ã€ŠThe Avalon Of Five Elementsã€‹


 Chapter 1: The Decision

    Chapter 1: The Decision

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    Crunching noises spilled out of Fatty¡¯s mouth as he gnawed on the malt candy. The day¡¯s austere chilliness was chased away in the dusky afterglow that spilled over the vastnd, the iing breeze as gentle as a feather. Ai Hui wondered if he would remember this day in the future.

    "Have you decided?" Fatty asked doubtfully.

    "I have decided," Ai Hui replied. He had long made the decision, and there was no longer any hesitation.

    Fatty sighed with some envy. He thenmented, "You don¡¯t lose out to those wimpy kids. That would be a disgrace to me. I just can¡¯t understand what¡¯s so good about fighting and killing. Let¡¯s take this money, go back, and live happily for the rest of our lives. Do you know how many people enter the Wilderness? Two thousand! And only the two of us survived! This money is the price of our lives! If I die, my family can still get the money. If you die..."

    "That¡¯s why I¡¯m still alive," Ai Hui interrupted Fatty, who had stood up to speak with increasing agitation. Slowly, Fatty lost his distraught expression and calmed down.

    The opportunity to enter the Avalon of Five Elements did note easily. Initially, due to Ai Hui¡¯s inadequate natural abilities, he hadn¡¯t been qualified to enter. However, in thest three years, his performance had been exemry. His ability to maintainposure inplex and stressful situations and his disy of courage and determination at crucial moments left an indelible impression in everyone¡¯s minds.

    When he made the request to enter the Avalon of Five Elements, the authorities ultimately gave their approval after consideration.

    Out of the two thousandborers, only two survived. Even if it wasrgely due to luck, it also illustrated the multitude of existing problems.

    Fatty sat down, disappointed. He was too familiar with Ai Hui¡¯s stubbornness. Soon after, however, he came to a realization and perked up once more to sincerely say, "Remember to write my name on thepensation payment form. Why benefit others when you can benefit me?"

    Ai Hui did not bother to care about him. He casually pulled a straw of grass from the ground, put it in his mouth, and pillowed his head with his hands as he stretched out, content on the ground. For the past three years in the Wilderness, his mental state had been stretched to the limit every day. Blood, death, fighting, and killing. It was an ice-cold world where darkness and scarlet melded together.

    He didn¡¯t know how he had endured those three years, and he did not want to remember it either. After all, there were no happy memories.

    The afterglow from the setting sun shone on his body. Feeling warm and snug, Ai Hui¡¯s eyebrows naturally unfolded while his steely face gradually rxed into a state of tranquility.

    It was sofortable!

    As Ai Hui¡¯s sun-warmed body loosened up, his mental state followed suit, as though a restrictive fog had been lifted from his mind to dissipate silently into thin air.

    The warm sunlight and the slightly invigorating breeze contained an uncanny quality that stirred up strange yet familiar memories from deep within his mind. The three years... no, not the ones he spent in the Wilderness. The three years before that, the sunlight and breeze in the swordsman school had felt just like this.

    .....

    In those days, before the sun had even risen, he would have gulped in a breath of cold air, ready to start cleaning the school that had been remodeled from a worn-out warehouse. After three runs of wiping down the entire floor, his body would be warmed up, ready to start in on constructing wooden shelves. Each nk had been collected from the nearby streets and were of different sizes and thickness. As such, one could notin much about how it looked put together.

    After constructing the wooden shelves, he began to arrange the swordy manuals the owner had obtained recently.

    One yuan could buy ten kilograms of manuals on the market. Paperbacks were cheap¡ªbut still more valuable than bamboo strips¡ªwhile the ones that were bound with iron and had gold covers were a bit more expensive. Though there was a lot of work to be done, there was no one to rush him. In fact, Ai Hui had never been hurried along. He was able to leisurely flip through and peruse the manuals.

    asionally, he fantasized about how well-off he would be if he were to live in the Cultivation Era. He would have sold swordy manuals until his hands went soft.

    After arranging the swordy manuals, he started organizing the various flying swords and treasure swords.

    At this point, the sun would have risen. Just like now, it would be warm and cozy. The corners of Ai Hui¡¯s mouth involuntarily quirked into a slight smile.

    Even though the flying daggers and treasured swords had lost their Spiritual Force and were just a bunch of unlit scrap metals, under the sunlight, the beauty of their antiquity would often captivate Ai Hui.

    Flying swords represented the apex of the Cultivation World. For generations, the flying swords had been the favourite weapon of master cksmiths. There were all kinds of oddities, and they existed in various shapes and sizes, there were all kinds of oddities. Some of the shapes were so weird that people could not even associate them with flying swords.

    He did not dare to touch those that had rusted too much. If they broke, the owner would scold him again.

    There was no sry for him, but all his meals were provided. To someone who had led the life of a miserable vagabond for thest ten years like him, this deal was as beautiful as the sunlight right now. He could not any better words to describe it.

    The owner was a good man. It was just that his way of handling business was not as good.

    Would a sessful businessman run a swordsman school?

    Ai Hui had stayed at the school for three years. During this period of time, less than ten people had visited the school. Upon seeing the signboard that hung over the entrance of the school, ny percent of the visitors turned their heads and left.

    In this day and age, were there even any Swordsmen left?

    Other than countless swordy manuals, treasured swords and flying swords, the swordsman school practically had nothing else. The owner had travelled to various marketces that sold rubbish just to obtain these things. Even when he travelled to foreign ces to do business, he would buy back a batch of such things.

    His zeal for Swordsmanship was obviously irrational. The transport fees alone was much more expensive than what they actually costed.

    Naturally, there were times when Ai Hui felt that the owner¡¯s pathetic financial power might only allow him to adopt a cheap hobby like Swordsmanship.

    Ai Hui had tried to persuade the owner to switch to bodybuilding, and such. These concepts would at least had more prospects than Swordsmanship. The owner flew into a rage and berated him. At that point of time, Ai Hui realised that the owner¡¯s business management skills were truly appalling.

    Guarding apletely empty school, Ai Hui felt that he might as well read and yed around with the swordy manuals. Eventually, he did not be a Sword practitioner, but to his perseverance in training, his fighting capabilities improved a lot. His fighting capabilities did attract a few wimpy kids.

    Due to the owner¡¯s incapacity,his business failed and he could not pay back his debts. Eventually, hemitted suicide. Ai Hui was saddened by this incident. The owner was a good man, but not a determined one. It was only right for one to pay back his or her debt. The school should be passed on to other people. These were what Ai Hui told himself on thest day when the debt collectors came to confiscate the school.

    The crude wooden shelves that he made were thrashed to the ground. The swordy manuals were scattered across the floor. Some of these manuals, the owner had retrieved from distant cities. The sword rack that he had wiped and cleaned every day were stomped to pieces by the debt collectors. ording to the owner, that rack used to reside in the abode of a sword expert. The flying sword on it had been used to shed the blood of thousands and intimidate the mighty heroes of the past. The Nine Tone Sword Chime that hung under the eaves was also smashed and fragmented. It, too, had its own lofty history as a noteworthy, prized possession of the Nine Tone Sword Sect in the past. When Ai Hui witnessed these acts, like a terribly wounded wolf that had been pushed to the brink, he lost control and frantically lunged forward.

    It was just a struggle, yes, and thest struggle he could make.

    Ai Hui did not know the owner¡¯s name. So he found a wooden b, carved the word "Owner" onto it and used it as the memorial tablet. He used twigs as joss sticks, and burned all the swordy manuals for the owner. After kowtowing to the tablet, he prayed that the owner would be able to pursue his dream of bing a swordsman in the afterlife.

    Covered in injuries, he fixed his gaze on the building that was now in shambles for a long time before turning his back and leaving. He walked through the streets of mottled light and shadow, the sunlight filtering past the uneven roofs of houses lining the pavement. His legs strode forward mechanically as he continued onward in a trance-like state without a goal or destination.

    Even after a year, the feelings of helplessness and loneliness remained fresh in his mind. He remembered that he felt somewhat cold, his fingers clutching tightly to his shirt that had been washed until it had been bleached of color. Both his hands were plunged deeply into his pockets. The sunshine on that day had been different from today¡¯s. The chill had pierced into his very marrow. After walking for an unknown period of time, he finally awoke from his stupor to the feeling of extreme hunger. At that moment, the cold and hungry Ai Hui saw the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ recruitment notice forborers in the Wilderness.

    Having nowhere else to go, Ai Hui went in.

    And luckily, he survived.

    .....

    As Ai Hui withdrew from his emotions, he discovered that his body had tensed up involuntarily. He could not help butugh bitterly in his heart. Such a beautiful moment was once again spoiled by his unpleasant memories.

    He heaved a deep breath of air and tried his best to uncoil his tensed muscles.

    By good fortune, he survived the entire three years in the Wilderness. Only two people out of two thousand men survived. One was himself, and the other Qian Dai, also known as Fatty.

    The families of those deadborers would receive apensation fee, while those who survived were able to receive arge sum of money. In regards to this, the Avalon of Five Elements was never stingy. Fatty prepared to go home. His family was filled with orphans and widowed mothers, and he had to provide for them. The burdens that he carried far exceeded Ai Hui¡¯s.

    "Fine, I know you¡¯re a determined person and will never change your mind. You have a bad temper, along with many other issues like seldom listening to other people¡¯s advice. You¡¯re not young anymore, and you still behave like this. How are you going to find a wife in the future? Try not to spend too much of your money..." Fatty continued to talk incessantly, perhaps because he knew they were going split ways soon.

    Since he was used to Fatty¡¯s irritated grumblings, Ai Hui didn¡¯t care. However, the moment Fatty mentioned the word money, he felt a slight headache. Whenever this fellow talked about money, he would rise into a frenzy.

    Indeed, the veins on Fatty¡¯s neck began to pulsate. Ai Hui made a prompt decision and quickly threw a pouch at him and said, "This is for you!" Fatty cast a puzzled nce at Ai Hui and caught the pouch with a speed that didn¡¯t seem in character with his body size. After he caught the pouch though, his small, beady eyes immediately widened.

    Using chubby, carrot-like fingers, he whisked open the pouch in an instant. As he nced inside at the pouch contents, his body fat began to tremble madly with agitation. Ai Hui ignored him and turned his face the other way. Fatty¡¯s face when he saw money was horrendous.

    Fatty rushed over and grasped Ai Hui¡¯s arms with a sharp smack. His face was filled to the brim with emotions while tears welled up in his eyes.

    Upon seeing Fatty¡¯s behavior, Ai Hui felt emotional as well. Perhaps he had thought too poorly of him. After both of them had been through so much together, this friendship was rather sincere and deep. Unused to such situations, he wanted to tell Fatty to get lost, but at the thought of their impending farewell, he tried his best to restrain himself and soften his tone. He then shakily said, "I¡¯m alone anyway. There isn¡¯t much for me to spend the money on. You¡¯re going back to the Old Territory, and you have a huge family. You definitely need more money than I do...."

    "Good brother! You¡¯re really my good brother!" Fatty choked with emotions as he shook Az Hui¡¯s hand desperately. With both his eyes glistening with tears, he then continued, "The Avalon of Five Elements takes care of your lodging and meals. Since you won¡¯t be needing the remaining half of the money, how about you give them to me as well?"

    He was naive to think too highly of this fellow. Ai Hui¡¯s arms, which were grasped by the Fatty, flipped over, gripped thetter and lightly but forcefully pushed. Like a portly cloud, the Fatty flew out for more than thirty meters before crashing to the ground, causing the surrounding wheat and barley to fly everywhere.

    "Get lost!"

    It felt good to be able to finally speak his mind.

    Ai Hui brushed his hands lightly, and then cautiously felt for the pouch in his pocket. Fatty had extremely nimble hands, making them difficult to guard against.

    Meanwhile, Fatty picked himself up, covered in dirt.

    At that moment, a whistle sounded from the distant assembly camp, and the two became silent.

    It was finally time for them to part. This would be thest time they met. Ai Hui had to head for the Avalon of Five Elements, while Fatty had to return to the Old Territory. The rapid descent of the orange sunset elongated their shadows on the ground.

    "Ai Hui, you must survive!"

    "Okay."

 Chapter 2: The Arrival

    Chapter 2: The Arrival

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    Ai Hui carried a threadbare backpack and stood in the crowd with a gloomy face. He was feeling thoroughly terrible. Just now, when he opened his pouch, he¡¯d found all his money gone, reced by a heap of stones.

    That wretched Fatty still stole from him at the end of the day!

    He swore that once he returned to the Old Territory and saw this fellow, he would beat the hell out of him.

    Shaking himself out of his daze, he exhaled deeply. He prayed that the Avalon of Five Elements would really provide him with lodging and food like Fatty had said. Otherwise, when they met, he would... beat him up with more force.

    For now, he put the issue of the stolen money aside and focused on what was happening before him.

    It was still too early for the reporting time, but the Induction Ground¡¯s entrance was already surrounded by students excitedly greeting each other. In groups of three or four, they held animated discussions and asked questions without holding back.

    After staying in the Wilderness for so long, Ai Hui was not used to the bustling scene before his eyes. He was more ustomed to the silence, killings, and dangers that had been his life for three years. Back then, his instincts would have gone on high alert at anything within five meters of him.

    However, within his range right now... there were fourteen people.

    He fidgeted restlessly, but it was pointless. He could only try his best to restrain the urge to escape or kill these fourteen people on impulse. In the Wilderness, an approaching unknown creature would immediately activate the fight-or-flight response in him.

    Fine, it was the ¡°Wilderness¡± again...

    He had already sensed his ipatibility with his surroundings even before entering the Induction Ground. Taking in a deep breath of air, he forcefully calmed his palpitating heart. He knew that this was a mental barrier that he had to ovee.

    After a while, he summoned the courage to force his way through the crowd, heading towards the Induction Ground¡¯s entrance.

    Squeezing through the crowd that pushed against him like torrential currents, Ai Hui was drenched in sweat, his clothes disheveled. Panting hard, he felt that this fifty-meter trek was somehow more tiring than walking for fifty kilometers.

    Upon reaching the entrance, Ai Hui raised his head and gazed up at the towering gate.

    From a visual estimate, the Induction Ground¡¯s entrance gate was approximately sixty meters tall, giving it an imposing atmosphere The gate itself was poorly assembled; however, it was made up of pieces of irregr iron panels put together. Its appearance was akin to that of arge, patchy rag that was speckled with rust and riddled with scratches everywhere.

    In front of the metal gate was a half-meter-wide stone b with a perfectly straight groove shed across its surface. Years of corrosion had smoothed its corners, and a few droplets of water collected along the edges.

    Ai Hui stared silently at the gouged b of stone.

    Everyone in the Avalon of Five Elements knew the story behind it. Even he knew about it since it was rted to swordsmen.

    It was known as the ¡°ultimate defensive line.¡±

    During the dark ages when the Wilderness invaded, this groove that was one meter in width and two hundred meters in length became the final defensive line in a battle to the death.

    Thest famous swordsman in history sacrificed his life to carry out the most dazzling sword strike to kill the enemy leader, carving out the ultimate defensive line.

    Inspired by his bravery, the human race tenaciously defended against the invasion and persevered until the opening of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    They dragged the scrap metal collected from the battlefield to assemble the towering metal gate that stood today, riddled with scars . Eventually, the Induction Ground was built upon this ce by the pioneers who wished for the future generations to remember that dark era and to never forget the purpose behind establishing the Avalon of Five Elements.

    The sufferings of the individuals would fade through the passage of time, but the memories and legends would pass on from generation to generation.

    The history behind the Induction Grounds surely made it a ce of utmost importance to the Avalon of Five Elements.

    The only reason Ai Hui knew about the ultimate defensive line was because of the swordy manuals that he had arranged back in the swordsman school.

    ¡£

    Almost all of them that mentioned it praised the strike to the greatest extent, saying that it saved humanity, beginning the chapter of a new era and so on. For those who cherished the legacy of Swordsmen, that strike marked the ultimate end of the Cultivation Era and the beginning of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    These facts had nothing to do with Ai Hui, however. Even if his job was to arrange numerous swordy manuals, he¡¯d never thought to revive swordsmanship.

    That was where the owner was foolish. Because of it, his business failed, he owed a huge debt, and he lost his life. Ai Hui felt pretty good to witness the historical remnant that he had read about in numerous swordy manuals, but it was tinged with sadness when he thought about the owner.

    Soon, however, he regained his usual calm. After enduring three years in the Wilderness, he was used to life-and-death situations. He was not as sad as he used to be over such matters. As long as those who were alive did their best to stay alive, those who were dead would be able to rest in peace.

    Done admiring the monument, he quickly escaped from the crowd and withdrew to the outskirts. His heart rate returned to normal, and he heaved a sigh of relief.

    Suddenly, at the corner of his eyes, he caught sight of a familiar figure. Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression swiftly sank. Withrge strides, he lifted his leg and kicked it with lightning precision.

    Bang!

    The plump figure flew across the air and plummeted heavily to the ground.

    Before Fatty could get up, a foot was nted onto his face. ¡°Hand the money over,¡± Ai Hui growled.

    ¡°It¡¯s all gone!¡± Fatty replied without even blinking his eyes.

    ¡°Whose money is gone?¡± The threat in Ai Hui¡¯s tone grew heavier as he pushed down with more strength.

    ¡°It¡¯s all gone.¡± Fatty said quickly, ¡°I¡¯ve already sent the money home.¡±

    ¡°My money.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s tone remainedposed, but even the most insensitive person could sense the anger surging beneath the facade of tranquility like scorchingva.

    ¡°I used it to buy a spot for this ce,¡± Fatty said with swag, before continuing, ¡°I had no other choice. The application date has long passed, and only money could buy me a spot here. I actually pulled a lot of strings, and your money happened to be just the right amount. You better treat me well. Haven¡¯t you heard that debtors are always the bosses? If I die, you won¡¯t get your money back...¡±

    Fatty continued to babble from under his foot. Suddenly, the anger disappeared and with nk face, he stomped his foot ferociously onto Fatty.

    The surrounding people withdrew their gazes from this scene in disgust. Fatty¡¯s body was riddled with dirt and mud. Compared to him, Ai Hui¡¯s clothes were presentably clean, but they were obviously washed till the point of losing all color. The backpack that he carried was washed out as well, appearing extremely shabby.

    With a face entirely covered with muddy footprints, Fatty helped himself up without the slightest sign of guilt or embarrassment.

    Moving away from the crowd, they sat down. Fatty produced a malt candy from out of nowhere and popped it into his mouth with a crunch. He kept looking around, curiously sizing up his surroundings.

    ¡°Howe you¡¯re not excited at all?¡± Fatty cast a puzzled look at Ai Hui and continued, ¡°Hey, it¡¯s the Induction Ground! Now that we¡¯re here, we¡¯re no longerborers! Give it another five years, and we can bring our entire families to the Avalon of Five Elements. This is where we can make a huge difference in our lives. Do you know how many people from the Old Territory would kill to be here?¡±

    Ai Hui was toozy to reply. He then pulled a strand of grass from a nearby pile of weeds and chewed on it. He asked, ¡°You¡¯re of which element?¡±

    ¡°Fire element!¡± Fatty eximed as he squinted his beady eyes. ¡°I had no idea that my physique would be that good...¡±

    All of a sudden, Fatty stopped talking as he realized he had divulged certain information.

    Ai Hui swiveled his head and asked with a doubtful look on his face, ¡°Your physique is good?¡±

    The Avalon of Five Elements ruled the Induction Ground with a firm hand. The people living within the Avalon of Five Elements, regardless of their gender or social status, were required at a certain age to enter the Induction Ground to study. As for the people from the Old Territory, as long as they passed the physical test, they would be able to enter as well.

    Unflustered, Fatty replied, ¡°Yeah, just a bit more, and I would have passed. My innate capability is way better than yours. Otherwise, even if I wanted to buy my way in, it would¡¯ve been impossible. With how strict the Induction Ground regtions are, it wouldn¡¯t be easy to enter just with connections.¡±

    No matter what, he could never let Ai Hui catch on to the fact that he obtained a spot through passing the physical test. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t be able to exin the missing money. Fatty reminded himself of this fact repeatedly, remaining calm so as to not reveal anything.

    ¡°Oh,¡± Ai Hui replied and withdrew his gaze. His physique was average and far from the basic requirement.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pity that we have different elements,¡± Fatty said regretfully. His physique was of the fire element while Ai Hui¡¯s physique was metal. This meant that they would be separated into different teams.

    Ai Hui agreed with Fatty. They worked well together, especially with the deep level of trust they¡¯d developed. He could also take care of Fatty if they were on the same team.

    As if he knew what Ai Hui was thinking, Fatty reassured him. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, no matter what, I¡¯m still a veteran who roamed the Wilderness before. How can I be bullied by those wimpy kids?¡±

    At that moment, a scarlet cloud flew over from the distant skies andnded slowly on the ground, triggering a wave ofmotion. Dismounting from the cloud was a well-dressed, handsome young man, causing many youngdies to cry out in admiration.

    ¡°That¡¯s extremely expensive!¡± Fatty¡¯s gaze was captivated by the cloud in an instant. Envious, he continued, ¡°The quality of this Fiery Floating Cloud is excellent! Its color is a bright scarlet. No signs of impurity. Look, doesn¡¯t the shape of the cloud look like a burning me? Well well, this Fiery Floating Cloud is of the highest quality. Thisd must havee from a very powerful family. I have to find a chance to toady up to him!¡±

    Upon biting the grass straw to nothing but dregs, Ai Hui suddenly missed the times in the Wilderness. At least there, the Ironback Canes could be found. Not only was it sweet, it alsosted longer. Even after gnawing on it for half a day, it would still be chewy. He shot a nce at the Fiery Floating Cloud and then withdrew his gaze. Not only was it eye-catching, it was slow as well, making it the perfect prey in the Wilderness.

    This Fiery Floating Cloud was like a signal. After it appeared, various kinds of strange flying objects flew in from all directions andnded on the za before the Induction Ground.

    Fatty became feverish with excitement as if he had taken some drugs. A string of words that Ai Hui had never heard of started to shoot out from Fatty¡¯s mouth. His eyes were very sharp. Not only could he identify those flying objects, he could also name their prices.

    While listening to Fatty¡¯s gibberish, Ai Hui¡¯s bored gaze scanned the crowd. In the Wilderness, it was rare to see such young and tender faces. Everyone there was like a beast¡ªfierce, agile, and dangerous.

    Meanwhile, the youths here had delicate faces that radiated sunshine and vitality. Their excited looks were filled with hope for the future. The guys were proactively chatting andughing alongside the girls, disying elegance and humor in an attempt to attract their attention. The girls shyly blushed, resembling vermillion clouds dyed red by the morning sun. The corners of their lips disyed hints ofughter, as beautiful as blossoming flowers.

    The sweet taste of the grass straw diffused throughout Ai Hui¡¯s mouth. He felt distracted, yet a little envious at the same time.

    A yearning look shed across his eyes, then disappeared. His face returned to normal, indifferent and calm. When he thought about the owner of the swordsman school, the three years he spent in the Wilderness, and theborers that had been reduced to nothing but a pile of bleached-white skeletons, he felt that he was very fortunate.

    Being alive was far more important than anything else. Being alive was the greatest fortune.

    At this moment, Fatty¡¯s non-stop gibberish became much more pleasing to his ears.

    The towering gate began to open slowly. Ai Hui stood up and brushed off the dirt on his body, his face steeled with determination. He knew that whaty beyond the door was a brand-new path¡ªa path that he could not have imagined.

    He did not know where it would lead to.

    Just as he entered the Wilderness three years ago, he took a step forward, speaking to Fatty without turning his head, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

 Chapter 3: Anger

    Chapter 3: Anger

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    ¡°My name is Ai Hui, and I¡¯m sixteen years old. I¡¯m pleased to be with all of you in the same ss. Please take good care of me.¡± Ai Hui tried his best to keep his tone gentle andposed as he stood on the podium. He had to keep reminding himself that this was not the Wilderness.

    His vantage point allowed him a panoramic view of his surroundings, and he found no hidden dangers. After introducing himself, Ai Hui descended the podium steps in an uncultured fashion.

    Some of the students were surprised at Ai Hui¡¯s age and broke out into lively discussions.

    ¡°He¡¯s old, and he¡¯s still able to enter the Induction Ground? He¡¯s even got such a weird name.¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s probably from the Old Territory...¡±

    Seeing themotion, Teacher Xu, who was standing off to one side, gave a gentle cough and said, ¡°For those studentsing up next, try not to give a brief description of yourself and talk more about your backgrounds. This way, your ssmates will have a better understanding of you.¡±

    Upon returning to his seat, Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief. Compared to being in a battle, the current situation left him far more bewildered.

    Aware of his disordered breathing, he inhaled, and then exhaled deeply. Gradually, the nervousness disappeared, and his body was restored to its peak form once again.

    To the others, Ai Hui appeared oddly quiet. No one realized that the peaceful and withdrawn guy that sat in the corner of the ssroom was actually a dormant beast that could erupt at any time with terrifying strength.

    The three years he spent in the Wilderness had left him with too many scars.

    For example, his choice in seating.

    He specifically chose a spot that was beside the window. From there, he¡¯d be able to see outside, making it easier for him to defend against any iing attacks. Or if the attacks came from within the schoolpound, he could immediately escape by jumping out the window.

    It dictated how he observed his surroundings. At any moment in time, he was secretly monitoring the area around him¡ªthe teacher on the podium, the students around him, the structure of the schoolpound, and the cement of tables and chairs. Too often, these minor details were the key factors in deciding one¡¯s fate¡ªto live or to die. One could neverin about an overabundance of information.

    He didn¡¯t consciously make these decisions. Everything came naturally to him.

    He had around two hundred ssmates, and most of them were quite young. This was evident from the naive and tender looks on their faces. There were a few fellows that dressed elegantly and appeared haughty, clearlying from influential families. Ai Hui recognized one of them as the same noble who came flying in on the high-quality Fiery Floating Cloud.

    His name was apparently Duanmu Huanghun, somewhat prideful and rather strong. Ai Hui took mental note of him.

    This guy had been appointed as the ss monitor. What is a ss monitor, he wondered. A team leader? It was never a good idea to let an arrogant guy be the team leader. The experienced Ai Hui made silent observations from the side.

    However, this had nothing to do with him.

    It was only a pity that he and Fatty weren¡¯t assigned to the same ss.

    At this thought, he felt some regret.

    But in the next moment, Teacher Xu said something that crushed this feeling and reced it with overflowing fury and endless killing intent.

    ¡°Next, I will announce the fees that are charged by the Induction Ground and the school. Everyone can feel that the concentration of elemental energy in the city is much stronger, right? Training in such an environment will save effort and ensure better results.

    ¡°The standard rent for a single room is fifty thousand yuan per year. As another option, we also provide a more luxurious dormitory that has an elemental energy concentration nine times higher than the outside world¡¯s. This upgraded room costs seventy thousand yuan per year, and the students who can afford it are free to apply. Now, let¡¯s talk about the food. The food sold within the grounds are rather cheap. Daily meals cost two hundred yuan per day, and this includes the breakfast...¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s cheeks twitched indiscernibly. He didn¡¯t want to listen to any more. He tried his best to control his facial expression, but the rage within him was practically consuming him. Under the table, his clenched fists were riddled with pulsing veins.

    The Induction Ground provided room and board? Haha!

    Why didn¡¯t he kill that wretched Fatty at registration?

    The teacher continued to talk non-stop on the podium. His saliva flew across the air andnded on the ckboard, seemingly forming a glittering word¡ªmoney.

    Even after half an hour, this fellow was still talking about the fees! Ai Hui had the sudden urge to charge forward and kill Master Xu who now seemed like an aggressive, life-threatening beast. No, Master Xu was also a beast that had a deep blood feud with him!

    Ai Hui squinted as the look in his eyes turned ice-cold. Haha, he had killed so many beasts like the one in front of him right now.

    An hour passed...

    By now, Ai Hui¡¯s anger hadpletely disappeared, his ice-cold gaze reced by a lifeless one. He was resigned to his fate, and it would be a bitter death.

    He was even tempted to escape back to the Wilderness.

    The dangerous beasts with their blood-stained ivory fangs in the somber Wilderness now appeared gentle and cute.

    Instead, shouldn¡¯t that be the true appearance of the Induction Ground? This ce was actually a hundred times more dangerous than the Wilderness!

    When Teacher Xu was perfectly satisfied, he finally stopped. ¡°Those students that came from the Old Territory should have received a sum of money after passing the aptitude test, correct? This is to be used for your daily allowance and study purposes.¡±

    He did not pass the aptitude test...

    Ai Hui looked insipidly at the teacher.

    ¡°Of course, that money is only enough for your basic necessities. If you wish to obtain more resources and opportunities, you¡¯ll have to work harder. There are a total of seventy-six cities in the Induction Ground that provide plenty of job opportunities and daily missions for you to earn reasonable remuneration. I have to remind everyone, however, that your main objective ining to the Induction Ground was to learn and train, not make money. Don¡¯t waste too much time on earning money and dy your training¡ªthe gains will not make up for your losses.¡±

    Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief. Luckily, there was a way out of this predicament. Like a deer that had barely escaped from the tiger¡¯s ws, the joy from his new lease on life formed a sheen of cold sweat across his forehead.

    Ai Hui dabbed at his forehead and revised the risk level of the Induction Ground in his mind!

    Teacher Xu began to distribute thick stacks containing detailed information: a timetable, a map of the local area, a job list, a mission list, locations of all avable lodgings and restaurants, and routes to various cities.

    ¡°Everyone has three days to settle their room and board. After that, we will begin lessons. Note that Introduction to Elemental Energy is not within our sybus. For those who have never attended this course before, you can self-study at the library or attend Teacher Dong¡¯s introductory ss. ss dismissed.¡±

    Ai Hui searched for Teacher Dong¡¯s introductory ss on the timetable and circled it. This was a ss he definitely needed to attend.

    However, the most crucial problem that he had to settle right now was the issue of money. He was penniless and didn¡¯t even have money for lunch.

    He sat perfectly upright and used his sharp vision to quickly scan through the hefty information in his hands. The first thing he looked for was the phrase ¡°All meals provided.¡± Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that many ces had it. Then, he began to use his fingertip to follow the listings one by one until suddenly, his fair and slender finger stopped in its tracks.

    The sharpness and intensity of his gaze disappeared, bing reserved and puzzled as he became somewhat lost in his own thoughts.

    Chewing a grass straw in his mouth, Ai Hui carried his shabby backpack in one hand and a map in the other and walked out of the schoolpound. Unfamiliar streets and shops passed before his eyes. Various objects he had never seen before whizzed past his body and over his head, and the people around him discussed topics that he knew nothing about.

    Ai Hui realized that he¡¯d been calmly observing the unfamiliar environment around him.

    After spending three years in the Wilderness, his strength still couldn¡¯t be considered powerful, but his mental strength had grown much stronger. Though it wouldn¡¯t be easy, he had the courage to live alone and take on the uncertainties of this world and .

    This was probably what growing up was all about, and to mature faster than others was not necessarily bad.

    Heughed to himself. It seemed that after leaving the Wilderness, his temperament had be more unpredictable. Slinging the shabby backpack over his shoulder with the grass straw still dangling from his lips, he looked at the map and walked alongside his shadow under the sun towards his destination.

    Luckily, the ce wasn¡¯t hard to find since the Commission Center building was eye-catching and located at the center of the city.

    ¡°Are you seriously going to ept thismission?¡± The old man in charge of allocatingmissions warned Ai Hui, ¡°The area is quite big, and the daily cleaning workload is rather tough. Honestly speaking, I hadn¡¯t expected anyone to take on thismission. The owner of this training hall hasn¡¯t returned for the past twenty years. Before he left, he deposited a sum of money into our ount, and since it hasn¡¯t run out, we¡¯ve been releasing the samemission every year. However, you must know that the remuneration for thismission follows the standard from twenty years ago. People stopped taking thismission for ten years now. I have to remind you that the pay will be very small, barely paying for your meals. Are you sure you still want to ept thismission?¡±

    Ai Hui answered with a question of his own, ¡°Can I have a partial advance payment?¡±

    The old man realized Ai Hui¡¯s financial problem and nodded. ¡°You can. And remember, once you take up thismission, you can¡¯t quit before you leave the Induction Ground. Do you want to reconsider your decision?¡±

    Ai Hui bluntly replied, ¡°I ept it.¡±

    ¡°Very well.¡± The old man quickly handled the formalities for him. ¡°That ce is very spacious. You can stay there and save your lodging fees. The advance payment has been sent to your card. Here¡¯s the key, and the address is on it. Finally, wee to the Induction Ground.¡±

    ¡°Thank you!¡± Ai Hui thanked the old man from his heart and gave a sincere bow.

    ¡°Such a polite kid.¡± The old man revealed a smile. ¡°Continue to work hard. Strength is everything.¡±

    Ai Hui did not know how to react to the old man¡¯s kind gesture, but he tried his best to return the smile. ¡°I will.¡±

    As the saying went, the heart would never panic with money in hand. Ai Hui¡¯s mood had lifted, and the world seemed more beautiful to him now.

    He was amused by the various, bizarre scenes on the street. Ai Hui felt like a tourist, taking an interest in everything around him.

    An enormous Three Leaves Bamboo Cart flew over his head, making him stop in his tracks to look up.

    A spacious bamboo cage was suspended under the hovering Three Leaves Bamboo Cart. Inside it were a few rows of bamboo chairs filled with passengers. At the head of the bamboo cart, there was a rainbow-colored cage. The vines atop the cage emitted a multi-colored glow and formed the words ¡°Green Mountain City¡±, making them clearly visible from afar.

    Ai Hui had seen a Three Leaves Bamboo Cart in the Wilderness before, but that model had been much uglierpared to this one. The bamboo cage on it had overgrown, colorful poison spikes, resembling a monster. Although its main purpose was to transport goods, the amount that it could carry was not a lot. With the wandering ferocious beasts and their terrifying offensive power, operating the cart was a dangerous job in the Wilderness.

    Wood elementalists had little passion forbat, preferring to stay behind the front lines.

    However, when Ai Hui saw the Three Leaves Bamboo Carts everywhere, he could feel the flourishing prosperity of the Induction Ground. Even the elementalists he held in high regard could be found all over.

    As the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart flew towards the horizon, he withdrew his gaze and continued walking forward.

    Within a short time, he finally found the alley where the training hall was located at. ording to the map, it was closer to the end.

    The deeper he walked in, the more he felt as though he had entered into an entirely different world. The deste, ancient air suddenly engulfed him as he observed the surrounding old-fashioned houses that had clearly been there for many years.

    Abruptly, Ai Hui stopped in his tracks.

 Chapter 4: Sand Puppet Lou Lan

    Chapter 4: Sand Puppet Lou Lan

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    Not far from him, in the middle of the alleyway, a figure struggled in what seemed to be a pool of yellow quicksand.

    Ai Hui increased his vignce. The first thought that came to his mind was earth elementalists.

    They had many unique killing moves that were difficult to guard against. When there didn¡¯t seem to be any changes to the situation, Ai Hui took a closer look and discovered something strange about the figure¡ªonly the top-half of its body was visible.

    Its skin was slightly yellowish with a coarse, gritty texture, and on its face, it wore a ck mask that seemed to be made of some kind of dense rock. Ai Hui opened his mouth and blurted out, ¡°Sand puppet?¡±

    The figure stopped struggling and cast a nce at Ai Hui before replying, ¡°Yes, you can call me Lou Lan.¡±

    It was a male voice, deep and hoarse.

    Sand puppets were a favorite of earth elementalists. They were easy to make and repair, would undertake any tasks withoutints, and were very suitable for manualbor. This one happened to be made of the high-quality heavy sand produced by the Yellow Sand Manufacturer in the Avalon of Five Elements. It was easy to recognize the sand puppet based on itsposition, but also, he had seen plenty of them in the Wilderness.

    ¡°It appears that you¡¯ve encountered some troubles.¡± Ai Hui walked to the front of Lou Lan and squatted. ¡°Is it your sand core?¡±

    If a sand puppet malfunctioned, it was most likely because of the sand core. It was the most importantponent of their bodies, crafted by earth elementalists using heavy sand. Each core was unique, however, since earth elementalists each had their own crafting methods.

    The sand core was pivotal in the formation of its body since they were entirely made of individual particles. Hence, if the core broke down, the sand puppet would be reduced to a pool of yellow sand.

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s a chronic problem.¡± Lou Lan sounded somewhat helpless. ¡°Can you help me? My master is Master Shao. He lives in the second building from the end of the alleyway. Could you deliver a message to him?¡±

    ¡°The second building from the end of the alleyway?¡± Ai Hui raised his eyebrows. ¡°Seems like we¡¯re going to be neighbors for some time.¡±

    Seeing Lou Lan¡¯s rather high intelligence, Ai Hui assumed that a powerful earth elementalist lived next to him.

    Just as Ai Hui put his hand into the pool of yellow sand, he immediately felt the tug of strong earth elemental energy crushing him like a grinding millstone. His entire face shuddered as he covered his palm with metal elemental energy, making it into a razor-sharp dagger.

    ¡°Try to bear with it.¡±

    Just as Ai Hui finished his sentence, the metal elemental energy gathered in his hands suddenly exploded outward.

    Bang!

    A low, muffled explosion could be heard from within the pool of yellow sand as invisible shockwaves diffused across the area. Lou Lan¡¯s upper body froze in the pile of trembling sand.

    Two secondster, his eyes brightened. The dispersed yellow sand rapidly gathered around his body like a pile of metal dust attracted to a ma.

    In the blink of an eye, not a speck of sand could be seen on the floor. With a recovered body, Lou Lan started to move his body around. Amazed, he asked, ¡°Such a magical method, how did you do it?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s a simple method, ¡°Ai Hui corrected him. He picked up his shabby backpack and slung it over his shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s only for emergencies though. You still have to go back and examine your sand core again.¡±

    He wasn¡¯t lying; it really wasn¡¯t some ingenious method. Ai Hui had seen earth elementalists in the Wilderness use this method to treat problematic sand puppets every once in awhile. It didn¡¯t work every time, but it did at least eight times out of ten.

    Admittedly, however, this was Ai Hui¡¯s first time trying it himself. No sane earth elementalist would let aborer repair his or her sand puppet.

    Lou Lan naturally didn¡¯t know this. Instead, he felt that Ai Hui possessed the demeanor of a very capable individual.

    ¡°Thank you very much!¡± Lou Lan bowed and thanked him sincerely.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. My name¡¯s Ai Hui.¡± Ai Hui waved his hand, signalling Lou Lan to not fret over it and continued walking towards the alley¡¯s end. ¡°Let¡¯s go, we¡¯re heading in the same direction.¡±

    Lou Lan followed beside Ai Hui and asked, ¡°So where are you heading?¡±

    ¡°The Vanguard Training Hall. Is it located here?¡± Ai Hui asked casually.

    ¡°We are indeed neighbors.¡± Lou Lan¡¯s deep voice contained a tinge of excitement. ¡°We¡¯re right next door. Is this your house? It seems no one¡¯s been here in a long time.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s walking pace slowed down, but he acted natural as he replied, ¡°No, I¡¯ve taken on amission that requires me to clean up this ce.¡±

    Lou Lan oohed. ¡°So you¡¯re a new student?¡±

    ¡°You got it.¡± Ai Hui nodded. He could already sense that Lou Lan seldom left his house.

    A sand puppet¡¯s intelligence had the capacity to develop further. While Ai Hui was in the Wilderness, he had seenbat sand puppets behave cunningly and callously¡ªtruly killing machines.

    There was a saying, ¡°One can easily tell the character of an earth elementalist by looking at their sand puppet.¡± Judging by Lou Lan, he could tell that the master, Master Shao, was an unworldly earth elementalist that focused on trainings.

    ¡°We¡¯ve arrived. This is the Vanguard Training Hall.¡± Lou Lan pointed at an old-fashioned house at the end of the alleyway.

    ¡°To build a training hall in such a secluded area is really...¡± Ai Hui shook his head. The three years he had spent in the swordsman school made him sensitive towards issues regarding training halls. He came roughly knowing that it would be out of the way. However, now that he saw this ce with his own eyes, he realized that he had underestimated just how remote it would be.

    Was thendlord a depressed individual like the owner of the swordsman school?

    Possible. Didn¡¯t the old man say that thendlord hadn¡¯t contacted them for twenty years? Perhaps he¡¯d been hinting at thendlord¡¯s unknown fate.

    Whatever. Ai Hui didn¡¯t care too much. After all, he was doing this for the money. The training hall and the fate of thendlord had nothing to do with him.

    Clusters of spiderwebs covered the door, and the signboard over the door was stacked withyers of filth, rendering the inscribed words illegible. If he didn¡¯t know this ce was called the Vanguard Training Hall, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to recognize it.

    He took out the key, easily unlocking the door. It seemed he had found the right ce.

    As he pushed open the door, heavy stacks of dust fell down like snow.

    Ai Hui stood at the entrance and waited for the dust to settle before he stepped in.

    The courtyard was dpidated while the weeds had grown taller than an actual person. Most of the overgrown vegetation were sword reeds, appearing like a sea of des pointed at the sky. Ai Hui¡¯s eyes twitched at the scene. Thendlord must have had a weird taste to grow sword reeds in his own home.

    The nts were generally used to make grass swords, which was exactly what Ai Hui used as a weapon.

    However, when Ai Hui saw the overgrown courtyard, he began to feel the beginnings of a huge headache. Sword reeds were difficult to cut due to their extreme durability that far exceeded even steel¡¯s. That wasn¡¯t even the worst part. Sword reeds grew in thickets, so if someone identally fell into it, their body would be covered in cuts and bruises.

    Ai Hui shook his head andughed bitterly.

    Another upsetting matter was that these sword reeds were too thick and old. If they were at most five years old, he could use them to make grass swords, but these were useless to him.

    ¡°I can help you,¡± Lou Lan offered.

    Ai Hui shook his head. ¡± I can do it on my own. You should go back and check on your sand core. What I did just now was a stopgap measure. It won¡¯t solve the root of the problem.¡±

    ¡°Okay then.¡± Lou Lan tilted his head. ¡°You can wait for me to return tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°I can do it on my own. Since I¡¯ve taken the money, I should work on it myself,¡± Ai Hui replied as he opened up his shabby backpack. He did not have the habit of throwing his own tasks at other people to do.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll go back first then.¡± Without another word, Lou Lan¡¯s body dissolved into a pool of sand that disappeared into the ground.

    Although sword reeds were considered by many as a troublesome nt, Ai Hui knew that wasn¡¯t the case.

    After three years in the Wilderness, Ai Hui considered himself a fledgling botanologist. It was only a pity that he wasn¡¯t a wood elemental; otherwise, he felt he¡¯d have much better future prospects than with his current affinity for the metal element.

    His backpack was filled with an assortment of objects: animal bones, pelts, seeds, and colorful stones. These were the spoils of war and savings he¡¯d obtained during his three years in the Wilderness. Most of these he had collected himself, while some had been given to him by other elementalists as rewards or as handouts because they were considered useless by their previous owners.

    Ai Hui guarded them closely. No matter what, he never allowed himself to lose his backpack.

    From his satchel, he took out a small, red bottle containing a kind of fire poison called ming Timbre that he had personally concocted. Its toxicity was not strong enough to be used inbat, but it was an essential item that everyone carried in the Wilderness.

    There, the overgrown vegetation could blot out the sun, making many ces difficult to ess. To set up camp as well, the area had to be cleared away.

    Unfortunately, there were countless nt types in the Wilderness that were exceptionally resilient, even more so than sword reeds. Manpower alone could not get rid of them, and they were resistant to ordinary fire. Only a fire poison like ming Timbre could dispose of them.

    As Ai Hui unstoppered the bottle, a sulfuric smell immediately diffused through the air. He then poured theva-like ming Timbre onto the sword reeds.

    As soon as it touched the leaves, the lush green became an ash-gray color that rapidly spread throughout the entire thicket with a visible speed.

    Gradually, the sulfuric smell in the air dissipated, and after approximately five minutes, the sea of sword reeds had turnedpletely gray.

    Pfff!

    The sword reeds copsed like an avnche, leaving the entire area littered with nt ashes.

    Ai Hui skillfully buried the nt ashes into the ground. By doing so, he could effectively suppress any future weed growth since they avoided the smell of ming Timbre.

    Fast with his movements, in the blink of an eye, he had cleared the entire courtyard. Using a broom, he swept away the spiderwebs in the room corners then drew water from the well to wipe the floors clean. With several years¡¯ worth of dust built up, he had to do five to six runs to clean it all.

    In the corners of the house, there were stone grooves with old cbash gourds. After clearing away the dead leaves that had umted in the gourds, Ai Hui wrapped vines around the pirs and eaves before hanging the cbashes on them.

    The windows were opened to ventte the house.

    He hung the weather-beaten wooden signboard in the main hall, washed the bronze incense burner and stuck in them three joss sticks that he had found in a cupboard.

    After working hard for the entire day, the training hall became as clean as new.

    Nightfall arrived, and the cbashes that hung under the eaves emitted a gentle glow, giving the training hall an ambient lighting. The bluestone benches were clean and neat. A simple and rustic wooden house. Neatly-ced equipment. Spiralling incense that contained traces of sweetness.

    Like a dream hidden within the depths of his mind, the tranquil scene before him seemed to appear without any warning.

    He was caught off guard and somewhat startled by the captivating scene, unable to resist its charm.

    He was slightly startled.

 Chapter 5: Blind Battle

    Chapter 5: Blind Battle

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    It was surely true that the mind could not win over an empty stomach.

    When Ai Hui returned to his senses and realized that he had not eaten anything the entire day, an overwhelming rush of hunger engulfed him.

    Limbs weakened, he supported himself by holding on to the wall.

    An empty sack could not stand upright, this idiom made so much sense now.

    As he staggered out of the alleyway, he caught sight of a noodle house and almost crawled his way over.

    "Boss, one bowl of noodles!"

    "Okay!"

    After eating, Ai Hui regained his strength, but when he went to pay his bill, his eyes almost popped out of their sockets. "How... how much?"

    "One hundred and fifty yuan, thank you for patronizing my store," the boss replied.

    "One... one hundred and fifty yuan?" Ai Hui asked incredulously. He stared at the boss with a darkening expression and a murderous aura. Since childhood, he¡¯d never been one to be pushed around.

    "New student?" The boss furrowed his eyebrows. This was not the first time such an incident had happened here. He pointed helplessly at the wooden signboard in his shop. "The prices are listed here."

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes followed the boss¡¯s hand to the signboard, an unpleasant feeling rising like bile in his stomach.

    The boss was speaking the truth...

    Ai Hui reeled out of the noodle house with an ashen face. He finally knew why no one was willing to take up themission on the training hall. The monthly sry was only four thousand five hundred yuan. Barely enough to pay for his meals? Who taught mathematics to the old man at the Commission Center? Reveal yourself now!

    Thirty bowls of noodles!

    A bowl of noodles each day. When Ai Hui touched his stomach, which did not seem full even though he had just eaten, and thought about his future, his face turned pale. He stepped into the Induction Ground with lofty aspirations, thinking he could be a powerful elementalist and take control of his life. However, he did not expect himself to be defeated by a bowl of noodles sold in the Induction Ground.

    If he couldn¡¯t even fill his stomach, why bother talking about training?!

    The night breeze sent a bone-piercing chill down his spine, causing him to tremble non-stop.

    No, he had to think of a way to earn money!

    After five seconds of self-pitying, Ai Hui pulled himself together. Money was important not only to ensure a full stomach but also to benefit an elementalist¡¯s training. While he was in the Wilderness, he had followed elementalists around just to hunt dire beasts.

    A dire beast¡¯s skin, flesh, tendons, and bones were considered treasures.

    The bones and tendons could be made into weapons and the skins into armor. As for the dire beasts¡¯ blood, they were usually used to concoct elixirs, and the flesh was mainly used to make elemental food.

    The so-called elemental food was rich in elemental energy, which was highly beneficial to one¡¯s training.

    The current elemental energy system had been inherited from the extensively detailed cultivation system. It was impacted so deeply that it still retained certain cultivation aspects that could still be seen today.

    Ai Hui was no longer an ignorant teenager who thought that diligent training was all that was needed to be more powerful.

    The streetlights lit up, brilliantly illuminating the nighttime Central Pine City. New students wandered in groups, and the streets bustled with life. As newly-admitted students, they did not have any worries yet. The excitement from entering the Induction Ground continued to burn within them, making them brim with hope for the future.

    Perhaps theughter and joy surrounding him alleviated Ai Hui¡¯s worries.

    He wandered around with both hands plunged deeply into his pockets, leisurely walking alone through the myriad of beautiful lights. He somewhat enjoyed this moment filled with the bustling crowd, the churning mist under the light, and the wafting aroma of food. This was a special moment for him. Even though he was always unknowingly on high alert, his cautious mind had rxed a bit at the sight of the lively atmosphere and the innocence of the ordinary people.

    He roamed aimlessly around the streets when suddenly, a signboard caught his eyes.

    The signboard wrote, "Blind battle! If you canst for five minutes, you can take away fifty thousand yuan!"

    Fifty thousand yuan!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes promptly lit up, resembling a hungry wolf that had identified its prey. His hands that were previously in his pockets were now touching his stomach, subconsciously rubbing it.

    Not really full yet....

    How many bowls of noodles could fifty thousand yuan buy? It didn¡¯t seem worth it, but howe he felt hungry again?

    Withoutpleting his thought process, he lost control of his legs that had already walked through the entrance.

    The body was always honest with its needs...

    ....

    Shi n Training Hall.

    The door to the resting lounge opened, revealing a tall, elegant, and frostydy brimming with confidence. She wore a ck windbreaker and a hat that covered almost her entire face. The youngdy pulled off her overcoat and passed it to a middle-aged man behind her asking, "Blind battle? This concept is rather interesting. I like it!"

    "I¡¯m d that Young Mistress is pleased." The middle-aged man quickly bent his body and took the jacket from her. "We¡¯ve received word from the n to inform Young Mistress of the situation. There aren¡¯t many experts in Central Pine City. Most of them are new students. Therefore, we came up with a new concept like this, but we¡¯re not certain whether it will work or not."

    "You didn¡¯t announce my name, right?" The youngdy sat down and crossed her gorgeous, slender legs. She took the ss of fruit juice in front of her and sipped leisurely. Her long hair draped over her shoulders, wlessly framing an exquisite oval face and eyes that shone brightly like stars. Her facial expression exuded extreme confidence that was tinged with pride. Her features made her breathtakingly beautiful but also gave her an imposing aura. Even when calmly sitting on the sofa, she emitted a powerfully oppressive air.

    "No!" The middle-aged man quickly denied. " If we announced Miss Xueman¡¯s name, who would dare toe? Your reputation is truly intimidating. We nned the blind battle and prepared a mask without eyes holes to prevent anyone from recognizing you."

    "It appears that all of you have put in a lot of effort. Thanks for the trouble." Shi Xueman smiled with satisfaction. "Tell everyone that they¡¯ll be rewarded with a three-month bonus."

    As a beauty who received both attention and recognition in the Induction Ground, she would be watched wherever she went. However, she was a smart individual who knew when to stay low-key.

    Power was the absolute truth. This was what she had been taught from a young age.

    "Thank you very much, Young Mistress," the middle-aged man hurriedly said with an uncontroble burst of happiness showing in his eyes. A three-month bonus was a huge sum of money to them, and more importantly, they earned praise from Young Mistress. Getting in her good books would definitely be exceptionally beneficial to their futures.

    Shi Xueman continued her line of questioning. "How many people have signed up?"

    "As of this moment, twenty-three people." Just as the middle-aged man finished his sentence, he tilted his head and continued, "Twenty-four people. Someone has just signed up. We hoped to attract more people by not setting an entrance fee, but it¡¯s just that we had no time to advertise this event with the time we were given."

    "It¡¯s enough. It seems I can have a good workout tonight." Shi Xueman lightly stroked her eyebrows as she gave a thin smile. Suddenly, she withdrew her smile and asked, "How long before it starts?"

    "It begins at eight-thirty. There¡¯s still fifteen minutes left," the middle-aged man replied. He could not help but remind, "Young Mistress, you will have to hold back a bit. I believe many new students will show up. If you injure them, I¡¯m afraid it might bring about some troubles."

    "Don¡¯t worry." Shi Xueman slowly nodded her head. "I put on the Suppression Bracelet."

    The middle-aged man heaved a sigh of relief. He was most worried about Little Mistress injuring the new students. If she hurt the senior students, the Induction Ground would be lenient, but the Induction Ground paid more attention to the new students. With the Suppression Bracelet that limited the powers of an elementalist, he felt now that he must have over thought the matter.

    Given Young Mistress¡¯s genius and her harsh self-expectations, how was it possible for her toe all the way here to bully a new student?

    "You can leave now. I need to prepare," Shi Xueman said inly.

    "Yes!" The middle-aged man bowed and left the resting lounge.

    Shi Xueman withdrew her smile, donning a more serious expression. She came to Central Pine City only to apany her grandfather in visiting a friend, but she did not have any thoughts of cking off. Before she left, she had already notified her family¡¯s training hall branch in Central Pine City that she nned on training there. She just did not expect them to put in so much effort in setting up a blind battle.

    This was her first time fighting in one.

    By wearing the Suppression Bracelet, her strength didn¡¯t differ much from the new students¡¯, testing her techniques even more. She was unsure how much of her actual capabilities would be exhibited in this battle.

    However, she never shied away from unknown challenges. Instead, the uncertainty aroused her fighting spirit and even made her eager for it toe.

    It had been a while since she had felt such excitement. She began to adjust herbat attire, tying up her long, draping hair with a red ribbon, revealing her beautiful, snow-white neck. Her unhurried movements and solemn expression gave the impression of vignce.

    Upon wearing the mask, the world before her was reced with nothing but darkness.

    The unfamiliar ckout sent a quiver through her heart.

    Closing her eyes, she slowly adjusted her breathing, feeling around her meticulously. The world before her blinded eyes became hushed, allowing her to hear sounds that she usually overlooked. Instead, they now resounded through her ears like fish silently emerging from the depths of the sea. Her heightened tactile sensitivity extended throughout her body, the subtle streams of air that blew by her skin enough to make her tremble involuntarily.

    This was a brand-new world¡ªa world she had never experienced before.

    It gave her extreme excitement. Her instincts told her that if she could master this unfamiliar world, she would definitely make a breakthrough in her level.

    Time passed silently, allowing her to clearly feel out this quiet and alien world.

    "The blind battle is about to start. You have three minutes to prepare. The blind battle is a five minute endurance match. Thest one standing on the arena after five minutes will win the prize money of fifty thousand yuan. To make it more realistic, the arena has been fully covered with the non-toxic and odorless Ink Night Fumes. It will only affect your vision, perfectly simting the night scene. To prevent unnecessary injuries, this endurance match will be fought using bare hands. Everyone, please wear your defensive gears and mask. The match will begin in one minute¡¯s time."

    Shi Xueman stood and headed towards the door that connected the resting lounge to the arena.

    It was as if she had used a ruler to measure her pace, stopping right where her mask touched the door.

    She waited silently, resembling an artist¡¯s most perfect sculpture.

    "The blind battle is about to begin. Counting down now, ten, nine, eight..."

    Shi Xueman remained motionless.

    "Three, two, one! Battle begins!"

    The door hinges slid open.

    Without any hesitation, Shi Xueman entered the arena. At that moment, she lost the faint light that had previously shone through her mask. She was now truly in a world of pure darkness.

    The Ink Night Fumes was worthy of its name!

    Shi Xueman secretly praised it in her mind.

    The Ink Night Fumes was a kind of smokescreen that was seldom used by people because there were only a small number of wood elementalists who knew how to concoct it, and it also had an extremely expensive price tag. Its effect, however, was rather remarkable. Shi Xueman¡¯s recent limatization had been shattered immediately.

    Suddenly, an ominous feeling rose in her heart.

 Chapter 6: Success

    Chapter 6: Sess

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Unlike the others who felt as though they were bound hand and foot, Ai Hui was like a fish in water, d to be back in a familiar environment.

    In the Wilderness, darkness ruled. Numerous massacres and sneak attacks urred quietly in that very darkness, seizing lives and warmth. Strength didn¡¯t matter; the elementalists who were unable to adapt to the dark would not survive.

    Ai Hui soon sensed a presence nearby¡ªso close that he anticipated they would pass each other.

    Initially, he had no intention of attacking. As long as he managed to hide and keep silent in a corner for five minutes, he could collect the prize money and leave because the rules stated that he would win as long as he persevered for five minutes without being defeated.

    It was, however, a matter of life and death in the Wilderness. No rules applied.

    When Ai Hui realized that the situation was not as he had expected, he responded instinctively. The opponent was dangerously close to him. If the opponent attacked, he wouldn¡¯t be able tounch a counterattack. Ai Hui entered a flowing state and gauged the danger level using the terrifying

    dire beasts that lived in the Wilderness as a benchmark. He would never foolishly assume that the people around him would be unable to adapt to the darkness.

    Countless life or death experiences had taught his body that when such situations arose, initiating an attack would give him a greater advantage.

    His footsteps were light and graceful. Like a cat in the night, each step he took was absolutely noiseless.

    His movements were very slow, to the point that not even the sound of wind could be heard. This was where Ai Hui¡¯s rich experience came into y. Within the dark environment, each breath or sound was as piercing as a dazzling ray of light.

    Silence was darkness¡¯s bestpanion.

    Ai Hui vaguely sensed his opponent¡¯s position and gently advanced towards it.

    He was in a highly anticipatory state. The flesh and muscles throughout his entire body were in a critical state, like a volcano on the verge of eruption. Nobody would have been able to discern this, however, from his external appearance.

    Suddenly, he stopped and held his breath.

    He was a seasoned hunter; he sensed that his prey had detected his presence.

    He did not know how to describe this sense of awareness or where this intuition was based. There was no need for substantiation in the Wilderness. There was only victory or failure, life or death.

    He stood in ce like a statue, without a single movement.

    On the other side, Shi Xueman smelled the faint trace of a dangerous odor. Although she wasn¡¯t certain, it was enough to put her on guard. She focused all her attention on the surroundings, vigntly using her ears to capture any sounds.

    The surroundings were very quiet as if there was only emptiness.

    But somewhere a little further away, she could hear the breaths of a few people. Although they were suppressed, she managed to capture the noises. In fact, she heard someone tiptoeing quietly around her left side.

    Inwardly she shook her head. At this point, any movement would lead to an attack.

    Right then, about ten meters away, a cry of surprise and a stifled groan could be heard, followed by the collisions of intense punching and kicking. Soon, chaos took over that area.

    Shi Xueman mentally heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed it was an illusion. There was no one within a three-meter radius from where she stood.

    Fighting in the dark was indeed very different.

    Shi Xueman felt stimted by such an unfamiliar battle. Her nerves tensed up like never before. Her perception of the surroundings was also unprecedentedly acute. If she could keep this up, her fighting abilities would take a qualitative leap.

    Before her eyes unfolded a path she had never seen before.

    She felt like a hunter hidden within the shadows, waiting for the best opportunity to strike. Confidence bubbled up within her. Under such a high level of alertness, even the slightest change in her surroundings could not escape her.

    While she was preupied with this fresh experience, she suddenly felt something brush against her shoulder.

    It broke her reverie and made her hair stand on end. She had not moved, so why would she bump into anything?

    Someone was close by! She¡¯d been unable to detect anything¡ªa presence, a sound, even a change in airflow. A chill shot up her spine.

    Her reaction was too slow however. Even as she finally realized the danger, it was already toote.

    When Shi Xueman had been lost in her thoughts earlier, the statue-like Ai Hui made his move. He moved excruciatingly slowly, even more so than a ny-year-olddy. He advanced with his five fingers carefully extended, grasping and exploring the area before him. His body leaned forward slightly, with the flesh and muscles in his body all ready to make a lunge.

    With Ai Hui¡¯s high level of concentration, he blocked out the battle noises from close by and remainedpletely unaffected. All his attention was on his fingertips. He knew that if he came into contact with someone, the battle would be over in a blink of an eye. Victory or defeat, the result would be pronounced at this moment.

    The moment his fingers felt an obstruction, Ai Huiunched an attack without hesitation.

    With knees slightly bent and tendons creating a burst of energy, his body sprang forward with lightning speed like a nimble and fierce cheetah. The sensation beneath his fingertips became more solid, his rich experience leading him to deduce that he had touched his opponent¡¯s shoulder.

    When Shi Xueman responded by violently lunging forward to push against his attack, she lost her bnce on the spot, and her body tumbled towards the ground. Her left hand, which had been ready to counterattack, lost effectiveness as she instinctively reached out to regain bnce.

    However, her arm became entangled with his, locked into a vicious attack that numbed her right arm.

    The attack thatpletely suppressed her did not stop there. Shi Xueman was greatly shocked as her opponent¡¯s body wrapped around hers like a snake. His body pressed up against her back tightly like an octopus. His legs were like thick and solid steel wires. They extended to her front and held onto her legs as his toes sped onto her calves like a metal lock.

    Never in her life had Shi Xueman had such close contact with a man. However, at that point, there were no butterflies in her stomach. There was only fear. Deep fear.

    The tough body lock made her feel like a fish caught in a,cking the power to struggle. She wanted to remove the Suppression Bracelet, but her limbs were mped tightly, unable to budge. She didn¡¯t hear him gasping for breath either, not even the rise and fall of his breaths. The ice-cold silence caused her great fear. She felt as if she was being attacked by a lifeless machine, and its steel cables had wrapped themselves around her. Her terror surged when she felt her opponent slowly tightening his grip.

    She smelled death.

    The intense fear and her strong will to live made her struggle with unprecedented strength.

    Hair continuously swept across her mask where beneath it, her eyes were shut, her face grim and unfeeling. It was normal. Even a beast would struggle its hardest before death, how much more so would a human.

    The fight wasn¡¯t over yet. It was now a battle of wisdom and tenacity.

    His grip on her slightly slipped.

    Upon realizing that her struggle was taking effect, Shi Xueman¡¯s body wriggled even more intensely.

    Ai Hui was like a hard-hearted hunter, steadily pressing down onto the main joints of the prey¡¯s body, letting it struggle and waste its energy. When the prey eventually runs of out strength, it was time for it to die.

    Soon enough, Shi Xueman ran out of breath and sweat started pouring from her body. She could feel her strength rapidly reducing. As she grew more and more tired, her opponent¡¯s grip became tighter and tighter.

    At this moment, she awoke from her fear.

    She regained a small measure ofposure. The results from years of tough trainings was immediately disyed. She¡¯d been born into arge and honorable n and experienced many things since childhood. Initially, she had lost control of her mind and body because of her momentary panic, but now that she had recovered from it, she hurriedly created a countermeasure.

    A bizarre ray of light shed, the elemental energy within Shi Xueman beginning to operate. Her body that had been bound tightly suddenly trembled.

    This slight tremble was not as aggressive as the struggle she had put up earlier, but the energy it released was so great that it far exceeded previous attempts to break free.

    Ai Hui only felt a shocking amount of force prating his body before his limbs became numb, causing him to nearly let go of her.

    Danger!

    His prey had skills beyond his expectations. As soon as his mind recognized the precarious situation, his body reacted ordingly. WIthout a moment of hesitation, his left forearm that had been holding onto his target rose up like a viper. With lightning speed, his fingers opened up and reached for his target¡¯s throat.

    Unlike the slow, silent hunting from earlier, this move made a sharp crack and was quick like lightning.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s heart trembled, and sweat started pouring from her body once again. She had no doubt this w on her throat was going to leave five bruises.

    Luckily when her opponent let go of her arm, she was given an opportunity to resist. Her delicate, snow-white arm swung out like a pendulum, blocking her throat without the least bit of dy.

    Boom!

    The force of impact brought acute pains to her wrists. She jolted backwards but could not dodgepletely. Her throat tightened as ck shed across her eyes with impending unconsciousness. Yet, she knew that no matter how difficult it was, she had to resist. She was resolute in her fight. Ignoring the burning pain of her neck, she used the only mobile part of her body¡ªher wrists¡ªto block off her opponent¡¯s violent attacks.

    This defensive move was one she was most familiar with from practice. Although her opponent¡¯s attacks were sharp, she managed to block them nevertheless.

    Moreover, she quickly found a possible weakness, but she wasn¡¯t sure.

    Until now, he had not utilized the elemental energy within his body. Was he holding back, or was it too weak? She couldn¡¯t be sure.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s tenacity led Ai Hui to feel a stronger sense of emergency. Instinctively, heunched an even more intense and murderous attack.

    The heart!

    A blow to any enemy¡¯s heart would render them defenseless.

    But first, he needed to remove his opponent¡¯s armor. To him, that was not a major problem. He learned to unfasten armor and untie ropes in the Wilderness. The barbarians wore rough and sturdy armor with ropes that often could not be damaged by even swords. Only a certain technique could undo the knots from a dead barbarian¡¯s body armor, which had been an important part of his job.

    With his right hand, he quickly and quietly loosened the ropes that held her armor together. If anyone had witnessed that scene, they would not have been able to detect any pauses in his finger movements at all.

    Like a slippery loach invading into her armor, his right hand felt another knot. He untied it without any further thought; any protectiveyer was an obstruction for him.

    Upon touching his opponent¡¯s skin, a lethal glint appeared in his eyes as his murderous instinct kicked in and burned fiercely. His five fingers formed a w and speedily pinned down against his opponent¡¯s chest where the heart was located.

    Yet at thest moment, he recalled that this was not the Wilderness; he was fighting for the 50000 yuan prize money. Instead he decided to first suppress his opponent¡¯s vital points. If she continued to resist, she had better not me him for being relentless because then he would not hesitate to kill.

    Boom!

    Target hit!

    He could clearly feel the body in his arms, which had been resisting earlier, be rigid.

    Eh?

    In the dark, Ai Hui had a keener sense of touch. Suspicion arose.

    This... does not... feel... quite right...

 Chapter 7: Resolution

    Chapter 7: Resolution

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Ai Hui was unable to make sense of the matter. After some time, he suddenly understood what he was grabbing on to.

    Feeling a lump of burning charcoal in his hand, he didn¡¯t know whether to hold on or to let go.

    D*mn it!

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but curse inwardly. He had no idea whom he was cursing at either.The motionless body in his arms wasn¡¯t putting up any resistance at all. From a fighter¡¯s point of view that was a good thing, but why was he feeling this unreasonable sense of guilt?

    Seconds felt like years as he became drenched in sweat.

    ng ng ng!

    The gong sounded, signaling the end of the battle. Ai Hui quickly removed his hands from his opponent and even considerately fastened the knots of her armor. He quietly got off her back and tiptoed into the smog.

    He was feeling guilty... It was better to stay far away from the target.

    Re-entering the crowd, Ai Hui let out a sigh of relief. This unexpected mistake left him lost and helpless. Luckily he had a mask on and the night smog was dark and dense. He felt his face burning and felt the urge to turn around and leave.

    Luckily, hisst trace of determination remained¡ªthe fifty thousand yuan!

    Along with the scattering smog, Ai Hui¡¯s embarrassment slowly dissipated as well; it was only an ident. All kinds of idents happened on the battlefield, or so Ai Hui told himself.

    Mhmm, he made so much sense, there was nothing to refute!

    After convincing himself, Ai Hui felt calmer.

    Soon the smog dispersedpletely and the head of the training hall was shocked to see over ten people remaining. He expected two or three to remain at best because he knew of his mistress¡¯s powerful fighting abilities. When it came to such realisticbat drills, she gave it her all, never going easy on her opponents,.

    Why were there so many left? Could it be that Mistress was unable to adapt to the unfamiliar blind battle mode?

    Seeing the training hall¡¯sck of response, someone from the audience blurted out, ¡°What about the money? Are you going to give it or not?¡±

    A few others chimed in immediately.

    ¡°Exactly, you¡¯re not trying to renege, are you?!¡±

    ¡°Hurry up and hand out the money! We¡¯re busy!¡±

    The middle-aged man nced at his mistress, but she had no reaction whatsoever as though she did not see his questioning gaze. He was the head authority after all and had the right to act ording to the situation. Moreover, to the training hall, fifty thousand yuan was nothing. Although he did not expect so many victors, even a few hundred thousand yuan of prize money could still be taken out easily.

    Upon receiving the money, everyone immediately cheered.

    To students, the fifty thousand yuan was not a small sum at all. Now they could bear to spend extravagantly on things they normally restrained from buying!

    The crowd started to disperse.

    Ai Hui blended well into the masses, no different from any one of them.

    Fifty thousand! Money in hand, he had long forgotten the awkward incident from earlier. He was on cloud nine!

    With no time to waste and full of vigor, he rushed into the noodle shop like a gust of wind. He confidently extended and opened his palm, saying to the boss in the most domineering manner yet since morning, ¡°Boss, give me five more bowls!¡±

    Finally, he could eat all he wanted without holding back.

    Only...

    Ai Hui shifted his gaze to his opened palm. The hand that had just...

    Snap! His fingers balled up into a tight fist.

    All kinds of idents happened on the battlefield, Ai Hui told himself once again, before digging into his noodles with a clear conscience.

    The head saw his mistress standing alone at her original position, and he had a premonition. She had already been standing there, without any movement, for more than ten minutes.

    ¡°Miss!¡± he could not help but call out.

    It was as if his mistress did not hear him at all.

    His sense of foreboding grew stronger. Had an ident urred during training? He simply could not imagine his mistress getting hurt. What a joke that would be; the trainers in the Induction Ground able to potentially oust his mistress could be counted with one finger. Although she suppressed her powers in an unfamiliar blind battle, he did not believe anyone here could have caused her trouble. Her biggest problem was her inexperience with blind battling.

    All of a sudden his eyes shed. Could it be that Miss was going through a moment of enlightenment?

    Indeed, was this not the legendary moment of enlightenment? It must be!

    He became agitated since he was in charge of the training hall and the blind battle was his arrangement. He had provided his mistress the opportunity to experience a moment of enlightenment; it was surely a huge contribution. He fantasized about advancing his career and achieving great sess, unable to suppress a silly grin.

    Meanwhile, Shi Xueman was at a loss.

    What happened a while ago was a big blow to her, leaving herpletely stupefied.

    From the incident until now, her mind waspletely nk. She did not hear the middle-aged man calling out for her and did not even realize the battle was over and that every contestant had already left.

    She slowly regained consciousness from the muddleheaded state she was in.

    Her whole body trembled but she tried to contain it. It was just an ident, she told herself but to no avail as her shudders continued from head to toe. She tried her best not to cry, but the great humiliation she suffered caused her to shake uncontrobly.

    Even if it had been an ident, she absolutely would not let that damned fellow get away with it!

    She gnashed her teeth and promised this to herself, emphasizing every word. Immediately, her trembling stopped and she no longer felt the urge to cry. It was as if that sentence had strange, magical powers.

    That¡¯s right, she absolutely would not let that damned fellow off!

    She regained her confidence from before, revealing the return of the high and mighty goddess.

    She took off her mask, her eyes shining with radiance once again.

    The middle-aged man¡¯s expression rapidly changed when he fixed his gaze upon his mistress¡¯s white-as-snow neck, astonished to find five purplish finger marks.

    Oh god... He could not believe his own eyes and almost cried out in rm; luckily he managed to hold his tongue.

    Miss had been defeated!

    If this piece of news were to spread, it would cause a bigmotion in the Induction Ground. Here, his mistress¡¯s skill level was one of the highest, ranking among the top five. Who could possibly beat her? His first instinct was that someone in disguise must have pulled a prank.

    However, he rejected the idea soon enough. Miss¡¯s secret whereabouts were kept well hidden, and her trip to the hall was by chance. Judging by the marks on her neck, her opponent must have held back or else her neck would have been shattered by now.

    Now that he thought of how his mistress had gotten into an ident in an event he had organized, the middle-aged man¡¯s back was drenched in no time.

    The fortunate fact that she was safe and sound brought some life back into his body, but his legs still felt a little weak.

    The unmasked Shi Xueman looked the same as she always had as she said faintly, ¡°Find out who the contestants are. Every single one of them, as well as those lying on the ground.¡±

    The middle-aged man dared not hesitate and immediately obeyed. ¡°Yes!¡±

    He could hear the frigid chill in her tone and knew that she was extremely angry. Since young, she had never suffered or been in such an unfavorable situation. Out of the corner of his eyes, he peeked at the finger marks on his mistress¡¯s neck and felt a wave of feare over him.

    Perhaps if he knew what exactly happened at the end, he would have fainted by now.

    Although he was quick to obey, he was whining inside. He said humbly and carefully, ¡°I have been negligent in keeping track of their information. Investigations must be done through other methods, so I may need assistance from the n.¡±

    He did not anticipate such amand. In his mind, the contestants were merely his mistress¡¯s sparring partners. What was the point of keeping track of their names and backgrounds when they were going to be defeated by her?

    ¡°At all costs,¡± Shi Xueman said coldly. ¡°The n will utilize all its power, so check it thoroughly for me.¡±

    The middle-aged man¡¯s heart trembled. ¡°Yes!¡±

    He felt his mistress¡¯s resolution.

    There was nothing strange about it. After unexpectedly meeting a threatening opponent, neither she nor the family n could possibly sit by and idly watch. He had enough confidence that if the n were to mobilize its full power, he would be able to identify that man no matter how well he hid.

    Shi Xueman walked towards the hall¡¯s main entrance, seemingly covered in frost.

    Once outside, she observed the people walking around on the streets before turning to look at the hall once more. She clenched her fists and walked away.

    .....

    When Ai Hui held on to the wall for support as he walked out of the hall, and he held onto the wall for support as he walked into Vanguard Training Hall as well.

    The difference was that before, his limbs had been weak from hunger but now he was too full to walk. With much effort, he finally shambled his way from the alley to the hall¡¯s entrance, taking him a whole ten minutes.

    On the stone steps before the training hall entrance sat Lou Lan looking quite bored.

    Ai Hui felt it strange. A bored sand puppet... such an image seemed unfitting.

    ¡°I have been waiting for an hour.¡± Lou Lan stood up and patted the dust off his body upon seeing Ai Hui approach.

    Ai Hui had never met such a ¡°smart¡± sand puppet before. Patting dust off his body took it to a whole new level. Eh, you are a sand puppet, there will not be dust as long as you do not pat your body.

    Plus, I do not remember us being close friends, he thought.

    Opening the door, he asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    ¡°Nothing.¡± Lou Lan crooked his head and thought for a while, as if searching for the right words. ¡°We are neighbors, and I am paying you a visit.¡±

    The sky was dark, but Ai Hui could clearly see the ck mask on Lou Lan¡¯s face. Upon seeing it, he was reminded again of the incident from earlier. He got the sinking feeling that he was traumatized.

    He asked absent-mindedly, ¡°Why are you wearing a mask?¡±

    Lou Lan replied, ¡°Because I do not have a face.¡±

    ¡°No face?¡± Ai Hui was slightly taken aback. ¡°Then why not make one?¡±

    It was very easy for a sand puppet to mold a face. Some of them could even change their faces as they pleased.

    Lou Lan answered, ¡°Master Shao felt it was troublesome.¡±

    Ai Hui thought about his neighbor, the earth elementalist, who was shut off from the world. Indeed, it was like him to think that way. It was normal to have odd characters amongst the earth elementalists, and Ai Hui had personally met even stranger and more dangerous ones. Inparison, while Master Shao had a strange personality, he did not seem as menacing.

    ¡°Actually, it is not a big deal,¡± Ai Hui said but at the same time, he felt the futility of his words. He knew there was really no need to brood over the incident although it did feel pretty good.

    ¡°There is no need, I am just a sand puppet. I do not need a face,¡± Lou Lan exined seriously. ¡°Who would remember a sand puppet?¡±

    Ai Hui, who had been opening the door, stopped midway.

    He felt like saying something but as the words were about toe out, he became uncertain.

    ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Ai Hui seemed to sigh. It seemed cruel, but he couldn¡¯t say something he didn¡¯t mean. In the Wilderness, sand puppets were only second to theborers easily eliminated and destroyed.

    No one would remember a sand puppet. What chance did aborer have?

    We are both deste, but I have fifty thousand yuan, he thought.

    With his spirits raised, Ai Hui proudly hoisted the door open.

    ¡°Wee in.¡±

 Chapter 8: The Sword Embryo

    Chapter 8: The Sword Embryo

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Ai Hui lied on his bed adjacent to the wall with a sword nestled within his arms. Slowly, his pitch-ck eyes opened to the darkness and a cold ray of light sharply shed before he returned to his harmless appearance.

    He¡¯d been away from the Wilderness for a few days now, but he still wasn¡¯t used to sleeping on a proper bed.

    He checked the sword embryo within his body which he had been growing for three years now and found no abnormalities.

    He put down his grass sword, the sensation of the sword embryo within his body disappearing. In the past, he was overly-dependent on the sword, always holding on to it and never letting go regardless of the situation. Later on, he realized that doing so caused his body to lose its vignce, so unless he was in a battle or keeping watch at night, he forced himself not to touch it.

    To survive the Wilderness, Ai Hui had to have something up his sleeves, and that something was the sword embryo.

    On his third day in the Wilderness, he almost lost his life. From that moment onwards, he started his obsessive search for greater strength because only then could he survive that cold ce. He had no one to go to for help, the elementalists never gave him face, and he was neither clever nor capable of bargaining for what he wanted.

    Wild beasts wielded extraordinary strength when forced to desperation. People would too, under simr circumstances.

    Like a drowning man, Ai Hui desperatelytched onto any chance of hope he could find.

    For example, he filled his mind with knowledge from swordy manuals.

    The disintegration of spiritual force sent the cultivation world tumbling down, ending the era of cultivators. However, the cultivation system was deep-seated, advancing so greatly in the hundreds of thousands of years of its existence that it far exceeded what people imagined today.

    Body training, spell formation, weapon training, five elements, necromancy and so on... there were all kinds of strange and abundant practices that utilized spiritual force. Coupled with humankind¡¯s rich imagination, the most resplendent and grandest cultivation system was brought into existence.

    Amongst the vast jumble of magnificent cultivation types, Swordsmanship always held the greatest value. Within the cultivation world, regardless of generation, the strongest followed the path of Swordsmanship.

    During that era, swordy manuals of great origins were created, bringing about reigns of terror every now and then. Today, they were buried between piles of old books and other garbage, not worth a single yuan.

    Swordsmen made up the majority of the cultivation world. It was only natural then that all sorts of strange concepts were born from themunity.

    Ai Hui first eliminated the sword manuals that required spiritual force. These types of manuals were frequently used by the big sects and schools to figure out how to utilize spiritual force more effectively back when it was still ample. The manuals that he eliminated next were those he could not understand. Books that were cryptic and abstruse were in excess,parable to the amount of hair on a cow¡¯s body. He could be considered a semi-expert with his experience flipping through an astonishing number of sword manuals, but he still found many of them too profound¡ªsome were archaic while others were deliberately mystifying.

    After he filtered them out, there were some sword manuals left.

    In the Cultivation Era, none of these manuals would be considered orthodox, and an honest and learned man would even deem them as demonic.

    Despite seeing them before, Ai Hui was notpletely free from fear. These sword manuals were strange and unpredictable,pletely beyond the limits of a normal person¡¯s imagination. For example, one manual taught cultivators to cut all emotions and desires, lust included, in order gain supreme mastery of the sword. Another, the Dream Demon swordy manual, instructed them to lie inside of a giant coffin, induce aa, and train within the Dream Demon himself. Upon mastery, the sword skills they umted would marvelously be applicable in reality.

    In the past he nced through these manuals out of interest and nothing more. Now, the thought of training ording to these books sent shivers all over his body. Ai Hui finally managed to find a book that seemed less eerie and strange. It had no name and was badly damaged, and the only words on the cover stated at the top, the method to nt the sword embryo.

    After a detailed examination, Ai Hui more or less understood the meaning of sword embryo, and it was actually quite simple. The human body could only grow so much, but there was no limitation to developing the three essential life-sustaining energies within¡ªthe essence, the breath, and the spirit. These energies, however, held no form, drifting harmlessly like mist. Therefore, the creator of this sword manual came up with an extremely interesting theory; that is, the human body was like a sword¡¯s sheath and the three energies made up the real sword.

    How then, could the three incorporeal energiese together to form the sword? The manual proposed a unique solution. Since it was difficult to congeal the energies into one entity, they could be treated instead as soil to nurture the sword embryo from within.

    Compared to the other books, this sword manual was obviously one of the more sensible ones.

    So without hesitation, Ai Hui followed the instructions on the sword manual and surprisingly seeded in nting the embryo.

    Back in the swordsman school, he would never have taken the risk, but in the Wilderness, what was there to worry about? People died every day, and he didn¡¯t know when it would be his turn. Risk meant nothing to him. Instead, he was more concerned about the effectiveness of the so-called sword embryo.

    Survival was his top priority.

    Three years passed, and he entered the Induction Ground after surviving the Wilderness, yet the sword embryo was still a seed with neither movement nor change.

    Ai Hui was rather unperturbed about this matter. It was enough for him to have stepped out of the Wilderness alive. He didn¡¯t hold unrealistic expectations from it either since the book was badly damaged with illegible instructions towards the end.

    The sword manuals from the era of cultivation believed that all routes eventually led to the same destination. No matter how odd or unorthodox the method, all of them ultimately went back to the the words "spiritual force." From this, he gathered that future training would most likely be rted to the spiritual force as well.

    Nevertheless, Swordsmanship was outdated, and it was worthless to train ording to these manuals. He was not like the boss of the swordsman school who obsessed over these manuals and falsely believed in sword mastery.

    He simply had no intention of growing the sword embryo any further.

    While the manual did mention that meditating while holding on to the sword would help nourish the embryo, Ai Hui did it to improve his alertness at night instead.

    There was something intriguing about the sword embryo. It came to life whenever he held on to his sword and his six senses became sharper as well. He could detect any slight sounds or movements around him. Later on, many elementalists became aware of his keen vignce and soon the night watch became one of his main tasks.

    This allowed him to loot from the battlefields, albeit only the leftover bits and pieces.

    For three years, Ai Hui carried the sword and meditated without sleep, persevering for what seemed like a day.

    The Ai Hui of the past shivered in the cold mud while the Ai Hui today had a warm and safe room of his own to sleep in until the morning light.

    He felt contented and blissful.

    Today was the first day of lessons, and he looked forward to it. He hadn¡¯t left the house ever since he imed the fifty thousand yuan prize.

    Outside, the sky was still dark with only a glimmer of light¡ªstill some time before sunrise.

    Ai Hui energetically jumped off his bed,nding soundlessly like an agile cat. The carpet under his feet was made from rough woven fibers that was somewhat prickly, but Ai Hui felt nothing. With the glimmer of light shining in from the horizon, the room was illuminated enough for him to not bother turning on the light as he washed himself in the dim room.

    His familiarity with darkness could be seen as a gift from the Wilderness where danger lurked in every corner and any trace of light would draw them to him.

    He skillfully removed the trap he had set behind the door and pushed it open. A rush of fresh air entered his lungs, giving him burst of energy.

    The slightly illuminated sky and the quiet training hall brought back memories of the swordsman school. The familiar sensations washed over him, and even the cool air seemed to have be more fragrant. The sharp and stiff edges of his face softened, a warm smile tugging at his lips.

    He began to mop the floor with quick and light strokes.

    Soon, his body remembered the familiar movement and reflexes quickly took over.

    Even before the sun came up, Ai Hui was finished with his cleaning chores. Without bothering to wipe the sweat off his body, he looked around the well-polished hall feeling genuinely satisfied and happy.

    Gazing at the sparkling ground, however, he was reluctant to step on it.

    During his three year stay in the Wilderness, he fought in the muddy swamps and amongst dried, decaying leaves. He became ustomed toing across rotting monster corpses with his shirt stained with blood. Over time, the stains dried up and faded into the same brown patches until he could no longer tell his blood from the beasts¡¯.

    The soles of his feet came into contact with the clean wooden floor. A familiar feeling.

    This dirtless, quiet hall was like a dream from deep inside his heart.

    The past two days had been a time of adjustment, but gradually he was starting to enjoy this new lifestyle. He even had the thought that life would be pretty good if he could carry on living like this.

    Feeling childish, Ai Huiughed before turning around to pack his things. He had a tight schedule after all.

    The sword embryo¡¯s ability to keep him alive was not worth mentioning. His mastery of elemental energy paled inparison to most people, so he faced much greater pressure as well.

    The Induction Ground had strict rules: failure to activate the natal residence within a year or inability to reach the Initial Completion level within five years would lead to an expulsion. For students who came from the Avalon of Five Elements, their parents would be med for their shorings whereas students from the Old Territory would lose their chance to qualify as a member of the Avalon of Five Elements and be banished back to where they came from.

    Those who attained the Initial Completion would have to leave the Induction Ground as well since it signified their right to qualify as a registered elementalist.

    Five years was all the Induction Ground could give. In reality, Ai Hui had only four years because there was one more rule¡ªstudents above the age of twenty had to leave the training grounds.

    He didn¡¯t have much time left. If he wanted to take charge of his own fate, he had to work harder.

    And if he felt inferior? Then he had to snap out of it and work even harder.

    The sun rose from beyond the horizon and shone brightly in the cold, blue sky. After packing, he slung the old cloth bag over his shoulders and exited the hall with a de of grass in his mouth and the sky behind him.

    The early morning streets were quiet and dark, still asleep. From beyond the mountains and rivers extended the first thread of light, entering homes and illuminating the streets.

    Ai Hui luxuriated in the sunlight.

    In the Wilderness, the hours before dawn were the most dangerous. It was a time ripe with the danger of sneak attacks, when deaths and fresh blood were aplenty.

    But with the arrival of the sunlight shining on the grassfield dews came the massacres¡¯ reveal and the retreat of the dire beasts and barbarians like the tides, returning peace and tranquility to the Wilderness.

    While the school building was not far from the training hall, it was not near either.

    The closer he got to the school, the more concentrated the student crowd became. The streets bustled with activities, and it was an unfamiliar sight for Ai Hui. Upon seeing the young faces full of vitality and eagerness, Ai Hui felt somewhat envious. Their faces showed no traces of blood-soaked battle injuries andcked vignce against the outside world since they had never experienced a massacre.

    They were wlessly pure and led happy lives.

    Ai Hui felt out of ce. He bit down hard on the bit of grass, allowing the raw, grassy taste to spread within his mouth.

    To them, the Induction Ground was a school. To him, it was his new battleground.

    Rather than happiness, survival was of a greater importance.

    He took a step forward and entered the school building.

 Chapter 9: Introduction

    Chapter 9: Introduction

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Shi Xue Man gazed at her body in the mirror. The fair, wless body she had once been proud of now had five faint, yet eye-catching, finger marks above her left breast. A few days had passed but the bruises still hadn¡¯t disappeared, causing her to believe her opponent had used substantial force.

    A baleful look appeared in her eyes. She did not want to recall what happened that day,but every time she bathed she could see the finger marks on her body. It made it difficult to restrain the anger.

    Luckily the marks on her neck were gone, since school was reopening today.

    She dressed, the usual confidence returning to her face.

    In the dining hall outside, food had already been prepared. As she entered, her grandfather gazed at her with a gentle smile. ¡°Come, have your breakfast.¡±

    ¡°Grandfather,¡± she called out sweetly before sitting down beside him. With her mother¡¯s early passing and her father¡¯s busy work schedule, her grandfather had been the one to raise her. Therefore every morning, she apanied him during breakfast.

    A servant delivered a bowl of hot soup to the table. She trained regrly and so all her meals were specially prepared to replenish her elemental energy and nourish her body.

    Sip by sip, she drank her soup that had been brewed meticulously with expensive ingredients. Not only did it benefit her training but it also tasted fresh and delicious. Today, however, she was somewhat in a daze.

    The grandfather had raised her since young and so knew her very well. He asked warmly, ¡°Why? Are you still thinking about that incident?¡±

    WIthin the family n, his granddaughter possessed unmatched talent. Always sensible and never pretentious, she was in fact more hard-working than others. Since childhood, she disyed excellent skills that surpassed even her father¡¯s and was regarded by the n as the next generation¡¯s leader. The whole n was pleased with her and all the seniors adored her greatly.

    The old man was deeply proud of his granddaughter¡¯s achievements. In his eyes, she was perfect, but the only thing that worried him was her pride. Like her father, she had never experienced any setbacks.

    But the old man had plenty of experience. He understood that there were many hidden talents in this world, and there would always be a higher mountain. No matter how outstanding his granddaughter, someone out there would be better.

    And this was exactly what happened.

    When he saw the marks on his granddaughter¡¯s neck that day, he received a shock and a fear that still lingered. If her opponent used just a little more strength, she would have died on the spot. Then, he quickly realized that her expression was somewhat off.

    This setback must have been far greater for her than he had expected.

    To him it was nothing, but he knew Shi Xueman needed more time to process since her life had been smooth-sailing so far.

    If he knew the truth of the matter, he would have ripped Ai Hui into pieces.

    ¡°No.¡± Shi Xueman lowered her head and continued eating.

    Seeing her like that, the old man could not help butugh. ¡°Why do you think you lost?¡±

    He knew from experience that avoiding the problem wouldn¡¯t benefit the youngsters.

    Shi Xueman paused, still holding on to the spoon. She was stumped by his question. Three days had passed yet she was still deeply ashamed and resentful. All she could think of was how to find that damned fellow and dismember his body into a million pieces.

    Although she was no fool, her anger had blinded her. Hearing her grandfather¡¯s reminder, she immediately addressed what she neglected so far.

    ¡°The opponent was very familiar with blind battling.¡±

    As the details from that battle reyed in her mind, Shi Xueman¡¯s expression became solemn. Since the incident, this was her first time recalling it without falling into a blind rage.

    ÀÏÈËÎÞÉùÐ¦ÁË£¬Ñ­Ñ­ÉÆÓÕ£º¡°»¹ÓÐÄØ£¿¡±

    The old manughed silently, guiding her along. ¡°What else?¡±

    ¡°Rich battle experience, fast reflexes, unfeeling, knew how to utilize his advantage...¡± Once Shi Xueman regained her cool, she disyed powerful insights. She mumbled to herself, ¡°Come to think of it, he must have sensed my presence and location right from the start unlike me who couldn¡¯t detect his movements. He was an expert in blind battling, able to fight well in the dark. He chose a close quartersbat style which in the darkness was ideal. It forced me into a passive position without space to maneuver at all. By doing so, I couldn¡¯t disy my numerous techniques while he could unleash his full powers.¡±

    The old man listened carefully knowing that he only needed to hear her out.

    ¡°He deliberately allowed me to struggle to expedite my energy consumption. Cunning. His elemental energy doesn¡¯t seem very strong since he didn¡¯t engage it from start to finish, so I had no way of confirming his level.¡±

    Listening to her, the old man responded, ¡°If he defeated you without engaging his elemental energy, he is definitely skillful.¡±

    ¡°Very. Also, like me, he must have been wearing a Suppression Bracelet.¡± Shi Xueman didn¡¯t refute his statement. She thought for a bit before adding, ¡°When he was locking me in, I utilized [Arching Fish Back] but could not break free.¡±

    For the first time, the old man lost hisposure. ¡°He blocked your [Arching Fish Back] without using elemental energy? Was he old?¡±

    [Arching Fish Back] was an ingenious technique used to struggle free. It emted a fish¡¯s reaction when startled¡ªfull of explosive strength. The old man was quite shocked by the fact that the opponent actually managed to suppress her [Arching Fish Back] without using elemental energy.

    ¡°Mhmm.¡± Shi Xueman gravely nodded. ¡°He had exceedingly strong murderous intent. Originally I nned on using [Arching Fish Back] to break free to remove the Suppression Bracelet, but it failed. However, he shouldn¡¯t be very old or else he wouldn¡¯t have attacked for fifty thousand yuan.¡±

    Thinking back, she couldn¡¯t help but respect him. As a girl, immobilization was more disadvantageous. As such, she was taught [Arching Fish Back] at a very young age, and she spent a lot of energy mastering this technique to the point that it was now a part of her.

    But even she could not maintain control over the burst energy of [Arching Fish Back].

    ¡°Suppressing [Arching Fish Back] without elemental energy and not too old... it must be a student then,¡± the old man eximed in admiration. ¡°Looks like there¡¯s an amazing talent among the new batch of students this year. I wonder who he is, and why haven¡¯t I heard of him?¡±

    ¡°Grandfather, you must investigate carefully for me!¡± Shi Xueman shook his arm and pleaded, ¡°I will not take this lying down. We must battle once more in the open, no tricks.¡±

    The old manughed loudly. ¡°Okay, okay, okay. How could I reject Xueman¡¯s request?¡±

    Clearly Xueman intended to erase her previous humiliation, but it was eptable for youngsters to hit a snag due to their zealousness. Moreover, he was very curious about this young man who suddenly appeared and overpowered his granddaughter. Interesting.

    Shi Xueman was overjoyed upon hearing the good news. If Grandfather was willing to help, that damned fellow would definitely be unable to escape!

    Wait and see! I will not let you off!

    A dangerous aura shed across her eyes.

    The old man noticed her expression. Having gone through the ups and downs of life, he certainly knew what she was thinking. He muttered, ¡°He held you down without engaging his elemental energy. I¡¯m afraid his skill surpasses yours. You have to be careful.¡±

    Shi Xueman raised her head, burning passion in her eyes. ¡°Xueman will surely strive hard!¡±

    The old man was somewhat surprised. This was his first time seeing her with such an exuberant fighting spirit.

    Looks like this failure was a major setback for her, the old man thought cheerily.

    At this point, Ai Hui did not realize the trouble that fifty thousand yuan brought upon him as he was attending his introductory lesson.

    The sunlight rays entered through the windows, shining onto his desk and the floor, making even the dust particles visible. They could be seen driftingzily in the air.

    The school was empty except for six people. Very few were required to attend this introductory ss. Whether they hailed from the Old Territory or the Avalon of Five Elements, most young children had already been exposed to the basics.

    Teacher Dong stood on the podium radiating passion and flinging spittle everywhere. He talked about the countless years of nning and preparation as well as manpower that went into the Avalon of Five Elements. With Cultivators from different sects aiming towards the same goal, the Avalon today was stable and beginning to infiltrate the Wilderness. He also mentioned the Avalon¡¯s ability to now proceed from defense to a counter-attacking phase and so on.

    Unlike the other students who were dozing off, Ai Hui was enjoying his lesson. He had previously dabbled in swordy manuals, but his knowledge about the Avalon¡¯s history came mainly from gossiping master elementalists in the Wilderness.

    Talking about history was Teacher Dong¡¯s favorite pastime. He spent more than half of his ss time on it with very little focus on the basics of training.

    For what purpose was this messy history lesson given, and what did it have to do with them? The students privately called this the saliva ss. They detested wasting their time on such things, but the teacher in charge of their basic training ss was Teacher Dong. Moreover, he was known for his bad temper. If anyone who skipped his sses dared to consult him about training, he wouldn¡¯t even bother acknowledging their presence.

    Who asked them to have zero understanding of the basics?

    Needless to say, students who came from the Avalon of Five Elements knew the basics. Those who were properly homeschooled went straight into the advanced sses while others were ced into the intermediate sses. Even students from the Old Territory received training from a young age. While the different environments contributed to the disparity in skills between them and the students from the Avalon, the former did not have many problems dealing with the theoretical aspects.

    Survival was always the strongest motivation for change. After thousands of years of progress, the five elemental energies had already be widely used.

    Unfortunately, this made the number of students who had to start from the very basics like Ai Hui pathetically few.

    A person had to lower his head when living under someone else¡¯s roof.

    Teacher Dong talked non-stop for a long time. When he finally started on the topic of training, the other students became much more enthusiastic.

    Unfortunately, Teacher Dong¡¯s passion lied only in imparting history. Without any interest in exining the formation of elemental energy, he ended the ss after only half an hour. In fact, by the time Ai Hui finished reflecting on the information gained from ss, he was already gone.

    Unlike the students who were aggrieved, Ai Hui felt overjoyed from the enlightening lesson.

    After three years in the Wilderness, he became capable and experienced, never backing down in the face of danger. In this, he stood out amongst the manyborers around him, gaining the trust of master elementalists and even having the few kind-hearted ones impart a skill or two.

    Danger lurked in every corner of the Wilderness, however, and could appear at any time. Under such circumstances, no one was willing to patiently and systematically educate him on training routines.

    Three yearster, he had learned many skills, but they were all practical moves, fragmented and iplete.

    While he fell behind theoretically, he gained much experience from realbat and in this aspect, none of his ssmates couldpare. In addition, he was good at analytical thinking and reflection, or else he would never have been able to create the sword embryo. Despite the simple and scattered knowledge he had umted in the Wilderness, he spent countless hours contemting each and every piece of information. Yet due to acking foundation, his learning produced limited returns, umting a number of questions that he had been puzzling over.

    During Teacher Dong¡¯s short lesson, he taught little about the definite methods to train and more on the theories relevant to elemental energy¡ªwhich was precisely the area Ai Hui fell behind in...

 Chapter 10: The Society of Excellence

    Chapter 10: The Society of Excellence

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Elemental energy was nothing umon.

    During the early Cultivation Era, it was heavily studied but not utilized as widely. Due to spiritual force¡¯s more abundant and active nature, it was easier to use than elemental energy. In fact, the ample production of spiritual force suppressed the generation of elemental energy, and so the study of elemental energy was mostly limited to small sects.

    It was only in the Wilderness where the spiritual force was thin that elemental energy could dominate.

    It had to be said that the cultivation world was favored by nature, as if the heavens had blessed the people with abundant spiritual force that covered thend. For a long time, almost every cultivator held themselves upright with pride, assuming their cultivation world as the core of the world.

    Yet they failed to take into consideration the living environment of the Wilderness. Gradually, the spiritual force became thinner, taking everyone by surprise. As the the foundation of the cultivation system, once the spiritual force disintegrated, the resplendent cultivation world copsed as well.

    Millions of yearster, the Wilderness neglected by the cultivation world became their undefeatable enemy.

    The elders who were forced into a corner frantically searched for a new source of power, and the ones who taught them best were their enemies, the dire beasts and barbarians. Under these strenuous circumstances, elemental energy was explored and expanded; however, it was the cultivators with their umted wisdom from over millions of years that quickly created their own system of five elemental energies.

    As the theories developed, the system stabilized and the Avalon of Five Elements gradually became stronger as well.

    Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth were the five basic elements that made up all living things. When the five elements were stable in nature, they formed matter. When they were active in nature, they formed the five elemental energies. In the existing theory, there were no observable differences between the five types of elemental energies outside of their different forms. Rather than existing as separate entities, they simultaneously transformed and suppressed one another, bing a perfect cycle. This was also the reason why five elements usually existed simultaneously instead of alone, and why the natural matters hadplicated properties.

    Teacher Dong taught only the most foundational reasonings that were obvious to most people who would find the lesson dull and useless. Nevertheless, to Ai Hui, it exined many of the questions that puzzled him. He was most familiar with swordy from countless manuals, be it traditional or unorthodox. However, without the foundational spiritual force, these things had no value at all. In fact, if the sword embryo didn¡¯t germinate within three years, any hope of future growth would be lost.

    Still, it was undeniable that flipping through the countless sword manuals did expand Ai Hui¡¯s horizons. The ancient swordsmanship theories had been developed maximally to be profound and wide-ranging, as he had disyed in the Wilderness. His operational styles were quite different from the others, moving even the most skillful masters to wonder.

    It was not by luck that he came out of the Wilderness alive.

    His current fragmented knowledge was slowly starting to make more sense. This excited him because in the past, he had some vague ideas but now he realized that they were not impossible to achieve.

    He restrained his restlessness, however, as it was not time yet. He needed more knowledge.

    Coming to the Induction Ground was the right decision to make. Just from the first lesson, he had already gained so much which came as a pleasant surprise, and he looked forward to the other lessons.

    The days of attending ss were simple yet enriching, as beautiful as the sunlight. He especially cherished the first lesson. For someone like him with a mediocre aptitude, such an opportunity did note easily. Like a sponge, he greedily absorbed any nutrients avable.

    Teacher Dong¡¯s introductory course was very short with only ten lessons, but Ai Hui did not want them to end. Despite his packed schedule, he realized that only Teacher Dong¡¯s ss involved the theoretical aspect of elemental energy formation. Teachers from other sses imparted either practical skills or the specific methods to train. Very few were like Teacher Dong who focused on the logic within.

    Perhaps they felt that for the new students, learning how to train was sufficient.

    By now Ai Hui had more or less gotten used to the student life in Central Pine City. He didn¡¯t feel the same agitation he once did when standing in front of the Induction Ground entrance. Studying in the city was rxing and rules were flexible. For any ss, as long as he met the requirements to a certain standard, attendance became optional.

    However, he still had a ss he was required to attend with the ssmates from his first day, and in charge of it was the very same Teacher Xu.

    Everyone had different skill levels and so picked different sses. It was usually difficult toe across one another, and it was only in homeroom that he got to meet these ssmates.

    Except no one was paying Ai Hui any attention.

    Most of them probably didn¡¯t even remember his name anymore since a mediocre and quiet student like him had no presence. Seeing that everyone was present, Teacher Xu began. ¡°I called you guys over this time to tell you about the Society of Excellence.¡±

    Upon hearing the words ¡°Society of Excellence,¡± the students from the Avalon of Five Elements became excited whereas those from the Old Territory looked puzzled.

    ¡°Society of Excellence is a club that selects gifted students with outstanding skills and potential. Not only will there be specialized teachers to guide them in the training process, the lessons will also be put into practice. For example, you¡¯ll be involved in the school¡¯s operation or spar with students from other cities and so on. You will even have the chance to enter the Wilderness with the teachers to experience its conditions.¡±

    The students, thrilled at the thought of visiting the Wilderness, started chattering.

    In their eyes, the Wilderness was mysterious and full of the unknown. Moreover, with the teachers¡¯pany, safety was not an issue. They started to desire the opportunity to see for themselves what the Wilderness was all about.

    In the sea of excited students, Ai Hui alone was indifferent since he had no desire to join this club. Having guidance from the teachers didn¡¯t sound bad but at this point in time, it was more important for him to umte ample elemental energy to activate his natal residence.

    As for the Wilderness, he had stayed there long enough. It was nauseating for him.

    Seeing the enthusiastic faces, Teacher Xu smiled. ¡°Of course, the selection process is strict for you guys who just entered the Induction Ground not too long ago. ording to the criterias from previous years, you¡¯ll need to have activated at least two pces.¡±

    The students howled in grief. Following this standard, only three to five students qualified. As for those who still had a chance, their eagerness bled through, unable to be hidden.

    ¡°This is the minimum criteria, but it¡¯s not impossible. Everyone should give it a try,¡± Teacher Xu encouraged before continuing, ¡°As for how to be chosen, have a look, and you¡¯ll know. All I want to say is that our city has prepared rewards for those who are chosen. They¡¯ll distribute valuable resources that would be advantageous to your training. Work hard, everyone. Duanmu Huanghun, distribute these materials.¡±

    Ai Hui had seen Duanmu Huanghun, the strongest student in his ss, that first day by the school entrance. He could tell from his luxurious clothes that he came from a rich family.

    Towards the society, Ai Hui remained indifferent. He reckoned that the reward would be pretty good but not worth the hassle, which made it unappealing to him. Plus, his skills were stillcking.

    His train of thought shifted to training. Central Pine City¡®s training environment was superior, almost like heaven. As he carefully nned his training, Duanmu Huanghun, who was distributing the materials, passed Ai Hui without stopping. He then mockingly said, ¡°You don¡¯t need this since you don¡¯t even know the basics yet.¡±

    Ai Hui was confused. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s hostility was uncalled for. Plus...

    How childish!

    .....

    Shi Family

    ¡°Are you sure there are only six of them?¡±

    Shi Xueman did not speak loudly, but the temperature of the whole hall seemed to have dropped by over ten degrees. All of the servants and bodyguards quivered.

    The head of the city branch paled, responding with a trembling voice as his body shivered non-stop, ¡°I havemitted a sin! None of the contestants¡¯ names were recorded, and the new batch of students just started school, making it a highly difficult task. Only through rumors from students and neighboring merchants did we manage to find these six.¡±

    By now, he was filled with regret. Did he have nothing better to do¡ªwhy a blind battle? He practically dug his own grave!

    Shi Xueman took a deep breath and reined in her emotions. She knew he wasn¡¯t at fault; instead, she had been slow to react. If she hadn¡¯t been in a daze, she would have easily gotten hold of the information and that damned fellow would not have escaped.

    ¡°You¡¯ve worked hard. This is not your fault. You did very well,¡± Shi Xueman said in the same cold tone.

    The middle-aged man teared. Recently, he was ced under unimaginable pressure recently. The investigation hit a dead end, and he was on the verge of copsing.

    Immediately, the tension within the hall dissipated significantly.

    Shi Xueman unhurriedly said, ¡°But regarding this, I will need to trouble you further. Everyone present will assist you. Find him at all costs.¡±

    The middle-aged man was surprised at her determination, but this was not the first time he heard the words ¡°at all costs¡±ing out of her mouth. Also considering the nature of her character, he did not think it so surprising anymore.

    ¡°I will work hard.¡± He dared not guarantee again. After thinking for a bit, he continued, ¡°I have an idea but am unsure if it will work.¡±

    ¡°What is it?¡± Shi Xueman asked straightforwardly.

    ¡°This way of searching is like fishing for a needle in the ocean, but I was thinking that if he could be a threat to you, he must have great skills. I would go so far as to say that within the Central Pine City, he would be the cream of the crop. With such abilities, entering the Society of Excellence should not be a problem. Should we narrow our search then, to the members inside?¡±

    At the battle, he had seen Shi Xueman but not that mystery man, so he was unaware of the details of their battle. Therefore, only his mistress had the ability to judge that man¡¯s capability.

    After listening to his words, Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes brightened. When her subordinate looked at her again, she said without hesitation, ¡°Watch that club. Give the name list to me the moment you have it.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± the subordinate hurriedly agreed.

    Shi Xueman turned and left quickly. She didn¡¯t want to waste any time; instead, all she could think about was training. Her eyes burned with passion and spirit.

    Even if you are stronger than me right now, I will not give up. Absolutely!

    This humiliation... I, Shi Xueman, am going to make you pay for it.

 Chapter 11: Ai Huiâ€™s Hypothesis

    Chapter 11: Ai Hui¡¯s Hypothesis

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Of course, Ai Hui had no idea that a vengeful someone was looking all over for him. Even if he knew, he wouldn¡¯t care. Who had time for that? He didn¡¯t even feel like entertaining Lou Lan whenever he visited, and he was such a nice sand puppet...

    Ai Hui waspletely engrossed in his own learning and trainings. It was as if he had entered a vast new world full of rich colors. There were so many hidden ces within the Induction Ground to train in that Ai Hui discovered something new every day.

    He was lost in happiness and never tired of it.

    No ce required more skills than the Wilderness where it was devoid of warmth, clear-cut and without any pretense. Within the Wilderness, there were no suitable grounds for him to train. ces with a slightly more concentrated elemental energy was already upied by either powerful, dire beasts or the barbarian tribes.

    And since he had to advance forward with the team, he had little time to train, especially with the tedious odd jobs toplete. He could never rest well either as the elementalists never seemed to need it with their brisk work efficiency.

    No teacher would be able to exin this. The elementalists who were willing to teach him a skill or two were already considered very friendly and kind whereas whenever he met the bad-tempered ones who happened to dislike him, inevitable suffering ensued.

    Compared to the Wilderness, the Induction Ground was like heaven.

    Ai hui possessed unrivaled passion that had been umting and bubbling for three years. Once released, the intensity of its explosion exceeded that of a volcano eruption.

    Ai Hui was as if possessed, immersed in his training.

    He knew he had a low aptitude and did not dare to set unreachable goals. He only hoped to be a registered elementalist. The problem was that even this goal required an extraordinary amount of effort in order to be realized.

    How could there be any time to waste?

    These four years was the only time for him to change his destiny. He knew a second chance would note.

    Since the Wilderness trained him to be adaptive, it did not take long for Ai Hui to settle downfortably into the city. His strategy for schooling also gradually changed. Initially he took every avable ss but gradually he began to filter, learning how to pick and choose.

    It was important to always understand the circumstances as well as the most crucial problem at hand as he had learned to do so in the Wilderness that was so cold and full of death.

    Right now, the most pressing concern was activating his natal residence.

    If he didn¡¯t manage to aplish this within a year, he would have to leave the school.

    The training ground he chose for himself was the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    Located about one hundred fifty miles outside the city, few students were willing to travel so far even by the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart just to train, leaving the pagoda mostly deserted.

    Needless to say, Ai Hui refused to take the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart. The cost of the round trip exceeded one thousand yuan; he¡¯d feel the pain for days.

    To him, traveling the one hundred fifty miles was a warm-up exercise. In the Wilderness, the pace ofbat was shockingly fast. Although Ai Hui was aborer who didn¡¯t need to take part in the battles, he still had to keep up with the team while carrying all the supplies. The first thingborers learned in the Wilderness was to run¡ªonly then could they keep pace with the team. Nobody wanted a slow-movingborer who was unable to follow.

    ¡£

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was neither robust nor were his strides very big, but he was steady and the top half of his body was motionless,cking any unnecessary movements.

    He traversed not the main roads but through the mountain forest like a nimble cheetah, effortlessly loping through in a straight line.

    It took him twenty-six minutes this time to rush down to the pagoda, five minutes faster than the previous attempt. Ai Hui was satisfied as he was fond of progress.

    A dpidated iron pagoda appeared before him with nobody else around. It had a total of seven floors and many areas were in ruins. Its history could be traced all the way back to the Cultivation Era, back when it belonged to a great sect and was used to suppress others. After the spiritual force disintegrated, however, the sect copsed leaving the pagoda to fall into decline. What stood before him now was the preserved remains.

    It survived the ravages of time thanks to the metal wind cave beneath. The gales it received from the cave contained concentrated metal elemental energy that eventually transformed the once wooden pagoda into an iron one that remained today. Later, the Induction Ground remodeled it into a training ground, but since it was in a remote location with no discernible advantage over the many other training grounds within the city, very few visited.

    The Suspending Golden Pagoda was actually not meant for beginners but rather for students who already activated their natal residence.

    Ai Hui had another n.

    He approached the entrance and heard deep rumbling.

    Ai Hui finally understood why the ce was so deserted. Just by listening to the sound of the wind, he knew that the metal wind inside was extremely strong. Almost none of the seniors who wrote the guidebooks rmended this ce.

    ording to them, the Suspending Golden Pagoda was like an upside-down waterfall of overwhelming power. The metal wind currents contained dense elemental energy that was bonescrapingly painful when blown against the body. Unfortunately, it was also extremely pervasive, able to enter the pores deep into the flesh, multiplying the suffering. Inparison, the whirlpool within the city¡¯s hot springs was gentler and much morefortable. Obviously, no one would ask for trouble bying here since both environments produced the same results.

    What spurred Ai Hui into visiting this ce was a seemingly unremarkable sentence that he came across while reading a particr senior¡¯s guidebook:

    If your endurance is great, go straight to the Suspending Golden Pagoda; the results are quite good.

    In terms of affinity, he had little confidence with his low aptitude that probably wouldn¡¯t fulfill the minimum requirement. But when it came to endurance, it was a different story.

    During his stay in the Wilderness, he managed to form a tenuous strand of elemental energy after drinking a specially brewed elemental soup. In it were ingredients he had umted over time including a piece of Dire Beast¡¯s meat given to him by an elementalist.

    The elemental energy formed by humans was closed to that of a dire beast¡¯s meat and thus was easily absorbed.

    This was the underlying reason behind the high cost of Dire Beast¡¯s meat as well as why countless elementalists risked their lives hunting them deep in the Wilderness.

    The extremely precious wisp of elemental energy often saved Ai Hui¡¯s life in times of great danger.

    An elementalist once bluntly informed him that he had a low aptitude and no affinity with elemental energy. And unfortunately, training with external items was something only the rich could afford to do.

    During his trainingter on, he realized that the master was indeed right. Even after three years, his elemental energy made little progress. Admittedly, there were many possible reasons such as insufficient training time, low concentration of elemental energy,ck of structured guidance and so on. But almost zero growth? Ai Hui saw for himself exactly how low his aptitude was.

    However, he had no ns to give up. In fact, since then, he¡¯d been racking his mind for a solution.

    In the end, his only source of help came from those outdated and worthless sword manuals.

    The manuals from ancient times were practically synonymous with ¡°genius.¡± No one but the gifted could think about touching them and even more so in prestigious sects. But there were certain exceptional cases in which mediocre swordsmen made a name for themselves within the cultivation world, gaining skills that struck fear into the people¡¯s hearts.

    In the long past era of cultivators, tens of thousands of cultivation worlds had yet to merge. One of those fragments was a small sect known as the Void Sword n where a disciple named Wei Sheng lived. He was not gifted yet he had great aplishments, able to disdain other outstanding heroes.

    Ai Hui had nced through enough swords manuals to know that Wei Sheng was not the only such swordsman.

    Although Ai Hui had zero interest in Swordsmanship, these swordsmen fought their way to the top in a society that nurtured only natural talents. Certain that they must have possessed some other qualities, Ai Hui hoped to find them out.

    These powerful fighters had simr characteristics like tenacity, diligence, and inhuman concentration. These were worth learning but clearly required great effort. After studying further, he realized they had another trait inmon.

    Where there is bad, there is good. If someone was unable to perform in a certain aspect, it was not erroneous to shift focus. The seniors who had average aptitude managed to carve a path for themselves only because they found their own strengths.

    Ai Hui had felt that his interpretation was logical but not employable.

    That is, until now. After attending Teacher Dong¡¯s introductory course, his doubts were swept away. He now knew that the so-called bad aptitude meant a lower affinity between a practitioner and the elemental energy. Due to hisck of aptitude, the majority of the energy dissipated as soon as it entered his body, leaving only a little behind.

    This was why he had negligible progress.

    Everyone was born with different and unalterable aptitudes. This news was, to most people, no different from a death sentence.

    Yet instead of feeling dejected, Ai Hui started thinking of ways around it instead. Since his body had less affinity with elemental energy, what advantage did he have over others?

    He had to have an advantage. He had faith. Even if it wasn¡¯t obvious or very useful, it had to exist.

    The heavens would not be so unfair.

    Other than affinity, what else was involved in the training process?

    Upon reading the senior¡¯s words, his eyes brightened. Yes, other than affinity, there was endurance.

    Didn¡¯t hisck of affinity mean that his body was not sensitive enough towards the elemental energy? In that case, the metal wind currents people shied away from could actually be bearable.

    That was when Ai Hui understood. Was this endurance not the advantage he¡¯d been searching for?

    Insensitivity towards elemental energy indeed slowed his training progress but theoretically, shouldn¡¯t he be able to handle a higher concentration of elemental energy? He was not a helpless rookie any longer with his rich battle experience. Any slight advantage could be put into good use.

    There was another advantage, however, that Ai Hui discovered very quickly.

    Having a high endurance meant that he could undergo a more intensive training.

    And now here he stood to test his hypothesis.

 Chapter 12: The Gifted and the Garbage

    Chapter 12: The Gifted and the Garbage

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Teacher Dong was aware of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s arrogance and felt the beginnings of a headache. He was a talented young man no doubt. Elegantly dressed with a solid build, and his handsome face carried a devilish charm¡ªdefinitely the type that girls swooned over.

    Other than his haughty nature, this fellow had few shorings. But of course, he had every right to be proud.

    He was born into a prestigious sect that had a long-standing history within the Avalon of Five Elements. In fact, an ancestor of the Duanmu n contributed to the creation of the Avalon. Not only that, but Duanmu Huanghun was outstandingly talented. Of all the students, he was among the top five.

    Teacher Xu felt his head throb. There was nothing wrong with being proud¡ªit was normal for youths to be hotheaded. Plus, which youth was not? Perhaps he had been teaching in the Induction Ground, he had seen many talents, causing him to worry when he noticed Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s hostility towards students of a lower realm. However, as an experienced educator, he kept a straight face and asked calmly, ¡°How is it going? It¡¯s been awhile since school started. Any impressions?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± Duanmu Huanghun responded with slight aloofness. ¡°Just that the academic program is too simple.¡±

    Teacher Xu smiled. ¡°That¡¯s because you were homeschooled and have talent. Of course you¡¯ll find it easy. This is also why I chose you as the ss monitor, so I have high expectations for your excellent leadership skills. I hope you won¡¯t growx and continue to work hard.¡±

    Upon hearing his teacher¡¯s confidence in him, he became excited. Compliments were irresistible to youths his age. Leader, what an admirable title, he thought. Just thinking about it moved him. He puffed his chest out and replied loftily, ¡°Do not worry, Teacher Xu, I won¡¯t let you down.¡±

    ¡°You can do it!¡± Teacher Xu sounded exceptionally certain. ¡°Then as a leader, how should you treat teammates who are not as strong as you? Of course you must help them! It is the responsibility of a leader after all. Let me assign you a mission. Ai Hui is slightly weaker, and I need you to assist him. How does that sound? Think you can do it?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s jaw dropped. He was stunned.

    ¡°I knew from the start that you were born to be a leader!¡± Teacher Xu continued happily without waiting for a response. ¡°I will leave Ai Hui in your hands! I don¡¯t expect the impossible. Hopefully, one year from now, he¡¯ll be able to activate four pces.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun was left speechless. Activating four pces in one year? What a joke¡ªthis garbage had yet to open his natal residence...

    ¡°What is a talent? A talent is someone who can achieve the unachievable!¡± With a stern expression, Teacher Xu asked, ¡°Duanmu Huanghun, are you doubting the talent in you?¡±

    ¡°No¡ª¡± Duanmu Huanghun blurted out.

    But immediately after, his face darkened as if he had just swallowed a fly. He felt terrible. Right from the start he disliked that trash Ai Hui. Of the whole city, only six students were required to attend the introductory course but one of them just had to be from his ss. As the ss monitor, he couldn¡¯t get himself to like this burdensome garbage.

    What right did this garbage have to be teammates with a gifted student like himself?

    And now the teacher actually expected him to be in charge of this fellow. This lightning bolt seemed to strike him out of the blue.

    He was going insane. Just looking at this guy made his blood boil. But now that he was supposed to help him, wouldn¡¯t he have to see this garbage every day? Duanmu Huanghun was certain he¡¯d go crazy by the end¡ªno, maybe he already was!

    Going into Teacher Xu¡¯s office had been a giant mistake. Something so ridiculous actually happened to him!

    Duanmu Huanghun stumbled out of the office, still in shock.

    After a few steps, he suddenly understood what he just promised to do. He agreed to assist that garbage into activating four pces! If being in charge of this garbage was like stepping into mud, activating four pces in a year was like falling into a poisonous swamp.

    The elemental energy system had more or less reached maturation from thousands of years of development and improvement. Different family ns and schools had their own unique practices, but the core methodology did not stray from the system of the five residences and eight pces.

    The production of elemental energy first urred in the five residences, or the natal residences. Each produced different elemental energies: fire from the heart, wood from the liver, earth from the spleen, metal from the lungs, and water from the kidneys.

    The initial step to any training system was to activate the natal residence. Only then could the first door that separated the physical body from the external world be opened. The natal residence acted as a catalyst in the absorption of elemental energy which had a nature that differed greatly from spiritual force. While the energy was stored within the body, its flow did not follow the meridians.

    After much fumbling, humans managed to find eight elemental energy storages and named them pces. When all eight were filled, an Initial Completion was aplished.

    In the Induction Ground, filling four pces was not a big deal. Not to mention the seniors, even he had four pces filled.

    But Ai Hui was a piece of garbage who had justpleted his introductory course. Loading four pces? What a joke!

    If not for Teacher Xu¡¯s good reputation and public praise, Duanmu Huanghun would have suspected him of pulling his leg. Only a genius could progress from nothing to four pces within a year. Why then would such a genius require his help?

    His face was as ck as the underside of a pan. He almost turned and charged into Teacher Xu¡¯s office again.

    But once he recalled the teacher¡¯s words that ¡°a talent is one who can achieve the unachievable,¡± he abruptly stopped in ce.

    That¡¯s right, he was a gifted genius!

    Duanmu Huanghun clenched his teeth. He roughly pulled apart his beautifully embroidered shirt cor. Pfft, ¡®defeat¡¯ was not a word in his dictionary. A genius like him could never give up so easily.

    Poor garbage, you better thank Heaven for blessing you with such an opportunity.

    Duanmu Huanghun raised his chin and readjusted his cor, regaining his usual grace.

    He strolled down the corridor and thought hard on how he could reach the target Teacher Xu had set for him, not caring about the adoring gazes from the girls lining the corridor. Thanks to the knowledge and experience he had from being homeschooled, he quickly came up with a few possible ns.

    His eyes lit up and his handsome face was full of concentration. Instead of his usual arrogance and viciousness, another kind of aura fell upon him.

    The smittened female students were so distracted by him that they lost their footing and fell hard on the floor. Duanmu snapped out of his thoughts and raised his head. As his enchanting eyes fell upon them, they momentarily forgot their pain¡ªthey were love-struck.

    Duanmu Huanghun involuntarilyughed, his warm smile mesmerizing.

    Thud, thud, thud!

    A series of tumbling noises rang out in the hallway.

    Ten minutester, Duanmu Huanghun stood ashen-faced beside the hot spring¡¯s whirlpool. He scanned his surroundings a few times, but saw no one at all. Despite searching the usual training grounds frequented by students, he could not find Ai Hui. He even asked a few ssmates but no one had seen him.

    Damn it!

    Steam wasing out of his ears. Duanmu Huanghun had never been so angry before.

    It was humiliating enough for him to teach this garbage, but d*mn, this piece of trash waszy! Not only did heck the skills but he also wasn¡¯t hard-working, unable to even attain the basic training routines. How was this useless lump of mud going to transform into a solid wall?

    Yet no matter how angry he was, he still could not locate Ai Hui¡¯s whereabouts.

    He specially made a trip to the dormitory to ask around, only to realize that Ai Hui did not stay there. No one knew where he lived.

    Godd*mn!

 Chapter 13: Wind of the Suspending Golden Pagoda

    Chapter 13: Wind of the Suspending Golden Pagoda

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    The world inside the door was entirely different.

    After spitting out the de of grass he had been chewing, Ai Hui had just stepped into the Suspending Golden Pagoda before he was battered and overwhelmed by intense gales.

    All he could hear were the deafening roars of the wind¡ªa fierce sound that he had never heard before. Beneath him were iron fences, and violent metal winds that spewed from the depths swirled into a turbulent vortex that stormed throughout the pagoda.

    Yet before he could gain his footing, Ai Hui was sent flying into the air by the wind. Like a lone leaf swaying in a storm, all he could sense was the world spinning around him.

    Bang!

    Ai Hui grimaced with severe pain as his back forcefully mmed into a wall. The metal wind was so severe that he could not even open his eyes. Even worse, it felt like innumerable small needles were pricking through his muscles and piercing deep into his bones.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face turned pale as the unspeakable pain instantly spread all over his body. He had underestimated the pagoda.

    However, thanks to Ai Hui¡¯s extensive experience in life-and-death situations, the second he realized his mistake, his body reacted instinctively. Under such a circumstance¡ªwhich waspletely out of his control¡ªthe first thing he had to do was protect himself.

    He huddled himself up with his arms on his head.

    Bang! Bang! Bang!

    He was like a ball bouncing around the pagoda.

    The prative metal wind continued to submerge him in a flood of pricking pain. Ai Hui felt powerless¡ªa familiar feeling that seemed to bring him back to his initial days in the Wilderness. As the seconds passed, the pain became increasingly severe, to the point that it almost exceeded what he could bear; he felt as if his bones were being rasped by millions of files.

    When was thest time he was in such a fluster? He could not really remember; even in the Wilderness, he had never been in such a state for long.

    Although he was aware that the Suspending Golden Pagoda was for those who had opened their natal residences, he assumed that he could persist because he was confident in his own endurance.

    The extremely concentrated metal energy in the wind permeated into his flesh and blood without showing any signs of diffusion, which indicated that this metal energy could not be absorbed by his muscles.

    Underestimating your rivals can put yourself in a terrible state, just like Ai Hui¡¯s situation at the moment¡ªit could not be more disastrous.

    The first step for elemental energy cultivation was to absorb elemental energy into the muscles. One of the quickest methods was to consume elemental soup because a dire beast¡¯s meat was rich in elemental energy. This was best for beginners to absorb and was how Ai Hui had cultivated his own meager amount of elemental energy.

    This method was excellent but expensive. Evidently, a poor wretch like Ai Hui could hardly afford it.

    Another conventional cultivation method was to absorb elemental energy from outside and was referred to as Elemental Energy Input. In this approach, the type of elemental energy could not be chosen casually, and most people would prefer a mild type for easier absorption.

    The needle-like elemental energy contained in the metal wind of the pagoda, however, was not moderate at all. The prickling pain indicated that it could not be easily absorbed and was hence hurting his muscles.

    Ai Hui tried to assimte the energy into his own, but soon realized that he was being too naive.

    Although the metal elemental energy appeared to be as thin as a strand of hair, it was much more concentrated than his own.

    It was only at this moment that he finally realized why the Suspending Golden Pagoda was only for those who had opened their natal residences.

    Bang!

    Striking into something violently, Ai Hui was suddenly jerked back into reality, but he soon felt as if all his bones were broken. Although that collision had been unpleasant, he could now discern that the prickling sensation in his back had weakened.

    Ai Hui suddenly realized something. Maybe...

    Bang! Although he had struck himself on the wall yet again, Ai Hui rejoiced excitedly.

    He could still clearly perceive the pain in his muscles, but the prickling sensation had been considerably reduced. Even though he was amidst such chaos and was unarmed, Ai Hui was calm enough to observe the slightest changes of his body.

    Whenever his body was knocked into something, the metal elemental energy scattered and was more easily absorbed than the energy in the wind, hence decreasing the pain.

    Nevertheless, Ai Hui¡¯s luck didn¡¯tst long before his expression abruptly changed.

    The scattered energy had not even beenpletely absorbed before additional elemental energy permeated into his body, intensifying the pain while causing him to feel as if he had a severe case of dropsy.

    Although in theory, those who had opened their natal residences could choose to train at the Suspending Golden Pagoda, Ai Hui did not know that there were actually very few students who would decide to do so. This was because the metal wind was too wild and the elemental energy¡ªdespite being extremely concentrated¡ªwas incredibly difficult to absorb.

    Worse still, there were endless amounts of energy in the pagoda.

    The moment he thought of this, Ai Hui realized the danger of his situation. If he stayed for any longer, the growing pain will dull his mind and consciousness, finally resulting in the explosion of his body.

    He had to leave RIGHT NOW!

    Ai Hui stretched his body as he carefully guided his own little bit of elemental energy to his eyes. He could not possibly escape such a perilous environment with the strong wind preventing his eyes from opening.

    Under his meticulous control, the elemental energy inside his body was infused into his eyes for the first time.

    Perhaps because his body was experiencing an indescribable prickling pain, Ai Hui felt only a slight difort in his eyes before immediately oveing it.

    As his vision returned , Ai Hui was able to view the interiors of the pagoda for the first time.

    Ai Hui swirled along with the wind like a dead leaf. Due to long periods of erosion and metallization by the metal wind, the surrounding cross-grained walls glimmered with a dark metallic luster.

    The inside of the pagoda was empty; everything, including the staircases, was long gone.

    To Ai Hui¡¯s surprise, as the metal wind spiraled higher, its strength did not weaken, but instead, grew stronger.

    Yet he had no time to look up. Time was very tight, and he had to escape before the energy surpassed his body¡¯s limit.

    Ai Hui was intensely focused as he prepared himself by carefully adjusting his position. With his entire body tingling with pain, it was exceedingly strenuous to maintain a state of concentration; but this was not a difficult problem to the experienced Ai Hui.

    Seeing the gate of the pagoda rapidly approaching, Ai Hui twisted his waist and stretched his body like a spring, as he slightly touched his toes to the ground.

    Pow!

    Forcefully pushing his toes, Ai Hui folded his body into a strange angle¡ªas if his waist was broken¡ªand ced his hands on the ground, resembling arge cat arching its back.

    Using both his hands and feet, he frantically scrambled out of the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    The instant he exited, all of his strength dissipated, making him feel pain so severe that he felt like he was dropped onto thousands of needles.

    Ahhh!

    The anguished cry frightened away a mass of birds from the nearby woods.

    Ai Hui screamed for 20 minutes before he recovered from the pain.

    It was really unbearable!

    Even with his face contorted in pain, tears in his eyes, and non-existent strength, Ai Hui struggled and eventually managed to get on his feet.

    There was a significant surplus of metal element in his body¡ªeven lying still could not stop the bone-stabbing pain.

    Longsting pain is no better than short-term pain!

    Remembering that the bumping had helped ease the pain, Ai Hui quickly made up his mind.

    He hastily rushed to the nearest tree. Pow! The tree snapped.

    Next, he crashed into arge stone in front of him. Bang! The stone shattered.

    Ai Hui anxiously searched around. What else can he crash against?

    Ahhh!

    The birds and beasts of the woods fled in panic. Behind them, a miserable cry lingered along with the sand and dust in the air, while countless trees fell down one after another as if there was a horrible, mad ancient beast running amok.

 Chapter 14: Harder than Iron, Stronger than Steel

    Chapter 14: Harder than Iron, Stronger than Steel

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Lou Lan, who was sitting by the entrance of the Vanguard Training Hall, was bored to death.

    When he finally noticed the limping Ai Hui, who had a bloody nose and a swollen face, he crooked his head and curiously asked, "Ai Hui, what happened?"

    The moment Ai Hui identified Lou Lan, Ai Hui¡¯s dull eyes suddenly brightened. Without any hesitation, he grabbed onto Lou Lan and shoved the door open. "Do me a favor!"

    Lou Lan stood up immediately and replied somewhat happily, "Okay."

    Hurriedly pulling Lou Lan into the training hall, Ai Hui chose a spacious area before firmly standing still. With a serious expression, he sincerely requested, "Beat me up!"

    Lou Lan opened his eyes wide as he gawked at Ai Hui; he thought he had heard wrong.

    "Come on, hit me! As hard as you can!" Ai Hui urged.

    He had been crashing and knocking into everything on his way back, but the amount of metal elemental energy that remained in his body was still aplenty. However, he had exhausted all his strength. Let alone knock into something, he was unable to lift even a single finger at this point. Plus, he did not dare to act recklessly in the city; he could not afford to pay for any damages.

    But when he saw Lou Lan, he had immediately thought of this fantastic idea.

    He could get the same results without even exerting any strength.

    Lou Lan tilted his head and looked at Ai Hui seriously, before concernedly asking, "Ai Hui, have you gone crazy?"

    "I have not. This is all part of training." Ai Hui racked his brains and then briefly exined, "I have created a secret training method."

    "Oh..." Lou Lan had apparently started to understand the situation.

    "Come on,e on!" Ai Hui vigorously encouraged him. "Use more strength. The harder, the better. Do not worry about hurting me. I have a high endurance!"

    "But, I do not know how to fight," Lou Lan replied meekly.

    Ai Hui felt like he had been struck by a bolt of lightning. His eyes were opened wide, as he stammered in disbelief, "Do... do not know how to fight?"

    Fi.. fight?

    Ai Hui was almost convinced that he had misheard. Indeed, the word ¡®fight¡¯ had be unfamiliar to him. To a seasoned fighter who had undergone three years of hardship and severe training in the Wilderness, ¡®fight¡¯ was too trivial a term. He only registered the word after two seconds.

    Wait, did not know how to fight? A sand puppet that did not know how to fight?

    Ai Hui stared at Lou Lan expressionlessly.

    All the sand puppets that he hade across were skilled fighters. They were also heartless, sly, and good at disguising and setting traps. They strictly followed orders and had all kinds of deadly tricks up their sleeves that were impossible to defend against.

    Sand puppets were real killer machines; it could be said that they were born to battle.

    But this was the first time he had encountered a sand puppet that did not know how to fight.

    Ai Hui involuntarily blurted,"Then what do you know?"

    Lou Lan counted on his fingers. "I can wash, cook, buy groceries, clean the house and garden, make tea..."

    Ai Hui was utterly bbergasted; he felt that his perception of the world had been hugely challenged. Was this... still a sand puppet?

    When he finally regained his focus, Ai Hui demonstrated his powerful adaptability. Having no other choice, he could only reassure Lou Lan. "No problem, I will teach you!"

    However, he did not sound confident.

    Lou Lan, on the other hand, was thrilled. "I will work hard!"

    Night soon arrived. The cbashes were lit as they released a brilliant white light, which enveloped the hall in a glow as bright as snow. Two entangled silhouettes could be seen. "The way you just attacked isn¡¯t right. You¡¯re a sand puppet with no joints. You should not blindly imitate. Lou Lan, you¡¯re a sand puppet! You should be soft when you have to and hard when you have to. Elemental energy is the key. Use it to strengthen your attacks!"

    "Harder than iron! Stronger than steel!"

    "Pay attention to the angle! Yes, the angle of attack is very important. Do not hold back!"

    "Stop only when I ask you to. Yes, you are improving! Ooh, that is fierce. Use more strength! Ahh..."

    Time ticked by.

    Lou Lan was excited because he believed that he was progressing swiftly. He always felt happy whenever he was able to learn something new. Although he believed that Ai Hui¡¯s obsession was slightly strange, he was still d to be able to help.

    Keeping Ai Hui¡¯s oft-repeated advice "Do not hold back!" in mind, he struck hard.

    Lou Lan beautifullyunched fifteen consecutive strikes as hepiled enough energy to release a final blow. A resounding boom was produced by a punch that surpassed all his previous hits. Like a human punching bag, Ai Hui formed a graceful arc as he flew more than thirty feet away.

    Superbly done!

    Lou Lan was extremely satisfied with his recent attack; he had executed it perfectly, without a single mistake.

    Ai Hui gasped for breath as heid pitifully on the ground. His gaze was unfocused, and he looked lifeless.

    Lou Lan bent over, tilted his head and earnestly asked, "Ai Hui, are we going to resume training?"

    Ai Hui could no longer feel the sting because all of his muscles and flesh were aching. The remaining metal elemental energy should have dispersed. Let us end it here...

    However, Ai Hui immediately realized something horrifying: the muscles in his face had be numb from the previous explosive attack, and now, he could not even open his mouth. Not only that, his whole body was paralyzed.

    Did he just teach Lou Lan how tounch a paralyzing attack? Damn, why did he do that?

    "Ai Hui?" Lou Lan crooked his head. "Are we going to continue?"

    Enough! It was enough! More than enough!

    Ai Hui moaned inwardly.

    Lou Lan¡¯s face appeared to dawn with realization as he suddenly recalled something. "I understand now! You mentioned earlier that I should only stop when you say so. I got it, let us resume! Lou Lan will continue to work hard!"

    Lou Lan transformed one of his arms into a sand whip andunched an attack at Ai Hui while repeatedly muttering, "Harder than iron! Stronger than steel!"

    No! Ai Hui¡¯s moan turned into horror. No, no, no! Hey, hey, hey! Enough! Stop training! Let us stop training...

    Bang, bang, bang!

    Amidst a barrage of violent, storm-like attacks, the helpless Ai Hui felt himself crumbling inside.

    Duanmu Huanghun looked gloomy. All his close friends were intentionally avoiding him, as they knew that this fellow had better not be provoked when in a bad mood. However, now, he was not just in a bad mood; he was in an incredibly dreadful mood!

    They all knew that Duanmu Huanghun was an exceedingly proud person, who had always exuded grace and elegance. When had they ever seen him with such a ck face? Moreover, with his expression worsening each day, he now looked as if he was ready to kill. Anyone with well-working eyes would shun him as well.

    Duanmu Huanghun was feeling extremely terrible. After scanning the schoolpound yet again, his face darkened.

    Damn it! That bastard!

    He clenched his fist so hard it became white.

    It had already been a few days! That damned garbage actually dared to skip so many sses!

    His pride was already hurt from the fact that he had to coach a rookie. He desperately tried to console himself. Look at the bigger picture! I will be a leader! I am a genius!

    Yet reality had actually dealt him such a brutal blow. He could do nothing about it except swallow his anger and humiliation.

    It was awful enough that he had failed to find Ai Hui after making so many trips down to various training grounds. He had already epted the fact that Ai Hui was the lousiest student of the entire Induction Ground and had long since nned to drag him over and drill him, but...

    This fellow did not even attend sses!

    At this point, all Duanmu Huanghun wanted to do was curse. He had seenzy people, but never any to this extent!

    If you don¡¯t even go to ss, then why in the world did you join?

    It had not been easy for him to lower his pride and concede to his teacher¡¯s request. But what happened now? He could not even find that fellow!

    Duanmu Huanghun was crying inside. Why are you toying with me? What wretched luck I have, for me to experience something this ridiculous! For me to meet such a ridiculous person!

    Just the thought of this garbage damaging his reputation of a great genius sent him into a zing fury.

    Just you wait!

    Hate was swiftly growing in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s heart.

 Chapter 15: Replenishing Elemental Energy with Soup

    Chapter 15: Replenishing Elemental Energy with Soup

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui bewilderedly opened his eyes, while his aching body allowed him to take just one breath of the chilly air.

    "You¡¯re awake?"

    Lou Lan pushed the door open and entered the room with a steaming bowl of soup in his hands. Despite being quite a distance away, Ai Hui could smell the alluring scent that wafted towards him, unintentionally causing his stomach to let out an embarrassing, loud growl. Making a conscious effort to swallow his saliva, he weakly asked, "What time is it?"

    "It¡¯s eight in the morning," Lou Lan replied, as he carefully handed the soup over to Ai Hui.

    The moment heid his eager hands on the bowl, Ai Hui momentarily forgot about his aches and immediately wolfed down the heavenly, delicious soup.

    "What time didst night¡¯s practice end?" he asked indistinctly.

    Not long intost night¡¯s session, his consciousness had started to fade, which rendered him unable to recollect anything about what had subsequently happened.

    "Five in the morning," stated Lou Lan.

    Five...

    Ai Hui¡¯s reaction was a bit sluggish, but then his expression suddenly stiffened. He finally realized the reason why his entire body was throbbing with aches and why even moving a single finger had be a painful ordeal. His cheeks twitched in disbelief, as he asked, "You were beating me up the whole time till five in the morning?"

    Ai Hui immediately felt uneasy when he thought of his unconscious self being violently beaten up like a punching bag. "I¡¯m very sorry," Lou Lan sincerely apologized. "Although you didn¡¯t ask me to stop, I had to end the practice at five to prepare breakfast for Master Shao. But now I have alreadypleted this morning¡¯s tasks and can continue practicing with you. Shall we begin?"

    Feeling sorry for thrashing him ¡¯only¡¯ until five in the morning, though...

    Ai Hui shook his head firmly and hurriedly cried out, "No thanks!"

    Withst night¡¯s tragic experience still vivid in his mind, Ai Hui could not muster up the courage.

    When Ai Hui noticed that Lou Lan seemed to be a bit down, he coughed, and remarked, "This soup tastes pretty good."

    Ai Hui had no idea what soup it was; he was only cognizant of the fact that the soup was incredibly delicious and that it was undoubtedly the best that he had ever consumed. Furthermore, after drinking the soup, a pleasant feeling of heat had gently washed over his body, flowing through every nook and cranny of his being and leaving him feelingfortably warm.

    Lou Lan, having just been praised, perked up quite a bit. "Ai Hui, your training ces great strain on the body. To prevent deficiencies that could further develop into internal injuries, you must timely replenish and nourish your body," he quipped.

    "You are really amazing!" Ai Hui could not help but exim. "No wonder I feel my body heating up, it¡¯s just like when I had previously tried some elemental soup. Now, that was a perfect dish, one that even had elemental energy!"

    Lou Lan¡¯s tone rose slightly. "This soup also replenishes elemental energy."

    "This soup? Elemental food?" Ai Hui was momentarily stunned. Elemental food was iparably more expensive than average meals. The school provided such food as well, but even though it could be considered cheaper than what was avable outside, it still carried a hefty price tag.

    An ominous premonition rose up in Ai Hui¡¯s chest. He slowly began, "The ingredients for this soup..."

    "They were found in your bag, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied matter-of-factly. "Although they were just scraps, the ingredients were of decent quality and were suitable for brewing soup. While a standard recipe wasn¡¯t followed, please rest assured that at least seventy percent of the elemental energy was utilized."

    Ai Hui felt as though he was forcefully hit by an iron rod. "Just...just how much did you use?" he asked, stupefied.

    "Don¡¯t worry, I have used up everything. I can guarantee that there was absolutely no wastage," Lou Lan wholeheartedly pledged.

    This was totally not the kind of guarantee he was looking for...

    Thump! With his heart filled with despair, Ai Hui stiffly copsed back onto the bed with a forlorn thud. The ingredients that he had painfully rued for over three whole years had disappeared just like that! After three years of scrimping and saving he had finally umted a few valuables. The mere thought of his precious ingredients being used up after just a night¡¯s rest left him trembling with unbearable heartache.

    If Ai Hui understood what utilizing seventy percent of the elemental energy meant, then...

    "Ai Hui, you should start cultivating now to properly absorb the elemental energy," Lou Lan reminded.

    Ai Hui quivered in realization. His ingredients had already been spent, so there was no point in feeling resentful anymore. He gritted his teeth and crawled out of bed; no amount of sweat or blood could deter him from making full use of this elemental energy.

    Ai Hui sat crossed-legged, and ording to Teacher Dong¡¯s method, he focused entirely on guiding the silver of elemental energy along the path of the five residences and eight pces.

    Of the eight pces, the four that were the easiest to open were those present in the four limbs; the left hand pce, the right hand pce, the left leg pce and the right leg pce. The other four pces¡ªthe sky, gate, sea and earth pces¡ªwere located from the space between the eyebrows down to the tailbone, and were significantly harder to open.

    However, regardless of whether the natal residences were opened or whether the eight pces were essed, the flow of elemental power always revolved around the five residences and eight pces. The only difference between the various schoolsid in the sequence of routes that the energy could take in the body. Different paths would result in entirely distinct results, giving rise to the myriad of avable cultivation methods. Additionally, the marvels and profound mysteries of each of the eight gates presented many opportunities for deeper research and exploration. Each school would pick out an area for further study, and over time, the knowledge gained from the extended periods of research would gradually umte and consolidate into their esoteric, unshared secrets.

    Ai Hui had chosen the safest and simplest route; it started from the four pces in his limbs and was followed by the space between the brows. From there, he continued downwards, using the elemental energy to thread between the sky and earth pces.

    Once he started to guide the elemental energy, however, Ai Hui felt different than usual.

    Ai Hui had never perceived anything like it; his elemental energy had been significantly strengthened after flowing through only the left hand pce. Gentle yet lively, the elemental energy lightly coursed through his body, causing him to feel lithe, alive and full of vigor. The movement of elemental energy was practically effortless, a far cry from the heavy sluggishness that he usually experienced.

    It was not long, however, before Ai Hui became agitated, as he discovered that the elemental energy within his body was gradually dissipating outward.

    His body¡¯s affinity for elemental energy was still too low.

    Preventing himself from bing distracted again, Ai Hui concentrated on the flow of elemental energy, and pressed on, making use of every precious second.

    Do not waste it!

    Just thinking about how this elemental energy had stemmed from his three years of cumtive efforts provided Ai Hui with a burst of adrenaline. His entire attention was centered on the elemental energy within his body, which was now surging with speed akin to that of a crazy, sprinting wild horse.

    On recognizing that Ai Hui was fully engrossed in his cultivation, Lou Lan silently stepped out of the room.

    As time crept by, Ai Hui, who had continued to meditate cross-legged, started to emanate a slight, silvery glow. If one moved closer, they would be able to see that this thinyer of light consisted of numerous needles of converging light rays, which were, in actuality, the manifestations of the dispersing elemental energy.

    However, despite Ai Hui¡¯s strenuous efforts, arge amount of elemental energy had still dispersed into the surrounding atmosphere.

    As he cultivated, Ai Hui gradually began toprehend some insights; he soon realized that the silver elemental energy was the type of energy that was most abundant in his body. This silver elemental energy was, in fact, a form of the scattered metal elemental energy. However, being finer and with a milder attribute, it appeared to be somewhat like fireflies gently floating within his body.

    It existed in a free-floating state and was also the fastest dispersing type of elemental energy.

    The other type of elemental energy present was much more stable and had a high affinity with his physical body, and every time Ai Hui circted his elemental energy, he would absorbrge amounts of it. More importantly, it could also bind and incorporaterge quantities of the free-floating metal elemental energy into Ai Hui¡¯s original pool of elemental energy.

    This kind of elemental energy probably existed uniquely in the elemental energy replenishing soup.

    Ai Hui had finally understood why so many people risked their lives and delved into the Wilderness to hunt for dire beasts.

    Even though the metal elemental energy had dispersed until there was practically nothing left, Ai Hui did not cease his practice, and he persistently channeled his elemental energy. His body, as well, was unceasingly emitting a faint aura.

 Chapter 16: Meeting of Rivals

    Chapter 16: Meeting of Rivals

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    The faint silver glow gently lingered around Ai Hui as smoke-like spirals, gradually transforming into hazy, sword-shaped forms that flitted about. Suddenly, everything vanished with a sh.

    Ai Hui was entirely immersed in his cultivation,pletely unaware of what had just urred.

    An hourter, he finally opened his eyes, which were filled with an iparable joy. He had never experienced such a marked improvement in his past three years of arduous practice. Ai Hui could barely contain his excitement; after all, he had persevered for three years before now finally glimpsing the light.

    What else could make one happier?

    Although he ultimately absorbed only five percent of the metal elemental energy, the total elemental energy within his body had been tripled; an unimaginable improvement for him.

    Even though Ai Hui had a low absorption efficiency, it did not particrly concern him, as this shoring could be ovee with persistent practice and perseverance. To him, any visible improvement¡ªno matter how little¡ªwas an achievement. He was most afraid of staying utterly stagnant despite practicing for many years.

    Ai Hui carefully reflected on his training. Lou Lan¡¯s soup had fulfilled a crucial function; without it, Ai Hui would not have been able to absorb such a rtivelyrge amount of metal elemental energy. Without its aid, however, Ai Hui did not know how much energy he could have absorbed, but he sensed that the result would have been drastically different.

    Ai Hui shook his head and banished these distracting thoughts to the back of his mind.

    The wealthy had their own practice methods, but the less-affluent had theirs too.

    While the metal elemental energy that was infused into his body was exceedingly harsh, it was, at the same time, much more condensed and pure. Although Ai Hui could only absorb a tiny fragment of the energy, it was countless of times purer than what the average novice could achieve. Because he was aware of this, Ai Hui did not stop cultivating the elemental energy, even when most of it had already dispersed.

    Most students pursued a higher cultivation level and hence vigorously strived to strengthen their elemental energy. Ai Hui, who had an abundance ofbat experience, had encountered all types of powerful individuals. He hade across many elementalists who had simr cultivation levels but vastly different fighting strengths. Ai Hui had long sinceprehended that the purer the elemental energy, the easier it was to manipte, thus allowing one to have greater efficacy in their attacks.

    Ai Hui had also understood that although the silver of elemental energy in his body was weak, it was extremely pure, and because it was also highly versatile in his hands, this elemental energy had repeatedly saved his life. Several of his tricks had even been praised by elder elementalists.

    Powerful weapons are no match for those readily on hand!

    When Ai Hui stepped out of the room and saw a pristine,pletely clean training hall, he was shocked.

    Noticing Aui Hui¡¯s expression, Lou Lan exined, ¡°I had some spare time on my hands and so conveniently cleaned up the ce. If you aren¡¯t happy, though, I will not do it again.¡±

    ¡°You did a way better job than me,¡± Ai Hui stammered with embarrassment. The hall looked as if it was thoroughly washed clean, and even the remote corners were totally free of dust. Ai Hui had always imed that he was a hall-cleaning specialist; never did he imagine that there would be someone who was several times better.

    When he received the praise, Lou Lan was obviously ted, and he cheerfully remarked, ¡°I am a sand puppet, and we are better at such things."

    Who would remember a sand puppet?

    Ai Hui wondered why this phrase had suddenly popped into his mind. He nced at Lou Lan, and then said out of the blue, ¡°Thank you for the elemental energy replenishing soup. It was very useful.¡±

    Ai Hui rarely praised people in the same way; in fact, towards others, he was usually much more guarded and distant. In front of Lou Lan, however, he was evidently much more rxed. Was it perhaps because Lou Lan was a sand puppet? It certainly seemed to be the case.

    When he heard that his soup was effective, Lou Lan felt even more pleased. Suddenly, his eyes started to glow with a rather demonic yellow light as he earnestly began to scrutinize Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui felt his hair stand on end.

    ¡°The bruises and swelling require some time to recover, but the muscle damage hasrgely healed,¡± Lou Lan unexpectedly reported, as the glow in his eyes disappeared.

    After listening to Lou Lan¡¯s report, the uneasiness that Ai Hui was feeling hadpletely vanished. He also started to feel that Lou Lan, with his unusual set of abilities, was bing stranger by the day. Lou Lan was proficient in preparing meals, brewing soup, cleaning and even appeared to be well-versed in medical treatment. Just what kind ofbination was this?

    ¡°I am going off to practice,¡± said Ai Hui, as he prepared to leave. He nned to make necessary preparations and purchase a few things before heading back to the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    ¡°I should head back to work too, then. Goodbye, Ai Hui,¡± Lou Lan replied as he waved farewell. Immediately after, his body transformed into a pile of sand, before seeping into the ground andpletely disappearing from the training hall.

    Duanmu Huanghun asionally scanned the crowd as he marched alone on the streets. Ai Hui had not attended ss for the past several days, leaving Duanmu Huanghun with no choice but to bring himself outside and try his luck in finding him. He knew that trying to find someone like that was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. However, if he was to tell Teacher Xu that he wanted to give up, that would be very embarrassing for him.

    Just thinking about that scoundrel, Ai Hui, made him tremble with anger.

    His devilishly charming yet refined, good looks attracted the attention of many who passed by.

    However, a good number of beautiful women had tried to approach him, only to be scared off by a furious, ice-cold gaze. After finding a camphor tree by the road, he leaned his slender body against it and started to leisurely eat a skewer of candied fruits. The bright crimson of the candied fruits contrasted sharply with his pale face, painting a dazzling, striking image.

    The youngdies were afraid to approach Duanmu Huanghun, so they flocked together nearby to gaze at him. Oh, how they longed to be that skewer of candied fruits that he held in his hands!

    Duanmu Huanghun, however, continued to stand with an elegant air of nonchnce. He had long been ustomed to being stared at and could care less about others were watching him.

    ¡°Duanmu Huanghun! Let¡¯s see how you¡¯re going to escape now!¡±

    A yell suddenly rang out from the opposite side of the street. After a quick nce, Duanmu Huanghun promptly chose to ignore the situation and continued to leisurely eat his candied fruits.

    A well-built, young man appeared not too far away from Duanmu Huanghun. With gleaming eyes and a mocking re, he taunted, ¡°Did you go into hiding after finding out that I, Zhao Zhibao, want to challenge you? Are you terrified? You disappoint me. I was under the impression that Duanmu Huanghun was some type of genius, but it seems like he¡¯s just a coward!¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun did not even bat an eyelid.The enchanting sight of his long eyshes, which gracefully stood against the glowing backdrop of his paleplexion, was enough to invoke jealousy from all the young women present.

    The onlooking group of youngdies started to go wild with excitement.

    ¡°Zhao Zhibao! How can you simply shoot your mouth off like that? You¡¯re not even qualified enough to challenge our Huanghun!¡±

    ¡°Exactly! Do you think that any random Tom, Dick or Harry can challenge our Huanghun?¡±

    ¡°Take a good look at yourself, with your long hair, boxy torso, and equally boxy legs. Hehe! Are you trying to act like a wooden trunk with a mop stuck on top?"

    Hearing the taunts and jeers of the young women, Zhao Zhibao¡¯s face flushed crimson as he flew into a rage. He had always considered himself to be a cut above the rest, and hearing of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s talent did not instill even the slightest amount of fear in him. Since he was a student that ranked in the top five of his ss, Zhao Zhibao was particrly confident in his own extraordinary strength and had hence openly issued a challenge to Duanmu Huanghun.

    ¡°So this is our talented Duanmu Huanghun, but his talent is in hiding behind a bunch of girls! Ha!¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun, however, still did not lift a single eyelid. He then spat out the rosehip seeds that he was chewing, and said tly, ¡°I¡¯m not in a good mood today, so you¡¯d better scram.¡±

    ¡°Not in a good mood? Ha! Come on, beat me up!¡± Zhao Zhibao teased.

    Five minutester.

    Without even a minute ripple in his expression, Duanmu Huanghun elegantly withdrew his leg. Zhao Zhibao¡¯s beaten body could be seen lying pitifully on the ground; not even his face was left untouched. Finishing hisst rosehip seed, Duanmu Huanghun tossed his bamboo stick aside before finally walking away indifferently.

    ¡°Pop!¡±

    Zhao Zibhao¡¯s gaze froze; he was too scared to move. The bamboo pick had forcefully dug into the earth barely two centimeters away from his nose.

    The girls who were watching cheered and screamed while they trailed behind Duanmu Huanghun like a swarm of bees

    Ady inconspicuously stood at a nearby street corner, wearing a light veil over her face. If one could look closely, however, they would see a glint in her eyes. Shi Xueman had unobtrusivelye to Central Pine City to explicitly visit her n¡¯s training hall, but little did she expect to witness such a scene. She had long heard of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s renowned name, but she had not anticipated that he would be here in Central Pine City as well. Furthermore, he had disyed his exceptional prowess.

    Could it have been him?

    Shi Xueman quickly shook her head. Even though it was a blind battle, that scoundrel¡¯s fighting style waspletely different from Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s; it was more violent and ferocious, much like that of a wild beast.

    She shortly turned around and left in the direction of her n¡¯s training hall.

    After twenty whole minutes, Zhao Zhibao finally recovered some of his energy and started to effortfully struggle to get himself off the ground.

    However, when he lifted his head, he saw something that stunned him.

    Someone with a simrly battered face was walking towards him.

    When Ai Hui, who had just finished buying his things, saw Zhao Zhibao in the middle of the street, he too waspletely taken aback.

    The two of them looked far too alike; they both had bloody noses, swollen faces, and bruises covering every inch of their bodies. Even their facial features were simrly disfigured, and both of their clothes were tattered as well.

    When Zhao Zhibao, who had just been beaten to a pulp, saw Ai Hui as a reflection of his miserable state, he believed that the situation itself had appeared to ridicule and humiliate him. He felt a sudden rush of inexplicable anger, which propelled him off the ground, and he viciously barked, ¡°I am not in a good mood today, you¡¯d better scram!¡±

    Ai Hui narrowed his bruised, swollen eyes.

 Chapter 17: Conveniently

    Chapter 17: Conveniently

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    Ai Hui felt that he did not have a good disposition and in the Wilderness, it was unnecessary. Instead, traits like strength, aggression, and perseverance were required. Even in the most desperate of times, one must be able to put everything on the line in exchange for a chance to survive. Those with a delicate disposition were the first to be eliminated.

    Besides, who wouldn¡¯t get riled up after being beaten up all the way till five in the morning?

    Ai Hui was like a volcano that was ready to explode, but he could not find an outlet. Lou Lan wore his naivety like armor, so his sincerity exposed no openings. Fatty was still the best since Ai Hui could beat him up whenever he felt like it.

    Here, someone had served up a sandbag just when Ai Hui felt like beating someone up.

    Squinting his swollen eyes, a cold murderous intent surged through Ai Hui¡¯s heavily bruised body. He promptly threw the stuff that he had bought on the floor, clearly not caring if they shattered.

    Zhao Zhibao saw the other person walk towards him and the anger he felt rose to another level. He had no choice except to endure his loss to Duanmu Huanghun, but he simply could not ept having some random person from the streets challenging him. How could he not be angry?

    With an evil grin on his face, Zhao Zhibao lunged at Ai Hui with his hands extended. His palms gave off dense, red mes.

    The red-hot tongues of meshed out as the hollow of his right palm shed radiantly, raising the surrounding temperature. Zhao Zhibao was extremely satisfied. Duanmu Huanghun had knocked him down before he could even utilize his elemental energy, then humiliated him by trampling him for five whole minutes. Now, his thoroughly damaged self-confidence soared with his mes, making Zhao Zhibao feel mighty again.

    His carelessness had led to his defeat at Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s hands. Yes, it must have been so. If he had circted his elemental energy earlier, the oue of the battle might have been different.

    His opponent¡¯s silhouette was distorted by the mes. It had be tiny and insignificant, just like the countless other opponents he had defeated in the past.

    me it on your bad luck!

    Zhao Zhibao let loose an explosive cry. With an expert step forward, the streams of fire emanating from his right hand appeared to be molded by an invisible force, with two me pirs spreading out like wings. The sharp overbearing cry of a crow rang out from amid the mes, creating the awe-inspiring image of a ming crow spreading its wings.

    Zhao Zhibao¡¯s heart filled with ecstasy.

    [Crow¡¯s Wings of Ice and Fire] was a move employed by both fire and water elementalists. Being a fire elementalist, Zhao Zhibao naturally practiced the Fire Crow. The first skill he learned upon opening his right hand pce was the Fire Crow. The form maniption involved was not difficult for him, but manipting its form was only the first stage of the skill. The crow¡¯s cry was the next level and the elemental energy¡¯s resonance with the skill signaled a sharp increase in its power.

    Zhao Zhibao did not expect himself to make a breakthrough at this moment. He felt it was a pity that such a magnificent skill was wasted on such an unworthy opponent. Not using this skill in the fight against Duanmu Huanghun left him filled with regret.

    Ai Hui was unconcerned.

    [Crow¡¯s Wings of Ice and Fire] was amonly seen move and was nothing to make a fuss about. It was certainly not easy for him to achieve the crow¡¯s cry at his age, but that was about it.

    In the moment that Zhao Zhibao lunged forward, a glimmer of light flickered in Ai Hui¡¯s pupil.

    Almost simultaneously, he brazenly dashed toward his opponent.

    Ai Hui¡¯s actions gave Zhao Zhibao a slight shock. Rather than hide, Ai Hui had unexpectedly rushed toward him. Was his brain not functioning normally? Since his opponent had a death wish, Zhao Zhibao was most certainly not going to go easy on him.

    As the distance between the two rapidly grew closer, Zhao Zhibao became more and more excited. His eyes grew wide with excitement as an evil grin emerged upon his face. Ready to knock his opponent down with one blow, he prepared to raise his right palm.

    Just as his opponent was about to collide into Zhao Zhibao¡¯s palm technique, Ai Hui swerved his body, disrupting Zhao Zhibao¡¯s rhythm.

    His opponent¡¯s maneuver left Zhao Zhibao feeling unspeakably annoyed. Any momentter, Zhao Zhibao could have blindly elerated his palm at his opponent. Any moment earlier,he would have time to make the necessary adjustments. This maneuver, however, was perfectly timed andpletely stopped him in his tracks. The resulting difort left him reeling.

    Both parties were extremely close, so Zhao Zhibao had no time to alter his move. All he could do was twist his palm toward its side, sweeping at Ai Hui in a chopping motion.

    Wait a minute, where did he go?

    Zhao Zhibao¡¯s eyes suddenly grew wide, as if he had seen a ghost. His opponent hadpletely disappeared right in front of him.

    Just what was happening?

    Bang!

    Zhao Zhibao felt an intense pain in his right ribs, which slowly spread to the rest of his body in a sh. His body began to stiffen. How was this possible......

    His mind was a nk, unsure if the intense pain or the sudden shock had rendered him incapable of thought.

    After swaying aside, Ai Hui had bent over like a limber cat toward Zhao Zhibao¡¯s right ribs. He did not even use elemental energy for this blow. The nerves in this area were bundled densely such that any strong strike was enough to momentarily stun someone.

    After having gotten the upper hand with just one move, Ai Hui seized the opportunity, turned to his side, and infused elemental energy into the soles of his feet. A silver light shed as Ai Hui quietly pressed his back onto Zhao Zhibao¡¯s chest. Ai Hui¡¯s arched back was like apressed spring. Upon release, a powerful force exploded from his back, hitting Zhao Zhibao¡¯s chest like a wild rhinoceros.

    With a loud thud, Zhao Zhibao was sent flying backward in an arc.

    Bang!

    Zhao Zhibaonded heavily on the ground. Instantly, Ai Hui appeared beside Zhao Zhibao, relentlessly pursuing him in a demonic manner. Without any hesitation, Ai Hui pressed his right knee into Zhao Zhibao¡¯s back while his left hand gripped onto his opponent¡¯s head. His right hand conveniently grabbed the bamboo skewer stuck in the ground, then viciously stabbed Zhao Zhibao in the back of his neck.

    Ai Hui could easily stab a wild beast in the throat with a blunt chopstick, let alone with a bamboo skewer that had such a sharp edge.

    The whole process happened smoothly, as fast as lightning.

    At the instant that the bamboo skewer was just about to pierce through Zhao Zhibao¡¯s skin, Ai Hui had a sudden realization¡ªthis was not the Wilderness! He forcefully stopped the bamboo skewer. On Zhao Zhibao¡¯s neck, a fresh red dot the size of a needle prick emerged and a drop of crimson blood seeped out of the wound.

    Zhao Zhibao, who had been knocked silly, had no idea that he had just narrowly missed death.

    This was not the Wilderness!

    Ai Hui reminded himself once more, as his gaze became solemn and withdrawn. Ai Hui then conveniently threw the bamboo skewer back to the ground.

    ¡°Ah!¡±

    Zhao Zhibao let out a mournful cry that abruptly stopped.

    Ai Hui withdrew his hand from Zhao Zhibao¡¯s nape without taking so much as a nce at the now-unconscious Zhao Zhibao. Winning against such an opponent did not give him any thrill or excitement. Without any concept of timing, Zhao Zhibao¡¯s attacks were utterly superficial. Moreover, this opponent became distracted in the middle of the fight. Such ackluster performance left Ai Hui feeling unsatisfied.

    As a result of his strong upational habits, Ai Hui certainly did not forget to rake in his rewards.

    Zhao Zhibao was stripped bare of his possessions and even his armor was not spared. Such thoroughness had long been ingrained into Ai Hui¡¯s basic instincts.

    Earning twenty thousand yuan put Ai Hui in a good mood. His opponent¡¯s clothes and materials were of good quality, so Ai Hui put them on without any hesitation.

    Picking up his belongings, Ai Hui continued toward the city gate.

    Duanmu Huanghun had yet to give up. He picked out a high ground near the city gate, waiting idly for his target to show up. He plucked another skewer of candied fruits seemingly out of nowhere and began leisurely eating it.

    Since he¡¯s not in the city, could he be outside?

    After giving Zhao Zhibao a good beating, Duanmu Huanghun felt himself bing more cid. This was the only way into or out of the city.

    A group of youngdies hovered nearby, their eyes gazed upon Duanmu Huanghun passionately. They suddenly became agitated.

    ¡°Look! Zhao Zhibao!¡±

    ¡°He looks so pitiful! His face and body are all out of shape!¡±

    ¡°He deserves it! How dare he challenge our Huanghun, this is already letting him off easily...¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was standing on high ground, shot a quick nce at Zhao Zhibao before looking away. He had no interest in those he defeated. Duanmu Huanghun had not looked Zhao Zhibao in the eye even once during the entire encounter. He did not care what Zhao Zhibao looked like before and cared even less now that the man was all battered.

    Ai Hui spotted Duanmu Huanghun before quickly retracting his gaze. Eating candied fruits instead of attending lessons or practicing, the whims of a spoiled brat were indeed strange.

    He too heard the chattering from the group ofdies, but he had no inkling of who Zhao Zhibao was.

    Noting that it had nothing to do with him, Ai Hui disregarded themotion and walked toward the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

 Chapter 18: Fumbling

    Chapter 18: Fumbling

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    Defeating an amateur did not stir up Ai Hui¡¯s emotions, but the short battle did give him the opportunity to witness his own improvement. The increased elemental energy had a direct effect on his strength. The metal elemental energy absorbed from the Suspending Golden Pagoda was much purer than that ofmon sources. The elemental energy within his body was still considerably weak, but a threefold increase in elemental energy implied much greater room for development.

    Ai Hui walked toward the Suspending Golden Pagoda, stopping outside its front gate. With the previous experience still fresh in his mind, he did not hastily enter the grounds this time.

    The howling gales within the pagoda were still as intimidating as ever.

    Ai Hui took out the rope he just bought, tying one end to a rock the size of a wicker basket. He tied the other end to his waist, lifted the rock, and threw it into the pagoda.

    The rope suddenly stretched taut and a powerful pulling force quickly followed. Ai Hui was well-prepared, but still he stumbled.

    The terrible metal winds within the pagoda violently tossed the rock in every direction. The force that pulled on the rope was beyond Ai Hui¡¯s expectations. He struggled to keep his body steady, but was still dragged toward the pagoda¡¯s entrance.

    Since was truly lucky to have made it out of the pagoda previously, Ai Hui felt a lingering fear.

    The rope suddenly rxed, as the force pulling him forward disappeared. Ai Hui was still exerting his power backward and was unprepared for the sudden change. He reacted quickly, gently tapping the floor with his palm as he fell before he soared back up andnded squarely on his feet.

    The rope had snapped. Ai Hui pulled the broken end over to investigate and found that the rope had arge number of tiny pinhole-like punctures through it.

    Discovering that a rope made of grass was not good enough, Ai Hui shook his head. The numerous tiny holes were caused by fine silver strands of metal elemental energy piercing the rope. The rock would probably notst much longer either. Within moments, the mming soundsing from within the pagoda came to a halt, and a crashing noise followed. The rock must have been shattered into a pile of small stones.

    The metal winds were truly ferocious!

    No wonder this training ground was only rmended to those who had opened their natal pces.

    Luckily, Ai Hui had a backup n as he pulled out an iron chain that was as thick as his wrist. Dragging this iron chain all the way to the Suspending Golden Pagoda had worn him out. He flung one end of the iron chain into the pagoda, waited a while, then pulled it back out. The chains remained undamaged. The metal fences in the pagoda that Ai Hui saw duringst visit gave him the idea that an iron chain might be able to withstand the metal wind.

    Ai Hui expended arge amount of effort and spent an entire hour pushing a rockrger than himself to the pagoda. There was no other choice since he had smashed up all the surrounding rocks on hisst visit.

    He wrapped one end of the iron chain around the rock before attaching the other to his waist.

    After ensuring that the ends were firmly secured, Ai Hui took a deep breath and jumped into the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    Once inside, Ai Hui was immediately swept up by the violent metal winds, spinning around like a top. A powerful force unexpectedly pulled at his waist, nearly snapping him into two. The iron chain wrapped around his waist was stretched so taut that it was perfectly straight. Seeing that his method worked, Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief. He barely had time to rejoice before his back mmed into the wall. He promptly covered his head with his hands, curled into a ball, and allowed himself to bounce around like a rubber ball.

    This time around, Ai Hui stayed inside for a shorter duration. Rather than wait until he had almost hit his limit, Ai Hui used the iron chain to pull himself out once he started to feel bloated.

    Having dragged himself out of the pagoda, Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief. The world inside the pagoda waspletely different from the world outside of it. Ai Hui had managed his training well¡ªhis mind was clear and he still had some energy left.

    He started to hit his own body.

    After his previous training session, Ai Hui had pondered over how he could absorb metal elemental energy. Ai Hui¡¯s pursuit of power was unquestionable, but he had no desire to be beaten up every day from dusk to dawn. That was an experience he had no wish to repeat.

    He thus devised the method currently being employed.

    In order to absorb metal elemental energy, the first step he had to take was to scatter the fine silver threads of energy that had been taken into his body. If a smaller amount of it was taken in, then perhaps he could handle this step himself.

    Hitting himself and getting hit by others were essentially the same. The experience, however, was wholly different.

    Ai Hui hit himself with maximum effort while simultaneously observing any changes within his body. He closely monitored his strength and technique, fumbling around to get a feel for the most effectivebination.

    He had a poor aptitude and was poor financially as well. All he could do was put in more effort.

    He gradually uncovered some tricks to this training, but soon encountered another problem: he was unable to reach the metal elemental energy within the muscles of his back. He deeply contemted his options before resting his gaze on the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    This pagoda that had been exposed to the metal winds for so many years should be quite sturdy. As such, the walls of the Suspending Golden Pagoda certainly seemed like a highly suitable piece of equipment for Ai Hui to ram his back into. Ai Hui quickly realized that he was thinking too much. The walls of the pagoda were as hard as metal, so dashing into them just two or three times would probably shatter his bones.

    A substantial portion of the metal elemental energy in his back was not yet scattered. Ai Hui suddenly thought of his recent fight with the ¡°amateur swollen guy¡± where he had executed the [Arching Fish Back] move.

    This skill, [Arching Fish Back], reminded him most of the blind battle. When he had locked his opponent down, the move she attempted to use to counter him was the [Arching Fish Back]. Ai Hui, who constantly performed work that required copious amounts of strength, had the utmost confidence in his brute power. His opponent had shocked him by wielding a surprising amount of force and, almost breaking free of his grappling technique.

    He could sense that his opponent¡¯s elemental energy wasn¡¯t particrly strong and that her physical strength wasn¡¯t great either. The fact that her Arching Fish Back was so powerful made it clear that she had profound martial attainments.

    Ai Hui had developed a strong interest in this move and copied it. In the three years he had spent in the Wilderness, Ai Hui learned many skills that were unorthodox and fragmented, but were highly practical, just like the [Arching Fish Back].

    However, he rarely had an opportunity to use this move. Getting locked down by an opponent at his current level would spell certain doom. He would not even have the chance to execute the move.

    A sh of inspiration gave him the idea to use the [Arching Fish Back] to send ¡°amateur swollen guy¡± flying earlier that day. This experience helped him to find other uses for the technique. He began to repeatedly use the [Arching Fish Back] against the walls of the pagoda.

    Not long after, he made another discovery. When he was curled up training in the pagoda, the part of his body that took in the most metal elemental energy was his back. Besides having an astonishing amount of explosive power, the [Arching Fish Back] had a jolting effect as well.

    No wonder his arms had gone numb during the blind battle.

    The effectiveness of his idea boosted his morale significantly. Ai Hui became even more meticulous at his task.

    Once all the metal elemental energy had been scattered, Ai Hui sat in a lotus pose. He began to enter a meditative state, absorbing the dispersed metal elemental energy.

    An hourter, Ai Hui opened his eyes. He could feel an increase in his elemental energy. Although his improvement this time was much less than that ofst night, that was to be expected. The thought of that bowl of elemental energy replenishing soup still made his heart ache. Last night¡¯s progress might have been remarkable, but the cost had been huge.

    This method of training might be long and arduous, but it didn¡¯t matter to Ai Hui as long as he saw possible improvement. For him who had struggled through dark and difficult times, but refused to pass into oblivion, hardship was not an issue.

 Chapter 19: Possessing The Arching Fish Back

    Chapter 19: Possessing The Arching Fish Back

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    Looking at the profusely sweating Shi Xueman, the middle-aged man was filled with regret. In hindsight, organizing the blind battle was truly a bad idea. He had brought this upon Miss Xueman.

    Among the descendants from the current generation of the Shi family, Miss Xueman was the most passionate. Despite her seemingly cold exterior, she was actually a warm person and was cherished by everyone. His eagerness in obtaining merit had resulted in Miss Xueman¡¯s tireless training, for which he med himself greatly and felt terribly guilty. He had tried to persuade her a couple of times, but to no avail. Once Miss Xueman had made up her mind, there was no turning back.

    This aspect of her personality was very much like her father¡¯s.

    The middle-aged man sighed deeply. He had worked together with Xueman¡¯s father before and had the utmost admiration for him. The figure in the training hall drenched with sweat reminded him of the past, and his mind wandered back to 20 years ago.

    Currently, Shi Xueman had finished her training and was headed toward the middle-aged man. ¡°Uncle Yong Zheng, you don¡¯t have to worry too much about me. I can practice on my own,¡± she said while wiping her sweat.

    The way she spoke was ice-cold, yet notpletely distant.

    Shi Xueman had only recently found out from her grandfather that the person in charge of the training hall was her father¡¯s colleague. Although hisck of talent limited his aplishments, she still respectfully regarded him as an elder on ount of his good rtionship with her father in the past.

    ¡°I¡¯m worried that it¡¯s too exhausting,¡± Uncle Yong Zheng replied. ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so hard on yourself. Sigh, your father used to be exactly the same. He couldn¡¯t even sleep a wink whenever he lost to someone. Like father like daughter indeed.¡±

    Shi Xueman quietly listened. From a young age, she had rarely met her father. The impression she had of him was based on what others told her.

    ¡°This list contains the name of all the newly enrolled students in the Society of Excellence,¡± Yong Zheng said as he handed over the namelist. ¡°I will continue to monitor any new members. Although repeating this so many times makes me sound really long-winded, I still want to remind you that you don¡¯t have to be so harsh on yourself since that was just a fluke.¡±

    Shi Xueman took the list, calmly saying, ¡°Uncle Yong Zheng, that was not an ident. A loss is simply a loss, and there are no excuses for it.¡±

    Expecting such a reply, Yong Zheng smiled wryly..

    Shi Xueman suddenly asked, ¡°Uncle Yong Zheng, how do you feel about organizing another blind battle?¡±

    ¡°Organize another blind battle?¡± Yong Zheng was momentarily shocked, but quickly responded, ¡°Is Young Mistress thinking of luring him into a trap?¡±

    ¡°Indeed,¡± Shi Xueman said with a nod, ¡°I have concluded that there are only two possible reasons as to why that person would participate in the blind battle. The first is that he is interested in the battle itself. With his skill in fighting in the dark, it would not be surprising for him to be enticed by such a uniquepetition. The other possibility is that he is poor and simply joined for the prize money.¡±

    Yong Zheng muttered, ¡°The first reason seems more probable. Someone who is strong enough to defeat Young Mistress can¡¯t possibly be moved by a mere 50,000 yuan.¡±

    ¡°Xueman feels that way too. Can we spend some effort on another blind battle? A revamped blind battle should attract our target.¡± Shi Xueman continued, ¡°Even though the second possibility seems less likely, we cannotpletely discount it. The prize money must be raised.¡±

    Yong Zheng¡¯s eyes lit up as he said, ¡°This is a great idea! Since he is so skilled in battling in the dark, a novel form of the blind battle is sure to entice him. As long as it is interesting enough, he will definitely be attracted. The prize money can easily be handled. We can raise it to 500,000 yuan.¡±

    ¡°Make it a million,¡± Shi Xueman stated resolutely. ¡°I¡¯ll be heading back shortly, so matters regarding the blind battle will need to be handled by you. I have a three-day rest period in two weeks and will be back again to trouble Uncle Yong Zheng then.

    Yong Zheng sighed, ¡°Leave it to me.¡±

    As long as it was within his ability, he would carry out his mission thoroughly. To be honest, he was also very curious about this mysterious genius who could defeat Miss Xueman.

    .....

    The Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    Ai Hui viciously smashed his back against the wall like arge, ferocious fish. A barely perceptible jitter traveled across his back at the same instant when he contacted the wall. An abnormally resounding boom rang through the air.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. This time around, there was obvious improvement in the power of his [Arching Fish Back]. It was now full of explosive power, far exceeding all his previous attempts.

    Before he had time to rejoice, a peerless force rebounded from the wall. His body was flung several meters away from the wall like a rag doll.

    Thump!

    Hended heavily in the mud. Luckily, he was experienced enough to make adjustments in mid-air. Even though hisnding position seemed to cut a sorry figure, he was not even scratched.

    He casually plucked a de of grass as he got up and started to chew on it. A pensive glint in his eyes hinted that he was deep in thought.

    The power of thatst [Arching Fish Back] hadpletely exceeded his expectations. If his [Arching Fish Back] had been this powerful in the previous fight, his opponent¡¯s chest would probably have been shattered.

    The power of the [Arching Fish Back] was much greater than he initially thought. More importantly, he still had the capacity to improve.

    Ai Hui spat out the grass chaff as his eyes shed with excitement.

    [Arching Fish Back] wasn¡¯t some superior skill, nor was it part of any system of skills. Not being part of a system meant that it was possible to train this skill independently. Training the power of this skill up a notch would certainly make it a killing move.

    In his initial n, [Arching Fish Back] was only intended to be used as part of his training, but he was pleasantly surprised when he unexpectedly discovered its use as a potential killing move.

    He became even more engrossed in his training, repeating the same old routine everyday. He would enter the pagoda to gather metal elemental energy, exit the pagoda, and practice the [Arching Fish Back] on its walls. He would then proceed by sitting in a lotus pose, entering a meditative state, and absorbing the elemental energy. Repeating the process tirelessly, his elemental energy increased slowly but surely.

    Possibly as a result of his increased elemental energy, his body¡¯spatibility with the metal elemental energy had risen. As his [Arching Fish Back] became more refined, the efficacy of his trainings improved, but he soon discovered another issue. The metal elemental energy in his back was efficiently scattered with the [Arching Fish Back], but scattering the energy in other parts of his body with his palm was much less effective.

    However, the technique used to generate power in the [Arching Fish Back] could not be employed in other parts of the body. The essence of the move lied in its use of one¡¯s spinal column and back muscles to mimic how a fish struggles to break free when caught.

    Realizing that his progress was hampered by this issue, Ai Hui knew that he needed to go back and make some additional preparations.

    He had previously returned one time for some dry rations and also asked Lou Lan for help with cleaning the training ground, to which Lou Lan happily agreed.

    Continuously training for seven days had left him looking like a savage. His clothes were dpidated but could not mask his impressive demeanour. Beneath his unkempt hair and dirt-crusted face were a pair of eyes as calm as water.

 Chapter 20: A Sudden Turnaround

    Chapter 20: A Sudden Turnaround

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Activities of the Society of Excellence were notpulsory but few students would choose to miss them. No one wanted to miss the opportunity of receiving guidance from the seniors. Unlike teachers from the Induction Ground, the seniors from the Society were all seasoned front-line soldiers. They might not be good at theory, but they had rich battle experience. Thus, the skills and techniques they imparted were of high practical value.

    To the front-line soldiers who were dispatched to be in charge of the Society, it was a lucrative and easy job: rxing work, double the allowance, good food, and no requirement to guard against dire beast attacks during the cold, windy night. Instead, they were able to drink hot tea in a warm room. How enjoyable!

    Because the demand for this job was high, every city¡¯s resident staff members were rotated every year.

    Li Wei and Zhou Xiaoxi had just been transferred into Central Pine City and were newly in charge of the Society of Excellence. Li Wei was from the army unit whereas Zhou Xiaoxi came from the northern navy unit. Both units had friendly rtions and were without conflict, so the two of them quickly became friends. After all, they were going to be working together for a year.

    ¡°What a tranquil ce.¡± Zhou Xiaoxi examined the surroundings and sighed, ¡°How time flies. Fifteen years gone in the blink of an eye. I really want to go back in time. Being young is still the best.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Li Weiughed. ¡°And go after all the girls you failed to chase in the past?¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxi rolled his eyes. ¡°Do I look superficial to you?¡±

    Without waiting for a reply, Zhou Xiaoxi continued in a deadpan tone, ¡°Yes.¡±

    Li Wei burst intoughter.

    Zhou Xiaoxi asked suddenly, ¡°If you were to return to life in the Induction Ground, what is the first thing you would want to do?¡±

    ¡°Sleep!¡± Li Wei responded without the slightest hesitation.

    ¡°Sleep?¡± Zhou Xiaoxi was quite surprised.

    ¡°That is right!¡± Li Wei sounded certain. ¡°I would tell myself, Li Wei, you are going to be sleep-deprived for the next fifteen years, so hurry and catch some sleep while you can or you will not get a chance again!¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxiughed out loud. He asked somewhat curiously, ¡°You had more activities during the night?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Li Wei looked helpless. ¡°Come to think of it, I was unlucky. Upon graduating from the Induction Ground, I moved directly to the frontline. Immediately after, the dire beasts became increasingly active everyday. The first two years were not too bad, but they became rampant in recent years and harassed us almost every night.¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s expression became grave. In recent years, the frontlines of all regions had been in an increasingly tense state. The dire beasts had be abnormally restless, causing unease. As veterans who had been on the frontlines for a long period of time, they understood this feeling.

    Civilians felt no pressure. Tension from the frontline had no effect on the leisurely lifestyle of those at the back who were protected.

    Li Wei sensed the heavy atmosphere and smiled. ¡°What are we worrying about? We are working under so many big shots. Let us just enjoy and cherish this one year. We can create more happy memories to make up for the past!¡±

    ¡°True, it is none of our business!¡± Zhou Xiaoxi had an evil grin on his face. ¡°I am going to drill these rookies! When I was in the Induction Ground, the old men from the Society of Excellence tormented me like *****. Now I am motivated to do the same.¡±

    Recalling the hard times he endured in the past, Li Wei nodded in agreement. ¡°In this area, we should not lose to our seniors! Look at this guy who just walked in, he looks sick. How can this be the case? The future of the Avalon of Five Elements is in his hands. How can such weak- shoulders carry that important responsibility?¡±

    ¡°That is exactly what I was thinking!¡± Zhou Xiaoxi agreed wholeheartedly. His smile became even more sinister. The way he gazed at the frail-looking student was the same way a big bad wolf looked at a fresh, tender, and snow-white rabbit.

    Duanmu Huanghun looked pale. He was not feeling well, his vision was blurry, he felt dizzy, his limbs were going weak, and he was sweating all over. He would not have attended if not for the fact that this was the Society¡¯s introductory gathering.

    Standing guard by the city gate continuously for three days and three nights, he had not paid attention to the cold weather and had caught a cold.

    That damned bastard!

    Just thinking about that damned fellow sent him into a rage. He coughed uncontrobly. Just you wait and see. One day you will fall into my hands and I, Duamnu Huanghun, will not let you off!

    ¡°Student Duanmu, are you ill? Is it serious?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun snapped out of his anger and raised his pale face. He did not know who the man in front of him was, but he had a badge pinned on his chest pocket that revealed his identity. Duanmu Huanghun hurriedly replied, ¡°Thank you for your concern, senior. I caught a cold, and it¡¯s nothing serious.¡±

    ¡°I thought so.¡± Zhou Xiaoxi grinned, revealing his canines. ¡°You have been crowned the most gifted student of the year. How could you get knocked down by a mere cold? Come,e,e. Take a look at the training n I have prepared for you! A genius needs a genius training n. Since you are feeling all right, let us start now. If dyed, we would not be able to make it in time for night training.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun looked at his senior in shock and thought he had misheard.

    Night training? Taking a student ill with a cold for night training?

    His pale, handsome, devilishly charming face was filled with bewilderment. Under his tall, handsome, and straight nose, mucus flowed down steadily from both nostrils.

    As Duanmu Huanghun shivered in the cold with his mucus trickling down, Ai Hui was in the Vanguard Training hall soaking in a piping hot bathtub. He was extremely content, and all of his fatigue disappeared.

    Howfortable!

    Training halls were prepared for practitioners. Most came with special bathing spots to help practitioners recharge. In the past, at the swordsman school, he had made a bathtub for himself using an iron-ted bucket. During his three years in the Wilderness, taking a cold shower had been a luxury, let alone a warm bath.

    He would depart once again when day broke.

    Having a day of rest allowed his tensed muscles to loosen up. Lou Lan had advised him to consume a bowl of elemental soup as it would help to repair his muscle and bone injuries. The puppet also offered to brew it for him. Ai Hui asked about its cost. At least 40,000 yuan was the reply.

    Ai Hui, who was in great pain, decided to save this offer for when he returned next week.

    How expensive!

    Yesterday, he went to a cksmith to custom-order some things, and they had cost quite a bit. The iron chain he purchased previously was also quite expensive. If not for the twenty thousand yuan that he took from the amateur, beaten-up man, Ai Hui would not even be able to pool together forty thousand yuan.

    The sky slowly brightened. As Ai Hui stepped out of his bath, he was energized and felt a boundless strength in his body.

    After cleaning the training hall, he packed some water and dried rations before shutting the door and setting off to the smithy to collect his custom-made items.

    Duanmu Huanghun held onto his clothes tightly as he shivered. His body was shaking and his legs were weak as he shambled into the city. What a terrifying night. He did not know how he had managed to survive. His illness had worsened after a night of battling with the winds and he was freezing, starving, and exhausted.

    His eyes were vacant, he was breathing very weakly, and he resembled a zombie.

    Hisst rational thought was to seek a doctor immediately.

    His dull gaze fell upon a smithy, and he happened to see a certain someone lift up the bamboo blinds before entering the shop.

    Previously, he had scoured every corner for this person, but to no avail. Now, when he was not even searching, that guy suddenly appeared in a smithy!

    His gaze was fixed, and all the rage that had been building up burst into mes. Forget the cold and the doctor... these thoughts were thrown to the back of his mind!

    I have finally found you, you bastard!

    He did not know from where, but a wave of energy came over him, and he charged towards the shop withrge strides.

    Upon reaching the entrance, he caught sight of Ai Hui¡¯s back from behind the blinds. Duanmu Huanghun only had one thought in mind: Let us see if you can escape!

    With an indescribable rage, he reached his hand out abruptly and grabbed onto Ai Hui¡¯s shoulder!

 Chapter 21: Target: the Heart!

    Chapter 21: Target: the Heart!

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    ¡°Boss, are the items ready?¡±

    ¡°They are done. They do not look very good due to theck of time, but do not worry, they are of good quality and there will not be any problems. Take a look.¡±

    Ai Hui conveniently picked up an item, carefully examined it, and was satisfied.. Although it did not look very refined, the cksmith had pretty good skills, and the workmanship was very solid. As long as the items were sturdy and reliable, they were good enough for Ai Hui. He never bothered with aesthetics.

    He packed his items and prepared to leave.

    Sensing a presence nearby, he was immediately on guard. Upon noticing the weakness of the foot steps, Ai Hui rxed. This was not the Wilderness, he reminded himself.

    Suddenly, he felt something on his shoulder. A hand! His hair stood on end and he forgot his own reminder as his body reacted instinctively.

    He did not dodge. Instead, he arched his back and closed in on the chest of this unknown threat. Exerting forcefully from his legs, Ai Hui¡¯s body became like a cannonball as it powerfully shot backward.

    Ai Hui was in a highly agitated state, so when he felt someone touching him, heunched the [Arching Fish Back], a technique he had been practicing for a whole week. He did it brazenly and without any hesitation.

    Like a ferocious fish that leaped out of the water with a powerful jerk of its arching back, his technique was executed at full power.

    Like a deluge breaking through a dam, the violent, surging force was abruptly unleashed.

    Boom!

    It was on point.

    Immediately, Ai Hui knew his [Arching Fish Back] waspletely on target. He felt his opponent fly back without any attempt to resist. It was like... like he had struck a feather-light sandbag.

    He felt a little weird that the opponent made no sound. Enemies that received such a counterattack or hit would usually scream miserably, like in the bamboo stick incident.

    Boom

    A heavy object fell onto the ground.

    Not even withstanding a single blow? Ai Hui was puzzled, but he suddenly realized what he had done. An ominous feeling rose in his heart as he turned around and saw a motionless fellow lying down on his stomach.

    Ai Hui was shocked and annoyed with himself. Did he not just remind himself that this was not the Wilderness? Why did he attack without thinking?

    Lying on the ground after a single [Arching Fish Back]? How weak was this fellow?!

    Ai Hui ran over while mumbling, ¡°Hey, hey, hey, are you okay?¡±

    Turning this fellow over, Ai Hui saw his face clearly and was startled. Eh, was this not that fellow, Duan... Bangwan something? Ai Hui remembered thinking it was a strange name and did not understand why anyone would use it. Or did he recall wrongly? How was it possible for the evening to be carried with both hands? Or was it actually Duanwan instead?

    ¡°Bangwan, Bangwan, are you okay?¡±

    Ai Hui had knocked him unconscious.

    Ai Hui felt slight remorse. He had been too aggressive. Although this fellow was unreasonable, full of arrogance, and was unfriendly toward him, Ai Hui believed he would not go so far as to attack him. Again, he thought about how he had just knocked out his fellow ssmate...

    Too aggressive... too aggressive...

    While reflecting upon himself, Ai Hui picked Duanwan up and slung him over his shoulder. He then collected his items before rushing back to the training hall.

    The moment he reached the training hall, he started to yell for his neighbor, ¡°Lou Lan! Lou Lan!¡±

    Soon after, a lump of sand seeped out from within the ground and metamorphosed into a humanoid form. Lou Lan was quite curious. ¡°Ai Hui, what happened?¡±

    ¡°I injured a ssmate by ident.¡± Without concealing, Ai Hui told the truth and felt his face burning. In the Wilderness, someone who mistakenly injured a fellow teammate would be marginalized. Ai Hui had not expected to make such a ridiculous error.

    Eh, hold on. That fellow was not his teammate.

    Ai Hui¡¯s guilt was erased immediately.

    In a rush, Ai Hui asked, ¡°Lou Lan, you know medicine right? Help me take a look at him.¡±

    ¡°No problem,¡± Lou Lan readily agreed. A brilliant yellow ray of light shone from his eyes onto the unconscious Duanmu Huanghun.

    This was the second time Ai Hui had seen Lou Lou¡¯s eyes light up. Unlike the previous time, he was just a bystander this time and did not feel ufortable, but he still found it unbelievable. Most of the medical practitioners whom he had met were wood elementalists. Possessing a good understanding of life and nourishment, they were naturals when it came to helping the dying and healing the injured.

    It was extremely rare to find a sand puppet who knew medicine.

    Sand puppets could barely tap into wood elemental energy, but this very energy still had healing abilities. Ai Hui realized his ignorance.

    ¡°An external blow caused him to lose consciousness. He has a cold so his body is in a weakened state. This does not look good,¡± Lou Lan concluded quickly.

    Ai Hui felt even more guilty. Although they were not teammates, he really should not have knocked this fellow down, especially when he was ill.

    Ai Hui immediately asked, ¡°What should we do now?¡±

    ¡°The easier method would be to recuperate,¡± Lou Lan responded. ¡°His body¡¯s condition is not bad to begin with. A few days of rest would do the trick.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good.¡± Ai Hui breathed a sigh of relief but quickly asked, ¡°How many days? Is there a quicker solution?¡±

    Ai Hui was sensitive to time. Upon hearing ¡°a few days,¡± he creased his brows involuntarily. A few days of time... That was going to hold up several trainings. Lou Lan nodded. ¡°But it would be more troublesome.¡±

    Ai Hui hastily replied, ¡°That¡¯s not a problem, go on.¡±

    ¡°He already opened up the four pces of his limbs and should not fall sick easily. Perhaps he had been suffering from pent-up frustrations. The rage within his heart inhibited the four pces, allowing diseases to invade and caused a cold. However, he has a higher than average immune system. He will naturally recover when the pces are reactivated and his suppressed anger is cleared.¡±

    Ai Hui was surprised by Lou Lan¡¯sposure and confident tone. After recovering from his daze, he inquired, ¡°How do we do that?¡±

    ¡°Pat on his skin with elemental energy, starting from his limbs¡¯ pces. Move up to his heart, and clear the anger within it.¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± Ai Hui said inly. Without any dy, he peeled off Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s clothes in a professional manner. Saving a life was like putting out a fire. On the battlefield, there simply was no time to overthink.

    Scanning across this fellow¡¯s pale body, Ai Hui clicked his tongue and made ament about how this skin resembled that of a freshly ughtered, shaved, and boiled pig.

    Pat, pat, pat!

    Ai Hui started pping lightly and continuously with both hands. Fortunately, his elemental energy had improved or else he would not have been able to carry on.

    He thought about how he was saving a sum from the medical fee and immediately felt less tired.

    I¡¯ll hit! I¡¯ll hit! I¡¯ll hit, hit, hit!

    Last one!

    Target: the heart!

    Ai Hui pped at Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s heart area with great precision using the energy he had left in his palms.

    Hah, mission aplished!

    Although Ai Hui had greater stamina than most, he was gasping and breathless at this point. He used both arms to support his body as he panted heavily.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body jolted, then he slowly opened his eyes.

    Their eyes met, and the air around them froze.

 Chapter 22: Duanmu Huanghunâ€™s Roar

    Chapter 22: Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s Roar

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    At that moment when Duanmu Huanghun opened his eyes, one would not know how to describe what he was thinking. In reality, his mind was nk.

    His entire body was shivering due to the cold while a guy was pressing against his chest with both arms and panting heavily. He could not see the guy¡¯s face clearly. As his head buzzed, his mind nked out as if he was heavily punched in the side of the head.

    Ai Hui noticed that Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes were open, however, his pupils... seemed to be disorganized?

    Although he had seen a lot of grisly scenes in his life, Ai Hui panicked for a moment. When he first entered the Wilderness, there was a total of two thousandborers. In the end, only two survived. The rest were forever buried in the muddy ground of the Wilderness. Ai Hui witnessed how they fell into pools of their own blood firsthand. He saw how their eye pupils dted until life disappeared from them.

    ¡°Lou Lan, what¡¯s wrong with him?¡±

    ¡°Hey buddy, wake up! Are you okay? Don¡¯t fall asleep!¡± Ai Hui asked while pping Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face.

    Lou Lan was somewhat puzzled at the scene before him. He thenmented naively, ¡°He¡¯s okay.¡±

    Smack smack smack!

    Ai Hui pped Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face with force.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s unfocused eyes gradually regained rity. His vision slowly recovered and the zed look on his face disappeared. When he clearly saw the face of the person before him, his face turned nk.

    Wasn¡¯t this guy that wretched bastard?

    Wasn¡¯t this person the useless guy who skipped lessons, refused to train, held the entire ss back, and had poor aptitude?

    Wasn¡¯t he the main culprit who caused him to fall ill, wasted his time, and tarnished his reputation as a genius?

    Fury gushed through his head and hatred filled his mind. Duanmu Huanghun sat up abruptly, wanting to rip this hateful fellow into a thousand pieces. Suddenly, his body froze.

    Trembling...

    His entire body was trembling in the cold.

    His facial expression froze and his body froze. After a while, he lowered his head in shock.

    He was only wearing his underpants. His thighs and arms were covered with bright red palmprints, contrasting greatly with the rest of his pale white body.

    Ohh... No!

    Fear appeared instantly in his widened eyes. What had this bastard done to him?

    Once again, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s mind was nk. He subconsciously grabbed the clothes beside him and scuttled out of the training hall.

    Ai Hui and Lou Lan looked confusedly at the door.

    ¡°It seems that he has recovered. Lou Lan, you¡¯re really awesome.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s voice was filled with joy. He could finally go back to training.

    ¡°Even though there was a short period of time when Lou Lan did not understand what was wrong with him, Lou Lan can see that he has recovered now.¡± Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯spliment, Lou Lan was beaming with joy as well.

    ¡°Thank you, Lou Lan. I shall go to train now.¡±

    ¡°Goodbye, Ai Hui.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun walked on the street as a rustling, cold breeze blew against his chest. He waspletely filled with despair. He did not dare to recall the scene just now or what had happened after he was knocked out.

    To him, this was the darkest moment in his life.

    After a while, Duanmu Huanghun gradually calmed down from the horror. Suddenly, he realized that he had recovered fully from his cold. He was a unique individual that could not be matched by ordinary people. After all, he came from an aristocratic family and had an outstanding aptitude that was meticulously nurtured by his family.

    After he regained hisposure, he thought of the reddish palmprints on his limbs and roughly understood how he recovered from his illness.

    Duanmu Huanghun was somewhat surprised. How could trash like Ai Hui know such a method? Even an experienced and knowledgeable individual like himself needed to think for a long time beforeing up with such an idea. Ai Hui used such an unorthodox method to cure his flu in the time that it would take for others just to think of this approach.

    One must note that having a lot of knowledge was one thing, but putting that knowledge to practical use was quite another.

    Perhaps this fellow was not as inferior as he thought?

    A metal elementalist that specialized in healing?

    Even though this seemed weird, this type of metal elementalist had appeared before in the history of the Avalon of Five Elements. Perhaps he did underestimate Ai Hui. After all, it was impossible to enter the Induction Ground with that fellow¡¯s inferior aptitude. He might have some other special talents, so the Induction Ground could have made him an exception.

    After calming down and determining how his opponent cured his cold, Duanmu Huanghun did not really care about what had just happened. However, when he thought of being knocked by such a weak individual, his face darkened.

    Even though he coulde up with excuses, such as he was sick, he was exhausted, or his opponent¡¯s attack was too sudden, he still could not ept the fact that he was knocked out by a garbage ssmate.

    It was too humiliating!

    Especially once he thought of the teacher¡¯s request, his face reddened. The teacher wanted him to guide the trash to sess, yet he was knocked out by such trash.

    Yes, he coulde up with many reasons.

    He was far too careless and underestimated his opponent. He let anger get the better of him. His body was so weak that he caught a cold just by standing in the wind. His stamina was so low that a night of training left himpletely drained...

    However, there was not a single reason that Duanmu Huanghun could ept.

    He was a genius!

    Geniuses do things that others can¡¯t do! How could hepare himself to the ordinary people? That was cking. That was failure.

    Duanmu Huanghun, you are indeed an embarrassment!

    Duanmu Huanghun cursed himself in his heart.

    Suddenly, he noticed people on the street were pointing fingers and mocking him. Most of them were girls. As he walked past these girls, they covered their mouths and whispered about him.

    No, it¡¯s not right!

    No matter where he went, Duanmu Huanghun had never had such an experience in his life before.

    Could it be that there was dirt on his face?

    As he walked past a weapon shop, he stopped in his tracks. He picked up a shiny, polished sword, used its de as a mirror.

    He was dumbfounded.

    Who was this guy whose face was swollen like a pig head?

    A thought shed across his mind. A blurry image intruded into his mind without any warning. A blurry figure seemed to be yelling something at him while pping his face forcefully with both his hands in quick session. The figure appeared to be continuously pping him.

    Smack smack smack....

    Loud and crisp smacking sounds. His face was like a bun that was being steamed. It inted slowly and then..

    The face in his mind merged together with the image disyed on the reflection of the de.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s lips quivered while his hand that gripped the sword trembled. Like a volcanic eruption, he clenched his teeth, let out a roar, and almost tore down the roof of the weapon shop.

    ¡°Ai Hui, I will rip you into pieces!¡±

 Chapter 23: The Backless Armor

    Chapter 23: The Backless Armor

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    As Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s roar faded into the wind, Ai Hui never even heard a whisper. If he remembered anything from that incident, it was most likely the part where he recalled the time he spent in the Wilderness.

    Outside the Suspending Golden Pagoda, custom-made pieces of armor were scattered all over the ground. Ai Hui picked them up and equipped them piece by piece. This was his custom-made ¡°armor.¡± Although everything was made out of steel, the appearance was simple and unrefined without any etched designs due to theck of time spent on the construction. The helmet looked like an inverted bucket, simply having two slits that served as eyeholes. The front torso was protected by a piece of steel te while the rest of the body parts were crudely made. Unexpectedly, the joints were rather flexible, disying the skillfulness of the cksmith who forged it.

    The most peculiar part of the ¡°armor¡± was its back. The entire dorsal section of this suit of armor was uncovered. This Backless Armor was specially prepared by Ai Hui for his training in the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    After wearing the full set of armor, Ai Hui moved around to test his mobility. It felt pretty good. Since Ai Hui had repeatedly stressed to the cksmith to make it firm and solid, the armor was exceptionally sturdy and weighed around a hundred kilograms. Even though Ai Hui was used to hauling heavy loads in the Wilderness, he was still exhausted from carrying the armor to the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    Luckily, Ai Hui¡¯s body was used to long-term, arduous jobs, and his physique was rather strong. However, after donning the armor, he could still feel that his movements were somewhat restricted.

    After fastening his armor, the neatly-dressed Ai Hui entered the Suspending Golden Pagoda once more.

    ng ng ng!

    The collision between Ai Hui¡¯s armor and the walls of the pagoda was much more spectacr than before. Every crash sent sparks flying everywhere and the impacts were several times louder than before, creating ringing echoes in Ai Hui¡¯s brain.

    After a while, Ai Hui limated to the deafening shing sounds and started to experience the benefits of wearing the Backless Armor.

    The metal elemental energy within the metal wind was unable to prate Ai Hui¡¯s armor, allowing all of the needle-piercing pain to converge on his back. Ai Hui rallied himself. He had spent a lot of time on the Backless Armor, and he derived this idea from the iron chain. Since the metal wind could not destroy the chain, it implied that the metal wind would not be able to destroy the steel armor either.

    This improved training method proved that his conjecture was correct, and nothing motivated Ai Hui more than this discovery.

    When Ai Hui felt the pain in his back had reached his limit, he grabbed the iron chain and pulled himself out. After exiting, Ai Hui was toozy to take off the armor and went straight to his usual practice of executing the [Arching Fish Back] on the external wall.

    ng!

    From the first collision, Ai Hui could feel the difference. His back felt as if it was going to fracture, requiring him to rest for a good five minutes before his strength recovered. A bitter smile appeared on his face. The dissipating effect of the metal elemental energy was superb and a lot better than its power. However, with the addition of the armor, the [Arching Fish Back]¡¯s overall strength increased dramatically and caused some light bruises to appear on back muscles.

    The [Arching Fish Back]¡¯s strength might be great, but this improvement in strength was due to the armor. Looking at it from an overall perspective, the power of the technique itself had actually decreased dramatically, Due to the weight of the armor, even though the power released might be strong and ferocious, but it was somewhat scattered instead of focused.

    Upon feeling that he had recovered his strength, Ai Hui contemted for a while before he began to practise the [Arching Fish Back] again.

    ng!

    This time around, Ai Hui shot forward and smashed onto the ground with a boom, filling the air with dirt and dust.

    As the cloud of debris dispersed, Ai Hui struggled to stand up. Spitting out the dirt in his mouth, he strode towards the Suspending Golden Pagoda with raging determination in his heart.

    ng ng ng!

    A tin-can man collided tirelessly against the iron pagoda.

    The nightfall arrived as stars rose over the dome of the night sky. It seemed like the night breeze had scattered resplendent stars all over the heavens. Shortly after, the horizon was sshed with cyan skies while the clouds were dyed orange. The first glimmer of the rising sun shined upon the sleeping tin man propped against the wall of the pagoda. Glittering dewdrops coalesced on his metal armor.

    Soon, the scorching sun hung high above in the sky, causing the perspiration within the tin man to boil and steam.

    Day by day, time gradually passed.

    Intense, continuous, and monotonous training posed a great challenge to the psyche.

    When his exhaustion hit the limit, Ai Hui plopped down on his butt to sit. He was toozy to take off the armor, so he only took off his helmet. It was taxing to wear this suit for a long period. Ever since he first put on the Backless Armor, even when he was sleeping or having his meals, he had not taken it off.. His facial expression was slightly distracted, which had always been the case whenever he trained up to his limit.

    After sitting for around twenty minutes, some vitality finally returned to his absentminded face as he began to return to his senses. Upon regaining his awareness, Ai Hui immediately felt a powerful stab of hunger in his stomach. He quickly took out a tbread from his bag. Ai Hui did not mind the dryness and hardness of bread, finishing it in an instant.

    He reached into the bag once more, but failed to grab anything this time around.

    No more?

    He was momentarily stunned. After recovering, he flipped the bag over and searched through it thoroughly, but the bag was empty.

    How long had it been? He could not remember, but he knew it was time to go back. As he prepared to leave, he paused for a moment before removing the armor from his body and hid it nearby. Since this thing was not worth much, no one would covet it. After he replenished his rations, he would be back shortly. Without the armor, he could afford to bring more rations.

    After removing the armor, Ai Hui felt as nimble as a swallow. It was as if he stepped into a sea of cotton¡ªmoving felt light and airy.

    The spirited Ai Hui surged forward and was shocked by his speed. Immediately, his eyes lit up. It turned out that wearing the Backless Armor nonstop while training produced such a benefit.

    Without a word, he broke into a run and ran in the direction of Central Pine City.

    Li Wei had a short stature, and he wore a very in green garment. Unlike Zhou Xiaoxi, who had a robust build, Li Wei appeared schrly and looked like the teachers in school. He strolled through the street in high spirits. Very few people knew that he studied in Central Pine City 15 years ago. Nheless, when he was free, he woulde back to visit his old haunts.

    Upon seeing the familiar yet modifiedndscape, he reminisced about the good old times. Numerous vague memories shed through his mind.

    The surrounding scenery changed as he strolled idly through the street. He knew for a fact that he had been to this ce before, but he was currently unsure of his exact location. After all, he had not been to this ce in fifteen years.

    He did not realize where he was until a towering pagoda appeared in his line of sight.

    It was the Suspending Golden Pagoda!

    Immediately, Li Wei became excited, and his walking pace increased subconsciously. The Suspending Golden Pagoda was a ce where he frequently trained in the past. He remembered he even wrote a book just to depict his experience in the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    The number of people here was still so scant!

    He could not help but heave a rueful sigh. It was just like fifteen years ago.

    The Suspending Golden Pagoda had never been a popr training site. In the past, he chose the Suspending Golden Pagoda as his main training ground because it was much quieter than the other ces.

    After fifteen years, the Suspending Golden Pagoda remained the same without many changes. He knew as long as the metal wind continued to blow in the tower, the Suspending Golden Pagoda would not copse.

    Li Wei walked up the flight of stairs. He was extremely familiar with everything here.

    He continued forward while feeling the wall of the pagoda with his hands. Numerous memories of the days and nights he spent there cascaded through his mind. A nostalgic smile appeared on his face.

    His hands suddenly stopped.

    Startled, he let out a soft yelp upon noticing what his hands had touched.

 Chapter 24: Friends

    Chapter 24: Friends

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Li Wei had trained in the Suspending Golden Pagoda for three whole years, so he was intimately familiar with itsyout. The sensation he felt from his hands... something was wrong!

    There seemed to be an indentation in the tower wall.

    He moved closer to inspect. There was indeed a dent, and it was a big one!

    Li Wei was utterly shocked. He knew how tough the walls were. After a thousand years of constant metal wind flow, the tower¡¯s exterior hadpletely metalized. It became extremely solid, somethingmon metal could notpare to.

    Li Wei tested the hardness of the pagoda wall and found it to be the same as before. Nothing had changed. The big dent he saw before him was clearly not caused by a natural process.

    Could it be that a formidable dire beast had smashed against it?

    Sure enough, he spotted several signs around him that indicated something had trampled through. Judging from the size, the beast must have beenrge. He imagined in his head a possible scenario: an enormous dire beast went crazy and it used its head to collide against the pagoda wall. The dent was created, but , the creature simultaneously ricocheted and fell far away due to the forceful impact.

    He found a few traces of upturned soil. Oh, it appeared that the a wild beast had done this more than once.

    It looked like this wild beast had brute force, but not brains.

    Li Wei, believing that he had found a logical reason, shelved this question. He would notify the school to warn students about the appearance of a ferocious and possibly wandering beast. He was not too nervous since such a foolish wild beast would not be very threatening. Plus, students who dared to visit this pagoda had probably opened at least two pces. A strong, but brainless wild beast would not threaten their safety.

    If one, who had already activated two pces, failed to handle such a beast , he or she deserved to die and Li Wei felt no sympathy.

    He loitered around for an extended duration before turning to leave.

    .....

    Vanguard Training Hall.

    Ai Hui looked at the piping hot soup before him and licked his lips. The appetizing aroma was too much to handle and he could not wait to dig in. He was uncertain about the effectiveness of this bone-benefitting soup, but just smelling it was enough to drive him crazy.

    Ai Hui admired Lou Lan¡¯s cooking skill. He believed if Lou Lan were to open up a soup stall, business would flourish. Whether it was at the swordsman school or the Wilderness, Ai Hui was forced to prepare his own meals. Practice made perfect, so he soon became a rtively good cook and believed his culinary skills were pretty decent. Compared to Lou Lan however, his skills were far inferior.

    It was quite odd for a sand puppet to be an expert at preparing soup.

    Ai Hui had lost track of the number of times that he puzzled over these quirks that Lou Lan had as a sand puppet, and he quickly discarded these thoughts as the soup stole all of his focus and attention.

    ¡°Drink it while it¡¯s hot since it¡¯s more effective this way,¡± Lou Lan reminded him as he delivered the soup.

    Ai Hui gingerly took the bowl from Lou Lan¡¯s hands, as if he was receiving a one-of-a-kind treasure. His final forty thousand yuan was spent on this bowl of soup. Ai Hui still could not believe that he had actually taken out all of his fortune to splurge on something like this. Such extravagant conduct.

    Licking his lips once more, he raised the bowl up to his mouth and gulped it down.

    The seemingly steaming hot broth was not as scalding as he had imagined. It was exceptionally delicious. The umami of the bones and meat had been brought out perfectly. Coupled with the fresh fragrance of the herbs, the soup had an indescribably well-bnced and harmonious taste. Its viscous,gtinous texture seemed to slide down this throat.

    Ai Hui did not stop drinking. It was as if he was pouring the soup down his throat without pause.

    It was simply too tasty!

    Lou Lan, go sell some soup!

    After thest dregs entered his mouth, he licked the bowl clean, before setting it down and opening his eyes wide.

    An inexpressible warmth surged upwards from the soles of his feet toward his heart, enveloping his whole body in a matter of seconds. The threads of warmth entered his bones and his face turned red, as if he was drunk. He felt a sensation of burning up.

    ¡°Quickly start training, Ai Hui. Spread the medicinal energy,¡± Lou Lan reminded.

    Upon hearing this, Ai Hui altered his posture and started to punch and kick.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered. Many moves were familiar since Ai Hui had coached him previously. The moves were scattered and mostly simple, not at all gaudy orplicated. Yet, when Ai Hui used them, they feltpletely different.

    Sharp, fierce, murderous. It was as if a wild, ferocious, blood-thirsty beast took over his body.

    Lou Lan envied Ai Hui a little. He was a useless sand puppet that could not even fight. He knew few who were like him. Sand puppets were war machines who saved theirpanion¡¯s life in times of danger. But him? He only knew how to clean the rooms, tidy the garden, cook, and perform other such chores. He did not understand why Master Shao had made him this way.

    Maybe Master Shao only needed this kind of sand puppet, Lou Lan thought.

    Previously Lou Lan had no neighbors, and no one talked to him either, except for the grocer. Oh, but that was work-rted. Ai Hui was the first person he had gotten acquainted with outside of work.

    We should be considered friends by now, Lou Lan reckoned.

    Being able to assist Ai Hui made him happy. Was that not the reason why sand puppets existed? To help people?

    Ai Hui, who was engrossed in his training, felt a ball of fire ignite within his body that made him sweat profusely. The moves which previously required a huge consumption of energy were less strenuous now. This was especially so for the [Arching Fish Back]. He performed it and could sense that the power of his back had increased significantly. This improvement was evenrger than the previous trainings.

    Bit by bit, time passed. The fluctuations within his body settled down, and Ai Hui finally stopped his training.

    His pupils were as bright as the stars, and he was soaked in sweat. However, he did not feel tired at all. In fact, he feltpletely energized.

    The intensity of his previous training session had been very high, and the multiple [Arching Fish Back] moves he had practiced against the pagoda wall carried unmatched power. Each time, the same amount of force would rebound and strike his body. He had sustained injuries of differing severity in many parts of his body. The metal elemental energy that his body had absorbed was as sharp as a de and had no nourishing effect on his flesh at all.

    Now, his internal injuries had disappeared. Ai Hui instantly felt that his forty thousand yuan was money well-spent. He was not short-sighted and was well aware that such internal damage carried hidden danger. Instead, he was simply used to being poor, and he had more pressing concerns to tackle.

    What caused Ai Hui greater surprise was the fact that his elemental energy had clearly expanded. It turned out that the previously unabsorbed threads of elemental energy that remained in his body were nowpletely digested into his flesh.

    ¡°Lou Lan, thank you!¡± Ai Hui said sincerely. He did fork out the money to buy the ingredients, but Lou Lan was the one who stewed the soup. Where else could he find such an amazing sand puppet?

    ¡°You¡¯re wee.¡± All of a sudden Lou Lan recalled an earlier thought and blurted out, ¡°Ai Hui, are we friends?¡±

    Friends?

    Ai Hui was stunned for a bit. He answered seriously and solemnly, ¡°Of course!¡±

    Lou Lan was overjoyed.

 Chapter 25: How Kind!

    Chapter 25: How Kind!

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    As he drank the soup, he was so happy that he seemed to hear bells chiming softly.

    Simultaneously, rm bells nged obnoxiously because he had just gone broke.

    The forty thousand yuan he had left now settled heavily in his stomach. He had to stop his training ns for now. In a few days¡¯ time, he would not even have money for food with starvation looming in the future.

    "Lou Lan, any ideas on how I can earn some money?" Ai Hui asked with some distress.

    "Earn money?" Lou Lan stared nkly. It was the first time someone had questioned him on this subject, leading him to ask, "You¡¯re out of money?"

    "Yes, it¡¯s all gone." Ai Hui pondered as he spoke. "If not for the fifty thousand from that blind battle, I would really have starved."

    "Blind battle?" Lou Lan¡¯s eyes brightened. "You¡¯re good at blind battles? Then go participate in more blind battles!"

    "How can there be a blind battle every day?" Ai Hui shook his head and felt a brief pang of guilt.

    The incident resurfaced in his brain, leaving a weakened yet distinct sensation on his fingertips. Ai Hui inwardly sighed. Having overly strong fighting instincts had its downsides; he could clearly remember every single detail of that particr battle.

    And he had no desire to remember such an embarrassing incident.

    "Yes there is." Lou Lan raised his index finger with sparkling eyes.

    Ai Hui was taken aback. Had the Shi n Training Hall organized another blind battle? It was certainly possible, Ai Hui thought as he mulled it over. Blind battles were pretty interesting, and training halls would not give them up so easily.

    But what is this awkwardness I¡¯m feeling?

    A pang of hunger snapped him out of it before Ai Hui realized he was being senseless. What awkwardness, what embarrassment? These thoughts vanished like smoke into thin air. He asked hastily, "Where? Let¡¯s go!"

    No one could stop him from making money. He would kill God and Buddha if he had to. Girl...

    Heh, heh, you better pray you won¡¯t run into me.

    A cold light shed through his half-lidded eyes his heart as hard as steel.

    Because you¡¯re out of luck if we meet!

    Ai Hui, with his murderous expression, raised his head and walked out like a heroic warrior ready for battle.

    Shi Xueman surveyed the Central Pine City, lost in thought. In the past, this small city had been nameless to her, but now she kept returning to it whenever she got a break. It was here that she experienced her biggest setback and her most painful failure.

    She would never, ever forget¡ªnot in this lifetime!

    She clenched her teeth.

    Her thoughts shifted to her blind battle strategy and wondered how it was progressing. She held high hopes for this operation. Although she was unprepared, and her skills were not enough to defeat that terrifying enemy of hers, she hoped only to find hints to help her identify that bastard.

    Perhaps there would be good news today?

    She was slightly expectant after hearing that the training hall had specially implemented many unique rules involving the blind battle. That fellow was an expert in blind battling, so how could he possibly not be moved to participate in such an interesting event? If she were him, she would not be able to resist entering this uingpetition.

    If I find any clues, you are dead!

    A bone-chilling, murderous look shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s icy face.

    Meanwhile, in the garden, a fire cloud descended slowly with Uncle Yong Zheng waiting for her. She jumped onto the fire cloud and said, "It¡¯s been hard on you, Uncle. How is our ning along? Any progress?"

    Yong Zheng¡¯s expression was a little odd, and Shi Xueman immediately knew something was wrong upon seeing it. She bluntly asked, "What happened?"

    Shi Xueman knew something was wrong upon seeing his face. She asked bluntly: "What¡¯s up?"

    Yong Zheng smiled bitterly. "Go out and you will see, Miss."

    Without further ado, Shi Xueman left the training hall.

    .....

    Ai Hui followed behind Lou Lan, slightly shocked. "Lou Lan, I didn¡¯t know you were familiar with this area!"

    Lou Lan exined, "It¡¯s because I have to buy groceries, wine, and ingredients. Everything Master Shao needs, I buy."

    Lou Lan¡¯s owner remained a mystery to Ai Hui. He never knew of a wood elementalist who could create a sand puppet like Lou Lan. With curiosity, he asked, "He doesn¡¯t go out at all?"

    Lou Lan replied, "Master Shao¡¯s leg is not in a good condition. Plus, he does not like going out or meeting people. Otherwise, you would have received an invitation to visit."

    Only then did Ai Hui realize the reason why Lou Lan was onlypetent in life skills. There was no danger within Induction Ground, and Master Shao¡¯s legs were weak, which meant that he required more assistance in his everyday life.

    All of a sudden, Ai Hui stopped in his tracks staring at the street before him

    in a daze.

    "The ultimate blind battle! Amazing prize money! An extraordinary challenge for experts! No light, no smell, no color, no shadow!"

    "Masked blind battle! The fifty thousand yuan prize money is waiting for you!"

    "A wild blind battle! A different kind of fight, a different kind of challenge!"

    The multitude of swaying, colorful banners made Ai Hui¡¯s eyes cross. Every single training hall had one hanging outside its entrance, advertising their very own blind battle. He was dumbstruck. What was going on?

    As if hearing his thoughts, Lou Lan exined, "I remember it was two weeks ago that the Shi n Training Hall organized a blind battlepetition with a reward of one million yuan. It caused an uproar and many went down to register. Soon after, almost every other training hall followed suit, making blind battling the most popr challenge in Central Pine City. Two days ago, as I was getting groceries, I even heard people say that the blind battling trend was no longer confined to this city, spreading out to many other cities. How amazing..."

    Lou Lan spoke with relish, as if it was an honorable thing.

    Ai Hui regained his senses, the excitement growing in his face. The way he took in the scene in front of him was how a hungry wolf would eye a fresh, juicymb. Oh, no. A whole herd of them!

    He had noticed from the previouspetition that the other contestants were unused to dark conditions. Like this, in a blindbat, his fighting power¡¯s potential could be unleashed perfectly while on the other hand, his opponents would be suppressed and at a great disadvantage.

    This battle was made for him!

    Ai Hui grinned, exposing his snow-white canines, ready to attack.

    His heart was set¡ªexcept for the Shi n Training Hall¡¯s blind battle, he was going to participate in everypetition avable!

    Thank you, Shi n Training Hall! How kind!

    He happened to nce at the Shi n Training Hall and noticed a youngdy at its entrance amongst the crowd. Like him, she stood in a daze staring at all of the advertisements. After a while, her shock was overtaken by a coldness that bleached her face of all color. Even from far away, Ai Hui could sense her rage.

    Wow, wow, wow, this expression... Too vivid!

    As if sensing Ai Hui¡¯s mocking gaze, thedy turned and red at him before stomping angrily into the Shi n Training Hall.

    Ai Hui,paratively, felt this world was full of hope. His body burned with passion, ready to fight. His purse was unbearably hungry and thirsty!

    "Lou Lan, let¡¯s start!"

    Lou Lan was momentarily stunned. "Start what?"

    "Earning money!"

    Like a soldier marching into war, Ai Hui majestically strode into a training hall.

 Chapter 26: The First Win

    Chapter 26: The First Win

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Lou Lan stood in front of the stage, feeling extremely nervous. The mask on his face concealed it well but his tightly clenched fist gave it away. While he was a stranger to battling, even he could tell that the situation onstage was subtly and abnormally dangerous. With a single moment¡¯s carelessness, anyone would be knocked down immediately.

    On stage, Ai Hui used a simple yet exceptionally fierce technique to take thest contestant down. Lou Lan, who had been tense from the start, suddenly jumped up and cheered loudly with both arms raised.

    Ai Hui got down from the tform with a few bruises and ten thousand yuan.

    ¡°You¡¯re too amazing!¡± Lou Lan¡¯s eyes shone brightly with unending respect for Ai Hui. Ever since his creation, his daily life revolved around the same routine: shopping for groceries, cleaning the rooms, and learning Master Shao¡¯s designated lessons like medicine.

    Fighting was a novelty to him. His first timeunching a fist at anyone was when Ai Hui had taught him.

    And now, for the first time, he witnessed his first battle today. It was so intense that he felt breathless,pletely forgetting that breathing was unnecessary for a sand puppet. Affected by the stifling atmosphere, his eyes stayed glued to the match in total concentration.

    His current lifestyle was peaceful and repetitive, and he had never thought to question it until today, when he suddenly felt that something was missing from his life.

    He never thought it a bad thing in the past, until today. He suddenly felt that something was missing from his life.

    His gaze fell onto Ai Hui¡¯s face.

    There were a few bruises on it, making it look somewhat pitiful. Ai Hui, however, was not bothered in the slightest; his bruised face carried a trace of firm austerity, as if nothing could obstruct him. His gaze was determined, the light in them not bright like the stars but rather deep and reserved. Their depths were cold and distant like the faraway horizon when the morning sun had yet to rise.

    Lou Lan¡¯s emotions were stirred. He felt a different kind of ice-cold passion from Ai Hui. It was a passion that never died out in spite of this dull life. A lonely passion that fought on through difficult times.

    Ai Hui¡¯s silence was like the deep, dark sky, waiting quietly for the next break of day.

    Lou Lan realized then what he was missing¡ªit was this very passion for living. His own life and fate had already been decided, and he had no choice but to abide by thesemands.

    Lou Lan knew these thoughts were senseless.

    He was a sand puppet, he reminded himself.

    Ai Hui noticed Lou Lan¡¯s gaze and assumed it was for the bruises on his face. He said carelessly, ¡°I¡¯m fine, they¡¯re all small injuries. Such superficial wounds look scarier than they actually are.¡±

    As they made their way out, someone yelled from behind¡ª

    ¡°If you¡¯re capable, stay where you are! Let¡¯s have another match!¡±

    It was thest contestant defeated by Ai Hui. Unwilling to ept his defeat, he came to the conclusion that it was due to his carelessness. Seeing that fellow¡¯s course techniques that seemed toe from street gangsters made him even more unwilling to admit his loss to such a guy.

    Lou Lan stopped but Ai Hui said while walking onward, ¡°Ignore him.¡±

    ¡°Spineless! Good-for-nothing! Coward!¡± Flustered, the contestant continued his verbal assault.

    One after another, the other defeated contestants started chiming in, also feeling that their loss was unfathomable.

    ¡°He had an idental win. You can¡¯t count on him being so lucky every time.¡±

    ¡°Scram!¡±

    ......

    Lou Lan took offense. How could these people act like that when they shouldn¡¯t? They clearly lost¡ªhow dare they spill such ugly insults!

    After a while, Lou Lan noticed Ai Hui¡¯sck of reaction and asked, ¡°Ai Hui, aren¡¯t you angry? Don¡¯t you want to go back and beat them up?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s there to be angry about?¡± Ai Hui casually plucked a de of grass from the roadside and put it into his mouth. ¡°In the Wilderness, they¡¯re all dead.¡±

    Lou Lan fell into a daze. He found it difficult to describe the feeling he felt upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s words. They were steady and confident, yet also tinged by a slight mncholy.

    Out of curiosity, he asked, ¡°Have you been in the Wilderness?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Ai Hui chewed on the grass. ¡°Stayed in there for three years.¡±

    ¡°How awesome!¡± Lou Lan felt deep veneration for him.

    To Lou Lan, the Wilderness was a mysterious and faraway ce. The thought of leaving Central Pine City had never even urred to him, and the only understanding he had of the Wilderness came from books. He was aware from the descriptions that danger lurked in every corner, but he did not know the sort of difficulties that had to be endured to stay there for three years.

    Ai Hui was so amazing!

    At this point, Lou Lan, was full of admiration for Ai Hui. He believed that in this world, the most powerful man was Master Shao, followed by Ai Hui. Oh, wrong. Both were powerful in different ways, so they should both be ranked first.

    ¡°Where are we going now?¡± Lou Lan thought of the ten thousand Ai Hui had just won and felt happiness bubble up at once.

    ¡°Next hall,¡± Ai Hui responded matter-of-factly.

    ¡°The next one? You want to continue?¡± Lou Lan was startled.

    ¡°Such a good opportunity.¡± Ai Hui involuntarily licked his lips and narrowed his eyes. He was like a wild beast that marked its prey and was ready to pounce.

    Lou Lan was unsure why he felt a chill in his heart upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s expression. As expected from an expert who stayed in the Wilderness¡ª, Ai Hui had such a murderous spirit. It made Lou Lan curious aboutas know what the Wilderness was like.

    They walked into the second training hall and were immediately were drowned in the mor.

    It was not unreasonable for blind battling to be a trend since it was a new mode ofpetition that proved to be a new challenge for people. This foreign method of fighting was highly unpredictable as it added a new variable besides skills. It was not umon to see practitioners with four pces to be defeated by those with two. Even those with unsurpassable skills had to be careful on stage¡ªa moment of neglect could result in failure.

    Under such circumstances, past experiences were useless, and everyone became so clumsy it was even funny.

    When Ai Hui walked in, a contestant on stage was being manhandled by an opponent who had no idea what he was grabbing on to. As he hurriedly applied force¡ªrip!¡ªthe contestant¡¯s pants were pulled down, revealing his white, fleshy buttocks.

    Those before the stage shrieked withughter, their loud screams and whistles on the verge of making the roof copse.

    In such an environment, Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression was exceptionally jarring. He seemed to have overlooked the contestant¡¯s shining, white bum and instead seriously observed the battle while scanning the other contestants onstage.

    Everyone had opaque masks on their faces, but what interested Ai Hui even more was the fact that it was a partnered team battle!

    If only Fatty was here, Ai Hui thought subconsciously.

    He continued his solemn observation before he internally shook his head. There was no teamwork whatsoever between the contestants.

    Ai Hui could not help but wish again for Fatty to be here. If theybined their powers, their chances of victory were high.

    He nced over the rules hanging on the signboard. Interested parties had to sign up in twos.

    Another hall? But Ai Hui felt somewhat adamant in joining. He looked to the side, only to see Lou Lan highly engrossed in the match. His heart stirred.

    Or, should he let Lou Lan try?

 Chapter 27: My Sand Puppet

    Chapter 27: My Sand Puppet

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    ¡°Lou Lan, do you want to try?¡± Ai Hui turned his head and suddenly asked.

    ¡°Try?¡± Lou Lan reiterated vacantly, ¡°Try what?¡±

    ¡°To go on stage and fight.¡±

    ¡°Go on stage....and fight?¡± Lou Lan¡¯s eyes widened, and then he shouted, ¡°Ai Hui, do you mean for me to go on stage and join thepetition?¡±

    Ai Hui, who had been perfectlyposed, was startled by Lou Lan¡¯s sudden outburst. He calmed his heart before replying, ¡°Yes. It says here that a team of two is required to participate. If you don¡¯t feel like, then...¡±

    ¡°Okay,¡± Lou Lan answered straightforwardly, but he was not without any hesitation. ¡°But I have never been in a fight. What if we lose?¡±

    ¡°Then we move on to the next one,¡± Ai Hui replied matter-of-factly. ¡°Win some, lose some. There¡¯s nothing wrong. You can take it as practice.¡±

    His words eliminated Lou Lan¡¯s worry.

    However, when he tried to register, the manager inly rejected him.

    ¡°Sand puppets are not allowed. They are not human, so they do not see with their eyes. Isn¡¯t that cheating?¡±

    Ai Hui could not argue with that.

    Yes, it was entirely true that sand puppets were not humans; in fact, they were both remarkably different. They judged situations differently and did not have simr physiological mechanisms. Some sand puppets had an acute sense of smell, while others possessed the ability of reptiles to detect opponents¡¯ positions through heat. Some even possessed the ability of bats to locate opponents through sound waves.

    Throughout his life, Ai Hui had encountered all kinds of sand puppets, and he had graduallye to realize that many earth elementalists would create and modify their sand puppets to an unimaginable extent. Although the majority of earth elementalists were entric, antisocial, and dislikeable, no one could ignore their impressive presence on the battlefield, and it was chiefly because of their sand puppets that they were often deemed as the most dangerous of people.

    Ai Hui felt like informing the manager that Lou Lan definitely had no such abilities, but in the end, he did not.

    Lou Lan was the weakest sand puppet that Ai Hui had ever met. He could not see how Lou Lan could have possibly been designed for battling; in his opinion, Lou Lan was a sand puppet that was purely constructed for lifestyle.

    When Ai Hui saw Lou Lan¡¯s bright eyes dim, he patted his back and faintly murmured, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    As they walked outside of the hall, Lou Lan looked down and kept silent.

    Ai Hui, having sensed Lou Lan¡¯s disappointment, started to silently think to himself. Lou Lan seemed to be really anticipating the opportunity to battle on stage, but as a sand puppet, he obviously had an advantage over the rest in such a blind battle. The training hall would never let him up on stage, unless...

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes suddenly lit up; he had an idea!

    He nced over the signs of the surrounding training halls before setting his eyes on one of them and charging in its direction.

    ¡°This way, Lou Lan!¡±

    Ai Hui brought Lou Lan into another training hall and headed straight to the registration counter. ¡°I want to sign up.¡±

    The staff looked pointedly at Lou Lan.

    ¡°He¡¯s my sand puppet,¡± Ai Hui imed, before hurriedly adding, ¡°I¡¯m an earth elementalist. Can I bring him along topete?¡±

    Lou Lan, who was standing behind, was shocked.

    ¡°Earth elementalist? Then yes, you can.¡± The staff nodded; it was clearly not his first time in such a situation. ¡°But your sand puppet is required to seal all sensing techniques and disconnect all telepathicmunication. Also, soul-fogging grass would have to be stuck onto him, and if it falls off, then you will instantly lose. Are you still interested in participating?¡±

    Ai Hui was secretly delighted; indeed, it was just as he had expected!

    Sand puppets were the most important aspect of earth elementalists¡¯ fighting abilities; without them, earth elementalists were no different than sheep awaiting ughter. Unless earth elementalists were prohibited from participating, which was highly unlikely because they made up a bigmunity, training halls would have to use different methods to suppress and neutralize the natural advantages of sand puppets.

    However, although Ai Hui had guessed at the possible preventive measures, he had never imagined that they would be so fierce.

    Soul-fogging grass was concocted only by wood elementalists, and despite being non-toxic itself, it was used extensively in setting traps and making poison. However, since its most significant use was to interfere with their sensing techniques, it was used specifically to deal with sand puppets and had hence be hated by all of them.

    This was especially true for lower level sand puppets, as the soul-fogging grass affected them significantly; in fact, it would suppress practically all of their sensing techniques. Without their sensing techniques and their telepathicmunication, these lower level sand puppets were basically useless. Ai Hui mused to himself that this was probably the reason for such harsh methods.

    Lou Lan swiftly responded, ¡°No problem.¡±

    On hearing Lou Lan¡¯s reply, the staff was slightly taken aback. ¡°Looks like you have an intelligent puppet.¡± Heughed. ¡°Intelligent sand puppets have a great advantage. Eh, good luck to you both.¡±

    Ai Hui knew that the man was correct. Without the ability to sense and receive orders, the sand puppet¡¯s own judgments were being put to the test. That was why intelligent sand puppets could be said to have an advantage.

    How rare! Lou Lan actually had an advantage here.

    The staff produced a de of emerald green soul-fogging grass and handed it over to Lou Lan. This was the first time Ai Hui had seen a full de of soul-fogging grass, and it somewhat reminded him of a bean sprout.

    Lou Lan stuck the soul-fogging grass onto his head.

    Ai Hui was unable to contain hisughter. Lou Lan¡¯s head was made of sand, and now with a de of grass sticking out, it was as if a bean had sprouted on it. The sight was indescribably amusing.

    Lou Lan noticed Ai Hui¡¯s peculiar expression and started to have some doubts. ¡°Did I stick it in the wrong ce?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s very good,¡± Ai Hui reassured him, beforementing, ¡°You look fresh!¡±

    After registering, they both stood aside to wait for themencement of the next match.

    Ai Hui took this chance to impart somest-minute knowledge to Lou Lan. ¡°Do not panic when you get up there and are unable to see anything. Do not stray far from me or I can¡¯t help you. Do not panic as well if you encounter an attack. Remember, you¡¯re a sand puppet and can transform. Come, let¡¯s create a warning signal. We shall use the sound of grinding sand. Do not be too noisy, just make it loud enough for me to hear. Stop talking once you get on the stage to prevent others locating your position. The moment you decide to attack, do not hesitate. Do you still recall the techniques we practiced together that night? Remember, if you fail to attack, move away immediately. The best solution is to roll on the spot. Remember, you are a sand puppet. You can flow towards the ground, and even flow on top of it...¡±

    ¡°Ai Hui, don¡¯t describe me as if I am urine! I am a sand puppet.¡± Lou Lan resentfully corrected him, ¡°Not a water puppet.¡±

    ¡°Something like that.¡± Ai Hui chuckled dryly. ¡°In any case, I will help you, so rx, rookie. This is the first battle of your life. From today onwards, you will be a sand puppet withbat experience. You will remember this day. But if it hurts too much, don¡¯t forget to surrender.¡±

    ¡°Got it,¡± Lou Lan replied honestly.

    ¡°Get ready to go on stage!¡± the staff called out.

    ¡°It¡¯s our turn.¡± Ai Hui encouragingly patted Lou Lan¡¯s shoulder. ¡°You can do it, my soup-brewing gem!¡±

    Lou Lan did not notice the strange name Ai Hui had called him. His tone revealed some nervousness, as he began, ¡°Ai Hui...¡±

    Dong! Dong! Dong! The reverberations of the bell spread throughout the hall.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze sharpened instantly; he seemed to transform into an entirely different person.

    With steady hands, he wore the opaque mask.

 Chapter 28: Lou Lanâ€™s suspicion

    Chapter 28: Lou Lan¡¯s suspicion

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    When Lou Lan put the training hall¡¯s mask on his face, he realized that he was actually wearing twoyers of masks. It was an entirely original experience, just like how, at this very moment, he was standing on a stage in front of an audience.

    While buying his usual groceries, he had passed by many training halls, seen many banners promoting blind battling, and had even heard many discussing it as well.

    However, before today, he had never imagined that he would someday be standing on a stage and participating in a blind battle.

    He truly would never have dreamed of it. Yet the reality was right in front of his eyes.

    A battle awaited him; either he or his enemies would prevail. However, Lou Lan had a belly full of doubts; he wanted to tell Ai Hui that this situation was somewhat different to what the staff had described.

    He reached upwards and lightly brushed his hand against the soul-fogging grass.

    What he had wanted to tell Ai Hui earlier, before he had been rudely interrupted by his own thoughts, was that the soul-fogging grass seemed to have no effect on his ability to detect people. He could still ¡°see¡± them.

    Lou Lou deemed it weird. He was familiar with the soul-fogging grass, and ording to what he had learned, it really should have been able to restrain his powers. But then why was he still able to ¡°see¡± others?

    This was the first time that he had noticed that his body was different, but he could discern it only because of this blind battle and the de of soul-fogging grass stuck on his head.

    Lower level sand puppets were significantly affected by the soul-fogging grass. Could it be that he was not one of them? Lou Lan felt that that was impossible. When a low-level sand puppet was perfectly adequate for cooking and cleaning, why would a high-level one be required? It was much more likely that his abnormalities were because of Master Shao¡¯s experiments. Master Shao was fascinated with research; whenever he gained inspiration, he would immediately test it out on Lou Lan.

    However, these experiments had often led to problems arising in Lou Lan¡¯s body. For instance, during the time he had first met Ai Hui, his core had malfunctioned, and hence his body had started to fall apart.

    Maybe it was some kind of new technology?

    He reminded himself to ask Master Shao when he returned home.

    In reality, the soul-fogging grass was notpletely ineffective; his field of vision was affected, and his surroundings had be much blurrier. Lou Lan also found out, that unexpectedly, the opaque mask on his face had the most noticeable impact.

    Had he been using his eyes to observe the outside world? How strange...

    Lou Lan was surprised; he really had not expected this. Sand puppets seldom used their eyes to observe the world because earth elementalists, with their exquisite techniques and colorful experiences, knew that their sight would be greatly impaired. Under Master Shao¡¯s meticulous guidance, Lou Lan hade to understand a lot about sand puppets. However, Lou Lan had never examined his own body and had never realized that it had so many unique qualities.

    When he thought about it, Lou Lan felt relieved. Master Shao had never been one to abide by conventions.

    It would have been odd if he had been like other sand puppets.

    Lou Lan suddenly noticed that during the short moment he had been distracted, Ai Hui had already initiated contact with an opponent.

    Ai Hui strangely groped in the dark; his legs were apart in a half-squat, while both his arms were spread out and open, like a crab¡¯s pincers. That¡¯s right! Ai Hui¡¯s posture was remarkably simr to that of a crab.

    Ai Hui¡¯s movements were silent. His soles were like those of a cat, uncannily inaudible.

    How amazing!

    Lou Lan inwardly eximed with admiration. Compared to Ai Hui, his opponent seemed much more amateurish; even Lou Lan could tell that thetter¡¯s movements carried a tinge of panic.

    The sight made Lou Lan recall scenes of wild beasts hunting. Ai Hui was like a slowly advancing wild beast, and his opponent was like an rmed, fidgety prey.

    Suddenly, while Ai Hui was in a crouching position, his palm made contact with his opponent¡¯s waist.

    At the moment of contact, both parties reacted simultaneously.

    The opponent¡¯s first response was to immediately direct a punch towards Ai Hui, but contrary to his expectations, Ai Hui was in a half-squat. The punch flew past Ai Hui¡¯s head and struck empty air.

    Ai Hu¡¯s attack was much more effective.

    The moment he felt his opponent¡¯s waist, Ai Hui instantly reacted by swiftly gripping onto it and pulling it close. He then borrowed this momentum to thrust himself sideways and lunge for his opponent¡¯s calf.

    The force, whenpiled from top and bottom, momentarily threw Ai Hui¡¯s opponent off bnce and prompted him to fall towards Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui subsequently disyed his astonishingbat techniques. Like a nimble python, he did not retreat, and instead went forward and smoothly wrapped himself around his target. Ai Hui¡¯s feet shoved against his opponent¡¯s chin. His opponent, who had his hands crushed behind his back, was quickly immobilized before passing out after twenty seconds.

    The referee, who had long since been watching from the sidelines, rolled out a snake-like whip and wrapped it around the unconscious contestant, before expertly pulling him off the stage. An experienced doctor swiftly attended to him, and it was only after a short while that he indicated that the contestant was all right.

    Although the contestant was not injured, the incident had made the two referees tense up. Their expressions quickly turned serious.

    ¡°That earth elementalist was too relentless.¡±

    ¡°Yes, his sand puppet did not move at all. An earth elementalist who can fight is quite rare.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s unsurprising, actually. Earth elementalists are a group of abnormal fellows. The abnormality is normal for them.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±

    ......

    Even though they both were idly chatting, their gazes remainedpletely fixed on the stage.

    The members of the audience were absolutely silent; they were shocked by Ai Hui¡¯s sharp and fierce attack.

    Ai Hui¡¯s previous move was neither dazzling nor exceedingly borate; in fact, he did not even engage his elemental energy. However, it had made the audience feel the scent of fresh blood waft towards them; it carried with it a sense of sharp danger. During the past several days, in the various training halls, they had witnessed all types of contestants with their unique fighting styles; some were meticulous, some were entric and hrious, while others were disorganized and acted without thinking.

    However, no match came close to the scene that had just unfolded in front of them¡ªit had stunned them greatly.

    A few secondster, everyone came to their senses, and amotion broke out off stage.

    ¡°How fierce!¡±

    ¡°Too handsome!¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s that move called? Anyone knows?¡±

    ¡°Are you kidding me? So ferocious, and he¡¯s an earth elementalist! How is anyone else going to win?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, it¡¯s okay. Hey, look at his sand puppet. Doesn¡¯t it look silly?¡±

    ......

    The usual moves in previouspetitions were all flowery and fancy, yet highly impractical and weak. However, upon witnessing Ai Hui¡¯s violent and sharp move, everyone¡¯s interest was immediately piqued, because it was much more unique.

    Lou Lan stared nkly at Ai Hui as he stood on the stage, dumbfounded.

    Unlike Lou Lan, the observers downstage were far away from the action, and so their reactions were less surreal. However, the moment Ai Hui hadunched his attack, Lou Lan had felt his heart skip a beat.

    After taking down the contestant, Ai Hui immediately started to quietly grope around as he stealthily advanced towards the next one.

    The remaining opponent¡¯s earlier movements had inadvertently revealed his position.

    As Ai Hui continued to feel around for the next target, Lou Lan couldn¡¯t help but widen his eyes; he was afraid of not catching all the details. As an utterly inexperiencedbatant, he had already forgotten his purpose of being onstage. He waspletely immersed in Ai Hui¡¯s battle and was incredibly tense.

    The audience observed Ai Hui as he locked onto a new prey; everyone held their breaths with their eyes wide open.

    A nket of silence had descended upon the training hall yet again.

    Ai Hui was unaware of what was happening outside; the training hall had used a special method to soundproof the stage. Like a cautious wild beast with a silent bloodlust, he carefully and patiently approached his target.

    However, at that very moment, an unforeseen event suddenly urred.

 Chapter 29: Zu Yan

    Chapter 29: Zu Yan

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    A thread of fire had been ignited under Ai Hui¡¯s feet.

    Not good!

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression changed slightly as he instinctively dodged to the side. At that instant, with a smooth flip of the opponent¡¯s palm, Ai Hui¡¯s former location was set aze.

    The contestant had not anticipated Ai Hui¡¯s quick reaction, which ultimately led to the unexpected failure of his well-disguised attack.

    Ai Hui, who had just barely managed to escape the column of fire, shot into the air like a cannon¡¯s projectile and charged towards his opponent. Thetter was an expert in long-range attacks and had much stronger elemental energy; only by getting closer would Ai Hui stand a chance to win.

    If Ai Hui¡¯s previous attack had been soundless with hidden killing intent, then this lunge had thoroughly disyed his imposing and iparably sharp bloodlust.

    Sensing that Ai Hui was rapidly approaching, the opponent instinctively tensed up. This was precisely Ai Hui¡¯s strategy¡ªtounch a psychological attack; any trace of panic from the enemy was favorable to him.

    However, his opponent then made a very strange move: he got into a handstand position.

    Lou Lan, who had been watching carefully, broke out in a cold sweat. This was bad!

    At that moment, the opponent¡¯s palms became enveloped in a zing ball of me. The dark red fire spread through the air like flowing kerosene.

    This was...

    Lou Lan felt that the scene was familiar; he had seen it somewhere before, but he could not recall anything due to his extreme nervousness.

    "ming Heavenly Spider Transformation!"

    A member of the audience cried out in rm.

    "Zu Yan!"

    "Oh my god! Zu Yan came!"

    That remark caused quite a stir within the audience. Everyone was pleasantly surprised.

    Zu Yan was an expert from Central Wind City. Although its school district was a year ahead, it was the nearest city to Central Pine City, and hence experts from both sides were quite familiar with one another.

    Zu Yan¡¯s base level was not considered high as he had only activated two pces; however, he had quickly risen to fame once he had seeded in learning the absolute art [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation].

    Elemental energy techniques had been in development for over a thousand years, but there were only a few which could be acknowledged as absolute arts. Absolute arts formed the foundation of a family n; for example, Zu Family n¡¯s [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] was created only after generations of esoteric perfection and gradual, continuous improvement.

    However, whenpared to the skills of the supreme manuals that had been passed down from the Cultivation Era, these absolute arts could be considered very young and new. Every family n within the Avalon of Five Elements knew this exceedingly well, and hence no one dared to show disrespect and ignore their ancestors¡¯ contributions.

    Since the Zu Family¡¯s lineage was predominantly predisposed to the fire attribute, this absolute art perfectly suited them. However, due to the exceptionally high level of understanding that was required, mastering it was extremely tough, and so the number of descendants of each generation of the Zu family who had managed to sessfully learn [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] had never exceeded three. This had been the situation for many sessive generations; unfortunately, it was like an irondw which never changed.

    [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] was very hard toprehend, but once it was understood, along with constant perfection and umtion of elemental energy, one could smoothly be an expert.

    Zu Yan was the first amongst his generation to understand [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation].

    The Zu Family was a prominent n of the Avalon of Five Elements, and the name of its greatest genius was naturally well-known far and wide. Therefore, as soon as the spiderweb-like fire had lit up the stage, Zu Yan¡¯s origin had been swiftly recognized.

    The audience started to grow increasingly excited; it was not often that they could witness a fight with a talent like Zu Yan. They were full of curiosity; to be called an ¡¯absolute art,¡¯ exactly how powerful was [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation]?

    The manager of the training hall was smiling so much that his chin could not be seen. The appearance of an expert like Zu Yan was a big boost to his business. They were just missing Shi Xueman; if only he could invite her from the nearby Shi n Training Hall, then the doorstep to his training hall would be broken from being trampled on by the throngs of people who woulde to watch.

    Everyone was holding their breaths and gaping at the scene on the stage. They were waiting to witness the magnificent show that Zu Yan was about to put on.

    Ai Hui¡¯s attack was as fast as lightning; the moment Zu Yan had gotten into the handstand position, Ai Hui¡¯s fist was already flying through the air.

    Zu Yan¡¯s heart trembled. His opponent¡¯s reaction had been much faster than he had expected. With both his palms nted firmly on the ground, everything within his surroundings was under Zu Yan¡¯s control, and he could clearly sense the power of Ai Hui¡¯s punch. His opponent did not use any elemental energy, but the force of this blow was so outstandingly powerful that he could only haveunched such a ferocious attack bypiling all of the energy from throughout his whole body.

    If this punch made contact...

    Zu Yan felt that it would be best not to try.

    His reaction wasn¡¯t slow either. With a slight drop of his wrist, his body curved backwards like a bent bow. With a burst of energy from his waist and abdomen, he tensed his right, pencil-straight leg and filled it with elemental power. The ze rose dramatically, and like a ming heavy axe plummeting down from the heavens, it filled the air with a red color.

    A fist and a leg violently collided. Bang! An explosion rang out, and sparks could be seen flying through the air.

    Ai Hui only felt the rebound of an enormous wave of energy before he was sent soaring backward. Zu Yan also retreated with his palms by many huge steps before stabilizing himself.

    Lou Lan was suddenly jerked back into reality, and without thinking, he rushed towards Ai Hui.

    Zu Yan coolly looked on as his opponent¡¯s sand puppet saved his master. The raging energy and blood inside of his chest only soothed after a while; Ai Hui¡¯s earlier punch was simrly unpleasant for him. He had really not expected that his opponent would have such strength.

    What was the most bewildering, however, was that his opponent did not engage any elemental energy in his attack!

    Throwing such a fierce punch with just pure muscle strength¡ªwho was he? Was there such an expert in Central Pine City?

    Could it be that he, too, was an expert from another city who came because of the news?

    Central Pine City¡¯s blind battles had be well known in the vicinity and being so close to Central Pine City, Central Wind City was naturally interested in the battles as well. Although the training halls within Central Wind City had already started to organize a few battles, they fell behind in terms of creativity. When people had time for leisure, they would take the short trip down to Central Pine City for some entertainment.

    While Zu Yan was pondering over Ai Hui¡¯s identity, the flying Ai Hui had already been caught by Lou Lan.

    Ai Hui looked a tad pitiful. His right hand was hanging down unnaturally by his side, and his fist was even burnt ck. It was evident that the exchange had been quite damaging to him. Without even needing to check, Lou Lan could distinguish that Ai Hu¡¯s right arm was broken.

    Lou Lan remorsefully med himself. He had boldly imed that he would assist Ai Hui, but he had not been of any help at all. However, Lou Lan honestly had no idea how to handle Zu Yan. Although he had recognized [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation], it was of no use to the battle. Due to hisck ofbat experience, Lou Lan was unable toe up with any solution at this time.

    Ai Hui was like a battle god in the eyes of Lou Lan, but even then, he was not the enemy¡¯s match. There was now only one solution.

    "Let¡¯s surrender," Lou Lan said honestly.

    Contestants that were on the stage could not hear noises from outside, but the members of the audience could clearly hear everything that was being said onstage.

    The audience roared withughter upon hearing Lou Lan¡¯s words.

    "Hahaha! Is this a sand puppet?"

    "Hahaha! This is the first time I¡¯ve heard a sand puppet persuading his owner to surrender. Haha! Too funny!"

    "I can¡¯t stand it anymore, no, let meugh, hahaha..."

    "Hey hey hey, you are a sand puppet! You¡¯re not supposed to submit even if it means death. You¡¯re supposed to sacrifice yourself and give your owner a chance to live! Hahahaha..."

 Chapter 30: Adviser-type Sand Puppet

    Chapter 30: Adviser-type Sand Puppet

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui was not the least bit surprised by Lou Lan¡¯s actions; Lou Lan was purely a lifestyle sand puppet and an inexperienced battler, and behaving appropriately in his firstpetition was already an incredible feat.

    The smarter the sand puppet was, the more affected it would be by its state of mind. On the other hand, low-level sand puppets, which had a much lower intelligence, could only follow orders blindly and emotionlessly.

    That was the reason why many earth elementalists did not prefer intelligent sand puppets. The smarter they were, the more human-like they would be. They would have a greater sense of self-awareness and would independently judge many things for themselves.

    Battle-type sand puppets were usually less intelligent. If they were like humans, who felt emotions like fear and anxiety, then they would be timid during fights, which was something that the earth elementalists, who had the desire to build ughter machines, disliked the most.

    However, the world is full of contradictions. Intelligence could also be said to be a quality that a killing machine should possess. Understanding how to make the right decision at the right time was undoubtedly the most important prerequisite of a top-notch ughter machine.

    Lou Lan was very intelligent, which was exactly the cause of his troubles during his first battle.

    However, the current situation was not that bad; Lou Lan had not lost his head out of fear. Instead, he had persuaded Ai Hui to surrender, which was, in actuality, the right choice, considering the skill levels of both the contestants.

    "He is using [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation], which is an absolute art," Lou Lan whispered. "His base level should only be of two pces, but his [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] has already managed to unlock [Hellfire Spider Web]. There¡¯s no way we can win."

    The audience¡¯s previous reaction to Lou Lan¡¯s persuasion was tough, but these words sent them into shock.

    "Don¡¯t tell me he¡¯s an adviser-type sand puppet?"

    "He actually knows [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation]! He¡¯s an adviser-type sand puppet!"

    "Such an intelligent sand puppet, this is an adviser-type sand puppet?"

    "What day is it today? Not only did an absolute art appear, but an adviser-type sand puppet showed itself!"

    The members of the audience discussed in hushed voices; they were all bewildered.

    Sand puppets had been in development for over a thousand years, and there were bound to be many unusual and bizarre types of sand puppets that would be invented. To the majority of people, earth elementalists were solitary and unique, and so the fact that they had strange temperaments was entirely natural. In fact, they even believed that it would be embarrassing to be called an earth elementalist if one had an overly normal character.

    Adviser-type sand puppets were incredibly rare. Not only did they require a high intelligence and capacity for learning, but they had to also remain calm during times of danger and rmend the most valuable solutions.

    In addition to being exceedingly troublesome to make, adviser-type also had high requirements, and much more was expected from them than other sand puppets. They were also very weak and would easily be a constant target in the battlefield, shortening their lifespans drastically.

    Of course, earth elementalists were usually conceited when it came to their abilities and wisdom, and so they only used their sand puppets toplete odd jobs and ensure their safety. Thus, they did not favor adviser-type sand puppets.

    However, to elementalists of other attributes, adviser-type sand puppets were their favorites¡ªespecially to those who had fists but no brains. These sand puppets had much better learning abilitiespared to humans because they did not need to sleep and could untiringly and unceasingly study and absorb knowledge.

    Who wouldn¡¯t want a smartpanion? It was due to this that the market price for an adviser-type sand puppet had always remained sky-high.

    Out of everyone present in the training hall, the one who was enjoying the most was definitely the boss of the training hall. First, the Zu Family¡¯s absolute art [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] had appeared, and then all of a sudden, that foolish-looking sand puppet was possibly an adviser-type puppet. He felt as if he had won the lottery twice in a day and was simply over the moon.

    Ai Hui had originally nned to retreat. As Lou Lan had mentioned, the disparity in their skills was too big. He had no chance of victory.

    He had came here only for the money. Since this opportunity was gone, he could just move on to the next training hall; after all, he was not one to care about the results of a fight.

    However, upon hearing Lou Lan mention that his opponent had engaged an absolute art, Ai Hui immediately changed his mind.

    He had stayed in the Wilderness for three years and had met many strong elementalists, but there were none who possessed an absolute art. However, he had witnessed the yearning in the faces of eminent elementalists whenever they spoke about absolute arts.

    Ai Hui was unaware of how Lou Lan had managed to identify his opponent¡¯s move as an absolute art, but he trusted Lou Lanpletely. Ever since they had be acquainted, Lou Lan had never spoken any unreliable words and, moreover, he had never spoken without thinking.

    An opportunity was right before his eyes!

    There would be no better chance than this!

    Blind battling was apetition, and contestants did not have to worry about losing their lives, even if they lost onstage. To be able to fight in apetition, rather than on a battlefield, and to get to witness an absolute art¡ªhow could it be better than that?

    Ai Hui started to be stimted when he thought of this rare opportunity. Although his right arm was numb, it was as if incessant energy was flowing throughout his whole body.

    "Go down first. I¡¯ll join you soon."

    Behind his mask, Ai Hui licked his lips. He then turned towards Zu Yan and crouched down slightly.

    Lou Lan did not understand why Ai Hui would reject his suggestion. Ai Hui should have been able to assess the situation, right? Their skill levels differed too much, and it was evident that he stood no chance of winning.

    However, since Ai Hui had chosen to continue battling, he also had no reason to retreat. He suddenly recalled his previous observation: there was an intense passion, which he had never seen before, in Ai Hui. The type of ardor that he would never possess.

    At most, he would just be broken and scattered...

    Lou Lan repeatedly consoled himself.

    He stood beside Ai Hui with his core fully operating, continuously racking his memory for relevant information concerning [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation].

    Ai Hui had not expected Lou Lan to remain, but he did not argue against it. Unlike others, Ai Hui believed that this was an equally excellent opportunity for Lou Lan.

    Being able to witness an absolute art during his first battle was...enviably honorable!

    Ai Hui did not even consider as to whether or not the neer would suffer from a mental blow or setback. Compared to the Wilderness, where blood was sttered everywhere and mangled flesh could be seen at every corner, apetition like this was simply too gentle and heartwarming.

    Although Lou Lan bravely stood by Ai Hui, he did not know what posture to adopt, and eventually ended up looking like a clumsy penguin.

    Stars filled the eyes of the girls downstage as they held their hands against their bosoms.

    "Such a cute sand puppet!"

    "It looks so silly! I want one!"

    There were others, however, who were more experienced, and they shook their heads one after the other. An adviser-type sand puppet entering realbat¡ªwasn¡¯t that simply courting death? It seemed like this adviser-type sand puppet was not of a high grade because otherwise, he would have a higher IQ and would not behave so foolishly.

    It was even more usible that everyone had guessed incorrectly, and he was not even an adviser-type sand puppet at all!

    The scarlet red ming on the ground resembled an enormous spider web, and Zu Yan, at the center, resembled a spider. Under the influence of his absolute art, he was cognizant of every movement within the hall. Yet, currently, he was only interested in the fellow with whom he just had a fistfight with.

    Zu Yan also became a little excited upon realizing that his opponent had not left. He might as well give his opponent a moment to rest. He took advantage of his fire to sweep the otherpetitors¡ªsimr to the autumn gales that sweep away the fallen leaves¡ªoff the stage.

    At this point, Ai Hui could spare no time for Lou Lan. All his attention was centered on his opponent; he was of aware of nothing else.

 Chapter 31: Hellfire Spider Web

    Chapter 31: Hellfire Spider Web

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Ai Hui¡¯s concentration had never been so fixated.

    The contestant before him was the strongest he had encountered so far. Showcasing superior skills, the obvious gap in strength killed all suspense as to who would im victory, but this strangely galvanized Ai Hui even more. Passionate, red-hot blood flowed in his veins like moltenva.

    He was moved by the fact that he was about to challenge one of the legendary absolute arts.

    Although his right arm was numb, hanging limply from his shoulder, and his vision was obscured in the darkness, his unprecedented focus led to an enhancement of the six senses.

    Ai Hui clearly sensed his opponent who didn¡¯t bother to conceal himself. From the strange handstand to the heat emitting from his palms, Ai Hui could feel even the faint flickers of energy rippling along the ground.

    The motion of the elemental energy was minute and Ai Hui had not detected it earlier.

    The surprise attack he hadunched earlier had probably been detected through this weak energy web.

    The other side had already quietly cast an inescapable, waiting for prey to intrude. Absolute art indeed, Ai Hui admired. Setting traps was a technique he was also proficient in, but he had not previously detected this snare at all. Evidently, his rival had next-level skills.

    He suddenly thought of Lou Lan¡¯s earlier words. That guy could cast the [Hellfire Spider Web].

    The spider was an arthropod that Ai Hui was familiar with. He had seen all kinds of spiders in the Wilderness. Both the [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] and [Hellfire Spider Web] appeared to be rted to spiders¡ªperhaps this principle could lead to victory?

    Techniques were not named carelessly. Their names, more often than not, represented their characteristics.

    Ai Hui knew how to catch spiders like the back of his hand. His heart stirred. Could it be...

    His figure shed as he abruptly charged forward. At the same time, he felt his opponent¡¯s body shift slightly. Indeed, as Ai Hui had deduced, the almost undetectable weak ripples on the ground were actually part of an extensive invisiblework. His opponent was like a spider waiting within a spider web. The moment an intruder entered any corner of his web, it fell under his control.

    In such a short moment, Ai Hui could not think of a better idea.

    This was the first time Ai Hui had met an opponent who was vastly superior. [Hellfire Spider Web] was undoubtedly the most suitable technique to use in a blind battle.

    ¡°Since you do not dare to attack, let me!¡±

    Zu Yan became impatient. He yelled loudly and initiated an attack. He smacked his me-d left palm on the ground, and his body fiercely lunged toward Ai Hui. The darkness did not affect his aim at all. Borrowing the force of his lunge, his straightened legs garnered elemental energy, and he once again dove at Ai Hui like a sturdy hatchet.

    The sharp, sky-rending sound that followed brought with it the billowing crackle of mes. The ferocity of his attack was iparable¡ªeven the audience was awestruck by the sheer force of Zu Yan¡¯s kick.

    As the attack approached, Ai Hui found himself beset by a feeling of helpless entrapment as the wind roared in his eardrums.

    His heart palpitated, but like a weak candle me shielded from the wind, he still had a trace of rity. He bit his tongue, allowing the sharp pain to rouse him. The iing me chopped down, like a solid hatchet de.

    With all his might, Ai Hui threw himself to the side.

    Boom!

    Amid the me-filled sky, the long legs impacted heavily onto the ground, like a heavy tomahawk thrown by a giant.

    The solid, elevated stage shattered like a crispy biscuit. Fragments flew everywhere, revealing a battered and exhausted Ai Hui.

    Zu Yan was quite surprised. His kick appeared sharp, but the real killer technique was the interference produced by the [Hellfire Spider Web]. This move had been trialed and validated. Opponents usually became distracted by his legs and their state of mind would be affected by the nearly invisible ripples.

    During a deadlocked battle between two excellentbatants, a moment of absent-mindedness was enough to tip the scales of victory.

    The interference of the [Hellfire Spider Web] surprisingly had zero effect on his opponent.

    Zu Yan¡¯s interest was piqued. Those capable of dodging this skill were not nameless people.

    ¡°Who are you exactly?¡±

    As if he had been injected with steroids, Zu Yan roared as heunched a storm-like attack. The collision between his heavy legs and the ground was so loud it made people shiver. A scarlet-red ze enveloped the whole stage, and the debris flew in all directions like a downpour. The pieces of the stage smashed against the elemental energy-powered screen, which isted the stage from the outside, like raindrops pattering on a huge piece of banana leaf.

    Stunned, the whole training hall fell into silence as everyone was rendered speechless by the scene happening in front of them. How could they have ever witnessed such a violent attack? The more faint-hearted spectators trembled uncontrobly, and those who boasted of being brave turned pale-faced.

    Even the referees on the side looked tense. They were already prepared to rescue someone at any time.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hairs stood on end. From the beginning and until now, danger had never left him. The intense crisis provoked his reflexes and he had no time to think at all. Dodge! Dodge with all his might! Relying on his instincts to dodge!

    He felt he could suffer a direct hit at any time. No, as long as his opponent¡¯s leg brushed against him,yers of skin would scrape off even if he did not perish.

    ¡°Are you a mouse? Dodge! You only know how to dodge!¡± Afterunching consecutive missed attacks, Zu Yan gradually became angrier and his voice revealed it. ¡°Do you think you can dodge?¡±

    Zu Yan sped up his attacks.

    Before the previous fire had even dispersed, a new flurry of mes were violently released with the heavy kicksing his way. In the blink of an eye, the mes onstage stackedyer uponyer like scorching, red clouds.

    Ai Hui was in an even more challenging situation. It was as if he had been surrounded by the raging sea and could be engulfed by the giant waves at any time. His energy was rapidly draining and at a faster rate than usual.

    Sweat was pouring out of his body, he was panting for breath, and his throat was hot like a zing fire.

    The audience offstage gradually recovered from their initial shock and soon discovered something abnormal. That strange, pitiful earth elementalist always appeared to be in jeopardy, narrowly avoiding copse and destruction. But, a long timeter, that fellow had actually not been hit yet!

    How odd!

    Those with even the tiniest brain could tell something was not right. Dodging a move or two was possibly due to luck. More than ten strikes? Absolutely not a fluke.

    Slowly, someone started to notice a possible exnation.

    That earth elementalist could anticipate Zu Yan¡¯s attacks, and his actions were extremely nimble,cking any slight dy and sloppiness. His moves were so fluid, it was as if his whole body had been coated with oil.

    With such smooth dodging, this was definitely not an obscure figure!

    Everyone was racking their brains to recall which earth elementalist was known to be an expert in this battling style. Wait, earth elementalist...everyone felt a sense of unexinable awkwardness.

    If it had been another individual, they would receive it well, but remembering that the person on stage was an earth elementalist, the crowd felt ufortable.

    Such smooth battle moves carried out by an earth elementalist. What a vition ofws.

    Shouldn¡¯t an earth elementalist¡¯s moves be dictated by his sand puppet?

    Eh? Only at this point did everyone remember. Where was that slightly foolish sand puppet?

 Chapter 32: Secret Signal

    Chapter 32: Secret Signal

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Everyone had forgotten Lou Lan.

    Zu Yan had initially paid no attention to Lou Lan. Additionally, he had been provoked by Ai Hui, and while fighting, he had naturally neglected a useless sand puppet. Ai Hui was in a highly strained state and waspletely relying on his instincts and wealth of experience to dodge. He, too, had no time to spare for Lou Lan. The members of the audience were enthralled by Zu Yan¡¯s dazzling and sharp moves and were staring, full of shock, at the stage. How could they possibly remember that clumsy sand puppet?

    All this while, Lou Lan was standing in a corner, watching Ai Hui dart around the stage. He pondered expressionlessly over the possible ways he could assist Ai Hui.

    He hadpletely recovered from his initial nervousness, but s, it was now of no use.

    He was truly a rookie when it came to battling; he waspletely unable to enter theirbat. Ai Hui, whom he regarded as akin to a war god, was forced to flee around the stage without the least bit of energy to retaliate.

    The opponent¡¯s skills were too powerful!

    With such an absolute disparity between the strengths of both parties, Lou Lan could note up with a practical idea to turn the situation around.

    If Ai Hui had stopped and asked, ¡°Lou Lan, have you thought of something?¡±

    He would definitely respond, ¡°We¡¯d better surrender.¡±

    He would then tell Ai Hui that judging from the current situational development, they were bound to be defeated at some point. Ai Hui¡¯s right arm was broken, and its treatment would cost quite a bit. If the fight continued, he would sustain more injuries, which in turn meant spending more money. He would then, as a loyal friend, remind Ai Hui that he was destitute. This was the most logical thing to do.

    Yet apparently, over here, all logic was thrown out of the window. Lou Lan vividly remembered Ai Hui¡¯s eyes: they were not bright but instead ice-cold and profound, while slightly flickering with an intense battle intent.

    Was that deeply hidden passion going to erupt at this moment?

    Lou Lan was a little envious. He did not understand why Ai Hui was so determined and reckless. Why did he choose to fight on, knowing that he was far weaker than his rival? Why didn¡¯t he surrender even after being chased around until he could not even hit back?

    Was that passion?

    Lou Lan seriously assessed himself but found no such passion within himself.

    He mocked himself. He really was thinking too much.

    Lou Lan, you¡¯re a sand puppet, he reminded himself.

    Nevertheless, to have a friend like Ai Hui was truly something to be happy about. Moreover, he was battling alongside Ai Hui! Huh? Suddenly remembering the battle, he scanned across the aggressive scene that was taking ce not far away and muttered uncertainly to himself, ¡°Somewhat alongside...¡±

    He had been a little troubled, but his unhappiness immediately vanished¡ªlike smoke into thin air.

    Although I do not have that kind of passion that you do, you are a friend. Lou Lan¡¯s one and only friend. That, in itself, was a sufficient reason to battle, Lou Lan said to himself.

    Lou Lan was a sand puppet!

    Lou Lan¡¯s body suddenly shattered and transformed into a pool of sand.

    The stage was filled with a surging airflow, and Lou Lan borrowed its energy to noiselessly hover in the air. asionally, fire fragments would pass through his body, but he disyed no reaction; he was like an unremarkable cloud, floating silently amongst the raging storm of violent mes.

    Lou Lan not only had a degree of understanding of [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation], but he had also read descriptions of [Hellfire Spider Web]. [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] had been ssified as an absolute art mainly because of its enormous potential for growth. Onceprehended, the absolute art¡¯s strength would jump to a higher level with each pce opened.

    With a base level of only two pces, executing [Hellfire Spider Web] was remarkably difficult, and at the very least, four would be required forplete implementation. [Hellfire Spider Web], when executed with only two pces, had an enormous loophole: it could affect only those enemies that were on the ground. If enemies approached from above, they would not trigger the response of [Hellfire Spider Web].

    It was a pity that Ai Hui could not fly.

    However, as a matter of fact, all weakness were only significant when two opponents were of simr strength. In the current situation, with such arge gap in skill level, identifying a weakness was somewhat useless.

    Lou Lan floated in midair, as he calmly drifted along with the airflow.

    Lou Lan could feel that the opponent was consuming huge amounts of elemental energy and physical strength, and this was evident from his increasingly slow attacks and hisrge, heaving breaths. However, Ai Hui wasparatively more miserable; his whole body was thoroughly exhausted.

    Lou Lan could even sense that Ai Hui¡¯s legs were trembling.

    He could not help but admire Ai Hui. Willpower was an unfamiliar word to a sand puppet. He had only read it in books previously, but today, he had finally witnessed Ai Hui¡¯s marvelous determination for himself. He could now sincerely feel what willpower was.

    Ai Hui was too awesome!

    At that moment, Ai Hui lunged to the side, narrowly avoiding a massive leg that descended from the sky. Boom! It forcefully smashed on the ground. Yet another near miss.

    Seeing that the opponent was close by, Lou Lan decisively made his move.

    Zu Yan had not expected Lou Lan¡¯s attack since all his focus was on Ai Hui. Furthermore, the attack came from midair, which was not under the jurisdiction of his [Hellfire Spider Web].

    Whoosh!

    A clump of sand suddenly materialized and wrapped Zu Yan up at lightning speed. Ayer of fine sand started to make its way onto Zu Yan¡¯s palms. Eventually, a thinyer of sand had appeared in between Zu Yan¡¯s palms and the ground.

    Caughtpletely off guard, Zu Yan¡¯s expression changed. With theyer of sand separating his palms from the floor, his connection with the Hellfire Spider Web was affected. His sense of his surroundings immediately turned blurry.

    Rustle! Rustle! Rustle!

    Countless grains of fine sand started grinding against one another.

    The sound of grinding sand was like a bolt of lightning that pierced through the clouds and struck Ai Hui, instantly illuminating his almost unconscious brain.

    ¡°...Let¡¯s set a secret warning signal. The sound of grinding sand. Not too loud, just enough for me to be able to hear...¡±

    His ckened pupils suddenly contracted as Ai Hui¡¯s demeanor abruptly changed.

    He adjusted his posture and his right foot stomped vigorously on the ground. Creak! An ear-piercing sound, caused by the friction between his shoes and the ground, was generated, which was followed by a cloud of green smoke. Ai Hui¡¯s body was in a steeply inclined position¡ªalmost parallel to the ground. He maintained his bnce by cing his hands on the ground to support his body.

    Ai Hui, who had just stopped himself, unhesitatingly garnered hisst bit of strength and elemental energy. He then engaged all limbs before shooting out, like a spring, towards the miserable figure that was bundled up by the yellow sand.

    Ai Hui arched his body slightly in midair.

    The moment his back touched something, his body reacted instinctively.

    [Arching Fish Back]!

    Boom!

    Unlike the explosive sounds that were being caused by Zu Yan¡¯s massive legs, this sonic boom was exceptionally dull and muffled, as if it hade from deep underground. However, it carried with it an even more frightening amount of power.

    The yellow sand was like a hurricane; it was flying everywhere. As if a wild rhinoceros had mmed into his body, Zu Yan, with a resounding boom, was sent airborne before smashing against the istion screen. A momentter, his limp body, which was spread out like a tbread, started to slowly slide down.

    The referees at the side rushed towards him, and after a brief inspection, they sighed a collective breath of relief. ¡°No worries. He¡¯s just unconscious.¡±

    There was only dead silence throughout the training hall; everyone present was left utterly speechless by the turn of events.

    The [Arching Fish Back] from earlier had drained every single drop of energy from Ai Hui¡¯s body; he could not even lift a finger right now.

    Rustle! Rustle! Rustle!

    Countless granules of yellow sand rolled about on the ground, resembling many creeks converging. Soon, arge lump of sand¡ªLou Lan¡ªappeared in front of Ai Hui.

    The sand moved under Ai Hui¡¯s body and propped him up, before gently sliding him off stage like moving quicksand.

    Everyone dazedly looked on in silence. They had yet to recover from the earlier shock.

    The golden sand did not pull Ai Hui out through the exit, but instead, slid towards the manager of the training hall. Pu! The mass of quicksand spat out the soul-fogging grass, whichnded on the manager¡¯s table.

    Then, a part of the flowing sand transformed into a palm and extended out in front of the manager.

    The manager was still standing in shock.

    After waiting for ten seconds, the golden sand hand impatiently pped down on the manager¡¯s table a few times, before moving back in front of the manager. It continuously gestured¡ªwith a thumb and index finger made of sand¡ªas a hint.

    The manager instantly understood and hurriedly brought the prize money over, fluidly cing it on top of the palm of yellow sand.

    It was only then that the golden sand pulled Ai Hui through the deadly silent hall, before exiting under the astonished gazes of the dumbstruck crowd.

 Chapter 33: Repercussions

    Chapter 33: Repercussions

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    Shi Xueman allowed herself to stop and catch her breath; however, she did this only after she managed to destroy twenty-seven wooden stakes and shatter thirty-seven iron targets consecutively.

    Wiping off the beads of perspiration that trickled down her forehead, Shi Xueman realized that after venting her anger, her pent up frustrations were finally relieved. She had initially been so confident about fighting a blind battle, but reality had given her a cruel p in the face.

    Shi Xueman felt that ever since she had encountered that scoundrel, her luck had started going downhill. Everything had be increasingly unfavorable for her.

    When she noticed Uncle Yong Zheng shuffling hurriedly in her direction, she halted her training, and a trace of hope inadvertently rose within her. "Have you found any news of that scoundrel?"

    "Miss, we just received news that Young Master Zu Yan was beaten unconscious at a training hall.

    Shi Xueman paused for a moment, before responding, "Ah, Zu Yan? He was knocked unconscious? What¡¯s the situation now?"

    She had known Zu Yan when she was a young girl. Both of their families were on good terms, and they were close family friends. Zu Yan was younger than her by 2 years, and she had always seen him as a little brat. When they were both children, he had always followed her around like a shadow; however, when he grew older, his talent had also emerged. Nobody had expected that Zu Yan would be the first in his family¡¯s younger generation to sessfullyprehend [ming Heavenly Fire Transformation].

    Since then, Shi Xueman had hardly seen him, and she had reckoned that he was locked up at home training. As the sole seedling of the new generation, the Zu family ced him with the utmost importance. In this aspect, though, Shi Xueman was no exception, but in spite of that, she was more diligent and had higher expectations for herself. She did not need to live under the constant supervision of others, and as such, her family did not impose many restrictions on her.

    Yong Zheng replied, "The Zu family¡¯s servants took him home."

    "That is good to hear," Shi Xueman softly sighed with relief. Shortly after, her expression became grave, as she asked, "What is the background of the opposite party?"

    "We are not sure yet. There have been many skilled practitioners from the outer-states recently participating in blind battles at Central Pine City." Yong Zheng paused before continuing, "Currently, we only know that the other party is an earth elementalist. He also has a brilliant sand puppet that aided him in defeating Young Master Zu Yan in the blind battle."

    "Blind battle?" Shi Xueman asked, surprised. Her first thought was of that scoundrel from the previous battle. However, upon thinking some more, she realized that if the opposite party had a sand puppet, then it could not be the scoundrel. Shi Xueman clearly remembered every detail about that scoundrel, and while she was unable to determine his identity, she was entirely certain that he was not an earth elementalist.

    Furthermore, it was highly unlikely that that scoundrel could defeat Zu Yan in a blind battle.

    The Shi family and Zu family were family friends, and thus, Shi Xueman knew much more about the Zu Family¡¯s legacy skills than the ordinary person. She had long heard that Zu Yan had managed to activate two pces ording to [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation], and as long as two pces of the [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] were activated, he would be able to learn [Hellfire Spider Web]. [Hellfire Spider Web] was simr to a spider web, in the sense that it would spread around an area to detect any movements within its surroundings. It could be said to be a weapon that was designed for blind battles.

    In fact, it seemed as if blind battles were tailored specifically for Zu Yan.

    Shi Xueman knew that in a standard duel, she had an eighty percent chance of defeating Zu Yan. However, in a blind battle, Shi Xueman clearly understood that she would not even stand a chance in defeating him.

    Yet Zu Yan was actually beaten in a blind battle!

    Furthermore, he was knocked unconscious!

    One could imagine the astonishment that Shi Xueman was feeling. She tried to recall the identities of skilled earth elementalists of the Induction Ground that could defeat Zu Yan. While there were many earth elementalist members who were definitely stronger than Zu Yan, it was difficult for her to pinpoint who exactly could defeat Zu Yan in a blind battle.

    After gradually recovering from her shock, she sighed again. "Perhaps it¡¯s a good thing, lest he bes arrogant."

    Yong Zheng nced at Shi Xueman andughed bitterly to himself. He, too, was shocked when he first heard the news. Central Pine City could be described as ¡®turbulent¡¯ in recent times, but as a resident of Central Pine City for many years, he was used to the previous peace and quiet. In the Induction Ground, Central Pine City was a small city that never had many experts.

    However, the sudden boom in poprity of blind battles had brought about a drastic change in the environment of Central Pine City.

    The news of Zu Yan¡¯s defeat and the mysterious earth elementalist was sure to spread like wildfire; unfortunately, it would only attract the attention of more skilled experts. If news that the famous Shi Xueman was hiding in his very own training ground was disclosed, then Central Pine City would get even more crowded.

    He sighed. He should not keep worrying blindly about such things.

    He could onlyugh bitterly when he recalled that the blind battle was initially his idea.

    "Ask around for more information on this earth elementalist," Shi Xueman instructed.

    Yong Zheng nodded affirmatively and replied, "Yes."

    As predicted, the news of Zu Yan being defeated by a mysterious earth elementalist quickly spread around the entire Central Pine City at an rming rate. Zu Yan was simply too famous. Although Zu Yan had managed to activate two pces, it was not considered to be an achievement in the Induction Ground. However, the fact that he practiced the absolute art [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] was sufficient enough for him to rise to fame.

    Throughout the Zu Family¡¯s long history, the disciples of each generation who had managed toprehend the [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] were all over the age of 30. Zu Yan, who was able toprehend an absolute art at such a young age, had already revealed his astonishing talent. This had greatly enforced the belief that he would have an exceptionally bright future. Due to his age, however, his power was now limited.

    Moreover, absolute arts were absolute arts, after all. So what if Zu Yan had activated only two pces? Zu Yan¡¯s capability was definitely not any less than those who had managed to activate four pces.

    Zu Yan had entered the Induction Ground while bearing the burden of being the top of the Zu¡¯s family younger generation. While he was not amon household topic, Zu Yan¡¯s fame definitely surpassed every student of Central Pine City.

    Even the reputation of the top genius of Central Pine City, Duanmu Huanghun, was iparable to that of Zu Yan.

    One could only imagine the sensation that Zu Yan¡¯s defeat had brought to Central Pine City; the whole city was discussing the identity of the mysterious earth elementalist. The effect of this incident was not just limited to Central Pine City¡ªafter hearing about it, many outstanding experts of other cities had also be exceptionally interested; they sought to take part in the famed blind battles of Central Pine City.

    However, no one knew about the miserable state of Ai Hui and Lou Lan¡ªthe chief protagonists of this incident.

    ......

    Swoosh! Lou Lan slid down from the fence.

    "Ai Hui, how do you feel?"

    Remaining in the form of a puddle of quicksand, Lou Lan smoothly glided to the side of a mummified figure. The figure, which was Ai Hui, looked far worsepared to Lou Lan; it was wrapped in countless of loops of white bandages and the right arm was pitifully hanging in front of its chest.

    In the main training hall, Ai Hui was miserably resting on the rattan chair, chewing on a de of grass. He mumbled, "Lou Lan, are you all right?"

    "Master Shao said that I will only be able to stand after three days. Before that, I¡¯m unable to heal you, Ai Hui," Lou Lan reported with regret, before continuing, "Do you want me to find Doctor Mu Xiu to heal you first?"

    "Nope. I¡¯m not in a hurry anyway. I will wait for you to recover and then heal me. I¡¯m a poor man, you see!"

    "Ok." Lou Lan did not protest and, like a snake, started to wind around a pir that was next to Ai Hui. He stopped his ascent when he reached Ai Hui¡¯s eye level.

    Ai Hui suddenly spoke. "Thank you for yesterday, Lou Lan."

    "Why are you thanking me, Ai Hui? Wasn¡¯t it supposed to be like this?" Lou Lan asked in confusion.

    "I¡¯m referring to not forgetting to take our reward when we left!" Ai Hui gazed up at the heavens while euphorically eximing, "So much cash! We are rich! We are rich!"

    The cash reward was extremely generous¡ªit amounted to five hundred thousand yuan, which was a tremendous amount in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    "We won," Lou Lan burst out with joy. He was particrly happy that he had managed to win his first actual battle. Nothing could make him more satisfied than the fact that he had yed a major role in the fight.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui, his voiceced with concern, asked, "Oh yes, what did Master Shao say about your special abilities?"

 Chapter 34: To Split The Cash

    Chapter 34: To Split The Cash

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    After they returned from the battle, Lou Lan exined the various odd quirks on his body to an astonished Ai Hui. Ai Hui was very familiar with the soul-fogging grass. While the effect of the soul-fogging grass in restraining a sand puppet was not definite, if a sand puppet was of low quality, the restraining effect would be very distinct. Although it was highly unexpected for Lou Lan to still be able to see when a whole de of soul-fogging grass was ced on his head, yesterday proved otherwise.

    From the beginning, Ai Hui felt that Master Shao was mysterious and brilliant. Many of Lou Lan¡¯s aspects continued to surprise him. Ai Hui had interacted with numerous sand puppets before, but Lou Lan was the most unique sand puppet that he had ever seen.

    ¡°Master Shao said he used a lot of his own inventions on me and never imagined that there would be such an effect. He did not know what I would be transformed into since most of the techniques he used were untested. As of now, I am a never-before-seen being. To put it simply, I am an experiment, but Master Shao never imagined that I would be effective inbat and was amazed by my performance. Regarding my current situation, Master Shao still needs time to contemte.¡±

    As he neared the end of his speech, Lou Lan looked happy. He felt rtively joyful due to the fact that Master Shao was astonished by his aplishments.

    ¡°You can definitely be a fighter!¡± Ai Hui said in an assured tone. He continued, ¡°I feel that you have the potential to be a high-level battle sand puppet!¡±

    ¡°Really, really?¡± Lou Lan¡¯s tone was jubnt, like a kid who had just received apliment.

    ¡°Of course!¡± Ai Hui thought of something suddenly and said, ¡°Oh yes! We have one more deed to do.¡±

    ¡°What do we need to do?¡± Lou Lan asked curiously.

    From lying on the rattan chair like he was at hisst breath, Ai Hui suddenly jolted up as if he had ingested some miracle tonic. His pride was practically bursting out of his body and could not be constrained by the numerous bandages wrapped on him. Ai Hui cheered, ¡°Split the cash!¡±

    ¡°Split the cash?¡± Lou Lan was somewhat confused.

    ¡°Of course we need to split it. Half of the cash reward belongs to you,¡± Ai Hui said in a matter-of-fact tone.

    Lou Lan paused for a moment before saying, ¡°We do not need to split the cash reward. I am just a sand puppet.¡±

    ¡°Who set the rules that sand puppets do not need to get a share of the cash reward?¡± Ai Hui asked calmly. ¡°No matter whether you are a sand puppet or not, we fought together, and this means we are partners. Since half the merit is yours, half the cash reward is definitely yours too. This is the rule.¡±

    Lou Lan said limply, ¡°But....¡±

    ¡°There is no but!¡± Ai Hui insisted. ¡°It is decided and it shall be this way in the future. Hmm, the one hundred thousand yuan from the first battle will be solely mine as I fought in the battle alone. The cash reward from the second battle is five hundred thousand yuan and we shall split it evenly between us. Take it away quickly before I get blinded by the amount of money we have! Adding up the cash from both battles, I will have three hundred and fifty thousand yuan!¡±

    Ai Hui spoke in an agitated tone. Three hundred and fifty thousand yuan. To Ai Hui, this is a hefty amount that he had never before earned in his entire life.

    I made it. I made it!

    His mind was filled with that phrase. As he visualized the countless energy-replenishing tonic soups that he could now afford and their tantalizing smell, he unknowingly gulped.

    Oh heavens have mercy on Ai Hui. A country bumpkin like him had never seen such arge amount of money before. With a trace of sleepiness in his voice, Ai Hui asked, ¡°How are you going to spend the money, Lou Lan?¡±

    Lou Lan was somewhat at a loss and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know...¡±

    ¡°What, you don¡¯t even know what to spend on? Lou Lan, you are too silly ha ha.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s voice was weary, and his speech was unclear.

    But Lou Lan truly did not know. He never thought that he would be given a share of the cash reward. Since he the day he was first created, Lou Lan had countless interactions with money, such as when Master Shao sent him to buy ingredients, when he went shopping for daily groceries, and so on. However, the sand puppet had never had money that belonged solely to himself.

    Nobody rewarded him with cash even if he helped them. He was merely a sand puppet. Wasn¡¯t it natural and proper for a sand puppet to help human beings?

    As a result, this was the first in his life that he received a sum of money that was his alone.

    This sudden mary gain affected him tremendously. Reflexively, he looked towards Ai Hui who had incidentally fallen asleep. Even while sleeping, Ai Hui pursed his lips, as if he was eating something.

    Lou Lan gazed at Ai Hui silently while reflecting on what Ai Hui had said previously.

    ¡°No matter whether you are a sand puppet or not, we fought together, and this means we are partners. Since half the merit is yours, half the cash reward is definitely yours too. This is the rule...¡±

    Partners ...

    A feeling he never experienced before surged into him. Lou Lan did not know how to describe this feeling, but he felt that this would be a day he would remember for the rest of his life.

    On this day, Lou Lan finally had his own money.

    On this day, Lou Lan was treated as a partner and not just as a tool.

    He realized that he had been unaware that he wascking something, but now he was fulfilled . It was as if he had encountered a light at the end of a dark tunnel.

    At that moment, he understood that he was no longer the same Lou Lan as before.

    He was unable to describe the change, but he knew that he was different now.

    ...

    ¡°Huanghun, you are still not attending lessons today?¡± His friends who were getting ready to leave shouted through his locked door.

    In his room, Duanmu Huanghun moved his face close to the mirror. Looking at his swollen face which still revealed the distinctive palm imprints, his eye twitched and he forced the words out of his mouth, ¡°I am not going.¡±

    ¡°Then we¡¯re leaving.¡±

    While continuing their discussion, his friends turned and departed.

    ¡°What is going on with Huanghun recently? He does not even attend his lessons anymore. He never skipped any of his sses before!¡±

    ¡°Perhaps he is sick. Didn¡¯t he catch a cold previously?¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah, it seems like he was also tortured by the instructor from the Society of Excellence. Thank goodness we didn¡¯t join.¡±

    ¡°Oh please, we wanted to be in the Society of Excellence, but we were not epted. Do you think just anyone can be like Huanghun? His poprity amongdies coupled with his handsome looks and capability made him number one in Central Pine City!¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun turned green. Currently, he only wanted to cover his ears, but thements of his friends outside found their way to his ears. Looking at the swollen face reflected in the mirror, every sentence was like a stab to his heart.

    That damn cold! He was actually knocked unconscious by that fellow. He felt his emotions rising.

    Thinking back to the humiliating measures that the scoundrel Ai Hui used, Duanmu Huanghun once again felt his face heating up.

    Recalling the gestictions from the many females on the street, his face was practically burning.

    He was not sure if it was an illusion, but he felt that the face in the mirror was more swollen than before, as if it had transformed into a bun. The elegant, dainty chin was gone and his facial features werepletely warped. His once charismatic eyes has also became lightbulb-like.

    This is too humiliating!

    This is simply too embarrassing!

    This hatred cannot be contained. Just you wait, Ai Hui. I, Duanmu Huanghun, will definitely not let you off!

    Suddenly, someone shouted from outside the window, ¡°Rumor has it that Duanmu Huanghun is the number one expert in Central Pine City. I am Gu Tianning and I am challenging you to a duel. Duanmu Huanghun, do you dare to ept my challenge?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun tensed.

    ¡°Fellow student Duanmu Huanghun, don¡¯t tell me that you do not have even an ounce of courage to battle? What a disappointment!¡± the neer shouted, his voice echoing into the distance.

    Duanmu Huanghun trembled in anger, but looking back at the swollen face in the mirror, the urge to rush out disappeared. If he rushed out, he would surely be theughingstock of Central Pine City tomorrow.

    Just you wait, Ai Hui!

 Chapter 35: Harvest and Explode

    Chapter 35: Harvest and Explode

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    As Ai Hui waved his arm, he felt that he was strong enough to kill a bull. Lou Lan¡¯s skills were indeed trustworthy.

    ¡°Lou Lan, I¡¯m going to train.¡±

    Ai Hui carried the dried food and water he had prepared during the morning and waved to Lou Lan.

    With a p, Lou Lan exploded into a lump of yellow sand and molded into a tight, yellow sand fist. ¡°You go, Ai Hui!¡±

    Ai Huiughed and hoisted the bag over his shoulder tightly before exiting the Vanguard Training Hall.

    Walking on the streets, Ai Hui clearly felt that there was a much bigger crowd than usual. Soon he understood that these people were mostly students from other cities who came over to participate in the blind battles. As he listened,their heated discussions involved experts they had met, mysterious earth elementalists, Zu Yan, and so on.

    Ai Hui was baffled by the news. He had long forgotten about his disguise as an earth elementalist, so he did not put two and two together.

    Very quickly, however, he heard something that he couldprehend.

    ¡°Have you heard? Gu Tianning challenged Duanmu Huanghun to a battle, but Duanmu Huanghun caught a cold and was unable to show up. What a pity.¡±

    ¡°Ah, that¡¯s really a pity! I have seen Gu Tianning¡¯s skills. He¡¯s powerful! He ranked within the top fifty of the Induction Ground at fourty-ninth! Plus, he¡¯s a berserker in battle. Duanmu Huanghun is the number one talent in Central Pine City. He¡¯s the most outstanding kid in his family, so it definitely would have been an intense battle!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why it¡¯s unfortunate. Initially, Gu Tianning thought Duanmu Huanghun was finding an excuse. He only found outter that Duanmu Huanghun was really out with a cold and couldn¡¯t attend sses for a few days.¡±

    ¡°Too bad...¡±

    Ai Hui sneered while listening at the side. He despised Duanmu Huanghun greatly. What cold? Who was this guy fooling? If he had not personally cured Duanmu Huanghun, Ai Hui would have been deceived by this absurd excuse.

    Duanmu Huanghun appeared to be decent, but it seemed like his morals were questionable.

    Ai Hui, who was inwardly disdaining Duanmu Huanghun, soon forgot about this news after traveling less than ten meters. Ai Hui never cared about things that were irrelevant to him. Although Duanmu Huanghun was a ssmate, he was no different from any passerby in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    Ai Hui was very cautious toward the world. He was insted, apathetic, and did not care if this perished or prospered. He was only concerned about his own small world.

    The word ¡°friends¡± had apletely different meaning to Ai Hui.

    Fatty was unscrupulous, stingy, greedy, and timid, but he was actually also a softhearted and kind person who tried to be on good terms with everyone. In the Wilderness, he was the one who buried the workers who had passed away. Only Fatty would do something like this. Ai Hui would not since he found it meaningless.

    He only cared about Fatty who was his friend during times of tribtion.

    Fatty had saved Ai Hui¡¯s life more than once.

    The worst incident urred when the team was attacked by a bunch of dire beasts. Half of the elementalists died. Theborers, needless to say, were practically all killed or injured. Ai Hui was seriously injured and had lost consciousness. Trembling, Fatty pulled him out from the pile of dead bodies. While the elementalists panicked and just wanted to be on their way, no one bothered to care for theborers. Fatty carried him, ran with the remaining team for five days, and lost ten kilograms doing this. That was the only time he had been skinny. When Ai Hui regained consciousness for the first time, Fatty hugged him while wailing loudly, creating a scene Ai Hui could never forget.

    Now there was Lou Lan. Probably because Lou Lan was a sand puppet, Ai Hui did not guard against him that much.

    He felt this situation was quite good. It would allow him to direct all his energy into his training. His world was small, but it was all he needed.

    Upon exiting Central Pine City, Ai Hui quickened his steps. No one noticed this youth with the shabby cloth bag. Although he had just earned a hefty sum of three hundred and fifty thousand yuan, he could not bear to spend it. His shabby cloth bag was still a shabby cloth bag. His dried rations were still hard and dehydrated pancakes.

    In the future, he would have many necessities that required money.. These blind battles made Ai Hui realize that he was very naive for hoping to earn money throughpetitions. Even though he had joined forces with Lou Lan, hisst victory had been a fluke within a fluke. Such luck would never befall him again. The blind battles within Central Pine City were now widely acimed and the number of expertspeting started to increase. His chances of winning would only be slimmer.

    Previously, he could depend on his familiarity with night battles to have an advantage over other contestants, but in front of all kinds of strange fighting methods and the absolute elemental energy disparity, his advantage became negligible.

    No matter what, experience could never rece skills. Otherwise, he would not have to attend sses in the Induction Ground.

    When he neared the Suspending Golden Pagoda, he met two city guards who reminded him about roaming wild beasts and warned him to pay attention to safety. Ai Hui was a little taken aback, but he expressed his thanks anyway. He had only been away for a few days, yet wild beasts started to appear.

    It looked like he had to be careful, so Ai Hui raised his alertness. Having survived the Wilderness, he naturally would not be the least bit careless.

    Arriving at the pagoda, Ai Hui scanned his surroundings meticulously. It was more or less the same as when he had left this ce a few days back. There were no marks left by the wild beasts, causing Ai Hui to feel a little puzzled.

    Although he was not sure how the beast sightings came to be reported, Ai Hui had extensive experience in this area and greater faith in his own judgment.

    Upon retrieving his well-hidden Backless Armor and seeing that it was safe without a scratch, Ai Hui was relieved. This armor was quite expensive, and it could be considered as an important asset.

    He put the armor on and fastened it before starting his unique training.

    When Ai Hui threw himself into the pagoda once again, he felt different from before. The metal wind still pierced into his bones, but the pain induced by the silver strands of metal element had lessened significantly.

    This caught Ai Hui¡¯s attention. After careful sensing and observation, he realized there was a slight change in his muscles. They were tougher, more durable, and denser. His muscles were initially like rice straw , while the strands of metal element were like steel needles that permeated into his body and caused shooting pains. Now, however, his muscles became more solid. The rice straw had be bamboo, naturally reducing the pain.

    The metal elemental energy contained within these silver strands was much more condensed than the energy from typical sources. This promoted the growth of muscle strength more effectively than themon metal elemental energy.

    This discovery incited Ai Hui. He knew he had found the right path.

    There was still ack of affinity, but he had better endurance. Although his absorption was less efficient, he could absorb a higher grade of elemental energy. The higher the grade, the more effective the training was for the body.

    There was nothing more exciting than unearthing a path that belonged to him.

    For this session, Ai Hui persevered for an even longer time.

    His day became richer and more fulfilling. Ai Hui was very willing to endure the dull and dreary training.

    Be it the absorption of elemental energy or the [Arching Fish Back], Ai Hui was full of vigor Before, Ai Hui only used the [Arching Fish Back] to disperse the silver strands of metal element in his body, but the previous blind battle had made him realize the effectiveness of this move. It could be formidable if trained properly.

    Even an expert who practiced an absolute art and activated two pces was knocked senseless by his [Arching Fish Back].

    Currently, it was definitely his most powerful technique!

    Ai Hui had brought a whole month¡¯s worth of dried food. He also found a water source about two kilometers away. In that deste Suspending Golden Pagoda, he started diligently training day and night without pause.

    It was not hard work to him. No one knew how much he had wished to be able to focus on training without having to worry about anything else during his time in the Wilderness.

    It felt so good!

    Being able to feel his dripping sweat was something that felt really good!

    He could sense his progress every day. They were tiny, but firm and steady improvements that gave him a feeling of aplishment.

    Yes, his world was this small. He had never thought of saving the or bing a hero. Training hard daily, without worrying about being attacked by wild beasts or about tomorrow¡¯s ns, was enough. How could such a life not be blissful?

    He could not think of a happier life. He wished for this lifestyle to continue forever.

    To Ai Hui, who was immersed in his training, one month ended in the blink of an eye. He only be aware of the fact that a month had passed when he reached into his cloth bag and felt that it was empty.

    During that one month, Ai Hui did not waste a single second.

    As he removed his Backless Armor, his face was full of surprise. His progress was so great that even he himself could not believe it.

    Under the sunlight, a faint metallic sheen appeared on his skin. He had witnessed such a phenomenon before, but only from some of the authentic, master elementalists.

    His skin became even harder. He tried using a sharp piece of stone to scratch his skin but only created a shallow mark. His strength had obviously increased. His muscles, which had been refined by metal elemental energy, could produce greater explosive force.

    His power was not weak to begin with, but it had now be rmingly strong. Even without utilizing elemental energy, his base strength was five times more powerful.

    The elemental energy within his body had grown even more obviously. In the past, his elemental energy was thin like a thread, but now it was as thick as a toothpick

    The growth in his elemental energy would bring about aprehensive growth to his fighting capabilities.

    The force of his [Arching Fish Back] was also boostedpared to before. It was evident from the big dent on the pagoda¡¯s wall. Before, the subtle indentation could only be seen with the naked eye when viewed up close. Now, it was extremely obvious and could easily be noticed.

    Judging from this pace, another two months was all Ai Hui needed before attempting to activate his natal residences.

    Ai Hui was not in a rush to activate the residences because he could feel his continuous progress, indicating his tempering had not reached bottleneck. His experience in the Wilderness taught him that a robust body was essential at all times.

    He witnessed some master elementalists perish, even though they possessed exceptional elemental energy, due to weak physiques.

    His body could take it, so why shouldn¡¯t he take this chance to fortify it even further? Ai Hui managed to control his eager heart since he knew he was on the right path. He had seen a lot of swordy manuals from the big sects and none failed to highlight the importance of the basics. These books should contain logic and truth if they had been passed down over tens of thousands of years.

    Ai Hui started salivating after suddenly recalling Lou Lan¡¯s elemental energy replenishing soup. Like a gust of wind he rushed toward Central Pine City.

    He was unaware that in the month he was gone, the world outside had been turned upside down.

    Defeated, Zu Yan closed himself off from the world to train. Seeking a rematch in half a year, he proimed a written challenge addressed to that mysterious earth elementalist. Challenge notices were ced outside every institution within the Induction Ground.

    Shi Xueman trained diligently as well. She felt that her skills were insufficient to defeat her enemy and was preparing for more arduous closed door training to sharpen herbat ability.

    Central Pine City had be the most popr city within the Induction Ground. The blind battling trend swept across the Induction Ground since it was a novel system ofpetition that attracted much interest. Teachers discussed blind battling techniques in sses and some more progressive schools even started to prepare lessons dedicated to blind battles.

    During this month, within Central Pine City, the limelight belonged solely to one person¡ªDuanmu Huanghun.

    Duanmu Huanghun was renowned as the number one genius among Central Pine City¡¯s current batch of students and people thought highly of him. He was also one of the more popr students in the city.

    The rise in poprity of blind battling brought along many expert fighters from outside of Central Pine. When many talentedbatants gathered, there were naturally people who wanted to challenge Duanmu Huanghun, especially after he rejected Gu Tianning¡¯s duel request.

    Sure, he had a cold, but many still scorned and looked down on him. Rumors spread that he was strong in appearance, but weak in reality, leading many fame-seeking students to challenge him one after another.

    Duanmu Huanghun consequently exploded!

    He consecutively defeated nine seniors, who were all at least four years older than him, within a week and spontaneously silenced the gossip.

    But this was just the beginning. With a belly full of anger, Duanmu Huanghun wasn¡¯t satisfied just yet. During the next week, he headed down to different training halls to dere challenges to their respective experts.

    Fifteen consecutive wins in a week!

    One of his defeated opponents even had six pces activated. Such a terrifyingbat record immediately boosted his reputation within the Induction Ground.

    The bloodthirsty Duanmu Huanghun had no intention to stop, however.

    In the third week, he fought his way out of Central Pine City and into the rankings of the Induction Ground. He challenged and defeated the forty-ninth ranked Gu Tianning, the thirty-third ranked Cui Zhiyuan, and the twenty-fifth ranked Fu Hua.

    The entire Induction Ground was momentarily silenced.

    He jumped up to seventeenth in the newly announced rankings, bing the only new student to ce within the top twenty. He also became the leading student of this year¡¯s new students.

    Historically speaking, the number of new students who managed to aplish this could be counted on one hand.

    With his outstanding aplishments, Duanmu Huanghun became one of the finest contenders in the Induction Ground. His astonishing talent and aptitude shocked the Induction Ground¡¯s management team. They allowed him to move up to a higher-level school district in order to receive better guidance.

    Upon hearing the news, countless school districts were quick to react. Since Duanmu had yet to return to Central Pine City, they took the opportunity to catch him midway and attempted to pull this rare talent into their institutions by offering generous conditions.

    What caused everyone to be taken aback was the fact that Duanmu Huanghun rejected all of them.

    He publicly dered that he was going to remain in Central Pine and would only ept Teacher Xu¡¯s guidance.

    This unexpected choice silenced the Induction Ground once again, but since everyone valued him highly now, they decided he was virtuous and respectful of those who had helped him along the way.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s glorious image received another boost. With his handsome looks, devilish charm, and naturally cool disposition, he became the man of many young girls¡¯ dreams. Many of them left their respective institutions in order to follow him as he went around challenging different experts.

    No matter where he went, countless beauties trailed behind him.

    The once-unknown Central Pine City was now beyond famous and had be a city envied by institutions from all other cities.

    And today was the day Duanmu Huanghun was returning to Central Pine City.

 Chapter 36: Nightmare

    Chapter 36: Nightmare

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    ¡°I didn¡¯t know that Duanmu is so strong!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, and he is so idealistic to choose to stay in Central Pine City. He is definitely a loyal person. I can¡¯t believe that I used to have prejudice against him before!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right! Duanmu may seem cold from appearance but is actually emotional at heart.¡±

    ......

    Today was the day of the return of Duanmu Huanghun to Central Pine City. When the faculty and students learned of the news, the entire school came together to distinctly hold a wee ceremony for Duanmu. Whether teacher or student, everyone¡¯s face was radiant with joy. A freshman had made it to the top twenty of the Induction Ground¡ªit was an unprecedented honor, even in the entire history of Central Pine City. It not only brought fame but also tangible benefits to the city.

    As long as they could retain Duanmu Huanghun, Central Pine Academy could get a high score every year, because the score earned by Duanmu Huanghun alone was more than all the other studentsbined. The score was tightly rted to the rating and resources that would be allocated to the school in the future. As a result, Duanmu had definitely be the apple of everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s incredible achievement was totally out of the school officials¡¯ expectations. Moreover, when Duanmu announced to the public that he would continue to study in Central Pine Academy, they felt as if a delicious pie had fallen from the sky onto theirps. Not only was it the reason why a wee ceremony was being held, but it was also why all the participants¡ªwhether teachers or students¡ªwere more than happy to do so from the bottom of their hearts.

    The benefit that Duanmu had brought them covered many aspects, including a rise in teachers¡¯ sries and the improvement of student¡¯s training resources.

    However, this was all the more impressive to the female students of Central Pine Academy; Duanmu Huanghun had previously enjoyed an amazingly high poprity among these girls, but now, after bing the idol of the entire Induction Ground, they had all started to go crazy over him.

    ¡°Girls, cheer up! We don¡¯t lose to the b*tches from other schools!¡±

    ¡°Exactly! Huanghun belongs to us. Who are they to meddle with us? Anyone who wants our Huanghun has to defeat me first!¡±

    ¡°Good things should always be kept for our own. Throw those b*tches away as far as possible!¡±

    ¡°Huanghun will know who really loves him the most!¡±

    ......

    These girls had dressed up extravagantly in their favorite dresses to attend the wee ceremony.

    Faculty and students were gathered on both sides of the road, preparing to wee their beloved Duanmu. The crowd stretched from the gate of the city all the way to the entrance of Central Pine Academy.

    The shops along the road were decorated with gs, and each training hall had also adorned their entrances with colorful banners. The managers and merchants were all beaming with joy as flocks of people continued to bring much more profits to their businesses.

    The sudden increase in poprity of blind battles had greatly improved the business of the various training halls in Central Pine City¡ªnow informally known as ¡°The Cradle of Blind Battles.¡± Their businesses could already flourish along with the trend for quite some while more. Yet, they were also clearly aware that that would hardlyst long, because, although blind battles were a new and hot topic at this moment, as time passed by, interest would eventually be lost, resulting in the inevitable plummet in profit.

    The rise of Duanmu Huanghun, however, was a pleasant surprise to them.

    As long as the glorious Duanmu Huanghun continued to stay in Central Pine City, the small city would no longer be as obscure as before. What did ¡®top twenty¡¯ in the Induction Ground stand for? It stood for something that everybody looked up to, and in other words, the signature symbol of Central Pine City had now been changed¡ªpreviously, it was blind battles, but from now on, it would be the great genius Duanmu Huanghun.

    In the keen eyes of the businessmen of Central Pine City, Duanmu was definitely akin to a rare treasure. Apart from his own potential and prominent background, merely the fact that he was now ranked among the top twenty as a freshman was enough for them to amplify the hype and turn him into ¡®the genius of the century¡¯. Now, he was the leader among the new students. How many woulde to challenge him? How many new, trendy topics would there now be?

    Moreover, Duanmu had a face that was so beautiful that even women would cry out in envy. Think of all those female students who had just lost their minds in infatuation. They were identical to countless walking money!

    Whose money was it the easiest to earn? Women¡¯s!

    The rise in poprity of the city was beneficial for everyone.

    Almost all the residents attended the ceremony. They were all rather curious because the city had never before seen a genius that could attract so much attention. No one in Central Pine City had ever made it into the top one hundred, much less the top twenty. The highest ranking of Central Pine Academy students had hitherto been 292.

    A lump of Fiery Floating Cloud was soaring through the air.

    Duanmu Huanghun was elegantly seated upon the Fiery Floating Cloud, but his handsome and devilishly attractive face carried with it a tinge of weariness. It was indeed a heavy burden, to both his spirit and body, to consecutively challenge arge number ofpetitive rivals.

    When he could finally glimpse the outline of Central Pine City, Duanmu heaved a long sigh of relief. He had purposefully set out overnight to avoid those crazy female students.

    The past several days had been a literal nightmare to him. He believed that the misfortune had started from that insufferable task that Teacher Xu had assigned to him. When he looked back at those unbearable memories, he felt fury begin to well up within him¡ªespecially when he remembered the day when he had to refuse Gu Tianning¡¯s challenge because of his puffy face, which had earned him the name of a coward.

    Even though Duanmu had endured through the immense shame, he really had not expected that every Tom, Dick, and Harry would want to duel with him after they heard of his refusal to ept Tianning¡¯s challenge. Having held in his anger for so long, Duanmu eventually could not take it anymore, and finally red up.

    That was why he thrashed the challengers without even saying a word.

    Moreover, in his violent rage, he had rushed straight to all the training halls and battered those foreign masters, who hade to experience the blind battles, to a pulp.

    However, Duanmu¡¯s anger was still notpletely vented. Heaven only knew how many more outlets he needed.

    Therefore, his next move was to rush out of Central Pine City, but the first person he encountered was Gu Tianning¡ªthe source of his grievances. When he thought of his puffy face and the taunts that wereing from outside, he felt an unspeakable humiliation.

    In the end, Duanmu thought of only one thing, which was to fight. His fury was almost driving him insane, and there was only a single thought that was constantly echoing in his mind: I want to vent! I want to vent!

    However, now, after having challenged another two strong opponents, Duanmu Huanghun was finally exhausted, and his rage was somewhat eased.

    He felt much more cid now.

    As for the invitations from other schools, he threw them into the dustbin without even a glimpse.

    Stand up from where he had fallen!

    He could not let Ai Hui off the hook so easily; he would not leave Central Pine Academy unless the resentment between them was settled. His intent for revenge was indeed hard to curb. When he thought of his puffy face, the killer intent within him became slightly uncontroble.

    He did not even have the courage to recall that horrible scene.

    Damn! It was all because of Ai Hui. He was his nightmare, and he must destroy him!

    Noticing the weing crowd at the city gate, he gracefully smoothed down his clothes, held his chin high and raised his head. His face returned to being cold and devilishly charming.

    His vanity was greatly content as he returned as a triumphant hero.

    Under the burning gazes of the crowd, the Fiery Floating Cloud stopped unhurriedly at the city gate. Everyone behind the gate held their breath; Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s cold yet handsome face quickly attracted attention. His tall and slender figure revealed his graceful temperament, and his gorgeous clothing, which was stained from travel, seemed to narrate a unique story of its owner¡¯s honor and achievement.

    The unprecedented genius of the entire Induction Ground!

    An absolute idol among the new students!

    The Fiery Floating Cloud steadily hovered several inches away from the ground. Duanmu Huanghun, who was being stared at by thousands of people, effortlessly and dignifiedly stepped down from the Fiery Floating Cloud like a valiant, glorious hero.

    ¡°Oh, hello, Bangwan! You are here too?¡±

    That voice had constantly lurked about in his nightmares, but now, from behind, it suddenly reached his ears like a thunderp.

    Duanmu seriously could not prepare for such an unexpected urrence, and almost instinctively, his pupils dted and his body stiffened, as he staggered and missed his step.

    With a resounding thud, Duanmu Huanghun fell to the ground like a rigid stake.

    Everyone instantly fell silent.

 Chapter 37: Noodle House

    Chapter 37: Noodle House

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui had no intention to greet Duanmu Huanghun since he did not know him very well, and so had just nned to ignore him.

    However, Duanmu¡¯s Fiery Floating Cloud had stopped right in front the gate and blocked the way. Moreover, it seemed to take ages for him just to step off the cloud. Ai Hui waited, and waited, until he eventually became really impatient, and greeted ¡®Hello!¡¯ out loud to remind that Bangwan that someone was waiting behind him and to please be quick.

    However, right afterward...

    Looking at the fallen Duanmu¡¯s face, Ai Hui felt contempt for his psychological weakness. His voice had been barely above a whisper. How could someone be so fearful? What about those dire beasts with their thundering roars in the Wilderness? This guy would simply be frightened to death!

    Maybe the kids nowadays were like this. Anyhow, Ai Hui had always regarded him as childish.

    Other than training, Ai Hui had never cared too much about anything else. As for therge crowd of people waiting at the city gate, well, what did it have to do with him?

    When he arrived back at the training hall, he noticed that it was spotlessly clean; as usual, Lou Lan had done a good job. Now, however, Lou Lan was not present, which left Ai Hui to be free.

    After finishing his shower, Ai Hui noticed that Lou Lan was still missing. All his hopes were dashed; it seemed like there would be no soup today.

    As it was still early, he decided to head out and have some noodles.

    Yes, noodles, which would cost him a hundred and fifty yuan for a single bowl! After all, now that he had three hundred and fifty thousand yuan on hand, he considered himself to be rather rich and could eat as much as he liked. Ai Hui had only been eating pancakes for the past month, and his mouth watered at just the thought of those noodles.

    He immediately rushed out through the door.

    Shi Xueman wandered the streets of Central Pine City without any specific destination. She had heard about the big weing ceremony for Duanmu Huanghun, but unfortunately, she could not witness it for herself. She had also learned from Uncle Yong Zheng that after jumping off the Fiery Floating Cloud, Duanmu had toppled over onto the ground in exhaustion. People were marveling at the hardship he had endured through to attain his current achievement.

    Shi Xueman also admired his unprecedented feat of consecutively challenging three experts of the top fifty in just one week. It truly was no surprise that he was exhausted.

    She herself had only managed to achieve the top one hundred during her first year of college; it was no wonder that Duanmu Huanghun was being honored as ¡®The Genius of the Century¡¯.

    Nevertheless, she had no interest in Duanmu Huanghun; she was only interested in that mysterious expert who had defeated her. She once suspected that Duanmu Huanghun might be the one, but had shortly rejected the notion.

    Duanmu Huanghun was of an apparent noble temperament¡ªtotally different from that of the mysterious master.

    Shi Xueman was wearing an elemental energy mask to avoid being recognized by others, and now, she appeared to be an ordinary girl student.

    Ever since that fateful blind battle, she would oftene to Central Pine City in her free time, and she soon became familiar with its topography. In fact, she was presently enjoying the feeling of strolling aimlessly after an intense training session.

    Detecting a mouth-watering aroma of food, Shi Xueman suddenly began to feel hungry.

    Turning to the source, she noticed a noodle house. Actually, she seldom ate out at restaurants¡ªto be more specific, she seldom ate anything except elemental food.

    On ount of her constant training, she was stringent with her diet. Her daily diet only consisted of elemental food that was specially made for enhancing the results of her training.

    Therefore, she hesitated...but she eventually sumbed to the temptation.

    As it was not yet mealtime, there were only a few customers in the noodle house. The owner was engrossed in preparing spiced beef, causing an irresistible smell to linger in the air.

    She casually entered, sat at a table, and requested a bowl of noodles. At that instant, a figure rushed in and sat at a table across from her. "Five bowls of noodles, please!"

    Shi Xueman took a brief nce and realized that it was a male student who seemed familiar. She might have seen him somewhere before.

    After pondering for a while, she remembered thatst time in Central Pine City, while she was fuming over all the colorful banners advertising blind battles, she had noticed a mocking gazeing from across the street...

    ...from this guy!

    Last time, although Shi Xueman was filled with self-confidence, she had made a mistake, and now she felt slightly embarrassed. However, she was not annoyed with the boy because they were unfamiliar with each other. Admittedly, she was in a rotten mood at that time, and she seemed to have given him an angry nce.

    She smiled wryly. Just then, her noodles arrived, and she began to enjoy her delicious meal.

    The noodles were incredibly tasty and totally different from the elemental food that she was used to. Try as she might, she could not stop eating.

    Compared to her, though, the actions of the fellow seated opposite were far more exaggerated. He swept through the fiverge bowls of noodles in a line like the wind sweeping the leaves, causing a scene that was of great visual impact. Furthermore, his table manners were rude and wild, and with each bite, half the noodles of a bowl would disappear. Shi Xueman, who had happened to take a glimpse, was left stunned.

    All the people she knew were restrained, elegant, and gentle while eating; she had never before seen anyone eat like him.

    At the beginning, Ai Hui had noticed her since she had stared at him for a while, but having already adapted to life in the Induction Ground, he did not regard it as anything dangerous.

    Now, he was so focused on the noodles that he had already forgotten himself.

    He picked up a bowl and gulped down half the noodle soup before cing it down contentedly. He suddenly noticed the stupefieddy sitting across from him.

    Shi Xueman met his gaze, but she immediately realized that it was somewhat rude and quickly looked down. In an attempt to cover her embarrassment, she hastily called the owner to bring her the bill.

    "That would be a hundred and fifty yuan, please," said the owner monotonously.

    "Okay," replied Shi Xueman as she rummaged about for her purse. However, she suddenly froze, because she realized one horrible thing¡ªshe did not take any money with her!

    She had taken a shower and changed her attire after training, but the purse was still in her previous clothes!

    What to do? She had never encountered anything like this and totally nked out.

    "Excuse me,dy?" Noticing her absence of mind, the owner gently gave another reminder.

    "Sorry...I...I forgot to bring money..."

    Shi Xueman stammered, her face burning with shame¡ªat this moment, she felt like hiding herself and disappearing.

    The owner¡¯s expression darkened.

    Ai Hui noticed the scene. Looking at thedy¡¯s face, which was almost buried in her arms, he shook his head to himself and said, "Hey, I¡¯ll lend you the money. Give me something as a pledge, and I¡¯ll return it to you once you pay me back."

    Would he freely pay the bill? No. Ai Hui would never utter such profligate words.

    One hundred and fifty yuan was a lot of money to him!

    If there was nothing to pledge, he would not lend the money. He was not one to show sympathy, and simply his willingness to lend was already a great favor in his eyes.

    He then took out the money and pointed to the bowls in front of him. "Bill, please."

    Having paid for the meals, Ai Hui strolled out of the noodle house with a toothpick in his mouth and Shi Xueman¡¯s bead bracelet in his hand.

    Shi Xueman sincerely expressed her gratitude to Ai Hui. "Thank you. I will definitely pay you back. Please give me your address."

    "Vanguard Training Hall." Ai Hui continued, "Bring the money, and I¡¯ll give you the bracelet. Go home and get the money quickly. I¡¯m leaving now."

    Noticing the decreasing sunlight, Ai Hui hastily corrected himself. "Tomorrow would also be fine. Farewell!"

    He quietly waved goodbye, without taking the clouds away from the sky.1

    Note:

    1. The original text is extracted from a modern poem which is well known in China. Basically, it means "He left."

 Chapter 38: The Inner Demon

    Chapter 38: The Inner Demon

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    When Shi Xueman returned to the Shi n Training Hall, she asked Uncle Yong Zheng, "Do you know where Vanguard Training Hall is?"

    "Vanguard Training Hall?" After mulling over for a while, he shook his head. "No. There is no such training hall. Where did you learn about it?"

    He had been responsible for the Shi n Training Hall of Central Pine City for a very long time, and therefore, he was familiar with everything about the city¡ªespecially with matters concerning training halls. He was literally one hundred percent sure that there was no such training hall in Central Pine City.

    Now that the young mistress had mentioned such a bizarre ce, though, he was seized with a feeling of foreboding. He was not worried about her safety at all because he clearly knew of her strength. However, having grown up in a rtively simple environment where she cared about nothing but training, she was naive and ignorant to the various ways of the world. This kind of girl would easily be cheated.

    Shi Xueman described what had happened.

    Yong Zheng felt even more uneasy. "The bead bracelet was the one you are always wearing?"

    "Yes, that was the only thing I could pledge. It is Grandmother¡¯s memento, so I always wear it." She noticed the change in Uncle Yong Zheng¡¯s facial expression. "Uncle Yongzheng, was there any problem with that guy?"

    When he heard that the bracelet was Shi Xueman¡¯s grandmother¡¯s memento, Yong Zheng felt himself break out in a cold sweat.

    The bead bracelet was made of Calming Indigo Silk, which was produced by a wild beast known as the Winged Indigo Silk Bird. However, due to its sparse production, it was extremely precious; even in the Cultivation Era, such beads were invaluable.

    Moreover, this bracelet was handed down by Shi Xueman¡¯s grandmother!

    He was aware of the identity and status of Shi Xueman¡¯s grandmother. If this bracelet was lost in Central Pine City, which was under his jurisdiction, then how could he afford to take the responsibility?

    "I¡¯ll go check right now!" Yong Zheng hastily rushed out, leaving everything else behind.

    Shi Xueman was not a sophisticated woman, but she was clever; looking at Uncle Yong Zheng¡¯s nervousness, she immediately understood what he was thinking. However, she was not as worried, because although the bead bracelet was given as a pledge, it was she who had offered to do so. Therefore, she did not really believe it was a scam.

    After a while, Yong Zheng returned, sweat dripping down his face. "Young Mistress, I got it. There is indeed a Vanguard Training Hall which had been closed for a long time. Recently a student moved in to do the cleaning and maintenance."

    "Thank you, Uncle. Please give me the address. I¡¯ll go there myself."

    Shi Xueman felt relieved. She was not worried of being cheated, as she was confident of getting back anything within the whole Induction Ground, let alone the small Central Pine City. She just did not want to see a kind deed turn out to be a scam, which would really make her unhappy.

    Yong Zheng was also relieved. Thank goodness it was not a scam. He hurriedly handed the address to Shi Xueman. As for her safety, Yong Zheng was not worried at all.

    He had long witnessed her powerful fighting abilities.

    Along with the address and money, Shi Xueman headed out.

    After the wee ceremony, Duanmu Huanghun withdrew to his new residence. Due to his excellent contribution, the academy had arranged another ce as his amodation, which possessed the highest elemental energy concentration and was fitted with luxurious interior decorations.

    ....

    Duanmu Huanghun could now finally rx and have some rest.

    These days he had been constantly worn out. He had held on till now because of the resentment in his heart, but now that it was released, he was overwhelmed with fatigue.

    Lying in bed, however, he could not fall asleep.

    His mind could not help but wander to the awkward tumble at the city gate. Ever since his birth, he had never done anything so shameful. Under everybody¡¯s keen attention and at the most awe-inspiring moment of his life, he had totally disgraced himself.

    The more he thought about it, the more furious he became. Damn it!

    He himself was clueless to why he tumbled on hearing Ai Hui¡¯s voice at the time.

    After pondering for a while, Duanmu Huanghun unconsciously sat up as he began to feel serious. A horrible phrase had suddenly urred to him¡ªinner demons!

    The more he thought about it, the more he believed it to be true. Ai Hui¡¯s voice was indeed like a nightmare to him, and this was definitely an inner demon. As a genius in training, Duanmu Huanghun had always had a sharp intuition. Having analyzed his abnormal reactions in front of Ai Hui, he knew that his judgment was right.

    Inner demons were actually not that rare in the process of training, especially to geniuses of higher levels¡ªDuanmu Huanghun had learned about this from many books and records. Inner demons were able to influence one¡¯s training, somewhat simr to a psychological barrier.

    As one¡¯s base level increased, the requirement for a perfect mental state would be more demanding, although it may be different depending on the type of technique practiced. Some techniques would require practitioners to be aggressive and determined, while even the slightest fear may prevent them from going any further, whereas some techniques necessitated a tranquillity and indifference in one¡¯s mind, and if a practitioner could not free himself from worldly attachments, it would be hard to attain sess in that technique.

    Inner demons had always had a big influence on one¡¯s training. The affected person may find it hard to improve. In serious cases, one might even develop an obsession that would cost his or her life.

    Last time, when he had opened his eyes in the biting cold, he had almost been traumatized by the palm prints all over his body. At the thought of this, his face began to burn. When he remembered his old puffy face, a furious me zed out in his chest, and when he recalled today¡¯s awkwardness ¨C he felt as if a bowl of hot oil was directly poured to the mes in him.

    Hatred! Old and new!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes grew red in fury. He was now one hundred percent sure that Ai Hui was the demon in his heart. He thought back to a set phrase in training that he had read before¡ªdemon decapitation.

    Only when one¡¯s inner demons were decapitated would one be able to return to the right path and prevent oneself from going astray. Demon decapitation did not necessarily mean the decapitation of the person who is the demon, but like untying a knot, one had to get over it by oneself.

    Duanmu Huang decided to decapitate his inner demon!

    It was a problem that he had ignored previously, and today, he would solve it entirely and release himself from his rage. Duanmu was quite certain of sess; since Ai Hui¡¯s natal pce hadn¡¯t even been opened, he definitely had a negligible level of skill.

    On the other hand, Duanmu had just defeated three of the top fifty rivals. To him, small potatoes like Ai Hui would be more than simple to defeat. He had not done this before merely because of the task assigned by Teacher Xu.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was now fully confident, began to think about how he should go about decapitating his inner demon.

    Should he disgrace Ai Hui just as how Ai Hui had disgraced him?

    Once this idea urred to him, Duanmu became exhrated. Yes, that was it! He thought over each step: first, make him catch a cold, and then treat it in the way as Ai Hui had done. He would pay him back in his own coin! Ah, and don¡¯t forget the puffy face! And the tumble!

    A cold, evil grin appeared on Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face. Ai Hui, just wait and enjoy the treat!

    Duanmu Huanghun could not help but let out a wild, wicked cackle.

    Mwahahahahaha...

    Duanmu, lost in his great excitement, could not feel the fatigue in his body anymore as he grabbed an elemental energy mask and put it on his face. He could not wait to begin.

 Chapter 39: Sword Dance

    Chapter 39: Sword Dance

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Vanguard Training Hall.

    Ai Hui dragged the rattan chair into the garden and plopped himself down in satisfaction.

    The quiet hall, the gentle light reflecting off the cbashes, the bright moon...they all made him feel exceptionallyfortable and calm. No mor, no battle, no tension. His body and mind were both rxed, making him feel slightlyzy.

    When he had been in the swordsman school, he had enjoyed spending the nights like that¡ªhe would empty his mind,pletely at leisure and carefree.

    The rattan chair rocked on as the moonlight caressed his body. He was facing the open entrance. The noiseing from outside would pass through the deep alley and be muffled by the time it reached the training hall, but it added a touch of liveliness to the night.

    As Ai Hui fiddled with the bead bracelet he recently received, he sensed that it was cool to the touch and veryfortable to hold. He was not sure if it was because of the pearl or the quiet night, but right now, he felt incredibly tranquil.

    "Calming Indigo Silk?" Lou Lan entered and noticed the bracelet in Ai Hui¡¯s hands. A yellow light shed through his eyes before he offered an objective assessment. "The Calming Indigo Silk is of fine quality."

    "Is it worth a lot?" Ai Hui continued to sway on his rattan chair. "A youngdy¡¯s coteral, a hundred and fifty yuan!"

    "Very valuable." Lou Lan nodded, the bizarre light within his eyes dimmed as he settled down beside Ai Hui. "You¡¯ve made great progress. Ah, and your body is more robust too. Such speed will allow you to charge for the natal residences in no time."

    "A while more." Ai Hui shook his head. "I hope to temper my body first. The metal wind has a great effect on my body, so I¡¯ll umte a little more before going for the residence. That way I¡¯ll be more confident."

    Lou Lan crooked his head. "If that¡¯s the case, then I shall make some blood-and-bone-strengthening cake. It¡¯s very effective."

    "Thanks, Lou Lan." As an afterthought, Ai Hui asked, "Is it expensive?"

    "Not expensive. A hundred thousand yuan worth of blood-and-bone-strengthening cake canst you a month," Lou Lan calcted.

    A hundred thousand...not expensive...

    Ai Hui choked. He just could not link "hundred thousand" and "not expensive" together. However, since Lou Lan mentioned that the effect was quite good, he was convinced. He knew that Lou Lan would never speak without thinking and that the cake was sure to be quite effective. Whether it was the elemental energy-replenishing soup or the bone-strengthening soup, they had all been extraordinarily effective.

    "Okay!" Ai Hui clenched his teeth. A hundred thousand yuan, let¡¯s do it!

    Ai Hui had sharp eyes, and he noticed a slight change in the sand from Lou Lan¡¯s body. "Lou Lan, your skin color seems a bit off."

    "Yes. I have the capability to learn how to battle." Lou Lan realized that he had to exin further. "Master Shao said that I wasn¡¯t created to battle so there is no specificbat technique for me, but he said that I¡¯m not weak when ites to battling."

    AI Hui stared nkly. "I don¡¯t understand."

    "That is to say, I can obtain battle skills through learning." Lou Lan continued, "But this requires time. I have been learning some basic techniques recently and they bring about a change to the nature of my elemental energy, so the color of my sand will change too."

    Ai Hui finally understood. "Oh, so it¡¯s like that."

    "But I have a question. Can you help me?"

    "Of course!" Ai Hui was certain. "Ask away!"

    "I¡¯ve seen many battle manuals that talked about weapons. What kind should I choose?"

    "Weapon?" Ai Hui muttered, "You do not even need weapons since your body is your best weapon."

    "Body?" Lou Lan looked doubtful.

    "Yes." Ai Hui sat up straight and his expression became earnest. "You can shapeshift as you please, you can be soft, you can be hard. Aren¡¯t you your best weapon? Battling may beplicated, but it can also be very simple. Just likest time, you became a sand cloud and disturbed his vision, disconnecting the link between his [Hellfire Spider Web] and himself. That was amazing! It is the key to scoring more victories."

    "It is?" Lou Lan rejoiced upon hearing apliment.

    "Yes, you are actually very powerful. As long as you can use your body well, you¡¯ll be in an invincible position." Ai Hui looked serious. "Battling is when you utilize your advantage to attack your opponent¡¯s weakness."

    "Ai Hui, you¡¯re amazing! You know so much." Lou Lan was full of admiration, but then he peered at Ai Hui curiously. "Then what weapon do you use?"

    "I use a sword."

    Lou Lan recalled the grass sword in the room and realization dawned on him. "Come to think of it, you do have a grass sword, but I¡¯ve never seen you use it."

    "Give me a second." Ai Hui also was feeling that he had not touched his sword for a very long time and momentarily felt his hand itch. He turned and ran to the room to retrieve it.

    Once the sword was in his hands, he felt the sword embryo between his browse to life. The feeling that he had not experienced in a long time stimted him.

    When Lou Lan saw Ai Hui walk in with the sword in his hand, he tilted his head and muttered to himself, "Ai Hui seems different."

    Ai Hui saw the moonlight shimmering like water, and his longing for the "sword embryo state" made him feel like dancing. Without thinking, he held his sword up toward the sky.

    His dark, glimmering eyes were unmeasurably deep. A faint yet cool aura surrounded Ai Hui¡¯s body and filled the air.

    His heart was as calm as water. It was as if countless sword manuals were suddenly blown open by the wind as the sword moves within the sheets came alive. They seemed to slowly float out of the pages and form many lively miniature figures.

    Ai Hui started to waltz with his grass sword.

    The grass sword, which was made from sword reeds, was about four fingers wide, three pounds heavy, and naturally sharp.

    Ai Hui¡¯s movements were slow; he moved at a speed akin to that of an olddy. The air around him, however, seemed to solidify and thicken as he continued with his dance.

    In the Wilderness, Ai Hui¡¯s development of the elemental energy had not produced much results, and so when he finally developed his meager strands of elemental energy, he did not dare to carelessly waste it. He only used it in times of extreme danger.

    He utilized sword moves the most.

    Ever since he had created a sword embryo, he had found sword moves to be very advantageous. It also made him realize that amongst the piles of sword manuals, there was also some useful information hidden within. Moreover, at that point in time, in the Wilderness, he had no other choice.

    He had tried all the skills in the manual a few times before finally finding some usable ones.

    They were all mainly simple, superficial techniques.

    He thought about it and it made sense. The more powerful moves required a greater spiritual force and thus were no longer useful. Contrarily, the simple, shallow techniques involved the operation of energy from the muscles and were hence more effective in today¡¯s era.

    The pace of Ai Hui¡¯s sword dance increased and he appeared to be extremely focused.

    Although the tip of the grass sword had no shine, the sword was reflecting the moonlight, making it float about the surroundings like a silverfish ying chase. It was indeed a heavenly sight.

    He did not notice that there was someone by the door.

    Shi Xueman was extremely shocked. She had not expected to see such breathtaking swordy in this city. Sword lessons were taught in the Induction Ground too, but she had never seen such beautiful swordsmanship.

    Could he be Central Pine City¡¯s hidden talent?

    All of a sudden, Shi Xueman¡¯s gaze fell onto the pearl that was on Ai Hui¡¯s wrist. Her head throbbed as her face quickly turned pale.

 Chapter 40: Eighty Million Worth Of Rage

    Chapter 40: Eighty Million Worth Of Rage

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    Shi Xueman could hardly believe her eyes.

    The Calming Indigo Silk on Ai Hui¡¯s wrist was like a candle ced above a fire grill, gradually melting into gluey liquid, as it unceasingly prated into Ai Hui¡¯s skin.

    It was as if she had experienced a mental blow¡ªher mind went nk.

    That was the treasure that her deceased grandmother had given her!

    She had been wearing it ever since she was young and hardly took it off. Looking at it was akin to looking back at her loving grandmother who would constantly dote on her.

    She still remembered the time her grandmother had given her the bracelet. Her grandmother had smiled while saying, "My darling granddaughter, you must take good care of this Calming Indigo Silk. When you grow up and meet your Mr. Right, give this string of Calming Indigo Silk to him. This is the best token of love that you can give. It was produced by the Winged Indigo Silk Bird..."

    But...

    Shi Xueman regained her senses and bolted forward. Her voiceced with tears, she cried out, "My beads!"

    Ai Hui quivered and was immediately jolted out of the sword embryo¡¯s state. He realized that it was the young girl from the noodle shop and remarked, "Oh, it¡¯s you. Why are you crying? Give me one hundred and fifty yuan and I will return the beads."

    Following which, Ai Hui touched his wrist and was instantly shocked motionless.

    Something doesn¡¯t feel right...

    Pausing momentarily, he looked down at his wrist and became bbergasted.

    There was only a bare string on his wrist. Where were the beads? He looked to the floor but there were no signs of the beads anywhere.

    "Ai Hui, the pearls have been absorbed into your skin," Lou Lan said honestly.

    Absorbed into my skin?

    Ai Hui was struck dumb. What sort of situation was this? How could it be absorbed? He hurriedly checked his body. When he noticed that the surrounding of the sword embryo¡¯s seed had an additional circle of blue mist, he could not help but take in a deep breath.

    Indeed, it had been absorbed by him.

    Ai Hui felt as if his heart had been trampled by a herd of running wild cows.

    Looking at the young girl from the noodle store, whose eyes were filled with tears, Ai Hui was at loss. "I...I am sorry. I did not mean to do it. You need not give me the hundred and fifty..."

    The moment the words left his mouth, Ai Hui knew he said the wrong thing. Instantly, the teary eyes of the girl became menacing.

    Ai Hui hurriedly added, "I will pay! I will pay!"

    "That was a treasure that belonged to my deceased grandmother," Shi Xueman cried out.

    Ai Hui waspletely nonplussed; his intestines turned green with regret. If he had known that earlier, he would not have asked for a coteral and would have instead freely treated her to that bowl of noodles. This was indeed his fault. He could only say meekly, "This was my fault, I¡¯m sorry, I am really sorry. I truly did not know things would turn out this way. I have no idea how I managed to absorb this item. Would it be alright if Ipensate you?"

    Shi Xueman gradually calmed down a little. "How will youpensate?"

    She had witnessed the whole process for herself. In her mind, she knew that the other party did it unintentionally, and she, too, had never heard of Calming Indigo Silk being absorbed before.

    "I have two hundred and fifty thousand yuan. I will give it all to you." While Ai Hui was unwilling to part with his money, he knew that he did not have other alternatives. This was indeed his fault and he could not bring himself to put the me on others.

    "Two hundred and fifty thousand yuan?" Shi Xuemanughed coldly.

    "Is it not sufficient?" Ai Hui was momentarily struck dumb. A hefty amount of two hundred and fifty thousand was not sufficient for that string of worn-out, blue pearls?

    Lou Lan, who was standing nearby, interjected, "Ai Hui, the average starting price of Calming Indigo Silk is usually three million yuan. This string of high-quality silk should be more than five million."

    Shi Xueman nced at Lou Lan. She was clearly aware that sand puppets who knew the market price of Calming Indigo Silk were quite rare. She replied expressionlessly, "This string of Calming Indigo Silk was of the utmost quality and thus, the bracelet was worth eighty million yuan.

    Eighty...Eighty million yuan!

    Ai Hui felt as if he was struck by a lightning bolt that was as thick as a water bucket. He was utterly devastated. His mouth dropped open and his eyeballs almost popped out of his sockets. Every single muscle on his body was as rigid as steel.

    Ai Hui felt like countless somber shadows were cast upon his life.

    Eighty million!

    Oh, Grandaunt, what were you trying to aplish by parading across the city with beads worth eighty million yuan?

    Oh, Grandaunt, you had brought out pearls worth eighty million yuan but why could you not even bring out a hundred and fifty yuan in cash?

    How big of an amount do you think one hundred and fifty yuan was, for you to use an eighty million yuan bead bracelet as coteral?

    Sword embryo, you disgraceful fellow! How dare you absorb that string of beads that were worth eighty million yuan? How ck-hearted are you? You are even worse than Fatty!

    Eighty million, my...my...my...

    Ai Hui did not know what to do. He had gone through a lot in his life, having experienced many life-threatening incidents in his time in the Wilderness, but those experiences were thoroughly useless for the current situation.

    He would rather face every single wild beast in the Wilderness than face this young girl from the noodle shop.

    One thing was sure, though, that even if he sold himself, he would still be unable to earn eighty million yuan.

    Well, Ai Hui had nothing to lose now. "I have no idea what to do. Even if you put me for sale, I am not worth eighty million yuan. Noodle shop girl, I will do whatever you say. I will definitely not renege on this debt."

    "Humph. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that you did it unintentionally, you would have been dead today," Shi Xueman said coldly.

    Ai Hui red at Shi Xueman in fury and wanted to say, "A gentleman can be killed but not humiliated." However, under the direct, ominous gaze of Shi Xueman, he simply muttered under his breath and turned around.

    That damned sword embryo.

    Why couldn¡¯t he be like Fatty? If he was Fatty, he would have said something pretentiously, like, "If I owe you money, I am your master. Given that I owe you eighty million yuan, I am the master of masters. You should wait upon me....."

    Fine. He had some morals after all and was unable tomit such a shameless act.

    Ai Hui was crestfallen.

    For a moment, Shi Xueman was also at a loss. The Calming Indigo Silk was gone. Should she kill this person? No matter what had happened, the person did help her out of goodwill at the noodle house. She had also observed the entire process of the Calming Indigo Silk being absorbed and she knew that it was unintentional.

    Make him pay? Even if she sold this chap, the amount she would get would definitely not be sufficient to cover the eighty million yuan worth Calming Indigo Silk.

    Bash him? That would be letting him off too easily.

    At that moment, Shi Xueman was feeling sullen and down; in truth, she did not care about that eighty million, but her heart was broken beyond repair over losing her grandmother¡¯s treasure.

    Hence, Shi Xueman could not bring herself to just let him go either.

    The two of them silently faced each other, rigidly standing.

    Lou Lan was speechless as looked at the two of them. He added weakly, "While it might not be of much use, I have two hundred and fifty thousand yuan."

    Ai Hui shook his head. "I should own up to my own wrongdoings, Lou Lan. I do not need your money."

    Shi Xueman gave a cold ¡®humph¡¯ again and kept silent.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui violently turned and looked upwards to the fence. "Who¡¯s there?"

    At the very same moment, Shi Xueman fiercely turned towards the fence and asked, "Who¡¯s there?"

    The two of them had spoken in unison.

    "Heh heh!" An evil cackle was heard as a ck figure appeared on top of the fence.

    Shi Xueman had sharp eyes and instantly recognized that the opposite party was wearing an elemental energy mask. With a voice that sounded like she was forcing the words through her teeth, she indignantly asked, "Why are you acting so mysterious?"

    She hadpletely forgotten that she, too, was wearing an elemental energy mask.

    "Ai Hui, I can¡¯t believe you actually have a sweetheart!" the dark figure on the fence eximed eerily.

    Sweetheart!

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman simultaneously furrowed their brows.

    Pfft! Was this chap worthy to be called my sweetheart? The rage, which had been restrained by Shi Xueman the entire night, instantly erupted.

    Pfft! I do not want a sweetheart who doesn¡¯t even bring out a hundred and fifty yuan! She resulted in me being extorted by that damned sword embryo of a hefty amount of eighty million yuan! The fury that Ai Hui had been holding back also exploded.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s figure turned green as it disappeared from its position.

    With a gloomy expression, Ai Hui wordlessly charged forward with his sword.

 Chapter 41: One Slash

    Chapter 41: One sh

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Duanmu Huanghun had theorized numerous possible scenarios in his mind, but the scene in front of him was totally out of his expectations.

    He started tough.

    This guy who had not attended a single introductory lesson nor opened any of his natal pces had actually dared to challenge someone of his caliber. Duanmu Huanghun was truly speechless at his audacity.

    As for Ai Hui¡¯s sweetheart, well, someone who was attracted to a wretched fool like Ai Hui could not possibly have any skill.

    Today shall be the day I sort out these two adulterers and decapitate my inner demon!

    Duanmu Huanghun let out an evil cackle; his eyes were practically glowing.

    The next moment, however, his smile froze.

    A blurry figure materialized right in front of him like a watery illusion. Fragments of a face¡ªwhich certainly did not seem to belong to a beauty¡ªappeared to pool together in front of his eyes.

    So...fast!

    A wless palm, as white as snow, gently pressed on his shoulder.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s pupils widened intorge circles.

    Dong!

    A deep, low boom, like that of a cannon firing, resounded; the sound was truly intimidating.

    The exquisite palm stood out like a full moon in the dark night, as surging streams of air formed a ring around it. The ring, which had yet to dissipate, was simr to the smoke rising from the barrel of a rifle that had just fired.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body had disappeared.

    He instantly flung through the air like a cannonball, smashing hard into the opposite wall and causing arge piece of the wall to copse onto the ground.

    Amidst the rubble, Duanmu Huanghun struggled to get back to his feet. A rattan shield weaved out of brambles could be seen on his shoulder. That blow had left him feeling dizzy, and he was currently seeing stars.

    What fearsome strength!

    Was Ai Hui¡¯s sweetheart actually a wild bull?

    This...this was not rational...

    How does Ai Hui have such a ferocious girl?

    Although Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s mind waspletely fogged up, he quickly realized the predicament he was in. He could feel that his reactions had be sluggish.

    Dang it!

    His body was extremely worn out, his strength totally drained. Most of his effort was given to try and stay clear-headed and his body could now no longer keep up. That blow was so powerful that his muscles were still trembling, and as a result of his immense fatigue, he was unable to control the elemental energy within his body.

    At that very moment, Ai Hui jumped onto the wall, sword in hand.

    As he was leaping through the air, Ai Hui¡¯s anger intensified. When he noticed a figure struggling to climb out of the rubble, he shot off the wall without any hesitation, pouncing straight towards his target¡¯s silhouette.

    From mid-air, he saw the girl from the noodle shop appear beside his target.

    She noiselessly drove her palm into the target¡¯s rattan shield.

    This made Ai Hui even angrier. Not only did she finish the noodles, she was not even going to leave him any soup!

    He viciously charged in their direction.

    Boom!

    A sonic boom rang out again, and a ring-shaped surge of air exploded outwards.

    Before Duanmu Huanghun could even gather his wits, another terrifying force had hit him, and his vision blurred as he was sent flying once again. This attack was almost fatal, thoroughly eviscerating thest shreds of consciousness that he had left.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who had beenpletely unprepared for something like this, was utterly defeated. Unable to retaliate even slightly, Duanmu Huanghun was like amb walking into its own ughter. Shi Xueman, who had been thoroughly enraged by thebeling of her as Ai Hui¡¯s ¡°sweetheart,¡± was relentless in her attacks.

    Dong! Dong! Dong!

    The familiar intimidating low, resounding booms sounded out one after another, reverberating throughout the dark, narrow alley.

    Ai Hui saw his target elerating through the air like a rocket, leaving him in the dust. Rather than relieving his anger, continuously being unable to catch up with his target had only amplified Ai Hui¡¯s rage by many times.

    This was the most stifled he had felt in a long time; his anger was practically boiling over. He grabbed his sword tenaciously, the veins on the back of his hand bulging. The girl from the noodle stall was as fast as lightning and he could barely even capture her movements with his eyes.

    Ai Hui, who waspletely focused on his goal, did not notice that the sword embryo had gradually begun to change. The seed of the sword embryo between his eyebrows was rapidly absorbing the blue mist around it, simr to the scorched earth of the desert fervently absorbing rainwater.

    The seed of the sword embryo was tirelessly absorbing the wisps of blue mist.

    Ai Hui could only feel the grass sword in his hand bing lighter. With his eyes on the prize, Ai Hui made a mad dash for the mouth of the alley.

    Simr to Shi Xueman, the word ¡°sweetheart,¡± too, had triggered something within Ai Hui. His anger could only be doused by shing Duanmu Huanghun with his sword.

    Eighty million yuan!

    Eating a simple bowl of noodles had left him eighty million yuan in debt!

    He was now spending every precious ounce of his elemental energy without hesitation, which resulted in a dramatic increase in speed.

    The blurred outline of the sword embryo on his forehead became increasingly distinct as it absorbed the Calming Indigo Silk. Previously, Ai Hui could only faintly discern the presence of the sword embryo¡¯s seed.

    Although he would warmly nurture his sword embryo, his efforts had neverrgely paid off¡ªuntil this time.

    Nobody noticed that a faint blue light had crept over Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. The blue glow illuminated his face, causing him to look all the more grave and stern, like a reef hidden deep in the sea.

    The speed at which the sword embryo¡¯s seed absorbed the blue mist started to elerate.

    Ai Hui¡¯s movement speed was also steadily increasing.

    Ai Hui¡¯s anger grew and grew as he dashed down the alley. He was moving so fast that his vision was affected; the girl from the noodle shop and his target had be a blur.

    The sound of the wind irrigated his ear canals as he swept past the lights of the houses on both sides of the alley.

    He had never run at such high speeds before, even when chased by dire beasts. The fluids within his body surged like flowing magma, and the deafening roar of the wind in his earspeted with that of his heart pounding.

    But...this speed was still not enough!

    Although the silhouette of his target was right in front of him, it seemed like it would forever be out of his reach.

    What other means are there...

    The grass sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hands bobbed up and down with the movement of his body, swaying like leaves drifting in the wind.

    The unique rhythm seemed to rouse a memory that was dormant within the recesses of his mind, and the grass sword started to resonate with his soul. With a light flick of his wrist, the grass sword swayed like a feather, gently shing at the air ahead with a crisp, humming sound.

    The oing wind was seemingly sliced through the middle by the sword, smoothly sliding past Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body left a streaking, blurry trail as he dashed forward.

    His solemn expression did not budge an inch and his glowing blue pupils showed no signs of emotion. They were firmly locked onto his target.

    The soles of his feet forcefully pushed off the ground, propelling him into the air.

    At that moment, thest strand of Calming Indigo Silk was absorbed by the sword embryo and the blue glow in his eyes vanished. The sounds that had enveloped Ai Hui also abruptly vanished¡ªit was as if he had now entered a soundless void.

    Not a single sound could be heard.

    A familiar yet seemingly foreign sword manual flipped open, as if it had been practiced countless times.

    When the light from the mouth of the alley came into sight, Shi Xueman had finally vented most of her anger. She had used the most violent method she knew, which was continuously sting Duanmu Huanghun more than ten times, with each st sending him flying further down the alley.

    Looking at the unconscious Duanmu Huanghun flying out into the alley¡¯s opening like a sandbag, she revealed a look of satisfaction. This fellow deserved to be severely punished for speaking out of turn. He may have escaped death, but at least it was not without enduring a living hell first.

    He would likely be bedridden for half a month before he could even get up again.

    She suddenly sensed something and briskly turned around!

    Beneath the night sky, Ai Hui leaped into the air like a giant bird, the darkness acting as his wings.

    An indescribable sh of light pierced through the sky.

    It was as if time stood still.

 Chapter 42: Calmly

    Chapter 42: Calmly

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    It was the cheapest and simplest type of grass sword avable, with no cksmith¡¯s signature or any ornaments on it whatsoever. Many weapon shops would not even bother to disy such a sword on their shelves; instead, they would likely tie such swords with rope and toss them in a corner, leaving them to collect dust. The selling price for such weapons was less than a thousand yuan.

    Even the practice swords that Shi Xueman used during training were worth tens of times more than that grass sword.

    She never imagined that a run-of-the-mill grass sword could emit such a resplendent light.

    The light emitted from the de resembled that of brilliant fireworks¡ªit was the most dazzling sword glint she had ever seen. The moment the grass sword left Ai Hui¡¯s hand, it transformed into a ray of brilliance that was as fine as a steady drizzle. It left a gorgeous trail of light as it pierced through the air, flying towards the hooligan at the mouth of the alley.

    Buzz! Buzz! Buzz!

    The grass sword made short work of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s clothes¡ªit was as though countless hands were tearing away at them, and they were instantly shredded away, scattering around him like butterflies.

    Shi Xueman, whose eyes were opened wide, quickly looked away.

    Plop!

    A smooth, pale body soared through the air from the alley, directlynding onto the main street.

    At first, the pedestrians were rather dazed by the sight, but a couple of girls soon started shrieking uncontrobly.

    Shi Xueman was visibly shocked, her gaze inadvertentlynding on Ai Hui, who was currently in the air. That sword technique was definitely many times more skillful than what she had witnessed earlier. Could this be his true caliber?

    She had met a few experts of swordy, but not even a single one had left her in this much awe. Swordy has been on the decline for quite some while, and although those experts possessed an abnormal fighting strength, they always appeared to be shrouded in an aura of despondence andck of ambition. She greatly disliked the vibe they gave off and hence never had much of an interest in so-called swordy experts.

    However, that sword technique earlier...... it was truly amazing!

    After Ai Hui unleashed that move, his entire body felt like it was moving independently of time. Snapping out of that soundless state ofplete concentration, he felt as though he had woken up from a dream. His surroundings were utterly empty. Eh, in the air? He looked down and was instantly dumbfounded.

    This high?

    I actually...jumped this high?

    Not good!

    Ai Hui¡¯s body started to plummet rapidly. His arms and legs were iling in all directions and his face was a deathly white. He remembered the time he fell off a cliff this high in the Wilderness; he ended up half-dead and required half a month to recover.

    Even worse, he discovered that his hands and legs had gone soft, and his elemental energy was thoroughly drained. Even the sword he was holding......was thrown away! Help!

    Shi Xueman was frozen, still awestruck. By the time she had snapped out of her daze, Ai Hui¡¯s situation was critical¡ªhe was a mere ten feet above the ground.

    With a whistling sound, a wave of yellow sand swiftly swept past.

    Lou Lan had arrived in the nick of time.

    Although Ai Hui had a lingering fear after being carried by Lou Lan, he gave Lou Lan a pat on the shoulders. ¡°Thank you, Lou Lan!¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re wee, Ai Hui,¡± came the overjoyed reply.

    Ai Hui was satisfied with the results of his sword technique. Killing was not permitted in the Induction Ground, but upon seeing the naked body of the other party lying in the middle of the street for all to see, his anger dissipated quite a bit.

    Suddenly, he frowned. ¡°Lou Lan, look at that guy¡¯s body. Doesn¡¯t it look a bit familiar?¡±

    Lou Lan turned to face the body. A yellow light flickered in his eyes as he stated matter-of-factly, ¡°Yes, indeed. An analysis of his build reveals a match of greater than ny percent with that of Bangwan, whom you had previously healed.¡±

    ¡°Oh, so it is Bangwan!¡± The revtion left himughing with indignation.

    Ever since thest time, when Bangwan had bluffed others by saying that he hadn¡¯t yet recovered from his cold, Ai Hui had felt that his morals were highly questionable and treated him with disdain. Looking at him now, Ai Hui felt that he was indeed a childish, delinquent youth. He shook his head in disappointment. ¡°Let¡¯s go back, Lou Lan.¡±

    From their conversation, Shi Xueman could discern a rough idea, and was under the impression that that naked figure was one of Ai Hui¡¯s ssmates named Bangwan. She simply had no idea that he was actually the great genius Duanmu Huanghun who had just dazzled the entire Induction Ground.

    The mes of anger in her heart finally satiated, Shi Xueman started to calm down. Losing the Calming Indigo Silk may be difficult to bear, but nothing good woulde out of harping on about it. As she walked back, she tried to think of ways to solve the issue.

    She was not generous enough to simply let him off, but what kind ofpensation should she seek?

    Walking down the alley, Lou Lan enthusiastically said, ¡°Ai Hui, I think I can restore the neighboring walls that have been damaged!¡±

    Ai Hui was practically moved to tears. ¡°Lou Lan, you¡¯re really the best!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m just a sand puppet.¡± Lou Lan was especially d that he could help Ai Hui.

    Only with Lou Lan could he experience the warmth of spring. Ai Hui was deeply touched. He turned around to face the girl from the noodle shop, his face grim. ¡°So tell me, how exactly do you want me to settle this?¡±

    Shi Xueman had just thought of something, but Ai Hui¡¯s tone made her furrow her long, shapely brows. She retorted, ¡°Your tone makes it sound as if I¡¯m the one who owes you eighty million yuan.¡±

    Ai Hui was momentarily embarrassed, so he rxed his tone. ¡°Just tell me, what do I have to do?¡±

    ¡°You definitely can¡¯t return the eighty million yuan all at one go,¡± Shi Xue Man said while giving Ai Hui a nce. ¡°I have two conditions. The first is that you must be my sparring partner for swordy and instruct me ordingly. The next would be to help me find someone.¡±

    Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°Great! It¡¯s a deal then. I¡¯ll teach you swordy as well as help you to find that person in exchange for writing off my debt of eighty million yuan.¡±

    ¡°You wish!¡± Shi Xueman eximed grimly. ¡°This is only the interest.¡±

    Ai Hui was instantly enraged, and he warned, ¡°Noodle shop girl, you better not take advantage of me!¡±

    Shi Xueman remained unmoved. She said tly, ¡°How about you ask your sand puppet friend for the current interest rates that are out on the market?¡±

    Ai Hui looked towards Lou Lan.

    Lou Lan reported honestly, ¡°The interest rates on loans generally start from ten percent.¡±

    Ten percent was not really all that much. Wait, what¡¯s ten percent of eighty million yuan?

    Eight million!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes grew wide with fear.

    ¡°See, I didn¡¯t try to cheat you.¡± Shi Xueman red at him. ¡°You think your swordy is worth eight million?¡±

    Ai Hui did not even utter a word.

    With the ongoing decline of swordsmanship, even renowned experts of swordy would notmand eight million yuan. Moreover, Ai Hui was not so conceited to im that his swordy was on par with that of those experts.

    The greatest tragedy in the world was to be stuck without a retort against the logical and factual arguments of others.

    ¡°I¡¯m giving you the task of finding the person because you live in Central Pine City and should thus be more familiar with it.¡± Although Shi Xueman felt that entrusting this task to such a fellow was rather ridiculous, any additional aid would be beneficial.

    Ai Hui asked dejectedly, ¡°What does this person look like?¡±

    ¡°No idea.¡± Shi Xueman shook her head.

    Ai Hui looked at Shi Xueman, suspicion written all over his face. ¡°Are you trying to make a fool out of me? How am I supposed to find someone without knowing what he looks like?¡±

    Shi Xueman muttered, ¡°Thest time I met him was in a blind battle at the training hall. Starting your search from the training ground should make things easier.¡±

    ¡°Training hall?¡± he blurted. It was now Ai Hui¡¯s turn to sneer. ¡°Lou Lan, how many training halls are there in Central Pine City?¡±

    Lou Lan once again stated matter-of-factly, ¡°Forty-six.¡±

    Shi Xueman dered, ¡°But of course, I still have more information.¡±

 Chapter 43: The Pervert and the Message Tree

    Chapter 43: The Pervert and the Message Tree

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Duanmu Huanghun woke up in a daze.

    There appeared to be amotion around him...

    Why was he feeling so cold? Why were his hands and feet all soft and his body so sore? Was he sick?

    Duanmu Huanghun opened his eyes with much effort. Through his hazy vision, he saw quite a number of human-shaped figures surrounding him from above.

    Could it be that the senior leadership was here to visit him out of concern for his illness?

    The sounds around him gradually became more distinct.

    ¡°Wow, what an exhibitionist!¡±

    ¡°He¡¯s really not wearing any clothes at all! Heavens, our school actually has people like that!¡±

    ¡°Could he be a rapist? Maybe he was caught in adultery?¡±

    ......

    Not wearing any clothes...feeling cold from head to toe...

    When realization dawned upon Duanmu Huanghun, he forced his eyes open. His face was nted on the ground, and he was surrounded by arge number of legs. The cooling sensation all over his body made him freeze in horror. All he wanted to do now was to dig a hole and hide in it.

    Too...too vicious!

    Duanmu Huanghun almost stopped breathing. The unwanted attention made him utterly embarrassed. He had never, in his entire life, experienced such helplessness before. He felt that his life was now dark beyondpare.

    That nefarious Ai Hui and his partner in crime were simply too ruthless!

    Duanmu Huanghun suddenly remembered that he was wearing an elemental energy mask and was hence unrecognizable. He let out a sigh of relief.

    He needed to escape, immediately!

    He could sense that the surrounding crowd was constantly growingrger, but the elemental energy within his body was not responding to hismands. He was filled with regret. Why did he have to pick a fight with Ai Hui when his own strength was sapped?

    He forcefully activated his natal residence, disregarding the consequent internal injury and the fact that he would need half a month to heal.

    The onlookers¡¯ vision blurred as the naked figure on the ground vanished.

    ¡°Wow, an expert!¡±

    ¡°Public decency is dying with each passing day! How can such an expert be so shameless?¡±

    ¡°We need to lodge aint with the administration! That pervert must be caught!¡±

    ......

    Pervert!

    When he heard the mob¡¯s angry cries behind him, Duanmu Huanghun spat out a mouthful of hot blood. His internal injury immediately became more severe.

    Ai Hui, you¡¯d better watch out!

    Duanmu Huanghun gritted his teeth.

    ......

    Vanguard Training Hall.

    Ai Hui drew himself up, preparing to listen to Shi Xueman¡¯s description of the target; after all, he had absorbed her Calming Indigo Silk. Even though the sword embryo was to me, Ai Hui felt truly apologetic. Furthermore, the noodle shop girl did not seem to be capricious and was, in fact, a pretty decent person.

    If he was in her shoes, he would chop the person who took his eighty million into mincemeat without any hesitation.

    Since it was his mistake, there was nothing more to be said. Ai Hui knew the value of eighty million yuan; he was not some naive kid who knew nothing about the real world.

    The noodle shop girl¡¯s good temperament was reflected in the fact that she did not get physical, in spite of possessing such power.

    He was thus very serious about aplishing his task.

    Noticing Ai Hui¡¯s sincerity, Shi Xueman had a somewhat better impression of him. She began to list down the target¡¯s characteristics, counting the points with her fingers. ¡°He is proficient in close quartersbat, highly experienced in realbat, and has a vicious fighting style.¡±

    Ai Hui instantly knew that this youngdy didn¡¯t have much experience. ¡°The information you have given is too general. Do you have his name? Maybe his age? How tall is he? Is he fat, skinny or well-built? Did he have anything unique about him? Perhaps some kind of deformity or disability? What about his hair and skin color?¡±

    Shi Xueman realized that Ai Hui wanted more specific details. She quickly responded, ¡°It was during a blind battle, and he didn¡¯t leave his full name. He is most probably a youngster. His height and build were rather simr to yours. As for other special characteristics...that¡¯s right, he had a lot of strength.¡±

    Ai Hui shook his head. ¡°Still too little information.¡±

    Shi Xueman was slightly anxious. She clenched her teeth and racked her brain. Suddenly, her eyes lit up as she offered, ¡°Oh, and he was very powerful.¡±

    ¡°How powerful? What was his base level?¡±

    ¡°Possibly more powerful than me.¡± She then added, ¡°Not much stronger but not much weaker either.¡±

    Ai Hui nodded and agreed, ¡°That does narrow our search down by quite a bit.¡±

    He was not simply shooting his mouth off. The power that she had exhibited earlier had sent a lingering fear crawling up his spine¡ªeven someone as arrogant as Duanmu Huanghun was beaten to a pulp.

    He reflected for a while, before asking prudently, ¡°What¡¯s your base level? It¡¯s fine if you¡¯re not willing to share.¡±

    Shi Xueman replied spontaneously, ¡°I have achieved six pces.¡±

    ¡°Absolute arts?¡±

    ¡°Of course!¡±

    Even though Ai Hui had already known she was fierce and powerful, discovering her base level still made him involuntarily suck in air through his teeth.

    This girl...even Fatty would not dare to tell her that the debtor is the boss!

    Ai Hui was d that he had no ns to renege on his debt; otherwise, he might have already ended up in the sewers as a pile of dregs.

    He sighed lightly, hiding his astonishment. ¡°The target must be a renowned expert, further limiting the scope of our search.¡±

    Little did he expect the seemingly ordinary girl from the noodle shop to shake her head and disagree. ¡°No! I am very familiar with all the renowned experts of the Induction Ground, and he is not one of them. The target is definitely a new student, someone who I have not traded blows with before.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind buzzed; the hidden implications of her words are rather frightening. What did she mean by being ¡°familiar with the renowned experts?¡± Judging from the phrase ¡®not traded blows with before¡¯, they were definitely more than just acquaintances.

    Furthermore, she had said it with absolute certainty. Didn¡¯t that imply that she had sparred with them before?

    Ai Hui felt his mouth turn dry. How unlucky must he be to owe someone so powerful eighty million yuan!

    He took a deep breath, trying to remain calm. ¡°How could any of the new students possibly have such a base level of six pces?¡±

    ¡°Why not?¡± she countered, disagreeing. ¡°For all we know, he could have a strange character and prefers to keep a low-profile. Maybe he enjoys preying on the weak.¡±

    Ai Hui considered the idea for a while. ¡°In other words, the target is a new student, who is actually an expert, with a build simr to mine. Also, his base level might be of six pces or possibly even higher, knows an absolute art, has a vicious fighting style, and is proficient in blind battling as well as submission moves.¡±

    ¡°That should be about it!¡± Shi Xueman was very pleased.

    Although he was young, Ai Hui¡¯s maturity, calmness, and attention to detail left her highly satisfied.

    Ai Hui decided to first temper her expectations. ¡°I will put my best effort for this task, but luck usually ys arge role in finding someone. I cannot guarantee sess.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s all right,¡± Shi Xueman casually replied. ¡°You owe me eighty million yuan anyway, and I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll find plenty of things that you can do to pay off the yearly interest. As for reneging on your debt, nobody in the entire Induction Ground has dared to do such a thing to me before.¡±

    The noodle shop girl¡¯s callous words made the hairs on the back of Ai Hui¡¯s neck stand on end.

    Ai Hui swallowed hard. ¡°What about the swordy coaching?¡±

    ¡°I should be in the city once per fortnight. When the timees, I¡¯ll look for you here.¡± Shi Xueman observed her surroundings. ¡°It just so happens that this is also a training hall. I¡¯ll notify you one day in advance. Luckily there¡¯s a message tree too, so keep a look out for it.¡±

    ¡°Message tree?¡± Ai Hui had no idea of what she was talking about.

    Shi Xueman could tell that Ai Hui was clueless. She pointed at a seemingly unremarkable tree in the corner of the yard and exined, ¡°That is a message tree. The leaves of a message tree are different from those of a normal tree, as every single leaf has the same pattern of veins. When it receives a message, the tree drops one of its leaves with the message written on it. It is a wood elemental technique. Did you not learn this in ss?¡±

    Ai Hui was astounded. He had not noticed anything special about that tree despite having swept the courtyard many times.

    Shi Xueman walked to the message tree and plucked one of its leaves. She produced a book seemingly out of nowhere.

    She opened the book and ced the leaf on one its pages, and a warm glow soon enveloped the leaf.

    Shi Xueman suddenly cried out in shock.

 Chapter 44: First Generation Message Tree

    Chapter 44: First Generation Message Tree

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Hearing her cry out in surprise, Ai Hui could not help but ask, "Is there a problem?"

    Shi Xueman shook her head and only spoke a momentter. "It¡¯s nothing. I just didn¡¯t expect the pattern of veins on this message tree to be this ancient."

    "Ancient?" Ai Hui was muddled.

    Shi Xueman raised her head and looked at him strangely. "You didn¡¯t learn this in school?"

    "I am a new student!" Ai Hui eximed.

    He had a poor foundational knowledge and a low base level, yet his swordy was strangely brilliant. Shi Xueman nced at him, wondering who could have groomed such a freak.

    She began to exin. "Message trees were invented by wood elementalists from the Jadeite Forest. These wood elementalists discovered that treesmunicated using a uniquenguage, which allowed them to transmit very fragmented information. Building on thenguage of the trees, the wood elementalists developed a message tree that possessed a greater informational capacity and an increased transmission range. Message trees differentiate from one another through the patterns on their veins. As the trees became more widely used, the wood elementalists in the Jadeite Forest realized that trees¡¯ venation was notplex enough to handle the increasing demand. As a result, they developed the second generation of message trees which have a moreplex pattern of veins. As of today, there are already three generations."

    Ai Hui asked thoughtfully, "So is this a first generation or second generation message tree?"

    "First generation," Shi Xueman concluded.

    "What an antique," Ai Hui said, as he gazed at the message tree in admiration. Perhaps he was influenced by the noodle shop girl¡¯s words, but he suddenly felt that this sprawling tree had a very simple, yet deste feel to it.

    "Looks like this training hall has been here for quite a while," Shi Xueman noted as she scanned her surroundings. "What about the owner of this training hall?"

    "He left twenty years ago," Ai Hui said tly. "It was already abandoned when I arrived. Could it have been of some importance?"

    "Definitely," Shi Xueman nodded. "The first generation of message trees were not extensively poprized and were only used by a rather small circle of people. The original owner of this training hall must have been a rather remarkable person."

    When it came to life-and-death experience, Ai Hui was miles ahead of Shi Xueman, but with regard to historical and schrly knowledge, Shi Xueman was naturally much more advanced.

    "Regardless of its past, can it still be used?" asked Ai Hui.

    He did not care an ounce about the training hall¡¯s past. So what if it was of historical importance? Would he get some money out of it? Certainly not. Ai Hui felt nothing for its potentially glorious history.

    No one couldpete with the swordsmen when it came to talking about history and romanticism.

    Just look at thoserge swordsmen schools¡ªthey were easily around for thousands and thousands of years. Although the swordsmen were masters with realms many times higher than those of the Avalon of Five Elements, they could hardly im to have ruled over the entire Cultivation World.

    In the end, they were still wiped out, swept away by the tide of history.

    Ai Hui was hence not interested in any of the ¡®history stuff¡¯ that the noodle shop girl was talking about. First generation or not, the most important matter was whether it could still be used.

    "It can be used," Shi Xueman answered, a little bit astonished. Someone who found out that he was staying in a training ground of such historical significance should be excited and curious to find out more, and maybe even hope to uncover an absolute art or two.

    The person standing in front of her, however, waspletely aloof.

    "It¡¯s settled then," Ai Hui said, nodding.

    Shi Xueman shut her book. Looking at the time, she also nodded. "Okay, keep a watch on your message tree. If you have any information for me, you can send it to me via the message tree as well. Here is a leaf from my message tree, although I doubt you¡¯d know how to use it."

    Shi Xueman ced her own leaf on the branch from which she previously plucked a leaf. A soft, green light appeared between the leaf and the branch, joining the two.

    "To send me a message, simply write on this leaf, but try to limit your word-count. Messages that I send you will appear here as well. Remember to take note and receive them."

    Ai Hui turned his head and called out, "Lou Lan, I¡¯ll leave this to you! Come find me at the usual ce if there¡¯s anything."

    "Alright, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied happily.

    Shi Xueman red at him andmanded coldly, "You¡¯d better practice hard. The more powerful you be, the sooner you¡¯ll be able to repay your debt of eighty million yuan."

    With that, she swiftly departed.

    Ai Hui let out a huge sigh, as he copsed into the rattan chair. He whined, "Lou Lan, why am I so unlucky?"

    A yellow light flickered in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes as he deeply pondered the question. A few momentster, he returned back to normal and stated truthfully, "This question is too profound for me, Ai Hui. I don¡¯t have any answer."

    "Eighty million yuan..."

    Ai Hui felt his eyelids grow heavy, and the regr sound of his sighs lulled him into dreand.

    Lou Lan had already left when Ai Hui suddenly woke up in the dead of night. The moment he opened his eyes, he was met with a sky full of stars. He lost himself for a moment, deeply awed by the boundless and mysterious night sky.

    It took a good while before he snapped out of it, and he then promptly sat up in his chair.

    During his training in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, his biggest change was that he was able to fall asleep because the intensity of his training wouldpletely exhaust him. Resting against the walls of the pagoda, he would often fall asleep without even realizing it.

    The seed of the sword embryo came to his mind. Although that detestable thing had absorbed the Calming Indigo Silk, which was worth eighty million yuan, it had allowed him to unleash such an amazing sword technique.

    ...

    His first thought was to reach for his sword, but he soon let out a bitterugh.

    His only grass sword was already destroyed.

    He shook his head and couldn¡¯t help but let out anotherugh. Since he was not able to sleep, he would train.

    Two dayster.

    Ai Hui was carrying travel bags that were bursting with blood-and-bone strengthening cake as he waved farewell to Lou Lan. "Goodbye, Lou Lan!" he shouted.

    Lou Lan dissolved into a pile of sand, subsequently transforming into a huge clenched fist of yellow sand. "Ai Hui, all the best!" Lou Lan shouted in return.

    The sun¡¯s warmth enveloped everyone on the streets. Ai Hui had gotten rid of the misfortune of the past two days, sweeping the debt to the back of his mind. He was now filled with hope for the future and self-motivation.

    "Did you know? Two nights ago, an extremely skilled pervert appeared here!"

    "Oh yes, I¡¯ve heard of it. A naked man reportedly ran onto the main street."

    "Indeed, it¡¯s so scary! What¡¯s more, the pervert was highly skilled. Seriously! What if he takes a fancy to me? How am I supposed to retaliate? I¡¯m so worried! A pity it¡¯s not our Huanghun, otherwise I would dly not resist."

    "What nonsense! Our Huanghun is such an upright young man!"

    "I haven¡¯t seen our Huanghun for the past few days though."

    "Our idol is injured, I heard he needs to rest for at least ten days. Have you forgotten that he tired himself out too much when he entered the city and fell as a result? He must have been injured since then. I don¡¯t even know how serious it is, how worrying!"

    "Yes, he¡¯s so delicate yet he still went to challenge Gu Tianning and the others. It¡¯s so heart-wrenching that he¡¯s so stubborn!"

    "That¡¯s what I love about him!"

    ...

    Listening to the bunch of young girls chattering away, Ai Hui sneered in his heart. That childish, delinquent brat! That double-crossing backstabber! He was such a disgrace! He deserved to be spurned!

    Ai Hui raised his head loftily and walked out the city gate, full of disdain.

    When he eventually reached the Suspending Golden Pagoda, Ai Hui felt stirred up quite a bit.

    Such training may be seen by others as dull and arduous, but to Ai Hui, it instead made him excited and gave him a feeling that he was steadily progressing.

 Chapter 45: Unlocking the Natal Residence

    Chapter 45: Unlocking the Natal Residence

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    The metal winds of the Suspending Golden Pagoda howled and screeched, but Ai Hui remained unmoved. It was as though he had fallen asleep; he seemed to have simply given himself up to the wrath of the metal winds, allowing them to fling him around the pagoda as they pleased.

    The metallic luster on his skin became deeper with each passing day, and before long, it gave his skin the appearance of old copper. This was the sign that Ai Hui¡¯s [Copper Skin] was about to take shape.

    Tempering the body with the metal element had always followed a certain dogma. The development of [Copper Skin], [Iron Muscles], [Steel Bones], [Silver Marrow] and [Golden blood] represented the five stages of such temperance, and achieving all five stages resulted in a very rarely seen metal element body of the purest form.

    However, it was as they say: it is easy to develop elemental energy, but difficult to temper one¡¯s body.

    This meant that as long as one had a decent aptitude, they could have some improvement through the umtion of small amounts of elemental energy. On the other hand, body tempering required one to go through various long and arduous processes, making it difficult to achieve sess without sufficient patience and determination.

    Within the Avalon of Five Elements, there had always been controversy regarding metal element body tempering. Many elementalists believed that even with immense training, the human body could never match up to the physical prowess of dire beasts and that thus, body tempering was not a worthwhile pursuit. Furthermore, as one¡¯s base level increased, the fighting potential granted by elemental energy would start to far outss that of the physical body.

    As a matter of fact, the opening of each pce would grant an incredible boon to one¡¯s elemental energy, advancing their fighting ability by leaps and bounds. More advanced body tempering techniques, however, had a less direct effect on one¡¯s fighting ability.

    Despite that, mainstream practices still involved at least some level of body tempering. Themon opinion was that although elemental energy has a greater destructive power, a robust, perceptive body was more capable of utilizing elemental energy.

    This was also the path that was followed by most metal elementalists.

    Even the first stage, [Copper Skin], was usually only attained by students who had opened six pces.

    Besides the low cost-benefit ratio, beginners would often not choose to practice body tempering because the elemental energy they absorbed during the initial stages of learning tended to be of a more gentle nature, and such gentle elemental energy made it difficult to advance in body tempering.

    That problem, however, was non-existent for Ai Hui.

    The metal elemental energy in the metal winds are extremely harsh, and apart from tempering Ai Hui¡¯s physical body, the scattered metal elemental energy also yielded a purer form of elemental energy than what was absorbed by most beginners. As a result, even though he had a lower quantity of refined elemental energy, its purity was unmatched.

    Armed with Lou Lan¡¯s blood-and-bone-strengthening cake, Ai Hui¡¯s training sessions were even more effective. Ai Hui improved by leaps and bounds, particrly in tempering his metal element body.

    Lou Lan¡¯s blood-and-bone-strengthening cake was so effective that it almost moved Ai Hui to tears. Not only was it useful in healing his internal injuries, the cake was also very helpful to his body tempering. Since Ai Hui had not opened his natal residence yet, the elemental energy was especially damaging to his flesh.

    Ai Hui was aware of the many bodily changes he was experiencing, of which his increasing physical strength was the most obvious. If he ever fought head-to-head with that guy with the [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] again, Ai Hui would most certainly not be as easily exhausted.

    If he mastered [Copper Skin] as well, he would then be able to withstand that fellow¡¯s powerful legs, and the fight would boil down to a battle of endurance of elemental energy.

    The previous engagement may have been short and pathetic, but Ai Hui had received considerable benefit from it. His base level may not have increased, but the battle was an immense eye-opener and had raised his confidence.

    He was extremely motivated after seeing the absolute art. To this date, he was still trying to figure out how his opponent¡¯s [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] worked¡ªit amazed him to no end. The advanced elementalists he had met in the Wilderness were truly formidable, but at the very least he knew where their power came from. However, the mysteries of the absolute arts were beyond his superficial knowledge.

    If his opponent had been more experienced inbat, he would have been easily defeated, and Lou Lan and he would not have stood any chance of victory.

    That very battle also made him more confident. He had not opened his natal residence yet and was thus considerably weaker than his opponent. Despite that, he was able to hold his own for long, and was eventually even able to make aeback and defeat his opponent with, admittedly, Lou Lan¡¯s help. The victory certainly gave him a reason to feel proud.

    He was not as weak as he had initially thought.

    Body tempering was an unexpected surprise, but Ai Hui did not lose sight of his main objective¡ªpursuing elemental energy.

    As time crept by, the elemental energy within Ai Hui¡¯s body increased, the metallic luster on his skin further deepened, and the pagoda wall became dented a little more. Every single day was filled with progress.

    Ai Hui lost himself in his training, barely noticing the flow of time.

    He was disheveled, filthy, and exuded an unpleasant smell. Although he had finished consuming all the blood-and-bone-strengthening cake, Ai Hui did not return to the city¡ªhe had a strong premonition that his breakthrough was nigh.

    Bang! Bang! Bang!

    As was his routine, he mmed into the pagoda wall with his [Arching Fish Back]. The contact between the sturdy metal wall and his back muscles generated a loud, booming noise.

    Beads of sweat exploded into a fine mist, engulfing Ai Hui as it surged forth with each m.

    After thest trace of metal elemental energy had been scattered, Ai Hui would sit cross-legged as always.

    Something felt different the moment he began to circte his elemental energy. The cirction of refined elemental energy was usually smooth and easily controlled.

    Now, however, the elemental energy within his body felt rather wild, and circted with great momentum, surging and raging against his control.

    Ai Hui suddenly realized that the time to unlock the natal residence had arrived.

    The elemental energy within his body had reached the limit that his muscles could bear. Like a reservoir bursting with water, the slightest disturbance would make it flow out of control.

    Unlocking the natal residence was Ai Hui¡¯s first goal, and he was well prepared for it. The Induction Ground had a wealth of experience when it came to unlocking the natal residence, as they had encountered all kinds of situations before, and they hence had a solid treatise on the subject.

    Ai Hui had learned from his past experiences that adequate preparation was the key to maintaining hisposure. He valued the unlocking of the natal residence highly, and hence had a thorough understanding of every possible situation that may ur.

    Very few people would develop their elemental energy to such an extent before unlocking their natal residence. After all, the amount of elemental energy that can be stored in the physical body was pathetically littlepared to the natal residence, and it was an endeavor that did not have any evident benefits.

    Few, however, did not mean none.

    Throughout history, there had been several others who had simr conditions to Ai Hui, some by chance and others on purpose. The facts for such scenarios were also very clear.

    At this moment, he remainedpletely unfazed, calm and collected.

    He channeled his thoughts, slowly pushing the elemental energy of his body. Slowing down was the key to circting elemental energy that was in such a state of overflow.

    Steadily circting the elemental energy, he gradually increased its speed, preventing it from going out of control.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body began to emit a ring of silver light rays, a phenomenon caused by the cirction of elemental energy that had been developed to the brim. It indicated the dispersal of elemental energy and was certainly not good news.

    Following his slow eleration of elemental energy, the light gradually disappeared, and Ai Hui descended into a state of quietness. It was almost as if he was asleep.

    However, the situation within Ai Hui¡¯s body was entirely different.

 Chapter 46: The Opening of the Natal Residence

    Chapter 46: The Opening of the Natal Residence

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    With the passing of each day, Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy¡¯s cirction speed increased by one point.

    After six consecutive days, the elemental energy within Ai Hui¡¯s body had increased to its maximum limit. Ai Hui felt that if it circted any faster, he would lose control of his elemental energy.

    At present, Ai Hui was almost drowning in the roaring revolution of the elemental energy within his body¡ªit seemed to resemble the raging tornado of the Suspending Golden Pagoda. This was the first time Ai Hui experienced the astonishing effect of the revolution of the elemental energy, and if he had not read about simr situations, he would have now been at a loss of what to do.

    Ai Hui was exceptionally calm since he was prepared for various different scenarios. What was there to be worried about?

    Spinning with maximum speed, the elemental energy ignited a roar within his body, and his muscles started to tremble uncontrobly. In the midst of this high-frequency vibration, the elemental energy resembled the rushing torrents of a tsunami as it poured into Ai Hui¡¯s lungs.

    In the past, whenever the revolution of the elemental energy had reached his lungs, it would meet an invisible barrier and would split into pieces like a delicate piece of paper.

    Ai Hui jolted; his lungs had suddenly started to emit intense silver rays, which prated through his whole body. Despite sitting in the darkness, Ai Hui¡¯s silver lungs were clearly visible.

    He involuntarily took a deep breath and heard a long hiss, which had a vague resemnce to the sound of a golden horn. Like a whale inhaling in rivers, a clear, visible stream of air current poured into Ai Hui¡¯s nose and rapidly entered his lungs.

    This sound was the initial indicator of the natal residence being opened. In reality, the moment the lung¡¯s residence had opened, it had generated a form of suction, affecting the air particles, and in turn, creating the sound.

    Ai Hui was unable to describe howfortable he was feeling¡ªit was as if he was injected with a new lease of life. All his fatigue was gone with a flourish, and the initial, violent elemental energy had stabilized immediately, bing unusually meek.

    He was unable to control the joy that spread across his face. Although he had found his path and was confident of opening the natal residence when he had first started training in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, he was still unable to control the delight of actually achieving his goal.

    He now aplished the first goal he had made after entering the Induction Ground!

    He was, in fact, slightly shocked, and was in a momentary state of disbelief.

    This was much faster than he had initially expected.

    The pressure that he had been experiencing since arriving at the Induction Ground now lessened significantly. At least he would not have to worry about being unable to open the natal residence within a year.

    Ai Hui, having matured at an early age, could gradually calm down from his state of happiness. The opening of the natal residence was just the beginning. To be a qualified elementalist who can be officially registered in the book, he still had a long way to go.

    Ai Hui widened his eyes and started to inspect his body. A few momentster, he was unable to resist the trace of happiness that spread to his face.

    The opening of the natal residence had indeed brought about tremendous changes to his body.

    The most distinct improvement was in the revolution of his elemental energy¡ªthe speed had increased tremendously. Ai Hui reckoned that the speed had been increased by onefold. This implied that the time for oneplete revolution was now halved and hence his elemental energy would be refined with speed greater by onefold in one day.

    At that moment, Ai Hui finally understood why average beginners were unwilling to train their elemental energy to the optimal point before attempting to open the natal residence.

    After opening the natal residence, the efficiency of his training was drastically differentpared to earlier.

    Furthermore, the improvement brought about by the faster revolution of the elemental energy had an enormous impact on improving his battle skills. This also implied that the amount of time to develop the elemental energy was halved while the potential force of the elemental energy had improved by onefold.

    The little pride that Ai Hui was feeling vanished like smoke in thin air.

    His battling experience and keen six senses would help a lot inbat, but regarding absolute skills, he was totallycking.

    Opening the natal residence had a tremendous impact. Whenever a pce was opened, his strength would increase by leap and bounds. What would happen if he managed to open eight pces? What kind of formidable speed would his elemental energy rotate with?

    An immobile fist does not hold any threat, and simrly, motionless elemental energy would also be harmless.

    The effect of elemental energy would only be exhibited when it was in motion.

    Having a richbat experience, Ai Hui was able to easily understand this point.

    His opponent¡¯s moves were as fast as lightning. The effect of his opponent¡¯s training was stronger by ten or even hundreds of times. Experience would definitely not be sufficient enough to make up for the drastic gap between their abilities.

    Ai Hui calmed down and went to the front of the fence. He took a deep breath, and using his back, he knocked violently toward the Suspending Golden Pagoda. The moment his back was in contact with the wall, his entire body trembled.

    [Arching Fish Back]!

    Bang!

    With a booming noise that was much clearer and louder than usual, the wall of the pagoda, which was harder than steel, became like rubber. The wall sank lower into the ground as a noticeable dent appeared on it.

    Next to it was the dent that he had made when he was previously training the [Arching Fish Back]. There was a notable difference between the two.

    Despite having trained in the [Arching Fish Back] for so long, the initial dent was only half as deep as the dent that he had just made.

    The increase of his elemental energy was indeed extraordinary.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart was filled with gratitude. Coming to the Induction Ground was indeed the correct decision.

    Ai Hui was perfectly content and did not continue his training. Instead, he prepared to head back to the city.

    He needed time to adapt to the changes of his new body and to supplement his newly found knowledge. What he had learned previously was basically all about the opening of the natal residence, and now that he had reached a new base level, he had practically no knowledge of theter stages.

    A hasty but blind training session would only hinder his progress towards his goal.

    If he did not ponder and reflect upon his training, and if he did not find the Suspending Golden Pagoda, his training would definitely not be as sessful as now. Training was like a long battle; sufficient preparation was a must if he wanted to seed.

    Hence, Ai Hui needed to attend lessons.

    Furthermore, Ai Hui had not yet forgotten about his promise to the girl from the noodle shop to find a particr person. A debt of eighty million yuan could not be simply forgotten.

    For a long time, the Suspending Golden Pagoda would be a suitable ce to train. Where else could he find such a good ce to train, improve his elemental energy, and even practice the [Arching Fish Back]?

    ......

    It was dusk when Ai Hui returned to the Vanguard Training Hall.

    The first thing Lou Lan said when he saw Ai Hui was ¡°You need a bath, Ai Hui.¡±

    It was only after Lou Lan¡¯s reminder that Ai Hui noticed how dirty his body was, and so he hurriedly ran to take a bath.

    Afterward, Ai Hui felt so refreshed that he felt like he was floating on air. Heidnguidly on the rattan chair. During the continuous training, Ai Hui was so focused that he had forgotten about everything else. While he did not feel anything then,ter on, the fatigue had hit him suddenly like a concealed virus.

    Lying on the rattan chair, Ai Hui was sozy that he did not want to move a finger. Even his tone when talking was simr to a pig¡¯s snort. ¡°Lou Lan, thank you for your blood-and-bone-strengthening cake! It helped tremendously!¡±

    ¡°Really? I am happy to be able to help you, Ai Hui.¡± Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered with yellow light. ¡°Congrattions! Opening the natal residence is a big achievement!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s still too early to say that. I am still unable to beat the young girl from the noodle store.¡± Ai Hui was as still as a dead pig, and without even lifting his eyelids, he asked, ¡°Was there anything from the message tree?¡±

    ¡°Nope,¡± Lou Lan replied.

    ¡°One month without any news. Ha! I hope she has forgotten about the eighty million yuan.¡± Ai Hui was ted.

    Lou Lan answered honestly, ¡°I reckon that will be difficult, Ai Hui.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s not care about her for now. We will first go for lessons tomorrow, then we will help her find that blind-battle person. Ah, we have such enriching lives!¡±

    Ai Hui muttered to himself as his lids became increasingly heavier, before finally falling into a deep slumber.

    When Lou Lan noticed that Ai Hui was asleep, he left quietly, not disturbing the peaceful Ai Hui in the slightest.

 Chapter 47: The Adorable Teacher Xu

    Chapter 47: The Adorable Teacher Xu

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    After Ai Hui had managed to open the natal residence, he no longer stuck out like a sore thumb in the school, which was something worth celebrating.

    Back at the dormitory, which he had not set foot in for a long while, he looked at the bustling crowd and felt slightly disoriented. He could not help but smile. Could it be that he had be sentimental after leaving the Wilderness?

    When he thought back, he realized that it had been a few months since he had left the Wilderness, and he had indeed changed tremendously.

    He could fall asleep in peace instead of hiding in a corner while clutching a sword. He could ept people within close proximity without the desire to kill them to get rid of any possible threats. He could leisurely talk to Lou Lan and gaze at the stars while lying on the rattan chair instead of constantly having his guard up against any potential danger.

    He did not know if these changes were good or bad, but for now, he was not going to reject them.

    If this type of life were to continue, he would, in fact, be very happy.

    He suddenly came across Teacher Xu along the way, whose face revealed a look of pride. ¡°Student Ai Hui, you have improved a lot. To be able to open the natal residence in such a short period, you must have put in tremendous efforts. Keep up the good work.¡±

    ¡°Yes, Teacher.¡± Ai Hui gave a courteous bow.

    He truly respected the teachers of his school, because in his opinion, imparting knowledge was a very noble deed. It was exceedingly difficult to learn things in the Wilderness, as everyone had something to do and seldom were there people who were willing to use their precious time to help you. Not to mention that none of them cared to see if he had learned anything.

    Initially, Teacher Xu was worried about Ai Hui¡¯s poor track record, but upon observing Ai Hui¡¯s base level, he knew that Ai Hui did not neglect his studies. Still, he instructed Ai Hui earnestly, ¡°After opening your natal residence, you have more things to learn. Compared to others, your basics are much weaker. You must not ck off.¡±

    ¡°I will work hard, Teacher,¡± Ai Hui replied, showing his thanks.

    Teacher Xu nodded. ¡°I am relieved that you think that way. You must live harmoniously with your ssmates. Some ssmates might be easily irritated and have a bad attitude, but their intentions are good. To be able to open the natal residence so quickly, I am sure you have had such experiences before.¡±

    Ai Hui was confused. What did Teacher Xu mean by saying this? Was it to get him to avoid conflicts with his ssmates?

    Nevertheless, he nodded respectfully. ¡°I will remember this, Teacher.¡±

    Teacher Xu was very pleased with Ai Hui¡¯s attitude. A respectful and diligent student would naturally be a good student. His vast teaching experience had enabled him to interact with many students. It did not matter if the basics were weak, as they can be learned gradually. As long as the students were equipped with a good attitude, then there would be an improvement. Since such students would not take shortcuts, they would have firm foundations. While it would be difficult for them to be a prominent hero in their own way, they would be able to be the backbone of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    ¡°Previously, I did not mention this to you as you had yet to open your natal residence. The school has many activities that you should actively participate in to expand your boundaries. After a period of time, all of you will have missions to execute. These would be considered as practical lessons and also as part of the assessments from the school,¡± Teacher Xu patiently said.

    ¡°Students have to go on missions, too?¡± Ai Hui was somewhat surprised.

    Teacher Xuughed. ¡°Of course. All of you are here to learn skills at the Induction Ground. What¡¯s the point of learning but not utilizing? You don¡¯t have to worry too much. The missions would be easy in the beginning and only grow harder when your abilities be stronger. In the future, all of you will meet with various scenarios which would be moreplicated and dangerous. More practice would be beneficial.¡±

    ¡°I will do my best, Teacher,¡± Ai Hui answered seriously.

    Teacher Xu was finished with his preaching and told Ai Hui, ¡°Go for your lessons.¡±

    Looking at Ai Hui¡¯s retreating back, Teacher Xue felt a little rueful. Ai Hui¡¯s situation was the most unusual in his ss. Aborer who did not manage to open his natal residence actually managed to stay in the Wilderness for three years and alsoe out alive. Truth be told, he could hardly imagine what Ai Hui had gone through in the past three years and how he had managed to stay alive.

    Teacher Xue had always disliked and opposed the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ recruitment ofborers from the Old Territory. However, he was not influential enough to change anything.

    When he first saw Ai Hui, he saw a thirst in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes¡ªa thirst for knowledge. To a teacher, there was nothing more touching than this.

    Therefore, he personally made a trip to find Duanmu Huanghun to request him to help Ai Hui.

    At present, it appeared that Duanmu Huanghun did a good job. He was aware of Ai Hui¡¯s aptitude. For Ai Hui to be able to open his natal residence in such a short amount of time, without a doubt, it must have been Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s doing.

    Teacher Xu was very pleased with his own decision. He had no qualms about Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s gifts and capability. The splendid results from his previous military battles proved everything.

    By helping Ai Hui, Duanmu Huanghun showcased his responsibility andpassionate heart. This made Teacher Xu delighted.

    His gaze soon fell upon the walking Duanmu Huanghun.

    Duanmu Huanghun also noticed Teacher Xu and hurriedly bowed. ¡°Teacher Xu!¡±

    ¡°Have you recovered from your injuries?¡± Teacher Xu concernedly asked, before continuing immediately in a reproachful tone, ¡°Student Duanmu, in the future, please do not be sopetitive. While rankings may be significant, your body is of the utmost importance. You are still young and have a long way to go. Do not ce too much emphasis on these useless rankings. Look at you, you pushed yourself over your limits which resulted in taking a month to recover. Do not do such things in future.¡±

    ¡°I will heed your teachings, Teacher. Huanghun will definitely not make such rash decisions in future.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun hastily, yet politely replied. He felt a pang of guilt in his heart.

    ¡°Your talent is excellent, given that you achieved a lot at a young age and I am not worried about your training. I am more concerned about your moral ethics.¡± Teacher Xu looked solemn. With a stern tone, he continued, ¡°No matter how exceptional a person is, without a good character, it will ruin everything. Just like previously, there was actually a student running naked in public. When that happened, it was humiliating for the entire Central Pine Academy. This has brought about much fury, and we are determined to uncover what happened. No matter how powerful the person¡¯s background is, once the truth is revealed, we will definitely not let him off! Eh? Student Duanmu, why are you perspiring so badly?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun had started to look increasingly guilty. He forced out augh. ¡°I guess I have not fully recovered, and my body is still weak.¡±

    With a voiceced with concern, Teacher Xu immediately advised, ¡°You have to be mindful of your body. Do let me know if you need anything.¡±

    ¡°I will.¡± Duanmu Huanghun could not wait to flee from this conversation.

    Teacher Xu thenplimented him by saying, ¡°Duanmu, you were very responsible. I didn¡¯t think that you could attain such an outstanding aplishment. Given that Student Ai Hui could open his natal residence in such a short period of time, the credit must definitely go to you. Initially, I was worried that both of your characters would sh, but it looks like I am thinking too much. The two of you have been long-term partners, and it looks like both of you have pretty good synergy. Not bad. Since we are doing group activities today, the two of you shall be in the same group. Okay, time to go for lessons.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun was initially baffled. It took forever for him to react after Teacher Xu had finished speaking.

    Ai Hui......and I in the same group?

    Oh no!

    Duanmu Huanghun clutched his head with both hands as he looked at Teacher Xu¡¯s retreating back. His face was filled with terror.

 Chapter 48: Attending Class

    Chapter 48: Attending ss

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    After opening his first natal pce, Ai Hui realized that his previous experiences were not as useful now. There was a drastic difference in the rotation of his current elemental energypared to the past. Every move wasposed of many minute details. If a small detail was not performed properly, it diminished the impact and power of the overall move. How to distribute the energy, how to revolve the elemental energy, when to speed up, when to slow down¡ªall these details determined the ultimate power of a move.

    Due to his wealth of practical experiences, Ai Hui was an ardent individual.

    He had not spent time contemting abstract ideas, and he did not believe himself capable of such conceptualizations. While he was able to achieve some level of sess in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, he was notcent. Teacher Dong was clear in his exnations and he himself had spent a long time in the Wilderness. Eventually, he was able toprehend the ideas after putting in much effort.

    Ai Hui possessed high self-awareness and knew that he was not talented. Most of the knowledge that he acquired was not learned conventionally.

    The elemental energy methods in the Induction Ground had been progressing for a thousand years, polished by many geniuses and seniors. They would definitely be better than him. The only thing he could do was persevere, practice hard, and be diligent in learning what the teachers taught.

    What was considered studious?

    It was to understand every detail that the teachers taught. Why was it fast here and why was it slow there? One would only be considered well-educated after breaking the information into smaller pieces, thoroughly deciphering these segments, and properly executing based on this knowledge.

    The ticking time bomb of academic dismissal was no longer a threat with the opening of his natal residence. He now had four years to learn at his own pace without rushing through. As long as he was diligent and steadfast in his studies for these four years, he could probably be registered as a documented elementalist.

    While the oue was uncertain, this was a goal he was working hard to achieve.

    Having seen so much life and death, Ai Hui had a clear understanding of the different facets of life.

    He saw the frailty which prevented people from having ambitious thoughts and unrealistic ns.

    While the teacher exined the basics in the training ss, Ai Hui paid very close attention. Only a quarter of the ss was present, with the rest of the seats empty. Most of those in attendance were from the Old Territory. As this was a really basic ss, there was little content that the students from the Avalon of Five Elements had not already learned.

    Central Pine Academy allowed students to have the freedom of choice in their lessons. Since the background of every student varied, the guidance they required differed as well. Students simr to the genius Duanmu Huanghun were way ahead of the other normal students. Typical sses had no meaning for them. Central Pine Academy considered this scenario and appointed the most outstanding teacher to guide those exceptional students. Outside the ssroom, outstanding students also had the guidance of the Society of Excellence.

    Ai Hui never thought of himself as a genius, but he also never felt that Duanmu Huanghun was a genius¡ªthat disdainful, childish, rude youth!

    Ai Hui greedily absorbed whatever the teacher was teaching. The teacher¡¯s surname was Wang. He taught the fundamentals, such as what to take note of during training after the opening of the natal residence, what new moves could be learned, and which teacher to consult to learn those moves.

    Every aspect of the Avalon of Five Elements was closely tied to elemental energy. More than once, Ai Hui heard from the teacher that in order to establish a moreprehensive five elements elemental energy, the system must be perfected to attain the level of the Cultivation Era from hundreds of thousands of years ago.

    The teacher¡¯s high regard for the Cultivation World caught Ai Hui by surprise, but he gradually understood why. The Avalon of Five Elements was established from the ruins of the Cultivation World. From a certain point of view, they originated from the same source. However, the Avalon of Five Elements only had one thousand five hundred years of history. It was not even considered an infant whenpared to the long history and glory of the Cultivation World.

    When the teacher lectured about the proliferation of elemental energy training system in the Old Territory, Ai Hui could very well rte to the topic.

    Before entering the Wilderness, he had always lived in the Old Territory. Compared to the Avalon of Five Elements, the Old Territory was apletely different world. It was once the center of the Cultivation World, but now had regressed to the level of a rural area. Life in the Old Territory was very slow and quiet. Under the protection of the Avalon of Five Elements, there were no dire beasts or barbarian tribes.

    The Old Territory was not a ce where training was often discussed. The concentration of elemental energy was very low; it did not have dire beasts, and it alsocked the materials for training. Furthermore, itcked the guidance of teachers and the environment for training was very weak, though this situation had improved in recent years. Many elementalist who originated from the Old Territory would return to their hometowns when they reached a certain age and set up training halls to guide the locals in elemental energy training.

    The teacher could not stop bbering during his lecture and asionally criticized some of the policies of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Ai Hui realized that the teachers in the Induction Ground had their personal preferences. For example, Teacher Dong liked to talk about the history of the Avalon of the Five Elements and Teacher Wang, who was in front of him, loved to speak about the future. This probably had to do with the influence of the Induction Ground. Regardless of whether it was an influential family or the Thirteen Divisions, it was difficult to sway the Induction Ground.

    Not only did Ai Hui not think these lectures were boring, he actually listened with avid interest. No matter if it was the past or the future, they were all things that he had no prior knowledge of, so he listened to expand his horizons.

    ¡°Suppose that each of you just opened your natal residence. I would not rmend immediately starting the training of new moves. Why? Because these techniques can easily limit our understanding towards elemental energy. Much of our understanding toward elemental energy was superficial. Some disagreed, arguing that the five residences and eight pces were perfect andplete. Certainly, whenpared to the old elemental energy system, the current five residences and eight pces system is far more mature andplete. It is widely known that, to date, the development of elemental energy had only been in progress for a thousand years. Look at the previous Cultivation Era. The Cultivation System was so boundless and vast, yet so detailed. Comparatively, the five residences and eight pces methodology was meager and crude. Therefore, everyone should be familiarized with their own elemental energy. Understanding this would be like understanding a partner.¡°

    However, the students were evidently uninterested in this viewpoint.

    The academic atmosphere in the Induction Ground was very liberal, especially for the teachers who faced even fewer restrictions. As long as the teacherspleted their work, the school would not intervene in their personal affairs.

    The lively and progressive atmosphere enabled the Induction Ground to have the most numerous theories and schools of thought in the Avalon of Five Elements. It was also touted that the number of teachers in the Induction Ground was equivalent to the number of researchers and schools of thought.

    The students had long be ustomed and immune to each teacher¡¯s ¡°personal research interest.¡± Not every teacher¡¯s theories were of interest to the students.

    Apparently, the teachers were used to such reactions.

    Those extravagant and shy moves were the most attractive for beginners. In their eyes, mboyance was an indication of power. The teachers were once students and also familiar with such mindsets.

    ¡°Alright, alright. I know what you students want to learn. No matter how easy a move is, to properly practice, you must take note of your personal attribute. The easier the move, the more details you must take note of.¡±

    The teacher saw that the students had long since lost their interest, so he decided to end the ss.

    He felt slightly helpless. It seemed that since he was born, nobody else was interested in whatever topics he wanted to learn about.

    While there were many lectures on topics like this in the Induction Ground, it still made him feel emotional.

    The students could not wait to leave, eager to prepare and practice their ownbat techniques.

    The teacher was collecting his stuff and preparing to leave when a voice rang out.

    ¡°Teacher, could you exin further? How do we improve ourprehension of our elemental energy?¡±

 Chapter 49: To Take a Disciple

    Chapter 49: To Take a Disciple

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    The teacher paused, but he quickly regained his senses. He could hardly believe his ears.

    ¡°What did you just say?¡±

    Ai Hui repeated his question. ¡°I think Teacher¡¯s ideas were very interesting and would like to understand more. Is this possible?¡±

    Upon hearing this, the teacher almost cried tears of joy.

    Oh heavens have mercy on him. Finally, someone was interested in his theories.

    For many years, he had proposed his theories, but no one was interested. Furthermore, as he did not have research subjects, it caused his theories tock evidence and undermined the validity of his ideas. Nobody would believe a theory that had never been proven.

    What was even worse was that without a research subject, he could not continue his study. He was beyond a certain age and his elemental energy had long since left the beginner¡¯s stage, so he was unable to prove that his theories were correct using himself as a subject.

    At the Induction Ground, there was only one method for apletely novel theory to gain everyone¡¯s approval¡ªthe new theory must be proven to be correct. And how to prove it? A sessful case study was needed.

    If a student trained based on his theories and attained some progress by gaining special abilities or bing some type of expert, this would validate the theory and provide evidence that it was useful.

    If many students achieved sess through his theories, this result would be sufficient for his new theory to be regarded as useful and desirable in the Induction Ground.

    Many a time, the teacher had fantasized that his theories would be famous in the Induction Ground and that he would be respected as a worthy figure. However, reality was cruel and his theories were currently of no interest to anyone. He did not even have a single subject to help further his research.

    Until today!

    Finally, someone was interested in his theories!

    ¡°No problem, no problem!¡± he said hastily. His face brightened and he asked, ¡°What do you want to learn? Just ask whatever you want. Teacher has more than enough time.¡±

    Ai Hui was extremely courteous and said, ¡°Teacher, can you exin your theories in detail?¡±

    Although many students were disdainful of the teacher¡¯s theories, Ai Hui felt that they were justified. Ai Hui had survived many real-life battle experiences and he was very clear that those extravagant-looking moves might not be of use in actualbat. The most dangerous moves were those that were subtle and not shy. Despite being low-key instead of morous, these techniques were scary and deadly.

    Not only was Ai Hui interested in the history and future of the Avalon of Five Elements, he was equally interested in different schools of thoughts and theories. He knew that his knowledge was limited. No matter how entric the teacher was, in terms of theoretical research on elemental energy, his expertise far surpassed what Ai Hui knew by several folds.

    ¡°No problem!¡±

    The teacher perked up and organized his train of thought while calmly saying, ¡°First, we need to start with the definition of elemental energy, even though our understanding to date is limited. Elemental energy is not as activepared to spiritual force. It is more stable and hasponents of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. This ismon knowledge. When we are training our elemental energy, we absorb the elemental energy from nature and refine it. At first nce, this does not differ greatly from the training of spiritual force during the Cultivation Era. However, in reality, the discrepancy is like the gap between heaven and earth. This is also one of the reason why our ancestors failed to quickly develop a method of utilizing elemental energy after losing their spiritual force.¡±

    Ai Hui listened attentively. He had seen many swordy methods and knew more about spiritual force than average people. Still, if asked what the differences were between spiritual force and elemental energy, he would be unable to list them.

    ¡°The first difference: spiritual force has no attribute whereas elemental energy has five types. Cultivators from the ancient times absorbed spiritual force from nature into their own body, then used their own secret arts to assign different attributes to the spiritual force like fire, water, lightning and so on. However, elemental energy is different. Since the elemental energy in nature has attributes, when we absorb it, we will only absorb the energy that has the same elemental attribute as we do.

    ¡°The second difference: spiritual force and matter are not interchangeable. Spiritual force is just spiritual force. It can be stored within a crystal, but it is unable to be converted into matter. However, elemental energy and matter can each be converted into the other. Metal, wood, water, fire, earth¡ªeach type of elemental energy has its own corresponding form of matter. This is the reason why we can make use of certain materials.¡±

    Ai Hui listened in rapt attention. The teacher¡¯s lecture was notplicated, but was still profound. While others might not be able toprehend, Ai Hui was able to feel it. He recalled the many sword manuals that he perused and was able to use them toprehend these theories better.

    ¡°These two differences prove one point: elemental energy isplicated. This is the root of my theory. What is anotherplicated subject? It is the human being!¡±

    The teacher provided an answer that Ai Hui had not thought about.

    Ai Hui widened his eyes and his face was full of surprise. He had never thought about people as a research problem. The study of elemental energy was like exploring an unknown, never-before-seen object. The effects of training were also linked to elemental energy and the method of training.

    The teacher was pleased with Ai Hui¡¯s expression and continued, ¡°The structure of the human body is generally the same, but in the minute details, it ispletely different. Are there twopletely identical people in the world? Nope! Even for twins, their abilities and physiques arepletely different. Also, do not forget that while our body is made up of the five elements, everyone¡¯sposition ispletely distinct.

    ¡°How didplicated elemental energy andplicated training manage to find a perfect harmony? This is the core of my theory!¡±

    Unknowingly, Ai Hui found himself prompting the teacher. ¡°How was it found?¡±

    The teacherughed; he knew that the student in front of him had been moved by his exnations. He did not answer, but instead countered, ¡°If you have a new partner, what would you do in order to develop a rapport with him?¡±

    Ai Hui thought for a moment and answered, ¡°You first have to see if this partner ispatible. After that, you need time to build up the rapport.¡±

    When Ai Hui was in the Wilderness, he had interacted with many elementalists. He had friendly rtions with some and hostile rtions with others. It was definitely an experience worth noting.

    Shocked, the teacher did not think that Ai Hui could give such an answer. The question was out of context for Ai Hui¡¯s age. Not only had Ai Hui answered, he managed to produce an extremely urate and suitable answer.

    The teacher could not help but reevaluate the student who stood in front of him. He could see that Ai Hui¡¯s aptitude was not exceptional, yet the youth¡¯s face revealed iparable gravitas. Ai Hui was steady, calm, considerate, and willing to listen attentively. Furthermore, this student had his own viewpoints, and the teacher was moved.

    Ai Hui noticed that the teacher was sizing him up and could not help asking, ¡°Did I answer incorrectly?¡±

    The teacher did not answer, but asked, ¡°What is your name?¡±

    ¡°My name is Ai Hui.¡± Ai Hui hurriedly bowed.

    ¡°Are you willing to be my disciple?¡± the teacher suddenly asked with sincerity.

    Not expecting such a query, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but be stunned.

 Chapter 50: Overwhelmed

    Chapter 50: Overwhelmed

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s stunned expression, the teacher smiled a little, but soon resumed his no-nonsense demeanor. ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Whether you agree or not, I will tell you everything I know and have studied. I will not conceal anything. Plus, even if you do agree, I can only review your training regimen and provide some pointers. Outside of that, I can¡¯t help much. I am poor and do not have many connections despite having taught the basics of training for thirty years.¡±

    He finished hisst sentence somewhat self-deprecatingly.

    Ai Hui felt odd. ¡°Why are you interested in me? I have a low aptitude and am just as poor.¡±

    ¡°Haha.¡± The teacher burst outughing. ¡°I¡¯ve known from the start that you have a low aptitude and are poor, but that¡¯s okay. You don¡¯t need much talent to understand my theories. All you need is patience and perseverance, which are qualities that I saw in you..¡±

    Ai Hui no longer hesitated and made a respectful bow. ¡°Your disciple pays respect, Master!¡±

    The teacher was pleasantly surprised and truly moved. ¡°Good, good, good!¡±

    Ai Hui also became very enthusiastic. He had been an orphan since he was little. Now that a teacher was willing to take him in as a disciple, one could easily imagine how touched he was.

    One was an impoverished intellectual who had been struggling to elevate himself over the past few decades, but no one appreciated his ideas. The other was an inept youth who had a thirst for learning. One was old, the other young, but at this moment, they were like partners in crime.

    It took half a day for them to calm down.

    The teacher was a bit embarrassed. ¡°I am already so old, but my emotions are still not tamed. Shameful, shameful!¡±

    Ai Hui merely grinned.

    The teacher continued, ¡°I¡¯ll have to tell you my name first. I am Wang Shouchuan. You are from the Old Territory right?¡±

    ¡°Yes, my name is Ai Hui and I am from the Old Territory. I worked in the Wilderness for thest three years.¡± Ai Hui introduced himself as well.

    Wang Shouchuan came to a realization. ¡°I¡¯ve heard about you before. I remembered the moment you mentioned the Wilderness. Being able to survive after toiling away in the Wilderness for three years, you are remarkable.¡±

    The longer the old man looked at Ai Hui, the more satisfied he became. When it came to survival in the Wilderness, not to mention theborers withoutbat experience, even the geniuses from the Induction Ground were not guaranteed to return.

    The old man had taught thirty years of sses in Central Pine City and had seen all kinds of students. But one like Ai Hui? This was his first.

    Why did it matter if he had a low aptitude? When did the Induction Ground ever fail to produce a few distinguished students out of those who had average potentials?

    At the start, he had known that Ai Hui was persistent, but he was not sure if Ai Hui could sustain himself. Now knowing Ai Hui¡¯s history, however, freed the Wang Shouchuan from all his worries.

    How else could an impetuousborer survive a three year stay in the Wilderness?

    Bearing typical hardship was even less of a worry.

    The old man finally realized why Ai Hui possessed a certain maturity and stability that was atypical for his age. A disciple who had been sharpened by such an experience was not considered an ordinary person.

    The old man knew that he had picked up a unpolished gem today.

    ¡°Come,e,e, let me properly exin my theories.¡± The old man was suddenly full of zeal. ¡°You have said a lot. When ites to human interaction, if two persons have conflicting temperaments and can¡¯t agree on things, then wanting them to build a rapport would be a never-ending process, like the stories told in ¡®Arabian Nights.¡¯¡±

    Ai Hui nodded his head repeatedly. That was true. He immediately thought of an apt example.

    Duanmu Bangwan!

    That despicable, disdainful, hypocritical, childish, heartless fellow. If Ai Hui were to be a team with this kind of person, Ai Hui would definitely have to get rid of him before the enemies.

    ¡°Having apatible partner is very important. If both have simr personalities, it would be easy to connect on a deeper level,¡± the old educator said.

    Ai Hui nodded his head once again. That was true. He thought of another perfect example.

    Lou Lan!

    Lou Lan was good, warm-hearted, helpful, kind, trustworthy, and had great culinary skills. Despite having known each other for only a short period of time, they had already be close friends who told each other everything without the slightest hesitation.

    ¡°Even with a suitable partner, time is still needed to mold the rtionship. You have to spend time getting to know your partner, learning his habits, and letting him adjust to yours. This way there will be mutual understanding,¡± Old Man Wang concluded.

    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Ai Hui agreed wholeheartedly.

    ¡°Elemental energy works the same way.¡± The old man continued, ¡°In today¡¯s training routines, people view elemental energy as more of a tool than a partner. There is nothing wrong with this since elemental energy has no consciousness. However, elemental energy as a tool is veryplicated and not as easy as people imagine it to be.¡±

    With relish, he concluded, ¡°That is because the nature of elemental energy is mutable.¡±

    However...

    When he saw Ai Hui¡¯s calm face, he was taken aback. As if his doubts were not resolved, he asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you shocked? This is something different from what other teachers are teaching, right?¡±

    ¡°What you said made a lot of sense,¡± Ai Hui said matter-of-factly, before borating, ¡°Just like metal elemental energy for example. Energy in the Suspending Golden Pagoda is more intense and milderpared to the energy in the Whirlpool Spring, proving that metal elemental energy can have different qualities. Although they are different, they can transform. This is nothing strange either. After the metal elemental energy flows out of the pagoda, it will probably undergo gradual changes.¡±

    The old man was dumbstruck. He had extensively researched before reaching this conclusion, and he had not expected Ai Hui to simply list out a reason.

    Actually, Ai Hui wanted to add that the energy could be transformed even if it could not by natural process. By shattering it, for example.

    Recovering from his stupor, the old man became even happier andplimented, ¡°You have wits indeed!¡±

    He continued, ¡°Every human body possesses slightly different properties. Metal elemental energies of different forms would have differentpatibilities too. This is why we need to find the elemental energy that is most convenient for us¡ªso it can better suit our bodies. Training today only considers one issue:patibility, or what we call ¡®aptitude¡¯¡ªwhether or not the energy is easy to absorb. But what if there is elemental energy that is more difficult to absorb, yet can be utilized even more smoothly and easily? Few people consider this.¡±

    Ai Hui had no problem understanding, and even expounded from there. ¡°Like me. I have a lower aptitude, but a higher endurance. I can choose to train with purer metal elemental energy. Although the absorption is slower, it is more effective when employed.¡±

    Was this principle not very simr to his own training? Indeed, while both analyzed from different angles, their core idea was the same. Plus, did this not rify that Master¡¯s theories aligned with his own?

    Ai Hui looked forward to the uing training.

    The old man stared at Ai Hui nkly. Could it be that the ideas he had been deliberating for the past few decades were actually very simple?

    Or was it that the student who was willing to listen to him, whom he had finally found and had luckily epted as a disciple, was actually a genius?

    The old man felt overwhelmed.

 Chapter 51: Picked Up A Gem

    Chapter 51: Picked Up A Gem

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Ai Hui looked at his teacher in anticipation, waiting for him to continue his exnation. While the old man had a dumbfounded expression, Ai Hui was not satisfied. He knew that his deductions were mostly based on feeling, and feeling was often inurate.

    Teacher Wang was no master, but he possessed a strong foundation since he had lectured in the Induction Ground for several decades.

    Deeply moved, the old man shook his head slightly. ¡°We were meant to be a team.¡±

    The old man knew that finding a disciple like Ai Hui was not an easy matter. There were many teachers in the Induction Ground who were stronger, more qualified, and more senior than him, but how many of them could find such apatible disciple?

    The Induction Ground encouraged teachers to ept multiple disciples, but the majority of the teachers did not.

    A disciple was different from a student. A student had to attend the teachers¡¯ sses, but a disciple had to continue their legacies and doctrines. Therefore, unless they really favored a student, teachers would not lightly ept someone as a disciple.

    Most of the teachers believed that it was better to choose nothing than to select something substandard.

    The old man was not someone with a reputation within the Induction Ground, and no one showed interest in his theories, but he still would not carelessly recruit disciples. No matter how uninspiring, his theories represented the years of hard work he had put in after all. If he were to impart his ideals to a student who did not agree, he would not rest in peace.

    The old man was more than satisfied and pleased with Ai Hui. Although he was behind other teachers in terms of achievements, his luck in finding apatible disciple was worth envying.

    Ai Hui¡¯s yearning gaze made him even happier. ¡°Let¡¯s talk about the second issue. Elemental energy is very suitable for you, but time is still needed in order to establish a good rapport. In other words, you have to unleash the potential of the elemental energy in your body. Everyone¡¯s elemental energy is different, yet how many moves are there? You¡¯ve just activated your natal residence and intrinsically wield metal attribute, so there are twenty-two moves you can practise. Which ones fit you? You don¡¯t know. A lot of people choose the moves based on interest, feeling, formidability, and appearance. This approach is not beneficial. You¡¯ve just activated your natal residence and stepped foot upon the path of training. The formidability of moves is not something you have to consider yet. What you need to ascertain is how you cany a solid foundation for this tedious journey.¡±

    Ai Hui was enlightened by his words. Thenguage was in, but the meaning was exceedingly profound.

    The old man¡¯s expression became stern and earnest. ¡°Understand your elemental energy and understand your body. The true meaning behind training is to achieve a perfect integration of these two.¡±

    Ai Hui said respectfully, ¡° I will definitely bear your instructions in mind!¡±

    The old man was quiteforted. He carried on, ¡°Now let¡¯s talk about the practical aspect¡ªabout how you should train. Tell me first, how do you develop your elemental energy?¡±

    Ai Hui then sincerely shared how he first developed a strand of elemental energy in the Wilderness, how he trained in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, how he designed a set of custom-made backless armor, how he thought of using the [Arching Fish Back] to shatter the silvery strands of metal element, how he broke through the natal pce, and so on. He told his teacher everything pertaining to his elemental energy.

    The old man was left stupefied once again. After a while, he hesitatingly asked, ¡°You thought of these all by yourself?¡±

    He knew it was a stupid question the moment the words left his mouth. Ai Hui had just talked about his ideas, how they came about, and where he had gotten his inspiration from.

    Ai Hui nodded. ¡°Yes, I thought of those.¡±

    The old man waspletely and utterly convinced that the disciple he had just epted was a genius! An extraordinary genius!

    His eyes brightened and he gazed at Ai Hui as if he was looking at a unique treasure. Ai Hui¡¯s aptitude was low, and in this era where aptitude was deemed paramount, he would definitely not be considered a genius. However, he had matured early and acquired an extreme level of insight toward training. The old teacher had never seen such qualities in anyone else.

    He had picked up a gem!

    The old man¡¯s gaze made Ai Hui anxious. ¡°Teacher?¡±

    As if he had woken from a dream, the old man regained his senses and praised, ¡°This is beyond my expectations, so I am truly shocked. You have such knowledge and experience despite having no one to guide you. Not bad, not bad at all! I believe you would seed even without my help. I¡¯m quite lucky, hahaha!¡±

    Slightly embarrassed, Ai Hui did not know what to say.

    He had never beenmended before. Nothing came easily to him and he had to work hard for everything¡ªtraining, the Wilderness, catching up with the team, and so on.

    After hearing thepliment, he was at a loss, which was a rare urrence.

    Upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s expression, the old man became happier. He chuckled for quite some time before stopping and bing serious.

    Ai Hui knew then that his teacher had something else to say. He also regained his focus.

    The fact that his disciple was a genius truly stirred the old man¡¯s heart. Ai Hui had already proven his worth, and the old man was determined not to lose in this aspect.

    His gaze flickered with wisdom and radiance as he began speaking, ¡°Your train of thought is correct and you have a solid foundation. These are good. It is advantageous for you to have an overflowing amount of elemental energy before breaking through the residences. This we can talk about in future. Let¡¯s discuss the current problem you¡¯re facing with your training. Above the concrete methods lie additional methods. You utilize metal elemental energy, so what are its characteristics? Sharp, powerful, and effective in battle are some facts that everyone knows. There is nothing wrong with you adopting the metal elementalist¡¯s path of thinking. What we need to do now is to let you discern which metal elemental energy is the most efficacious for you!¡±

    Ai Hui hastily followed the old man out of the school building.

    They came to a shabby garden. Inside, there were heaps of strange tools of all shapes and sizes.

    ¡°This garden used to belong to another teacher. He moved out and abandoned this ce, so I use it now,¡± the old man said softly. ¡°Out of my personal interest, I have remodeled the items here and they have not yet been used. Plus, I had little else to do aside from teaching sses. A lot of things have umted over the past few decades.¡±

    Looking at the garden full of strange tools, Ai Hui could not contain his admiration. No matter who, for no matter how small of a matter, it was not at all easy to continue persevering for a few decades. Concentration and dedication required a calm heart that could endure loneliness.

    ¡°These things are finally going to be useful!¡±

    The old man looked at his items with a certain ruefulness. He was unsure if it was due to the fact that they were collecting dust for so long or that they were finally going to see the light of day. Or could it be that he was feeling rueful about himself?

    The good thing was that it was not toote!

    With a face full of wrinkles, the old man stood proudly in the garden before his tools like a king overlooking his kingdom!

 Chapter 52: Seven Word Name

    Chapter 52: Seven Word Name

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    ¡°I¡¯ve extensively researched the five elemental energies.¡±

    The old man¡¯s preamble stunned Ai Hui.

    ¡°The most studied topic regarding metal elemental energy is its deadliness. Combat is the metal elementalists¡¯ main purpose. In terms of the level ofplexity, metal element is the simplest one out of the five elements. Hmm, simplest does not seem right. I should say that they require the most concentration. Wood elementalists need a lot of botanical knowledge, earth elementalists have to maintain sand puppets, water elementalists have azure wings as well as the most intricate techniques, and fire elementalists have to learn to smelt metal. Metal elementalists have only one requirement: to pursue fighting strength. From this perspective, they are simr to the ancient swordsmen. Those bygone warriors paid no attention to other things and were pure contenders seeking to be the best. Metal elementalists are somewhat like this.

    ¡°Battling is a sophisticated matter. You have more experience and know this better than I do. It is pretty embarrassing. I have been teaching for so long, but have never been to the frontline or the Wilderness. I am also not a proficient fighter. I can only support you by helping you to understand your own body and your own elemental energy.¡±

    The old man rummaged through the piled-up tools, revealing some copper armor. He patted the dust off of it and heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°I did not throw this out after all. Come, let us try this.¡±

    Ai Hui curiously nced at the copper armor before him. The workmanship was rough and ugly. There were marks everywhere and it was obvious that it had been modified, since the sheen of the newer copper tes contrasted with the old. Many vein lines had been engraved on the armor and were ovepping in certain areas.

    Ai Hui could locate the positions of the five residences and eight pces by looking at the densely concentrated areas of vein lines on the armor.

    ¡°Teacher, what is this copper armor for?¡± Ai Hui asked out of curiosity.

    ¡°This is used to test your body. Of course, this is for the metal attribute,¡± the old man answered, somewhat pleased. ¡°Its full name is a little long, but I call it the ¡®Thousand Prajna Elemental Energy All-Seeing Copper Armor.¡¯ ¡®Prajna¡¯ is a Buddhist term for ¡®wisdom¡¯ and ¡®Thousand Prajna¡¯ refers to its ability to imitate many kinds of elemental energy attributes. This one in particr is specifically used to test for metal elemental energy. ¡®All-Seeing¡¯ reflects the armor¡¯s function, which is to identify the wearer¡¯s aptitude. It can imitate all kinds of metal elemental energies, stimtes your body with these various energies, and tells you which type of metal elemental energy suits you the best. What do you think? Pretty good huh? I spent two months designing it and another three crafting it. The Induction Ground¡¯s aptitude test is so rudimentary that it failed to detect a genius like you. Pfft, those myopic fellows!¡±

    The old man was certain his disciple was a diamond in the rough and had started defending him unconditionally.

    ¡°You¡¯re amazing!¡± Ai Hui sighed in heartfelt amazement as his eyes lit up. Although he had a feeling from the start that his teacher was skillful, after seeing the copper armor with his own eyes, Ai Hui¡¯s reverence for the old man red up.

    And that name!

    Thousand Prajna Elemental Energy All-Seeing Copper Armor. Seven words... really long indeed.

    While inwardly ridiculing that name, Ai Hui observed the unrefined copper armor with excited eyes.

    Even a rookie like Ai Hui knew it would be highly beneficial to identify his mostpatible metal elemental energy. This copper armor alone was enough for him to regard his teacher as respectable.

    ¡°Of course! How can I be your teacher otherwise?¡± The old man was full of pride.

    Ai Hui could not wait any longer. ¡°Can I try it on?¡±

    ¡°Come,e,e!¡± The old man hurriedly put the armor on for Ai Hui as he said, ¡°Rest assured. I¡¯ve mulled over the design carefully. My Thousand Prajna Elemental Energy All-Seeing Copper Armor is definitely an epoch-defining work of art. It is a pity no one else witnessed the construction, missing a moment of such great historical significance. Oh well, pioneers are always lonely and singing loudly on their solitary journey. Us two, we will be fighting for the truth!¡±

    As Ai Hui listened, he had a premonition. He thought of something as his helmet was equipped and buckled up. ¡°Teacher, umm... Have you tried using this before?¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± The old man gave a ¡°don¡¯t-you-worry¡± look, allowing Ai Hui to feel less nervous. His next sentence, however, made Ai Hui tense up immediately.

    ¡°But previously, one I had used ittois for the fire attribute.¡±

    The old man patted the armor. It was tightly fastened and only Ai Hui¡¯s eyes could be seen. He saw the anxiety in Ai Hui andforted him. ¡°Rx, the versions are all more or less the same for each attribute. Oh wait, I have to find the operatingpass. Give me a moment.¡±

    The old man dug through the garbage heap once again. ¡°Hey, where I did throw it? Why can¡¯t I find it?¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s concern grew even stronger as he started to doubt his decision.

    ¡°Found it!¡±

    The old man¡¯s cheer resounded from the mountain of equipment. Shortly after, he crawled out with his hair all messed up and a dark green te in his hand. On it were all kinds of symbols Ai Hui did not recognize. It seemed impressive.

    Strangely, Ai Hui regained confidence.

    With his attire and appearance in disarray, the device in his hand, and his eyes shining, the old man relished in this momentous asion. His dream was about to take off. His clothes fluttered without any breeze, his unkempt dismal hair was like that of a poet, and his radiant pupils seemed as though they could see through all worldly objects. He said in a low, but powerful voice, ¡°I¡¯m going to start!¡±

    His hands, like flowing water, moved across the operatingpass.

    Bzzt Bzzt. A silver electric current flowed on the surface of the copper armor.

    Ai Hui opened his eye wide in fear and his body shook non-stop like a sieve. He wanted to call for help, but nothing came out of his mouth.

    ¡°Eh, why is there lightning?¡± The old man was puzzled.

    Ai Hui felt like crying. Who am I to ask if you ask me?!

    The old man stopped operating thepass, walked to the now inert armor, and kicked it a few times before starting the remote again.

    Ai Hui, who had just started to rx, opened his eyes wide once more, and his body again shook like a sieve as a numbness spread.

    ck fumes billowed from the copper armor and Ai Hui was soon surrounded by ck smog.

    The old man muttered, ¡°Eh, why is there smoke again? Did the rain tarnish it? Oh, oh, oh, wrong remote. This is for the wood attribute, no wonder, no wonder.¡±

    Ai Hui almost passed out when hearing this.

    He finally knew why he felt uneasy. He was going to quit this test the moment his body recovered.

    That¡¯s right!

    Must stop!

    Ai Hui swore to himself.

    Then, he saw a silverpass and a hand. That hand lightly shook the operatingpass as the old man¡¯s voice was heard. ¡°Nothing will go wrong this time! Ai Hui, it¡¯s starting!¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s immobilized body involuntarily trembled.

    Even before the old man finished talking, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes spasmed wide once more.

 Chapter 53: Hegemon of the Palaces

    Chapter 53: Hegemon of the Pces

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    If there were words to describe how Ai Hui felt then, it would have to be that his heart was being pierced by a thousand arrows!

    The sharp metal elemental energy entered his body from all angles, and he felt as if he was a cloth puppet being stung by bees. Unfortunately, this happened only after his numbness disappeared, allowing the pain to intensify.

    If it was not for the fact that he was used to the pricking pain from his stay in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, he would have been shrieking miserably and endlessly.

    His time in the pagoda had trained him to better endure agony like this.

    ¡°Your stamina is quite impressive, huh.¡± The old man was amazed. Ever since this prototype was created, he had been the only test subject. He had experienced the pain from the fire attribute armor. His ghostly howls and wails gave an assistant teacher such a shock that he lost control and threw the operatingpass far away.

    On the other hand, Ai Hui had yet to make any sounds so far. He was indeed a wild beast in human form, one who managed to survive the Wilderness!

    The old man¡¯s eyes shed. As a teacher with countless ideas, what was more important than a strong, durable disciple as a test subject? He could practically imagine how having a disciple like Ai Hui would help him to advance his theories and research by leaps and lead to substantial breakthroughs.

    A perfect partner to experiment with!

    He licked his lips as if he had seen fine delicacies as he mumbled, ¡°Increase the intensity, elemental energy bes more fragmented, metal elemental energy is a little foreign, no problem, try a few more times...¡±

    Thousands of heart-piercing arrows became thousands of ants devouring Ai Hui¡¯s body and he began to tremble.

    The old man was a good example of what would happen if decades of umted passion was released all at once. He had a frenzied gaze, was muttering to himself as he stared at the operatingpass in his hand, and unceasingly adjusted the armor¡¯s elemental energy while looking at the luster of the copper armor.

    As he fiddled with the remote, the copper armor illuminated as well.

    Ai Hui felt as if he had fallen into hell and into the eighteenth level no less.

    The elemental energy stimting his body was constantly changing. Numb, itchy, painful, hot, sore, and so on... all kinds of different sensations appeared in different parts of his body.

    Before today, no, before putting on the armor, he had never imagined that metal elemental energy had so many permutations. Every variation happened without any warning.

    That feeling was simply... such a painful revtion.

    Beneath the teacher¡¯s messy hair, his eyes were fervent and focused.

    The light on the armor kept changing, and he stood by the side taking notes with each transition while saying words and terms that Ai Hui had no knowledge of.

    Ai Hui had no other thoughts at this point. He just wanted this purgatory experiment to end as soon as possible.

    This set of copper armor had no practical value. Ai Hui acknowledged that his endurance level was higher than average, but a few times he had almost passed out and a few times his mind went nk. He suspected that students with slightly weaker constitutions would be in danger. Even if it was not physically hazardous, it would be traumatizing and would be a mental block that hindered future training.

    What an extreme product...

    This thought floated across his mind, but what he focused more on was his admiration for his teacher.

    Although the entire process was like a tortuous purge, to the point where dying was a better choice, Ai Hui felt the potential of the procedure.

    Even the many minute differences within the metal elemental energy were individually amazing!

    Ai Hui had a very strong feeling that even if this test produced negligible results, his interaction with so many different kinds of metal elemental energy would be considerably beneficial for future trainings.

    If he had not experienced it once for himself, he would be absolutely ignorant of the slight differences within the energies. They were all metal elemental energies, but each had subtle distinctions which would reveal their entirely unique nature.

    Metal elemental energy had an overall character, but contained respective variations as well.

    The teacher¡¯s knowledge ran deep.

    Ai Hui knew that when it came to principles like these, he would not be able to achieve any result just by fumbling about on his own.

    All of a sudden, an intense wave passed over his natal residences. At this point, the old man raised his head. ¡°Let¡¯s test your five residences and eight pces to see which ones are stronger and which are weaker.¡±

    Ai Hui was stunned. It was the first time he had heard that some of the five residences and eight pces were stronger than others.

    As if he had read Ai Hui¡¯s mind, the old man started to exin, ¡°Teachers do not usually lecture about this. It is moreplicated since there are so many students and plenty of problems involved. You just have to think about it this way. Some people are right-handed while others are left-handed. Some were born with a stronger and more agile left leg. The human body is bnced yet unbnced. The same goes for the five residences and eight pces. Some would be stronger and others would be weaker. This used to be a heritage secret in some influential families, but now it¡¯s widespread. Those families were amazing, and the research they havepleted was so thorough. Knowing the strengths and weaknesses of your pces would be very advantageous for your subsequent training sessions.¡±

    Comprehension shed across Ai Hui¡¯s face. What the old man had said made a lot of sense and was very convincing.

    ¡°Your opened natal elemental residence is not bad since you only broke through after filling up your elemental energy. As I have said before, waiting is beneficial since it allows your natal elemental residence to stabilize. Most people, however, do not have the patience.¡±

    The old man spoke while he tinkered with the operatingpass.

    Shortly, a ball of bright light lit up in Ai Hui¡¯s left palm.

    ¡°Not bad, the pce in your left hand is not bad at all. It¡¯s a strong pce.¡±

    Soon, another ball of bright light appeared in his right palm.

    ¡°Pce in the right hand is a strong one as well. Not bad eh, there is bnce in your hands and some moves can only be learned if there¡¯s bnce.¡±

    ¡°The pce in the left foot is a strong one!¡±

    ¡°Oh my, the pce in the right foot is also strong. Bnced legs and all limbs are bnced!¡± the old manmented in bewilderment, face full of excitement. ¡°Son, you have a ir forbat! Bnced limbs... perfect reptile eh. I know a few extremely powerful moves which require coordination of the limbs. Two hundred years ago, the leader of the Infantry Division, Wu Yan, possessed precisely this bnce of strong pces in every limb. Know what his nickname was?Iron Octopus! Hahaha, you¡¯re indeed my disciple.¡±

    Reptile...

    Ai Hui did not know what to say but... it sounded fearsome? Still, adding the word ¡°iron¡± in front of ¡°octopus¡± did not make it sound any fiercer at all.

    ¡°Strong earth pce!¡±

    ¡°Strong sea pce!¡±

    ¡°Gate pce is strong! Ah ah ah ah son, if your sky pce is strong, you¡¯re invincible! A body full of strong pces! Absolutely awesome! No points of weakness! A perfect five residences and eight pces! Know what this is called? Hegemon of the pces!¡±

    The sky pce was located between the eyebrows. Looking at how agitated his teacher was bing, Ai Hui was also excited. Hegemon of the pces! It sounded domineering, but... why did he think about rape... (The chinese words for ¡°Hegemon of the pces¡± sounds like an abbreviation for a chinese idiom which means ¡°to force oneself upon somebody; to rape¡±)

    A body full of strong pces was more pleasing to hear.

    ¡°Sky pce, sky pce, it must be a strong pce... eh?¡±

    The old man stopped suddenly as he stared nkly at Ai Hui¡¯s helmet.

 Chapter 54: Twinkle Twinkle

    Chapter 54: Twinkle Twinkle

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Looking at his teacher surprised expression, Ai Hui stared vacantly at himself as his heart skipped a beat.

    He was like a gambler scratching a lottery ticket. The first numbers matched and only thest one remained. The jackpot was just one number away. He felt his heart in his throat and excruciating pressure.

    Ai Hui had always viewed himself as someone who could maintain hisposure well, but at this instant, he could not contain his agitation at all.

    He knew clearly that he was not gifted. Although Teacher had often proimed him a genius, this did not improve his inferior aptitude. With great difficulty, he actually managed to possess seven strong pces. He was only one strong pce away from the legendary existence known as the hegemon of the pces.

    Sure, it was the first time Ai Hui had heard about the hegemon of the pces. He did not actually know if it was truly legendary. Looking at his teacher¡¯s fervent expression, however, he was quite convinced that the title referred to a very powerful, natural talent.

    From the start, Ai Hui felt pretty much hopeless when it came to his innate abilities. When someone suddenly informed him that he actually possessed a hidden and potent gift, one could only imagine the turmoil he felt after hearing the news.

    But... Teacher is not moving nor saying anything...

    The radiance in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes dimmed. All right, so he was not a hegemon after all. If thest one was a strong pce, teacher would have mentioned it immediately. Ai Hui recovered from his disappointment quickly and startedughing mentally. He had been too greedy. What more could he possibly ask for when his limbs were bnced and seven out of his eight pces were strong?

    As someone who had been fumbling in the dark for so long, he yearned for the light, but did not dare to im the entire sun. He was like a poor and hardworkingborer, daydreaming about winning a small amount of prize money, but never wishing for an excessive windfall.

    ¡°Why is this light twinkling? Is it a strong or weak pce?¡± the old man muttered, his voice full of doubt. ¡°Perhaps there¡¯s really something wrong with the copper armor? Seems like it, or it wouldn¡¯t flicker like that.¡±

    Silverish-white light glowed from seven of the pces. They shined brightly and continuously. The sky pce, however, was sometimes bright and sometimes dim

    For a moment it was a strong pce, but at another it became weak? Could it be that the sky pce was vtile? At this time, the old man had already readjusted his mental state. The old man kicked the armor and even smacked the helmet a few times. Same result.

    ¡°This is really weird, what is going on?¡± the old man mumbled perplexedly. ¡°Is the helmet defective? I have to find the blueprints. Did something go wrong during the designing process?¡±

    After much effort, Ai Hui took off the heavy copper armor. He was sweating buckets and was as wet as if he had been fished out of water. His clothes were drenched, his face was pale, his body exhausted, and some of his muscles continued to uncontrobly twitch.

    Breathing in the fresh air, Ai Hui felt he was revived after what seemed like a lifetime ago. The letdown from earlier vanished into thin air and there was only joy after the cmity.

    ¡°Son, no problem!¡± The old man consoled Ai Hui. ¡°I will redesign the Thousand Prajna. I¡¯ve gotten many new inspirations and have already thought of the possible mistakes that have been made. Don¡¯t worry, the new version will be perfect. I could even include new features. We can do a retest when it¡¯s done!¡±

    The word ¡°retest¡± sent Ai Hui¡¯s body into a fit of shivering.

    He could not bear to imagine undergoing such a torturous test for a second time and hurriedly replied, ¡°I think it¡¯s very urate, Teacher. I think the results are great, so we don¡¯t have to test it again. Having seven strong pces is good enough. It¡¯s not toote to conduct a retest after I¡¯ve developed my sky pce.¡±

    The old man thought about it and concurred. Out of the five residences and eight pces, the sky pce was the hardest to develop. Most students left it forst. Judging from Ai Hui¡¯s progress, the sky pce was still a distant goal.

    ¡°What you said makes a lot of sense.¡± The old man decided not to bother himself with the hegemon of the pces. Plus, he could tell that his disciple was in a pitiful state and felt quite apprehensive. He had finally found a disciple. If he experimented too much on Ai Hui... No, if he trained Ai Hui so hard that he broke, where would he find another disciple as good as Ai Hui? Most people could not endure his test. He himself only managed to persevere for three minutes before crying out loud.

    It wasn¡¯t a minor feat for Ai Hui to persevere through andplete the test.

    The old man quickly smiled. ¡°Son, having seven strong pces is already a great gift. Let¡¯s discuss the concrete training methods. My secret methods.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s body had recuperated after a period of panting. He perked up upon hearing those words. Although his teacher wasn¡¯t very reliable at times, it was a fact that he had substantial knowledge.

    Noticing that Ai Hui had revived by quite a bit, the teacher thought to himself that his disciple had quite a sturdy physique. Ai Hui¡¯s recovery speed was faster than most people¡¯s. Maybe he should test this out someday? This quality was quite rare, and it would be a pity if it wasn¡¯t put to good use. How could this advantage be effectively utilized? He had to think this over properly.

    ¡°Sir?¡± Ai Hui saw that his teacher was in a daze and quickly called for his attention.

    ¡°Oh, oh, oh.¡± The old man regained his senses and said lightly, ¡°I will have to analyze your test results for a few days before giving you the report. Meanwhile, you should train ording to the usual training methods and attend sses studiously. You should still go to ss since I am not all-knowing. It is very necessary and beneficial for you to expand your horizons. Your training in the future will be quite different from the norm. Sculpting, for example.¡±

    ¡°Sculpting?¡± Ai Hui was stunned. He had not imagined that training and sculpting would be linked together.

    ¡°That¡¯s right, sculpting.¡± The old man was obviously enjoying Ai Hui¡¯s surprised expression. ¡°Haha, didn¡¯t expect that, did you? A lot of knowledge is involved in training. What¡¯s the rtionship between sculpting and training? You¡¯re attributed in metal elemental energy. The most appropriate training would be sculpting. It can strengthen your ability to control the elemental energy. Think about it. Elemental energy is like the sculpting knife. There are big, small, angled, straight, and uniquely-shaped knives used for different tasks. Furthermore, when you¡¯re sculpting, you should not ce all your focus on controlling the elemental energy. Otherwise, you won¡¯t be able to sculpt well. It¡¯s not easy to manipte your elemental energy as you like, when you like. If you can learn how to sculpt your elemental energy and wield it proficiently, your meticulous energy control would reach an outstanding level. In the future, practicingplex moves woulde easy to you.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes glowed as the realization hit him.

    That¡¯s right, if he could carve aplicated sculpture, his control over elemental energy would reach a whole new level!

    ¡°But, training has always been easier at the start. It would be very difficult for you to start sculpting immediately. I have already thought of a simpler training method.¡± The old man smiled mysteriously.

    Strangely, the grin of his teacher¡¯s face made Ai Hui hesitate. ¡°What method?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll know when the timees.¡±

    The unease in Ai Hui¡¯s heart became even stronger.

 Chapter 55: Old Friend

    Chapter 55: Old Friend

    Trantor: JL Editor: Lis

    It was already noon the next day when Ai Hui woke, struggling to open his eyes in the ring sun. It was rare for him to sleep in sote.

    Last night, he barely managed to crawl back to the training hall before flopping into his rattan chair and nodding off, only to wake up now. He preferred sleeping in the courtyard with the calming starry sky before him. This way, he was able to rise with the morning sun, its gentle warmth the best start to the day.

    The afternoon sun was so much more scorching.

    Come to think of it, his body¡¯s aches, soreness, and swelling were gone. Not only did his body¡¯s ailments mysteriously disappear, but after a good night¡¯s rest, he also woke up feeling invigorated and brimming with energy.

    Ai Hui¡¯s spirits lifted immediately. With renewed energy, he felt able to wee any challenges that came his way.

    He decided he would have noodles before setting off to find the mysterious blind battler.

    Embarrassingly enough, even though so much time had passed since his promise to the young girl, he had yet to start on the task. He wasn¡¯t like Fatty who could be so openly shameless. It was a truly enviable skill and a legitimate talent to have.

    .

    As soon as he reached the noodle store, he aggressively ordered five bowls of noodles once more.

    Aftering to the noodle store a few times, the owner was able to recognize him, especially after the previous incident. As the owner served the noodles, he asked concernedly, ¡°It¡¯s been a while, sir. Oh yes, did the girl fromst time return the one hundred fifty yuan yet?¡±

    Ai Hui, who was about to devour his noodles, froze, the chopsticks on-route to his mouthing to a halt.

    Not only did the owner touch a sore spot, he also proceeded to rub salt into the wound. Did he not know how to conduct a business?

    What could he say? That he had an overbearing debt of eighty million yuan because of an inconsequential loan of one hundred fifty yuan? That a bowl of noodles led to his life¡¯s tragedy, or that one hundred fifty yuan effectively smothered his desires in life?

    Ah, this bizarre world, why did he still feel that he was in a dream...

    In his heart, Ai Hui gave a helpless sigh and started in on his noodles silently.

    Seeing his troubled expression, the owner sighed and ced a te of beef before Ai Hui. He pped his hands on Ai Hui¡¯s shoulder and consoled him, ¡°There isn¡¯t any road that you cannot get through in life. Even if she did not return the one hundred and fifty yuan, it doesn¡¯t matter. You should still be the better person. Come, let Uncle treat you to a beef dish!¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s mood immediately brightened at the te of mouth-watering beef in front of him.

    ¡°Thank you, Uncle!¡±

    He began to devour the noodles and exceptionally fragrant beef inrge mouthfuls.

    After five bowls of noodles, he waved to the owner of the noodle store. ¡°Goodbye, Uncle!¡±

    Ai Hui started visiting various training halls, trying to find the target based on the clues provided by the girl from the noodle store.

    Coming to a training hall for the first time in a while, he soon realized the quality of the blind battlepetitors had risen tremendously.

    Now, only those that were confident in their abilities dared to participate, making for more thrilling battles.

    After observing a few battles, Ai Hui realized it was now impossible to earn money through blind battles. Despite the increased strength he gained from activating his natal residence, he was stillckingpared to the rest of the contestants who had more than four pces. And while there were some younger participants, they were still renowned geniuses in their respective schools.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s continuous sess in blind battles raised the standard of Central Pine City, drawing talented and hot-headed youngsters eager to experience the thrill andpare themselves to an acimed individual.

    Blind battles had undeniably be a symbol of Central Pine City.

    Even after six training halls, he saw no chance of winning in any of them.

    What a pity. It was impossible to earn any more money from blind battles, but he had expected it to happen. Wanting to encounter such a good opportunity again was wishful thinking.

    In the end, he searched through all of the training halls in Central Pine City but still failed to find the target.

    As dusk set in, Ai Hui stumbled back to the Vanguard Training Hall, somewhat exhausted. Searching for someone was genuinely more tiring than training, but he rallied his spirits¡ªbeing unable to find his target on the first day was nothing surprising.

    Finding someone was no easy task by any means, especially with such vague clues, making it akin to searching for a needle in a haystack. In the end, luck was more crucial than the method itself.

    There had been no recent news of the little girl from the noodle store either. He idly wondered if she went on a long trip. He recalled Teacher Xu mentioning practice missions going on during this time¡ªcould she have left for a mission?

    Ai Hui did not think on it further.

    His life had be substantially busy between lessons, training, and searching for the masked individual. He also didn¡¯t forget to spend time revising the swordy manual for the girl who said she would find him for guidance on his techniques.

    Of course, what he meant by revision was actually a form of hypnosis before sleeping.

    As for the incident involving the sword embryo, he didn¡¯t care; he was still unwilling to buy a new sword after destroying thest grass sword he owned.

    On the contrary, it was actually in training that he invested the most time.

    ......

    In the teachers¡¯ lounge, Tao Yiwei was surprised to see Wang Shouchuan hard at work. His condition was different from normal¡ªalmost as if Old Wang was on drugs. After working together for more than ten years, the two of them were exceedingly familiar with each other, so he could immediately spot the rekindled passion that had not been seen on Old Wang¡¯s face for a long time.

    Perhaps Old Wang¡¯s theory had a breakthrough? Old Tao could help but mutter his suspicions in his heart, but he said instead, ¡°Old Wang, looking at your joyous expression, I can see there¡¯s good news. Let me hear it and soak in the joyous atmosphere too.¡±

    Wang Shouchuan, who was immersed in analyzing the test results, lifted his head, unable to conceal the joy and pride on his face. ¡°Sure enough, I can¡¯t hide anything from your sharp eyes. There is indeed good news¡ªI¡¯ve epted a disciple.¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Tao Yiwei was caught off guard but quickly recovered. With a surprised expression, he asked, ¡°You¡ªOld Wang is actually taking disciples?¡±

    The Old Wang he knew had a terrible temper. He was also willful, stubborn, and fiercely driven, devoting his entire life to his theories. Despite that, he was a man of few words, unable to promote his theories, leaving his theories unknown to many.

    For Old Wang to actually start taking in disciples was unexpected.

    Tao Yiwei was somewhat envious. ¡°Such a joyous event. Congrattions, Old Wang!¡±

    He did not bother concealing his envy; he had yet to find a good disciple to pass his legacy on to. While Old Wang¡¯s theory was nothing remarkable, his luck was quite good.

    Secretly pleased, Old Wang remarked, ¡°It¡¯s still too early to say. My disciple¡¯s strength is a bit disappointing.¡±

    Old Tao could not help butugh at Old Wang¡¯s words. He knew his friend would not ept a disciple without good reason. ¡°Then isn¡¯t it better for you to test your theories first?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s what I thought, too,¡± Old Wang replied. ¡°While that youngster¡¯s aptitude is so-so, he¡¯s notpletely unremarkable. He could actually endure my Thousand Prajna test.¡±

    Old Tao jolted in surprise. ¡°He endured it?¡±

    He was more than familiar with Old Wang¡¯s Thousand Prajna. Not only did he help in the nning and design process, he was also the one to control thepass upon the first set¡¯spletion. In the end, Old Wang only managed to endure for three minutes before wailing and mbering out.

    Even at the designing stage, he already suspected that Old Wang¡¯s idealistic mindset had made the Thousand Prajna of no practical value since nobody would be able to endure the entire process.

    So how could Tao Yiwei not be astonished when he heard that Old Wang¡¯s disciple passed the test?

 Chapter 56: Dai Gang

    Chapter 56: Dai Gang

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Wang Shouchuan grew even more pleased at the sight of Old Tao¡¯s stupefied expression.

    Both were clear on the terror of the Thousand Prajna. In fact, like Old Tao, Wang Shouchuan used to think nobody would be able to endure its effects.

    This had left Old Wang feeling a bit disgruntled. No matter how magnificent or unique the design, without any practical value, it was only an borate toy.

    But with the truth revealed that the Thousand Prajna was indeed of use, how could he possibly contain his joy? Even more satisfying was that his disciple was the one to pull through the test.

    After a while, Old Tao regained his senses and sighed. ¡°You hit the jackpot!¡±

    Able to bear the Thousand Prajna¡ªwho wouldn¡¯t want such an admirable disciple with a strong-as-steel willpower? Old Tao¡¯s eyes became slightly red.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t my disciple your disciple?¡± Old Wang sensed his friend¡¯s disappointment and deliberately pointed out, ¡°I¡¯vee all the way here. Are you still going to keep this up?¡±

    Old Taoughed and pointed at Old Wang. ¡°It¡¯s time to let your disciple take advantage of me!¡±

    Old Wang chortled together with his friend. ¡°Of course, it would be a waste not to!¡±

    ¡°No problem,¡± Old Tao readily promised, ¡°Find me if you have any problems. As long as your disciple is here, I won¡¯t mistreat him.¡±

    ¡°Then perfect timing¡ªthere¡¯s something I need your advice on.¡± Old Wang¡¯s expression took a serious turn as he handed over the test results to Old Tao. ¡°Take a look at this test results for me.¡±

    With some curiosity, Old Tao received it and nced over the contents before he burst out in a shriek, ¡°Now you¡¯re just bragging, aren¡¯t you? Seven strong pces out of eight¡ªwhat a big gain!¡±

    ¡°But he almost never made it into the Induction Ground due to his weak aptitude.¡± Old Wang feigned modesty, but inside, he was secretly delighted.

    ¡°Aptitude? That¡¯s all those guys care about.¡± Old Tao smirked disapprovingly. He and Old Wang agreed that the Induction Ground¡¯s testing methods were overly simplistic andcking.

    Old Wang added, ¡°Look at the test results for his sky pce.¡±

    ¡°Sky pce?¡± Old Tao¡¯s gaze swept across the record before questioning softly, ¡°It doesn¡¯t seem quite right. Is there something wrong with your Thousand Prajna? How could there be a sky pce that fluctuates in strength?¡±

    Vexed, Old Wang replied, ¡°Yeah, I found it strange, too. If only his sky pce was strong¡ªhe¡¯d be the hegemon of the pces.¡±

    Old Tao understood Wang¡¯s underlying thoughts and attempted to console him. ¡°Don¡¯t let your ambition get the better of you. It¡¯s already rare to see seven, strong pces after all. If you can¡¯t stop worrying, why not try testing it again? Your Thousand Prajna is spoilt, that¡¯s for sure. Or else, how is that even after teaching training basics for so long, we¡¯ve never heard of a fluctuating sky pce?¡±

    ¡°Again?¡± Old Tao asked helplessly. ¡°You should¡¯ve seen that fellow¡¯s expression when I made that suggestion. He was ready to flee!¡±

    ¡°Hahaha!¡± Old Tao burst intoughter at the thought. ¡°I would do the same! You yourself started crying like a chrysanthemum after three minutes.¡±

    Old Wang joined in theughter. ¡°Don¡¯t even mention it¡ªI¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll destroy him. There¡¯s a lot of time for a retest, but I only have one disciple, so I¡¯ll have to take it easy.¡±

    ¡°Did you report it to the higher-ups?¡± Old Tao reminded him.

    ¡°Of course.¡± Old Wang nodded. ¡°Who¡¯d dare forget?¡±

    Teacher Xu arrived at the teacher lounge as usual, only to be swamped immediately by the teachers who rushed to greet him. After Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s public deration, Teacher Xu¡¯s poprity skyrocketed, making him Central Pine City¡¯s famous star. To many, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s decision to remain in Central Pine City wasrgely due to Teacher Xu¡¯s personal charms.

    Just like that, Teacher Xu became the number one teacher in Central Pine City. With his magnanimous personality, the people came to love and respect him sincerely.

    For a whole ten minutes from the entrance of the teachers¡¯ lounge to his booth, Teacher Xu returned the endless greetings. Only when he got to his table did he sigh in relief before noticing the two documents lying on top.

    After leisurely pouring a cup of tea, he casually grabbed one and opened it. ncing over the contents, he immediately sat straight up. That was the signature issued by the Elders Guild!

    Dai Gang took a liking to Duanmu Huanghun and epted him as hisst disciple!

    Dai Gang!

    Teacher Xu couldn¡¯t believe his own eyes; the news came too suddenly. Who was Dai Gang? Only the most senior minister and one of the strongest wood elementalists around today. He created the absolute art [Death Commandment], which became one of the five most powerful skills used by wood elementalists, and innovated upon two schools of thought associated with the lotus and grass tendon nts, the [Lotus Chiropractic Technique] and [Grass Tendon] skills respectively.

    Dai Gang was a man who disregarded the world around him and focused only on his research. Other than the two disciples he epted in his early years, he had not taken another since then. Who would have thought that today, he would receive yet another? Teacher Xu knew without a doubt that the announcement would trigger a sizeablemotion.

    Teacher Xu wasn¡¯t a naive, bookish type by any means. Duanmu Huanghun was no doubt a talent, but was he enough to catch Dai Gang¡¯s attention? It was certainly questionable.

    He could sense the hidden currents; the alliance between Dai Gang and the Duanmu Family would bring about many change to the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Momentster, he chuckled. The workings of the Avalon of Five Elements was not something a small character like him could grasp. No matter what hidden dealings may be working behind the agreement, it was a benefit for Duanmu Huanghun to study under Dai Gang who was not only a wood grandmaster elementalist but an outstanding educator as well. His first disciple, Lu Chen, was one of the three most prominent doctors of the present age, widely acimed for his extraordinary expertise. The second disciple, Yu Mingqiu, broke the record in bing the youngest vice division leader of Deathgrass, one of the thirteen divisions. He went on to invent an absolute art, [Gctic Streak], that allowed him to walk the world alone with his mastery of archery.

    Knowing that his student had a bright future ahead of him, Teacher Xu was satisfied.

    Only after some time did he finally recover enough from his shock to look over and open the second document¡ªonly to receive another small shock.

    Wang Shouchuan had taken Ai Hui as his disciple.

    He¡¯d heard the name Wang Shouchuan before. He was an old teacher with several decades of experience teaching training basics in Central Pine City, with even more qualifications than Teacher Xu. He had little impression of this man except that he was unsociable and kept a low-profile; such an inconspicuous teacher could easily be found anywhere.

    It was astonishing enough that such a quiet figure like Teacher Wang epted a disciple, but the fact that it was Ai Hui shocked him more.

    Teacher Xu admired Ai Hui and his sensibility, diligence, and polite mannerisms; he even managed to recently activate his natal residence as well.

    Yet he also was aware of his low aptitude and weak foundation. To put it simply, he was the worst student in the ss. For Teacher Wang to choose such a disciple¡ªwhat a strange individual!

    Only in the midst of his considerations did Teacher Xu realize that these two students were in the same ss; one at the top¡ªgifted and skillful¡ªand one at the very bottom, with a poor aptitude and shaky basics. Not only that, but both simultaneously gained mentors; one was a well-respected grandmaster and the other an unknown teacher.

    How... interesting!

    After so many years teaching, this was the first time Teacher Xu felt such bemusement.

 Chapter 57: Embroidery

    Chapter 57: Embroidery

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Chewing on a de of grass, Ai Hui was sitting in the old man¡¯s small junk garden. He suddenly saw the copper armor and noiselessly shifted himself a bit further away from it.

    The previous experience was simply so miserable that even a guy like Ai Hui, who had a steel heart full of determination, was traumatized.

    The old man did not notice Ai Hui¡¯s subtle movement. He was busy borating on his analysis of the results.

    ¡°... low aptitude and a lower affinity between your body and elemental energy are actually not bad things. Other than allowing you to endure purer energy, the lower sensitivity allows you to absorb it from a wider scope. Precious racing horses, for example, are gifted but picky about food and are fed better meals than humans. A worn out, old horse like you can¡¯t run fast but can endure well and is easy to manage. You¡¯ll eat whatever grass there is and survive well. Eh? You¡¯re really eating grass!¡±

    Ai Hui continued to chew on his grass sluggishly.

    The old man stopped his discourse and hurriedly added, ¡°Go on, go on, eat it.¡±

    He went on to say, ¡°Looks like my example was really fitting.¡±

    Ai Hui felt weird now. Should he continue chewing or spit it out?

    ¡°I¡¯ve tested the metal elemental energy at the Suspending Golden Pagoda, and it suits you very well. Train there in the future. Aspared to your weak aptitude, your body is very strong. The effects of the tempering of your body are obvious. You¡¯re of a lower grade now, so the result is optimal. The metal elemental energy in the pagoda is of a high grade and is not something that you were supposed to touch based on your current base level. But since your body quality is the most outstanding I¡¯ve seen so far and you¡¯re good at using it, the tempering is super effective. Of course, this has something to do with the fact that the metal elemental energy in the pagoda is of a high grade. The degree of metallization is the greatest on your skin, and [Copper Skin] is already about eighty percentpleted. Judging from this speed, you¡¯re about two months away from perfecting [Copper Skin].

    The old man eximed with admiration, ¡°This is my first time seeing someone developing [Copper Skin] even before activating a single pce. How astonishing!¡±

    Ai Hui felt a little satisfied, knowing that he had surprised his teacher.

    ¡°Of course, the main point is still your seven strong pces. Other than the sky pce, seven are strong and very bnced. It is an amazing gift and wille in handy especially when you¡¯re selecting the moves in future. I remember there is a technique in the Induction Ground called [Big Dipper], which only requires seven strong pces. Although it is not an absolute art, it is still incredibly powerful and wondrous.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes shone. He asked without the slightest hesitation, ¡°Can I learn it?¡±

    ¡°Of course, you can apply as long as you get into the top five thousand within the Induction Ground.¡± The old man carried on happily, ¡°Oh, you¡¯re now my disciple. You only have to fulfill one criterion, and the institution will approve your application. I¡¯ve already filed a record of our master-disciple rtionship and sent it over.¡±

    Top five thousand...doesn¡¯t seem like much of a requirement.

    The old man noticed Ai Hui¡¯s expression and guessed his thoughts. ¡°Don¡¯t look down on this five thousand names. Their rankings are based on the entire Induction Ground. The best student from previous batches within Central Pine Academy barely squeezed into the top five hundred. Roughly, you¡¯d have to be amongst the top ten in the school to enter the top five thousand within the Induction Ground.¡±

    Ai Hui was dumbfounded. ¡°I have to get into the top ten in Central Pine Academy to make it to the top five thousand?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s correct!¡± The old manughed somewhat gleefully.

    Ai Hui realized how naive he had been. Top ten within Central Pine City seemed like a faraway goal to him.

    However, as if nothing had happened, he shortly asked, ¡°What was the training method that you talked about previously?¡±

    The old man was surprised by Ai Hui¡¯s ability to adjust his mood. He did not know exactly how many setbacks Ai Hui had encountered since young¡ªsuch an obstacle meant nothing to him.

    The old man spat out a single word: ¡°Embroidery!¡±

    ¡°Embroidery?¡± Ai Hui was shocked, and his face stiffened. A few momentster, he repeated lifelessly, ¡°Embroidery? Like flower embroidery?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± The old man answered with such certainty that Ai Hui knew there was no mistake.

    Ai Hui stared at the old man with an unkind expression. Yes, he was his teacher, but if he was going to be so unreliable, they would have to have a proper chat.

    Without the slightest embarrassment, the old man asked, ¡°Embroidery, you understand?¡±

    Ai Hui replied with an impolite tone, ¡°Yes, women¡¯s embroidery.¡±

    ¡°Rigid! Superficial!¡± The old man shook his head, full of disdain. ¡°Embroidery takes elemental energy as the needle which threads the embroidery pattern. Is it easy? There are thick and thin threads, soft and hard leather, cotton and silk. Are theplicated patterns easy? A skilled person can control ten elemental energy needles and embroidery patterns from different ces at the same time. And do you know how many elemental energy needles can the best of the best control at once?¡±

    ¡°How many?¡± Ai Hui blurted out; he was lured by the old man¡¯s words.

    ¡°The current record is nine hundred and forty-nine,¡± the old man answered, his face filled with awe.

    Ai Hui was stunned. How in the world? He just couldn¡¯t wrap his head around it!

    ¡°When present age embroidery master, Han Yuqin, embroiders with nine hundred and forty-nine elemental energy needles, it¡¯s like enveloping ck clouds or a shoal of fish moving together. Multicolored embroidery threads weave together in the sky like a rainbow. That¡¯s also why her work is known as ¡®The Rainbow Embroidery.¡¯ No matter howplicated an embroidery design is, she never takes over an hour toplete it,¡± the old man said seriously.

    ¡°And the threads, do you think all of them are light? Coal thread is as fine as a strand of hair, but it is very heavy. How difficult would it be to control its movement with the light and floaty elemental energy needle? Soft silver thread is very soft, like water. Any error in power control will break it. And some leathers can only be pierced through by using elemental needles wrapped with a medicinal bag.¡±

    The old man¡¯s description appealed to Ai Hui and left him speechless. He never thought that embroidery involved so much knowledge and details.

    ¡°Learn embroidery first and then sculpting.¡± The old man gave his guidance. ¡°If you can familiarize yourself with these two skills, you will definitely gain fine control over elemental energy. The more exceptional your control is, the more beneficial it is to you.¡±

    Ai Hui was convinced. He had to admit that the old man¡¯s words were very logical.

    While it was a little embarrassing for a man to learn embroidery, he had no issue with it as long as he could be stronger. To say that embroidery wasn¡¯t as noble as hardbor would be utter nonsense!

    The old man was pleased, but he concealed it well. ¡°Smart choice! Son, you will definitely be proud of this decision in future! Don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t speak without thinking. I made this suggestion after proper consideration.¡±

    ¡°Where am I going to learn?¡± he asked boldly; he had now set his heart on it.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, there¡¯s a workshop I¡¯m familiar with.¡± The old man added energetically, ¡°Follow me!¡±

 Chapter 58: Threading a Needle

    Chapter 58: Threading a Needle

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Ai Hui had a very serious expression on his face, and his eyes were cold and murderous. It was as if the surrounding air was about to freeze up. He could not even feel the fine beads of sweat dripping down his forehead.

    He held a bright silver needle unsteadily between his right thumb and forefinger and grasped a thread with his left thumb and finger as he carefully tried to thread the elemental energy needle.

    The eye of the elemental energy needle was very unstable. At times it was big, at other times it was small. It was extremely difficult to control. Ai Hui had been trying for half a day, but to no avail.

    A girl¡¯sughter sounded out from behind. When a man visited the workshop, all the youngdies naturally became curious and crowded around to observe. This workshop did not allow men to enter, so when thedies saw Ai Hui, their eyes widened with curiosity.

    .

    When Ai Hui started, everyone was immediately excited. They had never seen a man learning embroidery.

    ¡°How stupid, he couldn¡¯t even thread a needle after so long.¡±

    ¡°Exactly, exactly, look at the sweat on his forehead and his fierce look!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s because he holds a grudge against the thread!¡±

    ......

    Thedies chattered continuously since the spectacle was really entertaining to them. They felt it was like observing a rare animal, especially when they saw how clumsy Ai Hui was.

    Luckily, Ai Hui ced all his attention on the elemental energy needle and thread, blocking out the background noisespletely. Otherwise, he would have puked blood just by listening to their teasing.

    In the workshop, work desks were separated by light muslin curtains. One could get a clear view into the work areas since the curtains were translucent.

    Behind the curtains, Wang Shouchuan was having tea with the olddy, and they asionally nced over at Ai Hui¡¯s direction.

    ¡°He hasn¡¯t threaded the needle yet. Do you really think he¡¯s suitable for embroidery?¡± the olddy questioned indifferently after turning back.

    Old Wang sipped on his tea and answered casually, ¡°I¡¯m not hoping that he makes a living out of this anyway. It¡¯s just an exercise for him to train his elemental energy. Plus, haven¡¯t you noticed his tremendous determination?¡±

    ¡°A little.¡± The olddy¡¯s voice carried a tinge of admiration. ¡°It¡¯s not easy for someone his age to remain focused and not feel discouraged despite having failed for half a day.¡±

    Old Wang became pleased. He had taken in a good disciple and it made him ufortable all over if he did not brag a little. ¡°Exactly! He may have a low aptitude, but he has seven strong pces. And, he¡¯s really good at learning. He activated his elemental residence with overflowing elemental energy. He did it on his own without any guidance. Isn¡¯t he great? He even managed to endure my Thousand Prajna, so I¡¯m impressed.¡±

    The olddy was astonished. No matter how she looked at Ai Hui, he seemed really ordinary. Who knew he was such an outstanding man.

    ¡°Seems like you¡¯re really pleased.¡± The olddy was slightly surprised. She knew how bad Old Wang¡¯s temper was and he could be unreasonably stubborn and conceited at times.

    ¡°Not just pleased, but very pleased.¡± Old Wang corrected the olddy. ¡°I¡¯ve only had two good things happen to me. One was meeting you and the other is finally finding a disciple before dying.¡±

    The olddy was over the moon after listening to the first part, but crinkled her brows in displeasure upon hearing the second and said, ¡°Everything¡¯s fine, so why are you talking about death. Die on your own if you wish.¡±

    ¡°Heh, heh.¡± The old man felt a little embarrassed and changed the topic. ¡°I told him how powerful you are. You should¡¯ve seen how big his eyes grew when I said you could control nine hundred and forty-nine elemental energy needles.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s one thousand sixty-four now!¡± The olddy spoke proudly, before mumbling,¡°Looks like I¡¯ll have to show him a little something.¡±

    ¡°Do your best, do as you please, and don¡¯t be afraid of overtraining him. Give him all the work you have, no matter how tiring. This guy eats grass, but sh*ts gems!¡± the old man said nonchntly.

    The olddy was amused. ¡°How pitiable, being your disciple.¡±

    Ai Hui had no idea he was being sold out by the old man. He had finally threaded the needle and noticed the sweat on his forehead. He waspletely convinced by the old man¡¯s rationale that embroidery indeed put one¡¯s elemental energy control to the test. In the past, he had thought quite highly of his ability to control elemental energy, but was proven to be inadequate today.

    Only after he tried it himself, did he realize the how difficult it really was.

    It was not easy to stabilize the elemental energy needle, but it was even more challenging to open up an eye at the tail of the condensed elemental energy needle. Ai Hui was stuck at this stage for a long time, but he finally created the eye of the needle after some guidance. He then quickly realized how much more difficult, yet necessary, it was to stabilize the eye since it was important for threading the needle.

    With the thread in his left hand and needle in his right, he had to split his attention.

    The eye of the needle was big sometimes and small at other times, causing Ai Hui to fail repeatedly. The good thing was that he had finally grasped the pattern of this behavior after a whole afternoon and managed to thread his first elemental energy needle.

    He failed to suppress a sigh. Embroidery required way too much elemental energy control.

    Ai Hui thought about the embroidery master who could control 949 elemental energy needles and found it horrifying.

    But, he quickly came to be excited. If he had been half-doubting his teacher¡¯s words before, he was now exceptionally certain that embroidery was really a good training method.

    He only cared about improving his skills. Shameful or not, he did not care.

    ¡°How do you feel?¡±

    His teacher¡¯s voice came from behind.

    Ai Hui stood up hastily, wondering how long Teacher Wang had been standing there. Beside him was the embroidery master, a stern-lookingdy.

    ¡°I feel very good.¡± He thought for a bit beforementing, ¡°This is a very effective training method that demands great control over elemental energy.¡±

    Visiting this ce was really an eye-opening experience. Beforeing here, he had mistakenly thought that an embroidery workshop was only for embroidering.

    This was more like a factory.

    There were piles of cloth, yarn, unfinished leather armors and even knives and swords. The air inside was filled with a herbal medicinal smell. Only after asking Master did he be aware that the ropes and tassels coiled around sword hilts required embroidery. These things were not ornamental; they were made for battles. For example, the coarse ropes around the hilts were made from weaving an umon material together with a unique stitching method. High-grade elemental swords were usually formed naturally and they tended to repel and reject other types of materials. Hence, there was simply no way to wound the rope around the sword hilts with ordinary techniques. Special techniques were needed to do it.

    Ai Hui even saw a kind of soft grass sword that he had not seen before. Its body was full of embroidered flower patterns. He only found out, that this was a soft grass sword embryo after asking his teacher. The floral patterns allowed elemental energy to better thread together with the weapon body and strengthened it. This sword embryo would be sent to the grass weaponry processing facility to be refined. It would be soaked in chemicals and undergo a special tempering before transforming into a high-grade grass sword.

    Basically, anything rted to thread or rope would be seen in the embroidery workshop.

    Of course, the workshop only received high-grade items.

    Furthermore, the embroidery techniques involved were so dazzling that Ai Hui could not contain his amazement.

 Chapter 59: Requirement

    Chapter 59: Requirement

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    There was onedy who was about Ai Hui¡¯s age. Her elemental needle technique was like a group of active silvery-white fish and her embroidery cloth was like a calmke. The elemental needles nimbly jumped in and out from the cloth, as if they had a mind of their own.

    There was another seamstress whose elemental needle was like a hissing arrow released into the sky,. The embroidery cloth in front of her seemed like it had been woven with silver silk. It was entirely bright, and a very hollow tut-tut sound was made whenever the elemental needle poked through.

    Another middle-ageddy had her embroidery cloth pinned beside a weirdly shaped stove. Each time, the elemental needle would sweep across the fire within the stove before carrying a me with it and piercing through the cloth, leaving beautiful golden marks.

    What he witnessed todaypletely subverted his prior knowledge of embroidery.

    The old man was very pleased with Ai Hui¡¯s answer, but thedy beside him was not. The old man could say that, but when Ai Hui said it, she became unhappy and snorted coldly, ¡°A bunch of nonsense! Training method? To you, embroidery is a kind of training method?¡±

    The old man knew things had gone awry and that she was truly angry. To say that embroidery served as an effective practice exercise to a master who had dedicated her whole life to it, how could she not get angry?

    Darn! He would have exposed her identity to his disciple earlier if he had known. The old man tried his best to give a hint with his eyes.

    Ai Hui saw his gestures, but...what did they mean?

    ¡°Mingxiu,¡± the olddy called coldly.

    A sweet-tempered, beautifuldy appeared. ¡°Master!¡±

    The observingdies had earlier been quiet out of fear. A few timid ones started to slip away from the scene.

    The olddy said inhospitably to Ai Hui, ¡°My workshop is not for anyone toe to as they please. Ten days. I¡¯ll let you in if you can weave a light muslin.¡±

    The surroundingdies inhaled deeply in unison, faces full of sympathy. Ai Hui could barely thread a needle and had not learned how to move the needle. How could he possiblyplete such a challenging task?

    Ai Hui could tell from their reactions that spinning muslin was definitely difficult and was certain he had said something wrong to offend the owner of the workshop. He was, however, not overly rmed since there was no point in panicking.

    ¡°Yu Qin!¡± The old man¡¯s face changed as he said unhappily, ¡°Aren¡¯t you making things difficult for him? He¡¯s new to embroidery. How is he going to weave in ten days?¡±

    ¡°I have my rules,¡± The olddy responded persistently. ¡°If you¡¯re unhappy, leave with him.¡±

    Ai Hui saw the redness in his teacher¡¯s face and chipped in hurriedly, ¡°I¡¯m willing to ept the test.¡±

    His teacher was angry, but Ai Hui was not at all upset. A small test meant nothing. In the Wilderness, he had to request for a very long time if he wanted to learn something. He even had to trade items for tutge at times.

    No one was obligated to help you. You had to fight for everything yourself. Water, food, money, and sunlight.

    The olddy¡¯s requirement was very normal and was considered friendly whenpared to those of the master elementalists. No money was needed either.

    The olddy was somewhat surprised by Ai Hui¡¯s attitude, but kept a straight face. ¡°Mingxiu, demonstrate the Twin Weaving Technique.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡±

    Mingxiu smiled courteously at Ai Hui. ¡°I¡¯ve seen you, junior!¡±

    Mingxiu had been observing Ai Hui and had seen that he showed no signs of panic from the beginning. He had been calm all along. She knew, of course, exactly which of Ai Hui¡¯s sentences offended her master, but had no way of reminding him at this point of time.

    She decided to demonstrate the technique at a slower speed.

    Actually, she knew that it was totally impossible for a neer to learn weaving just by looking once. It was usually something that could only be learned after two years of apprenticeship.

    Ai Hui¡¯s calm demeanour impressed her. Unlike her master, she did not find that sentence offensive. It would be really weird for a man to take pleasure in embroidering!

    The master knew this as well, but could not control her rage anyway when that sentence was spilled.

    Mingxiu had a headache too. In a fit of anger, her master was naturally being impolite. The moment her anger dissipated, she would regret and sigh for a long time whenever she thought about how she had angered Grandpa Wang.

    Ai Hui immediately returned the gesture, albeit unustomed. ¡°I¡¯ve seen you too, Senior.¡±

    He felt as if if he had returned to the ancient times where even greetings sounded weird. In the Induction Ground, addressing one as junior or senior had been out of fashion for a long time. ¡°Seems like the embroidery workshop was a more traditional ce,¡± Ai Hui thought. Plus, from the greetings, Ai Hui could also tell that the rtionship between his teacher and the embroidery master was atypical.

    He had sensed this the moment he entered. Teacher was very familiar with the workshop and probably frequented this ce.

    Ai Huickedprehension when it came to women. He did not know how to describe senior Mingxiu, but he felt she was very beautiful, made people feelfortable, and had a pleasant, friendly attitude.

    ¡°Twin Weaving Technique is a basic method used to weave fabric, mainly muslin. It¡¯s unique in that both needles, side by side, will form crisscrosses as the threads move in opposite directions.¡±

    Mingxiu¡¯s voice was soft and soothing. She tried as much as possible to exin slowly inyman terms.

    Her delicate hands were unupied. Not far away, the spindle and bobbin were spinning rapidly as two muslin threads flew straight toward her. Ai Hui knew not when, but two elemental needles soon floated in front of her, already threaded.

    His eyes brightened at the dashing skill. Compared to his previous,borious attempt, this was much more adroit.

    Her control of elemental energy was just right. She was precise and her skill level was adept.

    Such precise control would be terrifying on the battlefield. Ai Hui had thought about the frightful attacking methods andbat scenarios that could emerge from this skill alone.

    It would be even more menacing if this was used in the dark.

    ¡°This is the simplest weaving method. You have to control two elemental needles simultaneously. The key is to coordinate the rhythm of the elemental needles. Are you ready junior? I¡¯m going to start demonstrating. It¡¯s a little tough, so please pay attention.¡±

    ¡°Wait a moment, Senior.¡±

    Ai Hui pointed at some words in the garden that were waiting to be roped and requested, ¡°Can Junior borrow a sword?¡±

    Mingxiu gave the olddy a nce. The olddy did not know why Ai Hui wanted a sword but she was not as angry as before, so she said coolly, ¡°Give it to him.¡±

    Another embroiderydy retrieved a sword and handed it over to Ai Hui. Ai Hui bowed in gratitude. He did not draw the sword out, but held the whole thing close to his waist instead. No one knew the purpose of his absurd action. Even the old man was baffled. Could it be that there was something special about that sword? No, there shouldn¡¯t be.

    Ai Hui held the sheath with his left palm and the hilt with his right.

    The hilt was not roped, so it was cold to the touch, but Ai Hui¡¯s palm held it perfectly snug. His world turned peaceful the moment he held onto the sword. All distracting thoughts retreated like the tides.

    He looked up, his reserved eyes as bright as the stars.

    ¡°Senior, you can start now.¡±

 Chapter 60: The Sword Embryoâ€™s Change

    Chapter 60: The Sword Embryo¡¯s Change

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Mingxiu couldn¡¯t tell what Ai Hui was up to, but she could see that he seemed somewhat self-assured.

    And...

    When he held the sword, she sensed that Ai Hui¡¯s temperament changed for the better. However, she couldn¡¯t exactly describe what kind of change it was, and after taking a closer look, she believed that what she just felt was an illusion.

    Ai Hui stood motionless before her.

    ¡°Then I¡¯ll start now.¡±

    The elemental needles in front of her started moving, and two rays of light shed through the air. The lights seemed to interweave as the muslin spindle on the embroidery stand spun swiftly.

    The quick movements of Mingxiu¡¯s elemental needles reflected brilliant rays like that of running water, and the thin, light muslin cloth gradually grew longer. The muslin threads created friction, making a non-stop hissing sound.

    ¡°Senior Mingxiu is so skillful!¡±

    ¡°So quick! How can the [Twin Weaving Technique] have such speed? Oh my god, I¡¯m not even half as fast as Senior Mingxiu!¡±

    ¡°Quick,e and look! It¡¯s a double stream; there are ripples both horizontally and vertically. How amazing!

    ¡°As expected from Senior. She¡¯s definitely going to be a master in future!¡±

    ......

    The surroundingdies repeatedly eximed in admiration. They had been learning embroidery every day and had a greater understanding of it than most people¡ªprecisely the reason why they were so shocked. They werepletely aware of the difficulty of this step.

    The olddy couldn¡¯t help but feel gratified by Mingxiu¡¯s performance. Although there were many embroidery girls in the workshop, only Mingxiu had the capability to continue her legacy.

    Unlike the olddy, the old man was feeling quite nervous.

    Amongst the continuous hissing sound and the ongoingmentary, Ai Hui¡¯s posture was abnormally strange. He was as still as a statue, and his bright eyes were fixed on the magnificent scene happening before Mingxiu.

    The moment Ai Hui had gripped the sword, he had sensed that something was amiss with his sword embryo.

    In the past, his sword embryo was faintly discernible, and although he could sense its presence, it was very difficult to urately describe it. This time, however, he could really ¡°see¡± it¡ªit was an infinitesimal wisp of a blue-colored sword gleam.

    It was very, very small, to the point where it was uncertain if it could even be considered a sword gleam, but at that moment, Ai Hui was sucked into it. A blue simr to that of Calming Indigo, it was just lonely and proudly existing amidst the chaos between his brows.

    The sword in his hands seemed like a part of his body. He had experienced a simr feeling in the past, but it wasn¡¯t as intense as now. Ai Hui could even feel the empowering effect the sword had on his state of mind.

    With that, he looked towards Mingxiu.

    The ripple-like light reflected off the needles seemed to slow down in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes till he could clearly discern the trajectory of the elemental needles. He could perceive exactly how they moved alternatively, how the muslin threads interweaved, and even how the airflow, which was caused by movement of the elemental needles, steadied the threads.

    How intriguing!

    Ai Hui watched silently. He knew that the elemental needles did not slow down but that instead, his perception had been enhanced. He admired the splendid scene happening before his eyes¡ªit really was aesthetically pleasing!

    Although it seemed like Mingxiu was only controlling the elemental needles, her body muscles were neitherpletely rxed nor tensed, but rather somewhere in between. Her extended arms helped her to stabilize and optimize her center of gravity.

    It was a picture of strength and beauty.

    In this picture, elemental energy was flowing like trickling water streams and was stable like the spinning muslin spindle. Full of well-distributed rhythm, the elemental energy maintained the high operating speed of the elemental needles.

    Ai Hui was learning many things; for example, the elemental energy used to control the elemental needles had to be well-distributed, and only then would it expedite the embroidery process.

    Yet such a change wasn¡¯t enough to surprise Ai Hui. Even though he had be more intuitive and perceptive, he had already discovered that in the past.

    What really shocked him was that this was the first time he had seen something he couldn¡¯t exin.

    He did not know what the faint mist curling up from Mingxiu¡¯s surroundings was. It was constantly changing shape; a soft light at times, yet foggy and indistinct at times. Sometimes, it woulde out in sheets, like fluttering fish scales.

    Also, within the ripples created by Senior Mingxiu¡¯s elemental needles, there were faint, twinkling spots of light, like stars scattered over the pond¡¯s surface.

    It was the first time these had appeared.

    Even after racking his brains for a long time, Ai Hui was still clueless.

    The sword embryo had changed after absorbing the Calming Indigo. Why did it absorb the Calming Indigo in the first ce? Ai Hui still did not know the reason. He couldn¡¯t find an answer in the sword manuals. Materials of ancient times werepletely different from today as their terminologies and characteristics had undergone major changes.

    Calming Indigo was a newly developed item and was absent in the Cultivation Era. There definitely would be something simr in the past, but Ai Hui had no idea what it was called.

    Parts of the sword manuals that exined methods of the sword embryo¡¯s development were severely damaged, so Ai Hui had to fill in most of the missing information himself. He waspletely unaware of how things would turn out.

    On the bright side, the sword embryo had strengthened after unexpectedly absorbing the Calming Indigo. Ai Hui presumed that the Calming Indigo must have contained some type of substance that assisted the training process.

    It was a pity that the Calming Indigo was gone. He couldn¡¯t even afford the cheapest kind, or else he could conduct research on the types of substances that were needed for the development of the sword embryo.

    This thought shed through his mind but was gone within seconds, like a small candle me in a gale.

    Calming Indigo, eighty million yuan!

    Although Ai Hui was startled by the sword embryo¡¯s change, his shock disappeared at the thought that this change had cost eighty million yuan.

    If it had been elemental energy development, then what kind of change could eighty million yuan bring?

    Ai Hui did not know if the ingredients needed for a lifetime¡¯s training would add up to eighty million yuan, but then he thought about how he could at least be a legitimate elementalist.

    Meticulous with his calctions, Ai Hui knew the sword embryo was something that cost much but yielded little, whereas elemental energy development was the exact opposite.

    The choice was clear.

    Ai Hui would not be tempted by the sword embryo. No matter how special it was, Ai Hui was a practical man whose dream was to only be a registered elementalist.

    His gaze was firmly fixed onto Mingxiu, not wavering in the slightest.

    Her speed was rapidly reducing, and Ai Hui knew that she was doing it on purpose, for his sake.

    Ai Hui was grateful for her kindness, but that picture of strength and beauty had be rxed and no longer seemed as artistic.

    He sighed to himself.

 Chapter 61: Vigilance

    Chapter 61: Vignce

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Mingxiu was unaware of the wistful feeling in Ai Hui¡¯s heart. Her beautiful eyes swept towards the youth standing upright with a sword in his hand as her flowing sleeves danced in the breeze, shimmering like ripples of water. The needles moved back and forth like a shuttle as the spindle whirled in the air, steadily increasing the length of the cloth.

    What a strange posture......

    Mingxu couldn¡¯t help but wonder how the sword would be of assistance to him. Ai Hui was as still as a statue, without a single sound or movement. During that graceful nce of hers, she saw his eyes sh like a sword being drawn out of its sheath. His eyes gave the ¡®statue¡¯ its only spark of life, appearing much like a star twinkling against the dark night.

    The imposing sight inevitably reminded Mingxiu of the ancient swordsmen, leaving her full of admiration.

    Her sleeves danced smoothly through the air, the tip of the needle constantly moving with an incessant hissing sound.

    Old Wang observed Ai Hui attentively, feeling both vexed and concerned. He began to think thating to the embroidery workshop today was a mistake after seeing the olddy acting so entric. There were many ways to develop elemental energy besides embroidery. Considering how overconfidently Ai Hui had spoken, Teacher Wang was afraid that Ai Hui might suffer a huge setback should he fail toplete the training.

    Ai Hui approached all tasks in an excessively systematic manner, thoroughly nning his every move before taking any action. He behaved in a manner that was akin to a veteran hunter cautiously harvesting his catch¡ªhighly mature and very unlike most youths. Old Wang was afraid that Ai Hui was overly reserved andcked the aggressive drive of the young.

    In the prime of his youth, he had been so full of pride and vigor.

    He had seen all kinds of gifted individuals during his many years of teaching in the Induction Ground. All of them were full of mettle, each one more passionate than thest.

    This was what youths should be like. Although theycked experience, youths were highly creative, less restrained, dared to challenge authority, and had amazingly bold and imaginative ideas.

    Among other young people, Ai Hui¡¯s focus on practicality would seem weird and garish. Ai Hui was so mellow that people would find him rather insipid; sometimes, they would even forget his age. Whatever pride he had was hidden deep in the recesses of his soul. Compared to others of the same age, someone so taciturn would likely be more deeply affected by failure.

    This was what the old man was more worried about.

    Moreover, he knew that the olddy was very petty and may end up disliking something.

    It hadn¡¯t been easy for him to get this precious disciple of his and he could not bear to see Ai Hui suffer any grievances.

    The old man snorted to himself¡ªthis practice could have been done anywhere else. Mingxiu¡¯s excellent demonstration put him into an even worse mood. Old man Wang was definitely not an open-minded person; he may be amiable when in a good mood, but when in a bad mood, well, hehehe...

    His disciple had actually practiced swordy before?

    The old man was pleasantly surprised; Ai Hui was always giving him new surprises. Although Ai Hui¡¯s posture looked a bit strange, it somehow seemed to be not awkward at all. In fact, his stance could be said to be aesthetically pleasing in an indescribable way. The old man had an eye for such things, and he knew from Ai Hui¡¯s posture that the boy had previously practiced swordy to quite an extent.

    It looked like Ai Hui¡¯s attention was much more focused when he held the sword.

    One could observe all types of strange training habits in the Induction Ground. Staying in the Induction Ground for an extended time allowed one to be habituated to many odd sights. For instance, some people required absolute silence before they could enter a meditative state while others had better focus in noisy and crowded areas.

    Seeing Ai Hui so deeply invested in the training made the old man feel even more worried. After all, in the event of failure, higher expectations would lead to greater disappointment.

    Failure, moreover, was inevitable. No one could possibly weave an entire piece of cloth in a week on their first try. Even Mingxiu, who had been chosen by the olddy as her sessor, had not been able to do it.

    The old man¡¯s brain must have been malfunctioning when he had this idea. Why did he let Ai Hui learn embroidery of all things? He was filled with regret.

    ¡°How is it?¡± Mingxiu asked warmly after finishing her demonstration. ¡°Do you have any doubts, junior?¡±

    Mingxiu had asked the question before her master could say anything. Although she knew there wasn¡¯t much use in asking, she still hoped to be able to help her junior in some way.

    The olddy nced at Mingxiu without uttering a single word.

    If learning to weave was so easy, then there wouldn¡¯t be a need for the embroidery workshop.

    Seeing her favorite disciple secretly try to help Ai Hui made the old woman dislike him even more. She felt that he was a pretentious person, trying to attract attention by holding on to his sword while watching the demonstration. Pretentious!

    ¡°I don¡¯t really have any questions.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s reply gave Mingxiu a bit of a shock, but she quickly felt relieved. It seemed like Ai Hui had already realized the futility of the task before him. Despite being older than Ai Hui, Mingxiu didn¡¯t underestimate him and even admired him. Backing out of an impossible situation wasn¡¯t something to be ashamed of. Rather, putting on a false show of bravery wasn¡¯t something a wise person would do.

    Ai Hui loosened his grip on the hilt.

    At this moment, Mingxiu turned her eyes onto Ai Hui and had a strange feeling. The person in front of her was still Ai Hui, but for some reason, he now gave her an entirely different feeling, as if he had be another person. She couldn¡¯t quite exin what she was experiencing. Ai Hui had previously exuded the imposing and elegant aura of a powerful swordsman, but the current Ai Hui, however,pletelycked that aura.

    What a strange urrence!

    This was the first time she had experienced such an odd feeling, two times in the same day to boot. She involuntarily sniggered to herself¡ªcould these irrational feelings be because she was exhausted? After all, how could she possibly know what a swordsman¡¯s aura felt like if she had never even met one before?

    No one else had noticed Ai Hui¡¯s transformation.

    Everyone took Ai Hui¡¯s ¡°no questions¡± to mean that he had understood the nature of his task.

    The instant his hand left the hilt, the world before him returned to its original state. That feeling of absolute control was now gone. His thoughts became more sluggish, and his sixth sense had instantaneously returned to its normal state.

    An intense longing for that state of power welled up inside him, causing Ai Hui to unconsciously reach over for his sword.

    Right before he touched the hilt, however, Ai Hui became aware of his actions.

    He quickly retracted his hand away from the handle, as if it was highly toxic.

    Ai Hui forcefully suppressed the strong urge, as he quietly reminded himself.

    From the moment he had nted the seed of the sword embryo, Ai Hui was practically glued to his sword. The sword embryo had given him an especially keen sixth sense with which he soon became infatuated with¡ªit was as if he had be addicted to this enhanced perception and his hand had refused to part with the sword hilt.

    It wasn¡¯t long before he eventually ran into a dangerous situation. Although he could sense the danger, his body wasn¡¯t able to react to it in time. He had watched the dire beast¡¯s fangs pierce into his flesh, and because he wasn¡¯t able to let go of his sword, the keen sixth sense bestowed by the sword embryo amplified the pain many times over.

    The experience had be one of his most painful memories.

    That experience helped Ai Hui realize that the sword embryo was not all-powerful. An over-reliance on the sword embryo would give rise to the illusion of omnipotence, leading to the neglect of physical training as well as the development of elemental energy.

    Without a strong, nimble body and well-developed elemental energy, the heightened sixth sense cannot be used to its fullest extent.

    ¡°Now, Senior, how long is one piece of cloth? How much yarn would I need to take with me? Could you maybe give me a little more in case I damage the cloth?¡±

    Ai Hui asked shyly.

    No one could believe what they just heard; the entire embroidery workshop had momentarily fallenpletely silent.

 Chapter 62: A Good Person!

    Chapter 62: A Good Person!

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    "You really want to weave cloth?"

    The old man couldn¡¯t help but ask as the two made their way back.

    "Is there a problem? You¡¯ve already asked me that three times," Ai Hui replied, feeling that something was amiss. Could it be that Teacher Wang didn¡¯t approve of him learning embroidery? Ever since they left the embroidery workshop, Teacher Wang had repeatedly asked him if he really wanted to weave cloth, as though Teacher Wang couldn¡¯t believe it. But Teacher Wang was the one who had brought him here!

    "Did you not see that she was trying to make things difficult for you?" the old man asked.

    "She wasn¡¯t exactly trying to, I guess," Ai Hui muttered to himself, piecing his thoughts together. "I feel that her request is entirely reasonable. When I was in the Wilderness, seeking guidance from others always came at a price. All the olddy did was give me a test. Not only did she not ask me for payment, she even provided the materials needed. The olddy is really a nice person, you shouldn¡¯t misunderstand her," he answered resolutely.

    Ai Hui shifted the backpack.

    The olddy had told him to take as much as he needed, prompting Ai Hui to sweep all the yarn that he could see into a backpack that was almost as tall as him. His actions had left everyone dumbfounded.

    The old man looked at the mound on Ai Hui¡¯s back, remembering the dumbstruck look on Yuqin¡¯s face. He couldn¡¯t help but let out a heartyugh.

    Ai Hui had no idea what he wasughing at.

    Afterughing for quite a while, the old man finally spoke. He asked, a little out of breath, "What you did back there was pretty brutal. Don¡¯t you find the backpack a bit heavy?"

    "What I did?" Ai Hui didn¡¯t quite get what his teacher meant. Was he afraid that Ai Hui wouldn¡¯t be able to carry it by himself? Ai Hui expressed his disagreement, "This isn¡¯t heavy at all. The things that i had to carry in the Wilderness were much heavier. The cotton yarns hardly weighed anything, it¡¯s a pity that the workshop only had so much."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice had a tinge of regret.

    The old man tried very hard to restrain hisughter. He pointed at the different colored yarns on Ai Hui¡¯s back and said, "Why did you take these even though you can¡¯t use them?"

    Ai Hui was slightly embarrassed, and he replied, "I didn¡¯t actually mean to take them, it¡¯s a habit. Back in the battlefields of the Wilderness, I was expected to sweep up literally everything. These colorful yarns were right in front of me, so I grabbed them without noticing. Should I return these then?"

    Without noticing...

    The old man was once again amused by the thought of the olddy¡¯s facial expression. This fellow didn¡¯t do it on purpose did he? After giving Ai Hui a few nces, Teacher Wang concluded that he most likely didn¡¯t.

    "This is just a small issue," the old man said, waving his hands. He continued, "Did you fullyprehend Mingxiu¡¯s demonstration?"

    "I managed to understand some of it," Ai Hui stated honestly.

    "Are you really going to weave the cloth?" the old man asked, his expression now serious. "Are you confident?"

    "I dare not say for certain," Ai Hui prudently replied. "But I¡¯d like to try."

    The old man could hear the persistence in Ai Hui¡¯s voice; he really was strong-willed.

    "Go ahead and attempt it, then," the old man said, giving up. He quickly added, "It¡¯s alright if you can¡¯tplete it, there are many other ways to train beside embroidery. Even the most talented people can¡¯t possibly be good at everything."

    "Don¡¯t worry Teacher, I¡¯m only trying it out." Although he wasn¡¯t sure why the old man was so worried, Ai Hui was moved by his teacher¡¯s concern.

    The old man no longer tried to persuade him otherwise.

    Noticing Ai Hui, who was carrying such a huge sack back to Vanguard Training Hall, Lou Lan curiously asked, "Ai Hui, are you currently working?"

    "Nope," Ai Hui responded, shaking his head. "I¡¯m learning embroidery."

    "Embroidery?" Lou Lan asked, clearly surprised. He moved towards Ai Hui in an inquisitive manner and said, "Looks pretty awesome."

    "I haven¡¯t even started, Lou Lan," Ai Hui replied, unimpressed. "Speaking of awesome, the Senior that I met today, Mingxiu, was really impressive."

    Ai Hui¡¯s thoughts wandered. Despiteing out of his sword embryo state, the image of Mingxiu executing the [Twin Weaving Technique] with maximum effort was still stuck in his mind.

    That picture of strength and beauty still left himpletely in awe.

    Every detail was well-bnced and perfectly harmonized.

    Although he was clueless about embroidery, he could still sense the inherent strength in her actions. He knew that achieving such a level was impossible without first aplishing several milestones. Ai Hui didn¡¯t know much about embroidery, but he was well-versed inbat. The elemental energy needs may be small, but they were still terribly deadly; Senior Mingxiu¡¯s perfected weaving technique would be highly destructive in battle.

    Senior Mingxiu wasn¡¯t much older than him, but her level of skill was something that Ai Hui admired and aspired to reach.

    "Senior Mingxiu from Jade Embroidery?" Lou Lan asked. Lou Lan¡¯s ingredient runs had brought him all over, making him familiar with everything regarding Central Pine City. "Senior Mingxiu is most certainly impressive. She is exceptionally gifted in embroidery and has been a disciple of the embroidery master Han Yuqin since young. Not only that, but she is currently the most outstanding disciple of the Jade Embroidery School. Many people believe that she will ascend to the position of master before she hits thirty, eventually surpassing the achievements of her teacher, Han Yuqin, and ultimately bing a grandmaster of embroidery."

    "That¡¯s amazing!" Ai Hui was starstruck. He knew that Senior Mingxiu was impressive, but didn¡¯t expect her to be this aplished. Wait a minute. Yuqin? He suddenly recalled that Teacher Wang had addressed the olddy as "Yuqin." Could that olddy have been the embroidery master Han Yuqin?

    He remembered that Teacher Wang had once mentioned that the record for controlling the highest number of elemental energy needles simultaneously was held by a particr master named Han Yuqin.

    The olddy was the embroidery master Han Yuqin!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes grew wide with astonishment. A momentter, he asked, "Lou Lan, a master is someone powerful, right?"

    "Of course!" Lou Lan eximed confidently. His body dispersed into a pile of sand, reassembling to form the words "master" and "grandmaster".

    "Ai Hui, the titles given in the Avalon of Five Elements follow a strict set of criteria. Currently, the grandmaster rank is the highest attainable, given only to the strongest individuals capable of establishing a sect. Masters upy the rank directly below the grandmasters. Those deemed worthy of being masters are powerful individuals considered to be at the top of their respective fields. Among them are those who have peerless strength as well as those who have made irreceable contributions to their fields. Master Han Yuqin has created more than ten weaving techniques."

    "That¡¯s amazing!" Ai Hui eximed in admiration. He was now even more determined to practice embroidery.

    This small test was nothingpared to the precious opportunity of receiving guidance from an esteemed embroidery master!

    If not for his teacher¡¯s deep friendship with Master Han Yuqin, he wouldn¡¯t even have gotten the chance to be tested. Other than himself, Ai Hui did not notice any males in the embroidery workshop.

    His teacher¡¯s request must have put her on quite the spot, yet all she did was propose a small test. Master Han Yuqin was really a good person¡ªshe even gave him so much yarn to work with!

    Ai Hui was moved by the master¡¯s generosity as he looked at the expensive multi-colored cotton yarns, which were emitting waves of elemental energy.

    She even gave him so much!

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell on the mountain of a backpack, as he revered the olddy in his mind. She was indeed a good person!

 Chapter 63: A Lousy Joke

    Chapter 63: A Lousy Joke

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    ¡°Ai Hui, you¡¯re learning embroidery from Master Han Yuqin?¡± Lou Lan continued joyfully, ¡°This is great. Embroidery is a very lucrative trade.¡±

    The remaining sand transformed into a cloud filled with the word ¡°money.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s eyes caught the sparkling light reflected by the sand clumps as the words danced around in front of him like water ripples.

    ¡°Make money!¡± Upon hearing these two words, all Ai Hui could see was money.

    The dense, sparkling cloud of ¡°money¡± fluttering around in front of him caused blood to rush to Ai Hui¡¯s head.

    ¡°How can I make money using embroidery?¡± Ai Hui instinctively blurted out.

    Money was one of his greatest weaknesses. At the mention of money, any determination and rationality of his would fly out the window! He never used to be this much of a money grubber, but the debt of eighty million yuan had be such a huge burden that he would now get a rush with even the slightest mention of money.

    ¡°Embroidery has many uses,¡± Lou Lan answered instructively. ¡°The current form of embroidery has departed greatly from the ancient techniques. In the past, cultivators would weave seals and spells into special materials, creating infused treasures. Modern embroidery is derived from the same basis. Following the disintegration of spiritual force and the rise of elemental energy, however, the properties of the materials havepletely changed. The seals of the Cultivation Era havepletely vanished, but it waster found that dire beasts and certain nts have naturally urring seals. As such, they became the main source of materials. The grass sword that you previously used is one such example, created from sword reeds.

    ¡°These naturally urring seals can be activated by elemental energy and are known as elemental traces. The usefulness of a material can be determined by the presence of these elemental traces. Seals found in nature are often imperfect; some are badly damaged while others are malformed. Perfect elemental traces rarely ur in nature. Most materials thus require further refinement before they can be used, and that¡¯s where embroideryes in.¡±

    Ai Hui listened intently, finally understanding why there were other things, like swords, in the embroidery workshop.

    Back in the Wilderness, he had heard the elementalists mention ¡®elemental traces¡¯ before, but he had never quite understood what they were. Listening to Lou Lan¡¯s lecture today had, however, cleared up all his doubts.

    He inadvertently asked, ¡°Elemental traces can be altered through embroidery?¡±

    ¡°Indeed, especially those of nts. It was initially thought that elemental traces could be altered through drawing, but this method was soon discredited. Regardless of whether it¡¯s perfect, every natural trace has its own elemental energy field, which repels all other materials that contain elemental energy. The pigments used in painting were unable to adhere to these natural traces. Speaking of which, there¡¯s a joke about this. Would you like to hear it?¡±

    ¡°You can even tell jokes?¡± Ai Hui was astonished.

    Lou Lan¡¯s voice rang out from the sand cloud. ¡°I saw it in a book.¡±

    ¡°Go ahead.¡±

    ¡°In the past, grass weapons weremonly refined using chemical painting methods.¡±

    The cloud of ¡°money¡± reformed into a cluster of yellow sand. One clump of sand transformed into a miniature person while another became a miniature sword. The miniature sand person was immersed in the act of painting on the sword.

    Ai Hui was dazed. Was this a live enactment?

    Was Lou Lan getting smarter? There must be some kind of misconception!

    ¡°The methods of that period were rather backward. After using special chemicals to restore and improve its elemental traces, a sword would still have to undergo two more processes. The sword was firstpletely covered with yellow y, following which a silver mist paste rich in elemental energy would be poured over it. Whenever the elementalists set out for battle, a war chariot carrying tworge vats would follow closely behind. The vats separately contained yellow y and the silver mist paste.¡±

    The yellow sand suddenly dispersed, transforming into a group of miniature people charging ahead with swords in their hands. Trailing behind them was a war chariot carrying tworge vats.

    ¡°When they encountered dire beasts...¡±

    Bang! A clump of yellow sand turned into a group of dire beasts, colliding with the miniature people.

    ¡°As the intense battle raged on, the pigments on the de would eventually fall off. Without any hesitation, the soldier would whip out another grass sword to block the enemy¡¯s attacks, seizing the opportunity to fling the grass sword back onto the chariot. The chemist on the chariot would grab the sword, swiftly dipping it into the vat of yellow y and then into the vat of silver mist paste. He would then throw the sword back out, shouting for the next sword.¡±

    The yellow sand brought the entire scene to life, vividly showcasing the entire process. The miniature person on the chariot was frantically busy as the swords rapidly flew through the air.

    ¡°They once encountered a huge pack of dire beasts.¡±

    The yellow sand shifted again, this time transforming into many miniature dire beasts. A trail of flying debris fanned out behind the miniature beasts, exhibiting their impressive momentum.

    Ai Hui watched the events vividly unfold with relish.

    ¡°The situation was intensely fierce.¡±

    As the battle raged on, the weapons were clinging and nging throughout the battlefield. The small swords were now flying through the air at a much faster rate as the miniature people struggled to keep up with the pace of the battle.

    ¡°In the end, the chemist died of exhaustion.¡±

    The miniature person on the chariot copsed.

    Ai Hui was fully engaged in the story when everything suddenly stopped. Subconsciously, he asked, ¡°What happens next?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s all,¡± Lou Lan said, as he resumed his normal form. He tilted his head to the side and looked at Ai Hui. ¡°Was it not funny? Why are you notughing, Ai Hui?¡±

    Ai Hui replied honestly, ¡°It wasn¡¯t very funny.¡±

    Lou Lan was taken aback. ¡°I thought that it would be hrious! The book said that it was one of the top ten jokes of the year.¡±

    Ai Hui coughed lightly, and changing the topic, he said, ¡°Let¡¯s continue talking about embroidery.¡±

    Ai Hui had noticed that Lou Lan¡¯s morphing abilities seemed to have improved. The miniature people that he had just created were remarkably true to life.

    Ai Hui, however, was thinking further than that. Morphing was a techniquemonly used by sand puppets and was one of the more effective moves at their disposal. Although practically all sand puppets could morph, sand puppets who could morph at Lou Lan¡¯s exceptional standards were quite rare. Lou Lan¡¯s morphing abilities would be truly formidable in battle.

    The standard of a sand puppet¡¯s morphing abilitiesrgely depended on its cognition. Lou Lan¡¯s cognitive abilities should thus be considerably remarkable.

    Perhaps he could help Lou Lan improve this aspect of his abilities? With his level of cognition, Lou Lan could definitely further enhance his morphing abilities. In their previous battle together, relying on his morphing alone already had a significant impact.

    This idea lingered in Ai Hui¡¯s mind for a moment before swiftly vanishing.

    Ai Hui felt that he was overthinking. Lou Lan was a domestic sand puppet and shouldn¡¯t be steered towards battling. The battlefield was a cruel ce from which he might not even make it out alive.

    Ai Hui reminded himself that he was no longer in the Wilderness and that he had started a new life that waspletely different to what he had experienced in the past three years.

    Life was not all about fighting¡ªfor Lou Lan at least. All that mattered was that he could boil soup and clean rooms.

    Fighting should be left to people like him who were already used to the violence.

    Ai Hui revealed a smile that was as radiant as the sun.

 Chapter 64: A Future Paved With Riches

    Chapter 64: A Future Paved With Riches

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    ¡°Embroidery is one of the more lucrative upations,¡± Lou Lan said, as he morphed into a book. A voice boomed out as the pages flipped. ¡°For the past twenty-two years, embroidery has consistently had a ce in the top ten most lucrative upations within the Avalon of Five Elements.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up like the stars in the night sky.

    Even wielding a sword could not captivate him to such an extent.

    ¡°This has to do with embroidery being applicable across arge number of fields, especially with regards to the handling of nt and leather materials. Due to the high prices of even basic embroidered goods, the sales volume isn¡¯t all that high. One sheet of elemental cloth costs a hundred times more than normal cloth, with the average price over the past ten years being five hundred thousand yuan.¡±

    Ai Hui sucked in a breath of cold air. Never had he imagined that one sheet of elemental cloth would cost this much.

    Five hundred thousand!

    Before his debt of eighty million yuan, five hundred thousand yuan was an astronomical figure to Ai Hui. But now, this was the price for only one sheet of elemental cloth!

    Huge profits! Such huge profits!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes glowed at the prospect of making so much money. In his mind, he was already running down to his teacher, shouting ¡°Teacher, I want to learn embroidery!¡± with utmost passion and sincerity.

    These profits were really too much!

    Ai Hui gritted his teeth, controlling himself.

    How could such a lucrative trade possibly exist in this world? Surely it exists so that he may join it!

    How much of the [Twin Weaving Technique] did he remember? Ai Hui had initially embraced the task with an attitude of experimentation, but he had nowpletely changed his mind. Oveing this test was a must.

    My head can be chopped off, my blood can be lost, but don¡¯t ask whether or not I would learn embroidery! Let the wind blow, beat the war drums, but I won¡¯t be called Ai Hui if I don¡¯t learn embroidery!

    ¡°What are elemental cloths used for? Why are they worth so much? Is weaving muslin considered as elemental cloth?¡± Ai Hui asked rapidly.

    ¡°Elemental cloths are weaved using elemental energy needles with threads made of materials rich in elemental energy. Elemental cloths are expensive because it is easy to add elemental traces to them. For instance, embroidery can be used to create these traces. Elemental cloths have many uses, including making weapons. Lian Feier, the vice division leader of the North Sea Division, has a weapon called [Dying Peach] that is created through embroidery. Much protective equipment and many armor linings are also made with such cloths, providing ayer of protection against the dire beasts¡¯ elemental energy-charged attacks.¡±

    Lou Lan returned to his normal form, appearing in front of the heap of yarn.

    ¡°Are you referring to these? These balls of yarn have elemental energy and can be used to make elemental cloths. The use of an elemental energy needle, however, is required. Ai Hui, do you know how to do it? Weaving cloth is one of the more profound techniques in embroidery,¡± Lou Lan said, as he looked at Ai Hui.

    ¡°There¡¯s no other choice,¡± Ai Hui stated resolutely. There was no room for negotiation.

    Hearing about the five hundred thousand yuan had steeled his resolve to learn embroidery. If one piece was worth that much, his debt could be settled with a hundred and sixty-four pieces. This quick calction left Ai Hui feeling momentarily relieved.

    Learning embroidery was suddenly so much more worthwhile.

    [Twin Weaving Technique]......

    Ai Hui recalled every detail of Senior Mingxiu¡¯s weaving demonstration. Without the aid of the sword embryo, his thought processes were much slower, but at least he could still remember everything clearly.

    Ai Hui had no intention of borrowing the sword embryo¡¯s seed¡¯s strength for the task ahead.

    He was clear about his stance. The increase in the seed¡¯s power brought with it an even greater sense of obsession.

    Ai Hui maintained a cautious and restrained approach while tapping on the seed¡¯s strength. Regardless of how strong it may be, using power beyond one¡¯s control can easily go south. The sword embryo¡¯s transformation meant that Ai Hui had to now be even more vignt than before.

    ¡°Do you know about the [Twin Weaving Technique]?¡± Ai Hui asked.

    Lou Lan morphed into a book again, its pages flipping rapidly.

    ¡°The [Twin Weaving Technique] was created by Master Han Yuqin when she was neen. It is the embodiment of Master Han Yuqin¡¯s skills with the needle.¡±

    Lou Lan¡¯s first sentence deepened Ai Hui¡¯s respect for Master Han Yuqin. Creating a whole new weaving technique at just neen years old was no mean feat¡ªshe truly was worthy of being a master!

    ¡°The [Twin Weaving Technique] revolves around the simultaneous coordination of two needles. It works by having one needle lead the other, tapping on the interaction between two needles that are bound by the same elemental energy. Building on the foundations of the [Twin Weaving Technique], Master Han Yuqin developed many other needlework techniques which ultimately culminated in her creation of the [Fish Waterfall] needlework style. It is so named for the enormous number of needles used. She currently holds the record for the greatest number of needles used simultaneously.¡±

    The rapid book-flipping sounds came to an abrupt stop as Lou Lan returned to his original form. ¡°That¡¯s all I have, Ai Hui. Master Shao has very few books regarding the embroidery workshop.¡±

    Ai Hui did not hear what Lou Lan was saying. He repeated to himself, ¡°Tapping on the interaction between the two needles that are bound by the same elemental energy......¡±

    Thanks to the sword embryo¡¯s seed, Senior Mingxiu¡¯s actions were seared into his head, down to the smallest details. If he had not relied on the seed during the demonstration, he surely would have been at a loss. Lou Lan¡¯s words reminded him of some important details that immediately surfaced in his mind.

    So this is how it works......

    The sentence had enlightened him, clearing up the fuzzy understanding he had of the concept.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression became serious.

    Understanding the principles behind the [Twin Weaving Technique] made Ai Hui realize why his teacher wasn¡¯t optimistic about the task. Although the technique¡¯s concepts weren¡¯t exactlyplicated, its execution required excellent control of elemental energy.

    Ai Hui¡¯s control of elemental energy was far below the minimum requirements of the technique.

    However, he was not dejected by this revtion; he had no time to lose.

    Ai Hui began his attempt at creating elemental needles. His prior experience allowed him to form the needles much faster this time, and the needles also stabilized quicker. Ai Hui¡¯s learning ability was decent. Once he seeded with an attempt, he would quickly get the hang of things.

    As he went through all of Senior Mingxiu¡¯s actions, he found a huge problem¡ªhe wasn¡¯t able to control the elemental needles from a distance.

    Throughout the entire demonstration, Senior Mingxiu had not used her palms to directly control the elemental energy needles. The theory behind that was simple enough. The densely packed elemental energy was used to form the needles, which were connected to the user via an ¡°invisible thread¡± of elemental energy. This ¡°invisible thread¡± was created using an extremely thin and faint form of elemental energy that was not only invisible but also undetectable.

    A high level development of elemental energy was needed to be proficient in the detachment of elemental energy needles. In fact, forming the ¡°invisible thread¡± was much harder than conjuring the elemental energy needles.

    Elemental energy was Ai Hui¡¯s biggest weakness. Having only just opened his natal residence, he didn¡¯t have enough elemental energy to detach the elemental energy needles from his body.

    But Ai Hui was not willing to give up just like that.

    Five hundred thousand yuan per cloth!

    He was excited by this figure.

    Ai Hui racked his brains, trying toe up with a solution. The [Twin Weaving Technique] required the two needles to simultaneously move along the horizontal and vertical nes, one needle for each ne. Only when the two needles moved inplete coordination could it be considered as the [Twin Weaving Technique].

    He didn¡¯t have to match Senior Mingxiu¡¯s speed; a more achievable pace would be adequate.

    While Senior Mingxiu¡¯s demonstration had made the technique lookpletely effortless and simple, a deeper analysis helped Ai Hui discover its trueplexity. The deceptively simple technique actually possessed several intricacies that might leave one feeling at a loss of where to start.

    It¡¯s not that easy to earn five hundred thousand yuan after all!

    Ai Hui let out a defeated sigh.

 Chapter 65: Invisible Thread

    Chapter 65: Invisible Thread

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    When Ai Hui roused from his deep rumination, the sky had already turned dark. Lou Lan was nowhere to be seen.

    While the [Twin Weaving Technique] was honestly out of his league, Ai Hui was not discouraged; he was already used to facing all kinds of challenges.

    He began his attempt.

    The first step was to try to conjure two elemental energy needles. This was the most fundamental aspect of the technique, without which the cloth couldn¡¯t even be woven.

    He had just learned how to integrate the element force needle in the morning, and the process wasn¡¯t exactly easy. An attempt at integrating two elemental energy needles at the same time was going to be difficult.

    Ai Hui was, however, surprised that despite several issues, the attempt went rtively smoothly.

    Ai Hui smiled, feeling pleased, as he gazed upon the needles on his right and left-hand fingers.

    His left and right hands were very bnced, something he had discovered in the Wilderness. He was capable of wielding swords in either hand without much difficulty and was pleased to find out that such benefits extended to the use of elemental energy as well.

    After the elemental energy at his fingertips stabilized, Ai Hui proceeded with his attempt at detaching the needles from his fingers.

    He had learned the theory during his teacher¡¯s fundamental lessons on training. Teacher Wang¡¯s exnation hadn¡¯t been very detailed, so Ai Hui had to fumble with the method by himself.

    Ai Hui continuously adjusted his breathing. His natal residence was in his lungs and had a direct rtionship with his breathing. The human body was truly wondrous, the five residences were very different from one another.

    Ai Hui¡¯s lungs expanded and contracted to the rhythm of his breathing. When he inhaled, his lungs suffused with a faint silver tint and exerted a pulling force that absorbed the metal elemental energy from the air. The residual air was then expelled through his nose.

    Being able to cultivate elemental energy through the mere act of breathing was one of the advantages of opening the natal residence. Even though the elemental energy present in the air was very sparse, the umtive effect of such absorption was nothing to scoff at in the long run.

    Furthermore, every breath taken excited the metal elemental energy within his body, causing fluctuations that shifted with every adjustment to his breathing.

    Being able to look into Ai Hui¡¯s body would reveal two extremely thin silver threads branching out of his silver-tinted lungs, with one entering his right hand and the other his left. These were formed from elemental energy.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hand pces had not been activated, which meant that the path from his natal residence to his palms hadn¡¯t been opened yet. ording to the conventions of the Cultivation Era, these paths were known as elemental ¡°veins.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy was currently circting via the back of his muscles. If the elemental veins were thought of as a wide torrential river, then the path through the muscles was like a small, convoluted stream in the middle of a forest. Not only was it unable to amodaterge amounts of elemental energy, but the muscles were also much less efficient in circting elemental energy.

    Ai Hui¡¯s situation was slightly better.

    Opening his natal residence only after having developed his elemental energy to its fullest state had helped drench his muscles in elemental energy, greatly reducing the pathway¡¯s resistance to elemental energy.

    The elemental energy condensed into needles at Ai Hui¡¯s fingertips, connecting to the thin silver threads of elemental energy within his body. Ai Hui was able to control the elemental energy needles because the other end of the silver threads were connected to his lungs.

    Ai Hui tried to move the needles forward.

    Under his watchful gaze, the elemental energy needles at his fingertips grew slightly longer.

    No! This was not elemental energy detachment.

    The principle behind this was notplex at all: keep the elemental energy thread unbroken, and maintain the density of the front of the conjured elemental energy needles while keeping it attached to an ¡°invisible thread¡± behind it.

    In other words, he had to thin the elemental energy further at the back of the needle, but not to the point where it would break away from the elemental energy within his body.

    How was he going to make it thinner?

    Ai Hui was at a loss. His teacher had not mentioned this before, as it was something that would be taught in the more advanced sses. This was too difficult for a rookie who had just opened his natal pce.

    It was now toote in the night to find his teacher. Ai Hui decided to spend the night figuring it out by himself, and he would consult his teacher the next day if there were still no progress.

    Ai Hui reflected on how he condensed the elemental energy into needles, thinking of reversing the process to make the elemental energy thread thinner.

    He got to work immediately. Compressing the elemental energy at his fingertips was the key factor in manifesting the elemental energy needles. To do the opposite, he would have to make the elemental energy fainter.

    The elemental energy needles at his fingertips gradually faded out of sight.

    The glow slowly be dimmer, turning transparent, before finally bing practically invisible. Ai Hui could still feel the elemental energy needles¡¯ presence even though he could no longer see it.

    He did not stop there. Carefully controlling the elemental energy within his body, Ai Hui continued to weaken it while he strived to maintain its shape.

    At this point, the elemental energy needle was so faint that Ai Hui had to consciously feel for it.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body suddenly trembled; his face lit up with joy.

    As the density of the elemental energy continued to drop, the feeling at the tip of his fingers that had almost disappearedpletely became clear once again. He could distinctly feel a very faint elemental energy in front of him that moved ording to his will.

    The ¡°invisible thread¡±!

    Ai Hui was ecstatic to see the ¡°invisible thread¡±! He had realized that weakening the elemental energy beyond the critical point was necessary for forming the ¡°invisible thread.¡±

    This was the key!

    Crossing this critical point would allow greater control over the elemental energy.

    Understanding the ¡°invisible thread¡± left Ai Hui feeling over the moon. Although he was still far from moving the detached needles, he was off to a great start. How could he not be happy afterprehending such an advanced lesson?

    Suddenly, the ¡°invisible thread¡± shattered into fragments.

    Ai Hui was dazed for a moment. A momentter, a wry smile appeared on his face as he realized why this was taught in more advanced sses.

    The ¡°invisible thread¡± was highly flexible and was capable of being manipted in a number ofplex ways. The amount of elemental energy required to sustain it, however, was much greater than that of thepressed elemental energy. This had depleted Ai Hui¡¯s pool of elemental energy, and as he was no longer able to sustain the elemental energy thread within his body, the ¡°invisible thread¡± quickly disintegrated.

    What was the use of this ¡°invisible thread¡± if it could only be sustained for such a short period of time?

    Furthermore, elemental energy detachment wasn¡¯t just about the ¡°invisible thread¡± alone. Combining the ¡°invisible thread¡± with the elemental energy needle was going to deplete his elemental energy at an even faster rate. If the simplest part of the technique¡ªmoving the detached needles¡ªwas this tough, how was he going to execute the [Twin Weaving Technique] in its entirety?

    Ai Hui sat under the starry sky, feeling empty inside.

    He rested for a while and recovered some of his strength. He then stood up resolutely, picked up the backpack, and walked out of the training hall under the sky full of stars.

 Chapter 66: Progress

    Chapter 66: Progress

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    When he saw Mingxiu, Wang Shouchuan gave a snort of contempt. His face looked gloomy.

    ¡°Please don¡¯t be angry, Uncle,¡± Mingxiu said softly with a gentle smile. ¡°You know the temperament of Master. Back then, she was in a rage, and when she calmed downter, she really felt regretful. She knows you must be angry. She even said that your disciple is her disciple and that even if Ai Hui cannot seed, she will teach him embroidery. She had said those unkind words only because she was angry.¡±

    ¡°So you don¡¯t have high hopes for Ai Hui, right?¡± Wang Shouchuan looked unhappy.

    Mingxiu knew that Wang Shouchuan¡¯s anger was still not mollified, so she said, ¡°Of course we do. Ai Hui¡¯s disposition is iparable. I¡¯m sure his future is very promising.¡±

    Wang Shouchuan¡¯s face was emotionless. ¡°That means you don¡¯t have hopes for him now, huh?¡±

    ¡°We all trust your foresight, Uncle,¡± Mingxiu said softly. ¡°Please don¡¯t be angry with Master. You know her bad temper. But she also has a deep affection for you. She knew that she was impulsive and has calmed down now. Master is very remorseful for making you angry. These days she has no appetite and has lost a lot of weight.¡±

    Mingxiu had been the mediator between the two for countless times. Neither of them was good-tempered, so although they loved each other, they began to live apart long ago.

    Han Yuqin was an aggressive person. She ran her own embroidery workshop and was ambitious to carry forward and develop her school of thought further. Wang Shouchuan, on the other hand, was addicted to his own doctrine and was indifferent to the outside world. He, too, was stubborn, so every time they met, they quarreled fiercely. At first, Mingxiu had be very worried, butter on, she had gotten used to it; she realized that even though they quarreled a lot, they loved each other very much.

    If it weren¡¯t so, Master wouldn¡¯t have been running the embroidery workshop in the remote and small Central Pine City for twenty years.

    Mingxiu knew that Master was indeed regretful this time. Uncle had never asked Master for any favor, and the first time he had done so had ended up in such chaos. That was why Master was feeling upset and remorseful.

    Wang Shouchuan¡¯s face had brightened up a bit.

    Mingxiu knew that the iron must be struck when it was still hot, so she quickly said, ¡°I will go to bring Ai Hui here now. The earlier he starts, the more progress he will make. Please rest assured, Uncle. Master will treat Ai Hui as her own disciple. What¡¯s more, I¡¯ll help too. I¡¯ll take good care of him. What do you think, Uncle?¡±

    Wang Shouchuan didn¡¯t answer her question immediately, and instead asked, ¡°That means neither of you thinks Ai Hui can pass the test?¡±

    Mingxiu thought for a while before saying, ¡°Ai Hui is of excellent temperament andposure. Regarding talent, I believe in your judgment, Uncle. The test is only Master¡¯s balderdash in rage. Please don¡¯t take it seriously. No one in this workshop has ever been able to weave a bolt of cloth with the [Twin Weaving Technique] in their first week of embroidery study.¡±

    Wang Shouchuan was acutely aware that Mingxiu was telling the truth, but he still shook his head. ¡°He is my disciple. He said he wanted to try, and I believe him. Let¡¯s see when the time is up. No need to be in such a hurry.¡±

    Mingxiu had not expected Wang Shouchuan to refuse. She knew that Uncle was as proud and arrogant as Master, but he seemed to be really angry this time. She started gently, ¡°Uncle....¡±

    Wang Shouchuan waved his hand and interrupted, ¡°Let¡¯s wait and see. If he really doesn¡¯t have talent in embroidery, then we don¡¯t need to waste time.¡±

    Seeing that Uncle had made up his mind, Mingxiu didn¡¯t try to persuade him further and returned.

    Having heard Mingxiu¡¯s update, Han Yuqin didn¡¯t say a word. Her face was gloomy; she knew she had gone too far this time. Although they used to quarrel before, as long as Mingxiu mediated, they would always reconcile. She really regretted the fact that she hadn¡¯t realized earlier that Wang Shouchuan¡¯s hope in Ai Hui was far beyond her expectations.

    Now it was clear that he didn¡¯t want to bring Ai Hui back at all.

    The test could not possibly be aplished by him.

    ¡°Whatever,¡± Han Yuqin said dispiritedly.

    Mingxiu was silent. She, too, hadn¡¯t expected Uncle to be so determined. Does this mean that Uncle doesn¡¯t want Ai Hui to study embroidery anymore? However, when she recalled Uncle¡¯s attitude, Mingxiu felt that that wasn¡¯t his intention.

    Did he really believe that Ai Hui had a chance to pass the test?

    Mingxiu was startled by this thought.

    That¡¯s not possible!

    She immediately denied the thought. The [Twin Weaving Technique] was notplicated, but to a novice like Ai Hui who had taken a long time to even thread a needle, it was definitely an insurmountable task.

    She believed that this was Uncle showing his favor for Ai Hui, which was actually normal. For all these years, Uncle had never taken a disciple¡ªAi Hui was his very first one. She knew Uncle too well; although he was bad-tempered, he was actually a kind person.

    She nned to persuade him again after a few days, or maybe ask Ai Hui to help her.

    Hmmmm...it suddenly urred to her that she didn¡¯t meet Ai Hui today.

    She realized that she could go and help him secretly. To her, Uncle was just in a temper. If Ai Hui passed the test smoothly, it would end happily for everybody. Of course, it was impossible to aplish this himself, but with her help, it wouldn¡¯t be a problem.

    ...

    A bumping sound could be heard from time to time from inside the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    After the metal elemental energy in his body was scattered by the [Arching Fish Back], Ai Hui sat down to absorb the scattered energy. With an opened natal pce, his energy absorption efficiency had beenrgely improved.

    He now knew the benefits of opening up the natal pce¡ªhe had seen an overall marked improvement, whether it was in his training efficiency or his energy control.

    The time he could hang inside the Suspending Golden Pagoda had also increased. This meant that the metal elemental energy capacity of his body had be farrger than before. However, the absorption speed of his flesh and blood was not at the same level as that of the natal pce at all.

    There was no need to mention energy control. Before, Ai Hui could only use elemental energy to perform some basic tricks, but now, he could make an ¡°invisible thread¡± with his elemental energy. This was indeed great progress.

    It was no wonder that opening one¡¯s natal pce was the first milestone in elemental energy training. Its benefits were exceptionally tangible.

    With such a high-intensity training, Ai Hui was receiving a much more direct benefit and was progressing by leaps and bounds.

    But at this moment Ai Hui had no time to cheer. Since his elemental energy had recovered during the meditative state, he opened his eyes and immediately started to try to manipte the elemental needle.

    Now, concerning the making of an elemental needle, Ai Hui was in no way a green hand anymore. After countless practices, he had be very adept at it.

    His hair was disheveled, and his face was dirty; he hadn¡¯t slept or rested in the past two days.

    Finally, he managed to detach the needle from his body while manipting it¡ªbut it was only within a radius of ten centimeters. Although the scope wasn¡¯trge, it was sufficient for him.

    Yet it was too early to be happy. He continued to devote himself to learning the next step. Elemental needle detachment was only the beginning.

    But this time Ai Hui was filled with confidence!

 Chapter 67: Duanmuâ€™s Self-Abasement

    Chapter 67: Duanmu¡¯s Self-Abasement

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    Duanmu Huanghun was sitting inside the schoolhouse, feeling impatient.

    The students around him couldn¡¯t help but continuously shoot gazes at him, and many girls hid themselves behind some windows and ardently peeped at him. Duanmu Huanghun, who had shot to fame after the famous fight, had now be thest disciple of the Grandmaster Dai Gang. Yet none of these made him feel pleased or joyful.

    With his noble upbringing, amazing talent, and handsome looks, and now as thest disciple of the famous master, he really was a favorite of heaven. He was so perfect that no one could even envy him.

    But he was not happy at all!

    That bastard didn¡¯te to school again!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s heart was full of anger. Yes, anger!

    Today was the first day he had returned to Central Pine City from meeting his master. With the title of a grandmaster¡¯sst disciple, he was shining brilliantly like the sun. The dean had personally came to wee him again and had even spoken to him obsequiously. The teachers gave him kind and warm greetings, not in the least bit treating him like a student. The male students looked at him with worship and reverence, while the female students stared at him with passionate love.

    But he neither wanted nor cared about any of these!

    The only person he wanted to see, the only person he cared about, was not included in these strangers.

    He wanted to see the unconcealed envy, jealousy, and self-abasement in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. Yes, he was this practical. He just wanted to see that fellow grovel at his feet under his dazzling fame.

    It would feel great!

    But damn it! That guy didn¡¯te to school again!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face was livid with rage. Although his eyes were as cold as ice, an unimpeded fury was burning beneath them.

    It was like a powerful army with a vast host of infantry and cavalry, after nning for a long time, had finally marched directly towards the enemy¡¯s camps in the hope of wiping the enemies out, but found out that the camp was empty.

    The feeling...sucks!

    He wasn¡¯t listening to a word of what the teachers were saying in the ss. For the whole morning, he was in a rage and was like a volcano that could erupt at any time.

    Each minute in the ss was simr to torture and made him more and more angry. He felt like he was a foolish clown. The feeling was so intense that he almost couldn¡¯t help but rush out of the ssroom.

    However, he somehow managed to restrain himself until the end of the ss.

    As soon as the ss was over, he stood up and rushed out of the schoolhouse with great haste.

    As he walked outside, he couldn¡¯t help but narrow his eyes in the bright sunlight.

    "Excuse me, do you know Ai Hui?"

    As he just passed the school gate, Duanmu heard a soft and gentle voice and suddenly stopped. However, he didn¡¯t stop because of how attractive the voice was, but instead, because of the name.

    Ai Hui...that damned bastard!

    After his eyes adjusted to the sunlight, he could clearly see the person in front of him. His eyes lit up. What a ssic beauty!

    The girl stood there gracefully with a demure temperament and a warm smile; she looked so gentle and decent. Duanmu Huanghun had seen countless beauties, but very few of them could be said to be as pleasant-looking as her.

    Ai Hui¡¯s girlfriend?

    Impossible! Duanmu immediately denied the thought. How can Ai Hui have such a pretty girlfriend? His girlfriend was the in-looking one. The moment the word "girlfriend" appeared in his mind, Duanmu¡¯s heart trembled, as he remembered the miserable experience of that night. It was a literal nightmare that he was still trying to forget.

    He never thought he would remember it here...

    Although he was roaring with anger deep inside his heart, Duanmu Huanghun still smiled brightly, and said, "Nice to meet you, I¡¯m Ai Hui¡¯s ssmate."

    He decided to paralyze his enemies before infiltrating himself into them!

    "Wow, that¡¯s great. So d to meet you. I¡¯m the senior disciple of Ai Hui¡¯s master," Mingxiu said, pleasantly surprised.

    Senior disciple of Ai Hui¡¯s master?

    Duanmu Huanghun was also a bit surprised. His attention was immediately caught by this rtionship. Ai Hui had a master? How could anyone choose such a terrible guy as a disciple? He began to feel indignant.

    Yet he was calm enough to maintain hisposure, and he asked with a big smile and appropriate surprise, "Ai Hui has a master? I¡¯ve never heard of it before. Why didn¡¯t he share this wonderful news with us?"

    Mingxiu didn¡¯t think too much, and she answered, "I presume he didn¡¯t have time to tell you. It was just days ago. His master is Wang Shouchuan, a teacher of Central Pine Academy."

    "Wang Shouchuan? Teacher in our academy?" Duanmu Huanghun paused for a minute as he quickly searched his memories. "Is he the one teaching the ¡®Basis for Training¡¯ course?"

    "Yes." Mingxiu was familiar with Uncle¡¯s course.

    "I see." Duanmu Huanghun instantly became more relieved. It wasn¡¯t surprising; surely no respectable teacher would choose such a terrible disciple. He didn¡¯t think that a teacher who taught ¡®Basis for Training¡¯ would be of high status.

    Now much happier, Duanmu Huanghun acted impressed and said, "He is a good teacher. Ai Hui is fortunate to have him as his master. "

    Hearing hispliment, Mingxiu¡¯s positive impression of Duanmu became reinforced. She had learned embroidery from Master ever since she was very young, and just like her master, Uncle was like kin.

    "So you and Ai Hui know each other well?" Mingxiu asked curiously.

    "Very!" Duanmu replied. He gnashed his teeth in anger but managed to give a bright smile. "We are on the same mission team."

    "Oh, then you must be good friends." Mingxiu was also happy to know this. The members of a mission team generally consisted of very good friends who could closely cooperate.

    "Yes, yes." Duanmu¡¯s smile became brighter, but in his heart, he wished to stab Ai Hui to death.

    Oops, no. Stab? How could he be so cruel to his "good friend"?

    He should hack him into pieces to resolve his hatred!

    "Oh, I don¡¯t know your name yet," Mingxiu said.

    Duanmu thought furiously to himself. Should he tell her his real name? No! He was too famous these days, and as a celebrity, he would be recognized if she knew his true name. Then she would know that he was lying because Ai Hui must have bad-mouthed him in front of her.

    Why not give her a pseudonym?

    Without thinking, Duanmu Huanghun blurted out, "Just call me Bangwan."

    The next moment he realized what he said, and he felt like killing himself.

    He almost cried out. Just what did he do?

    "Oh, hello, Bangwan!" Mingxiu said heartily.

    Hearing the familiar yet horrifying name again, tears welled up in Duanmu¡¯s eyes.

    "Yes, yes," he replied torpidly.

    This self-abasement was just too harsh.

 Chapter 68: Reveal

    Chapter 68: Reveal

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    ¡°By the way, Bangwan, do you know where Ai Hui lives?¡± Mingxiu asked. ¡°I tried to find him in many ces but failed.¡±

    When Duanmu Huanghun, whose heart was weeping silently, heard this, he almost burst intoughter¡ªso he was not the only one who couldn¡¯t find Ai Hui after all.

    Wait. Okay, this was nothing to be happy for.

    Duanmu Huanghun felt that he was almost being driven insane by himself. What the hell happened to him? Why was he always making mistakes like this?

    After making a series of stupid mistakes for no reason, he really wanted to cry.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know either. He seldomes to ss.¡± Managing to calm himself down, Duanmu decided to say something bad about Ai Hui first. He then added, ¡°He used to live in Vanguard Training Hall. You can try to find him there.¡±

    ¡°Great. Then I¡¯ll go to the training hall now.¡± Mingxiu was happy, but then she frowned when she thought of Ai Hui¡¯s bad habit of skipping sses. She should definitely remind him when she sees himter.

    Duanmu Huanghun was lost in thought as he watched Mingxiu walk away. Her name sounded familiar to him. He felt as if he had heard of her name somewhere before, but now he couldn¡¯t remember clearly.

    As he had met countlessdies, Duanmu was very experienced in this aspect. It was impossible for that girl, who was gentle, respectable, and had such an outstanding temperament, to be a nobody. Suddenly he recalled some details, such as her clothing, which was simple, in and not resplendent at all. But the texture was clearly of high quality, and it was all made of elemental fabrics. Moreover, the embroidery of the clothing was clearly a masterpiece.

    As a member of an honored family who had lived an extravagant life since childhood, Duanmu Huanghun could tell this from just a nce. Mingxiu¡¯s clothes were not conspicuous, but in terms of price, it was even higher than what he was wearing.

    Ai Hui was poor and weak. How could his senior Mingxiu be so rich?

    Embroidery...

    Duanmu Huanghun finally realized who Mingxiu was¡ªshe was the favorite disciple of Master Han Yuqin! Central Pine City was small without many notable big shots, which was why Duanmu was able to quickly remember her. Since he had decided to study in Central Pine Academy, his family had already collected all the information about the city.

    The first person one could not offend here in Central Pine Academy was Master Han Yuqin.

    No matter where she went, the embroidery master would always be an honored guest. Even his teacher, the Grandmaster Dai Gang, would keep a low profile in front of her.

    Duanmu Huanghun knew much more than others. Han Yuqin¡¯s embroidery workshop was remote and very few people knew where it was, and if it wasn¡¯t specially investigated by his family, he wouldn¡¯t have known that this ordinary workshop was owned by such a personality.

    And no one was stupid enough to go and offend an embroidery master.

    Workshops like this had business with the Thirteen Division. Many clients came to purchase high-end elemental fabrics, and these clients were either wealthy or powerful.

    The interpersonal connections behind it formed a huge, invisiblework.

    Then Mingxiu should be the disciple of Master Han Yuqin. How could she be Teacher Wang¡¯s disciple? No! It suddenly urred to him that Han Yuqin¡¯s husband was said to be a teacher in Central Pine Academy. That must be Teacher Wang!

    Duanmu Huanghun was greatly surprised at this conclusion.

    Teacher Wang was a person to whom very few people would pay attention, and Duanmu didn¡¯t have the slightest impression of him. Judging from the ss he taught, his level should not be very high.

    Duanmu quickly calmed down¡ªthis was not surprising at all.

    All of a sudden, he felt curious; why was Mingxiu searching for Ai Hui?

    Why not go and have a look?

    Once he had such an idea, Duanmu couldn¡¯t sit still. Yes, he should go and have a look! That damned fellow was already very weak, and he skipped school almost every day. What on earth was he doing?

    Duanmu Huanghun told himself that since they were now teammates, if Ai Hui was too weak, the team wouldg behind, which would directly influence himself.

    He set out immediately.

    The Vanguard Training Hall was remote and it wouldn¡¯t be easy for Mingxiu to find it, so it wasn¡¯t toote for Duanmu to start now.

    Yet he didn¡¯t go to the training hall directly; instead, he went back to where he lived and wore an elemental mask.

    This was the inconvenience his fame brought him¡ªhe would be recognized far too often. He didn¡¯t want to be interrupted by some crazy female students on the way.

    He made up his mind to find out what the hell the bastard was doing.

    The face in the mirror was strange, and the eyes were cold.

    As he had expected, by the time he made it to the alley to Vanguard Training Hall, Mingxiu hadn¡¯t arrived. So he bought a stick of candied fruits, hid himself somewhere covert, and waited like a patient hunter.

    ¡°Be more careful if youe here alone next time.¡±

    A boy was speaking to the girl beside him as they walked by.

    ¡°Why? It¡¯s not safe here?¡± The girl was curious.

    The boy said seriously, ¡°You don¡¯t know? This is where the streaking case took ce some time ago.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± The girl was greatly surprised. ¡°The insane naked guy?¡±

    ¡°Yes, I was here that night and saw it myself. The psycho also had strong fighting skills.¡± The boy continued, ¡°Do take care of yourself.¡±

    Duanmu was eating the candied haws, and when he heard their conversation, he froze, and his face burned as if he had been pped harshly. He felt like finding somewhere to hide himself. What happened that day inadvertently reappeared in his mind. Although it had already passed, he still felt humiliated.

    Immersed in the unbearable memory, Duanmu didn¡¯t notice the boy¡¯s unintentional glimpse towards him.

    The boy¡¯s body froze.

    Noticing this abnormality, the girl asked, ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°Nothing,¡± he answered in a low voice, and he pulled her hand quietly as a hint that they need to leave as soon as possible.

    The girl didn¡¯t understand what he meant, but she still quickly followed him and left.

    Having walked some distance away, the boy, still a bit scared, looked back and sighed with relief when he confirmed that Duanmu was looking down at the ground and hadn¡¯t seen them.

    ¡°What happened to you just now?¡± the girl asked, concerned.

    The boy was about to answer when he noticed two guards on patrol. He quickly took the girl¡¯s hand and ran to them.

    Duanmu Huanghun on the other side of the street, however, was still thinking about the shameful scene, and therefore didn¡¯t notice the nervousness of the guards after they heard what the boy said.

    The guards took it very seriously, because the reason why they were on patrol there every day was precisely the streaking case that Central Pine Academy was trying to investigate.

    Due to the rise of Duanmu Huanghun, the fame of the academy had been enhanced and was recently in a steady increase. So how could they put up with such a scandal?

    Every guard clearly knew that the naked miscreant had strong fighting skills.

    One of them opened the mini grass cage on his shoulder, from which a gray signal bee flew out and buzzed away.

    They looked at each other and simultaneously drew their own weapons from their waists, and from two separate directions, they started closing in on the male who was eating the candied fruits.

 Chapter 69: Cunning Fox

    Chapter 69: Cunning Fox

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    "Excuse me, which academy are you from?"

    Suddenly, a voice interrupted Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s thoughts and pulled him back from his shameful and resentful memories. He looked up and saw two guards staring at him like they were facing a formidable enemy.

    "Central Pine Academy." Duanmu Huanghun, who was not in a good mood, answered unconsciously.

    "What¡¯s your name? Where¡¯s your pine badge? Which ss are you in?" the guard then asked. A pine badge was a namete for each student of Central Pine Academy to prove their identity.

    "Leave me alone!" Duanmu Huanghun said impatiently.

    He knew his distinguished status differentiated himself from ordinary students and was therefore not nervous at all when facing the guards. As a result, when they asked him to show his pine badge, his first reaction was one of reproach.

    "Pine badge check." The guard softened his tone. "Thank you for your cooperation."

    Instinctively, Duanmu Huanghun reached for his pine badge, but then he stopped. Pine badge? There was no pine badge for his current disguised identity. Of course, he wouldn¡¯t show the badge with Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s name to them.

    After acting silly for the whole day, Duanmu Huanghun finally sobered down.

    "Didn¡¯t take it with me." Duanmu snorted. "I¡¯ve been to Central Pine City for so many times. Never heard of such a check before."

    Having been born in a noble and honored family, Duanmu had never known what it meant to keep a low profile. As for the two guards of Central Pine Academy, well, he didn¡¯t even bother to pay attention to them.

    The guards became more nervous when Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s hand stopped moving. At first, they weren¡¯t sure if the information the boy had provided was urate, but now, judging from the reaction of the target, he was definitely a suspicious character.

    The danger level of the suspectrgely increased!

    "New rules, published days ago." The guards stared at him and said, "If you didn¡¯t take your pine badge with you, pleasee with us to Central Pine Academy to apply for a temporary one."

    Central Pine Academy?

    Duanmu was a bit apprehensive, as he was afraid that his false identity would be exposed.

    "No. Why do I have to do as you say? Who bears the consequence if my mission is dyed?" Duanmu Huanghun seemed arrogant, but in his heart, he was getting worried that they had already figured out his intention.

    But that was weird. He hadn¡¯t done anything wicked. He was only wearing an elemental mask...wait!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes almost popped out. He finally knew the problem¡ªit was his mask...the damned mask!

    He quickly turned to look at the other side of the street, and as expected, he saw the two people who had just walked by.

    "...I was here that night..."

    What the boy had said had now urred to him. Damn it! Why did he pick up this particr mask today? He started to panic and totally forgot this was the only elemental mask he took with him.

    If his real identity was found out...

    Even if he had one hundred mouths to defend himself, he could hardly clear his name.

    Duanmu Huanghun was the naked pervert!

    No overstatement was needed. This fact alone could be the headline of Central Pine Academy and spread to the whole Induction Ground by tomorrow. He would consequently be deprived of his fame as a genius and be kicked out by his teacher. He would also disgrace the Duanmu family and be a joke in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    His face turned pale. Any one of these results touched his deepest fear and left him trembling with horror.

    No!

    He must not be caught!

    As long as he was not caught, no one would suspect him, and after his sessful escape, as long as there was no death, no exposure of his elemental energy, and no evidence, this incident would end. He could not care less about whether anyone would be injured.

    After calming down, Duanmu was thinking fast. His eyes narrowed, resembling a crescent moon.

    The two guards felt the suspect suddenly be a different person. After his eyes narrowed, the originally featureless face transformed into that of a cunning and cold-blooded fox.

    A strong sense of danger filled their hearts at the same time.

    But their reactions were too slow. The figure of the dangerous guy blurred, and something shed across their eyes.

    Bang! Bang!

    They were pounded on the stomach at the same time, and their back arched with severe pain like a shrimp.

    How dare he take the initiative to attack them...

    That was theirst thought before they lost consciousness.

    An evil smile appeared on the otherwise ordinary face, suddenly giving it a vivid and bright look. The crescent-shaped eyes were like those of a fox, and along with the evil smile, they revealed a hint of bloodthirsty cruelty and grimness.

    What slow reactions. Having got the upper hand with just one move, Duanmu Huanghun snorted. Although he had never thought much of the ability of the guards of Central Pine Academy, he was a bit surprised to get away with it so easily.

    Central Pine City was a small ce, and the ranking of Central Pine Academy in the Induction Ground was among the lowest. Therefore, the guards here were not highly skilled. Moreover, as a typical small town, it was generally peaceful, so the guards were usually at leisure and not vignt. They had never thought that Duanmu Huanghun would initiate the attack.

    Duanmu Huanghun was just about to leave when he heard the sharp sound of sirens pierce the air.

    His pupils constricted, and he murmured, "Troublesome!"

    Although the guards were easy to deal with, they had called for backup in advance, which was thest thing Duanmu wanted to see.

    Without any hesitation, he rushed to a street nearby like a lightning bolt.

    Thanks to Ai Hui, whom he had been recently looking for for a long time, Duanmu had be very familiar with theyout of Central Pine City. He didn¡¯t go too high because then he would be easily spotted.

    Two guards rushed into the street rapidly, weapons drawn.

    No one noticed the figure hiding in the shadow at the entrance of the street.

    Where is he? The two guards slowed down to search for the suspect.

    Like a ghost, a figure with a stick of candied fruits in its mouth appeared silently behind them. The narrowed eyes made it look like a fox taking a nap in the sunlight.

    The figure hit hard on the nape of their necks at the same time, causing the two guards to lose consciousness and fall down to the ground.

    The passers-by on the street were astonished. They were stuck dumb and didn¡¯t know how to respond.

    Amidst the gaze of all the pedestrians, Duanmu Huanghun ate up thest candied fruit and unhurriedly threw away the stick. He did not seem panicked at all.

    Chewing the candied fruit, he was strolling leisurely¡ªhe was as idle as an ordinary passerby.

    Incessant screams threw the deadly silent street into chaos.

    With his eyes still narrowed, Duanmu appeared to be enjoying himself.

    He randomly chose a tea house whose door was open and walked in.

    The people in the tea house were chatting and drinking tea. When the screams had starteding from outside, they didn¡¯t know what had happened, and since Duanmu Huanghun walked in at just this moment, he immediately caught everyone¡¯s attention. Yet he didn¡¯t pay any heed to them and walked to the seat near the door, before sitting down as if nobody was present.

    "A pot of your best tea, please."

    His voice soundedzy. The waiter, as if just awakened from a dream, replied promptly, "No problem. Please wait a minute."

    The ringing sirens outside became the topic of discussion for the people inside the tea house.

    "What¡¯s happening? An ident?"

    "What exactly is going on out there?"

    ...

    Duanmu Huanghun was at ease. He picked up the teacup and took a sip.

    The taste was ordinary. He put the tea cup down in disappointment.

    No one noticed a bamboo whistle suddenly appear in his hand. He put it to his mouth.

    All of a sudden, a sharp whistle unexpectedly pierced through the tea house, causing all the other noises to rapidly die down.

    In the dead silence, Duanmu Huanghun put down his bamboo whistle, and with a note of apology in his voice, he said, "Sorry to interrupt."

 Chapter 70: Mingxiu

    Chapter 70: Mingxiu

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    Duanmu Huanghun strolled out of the tea house, leaving the unconscious guards inside lying on the ground in disarray.

    He was in a good mood now.

    The gloom that Ai Hui had brought him these past days was all gone. The pleasant feeling after releasing all his depression at once was simply fantastic. Yes, instead of ming Mingxiu, Duanmu regarded Ai Hui as the troublemaker, the one to be med, and the cause of all wickedness.

    Now that Duanmu Huanghun had calmed down, he suddenly realized how crazy he had been just now.

    He had been obedient, intelligent and aspirant ever since he was very young, and he was a role model for all other kids; no one wasparable to him. He was recognized as the perfect young man by all adults.

    But he had just attacked the guards after specifically setting up an ambush to trap them.

    Before today, he had never thought he would ever do something as crazy as this; but now he had, and it was the hatred in his heart that had pushed him to do so.

    The unprecedented thrill actually made him feel somewhat excited.

    But when he saw the pretty figure standing not far away from him in the sunlight, his eyes narrowed again.

    ¡°Are you the one who attacked the guards just now? I haven¡¯t seen anyone as bold as you in Central Pine City for a long time.¡±

    Mingxiu spoke lightly. Her face used to be as delightful as a breath of fresh air, but now there was no pleasant expression or smile on it. Her beautiful eyes were calm, and the solemn and respectable aura surrounding her seemed to indicate a sense of invibility.

    She unwrapped her in-colored shawl from around her shoulders.

    Duanmu hadn¡¯t noticed before that the shawl was actually much longer than what it seemed to be.

    Raising her wrist, Mingxiu unfolded the shawl to its full length in the wind.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s pupils constricted.

    In the sunshine, bright streaks of light appeared on the shawl, making it appear glorious and resplendent.

    ¡°Troublesome.¡±

    The word was squeezed out of his clenched teeth. His eyes were cold, and the evil yet defiant smile appeared on his face once again.

    He fled without hesitation.

    Half an hourter, Duanmu Huanghun was still being chased to the outskirts of the city. He really wanted to cry; his bearing had be extremely awkward, and all his clothes were tattered.

    Anything rted to Ai Hui would end up in his own disaster. Senior Mingxiu, who had appeared to be so amiable, was actually skilled and relentless in her attacks. Duanmu was totally unable to defend himself, and the only thing he could do was run away.

    It was only now he understood why the first fact in the information collected by his family had said not to provoke the Jade Embroidery Workshop. It was not because of the interpersonal connections behind it, but rather, because of Senior Mingxiu!

    He still couldn¡¯t figure out why, as the heir of Master Han Yuqin and a genius regarded as a future grandmaster of embroidery who may even surpass her master, Mingxiu could have such strong fighting skills.

    He even began to doubt whether his ranking in the Induction Ground was only a figment of his imagination.

    Worse still, Senior Mingxiu was closely pursuing him, and if he stopped for even a second, she would catch up and attack him. The in-colored shawl must have been made by Master Han Yuqin!

    Every time it unfolded to its full length, the floating lights on its surface would cause him to feel intoxicated. He was not a green and inexperienced clodhopper, but he still couldn¡¯t tear his eyes away from it.

    It was the embroidery of an embroidery master!

    This was the first time in his life that Duanmu had lost to his opponent in each and every aspect. Not only was he inferior to Mingxiu inbat skills, but also in terms of wealth!

    Even for powerful families, like that of Duanmu, the embroidery that Mingxiu wore as her shawl was a rare treasure, and such treasures were all very precious to the highly respected elders of the family. No one would ever give it to kids like Duanmu, even if he were the most talented of his family¡¯s generation.

    He was desperate.

    What bad luck!

    Without any sense of direction, Duanmu Huanghun hobbled through the woods, trying to get rid of Mingxiu.

    Duanmu¡¯s elemental energy and physical strength had been almost entirely depleted after continuously fighting and desperately fleeing from Senior Mingxiu. Although he now believed that he had gotten rid of Mingxiu, he still didn¡¯t dare to stop running.

    Suddenly, he noticed a spire in the distance.

    That was...the Suspending Golden Pagoda!

    He thought for a while and realized that he could pretend that he had been training in the pagoda. Yes! All he needed to do was get rid of Mingxiu, enter the Suspending Golden Pagoda, throw away his mask, and pretend to be training.

    As for the naked pervert.....no no no, the man without clothes, as long as he doesn¡¯t admit it, then who would suspect him? Who would dare to suspect him?

    The entire academy was relying on him now, and they obviously would not destroy the genius they had just created.

    Besides, there were many non-native students in Central Pine City these days. The academy couldn¡¯t be sure that it was its own student just because the miscreant imed so himself.

    The whole incident woulde to an end once he throws away the mask and pretends to be training in the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    It was not important even if Mingxiu knew the truth. As long as he didn¡¯t openly admit it, Mingxiu would not take action against him. Although Jade Embroidery Workshop wasn¡¯t easy to deal with, Duanmu¡¯s family wasn¡¯t either.

    He warily waited for a while and didn¡¯t see Mingxiu, so was therefore somewhat relieved. It seemed that he was off the hook for now. He had run helter-skelter in the woods like a directionless headless chicken, doing whatever he could to elude Mingxiu.

    He removed his mask and buried it carefully in a hole to remove any traces.

    Then, with hisst bit of energy, he stumbled towards the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    He had made up his mind. When he reached the pagoda, he would lie down, pretending to be exhausted after training. As for the bruises all over his body¡ªthey were because of the crazy training he had just gone through. How could he be a genius without hard work?

    He was pleased with himself.

    But soon hiscency faded away. His legs were as heavy as lead. A few moments ago he was in a state of emergency; when he was being closely chased and attacked by Mingxiu, he was highly concentrated and his potential had been forced out, and therefore he didn¡¯t feel tired. Now, after finding a way out, his nervousness was alleviated, and fatigue and tiredness overwhelmed him like a flood.

    Each step was really heavy.

    Although the Suspending Golden Pagoda was merely a short distance away, to Duanmu, it felt poles apart.

    His elemental energy, which used to be plentiful, had been drained. During his daily training, he hardly spared time to exercise his body and was hence not physically strong. Now, without the support of elemental energy, his muscles were trembling.

    His face was pale and he was breathing heavily. His throat was burning.

    He slowly dragged himself to the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    Awful...

    It felt terrible; he could not even move one finger...

    This was how it felt to be totally exhausted...

    His sight gradually became blurry, but he struggled to hold on. He had to do whatever it took to make it to the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    The image of the pagoda before him was also gradually bing less clear.

    Thest moment before he lost consciousness, he finally reached the pagoda. Everything transformed into a blur as he strenuously climbed the stairs with both his hands and feet.

    Suddenly, he felt as if he touched something.

 Chapter 71: Simplifying The [Twin Weaving Technique]

    Chapter 71: Simplifying The [Twin Weaving Technique]

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    The [Twin Weaving Technique] was created by Master Han Yuqin when she was neen years old.

    Rome was not built in a day, and she did not be a master overnight. Without in-depth knowledge and innate talent, one would not be able to be a master. All the historical masters had disyed exceptional innate abilities and had stood out from the masses when they were young.

    Neen years was an age at which most people were still studying in the Induction Ground, yet at this age, Master Han Yuqin had already created her own unique weaving technique. Such talent was indeed jaw-dropping.

    During this period of time, Ai Hui had a deep impression of her. He had disyed great admiration for her on more than one asion.

    In theory, the [Twin Weaving Technique] was not reallyplicated. Its design was simple yet ingenious, which brought about an aesthetic bnce to it.

    Of course, the word "simple" was rtive to different individuals; this technique far surpassed Ai Hui¡¯s current powers and knowledge.

    The process of trying to understand the [Twin Weaving Technique] had broadened Ai Hui¡¯s perspective. To him, there were countless obstacles present in the simple steps of the [Twin Weaving Technique].

    However, he did not give up.

    Whenever he encountered an obstacle, he would think about how to solve the problem. No one guided him; he needed to solve every obstacle he encountered himself. Moreover, he had a weak foundation and did not have much knowledge on elemental energy. If it were another person in his position, they would not know what to do at all.

    Luckily, Ai Hui had used the powers of the sword embryo to view Senior Mingxiu¡¯s demonstration that day.

    Every movement of Senior Mingxiu and all the details of the flow of the elemental energy had been firmly engraved in his mind, and this yed a significant role in helping himprehend the [Twin Weaving Technique].

    When Ai Hui truly understood and digested the principles behind the [Twin Weaving Technique], he benefitted greatly from it. Master Han Yuqin¡¯s masterwork contained techniques and ideas on elemental energy that were extremely new to Ai Hui, who previously knew nothing at all.

    The benefits of such spontaneous thoughts were extremely precious.

    Ai Hui, who was in deep thought, was not thrilled at the benefits he received; instead, he was filled with endless agony. He had finally solved a problem with great difficulty, but before he could even rejoice, a tougher problem arose.

    When he fullyprehended the principles behind the [Twin Weaving Technique], he realized that he could not even use it. His current base level was far below the basic base level requirement for this skill; he calcted that the minimum elemental energy level that was needed for this technique was the fourth pce.

    He had not even activated a single pce.

    However, he did not intend to give up just like this. He was a practical individual and did not forget what his goal was. That goal was to sessfully weave elemental cloths!

    In fact, this was not the first time he had encountered such a situation.

    When he was in the Wilderness, he had been ced in many simr circumstances. When he did not have a grass sword, he would make a wooden sword; he was fine with anything as long as it could be used. When he was in the swordsman school, he did not have any bookshelves to ce and arrange the swordy manuals, so he had picked up scrap wood and had made them himself.

    Due to having a pathetic amount of resources, poor people would always encounter various difficulties in their lives. It was a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul¡ªusing worthless materials flexibly to create something usable.

    One could say that this was the poor person¡¯s wisdom. Even though it was not efficient, it was still usable.

    In Ai Hui¡¯s hands, the [Twin Weaving Technique] changed beyond recognition.

    When an elemental energy needle left one¡¯s body, their elemental energy would quickly deplete, so Ai Hui attempted to reduce the distance between the elemental energy needle and his finger. Eventually, the distance between the elemental energy needle and his finger had shrunk to only two centimeters. Although it did not appear graceful and elegant, it could still be used, and for a rookie like Ai Hui, it was instead much easier to control.

    For someone like Ai Hui, who had little mastery over elemental energy, it was impossible to make two elemental energy needles react to each other. Hence, Ai Hui thought of another method, which was to coordinate his hands and eyes. Even though elemental energy may be sensitive, it was still easier for Ai Hui to control his muscles and coordinate his hands instead.

    Of course, it was impossible for Ai Hui to harmonize his elemental energy like what Senior Mingxiu had done.

    If Senior Mingxiu¡¯s [Twin Weaving Technique] could bepared to an agile hummingbird, then Ai Hui¡¯s [Twin Weaving Technique] would bepared to a slow-moving snail. However, the hardest part was the movements of the hands.

    Each of Ai Hui¡¯s hands controlled an elemental energy needle. His two fingers were poking forward alternatively, and it appeared that Ai Hui was weaving a sweater. The aesthetic beauty of the [Twin Weaving Technique] hadpletely disappeared in his hands.

    Fine. It still could be considered weaving, because, in the end, he actually did manage to weave some elemental cloths. However, even though they looked crumpled and ugly, Ai Hui still needed to put in an all-out effort to produce such quality of work.

    It was truly an all-out effort.

    Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy could onlyst for five minutes.

    And he needed to be extremely focused during these five minutes. Any slight mistake would waste his elemental energy.

    Once his elemental energy was depleted, he would need to enter the Suspending Golden Pagoda to recollect the metal elemental energy. After that, he would have to use the [Arching Fish Back] to scatter the energy for absorption. This repetitive process would take up to an hour.

    In other words, he needed to train for one hour before he could weave for five minutes.

    The difference between Ai Hui¡¯s base level and Senior Mingxiu¡¯s base level was quite obvious. Ai Hui would need an unknown number of days to weave the same amount of elemental cloths that Senior Mingxiu could weave in ten minutes.

    Ai Hui did not have a moment of rest. He trained crazily, and then weaved crazily.

    Previously, he had some prejudice towards embroidery, but when he had clearlyprehended the [Twin Weaving Technique], he changed his stance. No matter what, he had to learn embroidery.

    If such dazzling and borate control could be utilized inbat, how frightening would it be!

    For example, if the twin needles were to be used duringbat, his enemies would find it hard to guard against its unpredictability.

    Furthermore, one bolt of cloth was worth five hundred thousand yuan!

    Ai Hui did not know how long he would take to weave one bolt of cloth; however, he knew that as long as he persisted, he could definitely weave it. If he could make a breakthrough to the fourth pce, he could then utilize the [Twin Weaving Technique].

    The [Twin Weaving Technique] was merely a basic weaving technique, yet it was so powerful and so valuable.

    Without any distractions, Ai Hui continued to train day and night.

    For someone who had survived the Wilderness, Ai Hui understood the importance of opportunity. When you see an opportunity, you have to make an all-out effort to pursue it. Before you seed or fail, you should stopining about how much hard work you have put in.

    He continued for three days without any sleep. For these three days, he engaged in high-intensity training, with the intention of not wasting any time.

    His body gradually became exhausted from the continuous high-intensity training. Even a maniac like Ai Hui found such training to be intolerable; if it were done for a prolonged period, it would even cause injuries to his body.

    This time around, Ai Hui spent a bit more time training in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, enduring the explosive effect of the metal elemental energy to his body. He was trying his best to climb the steel chain for the way out. Elemental energy could constantly be replenished during continuous training; however, this did not apply to his physical strength, which had constantly been drained. He was somewhat dispirited by the process of climbing out. The spirit was willing, but the flesh was too weak.

    He really needed a rest today.

    He nned to have a good sleepter.

    Before Ai Hui could even heave a sigh of relief after using all his strength to climb up to the entrance, a staggering figure suddenly came out from the dark and copsed onto his body.

    Ai Hui subconsciously reached out his hands and tried to catch the figure.

    That figure lost control of its body. Its swinging arms desperately tried to hold on to Ai Hui, resembling someone who was drowning.

    Both of them collided with each other, lost their bnce, and fell into the Suspending Golden Pagoda at the same time.

 Chapter 72: Danger

    Chapter 72: Danger

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    The unforeseen event startled Ai Hui. Before he could even see who collided with him, he was flooded with a whizzing metal wind.

    Damn it!

    Usually, when Ai Hui was alone in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, he would tread everywhere with care. However, he was now carrying a person, and his physical strength had been thoroughly depleted. How could he possibly move?

    The most annoying thing was that the other party was holding him tightly by his waist. He tried to break free a few times but failed.

    Ai Hui was obviously furious. Ruthless thoughts rose in his mind. Once he¡¯s out of here, he would bash this bastard up until he¡¯s unrecognizable.

    With this area being sorge and the steel chain so noticeable, how could he not see it?

    What kind of eyesight did he have?

    Just as Ai Hui was about to explode with anger, his hands gave way. A shiver went down his spine. The steel chain broke!

    The steel chain could not bear the weight of two people! Ai Hui¡¯s expression changed slightly.

    Both of them were like kites that were out of control. Bang! His body mmed heavily against the wall, and even with the protection of the armor, he could not help but let out a pained groan.

    Although the armor protected him from the metal wind, it was still very cumbersome. Furthermore, there was a person on his back. Even if Ai Hui¡¯s strength was at its peak, he would still not be confident of walking out of the Suspending Golden Pagoda alive.

    Bang!

    This time around, it was the person on his back that hit the wall.

    An involuntary groan came from behind him.

    Ai Hui¡¯s rage, which had just simmered down, erupted once more.

    Duanmu Bangwan!

    He could identify the other party with just the voice.

    Previously, both of them had borne grudges against each other, but now, the two enemies hade face to face as their eyes zed with hatred! It was not surprising at all to see this bastarde here to stir trouble! Ai Hui didn¡¯t know where his strength came from as he tried to grab Duanmu Huanghun, who wastched onto his back. However, the armor on his body was too bulky, and his movements were limited.

    He simply removed his armor. ng! Cling! ng! It crashed onto the metal fence below.

    However, before he could do anything, Duanmu Huanghun seemed to discover an opportunity to strike and used all his limbs to cling on to Ai Hui¡¯s back like an octopus.

    After removing the armor¡¯s restriction, Ai Hui felt his movements regain their freedom. However, at the same time, he became much lighter, and the wind now had a greater impact on him. Yet when he realized it, it was already toote.

    Bang! Bang! Bang!

    Both of them were like rubber balls, as they bounced off each other and flew around the pagoda uncontrobly.

    At this point of time, Ai Hui could do nothing else except protect his head. However, as an experienced individual, he was able to react in time. He knew that he would only waste his energy by bouncing around recklessly, and the best thing to do now was to protect himself, save his energy, and wait for an opportunity.

    Ai Hui, who had calmed down, knew what he was doing.

    He was very familiar with the first level of the Suspending Golden Pagoda. As long as he was blown somewhere near the entrance, he could sessfully escape.

    He no longer cared about Duanmu Huanghun and recovered from his fury¡ªit was as if nothing had even happened. In such a dangerous situation, acting on his emotions would not benefit him in any way. The only thing he could do was remain calm and help himself get out of this situation.

    The stabbing pain from the metal wind had started to be increasingly intense. Previously, he had already felt that he was at his limit, but the metal wind was now steadily prating his body. The feeling self-explosion was quickly growing stronger.

    However, it did not affect Ai Hui¡¯sposure. He remained cool and calm.

    But after the subsequent collision, he finally lost hisposure.

    This time around, the collision took ce at his back. The moment the unconscious Duanmu Huanghun collided against the wall, they involuntarily flew back like a spring.

    Ai Hui could only look on helplessly as he bounced off the ground like a rubber ball. With a slight push from the metal wind, they flew towards the second level.

    Calm down, calm down, calm down...

    Ai Hui kept on repeating to himself; however, he eventually could stand it no longer and swung his head backward.

    Pow!

    Like an iron hammer, the back of Ai Hui¡¯s head mmed directly into Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s nose.

    The unconscious Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body twitched but still remained clung on to Ai Hui, not showing even a single sign of loosening its grip. However, Ai Hui¡¯s rage had simmered down, and he knew that it wouldn¡¯t be possible to make Duanmu Huanghun let go of him. He had seen this before in the Wilderness¡ªit was a human¡¯s survival instinct. A person who was drowning would cling on to anything they could get a hold on and would never let go. This effect also applied to people who had lost their consciousnesses.

    And right now, Duanmu Huang was in this exact state.

    Ai Hui could not care about Duanmu Huanghun anymore as he was now facing an even grimmer problem.

    He could feel his speed increasing. This was a terrible situation, as it implied that the wind was getting stronger. After training in the Suspending Golden Pagoda for so long, he was very familiar with the ce. There was a total of seven levels in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, and the top part of the pagoda was narrow while the bottom part was wide. The air vent in the first level was the closest to them, yet the winding out of it was the weakest. The higher they would go up, the stronger the wind would get.

    Their bodies whirled along with the metal wind.

    Ai Hui¡¯s premonition was getting increasingly stronger, but right now, he was in mid-air with nothing to hold on.

    The wind was spiraling upward!

    The sound of the wind in his ear started to be peculiar and frightening. A sharp noise that could burst his eardrums prevented Ai Hui from hearing anything else. The wind had be so strong that he now had difficulty breathing.

    The pain from the metal wind was akin to that of being shed with a sword. Ai Hui could feel his skin being ripped apart by the intense metal gales.

    A faint light suddenly shone from behind him.

    It was the clothes that Duanmu Huanghun was wearing. They were emitting a faint glow, resisting the metal wind.

    The pair spiraled upward out of control as the metal wind blew stronger and stronger. Ai Hui¡¯s clothes had already been shredded by the slicing wind, leaving numerouscerations on his skin.

    Ai Hui was getting anxious. He had been observing his surroundings, and they had already reached the fifth level.

    Pop!

    After an explosion that sounded like a popped balloon, the glow around Duanmu Huanghun disappeared. Countless shreds of cloth dispersed in all directions; even Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s special clothes could not withstand the metal wind.

    Psss!

    Blood spurted onto Ai Hui¡¯s face. The faint smell of blood seemed to calm the anxious Ai Hui down.

    The blood belonged to Duanmu Huanghun.

    Even though Ai Hui¡¯s [Copper Skin] was almost fully developed, he could still feel the shing pain from the metal wind. This showed how powerful the metal wind was. Last time, Ai Hui had cured Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s flu; therefore, he knew everything about the fellow¡¯s body.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body definitely could not endure the metal wind.

    The reality was just what Ai Hui had expected it to be. Fine, red streaks appeared on Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body, staining his shredded clothes with fresh blood.

    The bloodstained shreds were being pulverized, bit by bit.

    Such a lucky fellow. Ai Huiughed bitterly. This fellow fell into aa and had yet to know the precarious situation he was in now.

    The faint smell of blood awakened the long since dormant valor in Ai Hui.

    A fierce look shed across his face. Without any hesitation, he started to directly absorb the metal elemental energy that was fiercely stabbing his body.

    This metal elemental energy had not been scattered, and hence wasn¡¯t suitable for absorption; however, at this point in time, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t care less.

    He must save himself; otherwise, he would die here today!

    The higher he went, the purer and stronger the metal elemental energy became. Ai Hui forcibly activated his natal residence, and the metal elemental energy channeled throughout his body, traveling within like countless steel needles. The needle-piercing pain turned Ai Hui¡¯s face pale-white.

    Yet he did not stop. However, if this situation continued, without any physical strength or elemental energy, he would be literally heading towards death.

    Life was more important. Without his life, he would have nothing left. If his natal residence was injured, he could still find a way to heal it.

    The metal elemental energy gushed into Ai Hui¡¯s natal residence like a group of vicious sharks.

 Chapter 73: Seeking Survival

    Chapter 73: Seeking Survival

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    Nowadays, the ¡°five residences and eight pces¡± was the most popr and developed training system. Although everyone had their own style of training, none had left out the five residences and eight pces.

    The five residence and eight pces had various functions and uses; however, the most important aspect was the natal residence.

    One could see its importance simply from the word ¡°natal.¡± Fire was associated with the heart, wood with the liver, earth with the spleen, metal with the lungs, and water with the kidney. They collectively constituted the source of elemental energy. The natal residence was able to store a huge amount of elemental energy, but its most important use was to absorb elemental energy and channel it elsewhere.

    Duringbat, the natal residence was responsible for channeling one¡¯s elemental energy.

    During the process of training, elemental energy needed to make a Circtory Cycle Revolution. The purpose of the Circtory Circle Revolution was to purify andpress elemental energy. The purification of elemental energy was to get rid of its impurities, allowing one to obtain a purer form of elemental energy. Meanwhile, thepression of elemental energy allowed one to store a greater amount of elemental energy.

    No matter how weak or strong a person was, the natal residence would have to transfer and bear the weight of an abundant amount of elemental energy. However, it would need only a small amount of elemental energy to injure the natal residence.

    Those high-level elementalists all had a high concentration of elemental energy in their bodies, making them extremely strong. Those who specialized in body-tempering had bodies that wereparable to the bodies of dire beasts.

    When one¡¯s base level was low, their body would be very weak, so during the initial stages of their training, many people tended to choose training grounds with elemental energy that was mild in nature. When such elemental energy was purified andpressed, it would not inflict any injury on one¡¯s body.

    No one would joke around with their natal residence because once the natal residence became injured, it would be very troublesome.

    When the sharp elemental energy gushed into Ai Hui¡¯s natal residence, his natal residence was immediately injured.

    Along with indescribable piercing pain, countless finecerations appeared all over his lungs.

    However, he did not stop. Even though the process was painful and torturous, he was reenergized by the influx of elemental energy into his lungs. Yet this was not enough, as he still had to direct the elemental energy toplete a Circtory Cycle.

    As the elemental energy endlessly gushed into his lungs, Ai Hui quickly discovered that he could not channel so much elemental energy.

    His base level was too low, and since the capacity of his natal residence was not high enough, its ability to channel energy was limited. Furthermore, the elemental energy that surged through his body was not only pure in nature, but its amount was tremendous as well.

    As the elemental energy continued to gush into his natal residence, the number of wounds in his lungs increased rapidly.

    It was a very precarious situation!

    If he could not quicklye up with a n, his natal residence would be ripped to pieces by the sharp, shing elemental energy. The wounds in his lungs were bing increasingly wider, and it began bleeding more and more.

    The blood foamed up from his lungs and entered Ai Hui¡¯s mouth as he breathed. The familiar, sweet scent of blood brought Ai Hui back to his time in the Wilderness, a ce where dangers lurked everywhere, and death could follow any moment.

    How many times had he encountered death?

    Live or die? It would all depend on what he would do next.

    His hair stood on end as a shiver went down his spine.

    He could not remember anything, but he soon felt a familiar presence. Like a veteran warrior that stepped onto the battleground once more, a peculiar me lit up in his previously ice-cold eyes.

    His attention became unusually focused, and his brain began working extremely fast. His surroundings slowed down and became silent.

    The surging elemental energy in his body was like a group of sharks, destroying his vitality.

    It was sharper, purer, and more congealed than the metal elemental energy on the first level. It was like...elemental energy needles...

    Elemental energy needles...

    Ai Hui seemed to catch on to something.

    They were indeed simr to elemental energy needles; in fact, from their shape and nature, their intrinsic qualities seemed to be exactly the same as that of elemental energy needles. The only difference was that they were not conjured by Ai Hui himself.

    He thought about how difficult it was for him to conjure elemental energy needles, and how hard it was to sustain them. After spending so much time and effort, he could still only weave a meager amount. Yet right now, there were so many elemental energy needles, making him feel embarrassed of his incapability.

    Wait, there were so many elemental energy needles...

    As if a light bulb suddenly lit up in his mind, Ai Hui suddenly thought of the [Twin Weaving Technique]!

    In the [Twin Weaving Technique], Ai Hui had never been able to understand how the elements energy needles reacted to each other. All the details of Senior Mingxiu¡¯s demonstration emerged in his mind as he clearly remembered that there was only one ¡°invisible string¡± when Senior Ming Hui was controlling two elemental energy needles.

    She must have used the reaction between the two elemental energy needles to control the other needle.

    Yes, it must be!

    He finally figured out what was going on.

    Was it possible for him to control a few elemental energy needles, and then use their reactions to channel this elemental energy?

    Ai Hui¡¯s simplified version of the [Twin Weaving Technique] skipped this step by using muscle control to coordinate between the twin needles. He did not have enough elemental energy for suchplicated coordination of the needles.

    However, right now, his body was filled with arge amount of elemental energy, and hence, he did not have to worry about the depletion of elemental energy. Another fortunate fact was that the part of the body that controlled the elemental energy needles was the natal residence.

    If the difficulty level of controlling elemental energy from the outside of his body was ¡°difficult,¡± the difficulty level of controlling elemental energy in the natal residence would be ¡°amateur.¡± He was a master in the aspect of his natal residence.

    At this moment, Ai Hui¡¯s state of mind was clear and bright. He did not know if this n would work, but he had no other choice. Other people might find it very difficult to fight for their lives when encountering death, but to Ai Hui, this was an experience that he was used to.

    He locked onto one of the densely packed elemental energy needles and started to experiment with it.

    It started off smoothly as the elemental energy needle floated in the air. However, he could not control it to interact with the other elemental energy needles.

    What surprised him was that there did exist a reaction between the elemental energy needles. However, this reaction was very weak. It was so weak that it could not even make the other needle tremble.

    He was not discouraged, though. To him, this was a very high-level technique, and even if he understood the principles behind the technique, it would still be very difficult for him to actually execute it.

    It appeared that the reaction field between the elemental energy needles was not responsible for the intensification of the reaction between them, but rather, it was due to some type of unique technique.

    Could it be that he had overlooked something by mistake?

    He carefully recalled every single detail in Senior Mingxiu¡¯s demonstration, before suddenly remembering something that he had neglected.

    At that time, when Senior Mingxiu had stretched her body, she had formed an alluring image. Faint mist had appeared and lingered around her, continuously changed its shape, while numerous specks of light had appeared in the water ripples that she had created. These light specks would randomly illuminate and extinguish themselves, resembling ake that was filled with twinkling stars.

    These were the two things that he had yet to understand.

    Even now, he did not know what it was, but he still decided to give it a try.

    He decided to start by mimicking Senior Mingxiu¡¯s movements. That image was iparably harmonized and filled with strength and beauty. It had left an extremely deep impression on Ai Hui.

    Senior Mingxiu did not have a muscr body, but Ai Hui saw strength and power in her movements.

    Ai Hui did not care that his body was hovering in the air. His arms stretched forwardfortably, and each of his fingers was spread wide open. All the muscles in his body were slightly tensed, and his legs were curled up, shifting his body¡¯s center of gravity to a perfect position.

    Ai Hui had remarkable control over his muscles. Furthermore, he had a very urate impression of Senior Mingxiu¡¯s movements, so his posture was exactly the same as hers.

    Exactly the same!

    The moment he assumed that posture, he could feel a transformation begin to take ce in his body.

 Chapter 74: An Unforeseen Event

    Chapter 74: An Unforeseen Event

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    The elemental energy in his body suddenly turned vigorous.

    No¡ªit was surging. Ai Hui had never seen so many elemental energy needles simultaneously jump before.

    Previously, they were simr to numerous iron nails, but now, they resembled mas; some were attracted to each other while some repelled each other, creating a huge mess. There were simply too many elemental energy needles in his body. These innumerable needles surged into his natal residence, creating a storm of destructive force. And after being wrecked by such a storm, the natal residence¡¯s past wounds were ripped back open.

    Ai Hui spat out another mouthful of blood.

    Instead of feeling surprised, however, he felt happy¡ªas long as his theory worked, he was fine with anything. He was most worried that the elemental energy needles would stay unmoved in his body; as long as there were changes, there would be an opportunity for him to live. Right now, he was in the worst possible scenario, and any changes would be a good thing¡ªat least he had a chance to make a difference.

    Ai Hui could presently not care about anything. Perhaps even Senior Mingxiu could not exin what was going on with him now.

    No one had ever done such a thing before. Even brave individuals would not dare to fool around with their natal residences like him.

    However, Ai Hui had no other choice, and a tremendous amount of elemental energy had gushed into his natal residence, far exceeding the limit his body could take. It had long been a hopeless situation for him.

    He would not hesitate to try any method he could think of.

    The storm in the natal residence not only started abruptly but ended abruptly as well.

    The surging elemental energy needles began to align themselves with each other in an organized fashion. If these needles could be previouslypared to vicious sharks filled with destructive force, then they could now bepared to a maic molehill made up of countless mas.

    Yes, they were now extremely quiet and stable.

    After the elemental energy needles had gotten attracted to each other, their sharpness decreased significantly. The needles themselves also soothed down by a reasonable amount. What surprised Ai Hui, however, was that the wounds of his natal residence had started to heal. The ma-like mass of metal elemental energy was of a higher base level than Ai Hui¡¯s, and as such, he could not absorb them. Nevertheless, Ai Hui¡¯s natal residence was acutely sensitive to this metal elemental energy. His natal residence also benefitted greatly from this pure and high-level metal energy, and his wounds were rapidly healing.

    Ai Hui finally heaved a sigh of relief.

    He had not expected events to unfold this way.

    He had initially intended to use the reaction between the elemental energy needles to direct the needles intopleting one Circtory Cycle, hence obtaining a temporary short burst of power that could help him escape.

    This hope of his had beenpletely shattered.

    Even though he found a way to increase the reaction, he had still not expected the elemental energy needles to be attracted to each other like mas.

    He now knew what the problem was¡ªthere were too many elemental energy needles.

    Senior Mingxiu could use one elemental energy needle to control another; however, if there were too many, Senior Mingxiu could do nothing as well. Furthermore, the reaction between the needles on Senior Mingxiu¡¯s hands was not as clumsy as his.

    Ai Hui guessed that it could be due to the natal residence.

    Senior Mingxiu had controlled the two elemental energy needles from outside of her body, weakening the reaction between the needles. Alright, what he did was wrong and what Senior Mingxiu had done was correct and normal. Who would anyone do such thing like him?

    His natal residence had the strongest control over his element energy, making it very likely that the reaction between the elemental energy needles would be stronger in the natal residence.

    After roughly figuring out the reason, Ai Hui was not happy at all.

    The elemental energy in the metal wind gushed into his body in an endless stream. Right now, the ¡°mass of elemental energy needles¡± in his natal residence was like a huge ma, generating a powerful attractive force. Ai Hui did not need to channel the elemental energy in his body as it was being automatically pulled to the mass of elemental energy needles.

    As more and more needles pulled towards it, the previously dispersed mass of elemental energy needles started to copse to the center, bing denser. From a small and fragile snowball, it eventually became an enormous solid ball of ice.

    There were too many elemental energy needles being added to the mass.

    Ai Hui trembled with fear when he saw the mass of elemental energy needles that was continuously expanding. No matter how hard he tried to channel his natal residence, he could not absorb the slightest bit of the mass of needles.

    Ai Hui¡¯s natal residence simply did not have the capacity to absorb such high-level metal elemental energy.

    As Ai Hui saw his natal residence being filled up bit by bit, he started to feel uncertain. He would soon implode and die while his natal residence would be stuffed to death.

    The only thing thatforted him was that the mass of elemental energy needles was currently not actually harmful.

    When Ai Hui saw that his natal residence waspletely stuffed, his heart sank. Previously, he could at least control one or two elemental energy needles, but this mass of elemental energy needles was totally out of his control. No matter how hard he tried to move it with his natal residence, it just wouldn¡¯t bulge.

    Bang! He mmed heavily against a wall. Wait...he had been blown upward; how could he have possibly mmed against a wall?

    A look of ecstasy suddenly appeared on his face!

    The top level of the pagoda¡ªthey had been blown all the way up to the top level of the pagoda!.

    Indeed, the metal wind was pressing the both of them to the ceiling of the pagoda, all the while making them feel as if they were being shed by many sharp swords.

    Yet it was currently a chance for Ai Hui to escape from this seemingly impossible situation. The metal wind was so fierce that he could not open his eyes; however, he could still feel the direction of the wind. There were five air vents in the top level of the pagoda, and they could escape out of any one.

    At this point of time, he recovered some of his physical strength.

    He followed the direction of the wind and inched sideways while sticking to the ceiling of the pagoda. The wind was incredibly powerful, making him feel as if there was a giant hand pressing firmly against his body.

    Meanwhile, behind him, Duanmu Huanghun remained unconscious and covered with blood. This fellow had an affinity with the wood attribute, and since Metal chopped Wood, being ravaged by the metal wind for such a long time was akin to receiving a torture; even if he were conscious, he would still be injured severely.

    At this point of time, Ai Hui had stoppedining about Duanmu Huanghun and merely hoped that he would survive. He had developed this mentality after braving through such a catastrophe together. He did not care about anything but surviving.

    Carrying the wretched Duanmu Huanghun, Ai Hui tried his best to move towards the air vent.

    After a while, he established that he was moving in the right direction. He no longer needed to move by himself as the strong wind was pushing him towards the air vent.

    This was because the wind became stronger as he drew closer to the air vent.

    Ai Hui protected his head from smashing into the edges of the air vent by curling his body into a ball. Even if he had a big and robust physique, it would still be extremely dangerous to crash into the edges of the air vent because of the fierce winds.

    ¡°ssmate Bangwan, I¡¯m afraid you¡¯ll have to fend for yourself,¡± Ai Hui muttered to himself.

    Finally! They were about to be out!

    Ai Hui was filled with joy as he had gained a new lease of life. Even though he could not open his eyes, he could feel the light grow increasingly bright.

    This meant that he was gradually approaching the air vent.

    At this point of time, hepletely lost control of his body, and it was as if he was going to be extruded out of the air vent by a powerful stream of air.

    Bang!

    He felt his arm m into something, and he was engulfed in a world of darkness.

    Thest thought he had before he lost consciousness was...

    I can¡¯t be that unlucky, right?

 Chapter 75: An Old Friend

    Chapter 75: An Old Friend

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    Mingxiu was lost.

    Not long after she left the city, she had be lost in the woods of the countryside. Ever since she was young, she had led a simple and straightforward life in the embroidery workshop. Other than looking after the embroidery business, she basically did not engage in other activities. The teachers had doted on her as well, and even when she went out to collect debts, she would be apanied by professional bodyguards.

    She did not have any experience traveling solo in the countryside.

    However, she was not really worried. The Induction Ground¡¯s countryside had long been purged a few times. Those fearsome monsters that could threaten the students had been repeatedly annihted by the older generations.

    The Induction Ground was the safest ce in the Avalon of Five Elements. This was a fact.

    Other than the injuries that urred during duels orpetitions in various training halls, there were not many fatal incidents. The Induction Ground even encouragedpetition among students, and the schools would not look into idental injuries that urred during duels and contests. Another source of injuries would be school missions. Although there were many dangerous missions, the Induction Ground encouraged students to engage frequently in such missions.

    This had always been a custom of the Induction Ground. It was built upon smoke and ashes and had never withdrawn from danger before.

    The threat of the Wilderness had still not been resolved. The Avalon of Five Elements needed valiant warriors, not sheltered babies, and the Induction Ground could never forget this principle.

    A lot of customs in the Induction Ground followed this principle.

    The Society of Excellence was also a product of this principle and the custom of bringing the frontline troops back to the Induction Ground as instructors had been established by the Induction Ground since early times.

    Li Wei and Zhou Xiaoxi regarded their stints as instructors in the Society of Excellence as a holiday. However, when both of them heard the siren, their old habits kicked in, making them the first ones to respond to the situation.

    Compared to them, the other teachers had a much slower response time.

    When both of them saw the unconscious guard and learned that the suspect had escaped to the countryside, they started the chase. After reaching the city gate, they split up. Li Wei spread the azure wings on his back.

    Azure wings had first appeared after the Avalon of Five Elements had been established. They were made of refined clouds, which were harvested in Palette Cloud Vige and then refined by water elementalists using a special technique. Before the appearance of azure wings, the sky was the territory of dire beasts. Mankind could not easily defend themselves from the dire beasts that could fly, and it was not until the creation of azure wings that they could go head to head with those dire beasts in the sky.

    Currently, the azure wings were the most widely-used single flying equipment. After thousands of years of development, the Palette Cloud Vige was able to export arger variety of the types of clouds, allowing it to live up to its name. As such, there was now a rich collection of types of azure wings avable.

    Initially, only water elementalists were able to use azure wings. However, after generations of hard work, water elementalists had developed various azure wings that were suitable for other types of elementalists.

    With a wingspan of seven meters, Li Wei¡¯s azure wings were copper-red and had a sturdy body speckled with a metal elemental glow. It was known as Copper Bone Bird and was suitable for metal elementalists. Copper Bone Bird did not have a high flying speed; however, it could bear a hefty load. Li Wei was from the infantry division, and his body had already developed copper skin and metallic bones; therefore, standard azure wings would not be able to carry his heavy weight.

    Furthermore, Copper Bone Bird had a rather powerful defensive capability, making it difficult to get damaged.

    He pped his azure wings, stirring up a huge gust of wind, before soaring into the sky.

    He hovered above, scanning through the woods with his eagle-like vision. If he were in the Wilderness, he would definitely not do such a thing¡ªhe specialized innd battles, not air battles.

    But he did not have such worries in the Induction Ground.

    After a while, he discovered a girl. He remembered that the guard had mentioned that some girl was pursuing the suspect.

    He leaped from the air andnded nearby the girl. He introduced himself, ¡°I¡¯m Li Wei from the infantry division. I¡¯m an instructor from the Society of Excellence in Central Pine City. Pleased to meet you!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m Lu Mingxiu from the Jade Embroidery Workshop.¡± Mingxiu returned the greeting politely.

    ¡°Lu Mingxiu from the Jade Embroidery Workshop,¡± Li Wei thought silently, as he carefully analyzed her face. She indeed looked familiar. He quickly asked, ¡°Is your Elder Brother called Mr. Lu Chen?¡±

    ¡°Brother Li knows my brother?¡± Mingxiu was astonished.

    Li Wei did not expect his guess to be right. He grinned. ¡°Mr. Lu saved my life before! That time when I was injured, I stayed at his ce for a month. He mentioned that Miss Mingxiu was training in embroidery. Then, now that I saw that Miss Mingxiu and Brother Lu looked very much alike, I took the liberty of asking Miss Mingxiu this question. I really didn¡¯t expect it to be Miss Mingxiu! Is Miss Mingxiu chasing the suspect?¡±

    ¡°He has escaped. The woods are toorge; after making a turn, I became lost, and I can¡¯t find which direction he went,¡± Mingxiu replied, distressed.

    ¡°Miss Mingxiu can return to the city first. I shall take care of the rest,¡± Li Wei said.

    ¡°We will go together.¡± Mingxiu shook her head and continued, ¡°And Brother Li can just call me Mingxiu. Miss Mingxiu sounds too formal.¡±

    When Li Wei saw how resolute she was, he decided not to persuade her anymore. The Induction Ground was anyways supposed to be very safe. Furthermore, that guard had merely fainted, and no one was injured. This should be some kind of prank. During his school days, he had done many unruly things as well.

    He felt that the school authority had somewhat overreacted. However, they could not be at fault, since Central Pine Academy¡¯s reputation had finally risen after great difficulty. The school authority did not want the school¡¯s reputation to now be affected in any way.

    Besides, he was now here taking care of this incident.

    Li Wei was very confident in his capability. With him around, it was impossible for anyone to harm Miss Mingxiu.

    Instead, he had hesitated when Miss Mingxiu had asked him to call her by her name. Mr. Lu was someone whom he respected very much.

    Mingxiu could sense Li Wei¡¯s hesitation. She assured him with a gentle voice. ¡°Since Brother Li is my elder brother¡¯s friend, you¡¯re naturally my friend too. Unless Brother Li does not wish to be Mingxiu¡¯s friend?¡±

    Li Wei was a no-nonsense man who was used to coquettishness. Upon hearing these words, he smiled. ¡°I shall respect your decision, then.¡±

    Mingxiu revealed a pleasant smile before quickly bing distressed. ¡°What should we do now?¡±

    When Li Wei saw Mingxiu¡¯s gentle and graceful smile, he was slightly struck dumb. He quickly returned to his senses and withdrew his gaze. With confidence, he replied, ¡°Mingxiu, follow me.¡±

    To Li Wei, pursuing a trail in the countryside was nothing out of the ordinary.

    He quickly found traces and started to follow them.

    Mingxiu was impressed by Li Wei¡¯s efficiency and skill. ¡°Brother Li is indeed skilled. You can identify the trail even in such arge woods.¡±

    Li Wei replied shyly, ¡°My skill level is considered average; there are people with higher skill level than me in my division.¡±

    When Mingxiu saw the tough and fierce man behaving shyly, sheughed softly, as she found it extremely funny.

    This time around, Li Wei¡¯s face blushed. When he realized his own reaction, he suddenly wished that he could go hide somewhere. To conceal his awkwardness, he looked around with a feignedposure and gave a sudden exmation of surprise.

    ¡°Has Brother Li discovered anything?¡± Mingxiu asked with her eyes wide open.

    ¡°That person has gone to the Suspending Golden Pagoda,¡± Li Wei exined.

    He could immediately identify the correct direction as he was very familiar with the terrain around the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    ¡°Let us go then!¡± Mingxiu said excitedly. Although she had a gentle nature, she was, after all, a girl. Having spent most of her time in the embroidery workshop, she had seldom encountered such a situation and felt that this was something new and exciting.

    Li Wei was infected by Mingxiu¡¯s liveliness and chuckled heartily. ¡°Let¡¯s go and find thatd who caused so much trouble!¡±

 Chapter 76: Discovery and Astonishment

    Chapter 76: Discovery and Astonishment

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    When the two of them rushed to the Suspending Golden Pagoda, they did not see anyone. Instead, their gazes were immediately attracted to something beneath the pagoda.

    A huge stone was tied by a thick metal chain, and a part of that metal chain was snapped off.

    Li Wei had previously trained at the Suspending Golden Pagoda and could figure out the purpose of the metal chain after some slight thinking. He couldn¡¯t help but feel that it was much more brilliant than his method in the past.

    When he had trained at the Suspending Golden Pagoda, he had sustained countless sufferings; but in exchange, he had managed to achieve a body of copper skin and iron bones. There were very few students who managed to reach the state of achieving a body of copper skin and iron bones in the Induction Ground, and due to the quality of his body, he was chosen to be part of the Infantry Division, one of the Thirteen Divisions, much to the surprise of numerous people.

    He couldn¡¯t believe that there was someone who was walking down the same path as him. His interest tremendously increased.

    The Suspending Golden Pagoda was not only one of the most neglected training grounds to the people of Central Pine City, but also to those from the neighbouring cities. It could be said to be almost deserted due to a single reason¡ªtraining there was simply too unbearable. It was much tougher than the average training, and furthermore, it took a long time to achieve the desired effect, which also made it a test of determination and willpower. There were very little who could endure it.

    Come to think of it, the Infantry Division was simrly not favorably seen upon.

    The Infantry Division was also known as theborer division. Despite being an elite division like the Infantry Division, the Sky Edge Division was more glorified and was more popr amongst girls. Li Wei was more than envious. The number of students who turned up for the Thirteen Divisions¡¯ yearly recruitment was lesser than those that turned up at the Sky Edge Division¡¯s by a huge margin. In fact, there was even a year where they did not manage to hit the recruitment target, which became a joke that spread throughout the Thirteen Divisions.

    Li Wei¡¯s heart beat faster after he saw the metal chain.

    It would really be a huge benefit for the Infantry Division if he could find a good seedling.

    The metal chain broke...

    Did an ident ur? Li Wei¡¯s heart jumped in rm.

    At that moment, he heard Mingxiu¡¯s surprised shout. "It is Junior Ai Hui!"

    Li Wei looked up and realized that other things were lying near the steps below the pagoda. He hurried over.

    There was a knapsack filled to the brim with yarn and a few threads of yarn scattered on the floor.

    Mingxiu¡¯s face was filled with rm. When she saw the knapsack filled with yarn, she had a slight feeling that it was Junior Ai Hui, but it was only after checking all the yarn and identifying the logo of the embroidery workshop that she confirmed that it was indeed Junior Ai Hui.

    She had searched for Junior Ai Hui in countless ces but to no avail. Mingxiu had not expected Junior Ai Hui to train at the Suspending Golden Pagoda alone as it was such a deserted area.

    She started to feel nervous.

    Junior Ai Hui was definitely not the suspect. She had exchanged hands with the suspect, and the suspect¡¯s base level was much higher than Junior Ai Hui¡¯s. She was worried that the suspect had harmed Junior Ai Hui, especially after seeing the broken metal chain.

    However, there were no traces of blood or a fight.

    Li Wei was more experienced. He gazed around and noticed a small piece of cloth on the ground. He hurriedly picked it up, and said, "There¡¯s a piece of muslin here!"

    Mingxiu, who was initially flustered, had slightly calmed down. But when her gaze fell upon the piece of cloth on Li Wei¡¯s hand, she could not stop her body from trembling¡ªshe was in a state of disbelief.

    Li Wei noticed Mingxiu¡¯s expression and passed the small piece of cloth to her.

    It was only a small piece of muslin, which was evidently iplete as it was still connected to two strings of yarn. The muslin was also creased, of inferior quality, and had many uneven parts. If someone produced such a product at the embroidery workshop, she would definitely return it back.

    However, it caused Mingxiu to be very shocked.

    Despite its inferior quality and ugly appearance, it was a piece of elemental cloth that had been weaved with the [Twin Weaving Technique].

    Junior Ai Hui was a novice who did not have any prior experience in embroidery and had spent half a day to thread a single needle, but he could actually produce an elemental cloth after seeing her demonstration just once. How could she not be astonished?

    She had grown up in the embroidery workshop but had never heard of such a thing before, let alone see it happen. The embroidery experts that she had met, including herself, could definitely not achieve such a feat. She clearly remembered that she weaved her first muslin cloth with the [Twin Weaving Technique] only seven months after entering the embroidery workshop.

    She could still remember the admiring and pleased gaze of her teacher.

    But Junior Ai Hui only saw it once....

    Apart from shock, countless doubts started to rise in her mind involuntarily. Since Junior¡¯s base level was so low, how could he manage to use the [Twin Weaving Technique]? Could it be that he saw the demonstration once and understood the [Twin Weaving Technique]? Were there really people with photographic memory in this world?

    She could see that Junior Ai Hui had a difficult time weaving from the creases on the muslin cloth.

    However, this was not a question of how tough it was, but rather of how it was even possible.

    He was able to weave the cloth with just his natal residence opened. If not for the special logo of the embroidery workshop on the cloth, she would have assumed that it was aplished with the help of others.

    Mingxiu felt that the knowledge she had umted over the years from learning weaving had beenpletely undermined.

    Li Wei saw that Mingxiu was out of sorts, seemingly deep in thought, so he did not disturb her. Instead, he started to survey the surroundings. When his gaze fell on the pagoda¡¯s wall, which was not far away, his pupils suddenly constricted.

    There was a distinct row of dents in the pagoda¡¯s wall.

    He suddenly thought of his previous trip to the pagoda. He had already seen the dents in the wall, but those previous dents were not distinct and weren¡¯t easily noticed by the naked eye. He had only discovered their existence by ident. At that point in time, he had assumed that the dents were caused by a beast, but now, after looking at the row of distinct dents, he realized that they were actually created by a human.

    Someone had been training and had rammed into the wall of the pagoda.

    Looking at the different shapes and magnitudes of the dents, Li Wei made a sudden decision. He approached a dent and turned around, leaning his back against the pagoda¡¯s wall.

    His back and the dent made a good fit.

    Indeed. It was a dent that was created by someone ramming their back into the wall.

    If Li Wei¡¯s emotions could be said to have been stirred after seeing the mental chain a moment ago, then when he now looked at the row of dents, his eyes could be said to be practically emitting rays of light.

    What a ferocious person!

    Other than Li Wei, nobody had a better understanding of how solid the wall of the Suspending Golden Pagoda was. Creating a dent in the wall required a horrifying amount of strength. The different types of killer moves that used the power of one¡¯s back shed through his mind. Which move was able to produce such power?

    Such tremendous strength also required at least four pces.

    Also, it was evident that the person was improving¡ªthe dents were getting deeper.

    Given Li Wei¡¯s current strength, it would be easy for him to achieve simr strength; but for someone to be training here, it was definitely a student. It was an incredible feat for a student to attain such a standard.

    However, the primary factor that contributed to the spark in Li Wei¡¯s eyes was the method used. This person was a perfect fit for the Infantry Division!

    This won¡¯t do! No matter what, he had to bring that person into the Infantry Division!

    Li Wei had already made the decision in his mind.

    Suddenly, his thoughts returned to the broken metal chain, and his eyelids twitched. Could it be that that fellow was training inside and had met a mishap after the metal chain snapped?

    He decided to rush in to find them. Given his current power, the Suspending Golden Pagoda was no longer a threat.

    However, just when he turned around, he heard a loud bang from the top of the pagoda.

    The two of them started in unison, before subconsciously raising their heads to look for the source.

    Mingxiu recognized Ai Hui at a nce, but the next moment, she became even more shocked.

    More than half of Ai Hui¡¯s clothes were torn, exposing his well-defined muscles. He was carrying someone, whose clothes were in bits and pieces, and the snow-white skin of that person could be seen stained dark red. They streaked across the air, leaving a stter of fresh blood in their wake.

    Mingxiu¡¯s first thought was that the person on Ai Hui¡¯s back was a woman, but when she saw the face, she couldn¡¯t help but halt in her tracks.

    Hey, isn¡¯t that Student Bangwan?

 Chapter 77: The Awakening

    Chapter 77: The Awakening

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui woke up in a daze. He had a bad dream, in which he was struggling in the middle of a gale and was unable to grasp ahold of anything. He had also dreamt of Fatty, who was carrying his corpse and sitting in a pool of mud, crying, his tears lost to the brutal winds.

    He had dreamt of Boss, who had made him burn all the swordy manuals. He had stood in the empty training hall for ages, feeling helpless and lost.

    Ai Hui woke up.

    His eyes were unfocused and dull; but after a moment, his gaze started to focus, and a feeble ray of light was lit up in the midst of an endless sea of gray and bleakness. It lit up the cold, engraved face of the metal and stone wall, akin to a spring breeze that vigorously blows and revitalizes the wintryndscape of the wilderness, delivering a fresh breath of life.

    He had not experienced a nightmare for a long time.

    He rested on the bed and stared at the ceiling, lost in thought.

    How was Fatty doing now? Was he still going around as a swindler and not training?

    Do not consume so much sugar, you are already so fat. If someone bullies you, remember the name but do not tell me. Even if you tell me, at least wait till I have higher skills than now. Or else if I am unable to curb the urge to avenge you, both of us would be in a terrible situation. Do not worry, I will train properly. If I am unable to defeat them, I will beat you instead, for provoking such a highly skilled enemy.

    He wondered how Boss¡¯s life was in the heavens. He guessed that there was no more swordsmanship in heaven.

    Boss, you must do as the natives do. As a human, no, as a ghost, you must be more realistic and not be so stubborn. Do not conduct business as you are not suitable. Find a stable job and do it well instead. There should be dozens of jobs like that in the heavens. It would not be qualified to be called ¡®heaven¡¯ if there were no stable jobs there.

    Ai Hui, you must work hard.

    After telling himself thatst sentence, he let out a long breath. The nightmare and the negative emotions were also exhaled out with the air.

    He went back to his usual self. The dull and dark state, the fearfulness, and the feeling of being a coward had all vanished as if nothing had even happened.

    His gaze was steady and calm. He was still the formidable Ai Hui who was scared of nothing.

    He struggled to get out of bed but was met with a sharp pain in his left arm.

    He expertly ascertained that his bone was fractured; this was not the first time he had met with such an injury. Recalling thest moment when he rushed out of the Suspending Golden Pagoda, he seemed to have knocked into something and had evidently injured himself. He did not realize that it was his left arm.

    As long as it was bound up properly and treated with medication, Ai Hui would recover in no time. He had ample experience¡ªexternal injuries such as fractures seemed to be serious on the surface, but in reality, they were not a big issue. As long as they would be treated properly and on time, there would be a rapid recovery. An internal injury, on the other hand, was a real nuisance. It would be very troublesome if there were injuries to the five residences and eight pces.

    He reckoned that he was in big trouble. Ai Huiughed bitterly.

    He was in a bit of a mess.

    He still did not know the condition within his body.

    Suddenly, he heard sounds of squabblinge from outside.

    "Shouchuan, he truly is a genius! He just opened his natal residence and could use the [Twin Weaving Technique] to weave the elemental cloth. Till now, I am unable toprehend how he did it. This is simply too unfathomable!"

    The voice of the olddy was filled with admiration.

    Ai Hui secretly felt pleased. Being praised by others was indeed a happy thing, not to mention that he had sacrificed a lot.

    "He is a genius! A weaving genius! Shouchuan, it was my fault previously. His talent is simply amazing, you must let hime to the embroidery workshop. I will educate him personally, and I want to take him as a closed-door disciple!" The olddy was evidently very agitated.

    Ai Hui was struck dumb. Please don¡¯t. Although weaving was a profitable job and offered a bright future, he was, after all, a man. It would be very awkward to always be dealing with weaving for the rest of his life.

    The old man was initially pleased, but once he heard that the olddy wanted to fight over Ai Hui, he could not care less anymore. "This is out of the question! He is my disciple! I have only one disciple, and he is going to be carrying my legacy in the future."

    "You are wasting his talent! You are being irresponsible!" The olddy coldly remarked, "Given your insubstantial theories, he could still follow and learn."

    "Whatever you say, my answer shall still be definitely no!" The old man rejected her bluntly.

    The olddy immediately became angry. "Wang Shouchuan, what do you mean by this? I have already apologized to you. What more do you want me to do? I have been following you for so many years, and this is how you treat me? It was my fault previously. When did I ever benefit from any good fortune after being with you for so long? When did I beg you for anything? If you are at the Induction Ground, I will follow you to the Induction ground. I let you squander whatever you want, and this is how you treat me? Wang Shouchuan, you better exin things to me clearly today! Boo hoo hoo....."

    Looking at his old partner reduced to tears, Wang Shouchuan became terrified. He softened his tone. "I did not say anything. Why are you crying?" My disciple is also your disciple. If he does not learn properly, you can break his legs."

    Li Wei and Mingxiu were at the side, looking down at the floor and standing still like statues. Li Wei felt weak and inwardly regretted that he rushed over. The spectacle unfolding did not seem like it was supposed to be seen by an outsider like him.

    Teacher, oh Teacher, please do not hold this against me, Li Wei thought to himself.

    Mingxiu had seen many such spectacles and did not feel too awkward. However, she also knew not to cut in at this moment.

    Seeing that his old partner had stifled her sobs, Wang Shouchuan continued, "But we have to consider Ai Hui¡¯s opinion as well."

    Having heard that, the olddy stopped crying and raised her voice. "He has objections?"

    Ai Hui, who was in the nearby room, felt his heart tremble.

    "Of course, he would not have objections." Wang Shouchuan coughed lightly. "Look at how much he wanted to enter the embroidery workshop. But we have to think over this properly. If he were a girl, I would give him to you without a second thought. But he is a boy, and you are more familiar with weaving than me. When was there a male weaving master? I am also clear of his temperament¡ªhe loves to fight. Learning to weave is one thing, but to let him weave for the rest of his life might be difficult for him."

    The olddy became silent.

    Wang Shouchuan¡¯s sentence was straight to the point. In fact, before she came, she too had felt that it was a pity that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t a girl. While it wasn¡¯t to say that there were no males who learned to weave, they were incredibly rare. Not to mention that there were no male weavers who had managed to achieve any aplishments.

    Seeing that he was winning the argument, Wang Shouchuan quickly continued, "My point is, let him go to the embroidery workshop when he has recovered. Let him learn first, and we will decide from there. We should not be anxious about whether he has good skills or whether he is interested in weaving. His future should still be decided by him."

    The olddy¡¯s face was not as ck as before, and she gave a snort and said, "Finally there is a humane sentenceing from you, after wasting so many of my tears. Mingxiu, let us go back to the embroidery workshop."

    With that, she left haughtily, without a trace of that tearful grandmother of a few moments ago.

    "Uncle, we are leaving." Mingxiu hurriedly bowed to Wang Shouchuan, waved to Li Wei, and ran after her master.

    Wang Shouchuan looked at his old departing partner and let out a sigh of relief. The battle that he had just fought had given him a huge shock. He grabbed the teapot that was on the table and started to take big gulps of water.

    Putting down the teapot, he asked Li Wei, who was at the side, "What happened to you again?"

 Chapter 78: The Teacherâ€™s Faith

    Chapter 78: The Teacher¡¯s Faith

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    "I want to invite Student Ai Hui to join the Society of Excellence."

    Li Wei carefully said. Although Teacher Wang wasn¡¯t that well-known, Li Wei did not dare to disy any signs of negligence. He had attended school at the Induction Ground and knew that the teachers were all hidden talents. He hadn¡¯t sensed it as a student; it was only after leaving the school that he realized that the teachers were all very remarkable individuals.

    Furthermore, as a student, Li Wei had attended Teacher Wang¡¯s lessons before.

    He was d that he hade to Teacher Wang¡¯s ce.

    After hearing that Ai Hui had a teacher, he didn¡¯t dare raise the invitation to Ai Hui without permission.

    "We should talk about this next time." The old man¡¯s tone to Li Wei was not that courteous. He waved his hand and stopped Li Wei from speaking.

    Li Wei retreated tactfully. However, in his heart, he had be even more determined in his resolution to bring Ai Hui into the Society of Excellence. The teachers in the Induction Ground had very high standards. To get into his good graces, Ai Hui¡¯s talent was definitely thought highly of. The recent debate had further proved his point¡ªeven Master Han Yuqin wanted to take Ai Hui as a disciple. What other thoughts could he have?

    Such a fine young talent! He would regret if he just let him pass by!

    The wheels were turning in Li Wei¡¯s head, as he thought of how he could kidnap¡ªno¡ªinvite Ai Hui into the Society of Excellence. And afterward, ignite his interest in the infantry division.

    After the old man had driven Li Wei away, he entered the room and saw Ai Hui, whose eyes were already opened. Heughed. "You heard everything right? What do you think? Are you interested in weaving?"

    Ai Hui shook his head. "While Disciple might get an ie through weaving, Disciple is unwilling to weave for the rest of his life."

    "See, I know you like the back of my own hand!" The old man was very pleased, and he clicked his tongue in wonder. "You could actually weave the muslin cloth. Even I received a shock."

    However, the old man immediately turned stern, and said, "Anyway, you should not be going to the embroidery workshop for some time. Your injuries are quite serious, and it would be troublesome."

    Ai Hui recalled the big piece of "ma" in his body and suddenly had an ominous premonition. "Is it very severe?"

    The old man did not answer his question, but instead, replied, "Tell me the specific details of what exactly happened."

    Ai Hui started to recount his experience¡ªhow he managed to train and weave simultaneously in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, how he was knocked back when he wanted toe out, and how he was subsequently swept up to the top of the Suspending Golden Pagoda. He had only been trying to save himself when he had injected the elemental energy into his natal residence.

    The old man listened till his eyes formed a straight line. Not only was he was shocked by his own disciple¡¯s fierce resolution, but he was also full of admiration for Ai Hui¡¯s courage and insight.

    He could not help but ask, "How did you think of the mutual attraction of the elemental energy needles?"

    "[The Twin Weaving Technique]! Didn¡¯t Senior Mingxiu demonstrate it once?" Ai Hui said matter-of-factly.

    The old man stared nkly at Ai Hui, and after a long while, he finally replied, "I am starting to believe the old woman¡¯s words that you are a weaving genius."

    His wife was an embroidery master, and he naturally understood the embroidery process more than others. Especially that old woman¡¯s [Twin Weaving Technique]. Very few people knew that there was actually a connection between him and the [Twin Weaving Technique].

    People only knew about Han Yuqin, the embroidery master, while Wang Shouchuan wasparatively unknown. There were very few that knew that they were childhood sweethearts. It was widely known that Master Han Yuqin had invented the [Twin Weaving Technique] at the age of neen, but no one knew that it was Wang Shouchuan who had initially discovered the induction effect of the elemental energy needles.

    As a result, the old man was even more impressed by Ai Hui¡¯s talent.

    To be able to understand theplexity of the [Twin Weaving Technique] after seeing it merely once¡ªsuch talent was truly unheard of.

    It was both a good and a bad thing that his disciple was this talented. This was because a talented disciple would create much more trouble than an average person.

    Just like this time.

    Ai Hui thought of Duanmu Huanghun, and he could not help but ask curiously, "Teacher, how¡¯s that fellow now?"

    The old man knew that Ai Hui was referring to Duanmu Huanghun, and he replied huffily, " His teacher is Dai Gang. Why are you even worried about him?"

    "I am not worried." Ai Hui fumed with rage, "I am awaiting mypensation from him! That hypocritical chap got me into so much trouble. This matter shall not rest until I destroy him!"

    "Teacher will support you!" The old man was very much in favor of Ai Hui¡¯s deration.

    "How about my injuries?" Ai Hui¡¯s eyes widened as he looked at his teacher with an innocent face.

    "Very troublesome," his teacher muttered. "The base level of the metal elemental energy in the Suspending Golden Pagoda is much higher than your natal residence. Your body is too weak for the strong metal elemental energy, and your natal residence is unable to absorb and digest it. Furthermore, as you are unable to train these days, it will be devoured straight by your body once the metal elemental energy enters. If you have opened four pces, then this elemental energy mass would be very nourishing for you, and you would be able to slowly absorb it."

    Ai Hui was anxious. "What should I do?"

    "There¡¯s always a solution." The old man continued haughtily, "While your teacher might not be Dai Gang, he is still capable of doing something."

    Ai Hui let out a breath in relief. As long as there was a solution, all was good.

    "This matter still needs the help of your mistress." The old man thought for a while before warning him, "Your mistress does not have a good temper. You should agree with whatever she says and should not offend her. Once she is offended, I will be unable to do anything as well. I owe her too much."

    The old man said thest sentence with slight guilt and regret.

    ...

    Ai Hui¡¯s fracture recovered speedily. His body was inherently strong, and his recovery ability was much better than that of the average students.

    He did not idle around while recuperating. Although he was unable to train, he had no qualms about attending lessons. When he went to ss, his ssmates noticed the injuries on his hand and some even asked about it concernedly.

    Duanmu Bangwan did not appear. Ai Hui presumed that he had still not recovered, and when he asked his ssmates, nobody knew when Duanmu Bangwan woulde. It seemed like the mishap which led to the injury on himself and Bangwan had not circted.

    Ai Huiughed coldly. Wait till he sees that fellow again. He would definitely get his revenge.

    He had wasted a lot of days without training and had dyed a few matters. He did not know if there would be any repercussions.

    He was so unlucky.

    In the middle of his recuperation, he also made a trip to the Vanguard Training Hall. Lou Lan examined him and also said that his condition was incurable. There was still no news from thatdy from the noodle shop¡ªit was like she had disappeared into thin air, making Ai Hui feel bbergasted.

    Ai Hui had always regarded injuries as amon urrence, and he kept a bnced mindset and lived his life to the fullest.

    The old man was always busy from dawn till dusk and his eyes were filled with red veins. Ai Hui knew that his teacher was busy with helping him in his recovery and was secretly very touched.

    Finally, the day came where the old man asked, "How¡¯re your injuries?"

    "They have all recovered!" Ai Hui waved his arm, proving that it was almost as good as new.

    "Then let us solve your problem of that mass of elemental energy!"

    As the old man expressed what Ai Hui had long been expecting to hear, Ai Hui continuously nodded his head, only one step away from eximing that his teacher was brilliant. Although this lifestyle was enriching, Ai Hui felt that his body was bing rusty from being unable to train.

    "Are we going to the embroidery workshop?"

    Ai Hui thought of his teacher¡¯s words that he needed his mistress¡¯ help and could not help but ask aloud.

    "Why should we go to the embroidery workshop?" The old man had a weird expression and continued, "Follow me."

    Ai Hui followed the old man to a familiar ce. The courtyard, which seemed to be made for collecting rubbish, was filled to the brim with junk. He definitely did not have any good memories of this ce.

    However, after seeing what was in the middle of the courtyard, Ai Hui¡¯s expression changed.

 Chapter 79: Teacherâ€™s Instructions

    Chapter 79: Teacher¡¯s Instructions

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    The junkyard contained memories that Ai Hui did not wish to recollect.

    However, while walking in, he realized that there had been drastic changes to the junkyard, which led him to believe that he had arrived at a different ce. Five luxuriant pine trees practically upied the whole junkyard, yet he clearly remembered that previously there were no trees.

    All the pine trees were taller than ten meters as if they had been growing there for a few decades.

    Ai Hui knew that this was done by wood elementalists. Back in the Wilderness, whenever they had stopped to set up camp, they would nt various strange vegetations near their campsite. If they wanted to stay in a treehouse, then within half an hour, wood elementalists could grow a Zeikowa Acuminata tree with a height of more than twenty meters, They could also manage to grow poisonous grass that had neither fragrance nor color. Fields of thistles and thorns, along with wind-chime grass, could act as warning signals as well.

    If earth elementalists were said to have entric dispositions and strange skills, then every wood elementalist was said to be a botanical expert. The dispositions of wood elementalists were usually on two opposite ends of the spectrum. There were those who were kind, extremely kind, and would not bear to kill even an ant. And then there were also those who were twisted, extremely twisted, and would even use otherworldly techniques to murder; they would not let anything, even a corpse, remain.

    The five pine trees were coincidentally arranged in the shape of a ring. Between each tree, there were many colorful vines, forming something simr to a brightly-coloured rattan wall.

    An ice-cold copper armor was ced in the middle of the five pine trees.

    Upon seeing the armor, Ai Hui¡¯s expression changed.

    The memories of the Thousand Prajna still gave him nightmares.

    Moreover, the volume of this armor was muchrger than the Thousand Prajna. There were also many colorful vines that dropped from the pine tree and pierced through the armor.

    Ai Hui swallowed hard. The scene before his eyes reminded him of the Blood-Sucking Rattan, one of the evilest nts used by wood elementalists. Many kind wood elementalists themselves loathed the blood-sucking rattan as well. It was very frightening. In the Wilderness, he had experienced first-hand how a wood elementalist made use of the blood-sucking rattan to reduce an elephant to just skin and bones within a minute.

    For a long period, that scary scenario had kept repeating itself in Ai Hui¡¯s nightmares.

    ¡°How about this? Pretty good right?¡± The old man was quite proud. ¡°I had to get a few wood elementalist masters to do this for me. The metal elemental energy in your body is simply too stable. It would not be an easy feat to move it. But you don¡¯t have to worry; Master has years of experience in the interaction between the different types of elemental energy. Furthermore, it would definitely not be a problem with the participation of your Mistress.¡±

    Ai Hui felt more assured after that. After all, Mistress¡¯ nickname(Master) was quite intimidating.

    ¡°Your situation is rtively serious. In fact, it¡¯s more serious than I had previously thought.¡± The old man¡¯s expression became stern. ¡°There is simply too much regarding quantity. Perhaps you would be able to understand if I exin it in another way. If you had opened four pces, then topletely absorb and digest the mass of elemental energy, you would need approximately eight years. And if you had opened five pces, the time frame would be shortened to four years.¡±

    Ai Hui jumped in rm. ¡°Not...Not such a long period of time, right? I did not stay inside the pagoda for so long.¡±

    ¡°It is much longer than you imagined.¡± The old man looked at Ai Hui with a face of pity and continued mockingly, ¡°Come to think of it, you were ignorant and had no fear. I am very impressed by the fact that you dared to go to the Suspending Golden Pagoda when you had just opened your natal residence. Do you know who would usually dare to go? Four pces, only the students who opened four pces would dare to. This is because the elemental energy of the metal wind is very pure and the base level requirement is very high. Without the support of four pces, it would be very difficult to absorb and digest this energy.¡±

    Ai Hui opened his mouth, but no words came out.

    ¡°And this is only the first level. Someone had previously conducted research. With each increasing level, the purity of the elemental energy would increase by approximately three times. You, my disciple, took a walk around the seventh level.¡± The old man clicked his tongue and continued, ¡°For many years, nobody has dared to do such a thing. If this spreads, you might even be famous.¡±

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck.

    It was evident that the old man was not going to let him off the hook easily. ¡°If that were the only thing that happened, you would not have absorbed so much metal elemental energy. However, you, my disciple, are a genius. You thought of using the [Twin Weaving Technique] to circte your elemental energy. What an exquisite and brilliant idea! Thereafter, you had lost control, and the elemental energy became uncontroble. The elemental energy masspressed itself continuously while the attractive force kept on increasing, absorbing the elemental energy steadily. I was bored while doing my business in the toilet yesterday and did some calctions for you. Approximately eighty percent of the elemental energy in your body was absorbed by itself.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s worse is that you, my disciple, used such a brilliant inspiration on your own natal residence. This is not just difficult, this is creating extreme difficulty for yourself. If it were just in the pce and not the residence, the difficulty level would be much smaller,¡± the old man said, with a face full of ridicule. He suddenly realized something, and continued, ¡°Oh, I forgot that you, my disciple, had only managed to open your natal residence.¡±

    It was only after seeing Ai Hui¡¯s pale face that the old man slowed down his speech. With a serious expression, he said, ¡°The reason why Master is saying so much is to give you a shock.¡±

    Ai Hui helplessly looked at his harsh Master.

    ¡°You might be able to win unexpectedly, sometimes due to luck and taking risks, but it is not sustainable. You have more real-life experiences than Master, and you should know that sess is mostly based on capability, and intelligence would be effective asionally. Training is a long battle, and training to be strong to defeat the weak is the right way to go. If you are to rely on luck and you meet with any mishaps, you would be consigned to eternal damnation.¡±

    There was a rare note of seriousness to the old man¡¯s tone.

    Ai Hui jolted and replied courteously, ¡°Disciple will bear this in mind.¡±

    The old man was satisfied with Ai Hui¡¯s attitude and continued slowly, ¡°Okay, we are done with the negatives. Let¡¯s talk about the benefits now.¡±

    When Ai Hui initially heard the word ¡°benefits,¡± he paused for a moment, before asking excitedly, ¡°Don¡¯t tell me there are benefits too?¡±

    ¡°Of course.¡± The old man continued, ¡°You have to think of it this way. There is so much elemental energy in your body. How could there not be any benefits? Do you usually have so much elemental energy? Furthermore, it is such pure elemental energy.¡±

    ¡°But it is of no use,¡± Ai Hui said, his face filled with confusion.

    The old man said impatiently, ¡°Where did your intelligence go? You can always think of something!¡±

    ¡°Has Teacher thought of a solution?¡± Ai Hui rushed forward and looked at his teacher with a fawning face.

    ¡°How could I be your teacher otherwise?¡± The old man said with a smug face, ¡°Your body¡¯s internal elemental energy is simply toopressed. If we break it uppletely, your natal residence would explode. Do you know about the spirit stone in the Cultivation Era?

    ¡°Yes, I have heard of it,¡± Ai Hui said truthfully.

    ¡°Inherently, the spirit stone is actually the spiritual force beingpressed to the maximum point, before being solidified into a crystal. The elemental energy mass in your body now is slightly simr to the spirit stone. Many people have tried to create the elemental stone but to no avail. On the contrary, you managed to do it by a stroke of luck. Just imagine that mass of elemental energy as an elemental stone with a high base level. Do you feel a little more awesome about yourself if you think about it that way?¡°

    Ai Hui replied honestly, ¡°Nope.¡±

    ¡°No?¡± The old man widened his eyes. ¡°At your current level, that mass of elemental energy can never be used up and can self-replenish. Isn¡¯t that awesome?¡±

    ¡°But I am unable to use it,¡± Ai Hui said matter-of-factly.

    ¡°Who said that you are unable to use it?¡± The old man almost went crazy with rage, and he countered, ¡°Then what have I been doing?¡±

    Ai Hui was surprised, and with a shocked face, he asked, ¡°Didn¡¯t Teacher say it was a treatment? I thought it would be a removal or something along the same lines.¡±

    ¡°That is too easy,¡± the old man said loftily.

    Ai Hui gulped.

    Why did he suddenly feel guilty?

 Chapter 80: Gloves and Blood Bandage

    Chapter 80: Gloves and Blood Bandage

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    "This is something that can¡¯t be helped." The old man coughed softly.

    Hearing these words, Ai Hui suddenly felt at ease.

    "The elemental energy has beenpressed to an extreme degree, and once it copses, your natal residence will be destroyed¡ªthis is why we are trying to prevent it from caving in on itself. Or you can treat it as an iceberg that we are trying to melt bit by bit. Since its base level is extremely high, a small portion of the melted energy can be used for a long time. However, the thawing process will not be easy. We¡¯ll have to use certain specialized equipment such as this one. Oh... I can¡¯t remember the name of it." The old man had a strange expression.

    "The elemental energy in your body contains a powerful attractive force that behaves like a ma. This will be our greatest hurdle as it¡¯s extremely difficult to ovee this kind of attraction. However, if we only need to influence a small portion, then it¡¯s still possible to do so. Have you noticed these rattans? They are able to generate powerful wood elemental energy, and since metal chops wood, the wood elemental energy will induce a strong attractive effect on the metal elemental energy, thereby controlling a small portion of it from the energy mass. This is the portion of metal elemental energy that you will be able to control."

    After listening to the old man, Ai Hui vaguely understood what was going on. "So, we¡¯re using the wood elemental energy as bait? To pull out a portion of metal elemental energy from the mass?"

    "Yes! You got it!" The old man briskly nodded his head. "Shall we begin then?"

    Without any hesitation, Ai Hui nodded. "Okay!"

    Though the past few days had been enriching, his inability to train made him feel as though something was missing. His life was dedicated to bing an elementalist, and training had be an inseparable part of it.

    After equipping the copper armor, he ced the massive copper helmet on his head, narrowing his field of vision as the world around him became hushed.

    He could hear his own heartbeats, which were steady and vigorous.

    The rattans on the copper armor lit up on by one, illuminating the courtyard with its bright, enchanting glow.

    The old man¡¯s gaze sharpened, and from time to time, he nced at the control panel in his hands.

    The elemental energy mass in Ai Hui¡¯s body started channeling, making him ufortable. To him, it was like a huge monster living inside his body that wasparatively far too inferior. When the monster was calm and quiet, he did not feel anything; but when it began to get agitated, Ai Hui felt as though his body was going to be ripped apart at any time.

    Lacerations began to appear in his natal residence.

    It was at this moment that Ai Hui realized the terrifying amount of elemental energy in his body. The slightest movement from the mass was enough to inflict injuries on him.

    It was as if Ai Hui was in a stormy sea, undting along with the choppy tidal waves.

    His world spinning and his vision turning dark, Ai Hui¡¯s consciousness flickered.

    Outside, the old man became anxious as well. The rattans on the copper armor dimmed one by one, and in the blink of an eye, one-third of them were extinguished. With each extinguished rattan, the old man quickly plucked it off.

    "Persevere!" he muttered to himself.

    As time passed, the glow of the rattans diminished one at a time, the old man continuing to remove them in session.

    Half an hourter, when thest rattan dimmed, the old man opened the armor as quick as possible. Boiling steam surged out from within the armor. Ai Hui had already lost his consciousness and his face was pale-white. When the old man pulled Ai Hui out of the armor, thetter¡¯s body was drenched in sweat, looking as if he was being out of a pool of water.

    The old man observed the elemental energy mass in Ai Hui¡¯s body. When the old man saw the elemental energy mass was stabilizing gradually, he then felt at ease.

    When the old man removed thest extinguished rattan, he looked somewhat surprised.

    The ashen green rattan was nondescript without any particr design except that it was soft and smooth, as though it had been polished by sandpaper.

    It was a sword rattan.

    ***

    Three dayster.

    Ai Hui was ying with the sword rattan.

    After spending one day in aa, he woke up only to have the old man immediately throw this at him. Sword rattans had a soft texture, yet they were highly durable and resistant to wear. Once polished, they had a pleasing texture. Sword rattans were called so for their use as the material for top-quality sword hilts with natural grips.

    Master said that this was the rattan that suited him the most.

    Ai Hui felt that his fate was tightly linked with swords. So far in his life, there were swordy manuals, swordsmanship, and a sword embryo. Now there was the addition of a sword rattan. Could it be that he was born to be a swordsman?

    He was ying idly with the sword rattan when he spotted the sudden entrance of his mistress and Senior Mingxiu. He hastily stood up and greeted them, "Mistress! Senior Mingxiu!"

    Han Yuqin did not expect Ai Hui to call her Mistress; as such, she could not help but smile. "Good boy."

    The bit of animosity from their previous tiff disappeared into thin air.

    Mingxiu smiled gently at Ai Hui.

    Seeing the old man enter, Han Yuqin¡¯s smile disappeared, and she harrumphed.

    Long used to his wife¡¯s antics, he merely said, "Have you finished making it?"

    "Take it out," Han Yuqin ordered Mingxiu.

    Mingxiu took out a pair of ashen green, fingerless gloves and passed them to Ai Hui. "Junior, try them on. These are the Sword Rattan Gloves that Mistress made without sleep for three days."

    Mingxiu

    Only now did Ai Hui notice the the fatigue in Mistress¡¯ face and her bloodshot eyes. "Thank you, Mistress!" he said emotionally.

    "Such a good boy!" Han Yuqin praised Ai Hui amicably. Following which, her tone changed and she crooned coldly, "The disciple is so much better than the master; at least he still cares about his mistress, unlike someone who doesn¡¯t concern himself with me!"

    Slightly embarrassed, the old man coughed softly. "I didn¡¯t manage to say it in time. Thank you for your hard work."

    Han Yuqin uncaringly turned her face away with a humph.

    Just as Ai Hui was about to put on the gloves, he was stopped by Han Yuqin. "Wait, put on this bandage first!"

    "Bandage?" Ai Hui was stunned.

    Han Yuqin took out an archaic bronze box and passed it to Ai Hui.

    When the old man saw the bronze box, his eyes widened. "That piece of blood-refined cloth?"

    Han Yuqin gave a soft sound of acknowledgement, but her face was covered by an unconceble smirk.

    Ai Hui opened the bronze box, releasing a bolt of killer intent that mmed into his face. The scent of blood overwhelmed him, but upon a second sniff, it had disappeared, as if the smell from earlier had been a hallucination. The cloth was obviously an antique, but the blood stains appeared to have dried up not too long ago.

    "I incidentally came across this piece of blood-refined cloth in the past. It should be an artifact from the Cultivation Era. I don¡¯t know which blood sect it belongs to; it is certainly not an orthodox artifact. However, even after thousands of years, it has not rotted, proving it to be a good item. I¡¯m unsure whose blood is on the cloth, but it exudes a strong killer intent. It¡¯s too demonic for me or Mingxiu to use; as such, we have never touched it.

    "Your master hasn¡¯t given you a single wee gift since epting you as a disciple. I have cut this piece of blood-refined cloth into two, making them two pieces of bandaging. While they¡¯re not suitable for treating wounds, they are useful for protection, especially since your body is weak. With these two Blood Bandages, it will be very difficult for any weapon to harm you. They can help you withstand a portion of any attack, preventing your body from giving way or copsing. Later, Mingxiu will teach you how to wrap the bandage," Han Yuqin exined with a gentle voice.

    A wide grin appeared on the old man¡¯s face and he yelled, "What are you waiting for? Quickly thank your mistress!"

    Ai Hui was touched and gave a sincere bow. "Thank you, Mistress!"

    An unfamiliar feeling of warmth, like sunlight, shined upon him.

 Chapter 81: Three-minute Hero

    Chapter 81: Three-minute Hero

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    Senior Mingxiu¡¯s bandaging technique surprised Ai Hui. She had said before that her limited medical knowledge came from her brother who was an exceptional doctor.

    However, the way he saw it, her medical knowledge was not little at all, but rather, quite detailed.

    She started by wrapping the bandage diagonally across the top half of his body, then down his shoulders and arms to his wrists. Lastly, the blood bandage was tied to a knot on each of the Sword Rattan Gloves; this way, the bandage wrappings on both left and right arms were symmetrical to each other.

    The blood bandage was surprisingly long, enough to wrap around the necessary body parts.

    Ai Hui became acutely aware of his clumsiness after taking more than ten tries to get it done.

    Finishing, he felt a change had taken ce.

    Chilly killing intent from the bandage entered his body, exerting a calming influence on the elemental energy mass. Ai Hui immediately felt his body rx, and the feeling of being as lithe as a swallow returned to his body once more. It seemed the blood bandage¡¯s tight wrapping did not limit his body¡¯s movements but made him more agile instead.

    "Now try untying the knots on the gloves," Mingxiu encouraged.

    All eyes were trained on Ai Hui, especially the old man¡¯s who looked on somewhat nervously.

    Taking a deep breath, Ai Hui untied the knot on his right wrist.

    The elemental energy mass in his natal residence shuddered before a strand of elemental energy swam out from it and rapidly entered his right palm.

    Despite the elemental energy strand¡¯s weak nature, it was extremely pure. It swam through his body with lightning speed, reaching Ai Hui¡¯s right palm in no time. Just as it was about to prate through the Sword Rattan Gloves, it unexpectedly stopped in its tracks, blocked by an invisible wall.

    The gloves woven by a master weaver were indeed extraordinary!

    Joy coursed through Ai Hui, and realizing he could control this strand of metal elemental energy, he became even more excited. With a jolt of his body, he appeared like a phantom before the trunk of arge pine tree in the corner of the courtyard.

    It had been a while since hest practiced [Arching Fish Back], but now it activated instinctively, ferociously mming him backwards.

    Crack!

    The pine tree, as wide as two men together, shattered, the point of impact spraying countless wooden shavings. The top half of the tree snapped and flew through the air.

    Rumble!

    It smashed into the courtyard wall, filling the air with dust and dirt. The wall remained standing, thickly dotted with numerous wooden fragments.

    Everyone was dumbstruck with terror after witnessing such a ferocious strike from Ai Hui.

    "Is this guy a bear?" the old man muttered.

    Ai Hui stared with simr astonishment at the tree stump, unable to believe the sight before his eyes. Was this truly the [Arching Fish Back]?

    "Now you can feel the power of it, right?" The old man returned to his senses and spoke with excitement, "Even though it¡¯s just a small strand, the high-quality elemental energy can generate far greater power than what is generated by low quality elemental energy. This is also one of the reasons for training. The elemental energy you are able to wield now far surpasses your base level. The benefits are already quite obvious. Your fighting capabilities will improve immensely, and you will gain a stronger tempered body.

    "So why, then, do we need the Sword Rattan Gloves? With these, you¡¯ll be able to direct the elemental energy to your palms. This will be useful in activating the pces in your left and right hands. It feels good to be an expert, right? Now since we¡¯ve finished talking about the benefits, let¡¯s talk about the drawbacks."

    Ai Hui pricked up his ears.

    Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s calm countenance, rather than ecstasy, after obtaining stronger powers, the old man subtly nodded.

    Ai Hui truly deserved to be his disciple. His maturity at such a young age was rarely seen!

    "The problem is that there will be a heavy strain on your body. Does this sound confusing? There¡¯s actually nothingplicated about this. When this strand of elemental energy slowly revolves in your body, it will help in your training. However, inbat, the elemental energy will revolve very quickly around your body¡ªthe higher the level of elemental energy, the faster its revolution speed. This is what will strain your body greatly. When the pressure gets too great, your body will sustain irreversible damages."

    "How long can I fight?" Ai Hui asked calmly.

    The old man held out three fingers and answered, "Given your current physical status, it is considered safe to fight for no more than three minutes."

    "That¡¯s quite good; at least I can be a three-minute hero," Ai Hui quipped.

    When Han Yuqin and Ming Xiu heard the phrase "three-minute hero", they broke out inughter.

    "You¡¯re right. However, during this period of time, as your body bes stronger, the duration will increase as well. Your main objective is to activate the pces in your left and right hands; once you do, not only will you be able to use more elemental energy, it will be much safer for you as well. You have to keep in mind that although you have the blood bandage, that mass of elemental energy remains in your body as a ticking time bomb. If anything goes wrong, your body will explode into countless pieces with a bang," the old man chimed in.

    This result was within Ai Hui¡¯s expectations. He remained unperturbed as he knew that this was inevitable. He was not someone born under a lucky star. You win some, you lose some, there was nothing to be surprised about.

    Everyone present thought Ai Hui was joking when he mentioned the phrase "three-minute hero," but that was not the case, and he was fine with it. Although three minutes were short, it was still enough for him to aplish many things. A real battle could be decided in an instant. With a whole three minutes of immense powers, Ai Hui would not waste a single second. With a straight face, he asked, "How should I train?"

    "You won¡¯t need to go to the Suspending Golden Pagoda for very long," the old man teased before a solemn look overtook his face and he continued, "There¡¯s a crucial problem with your training¡ªthe strand of elemental energy cannot return to the natal residence. If it does, it will only be absorbed back into the elemental energy mass once more."

    Hearing these words, the previously calm Ai Hui lost hisposure, and he asked, "How should I train then?"

    The basis of training was to direct elemental energy using the Circtory Cycle Revolution of which the natal residence was both the starting and ending point. If the elemental energy could not return to the natal residence, how could he train?

    The old man revealed a smirk, replying, "I have alreadye up with a solution for this problem. It¡¯s simple¡ªwe won¡¯t use the Circtory Cycle Revolution."

    "Not using the Circtory Cycle Revolution?" Ai Hui thought he misheard.

    Han Yuqin and Mingxiu revealed surprised expressions as well.

    "That¡¯s right! No Circtory Cycle Revolution!" the old man replied without hesitation. "What¡¯s the purpose of the Circtory Cycle Revolution? To purify and absorb elemental energy. Currently, the elemental energy in your body does not need to be purified since it is already extremely pure in nature. Furthermore, there is an abundance of it. What you need to do now is toughen your body, especially your palms.

    "To activate the pces in your left and right hands, there are two conditions. The first is to make sure your hands are sensitive to elemental energy. The second condition is to make sure there is enough elemental energy. The elemental energy you have is pure in nature, but the amount you control is far too little; it is far from enough to activate the pces in your hands."

    Ai Hui felt that what his master had said made sense, and he could not help but ask, "What do I need to do specifically?

    "For this, you will have to depend on your mistress." The old man smirked.

    "Depend on me?" Han Yuqin was baffled. Suddenly, her eyes lit up as she thought of something. "Are you talking about..."

 Chapter 82: Lou Lanâ€™s Medical Care

    Chapter 82: Lou Lan¡¯s Medical Care

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    ¡°Ai Hui, how are you feeling?¡±

    Lou Lan, who was standing on one side, asked with sincere concern.

    Ai Hui had actually wanted to start training as soon as possible. However, Mistress had said that she needed to prepare for a few days and that she stillcked certain items. At the same time, Master was putting on a mysterious front¡ªit appeared that the training this time around would be quite special. However, aspared to his prideful Master and temperamental Mistress, the training made Ai Hui felt more at ease.

    How could he think of such things? How could he not have confidence in his master?

    When Ai Hui realized that he was having such thoughts, he felt ashamed and guilty. He reflected upon himself for a long time. Why was he thinking like that?

    For the next few days, Ai Hui attended sses as per usual since he could not train. He was filled with enthusiasm towards all his sses. The only regret he had was that he wasn¡¯t able to encounter his fellow ssmate Bangwan and im thepensation for the damages thetter had caused.

    After the lessons had ended, Ai Hui returned to the training hall. Lou Lan, who had been anxiously waiting for Ai Hui, scurried over.

    It just so happened that Ai Hui had wanted to find out the current status of his body. With Lou Lan, who specialized in healing, by his side, Ai Hui did not have to worry about any idents happening.

    ¡°Three and a half minutes.¡±

    Ai Hui, who wasying on the ground, felt rather happy. He hadsted a whole half minute longer than what Master had anticipated. To other people, an additional thirty seconds would be equivalent to an extra few breaths of air; however, to Ai Hui, the additional thirty seconds would allow him to execute quite a few attacks.

    ¡°Your attacks are rather powerful,¡± Lou Lan analyzed, as the yellow light in his eyes flickered. ¡°Your normal attacks have roughly reached the level of two pces. Your [Arching Fish Back] is your most powerful attack. With a conservative estimate, it has a killing power of three pces. I do not have enough information and could not make an urateparison. Your body is outstanding, and this can provide a significant boost to your fighting capabilities.¡±

    Lou Lan¡¯s assessment was very urate¡ªalmost identical to Ai Hui¡¯s own assessment of himself.

    During the three and a half minutes, although Ai Hui¡¯s base level was around two pces, his fighting strength exceeded that level. Other than his remarkable fighting techniques and experience, his excellent body also yed a major role in improving his fighting capabilities.

    The high-level elemental energy allowed him to sessfully develop the [Copper Skin].

    [Copper Skin] contributed an important upgrade to his body.

    His strength and reaction time had also increased onefold, and his body had be much tougher. Non-refined sword reeds would not be able to inflict any cuts on his skin.

    This meant that even if he didn¡¯t have elemental energy, his base power was at the level of two pces.

    Developing a tempered body was a difficult process; however, if one were to seed, it would provide aprehensive boost to their fighting capabilities.

    Simrly, the power of [Arching Fish Back] had exhrated Ai Hui.

    [Arching Fish Back] was an escaping technique and was usually used to escape from body locks; it was incapable of inflicting any damage. Ai Hui had ingeniously used it during battles and had discovered that it was a rather good technique to be used during fighting. He then subsequently mastered this technique to the point of perfection during his training in the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    Other than Ai Hui, no one would waste so much time on an escaping technique that had limited uses.

    This could, however, be linked to Ai Hui¡¯s past experiences. He was extremely meticulous and sensitive to every detail that was rted to fighting. He could urately sense the increase in his powers.

    If it were in the past, he would have to find loopholes in his opponent¡¯s defense before executing the [Arching Fish Back]. However, now, if an opponent tried to block his [Arching Fish Back] head-on, they would indeed suffer.

    The densely packed wood shavings that were deeply embedded into the wall of his Master¡¯s courtyard was the best disy of his [Arching Fish Back]¡¯s might.

    Combat was veryplicated; however, strength was still what mattered the most. When a person who had a base level of four pces fought against another who had a base level of two pces, the former might not necessarily win, yet the probability of them winning would definitely be higher. The stronger one was, the more trump cards they had. This would ensure that they would obtain an advantageous position inbat.

    Right now, if Ai Hui were to fight against any student in the Induction Ground, he would win easily as he had rich fighting experience. However, when he would step out of the Induction Ground and enter the Wilderness in the future, it might not be the same case. That was a ce where everyone knew how to fight and those who did not would be eliminated.

    Strength was everything.

    And only strength could bring a sense of security to Ai Hui.

    ¡°Lou Lan, I can¡¯t move,¡± Ai Hui groaned, as hey on the floor.

    Although the three and a half minutes were exhrating, the strain it put on Ai Hui¡¯s body had far exceeded what he had expected. Currently, his body was sore and aching, and his fighting capabilities were totally crippled. His muscles were involuntarily trembling as well.

    ¡°Lou Lan ising!¡±

    With a loud cheer, Lou Lan transformed into a massive hammer of sand.

    ¡°Bang! Bang! Bang!¡±

    The huge sand hammer struck Ai Hui¡¯s body. Ai Hui felt sofortable that he was grasping for cold air while moaning, ¡°Ah! Ah! Correct, correct, you¡¯re right on the spot! Harder, please!¡±

    After enjoying for quite awhile, Ai Hui felt that it was enough, and he yelled, ¡°Lou Lan, change to another form!¡±

    ¡°No problem!¡±

    Lou Lan yelled happily as he transformed into two huge sand palms and began to massage Ai Hui¡¯s body as if he was kneading dough.

    ¡°There¡¯s the right amount of force! There¡¯s the right amount of pressure! Everything is the right amount...¡±

    Ai Hui felt that his body was as soft as a dough, not belonging to him anymore.

    After a while, Lou Lan transformed into numerous little sand wheels that rolled around Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    ¡°Hahaha, ahh...Lou Lan, you really know a thing or two about massage...Hahaha, it¡¯s ticklish...¡±

    With a bang, Lou Lan transformed back to his original form. When he saw that Ai Hui had fallen asleep, he pulled him to the hot spring at the back of the courtyard and tossed him inside.

    Ai Hui woke up with a start. At that moment, his pupils dted as he scanned his surroundings, and he finally heaved a sigh of relief only after he noticed Lou Lan.

    ¡°I actually fell asleep...¡±

    Ai Hui felt somewhat embarrassed. Lou Lan had put in so much effort to massage him, and he had fallen asleep instead. Good job!

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Ai Hui,¡± Lou Lan replied casually. Then, he asked, ¡°Ai Hui, what shall we do next?¡±

    ¡°Next up...¡± Ai Hui had wanted to suggest taking a nap, but when he saw Lou Lan staring anticipatively at him, he changed his mind. ¡°Is there any news from the youngdy of the noodle house?¡±

    ¡°No.¡± Lou Lan shook his head.

    When Ai Hui felt that his strength was recovering rapidly, his spirits were raised. ¡°We shall go to the training hall now.¡±

    Ai Hui wanted to fulfill his promise to thedy at the noodle house despite the fact that he did not carry much hope of sessfully finding that person.

    ¡°Okay, Ai Hui!¡± Lou Lan replied enthusiastically.

    A smile appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face when he saw Lou Lan¡¯s happy reaction. Lou Lan reminded him of Fatty; however, in this case, Lou Lan¡¯s character was far better.

    Such a nice sand puppet!

    Fatty, that bum¡ªhe did not even know how to massage.

    The hot spring was able to help him regain his strength quickly, and after a while, he had regained most of his strength.

    In summary, he could only fight for three and a half minutes¡ªthat was his limit. After the time was up, he would lose all means to defend himself. Hence, it seemed reasonable for his master to set three minutes as a time limit for him. It was much easier to recover from exhaustion that was derived from the revolution of elemental energy.

    ¡°Lou Lan, is there anything that can regain my strength after what happened just now?¡± Ai Hui suddenly asked.

    Lou Lan nted his head for a moment before nodding his head. ¡°Yes, you can drink the Energy Replenishing Soup.¡±

    ¡°Is there anything that can be carried along with me?¡± Ai Hui carried on.

    Lou Lan nodded again. ¡°I can make biscuits.¡±

    ¡°Are they expensive?¡± Ai Hui asked.

    ¡°They¡¯re not expensive.¡± Lou Lan shook his head, as he continued, ¡°Any ingredient that¡¯s rted to elemental energy will be costly. Any ingredient that¡¯s rted to just energy will be cheap. A lot of biscuits can be made with just fifty thousand yuan. However, you will know how well they work only after you eat them.¡±

    ¡°I cane up with the money. Lou Lan, please help me make the biscuits.¡± Ai Hui clenched his teeth.

    ¡°No problem, Ai Hui.¡± Lou Lan felt very pleased that he could help Ai Hui again.

    When Ai Hui felt that his strength had recovered, he yelled with vigor, ¡°Let¡¯s go! To the training hall!¡±

 Chapter 83: Zu Yan And The Young Girl

    Chapter 83: Zu Yan And The Young Girl

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    "Actually, you don¡¯t have to care so much about your previous loss."

    The young girl continued tofort the masked young man beside her. When she saw the banners that advertised "Blind Battle!" along the streets, she became very excited. The girl was average-looking, and her eyes were flickering, disying traces of wittiness.

    "Master had once said that you must pick yourself up from where you had fallen."

    The voice that came from behind the mask contained a hint of chilliness; one could sense that the words were being spoken through clenched teeth.

    "The other party did not respond to your challenge." The young girl continued to persuade him, "The Induction Ground is so big, and there are so many students. If the other party doesn¡¯t reveal himself, how are you going to find him?"

    "Master had said that you must pick yourself up from where you had fallen!"

    The masked youth continued to repeat these words through his gritted teeth.

    The young girl shook her head. Being stubborn was not a good thing. She spread out her hands and asked, "So are we now going to the training hall that you went tost time?"

    "You¡¯re right!" The masked youth¡¯s eyes were zing with vigor. "Master had said that you must pick yourself up from where you had fallen!"

    The young girl put a hand on her forehead and gave a helpless look.

    He used to be a high-spirited teenager in the past, but look at him now! This only proved a point¡ªbe careful when choosing someone as your master!

    Without even taking a nce at the young girl, Zu Yan entered Central Pine City. However, when he stepped onto the street of Central Pine City, he immediately almost went insane.

    Those painful memories seemed to have urred just yesterday.

    Seclusion, tough trainings¡ªdidn¡¯t he do all of them just to prepare for today?

    He had to defeat that fellow this time around!

    Unable to restrain his emotions, Zu Yan clenched his fists tightly. Master had said that you must pick yourself up from where you had fallen!

    "Aren¡¯t you worried that he won¡¯t be there?" the young girl asked casually. However, before Zu Yan could reply, she changed the topic and asked, "Do you know which ss Duanmu Huanghun is in?"

    Although Zu Yan was brooding over his loss, he was still clear about what was going on in his surroundings.

    He suddenly came to a realization. "I had been wondering why you wanted to follow me. So you¡¯re following me for the sake of Duanmu Huanghun?"

    "Of course!" the young girl replied, filled with confidence. "If it wasn¡¯t for Duanmu Huanghun, why would Ie to this lousy ce? Duanmu Huanghun...my new idol...do you know how handsome he is? He¡¯s ten thousand times more handsome than you!"

    Zu Yan humphed and yelled, "Childish!"

    "Don¡¯t be jealous of him." The young girl appeared to bepletely smitten. "Do you know how popr he is? In school, if I shout out for people toe with me to take a look at Duanmu Huanghun, half the girls in the school would follow me! The most important thing is that he¡¯s not taken yet!"

    Zu Yan ignored her. "Love-struck fool!"

    "Later on, if you can¡¯t find the person you¡¯re looking for, can you apany me to look for Duanmu Huanghun?" The young girl grabbed Zu Yan¡¯s elbow and pleaded coquettishly.

    "No. I will definitely find him." Zu Yan shook his head resolutely.

    "People might be busy. Who will be so free toe here and take part in the blind battle?" the young girl retorted. However, when she saw Zu Yan¡¯s murderous eyes, she quickly changed her tone. "Might be! I¡¯m saying that he might be busy, okay?"

    "I will definitely find him." Zu Yan had a determined look on his face. "I have a feeling that he¡¯s waiting for me!"

    "It¡¯s over, it¡¯s over. This guy is hopeless!" A look of despair appeared on the young girl¡¯s face.

    "You don¡¯t understand!" Zu Yan gave the young girl a look of disdain.

    Zu Yan stopped at a training hall and looked at the familiar words on the banner beside the door. The memories of that day flooded into his mind¡ªhis previous loss was still vivid. He clenched his fists and entered the building with a determined expression.

    "This is the ce?" The young girl understood and quickly entered.

    The moment they entered the training hall, the young girl was overwhelmed by the unceasing cacophony of mor, but she soon became excited. It was so lively! This ce was far more lively than the training hall in her school. No wonder so many people liked toe here.

    Zu Yan steadily walked into the crowd.

    The young girl secretly stuck out her tongue. The moment Brother Yan had arrived at this ce, his attitude had changedpletely. Right now, his body was surging with a fervor for battle, zing like an actual fireball. She had never seen Brother Yan behave like this before.

    It appeared that the loss Brother Yan had sufferedst time had had an enormous impact on him. In her eyes, Brother Yan used to be no different from most of the younger generation of those aristocratic families. However, after that loss, he seemed to have be another person.

    The current Brother Yan was no longer the same person that she knew.

    She hoped that Brother Yan could find the opponent that had defeated him. She was rather curious about how that person looked like.

    While the young girl was looking around, Zu Yan directly walked towards the employee and said with a deep voice, "I want to take part in the next round."

    After receiving a number tag, Zu Yan turned towards the young girl. "Find a ce and wait."

    Zu Yan promptly walked straight to the resting area to mentally and physically prepare himself while he waited for the next round to start.

    The young girl was left dumbfounded, but after a while, she returned to her senses. She stomped after Zu Yan and yelled angrily at him, "How can you leave me alone like this! You will definitely lose!"

    "No. I will win!" Zu Yan answered back with a resolute tone. "Master had said that you must pick yourself up from where you had fallen!"

    "....." The young girl was speechless.

    Meanwhile, on the street, Ai Hui walked out of thest training hall and shook his head. "There¡¯s nothing again."

    Lou Lan assured him, "Ai Hui, don¡¯t panic."

    "I¡¯m not panicking." He shook his head again. He wasn¡¯t disappointed with this result; after all, it took more than just luck to find a needle in a haystack.

    "Ai Hui, what shall we do next?" Lou Lan asked.

    Next....

    Ai Hui recalled Lou Lan¡¯s anticipative look and immediately felt guilty. Recently, he had been busy with training and had not bothered about Lou Lan at all, but Lou Lan had still put in so much of effort to help clean the training hall. He was such a nice sand puppet.

    "Lou Lan, do you still remember that training hall?" Ai Hui suddenly asked.

    "The one where we won the fight?" Lou Lan¡¯s eyes lit up. That was the first time he had taken part in a fight. Even though he was at a loss in the beginning, he had eventually managed to help Ai Hui. To Lou Lan, it constituted a beautiful memory.

    "Yes, that¡¯s the one. That training hall offers more prize money. That time we won fifty thousand yuan, right?" Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were zing as he spoke with extreme confidence. "Since my powers have increased so much, no matter what I have to earn back the money for the biscuits!"

    "Okay! Okay!" Lou Lan cheered.

    Lou Lan thought to himself, "During this period of time, Lou Lan has not been cking off. Later, Lou Lan will certainly shock Ai Hui."

    Ai Hui clearly knew that thest victory was due to luck. This time around, he wanted to win with his own capability. True power can only be revealed in a real fight.

    The reason why he chose that training hall was that he could bring Lou Lan along.

    Ever since he had promised the girl from the noodle house to search for that person, Ai Hui had be very familiar with the training halls of Central Pine City. Without spending much effort, he was able to easily find that training hall.

    Before Ai Hui opened the door to enter, he put on a mask, turned around, and asked, "Lou Lan, are you ready?"

    "Lou Lan is ready!" Lou Lan spoke with an indescribable excitement.

    Ai Hui felt rather excited too. Could it be that he had not fought for a long time?

    When he opened the door and entered, a rowdy din sted him in the face. Ai Hui felt his body be exuberant and his blood boil.

    "We will take part in the next round!" Ai Hui said as he walked towards the employee.

    The employee stared at Lou Lan.

    "He¡¯s my sand puppet!" Ai Hui yelled with conviction.

    "Have youe before?" The employee returned to his senses and handed over a strand of soul-fogging grass. "Do you know how to use it?"

    "We know!" Without any hesitation, Lou Lan took the soul-fogging grass and put it on his head with peerless confidence.

    On Lou Lan¡¯s head, there was a strand of grass standing by itself, swaying in the wind.

 Chapter 84: Le Buleng

    Chapter 84: Le Buleng

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    Honestly speaking, humans were strange and contradictory creatures.

    When they were fighting every day in the Wilderness, they looked forward to a peaceful life. But when they were in the Induction Ground, where they could actually leadfortable lives, they instead looked forward to taking part in battles.

    Ai Hui felt somewhat emotional as he stepped onto the blind battle arena.

    Life in the Induction Ground was not as boring as he had expected it to be. Although his life here may not be as intense and exhausting as the one he had led in the Wilderness, there were still many twists and turns that made his days colorful.

    He thought of the people he had met and the events he had encountered. Lou Lan, Master, Mistress and Senior Mingxiu were all friendly and kind-hearted individuals. There were peace andfort in every aspect of his life. His powers had increased significantly as well¡ªhe was indeed leading a beautiful life.

    The arena was pitch-ck and nothing could be seen.

    Ai Hui could not help but feel astonished. It seemed that the arena had been upgraded. Last time, the training hall had used Ink Night Fumes and had required contestants to wear masks. All those were not needed anymore. He raised his head and looked at the elemental energy shield above, and guessed that the shield was responsible for this upgrade.

    Ai Hui¡¯s guess was right. Ever since the concept of blind battles was created, it had undergone many changes. Training halls now depended on blind battles to earn money, and all of them had racked their brains to improve the concept. By doing so, all of them wished to distinguish themselves from the rest.

    Nothing was more motivating than that.

    This training hall had adopted an original approach to blind battles. They designed a type of elemental energy shield called the Light Absorption Dome. The dome was able to absorb light, causing just darkness to remain within; however, the audience seated outside the dome could still clearly observe the battles happening inside. Furthermore, to ensure that the audience obtained a good view, seats had been set up in mid-air around the arena.

    Of course, these seats, which granted an excellent view of the battle, needed to be purchased.

    Zu Qiuni was seated on one of those seats; in fact, she had purchased one of the best seats avable. She was very curious about how much progress Brother Yan had made after his seclusion. Although she was tired of hearing Brother Yan¡¯s master¡¯s favorite saying ¡°pick yourself up from where you had fallen,¡± she understood that his master was a training fanatic.

    Le Buleng was not really famous in the Avalon of Five Elements;pared to Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s master, Dai Gang, Le Buleng had a much lower reputation.

    He had always been single, leading a solitary life, without many aplishments as well. His most impressive de was that he took up the position of Division Leader of the Icy mes Division for three years. However, due to his addiction to training, he hadpletely ignored the affairs of the division, resulting in a boycott of all his subordinates. He had also felt that the duties of a division leader hindered the progress of his training, and hence, he left the division.

    Le Buleng was most famous for his tough training.

    Reportedly, Dai Gang had once said that if he had put in half the amount of effort Le Buleng had put in training, he would have be a grandmaster at the age of thirty. This clearly showed how much hard work Le Buleng put into his training.

    However, Dai Gang eventually became a grandmaster at the age of forty, and Le Buleng was not even a master now.

    In the past, when Brother Yan had justprehended the [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation], he was viewed by many as the most outstanding talent among his generation. That was when he was at his peak; no one had expected the n leader to make Le Buleng as Brother Yan¡¯s master. During that time, there was a unanimous objection to this decision from everyone else in the n. Given the n¡¯s wide connections and affluence, although it wasn¡¯t possible for Zu Yan to be the disciple of a grandmaster, it was definitely more than possible for him to be the disciple of a master.

    The n leader had finally convinced everyone.

    However, beyond everyone¡¯s expectations, Le Buleng had rejected Zu Yan. The reason he had given was that Zu Yan¡¯s character was too weak and he was hence not suitable to be his disciple. It was only after the n leader had implored him that he eventually decided to ept Zu Yan as his disciple. But even after taking Zu Yan as his disciple, Lu Buleng did not really like Zu Yan and seldom cared about him, letting him do whatever he wanted.

    Zu Qiuni could not understand why the n leader wanted Zu Yan to be Le Buleng¡¯s disciple even though there were so many other qualified experts in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    She also naturally felt that Le Buleng¡¯s assessment of Zu Yan was right. But now, Brother Yan had totally be another person aspared to the past. To Zu Qiuni, the most interesting thing was Brother Yan¡¯s seclusion; by a slip of the tongue, Zu Yan had identally revealed that his seclusion n was drawn up by his master.

    When Zu Qiuni heard about this, she was dumbstruck. She really did not expect that person to draw up a seclusion n for Brother Yan; however, she also did not expect Brother Yan to agree to this n and subsequentlyplete the seclusion.

    In the past, Brother Yan had alwaysined to them about how crazy Le Buleng¡¯s training sessions were. He felt that ordinary people would absolutely not able to keep up with his training system.

    She silently prayed in her heart.

    I hope that Brother Yan doesn¡¯t be like Le Buleng. Le Buleng is not considered a role model for sess at all...

    Right now, Brother Yan seemed to show signs of going insane.

    Zu Yan stood silently in the arena with both his eyes closed. He was like a statue, not even breathing at all.

    It was only when the bell rang, which marked the start of the blind battle, that Zu Yan opened his eyes.

    Without any hesitation, he immediately activated the [Hellfire Spider Web]. His mind took note of every single detail in the arena as he recalled what his master had told him. The reason he had failed was not the disparity in base level, but rather, it was due to hisck of understanding ofbat techniques. He wasn¡¯t able to identify the right fighting techniques to use in various situations.

    During this period of time, he had been frantically trying to improve hisbat techniques.

    With a sway of his body, he appeared beside a contestant like a phantom. Even though this contestant had been on high alert, he did not react when Zu Yan approached close to him. Zu Yan¡¯s figure seemed to soundlessly appear out of thin air.

    Like a viper in the darkness, his right leg struck out silently.

    It was only until Zu Yan was three inches away from the other party that the sound of his kick could be heard.

    The opponent¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. However, before he could react, his body had already flown upwards. He lost consciousness while he was in mid-air. The referee of the training hall threw out asso with his whip and caught the already fainted contestant. The two referees looked at each other and saw traces of fear in each other¡¯s eyes.

    Even the referees were stunned, let alone the audience. The kick was extremely vicious and efficient, making everyone gasp aloud in horror.

    After a moment of shock and silence, the audience erupted with enthusiasm.

    Weren¡¯t these experts the main reason why everyone came here to watch the blind battles? This person was indeed powerful! There was going to a good show!

    Zu Qiuni stared nkly at the arena with her mouth wide open. Was that ferocious kick from Brother Yan?

    Nearby, in the arena, Ai Hui heard a sudden yet brief explosion and felt a cold shiver run down his spine.

    Expert!

    Ai Hui had a different definition of the word ¡°expert¡± from ordinary people. He did not ssify someone as an expert based on his base level, but rather on the level of hisbat techniques. The sound of that kick was like an explosion, abnormally powerful yet brief. The kicker had excellent control over his elemental energy as he did not put too much elemental energy into this kick. One could see that he had a remarkable understanding ofbat and was skilled in concealing the sound of his attacks.

    Only abat veteran could produce such a kick.

    Ai Hui realized that the uing onerous battle was unavoidable.

    However, for some reason, even though he knew that it was going to be a tough fight, he was not scared at all and was excited instead.

    It¡¯d be nice if he had a stalk of grass to chew on now. Suddenly, he thought of the stalk of soul-fogging grass on Lou Lan¡¯s head. Nah, forget it¡ªthe soul-fogging grass does not taste nice anyway.

    Ai Hui grinned as a ghastly look appeared on his face.

 Chapter 85: Reunion

    Chapter 85: Reunion

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Within an extremely short period of time, several contestants had been attacked and thrown off the stage consecutively.

    Since he had perceived weak elemental energy ripples on the ground¡¯s surface, Ai Hui did not move. He felt that they were familiar, and suddenly, that fellow whom he had defeated in the previouspetition came to mind. Could it be a coincidence?

    Ai Hui was a little taken aback, but soon, he became even more surprised by something else.

    Significant progress!

    His opponent¡¯s skills had improved so greatly that it was as if he had be a different person. Compared to the tenderness and immaturity from the past, he was now much more shrewd and ruthless in his attacks.

    But when Ai Hui thought about his own improvement, he immediately felt relieved. He had progressed tremendously, so why couldn¡¯t his opponent do so too? That fellow had a higher aptitude and only used absolute arts¡ªhe was definitely from an influential family n. There was simply no reason for that fellow to improve any slower than himself.

    Ai Hui, who assumed this to be a coincidence, was utterly unaware that the fellow had been searching high and low for him. He had heard about Zu Yan¡¯s written challenge but had no idea that it had something to do with himself.

    After all, Zu Yan had been searching for an earth elementalist!

    He was even more unaware of the hard work Zu Yan had invested in order to defeat him. Ai Hui treated that previous battle as an ordinary one¡ªother than his injuries, there was nothing worth remembering.

    However, Ai Hui was more than d that they got to meet again.

    Fighting against the same opponent allowed him to measure his own progress.

    Without any warning or hesitation, Ai Hui suddenly dodged to the side.

    p!

    A crisp, whip-like explosion sounded out from where he had just stood a moment ago. Like a solid axe, a heavy leg flitted next to Ai Hui¡¯s body, causing a cutting, sharp stream of air to blow past.

    Zu Yan wasn¡¯t rmed by his miss, but instead, he seemed to enjoy it. When his leg was about to hit the ground, he made a strange, sudden turn and redirected his kick.

    At the same time, Ai Hui struck with his fist.

    Bang!

    A deep, low boom reverberated throughout the whole hall. It was as if two colossal monsters had just collided head-on. Such a wild and violent force was beingpressed into a small, tight space.

    The enormous power caused Ai Hui to take two steps back. Zu Yan was the same; he sprung back by five steps.

    During the split second their fist and leg had crossed, Zu Yan¡¯s eyes had lit up. His previous failure was etched into his memory, every single detail unforgotten.

    ¡°You¡¯re here indeed!¡± he hissed, evidently agitated.

    Ai Hui could feel his opponent¡¯s progress. Not only had his heavy leg be more powerful and concentrated, but it had also be much more formidable and threatening in battle. Moreover, he had definitely gained a lot morebat experience, or he wouldn¡¯t have been able to execute the previous move so naturally.

    This, however, made Ai Hui so excited that his blood boiled.

    Although his opponent had be much more skilled, he, too, had taken a qualitative leap in strength. Previously, he could only dodge that fellow¡¯s leg until he was all battered and exhausted; but this time, he could actually face the attacks head-on without falling into a disadvantageous position.

    As Ai Hui¡¯s battlelust surged, his eyes turned increasingly cold and unfeeling.

    Ai Hui knew that the opponent had recognized him, but he had no intention of reminiscing. He didn¡¯t even say a word¡ªit was as if a ghost had possessed him. He had previously suffered greatly from his opponent¡¯s [Hellfire Spider Web] and had also thoroughly analyzed the incident.

    This was a habit he had developed in the Wilderness. As he had been very weak at the time, it was quite easy for him to lose his life, and the only thing he could do was spend more time reflecting on his fights. Every time he had met a dire beast, he would consult the master elementalists whenever he could and gain information about the monster in exchange forbor. Also, upon seeing that he was a sensible fellow, the master elementalists were usually willing to provide an opinion or two.

    He had never looked down on any enemy, as he had no right to.

    Being cautious and prudent had long been a part of his nature.

    Zu Qiuni opened her eyes wide as she observed the stage. Sweat started pouring out of her body when she heard Brother Yan¡¯s hiss¡ªthat fellow in the mask was the mystery expert who had previously defeated Brother Yan!

    Although the others were not aware of this fact, they nevertheless steadily watched on. The interaction between the two parties was very sudden and fierce!

    Ai Hui¡¯s actions immediately calmed Zu Yan down. Seeing his opponent charge towards him, Zu Yan shut his eyes. He was highly focused; every corner of the elevated stage was enveloped by his [Hellfire Spider Web] and within his control.

    A series of rippling waves simultaneously emerged on the web, rushing straight towards him with shocking speed.

    Meeting force with force?

    His opponent did not hide his intention and charged straight towards him. The previous collision must have given him confidence.

    Zu Yan was actually surprised; Ai Hui¡¯s improvement was far beyond his imagination. Although Ai Hui had previously been reduced to a pathetic state because of Zu Yan¡¯s heavy leg, he had now tried to retaliate head-on.

    What a good rival!

    Zu Yan¡¯s eyes were zing with fire; Ai Hui¡¯s significant progress further fed his battlelust.

    The stronger hispetitor was, the stronger he could prove himself to be after iming victory!

    His concentration level was iparably high as the undting spots on the web were reflected clearly in his mind. Akin to a spider who¡¯d found its prey, he kept silent, waiting for the right moment to strike a fatal blow.

    You¡¯re not the only one who improved.

    His eyelids lowered, Zu Yan became one with the web. He felt the world turn silent, while only weak ripples remained. His calm face carried a dash of confidence, which was derived from the endless hard work and training that he had undergone.

    That trick from the previous match no longer had an effect on him.

    It was as if the web was a part of him. Afterpleting the isted training that was nned for him by his teacher, he could locate his target immediately even in the midst of twenty chaotic ripples.

    Before, he would misjudge as long as there were more than three ripples.

    The quietness and nothingness of the world gradually spread as he urately identified and captured every single movement in his vicinity.

    Thatst movement was more violent than those before. His opponent wanted to mislead him by jumping? Zu Yan smirked as he counted the seconds in his mind.

    Now!

    Zu Yan¡¯s eyes suddenly opened as the light exploded.

    Nobody noticed when his right leg, which had been on standby, had suddenly enveloped itself in mes. He sprung up from the ground, revolved his whole body, and drove his right leg¡ªit was as if a heavy axe had been flung upwards.

    All other sounds seemed to have been muted by this leg; the whole ce had be silent.

    All the light upstage was absorbed by the Light Absorption Dome, but everyone in the audience was bedazzled and left speechless by this powerful kick. Although there was no sound at all, it made them feel a sense of burning bitterness.

    They couldn¡¯t help but hold their breaths and open their eyes wide for fear that they would miss something.

    Zu Qiuni was astonished; she couldn¡¯t believe her own eyes. Brother Yan had actually executed such a terrifying kick.

    Wasn¡¯t this....wasn¡¯t this the guy who hadined about tough training, showed off in front of girls, and enjoyed making friends?

    Brother Yan was so powerful...this Brother Yan was so different...

    No one could block this kick directly¡ªno one in Central Pine City at least!

    However, the scene that was about the unfold made Zu Qiuni suddenly stand up. Her expression hadpletely changed.

    ¡°Look out, Brother Yan!¡±

 Chapter 86: A Familiar Feeling

    Chapter 86: A Familiar Feeling

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Before the battle had begun, Ai Hui had thought to use it as a test of his abilities. However, once it started, he immediately tossed these thoughts out the window.

    Every fight in the Wilderness had been a matter of life and death.

    There were no retries, undos, or extra time for preparation. Nobody would tell him that he could always try again next time because...

    ...there was simply no next time.

    Losing meant death, and death meant bing food for the dire beasts and adding to the piles of bones that already littered the Wilderness.

    The prize for winning was the chance to continue standing in that blood-soaked battlefield, taking breaths amongst the ice cold corpses, being able to feel the warmth of life and the beating of your own heart while gasping greedily for the piercing, bitter-cold air.

    Since Ai Hui never knew when the next test would be, he never knew whether he would manage to get through it.

    He had to squeeze out everyst ounce of his potential because he was weak and could die at any moment. He would remind himself every day that there wasn¡¯t going to be a second chance¡ªhe had to give it his all.

    Would there be a tomorrow? He had no idea.

    Even if he gave his all, it still might not even be enough to make it to the next day, but he knew that any mistakes would spell certain death. There was no room for errors or luck; death was absolute.

    Every single day was filled with fear and trepidation. He would often be too afraid to sleep, and even the shelters provided no reprieve from danger. When living in such conditions, where death lurked at every corner, merely being able to stay sane was a blessing. Manyborers had even experienced mental breakdowns, running out of the camp in the middle of the night as they howled like wild beasts, never to return.

    It was the Wilderness, a ce respected by the strong, and a ce where the weak struggled to survive.

    His teacher had told him that his all-out approach wasn¡¯t a long term solution, but he already knew that. However, it had beenpletely uncertain if he would even make it till tomorrow, and if he didn¡¯t give it his best shot, he might not have the chance to do so anymore.

    Being able to take things one firm step at a time was a privilege that was not given to everyone.

    Ai Hui had lost count of the number of times he had faced death. He had no wish to remember either, lest he lose himself to fear. All he could do was make use of his abilities to the fullest and steel his heart. In such an extreme environment, having any sort of sentiment could easily result in death.

    The three years he spent in the Wilderness still clung onto him like a shadow. It was arge part of the person he was today.

    He tried very hard to adapt to life in the Induction Ground, constantly reminding himself that this was not the Wilderness. What¡¯s important now was that he should refrain from killing others in battle.

    Other than that, he wasn¡¯t going to hold back.

    He never once believed that fate was something that could be controlled. He was never able to shape his destiny. It was just like the Wilderness, always fighting against him. The only thing that made him happy was the brief reprieve he had after each victory.

    Fighting was the only weapon he could use to resist his destiny. It was the only means by which he could win; he was nothing without it.

    To him, fighting was never to be taken lightly.

    He didn¡¯t even have the chance to mock his silly thoughts before the battle started and he entered a fighting state.

    His eyes were stone cold, and his soul was equally icy. Ai Hui felt that he was more like a sand puppet, a killing machine created solely for the purpose of fighting. He didn¡¯t find anything wrong with that¡ªthe only thing hemented was hisck of power.

    He never intended to meet force with force; that first blow was just to test the waters.

    Ai Hui¡¯s keen perception allowed him to detect the subtle changes in Zu Yan¡¯s state of mind despite thetter concealing his abilities well.

    Fighting habits that resulted from tireless training in seclusion were indeed entirely different from those bred through struggles of life and death.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t understand his opponent¡¯s sudden shift in mental state, but being able to sense it allowed him to exploit the moment.

    Compared to hispatriots from the Induction Ground, Ai Hui could be said to be a whole other life form altogether.

    The huge disparity between the twobatants were vividly demonstrated at that very moment.

    Zu Qiuni, who had screamed her lungs out, watched as Ai Hui leaped into the air. Like a bat in the night, his body noiselessly traced through the air in an arc, heading towards Zu Yan¡¯s side.

    She woke with a start, fear written all over her face.

    She understood Ai Hui¡¯s intention¡ªhe had discovered the [Hellfire Spider Web]¡¯s weakness!

    Ai Hui had indeed found the [Hellfire Spider Web]¡¯s weakness.

    He had conscientiously analyzed their previous battle and had easily found the limitations of the [Hellfire Spider Web]. In essence, the skill was simply an elemental energy web spread out over the ground. Its natural weakness was thus aerial attacks.

    This weakness was due to Zu Yan¡¯s inadequate base level¡ªan absolute art would most certainly not have such a ring weakness. Raising his base level would change the nature of the web.

    This weakness, however, was not much of a concern in the Induction Ground, since most students did not have aerialbat abilities until they became full-fledged elementalists.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t either, but he had managed toe up with three different methods to deal with the web.

    This was his habit. Even though he wasn¡¯t expecting to face Zu Yan again, Ai Hui had prepared well for this scenario.

    Meeting him once more was rather unexpected, but it wasn¡¯t frightening to Ai Hui at all.

    He unfastened the Blood Bandage from his Sword Rattan Gloves, infusing elemental energy that was many times purer than his own into his arm.

    Zu Qiuni¡¯s hunch was right. The technique that Ai Hui was executing had something to do with bats. It was a very shallow form of swordy known as the Gale Bat de.

    The technique imitates the movement of the fast-flying gale bat, which, ording to notes in the margins of the swordy manual, had be extinct.

    Ai Hui had run many simtions in his mind before he had finally found this technique, which would allow him to execute aerial maneuvers, in a swordy manual.

    Although he was unable to fully utilize the technique without a sword, he could still perform its aerial maneuvers to change his direction in mid-air. As he had previously practiced, Ai Hui straightened his arm and channeled elemental energy through it in an arc.

    He immediately felt a surge of air pushing his body, causing him to circle around Zu Yan in a clearly-defined arc.

    Ai Hui had thought through everyst detail of the n, but appeared to have missed out one thing. Ai Hui had thought through everyst detail of the n, but he appeared to have missed out one thing. His elemental energy was now much purer than before.

    Thus, things did not go ording to n.

    Ai Hui¡¯s n was to attack his opponent from the side, but he soon realized that he had overshot andnded behind him.

    Zu Yan¡¯s body was slightly suspended in the air, ready to unleash his next attack.

    Any other student might have been fazed by this, but not Ai Hui. He always expected the unexpected and believed that nothing was ever certain in battle.

    Ai Hui braced himself, taking a powerful driving step as heunched himself backward.

    Zu Yan was shocked when he sensed a disturbance behind him. How was it possible that his opponent was there...

    Bang!

    Ai Hui rammed his back into Zu Yan with the force of a trampling dire beast.

    The [Arching Fish Back] was still a reliable form. It gave him a familiar feeling.

 Chapter 87: Silver Hair

    Chapter 87: Silver Hair

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Everyone was shocked by how quick the battle ended.

    The boss of the training ground, however, found this sight to be vaguely familiar.

    Lou Lan morphed into a giant hand and dashed towards the training ground¡¯s boss, rubbing his thumb and forefinger together. When he saw this, the boss abruptly realized that Zu Yan¡¯s opponent was that earth elementalist from before.

    The boss became excited as he realized that the unknown expert had returned. This unknown expert was a walking advertisement for the training hall. Zu Yan¡¯s previous defeat at the hands of that mysterious earth elementalist had caused a sensation, drumming up his business for quite an extended period of time.

    He was so excited that his hands began trembling, but he did not give even a cent more.

    At this moment, a voice full of worry came from behind him. ¡°Brother Yan! Brother Yan!¡±

    Brother Yan......Zu Yan?

    The training ground¡¯s boss couldn¡¯t believe his luck. Was this actually happening?

    At this point, he was so excited he almost couldn¡¯t breathe. Faltering, he turned around and saw the referee heading towards him. Having just checked out Zu Yan¡¯s injuries, the cheerful referee lowered his voice and said, ¡°It¡¯s Zu Yan. He¡¯s unconscious, but it¡¯s nothing major.¡±

    What luck! The boss let out a whimper of a cheer; he was so agitated that he almost fainted.

    The rivalry between Zu Yan and the mysterious earth elementalist was the talk of the town. Zu Yan had distributed his written challenge to every single institution in the Induction Ground. Was this second encounter merely a coincidence? And more importantly, it resulted in Zu Yan¡¯s second defeat!

    ¡°Movie bean?¡± The boss suddenly remembered something important. He had regretted the fact that he had not recorded any footage of the two opponents¡¯ previous fight. A movie bean of that fight would surely have been worth a lot of money!

    The referee nodded his head vigorously as he stretched out and opened his palm, revealing a brilliant, multi-colored seed.

    The boss howled withughter. He was going to be rich!

    The mirage bean pod was a nt cultivated by wood elementalists. It was capable of recording images and storing them in its seeds, which were called movie beans.

    Mirage bean pods have been considered to be the wood elementalists¡¯ greatest achievement of the century. Upon its release, the nt had quickly be extremely popr throughout the entire Avalon of Five Elements.

    Like the message tree, the mirage bean pods were further bred and optimized by the wood elementalists of the Jadeite Forest. There was now a wide variety of mirage bean pods, some of which wererge enough to store more than twenty movie beans. The most popr type among girls was the Meitu Bean, which was capable of beautifying one¡¯s image.

    With the movie bean in his hand, all the boss could see was money dancing before his eyes.

    Zu Yan had been eliminated, losing the grudge match and suffering defeat for the second time. Just who was this mysterious earth elementalist?

    Are you curious? Are you unconvinced? Do you want to find out more? Then buy the movie bean! Buy it and watch this fearsome battle! Buy it to see the Zu family¡¯s absolute art! Buy it to find clues about the mysterious earth elementalist!

    Money, money, money...

    The boss looked behind himself when he finally calmed down, trying to search for the mysterious earth elementalist. Where was he? He felt terribly vexed¡ªwhy hadn¡¯t he asked the earth elementalist for his contact details? If only the mysterious earth elementalist could stay here in the long term...

    There would be even more money to be made!

    The boss felt much less excited after he realized that he missed a golden opportunity.

    Ai Hui was still reflecting on the battle as he walked out of the arena. The battle had been short, and he couldn¡¯t care less about that opponent whom he had faced for the second time. His focus was solely on the main factor of this victory: how he changed his direction in mid-air.

    Although it seemed useful, changing direction in mid-air was a technique that didn¡¯t actually have much use. Furthermore, effective flying equipment like the azure wings was avable to most elementalists, and consequently, very few people would bother to study such a shallow technique that was essible before they reached the Initial Completion.

    His opponent was caught off-guard; he had not expected him to be able to perform such a maneuver.

    Ai Hui was actually surprised at his own performance as well. This time, the curvature of his movement through the air was much greater than those of his previous attempts.

    Therger the arc of motion, the greater the surprise and effectiveness of the maneuver.

    Ai Hui impulsively took a few steps before leaping into the air. His body suddenly shifted from its initial trajectory as if an invisible hand was tugging him to the side.

    How interesting!

    Ai Hui¡¯s keen battle intuition promptly kicked in as he realized its potential applications inbat.

    He ran forward a few steps again, lightly tapping the ground with his toes to propel himself upwards. Just as he was about to hit a wall on the side of the road, Ai Hui lightly pointed his toes and soared even higher. This time around, the angle and speed at which his direction changed had been decreased.

    Giving in to his childish whims, Ai Hui started jumping around, gliding through the air like a giant bat in flight.

    Lou Lan found this fascinating, and he spontaneously morphed into a bat and joined Ai Hui in the air.

    Ai Hui stopped after messing around for three whole minutes to avoid having to be dragged home by Lou Lan. Flying was indeed an amazing experience¡ªeven gliding for a brief moment was so enjoyable. Ai Hui had heard stories from elementalists about people who refused to stop flying after learning how to use the azure wings.

    As Lou Lan also returned to the ground, he noticed something off about Ai Hui¡¯s appearance. ¡°Ai Hui, your hair!¡± he shouted.

    ¡°What¡¯s wrong with my hair?¡± Ai Hui asked, astonished.

    ¡°Your hair has turned white,¡± Lou Lan informed him.

    Turned white? Ai Hui was deeply shocked. He picked up a well-polished steel dagger from a nearby weapon store and used it as a mirror.

    His hair had indeed turned a silver-white. It was suffused with a metallic glow and resembled strands of silver threads.

    Recovering from his shock, Ai Hui took off his mask.

    The face he saw in the de looked unfamiliar.

    A silver glow outlined his entire face, enhancing its contours and sharpening his features. His gaze was as sharp as a newly ground edge, and his entire demeanor had be far more menacing.

    Pedestrians subconsciously avoided him as they walked past.

    As he snapped out of his daze, Ai Hui jovially said, ¡°I can now make money with my looks.¡±

    His appearance contrasted sharply with his simple and reserved self. The silver strands of hair made his appearance even more striking, like a well-polished sword unsheathed from its scabbard.

    This shiny exterior was definitely not suitable for battle; he would be detected too easily.

    ¡°Ai Hui, your hopes are dashed. The silver glow is fading,¡± Lou Lan said, as his eyes flickered with a yellow light. ¡°I understand now. The metal elemental energy within your body is of such a high grade that using it ces a huge load on your body. Tiny amounts of this elemental energy thus permeated your entire body, including your hair. When you¡¯re not utilizing it, the load will gradually lighten as the metal elemental energy throughout your body slowly retreats, returning your appearance back to normal.¡±

    ¡°What a waste! My dream of making money has ended so soon,¡± Ai Huimented, feigning disappointment. He continued, ¡°Lou Lan, how did you find the battle just now?¡±

    Lou Lan replied, ¡°Ai Hui¡¯s battle was too fast; Lou Lan needs to work harder.¡±

    Ai Hui was slightly embarrassed upon hearing this response. He was originally supposed to bring Lou Lan out to y, but he ended up dragging him into a fight.

    He quickly changed the subject, shouting, ¡°Split the cash, split the cash!¡±

    With a bang, Lou Lan transformed into a cloud of money as he followed suit, shouting, ¡°Split the cash, split the cash!¡±

    Ai Hui burst into merryughter.

 Chapter 88: Silk Extraction and the Grass Hollow

    Chapter 88: Silk Extraction and the Grass Hollow

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    ¡°Master is very disappointed that you¡¯ve gotten injured.¡±

    The person speaking was Hai Qing, who had been Dai Gang¡¯s attendant since before he had be a master. Practically all of Dai Gang¡¯s matters were handled by Hai Qing, who was serious and inflexible.

    A spark of jealousy shed in his eyes as he looked at Duanmu Huanghun, but it disappeared as quickly as it had appeared. He had been a faithful attendant to the master for more than thirty years, yet he was still not qualified to be his disciple.

    Although he was jealous of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s good fortune, he did not utter a singleint. Even though Master Dai Gang had not taken him in as a disciple, he had never shortchanged Hai Qing. The guidance Dai Gang had given him was no less than that provided to his own disciples. He was extremely grateful to the master and had always beenpletely loyal to him.

    Hai Qing couldn¡¯t understand how this wretched looking fellow was worthy of Dai Gang¡¯s notice. When Duanmu Huanghun, who was riddled with injuries, was brought before him, Hai Qing¡¯s first reaction wasn¡¯t tough at his plight; rather, it was one of anger.

    Yes, anger.

    It was an honor to be one of Dai Gang¡¯s disciples. Hai Qing felt that Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s first duty after bing Dai Gang¡¯s disciple was to uphold this honor and not disgrace his new status.

    He did not like Duanmu Huanghun.

    The other two disciples of the master were brilliant and aplished. Lu Chen was one of the top three physicians of his generation. He was known as the Divine Physician and was revered by many. Yu Mingqiu was the youngest person to ever be a vice-division leader. His progress in recent years has been phenomenal, and he was a popr candidate for the next division leader of the Deathgrass Division.

    This Duanmu Huanghun, however, was such an embarrassment.

    Hai Qing spared no effort to protect the reputation of his master, and hence, he did not like Duanmu Huanghun one bit.

    Due to his longstanding service to Dai Gang, Hai Qing was regarded as a part of his family. Hai Qing had taken charge of both Lu Chen and Yu Mingqiu¡¯s initial training, but he would most certainly not extend the same courtesy to Duanmu Huanghun.

    ¡°A grandmaster¡¯s disciple needing to be rescued by a student who had just activated his natal residence; oh boy, I sure hope I heard wrong. What¡¯s worse is, of course, being found naked and covered in injuries. Remember this, it doesn¡¯t matter if you prefer men or women or whether you¡¯re a good or a bad person. You¡¯re free to do as you please but as a disciple of Master Dai Gang, the greatest sin that you can possiblymit is being weak.¡±

    Hai Qing delivered his speech coldly, his sentences carefully crafted to provoke.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face revealed hints of a cruel expression as he red ferociously at Hai Qing.

    ¡°Not happy? Hehe! Very well, remember this expression of yours! You still think you¡¯re gifted and don¡¯t need to respect anyone here? Let me tell you what it means to be a genius. Only those who are much stronger than others deserve to bebeled as geniuses¡ªpathetic wimps like you are nothing more than maggots.¡±

    Hai Qing remained expressionless as he ripped Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s wound open.

    ¡°To be honest, I couldn¡¯t care less about what happens to you, you pathetic maggot. As far as I¡¯m concerned, you have no business being in this sacred ce. Regretfully, I do, however, have to honor my duty. This is the key to the Grass Hollow. Come find me when you manage to get out of it. Although, I¡¯d be very pleased if you end up dying inside instead.¡±

    Hai Qing tossed an emerald green leaf on the ground as he left.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s anger soon subsided and he becamepletely calm.

    Without any hesitation, he picked up the leaf and started walking towards the Grass Hollow under the cover of night.

    Hai Qing returned home.

    His wife was rather worried, and asked, ¡°Huanghun is still so young, isn¡¯t it a bit early for him to be in the Grass Hollow?¡±

    ¡°He is talented but needs to be polished. Otherwise, he¡¯ll not amount to anything,¡± Hai Qing exined.

    ¡°But he¡¯s too young. Lu Chen was seventeen when he entered the Grass Hollow; Mingqiu a little earlier at sixteen,¡± his wife responded, clearly still worried.

    ¡°He is thest disciple,¡± Hai Qing replied tly. ¡°He is different from the others.¡±

    ¡°But if some mishap were to befall him......¡±

    ¡°That only means that he isn¡¯t talented enough and doesn¡¯t deserve to be part of master¡¯s ns. We still have time to find another one.¡± Hai Qing continued, ¡°Thest disciple has a different significance to the master.¡±

    His wife was silent for a moment before she asked, ¡°Do we really still have time?¡±

    Hai Qing, who was packing his things, sluggishly replied, ¡°We do.¡±

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t ce much significance to the current blind battle; both Lou Lan and he did not seem to care about it at all.

    The next day, Ai Hui was summoned to the embroidery workshop.

    The youngdies of the embroidery workshop noticed a different air about him, and none of them dared to tease him anymore. After all, he must be incredibly talented to be able to learn the [Twin Weaving Technique] after seeing it just once, and it was said that the owner of the workshop even wanted to take him in as herst disciple.

    Perhaps because it wasn¡¯t his first visit, Ai Hui felt less constrained this time.

    Mingxiu, who was standing in front of a door, waved at Ai Hui as she said, ¡°Junior,e over here.¡±

    Ai Hui promptly went over.

    ¡°Master and Mistress are both inside,¡± Mingxiu said while she pushed the door open.

    A wave of heat gushed out of the room as the door opened.

    Ai Hui was startled. Just what was inside?

    ¡°What are you waiting for? Come in quickly,¡± his teacher snapped impatiently from within the room.

    Ai Hui hurriedly entered.

    Upon entering, he realized that the temperature inside was even higher¡ªit was as if he was a piece of dim sum being steamed. Both Teacher Wang and the Mistress were here, but they appeared to bepletely unaffected by the intense heat.

    Ai Hui noticed an enormous boiler in the center emitting waves of heat. This must be what was causing the workshop to be so hot.

    Ai Hui was curious about what the boiler was used for.

    ¡°Master, Mistress,¡± Ai Hui greeted.

    Han Yuqin addressed him as well. ¡°Let me check the gloves for any damage.¡±

    She was pleased to see that the gloves remained in good condition. After her examination, she said, ¡°Some irresponsible old man has left your training to me. It seems I have no choice but to take up the job.¡±

    Old Wang chuckled. Not only was he not embarrassed, but he also appeared to be very pleased with himself.

    Mingxiu sniggered.

    ¡°Your circumstances are rarely seen,¡± the olddy said, before continuing solemnly, ¡°Since you are unable to carry out Circtory Cycle Revolution, our aim is to activate your two hand pces. After much discussion with your teacher, we have decided on silk extraction as a method of training.¡±

    ¡°Silk extraction?¡± Ai Hui asked, his face nk. He wasn¡¯t expecting something like that. Can silk extraction even be considered a training method?

    ¡°Yes, indeed, the training method suitable for you now is different from what is usually done. You need to circte your elemental energy in as slow a manner as possible. The elemental energy within your body is extremely pure, and circting it at a fast pace would ce a huge burden on your body. When done slowly, the burden is much lighter and will allow your body to gradually be more ustomed to elemental energy. The slower cirction will thus result in a greater stimtive effect of the elemental energy in your body, helping it absorb elemental energy more effectively.¡±

    ¡°In the field of embroidery, silk extraction requires the slowest cirction of elemental energy!¡±

 Chapter 89: Twilight Silk

    Chapter 89: Twilight Silk

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Zu Yan¡¯s second defeat caused a much bigger sensation than his previous loss.

    That was because movie beans of the battle were avable this time around.

    Although people were curious about his earlier defeat, theck of footage meant that most people were unable to watch the battle. The students of Central Pine Academy were also not that familiar with Zu Yan, which further contributed to the more muted reaction. Zu Yan¡¯s publicly issued challenge was what triggered greater interest in this talented member of the Zu family.

    Yet he was once again defeated by the same opponent.

    Many people even suspected that the two of them were secretly colluding to put up a show.

    Nevertheless, quite a number people still rushed to purchase the movie bean, tempted by the chance to witness an absolute art. The students¡¯ eagerness to improve and their need for exposure were the main reasons that drove the training ground¡¯s sales. While the Induction Ground imparted the basics and did indeed provide some opportunities for further learning, information regarding more powerful skills often required one to reach a certain level or contribute to the Induction Ground in some way.

    The things that ordinary students could learn in the Induction Ground were pretty much fixed. Daily training was not an issue, but it could be difficult to attain more powerful techniques.

    The Induction Ground also had several absolute arts in their possession. It was, however, extremely challenging to be deemed worthy of receiving one, as evident from the small number of sessful cases.

    Aristocratic families had an absolute advantage when it came to absolute arts. Any family with more than a hundred years of history would definitely have some form of inheritance. The Avalon of Five Elements was constituted of a culture steeped in innovation, and as such, each new generation would further research and develop their family¡¯s unique legacy. This continued advancement resulted in a more profound understanding of elemental energy, allowing the gradual formation of many different styles.

    The appearance of a genius would lead to the culmination of all the knowledge that was umted prior to his generation, resulting in the creation of an absolute art out of the family¡¯s legacy.

    The saying, ¡°Absolute arts are created through umtion,¡± was, indeed, an apt one.

    The older the family, the greater their umtion of knowledge. The emergence of an individual with monstrous talent would also tend to vastly benefit a family¡¯s prowess.

    Passing on a legacy was the nature of those families, not the Induction Ground. It wasn¡¯t easy for teachers to find suitable sessors. The teachers themselves were likely to contribute to this environment since they usually preferred to study what interested them rather than follow others¡¯ paths.

    The Induction Ground may be an incubator for all sorts of brilliant ideas, but rarely did it produce absolute arts.

    The teachers¡¯ most obvious weakness was theirck ofbat experience. They lived rtively simple lives in the Induction Ground, which was the safest ce in the Avalon of Five Elements. The teachers were only exposed tobat during their students¡¯ practical training or while apanying them on missions.

    Absolute arts were mainly used inbat and were often born out of richbat experience.

    Families that sought to get ahead of others would send sessive generations of members to the frontline. These members would proudly enlist into the Thirteen Divisions, the unit that was positioned in the forefront of battle and heldbat abilities in the highest regard.

    In the long run, they would get a deeper understanding of the advantages and disadvantages of their inherited teachings. And this understanding was necessary for further improvement.

    The members of aristocratic families were exposed to absolute arts from a young age. To ordinary students, however, absolute arts were an elusive and unattainable goal. All families shared a simr zeal in protecting their own absolute arts from the prying eyes of the outside world¡ªeven umted knowledge was not divulged to outsiders. These were the fruits of their ancestors¡¯bor and were also the core of their strength.

    In the eyes of ordinary students, absolute arts were shrouded in mystery.

    Upon finding out that there were movie beans with footage of an absolute art, many students quickly rushed to get one. Even though the beans were not cheap, being able to see an absolute art made them worth it in the end. This was particrly true in a remote ce like Central Pine Academy where such opportunities were hard toe by.

    ¡°Only twenty-odd beans left?¡±

    The boss froze for a moment before roaring, ¡°Why are you still standing here? Quickly nt more beans!¡±

    ¡°We¡¯ve already nted them all, but we only have three wood elementalists,¡± the assistant effortfully exined.

    Wood elementalists had to be specialists in order to grow movie beans. While a single bean was capable of producing twenty beans after one night¡¯s worth of growth, it wasn¡¯t sufficient to just throw the beans into some random soil. A wood elementalist would have to expend elemental energy to control the bean¡¯s growth and ensure that they would be exact replicas of the seed bean. A typical wood elementalist was capable of attending to approximately twenty mirage bean pods at a time.

    ¡°Hire more! Raise the pay! Double the pay!¡± the boss shouted, his heart aching. ¡°Raise the price, we¡¯re going to increase the price!¡±

    He had expected the movie beans to sell quite well, but he would never have imagined them to be this popr.

    More wood elementalists rushed over to the training ground, working tirelessly to grow more movie beans. The entire training ground was covered by pot after pot of mirage bean pods¡ªeven the fighting stage was not left empty. The sound of bean pods popping open could be heard the whole night.

    Little did the training ground¡¯s boss know that this was only the beginning of the ruckus that was to ensue.

    A strong herbal scent pervaded the entire embroidery workshop. Ai Hui stared intently at the translucent piece of silk in his hands, his actions the speed of a snail. His heart trembled with each quiver of the extremely fine strand of silk.

    The twilight cocoon was a very rare type of silkworm cocoon that was especially difficult to handle. The cocoon, which was produced by the twilight silkworm, was as hard as steel andpletely resistant to fire and water.

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck by the amount of work involved in the handling process. A wood elementalist would first prepare a massive vat of a herbal concoction that was used to soak only a single twilight cocoon. Next, a fire elementalist would enhance the intensity of the fire, boiling the cocoon in the herbal concoction for two hours.

    The concoction became clear while the twilight cocoon turned into a ck gtinous substance.

    This was where Ai Hui¡¯s training began. His task was to slowly extract the silk from the gtinous substance. The difficultyy in ensuring that the silk, which had melted into a gtinous state, would not break; even the slightest increase in speed would cause the silk to snap.

    Moreover, he had to steadily infuse his elemental energy into the silk.

    The infusion of elemental energy into the gtinous silk made it solidify back into its usual state.

    Even the slightest oversight could ruin the entire process. A tiny tremor or a marginal quickening of his elemental energy could cause the gtinous silk to break.

    The heat in the workshop was of a shocking amount, but Ai Hui was too focused on his task to notice. He probably didn¡¯t realize how much he was sweating either.

    The value of twilight silk was dependent on its length.

    The longest thread of twilight silk that Ai Hui had extracted up till now was only one meter. twilight silk of this length had no value and could only be regarded as scraps.

    Ai Hui was under immense pressure to perform. He was no fool. Taking the cocoon, the herbal concoction, and the services of the elementalists into consideration, he knew that the production cost of the Twilight Silk was immense, even though Mistress did not reveal it.

    It would be aplete waste of resources if he couldn¡¯t extract good silk.

    His finger trembled, causing the other end of the thread to break. Unable to persist any longer, AI Hui plopped himself onto the ground, panting. He was drenched in sweat.

    Silk scraps littered the floor around him.

 Chapter 90: Movie Bean

    Chapter 90: Movie Bean

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Zhou Xiaoxi barged in excitedly and eximed, ¡°Old Li,e and watch this movie bean!¡±

    Li Wei was lying on his bed, deep in thought. His brow furrowed as he answered flippantly, ¡°Watch it on your own.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s useless to think about it since there¡¯s nothing you can do if his teacher doesn¡¯t agree. You¡¯d better not offend the teachers of the Induction Ground,¡± Zhou Xiaoxi replied from outside. ¡°Recruiting soldiers was never an easy task to begin with, so don¡¯t make things difficult for yourself. It¡¯ll be toote to regret if you end up getting backstabbed.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t spout nonsense. Teacher Wang is not like that!¡± Li Wei quickly retorted. ¡°I¡¯ve attended his lessons before, and I am confident of his character.¡±

    ¡°In any case, don¡¯t push too hard. You¡¯ve been disadvantaged quite a few times because of such issues already.¡± Zhou Xiaoxi was still worried as he continued to warn Li Wei. ¡°You should stop feeling so miserable; your luck is already good enough. Although your potential sessor¡¯s teacher refuses to let him go, you just need to gradually wear him down. I, for one, haven¡¯t even seen anyone worthy.¡±

    Li Wei askedzily, ¡°Isn¡¯t it easy for the North Sea Auxiliary Division to recruit members? Do you really need topete with us bitter folks¡±

    ¡°Bitter? More like sweet,¡± Zhou Xiaoxi teased. ¡°Someone has been distracted ever since he returned that day. I sense some stirrings of love, oh, glorious spring![1]¡±

    Li Wei immediately jumped out of bed in embarrassment and dashed out of his room, shouting, ¡°Today seems like a good day for us to exchange blows! You can make fun of me, but it¡¯s simply unbearable if you tarnish a fairdy¡¯s reputation like that!¡±

    Acting all innocent, Zhou Xiaoxi protested, ¡°Did I say something wrong? Tarnished her reputation?¡±

    ¡°You......¡± Li Wei was at a loss for words. His embarrassment quickly turned to anger as he taunted, ¡°Come over here right now. I¡¯m gonna beat your North Sea dog face into the ground.¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxi was not one bit angry. He joked loudly, ¡°I am a North Sea dog, and you are a blooming sago tree[2]¡ªI mean¡ªa blossoming metal man. Alright, alright, I¡¯m only teasing. Such things are part of human nature. Next time, I¡¯ll introduce you to thedies of the North Sea who are as stunning as the ocean. Do you know why the women of the North Sea are called the daughters of the sea?¡±

    Li Wei was veered off course. ¡°Because they¡¯re as stunning as the ocean?¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxi replied innocently, ¡°Yes, they¡¯re stunning, but what¡¯s the main feature of the ocean? It¡¯s extremely temperamental! When it¡¯s happy, all is calm and well. If it¡¯s unhappy, prepare to feel the wrath of its storms! Do you know why I¡¯m still single? I am a man who has braved these storms and lived to tell the tale! I heard that thedies in the Infantry are blessed with good figures?¡±

    Li Wei nodded his head in response to Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s curiosity. ¡°Definitely. Every one of them has amazingly well-proportioned figures. They are well-toned and have abs¡ªnot even a single one of them has the slightest bit of b. To top it off, they are most certainly not temperamental.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s great!¡± Zhou Xiaoxi said, as his eyes lit up with joy. ¡°I leave my future happiness in your hands!¡±

    ¡°As long as you can satisfy their three needs, your rtionship will be very blissful,¡± Li Wei said while he casually lifted three fingers.

    ¡°Money? Not a problem! Looks? I have that as well! My figure is not too shabby either!¡± Zhou Xiaoxi announced, brimming with confidence.

    Li Wei let out a chuckle. ¡°Thedies in our Infantry Division do not look out for these things. Their three needs refer to the need for blood when killing, the need to violently vent their anger, and the need to rip things out of sorrow.¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxi shivered momentarily in fear. He muttered, ¡°I think I¡¯ll just remain single, then.¡±

    ¡°Forget it, let¡¯s move on from this sad topic. Come, let¡¯s watch the movie bean,¡± Zhou Xiaoxi said, back to his usual self. ¡°You have no idea how hard it was to buy this. I queued really long for this bestseller.¡±

    ¡°What movie bean is this?¡± Li Wei casually asked.

    ¡°Have you heard of Zu Yan? The one who was defeated by an earth elementalist a while back? He¡¯s a pretty arrogant chap, openly distributing his written challenge for all to see. He¡¯s reallynded himself in an embarrassing situation this time.¡± Zhou Xiaoxi was clearly gloating at Zu Yan¡¯s misfortune.

    Between the aristocratic families and themonersy an uncrossable chasm. This disparity was apparent everywhere, even on the front line.

    Aristocratic families often had long and illustrious histories, leading all the way back to the battle that had founded the Avalon of Five Elements.

    After the Avalon of Five Elements had gradually stabilized, a protracted period of expansion had begun. Talented individuals from the Old Territory were brought into the Avalon of Five Elements as new residents to fill the space created by the continued expansion.

    Most of themoners of the Avalon of Five Elements could trace their roots back to the migrants from the Old Territory.

    Despite the declining influence of these families and the rise of several outstandingmoners, the allocation of resources was still vastly skewed in favor of the aristocratic families. They controlled almost eighty percent of high-grade resources.

    Conflicts between themoners and aristocratic families were everywhere but were especially prevalent on the front line, where such shes were almost an everyday urrence.

    ¡°I¡¯ve heard of this before,¡± Li Wei said, nodding. He suddenly felt curious. ¡°How did he lose so badly if he could execute an absolute art?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, I¡¯d like to see this ferocious earth elementalist for myself.¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxi took out the movie bean, tossing it into the light-swallowing, shadow-spitting nepenthes[3] set on the table. This particr type of bonsai had a broad range of uses and waspatible with many media products made by wood elementalists.

    In the dark brown-colored pot stood a twenty-centimeter tall nepenthes with arge pitcher. The pitcher was decorated with a wood elementalist¡¯s signature, and a red ring encircled its opening.

    After being tossed into the nepenthes, the movie bean was quickly dissolved by digestive fluids. Within moments, a beam of light sprang out of the pitcher¡¯s opening.

    The faint light converged into a rather blurry image.

    ¡°Why is it so unclear?¡± Zhou Xiaoxi said, visibly upset. ¡°Unscrupulous businessmen! How dare they sell such low-quality beans at such exorbitant prices! This is crazy!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t expect too much from this small region,¡± Li Wei said in an understanding manner. He was familiar with how things were like in the area. Watching the projection, he continued, ¡°Observe carefully, or you¡¯ll lose out even more.¡±

    Upon hearing Li Wei¡¯s advice, Zhou Xiaoxi ceased hisints and watched every detail attentively.

    It was evident that the mirage bean pod was focused on Zu Yan from the get-go; he was simply too eye-catching. His heavy legs were like hatchets, and his attacks were cleanly executed. His moves were not the least bit sloppy.

    ¡°He¡¯s pretty powerful,¡± Zhou Xiaoxi muttered to himself. ¡°That¡¯s a rather well executed [Hellfire Spider Web].¡± His condescending manner from before had disappeared.

    He had initially thought that Zu Yan¡¯s defeat was the result of insufficientbat experience. Judging from the footage, however, Zu Yan appeared to be highly seasoned and had not made any mistakes. Besides having a higher base level, Zhou Xiaoxi himself probably couldn¡¯t have done any better.

    Li Wei did not utter a single word; he just stared at the footage.

    There wasn¡¯t a single opponent on the ground who could match Zu Yan. He took down a handful of contestants without breaking a sweat.

    Everything changed when he attacked a participant that had a mask on.

    That seemingly innocuous contestant suddenly made a move, punching Zu Yan¡¯s heavy leg.

    Zhou Xiaoxi subconsciously shook his head. Considering that legs were much more powerful than fists, the most viable options against the heavy leg were to either dodge and find an opening, or to fight fire with fire and return with a kick.

    What happened next gave him a shock. Zu Yan was knocked back a good couple of steps while his opponent only needed two to stabilize himself.

    ¡°Impressive strength,¡± Li Weimented objectively.

    ¡°Zu Yan seemed a little stirred up¡ªhe must have recognized the other party,¡± Zhou Xiaoxi observed. His vast experience with actualbat allowed him to deduce this fairly quickly.

    However, the sight of the mysterious earth elementalist suddenly changing direction in mid-air as he rushed towards Zu Yan made them both stand up spontaneously in shock.

 Chapter 91: Discussion

    Chapter 91: Discussion

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Changing direction mid-air!

    Between the shades of light and shadow of the bean pod¡¯s image, the fuzzy figure of the earth elementalist could be seen charging towards Zu Yan. He flew into the sky and made a major turn halfway. The deflection was veryrge, like a bat gliding in low altitude.

    Zu Yan umted all the strength in his body and directed it to his heavy leg, but he still missed.

    The earth elementalist made a bizarre arc and appeared behind Zu Yan.

    The moment hended, Zu Yan¡¯s muscles seemed to have tensed. Both of them watching were seasoned battlers, and upon seeing Zu Yan¡¯s slight movement, they knew it was getting serious.

    The earth elementalist sprung up from the ground, and his back struck Zu Yan.

    They promptly saw Zu Yan turn into an afterimage as he flew out of their field of vision like a rubber ball shooting upwards from a seesaw. The wood elementalist controlling the mirage bean pod was obviously shocked by this scene. The scene was frozen still for a good few seconds before the wood elementalist regained control of his senses and redirected the mirage bean pod.

    In between the light and shadow of the mirage bean pod, Zu Yan¡¯s body could be seen stuck to the light cover like a baked tbread.

    ¡°Must be painful,¡± Zhou Xiaoximented, as he looked lifelessly at the tbread man in the image and swallowed his saliva with a little bit of difficulty.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it doesn¡¯t hurt.¡± Li Wei shook his head with a simr dull expression. ¡°He¡¯s unconscious; he can¡¯t feel a thing.¡±

    Snap! The light and shadow image disappeared from the nepenthes cage.

    ¡°That¡¯s.... that¡¯s it?¡± Zhou Xiaoxi, who had just regained his senses, fell into a daze once again. Two secondster, a mournful shriek loud enough to tear the roof apart sounded out. ¡°Not one minute¡¯s up and it¡¯s already over? Where¡¯s the absolute art? I can¡¯t even see his face clearly! Earth elementalist? Where¡¯s the sand puppet? Where are the other people? That¡¯s all? How dare you sell the tickets at a hundred thousand yuan for this kind of show? Ahhhhhh...I¡¯m gonna kill somebody! Don¡¯t stop me!¡±

    ¡°A hundred thousand?¡± Li Wei looked disdainfully at Zhou Xiaoxi and did not forget to rub it in. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you have assets in terms of face and body, but money? I know you do! And brains? None for sure!¡±

    Pfff. A puff of mist exited the nepenthes, releasing a burp-like sound that seemed to give an affirmation to Li Wei¡¯s words. ¡°Light-swallowing, shadow-spitting¡± nepenthes sounded like a mighty name but it was actually a very simple type of nt¡ªits most unique trait was that it wasn¡¯t picky about food.

    When the wood elementalists first bred the mirage bean pod, they found an awkward fact¡ªthe smell of the bean was rejected by all flora and fauna.

    The initial test subject was a colorful chameleon. Its skin could spray out multicolored light, creating an illusion around its surroundings to protect itself. But the experiment had quickly failed because the chameleon was badly poisoned after eating the bean.

    Images stored inside the movie bean were screened sessfully only after the wood elementalists had discovered a special kind of nepenthes. This was how it was given such an imperious name.

    The two of them briefly stood in silence, digesting the scene from earlier.

    ¡°There¡¯s finally a powerful fellow but he turns out to be an earth elementalist. How unexpected.¡± Zhou Xiaoxi was disappointed as the North Sea was recruiting water elementalists.

    ¡°It¡¯s a pity there¡¯s no sand puppet.¡± Li Wei was curious. ¡°An earth elementalist good at battling close-range...I really wonder how his sand puppet would be like.¡±

    Seasoned fighters like them knew that in order to evaluate an earth elementalist, they would have to understand his sand puppet. The sand puppet was the real trump card.

    One must not judge a wood elementalist¡¯s battling abilities before assessing his sand puppet.

    ¡°That was a mid-air direction switch, eh?¡± Zhou Xioaxi was slightly uncertain. ¡°Recognize the move yet?¡±

    Between the two of them, although Li Wei looked a little more forthright, their personalities werepletely opposite. Zhou Xiaoxi had a carefree personality while Li Wei was more meticulous in nature.

    ¡°No.¡± Li Wei shook his head. ¡°Doing a mid-air switch is possible, albeit difficult. Don¡¯t forget that he¡¯s an earth elementalist. He has a sand puppet.¡±

    ¡°Reasonable.¡± Zhou Xiaoxi lightly touched his chin before asking, ¡°Don¡¯t you feel that the back leaning move was simr to [Arching Fish Back]?¡±

    Actually, when he had first seen that move, Li Wei had immediately thought about the series of dents on the wall of the Suspending Golden Pagoda. Could it be Ai Hui? This idea shed through his mind before he quickly shook it off. Although his build matched the dents, he had just activated his natal residence. It was impossible for him to possess suchbat strength.

    Plus, this was an earth elementalist. Ai Hui, on the other hand, was definitely of the metal attribute.

    ¡°I¡¯m more willing to believe that it¡¯s [Back to the Mountain],¡± Li Wei said.

    Zhou Xiaoxi understood; although the earth elementalist¡¯s move seemed to be simr to [Arching Fish Back], the power released far exceeded that of it.

    [Arching Fish Back] was a technique that was used for struggling free instead of attacking.

    ¡°There are all kinds of freaks this year. How can an earth elementalist be an earth elementalist if he doesn¡¯t engage his sand puppet when fighting?¡± Zhou Xiaoxi mumbled to himself.

    ¡°Youngsters nowadays are fierce!¡± Li Wei sighed. Zu Yan¡¯s performance was already pretty solid but that earth elementalist¡¯s abilities were even more outstanding. The disparity between levels could be made up with time but a gap between talent wasn¡¯t something that could be easily filled.

    Li Wei did not know why, but after viewing the movie bean, he all the more yearned to urgently recruit Ai Hui.

    He felt that Ai Hui was undoubtedly the most suitable fellow for the Infantry Division!

    What should he do?

    Li Wei decided that no matter what, he had to meet Ai Hui personally before thinking further.

    The embroidery workshop.

    As usual, Mingxiu was reporting to her teacher. The workshop had received many orders of different priorities; some were urgent while others could wait. Some required her teacher to attend to personally while others could be taken care of by Mingxiu. She organized and handled the tasks well; Han Yuqin was extremely reassured and satisfied with this beloved disciple of hers.

    After listening to Mingxiu¡¯s report, Han Yuqin asked about Ai Hui. ¡°How¡¯s your junior doing recently?¡±

    ¡°Not much progress.¡± Mingxiu shook her head, and she hesitated a little before continuing, ¡°I¡¯m afraid that Twilight Silk¡¯s too difficult for him. It¡¯s not easy even for me. Should we change it to something else?¡±

    Han Yuqin hesitated as well. Mingxiu didn¡¯t seem to be exaggerating.

    Unlike what Ai Hui thought, Twilight Silk was not sold in the market at an extremely high price because of the rarity of twilight silkworm cocoons. In fact, twilight silkworm cocoons were really cheap. They were resistant to water and fire, as solid as iron, and not many insects liked nibbling on them. Herbal medicine used to treat the cocoons were not worth much either.

    Actually, it was so pricey because it was too difficult to collect.

    The silk spinner had to have sufficiently pure elemental energy to solidify the gluey natural silk. Furthermore, a very stable and precise control of elemental energy was needed. Any slight disturbance in concentration would cause the silk to break.

    Once the silk was broken, it couldn¡¯t be joined back¡ªthis meant that it was impossible to make a long silk strand from many short ones.

    And the whole process was time consuming and produced little output. Whenever Han Yuqin needed it, she would purchase it directly instead of producing it on her own.

    To be fair, Han Yuqin also felt that Twilight Silk was too difficult for Ai Hui.

    But to change it?

    Thinking about this, she couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°How does Ai Hui feel about it?¡±

    After all, she was someone who had already taken in disciples. She knew that when it came to youngsters, difficult tasks would dampen their zeal.

    As an afterthought, Han Yuqin added, ¡°Discuss it with him first.¡±

 Chapter 92: Experience

    Chapter 92: Experience

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui sat on the ground of the workshop, gasping heavily.

    The rising fog carried a herbal medicinal odor as it squirted out from the window from time to time. The workshop was like a monster, spewing poisonous gas at random intervals.

    The embroiderydies didn¡¯t dare to go close and rather took more steps to walk around it instead. Many of them hade to a sudden realization¡ªno wonder the workshop never produced any Twilight Silk. But there were still bolderdies who stole nces at Ai Hui from afar.

    It was seriously hot inside the workshop, and Ai Hui was working half-naked, disying his well-proportioned, robust, and fit body. His skin was emitting a golden glow as if he¡¯d been smeared with ayer of grease. The steam within the workshop carried an unpleasant odor, which prevented the women from approaching¡ªbut it did not stop them from admiring from a distance.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t aware that people were secretly watching him. All his focus was ced on that damned Twilight Silk.

    So far, the silk that he had extracted had never exceeded one meter in length.

    The elemental energy within his body was abnormally smooth and fast like lightning. It was easy to make it quick; with just a thought, his elemental energy would gain speed. To slow it down, however, was exponentially harder. Moreover, not only did he have to slow it down, he had to ensure that it had a uniform velocity, free from fluctuations.

    Ai Hui had been thinking about a lot of things these past few days.

    What he pondered most about was the fact that although the elemental energy within his body was pure, it was very different from the energy that he developed himself. He could induce elemental energy with help from the Sword Rattan Gloves, but he could only exercise simple control over it.

    The elemental energy he had developed through self-training wasn¡¯t as pure and was little in quantity, but it could easily be controlled and engaged during moreplicated operations.

    Ai Hui had gotten out of the excitement from his previous victory and had be much more clear-minded.

    No matter how much strength he had, it was useless if it was untamed. And on the contrary, no matter how little strength he had, it could still be used during crucial moments as long as he had perfect control over it.

    Slow and steady should be the way to go, Ai Hui told himself.

    The nature of a three minute hero was no different from the sword embryo. What he needed was reliable strength. Reliable strength and reliable abilities.

    ¡°How is it, Junior?¡± Mingxiu walked into the workshop.

    Ai Hui stood up. ¡°Not bad, Senior. It¡¯s actually quite rewarding.¡±

    Mingxiu was slightly surprised. She expected her junior to be somewhat dispirited, but he actually had a very optimistic attitude. She observed attentively and caught no signs of disappointment in Ai Hui¡¯s expression.

    But then again, her junior had attempted the [Twin Weaving Technique] just after activating his natal residence, so why would he be discouraged by the difficulty of the Twilight Silk?

    ¡°That¡¯s good. Don¡¯t be anxious, Junior, try slowly.¡± Mingxiu consoled him, ¡°Twilight Silk is so expensive precisely because it is very challenging to extract.¡±

    On hearing the word ¡°expensive,¡± light shed within Ai Hui¡¯s eyes, but the words behind captured his attention even more. ¡°Senior, are you saying that the raw material isn¡¯t expensive?¡±

    Mingxiu nodded. ¡°It is inexpensive. A silkworm cocoon costs about two hundred thousand yuan now.¡±

    Ai Hui opened his eyes wide. ¡°Two hundred thousand isn¡¯t considered expensive?¡±

    Mingxiuughed briefly. ¡°Indeed, it is considered inexpensive. An elemental cloth costs fifty thousand yuan.¡±

    ¡°What about Twilight Silk?¡± Ai Hui asked, unable to believe what he was hearing.

    ¡°Depends on its specifications.¡± After taking a few moments to remember, she said, ¡°Anything below five meters isn¡¯t worth much. Ten meters or so can be bought at two hundred thousand. The price doubles every five meters.¡±

    Ai Hui gulped. A Twilight Silk silkworm cocoon looked small but the silk within was extremely fine. Theoretically, it was possible to extract over a hundred meters of silk.

    How much money is that!

    Twenty meters for eight hundred thousand yuan. Thirty meters for three million and two hundred thousand yuan. Forty meters for twelve million and eight hundred thousand yuan! And fifty meters would cost over fifty million yuan!

    Come to think of it, the noodle shop girl¡¯s eighty million yuan...it could be paid off with just two fifty-meter-long strands of Twilight Silk and there would still be a lot to spare!

    He was about to drool.

    Ai Hui felt resentful. Why was it that whenever the topic of embroidery came up, it always involved a lot of money?

    But from his previous experience with the [Twin Weaving Technique], Ai Hui was aware that while money from embroidery seemed to be plenty, it was actually extremely challenging to earn.

    Ai Hui had calcted the Twilight Silk¡¯s best solidifying speed. One day and one night for a length of about two meters. There was no mistake.

    Twilight Silk of fifty meters required twenty-five consecutive days of operating elemental energy non-stop at a consistent speed, without even the slightest error.

    This was not only incredibly challenging, but it was also terrifying. Not to mention the elemental energy, just maintaining focus for twenty-five days straight was almost impossible.

    Anything below five meters wasn¡¯t worth much money, yet Ai Hui already had trouble in producing five meters.

    Wow, money isn¡¯t easy to earn!

    As if she¡¯d noticed Ai Hui¡¯s dejected expression, Mingxiuforted him. ¡°Don¡¯t be discouraged, Junior. Manufacturing Twilight Silk is bitter work; even those who are able to aren¡¯t willing to do it too. Thirty-meter-long Twilight Silk can¡¯t be easily found in today¡¯s market. Plus, you¡¯re doing this to train. When your skills improve, spinning silk will be second nature to you.¡±

    Ai Hui regained his spirit; although he had failed to spin silk, it was still a pretty effective training method.

    Silk spinning forced the operation of elemental energy to slow down. Having such pure elemental energy circting at such a slow speed within his body was intensely stimting.

    In the past, whenever his elemental energy cirction would reach his hand pce, it would feel no different from any other parts of his body. Now, however, he could feel that a region of his palm was more sensitive to the energy.

    He knew that this region, which felt more sensitive and intense, was his hand pce.

    Elemental energy within Ai Hui¡¯s body had never operated so slowly before. Over the past few days, he had been immersed in many fresh experiences; for example, he had recently found out that operating his elemental energy slowly had a body tempering effect.

    The world was so big¡ªAi Hui always carried an inquisitive attitude towards many things.

    Seeing the improvement in Ai Hui¡¯s mood, Mingxiu advised him, ¡°Go home and rest for a few days. You need to strike a bnce between work and rest; alternating between tension and rxation is the key to training. You¡¯ve been without rest for a few days, and it¡¯s detrimental to your body. Go back. I¡¯ll tell Teacher.¡±

    Truth be told, Ai Hui¡¯s non-stop training had scared her. He must have been this hard-working when he was trying to figure out the [Twin Weaving Technique] in the Suspending Golden Pagoda. No wonder he could simte the technique even though he had just activated his natal residence. How amazingly determined!

    Ai Hui felt that his senior was right¡ªfocusing had started to be increasingly difficult. He knew that this was the sign of exhaustion.

    "Then I¡¯ll get going, Senior!"

    Ai Hui bid Senior Mingxiu goodbye before promptly leaving the embroidery workshop.

    On the street, Ai Hui felt like he was in another world. All the fog and smell of the herbal medicine within the workshop had disappeared, leaving only a faint herbal smell on his body to remind himself how he had passed thesest few days.

    Under the sunlight, Ai Hui smiled and had a good stretch. He decided that once he reached back, he would have a good bath and sleep.

    Just then, he heard someone call his name.

 Chapter 93: Li Weiâ€™s Treat

    Chapter 93: Li Wei¡¯s Treat

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui looked attentively towards Li Wei as he found him somewhat familiar.

    ¡°I¡¯m Li Wei, an instructor of the Society of Excellence. I¡¯m also Mingxiu¡¯s friend. I¡¯m the one who carried you and Duanmu Huanghun back from the Suspending Golden Pagoda.¡± The veteran Li Wei introduced himself to Ai Hui.

    ¡°Brother Li Wei! Thank you very much, Brother Li Wei!¡± Ai Hui felt embarrassed and quickly thanked him.

    ¡°You haven¡¯t eaten anything yet, right? Let¡¯s go and eat now; we will talk over the meal.¡± Li Wei appeared to be extremely amicable.

    The moment Ai Hui heard that there was going to be food, his eyes lit up, and he immediately agreed to Li Wei¡¯s invitation.

    When Ai Hui learned that Li Wei was the one who had written the strategy to tackle the Suspending Golden Pagoda, his respect for him grew significantly. And after he heard that Brother Li Wei was going to treat him to a meal, he quickly brought Li Wei to the noodle house. He decided to order a few extra bowls of noodlester to show his respect for Li Wei.

    ¡°The Society of Excellence?¡±

    Li Wei was surprised when Ai Hui shook his head and rejected his invitation. ¡°Brother Li Wei, I really have no time. Until now, I haven¡¯t evenpleted the training assignments that the teachers in school have given me.¡±

    Deep down, Li Wei was disappointed. However, he could tell that Ai Hui was not lying. Fatigue was written all over Ai Hui¡¯s face; he looked extremely tired.

    ¡°When¡¯s thest time you had a rest?¡± Li Wei asked with great concern, ¡°It¡¯s important to pace your training. Don¡¯t be too impatient. You¡¯re still young and there¡¯s plenty of time.¡±

    Li Wei was someone who valued and cared for talents. And in his eyes, Ai Hui was a prodigy.

    ¡°Compared to other students, I¡¯m quite old.¡± Ai Hui shook his head.

    Li Wei oohed. Yes, Ai Hui was not young anymore. It was only now that he realized that he had only noticed Ai Hui¡¯s talents and not his age. Compared to other students, it was indeed quitete.

    Those exceptional prodigies were all able to graduate from the Induction Ground at the mere age of sixteen. However, at this age, Ai Hui had barely started training. Li Wei felt great pity for him. Yet such situations weremon urrences in both the Old Territory and the Avalon of Five Elements.

    By the time many people discovered that they were gifted, they had already missed their best window of time to train.

    ¡°Even though you started offte, I still believe you can do it!¡± Li Wei sincerely encouraged Ai Wei. He could sense Ai Hui¡¯s impatience.

    ¡°Thank you, Brother Li Wei!¡± Ai Hui was touched by Li Wei¡¯s words. He felt that he should do something to reciprocate Brother Li Wei¡¯s concern for him, so he turned around and yelled to the boss, ¡°Boss, give me one more bowl of noodles! No, two more!¡±

    Li Wei did not expect to seed on his first try. He merely wanted to leave an impression on Ai Hui and try again in the future. There was no need for him to be impatient. And after the short interaction with Ai Hui, he felt that the trip he made today was not in vain and was rather rewarding.

    Ai Hui left a deep impression on him.

    He was a reserved person with a determined gaze and a maturity that far surpassed his age. From their conversation, Li Wei could sense the determination and willpower of the young man seated in front of him.

    Whenever Ai Hui was unsure of something, he would ask a lot of questions. Some questions even left Li Wei in a daze.

    Were the youngsters nowadays really that hard to deal with? When he himself was at such an age, he was as innocent and stupid as a pig.

    Prudence, foresight, and determination.

    Li Wei sighed in his heart once more. He was bing increasingly convinced that Ai Hui was a legitimate prodigy. Even though he started offte, Li Wei still believed that he could ovee such an obstacle.

    It was both simple and difficult to convince this kind of person. The difficult part was that they would not be easily persuaded by flowery words, and the easy part was that they would agree to anything without a second of hesitation if they found it to be beneficial to themselves.

    And it was also because of this that Li Wei was so confident that he could persuade Ai Hui. Although the Infantry Division was not as popr as other divisions, it was very suitable for Ai Hui¡¯s character and physical traits. He believed that Ai Hui could see this as well.

    Right now, he decided to just be friends with Ai Hui. There would be plenty of time and chances in the future. Teacher Wang may be knowledgeable, but his knowledge of body tempering andbat techniques paled inparison with that of the Infantry Division.

    For some reasons, Li Wei could sense an aura from Ai Hui that was simr to his.

    Li Wei was a veteran. He knew that his intuition was not baseless. However, at the same time, his mind was filled with doubts. It was rather incredible to see such traits in a sixteen-year-old boy.

    Even those prodigies that graduated from the Induction Ground at this age reeked of rookie¡¯s aura, which could be sensed from two kilometers away.

    In the front line, even if a rookie were a prodigy, they would be considered as one of the most undesirable people to be around.

    The most undesirable group of people, however, were those rookiemanders.

    When the younger generations from those aristocratic families entered the front line, they seldom worked their way up from being a soldier.

    Li Wei had no prejudice against the younger generations of those influential, aristocratic families. In fact, he had seen many outstanding youthse from aristocratic families; however, he bitterly detested rookiemanders.

    ¡°Have you ever stayed in the Wilderness before?¡± Li Wei asked curiously.

    Ai Hui, who was busy eating the food, stopped and raised his head. With his mouth stuffed with noodles, he replied unintelligibly, ¡°Yes, I stayed there for three years. I used to be aborer.¡±

    When he heard Ai Hui¡¯s response, Li Wei became thoroughly dumbfounded, and he only returned to his senses after a few seconds. With an incredulous look on his face, he asked again, ¡°Are you saying that you used to be aborer? And that you stayed in the Wilderness for three years?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Ai Hui nodded as he kept stuffing his mouth with noodles.

    Li Wei was shocked by this information.

    Of course he knew what aborer was.

    In the Wilderness, there was a unique group of people that were collectively calledborers. Theseborers were hired from the Old Territory, and most of them were desperate, pitiful souls. Laborers had almost zero fighting capabilities and were the fastest and earliest group of people to be eliminated and killed in the Wilderness.

    When Li Wei first learned aboutborers, he did not understand why they were hired. From his perspective,borers were frail and had low stamina. They were also mentally weak and were easily killed. But after staying in the Wilderness for some time, he had finally understood the reason.

    The Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ current training system was developed from and based on dire beasts. Elementalists were much more sensitive toward elemental energy fluctuations in dire beasts, and vice versa.

    If a detachment had too many powerful elementalists, it would only result in two possibilities. The first was that they would scare away the dire beasts. The second was that they would encourage the dire beasts to gang up against them.

    A division like the Infantry Division did not enter the Wilderness to hunt the dire beasts, and hence, they would not have such worries.

    However, for those who entered the Wilderness to hunt for the dire beasts, these two results were not something they wanted to encounter.

    Hence, recruitingborers was their best option. Butpared to the benefits of hunting the dire beasts, thepensations for theborers were worth nothing.

    Laborer recruitment had a long history that could be dated back to seven hundred years ago.

    Ever since the concept of recruitingborers had been initiated, there had been huge debates over it. As such, there was a strict regtion on thepensation payments forborers. However, the number of ¡°new citizens¡± in the Avalon of Five Elements was getting increasinglyrger, and their objections forborer recruitment were getting louder and louder.

    The so-called ¡°new citizens¡± referred to the people who had migrated from the Old Territory to the Avalon of Five Elements after thetter had been established. They had deep sentiments towards the Old Territory, and the higher-ups held their voices in high regard. Many signs also indicated that the abolishment ofborer recruitment was near.

    Li Wei had never expected the youth who was heartily eating the noodles in front of him to be aborer!

 Chapter 94: Midnight

    Chapter 94: Midnight

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    Li Wei did not know how long he had been in shock for. In any case, the empty bowls in front of Ai Hui seemed to have stacked higher and higher.

    For a moment, he did not know what to say.

    After a long silence, he opened his mouth. ¡°Being aborer, it¡¯s not easy to return alive.¡±

    At this point, Ai Hui was nearly done eating, and his actions had slowed down. He raised his head and gave a sunny smile. ¡°That¡¯s right. Only two out of two thousandborers survived.¡±

    A cold shiver ran down Li Wei¡¯s spine. He had spent a long time at the front line and was used to death; however, this was the first time he had ever heard of such a terrifying mortality rate. He finally realized whatborers being ¡°easily killed¡± meant.

    He became silent and observed the young man seated across him.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face did not show any signs of vengeance, self-pity, sadness or suffering. He was just sitting there looking calm and earnest, his gaze limpid.

    Unknowingly, Li Wei became somewhat emotional. ¡°Why did you want toe to the Induction Ground?¡±

    ¡°I want to be an elementalist.¡± Ai Huiughed as he idly stirred the empty bowl with his chopsticks. ¡°There¡¯s no future in being aborer; it¡¯s better to be an elementalist.¡±

    For some unknown reason, Li Wei could sense that these straightforward and casual words contained much more than what they actually meant.

    This was the first time that Li Wei did not know what to say to a young man. He finally understood how Ai Hui had developed a maturity that far surpassed his young age.

    The number of deaths that Ai Hui had witnessed far exceeded what he had. Ai Hui had survived the harshest and cruelest of environments, and the situations he had faced were far more dangerous than what Li Wei had ever faced. Yet the three years of extreme hardship still did not destroy the young man¡¯s courage and will to live.

    Other than age and strength, Ai Hui¡¯s experience and character were not inferior to his.

    This was a young man who did not need constion and encouragement. He knew what he was doing and what he was working hard for. There was no uncertainty and hesitation¡ªonly a strong and determined heart.

    Unwittingly, Li Wei started to treat Ai Hui as someone who was of the same age as himself.

    He took out a roll of thumb-sized golden leaf. ¡°This contains some of my usual training tips, but it doesn¡¯t include any secret techniques. I¡¯m giving it to you in the hope that it will be of some help! I am metal-attributed, and I have also stayed in the Suspending Golden Pagoda for a long time. That ce will suit you well.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Brother Li Wei!¡± Ai Hui thanked him sincerely. This was something that he needed the most right now, and he did not act hypocritically.

    Such a nice senior. If he didn¡¯t do anything to repay him, he would feel guilty! Ai Hui turned his head around and was about to order another bowl of noodles to show his respect for Brother Li Wei. Ow...he could not eat anymore...

    Sadness and regret rose in Ai Hui¡¯s heart. This ending was not perfect at all.

    Seeing that it was gettingte, Li Wei stood up and patted Ai Hui¡¯s shoulder. ¡°Let¡¯s go back and have a good rest.¡±

    Ai Hui quickly nodded.

    ¡°Boss! Bill, please!¡±

    The boss arrived as swift as the wind. ¡°That will be one thousand and five hundred yuan!¡±

    Li Wei was momentarily stunned. ¡°Boss, you must have miscounted.¡±

    How could they have eaten one thousand and five hundred yuan worth of noodles? Ten bowls?

    ¡°Sir, look at the table.¡± The boss pointed at the table.

    When Li Wei turned around and saw the high stack of bowls on the table, he was dumbfounded.

    To the side, Ai Hui put on an innocent face.

    After bidding farewell to Brother Li Wei, the stuffed Ai Hui dragged himself back to the training hall. Lou Lan wasn¡¯t there. Ai Hui, who was already tired and incredibly full, immediately went straight to bed.

    Before his body could even warm up the bed, he had already fallen asleep.

    On the other side of the wall, there was a room that was dimly lit under the glow of a yellowish-orange light.

    ¡°How do you feel? I have made many improvements to the new sand core. The problems that it faced in the past have already been rectified. This is the sand core that I¡¯m most satisfied with for thest fifty years, and I have put in most of my knowledge into this. Lou Lan, you have a matchless sand core. It¡¯s a pity that I don¡¯t know much aboutbat and I can¡¯t make too many improvements in that aspect.¡±

    An old man with ash-grey hair looked directly at Lou Lan, who wasfortably stretching his body. The old man¡¯s gaze was tender¡ªit was as if he was looking at his own child.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, Master Shao,¡± Lou Lan replied as he touched and felt his own body. ¡°Lou Lan can learn by himself.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Master Shao became excited. ¡°You¡¯re very smart. I¡¯m sure there are not many sand puppets in this world that are smarter than you. As long as you keep on learning, you will be stronger. Combat is not a problem for you. You have such a matchless sand core, it¡¯s a pity that I don¡¯t have enough money to rece your body. If your body¡¯s material can be reced with Yellow Sand Corner¡¯s high-grade sand, you will be nearly invincible.¡±

    Master Shao¡¯s tone was filled with pride.

    ¡°Is it because Lou Lan¡¯s body can be fluid-like?¡± Lou Lan asked curiously.

    Master Shaoughed out loud. After a while, however, he stopped. ¡°Lou Lan is a good boy!¡±

    Lou Lan did not quite understand what Master Shao meant, but he knew that thetter was praising him and so he was delighted.

    ¡°Lou Lan, what do you think of Ai Hui?¡± Master Shao suddenly asked.

    ¡°Ai Hui is Lou Lan¡¯s best friend,¡± Lou Lan replied without any hesitation.

    ¡°How do you feel when you¡¯re together with him?¡±

    ¡°Very happy,¡± Lou Lan replied. ¡°Ai Hui is a good guy, a very good guy.¡±

    Master Shao treated and understood Lou Lan like his own child. His face was filled with warmth as he deeply looked at Lou Lan.

    ¡°Good boy. Even though your sand core has be so powerful, it¡¯s still considered an iplete product. Yes, I have spent fifty years on your sand core, but there¡¯s a limit to my talents. I¡¯m afraid I don¡¯t have the capability to perfect it. My child, what I¡¯m going to say next is very important. You have to remember these words. Store them in the deepest part of your sand core.¡±

    Master Shao¡¯s facial expression became solemn.

    ¡°Okay, Lou Lan will start recording now.¡± Lou Lan became serious.

    Master Shao went into a deep silence and was somewhat entranced, as if he was thinking of something.

    After a long while, he finally returned to his senses andughed to himself. ¡°I¡¯m indeed old.¡±

    ¡°Master Shao, do I need to remember this line?¡± Lou Lan asked with his eyes wide open.

    ¡°No need, no need.¡± Master Shao chuckled.

    ¡°Lou Lan, your current sand core is in an iplete state. That¡¯s because your body can¡¯t handle all the powers of the sand core, and so I have to seal a portion of the core. Before your body bes stronger, you are not allowed to remove the seal. As for the information on how to remove the seal and how to transform your body, I have already saved them in your sand core. You need to spend some time studying this information. And thest thing is that if Master Shao is not around in the future, you must follow Ai Hui. He¡¯s a rather good guy,¡± Master Shao told Lou Lan with a stern tone.

    Lou Lan abruptly asked, ¡°Master Shao, are you leaving Lou Lan?¡±

    ¡°Lou Lan, my life ising to an end. Before I die, I have to have to go and settle an issue that I have regretted most of my life.¡±

    Master Shao suddenly spoke after being lost in thought for a long while.

    ¡°Lou Lan, remember this......your sand core is called Midnight.¡±

 Chapter 95: Changes To The Blood Bandage

    Chapter 95: Changes To The Blood Bandage

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    After a good night¡¯s sleep, Ai Hui felt an indescribable sense of happiness and satisfaction. All his previous tiredness was now gone.

    Looking at the time, the traces of sleepiness that Ai Hui felt immediately disappeared. He had actually slept for one entire day. Given that he had just woken up, Ai Hui decided to take a bath directly.

    While soaking in the hot spring, he began ying with the Blood Bandage.

    The Blood Bandage had a very unusual texture; it was neither cloth nor silk, and there were still intact traces of blood as if it had just dried up. Mistress had said that it had existed for an extremely long period of time¡ªmore than ten thousand years.

    Every time he looked at the Blood Bandage, his thoughts couldn¡¯t help but wander to the Cultivation Era. It was such a bustling and diversified period with a vast world. There were different oddities of techniques and innumerable magic-infused treasures. Cultivators soared through the skies andbed through the earth to explore the unknown, dominating the era for thousands of years.

    The Blood Bandage was really sturdy; even with all his strength, Ai Hui was unable to tear even a bit. When Mistress had split the Blood Bandage into two, she had used tremendous strength as well. She had said that the silk yarn was bound up by a special force, seamlessly blending them together. The Blood Bandage had many loose threads on its sides due to Mistress¡¯ attempt to tear it.

    Thanks to the swordy manual, Ai Hui¡¯s had a much better understanding of the Cultivation Era than before.

    During the Cultivation Era, blood sects were never the mainstream sects; instead, the mainstream sects were those that revolved around swordsmanship and weapon-training. Now, though, along with all their magic-infused treasures, those prestigious and orthodox schools that had hundreds and thousands of years of history had all decayed and disappeared. However, an object from a small blood sect had been able to escape the fate of bing decayed throughout the millennia. Life was indeed filled with variables.

    Just by hearing the name "blood-refinement," one could figure out that it was rted to fresh blood. That mysterious strength should be rted to fresh blood as well.

    The Blood Bandage had a faintly discernible bone-chilling smell. In the beginning, Ai Hui was not ustomed to wearing the bandage as it would suddenly erupt with a killing intent. Ai Hui¡¯s pores would abruptly constrict, and it would feel like the bandages had be two bands of ice.

    Nevertheless, it was fortunate that the killing intent did not erupt frequently and that each episode was short-lived.

    What a strange object.

    To be rted to blood...

    Should he perhaps try to drip a few drops of blood onto the bandage?

    That sudden inspiration filled Ai Hui with energy; he had always been curious about the Blood Bandage. The Blood Bandage was a blood-refined object, and he did not have any clue as to what was blood refinement. As for those few drops of blood, it was not a matter of concern for Ai Hui; he was not a pampered and spoilt rich brat, and injuries were amon urrence back in the Wilderness.

    Unable to contain his curiosity, which had firmly rooted in his heart like a weed, he did not hesitate and immediately bit his finger. He dripped a few drops of blood on the two pieces of the Blood Bandage.

    The fresh blood dripped onto the Blood Bandage. The drops resembled water droplets on a lotus leaf, round and dark red.

    The next moment, the blood droplets were absorbed into the Blood Bandage, as if it were yellow sand. Only a few abnormally bright blood stains were left on the bandage.

    The next scene, however, led Ai Hui to widen his eyes in shock. The Blood Bandage suddenly came to life¡ªthe part that was torn by Mistress had loose threads, which started to wriggle and grow.

    In just a few moments, the edge of the Blood Bandage lost all signs of being torn. The two pieces showed no evidence of damage and were perfectly intact.

    Ai Hui was dumbfounded.

    This blood refinement was indeed unconventional.

    Previously, the Blood Bandage had looked rather dull and low; but now, it looked as good as new and had be brighter and whiter. The earlier dried blood stains had be more faint, except the stain due to his blood¡ªthat was still unusually bright red.

    The texture of the bandage had also be soft, unlike the hard and heavy texture of before.

    Ai Hui examined it over and over again, but he was unable toe up with any usible reasons, except the confirmation that his fresh blood was pivotal to such a change.

    "You indeed live up to your name," Ai Hui muttered. Yet, he did not n to continue wasting his own blood. An average person would have some fear when faced with the strange situations of the Blood Bandage. Ai Hui, however, did not experience any fear; he had seen many situations which were simr to hell. How could he be frightened by a few drops of blood?

    He finished his bath and came out of the hot spring. After wiping his body dry, he prepared to bind the Blood Bandage to himself.

    When it came into contact with his body, the bandage came to life. Like an agile snake, it wound nimbly around Ai Hui¡¯s body, and in a sh, it was bound properly and was simr to how Ai Hui usually did it. The fit was just right. It did not have the usual bone-chilling feel, but instead, it was warm and soft¡ªextremelyfortable. Ai Hui widened his eyes. Was this the same Blood Bandage?

    This is kind of awesome....

    He could never have believed his unexpected action to bring about such a pretty good result. He felt that he was quite lucky. It was aplicated process to bind the Blood Bandage, and it usually took Ai Hui quite a long time. Now that the bandage could bind by itself, it saved him a lot of hassle.

    After wearing his clothes, he randomly plucked a de of grass and chewed on it. Walking into the training hall, he saw Lou Lan sitting in the courtyard. He noticed that Lou Lan did not seem to be in a good mood. Ai Hui was puzzled. If sand puppets had personalities, then Lou Lan was definitely an optimistic and happy-go-lucky sand puppet.

    "Lou Lan, what happened?"

    Ai Hui sat next to Lou Lan.

    "Ai Hui, Master Shao left," Lou Lan said, his head downcast.

    Ai Hui paused. "Master Shao left? Did he go on a journey or did he meet with some mishaps?"

    Ai Hui had always been mystified by his neighbor. It was said that one could see an earth elementalist¡¯s character through his sand puppet. However, he could not think of any kind of earth elementalist who would create a sand puppet like Lou Lan.

    Ai Hui had encountered many sand puppets. All those sand puppets had shocking war capabilities, butpared to Lou Lan, they were many times more foolish.

    "He left on a journey," Lou Lan said softly. "He said he has almost reached the end of his life and he wanted toplete something that he has always regretted. Ai Hui, what kind of matters could make Master Shao feel regretful his whole life?"

    Ai Hui exhaled in relief. It was fine as long as he hadn¡¯t met with any mishaps. He thought for a while. "It could be anything; rtionships, diplomatic matters...there are important events for each and every one of us."

    "But if that¡¯s the case, then why didn¡¯t he do it then?" Lou Lan said with a face of confusion.

    Ai Hui was struck dumb. He did not know how to answer such a profound question. He thought quickly and spread out his arms. "For example, he had no money!"

    "No money?" Lou Lan tilted his head and pondered. "Yes, Master Shao always used his money on Lou Lan."

    Ai Hui let out a breath. "Now that Lou Lan has grown up and Master Shao does not need to watch over Lou Lan, he canplete his unfulfilled desires."

    Ai Hui felt as if he was an old creep that was going to kidnap a child.

    "But why didn¡¯t Master Shao bring Lou Lan along? Lou Lan could help Master Shao." Lou Lan looked at Ai Hui with wide eyes.

    Ai Hui racked his brain. "A lot of things should be solved by oneself. Look at my Master and Mistress, can I help in their rtionship? I definitely can¡¯t! If Master wants to have a date with Mistress, would he bring me along? Definitely not."

    "Master Shao has gone to find Mistress Shao?" Realization dawned upon Lou Lan. "I see."

    "It must be!" Ai Hui wondered how many of his brain cells had died; he was starting to believe his own lies. His voice expressed heartfelt emotion as he said, "Although Master Shao is of a certain age, he still has the right to chase after his happiness. To be able to figure this out at such an old age is not easy. We must give him our blessings!"

    Lou Lan nodded. "Lou Lan also wanted to wish Master Shao."

    Bang! Lou Lan transformed into five words.

    "All the best, Master Shao!"

    Ai Hui let out a loudugh.

 Chapter 96: The Discussion Between the Old and the Young

    Chapter 96: The Discussion Between the Old and the Young

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    He didn¡¯t know if it was because he had been hanging out with Lou Lan for an extended period of time, but Ai Hui felt that he had be a much more cheerful person.

    Alright. Perhaps these were his true colors?

    Ai Hui pondered over it. At the swordsman school, he was mostly alone and did not have any ymates of the same age. He had usually read through the sword manuals in silence alone. When he was in the Wilderness, everyone was always filled with tension as they lived on the edge, and as a result, he did not have any ymates in the Wilderness as well. However, there was Fatty; but he wasn¡¯t really reliable.

    Luckily, Lou Lan was a good person¡ªno, good sand¡ªwait, that didn¡¯t sound right either...

    Lou Lan had already transformed back. ¡°Ai Hui, Master Shao said for Lou Lan to follow you in the future. Can I?¡±

    ¡°Of course! We are the best partners!¡± Ai Hui said without hesitation. He was over the moon¡ªhe had made it! Heughed till his eyes couldn¡¯t be seen, and he eximed in high-spirits, ¡°Let¡¯s go around the world with our swords and make money! I will dominate the Elemental Era and Lou Lan, you¡¯ll reign the kitchen!¡±

    Lou Lan simmering soup, Lou Lan cleaning the training hall, Lou Lan, the multi-purpose helper...

    As long as you could think of it, Lou Lan was able to do it.

    Lou Lan also became ted, and with a bang, he transformed into countless instances of the word ¡®money,¡¯ in numerous different sizes. These words danced around Ai Hui like a school of fishes.

    After going wild with Lou Lan, Ai Hui had to leave for his training.

    He didn¡¯t know if it was because of his good mood¡ªalthough he could only extract bits and pieces, Ai Hui was no longer so anxious now. He was in a more stable state.

    It was important to have a peaceful mind while extracting the Twilight Silk. That was why Ai Hui managed to surpass one meter in one fell swoop.

    His life had also started to be more substantial; he did not spend all his time extracting the Twilight Silk. He realized that extracting the Twilight Silk needed a high amount of concentration, and if he was tired, it would reduce the effectiveness of his training. And on the other hand, resting could actually be beneficial for his training.

    He started to adjust his lifestyle. He still attended lessons and would find the old man to discuss about elemental energy afterward. After teaching for decades, the old man had profound theories and knowledge. His discussions with the old man were all eye-openers for Ai Hui.

    He did not know that Wang Shouchuan was even more amazed by his own disciple.

    He had wanted to give a reminder to Ai Hui when he saw him train day and night, but he really couldn¡¯t believe that Ai Hui himself had quickly realized that something was wrong and had adjusted his habits on his own ord.

    Wang Shouchuan wondered if his disciple had lied about his age. He was so seasoned and mature till the point that it could be called formidable. He had seen many different talents in the Induction Ground. While Ai Hui¡¯s aptitude was nothing worth speaking of, his temperament and determination could definitely ce him in one of the top three.

    What a formidable chap.

    However, Ai Hui¡¯s capability was never written on his face; underneath hismon appearance, therey an enigmatic ocean.

    At the start, Wang Shouchuan had exined and imparted knowledge of elemental energy to Ai Hui, but as time went by, he was shocked to realize that it had started to be more like a discussion between them.

    His disciple had an unusually sharp intuition towards strength. What was even more unfathomable was that Ai Hui had a profound understanding of ancient swordsmanship. Ai Hui often used swordsmanship as a source of reference and research, oftening up with theories and conjectures that repeatedly shocked Wang Shouchuan.

    Ai Hui was like an insatiable sponge, desperately trying to absorb all sort of knowledge.

    He was a different person while he was training. He could be calmly engaged in some form of training, but once he thought of an idea, he would not hesitate to try it out.

    Wang Shouchuan was not used to this. He was a cautious and conservative man, or else he wouldn¡¯t have stayed in the Induction Ground for so long.

    In that aspect, Ai Hui disyed his courageous spirit and was abnormally brave. Wang Shouchuan always had an illusion¡ªhe felt that his own disciple would not hesitate to gamble his life if there was a need to.

    The risks he had taken at the Suspending Golden Pagoda had already illustrated this point.

    Wang Shouchuan hoped that Ai Hui could be more cautious; on the contrary, Han Yuqin was more than appreciative of Ai Hui¡¯s personality. She felt that this disyed his masculinity, and she would take every chance to mock Wang Shouchuan whenever Ai Hui showed any signs of such.

    That woman could really hold a grudge!

    Wang Shouchuan was somewhat helpless, but two sentences from that woman really moved him: ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you want your disciple to be like you? To stay in the Induction Ground for a few decades?¡±

    That particr sentence led him to be distracted for a long period of time.

    Ai Hui did not know about all this; he was totally immersed in the sea of knowledge. His greatest gain was from his daily discussions with his teacher. Compared to the average sses, such mutual discussions were much more profound.

    Through these intense discussions, Ai Hui¡¯s understanding towards training and elemental energy increased day by day.

    His next gain was that he discovered that there were many things in the sword manual that were of use. Compared to the system of five residences and eight pces, the system for swordsmanship was many times more tremendous and vast.

    Few people would pour through so many swordy manuals and spend so much time browsing through a system that was not of use. Furthermore, it was such a vast,plicated system toprehend. Nowadays, that was why those who were obsessed with swordsmanship held no interest in training their elemental energy.

    After recognizing such a vast and rigorous training system, Ai Hui realized that he now had an entirely different understanding of the five pces and eight residences upon revisiting it.

    What made him happier was that he realized that some concepts pertaining to swordsmanship may even be applicable elsewhere.

    For example, the Twilight Silk required the concentration of elemental energy; however, from another point of view, wasn¡¯t this just using elemental energy as a thrust from a sword?

    It was just that this sword had to be extremely stable and slow.

    A slow sword?

    Within the vast and tremendous amount of swordy manuals that all held various odd things, Ai Hui managed to find a simr manual.

    Perhaps he could use this technique or school of thought as a reference?

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes sparkled.

    Wang Shouchuan also approved of such a theory.

    The present atmosphere was highly practical for discussion since few students were interested in the principles of training of elemental energy. During lessons, teachers would make a half-hearted attempt to exin about elemental energy training, and they would instead emphasize more about describing the moves and potential problems that would ur during elemental energy training.

    The old and the young were immersed in the discussion of the theory.

    Initially, Old Man Wang had the intention to teach, but pretty soon he was immersed in the discussion and couldn¡¯t extricate himself. Ai Hui was very familiar with the swordy system, and he had many interesting questions pertaining to swordy.

    The old man was very much inspired, and his gains were plentiful.

    For example, Ai Hui had asked that if both swordy and spirit energy had a separation between the yin and the yang, then why didn¡¯t elemental energy have such a differentiation?

    This question had stumped the old man. He pondered over it for a few days and finally gained a few vague ideas. He wanted to discuss it with Ai Hui and widen his train of thoughts. However, much to his surprise, a few days had passed, and Ai Hui did not show up.

    The old man felt uneasy. Where did this youngster go?

    He could not stop himself from running straight to the embroidery workshop.

    Upon rushing into the workshop, he was prepared to shout his head off when he suddenly saw something out of the corner of his eyes. His woman and Mingxiu were standing outside the workshop¡¯s window in rapt attention.

    The old man forcefully refrained himself from yelling, tiptoed to the side of the old woman, and looked through the window.

    His eyes widened.

 Chapter 97: Embroidery Genius

    Chapter 97: Embroidery Genius

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    The workshop was filled with rising mist. Ai Hui, who was wrapped with the Blood Bandage, was fully focused. His actions were extremely slow¡ªslow to the point that it was unable to detect his movements with the naked eye. However, his body had seamless coordination, as if he was a statue of a mummy that exuded strength and beauty.

    The silk was as fine as hair. It was wrapped around the tip of his finger while the other end was immersed in the hot boiler.

    Behind Ai Hui was a chunk ofpleted silk. However, the mist kept rising, and the old man couldn¡¯t discern it clearly. But judging from the number of bundles, it was definitely of considerable length.

    What the old man¡¯s eye could see was that its length was already more than three meters.

    The old man swallowed hard. With a heart filled with anticipation, he lowered his voice and asked, "How long is it?"

    "No idea." Han Yuqin did not spare him a nce. Her gaze was filled with passion as her gaze never left Ai Hui.

    Embroidery genius!

    If anyone were to tell her now that Ai Hui was not an embroidery genius, she would use the word "Master" and bash that person¡¯s face till it was filled with blood without a second thought. Even if it were the old man who dared to argue¡ªshe would still bash his face!

    How difficult was it to create Twilight Silk? Even Han Yuqin did not wish to torment herself with this problem. It was a time-consuming, arduous, and thankless task. Ai Hui the novice, who had just opened his natal residence, could actually extract such a long strand of silk. If this wasn¡¯t considered a genius, then what was?

    Bothprehending the [Twin Weaving Technique] and extracting Twilight Silk were not things a neer who had just opened his natal residence could achieve.

    Han Yuqin¡¯s primary motive for Ai Hui to try his hand in peeling the silk cocoons was to use it as a form of training. From the start, she did not think that Ai Hui would be able to extract Twilight Silk that was of value.

    However, Ai Hui had done it.

    She did not know how Ai Hui had managed to do it, just like how she didn¡¯t know how he had managed toprehend the [Twin Weaving Technique].

    She spared the old man a nce. Alright, while the old man was so-so in other aspects, his taste in choosing a disciple was good! She should think of ways to pry Ai Hui over from the old man¡¯s hand. This wasn¡¯t the time to talk about the rtionship between a husband and wife¡ªthey could not waste the young chap¡¯s talent.

    The old man was still rtively easy to appease¡ªshe just needed to weep and act coquettishly. With that, she presumed that the old man would find it hard to escape from her clutches. Ai Hui, however, would be more difficult.

    What a headache. Hmph. It was all the old man¡¯s fault! He had taken a disciple, but he was such a difficult chap! This pair of old and young had no good points to them!

    The old man did not notice that his partner was looking at him weirdly. He suddenly thought of Ai Hui¡¯s disappearance over the past few days and reacted with a face of shock. "He was here for the past few days?"

    "If not here, then where else would he be? Do you look down on my workshop so much?" The olddy narrowed her eyes; she was ready to counter-attack.

    The old man had abundant experience in such debates, and he immediately praised the old woman. "How could I? Your workshop must be a gem of feng shui, or else how could this chap have such fast improvements? The credit must go to you!"

    The old woman saw that the old man was not caught in her trap and said unwillingly, "I saw that Xiao Hui was rather interested in embroidery. Otherwise, he would not stay as well."

    The old man gave a silent cheer and continued with a poised expression, "Everything is dependent on his interests. Embroidery is a respectable profession, and the money flow is veryrge. Back then, I was supportive of your profession as well."

    The old man said these sentences smoothly, and old woman could only re at him.

    Wang Shouchuan was secretly pleased. Over this period, he had had many in-depth discussions with Ai Hui over training. He had already made out that Ai Hui belonged to actualbat. Ai Hui¡¯s interest towards those theories was not because he liked the theories of elemental energy¡ªit was because understanding these principles would benefit his training. Once he understood the principle, Ai Hui¡¯s next move was always to think of how to use those special traits in battle.

    This chap was simply too shocking.

    Wang Shouchuan had finally be clear of something, and that was that Ai Hui¡¯s learning about elemental energy and training revolved around amon theme: how to achieve sess in battle.

    To tell the truth, the idealistic Wang Shouchuan did not really like the fact that his disciple had such a purpose to learning, but he could only sigh when he thought of what Ai Hui had been through.

    As such, he was confident that Ai Hui would not make embroidery his own profession. Ai Hui would learn embroidery for the sake of earning money and to enrich himself. Ai Hui would also learn embroidery to create outstanding equipment, but he would definitely not be like his own partner and view embroidery as his own life.

    Wang Shouchuan was extremely clear on this point. As such, he was not concerned over his partner¡¯s thoughts.

    Suddenly, Wang Shouchuan noticed Ai Hui¡¯s position and became surprised. "Was he always in this position?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s position was very unique. His left leg was in front while his right leg was at the back, forming a bow-like stance. His left hand was clenched around his waist, and his right arm was stretched straight, while his forefinger and middle finger were pinched together like a sword.

    Wang Shouchuan was a knowledgeable teacher. At one nce, he could see that Ai Hui was using his hand as an invisible sword.

    Using the hand as an invisible sword was amon technique used by ancient swordsmen. However, there was no swordsman now, and thus, it was seldom seen. While elementalists would also use swords and some form of swordy, it waspletely different to that of ancient swordsmen.

    "Nope, he hasn¡¯t moved." Only then did Han Yuqin realize that Ai Hui was in a unique posture, and she couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Is there any reasoning behind this posture?"

    The five residences and eight pces did not have a history of thousands of years, and the existence of embroidery was even shorter. As for extracting silk, it was even more unknown, and there weren¡¯t any mature and established techniques. Everyone practiced a myriad of techniques.

    But Han Yuqin knew her man well. The old man had definitely observed something, and she had the utmost faith in his schrly knowledge. It was because of this essential point that led to her falling into his clutches when they were young. She really was young and naive then.

    "Invisible sword." The old man exined, "Sword training in the past made use of this invisible sword technique when they are expediting their spiritual sword."

    Han Yuqin paused for a moment. She would not have thought that it was actually an ancient and unfamiliar technique like the invisible sword.

    "Could the invisible sword technique still be used now?"

    "It would be useless to others, but it might not be totally useless to this chap." The old man¡¯s tone wasced with smugness.

    Mingxiu, who was at the side, suddenly said, "Master and Uncle-Master, Junior has finished!"

    The two of them hurriedly looked over. Indeed, Ai Hui, who was in the workshop, had stood up and was rotating his shoulder.

    The three of them rushed in.

    The door to the workshop was suddenly mmed open and Ai Hui, who was exercising his limbs, jumped in shock. But he soon recognized the intruders and quickly greeted, "Teacher, Mistress, Senior Mingxiu."

    After maintaining the same posture for a few days, Ai Hui was experiencing an indescribable ache. The profit from the Twilight Silk was indeed hard-earned. He wondered the extent of aches for those who had to extract the silk continuously for over ten days.

    With an appreciative expression, the old man said, "Not bad, your improvement is drastic."

    Han Yuqin picked up the Twilight Silk and gently shook it. Her gaze was urate as she immediately concluded, "About ten meters."

    Ai Hui¡¯s spirit suddenly rose. He clearly remembered that a ten-meter-long strand of Twilight Silk was worth two hundred thousand yuan.

    There was a flicker of astonishment in Mingxiu¡¯s gaze, "This isn¡¯t quite right. Junior managed to extract ten meters of Twilight Silk in just three days and three nights."

    Han Yuqin caught the reminder and reacted. To extract ten meters in three days and three nights suggested that he would have extracted slightly more than three meters worth of Twilight Silk daily. Han Yuqin had conducted her business with a few elementalists who extracted Twilight Silk, and their fastest speed was only two meters in one whole day.

    If Ai Hui¡¯s statistics were indeed urate, it implied that there was a fifty percent increase in efficiency. For any business, it would be considered a remarkable feat.

    Embroidery genius!

    It was as if those two words floated in front of Han Yuqin, dazzling and shining in gold.

    Her gaze towards Ai Hui suddenly became very passionate.

 Chapter 98: Bold And Imaginative

    Chapter 98: Bold And Imaginative

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was still filled with aches. Thest time he was in such a sorry state was when he had been in the Wilderness. At that time, the troops were under attack, and he had gotten separated; however, based on his capability at that time, being alone in the Wilderness was only a road to disaster. His only option was to wait at the exact same spot, as that was also where the troop would get their replenishments.

    In order to reunite with the troops, he had covered himself in mud and hadin in the sludge without moving.

    Well, at that time, too, it had been three days and three nights.

    In the depths of the night after three long days, his body was drenched in perspiration

    Ai Hui silently wiped his beads of perspiration, and soon, his aches also started to quickly subside. A trace of joy flickered in his eyes, reflecting a confirmation of some ideas in his mind.

    "Disciple, you used the invisible sword technique, right?" The old man was evidently very curious. "How did you think of using that? What was the reasoning?"

    Han Yuqin and Mingxiu¡¯s gaze turned towards him as they were filled with curiosity too.

    "Yes, Teacher, that was the invisible sword technique." Ai Hui was already used to the old man¡¯s questions which were usually asked in rapid session. The old man has disyed this trait more than once throughout those previous days of discussions.

    Ai Hui organized his flow of thoughts before beginning to borate. "During the discussion with Teacher a few days ago, Disciple suddenly thought of the fact that the Twilight Silk needed the full concentration of the elemental energy. This process is very simr to the thrusting of a sword. It¡¯s just that this sword would be the elemental energy and it would be thrusted out at a slow and uniform speed."

    The old man muttered to himself, "Seems reasonable."

    Ai Hui continued, "Disciple thought whether there were any slow swords during sword training in the past? And how did they control the speed of the sword? Disciple recalled looking through the swordy manuals and discovering the existence of the slow sword."

    "Slow sword? What use does it have if the sword is slow?" Han Yuqin blurted with a face of confusion.

    At present, movements and attacks were all about speed, and this was understandable, as one would not be easily defeated if they were fast. Moves or traditions that pursued slow speeds had never been heard of.

    "To say it precisely, the so-called slow sword is not seeking to be slow, but instead, it is to not be fast. If you want to hasten the process, you would not be able to achieve it. The ancient swordsmen pursued to do it steadily and achieve a better result." Ai Hui was like another person when he started to talk about the topic of swordsmanship. He continuedposedly and smoothly, "So, the supposed ¡®slow¡¯ is rtive but not absolute. For example, during a storm, their sword moves would be the wind. The wind would gather unceasingly which resulted in the storm. No matter how fast the speed of the wind was, its power would not beparable to a storm. Is it that the faster the wind, the better it is to form a storm? It is not the case. In order to create a storm, you need a particr type of wind, and it is not that the faster the speed, the better it is."

    The advantage of discussing with Teacher was that Ai Hui was getting better at exining hisplicated viewpoints in simpler terms.

    Mingxiu¡¯s eyes shed. "I understand now. The slow sword that Junior is talking about is very simr to extracting the Twilight Silk. While slow elemental energy is needed to extract the Twilight Silk, in reality, it is not about being as slow as possible but instead the uniformity. The emphasis on being slow for extracting silk was to actually control the even distribution of the elemental energy in a better manner. How did Junior solve the problem of uniform velocity?"

    Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqin also nodded.

    "Senior is so clever!" Ai Hui praised Mingxiu. Presently, Ai Hui seemed to be emitting a dazzling glow which was blinding to the eyes. His usual reserved gaze was now as bright as the stars at night. "I referenced many simr swordy manuals and discovered an unusual phenomenon. Almost all of the styles that were simr to the slow sword made use of a spiral. The styles were enlightened by how storms and whirlpools worked. After that, I discovered that when elemental energy was employed in the form of a spiral, it did not increase the speed, but instead, it caused it to lose a part of its initial speed. However, its stability increased, and the elemental energy became more concentrated and did not disperse."

    Everyone in the embroidery workshop was shocked into silence.

    After a moment, Ai Hui started to feel slightly ufortable, and he broke the silence by asking, "Did I say something wrong?"

    Han Yuqin suddenly asked, "You thought of all of this by yourself?"

    "Yes." Ai Hui felt somewhat embarrassed. "Disciple was just guessing."

    Han Yuqin ignored him and immediately turned to the old man and shouted, "He is an embroidery genius! We should not neglect his talent!"

    The old man corrected, "He is a genius in training!"

    Wang Shouchuan had always felt that it was a pity that his disciple had a slower start. However, now, he was d that he had startedte. If Ai Hui had been exposed to training and had be familiar with the five residences and eight pces when he was young, would he still have such unorthodox, bold, and imaginative ideas?

    Ai Hui¡¯s diligence and determination had given him a formidable body, while his ideas that were not confined to restrictions gave him an additional pair of wings.

    Wang Shouchuan did not know the extent of Ai Hui¡¯s future sess.

    It was as if he saw a towering and formidable figure enveloping the sky of the future.

    "Exactly, embroidery can be used in training and also inbat!" eximed the olddy.

    "Embroidery Grandmaster, do you think you have enough fighting capabilities?"

    "Wang Shouchuan! What do you mean? Do you want to fight? I will let you make a move first!"

    "You are too boring. Look at our juniors; they are watching us make fools of ourselves. You can bash me up after my discussion with Ai Hui. I still have a few doubts to rify..."

    Looking at the couple, who were both flushed with anger, Ai Hui was bbergasted. He asked uncertainly, "I.....I have a question."

    The two of them immediately stopped and turned to face Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui waved the Twilight Silk in his arms and asked weakly, "Can this be sold for money?"

    The couple spoke in unison. "Money?"

    Ai Hui eyes widened, "Don¡¯t tell me you were lying when you said this can be sold for two hundred thousand yuan?"

    "..."

    The two of them suddenly stopped quarreling.

    In the end, Ai Hui managed to get one hundred thousand yuan as his wages. After all, the venue and the materials used had belonged to the embroidery workshop. Ai Hui was more than happy. To be able to earn one hundred thousand yuan in just three days and three nights! Although it was hard-earned money, it was still not a small amount. And he was confident that he would be able to extract an even longer strand of silk the next time.

    Most importantly, he had finally obtained a steady source of ie.

    He had turned to his mistress and asked if extracting silk was a form of craftsmanship.

    Mistress¡¯s expression had not been very pleasant, and she had reluctantly nodded her head. Mistress had even warned him that in the embroidery workshop, extracting silk was only considered a minor task and it was not something grand.

    As long as it made money, Ai Hui did not care if it was grand or not. Just wait till he could extract fifty meters worth of Twilight Silk. Hmph. He would throw out two strands of silk and hire the little girl from the noodle shop. She could learn to cook noodles from the boss of the noodles shop and then she would be able to serve him over ten bowls of noodles a day.

    He would be able to get Lou Lan to simmer soup for him daily and also prepare lots of elemental energy food for him.

    His mouth started watering. Ai Hui had the sudden urge to splurge. Should he get Lou Lan to boil a pot of soup today?

    With this thought, Ai Hui started to increase his pace.

    At the mouth of the alley, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. He looked at the silhouette of the figure near the mouth of the alley in surprise.

    Hey, wasn¡¯t that Student Bangwan?

    Heh heh! There are escape routes in heaven, but you refused to walk through them! There are no doors in hell, but here you are!

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression turned cold and murderous.

 Chapter 99: That Expression

    Chapter 99: That Expression

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    Hai Qing was standing respectfully outside the grass hut.

    The fence was built with dried branches, and it carried an atmosphere that seemed to ward people away. The shadow cast when the sun shone upon the hut always captured Hai Qing¡¯s attention. The fence had been weaved personally by his master, who, at his cultivation level, had a profound understanding towards elemental energy. Each and every one of his movements contained deep significance.

    The obscure grass hut was built by his master from scratch.

    Hai Qing couldn¡¯t help but feel respectful every time he saw the grass hut.

    Forty years ago, he followed his master to a barrennd in the Wilderness after leaving the Avalon of Five Elements. His master had pointed at the barren ground, saying that it would be his new home and that he was going to build a grass hut at that very spot.

    That year, his master, who was still not considered a grandmaster, had picked up the first dried twig, threw out the first seed, and shoveled the first shovel of earth.

    For a solid five years, Master had only done that. Sometimes, he would be lost in thought while sitting on the cliff like a statue, regardless of the weather. At times, he would wander far away to find a suitable dried twig. He would also use his hands as a shovel. His master then was slightly deranged and was as dirty as a beggar.

    Hai Qing would never forget the day the grass hut waspleted.

    At that point, Master had hung a piece of grass curtain at the grass hut¡¯s entrance. He had then suddenly turned around and told Hai Qing with a clear gaze, "Hai Qing, I am a grandmaster now."

    While Hai Qing was still caught off guard, the wood elemental energy had erupted like a volcano.

    Countless of sprouts had emerged from the barren, deserted hill. The ring sun was also reced by dark clouds and drizzle. Grass started to grow and rapidly fill up the initially bare and tan mountain peak.

    Amidst the drizzle, trees began to grow, and flowers started to bloom as if it were spring. A ray of sunlight prated through the dense clouds and enveloped the grass hut. Under the warm glow of the sunlight, the grass hut was not affected by the drizzle in the slightest.

    At that time, Hai Qing could not control his body and had kneeled down in respect.

    The initial barren mountain had be a formidable sea of green.

    The grass curtain was thin, and he could vaguely make out that Master was trimming and watering the nts. His actions were smooth and leisurely, and watching him warmed Hai Qing¡¯s heart.

    "Huanghun came out of the Grass Hollow so quickly?"

    A voice that was as warm as jade yet without any trace of liveliness came from the back of the grass curtain.

    "Yes." Hai Qing was also surprised. "When I had seen Huanghun¡¯s injuries due to the metal wind, I thought he would need a period of time to recover. I didn¡¯t expect him toe out of the Grass Hollow so quickly." Hai Qing continued respectfully, "Throughout my entire life, his innate talent is one of the best¡ªeven better than Big Chen and Mingqiu. The only person who can defeat him is probably Master. What is even rarer is that he has apetitive temperament. He is the mostpetitive amongst the three of them. Big Chen¡¯s character is too mild while Mingqiu is slightly yful."

    Dai Gangughed lightly. "Looks like the Duanmu family produced a mythical being, to be able to receive such high praise from our Hai Qing."

    Hai Qing replied courteously, "Huanghun insisted on going back to the Induction Ground. Hai Qing will get someone to send him back."

    Dai Gang replied gently, "Indeed, he should go back. At this age, the Induction Ground is the most suitable ce for him. It could be a period of wonderful memories for him in the future as well."

    "Yes." Hai Qing¡¯s tone remained respectful as he continued, "The Duanmu Family¡¯s belongings have arrived."

    "Put it aside first. The stone is finally going to bloom." Dai Gang¡¯s voice was as warm as spring.

    Hai Qing couldn¡¯t help but expose a hint of pleasure on his face. "Congrattions, Master."

    ...

    In Central Pine City, Duanmu Huanghun was standing hesitantly at the mouth of the alley, feeling extremely vexed. How did he manage to owe a favor to that scoundrel? Whenever he thought of it, he felt agitated to the point that he felt like killing someone.

    He even made a trip to Instructor Li Wei to rify the situation.

    At that point, he was still puzzled over Instructor Li Wei¡¯s peculiar gaze towards him. However, after hearing the entire story, he had turned green.

    He was lying on Ai Hui¡¯s back?

    And their clothes were shattered?

    He stared at Li Wei unwaveringly for a full five to six minutes, eventually giving him goosebumps.

    Duanmu Huanghun stood at the mouth of the alley, hesitating for a long period of time. His mind was a mess. His pride prevented him from pretending that nothing had happened. Hai Qing had even told him that the longer he stayed in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, the harder it would have been to rescue him. Although it was not life-threatening, it would have brought about long-term harm to his body.

    He clearly remembered how he had run to the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    But damn it!

    Why was it the scoundrel who saved him?

    He could ept it if anyone from the Induction Ground had saved him¡ªbut not Ai Hui.

    Damn it!

    He had been looking for an opportunity to bash that fellow up, but how could he bear to do that now? That damned fellow! Ai Hui must be very pleased now, thinking that he was a big joke.

    "Isn¡¯t this Student Bangwan?"

    A familiar voice that was like a nightmare suddenly rang out from behind him. Duanmu Huanghun was like a cat whose tail had gotten stepped on, and he almost jumped out in shock.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was still in a panicked state, pretended to be calm as he turned around. Looking at that hateful face, he lifted his chin and asked haughtily, "Oh it¡¯s you. Why are you looking for me?"

    "Looking for you?" Ai Hui exaggeratedly looked around. "Hearing you say this, I thought I walked into the wrong alley for a moment. But nope, Student Bangwan is indeed unique. You are here at my house, but you¡¯re asking me why I¡¯m looking for you?"

    It was only then that Duanmu Huang reacted. His face was burning, and he couldn¡¯t wait to dig a hole and hide. How could he make such a basic mistake?

    Ai Hui was not nning on letting him off. He finally managed to get hold of Duanmu Huanghun with much difficulty. How could he let him leave before tormenting him?

    "Seems like Student Bangwan did not forget that he¡¯s indebted to me. Okay, just say it. How are you nning to repay me?" Ai Hui did not waste any time and got straight to the point. "We have to make things clear. The first is when I rescued you from the Suspending Golden Pagoda. And the second would be thepensation for my injuries."

    Where did Duanmu Huanghun hear of such apensation request before?

    That¡¯s right! It was this expression!

    He was even more disgusted now. "You are indeed not a good person!"

    "Not a good person? How can you say this to your savior?" Ai Huiughed coldly and disyed some impatience. "Of course, that isn¡¯t important. I want something more practical, Student Bangwan."

    Duanmu Huanghun had finally regained hisposure, and he said gravely, "I owe you a favor. No matter what and when, as long as you need me to fulfill it, I will do my best."

    Duanmu Huanghun gave an inward sigh of relief after making that serious promise. Although he felt that Ai Hui was loathsome, he was indeed saved by Ai Hui. His pride did not allow him to repay Ai Hui half-heartedly.

    He would only have a clear conscience by making such a promise that was worth millions.

    His expression was proud but dignified. This was a promise to himself.

    "Just like this?"

    Ai Hui stared at Duanmu Huanghun dumbly, as if he had seen a ghost.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was initially calm, became flustered and somewhat guilty under the scrutiny of Ai Hui¡¯s gaze. He unconsciously blurted out, "Then....then two favors?"

 Chapter 100: God Damn It!

    Chapter 100: God Damn It!

    Trantor: JL Editor: Lis

    Seriously, god damn it!

    Ai Hui inwardly roared with anger, as if there were several wild beasts trampling about.

    He seldom had such a tenuous grasp over his self-control, but today, he truly wanted to use a brick and pound it into Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face.

    He controlled his urges, but only by forcibly restraining himself.

    He told himself that if Duanmu Huanghun were to sustain injuries, he wouldn¡¯t be able to receivepensation. If he could have killed him, he would have already taken action. If he could not kill him, then there was no point in beating him up. Hence, he restrained himself.

    In the Wilderness, telling someone, ¡°Since you saved me, I owe you a favor¡± would result only in impending death. No one knew if you would live to see the next day. By saying ¡°I owe you a favor,¡± not only would nobody rescue you in the future, you could also be killed that very night. In such an environment, a favor was very much worthless.

    Trying to reap more than you sow?

    What an ingrate!

    Ai Hui¡¯s impression of Duanmu Huanghun was already set in stone. Without batting an eyelid, he continued, ¡°Is a favor worth fifty million yuan?¡±

    ¡°Of course!¡± Duanmu Huanghun said with pride shining on his face, ¡°How could youpare my favor to a mere fifty million?¡±

    Indeed, he had the background to prove his worth. As the future heir of the Duanmu family and his discipleship to Dai Gang, it was not excessive of him to say that his favor was worth more than fifty million yuan.

    Ai Hui restrained himself from murdering the boy, but his patience was wearing thin. ¡°All right, I don¡¯t need anything else, just two favors. Whenbined, that totals one hundred million yuan.¡±

    Now Duanmu Huanghun had been rendered speechless. How could he have calcted it like this? Didn¡¯t he realize the potential usefulness of his favors? Didn¡¯t he want to be a part of the Thirteen Divisions in the future?

    Fifty million yuan? Was this chap insulting him on purpose? How could his favor only be worth fifty million yuan?

    No matter how stupid he was, shouldn¡¯t he at least think before speaking?

    Duanmu Huanghun regarded Ai Hui with a look of despise, his gaze increasingly hateful. This chap was such a lowborn. It was already repulsive that Ai Hui was vulgar enough to desirepensation for a good deed.

    An indescribable rage rose up from within Duanmu Huanghun. He felt as though a precious item he had gifted to a recipient had just been thrown to the dogs without a second thought. And he actually had the gall to ask the dog if he would like to eat such a good item.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face paled, his gaze practically shooting mes.

    But instead of cowering, Ai Hui onlyughed. ¡°Let¡¯s stop with the brainless crap. Do you have one hundred million yuan?¡±

    Looking at him, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s anger intensified. He almost blurted out a ¡°yes,¡± but at thest moment, a thought urred to him and his expression changed.

    Since young, he had lived a life of luxury, nevercking in money. His family invested heavily in his daily needs such as food, housing and training. Whatever he needed, his family bought for him without a second thought.

    In terms of cash, however, he did not have much on hand, and neither would his family be willing to give him such arge amount like one hundred million as allowance.

    Even if he wanted to, he was clueless on how to approach such a topic.

    Borrow from a friend? He shook his head inwardly. If he didn¡¯t have such a hefty allowance, then neither would his friends. Furthermore, he knew them well; unlike him, who obsessed over training with no desire to chase after an extravagant lifestyle, they indulged in life¡¯s pleasures by overspending with no savings left over. He would rather rely on himself toe up with the one hundred million yuan.

    Seeing the change in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s expression, Ai Hui felt that this guy was despicable. He continued, ¡°You don¡¯t have it, right? You¡¯re really good at blowing your own trumpet, but it¡¯s only empty talk. My judgment of you was correct. It¡¯s all right, I¡¯ll just take it as if I had rescued a dog.¡±

    In Ai Hui¡¯s mind, Duanmu Huanghun had beenbeled as a hypocrite and an ingrate.

    Ai Hui could not be bothered with him and swagged off without a second thought. He was a person who clearly distinguished between love and hate. If he felt that Duanmu Huanghun was not worth it, speaking more than a sentence to him was a waste of his time; and time was precious.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s expression alternated between green and red. He bit down on his lips viciously.

    Insulting, extremely insulting! Since young, he had never felt so insulted. Yet, he could not utter a single word of rebuttal. If the other party desired jewels or heirlooms, he would¡¯ve been able to think of ways to procure them. But Ai Hui wanted cash, his achilles heel.

    What a humiliation. The humiliation was indescribable. His porcin skin flushed red as if it was burning up.

    He clenched his fists until his bones crackled, and his gaze was shadowed.

    All right, he¡¯d been too optimistic. How could a lowly chap like Ai Hui be worthy of his favors?

    Wasn¡¯t it just one hundred million yuan? Just you wait!

    ¡°To a useless person like you,¡± he thought, ¡°earning money is a difficult thing. But pretty soon, you¡¯lle to see that earning one hundred million is an insignificant matter for a genius like me!¡±

    Making up his mind, Duanmu Huanghun swore to himself that he would earn more money in the next few days. He would earn one hundred million yuan¡ªNo! One hundred million yuan was still not enough to match his worth.

    Two hundred million! No, five hundred million!

    He was going to bring five hundred million in cash and throw it into the chap¡¯s face.

    His mind conjured up an image of Ai Hui, with a fawning face, kneeling like a dog next to a mountain of cash.

    Abruptly, a bewitching, red flush emerged on his face. He felt his body surge with energy. That¡¯s right! This was the feeling!

    ¡°Ha ha ha ha....¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun howled withughter.

    As Ai Hui entered the training hall, he spotted Lou Lan. The dark clouds in his heart momentarily cleared. To hell with the hypocritical ingrate. He had Lou Lan, a good sand puppet.

    At that moment, a howl of maniacalughter erupted from the direction of the alley entrance.

    Lou Lan tilted his head and listened. The yellow light shed in his eyes and after a moment, he said, ¡°Ai Hui, this person¡¯sughter is not very healthy. It is resounding, empty, andcking in vital energy. There seems to be an unhealthy internal heat attacking his heart as well. He might faint. Eh, theughter seems familiar? Where could Lou Lan have heard it?¡±

    Plop.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who stood at the mouth of the alley, stiffened before falling face-down with a strange flush on his face.

    Ai Hui snorted and said, ¡°Who cares about him? It¡¯s best that he fainted. Saves me the hassle of beating him up....¡±

    Beforepleting his sentence, he could no longer see any trace of Lou Lan.

    Where did he go?

    Ai Hui looked around, then stared nkly when he saw Lou Lan standing at the entrance with Duanmu Huanghun slung over his back.

    ¡°Ai Hui, it is Student Bangwan. Luckily, Lou Lan went down to take a look,¡± Lou Lan happily said.

    Ai Hui was on the verge of saying, ¡°Trash like Duanmu Huanghun should be fed to the dogs.¡±

    But seeing the passionate Lou Lan, he could not bring himself to say such words. He internally sighed, thinking, ¡°My Lou Lan is good at everything, just that he¡¯s too helpful.¡±

    Ai Hui did not wish to change this trait of Lou Lan¡¯s. In fact, he was delighted with this particr characteristic. To him, it differentiated Lou Lan from the other sand puppets who were relentless in executing their masters¡¯ orders but indifferent towards matters unrted to them.

    Lou Lan was different, filled with curiosity and a burning passion for this world.

    Lou Lan should remain as he was, yet Ai Hui¡¯s downcast eyes were as dark as the night sky.

    But why did it have to be this ingrate? Looking at the unconscious Duanmu Huanghun, Ai Hui felt resentful yet conflicted.

 Chapter 101: A New Situation

    Chapter 101: A New Situation

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lis

    Ai Hui watched coldly from the side. If looks could kill, Duanmu Huanghun would have died many times over. As Lou Lan skillfully stripped Duanmu Huanghun bare, Ai Hui observed without the slightest intention of helping.

    To him, Duanmu Huanghun looked no different from a nched suckling pig. This sort of spare ribs would even be scoffed at by a butcher for its utterck of flesh.

    He cursed relentlessly under his breath.

    If Lou Lan left for even a moment, Ai Hui would have stabbed Duanmu Huanghun multiple times already. He had always despised those who were all talk and no action, yet now he was no different from them. Ai Hui was filled with sorrow; if only he didn¡¯t need that one hundred million!

    ¡°Preparations have been made,¡± Lou Lan said.

    Roused from his self-pitying stupor by Lou Lan¡¯s words, Ai Hui automatically replied, ¡°Ah....¡±

    There he saw Duanmu Huanghun, stripped to his underwear and lying on the table beside Lou Lan. His body was strangely bright red like a cooked prawn.

    Ai Hui looked at Lou Lan oddly. What did he mean by preparations have been made?

    ¡°Does he mean that I can start beating him up?¡± he thought. ¡°Then why didn¡¯t he say so earlier? Lou Lan must still be too inexperienced at these things. What I n on doing is simr to how a butcher ughters livestock; there¡¯s no need to strip someone bare before killing him. At my current level, I can kill him without spilling a single drop of blood. Afterwards, all we have to do is feed him to the dire beasts, and he¡¯ll have disappeared without a trace. Faking a natural death isn¡¯t impossible either. All we need are the right materials. Have you prepared these materials, Lou Lan...?¡±

    Just as Ai Hui¡¯s murderous intent reached its highest point, Lou Lan began to exin.

    ¡°Bangwan¡¯s current conditions is more serious than thest time. Luckily, Ai Hui¡¯s strength has also improved, so we can still save him. You must be anxious to help since the two of you seem to have a good rtionship.¡±

    Ai Hui froze, as if a binding curse had been ced on him. The corner of his eye twitched as he asked, ¡°Save him? Me?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Ai Hui¡¯s metal elemental energy can stimte his body and facilitate the movement of his vital fluids,¡± Lou Lan said, continuing honestly, ¡°Lou Lan¡¯s elemental energy may not be enough to save Bangwan, but rest assured, Ai Hui is definitely capable of saving him.¡±

    To hell with this!

    I have to save this ingrate again?

    Seething inside, Ai Hui raged internally like a dire beast rampaging through the woods.

    ¡°Are you not feeling well?¡± Lou Lan asked, deeply concerned. Ai Hui wasn¡¯t moving much, and hisplexion was abnormal. Lou Lan prepared his eyes for a scan.

    Ai Hui raised his head, revealing an incredibly forced smile.

    Lou Lan heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°Ai Hui, the technique is exactly the same as before.¡±

    Turning to face the unconscious person lying on the table, his eyes red with hatred as he asked, ¡°I have to use elemental energy for this?¡±

    ¡°Yes, Ai Hui.¡± Lou Lan further exined, ¡°Bangwan¡¯s condition is more serious this time around, so Ai Hui must use elemental energy. The force exerted should also be slightly increased.¡±

    ¡°Exert more force?¡± Ai Hui asked, his lips curving into a grin. ¡°No problem!¡±

    As soon as he finished his sentence, a crisp p resounded through the air. A clear imprint of Ai Hui¡¯s palm appeared on Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s bright red body that still trembled from the impact.

    You may have escaped death, but you¡¯ll still have to face my wrath. me your bad luck for delivering you right into my hands!

    Using his palms, Ai Hui rapidly delivered blow after blow at full force.

    Enemy, enemy, enemy! Ingrate, ingrate, ingrate!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body began to swell up like an inted balloon as Ai Hui continued to rain relentless blows on him.

    This was only his second time unleashing his full strength since the mishap. The first had been during the blind battle at the training ground. Otherwise, extracting silk required him to slow his elemental energy significantly, and his regr trainings were the same as well.

    Being able to fully utilize his strength was deeply satisfying.

    Recalling his method of using a sword technique to extract silk, his fingers readily moved into position, poised to take action.

    The sword technique he previously used had been the result of a sudden inspiration. His subconscious attempt to channel elemental energy into a non-existent sword had yielded surprisingly remarkable effects.

    During silk extraction, Ai Hui could barely feel the movement of his elemental energy due to its incredibly slowed speed. This time, however, his elemental energy was free of constraints and circted at full power. Ai Hui executed his sword technique and immediately felt the difference.

    Bang!

    Without warning, the insanely fast elemental energy within his body became torpid.

    The sword embryo state!

    Ai Hui was taken aback. The sword embryo state that he so painstakingly avoided appeared without warning. And for the first time, he activated it without a sword in hand. There was no mistaking it; he could feel the imposing aura exuding from the exceptionally fine tip of the de between his brows.

    While Ai Hui didn¡¯t know how to describe the aura, the closest word he could think of was ¡°formidable.¡±

    .

    Like being in the sword embryo state.

    The sword embryo state surely had extensive uses, but it was easy to be reliant on it.

    The world in Ai Hui¡¯s vision was nowpletely different. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s skin appeared much thinner, clearly revealing his vital fluids¡¯ movements and its chokepoints.

    Ai Hui was deeply familiar with the sword embryo state; he had experienced the vast benefits, as well as the suffering it could bring.

    Despite that, he was shocked to sense the movement of the elemental energy within his body so clearly.

    Ever since his elemental energy had be tightly wound, he could utilize only small amounts of elemental energy with the help of the Sword Rattan Gloves. The purity of this elemental energy, however, far exceeded that of his natal residence. As a result, when circting at full power, its speed was beyond what Ai Hui could perceive. Only during silk extraction, when the elemental energy was restricted, could he clearly perceive its movement.

    The slow cirction of elemental energy was suitable for training, but fighting required swiftness. If the speed of cirction exceeded the agility of one¡¯s thoughts, however, the elemental energy could easily spiral out of control.

    He knew that the elemental energy wasn¡¯t circting any slower; it was the sword embryo state that was enhancing his processing speed and perception, allowing him to fully capture the flow of his elemental energy.

    Without hesitation, Ai Hui turned his palm into a de and stabbed his fingers towards one of the blockages within Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body.

    Buzz!

    Around his fingertips, a faint de appeared, apanied by a slight, ringing sound as the de prated Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s flesh.

    The blockage was immediately cleared.

    A demonic glow shed in his eyes, his fingers rapidly prodding Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s entire body.

    Buzz buzz buzz!

    Piercing sounds rang out incessantly. With each thrust of Ai Hui¡¯s fingers, a tiny speck of blood appeared on Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body. As they grew in number, the reddish hue of his body began to subside.

    Duanmu Huanghun sluggishly woke up.

    As he stared at the vile face in front of him, his body chilled.

    This situation felt way too familiar.

    He silently closed his eyes. Why was he having this nightmare again? So much time had passed since that incident; surely his mind was stronger than this.

    This nightmare must still be haunting him because he hasn¡¯t gotten over the incident. He probably just needed to exact revenge on that scumbag.

    ¡°Hello, why are you pretending to be dead? Are you trying to be an exhibitionist?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun grew bewildered. This wasn¡¯t part of the script....

    ¡°Take note! Including this time, you now owe me one hundred and fifty million!¡±

    Seeing Duanmu Huanghun ying dead rekindled Ai Hui¡¯s anger. Unable to restrain himself any longer, Ai Hui viciously smacked Duanmu Huanghun right on the thigh.

    As if struck by lightning, Duanmu Huanghun grew addled from the blow.

 Chapter 102: Reflection

    Chapter 102: Reflection

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui had no interest in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s frail physique.

    Healing Duanmu Huanghun this time had helped Ai Hui notice how much the sword embryo had grown. The sword embryo had be much more sensitive after his elemental energy had be purer.

    All of a sudden, Ai Hui realized that the seemingly pointless swordy manuals weren¡¯t as useless as he thought. The techniques in the swordy manuals had been applicable across many areas, such as silk extraction and the growth of the sword embryo. Even the Gale Bat de had proven useful during his blind battle with Zu Yan.

    Ai Hui was a realistic person; he wouldn¡¯t simply ignore evidence in front of him.

    Why were these swordy manuals that everyone else despised useful for him?

    He quickly understood that the key to this was the sword embryo!

    Sword manuals became irrelevant following the disintegration of spiritual force.

    Long ago, when he had first started reading swordy manuals, Ai Hui had wondered if sword techniques could be activated using elemental energy.

    He quickly figured out that it was unlikely. Lots of people would probably have already tried something so seemingly simple. The swordsmen of the Cultivation Era were so much more powerful than the elementalists of today, and in pursuit of power, many elementalists would certainly have tried to tap into the learnings of the swordsmen. Besides, there were so many swordy enthusiasts out there who would do anything to revive the glory days of swordsmanship. Surely they would have attempted something like this, right?

    This was definitely the case.

    However, the number of swordy enthusiasts has been on the decline ever since the founding of the Avalon of Five Elements. The value of swordy manuals had also fallen correspondingly. They were initially sold by the book, then by weight, and nowadays, these manuals were as good as rubbish.

    These hard truths reflect the failure of the many attempts at reviving swordy. But for the entire Avalon of Five Elements to utterly disregard swordsmanship meant that there was a serious underlying problem.

    Ai Hui never really understood the reason behind these failures, but his lessons in the Induction Ground, especially his discussions with his teacher, made him revisit the issue.

    The stability of elemental energy and spiritual force differed greatly.

    Spiritual force was much more dynamic than elemental energy. This can be further exined by drawing parallels to the different states of water. Spiritual force could be said to be akin to water vapor, able to prate even the smallest of openings. Elemental energy, on the other hand, was simr to slush¡ªit was difficult for it to pass through such narrow channels.

    This fundamental difference was the root of why sword techniques couldn¡¯t be used.

    Ai Hui had asked his teacher if it was possible to simply convert elemental energy into spiritual force.

    His teacher hadughed upon hearing his idea. Teacher Wang then went on to exin that countless people have tried to do so in the past one thousand years. Everyone knew that converting elemental energy into spiritual force was the key to essing the inexhaustible teachings and treasures of the Cultivation Era. Anyone who was able to do so would be able to simply tap into this vast resource instead of training with an entirely new system from scratch.

    The Cultivation Era was a period of power and riches. The ferocious dire beasts were merely the prey of the cultivators, kept as pets and mounts and sometimes even killed for food. The only reason why the Wilderness had not been conquered was that it wasn¡¯t deemed worthy of being so.

    But the experiments had all ended in failure¡ªeven those that were undertaken by grandmasters.

    Ai Hui had never once thought that this seemingly impossible problem would have anything to do with him.

    His main focus was on the sword embryo that appeared to be capable of linking his elemental energy to the swordy manuals, fanning the embers of this dying art.

    All of Ai Hui¡¯s attention was focused on reviving more of these embers.

    After the strain on his body had subsided, Ai Hui began his next attempt.

    As he circted his elemental energy and formed the sword technique with his hand, Ai Hui experienced the same situation as before. Although he was filled with joy, he remained much calmer this time. Triggering it twice implied that it wasn¡¯t merely a coincidence.

    Ai Hui had a sudden urge to test some swordy.

    He tried to execute the techniques of many different manuals, but he quickly discovered that he wasn¡¯t able to proceed. The spiritual force of the Cultivation Era operated along a different pathway from the current five residences and eight pces.

    Ai Hui was deep in thought. Following the sword manuals didn¡¯t seem to produce any results, so what next? The sword embryo might be useful, but how exactly did it work?

    He suddenly began to stab the air with the energy de on his fingers, simr to when he was treating Duanmu Huanghun.

    His eyes grew wide in panic.

    There was no response!

    There really wasn¡¯t any response at all!

    What happened?

    Ai Hui was in disbelief. He attempted the same move many more times but to no avail. Just what was going on? Ai Hui quicklyposed himself and thought of possible reasons for this unfavorable oue. However, no matter what he tried, he wasn¡¯t able to enter the sword embryo state again.

    He became disappointed when he realized that digging out more secrets from the swordy manuals wasn¡¯t going to be as easy as he had initially thought.

    However, it wasn¡¯t long before he snapped out of it. Ai Hui was, after all, well ustomed to failure, and this setback wasn¡¯t going to take him down. What¡¯s more, this problem was especiallyplex, and had perplexed many great people before him¡ªit surely wouldn¡¯t be solved so easily.

    Ai Hui¡¯s overworked brain eventually cooled down and he began to reflect on recent happenings. Perhaps he had be more conceited as a result of his smooth-sailing training sessions. Being hailed as a genius must have gotten to his head.

    His path was now much clearer.

    Ai Hui realized that he was getting ahead of himself. He had just activated his natal residence and was already focusing on the sword embryo.

    Whether it was a tiny seed or some kind of treasure, the sword embryo would always be there. His current focus shouldn¡¯t be on this hidden, unknown item. What he needed to do now was to proceed steadily with his training and activate his hand pces.

    This was what he should be putting his time and effort into.

    Having thought things through, Ai Hui became more focused. He was filled with a sense of tranquility and was no longer distracted.

    ...

    After a good sleep, Ai Hui bade Lou Lan farewell. He left the Vanguard Training Hall and headed for the embroidery workshop.

    When Han Yuqin noticed Ai Hui return to being silently engrossed in his training, she inevitably felt relieved. Even Wang Shouchuan couldn¡¯t bear to disturb his disciple when he saw him being so focused.

    The elderly couple had seen many geniuses who possessed amazing talents, most of whom had ended up losing sight of themselves amidst the praise.

    Just as they had begun to worry about Ai Hui, he proved to them through his actions that he wasn¡¯t going to lose himself in the adtion. He had realigned his attitude and was now as hard-working and humble as before.

    The bandaged youth quietly focused on his training in the steam-filled workshop. The embroiderydies were initially curious about him but soon became ustomed to this sight. As time passed, the youth had long been forgotten by the embroiderydies, and it was only when they asionally walked past the workshop window did they notice the young man inside standing as still as a statue.

    A pair of abstruse eyes as deep as the abyss could be seen amidst the mist.

    This went on tirelessly, day after day.

 Chapter 103: Hall of Nine Tones

    Chapter 103: Hall of Nine Tones

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    After throwing all those nonsensical and distracting thoughts to the back of his mind, Ai Hui¡¯s mind was now at peace. All that stuff about Bangwan or his one hundred fifty million yuan didn¡¯t matter to him anymore. He wasn¡¯t going to waste any more time and effort on that ingrate¡ªit wasn¡¯t as if they were rted in any way. Ai Hui was stingy with his time and would much rather spend it on those close to him.

    Was the ingrate within his intimate social circle? Certainly not.

    Only Lou Lan, Fatty, Teacher Wang, Mistress, and Senior Mingxiu were worthy. Everyone else can just go mind their own business!

    As for the one hundred fifty million? Hehe, forget about it.

    Having grown up in the Wilderness, Ai Hui had witnessed the most extreme of contests for resources. People would fight over mere pennies and would sometimes even engage in battles of life and death over a few hundred yuan.

    And some rich kid came along and offered him a hundred million? Other people could afford to be naive, but not Ai Hui.

    Lou Lan was the only reason why he was willing to lend a helping hand.

    Ai Hui knew how different he was from Lou Lan. He also understood that he would never be as kind as Lou Lan, and he didn¡¯t want Lou Lan to be more like him.

    Even though he managed to escape the darkness, it had long permeated his entire being. He knew that he would never be able to break away from the constant fighting and killing of his past.

    Victory and strength were the only things that made him feel safe.

    Lou Lan was different; his passion for this world radiated warmly like the sun.

    And Ai Hui enjoyed the sun; he liked the way Lou Lan was. Everything was fine as long as Lou Lan remained happy.

    As for that ingrate, he¡¯d better not meet Ai Hui in battle.

    By focusing on those that mattered and treating Duanmu Huanghun as an insignificant being, Ai Hui preserved his inner tranquility.

    Duanmu Huanghun was, however, not the least bit at peace.

    How could he be?

    He was resentful that putting down his pride and sincerely apologizing wasn¡¯t enough for Ai Hui. Moreover, he had experienced that nightmare again¡ªwhat a harrowing experience! He had felt so fearful that he didn¡¯t even know how he had managed to flee from the Vanguard Training Hall.

    Duanmu Huanghun only regained his senses the next day.

    Fully aware of his circumstances, he felt even more resentful.

    How could he have fainted in that alley? How could he have allowed himself to be saved by Ai Hui once again? The scene where Ai Hui had contemptuously asked him for one hundred million yuan was etched deeply in his mind.

    Duanmu Huanghun had never been scoffed at to such an extent in his life.

    Not even once!

    Just like how nobody had ever considered him to be someone who made empty promises. Everyone around Duanmu Huanghun, even adults and his childhood friends, had always regarded him as a respectable man of his words!

    Money?

    To him, money was insignificant!

    Money was just a figure to him. Having his promise disregarded was one thing, but to view it as being worth less than fifty million yuan was a total insult to his character. What¡¯s worse was that the other party believed that he couldn¡¯t even afford one hundred million yuan.

    Fine, he was indeed unable to afford that amount at that point in time.

    That scoundrel!

    Duanmu Huanghun clenched his fist tightly, his knuckles turning white. His eyes felt like they were capable of spewing fire.

    He took a deep breath, slowly releasing his fist. Although he was still filled with rage, Duanmu Huanghun could now restrain it.

    He made a decision.

    Counterattack!

    He was going to counterattack!

    He would show that scoundrel just how easy it was for him to make money. He would demonstrate the vast difference between a genius and a piece of trash! He would let him know just how much his promises were worth¡ªthat scoundrel could just take his one hundred fifty million yuan and wallow in regret!

    Duanmu Huanghun regained hisposure, quicklying up with a n.

    ......

    Wu Qirong¡¯s birthday was finally here; he was finallying of age. The Wu family had a 600-year history, and even though it wasn¡¯t particrlyrge, it wasn¡¯t exactly small either. Although their legacy wasn¡¯t as established as those of the founding houses, the family nevertheless had its own estate and a decent sphere of influence.

    After six hundred years of painstaking efforts, the Wu family was now flourishing.

    Wu Qirong was the eldest son of the Wu family, and his name reflected the great expectations that his elders had of him. [1] He was, however, a mischievous child, and had grown to be a highly sociable person with a vastwork of friends. Wu Qirong was bright; he had noticed early on that he couldn¡¯t match his elders when it came to hard work.

    As such, he had focused on expanding his socialwork. He was a generous person who was well versed in negotiating his way around others, and he had never offended anyone. These qualities led him to have quite a reputation among the dandymunity.

    Wu Qirong continued to socialize even when he hade to the Induction Ground. He spared no expense, choosing to host arge banquet to celebrate his birthday.

    One could tell from the venue that the host was a massive spender. The banquet was held at the Hall of Nine Tones, the most luxurious venue in the Induction Ground.

    The Hall of Nine Tones was built by Di Xinyuan, a Music Theory Master. When the Induction Ground¡¯s administration received news that Master Di Xinyuan intended to return to the Induction Ground, they decided to give him a beautiful, scenic ce to honor his return.

    The master had been indescribably happy at the gesture and had decided to build the Hall of Nine Tones on this piece ofnd for his life of solitude. He had once roamed the world, exploring the Avalon of Five Elements, and he had even wandered into the Old Territory. He had picked his nine favorite architectural styles and had built nine entirely different courtyards, and hence the name Hall of Nine Tones.

    Once built, the Hall of Nine Tones instantly became the Induction Ground¡¯s most valued venue.

    Besides being an architectural marvel, the hall yed host to musicians that were handpicked and taught by the master himself. The songs they performed were always changing and were all written by Master Di Xinyuan himself.

    Ever since the day of itspletion, the Hall of Nine Tones had be the favorite haunt of youngsters from the influential families.

    Getting a reservation for the venue was extremely difficult. Not only was it extremely costly, but the ce also had strict requirements regarding the identity of its customers. Wu Qirong had spent a tidy sum to buy someone else¡¯s reservation.

    He had to admit, though, that it was all worth it!

    The hall¡¯s decor and the exquisite elemental food dishes, coupled with the heavenly music, were simply intoxicating. The look on his peers¡¯ faces upon entering the venue gave him immense satisfaction. He was extremely pleased with his purchase!

    Just as Wu Qirong was happily content, an icy voice suddenly rang out from the doorway. ¡°Little Wu, why wasn¡¯t I notified of your birthday party? You¡¯ll have to drink three sses of wine as punishment.¡±

    A lithe figure with an air of aloofness appeared at the doorway.

    The guests at the table instantly fell silent.

    One of Wu Qirong¡¯s yboy mates angrily voiced out, ¡°Who is this atrocious piece of trash¡ª¡±

    Pa!

    A resounding p in the face!

    The yboy held his cheek and stared nkly at Wu Qirong, stunned that his friend had actually pped him.

    Wu Qirong, who was behaving all loftily just awhile ago, bent down without hesitation to pour himself three sses of wine. He downed them all in one breath.

    Without putting down the ss, Wu Qirong hastily ran over to the newly arrived guest. He bowed slightly and said, ¡°Brother, you should have told me earlier that you wereing! I would hardly dare to disturb you without hearing from you first. Someone as important as you must surely be very busy, unlike us idle fools who merely spend our time strolling around and ying to our whims.¡±

    Everyone was shocked silent.

 Chapter 104: Demon King

    Chapter 104: Demon King

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s sharp gaze swept across the entire hall as he nonchntly walked towards the seat of honor.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes were focused on Yu Ziyi who was sitting on that seat. The Yu family was an illustrious family as well, and its prominence was such that even Wu Qirong had to curry favor with Yu Ziyi.

    The Yu family had produced three grandmasters throughout its 800-year family history¡ªan average of one every two hundred years. What was more impressive was that the three of them had imparted three entirely different absolute arts to the family.

    Outsiders were simply unable to imagine just how vast the knowledge left behind by three grandmasters was.

    The Yu family had its roots firmly nted in the Avalon of Five Elements; all of its sessive heads of the family were extraordinary individuals. Most of the top-tier influential families of today had been involved in the founding of the Avalon of Five Elements. The Yu family was one of those handful of families who managed to sustain their power till today.

    Yu Ziyi was young, but he was ranked high in the Yu family¡¯s hierarchy. He was recognized as being immensely gifted and was ted as a possible candidate for bing the Yu family¡¯s fourth grandmaster.

    Wu Qirong had spent a lot of effort to curry favor with Yu Ziyi.

    Several guests were smiling grimly, unsure of what was about to happen. The Yu family was renowned throughout the Avalon of Five Elements¡ªjust who was this new guest who dared to try something like that? Yu Ziyi wasn¡¯t exactly known for being amiable or modest either.

    He gave off an air of aloofness and arrogance, and his face was cold¡ªhe hadn¡¯t so much as smiled since the meal started. Those who were familiar with Yu Ziyi knew that he was definitely someone who wouldn¡¯t hesitate to fight over the slightest disagreements.

    The other party seemed to be someone with a background too. With two tigers in the cage, there was bound to be a good show.

    Yu Ziyi pushed his chair back and stood up, his face expressionless.

    The guests had be agitated, but they all tactfully remained silent. Yu Ziyi had a profound knowledge of his family¡¯s teachings but rarely demonstrated these skills in front of others. The few instances where they had seen bits of his skills had left them feeling bewildered.

    The atmosphere was electric as their eyes locked.

    The tension at the dining table ran high as the guests continued to sit in an ufortable silence.

    Suddenly, Yu Ziyi bowed at the waist and affectionately eximed, ¡°Brother Huanghun!¡±

    Everyone¡¯s eyes opened wide, dumbstruck by what they had just witnessed.

    Yu Ziyi helped Duanmu Huanghun get seated, warmly saying, ¡°Please take a seat Brother Huanghun. If I knew you wereing, I¡¯d have gone to fetch you!¡±

    Hearing Yu Ziyu address the guest in such a humble manner almost made the others spit out their food. Confused expressions could be seen across the entire table. Was this really the unfeeling and arrogant Yu Ziyu that they knew?

    Duanmu Huanghun nodded towards Yu Ziyu. ¡°Your base level has increased quite a bit; it seems like you haven¡¯t been wasting all your time gallivanting.¡±

    Feeling wronged, Yu Ziyu immediately whined, ¡°Brother, your words really hurt! I¡¯ve been hard at work from dawn till dusk, trying to catch up with Brother Huanghun. If not for Little Wu I wouldn¡¯t be out here today.¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s true,¡± Wu Qirong hurriedly verified Yu Ziyu¡¯s words. ¡°Young Master Yu has practically been in seclusion these days.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun sat down in a dignified manner. When he saw that everyone else was still standing up by the table, he said indifferently, ¡°Do sit down.¡±

    Everyone sat down subconsciously as if they had just awoken from a dream.

    Some of the more quick-witted guests had begun to deduce Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s identity. The name ¡°Huanghun¡± was, after all, rather unique. Being in the same social circle made it all the easier, and soon, everyone knew who this godlike person was. They now understood why Wu Qirong and Young Master Yu would behave as such.

    Duanmu Huanghun! The top talent in the Duanmu family! The one who had just been epted by Master Dai Gang as hisst disciple!

    The Duanmu family was one of the oldest and most powerful families of the Avalon of Five Elements. Members of such families were far beyond the reach of folks lower down in the hierarchy.

    While they may not be adept at much, these rich and good-for-nothing yboys were highly social and were privy to all sorts of gossip. Upon learning of his identity, they quickly recalled several fear-inducing rumors about Young Master Duanmu.

    Before he had entered the Induction Ground, Young Master Duanmu was notorious for being utterly vicious.

    Yu Ziyi was always on edge around Duanmu Huanghun. The Yu Family and the Duanmu Family were rted by marriage and were, as such, very familiar with each other.

    Yu Ziyi had known Duanmu Huanghun since they were kids. Although Duanmu Huanghun was younger than him, Yu Ziyi was forced to address Duanmu Huanghun as his elder from the moment they first met. However, Yu Ziyi had refused to do so, thus beginning his days of being beaten up.

    The only thing that made Yu Ziyi d was the fact that he wasn¡¯t the only one had been beaten up. All the other members of both families, who were of the same generation as them, were beaten up by Duanmu Huanghun as well.

    This went on to such an extent that those who were beaten up eventually decided to join hands and attack Duanmu Huanghun. However, despite uniting against amon enemy, they were still beaten badly.

    From then on, Duanmu Huanghun was unanimously addressed as Brother Huanghun.

    However, that was not all. After that fight, Duanmu Huanghun began to show more interest in training, eventually bing madly obsessed with it.

    Everyone was initially happy that they were no longer oppressed by the Demon King¡¯s presence. Little did they know that the true nightmare was about to begin.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s all-consuming obsession resulted in him thrashing anyone whom he saw not training. Yu Ziyi was once caught by Duanmu Huanghun while he was ying around. Duanmu Huanghun had dragged him in front of his father after giving him a good thrashing.

    With a stern expression on his face, Duanmu Huanghun had reported to Yu Ziyi¡¯s father, ¡°Uncle Yu, I cannot bear to see Ziyi wasting his time like this, so I beat him up.¡±

    Yu Ziyi¡¯s father had stroked Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s head gently and had said, ¡°You¡¯re so sensible, Huanghun! You did the right thing! Please help me give Ziyi a good thrashing if you catch him cking off again, alright?¡±

    Following that exchange, Duanmu Huanghun had happily returned to his training.

    Yu Ziyi was then severely beaten by his father behind closed doors.

    That scoundrel Duanmu Huanghun made use of his good looks to cajole the youngdies of other households into keeping watch for him. Oh gosh! Those nightmarish days were simply unbearable. Duanmu Huanghun was adored by the elder generation who saw him as an individual with a penchant for leadership.

    In the past, the good-for-nothing youths of the influential families would give all sorts of excuses to avoid going to the Induction Ground.

    Yu Ziyi and the others of his generation were, however, very eager to enter the Induction Ground as soon as possible, praying that they could escape from the demon king as early as two years ahead of schedule.

    Their wishes were eventually realized when they finally entered the Induction Ground. Yu Ziyi enjoyed a good two years free from the oppressive reign of the demon king.

    Just as he had left those dark days in the past, Duanmu Huanghun had suddenly appeared before his eyes. The very sight of him left Yu Ziyi¡¯s face frozen in fear. Thankfully, he had made some progress in the past two years and was able to prevent his legs from trembling. Those horrifying memories suddenly began to surface in his consciousness¡ªhe soon realized that this was the year Duanmu Huanghun was going to enter the Induction Ground.

    The good old days were over!

    All he wanted to do now was escape this ce. Why did he even attend this dinner? Duanmu Huanghun had be even more powerful now, and coupled with his greater prestige, he was bound to make life a living hell for Yu Ziyi in the years toe.

    Wu Qirong!

    You¡¯ve gotten me in trouble!

 Chapter 105: Brother Huanghunâ€™s Bet

    Chapter 105: Brother Huanghun¡¯s Bet

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    In this circle of yboys, Brother Huanghun was widely known as the Demon King.

    In truth, however, Duanmu Huanghun did not actually have much interaction with this bunch.

    Even though, like them, he was not in the least bit frugal, much of his life was dedicated to training. He was not interested in the pursuit of earthly pleasures.

    This group of rich yboys had only heard of him and had never met him in person before.

    Forget his reputation, who would dare to stand up to him if even someone as powerful as Young Master Yu had to bow?

    Duanmu Huanghun always felt at home amongst hispanions, doing as he pleased. He raised the ss of wine in his hand and said tly, ¡°Today is my dear friend Little Wu¡¯s birthday. Let¡¯s all drink one ss to congratte him. Bottoms up.¡±

    Wu Qirong trembled with excitement. To hear such words from Brother Huanghun was a rare and precious gift! Although he had known Brother Huanghun for many years, Wu Qirong could only observe him from afar. The gap between them was so great that they might as well have been from different worlds. Wu Qirong had always thought of Brother Huanghun as someone destined for greatness, someone who would someday be a grandmaster or a division head.

    He was clear of his station in life. And for just this sentence, he would do anything for Brother Huanghun.

    Holding back his emotions, Wu Qirong promptly stood up and raised his ss for a toast. ¡°There is no need for more words. From today onwards, Brother Huanghun shall be my blood brother!¡±

    He lifted his head and swiftly drained the ss.

    In the Avalon of Five Elements, everyone developed elemental energy from a young age. What they were drinking was elemental wine, and one cup was enough to give them a rush, making them feel as if the elemental energy within their body was ignited.

    Duanmu Huanghun too downed the drink without saying another word.

    He rarely drank and practiced restraint in many other aspects of his life as well. Although he seldom met anyone who could rival him, Duanmu Huanghun simply didn¡¯t indulge in these pleasures.

    He took pride in his discipline.

    The elemental energy within his body was set aze, the warmth quickly spreading to his extremities. A red flush spread appeared on his pale face, softening his features and causing him to appear less aloof.

    The others didn¡¯t dare to have the slightest hesitation and downed the drink in one gulp as well.

    Duanmu Huanghun tugged at his cor and squinted his eyes as he enjoyed the feeling granted by the wine. The mes had spread throughout his entire being, consuming even the fog in his mind.

    However, the grievances that he was nursing in his heart made him want to erupt even more violently.

    Duanmu Huanghun managed to restrain himself¡ªhe did not forget the main reason for his visit. He wasn¡¯t some weakling who needed to rely on alcohol to numb himself. He was going to defeat that detestable bastard through direct means.

    Yes, he was going adopt the most effective, convincing method avable, and that was to wallop that damned Ai Hui until he begged for mercy!

    After drinking the wine, the guests had be slightly more restless. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s terrifying, murderous intent soon pervaded the entire dining table, sending chills down their spines as they became silent.

    Yu Ziyi shivered the most.

    This was just too familiar!

    He was all too familiar with this atmosphere. The faint memories of his past began to surface like a school of hungry fish. This was the atmosphere that would arise whenever Brother Huanghun wanted to deal with someone.

    Damn it! Why am I so unlucky? Why am I here on one of his bad days?

    Yu Ziyi was so nervous that he was on the verge of bursting into tears.

    ¡°I came here today to get some ideas from you guys.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s words gave Yu Ziyi a big shock. Gathering ideas from others? He could not help but nce at Duanmu Huanghun. This didn¡¯t seem like Brother Huanghun¡¯s usual style; he was always a lone wolf. Since when did he need others¡¯ help ining up with ideas?

    Sadly, they couldn¡¯t tell if Brother Huanghun was happy or angry.

    Nobody dared to make a sound.

    Brother Huanghun may have asked for opinions, but did you really think that you have the right to speak up? Don¡¯t be so naive!

    Duanmu Huanghun was very familiar with such situations and knew that nobody would dare to speak if he didn¡¯t rify himself further. Getting straight to the point, he announced, ¡°I¡¯m here to get everyone to help me think of ways to earn money!¡±

    What?

    Everyone stared in disbelief, wondering if their ears were ying tricks on them.

    The almighty and highly-regarded Duanmu Huanghun, the eldest son of the illustrious Duanmu family, was actually asking them for advice on how to earn money?

    Big Brother, this joke isn¡¯t funny at all...

    Even Yu Ziyi¡¯s eyes grew wide open in shock as he stared at Duanmu Huanghun¡ªit was as if he had just seen a ghost.

    Wu Qirong muttered weakly, ¡°Brother, your matters are certainly more pressing! Here are my savings of two million yuan, Brother...¡±

    Everyone else immediately followed suit, disregarding their heartache, as they offered whatever they had in a show of loyalty. Yu Ziyi, not wanting to fall behind the rest, put on a brave front and offered, ¡°I have five million yuan, Brother Huanghun can have it all!¡±

    Yu Ziyi was crying inside,menting the loss of everyst cent of his wealth. He did not dare to underreport how much he had; he was afraid that Duanmu Huanghun would easily find out that he was lying through hiswork of infatuated women in the Yu family. If it came to that, Yu Ziyi would probably end up being skinned alive, if not killed.

    Alright, losing five million might be a bit heart-wrenching, but at least it wasn¡¯t aplete waste. Besides, Yu Ziyi knew that Brother Huanghun was a prideful person and wouldn¡¯t simply ept handouts.

    Frankly speaking, Yu Ziyi had been astonished when Brother Huanghun had started talking about money.

    ¡°I thank you all for your goodwill,¡± Duanmu Huanghun said as he shook his head. ¡°But I¡¯m not looking to borrow money. What I want is to earn money. Okay, let me phrase it in another way¡ªcan all of you help me think of ways to make five hundred million yuan?¡±

    Everyone¡¯s eyes grew even wider.

    This time, however, nobody made any noise.

    The people present had some money on them, ranging from a couple of hundred thousands to a million yuan. Yu Ziyi¡¯s five million was already exceedingly rare.

    But five hundred million yuan?

    This was not a quantifiable concept.

    Yu Ziyi¡¯s allowance of five million was probably already the highest. Although the influential families could easily afford to spend five hundred million worth of resources on their youths, they would most certainly not casually give any one of them control of so much.

    Yu Ziyi cautiously asked, ¡°Brother Huanghun, did something happen?¡±

    ¡°What happened?¡± Duanmu Huanghun said as he turned to face Yu Ziyi.

    Yu Ziyi nervously replied, ¡°I was intimidated by that fi-five hun-hundred million...¡±

    ¡°Oh, I made a bet with someone to see who could earn five hundred million first,¡± Duanmu Huanghun said calmly. Everyone else heaved a sigh of relief.

    Making a bet was amon practice in this circle, and among them, all manners of bets were possible! Five hundred million may sound like an exorbitant amount, but considering Brother Huanghun¡¯s status, how could any of his bets be of the same level as theirs?

    Only a bet of five hundred million yuan was worthy of someone like Brother Huanghun!

    Seeing everyone rack their brains, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face lit up with satisfaction.

    ¡°I spend most of my time training, and as such, I know next to nothing about businesses. I have thus taken the liberty ofing over to consult with you guys. I know that you all know more than I do and that you have more connections and methods as well. Regardless of whoes up with it, I will definitely return the favor.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s gaze swept across the table. However, his voice suddenly became much deeper, and it acquired a murderous intent.

    ¡°If no one cane up with a good idea, then none of you will leave today!¡±

 Chapter 106: Scraps

    Chapter 106: Scraps

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    As Mingxiu strolled towards the embroidery workshop, she couldn¡¯t help but smile at the thought of Brother Li Wei¡¯s clumsy appearance from earlier. Every few days or so Brother Li Wei would bring some wild animals. In the past, he had brought them over alive, but now they were all roasted and marinated with high-grade honey. Sometimes, he would even bring dipping sauce, and Mingxiu couldn¡¯t help but always eat a lot.

    Really! How could he offer meat to a girl every time? What if I get fat?

    But each time she saw Brother Li Wei¡¯s bewildered expression, she couldn¡¯t help but eat her fill. Plus, the food tasted great. There was softness within Brother Li Wei¡¯s tough appearance; he was a simple man, and chatting with him had soon be the happiest part of her day.

    Brother Li Wei would talk about the front line, battles with dire beasts, and the kinds of strange nts that lived within the Wilderness. And on the other hand, she would talk to him about the workshop and her embarrassing childhood stories, making himugh out loud each time. She, too, would convulse withughter upon hearing the stories.

    She was quite frustrated. She would usually appear to be gentle and quiet, so why did she reveal her true self in front of Brother Li Wei?

    They shared many little secrets. For example, only the two of them knew that Duanmu Huanghun was the mysterious naked man. The only thing she couldn¡¯t understand was why Huanghun had addressed himself as Bangwan?

    Thinking about how Bangwan had fallen into such a pitiable state because of her chase made her subconsciously stick out her tongue. Brother Li Wei had said that Bangwan was definitely being mischievous and had proceeded to tell her about the many bad things he had done when he was in school, which made Mingxiu stare at him with wide eyes.

    Mingxiu then talked about the bad things she had done in school as well, stunning Brother Li Weipletely. His expression had made her feel a little proud.

    Time flew by when they were together.

    As she entered the workshop, she regained focus and went into work mode. She had been assisting her master by being in charge of the workshop for a long time now, and practically managed all work-rted matters, whether big or small. Mingxiu always concentrated at work¡ªif one became distracted while embroidering, it was incredibly easy to make a mistake.

    Although her master frequently praised her talent, Mingxiu felt she was only just a little more meticulous and focused.

    Speaking of talent, Ai Hui was the real deal. Even Brother Li Weiplimented him non-stop and tried so hard to pull him into the Infantry Division.

    ¡°See, there¡¯s fog now. It¡¯s starting again!¡±

    ¡°How hard-working! Is he a sand puppet? He doesn¡¯t seem to get tired.¡±

    The shocked voices of the embroiderydies could be heard throughout the workshop, and Mingxiu knew that they were referring to Ai Hui. She diverted her gaze towards the workroom. Mist rose against the window like a dire beast that had just woken up from a deep slumber and started spitting fog.

    Ai Hui hadmenced his training for the day.

    Mingxiu was moved. Her junior¡¯s natural talent was already shocking, yet his diligent attitude far exceeded hers as well. She was inplete admiration.

    Other than asionally visiting the training hall, Ai Hui devoted all his time to practicing his embroidery. Since eating rice wasted too much time, he had previously brought heaps of dried food into the workroom.

    Ai Hui had a sand puppet with amazing culinary skills who specialized in elemental food. The dried food was exquisitely made and contained a pretty good amount of elemental energy.

    Mingxiu was aware that in the Cultivation Era, there was a group of cultivators who were known as ¡°bitterness cultivators¡± as their training was always tedious and tough. From what she observed, if Ai Hui had been in the Cultivation Era, he most definitely would have been a ¡°bitterness cultivator.¡±

    Eating in the workroom, sleeping in the workroom, training right after waking up, eating when hungry, sleeping when tired¡ªthe stinky herbal medicinal smell that she considered unpleasant was like a sweet syrup to Ai Hui. Before he had appeared, she had never known how arduous training could be.

    Within a short period of time, Ai Hui had be the embroiderydies¡¯ idol. Actions always spoke louder than words; although he never engaged in much conversation with the girls, his actions had already convinced all of them.

    Such perverse perseverance was always highly revered.

    In the beginning, Mingxiu had been a little worried that Ai Hui¡¯s health would be damaged. She had some level of medical expertise because of her brother, and with that knowledge, she checked on Ai Hui¡¯s body regrly. However, she had found that he was very healthy, and what she was worried about did not happen.

    After a few observations, she realized that Ai Hui had an excellent understanding of his own body¡¯s condition. He would always rest just before reaching his limits, never overexerting himself.

    Mingxiu was greatly shocked. She didn¡¯t know how Ai Hui had done it, but she nevertheless set her worries aside.

    What she didn¡¯t understand, however, was that recently, the Twilight Silk Ai Hui had been churning out had be shorter and shorter. The recent batches of silk were only a meter long. If it had not been for the fact that each batch¡¯s silks were uniform in length, she would¡¯ve suspected that something went wrong with his training. It seemed more like he was experimenting.

    Previously, the money-grubbing look he had on his face after producing a silk that was over ten meters long had greatly irritated Master.

    Yet, he had no such look when he was training, and it was apparent that he didn¡¯t see the Twilight Silk as money.

    Scraps weren¡¯t worth much yet his silk steadily grew shorter and shorter. He was losing a lot of money each day. When she thought about how his heart must be aching, she wanted tough.

    But, while the silks were getting shorter, the quantity was increasing. He had actually managed to use up two Twilight Cocoons in a single day.

    The umted pile of Twilight Silk that he had pulled out was impressive. In order to prevent wastage, the workshop had been using the silk as sewing thread. Although it was quite a pity to use such a quality material as thread, the Twilight Silk was indeed tough.

    Her junior was in trouble, and Mingxiu couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit of schadenfreude.

    Ever since Master felt that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t passionate about embroidery, her whole countenance had changed¡ªno, she mustn¡¯t say that about Master¡ªit was her style of teaching that changed.

    All the materials used were recorded and ounted for, and Mingxiu saw the amount Ai Hui owed increase non-stop. At this point, he was going to have to sell himself to the workshop.

    Even Master couldn¡¯t do anything about it, but she continued keeping track of the material usage records, not overcharging a single cent.

    Mingxiu helped Ai Hui sell a batch of Twilight Silk, and while it wasn¡¯t worth much, it was something. A pity such short lengths were worthless. She sold over a hundred pieces at five yuan each.

    ¡°Miss Mingxiu!¡±

    Mingxiu snapped out of her thoughts upon hearing her name being called. When she saw that it was the frequent visitor, Manager Li, a warm smile appeared on her face as she greeted, ¡°Manager Li, long time no see. How¡¯s business nowadays?¡±

    Manager Li was about forty years old and was a sharp-witted man. He hurriedly responded, ¡°Thanks to you, it¡¯s been okay. I havee to buy a batch of Twilight Silk scraps.¡±

    Mingxiu was slightly taken aback. ¡°You¡¯ve finished using the hundred pieces from before?¡±

    ¡°Yes, a new order came in coincidentally.¡± Manager Li maintained a harmonious smile and continued, ¡°I am thinking of purchasing more this time but am not sure if the shop still has it?¡±

    Mingxiu nodded. ¡°How many would you like?¡±

    ¡°Give me whatever you have.¡± Manager Li added quickly, ¡°The consumption rate is high and fast. Do you have stock?¡±

    Mingxiu smiled. ¡°Let me check.¡±

    Manager Li said hastily, ¡°Thanks for your trouble.¡±

    However, Mingxiu¡¯s smile disappeared the moment she turned around. She had a pensive look on her face as she strode over the doorstep to enter the hall. She immediately gave an order to the servant girl beside her, ¡°Take a few pieces of Twilight Silk that Junior has pulled. No, I¡¯ll take it myself. Where is the pile?¡±

 Chapter 107: The Usage of Twilight Silk

    Chapter 107: The Usage of Twilight Silk

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    Mingxiu squatted and started to study the piles of Twilight Silk.

    The Twilight Silk that Ai Hui extracted every day was put aside from the others¡¯. At first, there wasn¡¯t much, but dayster the amount began to increase sharply¡ªespecially in the past two days. Ai Hui could use up two cocoons a day, and the amount of silk extracted from two cocoons was staggering.

    Mingxiu hadn¡¯t noticed anything before, but now, as she looked at the piles of silk, she was greatly surprised.

    Two cocoons per day. How could he be so fast? How on earth did he do it?

    She hadn¡¯t thought about it very carefully before, and it was only now that she realized that this was unbelievable. It meant that Ai Hui¡¯s speed of extracting silk was extremely quick¡ªonly in this way could he consume two cocoons a day.

    Maybe he was silkworm-attributed?

    Even the Twilight Silkworm couldn¡¯t produce silk as fast as him.

    Yet Mingxiu soon noticed something amiss. The color of each pile of silk was slightly different¡ªthe longer the time gap was, the more evident the difference in color, and vice versa. The strands of silk produced within the past three consecutive days were almost of the same color¡ªthe color difference was practically unnoticeable to the naked eyes.

    She was right! Ai Hui was doing some kind of experiment.

    The difference in color of the strands of silk in front of her verified her assumption.

    Mingxiu picked up a strand of silk and carefully inspected it. The shop manager¡¯s return had made her a bit confused. Manager Li was a shrewd person who was always careful and strict with his daily budget and would never buy something unnecessary. This was the first time that Mingxiu had seen him buy up everything without hesitation.

    Unless... unless he believed he was on the advantageous side of the deal.

    Mingxiu¡¯s mind raced. The Twilight Silk was not widely used, and also, since it was very thin, the requirement for its length was high. Therefore, these short strands of silk were hardly of any use.

    Any good embroidery worker had to be very familiar with embroidery materials because the materials used in embroidery were critical. Any difference in materials would change the quality of the fabrics.

    Mingxiu hadn¡¯t paid particr attention to these strands of silk before. Now, after scrutinizing the silk carefully, she soon became surprised by what she found.

    Ai Hui had no idea that Mingxiu was examining the silk he had extracted. He was totally engaged in training. The change he was going through, in regards to his training, had been much more apparent.

    At the very beginning, he had controlled elemental energy with the slowest speed to extract the silk, as instructed by Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqin.

    But after continuously training, he began to gain experience, and he soon made new discoveries.

    During his discussions with his master, Ai Hui realized that although Master was equipped with enough theoretical knowledge, he hardly had any hands-on experience. When it came to training, especially to the details, hisck of experience would be exposed.

    Moreover, Ai Hui¡¯s case was unique. Wang Shouchuan had never met someone like him before.

    This was amon problem for all teachers; while they could exin their theories clearly, they seldom talked about the details.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t have much training experience either, but he was used to learning through trial and error. After fully understanding the theories through several rounds of discussion with his master, Ai Hui had obtained a vague idea of his physical condition. One interesting thing he discovered was that the feeling he got¡ªwhen he passed his elemental energy through his hand pces¡ªwasn¡¯t necessarily intensified along with the slowing down of his elemental energy control.

    As he trained, he tried to change the speed of elemental energy topare the different levels of stimtion to his hand pces.

    That was how he had found the optimal speed to best stimte his hand pces.

    And this optimal speed was much faster than his lowest speed.

    Now, Ai Hui had be very familiar with extracting silk. His elemental energy was like a sword, and when it was spirally infused into the silk at optimal speed, the silk would remain unbroken.

    However, when he had just begun to believe that he could extract ten meters of silk per day, reality gave him a severe blow.

    At the optimal speed, Ai Hui could extract silk much faster. But when his elemental energy passed through his hand pces, the stimtion he would feel was so strong that his hand pces would quiver and break off the silk. That was why the silk Ai Hui extracted was only one meter long.

    That was... a lot of money!

    Weeping inside his heart, Ai Hui continued his training.

    He consoled himself that it was fine. He could always earn more money in the future.

    Although the loss was huge, he was d that the efficiency of his training had beenrgely increased.

    While the optimal speed was much more than before, it was still less than the running speed of elemental energy during fighting. Therefore, it was not yet too heavy a burden for him.

    This meant he could raise the density and duration of his training, and in this way, Ai Hui progressed by leaps and bounds.

    He could clearly feel the existence of his hand pces. When elemental energy ran through his palms, apart from little tremors, he could also feel a slight heat in his hand pces.

    Nothing encouraged him more than this.

    Nothing could cheer him more than the tangible feeling of his own progress.

    And today, Ai Hui could feel that something was different about his hand pces as soon as he started training. When the elemental energy ran through his palms, it was as hot as a soldering iron, and they shivered much more fiercely than usual.

    Therefore, Ai Hui was highly vignt. He strongly felt that there would be breakthrough today.

    But this did not disturb his state of mind, and he continued to unhurriedly extract the silk as usual.

    The breakthrough would be naturally achieved when all the conditions were ripe.

    Hidden in the fog, his eyes were as calm as water.

    Seeing Mingxiu return, Manager Li cracked a wry smile. He knew he had given himself away. He used to think that Mingxiu was gentle and graceful, but he never knew that she was so smart, too.

    Mingxiu smiled back at him.

    Manager Li cupped his hands and smiled bitterly. ¡°Nothing can escape your eyes.¡±

    He felt a bit upset. He had intended to gain enormous benefits, but this goal now seemed very difficult to achieve.

    ¡°I¡¯m ttered.¡± The smile on Mingxiu¡¯s face disappeared, but her voice was still gentle. Her expression became serious as she said, ¡°The Jade Embroidery Workshop only focuses on embroidery and is not interested in other businesses. You are really talented if you can put this material into use. It¡¯s just that this Twilight Silk was made by Ai Hui. I¡¯m his senior, and I cannot just stand by and watch you take advantage of him. I think you would also prefer cooperation rather than a one-time deal. If we can cooperate, you will have a stable supply of materials, and we can both earn more. Don¡¯t you agree?¡±

    Manager Li was filled with admiration. ¡°You are indeed as generous as I expected, Mingxiu. I really appreciate it. Your junior is skilled enough to produce such Twilight Silk. It is as tough as steel wire and is also very sharp. If infused with elemental energy, it can be used to cut through stones. I soaked a piece of ebony vine as thick as a thumb in oil until it became soft, and I made an arrow together with Twilight Silk and gold wire grass. With this arrow, I can pierce a three-inch-thick te from five hundred steps away.¡±

    He told everything about the method and usage of the silk to Mingxiu to show his sincerity. Anyway, since she had already noticed the peculiarity of this Twilight Silk, it wouldn¡¯t be long before she found out the usage herself.

    Mingxiu¡¯s beautiful eyes lit up. She of course knew what this meant. ¡°How much is one arrow?¡±

    ¡°I made ten arrows with one hundred pieces of Twilight Silk, and I sold them all to a customer I¡¯m familiar with at the price of thirty thousand yuan each,¡± Manager Li said proudly.

    Mingxiu nodded. ¡°If so, I will decide on behalf of Ai Hui to provide the Twilight Silk to you. In return, you will give him thirty percent of your profits. What do you think?¡±

    Manager Li was slightly surprised. ¡°Really?¡±

    Of all the materials, the most important one was the Twilight Silk. He had been prepared for Mingxiu to ask for fifty percent of the profits¡ªthirty percent was something he would never have expected.

    Mingxiu smiled like a spring breeze, and she was about to say something when she suddenly heard a loud, thundering sound.

    The ground trembled.

    Mingxiu¡¯s expression changed. She had no time to finish her words before she hurriedly rushed towards the workshop.

    Junior Ai Hui!

 Chapter 108: New Twilight Silk

    Chapter 108: New Twilight Silk

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    The colorful smog rose into the sky like a ferocious-looking poisonous serpent with bared fangs.

    The workshop had already been razed to the ground. The ashes and smog floating around were indicators to how violent the explosion was.

    Ai Hui, with bandages all over his body, was climbing out of the ruins. Although he was ckened by smoke and fire and looked incredibly awkward, he wasn¡¯t wounded. Seeing that Ai Hui was fine, Mingxiu sighed with relief.

    At that moment Han Yuqin had also heard the loud noise and rushed out. When she saw that Ai Hui was okay, the concern in her eyes disappeared. But the next second a hint ofcency shed in her eyes, and she sneered at Ai Hui. ¡°Now even your master can¡¯t save you, little Ai Hui. Do you know how much this workshop is worth? I spent as much as eight million on it, and I¡¯m still keeping the bill. It seems that you will have to work for me for many years, little Ai Hui.¡±

    Mingxiu hesitated for a while, but then she interrupted, ¡°Master.¡±

    ¡°Oh, Mingxiu, you are here too.¡± Han Yuqin was d to see Mingxiu. ¡°You see, Ai Hui just destroyed the workshop. Remember to give him the bill. Don¡¯t forget to take into consideration the materials he consumed during his daily training. He cannot leave before he pays off his bill. Ai Hui, you can learn the double-flow embroidery method further from Senior Mingxiu.¡±

    ¡°Er, Master...¡± Mingxiu braced herself and said, ¡°I think Ai Hui can pay it off.¡±

    Han Yuqin was surprised. ¡°How?¡±

    Mingxiu showed a strand of the Twilight Silk that Ai Hui had recently produced. ¡°Please have a look, Master.¡±

    ¡°So short? Ai Hui seems to have regressed.¡± Han Yuqin frowned, but the moment she touched the Twilight Silk, her eyes widened. ¡°No, wait. Why is the Twilight Silk like this?¡±

    The hair-thin strand of Twilight Silk was as hard and tough as a steel wire. As an Embroidery Master, Han Yuqin was far more sensitive to materialspared to Mingxiu.

    She infused a strand of elemental energy into it, and a sh of silvery light appeared on the silk. She could feel a sharp aura rushing to her eyebrows.

    ¡°Why is it like this?¡± Han Yuqin murmured to herself. She had seen and used countless strands of Twilight Silk but had never seen anything like this.

    By this time, Ai Hui just managed to carry himself out of the ruins. He looked really miserable. Except for the bandages, which were still white, he was either covered with ashes or ckened by smoke.

    ¡°What...¡±

    Ai Hui grimaced in pain as he walked towards them. Although he wasn¡¯t injured, he had been hit by arge pot that had dropped on top of him, and he was currently feeling pain all over his body.

    Han Yuqin suddenly raised her head. ¡°How did you do it?¡±

    Ai Hui was totally confused.

    Mingxiu exined, ¡°Ai Hui, Master is asking you how you had managed to change the nature of the Twilight Silk.¡±

    ¡°I changed the nature of the Twilight Silk?¡± Ai Hui seemed to be at a loss. ¡°What nature did I change?¡±

    Looking at his expression, Han Yuqin knew he that he hadn¡¯t done it on purpose, so she changed her question and asked Ai Hui how he had circted his elemental energy. Since she was very experienced, she soon figured it out. Ai Hui¡¯s metal elemental energy was pure and sharp. When it was spirally infused into the Twilight Silk, it caused the silk to be further sharpened. Besides, Ai Hui had increased his speed of infusion, which had made the silk more solid. She was greatly surprised that the Twilight Silk had such a property.

    She couldn¡¯t help but nce at Ai Hui. Old Wang¡¯s disciple was indeed good at giving pleasant surprises.

    Throughout the years since its discovery, Twilight Silk had enjoyed a rich history of usage. The existing types of Twilight Silk had all been discovered long ago, and it now seemed that a new member would join them.

    Although the Avalon of Five Elements had a short history and the development of elemental energy had yet to encounter a bottleneck with new discoveries being made every day, it was still an extraordinary achievement for a student of the Induction Ground.

    Han Yuqin was much more experienced when it came to materials. At first nce, she could discern the value of this new type of Twilight Silk.

    The people of the Avalon of Five Elements were infatuated with new materials. A brand-new material or species usually represented an astonishing fortune, and anyone who could cultivate extraordinary nts like the mirage bean pods would definitely make a great fortune overnight.

    That was why so many wood elementalists were keen on cultivating new species.

    When she realized her hope had been misced, Han Yuqin¡¯s mood turned sour. She red at Ai Hui angrily and stomped away.

    ¡°Why is she...¡± Ai Hui was at a loss as he turned to Mingxiu.

    Mingxiu knew what her master was thinking, but she couldn¡¯t tell Ai Hui. Right at this moment, however, she noticed Manager Li looking towards them, so she called him over. ¡°Would you pleasee here, Manager Li?¡±

    Manager Li had already approached long ago, but he didn¡¯t daree closer because of Master Han Yuqin. He had been worried about losing the deal. But when Mingxiu called him, he quickly replied, ¡°Coming!¡± and immediately ran to them.

    Mingxiu introduced Ai Hui to Manager Li. ¡°This is my junior, Ai Hui. Ai Hui, this is Manager Li.¡±

    Ai Hui was confused, but he still greeted Manager Li.

    Mingxiu exined, ¡°Manager Li found an excellent use for your Twilight Silk: it can be used to make arrows. From now on, you can provide Twilight Silk to Manager Li with a quality simr to that of the silk you¡¯ve made recently. Manager Li will give thirty percent of his profits to you. What do you think, Ai Hui?¡±

    Manager Li was aware that this youth was the producer of the silk. Although he looked very young, as the junior of Mingxiu, he was most certainly not an ordinary person. Manager Li ardently watched Ai Hui. Even though he had to surrender thirty percent of the profits, he could get a stable supply in return. This would allow him to produce arrows continuously. The arrows were consumables, and that would be a lot of money.

    ¡°Twilight Silk?¡± Ai Hui shook his head. ¡°I probably won¡¯t extract Twilight Silk anymore.¡±

    Manager Li¡¯s face turned pale.

    Mingxiu was also surprised. ¡°Why?¡±

    Ai Hui smiled proudly and raised his hands.

    Mingxiu looked at one of his hands, and a momentter, she becamepletely amazed. ¡°You have activated your hand pce?¡±

    ¡°Haha! Yes!¡± Ai Hui was thrilled.

    ¡°Which one? Left or right?¡± Mingxiu asked. She had calmed down from her initial shock. Compared to the Twilight Silk and the speed at which he had learned the [Twin Weaving Technique], it wasn¡¯t really much of a surprise that he had activated his hand pce. In her eyes, this was easy for a genius like Ai Hui. She herself had activated her hand pces such a long time ago that she didn¡¯t even remember what happened properly.

    Manager Li was anxious.

    Why are you so excited about activating the hand pces? Why not talk about our business first?

    Ai Hui chuckled. ¡°It is for both hands! And at the same time!¡±

    ¡°Good, good,¡± Mingxiu said admiringly, but then she abruptly changed the topic. ¡°Are you really not considering the business? It¡¯s really generous. Very few people can ignore such arge amount of money. It looks like you aren¡¯t an ordinary person indeed.¡±

    On hearing Mingxiu¡¯s words, Ai Hui¡¯s ears pricked up. ¡°How much?¡±

 Chapter 109: Bunny Hair Arrows

    Chapter 109: Bunny Hair Arrows

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    It must be arge sum of money; otherwise, Mingxiu wouldn¡¯t have bothered to talk about it. Ai Hui was now as poor as a church mouse. He didn¡¯t even remember how much money he owed, and even worse, daily consumables such as Twilight Cocoons, herbs, materials, and manpower were driving up his costs every day.

    He strongly felt that training was akin to burning money.

    Why didn¡¯t he feel so before? Well...that was probably because his previous so-called training was far from the standard.

    If so, then life was hard for elementalists, too. Hmmm... maybe not. Not everyone was as poor as him.

    If one had too many debts, then they would no longer worry about it. Ai Hui didn¡¯t bother to think about his debts further¡ªrather, he didn¡¯t dare think about it.

    The reason why he had just refused Mingxiu¡¯s proposal was that he wanted to study his hand pces further. Ai Hui was still excited about the fact that both his hand pces were activated at the same time, and he didn¡¯t want to waste time extracting more Twilight Silk. Money? No one cared about money!

    Except himself!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were wide; they were twinkling like stars in the sky.

    Mingxiu tittered. Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression was pretty much the same as that of a money-grubber. Mingxiu didn¡¯t know that Ai Hui was so greedy for money¡ªshe only realized it now. Who did he learn it from?

    It was a pity that he was Uncle¡¯s disciple¡ªUncle really was poor, but he always held himself aloof. He could ept Master¡¯s help with tiny issues, but he would be unhappy if she wanted to spend more money for him.

    For so many years, Master had always wanted to financially sponsor Uncle¡¯s research, but Uncle never agreed. He would rather do it himself without extra help in his small courtyard filled with waste products.

    Uncle was always stubborn, and Master couldn¡¯t do anything but give up.

    This was his only shoring¡ª he would never give in to money, which was respectable but exasperating.

    In this aspect, Ai Hui was entirely different. He was always keen for money, and his eyes would light up every time he heard the word ¡°money.¡± Master hadined several times about this to Mingxiu, saying that Ai Hui was wasting his talent and that he was vulgar without any proper ns for his future. And next, she wouldin about Uncle, saying he was terrible at teaching his own disciple.

    But Mingxiu thought it was all right. Uncle was unyielding like a steel te; however, a steel te could be broken. On the other hand, Ai Hui was persistent yet resilient, just like the Twilight Silk he extracted. Every time Mingxiu saw his hard work and thought about his experience, she would sincerely feel admiration. At the same time, though, she couldn¡¯t help but feel protective towards him. She herself had nothing to worry about since she was young¡ªshe had never experienced or even imagined that kind of life.

    ¡°Each arrow is made of ten pieces of Twilight Silk and is sold for thirty thousand yuan. You will provide Twilight Silk to Manager Li, and in return, you get thirty percent of the profit. Manager Li will provide the Twilight Cocoons and herbs.¡± Mingxiu exined everything clearly and concisely.

    Thirty thousand yuan for each arrow!

    This was daylight robbery!

    Ai Hui almost blurted out loud, but the next second, he realized that part of the money would belong to him!

    This was daylight robbery! But why not?

    He bit his tongue and proceeded to ask the key question. ¡°How many arrows can you sell in one month?¡±

    Manager Li thought for a while before saying, ¡°The ten arrows I madest time have already been sold out. I¡¯m not exactly sure how many arrows I can sell in one month, but since it¡¯s a consumable, I believe we can sell quite a lot although it¡¯s not cheap. If we look at the sales records of simr goods, after the market opens up, I think we can sell three to five hundred arrows every month.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes widened with a glittering light. ¡°Five hundred! That is fifteen million yuan, and thirty percent is four million five hundred thousand?¡±

    Manager Li began to sweat. ¡°Not that much. First, we have to consider the cost, including the cost of cocoons, manpower, materials, and the rent for the shop. At least twenty percent of the price goes there. I think Mingxiu can figure this out too.¡± He turned to Mingxiu. ¡°You know I¡¯m not lying.¡±

    Mingxiu nodded as she knew that Manager Li was speaking the truth.

    ¡°Next, in the beginning, we can hardly sell five hundred arrows. Before the power of the arrow is proved, no one will buy it on arge scale. I¡¯ll reach out to my regr customers first, and I estimate that dozens of arrows can be sold out. Once it¡¯s epted by most people, the sales will increase. Earlier on, I think at most we can sell thirty to fifty arrows within a month.¡±

    Manager Li was conservative, which was something he had to be. If he exaggerated the possible ie but failed to reach the target, then he would get himself into trouble, because the boy in front of him would definitely not let him off easily.

    From three or five hundred to thirty or fifty...the gap was big, and the money he could earn was far less than he had imagined.

    Ai Hui stared at him with dissatisfaction, but he still told himself, ¡°Anyway, it¡¯s better than nothing.¡±

    ¡°Fifty arrows with a profit of twenty-four thousand for each. Thirty percent is three hundred and sixty thousand yuan.¡±

    Mingxiu told Ai Hui gently, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. There may not be much profit in the beginning, but it¡¯s a long-term business. Besides, it doesn¡¯t require much silk, so it won¡¯t influence your training. I think you can do it.¡±

    ¡°Three hundred and sixty thousand yuan is already a lot of money to me,¡± Ai Hui said happily.

    Yet Manager Li didn¡¯t take him seriously. As the disciple of a master, three hundred and sixty thousand could barely be enough for his pocket money. He quickly replied, ¡°As soon as we open up the market, the sales will increase. By the way, we need to give the material a new name so that no one will know it is actually Twilight Silk.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Mingxiu nodded. ¡°You can give it a name, Ai Hui. It deserves a new name. If I hadn¡¯t seen it for myself, I could never have rted it to Twilight Silk.¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes. I¡¯ve been making weapons for so many years, but I¡¯ve also never seen Twilight Silk like this,¡± Manager Li said.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t refuse them. He thought for a while and said, ¡°Let¡¯s call the silk ¡®Snow Silver Bunny Hair¡¯ and the arrow ¡®Bunny Hair,¡¯ shall we?¡±

    Manager Li was a bit confused at first, but then after a minute, he realized Ai Hui¡¯s intention. He couldn¡¯t help give him a thumbs-up. ¡°That¡¯s smart.¡±

    The name itself wasn¡¯t that smart, but in this way, the customers would think that it was made from the hair of some kind of rabbit. As a result, no one would know that the snow-white, silvery thread was actually Twilight Silk. When he thought of those imitators who would start chasing all kinds of rabbits to find the material, Manager Li couldn¡¯t help but let out augh.

    This boy was really cunning!

    Manager Li made a mental note to be careful and not irritate this fellow. Although Ai Hui didn¡¯t look the part, he was actually very shrewd.

    Even Mingxiu couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°This name is cruel to rabbits.¡±

    Ai Hui chuckled. Neither of them had understood his real intention. The word ¡°bunny¡± sounded simr to ¡°money.¡± Once the arrows were sold and profits were earned, he would be a man with money!

    ¡°But can bunny hair be this long?¡± Mingxiu asked curiously.

    ¡°You don¡¯t know?¡± Ai Hui was surprised. ¡°I¡¯ve seen rabbits with hair much longer than this in the Wilderness. They are very fierce, and they can bite off a chunk from a tree trunk that¡¯s as thick as a bowl. They like to eat shrubs, leaves, and meat, and their hair is also pretty much the same as Twilight Silk¡ªit¡¯s snow-white with a silvery sheen, but it¡¯s much thicker, though.¡±

    Looking at Ai Hui¡¯s extremely low base level, Manager Li was astonished when he heard that Ai Hui had been in the Wilderness before. None of the disciples of the master seemed to be normal...

    The Wilderness...

    Mingxiu remembered the various amazing details and weird species of the Wilderness that Li Wei had told her about, and she couldn¡¯t help but be enchanted with this mysterious ce.

 Chapter 110: Mingxiuâ€™s Concern

    Chapter 110: Mingxiu¡¯s Concern

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    Although Ai Hui hadn¡¯t provided more ¡°bunny hair¡± yet, Manager Li gave him a sum of money as a deposit without any hesitation. He was acting so generous that Ai Hui started to feel worried about whether he was shrewd enough to make money.

    No profiteer, no money!

    When she recognized the concern in Ai Hui¡¯s tone, Mingxiu couldn¡¯t help but burst intoughter. ¡°Ai Hui, you are so...realistic. But if you think he is stupid, then you can stop worrying. He has been conducting business with our workshop for many years, and he is a very shrewd businessman. The reason why he is so generous is that we are taking a percentage of profit that is less than what he expected.¡±

    ¡°Less than his expectation?¡± Ai Hui¡¯s eyes widened. He seemed to be prepared to rush out and get Manager Li back at any moment.

    Mingxiu gave him a nce. ¡°Do you think I¡¯d let you suffer any loss?¡±

    Ai Hui looked embarrassed. ¡°Of course not. I¡¯m not an ungrateful person! And I always really appreciate your help. I¡¯m sure this is good enough for me.¡±

    In fact, Ai Hui was actually being sincere. Not even a single word he said was against his true feelings. Mingxiu would always help him as much as she could; sometimes, even Han Yuqin didn¡¯t know what she did. He was clearly aware of this.

    If one had a sister, she should be like Mingxiu.

    Even Master Han Yuqin, who always wore a fierce look, was actually kind to him. She was only dissatisfied with Ai Hui just because he couldn¡¯t be fully engaged in embroidery. She kept mentioning how much money he owed her, but she never hesitated to give him the materials he needed for training. His teacher was a good person, too¡ªeven if he was, admittedly, sometimes unreliable and a bit pedantic. He was only good at his theories and knew nothing about the real practice of training. He wasn¡¯t perfect at all.

    But still, Ai Hui believed that Master was the best teacher, his mistress was the best mistress, and Senior Mingxiu was the best senior he could possibly have in the entire world. They cared about him, they loved him, and they helped him in the best ways they could think of.

    He was not an ingrate!

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was far away from them, sneezed twice, oblivious to Ai Hui¡¯s words.

    Mingxiu could feel the sincerity in Ai Hui¡¯s words. She smiled and patiently exined, ¡°You¡¯ll definitely have a bright future, Ai Hui. So, for you, this business is just the beginning. Of course, I can ask for a higher percentage of profit, but that isn¡¯t necessary. Since you are only responsible for providing the Twilight Silk, if you take away too much profit, Manager Li will not be so enthusiastic. The production, sales, and channel development all depend on him. After a period of time, there will inevitably be conflicts between us. If so, he will either find someone else to counterfeit the silk, or he will start another business himself. But now, since you take only thirty percent of the profit, which is eptable to any independent business, he won¡¯t think he is working for you. Instead, he will regard it as his own business. In this way, he will not fall out with our workshop, and the business can go on for a long time.¡±

    Ai Hui nodded. In terms of doing business, he was undoubtedly inferior to Mingxiu, who had been assisting in running the workshop for years.

    ¡°Although the proportion of profit we take is notrge, your ie will umte and increase as the business grows. Besides, you can spend more time on training. In the future, you will feel the benefit that a steady ie brings to your training.¡±

    Ai Hui was moved by Mingxiu¡¯s patient exnation, and he replied in earnest, ¡°I¡¯ll keep that in mind.¡±

    The unruliness and stubbornness in Ai Hui were gone. Instead, right now, he was like a lion that had retracted its sharp ws and teeth¡ªhe was as docile as a cat.

    Ai Hui then left; Mingxiu didn¡¯t ask him to stay. Every student would be extremely excited when they activated a new pce and anxious to try to open up the next one.

    She nced at the workshop, now in ruins, and was about to find someone to clean it up when she suddenly thought of something.

    She realized that she had ignored an important question: why did the activation of Ai Hui¡¯s new pces lead to an explosion?

    The activation of one¡¯s pce would result in different consequences depending on their physical condition, but Mingxiu had never heard of anyone who opened up the new pces with an explosion.

    Explosion...

    ¡°Explosion?¡± Li Wei was surprised to hear what Mingxiu had told him, and he asked, ¡°You mean both of his hand pces were activated at the same time, and the explosion happened in this process, too?¡±

    ¡°Yes, the workshop was razed to the ground.¡± Mingxiu was a bit worried. ¡°Is there any problem in Ai Hui¡¯s training method?¡±

    When it came to this question, Mingxiu thought for a while before she finally decided to ask Li Wei for help. Master was definitely aplished in embroidery, but she was not very good at basic training. On the other hand, although Uncle was good at basic training, he only knew about the theory, and he had no idea about how to deal with the idents that urred during training.

    Compared to them, Li Wei was much more experienced.

    He was, indeed, experienced. He consoled Mingxiu, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Xiu. This is not amon phenomenon, but it¡¯s not unprecedented either.¡±

    Mingxiu was relieved when she heard Li Wei. She was most worried about whether the explosion during the activation of both his hand pces meant that the method of his training was wrong.

    Li Wei looked unconcerned as if this was normal, but inside his heart, he was greatly shocked.

    Generally, the higher the base level, the more fierce the consequences would be when a breakthrough was achieved. For some elementalists, their breakthroughs could lead to thunder and lightning¡ªmaybe even storms and reversed tides.

    The students of the Induction Ground seldom made a fierce reaction when their pces were activated because the elemental energy within them was too scarce to cause any abnormality.

    But Ai Hui was different from others because he had the ball of elemental energy which contained more elemental energy than he could control. This was very likely to be the reason for the urrence of the abnormality.

    Although Li Wei didn¡¯t know the reason for the explosion, he was more interested in what Ai Hui gained in return.

    Li Wei had once heard that when these abnormalities urred when one moved to the next level, there was a possibility that the elementalist would gain something unique. However, this seemed to apply only to high-level elementalists, instead of those who were still in basic training.

    Ai Hui had only activated his hand pces, but this had led to an unexpected explosion. What did this mean to his hand pces?

    Or was he overthinking? After all, this was a saying that usually referred to high-level elementalists. He wasn¡¯t sure whether it would apply to students as well.

    Li Wei mocked himself. He was almost sure that he was thinking too much just now. But anyway, Ai Hui had potential as he would always do things differently. This was what a potential youngster should do!

    Even when he ate noodles, he was different from others!

    When he envisioned the scene of Ai Hui eating noodles, Li Weiughed and said, ¡°If you want to know whether everything¡¯s fine, there¡¯s a simple method.¡±

    Mingxiu was immediately attracted to his words. ¡°What method?¡±

    ¡°Take him out and buy him noodles.¡± When he saw that Mingxiu didn¡¯t appear to believe him, Li Wei said, ¡°Last time, in the noodle house, I said I would buy him some noodles. He was sitting opposite to me, and he stared at me sincerely and kept saying ¡®You¡¯re so nice, Li Wei.¡¯ And at first, I was thinking, ¡®Okay, this is a good boy.¡¯ But then I was totally shocked when I saw the bill. Do you know how many bowls we ate? Ten! That means he ate nine bowls of noodles himself! That was when I understood why he was so sincere. Yes, he was sincere because the noodles were delicious. So, if you want to know if everything is fine with him, take him to the noodle house. If he cannot have more than five bowls of noodles, then there must be something wrong...¡±

    Mingxiuughed out loud.

 Chapter 111: Unique Hand Palaces

    Chapter 111: Unique Hand Pces

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    Just now, in the embroidery workshop, Ai Hui had been totally immersed in the happiness that the money had brought him. As a result, as soon as he went back to the training hall, he bragged with Lou Lan for quite a while.

    Lou Lan had been distraught these past few days since he had just been separated from Master Shao, and Ai Hui had been so engaged in training that had no time to think about Lou Lan. Therefore, Ai Hui seriously bragged with Lou Lan for a whole afternoon.

    But Ai Hui soon realized that bragging for an afternoon was much more tiring than training, and he decided to rece "bragging with Lou Lan" with "training with Lou Lan."

    Fortunately, he still had the elemental soup prepared by Lou Lan¡ªit was so delicious that Ai Hui nearly bit his own tongue.

    Its delectable taste lessened the pain he was feeling for the one hundred thousand yuan for its ingredients.

    In the evening, Lou Lan went back to Master Shao¡¯s former residence and busied himself in organizing the things that Master Shao had left behind.

    Lou Lan had said that he wanted Master Shao to return to a tidy house in case he came back one day, and presently, he could only think of this way to help Master Shao.

    On hearing this, Ai Hui had be silent for a long time. He had felt like telling Lou Lan that Master Shao would never return, but as an afterthought, he felt that Lou Lan also understood this. Lou Lan just desired to do something.

    What if he were Lou Lan?

    Chewing the grass in his mouth, Ai Hui stared at the sky for ages, lost in thought. The taste of the grass slowly pervaded his mouth, just like the sky that was gradually immersing into darkness.

    His mind wandered to the owner of the swordsman school in the Old Territory.

    How time flies!

    Are you fine in heaven, Boss? I am. And I hope you are as happy as I am now. But if you are not...then find a way out yourself.

    Ai Huiughed out loud, theughter washing away all his worries.

    He picked himself up and began to study his hand pces passionately. Anything else was left behind for the moment.

    He himself hadn¡¯t expected to activate both his hand pces simultaneously.

    The activation order of the eight pces wasn¡¯t fixed, but the hand pces were usually the first to be activated simply because they were the easiest. However, the inheritance of the unique skills of many influential families usually had a particr requirement for the activation order. For example, the skill [Eyebrow Heart Knife] required the sky pce to be activated first, which was, in fact, the most difficult pce to activate.

    Therefore, there were very few sessors of [Eyebrow Heart Knife] in each generation, and its inheritance was faced with many interruptions.

    Except for the four pces in the hands and feet, the activation of the other four¡ªthe sky, gate, sea, and earth pces¡ªwas incredibly difficult.

    However, whether one opened an easier or more difficult pce first, the eight pces were almost always activated individually. As such, he was surprised by the simultaneous activation of both his hand pces, but the explosion during the activation had further confused him.

    Why did it explode?

    The explosion had taken ce very abruptly, almost in an instant, and he himself didn¡¯t know what happened either. He hadn¡¯t realized that his hand pces were activated until he had climbed out of the ruins and checked to see if he was injured.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell on his palms.

    The Sword Rattan Gloves were already in pieces. Although the explosion had been very powerful, he was safe and sound, but he was clueless of the reason. Fortunately, the workshop was isted because of the unpleasant smell of the various herbs used during extraction, and hence, although the whole workshop was razed to the ground, nobody else was affected by the explosion.

    However, Ai Hui clearly remembered that the trigger of the explosion was the sword embryo!

    At that time, he had been infusing his elemental energy into the Twilight Silk, and he remembered feeling an intense sensation from his right hand pce. Ai Hui had thought that the trembling of the right hand pce would break the Twilight Silk like it had done many times before.

    But unexpectedly, the sword embryo, which had always been quiet and still, suddenly moved.

    Yes. Ai Hui was sure that it wasn¡¯t a figment his imagination. The movement was so obvious¡ªit was like a strong and sudden heartbeat.

    And then there was the explosion!

    It had urred all of a sudden and had caught Ai Hui totally off guard.

    Everything had happened too fast for Ai Hui to react. All he could remember was the movement of the sword embryo, which he knew was the cause of the explosion. But as to how, he didn¡¯t know anything either.

    Ai Hui felt a headacheing on.

    When he had nted the embryo, he didn¡¯t have the slightest idea that it would cause so much trouble, moreover during breakthroughs. This time, he was lucky enough to not be injured in the explosion and somehow open his left hand pce, albeit without warning.

    The activation was a good thing, of course. If an explosion could open his third pce, Ai Hui would choose the explosion in a heartbeat.

    But the instability of the sword embryo was a bit disturbing. It was unknown when it would break out again. This time, the result was all right, but who knew what it would bring next time?

    Ai Hui was frustrated. If he could choose to remove the sword embryo, he would do so without dy.

    Compared to the sword embryo, the system of the five residences and eight pces was mature, and as long as he kept working hard, he would definitely be able to make achievements by following such a system.

    But the sword embryo? God knows!

    However, the sword embryo could not be removed. Actually, he himself wasn¡¯t quite sure how he had managed to nt the sword embryo in the first ce, much less remove it.

    After thinking for quite a while, Ai Hui still couldn¡¯te up with any good ideas.

    On second thought, if it were not for the sword embryo, he would have already died in the Wilderness, let alone train here now.

    Thus, Ai Hui became at ease again. If he was aware of all the side effects of the sword embryo, would he still choose to nt it? The answer was yes, because at that time, the only thing he wanted to do was survive.

    Yes, at least he was alive.

    Alive was good.

    Ai Hui mood brightened, and he began to carefully study his hand pces.

    A silver ball appeared in his right palm.

    Ai Hui was surprised at how small it was.

    The silver ball, which was as small as a sesame seed, was, in fact, his elemental energy. Ai Hui suddenly felt some uncertainty about whether his hand pces were actually activated because he noticed that his hand pces seemed to be somewhat different from others¡¯.

    The activation of any of the five residences and eight pces had its own benefit. The fundamental function of the eight pces was to store elemental energy, and its capacity was muchrger than that of the natal residence.

    Ai Hui had assumed that his activated hand pces would share the pressure on his natal residence by storing the elemental energy mass, or at least a portion of the elemental energy.

    However, things developed differently and out of his expectations.

    When Ai Hui checked his left hand pce, he discovered that there was a small silver ball in it, too.

    But he soon uncovered something else.

    The silver ball, which was smaller than a sesame seed, was not motionless¡ªit was spinning fast.

    After thinking for a while, Ai Hui finally understood the reason. The elemental energy mass in his natal residence had a strong suction that could attract and absorb all the elemental energy in his body. To prevent itself from being absorbed, the silver ball had to spin fast to offset the suction.

    For example, the elemental soup he had just consumed had not yet been fully digested, but its elemental energy had already been absorbed by the elemental energy mass in his natal residence.

    The silver balls in his hand pces, however, were tiny in size, but they contained the only elemental energy of his body that had not been absorbed by the elemental energy mass in the natal residence.

    Now, after determining the question, Ai Hui thought of a solution, which was to guide the elemental energy of the elemental energy mass to his hand pces.

    Anyway, he still had to get a new pair of Sword Rattan Gloves.

    When he looked at the fragmented Sword Rattan Gloves on his hands, Ai Hui smiled bitterly. He had to ask Mistress for help tomorrow.

    He would be scolded again.

 Chapter 112: Unification of the Average Minds

    Chapter 112: Unification of the Average Minds

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    The Hall of Nine Tones, Day One.

    ¡°Brother, we are talking about five hundred million yuan. It will not be easy to earn. Even if we engage in dishonest practices like collecting protection fees, it will still be impossible. Actually, it would be a feat if we can collect even eight million yuan.¡±

    ¡°Brother Huanghun, it would be difficult to earn at the training halls as well. At present, the maximum cash reward for apetition is five hundred thousand yuan. In order to get five hundred million, you will have to win one thousand fights. At threepetitions a day, you will have to fight for a year.¡±

    ¡°Brother Huanghun, if I may suggest, I think that it¡¯s possible for us to resell military weapons as everyone would be able to do it. However, it would be more feasible if we do it externally rather than in the Induction Ground. If news of our activities were to spread, then we will be suppressed.¡±

    ¡°Brother Huanghun, how about you prostitute yourself? No, I am not saying you should sell your body, but instead, you can sell pictures of yourself or something! You are the apple of many girls¡¯ eyes! Bro...Brother Huanghun! I am wrong! I am wrong! Ahhh!¡±

    ......

    Everyone was engaged in a lively discussion. However, it was impossible for them to resolve the issue of an enormous amount like five hundred million yuan. While some of them were earnest in helping Duanmu Huanghun, the majority of them just wished to free themselves from their obligation.

    The Hall of Nine Tones was a unique ce in the sense that it did not make any concessions, no matter how reputable a person was.

    Sure enough, a worker came after a short while. ¡°Dear customers, we are going to close soon.¡±

    Without a change in expression, Duanmu Huanghun took out a dark gold card, passed it to the worker, and said indifferently, ¡°I need to borrow this courtyard for a few days.¡±

    The worker received a huge shock upon seeing the dark gold card. He immediately broke into a small jog to report to the main person in charge.

    Wu Qirong had an ominous premonition. However, since nobody had seen the dark gold card before, they were all clueless to what it was. Everyone¡¯s gaze turned to Yu Ziyi, but he shook his head vaguely, implying that he, too, had never seen it before.

    Nevertheless, everyone felt that Brother Huanghun was asking for too much. All of the courtyards in the Hall of Nine Tones were always booked in advance. How was it possible to just borrow it, let alone for a few days?

    After a moment, the main manager hurriedly rushed in, and with a humble and respectful expression, he said, ¡°My apologies. We were not aware that we have distinguished guests at our premises. You want to use the Happiness Courtyard? No problem! However, this courtyard may be slightly small. Would you prefer to switch to a bigger courtyard? Our Do Courtyard isrger.¡±

    Both Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong¡¯s jaws dropped. They were dumbstruck.

    The Hall of Nine Tones had nine courtyards in total, which were named after the first five notes of the pentatonic scale (Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So) and the four types of humans emotions (Joy, Anger, Sadness, Happiness).

    The Do Courtyard was the best of the nine courtyards. It was never opened for booking to the public. It was only used when there were distinguished guests in the Hall of Nine Tones.

    But the Hall of Nine Tones invited Brother Huanghun to the Do Courtyard!

    Everyone was bbergasted!

    The next instant, the young masters all started staring at Brother Huanghun impatiently.

    Quickly agree to it, Brother Huanghun! Let us experience the legendary Do Courtyard! We¡¯ll be able to brag to people in the future with pride!

    But they did not expect Duanmu Huanghun to shake his head and bluntly say, ¡°Thank you, but I shall pass. It is perfect here.¡±

    The group of yboys howled in grief.

    ¡°All right, as you wish, sir¡± the manager respectfully said. ¡°If you still have any orders, please pull this red string; it is attached to a bell. We will rush over as fast as possible.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun nodded. ¡°You do not need to have any workers waiting on us. Have a break as per usual. Prepare some rations for them.¡±

    He then cast a meaningful nce at the rest of the young men. ¡°The night is long.¡±

    The manager also looked at everyone, bowed, and respectfully answered, ¡°Yes.¡±

    ......

    The next day.

    Everyone was dispirited and listless. The Hall of Nine Tones had not sent anyone over, and they only received some rations, which were so dry that it was difficult to even put it in their mouths. Yet Brother Huanghun was eating the rations leisurely as if it was the best delicacy in the world. After he finished the rations on hand, he said indifferently, ¡°The sun is up, let¡¯s continue brainstorming.¡±

    ¡°Brother Huanghun, I have lessons today......¡±

    ¡°Skip them.¡±

    ......

    ¡°Brother Huanghun, I have to visit my father tonight. My father is very strict......¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun pulled the red string, ringing the bell. Momentster, the manager, who had just received instructions from Duanmu Huanghun, turned around and left the hall.

    Two hourster, a square-faced middle-aged man followed alongside the manager.

    ¡°You little brat! If you dare spoil Master Duanmu¡¯s ns, I will break your legs when we are back!¡±

    ......

    ¡°Ah ah ah, Brother Huanghun, I..I am not feeling well....¡±

    Bang!

    The sole of a foot could be seen on his face. His body became rigid for a moment, before copsing limply on the floor.

    Duanmu Huanghun said expressionlessly, ¡°This is called feeling unwell.¡±

    ......

    The third day.

    Looking at the group of downcast yboys who surrounded him, Duanmu Huanghun felt that he now truly understood the meaning of the phrase ¡°useless people.¡±

    After thinking for three days and three nights, this bunch of ipetent fools could note up with even a single viable idea.

    Yu Ziyi, who was faint with hunger, saw that Brother Huanghun¡¯s expression was bing more and more displeased. He knew that this signified the imminent eruption of the monster, so he said miserably, ¡°Brother Huanghun, we are talking about five hundred million yuan. Once the value hits a hundred million, it bes exceedingly difficult to procure. The Induction Ground is a very small ce. You would need to be very capable in order to earn that five hundred million yuan.¡±

    Bang!

    With one leg, Duanmu Huanghun kicked Yu Ziyi down on to the floor. With a foot crushing Yu Ziyi¡¯s chest and a cold, indifferent face, he asked, ¡°Are you saying I¡¯m not capable enough?¡±

    Yu Ziyi trembled. He felt like pping himself. How could he say the wrong thing again?

    ¡°I¡¯ve thought of something! I¡¯ve thought of something! Hahaha! I¡¯ve thought of something! Brother Huanghun, I have thought of something!¡±

    Wu Qirong suddenly jumped up in excitement.

    Everyone looked towards Wu Qirong. Tears filled their eyes as they gazed at him full of hope.

    After three consecutive days and nights, Wu Qirong appeared tired and disheveled. However, at this moment, his eyes were exceptionally bright. ¡°It would be difficult to use conventional methods to earn that five hundred million. Hence, we have to do something unconventional. Brother Huanghun is a wood elementalist. Have all of you forgotten what a wood elementalist is good at?¡±

    ¡°Healing!¡±

    ¡°Runaways!¡±

    Bang!

    A figure was thrown into the air.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face was expressionless as he withdrew his leg.

    It was true that wood elementalists did not like to be in the battleground, and this was bing increasinglymon¡ªespecially in recent years. In the Thirteenth Division, there were two wood-attributed divisions¡ªthe Deathgrass Division and the Truewood Division. Runaways weren¡¯t prevalent in the Truewood Division as their main focus was on treatment; however, in the Deathgrass Division, there were many situations of discontentment amongst the wood elementalists. Although it was publicized as being due to the stringent selection process, the younger generations of influential families were clear of the truth.

    However, the higher authorities of The Avalon of Five Elements weren¡¯t pleased.

    Duanmu Huanghun looked at the slightly dazed Wu Qirong and replied, ¡°Continue with your idea.¡±

    Wu Qirong was jolted awake, and he hurriedly continued, ¡°Wood elementalists are experts in cultivating new varieties of species. I was wondering if we could develop ideas based on this? We don¡¯t have to talk about those species like the mirage bean pod, but if it were a tiny species and a rtively practical species, we would be able to achieve five hundred million yuan much more easily if we were to sell out everything.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun appeared to be deep in thought. Five hundred million yuan for a new type of material was indeed inexpensive.

    ¡°Furthermore, we would be able to help as well. We can help Brother Huanghun and ask around about what type of materials would be more profitable, allowing us to be able to create more relevant items, too. Also, Brother Huanghun¡¯s teacher is a grandmaster wood elementalist and would have conducted a lot of research on this subject. Brother Huanghun¡¯s a genius, so I feel that there is a high possibility of this being doable. If we¡¯re able to produce the item, who would dare to cheat us of our money?¡±

    Everyone¡¯s gaze was fixed on Duanmu Huanghun. This was the most feasible idea thus far.

    As usual, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face was inscrutable.

    But just when everyone was about to give up all hope, Duanmu Huanghun suddenly spoke. With an indifferent voice, he said, ¡°Let¡¯s go to the Do Courtyard.¡±

    Everyone was stunned, and after a moment, they erupted in cheers.

 Chapter 113: A Strange Message

    Chapter 113: A Strange Message

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui had been certain that Mistress would give him a scolding, but he did not expect her to just throw him a new pair of Sword Rattan Gloves without saying a word.

    The embroidery workshop did not sell Sword Rattan Gloves, and it was only he who used them.

    It was likely that Mistress had spent the whole night weaving it for him.

    Ai Hui was touched. Mistress was the perfect example of ¡®all bark and no bite.¡¯ She treated him as if he were her own disciple.

    The workshop¡¯s ruins had already been sorted out.

    However, it was still not suitable for Ai Hui to train in the embroidery workshop, so he took the Sword Rattan Gloves and returned to the training hall.

    Ai Hui could only feel the effect of the Sword Rattan Gloves when he trained.

    After a deep breath, Ai Hui began.

    The Sword Rattan Gloves worked very well indeed. The instant he removed the Sword Rattan Gloves and untied the Blood Bandage, he immediately felt the trembling of the elemental energy mass within his natal residence, and a slender thread of elemental energy drifted out from it.

    However, what made Ai Hui surprised was that the Sword Rattan Gloves were not the reason why the silver balls in his hand pces rotated at a fast speed.

    The fine thread of elemental energy drifted away and entered the hand pce¡¯s silver ball, like a tired bird returning to its nest.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body jolted and both his hand pces suddenly heated up¡ªit was as if his hands were about to burn. Before Ai Hui could even react, a steady flow of elemental energy started trickling out of the elemental energy mass in his natal residence and into Ai Hui¡¯s hand pces.

    The temperature of his hand pces began increasing rapidly. Ai Hui felt as if his palms were pork knuckles on a hot stove¡ªhe had almost jumped up, but he managed to forcibly restrain himself. He could feel the silver balls in his hand pces expanding rapidly.

    Not only was the silver balls¡¯ elemental energy increasing, but the balls were also changing in shape. The silver balls began to copse towards the middle, and gradually, Ai Hui could perceive some development.

    Vortex!

    The silver balls continued to expand, gradually transforming into a silver vortex.

    The silver elemental vortex was continuously growing at a slow speed, and Ai Hui was more than happy with such a change. In general, when a student just activated a hand pce, it was impossible to it fill it up with elemental energy in just a day or two. After all, elemental energy was extremely sparse in the natural world, and even with the aid of elemental food, it would still take time.

    Ai Hui¡¯s situation was slightly special as his body already had an astonishing amount of elemental energy.

    Not only was the elemental energy vortex in both his hand pces unceasingly expanding, but its elemental energy absorption speed was also constantly increasing. However, Ai Hui soon started to feel that something was wrong. Not only was the absorption speed increasing, but the speed of the elemental energy¡¯s cirction in his body was also rising as well. Such a high concentration of elemental energy brought about a burden to Ai Hui.

    While the rotation of the elemental energy was not as fast as it was during battle, it had been rotating for an extended period of time, which brought about obvious changes to his body. Ai Hui¡¯s muscles started to swell, and he began to tremble. Large droplets of sweat appeared, flowing down in streams.

    At thest moment, just before he could hold on no longer, Ai Hui managed to tie a knot on the Sword Rattan Gloves.

    The connection between his hand pce and his natal residence was suddenly cut off, granting him immediate relief from the fluster. Ai Hui desperately gasped for breath, as if he had just drowned and had been rescued. With a ckened gaze, heid straight out on the floor.

    After a long moment, his zed eyes began to recover, and the bright, starry sky soon came into focus.

    While he was still panting and his body was weak, his mind was no longer nk. Although he didn¡¯t feel like moving even an inch, he still struggled to push himself up. Checking his hand pce, he realized that the elemental energy vortex was rotating automatically, and it had be very stable.

    A faint silver glow could be seen through the gaps of the Sword Rattan Gloves.

    If he removed the Sword Rattan Gloves, the vortexes, which were emitting the silver rays from each his hand pces, would be clearly visible.

    It was fortunate that the Sword Rattan Gloves blocked the glow, as it would otherwise be too eye-catching. Ai Hui did not like anything that was conspicuous. The more attention-grabbing something was, the easier it would be to be the main target during an attack.

    The mass of elemental energy in his natal residence had slightly decreased in size. While it wasn¡¯t a significant difference, it was definitely a good start.

    Ai Hui could sense that he was able to recover his energy much more swiftly than before. This was was due to the activation of a new pce; when a pce was activated, various bodily functions would be raised by varying degrees.

    ording to Teacher¡¯s exnation, it was an indicator that his vitality had been strengthened, and the higher the base level, the higher the vitality.

    Ai Hui felt that his teacher¡¯s description was apt.

    He nned to soak in the hot spring in the training hall¡¯s backyard, as this would enable him to recover faster. And when he fully recovered, he would be able to resume his training.

    Ai Hui suddenly started, and he looked towards the message tree.

    A leaf of the message tree was emitting a gentle ray of light.

    The young girl from the noodle shop? Ai Hui¡¯s spirit lifted. It had been a while since he had received news from that girl; she seemed to have disappeared recently. However, after a moment¡¯s thought, Ai Hui felt a tad suspicious. Why would the young girl from the noodle shop send news at such an hour?

    Only when he approached the message tree did he realize that the glowing leaf was not the same leaf that the young girl from the noodle store had shown before.

    Who could it be?

    Ai Hui was baffled. He didn¡¯t know anyone from the Induction Ground. However, after some thought, he shook his head. He had been taking things for granted; he almost forgot that he was just a lowly janitor.

    It should be a friend of the owner of the Vanguard Training Hall.

    After he came to this conclusion, Ai Hui decided to leave, and he turned around. Suddenly, though, he had a second thought. It had been twenty years since the owner hadst visited the training hall. Ai Hui reckoned that the message came from a friend who had not been in touch for a very long time. But what if it was an emergency? Perhaps he should let the opposite party know that the owner hadn¡¯t been back for years.

    Ai Hui ran back inside to get a pen. Luckily, Lou Lan was a good sand puppet who loved to learn, and he thus kept a few pens.

    He walked towards the luminous leaf and nced at it curiously. This was his first time using the message tree. The country bumpkin in him was filled with curiosity, and he felt that it was magical.

    Eh? Ai Hui frowned. The leaf had only four sentences that did not make any sense.

    ¡°I have no idea who among you are still alive, but I know that no one can stop them. They have alreadypleted the necessary preparations. Everything will change in sixty days. Who will protect the Avalon of Five Elements?¡±

    Ai Hui read it over a few times, but he felt that it didn¡¯t make any sense.

    Them? Sixty dayster? Everything would change?

    Ai Hui, who had been prepared to write, put his pen down. The message made his blood run cold. It looked like the owner of the training hall had low standards¡ªhe actually had such an entric friend!

    And who would be able to protect the Avalon of Five Elements?

    Ai Hui was dumbfounded. The Avalon of Five Elements had a very firm foundation, and he had never heard anything about the Avalon of Five Elements being unstable during his time in the Wilderness. And this belief was reinforced when he arrived at the Induction Ground. Compared to the Wilderness, the Avalon of Five Elements was like a paradise; there were no battles, and the environment was secure and peaceful.

    After pondering for a while, Ai Hui wrote on the leaf, ¡°Maybe you should see a doctor.¡±

    Looking at the fading letters, Ai Hui felt that the message tree was fascinating.

    Ai Hui was satisfied, and he then dashed to the backyard to take a hot soak.

    However, a moment after Ai Hui left, the leaf lit up once again.

 Chapter 114: Practicum Far From Home

    Chapter 114: Practicum Far From Home

    Trantor: JL Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui very rarely cared about such entric people. Even if there really was a major incident, it would definitely not be him who saved the world. So how did this concern him? He was merely an insignificant and weak nobody.

    He continued to immerse himself in his training¡ªonly during such practice did he feel that he was fully utilizing his time. He had just activated two pces, and this base level was nothing much in the Induction Ground, unless he had an absolute art like Zu Yan.

    However, his training was interrupted on the second day.

    "A practicum far from home?"

    Everyone had questions in their hearts as they looked at Teacher Xu. All of them had been called by the teacher.

    Teacher Xu exined, "Yes. Every year, we organize a long journey for the whole ss. The main purpose is to allow everyone to expand their horizons. I will be leading the team and the school will send a few capable teachers along with us. Two instructors from the Society of Excellence will also be joining us on this journey. We will be going to the periphery zone of the Induction Ground."

    While the majority of the students were eager to give it a try, Duanmu Huanghun frowned. "Teacher, may I opt out of such a long journey? I recently have a very heavy responsibility in training."

    Ingrate! Ingrate! Ingrate!

    Ai Hui silently scolded Bangwan with these three consecutive words before turning to Teacher Xu with an expectant look on his face. If Teacher Xu agreed, then he would be able to use the same excuse to stay behind as well.

    No one objected to Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s words. Based on his capability, it was true that such a long journey would not be as effective as his training.

    However, Teacher Xu shook his head. "No, Student Duanmu. This is the first time our ss is having a collective activity. Everyone has to attend. You are the ss monitor and you have to set an example!"

    Duanmu Huanghun opened his mouth, but he ultimately decided not to speak up.

    After hearing this, Ai Hui had to give up as well.

    If Teacher did not allow a concession for that ingrate, then it really would be an impossible task for him. While Ai hui was disdainful of that ingrate¡¯s personality, he couldn¡¯t help but admit that that ingrate had a higher standing in Teacher¡¯s heart than him.

    What bad luck...

    Since he couldn¡¯t change anything, Ai Hui started nning for the excursion.

    It looked like he was going to end up wasting a few days. He should get Lou Lan to prepare some dried rations to help replenish his energy¡ªhe would then be able to train while in the camp.

    Oh, he also had to make a trip to Manager Li¡¯s to choose a suitable sword. Although the Induction Ground was a safe ce, it was better to be prepared. Self-defence skills were a top priority.

    Dried rations and a sword. Ai Hui gave a bitterugh; it was no small expense.

    He was only left with around three hundred thousand yuan, and this was only because Manager Li had given him an advance payment. He seemed to never have enough money, and he still owed his mistress a significant amount, which he definitely had to return. Ai Hui didn¡¯t even have the courage to think about the noodle shop girl¡¯s eighty million yuan.

    Bunny hair, oh, bunny hair, you have to buck up!

    Back at the training hall, Ai Hui passed fifty thousand yuan to Lou Lan to purchase ingredients for the energy-replenishing cake. Thanks to Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup, Ai Hui was able to quickly recover the night before. The effect of the elemental soup wouldst for around three days, weakening with each passing day. Although the elemental soup had a much greater efficiency than the energy-replenishing cake, it was also much more expensive.

    Ai Hui then made a trip alone to Manager Li¡¯s store.

    This was actually the first time that Ai Hui had stepped foot into Manager Li¡¯s weapon store. It wasn¡¯t far from the training hall; as a matter of fact, Central Pine City wasn¡¯t that big of a city.

    The dazzling array of weapons disyed on the shelves made Ai Hui starry-eyed.

    Looking at Ai Hui¡¯s passion, and hearing that Ai Hui was nning to purchase a weapon, Manager Li served him with even more enthusiasm. "Oh, feel free to try. As long as you think it¡¯s suitable, I¡¯ll give you the best discount possible."

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyed the various swords on disy and started drooling. As someone who had experienced many battles, he had a deeply ingrained love for weapons. To him, a weapon was an important weight in the bnce of life and death.

    In the Wilderness, he had used the Sword Reed Grass Sword, which was the most basic type of sword. It cost only two to three thousand yuan, equivalent to ten bowls of noodles.

    There were many variants of grass swords. High-quality grass swords, though, were not cheap.

    At first nce, Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell on a Sawtooth Grass Sword that was worth one hundred and twenty thousand yuan. In the past, he had tried out a simr Sawtooth Grass Sword, but he couldn¡¯t afford it then. This Sawtooth Grass Sword was heavy to hold; Ai Hui was exceptionally sensitive towards weapons, and he guessed that the weight was 2.5 times that of the previous Sawtooth Grass Sword. If it were in the past, he would have needed to apply some effort to hold it, but now his power had grown and his body had be much stronger. Such a heavy sword would be an additional advantage for him.

    The edge of the sword was dark grey, and the sawtooth was slender, dark red, and exceptionally sharp. Sawtooth grass was a variety bred by wood elementalists, and it required metallic soil to grow. It matured in one year and could be manufactured into swords and des in the first-stage manufacturing room of the Grass Division. Compared to the Sawtooth Grass Sword, the sawtooth grass de had arger variety of uses, and it was also able to exhibit a more abnormal destructive power than the Sawtooth Grass Sword.

    The color and luster of sawtooth grass was rted to its age; the more mature it was, the deeper the color. If the sawtooth grass was older than ten years, its color would turn ck, and it would consequently be extremely expensive.

    However, what astonished Ai Hui was the value of the Sawtooth Grass Sword. At a price of one hundred and twenty thousand, it was definitely on the lower side. If it was at the replenishment store in the Wilderness, such a sword would definitely cost around three hundred and fifty thousand yuan.

    While Central Pine City was at the rear and not the front line, a price of one hundred and twenty thousand was simply too cheap. Ai Hui bought the sword without hesitation.

    The weight of the sword was much heavier than that of usual grass swords, and without a certain amount of strength, it would be difficult to use it. Although it was normal for few students to be able to use such a sword, the low price was slightly out of the norm.

    After questioning Manger Li for the reason, Ai Hui was at a loss for words. The reason was that the sword¡¯s colour was dull, and hence not popr amongst students, which led to the low price.

    Manager Li proceeded to rmend a variant of the grass sword, called ¡®ming scarlet,¡¯ which he imed was a best seller. Theplete body of the sword was scarlet and it gave off a faint crimson shimmer, like a piece of iron heated in a me. When waved around, sparks would fly out intermittently. It was like a disy of fireworks, extremely beautiful.

    This was the first time that Ai Hui had seen such a dazzling grass sword and he was surprised. Upon taking a closer look, his expression changed, as the crimson shimmer of the sword was not hot to touch; instead, it was cold. And the sparks were, in fact, grass seeds.

    Manager Li said that the wood elementalists who breed the red grass did not manage to sell any of it in the beginning. The quality of the red grass was mediocre, so the swords created from it were also of average quality. However, Manager Li had good foresight and he bought over its selling rights. He then brought the swords over to the Induction Ground where it quickly became a favorite. Those experienced swordsmen, who roamed the Wilderness, were not fond of shy and impractical swords, but the students, who did not engage in real battles, loved them and felt that the me Scarlet Grass Swords were very dashing and stylish.

    Ai Hui gave a thumbs up.

    I like your unscrupulous thinking!

    Bunny Hair, I am depending on you now!

    After returning to the training hall, Ai Hui unfolded the materials that Teacher Xu had given him, but when he discerned the exact location of the practicum, he was slightly startled.

    The Induction Ground used to be the military front, but owing to the expansion of the Avalon Of Five Elements, the Induction Ground ended up as the rear. But its position was closer to the Old Territory, and the expedition¡¯s destination was at its fringes.

    The Old Territory...

 Chapter 115: The Detached Bystander

    Chapter 115: The Detached Bystander

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Holding his Sawtooth Grass Sword, Ai Hui cooly watched on as his surrounding ssmates vomited continuously. During his first ride on the Clover Transport Wagon, he, too, had vomited¡ªeven more, in fact, than these students, so he did not sympathize with them at all. It was obvious that the wood elementalist controlling the vehicle was being lenient.

    Compared to the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart within the cities, a ride on the Clover Transport Wagon was much wilder.

    It was wilder in all aspects.

    With a tougher stem and leaves, if the clover of the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart was a delicate and tender beauty, the Clover Transport Wagon would be a muscr, iron giant. Grass stems as thick as calves were not easily damaged by swords, and every leaf was like a de and half the size of a door. As the wagon moved, they produced a scalp-tingling sound.

    Not only did the Clover Transport Wagon have to be able to transport enough goods, it had to provide sufficient protection and also had to have a certain flexibility. Colorful nts dotted the outside of the vehicle, and there was a different significance for each flower bud, thistle, and thorn. For example, some could spray a steady stream of toxic vapor to chase away flying dire beasts, helping pave a path of escape for the wagon in desperate situations.

    However, the flying dire beasts were resilient, and the effectiveness of the toxins was limited. It was, in fact, the smell of the vapor that would allow the wagon to dodge a bullet¡ªa majority of the flying dire beasts detested the odor.

    Although it was a wagon, going in and out of the Wilderness required it to be more flexible and nimble than the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart in the cities. It was simr to a massive but agile and robust man. The wood elementalist controlling the wagon usually loved to gift rookies a tough flight experience.

    Ai Hui, however, was enjoying the ride.

    The wood elementalist in front had obviously taken care to not overdo it. This level of bumpiness was practically sleep inducing.

    Other students were badly battered. Throughout their lives, they had traveled in stable vehicles like the Fiery Floating Cloud and the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart. Where would they have experienced such a wild ride?

    Ai Hui took a sideward nce at the ingrate.

    The ingrate had been arranged to sit beside him. However,pared to others, Duanmu Huanghun was performing well. He sat motionless on his seat. Although his expression didn¡¯t look too good, he hadn¡¯t vomited.

    Ai Hui suddenly noticed that Duanmu¡¯s whole body was tensed up, so he leaned over and advised him nonchntly, ¡°Puke if you feel like, don¡¯t hold it back. You¡¯ll feel much better after...¡±

    Wow!

    Duanmu Huanghun, who had been resisting all along, instantly felt his throat be dry and itchy¡ªhe couldn¡¯t keep it in any longer! Duanmu bent over and let it all out, like a flood breaking through a dam.

    ¡°Got vomit on your body? How careless. There¡¯s no ce for you to wash up in the countryside. But it¡¯s not a big deal, just smell it for a few days at most.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s devilish voice sounded from above.

    Duanmu Huanghun saw the filth that covered his pants and shirt. His pupils shrank and his mysophobia finally acted up, causing him to puke wildly again.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t bear to keep looking, and he shifted a little away.

    He really didn¡¯t know what Teacher Xu was thinking by teaming this ingrate with him and having them sit together.

    How suffocating.

    Zhou Xiaoxi nced over at Teacher Xu and couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. Teacher Xu¡¯s face was pale, and it was evident that he was making an extreme effort to endure. Luckily, they were traveling within the Induction Ground; if they were heading for the Wilderness, he would definitely not have agreed to babysit these rookies.

    Among these people, Ai Hui was the most eye-catching. He was also the only one Zhou Xiaoxi did not have to worry much about.

    He could tell from Ai Hui¡¯s posture that he was a veteran. His body was rxed, and he moved up and down along with the wagon¡¯s movements. His hands were gripped onto his weapon, and he had a steady gaze, both of which would allow him to respond to any possible dangers. His mind was alert, with his eyes constantly paying attention to his surroundings.

    Even an experienced person like Zhou Xiaoxi couldn¡¯t find any fault. He thought about what Li Wei had mentioned before, that Ai Hui had worked in the Wilderness as aborer for three years. Seemed like he wasn¡¯t talking nonsense.

    It was always better to have at least one reliable person.

    ¡°Haha, we¡¯re about to reach!¡± The wood elementalist whistled.

    There was a sudden change in the engine¡¯s noise as the wagon started to swiftly pull up.

    Among the shocked gazes, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. These fellows sure had simr bad habits! Couldn¡¯t they do something new?

    The raised wagon gave a terrible jerk, and in the next instant, it dove down fast.

    The screeching of the wagon drowned the high-pitched screams, but Ai Hui was indifferent to it all. He was only inwardly ridiculing those wood elementalists for not having any creativity.

    The familiar feeling of that drop brought Ai Hui back to the time he spent in the Wilderness.

    He missed Fatty all the more now. If Fatty were here, he would be talking non-stop; he always became long-winded when nervous.

    Ai Hui was the first to jump off as he couldn¡¯t stand the smell inside. But the others¡¯ legs had turned soft; they were practically rolling and crawling out. Some of the timid girls couldn¡¯t even dare to jump, and they had to be thrown out of the wagon by Zhou Xiaoxi.

    The wood elementalist was singing at the top of his voice, either in a satisfied or mocking tone, as the wagon whizzed away.

    The group of students left behind was simr to helpless sheep within the Wilderness.

    Teacher Xu had considered the kids¡¯ck of experience while nning the itinerary. They were merely first-year students and were weak to begin with, so this long journey was purposefully organized for them to just experience a little.

    ¡°We¡¯ll rest here tonight and continue tomorrow. First, though, you must all learn how to pitch camp! It is an essential skill, and you will discover its importance upon graduating! Instructor Zhou from the Society of Excellence will guide us on how to do it. He is an elite veteran from the North Sea Division!¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxi didn¡¯t decline; this was one of their missions anyway. It was a tradition in the Avalon of Five Elements for seasoned frontline soldiers to return and impart their knowledge to students as it was extremely beneficial to their growth.

    Zhou Xiaoxi did not start immediately, but he instead instructed, ¡°Ai Hui, you¡¯re in charge of standing guard.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡± Ai Hui nodded as he walked towards the forest, sword in hand.

    Zhou Xiaoxi began, ¡°Let¡¯s start pitching ca¡ª¡±

    ¡°Why does he get to stand guard?¡± Duanmu Huanghun interrupted. ¡°Instructor Zhou, shouldn¡¯t the strongest go?¡±

    He had been made a fool by Ai Hui earlier and was waiting for an opportunity to get back at him.

    ¡°Generally, yes.¡± Zhou Xiaoxi gave an amiable smile. ¡°You think you¡¯re the strongest?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s correct!¡± Duanmu Huanghun was unwilling to pass his responsibilities. ¡°I¡¯m stronger, and I¡¯ve also learned how to guard. I¡¯m more experienced.¡±

    ¡°Sure.¡± Contrary to his expectations, Zhou Xiaoxi was straightforward. ¡°Then you shall stand guard, and Ai Hui will pitch camp.¡±

    Feeling that his n was a sess, Duanmu sneered and dashed into the forest, looking for Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui did not mind. He had frequently stood guard and knew that it was tougher than ordinary work. He was more than happy to hand it over to Duanmu Huanghun, who was, moreover, willing to handle the job.

    Under Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s guidance, the students quickly learned how to pitch camp and the difort from the wagon ride was soon forgotten. Work was now proceeding in full swing.

    As the sky darkened and the winds grew stronger, a bonfire was lit.

    Ai Hui suddenly raised his head.

 Chapter 116: Barrier

    Chapter 116: Barrier

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui heard a faint sound.

    He raised his head and looked around, listening attentively.

    The bonfire was burning brightly, and the students were recovering from that wild wagon ride. The freshness of it all significantly improved their moods as they settled down around the fierce mes and chatted. Some of the more lively and outgoing students even started singing and dancing. Teacher Xu was also infected by everyone¡¯s enthusiasm and could be seen full of smiles.

    Ai Hui did not join them, and instead, he quietly sat under a big tree about forty meters away from the bonfire.

    A fire in the countryside at night was the most eye-catching target. It was too easy to attract wild beasts.

    Ai Hui was aware that the Induction Ground was devoid of violent beasts and that there was an expert like Instructor Zhou to protect them¡ªthere wouldn¡¯t be much danger in this excursion. However, due to habit, hiding in the dark had already been ingrained as an instinct. He always felt safer that way.

    Upon entering the countryside, it was as if Ai Hui had returned to the Wilderness¡ªto thend of cold ughter. However, he was shocked to find out that he wasn¡¯t the least bit repelled by this; he was, in fact, faintly excited. The moment he had stepped into the forest, he felt like a fish back in water. Perhaps he had been a jungle beast in his previous life.

    Humans are ignoble!

    Ai Hui mocked himself. It had only been a few good days, and he was already starting to reminisce about the past.

    Leaves rustled as the wind swept by, but the ground remained still. There were no sounds of people trampling on dead leaves, no abnormal noises from the bushes, and no sounds of pping wings breaking through the air.

    Was it an illusion?

    Ai Hui saw Instructor Zhou standing not far away. He had shown no reaction and was currently bragging about his past military sesses, basking in the students¡¯ worshipping gazes.

    Ai Hui¡¯s pursed his lips as they turned upwards to form an arc.

    How great!

    Yes, this was not the Wilderness. There were no dire beasts, only peace, and tranquility.

    Ai Hui shook his head. He was overreacting. He thought back to how he had almost slipped up and killed some people a few times when he had first entered the Induction Ground; adapting had taken a long time. But being in the countryside easily roused memories of the Wilderness.

    This was not the Wilderness.

    Ai Hui reminded himself once more. He hadn¡¯t done so for a long time.

    However, when he thought of the ingrate, Ai Hui felt like gloating. He must be feeling quite satisfied right now!

    Duanmu Huanghun was feeling terrible. Not only was the wind at the treetop much stronger than on the ground, but he was also receiving its full bore. He must have had a mentalpse when he had offered to take over guard duty.

    Instructor Zhou had exined in detail about the necessary requirements of a sentry.

    Duanmu Huanghun had never tolerated half-hearted work, and so he operated ording to Instructor Zhou¡¯s orders and warnings. For example, he had to always be on alert and pay attention to every single movement in his surroundings.

    In the beginning, Duanmu Huanghun did not see much difficulty in it, but as time passed, the uneventfulness of it all made his eyelids grow heavy. The sounds of the trees swaying in the wind were hypnotizing.

    Eh? What was that sound?

    He suddenly quivered. He seemed to have heard a faint sound, different from the rustling of the leaves.

    But when he pricked up his ears, all he heard was the familiar rustling.

    Was it an illusion?

    Duanmu Huanghun was uncertain; he had just been in a daze.

    He collected his thoughts. Although he was inexperienced, he knew the importance of standing guard in areas outside the city. This involved the safety of everyone so he couldn¡¯t ck off. Since he was the one who had snatched the job, he had better do it well¡ªbetter than that bastard Ai Hui at least.

    The raging mes of the bonfire eventually calmed down. A day¡¯s worth of toil and torment had knocked everyone out, and silence quickly pervaded the camp as the students fell into deep sleep.

    Nothing happened throughout the night.

    Ai Hui opened his eyes and caught sight of the curling embers of the bonfire under the light of the morning sky.

    Zhou Xiaoxi was on patrol when he noticed that Ai Hui had woken up. He nodded as a hint of admiration shed across his eyes before he continued with his rounds. Bringing a bunch of rookies brought him a lot of stress. Bragging was one thing, but when it came to proper business, he was never careless. He was well aware of the severity of the situation.

    An elite indeed!

    Ai Hui was full of respect for Zhou Xiaoxi. He was stronger than many elementalists that Ai Hui had seen. As an elite of the Thirteen Divisions, he was on another level from those elementalists of the hunting teams in the Wilderness.

    The students gradually started to stir from their sleep, and by sunrise, everyone had awoken. After a simple washing and cleaning up, they were ready to be on their way.

    Duanmu Huanghun returned with two clearly visible dark eye circles.

    The white-eyed wolf [1] was now a white-eyed husky...

    Ai Hui was moved. It wasn¡¯t an easy job, after all. He did well!

    The team gathered and started to trek towards their next destination.

    Listening to his ssmates¡¯ chit-chat and seeing many of them take out their packed snacks gave Ai Hui the feeling that they were on a pic.

    Ai Hui and his teammates were somewhat inharmonious, so he stayed at the back of the group.

    As they hiked, Teacher Xu was responsible for exining.

    ¡°We are heading for the Old Territory. Many of you havee from there, so, that is to say, we are heading towards your hometown. The Old Territory is not only home to some students, but it is the native ce for us all. The construction of the Avalon of Five Elements is closely linked to the Old Territory. They have the same origin, and we are all family. Many of our future students will join the Avalon of Five Elements, too. We are fighting so hard today not just for the Avalon or the Old Territory, but for our future.¡±

    Under the sunlight, the students were engrossed in Teacher Xu¡¯s speech, which was spoken with much dignity.

    Zhou Xiaoxi said nothing. He nced at Teacher Xu before moving forward with his head down.

    AI Hui noticed that Instructor Zhou was in low spirits, but he did not know why. At the front line, the barrier between the Avalon of Five Elements and the Old Territory was like an invisible wall, unseen but everywhere.

    However, Ai Hui didn¡¯t feel that Teacher Xu¡¯s words were wrong because regardless of whether it was the Old Territory or the Wilderness, the dire beasts were the real, important enemies.

    Plus, he respected Teacher Xu a lot. All the teachers within the Induction Ground had opinions about this issue, but few would openly discuss them. Teacher Xu had courage.

    Of course, Ai Hui could only face it indifferently because he felt that a topic so noble had nothing to do with him.

    His own world was very tiny, to the point where it had no room for suchrge ambitions.

    Surviving and bing strong enough to protect the people he cared about were perfectly sufficient.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes scanned the surroundings and suddenlynded on a tree stump nearby, causing him to stop in his tracks.

    He walked towards it and squatted down.

    [1] A white-eyed wolf refers to an ungrateful person (an ingrate).

 Chapter 117: Dark Red

    Chapter 117: Dark Red

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    ¡°You find anything?¡±

    Instructor Zhou¡¯s voice suddenly sounded from behind him, and before Ai Hui knew it, they were standing side by side.

    Ai Hui shuddered. He had not sensed Instructor Zhou move towards him at all. Was this the power of an elite from the Thirteen Divisions? Ever since he had nted the sword embryo when he was in the Wilderness, no one within a three-meter radius could escape his detection.

    Ai Hui was in awe, and an intense feeling of desire and motivation grew within him. The elites of the Thirteen Divisions possessed skills that far exceeded those of the elementalists of the hunting teams.

    Ai Hui regained hisposure and gave his report. ¡°It should be gnawing marks left by a big fellow. The strength of its bite is astonishing. Judging by the tree stump, the creature broke it with a single bite.¡±

    He did not say whether it was a wild beast or a dire beast. While there was only a single word¡¯s difference, both were essentially unalike because of the distinction in the usage of elemental energy.

    Dire beasts had existed since the Cultivation Era and were closely rted to the Wilderness. They could channel elemental energy. Wild beasts, however, did not have this ability.

    Admiration shed in Instructor Zhou¡¯s eyes as he lowered his voice and said, ¡°Be more careful, and don¡¯t utter a word.¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Ai Hui understood what Instructor Zhou meant. Spreading the news would cause unnecessary panic. These students did not have much mental strength.

    When Ai Hui turned around, he was met with emptiness. Only when he looked at the front did he see Instructor Zhou standing among the team members over ten meters away. He even gave Ai Hui a wink.

    That speed...

    Ai Hui was stunned once again.

    It wasn¡¯t that he hadn¡¯t ever encountered an elementalist well known for speed, but when could he have ever seen such noiseless, lightning-like movements? This was the first time!

    How did he do that?

    Ai Hui pondered over this question at length. He envisioned a few possibilities in his mind, but none seemed possible. Actually, he knew that Instructor Zhou¡¯s level was beyond his scope of understanding, but he nevertheless couldn¡¯t help but imagine how he would go about doing so if he was at Instructor Zhou¡¯s level.

    It was Ai Hui¡¯s habit to indulge in flights of fancy about questions and doubts involving fighting. When he was stuck with a problem, he would repeatedly try to analyze and visualize possible solutions. This was the residual effect of tossing and turning all night over the sword embryo.

    Ai Hui thought about the matter in silence as he elerated his pace and caught up with the team.

    No one was aware of the short exchange between Ai Hui and Instructor Zhou. They were all in high spirits.

    Suddenly, someone in the front cried out in rm, ¡°Quick, look! What¡¯s that?¡±

    The group was roused as everyone stopped their discussions and gathered around to inspect.

    Ai Hui, however, did not join them. A crowded ce was vulnerable to attacks. He moved to the side, creating some space as he stood facing the group, trying to get a clear understanding of the situation.

    Ants. Countless ants. They were crawling out in an unending stream from arge hole in the ground, forming a current of ants about three meters wide and two meters long. They were slowly advancing in the direction of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    ¡°So many ants! What are they doing?¡±

    ¡°Are they migrating?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s quite a scary sight.¡±

    ¡°No worries, they are just ordinary ants, not elemental ants.¡±

    ......

    Everyone was curiously discussing; it was their first time seeing such a sight. They weren¡¯t afraid, however, as ordinary ants weren¡¯t dangerous.

    ¡°This is not a small antmunity,¡± Teacher Xu exined. ¡°It is not umon for ants to migrate. When you all enter the Wilderness in the future, you¡¯ll be able to see many different types of elemental ants, and you all have to be careful. If you see elemental ants migrating in a group, do not provoke them. Don¡¯t underestimate the strength of an ant colony. Even though they are weak individually, they are terrifying when gathered together. Instructor Zhou can share more information with you all.¡±

    Zhou Xiaoxi nodded. ¡°In the Wilderness, when elemental ants migrate, even dire beasts avoid their path. It¡¯s best not to provoke creatures like ants and bees that im victory by their numbers. They are vengeful and wille for you in a group. If you stumble upon them, the best thing to do is to break them up. A lot of medicines are made specially to handle these types of beasts.¡±

    Everyone was amazed; how interesting!

    Teacher Xu was pleased. This journey was to expand their horizons, and such a sight could hardly be witnessed in cities and academies.

    Zhou Xiaoxi led everybody around the ants. As the ants were moving slowly, they did not hinder the team¡¯s movements.

    The jungle, which was filled with lush vegetation, was home to an uncrossable river ofva, which marked the boundary between the Induction Ground and the Old Territory.

    Theva river flowed out from the ground all year round.

    It was said that thisva river was connected to the subterranean Fire Prairie of the Cbash Mountain, but no one had ever seen the me flowers floating on the river.

    me flowers constituted a special feature of the Sparking in, which was, in fact, a haven for fire elementalists. Amongst a vast, boundless ck field stood a single cbash-shaped volcano that touched the clouds. Once in a while, Cbash Mountain would erupt, creating a rain of fire unique to the Sparking in. That very rain would cover the deste ck field, forming unique flowers of me.

    Fresh fire-red me flowers spread over the vast ck in, forming a beautiful, painting-like scenery.

    If theva river originated from the Fire Prairie, then me flowers should be seen floating on the river. However, since no me flowers were ever seen in the river, no one believed the legend.

    Theva riverpletely separated the Induction Ground and the Old Territory, and the cities and academies of the Induction Ground were mostly congregated on the other side that was closer to the Avalon of Five Elements. The areas closer to the Old Territory eventually became a wild jungle, filled with lush vegetation and rampaging wild beasts due to a prolongedck of human activities.

    The Induction Ground would regrly dispatch manpower to exterminate the dire beasts while the ordinary wild beasts were allowed to roam and reproduce.

    This region gradually be an external ssroom for the students within the Induction Ground. The wild beasts here were not very dangerous, making them just suitable for educating the students. The thick jungle also allowed students to learn quite a lot.

    There were no dangers on the way, but Ai Hui¡¯s group constantly faced many small challenges. Ai Hui felt that the team was advancing at the speed of a snail.

    But he did not utter a word and just trained by himself during breaks.

    As they approached theva, the flora started to be richer and more abundant. Ai Hui noticed many nts that could be found in the Wilderness. They were probably initially nted by the wood elementalists of the Induction Ground, but as time passed, these nts had undergone significant changes.

    Ai Hui saw sword reeds, but unlike those he¡¯d seen in the past, they weren¡¯t enormous and tall. Their leaf des were narrower, and instead of being dark or ash green, they were dark red in color, exuding a demonic aura.

    Was it because they were close to theva? Most of the nts here were somewhat of a dark red color.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t know why, but this kind of dark red made his heart pound.

    After Teacher Xu¡¯s exnation, Ai Hui understood that this ce was not only a training ground for students but also a ground for wood elementalist instructors to transnt all sorts of strange vegetations, letting them grow naturally. But with the existence of so many strange nt species, none of the teachers really knew all about them.

    With his sharp senses, Ai Hui sensed human voicesing from not far away.

    Ai Hui had a strange expression. They had unexpectedly bumped into another ss.

    But all of a sudden, he heard a certain voice, and a murderous look immediately filled his eyes.

    Damned Fatty!

 Chapter 118: Interweave

    Chapter 118: Interweave

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    ¡°You can¡¯t carry it? Hey, let me help you. One thousand yuan per hour? That¡¯s yesterday¡¯s price, it¡¯s so dangerous these days! A moment of carelessness will result in a slip and a fall. I¡¯m fine with falling down as my skin is rough and my body¡¯s thick, but your goods are precious and fragile! If they fall to the ground, you will suffer great losses! Let¡¯s make it clear, you will not receivepensation for damaged goods. If you¡¯re sincere about this, then I will be sincere, too. Since we are ssmates, I will give you a reasonable price. Two thousand yuan per hour. It will only cost around twenty thousand yuan a day. This will save you a lot of trouble!¡±

    Fatty¡¯s face was filled with sincerity. The other party¡¯s backpack resembled a small hill, making it very difficult and heavy to be carried. After a slight hesitation, he agreed to Fatty¡¯s offer. Even though it was rather expensive, it wasn¡¯t much to a wealthy person.

    The fatty was silently rejoicing. This kind of weight was child¡¯s y.

    He happily epted the money. However, just as he was about to put the money into his pocket, someone¡¯s hand suddenly came from behind and emptied his hand.

    Fatty was stunned, but the next moment his pupils shrunk. This feeling...was too familiar! He immediately turned his body around, kneeled down, and hugged Ai Hui¡¯s legs. He started weeping. ¡°Ai Hui, I finally found you!¡±

    ¡°Give us a moment.¡± Ai Hui forced a smile at the student who had just paid Fatty.

    With a nk expression, he lifted Fatty up with one hand; Fatty¡¯s enormous and cumbersome body seemed to weigh nothing in Ai Hui¡¯s hand. The other hand of Ai Hui¡¯s was searching through Fatty¡¯s body, not leaving a single pocket. Ai Hui was too familiar with where Fatty hid his money, and in less than half a minute, he managed to obtain all of Fatty¡¯s stash.

    ¡°Where¡¯s the money?¡± Ai Hui asked coldly.

    He had found barely fifty thousand yuan.

    Ai Hui did not idle around, and he plucked off a thorny branch from a nearby cluster of thistles. When Fatty saw the densely-packed thorns on the branch, his face turned pale. An interrogation by torture was about toe.

    However, he did not dare to struggle. He understood Ai Hui¡¯s temperament very well. The more he struggled, the more he would suffer. He was well aware that Ai Hui¡¯s anger stemmed from the fact that he had previously stolen his money.

    ¡°I spent all of it,¡± Fatty replied honestly. His tone was like a pig that was about to be ughtered.

    ¡°You spent it all?¡± Ai Hui¡¯s tone was t. A fearful look shed across Fatty¡¯s face when he saw the thorny branch in Ai Hui¡¯s hand tremble.

    Fatty gulped. He knew he had to settle the issue this time around.

    ¡°Do you still remember Pockmark? I¡¯m sure you have forgotten; you never spoke a single word to him. I still remember that in the beginning, when I couldn¡¯t carry so much, he was the one who helped me. I buried his body. His wife never recovered from her illness. His daughter has reached the schooling age. When Pockmark died, I told him that if I came out alive, I would take care of his family.¡±

    The thorny branch in Ai Hui¡¯s hand stopped moving.

    Pockmark...

    A blurry face appeared in a distant memory. Anguish, fear, ink-ck nights and icy winds. Fuzzy memories began to surface in his mind.

    Ai Hui had a vague image of aborer that had died very early during their time in the Wilderness. Fatty did not remember wrongly¡ªhe had not talked to Pockmark at all. Pockmark was not the only one he had never talked to; in fact, he did not talk to anyone except for Fatty.

    ¡°Do you remember Old Wei? That guy who liked to brag? I bet you don¡¯t remember him as well. I still remember that when I had just entered the Wilderness, I was always hungry. Old Wei once gave me some food to eat and told me that I am around the same age as his son. The day he died was a rainy day. It was hard to dig a grave in the muddy soil, which was easily washed away by the rain. It took me half a day to bury him properly. He has two children. The younger one has a terminal illness at the mere age of seven. He knew he wouldn¡¯t survive, and hence, he went to the Wilderness. I have sent his family a sum of money. It¡¯s not a huge sum, it¡¯s only forty thousand yuan. Although I survived, I can¡¯t do anything more...

    ¡°Do you remember Big Lee....¡±

    The fatty continued to talk endlessly, without getting to the point. Sometimes he talked until he was out of breath, at times he spoke with agitation.

    The dumbstruck student who had paid him earlier had long been scared off.

    ¡°Duanmu Huanghun! Ahhhhhhh! Am I dreaming?¡±

    ¡°Ahhhh, quick, pick me some flowers!¡±

    Suddenly, young girls¡¯ shrieks could be heard from behind the nearby trees.

    Ai Hui was shocked speechless.

    ¡°Teacher Xu, what a coincidence!¡±

    ¡°Ah, Cui Xianzi, you¡¯re bringing your students on an excursion as well?¡±

    ......

    ¡°Only the two of us survived, only the two of us survived!¡±

    ¡°...At least we are still alive...¡±

    ......

    The warm, cordial greetings, the somber memories, they all kept interweaving and appearing in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    He remained stupefied as if he were in a dream.

    ......

    ¡°While I was burying them, I told them that if I made it out alive, I would take care of their families.

    ¡°Why am I still alive? Why....¡±

    ......

    The spurt of fresh blood, the pouring rain, the dire beasts feasting on corpses¡ªmemories kept shing through Ai Hui¡¯s mind. His body suddenly became cold, as if an icy bath had been dumped onto him. He clenched the thorny branch so tightly that his fingers turned pale.

    ......

    ¡°Why don¡¯t both our sses travel together? We can take care of each other. With an expert like Instructor Zhou, I can feel relieved.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good, that¡¯s good! Cui Xianzi is so beautiful! Are you married?¡±

    ......

    ¡°I know you have no money and that brings about a lot of inconveniences. I know I have brought you nothing but troubles. However, you¡¯re an evildoer, and no trouble can stump you.¡±

    ......

    ¡°ssmate Duanmu, do you have a girlfriend?¡±

    ¡°ssmate Duanmu, do you want to be friends with me?¡±

    ......

    ¡°I know I started this. I¡¯m a pig! I¡¯m stupid! I¡¯m a useless person! But I¡¯m still alive. Why am I still alive? I can¡¯t stand it anymore, I really can¡¯t stand it anymore...

    ¡°Sorry...sorry...¡±

    Fatty was speaking gibberish, and his body was trembling. Emotions were flooding his mind in waves.

    Ai Hui suddenly broke free from that ice-cold nightmare and took a few deep breaths. The air was frosty and bone-piercing, but he could feel his body¡¯s temperature begin to rise gradually again.

    Yes, that was a dream, a dream that he had broken free from long ago. He had already abandoned the times of darkness and shadows. He was now pursuing the light and the sunshine. He had begun a new life.

    He was no longer the Ai Hui of the Wilderness. He was stronger, both mentally and physically.

    So...

    With a flick of his wrist, the thorny branch began to batter Fatty.

    ¡°You can¡¯t get past your conscience, right? You want to be a hero, right? Then why don¡¯t you train harder? Why meddle in other people¡¯s business when you¡¯re not capable at all? Just because you¡¯re alive and they¡¯re dead? So what if you¡¯re alive? Is it something to be proud of? Goddamnit, how are you still alive? You¡¯re not even strong, and you still talk about some goddamn conscience. Do you know you will die sooner orter if you aren¡¯t strong enough? What makes you think that you don¡¯t need to train? What makes you think that you don¡¯t need to be stronger?

    ¡°You have no powers and no money, and yet you still meddle in other people¡¯s business. You even drag me down along with you. I¡¯m going to beat you to death!

    ¡°If he¡¯s weak, he will die. If he¡¯s weak, he will be poor. But if he¡¯s dead, then that¡¯s his problem! Is his family pitiful? Who isn¡¯t pitiful?

    ¡°If you yourself don¡¯t want to be a pitiful soul, think of ways to be stronger. Do whatever it takes to gain power!

    ¡°You can¡¯t hide from it, I can¡¯t hide from it, no one can hide from it!¡±

    ......

    ¡°Instructor Zhou, please take good care of me from now on!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry! Leave it to me!¡±

 Chapter 119: The Garden of Life

    Chapter 119: The Garden of Life

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: - -

    The two sses walked together, causing those students who had been bored by the excursion to be intrigued and excited by the new faces.

    No one noticed when Ai Hui pulled the badly battered Fatty back to the group.

    Most of the girls were surrounding Duanmu Huanghun, chattering non-stop.

    Zhou Xiaoxi felt that he had found his goddess in Cui Xianzi. He tried his best to impress her, making herugh non-stop. In contrast, Teacher Xu was patiently teaching the students who were listening carefully to his lesson.

    ¡°The teachers named this area the Garden of Life. Why that name? There are many wood-attributed teachers in the Induction Ground, and everyone knows that they love breeding new species of nts, which then results in arge number of newly bred nts. These nts, however, are not valuable, yet the teachers are unwilling to destroy them. So, they transnt them here. There are so many bizarre nts here now, that even the teachers can¡¯t keep track of them all, which has resulted in us calling this ce the Garden of Life.¡±

    ¡°Won¡¯t there be problems? Isn¡¯t it dangerous?¡± one student couldn¡¯t help but ask.

    ¡°Actually, everyone hopes for exactly that.¡± Seeing everyone¡¯s puzzled faces, Teacher Xuughed. ¡°I shall let the wood-attributed Duanmu Huanghun exin why to everyone here.¡±

    The bunch of girls acting like a flock of ducks were driving Duanmu Huanghun crazy. He had not been in a good mood to begin with, so if not for the presence of the teacher, he would have already chased them away.

    Teacher Xu¡¯s words caught everyone¡¯s attention.

    In the other students¡¯ eyes, Duanmu Huanghun was a mysterious figure, so when they heard Teacher Xu say that Duanmu Huanghun knew the answer, they immediately directed their attention to him. They wanted to know if the legendary Duanmu Huanghun knew the answer.

    Even Cui Xianzi stopped talking with Zhou Xiaoxi to look at Duanmu Huanghun with interest.

    The rowdy girls surrounding Duanmu Huanghun finally quieted down and stared anxiously at him with their eyes wide open.

    Duanmu Huanghun felt like a suffocating fish that could finally breathe some fresh air. He gave Teacher Xu a grateful look, then his facial expression turned cold as he answered, ¡°From a wood elementalist¡¯s perspective, having problems with the nts is a good thing, because it means that there is room for more changes and new possibilities. When breeding a new nt species, the more changes there are, the more beneficial it is. I think this is the scenario all the wood-attributed teachers are hoping for.¡±

    The amount of adoration in those young girls¡¯ infatuated eyes increased significantly.

    Duanmu Huanghun ignored these gazes. There was absolute silence in his surroundings.

    If this silence couldst, Duanmu Huanghun did not mind talking for the rest of the day.

    So he did just that; before Teacher Xu could open his mouth, Duanmu Huanghun continued to speak with confidence, ¡°The reason why there are no changes is not thatplicated. ording to the current theory, elemental energy is the biggest factor that causes changes to ur in nts. The higher the concentration of elemental energy in an area, the more likely changes will ur in the nts there. This exins why there are a lot of mystical nts in the depths of the Wilderness. Even though the Garden of Life is located within the Induction Ground, it is in a ce very near the Old Territory, so the concentration of elemental energy there is very low. This is why the likelihood of changes urring in nts there is also very low...¡±

    Everyone was captivated by Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s words.

    Teacher Xu nodded his head repeatedly, feeling especially proud of his student. For a first year student toe up with such conclusion showed a lot about his solid foundation.

    Teacher Xu continued from where Duanmu Huanghun stopped, ¡°ssmate Duanmu is correct. The oldest nt in the Garden of Life can be dated back to when the Avalon of Five Elements was established; however, the number of changes urring in the nts there are bing less and less, because the concentration of elemental energy is very low. Even those thousand-years-old ancient trees are no exception.¡±

    Ai Hui shot a nce at Duanmu Huanghun, which was caught by Fatty.

    Fatty knew Ai Hui too well. From the look on Ai Hui¡¯s face, he knew something was up. He lowered his voice and asked, ¡°You have a dispute with this guy?¡±

    ¡°A small matter,¡± Ai Hui replied without batting an eyelid. ¡°He owes me some money.¡±

    ¡°He owes you money?¡± Fatty¡¯s eyes immediately widened as he rolled up his sleeves and rubbed his palms together. ¡°That¡¯s intolerable! He owes you how much money? I will help you collect the debt!¡±

    ¡°One hundred and fifty million yuan,¡± Ai Hui replied inly.

    Fatty staggered and almost fell down. He could not help but raise his voice, ¡°How much?¡±

    His voice was exceptionally loud in the silence and everyone turned to look at the two simultaneously.

    ¡°One hundred and fifty million yuan,¡± Ai Hui replied calmly.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was previously filled with arrogance, staggered and almost fell down. Other people may have been baffled when they heard Ai Hui talking about one hundred and fifty million yuan, but Duanmu Huanghun clearly knew what Ai Hui was talking about.

    Goddamn bastard!

    Blue veins appeared at the back of his hands as he clenched his fists.

    ¡°One hundred and fifty million yuan?¡± Fatty muttered, shocked, ¡°It can¡¯t be, how can someone be so stupid? Is it even possible to owe so much money?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun almost lunged at him.

    Ai Hui noticed everyone¡¯s attention on them and stopped talking. After a while, the other students lost interest and directed their attention elsewhere. Ai Hui and Fatty maintained some distance from the main body of students, walking together at the back.

    ¡°Really? One hundred and fifty million yuan?¡± Fatty asked again, solemnly.

    ¡°It¡¯s a lie,¡± Ai Hui replied inly.

    ¡°I knew it. You almost frightened me to death.¡± Fatty pat his chest.

    ¡°Fatty,¡± Ai Hui suddenly called out to him.

    Fatty knew Ai Hui wanted to say something, just by taking a look at his face.

    Instinctively, Ai Hui scanned the bushes and trees around them. Without looking at Fatty, he asked, ¡°How¡¯s your training progressing?¡±

    ¡°I have just activated my right hand¡¯s pce,¡± Fatty replied weakly. When he heard Ai Hui¡¯s question, he had a bad feeling. Fatty might be very stubborn, but Ai Hui still scared him the most.

    Ai Hui was expressionless, but deep down he was shocked.

    It appeared that Fatty was far more gifted than he was.

    If not for his blessing in disguise and his managing to activate two pces, Fatty¡¯s training progress would have surpassed his.

    ¡°Ai Hui, how about you?¡± Fatty nced warily at Ai Hui.

    ¡°Left and right hands¡¯ pces,¡± Ai Hui replied.

    Fatty had an ¡®isn¡¯t-it-obvious¡¯ look on his face. It had been like this since the days they were together in the Wilderness. Other than running for his life, there was nothing he was better at than Ai Hui.

    ¡°From today onwards, I will be monitoring your training.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s tone was cold and without leeway; Fatty¡¯s face filled with anguish. Every time he wanted to open his mouth and say something, he would timidly close it before any words came out. Every time Ai Hui used such a tone to talk to him, he would have miserable days ahead of him.

    ¡°You like to meddle in other people¡¯s business, right? Only capable people are qualified to meddle in other people¡¯s business. Those who are not capable would only seek death if they tried.¡±

    Fatty was touched by Ai Hui¡¯s naggy words. He knew Ai Hui wanted the best for him.

    Just as Fatty was about to raise his head and dere his determination, Ai Hui suddenly stopped in his tracks.

    ¡°Fatty, did you hear something?¡±

    Ai Hui squinted his eyes. Fatty was too familiar with this facial expression of Ai Hui¡¯s. Something was wrong. His pupils constricted as he saw Ai Hui¡¯s hand silently move towards his sword hilt.

 Chapter 120: Strange Phenomenon

    Chapter 120: Strange Phenomenon

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: - -

    Fatty was very experienced. The moment Ai Hui finished speaking, Fatty was already moving towards him. He put up his guard, like an alerted cat.

    The main reason why he could survive the many dangers of the Wilderness was because every time Ai Hui gave a warning, Fatty would immediately react to it.

    Other people would question Ai Hui¡¯s intuition, causing a slight dy in their reaction.

    Fatty, however, would not doubt him, and that was why he managed to survive.

    Fatty felt that Ai Hui was much more powerful than himself. Ai Hui was the abnormalborer who had the highest chance of leaving the Wilderness alive. He trusted Ai Hui unconditionally.

    Complete obedience!

    Whatever Ai Hui wanted him to do, he knew that it would be necessary. Whatever reaction Ai Hui had, he knew that Ai Hui must have discovered something of importance.

    When Ai Hui asked him if he had heard anything, he knew right away that Ai Hui must have heard something.

    Hence, without any hesitation, he moved closer to Ai Hui. The closer he was to Ai Hui, the safer he would be. Whatever Ai Hui did, he would follow suit.

    As swift as the wind, Ai Hui¡¯s sword brushed past Fatty¡¯s face and prated the underbrush behind him.

    Swoosh!

    Possessing the sword embryo, Ai Hui¡¯s senses were extremely acute. Even though the sound was very soft, he could still hear it. It might be hard to sense something through the tip of his sword, but he could still sense what he had struck.

    Deep down, Ai Hui quickly confirmed that the thing he had hit had a very small surface area.

    The first time he entered the Garden of Life, he had heard a faintly discernible noise at night. At that time, he had still thought that it was a misperception caused by his long absence from the wild; however, today he heard the same noise again.

    He withdrew the Sawtooth Grass Sword and positioned its tip right in front of his own face.

    ¡°You shocked me!¡± Fatty came over. ¡°What¡¯s that? Eh, there is some blood on the tip of your sword.¡±

    Fatty moved nimbly into the underbrush. After a while, he returned with a dead mosquito that had its wings shattered and body cut in half. ¡°It¡¯s a mosquito.¡±

    Ai Hui saw the blood stain Fatty was talking about. It was a very small drop of blood. When the mosquito was struck by the grass sword, its body exploded and this small drop of blood stained the sword.

    Ai Hui was surprised as well. He did not expect it to be a mosquito.

    He did not feel relieved just because it was only a mosquito. In reality, the mosquitoes in the Wilderness were rather dangerous, as many of them were extremely poisonous. Once you were stung by a mosquito, you would be in dire straits.

    As such, he did not put his guard down just because it was only a mosquito. The thing that surprised him was that faintly discernable sound; he did not expect a mosquito to produce such a weird sound.

    ¡°There¡¯s something odd with this mosquito.¡± The dead mosquito on Fatty¡¯s hand only had half of its body remaining. Its wing was, oddly, dark red in colour. For some reason, even Fatty, who had been through many life-and-death situations, felt a shiver go down his spine. He mumbled to himself, ¡°Why am I afraid?¡±

    Even though Fatty was scared, he still checked the dead mosquito carefully.

    In the Wilderness, one could not stand there and do nothing.

    Fatty might hide behind Ai Hui when they were engaged inbat, but he would not be sloppy when there was a need for him to do some work.

    Ai Hui pulled the tip of the sword close to his nose and took a sniff. There was an odd, sweet smell to it.

    He suddenly had an urge to lick it.

    ¡°There¡¯s something wrong with this blood.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were ice-cold as he put down the sword.

    ¡°There¡¯s definitely a problem,¡± Fatty replied. ¡°Such a small amount of blood should have dried up by now, but take a look, it hasn¡¯t dried up at all. Look at its wing, what do you think of when you see this color?¡±

    Fatty bent down to pull a stalk of grass from the ground, then ced it beside the mosquito¡¯s wing. ¡°Look at this root, isn¡¯t its color simr?¡±

    Ai Hui nodded. The two colors were slightly simr. It was just that the mosquito wing¡¯s color was a bit darker.

    ¡°Look at the grass.¡± Fatty¡¯s eyes were flickering. ¡°The roots are the most red. The color bes fainter as it goes up the grass and the top half of the grass is dark green. What do you think?¡±

    ¡°The soil!¡± Ai Hui replied without the slightest hesitation.

    The two of them looked at each other before squatting down to begin looking through the underbrush. Ai Hui used the tip of his sword to dig up the roots of the grass. Indeed, he saw red-colored soil, so he did not stop and continued digging. The deeper he dug, the redder the soil became. The soil was so red that it looked like cinnabar.

    Suddenly, red-coloured, muddy water gushed out from beneath Ai Hui¡¯s sword. It resembled gurgling blood.

    Ai Hui froze and the air seemed to freeze with him. Both Fatty and Ai Hui could see the fear in each other¡¯s eyes. The two of them had seen many scary things before in the Wilderness, but this sight still managed to make their blood run cold.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t they say this damned ce is safe?¡± Fatty gulped.

    Ai Hui moved the tip of the sword in front of his face. The sword¡¯s tip was dark red,pletely stained by the muddy water. He took a careful sniff. It did not smell like mud; instead, it had a faint aroma.

    This aroma smelled somewhat simr to the aroma from the mosquito¡¯s blood; however, this one was milder.

    They had seen red-colored soil before, but the red color of the soil before them now resembled the color of blood. Could there be a cinnabar mine here? No, that couldn¡¯t be right, cinnabar would not have such a weird aroma. Furthermore, if there was really a cinnabar mine here, the surrounding vegetation would be red in color. Right now, only the roots of the grass were dyed red.

    Apparently, this phenomenon had begun quite recently.

    This might be the reason why everyone, including Ai Hui, did not notice it at first. From afar, everything looked lush and green.

    Ai Hui walked for another ten steps until he came to an area where there was no vegetation, then started digging again.

    Fatty trembled in fear and quickly hurried over.

    The soil Ai Hui dug up was ash gray in color. Where had the red color disappeared to?

    Could it be...

    Fatty¡¯s face turned ugly.

    Without saying anything, Ai Hui walked under a tree and started digging again. Within seconds, blood-like muddy water gushed out from the ground. He then hacked open the tree and found that, within one meter from the ground, the core had turnedpletely red in color. From the outside, no one would be able to see it.

    Fatty and Ai Hui clearly understood that this could not have happened naturally.

    ¡°Maybe it¡¯s a kind of blood poison?¡± Fatty¡¯s trembling voice contained a hint of uncertainty. ¡°It¡¯s cross-contamination. The contaminated nt must have been eaten by a herbivore, contaminating the herbivore in the process. That herbivore was then stung by a mosquito, causing the mosquito to be contaminated as well. What kind of poison is this? This... this is too scary...¡±

    Knowing that there was a sea of blood beneath the boundless, lush vegetation surrounding them, the two trembled in fear.

    ¡°We had better get the teachers and Instructor Zhou toe and take a look,¡± Fatty warned, ¡°because this ce is too bizarre.¡±

    Without any hesitation, Ai Hui nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    The two of them were feeling extremely uneasy.

    Suddenly, there was an amazed exmationing from up ahead.

    ¡°Rabbit, ahh, there¡¯s a rabbit!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s really a rabbit!¡±

    ¡°Even more so, it¡¯s a rare red-haired rabbit!¡±

    ¡°Woah, such beautiful eyes, they look like rubies! Oh my god, it¡¯s so cute!¡±

    Red hair...

    At the same time, Ai Hui and Fatty thought of the red-colored weeds, dark-red mosquito, and the seeping blood-colored muddy water.

    ¡°Be careful!¡±

 Chapter 121: Poisoned

    Chapter 121: Poisoned

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: - -

    Zhou Xiaoxi felt that he had made the right choice by participating in this excursion. He could not shift his gaze from Cui Xianzi. Previously, he still thought that everyone was exaggerating about the benefits ofing to the Induction Ground. However, after today, he changed his mentality and rejoiced.

    If he had not taken part in this excursion, how would he have met such a gentle girl like Cui Xianzi?

    Women who were stationed at front line were usually more fearsome than the men. Like Li Wei had said, those who carried a sword usually did not engage in petty squabbles.

    Only the Induction Ground would have such a gentle, elegant, and beautiful girl like Cui Xianzi.

    A ce like the Garden of Life would not have many dangers. For an elite like him, who had been to the depths of the Wilderness multiple times, the Garden of Life was like his backyard.

    Even so, he did not lower his guard. At the moment when he sensed there was something nearby, he broke intoughter after realizing that it was merely a rabbit.

    This rabbit was actually a rare red-haired breed.

    Its fur waspletely doused in red, and its ruby-like eyes mesmerized Zhou Xiaoxi. So beautiful.

    If he encountered such a beautiful rabbit in the Wilderness, he would definitely not exim in admiration. Instead, he would run as far away as possible from it. For such a beautiful creature to exist in the Wilderness, where the survival of the fittest was the most cutthroat, it must be very powerful.

    It must be a pet that was released by another teacher, Zhou Xiaoxi thought to himself.

    At this point in time, the rest of the students had discovered the red-haired rabbit as well.

    The female students started to shriek with excitement.

    Some of the more daring students even gathered together to use a stalk of grass to tease the rabbit. Initially, Zhou Xiaoxi was prepared to stop them. However, he soon realized he was making a big deal over a small issue. This was the peaceful Garden of Life, not the perilous Wilderness.

    It was customary for students to go on an excursion to the Garden of Life. When Zhou Xiaoxi was still a student, he was filled with curiosity just like these students. Every excursion left him with beautiful memories. All these years, he had never heard of any idents in the Garden of Life. The injuries that students suffered were mostly idental, such as sprains.

    There was no restriction on catching the wild animals in the Garden of Life as pets.

    Many students would capture wild animals as their pets while they were on excursions. Zhou Xiaoxi thought of the grey hedgehog that he caught in the Garden of Life. It apanied him throughout his student life in the Induction Ground.

    He sighed silently.

    Perhaps that innocence could only exist in the Induction Ground. After he left the Induction Ground, all he thought about was how to survive and be stronger. The pets that everybody kept for their aesthetics eventually became beasts that aided them in battle.

    Good old times.

    Zhou Xiaoxi smiled as he looked at the innocent actions of the students.

    "Be careful!"

    rmed cries came from the rear of the main body of students. Zhou Xiaoxi was stunned. He knew one of the voices belonged to Ai Hui.

    The other voice... must have belonged to that fatty.

    Zhou Xiaoxi had noticed the dispute between the two students previously. However, he did not interfere as he could sense the deep friendship between them.

    Because of Li Wei, Zhou Xiaoxi had a good impression of Ai Hui. Even though Zhou Xiaoxi was in a different division than Li Wei, he was impressed by Li Wei¡¯s knowledge and character after spending some time with him. Hence, a youth that was highly favored by Li Wei was definitely an extraordinary individual.

    The performance from Ai Hui a few days ago made Zhou Xiaoxi see him in a new light.

    Could there be something wrong?

    Everything seemed normal. The rabbit¡¯s nose twitched, and it leaped toward the stem of grass in the student¡¯s hand, seemingly interested in it.

    At this moment, Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s eye pupils suddenly dted.

    The rabbit suddenly jumped forward and bit the hand of the student.

    "Ah!"

    The student, who was caught off guard, let out a blood-curdling screech as blood streamed down from her hand. The surrounding students shrieked and fell into chaos.

    Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s reaction was extremely fast. He appeared icy faced beside the injured student like a phantom and flicked his finger.

    Like an arrow, a stream of air shot out and pierced the red-haired rabbit.

    Boom!

    Blood sshed everywhere as the stream of air that punctured the red-haired rabbit suddenly exploded. Pieces of its body wereunched here and there.

    The students immediately screamed in horror as they had never seen such a gory sight.

    Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s face turned ashen since he never expected an ident to actually happen. He held up that student¡¯s bitten hand. The horrified student was still trembling non-stop. Chunks of the rabbit were strewn all over the ce, but its head was still biting the student¡¯s hand, refusing to let go.

    Its ruby-like eyes were filled with an indescribable frenzy and bloodlust. Its previous docile and adorable look had vanished, making it now look extremely sinister.

    Pop!

    Zhou Xiaoxi crushed the rabbit¡¯s head coldly. The injured student fainted straightaway.

    Ai Hui and Fatty managed to catch sight of this just as they arrived. When they saw the situation, their hearts sank.

    "What have you discovered?" Zhou Xiaoxi turned his head around and stared fixedly at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui felt as if he was being red at by a ferocious beast. He was under such great pressure that he was unable to breathe.

    He calmed himself and replied, "There¡¯s something wrong with the blood, and there¡¯s a problem with the vegetation and soil as well."

    He knew what to do to convince the others. Without any hesitation, he started to hack a small tree nearby.

    The grass sword in his hand shaved off the tree bark with great precision, revealing the core of the tree.

    Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s eyes narrowed. The core of the tree looked as if it was soaked in blood.

    Ai hui¡¯s grass sword kept on digging the soil beneath the tree. The soil that was unearthed looked as red as cinnabar. After a while, the blood-like muddy water flowed out from the soil and a faint fragrance pervaded the air.

    Everyone¡¯s face drained to a pale-white. They had never seen anything like this. The students that were timid felt their legs go soft and sat on the ground while trembling in fear.

    Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s face turned white as well. This was also the first time that he had seen something so bizarre.

    "There¡¯s something wrong with the rabbit¡¯s blood. It might be blood poison." Ai Hui continued to maintain hisposure.

    Zhou Xiaoxi sniffed the rabbit blood on his hand and a refreshing fragrance filled his nose. He almost put his finger in his mouth.

    "The blood is poisonous!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s reminder gave Zhou Xiaoxi a shiver and returned him to his senses. Zhou Xiaoxi felt a scorching feeling on his fingertips and quickly wiped away the blood on his hand. However, the rabbit blood had already seeped into the skin of his hands by then.

    Such a scary blood poison!

    At the moment, Zhou Xiaoxi was able to keep calm. He confirmed that he had been poisoned.

    A red color had already pervaded throughout the body of the fainted student.

    Zhou Xiaoxi knew that he was the main pir of support for the students. Right now, his most important task was to bring these students back to safety.

    Without hesitation, he took out a tiny bamboo tube and opened its lid. There were many pine needle leaves with a variety of colors inside.

    He took out a red pine needle leaf, which was also known as the distress leaf.

    He walked toward a tree and pinned the red leaf onto it like a needle.

    The pine needle leaf started to emit a red glow, which brightened and dimmed rhythmically, as if it was breathing.

    Suddenly, the red glow started to grow dimmer and dimmer. Eventually, the pine needle leaf fell from the tree.

    Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s heart sank.

 Chapter 122: Duanmuâ€™s Absolute Art

    Chapter 122: Duanmu¡¯s Absolute Art

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: - -

    There were many types of distress leaves. There were maple leaves, gingko leaves, and so on, but pine needle leaves were the most popr type.

    Pine needle leaves were small in size and convenient to bring along. A tiny bamboo tube could contain numerous pine needle leaves. Certain features of pine trees could be found in pine needle leaves as well.

    Distress leaves were a product invented by wood elementalists. Wood elementalists felt that trees couldmunicate with each other, and this logic formed the basis for message trees. However, message trees could not be found in the wild.

    Hence, the elementalists invented a kind of leaves that could transmit messages through the trees in the wild.

    Unlike message trees, the amount of messages that distress leaves could transmit was very limited. However, they were still able to make distress calls. There must be nts or trees nearby for distress leaves to work, so they could not be used in ces like deserts or oceans.

    Veterans would definitely carry some distress leaves along with them. For this excursion to the Garden of Life, Zhou Xiaoxi had chosen to bring some distress leaves along just in case something happened.

    He never expected that something would actually happen. Even worse, the distress leaf failed to work!

    He had never encountered a situation where distress leaves failed to function.

    When he thought of the scene where Ai Hui dug up the soil, he was sure that the surrounding vegetation was poisoned as well. Zhou Xiaoxi did not quite agree with Ai Hui saying that it might be a type of blood poison. Blood poisons were rarely seen. Like its name suggested, blood poison worked by tainting the blood. However, nts and trees did not have blood. Zhou Xiaoxi had never heard of any nt or tree bing afflicted with blood poison.

    Suddenly, he heard a wave of faint rustling noisesing from afar, and his facial expression changed.

    There were many wild beasts surging toward this ce!

    He saw that Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression had changed as well. However, at this point of time, he did not have time to be impressed by Ai Hui¡¯s sharp sense of hearing. He did not dare to hesitate and made a prompt decision. "Get out of here! We will go back through the same road that we used to get here!"

    After finishing his sentence, Zhou Xiaoxi lifted up the fainted student and ced her upon his shoulder. Then, he looked at the terrified students and yelled coldly, "If you run any slower you will get devoured by the wild beasts!"

    Even though Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi were very worried, they did not forget their responsibilities and kept on encouraging the students.

    "Watch out for the wild beasts and insects! Don¡¯t get bitten by them!" Ai Hui reminded everyone loudly.

    Fatty stayed close to Ai Hui. Surprisingly, his plump and huge body was unusually nimble.

    Ai Hui¡¯s previous performance unwittinglymanded the respect of everyone.

    "Everyone, stay close together, and don¡¯t leave the main group. All the girls move to the middle of the group. Ai Hui and Duanmu Huanghun, both of you will stay at the front of the group. Ai Hui will navigate the road, and Duanmu Huanghun will safeguard him. I will bring up the rear. Teacher Xu will take care of the left nk of the group, and Cui Xianzi will take care of the right nk. The stronger students will keep to the outer edges of the group. Everyone listen to mymand. Do not panic. I will bring everyone to safety," Zhou Xiaoxi ordered resolutely.

    His tone was calm and collected, disying leadership and dignity.

    Currently, whenpared to the other two teachers, the Thirteenth Division¡¯s elite Zhou Xiaoxi brought much more assurance to the students. Even Ai Hui could not help but exim in admiration. Zhou Xiaoxi truly lived up to his reputation of being a front line elite. Such orders of manpower deployment revealed a lot about his experience.

    The rear of the group was the most dangerous position, and this position was overseen by Zhou Xiaoxi.

    The other two teachers¡¯ strength were second only to his. They were positioned on the left and right nks of the group. Both nks needed to be taken care of.

    The front of the group was the safest as they going back along the same road that they used to get to the Garden of Life.

    Duanmu Huanghun was cool-headed. The Grass Hollow was much scarier than this ce. He was not a delicate young master. It was just that... he took a look at Ai Hui and felt an indescribable awkwardness.

    He actually had to fight alongside with this fellow...

    This was ridiculous.

    "Let¡¯s go," Zhou Xiaoxi shouted. "Everyone, move out!"

    Without hesitation, Ai Hui walked to the front of the group. Other students might easily get lost in the woods, but for Ai Hui, it was a walk in a park.

    With a humph, Duanmu Huanghun appeared beside Ai Hui.

    Even though Duanmu Huanghun hated Ai Hui to the core, he knew the severity of the current situation. The failure of the distress leaf implied that they would not be able to obtain any reinforcements. This would put them in a precarious situation.

    He was a wood elementalist and clearly knew how scary blood poison could be.

    Furthermore, how could he be outperformed by this scoundrel?

    The surrounding rustling sounds were getting louder and louder. Danger was approaching, and fear was growing in the group.

    "Everyone, be careful!"

    Zhou Xiaoxi roared. Suddenly, white-colored azure wings emerged from his back. The azure wings appeared and exploded with a loud bang, forming wisps of white mist.

    In the hands of other elementalists, azure wings were a type of flying equipment. In the hands of a water elementalist, they were a dangerous and deadly weapon.

    The wisps of mist swam around him like a school of white swordfish.

    Swish swish swish!

    The wild beasts were continuously entering the mist. However, once they were in, they were sliced and ground by the razor-sharp mist, resulting in a massive bloodbath.

    Now, Teacher Xu also disyed his prowess. Numerous silver light screens appeared around his body, which then formed a silver barrier around the group. The most impressive thing about this barrier was that its sticity was extremely powerful. Any beast that crashed onto the silver barrier would be bounced back as if it had jumped into a trampoline.

    Bang bang bang!

    The sounds of collisions were so concentrated that they resembled the pattering of raindrops.

    The fact that Cui Xianzi could bring a ss out on an excursion showed that she was quite capable as well. A piece of fiery silk appeared mysteriously on her hand. One hundred lifelike birds were embroidered on the the piece of silk.

    With a flick of the silk, its surface immediately exploded with a loud boom into a sea of mes.

    Numerous chirping zing birds flew out from the sea of mes

    Any iing beast that was hit by a zing bird would have its body burst into mes.

    Usually, Ai Hui would be captivated by these dazzling attacks. However, he could not care less about them right now.

    Suddenly, Duanmu Huanghun, who had been silently beside him the whole time, struck out abruptly.

    Green glowing symbols and designs that were usually found on porcin vases began to appear under Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s feet. Numerous dark-green vines came alive and extended outward from the green glow beneath his feet. Like a formless pencil, the vines rapidly drew out graceful and elegant patterns on the ground.

    Everyone felt their feet lighten, and their running speed suddenly increased.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s palms swayed gently in the air. The green vines shot into the air with a terrifying speed, resembling green branches growing and twinning in the air.

    Eerie green peonies started to blossom on the vines.

    In the blink of an eye, the peonies were fully bloomed. One could hear a faint sigh as a breeze drifted through the air. The petals began to detach themselves from the fully bloomed peonies.

    Peony petals drifted and danced in the air, resembling a rain of petals that dyed the sky green.

    When the wild beasts were caught in the green rain of petals and came into contact with the green petals, their dark-red bodies were dyed green. At the very instant they were dyed green, their bodies appeared to disintegrate.

    The wild beasts that leaped into the mid-air disintegrated into wisps of green smoke before Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    Ai Hui was overwhelmed with shock.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face was filled with pride and haughtiness.

    Duanmu¡¯s absolute art.

    [Viridescent Flower]!

 Chapter 123: Zhou Xiaoxiâ€™s Decision

    Chapter 123: Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s Decision

    Trantor: JL Editor: - -

    Ai Hui was shaken by the sight in front of him. His mouth dropped open, and he stood dumbstruck. Not only him, the entire troop was shocked by Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower].

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s abrupt emergence was not limited by his young age. Everyone¡¯s sole impression of him was that he was a talented genius. They had little understanding toward him or his legacy skills. When Dai Gang took him as hisst disciple, it was further ingrained in everyone¡¯s mind that Huanghun was a talented genius.

    The impact and shock that was brought about by the [Viridescent Flower], which was as pretty as a painting, led to a momentarilypse within the troops.

    It was only at this point that everyone remembered that Duanmu Huanghun was ranked Number 17th in the Induction Ground in terms of fighting strength.

    Not only did he possess shocking innate skills, he had valiant capabilities as well.

    Fatty¡¯s gaze was nk while he mumbled, ¡°I am done for, I am done for. The money is a lost cause. Why did Ah Hui [1] give a loan to such a capable chap... This is ruined. What a huge amount of ruins...¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes were flickering with a serene splendor. He strolled idly, yet with lively steps. As green rain droplets sttered, his elongated body was graceful and picturesque. His wless face radiated confidence, and all his movements were calm and unhurried.

    In a sh, the gazes from the young girls became smitten.

    Ai Hui was shocked momentarily, but he quickly regained hisposure. With a low voice, he shouted, ¡°Let¡¯s walk this way!¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s explosive disy greatly improved everyone¡¯s morale and pulled everyone away from a state of panic. The students who realized the capability of the group also gradually calmed down. The emphasis on actualbat was a tradition of the Avalon of Five Elements. The students from the Old Territory were slightlycking, but the students from the Avalon of Five Elements had been trained and educated since young. They had also epted the notion of actualbat.

    When they settled down, their capability would also progressively emerge.

    Many female students started to take the initiative to participate. Gradually, the situation stabilized.

    The pressure on Duanmu Huanghun was quickly reduced by half. He shot Ai Hui a nce and was secretly surprised. From the beginning , Ai Hui did not disy any signs of hesitation along the way. It was a jungle of weeds, and there were nondmarks. How did he do it?

    Duanmu Huanghun even had the notion that Ai Hui had been to this plot of forest many times.

    Soon, however, Duanmu Huanghun did not have the leisure to pay attention to Ai Hui. He was starting to feel pressured. They had run for at least one hundred miles, but the wild beasts that attacked them along the way did not reduce in number. Instead, they exhibited an increasing trend.

    The size of the wild beasts were notrge. Their bodies appeared to be a strange dull red, and they were extremely irritable, without any care for their lives or deaths. All these symptoms suggested that they had blood poisoning.

    Even the elite Zhou Xiaoxi felt chills at this point in time. Not only would the wild beasts attack them, they were also extremely bloodthirsty. They would even crazily gobble up the blood and flesh from the corpses of their own kind.

    The shredded pieces and body parts of the wild beasts had yet to fall on the ground when numerous wild beasts pounced and fought over them.

    Those torn body parts and the fresh blood that dripped on the floor would be snatched up by numerous insects that rushed up through the ground and from the bushes, as if they were snatching up delicacies. Zhou Xiaoxi was proud of the fact that he had been through countless of tough situations. No matter how cruel the situation, he was able to face it.

    However, what he experienced today made him fearful.

    He attempted to use the distress leaf three times during the journey, but to no avail.

    Zhou Xiaoxi had an acute sense of distance. They had walked approximately one hundred fifty miles, yet they had not left the infected area.

    How extensively had the strange blood poisoning spread? Could it be that the entire Garden of Life had already...

    He trembled and did not dare to dwell further.

    But, if the entire Garden of Life was infected with the unknown blood poison, he had to make a decision. His gaze swept across the students. After more than an hour of battle, their faces started to show traces of fatigue. Morale was also falling.

    If that was the case, they would definitely be unable to leave this ce!

    He suddenly shouted, ¡°Ai Hui, find a ce that is easy to defend, but hard to attack!¡±

    He knew that Ai Hui would understand what he meant.

    Ai Hui gave him a nce. Without another word, Ai Hui took the lead and ran.

    He understood Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s intention and had to admit that it was the best avable option . At their current speed, it would be impossible to escape from the Garden of Life. Instructor Zhou had azure wings, so he could fly back to get support. Even with the added time that the support team needed to fly back to the students, it was much less than the time required for the students to travel out of the Garden of Life.

    As long as they were able to find a suitable spot that would be advantageous for their defense, the pressure would be lessened. Furthermore, they would be able to prolong their survival time.

    Ai Hui remembered that there were a few exposed boulders not far away. If they could make use of these rocks, it would be a good defensive position. Duanmu Huanghun was astonished. He did not understand why Instructor Zhou trusted Ai Hui when Ai Hui¡¯s capability was so low.

    He suddenly thought of the first day when they had entered the Garden of Life. Instructor Zhou had asked Ai Hui to stand guard.

    Suddenly, Duanmu Huanghun realized that his understanding toward his nemesis was pathetic.

    No, in fact, he knew nothing at all.

    He observed Ai Hui surreptitiously and immediately discovered many unusual traits. For example, Ai Hui rarely walked in a straight line. Ai Hui¡¯s figure was like that of a cheetah when he ran. Also, his grass sword was inverted and ced at the side of his body, making tiny swinging arcs like a pendulum.

    Duanmu Huanghun was extremely intelligent. While he did not notice it before, he understood the benefits immediately when he noticed it.

    The grass sword could be unleashed immediately when faced with danger.

    This chap... was not simple!

    In his heart, Duanmu Huanghun was rmed. He was displeased with himself because he only just realized these unusual traits.

    When Zhou Xiaoxi saw the rubble from afar, he was ted. He looked at Ai Hui, thinking that it was a pity that Ai Hui did not possess the water attribute. Otherwise, he would recruit Ai Hui into the North Sea Division. While Ai Hui¡¯s absolute base level was not high, much to Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s astonishment, Ai Hui had performed exceptionally ever since they stepped foot into the Garden of Life.

    Ai Hui was the first to detect the abnormalities, surpassing even the instructor. Zhou Xiaoxi was an elite from the North Sea, yet he was not as perceptive as a student. He was slightly ashamed.

    This was also a form of innate skill.

    While natural endowments were innate skills, knowing how to battle and react toplicated situations required talent as well.

    A pile of rubbleprised of a heap of ck rocks that were about six or seven meters tall was the best defensive position they could find.

    The students, who were at the brink of exhaustion, practically crawled and rolled into the rubble.

    Zhou Xiaoxi, together with Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi, coordinated and stood at the various high ground spots among the rubble. The towering boulders blocked the wild beasts that were like a rushing tide.

    The students finally had a chance to catch their breath and theyy around haphazardly.

    ¡°I am going to get support! The two of you will stay guard here!¡± Zhou Xiaoxi shouted to Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi.

    ¡°All right!¡± Teacher Xu nodded his head without hesitation.

    Cui Xianzi shouted concernedly, ¡°Be careful!¡±

    ¡°You must hang in there!¡± While Zhou Xiaoxi was saying that, he threw all the rations and medications that he had to Cui Xianzi.

    Zhou Xiaoxi gazed deeply at Cui Xianzi for two seconds, as if he wanted to safeguard this memory. He did not know why he was doing this. Was it because of the insecurity in his heart?

    How he wished that his world was still the same as yesterday...

    When he turned around, his gaze was resolute.

    He soared into the air and disappeared into horizon.

    [1] Ah Hui is a pet name for Ai Hui.

 Chapter 124: Ai Huiâ€™s Conjecture

    Chapter 124: Ai Hui¡¯s Conjecture

    Trantor: JL Editor: - -

    Nightfall was gradually approaching.

    The ck rocks were sturdy. With the aid of the rubble and by alternating between passively guarding and actively rebuffing the attack of the wild beasts, the situation was finally under control.

    ¡°Huanghun, I will take over for you. You should have a good rest.¡± Teacher Xu¡¯s voice was filled with concern.

    Apart from Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi, Duanmu Huanghun was the third in importance. The amount of time he spent guarding was the same as the two teachers. The rest of the students looked at Duanmu Huanghun with admiring and respectful gazes. Furthermore, Duanmu Huanghun was one of the youngest here, yet he held such great responsibility. How could they not respect him?

    ¡°Yes, Teacher,¡± Duanmu Huanghun replied courteously. Even at this point in time, he did not forget his manners.

    Jumping down from the rocks, he was exhausted. He found a clean spot among the stones and sat down. Duanmu Huanghun realized that the person resting next to him was Ai Hui only after sitting down.

    Had the fellow already made his move? It was a pity he had not seen it.

    The intensity of the battle had been at another level. The wild beasts seemed to have gone crazy and came one after another. Guarding was a serious affair as he was holding down the fort, so he had no time to bother with other stuff.

    ¡°What do you think of the situation now?¡± Duanmu Huanghun suddenly asked.

    Ai Hui was somewhat surprised and shot a nce at Duanmu Huanghun. He did not expect Duanmu Huanghun to suddenly talk to him.

    However, at this point in time, it was not worth it to bring up the previous grievances. Regardless of whether he was willing or not, all of them were in the same boat now. Also, Duanmu Huanghun performed significant deeds and had not proved to be an obstruction. If they were able to make it out alive, Duanmu Huanghun would have yed a huge part in making it happen.

    The malice Ai Hui felt toward him lessened.

    He shook his head. ¡°Disastrous.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun frowned ever so slightly. ¡°Why is that? Hasn¡¯t the situation stabilized?¡±

    Looking at the situation before his eyes, Duanmu Huanghun felt that the situation had improved. They had a favorable defensive position and also figured out the pattern of alternating defenders. The avable rations and water was also sufficient tost for a period of time.

    Where was the danger?

    Duanmu Huanghun believed that Ai Hui would not have spoken without thinking.

    Just as Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s capability had obtained the stamp of approval from everyone, Ai Hui¡¯s acute judgement has also obtained the same stamp of approval. Although this result made Duanmu Huanghun ufortable, he had to admit that while he was confident of winning in a personal battle, he was indeedcking in other aspects.

    Many times, Ai Hui¡¯s experience and skills reminded him of Instructor Zhou.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you notice? Those wild beasts that attacked us were herbivores.¡±

    While Ai Hui¡¯s tone was calm, it was still a shock for Duanmu Huanghun when he heard it.

    Recalling the previous battles, the animals that he met with were mostly small animals that fed on nts. He pondered for awhile. ¡°Are you implying that there are even more ferocious wild beasts that were poisoned? Or only those that fed on nts would be poisoned?¡±

    ¡°The red water underground has a very weak delicate fragrance. If you pull a de of grass, the fragrance of the grass is more intense than the red water. Do you still remember the red-haired rabbit? The blood of the red-haired rabbit was even more fragrant than the grass. I killed a mosquito previously and the blood from the mosquito was even sweeter and more fragrant than the red-haired rabbit¡¯s blood. What do you think this means?¡±

    ¡°You are implying...¡± Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s expression became very worried.

    ¡°The concentration of the blood poison is increasing progressively,¡± Ai Hui said straightforwardly. He continued, ¡°Look at those wild beasts that were killed by us. Their corpses were gobbled up cleanly, right? Have you seen a drop of blood on the ground yet?¡±

    ¡°This proves that those wild beasts that were poisoned were very bloodthirsty.¡± Duanmu Huanghun thought of the most usible reason.

    ¡°No.¡± Ai Hui shook his head. ¡°They were attracted by the blood poison. I suspect they are transforming.¡±

    ¡°What do you think of the battle ability of these small animals that feed on nts? Did it increase substantially?¡± Ai Hui continued to ask.

    ¡°Very much so.¡± Duanmu Huanghun nodded his head.

    ¡°What has changed them? The blood poison. It enabled them to be stronger. Do you still remember the progressive trend? For the carnivorous wild beasts, the blood poison is more concentrated, so their change would be even greater and more dangerous,¡± Ai Hui said gravely.

    Duanmu Huanghun had actually missed that small detail. A chill that was hard to put in words ascended from his spine, and he shivered.

    ¡°For the time being, we still do not know what change it will bring. However, the mosquito i killed previously was also very weak. As such, I suspect that it is possible for the carnivorous wild beasts to have to undergo a transformation period. Thus, the reason why we have yet to meet with these carnivorous wild beasts might be because they have notpleted the transformation.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face turned as white as sheet. ¡°This... This is just your conjecture...¡±

    ¡°If I am not wrong, the wild beasts we are going to encounter subsequently will be harder to deal with.¡± Ai Hui was as cool as a cucumber, like he was narrating an incident that had nothing to do with him. ¡°I hope my guess is wrong. Otherwise, we can only wish for the early arrival of the support team.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun stared nkly at Ai Hui. He could not imagine how Ai Hui could be so indifferent to their dire state.

    Ai Hui did not take note of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s gaze. He continued to mutter, ¡°Also, why would the wild beasts attack us? And why didn¡¯t they attack us previously? Did you notice that the wild beasts would gobble up the corpses of their own kind but would not attack those that were alive. Why was that the case?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun felt dumbstruck.

    He had always thought that he was truly a genius and felt that he had a nimble mind. He was able to think of a reason whenever there was a problem. But now, listening to Ai Hui¡¯s consecutive ¡°why¡¯s¡±, he felt that his brain was not substantial enough.

    Had everyone not walked the same route? Why did the things they saw differ so much?

    The expression Duanmu Huanghun had while looking at Ai Hui was like he had seen a ghost.

    Every detail that Ai Hui mentioned was something that Duanmu Huanghun had not noticed. Thinking about it closely, every problem seemed to have a profound theory behind it.

    At that moment, Duanmu Huanghun saw Ai Hui in a new light. He finally understood why Ai Hui always managed to gain the trust of other people. This fellow¡¯s insight was simply too scary. Furthermore, his calm and cool-headed thinking always managed to point directly to the crux of the problem.

    Moreover, no matter how bad the situation, Ai Hui seemed to never panic.

    For example, if Ai Hui¡¯s conjecture was true, then they were going to be in a dire situation. When Ai Hui used his exclusively strange tone, yes that¡¯s right, that sort of strange tone that had nothing to do with him. To Duanmu Huanghun, the tone was weird to an extreme degree.

    Seems like he was not very worried now...

    What sort of weird mindset was this? Duanmu Huanghun, himself, was also rather speechless.

    ¡°Ah Hui, it is our turn now.¡±

    Fatty¡¯s shout broke Ai Hui¡¯s train of thoughts.

    Ai Hui gathered his senses, grabbed his grass sword, and, together with Fatty, took over Cui Xianzi¡¯s post.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes brightened. He was filled with curiosity toward Ai Hui¡¯s battle ability since he had never witnessed it before. Now he would be able to observe it.

    At that moment, a long beast howl sounded out from a distant ce.

    In unison, Ai Hui and Duanmu Huanghun changed their expressions.

 Chapter 125: Solution

    Chapter 125: Solution

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    Ai Hui felt that he really was a jinx.

    Upon hearing that long beast howl, he knew that they were at the most critical moment.

    The points that he had mentioned to Duanmu Huanghun were not casual opinions but the things that he was most puzzled about. He still had many doubts that he hadn¡¯t mentioned, but at this juncture, all of them were unimportant.

    Although he was unable to identify the wild beast¡¯s type from its howl, he was sure that they were unable to defeat it.

    Perhaps only Instructor Zhou could.

    He had seen many dire beasts in the Wilderness, and every single mighty dire beast definitely had an imposing manner. Just like people who held high positions, they had gestures and mannerisms that were different from ordinary folk. Thew of the jungle was, obviously, even crueler and prevalent in the jungle. Battles between wild beasts were more straightforward, and in order to protect their own territory, wild beasts didn¡¯t know what it meant to keep a low profile¡ªthe king of the beasts must be cruel, vicious, and warlike. Only then would they be able to achieve sess and attain the title of king of the beasts.

    Those who managed to survive thew of the jungle had the instinct to fear danger and cower in front of those who were stronger.

    Ai Hui had clearly noticed the panic of the surrounding wild beasts after hearing the beast howl.

    And he instantly knew that the distant wild beast was not something they couldpete against.

    Furthermore, the flock of wild beasts that was rushing up suddenly scattered, as if there was an opening at the other end. They left the rubble and dispersed into the distance.

    While there was joy on the other students¡¯ faces, Ai Hui¡¯s pupils constricted, and his hair stood on end.

    Pieces of flesh were scattered on the ground. Those wild beasts had run for their lives without even bothering about the flesh that they initially could not resist. This was the first time Ai Hui had seen such bloody chunks of the flesh on the ground.

    There was only one possibility¡ªthat ferocious beast was approaching!

    Damn it!

    The intensified fear stimted all of Ai Hui¡¯s brain¡¯s nerves. He knew that they had to quicklye up with a response. It would be toote when the ferocious beast discovered them.

    What should he do?

    He forced himself to calm down. He repeated to himself that it was not the first time he had encountered such a situation. He had experienced much worse in the Wilderness. Back then, he did not have any support, and the elementalists also did not care if he was dead or alive. However, now, the teachers would not be callous and make him fight his own battles.

    How did he hide previously?

    Ai Hui jolted. Hide......

    Yes!

    Hide! Only if they hide would there be a possibility to survive.

    Hide...hide... hide...

    The wheels in Ai Hui¡¯s head spun furiously as he recalled that at the most dangerous juncture, he had covered himself in mud and had hidden in the sludge, thus having a narrow escape.

    His gaze swept over the surroundings, but there were only rocks. There was no mud here.

    Rocks...

    His gaze fell onto thergest one. That rock was about ten meters tall and was nted at a certain angle. Ai Hui¡¯s eyes brightened as he shouted, "Everyone, hide beneath that piece of rock!"

    Everyone looked bewildered.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s brain had been filled to the brim with Ai Hui¡¯s predictions when one of them hade true. This had heightened his uneasiness. And when he saw the calm Ai Hui have such an intense reaction, he instantly became alert.

    "Move over everyone! Listen to Ai Hui¡¯smands!" Teacher Xu¡¯s voice rang out. He had also picked up on Ai Hui¡¯s nervousness. In his memory, Ai Hui had never been this anxious.

    "Teacher, could you move that piece of rock?" Ai Hui pointed to a horizontal, rectangr rock.

    "Let me do it." Cui Xianzi did not question his intentions, and a red satin cloth flew out from her hand and coiled around the rectangr rock like a snake.

    Hu!

    The rectangr rock flew upwards and was slotted into the bottom of the huge rock, forming an empty, partially closed-off space, like a small shelter.

    At that moment, all the wild beasts in their surroundings had vanished. By now, even those with slower reactions could tell that something was wrong.

    "Everyone, go in!" Ai Hui urged the students. While the students started to hide in panic, he asked Teacher Xu, "Is it possible to use mud to seal up the cracks?"

    "I know how to; I am an earth elementalist." A student whom Ai Hui did not know raised his hand. He continued, "But how do we breathe?"

    "Just hold your breath! Speed up! It¡¯s going to be here soon!" Ai Hui replied with an agitated tone.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hand that was clutching the grass sword was trembling, but it was barely perceptible. He was in his sword embryo state, and all his six senses had been heightened. But it was also due to this that he was more than able toprehend the frightfulness of the unknown beast that was approaching their group.

    "The thicker the mud, the better it is! It would be even better if it¡¯s like a mountain; it would be able to cover us!"

    The earth elementalist set about his task immediately. Controlling mud was not difficult to an earth elementalist. The nearby mud and sandstone started to slowly ascend the rectangr rock like an ugly monster wriggling its way upwards.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze swept over the discarded torn body parts that were near them. He had a sudden idea. "Is it possible to put those torn parts on the topmostyer of the mud?"

    Duanmu Huanghun somewhat understood Ai Hui¡¯s intentions.

    A blue and white slender rattan flew out from his hand. When it reached the top of a piece of flesh, it suddenly split into ten different blue and white rattans that were even more slender than the first rattan. Each of the slender rattans rolled up a piece of flesh.

    Duanmu Huanghun controlled the rattans and brought the flesh to the top of the rock.

    When thest crack was sealed, the rattans faded away, and all the torn pieces of flesh lost their support and scattered around the huge rock and sandstones. Darkness engulfed everyone.

    The earth elementalist student copsed on the ground. In order to create a thickyer of mud as Ai Hui had requested, he had exhausted all his energy. From the outside, one could see the tremendous changes that the rubble had undergone. The massive rock that had initially had half its body inclined into the air was nowpletely buried under the sandstones, forming a small barrow.

    "It is here. Do not make any noise."

    In the dark, Ai Hui¡¯s lowered his voice to deliberately contribute to everyone¡¯s tension.

    Pa...Da...Pa...Da...

    Unhurried footsteps could be distinctly heard in the dark. Everyone¡¯s hearts were in their throats.

    A dark red wolf appeared at the perimeter of the rubble. Its nose twitched as if it had some suspicion. It was puzzled by the sight in front of him¡ªthe barrow that was scattered with huge amounts of flesh.

    The atmosphere was filled with the delicate fragrance of blood and flesh.

    The wolf soon threw its doubt to the back of its mind. The pieces of flesh in front of it had caught its attention, and it started to greedily devour them. Although the flesh couldn¡¯t be said to be the best food, it wasn¡¯t too bad either. Previously, the wolf was not considered a powerful wild beast in the Garden of Life, and even after its transformation, it still retained its previous instincts to not waste food.

    Beneath its feet, the students who were waiting felt each second to be years.

    Goosebumps crawled up everyone¡¯s arms upon hearing the crunching of bonesing from the top of their heads.

    The blood wolf cleared all the body parts, but it did not have the least bit of contentment. Instead, it became even more hungry.

    Suddenly, its eyes lit up with a blood-thirsty re as it gazed deep into the forest.

    A howl sounded out from afar, causing the blood wolf to turn its head. There was now anotherrge beast like it in the vicinity.

    It wasn¡¯t sure how that was possible, but right now, it just wanted to have a good meal.

    It retracted its gaze, turned around, and headed into the forest.

 Chapter 126: I am the Wind of the North Sea

    Chapter 126: I am the Wind of the North Sea

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    Zhou Xiaoxi was worried sick. He was flying at his highest speed as he knew that the students could not hold on for too long.

    Every one hundred kilometers, he would stop and chop down a tree to see if the blood poison had spread to that area. However, every time he stopped to check, his disappointment would only increase. He had already flown halfway through the Garden of Life, but the cores of the trees he chopped down were still red in color.

    He could not imagine what was going to happen. He felt fear.

    In his eyes, the boundless Garden of Life had be a boundless sea of blood.

    The Garden of Life was being corroded by the blood poison. His body was also being corroded by the blood poison. It was like a monster that continuously devoured his elemental energy, making itself grow increasingly stronger.

    He clenched his teeth and flew with all his might. However, he soon discovered that his pair of azure wings was bing weaker and his flying speed was decreasing.

    He became dismayed and somewhat mocked himself. If his brothers from his department saw him flying at this speed, they would definitelyugh at him. The day when the Wind of The North Sea, Zhou Xiaoxi, was slower than a tortoise had finallye.

    Like a bird with injured wings, he lost his bnce and started to wobble in mid-air, his altitude rapidly decreasing.

    As he flew through the canopy of the woods, densely-packed tree branches whipped his body, but he could not feel anything.

    When was thest time he flew so low? It should be when he was twelve years old...

    An image of a young and immature youth appeared before his eyes. The youth was clumsily wearing a pair of azure wings that was much bigger than the size of his body. It was his father¡¯s azure wings. Even in his dreams, he would yearn to soar through the skies like his father.

    The first time the youth had put on the azure wings, he had been very nervous. He had pursed his lips and channeled his elemental energy before unsteadily taking off from the ground. But before he could rejoice, he had screamed and crashed into the tree in his backyard like a drunk bird.

    The feeling of branches smacking his face then was simr to what he was feeling now.

    That youth was filled with ignorance and vision. Those were good old times.

    Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s body mmed heavily onto the ground, causing soil and rotten leaves to fly everywhere. A warm and nostalgic smile appeared on his face.

    After struggling to pick himself up, he leaned against a tree and took out a bamboo tube from his shirt. He then pulled out a distress leaf and pinned it on the tree trunk.

    When he saw the glow of the pine needle dim, he was in a daze for ten seconds.

    He carefully closed the bamboo tube and hid it well within his shirt. Without any hesitation, he turned around and started staggering in the direction of the Induction Ground. However, as he moved, he found it to be increasingly difficult to breathe, and his body¡¯s temperature was rising. His energy was rapidly reducing as well. All right, he actually did not have any strength left; his legs went to jelly, and he was shaking.

    Luckily, Cui Xianzi was not able to see his current pathetic state; otherwise, it would be very humiliating...

    The dizziness and the ringing in his ears had sent him into a state of stupor.

    He must look very ugly now....

    In his daze, he seemed to see Cui Xianzi give him a smile. Suddenly, his legs tripped over a branch, and he fell t on his face, causing his forehead to knock against a rock and start bleeding.

    This made him a bit sober. With a surge of strength, he picked himself up and struggled forward.

    Tumbling, staggering, and dazed.

    His body was as red as a cooked prawn; his body temperature was astonishingly high. He could feel an erupting volcano inside his body.

    The blood on his forehead was emitting an alluring fragrance.

    Sounds of rustling could be heard as several pairs of scarlet eyes began to light up in the nearby underbrush.

    Even so, he did not feel fear anymore, just like how he did not know how far he had walked. His dazed eyes were dyed red by the blood dripping from his forehead, causing his vision to be of a simr blood-red.

    He could hear his own breathing loud and clear, and his heart was pounding so hard that it resembled a roaring monster. He could feel the world leaving him.

    Is this the feeling of death....

    He tried to move his lips, but he no longer had any strength. He copsed onto the ground.

    The wild beasts started to approach from all directions. Their scarlet eyes were filled with hunger and desire.

    Behind the blood-red canopy, there was the deep, blood-red sky. It was so beautiful. He did not know since when he had loved the sky, but he had always desired to conquer and soar through the heavens.

    Who was the one who had told him that thest thought before someone died was the thing that they loved the most?

    Such bullshit...

    So the thing he loved the most was his bamboo tube? Hahaha....

    Next time, he should remember to not close the lid of the bamboo tube so tightly... Okay, there would be no next time.

    With shaky hands, he managed to open the lid of the tube and involuntarily spilled the pine needle leaves all over the ground.

    Through his blood-filled vision, he could not differentiate the multi-colored pine needle leaves from each other.

    His eyes had been rendered colorblind from the blood...

    Dark red tears started to flow down his cheeks, but he did not know whether they were blood or tears. The tears fell onto his soil-smudged palms, forming a small, heart-shaped puddle.

    Cui Xianzi, you must survive!

    He summoned thest bit of strength he had and grabbed a bunch of pine needle leaves. Then, like a beast that was pushed to its edge, he dashed towards the nearest tree!

    Bang!

    A bunch of pine needle leaves smudged with mud was pinned onto the tree.

    He stared nkly at it. There was a speck of light that was bing brighter and brighter, bit by bit.

    He wanted tough, he wanted tough at the top of his voice! However, he could not make any sound.

    This was his distress leaf, and the Induction Ground could track it. The Induction Ground would be able to identify Cui Xianzi¡¯s location as his North Sea Token was in the bag of rations and medicine that he had passed to her.

    He raised his head with satisfaction. Through his blood-covered vision, he could see those malevolent wild beasts.

    So ugly....

    At this moment, he just wanted to yell his name with pride to Cui Xianzi and his dear beautiful sky. He wanted to let the drifting wind carry his name...

    I am the Wind of the North Sea!

    Then, he fell to the ground, his body stiff, as he faced his beloved sky for thest time.

    ...

    The students had already spent three days in darkness under the mound.

    After the ferocious beast had left thest time, Ai Hui had requested Duanmu Huanghun to dig a few more small holes in the mound using his vines.

    The amount of oxygen that these little holes could channel was minimal. Fortunately, everyone knew how dangerous it was outside. Even the delicate and petite female students were enduring and persevering at this point.

    Outside was total chaos. There were various unknown wild beasts, and their roars were getting louder and louder.

    Everyone was trembling in fear even though they were under the mound.

    Their shelter had repeatedly been strengthened over these past few days. Ai Hui was in charge of the students¡¯ security while those who were earth elementalists were in charge of controlling the soil and mud to strengthen the mound.

    The mound was bing increasingly thicker, but even after being strengthened, it still could not stop the roars from prating.

    When will we be rescued?

    "Will we survive?" someone asked in the dark.

    "We will definitely survive!" Teacher Xu replied with absolute determination. "The Induction Ground will not ignore such an overt situation. Everyone needs to believe in the Induction Ground, and believe in ourselves."

    "Teacher Xu is right." Cui Xianzi put in some encouraging words as well. "We need to believe in the Induction Ground. It¡¯s quite a long distance between the Garden of Life and the Induction Ground, so it will take some time for reinforcements. However, no matter what, the Induction Ground will definitely not remain indifferent to such a dire situation."

    After hearing these words, the students were more at ease.

    After speaking, Cui Xianzi became silent in the darkness.

    As she thought of Zhou Xiaoxi, her hands involuntarily grasped the bag that he had thrown to her. It had been three days, and there was still no news of that fellow. Could it be that he had gotten into some ident?

    When she thought of the blood poison in Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s body, she became more worried.

    That frivolous face kept appearing in her mind. When she thought of how his shamelessness had amused her and made her cheerful, a smile involuntarily appeared on her face.

    That fellow was much more amusing than the other teachers....

    She thought of how Zhou Xiaoxi had pestered her for her contact details and told her that he was going to write letters to her. Such an old-fashioned man. How could he not know that letter-writing is outdated?

    By then, if I don¡¯t receive any letters from you, you¡¯re finished... Humph....

    In the darkness, a faint blush appeared on Cui Xianzi¡¯s face.

    However, in the blink of an eye, all those distracting thoughts transformed back into ones of worry.

    When she saw the injured student who was had been knocked out and tied up tightly, she became even more anxious.

    No matter what, you must survive!

    Ai Hui actually wanted everyone to stop talking. Although they were all keeping their volume low, he still wanted to tell them that a lot of wild beasts had superb hearing.

    However, in the end, he did not say anything because he knew that if everyone really maintained total silence, they would all plunge into a mental breakdown.

    He was used to being in darkness and was not in any difort.

    He took a nce at Fatty, who was lying against a rock, sleeping soundly. Actually, the best thing to do in such a situation was to sleep.

    However, Ai Hui did not dare to sleep because he wanted to pay constant attention to what was going on outside. His hand never left the grass sword at all.

    Aspared to other people, he was not really optimistic about the current situation. He had not slept for three days. He clearly knew what was going on outside.

    The situation was deteriorating!

    Everyone could hear that the wild beasts¡¯ roars were bing increasingly frequent; however, only Ai Hui was counting the types of roars in his mind.

    Twenty-six!

    During thest three days, he had heard twenty-six different types of roars. But these ferocious beasts would usually not let out such raging howls.

    Every beast would only let out one distinct roar.

    He guessed that these roars must contain some kind of special message. But the amount of information he had gathered was far too little. There was no way he could decipher the meaning behind them.

    However, there was one thing that he was sure of, and that was that only dangerous beasts would give off such angry roars.

    There were twenty-six different types of wild beasts out there, and every one of them was extremely dangerous. Just this fact would make everyone tremble with fear.

    Ai Hui knew that the blood poison was beginning to spread. The incubation period of the blood poison had passed, and it was now in its maturity period. The fact that the blood poison had incubated had already been validated.

    The student who was bitten by the red-haired rabbit was the one whom Ai Hui had gotten his validation from.

    This student¡¯s elemental energy hadpletely disappeared, and his entire body was boiling hot. When he woke up, he was filled with irritation and aggression. If Ai Hui had never broken away from the sword embryo¡¯s state and detected these symptoms, roughly half the number of people under the mound would have been injured by this infected student.

    The injured student¡¯s body was undergoing astonishing changes. For example, his skin had be tougher, his eyes had be bloodshot and were giving off a demonic-red glow, his strength had increased tremendously, and his hair had be thicker. That fellow¡¯s hair had also grown a significant length in the past three days.

    The wound on his hand had also been fully healed without leaving any scar.

    Furthermore, Ai Hui also noticed that this student did not lose his total self-awareness. It was just that he could not control his emotions. It was as if there was something in everyone¡¯s body that was provoking him.

    For the sake of everyone¡¯s safety, this student was tied up.

    Ai Hui was secretly observing the injured student, like how he had observed the dire beasts in the Wilderness.

    Ai Hui was most worried about whether the Induction Ground was capable of handling the blood poison that was already in its maturity period.

    However, when he thought of thex garrison in the Induction Ground, he could onlyugh bitterly.

 Chapter 127: Si Nanâ€™s Journal

    Chapter 127: Si Nan¡¯s Journal

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: - -

    It was the fifth day. Ai Hui noticed that the movements outside had decreased, and he guessed that the Induction Ground must have taken action.

    He made sure to tell this to everyone as he knew that they needed a boost in morale right now. If not for the terrifying roars of the wild beasts outside, there would be people here taking action. However, no one had the courage to go out when they heard those furious roars.

    Ai Hui¡¯s conjecture significantly raised the spirits of those downcast students. They already had faith in Ai Hui¡¯s judgments since the beginning of this excursion.

    In such a cramped and dark environment with foul and dirty air, every day was akin to torture.

    On the sixth day, Ai Hui and the rest of the students were finally rescued by Li Wei and his rescue team.

    When everyone finally walked out of the mound, they felt as if it had been a lifetime. The surrounding terrain had undergone massive changes; the initial lush and verdant forest had been reduced to a barrennd with billowing smoke and fumes.

    Ai Hui noticed many people pouring red kerosene onto the trees and nts. Behind them was scorched earth; every inch ofnd had been torched by the burning kerosene. No nts could ever grow on such and.

    He was in somewhat of a daze.

    A few days ago, he had been thinking about how peaceful the Induction Ground was; however, after now seeing the charrednd, he felt that he had been too naive.

    Ai Hui himself reacted like this, let alone the other students. An ordinary excursion had turned into a terrifying experience.

    Aftering out of the mound, many students broke down on the spot. Everyone was crying bitterly. At this point, all they wanted was to return to the safety and warmth of their homes.

    Ai Hui noticed Li Wei pull Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi to one side. Li Wei told them something, causing Cui Xianzi¡¯s face to turn deathly pale, and her body appeared to be on the verge of copsing.

    Upon seeing this, Ai Hui was stunned. Actually, when he did not catch sight of Instructor Zhou aftering out of the mound, he knew that something was wrong.

    He was used to witnessing death, but at this moment, he still felt despondent.

    Everyone was assigned to a transport wagon and set off homeward. Li Wei did not follow them as he still had a mission to carry out; there were still lots of people who had yet to be found. A total of five sses had gone on this excursion, but only two sses¡ªAi Hui¡¯s ss and Fatty¡¯s ss¡ªhad been rescued. One ss had been confirmed dead, and the remaining two were still missing.

    After going missing for so many days, their chance of surviving was minimal.

    Yet, no one wanted to give up. Li Wei was greatly encouraged after finding Ai Hui¡¯s and Fatty¡¯s sses.

    When Ai Hui heard that there were still two sses missing, he felt even more downcast. Those of the Wilderness were always mentally prepared for death. Surviving was a gift conferred by the gods, and everyone was apathetic to death.

    However, the Induction Ground was like heaven, peaceful and safe. Ai Hui used to think that the Induction Ground was the best ce in the world, and he had even thought about how nice it would be if he got to stay in the Induction Ground forever.

    Li Wei patted his shoulder and told him to go back and have a good rest.

    On the transport wagon, no one had the mood to talk. Sobs could be heard everywhere. Cui Xianzi was seated on one side, staring nkly into space as if her soul had left her body. Her face was as pale as paper, and her hands were clenching onto Zhou Xiaoxi¡¯s bag.

    Ai Hui wanted to console her, but he did not know what to say. The death was so sudden, and she did not even have the chance to bid farewell.

    Ai Hui, who had always thought that he was used to death, could not help but look down.

    As he gazed downwards from the sky, he could see that the jade-green sea of trees had disappeared. The charred ground was like an ugly scar that stretched into the smoky horizon. Fire extended towards the distance, devouring everything in its path.

    The poisoned student was put on an emergency transport wagon as he needed urgent medical treatment.

    However, Ai Hui felt that the chance of that student surviving was not high. He had never seen such a strange type of blood poison. That poisoned student¡¯s body had undergone terrifying mutations.

    For some reason, the blood poison seemed somewhat familiar to Ai Hui. He remembered reading about something simr in a journal.

    But when he tried to think about it, he could not remember any details.

    When Ai Hui finally glimpsed Central Pine City, he was suddenly overwhelmed with emotions.

    It was just that...

    Central Pine City was still the same, prosperous and peaceful. It looked as if nothing had happened.

    At this moment, someone noticed that the transport wagon was not flying in the direction of Central Pine City.

    ¡°Where are you taking us?¡±

    ¡°I want to go home!¡±

    ¡°Let us down!¡±

    The students started to be agitated. Their mental states had already been pushed to the brink of copse, and when they saw that the transport wagon was taking them to another ce, they all went frantic.

    Ai Hui observed quietly from one side. When he saw that Central Pine City was not heavily guarded, he roughly understood what was going on.

    The Induction Ground had instituted a lockdown on information.

    ¡°Teacher Xu, please cooperate with us,¡± an elementalist said solemnly. ¡°To prevent the spread of the poison, all of you will have to be quarantined for a period of time. Everyone, please try to understand. This is for the sake of everyone¡¯s safety and for all of you.¡±

    Teacher Xu¡¯s face turned ugly. He didn¡¯t expect to be quarantined just after escaping from that hellhole.

    But the dead-serious look on the elementalist¡¯s face told him that it was an order from the goddamn higher-ups.

    He was clear about the Induction Ground and the higher-ups¡¯ ways of handling such situations.

    So he had no choice but to console the students. He knew that if he let the students carry on stirring up trouble, things that he did not want to see might happen.

    ¡°You want to put a lockdown on information?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun suddenly asked. That elementalist¡¯s facial expression slightly changed as he nced at Duanmu Huanghun. However, he did not disagree, and instead replied inly, ¡°It¡¯s for everyone¡¯s sake. This is such an enormous catastrophe. Who will be responsible if it creates unnecessary mass hysteria?¡±

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you disperse everyone?¡± Duanmu Huanghun replied, meeting the elementalist¡¯s gaze head-on. Without any fear, he asked coldly, ¡°Have you not thought about what will happen if you lose control of the situation? How many people will be implicated?¡±

    ¡°We will not lose control of the situation.¡± The elementalist was aware of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s identity and was careful with his tone. ¡°We have already found a way to deal with this poison.¡±

    ¡°You figured out a way to deal with the poison?¡± Ai Hui suddenly opened his mouth and asked.

    Initially, the elementalist had not wanted to divulge anything. However, after seeing the agitation of the surrounding students and that Duanmu Huanghun was staring coldly at him, he decided to reveal a bit of information. ¡°Yes, we found records of a simr poison in the journal of a deceased wood elementalist. The Induction Ground gathered the most powerful wood elementalists in the city and discovered a way to counter this type of poison. This whole situation was an ident.¡±

    ¡°ident?¡± Duanmu Huanghun felt that he had heard a huge joke. It was obviously an enormous disaster, where so many people had died, but this fellow was saying that it was just an ident?

    ¡°Yes. There is a clear record of the form of this type of poison in the wood elementalist¡¯s journal. Right now, we are performing tests, but from the looks of it, things are proceeding very smoothly.¡±

    The elementalist was brimming with confidence as he replied to Duanmu Huanghun.

    ......

    Ai Hui and the rest were brought to a manor that was roughly forty kilometers from Central Pine City. When they just reached, they were immediately questioned by a few elementalists. It was evident that the security was extremely tight.

    ¡°I hope everyone can stay here at ease. If everything goes smoothly, all of you will be back in Central Pine City very soon. Please surrender all the various types of leaves you have with you. There will be severe consequences for anyone who tries tomunicate with outside world without permission. If everyone can cooperate with us, the Induction Ground willpensate for the losses you suffered during this period of time.¡±

    The elementalist then hurriedly took off.

    ¡°Let¡¯s find a ce and sleep,¡± Ai Hui told Fatty.

    In order to be aware of what was happening outside the mound, Ai Hui hadn¡¯t closed his eyes and had stayed in the sword embryo¡¯s state for six days straight. When he finally loosened his grip on the sword hilt, weakness and fatigue flooded him like a tsunami.

    He casually found an empty room that had a bed and fell asleep the moment heid on it.

    Meanwhile, Fatty stood guard at the door. He had slept day and night when under the mound, and he now felt as if he could go for days without sleep.

    ......

    In a heavily-guarded basement in the Induction Ground.

    The powerful wood elementalists of the Induction Ground had all gathered here. At this moment, they were studying an ancient journal, whose rotten pages revealed its unknown age.

    This was a four-hundred-year-old journal that was left behind by a wood-attributed teacher named Si Nan.

    In this journal, he had recorded his lifetime¡¯s research and knowledge in detail.

    In the course of his research, he had discovered a special phenomenon: except for blood-refined artifacts, all artifacts from the Cultivation Era had now be scraps.

    He had collected a few pieces of blood-refined artifacts, and after carrying out experiments on them, he had discovered that they had the ability to self-repair. No one in current times knew how to use these artifacts, but they had not degenerated like the others.

    They were well preserved.

    This unique phenomenon had aroused Si Nan¡¯s interest. He had proceeded to study many blood-refining manuals of the Cultivation Era and had discovered that blood-refining was entirely different from those mainstream training methods of the Cultivation Era.

    Blood-refining was an ancient training method. Reportedly, it originated from the blood sacrifices that humans had made to the Heaven and Earth when they were just created.

    Si Nan hadbined the knowledge he had obtained from his research on blood-refining with that of wood elementalist¡¯s nt breeding.

    He hoped to breed nts that possessed the powers of blood-refining, and he put in a great deal of effort to breed a lot of nts. However, he did not seed, even until his death.

    After he had passed away, his student had discovered a significant amount of premature nts while tidying up his life¡¯s works.

    His student could not bear to destroy his teacher¡¯s life¡¯s work, but he was too busy to take care of them, so he transnted these nts to the Garden of Life.

    And that student had recorded this incident in his diary.

    After this disaster had broken out in the Garden of Life, someone had remembered Si Nan¡¯s journal during the initial investigation. Most of the teachers would donate their life¡¯s research and findings to the Induction Ground after they died, and other teachers had the right to read and study them.

    There was more than one person who had read Si Nan¡¯s journal. Many wood elementalists that were gathered here today had also thought of this journal after hearing about the blood poison.

    This was what encouraged the Induction Ground the most¡ªthey had found the key to the problem.

 Chapter 128: The Fattyâ€™s Unique Skill

    Chapter 128: The Fatty¡¯s Unique Skill

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: - -

    Ai Hui woke up with a splitting headache.

    He had a dream. He dreamt that the recent event was a dream. And after he woke up from the dream within his dream, he was back in the Wilderness, where an elementalist had asked him why he had not finished his work.

    ¡°Are you awake?¡±

    Fatty¡¯s voice brought him back to reality. He turned around and saw Fatty squatting at the door, crunching on a piece of malt candy. If the malt candy were reced with a bone, Fatty would look exactly like a plump guard dog.

    Dog...he doesn¡¯t look like a dog...pig suits him better...

    He had persuaded Fatty to stop eating so many candies numerous times, but this fellow would always just turn a deaf ear.

    He did not know where and how Fatty hid his malt candies. No matter the location or the time, he could always get out a piece of malt candy. It must be his unique skill.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was drenched in sweat, and he felt terribly ufortable. ¡°I need to find a ce to bathe.¡±

    The moment he started talking, he was shocked by his hoarse voice.

    ¡°What happened to your throat?¡± Fatty turned around, his face filled with concern.

    Ai Hui shook his head and did not say anything else. He hung his sword on his waist and walked out of the room. The dazzling sunlight shone upon his face, preventing him from opening his eyes. He subconsciously squinted and used his hands to block the ring daylight.

    After observing his surroundings, Ai Hui realized that this ce was not a manor but an army camp. From the look of it, this army camp was rather old. Was it possible that this manor was remodeled from an abandoned army camp?

    When he noticed a guard standing nearby, Ai Hui walked straight towards him and asked, ¡°Is there a ce for bathing?¡±

    A trace of disdain shed across the guard¡¯s eyes as he took a nce at Ai Hui. He was reluctant to waste his words and pointed a finger in the direction of the courtyard.

    ¡°Thank you.¡± Ai Hui nodded and walked in the direction of the guard¡¯s finger.

    ¡°Wait for me!¡±

    Fatty shouted from behind. With nimbleness that did not match his body size, he appeared beside Ai Hui. Ai Hui had long be ustomed to Fatty¡¯s cowardice; when they were in the Wilderness, Fatty would always follow wherever he went, just like now.

    Luckily, Fatty was timid in nature; if not, he would not have survived until now.

    As they reached the courtyard, Ai Hui discovered a corridor, and after walking through it for awhile, they finally saw a small pond.

    The size of the pond wasn¡¯t really that big; however, its water was clear and rippling.

    Plop! Ai Hui jumped into the pond and was prepared to take a rxing bath.

    He sighed. How nice would it be if he was in the training hall now! A massage session from Lou Lan would get rid of all his weariness and fatigue.

    Lou Lan was still the best...

    He wondered how Lou Lan was doing.

    ¡°Ai Hui, I¡¯ming!¡±

    Fatty yelled and jumped straight into the pool.

    Ai Hui let the water ssh onto his face as his eyes twitched. This bastard...

    Within seconds, the already small pond had lost half the amount of its water. Ai Hui suddenly wished that he could kick Fatty out of the pond.

    ......

    After taking a bath, Ai Hui finally felt much better. His splitting headache had been mostly relieved. Headaches, however, weren¡¯t an unusual urrence to him¡ªwhenever he used the sword embryo for an extended period of time, he would have a headache. Yet he never paid it any mind as it would always disappear after some time.

    This time, if not for the sword embryo, he would have died.

    After finishing his bath, Ai Hui walked to the steps and settled down. He casually plucked a de of grass and was about to put it in his mouth when he suddenly stopped and scrutinized it. When he discerned that there were no signs of a red color, he ced it near his nose and smelled it. It was only after perceiving that there was no faint fragrance to it that he felt relieved, and he then put it in his mouth and began to chew.

    He propped his hands behind his head and basked in the sunlight while chewing his de of grass.

    What was Lou Lan doing now? How was Master, Mistress and Senior Mingxiu? When he remembered seeing that Central Pine City looked normal as usual when they flew past it, he was more at ease.

    He felt that he was worrying for nothing. Mistress and Senior Mingxiu were so powerful; why would he need to worry about them?

    Lou Lan was a sand puppet; no one would deliberately target him...

    Crunch. Crunch.

    The sound of someone crunching malt candies came from Ai Hui¡¯s side. Ai Hui¡¯s thoughts suddenly disappeared, and he then involuntarilyughed at his previous mncholy.

    The heat from the sun was intense. After lying in the sun for only a short moment, Ai Hui¡¯s shirt was already drenched in sweat.

    He stood up and gave Fatty a harsh kick.

    Fatty opened his groggy eyes and looked nkly at Ai Hui.

    ¡°Wake up and start training now,¡± Ai Hui instructed.

    ¡°Training?¡± Fatty was in a daze. After a while, he copsed back onto the ground. ¡°Such beautiful sunshine, let me sleep a bit more.¡±

    However, Ai Hui didn¡¯t say anything and used one hand to pull Fatty up, dragging him to a nearby empty training hall. ¡°Don¡¯t think that I¡¯ve forgotten about the debt you owe me. Do you think you can get away with stealing my money that easily? From today onwards, I¡¯m your creditor. You will only have your life back the day you return me my money. And to prevent you from dying identally and from me being able to get my money back, I will be supervising your training.¡±

    Ai Hui stopped talking as he felt his throat be ufortable after speaking so many words in a single breath.

    Fatty¡¯s face was filled with fear. He knew how terrifying Ai Hui¡¯s training routine was.

    The training hall was empty. The sun was so scorching hot that Fatty felt that the bath he took earlier was a waste.

    ¡°Show me what you can do.¡±

    When Fatty heard this, he shivered with fear. But just as he was about to open his mouth and plead, Ai Hui¡¯s fist wasing straight at him.

    Fatty instinctively dodged to the side. His movement was unusually graceful and agile, simr to a fat cat.

    Ai Hui¡¯s fist grazed the side of his face, sending undtions through itsyers of fat. Fatty¡¯s eyes widened as a shiver ran down his spine.

    This...this fellow is for real!

    If that punch hadnded squarely on his face, it would now be swollen like a pig¡¯s head.

    ¡°Ai¡ªAi Hui......if¡ªif there¡¯s anything wrong, we can talk about it. It¡¯s...it¡¯s not worth to risk our brotherly rtionship for such a small amount of money...¡±

    Fatty¡¯s voice was trembling. He resembled a madman as he dodged Ai Hui¡¯s punches left and right.

    ¡°You have be more adept at dodging.¡±

    From the corner of his eyes, Fatty noticed a glint flicker through Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. A shiver ran down his spine once more¡ªhe was all too familiar with this expression! Right now, Ai Hui was in an extremely dangerous mood.

    ¡°Spare me, spare me, Ai Hui! Let me off, please! I know I was wrong, I really know I¡¯m wrong!¡± Fatty wailed desperately.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face remained expressionless, but he started to throw his punches faster. Although he had never learned boxing before, his punches were extremely rapid and precise, simr to torrential rain. Initially, he had just wanted to see Fatty¡¯s progress, but after his first few punches hit nothing but air, he became more enthusiastic in attacking.

    Fatty looked extremely pathetic as he rolled and crawled around, trying to escape. However, he still managed to dodge Ai Hui¡¯s punches, and it was as if there was lubricant all over his body.

    Last time, Fatty would not have been able to perform at such a level. It appeared that he had made significant progress.

    Ai Hui¡¯s punches kept missing their target. However, the more surprised he became at Fatty¡¯s improvement, the more earnest he became with his attacks. Even though he was no good at boxing, the continually failed attacks stirred up his battlelust.

    Once Ai Hui really became serious, his punches slowed down.

    Fatty was like a cat which had its hair standing on end as if it had sensed an iing storm.

    At this moment, Ai Hui sensed something amiss with his body¡ªit was as if he had entered the sword embryo¡¯s state!

    In the past few days when he was under the mound, Ai Hui did not dare to let go of the grass sword lest he leave the sword embryo¡¯s state.

    It had been a while since he had continuously held on to the sword for six days and nights. Ever since he had discovered that it was easy to develop an unhealthy dependency on the sword embryo, which, in turn, would damage his actual skill level, he had tried his utmost to prevent himself from entering the sword embryo¡¯s state.

    What had happened under the mound was an emergency. At that time, he could not care about whether or not he would develop a dependency on the sword embryo.

    Previously, when Ai Hui had just woken up, he had assumed that his splitting headache was a side effect of entering the sword embryo¡¯s state for a prolonged period. However, at this moment, Ai Hui realized that he was getting more and more used to the sword embryo¡¯s state. He was finding it easier to enter it as well.

    Instead of punching, Ai Hui used his fingers as a sword and brandished it casually.

    Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

    Those swooshing sounds would cause one to prostrate with fear.

    Fatty was like a puffed-up, frightened fat cat. He felt the approach of danger and quickly maneuvered his body. However, to his horror, no matter how he maneuvered his body, he could notpletely dodge Ai Hui¡¯s seemingly rxed sword fingers.

    From those fearful swooshing sounds, Fatty knew that if he got hit, the result would be miserable.

    Just as Fatty was about to be jabbed by Ai Hui¡¯s swordy, he suddenly rolled onto the ground, and his right palm shot out a jet of scorching hot mes.

    Voom!

    Like a fat rat, Fatty quickly turned around and scurried away. He was abnormally fast.

    ¡°This is quite interesting!¡± Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up; he had never seen such a move before.

    It reminded him of fireworks. Fatty had always been proficient at sneaking and escaping. With the addition of this move, his escaping skills could be said to be matchless.

    This was Fatty¡¯s typical style!

    Even the moves he had learned in the Induction Ground were used for escaping.

    ¡°We can talk about it nicely, Ai Hui. After all, we are brothers. Why let such a small amount of money injure our brotherly love? A money-minded world is cold and disappointing! Don¡¯t worry, once I go back and save enough money, I will immediately return the money to you!¡± Fatty fawned over Ai Hui, continuously bowing and making promises.

    ¡°Go back and save enough money? Fatty, if I¡¯m able to find you after you go back, I would be as fat as you!¡± Ai Hui sneered.

    ¡°The one with the surname Ai! If you¡¯re capable enough, kill me then! Today, we shall break all ties. I...¡± Fatty was enraged.

    Toozy to be bothered with him, Ai Hui suddenly surged forward.

    ¡°Ahhh, dammit!¡± Fatty¡¯s facial expression changed. He immediately turned around and started to flee.

    Even though he was fat, he ran very fast. And as he ran, his palm continued to shoot out mes.

    With his body slightly crouched, Ai Hui drew his Sawtooth Grass Sword and dragged it behind him. He stomped his right foot heavily on the ground, and his body leaped towards Fatty like an arrow that had been released from a bow.

    Ai Hui did not train his [Copper Skin] for nothing; the force generated from his right leg was extremely great. His ankle dug deep into the soil, causing crushed rocks to shoot backward as he continued to shoot forwards.

    Bang!

    The sound generated was so loud that even the guard standing far away had a surprised look on his face.

    It was rare to see students from the Induction Ground who had mastered the body-tempering skill [Copper Skin].

    Every step Ai Hui took was generating immense power. He was like a heavy bull that was dashing forward madly, causing the earth to quake and the mountains to shake.

    Fatty¡¯s face became ashen when he looked back.

    ¡°Damn it!¡±

    The distance between them was rapidly decreasing, and the glint in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes was much colder than the grass sword in his hand.

    Suddenly, Fatty pointed his right palm outwards and shot out another massive jet of zing mes.

    His body made a sudden sharp turn in the air, and like a rubber ball, he bounced and darted in another direction.

    Fatty heaved a sigh of relief. This was a time-tested move; the faster he ran, the better this move worked. Previously, he had purposely increased his speed just to enhance this move¡¯s effect.

    Ai Hui definitely could not catch him!

    Fatty was filled with satisfaction. He turned around and was prepared to see Ai Hui fail to stop and be thrown out of the training hall.

    However, when he took a closer look at Ai Hui, he was momentarily stunned.

    Like a huge bat, Ai Hui was flying in a weird arc-like trajectory through the air and was swooping directly towards him.

    He had...seen a ghost!

    All Fatty could think of were these three words: to be continued.

 Chapter 129: As Seen by Duanmu

    Chapter 129: As Seen by Duanmu

    Trantor: YH Editor: - -

    Duanmu Huanghun was sleeping when he suddenly heard some activity outside. Fatty¡¯s voice pierced his ears like demonic music.

    Talking about debts again!

    In his semi-conscious state, the voices plucked at the delicate strings of his sanity, making the corner of his eye twitch wildly.

    Just what was this Ai Hui up to? Going around collecting debts? Is he a loanshark?

    Duanmu Huanghun pulled the sheets over his head in an attempt to block the noise. He decided to restrain his curiosity and stay inside¡ªhe¡¯d only be asking for trouble if he went out now.

    It hadn¡¯t been easy for them to finally get to safety, so why were these people not resting?

    Duanmu Huanghun was determined to continue sleeping in a bid to repair his damaged psyche. The six days that they were trapped in the mound felt like a nightmare. Although he had appeared to be very calm during those six days, he had actually been terrified. The tension only began to subside after they returned to safety, but by then the post-trauma stress had started to kick in.

    Duanmu Huanghun had felt very muddled throughout the next few days. He had slept lightly and was awakened by even the slightest noise. He would have nightmares all through the night, sometimes waking up from one in fear, unable to discern if he was really awake. Consecutive days of poor sleep left Duanmu Huanghun severely dispirited and devoid of energy.

    He wasn¡¯t the only one experiencing this; the others were going through the same as well. Even Teacher Xu went about with a dazed expression on his face.

    However, Duanmu Huanghun was unable to go back to sleep as the noise outside was simply too loud. Having had enough of it, he promptly erupted in anger, jumping off the bed and dashing towards the door.

    What are these two jokers trying to pull? Can¡¯t they just let the rest of us have some peace?

    When he rushed out of the room, he saw two figures drenched in sweat, standing in the middle of an empty training ground.

    ¡°Two hundred sets of Fluttering Butterfly Steps! If you can¡¯tplete it, I¡¯ll thrash you!¡±

    ¡°No, please. Please spare me, Ai Hui. Duanmu Huanghun owes you one hundred and fifty million yuan, yet he¡¯s allowed to sleep peacefully. I owe you so much less so please stop torturing me...¡±

    Upon hearing this, Duanmu Huanghun felt the urge to quickly return to his room.

    This is too...humiliating!

    His face turned bright red. That despicable scoundrel had been going around and smearing his reputation! How hateful! Duanmu Huanghun wasn¡¯t sleepy anymore¡ªall he felt was an overwhelming impulse to go out and fervently earn money.

    How was he going to reim his reputation if he couldn¡¯t pay up this one hundred fifty million yuan?

    Duanmu Huanghun red intensely at Ai Hui.

    ¡°It¡¯s three hundred steps now. I don¡¯t want to hear any more nonsenseing out of your mouth!¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s words made the Fatty explode with anger. An unyielding and enraged expression was stered across his face as he leaned forward, ready to confront Ai Hui.

    Duanmu Huanghun looked on in disdain.

    Does he really think that everyone¡¯s going to just listen to him? Humph. Even a teacher wouldn¡¯t say something this fierce. How can he treat his friends with such disrespect? A civil war was bound to erupt at this rate.

    Looks like there¡¯s going to be a show! Duanmu Huanghun was taking delight in the impending disaster.

    Ai Hui remained expressionless and said, ¡°Come at me if you dare.¡±

    However, Fatty stared at Ai Hui with rage and suddenly barked. ¡°Woof!¡±

    ¡°Weren¡¯t you all full of gusto earlier? Weren¡¯t you going to y the hero? Come on, say something vicious to my face!¡±

    ¡°Woof!¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t dare to argue anymore? Tsk tsk, where¡¯s your backbone? Are you terrified now? A hero! Weren¡¯t you acting all brave a moment ago? Where has that bravery gone?¡±

    ¡°Woof! Woof! Woof!¡±

    ¡°Bark again and you¡¯ll have to do five hundred more steps!¡±

    Fatty hopped away from Ai Hui like a bouncy ball of meat, ring angrily at him the whole time.

    ¡°......¡± Duanmu Huanghun was at a loss for words.

    Out of the corner of his eyes, Ai Hui noticed Duanmu Huanghun standing under the eave. He was suddenly reminded of the ¡°fellow who owes you a hundred and fifty million¡± that Fatty had spoken of earlier.

    One hundred and fifty million yuan!

    Ai Hui was greatly annoyed by that damned ingrate!

    He turned his head away and started his own training.

    Ai Hui was keeping an eye on Fatty¡¯s training because he didn¡¯t want him to die so easily. It was okay to be weak if he hid well, but Fatty was weak and loved to meddle in others¡¯ affairs. Fatty may be a cheap person, but Ai Hui didn¡¯t want him to die. After all, who was going to return Ai Hui the money if he did?

    He was all too familiar with Fatty¡¯s character. That guy waszy, timid, and looked really sleazy. In actual fact, however, he was a sentimental person who always tried to be on good terms with everyone.

    Ai Hui never knew that Fatty had done so many things behind his back, but he was aware that Fatty hade to the Induction Ground to look out for him.

    Ai Hui knew that he couldn¡¯t change Fatty¡¯s character; he just didn¡¯t want him to die.

    Being stronger should help him even when he¡¯s running for his life.

    Ai Hui had always felt that he was more selfish than Fatty. He would always look out for himself first and find a path that was suitable for himself before proceeding with something.

    If Fatty was killed by someone, Ai Hui would definitely seek revenge. If the killer was too strong, then perhaps he would train for a few years before seeking revenge. But if the other party was so much more powerful that Ai Hui felt that there was no chance of winning, he would put his utmost effort...to burn incense and pay his respects.

    Ai Hui was supervising Fatty¡¯s training because he wanted to train as well.

    He was killing two birds with one stone.

    After resting, Ai Hui immediately began his training preparations. There was no time to waste. The six days spent in the mound may have been the most terrifying event of the other students¡¯ lives, but to Ai Hui, it had only helped him understand that life in the Induction Ground was no fairy tale either.

    Life in the Induction Ground was amazing, but there was an unrealistic quality to it that always made Ai Hui wonder if he was just dreaming. The recent incident had lifted a veil from his eyes, serving as a timely reminder of the potential dangers that lurked about even in the Induction Ground. This was the reality that had eluded him.

    Not only did the danger not make him panic, but it had also helped him find inner peace.

    No matter how perfect his life in the Induction Ground would appear, it wasn¡¯t a life that Ai Hui was used to. He had always felt a nagging uneasiness. Now that the Induction Ground had be more dangerous in reality, he was back to a familiar way of life. He truly feltfortable in his new surroundings.

    Ai Hui quickly adapted to the changes since it was an experience he was already familiar with. In the Wilderness, he would always train whenever he had time.

    This manor had once been an army camp, so it had excellent facilities for training. It would be a waste to not practice in such an excellent location, especially since he had so much free time.

    Ai Hui was very mindful of his time and would never tolerate wasting it.

    Furthermore, exchanging blows with Fatty gave Ai Hui a surge of motivation.

    Fatty had only activated his right hand pce but was able to execute recoil and drifting techniques quite beautifully. Ai Hui had specially asked Fatty about this, and he learned that Fatty had grasped the techniques on his own through repeated attempts. Learning how to escape more effectively had always been Fatty¡¯s biggest priority when it came to training.

    Ai Hui approved of Fatty¡¯s thinking.

    His own thirst for more power stemmed out of his desire to survive. Fatty¡¯s focus on escaping was also for survival. The two of them were, in essence, pretty simr.

    Beating Fatty in thosest few rounds helped Ai Hui understand Fatty¡¯s thought process. Besides that, he also discovered some changes within himself.

    The sword embryo seed¡¯s transformation.

    During the six days spent in the mound, Ai Hui had never once let go of his sword and was constantly in the sword embryo¡¯s state. At that point in time, his focus was on self-preservation, but he now realized that activating the state for six days had caused the sword embryo to undergo a change.

    His sixth sense had be even sharper than before. Even when he wasn¡¯t in the sword embryo¡¯s state, Ai Hui¡¯s sixth sense was now as keen as it was in his previous sword embryo¡¯s state.

    If he were to wield a sword now...

    Ai Hui lifted his sword and slowly closed his eyes.

    He felt as if the grass sword had be an extension of his body. He was able to feel the ambient temperature and airflow around the sword through the sword itself¡ªthis was something that he couldn¡¯t possibly have done before.

    As Ai Hui started to circte the elemental energy within his body, he was amazed to discover that the grass sword in his hand had an extremely high affinity with his elemental energy. Before Ai Hui could fully grasp what was happening, his elemental energy was already pouring into the grass sword.

    The sawtooth grass sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand started to faintly glow. The understated shine of this grass sword meant that it wouldn¡¯t reflect much light when brandished, something Ai Hui liked very much as it gave him an advantage when fighting at night. His biggest concern wasn¡¯t how dazzling or brilliant a sword was, but whether it could pierce his enemy.

    This time, however, the faint glow emerging from the grass sword could be seen even under the strong sunlight.

    Ai Hui discovered that he could actually sense that the grass sword had a saturated feeling to it, but he was unsure why.

    It was simr...it was simr to the feeling he had at the noodle shop when he ate ten bowls of noodles in one go.

    Can a sword feel full?

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help butugh, but the feeling was very sharp and distinct. Like a big fellow who needed to take a stroll after eating a lot, Ai Hui subconsciously thrust out the sword in his hand.

    One stroke after another.

    Every stroke was simple and unadorned.

    Ai Hui soon noticed that the sword¡¯s point was experiencing some sort of resistance¡ªit felt as if he was stabbing the sword through water.

    This feeling became more and more intense with each stroke bing ever moreborious. The sun at noon was ferocious, and Ai Hui¡¯s forehead was now drenched in sweat. Beneath the bandages, his muscles were all trembling.

    Standing under the eave, Duanmu Huanghun nkly watched the two of them dripping with sweat under the scorching sun.

    These two people...

    He initially thought that Ai Hui was only tormenting Fatty on purpose to vent his anger. Duanmu Huanghun didn¡¯t expect Ai Hui to actually start training as well.

    He didn¡¯t anticipate this at all.

    The harrowing experience in the Garden of Life was like a recurring nightmare, draining him of his vitality. Being ced here under quarantine only made his imagination run wild, causing him to be even more uncertain of what was going to happen. Under such circumstances, how could anyone possibly still want to train?

    It wasn¡¯t just him¡ªthe other students were the same. Everyone was dispirited and listless, clearly still affected by the traumatic incident.

    Yet these two jokers had already started training...

    The midday sun was so vicious that it was hard to even open one¡¯s eyes. The rest of the students were hiding in their dark, shady rooms while Ai Hui and Fatty were busy with their practice in the otherwise empty training ground.

    Duanmu Huanghun thought of just how much they were sweating.

    Fatty¡¯s entire body was drenched with sweat¡ªit was almost as if he had just gone for a swim. His clothes werepletely soaked and were clinging onto his body.

    Ai Hui was experiencing the same thing; the grass sword in his hand felt like it weighed a ton. Every stroke of his sword had substantially slowed down, and even Duanmu Huanghun could see that Ai Hui was using everyst ounce of his strength.

    Duanmu Huanghun snapped out of his daze feeling ashamed of himself. He was so frail whenpared to them!

    Just as he was about to return to his room to start practicing, he glimpsed Ai Hui¡¯s figure out of the corner of his eyes. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body immediately froze as his eyes opened wide.

 Chapter 130: A Flash

    Chapter 130: A sh

    Trantor: YH Editor: - -

    Ai Hui had no idea that someone was secretly observing them, but he wouldn¡¯t really care even if he knew.

    He was exceptionally focused right now; all his attention was on the grass sword in his hand.

    Never had he imagined that there woulde a day when he could experience the world through the ¡°eyes¡± of a sword. He felt as if he had possessed the grass sword, turning it from an inanimate object into a living thing.

    If he hadn¡¯t bought it from Manager Li¡¯s shop himself, Ai Hui would probably have thought that this grass sword was some kind of legendary weapon.

    Back when he was reading swordy manuals in the swordsman school, Ai Hui would often chance upon passages discussing the mythical sword souls. These were, of course, legends of old, and now that the swordsmen were long gone, there was no longer anyone who could verify such things.

    Ai Hui had treated these passages as mere stories.

    The cultivators of the past had left behind many bizarre ounts, but even those were no match for the seemingly exaggerated topics of the swordsmen. He had read ounts of swordsmen who were too embarrassed to even leave their homes without first achieving a certain skill level.

    Ai Hui was initially astonished by the things he had read, but the sheer number of such ounts soon left him numb. Yes, indeed, today you put out the sun, tomorrow you shattered the moon, and the day after you could only destroy the stars. Oh, did you say that there were too many stars?

    The more he read, the more ustomed he became to these oddities. Eventually, these stories no longer made him feel any shock or surprise.

    But, today, the grass sword he was wielding seemed to be alive. The feeling wasn¡¯t particrly intense, but it was exceptionally clear. Could it be that swords really were alive?

    Ai Hui was still unsure.

    Every swordy manual would mention at least once that swords had essences within them. What they meant was that every sword, when cast, was bestowed with its own spiritual characteristics.

    Sword essences varied in strength, and some were even able to grow along with their owners, further evolving into sword spirits and sword souls.

    Since this was written in practically all the swordy manuals, Ai Hui believed that it wasn¡¯t all nonsense and might have been actually true during the Cultivation Era. But the times had since changed, with elemental energy bing dominant after the disintegration of spiritual force. Now that even the swordsmen were gone, how could there still be sword essences?

    Ai Hui suppressed these distracting thoughts and executed a simple sword stroke.

    He had read countless swordy manuals and had an understanding of swordy that few today could match. His actions were urate and well-controlled.

    When he had just nted the sword embryo, the only literature that he could seek help from were the swordy manuals. Strangely, it was the low-level manuals that were of use to him. The more advanced the manual, the less applicable they were.

    Brandishing a grass sword was usually effortless for Ai Hui.

    Today, however, this feat could hardly be said to be effortless.

    Ai Hui seemed to have be one with the grass sword; he felt as though he was bound by the surrounding air. He was not ustomed to this restrictive sensation, and Ai Hui felt like he was trapped under water, repressed by forces all around him.

    He knew that this was merely an illusion, but the experience was too intense.

    Thrusting the sword just a little bit faster made it feel as though he had mmed into arge wave, causing the de to wobble.

    Ai Hui had no choice but to increase his effort as each stroke became heavier than thest. His muscles were bulging and trembling from the effort, like a heavy-duty belt driving a huge wheel.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sword strokes slowed down as the sword became heavier and the air resistance increased.

    Beads of sweat rolled down Ai Hui¡¯s body as his muscles continued to churn out massive amounts of power. All of a sudden, he felt as if he had finally pierced through that invisible resistive force.

    With a sudden jolt, the grass sword in his hand spontaneously emitted dazzling rays of light. Its brightness was so intense that not even the scorching midday sun could mask its brilliance.

    The light that had burst forth from the grass sword blinded Ai Hui. He noticed that the grass sword had be much lighter.

    A loud boom followed!

    A powerful earth-rending force sent Ai Hui flying through the air before he could even react.

    The massive blunt force left Ai Hui thoroughly concussed, his ears ringing. An unknown amount of time had passed before he heard Fatty¡¯s anxious voiceing from what seemed like quite a distance away. ¡°Ai Hui...Ai Hui, are you all right? How are you feeling?¡±

    The surreal sounds gradually became clearer as Ai Hui¡¯s pupils began to focus.

    Fatty anxiously let out a stream of words. ¡°Ai Hui, can you not scare me like that? What kind of training is this? It looks more like you¡¯remitting suicide! Here I had thought that you became more tranquil, but it seems like you¡¯re as violent as ever¡ªno, you¡¯re even more violent now. I don¡¯t get it, aren¡¯t you doing just fine? What¡¯s more, I¡¯m the one who owes money, not you...¡±

    Fatty¡¯s long-winded nagging reminded Ai Hui of their time in the Wilderness.

    His whole body was unbearably numb¡ªan aftereffect of that enormous impact he had just suffered. Although it had disrupted the flow of his blood and qi, it could heal in moments. After ten seconds, he finally recovered some movement, and he struggled to stand up.

    He spat out the sand in his mouth, still feeling dizzy.

    What... just happened?

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell onto where he had previously stood. What he saw shook him deeply, his reaction simr to a deer in headlights.

    Arge pit, which was six meters in diameter and three meters deep, appeared where he hadst stood.

    Duanmu Huanghun stared nkly at the pit. Not even the sudden influx of figures and noise could rouse him from his daze.

    ¡°What happened? What¡¯s going on?¡±

    ¡°Did a wild beast get in?¡±

    ¡°Wasn¡¯t this ce supposed to be safe?¡±

    ¡°Heavens...what just happened here?¡±

    Themotion brought even more students out of their rooms. Everyone was still on edge from the incident in the Garden of Life, and they were all easily startled. That massive st had definitely thrown their instincts into overdrive.

    The guards in the area soon came over to investigate.

    ¡°What arge pit!¡±

    ¡°What is going on? Did a wild beast attack?¡±

    ¡°Did anyone witness the events that transpired?¡± asked a man, who appeared to be the head of the guards.

    ¡°I¡ªI¡ªI....¡± stammered the guard that gave Ai Hui directions.

    ¡°What is it?¡± the head asked softly.

    The guard gulped and replied, ¡°One of the students was practicing when suddenly...¡±

    ¡°A student was practicing?¡± the head responded with suspicion. He nced at therge pit in the training ground. ¡°Do you mean to say that this deep pit was the result of a student practicing?¡±

    Everyone else was filled with disbelief. How could a student possibly create such a huge pit?

    ¡°What he said was true,¡± said Duanmu Huanghun out of nowhere. He inevitably stared at Ai Hui¡¯s dazed face, unable to calm down.

    He now realized just how wrong he was to have underestimated Ai Hui.

    Duanmu Huanghun could understand why the head guard wasn¡¯t convinced. He probably wouldn¡¯t believe it if he hadn¡¯t seen it himself either. His [Viridescent Flower Dance] was unpredictable and vicious, but creating a pit thisrge would take up everyst shred of his strength.

    Causing an explosion like this didn¡¯t actually require skill. What was more important was the quality of one¡¯s elemental energy.

    Fire elemental energy was the most explosive of them all, but to create a pit of this size would still require the activation of at least four pces. Students with an affinity for other elements would probably need something upwards of six pces to achieve the same effect.

    Ai Hui here wasn¡¯t using fire elemental energy but the non-explosive metal elemental energy!

    What¡¯s more, he had only activated two pces.

    Duanmu Huanghun had already found it hard to believe that Ai Hui could activate two pces in such a short time. After all, that guy had such a pathetic aptitude.

    Although terribly shocking, Duanmu Huanghun could still ept it. When it came to training, elementalists with poorer aptitudes could at times have sudden bursts of progress.

    This sight in front of him, though...

    It waspletely beyond his understanding.

    The head guard recognized Duanmu Huanghun, especially since he was the only person here that required extra protection. He nodded towards Duanmu Huanghun. Now that he knew his subordinate was telling the truth, an intense feeling of curiosity arose within him.

    Could it be that... there was another genius among them?

    He slowly walked towards Ai Hui, inspecting the pit as he went past it. It was only upon closer inspection that he fully realized theplete magnitude of the st.

    The head guard¡¯s expression turned grave. He¡¯d probably be dead from an impact this powerful.

    ¡°Young man, how may I address you?¡± the head guard asked amiably.

    Ai Hui had regained hisposure by then, and his eyes were glowing with a strong luster. He had sensed immense changes within his body and couldn¡¯t wait to resume his practice.

    ¡°My name is Ai Hui,¡± he answered hurriedly. ¡°Can you lend me a sword?¡±

    His Sawtooth Grass Sword had beenpletely destroyed. All that was left was the hilt that Ai Hui was holding on to. The thoughts in his head urged him to get on with his practice, distracting him from feeling sorry for the loss of his sword.

    The head guard was stunned for a moment, but he quickly responded, ¡°No problem!¡±

    He turned around and shouted, ¡°Someone toss me a sword!¡±

    One of the guards brought his sword forward, and the head guard grabbed it and handed it over to Ai Hui. His tone was friendly as he instructed, ¡°Use it as you please, Ai Hui. Everyone else, kindly step away from the immediate area.¡±

    He was experienced enough to notice that Ai Hui had just had a revtion. He knew that it was horribly annoying to be disturbed at times like these. After all, inspiration seldom knocked twice.

    Ai Hui sincerely thanked the head guard.

    Everyone kept quiet as they looked on curiously. Seeing Ai Hui all ready to start anew kept them fixated. They might have missed his performance earlier but not this next attempt!

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t be bothered about the onlookers. He took the sword and began to assume the same stance as before.

    Duanmu Huanghun stared at Ai Hui with his eyes wide; he recognized the same stance from before. Was Ai Hui going to repeat that move? He focused hard, afraid he¡¯d miss any details.

    All he had seen before was an exceptionally brilliant burst of light that had obscured Ai Hui¡¯s silhouette.

    Right after that came the earth-splitting sensation.

    This time, he had to see the technique that enabled a student with only two activated pces to generate such explosive strength.

    Everyone, not only Duanmu Huanghun, kept their eyes peeled and held their breaths.

 Chapter 131: Elemental Energy of the Sword

    Chapter 131: Elemental Energy of the Sword

    Trantor: YH Editor: - -

    Sword in hand, Ai Hui prepared to strike.

    Twenty minutes passed, but Ai Hui remained in that same stance, not moving one bit.

    Several students soon became impatient and prepared to leave.

    ¡°What is he trying to do? He¡¯s obviously making it unnecessarilyplicated!¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

    The majority of the students left the training ground, leaving only a handful behind. Those who remained began to sit in clusters, chatting under the shade.

    Ai Hui¡¯s explosion had shocked the students greatly.

    The shock, however, seemed to clear up the fog in the students¡¯ minds, rousing them from their distracted state. After all, they were young people whose minds could easily be taken away from their worries.

    Although the shadows of the incident still lingered in their minds, the students were already bing more cheerful. Teacher Xu was slightly embarrassed that he, himself, was stuck in a daze and unable to monitor the condition of his students. If not for Ai Hui¡¯s distraction, the rest of them would probably still be in shock.

    He heaved a sigh of relief, cing his gaze on Ai Hui. Teacher Xu had many misgivings.

    He was well aware of Ai Hui¡¯s situation. He knew that Ai Hui had a weak aptitude but was very hardworking and polite. Seeing therge pit in the ground left him bewildered.

    Was that sword-wielding young man really the untalented Ai Hui that he knew?

    To Teacher Xu, Ai Hui was now a figure shrouded in mystery. Many details from the incident at the Garden of Life spontaneously surfaced in his mind. Teacher Xu remembered how Ai Hui had demonstrated respectable strength.

    Only two of his students were taken in by other teachers as disciples. One was Duanmu Huanghun, while the other was Ai Hui.

    He nced at Duanmu Huanghun, who was observing Ai Hui attentively. Teacher Xu smiled to himself, noting that Ai Hui would make a fine rival for Duanmu Huanghun.

    Ai Hui did not pay attention to what was happening in the periphery. He had regained hisposure after receiving the sword, channeling his attention toward the changes in his body and sorting out the waves of ideas that had washed upon his mind.

    His eyes were getting brighter.

    Ai Hui made a sudden movement.

    Teacher Xu saw Duanmu Huanghun shiver slightly.

    Teacher Xu quickly reacted, turning to look at Ai Hui. Indeed, Ai Hui had stood up.

    The head guard was more experienced than the other two when it came to such situations. Despite Ai Hui remaining utterly motionless, the head guard was not impatient. The moment Ai Hui made a move, the head guard immediately opened his eyes wide to avoid missing anything important.

    These spontaneous and rare moments of epiphany were extremely important for practitioners. It was also immensely beneficial for spectators to observe such moments, especially since they did not ur that often.

    Thus, the head guard was very patient.

    Ai Hui¡¯s attention was focused on the space in front of him.

    He formed a seal with his left hand before slowly raising the sword with his right.

    Like an elderlydy, his moves were executed extremely slowly. A wisp of elemental energy flowed out from the mass of elemental energy within his natal residence, attracted by the movement of his sword. The grass sword in his hand was like a delicious piece of meat, enticing the elemental energy in his body to flow.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sword strokes were deliberately unhurried. Following his movement, the elemental energy within his body felt like a wild horse tugging forcefully at its reins, slowly surging forward. It entered his right hand pce before moving into the grass sword. At that instant, when the elemental energy poured into the grass sword, the resonance between the sword embryo and the grass sword soared abruptly.

    Right at that very moment, the sword embryo between his brows started to throb.

    It appeared to throb rhythmically, like a pulse. The throbbing was not quick, but it felt like something was repeatedly hammering his mind.

    Ai Hui restrained his mind, ignoring the throbbing of the sword embryo. His focus was on maintaining the speed at which he channeled the elemental energy as he continued with his patient sword strokes.

    Dong, dong, dong!

    Like a noiseless drum, the throbbing pulsed on intensely.

    The elemental energy within the sword appeared to heed his call, flowing one round through the grass sword before returning to his body.

    Ai Hui was ecstatic as he confirmed his theory. The ident earlier enabled him to have a deeper understanding of the sword embryo. He was able to sense the grass sword attracting the elemental energy within his body, and he then noticed the sword embryo attracting the elemental energy back from the grass sword.

    The explosion had urred because he had failed to control the speed at which the elemental energy flowed. The sudden influx of excessive elemental energy into the sword was responsible for the subsequent explosion. From within this mess, Ai Hui managed to identify the sword technique as the sword embryo¡¯s trigger.

    This was something new.

    The amount of elemental energy that Ai Hui had back when he first started practicing swordy techniques was pathetic. Despite that, he had always practiced infusing the grass sword with elemental energy. However, it was only recently that he began to circte the elemental energy within his body as he practiced swordy.

    Ai Hui knew he had struck the jackpot when the elemental energy slowly flowed back into his body!

    The elemental energy that had returned was transformed!

    The sharpness associated with the elemental energy in his body became even richer. Ai Hui did not know how to describe this particr vor, but the first thing that came to mind was the vor of a sword.

    Ai Hui had previously been unable to refine the elemental energy that he obtained from the Suspending Golden Pagoda. In addition to its harsh nature, elemental energy from the pagoda was at a much higher level than the energy he possessed.

    Due to its powerful attractive force, the huge mass of elemental energy within his natal residence made it difficult for Ai Hui to control his elemental energy.

    Ai Hui was indescribably happy to discover that the elemental energy which had circted back from the grass sword was much easier to control. The energy that returned from the sword had a different nature and was no longer affected by the attractive force of the elemental energy mass. Attraction would only ur between elemental energies of a simr nature.

    The elemental energy that returned to his body embarked on one Circtory Cycle Revolution on its own.

    He noticed the sword embryo absorbing a portion of the elemental energy as it flowed past the space between his eyebrows. While surprised, Ai Hui was not thrown off by this as he continued to execute his dance with the sword.

    About 20% of the elemental energy was absorbed by the sword embryo.

    He heaved a huge sigh, relieved that the sword embryo was not consuming much more of his elemental energy.

    Strands of elemental energy continued to flow from his natal residence into the grass sword before returning to his body to perform one revolution of the Circtory Cycle. A portion of this new energy was absorbed by the sword embryo while the remainder was stored within his right and left hand pces.

    The two pathways ran parallel to each other without conflict.

    After short a while, Ai Hui¡¯s left and right hand pces started to swell up. Ai Hui knew that he was reaching his limits. He understood that training was about steady, incremental progress and that overtraining would lead to undesirable consequences.

    The activation and expansion of each pce was, in essence, a gradual process.

    Upon seeing this, he immediately prepared to stop. Although he had yet to figure out what exactly the sword embryo was, he now had a vague idea.

    Anything that had to do with swords seemed to elicit some reaction from the sword embryo.

    A sudden urge rose up within him. He had only been executing in sword strokes, so what would happen if he were to perform a sword technique in its entirety?

    The sword seemed to hear his thoughts as he began to perform a sword move exactly as described in one of the manuals.

    This move was simple enough. It was the [Gale Bat de] that he was familiar with.

    The [Gale Bat de]¡¯s characteristic feature was its non-linear movement. Every sword stroke moved in a distinct arc, slicing through the air at an angle before bouncing off suddenly, like a stone being skipped across water.

    Ai Hui had previously used this move to change his direction in midair.

    Ai Hui had studied the [Gale Bat de] more than the other moves because being able to change direction in mid air was a very useful ability. The arc traces left behind by the grass sword looked like the sweeping wings of the gale bat.

    The sword embryo became more and more agitated as Ai Hui danced around with the sword in hand, vibrating like the plucked strings of a zither.

    The elemental energy stored within his hand pces also began to stir.

    Ai Hui¡¯s moves were increasing in speed.

    Within his body, the elemental energy appeared to be boiling over as it ceaselessly bubbled over the edge.

    Duanmu Huanghun was taken aback when he sensed a keen aura emanating from Ai Hui. It was as though Ai Hui had transformed into a legendary sword that was capable of emitting a sharp and piercing cold.

    The Ai Hui standing in the training area was not the one that Duanmu Huanghun recognized.

    Teacher Xu was startled by the sight as well. Logically speaking, Ai Hui¡¯s aura appeared to be in line with the characteristic nature of metal elemental energy. Yet, even with his profound knowledge, Teacher Xu had never encountered something like this before.

    The gracefulness of Ai Hui¡¯s sword dance reminded Teacher Xu of the swordsmen. With the decline of swordy, however, most of the so-called swordy masters of today were really just a bunch of performers.

    Afraid that Ai Hui was walking down the wrong path, he decided to discuss the matter with himter.

    The head guard looked on in awe as he experienced the sharp, piercing sensation. Ai Hui¡¯s aura also possessed a potent aggressive intent which stabbed at the head guard¡¯s mind with an indescribable edge.

    He was fond of this imposing aura, noting that someone like this would definitely make an excellent vanguard.

    Duanmu Huanghun was the only person in this ss who had some importance. The guards were not asked to keep an eye out for any of the other students, meaning that their families did not have much influence. Perhaps he could consider roping Ai Hui in?

    Completely oblivious to the thoughts and feelings of the others, Ai Hui felt himself losing control of the elemental energy that was boiling within his body. Sensing danger, he subconsciously truncated the sword move.

    The sizzling elemental energy abruptly turned cold, like arge wave suddenly losing all of its might and directly copsing onto the sand beneath it.

    Ai Hui experienced an acute paining from both his hand pces. Bright red blood oozed out from beneath the skin of his palms.

    All traces of his performance had vanishedpletely.

    Ai Hui returned to being the average young man that everyone knew, as if everything that happened was just an illusion.

    Right before the blood dripped off the edge of his palm, the snow white bandage on his arm shot forward like a snake to intercept it.

    The drop of blood disappeared upon contact with the bandage.

    As if they were unsatisfied, the bandages on both his arms wound themselves up toward his palms. In an instant, not a single trace of blood remained.

    The Blood Bandage then automatically returned to its original state.

    Ai Hui looked at his hands,pletely dumbfounded.

 Chapter 132: The Premature Disappearance of Elemental Energy

    Chapter 132: The Premature Disappearance of Elemental Energy

    Trantor: YH Editor: - -

    ¡°This is indeed a very unique and potent blood poison.¡±

    The person speaking was Qiao Hua, the first teacher to think of Si Nan¡¯s notebook.

    There were thousands of teachers who were wood elementalists in the Induction Ground and they were divided into different sections. The sections varied greatly in terms of standards. Of the top 10 wood element teachers in the Induction ground, Qiao Hua was the youngest.

    His achievements at such a young age led many to consider him as someone who could be well on track to match up to Dai Gang.

    Qiao Hua had bright eyes and a confident demeanor. He gave off a vibe of being capable and experienced, but he was not pedantic like the average teacher. He did things decisively and never procrastinated.

    Many problems that others could not solve were often solved perfectly by him.

    Over time, he won the trust of everyone around him.

    Qiao Hua had immediately sought out Si Nan¡¯s notes when they came to mind. He found many corresponding theories within these notes, then quickly started forming a group of recognized wood elementalists. The group¡¯s aim was tob through Si Nan¡¯s notes, find all the relevant theories, and devise ways to counteract the poison.

    The Induction Ground responded promptly, gathering the most outstanding wood element teachers to help him.

    In addition, the Induction Ground had specially dispatched extra manpower to capture some poisoned animals. Theirbined efforts helped Qiao Hua live up to his expectations, and he soon found what he needed.

    ¡°This particr blood poison is very fragile in its initial stage, making it the most vulnerable at that time. However, we have obviously already missed this opportune period. First, it takes about ten days to infect a nt. Then, it begins to spread at an impressive speed via nt pollen and spores. The climate is partly responsible for the massive outbreak this time, as the flowering season further increased the rate at which the virus spread.¡±

    Qiao Hua exined confidently to the elders of the Induction Ground. His speech was convincing and assuring.

    ¡°It is also capable of infecting the moisture within the soil, which is why the ground appears blood red when dug up. As of now, we have not found evidence of deeper pration. If the groundwater deep underground bes infected, then we¡¯re finished. Fortunately, the worst scenario has yet to happen.¡±

    Qiao Hua¡¯s voice reverberated throughout the conference room, enthralling everyone within.

    ¡°The most formidable aspect of this poison is its unique ability to mutate. After infecting a nt, the blood poison bes much more toxic. Once the infected nt is ingested by herbivores, such as rabbits, the poison changes again, bing several times more potent. If the infected rabbit is then eaten by a wolf, the toxicity of the blood poison once again multiplies. Every round of infection sees its toxicity multiplied even further, making the poison very frightening.¡±

    Amotion began to stir among the elders, their faces revealing feelings of surprise and fright. They had never heard of such a strange and terrifying blood poison before.

    Teacher Qiao Hua starting speaking in a graver tone, ¡°If only the terrors of this blood poison stopped here, but the truth of the matter is that we have found something even worse about it. Research on the injured student has revealed that elemental energy is even better than flesh in encouraging the poison¡¯s mutation. Elemental energy appears to be the blood poison¡¯s preferred nutrient. A small amount of elemental energy is enough to alter the nature of the poison. Because it devours elemental energy frantically, any elementalist who is infected will quickly lose all of his elemental energy to the poison. The greater the toxicity of the poison, the more efficiently it spreads throughout the body. After the body has been drained of elemental energy, the elementalist will ultimately be just a blood human.¡±

    The conference room went quiet for a moment before abruptly exploding with noise.

    ¡°Has this been proven? How can such a blood poison possibly exist?¡±

    ¡°Are you exaggerating?¡±

    ¡°This is impossible!¡±

    Unable to ept this answer, the elders were extremely agitated.

    Qiao Hua calmly watched the agitated elders without uttering a single word. The elders gradually quieted under Qiao Hua¡¯s unperturbed gaze.

    The conference room became silent again.

    Qiao Hua slowly opened his mouth to speak, ¡°The truth may be hard to ept, but it has indeed been experimentally verified. We brought a vial of the blood poison to a prison that houses death row inmates and came to this conclusion only after infecting three of them with it.¡±

    ¡°Did all three of them die?¡±

    ¡°None of them did,¡± Qiao Hua replied, shaking his head. ¡°This type of blood poison isn¡¯t fatal, so it won¡¯t kill you. All it does is frantically absorb and devour everyst drop of elemental energy within your body as it grows stronger. The most despairing thing is that the process is irreversible. In other words, anyone who is poisoned will inevitably end up as a blood human, someone who is unable to develop or utilize elemental energy. It is my duty here to highlight that if it cannot be kept under control, this blood poison will be the downfall of the Avalon of Five Elements and the system of five residences and eight pces, in a vein simr to the copse of the cultivators¡¯ system. The only difference being that the Cultivation Era ended due to the disintegration of spiritual force.¡±

    A deathly silence washed over the frightened elders.

    After a long pause, one of the elders anxiously muttered, ¡°How can such a vile blood poison exist? Is this heaven¡¯s will?¡±

    Several other elders revealed expressions of realization for they too had the same thoughts.

    ¡°This is not heaven¡¯s will!¡± Qiao Hua eximed firmly, his gaze so sharp that nobody dared to look at him directly. ¡°If this is heaven¡¯s will, then heaven has also given us the key to destroying it in the form of Si Nan¡¯s notes. We have sorted out everything from his notes and, based on his theories, have found the ingredients required to eliminate the blood poison. We won¡¯t be able to treat and cure someone who has already been infected, but we can can eliminate the blood poison itself.¡±

    Everyone¡¯s spirits were uplifted. The elders raised their heads and looked at Qiao Hua.

    Qiao Hua continued confidently, ¡°We have already made the medicine for counteracting the blood poison. If we can find the tree that produces this blood poison, we¡¯ll be able to kill it using this medicine. From there, the medicine will enter the blood poison¡¯s system, working to destroy its fundamental structure from within. Drawing inspiration from the blood poison, we have formted the medicine such that it spreads just like the blood poison. The difference is that the medicine¡¯s best growth medium is the blood poison, so it should not theoretically cause any harm to us elementalists.¡±

    Qiao Hua¡¯s words rang out loud and clear as the elders gave him an enthusiastic round of apuse.

 Chapter 133: Danger Arrives

    Chapter 133: Danger Arrives

    Trantor: YH Editor: - -

    It was not until the sixth day after obtaining the sword elemental energy that he noticed the strange atmosphere in the camp.

    The atmosphere in the camp had be tense, and the guards who were originally in charge of monitoring them had been frequently transferred. On the seventh day, Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi were also hastily mobilized and had yet to return.

    Ai Hui meticulously counted the number of guards, concluding that their numbers were constantly declining. By the tenth day, the headcount had been reduced to a quarter of the initial number.

    Fatty had always had an innate sensitivity toward danger. He also quickly picked up that something was amiss.

    What should we do, Ai Hui?¡± Fatty asked, deeply worried. ¡°I have a feeling that something bad is going to happen.¡±

    Just as Ai Hui was about to console him, a shrill scream from one corner of the manor rang through the air.

    The two of them looked at each other.

    All of the students immediately rushed out of their rooms. The guards, also rmed by the scream, dashed over and questioned, ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    At that very moment, Ai Hui¡¯s keen eyes spotted the figure of a dark-red wild beast atop the perimeter wall. His expression turned to one of shock as he eximed, ¡°On the wall! Blood fiend!¡±

    Ai Hui could see clearly that it was a blood rabbit. Its appearance, however, was a far cry from the one which they had first encountered.

    The blood rabbit was almost asrge as a wolf, with ears that were short and pointy unlike a typical rabbit. Its deep maroon-colored fur was as thick and hard as palm fiber. Lined with bulging veins and solid muscle, its hind legs were stronger than its front legs, though they were also robust. A sharp-looking head and even sharper teeth furtherplemented its menacing look.

    Beyond all of that, however, the most terrifying part of the rabbit were its eyes.

    Those demonic eyes stared at them like a predator.

    The blood rabbit jumped off the wall with its powerful hind legs, bing a red shadow dashing through the sky.

    One of the guards who was standing near the blood rabbit failed to react in time and his throat was ripped out by the beast. A fountain of fresh red blood spurt out of his neck, spraying onto the blood rabbit¡¯s body. Looking satisfied, the rabbit shook its entire body and absorbed the fresh blood into its fur.

    An eerie crimson luster coated its dark red fur.

    Everyone was deeply frightened, and a few of the more timid girls started screaming. When had they ever seen such a gruesome and bloody scene? They were just typical students who were living afortable and peaceful life.

    The guards charged forward, cursing under their breaths.

    Ai Hui suddenly shouted loudly, ¡°Fellow students, please move toward Duanmu Huanghun! Quickly!¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face was as pale as a sheet. He too had never experienced something so gruesome. Luckily, he had greater mental fortitude than the average student and was still able to maintain hisposure.

    Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s announcement surprised him a bit, but he promptly responded, ¡°All students, move toward me!¡±

    The frightened students were momentarily roused from their petrified states as they hurriedly rushed toward Duanmu Huanghun. Duanmu Huanghun had gained recognition for his strength during the escape from the Garden of Life. Since Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi were not around, Duanmu Huanghun was the strongest among them.

    Without hesitation, Duanmu Huanghun used his [Viridescent Flower]. Branches shot out from beneath his feet, spreading all around them.

    He knew just how sharp Ai Hui was.

    When they were hiding in the mound, Ai Hui was somehow aware of what was going on outside. Duanmu Huanghun felt a bit freaked out by how keen Ai Hui¡¯s senses were. Knowing that Ai Hui was not someone who enjoyed taking the initiative to speak, Duanmu Huanghun deduced that the current situation must be highly dangerous.

    Ai Hui was very familiar with the attack pattern of wild beasts. Seeing the blood rabbit swagger and taunt the guards into charging forward made Ai Hui suspect that there were others lying in ambush.

    Wild beasts were not stupid.

    Ai Hui saw a red sh streak across his field of vision.

    He shed his grass sword out without thinking.

    Over the past several days, Ai Hui had incorporated many sword techniques into his training sessions. During these sessions, Ai Hui realized that his sword techniques were getting more and more potent as he practiced his execution to perfection. The sword embryo¡¯s response was also getting stronger and his training of elemental energy was more efficient.

    After so many days of practice, Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy had advanced quite a bit, bing much deeper. In the past, each of his hand pces was only the size of a green bean. They had since grown to the size of a broad bean. Even Ai Hui was surprised at his speedy improvement.

    Besides having an improvement, Ai Hui had also be more familiar with sword techniques.

    Ai Hui first started practicing sword techniques back when he was still in the Wilderness. After developing his first shred of elemental energy, his focus shifted toward further training.

    He had recently spent copious amounts of time and effort to sculpt his elemental energy using sword techniques. As a result, his familiarity with the sword increased tremendously.

    His vast improvement could be seen in this stroke that was as fast as lightning yetpletely silent.

    Ding!

    The sound of metal striking stone reverberated through the air.

    Ai Hui felt a tremendous force against the sword¡¯s de. Rather than resisting the impact, he borrowed its strength and took several steps back.

    He was not particrly jolted by this since raw strength had always been the wild beasts¡¯ strong point. Ai Hui¡¯s [Copper Skin] might make him stand out among the students, but even the mostmon wild beasts in the Wilderness were stronger than him.

    Of course, victory was not determined by brute strength alone.

    Humans, who were not as strong as wild beasts, had always been the winning species.

    Ai Hui bent his legs, lowering his body slightly like a coiled spring. His gaze was stone cold and his face expressionless while the tip of his sword circled in a small arc.

    His eyes were locked onto the blood fiend that was a short distance away.

    It was a blood snake, more specifically a blood krait. Blood-red spots, reminiscent of red flowers, covered the snake¡¯s silver body. Its eyes looked like blood-colored ss, with a sparkle that made it appear much lighter than the blood rabbit¡¯s eyes.

    ording to what Ai Hui had surmised from the incident in the Garden of Life, the darker the color of the blood fiends¡¯ fur and eyes, the more potent the blood poison. However, carnivorous wild beasts were much more dangerous than herbivorous ones.

    Ai Hui scanned the snake¡¯s body, noting that his attack had only left a single white spot on the snake¡¯s otherwise unblemished body.

    His heart quivered with anxiety as he realized that the blood snake¡¯s skin was almost as tough as some of the weaker species of dire beasts. A short while ago, these blood fiends were still just normal wild beasts. The speed at which they grew stronger was truly frightening.

    Given more time...

    Ai Hui¡¯s pupils contracted as his killing intent surfaced.

    His gaze was fixed squarely on the blood snake in front of him. Nearby, the intense battle between the guards and the blood rabbit seemed to fade out of existence as Ai Hui focused all of his attention on the impending battle against the snake.

    As if it had sensed Ai Hui¡¯s killing intent, the blood snake suddenly raised the upper half of its body. Its red, ssy eyes locked onto Ai Hui,pletely devoid of emotion.

    And so, the confrontation began.

    Duanmu Huanghun was bbergasted to see Ai Hui confronting the blood snake.

    His impression of Ai Hui had already changed drastically from when they were in the Garden of Life. Ai Hui¡¯s acute sixth sense, coupled with his experience and decisiveness, were what made Duanmu Huanghun feel taken aback.

    As for his fighting abilities, Duanmu Huanghun felt that they were not particrly impressive.

    In that moment however, Duanmu Huanghun felt his pupils contract in response to Ai Hui¡¯s killing intent.

    Duanmu Huanghun, himself, possessed exceptional strength. Thus, he had a greater understanding of things like auras and intents whenpared to the average student. These were not illusory ideas but actual phenomena.

    Experts who possessed advanced knowledge inbat were often able to pinpoint their opponents¡¯ strengths and weaknesses. Because they had the sufficient abilities and methods to alter the circumstances in their favor, these experts remainedposed and acted as the situation required without a moment¡¯s hesitation. ordingly, their demeanor on the battlefield naturally allowed them to exude an intent or aura that vastly differed from the majority.

    Duanmu Huanghun never expected Ai Hui to have such an imposing presence.

    This guy was pretty good at swordy...

    He thought back to Ai Hui¡¯s first strike against the snake while his eyes remained focused on the current situation. Feeling annoyed, he wondered if Ai Hui had been hiding his true abilities all along. The other students were also gawking at Ai Hui, having the same thoughts as Duanmu Huanghun. They had been under the impression that Ai Hui reminded them to stick to Duanmu Huanghun so that they could all use him as a protective screen.

    Little did they know that Ai Hui had been nning to engage the blood snake.

    Fatty was extremely anxious.

    Ai Hui maintained hisposure and remainedpletely unperturbed. He suddenly lowered his sword, prompting the blood snake to spring at him.

    A red blur streaked toward Ai Hui at an rming speed!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up at the sight of the snake advancing, satisfied that his bait had worked. He was experienced in dealing with wild beasts and knew that they were especially susceptible to feints.

    The red blur might be fast, but Ai Hui was well prepared. Ai Hui swiftly elerated the grass sword forward in a thrusting motion.

    The grass sword in his hand was a military-grade weapon that belonged to one of the guards. Grass swords used in the military were of excellent quality and were way better than the sawtooth grass sword that he had bought.

    Its de was constructed with steel wood and heavy reeds, making it extremely hard and resistant to damage. These swords, however, were very heavy and not suitable for use by students as a consequence. Its weight was just right for Ai Hui, who was not just any other student.

    Infusing elemental energy into the sword made its edges glow with a cold, pale light that possessed an oddly prating feel to it.

    The red and white shes collided.

    Ding!

    A ear-splitting sound even sharper than the one before pierced through the air.

    The blood snake retreated at an even faster speed. It dug into the ground, leaving a small hole behind.

    Ai Hui¡¯s arm was so sore that he was almost unable to lift his sword. The blood snake¡¯s second strike was much stronger than the first. Even Ai Hui, who had developed the [Copper Skin], could not handle the attack.

    A red sh flew out of the small hole, once again charging toward Ai Hui.

    The blood snake was visibly injured this time, its forehead sporting a deep gash. Ai Hui had used up practically all of the sword elemental energy stored within his hand pces to execute his previous attack.

    Charging through the air at an impossible speed, the blood snake bared its gleaming fangs.

    Duanmu Huanghun noticed that Ai Hui¡¯s right arm had weakened and that he was probably no longer able to fight. He had not expected Ai Hui to have such a confrontational fighting style, trading intense blows with the opponent without first testing the waters.

    Surprised by the turn of events, Duanmu Huanghun was unable to provide support!

    Damn it!

    Was this guy trying to die? Had he not thought of his next move? Was he crazy?

    Duanmu Huanghun was stunned when he caught sight of Ai Hui¡¯s grass sword.

 Chapter 134: Sword Ray!

    Chapter 134: Sword Ray!

    Trantor: Irene Editor: - -

    Ai Hui did something Duanmu Huanghun absolutely did not expect. He passed the sword over to his left hand.

    Left hand!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes opened wide, as if he had seen a ghost.

    Ai Hui¡¯s left hand held onto the sword skillfully, not at all unfamiliar with it. Strike!

    Elemental energy poured into the sword¡¯s body, a faint shimmer soon covering the sword. With a humming vibration, the grass sword transformed into a cold ray of light.

    The light reflected on Ai Hui¡¯s face, highlighting his indifferent expression and chilling eyes. It was as if he had be apletely different person who emitted a blinding glow of stern danger. What a great disy of ability!

    False move, luring move, killing move!

    Whether it was the slight heaviness from before or the sword¡¯s relentless first blow, they were building up to the sword that Ai Hui now gripped with his left hand.

    His muscles were engaged to their limits, and the bandage on his left hand had unbound at an unknown point in time. The white clouds, driven downwards by the rapid streams of airflow, funneled from the sky as an impressive finale for this austere sword ray.

    Ai Hui held nothing back, cing his faith in the heavens.

    The devilishly red light and the chilly sword ray intertwined in the sky once more.

    With exact precision, Ai Hui thrust his sword into the wound on the blood snake¡¯s forehead.

    There was no sharp, piercing ring; instead the muted sound of a sharp de shing across leather was heard.

    The bone-chilling sword ray shed through the center of the blood snake¡¯s body, splitting it into two. The fresh blood and minced meat were like red, drizzling rain, yet before it fully dispersed, they were absorbed by the blood bandage in a sh.

    p.

    The remaining chunks of the snake¡¯s body flew in a straight trajectory towards the students before plopping onto the ground not far from them.

    The students remained dumbstruck by this swift yet hair-raising disy and had yet to regain their senses.

    Duanmu Huanghun had received an even greater shock. The so-called sword masters he had seen in the past were all appearance and no substance. The sword moves they demonstrated had focused only on aesthetics.

    But Ai Hui¡¯s strike had been extremely sharp.

    Could it be that this fellow really was a dark horse? No, Duanmu Huanghun inwardly rejected this thought; he had better insight than most, and it was an unalterable fact that Ai Hui only had two opened pces. Swordy wasn¡¯t an absolute art. While the moves were skillful, they weren¡¯t umon.

    Everything was ordinary, so why was the result so sharp and stunning?

    After some more thinking, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s shock dissipated with his increased understanding, but the surprise nevertheless remained.

    First was the imposing manner. From beginning to end, Ai Hui remained calm, showing no signs of weakening; he held clear confidence regarding the battle from the start. This led to his ability to control the flow of the battle. Also, his left hand¡¯s swordy had been unexpected. Even if he himself had been the opponent, he would have been struck by Ai Hui.

    Simply put, Ai Hui utilized everything he had on-hand to produce such a startling result.

    This fellow... was made for battling!

    Duanmu Huanghun narrowed his eyes, apetitive spirit rising from within his chest.

    The two of them were rivals to begin with. Ai Hui looked unfavorably upon Duanmu Huanghun and vise versa. This bastard actually turned out to be a battling genius, but so what? When it came to absolute base levels, these battle skills and determination were negligible.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s thoughts were lofty; in this aspect, he had sufficient confidence. But Ai Hui¡¯s splendid performance made him see what hecked. He had greater elemental energy and his [Viridescent Flower] was not something sword-ys couldpete with, but in terms of battle experience, he was far behind Ai Hui.

    He had already decided that after this journey, he would train in realbat.

    To be defeated by this bastard was absolutely uneptable!

    Fatty squatted down to study the corpse.

    ¡°Discover anything?¡± Ai Hui asked from behind.

    Without turning around, Fatty responded, ¡°I¡¯ll have to inspect it a bit more. It¡¯s something new after all; if we can find useful information, we¡¯ll be rich!¡±

    As he spoke, he wrapped up the two pieces of the snake¡¯s body.

    Ai Hui was more than familiar with Fatty¡¯s money-grubbing personality. He even extracted two grams of oil from mosquitos before, so why would he let this blood snake go? Ai Hui ignored Fatty and did a sweep over everyone else. Seeing that they were all safe and sound, he diverted his gaze towards the guards.

    The other students looked at Ai Hui with more respect. To be able to eliminate a blood snake so cleanly gave Ai Hui¡¯s image arge boost.

    A cruel, harsh environment was best at toughening people up. The fact that no one had screamed this time was a sign of improvement as well.

    But in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes, there was no trace of reverence, only strong battlelust.

    Despite that, Ai Hui¡¯s gaze swept across his face as if looking past air, causing Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face to darken.

    Damn it!

    Looked down by this fellow again!

    Ai Hui was not in the mood to consider Bangwan¡¯s feelings. During his observations, he mulled over an issue¡ªthe manor was outside of Central Pine City, far away from the Garden of Life, but a blood fiend had actually appeared here.

    His face turned ugly just thinking about it.

    Before long, under the guards¡¯ attacks, the blood rabbit also perished. This showed Ai Hui that the guards were physically and mentally weak. Despite their advantage in numbers and greater strength, they were all bitten and infected by the blood poison, and some were timid. Only after some time passed did they finally manage to end the battle.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. The guards of the Induction Ground were too used to working in peaceful environments and werecking in standards.

    The guards cheered while the students heaved sighs of relief.

    Ai Hui shouted suddenly, ¡°Let¡¯s get out of here!¡±

    His voice caught the students¡¯ attention, surprising them. They did not expect Ai Hui to say something like this. Only Duanmu Huanghun had a pensive look on his face. With his understanding of Ai Hui, this bastard must have found something.

    A middle-aged guard stood and retorted gloomily, ¡°Imp, don¡¯t stir up trouble!¡±

    Ai Hui remained unmoved. ¡°Blood fiends have appeared here, so the blood disaster must have already spread to this region. It¡¯s no longer safe here. It¡¯s best that we return to the city.¡±

    The middle-aged guardughed mockingly. ¡°Two blood fiends got you so scared. Rx, they got us because we were unprepared. As long as we prepare ourselves, no number of blood fiends can threaten our safety.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t guarantee that,¡± Ai Hui said coldly, ignoring the middle-aged guard¡¯s ashen face. ¡°Once the blood fiend bites, you get poisoned, and the moment one appears, more will flood in in no time.¡±

    ¡°Shut your trap! Stop scaring people! Where are the rest? There are only two!¡± the middle-aged guard said in a fury. If not for the fear instilled in him from Ai Hui¡¯s earlier performance when ying the snake and the risk of causing a bacsh, he would have taken Ai Hui down.

    ¡°Incubation period,¡± Ai Hui said, continuing icily, ¡°and the injured students red up after a few days. When the blood poison really erupts, it will be toote for us to leave!¡±

    The students immediately became restless, their expressions changing greatly. They clearly remembered the day-to-day changes that had urred in the injured students.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s expression simrly shifted. He was acutely clever, understanding easily the truth in Ai Hui¡¯s words.

    It did not ur to him immediately since he was merely a student who was used to listening to the teachers¡¯ judgments.

    Ai Hui, however, had to judge and decide for himself in all matters, both big and small. In the Wilderness, the elementalists did not care about the well-being of theborers. If they wanted to survive, there was not a single moment in which they could lower their guards.

    By this point, the middle-aged man had be frantic from Ai Hui¡¯s words.

    He was helpless amidst the students¡¯ uproar. Plus, that imp¡¯s word had even swayed him a little¡ªand not just him, but the other guards were uneasy now as well.

    The head guard, of all people, had to be away at this moment, so everyone was waiting on him to make a decision.

    ¡°You guys know who I am. If something were to happen to me....¡± Duanmu Huanghun said suddenly, gazing at the guards as if harboring evil intentions. While he did not state it aloud, even a fool could hear the threat in his voice.

    The guards¡¯ faces changed.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s identity had been stressed to them over and over again. If something happened to the young master of the Duanmu household while under their care, his family would not let them off. Their own families could be implicated as well.

    ¡°Old Wang, let¡¯s go. We¡¯d better enter the city!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, if this blood poison breaks out, who woulde save us in this deste ce?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s no big deal. We¡¯re in charge of supervising them, and no one said anything about not entering the city. We can just supervise them there!¡±

    These words made Old Wang¡¯s eyes light up. What he said made sense¡ªsupervising them in the city was no different!

    ¡°Go! Let¡¯s enter the city!¡±

    Many people had been sent away these past few days, so all of the transport wagons had flown away, leaving not one remaining.

    This meant that they had to return to Central Pine City by foot. Fortunately, the manor was only about forty kilometers away from the city.

    This short distance meant nothing to Ai Hui. He had to travel even further to reach the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t careless and used every second avable to recover his elemental energy. Much of it had been consumed while dealing with the blood snake. If anything were to happen on the way back, he would have no way of fighting back, and though there were the guards and Duanmu Huanghun with him, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t willing to leave his life in the hands of others.

    As he walked, he gesticted with the grass sword, leading the embryo¡¯s pulses to generate sword elemental energy.

    The surrounding people gave Ai Hui weird looks.

    Was this fellow convulsing?

    Old Wang looked on diffidently. Luckily, he did not take action earlier; this fellow was so strange. Convulsing while walking... If he muttered under his breath as well, he would resemble a medium doing a dance to lure the spirits.

    Ai Hui did not care about what they thought. Embarrassment meant nothing as long as he could regain his elemental energy quickly.

    Everyone felt fragile inside; slightly afraid, they were on the verge of breaking into a run.

    Such a speed wasn¡¯t worth mentioning to Ai Hui who came from aborious background. Operating the sword while walking, however, was a foreign experience.

    At first, he couldn¡¯t seem to quite catch the rhythm, and his moves were consequently clumsy. But as he gradually grasped the technique, he soon found something different.

 Chapter 135: Insects

    Chapter 135: Insects

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Because he was utilizing the sword while sprinting, Ai Hui had to maintain bnce which meant he was unable to lean forward. His upper body remained still while his lower back was like an extremely stic and tough spring. The sword in his hand had to adjust and follow the movement of his body¡¯s rhythm and tempo.

    This matter only concerned the center of gravity; what was more difficult was the issue of breathing.

    Controlling his respiration was much more difficult when sprinting as opposed to standing still. As an old hand at this, Ai Hui knew very well that if the operation of elemental energy was the essence of an elemental energy attack, then breathing was the foundation of any attack.

    This included the most basic rapier. Strict breathing control was a requirement, and if the breaths did not synchronize with the swordy, then not only would the power becking but injuries would also ensue.

    Of course, for Ai Hui, there was a more serious consequence, which was that he would be unable to generate sword elemental energy.

    As Ai Hui gradually grasped the technique, he began to realize its benefits.

    The sword embryo¡¯s pulse was stronger than before.

    The most immediate benefit was the increased rate of sword elemental energy production.

    The newly generated sword elemental energy flowed from the grass sword in his hands then back into his body to initiate the Circtory Cycle Revolution. Twenty percent of the energy was absorbed by the sword embryo, and whatever remained re-entered Ai Hui¡¯s hand pces after one cirction cycle.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hand pces, which had started off empty, charged quickly and gradually became full.

    But Ai Hui did not stop there. He continued circting until his hand pces began to swell and ache. For every pce that he opened up, he became stronger with each training, like a small pond expanding into ake.

    In the process, developing his constitution yed a key role.

    People with good constitutions, like Bangwan, were like ponds surrounded by marshes¡ªexpanding intokes was fairly straightforward.

    On the other hand, people with weak constitutions, like Ai Hui, were like ponds in the middle of the desert. It was much more challenging for them to expand intokes.

    But things were never fair when it came to training; Ai Hui did not mind this at all. People with the time toin were better off training instead.

    Ai Hui no longer intended to resist the sword embryo state since he was now able to control his awareness within, meaning his psyche and strength had improved. Previously, he had been like a toddler waving a heavy axe around, but now that the toddler had grown up, he could wield the hefty weapon.

    Ai Hui ended his training and casually plucked a grass straw from the roadside. Its stem was faintly red, causing Ai Hui¡¯s expression to darken.

    cing it before his nose, Ai Hui smelled a familiar, faint, and delicate fragrance¡ªthe temptation of the devil.

    Throwing it aside, Ai Hui¡¯s expression returned to normal, but there was now a dimness within his heart. He could see in the distance the faint outline of Central Pine City. The quiet and peaceful city remainedpletely unaware of the imminent danger.

    The noisy training halls bustling with activities and the flourishing night lights that filled the streets... Would they still be there in the future? The tranquil mornings he had experienced¡ªwaking up to warm sunlight against the cool air and the sleepy, droopy eyes of those fellows as he smelled the sweet pastries¡¯ rising steam¡ªwould he still wake up to these?

    Ai Hui was in low spirits. He sighed inwardly, as if all that was beautiful was slowly fading away.

    He shook his head, feeling that he was being a bit unreasonable. Only a few good days had passed, and he was already corroded by the easyfort.

    To be born in suffering and hardship and to die in peace and happiness¡ªmade sense.

    Ai Hui regained his vigor. No matter how terrible, it wouldn¡¯t be worse than the Wilderness, right?

    He rid himself of distracting thoughts and thought back to the Blood Bandage that had snatched up the blood snake¡¯s meat. He did not inspect it at the time, the intense situation not allowing him to. He quickly turned his attention to it.

    It was white as snow, without any visible marks.

    Ai Hui was stunned. He rummaged through the Blood Bandage but still there was nothing.

    Where did it go?

    He thought about the time when blood had seeped out of his palms, only to be absorbed by the bandage.

    Could it be that the bandage was devouring blood?

    He recalled his mistress¡¯ words. The Blood Bandage was an artifact of the blood sects back in the Cultivation Era. Blood sects... just from their names, it was obvious that they were rted in some way to blood, so when the bandage had absorbed his blood, Ai Hui had not been too surprised.

    But the blood snake¡¯s meat was poisonous. Would there be an issue now that the Blood Bandage had absorbed it?

    Ai Hui startedughing involuntarily. He had actually thought of the bandage as a living object. What issue? Diarrhea?

    Imagining the bandage having diarrhea... He simply couldn¡¯t picture it...

    He decided to leave this tough problem to Lou Lan and let him interpret it.

    His upturned lips disappeared in a sh and the next moment, with a tremble of his ears and a cold light shing across his pupils, he shouted, ¡°Something¡¯s wrong!¡±

    Everyone tensed up.

    Duanmu Huanghun had been paying attention to Ai Hui all this time. Without mentioning anything else, the smallest sign of trouble, no matter how small, never went undetected by this bastard. Duanmu Huanghun had no idea how he did it, but Ai Hui had clearly disyed this ability in their previous escape.

    With his clear vision, Duanmu Huanghun did notice the faint red color of the grass de Ai Hui had picked up, causing his expression to change slightly as well.

    He rejoiced inwardly, thankful that they had already left the manor.

    Although Ai Hui was a bit of a scoundrel, he had a nose sharper than a dog¡¯s.

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s warning, he became highly focused and inhaled deeply. ¡°Those under two pces, stay close to me. Those above, get ready to attack, but be careful not to stray too far from my protection zone.¡±

    The teachers were not around anymore. As the strongest within the group, Duanmu Huanghun was obligated to take up the duty.

    Ai Hui looked over at Duanmu Huanghun with surprise. He did not expect this ingrate to assume responsibility.

    The students hadplete faith in Duanmu Huanghun and upon hearing hismand, they immediately got into their respective positions. The process was chaotic and the formation messy, but they nevertheless aplished the task.

    Duanmu Huanghun slowly found himself getting ustomed to the role. Since young, he had been called Brother Huanghun because of his experience in leading a fight team.

    ¡°Be aware of the distance, don¡¯t go too far.¡±

    ¡°Support each other.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t stop, we¡¯re not far away from Central Pine City.¡±

    ......

    He was a perfectionist with a haughty personality. Once he began something, he would do it to the best of his abilities.

    Ai Hui observed as the ingrate instructed the students who were giving their best efforts to cooperate. They then stood still and calm, waiting quietly for the nearby blood fiends. Fatty carefully positioned himself beside Ai Hui like a fat cat facing off against arge enemy.

    Rustling noises, amplified in Ai Hui¡¯s ears, sounded from the underbrush. He inhaled sharply before shouting loudly, ¡°They¡¯re here!¡±

    Before he finished speaking, the grass sword in his hand unexpectedly thrust forward.

    The sword ray from Ai Hui¡¯s grass sword struck a fist-sized spider.

    The spider¡¯s back was covered densely in dark-red streaks and its eyes were bloodshot. The sight made everyone shiver.

    nk!

    A nging, metallic sound pierced the air as the spider¡¯s body froze rigidly before diving into the underbrush with an even faster speed.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression changed slightly. His sword stroke did not break the spider¡¯s carapace!

    He had a rather sound understanding of spiders. He had seen all sorts in the Wilderness. While the spiders were highly toxic, their most fearful trait was their ability to ambush noiselessly with fatal attacks. But they were never known to have a solid defense.

    That blood spider had evidently undergone some sort of mutation. To withstand his strike without breaking, its carapace must have been extremely resilient.

    An assortment of insects with red patches on their bodies began to surface from the underbrush.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] was fully utilized. The green vines wrapping around the branches moved ceaselessly, creating a blurry, green shadow. The insects crashed into them, as dense as raindrops.

    The soft, wound-up vines and branches diminished, but they effectively trapped the insects¡¯ attacks.

    Awoken from their stupor, the other students hurriedlyunched their own attacks.

    The next moment, an array of colored lights shed as dense as droplets¡ªze, ice, quicksand, and vines.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t stop from shaking his head. Their moves seemed shy, but they were of limited use when targeting these blood insects which were once weak and frail but now extremely difficult to deal with.

    The spider previously struck by Ai Hui reappeared and lunged at him, spitting out a red light midair.

    Ai Hui, who was getting ready to swing his sword at the spider, was caught off-guard by its move. He knew the situation was amiss, and his pupils constricted. His power was almost used up!

    Suddenly, a strong force tugged his body away from the red light, causing it to miss him by a tight margin.

    It was Fatty, who had been alert all along. Upon noticing that something was wrong, he had hurriedly pulled Ai Hui aside.

    A loud cry sounded from behind Ai Hui¡ªa guard had been hit by the red light. It transformed into a crimson spiderweb upon touching his body, trapping him tightly within.

    Before Ai Hui had time to assist, the guard was quickly drowned in a wave of insects crowding around him. In the blink of an eye, only a pile of white bones was left, not even a bit of flesh to be seen.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hair stood on end. He noticed that the red patches on the insects had be brighter andrger.

    Flesh made the blood fiends stronger?

    In the Garden of Life, Ai Hui had already noted the blood fiends¡¯ fric attacks but failed to understand the reason behind it. Now he finally knew why. Like how elementalists hunted dire beasts, the blood fiends, too, saw them as delicious food that could make them stronger.

    ¡°Don¡¯t get entangled! Leave quickly!¡± Ai Hui bellowed while advancing with all his might. Fatty began to move as well, following closely behind.

    Duanmu Huanghun reacted as well. ¡°Follow up! Charge!¡±

    The guards were scared out of their wits. With four men down, they had incurred the most damage. While Duanmu Huanghun and the others were weaker, they had experience from the Garden of Life and knew the characteristics of the blood fiends. And most importantly, they trusted Ai Hui¡¯s judgmentspletely.

    The guards, on the other hand, were skeptical of Ai Hui¡¯s warning and hence reacted half a beat slower. This, coupled with theirck of experience in dealing with blood fiends, had devastated them.

    Like a swarm of bees, everyone charged towards Central Pine City.

 Chapter 136: Back to the City

    Chapter 136: Back to the City

    Trantor: JL Editor: - -

    Despite having been affected by the blood poison and undergoing shocking changes, insects were, after all, still insects. While they could be as fast as lightning, they were unable to sustain that speed for long distances. Ai Hui and his fellow students ran with all their might and gradually shook off the swarm.

    Forty kilometers was not a long distance. Under the looming threat of death, everyone exerted all their strength and even the weakest girl moved as quick as lightning.

    When the city gates of Central Pine City came into view, almost all of the students fell to the floor and cried tears of joy.

    Looking at the heavily guarded city gates, Ai Hui knew that something serious had happened, otherwise the entrance would not be so heavily guarded. It was as if they were awaiting the arrival of an enemy. He felt worried. Was Lou Lan all right? Master, Mistress, and Senior Mingxiu should be fine too, right?

    The day he returned, he flew over Central Pine City. When he saw how quiet it was, he felt an immense sense of peace, despite having just escaped death. Now, he became worried when he saw such tight security.

    He had more people to worry about now.

    Ai Huiughed mockingly at himself. Before, he had been alone in the world, with nothing to tie him down. Even if he¡¯d died, he wouldn¡¯t worry about whether or not he¡¯d be buried. He could have still taken pleasure from being dposed by artillery shells.

    Once Fatty saw that it was safe, he started to chew on malt candy without a care in the world. Hearing the familiar crunching sound, Ai Hui shook his head helplessly. Fatty sure did not waste any time.

    Fatty had saved him once again. It was hard to calcte such a debt.

    Thank goodness they had the easily identifiable Duanmu Huanghun. The guards recognized him with a single nce and quickly allowed the students to pass through.

    Back in the familiar Central Pine City, everyone rxed immediately. After escaping death twice, they didn¡¯t need to put on a brave front anymore. For many of them, their tears started to flow and they gathered together to sob quietly. Only with this were they able to release their fear. Only with this were they able to calm their thoughts of their homes, their parents, and the family members that they had missed.

    Ai Hui looked at the other students in silence. He gave a soft sigh; they were just a bunch of kids.

    He had already forgotten that he was not that old either.

    Fatty stopped crunching on his malt candy. He was slightly dazed because of everyone¡¯s sobbing.

    There were those with a tougher temperament as well. Anky male student walked up to Ai Hui and said sincerely, ¡°Ai Hui, thank goodness for you. If not for you, all of us would not have been able to make it back home. My name is Jiang Wei. Do let me know if you need any help in future, don¡¯t feel shy to ask me!¡±

    His name had the demeanor of a general in the olden times. He was a student from Fatty¡¯s ss and was quite capable. Like Ai Hui, he was a metal elementalist and his speciality was archery. Ai Hui had seen him perform before and he was extremely good.

    Ai Hui replied without an ounce of modesty, ¡°Do not worry. I definitely would not be modest about asking you for help.¡±

    Jiang Weiughed heartily. He was appreciative, feeling that Ai Hui was without airs and not at all a hypocrite.

    Suddenly, many people came up to thank Ai Hui. Thanks to Ai Hui¡¯s warning, they were able to narrowly escape death twice. Without Ai Hui, it was likely that none of them would have made it back alive.

    With Jiang Wei alone, Ai Hui¡¯s behavior was still as per normal, but with so many people conveying their thanks, he became flustered. This was his first time experiencing something like this.

    At the side, Duanmu Huanghun jealously said, ¡°If all of you are so thankful, why don¡¯t you show it by giving him money.¡±

    Ai Hui shot a bbergasted nce at that ingrate; he had managed to guess Ai Hui¡¯s thoughts, as in that moment, he had thought the same thing.

    ¡°How could you say that, Student Duanmu!¡± a girl said angrily. She stood up and continued, ¡°Can Student Ai Hui be such a person?¡±

    Ai Hui nearly said, ¡°Yes, yes I am.¡±

    ¡°Student Duanmu, how could you misunderstand Student Ai Hui like this?¡± Another girl also stood up to express the injustice.

    Duanmu Huanghun felt extremely wronged and pathetic. He wanted to say, ¡°Isn¡¯t that the case? Ask him if you do not believe it,¡± but after seeing everyone¡¯s furious expressions, he could only say that he was joking. Only then, everyone¡¯s anger appeased.

    Of course, everyone should also be thankful to Duanmu Huanghun. His [Viridescent Flower] had saved many of their lives.

    The words that were at the tip of Ai Hui¡¯s tongue were forcibly pushed back. But then, on second thought, this wasn¡¯t right. Clearly that ingrate knew that giving money was the most practical. The dispute due to the two promises from before was clearly meant to deceive him.

    Ingrate!

    The look Ai Hui gave Duanmu Huanghun became increasingly unfriendly. Indeed, his character was disdainful!

    After living in peace for so long, they needed more time to react to dangers; unfortunately, in times of crisis, time was the thing they usuallycked the most.

    Ai Hui shook his head. He was merely a nobody. All of these big events were of no concern to him. What was of concern to him was getting his hands on a big bowl of noodles.

    He brought Fatty back to the training hall and they had yet to enter the door when Ai Hui shouted at the top of his lungs, ¡°Lou Lan! I am back!¡±

    Lou Lan, who was sweeping the training hall, stopped and tilted his head to look at Ai Hui. Surprised, he said, ¡°Wee back, Ai Hui!¡±

    ¡°This is Qian Dai, also known as Fatty, my best buddy.¡± Ai Hui pulled Fatty over to do the introductions, after which he faced Fatty and said proudly, ¡°This is Lou Lan, my sand puppet!¡±

    With a bang, Lou Lan transformed into two words, ¡°Wee Fatty!¡±

    ¡°Wow, this is interesting!¡± Fatty smiled until the crinkles on his face trembled and he eagerly ran over and said, ¡°Have some sweets, Lou Lan. Can you change again?¡±

    Lou Lan took the malt candy and threw it into his mouth. Crunch, crunch. That image was an exact replica of Fatty. ¡°This consists of malt. Fatty, what should Lou Lan transform into?¡±

    What should he transform into? Fatty frowned and pondered.

    ¡°Transform into a bandage having diarrhea.¡± Ai Hui suddenly interrupted. He threw out the hardest request he could think of while they had been on the road.

    ¡°Bandage having diarrhea......¡±

    Lou Lan and Fatty looked dazed.

    After aplishing his evil scheme, Ai Hui announced that he was going to the embroidery workshop and left with a breeze.

    At the workshop, he saw that Senior Mingxiu and Mistress were safe and sound. To his surprise, Master was also actually there. Master looked like he had aged a lot and Mistress also looked more frail. Ai Hui was touched; he knew that they had been worried about him.

    Upon seeing him, everyone became agitated, especially Master, who looked as happy as a child.

    They only managed to calm down from the joy of reuniting after a long moment.

    Ai Hui recounted in detail what he had experienced.

    Wang Shouchuan sighed and said, ¡°It¡¯s hard to believe that there¡¯s such a peculiar blood poison in this world. Who knows which wood elementalist came up with it. It¡¯s going to be aplete mess this time, you should not run about and just stay in the city instead. After all, Central Pine Academy is here. With the teachers¡¯ strength, I would be more at ease.¡±

    Senior Mingxiu gave an unhurried exnation and Ai Hui learned what had happened recently.

    A few days ago, someone came down with a weird illness. After getting Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi to examine, they diagnosed the person with a blood poison infection, and against their expectations, over the next few days, more cases of blood poisoning appeared. They only realized afterwards that it was being caused by a group of blood rats which had made its way into the city through an abandoned sewer.

    Thankfully, the blood rats had not fully mutated and were not very strong, so they were easily destroyed, but many people had already died by that point.

    The crisis that Central Pine City had faced led to panic urring at the slightest movement. Emergency measures were imposed on the city and the whole ce was probed for possible dangers.

    Those who were infected were sent to an istion bay for observation.

    Ai Hui could not help but be speechless after hearing the news. Previously, he had already thought that if there was a blood poisoning epidemic, the situation would be very dire. He could not believe that what he had worried about the most had already happened, and not in a city that was near the Garden of Life, but in Central Pine City instead.

    If Central Pine City was in such a state, then he reckoned that it was no better in the other cities.

    The blood poison was too frightful!

    After thinking about it, however, he guessed that it was normal for the Induction Ground to have such a slow reaction. It was likely that everyone was still at a loss as to what to do about the situation.

    Master¡¯s only worry was Ai Hui; he only let go of it after seeing Ai Hui back in one piece. He felt that ultimately, the city was a safer ce to be. There were enough people and the teachers each had a different absolute art. It would not be easy for the blood fiends to invade this city.

    Ai Hui did not refute, but only answered, ¡°Disciple had some thoughts after escaping from death. I feel that my contingency ns arecking, and I would like to learn some new moves.¡±

    Wang Shouchuan thought so too. While he felt that it was safe in the city, at times like this, self-defense moves were the most important. In the past, he had wanted Ai Hui to grow step-by-step instead of learning techniques hurriedly, but now that the situation had worsened, he could not afford to be learning so leisurely.

    ¡°Master has been thinking of this too. What sort of moves would you like to learn?¡±

    Ai Hui replied, ¡°Disciple would like to learn some sword moves.¡±

    ¡°Sword moves?¡± Wang Shouchuan was not the least bit surprised. He had long realized that Ai Hui had a passion for the sword. He thought for a while before saying, ¡°Swordy has been in decline for a long time. There were very few people practicing it, so few legacies could be formed and passed on to future generations. The same could not be said for absolute arts, so a legacy would not be a problem.¡±

    Ai Hui was at a loss as to what to do. Those arts that could be called legacies definitely had something extraordinary to them, but this way, he would have to give up on the sword embryo. If it was in the past, Ai Hui would not hesitate, but now his sword embryo was getting better. Moreover, it would be a pity if he did not use his unique sword elemental energy to practice sword moves.

    Mistress spoke up and saidughingly, ¡°I have an absolute legacy. If Little Ai Hui is willing to learn, Mistress can teach him everything.¡±

    A vision of himself floated into Ai Hui¡¯s mind; countless bright needles danced around him as he grasped an embroidery needle, then he turned around and smiled sweetly. He suddenly felt cold and could not help but tremble.

    Looking at Ai Hui¡¯s state, everyoneughed heartily. Even Han Yuqin convulsed withughter and was not at all angry.

    Ai Hui thought carefully and made up his mind. ¡°Disciple has decided to expand and work on his sword moves.¡±

    After making that decision, he felt surprisingly at ease. He had the sword embryo within his body and training required the brandishing of sword moves. Elemental energy was also a part of sword elemental energy. If he did not expand the development of his sword moves, what area should he expand on?

    He was not someone who was overflowing with talent. It would be like courting death if he wanted to be greedy when he had a terrible aptitude.

    Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqin gave each other a nce and saw the tell-tale signs of a smile in each other¡¯s eyes.

    ¡°Mistress and I had long predicted this.¡± Wang Shouchuan did not bother to conceal his approving expression andughed. ¡°Every major event that you have encountered was decided with the sword. Mistress and I both feel that you should learn swordy.¡±

    ¡°So what if swordy is in decline?¡± Han Yuqin continued haughtily, ¡°Was Mistress¡¯s embroidery not invented by herself? Maybe our Little Ai Hui would be the first Swordy Grandmaster in the future!¡±

    Mingxiu took out a wooden box and said smilingly, ¡°Master and Mistress had long taken care of it. Junior, quickly open this box and take a look.¡±

    Suddenly, a warmth which he had never experienced before engulfed Ai Hui, and he was momentarily caught off guard.

 Chapter 137: To Get Rich!

    Chapter 137: To Get Rich!

    Trantor: JL Editor: - -

    Inside the wooden box, there was a silver pill ced on top of a ck velvet cloth.

    ¡°This is the sword pill.¡± Wang Shouchuan could see that this was the first time Ai Hui had seen one and exined, ¡°Disciple, you are familiar with the ancient swordy manuals and you should know about the sword pill; however, the sword pill is now drastically different from the sword pills from the Cultivation Era. This sword pill is an object used to seal up swordy. Using the finest liquid gold from the Silver Mist Sea and the Inverted Sky Pce Technique, the sword pill was created with the knowledge of swordy branded within. For brilliant legacies, there were many subtle things that could not be put in words, so using the sword pill, future students were able toprehend these subtleties. The Inverted Sky Pce Technique was learnt through ancient bamboo strips and many of the movements of metal elemental energy were sealed through this method.¡±

    The first part left Ai Hui baffled. He knew about the Silver Mist Sea; it was part of the Avalon Of Five Elements and also thend of metal elementalists. While he did not know what the Inverted Sky Pce Technique was, it sounded very impressive.

    But once he heard ¡®bamboo strips¡¯, Ai Hui understood in a sh.

    The swordy manuals were mostly recorded on bamboo strips and Ai Hui had gone through a countless number of them. As of now, the bamboo strips were already torn and tattered, he reckoned that they would disintegrate in another century.

    During the Cultivation Era, the bamboo strips were usually passed down after a period of ten thousand years.

    Wang Shouchuan instructed, ¡°ce the sword pill in your hand and insert some elemental energy into it.¡±

    Ai Hui did as told. He took the silver sword pill from the wooden box and ced it within the hollow of his palm. The sword pill was not big as it was only slightlyrge for a pill.. Ai Hui carefully inserted a thread of elemental energy into it.

    A brilliant ray of light was abruptly set off from the sword pill on his palm. Within the ray of light, there were constantly flickering silhouettes that were holding on to swords and practicing. They were like flickering lights and passing shadows, gone as quickly as they came.

    Ai Hui was attracted to it immediately.

    The movements of the silhouettes were as fast as lightning, and they dazzled and confused him. Suddenly, a violent movement was aimed at the space between his brows.

    Ai Hui jumped in shock, but he soon felt an immense happiness. He had seen many sword manuals, but their correct interpretations had long gone with the passing of time. He could only make use of the words and diagrams to reconstruct the movements.

    With an anxious tone, he asked, ¡°Master, what sort of swordy is in this?¡±

    Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqinughed upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s impatient expression. Ai Hui had always disyed a maturity beyond his age, so it was rare to see a childish side of him. While the couple liked the the steadfast and mature Ai Hui, they also wished to see him be like an ordinary teenager, carefree and high-spirited. To them, the youthful period was the best time to be.

    ¡°There¡¯s no name. It has three scattered sword moves,¡± Wang Shouchuan recalled fondly. ¡°This was left behind by an old friend of mine. He was called Cheng Rou and was an odd talent with a vast range of interests, dabbling in everything. He was a rare Complete Elementalist and bore the Five Elements. It was difficult to train to be a Complete Elementalist, but he was a gifted and passionate learner. As long as he put his mind to it, he would be able to master anything, but he did not have a fixed temperament and was very carefree. There was a period of time where he developed an interest in swordy and told me that he wanted to invent a set of swordy.¡±

    Ai Hui and Mingxiu paid close attention, like they were listening to a story.

    Recalling the past, Wang Shouchuan sighed and said, ¡°He took seven days to invent these three sword moves. I witnessed how he did it and his talent was astonishing. To date, I had never seen a talent who was able to surpass him.¡±

    Han Yuqin coldly snorted. ¡°What a pity he wasted his talent. Little Ai Hui, do not learn from him. A jack-of-all-trades is a master of none.¡±

    Ai Hui muttered to himself that this Senior Cheng Rou must have offended Mistress in the past. While he had such opinions, Mistress still made sense and Ai Hui agreed from the bottom of his heart. While Cheng Rou was willful, he was still a genius, whereas Ai Hui was just an average chap. Only when he fought to the death for something would he then be able to make some progress.

    Wang Shouchuanughed, but did not rebut, then continued, ¡°After three moves, he said that his creativity and inspiration were used up and did not continue. These three moves were too scattered to be made into a system and could not be formed to pass on to future generations. As such, he just randomly threw it to me.¡±

    ¡°Humph! You are treating it like a treasure when it is someone else¡¯s trash!¡± Again, Han Yuqin gave a cold snort.

    At this point, Ai Hui was one hundred percent sure that Senior Cheng Rou had offended Mistress, and that the offense had been a huge one.

    Again, Wang Shouchuan did not get angry. He just gave augh and continued, ¡°I did not imagine there would be a day where I would bring it out again. While these three moves are scattered, the impact is still pretty good. The design is borate and would be suitable for you to learn. Take it and slowly analyze it. Learn as much as you can. The usage of the sword pill is very easy; just like what you did just now, use your elemental energy to activate the sword pill and you will be able to see the images. When you have familiarized yourself with the posture, pace, and movements, ce the sword pill at the Sky Pce between your eyebrows which supplements the visuals. The sealed intentions of the sword pill will appear in your mind and you will be able to experience their true interpretations. Remember, you must first be proficient in the movements. Once the seal of the sword pill is broken, the true intentions will only be preserved for a short period of time.¡±

    ¡°Thank you, Master!¡± Ai Hui carefully returned the sword pill to the box.

    Everyone could not help but smile when they saw Ai Hui looking at it like it was a treasure.

    ¡°Junior made a small fortune recently,¡± said Senior Mingxiu, smiling. ¡°The havoc created by the blood fiends led to a terrible situation. Junior¡¯s Bunny Hair Arrows performed exceptionally well and were considerably effective in dealing with the blood fiends. All the Bunny Hair Arrows from Manager Li¡¯s store have been sold. While at twenty thousand yuan per arrow, the price was notparable to the market price of thirty thousand yuan; however, therge quantity sold still brought about a profit. Manager Li was as busy as a bee and spent his days manufacturing the Bunny Hair Arrows. I reckon Junior will have an ie of millions of yuan.¡±

    Mistress said cheerfully, ¡°That¡¯s good! I finally see some positive development towards my eight million for the workshop.¡±

    Ai Hui was slightly embarrassed.

    Senior Mingxiu instructed, ¡°Junior, make a trip down to Manager Li¡¯s storeter. His hair has gone gray from waiting. There was a huge demand for the Bunny Hair Arrows, and he¡¯s worried about the problem of the Bunny Hair now.¡±

    ¡°I will make a trip downter.¡± There seemed to be countless small money signs flying in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    He suddenly thought of the issue of the Blood Bandage and asked, ¡°Mistress, do you still remember anything about the Blood Bandage?¡±

    Han Yuqin did not expect Ai Hui to mention the Blood Bandage and astoundedly responded with another question, ¡°Did something happen to the bandage?¡±

    Ai Hui hurriedly replied, ¡°No, it is not a problem. I am just curious about the strange material.¡±

    He wanted to keep the matter of the bandage devouring flesh under wraps, or else they would worry again.

    Han Yuqin frowned and pondered before shaking her head. ¡°I have no recollection. Someone gave it to me in the past. At that point, I thought that the material was very special, so I kept it as I had never seen such a material before.¡±

    Ai Hui was somewhat disappointed, but he was not surprised. He instructed his Master and Mistress to take note of their safety, but he ended up leaving under Mistress¡¯s disdainful gaze. With Mistress keeping watch at the workshop and Senior Mingxiu, who was also highly skilled, with her, Ai Hui also felt that his worry was uncalled for.

    The embroidery workshop was exceptionally busy, just like before. It was like apletely different world whenpared to the outside.

    After leaving the embroidery workshop, Ai Hui ran straight to Manager Li¡¯s store.

    When Manager Li saw Ai Hui, the look he gave him was as if he had just reunited with a long lost rtive. ¡°Goodness! My boy, you are finally here! I had been to the embroidery workshop a few times and they said that you had not returned. Oh my, my heart was in a mess, the world is in a disorganized state now. Although your abilities are exceptional, you still have to be careful! Our future is vast and paved with riches. We should avoid unnecessary risks.¡±

    Nearing the end of his speech, Manager Li¡¯s tone was sincere and earnest.

    Ai Hui joyfully gestured, saying, ¡°Then I am counting on Manager Li to make more money on my behalf.¡±

    When he heard ¡®money¡¯, Manager Li brightened up. ¡°I have been waiting for you! Our Bunny Hair Arrows were beingmandeered at twenty thousand yuan each. After deducting the manufacturing costs of six thousand yuan, we still have a profit of fourteen thousand yuan per arrow. Guess how many we sold?¡±

    Ai Hui too, brightened and said, ¡°Five hundred?¡±

    Manager Li gave Ai Hui a disdainful gaze.

    Ai Hui was ecstatic now. ¡°One thousand?¡±

    ¡°Confidence! Confidence! Where is your confidence? Why can¡¯t I see it?¡± Manager Li pretended to be displeased.

    Ai Hui trembled. ¡°Could it be two thousand?¡±

    Manager Li¡¯s expression was proud as he extended three fingers. ¡°Three thousand!¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes almost popped out.

    ¡°Three thousand!¡± Manager Li¡¯s saliva was flying out as he spoke, ¡°Do you know how long I have not slept? Because of these three thousand arrows, I put my life at risk. I spent days and nights on them. Wow, that pain, oh, that tiredness; I was so tired that I could not straighten my back. Do you think it was easy considering my old age? My boy, looking at how much effort I put in, would it be possible to ...¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes, which were almost popping out, suddenly became alert like a starving cat¡¯s on a dark night. They flickered brilliantly with golden, shiny rays. Without a second word, he interrupted Manager Li, ¡°No! Divide the money! Divide the money now!¡±

    He would be able to get seven million yuan for one thousand arrows. Three thousand arrows meant twenty-one million yuan.

    Twenty-one million yuan!

    This was an amount he did not dare to think about in the past. He should first repay Mistress the eight million for the embroidery workshop. After adding up the misceneous expenses, he reckoned it would be ten million yuan.

    He would still have eleven million left over. Oh gosh, so much money, why was his heartbeat so fast......

    ¡°Divide, divide, divide!¡± Manager Li nodded his head, and without a second word, he took out a delicate money card that was printed with the Avalon Of Five Elements logo.

    So advanced!

    Ai Hui took the money card. He had seen people using it before, but this was the first time he would use one. This money card was nameless, so Ai Hui needed to imprint on the card. He carefully injected a thread of elemental energy and a small silver sword appeared on the bottom right corner of the ck money card.

    ¡°Oh, swordsmanship, you have taste! No wonder I felt that you were extraordinary,¡± Manager Li repeatedly praised.

    The money card could distinguish the attribute of elemental energy and form different kinds of seals. Everyone¡¯s elemental energy imprint differed ording to their attributes and trainings.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind stirred and the amount appeared on the face of the ck card. Indeed, it was twenty-one million!

    He made it! He made it! He made it!

    Bunny Hair was indeed a great name!

    In a sh, Ai Hui became extremely agitated. He has never had so much money before.

    ¡°After I learned that my boy practiced swordsmanship, I kept a lookout for swords. Good thingse to those who wait, and I finally managed to receive a good sword. Do you want to take a look? This is indeed a good sword. Now that the world is in such a disorganized state and there is no army for support, it is very dangerous.¡±

    Manager Li was all smiles. His appearance then was indeed the perfect example of a profiteer.

 Chapter 138: Dragonspine Inferno

    Chapter 138: Dragonspine Inferno

    Trantor: JL Editor: - -

    After repaying the money he owed to Mistress and making some calctions, he would be left with just two hundred and sixty thousand yuan.

    But looking at Manager Li¡¯s facial expression, Ai Hui guessed that the sword he had was an extraordinary sword. Otherwise, he would not look so smug. It would be a lie if Ai Hui said he was not curious; being an experienced veteran, Ai Hui knew the importance of a good weapon. He was still using a borrowed military-grade grass sword from the manor¡¯s guard after his Sawtooth Grass Sword was spoilt.

    Ai Hui could not contain himself and said, ¡°Do not try to fool me using an ordinary weapon.¡±

    While Master and Mistress felt that the situation would not worsen, Ai Hui was still worried. The eruption of the blood poison epidemic was too ferocious and it did not help that the response from the Induction Ground was too slow. Ai Hui had an extremely acute sense for danger after struggling in the Wilderness for such a long period of time.

    The infected insects they had encountered while running back to the city only increased Ai Hui¡¯s worries. Based on his predictions, it would be a matter of time before therge carnivorous animals finished their transformation. The situation then would be far worse than now.

    In the barrow, the beast howl they had heard was loud enough to cause tremors, and the fear that had caused him was still present in his heart. He had seen many dire beasts and their ordinarily imposing manners did not have any effect on him, but when he had heard the beast howl from outside the barrow, he could not help but be extremely fearful and scared..

    He did not know if anyone in Central Pine City would be able to deal with them.

    Furthermore, Ai Hui did not have high hopes for the support team from the Avalon of Five Elements. There were so many cities in the Induction Ground; who would be able to save them all?

    If this was a conspiracy, Ai Hui waspletely in awe of the conspirator. The Induction Ground was the most peaceful ce with the least security measures. If the Avalon of Five Elements was a huge, violent beast, then the Induction Ground was its soft abdomen. It was a wide district and had few restrictions. Even if you stirred up any trouble, it probably would not catch the attention of anyone important. The Induction Ground only had weak students and teachers thatcked experience.

    The Thirteen Divisions of the Avalon of Five Elements was stationed near the frontline of the Wilderness, so Central Pine City would need time for them to reach the city.

    Ai Hui felt like a shadow was being cast over his heart. Who would design such a conspiracy? What could they gain from this plot?

    The most suspicious person might be a teacher with a screw loose in his head. He would probably torment them with such a vicious plot and finish them off.

    He had many conjectures and they were both good and bad, but he reckoned it was going to be a long time before they were able to make use of them to make any judgements on the situation. Everyone would be living in danger. The time before the Thirteen Divisions came to provide their support would be the hardest period to go through, and also the most critical.

    They had to get through this hurdle first.

    Ai Hui resolved not to worry about money. He could only use the money if he survived.

    ¡°Of course it¡¯s not an ordinary sword.¡± Manager Li¡¯s smile was simr to a Buddha¡¯s. Ai Hui¡¯s tone was fitting for a disciple under a Master. Thinking back to the time when he had borrowed two hundred thousand to purchase the grass sword, his eyeballs had almost popped out of their sockets in shock. It was the first time he seen a disciple in such dire straits.

    Manager Li walked into a side room and soon came out holding a long and narrow sword case.

    The sword case was fully coated in ck. There were patterns of red water caltrops on the top of the case and each of the four corners had drawings of a bat. Ai Hui had familiarized himself with the sword manuals and knew that the bat was the mostmonly seen decorative symbol in the past. It implied good fortune.

    Upon opening the sword case, a beautiful longsword could be seen within.

    At first nce, Ai Hui already thought that it was pretty. The ck body of the sword did not have any sheen and looked like some sort of timber. There were seven small, shiny water caltrop crystals that were a fiery red on the ridge of the sword. It looked like it was encrusted with red rubies. It also looked like the protruding stiff bones on the back of the Swordback Dragon dire beast from the ancient times. Both sides of the sword were a faint, dark red. It appeared to have irregr wave patterns which were gathered on the sharp end of the sword.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up and he took the sword out carefully.

    ¡°This sword is named Dragonspine Inferno. It was grown!¡° Manager Li announced.

    ¡°It was grown?¡± Ai Hui eximed.

    With a smug expression, Manager Li replied, ¡°Look at the seven red crystals. They are not just any crystals, but are the artifact remnants that were fished out from the Silver Mist Sea. They are the remnants of a spiritual sword from the Cultivation Era.¡±

    ¡°What artifact remnants, do not try to fool me,¡± Ai Hui countered with disdain, ¡°Do not take me for a fool because I am young. It¡¯s just sea g (waste from the sea) and you talk as if it¡¯s very high-end.¡±

    Yes, some people called them treasures of the sea, but most called them waste from the sea.

    The Silver Mist Sea was part of the Avalon of Five Elements and, together with thend of the metal elementalists, was collectively known as the Silver Mist Sea. In reality, the real Silver Mist Sea was actually the core of a man-made sea, or rather, it was a big, artificialke which had already existed since the early establishment of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    The aim of establishing the Silver Mist Sea was to obtain help from the metal elementalists.

    At the time, spiritual force had dissipated and became extremely rare, while elemental energy had just been discovered. In order to obtain help from the metal elementalists, the elders thought of a foolish idea. They transported countless treasure-infused flying swords which no longer had any spiritual effects into the middle of the valley.

    All those treasure-infused flying swords were mostly created by those with metal attributes. As time passed, the metal elemental energy began to flourish and the density of the metal elemental energy was like a silver mist. Before long, the top of the valley was filled with the silver mist and henceforth, it had been called the Silver Mist Sea.

    From the start until now, the expansion of the sea in the Silver Mist Sea had been unceasing.

    It was hard to determine how much the Silver Mist Sea had expanded. It was much bigger than in the past and the boundary could not be seen. It truly lived up to the term ¡®sea¡¯ now. Until now, every year, many elementalists would enter deep into the Old Territory to look for unknown paradises, and they would end up bringing back carriages full of treasure-infused flying swords which no longer had any spiritual effects. In addition, amongst those would be huge amounts of metal attributes from the smelted metal.

    Following the flourishing of the metal elemental energy, the original treasure-infused flying swords became crisp in exterior. The metal elemental energy was strong and acidic, so coupled with the constant erosion caused by the fine Silver Mist, the crisp exteriors of the treasure-infused swords were constantly being turned into ashes.

    But there were always some objects that were hard for the silver mist to erode. These objects would lie quietly beneath the Silver Mist Sea and were called sea g. They were sediments left behind by the Silver Mist Sea.

    The sea g had many different oddities and most of them were from unknown origins. The training equipments used in the Cultivation Era were broad, extensive, andplicated, using many different materials. Even if anyone knew their origins, the sea g would still not be useful as, following the dissipation of spiritual force and the emergence of elemental energy, those objects underwent huge changes in their initial attributes.

    But given that they were able to withstand the silver mist¡¯s erosion, sea g definitely had extraordinary features. Following the opening of the Silver Mist Sea each month, these bits of sea g would be pushed into the river channel. As a result, it led to the creation of a group of people who would fish out the sea g at the river bank for a living.

    Using sea g was like taking a gamble. Once you found a suitable purpose for it, it would be akin to winning the lottery; however, most of what they found were objects which served little purpose.

    Even though Manager Li was caught in his lie, he was not at all ashamed and instead praised Ai Hui, ¡°My boy is indeed experienced and knowledgeable! It was by a coincidence that my friend received the artifact remnants, no, sea g. Seven of them, just the right amount! It was rare that they all originated from the same object, so he decided to make a weapon out of them and immersed them in the bud of a Devil¡¯s nt of Twilight Sandal Wood.¡±

    Ai Huiughed coldly. ¡°So, he wanted to grow a heavy weapon initially, but unexpectedly, a sword grew instead? And because there are few practicing swordsmanship, coupled with the fact that this sword is heavy, you are unable to sell it. Am I right?¡±

    When he heard Old Li mention the Devil¡¯s nt of Twilight Sandal Wood, he knew the intention of the opposite party, which was to grow a heavy weapon. Given the current poprity of vegetation weapons, using nts as a fetus and then growing a weapon out of them was one of the most mainstream methods used.

    Embarrassed, Manger Li replied, ¡°I had not started selling and immediately thought of you. How could the Sawtooth Grass Sword be worthy of you? This Dragonspine Inferno would be a perfect match!¡±

    ¡°I am buying that sword,¡± said Ai Hui straightforwardly.

    Manager¡¯s Li had a joyful expression while he gave a thumbs up. ¡°That¡¯s the way! This should be the way a disciple under a master acts! This isn¡¯t the least bit expensive, my boy...¡±

    Without waiting for Manager Li to set a price, Ai Hui interrupted him and said coldly, ¡°Old Li, you made quite a fortune this time. I took a thirty percent cut while you took seventy percent. I did not even get half of what you made, wasn¡¯t it?¡±

    Manager Li had an ominous prediction after hearing that sentence. ¡°But we made a deal previously!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right, we made a deal!¡± Ai Hui waved his hands around and continued gravely, ¡°You are still operating a business right? It¡¯s so difficult to produce the Bunny Hair. If any mishaps happened to me, what would happen to your business? Shouldn¡¯t you invest in ensuring the safety of your partner? If you are unwilling to invest, take it that I did not say anything. I will still pay whatever price you set. But you are operating a business after all; there are bound to be mishaps sometimes.¡±

    Upon hearing that, Manager Li almost wanted to kneel down. With a passionate expression, he pped his chest heartily. ¡°My boy, your words hit close to heart! Such a sword deserves a hero and only a hero like my boy here would be able to match this sword. I thought of you when I saw it. Come! Hold on to the sword. It is just a little gesture on my part. My boy, one word of advice from an elder brother, safety is first. We were able to make a huge profit on just the Bunny Hair Arrows. For the sake of huge amounts of money, you must take note of your safety.¡±

    What else could he say? Manager Li was practically crying when he said the above. He thought he would be able to take advantage of Ai Hui, but who knew Ai Hui was even more cunning.

    He was unable to ward off such a practical threat.

    Thank goodness he bought the Dragonspine Inferno at a low price. Swords were usually hard to sell, let alone such a heavy sword.

    Upon thinking of the money he made, however, Manager Li immediately became clear-headed. He was indeed confused. How could he make such a rudimentary mistake? He should curry favor with the chap in front of him!

    He had a better understanding now. While Ai Hui was Mingxiu¡¯s junior, he was more flexible and invasive in his methods, making him harder to deal with. It was a joke that he once thought of Ai Hui as a novice, someone who was not updated with the affairs of the world. Thank goodness he came to see the truth early on.

    ¡°Then I am going to ept this sword. I should not be unappreciative of your intentions.¡± Ai Hui patted Manager Li¡¯s shoulder and continued, ¡°Old Li, you should concentrate on working steadily at something in terms of investment.¡±

    Manager Li¡¯s knees almost buckled after hearing those words.

    Concentrate on working steadily...

    Gangster! What a gangster! And Ai Hui could still say it in such a righteous way till he was unable to reject him!

    Was this guy really a disciple under a Master? How could he have the air of a hooligan from the marketce?

    Both of his eyes were brimming with tears while he said from the bottom of his heart, ¡°Yes, yes, yes, working steadily, working steadily!¡±

    ¡°How is it? Do you still have sufficient Bunny Hair?¡± Ai Hui saw that he had aplished his mission and decided to top the icing on the cake.

    Manager Li jolted and looked at Ai Hui anxiously. ¡°It is almost used up. The main issue is that the length of many of the Bunny Hairs is not suitable. I am only able to wait for your assistance.¡±

    Ai Hui pondered before answering, ¡°Prepare the Twilight Silkworm, herbs, iron cooking pot, and whatnot and send it over to my ce. Afterwards, send someone to collect the Bunny Hair daily.¡±

    Manger Li was long awaiting those words from Ai Hui. Without a second word, he said, ¡°The things have long been prepared. They will be sent over now!¡±

    Ai Hui: ¡°......¡±

 Chapter 139: Chime of the Sword and Weapons

    Chapter 139: Chime of the Sword and Weapons

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: - -

    AI Hui happily carried the Dragonspine Inferno in his hand.

    What a good sword!

    The sword was as heavy as one hundred kilograms. The Devil¡¯s nt of Twilight Sandal Wood was a material used to make heavy weapons. Its density was the highest, so the sword grown from it was extremely heavy. If Ai Hui had not developed [Copper Skin], he would hardly be able to lift the sword. Even now, when he tried to swing the sword, he could still feel its heftiness.

    Even if it hadcked edges and was used to hit the enemy as a club, the bones of the enemy would all be broken.

    Excellent!

    To Ai Hui, the fiercer the weapon was, the better he could utilize it. His skills were not systematic. Therefore, he might not be able to make the optimal use of certain good weapons that possessed a specific effect. Only the crude and simple weapons like this suited him the best.

    Moreover, he had not paid anything for the Dragonspine Inferno.

    A free weapon was undoubtedly a good weapon, even if it was a grass sword.

    The swinging the one hundred kilogram sword produced a deep and scary whistling sound.

    If not for the fellows following him, Ai Hui would have already tested this sword. He reminded himself that he was now a rich man, and a rich man should behave with grace.

    Pushing open the gate of the training hall, Ai Hui¡¯s nose twitched before he said anything, and his eyes immediately widened.

    The smell of food! Elemental soup!

    Rushing inside, Ai Hui suddenly saw a fat guy licking the bottom of a bowl. Instantly, evil thoughts flooded into his mind.

    Yet, he had not immediately revealed his fury. Instead, he smiled at Fatty wickedly and noted this in his mind. Even if Fatty was his pal, there was no way he would not mind Fatty taking his elemental soup.

    ¡°Ai Hui.¡± Lou Lan¡¯s eyes brightened when he saw him.

    Lou Lan then noticed the fellow behind Ai Hui who was carrying a big pot and herbs. Golden light was shining in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes. ¡°Noctilucent Grass, Poria Water, Bamboo Stone, and Bian Fish Eyes. So many herbs. Are you going to peel Twilight Silk, Ai Hui?¡±

    Ai Hui was not surprised at Lou Lan¡¯s knowledge. Lou Lan was skilled at medical treatment, so it was not odd for him to be familiar with all kinds of herbs.

    ¡°Yes. You also know this?¡± Ai Hui asked the fellow to put down all the materials while talking to Lou Lan.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know much, but the principles are simr. By the way, Ai Hui, this form was not good enough.¡±

    The fellow was unhappy to hear this and said, ¡°Not good enough? That¡¯s impossible. This is the standard form to soften Twilight Cocoons.¡±

    ¡°Shut up!¡± Ai Hui looked at the fellow with an unfriendly gaze.

    Ai Hui had always been partial to his friends and would not allow anyone to say anything bad about them.

    Lou Lan replied honestly, ¡°If the ratio of the form is adjusted, it will be more effective.¡±

    The fellow wanted to refute when he felt something heavy on his shoulder. Turning his head, he saw Ai Hui¡¯s clouded face, the Dragonspine Inferno at his throat, and did not dare to say another word.

    Ai hui nced at him, took back his Dragonspine Inferno, and said lightly, ¡°Put down the materials and leave.¡±

    The fellow felt as if he was granted amnesty and left in dejection.

    Ai Hui turned to Lou Lan and cracked a smile. ¡°I will leave the herbs to you then, Lou Lan.¡±

    Lou Lan was very happy that he could help Ai Hui. ¡°No problem. Just leave it to me!¡±

    Then he began his work.

    At that point, Fatty had finished drinking the soup and joined them. ¡°I still cannot understand your intention, huh? But I think Lou Lan is definitely a good sand puppet. Where did you buy it? I want to buy one even if it costs me my whole fortune. It is rare to see such a good sand puppet.¡±

    Seeing Fatty¡¯s satisfied expression, Ai Hui smiled grimly in his heart, but kindly said to him, ¡°How does the soup taste?¡±

    ¡°Delicious!¡± Fatty¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°I never tried any soup as delicious as this before. Is this elemental soup? It¡¯s so great! My body gets warm after just one sip. If I could have one bowl of this soup every day, I¡¯ll die without any regrets.¡±

    One bowl every day...

    Ai Hui was so irritated that he burst intoughter. ¡°How dare you think of that. How much is the soup, Lou Lan?¡±

    Lou Lan tilted his head and said, ¡°That soup is called Oil Under Fire, which best fits his fire attribute. The cost of the materials is one hundred and seventy thousand yuan. It is beneficial for his training.¡±

    One hundred and seventy thousand yuan...

    Ai Hui¡¯s face froze, regretting that he did not remind Lou Lan of this before leaving. Lou Lan was just too honest.

    Fatty smacked his lips to recollect the aftertaste of the soup. ¡°No wonder it tastes so good. This is an expensive delicacy. Delicious!¡±

    Seeing Fatty¡¯s annoying face, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were cold. ¡°The one hundred and seventy thousand yuan is on you. Didn¡¯t you hear what Lou Lan said? Hurry up and start training now. Haven¡¯t you finished practicing the [Fluttering Butterfly Steps]? Then the next is the [Dancing Flower Steps]. You should have the strength to do five hundred sets, since you just finished the soup.¡±

    ¡°Five hundred sets?¡± Fatty¡¯s eyes widened as if he had heard some horrifying news.

    ¡°Not enough?¡± A warm smile appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face. ¡°Then two hundred more.¡±

    ¡°Seven hundred sets of the [Dancing Flower Steps]? I don¡¯t think that¡¯s enough for him to totally absorb the soup,¡± Lou Lan said honestly.

    ¡°How about nine hundred? Okay let¡¯s just round it to one thousand.¡± Ai Hui asked Lou Lan with a smiling face.

    ¡°That¡¯s more or less enough.¡± Lou Lan nodded.

    Ai Hui noticed Fatty¡¯s shivering legs and smiled grimly in his heart, but his face became more amiable. ¡°What if the training is not finished? Lou Lan, do we have any punishment that does not harm the body, but is still effective?¡±

    Tilting his head, Lou Lan thought for a while and said, ¡°So you are referring to mental punishment instead of physical punishment? I think one such method is to forcibly immerse someone¡¯s face in water until the person almost drowns. This was used to torture prisoners before. The suffocating and dying experience is very impressive.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s a good idea,¡± Ai Hui said in admiration.

    Not only his legs, but every part of Fatty was shivering now. He looked at Lou Lan as if Lou Lan was a devil who had just climbed out of hell.

    What a vicious sand puppet...

    Then, Ai Hui delivered the final shot casually. ¡°You will know how that feels if you cannot finish one thousand sets, Fatty.¡±

    Fatty¡¯s face was as pale as ashes. He whined as he crawled his way over to the training area without hesitation, like a bear with an arrow in its hip. He knew Ai Hui would carry out the threat, and he did not want to experience it at all.

    Seeing that Fatty left, Lou Lan began to adjust the proportion of the herbs. Ai Hui had to admit that the way Lou Lan dealt with the herbs was delightful to watch. It was as smooth as drifting clouds and flowing water.

    Lou Lan is my pride!

    Ai Hui felt at ease leaving all these materials with Lou Lan and departed by himself.

    He was finally able to study the sword pill that his teacher gave him as well as the Dragonspine Inferno.

    Just now, when he was with Manager Li, Ai Hui could only try to feel the sword in his hands instead of studying it carefully.

    Hum! As elemental energy was infused into the Dragonspine Inferno, the sword trembled slightly. His hand felt the vibration and almost dropped the sword on the ground. The Dragonspine Inferno was heavy indeed. Even the slightest tremble could produce an amazing force.

    The low and deep vibration was like the breathtaking growl of the Swordback Dragon.

    The chime of the sword! This was a pleasant surprise and a good omen for Ai Hui because it indicated that his elemental energy synergized with the Dragonspine Inferno. Ai Hui guessed that this might be because his elemental energy was sword elemental energy.

    Having figured this out, Ai Hui calmed down and began to feel the change of the flow that his elemental energy was going through within the sword.

    As the elemental energy flowed in the sword, he immediately knew the difference.

    The flow of the elemental energy was smooth and lubricated, making the flowing itself an enjoyable process. Ai Hui could not resist praising the sword again. Simply judging from the flow, it was far better than the grass swords he had used before. The sword was heavy, but as the elemental energy was now infused into it, it seemed to be much lighter. As a result, it was a bit easier for Ai Hui to wield it.

    With the elemental energy circting, the de of the sword became dark red, and the color slowly pulsed as if it was alive.

    He tried to touch the Ga Prismatic Crystal in the sword with the elemental energy. Like a y ox thrown into the sea, the energy was absorbed into the abyss and disappeared. He knew that this was because the amount of elemental energy he had was too small to activate the prismatic crystals, so he stopped.

    His level was still not high enough. Ai Hui shook his head.

    The Dragonspine Inferno was indeed a good weapon. For ordinary elementalists, they would have to spend a considerable amount of money to get such a weapon. Ai Hui believed that he would not have to worry about his weapon for a long period of time.

    Nowadays, there were various kinds of weapons, but most of them were long-range weapons.

    Elementalists tended to fight using sand puppets. For themselves, they either chose self defense or concealment.

    There were many weapons designed for wood elementalists, but a pure elementalist usually fought with their particr Grass Seed Fruit. Metal elementalists had two divisions that had totally different styles, the Sky Edge Division and the Infantry Division. The former mainly used sabers, bows, and spears, while thetter mostly used heavy weapons.

    It was thought-provoking to note the fact that swordsmanship, which had once been mainstream for thousands of years, had declined and was reced by the saber, which had never been dominant before.

    Yet, the reason was not difficult to understand. Swordy wasplicated and could not be supplemented by spiritual force. People mainly used swords for stabbing, so the lethality was limited. Inparison, sabers were simpler to use and people mainly used then to chop or hack. During the era of elemental energy, theck of spiritual force was less important, while the advantages due to simplicity and power were amplified.

    The rise of archery was also because of these changes over time. It was now the most powerful long-range weapon and the easiest to learn. Archery practitioners included elementalists of all attributes. This indicated its poprity.

    The weapon of the fire elementalist was usually simr to a cbash. It contained Earth Fire Lava which was collected from deep beneath the Sparking in and had been refined many times. Ai Hui once saw a fire elementalist carrying a wine jar about his height that was filled with the Earth Fire Lava.

    There were many benefits to traveling with a fire elementalist. For example, if you went somewhere cold, you could stay warm because you had a human-shaped stove. What was more convenient was cooking, because you could simply cut raw meat and put the slices on the wine jar to grill them. Those who had high criteria for food would brush the meat with oil and add spices, but this depended on whether you could get along with the fire elementalist.

    In this scenario, if a wood elementalist joined, then it would be a perfect team. A wood elementalist could find many weird nts, fruits, and mushrooms that you never knew about before. Eating these together with the meat would make it delicious and less greasy.

    Other weapons like the whip also had its enthusiasts, especially among wood elementalists, because it couldplement well with their vines. However, the whip was regarded as a weapon with a minority of wielders. Another popr weapon among the minority was the flying knife, which was typically used by some water elementalists. They knew how to fly, so it was easier for them to control the path of the flying knife, which could be very tricky sometimes.

    Most water elementalists used azure wings as their weapon. Azure wings were developed from flying equipment used in the early years and evolved into a weapon that integrated offense and defense.

    When it came to the water elementalists, a very unpopr weapon had to be mentioned, which was the javelin. The heavy javelin would be elerated through a sharp dive and then thrown with elemental energy by the water elementalists. They had killed numerous wild beasts using this method, making the javelin their most powerful and favorite weapon.

    Alright, swordsmanship had indeed declined, but it was what Ai Hui was good at.

    Ai Hui took out the sword pill.

 Chapter 140: Team Leader Shi Xueman

    Chapter 140: Team Leader Shi Xueman

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: - -

    Other than the swordy manuals, this was the first time that Ai Hui had studied a record of swordsmanship. Actually, what was written in the swordy manuals was not exactly swordy, but rather sword moves.

    There were big differences between swordy and sword moves.

    The nature of sword moves was the ¡®move¡¯, or the change of the spiritual force, and the sword was only a carrier. The nature of swordy, however, was the skill to wield a sword. This was also the reason why the sword declined as a weapon. In the early stages of the development of the sword moves, swordy was a basic training subject for all swordsmen. During the Cultivation Era, swordsmen had not had to start with swordy because the sword was not necessarily controlled by the hands.

    The use of spiritual force could send the sword flying for thousands of miles and was what swordsmen practiced.

    Yet, due to the unexpected disappearance of spiritual force, people had to control the sword with their hands again. Only by that time had they realized that they were no longer able to use the sword.

    In terms of chopping and hacking, swords were less powerful than sabers and axes. In terms of stabbing, they were not as good as spears.

    Currently, this was the embarrassing status of swordy. While, the elimination of species was selected by nature, the elimination of swordsmanship was selected by time. Ai Hui was unaware of any profound theories, but he was well versed in the limits of swordsmanship due to his abundant experience in fighting.

    If it were not for the sword embryo and its subsequent changes, he would not have chosen swordy.

    Thanks to the sword embryo, he developed his own advantage. Although he had no way of knowing if this would be advantageous in the future, he had decided to ce his future on the sword simply because of what he could obtain now. Others might think he was too careless in making such an important decision for his future, but Ai Hui disagreed.

    What meaning would the future have to a person like him who had nothing at all? His life was worth nothing, so it was needless to talk about his future. Therefore, to him, even the slightest advantage was valuable.

    He slowly infused his elemental energy into the sword pill.

    The sword pill began to shine again, and a figure appeared in the light.

    Ai Hui watched carefully this time. The faster he infused the elemental energy, the more rapidly the figure move and vice versa.

    His teacher said there were three independent moves with their own names. The first one was named the [Crescent Moon], the second [Dust Fall] and the third [Night Epiphyllum]. None of the names were rted. That was why Cheng Rou thought they were a mess. Actually, Ai Hui had not seen an interrtion between them either.

    Having watched carefully from the beginning to the end, Ai Hui realized that there was only one move he could learn now among the three moves.

    It was the first one, the [Crescent Moon].

    This was because the [Crescent Moon] was the only move that merely required the hand pces. Both of the other two moves had a higher criteria in the base level and involved the activation of more pces. The [Dust Fall] technique demanded the activation of the hand pces and the earth pce, which was not easy to open. Ai Hui would be hard pressed to aplish this within a short period of time. Meanwhile, the[Night Epiphyllum] was even moreplicated. Apart from the four pces of the hands and feet, the sky pce was also needed to be activated.

    Ai Hui was a bit disappointed at first, but on second thought, he was satisfied as he knew very few masters would bother to create a set of swordy for beginners.

    The [Crescent Moon] alone was sufficientlyplicated for him to learn.

    This was the mostplicated move he had ever encountered. The moves he previously learned were simple and brutal, like the [Arching Fish Back]. Although he had not really started, he had already gained a lot simply by watching the three moves in the sword pill. This experience was amazing and really eye-opening for Ai Hui.

    The first thing he noticed about the three moves was their boration in an all-round way. The flowing route of the elemental energy, for example, wasplicated and carefully designed. Moreover, the flowing speed of the elemental energy was not constant either, but was sometimes fast and sometimes slow.

    Additionally, the coordination of the breath and the body was also required.

    In other words, the move would only be unleashed when the elemental energy and breathing were coordinated with the movement.

    The perfectbination of these three factors could lead to the most powerful execution of the moves.

    The countless details were soplicated that it almost took Ai Hui¡¯s breath away.

    The difficulty in practicing the [Crescent Moon] was already beyond Ai Hui¡¯s imagination, but it would be even more difficult to use this move in actualbat because, in a real fight, the environment was moreplicated and tougher. Furthermore, the fighter would have to consider how to grasp fleeting opportunities while simultaneously dealing with the obstruction and interference of the opponents.

    Based on his fighting experience, Ai Hui preferred simpler moves which were easier to use. However, he was also aware of his weakness, which was theck of a powerful finishing move.

    The three independent moves in the sword pill could be his finishing techniques.

    Although he had not yet learned the move, he could already feel its power.

    His teacher was right. Cheng Rou was definitely a true genius.

    Admittedly, Ai Hui had gained something from the swordy manuals. Although his training no longer depended on the swordy manuals, he had developed his own understanding of swordy under the influence of the manuals which contained the wisdom of numerous cultivators spanning thousands of years.

    The three moves of the sword pill were featured with detail. All the energy within the body was allocated borately, then converged, and finally burst out.

    This was awesome.

    With eyes lit up, he calmed down from the excitement and began to study carefully.

    The sky outside Central Pine City.

    A transport wagon roared past. The students in the wagon were sitting quietly.

    ¡°It¡¯s my pleasure to fight with all of you. My name is Shi Xueman, and I¡¯m the team leader. I hope we can get along well andplete the mission smoothly. This will be your graduation examination.¡±

    If Ai Hui were able see the scene, he would be amazed because the person who was speaking was the same as thedy from the noodle house.

    Shi Xueman was in a white battle suit looking bright and brave. Her ck hair blew in the wind, and her splendid face was like a perfect painting.

    Yet, since she was the top goddess as well as the top Goddess of War, no one dared to show an obscene expression. The number of men who dared to pursue her was definitely less than the number of men who had been defeated by her.

    Shi Xueman looked solemn and her eyes were cold. Her intangible aura stimted everyone¡¯s nerves.

    The students realized how powerful thisdy was.

    ¡°You are all very familiar with the current situation. The blood catastrophe broke out suddenly, and the Thirteen Divisions could not provide assistance within such a short period of time. What we were worried the most about was the area for the younger students, who are less powerful and are not able to resist. As for the guards of each city, I¡¯m sure you are familiar with their ability.¡±

    Some studentsughed out loud.

    Underssmen students usually regarded the guards with reverence, but the upperssmen, who were experienced in actualbat due to daily tasks, never thought highly of them. Plus, all of the students in the transport wagon were the best of the best, so they had undoubtedly surpassed the guards in terms of overall fighting skills.

    Shi Xueman continued her speech as if she had not heard theirughter, ¡°This is an abrupt case, but I believe you will not flinch. I know that none of you need to worry about your graduation, but since the Induction Ground has assigned such an important task to us, I¡¯m sure that no one wants it to end in failure or disgrace their family.¡±

    Hearing thest sentence, some students who were lounging just now sat up straight, and their look became serious.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were cold. She nced at the students and said, ¡°This is a special mission that concerns the lives of millions of people. I believe you have heard about the blood poison, but I would like to remind you that it is even more horrible than you imagined. This is a mission that is different from what you have been through before. As your team leader, I have three requirements for you.¡±

    ¡°First of all, I hope you can follow orders and pool our efforts together. Second, be alert to dangers since anything can happen in the blood disaster zone...¡±

    Some students became impatient. Although Shi Xueman was well-known indeed, they were also not nobodies. It had not felt good to be lectured by a female team leader.

    Besides, they thought Shi Xueman was exaggerating the danger and making a fuss out of a casual order. The blood catastrophe was already under the control of the Induction Ground. All of them were from well-known families, so they all knew that the Induction Ground had found the solution to dealing with the blood catastrophe.

    As a result, they regarded the mission more as a field trip so that they could have a better curriculum vitae before graduation which would justify the important positions they were going to take.

    Yet, this stupid woman took it too seriously.

    ¡°Stop nagging!¡± said a male student who looked doughty as he snorted without looking at her. ¡°You are just a team leader...¡±

    Without warning, a beautiful hand appeared in front of him out of nowhere. He was greatly frightened but had no time to react before the sinewy rattan, which was as tenacious as steel wire and used to secure his body, was abruptly parted and he was dragged away from his seat.

    When he realized what had happened, he had already been thrown out of the transport wagon.

    ¡°Ahhhh...¡±

    The scream sounded farther and farther away. Everyone in the wagon swallowed nervously, and their expressions changed. Those who had been unsatisfied just now immediately became silent.

    No one expected Shi Xueman to be so direct and rude, or so ruthless. All of the students were frightened.

    Fortunately, the transport wagon was flying in a rtively low altitude.

    Still, the injury must be severe.

    This woman was more horrible than they had expected...

    ¡°I will report Li Hai¡¯s case to the Induction Ground, and I¡¯m d to meet with his parents if needed.¡± Shi Xueman was as serene as a realdy andcked any murderous countenance. As she ran her fingers through her hair, every movement was the embodiment of grace and beauty.

    No one dared to look at her or say a word.

    Only now had they remembered that this goddess surpassed them not only in terms of fighting skills, but also in terms of family background. As for the bitter experience today, Li Hai could only bear it because the Li Family clearly dared not bother the Shi Family. However, if Shi Xuemanined to Li Hai¡¯s parents, he would definitely be punished.

    This... this was unfair!

    The students were angry and sad.

    Shi Xueman felt the transport wagon begin tond, so she sat up straight with her expression bing serious.

    The transport steadily stopped on the ground.

    ¡°Disembark!¡± she ordered coldly.

    Like a heroine, she was the first to neatly jump out of the wagon as her long ck hair fluttered in the sunshine.

 Chapter 141: New Arrows

    Chapter 141: New Arrows

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: - -

    The difficulty for learning ¡¾Crescent Moon¡¿ was much higher than Ai Hui had expected.

    Although it only involved two pces, Ai Hui tried for a long time but still could not find a way to start. Thanks to his frequent discussions with his teacher, his horizons had been greatly broadened. Wang Shouchuan was good at working with theories and often discussed them with Ai Hui, even though he knew Ai Hui was only a beginner.

    In fact, moves involving only two pces were mostly basic moves. They were simple and easy to learn, but had limited power. Since not much elemental energy was needed, the flowing route was simple too. As a result, such skills could not involve many changes.

    It was like cooking. If the cook had only two ingredients, he would have very few choices in how to use them, and therefore could not prepareplicated dishes.

    That was why he believed that Cheng Rou, who could create the skill of ¡¾Crescent Moon¡¿ within the hand pces, was definitely a genius!

    Since it only involved two pces, the requirement for elemental energy was not high, but the techniques it involved were not simple at all.

    It was veryplicated!

    The first thing Ai Hui needed to do was to make a stable string between his hand pces. This alone was a high-level technique and could not be achieved easily by beginners.

    When Wang Shouchuan gave him the sword pill, he did not expect Ai Hui to master the skills in a short period of time. He just wanted to show Ai Hui what real swordy was, so that he could have a target in the future.

    But Ai Hui did not want to give up at all. The techniques wereplicated, but still achievable.

    Yet he was still forced to stop because of the many other things he needed to do, such as peeling the Twilight Silk.

    Lou Lan had finished adjusting the proportions of the herbs. The iron-like Twilight Cocoons were softened.

    Was there anything Lou Lan could not do? He could braise soup, make elemental food, heal wounds, do massages, make up prescriptions, and soften cocoons...

    Who dared to speak ill of such an excellent sand puppet!

    Ai Hui said, ¡°Lou Lan, you are brilliant!¡±

    Hearing his praise, Lou Lanughed happily and his eyes became like crescent moons. ¡°Keep going, Ai Hui!¡±

    A g of sand suddenly appeared in Lou Lan¡¯s palm. The sandy surface of the g had two hollowed-out words: Keep Fighting! Lou Lan cheered as he waved the g.

    Ai Huiughed out loud.

    Once again, Shi Xueman came back to Central Pine City. Seeing the empty streets, she felt really unfamiliar with the city that she had visited many times. This was her first time seeing the streets so empty.

    It seemed that the situation was worse than she had expected.

    This was the first time for her to be a team leader. She mustplete the task perfectly!

    She encouraged herself quietly.

    It was not long, however, before she realized that she was absolutely wrong. The obstacle she had encountered was unprecedented.

    ¡°I know, I know. You can trust us. We are able to protect Central Pine City. More guards were assigned to us and now we have plenty of people. You can take a rest in Central Pine Academy or have a talk with the freshmen. I believe you will have a happy time there. If we need any help, I will turn to you first.¡±

    The officer in Central Pine City was polite, but refused their offer of help. In his eyes, these students were sent here to have it easy. Ask them to help? Stop kidding. If any of them got injured, he would have great trouble. By that time, it would be lucky enough if he only lost his job.

    Every one of them was like a statue of Buddha. They only needed to sit there and enjoy themselves.

    Seeing her teammates¡¯ cheerful expressions, Shi Xueman felt depressed in her chest.

    Not because of her ample chest!

    In Central Pine Academy.

    ¡°Wee to Central Pine Academy, elites of the Induction Ground. This is the first time that Central Pine Academy has witnessed so many geniuses. Our humble academy is honored by your presence. You can stay here and we will arrange the best amodation for you. Feel free to tell us if there is anything you need. Please help yourselves while you are here. We would also really appreciate it if you could have a chat with and give some pointers to the new students here when you have the time.¡±

    The dean of Central Pine Academy was enthusiastic.

    ¡°Sorry to interrupt.¡±

    ¡°No problem!¡±

    ¡°What are your training facilities like? I don¡¯t really care about amodations; the training facilities are more important.¡±

    By this time, Shi Xueman had realized that none of her fellows took the mission seriously.

    She was the one who had been too naive.

    She was silenced. Maybe it really was a trip to have it easy.

    She had thought that Central Pine City was threatened with a growing crisis, but there actually seemed to be no crisis at all.

    She had been too sure of herself.

    Shi Xueman sneered at herself and felt very bored. She refused the academy¡¯s invitation and chose to live in the Shi n Training Hall.

    If it were peacetime, the dean would try his best to ask her to stay, but at this time, he earnestly wished she could leave. Although Central Pine City was safe for the moment, it was still more dangerous than it used to be. He would be responsible if anything happened to her in Central Pine Academy.

    If she stayed in the Shi n Training Hall, however, then it was none of his business.

    He even hoped that Shi Xueman could bring all her teammates to the Shi n Training Hall; but of course, Shi Xueman could not bother to care about them.

    Vanguard Training Hall.

    Ai Hui looked at the Twilight Silk he had peeled. The new Twilight Silk seemed a bit different from before; the silver gloss was like snow and frost. No matter how he put it, it was as straight as an arrow.

    ¡°It seems that the silk is harder than before,¡± Ai Hui murmured. He infused some elemental energy into it and a needle-thin light appeared at the end of the Twilight Silk.

    Ai Hui held the silk carefully and stabbed the edge of a pot lightly. It immediately pierced through and made a hole.

    Ai Hui thought happyily, ¡°This is a great progress.¡±

    The liquid Lou Lan had made was really different, and Ai Hui also suspected that it might have something to do with the change in his elemental energy; it had be sharper than before. The change in his elemental energy might have lead to the change in the silk he peeled.

    Ai Hui gave the silk to the fellow who came to pick it up and said, ¡°Ask your boss to try the new Bunny Hair.¡±

    The fellow took away the half-filled box of silk carefully. He was a distant rtive of Manager Li. Last time he had spoken too much and was then scolded by Manager Li when he returned. Since then, he had be much more polite.

    Anyway, Ai hui only cared about whether or not the quality of the silk was better, and whether or not there would be more money.

    It was not long before someone came to the training hall. It turned out to be Manager Li; he was paying a visit himself.

    Manager Li was glowing with delight andughed out loud just as he stepped into the training hall. ¡°Ai Hui, you are as extraordinary as I expected. I¡¯m really astonished at what you¡¯ve made. The Bunny Hair is way better than it was before. This is great!¡±

    Ai Hui was surprised. ¡°Old Li, why did youe in person?¡±

    ¡°I have to,¡± said Manager Li, ¡°Your amazing achievement has astonished me. It¡¯s too exciting for a coward like me. I can see yourposure, so you must be very confident now.¡±

    ¡°You already have the test result?¡± Ai Hui became excited too.

    Manager Li licked his lips and said, ¡°The old Bunny Hair Arrows could pierce a three-inch thick te from five hundred steps away. We just made ten arrows with the new Bunny Hair. Guess what the result was.¡±

    Ai Hui, who was eager to know the result, almost pped him in the face. It was annoying to tantalize him at this moment. He told himself to keep calm, but still couldn¡¯t help staring at Manager Li before saying, ¡°Just say it.¡±

    Manager Li¡¯s shrewdness appeared in his eyes. He gestured as he spoke, ¡°It can pierce a five-inch thick te from five hundred steps away or a three-inch thick te from one thousand steps away.¡±

    Ai Hui was surprised. He knew that the quality had improved, but didn¡¯t expect it to be so obvious.

    The next question he thought to ask was, ¡°What¡¯s the price for the new arrows?¡±

    ¡°One hundred thousand Yuan for one arrow.¡± Manager Li replied without hesitation.

    Ai Hui asked, ¡°Will it be too expensive?¡±

    ¡°This is the price Central Pine City offered for expropriation,¡± Manager Li said proudly. ¡°If put up for sale on the goods shelf, it can be sold at one hundred and fifty yuan for one.¡±

    Ai Hui was stunned and murmured, ¡°How many people can afford to buy it?¡±

    The Sawtooth Grass Sword he¡¯d boughtst time was only one hundred and twenty thousand yuan, which was less than the price of one new arrow. The arrows were consumables. How much money would they be willing to spend on arrows that were so expensive?

    Manager Li snorted. ¡°This is expensive? No! It¡¯s already cheap enough, since in the Induction Ground there are few big customers. For example, one Blue Blood Arrow provided to the frontline fighters costs five million yuan. This depends on how you look at it. How valuable is a wild beast? The mostmon beasts are worth tens of millions of yuan. Forrger beasts, they can cost hundreds of millions of yuan. There is no ceiling in terms of price, and sometimes you cannot buy what you want even if you are willing to pay. The life of the elementalists who dare to hunt ferocious wild beasts is worth far more than five million yuan.¡±

    Ai Hui was shocked. Now he knew that the hunting groups he used to follow before were of low level. He never saw an elementalist who would use arrows that cost hundreds of thousands of yuan.

    ¡°Don¡¯t think it¡¯s expensive. You cannot buy Blue Blood Arrows whenever you want. You need to ce an order in advance, and the minimum order quantity is one hundred. They don¡¯t sell to retail customers. Inparison, what we are doing is only small business.¡±

    Manager Li sighed, but when he saw Ai Hui¡¯s astonished face, he was afraid he would influence Ai Hui¡¯s enthusiasm and quickly added, ¡°But you are still young, and you have already created the Bunny Hair. You might be able to outperform them in the future. Besides, maybe you can further improve the Bunny Hair, and when you achieve that, we can both be rich...¡±

    At first Manager Li only intended to console Ai Hui, but he unexpectedly convinced himself and was getting more and more excited, as if the Bunny Hair Arrows were already being sold at the price of five million yuan for one.

    Fatty, who was practicing the Dancing Flower Steps not far away from them, tried hard to hear what they were talking about. He heard them mention something about money and became so curious that he almost rushed to join them.

    ¡°Two hundred and sixty-two. Keep practicing, Fatty!¡±

    Lou Lan encouraged him loudly and ran past him.

    Fatty was scared and almost twisted his ankle. He watched Lou Lan resentfully as he ran far away.

    What a vicious sand puppet!

    Fatty calmed down and didn¡¯t dare to stop. He knew Ai Hui would do what he said. If he could notplete the assignment, he would be unable to escape the punishment.

    No one knew Ai Hui better than he did. Ai Hui was cold, ruthless, and as hard as aher millstone.

    Once Ai Hui made up his mind, begging meant nothing to him.

    Fatty could only avenge himself on the floor tiles under his feet.

    He stepped on the tiles hard thinking,¡°If you won¡¯t let me join you, then I¡¯ll break every tile in your training hall!¡±

 Chapter 142: Sang Zhijun

    Chapter 142: Sang Zhijun

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: - -

    In the nearly empty training hall, a figure was practicing hard. Sweat poured down from her face like raindrops.

    Watching Shi Xueman¡¯s training reminded Yong Zheng of the past, which made him smile subconsciously. Shi Xueman had almost the same characteristics as her father.

    She was brave, self-disciplined and responsible, just like her father.

    He now somewhat understood why the family spent so much on Xueman. From their perspective, Shi Xueman was definitely the best candidate from her generation to assume responsibility of the family from her father.

    Nheless, Yong Zheng somehow felt pity for her.

    He saw how much his friend had sacrificed to raise the family to what it was now. Shi Xueman was a girl. It would only be more difficult for her to achieve the sess her father had once attained.

    After an almost desperate training session, Shi Xueman¡¯s frustration was greatly relieved.

    Although there was no task, she consoled herself by thinking it was good that she could spend time in the training hall.

    ¡°Miss.¡±

    Yong Zheng greeted her. He refrained from telling her what he was thinking. Instead, he simply kept it deep in his heart. People were different. He, himself, was an indolent person, which was why he was living a life like this. Only once had he seen Shi Xueman¡¯s father shedding tears. It was the regret and anguish due to a failure.

    The man who regarded sess as his life was as unyielding as the hardest stone. The only way to beat him was to totally destroy him, like smashing stones into sand.

    ¡°Uncle Yong Zheng.¡± Shi Xueman forced a smile and could not help asking, ¡°How on earth is Central Pine City now?¡±

    They were really the same kind of person.

    Yong Zheng smiled in his heart, but nothing could be seen on his face. He simply replied, ¡°There were idents some time ago. Fortunately, measures were taken in time. A ss of students escaped from the Garden of Life, and they had some basic knowledge of the blood poison, so it prevented disaster. After that, many teachers from Central Pine Academy arranged detailed inspections all over the city to eliminate the hidden dangers. Meanwhile, many earth elementalist teachers reinforced the defense of the city. As for the magistrate court, they assigned more guards for day and night patrols. For Now, there should be no problem.¡±

    Shi Xueman was a bit depressed. At first she thought that the magistrate court and Central Pine Academy were perfunctory, but now she knew that was because everything was fine at this moment.

    After being depressed for a few seconds, she cheered up again.

    Originally, she was depressed because she was fully prepared to wee a rough fight, but when she heard what the dean said, she felt she had been fooled. Now, she was happy to know that the city was truly safe, although this would make her look stupid for the mission. Still, it was something to cheer for, since there had been enough people killed in the blood catastrophe.

    She could at least rx and do whatever she wanted.

    Maybe because she was free from anxiety, Shi Xueman now felt hungry.

    She decided to go to eat beef noodles!

    She said goodbye to Yong Zheng, took a shower, and went out.

    As she walked past the blind battle training halls, she was reminded of their poprity in the past. Due to the blood catastrophe, most of the travel to the Induction Ground was now stopped. Currently, it was impossible to fly between each city like before, and it would remain this way for a short while.

    Most of the previous participants of the blind battles were students from other cities. As a result, there were few visitors now.

    In addition to the training halls, almost all stores were suffering from poor business too. Seeing the depression, Shi Xueman sincerely hoped that the blood catastrophe would end as soon as possible. It broke out recently, but had shown how destructive it could be.

    The only exception was probably the weapon shop because many people liked to buy weapons in times of crisis.

    Unexpectedly, Shi Xueman met someone she knew.

    It was Sang Zhijun. Except for Shi Xueman, she was the only girl in the team.

    ¡°Xueman!¡± Sang Zhijun was delighted to see Shi Xueman. She waved to her and said, ¡°Come here!¡±

    Shi Xueman was a bit surprised. ¡°What¡¯s up, Zhijun?¡±

    She was not very close with Sang Zhijun. They were not from the same branch academy after all, and they only knew each other because of the mission. As they were the only girls in the team, however, they were quite familiar with each other.

    After getting to know her for some time, Shi Xueman thought Sang Zhijun was an easygoing, elegant,l and modest girl. She seldom saw such a delightful expression on Sang Zhijun¡¯s face.

    Shi Xueman hurriedly walked to her.

    ¡°Can I borrow some money?¡± Shang Zhijun seemed a bit frustrated. ¡°I thought this was a remote ce, so I didn¡¯t bring much money. Now I don¡¯t have enough money.¡±

    ¡°Of course. How much do you want?¡± Shi Xueman agreed at once, since she had the same experience of forgetting to bring any money to pay the bill before. It was a really awkward and very poignant experience for her.

    ¡°Twenty million yuan first.¡± Sang Zhijun said.

    She Xueman was startled, ¡°Twenty million yuan? What are you going to buy?¡±

    The first thought that came to her mind was that Zhijun was being swindled. In this small city, where a bowl of beef noodles cost only one hundred and fifty yuan, what could be priced at twenty million yuan? Zhijun must have been ripped off. Shi Xueman became angry and decided to argue with the merchant.

    Sang Zhijun knew what Shi Xueman was thinking when she saw her frowning and said, ¡°Rx, I am not being cheated. I just came across something good.¡±

    In response to Shi Xueman¡¯s suspicious look, Sang Zhijun gave her an arrow and said, ¡°Have a look.¡±

    An arrow?

    For twenty million yuan? This was definitely cheating!

    Shi Xueman took the arrow suspiciously. Archery was not in her training regimen, but she knew some basic knowledge about it. The arrow seemed fine, but she still could not understand how an arrow could cost twenty million yuan. Yet, she also knew that Sang Zhijun was not a fool, so she asked, ¡°Sorry Zhijun, I don¡¯t really understand. Is this arrow special?¡±

    Sang Zhijun exined, ¡°Yes, its prating power is strong. I just tried. Without elemental energy, it can pierce a three-inch te one thousand steps away, or a five-inch te five hundred steps away.¡±

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes widened. She knew a little about archery, but she knew what the results meant.

    Looking around, Sang Zhijun confirmed that no one was near them before she said in a low voice, ¡°I have also tested and found that metal elemental energy can enhance its effect.¡±

    Shi Xueman understood at once. The data Zhijun just told her was the power of the arrow without elemental energy. If infused with elemental energy, it would be more powerful, especially when the attribute of the elemental energy matched it.

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s physique was of the metal attribute, so the arrow was just right for her.

    It was out of Shi Xueman¡¯s expectation that Central Pine City had such excellent treasures. She had been here many times, but this was the first time that she discovered that the stores here had high-grade goods to sell.

    ¡°How many are you going to buy?¡± she asked, as she realized Zhijun was not just buying one arrow.

    Sang Zhijun was exciting and said in a low voice, ¡°We could not have possiblye at a better time. This arrow was just invented today. The price for one arrow is one hundred and fifty thousand yuan. It¡¯s not expensive.¡±

    ¡°One hundred and fifty thousand yuan each? Not expensive indeed.¡± Shi Xueman said without hesitation, ¡°I have some money. You can take it all.¡±

    The importance of the arrow to an elementalist who practiced archery was beyond doubt. The poprity of archery had raised new demand for arrows, and there were now people who worked as specialized arrow producers.

    Nowadays, you could find arrows in almost all weapon shops, but it was still difficult to find good arrows. It was very fortunate to encounter an arrow that suited the user.

    Shi Xueman understood what Zhijun was thinking. She would stock up on these arrows now because they were consumables, and she might not be able to get more when hers were used up.

    ¡°I have ten million yuan and together with your twenty million yuan, I¡¯ll have thirty million yuan total. If so, I can buy two hundred arrows. It will be enough for me to use for a while.¡± Sang Zhijun was grateful. ¡°They have just created this arrow and haven¡¯t released it into the market. Besides, they don¡¯t have enough in stock, so I¡¯ll have to wait. two hundred arrows! They will have to work hard for quite a while.¡±

    Sang Zhijun went into the store to negotiate with the shopkeeper while Shi Xueman looked around by herself.

    It was unexpected for a store that seemed so ordinary to have such wonderful arrows to sell. Shi Xueman was looking forward to finding some other first-grade goods.

    After looking over everything on the shelf, Shi Xuewan was disappointed.

    None of the goods could impress her.

    Sang Zhijun came out happily with ten arrows in hand. Apparently, the arrows had just been made.

    ¡°What¡¯s its name?¡± Shi Xueman asked casually.

    Sang Zhujun answered in a good mood, ¡°The name is weird. It¡¯s called Bunny Hair. I learned about this arrow from the magistrate court. They acquired some before, but theirs are only half as powerful as this one. They bought them at the price of twenty thousand yuan each, and in the market it was sold at thirty thousand yuan. So, I decided to have a look here in the store. Surprisingly, they just invented the new arrow which was more powerful. I¡¯m so lucky.¡±

    Since she would not be willing to use them during daily training, two hundred ¡°Bunny Hair¡± arrows were enough for her to use for a long time.

    ¡°Not expensive indeed.¡± Shi Xueman said, ¡°It¡¯s not easy to find such a powerful arrow.¡±

    The power was merely doubled, but the price was five times higher. Yet, this was no surprise to Shi Xueman. She knew that after the power reached a certain level, any increase would cost a lot of effort. Therefore, the price would be much higher.

    ¡°Xueman, you have to buy me dinner.¡± Sang Zhijun looked delicate and touching. ¡°I have no money now. I¡¯ll have to depend on you.¡±

    ¡°No problem! I¡¯ll buy you everything.¡± Shi Xueman smiled. ¡°Let¡¯s go to eat beef noodles. I know an old noodle house here which is very famous.¡±

    Shi Xueman was a cold beauty in the eyes of boys, but to girls, she was like a warm and reliable big sister.

    ¡°You seem to be very familiar with this city?¡± Sang Zhijun followed her and asked curiously. To her, Shi Xueman did not look like the kind of person who would eat beef noodles in the small restaurants.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Shi Xueman replied, ¡°we have a training hall here, and I¡¯ve been here several times.¡±

    The smell of beef made Shi Xueman hungry.

    She walked in the noodle house like a regr and called, ¡°Two bowls of beef noodles and a beef dish please.¡±

    The owner of the noodle house answered, ¡°Okay.¡± When he looked up, he saw two unfamiliar female customers, and the one who was speaking was extraordinarily beautiful. If she hade here before, it would be impossible for him to forget her.

    ¡°Please have a seat. The noodles will be served soon.¡±

    Although he felt confused, he still asked them to take a seat.

    Sang Zhijun looked around curiously behind Shi Xueman, but soon she was attracted by a weird sound.

    ¡°Fatty! How can you eat so much?¡±

    ¡°Two bowls less than you, okay?¡±

    ¡°It is you who owes me money. How can you eat this much? At least four bowls less than me!¡±

    ¡°Ai Hui, don¡¯t you remember that I left thest steamed bun for you that time? You cannot be so ruthless. At least let me have enough noodles.¡±

    ¡°That makes sense. You can continue, and if you can give me five reasons, I¡¯ll let you eat more. Hmmm, yes, go on... yes, you are right... Hmmm, excuse me, I want one more bowl of noodles please!¡±

    ¡°Ai Hui, you are so cunning!¡±

 Chapter 143: Money Losing Deal

    Chapter 143: Money Losing Deal

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: - -

    Shi Xueman was surprised to see Ai Hui.

    It seemed as if she came across this guy every time she came to the noodle house.

    Instead of saying anything, however, she just found a seat casually and Sang Zhijun sat beside her.

    Sang Zhijun had never been to such a small restaurant and so was very curious. The boys sitting not far away from them were making a lot of noise and the smell in the air made her very hungry.

    The table in front of them was cluttered with tall stacks of empty bowls. Sang Zhijun felt speechless seeing how much the two boys had eaten. She had never before seen anyone eat like them; all men she knew were restrained, elegant, and gentle while eating.

    This was a new experience for her.

    What surprised her the most, however, was Shi Xueman. In her eyes, a goddess would nevere to this kind of restaurant. In fact, not only boys, but a lot of girls also regarded Shi Xueman as a goddess.

    Shi Xueman noticed that Sang Zhijun was looking at her and could roughly guess what she was thinking. She simply smiled and didn¡¯t exin further.

    The two boys who were busy eating didn¡¯t notice the presence of other people at all.

    Fatty finally returned to reality and said, ¡°This is great! This is what life should be! Ai Hui, how did you find this restaurant? It¡¯s amazing! I have made up my mind!¡±

    Fatty¡¯s sudden, loud voice gave Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun a good scare.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t have any expression at all. He continued to eat his noodles and said without raising his head, ¡°Made up your mind to pay your debt?¡±

    Fatty replied, ¡°No, of course not. I¡¯ve decided to stay with you. I have looked into it, and in the second year in the Induction Ground, I can apply for a branch transfer provided the branch college is willing to ept me. You see, I am working so hard these days and I¡¯m sure your branch college will be more than willing to ept me.¡±

    ¡°Pay your debt first.¡± Ai Hui sounded emotionless and focused on his noodles, as if all his passion had been exhausted in his effort to distract Fatty just now.

    Fatty red at him in fury. ¡°Why are you so realistic now?¡±

    ¡°So you are saying that you won¡¯t pay your debt?¡± Ai Hui ignored his question.

    ¡°I am going to pay...¡± Fatty didn¡¯t dare to admit otherwise and decided to convert the topic of their conversation. ¡°Ai Hui, when do you think the blood catastrophe wille to an end?¡±

    The first thing that came to Shi Xueman¡¯s mind when she saw Ai Hui was not his debt or whether he had found the person she was looking for, but was the message tree. The tree was so old that she could not even trace its origin.

    It was impossible for such an old message tree to not be registered, and she had seen for herself that the tree was healthy with no diseases or infections.

    After the outbreak of the blood poison, all these thoughts were left behind. She only remembered the message tree after seeing Ai Hui.

    To learn more about the tree, she had even asked her family to help investigate the Vanguard Training Hall. They had searched the entrustment in the Mission Hall of Central Pine City and learned that the owner of the training hall was called Heng Bingfeng; it was a name no one knew anything about.

    This was all the information she could get. Apart from this name, no information could be found, not about the message tree or Vanguard Training Hall.

    She had also asked her grandfather, but he hadn¡¯t known anything about this name either.

    When she saw Ai Hui, she couldn¡¯t help thinking about this investigation.

    Then the boys¡¯ conversation about the blood catastrophe caught her attention. Sang Zhijun showed a look of disapproval; she had seen so many boys who loved to talk big.

    The noodles were served just at that time. Shi Xueman began to eat her noodles, but she also continued paying attention to the boys because she wanted to hear what Ai Hui would say. In her eyes, although Ai Hui was not impressive, he was bold,cautious, and had his own opinions.

    ¡°End?¡± Ai Hui paused for a while. ¡°It will not end soon.¡±

    At first, Fatty had just wanted to change the topic; he hadn¡¯t expected to hear such an answer from Ai Hui. He thought for a second, then asked, ¡°Why? It¡¯s only blood poison. I think the Induction Ground is powerful enough to find a solution soon.¡±

    Fatty had confidence in the Induction Ground, just like almost everyone else. The Induction Ground was an enclosed area withoutplicated conflicts between factions. It possessed strength and the people here were united as one.

    Its most significant feature was its strength. Since the Induction Ground was cut off from the outside world, the environment here was rtively pure. As a result, many masters and well-known people liked to live in seclusion here.

    Besides, there were researchers who studied weird things, countless schools, various new theories, and learned teachers.

    How could the blood poison get the better of the Induction Ground that had such strength?

    At first, Fatty didn¡¯t quite believe Ai Hui. If it were another person who had said this, Fatty would have given a snort of contempt, but since it was Ai Hui, although Fatty was still muttering something, he began to believe it in his heart.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Ai Hui didn¡¯t raise his head and continued to eat the noodles, then said unclearly, ¡°I just have this kind of feeling. What ising is not good, and it¡¯sing with menace.¡±

    ¡°What ising is not good. It¡¯sing with menace,¡± murmured Fatty, then felt an overwhelming sense of danger.

    What ising is not good. It¡¯sing with menace.

    Shi Xueman was also thinking about what Ai Hui had said.

    Since Sang Zhijun had regarded them as two bombastic guys from the very beginning, now that she heard thispletely unreasonable reason, she further believed that her initial judgment had been correct.

    As a girl, she had been a bit scared of the blood poison all along.

    She didn¡¯t want to hear them talk about this topic any more, but was too shy to ask them to stop. After thinking for a while, she said, ¡°Thank you, Xueman. If it were not for you, I would have been unable to buy the arrows.¡±

    Shi Xueman recovered from her contemtion and smiled. ¡°It¡¯s not a big issue. Don¡¯t mention it.¡±

    ¡°I never thought that I could find such excellent arrows in Central Pine City.¡± Sang Zhijun seemed excited. ¡°Although the name is a bit weird. Bunny Hair Arrows... Anyway, I have known for a long time that the Induction Ground has many undiscovered talents, even in the small cities. This trip has been so rewarding.¡±

    ¡°Yes, it¡¯s also because you are lucky.¡± Shi Xueman was happy for Sang Zhijun too. Not every family was like hers and could spend as much as possible on one child, regardless of costs.

    Every family had strict rules on the spending of their young generation, unless the person in question was almost sure to be the sessor of the family. The longer the history the family had, the more strict the rules would be.

    If you want to get more, you will have to stand on your own feet.

    In the families that had many children in one generation, graduation from the Induction Ground meant the start ofpetition. Under simr investments, the ones who could win thepetition were more likely to y an important role in the continued extension of the family.

    Even if some of them were not eager to be the sessor, their rights and obligations were always equal and the investments of the family on them was never unconditional. They knew sometimes that they needed to obey the requirements of the family.

    Such as making connections through marriage.

    They were like ropes on which their family had spent a lot of resources and money to polish, then make into a part of the family¡¯s of interest.

    If they wanted to get rid of their family¡¯s restrictions, there was no other way but to bring more interest to the family.

    So if a girl like Sang Zhijun didn¡¯t want to go through with the marriage arranged by her family, she needed to be extraordinarily hard working in order to prove her value. If she was in a high position as a head of a n and could bring more benefits to the family than what the marriage would bring, the cunning elders of the family would then know and choose the greater benefit.

    But this was definitely a more difficult way.

    Smart children of the big families never gave up working hard. They would be more and more independent and assiduous, and try their best to show their talent and ability. They were clearly aware that was how they could get freedom.

    As long as you could reach the peak, you could do whatever you liked.

    Even if you could not reach the peak, the more freedom you had, the better.

    Sang Zhijun was going to graduate soon and then she would be faced with such problems. This was why she was so cheerful. If wars were not too frequent, the two hundred Bunny Hair Arrows were enough for her to use for two years on the frontline

    Even if she had to join the hunting team in the Wilderness, the two hundred Bunny Hair Arrows could y an important role.

    Seeing this, Shi Xueman believed Sang Zhijun was a clever girl who knew to start preparing from early on. Compared with the more mature girls, the boys on their team were amazingly simple.

    ¡°It¡¯s just, the total price of thirty million yuan is a bit too high for me.¡± Sang Zhijun looked upset. Her family would never give her so much money.

    ¡°You won¡¯t need the money in the short run,¡± Shi Xueman said gently.

    Sang Zhijun smiled and responded, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I always save money because It makes me happy to have a lot of money on hand. This is the first time that I have to spend so much money, so I¡¯m feeling a bit guilty.¡±

    Now Shi Xueman began to have apletely new appraisal of her. A girl who loved to save money didn¡¯t hesitate to buy so many Bunny Hair Arrows. With such boldness and courage, she was definitely not an ordinary girl.

    Bunny Hair...

    Hearing these words, Ai Hui paused for a while and became filled with joy. Of course he was happy to hear his arrows being praised, even if he was only responsible for providing the silk.

    Wait!

    Thirty million yuan!

    That girl bought thirty million yuan worth of Bunny Hair Arrows!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were fixed on her. He wished he could rush to Manager Li to tell him what he had heard. Thirty million yuan¡¯s worth of Bunny Hair Arrows. She was really rich.

    Hearing the two girls talking, Fatty looked up and was stunned at once. He murmured, ¡°A...Ai Hui, so pretty...¡±

    Pretty?

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes could only see money now. He looked up and said carelessly, ¡°Which one are you talking about?¡±

    ¡°Both.¡± Fatty¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Ai Hui pped him on the back of the head and said, ¡°The one who paid was pretty. Do you understand?¡±

    Whoever was the one to praise the Bunny Hair arrow was prettier.

    Ah, no, whoever bought thirty million yuan¡¯s worth of Bunny Hair Arrows was prettier.

    Fatty red at Ai Hui and said, ¡°You are bullying me because I don¡¯t have money.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Ai Hui nodded. ¡°Or you pay me back the debt.¡±

    Fatty did not dare to say anything.

    Ai Hui told him sincerely, ¡°Fatty, remember, money is everything. If you don¡¯t have money, you cannot even buy a bowl of noodles. Last time in this noodle house, I met a girl who didn¡¯t take money with her, and in the end I had to pay for her. You know what? If you see any girl who doesn¡¯t bring money with her, you should run away from her as far as you can go.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Fatty was confused.

    ¡°Because that¡¯s a skank. If you pay for her, you are dead,¡± Ai Hui said with bitter hatred. ¡°I paid one hundred and fifty yuan for the noodles, but I ended up owing her eighty million yuan. This is a money-losing deal.¡±

    ¡°Eighty million yuan...¡± Fatty was dazed. The number was toorge and he could not respond.

    Sang Zhijun noticed Shi Xueman¡¯s weirdness and asked with deep concern, ¡°Xueman, are you alright? You don¡¯t look well. Are you feeling ufortable?¡±

 Chapter 144: Ambush And Oversight

    Chapter 144: Ambush And Oversight

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: - -

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face turned ashen.

    Skank...

    She had never thought that she would one day be called a skank.

    Damn it!

    Even though she tried her best to act as if nothing happened, her facial expression showed otherwise. She took in deep breaths of air and restrained her anger. In front of Sang Zhijun¡¯s concern, she forced a smile and said, ¡°I must have trained too hard.¡±

    On the other side, Fatty suddenly responded, ¡°So you owe a debt of eighty million yuan?¡±

    Ai Hui suddenly felt the noodles be tasteless, and he stopped eating. With an irritated tone, he replied, ¡°Why do I feel that you¡¯re somewhat rejoicing at my misfortune?¡±

    ¡°No, no, no!¡± Fatty shook his head like a rattle-drum. ¡°It¡¯s not just somewhat¡ªI¡¯m really rejoicing! Ai Hui, you actually owe someone eighty million yuan, hahaha! Ai Hui, let me tell you this seriously, we are both debtors and we should be in harmony and not criticize each other....¡±

    ¡°I will clear my debt very soon.¡± Ai Hui cast a look of disdain at Fatty. He then nced at Sang Zhijun, who appeared to him like a god of wealth, dazzling with golden light.

    Whoever bought the Bunny Hair Arrows must be a rich person!

    Fatty humphed and remained silent. Ai Hui, however, had be sick of Fatty¡¯s facial expression. ¡°Two more sets of lunges when we¡¯re back hometer!¡±

    ¡°Hey, hey, hey, the one with surname Ai, are you trying to take revenge by doing this?¡± Fatty was enraged.

    ¡°Why don¡¯t you pay for the bill, then?¡± Ai Hui sneered as he yed his trump card.

    Fatty immediately shut his mouth. At this moment, he understood what living under someone else¡¯s roof meant.

    A cold glint shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes as she sneered in her mind.

    You even have the money to eat beef noodles¡ªit seems that you¡¯re rich now!

    ¡°That¡¯s not right, Ai Hui.¡± Fatty suddenly thought of another question, and a puzzled look appeared on his face. ¡°Are you referring to a girl just now?¡±

    Girl? Woman?

    In Fatty¡¯s memory, Ai Hui¡¯s world was all about fighting, training, weapons, and money. Weapons were for the sake of improving his fighting capabilities, and money was for the sake of better training. Actually, in the end, it was all about fighting and training.

    This fellow was a legitimate cold-blooded killing machine.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± With his head lowered, Ai Hui was engrossed in settling the bill with the owner.

    ¡°Wow, I really can¡¯t tell...you¡¯ve been enlightened after you left the Wilderness!¡± Fatty was astonished. ¡°You actually paid for a girl, but why don¡¯t you pay for me?¡±

    Ai Hui raised his head and nced at the owner before gesturing to the heap of bowls in front of Fatty. ¡°He¡¯s paying for himself.¡±

    Fatty immediately became terror-stricken and gave a hollowugh. ¡°Help me please, help me. We will pay together, we will pay together.¡±

    Ai Hui lowered his head again and returned to calcting the total cost of the noodles. That damned Fatty, he ate so much!

    Suddenly, Fatty sighed ruefully. ¡°There¡¯s only both of us left. If I can see you, Ai Hui, get together with a girl, I will die without any regrets.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s hands trembled as he continued counting the money. Without raising his head, he replied coldly, ¡°Return me my money first before you die.¡±

    Damn it, he had miscounted.

    After flustering over the bill for a few times, Ai Hui finally settled it.

    At this point of time, Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun finished their meals as well. The jubnt Sang Zhijun had almost finished an entire bowl of noodles. After she had finished eating, she noticed that Shi Xueman did not eat much and felt a bit embarrassed.

    By the time Ai Hui and Fatty walked out of the noodle house, night had already fallen.

    Due to the blood poison catastrophe, almost all the stores on the street were closed. It was barely nighttime, but the street looked as if it was already midnight. The deep darkness of the night seemed to be devouring all light and warmth. Even the lightmps on the street seemed to be somewhat dimmer.

    Such a gloomy scene....

    After staying in the Central Pine City for so long, this was the first time Ai Hui saw the night street being so empty and cold

    If Central Pine City that was so far away from the Garden of Life was so greatly impacted by the blood poison, then what was the state of those cities and towns that were close to the Garden of Life?

    The formerly lush and verdant forest had now be a barrennd; therge pieces of scorchednd resembled ugly scars. From afar, one could see surging ck fumes rising above the horizon.

    The scene of that day he had been rescued from the Garden of Life had left an incredibly deep impression on him.

    That had fully and vividly disyed the might of the Induction Ground. They wanted to quickly destroy the blood poison even if it meant using the most brutal of ways to achieve it. Sometimes, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but wonder how such a powerful entity like the Induction Ground could not handle a mere blood poison?

    Like a persistent haze, the uneasiness lingered in his mind.

    Ai Hui believed that the Induction Ground would definitely find a way to handle the blood poison. Perhaps the only thing he had to worry about was the Induction Ground¡¯s efficiency. The reason why he was feeling uneasy might be because of the appearance of the blood poison inside Central Pine City.

    Ai Hui silently shook his head and tried to ignore these distracting thoughts. He was just a nobody; why should he worry so much? He should make good use of his time and train harder.

    Behind him, Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun left the noodle house as well.

    All right, he would have to make a trip to Old Li¡¯s shop tomorrow. How much money will he make from such a huge business deal?

    After settling his mistress¡¯s debt, Ai Hui¡¯s cash on hand had reduced significantly. Even though Senior Mingxiu had assured him that there was no rush in repaying the debt, Ai Hui still paid her back the full amount of money he owed.

    He already owed a lot to his mistress. If he had no money, then he could not do anything about the debt. But if he earned money and still did not settle his debt, then what would that say about his character?

    Luckily, tonight he met a rich person; he would make a profit.

    The overjoyed Ai Hui cast a nce at Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun. How could he not notice such wealthy clients?

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s eye pupils shrunk, and he yelled solemnly, ¡°Be careful! Behind you!¡±

    Sang Zhijun was stretching her back. The bowl of noodles she had just eaten was too delicious. Suddenly, she heard a yell from ahead, and a nk look shed upon her face.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s attention was still on that damned fellow. How dare he call her a skank? She would never let this matter rest! And because of this, she noticed Ai Hui¡¯s eye pupils shrink, and at that moment, she went on high alert.

    Furthermore, due to her previous encounters with Ai Hui, she was aware of his sharp senses.

    Without any hesitation, Shi Xueman, being one of the top students in the Induction Ground, disyed a superb reaction speed at this critical moment.

    She pushed the bewildered Sang Zhijun to the ground, and her other hand simultaneously released a cloud of mist.

    The palm-sized cloud of mist exploded violently.

    A ring-shaped wall of water vapor extended outwards with a loud bang.

    The seemingly weak wall of water vapor was sizzling furiously, disying terrifying might.

    Behind it...

    She Xueman remained remarkably cool-headed. Ai Hui¡¯s warning had zoomed past her mind with a lightning speed. At the instant she released the cloud of mist, both her legs were already pinned to the ground as she flung Sang Zhijun towards Ai Hui with one hand.

    Thump! Pfff!

    These two sounds could be heard at the same time. A shiver ran down Shi Xueman¡¯s spine.

    The first sound was somewhat muffled. Clearly, it was produced when the attacker had mmed itself against the wall of water vapor. The second sound was produced when the attacker¡¯s attack hit the ground; it hadnded on the spot where they were standing previously.

    Shi Xueman was appalled.

    She was well aware of how powerful the wall of water vapor was. The wall of water vapor could easily bounce off an elephant and send it flying a few hundred meters away.

    The attacker had actually mmed against the wall and could still attack them afterward.

    Terrifying...

    When Sang Zhijun stood up and saw the deep scratches on the spot where they had previously been standing a few moments ago, her expression changed drastically.

    Shi Xueman was much calmer, but she still felt a lingering fear. If she had been slightly careless, both of them would now be terribly injured.

    She looked around and did not discover anything, so she raised her head and looked at the sky. The pitch-ck night sky seemed to devour all light.

    ¡°What was that just now?¡± she asked Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was shocked when he heard a seemingly familiar voice. However, he did not think much about it; after all, the danger was not over yet. He put his hand on his sword hilt and replied solemnly, ¡°It¡¯s a bat, and there¡¯s a few of them. They must be infected with the blood poison.¡±

    ¡°Bats?¡± Shi Xueman¡¯s expression changed slightly. ¡°How did they get in?¡±

    Due to the appearance of flying insects that had been infected with the blood poison outside the city, Central Pine City had purposely strengthened its air defense¡ªits defense could now be said to be very tight.

    None of them had expected that Central Pine City, which they thought was well-fortified, had let in a bat.

    Ai Hui clutched his sword¡¯s hilt. The cold sweat on his back had already drenched his shirt. This was the first time he could not identify the location of his enemy while he was in the sword embryo¡¯s state. He licked his lips and warned them. ¡°Be careful, they haven¡¯t left yet.¡±

    Shi Xueman¡¯s expression changed drastically as she awaited the enemy¡¯s strike.

    The previously bewildered Sang Zhijun had calmed down as well. She removed the lock of golden silk that was tied around her wrist, and with a flick, it transformed into a golden longbow.

    This was the first time Ai Hui had seen such a unique bow, and he could not help but take a second look.

    The bow was made up of countless intertwining threads of golden silk, causing it to look more like a piece of art than a weapon. It was slim and magnificent.

    Sang Zhijun, who had now calmed down, drew three Bunny Hair Arrows.

    In a time of crisis, she did not hesitate in the slightest and was extremely decisive.

    Shi Xueman did not unleash her azure wings; they would be useless as her opponent was a bat that naturally specialized in flying. Furthermore, the sky was dark, and she did not want to put herself in a disadvantageous position.

    A faintly discernable cloud of air was gathering in her palms.

    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we request for help first?¡± Fatty said weakly while hiding behind them.

    Ai Hui was focused on the space of air ahead of him. As he scanned his surroundings, he replied, ¡°No. If we request for help now, this ce will be chaotic. A chaotic scene will be advantageous to those blood bats. And if they have an advantage, we will not leave this ce alive today.¡±

    Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun both agreed to Ai Hui¡¯s words.

    Just now, if not for Ai Hui¡¯s warning, they would have already been struck by the bats. Bats were the assassins of the dark¡ªif they missed their attacks, they would flee, hide in the dark, and wait patiently for the next chance to strike again.

    A chaotic environment would provide many such chances to the blood bats.

    Sweat was dripping down Ai Hui¡¯s forehead, but he still maintained hisposure. He could sense a few strands of a very weak aura drifting around. Previously, he had managed to give a warning not because he had sensed the blood bats, but rather because he had seen a red glow sh across the night sky.

    Ai Hui had managed to take a good look at them. They belonged to the blood-red glowing eyes of a bat.

 Chapter 145: Bring It On!

    Chapter 145: Bring It On!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: - -

    Bats were outstanding predators, and they were one of the many dire beasts that Ai Hui did not wish to encounter in the Wilderness. Of course, there were many dire beasts that he did not want to encounter.

    ¡°Everyone, stick together.¡±

    At this point of time, Ai Hui did not care about whether or not they were familiar with each other.

    Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun were not unreasonable individuals. Shi Xueman knew Ai Hui rather well, and Sang Zhijun was a straightforward person. If not for Ai Hui¡¯s warning just now, they both would have died.

    Both of them were on their guard as they moved slowly to Ai Hui¡¯s side.

    The terrifying w marks on the spot where they had been standing previously made them tremble with fear. They were so close to death.

    The hand with which Sang Zhijun was holding her Golden Silk Longbow was trembling involuntarily.

    Even Shi Xueman, who had reacted to the situation calmly, felt a lingering fear hit her like a sweeping tsunami after she now managed to catch a breath. She could feel her legs wobbling.

    Shi Xueman had always emphasized on improving her real-lifebat capabilities, and she had¡ªon numerous missions. However, she had never experienced such a terrifying situation. Just a moment ago, she had an actual close brush with death.

    Right now, she felt that the lofty aspirations she had on the transport wagon were so childish and ridiculous. In a real life-and-death battle, how much of herbat capabilities could she execute? Fifty percent? Perhaps thirty percent? She may even be killed by the blood fiends while standing frozen in a spot, staring into nk space and not knowing what to do.

    So far, she and Sang Zhijun had not been able to sense the slightest bit of the bats¡¯ aura. If not for the deep w marks on the ground, she would have thought that what she saw earlier was an illusion.

    It¡¯s a pity that it¡¯s not an illusion.

    Her gaze automatically shifted towards Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was no better than them. His body was slightly crouching, his right hand tightly holding on to the sword hilt of the Dragonspine Inferno. His body was a motionless statue. A bead of sweat meandered down from his forehead to his chin before dripping to the ground.

    The dusky streetmps looked especially lonely in the utterly quiet street. The sounds of dripping sweat and heavy breathing could be clearly heard.

    However, for some reason, when Shi Xueman saw Ai Hui¡¯s tense body, her anxiousness was alleviated.

    Beads of sweat slid under his flickering eyshes, and his eyes looked as calm as still water¡ªone could not discern his feelings. Yes, it was that gaze that made Shi Xueman feel more at ease.

    His gaze did not contain the slightest trace of a fluster.

    Shi Xueman felt that her performance was terrible. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them, her confidence and fighting spirit had returned.

    Sang Zhijun calmed down very fast as well.

    Indeed, Ai Hui was not flustered, but he was very nervous. His mental state was taut, and his entire body was like a string that was tightly stretched.

    His inability to track the bats¡¯ location was giving him an immense pressure, the likes of which he had never experienced before. From the day he had sessfully nted the sword embryo¡¯s seed, nothing in his surroundings could avoid the sword embryo¡¯s discerning eye.

    What happened today was a first. He was engulfed with tremendous pressure.

    What should he do?

    Ai Hui¡¯s first reaction was to flee. However, his rationality told him that this would be the wrong decision. No matter how fast he ran, he could not outrun the bats in the sky. The bat that had attacked them just now was extremely fast, so fast that Ai Hui¡¯s eyes could not catch it. All he had seen was a blood-red colored blur.

    These blood bats were far more powerful than the blood insects they had encountered outside of the city!

    Bats were carnivores....

    This thought shed through his mind.

    What should he do?

    Previously, he had rejected Fatty¡¯s suggestion to call for help as he had sensed that the bats in the sky had already locked onto them.

    Ai Hui did not know how they became the targets for the predators. It really was unlucky, given that Central Pine City was huge. He continued to rack his brain for a way out.

    The sensing ability of the sword embryo had already reached its limit...

    Eh? Limit!

    Suddenly, Ai Hui thought of the times when he would absorb a strand of elemental energy during his training.

    With a jolt, he directed a strand of elemental energy towards his be.

    When the strand of elemental energy reached the be, the fidgeting sword embryo absorbed itpletely without any hesitation.

    Ai Hui could feel the range of his perception expand significantly. In the sky above his head, a faint-looking shadow became clearer in his vision. A bat was noiselessly flying through the air. Every few seconds, it would produce an invisible whirlpool of air current to jumble and hide its aura.

    It was only at this moment that Ai Hui realized that there was only one bat. All the other auras created by it was to confuse its enemy and hide itself. Ai Hui had also not expected that while this bat was swirling in the air, its eyes were closed.

    Such a powerful bat!

    Ai Hui smacked his lips. Once these wild beasts were infected with the blood poison, they would be much more powerful.

    ¡°There¡¯s only one bat, and it¡¯s swirling above our heads.¡±

    Ai Hui said with a low voice. His focus was locked on to that blood bat.

    Everyone felt a shiver run down their spines.

    At this moment, Ai Hui felt his senses gradually be blurry. He cursed in his heart. Without any hesitation, he directed another strand of elemental energy to his sword embryo, and his senses immediately became clear again.

    ¡°It¡¯s two hundred meters above us.¡± Ai Hui quickly gave a specific height of the bat from the ground.

    Sang Zhijun was bbergasted and involuntarily stared at Ai Hui. This fellow could actually determine how high was the bat from the ground. Such a powerful fellow, why had she not heard of his name before? She was trained in archery. To be an archer, one had to develop their eyesight. Sang Zhijun had always possessed extreme confidence with regards to this aspect, but now, even when she widened her eyes, she still could not discern the bat.

    The blood bat¡¯s body perfectly blended into the darkness, and its flight through the air did not produce any sound; it waspletely silent like a ghost.

    She did not know how Ai Hui tracked the bat¡¯s location.

    ¡°What should we do then?¡± Shi Xueman asked softly.

    ¡°If I lure it down, are both of you confident in killing it?¡± Ai Hui replied as he licked his lips.

    Since they could not escape, they could only kill this bat.

    And it must be now.

    Currently, Ai Hui was unceasingly expending his elemental energy as his perception was locked on to the blood bat. But once his elemental energy was used up, they would end up in a defensive position.

    The battle must be finished before his elemental energy was depleted. There was no other choice.

    Ai Hui quickly and urately determined the situation.

    ¡°I¡¯m not confident.¡±

    When Shi Xueman said these words, she felt so ashamed that she wanted to find a hole and hide. The other party used himself as a lure to create a chance for them, and all the danger was solely upon him. And in such an extreme situation, she could not even dare to say that she was confident.

    That¡¯s right, she actually did not dare to say she was confident. Previously, when the blood bat had mmed itself against her wall of water vapor, she had realized its strength.

    Sang Zhijun was shocked at Ai Hui¡¯s courage. She felt disbelief. She used to think that this kind of scene would only appear in storybooks that depicted heroes. Who would actually sacrifice himself as a lure? How stupid would that be?

    She never expected herself to witness this scene today. If it were some other person, then she would think that it was because of her and Shi Xueman¡¯s beauty. However, it was definitely not the case for the fellow in front of her, because he had never even taken a serious look at them from the beginning.

    Are there really fools who would sacrifice themselves for others in this world?

    It seems that there is....

    Ai Hui did not know Sang Zhijun¡¯s thoughts on his suggestion. And even if he did, he wouldn¡¯t care. At this crucial moment, who would care about a girl¡¯s rubbish thoughts when he did not even know her?

    He was only aware that this could not drag on for any longer. He had already depleted one-fourth of his elemental energy, and the longer he persisted, the more unfavorable the situation would be for him.

    The sword embryo was like a ck hole that kept on devouring his elemental energy!

    ¡°Even if you don¡¯t have confidence, you have to do it.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s tone was resolute and decisive, but his facial expression remained calm.¡°Both of you, get ready.¡±

    At this moment, Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun became nervous. Both of them knew that their attacks would determine Ai Hui¡¯s fate. They, too, were now engulfed with tremendous pressure.

    ¡°But....¡± Sang Zhijun¡¯s face turned pale.

    ¡°There¡¯s no but!¡± Ai Hui interrupted her. There was no time to waste.

    He was also very nervous. Both of their behaviors did not give him any sense of security, making him think about whether this was a stupid decision. However, he tried to restrain his nervousness and irritation. If possible, he would definitely not want to put his life in the hands of two strangers.

    However, right now, he had no other choice.

    There was no point in thinking about the impossible.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze regained its calm and coldness. Even his voice contained a tinge of indifference; he spoke as if the situation had nothing to do with him. ¡°We only have one chance to strike.¡±

    After finishing his sentence, he did care about the both of them anymore and turned to Fatty. ¡°Be careful.¡±

    Fatty knew what Ai Hui meant. Ai Hui was trying to say that if the situation turned for the worst, Fatty should quickly escape by himself. Fatty didn¡¯t say anything; he only nodded his head, signaling that he knew what to do. He was acting way more level-headed than both Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun.

    ¡°If we fail, the three of you have to run in three different directions,¡± Ai Hui reminded them. The two girls were rookies, and he had no choice but to remind them of this basic knowledge.

    Seeing that Ai Hui had a thorough arrangement, Shi Xueman¡¯s anxiousness disappeared. Her eyes became determined as she replied with a serious tone, ¡°I will do my best.¡±

    The sparkling and translucent pearl that hung on her wrist suddenly trembled, resembling a shaky dewdrop on the tip of grass in the morning. With a flick of her snow-white hand, the glistening pearl broke off from the string and rolled along her wrist and into her palm.

    With a flick of her slender middle finger, the pearl was lodged in between her thumb and middle finger.

    ¡°Me too.¡± Sang Zhijun bit her lips.

    She tossed the arrow quiver that was hung onto her waist to the ground. Her hand was holding on to three Bunny Hair Arrows, and her legs were wide apart as she stood like a tree, tall and upright.

    Without raising his head to look at the bat, Ai Hui took a step forward.

    The blood bat in the sky moved.

    At this point in time, he finally confirmed that the bat was locked on to him. Among the four people, he was the only one who was locked on to by the bat. Could it be that the blood bat had sensed the aura of his sword embryo as well? Bats did not require their eyes to look at things; rather, they used their senses and echolocation.

    Ai Hui quickly dismissed the distracting thoughts in his head and focused on the space of air before him.

    Suddenly, he dashed forward¡ªit was as if he could not take the pressure anymore and wanted to flee.

    Ai Hui was unsure whether the blood bat in the sky would fall for his trap. Now, however, he did not want to think about anything else.

    Almost instantly, he could sense the blood bat above him begin to swoop downwards silently.

    It¡¯sing.

    In the darkness, Ai Hui grinned sinisterly as he tightened his grip on the Dragonspine Inferno.

    Bring it on!

 Chapter 146: Unleash The Sword

    Chapter 146: Unleash The Sword

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    The deep darkness of the night was its best cover.

    Its wingspan was more than one meter. Its dog-sized ck-colored body was striped with blood-red streaks, resembling the color of cooled magma. One would not be able to sense its presence in the dark night.

    Its eyes were tightly shut, and it disyed an incredible calmness. The sound waves that it emitted covered the entire street.

    Its target was that human who gave off a unique aura, a dangerous aura, which it could senseing from his body. Its underdeveloped intelligence did not allow it to understand what exactly was going on. Its killing instinct and strengthened body, which were several times stronger than before, may be the reasons why it was doing this. Its unique flying techniques resembled a whale swimming in the depths of the ocean, making no noise at all.

    The target wanted to escape. This was something that itmonly encountered.

    Its diving speed was extremely fast; the distance between the two parties began to rapidly decrease. Halfway through its dive, it increased its speed abruptly. Its previously closed eyes started to open, revealing a pair of dark red eyes that looked like pieces of glowing iron. Its expression became sinister, and its sharp, snow-white teeth produced a hissing sound in the wind.

    Suddenly, its target stopped running and turned around.

    Escaping was a stupid thing to do, but putting up a resistance would be even more stupid. It could feel the blood boiling within its body, and its bloodthirsty killing intent stimted it even more.

    It continued to increase its speed.

    Even though Ai Hui, who had ced all his attention on the blood bat, was mentally prepared, he was still frightened by the blood bat¡¯s speed.

    Too fast!

    The eyes of the blood bat created a blur of demonic-red glow in the air. Its speed was so fast that Ai Hui¡¯s eyes could not keep up with it.

    The scarier part was that the sound of the wind it produced was very soft¡ªit only produced a low, snake-like hissing sound as it dived.

    This defied Ai Hui¡¯s logic. From what he knew, the faster a beast flew, the louder the sound it would make. Arrows behaved simrly as well; the more the power of a flying arrow, the louder it would be.

    However, the diving blood bat barely made any sound.

    And the frightening thing was that it was still increasing its speed!

    It doesn¡¯t make sense!

    An urge to flee arose in Ai Hui¡¯s mind. He felt that his idea was too naive. How could those two girls keep up with such terrifying speed?

    He forcibly restrained the fear in his mind. At this point in time, he would have no chance of surviving if he escaped. How could his legs outrun something that could fly?

    Moreover, the speed of this beast had surpassed that of any arrows he had ever seen!

    When Ai Hui realized that there was no way he could escape, he calmed down. Just like before, when he knew he had no other options, all distracting thoughts disappeared immediately.

    He held his sword hilt.

    The grip of the Dragonspine Inferno felt very hard and rough. The rope grip of the sword was made by him; after staying in the embroidery workshop for so long, making a simple rope grip wasn¡¯t too difficult.

    The rope grip was rather fitting for his hands as well.

    For some unknown reason, whenever Ai Hui ced his focus on the sword, his mind would calm down immediately.

    He remembered that a lot of swordy manuals had discussed how a swordsman should treat his sword. Some manuals even stated that swordsmen should craft their own swords, and the whole crafting process should be done by them alone.

    After the crafting waspleted, the swordsmen should start a long process of nurturing their newly-crafted swords.

    Other types of cultivators often changed their weapons, but swordsmen would not do that; most of the swordsmen had at most five swords in their entire lives. It was not rare for those swordsmen, who never changed their swords even once in their lives, to develop an ordinary sword into a legendary one.

    Ai Hui felt that it was incredible that his mind could still be distracted at this point in time.

    He did not have the slightest bit of nervousness or fear¡ªit was as if all the danger had been resolved all of a sudden.

    Holding the sword, he could a perceive a sensation from the sword hilt. His mind was tranquil. The previously restless sword embryo had also be calm and vigorous.

    Ai Hui was emotionless. He slightly crouched, hind leg and elbows bent, as he pressed the sword hilt against his chest; the tip of the sword was pointing towards the sky. The body of the sword was so ck that it did not even reflect a bit of light. The seven dazzling pieces of red crystal resembled seven mysterious inds that floated out on the dark sea.

    His movements were rxed, without any signs of danger or vigor.

    A silver color extended outwards from the roots of his hair. His eyes remained indifferent and as calm as still water.

    His inner mind was extremely tranquil.

    Even the faint hissing sounds had disappeared. The sword, which weighed around one hundred kilograms, was firm and steady in his hand, motionless like an unmovable boulder. He could feel the light drafts brush past the tip of his sword as it sliced through the air¡ªit felt as if a river was flowing through his sword.

    Ai Hui was channeling his elemental energy into the sword embryo, continuously expanding and extending his perception.

    Suddenly, however, the experience became different. He could feel the range of his perception begin to shrink, and it continued until he could only perceive his sword. He could now clearly see and feel every fine crack and impurity on the seven pieces of red crystal.

    This kind of feeling was extremely wonderful.

    Not far away, Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun were shocked upon witnessing the huge transformation in Ai Hui¡¯s aura with their own eyes.

    Especially Shi Xueman, even though she had seen Ai Hui fight before. She could still not forget that magnificent and dazzling sword move from that day; it was the most breathtaking sword move she had ever seen in her life. And, from then onwards, she had been impressed by Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship.

    But that was all.

    In an era where swordsmanship was irrelevant, even if one¡¯s sword skills were impressive, it wouldn¡¯t matter much.

    From the day the Avalon of Five Elements was established, there had not been a single Grandmaster Swordsman. Even most of those so-called Master Swordsmen were frauds who self-conferred their titles themselves.

    However, at this moment, Ai Hui was showing her an entirely different perspective on swordsmanship.

    There was no luster, there was no resplendence. Ai Hui was like a statue, a boulder, a stillke.

    Since young, Shi Xueman had encountered many experts, and she was well versed with their characteristics. She knew that the calmer an expert was, the more destructive the storm brewing in him would be.

    Shi Xueman did not dare to look on anymore. The statue-like Ai Hui was emitting an indescribable attractive force, charming people and captivating souls.

    She did not forget her responsibilities. They had only one chance, and if they made a mistake, Ai Hui would perish on the spot. Shi Xueman¡¯s back was shrouded in a faint surging mist, the result of her channeling her water elemental energy to the limit. She was trying her best to lock onto the swooping blood bat, but no matter how hard she tried, she wasn¡¯t able to do it.

    It was simply too fast!

    The blood bat opened its eyes, and Shi Xueman could see a blur of demonic red glow. However, even when she tried her best, she barely managed to catch its afterimage.

    Sang Zhijun subconsciously bit her lips until they bled, and her forehead was dripping with sweat.

    She could not lock onto the blood bat as well.

    Just when Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun were at their wits end, Ai Hui suddenly unleashed his sword.

    This strike was very slow and light¡ªit looked as if Ai Hui unleashed this attack with zero effort.

    The lightning-fast streak of demonic red glow and Ai Hui¡¯s sluggish sword strike provided an enormous visual contrast.

    Shi Xueman indescribably ufortable upon witnessing it; however, her eyes and attention had been involuntarily captivated by Ai Hui¡¯s strike.

    The moment the tip of the sword made contact with the demonic red blur, the sluggishness and extreme speed converged.

    The dark red w and the ck-colored sword tip seemed to have frozen in time.

    Shi Xueman could not describe the awkwardness of this scene. She felt dizzy and nauseous; her chest felt tight, and she was suffocating. She was so sick that she wanted to vomit, and beside her, Sang Zhijun¡¯s body swayed, and her face also became pale-white.

    Boom!

    The violent explosion sent shivers down everyone¡¯s spine.

    A visible ring-shaped billow of air exploded outwards from the point of contact between the sword¡¯s tip and the bat¡¯s bloody ws.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face suddenly became flushed, and it looked as if he was drunk. He gritted his teeth and appeared to say something, but no sound came out from his mouth as he flew through the air, forming an arc in the sky. He proceeded to crash into a nearby wall, causing the entire structure to copse with a loud rumble.

    The blood bat appeared before Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun for the first time. Its body was striped with dark-red streaks. However, at this point in time, its sinister-looking face was in a daze.

    Shi Xueman endured the pain in her chest as she knew the crucial moment had arrived. Without hesitating, she channeled all her elemental energy into the pearl between her fingers and shot it out with a flick of her finger.

    With a sh of luster, the pearl in Shi Xueman¡¯s hand disappeared. She then copsed as if she was drained of all energy.

    On the other side, Sang Zhijun¡¯s face was pale, but her eyes were filled with an imposing battlelust. The Golden Silk Longbow in her hand looked like a crescent moon with the three Bunny Hair Arrows ced upon it. Even though her fingers were clenching the fletchings of the three arrows separately, the arrow heads were in contact with each other.

    The three Bunny Hair Arrows gave off a faint silver glow with a sharpness so unequaled that Sang Zhijun was pleasantly surprised.

    Clink!

    The three Bunny Hair Arrows merged in mid-air and materialized into a dazzling silvery light.

    Compared to Shi Xueman, Sang Zhijun was worse off. After putting all her energy into that attack, she retreated several steps before her legs gave way, causing her to fall down on her backside.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s pearl struck the dazed blood bat, and as soon as it made contact with the blood bat¡¯s body, it disintegrated into a tiny cloud of mist which seeped into the bat¡¯s body.

    The blood bat froze. Both the water and blood cells in its body were beginning to frantically rush towards the tiny cloud of mist. However, it looked as if its body was trying to devour the cloud of mist, which was filled with concentrated elemental energy.

    At this moment, the blood bat was in the perfect position to be struck.

    The silvery light shot out from Sang Zhijun¡¯s bow effortlessly hit the blood bat¡¯s head.

    The silvery light suddenly blew up, causing the bat¡¯s head to explode into countless fragments.

    Its headless body was bubbling with water vapour¡ªit was as if it was dumped into boiling water. The previously strong metallic skin had lost its luster and had dried-up.

    Its body crashed to the ground with a resounding bang.

    A plump silhouette pulled Ai Hui to one side.

    The instant Ai Hui had been sent flying backward, Fatty had already rushed forwards to catch him.

    Ai Hui had fainted.

    Without saying anything, Fatty carried the dusty Ai Hui on his back and dashed frantically in the direction of the training hall.

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t even bother to say goodbye, really...¡± Sang Zhijun muttered as she sat on the ground, staring nkly at Fatty¡¯s retreating back.

    ¡°He must be anxious to save his friend.¡± Shi Xueman had regained a little of her strength, and she helped Sang Zhijun up from the ground.

    ¡°What should we do now?¡± Sang Zhijun was exhausted, and her face was dazed.

    ¡°Request for help.¡± Shi Xueman said, releasing a distress signal.

    She cast a nce in the direction that Fatty had disappeared into and felt a bit worried. How was Ai Hui¡¯s injury?

    His direct collision with the blood bat had been truly amazing...

    He must be fine!

 Chapter 147: Whoâ€™s Ai Hui?

    Chapter 147: Who¡¯s Ai Hui?

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    The infiltration of the blood bat shook the entire Central Pine City.

    Everyone had assumed that Central Pine City¡¯s defense was impregnable, but reality had shown otherwise. Moreover, it was Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun who had encountered the danger this time.

    If any mishaps had happened to the both of them, the entire Central Pine City would have borne the me, and the consequences would have been devastating.

    Immediately after the incident, both the magistrate court of Central Pine City and Central Pine Academy sent their representatives to visit them. However, these representatives were stopped by Yong Zheng, whose face was furious. When he had discovered that Shi Xueman had almost met with a mishap, he had be terror-stricken.

    Not only was Shi Xueman the affirmed third-generation sessor to the n, but she was also the daughter of his good friend. If anything were to happen to her, he would not be able to forgive himself.

    When he was dealing with the visitors, he was very rude and blunt.

    Even though Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun were still recovering from their injuries, both of them handed detailed reports on the blood bat¡¯s fighting capabilities.

    In these two reports, there was enough evidence to show the frightening formidableness of the blood bat.

    For example, the report had mentioned how Shi Xueman was forced to use a precious artifact like the Vers Mist Pearl.

    The Vers Mist Pearl had cost more than thirty million yuan, and it had been given to her by her father as a birthday gift when she was twelve. When everyone read this report and saw the three words ¡°Vers Mist Pearl,¡± their eyes popped out of their heads. They then all agreed ruefully that the Shi n was truly rich and powerful.

    The Vers Mist Pearl was a water elemental artifact that was extremely pure in nature.

    Only under very special conditions could some of the colored clouds in the Palette Cloud Vige produce Vers Mist Pearls. These artifacts were exceedingly rare.

    Could produce the Vers Mist Pearls. These artifacts were extremely rare.

    Everyone clearly knew that Shi Xueman would never use the Vers Mist Pearl unless it was a life-and-death situation. No one would actually use it. Furthermore, one had to use the high-level skill [Avalokiteshvara Seal] to utilize the Vers Mist Pearl.

    Avalokiteshvara was an ancient god and was not well known. This, too, said a lot about the long history of the Shi n.

    The Shi n had more than one absolute skill. The absolute skill that Shi Xueman practiced was called [Hydromancy], a profound andplex skill. As for hand-sign rted absolute skills, there were the [Avalokiteshvara Seal], [Lament of Lute], [Rain of Musa], [Ripple], etc. and all of these were well-known.

    The moves that Sang Zhijun had used were also extraordinary.

    The Sang n did not have many absolute skills¡ªonly one, in fact, and it was known as the [Arrow Fusion Technique]. This skill fused multiple arrows together into one arrow.

    Sang Zhijun could fuse three arrows into one.

    The three-into-one arrow technique was an important skill of the Sang n. Only those disciples who could fuse three arrows into a single one were qualified to travel on their own, and this showed a lot about Sang Zhijun¡¯s capabilities. This incident also gave people a new evaluation of her abilities.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s [Avalokiteshvara Seal] and Vers Mist Pearl, and Sang Zhijun¡¯s [Arrow Fusion Technique]......such fighting capabilities were enviable and disyed both might and wealth. How could that formidable blood bat not be destroyed by them?

    However, both Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun stated in their reports that they did not y a pivotal role in the victory over the blood bat.

    The key to the victory had been a student named Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui had been the first to discover the blood bat, allowing them to make a narrow escape from death. Ai Hui had been the one to sense that the blood bat had not yet left and was swirling around in the sky. Ai Hui had been the one to determine that there was only one blood bat. Ai Hui had been the one to take the initiative to use himself as bait. Ai Hui¡¯s peerless swordsmanship had stopped the blood bat¡¯s lightning-fast diving attack, giving Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun the golden opportunity to strike.

    Ai Hui, Ai Hui, Ai Hui....

    ¡°Who¡¯s Ai Hui?¡±

    The dean of the Central Pine Academy waved the two reports in his hand as his gaze swept across the teachers who each led a ss of students.

    Everyone looked at each other, but no one knew who he was.

    ¡°No one actually knows who¡¯s Ai Hui?¡± The dean¡¯s face turned gloomy at once.

    The room was in absolute silence as no one had heard of this name before. Where did this fellow pop out from? All the teachers present had never heard of a student called Ai Hui.

    ¡°Is he from your ss?¡±

    ¡°No, my ss doesn¡¯t have such a student!¡±

    ¡°He isn¡¯t from my ss as well!¡±

    After a round of questioning, everyone quieted down.

    ¡°Is he from Teacher Xu¡¯s ss?¡± someone suddenly asked upon noticing that Teacher Xu was not present.

    ¡°It can¡¯t be.¡±

    Everyone was already jealous of the fact that Teacher Xu¡¯s ss had Duanmu Huanghun. How could it be that his ss had one more genius? Everyone still thought that they misread the reports just now. If Ai Hui¡¯s name were to be reced by Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s name, eh, that would make more sense!

    Fortunately, everyone knew that Shi Xueman was aware of who Duanmu Huanghun was, and hence, she would not make such a mistake.

    ¡°Teacher Xu has gone to the Garden of Life,¡± someone quickly reminded. Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi had gone to the Garden of Life, but no one was clear on their mission¡¯s specifics.

    Eventually, everyone was able toe up with a solution. Teacher Xu might not be here, but there was still Duanmu Huanghun. They could simply ask him.

    The magistrate office.

    ¡°Who¡¯s Ai Hui?¡±

    A burly man, who was leaning against a chair behind a long table, askedzily. He was the mayor of Central Pine City, Wang Zhen.

    Everyone looked at each other in dismay as they could not answer this question.

    ¡°Investigate! Go and investigate now!¡± Wang Zhen swung his massive hand. ¡°I want to know everything about him!¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡±

    Vanguard Training Hall.

    ¡°Is he really okay? If he¡¯s okay, then why isn¡¯t he awake?¡± Fatty was worried as he stared at the unconscious Ai Hui.

    Even though Ai Hui was unconscious, his hand was holding tightly on to his sword. Previously, Fatty had tried to pry the sword free from Ai Hui¡¯s hand, but no matter how much force he used, Ai Hui would just not let go of it.

    ¡°Lou Lan also doesn¡¯t know why Ai Hui hasn¡¯t woken up yet,¡± Lou Lan tilted his head as his eyes flickered with a yellow glow. ¡°The elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body is currently being channeled, so don¡¯t worry, Fatty. Right now, he¡¯s in good condition¡ªmuch better than before.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s good, then,¡± Fatty tried to restrain himself from worrying too much. He could only tell himself to believe in Lou Lan.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was undergoing a tremendous transformation.

    The force of the collision with the blood bat was so immense that it had exceeded what Ai Hui¡¯s body could take. If not for his sword embryo, which had saved him in the nick of time, and the timely unleash of his potential that had enabled him to execute that unexpected sword move, he would have been reduced to a heap of meat pulp.

    However, the blood bat¡¯s devastating attack could still deal severe damage to Ai Hui¡¯s body. The force from the impact had prated into the depths of his body.

    Under such a huge impact, the elemental energy ball in Ai Hui¡¯s body copsed like a crushed snowball.

    The terrifying external force directly destroyed the attractive force of the elemental energy ball.

    The copsed elemental energy was wreaking havoc in Ai Hu¡¯s body. Some of the energy surged into the Dragonspine Inferno that Ai Hui was grasping. At first, the sword embryo in Ai Hui¡¯s be had been dispirited and listless as it was severely injured. However, the sword embryo had suddenly be energetic, resembling a shark that smelled blood.

    The copsed elemental energy immediately became its best nourishment.

    Even though Ai Hui was still unconscious, the sword embryo was channeling itself spontaneously.

    Elemental energy steadily flowed through Ai Hui¡¯s hand into the Dragonspine Inferno before flowing back to Ai Hui¡¯s body. The nourished sword embryo quickly regained its energy and began strengthening rapidly.

    If Ai Hui were awake, he would be surprised at the growth of his sword embryo. The surprisingly powerful sword move that Ai Hui had executed to stop the blood bat had greatly stimted his sword embryo as well.

    The elemental energy from the elemental energy mass was continuously converting into sword force.

    The amount of elemental energy entering the Circtory Circle Revolution kept on increasing, enhancing its efficiency. Meanwhile, the sword force channeling in Ai Hui¡¯s body was surging violently, like a tidal wave that was made up of countless razor-sharp swords. It cleansed his body continuously; every ce it passed through was purified and destroyed.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body trembled as the pce in his left leg activated. As soon as it activated, it waspletely filled with the surging sword force. If Ai Hui were awake at this moment, he would faint due to the intense pain.

    More and more sword force surged through his body.

    When the sword force entered the pce in Ai Hui¡¯s right foot, his right foot trembled. The pce in his right foot was activated as well!

    As soon as the pce was opened up, the sword force gushed in frantically.

    Both of Ai Hui¡¯s legs were trembling violently. The shoes on his feet were wrecked by the sharp-edged sword force.

    However, this was just the beginning. More and more elemental energy was steadily entering the Circtory Circle Revolution.

    At this point of time, Lou Lan couldn¡¯t just sit there and do nothing. If the energy were solely entering his feet, there wouldn¡¯t be much of a problem; however, if the energy gushed into any one of his earth, sea, gate or sky pces and created a problem there, the damage done would be irreversible.

    ¡°Fatty, hurry and beat him up!¡± Lou Lan urged.

    ¡°Huh!¡± Fatty was stunned.

    ......

    The magistrate office.

    ¡°Got it, we have obtained the information on Ai Hui through the Commission Hall!¡±

    ¡°He lives in the Vanguard Training Hall. This subordinate has already located the specific address!¡±

    ¡°Where¡¯s my uniform? Where¡¯s Master¡¯s uniform? Quickly find it for Master now! Let us go to the Vanguard Training Hall!¡± Wang Zhen stood up and yelled as he felt energized all of a sudden.

    Central Pine Academy.

    Duanmu Huanghun was baffled when he heard the teachers yelling his name. But when he heard the name ¡°Ai Hui,¡± he returned to his senses and said, ¡°That¡¯s right, he¡¯s from my ss.¡±

    He tried to remain calm.

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief; they finally found the ss which Ai Hui belonged to.

    ¡°Do you know where he lives?¡± the dean asked solemnly.

    Could it be that this fellowmitted a crime? Duanmu Huanghun rejoiced secretly. He could not conceal the smile on his face no matter how hard he tried, and without any hesitation, he replied, ¡°Yes.¡±

    ¡°You shall lead the way!¡± the dean demanded ferociously.

    Seems like he hasmitted a big crime. Duanmu Huanghun sneered in his mind.

    Vanguard Training Hall.

    ¡°I really have to beat him up?¡± Fatty was hesitating.

    ¡°Yes, and use more strength!¡± Lou Lan was encouraging Fatty. ¡°The harder you beat him, the faster he will recover!¡±

    ¡°Really, Lou Lan, you¡¯d better not be lying to me!¡± Fatty said.

    ¡°Lou Lan doesn¡¯t lie.¡± Lou Lan shook his head.

    ¡°When Ai Hui wakes up, Lou Lan, you have to be my witness,¡± Fatty said, evidently still hesitating.

    ¡°No problem.¡± Lou Lan nodded.

    A sinister smile appeared on Fatty¡¯s face. He dragged Ai Hui to the training ground and tied him to a wooden stake.

    The one with the surname Ai, you¡¯re finally in my hands! Today, we shall settle all the grudges between us!

    Thump! This punch is for the lunges you made me do!

    Thump! This punch is for the flutter kicks you forced me to do!

    Thump! This punch is for you eating one more bowl of noodles than me!

    Thump! This punch is for that other extra bowl of noodles you ate!

    Thump! Thump! Thump!

    As Fatty¡¯s punches bombarded Ai Hui¡¯s body like a rainstorm, he felt an indescribablefort. It was his lifelong dream to bully Ai Hui! All along, he had been under Ai Hui¡¯s tyrannical abuse.

    Today, I will let you know that Fatty is also a hero!

    What makes you think that you can eat two more bowls of noodles than me?

    I will beat you until your head is swollen!

    I will beat you until your body is as swollen as mine...

    However, as Fatty continued beating Ai Hui, he soon felt that something wasn¡¯t right.

    ¡°Lou Lan, I¡¯m almost done, you want to give it a try?¡± The perspiring Fatty turned around and asked Lou Lan while gasping for air and beating Ai Hui wildly at the same time.

    ¡°Fatty, hang in there!¡± Lou Lan shook his head furiously like a rattle-drum.

    Why does he shake his head so furiously?

    Fatty felt uneasy.

 Chapter 148: Mayor Wang Zheng

    Chapter 148: Mayor Wang Zheng

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    Punch after punch¡ªafter several rounds of this, Ai Hui remained unconscious. Fatty¡¯s vignce was put to rest.

    ¡°It seems I thought too much. I better make use of this once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity to teach Ai Hui a lesson. I even have Lou Lan as my witness; the gods are really helping me this time! Hahaha!¡± Fatty sneered.

    Thump thump thump!

    Suddenly, Fatty felt his fists be numb. Taking a nce at Ai Hui, he was immediately startled. ¡°Ahh! Why did he suddenly be fatter?¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s body had be bloated and deformed like a swelled balloon.

    ¡°There¡¯s too much elemental energy in his body. Right now, we¡¯re using this method to ease the pressure in his body,¡± Lou Lan exined. ¡°Lou Lan has to monitor the status of the elemental energy in his body, so I will have to leave the beating to you, Fatty.¡±

    ¡°No problem, leave it to me! I¡¯m the best at easing pressure!¡± Fatty chirped.

    Thump thump thump!

    ¡°The elemental energy is umting in his left cheek!¡±

    ¡°Right cheek!¡±

    ¡°His chin!¡±

    Lou Lan¡¯s glowing yellow eyes flickered constantly as he instructed Fatty on where to hit. By the time Fatty saw that Ai Hui¡¯s head had been beaten into the shape of a pig¡¯s, he felt aplished.

    ¡°Fatty, use more strength!¡± Lou Lan instructed.

    ¡°Okay!¡± Fatty¡¯s punches became heavier.

    Time passed bit by bit, and Fatty was now drenched in sweat, unable to remember how many punches he had thrown. Ai Hui¡¯s face was changed beyond recognition, and his body had swelled up by approximately two to three times.

    If Fatty were to meet the current Ai Hui on the street, he definitely would not have recognized him.

    However....

    Fatty¡¯s arms were so sore that he could not lift them, and his entire body was drenched in sweat. His throat was burning, as if molten lead had been poured into his mouth. It seemed as though he would stop breathing right there and die of exhaustion. Gasping for air, he asked, ¡°Lou Lan... it¡¯s... it¡¯s nearly done, right? I have... I have no more strength!¡±

    ¡°Fatty, endure a bit more. It will be done soon.¡±

    Lou Lan¡¯s glowing yellow eyes flickered as he stared fixedly at Ai Hui¡¯s body, observing the flow of elemental energy in his body with care.

    ¡°Shoulders!¡±

    ¡°Thighs!¡±

    ......

    Lou Lan continued barking outmands, but Fatty¡¯s body felt numb, his energypletely expended. He had yet to notice that his fists were swollen like steamed buns. Punching Ai Hui¡¯s body had be simr to punching a porcupine.

    Buzz buzz buzz!

    Traces of razor-sharp elemental energy were emitting for Ai Hui¡¯s pores continuously, making him remarkably like a thorny porcupine.

    ¡°Fatty, use more strength!¡± Lou Lan yelled.

    Fatty vaguely perceived amotion in the alleyway, but at this moment, the entirety of his attention was focused on Ai Hui, and he could not hear clearly.

    ¡°Lou¡ªLou Lan... I can¡¯t do it anymore!¡± Fatty was shedding tears. He felt as though he would copse from exhaustion at any time. How many punches had he thrown today? He must have thrown a lifetime¡¯s worth.

    ¡°Fatty, persevere! It is a crucial time now!¡±

    Lou Lan encouraged Fatty, his eyes never leaving Ai Hui¡¯s body for even a split second. The flickering of his yellow eyes had be a blur. The amount of elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body was terrifying. Lou Lan could not understand why there was so much. How was it possible for Ai Hui to have remained safe and sound until now? If it were anyone else, they would have already exploded from the abundance of elemental energy!

    The situation was at a critical point.

    The two pces in Ai Hui¡¯s legs had opened, allowing his condition to improve momentarily. Despite that, however, the pces in his limbs were being flooded and expanded brutally by the sword force. The speed of the pces¡¯ expansion could not catch up to the amount of elemental energy that was flooding in.

    The forceful expansion of the pces would damage the body severely. Lou Lan had many ways to deal with the damage done to the pces in Ai Hui¡¯s limbs, and so it was not too great of an issue. For the earth, sea, gate, and sky pces to sustain injuries, however, the situation would be troublesome.

    This was why the elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body had to be drained.

    Punching Ai Hui¡¯s body allowed some of the elemental energy in his body to be released. Throughout the whole process, Lou Lan had to monitor the elemental energy in his body to see if they over-umted in a certain area which would damage Ai Hui¡¯s body. As such, he needed Fatty to carry out the punching.

    Lou Lan had previously been worried that Fatty would not have enough energy. He never expected that Fatty would instead have so much energy left and punch with such force.

    Such a good brother!

    Lou Lan was praising the fatty in his heart. He was putting in all of his effort¡ªonly a true brother would sweat and toil so for his friend.

    The fatty was really a good guy.

    On the other hand, Fatty was unaware of Lou Lan¡¯s admiration. He was on the verge of tears. Both of his fists were swollen, and every punch he threw was a torture. Why did he have to be the one to beat Ai Hui up? Was he punishing Ai Hui or himself?

    Lou Lan, I want to train now!

    Flutter kicks! Lunges! Anything will do!

    One hundred sets, five hundred sets.... Any number of sets will do!

    Fattymented sorrowfully as tears streamed down his cheeks.

    Puff!

    Fatty felt something amiss with his punch. It felt as though it hadnded on a heap of cotton.

    ¡°Fatty, be careful!¡±

    What¡¯s there to be careful about....

    The dazed Fatty failed to react in time. As if a dashing wild beast had crashed into him, his body flew backwards like a cannonball.

    It finally ended....

    Lou Lan became anxious. Ai Hui had reached the most critical stage!

    ...

    The dean did not expect to encounter Wang Zhen in the alleyway. He scowled. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m here for whatever you¡¯re here for.¡± Wang Zhen smiled cheekily.

    ¡°Ai Hui is a student of Central Pine Academy.¡± The dean¡¯s face became gloomy. ¡°Since when did the mayor begin to interfere in the business of our academy?¡±

    For quite some time, Wang Zhen and the magistrate office had held little presence. Central Pine Academy was the most important organization within Central Pine City and as a result, undertook many of the city¡¯s important roles. By contrast, the duties of the magistrate office were few and far between. In the Induction Ground, the academies held higher positions than the magistrate offices. As such, when the dean saw Wang Zhen, he felt not the slightest bit of fear.

    ¡°Student Ai Hui lives and studies in Central Pine City. As the mayor of this city, it¡¯s only natural for me to care about him,¡± Wang Zhen repliedzily.

    ¡°All of you back off. I have something to discuss with the mayor in private,¡± the dean suddenly told his subordinates.

    ¡°What are you trying to do?¡± the dean lowered his voice and asked Wang Zhen.

    Wang Zhen withdrew his smile and replied, ¡°I just don¡¯t want anything happening to Central Pine City in my hands.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t listen to the rumors. The Induction Ground has already contained the situation.¡± The dean¡¯s eyes flickered.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, then why would you, the dean,e here?¡± Wang Zhen sneered.

    ¡°If that¡¯s the case, why would you, the dean, woulde here?¡± Wang Zhen sneered.

    The dean had met the mayor on a few prior asions, but this was his first time discovering that he was not a pushover. Being mayor of the Induction Ground was not an easy job. The Induction Ground by nature was autonomous, cut off from the rest of the world, and the mayors of the cities here were known to sulk. This was because the power and authority of each cityy in the hands of the respective academies instead of with the mayor. Furthermore, the Induction Ground had always enjoyed strict security, and so the mayors within the cities had nothing much to do.

    Those who were willing to be mayors in the Induction Ground were usually retired civil servants or those ambitionless, spineless scumbags.

    ¡°Does the mayor feel that the situation is getting out of hand?¡± the dean asked directly.

    ¡°Yes, the situation is extremely critical now.¡± Wang Zhen nodded solemnly.

    He had always wanted a chance tomunicate with the dean; however, he knew that the dean would not listen to him. Despite being mayor, he held very little power, and the teachers within Central Pine Academy would not listen to hismands.

    ¡°How is that so?¡± The dean understood the seriousness of the situation. He wanted to be responsible for Central Pine City as well, and so the two held no conflict of interest.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know what the Induction Ground is nning. So far, however, the blood poison catastrophe has not been controlled, and the situation is worsening instead,¡± Wang Zhen replied. ¡°The appearance of the blood bat is enough to throw everyone into a state of panic. And if I¡¯m not wrong, the Induction Ground has yet to find out how the blood bat infiltrated the city.¡±

    The dean¡¯s pupils contracted at this.

    Noticing the dean¡¯s reaction, Wang Zhen continued calmly, ¡°I can roughly guess the solution you havee up with. Is it the Chiming Dandelion? Am I right?¡±

    The dean was mildly surprised by Wang Zhen¡¯s guess, but replied easily, ¡°Anyone could have made this guess.¡±

    The Chiming Dandelion was a nt that wood elementalists had bred long ago, used mainly for security purposes that developed to adopt advanced measures. Tiny dandelion seeds could float in the air for some time, and when used inrge amounts, they formed a nearly impregnable security warning system.

    At any security breach, these extremely miniscule seeds would give off chiming vibrations, immediately notifying the wood elementalists in charge of security.

    ¡°I hope to be in charge of the city¡¯s defense. I have some experience with regards to this aspect. And even though I¡¯m not some powerful individual, I did serve ten years on the front line.¡± Wang Zhen gazed at the dean and revealed what was under his left trouser without any hesitation.

    A roughly-made metallic leg.

    The dean was rendered speechless, and a tinge of respect shed across his eyes as he asked Wang Zhen, ¡°When did you get injured?¡±

    ¡°Ten years ago,¡± Wang Zhen replied unconcernedly.

    ¡°I can hand over the defense of the city to you; however, I will be keeping an eye on you,¡±

    ¡°No problem,¡± Wang Zhen agreed wholeheartedly.

    Both of them heaved a sigh of relief in unison. Wang Zhen¡¯s main objective had been fulfilled and the dean could remove himself from this tangled mess.

    The dean then signaled for his subordinates to return and instructed, ¡°From now on, the mayor will be in charge of the city¡¯s defense. All of the teachers and students will have to cooperate with him.¡±

    ¡°Let us go in.¡± The dean smiled.

    ¡°Please!¡± Wang Zhen gestured for the dean to enter the training hall.

    The door to the training hall was wide open. Both of them stepped over the doorstep, and at that very moment, a shadow flew towards them at high speed.

    Both of them were shocked.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s reaction was faster. Without hesitation, he lifted his left leg and gave a vicious side kick. He underestimated the impact of the iing shadow, however, and was knocked flying backwards. Luckily, the dean was able to catch him, preventing any humiliations.

    Uponnding, his legs nearly gave way, causing him to kneel on the spot.

    Such a powerful impact.

    Taking a closer look at the person, they became anxious. Could this individual be Ai Hui?

    With a resounding crash, Fattynded heavily on the ground, causing it to tremble and filling the air with dust clouds.

    In shock, Wang Zhen and the dean exchanged looks.

    At that very moment, a shout came from the courtyard, ¡°Ai Hui, unleash your sword!¡±

    Ai Hui... unleash your sword?

    Both of them heaved a sigh of relief. It seemed the person before them was not Ai Hui.

    Wait!

    Unleash your sword?

    A sudden powerful and chilling aura erupted from within the courtyard.

    The youth, shrouded in scorching white light and tied to a wooden stake in the courtyard, slowly opened his eyes.

    His eyes were ice-cold but abstruse. As his eyes slowly opened, he resembled an ancient beast that had awoken from its slumber of thousands of years trapped under a mountain.

    The expressions of Wang Zhen and the dean changed drastically!

 Chapter 149: Crescent Moon

    Chapter 149: Crescent Moon

    Trantor: JL Editor: JL

    Threads of elemental energy bubbled relentlessly from Ai Hui¡¯s pores, creating a ring of dazzling light.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind was nk.

    The sword force in his body was as boundless as an ocean which was, at this point, rumbling with a fury. In the midst of the storm, Ai Hui¡¯s mental state was a helpless leaf constantly rolled about by the waves, falling, and being torn into pieces before finally being engulfed by the ocean.

    Fatty¡¯s continuous beatings had facilitated the sword force within Ai Hui¡¯s body to actively prate outwards. Under normal circumstances, the elemental energy would not have been able to do this. Furthermore, due to his training, Ai Hui¡¯s skin was like copper, more tough and durable than an average student¡¯s. Thus, it was more difficult for the elemental energy to leak out of his pores.

    Fatty¡¯s constant ¡°efforts¡± had finally paid off. Vast amounts of elemental energy bubbled out from within Ai Hui¡¯s body like steam.

    Once the elemental energy was drained away, the pressure within Ai Hui¡¯s body lessened. This allowed Ai Hui¡¯s unstable mental state to finally have a breather and regain an ounce of rity.

    ¡°Ai Hui! Use your sword!¡±

    Lou Lan¡¯s reminder was like an explosion in Ai Hui¡¯s mind but also seemed to being from the opposite end of the sea.

    Use my sword?

    In the midst of his confusion, a sword technique came to mind with lightning speed.

    Within his elemental energy that was vast as an ocean was a slender bowstring that connected Ai Hui¡¯s left hand pce to his right hand¡¯s pce. The elemental energy cord with which he had always had difficulty waspleted with ease while Ai Hui had been unaware.

    At the moment of the elemental energy cord¡¯spletion, the elemental energy bubbling out of Ai Hui changed abruptly.

    Instead of leaving him, it surrounded Ai Hui¡¯s surroundings while rotating at high speeds.

    Swoosh swoosh swoosh!

    It was as though there were countless sharp small swords flitting about speedily in the air. The stake and ropes that had initially tied him down became fragmented and of different lengths. They hovered in the air in segments, as if supported by an invisible hand. Constant cuts were made on the brick flooring beneath Ai Hui¡¯s feet by the sword, and chunks of brick flew wildly.

    Within Ai Hui¡¯s body, the roaring of the elemental energy ocean stopped preemptively the moment the elemental energy cord waspleted.

    Time seemed to havee to a standstill.

    As if Ai Hui had practiced it countless times, he was familiar with the move in its entirety. The Dragonspine Inferno, which had never left his hand, was ced horizontally before him. Together with a single stride, he swung the sword.

    The Dragonspine Inferno, which weighed one hundred kilograms, was as lithe and agile as a skipping stone on water.

    The elemental energy that had been dammed in Ai Hui¡¯s body rushed like the flowing waters of a dike and into the Dragonspine Inferno in Ai Hui¡¯s right hand.

    Buzz!

    As a spring vibrates with flicked, the deep thrumming of the Dragonspine Inferno gave rise to a slight tingle. A sheen of dazzling light appeared on the ck body of the Dragonspine Inferno.

    A crescent culminated on the sharp end of the sword, disappearing within moments.

    The expressions of the dean and mayor changed after being exposed to Ai Hui¡¯s imposing manner. The dean was especially shocked. How could he have been ignorant of such a brilliant student at his school? Such an explosion of aura was not something easily surpassed. Even the top genius of Central Pine Academy, Duanmu Huanghun, would find it difficult.

    How could a student have such an imposing air?

    Wang Zhen, too, was incredibly amazed, but for different reasons from the dean¡¯s. When he received Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun¡¯s reports, he did a thorough background check on Ai Hui. There was nothing about him that he did not know. Ai Hui had been born to a life of hard work, staying in the Wilderness for three years. An exception was made, allowing him to enter and train in the Induction Ground. He achieved the base level of two pces and was also a disciple of Wang Shouchuan. Even Ai Hui¡¯s hand in the Bunny Hair¡¯s profit was not absent from Wang Zhen¡¯s knowledge; he had done an incredibly detailed investigation.

    What made him deeply respect Ai Hui, however, was actually the fact that not only did Ai Hui survive two encounters with the blood beasts, but also that he yed a pivotal role in the group¡¯s sessful escape. Aside from Shi Xueman¡¯s and Sang Zhijun¡¯s reports, Wang Zhen had also seen the reports from Teacher Xu and Cui Xianzi. Both of them also mentioned Ai Hui as the one to have first realized that something was amiss.

    Ai Hui seemed to have an extraordinary intuition towards the blood poison. It also happened to be the main reason behind seeking him out.

    But all of the intelligence he received failed to mention that Ai Hui had such an uncanny capability for swordy!

    Was this truly two pces? How could such frightening waves of elemental energy result from just two pces? It most certainly had to belong to at least seven pces! Could it be that this chap was concealing his talent?

    He would not have been so shocked if it were simply the waves of elemental energy. The moment the tip of the sword transformed into a crescent moon, his facial muscles trembled involuntarily. Such awe-inspiring swordy gave him goosebumps.

    The sword seemed to head straight for his be; with the sword¡¯s next movement, it would even pierce him.

    Both Wang Zhen and the dean reacted immediately.

    Wang Zhen suddenly held a stained knife. His aura underwent a transformation, as though he had be another person. Even his height seemed to have increased. His bearing was indescribably fierce and severe. He wordlessly brought down his knife in a single stroke, its gleam simr to an inverted waterfall.

    The dean¡¯s wide sleeves emittedrge amounts bubbles like the ones blown by soapy water. Under the sunlight, they reflected a myriad of colors, dancing alongside the wind in a dream-like sequence.

    The crescent which had disappeared from the tip of Ai Hui¡¯s sword appeared before them as if out of thin air. It intersected with the gleam from Wang Zhen¡¯s knife.

    Like fragile porcin, the crescent silently shattered into a multitude of fragments.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s expression changed slightly, and he immediately held his knife horizontally and exerted his left palm outwards.

    Bang!

    The shattered crescent suddenly transformed into numerous sword gleams and enveloped the entire courtyard.

    Swoosh swoosh swoosh!

    The sword ray collided with the bubbles. They popped as though pricked by a needle, bursting immediately. However, the dean¡¯s billowing sleeves seemed to be a bottomless pit, gushing out colorful bubbles in a relentless torrent.

    The spheres increased in number, covering the dean from view.

    The sword gleam, which had been aimed at Wang Zhen, now seemed to have hit an invisible barrier and set off rippling waves.

    A glint of the sword beam shot towards Duanmu Huanghun. Waking up from his stupor, he immediately used his [Viridescent Flower]. A circle of branches materialized around him, and the sword gleam collided into the branches. With a tremble, Duanmu Huanghun sessfully blocked the sword gleam, but there was not a trace of celebration on his face. His gaze was instead fixated on the V[iridescent Flower]¡¯s branches that were slowly rotating around him.

    The small pinhole on a single leaf was extremely blinding.

    How could it be....

    He almost could not believe his eyes. From the moment he entered the training hall, the impacts came in wave after wave. The Ai Hui in front of him felt like a stranger.

    He had recently improved tremendously, with the encounter in the Garden of Life and the bitter battle outside of the city serving as stimtion. He was already talented, but with the threats of death, he was able to fully exploit and expand his talent and capability.

    Three days ago, he managed to activate the fifth pce, known as the earth pce.

    The implication was that he was entering the territory of greater skills. With each activation of the four pces¡ªearth, sea, gate, and sky¡ªthe strength would increase by leaps and bounds. Although everyone¡¯s constitution was different, in general, the earth pce could store 1.5 times more elemental energy than the hand pce. Additionally, the activation of his earth pce enabled him to practice moves from the [Viridescent Flower] that he had been unable to previously.

    Thus, his strength increased tremendously, and he was pleased beyond expectations.

    But that was before today. The waves of elemental energy that Ai Hui emitted sent chills to his heart. Duanmu Huanghun was certain that he would be unable to produce such frightening vibrations even with a base level of five pces.

    And that sword move....

    Just one move from Ai Hui had forced the dean and the mayor into such a situation. This far surpassed any knowledge Duanmu Huanghun had of Ai Hui.

    Duanmu Huanghun was clear about his capability. While he shot into fame after just one battle, he immediately became low-key and restrained afterwards. He knew that his brilliant results happened only because everyone was unfamiliar with him, unfamiliar with his [Viridescent Flower].

    In the end, he had been a freshman with the base level of four pces. Once everyone familiarized themselves, they would be able to think of ideas to counter him.

    Base level was a weakness that he could not avoid. While it required talent, it also needed time and patience.

    However, Ai Hui seemed to have skipped thetter requirement.

    From the activation of his natal pces to both of his hand pces, and now... How many pces had he activated to produce such strong elemental energy waves?

    And that unnerving yet grand sword move. Was it an absolute art? Didn¡¯t they say that swordy was in decline? How could such impressive swordy be in decline?

    His own rapid improvements were supported by several reasons. He was gifted with talent and imparted with an absolute art. His family was rich, and with external triggers, there was nothing strange about his tremendous improvement.

    Yet he could notprehend Ai Hui¡¯s improvement. There was no reasoning he could see behind it. His skills were nothing extraordinary, he was poor, and he was also older. How could he ever understand why that fellow¡¯s improvement was greater than his?

    While the bubbles seemed powerless as they would burst upon contact, the volume was simply so much that it seemed limitless. All of the sword gleams were forcibly blocked by them. With the exception of Duanmu Huanghun, everyone was sheltered and protected behind him.

    ¡°This feels good!¡±

    Wang Zhen burst intoughter for a long time, containing a whole ten years¡¯ worth of battle intent. His hair and beard fluttered around him, and his gaze was bright and animated. Holding onto the rusted knife, he was in high spirits.

    ¡°Central Pine Academy had a concealed talent! I cannot believe that there¡¯s such an expert here! Ai Hui, show me all that you¡¯ve got. Let¡¯s have a hearty battle!¡±

    Wang Zhen¡¯s thundering voice left a buzzing sound in everyone¡¯s ear.

    He raised his de and approached Ai Hui. Each stride wasrge, pressing into the hearts of those present. Even the floor trembled.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s pupils constricted while the expressions of the other teachers changed. Nobody could have expected the inconspicuous mayor to have such violent capabilities and strength.

    ¡°Ai Hui, could it be that you have lost your guts?¡±

    Wang Zhen roared loudly and took a leaping step.

    In midair, Wang Zhen¡¯s vigor was at its peak, and he felt an indescribable contentedness. He was all fired up.

    No one would be able to block this move!

    Eh?

    Ai Hui, who was below him, fell face down like a blockhead, unconscious.

    At his side was Lou Lan, thoroughly rxed. He had exhausted all of his sand core¡¯s elemental energy. His eyelids grew heavier and heavier as he mumbled deliriously, ¡°Lou Lan is tired....¡±

    Wang Zhennded back on the floor with a stiff expression.

    The dean, who had just finished dispersing the bubbles, was dumbfounded.

    Ai Hui, unconscious. Fatty, unconscious. Lou Lan, unconscious.

    This...

 Chapter 150: Blood-red Ripple

    Chapter 150: Blood-red Ripple

    Trantor: JL Editor: Lis

    ¡°It should be around here. Search carefully, everyone.¡±

    Qiao Hua¡¯s voice was hoarse and his appearance disheveled, but he still exuded a sense of confidence and good spirits. His gaze kept its confidence and steadiness while his face had a morbidly excited red blush. Only the corners of his eyes disyed his fatigue.

    Everyone knew that Qiao Hua was bearing a heavy burden.

    The blood catastrophe situation was rapidly deteriorating. There were sightings of blood fiends in many cities. Due to the emergency, the ones deeper in the Garden of Life were pressed by a heavy atmosphere. Even the areas that had been burned still had blood-red sprouts growing from the charred ground. The blood nts had a resilient vitality, instilling fear in everyone.

    The blood fiends were getting stronger. Just seven days ago, they were hit by a sneak attack from a blood wolf, causing three deaths and six injured. This was the first instance of severe injuries and death received since they entered the Garden of Life. The blood wolf was a strong but cunning dire beast that quickly became everyone¡¯s nightmare. Since then, the troop had be startled by the smallest things.

    Their caution, however, did not improve their situation. They began to suffer continuous attacks from different blood fiends, increasing the number of casualties. This further strengthened their belief that they were traveling in the correct direction.

    Qiao Hua continued tomand them deeper into the Garden of Life while praying for divine intervention.

    The burdens in Qiao Hua¡¯s heart increased, but he continued to encourage himself, saying that this was the best option to take. As long as they discovered the first blood tree, they would be able to find a solution.

    The blood poison could not be dealt with using ordinary ideas, which was evident from the blood grass that was growing from the charred soil. They sprouted at an astonishing rate. Only a few days had passed, and the blood grass had already grown past their kneecaps.

    The fire, intended to prevent the spread of the blood poisoning, aided it in bing stronger instead.

    Qiao Hua examined the newly grown blood grass and realized that the blood poison in them was slightly different from the one gathered in his initial investigations.

    Layers uponyers of transformations had taken ce, and the blood poison became increasingly formidable¡ªto the point that Qiao Hua experienced fear.

    He did not express his worries and fears, knowing that the troop¡¯s morale was undergoing some subtle changes. Everyone was tense and strained as they had yet to find the blood tree left behind by Si Nan. Furthermore, the continuous escting attacks by the blood fiends and the loss of their people made their confidence in Qiao Hua waver.

    The loss of confidence and intensifying insecurity made them extremely weak.

    Qiao Hua¡¯s resolute nature showed itself; he did not have the least bit of hesitation and held on to his determination. He believed his conjecture was correct and was not the least bit swayed.

    Everyone dispersed to seek out the potential target.

    Si Nan¡¯s notes were decades old; since his time, there had been many changes in the Induction Ground. Even the geologicalndscape had noticeable differences. Furthermore, the notes had been organized by Si Nan¡¯s students, and so many details were indistinct and unclear.

    After analyzing the notes, Qiao Hua had jotted down a few potential locations.

    Most of the people were in low spirits and were not encouraged by Qiao Hua¡¯s words since their previous searches had proved to be fruitless. Everyone maintained their patience out of respect for Qiao Hua¡¯s high rank. Their tolerance, however, was running thin. Some of the troop members were starting suspect whether Si Nan¡¯s notes were real.

    ¡°Found it!¡±

    An agitated voice suddenly rang out, and everyone involuntarily paused in their movements. After a moment of silence, they erupted in cheers.

    Everyone rushed towards the loud shout.

    Qiao Hua¡¯s knees went soft. He no longer cared about his image and plopped butt-first onto the ground. He looked utterly exhausted. He did not think that their journey would have been met with so many mishaps, nor did he predict the blood poison to have worsened so rapidly. The burden he shouldered had been heavy beyond expectation.

    The blood catastrophe had worsened with a swiftness outside of anybody¡¯s expectations, even Qiao Hua¡¯s. There were rumors of displeasure from the elders who had been persuaded by him.

    The winner takes all while the loser is left with nothing.

    If he could sessfully resolve the blood disaster, then he would rapidly be the hero of the Induction Grounds¡ªno, of the entire Avalon of Five Elements. To him, this was critical. As long as he seeded, his poption would be elevated to unprecedented heights.

    Always, he had hoped and longed for such a chance. His ambitious nature had been stirred since long ago.

    They finally found it....

    As long as they found the blood tree, he was halfway to sess. This implied that there would be a feast for them soon.

    It would be one of celebration, the best reward he could ever get. The courage he invested would soon reap numerous rewards. He could almost envision his name in the river of history, praised by millions of people.

    He did not know where he got the strength from, but he stood and walked towards the group of people.

    The crowd automatically parted to form a path, like the weing of a crowned victor.

    With a steady pace, Qiao Hua held his head up high. The gazes that turned his way were no longer filled with doubt and suspicion but instead were of adoration and respect. Finding the blood tree was evidence of Qiao Hua¡¯s correct theory.

    They all believed that they would soon witness the destruction of the blood disaster. Most of them were ovee with emotion.

    Qiao Hua did not let the sess go to his head. Instead, he calmed himself and approached the blood tree. After regaining his absolute tranquility, he inspected the blood tree carefully.

    After four hundred years of growth, the sapling had grown into an ancient tree of the firmament.

    Not an inch of grass grew within a perimeter of fifty meters.

    The top of the tree was thick and scarlet red like the evening maple inte autumn; it was breathtaking. Qiao Hua, however, did not raise his head. His gaze was fixated on the ck streaks on the tree trunk.

    The dull-red tree trunk was covered with ck patterns like a totem from the ancient times. It exuded an indescribable gloom and evil.

    ¡°Teacher, what is this ck decorative design?¡± Qiao Hua¡¯s student gathered up his courage and asked.

    ¡°Blood traces.¡± Qiao Hua did not move his gaze. His finger ran lightly across the ck patters as he continued, ¡°During the Cultivation Era, it was a taboo in blood-refinement. Very few know about this now. Senior Si Nan¡¯s extensive knowledge in blood-refined techniques was startling.¡±

    The people¡¯s expressions changed to one of admiration. Teacher Qiao was indeed erudite.

    In their eyes, blood-refined techniques were mysterious and unfamiliar. Much of their understanding about the subject touched only upon objects used during the techniques.

    To them, the teachers who pursued research in the bizarre such as objects of blood-refinement were like valuable. The rusty entrance was locked and covered with gray dust¡ªa treasure left behind by the Cultivation Era. It could be worth less than a penny, or it could change the world.

    To date, this door remained locked tight, and nobody had managed to open it.

    While blood-refined objects were not destroyed, nobody was able to use or find anything wondrous about them. The long history and experience left behind by the Cultivation Era was unimaginable for the people of the Avalon of Five Elements after all. Even objects left behind by the mysterious and neglected blood-refined technique were not rare to see.

    Apart from Ai Hui¡¯s Blood Bandage, which was made of a special material, most of the objects were considered useless and ced in a corner to collect dust. Only those with special uses were kept.

    Everyone held their breath, not daring to exhale.

    Qiao Hua¡¯s expression became bewitched. The more he understood, the more he sensed the coordination, power, and beauty in the blood traces on the tree trunk. It was as though he gazed into the sea of history of the Cultivation Era. In this humble corner was a fascinating blood-colored cloud that while not formidable, had never been destroyed or gone extinct.

    What an era that people would yearn for!

    Qiao Hua¡¯s thoughts wandered far and away. He could not imagine the vastness of the Cultivation Era. To think that the blood-refined techniques, fit only to be on the sidelines, had not yet gone extinct. And it set off such shocking waves.

    He remained in a befuddled state for a moment before regaining his senses. Strength and confidence returned to his body once more.

    Perhaps blood-refined techniques used to be formidable, but now the times had changed. It was an era of elemental energy, and it was his era.

    ¡°Number seven medicine!¡± he confidently said to his students.

    The rattan basket that was being carried by a student suddenly wiggled, and the sticks forming the basket separated to expose the contents within. In it were flower pods hanging from rattan sticks, and each pod wasbeled with a number.

    Finding the number seven flower bud, he inserted a thread of elemental energy.

    The flower bud slowly blossomed. Inside, a crystal-clear bamboo joint containing a ck liquid appeared before everyone. It was difficult to breed crystal bamboo joints as their rate of growth was slow. As such, they tended to be on the pricier side and were used to store precious medications.

    The student gingerly took out the crystal bamboo joint. The ck liquid medicine inside was like ckva. Even with the bamboo joint containing it, everyone could feel the heat waves.

    Qiao Hua¡¯s confidence was not without basis. He had thoroughly studied every detail in Si Nan¡¯s notes to purposefully creating several types of liquid medicines for different contingencies.

    For now, the situation was still within his control, and he was sufficiently prepared.

    ¡°Everyone, retreat by fifty meters,¡± hemanded gravely.

    Without any objections, everyone quickly retreated by fifty meters. They widened their eyes, afraid to miss out on any details. This would surely be an unforgettable moment in their entire lives.

    The fearful blood disaster was finally going to meet its end.

    Qiao Hua took a deep breath and surprisingly felt slightly nervous. After careful consideration, he was confident that he had considered all aspects. His gaze became determined.

    He cautiously removed the cap of the crystal bamboo. An unpleasant odor gushed out. Without a change in expression, he overturned it along the blood traces on the tree trunk.

    Thest drop of ck medicine dripped out from the crystal bamboo and permeated through the tree trunk.

    Qiao Hua had a relieved expression. The medication that he came up with was the bane of the blood poison. It could be considered to be another form of toxin that would directly counteract against the blood poisoning. It would spread in the same way, and there was no escape for anything already infected.

    The branches exhibited signs of ckening. Qiao Hua became excited; it was going to start!

    The ck color began to spread, and the leaves fell in session. All around them, the blood-red leaves descended and swirled like falling snow. Qiao Hua gave a heartyugh.

    Oh, what a pretty sight!

    In a sh, the ancient tree was barren without any leaves on it.

    Qiao Hua was pleased with himself when out of the corner of his eyes, he caught sight of a dried-up twig. His pupils constricted, his expression frozen in ce.

    A newly grown sprout that was even more sparkling with a brighter red tint.

    W......Why......

    He stared nkly at what had been bare branches that were now filled with new sprouts that were blood-red and growing at an astonishing speed.

    In the blink of an eye, the treetop waspletely filled, simr to a bewitching sea of blood.

    Without warning, the blood-red grass fifty meters away began to grow rapidly. In the midst of the surprised shouts and screams, it was like a paranormal beast with its ferocious maws wide open.

    The blood-red ripple expanded outwards at an rming speed.

 Chapter 151: Reward

    Chapter 151: Reward

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    Long ck hair flew in the wind.

    A youngdy casually sat on a rock on top of a summit. She paid no attention to the fact that she was sitting on a high overhanging cliff. Her red maxi skirt fluttered with the wind, akin to a blooming rose, yet also appearing like a ball of fire.

    On her delicate oval face, her eyes were closed. She raised her chin slightly to enjoy the iing breeze. Her slender and fair feet extended from under her fire-red skirt. She yfully swung her feet in the air, as if ying a touching song.

    Suddenly, her eyes opened, and she turned her head slightly.

    A hint of a smug smile emerged, and she let her charming gaze wander.

    It was starting.

    Like a perfect masterpiece, she stretched her fair-as-snow arm. Her murmurings werenguid, yet enticing. It was like a siren¡¯s call.

    After she finished stretching, she suddenly eximed slightly, ¡°ckie has not returned since it went out to hunt for food five days ago.¡±

    Could it be that ckie met with some mishap? She did not think this was likely. ckie was able to fly high and was as fast as lightning. Even if it did meet with danger, it would be able to escape easily.

    Still, she decided to head down the mountain to look for ckie. It would not be an easy task for her to nurture another talented blood fiend like ckie.

    With the tip of her foot, she tapped lightly on the rock. Like a zing phoenix, she flew off the cliff.

    Ai Hui woke up in a daze.

    It was like he had just had a bad dream where he was continuously beaten up like a sandbag.

    It had been a while since he had such nightmares.

    Thankfully, he woke up and realized that he was safe and sound. He gave a sigh of relief and sat up in one motion. Where were Lou Lan and Fatty? Ai Hui walked out of the room while stretching. He retreated when he saw Lou Lan¡¯s reflection in the training hall.

    Hey, why was his head so painful? It must be that he had not fully recovered. He needed more rest!

    ¡°Ai Hui! You are awake!¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s halted his movement, and his expression froze upon hearing Lou Lan¡¯s joyous voice.

    ¡°Ai Hui, do you still feel unwell? You have fully recovered from your injuries! Lou Lan is brilliant, right? Fatty put in a lot of effort too. He was terrific! Congrattions Ai Hui, you have activated four pces!¡±

    Lou Lan rattled on in a single breath.

    Ai Hui thought to himself, ¡°Lou Lan was good at everything, but he does not know how to read people¡¯s facial expressions. How could it be that I have recovered? Would I recover so easily from an eighty million injury?¡±

    The girl from the noodle store did not bother to hide her mocking gaze. Ai Huiughed and said, ¡°It has been a while!¡±

    ¡°Weren¡¯t you hoping that I would never appear?¡± the girl from the noodle store hissed and her tone was cold.

    ¡°How could that be?¡± Ai Huiughed a guiltyugh.

    The girl from the noodle store did not give him a chance and cut straight to the point. ¡°Tell me, when are you going to pay me back?¡±

    The girl from the noodle store was not in a good mood today. Could it be that someone offended her? Someone actually dared to offend such a violent girl? Their courage is seriously admirable!

    Ai Hui muttered in his heart, but he smiled and said, ¡°I am rather short on cash recently...¡±

    The girl from the noodle store smiled insincerely while saying, ¡°When are you not short on cash?¡±

    Ai Hui was pissed off. You can kill me but you should not insult me. What do you mean... Nevermind!

    ¡°I have no choice, I am a poor man. Young girl... youngdy, could you lower your standards and extend the deadline? Give me some more time, or else could I pay part of it first?¡± Ai Hui remembered his Bunny Hair Arrows. Had they not just been sold for thirty million?

    His share was quite significant, and he could use it to return some of the debt first.

    Thinking of the Bunny Hair Arrows, Ai Hui straightened his back. He was about to be someone rich! That amount of money was nothing!

    If this pace continued, it would not take long for him to give back the eighty million.

    ¡°If you are going to repay, pay it in one lump sum!¡± the young girl from the noodle store replied coldly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s back suddenly softened. ¡°Who made you angry? Don¡¯t be angry. Vent your anger and it will be all right. You will feel better after beating someone up. Come Fatty, let this sister beat you up to vent her anger!¡±

    ¡°I would be appeased if you allowed me to bash you up.¡± The young girl¡¯s eyes twinkled coldly, and her tone was terrifying. ¡°Tell me, if I ate a bowl of noodles belonging to you and paid eighty millio, wouldn¡¯t I be like a skank?¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes twitched. He knew the extent of the young girl¡¯s wrath. His bones would definitely shatter if she were to beat him. Heughed dryly. ¡°Fatty has more meat and would feel nicer . My bones are hard and would be feel painful. Otherwise, Lou Lan would be good too. You could even replenish your energy by having Lou Lan cater to your needs! Having said that, how could you say that you are a skank. Furthermore, this eighty million is not a matter to be treated lightly. I will return you the money, but I need some time as well.¡±

    Fatty stared incredulously at Ai Hui¡¯s terrified expression. Was this the same cruel, unfeeling, ughter-machine that he knew Ai Hui to be? Why did this scene seem so familiar? A sense of understanding swept over his mind. Indeed, only money could cause such turmoil. Even Ai Hui was unable to avoid such a matter.

    Hold on... Was it true that Ai Hui had an eighty million debt?

    Fatty was dumbfounded, dumbfounded by the shockingly cruel reality.

    At this moment, a knocking sound was heard through the door.

    Ai Hui exhaled deeply. No matter who it was, this person came at just the right time. It was a good person, a savior!

    ¡°Who¡¯s there!¡± he shouted at the top of his lungs as he ran over to open the door enthusiastically.

    His expression immediately became crestfallen and his tone became cold. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±

    Ingrate!

    Duanmu Huanghun was also in an awkward situation. He wanted to punch Ai Hui when he saw his face, but he restrained himself. If not for the fact that he bore a heavy responsibility, he would rather die than visit Ai Hui.

    ¡°Matters rted to the institution and the magistrate court.¡± Duanmu Huanghun did not bother to keep his tone civil.

    Ai Hui snorted and opened the door widely.

    Upon seeing Duanmu Huanghun, Lou Lan greeted him enthusiastically, ¡°Student Bangwan.¡±

    Hearing those two words, Duanmu Huanghun trembled. To him, these two words were a nightmare.

    When his gaze fell on the young girl from the noodle store, his pace became even more sluggish, and he could not help but tremble.

    Ai Hui¡¯s me was actually here!

    That girl with strength off the charts, the girl who was as fierce as a wild beast was actually here. At that moment, he only wanted to run! Previously, when he exchanged blows with Ai Hui¡¯s me, he could not even retaliate. He waspletely suppressed by her and had experienced the most painful defeat of his life.

    Suddenly, he felt that he had walked into a lion¡¯s den. Everyone¡¯s gaze was like a tiger watching its prey.

    ¡°Say it. What¡¯s the matter?¡± Ai Hui only wished for the early departure of this person.

    Looking at Ai Hui¡¯s face that deserved a spanking, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s anger rose, but looking at that woman who was standing close by, that anger disappeared without a trace.

    ¡°As you were helpful in defeating the blood fiend, the institution and the magistrate court would like to reward you. They sent me here to check on your opinion.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face was impartial. He had a headache when he received the assignment. Truthfully, his feelings wereplicated when he saw Ai Hui today.

    He had seen with his own eyes how Ai Hui impressively executed his sword moves. The Dean and the Mayor both praised him, while those teachers who followed them were also amazed.

    There were even some who thought that Ai Hui could be a swordy master in the future.

    Duanmu Huanghun felt pressure, tremendous pressure. Ai Hui was catching up to him with a speed that he could notprehend. The distance between Ai Hui and him was getting shorter. He had also discovered that Ai Hui was better at adapting to dangerous situations. When everyone was at a loss, only Ai Hui managed toe up with a solution.

    Reward!

    Ai Hui brightened up in a sh. ¡°How would they reward me?¡±

    ¡°This would depend on your needs. It could be absolute arts or weapons and defensive gear. You can slowly reflect and consider.¡± Duanmu Huanghun secretly thought to himself that he would give Ai Hui the one with the worst quality.

    ¡°Money!¡± Ai Hui said defiantly, ¡°If they want to reward me, reward me with money!¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun could not contain himself and reminded Ai Hui, ¡°You better choose a few imparted skills or special defense equipments or even elemental ingredients.¡±

    While Ai Hui brought about a huge amount of stress to him, his pride did not allow him to use such low methods to slow down Ai Hui¡¯s progress.

    Victory must also be achieved fairly and honorably.

    I will not lose to you!

    Duanmu Huanghun felt relieved after resolving his internal turmoil. Heughed involuntarily. It seemed that he had been possessed recently. How could he have such thoughts. Although Ai Hui had improved tremendously, Duanmu Huanghun was still superior.

    He knew that it was due to the sword move. Seeing that sword move shocked him like never before, which led to his recent imbnced mentality.

    Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s indifference, he continued in a light tone, ¡°In the current situation, whether it is the academy or the magistrate court, they would not have so much money. That is because much of their money would be used to replenish and purchase supplies. You should think about unobtainable or expensive items that you wanted in the past. Think this over carefully.¡±

    Ai Hui was taken aback as he sensed that Duanmu Huanghun was serious.

    ¡°He said it perfectly.¡±

    The youngdy from the noodle store abruptly interrupted.

    Ai Hui became prudent and cautious. The youngdy from the noodle store was wealthy and respectable, so she definitely knew more of the world than a country bumpkin like him. He face-palmed. He could also ask Teacher and Mistress for their inputs and suggestions.

    ¡°Give me a second.¡±

    Having said that, he rushed out of the training hall.

    Fatty and Lou Lan were conversing, which left just Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun alone. Duanmu Huanghun felt extremely awkward.

    ¡°May I dare ask youngdy¡¯s name?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun decided to break the awkward silence. He was extremely curious about Ai Hui¡¯s old me. Her capability was deep and unmeasurable. While there were many reasons as to why he was suppressed that night, the main reason was because he did not have much confidence in defeating his opponent.

    For a student to be able to threaten Duanmu Huanghun, she was definitely not a nameless nobody to be taken lightly.

    Could it be that she was not a student?

    Thinking of Senior Mingxiu, another woman in Ai Hui¡¯s life, Duanmu Huanghun trembled. She was also a nightmare.

    Why were the women around Ai Hui so frightening?

    Shi Xueman treated Duanmu Huanghun indifferently. In her eyes, Duanmu Huanghun was just a little boy, and she did not think highly of him. Her expression wasposed, then she smiled and said, ¡°He usually calls me ¡®skank.¡¯ ¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun: ¡°...¡±

    Fatty, who was not far away, eximed, ¡°This... I seemed to have heard of this!¡±

    ¡°Hehe, I had heard of it too.¡±

    Shi Xuemanughed lightly. Herugh was as cold as the winter tide.

 Chapter 152: The Dangerous Young Lady

    Chapter 152: The Dangerous Young Lady

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    ¡°Teacher has heard about what happened during the past two days and was about to pay you a visit. Do not take anything from the Institution except for the [Big Dipper]. Remember the test we took? Within your eight pces, there are seven strong pces. We should not waste your innate skills. Teacher did not anticipate that you would improve so quickly! You gave us a shock by having a breakthrough to the fourth pce so quickly. Remember, only ask for the [Big Dipper]! You will know the reasoning behind this after you have received the [Big Dipper].¡±

    ¡°Teacher and Mistress are not familiar with the Magistrate Court and we do not know what they have, but your fellow ssmate was justified in saying that it would be too derogatory to ask for money as a form of reward. Disciple, you should not fall into the trap of money. Don¡¯t you have a sand puppet that is an expert in making elemental food? You could request for ingredients to make elemental food. You have already made a breakthrough to your fourth pce, so you need to prepare for the fifth pce. The earth pce, sea pce, gate pce, and sky pce have a much higher difficulty level than the left hand pce, right hand pce, left leg pce, and the right leg pce. You need to start preparation early. This is a good sword, so you are notcking weapons. In terms of defensive equipment, you have the Blood Bandage. With that, it would be hard to harm you with just des and swords. Though it is on the ugly side, the Blood Bandage does not have any negative traits. Oh yes, your senior prepared a pair of shoes for you. This pair of shoes will enable you to run faster. Disciple, the ways of the world are evil. If you are caught in any dire situations, remember to run quickly without hesitation. Run as far as you can. Do not worry about us, just look after yourself first...¡±

    Teacher¡¯s endless chatter was reverberating in Ai Hui¡¯s mind. He was touched and felt that he had the best teacher, mistress, and senior in the world.

    He had just exited from the embroidery workshop. His speed was exceptionally fast, like he was flying.

    He wore a pair of white shoes on his feet. The workmanship was extremely delicate and was made by his Senior Mingxiu. As Ai Hui¡¯s base level was still low and he could not use top-quality materials, Senior Mingxiu¡¯s skills were exquisite. Under her perfect workmanship, she was able to produce a pair of remarkable shoes using just normal materials.

    Ai Hui felt that his body was as light and lithe as a bird.

    Drifting Cloud Boots. The main body of the boots were made using the Thousand Drift Cloud from Ptte Cloud Vige. The Thousand Drift Cloud was amonly seen water elementalist material and had a vast usage. This pair of shoes brought out the lithe characteristic of the Thousand Drift Cloud brilliantly. Ai Hui¡¯s speed and agility were tremendously increased.

    Regardless of whether it was in a battle or to escape, these shoes would be able to perform many functions.

    Ai Hui did not think that running away was a disgraceful thing to do. As long as the situation did not seem right, he would run without a second thought. His life was his and was more important than anything.

    The elders were indeed more experienced. Teacher¡¯s suggestions were very much on point. His previous thoughts were too simple.

    The only regret he had was that his hopes of having money were dashed.

    Oh money. Oh money...

    Ai Hui sighed while running madly. The Drifting Cloud Boots were veryfortable, but he needed to adjust and familiarize himself with them before increasing the speed and flexibility. After this limation period, he would be able to perform outstandingly during battle.

    When he walked passed the noodle store, he thought about the thrilling encounter when battling with the bat. He had been really lucky during that battle. Even now, he was still unable to understand how he managed to block the blood bat.

    He had not expected to be able to benefit from the battle. While muddled, he had managed to survive and advance to four pces. Even the elemental energy ball in his natal residence disappeared without a trace. In the confusion, he even obtained a reward.

    What a pity they did not offer cash rewards directly!

    While Ai Hui was feeling resentful, he suddenly noticed a youngdy in a red skirt squatting at the scene of the previous battle.

    The copsed fence was already repaired and looked as good as new. The blood stains on the ground were also swept and cleaned.

    The youngdy seemed to sense Ai Hui¡¯s gaze and looked up, casting her gaze toward him.

    The sword embryo between his eyebrows trembled as Ai Hui became distracted.

    The youngdy¡¯s red clothes were fiery and alluring. Ai Hui did not know how to describe her beauty. She squatted in the middle of the street and gave off a pitiful vibe. Even the shadow beneath her legs seemed to be darker than usual and more dull.

    Despite being under the warm sunlight, no warmth was added to her figure. Even though her clothes were as red as fire and she was as pretty as a fairy, it seemed that she was enveloped by a faintyer of ck fog. This was a darkness that could not be prated by sunlight.

    However, there was nothing when Ai Hui looked at her closely.

    The youngdy suddenlyughed sweetly, like a bright flower blooming in the darkness. ¡°Am I pretty?¡±

    Ai Hui regained his senses and looked around. He pointed to himself uncertainly. ¡°Are you asking me?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± The youngdy in red walked toward Ai Hui while smiling.

    Ai Hui, who previously still thinking about money, replied straightforwardly, ¡°My standard is different from others¡¯. Give me one hundred yuan, I will say you¡¯re pretty. Give me five hundred yuan, then I will say you¡¯re very pretty. Give me one thousand yuan, I will say you¡¯re as pretty as a fairy!¡±

    The youngdy who walked in front of Ai Hui paused and suddenlyughed sweetly. ¡°Looks like I am as pretty as a fairy.¡±

    Ai Hui went cross-eyed while a sweet fragrance was blown along with the wind. He was suddenly holding on to something.

    Ai Hui was startled and did not manage to clearly see her actions.

    ¡°Although it might be difficult, I hope to meet you again. All the best!¡±

    Her enticing voice floated along with the wind.

    When he regained his senses, there was no trace of the young girl. He looked downward and saw that he was holding on to more than a thousand yuan. He could not help butugh. However, his expression quickly dulled.

    When the youngdy in red rushed toward him, his sword embryo had not managed to react in time.

    What a scary woman!

    Ai Hui took a long time before snapping out of his daze. Heughed bitterly. He was just randomly walking along the street when he met a woman with unfathomable capabilities. Was he considered lucky or unlucky?

    Ai Hui pondered and decided that he was unlucky. Whenever he met women with unfathomable capabilities, they were not kind souls. The youngdy from the noodle store was a good example.

    Thinking of the youngdy from the noodle store, then looking back at the one thousand yuan in his hand that was given by the youngdy in red, Ai Hui had an ominous prediction.

    The loneliness and darkness from the youngdy in red led Ai Hui to think back to the three years he spent in the Wilderness. He somewhat understood why he was moved by her temperament. It was the despair and fear of the weak and puny in times of distress.

    He shook his head. He kept the money and hoped that he would not see her again.

    He had already stepped out of his dire straits and bid goodbye to darkness.

    One thousand yuan was also an unexpected fortune!

    In the past, few frequented the magistrate court. These days, traffic was heavy because there were countless streams of people entering and leaving, causing it to be very crowded. When Wang Zhen took over the city, his rich experience allowed him to rapidly gain the trust of everyone. Then, the magistrate court became the heart of Central Pine City.

    Wang Zhen, who was alwaysposed, looked ashen at the moment. Next to him, the dean¡¯s face was as white as paper. His hand, which was holding on to the report, was trembling uncontrobly.

    ¡°Failed? How did it fail? Didn¡¯t Qiao Hua say he could be a wood elementalist for Dai Gang?¡±

    The dean¡¯s murmurs had a slight tremor. His gaze was nk and filled with despair.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s lips were trembling. He wanted to have a sip of tea to calm himself, but his hand was trembling too badly and the tea spilt over. He was someone who had experienced battle. He knew the failure of Qiao Hua¡¯s n would bring about a catastrophic disaster and was also a fatal turning point.

    The incident of blood poisoning had be a blood catastrophe.

    It was the epitome of catastrophe!

    Due to the failure of Qiao Hua¡¯s n, there were zero survivors among the entourage. The blood catastrophe worsened, and the new blood poisoning was more dangerous and violent. The rate at which it spread was even scarier...

    The Garden of Life, which had been reduced to scorched earth, was once again covered by blood grass that grew at an insane pace. The Garden of Life had be a sea of red, like a blood ocean without any boundaries.

    Those elementalists in the air could clearly see how the blood ripple spread. It had now be a crazy red wave and was sweeping across the Induction Ground at an astonishing speed.

    The Induction Ground, no, the whole Avalon of Five Elements was facing a catastrophe like never before. How many of them would be swallowed up by the scary blood wave? He had no idea, but he knew that the amount would be high. Perhaps the number would be greater than those who died at the front line.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s unfocused gaze started to regain some focus. His tenacious spirit from being a veteran started to emerge.

    He had never encountered such a difficult and desperate moment. Even when he had broken his leg, he had not been in so much despair. Yet, he knew that he needed to take action or else they would be like sitting ducks.

    ¡°When will the blood wave arrive at Central Pine City?¡± he asked suddenly.

    The dean replied with a pained expression, ¡°The day after tomorrow.¡±

    ¡°Okay, buck up. It is not the time for despair yet,¡± Wang Zhen said gravely. He did not dare to imagine the cities that the blood wave had swept across. He steadied himself and continued, ¡°The blood wave will arrive the day after tomorrow. Given the pattern of how the blood fiends changed previously, they would still need an average of five to seven days to transform again. In that case, we have seven to nine days of preparation time. By now, the higher-ups must have already received the news. They will make arrangements and rush to our rescue. The fastest we can expect to receive some support should be in fifteen days¡¯ time.¡±

    After hearing Wang Zhen¡¯s analysis, the dean¡¯s eyes regained some liveliness. He continued, ¡°This means we just need to hang on for around a week and we will be able to get support. Furthermore, Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun are in Central Pine City. The higher-ups would definitely think of a way to send support immediately. ¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Wang Zhen waved his fist around vigorously. ¡°We only need to endure for one week. We have so many teachers and students here. There are many training halls in the city and guards in each training hall. These are all sources of strength. However mighty the new blood fiends might be, I believe there¡¯s a possibility that we can endure for a week.¡±

    The dean sighed deeply in relief. ¡°Yes, yes, yes. There¡¯s hope. There¡¯s hope.¡±

    A glimmer of light flickered in Wang Zhen¡¯s eyes. ¡°It is possible that people have already received news of Qiao Hua¡¯s failure. We have to control the situation immediately and make use of all the manpower we have. Since nobody will be able to escape, it might be a good thing if they are aware of this danger early on.¡±

    The dean clenched his teeth and said, ¡°I will gather some teachers to impart some practical, but impactful, moves. While we do not have much time, any gain in strength, no matter big or small, would be beneficial.¡±

    Wang Zhen was surprised by the dean¡¯s courage. This course of action might result in consequences that he would be held responsible for. The Induction Ground had strict control over the imparting of moves at institutions. Apparently, the dean no longer cared about regtions at this juncture.

    Wang Zhen nodded his head. ¡°This would be for the best! We need to control all the elemental food. We need to prepare for the worst.¡±

    ¡°All right!¡± The dean nodded his head fiercely. ¡°I will gather the students.¡±

    At that moment, a mournful rm was heard. An elementalist rushed in with a panicked expression. ¡°Superior, there are blood fiends! There are many blood fiends!¡±

    Their expressions changed drastically.

 Chapter 153: The Original Inheritance and the Pact

    Chapter 153: The Original Inheritance and the Pact

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    A siren rang out while Ai Hui was on his way back to the training hall. Troops of anxious elementalists were patrolling the streets, reassuring everyone that things were under control and that they should stay at home as much as possible.

    Ai Hui had a bad feeling about this. He could feel that the elementalists¡¯ were tense like he had never seen before.

    He kept his head down, silently passing through the streets and headed toward the Vanguard Training Hall.

    Both the noodle shop girl and Duanmu Huanghun had already left.

    Fatty¡¯s face was filled with panic, but seeing Ai Hui allowed him to rx and heave a sigh of relief. He asked, ¡°What¡¯s happening outside? Why does it seem so chaotic?¡±

    ¡°I have no idea,¡± Ai Hui said, shaking his head. ¡°Something big must have happened.¡±

    ¡°Is there anything Lou Lan can help with?¡± Lou Lan chimed in with his head tilted.

    Ai Hui let out a short burst ofughter upon seeing Lou Lan¡¯s cute actions before replying, ¡°Not for now, but I¡¯m sure we¡¯ll need your help soon enough.¡±

    Fatty knew Ai Hui like the back of his hand. He already knew that something was amiss from the moment he saw Ai Hui¡¯s expression. ¡°Is the situation really that bad?¡± Fatty asked.

    ¡°I can¡¯t say for sure yet,¡± Ai Hui replied tly. He knew that he would not be able to stay out of it this time.

    The reward he received came with certain expectations. Moreover, Ai Hui knew that the city¡¯s strength was considerably limited. The teachers may be powerful, but their pitifulbat experience hardly qualified them aspetent fighters.

    His worries about the blood poison incident worsening appeared to being true.

    ¡°Why are you still standing here?¡± Ai Hui asked while ring at Fatty. ¡°You should be training!¡±

    Fatty could see that Ai Hui was in a foul mood. Dejected, Fatty silently retreated to a corner to train.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Ai Hui, Lou Lan will definitely help you!¡± Lou Lan cheered.

    Ai Hui smiled and thanked Lou Lan.

    Considering the Induction Ground¡¯s sluggish response, it was not exactly surprising that the situation had worsened.

    If the situation continued to deteriorate, there would be nowhere to escape to. Based on their current strength, they would likely end up as food for the blood fiends once they left the city. Furthermore, his master and the others were still here. It was impossible for Ai Hui to sit back and watch as they sumbed to the disaster.

    He was suffering from all these agonizing thoughts.

    He was still too weak. The thought of facing the blood poison disaster with his meager power made him feel utterly insignificant. Ai Hui was not even certain that he could contribute much to the city¡¯s defensive efforts.

    After all, what could a student who had only recently activated four pces aplish?

    These unbearable thoughts were suffocating Ai Hui. He had been a free spirit in the Wilderness, where his only concern was his own survival. Now, he was tied down by the lives of so many others whom he wished to protect: Master, Mistress, Senior Mingxiu, Lou Lan, and Fatty.

    He took a deep breath to dispel the wild thoughts flooding his mind and started to train.

    Having just activated both of his foot pces, he had yet to properly analyze them.

    Ai Hui was soon deeply immersed in his training.

    The sky began to darken as time quietly passed. A student hurriedly rushed over to inform Ai Hui that he was to return to the academy immediately.

    Ai Hui did not hesitate in the slightest.

    Upon reaching the academy, he was summoned to the dean¡¯s office.

    The dean looked as if he had aged ten years, and the hair along his temples had grown white. He smiled at Ai Hui and said, ¡°Student Ai Hui, you have given me a big surprise. I shall get straight to the point of why I¡¯ve called you here today. The first thing I¡¯d like to settle is your reward. Student Duanmu should have already spoken to you about this. Feel free tell me what you have in mind as a reward, even things such as inherited knowledge, elemental food, or equipment. Of course, it has to be something that the academy can provide.¡±

    Ai Hui replied without dy, ¡°Dean, I hope to learn the [Big Dipper] technique.¡±

    ¡°[Big Dipper]?¡± the dean asked, a little surprised. ¡°This must be your teacher¡¯s idea. It looks like he¡¯s been guiding you well. The [Big Dipper] is Central Pine Academy¡¯s greatest inheritance and, although it isn¡¯t a lost skill, it still has its distinct features. Learning it is no mean feat since studying the [Big Dipper] requires the trainee to have seven strong pces. Oh, I¡¯m so muddleheaded. Old Wang must have already tested your constitution before encouraging you to ask for the [Big Dipper]. He just loves to study such things.¡±

    The dean solemnly shook his head, appearing to remember something from his past.

    He walked toward the bookcase, pressing his palm on it. Aplex pattern of light emerged along the bookcase, dazzling Ai Hui. The next moment, different-colored balls of light appeared all over the bookcase in a picturesque fashion, each one about the size of a fist.

    The dean retrieved a ball that looked like a dark neb. The lump of ck vapor in his hand was scattered with tiny dots of light and was extremely eye-catching. Ai Hui came to a sudden realization that every one of these balls of light contained an inheritance.

    His gaze fell on the neb. Could this be the [Big Dipper]? How is this thing essed?

    Having never seen something like this before, Ai Hui was filled with curiosity and anticipation. Ai Hui thought of himself as a country bumpkin without much experience.

    The dean noticed Ai Hui¡¯s nervous anticipation andughed. He was reminded of his younger days, back when he firstid eyes on an inheritance. The sense of nostalgia invoked by this memory seemed to have cleared up his mind quite a bit.

    ¡°Put your hand on it,¡± instructed the dean.

    Ai Hui carefully ced his hand on the neb in the dean¡¯s hand.

    ¡°Circte your elemental energy,¡± the dean continued.

    Ai Hui carefully circted his elemental energy. A bright sh appeared in front of his eyes and he appeared to have been dragged into a void. Packed together in dense clusters, stars were all around Ai Hui.

    The star-filled sky suddenly began to revolve.

    The star-filled sky swirled into rings of light, drowning Ai Hui within. After an indeterminate amount of time, seven stars emerged from the light rings, tracing out the shape of adle. Thedle rotated and expanded in front of Ai Hui¡¯s eyes, appearing to fly toward him.

    It was quite a while before Ai Hui awoke from the trance-like state with a violent jerk.

    ¡°How does it feel?¡± the dean asked, smiling.

    Ai Hui hesitantly replied, ¡°It¡¯s not easy to describe. It feels as though I¡¯ve gained some knowledge, but I really can¡¯t say for sure. Dean, is this the [Big Dipper]?¡±

    ¡°Yes, indeed,¡± the Dean answered, nodding his head in affirmation. ¡°This isn¡¯t just the [Big Dipper], it¡¯s the original [Big Dipper].¡±

    ¡°What do you mean by ¡®original¡¯?¡± Ai Hui was confused.

    The dean patiently exined, ¡°The original [Big Dipper] is the primary source of this inheritance. In ordance with academy regtions, legacies and skills that are passed on to students are done so via copies. In addition to the details of the inheritance, the primary source also contains some of the creator¡¯s experiences and realizations, making it extremely valuable. You¡¯ll soone to realize that every round of replication results in more information being lost from the original. Inheritance skillsets that are sold on the market tend to be very inferior copies. So, do you think you¡¯ve got a good deal?¡±

    The dean was amused by Ai Hui¡¯s look of amazement.

    ¡°Definitely,¡± Ai Hui replied as he attempted to keep his facial expression in check. He looked up at the dean and continued weakly, ¡°Although, why am I feeling guilty? I guess there¡¯s no such thing as a free lunch...¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t even falter after experiencing a surprise this huge. With such mental fortitude, old Wang has indeed taken in a good student.¡± The dean was all smiles as he proceeded with his instructions, ¡°I¡¯ll now continue with the other matter at hand.¡±

    After Ai Hui gave the situation some serious thought, he realized there was definitely something he had to do to earn such a reward. Given his current ability, Ai Hui was definitely not capable of resolving any major issues for the dean. He would most likely be asked to deal with some minor concern.

    The dean paused for a moment before speaking, ¡°You¡¯ll be cooperating with Shi Xueman and the others from now on. Shi Xueman, Sang Zhijun, and you will be working hand in hand. I believe that you three are already quite familiar with one another. This group, which the three of you will be a part of, is rtively stronger than the other groups and will thus be assigned several missions.¡±

    Ai Hui quietly waited for the next part.

    ¡°You have richbat experience. I¡¯ve looked through your file and noted that you¡¯ve previously stayed in the Wilderness for three years. It¡¯s no mean feat for aborer to survive the Wilderness. I¡¯d say that you have the mostbat experience in the entire academy. Shi Xueman is the leader of the other team, of which I have no control over. You¡¯ll be the leader of a new team, taking charge of several outstanding students that will be handpicked by me. Duanmu Huanghun will be your deputy. Both of your teams will operate together as a group.¡±

    Ai Hui continued to remain silent.

    ¡°If, and I¡¯m only saying if, the situation bes critically dangerous, I hope that you will guarantee Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s safety. Do you understand what I mean?¡± The dean spoke solemnly, his gaze set on Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui did not avoid the dean¡¯s gaze as he calmly replied, ¡°Do you mean to say that the others are disposable as long as Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun survive?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± eximed the Dean. Ai Hui had taken the words right out of his mouth, relieving him of his apprehensions. ¡°Perhaps the situation won¡¯t degrade to that point. We¡¯re definitely the first city in line for reinforcements, so there¡¯ll be supporting to join us.¡±

    ¡°Because of them?¡± Ai Hui asked.

    ¡°Yes,¡± said the dean while nodding his head. ¡°Life is often unfair. The lives of some are worth more than others. Although such things are better left unsaid, this is the truth of the matter. If something happens to the two of them and the reinforcements get wind of it, everyone here will be knee deep in sh*t. Your wealth of experience, mature disposition, and outstanding swordy reflect your potential. While these may not necessarily be useful, I¡¯m still willing to ce my bet on you. For all we know, you might just give me a pleasant surprise.¡±

    ¡°I ept this mission.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s straightforward reply startled the dean. It made the carefully chosen words of his speech appear to have been for nought.

    The dean was happy to know that he picked the right person.

    ¡°However, I have two conditions.¡±

    The dean was again taken aback by Ai Hui¡¯s audacity. Surprise turned to admiration as he responded, ¡°Say it, if it is within my means.¡±

    ¡°First, as the leader I¡¯d like to pick the other members myself. Everyone in my team will have to obey my orders unconditionally, even Duanmu Huanghun.¡±

    ¡°This, I agree with,¡± the dean swiftly answered.

    ¡°Second, I need a few spots in the first batch of people to be evacuated once the reinforcements arrive.¡±

    The dean was gobsmacked. He scrutinized the young man standing in front of him.

    Dark, clear, and calm, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were as deep as the ocean.

    After a moment¡¯s hesitation, the dean asked, ¡°How many spots do you need?¡±

    ¡±Me, my teacher Wang Shouchuan, his wife Han Yuqin, Senior Mingxiu, my good friend Qian Dai, as well as my sand puppet Lou Lan.¡±

    The dean heaved a sigh of relief, ¡°You do not need to worry about those 3 from the Jade Embroidery Workshop as they have already been allocated evacuation slots. Adding you in won¡¯t be a problem either, which means you only need an additional 2 spots. All right, you¡¯ve got yourself a deal.¡±

    Ai Hui responded with his own sigh of relief. ¡°Deal.¡±

    The two stood there as they exchanged nces and smiled.

 Chapter 154: Recruiting Members

    Chapter 154: Recruiting Members

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    ¡°Dean, regarding that siren earlier, did something happen?¡± Ai Hui took the initiative to ask.

    The dean suddenly didn¡¯t look too well, but he remainedposed and answered with a reassuring smile, ¡°Nothing much. Our lookouts were too anxious upon spotting a few blood fiends close to our defensive perimeter, so they sounded the rm.¡±

    From the dean¡¯s voice, Ai Hui could hear that he was dissatisfied with the city¡¯s elementalists. He regretted letting the Society of Excellence¡¯s instructors leave; he would have insisted for Li Wei to stay back if he had known that the blood disaster would spread to Central Pine City.

    Compared to soldiers who had served ten years ago, the elites from the current Infantry Division felt much more dependable.

    Ai Hui felt slightly relieved.

    The dean didn¡¯t say much else besides telling him how to collect his reward from the magistrate court and to pick out his team as soon as possible. Shi Xueman¡¯s team would then be able to join up with his. The dean had many other matters to take care of, he hadn¡¯t intended to spend so much time on Ai Hui¡¯s issue since it was merely ast minute decision. Wang Zhen was his biggest hope.

    Never before had the dean imagined that he would pin this much faith in a student. Moreover, this was only his first time meeting Ai Hui.

    Perhaps many years down the road he¡¯ll look back and remember how panic-stricken and desperate he was. Like a drowning man, he¡¯d dly grab onto anything he can find. Although, he could not deny that Ai Hui was different from any other student he had ever met.

    This youth, who wasn¡¯t exceptionally powerful, had a certain air about him. His eyes were as calm as the deep sea, unaggressive and restrained. He had a maturity and mellowness that you would often find only in those of middle age, and only in individuals who had a wealth of worldly experience. It was difficult to ascribe such a manner to a youth of only 16.

    When serious, he would be as keen as a knife¡¯s edge.

    He had, generally speaking, an aura of elegance.

    Ai Hui bade farewell to the dean and walked through Central Pine Academy.

    To prevent the blood poison from spreading, the trees in the academy¡¯s garden had to be cut down. Trees that were hundreds of years old were not spared either, and their roots were thoroughly destroyed for safety. yful and joy-filled scenes under those great trees were now only distant memories, and the campus once filled with lush greenery had be utterly bare, like a battlefield devoid of life.

    The young, tender faces of the students were riddled with signs of panic, their eyes filled with fear and confusion. Several teachers were delivering announcements while flying over the academy grounds, using elemental energy to project their voices all around the school. The announcements made known the administration¡¯s decision to make a set of skills avable, which were, in the past, only taught to those with additional contributions. A group of teachers was organized to impart these skills in the hope that it will aid the students in fighting the blood poison.

    It looked like things had really gone south.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mood was inexplicably low. Central Pine City was the safest and most peaceful ce he had ever known. It was a ce filled with sunshine, dreams, and vigor¡ªtheplete opposite of what he had encountered in his past. Here, there were no massacres, no chilling nights, and no need to be on guard all the time. He remembered how much he had wanted to just stay in Central Pine City forever.

    This was the world he had yearned for in his dreams.

    Was it now time to wake up from this dream?

    Ai Hui was devastated.

    ¡°Disciple!¡±

    Teacher Wang was panting hard as his voice dragged Ai Hui out of his emotional state. The grief and sadness he had just experienced were quickly buried deep within the recesses of his mind. Raising his head in surprise, Ai Hui called out, ¡°Teacher!¡±.

    ¡°I¡¯ve finally found you,¡± Wang Shouchuan said as he tried to catch his breath. He was drenched in sweat. ¡°Everyone was worried about you when we heard the siren. The situation doesn¡¯t look too good. How did the blood catastrophe end up like this? Has it actually worsened this much?¡±

    Wang Shouchuan looked around as he spoke, his eyes filled with sentiment. He had been a teacher in Central Pine Academy for twenty years, and he had deeply-rooted feelings for the school. It wasn¡¯t hard to imagine just how much this deste sight upset him.

    He effortfully suppressed the throbbing heartache and told Ai Hui, ¡°Follow me to the embroidery workshop. We¡¯ll weather out the storm there with your mistress. With her around, nothing bad can happen! All these blood insects aren¡¯t even a match for her soles.¡±

    Wang Shouchuan spoke highly of his partner, describing her as though she was a valiant general capable of crushing all opposition.

    Ai Hui did not tell him about his agreement with the dean, and instead, he shook his head and replied, ¡°Your disciple humbly wishes to contribute whatever he can to help fight against the disaster. In the face of cmity, should one not calmly resist? Having escaped from the Garden of Life, I have a better understanding of the blood catastrophe than most people. Don¡¯t worry, Master, I¡¯ll hurry back to the embroidery workshop if things truly get out of hand.¡±

    The determination in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes gave Wang Shouchuan a great headache. This disciple of his was excellent in many ways, but he was such a stubborn individual. Nobody could shake his resolve once his decision was made.

    Moreover, his disciple¡¯s way of thinking wasn¡¯t wrong. Assuming responsibility instead of escaping in such times was indeed a precious quality. Wang Shouchuan was conflicted. He didn¡¯t want his disciple to be a coward, but he feared for Ai Hui¡¯s safety as well. He thought about it for a moment before asking, ¡°What do you n to do?¡±

    ¡°The administration intends to organize a team of elite students with me as the leader. Duanmu Huanghun is also a part of this. We¡¯ll be working together with Shi Xueman¡¯s team.¡± Ai Hui continued, ¡°I have also absorbed the original [Big Dipper], and I need to process this inheritance as well.¡±

    ¡°The dean gave you the original [Big Dipper]?¡± Wang Shouchuan asked in disbelief. ¡°Has he gone mad?¡±

    It took Wang Shouchuan a whole ten seconds to regain hisposure, his displeasure betrayed by the deep frown on his forehead. ¡°The dean¡¯s move reveals that he has abandoned all backup ns, meaning that the situation is much worse than I had imagined. You must be careful and escape to the embroidery workshop at the first sign of trouble, do you understand? I need to go back and make preparations with your mistress. The way things are, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if the embroidery workshop bes conscripted as well.¡±

    His master left with a heavy heart. However, hearing the names Duanmu Huanghun and Shi Xueman consoled him a little, as he knew how highly the dean regarded those two.

    Ai Hui set off to find Duanmu Huanghun without any further dy.

    There was no time to dwell on past grudges.

    Duanmu Huanghun was still slightly embarrassed to see Ai Hui, especially since he had to be his deputy. If someone had brought up something like that before the cmity, he¡¯d definitely have dismissed that person as insane. Now, however, he was clearly aware that Ai Hui was much more suited for the role of a team leader. Ai Hui had yed a pivotal role in the past two escapes from the blood fiends¡¯ clutches.

    Although he was a bit vexed, Duanmu Huanghun spoke calmly. ¡°Give me the list of names and I¡¯ll gather the members.¡±

    Ai Hui went straight to the point. ¡°You, me, Fatty, Lou Lan, Jiang Wei, and Wang Xiaoshan. We shall assemble at the Vanguard Training hall.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun furrowed his brows. He had assumed that Ai Hui would select students with exceptional abilities and not this motley crew. Jiang Wei was pretty capable, but Wang Xiaoshan, the earth elementalist who had built the mound in the Garden of Life, was mediocre. He had never seen Fatty demonstrate anything before, but he knew there was nothing special about him either. At least Lou Lan was a good pick as his healing ability would definitelye in handy.

    Ai Hui knew what Duanmu Huanghun was thinking and directly asserted, ¡°Do you think the number of activated pces will matter in front of the blood fiends?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun was at a loss for words. There would indeed be no significant difference if they were facingrger blood fiends.

    Ai Hui nced at Duanmu Huanghun and said, ¡°We will not be handling dangerous missions. The elementalists, teachers, and training ground personnel will be around to take those. To be precise, we¡¯re just here as a backup, dealing with smaller things like blood insects. Furthermore, we¡¯ll be working with Shi Xueman¡¯s team. They¡¯ll be the ones going up against the stronger blood fiends. That¡¯s why trust is more important than ability for our team.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun wasn¡¯tfortable being told that his role wasn¡¯t particrly important. For a genius, being overlooked was a difficult pill to swallow.

    He knew, however, that Ai Hui was merely stating facts, and that the things he said made sense.

    ¡°If you insist, I have no objections,¡± Duanmu Huanghun said expressionlessly. ¡°I¡¯ll perform my role as your deputy as required.¡±

    It took a lot out of him to say the word ¡°deputy.¡±

    Since when had Brother Huanghun ever been someone¡¯s assistant?

    Since when had Brother Huanghun ever been slighted by others?

    Having experienced a series of disturbing events up till now, Duanmu Huanghun felt extremely discontent. He couldn¡¯t find an outlet to vent his frustration.

    He may be a prideful individual, but he wasn¡¯t someone who made a fuss out of everything. Things that he had to bear with gritted teeth only served to trigger Duanmu Huanghun into action.

    ¡°I¡¯ll definitely surpass you in every way!¡± Duanmu Huanghun swore to himself.

    Ai Hui was unaware of the vows that Duanmu Huanghun was silently swearing, but it wasn¡¯t as if he¡¯d give a hoot if he knew. He looked Duanmu Huanghun in the eye and said, ¡°Let¡¯s begin.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun went off to find Jiang Wei and Wang Xiaoshan while Ai Hui headed towards Manager Li¡¯s shop.

    ......

    AI Hui was bbergasted when he saw Manager Li. He eximed, ¡°What happened to you, Old Li?¡±

    Manager Li¡¯s hair had all turned white as though he had aged rapidly.

    Manager Liughed bitterly and avoided his question. ¡°I was just about to look for you; we have to settle the money for the Bunny Hair. Bunny Hair Arrows have been selling like hotcakes, and I can hardly keep up with the demand. Here¡¯s twenty million, keep it safe. If nothing happens over the next ten days, you cane over to settle the bill again.¡±

    Ai Hui kept the money, but strangely, he didn¡¯t feel any happiness upon receiving it.

    ¡°Old Li, are there any more Bunny Hair Arrows in the shop? Please keep some from the next batch for me.¡±

    Manager Li happily agreed. ¡°No problem.¡±

    Ai Hui continued to ask, ¡°Are there any more heavy shields in the store?¡±

    ¡°Heavy shields?¡± Manager Li responded with a nod. ¡°Almost all of the arms have been expropriated by the magistrate court. All I have left are some of this second-hand heavy equipment from years ago. I haven¡¯t been able to sell them because they¡¯re too heavy. Come take a look, you can have whatever you like since they¡¯re not worth much anyway.¡±

    Ai Hui followed Manager Li to the storehouse where he really saw a bunch of rusty second-hand heavy gear. Ai Hui picked out an ironwood shield weighing over 150 kilograms. He brushed off the dust and polished off the rust, revealing a shield as sturdy as a wall. It was incredibly solid, truly an excellent find.

    Ai Hui thanked Manager Li before lugging the ironwood shield back to the training ground.

    The Dragonspine Inferno he was carrying on his body weighed 110 kilograms. In addition to that, he was lugging the even heavier ironwood shield which weighed about 170 kilograms, abined weight of 280 kilograms. Carrying such heavy items thoroughly exhausted Ai Hui, reminding him of his days as aborer in the Wilderness as he panted heavily.

    After much effort, he finally managed to carry the shield back to the training ground. As he entered, he heard Lou Lan cheering, ¡°Ai Hui is back!¡±

    Before Ai Hui could put the shield down, however, he heard Fatty frantically shout, ¡°Come quickly, take a look at this!¡±

 Chapter 155: Message Tree

    Chapter 155: Message Tree

    Trantor: YH Editor: Pranav

    Come quickly and take a look?

    Ai Hui put the shield down and asked, ¡°You¡¯re done with your training?¡±

    Fatty sluggishly answered, ¡°Is anyone ever done with their training? Come quickly, some of the leaves on your message tree are glowing, someone has sent a message. Wow, this is really advanced, I¡¯m really excited to be able to see something so advanced. Please understand that it¡¯s the first time a country bumpkin like me has seen something like this.¡±

    Message tree?

    Ai Hui paused for a moment, suddenly recalling the nonsensical words that had previously appeared on one of its leaves.

    ¡°I have no idea who among you are still alive, but I know that no one can stop them. They have alreadypleted the necessary preparations. Everything will change in sixty days. Who will protect the Avalon of Five Elements?¡±

    Ai Hui remembered the message clearly. He had attempted to understand this seemingly nonsensical message several times but to no avail.

    He had felt that the other party was abnormal and should totally see a doctor. Until now, he had thought that the message was just a prank and had buried it somewhere in the back of his mind. However, hearing Fatty mention the message tree reminded him of that message, which he now saw clearly in his head.

    Everything will change...

    Ai Hui inevitably thought of the blood catastrophe. It was most certainly a catastrophe capable of being called an ¡®incredible change.¡¯ Hadn¡¯t Central Pine City and the Induction Ground both already changed drastically?

    Wait a minute! If the blood catastrophe was what the other party was referring to...

    ¡°No one can stop them¡± seemed to indicate that the blood catastrophe was set in motion by some people. Ai Hui let out an angry hiss. He had also once thought that this might have been the case.

    The blood poison needed a period of incubation before it couldplete its metamorphosis. The Garden of Life was undoubtedly a good choice. Nobody would notice anything different in a forgotten area flooded with all sorts of strange vegetation. Besides the students that went there for excursions, the Garden of Life was deste and uninhabited. Moreover, there were no powerful dire beasts out there, only wild beasts. Perhaps the blood poison was extremely weak in its early stages?

    The Garden of Life could be said to be an excellent breeding ground for the blood poison, and it had allowed the poison to continuously spread and transform the blood beasts.

    It was already toote by the time the blood poison started to break out. What¡¯s worse was that the Induction Ground did not have any stationed troops from the elite Thirteen Divisions at the time, thus causing them to be unable to adapt quickly enough to fend off the sudden outbreak.

    The number of coincidences made Ai Hui think that the blood catastrophe was nned, but he promptly dismissed the thought after feeling that he might be too paranoid. Who would deliberately make such a blood poison? What good would it do for them? Ai Hui could not think of a good reason.

    But what if the other party really was referring to the blood catastrophe?

    Ai Hui hesitated for a moment, juggling the strange message around in his mind.

    ¡°I have no idea who among you is still alive¡± implied that there was a group of people¡ªmaybe his friends? It didn¡¯t seem like it though, perhaps it was a group of sorts? ¡°Is still alive¡± implied that this group of people was either very old or trapped in dire circumstances. Either way, they were people facing death.

    Does the ¡°them¡± in the message then refer to the people who initiated the blood catastrophe?

    The thing that didn¡¯t add up was the ¡°60 days¡± mentioned in the message. Ai Hui had gone on the excursion the next day after receiving the message. The blood poison incident had alsoe shortly after.

    It had been 32 days since Ai Hui had received the strange message, which meant that the blood catastrophe had started 28 days after the message.

    The sender must have postted incorrectly.

    Or was he not talking about the blood catastrophe?

    ¡°Everything will change¡± probably meant that the event would create an impactrge enough to alter the Avalon of Five Elements. ¡°Who will protect the Avalon of Five Elements?¡± insinuated that the change wasn¡¯t going to be a good thing, it was more likely a cmity.

    It was thisst sentence that led Ai Hui to think of the blood catastrophe. He couldn¡¯t think of any other event that had the ability to drastically change the Avalon of Five Elements.

    But if it, indeed, referred to the blood catastrophe, the timing was an issue.

    ¡°Ai Hui, why are you daydreaming?¡± Fatty asked as he walked over, deeply concerned. ¡°Are your injuries still not healed? Lan Lan, quickly give Ai Hui a check up.¡±

    ¡°No problem!¡± Lou Lan replied, his eyes shing. ¡°Ai Hui is very healthy!¡±

    Ai Hui snapped out of his thoughts, mocking himself for overthinking and being paranoid.

    But wait....

    Ai Hui pointed at Lou Lan and questioned Fatty, ¡°What did you call him?¡±

    ¡°Lan Lan,¡± Fatty answered matter-of-factly.

    Ai Hui shivered, clearly grossed out. ¡°Lan Lan? Please don¡¯t give me goosebumps. Lou Lan is my sand puppet, you¡¯d better not mangle his name.¡±

    Fatty innocently replied, ¡°What about Lou Lou?¡±

    ¡°Why are you not called Dai Dai, then?¡± Ai Hui could barely spit out those two words.

    ¡°Oh, you know my childhood nickname!¡± Fatty eximed with his eyes opened wide in surprise. ¡°I¡¯ve never told you this before!¡±

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t be bothered to continue talking. He pointed to the ironwood shield on the floor. ¡°This is for you.¡±

    Fatty looked at the ironwood shield lying on the floor, dazed by its great thickness. ¡°Ai Hui, are you sure about this? I¡¯m supposed to use this? Ai Hui, I haven¡¯t seen you for just a few months, and you¡¯ve already forgotten my light and graceful fighting style?¡±

    ¡°Light and graceful? I think you mean hit and run?¡± Ai Hui sneered and pressed on without giving Fatty a chance to rebut. ¡°I need someone to wield a shield, and I think you¡¯re the most suitable person to do it. We can¡¯t waste all that flesh, now can we?¡±

    Fatty replied anxiously, ¡°This is all fat...¡±

    Ai Hui swiftly interrupted, ¡°Are you doing it? Return me my money if you aren¡¯t going to do it!¡±

    Fatty slumped his body and pleaded, ¡°Ai Hui, we¡¯ve been brothers for so many years...¡±

    ¡°You still need to return the money!¡± Ai Hui said bluntly. ¡°If you cannot afford to pay up then you¡¯d better be my shieldman. You¡¯ll be well fed with noodles and meat, and you can even y with Lou Lan.¡±

    Lou Lan morphed into three words¡ª¡°y with you¡±¡ªthat flitted about.

    ¡°Lou Lan is such a good boy,¡± Ai Hui said, smiling at Lou Lan with the warmth of spring. But an expression as cold as winter immediately took over his face when he turned to Fatty. ¡°You¡¯ve yed with this before, time to pick it up again,¡± he ordered.

    Fatty¡¯s head hung low as he marched unsteadily towards the ironwood shield. The overly-dramatic Fatty looked as if he was part of a funeral procession.

    Ai Hui ignored him and instructed, ¡°Lou Lan, make sure hepletes all three hundred sets of shield raises. No dinner for him if he misses even a single set.¡±

    ¡°The one with the surname Ai!¡± Fatty shouted through clenched teeth. Gone was the Fatty who was filled with despair, he was now a raging brown bear.

    ¡°No problem! I will not miss a single count!¡± Lou Lan said happily, clearly excited to be of help to Ai Hui.

    With a bang, Lou Lan morphed into three ¡®zeroes¡¯ and started to count.

    Seeing Lou Lan¡¯s new form, Fatty¡¯s expression changed to one of dread. Using a ttering voice, he promptly whispered, ¡°Lan Lan, think of all the fun we had just now, aren¡¯t we good brothers? Good brothers should help each other out. Come on, help me count a few free sets and I¡¯ll y with you in the future.¡±

    Fatty immediately noticed the sand figures changing swiftly, making him beam with joy.

    Bang!

    The numbers suddenly returned to zero.

    Fatty was stunned.

    ¡°Add another hundred sets! That¡¯s four hundred sets together! Miss one set and there¡¯ll be no food for you!¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice boomed from behind. Fatty trembled as Lou Lan disyed ¡°400.¡± As if he was afraid that Fatty couldn¡¯t see it clearly, Lou Lan doubled the size of the numbers and brought it right in front of his eyes. The sand counter then reset to ¡°000.¡±

    ¡°They¡¯re all in this together... crooks working hand in glove with one another.¡±

    Fatty ranted on as he brandished the shield.

    Ai Hui took a nce at Fatty and smiled. Ai Hui knew best just howzy this fellow could be. He would definitely not stand if he could sit, and he definitely wouldn¡¯t sit if he could lie down. One of these days, he would sumb to hisziness.

    All men must die eventually.

    Nobody would have cared if Fatty had just died quietly somewhere, but it was just his luck to have bumped into Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui had a premonition that the blood catastrophe had only just started. The blood beasts outside of the city were growing stronger, while the situation within Central Pine City was worsening. Without the Thirteen Divisions, the only people they could depend on were the teachers, students, and the guards of the training grounds. Was this really enough to repel the beasts?

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t sure, but he knew that Central Pine City was no longer the peaceful city he once knew. It was now a battlefield.

    Everyone needed to fight for their own destiny.

    Ai Hui knew that Fatty was a coward who would flee at first sight of danger, so he did not mention much else. However, the blood poison had already spread to the Induction Ground, so where could they flee to?

    There was nowhere to run.

    Ai Hui looked at the message tree and saw one of its leaves glowing as if it was breathing. It was the same leaf as before.

    Ai Hui grabbed a pen from his room before walking towards the tree.

    Somehow, he found himself unusually nervous.

    He felt as if a riddle was about to unravel before his eyes.

    ¡°Are you still alive?¡±

    Ai Hui read the four words several times. He thought about his experiences over the past few days, which now felt like an eternity ago. To be honest, the battle at the Garden of Life hadn¡¯t had much of an impact on him. He was, after all, not new to this game. He might be weak, but he was experienced inbat.

    Witnessing the drastic changes that befell Central Pine City was what truly affected him.

    A dreamscape was shattered.

    Ai Hui could sense the sender¡¯s urgency, so he lifted his pen and began to write.

    ¡°I¡¯m still alive.¡±

    He stared at the ck ink fading into the leaf, reminding himself to be as patient and calm as he used to be while hunting dire beasts in the Wilderness.

    A short whileter, the leaf on his hand lit up again. ¡°Thank the heavens you¡¯re alive! Can you tell me where you are now? How is the Avalon of Five Elements doing?¡±

    Ai Hui pondered over what to reply before putting his pen to the leaf.

    ¡°Are you referring to the blood catastrophe? The situation has gone out of control, with the Induction Ground being dragged into it. Who are you?¡±

    Being cautious, he didn¡¯t reveal his location. He had no idea if the other party was well-intentioned or malicious, trustworthy or otherwise. Also, if the ¡°you¡± that was mentioned in the first message referred to a group, they would very likely be enemies with the people who unleashed the blood poison.

    Ai Hui remembered the noodle shop girl telling him that this message tree was ancient.

    He had a feeling that this message tree had aplicated past. The people and circumstances that were entwined with it were definitely not minor characters like himself.

    He had no interest in bing a part of such matters.

    All he wanted to do was survive¡ªto make it out of this blood catastrophe alive. He was just like everyone else, desperately grasping at straws to prevent himself from drowning.

    Ai Hui was a little distracted. How would the other party reply? Is the blood catastrophe really man-made? Why? Why would anyone do such a thing?

    He patiently waited for an answer.

    The reply took a bit longer this time.

    Ai Hui came back to his senses as the leaf began to glow again.

    Had fate finally revealed its hand?

 Chapter 156: Conflicts

    Chapter 156: Conflicts

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    ¡°I am just an old prisoner. Ah, so it turned out to be the Induction Ground. Although I have known for a long time that the catastrophe ising, I still feel sorrowful after your confirmation. If you are trapped in the blood catastrophe, please be reminded that you must not touch any blood, because not only wounds but any skin exposure to the Blood of God will get you infected.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were burning when he saw the words ¡°Blood of God.¡± It really was funny¡ªthe blood poison, which had caused countless disasters and deaths, was actually called the ¡°Blood of God.¡± What kind of ¡°god¡± could be so evil?

    ¡°Blood of God?¡±

    ¡°The masterpiece of the insane, the perfectbination of a blood-refined sect from ancient times and the wood elementalists of the Avalon of Five Elements. The Blood of God can be traced back to a hundred years ago, where they had already been secretly studying it for fifty years. It wasn¡¯t until thirty years ago that we had finally noticed their dirty tricks, but it was toote. They had be very powerful and had long been eyeing us. We had failed.¡±

    Ai Hui was about to ask ¡°Who are they, and who are you?¡± but he restrained his curiosity. Once he knew the answers to those two questions, he would be officially involved in their conflict, which may bring him many troubles.

    All he desired was to be alive and live a quiet life. He didn¡¯t want to be involved in any conflicts.

    So, instead, he asked, ¡°Last time, you said that everything will change in sixty days. What did you mean?¡±

    ¡°I only know that they have a big n, but I don¡¯t know the details. They have been nning for a long time, and the blood catstrophe is only the beginning.¡±

    This answer made Ai Hui more unwilling to get involved. It was clear now who yed their cards better. The enemies could devote themselves to study for one hundred years, arrange everything delicately, and also leave room for maneuvers. The old prisoner¡¯s side, on the other hand, only noticed the abnormality after fifty years and were caught due to their carelessness. And they still didn¡¯t know much about their enemy.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui heard some noise outside.

    He quickly wrote on the leaf, ¡°Someone ising.¡±

    Then he left as if nothing had happened. He didn¡¯t know why, but intuitively, he believed it was better to not tell others about the message tree.

    At first, Ai Hui had thought that Duanmu Huanghun wasing back. However, he paused when he saw the faces of theers.

    There was a ponytailed girl in a white-blue armor, and she was heavily armed. Her pretty but cold face attracted everyone¡¯s attention, and her awe-inspiring eyes were as pure as untouched crystal.

    What impressed Ai Hui the most was the spear in her hand.

    He could not tell what the snow-white spear was made of, but it was surrounded by a white cloud, and the tip was as shiny as the water of ake.

    The white-blue armor was delicately made. The texture of the blue part was crystal-like and as clear as the sea, while the white part was like the snow or the clouds. It looked light and handy without the heaviness of ordinary armors, and Ai Hui could tell at first nce that it must be expensive.

    The girl¡¯s waistline was outlined by the armor, and with her ponytail hanging down almost to her waist, she looked agile and fresh.

    Hmm, this girl seemed familiar...

    When Ai Hui saw the inimitable Golden Silk Longbow, he suddenly realized that they were the two who had fought against the blood bat with him that night. Girls would be totally changed in different attire. Oh! He suddenly remembered that one of them was Shi Xueman and the other was Sang Zhijun.

    Wait...Shi Xueman?

    She was Shi Xueman?

    Ai Hui¡¯s jaw dropped as he stared at the vigorous girl nkly. Only then did he realize that the Shi Xueman that the Dean had told him about was that Shi Xueman!

    Ai Hui was not a green hand [1] who had juste to the Induction Ground. He had heard of the goddess¡¯ name before.

    The blood bat had died a worthy death, Ai Hui thought. He knew who he was, and it was already beyond his capacity to resist an attack of the blood bat. It seemed that he should thank this pretty girl. It was because of her excellent fighting skills that he was still alive.

    When Shi Xueman noticed Ai Hui¡¯s stunned face, she didn¡¯t show any expression, but in her heart, she feltcent. However, the next second, she remembered that she was what this guy called ¡°a skank,¡± and thecency disappeared. Her face darkened, and she said coldly, ¡°Come in, everybody.¡±

    Ai Hui felt a bit weird. The girl seemed unhappy?

    And she red at him?

    Why? He didn¡¯t remember ever offending her before.

    Ai Hui shook his head. He suddenly felt that it was funny that he had thought that he could understand females. It was okay, though. He wasn¡¯t alone. Fatty, for sure, could not understand them either.

    Fatty...

    Ai Hui suddenly turned and saw Fatty, who was taking a rest. With a darkened face, he said, ¡°Lou Lan, one hundred sets more for Fatty.¡±

    Fatty¡¯s face quickly turned pale, and he returned to continuing to wave the shield ruefully.

    Sang Zhijun was puzzled as she watched the two standing in front of her. Xueman had been in good mood on her way here, and Ai Hui had also seemed fine when they had just arrived. Why did both of them suddenly be so unpleasant?

    Then, a group of people walked into the training hall, the sight of which caused Ai Hui to feel dizzy.

    They were all in magnificent and ring equipment, the colorful lights of which dazzled him. They were like human-shaped shelves with various shining equipment was on disy.

    Red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue and purple...They should be named ¡®the group of the rainbow.¡¯

    They were rich indeed...

    Ai Hui was stunned. Prodigal kids! He didn¡¯t need to look back to know that Fatty must be as astonished as he was because Fatty would always be like this whenever he saw something expensive. So, without even looking at Fatty, he shouted, ¡°If you arezy again, I¡¯ll add a hundred sets more.¡±

    Fatty was so frightened that he almost lost some weight, and he immediately continued to practice. He felt Ai Hui to be much more frightening than before.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were clear, and he immediately noticed the unfriendly gazes of the colorful guys.

    Everyone looked at Ai Hui up and down maliciously but did not find anything special. They had been unwilling to follow even Shi Xueman¡¯s lead, much less this unknown guy.

    But Shi Xueman outperformed them both in terms of fighting skills and family background, so they had to obey.

    But Ai Hui¡ªjust who was he?

    These guys were all very proud, and some of them were even preparing to give Ai Hui a good beating.

    Ai Hui knew what they were thinking as soon as he saw their expressions.

    He didn¡¯t understand females indeed, but he knew very well what men thought. Ai Hui snorted in his heart.

    If it were not for the escape quota, he wouldn¡¯t bother to care about them.

    ¡°Fatty, you can stop practicing for a while. Come here.¡±

    On hearing Ai Hui¡¯s words, Fatty happily ran to him at once with the shield in his hand.

    Shi Xueman also noticed the unfriendly environment, and her eyes became cold. At first, she had wanted Ai Hui to join her team, but with the consideration that the other teammates might reject him, it was finally decided that Ai Hui would lead another team.

    Her father once told her that if there was one thing she was not good at, then she should leave it to someone who was¡ªespecially when the situation was important.

    She knew of Ai Hui¡¯s ability very well. Although he may not be the best fighter, he could be the best leader.

    Shi Xueman disyed her attitude clearly. ¡°It is my suggestion to follow Ai Hui¡¯s lead. Do you have any objections?¡±

    Sang Zhijun said without hesitation, ¡°I agree.¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t. If it¡¯s you, Xueman, I¡¯m fine with it. But why does this unknown guy suddenly be our team leader?¡±

    It was out of Shi Xueman¡¯s expectation for the first one to object to be He Qiuming, whom she had always regarded as a sedate member of the team.

    If Li Hai was a disorderly guy because of his family background, then He Qiuming was a person who was always responsible in his behavior. His objection made her realize that her suggestion might have been a bit reckless.

    ¡°That¡¯s right. How can such a small potato ride on our back and piss and sh*t on us?¡± Li Hai¡¯s rudeness made everybody frown.

    ¡°I don¡¯t agree either!¡±

    ¡°Neither do I!¡±

    Six members out of eight were against the suggestion.

    Duanmu Huanghun didn¡¯t expect to see such an embarrassing scene when he had just entered. Meanwhile, Jiang Wei and Wang Xiaoshan, who were standing beside him, were full of anger.

    ¡°A Hui, let¡¯s do it ourselves. Why do we have to team up with them?¡± Jiang Wei gazed at them with hostility.

    ¡°Yes, why do we have to?¡± Wang Xiaoshan also agreed with Jiang Wei.

    Both of them had escaped from the Garden of Life with Ai Hui all the way, and they admired him from the bottom of their hearts. Now, their blood was boiling when they saw the contempt the others had for Ai Hui.

    Shi Xueman felt a headacheing on; she hadn¡¯t expected her first proposal to be strongly opposed by both sides.

    There were things in the world that before you really experienced, you would not know how naive you were.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± Ai Hui appeared to be at peace. ¡°I think the overall capacity of your team is good enough. Then will you six make up a team, and let the two girls join our team because we are a bit weaker?¡±

    Fatty, who was standing beside Ai Hui, felt heart tremble when he heard his words. Ai Hui was bing more and more insidious. It was clear that he didn¡¯t bother to care about those guys.

    Fatty was right¡ªAi Hui was more than willing to leave them aside. They had nothing to do with him. He clearly remembered that the dean had asked him to guarantee the safety of only two people¡ªone was Shi Xueman, and the other was Duanmu Huanghun.

    As to the others...

    It was none of his business.

    ¡°No!¡±

    The six boys all disagreed. Shi Xueman was their goddess, and Sang Zhijun was also very pretty. They were the only two girls in their team. How could they surrender so submissively? Did he think they were so stupid?

    Even He Qiuming, who was rtively good-tempered, felt furious upon hearing this suggestion.

    Now, Ai Hui knew what the dean was thinking. It was all bullshit when he asked Ai Hui to lead them. All these guys were so supercilious that they would not even obey the dean. How could he expect them to listen to hismands?

    What the dean actually wanted him to do was clean up the mess they left behind, and protect Shi Xueman in times of emergency.

    Clean up the mess...

    ¡°Or why don¡¯t you tell me your suggestion, and let¡¯s have a nice discussion?¡±

    Ai Hui smiled as he walked towards them, and Fatty followed him tteringly with the shield in his hand. He was staring at their equipment with admiration, and it seemed like he was resisting the temptation to touch it.

    A light shed in Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. She had a vague premonition that something was about to happen.

    Meanwhile, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s heart trembled; he was one hundred percent sure that something was going to happen.

    And where was Lou Lan?

    [1] A person who is new to or inexperienced at a particr activity; a novice.

 Chapter 157: Beat Down

    Chapter 157: Beat Down

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Pranav

    Looking at Ai Hui¡¯s friendly face, Li Hai disyed his unabashed contempt and scorn. ¡°Haha! He is just a jellyfish! How can such a guy lead us?¡±

    Then, when he saw Fatty, who was gazing at him with eyes full of admiration, he couldn¡¯t help but sneer. ¡°Poor wretch! Never seen this before, huh? Come on; I¡¯ll let you touch it. I bet you have never seen such high-level equipment in your whole damn life. Hahaha!¡±

    Seeing the veneration in Fatty¡¯s eyes, Li Haiughed out even more wantonly.

    He Qiuming was more or less relieved. He was worried that if Ai Hui had also insisted, Shi Xueman would be unable to solve this embarrassing problem. If they were on opposing sides, it would be tough for them to fight against Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun, too. Moreover, even if they really did not need to fight, if Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun were willing to follow that guy, there was nothing they could do.

    Now, it seemed that it was not yet the worst situation.

    He Qiuming nced at Shi Xueman, whose face was inscrutable. It appeared that she was not very attached to that guy; otherwise, Shi Xueman, who was usually so irritable, would have already initiated a fight.

    But why did the goddess have such a strange expression?

    Ai Hui was speechless when he witnessed the response of the guy in front of him. He has so close to him, but that guy was still looking at girls with such fascination. Guys like this would have died a thousand deaths on the battlefield. Clean up their mess? Stop kidding...

    ¡°What suggestion do you have...¡±

    Before he could finish his sentence, He Qiuming suddenly felt his vision blur, and before he could even react, his abdomen was heavily attacked. His expression suddenly froze.

    His gaze was fixed on Ai Hui as if he still could not believe he was attacked.

    Ai Hui could feel the fluctuations of elemental energy on the silk clothes. Evidently, He Qiuming¡¯s clothes had either high protection capabilities or other unique functions.

    If it were the Wilderness, he would have killed him without hesitation.

    What a pity...

    Although Ai Hui didn¡¯t use his elemental energy at all, the punch was still powerful. He Qiuming¡¯s body was arched like a shrimp. He wanted to say something, but no words coulde out.

    Meanwhile, Fatty, who had been fascinated by the armor just now, suddenly had a change in expression. His fingers shot to the slits of Li Hai¡¯s armor, and he abruptly grabbed it and lifted Li Hai¡¯s body, which was massive and tall, with one hand, like a furious brown bear.

    Sensing his feet leave the ground, Li Hai was dumbstruck, and his unrulyughter abruptly stopped.

    Fatty grabbed the shield with the other hand and pped his hands hard, causing Li Hai to heavily dash against the wall-thick Ironwood Shield. A muffled sound could be heard.

    After such a strike, Li Hai was limp and feeble, and Fatty threw him away like a rag.

    ¡°You are looking for trouble!¡±

    ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°Are you crazy?¡±

    The other four panicked and cried out in reproach at almost the same time.

    Idiots!

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t even want to make ament. These fellows were just threatening in manner but cowardly at heart. It truly was hrious that their first reaction towards an attack was to reprimand instead of to fight back.

    In the blink of an eye, Ai Hui shed to another person who stood nearby.

    Staying so close to one¡¯s enemy without any self-protection was tantamount to suicide. The closer the distance was, the lesser the time the opponent had to react, which was obviously more advantageous to Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui rapidly invaded into the other guy¡¯s field of vision, causing him to scream and step back subconsciously. However, he was now somehow trapped, and he lost his bnce and fell backward. He struggled to stay steady, but the next second, he saw Ai Hui¡¯s leg smashing towards him from high above like a hefty axe.

    No!

    He subconsciously crossed his arms in front of his face for self-protection. His elemental energy was surging within his body.

    With a frightening whistle, Ai Hui¡¯s leg smashed onto his arms heavily.

    Bang!

    The guy was like a floating gourddle that was suddenly attacked and sank into the water.

    His arms were aching, and under the tremendous force, his back hit the floor hard. Severe pain shot through his body as his mind went nk.

    A wisp of sand slipped away from his feet.

    It must be admitted that there were some people in the world who could be friends quickly. Then, they would gradually be more and more alike before beginning to act harmoniously in collusion with each other.

    For example, Lou Lan, who initially knew nothing aboutbat, had perfectly copied Ai Hui¡¯s fighting style within such a short period of time. When Ai Hui had been walking towards the boys, Lou Lan had already transformed into a wisp of sand and had crept like a snake in the grass.

    The other three students wanted to keep away from Ai Hui, but they found their ankles to be already tangled by the sand.

    The sand was not very powerful, but at this point in time, it yed a pivotal role.

    The Ironwood Shield that Fatty was wielding was like a thick and solid wall. In such a narrow area, the whistling shield could cover all the three guys, whose faces immediately turned pale.

    Almost by instinct, they used their best defensive moves.

    There was no cooperation between them. Everyone was defending independently, and they evidently had no trust in the others. If any one of them were to put up a fight with Fatty, however, he might be able to win some buffer time for the other two.

    When Ai Hui was at the dean¡¯s office, he had been considering how he could lead the two teams well. Now, though, he did not want to take them with him at all.

    The only thing in his mind was to get rid of them.

    In the growling whistling sound of the shield in Fatty¡¯s hand, Ai Hui arched his back and rushed forward like a ghost to the student standing farthest from him, who was protected by three mes that kept circling around him.

    Between the mes. Ai Hui stabbed at him with his Dragonspine Inferno, like a snake in the dark.

    Just as the Dragonspine Inferno was about to get him, the mes suddenly exploded, and everything was shrouded in a dazzling light.

    Ai Hui could see nothing but white light. In the midst of the student¡¯s scream, he stepped forward, and with a powerful jerk of the Dragonspine Inferno, Ai Hui hit him as if the Dragonspine Inferno was a whip.

    The student gave out a shrill cry and flew backward across the air.

    The sudden sh temporarily blinded everyone, yet the gap in the strength of the two sides had already determined the result of the fight.

    Fatty didn¡¯t withdraw. In such a circumstance, the power of the shield was not influenced at all.

    And when Ai Hui whipped the student with his Dragonspine Inferno, he had heard his scream, and at that moment, the whistle of the Ironwood Shield and the scream of the student revealed their location.

    They were behind him!

    Without any hesitation, Ai Hui stepped hard on the ground and jumped backward like a flying arrow.

    The moment he felt his back touch something, he used [Arching Fish Back] boldly.

    An overwhelming power passed from Ai Hui¡¯s back to the one behind him.

    Ping!

    Something broke into pieces like ss, and he could feel the absence of any resistance. He then mmed into the other guy¡¯s body.

    Pang!

    There was a muffled sound, and the guy was hit by a strong force¡ªit was like hitting a beast running wildly towards him, and he was flung away. Ai Hui didn¡¯t need to check to know that he had lost consciousness. The [Arching Fish Back] could create a significant dent in the walls of the Suspending Golden Pagoda, and Ai Hui was not sure if he himself could bear the entire force of the [Arching Fish Back] he just used without being injured.

    Anyways, as long as Lou Lan was here, any injury could be healed. It would be alright as long as nobody was dead. As for possible revenge in the future, Ai Hui didn¡¯t want to spare time to think about it.

    He wasn¡¯t even sure whether he could leave Central Pine City alive, so for the moment, he did not want to think about what would happen in the future.

    Bang!

    The deafening crash of metal was piercing to the ears.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui felt sympathetic toward the student who confronted Fatty with his Ironwood Shield which was 175 kilograms.

    As one of only two survivors out of two thousand people who escaped from the Wilderness, Fatty definitely had his own particr advantages.

    He was timid and vignt. As long as there were any signs of danger, he ran away faster than anyone else.

    And the other advantage was his incredible strength¡ªone couldpare in anything with Fatty but strength. If it weren¡¯t for his massive strength, how could he earn his living by helping others carry things, or how could he carry the unconscious Ai Hui on his back and keep running with the hunting group for days?

    Fatty used to use the shield when they were in the Wilderness. This had been impressive to Ai Hui. It was a pity that Fatty was cowardly, or he could be a natural born shield bearer.

    But whether he was a coward depended on who his enemy was. When faced with elementalists and wild beasts, Fatty was, of course, a coward. But it wouldn¡¯t have been possible for him to escape the Wilderness if he didn¡¯t even dare to fight against these students. There had been many battles in the Wilderness where they could not hide.

    Ai Hui believed that Fatty was definitely not afraid of these guys. They were just prodigal kids, who only dared to bully the weak but fear the strong.

    As he expected, Fatty became excited during the fight.

    Bang¡ªBang¡ªBang!

    The crashes became louder and louder.

    By now, the white light had dispersed, and Ai Hui¡¯s vision had returned to normal. He saw thest student staggering around like he was drunk.

    He said peacefully, ¡°Okay, Fatty, enough.¡±

    The ruthlessness in Fatty¡¯s eyes dimmed down. He had just been like a furious brown bear, but now, heid down on the ground like a dead dog.

    ¡°Oh...this is so tiring. I can¡¯t feel my arms. Ai Hui, I can¡¯t move now. Let me have a rest.¡±

    But, even at this time, he didn¡¯t throw his shield away.

    Seeing the dizzy student stumble involuntarily, Ai Hui acted as if he didn¡¯t hear what Fatty said and asked Lou Lan, ¡°Lou Lan, how many sets are left for Fatty?¡±

    ¡°Three hundred and twenty-two.¡± Lou Lan instantly returned a precise number.

    Ai Hui said, ¡°Guarantee that he finishes all the sets, or he cannot eat anything.¡±

    ¡°No problem, Ai Hui!¡± Lou Lan answered happily.

    Fatty was so angry that he jumped up from the ground, ¡°The one with the surname Ai! I just fought along with you, and now you are kicking down thedder! I¡¯m so disappointed. How can you...¡±

    ¡°We will have our meal in one hour.¡± Ai Hui reminded Fatty.

    ¡°You!¡± Fatty got so furious that when he noticed the staggering student nearby, he rushed forward and pped him away with his shield to vent his rage. Then, he reluctantly turned back to practice in anger.

    ¡°Keep going, Fatty!¡± Lou Lan shouted.

    Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun stared nkly at the students lying on the ground in disarray.

    There was dead silence; as Fatty wielded the shield, only the sound of the wind could be heard.

 Chapter 158: Ai Huiâ€™s Way

    Chapter 158: Ai Hui¡¯s Way

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Lis

    Shi Xueman and the others were stunned while Jiang Wei¡¯s and Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s faces were ashen. Although they didn¡¯t like those guys either, never once did they think about attacking them.

    With their family background, it was best not to irritate them.

    Duanmu Huanghun had some knowledge of Ai Hui¡¯s characteristics; he knew Ai Hui would never allow himself to be trampled upon. But what he didn¡¯t expect was that he would choose such a straightforward method.

    What was more surprising was that in a two-versus-six fight, Ai Hui and Fatty ended it so quickly and neatly. Admittedly, it was a sneak attack, but everyone here was nevertheless astounded.

    If he had been the one to be attacked by Ai Hui just now, would he have have been able to escape? The more Duanmu Huanghun thought about it, the more fearful and vignt he became against Ai Hui¡ªbecause he knew that if it were him, he would have been hardpressed to survive as well.

    Sang Zhijun was simrly stunned. She nced at Shi Xueman, remembering the scene where she threw Li Hai out of the transport wagon. She thought to herself that the means of these two were amazingly simr. At the time, she thought Shi Xueman to be violent enough. Now she knew that Ai Hui was more violent. No, it was not violent. It was better described as ferocious.

    The next moment, however, she became a bit worried. These guys were beaten so harshly and would not let him off easily. Did he ever consider the consequences?

    Shi Xueman suddenly spoke up, ¡°Do you think they will obey yourmand this way?¡±

    Ai Hui was squatted on the ground, tying up the unconscious guys with ropes. He answered without looking up, ¡°Obey mymand? Why?¡±

    Shi Xueman was surprised. ¡°Then what are you doing?¡±

    ¡°I just don¡¯t want them to hinder us,¡± Ai Hui said lightly.

    No one understood why Ai Hui was so cruel if all he wanted was for them to not impede the team.

    ¡°Then what are you going to do?¡± Duanmu Huanghun asked. He knew a bit more about Ai Hui than the others, and he guessed the Ai Hui¡¯s method would be different from their expectations.

    ¡°Tie them up tight,¡± Ai Hui replied casually while tugging at the ropes, ¡°and find somewhere to lock them up. I¡¯ll let them out when we finish.¡±

    Everyone was startled by this answer.

    ¡°D-do we have to do this?¡± Wang Xiaoshan stammered.

    They did have their conflicts and disagreed with each other, but was it necessary to lock them up? Ai Hui¡¯s method seemed too extreme.

    Shi Xueman also tried to persuade him. ¡°I think we can talk them into it. I believe they¡¯lle to see the big picture.¡±

    ¡°Then what if they stab us in the back, or refuse to cooperate with us and cause great losses?¡± Ai Hui continued without slowing down.

    Sang Zhijun quavered, ¡°Will they really do this...¡±

    Tightening the rope, Ai Hui said calmly, ¡°For many things, there is no second chance. Don¡¯t leave any hidden dangers to yourself. It¡¯ll be for the best, for both of us, if they stay here quietly until we are out of danger.¡±

    Everyone shivered. Ai Hui didn¡¯t mention what would happen if they didn¡¯t stay here quietly.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s astonishment turned to admiration. He now understood vaguely why he always lost to Ai Hui; it was because he was not as resolute.

    Of course, if Ai Hui knew what he was thinking, he would disagree.

    ¡°If I¡¯m not mistaken, I have absolute control, right? Then my firstmand is to tie them up and lock them in the wood house.¡±

    ¡°Will the academy or magistrate court take actions against us?¡± Jiang Wei was a bit worried as well.

    ¡°No, they¡¯re more than willing for us to do so.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s tone became cold. ¡°I don¡¯t want to exin anymore. Now you have two choices¡ªto ept or to refuse.¡±

    Unexpectedly, the first to speak was Duanmu Huanghun. He said emotionlessly, ¡°Useless people should stay in the wood house.¡±

    He wanted to teach them a lesson from the start. In his heart, the first one qualified to question Ai Hui¡¯smand was Shi Xueman, and the second was himself. How dare these guys jump out to oppose Ai Hui while knowing that both he and Shi Xueman had agreed?

    Jiang Wei and Wang Xiaoshan looked at each other before hurrying to do as Ai Huimanded.

    Sang Zhijunughed. ¡°Actually, we¡¯re d to do so.¡±

    Shi Xueman snorted. She felt ufortable with Ai Hui¡¯s attitude, but since it was her own proposal... she had to stick to it.

    She walked towards one of the unconscious figures and picked him up.

    After finding a wood house, they threw the six tightly trussed students into it, going so far as to gag them to prevent them from calling out for help.

    ¡°How will they eat?¡± Shi Xueman asked.

    Ai Hui casually said, ¡°They¡¯ll be able to eat when wee back. Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s not so easy to die from starvation. We can just leave them some water.¡±

    Sang Zhijun reflexively asked, ¡°And what if we don¡¯te back?¡±

    Ai Hui nced at her, then said lightly, ¡°That means we are dead.¡±

    A chill rose in everyone¡¯s hearts, and their gazes at Ai Hui were now filled with fear.

    Only then did they realize how heartless and cruel he was despite their simr ages.

    Shi Xueman was greatly shocked, doubting whether she ever knew the person in front of her. Was this the same person who paid her bill at the noodle house and tried to please her due to the eighty million debt he owed her?

    Just what kind of person was he? What did he go through? Shi Xueman¡¯s curiosity towards him was roused.

    Everyone was quiet, including Duanmu Huanghun. Proud as he was, at this moment, he appeared solemn. The people present felt as though they were a flock of sheep while Ai Hui was a dangerous beast used to the life and killings of the wild.

    Now they were sure that Ai Hui did not care about the retribution of the students or their families. They even suspected that if they were not present, Ai Hui would have already killed the six people quietly.

    Ai Hui noticed the fear in their eyes, but he didn¡¯t care.

    What they were thinking or whether it would lead to their estrangement¡ªhe did not care. If not for the escape quota, he would not have wanted any connection with them.

    Walking out of the wood house, he saw that Fatty was still practicing.

    ¡°I have something to tell you in advance.¡± Ai Hui paused to think for a minute before continuing, ¡°The situation might be worse than you think.¡±

    He noted the anxious and doubtful looks on their faces and said firmly, ¡°Worse than whatever you can imagine. We¡¯ll be faced with many dangers more precarious than what we experienced in the Garden of LIfe or even the blood bat. I hope we can leave here alive.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± asked Wang Xiaoshan, who was the most fearful one of those present. His face was pale.

    As Ai Hui was about to speak, they heard a loud explosion in the distance, and the earth began to quake.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face paled. ¡°That was from the city gate!¡±

    They then saw many elementalists flying to the city gate from all quarters. Despite their high elevation, Ai Hui and the others could read the panic on their faces.

    They began to feel anxious as well.

    But Ai Hui remained calm as before. He noticed Lou Lan and the number that he had transformed into which indicated that Fatty was done with practice. Staggering out with the ironwood shield as his stick, Fatty was soaked with sweat, looking as though he had just climbed out of a pool. His heavy breathing sounded like bellows, and his eyes were wide as he red at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui smiled.

    ¡°Ai Hui, Fatty has finished,¡± Lou Lan said happily.

    Ai Hui nodded. ¡°Good. It¡¯s time to have some food.¡±

    Hearing what Ai Hui said, Fatty¡¯s anger turned into weariness and hunger. He plopped onto the ground and shouted, ¡°Oops. I need to eat more. I¡¯m dead tired. Water, Lou Lan, I need water!¡±

    Lou Lan took out some of the solid food that he had prepared. Ai Hui said, ¡°Let¡¯s all have some.¡±

    Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°Don¡¯t we need to help them? If the city gate falls, then we¡¯re all doomed.¡±

    While eating, Ai Hui said, ¡°The city gate already has the best defense. If it¡¯s about to fall, then there¡¯s nothing we can do to help.¡±

    Shi Xueman wanted to retort but realized there was nothing she could say; she knew Ai Hui was right. The mayor had already assigned guards and teachers to key areas for the city¡¯s defense, and the city gate was the topmost priority. Compared to them, the six people here were a drop in the ocean.

    ¡°Actually, the best choice for us is to stay in the training hall.¡± Ai Hui nced at Shi Xueman. He was wondering if he could knock them out if heunched a sneak attack. The dean only wanted Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun to be alive anyway. He would not care whether they were conscious or not.

    But it seemed this n would be hard to achieve. The fighting skills of Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun, and Sang Zhijun were all upper-tier. If he could not defeat them in one go, he would be beaten down for sure.

    ¡°So we hide here like cowards and watch them die without doing anything?¡± Shi Xueman watched Ai Hui coldly. If she could kill Ai Hui with her eyes, then Ai Hui would have died a thousand deaths.

    She began to doubt the wisdom of her suggestion to give Ai Hui the right to lead. He was too sophisticated.

    The others remained mute with frightened expressions, but they did not agree with him either. Only, they did not dare to oppose due to his imposing manner.

    You are all just too naive and enthusiastic, Ai Hui thought to himself.

    ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± Unexpectedly, Ai Hui admitted his mistake at once. ¡°Let¡¯s go to the magistrate office to get some equipment. I¡¯ll collect my reward as well.¡±

    Fatty was speedily stuffing food into his mouth. He seemed without emotion, but inside, his mind was turning rapidly. He knew that there must be something that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t saying!

    He knew Ai Hui too well. If he admitted his mistakes quickly, then either he knew he was wrong, or he did it with a motive in mind.

    The others were eating the food silently.

    Shi Xueman didn¡¯t expect Ai Hui to admit his mistake so quickly. To ease the tension, she praised, ¡°This tastes pretty good.¡±

    ¡°Lou Lan made it. I¡¯m afraid we won¡¯t have time to cook, so I asked Lou Lan to make more. It should be enough tost us several days,¡± Ai Hui said.

    Lou Lan, who was standing next to Ai Hui, smiled happily, his eyes behind the pale mask bing like crescent moons.

    Everyone was surprised to find that Lou Lan was able to cook. From his outstanding performance in the fight just now, they assumed Lou Lan to be abat sand puppet; they didn¡¯t know he would also be good at household skills.

    But Shi Xueman noticed something else and could not help but look at Ai Hui.

    He began to prepare for this long ago?

    He really was a mysterious guy.

    At that moment, Ai Hui suddenly gestured for them to keep quiet.

 Chapter 159: The Warehouse of the Magistrate Court

    Chapter 159: The Warehouse of the Magistrate Court

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Cynthia

    The others still eating were startled by Ai Hui¡¯s gesture.

    Fatty was the first to react and immediately grabbed the shield. With his eyes widened and mouth full of food, he resembled an alert frog.

    Only then did the others realize something had happened. They knew Ai Hui and were confident in his detection ability.

    Ai Hui abruptly lied on his stomach and pressed his ear to the ground.

    ¡°The earth is quaking,¡± Ai Hui said in a low voice.

    His behavior made everyone else nervous.

    ¡°What¡¯s causing it?¡± Jiang Wei asked. On the surface, he was tall and impressive with long arms and legs, and his fighting skills were excellent. But among this group of people, he didn¡¯t feel confident at all, like an ordinary soldier.

    ¡°It¡¯s hard to say.¡± Ai Hui exined, ¡°Maybe it¡¯s due to the migration of so many beasts, or perhaps something is moving underground within a certain distance. Hmm, I think it¡¯s most likely the beasts. Are they going to attack the city?¡±

    Confused, Ai Hui stood up.

    The rest felt relieved. They came to the mission believing it no different from the previous ones, but over the past several days, they became more nervous. Now they finally understood Ai Hui¡¯s range of detection as none of them had felt any trembles yet.

    Duanmu Huanghuny down and ced his ears on the ground as Ai Hui did, listening carefully. He heard nothing.

    Fatty snorted when he saw Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s attempt. How could hepare himself with Ai Hui? It would only lead to disappointment.

    ¡°Finished eating? If so, let¡¯s go to the magistrate court now,¡± Ai Hui said as he stood up.

    They weren¡¯t in the mood to eat anyway. Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s words, they quickly stood and went after him. The group drew the eye, especially the trio¡ªDuanmu Huanghun, Shi Xueman, and Sang Zhijun¡ªwho were equipped with gorgeous equipment indicating their wealth and social status.

    As soon as they entered the streets, they realized thatpared to when they first arrived, something had changed.

    Nearly everyone on the streets was armed, nervous, and in a hurry to depart.

    They arrived at the heavily guarded magistrate court. Lookout posts were situated, and many elementalists were on aerial patrol.

    Fortunately, a few guards recognized Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun and immediately let them pass. Seeing a guard who looked familiar, Duanmu Huanghun approached him and after talking for a minute, returned with a somber expression.

    ¡°The number of blood fiends outside rose sharply, and some initiated an attack on the city wall this morning. At first, it wasn¡¯t as fierce, but then the intensity began to increase. Just now, the city gate was charged, and twelve people died.¡±

    Their faces paled when they heard what Duanmu Huanghun had to say. This was the highest number of casualties since Central Pine City decided to defend.

    They couldn¡¯t help but look at Ai Hui. Hearing what he said, they held some doubts, but now they werepletely convinced that the situation was worse than they initially expected.

    Suddenly, someone shouted, ¡°Earth elementalists! Any earth elementalists? There are fissures in the city wall!¡±

    Several earth elementalists followed him out in a hurry.

    Their anxiety worsened. They were only students, after all, who had never experienced such severe conditions. Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun were both well-known talents chased after wherever they went, but at this moment, their insignificance was made acutely known to them.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go inside.¡± Ai Hui said nothing more.

    His voice brought everyone back from their thoughts and into reality. Every one of them felt apprehensive, stretched like a taut string¡ªall except Ai Hui, who seemed as calm as usual. Hisposure settled their nerves.

    Sang Zhijun couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid, Ai Hui?¡±

    ¡°I am,¡± he answered.

    This was out of their expectations. They thought Ai Hui would say something along the lines of, ¡°Why? There¡¯s nothing to be afraid of.¡±

    Confused, Sang Zhijun said, ¡°But you don¡¯t look like you¡¯re afraid.¡±

    Ai Hui replied without looking back, ¡°You won¡¯t be so nervous either when you¡¯ve been through more battles.¡±

    Shi Xueman snuck a glimpse at Ai Hui. Under the sunlight, his face seemed serene and indifferent, somehow calming her. Perhaps this was the difference between a veteran and a rookie.

    They could not find the mayor since he was too busy. An officer received them instead and brought them to the warehouse.

    ¡°The materials in the city have been gathered for unified allocation. The mayor has informed me of your special status. Each of you may receive one set of equipment, and Ai Hui one more as his reward. By the way, it seems that some members are missing?¡±

    Shi Xueman and the others looked embarrassed.

    Duanmu Huanghun was the one to answer indifferently, ¡°They didn¡¯t bother toe.¡±

    The officer didn¡¯t say anything, but he was displeased to hear this. However, he understood that children from noble families had had luxurious equipment. It came as no surprise that they looked down on the equipment here.

    Despite that, he quietly remembered the names of those who didn¡¯te. They had better note to beg anything from him one day.

    Everyone looked at Duanmu Huanghun with strange expressions. Even Ai Hui was surprised this time.

    What an insidious guy!

    But Ai Hui was confused. Why did he nce at me, he wondered.

    In Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s mind, he always lost to Ai Hui simply because he was not ruthless enough, and he was determined to change it. How could he lose to Ai Hui? Even in terms of ruthlessness, he had to win over him!

    Hearing that there would be equipment for all of them, Fatty became excited. Sure enough, it was promising to follow Ai Hui, even allowing him to choose any equipment from the warehouse of the magistrate court.

    Jiang Wei and Wang Xiaoshan were also very happy.

    Inparison, Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun kept their calm. Truthfully, they agreed with what Duanmu Huanghun had said just now, but in order to not be cklisted, they pretended to choose their equipment carefully.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t pay attention to the others. He only told Fatty, ¡°You are a shieldman. Don¡¯t choose any irrelevant stuff!¡±

    He knew Fatty too well. Without limits imposed, Fatty would gravitate towards the most expensive one.

    ¡°Shieldman?¡± The officer who brought them in couldn¡¯t help praising Fatty when he saw his hill-like, strong figure. ¡°What a good shieldman! We happen to have a set of armor for that role!¡±

    The officer brought them to a set of bronze armor.

    ¡°This is called the Steady Mountain, which alludes to the phrase, ¡®as steady as a mountain¡¯. Its weight is as high as two hundred eighteen kilograms.¡±

    Jiang Wei and Wang Xiaoshan, and even Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun were astounded at this frightening number.

    The officer was pleased to see their expressions. It vexed him to hear that those highborn kids dared to look down upon this warehouse. Now that he saw the amazement on everyone¡¯s face, the officer felt at ease, morefortable than when eating elemental food. He began to exin without end.

    ¡°Although it looks ordinary and wasn¡¯t made by a well-known craftsman, it is definitely a rare armor of superior quality. The first time the mayorid eyes on it, he praised it and even tested a saber against it himself, only to find that the saber could not break it. At the time, the mayor asserted that only a person born with amazing strength would be able to wear it. Do you want to give it a try?¡±

    From the very beginning, Fatty¡¯s eyes were glued onto it.

    After experiencing life and death, he knew that for a shieldman, such heavy armor could greatly increase chances of survival. Moreover, he was experienced enough to know that he would never be able to afford such an armor.

    ¡°Yes, I want this one,¡± Fatty said without hesitation.

    Then without seeking help from the others, he grabbed it with one hand and began to equip it clumsily.

    When he finally finished, the others gasped in surprise.

    He was already as strong as a hill, but now with the Steady Mountain, anyone who saw him had to bear a heavy pressure. Even the shadow he cast seemed thicker than before.

    Excited, Fatty strolled around the room. It seemed as though the armor weighing two hundred eighteen kilograms had no influence on his movements at all.

    Yet without warning, he began to wail loudly, tears streaming down his face.

    This was his first time having armor.

    Theborers in the Wilderness had no armor or protection, which was a major reason behind their deaths. With their meager earnings, it was impossible for them to buy such expensive equipment. They were used to facing the sharp ws and tusks of wild beasts without any protection.

    Now he was bundled up within the armor. The unustomed sense of safety made him cry aloud.

    And the cry stunned everyone else.

    But Ai Hui understood Fatty¡¯s feelings. He patted him on the armor and said, ¡°Take care of the armor. Don¡¯t lose it.¡±

    ¡°Sure,¡± Fatty replied. He stopped crying and said earnestly with a nasally voice, ¡°I won¡¯t.¡±

    This was the most expensive armor he had ever owned. He would never lose it, no matter what.

    Holding a heavy shield weighing 175 kilograms in one hand and wearing a heavy armor of 218 kilograms, Fatty could still walk around as usual. The rest could hardly move their eyes away from him. They used to regard Fatty as a useless person, but this visual impact now changed their perceptions.

    ¡°Everybody, choose your equipment now,¡± Ai Hui said.

    The others began to search for what they wanted.

    Ai Hui also began to think about what equipment he would need. His current weapon was the Dragonspine Inferno, which he would not need to change for a while. The Drifting Cloud Boots were also the best shoes he could have. Moreover, the Blood Bandages were good protective equipment that would not influence his agility.

    And with Fatty as his shieldman, he didn¡¯t ce high requirements on his own protection.

    ¡°Do you have anything like azure wings that I can use?¡± Ai Hui asked.

    The warehouse officer immediately understood. ¡°You mean the kind of equipment that enables you to fly? I think you can only use the cloak.¡±

    ¡°Cloak?¡± Ai Hui¡¯s eyes brightened.

    The officer quickly found one and said, ¡°We pay attention to what students need, too. Your elemental energy is of the metal attribute, right? Here¡¯s one you can wear. It¡¯s called the Golden Wind. It enables you to fly by erupting metallic wind.¡±

    ¡°Then that¡¯s it,¡± Ai Hui said without hesitation.

    Apart from the cloak, Ai Hui was allowed one more, but he didn¡¯t know what he wanted either. Therefore, he decided to make a sweep around the warehouse.

 Chapter 160: Red Dust Sword Box

    Chapter 160: Red Dust Sword Box

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X

    The warehouse of the magistrate court was notrge and itcked in equipment. Shi Xueman and others might regard it as shabby, but it was definitely a treasure trove to Ai Hui.

    He walked slowly past the shelves and obsolete boxes. From time to time, he picked up the dusty equipment in his hand to take a closer look. He did not care about the dust. When he was unfastening armor in the Wilderness, the armor sets were likely to be covered with residue such as blood, flesh, or bone powder.

    Duanmu Huanghun was observing Ai Hui secretly. Seeing what Ai Hui was doing, he encouraged himself to take one of the shabby weapons and kept telling himself that he must do better than Ai Hui.

    He would not lose to Ai Hui in any aspect!

    However, as a mysophobiac since was young, Duanmu Huanghun found it really sickening.

    Holding the idea that he must beat Ai Hui, Duanmu finally made up his mind. He chose a bag of grass seeds called Shackle. These seeds, after activation by elemental energy, would form a rattan gand that rapidly contracted to lock the target when it touched the target. It earned its name since it was very sturdy like a shackle and its target would be hard pressed to escape.

    Shi Xueman chose some Water Candles, which weremon consumables for water elementalists and could be lit up with water elemental energy. The light was invisible to the naked eye, but was able to scatter elemental energy to create a dazzling illusion. Sang Zhijun picked a quiver of arrows called String & Woodwind, a type of umon rhythm-based arrows.

    Wang Xiaoshan chose a pair of khaki gloves with the name of Mud Gloves to help him control mud and earth. Actually, Wang Xiaoshan was not feeling very confident and had no idea why Ai Hui chose him, especially when he saw the other members who were all people he looked up to before. He had a clear estimation of himself and knew that his only strength was controlling earth. That was why he chose this equipment.

    Jiang Wei picked a big bow called Stone Mountain.

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s Golden Silk Longbow was thin and gorgeous, while Jiang Wei¡¯s Stone Mountain was massive and solid. It was a typical heavy bow, with its length almost the same as his height.Only a tall man with long arms would bring out its true potential. Jiang Wei was surprised and happy when he saw it. He had always been looking for such a big bow and had not expected toe across one here.

    Everyone except Ai Hui had chosen their equipment.

    ¡°You all have very good taste.¡± The officer standing beside them spoke highly of them, though he was also loath to give away so many good things. ¡°Most items here belong to the private collection of the mayor. He was obsessed with equipment, which is why the warehouse is sorge today. Everything you picked was really good stuff.¡±

    Ai Hui caught sight of a square box. It seemed a bit familiar to him. He felt as if he had seen it somewhere before.

    The box was dusty. He picked it up and blew away the dust. Then, the real appearance of the box could be seen. It was ck and made of a kind of ck metal. There was a lock catch on one corner, which could be used to hang it on a belt. The box could be opened from one side, but it was so deep and dark inside that it was hard to clearly see its contents.

    The officer noticed the box in Ai Hui¡¯s hand and introduced it. ¡°This is an old-fashioned sword box with three small swords in it. When you dance with your sword, they will fly out from the box and dance together. It¡¯s not very useful. The craftsman who made it fancied the ancient swordsmen, but when he realized that he could not control the swords, he just put it aside. The Mayor found it interesting, so he bought it with 100,000 yuan.¡±

    Ai Hui then realized why he felt it was familiar. It turned out to be a sword box. He had read about it in the swordy manual, but this was the first time that he had seen one in real life.

    ¡°100,000 yuan?¡± Fatty shook his head like a rattle-drum. ¡°Nothing good would be so cheap. Ai Hui, you¡¯d better choose something else.¡±

    Ai Hui paid no attention to him but turned to ask the officer. ¡°Can I have a try?¡±

    The officer had no reason to stop him, so he just said, ¡°Be careful. There are many items around.¡±

    The others dispersed in curiosity, including the warehouse officer. He had followed the Mayor for many years. After it was bought, the sword box had been stored in the warehouse, and no one ever touched it. The mayor, himself, had already forgotten its existence.

    It was a pity that Ai Hui was not there when the sword box was purchased. He did not have a chance to see how the craftsman yed with the swords nor how to use the sword box.

    Ai Hui ced the sword box at his waist carefully. Although he never saw a sword box before, he knew a lot about them.

    Next, he calmed down and began to concentrate his attention. With a flick of his right hand, the Dragonspine Inferno was drawn out.

    The low chime thrilled everyone around. Apparently, the sword was very heavy.

    At that moment, three rays of red light jetted out from the box. They flew around Ai Hui like three fish.

    Only then could the others see the red light clearly. They were three small swords and were flying at a very high speed.

    The swords were as small as a palm and as wide as two fingers. They were translucent and delicately made.

    The others were amazed. This was the first time that they had seen such a light and flexible weapon.

    Ai Hui did not stop. With another flick of the wrist, he began to practice the sword moves he knew. He had learned all these sword moves from the swordy manuals, but these techniques had long since lost their efficacy. To find useful moves from the manuals was like looking for usable material within a pile of trash.

    Some were partial techniques or even half of a movement. Others were breathing methods and tips to utilize strength. The withered parts of the ancient swordy manuals were of no value at all.

    It was easy to imagine how fragmentary and unsystematic the knowledge was.

    Therefore, Ai Hui¡¯s movements were fragmented, ugly, and ufortable to watch. Sometimes the first half was elegant and graceful, but then it abruptly became rigid and ferocious. The pause and gap in between were palpable.

    It was like feeling tightness in the chest. The obvious pause and transition disrupted everyone¡¯s breath.

    They could not believe their eyes. Such ugly sword moves were really executed by the swordy talent Ai Hui?

    More surprisingly, the three red swords became more energetic, like sharks that sensed the smell of blood. They circled around the Dragonspine Inferno in Ai Hui¡¯s hand. The red sword lights interweaving in the sky were very beautiful.

    Ai Hui¡¯s figure was indistinct in the red light of the swords.

    A red sword beam, which was as thin as a hair, shed across Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s vision with a slight buzz, like a sharp knife cutting a thin paper, and then disappeared in an instant.

    They finally knew why the craftsman said he could not control them¡ªthey were too fast.

    They flew so fast that the naked eye could hardly discern them.

    Both Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun could only see the inteced red lights in front of them. The ck heavy sword was moving slowly, yet the small red swords were as fast as a sh of light and as flexible as fish. The weapons were in sharp contrast, but those who were watching felt an astonishing harmony, as if that was how they should be.

    Ai Hui was immersed in a peculiar feeling.

    The sword embryo seemed to be extremely excited. The three small swords were like its new toys. As Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo state became more developed, he could feel many things more clearly than he used to.

    Ai Hui was also excited. This was a novel experience for him too.

    The Dragonspine Inferno had a special attraction to the small swords. That was why they orbited around Ai Hui. Such attraction was unique. Once the swords became too close to Ai Hui, the attraction would decline and even transform into a repulsive force. However, once they were repulsed a sufficient distance, the attraction would increase. It was like an invisible spring that linked them together and prevented them from flying too close or too far away.

    The small swords only flew within the area around Ai Hui.

    Since the small swords were flying very fast, the attraction constantly changed. Therefore, the flying paths of the small swords were totally irregr.

    The dazzling red light interweaved, waned, and waxed to create a wonderful scene.

    ¡°It¡¯s beautiful.¡± The warehouse officer could not help gasping in admiration. ¡°No wonder the mayor bought it with 100,000 yuan. It¡¯s interesting.¡±

    The others nodded. They were thinking the same.

    It was interesting indeed, but it was better not to take it as a weapon. What was the use of swords that could not be controlled in a battle? They might even hurt teammates.

    The Dragonspine Inferno slowly drew a half circle in the air like a writing brush with thick ink.

    Swoosh swoosh swoosh!

    The red lights flew back to the sword box like birds returning into the nest in the evening.

    Ai Hui also slid the heavy sword back into his scabbard. His eyes that were as bright as stars gradually became dim and calm as usual. ¡°I¡¯ll take this sword box,¡± he said.

    Everyone was surprised.

    Fatty reminded him anxiously, ¡°Ai Hui, 100,000 yuan. It¡¯s only 100,000 yuan. Don¡¯t waste your chance.¡±

    Shi Xueman also said, ¡°The swords were indeed splendid and gorgeous, but they are not good weapons and can easily hurt your teammates. Why not choose another one?¡±

    Ai Hui shook his head. ¡°This sword box fits me the best. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t use it before I¡¯m proficient in controlling it.¡±

    ¡°Are you sure you want to choose this sword box?¡± The warehouse officer also reminded him, ¡°Once you walk out of the warehouse, you cannot go back on your decision.¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right,¡± Ai Hui said decisively.

    ¡°Okay,¡± the warehouse officer said, ¡°its name is on the box. It¡¯s called Red Dust.¡±

    ¡°Red Dust?¡± Ai Hui repeated. He could feel the profound meaning the name contained and nodded. ¡°It¡¯s a good name.¡±

    Although they did not know why Ai Hui insisted on choosing Red Dust, they would not stop him as long as he did not hurt his teammates.

    The group had just walked out of the warehouse when they heard a loud boom. Everyone¡¯s expression changed.

    ¡°It¡¯s the north gate!¡± Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face turned pale.

    The main gate of Central Pine City was the south gate, and the north gate was much smaller. As they expected, a cloud of smoke and dust rose from the north gate. The shrill rm could be heard all over the city, and the elementalists all rushed to the north gate in a frenzy.

    It was the south gate that was attacked, but the chaos were fiercer at the north gate now.

    This reminded everyone of one word: diversion!

    They looked at each other and saw the incredulity in the others¡¯ eyes. Could blood beasts be so clever?

    The elementalists in the sky were in great turmoil.

    ¡°Plug the hole! Earth elementalist! We need earth elementalists!¡±

    ¡°Damn it! Blood beasts have rushed into the city!¡±

    ¡°Plug the hole first!¡±

    ...

    Their hearts sank. No one expected that the situation would worsen at such a rapid speed.

    ¡°Back to the training hall. Come on!¡± Ai Hui said in a low voice. He was the first to rush to the street, and the others followed him in a hurry.

 Chapter 161: Encountering Danger

    Chapter 161: Encountering Danger

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    The streets were in chaos.

    Individuals with nobat experience could usually maintain order during peacetime, but when catastrophes broke out, this false sense of order would break down in an instant.

    Everyone was feeling uneasy as they followed behind Ai Hui.

    On the contrary, Fatty, whom everyone previously thought was an useless bum, was holding a huge shield and striding beside Ai Hui while scanning his surroundings with a vignt look on his face.

    ¡°Won¡¯t it be safer if we remain here?¡± Wang Xiaoshan asked weakly.

    ¡°Nowhere is safe,¡± Ai Hui replied without turning his head while maintaining his walking speed. ¡°If they were the Thirteen Divisions, I would definitely endorse the idea of staying there. However, they aren¡¯t. If the situation turns for the worse, a moment of carelessness will cause them to crumble under pressure. Do you want to know how it feels to be squeezed and trampled on by a panic-stricken crowd? You don¡¯t want to know. Furthermore, they have a lot of people, making them a huge target that is easily targeted by the blood fiends.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re so confident?¡± Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes flickered.

    Deep down, he already acknowledged Ai Hui¡¯s capabilities, but what Ai Hui just said obviously belittled those guards.

    ¡°I think it makes sense,¡± Jiang Wei agreed with Ai Hui. ¡°The quality of the guards is really low. Even now, they still can¡¯t catch that naked pervert. Reportedly, they were even being toyed with by that boy, causing several guards to be injured. I think it¡¯s better that we depend on ourselves. Eh? Ai Hui, why is your facial expression so weird?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes began to twitch. He felt as if he was being stabbed several times in his heart and bleeding non-stop.

    Shi Xueman also thought back to the scene from that night. That was the first time she saw Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship. Thest sword move that he executed was peerlessly magnificent. That scene was etched deeply in her mind.

    When she thought about it now, she could not help but exim in admiration.

    As for the perverted naked boy, Shi Xueman did not really have a deep impression of him. On the other hand, she was more and more amazed by Ai Hui.

    Previously, when she saw Ai Hui using the [Arching Fish Back] during his fight with He Qiuming and his team mates, she thought of her first blind battle. That was the only time she used the [Arching Fish Back] in an actualbat setting and she was subsequently defeated. After she saw Ai Hui¡¯s [Arching Fish Back], she was blown away. If her [Arching Fish Back] was of the same level as Ai Hui¡¯s, she would have obtained victory in that blind battle!

    Unfortunately, she had not found that mysterious fighter yet, which left her disappointed and frustrated.

    ¡°I only remember that the perverted streaker¡¯splexion is rather fair...¡±

    Immense shame engulfed Duanmu Huanghun. His face was burning with anger. At this point in time, he wished he could find a hole and hide in it.

    ¡°Ai Hui, have you seen this pervert before?¡± Jiang Wei asked excitedly.

    ¡°Yeah, that incident happened right at the alley outside the training hall,¡± Ai Hui replied. Initially, he did not want to talk much about it, but when he thought of Duanmu Huanghun still owing him 150,000,000 yuan, he changed his mind and continued his insults. ¡°I have never seen such a perverted fellow in my life. He did not have a single piece of cloth on his body. Everyone on the street was shocked at that sight. Numerous eyes...¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face darkened.

    Shi Xueman cast a nce at Ai Hui. Since when had this fellow became so talkative? The only thing that surprised her was that Ai Hui had not mentioned his stunning sword move at all. All he talked about was that perverted naked guy.

    Not bad, he was not a pompous and conceited fellow after all.

    She had encountered a lot of young talents and all of them kept on bragging to her about their capabilities and glorious expertise. She was extremely disgusted by such haughtiness.

    She turned around and suddenly noticed that Duanmu Huanghun was looking unwell. She could not help but ask with great concern, ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?¡±

    Both of their families had close ties with each other, and both of them knew each other from childhood as well. However, they were not really close friends. Shi Xueman was older than Duanmu Huanghun and she treated him like a little brother.

    Duanmu Huanghun froze. After a while, he forced a smile and replied, ¡°Everything¡¯s fine, Sister Xueman.¡±

    At this very moment, a shriek suddenly came from ahead.

    ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°Oh my god, it¡¯s a blood fiend!¡±

    ¡°Be careful!¡±

    ¡°Run!¡±

    There were numerous people who were in hysteria on the street in front of them. The crowd ran toward Ai Hui¡¯s group, resembling an iing sh flood. Many people fell onto the ground and were trampled, but no one dared to stop running. There were also a lot of people who tried to escape through the air, yet these people crashed into each other within a few meters after taking off since there were too many people trying to fly at the same time. Their bodies lost control and fell to the ground.

    At this point in time, it would be deadly for people to fall down as they would be instantly drowned by the crowd.

    Everyone¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. Without any hesitation, Ai Hui instructed, ¡°This way!¡±

    He was the first one to run into an alley nearby. The others seemed to wake up from a dream and quickly followed him.

    Boom!

    The sound of the ground trembling, the numerous shrieks and cries, and the surging tide of people whizzed past behind them like a furious tsunami.

    Everyone, including Shi Xueman, ran through the alleyway in a hurry. Their faces had turned pale-white. Wang Xiaoshan thought of the question he asked Ai Hui just now and felt a shiver went down his spine. A person is so insignificant when he or she is faced with a tide of hysterical people.

    At this moment, it felt like the end of the world was upon them.

    They frantically ran through the alley. The wriggling and winding alleyway became the best screen for them, shaking off the terrifying flood of people behind them.

    They stopped after running for several kilometres.

    Upon seeing everyone¡¯s pale-white faces and the deep fear in their eyes, Ai Hui sighed silently. He clearly understood the rookies¡¯ feelings. The scene today would appear in their nightmares for a very long time.

    The fatty simple-mindedly popped a piece of malt candy into his mouth as soon as he got the opportunity. His performed the best in this situation.

    Duanmu Huanghun, Jiang Wei, and Wang Xiaoshan were pale faced. Everyone was panting heavily, like a fish that was about to suffocate.

    Sang Zhijun and Shi Xueman were the most affected. Sang Zhijun¡¯s eyes were slightly red and her entire body was shivering involuntarily.

    Shi Xueman did not look well either. Ai Hui noticed that the hand that she was holding her spear with had turned pale. However, she managed to calm down gradually.

    Actually, they performed better than Ai Hui had expected.

    Duanmu Huanghun and the other two had been through two battles in the Garden of Life, and as such, their ability to deal with such situations had improved a lot. As for Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun, they had killed the blood bat with Ai Hui. Therefore, they did not have much of a problem either.

    Ai Hui could not help but rejoice over his decision to kick the other six people out of the group.

    ¡°We need to find out where we are now.¡± Ai Hui took a look at his surroundings and felt a headache. He was unfamiliar with his location.

    He was actually lost...

    Ai Hui wanted to put a stalk of grass into his mouth, but he resisted. He did not know whether or not the blood poison had infiltrated the city.

    ¡°This is Amber Lane¡± The voice belonged to Duanmu Huanghun. Other than his pale face, he looked rather normal.

    ¡°Are you sure?¡± Ai Hui looked at him doubtfully.

    ¡°I¡¯m sure,¡± Duanmu Huanghun replied. For the sake of finding you to bring you back to ss, did you know that Brother Huanghun searched through the entire Central Pine City?

    Eh? After having an agitated thought like this, Duanmu Huanghun did not seem nervous anymore...

    ¡°This ce is rather close to the training hall. Go straight, turn left, and walk through Pine Lane. After walking past five streets, we will turn onto Cloud Lane. After walking past another three streets, we will reach the training hall.¡±

    Everyone was stunned by Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s words.

    ¡°You¡¯re so familiar with the area?¡± Ai Hui still remained doubtful.

    ¡°I have a photogenic memory,¡± Duanmu Huanghun replied expressionlessly.

    So this fellow has a poor sense of direction! Duanmu Huanghun thoughtughingly to himself. I finally found your weakness, Ai Hui!

    Suddenly, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes widened as the image of a jet-ck sword tip rapidly magnified in his eyes.

    Murder...

    His brain could only think of this word before he heard a loud nk. The deafening sound of a collision exploded beside his ear, throwing his mind into a daze.

    ¡°Everyone, be careful!¡±

    Ai Hui yelled to warn everyone. A powerful force erupted through the tip of the Dragonspine Inferno and into Ai Hui, pushing him back several steps.

    A half-meter tall blood mantis flew up and stood atop a nearby wall. Its dark red eyes were staring coldly at Ai Hui.

    Its sneak attack had actually been blocked.

    The pair of scythe-like front ws were slicing in mid-air and produced a sound that would make people shiver in horror. With a p of its wings, it became a red streak and pounced toward everyone.

    Shi Xueman suddenly took a step forward and stabbed her snow-white spear into the red streak that was flying through the air!

    A snow-white spear glint collided with the two streaks of red-colored scythe glint. Shi Xueman staggered, and before she could react, the demonic red-colored scythe glint appeared before her eyes once more.

    The spear in Shi Xueman¡¯s hand abruptly twisted and ts body distorted to block the iing attack from an impossible angle.

    Shi Xueman had underestimated the blood mantis¡¯s strength and speed. She could not control her body in time and flew backward.

    The demonic red-colored scythe glint appeared before her all of a sudden.

    Her heart sank.

    At this critical moment, a ck sword suddenly sprung out from under her arm, behaving like a python that lunged out from the underbrush.

    nk!

    Ai Hui¡¯s arm was sore and he almost lost control of the sword, but he still managed to block off the iing attack! He quickly put his left arm around Shi Xueman¡¯s waist and both of them flew backward from the impact.

    Before they evennded on the ground, Ai Hui yelled, ¡°Fatty!¡±

    Fatty and Ai Hui were well-coordinated. Like an angry grizzly bear, Fatty roared, raised his shield in front of him, and made a ferocious lunge at the blood mantis.

    The blood mantis¡¯s ws began to rain down on the heavy iron shield.

    The fatty tightened his core and resisted the torrential attacks with his shield.

    At this moment, the others returned to their senses and joined the fight.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] conjured up several vines that shot out from all directions and wrapped around the blood mantis.

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s Golden Silk Longbow was shooting arrows at the blood mantis in rapid session.

    However, all these attacks failed to work. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] waspletely useless. The blood mantis was lightning fast. It could even fly at an extremely low altitude, constantly creating afterimages to confuse his enemies. There were a few times where Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s vines had wrapped around the blood mantis¡¯s afterimages instead of the real body. Sang Zhijun¡¯s rapid fire had been stopped as well.

    The usually unavoidable arrows were destroyed with one swing of its ws.

    Mantises were naturally gifted in executing sword moves with their scythe-like ws. In the Wilderness, mantises were widely feared. The blood mantis¡¯s strength exceeded everyone¡¯s expectation. From the beginning, it was on the winning side of the battle.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s heavy bow and Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s attacks werepletely ineffective. They simply could not keep up with the blood mantis¡¯s speed.

    Upon seeing that the situation was getting out of hand, Ai Hui made a weird maneuver in the mid-air beforending on the ground. Like a whip, the arm that he held Shi Xueman with swung forcefully, throwing thetter through the air. ¡°Attack it!¡±

    After throwing Shi Xueman into the air, Ai Hui crashed into the ground and groaned.

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s groan, Shi Xueman, who was already embarrassed by the previous exchange, suddenly returned to her senses. A killer instinct arose in her eyes. After she finished adjusting her posture in mid-air, her elemental energy frantically surged into the snow-white spear in her hand!

 Chapter 162: Bitter Battle

    Chapter 162: Bitter Battle

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ

    Her long ck hair was drifting in the wind and her eyes were as cold as frost. The blue-armored Shi Xueman was flying.

    The blood mantis could sense that danger wasing. It erected its feelers and pulled back the top half of its body, then positioned its scythe-like ws to protect its front. Itpressed its sturdy and powerful lower limbs like springs, preparing to pounce forward at any moment.

    Apanied by a deafening whizzing sound, the snow-white spear pierced towards the blood mantis¡¯s head.

    A demonic red glow suddenly erupted in the blood mantis¡¯s eyes. Its scythe-like ws, which had been storing energy in preparation for an attack, lunged forward, forming a red streak that struck fear into everyone¡¯s hearts.

    The white streak of light and red streak of light collided head-on. Just as everyone thought that it would be a head-on collision, the spear in Shi Xueman¡¯s hand suddenly disintegrated into a cloud of white mist.

    The sudden change in Shi Xueman¡¯s attack caught the blood mantis unprepared.

    The white mist engulfed the blood mantis, causing its attack to miss. The blood mantis sensed that something was wrong.

    It spread its wings and prepared to escape from this weird mist; however, at that moment, its thin, red-colored wings seemed to be covered in a thick, glue-like substance. No matter how hard it tried, it could not fly.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s unimaginable attack had reduced the blood mantis¡¯s lightning-fast speed significantly, giving everyone the opportunity to strike back.

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s arrows rained down on the blood mantis like a torrent. The blood mantis did not have the slightest bit of fear with regards to the iing arrows and began to thrust its scythe-like ws forward.

    Tink, tink, tink!

    A melody suddenly resounded amongst the densely-packed collisions. The blood mantis¡¯s body froze.

    The Melody Arrow that Sang Zhijun had secretly hidden within the rain of arrows began to work its magic.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s muscles tensed up, revealing the veins on his arms. The bowstring of the Stone Mountain Bow, which was as tall as he was, had been pulled back so far that the bow resembled a full moon. The Stone Mountain Bow required unique, heavy arrows to be effective. The Wolftooth Heavy Arrow loaded on the bow was solid and thick, only a tad smaller than a javelin.

    All of his elemental energy was channeled into the Wolftooth Heavy Arrow. He knew his strengths and weaknesses well. If the others were finding it so hard tounch a sessful attack, then his normal attacks would definitely not work.

    There was only one chance for him tounch an all-out attack.

    Boom!

    With a loud, metallic boom, a dazzling beam of light instantaneously appeared before the blood mantis.

    The somewhat dazed blood mantis continued to disy its powerful fighting abilities. At the critical moment, it raised its left w in front of its body.

    ng!

    The sound resembled the impact of a battering ram crashing against an iron city gate, sending shivers down everyone¡¯s spines.

    The powerful impact sent the blood mantis flying backwards. Its lower limbs were trying to hold on to the ground, leaving two deep w mark tracks gouged into the ground. It flew back approximately seven meters before it could stabilize itself.

    Everyone was overjoyed when they saw that the blood mantis was in a shaky and miserable state. Its left w was broken, revealing a frightening wound that was bleeding non-stop. The red-colored armor on its body was densely filled with pin-sized holes. These holes were created by Shi Xueman¡¯s cloud of mist.

    The cloud of mist in the air started to shrink rapidly, transforming back into the snow-white spear and returning to Shi Xueman¡¯s hands.

    At that moment, Ai Hui picked himself up from the ground where he had fallen, hard.

    Upon seeing the wound on the blood mantis, his face did not show any sign of joy. He could only yell, ¡°Be careful!¡±

    In the Wilderness, dire beasts that were severely injured would have one of two reactions. They would either turn and run away, or they would be even more aggressive. The more powerful a dire beast was, the more likely it was to adopt the second reaction. That was because stronger dire beasts had been through more killings and were more ferocious; they definitely would not easily give up a fight. Right now, the blood mantis did not show any signs that it would escape!

    Just as Ai Hui finished yelling, the blood mantis pped its wings and slowly flew up into the air.

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed. He just remembered another strength that the blood mantis possessed: low-altitude flying, also known as treetop flying. Treetop flying involved flying at high speeds while staying below the height of the treetops, which was around ten meters.

    Insects were the ones that usually specialized in low-altitude flying. Their flying speeds were not fast, but they were extremely agile, making them ¡°treetop assassins¡±.

    In contrast, birds belonged in high-altitude zones. The more ferocious a bird was, the higher it would fly. Somerge-scale beasts could even stay in extreme-altitude zones for an entire year without flying back down even once.

    Elementalists¡¯ azure wings were of a simr nature to those of the birds; they were more suitable for high-altitude flying. Maneuvering in dense jungles was not the azure wings¡¯ forte...

    Ai Hui choosing the cloak, Golden Wind, was for this reason; for the city which was densely packed with buildings, low-altitude flying would be more suitable. His [Gale Bat de] could also exhibit a simr effect, but the [Gale Bat de]¡¯s flying path was more predictable as it could not make as many maneuvers as the cloak.

    Although this was the case, damn it, he had just gotten the cloak and had not even had the chance to use it once.

    Before he could make any moves, the hovering blood mantis surged forward.

    A red sh appeared before everyone¡¯s eyes; however, to their surprise, the blood mantis was not flying towards them, but to a wall nearby.

    In an instant, Ai Hui knew what was going on. His facial expression changed drastically as he snarled, ¡°Left side!¡±

    Fatty was well-coordinated with Ai Hui. Without any hesitation, he dashed towards Ai Hui¡¯s left side and raised his heavy shield.

    When the blood mantis reached the wall, it used its powerful lower limbs to give the wall a kick.

    Boom! The powerful impact from the kick sent the bricks in the wall flying everywhere. The blood mantis¡¯s speed was greatly increased, so much so that its form could no longer be caught by human eyes.

    A demonic red scythe glintnded on Fatty¡¯s shield like a meteor.

    Boom!

    Fatty, who was wearing a heavy armour and holding a heavy shield, flew backwards and crashed into a fence. He looked like a kicked ball.

    The recoil that the blood mantis received was also harsh. It flew back as if it was being tugged by a string tied to its back. Its body suddenly drifted up into the air and started swaying like a drunkard.

    Everyone was shocked by the might of its attack. With the heavy armor and shield, Fatty weighed up to a few hundred kilograms. They had also seen Fatty¡¯s God-given strength in action, but one strike from the blood mantis had still sent Fatty flying off.

    Such terrifying power from one strike...

    Even Shi Xueman, who was the most powerful among them, had her face turned deathly white. The strength of this blood mantis struck her deeply with fear. At that moment, her first reaction was to look for Ai Hui.

    She did not know since when Ai Hui had be the person she subconsciously sought help from. It might have been because of his calm and easygoing attitude, or his unwavering confidence.

    Anyways, where was Ai Hui?

    Her eye pupils abruptly constricted. Unexpectedly, Ai Hui was below the blood mantis!

    Ai Hui was extremely focused at that moment. The sword embryo in his forehead was throbbing intensely, as if it was going to jump out at any moment.

    The blood mantis¡¯s strength had almost reached the level of a dire beast. If Ai Hui was to encounter such an enormous monster in the past, he would have immediately run away as far as possible. It was a joke for the few of them to deal with a monster that was at the same level as a dire beast.

    Now, however, where would they run to?

    The entire Central Pine City was surrounded by blood fiends, where could they possibly run to?

    The only way for them to survive was to go all-out and fight.

    He had watched countless dire beasts being hunted and he had survived a close encounter with one before; however, in this dangerous situation, he still trembled with intense fear. It engulfed his entire body, stimting every muscle and nerve, causing them to tremble involuntarily.

    Actually, he knew that he wasn¡¯t someone who treated death nonchntly. He was actually very timid and scared before the prospect of death. Nevertheless... nevertheless, at this moment, Ai Hui forced himself to be cool-headed.

    He became so calm that not a single emotion ran through his mind.

    Only by staying calm could he find a way to survive.

    He must survive.

    He was emotionless. All he could see was the swaying body of the blood mantis above his head. He could see that the previous impact had opened up the blood mantis¡¯s wound even more, causing its bleeding to be more severe. He could smell the unique fragrance of the blood poison in the air. He could see that the stiff and rigid body of the blood mantis was recovering rapidly.

    Shi Xueman was filled with intense embarrassment. Since when had he gone over?

    Her teammate was fighting with an all-out effort, and yet, she was so scared that she had lost all of her fighting spirit. An imposing figure appeared in her mind. If her father were to see this scene, he would be very disappointed in her....

    The intense feeling of embarrassment and her sense of responsibility were burning her like a scorching me. The fear in the girl¡¯s eyes disappeared and was reced by determination.

    Traces of white-colored mist emitted from her back. They kept on extending and wafting through the air.

    The mist at her back was nimble and graceful, swaying slowly like how nts swayed in water.

    With a twist of her body, she looked as though she had just broken out from shackles which had been binding her, and disappeared in an instant.

    The next moment, she appeared before the blood mantis and stabbed her spear towards its eyes.

    The blood mantis sensed that danger wasing and started hissing. Its scythe-like w swept through the air and blocked Shi Xueman¡¯s attack.

    The blue-armored girl that was drifting in the mist had a determined look on her face. Her attacks got faster and faster.

    The blood mantis tried its best to fend off the attacks, but it still got stabbed eventually. Two more bloody holes appeared on its body, causing it to turn even madder.

    Suddenly, Shi Xueman, who was about tond on the ground, noticed that there was a green glow on the blood mantis¡¯s head. Without any hesitation, she channeled the elemental energy in her body and disappeared, reappearing in the next moment on the other side of the blood mantis.

    She channelled all of her elemental energy into her spear. Synchronizing her body with her spear, she thrust it forward!

    This thrust was extremely powerful. A ruthless look shed across the blood mantis¡¯s eyes, and without showing any signs of dodging, it lunged its ws forward!

    A red-colored scythe glintnded viciously on the power-concentrated spear tip.

    Boom!

    Shi Xueman fell, whizzing down through the air. She looked as if she had been struck by lightning.

    It did not go well for the blood mantis either. All the wounds on its body ruptured, causing blood to spurt out from them. Its body began to sway again and its head was slightly lowered.

    At this point in time, the green glow on top of the blood mantis¡¯s head started to form numerous green flower patterns that wrapped around its body.

    Pop, pop, pop!

    Light andpact explosions could be heard within those patterns, following which, many ck-colored shackles were expelled explosively from the patterns. Once these shackles made contact with the blood mantis, they automatically shackled its body parts.

    The shackles had tightly bound all the joints of the blood mantis.

    Duanmu Huanghun had thrown an entire packet of Shackle Seeds into his [Viridescent Flower]. His face turned pale-white and his body swayed, following which, he copsed to the ground. After activating so many Shackle Seeds, the elemental energy in his body had beenpletely depleted.

    At that very moment, Ai Hui took action.

    The immensely heavy Dragonspine Inferno in his hand felt weightless to him. The intense fear and desperate desire to survive pushed him into a state of extreme focus. Every single trace of elemental energy in his body was pristine and pure.

    They flowed like a river, changing form and direction irregrly. Two elemental energy cords flowed into his left and right hands¡¯ pces respectively.

    The elemental energy cords began to vibrate lightly.

    [Crescent Moon!]

 Chapter 163: Returning to the Training Hall

    Chapter 163: Returning to the Training Hall

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ

    At that moment, the ringing of the sword resembled a sound out of nature.

    The vibrating Dragonspine Infernopletely sapped the elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body in an instant and urately pierced through the blood mantis¡¯s wound. A sword glint that resembled a crescent moon exactly erupted from the tip of the Dragonspine Inferno. The magnificent crescent moon frantically destroyed the inner organs of the blood mantis. It was a crescent moon of death.

    Its muscles, bones, blood vessels, and everything else werepletely shattered.

    The crescent moon pierced through the blood mantis¡¯s body and made its way to its head.

    Pop!

    The crescent moon erupted out of the blood mantis¡¯s head.

    The blood mantis¡¯s body froze as it lost all of its life force.

    The whole process seemed very long, but in reality, it only took a short period of time. Ai Hui finally removed himself from the state of extreme focus. His entire body was sore and weak, as if he had been submerged by surging tidewater.

    They had won.

    He burst intoughter and copsed freely towards the ground.

    At that moment, his body tightened and a white-colored bandage shot out from his shirt to lunge towards the blood mantis.

    Ai Hui¡¯sughter stopped. The Blood Bandage!

    Like an agile white python, the snow-white bandage wrapped around the blood mantis which had been mangled almost beyond recognition. In the blink of an eye, the bandage had tightly wrapped itself around the blood mantis, like a mummy.

    The unforeseen event left everyone in shock.

    The recovered Jiang Wei was able to catch Ai Hui, who was about to make contact with the ground. Wang Xiaoshan pulled Fatty out from the wall debris while Sang Zhijun pulled Shi Xueman out from more debris nearby.

    Duanmu Huanghun was bent down and holding his knees. He was panting very heavily.

    Ai Hui looked around his surroundings. Even though everyone looked miserable, he was overjoyed that they had managed to survive.

    Thump. The blood mantis copsed to the ground heavily. The bandage released itself from the blood mantis¡¯s body and returned to Ai Hui.

    The bandage automatically withdrew back into Ai Hui¡¯s shirt and wrapped itself around his body. At that moment, a wave of heat energy gushed into Ai Hui¡¯s body and he immediately felt refreshed. It was as if his body had regained its energy.

    He was very surprised. He did not know that the bandage had such a use!

    Previously, he had known that the bandage could devour blood and flesh; however, this was the first time that he had received heat energy from it. He felt revitalized, as if he had recovered to his usual state. At the same time, however, he knew that this was a misperception. There was no elemental energy in his body. Usually, when an elementalist¡¯s elemental energy was depleted, he would feel extremely weak. For a student like Duanmu Huanghun, who had a delicate body and focused his training on elemental energy, the fatigue would be more severe and obvious. For Ai Hui, who focused his training on body-tempering, it would be much better for him even though he would still feel tired.

    What was the wave of heat energy if it was not elemental energy?

    Ai Hui was puzzled as he got down from Jiang Wei¡¯s arms.

    Jiang Wei was staring at Ai Hui in shock. Previously, Ai Hui had been gasping for air, but now, he suddenly seemed to have recovered and left Jiang Wei¡¯s hands as if nothing had happened.

    ¡°We have to leave this area immediately.¡±

    Ai Hui took a nce at everyone. Shi Xueman¡¯s face was pale-white and half her body was leaning on Sang Zhijun. Her eyes, however, were still flickering, zing with mes.

    This girl had developed battlelust...

    The so-called ¡°battlelust¡± referred to a state in which one developed a strong desire for fighting and killing. In this state, one could exceed the limits of his or her fighting capabilities. Ai Hui had seen many male elementalists that had developed battlelust, but this was the first time he had seen such a ruthless and violent woman.

    The easier one developed ¡°battlelust¡±, the easier it would be for him or her to ovee the mental barriers of fighting and killing. Eventually, these people would enjoy engaging inbat. This was a remarkable trait for one to have. Those who had this trait were normally filled with fighting spirit and determination.

    Beneath that icy, beautiful face was boiling blood that was filled with battle fervor.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but take a second nce at Shi Xueman. She was indeed the best female student.

    She was able to go all-out on the blood mantis and entered a state of bloodlust during her first realbat. He had never seen such a ferocious girl! In fact, Shi Xueman was much more powerful than most of the hunting units¡¯ elementalists whom he had seen.

    Fatty was lying on the ground and groaning while having a half-dead look on his face; however, Ai Hui heard the crunching sound of Fatty eating his malt candies and felt relieved. This fellow was alright.

    Duanmu Huanghun had a tired look on his face, but when he saw Ai Hui looking at him, he humphed and acted as if he was alright, then stood up.

    ¡°Aim before you throw the Shackle Seeds, they¡¯re very expensive.¡± Ai Hui¡¯s voice rang across his ears.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s facial expression froze.

    After stabbing Bangwan with his words, Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell upon the blood mantis on the ground. All of the blood mantis¡¯s blood and flesh had been devoured, leaving an empty shell on the floor.

    The bright-red shell looked as if it was made out of red crystal.

    Ai Hui walked over and picked up the blood mantis¡¯s shell. Since the flesh and tendons had been removed, it was very easy to break it apart. Ai Hui skillfully broke the shell into pieces and gave one piece each to everyone in the group.

    Upon seeing the confused look on everyone¡¯s faces, Ai Hui exined, ¡°This shell still contains the aura of the blood mantis. By carrying a piece with us, we can hide our auras and make the other blood fiends think of us as their kind.¡±

    If it was other people who said these words, everyone might be skeptical, but it was Ai Hui who had long gained their trust.

    Everyone took a piece of the blood mantis¡¯s shell and under Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s direction, were able to arrive at the training hall safely.

    The alleyway outside of the training hall did not show any signs of damage, implying that the blood fiends had not visited the ce yet. Upon knowing this, everyone heaved a sigh of relief.

    When everyone saw Lou Lan, because of their tension and anxiety, they copsed all over the ce.

    Lou Lan quickly tended to everyone¡¯s wounds.

    Ai Hui chose a few pieces of shell and ced them at the entrance and various corners of the training hall. He hoped that the aura of the blood mantis would ward off other blood fiends. He did not know whether or not it would work, but he was willing to try anything in this desperate situation.

    After receiving treatment from Lou Lan, Shi Xueman had more or less recovered. She walked towards Ai Hui and sat beside him to ask, ¡°What¡¯s up with your bandage?¡±

    After going through a life-and-death battle together with Ai Hui, Shi Xueman became more friendly.

    Ai Hui felt that the way Shi Xueman treated him now was as if both of them had known each other for a very long time; however, he did not feel the same way.

    ¡°It¡¯s an ancient blood-refined artifact that was given to me by my mistress. I don¡¯t know what happened either.¡± Ai Hui removed the bandage and passed it to her. ¡°It used to be a piece of Blood Bandage that was torn in half by my mistress. There was a time when I spilled my blood onto it and the blood was absorbed in an instant. After it absorbed my blood, it became snow-white. Can you help me take a look and see what¡¯s wrong with it? It scared me as well.¡±

    Shi Xueman took the bandage and observed it carefully for a long time. She looked surprised and said, ¡°Such a weird bandage.¡±

    Since she was younger, she hade across a lot of artifacts, and hence, she knew a thing or two about them. She could not, however, see what was unique about the bandage. Other than it being tattered, there was nothing special about it, although she did see with her own eyes how the bloody bandage had devoured the blood and flesh of the blood mantis. It had frightened her. She quickly passed it back to Ai Hui.

    ¡°What shall we do now?¡± Shi Xueman asked and looked at Ai Hui.

    After having some rest and replenishments, the others had regained much of their elemental energy. Upon hearing Shi Xueman¡¯s question, all of them gathered around.

    Any amount of arrogance that anyone might have had prior to the battle today had been erased. It took so much effort from everyone to barely defeat a blood mantis. Furthermore, there was so much luck involved in the battle that if they were to fight the blood mantis again, none of them had the confidence that they could defeat it once more.

    They were at aplete loss and felt that their future was bleak.

    Only Ai Hui and Fatty remained as calm as usual. For those who had walked out of the darkness, whatever happened recently was merely a cloudy day.

    ¡°These next few days, we will try to avoid crowded ces. Right now, it is the most chaotic period of time. We don¡¯t know how many blood fiends have infiltrated the city and whether or not the breaches on the walls have been repaired. These issues are not something that we can care about or resolve. The only thing we can do now is to improve ourselves and learn how to fight in realbat. This is a race and those who are slow will be eaten.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s tone was so cold that it sent shivers down their spines.

    Everyone remained silent. They found it hard to ept such a cruel reality.

    ¡°Can¡¯t we fend off the blood beasts?¡± Shi Xueman suddenly raised her head and asked.

    ¡°Only if you¡¯re a Grandmaster, then it might be possible.¡± Ai Hui cast a nce at her. That absolutely beautiful face contained a tinge of worry and anxiety. He then continued bluntly, ¡°You¡¯re not a Grandmaster, I¡¯m not a Grandmaster, and all of us almost got killed by a blood mantis. Don¡¯t do things that are not within your limits. Other than losing your life, you¡¯re also going to implicate the rest of us.¡±

    ¡°What if everyone unites together and fights them?¡± Jiang Wei asked doubtfully.

    ¡°Perhaps it might work.¡± Ai Hui unexpectedly nodded his head, but his tone changed the next moment. ¡°Who¡¯s going to do it? There has to be a hero to do that. You? Me? The mayor? Alright, let¡¯s hope that the mayor is that hero.¡±

    Everyone was depressed, but they knew that what Ai Hui said was right. No one felt that the mayor could do this. Even though Wang Zhen had been the mayor of this city for ten years, they had never even seen this man.

    Shi Xueman raised her head again, and this time, she had serious look on her face. ¡°Nevermind, we can¡¯t afford to care about the others. What matters most is that we survive.¡±

    ¡°We need to endure for a period of time and wait for the Thirteen Divisions¡¯ reinforcements. I¡¯m sure all of you know about the Thirteen Divisions¡¯ situation. If you want to survive, you have to live at least until then. Reflect on the battle today.¡±

    After Ai Hui finished speaking, he did not care about them anymore and walked to one side by himself.

    He had a lot of things to do. Until now, he had yet to read the original copy of [Big Dipper] that he got from the dean.

    He also needed to familiarize himself with the Golden Wind and the Red Dust.

    Aspared to thest time when Ai Hui identally executed [Crescent Moon], today¡¯s situation had not been too different as there had been a lot of luck involved in the end. On the other hand, he could feel that there were some positive developments as he had observed and learned from every single detail of the sword move.

    He felt that if he did not have enough time to train, how would he have the time to chit-chat with everyone?

    During today¡¯s battle, whether it was Shi Xueman or Duanmu Huanghun, all of them hadmitted a lot of stupid mistakes; however, he did not criticize them. Both of them were geniuses and were smarter than him. They would learn how to coordinate during a fight after just a few more battles.

    If they identally died before they learned how to engage inbat properly, then so be it.

    Thanks to the blood mantis, Ai Hui was able to realize that the situation was far worse than what he had expected it to be. The blood mantis had been extremely powerful and was far stronger than the blood fiends that they had encountered in the Garden of Life and Central Pine City. It was on apletely different level.

    It made him think of the days when they had hidden beneath the mound while matured blood fiends roared outside.

    After reminding Lou Lan to supervise Fatty in his training, Ai Hui immediately dove into a crazy training routine.

    His intense uneasiness made him more focused.

    He was also deeply captivated by the [Big Dipper].

    Lou Lan was squatting in front of the red crystal-like shells that Ai Hui and the rest had collected. The eyes on his pale-white mask were blinking excitedly, showing deep interest.

 Chapter 164: The Coming Of The Blood Tsunami

    Chapter 164: The Coming Of The Blood Tsunami

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    The afternoon sun was intensely hot, yet it could not bring the slightest bit of warmth to Wang Zhen and the dean, who were both high up in the sky.

    The cracks in the north gate had been repaired. However, the city had already been invaded by a lot of blood fiends. Since the incident happened too abruptly, the unprepared popce had caused a very massive and severe trampling ident, causing the deaths of many people. Wang Zhen immediately ordered a cleanup operation of the blood fiends in the city. Initially, the operation went rather smoothly. Then, they encountered a two meter-long blood centipede which killed approximately 30 people.

    If Wang Zhen and the dean had not managed to arrive at the scene in time, the rest of the elementalists would have been killed on the spot.

    Currently, all of Central Pine City was low in morale and its people were in a state of anxiety.

    ¡°Things are not going as nned.¡± The dean¡¯s voice contained a tinge of dissatisfaction. He ced high hopes on Wang Zhen, but the first day Wang Zhen took over the defense of the city, there was already an ident. Previously, they thought that the blood fiends¡¯ maturity period would take about five to seven days. However, the blood centipede¡¯s fighting capabilities showed otherwise, striking fear in the dean¡¯s heart.

    ¡°My dean, this is a battlefield. idents happen anytime and anywhere on a battlefield.¡± Wang Zhen sneered.

    ¡°Yes, you¡¯re right. There are definitely idents on a battlefield, but for a time window of 15 days, we let the blood fiends infiltrate the city on the first day. What can you say about that? My mayor,¡± the dean replied sarcastically.

    ¡°Naturally.¡± Wang Zhen nodded his head calmly. ¡°This shows that the enemies are much stronger than what we expected them to be. This also shows that we are much weaker than what we expected ourselves to be. There¡¯s nothing too terrible about this. Committing a mistake on the first day is much better thanmitting a mistake on thest day. At least we have the time to make improvements, even though the improvements might not work.¡±

    The dean was speechless. He knew that the current situation could not be med on Wang Zhen. At this point of time, he hoped for a hero that could create miracles, but that person clearly was not Wang Zhen. He had to eventually pull himself out of the unrealistic fantasy and return to the cruel reality.

    ¡°What can we do now?¡± the dean asked, trying to calm his tone down.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s facial expression returned to normal and he replied, ¡°Right now, we have to quarantine those people who are afflicted with the blood poison. We still do not know whether or not they can be saved. If we let them howl in anguish in the city, it will deal a huge blow to the overall morale. Next, we will organize student groups to carry out the cleanup operation of the blood fiends in the city.¡±

    ¡°We are involving the students so early?¡± The dean was astonished.

    ¡°Yes,¡± Wang Zhen replied solemnly, ¡°the blood catastrophe is much worse than what we expected it to be. Let them get used to it. The subsequent phase of the catastrophe will be even more grim.¡±

    The dean trembled in fear.

    ¡°It¡¯sing!¡± Wang Zhen¡¯s voice contained a rarely seen tinge of panic.

    The dean quivered and raised his head involuntarily. He saw something that he would never forget for the rest of his life.

    The bloody skyline at a distant mountain suddenly thickened. Then, a surging blood tsunami swallowed the mountain like an enormous ck hole.

    One by one, the mountains were swallowed by the blood tsunami.

    The dean could feel a chilly wave shooting up his legs. Even Wang Zhen, who had seen countless terrifying scenes on the battlefield, turned deathly-white at this moment.

    Furthermore, both of them were in the sky and could see what was going on clearly.

    Everywhere the blood tsunami passed through, various blood nts would grow frantically. These nts continued to grow upward. In the blink of an eye, the lush and verdant forests were dyed blood-red. Rocks and boulders were covered in bright red moss. Not a single mountain could withstand the blood tsunami. It was swallowing up everything.

    The rapidly growing nts caused the forests to grow denser and thicker. One would not be able to see the ground from the sky anymore and all he or she could see was a boundless sea of blood.

    In the face of a world-changing force, mankind was incredibly insignificant.

    At this moment, those who saw the iing blood tsunami had only deep fear and despair in their eyes.

    The distant blood tsunami, the sounds of nts frantically growing, and the whizzing currents of blood swallowed up everything before their eyes. Such crazy, boundless, and terrifying power did not belong to any man. Only gods had such power.

    Everyone¡¯s face was ashen, including Wang Zhen¡¯s.

    Everything outside of Central Pine City was changed beyond recognition. The mountains, rivers, and hills hadpletely disappeared. The previously 10 meter-tall trees had now be more than 50 meters tall. The branches and leaves hadpletely transformed, looking like an alien nt. Bristlegrass, which normally only grew to knee level, had now grown to more than six meters tall. The grass had be stronger and more sinister. Sword reeds had grown more than 20 meters tall, but their biggest change was that they became wider. The sawtooth edges of their leaves had be thicker and sharper. If one had not seen the way they transformed, he or she would not be able to identify them as sword reeds.

    Everything changed.

    All one could see was the sea of blood. The most noticeable entity in this vast sea of blood was Central Pine City. The city was like a small lonely ind.

    Suddenly, Wang Zhen realized something was wrong.

    ¡°It¡¯s so quiet.¡± The dean¡¯s murmur exploded in Wang Zhen¡¯s ears like a thunderp.

    He finally realized what was wrong.

    The blood sea outside of the city was dead silent. Not a single sound could be heard. The surging waves of the blood tsunami had disappeared, leaving a vast sea of blood here.

    There were no insect cries, roars of beasts, or birds¡¯ chirpings. There were no sounds at all.

    The silence made one¡¯s hair stand on end.

    Where were the blood fiends?

    An intense uneasiness engulfed Wang Zhen¡¯s mind. He kept on looking around, trying to find signs of blood fiends. However, his line of sight was blocked by the thick and dense forests, causing him to not be able to see anything.

    What exactly was the blood tsunami? Where were the blood fiends? What was going on under the sea of blood?

    Countless questions were spinning in his head. Like an invisible hand that tightly gripped his throat, an indescribable fear choked and suffocated him.

    Dead silence. Boundless dead silence.

    Even the intense afternoon sun could not bring any vitality to this dead silence. It was natural for anyone to feel fear upon facing such dead silence and this blood sea.

    The thick city walls could not bring them any sense of security. Currently, Central Pine City was like a lone ind in the midst of deathly blood sea.

    Wang Zhen was terrified. He knew that this silence was the calm before the storm. Something had to be brewing in the blood-colored forests outside. He did not know what was it, but he knew it would be something horrifying.

    ¡°Old Yu, bring some people with you and go out of the city to check it out. Bring the telepathy lotus as well.¡± Wang Zhen looked at his subordinate that had followed him for many years and hardened his heart.

    Old Yu¡¯s previously anxious face calmed down instead. ¡°Help me take good care of my son.¡±

    ¡°Okay.¡± Wang Zhen bit his lips. Hecked the courage to say anything else.

    If people were to leave the city at this point of time, they would have little chance of surviving. No, they would have zero chance of surviving.

    Without wasting time, Old Yu picked five people. All of them were veterans from the front line in the past. Their hairs were grizzled and white, while their wrinkled faces looked peaceful. Without hesitation, they bowed to Wang Zhen.

    Wang Zhen had taken care of them for many years. If not for the mayor, aged and feeble men like them would lead a difficult and miserable life.

    The group of aged and thin figures disappeared into the sea of blood.

 Chapter 165: The Mantis Vest

    Chapter 165: The Mantis Vest

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Pranav

    The training hall had been very peaceful today.

    Everyone was immersed in their training, and other than Fatty, whom Ai Hui needed to supervise, everyone else was fine. Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun were able to quicklye up with specialized training routines that focused on their respective needs, which were much better than usual and conventional practice.

    Upon seeing this, Ai Hui could only sigh. Geniuses were truly a bunch of freaks.

    He didn¡¯t know that, in the eyes of others, he himself was a freak as well.

    He was steadfast, focused and did everything with overwhelming confidence. Furthermore, whenever he encountered perilous situations, he would remainpletely calm, and he was always meticulous with his actions, causing everyone to be at ease.

    Within a short period of time, he had gained the trust and confidence of all.

    Not everyone who had survived the Wilderness could do this. Take Fatty, for example. He, too, had survived the Wilderness, yet he looked and behaved like a bum.

    Ai Hui was a freak, and even his sand puppet was a freak.

    They were all very knowledgeable and had seen many sand puppets before, but they had never encountered one that was so smart and intelligent. There was nothing that Lou Lan could not do, and he would give everyone the feeling that ¡°Lou Lan is very happy¡± in whatever he did.

    Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun were both charmed by Lou Lan; they really liked him.

    Lou Lan turned himself into a sand-made saw and started happily sawing the blood mantis¡¯s empty shell into palm-sized pieces. Lou Lan then transformed into a mini sandstorm that sucked them all in, and after a while, the sandstorm ¡°spat¡± out a heap of polished and glossy red pieces of mantis shell.

    When Lou Lan used these polished red shell pieces to craft a vest and passed it to Ai Hui, Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun turned green with envy. They looked as if they wanted to snatch the vest from Ai Hui.

    However, honestly, Lou Lan¡¯s craftsmanship could be said to be exceptional. Every shell piece was like a ruby that had been meticulously polished. Even Shi Xueman¡ªwho was used to seeing all kinds of jewels since a young age¡ªeximed in admiration.

    ¡°Thank you, Lou Lan!¡±

    Ai Hui was pleasantly surprised. The reason why he had brought back the blood mantis¡¯ shell was that he felt it would be a rather good material. Not only was it very light, but it was also very tough¡ªthese features were what made them suffer during their fight with the blood mantis. Ai Hui, who was immersed in his training all day long, did not have any time to waste. He did not expect Lou Lan to give him such a surprise.

    ¡°You¡¯re wee, Ai Hui,¡± Lou Lan replied happily.

    ¡°What a fantastic sand puppet.¡± Sang Zhijun could not help but feel sour. Lou Lanpletely overthrew her understanding of sand puppets; this was the first time she had seen such a smart sand puppet like Lou Lan in this world.

    ¡°Train faster.¡± Even though Shi Xueman was envious, she could still restrain her emotions. She had already made up her mind to buy a sand puppet like Lou Lan in the future.

    Suddenly, everyone heard the rapid approach of a strange sound of crashing waves. Momentster, though, the sound could be heard going away from them rapidly again. It was as if a tsunami had just hurtled past them.

    Everyone stopped what they were doing.

    ¡°What is that sound?¡± Wang Xiaoshan asked weakly.

    No one answered him. Everyone looked bewildered as they had never heard such a sound before.

    ¡°It¡¯sing from the outside of the city.¡± Ai Hui listened attentively to the sound as a solemn look appeared on his face.

    ¡°Shall we go and take a look?¡± Shi Xueman looked at Ai Hui and asked.

    Ai Hui thought for a while before shaking his head. ¡°I don¡¯t think so. We better hurry up and focus on our training. Even if something happens outside, I don¡¯t believe that it¡¯s something that we can resolve.¡±

    Everyone had the same thought. The battle with the blood mantis had made them realize how weak and delicate they actually were.

    ......

    Wang Zhen was waiting anxiously. In front of him, six bowls of water were lined up on a table.

    Inside every bowl of water was a floating ck-colored lotus seed¡ªthe telepathy lotus seed. Its scientific name was ¡°Yin and Yang Telepathy Lotus Seed,¡± and they were created and bred by a lotus-loving wood elementalist. At that time, a lotus that was half-white and half-ck had appeared in his lotus pond, and there were two lotus seeds¡ªone ck, one white¡ªin it. He had been fascinated by it, and hence, he had started to cultivate it with great care.

    Ten years ago, when the Yin and Yang Telepathy Lotus first appeared, it merely existed to be looked at and appreciated by people.

    It was only until one day that the wood elementalist identally crushed one of its seeds and discovered the magical property of the telepathy lotus seeds.

    If Old Yu crushed his telepathy lotus seeds, the telepathy lotus seeds in the bowls of water would be crushed at the same time and broadcast moving visual images of the surroundings of the lotus seed that had been crushed.

    The image would onlyst for around two minutes.

    The telepathy lotus seeds were quickly utilized in the battles in the Wilderness, and they demonstrated great versatility. The ability to receive moving visual images from the front line was greatly valuable to themanding officers.

    The telepathy lotus seed naturally had its weaknesses as well. For example, it could not be used for more than a distance of one hundred miles, and the time of the visual images it could broadcast was very short. However, they were very cheap and were easily bred, making them very versatile.

    Everyone was silent. The world-changing power that the blood tsunami had disyed had struck fear and despair into everyone¡¯s heart. They did not know how to fight against such a formidable and nerve-racking opponent¡ªthey simply couldn¡¯t think of any solutions. The back view of the six old men walking towards their deaths added a touch of sorrow and despair to the entire situation.

    The passing of time was slowed down by the dead silence.

    Time passed slowly, and the lotus seeds in the bowls of water still hadn¡¯t shown any signs of movement. Wang Zhen was bing increasingly impatient.

    An hour soon passed.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s facial expression had returned to normal. It had already been an hour, and it was very likely that Old Yu and the rest had died. After regaining hisposure, his thought process became much clearer.

    ¡°There are two possibilities. The first is that Old Yu and the rest were killed before they could crush the telepathy lotus seeds. The second possibility is that the blood sea can disconnect the telepathic connection between the telepathy lotus seeds,¡± Wang Zhen muttered to himself.

    The dean¡¯s face was pale. He was rather powerful, but he had never been to a battlefield before.

    Wang Zhen cast a nce at the dean andughed bitterly. To maintain meritocracy, the Induction Ground would never choose anyone from the Thirteenth Division or the influential families to be the dean. All the deans came from an average background and had never been to the front line; they were only specialized in the field of education. And because of these academic-oriented deans, the Induction Ground became a hub of education that contained a broad range of schools of thought.

    However, everything had its pros and cons.

    Ever since the catastrophe broke out in the Induction Ground, these well-educated teachers and deans had been clumsy, slow-reacting, and panicky.

    Wang Zhen regretted that he never paid enough attention to training soldiers in thest ten years. When the blood catastrophe struck, he suddenly discovered that he did not have any capable men to rely on. He now had to pay the price for wasting so much time during thest ten years.

    Not only the Induction Ground, but the entire Avalon of Five Elements had its sense of danger derived solely from the front line in the Wilderness. Everyone had to now pay the price for being careless and shortsighted.

    If the current catastrophe was man-made, the mastermind had definitely picked the weakest area of the Avalon of Five Elements to plot against...This blood disaster was truly disastrous. It was the heaviest loss the Avalon of Five Elements suffered ever since it was established.

    After digesting the bitterness and regret, a determined look appeared on Wang Zhen¡¯s face. ¡°I need to send someone in to clearly discern what¡¯s going on inside.¡±

    ¡°Who are you going to send?¡± The dean was at a loss.

    Wang Zhen racked his brain and tried to think of a candidate who could handle this mission. The more dangerous the mission, the higher the expectations he had for the candidate. Those who were mentally weak and inexperienced would copse even before the mission started.

    He wanted to do it himself, but he knew that if anything were to happen to him, then Central Pine City would not have anyone who could take charge of the entire situation, and it would immediately copse.

    ¡°We will start a recruitment drive.¡± He thought aloud, ¡°There are definitely some people who specialize in reconnaissance in the multitude of training halls and workshops in this city. The problem is how should we persuade these people to go? They have no obligation to die for us.¡±

    ¡°What do you need?¡± The dean understood at once.

    Right now, the more capable individuals in Central Pine City were members of the various training halls. Anyone who could be referees or guards in the training halls were more or less capable, and most of them had joined hunting units before. After they became older and wanted a stable life, they chose to work in training halls.

    However, even though these people were veterans, they would not ept Wang Zhen¡¯s mission easily.

    Wang Zhen sighed. ¡°We will take care of our respective sides. I will provide the money, the valuable equipment, and supplies. You will provide absolute arts and the like.¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± The dean agreed swiftly. He had already given out the original copy of [Big Dipper], and as such, he did not care about giving out other absolute arts and valuable manuals anymore.

    ......

    The elementalists in the sky kept yelling and publicizing the recruitment drive.

    It was at this moment that Ai Hui and the rest understood what was going on.

    ¡°I wonder what the situation is outside? Howe there¡¯s a blood tsunami all of a sudden?¡± Sang Zhijun¡¯s face was filled with worry.

    It wasn¡¯t only her¡ªeveryone was deeply troubled as well. Ever since the onset of the blood catastrophe, the situation had continued to worsen, causing the uneasiness in everyone¡¯s heart to continuously grow.

    Fatty noticed Ai Hui¡¯s gaze and asked doubtfully, ¡°Ai Hui, don¡¯t tell me you want to go?¡±

    ¡°Yes. The dean and the mayor have put in all they have this time around.¡± A glint was flickering in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    Ai Hui¡¯s reply shocked everyone.

    ¡°No! It¡¯s too dangerous!¡± Shi Xueman vetoed without even a second¡¯s thought.

    ¡°Yes, I agree. Ai Hui, didn¡¯t you just say that we will not be capable of resolving anything that happens outside?¡± Sang Zhijun started to persuade Ai Hui as well.

    Duanmu Huanghun had a confused look on his face as he stared at Ai Hui. He did not know why Ai Hui suddenly had this notion¡ªsuch a rash decision wasn¡¯t his style at all.

    ¡°What do you have your eye on this time?¡± Fatty asked directly. He still knew Ai Hui the best.

    ¡°Dire beasts¡¯ meat, elemental food,¡± Ai Hui replied bluntly.

    Everyone was infuriated by Ai Hui¡¯s response. They could understand if the reward was some absolute art, but elemental food? Since when had theycked elemental food? Elemental food was the mostmonly-seen thing to them.

    ¡°There¡¯s too little time, and we need to increase our fighting capabilities. The best solution to this problem is elemental food. Lou Lan is very good at making it. During this period of time, things like dire beast meat are hard toe by. They are priceless, and they are excellent for making elemental food,¡± Ai Hui continued.

    Shi Xueman still disagreed with him. ¡°I agree with you that we need to improve our fighting capabilities as soon as possible. However, it¡¯s still too dangerous. We don¡¯t need to be so anxious about it.¡±

    ¡°Actually, there¡¯s nothing dangerous about it,¡± Ai Hui exined.

    No one believed his words.

    Ai Hui pointed to the mantis-shell vest on his body and continued to exin, ¡°I have this¡ªits aura will conceal my aura. If I¡¯m careful, there shouldn¡¯t be much of a problem. Haven¡¯t you all realized that from yesterday till today, there hasn¡¯t been any blood fiend near us? I feel that it¡¯s not too big of a risk and that it¡¯ll be worth it.¡±

    Everyone was astounded. It turned out that Ai Hui had already considered every factor.

    ¡°I will apany you.¡± Shi Xueman stepped forward bravely.

    ¡°Do you know how to carry out an infiltration?¡± Ai Hui asked doubtfully.

    Shi Xueman rolled her eyes.

    ¡°Everyone, wait for my return.¡±

 Chapter 166: Panic in the Blood Forest

    Chapter 166: Panic in the Blood Forest

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Brave men will emerge when the reward is good.

    When the magistrate court and Central Pine Academy simultaneously brought out enticing rewards, the number of elementalistsing forward to register increased significantly. Wang Zhen heaved a sigh of relief. The unusual change in situation outside the city had made him extremely uneasy.

    Still, he was surprised to see Ai Hui¡¯s name; it had left a deep impression in his mind. He wrinkled his brows. This little fellow was most likely still a student.

    Hepulsively wanted to overrule it but then recalled the dean¡¯s assessment of Ai Hui¡ªthat he was the most mature student he had ever met, clear about his goals, andcking in juvenile impulsivity. Wang Zhen then thought about Ai Hui¡¯s experiences in the Wilderness as aborer. Perhaps that fellow had something unique that he did not understand.

    This was not surprising. Laborers who managed to survive the Wilderness had to have something extraordinary about them.

    Wang Zhen collected his thoughts. Right now, there was nothing more important than getting information about the blood forest.

    The dean had already arranged for the teachers to lead students in purging the blood fiends within the city. ording to Wang Zhen¡¯s n, the entire city would be divided into twelve regions, each handled by a division of teachers and students.

    A few battles had already broken out today, with numerous casualties.

    The dean had approached him, hoping to change the n before being firmly denied. Wang Zhen¡¯s wish was for everyone to gradually adapt through this low-intensity battle. In the process, lives would inevitably be lost, but he had no other choice. Only through this could everyone be prepared to fight in more strenuous circumstances. At the very least, if that time shoulde, they would not crumble and scatter.

    Ai Hui did not wear the mantis vest on the outside; he understood the logic behind hiding one¡¯s wealth.

    After receiving the telepathy lotus seed and movie bean, he departed from the city alone. The number of participating elementalists was not small. Some grouped in threes or fours, while others decided to move independently as Ai Hui did.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes gleamed brightly in their vignce. One look and Ai Hui could tell that they were all seasoned warriors with rich experience. His eyes lit up; it was his first time seeing so many veterans within the city. Be it the magistrate court¡¯s guards or the teachers in Central Pine Academy, they were all rookies when it came to realbat.

    Old hands were indeed different!

    Ai Hui was confident in this operation.

    With so many people participating, the investigation shouldn¡¯t be a problem this time. This was good for the guards in Central Pine City. Plus, having arge crowd would distract the attention of the other blood fiends.

    When it came to understanding blood fiends, Ai Hui was better off than most. Since his time in the Garden of Life, he had been secretly observing them and their changes.

    For example, the blood mantis was much stronger than the previous blood fiends. There were differences in its body characteristics as well. The blood fiends of the past had blood-red bodies, but the carapace of the blood mantiscked the strong red hue and even appeared translucent. Its defense had risen as well.

    Most elementalists had dismissed these subtle changes, but Ai Hui caught and remembered them.

    The blood fiends were bing stronger, yet even now, nobody knew the method behind theirplete transformations and what advantages came with it.

    He hoped to find a pattern in the blood fiends¡¯ metamorphoses.

    As Ai Hui exited through the city door, the blood forest came into view, and he momentarily lost his spirit. The changes were beyond recognition.

    With a quick scan across, the devilishly bright red expanse seemed boundless. The formerly azure skies were now contaminated by a dullyer of crimson¡ªit was eerily frightful. The towering, dense, and thick forest... it was like an imprable wall of red, blocking out all attempts to peer inside as though concealing a terrifying secret.

    Ai Hui stood in a daze for a few good minutes.

    His hair stood on end, and a chill ran through his body. He simply could not imagine the force that could create this insanely warped sight before his eyes.

    He finally understood why the mayor wanted to spend so much time and effort to obtain the secrets within the blood forest.

    Seeing everything, his thoughts were exactly the same as the mayor¡¯s. Something frightening was definitely brewing within the forest.

    They must find out!

    Ai Hui inhaled deeply to warm his cold body. The fear in his eyes receded slowly, his pupils regaining their cool, dusk-blue color.

    He stepped forward and advanced firmly towards that towering, blood-red ¡°city wall.¡±

    Ai Hui knew the region well; it was the path he took to reach the Suspending Golden Pagoda. After walking here countless times, he naturally became familiar with it. Yet even then, the sight before him was extremely foreign now. What happened to the pagoda? This thought shed across his mind before he re-focused fully on what was before him.

    He stopped at the edge of the forest.

    Dense weeds, about two meters tall, obstructed his path. The leaves were like swords, and the red edges were fine and piercingly sharp, reminding Ai Hui of the fangs of dire beasts.

    Ai Hui could no longer recognize what breed they once were.

    The other elementalists entered by flying, but Ai Hui did not do so. Blood fiends were sensitive to elemental energy, so flying would easily rm them. Of course, master elementalists were strong and had their own methods of handling them, so he didn¡¯t worry. He was of a lowly position; it was of no use to say anything, and he wasn¡¯t someone to meddle in others¡¯ businesses anyway.

    After finding a more covert location, he took off his jacket, revealing the red mantis vest underneath.

    Ai Hui brushed the weeds aside with his Dragonspine Inferno and unhesitantly felt his way in. The brush was thicker than he thought because ten meters in, still all he saw were weeds. The red nts were tough, and parting them took a lot of effort. With his sword, he sawed off a small section. The leaf snapped, and fresh red juice oozed out with a familiar, sweet fragrance. Ai Hui noticed that the smell had be more concentrated.

    After a few minutes, the color of the cut leaf dulled before withering into a gray. A light touch, and the leaf scattered into ashes.

    Ai Hui was painstakingly careful to avoid getting the juice on himself. He was suddenly reminded of Zhou Xiaoxi and felt pity. He couldn¡¯t help but sigh. Such a strong elementalist, elite of the Thirteen Divisions, and he died so unreasonably.

    Advancing, the lush weeds became more sparse about a hundred meters in. Recalling the topography from before, he knew the way into the forest was just in front.

    Ai Hui warily pinched and broke a telepathy lotus seed into pieces.

    Nothing happened.

    A haze passed through his eyes. Indeed, the telepathy lotus seed had disconnected, verifying one of the magistrate court¡¯s conjectures. Fortunately, the court had considered this and specially provided movie beans for them. Compared to the ones used by the training hall, this one was for military use. Recording images no longer required the cumbersome pod, and the visuals were clearer.

    He prepared the movie bean before continuing forward. Everything was going smoothly so far. While there hadn¡¯t been any results, the same could be said for idents as well.

    As the surrounding weeds became increasingly sparse, towering trees began to appear before him.

    He was dumbfounded.

    Over fifty meters in height, the towering trees were so thick that several people would be needed to span the trunk¡¯s circumference. Misshapen tree tumors and strips of twisted vines filled it, seeming to wind around the trunk but also somehow embedded within. The foliage was thick like felt, covering the skypletely. Roots hung down like that of a banyan tree, their ends deeply secured into the ground.

    Suddenly, a blood-curdling screech sounded from the front.

    Ai Hui quivered.

    He carefully parted the roots before bursting forward full-speed.

    Countless hanging roots from a tree had coiled themselves around an elementalist, his skin pricked by small, fine needles.

    The following scene changed Ai Hui¡¯s expression greatly and sent a chill down his spine.

    The tree roots became clear, and the blood-like red juice pumping within flowed into the elementalist¡¯s body continuously. The elementalist¡¯s shrieking came to a sudden stop. His panic-stricken face ckened, and he looked on in relish with a drunken expression. His body was like a fully-inted balloon, while his veins were fully visible in the skin that was now transparent.

    The towering tree let out a crashing rumble.

    Ai Hui felt his blood run cold. He became aware of the whole tree trembling. The vines around the trunk became translucent as well, like human veins through which red juices flowed. The tumors on the trunk seemed toe alive as well, like many distorted and terrifying faces.

    Until now, Ai Hui had assumed he had already experienced the worst the Wilderness had to offer, but he was proven wrong. He had been ridiculously wrong.

    He pinched the movie bean with trembling hands that exposed his current dread.

    He breathed deeply, continuously, in an attempt to control and calm his state of mind.

    No need to look; there wasn¡¯t any hope left for that elementalist.

    And Ai Hui, with his sharp senses, realized the astonishing changes urring in the elementalist¡¯s body.

    Wild animals became blood fiends from the blood poison¡¯s infection. What about humans? Would they be...

    Blood people?

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but shiver.

    Could such a monster still be called human? Completely transformed blood fiends did not lose consciousness¡ªrather, they became stronger and more agile. What about blood people? What would be of them?

    Ai Hui¡¯s fear heightened. Blood fiends were already frightening enough to send them fleeing.

    If blood people... with the intelligence of a human and the body of a blood fiend...

    Ai Hui suddenly thought of the blood poison¡¯s name¡ªGod of Blood. Were they trying to create another variant of human?

    No, impossible!

    No one could do it!

    Ai Hui¡¯s body turned cold as aggressiveness emerged in his eyes. He held on to an additional smallsword before throwing himself forward with all his might.

    Bang!

    The elementalist¡¯s brain exploded, red juice spraying high like a fountain.

    Whatever juice ended up on the tree trunk or leaves was absorbed immediately.

    The tightly coiled roots loosened, dropping the pale, lifeless corpse on the ground.

    Ai Hui rxed a little.

    ¡°Tell me, you killed one of my subordinates. How are you going topensate?¡±

    An indistinct voice echoes in his ears without warning. A faint fragrance entered Ai Hui¡¯s nostrils and a warm breathnded on his neck.

    Ai Hui¡¯s pupils shrank as the hairs all over his body stood on end.

 Chapter 167: Reunion

    Chapter 167: Reunion

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Thanks to the sword embryo, Ai Hui had long be ustomed to having control over the surrounding movements. His six senses were sharper and better than most master elementalists¡¯. Even the high-altitude, noiseless blood bats could not escape him.

    But the voice behind him was like a ghost appearing from nowhere.

    He detected nothing until he heard it.

    He was shocked, but his real-lifebat experience benefited him at such a time. Before his brain had time to process the situation, he had alreadyunched his Dragonspine Inferno behind him out of instinct.

    But it was empty. The Dragonspine Inferno caught nothing.

    ¡°So it¡¯s you, One Thousand Yuan boy.¡± Ady¡¯s sweet, sticky voice sounded from before him.

    Ai Hui raised his head. He knew not when, but a woman dressed in red smiled at him while standing on the branch that had entrapped the elementalist. She sat down easily, her red dress like a waterfall.

    ¡°It¡¯s you!¡±

    Ai Hui was utterly shocked. It was the samedy in red whom he had met in front of the noodle shop.

    ¡°Seeing an old friend makes me so happy.¡± She looked Ai Hui up and down with excitement. ¡°Those who came before were either old or ugly; you look the best. See, you didn¡¯t pay me, but I said you¡¯re pretty.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s mental state was highly tense. Thedy in red had unfathomable powers. Plus, it seemed...

    His gaze fell on the branch below her. The tree roots which had been so wild before were now quiet and cid. But recalling how they had sucked that elementalist dry earlier, the sight before him frightened him still.

    His throat dried up and his heart pounded increasingly fast, but he forced himself to remain calm. ¡°Who are you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m a beauty!¡± thedy answered matter-of-factly before blinking. ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that? Beautiful as a fairy.¡±

    She then shook her head, feigning sadness. ¡°Men are heartless, forgetting what they¡¯ve said just a few days prior? Indeed, if you want to trust a man¡¯s words, you might as well believe that there¡¯s a ghost in this world. Spending a thousand yuan is useless!¡±

    Finishing her sentence, she was unable to restrain a smile.

    Ai Hui did not rx in the slightest. The tree roots remained still and the surrounding forest was quiet, but the pretty and flirtatiousdy before his eyes was immeasurably powerful. Herughter tinkled like silver bells, reverberating around the woods.

    ¡°You nted the blood poison?¡± Ai Hui swallowed his saliva and kept his cool.

    ¡°I¡¯m not that capable.¡± Thedy looked Ai Hui up and down again before continuing, ¡°ckie died in your hands, right? I smelled his scent on your body earlier.¡±

    ¡°ckie?¡± Ai Hui opened his eyes wide and dared not loosen up.

    ¡°The blood fiend baby that I¡¯m keeping. It¡¯s a very powerful bat.¡± Thedy was doubtful. ¡°How strange. You¡¯re not that strong, so how did you kill ckie?¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s scalp started to feel numb. He finally understood why he met her in front of the noodle shop. She was trying to track down that blood bat!

    ¡°Whatever!¡± The youngdy stretched. ¡°You killed ckie, so you must be more powerful. I only like powerful things! Plus, how interesting¡ªbeautiful as a fairy! I feel so shy! Don¡¯t worry, follow me in the future, and I¡¯ll let you have a good life.¡±

    Interesting... it was his first time being called interesting.

    Ai Hui was not happy at all. Instead, he was trying to find an opportunity to escape, but the situation was not in his favor.

    Her power was unpredictable. He was unable to detect her presence even when she was close by. The same was true for when she flew up to the branches. Moreover, the surrounding roots and vines did not affect her, but they were fatal to him.

    Then the dense weeds, thick like walls, were natural obstructions blocking his path.

    On his way here, he had carefully avoided the weeds¡¯ serrated edges when pushing through. The moment he got cut meant a dead end for him. There was absolutely no antidote for the blood poison at this point.

    The hope for a direct and sessful escape was very slim.

    As for any regrets he had over his decision to risk his life like this, it was meaningless to think of it now.

    He was thankful only that thedy did not attack him directly. Perhaps she had insufficient experience, perhaps it was deliberate, or perhaps it was a game to her. No matter the reason, stalling for time was a good option in his current situation.

    There was nock of strong elementalists this time. If they happened to pass by, he could take the chance to escape.

    All right!

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind was turning rapidly, but his face showed no sign of it. Rapidly formting a n, he initiated, ¡°Why are you guys doing this?¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± Thedy in red asked naively, ¡°Then why are you training?¡±

    ¡°To control my own destiny,¡± Ai Hui responded.

    ¡°Control your own destiny?¡± Thedy in red gave a nk stare but soon startedughing happily. ¡°I like this saying! Indeed, you¡¯re worthy of being my subordinate. How interesting.¡±

    ¡°And you guys¡ªwhy?¡± Ai Hui asked in a low tone.

    ¡°Only God can control his own destiny.¡± Thedy in red looked Ai Hui over again, her gaze flickering. ¡°How can ordinary beings struggle free from fate¡¯s stocks and chains? Of course, they can choose a better lock. For example, bing my underling will ensure a bright future. Think about it? I like it when people act ording to their wishes!¡±

    ¡°And then I¡¯ll be sucked dry like him?¡± Ai Hui replied coldly while pointing at the desated corpse on the ground.

    ¡°You killed him.¡± Thedy¡¯s smiling face was like a flower. Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s look of disbelief, she continued unhurriedly, ¡°Although he was trapped, it was actually his good fortune. Do not look down on these bloods. They are the spiritual essence of countless blood insects and beasts, and maybe a thousand or ten thousand of them entered his body. Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s good fortune? If he had survived, his strength would have increased exponentially, much faster than your training. Are you moved? Do you want to control your own destiny? How can you do it without power? I can give you power¡ªmuch more than what you have now! How about it? Are you moved?¡±

    Hearing this, it was as if raging waves had hit his chest. He was no longer able to remain calm. ¡°You guys swallowed all of the blood insects, treating them as nutrients, and gather them into a human body....¡±

    ¡°A human body? No no no!¡± Thedy in red shook her head like a rattle-drum. ¡°No one can endure the power of so many blood insects. Even God can¡¯t do it. Humans mustn¡¯t be so greedy!

    ¡°Maybe you have the gift!¡± She sized Ai Hui up before continuing, ¡°I¡¯ll let you tryter, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯m very generous. If you want it, I¡¯ll give it to you.¡±

    Thedy gave a charming expression and winked at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui finally understood why the forest was so deathly still and silent. He felt a chill in his body, an incorporeal hand firmly strangling his throat.

    The events currently unfoldingpletely subverted all of his knowledge.

    p!

    A sound like that of a watermelon splitting suddenly rang out from deep within the forest.

    ¡°Hey, these people have such weak essence.¡± Thedy was clearly displeased. ¡°They can¡¯t even endure such little blood spiritual force? Useless. God wouldn¡¯t even want such rubbish. The greatest contribution trash can make is to be nutrition for a genius. Sigh, there¡¯s enough nutrients but not enough talents. Hey, are you a genius?¡±

    Ai Hui sharply inhaled in an attempt to restrain the throbbing of his heart.

    That exploding sound couldn¡¯t have been an elementalist who had failed to endure the infusion of blood spiritual force....

    Wait!

    Blood spiritual force!

    Ai Hui soon grasped the crux of the matter. Blood spiritual force¡ªspiritual force! Having disappeared for over a thousand years, the once-resplendent and magnificent spiritual force had actually reappeared....

    This isn¡¯t real....

    ¡°Spiritual force, you said?¡± Ai Hui asked hoarsely. His state of mind was utterly unguarded at this point. He even forgot about escaping.

    Because of spiritual force.

    He knew what its reappearance meant.

    His sword techniques and secrets could be of use. The countless sword manuals he had read that were covered in grime and regarded as rubbish could be useful again. Their dust-covered brilliance, scattered into years of legends and folklores, would reemerge on thisnd.

    The extinct cultivators would reim their world. Be it the Avalon of Five Elements or the Wilderness, neither were worth mentioning in front of them. No one would be able to stop the cultivators.

    Impossible...

    ¡°Yes.¡± Thedy smiled. ¡°Looking forward to it? Cultivation is bing a long-forgotten term. Look, we¡¯re finally able to recover our legacy. How about it? Are you all fired up? Probably getting impatient....¡±

    All of a sudden, with great strength, Ai Hui charged towards Central Pine City like aunched arrow.

    ¡°Men are full of empty words!¡±

    The indistinct voice travelled from behind Ai Hui. Her breath was fragrant and stuck close to his body.

    A cold ray shed past Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. Without a sound, the Dragonspine Inferno struck backward from his left underarm.

    Fell through again!

    Damn it!

    Things were not looking good. Without waiting for Ai Hui to turn around, the voice sounded once again from the back of his neck.

    ¡°Know why I¡¯m talking to you for so long? So much trash is bothersome enough, so I¡¯m just waiting for these trees to recover, and I can prepare a big meal for you. Am I not especially nice to you?¡±

    Without warning, Ai Hui braked and with the power of both legs, lunged himself backwards with all his might.

    [Arching Fish Back]!

    But it was once again fruitless. Ai Hui¡¯s heart dropped.

    The voice came from behind his neck again. Thedy stuck onto him, her puffs of breathnding just above his ears.

    ¡°Although I like it when people act ording to their wishes, if they can¡¯t do it, I find it tasteful to force myself upon them too. One Thousand Yuan boy, I will make youfortable.¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s body tensed as suddenly, his body was bound by the root-like objects. The immense force made his body lose all control, and with how tightly he was wrapped, he felt himself losing consciousness.

    .

    Was he going to die?

    Or be a monster?

    Ai Hui¡¯s limbs were ice-cold.

 Chapter 168: Blood Refinement

    Chapter 168: Blood Refinement

    Trantor: Irene Editor: CakeHermit

    All was ck before Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. His whole body was tightly tied up and he felt like a dumpling. Even his mouth was tightly bound. Luckily, his nose was notpletely blocked or else he would have suffocated. That would have been depressing.

    He felt like he had soared up into the clouds and was flying amongst them, floating unsteadily as he rose and fell.

    Was this how flying felt?

    It wasn¡¯t actually a wonderful experience.

    Initially, panic and dread had upied his mind and body, but as time passed, he struggled free from the fear. As the fear lessened, so did the panic. Panicking wasn¡¯t useful at all since it would not loosen the vines wrapped around his body.

    During his three years in the wilderness, the biggest change Ai Hui had undergone was learning how to fight with his all despite the danger he may be in; if he could not alter the situation, he just had to face the problem with a calm and collected mind. Every day was like a roulette on a gambling table. No one knew what would happen in the next second, so whether or not you were willing and whether or not it was alterable... you would have to face the result eventually.

    Supposing ignorance wasmonce, what one sees is merely a watery reflection on the surface. In that case, only when undisturbed can one see more clearly.

    Having calmed down, Ai Hui¡¯s brain recovered from its frozen state and his thoughts started spinning once again. Every sentence from the conversation he had just had with thedy in red re-emerged in his mind. He suddenly felt that what she had said was fragmented and dishonest.

    If the so-called blood spiritual force really was spiritual force, then they had no need to resort to these tricks. A blood catastrophe waspletely unnecessary.

    Cultivators had many advantages over elementalists.

    Thedy in red and her fellows had killed so many people, enough to cause terror in the popce; however, at the same time, they had created countless nemeses who were now seeking vengeance. Threats were a weapon for the weak. The truly strong would have no need to talk; they would simply crush their opponents.

    If this group of people were really so strong that they were superior whenpared to everyone else, then there should have been no need to create such a dramatic bloodbath.

    There was a ny percent chance that thedy in red was lying.

    Beautifuldies are indeed liars, Ai Hui cursed silently. Unable to resist, he decided to give thedy in red a name to express his disdain.

    What to call her? Oh, how about One Thousand Yuan? Need ¡°One Thousand Yuan¡±! Pfft, what¡¯s the use of being pretty? She was only worth one thousand yuan anyway!

    Ai Hui drew circles and cursed non-stop in his heart, but his brain did not stop thinking.

    It looked like the blood wave was caused by One Thousand Yuan and her group in order to create a batch of powerful soldiers. Currently, this method had proven to be greatly wed since it had extremely high requirements for the test subjects.

    All the elementalists had failed.

    He wasn¡¯t sure if even he could seed. Okay, he probably couldn¡¯t. He wasn¡¯t that gifted.

    How pathetic. He was going to be a firecracker, explode into meat dregs, and die without an intact corpse. So ugly...

    So, what if he did seed? He would be an evil monster. How could he bear killing Fatty and the rest? Fatty and Bangwan owed him so much money too, it would be such a loss. Oh wait, he still owed the noodle shopdy eighty million yuan. Forget it, a monster had better prospects...

    Disorganized and scattered thoughts filled his brain.

    He was even more pessimistic when it came to Central Pine City¡¯s future.

    What if One Thousand Yuan used this kind of method to create a whole bunch of blood fiends? Not many were needed, trouble ensued even if only ten tiny, weak insectsbined their strength.

    Yeah, he had probably reached the depths of the forest by now.

    ¡°Sorry to keep you waiting.¡±

    The gentle voice of thedy in red sounded like the eerie sneer of an executioner to Ai Hui¡¯s ears.

    He was going to leave this world without bing an elementalist after all!

    He ridiculed himself for wanting to control his own fate. His so-called dreams were about to die.

    Okay, it would be considered a blessing if he could just live for a few more years. A tiny small-fry like him had no rights toin, right? It was destiny, huh... he could only ept his fate and surrender his life!

    Please loosen the vines gripping my mouth...

    Hey, hey, hey, I¡¯m about to surrender. One Thousand Yuan, oh, no, beautiful fairy, I¡¯m going to surrender...

    Beautifulmanding officer, your loyal subject is here...

    Hey, hey, hey...

    Thedy in red did not read his thoughts. ¡°I find you interesting. You must be different from the other bunches of trash, so I prepared a big meal for you. You¡¯ll enjoy it very much. When you get used to the taste of blood spiritual force, you¡¯ll know why it¡¯s a world delicacy. Be good, it won¡¯t hurt at all.¡±

    Using her gentle fingers, she pulled a tree root as thick as a thumb over to Ai Hui and stuck it into the hollow of his left palm.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body stiffened and an intense pain made him nk out.

    He¡¯d had no time to react. The red, hot-asva juice entered his body ceaselessly through the wound. He wanted to struggle, but was unable to move at all. He wanted to shout, but not a single sound came out.

    The seemingly boneless, soft white palm grabbed Ai hui¡¯s right hand. Seeing the tightly held sword, she tried to take it away. Who knew that Ai Hui¡¯s grip was so strong. She was unable to take the sword from him no matter how hard she tried.

    ¡°I like stubborn people.¡± The youngdyughed and said, ¡°The more stubborn, the more suffering they¡¯ll feel. Blood spiritual force is the best wine and pain is the best apanying dish. The more you taste, the more pain you experience. My first subordinate is indeed different from the rest. Such happiness.¡±

    Pop.

    Another tree root was stuck into the back of Ai Hui¡¯s right hand.

    Thedy in red looked at Ai Hui, who was tightly bound, with great satisfaction. Countless tree roots swarmed in from all directions, like snakes lured by the smell of fish, towards Ai Hui.

    Each surrounding tree was taller and more solid than the others. The more roots they had, the more concentrated the tumors on the trunks were. The tumors seemed to take the form of human faces and started turning and twisting.

    ¡°I¡¯m really looking forward to it.¡±

    More and more tree roots started pricking Ai Hui¡¯s body and a steady flow of fresh red juice entered within him. Ai Hui¡¯s body twitched uncontrobly and eventually became still, like a senseless corpse.

    Time passed slowly. An hour went by and Ai Hui still showed no signs of bloating.

    Thedy in red was beyond pleased. She muttered to herself, ¡°Indeed, I¡¯ve picked the right subordinate.¡±

    She appeared to be admiring her best work of art.

    Suddenly, movements were detected from far away and her expression changed, but then quickly returned to her usual pretty and flirtatious face. She wrinkled her brows slightly and pouted her rosy lips. ¡°How annoying, finding trouble at such a time.¡±

    Nevertheless, she got up and took ast look at Ai Hui, who was wrapped and bound tightly by countless tree roots.

    She crooked her head and thought for a while before disappearing in a sh.

    Having flown over ten meters, she came to a stop in front of a big tree. It had dense tree roots and a suspended rattan ball.

    Thedy revealed a hurt expression, but still clenched her teeth and shed across the roots supporting the rattan ball. The dense roots broke without a sound and the ball fell to the ground.

    Thedy flew over andnded in front of it, then peeled it open carefully.

    A mastiff dizzily crawled out from inside.

    This mastiff was big, around the size of a young horse. The soles of its feet were blood red and its ws looked like they were dyed the same color. The fresh, blood-like red extended upwards from its ws in a meandering design before formingplicated patterns on and throughout its ash-gray body.

    The mastiff¡¯s eyes were like red rubies, pure and sparkly.

    It bared its fangs, displeased by the disturbance; however the moment it saw the source of the disturbance, ity on the ground obediently.

    Thedy in red felt some heartache. The mastiff was only halfplete. Disrupting its blood refinement process like this meant that it would be difficult for the wolf to be strengthened in the future.

    She quickly recovered from it however. No matter how gifted a blood fiend was and no matter how much refinement it underwent, it would never be on par with a human. There were too many things a blood fiend couldn¡¯t do.

    ¡°Greenie,e here.¡± She waved her hand and floated towards where Ai Hui was.

    The mastiff gave a low howl and followed closely behind.

    The halfplete, blood-refined mastiff had gotten quite a lot stronger, satisfying thedy in red. Its huge body made no noise while it sprinted as fast as lightning.

    In this blood forest, the mastiff¡¯s power wasn¡¯t something average elementalists could fight against.

    ¡°Greenie, guard him. You can kill whoeveres close.¡± Thedy in red instructed the mastiff while pointing at Ai Hui, who was suspended in midair.

    It let out a whimper and licked thedy¡¯s palm.

    ¡°Be good, Greenie. When I¡¯m done settling the problem, you can continue your blood refinement.¡± Thedy in red caressed its head with much tenderness.

    Having said that, she flew up and away.

    She was iparably fast; a red blur shed across the sky as she flew by.

    The mastiffid down below the suspended Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui felt as if he had fallen intova; his whole body was burning. The tremendous pain washed over his whole body like the tide. The torment was so intense and distinct that it was like a purgatory he couldn¡¯t escape.

    The red-hotva-like juice was naturally fond of elemental energy. It charged from all directions to wrap tightly around Ai Hui¡¯s recently activated limb pces and natal residence.

    Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy was slowly swallowed up as the red juice seeped into every single piece of flesh within his body. Every bit of elemental energy was its prey.

    It was like elemental energy¡¯s mortal enemy. It existed to destroy elemental energy and the five residences and eight pces.

    Ai Hui¡¯s limb pces and natal residence started to crumble bit by bit.

    The leg pces lost ground, followed by the hand pces. Intense anguish and despair enveloped Ai Hui. The price he had paid, the time and effort he had put in to activate the residences and pces, and his dream were slowly being swallowed by the red juice right before his eyes.

    The indignation...

    When his natal residence was drowned in the red juice, an unprecedented hopelessness devoured Ai Hui. At this moment, his heart¡¯s despair far exceeded any physical pain.

    He had fallen into the darkest abyss, where not a trace of sunlight or hope could be felt. Only boundless and profound gloom and cold pervaded.

    Just die like this, he said to himself.

 Chapter 169: Go to Hell!

    Chapter 169: Go to Hell!

    Trantor: YH Editor: CakeHermit

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind was in a state of disarray as his body was thrown into chaos. Nothing was left of the hand and leg pces that he had worked so hard to develop. Within his body, the rest of the pces which had not yet been activated were also being destroyed as the blood poison permeated deep into his muscles and bones, thoroughly changing their structure andposition from within.

    His entire body became afflicted with the blood poison. Everyst part of him, both internal and external, was triggered by the blood poison into undergoing a raging, morous transformation.

    There was, however, one spot which remainedpletely calm amidst the chaos his body was experiencing - the sky pce between his brows.

    The blood poison was viciously potent, quickly oveing his natal residence and activated limb pces. Only his sky pce remained as stable as a rock. Blood-red traces surfaced on Ai Hui¡¯s face, spreading to his tightly shut eyes.

    The space between his eyebrows remained unaffected.

    The sky pce remained imprable as the blood poison surged, surrounding itpletely.

    Blood-red traces appeared and vanished on different parts of his body, as if red bugs were congregating and scattering as they ran around.

    The mastiff raised its head and looked at Ai Hui before letting out a couple of envious howls, after which itzilyy back down on the ground.

    Several kilometers away from where Ai Hui was held.

    Thedy in red looked at the wretched-looking man in front of her with a frown. ¡°How did you end up like this?¡± She berated.

    The man was around forty-years-old and had a distressed look on his face. He looked like an honest, down-to-earth farmer with messy hair and a body littered with scars.

    ¡°Met with stiff resistance.¡± The manughed bitterly as he spoke.

    ¡°Powerful people?¡± asked thedy, her pupils contracting. ¡°A Grandmaster?¡±

    ¡°If there had been a Grandmaster you wouldn¡¯t be seeing me here,¡± said the man, clearly in pain. ¡°I was unlucky, running into a group of elites from the Thirteen Divisions during my blood refinement. I killed a couple of them, but there was one that was particrly hard to handle.¡±

    Thedy in red heaved a sigh of relief. ¡°As long as it wasn¡¯t a Grandmaster.¡±

    They were at their most vulnerable during blood refinement, as it caused their strength to fall drastically. Meeting enemies during this period would spell disaster.

    She calmly asked, ¡°You¡¯re still going to continue with blood refinement?¡±

    The same pained expression never left the man¡¯s face. ¡°I don¡¯t really have a choice. I have to spend more time and effort since I¡¯m not as talented as you are.¡±

    While the two appeared to chat familiarly, they were constantly on guard, keeping some distance between each other.

    Both of them were from the same faction, but were otherwise hardly rted. They were teammates as well as rivals. Thedy in red wasn¡¯t expecting the man to persist with blood refinement.

    Blood refinement was a risky endeavour and every step taken must be done with the utmost care. It was, in a sense, like walking on thin ice. Since they were essentially just beings of flesh, there was a limit to how much blood refinement their bodies could take. This was especially the case with the Blood of God, which was potent beyondpare. Blindly partaking in blood refinement would only result in death by fulmination.

    Amidst the blood disaster, Blood of God could easily be obtained. Its power was as vast as the ocean. Rather than blind refinement, control was the key to handling it.

    The man in front of her was Tian Kuan. Since they had first met and until now, she had never seen a different expression on his face. It was the same pained expression day in and day out. He was the oldest and least talented among them. Nobody knew why he was chosen and nobody seemed to think highly of him.

    Nobody had expected him tost this long, to still be standing after so many others had been eliminated. Tian Kuan was one of the six who managed to persist through the many rounds of blood refinement.

    By that point, the others had learned to stop belittling him. After all, every one of the six were impressive individuals who had had to step over countless corpses to get this far.

    Thedy in red hadn¡¯t thought that Tian Kuan would actually incorporate Blood of God into his body.

    Since the six of them had all long reached their limits, they would have to train and further increase those limits before they could continue with subsequent rounds of blood refinement. Fervently proceeding with training carried insanely high risks, which was why the others were instead nning to use the Blood of God to create new subordinates first.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s actions were simply insane!

    Thedy in red decided that she had to re-evaluate Tian Kuan. Overly zealous individuals either died at the hands of their zeal or went on to have shocking achievements.

    ¡°You could always capture some students or wild beasts,¡± thedy in red said tly. ¡°Perhaps then you won¡¯t end up all deste again.¡±

    ¡°Forget it,¡± rejected Tian Kuan with a shake of his head. ¡°I¡¯m used to working alone.¡±

    Thedy in red looked up at the sky and said, ¡°Heree your little maggots.¡±

    The sky above the sea of blood had be slightly more dangerous due to the increasing numbers of blood-refined avians. As more of them appeared, the elementalists would have to take greater caution before soaring into the skies above the Induction Ground. For now, however, the number of blood-refined avians was still rtively low and did not pose that much of a threat to elementalists who were using the azure wings.

    The skies were still safer than the forest below.

    Thedy in red kept her calm gaze on the approaching elementalists. A few elites from the Thirteen Divisions weren¡¯t a threat to her. If Tian Kuan hadn¡¯t been engaged in blood refinement, he¡¯d have easily been able to handle these maggots as well.

    ¡°You owe me one,¡± said thedy in red casually.

    ¡°Although I¡¯d much rather not, I don¡¯t think I have any other choice,¡± answered Tian Kuan. ¡°Why can¡¯t they just let me practice in peace?¡±

    ¡°You only have yourself to me,¡± said thedy in red with a sneer. ¡°Do you really intend act alone forever? Are you sure you can keep going by yourself?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m used to being alone,¡± Tian Kuan said tly. ¡°Furthermore, such power is better kept to myself.¡±

    ¡°You can¡¯t possibly use up that much Blood of God by yourself.¡±

    ¡°Interacting with others takes too much effort.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t mess up the grand n.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t intend to die.¡±

    The two of them tactfully cut the conversation short, neither could go on with it. Thedy in red couldn¡¯t understand how Tian Kuan could possibly attempt to absorb something so powerful on his own. She became more guarded against Tian Kuan, noting that he was someone who simply couldn¡¯t trust others.

    She would never have trusted him anyway.

    Bloodshed and betrayal were the keys to survival for the remaining six.

    Thedy in red stopped trying to convince him. The two of them weren¡¯t exactly close to begin with. Besides, being able to survive until now meant that all of the six weren¡¯t normal at all. How could she expect any one of them to not have their own quirks?

    Li Wei pressed on with all his might as mes of hatred burned hot within his eyes.

    Hisrades had sacrificed themselves to see this mission through, leaving Li Wei as the sole survivor. He felt an iparable sorrow deep within his heart. Despite having be ustomed to death over his years out on the frontlines, this was the first time he had experienced the loss of an entire squad. Hisrades¡¯ sacrifices were definitely not in vain, as they had rained hell on their enemies.

    Li Wei had a death wish. He wasn¡¯t afraid of dying as long as he could y everyst one of them!

    His skin possessed a metallic luster, making the exposed parts of his body look like they were cast out of iron. Some of the white marks that lined his entire body were faintly stained with blood, a remnant of the tragic battle he had just survived.

    The sturdy, bronze-colored azure wings spread wide open. While the Copper Bone Bird wasn¡¯t particrly fast, the majestic wings enhanced Li Wei¡¯s presence while his murderous intent permeated the air around him. He looked just like an ancient god of war, as described in the legends of old.

    ¡°What an impressive aura!¡± Thedy in red¡¯s eyes lit up in excitement. She couldn¡¯t help but call out in praise, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect such a heroic-looking figure to be in the Infantry Division. I imagined that you were all just lumps of dull metal.¡±

    With his usual pained expression, Tian Kuan said, ¡°Enough with your wild thoughts and quickly finish him. We shouldn¡¯t let him live since he managed to injure me.¡±

    Thedy in red felt it was a pity that she had to kill him, but Tian Kuan had anticipated her thoughts and left her with no other choice. It wasn¡¯t worth offending Tian Kuan over an elite from the Thirteen Divisions. Since the two of them were of equal standing, a favor from him was like having a valuable ally.

    Alright, since you¡¯re giving me the chance to earn a favor, I¡¯ll grant you a straightforward death.

    Thedy in red lunged forward, appearing to turn into a wisp of red smoke. The speed with which she charged towards Li Wei made it impossible to pinpoint her location at any given moment.

    Li Wei was surprised to discover that his target had an ally.

    Pressed for time, he immediately reacted by sending a crushing blow in the direction of his opponent. His palm, suffused with metallic luster, surged forward like an advancing tank.

    ¡°Not quite skillful enough.¡±

    Thedy in red giggled as she appeared behind Li Wei.

    A soft, delicate palm pressed silently onto Li Wei¡¯s back.

    Li Wei¡¯s pupils dted rapidly. A tremendously violent force erupted from behind him.

    Pop!

    He spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. Knocked out of the air by what felt like arge hammer, Li Wei fell towards the ground like a whistling meteorite.

    A sinister smile crept across Tian Kuan¡¯s mouth,pleting the malevolent look on his face.

    He froze when he saw Li Wei¡¯s figure appear out of nowhere, growingrger by the second.

    Li Wei¡¯s hate-filled eyes burned with satisfaction. He grinned, revealing two rows of snow white teeth stained with streaks of blood.

    Li Wei had known that he was in trouble the moment heid eyes on thedy in red. Despite that knowledge, he had had no intention to retreat whatsoever.

    He sped his hands together and raised them high above his head like a hatchet, ready to strike. A brilliant silver light shrouded his sped hands as everyst bit of elemental energy he had left was channeled into them. The metallic luster that coated his skin became even more dazzling, appearing more like a coat of silvery liquid.

    ¡°Go to hell!¡±

    With that cry of rage, Tian Kuan¡¯s terror turned into despair and thedy in red¡¯s face turned ashen.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s despair instantly transformed into ruthlessness. A blood red pattern appeared on his forehead like a banner.

    Thedy in red stared at Tian Kuan in disbelief.

    The ever distressed-looking Tian Kuan had practically transformed into a different person. His aura was definitely not the same as before. Tian Kuan¡¯s usual hunched back was reced by an upright posture and his skin was washed over with a warm glow. He had transformed from a farmer into an elegant prince.

    His lips curved into a sinister smile.

    Lightly stretching out his arms, Tian Kuan gracefully resisted the war god¡¯s silver hammer with his palms.

    The sneer on Li Wei¡¯s face was frozen solid in shock.

    The silver glow in his hands exploded, unleashing a powerful st with the force of a thousand suns.

    The explosion sent the now unconscious Li Wei flying through the air like a ragdoll. He had lost both of his arms in that final attack. Blood dripped continuously from his tattered sleeves, scattering throughout the air.

    ¡°I¡¯m going to kill you!¡±

    Amidst the heat of the explosion, Tian Kuan¡¯s hysterical cry pierced through the air.

    A figure dived down from above the clouds, catching Li Wei with amazing uracy before soaring back up above cloud cover with unprecedented speed.

    Thedy in red subconsciously moved, but stopped herself upon remembering the blood marks between Tian Kuan¡¯s eyebrows.

    Then she suddenly felt a terrifying disturbance and the color drained from her face.

    That location... it was where she hade from!

 Chapter 170: The Sword Embryo and the Bandage

    Chapter 170: The Sword Embryo and the Bandage

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lis

    The sword embryo¡¯s throbbing felt like an endlessly beating heart.

    Theplex pattern of blood traces was rapidly shifting over Ai Hui¡¯s entire body like a swarm of poisonous ants. Large quantities of blood poison were transforming Ai Hui¡¯s body from within, and a faintly sweet scent wafted from his body.

    A violent, murderous power was steadily produced by his blood-transformed body.

    Blood traces from all over his body began topress, aggregating towards the space between his eyebrows. They became sleeker and more elegant, with increasing activity. As they surrounded a nk space between his brows, they took on the shape of diminutive mes.

    The blood traces seeped towards his brow, appearing as a thin, crimsonyer on Ai Hui¡¯s skin. The sweet scent became thicker.

    As if covered by a thick bloody paste, the sword embryo¡¯s activity slowed.

    An unceasing torrent of blood poison flowed more furiously from within the tree roots.

    As soon as the new blood traces appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s body, they quickly rushed towards the space between his brows. It was as though a powerful ma resided there, attracting them.

    At that moment, the inactive bandages on his arms noiselessly coiled its way around Ai Hui¡¯s body. As if controlled by invisible hands, the Blood Bandages worked in synchrony, with one end wrapping down from his forehead and the other starting from his feet. Layer byyer, he was tightly wound, and in the blink of an eye, Ai Hui¡¯s entire body was bundled up tightly like a dumpling. Interestingly enough, the Blood Bandages deliberately avoided wrapping the tree roots.

    A single blood trace appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s palm, prating through his skin and surfacing on the outside of the bandage.

    As if it had a life of its own, the blood trace moved along the bandage towards his forehead.

    It seemed like nothing had changed.

    The blood trace became duller upon moving past Ai Hui¡¯s elbow.

    Extremely fine veins appeared along the bandage, absorbing blood from the blood traces as they moved along; their bright red color gradually faded until they turned gray.

    The sword embryo that had almost been ovee by the immense pressure from the blood traces sprang back to life upon sensing that victory was now possible. It momentarily paused all activity when the blood traces surfaced on the bandages before restarting its throbbing pulse one secondter, speeding up to an even higher level of activity than before. The cold, frigid sensation of metal pervaded the air atop Ai Hui¡¯s brows.

    At the same time, an attractive force was present.

    Droplets of colorless light were extracted from the blood traces, amassing into a glinting needle mid-air before prating back into Ai Hui¡¯s body. A soft sword cry rang out from the point of entry.

    The blood traces had lost all luster as well as color.

    While moving along the Blood Bandage, the blood trace¡¯s color began to dull, and by the time it reached his shoulders, nothing was left of the bright red that once illuminated it.

    The ashen remnant then became a thin wisp of smoke, dispersing in the air and vanishing from the bandage.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mummified body was heavily emitting gray smoke.

    In contrast to the blood poison¡¯s sweet scent, the gray smoke had a raw, fishy odor. Upon contact with it, the tree¡¯s blood-red leaves rapidly turned to ash.

    The thick shroud of smoke engulfing Ai Hui looked like a gray cocoon from afar.

    Looking up, the mastiff grew suspicious. The transformation urring had proceeded well beyond its understanding, but it seemed to sense something monstrous lurking within the cocoon of gray smoke. A primal fear rose from within it.

    It retreated a few steps, scanning around for further signs of change. Ascertaining that all else was fine, the mastiffzily rxed on the ground once more.

    A whileter, Ai Hui drowsily regained consciousness.

    He had been awoken by an unusual sound. It was rather unfamiliar yet strangely familiar as well. Listening intently, he finally recognized the sound of a sword being unsheathed, only he had never before heard of a sword being unsheathed for such an inordinate amount of time.

    Was he dreaming?

    He often had such dreams back in the swordsman school. He would dream of tall, exquisite pces that reached into the clouds, of swordsmen who could fly on swords, or of majestic mountains that cast their shadows onto heavenly sword formations, as well as all manner of interesting spiritual beasts...

    He would dream of mystical swordy manuals, the flying swords of legends¡ªeven dreaming of those figures who once dominated the entire world.

    It had been a while since he had such bizarre dreams. The naive and curious minds of the young would inevitably be eroded by reality and time.

    The mental state of humans were associated with time and even more closely with experiences. Ai Hui had never experienced a childhood filled with imagination; instead, he had lived an unimaginable life.

    Ai Hui¡¯s first reaction to the unceasing sounds was to think that he was dreaming.

    He soon realized that he wasn¡¯t in a dream, however.

    The sword embryo¡¯s throbbing was more forceful than he had ever experienced. It emitted a ceaseless cry, and he could feel the muscles in his body resonating along with it.

    The darkness before his eyes perhaps yed a role, but Ai Hui noticed that he was acutely sensitive to bodily sensations. He could feel a stream of energy swimming around his body like arge school of fish, and strands of it seemed to resonate with the sword embryo, trembling slightly with each pulse.

    Ai Hui was startled by this sensation. What is that?

    Never before had he experienced such energy strands. He could sense the power contained within them, but it waspletely different from anything he had ever encountered.

    Well, Ai Hui quietly mocked himself, he hadn¡¯t exactly experienced other kinds of power either.

    But he was certain that this torrential energy was vastly different from the elemental energy he had been developing. Could it be a new kind of elemental energy?

    Ai Hui was uncertain. In matters of elemental energy, he had only recently graduated from being aplete rookie.

    There existed too many kinds of elemental energy that he had yet to see.

    Now was not the time to think about such things, however; he had to find a way to escape.

    Finally sober, Ai Hui attempted to struggle his way out but soon realized that he had lost all control over his body. He could not move an inch.

    Ai Hui remainedposed. He had, after all, been through scenarios far worse than this.

    He repeatedly encouraged himself¡ªthere had to be a way out.

    He started by inspecting his body closely, bing increasingly bewildered as he went on.

    It wasn¡¯t surprising that the five residences and eight pces within his body werepletely wrecked; he still had an impression of what had happened before losing consciousness.

    Were these strands of energy a part of the blood poison?

    No, the blood poison was much more impetuous, more unrelenting. But the strands of energy flowing through his body were mild, even whenpared to the metal elemental energy he had personally developed. These energy strands clearly originated from outside his body, outside....

    Ai Hui suddenly realized that he was wrapped in the Blood Bandage. How strange, he thought, as his consciousness effortlessly slipped into the Blood Bandage.

    He felt as if he had entered a different dimension, one filled with the scent of blood.

    A thick sea of blood stretched as far as his eyes could see. Immense waves rose up across the violent sea, as if a monster had awoken from deep within to taste the air with its tongue.

    Across the sky, streaks of blood traces flowed like rivers of blood.

    Every time a tongue of bloodpped at the sky, glowing essences from the blood traces were dragged down like a waterfall. Ai Hui¡¯s heart started palpitating. He felt his mind quiver at the strange, bloody sight, and he had to fight to maintain his consciousness.

    Seeing the blood essences made him extremely ufortable; he did not like it one bit.

    The blood traces in the air started to fade.

    In his mind, the past forms of Blood Bandages shed. He further affirmed that the Blood Bandage was an artifact from the Cultivation Era. It was truly a time of unimaginable power when even a nameless, tattered piece of cloth could possess godly powers.

    Witnessing the blood traces¡¯ transformation, Ai Hui finally understood where the strands of energy came from.

    The Blood Bandage had extricated the blood essence from the blood poison, allowing the sword embryo to then draw closer the energy remaining in the blood poison.

    Ai Hui recalled the words of thedy in red.

    Blood spiritual force.

    He had promptly dismissed her words as a lie, thinking this so-called blood spiritual force had to be simr to spiritual force only in name.

    But what if the blood poison was truly blood spiritual force?

    Thinking this triggered his memories, and the phrase ¡°blood refinement¡± surfaced from his memories.

    If the blood poison truly was blood spiritual force, then it had to be closely rted to blood refinement. How had the Blood Bandage been able to absorb the reddish blood essence? As an artifact from blood sects, it had to be capable of devouring objects rted to blood.

    Many swordy manuals mentioned blood-refinement techniques as well as the blood sects that had been considered heretical during the Cultivation Era due to their cruel practices. They often used spiritual beasts in their trainings, or in more extreme cases, human sacrifices. For many years, blood sects were seen as those dabbling with demonic forces, untolerated by orthodox sects.

    The Blood Bandages had to be devouring the blood-rtedponents from the blood poison.

    Subtract the blood-rtedponents from blood spiritual force and what do you get?

    Ai Hui had a tremendous revtion.

    Spiritual force!

    This answer left him stunned for a good few minutes. Never in a million years did he imagine that he woulde to such a conclusion, but he simply could not think of any other answer.

    Spiritual force, it¡¯s really spiritual force! The force that led to the blossoming of the Cultivation Era, the force that had supposedly vanished from this world.

    Ai Hui was exhrated.

    He was no longer able to remain calm. The glory of the Cultivation Era was still deeply imprinted in everyone¡¯s mind. With this spiritual force, he could undoubtedly execute all of the mythical sword techniques found in the manuals of old.

    Ai Hui forced himself to calm down.

    Regardless of the spiritual force¡¯s power, he was still in a precarious situation.

    He attempted to activate a sword seal, hoping to escape through such means. However, he soon realized his naivety. The spiritual force within his body had a mild reaction, but he quickly found that he had no means of circting it. After all, Ai Hui had never nurtured the channels required to utilize spiritual force. The cultivators had a strict systemprised of spiritual force, its corresponding channels known as meridians, spell seals, andstly, one¡¯s sword. If any one of theseponents were missing, nothing could be achieved.

    Ai Huiughed bitterly before regaining hisposure. He reminded himself once more that he had survived far worse than this.

    Levelheaded, Ai Hui began to explore ways to utilize this spiritual force.

 Chapter 171: The [Big Dipper] Predicament

    Chapter 171: The [Big Dipper] Predicament

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lis

    The authenticity of this ¡°spiritual force¡± was questionable since this was, after all, purely Ai Hui¡¯s deduction.

    Regardless, the most pressing issue now was to figure out how to make use of it.

    It was a pity that his five residences and eight pces had been destroyed.

    Prior to bing unconscious, Ai Hui had been devastated to see his efforts and dreams ruined. Waking up now, however, his feelings of disappointment had faded substantially, leaving only survival instincts aze.

    No, the five residences and eight pces were notpletely destroyed. There was one that remained intact¡ªthe sky pce, which housed the sword embryo.

    He would be thinking of ways to repair the other seven pces, but that was only if his natal residence had not been destroyed. That was the foundation for the system of five residences and eight pces as well as the basis for nurturing elemental energy. As long as the foundation was intact, there were ways to fix the rest of the system. But the destruction of his natal residence meant that there was no way of restoring the other seven pces.

    Hang on, the rest of the seven pces....

    A thought formed hazily, and he couldn¡¯t quite make it out.

    Seven pces... seven pces....

    Ai Hui racked his brains before finally realizing what he had been reminded of.

    Didn¡¯t the [Big Dipper] require seven pces?

    A sudden surge of inspiration led him to the answer; it was indeed the [Big Dipper]. Having only recently acquired the technique, Ai Hui had yet to carefully examine it. The [Big Dipper] he received was the original version left behind by its creator, containing all of his experiences and a massive amount of information beyond Ai Hui¡¯sprehension.

    He hadn¡¯t thought to use it so soon, originally intending to digest more of the information before taking that final step.

    Nobody would rush to utilize an original inheritance. It was a waste of the precious knowledge contained within, and it was also exceedingly dangerous to do so.

    Anyone with some semnce ofmon sense would understand the principle of taking things one step at a time. To receive such tremendous knowledge as a greenhorn was analogous to a traveler dying of thirst throwing himself against enormous waves. Not only would he be unable to quench his thirst, he would end up drowning as well.

    But time was a luxury he could no longer afford. He was at the crossroads between life and death.

    There was no time to hesitate, nothing further to consider.

    Without further deliberation, Ai Hui¡¯s mind delved into the [Big Dipper]. The feeling was akin to piercing the surface of a ball of water.

    What came out, however, was not a stream of knowledge but a raging torrent of information. Ai Hui was unable to react in time and became overwhelmed.

    He soon fell into a trance-like state.

    A flood of specious arguments, paradoxical thoughts, and familiarly unfamiliar feelings engulfed his mind. After what seemed a long period of time, his consciousness emerged from what had been another person¡¯s world and drifted along like a wilted leaf upon a vast ocean.

    While his consciousness was exploring the [Big Dipper], the strands of energy flowing through his body were stirred up.

    The once peaceful flow began to surge ceaselessly.

    While Ai Hui was in a trance-like state, the sword embryo within his sky pce also became active.

    Its throbbing slowed in tempo but grew in strength. It pulsed like a bass drum, booming steadily and causing the energy strands within his body to quiver with each beat.

    The ¡°spiritual force¡± began to move from his lungs,pleting one Circtory Cycle Revolution before seeping through his arm and into the Dragonspine Inferno. It then proceeded to flow back into his body.

    If Ai Hui was conscious, he would have been shocked to discover that this ¡°spiritual force¡± circted through the same route as the elemental energy.

    The returning ¡°spiritual force¡± possessed a sharp vor and waspletely absorbed by the sword embryo.

    As the sword embryo grew in size, the sharp beats became even more pronounced.

    Once it reached the size of a soybean, the sword embryo halted its expansion but not the absorption of ¡°spiritual force.¡± On the surface, a faint pattern appeared where the sword embryo was located, and as it continued to absorb the ¡°spiritual force¡±, the pattern became more distinct and refined, ultimately culminating into the shape of a longsword.

    Only after the mark of the longsword appeared did the sword embryo halt the absorption of ¡°spiritual force¡±. The sharp aura shrouding the sword embryo quickly became more restrained as the sword embryo whirled about within the confines of the space between Ai Hui¡¯s eyebrows until it looked just like an ordinary seed.

    The returning ¡°spiritual force¡± still flowed through the sword embryo, but it appeared to have lost all interest. As the Circtory Cycle Revolution continued, the outflow of ¡°spiritual force¡± from the sword embryo was now equal to the ¡°inflow.¡±

    There was an increase in the amount of ¡°spiritual force¡± entering the Circtory Cycle Revolution. With each revolution, the ¡°spiritual force¡± passed through the sky pce as well as the sword embryo.

    And each time it passed through the sword embryo, the ¡°spiritual force¡± became thicker and its razor-sharp vor enhanced. The Circtory Cycle Revolution gradually slowed.

    After countless revolutions, the ¡°spiritual force¡± had be as viscous as magma. Imbued with a dense sword intent, the ¡°spiritual force¡± flowed slowly back into Ai Hui¡¯s lungs. It moved along the inner walls of his lung residence and covered the entire area with a thickyer of ¡°spiritual force.¡± The constant influx of ¡°spiritual energy¡± umted within and thickened the inner walls.

    With each Circtory Cycle, the thick ¡°spiritual force¡± passed through the sword embryo and umted a stronger sword intent. The thickeningyer of ¡°spiritual force¡± silently transformed Ai Hui¡¯s lungs.

    The ¡°spiritual force¡± seemed to have a naturally nourishing effect for flesh and blood. A portion of it prated the inner walls of Ai Hui¡¯s lungs and began to grow with the force of life. Once Ai Hui¡¯s dpidated lungs were fully saturated with ¡°spiritual force,¡± they began to steadily rejuvenate.

    The sword intent embedded within the ¡°spiritual force¡± was also absorbed by his lungs.

    After its destruction, his lungs had been like bellows riddled with holes, but now that they were repaired, the bellows were once again capable of generating air flow. Ai Hui¡¯s breathing caused his lungs to rhythmically expand and contract, increasing the speed at which the sluggish ¡°spiritual force¡± was flowing.

    His left hand¡¯s pce was repaired at the same slow pace. Soon enough, the pces in his right hand, left foot, and right foot were also restored to their original states as they simrly absorbed the sword intent.

    Unlike the pces within his four limbs, Ai Hui¡¯s gate, earth, and sea pces had never been activated. Even so, the potent blood poison had thoroughly spread to every part of his body, bursting into his three unactivated pces and destroying them as well. The blood poison had evidently done him a huge favor.

    The ¡°spiritual force¡± entered the three pces in ordance with the Circtory Cycle Revolution, flowing along the damaged areas and thoroughly coating them.

    The gate, sea, and earth pces were like three damaged reservoirs being patched up by the ¡°spiritual force.¡± Never would Ai Hui have imagined that his gate, sea, and earth pces would be activated in this way.

    This was likely a great example of the rise after the fall.

    Once the seven pces were fully formed, Ai Hui¡¯s body convulsed.

    He had been floating about, bobbing up and down within the vast sea of someone else¡¯s world like a duckweed without roots. And then without warning, the floating duckweed began to take root, the familiar experiences and information finally finding an inlet. The body that had been unfamiliar one moment became familiar the next.

    After activating the [Big Dipper]¡¯s inheritance, a tremendous wave of information and past experiences had crashed directly against his mind, knocking him senseless. What was more frustrating was hisck of seven pces¡ªwithout it, the knowledge couldn¡¯t be absorbed.

    It was simr to having sudden realizations about swordy without having a sword on hand. The torrent of understandings and past experiences were stoppered without outlet, further clogging his mind.

    It wasn¡¯t until the ¡°spiritual force¡± miraculously repaired his natal residence and seven pces that the deluge of past realizations and experiences found their resting ground.

    If Ai Hui were to regain consciousness now, he would be shocked to discover that his seven pces were vibrating at the same frequency.

    The intensity of the vibrations increased, provoking the ¡°spiritual force¡± within his body to enter state like boiling water.

    Ai Hui¡¯s consciousness was restored amidst these vibrations. He immediately felt as though he would explode!

    The ¡°spiritual energy¡± within his body was entering a state of overflow as the seven pces¡¯ synchronised vibration caused the ¡°spiritual energy¡± to gush.

    A terrifying presence seeped from Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    The mastiff raised its head, uneasily wing at the ground with its front paw. It stared at the mass of gray smoke and uttered a low and ferocious growl. It could sense something amiss.

    Ai Hui¡¯s aura was slowly growing in strength.

    Like startled snakes, the bandages wrapped around Ai Hui¡¯s body hastily returned to their original positions with a whoosh.

    The tree roots that stabbed into Ai Hui¡¯s body turned to ash, revealing Ai Hui who looked good as new without a single scratch to be seen on his body.

    [Big Dipper]...

    Ai Hui finally understood in part why the [Big Dipper] required seven strong pces. By the time he had snapped out of his thoughts, it had already been toote. And while the past realizations and experiences contained within the [Big Dipper] inheritance were partially eroded from time, they were still immensely powerful.

    Before he could even react, his instinct had already taken control from his entire body.

    The seven pces vibrated more intensely while his aura strengthened at an insane rate.

    The mastiff stared with horror at the mass of gray smoke. It unwillingly feared and revered the aura that was emitted from within the smoke.

    Its ferocious snarling had long turned into frightened whimpering, and its limbs were quivering in fear. The mere presence of whatever was within the smoke was terribly suffocating,pletely suppressing the mastiff. Even the blood traces on it began began to destabilize.

    Ultimately, fear overcame its obedience to directives as it quickly escaped.

    Far away, thedy in red turned pale with shock. Equally far but in the opposite direction, Central Pine City was shaken as well.

    The mayor and the dean immediately took to the skies and were soon followed by all elementalists in the city who had azure wings. Aghast, they stared into the depths of the blood forest.

    Shi Xueman was filled with fear as wel.

    The terrifying presence was like a ferocious beast that crawled out from the depths of time, bearing power that was as awe-inspiring as it was frightening.

    The intensely stifling atmosphere clung heavily onto everyone.

    In the depths of the forest, Ai Hui¡¯s muscles were convulsing wildly within the cloud of gray smoke. Suspended midair, he felt as though he was about to explode.

    The [Big Dipper] was formidable and violent, but it was the ¡°spiritual force¡± within his body that made things much worse.

    If it really was spiritual force...

    Ai Hui forced his eyes open. He was already at his limit, and intense rays of light were practically spilling out from his eyes. If spiritual force was truly within his body... exactly how many times stronger than elemental force was it?

    Damn it, I¡¯ve never learned this in ss! The teachers never taught this!

    Ai Hui clenched his teeth,ing up with a n to use the simplest and most brutish method to release the overflowing ¡°spiritual force¡± within his body.

    Ai Hui adjusted his posture midair, facing his back towards the ground while clutching his sword against his chest. Like a meteor falling from the heavens, he threw himself towards the ground with heavy force.

    With this posture and the spiritual force¡¯s strength, how much power would be unleashed from executing the [Arching Fish Back]?

    The wind whistled in his ears.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes widened as a single thought filled his head.

    Damn it, something I haven¡¯t learned again....

    The moment he felt something against his back, his body instinctively arched. The violently surging ¡°spiritual force¡± rushed to his back.

    The crude move that he had practiced countless times¡ª

    ¡ª¡ª [Arching Fish Back].

    A tremendous explosion burst forth.

 Chapter 172: A Giantâ€™s Back

    Chapter 172: A Giant¡¯s Back

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    Driven by his overwhelming anger, Ai Hui expelled from his body the ¡°spiritual force¡± that bloated him into the ground. His entire body felt an indescribable relief at once.

    Boom!

    The earth shook and the mountains trembled.

    The ground directly beneath him was immediately reduced to a fine powder. The surrounding soil arced into the air, sting in all directions. Everywhere else around him was inplete chaos.

    More fatal was the mass of gray smoke that exploded without warning.

    Apanied by a terrifying hiss, the gray cloud burst through the area like a hurricane.

    The gusts of air was a sickle of the grim reaper, withering and killing all that it passed.

    The mastiff broke into a run. The gray cloud behind it was a monstrous tsunami, crushing everything in its way.

    One after another, rattan balls flew across the mastiff¡¯s field of vision. Already possessing a trace of self-awareness, the mastiff knew that each rattan ball contained a blood fiend like itself.

    A gray tint diffused like an ugly and dreadful mold over the rattan balls. The breathing inside them became increasingly weaker until they disappeared altogether.

    One of the blood fiends inside a rattan ball seemed to sense the danger and attempted to break out. But as the gray cloud swept past, its body suddenly froze as the ash-gray spread over its body. When thest vestiges of red were overtaken¡ªbang!¡ªthe blood fiend exploded into a cloud of gray dust that scattered through the air.

    The fear in the mastiff¡¯s eyes grew deeper. As the blood traces on its body began to crack and a red glow appeared underfoot, its running speed inexplicably increased.

    From overhead, the circr, gray cloud could be seen spreading outward in ripples of death that expanded without end in the sea of blood.

    Not a single area of the red valley was spared from the immense and terrifying circle of death that was now more than ten kilometers in radius.

    In the center of the gray circle of death was a pir of gray smoke that reached into the skies. It was congealed without sign of dissipating and resembled an enormous gray dragon that bared its fangs and brandished its ws.

    The mastiff had escaped all the way to the mountain peak, its body drenched in blood. Fresh blood continued to ooze from its skin, making it look like a bloody wolf. It panted heavily and stared firmly at the figure that climbed its way out of the soil from the middle of the gray valley.

    Fear, there was only fear in its eyes.

    The pir of smoke that resembled a gray dragon rose straight into the sky, bing the backdrop of that figure¡¯s frail back. At that moment, from the mastiff¡¯s perspective, that figure was a grim reaper who had just climbed out of a hellish swamp to arrive in this world.

    Ai Hui felt dizzy and weak as he picked himself up from the ground. The soil beneath his feet had be a powder, with texture smoother than flour¡¯s.

    He surveyed his surroundings with a nk look on his face.

    The dense, blood-colored vegetation had disappeared, recing his surroundings with the gray wilderness. All nts had been reduced to thick piles of gray residue, as if burned and reduced to ashes.

    Only now did Ai Hui realize that he stood in a valley.

    Were all these caused by him?

    He could not believe his eyes. After a second-long daze, he jumped up and broke into a run.

    Why wouldn¡¯t he flee now while One Thousand Yuan was away? Should he wait for her toe back before starting his escape?

    The fighting capabilities of One Thousand Yuan were enigmatic and unpredictable. He definitely did not want to encounter her again.

    Ai Hui began to notice some changes in his body, the most obvious being his running speed which was much faster than it had been in the past. The forest was deathly silent, sending a shiver down Ai Hui¡¯s spine.

    He did not want to stay an extra second in this godforsaken ce.

    Once he oriented himself in the right direction, he ran with all his might. He was pleased to encounter not a single blood fiend on his sprint through the forest. When he thought of how One Thousand Yuan was able to amass the power of blood fiends, however, he trembled in fear and sped up.

    In the skies above Central Pine City, the mayor and the dean were observing the distant pir of smoke with ashen faces. Not only them, but the faces of the elementalists behind them had simrly drained of all color. Central Pine City was in a state of hysteria.

    The explosion just now resembled thunderps that rattled the earth and shook the mountains. The entirety of Central Pine City had felt it.

    ¡°I wonder which expert did that?¡± The dean gulped his saliva anxiously, a hopeful look flickering in his eyes.

    If there was an expert that took action, they were saved. There was one in Central Pine City, but he was an embroidery expert, not a fighting one.

    Given that there were a few youths of nobility in the city, it was not surprising for an expert to show up and save them.

    Wang Zhen appeared calm, but the fear in his eyes revealed the uneasiness within. ¡°If there¡¯s an expert passing by that area, then he will definitelye here as well. We¡¯ll find out soon enough.¡±

    He was not as optimistic as the dean.

    His mind was filled with images brought back by the scouts who had been in the forest beyond city limits. So far, only three scouts had returned, and only one managed to sessfully deliver the images. The elementalists who had signed up for this mission numbered forty-six.

    Of the forty-six people, only three survived. Wait, four people survived.

    Wang Zhen spotted a figure, vaguely familiar, running out from the forest. Soon enough, Wang Zhen identified him as Ai Hui, the young fellow with remarkable swordsmanship.

    He noticed that Ai Hui was covered in grime and dirt, appearing extremely pathetic. He seemed to have suffered a lot, but since he was able to survive and return, his luck was rather good.

    When Ai Hui dashed out of the forest and saw the city gate of Central Pine City, he almost cried tears of joy.

    Soon, an elementalist came from the city to receive him. ¡°Did you manage to seed? Where¡¯s the movie bean?¡±

    ¡°Movie bean?¡± Ai Huiughed bitterly. ¡°I wasn¡¯t able to record anything; I was busy running for my life.¡±

    The goddamned One Thousand Yuan!

    If not for that goddamned girl, he would havepleted his mission. But he was so busy running for his life from One Thousand Yuan, how could he have had the time to use the movie bean? When Ai Hui recalled the events, however, he felt that it had not been an easy task for him to survive. His regret at not using the movie bean then lessened significantly.

    The elementalist¡¯s disappointment was disyed openly. He flew towards the mayor while shaking his head. The information he obtained from Ai Hui regarding the situation inside the forest did not differ much from the other survivors¡¯ ounts.

    The elementalist still passed Ai Hui his reward. The mayor had really paid a hefty price for nothing....

    The reward was exceedingly generous. When Ai Hui saw the contents, his previously gloomy face brightened instantly. The reward nearly met all of their requirements.

    Wang Zhen knew from experience that the more deaths there were, the more generous the reward had to be. Otherwise, who would sign up next time?

    Upon returning to the Vanguard Training Hall, Ai Hui received cheers from Shi Xueman and the others. From the day of his departure, they had been frightened and anxious, and though it had only been for a short period of time, they felt as though a year had passed.

    When they saw Ai Hui safe and sound, they finallyid their worries to rest. Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun, and the others suddenly realized that Ai Hui had naturally be their indispensable pir of support.

    Fatty, who was training hard off to the side, wanted toe over to join them as well, but Ai Hui gave him a hard stare and yelled, ¡°Continue your training! Don¡¯t stop!¡±

    Fatty¡¯s face drooped immediately.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on outside? What happened just now?¡± Duanmu Huanghun could not help but ask. He was curious and worried.

    His query immediately caught everyone¡¯s attention. They were all frightened by the events happening outside the city.

    Shi Xueman noticed the grime and dirt on Ai Hui¡¯s body. Though he was not injured, she could tell that he was exhausted. She said concernedly, ¡°Go and rest first. We¡¯ll talk again after your rest.¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun felt somewhat embarrassed and agreed with Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui was indeed weary. The whole day had been aplicated and ever-changing experience with multiple struggles with death. Now that he had survived the cmity, exhaustion surged through his body like a flood to the point that he could not keep his eyes open.

    After saying goodnight to everyone, he returned to his room and fell asleep immediately.

    .....

    In the sky above the valley.

    When the red-dressed girl rushed to the scene and saw the gray valley below her, her face turned ashen, and she clenched her fists tightly. She did not register the pain of her nails digging into her flesh.

    All of her efforts, all gone.

    Besides the mastiff she had been forced to interrupt, every outstanding blood fiend she had found nearby were in this valley.

    To ensure security and secrecy, she chose this valley to carry out the blood refinement. She had an exacting nature that kept her from approving of most blood fiends around her, and so her standards for choosing them were high. In order to search for these blood fiends, she had spent an inordinate amount of time and energy.

    However, right now, nothing was left.

    Gradually, her anger cooled. She knew clearly that fellow¡¯s capability. He could not have caused all of this.

    She disliked the aura being emitted by the imposing and congealed pir of gray smoke before her.

    It came from not only the pir of smoke but also the entire valley, and she loathed it.

    Shended on the ground and lowered her body to observe the gray residue beneath her feet.

    They weren¡¯t ashes, she thought to herself.

    For unknown reasons, she found this gray residue somewhat familiar, but still she hated them, more than she found them familiar in fact.

    The surface of the entire valley appeared as though it had been plowed. With a solemn look, she approached the pir of smoke. She clearly remembered that this was where she had carried out the blood refinement for that fellow.

    She stopped in her tracks, noticing something strange beneath her feet. She lowered her body once more and grabbed a handful of soil. Her expression changed.

    No gravel, stones, or anything solid¡ªthe soil in her hand was so smooth that it resembled flour.

    She recalled that terrifying wave of energy. That surging force must have been directed towards the ground.

    She could not imagine what kind of attack would cause this to happen. The sedimentaryyer in the valley was not thick, and beneath it was ayer of hard rocks.

    Suddenly, s he brandished her long, red sleeves.

    Whoosh!

    Howling gales swept through the valley, sweeping up the soil and gray residue into the sky.

    The red-dressed girl expressionlessly brandished her sleeves continuously. Layer afteryer, the soil left the ground, revealing the earth¡¯s crust before her.

    Seven meters below the surface, there was an extensive hollow in the solid graniteyer.

    And in the middle of that hollow was a long trench nine meters long, scored with sections of deep gashes.

    It was a back¡¯s imprint of the spinal column, and the varying indentations on the left and right of the trench were the back muscle imprints. They were extremely clear despite being engraved on ayer of solid granite seven meters below the surface.

    The red-dressed girl was dumbstruck. She had thought it to be an ultimate move rted to fists or legs.

    It was actually the back....

    What sort of move rted to the back could hold such power?

    A flurry of questions ran through her mind before she finally settled on one.

    Who exactly was this fellow?

 Chapter 173: The So-Called Master

    Chapter 173: The So-Called Master

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Central Pine City was bound for disappointment. They had waited for a long time, but no master had arrived.

    The dean looked down, revealing an unconcealed disappointment.

    Wang Zhen was disappointed as well. However, his facial expression looked extremely calm. He nced at the dean and said deeply, ¡°Let¡¯s go. We need to study the movie bean that was brought back and see what the situation is inside.¡±

    The dean got ahold of himself and forced a smile.

    In order to obtain this movie bean, they had suffered such a huge loss. Its value was immeasurable.

    All the reputable and powerful individuals were gathered for this meeting. Wang Zhen clearly knew that if he could not get their support for the subsequent battles, Central Pine City would have no chance of surviving.

    The enormous meeting room was fully packed, but at the moment, there was dead silence in the room.

    The faces of those who participated in the meeting were pale-white. They were looking at the video on the screen with fear. It was as if a noose was tied around each of their necks, causing them to have breathing difficulties.

    Those hideous and sinister nts looked as if they were from another world. No, they were from hell.

    The thick hanging roots of the trees resembled gigantic blood vessels. One could even see blood pumping and flowing within them.

    A wave of rmed cries swept across the meeting room. Involuntarily, some people even stood up in trepidation.

    ¡°Oh my god, what¡¯s that?¡±

    ¡°Is it blood inside them? That¡¯s too scary! Is this even considered a tree?¡±

    Even the wood elementalists, who were used to seeing various weird nt species, had their faces nch. Their eyes contained nothing but fear. It was almost like they could smell the strong and nauseous odor of blood just by watching the video. They could not understood why the nts outside of the city had be such monstrosities.

    When everyone saw the densely-packed hanging roots rise up like a bunch of snakes and bind an elementalist, a cold shiver went down their spines.

    A few chairs flipped over. Those who fell to the ground were trembling nonstop with fear.

    No one wasughing at these people because everyone was staring fearfully at the screen with their eyes wide open. Everyone finally understood why they suffered such a huge loss.

    Initially, the elementalist that was bound by the hanging roots was struggling with all his might. However, as the red-colored liquid started to pump into him, his struggling became increasingly weaker. A red flush appeared on his face and his gaze became trance-like, as though he was enjoying the process. Unexpectedly, his mouth broke into a smile, a smile that disyed extreme pleasure and satisfaction.

    The red liquid that flowed through the densely-packed hanging roots that were inserted into the elementalist¡¯s body glowed with a red fluorescence. As the glow reached his face, his smile became indescribably weird and sinister.

    Everyone¡¯s heart stopped beating, as if their hearts were being tightly gripped by an invisible hand.

    Their minds were nk and their hair stood on end. They had even forgotten to breathe.

    Pop!

    The sinister smile suddenly exploded in front of them on the screen. Everyone was dumbstruck. When they returned to their senses, they saw brain matter and blood strewn all over the ce.

    rgh...

    Nearly half of the participants in the meeting covered their mouths and puked without pause. The entire meeting room was filled with the odor of vomit. However, at this moment, no one cared anymore. Those who did not puke stared nkly at the screen with deathly white faces. Their hands and feet were unconsciously trembling.

    A lot of people wanted to escape from the meeting room, but their legs would not listen to them.

    Wang Zhen had a solemn look on his face. He did not mock these people¡¯s reactions at all.

    When he first saw this segment of the video, his reaction was not much better than everyone else¡¯s. He thought that nothing could frighten him since he, himself, had experienced bloodshed and numerous battles.

    He had not realized how wrong and naive he was until today.

    ¡°Let¡¯s switch to a new meeting room,¡± Wang Zhen told his subordinate.

    .....

    There was absolute silence in the new meeting room.

    These reputable individuals were covered in vomit. Each of them was holding a cup of hot water, as if it would make them feel better. They were in despair and their faces were ashen.

    ¡°From what we observed, this should be the way they transform. Take note of the bulges on the tree branches. Did all of you notice that there are many bulges? When the hanging roots move, these bulges move as well. The wood elementalists who are studying this phenomenon think that these bulges are created when devouring blood fiends or blood insects. To be precise, the smaller and weaker blood insects will act as nutrients for therger and stronger blood fiends¡¯ transformation. This conjecture can be proven by the fact that our scouts did not discover any blood fiends or blood insects on their trip outside of the city.

    Only the mayor¡¯s voice resounded through the dead silence of the meeting room.

    ¡°Right now, it¡¯s extremely possible that a batch of even more powerful blood fiends or blood insects are being created. That means, from now onward, we will encounter stronger blood fiends. Our situation will be even more challenging. The time that we will be tested is arriving soon,¡± Wang Zhen looked around the room and announced.

    ¡°Can¡¯t we run away? Travelling on the ground might be hard, but what about escaping through the sky?¡± someone asked feebly.

    ¡°Where can we run to then?¡± Wang Zhen questioned back. ¡°How big is the Induction Ground? Can we really fly out of here? Furthermore, we might encounter flying blood fiends. Don¡¯t forget about the blood bat from before. If we lose the city walls, how long do you think we canst?¡±

    The person who asked that question was dumbstruck. After somemotion, the room returned to its state of absolute silence.

    The meeting was very sessful. Wang Zhen¡¯s suggestion garnered everyone¡¯s support. They all knew that their individual powers did not matter at this crucial juncture. They could only unite and work together.

    Upon seeing that everyone left the room in despair, the dean could not help but say to Wang Zhen, ¡°By behaving like this, you will cause panic.¡±

    Actually, the dean did not support the idea of letting these people watch the scary video. He knew how mentally weak these people were.

    Wang Zhen did not seem to care. ¡°If they panicking, let them. At this point in time, only panic can make them abandon those impractical thoughts. Otherwise, do you think they would put in the effort to fight against the enemy?¡±

    The dean knew Wang Zhen was right, but he was still worried. ¡°Panic will make them crumble easily.¡±

    Wang Zhen turned his head abruptly and replied, ¡°Do you know what you should do to survive on a battlefield? Don¡¯t think too much and move forward. Those who crumble easily are fated to die. Who can do anything about that?¡±

    The dean was silent.

    At this moment, both of them noticed that two people were walking toward them. They were Han Yuqin and Mingxiu from the Jade Embroidery Workshop.

    ¡°Good afternoon, Master Han,¡± Wang Zhen and the dean greeted at the same time.

    For those who became masters, people would add the title ¡°Master¡± to their surnames as a form of respect.

    Any master, regardless of their field, enjoyed an extraordinary status. Whether one was a dean or a mayor, he or she had to disy a certain level of respect toward a master.

    Even though they wished that Han Yuqin was abat master and not an embroidery master,, they would not treat her with less respect at the current time.

    Regardless of the field, a master had an extremely deep understanding of elemental energy. Naturally, Han Yuqin¡¯s fighting capabilities would not beparable to abat master¡¯s. However, her fighting capabilities would still be superior to an average elementalist¡¯s. An average elementalist¡¯s understanding of elemental energy could not bepared to a master¡¯s.

    Even her disciple, Mingxiu, had rather terrifying fighting capabilities. Mingxiu was from a noble family. Her family had many talents and she had a very powerful elder brother. Previously, during the naked streaker incident, the fighting capabilities that Mingxiu disyed were so powerful that she struck fear in everyone¡¯s heart.

    Han Yuqin and Mingxiu came here as the representatives for the Jade Embroidery Workshop. Wang Shouchuan did note.

    Wang Zhen admired them in silence. While one was old and the other young, these two women were still much more calm andposed whenpared to the others, though they still looked somewhat afraid.

    ¡°Good afternoon dean. Good afternoon mayor,¡± Han Yuqin greeted them back. She then sighed. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect the situation to worsen to such a critical state. Mayor, you¡¯re right. Everyone needs to unite and work together if we want to possibly survive this ordeal. Mayor, feel free to use anyone from the Jade Embroidery Workshop, including Mingxiu and I. If you need us to do anything, feel free to tell us.¡±

    ¡°Mayor, feel free to let us know if there¡¯s anything we can help with,¡± Mingxiu added.

    Wang Zhen was overjoyed at the good news and bowed. ¡°Thank you Master Han and Miss Mingxiu!¡±

    Previously, he did not dare to request help from the Jade Embroidery Workshop. How could he request for an embroidery master to fight on a battlefield? This would be disrespectful to her and he did not have the balls to do so. It was the same regarding Miss Mingxiu, he did not dare to ask her due to her status.

    Right now, with the approval from both of them, he seemed to have gained two powerful allies.

    ¡°Mayor, you¡¯re too courteous.¡± Han Yuqin continued to say, ¡°I¡¯m aplete stranger to fighting on a battlefield. However, if it¡¯s about defending a city, I might have some ideas.¡±

    Wang Zhen was surprised at these words, but he quickly said, ¡°Master Han, please borate.¡±

    Han Yuqin thought for a while before replying, ¡°The first thing I can think of is a spell formation previously mentioned by my husband. The art of spell formation has long since vanished along with the Cultivation Era and I¡¯m not proficient in it. However, the logic applied should be the same. If there¡¯s a workable spell formation now, it would be [Elemental Energy Distribution-Connection Formation]. It¡¯s somewhat simr to embroidery. The only difference is that we would treat the sky, earth, mountains, and rivers as the ¡®cloth.¡¯ The sky, earth, mountains, and rivers might be too vast, but if we treat the city as the ¡®cloth,¡¯ I might be able to do it.¡±

    Wang Zhen was stunned. He was looking nkly at the calm-looking Han Yuqin.

    Treating the city as ¡°cloth¡±... Was this the lofty quality of an embroidery master?

    Currently, Han Yuqin¡¯s petite and aged stature became imposing in his heart.

    ¡°Master Han, please give it a try!¡± He submitted willingly to her and bowed deeply.

    The dean was also convinced and bowed. ¡°Master Han, please give it a try!¡±

    .....

    Outside of Central Pine City.

    The red-dressed girl looked at the rattan balls that were hanging on the tree in front of her. She specially found this batch of blood fiends from up to 100 kilometers away. This time around, she did not care about the quality of the blood fiends, but rather the quantity.

    The turn of events in the valley hadpletely disrupted her n. Central Pine City was no longer her ideal choice.

    She was not Tian Kuan.

    She did not have much time to waste. Otherwise, she would not be able to catch up and wouldg behind everyone else.

    However, she refused to forgive herself for leaving without doing anything.

    As such, before she left, she prepared a huge present for Central Pine City.

    She flew up in the sky and looked at the distant Central Pine City. The image of a young man appeared in her mind, and she bewitchingly smile. ¡°I will be back for you.¡±

    She turned around and disappeared, like a wisp of ethereal red smoke.

 Chapter 174: The Blaze Of The Winter

    Chapter 174: The ze Of The Winter

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    It was extremely pleasing to have a moment of enjoyment in the midst of critical danger and a moment of rest in the midst of bustling preupation.

    Lying in the hotspring, Ai Hui¡¯s face was filled with pleasure and enjoyment. There were no clouds, so twinkling starspletely covered the vast night sky. Such rarely-seen good weather. Ai Hui was facing the sky and his body was totally rxed, floating on the water like a piece of wood.

    Ai Hui sighed silently. He did not know whether or not he could see such an enchanting night sky in the future again. Even if he could, he might not be as tranquil as he was now.

    After the joy of surviving the cmity gradually disappeared, he realized that the situation he was in had not changed much. He knew much more and became more worried. When he heard Shi Xueman and the rest discussing about when the blood catastrophe would end, a bitter smile appeared on his face.

    End...

    If it was a natural disaster, he would not spend much time contemting even if the situation was very dire. However, the blood catastrophe was a man-made disaster. This was a conspiracy that had been prepared and plotted for a long time. The conspirators behind the scenes had nned meticulously for a war.

    Between the two sides of the war, one side was well-prepared and the other side was ill-prepared. Even an outsider like Ai Hui could sense that the oue of the war was obvious.

    His thoughts were drifting.

    The dying scene of the elementalist exploding in the forest appeared in his mind. If One Thousand Yuan was not so picky and had not pumped so much blood poison in them, would they have survived? Using this method, could she create an army of... hmm, what should they be called? Blood men? Snowmen? (Ame joke, snow and blood sound the same in Chinese)

    Oh, they would most likely be called blood elementalists.

    If he encountered arge group of blood elementalists in the future... all he could do was surrender!

    It was best not to provoke beautiful women...

    Ai Hui¡¯s thoughts drifted extremely far away.

    One Thousand Yuan did not seemed to be bullsh*tting about the blood spiritual force. Even though he had not confirmed whether or not it was ¡°spiritual force,¡± he felt that his body was alright at least.

    The [Arching Fish Back] hadpletely exhausted the ¡°spiritual force¡± in his body. Previously, he was still worried that his five residences and eight pces, wait no, the seven pces would have problems. His lungs and the seven pces had been utterly damaged by the blood poison. There were some parts where flesh was starting to grow back and recover. However, most of the damaged parts were healed by the ¡°spiritual force¡±.

    Using an analogy, this ¡°spiritual force¡± was like a magical glue, while Ai Hui¡¯s lungs and seven pces were like dpidated houses. Right now, a thickyer of magical glue had been applied on these houses. By doing this, the walls of these houses were renewed. The previously leaking houses were no longer leaking.

    Currently, Ai Hui was most worried about how long this magical glue wouldst and whether or not it was reliable.

    Even if it was not reliable, there was nothing he could do now.

    He had already gotten Lou Lan to examine his body. Lou Lan felt that what was going within his body was a miracle. He admitted he would not have the capability to repair such devastating injuries, and he was sure that not even masters could do it. However, he was still optimistic toward Ai Hui¡¯s conditions.

    All right, actually there were not many times that Lou Lan was not optimistic....

    Ai Hui soon put down his worries. Even though there might be hidden dangers within his body, he was at leastpletely all right now. Not only that, he had also opened up seven pces, and his fighting capabilities had advanced by leaps and bounds.

    He did not even know whether or not he would live past tomorrow, so why should he think so far ahead?

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s nose twitched and his eyes widened as he collected his thoughts.

    Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup!

    All his worries were immediately thrown away. Ai Hui almost scrambled out of the hotspring, put on his clothes, and rushed to the front courtyard. He remembered when he first came back to the training hall, he had thrown his rewards to Lou Lan.

    Wang Zhen was generous with the rewards as he wanted people to continue signing up for his missions. As such, there was a lot good stuff among Ai Hui¡¯s rewards.

    When Ai Hui was signing up for the mission, he chose elemental food ingredients. Thus, all of his rewards were rted to the ingredients of elemental food. These ingredients were so valuable that Ai Hui did not even dare to dream about having them in the past.

    For example, there were two fiery-winged snake eggs. Their specification was three years, which meant that they had been stewed underva and absorbed the underground heat for three years. The fiery-winged snake was a kind of extremely vicious and poisonous dire beast. It could fly and its senses were exceptionally sharp, making the process of stealing its eggs very difficult.

    There was one hind leg of herb-cured heavenly-eyed yak. The heavenly-eyed yak was an extremely powerful dire beast. Its hind legs were the strongest part of its entire body, which were considered the most important part as well. The hind legs were marinated using the herbs that were meticulously prepared and mixed. Next, they were air-dried and couldst for 100 years. As the cured hind legs aged with the years, the infusion between the meat and the herbs would be stronger, improving the quality of the meat.

    As for the fragrant lotus golden toad, it was first prepared by sedating the golden toad using a special method and put inside a lotus flower that had bloomed. Then, elemental energy was used to close up the lotus flower, wrapping up the golden toad. The golden toad would enter a state that was simr to hibernation. Its toxicity would be absorbed by the lotus flower as time passed. The water elemental energy of the lotus would gradually seep into the golden toad as well. It would take at least six months to produce a fragrant lotus golden toad.

    There were a lot of other valuable ingredients included as well...

    Regardless of the types of ingredients, all of them were extremely expensive. Even Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun were stunned by the ingredients.

    Lou Lan was a connoisseur in this aspect and gave a reasonable estimation of the cost of these ingredients. The total price of just these three ingredients alone was estimated to be at least 10,000,000 yuan.

    Everyone¡¯s attention was caught by the fragrance of the elemental soup. All of them stared nkly at Lou Lan when he brought out a huge cauldron of soup.

    It was far too tempting!

    After taking in a sniff of the unique fragrance, everyone became hungry.

    Those who were thin-skinned, like Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun, tried to hold themselves back. However, one could see that their throats were gulping nonstop. Those who were thick-skinned, like Jiang Wei and Wang Xiaoshan, had already gathered around the cauldron. Fatty looked even more unsightly with his saliva drooling all over the ce.

    Ai Hui dashed forward like an arrow.

    ¡°Everyone has a share!¡± Lou Lan chuckled.

    Shi Xueman was extremely jealous of Ai Hui. Howe this fellow had such a perfect sand puppet? Could the food from her home even bepared with Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup?

    Gurgle gurgle gurgle. Her stomach kept on growling. A flush of embarrassment appeared upon her face.

    In front of Lou Lan¡¯s unrivalled elemental soup, everyone looked extremely obedient. All of them held an empty bowl in their hands as they waited anxiously for their turn to get the soup.

    It was unknown when exactly Lou Land had be a chef. He was wearing a huge apron and a chef hat while holding an enormousdle, making him look extremely imposing!

    The first bowl belonged to Ai Hui. When Ai Hui got his share of soup, he immediately drank it with a silly smile on his face.

    When the rest heard Ai hui¡¯s slurping, they began to gulp their saliva frantically. Brother, can¡¯t you be more quiet? Do you have any dining manners? Why is the soup being distributed so slowly?

    Those who had received their shares of soup eagerly ran to one side and started drinking it.

    Even Shi Xueman, a goddess who was refined and raised from a strict family background, took a big bowl of soup and squatted on the floor like a country bumpkin to drink her soup. She did not even bother to use chopsticks or care whether it was too hot. Mouthful by mouthful, she slurped the soup,pletely disregarding her image.

    It was too delicious!

    Standing at end, Fatty could already form a sea with his saliva.

    ¡°Lou Lan has prepared something special for Fatty!

    Lou Lan brought out a pot of bright red soup from nowhere and passed it to Fatty.

    Fatty was stunned. The soup in front of him did not have a single piece of meat or a whiff of fragrance. It was not even producing steam. However, upon taking a second look, he could smell a whiff of fragrance. Whoa... the stewed meat... The meat had stewed for so long that it was going to melt soon. If he was to take a bite of it...

    Gurgle!

    He swallowed his saliva, pointed toward the inside of the huge cauldron, and said weakly, ¡°I want to drink that.¡±

    ¡°Fatty¡¯s body constitution is different from everyone else. He does not need to strengthen his body. What he needs is to strengthen his fire elemental energy. This was specially and carefully prepared by Lou Lan. It costs more than 5,000,000 yuan,¡± Lou Lan exined.

    5,000,000 yuan....

    ¡°Five million yuan?¡± Fatty¡¯s eyes widened as his body trembled.

    ¡°Yes, there are two fiery-winged snake eggs in it!¡± Ai Hui affirmed.

    ¡°Drink! I will finish it all!¡± Fatty replied without any objections.

    5,000,000 yuan worth of soup! He must definitely finish it!

    Fatty picked up the pot and started gulping the soup. The soup was smooth and did not taste bad at all. God d*mnit, one mouthful of this soup cost at least 10,000 yuan...

    10,000 yuan, 10,000 yuan, 10,000 yuan....

    Fatty put down the pot unsteadily. Even someone like him, who could eat and drink a lot, had a dazed expression after downing the entire pot of soup in one go.

    Now you know how good I am! Fatty was somewhat pleased with himself. Usually, Lou Lan would only give Ai Hui such look of admiration.

    Hahaha, you have finally witnessed what I am capable of!

    Fatty burped and a nk look suddenly appeared on his face.

    ¡°Amazing!¡± Lou Lan¡¯s tone was filled with amazement. ¡°Fatty, you can actually finish the entire pot of Dragon Soup in one sitting. You¡¯re really amazing. Lou Lan had thought that you would need one week to finish it.¡±

    Shi Xueman, who was contemting whether or not to lick the bottom of the bowl, was stunned when she heard the two words ¡°Dragon Soup.¡±

    Not only her, even Duanmun Huanghun and Sang Zhijun simultaneously stopped what they were doing and looked at Fatty in wonder.

    Ai Hui looked at everyone¡¯s reaction and took a look at Fatty. Fatty was in a daze. Ai Hui could not help but ask, ¡°Lou Lan, what¡¯s Dragon Soup? It¡¯s name sounds rather imposing.¡±

    ¡°Ai Hui, it¡¯s a kind of soup that¡¯s specially for fire elementalists. It uses fiery-winged snake eggs as the main ingredient, with the addition of 12 different types of heavenly fire peppers. It¡¯s a special type of elemental food. Most people feel it¡¯s actually a type of elixir. If it¡¯s considered as an elixir, it¡¯s name would be10 Oil Drops, which implies that one can only drink 10 drops of it in one sitting. It¡¯s extremely beneficial to fire elementalists, but not a lot of people dare to drink it. That¡¯s why I said Fatty is really amazing!¡±

    Fatty¡¯s body felt like it was boiling. His body became bright scarlet, resembling red hot chili peppers. Even his hair turned red.

    ¡°As for why it¡¯s called Dragon Soup, it is because dragons can spit fire.Dragon Soup is extremely stimting. If one finishes it, he or she can spit out fire easily. Of course, Lou Lan doesn¡¯t think this is a good name since there are many kinds of dragons. Fire-spitting dragons are only one of the many types....¡±

    Burp. Fatty burped again.

    Boom!

    A stream of zing fire shot out from Fatty¡¯s mouth for a distance of more than two meters!

    Everyone was bbergasted.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry Ai Hui, the Dragon Soup is safe and will not cause any damage to the body. To make it easier for him to drink, Lou Lan has used a special method to brew it. It¡¯s as smooth as water when one drinks it at first. Of course, the stimting effect thatester will be very obvious. Lou Lan thought of the Dragon Soup only after I saw the fiery-winged snake eggs. Luckily, the heavenly fire peppers are easy to obtain. It¡¯s a pity that I couldn¡¯t get the spiciest chilli: Rosy Cheeks, and only got the third spiciest: Lava, the sixth spiciest: Jealousy and the eighth spiciest: Anger. Lou Lan wrote down all of this information. I will prepare a better Dragon Soup for Fatty in the future!¡±

    Burp, boom!

    Burp, boom!

    Boom boom boom...

    The chill of the night was dispelled.

    Fatty, you are the ze of the winter!

 Chapter 175: Seven Palaces!

    Chapter 175: Seven Pces!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Fatty resembled a lighthouse that would never extinguish its light. He kept spitting out mes, shining a dazzling light upon his figure towering in the darkness.

    After sympathizing with Fatty, everyone hurriedly went back to training.

    Shi Xueman was somewhat shocked with the surging elemental energy in her body. She had a greater understanding of elemental food than the average individual because she frequently consumed it.

    Whether it was fiery-winged snake eggs, heavenly-eyed yak, or fragrant lotus golden toad, they were all dire beast-based ingredients; however, among the levels of dire beast-based ingredients, they were still considered to be entry-level ingredients.

    The difference in quality between dire beast-based ingredients heavily affected their efficacy and cost.

    The Avalon of Five Elements had stringently differentiated not only the level of dire beast-based food ingredients, but all of the materials which were dire beast-based. There were a total of eight levels: Heaven, Earth, Mysterious, Gold, Universe, Eternity, Flood, and Deste.

    Other than the rarity of the dire beasts from which they were derived, the preparation methods of the ingredients also yed an important role in determining their quality level. Unique, skillful, and meticulous preparation methods could greatly increase the quality level of certain ingredients.

    Central Pine City was just an average, small city in the Induction Ground. There were thousands of cities like it in the Induction Ground. Small and isted cities that were located in the safest areas at the rear of the Induction Ground had little need for high-level food ingredients.

    The magistrate¡¯s office¡¯s reserve contained mostly dire beast-based materials; as such, it was natural for Ai Hui to receive so many valuable dire beast-based ingredients.

    Nevertheless, the beneficial effects of the elemental soup were... surprisingly outstanding!

    Shi Xueman was extremely surprised. This proved that the elemental soup had retained at least fifty percent of the beneficial effects of the ingredients used. Such outstanding effects could only be achieved with a high utility rate of the ingredients.

    She knew that such a top-quality elemental soup was hard toe by.

    Currently, instead of being jealous of Ai Hui for having Lou Lan, she was curious about Lou Lan¡¯s background. Even those elementalists who were skilled in preparing elemental soup would find it hard to produce such top-quality elemental soup. It would take extraordinary individuals to produce such a result.

    Lou Lan¡¯s background was not that simple after all.

    She did not, however, want to pursue an answer just to satisfy her curiosity. Asking about someone else¡¯s background was extremely rude and considered a taboo.

    After drinking such outstanding elemental soup, the most important thing for her to do now was to train and absorb the nutrients of the soup. Such top-quality elemental soup was extremely beneficial for students who were in the middle of training.

    Everyone was focused on their training except for Fatty... Shi Xueman could not help but cast a sympathetic look in his direction. Indeed, not a single one of Ai Hui¡¯s friends was normal...

    She cast an involuntary nce at Ai Hui and was stunned.

    Such a weird posture!

    Ai Hui was neither in bow stance nor horse stance. He was holding his sword with one hand with his elbow pointed down and his sword pointing up, forming a straight line between his be and the sword.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were sharp and she immediately noticed that the tip of Ai Hui¡¯s sword was synchronized with his breathing in some mysterious way.

    What inheritance was this?

    She was very curious as she had never seen such a unique posture. Perhaps it was some sort of swordsmanship training method?

    Suddenly, Shi Xueman discovered that her understanding towards swordsmanship was pathetic. She could not be med for herck of understanding; after all, swordsmanship was really outdated and there were not many swordsmanship inheritances that were distinctive.

    She was no longer in a hurry to train after her interest was piqued.

    In terms of elemental energy reserves, she and Sang Zhijun had the most among everyone here. Furthermore, they were graduating soon. The Induction Ground¡¯s criterion for graduation was very simple; all they had to do was attain Eight Pces Completion.

    She was just one step away from attaining it.

    Among these people, she and Sang Zhijun had benefitted the least from the dire beast-based elemental soup.

    Previously, during the battle with the blood mantis, she had felt that she would soon make a breakthrough.

    When she suddenly saw the unique and seemingly powerful swordsmanship inheritance from Ai Hui, she became extremely curious.

    Aspared to the level of curiosity that she had for Lou Lan, the level of curiosity she had for Ai Hui was a hundred times greater. She saw with her own eyes how Ai Hui had blocked the blood bat¡¯s attack. She had also personally experienced how a guy who had activated only four pces could be the leader of their group.

    She decided to observe him carefully.

    Ai Hui did not know Shi Xueman was secretly observing him. At the moment, he was focusing entirely on his training.

    His body¡¯s condition was neither good nor bad; he was unable to even gauge his condition urately.

    He had identally activated seven pces and this was a huge boost to his strength; however, his lungs and the seven pces that were being repaired by the ¡°spiritual force¡± did not seem to be too secure. Other than fusing with his lungs and the seven pces, the rest of the ¡°spiritual force¡± had been expelled and directed towards the ground by using [Arching Fish Back].

    Ai Hui was worried about whether or not the ¡°seventh pce¡± would work.

    His lungs and seven pces had been repaired by the ¡°spiritual force¡±, not elemental energy. It was still unknown whether or not he could continue to develop his elemental energy.

    Very soon, Ai Hui realized that he had worried for nothing.

    As he breathed, the elemental energy from the elemental soup steadily flowed into his limbs and bones, nourishing his blood and muscles. Lou Lan had definitely considered the injuries in his body when cooking, as Ai Hui realized that the injuries within his five residences and eight pces had healed significantly.

    Ai Hui was more surprised by his sword embryo. This time, his sword embryo did not absorb any elemental energy during the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    Weird! Did the sword embryo¡¯s nature change?

    Ai Hui just could not figure out what was going on. Previously, his sword embryo would seize any opportunity to absorb elemental energy, but now, it suddenly did want toe into contact with any. Ai Hui was puzzled by this. Could something have happened to the sword embryo as well?

    As Ai Hui proceeded with the Circtory Circle Revolution, what he had been worried about did not happen. Since the sword embryo did not try to absorb any of the elemental energy, his Circtory Circle Revolution proceeded smoothly. The pces were filling up faster than usual.

    Shi Xueman noticed that the Dragonspine Inferno suddenly gave off a faint glow, looking extremely striking in the dark. She became even more curious.

    Suddenly, she cast a nce at Duanmu Huanghun, as if she had sensed something.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s sea pce was emitting a green glow.

    He was truly the most exceptional genius of the Duanmu n¡¯s younger generation!

    A first-year student that had already activated the sixth pce. With the Duanmu n¡¯s absolute skill [Viridescent Flower], Duanmu Huanghun was powerful enough to challenge his seniors. If the Induction Ground still retained the ranking system next year, Duanmu Huanghun would shock everyone.

    Then again, when Shi Xueman considered when the blood catastrophe might end, sheughed bitterly to herself.

    Duanmu Huanghun was burning with motivation. He was a prideful individual and could not stand being overshadowed by Ai Hui. At this time, his levels of focus and diligence had reached an unimaginable high. Furthermore, thest few real-lifebats and struggles between life and death had benefitted him greatly.

    A so-called genius was a freak that would advance by leaps and bounds when life put some pressure on him or her!

    Shi Xueman sighed and shifted her gaze. She was not interested in Duanmu Huanghun at all. The one she was interested in was Ai Hui.

    At first, Ai Hui¡¯s left hand pce lit up. Then, his right hand pce lit up as well, followed by his left foot pce and then, after a while, his right foot pce.

    He had actually activated four pces!

    Shi Xueman gasped in surprise. The first time she had seen Ai Hui, he had just activated his natal residences. Now, he had already activated four pces.

    That was barely half a year ago. Even though he was not as talented as Duanmu Huanghun, he was not as bad as what his profile had portrayed.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s earth pce began to give off a faint glow.

    Shi Xueman was dumbstruck. This was... the fifth pce!

    She was at a loss. Activating four pces in half a year was rather fast, but he still could not be considered a genius. Everyone knew that the four pces in the limbs were the easiest to activate. The difficulty would increase significantly once one reached the pces of earth, sea, gate, and sky.

    Ai Hui had actually activated the fifth pce!

    Could... this fellow be a geniusparable to Duanmu Huanghun?

    ¡°Oh my god!¡± Sang Zhijun softly gasped in surprise. Her face was filled with incredulity.

    Shi Xueman also eximed in surprise, but after taking a closer look, shepletely freaked out.

    Meanwhile, Duanmu Huanghun, who had just activated the sea pce, was overjoyed. After activating the sixth pce, the number of moves he could use from the [Viridescent Flower] had greatly increased. The thing he cared about the most was Ai Hui! The reason why his fighting capabilities were weaker than Ai Hui was the great disparity between their respective amounts of actualbat experience. Since he could notpensate for theck of actualbat experience, he would try to overtake Ai Hui in other areas!

    Base level!

    After activating the sixth pce, the power of the [Viridescent Flower] rose sharply. Even if his actualbat experience lost out to Ai Hui¡¯s by a huge margin, he could use just his base level to increase his fighting capabilities and defeat that scumbag!

    After relieving his concern, the following carefree feeling made Duanmu Huanghun want to just look up at the sky and let out a heartyugh.

    At that moment, he heard Sang Zhijun¡¯s rmed cry and involuntarily opened his eyes.

    As soon as he opened his eyes, a figure holding a sword appeared before him. One, two, three... six!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s head spun as if someone had whacked his head with a bat. Somewhere in his nk mind, a voice roared. It can¡¯t be!

    After being dazed for nearly half a minute, he finally came to his senses. The first thought toe to his mind was that he had miscounted.

    He decided to count again. One... Two... Three... Four... Five... Six...

    There really were six...

    Then at that moment, Ai Hui¡¯s gate pce faintly lit up.

    ...Seven... howe there¡¯s one more? Duanmu Huanghun felt like he was going crazy.

    While Ai Hui¡¯s gate pce was flickering with light, there was a dead silence in the training hall except for the sound of Fatty spitting out mes.

    At that moment, everyone was gaping at Ai Hui in silence.

    The way they stared at Ai Hui was as if they had seen a ghost.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s trembling fingers could not help but start to count again. Seven pces. There were really seven pces!

    He stared nkly at Ai Hui.

    Sang Zhijun had her mouth wide open and looked like a frightened quail. She hadpletely lost her usualdylike demeanor.

    Shi Xueman was also frightened by what she saw. She was really frightened. She had been a genius ever since she was young and had also been surrounded by various other geniuses. Despite that background, she was frightened by the sight currently in front of her.

    She had known Ai Hui far longer than Sang Zhijun. She clearly knew how low Ai Hui¡¯s starting point had been.

    As a result, the scene before her eyes gave her a far stronger sense of surprise and terrorpared to the others.

    It defied logic!

    The seventh pce! How could he have activated the seventh pce?

    For a genius like Duanmu Huanghun, whose family had plenty of knowledge and wealth, it was not unusual for him to activate the sixth pce in his first year; however, for a poor kid who had not even learned how to train before entering school and who had just barely activated his natal residences half a year ago, it was incredible for him to have activated the seventh pce...

    That¡¯s right! It¡¯s the seventh pce!

    Right now, she wanted to grab Ai Hui by the cor and asked him what miracle drugs he had taken!

    After a while, the horrified Shi Xueman, who had beenpletely overwhelmed by theck of logic in Ai Hui¡¯s feat, suddenly quivered. This fellow had not stopped yet!

    Her chest tightened.

    No, it can¡¯t be. It can¡¯t be possible that this freak was going straight for the Eight Pces Completion!

    If someone had narrated this scene to her in the past, she would have felt that it was an extremely funny joke. Right now, however, she did not dare tough at all.

    This guy was a freak. A never-before-seen, extremely ferocious and formidable freak.

    Everyone¡¯s gaze was on Ai Hui.

    No one had noticed that the scorching red-colored spots of light on the fiery-red body of the fire-spitting Fatty were slowly lighting up, resembling volcanicva...

 Chapter 176: The Danger from Beneath

    Chapter 176: The Danger from Beneath

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    Pop.

    The faint sound of a rupture broke the silence in the forest. The soil on the ground flipped open and a fist-sized red-colored ant crawled out, follow by another blood ant. The soil flipped open repeatedly and a constant stream of blood ants began crawling out.

    Ants, which built their nests underground, were not devoured by the hanging roots to be ugly tree bulges during the outbreak of the blood tsunami. On the contrary, they became stronger as they gnawed on and ate the underground tree roots. Then the ants started to devour each other, causing their previously huge number to diminish greatly.

    The blood ants were the true victors of this devastating massacre. There was a huge difference between their current fighting capabilities and their former fighting capabilities.

    Perhaps even thedy in red had not expected that the ordinary-looking ants would be the first toplete their transformation. They had not even been numbered among the blood fiends and blood insects that she had prepared.

    The feelers on their heads trembled as they traversed through the forest. Their travelling speed was extremely fast and they maintained an orderly group. A single ant colony was made up of a few hundred ants, resembling an orderly army.

    Different ant colonies kept a certain distance between each other. Instead of merging together, the ant colonies were hostile and took precautions against one another.

    They crawled out of the forest and the silhouette of Central Pine City appeared before their eyes.

    The concentrated aura of the elemental energy being emitted from the city sent a wave ofmotion through the blood ant colonies. They were like red-colored tidal waves. They marched towards Central Pine City under the cover of night.

    In each colony, the ant that led the rest was the biggest in size. Its body was also a deeper redpared to the others. Its feelers swayed non-stop.

    When they were to about to reach Central Pine City, they suddenly stopped and started digging into the ground. They did it easily, as if the soil was as soft as biscuits.

    The red-colored tidal wave disappeared in the blink of an eye.

    Ai Hui slowly opened his eyes and was greeted by everyone¡¯s surprised gazes and gasps.

    Luckily... he did not activate the eighth pce...

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief at the same time.

    ¡°Is there something on my face?¡± Ai Hui looked puzzled. ¡°Why are all of you looking at me like that?¡±

    At this point of time, the horizon was speckled with light particles. Dawn wasing.

    Just as Shi Xueman was about to inquire about Ai Hui¡¯s circumstances, a deafening emergency rm suddenly resounded throughout the entire city.

    Everyone was shocked.

    ¡°It¡¯s from the east gate!¡± Duanmu Huanghun cried.

    Before anyone could turn towards the east gate, an emergency rm rang from the west gate as well, followed by emergency rms from the north gate and south gate.

    Everyone looked at each other in dismay. They could see the terror in their eyes. The emergency rms at all four gates had suddenly sounded at the same time. Did that mean that the city was surrounded by blood fiends?

    ¡°Ants! They¡¯reing from beneath the ground!¡±

    ¡°They are digging through the foundation of the city walls!¡±

    ¡°Earth elementalists! Where are the earth elementalists? Faster, stop them! The city stabilizers are being bitten off!¡±

    ¡°Damn it! They can¡¯t be stopped! What kind of ants are they?¡±

    ......

    Through the message tree, a detailed report from the front lines appeared on Wang Zhen¡¯s desk almost immediately.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s face was pale-white. He had not expected the first wave of blood fiends toe from beneath the ground. The most powerfully defended area of every city was its ground. To prevent the blood fiends from carrying out an underground invasion, incredibly thick city stabilizers had beenid beneath the ground in every city.

    The city stabilizers were made of a kind of extremely strong and stable stone. Every piece of city stabilizer was at least nine meters thick and would be ced beneath the city ground without neglecting a single area. The city stabilizers had one more special characteristic; after ten years, the city stabilizers would fuse together, bing one whole.

    It was as if the entire city¡¯s underground was covered with an impregnable coating. The city¡¯s drainage system was built upon these city stabilizers.

    There were very few cities that were invaded by dire beasts from underground.

    Wang Zhen had not at all expected that the first wave of attacks woulde from beneath the ground. He had not had a lot of manpower or resources to begin with and had used almost all of them on guarding the city walls and defending against aerial attacks.

    He was caught unprepared.

    Fortunately, he was able to quickly calm himself down. He did not have many earth elementalists with him and not many of them were powerful. Hence, even if he knew that the blood ants would be invading from underground, there was not much he could do about it.

    Just like the elementalists that had first discovered the blood ant invasion, the earth elementalists took immediate action, but they simply could not stop the blood ants.

    ¡°Announce to the entire city to pay attention to the ground.¡±

    Wang Zhen gave the order in a low voice.

    ¡°Doing that will make us lose control of the situation!¡± The dean had heard what was going on and rushed over. His face was pale.

    ¡°The situation has never been under our control.¡± Wang Zhen waved his hand.

    The dean was speechless.

    Elementalists flew through the sky above Central Pine City while repeatedly announcing Wang Zhen¡¯s order.

    ¡°Beneath the ground?¡±

    Ai Hui looked solemn as an elementalist flew overhead.

    ¡°Aren¡¯t there city stabilizers beneath the ground?¡± Jiang Wei¡¯s face was filled with incredulity. ¡°Don¡¯t tell me the blood ants can even bite through the city stabilizers? Are they even really ants?¡±

    Everyone else¡¯s faces paled.

    ¡°Everyone, be careful.¡± Ai Hui reminded them.

    At that moment, a blood-curdling scream came from the alleyway. Everyone jumped to their feet.

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed and he hand-signalled Shi Xueman to retreat. At first, when Shi Xueman saw Ai Hui¡¯s hand signal, she was stunned; however, soon after, she floated up into the air and hovered backwards slowly while holding the snow-white spear in her hands. Wisps of mist began to gather around the spear.

    Duanmu Huanghun spread his fingers wide as the elemental energy within his body began to charge up.

    Sang Zhijun took out her Golden Silk Longbow, looking somewhat anxious.

    Jiang Wei had already loaded a heavy arrow onto his huge bow.

    At that moment, Wang Xiaoshan could sense the presence of blood ants as well. He really had to give it to Ai Hui. As an earth elementalist, he had not been able to sense anything beneath the ground previously, and yet, Ai Hui had sensed the blood ants.

    Lou Lan was the only one who was not nervous. He stood behind Ai Hui, looking somewhat eager to fight. Thest time he had fought alongside Ai Hui was during the fight with Zu Yan. Since then, Lou Lan¡¯sbat skills had improved greatly!

    Pop!

    A red streak shot out of the ground and lunged towards the hovering Shi Xueman with an extremely fast speed.

    The prepared Shi Xueman remained calm. The snow-white spear in her hand suddenly struck out.

    Driven by an invisible force, the mist surrounding the spear started to whirl around the spear¡¯s body at a terrifying speed, resembling a tornado. Apanied by a vibrating screech, a snow-white spear glint pierced towards the blood ant.

    nk!

    The deafening sound of the collision was so loud that it struck pain into one¡¯s eardrums.

    The force from the collision passed through the tip of Shi Xueman¡¯s spear, causing her to float gracefully into the sky as if there was a steel wire pulling her from behind.

    The lightning-fast red streak suddenly came to a stop. The blood ant was frozen in mid-air.

    A tinge of happiness shed in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. He almost yelled, ¡°Nice!¡± at this scene.

    This spear move of Shi Xueman¡¯s was indeed beautiful. Her counter-attack had cancelled out the blood ant¡¯s lunging attack and sessfully froze its body in mid-air, disying exceptional spear techniques and an excellent control over her strength.

    Shi Xueman was truly worthy of her reputation.

    Ai Hui was eximing in admiration in his heart, but the sword in his hand did not slow down at all.

    He heard a snapping sound. Jiang Wei¡¯s heavy bow! Suddenly, Ai Hui hit upon an idea and flipped his Dragonspine Inferno around to use the side of its de as a bat.

    Ai Hui urately smacked the blood ant on its side. At the same time, Jiang Wei¡¯s Wolftooth Heavy Arrow whizzed through the air and struck the blood ant from the other side.

    The two attacks struck the red ant from opposite directions at the same time, one from the left side and one from the right.

    ng!

    Ai Hui felt an extremely powerful wave of energy surging through his sword and into his hand. His palm became so hot that he could not even hold the sword hilt properly. He did not resist the energy and conveniently used it to propel himself into flight.

    Thebined attack from the two of them was indeed potent!

    Before the blood ant could react, it was hit by the Wolftooth Heavy Arrow and exploded into smithereens.

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief. The battle had gone much smoother than what they had expected. The blood ants were just as powerful as the blood mantis that they had foughtst time; however, this time around, everyone¡¯s strength had increased significantly and their attacks were much more coordinated.

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression suddenly changed drastically. ¡°Be careful, there¡¯re still more!¡±

    Pop, pop, pop!

    Streaks of red light shot out from the ground like red-colored arrows.

    Everyone¡¯s facial expressions changed drastically.

    ¡°Lou Lan, protect Fatty!¡± Ai Hui yelled urgently. His body was fully stretched in mid-air. The Dragonspine Inferno in his hand materialized into a dark shadow that struck an iing blood ant.

    The blood ant flew backwards and mmed heavily into the wall, leaving a fist-sized hole.

    The Dragonspine Inferno was brandished gracefully through the air, disying excellent precision and uracy.

    Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh. The daggers in the Red Dust Sword Box automatically flew out and wound around Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Almost everyone was being attacked by blood ants.

    Duanmu Huanghun flipped his palms and the glowing green light between his fingers began to bounce actively. Even though he was nervous, he was more cool-headed than he had been during the previous battle. Glowing green flowery patterns started to form and twirl under his feet, followed by green vines which shot out of the patterns.

    Pow!

    His attack urately struck one blood ant.

    Another crisp sound came from behind him. A green vine that had just struck a blood ant withdrew back into the glowing patterns.

    Duanmu Huanghun was gaining confidence. After activating the sixth pce, the powers of the [Viridescent Flower] indeed rose sharply!

    The confident Duanmu Huanghun became increasingly calm. His fingers were spread open, resembling blossoming flowers. Green flowers hovered around his slender figure, disying an indescribable confidence. He looked like a character that was part of a beautiful painting.

    In mid-air, the mist was rising and curling behind Shi Xueman¡¯s back. The spear in her hand was like a tornado, sucking in the red ant andpletely shredding its red-colored body.

    Within the bright snow-white tornado were the sounds of numerous sonic booms.

    Boom!

    The red ant exploded into a cloud of blood mist. The tornado disappeared instantly, leaving not the slightest bit of the red ant¡¯s remnants.

    Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun, and Wang Xiaoshan formed a triangr formation. They knew theirbat skills were limited and could not bepared to the other formidable trio.

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s Golden Silk Longbow was shooting at an incredibly fast speed. The arrows shot out were getting increasingly quicker. Instead of going for a one-shot-one-kill, she was trying to hit the blood ants with continuous arrows. Shi Xueman¡¯s previous attack had given her this inspiration. Even though she did not have Shi Xueman¡¯s strength, she could strike the blood ant with continuous arrows to slow it down, creating an opportunity for Jiang Wei to strike.

    Snap!

    Every time there was a blood ant which had been slowed down, Jiang Wei¡¯s Wolftooth Heavy Arrows would whiz through the air and hit it.

    At such a short range, the power of Jiang Wei¡¯s heavy arrows was really devastating.

    Every shot blew up a blood ant.

    Wang Xiaoshan kept channeling his earth elemental energy to pile up the soil beneath the trio. After a while, a rough-looking soil-made target board appeared beneath them.

    The situation was extremely chaotic.

    Lou Lan, who was guarding Fatty, had been eager to fight for quite a while; however, not a single blood ant had attacked them.

    He nced around with a nk look on his face.

    Why aren¡¯t the blood antsing at me?

 Chapter 177: [Big Dipper]

    Chapter 177: [Big Dipper]

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    The mes that Fatty spewed made Lou Lan¡¯s silhouette look extremely lonesome.

    Yet, the battle going on within the training hall was very intense.

    At the start, Ai Hui did not dare to rx too much. He had not adjusted to his new level of seven pces and did not know how to efficiently utilize them in battle. Plus, he still felt some fear. He was afraid that overexerting the seven pces, which were mended by the ¡°spiritual force,¡± would cause them to fall apart.

    Fortunately, the situation was highly heated, which quickly made his fear vanish into thin air.

    It was a matter of life and death, how could he afford to think too much?

    Be it in size or strength, the blood ants paled inparison to the blood mantis. However, there were simply too many of them. Just looking around, there were at least 100 ants crawling about in the training hall.

    Their speed was fast, even faster than the blood mantis. They were like red arrows. Move any slower and they would strike. Also, they were very good at cooperating and pounced on their prey from all different directions.

    Ai Hui was flustered at first, but soon enough, he found the trick to deal with the blood ants.

    The blood ants had great speed, but lost out in size. Their strength was far below the blood mantis.

    The Red Dust Sword Box gave Ai Hui a huge, pleasant surprise. He was unable to control the Red Dust daggers that well, but since there were just too many blood ants, he did not really require much precision.

    The red light surrounded Ai Hui. It was very sharp and left a wound on the blood ants¡¯ bodies the moment they touched it.

    On the contrary, the heavy Dragonspine Inferno in Ai Hui¡¯s hand was slow-moving.

    Ai Hui realized that it was difficult to kill the blood ants if he met force with force. They were very tenacious and would quickly crawl up and join the next attack wave if they were swatted away.

    Blood fiends had very tough bodies. Even if they were small and weak like ants, they were still difficult to handle.

    Ai Hui could onlyment about the power of the blood poison. Without exception, wild beasts and insects underwent major changes when poisoned. It was clear that the existence of the blood poison was in defiance of the natural order. The God of Blood... what a horrifying thing!

    As a seasoned veteran, Ai Hui realized that using brute force was not efficient enough, so he needed another strategy. They won in numbers. He would not be able to weaken their advantage if he did not find a more effectivebat method. Over time, his strength would only reduce, and he would sink into a precarious situation.

    He quickly noticed that Jiang Wei and the others were in an increasingly terrible situation. They were weaker and not as strong in close quartersbat. He had to assist them as soon as possible. With no time to think, he dashed toward the three of them and shook the Dragonspine Inferno in his hand.

    As he prepared to mobilize the elemental energy within his body, the seven pces vibrated simultaneously.

    Caught off guard, the Dragonspine Inferno in Ai Hui¡¯s hands stopped moving momentarily, but his eyes were wide open.

    [Big Dipper]...

    An indescribable familiarity surfaced from within Ai Hui¡¯s body. The simultaneous release of elemental energy from the seven pcesbined these seven infinitesimal elemental energies into one.

    Bzz!

    Like the sound a bamboo splitting and swinging in midair, there was suddenly a strong suction force generated from within the center of the circle drawn by the swing of the heavy sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand. The surrounding blood ants began to gravitate to it.

    Like a stone on the riverbed that was visually distorted through the rippling waters, the bodies of the blood ants inside the sword circle were simrly deformed.

    p, p, p.

    A few blood ants simultaneously exploded.

    The scene before Ai Hui¡¯s eyes made him jump in shock and even caused him to fall into a short daze.

    The [Big Dipper] technique... was actually this powerful!

    This was the second time he operated the [Big Dipper], and he had a sudden urge to thank the mayor. Even though it was a transaction, the original version of the [Big Dipper] that the mayor bestowed upon Ai Hui was supremely helpful. Previously, in the blood forest, he had activated it without hesitation when in critical danger.

    He could not remember much, but he was very clear about the fact that the [Big Dipper] had saved his life.

    From a learning perspective, his impetuous activation of the [Big Dipper] was undoubtedly a big waste, but he had no regrets at all. Without the [Big Dipper] and relying on just the [Arching Fish Back] would not have allowed him to mobilize such enormous ¡°spiritual force,¡± Without expending such a huge volume out, he would have exploded.

    After being dazed for a short while, Ai Hui suddenly became excited.

    The [Big Dipper] was actually this powerful!

    Although the traditions passed on by the Avalon of Five Elements were few inparison to the number of swordy manuals left by the Cultivation Era, after more than 1,000 years of development, they were pretty impressive in both the quality and quantity. After all, in the Cultivation Era, cultivators did not have mortal enemies, while the Avalon of Five Elements had never stopped battling the Wilderness.

    War was a huge stimtion for the spread of knowledge.

    All kinds of knowledge had been imparted. Some pertained to fighting styles and elemental energy operation while others involved training methods and a jumble of everything.

    The [Big Dipper] focused on the operation of elemental energy. There were no moves.

    Coined as the most powerful technique, the [Big Dipper] naturally had its own unique properties.

    Generally speaking, operation of elemental energy abided by the ¡°from near to far¡± rule. For example, the sword moves Ai Hui used usually activated the hand pces first since they were the fastest. If both hand pces consumed more elemental energy, the elemental energies from the other pces would steadily flow to the hands.

    The [Big Dipper] was different however. Its elemental energy operation was very unusual.

    Whether Ai Hui used his hands or legs or head, whether this technique required strong or weak elemental energy, it needed a simultaneous mobilization of elemental energies from seven pces.

    Seven pces moved as one. They released seven elemental energies together tobine into one outstanding elemental energy.

    Basically, the [Big Dipper] was veryplicated, but it consumed the same amount of elemental energy and yet increased the power of another move by a huge margin. If an enemy attacked with elemental energy, the [Big Dipper] would distribute the power of the attack between all seven pces, which allowed each pce to simultaneously endure the same amount of dispersed force and greatly reduced the chance of sustaining an injury.

    The [Big Dipper] had its ws of course. Its requirements demanded a lot from its users.

    Users had to have seven strong pces to attain resonance. Then, they had to be capable of unleashing seven elemental energies simultaneously. If the seven pces varied in strength, the energy released would naturally vary in speed.

    Having seven strong pces was a very difficult condition to fulfill, and the majority was ruled out. This was why the [Big Dipper] was powerful, yet not well-known, and why Wang Shouchuan wanted Ai Hui to learn it.

    Other than mandating excellent physical fitness, a superb control over elemental energy was also required. The process of seven elemental energiesbining into one within the body had to bepleted within a short period of time, which was very difficult to achieve without outstanding energy control.

    A high level of control...

    Something clicked in Ai Hui¡¯s brain¨Cembroidery!

    Just like the [Big Dipper], theplex and meticulous embroidery process required a precise control over elemental energy.

    Teacher had long since set his eyes on the [Big Dipper] and had made preparations for Ai Hui from the start. What teacher did not expect was for the mayor to give Ai Hui the original version of the technique!

    At this point, Ai Hui finally understood. No wonder he had such few issues mastering the [Big Dipper]. Be it attaining resonance between the seven pces orbining the seven elemental energies into one, they all went pretty smoothly for him.

    The edge formed by the convergence of elemental energies was extremely sharp. The sword ray swept over a few blood ants, splitting them in half.

    Jiang Wei and the guys were in a dire situation. They looked battered and exhausted.

    Ai Hui was quite far away from them. He took a deep breath and dashed a few steps forward while using a sword-made screen to protect himself. The fearless blood ants threw themselves at Ai Hui andnded on the screen, bursting into tiny mes.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was in a half arch. He ran like a cheetah and, when hended hisst step, theDragonspine Inferno gathered the sword screen that filled the sky and thrusted it forward.

    Sss!

    At the end of the Dragonspine Inferno, a white ray lit up suddenly. It extended along the sword de, across Ai Hui¡¯s palm, wrist, arm, and finally to his whole body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s entire body was engulfed in the ne of the de ray. He was like a bat, drawing a strange arc across the sky.

    [Gale Bat de]!

    Limbs of the marching blood ants were severed upon touching the de ray.

    Sang Zhijun drew her Golden Silk Longbow unceasingly, and the arrows wereunched like a storm. She was utterly focused and had full confidence in her bow mastery. All kinds of harsh training and evaluations were nothing to her. She could release seven arrows in a second and hit the bullseye every single time.

    At she beginning, she was a little nervous and missed a few shots. Soon enough, however, she steadied her feet and had not missed again. She worked well with Jiang Wei and they fought well. They managed to y 16 blood ants together.

    What she did not expect, however, was that the blood ants did not seem to decrease in numbers.

    Plus, she was starting to get tired. Jiang Wei¡¯s power consumption was even higher since he was using a heavy bow. She could even hear Jiang Wei¡¯s breathing getting heavier.

    The arrow target formed by Wang Xiaoshan offered more of a psychologicalfort since the actual protection it provided was quite limited.

    Within her field of vision, all she saw was a frighteningly dense collection of intertwined red shadows.

    An intense feeling of powerlessness emerged from within.

    ¡°Persevere!¡±

    The shout was like a thunderp that rang in her ears. She quivered and instantly became more clear-headed.

    She turned around and saw a figure covered in sword light entering her view and leaving many scattered shadows.

    A low whistle seemed to ring out from below.

    A white sword ray divided the world within her view into two, while the criss-crossed red threads were like frail spiderwebs inparison.

    The ray grew bigger and bigger, like a storm sweeping across the training hall.

    The blood ants were swept up by Ai Hui¡¯s sword ray. Plop plop plop! Like torrential rain, many were flung onto the perimeter walls, leaving only tiny empty spaces on it.

    Other blood ants were intimidated by Ai Hui¡¯s strike, and a short silence fell over the scene.

    A blood-curdling screech was heard from the alleyway. It was weak and almost hollow. The sounds of bone-breaking and chewing never stopped. It was so distinct that everybody¡¯s expression changed altogether. The fates of those in the alleyway was clear. There was no need to think.

    The bodies of those in the training hall grew cold, but fury took over shortly. Boundless anger.

    A baleful gaze emerged from the eyes of the blood ants lying on the ground. Rise again!

    This was a death match. A battle without a retreat route. It would only end with the copse of one side.

 Chapter 178: You Do It

    Chapter 178: You Do It

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Ai Hui shielded the three of them before withdrawing to Fatty¡¯s side.

    He noticed that the blood ants did not like being close to Fatty. Seeing Fatty shooting mes so diligently made Ai Hui think. Could it be that the blood ants were also afraid of fire?

    That was a good thing.

    Jiang Wei was almostpletely exhausted. His heavy bow was astonishingly fatal, but also consumed an astonishing amount of energy. Sang Zhijun had some strength left, but her Golden Silk Longbowcked sufficient power unless she used a special kind of arrow or technique. Even then, it was quite ineffective when facing the densely packed blood ants.

    Wang Xiaoshan sat paralyzed on the ground. He was the weakest amongst these people.

    Indeed, the blood ants did not attack Jiang Wei and the other two. Seemed like his guess was correct. Fatty¡¯s mes were useful in restraining the blood ants. Good one, Fatty! Be at ease, shoot on!

    Ai Hui looked at Fatty in admiration before shouting, ¡°Lou Lan! Follow me!¡±

    ¡°Coming!¡±

    Eager to act, Lou Lan called back loudly before turning into a sand cloud and reforming by Ai Hui¡¯s side.

    Underneath her fluttering hair, Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were bloodshot. Her blue and white armor was streaked with blood poison and dust. The spear in her hand was like a frantic, furious wave.

    The skill that she practiced was [Hydromancy], which was known for its variation. It was not a spear technique.

    Because of her father, she had a unique fondness for spear mastery and had been training with dedication from a young age. The cloud-like, untainted spear was a gift from her father, from when she turned 10. He had it sent over to the house from the front line.

    Its name was Cirrus.

    At that time, her father had killed a humpback cloud whale, and after it dposed, he selected the straightest and most beautiful bone to use as the spear¡¯s body.

    Humpback cloud whales were dire beasts that lived high up and deep within the blue dome of heaven. Their enormous bodies stretched over a few miles and were entirely snow-white, like white inds flying in the sky. It was easy for people to mistake them as floating clouds.

    They had outstanding flying abilities, did not tire, and searched for sea clouds throughout their lives. They fed on these sea clouds as well as the dire beasts that lived within theseyers of clouds.

    Generally speaking, humpback cloud whales did not leave the deepest part of the sky and did not initiate attacks on elementalists. Only rarely did they appear at low altitudes and destroy everything in sight.

    When that happened, a catastrophe would follow.

    Bones of these cloud-eating humpback cloud whales emitted silky threads of mist.

    The pure, crystal-like spearhead was a result of her father¡¯s masterpiece, which also caused a sensation the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Near her father¡¯s military encampment was ake named Blue Sapphire. The scenery was beautiful and he liked to train by thekeside. Every day, he would carry a pail ofke water, pour it into a water tank, and use his elemental energy topress it to its limit.

    The next day, he would continue pouring another pail of water in andpress it. The clear, dark blueke water would be tougher and tougher with eachpression.

    After three years and 1,000 more pails ofke water, he created a huge blue crystal half the size of a person. It was a novel material, an ingredient wholly created by him. Because it was heavy and the color of the sky, it was named Firmament Iron.

    This development caused hugemotion as countless people were willing to spend huge amounts of money to purchase a small piece of it, but they had all been rejected by her father. Since the blue crystal was imperfect, he kept on polishing and grinding it until only a small piece remained. This piece, perfect in his eyes, then became the spearhead of the Cirrus.

    Be it the humpback cloud whale bone or the blue crystal, they were all of the best quality. The moment the Cirrus was forged, it became one of the top water type weapons in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Even when blood was shed everyday, Cirrus remained untainted. No matter what, it was always encouraging to Shi Xueman. She could sense her father¡¯s hopes through it. In her heart, he was like a guardian angel protecting everybody.

    She hoped to emte her father, selflessly helping and safeguarding people.

    The subsiding of the anguished wailings from outside, coupled with the noise of the blood ants chewing, deeply provoked her. She was beyond angry.

    Indeed, she knew why she was so furious.

    She used to be proud of her abilities and strongly believed that she could be like her father, but when danger struck, she was unable to protect everyone like her father. Even she, herself... had be someone else¡¯s burden.

    At this point, the young water elementalist was like a ball of fearless, raging me.

    Shi Xueman powered up, immediately allowing Ai Hui to feel less pressured. He could not help but to look at the madness that Shi Xueman disyed. What a ferocious woman, he thought to himself.

    She was practically a wild beast in human form!

    Whenpared to Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun was not as violent. In fact, he seemed unhurried. His performance waspletely different from a few days ago. While he was not as efficient as Ai Hui, he basically had not missed.

    The breathtaking [Viridescent Flower] in his hand slightly stunned Ai Hui.

    This was not the first time Ai Hui had seen that thankless wretch¡¯s [Viridescent Flower], but in the past, it had been no different from that ingrate¡¯s personality. It looked impressive, but was actually worthless.

    To Ai Hui at least, the skilled had looked shy, but was weak and insignificant.

    Today, however, the [Viridescent Flower] that the ingrate wielded waspletely different. One word: deceitful!

    Damn deceitful!

    It appeared out of nowhere and disappeared to nowhere. It started to attack from the left, but out of nowhere, the branches moved to the right. Extremely deceitful!

    This fellow had been enlightened!

    He had a bad personality, but his brain was not bad at all.

    Soon, Ai Hui witnessed the power of the [Viridescent Flower]. It changed unpredictably and could attack from practically all angles. Plus, it could cover quite arge area.

    If only this fellow knew how to cooperate...

    This thought shed across Ai Hui¡¯s mind. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] looked soft, but was deceitful, stealthy, and had arge area of effect. It was simply made for team y.

    ¡°Ingrate! Cooperate!¡± Ai Hui shouted.

    Ingrate... Damn that bastard! How dare he call him an ingrate in front of so many people!

    Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!

    The inner rage boiled likeva within his chest and rose up violently, but when it reached his mouth, all that came out was, ¡°How... how do I cooperate?¡±

    Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!

    Why had he said something like this? Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s skin reddened from anger.

    ¡°Bangwan, Lou Lan will cooperate. We can do it like this.¡±

    Like a sand cloud floating in the sky, Lou Lan transformed into a fine trip wire. Caught off guard, the blood ants swarming Ai Hui crashed and stumbled onto the ground where Ai Hui stood.

    Brush!

    A sword ray then swept up from the bottom, splitting them in half.

    ¡°And this!¡±

    He had not finished talking when a sand screen appeared in front of a bunch of charging blood ants, blocking their line of sight. However, how could such a thin sand screen obstruct their path?

    Bang, the blood ants broke through the screen fiercely.

    Yet, what weed them was a sword ray.

    ¡°And this!¡±

    ¡°This!¡±

    ¡°This!¡±

    ...

    Duanmu Huanghun was struck dumb by Lou Lan¡¯s demonstration. There were so many moves. While none were very formidable, they effectively subdued the blood ants.

    Ai Hui was even more powerful. Any deviation and it was as if his sword ray was a shark smelling blood or a creditor smelling money...

    Damn it! Why did he think of a creditor...

    Duanmu cursed inwardly, but was unable to deny that Ai Hui and Lou Lan¡¯s teamwork was shockingly well-coordinated.

    Ai Hui was already very efficient to begin with. The Dragonspine Inferno in his hand never once stopped. It shed up in sessive arcs, one after another, and a low vibrating sound continued to ring as the blood ants in the path of these curves were continually crushed.

    Were they... butchering chickens?

    Within a short period of time, the corpses of the blood ants on the floor increased by more than 10. Lou Lan¡¯s various moves were strange but unblockable, and Ai Hui¡¯s ability to react wasmendable. There were no misses at all.

    What puzzled Duanmu Huanghun was that an earth elementalist was actually powerful enough to create such a treacherous sand puppet? Had he missed out on thetest news about wood elementalists?

    Then again, it did not seem that surprising. Only such a deceptive sand puppet would collude with that damned bastard. Birds of a feather flock together.

    And he used to think Lou Lan was a pleasant sand puppet!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face was gloomy, and heughed grimly. I have seen through your disguises!

    I, Duanmu Huanghun, straight up will not be associated with you filthy creatures!

    ¡°Understand? Know how to do it? Come try!¡± Ai Hui asked aloud while waving his sword.

    Duanmu Huanghun remained unmoved as he sneered.

    ¡°You can¡¯t even learn this?¡± Ai Hui was somewhat shocked by Duanmu Huanghun¡¯sck ofprehension. Was this fellow really a genius?

    Heh heh, how stupid of you to use such lousy reverse psychology on me! Duanmu Huanghunughed sarcastically to himself.

    ¡°Lou Lan, let¡¯s do it one more time, he¡¯s slow to understand.¡± Ai Hui decided, without a choice.

    Heh, you think I¡¯ll fall for your trick? I¡¯ve seen through you guys! Duanmu Huanghun thought to himself as he continued grinning.

    ¡°No problem. I¡¯ming! Bangwan, look closely. It¡¯s all right if you don¡¯t get it the first time, I can continue demonstrating!¡± Lou Lan shouted encouraging.

    ¡°We can do this!¡±

    ¡°This!¡±

    ¡°This!¡±

    ......

    ¡°Do you get it? Don¡¯t feel discouraged! I¡¯ll do it again... Eh, no more blood ants?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was no longer able to hold it in and was going insane, yelled out, ¡°Enough! Let me!¡±

    p, p, p.

    Blood ants ceaselessly jumped over the fence from the alley. Having finished their meal outside, they were lured by the thick bloody smell from inside the training hall. In the blink of an eye, the fence became a bright red sheet, while the vicious re of the densely pack blood ants made everyone¡¯s hair stand on end.

    Ai Hui was stunned for awhile, but when he recovered, he quietly retreated a few steps behind Duanmu and whispered, ¡°You do it.¡±

    ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 179: The Brave One Wins!

    Chapter 179: The Brave One Wins!

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Shi Xueman, who was in midair, started bursting out inughter. She had witnessed all that happened below and was simply unable to hold it in.

    All the anger, self-reproach, and guilt that were devouring her flew out of the window in an instant. Freed from those terrible emotions, she became very rxed and felt that she must have been possessed earlier.

    Had she not already known from the start that she would not be like her father? It was just that the daily praises and ttery had fed her ego and made her arrogant.

    Her eyes cleared and her irritable heart calmed.

    The path she wanted to follow was endless, and at that unattainable, distant end stood the blurry, yet majestic, view of her father¡¯s back. He was like a big mountain, attentively watching her unsteady steps.

    Her father must have shed through countless thistles, thorns, and ferocious beasts before reaching that point. He must have crossed over vast bodies of water, passed through violent storms, and endured the bone-chilling cold of boundless ciers. Furthermore, he withstood bone-piercing loneliness, carried deep scars all over his body, and travelled alone before arriving at the peak.

    How could her hardships count for anything?

    Her heart became cid.

    Looking at everyone¡¯s warm and gentle smiles, she felt thankful and happy to have suchrades.

    Shi Xueman¡¯sughter was exceptionally clear amid the silence brought about by fierce gaze of the closely packed blood ants¡¯.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face flushed. He felt so ashamed and wished there was a hole for him to hide in. Why was he always the one feeling embarrassed when associated with Ai Hui?

    Why...

    Before finding a clear answer to this question, the blood ants on the wall suddenly rose.

    Like a troop of archers shooting earth-shattering red arrows from a distance in an open field, Duanmu Huanghun only felt things darkening in front of him as the ugly and malevolent appearance of the blood ants magnified before his eyes.

    ¡°Let me help you!¡±

    Shi Xue Man¡¯s voice sounded in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s ears like a beautiful melody of nature, and his spirits were slightly shaken. Ever since he was young, he knew that sister Xueman was extremely powerful, so every time he met her, he was very honest. The earlier battle illustrated this. Shi Xueman fought the blood ants alone and was not at all inferior.

    However, he still underestimated the power of Shi Xueman.

    What Shi Xueman did next frightened everyone. Not only did she not retreat, she took the initiative and charged toward the iing blood ants.

    Sh was like a snow-white humpback cloud whale that charged relentlessly toward a shoal of fishes.

    White clouds surged from the spear¡¯s body like fierce solid canes, whipping the iing blood ants ruthlessly and creating sharp hissing sounds.

    p!

    The sound of unusually concentrated and loud explosionsbined together. Those with slightly weaker hearing heard only a single boom as the rain of red arrows caused over ten explosions of blood.

    This spectacr scene immediately shocked everyone, including Ai Hui. His mouth gaped wide and disbelief was evident on his whole face as he looked at the domineering blue and white figure in the training hall.

    Was this girl really a water elementalist...

    He would not feel surprised if Shi Xueman was a fire elementalist. Or a metal elementalist. Brother Li Wei and the guys from the infantry division were good at fighting head-on. Such fierce earth elementalists, although quite rare, were also eptable.

    From the start, earth elementalists were a little sly. Wood elementalists, on the other hand, were gentle and reserved. Seeing that thankless wretch put on airs was the best example.

    Yet, who was the gentlest of them all? Water elementalists, most definitely.

    This was determined by the characteristics of water elemental energy. It was soft and easily mutable. It could change between water and cloud, cloud being the softest matter.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s attack, however, was overbearing and unyielding. Ai Hui conceded defeat.

    Ai Hui had heard a saying that women were made of water. Now, he finally realized that this so-called water was certainly molten iron.

    None of the women he had met were gentle.

    8,000,000 yuandy was incredibly ferocious too, probablyparable to Shi Xueman, the irondy. One Thousand Yuan looked feeble, but was much more dangerous than the other two. When Ai Hui escaped the previous time, he made up his mind to run if he ever met One Thousand Yuan. The further the better.

    Ai Hui was shocked. There was no need to mention the others, even Duanmu Huanghun had momentarily forgotten about his [Viridescent Flower].

    Suddenly, Ai Hui noticed that the actions of her body were abnormal and opened his eyes even wider.

    Irondy seemed to have made a breakthrough... No way...

    Everyone else¡¯s attention was quickly drawn to Shi Xueman¡¯s increasing elemental energy movements. Their faces were mixed with shock and joy. All of them had their eyes opened as wide as possible, in fear of missing any details.

    Sss!

    The spiraling, water nt-like clouds on Shi Xueman¡¯s back, the surrounding dispersed clouds, and the clouds emitted by the spear entered her body suddenly, like a whale inhaling air through its blowhole.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s exaggerated body movements from earlier immediately disappeared without a trace. She floated in the air as if unconscious, her body motionless.

    A strange hint of color shed across Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. He had a keen sixth sense and could feel the elemental energy within this irondy¡¯s body. It was operating at an astonishingly crazed speed.

    All at once, the blood ants that were flying everywhere started hissing at Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression changed. Irondy was in danger!

    ¡°Be careful!¡±

    Even before finishing his warning, Ai Hui flew toward Shi Xueman like a frostbitten sword ray!

    The others came to their senses abruptly and all their expressions suddenly changed. Duanmu Huanghun flew at Shi Xueman without the slightest hesitation. Each time he stepped upward, a mass of bluish-white cloud emerged under his feet at the highest point of his stride. He traveled on these clouds and continued ascending, as if he was walking up a flight of stairs.

    The Golden Silk Longbow in Sang Zhijun¡¯s hand was nocked with three valuable Bunny Hair Arrows.

    Already exhausted, Jiang Wei gathered whatever energy he had left to fire his arrows.

    Thud thud thud!

    Like raindrops, the number of blood ants that crashed to the ground quickly increased. Their eyes flickered with greed. The elemental energy brewing within the body suspended in the air was like heavenly food, and they were deeply attracted.

    These blood ants were not very smart. Previously, they were cooperating, but they hadpletely forgotten to do so at this point. All they could think about was pouncing on Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui was the fastest, appearing by Shi Xueman¡¯s side first. His view darkened as densely packed blood ants threw themselves over from all directions, practically blocking his visual field. He felt the weight of great despair, as if he was being crushed by Mount Tai.

    Before, the blood ants attacked in a coordinated manner, but now they hadpletely discarded this method. They dashed toward Shi Xueman and Ai Hui without any sort of n, which actually made it difficult for Ai Hui to find an outlet.

    The ingrate was slower by half a beat...

    Ai Hui, who was forced to desperation, felt a sense of calm instead. Faced with such chaotic attacks, any intention of retreat would only remove thest chance of survival.

    He had already adjusted his posture when dashing to Shi Xueman. He was like an octopus, sticking himself to the irondy¡¯s back. He sprang at her with great strength, causing both of them to dive down toward the training hall¡¯s perimeter wall at a very fast speed. Dense red shadows followed closely behind.

    From behind, the sound of sharp hissing fell incessantly on their ears.

    Ai Hui wrapped his limbs around the irondy. His chest hurt badly from pressing so tightly against her armor. Unfortunately, he would have to use his legster... At the moment, he could only use his arms to hold her to his chest as his legs coiled around her thighs.

    What was this iron shell... Was there a need for it to be so hard?

    His chest was going to be injured at this rate...

    Luckily there was no armor on her thighs. He could not tell previously, but her thighs were pretty soft... They felt good on the hands... No, legs...

    Ai Hui saw nothing except for the wall that was quickly increasing in size. There was no warmth, only cold. The moment they hit the wall, blood red shed across his ice-cold pupils.

    The brave one wins!

    The legs he wrapped around Shi Xueman¡¯s thighs abruptly sprang up. Keeping a small distance between his legs and her body, he stomped onto the wall heavily.

    Boom!

    It was as if the wall was hit by a cannon. A storm of countless bricks broke off and flew toward the alley.

    Ai Hui borrowed this force, increased his speed, and flew backward!

    rmed cries rang out from behind!

    Those witnessing the scene admired Ai Hui¡¯s fast reaction, which saved Shi Xueman¡¯s life. They had expected him to carry her along and dodge the blood ants in order to survive.

    No one had expected that he would spring back and charge toward the whole group of blood ants. Was this not a deathwish? They had yet to digest Shi Xueman¡¯s impulsive behavior from earlier, and now, the usually cool-headed Ai Hui also acted so reckless!

    Nobody could remain calm at that point. Sang Zhijun shot the [Bunny Hair Arrows] without hesitation. They formed a fine rain-like silver light, whichnded amid the group of blood ants. Indignation appeared on Jiang Wei¡¯s face. He used hisst bit of energy to fire three consecutive heavy arrows. Duanmu Huanghun had no time to worry about the others. He clenched his teeth so hard that they were about to be crushed. Countless viridescent flowers shot out from his surroundings, like a flowery storm flying into the ant swarm.

    Half of the closely packed blood shadows disappeared!

    But... As their eyes about to explode, everyone present witnessed Ai Hui and Shi Xueman being swallowed up by the crimson shadows.

    The seven pces within Ai Hui¡¯s body jolted before a rush of elemental energies surged up from his pces tobine into one. A small trickle of blood spilled out from the corner of his mouth. He had just recovered from the previous injuries and was about to get hurt again. Why am I always the unlucky one...

    He did not hold back and directed all of his elemental energy to flow into his back.

    Come on!

    [Arching Fish Back]!

    A noiseless, raving storm exploded in Ai Hui¡¯s chest, but his eyes maintained their same azure color.

    Bang!

    Ai Hui felt himself knocking against aroaring, furious wave. The immense collision struck him senseless.

    Filled with much grief and indignation, Duanmu Huanghun and the others suddenly heard a loud sound, before witnessing the densely packed blood ants explode. They suddenly erupted, and their bodies flew in every direction.

    Then, they saw the unstoppable Ai Hui and his bloodstained back.

    Ai Hui lost control and spat out a mouthful of fresh blood, which coincidentallynded on Shi Xueman¡¯s neck.

    It was quite a pity for such a long white neck to be stained with blood. It was not as pretty anymore...

    Dazed, Ai Hui¡¯s senses were somewhat fuzzy. He did not even feel thedy in his arms rapidly soaring.

 Chapter 180: Why isnâ€™t it a Treasure Chest!

    Chapter 180: Why isn¡¯t it a Treasure Chest!

    Trantor: Irene Editor: CakeHermit

    Shi Xueman slowly regained consciousness.

    Having a breakthrough in the midst of battle had caught her off guard and she¡¯d almost lost her life. Every elementalist yearned for a breakthrough, but because unpredictable situations could easily arise, it became very important to be prepared for one.

    Knowing this, it became obvious that Shi Xuemancked experience. There were signs which would present themselves whenever a breakthrough was near, but only seasoned elementalists would recognize them and prepare for it.

    Gradually recovering, Shi Xueman felt the strange condition of her body even before opening her eyes.

    Her limbs were bound tightly by someone from behind. She was unable to move an inch.

    That was...

    She fell into a short daze. This familiar feeling triggered a certain memory that she had tried so hard to forget. It came back to her now, clear and distinct.

    In the dark, every single detail was so clear, as if it happened just yesterday. That indescribable feeling of shame and humiliation was like an electric current circting throughout her whole body, causing her to tremble uncontrobly.

    She¡¯d thought she had already forgotten that event, but when a simr scene yed out, the familiarity enveloped her senses once again.

    Time had not reduced the pain and humiliation. Instead, it had thickened the emotions involved, like a cup of water turning into alcohol.

    Having just experienced a breakthrough, Shi Xueman¡¯s three energies were at their strongest. The resurfacing of these intense emotions from the deepest part of her mind led to an unprecedented eruption of fury.

    Still in the air with her eyes shut, Shi Xueman grabbed her spear with one hand. The elemental energy within her whole body boiled. It looked like she was about to channel all of her rage into this spear!

    This fanciless spear!

    Cirrus vibrated and started humming. Turbulent clouds erupted and flew out of the spear¡¯s body with a hiss, like an enormous white whale loudly advancing.

    Blood ants that came into contact with the clouds burst upon touch, just like fragile bubbles!

    Numerous blood flowers blossomed at the same time. The ball of clouds was like a white cloth that made the sea of blood flowers look especially tender and beautiful. This beautiful picture did notst long, however, for the blossoming flowers shook and shattered into a blood fog that was swept away by the stirring air, disappearing without a trace.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    The whale-like cloud ball, as if making up for its prior negligence, advanced with unstoppable force and pulverized everything in and along its path without holding back.

    The wall Ai Hui had made a hole in shattered into fine powder immediately. The formidable cloud ball rushed past the alley and went straight for the opposite wall, causing broken fragments to fly everywhere.

    The earth quaked, mountains shook, and the sky rumbled. It was like the monsters were far away.

    Duanmu Huanghun and the rest were struck absolutely dumb by the change of events. Ai Hui and Shi Xueman had been in crucial danger just a moment ago, but in the blink of an eye, every single blood ant in the training hall was destroyed.

    The twists and turns from start to finish had Duanmu Huanghun and gang gasping for breath.

    This attack had consumed more than half of the elemental energy within Shi Xueman¡¯s body. She opened her eyes and her anger greatly dissipated. Having vented most of her raging emotions, she regained herposure.

    The falling objects within her field of vision reminded her that she wasn¡¯t done yet.

    A few blood ants were left struggling to escape this scary training hall.

    So, blood fiends also feel fear, Shi Xueman thought to herself.

    Wait!

    Her face darkened immediately upon realizing that the guy on her back had yet to release her, but the bloody smell on her neck softened her expression.

    She wasn¡¯tpletely unaware of what had happened.

    Ai Hui had merely been trying to save her life. He¡¯d gotten injured pretty seriously and was unconscious.

    Her anger quickly subsided and was reced with reproach and regret. Ai Hui had just saved her life and yet all she did was me him, how ungrateful. Calming down, she also became shocked at her overly intense reaction. Her body had subconsciously acted out of instinct rather than careful consideration.

    Although she was unwilling to admit it, all that had happened was enough to prove that her fateful blind battle had been etched deeply into her heart and mind.

    She pushed the bottom of the spear against the ground to stabilize herself and prepared to removed Ai Hui from her back; however, she was surprised to find that she couldn¡¯t pull his hands and feet apart.

    Ai Hui had fallen into aa, but his limbs were still wrapped tightly around her body with shocking strength. Shi Xueman had heard stories from the front lines before. Some soldiers had gotten their bodies tangled with the enemies¡¯ corpses and were unable to separate themselves. She had been skeptical in the past, but who knew that she would now experience it for herself.

    What a clingy fellow...

    Shi Xueman felt both admiration and vexation.

    In such a situation, she might cause damage to his body if she were to forcefully remove him. His joints could easily be broken.

    But he... looked so unmorous right now...

    Because everyone was looking at her with their mouths and eyes wide open, her face blushed a deep red.

    ¡°I¡¯ll... I¡¯ll go in for a bit.¡±

    Face almost burning up, Shi Xueman dashed into a room inside the training hall immediately after finishing her sentence, like a bunny whose butt was being roasted.

    The sudden return of peace allowed everyone to finally release all of their tension. They were long exhausted and started plopping themselves all over the ground. Only Sang Zhijun bothered thinking about her image as a woman and reluctantly sat on the ground.

    ¡°Never thought we¡¯d survive.¡±

    Wang Xiaoshan said in a somewhat nervous manner with a half smiling, half crying expression.

    No one said anything as they were all enjoying this precious calm.

    The intensity of the battle made everyone unwilling to recall its details. At many points, they had expected to die right there and then; yet, there was no joy after the cmity since they knew that the blood catastrophe had just started.

    Intense sounds from a faraway battle made their way into the training hall as mes and smoke rose amidst the sunlight.

    Even though it was so far away, they could still see it.

    The sky brightened up but the light emitted by the rising sun no longer carried warmth, but oozed horrifying coldness and death.

    A new day of killing had started just like that.

    Sang Zhijun gazed absentmindedly at the ck, rising smoke from far away as it floated along with the wind like a ck armband in a funeral.

    She muttered, ¡°I wonder how many are going to die this time?¡±

    No one knew the answer.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s expression changed slightly at the sudden thought of the few people in the woodshed. ¡°How are those in the woodshed doing?¡±

    Everyone looked at each other in dismay, a bad feeling rising within their chests.

    Lou Lan opened the door to the woodshed and they were weed by a choking smell of blood. Their hearts skipped a beat.

    Nothing was left in the woodshed except for traces of blood, bits and pieces of flesh, and bone dregs. Everyone could guess that the blood ants must have smelled humans in here and had themselves a feast.

    Sang Zhijun dashed out, held onto the wall, and started puking violently.

    Jiang Wei and Duanmu Huanghun maintained their calm even though their faces did not look too good. They exchanged looks and understood each other¡¯s intent. No matter what, they must hold it in.

    Sang Zhiju vomited for a short while before stopping. While her face was as pale as before, she felt better emotionally. ¡°It¡¯s for the better, death ends all one¡¯s troubles.¡±

    The terrifying blood disaster, nightmare-like battles, and the struggles between life and death made these weak students grow speedily. Their mental strength had improved greatly.

    This was the survival instinct. Regardless of origins, the desire for life was the most primitive instinct. During this disaster,passion, sympathy, fear, and hesitation would only lead to tragic endings.

    They were lucky to have survived the past few battles. They had been given time to understand and adapt ordingly.

    They were all smart people. They knew where this luck hade from.

    The blood stains on Ai Hui¡¯s back had everyone all tensed up. Such a wound could be infected by the blood poison.

    If Ai Hui became infected...

    Everyone shuddered at the thought of it. All at once, their gazes fell upon the room into which Shi Xueman had dashed earlier.

    The light inside the room was dim and Shi Xueman had closed the door. She did not have a choice since she was forced into an ugly position and had no courage to show herself to everybody.

    Because she was sitting on the ground, Ai Hui looked as if he was hugging her from behind, his legs still wrapping around her thighs.

    Although he had saved her life, she still wanted to break all of his limbs.

    Okay, she¡¯d better shift his legs slowly and carefully. His grip was too tight, so she was unable to stand up straight, leaving her with no choice but to remain seated.

    So that she would not hurt Ai Hui, she channelled a small amount of elemental energy into her fingertips and used them to provoke Ai Hui¡¯s tensed leg muscles. This was the only harmless method she could think of for now.

    Ai Hui had a dream.

    In that dream, he and Fatty were hugging a piece of tree trunk, struggling in the middle of a big storm at sea. Lou Lan was in the middle.

    The monstrous waves were like many overhanging cliffs, constantly rising from the ground, tilting forward, and copsing, effectively burying them.

    Everyone was hugging onto the block of wood, hanging for dear life without loosening their grip.

    Fatty said, Ai Hui, I can¡¯t do this anymore, I¡¯m out of strength.

    He then responded, Fatty, persevere!

    Fatty was losing consciousness and said, Ai Hui, it¡¯s good for me to die in the ocean. When you burn ritual money, just choose any beach since all of the waters are linked. I¡¯ll definitely receive it.

    Lou Lan then said, Fatty, don¡¯t you worry. If you die, I will burn money, chilli and even trainning programme schedules, one book each year.

    Fatty replied, it¡¯s alright, I don¡¯t want to die now.

    Just as he finished, a wave smashed them into the sea. Heughed until tears spilled out and mixed into the sea water.

    They floated up to the water¡¯s surface.

    Lou Lan said, Ai Hui, I can be a treasure chest and keep everyone inside. You can grab onto it, swim to the shore, and save everyone. Muddle-headed Ai Hui realized he was lying on the beach, tightly holding onto a treasure chest.

    He had no idea why the treasure chest was covered in ayer of armor. The armor looked familiar. Wasn¡¯t this irondy¡¯s armor? Could it be that she was inside too? The armor was fastened very securely, but it wasn¡¯t a problem for Ai Hui. He had loosened countless armors which had been even tighter.

    Ai Hui suddenly jerked a little, giving Shi Xueman, who was controlling her elemental energy carefully, a shock, but it quickly turned into joy. Was heing around?

    ¡°You¡¯re finally awake...¡±

    Her words fell as her expression and body stiffened.

    In dreand, Ai Hui peeled open the armor. It wasn¡¯t a treasure chest, there was anotheryer! He got worried instantly and increased his speed to undo the secondyer.

    Eh what was this?

    Why wasn¡¯t it a treasure chest!

    Furious, Ai Hui grabbed...

 Chapter 181: Target Locked!

    Chapter 181: Target Locked!

    Trantor: Irene Editor: CakeHermit

    Suddenly, a sky-piercing scream caused Ai Hui and everyone else¡¯s faces to change. It was Shi Xueman!

    Were there blood fiends in the room?

    Without considering, a few people sprang up and appeared in front of the room as quick as lightning.

    Bang!

    The door was forced open.

    In the center of the room, Shi Xueman was lying on the ground in a daze while Ai Hui could be seen in a defensive posture in the corner. He gazed around non-stop, seemingly at a loss.

    ¡°What happened?¡± Sang Zhijun asked urgently.

    The others had their eyes set on those two.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± Ai Hui shook his head calmly. ¡°I just woke up, heard irondy screaming, and thought there was an enemy attack.¡±

    He had just been dreaming...

    Ai Hui was much more clear-headed now. He vaguely remembered himself opening the treasure chest in his dreams. He had finally loosened the outermost armor but was awoken by irondy¡¯s shriek. He¡¯d thought that there was an attack and subconsciously created distance between them, preparing to defend.

    Those present collectively shifted their gazes onto Shi Xueman.

    ¡°Nothing... nothing much.¡± Shi Xueman forcefully squeezed a smile onto her face and said, somewhat absent-mindedly, ¡°Maybe I¡¯ve been feeling too nervous.¡±

    Everyone simultaneously heaved a sigh of relief. Upon hearing her words, Ai Hui did so too.

    ¡°Ai Hui, how¡¯s your back injury?¡± Jiang Wei asked, voice full of concern.

    ¡°Back injury?¡± Letting his guard down, Ai Hui stood up and stretched his limp and painful limbs. They did not feel like his own. He shook his head, saying, ¡°I have the bandage and am not hurt.¡±

    He turned around and indeed, the bloodstains werepletely gone. Everyone was utterly shocked. If not for the closely packed holes in his shirt, they would¡¯ve thought that the bloodstains had just been their hallucination.

    But the fact that Ai Hui was unharmed allowed them to finally stop worrying and be thoroughly relieved. Ai Hui was their pir of support. If something were to happen to him, no one would know where to go or what to do next.

    ¡°Let¡¯s grab this opportunity to catch some rest.¡± Ai Hui regained himself.

    The others nodded one after the other before dispersing. The battle hadpletely drained all of their elemental energy. After all that tension and fear, all they were left with was an unprecedented fatigue.

    Ai Hui also got ready to meditate. He wanted to check himself for internal injuries.

    He noticed that Shi Xueman was not moving at all and asked out of concern, ¡°Are you okay?¡±

    At this point, Shi Xueman had already calmed down and there was neither joy nor anger in her face. ¡°I¡¯m fine.¡±

    ¡°Rest while you can, the blood fiends may appear any time.¡± Ai Hui reminded her.

    Shi Xueman nodded and changed the topic. ¡°You called me irondy earlier?¡±

    Ai Hui¡¯s stern face turned sluggish. Not good, I¡¯m dead! Why did I spill my thoughts out? I can¡¯t wait to run from this ferocious woman so why did I provoke her? Am I not digging my own grave?

    How... how...

    AAi Hui¡¯s brain was spinning fast although there was no change in his expression. Calm and collected, he said, ¡°You heard wrong. I said blue-white sweetdy.¡±

    ¡°Oh yeah?¡± Shi Xueman gave Ai Hui a half-smile.

    Her response gave Ai Hui the chills but he knew for sure that he wasn¡¯t going to admit it. With a fixed look, he questioned her back, ¡°Any problem?¡±

    ¡°You think I¡¯m sweet? Shi Xueman asked while giving Ai Hui that same strange look.

    Now he had goosebumps and the hair all over his body stood on end. Having experienced countless near-death situations, Ai Hui disyed his strong mental strength. At a time like this, he had to maintain hisposure.

    If he did not persevere, irondy would most definitely show him what iron was!

    His mind worked quickly. To be honest, he did not feel that ¡°sweetdy¡± could ever be associated with Shi Xueman, but he¡¯d said it somehow, so he had to reconcile these two no matter what!

    How...

    A divine light shed past his mind as he became determined instantly. At ease, he said naturally, ¡°You¡¯re a water elementalist, which reminds me of the clouds and spring water on the mountains. As people from the Old Territory always say, water from mountain springs is a little sweet.¡±

    Red took over Shi Xueman¡¯s half-smiling face.

    Seeing that, Ai Hui seized the opportunity to end the conversation. ¡°Sigh, just pretend I didn¡¯t say anything. I¡¯m going to check my condition.¡±

    Got to stay far away from irondy!

    Ai Hui walked out with his default, calm expression even though he was more than eager to exit the room.

    Jiang Wei informed him that the few fellows in the woodshed had be bone dregs. Ai Hui nodded without saying anything. He barely had time to care about his own life, so needless to say, he did not bother about those fellows¡¯ deaths. If even Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun could be calm about it, it wasn¡¯t something worth mentioning to Ai Hui.

    Wonder how many were going to perish today.

    Sitting under the message tree, Ai Hui took a long, deep breath. He only just realized that saying those two lines caused ayer of sweat to form all over his body.

    However, at least he was able to fool her. Good that it had passed, good that it had passed...

    Inside the room, sunlight shone in from the windows. Dust drifted around in the pencil-straight light ray. There was an indescribable peacefulness.

    With the flickering of the light, Shi Xueman¡¯s slightly closed eyes were like that of a hunter who had found a long-awaited prey. The hunter whispered in a bitingly-cold manner, ¡°Finally found you.¡±

    The dull ache in her chest reminded her that everything that had happened wasn¡¯t an illusion. No one who hade into the room had noticed that a few of the buckles on her armor had been unlocked.

    History was always strikingly simr.

    She knew now why her reaction had been so intense when Ai Hui wrapped himself around her body. It wasn¡¯t just because of that unforgettable incident, but rather, even before she learned the truth, her subconscious mind had already noticed the simrities between the two experiences. It made her 100% certain that Ai Hui was, in fact, the guy from the blind battle. It was because of the way he had unbuckled her armor... it was precisely the same.

    The same moves, and that abominable grip...

    Her face was flushed red once again. She clenched her teeth. There was no need to check, she knew there would be ten fingerprints!

    Ten... Five more than the previous time!

    Vile! Damn it!

    The rage within her chest surged. She couldn¡¯t wait to finish that damned fellow off with her spear.

    No, that¡¯d be too easy on him!

    There were angry mes burning in her eyes. How humiliating for her to go through the same degradation twice. She wanted Ai Hui to repay her a thousand times over!

    That¡¯s right, just like that!

    Shi Xueman was beyond determined. She made a vow in her heart to never forget this moment.

    The rage within her chest subsided as a smile appeared on the corner of her lips. She did lose a lot this time, but she had finally locked onto her target. As long as she was clear about the target, she had plenty of ways and means to deal with him.

    The most important thing right now was to survive this blood disaster.

    How could she let Ai Hui die? After all, he was her savior. Of course, some favors had to be returned. She could slowly get her revenge... Heh heh, mountain spring water, I¡¯ll let you know how sweet it is...

    Shi Xueman¡¯s fighting spirit was at an all-time high. She was excited.

    Under the message tree, Ai Hui carefully checked himself for internal injuries. What relieved him a little was the fact that his seven pces were still intact. This was the thing he was most worried about. After all, the pces had been destroyed once and then restored. He wasn¡¯t sure if they could endure such great pressure.

    While he had been operating the [Arching Fish Back] defense, he had also been using [Big Dipper], so the impact of the attack had been distributed evenly between the seven pces.

    It seemed now that the seven pces were more reliable than he had imagined.

    Now certain that he was unhurt, he did not stop. He stared nkly at the message tree for a while before searching for a brush and writing on a leaf.

    ¡°Since the blood wolves, the bloodshed has be more severe. The forest outside the city has be the nest of the blood fiends. The forest can devour the weaker blood fiends and channel their power into a particr blood fiend to create an even stronger one. This is called blood refinement. The whole city was attacked. We encountered two groups of blood ants. Fortunately, we are still alive.¡±

    Ai Hui did not know why, but he wanted to tell the fellow that called himself a prisoner. He wanted to tell him about almost losing his life and the ming city. He wasn¡¯t afraid, but felt an indescribably bleak sadness.

    He wanted to write a little something, say a little something.

    Whatever secrets or advice about not provoking the Blood of God were forgotten. Perhaps they would all die here today, who could care so much?

    Looking at his slowly fading handwriting, Ai Hui became lost in thought.

    He regained his spirits. He hadn¡¯t died, had he?

    He thought about the dream he¡¯d had. He was still encouraging Fatty not to give up on his life... Eh? Fatty?

    The sounds of fire sprayingnded in his ears, and he found Fatty with much ease. Fatty was like a methrower, never knowing the meaning of being tired. He was still tenaciously shooting mes.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui thought about a certain scene from the earlier battle.

    Fatty waspletely unharmed... and he was shielding Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun and Wang Xiaoshan...

    A light shed past his eyes. Correct, the blood fiends had attacked those fellows in the woodshed, attacked everyone except for Fatty!

    Could it be that there was something on Fatty that they hated?

    If they could find out what, wouldn¡¯t they be able to restrain the blood ants and make them avoid people?

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind shook!

    The first thing he thought about was the mes. A lot of wild beasts had the instinct to fear fire. Could it be that blood ants hated it too?

    No! The guys in the woodshed were fire elementalists, but they too were eaten and reduced to bone dregs. Even the equipment containing fire elemental energy was swallowed up cleanly by the blood ants.

    If it wasn¡¯t fire then what was it?

    Could it be... chilli?

    Ai Hui asked Lou Lan in a loud voice, ¡°Lou Lan, besides me-winged serpent¡¯s egg and chilli, what else was in the dragon soup that you gave Fatty?¡±

    ¡°Starsword grass, triangle fennel, and soft wood powder.¡± Lou Lan answered precisely.

    They weremonly seen ingredients. Ai Hui was all the more convinced by his conjecture. He asked urgently, ¡°Do we still have chilli at home?¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s some left.¡± Lou Lan looked puzzledly at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was overjoyed and said hurriedly, ¡°Take them all out!¡±

    ¡°No problem, Ai Hui.¡±

 Chapter 182: Heavy Losses

    Chapter 182: Heavy Losses

    Trantor: YH Editor: CakeHermit

    No matter how they looked at it, what Ai Hui was doing seemedpletely unorthodox. Seeing his serious expression however, helped them to ept it without so much as a squeak. The past few battles had given them a taste of just how far behind Ai Hui they were, and as such they were now less doubtful of his actions.

    Lou Lan brought out all the remaining chili.

    Chili was amonly found cooking ingredient that was especially enjoyed by fire elementalists.

    During the Cultivation Era, the cultivators led simple lives and enjoyed light and elegant dishes. They ate things like spirit grains and drank spirit tea. Those who were more affluent ate spirit food that had been nurtured for extended periods of time, usually upwards of ten thousand years. Such foods were not just highly potent, they were also symbols of wealth and power.

    The newly founded Avalon of Five Elements only had a history spanning one thousand years, even less if one began counting from when they first achieved an advantage over the Wilderness. People living in the Avalon of Five Elements were more interested in the practical value of the food they ate. Elemental food, for instance, was an important part of any elementalists¡¯ training regime. Potency was the most highly regarded aspect of elemental food.

    The poprity of elemental food was what spurred the wood elementalists to focus more of their efforts on selectively nurturing ingredients. Chili was an example of a sessfully nurtured ingredient.

    Chilies contained an abundant amount of fire elemental energy. While not considerably powerful, the fire elemental energy found in chili was unique in that it could greatly increase the liveliness of the fire elemental energy within a fire elementalist¡¯s body.

    Fire elemental energy was the liveliest among the five types of elemental energy. Liveliness was a crucial part of fire elemental energy, so much so that the mes created from livelier fire elemental energy burned hotter. If it was an endothermic me being formed, then its temperature would be much lower.

    The wood elementalists had spared no effort in breeding chilies, creating a wide variety of exceptional species.

    Each chili pepper from the Lava species was only the size of a pinky and was slightly curved. Its neatly arranged seeds could be seen through its crystalline red body. Every once in awhile, one of its seeds would release a jet of me that surged around the cavity within the chili pepper¡¯s body.

    Of course, such chilies couldn¡¯t simply be eaten on a whim.

    Although the elemental energy contained within chili had many benefits, it was highly irritating and posed a serious challenge to the person eating it. The more outstanding the species, the more potent and irritating its elemental energy. After many rounds of selective breeding, wood elementalists had been able to take its ¡°spiciness¡± to a whole new level. At that level, spiciness was no longer just a taste, but an experience.

    Anyone who took on the challenge would feel as though their entire body was on fire. They would feel as though mes were spurting out of every single pore on their body, as if they had fallen into a pit of magma or burned at the stake.

    Such advancement had also elevated chili¡¯s status from amon ingredient to one that was specially used by fire elementalists. Only fire elementalists could withstand such a terrifying form of elemental energy. Nowadays, there existed certain species of chilies that were rarely eaten even by fire elementalists. Under the perverse dedication of the wood elementalists, quite a number ofmon food ingredients had undergone extreme transformations.

    Using chili to suppress the blood ants was no joke.

    In the Wilderness, Ai Hui had done and witnessed even weirder things. From smearing sludge on one¡¯s body to hide bodily scents, to using nt juices as poisonous insect repellent, he had experienced them all.

    What¡¯s so strange about using chili?

    Lou Lan squatted beside Ai Hui and asked curiously, ¡°Does Ai Hui have a sudden craving for chili?¡±

    ¡°Nope,¡± replied Ai Hui without lifting his head. ¡°I suspect that the blood ants have an aversion to the smell of chili.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Lou Lan asked, suddenly interested.

    ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but we won¡¯t know until we try.¡± Ai Hui examined the chilies, quickly noticing a problem. All of the slightly different looking things in front of him were chilies. There were green ones, yellow ones, red ones, and even ck ones! Some wererge and some were tiny, some were of odd shapes as well.

    Were the blood ants averse to all kinds of chili or only specific types?

    Forget it, let¡¯s just try them out first.

    Ai Hui took out a few of each type of chili and began to grind them up separately. A rich, spicy smell pervaded the air as he crushed the chilies into powder form. Tiny tongues of me could asionally be seen among the powdered forms of species such as Lava.

    He spread the chili powder in a circle around the training ground. In order to test how effective each type of chili was as a repent, he marked down the location of each different kind. Lou Lan went down into the basement to sprinkle chili powder as well.

    The blood ants weren¡¯t powerfulbatants on their own, but they had strength in numbers and often moved in swarms. They were adept at ambushing from underground as well.

    Ai Hui was exhausted after finishing the whole business with the chilies.

    He didn¡¯t sit down, but began toplete one Circtory Cycle Revolution while remaining in his sword stance. He relished finally having the chance to meditate.

    He had done all he could, the only thing left to do was wait.

    Every part of his body ached as an overwhelming tiredness washed over him, but he couldn¡¯t fall asleep just yet. Keeping himself awake, Ai Hui persevered with the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    His bodily aches, exhaustion, the wind, and the faraway sounds of battle receded from his mind like an ebbing tide. The world around him slowly faded away as his focus remained squarely on the task at hand. All that was left was an inner tranquility, the cirction of his elemental energy, and the throbbing of the sword embryo.

    The mayor¡¯s residence.

    Wang Zhen had a grave expression as he listened to his subordinate¡¯s report.

    ¡°... The situation at West Second Street has been stabilized. Upon arrival, we found around two hundred and seventy dead and one hundred and twenty injured. The number of people missing is still undetermined. We have mobilized the residents to begin efforts to eradicate the remaining blood ants. As of now, West Second Street has been purged, but because the sealing stone has been damaged, it is difficult for us to redeploy underground defenses. I have already given orders to set up early warning systems, as well as arranged for the injured to be quarantined and overseen.¡±

    ¡°The situation on Wave Street is critical, with more than five hundred blood ants belonging to more than four swarms on the attack. Despite our resistance, pretty much the entire street has been destroyed. The number of deaths is catastrophic... We only managed to save sixty-four people. Twenty-four of those saved were injured and arrangements have been made to send them to quarantine. We¡¯ve suffered heavy losses and can no longer continue with the operation. May I suggest that we assemble a team of students from Central Pine Academy to assist with a sweep of the area, to ensure that none of the blood ants remain?¡±

    ......

    The air around them seemed to congeal as the mood became incredibly sullen. Hearing more of the depressing, bloodstained figures eventually numbed them from the initial terror. They had lost almost a third of the districts within Central Pine City within such a short span of time.

    After a long day of firefighting around the city, the dean was visibly tired. Having led afortable life, when had he ever experienced such intensebat? Although, he didn¡¯t exactly have a choice either.

    Nowhere to run, everyone knew that there was nowhere to run.

    Losing almost half of their personnel to death or injury was a hard pill to swallow. Only elites were capable of standing in the face of such adversity on the battlefield.

    But it wasn¡¯t as if these people had be elites overnight. They were simply driven to fight by the fear of dying at the hands of the blood fiends. Fighting was the only way forward.

    The dean slowly opened his mouth to speak, his voice hoarse. ¡°The situation in Central Pine Academy is slightly better. The teachers have experienced a greater number of casualties than the students. We¡¯ve lost slightly more than one hundred students, with an overall loss of over twenty percent of the academy¡¯s headcount.¡±

    A weak smile crept onto Wang Zhen¡¯s lips. The teachers were much more important than the students. To him, the students were too weak to be of much use, especially whenpared to the teachers. He was certain that the teachers would be able to easily unleash their true powers with a few more battles under their belts.

    ¡°Why such arge number?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but ask, thinking about the much greater number of casualties among the teachers.

    ¡°They are teachers,¡± the dean croaked on. ¡°None of them will simply stand and watch while their students are eaten.¡±

    A sh of rage lit up in Wang Zhen¡¯s eyes. ¡°They¡¯re too soft-hearted!¡± he hissed angrily.

    ¡°They are teachers,¡± the dean replied while returning Wang Zhen¡¯s fiery gaze. Raising his voice slightly, he continued, ¡°Not soldiers.¡±

    Central Pine Academy wasn¡¯t a particrly prestigious academy. Teachers were rarely transferred into or out of the academy, and as such, many of them had worked with the dean for many years. They had be more like friends rather than colleagues.

    The number of deaths he had received news of and witnessed first hand that day alone was more than the number of funerals he had attended until now. The sorrow he felt was terribly overwhelming.

    In all his years of teaching, some things had long been inscribed into his bones.

    He was a practical man, looking out specially for Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun due to their importance, but when he sees students being attacked, notices them trembling before the blood ants, and sees their fear-stricken faces, he would still rush forward to protect them.

    They were, after all, just a bunch of children.

    He knew that such acts weren¡¯t rational at all, that he should be using his elemental energy in more important situations, and yet...

    This is probably why he¡¯s still only the dean of such a small academy. The deanughed in his heart, resigned to his fate.

    Wang Zhen kept quiet, realizing his mistake. While the teachers¡¯ actions appeared very silly and naive to him, he couldn¡¯t help but admit that they were highly admirable.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, where are my manners. The students will be proud of them.¡± Wang Zhen apologized sincerely with a bow.

    ¡°It¡¯s okay, you must be under a lot of pressure as well,¡± the dean responded empathetically. ¡°What¡¯s the n now? Is there any news from Master Han¡¯s side?¡±

    Wang Zhen regained hisposure and said, ¡°A map of the entire city has been sent to the embroidery workshop. Master Han has gotten in touch to tell us that they have begun studying it.¡± The dean nodded andmented, ¡°No one else has done this before, so there¡¯s no point of reference. Only Master Han has the mettle and confidence to take on such a challenge.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s also why we can¡¯t just pin all our hopes on Master Han,¡± Wang Zhen replied resolutely. ¡°We need to reim the areas taken over by the blood fiends before Master Hanpletes her preparations. I n to mobilize every able person, including the students, for this battle.¡±

    ¡°Why?¡± asked the dean, his face drained of color. ¡°How many more will have to die? They¡¯re not strong enough, we¡¯ll only be sending them to their deaths!¡±

    Wang Zhen calmly looked at the dean and said, ¡°There are two reasons for this. First, we¡¯re low on manpower so everyone has to take part. Everyone will be fighting to the death, so it makes no difference. Second, some of the blood ants have alreadypleted their transformation.¡±

    ¡°Transformation?¡± The dean¡¯s face turned ashen.

    ¡°Our elemental energy seems to be the catalyst for their transformation. So far we¡¯ve only met one fully transformed blood ant, but we had to sacrifice a lot of people to take it down. We¡¯ve also killed another three blood ants in the midst of transforming that appeared to be in a state of hibernation. It is still unknown if their transformation has anything to do with eating people, but considering that it¡¯s not an isted phenomenon, things might get worse if we continue to wait. If more blood antsplete their transformation, our circumstances will be even more dire. That is why I am prepared to send everyst elementalist and student out on a full-scale assault to reim every one of the districts that we have lost, as well as to kill everyst one of these damned blood ants!¡±

    Wang Zhen looked extremely ferocious.

 Chapter 183: Communication

    Chapter 183: Communication

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lis

    Ai Hui meditated for much longer this time. By the time he finished, it was already dusk. All traces of exhaustion vanished from his body, a testament to the efficacy of entering a meditative state while wielding the sword. Previous Circtory Cycle Revolutions were driven only by his lungs, but now the sword embryo enhanced its movements as well.

    The sun set over the horizon, signaling the end of another day.

    The morning¡¯s massacrey fresh in everyone¡¯s minds. A lingering fear hovered over the edges of their conscious minds like a dissipating column of smoke.

    At the very least, they were now much calmer than they had been in the morning.

    The good news was that Jiang Wei and Wang Xiaoshan managed to simultaneously achieve a breakthrough.

    Whenparing base levels, Jiang Wei was much weaker than Sang Zhijun. In terms of fighting prowess, however, they were equals.

    Sang Zhijun trained in the [Arrow Fusion Technique]. While formidable, the technique expendedrge amounts of elemental energy, and though she was close to achieving Eight Pces Completion, she remained an amateur when it came to the [Arrow Fusion Technique]. Despite her ability to fuse three arrows, she could only use it a couple times.

    The Golden Silk Longbow¡¯s advantage was in its firing speed, but conversely, this made the shots weaker. Compared to the arrows fired from Jiang Wei¡¯s Mountain Bow, the ones released from Sang Zhijun¡¯s Golden Silk Longbow were considerably weaker. With increased base levels, they would eventually encounter and use a wider variety of elemental energy skills to cope with depletion. These skills wouldplement the Golden Silk Longbow, allowing its wielder to ovee the inherent loss of power while gaining an edge with its increased firing speed.

    But for now, Jiang Wei was more effective in his role.

    Breaking through to the fifth pce was a significant advancement.

    Ai Hui thought highly of Jiang Wei.

    Jiang Wei was down-to-earth, diligent and dependable. All he needed to ensure a bright future was a powerful legacy.

    Compared to Jiang Wei, Wang Xiaoshan did not hold as much of a presence, and so the activation of his third pce came as a surprise to Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui never intended for Wang Xiaoshan to y much of a role in battle, having other ns in mind.

    He needed Wang Xiaoshan to maintain the walls. The perimeter partitions destroyed earlier were already fixed by Wang Xiaoshan. Back in the Garden of Life, Ai Hui noticed that although he wascking in base level and courage, he was highly imaginative in his use of mud. Onlyter did he discover that Wang Xiaoshan came from a line of masons, which counted as a type of inherited knowledge.

    The newly repaired wall waspletely different. Densely packed stone barbs lined the entire wall, making it seem as though it had grown thorns. Wang Xiaoshan had also taken into ount the blood fiends¡¯ destructive powers and rebuilt the walls with greater width and height than before.

    Sang Zhijun and Shi Xuemanmented the terrible aesthetics of the new training ground.

    The entire ce hadpletely transformed under Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s liberal use of his creativity.

    Lou Lan held an interest in Wang Xiaoshan. Although thetter was not as skilled at controlling earth elemental energy, he was exceptionally adept at building. Theplex structures of the rebuilt perimeter walls made it less pleasing to the eye, but the walls were much stronger than before with the new additions.

    Bangwan attacked the wall with his [Viridescent Flower] at full power but only managed to dislodge a small chunk of the wall about half a meter across.

    Everyone had a whole new level of respect for Wang Xiaoshan.

    The original perimeter wall would have instantly copsed under such an attack.

    In addition to this, Wang Xiaoshan constructed more robust battlements across the wall specifically for Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun to allow them greater protection.

    Wang Xiaoshan was in a state of frantic energy, ignoring everyone around him. He had transformed into a different person altogether.

    Focus was a mystical force. It granted charisma to those whocked it, increased the stature of a meek individual, and allowed even the most ordinary of individuals to stand out from among the crowd.

    Fatty was single-mindedly focused on spitting out mes as well.

    ¡°Will Fatty be all right if he continues like this?¡± Ai Hui asked Lou Lan, a little worried.

    A familiar yellow light shed in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes as he gave Fatty a full-body scan. He said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Ai Hui, he¡¯ll be fine. Fatty¡¯s condition is extremely favorable. He has alreadypleted his third pce, and continuously spitting fire has increased the liveliness of his fire elemental energy by a good amount. The fire elemental energy in his body has begun to stabilize and should be finished in about three more hours.¡±

    His third pce... Such amazing speed!

    Jiang Wei and Wang Xiaoshan had also achieved breakthroughs. Ai Hui recalled how difficult it had been for him to activate a single pce. Using up ten million yuan worth of ingredients had indeed been worth it considering the breakthroughs it had helped to trigger. Surely you receive what you pay for.

    It was no wonder those children from influential families had such high base levels.

    Ai Hui, who was experiencing mild heartache, moved over to where Duanmu Huanghun was standing and curiously asked, ¡°Why is your base level so low? Can¡¯t you activate more pces by eating more elemental food?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun looked over at Ai Hui with disdain and snorted loftily. ¡°What do you know! Coveting shortcuts will result in weak foundations, making it difficult to be a Grandmaster.¡±

    Sang Zhijun exined further, ¡°Using elemental food to increase one¡¯s base level isn¡¯t difficult, but it¡¯s not all rainbows and sunshine either. ssmate Duanmu has far-reaching ambitions and with his innate talent, he has no need for such shortcuts.¡±

    Sang Zhijun went on to highlight the many nuances of using elemental food. Geniuses from influential families like Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun normally consumed elemental food to aid in nurturing their foundations rather than to increase their base levels.

    Apart from this, arge number of absolute arts required a solid foundation, and so rushing to increase base level was not always best. The more effort spent on umting elemental energy eventually meant more benefits.

    Ai Hui finally understood. He did not, however, care much about these pitfalls. He wasn¡¯t sure if he would even live to see tomorrow, so why would he concern himself over such things? Hidden side effects were a problem for the future Ai Hui. For now, increasing his base level was the best way to increase his chances of survival.

    Grandmaster? That wasn¡¯t something he had even considered before.

    ¡°Oh, so you wish to be a Grandmaster?¡± Ai Hui questioned as he circled Duanmu Huanghun, clicking his tongue.

    Duanmu Huanghun arrogantly harrumphed, speaking disdainfully, ¡°What would a brambling know of a swan¡¯s aspirations!¡±

    ¡°Then why did you eat so muchst night?¡± Ai Hui asked tauntingly, raising his eyebrows. ¡°Hypocritical! Don¡¯t think I didn¡¯t see you licking the te!¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun was stunned. A red flush quickly crept over his face and up to his ears. He felt so embarrassed that he wanted to find a hole in the ground to hide in.

    To him, licking the te was too....

    Nearby, Shi Xueman had an embarrassed look on her face as well. The soup was so delicious that she too had almost licked the bowl clean.

    A leaf on the message tree lit up, drawing Ai Hui¡¯s attention away from his ns to relentlessly humiliate Duanmu Huanghun.

    Likely because he was well-rested, Ai Hui was in a much calmer state of mind than he was in the morning. He approached the message tree and nced over the glowing leaf.

    ¡°I apologize that I managed to see your message only now, but I am even more remorseful that I do not know how to help you. Blood refinement allows for the creation of extremely powerful warriors known as apostles. As far as I know, there are six, and the Blood of God flows within their bodies. You must be exceedingly cautious when meeting them and attempt to flee as soon as possible. Could you perhaps describe what blood refinement is like?¡±

    Blood apostles... a red figure surfaced in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    One Thousand Yuan....

    Ai Huiughed bitterly in his heart. There were only six of them yet he had already met one. Such luck.

    He thought for a while before writing.

    ¡°I¡¯ve already encountered one of them, ady, and almost lost my life. The trees outside the city have be exceptionallyrge, and in numerous roots that hang from the trees resembling blood vessels, a blood-red fluid flows. I was bound by these roots which then pierced into my skin. I felt an extreme burning sensation throughout my body and soon lost consciousness. Thank the heavens that I¡¯m still alive, though I have yet to fully understand what¡¯s going on.¡±

    A reply came swiftly after. Ai Hui could sense the old man¡¯s agitation.

    ¡°I¡¯ve got it! They¡¯re using the root channeling technique! Forgive my loss ofposure, but we¡¯ve never received concrete reports regarding the blood poison before. The root channeling technique allows nts to link and channel substances. It¡¯s an unorthodox wood elementalist legacy. As for the fluid within those roots, I do not know yet.¡±

    Ai Hui was momentarily distracted. This was his first time hearing a deduction regarding the Blood of God. These were the sort of messages that could possibly be of help to him.

    He quickly jotted down all of his observations.

    ¡°There were many burrs on the trees that came to life once the roots pierced into an elementalist. These tumors writhed non-stop when active, resembling a face twisting its features. Blood refinement appears to require much from its target. I¡¯ve seen elementalists who could not endure it and exploded.¡±

    ¡°Tree burrs? They might be devouring spirits, parasitic spirits, or confined spirit faces of the ancient blood refinement methods. Blood refinement has high requirements with regards to constitution. The number of blood fiends that operate in groups, such as blood ants, will start to decline as time passes. The blood fiends you faceter on will be much stronger, but they act on their own.¡±

    Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief upon reading that bands of blood fiends would decrease. Facing stronger blood fiends, however, was going to be another headache.

    ¡°It seems like blood ants are sensitive to chilies, but we have yet to verify this conjecture. After consuming Dragon Soup, one of our friends began to spit mes and the blood ants appeared to avoid going near him. Blood ants aren¡¯t afraid of fire elemental energy, so does anything elsee to mind?¡± Ai Hui wrote his reply.

    ¡°Yes, it does bring some ideas to mind. You can try mixing chili with firethorn stones or ck-branded mes, or maybe even red sulphur and see if they have any effect on the blood ants.¡±

    Ai Hui finally received a reply that he had hoped to see. He was itching to give it a go.

    Struck by a sudden thought, he penned, ¡°I heard them mention blood spiritual force.¡±

    ¡°Blood spiritual force? Really? Are you sure? This is impossible! Nobody should be able to create blood spiritual force. The ancient blood sects couldn¡¯t do it, and there¡¯s no longer any spiritual force left in this world. How is it possible to turn elemental energy into spiritual force? No, could it be that adding elemental energy to blood creates spiritual force? How does that work? I need to think about it, this is simply too shocking!¡±

    Ai Hui could sense the extent of the old prisoner¡¯s agitation and confusion, but he didn¡¯t mock him. Hearing the three words ¡°blood spiritual force¡± for the first time had left him in a state of utter shock as well.

    Spiritual force, the key to unlocking the vast treasures of the Cultivation Era!

    He shook his head, halting his wild thoughts before they got out of hand. He was more interested in the old man¡¯s other suggestion.

    After hismunication with the old man this time around, Ai Hui confirmed two conjectures. He was now sure that the old man was a sworn enemy of the Blood of God, and that his group had intensely studied it in order to deal with it. Although the old man¡¯s group didn¡¯t have a concrete understanding of the situation with the Blood of God, they knew quite a bit about the organization behind it.

    Under the curious gazes of the others, he carefully plucked the leaf off of the tree branch and hung it around his neck.

    ¡°Lou Lan, do we have firethorn stones, ck-branded mes, and red sulphur at home?¡±

 Chapter 184: City-wide Mobilization Order

    Chapter 184: City-wide Mobilization Order

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lis

    Slightly surprised, Shi Xueman stared at the message tree.

    She had no idea who Ai Hui wasmunicating with but didn¡¯t pry. What astonished her was the message tree¡¯s ability tomunicate with someone who was outside of the city limits. Then again, this wasn¡¯t some ordinary message tree but rather a specimen of the first generation.

    Communication between Central Pine City and the outside world was nearlypletely broken. The only message tree still fully active within the city was the one in the mayor¡¯s residence. She had used it tomunicate with her family after the outbreak of the blood disaster.

    ¡°May I use this message tree?¡± Shi Xueman suddenly asked.

    Ai Hui waved his hand without looking and replied, ¡°Go ahead.¡±

    Shi Xueman found itughable that a leaf from her own message tree was hanging on this one. Ai Hui would probably never guess that Shi Xueman was actually ¡°a bad deal.¡±

    A bad deal....

    Shi Xueman¡¯s amused expression became a grimace as she hung up a new leaf in ce of the one she previously put up. She thought of her doting grandfather who must be racked with worry and came close to tears.

    Reminding herself that she was much stronger than before, she kept her emotions in check and penned her message on the leaf.

    Just as she finished writing, the dean flew into the alley.

    The dean was shocked to see thepletely transformed yard that was littered with the corpses of blood ants. Even more remarkable was the team, especially Ai Hui. It had only been a few days since the deanst saw him, yet already seven pces were activated!

    Was Ai Hui a genius that he had overlooked?

    The dean was bbergasted. In all his years as dean, he had never once met such a freak.

    ¡°Seems like the fight went well. And to think I was worried about your safety. Hmm, weren¡¯t there more of you?¡± the dean asked as he noted the numbers that didn¡¯t add up. He recalled Shi Xueman¡¯s group had more members than just herself and Sang Zhijun.

    ¡°The blood ants....¡± Sang Zhijun replied in a sad tone.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were slightly bloodshot while Duanmu Huanghun quietly looked down.

    Ai Hui stared fixedly at them. These guys had some top-notch acting skills.... Even someone as dumb as the ingrate could perform so well!

    No matter their ipetence or mediocrity, pretense was indeed the natural ability of the younger generations of influential families. In the harsh and backstabbing world of the rich and influential, pretense was essential for survival.

    Those at the top of the families existed above all other authority and rules, free to act as they pleased. But before they could reach such a level, the younger members could not escape the shackles of their environment.

    The dean sighed deeply. A quick survey of the piles of blood ant corpses littering the ground was enough for him to visualize the bitter fight that must have taken ce. Fortunately, Duanmu Huanghun and Shi Xueman were safe and sound.... The number of deaths he had witnessed had served to numb his emotions. After seeing a number of powerful teachers fall before him, what were a few students¡¯ deaths?

    Was he going to survive this catastrophe? The dean was deeply pessimistic of his chances.

    He equally doubted their chances of surviving until reinforcements arrived.

    But still he did not forget his duty as the dean. No matter his pessimism, he could not pass that feeling on to the students. The dean began to encourage and console them, ¡°Let¡¯s all perk up and not let our imaginations run wild. There are still battles to be fought.¡±

    ¡°How is the situation within the city?¡± Shi Xueman took the initiative to ask.

    The dean hesitated for a moment before deciding not to sugarcoat it. ¡°The situation is terrible. We have lost control of almost one-third of ournd. What¡¯s worse is that the blood ants have started to transform.¡±

    ¡°Transform?¡± Ai Hui and Duanmu Huanghun asked in unison.

    ¡°Yes, we suspect that elemental energy is what¡¯s driving the blood fiends¡¯ transformation.¡±

    Ai Hui slightly trembled after hearing this. He understood more than his peers about the blood fiends. Back in the Garden of Life, he had drawn the same conclusions after observing their sensitivity to elemental energy. In other words, elemental energy was highly attractive to these blood fiends.

    Blood of God; blood refinement; using elemental energy as food; transforming after devouring elementalists....

    A chill ran up his spine. Was the Blood of God really trying to destroy the Avalon of Five Elements? Did they consider all other elementalists as prey?

    Noting the shock and concern on his allies¡¯ faces, he realized that telling them all he knew about the blood disaster would only serve to frighten them further.

    He decided to keep everyst word about it to himself.

    Would revealing his knowledge help them in escaping from Central Pine City? Would it help them survive this danger? No.

    On the contrary, he would be opening Pandora¡¯s Box if he told them any more. Even if he managed to get out of this alive, there would be no end to his troubles and likely face incarceration and repeated interrogations. And since the higher-ups would not be satisfied with answers obtained via gentle questioning, they would definitely turn to crueler methods of torture to ease their worries.

    Even if he somehow managed to survive all of that and be a hero, the Blood of God would most certainly seek revenge on him.

    Truthfully speaking, between the Blood of God and the Avalon of Five Elements, Ai Hui regarded the former more highly. Despite their weak appearance, the ns they hatched were far beyond those of the Avalon of Five Elements. Even now, the Avalon of Five Elements had yet to fullyprehend the current situation.

    When an underground organization with hundreds of years of deliberations finally decides to act, their preparations must surely beplete.

    The old prisoner mentioned that the Blood of God had six god apostles, and Ai Hui believed this to be true. Whether or not there were only six, however, was something he was unsure of.

    If captured by One Thousand Yuan again, he was probably better off surrendering....

    And if he wasn¡¯t good enough to be a blood elementalist, then he¡¯d just have to ept that fact. Ending up dead was still better off than living a wretched life. Ai Hui decided to find some time to have a talk with Fatty about it.

    Ai Hui maintained a straight face while his mind worked.

    He would only divulge these thoughts to Fatty and Lou Lan.

    ¡°If so, we¡¯ll need to take back all of the lost areas and eliminate everyst one of those blood ants that continue to transform,¡± Shi Xueman said gravely.

    The dean was secretly pleased to see Shi Xueman¡¯s resolute expression as she said these words. She was truly Shi Beihai¡¯s daughter.

    ¡°Indeed, that is the mayor¡¯s opinion as well. We must reim the lost areas at all costs before the blood ants transform. Everyone will be involved in this operation, even students and residents. I¡¯m here to inform you guys of this operation, and someone else wille byter to brief you on your mission. This is a city-wide mobilization order!¡±

    ¡°Yes!¡± Shi Xueman answered, stiffening her body and giving a salute. ¡°We ept this order!¡±

    She wasn¡¯t the only one doing so. Duanmu Huanghun, Sang Zhijun, and Jiang Wei saluted the order as well. In the Avalon of Five Elements, ordinary citizens were normally not involved in operations. As such, a city-wide order signalled just how dangerous the situation had be.

    Ai Hui and Wang Xiaoshan didn¡¯t perform the salute. Coming from the Old Territory, they weren¡¯t ustomed such formalities.

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell them to try their best to avoid splitting the few of you up,¡± the dean said as he looked over the blood ant corpses again. ¡°After being together for some time, you guys must have built up a rapport with one another. We¡¯ll instead send some students to reinforce your group, so please look out for them.¡±

    The dean¡¯s gazended on Ai Hui, knowing that he was the core member of this group.

    Shi Xueman suddenly blurted out, ¡°Since a city-wide order is in effect, and we¡¯re currently in a state of war, are we allowed to act ording to martialw on students who disobey orders?¡±

    The current members had full faith in Ai Hui¡¯s orders, but the neers might now. She didn¡¯t want to bring up something like this so soon after witnessing theirrades¡¯ deaths, but it was crucial to set the record straight. In times of peace, ack of solidarity affected only rtionships, but in times of war, it could potentially lead to their deaths.

    Everyone else looked at the dean.

    The dean was taken aback. He wouldn¡¯t have found it strange if Ai Hui had been the one to ask this. From their conversations, the dean found that Ai Hui was not easy to deal with; the boy simply wouldn¡¯tpromise without a bargain. The one asking this now, however, was Shi Xueman, which meant that Ai Hui had already won the trust of Shi Xueman and the others.

    He was quite something... this fellow.

    The dean had no idea how Ai Hui had managed to aplish this, but his evaluation of the boy was raised by quite a bit. Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun were, after all, not well-known for their easygoing personalities.

    ¡°Definitely! Deserters are to be executed, and no one is exempt from this,¡± the dean instructed.

    Everyone tensed upon hearing the words ¡°deserters¡± and ¡°executed.¡± These words reflected the graveness of the situation and foreshadowed the ughter that was soon to follow.

    ¡°I require some additional supplies,¡± Ai Hui informed, breaking his silence.

    The dean sighed. ¡°I¡¯ll try my best to get what you need.¡±

    With a city-wide mobilization order passed, even individuals like Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun had to charge ahead. Anyone caught retreating would be severely punished, possibly implicating their entire family.

    The dean had no say in this matter since the authority to pass such an ordery solely in the hands of the mayor. There was no longer much of a choice either, considering their bleak circumstances.

    If Shi Xueman and the rest perished as a result of the city-wide mobilization order, nobody would me the city or the academy because it would be considered an honor. It was a good thing for the dean as well, to no longer have to protect Shi Xueman and the others.

    Seeing the blood ant corpses reaffirmed this feeling.

    Keeping the students away from the fight was not much different from sending them straight to their deaths. Even if they knew of their impending deaths, retreat was no longer an option for anybody.

    How many students were going to die? The dean didn¡¯t dare to think too deeply on it.

    He had picked a number of talented students to be ced under Ai Hui¡¯s care. He wasn¡¯t sure what woulde of this, but he wanted to leave some hope for Central Pine Academy¡¯s future.

    Ai Hui was a student as well and would hopefully look out for them.

    ¡°Are my master and mistress okay?¡± Ai Hui asked.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The embroidery workshop is a key protection site.¡±

    The dean¡¯s words ayed Ai Hui¡¯s worries.

    Soon after, the dean brought over roughly 100 students, each and every one of them handpicked.

    Ai Hui recognized most of them as the brightest of Central Pine Academy.

    He nced at the dean who had unexpectedly ced such confidence in him.

    ¡°I leave them in your hands,¡± the dean announced tiredly. ¡°As for the resupplies you requested, you¡¯ll have to make a trip down to the stores. They¡¯ve agreed to your request, but resources are very limited.¡±

    Nobody could have imagined the future achievements that woulde from these sad and frightened youths gathered in this courtyard.

 Chapter 185: Huo Yuanlong

    Chapter 185: Huo Yuanlong

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lis

    ¡°... His stone-cold eyes looked at us as though we werembs sent to be ughtered. He was supposedly one of the students from the academy, but I was pretty sure that his name had never appeared on the top two hundred lists. Perhaps he had some unique capabilities? Who knew! Regardless, he appeared to be a cold-hearted person, like someone who might send us to our deaths. I wished that the one leading us was the respectable Shi Xueman and not this nameless person.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª Taken from¡¶Huo Yuanlong¡¯s Diary¡·

    The tender youths standing in front of Ai Hui reminded him of the coolie that he had been three years ago.

    Without any trace of elemental energy, coolies out in the Wilderness were just like paper dolls and were meant to be treated as cannon fodder. In the face of the blood disaster, these rtively formidable yet inexperienced students were not much stronger than the coolies out in the Wilderness. They were pretty much just cannon fodder as well.

    Winning with numbers alone wasn¡¯t going to be possible anymore. Now was the time for experts to shine.

    A Grandmaster would be much more useful than everyone in Central Pine Citybined. If the city had just a Grandmaster, they probably would have escaped by now.

    It was a pity that there weren¡¯t any in Central Pine City.

    Besides making use of numbers, the city had no other tactics avable. It was as though the humans were mimicking the blood ants¡¯ use of group tactics. In today¡¯s Central Pine City, humans were not much better than beasts.

    Newly formed groups of one hundred people each were gathered on the streets. The leaders were shouting at the top of their lungs and waving their arms in an attempt to drum up the troops¡¯ morale.

    Ai Hui could see the fear hidden beneath their impassioned faces.

    Chaos and despair filled the air as the darkness of night engulfed the ck smoke that was rising everywhere.

    Copsed walls and houses blocked parts of the streets while bricks were strewn all over. Dried bloodstains were everywhere and the air reeked strongly of blood and smoke. The jack-o¡¯nterns that neatly lined both sides of the streets were now badly damaged and scattered about, making the street sides look likebs with missing teeth. The remainingnterns radiated a haunting, feeble glow, casting shadows throughout their street. Central Pine City had undergone a drastic change.

    He had never seen anything like this, not even in the Wilderness.

    At the warehouse, Ai Hui queued for half an hour before he managed to meet the frantic officer-in-charge. The officer immediately recognized Ai Hui, who had left a deep impression thest time they¡¯d met.

    ¡°Hardly anything good is left, although you can pick out two items. I¡¯d advise you to hurry.¡±

    The officer gestured towards the long line.

    Ai Hui knew he didn¡¯t have the time to slowly saunter in and pick out items. He directly replied, ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll need a weapon for a fire elementalist, something like a fire jug.¡±

    ¡°For that fatty?¡± the officer asked. The officer¡¯s memory seemed to be very good, but he remembered Fatty because he too had left a deep impression when he¡¯d put on the Steady Mountain.

    ¡°That¡¯s right,¡± Ai hui answered, nodding.

    ¡°Ha, you guys are in luck,¡± said the officer,ughing. ¡°There¡¯re no more fire jugs, but we do have a fire vat. Nobody has taken it because it¡¯s so heavy, but I think it¡¯s very suitable for him.¡±

    The officer brought Ai Hui to a corner of the warehouse and pointed to a huge vat that was almost as tall as he was. Ai Hui instantly understood why nobody wanted to use it, it was simply too big. The vats that fire elementalists used were more expensive the smaller they were. Fire gourds were one of the smallest types but were very expensive, so most fire elementalists used fire jugs.

    Standing before Ai Hui was practically a wine jar.

    ¡°Is it useful?¡± Ai Hui asked skeptically.

    ¡°Of course,¡± the officer replied matter-of-factly. ¡°It may be huge, but it¡¯s good stuff. Besides being a little bit heavy, it doesn¡¯t have any other shorings.¡±

    Ai Hui almost rolled his eyes at the officer. Being heavier andrger were huge shorings. He pictured Fatty donning the Steady Mountain armor, raising the tower shield, and lugging this huge vat on his back. This getup would be a bit too... indescribable!

    ¡°This is really something good!¡± the officer eximed discontentedly as he noticed Ai Hui¡¯s skeptical look. ¡°The artisan who made this had intended to create a Heaven-grade weapon, but ultimately failed. He then used its core to forge this fire vat. If you look carefully you can see an inscription on it, it¡¯s not something I made up.¡±

    He pointed to the fine print on the side of the vat.

    If it was someone else who had suspected him like that, he would¡¯ve thrown that person out long ago; however, he remembered Ai Hui and understood that the two of them must be quite capable to have survived until now.

    Upon hearing that it was a product resulting from a failed Heaven-grade weapon, Ai Hui immediately agreed. ¡°I¡¯ll take it!¡±

    Heaven-grade weapons were high-grade arms created for elementalists to use. In order to distinguish them from treasures of the past, they were named as such because they were created in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s spear was one such weapon.

    Heaven-grade weapons possessed mystical powers and were able to greatly enhance an elementalists¡¯ fighting prowess. Wielding these weapons was, however, highly taxing on the user, usually requiring at least thepletion of eight pces. In other words, one pretty much had to be a full-fledged elementalist to use one.

    Shi Xueman was unable to unleash even one percent of her spear¡¯s true power.

    The materials required for forging a Heaven-grade weapon had to be of the highest quality. This was why Ai Hui immediately agreed to take the vat after hearing that it had been created from a failed Heaven-gradel weapon.

    Theplex techniques and high-quality materials required to forge a Heaven-grade weapon were the reasons why their prices never fell. Ai Hui had seen many great elementalists in the Wilderness, but had only seen a handful of them wielding Heaven-grade weapons.

    The warehouse officer was satisfied with Ai Hui¡¯s quick answer. ¡°What else do you need?¡± he asked.

    ¡°Spiderweb Iron Pellets, Wolftooth Heavy Arrows, and chillies.¡±

    ¡°Spiderweb Iron Pellets? For Miss Sang? She should be able to use them considering her ability with the bow.¡± The officer nodded. ¡°There are around two hundred or so of them left, you can take them all. Trust you guys to think of something so unorthodox.¡±

    Spiderweb Iron Pellets were about the size of a thumb and didn¡¯t look very different from ordinary iron pellets. As their name suggested, the Spiderweb Iron Pellets, however, contained highlypressed spider webs within. Triggered by elemental energy, the spider web within each pellet would expand upon impact and restrain the target.

    The officer was truly an experienced individual. Ai Hui had indeed requisitioned the pellets for Sang Zhijun. Although Sang Zhijun was more skilled with a bow than Jiang Wei, her fighting strengthgged behind his. As such, Ai Hui had thought of using these pellets to maximize her utility, but hadn¡¯t expected the warehouse to actually still be stocked with them.

    The use of Spiderweb Iron Pellets was umon because spider webs weren¡¯t particrly tough. They wouldn¡¯t be so cheap if they had more restraining power.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t really care about this since he only intended to use them to confuse the enemy.

    ¡°I can only provide you with two quivers of Wolftooth Heavy Arrows,¡± said the officer, then swiftly continued upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s intention to retort, ¡°A lot of people still need these. I¡¯m already looking out for you guys by giving two quivers¡¯ worth, the others are only being given one.¡±

    ¡°Alright, I¡¯ll take whatever I can get.¡± Having seen the long line at the door, Ai Hui epted his exnation.

    ¡°We don¡¯t have any chillies in the warehouse.¡± The officer was a bit puzzled by the request. ¡°Why do you need chillies? What a strange request! I¡¯d suggest that you buy some from the spice shops since it¡¯s rare for people to stock up on chillies. I¡¯m sorry, but the mayor prefers sweet foods over spicy ones.¡±

    Ai Hui was disappointed that he couldn¡¯t get the chillies.

    The officer had already left to tend to others. Knowing that he couldn¡¯t get anything more, Ai Hui dragged the huge wine vat out of the warehouse.

    Those who were still queueing up cast sidelong nces at Ai Hui.

    The students gathered in the Vanguard Training Hall had just undertaken one round of gruelling training and were enjoying a well-deserved break.

    Shi Xueman was the one leading the training since Ai Hui had no interest in looking after this group of students.

    Her power and prestige weremon knowledge among the students, allowing her to quickly win over their trust.

    She had secretly read many of her father¡¯s books from a tender age and was, as such, better versed in military tactics than the others.

    When Ai Hui had handed them over to her, Shi Xueman had felt a hint of excitement. She finally had the chance to practice what she had been learning since she was young.

    The only thing that she was slightly unhappy about was her assistant. She¡¯d wanted Duanmu Huanghun to be her assistant, but Ai Hui assigned Jiang Wei to the role instead.

    Stealing a nce at Jiang Wei, she had no choice but to admit that Ai Hui was a better judge of people than her.

    Jiang Wei wasn¡¯t as outstanding as Duanmu Huanghun, but he was calm, dependable, patient, and meticulous. Without Jiang Wei¡¯s help, Shi Xueman would have been flustered.

    Duanmu Huanghun waspletely immersed in his own practice.

    He wasn¡¯t particrly willing to help out with the students¡¯ training; his dream was, after all, to be a Grandmaster.

    In the past, he hadn¡¯t been sure of his aim in life. Experiencing these cruel battles and facing death had made it much clearer to him ¨C he wanted to be a Grandmaster, and not just any grandmaster, but the strongest grandmaster ever!

    A depressed mood pervaded the atmosphere during the break. Everyone was apprehensive about the future and a little terrified of the battles toe.

    Fear and confusion made the students restless.

    ¡°Why do we have to listen to Ai Hui¡¯s orders?¡± Huo Yuanlong asked, just loud enough for everyone around to hear.

    He had done it on purpose. Having consistently been among the top ten students in the academy, he was unhappy that he had to listen to the orders of a first-year student. It was fine if someone like Duanmu Huanghun was the one in charge, but not if the leader was an unknown like Ai Hui.

    Huo Yuanlong had secretly observed Ai Hui earlier while the dean had been speaking. He didn¡¯t see anything special about Ai Hui.

    The only thing that had left an impression on him was Ai Hui¡¯s cold gaze. This gaze was, however, also the reason why Huo Yuanlong was so annoyed. Huo Yuanlong simply couldn¡¯t stand being sized up by an unknown junior with such an indifferent gaze.

    Shi Xueman furrowed her brows, Jiang Wei was roused from his rest, and Sang Zhijun shot a nce over upon hearing this. A grin crept onto her lips as she strummed her bowstring like an instrument.

    The atmosphere was heavy.

    Some of the students urged, ¡°Yuanlong, mind your words!¡±

    Huo Yuanlong stiffened his neck and raised his voice. ¡°Did I say something wrong?¡±

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s was displeased that his practice was interrupted.

    ¡°I¡¯m willing to listen to Miss Shi and Huanghun¡¯s orders, but who is Ai Hui tomand us?¡± Huo Yuanlong eximed.

    His words resonated with the thoughts of many others, causing an uproar.

    ¡°Yes, only Miss Shi and Huanghun are qualified!¡±

    ¡°Who is this Ai Hui? Where did hee from?¡±

    ......

    ¡°Enough!¡± Shi Xuemanmanded. She walked towards Huo Yuanlong with Cirrus in hand, her expression solemn. ¡°You, fall out. Fifty strokes for causing trouble!¡±

    Huo Yuanlong¡¯s facepletely drained of color. He couldn¡¯t understand why Shi Xueman was siding with Ai Hui.

    Fifty strokes... He trembled and hurriedly called out to Duanmu Huanghun for help. ¡°Huanghun, don¡¯t you have anything to say?¡±

    ¡°I do,¡± Duanmu Huanghun replied as he walked over.

    Huo Yuanlong was filled with relief upon hearing Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s words. ¡°Exactly! Tell them what you think, Huanghun. Everyone will listen to you.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s really quite simple.¡± Duanmu Huanghun sneered, revealing a set of snow-white teeth. ¡°I¡¯ll personally mete out these fifty strokes.¡±

 Chapter 186: Minute Arc Stab and Hilt Mist Combined

    Chapter 186: Minute Arc Stab and Hilt Mist Combined

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    When Ai Hui returned, he saw Duanmu Huanghun whipping a student.

    Oh, that student seemed familiar.

    Ai Hui did not have much interest in these people, so he took one look before retracting his gaze. His treatment of Shi Xueman and the others differed vastly from his attitude toward this new batch of students.

    He was a realistic person, unmistakably realistic.

    After leaving the students to Shi Xueman and Jiang Wei, he had no intentions of interfering with their matters at all. His time was far too precious to be wasted on them. He passed the [Spiderweb Iron Pellets] to Sang Zhijun and put the huge vat down before beginning his own practice.

    Ai Hui swiftly slipped into a meditative state.

    He was notpletely familiar with his current state of seven pces and disliked how it felt. The amount of elemental energy in his body was significantly less in the past, but at least he was able to unleash its full power. Although he had a lot more elemental energy now, he was unable to bring out 100% of its power.

    He felt that this was a waste, and waste was something he absolutely loathed.

    Everyone¡¯s attention was drawn to Ai Hui when he walked into the training hall. Some of the students looked at him with disdain while others looked on pensively or with curiosity. Duanmu Huanghun spared no mercy in meting out Huo Yuanlong¡¯s punishment, resulting in the poor fellow passing out before the 50 strokes werepleted. Having learned from Huo Yuanlong¡¯s mistake, the rest of the students ceased with theirints.

    Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s determined attitudes came as a shock to the students.

    Ai Hui ignored everything and continued with his seemingly unorthodox training. The number of disdainful and contemptuous stares increased as he proceeded with his swordy rted practice.

    It was swordy...

    Many of the curious students could not help but reveal their disappointment when they saw him practicing something that had no future.

    Ai Hui was not practicing the three skills he obtained from his master¡¯s swordpill, but was instead honing the diverse moves that he had developed on his own. The three skills from the sword pill requiredplex patterns of elemental energy cirction. [Crescent Moon] was the simplest of the three, but was still highlyplex. Attempting to practice the three sword pill skills was tantamount to fetching water with a bamboo basket.

    In addition, Ai Hui realized that continuous ordinary attacks were much safer and more effective than powerful killing blows when it came to handling enemies that attacked in swarms.

    The elemental energy within his body had be much stronger than before. His fragmented sword techniques were not quite the same anymore.

    The sword embryo had experienced an even greater change.

    In the past, the sword embryo would be active whenever he practiced swordy. Ever since it became stronger, however, the sword embryo appeared to have be quite a bit more reticent. It was like a wild beast who had just eaten its fill and was dozing off in Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce.

    If not for Ai Hui¡¯s sharpened sixth sense, he would definitely have thought that something was wrong with the sword embryo.

    Although the sword strokes that Ai Hui practiced were fragmented and constantly changing as a whole, each individual stroke was very well-executed because he had spent a lot of time refining and practicing every single move.

    He thrust the Dragonspine Inferno forward in a tiny arc. The movement of the sword was simr to a seabird skimming across the surface of the water.

    He had adapted this move from one of the killing techniques he found in a swordy manual. Ai Hui felt that this half of the killing technique was especially useful. This [Minute Arc Stab] made the sword thrust forward in an extremely tiny arc such that the opponent only saw the de as moving straight forward.

    The sword embryo suddenly jolted.

    Hmm?

    Ai Hui was taken aback, but he was a bit unsure of what he felt. The sword embryo¡¯s throbbing was sometimes orderly, but also highly irregr other times.

    He tried the [Minute Arc Stab] again, but the sword embryo remained inactive this time.

    Ai Hui decided to ignore the sword embryo and continued to practice his self taught sword techniques. The habitual sword strokes allowed him to be more familiar with the elemental energy within his body.

    The heavy Dragonspine Inferno felt weightless in his hand. One of the benefits of his enhanced elemental energy was the increment in his already hefty strength. Ai Hui became more and more immersed in his training and began to practice some more difficult moves. Moving the sword¡¯s hilt rapidly while maintaining the exact same position of the de tip, he sessfully created six distinct afterimages of the sword hilt.

    This move was called [Hilt Mist] and was one of the training methods of the ancient swordsmen. Being able to maintain the sword tip in the same position while rapidly shifting the hilt was an indicator of a nimble wrist and implied excellent control. Outstanding swordsmen were capable of moving the sword hilt in any direction and were not restricted to only left and right shifts. The rapidly shifting sword hilt looked like an illusory mist, which was how the technique gained its name.

    [Hilt Mist] was used as an assessment tool by many ancient sword sects.

    Prior to this, Ai Hui had been unable to sessfully execute the [Hilt Mist]. He was not expecting to achieve something like this, but was d he attempted the move on a whim.

    The quiet sword embryo throbbed again.

    Hmm?

    Ai Hui¡¯s surprise faded as his attention was grabbed by the sword embryo. The two times it had throbbed set off something in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    He attempted the [Minute Arc Stab] again, but the sword embryo refused to budge. He then performed the [Hilt Mist], but the sword embryo still remained stationary.

    Why was this happening?

    Ai Hui lifted the Dragonspine Inferno and stood still, deep in thought. He could not make sense of the sword embryo¡¯s current activity, but his many past experiences with it had vaguely drilled its rhythm into his heart. The sword embryo was sensitive to all actions rted to swords, ranging from the first time he picked up the Dragonspine Inferno to when he executed sword techniques.

    All of a sudden, Ai Hui instinctively performed the [Hilt Mist]. Just as the Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s hilt reached Ai Hui¡¯s mostfortable position, the sword tip swiftly lunged forward in a tiny arc. It was the [Minute Arc Stab]!

    Almost simultaneously, the sword embryo between his brows throbbed vigorously.

    The Dragonspine Inferno in his hand immediately lit up, leaving a bright trail in the air.

    The sword¡¯s bright streak shot across the air like a meteor falling through the heavens. The students who were secretly watching Ai Hui were astonished.

    What kind of swordy was that?

    The luster hanging in the air was highly condensed and refused to disperse. It was not particrly awe-inducing, but itsck of elemental energy was somewhat surprising.

    Shi Xueman was also attracted to the streak of light left behind by Ai Hui¡¯s stroke. She could not figure out how Ai Hui was able to create it without using elemental energy

    None of his moves involved the use of elemental energy and as such, should be unable to produce any radiance. This was amonly known fact. The other students suspected that Ai Hui had used very miniscule traces of elemental energy, but Shi Xueman was sure that there had been none in that sword stroke.

    Duanmu Huanghun stared nkly at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was extremely excited!

    He had invented a move by himself and had not used an ounce of elemental energy, yet a sword beam was produced!

    He had no idea how it happened, but he was very sure that he had just executed an extremely remarkable sword stroke. He did not stop to admire it for long, instead beginning his next attempt atbining the [Hilt Mist] with the [Minute Arc Stab]. There was no sword streak produced this time, but he was not discouraged. He noted that he had failed to grasp the correct timing on thest attempt.

    Ai Hui practiced repeatedly.

    The sound of his sword piercing the air rang out incessantly, and he soon becamepletely absorbed in his practice.

    Some of the students started looking at Ai Hui in a different light. Focus was an attractive, respectable quality. Being able to focus andpletely immerse oneself in the task at hand was something worthy of respect and was especially remarkable when done under the watchful gaze of others.

    The ck Dragonspine Inferno cast a dark shadow as it streaked through the air. The dark red edge of its de, together with its seven iid jewels, added a blood red smudge to its afterimage. The sight was strangely reminiscent of Central Pine City¡¯s night sky, filled with the scent of blood.

    Ai Hui tirelessly brandished his sword.

    A streak of light suddenly lit up the air where the Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s path had just passed through. Like a shooting star streaking across the night sky, it soon vanished without a trace.

    Sighs of pity were heaved in unison.

    Another streak of light appeared a while after, and soon, the night sky was filled with more and more of these ¡°shooting stars.¡±

    The bright sword streaks which passed swiftly into oblivion pierced the evening curtain one after another. The onlookers were practically witnessing a meteor shower.

    The training ground had bepletely quiet as the onlookers were moved by this magnificent sight. Perhaps they were simply moved by the streaks of light that lit up the night sky or perhaps witnessing the birth of apletely new sword skill stirred up something within them.

    Perhaps it was neither of those, but instead the sweat-drenched, joy-filled face that followed each streak of light.

    This expression, filled with pure unadulterated joy, was utterly dazzling among the sad fearful faces of the students. It was eye-catching, attractive, and brought hope.

    Duanmu Huanghun continued to stare nkly at Ai Hui, his mind slowly drifting.

    Something stirred deep within his soul as the scene before him was seared into his memory. Something told him that he would never forget this moment. He was looking at an indomitable spirit, one so powerful that it could persist even in the darkest of times.

    Duanmu Huanghuncked the words to fully describe his experience. He saw an indistinct figure towering over thendscape at the end of a long winding road, a road that stretched out all the way to the horizon from behind Ai Hui¡¯s silhouette.

    Was this a Grandmaster?

    Yes, definitely!

    Stuck in his daze, Duanmu Huanghun confidently answered himself. A grand sense of purpose rushed through his veins, reaching every corner of his body and causing him to shudder involuntarily.

    Was this not his aim? To tower over all living things! To rise to the summit!

    That awe-inspiring, fear-inducing silhouette.

    To be an indomitable figure, one must first forge an indomitable spirit. I shall be the embodiment of power itself!

    Duanmu Huanghun had never experienced such rity in his thoughts.

    Death was still terrifying, but it no longer controlled his mind the way it used to. He was no longer a puppet being strung along by death.

    All tension was released from his body as the invisible shackles that weighed him down vanished.

    The flourishing life force within his body caused the elemental energy inside his body to undergo a mysterious transformation.

    Duanmu Huanghun remained motionless while he enjoyed the peace and rxation of the moment.

    Shi Xueman noticed something different about Duanmu Huanghun.

    The Duanmu Huanghun she had known until now was a truly brilliant individual, but was overly cautious and restrained. His mind was weak and his spirit easily bent. He had the arrogance of a genius, butcked the assertiveness of one.

    She could not believe that he had achieved a breakthrough so quickly...

    Ai Hui caught hints of a miraculous change urring nearby, but was too caught up in his own thoughts to bother with it. After all, he had just created a new sword skill bybining the [Minute Arc Stab] and [Hilt Mist].

    After all these years of digging through rubbish, Ai Hui finally found a way to turn trash into treasure!

    He pushed the windows open, revealing a courtyard piled with rubbish. In his eyes, however, he saw a mountain of gold.

 Chapter 187: Manager Li and Bunny Hair Arrow

    Chapter 187: Manager Li and Bunny Hair Arrow

    Trantor: Irene Editor: CakeHermit

    It took Ai Hui two hours to break free from his trance.

    He sat motionless on the ground, giggling. He looked battered and exhausted and his whole body was thoroughly soaked. His face and scalp were covered in sweat and his upper arms were so tired it was as if they were paralyzed.

    Two hours had resulted in two moves. They were all simple strokes, nothingplicated. Thebination of the [Minute Arc Stab] and [Hilt Mist] was already considered moreplex. There was another inclined move, but the only changey in its angle. He tried almost all the angles a few times before finally finding the optimal one. He named thebination of [Minute Arc Stab] and [Hilt Mist] as [Misty Strike] and the inclined move as [Oblique sh].

    The change that had urred in those two moves were so great that even without the sword embryo¡¯s heartbeat, Ai Hui could still feel their wholesome change.

    The old strokes were now like dance moves, graceful, yet full of power. Sword manuals without spiritual force were like fishes without water. Whether willingly or not, they had long be useless; throwing fishes into the river also led to a dead end.

    A change in the environment meant that a lot of things had to be redone.

    No matter how splendid Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship had once been and no matter how many swordy manuals were left behind, it was difficult for them to fit into this era without some alterations.

    Ai Hui still had not found out the reason behind this. A slight alteration would cause the nature of a sword move to changepletely.

    Perhaps there was a resonance between the sword and elemental energy?

    No idea.

    But he knew that he had found the key to solve what the sword techniquescked.

    There were still many sword moves waiting for him to explore and change. He had ample time to search and understand them, so that was a good start. In the past, he had improvised and used the [Gale Bat de] technique, but this time he was going to take it a step further. He had seen countless sword manuals and despite having no idea how to practice them, he knew how the cultivators had done so during the Cultivation Era.

    The [Smoke Meteor] and [Oblique sh] made him realize that all the sword moves had to be changed starting from the most basic strokes in order to adapt to the elemental energy era.

    This was his greatest reward for the night.

    He never would have thought of this if he hadn¡¯t been struck by a brainwave. There were some sword moves that possessed formidable power even without operating any elemental energy.

    He thought about how he had toe up with a resounding name for this swordy series when he was done perfecting it.

    For now... hepletely did not feel like touching it!

    Hey on the ground, gazing up at the pitch-ck sky.

    Fatty felt himself dreaming a long dream. He dreamt that he was swimming in a boundlessva river. Swimming and swimming for god knows how long, but never escaping the fire sea.

    Muddle-headed, he opened his eyes to find Lou Lan, whose face was almostpletely covered by a mask, blocking his view.

    ¡°Fatty, you¡¯re really amazing!¡± Lou Lan eximed in admiration, his eyes shining. ¡°The result was outstanding. Congrattions Fatty, four pces! Seems like the effectiveness of the dragon soup has something to do with the number of times one consumes it. Yeah, I¡¯ll have to note this down. Please don¡¯t worry, Fatty. I¡¯ll definitely do more research and brew an even better dragon soup!¡±

    Loss was evident in Fatty¡¯s face. Upon hearing the words ¡°Dragon Soup¡±, he couldn¡¯t help but shiver. He finally remembered what he had been doing before he lost his memory.

    Snapping out of it, he looked at Lou Lan as if he had seen a ghost. He shook his head bluntly and replied furiously, ¡°Lou Lan, I¡¯m never drinking your soup again. I still want to live.¡±

    ¡°Why? Dragon soup isn¡¯t toxic. Although it gets less effective over time, it is still very useful. It can raise your level within a short period of time. You can definitely open up your fifth pce with another bowl,¡± responded Lou Lan with confidence.

    Another bowl...

    Just thinking about that frightening experience made him tremble again. He would drink a second bowl over his dead body.

    Just then, someone staggered in, their body covered in blood. Seeing who it was, Ai Hui jolted up!

    ¡°Manager Li!¡±

    Manager Li¡¯s body was covered in blood and he was carrying a pouch. Seeing Ai Hui, radiance filled Manager Li¡¯s empty eyes. ¡°Brother...¡±

    Having endured until this point, he was alreadypletely exhausted. His legs went soft, causing him to plunge forward.

    Ai Hui suddenly sprang over with arge stride and held onto Manager Li. He then saw that Manager Li was almost eaten clean. Bones were exposed all over his back, making Ai Hui speechless.

    ¡°These are Bunny Hair Arrows...¡± Manager Li looked at Ai Hui and smiled, grief and regret evident in his expression. ¡°Pardon me, I can¡¯t settle the ounts anymore...¡±

    Manager Li opened his eyes wide as hisst wisp of spirit dissipated and he stopped breathing altogether.

    Ai Hui held onto him, as motionless as a statue.

    Emerging out of his daze after a while, sorrow was missing from his face. He freed one hand to retrieve the pouch in Manager Li¡¯s arms. There were twenty Bunny Hair Arrows inside. After putting them on the ground, Ai Hui carried Manager Li on his back, turned around, and walked deep into the garden.

    Ai Hui was momentarily brought back to the Wilderness, where he had witnessedrades around him copse one after the other. Profound helplessness and despair enveloped him.

    He started digging without a word. He had never helped Fatty out in the past when Fatty had buried their teammates.

    Actually, the rtionship he¡¯d had with Manager Li wasn¡¯t very close or anything. They were merely business partners. The Dragonspine Inferno in his hands lifted lumps of earth with each swing.

    So, why was he sad?

    There was nothing to be sad about. Everyone would die someday, and he might even be next; who was going to dig his grave when that time came? Okay, so nothing mattered after death. There was no difference between being buried or eaten by blood fiends.

    By the end of the burial, Ai Hui was back to his normal state of mind. He was used to seeing people leave this world.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Shi Xueman walked over to his side, concern evident in her voice.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Ai Hui answered with his usual expression.

    Changing the topic, Shi Xueman asked, ¡°You left the students with me. Isn¡¯t that kind of irresponsible?¡±

    ¡°Why do I have to be responsible?¡± Ai Hui responded.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hoodlum behavior ticked Shi Xueman off. ¡°So you were just bullshitting the dean?¡±

    ¡°I only agreed to let them follow.¡± Ai Hui continued matter-of-factly, ¡°If I have to be responsible, the president has to take more me.¡±

    Shi Xueman did not know whether tough or cry. She stared into Ai Hui¡¯s eyes, unable to fathom that this scoundrel before her was the same guy that had led them during the battle!

    Okay, to be honest, this guy¡¯s splendid performance over the past few days had confounded the image she¡¯d had of him.

    He¡¯d paid the bill for a female ssmate but was so adamant about her returning the money...

    He owed eighty million yuan but had the guts to call people money-losing deal...

    Money! Losing! Deal!

    These three words floated across Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. Veins on the hand holding Cirrus throbbed as she wanted so badly to stab three holes into his body!

    Impulse was the devil... this was the real face of this fellow.

    Cooling down, Shi Xueman questioned, ¡°Don¡¯t tell me you have no advice for them?¡±

    ¡°My suggestion? Try hard to stay alive.¡± These superfluous words came out of Ai Hui¡¯s mouth as he kept a serious face.

    Shi Xueman no longer wanted to reason with him. She said simply, ¡°Give Zhijun to me too.¡±

    ¡°As long as she agrees.¡± Ai Hui replied indifferently, throwing the bloodstained pouch to Sang Zhijun. ¡°Use them wisely!¡±

    Sang Zhijun caught it before reassuring him in all seriousness, ¡°I will!¡±

    Actually, witnessing Manager Li¡¯s death was a big blow to her.

    Shi Xueman walked towards Sang Zhijun without giving Ai Hui a single look. She couldn¡¯t read him sometimes. After calling him a scoundrel, he actually became all generous by gifting Sang Zhijun twenty Bunny Hair Arrows. Shi Xueman had seen how Sang Zhijun bought her Bunny Hair arrows and knew how expensive they were. Sang Zhijun couldn¡¯t even bear to fire them if not for emergency use.

    And he had given her twenty arrows just like that.

    Yet he wouldn¡¯t let one hundred and fifty yuan go... what a weird fellow.

    Okay, these were not important. What was important was the fact that he dared to call her ¡°money-losing deal¡±!

    Every step that she took carried murderous spirit.

    Initially quite surprised by Ai Hui, the students were utterly shocked by now and their eyes were wide open. They red at him, clearly infuriated by his careless words from before.

    Towards Shi Xueman¡¯s invitation, Sang Zhijun agreed quickly. She was a smart woman and knew herself well. In order to be of greater value to the team, she had to be put in an auxiliary position.

    ¡°What an amazingdy!¡± Fatty, now clear-headed, walked over to Ai Hui¡¯s side andmented in a low voice.

    Ai Hui looked Fatty up and down before saying, ¡°Not bad, four pces. I have something expensive to give you!¡±

    Upon hearing the word ¡°expensive¡±, Fatty¡¯s eyes shone. ¡°I knew you wouldn¡¯t forget your own people! What is it?¡±

    Ai Hui pointed to the half-a-man tall vat in the garden. ¡°There, a fire vat used specially by fire elementalists.¡±

    At Ai Hui¡¯s words, Fatty¡¯s face lit up. A fire vat was one of the weapons usedmonly by fire elementalists. Usually the vat would be filled with earth-fireva broth, which not only was helpful for everyday training but was also a highly formidable, powerful weapon in times of battle.

    ¡°Fire vat... is it too early?¡± Fatty asked, eyes bright as he rubbed his hands, slightly embarrassed. When he finally saw the huge vat in the garden, his face stiffened up. ¡°Ai Hui, you meant this vat?¡±

    Fatty was frightened by the volume of this vat. The Steady Mountain heavy armor on his body coupled with the Ironwood Shield was about sixty pounds, and the big vat before his eyes looked at least two hundred and twenty pounds... And there was the three-hundred-and-thirty-poundva broth...

    For a moment, Fatty felt that his life was bleak.

    ¡°Don¡¯t want it?¡± Ai Hui gave Fatty a look before adding, ¡°Just as well. This fire vat was originally made to be a Heaven-grade weapon, but became a failure because it was too big. I was actually worried that it would affect your speed.¡±

    Hearing that the material used to make it was worthy of a Heaven-grade weapon, his small eyes quickly brightened up. ¡°I want it! Who said I don¡¯t want it! It suits me too well! No one else would have a use for it. It¡¯s no wonder the material seems different...¡±

    Fatty¡¯s whole face was almost squashed t against the outer wall of the fire vat. He waspletely enchanted. He got even more excited after seeing the inscription on the vat.

    An elementalist descended from the sky. ¡°Who¡¯s Ai Hui?¡±

    ¡°I am.¡± Ai Hui stood up.

    ¡°Please get your team ready and assemble at the intersection of Soundwave Street and Brightflower Street at six o¡¯clock. The target of attack and sequence will be arranged for you. Laters will be dealt with by martialw.¡±

    The elementalist ordered expressionlessly, not revealing any emotion. Finishing up, he turned around and left in a hurry

    The atmosphere instantly became grave and stifling.

 Chapter 188: Attack

    Chapter 188: Attack

    Trantor: Irene Editor: CakeHermit

    Intersection of Soundwave Street and Brightflower Street.

    ¡°Lou Lan, how do I look?¡± Fatty asked Lou Lan while striking different poses.

    Wearing the Steady Mountain heavy armor made him look like a moving fort. He held the door-like Ironwood Shield in his hand and carried the big fire tank, an even more eye-catching weapon, on his back, effectively bing a focal point.

    ¡°Very powerful!¡± Lou Lan was generous with his praise. ¡°Fatty is gifted with great strength. I can make you some turtle dragon miracle soup to unleash your potential. It is extremely effective.¡±

    At Lou Lan¡¯s mention of soup, Fatty¡¯s face turned ugly. He shook his head hurriedly. ¡°Lou Lan, I¡¯m not falling for your trick!¡±

    They arrived half an hour before the scheduled time.

    The wide intersection was already filled with groups of troops awaiting orders. They were going to be attacking in the same wave as Ai Hui and his team.

    Holding onto Cirrus, Shi Xueman walked beside Ai Hui and said in a low voice, ¡°The situation is looking bad. I asked around and the damage is disastrous. Many teams were dispatched but only a few came back safely. Our advancing speed is not ideal, only half the street is reimed.¡±

    ¡°This is just throwing lives away.¡± Jiang Weimented helplessly.

    ¡°What do we have other than our lives?¡± Duanmu Huanghun responded.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s words hit the nail right on the head, leaving everyone in silence.

    Suddenly, amotion sounded from up front.

    ¡°Help me! I don¡¯t want to die! I don¡¯t want to die! Save me...¡±

    ¡°I want to go home... I want to go home... Hu hu... Mother...¡±

    ......

    The attack teams in the previous wave were retreating from Soundwave Street and only twelve fighters remained. They looked dazed, their gazes vacant with bodies covered in blood stains. Worse, the wounded were lying on rattan stretchers dragged by sand puppets. They were badly injured and some body parts were missing, exposingrge amounts of flesh. Some curled up and quivered in pain, letting out blood-curdling screams and howls. Somey motionless with a lifeless expression on their faces. It was as if their bodies had no soul, not even a tiny murmur or whisper was heard.

    Those awaiting battle became restless. Their faces were all tensed up and their bodies trembled uncontrobly. Fear and dread spread like ripples.

    ¡°They¡¯re throwing our lives away! They¡¯re trying to kill us!¡±

    Someone within the crowd shrieked agitatedly, dashed out from the formation, and ran far away.

    He was extremely fast. As he was about to disappear around the corner of the street, an arrow suddenly appeared in his chest out of nowhere. He staggered a little, staring at his chest nkly, unable to make a sound. All the strength left his body and hey paralyzed on the ground.

    Everyone was shocked by what they had just seen. The spacious road was filled with a deathly stillness.

    ¡°Deserters will not be pardoned!¡±

    The imposing, deep voice rang in the sky and echoed within the hearts of those present. They were struck dumb. Immediately, all themotion was constrained.

    "This person fled just before the battle and will be reported directly to the chief association. All rights and privileges enjoyed by his immediate family members will be taken away and the whole n will be severely punished. I advise everybody here not to depend on luck. Those who died fighting are honorable and those who withdraw will live in perpetual shame. Think carefully!¡±

    The elementalist spread open his azure wings and stood proudly, face expressionless.

    Ai Hui looked up and made eye contact with the man, unable to restrain the astonishment he felt. That shot was so amazing. It had appeared on the runaway¡¯s body even before he managed to see it.

    He was totally unable to detect the trajectory of that arrow!

    That meant that he would also be unable to dodge that arrow.

    He quivered inwardly. The satisfaction he¡¯d gotten from understanding [Misty Strike] and [Oblique sh] flew out the window. He sent a deep look towards the elementalist before retracting his gaze.

    Like Ai Hui, Duanmu Huanghun looked up towards the sky. The shock he felt was even more intense, his gaze filled with unconceble heat and thirst.

    ¡°The move in [Heaven Bow] should be [Scarless Heaven Bow].¡± Shi Xueman nced at the elementalist in midair. ¡°A bow-rted inheritance passed down within the Sky Edge Division. He must have served in the Sky Edge Division.¡±

    She knew the Thirteen Divisions better than anyone else.

    ¡°Ignore him,¡± said Ai Hui before adding, ¡°Are we attacking from Soundwave Street or Brightflower Street?¡±

    ¡°Soundwave.¡± Shi Xueman snapped out of it and answered hurriedly. She had long forgotten about finding trouble with Ai Hui.

    She couldn¡¯t be as heartless as him. Having a hundred students ced under her supervision was tremendously pressuring. She felt even more tense after seeing the plight of thest wave of fighters.

    Idle theorizing gave her no sense of security at this point. She saw the fear in her teammates¡¯ eyes and felt even more uneasy. She suspected that they might undergo a mental breakdown first.

    The current situation was everything that the books warned against. The leader was a rookie and the team was made up of rookies whocked training and morale. There was also ack of understanding between themander and soldiers...

    Her only sense of security came from Ai Hui, who had been expressionless all this while, so she hurriedly snapped out of it upon seeing that he wanted to have a battle discussion. Earlier, he¡¯d looked so unconcerned that she¡¯d wanted so badly to prick him.

    ¡°Anyone familiar with Soundwave Street?¡± asked Ai Hui.

    ¡°Let me ask around.¡± Jiang Wei turned and walked amongst the team, quickly bringing out a member. It was Huo Yuanlong, who had already suffered fifty whips. ¡°He¡¯s very familiar with this area.¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s hear about the situation at Soundwave Street,¡± said Ai Hui directly.

    ¡°Why must I tell you?¡± Huo Yuanlong red at Ai Hui as a cold smile formed on his lips, anger flickering in his eyes.

    Oh no, Shi Xueman thought to herself.

    ¡°Because you don¡¯t want to die.¡± Ai Hui looked him straight in the eye, continuing frankly, ¡°I don¡¯t care what happened earlier. If you don¡¯t co-operate, I will make you stand at the frontline.¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re threatening me?¡± Huo Yuanlong snarled. He was about to burst with rage.

    Huo Yuanlong¡¯s bellow caught everyone¡¯s attention. Even the team beside them looked over, gloating.

    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡± Surprisingly, Ai Hui did not deny it but coolly admitted it instead.

    The anger within Huo Yuanlong disappeared without a trace, as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over his head. Ai Hui remained expressionless and his tone was as calm as ever, as if he had just been talking about ordinary matters.

    Huo Yuanlong suddenly felt a little intimidated. This unusual calmness scared him.

    No raising his voice, no anger, no clenching his teeth, and no unnecessary menace. He had a feeling that Ai Hui would do it.

    Ai Hui¡¯s answer had quieted the whole crowd.

    ¡°How... dare you?¡± Huo Yuanlong did not detect the slight tremble in his own voice.

    ¡°I¡¯m the leader of this team. If you disobey my orders you will be dealt with by martialw. That arrow earlier? Martialw.¡± Ai Hui replied steadily and emotionlessly.

    The students felt a chill in their hearts when they saw theplete change in Ai Hui¡¯s gaze.

    Ai Hui¡¯s words were calm, bare, and raw, without reasoning and without trying to convince them. He was merely narrating a simple fact.

    An ice-cold, unsentimental fact.

    Huo Yuanlong was now totally afraid. In fact, he felt relieved when Ai Hui finally spoke. He swore to himself that he would leave this scary fellow once the catastrophe was over.

    Ai Hui questioned him thoroughly, asking which houses had how many rooms, how big the gardens were, and so on. Huo Yuanlong could not answer many of the questions.

    Huo Yuanlong returned to the team after answering whatever questions he could. No one mocked him. They kept quiet out of fear as well. The students couldn¡¯t help but avoid Ai Hui¡¯s gaze as they did not dare to look him in the face.

    Unlike what Ai Hui had thought would happen, no elementalist came over to allocate a specific attack position for them. Their only requirement was to advance forward as much as possible, destroying all the blood ants they saw.

    Such a simple and crudemand displeased Shi Xueman. ¡°Swarming in like bees is no different from seeking death. Why is there no concrete n?¡± After speaking, she felt thatining was useless. Even if they had a n, her teammates would absolutely fail to carry it out.

    Truth be told, they were cannon fodder. Cannon fodder used to drain the blood ants¡¯ energy.

    Duanmu Huanghun was right. Other than cannon fodder, Central Pine City had nothing. Shi Xueman believed that with her position in the mayor¡¯s eyes, there were no other employable methods.

    ¡°You guys are up! Start attacking!¡± Instructed the elementalist in midair.

    Each team hesitated before moving towards Soundwave Street.

    ¡°Let¡¯s head to the gate of that shop facing the street.¡± Ai Hui pointed out.

    Fatty held the heavy shield and walked at the forefront. His overall weight was astonishing. The earth quaked and the mountains shook as he walked. Even the elementalist in the sky was astounded.

    There was no morale boosting cheer, no shouting, and no vehement emotions. Each team cautiously advanced forward along the wide street.

    The elementalist in the sky wasn¡¯t impatient, but when he noticed Ai Hui¡¯s team, he couldn¡¯t help but feel surprised.

    Ai Hui¡¯s team did not advance along the street and appeared by the fence surrounding a shop on the right side of the road instead.

    The elementalist seemed rather interested. He recognized Shi Xueman and the rest. While they had little experience, this small team¡¯s strengthy in its students. Not bad at all.

    But he also knew that the students were all cannon fodder. The ones which weren¡¯t expendable were the elementalists conscripted by their respective training halls and ced into small teams. They were honing their strength for the big push. Only after the ants had been sufficiently dealt with would it then be time for the main force to enter.

    Nevertheless, this small team was actually quite interesting.

    Shi Xueman and the rest were unable to make heads nor tails of Ai Hui¡¯s order. The other teams were a distance away from them by now. They looked at Ai Hui, waiting for him to answer this riddle.

    ¡°Any way to raze this to the ground?¡± Ai Hui asked Wang Xiaoshan.

    Wang Xiaoshan did not understand what Ai Hui was up to, but it wasn¡¯t difficult for him to do so. He had great knowledge of all kinds of building structures. This shop was built normally and could easily be demolished if they could just find a few key nodes.

    ¡°I¡¯ll try.¡±

    Wang Xiaoshan did not dare to over-deliver. He was a little afraid of Ai Hui.

 Chapter 189: Ai Huiâ€™s Method

    Chapter 189: Ai Hui¡¯s Method

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lis

    Wang Xiaoshan moved quickly and ced both hands on the ground, channeling earth elemental energy into the shop.

    Boom! Several explosions sounded simultaneously from within the shop, and the once-intact shop crumbled like crisp crackers.

    Shi Xueman lightly waved her bare hands to clear the dust raised by the shop¡¯s copse. Her vision returned, and indeed, the shop was now in ruins.

    ¡°How amazing!¡± Fatty eximed sluggishly, his mouth wide open. ¡°Xiaoshan, how did you do that?¡±

    Slightly flustered, Wang Xiaoshan stammered, ¡°Very simple. Each building has some key... nodes, uh, you just have to find and blow them up at the same time to destroy it... and make use of the building¡¯s weight....¡±

    Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s description was rather incoherent, but this time, no one underestimated him.

    Destroying this shop wasn¡¯t a big feat; anyone present could do it, but few could aplish it as cleanly as Wang Xiaoshan did. Without anyrge fragments to be seen in the rubble, it could be said that the building waspletely shattered.

    An unusual look shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes.

    She felt it strange when Ai Hui chose Wang Xiaoshan for the task. Simply said, his skills werecking, even moreso whenpared to the rest of the team. But the scene before her drove her to specte that perhaps Ai Hui had already been aware of Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s potential?

    She found this unfathomable.

    Ai Hui himself was slightly shocked. Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s move was simply too beautiful. This fellow was a bigger underdog than he was!

    ¡°Well done!¡±

    Ai Hui gave Wang Xiaoshan a big thumbs up.

    Receiving Ai Hui¡¯s praise, Wang Xiaoshan blushed a deep red, so moved that he did not know where to ce his hands. These past few days, he¡¯d been under tremendous pressure. As the weakest link in the group, he was timid and couldn¡¯t help much in battles, and whenever it was time to fight, he trembled uncontrobly.

    He was downcast, not understanding why Ai Hui had selected him, and as the danger grew, he became afraid¡ªafraid that he would be abandoned by his teammates. No one would care for him unconditionally if he wasn¡¯t able to prove his worth and assist the team during difficult situations.

    It was his first time receiving apliment from Ai Hui. It stirred him up greatly, as though he had just taken an alcoholic shot.

    Wang Xiaoshan performed better than expected and was of great help to Ai Hui¡¯s ns. Nevertheless, he continued to instruct calmly, ¡°Fatty, walk in front. Wang Xiaoshan, follow him. Continue tearing down the shops while advancing slowly, and beware of blood ants.¡±

    Shi Xueman briefly lost her train of thought before she asked, ¡°We¡¯re tearing them down to move forward?¡±

    She waspletely baffled by Ai Hui¡¯s oundish strategy, and it wasn¡¯t just her¡ªeveryone else was puzzled as well.

    ¡°The building structures areplex, making them good hiding ces for blood ants tounch sneak attacks. It will be disadvantageous for us,¡± Ai Hui exined.

    Shi Xueman straightforwardly asked, ¡°Then why don¡¯t we follow the rest of the teams and advance along the street path?¡±

    Ai Hui looked at Shi Xueman as if he was talking to a fool. ¡°That will cause us to be attacked from both sides.¡±

    ¡°Logical, but...¡± Shi Xueman was at a loss. She acknowledged that Ai Hui was making a lot of sense, but to tear down the houses in order to advance... This sort of method was unheard of! In all of the books of war that she read, she had nevere across a simr military strategy.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t be bothered with her and instead, followed closely behind Wang Xiaoshan. Doing so brought about many gains. For example, the copsing buildings would rm the blood ants, leading them to reveal their locations. Also, a wide terrain allowed rookies to better disy their skills, which Ai Hui had doubts about anyway.

    More importantly, as cannon fodder, they shouldn¡¯t be thinking about iming credit but how to protect themselves on the battlefield instead.

    Boom!

    Yet another building crumbled.

    Everyone advanced through the ruins, but by now, the few teams ahead of them had already taken a substantial lead and disappeared without a trace.

    Nevertheless, Ai Hui continued moving forward at afortable pace. As they progressed, all that they left behind was a field of ruins.

    Wang Xiaoshan became increasingly skillful. Within ten minutes, he had already torn down more buildings than his father, and his control became more precise which brought about even more outstanding results.

    Seeing the buildings copse in front of his eyes filled his heart with a sense of aplishment.

    Chi chi chi!

    Rows of red shadows shot out from the dust and pounced on Ai Hui and the team.

    One row knocked against the heavy shield in Fatty¡¯s hands. A smothered boom rang out, causing Fatty¡¯s body to sway. Both he and Wang Xiaoshan were so afraid of death that Fatty shielded himself securely with Wang Xiaoshan hiding closely behind him.

    ¡°Careful!¡±

    Shi Xueman let out a shout while blocking three blood ants with her Cirrus.

    The students were disordered, losing their heads out of fear as they screamed incessantly.

    Ai Hui shook his head but ignored the chaos. If they couldn¡¯t break their way past this level of difficulty, they would be in worse troubleter on.

    With the Dragonspine Inferno, he executed a sudden [Oblique sh]. A faint light glimmered on the sword body as it urately struck a blood ant. Upon closer inspection, Ai Hui saw that the cut had left a clear wound on its body.

    Ai Hui was slightly startled. Before, it was difficult for him to leave a mark on a blood ant without operating his elemental energy.

    With growing confidence, he continued attacking without retreat and performed another [Oblique sh] with the Dragonspine Inferno.

    The move was simple and did not cover a wide range, but Ai Hui¡¯s agile stepspensated for its weaknesses.

    His consecutive hits slowed the ant down, but the malice within its body fueled its dogged attacks on Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hilt seemed to transform into a cloud of smoke and from it shot a sword ray.

    [Misty Strike]!

    The ant¡¯s body was cleaved in two by the Dragonspine Inferno and fell through the dust.

    Soon after, Ai Hui¡¯s gaze was quickly caught by Duanmu Huanghun, and his eyes disyed astonishment.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] always disyed dazzling transformations, but Ai Hui felt it came with a sense of softness. This time, however, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] was dynamic as always, but the softness was absent, reced by gloom and abstruseness.

    When the viridescent flowers made contact with the blood ants, thorns grew out to pierce the eyes. And as the ants stiffened, flowers bloomed from their red bodies, bing a colorfully auspicious viridescent flower ant.

    Ai Hui trembled inside. [Viridescent Flower] was really demonic.

    Duanmu Huanghun casually retrieved his viridescent flower as if there was no one else around. He gave Ai Hui a faint smile without caring to conceal the battlelust in his eyes. His vigor was astonishing, and it was as though he had be another person, his energypletely renewed.

    ¡°How do you intend to return the money?¡± Ai Hui caught Duanmu Huanghun by surprise.

    Duanmu Huanghun froze, his smile turning rigid.

    ¡°Public morals are really degenerating each day. You¡¯re in debt and still have the cheek to act all holy. Aren¡¯t you shameless?¡±

    Ai Hui muttered to himself, failing to notice the popping veins on Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face. He spun on his heel and left only a silhouette of profound mystery.

    He forgot that he still owed someone eighty million yuan.

    It was a pity that his creditor was busy at the moment. Five ants flew out and three were tossed away by Shi Xueman¡¯s Cirrus. She did not, however, deal with them on her own but instead threw them to the team.

    ¡°Stay calm, don¡¯t panic!¡±

    ¡°Maintain distance!¡±

    ¡°Co-operation, teamwork!¡±

    ......

    Shi Xueman, Sang Zhijun, and Jiang Wei each led a group to deal with a blood ant. They did not kill it directly but allowed the students to do so. Shi Xueman understood that if they did not allow these students to face and deal with an attack soon, their losses would be disastrous.

    Ai Hui witnessed the clumsy and messy scene before him, and he shook his head. Without any urging, he decided to train his sword skills off to the side.

    After killing a blood ant, the battlelust within his body was surging, but there was no outlet to release it, so his only option was to train.

    Duanmu Huanghun simrly did not bother with the rest. With his eyes shut tightly, he sat cross-legged on the ground, the viridescent flower pattern on his lower abdomen circting non-stop.

    ¡°Bangwan seemed to have changed a lot,¡± Lou Lanmented quietly.

    ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s be fiercer, toward himself as well.¡± Fatty touched his chin before continuing ruefully, ¡°But no matter how ferocious he is, there¡¯s no point since he owes money. Look at me. I used to be a hero who charged my way out of the hell-like Wilderness. But see what happened in the end. Negligence turned me into Ai Hui¡¯s debtor, and I can only be his waterboy for now. Money is a hero¡¯s guts!¡±

    Wang Xiaoshan, who was observing the chaotic scene, couldn¡¯t help but say, ¡°Shi-goddess is a good person.¡±

    Anyone with eyes could tell that Shi Xueman was only doing this to give the students an opportunity to adapt to battle conditions.

    Her efforts did not go to waste after all.

    The once noisy scenes steadily calmed. Huo Yuanlong and his friends, with theirmendable strength and talent, shined among the students of Central Pine Academy. Highly ranked students naturally had more opportunities topete and learn from each other on a daily basis. The battles weren¡¯t fought with real weapons, but it allowed them to restore their standards by oveing psychological barriers and regting their disjointed actions.

    Shi Xueman heaved a sigh of relief, fine beads of perspiration on her forehead. Leading her team seemed more tiring than fighting her own battle.

    But she had to do it. The following battle would only be more intense and cruel. The students, too, had to undergo the probation period that the few of them had gone through.

    The weak would be eliminated. It was an unchangeable fact.

    Ai Hui stopped and looked over the breathless students. ¡°Continue forward.¡±

    ¡°Can we rest for a little while?¡± a student shouted.

    ¡°I don¡¯t want to be executed by martialw under the charge of passive resistance,¡± Ai Hui said while looking up.

    Everyone turned to find an elementalist approaching them from the sky. They swallowed any remaining words before they left their lips.

    Shi Xueman took the lead. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±

    She knew the higher-ups would tolerate the time taken to adapt but never passive resistance. Any sign of this happening would cost them their lives, right there on the spot.

    Ai Hui and his team pushed forward at a slow but steady rate.

    Shi Xueman quickly experienced the benefits of Ai Hui¡¯s method. They did not encounter many ants, most likely due to the earlier teams¡¯ clean-up operation. Whatever blood ants left over gave the rookies a chance to learn. It couldn¡¯t be more optimal. It would also be a nightmare if they were to get raided by these ants while retreating.

    Blood ants appeared once more from the front, but this time, the students¡¯ responses were much better.

    They were also trying hard to adapt.

    Nobody wanted to die.

 Chapter 190: The A-1 Unit

    Chapter 190: The A-1 Unit

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    ¡°Since the first day of battle, I have been posted to Soundwave Street and Brightflower Street to supervise the battles. The students¡¯ performance is atrocious. We have suffered terrible losses, and yet, we have dealt little damage to the blood ants. Among the slew of bad performances, nothing is more promising than the unit numbered A-1, which contained a number of the student body elites such as Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, Sang Zhijun, Duanmu Huanghun, and some others. They are the most outstanding students of Central Pine Academy. Reportedly, the mayor and the dean had a disagreement over the use of the A-1 unit. The dean did not want his best students to die in a battle of attrition doomed to yield high casualties. The mayor argued that everyone in the city had to participate in the battle and give their best efforts, no matter the insignificance. Eventually, the mayor managed to convince the dean, and fortunately, the A-1 unit was dispatched to the conflict zone under my supervision.¡±

    ......

    ¡°I have finally met the A-1 unit that is most talked about in the magistrate office. The leader for this unit is Ai Hui. He is the one who discovered the blood bat¡¯s infiltration and assisted Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun in eliminating it, thereby achieving a meritorious service and the magistrate office¡¯s attention. Surprisingly, he is not the onemanding the unit. This role has fallen into the hands of Shi Xueman. If I had not witnessed it with my own eyes, I would not have believed that Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun, and the others would obey hismandspletely. His performance has caught my attention.¡±

    ......

    ¡°Unlike other units that advanced using the streets, the A-1 unit proceeded down the west side of Soundwave Street. that side is packed with houses, shops, and residents. Like a bulldozer, they destroyed the houses, razing them to the ground and advancing by stepping over the ruins. They went on like this by repeating this process. Honestly speaking, it is the most unprofessional and foolish advancing technique I have ever seen. After a while, however, I was made to admit that it was brilliant. Though the A-1 unit¡¯s performance wascking, they have capable individuals upon whom they can rely on. Shi Xueman¡¯s leadership is terrible, but she¡¯s extremely courageous. She also possesses a strong sense of responsibility and loves to help her teammates. At times, she seems more like a leader than Ai Hui.¡±

    ......

    ¡°The A-1 unit¡¯s advance was slow and steady, and the unit members disyed signs of adapting tobat. Shi Xueman boosted the morale of the unit greatly. It appears that though she is inexperienced and not good with words, her strong sense of responsibility propelled her to give her utmost in helping her teammates. If she can survive this catastrophe, she will be an outstanding leader in the future. In contrast, Ai Hui was cold and looked on without helping his teammates. It was as if he had nothing to do with the battle. As the leader of the A-1 unit, I would give him zero points, though I do admit his swordsmanship is exquisite.¡±

    ......

    ¡°There are a few units on the verge of destruction, and their performance was pathetic. The A-1 unit continues to advance, but they are beginning to encounter troubles as well. The number of blood ants is increasing. I predicted that they would suffer great losses like the previous units, but I have underestimated Ai Hui; he came prepared.¡±

    ----- <>

    With an overpowering rumble, the house copsed, filling the air with smoke and dust. Before Duanmu Huanghun could wipe the dust off his body, a deafening noise pierced his ears.

    A shiver swept down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. He instantly sensed that there were more than fifty blood ants in the area, thergest wave they had encountered in this battle so far.

    ¡°Lou Lan!¡± Ai Hui yelled gruffly.

    ¡°Lou Lan ising!¡± Lou Lan cheered.

    The leaves covering the enormous fire vat on Fatty¡¯s back were peeled back with lightning speed. Lou Lan then transformed into a sandy watering can and dipped half of his body into the fire vat. The long spout of the watering can extended over Fatty¡¯s head and pointed towards the front.

    Ssh!

    Torrential red mist began spraying over arge area.

    The overwhelming scent of strong chili immediately pervaded the air, dousing the blood ants that had just shot out in a red chili concoction. Ai Hui became nervous. Using chili against the blood ants was purely his conjecture, unsupported by data.

    Instead of thinking about failure, his gaze fixated on what was going on ahead. His muscles strained, and the Dragonspine Inferno in his hand was in its optimal position; he resembled a beast that waited to pounce on its prey.

    The blood ants doused in the chili concoction mist suddenly fell apart, descending into chaos. Terrifying shrieks sounded and startled everyone.

    Everyone except for Ai Hui.

    The chilli concoction in Fatty¡¯s fire vat was specially concocted by him and Lou

    A vicious light shed across his eyes as he lunged forward. His Dragonspine Inferno swept up a cloud of fog before materializing in a streak of radiance.

    [Misty Strike]!

    Apanied by an indiscernible buzz, the dazzling Dragonspine Inferno hit a blood ant with a piercing blow.

    Bang!

    Ai Hui¡¯s readied attack had astonishing destructive power. The blood ant exploded midair into a cloud of bloody mist.

    With a slight twist of his feet, Ai Hui jumped through the air at an angle over the cloud of blood. Taking advantage of the momentum, he swiveled his sword and used the from from his momentum to execute an [Oblique sh].

    His movended urately on the blood ant¡¯s neck and effortlessly beheaded it.

    Only then did Duanmu Huanghun and the others realize what was going on.

    Shi Xueman and her team began their attack against the oing wave of frantic blood ants. As of now, the students¡¯ coordination was passable¡ªnot the best, but better than before. The unit was divided into three groups, each led by Shi Xueman, Jiang Wei, and Sang Zhijun respectively.

    Everyone realized this was an opportunity to attack, and they all rushed forward. The blood ants that had just escaped the chili concoction mist descended into a panic, and in the blink of an eye, more than twenty of them were killed. The disquieted blood ants soon returned to their senses, however, and lunged towards Ai Hui and his unit in waves.

    The scene of the fight descended into chaos.

    Seeing the disorderly situation, Lou Lan halted his movements; the chili concoction would harm the students as well, and though it was not deadly, it could possibly disrupt their momentum. They already struggled to coordinate with one another. If they were to be hit by the chili concoction as well, Lou Lan did not know how many students would survive this fight.

    The battle had begun in earnest.

    The students quickly found that this battle waspletely different from the ones before. All they could see were the streaking after-images of blood ants all around them, which sent them into a panic. Screams and roars prated the air, and their previously eptable coordination copsed in an instant like fragile biscuits. Casualties rued.

    Some people clutched their throats as they copsed onto the ground, struggling as they gasped in pain.

    Others rolled frantically on the ground, their bodies bloody and mangled.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were red. She tightly pursed her lips and darted back and forth. Her spear was like a moving cloud, reinforcing students at a disadvantage. Even so, she could not stop the students from copsing one after another.

    The two most dazzling individuals on the battlefield were Ai Hui and Duanmu Huanghun. Ai Hui¡¯s sword glinted crisply and sharply with abnormal deadliness. Very few blood ants could survive to escape his sword. Flying around him were the Red Dust Daggers that carved numerous streaks of sword traces into the air.

    Duanmu Huanghun was another distinguished individual on the battlefield.

    His [Viridescent Flower] had be moreplex and unpredictable. Under his feet, patterns of glowing vines, clouds, and lotuses were scattered and blossomed over his hands. He stepped on air and ascended into the sky, and from time to time, green flowers drifted around his body in a phantom-like image.

    Fatty stood off to one side. His speed was slow, so when facing the fast and nimble blood ants, he remained passive. His shield was like a wall, however, and his armor resembled a mountain. Wang Xiaoshan stood behind him while Lou Lan transformed into a swirling sandstorm that surrounded them and ground the blood ants to smithereens. As for the ones that made it through the sandstorm, they were faced with Fatty¡¯s heavy shield.

    The battle became increasingly intense, and from the midst of the smoke and dust, the asional blood ants were sted out.

    Duanmu Huanghun had killed more than ten blood ants in one go, but as the elemental energy in his body began to deplete, his efficiency dropped and forced him to slow down his attack speed. He retreated to a less conspicuous position.

    Thirteen!

    He was thoroughly satisfied with himself. Compared to previous battles, his performance today was brilliant. Aftering to know more about himself, he conquered his fear and underwent aplete transformation. Even the style of his [Viridescent Flower] had unmistakably evolved. It maintained the sameplexity, but it now focused more on killing power, making it intensely ruthless.

    With less pressure on him, his gaze shifted involuntarily towards Ai Hui. He was quite satisfied with his performance today and so felt confident that it was on par with Ai Hui¡¯s.

    Eh?

    Ai Hui¡¯s attacks followed a certain pattern, the same two moves. However... his attacking rhythm did not seem to vary at all....

    How is it possible? Doesn¡¯t he feel tired? Doesn¡¯t he use his elemental energy?

    Duanmu Huanghun felt incredulous.

    Ai Hui was extremely focused. He needed to face four blood ants at once which didn¡¯t allow him any time for distractions. In such an intense battle, it was not enough to rely solely on [Misty Strike] and [Oblique sh]. He had to use elemental energy several times, and in some situations, he needed to dodge, unable to use either [Misty Strike] or [Oblique sh], and sometimes block.

    [Oblique sh] and [Misty Strike] both had their own unique characteristics. [Oblique sh] could be executed quickly, but it was highly dependent on angles and the attack range was narrow. Fighting stance could make up for these weaknesses, but such an intense battle greatly limited his options.

    [Misty Strike], on the other hand, had great attack power, but its execution time was long. Ai Hui could only use this move when the time was right and normally employed it once per strike.

    And like [Crescent Moon], these moves consumedrge quantities of elemental energy, discouraging Ai Hui from using them too often.

    Once his elemental energy was depleted, death was the only way out for him.

    Sixteen.

    Ai Hui did not know how many more blood ants were left. He forced himself to focus and pushed his mind to think of ways to use his [Oblique sh] and [Misty Strike] to attack the blood ants.

    He felt himself bing more adept with these moves, but his physical and elemental energy were gradually diminishing.

    Twenty-two.

    Ai Hui started to pant. He could feel the Dragonspine Inferno in his hand getting heavier. Fortunately, the blood ants were bing sparser.

    The remaining students limated to engaging inbat after their cruel ¡°baptism.¡± Clearly, they had improved.

    ¡°A-1 unit, you can retreat now.¡±

    The voice of the supervising elementalist resounded from the sky behind them, resembling a sound of nature.

    His mind rejuvenated, Ai Hui spoke quickly, ¡°Myself, Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun, and Sang Zhijun will take care of the rear. Jiang Wei, lead everyone out of the battleground and retreat as quickly as possible. Lou Lan, prepare the chili concoction and retreat one hundred meters. Provide support to uster.¡±

    ¡°No problem, Ai Hui!¡± Lou Lan quickly drew the chili concoction and sprayed it over the ground as he retreated.

    The rest of the students left the battleground one by one. Behind them were nothing but ruins.

    ¡°There¡¯s onest thing we need to do,¡± Ai Hui suddenly said to those who remained.

 Chapter 191: War Trophy

    Chapter 191: War Trophy

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    One more thing to be done?

    Everyone was confused as they waited for Ai Hui¡¯s next order.

    "We have to capture a blood ant alive," Ai Hui spoke rapidly as he brandished his Dragonspine Inferno continuously and surged towards a blood ant. "Listen to mymands."

    There was no time to waste on the battlefield. It didn¡¯t take long before the remaining blood ants pressed down on Ai Hui and the others.

    "Run!"

    Ai Hui turned around abruptly and started running.

    Upon seeing this, everyone followed suit and ran without hesitation.

    The blood ants pursued behind them tightly. With their low intelligence, they based their actions on instinct, so as soon as they saw Ai Hui and the others running away, they went after them with lightning-like speed!

    Mist drifted from Shi Xueman¡¯s back, and her speed increased sharply. She brushed past Ai Hui, leaving him far behind.

    Sang Zhijun resembled a lithe and agile bird with her clothes fluttering in the wind as she simrly blew past Ai Hui.

    "Come on." She smiled at Ai Hui.

    From under Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s feet, a glowing green flower pattern was spinning. He flew through the air as if running on a level road. At first nce, he didn¡¯t seem fast, but he gradually bypassed Ai Hui. Without looking back, he gave a cold sneer. "Ahh...."

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck. He had be thest one.

    Behind him, the blood ants were pursuing him relentlessly, and in his ears sounded the incessant hissing. He trembled in fear and dashed forward frantically.

    It was at this point in time that he realized his weakness. He never learned an escaping technique! He was rtively fast in short distances, and this was why no one had noticed until now that Ai Hui¡¯s running pace was neither nimble nor fast.

    And so when the running distance was pushed to a hundred meters, his weakness revealed itself.

    His base level had risen too quickly, exposing his many shorings. Compared to Shi Xueman and the others who had a bnced growth, Ai Hui was clearly unbnced in his developments. All his time was spent on sword moves; he had to find a chance to learn a few escaping techniques. He ced great importance on anything that would ensure his survival.

    He undoubtedly had to learn how to use azure wings in the future....

    This bunch of fellows... was too much!

    Ai Hui felt the blood ants behind him approaching closer and closer, and so he exerted all of his strength into running as quickly as possible.

    Like a drill, his right leg dug into the rubble-filled ground. Boom! The ground under his feet suddenly exploded, sweeping up a tidal wave of dust that reached a height of three meters.

    Making use of this explosive force, Ai Hui¡¯s speed rose sharply.

    He flitted forward at an extreme speed. His left leg behaved like a drill once more, digging ferociously into the ground.

    Boom! Dust diffused into the air.

    Ai Hui was akin to a heavy beast. He surged forward frantically, and with every step, he stirred up towering waves of rubble.

    The students watching from afar were stunned at the sight. Shi Xueman was fast as lightning while Sang Zhijun was lithe and agile. Duanmu Huanghun flew gracefully through the wind. And as for Ai Hui, there were no techniques involved in his sprinting. His violent and imposing manner while running was driven by his capricious mule-headedness.

    With every step he took, the ground quaked and the mountains shook.

    In a blink of an eye, he covered a distance of one hundred metres.

    "Lou Lan!" Ai Hui yelled.

    "Lou Lan ising!" Lou Lan cheered as he shot out the chili concoction in his hands, creating an immense cloud of red mist.

    Like a cannonball, Ai Huinded headfirst into the topsoil behind Lou Lan. Boom! The soil flew up into the air from the powerful force.

    Ai Hui managed to use this momentum to change his direction before he then roared, "Get ready!"

    The blood ants emerging from the curtain of dust and soil were doused in the chili concoction, and chaos descended once more. This time around, however, they continued to instinctively fly towards Ai Hui and the rest.

    Ai Hui flipped his sword and used the side of the de to strike one of the iing blood ants.

    It arced towards Shi Xueman.

    "Stop the ant!"

    Shi Xueman spun Cirrus in her hand lightly, and a cloud of mist engulfed the blood ant, slowing it down as if in a pit of quicksand.

    "Use [Viridescent Flower] to tangle it up!"

    "Use your arrows to stop the rest of the blood ants from advancing!"

    By now, Duanmu Huanghun had nearly used up all of the elemental energy in his body, yet he forced himself to channel thest strand still avable. A green vine shot out and lightly tangled up the blood ant from within the cloud of mist.

    Meanwhile, Sang Zhijun¡¯s Golden Silk Longbow explosively shot out numerous dazzling streaks of light, stopping the other blood ants from advancing.

    Ai Hui leapt into the sky and surged towards the blood ant that was engulfed in the cloud of mist.

    "Withdraw your spear!"

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯smand, Shi Xueman withdrew her spear without any hesitation.

    As soon as Cirrus¡¯ suppression was lifted, the blood ant became agitated. The green flower vine executed with thest of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s elemental energy also loosened bit by bit.

    Just as the blood ant was about to escape from the vine, a snow-white bandage suddenly shot down from the sky.

    The snow-white bandage rapidly wrapped around the blood ant, and in the blink of an eye, the blood ant was firmly tied up with only its head revealed. With its body unable to move a single inch, the agitated blood ant could only stare ahead nkly. Though its mouth continued to gnash, it wasn¡¯t able to bite into anything. Every joint in its body, except for its neck, was tightly bound.

    Ai Hui looked on with satisfaction at his work, the mummified ant.

    Carrying his war trophy, Ai Hui yelled happily, "Run faster!"

    Shi Xueman remained the fastest one, while Sang Zhijun was as graceful as ever. Only Duanmu Huanghun, who had lost all remnants of elemental energy, could no longer fly elegantly like before. He could only frantically run on the ground now.

    "Despicable!" Duanmu Huanghun was fuming with rage.

    The beast-like Ai Hui kicked sand all over Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face as he zoomed past him. The sound of a cold sneer could be heard, "Ahh...."

    After chasing them down for several meters, the rest of the blood ants turned and retreated. Even with their low intelligence, when they saw the densely packed humans at the entrance of the street, they knew it was not a good decision to continue forward.

    Several units had gathered at the street entrance, preparing tounch the next wave of attacks.

    They had witnessed the battle carried out by Ai Hui and his unit with their own eyes and were aroused into excitement. When thest person from the A-1 unit arrived safe and sound, they broke into thunderous cheers; every one of their gazes were aimed at the A-1 unit with the utmost respect.

    "I believe all of you can see that the blood fiends are not victorious. As long as we are courageous and united, we can drive them away from Central Pine City!"

    The supervising elementalist arrived just in time to encourage everyone.

    The morale of the units rose sharply!

    The blood ants were certainly powerful, but the students knew that they were not undefeatable. Only, they were affected by thebat and the fear of the unknown.

    When the supervising elementalist noticed Fatty with his enormous fire vat, he couldn¡¯t help but do a double-take. His appearance was indeed unique.

    As he approached therge fire vat, he was greeted by the strong scent of chilies. Surprised, he asked, "Chilies?"

    "Yes, sir," Ai Hui replied.

    "The blood ants are scared of chilies? Wow, I never thought of that. How did youe up with that?" The elementalist was extremely surprised.

    Ai Hui recounted the incident of Fatty and the Dragon Soup. When the elementalist heard that he had finished an entire cauldron of Dragon Soup in one go, he couldn¡¯t help but stare at the fatty as if looking at a ghost.

    Ai Hui¡¯s recounting of the event was clear and concise, drawing a satisfied expression from the elementalist.

    "I will report this to the mayor. If it¡¯s proved to be effective, all of you will be rewarded for your meritorious service to the city."

    Ai Hui expressed his gratitude, "Thank you, sir."

    Duanmu Huanghun and the others were somewhat disapproving of Ai Hui¡¯s attitude towards the supervising elementalist. To them, the elementalist was insignificant in their eyes, but it was different for Ai Hui. Coming from aborer background, there was nothing wrong with addressing the supervising elementalist as "sir."

    The supervising elementalist was extremely pleased with Ai Hui¡¯s attitude. "How about this live blood ant? Do you want to hand it over to the higher-ups? You can add it to the meritorious services you¡¯ve umted."

    "We have some ideas and would like to experiment with it," Ai Hui exined.

    "That¡¯ll work too." The elementalist was not surprised, nor did he try to confiscate the blood ant. He could see that Ai Hui had his own ns for it, and this was a good thing for him. The more meritorious services rendered by Ai Hui and the rest, the more rewards he himself would receive as well.

    "This is a special period of time, and all of your contributions will be regarded as meritorious services for the Avalon of Five Elements. As for the battle evaluation, I¡¯ll give you all the highest marks possible. If you can survive this catastrophe, they will be of great help to whichever job you apply for. I hope all of you avoid bingcent and continue fighting. Now go back and rest. I¡¯ll notify you again for the next wave of attacks."

    Finishing his sentence, the supervising elementalist did not pay anymore attention to them and moved on to give orders to the other units.

    "This time around, our target is east of Soundwave Street. All of you have seen the A-1 unit¡¯s battle tactics¡ªyou will now follow that. Don¡¯t walk in the middle of the streets. Now, tear down the buildings!"

    "Yes!"

    Uneven voices resounded through the air.

    "Let¡¯s go."

    Ai Hui led his unit towards the training hall, and the rest silently followed him one by one. After going through the most devastating battle of their lives, they were physically and emotionally exhausted.

    When the unit passed by a location where the supervising elementalist could no longer see them, Ai Hui suddenly asked, "Lou Lan, are there any spice shops in this area?"

    "No." Lou Lan shook his head and then asked, "Ai Hui wants to buy chilies?"

    "Buy? Are the shops even open? The entire city has mobilized." Ai Hui lowered his volume and said, "The higher-ups are going to verify the chili method soon. Do you think we¡¯ll still be able to get chilies?"

    "Are you saying that we should have a hoard of chilies before the mayor takes action?" Duanmu Huanghun was the first to react.

    "That¡¯s right." Ai Hui gave a look that said ¡®Ingrate, you¡¯re indeed unscrupulous¡¯ before he continued, "The higher-ups will definitely expropriate all of the chilies. When that dayes, it¡¯ll be very difficult for us to advance in the battles without them."

    Everyone nodded in consensus. The chili concoction had yed a key role in the battle this time. Without it, they would have suffered many more casualties.

    "Is this okay?" Shi Xueman was indecisive. Since young, she¡¯d been a well-behaved girl. How could she do such a cunning thing?

    "Then we¡¯ll have more deaths the next time," Ai Hui replied bluntly. "What do other people¡¯s deaths have to do with us? We care for our own people first before we care about the others!"

    When the members of the unit saw Ai Hui¡¯s expression, their attitudes towards him changed immediately. Even the few troublemakers like Huo Yuanlong, who previously refused to ept Ai Hui as his leader, felt his animosity towards thetter reduce significantly. A leader who cared for his members was a good leader.

    "Fine!" Shi Xueman clenched her teeth and a shiver went down her spine.

    "Ai Hui, I know the locations of a few spice shops." Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were glistening. "We can go try our luck."

    "Everybody, hang in there. The sooner we finish this task, the sooner we can rest peacefully."

    Ai Hui spoke softly, appearing as if he had several years of experience as a seasoned bandit chief.

 Chapter 192: Shouchuan, Can You Help Me?

    Chapter 192: Shouchuan, Can You Help Me?

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    The spoils of war were plentiful, and Fatty¡¯srge fire vat was nowpletely filled with various kinds of chilies. Eventually, Ai Hui had to stop everyone from taking any more.

    "Once these chilies are verified to work against blood ants, they¡¯ll be an important warmodity. Since we came up with the idea, the higher-ups will turn a blind eye to us taking some, but if we take too many, it¡¯ll affect the overall situation, and they¡¯ll take issue with us."

    Hearing those words, the rest nodded in agreement, thinking that Ai Hui was indeed thoughtful.

    Shi Xueman was astonished at Ai Hui¡¯s experience. It appeared that this was not his first time carrying out such a shady action.

    Duanmu Huanghun snorted in disdain at Ai Hui¡¯s timidity. Why would the magistrate office make trouble for them over such a small amount of chilies?

    When the unit finally returned to the training hall, it became obvious that their method of sprinkling chilies around the training hall did work as there were no signs of blood ants anywhere. This made them feel rather relieved.

    The moment they reached the training hall, everyone copsed all over the ce. Their exhaustion went bone-deep, their minds and bodies overwhelmed by the ravages of this battle. Even though the A-1 unit had the best battle results out of all the units, they still suffered high casualties, losing sixteen men total. There were another three who were injured and quarantined because so far, there were no remedies for injuries rted to the blood poison.

    It was torturous for them to watch their fellow peers have their necks savagely bitten by the blood ants as they fell to the ground with their eyes wide open.

    The students sitting slumped on the ground were extremely downcast. They struggled to hold back the tears in their soulless eyes. It was as if they were living in a nightmare.

    A single thought was at the forefront of their minds, and that was to sleep. They hoped that upon waking up, they¡¯d find that it had all been a dream.

    When they closed their eyes, however, all they saw were their deadrades.

    "Make good use of this time to carry out the Circtory Cycle Revolution. Whoever has not recovered their elemental energypletely by the time we¡¯re due for the next battle will be put on the front lines." Ai Hui¡¯s cold voice rang in everyone¡¯s ears. Hearing this, shivers crawled down their spines, and they quickly sat up to do as he said. With the respect garnered from his performance, no one dared to question Ai Hui¡¯s authority.

    Besides respect, there was fear as well.

    Ai Hui¡¯s rapid adaptation tobat and his calmness towards life-and-death situations had struck fear into these soft and immature students. They knew without a doubt that if they did not do as they were told, he would definitely be callous and send them to their deaths.

    Shi Xueman, who¡¯d been ruminating over how to encourage everyone, suddenly realized that the problem was easily solved with Ai Hui¡¯s words.

    She thought pensively, "So it can be resolved like this! Give the unit members a clear directive and make them busy. This way, they won¡¯t have time to let their imaginations run wild."

    Shi Xueman nced at Ai Hui, admiring him yet feeling depressed at the same time.

    Compared to this fellow, she was still far behind....

    She was deeply dissatisfied with her performance today. Whenever she encountered a problem, she¡¯d been at a loss, not knowing what to do. If not for Ai Hui, the number of casualties would have been much higher. In fact, she wouldn¡¯t be surprised to see the entire unit wiped out. It seemed that every time she saw this fellow, she inevitably became gloomy.

    It all started from that blind battle.... Shi Xueman suddenly looked unwell.

    "What¡¯s there to daydream about? Hurry up and start your Circtory Circle Revolution!" A reprimanding voice suddenly came from above her head.

    "Yes!" Startled, Shi Xueman subconsciously stood and gave a bow.

    When Shi Xueman turned around and realized that the voice belonged to Ai Hui, she was enraged and tempted to give him a good beating.

    But she breathed in and calmed herself. There was nothing to be depressed about. She thought, "I have to pick myself up and not lose out to this a*shole."

    For some unknown reason, she could not stand being looked down on by Ai Hui.

    .....

    Ai Hui did not rest or carry out the Circtory Cycle Revolution; he had many other things to do.

    He threw the blood ant at Lou Lan and said, "Lou Lan, try and see what kind of chilies are more effective against our cute baby ant."

    "Okay, Ai Hui." Lou Lan caught the blood ant, and his eyes flickered with a yellow light. He was intrigued by Ai Hui¡¯s suggestion. Until now, the mummified blood ant was the first blood fiend to have been captured.

    It was only because of Lou Lan that Ai Hui had thought of capturing a blood ant to study it. Given Ai Hui¡¯s capability, killing one was no problem, but asking him to study them was impossible.

    Ai Hui walked to the message tree and took off the leaf from his neck and hung it on the tree branch. When the leaf and the tree branch were connected, he wrote, "It has been confirmed. Blood ants do not like chilies."

    After a pause, he added one more line, "Even though they are both red."

    As soon as he finished writing this sentence, he felt content and more rxed. Happiness was not determined by what was happening around you but rather by what was happening within you.

    "We¡¯ve captured a blood ant alive and will carry out some tests to see which formtion will work best against it. Do you have any suggestions? Everyone in the city must participate in the battle against the blood ants. We¡¯ve juste back from one. A batch of blood ants that have finished one round of transformations was found in the city but luckily, we did not encounter them. Some feel that the main reason behind the blood ants¡¯ transformation is their desire to devour elementalists."

    Once he finished writing his message, he sat below the message tree and stared nkly into space.

    After a while, the leaf lit up.

    "My dear friend, I¡¯m so d that you¡¯re still alive. Do the blood ants repel the chilies or do the chilies repel the blood ants? I need you to test it out. I¡¯m more concerned about the reason behind the blood ants¡¯ transformation. Perhaps you can try feeding it a piece of dire beast meat. If it does not like it, then I think your reasoning may be valid: blood ants, or blood fiends, desire the elemental energy developed by elementalists."

    Almost immediately, Ai Hui yelled, "Lou Lan, feed a piece of dire beast meat to the blood ant!"

    "Yes, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied. After a while, Lou Lan said, "Ai Hui, it does not seem too interested in the dire beast meat.¡¯

    Ai Hui¡¯s throat was dry and his limbs were trembling slightly.

    This was the worst answer possible.

    If the elemental energy of an elementalist was the main criteria for the blood fiends¡¯ transformation, then that implied that a blood fiend¡¯s prey was an elementalist. Devouring them made a blood fiend more powerful.... Alternatively, one could also say that if a blood fiend wanted to be more powerful, it needed to devour elementalists. It could only be imagined how frantic the blood fiends were in hunting them down.

    With such arge number of blood fiends, how many of them wouldplete one round of transformation? The blood fiends would be increasingly stronger while the Avalon of Five Elements would be increasingly weaker. It could be theorized, then, that there would be many elementalists joining the ranks of blood elementalists for this reason.

    Furthermore, there was also the Blood of God.

    Or should he himself join the ranks of blood elementalists and bootlick the Blood of God? That future seemed brighter than the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯! Furthermore, with his rtionship with One Thousand Yuan, he might even obtain a pretty good position.

    Ai Hui sat in a daze, not saying a single word.

    After an unknown period of time, he returned to his senses and calmed down. He then wrote on the leaf, "It¡¯s been confirmed. The blood ant is not interested in the dire beast meat. It seems the future of the Avalon of Five Elements is bleak. What good suggestions do you have? For example, maybe I should be closer with the Blood of God? Or anything you can suggestion for my next round of battle?"

    After a while, the leaf lit up.

    "My dear friend, don¡¯t be too pessimistic. The Avalon of Five Elements was built upon a series of wars, not a soft and loose desert. Its history is short, not yet entering its twilight. The smell of blood and smoke has not yet been forgotten. All right, this is all nonsense. Honestly speaking, we have no other choice. If you encounter the transformed blood ants, you must run away. If you fail to escape from them, take note of the blood traces on their bodies. Their weaknesses definitely lie there, though I don¡¯t exactly know why that is so. Good luck."

    Ai Huiughed bitterly to himself and took down the leaf and hung it around his neck.

    Blood traces?

    Ai Hui furrowed his eyebrows. What the hell was that?

    He shook his head and tossed aside the negative thoughts. Let nature take its course. The other party was right; they had no other way.

    When Ai Hui remembered One Thousand Yuan, he trembled in fear. She was indeed beautiful, but her heart was as poisonous as a python. Even if One Thousand Yuan requested that he switch sides, he would not do it. That woman was too evil. And remembering the mysterious blood refinement and how those elementalists had exploded, he felt deeply disturbed.

    The Blood of God was a bunch of lunatics, horrifying lunatics.

    Ai Hui did not dare to switch sides to a bunch of lunatics.

    Ai Hui began his unique Circtory Cycle Revolution during which the sword embryo became more active. It throbbed in a slow and orderly rhythm, both strong and sturdy, each throb producing a deep and powerful echo within his brain.

    .....

    The Jade Embroidery Workshop.

    Wang Shouchuan looked haggard. With an unconceble look of weariness on his face, he said, "You really know how to bullshit. Treat the city like a piece of cloth, who has even done it before? You¡¯re already so old. Howe your temperament has not dampened yet?"

    Surprisingly, Han Yuqin had no retort. She even took the initiative to pour him a cup of tea. With a demure tone, she said, "Thank you for your hard work."

    Treat the city like a piece of cloth. Indeed, no one had done it before. It was, after all, an idea inspired by the formation her husband had spoken of.

    "There¡¯s nothing difficult about it. I¡¯m just afraid that you¡¯ll embarrass yourself. If you can¡¯t fulfill your promise and humiliate yourself, won¡¯t you be angry? Furthermore, what¡¯s so special about formations? They belong to the trash bin of history." Wang Shouchuanughed.

    He did not understand why his wife would bring him unnecessary troubles, especially such a dangerous task.

    "I know you¡¯re worried about me, that something might happen to me. Both of us already have one foot in the grave after all. I¡¯ve been married to you since I was twenty years old, and we¡¯ve never parted since. The furthest we¡¯ve ever distanced ourselves was a few streets away. I don¡¯t have many regrets in this life of mine. Even if I die now, I will rest in peace." Han Yuqin looked at Wang Shouquan with tears welling up in her eyes. "But what about Mingxiu and Ai Hui? It¡¯s not possible for them to die with us. Mingxiu is my favorite disciple, and Ai Hui is your first disciple. I don¡¯t care about other people in the city, but I don¡¯t want Mingxiu and Ai Hui dying in Central Pine City."

    Wang Shouchuan was stunned.

    "The entire city has been mobilized, and Ai Hui has already been to one battle. The results were rather good. Mingxiu is scheduled to be in one of thest few units to set off. Ai Hui can hold his own in battles; this kind of violent scenario is perfect for him. But he¡¯s still young. If the catastrophe drags on for any longer, he won¡¯t be able to take it either, and it¡¯s even worse for Mingxiu. Shouchuan, can you help me?"

    Wang Shouchuan looked at the wrinkles that over the years filled the corners of his wife¡¯s eyes. When he saw her gentle and soft gaze, he was taken back to several decades ago.

    That youngdy was looking at him in a simr way and asking him a question in a simr tone.

    "Shouchuan, can you help me?"

    She had always been like this, stubborn and determined, never even discussing things with him beforehand.

 Chapter 193: Rewards

    Chapter 193: Rewards

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Six people made breakthroughs in their base levels.

    Shi Xueman, who had justpleted her Circtory Cycle Revolution, was observing the rest of the students closely. Upon seeing the six break through to the next stage, she was rather happy. The battlefield was the best ssroom. Nothing could stimte one¡¯s potential better than the pressure of death.

    Her joy did notst long because she had too many things to do.

    Her lousy performance during the battle had not caused her to lose confidence and give up. The sense of failure was a rather unfamiliar feeling for her. Even so, she did not think of giving up. After calming down, she recalled certain details from the battle and developed a new understanding of the things she had learned in the past

    The evidence had proven that she was not a genius in terms ofbat techniques.

    She reached out to Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun, and some of the students to summarize the losses they had suffered during the battle. Since she could not be a hero that saved everyone, she could only discuss the issue with the others. By helping everyone, everyone simultaneously helped her.

    When everyone saw their eminent goddess reaching out to them for a discussion, they became abnormally enthusiastic and active, as if they were pumped with caffeine.

    When Ai Hui, who had justpleted his Circtory Cycle Revolution, saw the bustle, he sneered in his heart. The more beautiful a woman was, the more dangerous she was. Someday, all of you will understand this!

    He sat down and started to recall his merits and demerits during the battle.

    He had too few moves. Having just the [Oblique sh] and [Misty Strike] were not enough and limited his offense in many ways. As for escaping techniques, he would have to wait until he attained the Initial Completion before he could obtain a pair of azure wings. No matter how fast one ran on the ground, he or she would still be slower than someone who was flying through the air.

    When Ai Hui thought of escaping techniques, he thought of the [Golden Wind Cape] and then he felt a pain on his back. When the training hall was attacked by the blood ants, he used the [Arching Fish Back] against the ants andpletely destroyed the [Golden Wind Cape] in the process. After all, the cape was not as sturdy as the [Blood Bandage].

    If not for the [Blood Bandage], Ai Hui would be severely injured.

    At this moment, Ai Hui sensed something and raised his head involuntarily. A few elementalists had arrived in the sky above the training hall. Ai Hui found some of them to be rather familiar. One of them was the guard of the mayor. Another one, whom Ai Hui was the most familiar with, was the officer in charge of the warehouse.

    When all of themnded on the ground, Ai Hui quickly went forward to greet them. The rest of the students gathered as well.

    The moment the warehouse officer saw Ai Hui, he smiled. "I knew all along that your group was different from the rest. I was correct indeed."

    "Thank you Sir for taking care of us," Ai Hui replied with sincerity. The warehouse officer had been taking good care of them, giving them all the good stuff. Ai Hui, who had experienced both the warmth and chill of mankind, did not take this for granted. For whatever reason, this person had been kind to them. Ai Hui felt that he still had to thank the officer.

    The warehouse officer was very happy as they now had a much closer rtionship than before. He winked at Ai Hui, but did not say anything else.

    A stern-looking officer then began to talk, "Due to the outstanding performance from the A-1 unit, the mayor has decided to give everyone a letter ofmendation and unique rewards. Every student will get 100 Heaven Merit Points. Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun, Sang Zhijun, Qian Dai, Jiang Wei, and Wang Xiaoshan will be rewarded with 200 Heaven Merit Points each. This reward had been submitted to the Elders through the message tree and has already been approved.

    Other than Ai Hui and Fatty, everyone was overjoyed.

    Heaven Merit Points?

    Both of them looked at each other and saw disapproval in the other¡¯s eyes. At this critical stage, why would they even bother to use such imaginary and useless merit points to reward everyone? Reward them with something more practical!

    "Other than that, each person will be given two portions of revitalizing powder and one piece of Central Pine Armor."

    Ai Hui knew that revitalizing powder was a more practical item. It allowed an elemental energy-depleted elementalist to recover a portion of his or her elemental energy within a short period of time. However, one could not take it too often as it would cause side effects to the body.

    What the hell was a piece Central Pine Armor?

    It was as if the warehouse officer had expected everyone¡¯s misgivings, so he started to exin, "The Central Pine Armor is a new armor that we have recently developed. Its most unique characteristic is that it can prevent blood poison from identally sshing onto you and protect you from its harmful effects. This armor has not been forged inrge quantities yet. The mayor eventually decided to provide you all with this armor. Right now, all of you are the pioneer users of this armor."

    When everyone heard that the armor could protect them from the blood poison, they became high-spirited. Right now, this armor was undoubtedly the most important tool that they needed.

    The battlefield was extremely chaotic and a moment of carelessness would result in them being infected with the blood poison. Furthermore, the blood poison was extremely corrosive toward their gear and equipment. The blood poison was the main factor that everyone feared when they faced a blood fiend. Even though the Central Pine Armor could notpletely resolve this problem, it still provided everyone with a sense of security.

    The greenish-grey, tree bark-like Central Pine Armor emitted a faint pine fragrance. The armor was not good-looking and one could clearly see that it was made in a rush from its roughness. However, at this point of time, even Duanmu Huanghun, who was a picky individual, equipped the armor on his body immediately.

    The most bizarre looking part of the armor was its helmet, or rather, a conical hat that was made up of tree bark. The edge of the conical hat continuously emitted a faint light smoke, forming a smokescreen thatpletely covered the head of its wearer. When Ai Hui put on the helmet, he was surprised to discover that his vision was not affected by the smokescreen at all. He could still see as clearly as usual.

    "This smokescreen can block low-impact objects, like sprayed blood. The best benefit is that it will not affect your vision at all," the warehouse officer exined. "Other than this armor, the mayor also asked me to pass on a batch of elemental food ingredients to all of you. Even though these ingredients are not dire beast-based, they are considered the best ingredients in the warehouse."

    Heughed bitterly. Meanwhile, Central Pine City¡¯s warehouse was not affluent. Currently, just rewarding the students with these items almost emptied the entire warehouse. Even though the officer thought highly of Ai Hui and hisrades, he was surprised that the mayor would spend so many resources on these youths.

    "Help us ry our heartfelt thanks to the mayor," Shi Xueman interjected and gave a slight polite bow.

    "Rather than thanking him verbally, I think the mayor wants all of you to be role models that encourage everyone else and help them regain the courage that they have lost," the officer replied sternly.

    "We will try our best," Shi Xueman answered solemnly.

    "We will definitely try our best." Ai Hui nodded his head.

    A look of satisfaction appeared on the faces of the elementalists. One of them started to talk again, "Thanks to your demolish-and-advance tactic as well as the discovery of the efficacy of the chillies against the blood ants, our advancing speed has increased greatly. Given the current speed, we hope to clear up all the blood ants by sunset tomorrow. This is also why the mayor decided to reward all of you so handsomely.

    The sudden good news resulted in thunderous cheers of joy from everyone. The dark clouds that engulfed their minds had been significantly cleared. It was as if everyone had seen the dawn of victory.

    Smiles appeared on the elementalists¡¯ faces as well. Then, they reminded once more, "Have a good rest. All of you have tounch another wave of attacks tomorrow."

    Afterpleting their task, the elementalists flew up into the sky and returned to the mayor¡¯s residence.

    "The rewards this time around are really bountiful." A smile appeared on Sang Zhijun¡¯s face. "200 Heaven Merit Points. I never expect to earn 200 hundred Heaven Merit Points in such a short period of time."

    "What are these Heaven Merit Points?" Ai Hui could not help but ask. "Can they be exchanged for money?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s words made immediately everyone roll their eyes.

    "Oh my god, this is the first time I have heard of someone that wants to exchange Heaven Merit Points for money! If they could be bought with money, I would definitely buy all of your Heaven Merit Points at any cost" Sang Zhijun¡¯s face was filled with incredulity.

    "Country bumpkin!" Duanmu Huanghun sneered as he cast a disdainful nce at Ai Hui.

    Even Shi Xueman almost could not stand the phrase "exchange for money."

    Ai Hui did not care about how Duanmu Huanghun looked at him. When he saw everyone¡¯s reaction, he quickly realized that the Heaven Merit Points were much more valuable than money.

    Much more valuable than money!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes immediately lit up and he asked, "Come, let¡¯s talk about the Heaven Merit Points? What uses does it have? How do I use it?"

    Sang Zhijun quickly replied, "The Heaven Merit Points are the highest ranking merit points in the Avalon of Five Elements. The entire Avalon of Five Elements, including the small towns and viges, follow the merit point system. The merit points represent your contributions. The amount of merit points you have will determine your status in society. For example, Central Pine City has its own type of merit points, the Central Pine Merit Points. The Fire Prairie uses Fire Merit Points, the Palette Cloud Vige uses Water Merit Points, the Yellow Sand Corner uses Earth Merit Points, the Jadeite Forest uses Wood Merit Points, and the Silver Mist Sea uses Metal Merit Points. Of course, the most valuable type is the Heaven Merit Point as it represents the contribution you made to the entire Avalon of Five Elements."

    "They seem like different vors of smoked meat. So how do I use them?"

    "Smoked meat... Whether you are finding jobs or pursuing promotion, these merit points y an important role. Without enough merit points, you can¡¯t get certain positions that you¡¯re looking for. The most important use for merit points is to purchase resources. You can use them to buy various artifacts, materials, inheritances, and even absolute arts."

    "You can buy absolute arts with them?" Ai Hui was shocked.

    "Of course! As long as you have enough merit points, you can buy many absolute skills."

    "Aren¡¯t the various absolute arts heavily protected by their respective ns and families?" Ai Hui did not seem to understand.

    "That¡¯s right. However, there will be times when these ns will request the Elders for extraordinary artifacts, medicines, etc. If they have enough Heaven Merit Points, they can buy them directly. But what if they don¡¯t? You can¡¯t obtain Heaven Merit Points through mary means. The only way is through trade, but what do you use to trade for them?"

    "You can convert artifacts and absolute arts into Heaven Merit Points, then buy whatever you need," Sang Zhijun exined.

    "That¡¯s good! This can be a lucrative business!" Fatty yelled in excitement. "We decide the price of the resources, and we are the only ones with Heaven Merit Points. There are really a lot of business opportunities in this ce. This is absolutely a profitable business!"

    Ai Hui cared more about the other problem. "Don¡¯t the ns worry about their absolute arts being leaked to outsiders?"

    "Usually, it¡¯s only during critical moments that these ns would trade their absolute arts away. Otherwise, why would they do it?" Shi Xueman interjected. She knew a lot more about these prestigious families. "Furthermore, absolute arts are first-rate inheritances. What is an inheritance? An inheritance is an art that¡¯s passed down through the generations. Every n in their right mind would keep on improving their absolute arts. This is done to ensure that their future generations would surpass the older generations. If they can¡¯t achieve this, they will decline as time passes. If they can achieve this, why would they be worried about their absolute arts being leaked to outsiders? Most of the time, the absolute arts that are traded for Heaven Merit Points are outdated versions. Some are even as old as the establishment of the Avalon of Five Elements. Their powers are much weaker than the current versions."

    It was at this moment that Ai Hui realized what was going on. "I see. If what you said is true, why would people buy outdated absolute arts?"

    "Even if the absolute arts are outdated, they are still absolute arts. Furthermore, developing a new absolute art depends on one¡¯s innate capability and enlightenment," Shi Xueman replied coldly. "Of course, if you¡¯re gifted enough, you might evene up with your own absolute art while you¡¯re sleeping."

    What a joke!

    When Ai Hui realized he only had 200 Heaven Merit Points, but was already thinking of buying absolute skills and looking down on outdated absolute skills, he could not help butugh.

 Chapter 194: Casualties And Hidden Dangers

    Chapter 194: Casualties And Hidden Dangers

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    "Let¡¯s think about it practically. What can we buy with 200 Heaven Merit Points?"

    "There ought to be a lot of stuff that we can buy. This is the first time we¡¯re getting Heaven Merit Points. What¡¯s with that look?"

    "Think about it. That¡¯s provided we can survive this catastrophe. Therefore, it¡¯s pointless to talk about this. Why not we buy some dry goods?"

    "That¡¯s provided the mayor has enough of them."

    ...

    Shi Xueman¡¯s exnation on absolute arts roused Ai Hui.

    The dazzle of genius was like a blossomed flower. The knowledge that was built upon generations of hard work was absorbed silently by the roots of the flower. Surpassing the older generations was a form of respect to their ancestors. It represented the confidence and courage of the new generation.

    It felt gratifying to have an absolute art be passed down and studied for generations.

    Ai Hui was envious as he continued his seemingly fruitless training. All right, there was no one to lead him and the process was rather lonely, but he had no limitations and could do whatever he wanted.

    This should be how a pioneer felt. The feelings of solitude and helplessness were coupled with a heroic spirit.

    Ai Hui broke into aughter. The feeling of depicting himself as a supreme individual was rather encouraging.

    Shi Xueman cast a nce at him, not knowing why he wasughing. However, when she saw Ai Hui had started to practice his swordy, she withdrew her gaze and focused on the discussion with the other students.

    Her notebook was densely-packed with notes taken from the fruitful discussion. Most of these notes corresponded to the information that she read in books rted to art of war. Everyone gave her heaps of praise as they felt that she was a natural born leader. She felt very embarrassed by these words. The previous battle had made her realize that having theoretical debates was pointless.

    As the discussion went in-depth, a series of terrifying training routines were drawn up.

    There was going to be another battle tomorrow. Without hesitation, everyone began practicing.

    In the students¡¯ hearts, Shi Xueman and Ai Hui werepletely different from each other. For Ai Hui, his authority caused everyone to fear him and to have confidence in him at the same time. For Shi Xueman, everyone trusted her like a friend.

    "Fatty, why are you not training?" Lou Lan shouted.

    Fatty, who was sleeping soundly in one corner, woke up feeling terror-stricken.

    "Lou Lan, supervise Fatty. 200 sets of sprinting!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s cold voice resounded through the air.

    "No problem, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied cheerfully.

    "Lou Lan, why do you have to do this to me?" Fatty sobbed with a frowning face.

    "Fatty, Lou Lan is doing this for your own good," Lou Lan replied lightheartedly.

    Poof.

    Lou Lan conjured a sand-made whip and started brandishing it. "Fatty, 200 sets!"

    .....

    The mayor¡¯s residence.

    "... Currently, the battle results are remarkable. Our advancing speed has far exceeded what we anticipated before the start of the battle. Tomorrow, it¡¯s even possible that we do not need to activate all of our elite units. However, note that we have encountered threepletely transformed blood ants today. They have caused us heavy casualties. It has been estimated that the number of transformed blood ants will increase tomorrow. The rmended offensive for tomorrow is to ce elite elementalists at various blocks of the streets beforehand to handle any possible dangers."

    "... The total number of deaths today amounts to 5,721. The total number of injured individuals amounts to 1,655. These individuals have been quarantined. The casualties are devastating. The fighting capabilities of the students and residents that survived have increased sharply. Note that the number of people that we have quarantined has reached 3,100. Our doctors have not found a remedy for the blood poison. There are already 26..."

    The voice was trembling as it read out the chilling numbers. Each number was equivalent to a human life.

    "26 what?" the mayor raised his head for the first time and asked with stern voice.

    "These individuals have their bodies undergo huge changes. Their muscles be thicker and harder, their hair be denser, and their powers be terrifyingly strong. The elemental energy in their bodies are devoured by the blood poison and transformed into an unknown force. This mysterious force is the main culprit for the transformations in their bodies. However, it also bestows unique powers to them at the same time. We have a few wood elementalists that were almost killed by them."

    "The Elders Guild has been studying this kind of force. It has an inextricable link with the blood refinement methods from the Cultivation Era. Blood sacrifices, underworld, soul-refinement, zombies, etc. Blood-refinement is viewed by the living as the power of death. The transformation of one¡¯s body caused by the blood poison is known as beastification. Currently, the Elders Guild has not found a cure for it."

    "Beastification..." This was the first time the mayor showed fear in his eyes.

    On one side, the dean¡¯s face was already filled with terror.

    There was an absolute silence in the hall.

    "Right now, the problem is what do we do with the 3,100 quarantined people if the beastification can¡¯t be stopped?"

    Gasping in horror, everyone¡¯s heart stopped beating. There was a dead suffocating silence in the hall.

    ....

    The Vanguard Training Hall.

    This time around, Ai Hui¡¯s luck was not as good. After one night of trial and error, he did not develop any new moves, like a fishing boat that returned with an empty from a fishing trip.

    Ai Hui was not discouraged as this was normal.

    He raised his head. The moon was bright and the amount of stars in the night sky were sparse. The courtyard, however, was filled with intense heat.

    Fatty was fully-armored, his hands were holding a heavy shield, and there was a huge fire vat on his back. He let out a boar-like roar as he sprinted forward with all his might. If this was in the past, Ai Hui would have found it unpleasant to hear. However, at this point of time, it sounded rather refreshing.

    On the other side, Shi Xueman led everyone in trying out different training routines. Jiang Wei¡¯s stern shouts and Sang Zhijun¡¯s cold taunts could constantly be heard. The young and tender faces of the students were filled with focus and sweat. For the sake of surviving, no one wasining.

    For some unknown reason, Ai Hui felt slightly touched.

    This ce was different from the Wilderness. In the Wilderness, one would never see this kind of focus and struggle for survival. He mostly saw numbness, emptiness, and fear from the people in the Wilderness. They were waiting for death toe.

    In this ce, no one was willing to resign to death. Perhaps it took strength or the determination to preserve one¡¯s dignity in order to defy a doomed fate?

    Okay, I am bing more and more mncholic. It seems I¡¯m not tired enough.

    Ai Hui started stretching his limbs. When he felt that he had regained most his energy, his facial expression became solemn once more.

    He wanted to try to use the [Big Dipper] to execute the [Misty Strike] and [Oblique sh]. What would the oue be?

    The seven pces in his body trembled together, each simultaneously releasing a strand of elemental energy. The seven strands of elemental energy merged together and entered his arm. However, by the time this happened, he had already finished executing the [Oblique sh].

    The channeling speed of his elemental energy was too slow.

    Ai Hui stopped what he was doing. It was easy to identify where it went wrong when he recalled every single detail. He was still not ustomed to the elemental energy channeling method of the [Big Dipper]. For his other moves, their elemental energy channeling methods had always been simple and straightforward. The onlyplicated one belonged to the [Crescent Moon] technique.

    After realizing what the problem was, Ai Hui continued to channel his elemental energy and brandish his sword.

    Fail, fail, fail...

    Like a stone statue, Ai Hui¡¯s face did not move a single iota. He kept on executing the [Oblique sh], behaving like an emotionless sand puppet.

    Upon seeing this scene, the students would always cast an involuntary nce at Lou Lan.

    "Faster Fatty! Come on!"

    "Fatty, you can do it!"

    "Fatty, if you run any slower, I will make you drink the Dragon Soup!"

    ...

    Lou Lan¡¯s encouragements were fanciful and surging with fervor.

    They were the most bizarre duo of master and sand puppet. The master behaved more like a sand puppet than his sand puppet, while his sand puppet behaved more like a human than the master.

    Fatty would definitely agree with this statement. After finishing 200 sets of sprints, he copsed onto the ground. His sweat began forming a small puddle beneath his body. His heavy panting rubbed against his throat, as if he would produce sparks from his throat at any moment. His mind was nk, which signaled that his body was reaching its physical limit.

    Lou Lan brought out a pail of water and a bunch of straws appeared out of thin air in his hand. Next, he put one end of the cluster of straws into the pail of water and the other end into Fatty¡¯s mouth.

    "Fatty, good one! Take a break. Lou Lan needs to start working as well."

    Lou Lan had already found the chili formtion that the blood ants hated the most. For a sand puppet that was well-versed in cooking and medicine, as long as he was working in the right direction, he would be able to determine the most suitable formtion with abnormal uracy.

    The battle would start after dawn. Lou Lan needed to make enough of his brand new chili concoction.

    He had to work hard to help Ai Hui!

    Lou Lan raised his small fist in determination.

    Gurgle gurgle. The level of water inside the pail was decreasing at a visible rate.

    Fatty was finally able to breathe as he struggled to sit up. Just as he was about to start whining, he saw Ai Hui brandishing his sword emotionlessly, so he quickly shut his mouth.

    No one understood Ai Hui¡¯s ruthlessness more than Fatty. The scariest part of Ai Hui was his ruthlessness. He was even ruthless to himself, repeatedly punishing and torturing himself. The level of Ai Hui¡¯s training was extraordinary.

    For a person who was so heartless to himself, how vicious would he be toward other people then?

    Better not provoke Ai Hui!

    This was the conclusion that Fatty came up with after following Ai Hui for so many years. As such, Fatty could only clench his teeth and endure with regards to Ai Hui¡¯s expectations for his training. He did so because he knew that enduring the pain of Ai Hui¡¯s training was better than experiencing the pain of Ai Hui¡¯s beatings if he failed toplete the training. That fellow would definitely not sympathize with Fatty.

    His nose suddenly started twitching.

    Such an alluring fragrance... It smelled familiar, but he could not tell what it was...

    Fatty propped himself up from the ground and followed the smell.

    Bang.

    He was frightened by the sudden noise. After a while, there another bang rang out.

    What the hell was Lou Lan doing?

    He was filled with curiosity. When he walked closer, he saw Lou Lan burning a thorny fist-sized green rattan ball.

    Bang. The thorny ball suddenly exploded. Apanied by scarlet mes, a cloud of glittering red powder sprinkled out.

    The fragrance belonged to this glittering powder.

    "Lou Lan, what are you doing?" Fatty could not resist gulping.

    "Refining the chili powder and chili fire oil," Lou Lan replied without raising his head.

    His hands were moving nonstop. He opened the thorny green ball, put in a chilli, closed it up, and lit it up.

    Bang. The thorny ball exploded and a cloud of glittering red powder cascaded through the air with zing mes,nding in a hollow purple bamboo tube.

    "I¡¯m putting the chili into a hollow cocklebur and igniting it. The wood elemental energy from the hollow cocklebur will then seep into the chili. Wood feeds fire. The chili¡¯s fire elemental energy will be further stimted, and the explosive power will crush the chili and its seeds into powder. From there, we can collect the limited chili fire oil. Fatty, look at the scarlet mes. That¡¯s the chili fire oil which we will collect using the ming purple bamboo tube. The ming purple bamboo tube¡¯s dual natures of fire and wood will feed off of each other. Not only can it hold the chili fire oil, but it also has an intoxicating effect. It¡¯s a pity that we don¡¯t have enough time..."

    Like the paw of a cat, a fat meaty hand reached out silently and grabbed the purple bamboo tube.

    Lou Lan was stunned when he turned around.

    Fatty was gulping the liquid inside the bamboo tube. When thest drop of chili fire oil that, apanied by a streak of mes,nded in his mouth, he unwillingly put down the bamboo tube and uttered his catch phrase.

    "Another bowl?"

 Chapter 195: Fire Enhancing Soup

    Chapter 195: Fire Enhancing Soup

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Another bowl?

    Lou Lan was stunned. Fatty was stunned as well.

    Wait... did he just drink... chili fire oil? Chili! Fire! Oil!

    Fatty¡¯s eyes widened abruptly. A zing flush could be seen extending from his neck upward. His fingers crooked involuntarily as they ended up grabbing nothing but air, resembling someone who was drowning and struggling to stay alive.

    He looked at Lou Lan with agony on his face as he feltva surging through his throat. This resulted in him crying while speaking unclearly. "Rou Ran..."

    "Fatty, wait for me!" Lou Lan eximed before he turned around and dashed into his room.

    Sitting alone on the ground, Fatty wanted to cry, but there were no tearsing out from his eyes. He had realized how stupid he was. Every second was torture to him. Rather than cold tiles, the floor beneath his butt felt like a volcanic crater. His body was burning. Indeed, he felt like a roasted pig now. His entire body was surging with mes.

    Fatty never thought that he would one day see mes flowing under his skin.

    But now he had seen it.

    mes were seeping out of the pores of his skin, resembling red ming snakes that slithered across his skin.

    Fatty took off the armor on his body in a hurry. The shirt he wore had already been set ame.

    A bowl of clear liquid that was emitting a tinge of frost appeared before him.

    At this moment, Fatty was filled with gratitude toward Lou Lan. Lou Lan was such a nice sand puppet. He was always reliable at such critical moments. Fatty did not even bother to thank Lou Lan before taking the bowl and gulping down the liquid.

    A chill went right through his body!

    Fatty felt that the temperature of his skin dropped almost immediately. He squinted his eyes, feeling so relieved that he wanted to start moaning. However, he suddenly realized that his vision became somewhat brighter. Eh? What was glowing?

    He opened his eyes and his face froze.

    Voom, voom, voom!

    The slithering me snakes on his skin had be zing infernos. They shot out from his skin, resembling a stove fire that had been stoked. The augmented and intense heat caused his clothes to burn and vanish in a puff of smoke.

    The soothing frosty feeling had disappeared. He felt as if a volcano was about to erupt within his body.

    Grasping at hisst bit of hope, Fatty asked with a trembling voice, "Wasn¡¯t... wasn¡¯t that water?"

    "Nope," Lou Lan shook his head and replied with a serious tone, "that was the Fire Enhancing Soup that Lou Lan specially brewed for Fatty. The fire attribute of the chili fire oil is much stronger than the Dragon Soup¡¯s. Furthermore, its prability is stronger than the Dragon Soup¡¯s as well. Not only can it prate through your skin, it can also prate through the deepest regions of your body. Therefore, the chili fire oil has always been viewed as an excellent enhancer that boosts fire elemental energy. It¡¯s a treasure to fire elementalists..."

    Boom!

    The mes on Fatty¡¯s body intensified explosively and formed a gigantic fireball. His mind nked.

    "There are very few people who dare to drink the chili fire oil directly. The concentration of fire elemental energy in the refined chili fire oil is 22 times stronger than the chili¡¯s. After the stimtion from the cocklebur, this factor can increase up to 25 times. Fatty, you¡¯re really brave! No wonder you can finish a cauldron of Dragon Soup in one go. Of course, if you can drink the chili fire oil directly, the Dragon Soup is definitely a piece of cake for you. To make sure that you can efficiently absorb and utilize the fire elemental energy in the oil, Lou Lan has specially prepared the Fire Enhancing Soup. There are 17 kinds of herbs and ingredients in it. The clear and ice cold Fire Enhancing Soup can only be brewed through precise and perfect mixing of these ingredients. Furthermore, the grade of the soup is limited by the ingredients¡¯ quality and has reached only 72% of its potential..."

    Boom!

    Something seemed to have exploded within the fireball, causing the mes to intensify. The size of the fireball suddenly increased twofold.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered rapidly as he continued, "Sand core, begin the recording. The research on chili fire oil, scene one. One minute and 46 seconds after consuming the Fire Enhancing Soup, the respective fire elemental energy in the chili fire oil and Fatty¡¯s body have harmonized perfectly! The temperature of the mes are increasing, the degree of the mes¡¯ purity is high, and they have been burning for 34 seconds. The fire elemental energy is beginning to stabilize, stabilize... stabilize... Oh, Lou Lan almost forgot about the task that Ai Hui gave him. Lou Lan needs to continue preparing the chili concoction. Fatty, all the best!"

    Lou Lan hastily went back and resumed preparing the chili concoction. The chili fire oil that he had just extracted was consumed by Fatty. This meant that he needed to start again from scratch. Time was very limited and he needed to increase his speed in order to not dy Ai Hui¡¯s n.

    "Such a powerful fire elemental energy undtion!"

    "Oh my! What¡¯s going on inside? Howe there¡¯s such a terrifying fire elemental energy undtioning from within?"

    "I just saw that Fatty went in."

    "Fatty is fire-attributed? Isn¡¯t he a shield bearer? A fire elemental shield bearer?"

    "He¡¯s definitely fire attributed. You forgot about his fire vat."

    ...

    It was as if Duanmu Huanghun was able to look through the wall. A shiver went down his spine. Such powerful fire elemental energy undtions should not be released from the body of an Induction Ground student.

    Fatty....

    He had never taken a serious look at Fatty before. In his vague memory, Fatty was nothing more than an overweight brute that spouted fire for an entire night. Nothing about Fatty left a deep impression on him.

    However, the disy of such powerful fire elemental energy waves was enough to show that Fatty was not someone to be looked down upon.

    Duanmu Huanghun cast a nce at Ai Hui. All of this fellow¡¯s friends seemed to be extraordinary.

    So what? Duanmu Huanghun was still the best!

    With a proud look on his face, Duanmu Huanghun scoffed and withdrew his gaze. There was no time for him to waste on these insignificant matters. He would not be swayed by these distractions. He truly believed he was a genius that was going to be a Grandmaster in the future. No matter what other people did, it had nothing to do with him.

    There was only one person who was worthy for Duanmu Huanghun to spend his time observing.

    With intense fighting spirit in his eyes, Duanmu Huanghun looked at Ai Hui, who was practicing his swordy and gave a cold humph. He then withdrew his gaze and continued practicing his [Viridescent Flower]. Being recognized as the premier genius of the Duanmu c, he began training the [Viridescent Flower] earlier than anyone else. It was as if he was born for this mysterious andplicated absolute art.

    From the initial vine patterns to the recently developed cloud and lotus patterns, he had progressed extremely fast.

    Time passed silently.

    ......

    The two sides of Soundwave Street had been almostpletely razed to the ground, having just around 10 shops still standing. The resistance from the blood ants had be extremely fierce. Every deployed team returned with only half of its member surviving.

    Looking slightly distracted, the supervising elementalist observed Soundwave Street. This was the most brutal and devastating battle he ever experienced in his life. It was as if he had been through purgatory. He could not remember clearly how many students had died on Soundwave Street. If it was any other period of time, the Avalon of Five Elements would never send so many youngsters to the battlefield.

    However, no one could escape from this catastrophe. No one could save these students except themselves.

    The only thing that gave him hope and confidence was that the situation was turning for the better.

    No one had a happy-go-lucky attitude in them anymore as battle would terminate the weak. Compared to the previous battle, where the students disyed disorder and weakness, the performance of the students today had greatly improved.

    "Have you heard about it! 100 Heaven Merit Points! Everyone in the A-1 unit was rewarded with 100 Heaven Merit Points!"

    "The core members were rewarded with 200 Heaven Merit Points each!"

    "Oh my god! 200 points?"

    "I don¡¯t even know whether or not I could earn 100 Heaven Merit Points in my lifetime?"

    "Hehe, you should rephrase your statement. Can you even earn any Heaven Merit Points in your lifetime?"

    ...

    The supervising elementalist broke intoughter. He had to admit that the mayor¡¯s move was masterful. Using strict and cold militaryws at first, and then followed by generous rewards. Even the supervising elementalist himself was envious of the 100 Heaven Merit Points.

    This was really a huge reward.

    It was extremely difficult to earn Heaven Merit Points, which made them astonishingly valuable.

    Wang Zheng had not be the mayor after retiring as an injured veteran by making use of his connections. Instead, he had umted 500 Heaven Merit Points, granting him the qualification to be one of the mayoral candidates. The selection process for the important positions in the Avalon of Five Elements ced a huge emphasis on Heaven Merit Points. Only those who had a certain amount of Heaven Merit Points would be selected.

    100 Heaven Merit Points were enough to motivate someone to sacrifice his or her life. Most people would not be able to earn this many Heaven Merit Points in their lifetimes.

    Not only were the students motivated, but even the elders in the city were enticed by the rewards and signed up for battle.

    Heaven Merit Points would give one the chance to be healed by the top-notch divine physicians of Avalon of Five Elements, allow one¡¯s descendants to enter the best school and enable one to obtain more life opportunities.

    All of them had forgotten about the dangerous nature of the blood ants.

    If one was to die in the battlefield, his or her family members could im the Heaven Merit Points.

    "They¡¯reing! They¡¯reing!"

    "It¡¯s the A-1 unit!"

    "Such a weird-looking armor. It is terribly ugly and looks like tree bark."

    "What do you know? That¡¯s the newly-created Central Pine Armor! You won¡¯t get it even if you want it! The mayor specially allocated this armor to them first."

    "Isn¡¯t this too unfair?"

    "This is called capability!"

    ...

    When Ai Hui and his counterparts walked on the street, they immediately be the focal point of everyone on the street. Since when had they ever been looked at in such a way by so many people? All of them felt uneasy.

    Luckily, the smokescreen from the helmet of the Central Pine Armor covered their faces, preventing the onlookers from seeing their facial expressions.

    The supervising elementalist descended from the sky.

    Ai Hui walked forward and bowed. "The A-1 unit is here to report for duty. We are awaiting your orders, Sir!"

    "There¡¯s still 20 minute before the next wave of attacks. All of you can take a rest first," the supervising elementalist also replied politely.

    With 100 Heaven Merit Points in their hands, these students did not want to die. After they graduated from the Induction Ground, a lot of opportunities would be opened up to them. No matter what jobs they pursued, they were already ahead of everyone else in the rat race.

    "Yes," Ai Hui replied politely.

    "Eh, where¡¯s that big fellow with the gigantic fire vat on his back?" the supervising elementalist asked upon noticing that Fatty was not present. Fatty¡¯s physical appearance was extremely distinctive.

    "He just had a breakthrough in his base level and has not stabilized yet. Hence, I did not bring him here," Ai Hui exined.

    Spouting fire should be considered a breakthrough. The fact he had not finished spouting fire meant that he had not yet stabilized.

    Ai Hi thought to himself. The absence of Fatty had impacted them significantly on the battlefield. The task of protecting Wang Xiaoshan thus fell onto Duanmu Huanghun¡¯sp.

    Duanmu Huanghun was not happy at this decision. However, he could not do anything as Ai Hui could shut him up with one sentence: "Who killed more blood ants during thest battle?"

    The number of blood ants Ai Hui destroyed during the previous battle was far more than the amount Duanmu Huanghun had killed. Hence, how was it possible to assign the person with the strongest fighting capabilities as the caretaker?

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face was gloomy and his body was emitting killer intent. He looked as if he did not anyone to get too close to him. Wang Xiaoshan was standing beside Duanmu Huanghun with a pale-white face, but did not dare to wander too far from him either.

    At this point of time, a blood-curdling screech sounded from street.

    The supervising elementalist turned his head abruptly and his facial expression changed drastically. "Blood-traced ant!"

    A red streak surged toward them with lightning speed.

 Chapter 196: Blood-traced Ant

    Chapter 196: Blood-traced Ant

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Lis

    The red figure was astonishingly fast, but so was Ai Hui¡¯s reaction. He swiftly sidestepped and shed with his Dragonspine Inferno, which was emitting a faint light as it collided impactfully with the red blur.

    nk!

    Ai Hui jolted, as if struck by a thunderbolt. A heavy force swept through the sword, and he felt as if he held in his hand a hot soldering iron.

    Ai Hui gave a stifled groan and gripped the sword hilt tightly as his body flew backward uncontrobly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sh had slowed the red figure down considerably, allowing him to see it clearly for the first time.

    It was asrge as a dog, which was heftier than most ordinary blood ants were, and the red carapace was marked with messy but mysterious ck stripes.

    When he spotted the stripes, Ai Hui¡¯s first impression was of danger. He didn¡¯t dare to look at it any longer, or else risk having his mind and spirit drawn into it!

    The supervising elementalist reacted with a furious roar, and with the string of his longbow as a de, he shed at the blood-traced ant. The string trembled slightly and transformed into a light de with a dazzling illumination. A sharp and piercing aura was released on the entire area as if a peerless saber had been unsheathed.

    Someone received Ai Hui from behind¡ªit was Shi Xueman.

    As soon as theynded on the ground, Ai Hui shouted anxiously, "Everyone step back!"

    Ordinary students were of no help in a battle of this scale; instead, it was more likely that the ant would take advantage of them. The frightened students¡¯ faces were pallid. Even Ai Hui was knocked back by one strike from the ant. How terrifying was this monster?

    Just as the light de was about tond, the markings on the ant brightened without warning. Boom! A dazzling, bloody light pierced the air.

    The supervising elementalist was shocked to see the light de in his hand sink into the midst of a muddy blood sea, its power sharply copsing.

    The bloody light went straight for his eyebrows. It was like a violent, surging wave of a blood sea that would soon devour him.

    With a slight shift in his expression, the elementalist¡¯s richbat experience saved his life. He loosened his grip on the bow and pped it. By using the stic momentum, he ricocheted backwards.

    With irritation, he realized that the blood-traced ant was far tougher to deal with than he originally thought. He wouldn¡¯t let himself get into such a disadvantageous position again.

    He had underestimated the enemy!

    In that moment, he noticed a pair of cruel and ruthless eyes that was fixated on him with a bloody light.

    Whoosh!

    His expression changed upon seeing the ant be a bloody blur.

    From behind him, a snow-white spear shot out silently.

    nk!

    Cirrus urately struck the ant. Shi Xueman stifled a groan, but she was well-prepared and dispersed most of the force with the spinning spear. Without retreating, she advanced and stabbed the blood-traced ant with the swiftly rotating spear as the tip of the spear howled viciously.

    After receiving Ai Hui, she realized the ant¡¯s astonishing strength that belied its small size. It shocked her to know that Ai Hui was disadvantaged in a confrontation of strength.

    The blood-traced ant parried, and suddenly three reflections appeared from the sky. The sudden change left no time for Shi Xueman to think, and her Cirrus stabbed into one of them.

    Feeling the emptiness at the end of the spear, Shi Xueman knew she¡¯d been fooled.

    With arrow-like precision, a crimson figure emitting a bloody gleam arrived in front of Shi Xueman with its red-and-ck mandibles like blood-stained scissors.

    Shi Xueman felt her blood freeze. She was certain those scissor-like mandibles would easily shear off her thin neck.

    At that moment, a re like a shooting star darted past her neck and precisely hit the mandibles.

    [Misty Strike]!

    With a thunderous crash akin to the sounds produced by collision of saber and spear, the blood-traced ant trembled and rebounded backwards.

    Ai Hui then retrieved the longbow and threw it to the supervising elementalist.

    Shi Xuemannded on the ground, her heart still fluttering with fear. She felt at that moment just how close to death she had been. Her hand which held the spear trembled non-stop.

    "Stop dreaming!" Ai Hui¡¯s reproach brought Shi Xueman back to reality.

    Her face turned red.

    Suddenly, the twangs of bows sounded from behind, one after another.

    They came from Jiang Wei¡¯s heavy bow, Sang Zhijun¡¯s [Arrow Fusion Technique], and most powerful of all, from the supervising elementalist¡¯s longbow. He had a brush with death just now, and this was his furious revenge. He released his bowstring with a slight dy behind the other two¡¯s, right as the ant lost control of its body.

    The string rang with a thunderous noise as his elemental energy fluctuated powerfully and burst out.

    The entirety of Soundwave Street was bathed in the silvery light.

    This there, there was no howling to be heard. The Sky Edge Arrow, despite its dyed release, reached the target first.

    The ant¡¯s bloody light burst out once more.

    The Sky Edge Arrow faltered slightly, but the bloody light was split open, no longer able to withstand the sharp, silvery light. Just as the ant was about to be pierced by the arrow, a shocking event unfolded.

    The blood-traced ant rolling in the air suddenly ejected several red streams from its expansive abdomen.

    It changed trajectory, narrowly avoiding the Sky Edge Arrow.

    Jet streams continued to eject from its pores, allowing it to dodge strangely like a marite attached to strings.

    All of Sang Zhijun¡¯s and Jiang Wei¡¯s arrows missed as well.

    Everyone was stunned by the change of events. Only now did they notice the pores on the ant¡¯s abdomen where the red streams had been ejected.

    Puff! Puff! Puff!

    By ejecting the air currents, the ant regained its bnce and steadilynded from the sky.

    The emotionlesspound eyes stared at the figures in front of it, realizing that they were more difficult to deal with than its previous prey.

    Soundwave Street was deadly silent.

    They were still stunned at the blood-traced ant¡¯s fighting capability. The killing moves had appeared in an instant, and some students were still unable toprehend what hade to pass.

    Too fast!

    The ant faced Ai Hui and others and began to retreat slowly.

    The supervising elementalist, still mired in shock, didn¡¯t issue an order to pursue and attack. He¡¯d been determined to win with his final attack, but the ant managed to escape so easily that he still could not believe it. In the midst of his deep-seated fear, he didn¡¯t know how to proceed.

    Ai Hui stared at the ant fixedly.

    When the blood-traced ant began to retreat, a peculiar light shed in his eyes. With his fighting experience from the Wilderness with all kinds of beasts and wild creatures, he knew their patterns well. From the ant¡¯s withdrawal, he guessed that it was tired.

    He became more certain of his spection when he saw that the stripes on its carapace had dimmed. Therefore, he was resolved.

    "Get ready!" Ai Hui said calmly.

    Everyone else was surprised and couldn¡¯t help but look at Ai Hui.

    Unmoved by the stares, he said, "I¡¯ll take point with Shi Xueman. Duanmu Huanghun and Lou Lan, follow us from ten steps away. Sang Zhijun and Jiang Wei, keep a distance of fity steps from us. Sang Zhijun, be ready with your Bunny Hair Arrows. Lou Lan, prepare the chili concoction."

    Shi Xueman settled at Ai Hui¡¯s side without hesitation before exchanging a nce with him.

    "What we need to do is defend and entangle it," Ai Hui said in a low voice.

    "No problem." Shi Xueman nodded.

    They approached the blood-traced ant slowly but firmly.

    The ant didn¡¯t expect that they would dare to close in and immediately became ferocious. It angrily pped its membranous wings which hummed with a harsh and unpleasant sound.

    Ai Huiughed. "It¡¯s tired."

    Shi Xueman didn¡¯t know how Ai Hui made that judgment, but there was no doubt in her mind. Her grip on Cirrus was tight and her steps were firm.

    Lou Lan immediately transformed into a sandy spraying cart with a long spout that pointed towards the ant.

    Lou Lan¡¯s transformation elicited some exmations.

    Transformation was amon and useful skill in sand puppets, but normally, they turned into lions, tigers, or traps at the most. To see Lou Lan changing into a spraying cart....

    How entric was the earth elementalist who created it?

    Walking beside the spraying cart, Duanmu Huanghun was a bit distressed. Why did Ai Hui have such a strange sand puppet?

    He narrowed his eyes. Although he didn¡¯t participate in the confrontation with the blood-traced ant, he attempted to find methods to deal with it. On the surface, he seemed to be strolling idly and calmly, but a hidden thin and green twig appeared at his finger, circling flexibly like a small green snake.

    The ant became more restless with the addition of Lou Lan and Duanmu Huanghun.

    When Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun began to follow as well, the ant calmed down and continued its retreat.

    Seeing this, the supervising elementalist felt ashamed of himself. Even a student yet to graduate from the Induction Ground could do better than he did.

    With years of idle living, his courage had eroded.

    He breathed deeply, filling his body with elemental energy that exuded into the air around him. The bow in his hand suddenly shined with a bright luminescence, the gleaming, silvery light turning the ordinary longbow into a peerless treasure that was astonishingly imposing.

    The blood-traced ant stopped its retreat. It sensed the danger that came with being targeted by its attackers and instinctively realized that if it withdrew any further, it would be jeopardized.

    The elementalist¡¯s hair and beard drifted as he slowly pulled back the arrowless bowstring. On it converged a silvery light that gradually took the form of an arrow, and his imposing aura became more apparent.

    The blood-traced ant on the ground could sense the dangers it faced. Its ck marks shined once again with a bloody red light that epassed its body so strongly that others couldn¡¯t clearly discern its body anymore¡ªall except for an emotionless and clear pair of eyes that seemed able to pierce into one¡¯s deepest fears and cowardice.

    The red light eroded the ground beneath it, making it soon copse into a pit. The blood-traced ant remained suspended over it.

    Shi Xueman could not help but look up, but Ai Hui remained unmoved and stared at the blood-traced ant.

    Bang!

    The twang of a released bowstring came from the sky.

    A silvery arrow streaked down from the sky, leaving behind it a trailing light.

    Sky Bow ¨C Light Binding Arrow!

    Meanwhile, Ai Hui shouted loudly, "Lou Lan!"

    Before he finished calling out, he had already stamped on the ground and bravely advanced with his sword.

 Chapter 197: Blood Crystal

    Chapter 197: Blood Crystal

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Lis

    Although the beam of light was thin, it had devastating destructive power. Compared to it, the bloody light surrounding the ant was like fragile paper and was immediately pierced. The beam shot straight into the back of the ant, prating through it and out of its abdomen. Afterwards, there was a narrow yet deep hole left behind in the ground.

    The blood-traced ant¡¯s shrill scream resounded through the air. The bloody light stirred violently like water, and its cold,pound eyes turned scarlet.

    A cloud of red mist erupted from Lou Lan¡¯s spraying pipe. Though most of the mist evaporated upon contact with the bloody light, a small amount managed to bypass the light and reach the back of the ant.

    The pepper water made with the new form did not smell as spicy as before, but it was more effective.

    With this attack, the ant began to roll frantically on the ground, tossing sand and detritus in all directions. Under its devastation, the rigid ground underneath it was fragile. Its eyes scarlet, blood from its abdominal wound spilled out and spread the sweet and fragrant smell of blood poison into the air.

    In a sh, Ai Hui flew past the flying sand and detritus, the Dragonspine Inferno trembling slighitly in his hand.

    His concentration was at its peak, and everything in his vision seemed to slow. He could even clearly note the trajectory of the detritus flying past his cheeks.

    The rage in the blood-traced ant¡¯s eyes was dying down, which indicated that the pepper water was losing effect.

    There was an insufficient amount of pepper water, and even less reached the ant. Despite that, he felt fortunate that it worked. After all, the blood-traced ant was farrger than an ordinary blood ant.

    The world around him was clearly reflected in Ai Hui¡¯s mind. He knew he had only one chance.

    [Big Dipper] was fully activated, and the elemental energy in his body was flowing at an unprecedented speed. The strand of elemental energy immediately took shape between his hand and foot pces.

    [Crescent Moon]!

    Ai Hui used his most powerful killing move without hesitation.

    A sword ray like moonlight flew out from his Dragonspine Inferno.

    As soon as Ai Hui¡¯s strike hit the ant¡¯s body, nearly half of its back was cleaved off.

    But it was not dead yet. Its bloody body dashed recklessly towards Ai Hui, driven mad from the severe pain of losing half of its back.

    Seeing the ant rushing at him, Ai Hui used his tiptoes to retreat rapidly.

    Ai Hui was fast enough, but he still smelled a sweet fragrance and watched as a bite rapidly came at him.

    At that moment, a green twining twig extended from the ground and suddenly appeared in front of the ant.

    In its mad dash, the ant was unprepared and lost its bnce. Instead of rushing towards Ai Hui, it was rolling towards him now.

    Good chance!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. The ingrate was making good progress. The trip was a small trick but proved effective with its timing. He grasped the chance and halted his retreat. Instead, he shed at the rolling ant that approached him with the Dragonspine Inferno in his hand.

    A snow-white spear shot at the ant with an imposing aura, like a white whale breaking the surface of clouds.

    Shi Xueman shoved her Cirrus into the ant with amazing power before Ai Hui was able to.

    Puff!

    The spear once again pierced the blood-traced ant.

    Nevertheless, Ai Hui¡¯s expression twisted as he realized that the situation was not as good as they thought.

    The ant, regardless of its injuries, hung onto the now-bloodstained white spear and crazily rushed at Shi Xueman. The scissor-like mandibles emitted sounds of sharp winds as they readied to bite into Shi Xueman¡¯s arm.

    Despite Shi Xueman¡¯s adaptations tobat, she didn¡¯t expect that even after incurring deadly injuries, the ant would still be able to attack them ferociously. Her face paled.

    Bang!

    In a sh of inspiration, Ai Hui¡¯s sh became a p. The Dragonspine Inferno was used as a stick and impacted the mandibles with great force.

    Sparks flew in every direction!

    Hand trembling, Ai Hui tightly gripped the hilt of the sword that almost ricocheted. Under the rebound¡¯s power, he gave a muffled groan while he was sent flying backward. He originally intended to take advantage of the ant with a sh, but never did he expect for it to be a direct confrontation of power. He lost control of his body and was thrown into the sky.

    Just as he was about to hit the ground, the spraying cart rushed to him.

    "Ai Hui, Lou Lan is here!" Lou Lan said happily. As soon as Ai Hui heard this, his body immediately rxed.

    The spraying cart transformed into a sand that caught Ai Hui precisely.

    The sand then turned into a palm that ced Ai Hui at the helm of the cart, which had previously been a spraying pipe.

    The ant, on the other hand, was like a ball hit by Ai Hui and slid out of the Cirrus.

    Shi Xueman was dumbstruck. She stared nkly at the blood-traced ant that was getting farther and farther away in the sky.

    The spraying cart carried Ai Hui closer and stopped beside Shi Xueman, who was still absent-minded. Ai Hui said lightly, "Don¡¯t get too close to a dying beast unless you want to die with it."

    As soon as he saw Shi Xueman¡¯s spear pierce the ant, he¡¯d realized it was far from good.

    Whether human or beast, the final attack before its dying breath was always the most ferocious and powerful because it carried thebined force of its hatred and desperation.

    Then, turning his head, Ai Hui spoke highly of Duanmu Huanghun, "Hey ingrate, your move was really tactful."

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face froze.

    Ingrate....

    He must¡¯ve said that so loudly on purpose!

    Duanmu Huanghun at once felt as though everyone was staring at him.

    Damn it! Bastard!

    Anger grew in Duanmu Huanghun, his blue veins standing out starkly against his temples. He wanted to rush at Ai Hui and bash his head with a brick many times, but as soon as he remembered that he really owed money to this bastard, he struggled to restrain his impulses.

    He was a perfectionist, and he couldn¡¯t bear a stain like this in his life. He had no problem starting a fight without any reason since he had done so many times, but he could never beat up a person to whom he owed money.

    He hardened his resolve. As soon as he left this ce, the first thing he¡¯d do is pay off his debt.

    And the first thing after that would be to beat this bastard to death.

    Definitely! Undoubtedly!

    Duanmu Huanghun clenched his fists tightly and visualized Ai Hui kneeling in front of him, wailing and whining bitterly. He immediately felt more at peace.

    The supervising elementalist descended from the sky, and as soon as hended, he staggered slightly.

    His elemental energy was nearly consumed from the Light Binding Arrow.

    "You¡¯ve made another contribution." He nced at Ai Hui, who had disyed courage and urate timing in this battle. This student had managed to outperform him, a veteran.

    Recalling that Ai Hui used to be aborer in the Wilderness, he couldn¡¯t help sighing for him.

    He believed Ai Hui was born for fighting.

    Troubled times were a disaster for most, but for a small number of people, it was the best stage.

    They were born for this era.

    That was the feeling Ai Hui gave him.

    Thank you, sir, for your support," Ai Hui said with deep respect.

    The light arrow carried a power that Ai Hui had never witnessed in his life. So long as it hit a critical point, the enemy was guaranteed to die. He remembered the inheritance of Sky Edge Division that Shi Xueman had once told him about and realized the power of the Thirteen Divisions that was beyond his expectations. He suddenly gained confidence. If an ex-serviceman of the Thirteen Divisions was so strong, how amazing would the fighting capability of the elite force be?

    The powerful Thirteen Divisions against the Blood of God. They had a chance to win against them.

    Perhaps the future of the Avalon of Five Elements was not as dim as he imagined.

    He caught sight of the blood-traced ant in the distance. It sported fatal injuries but continued to twist bitterly on the ground. Everyone was amazed at its tenacious vitality. A sweet and extraordinarily tempting smell lingered in the air. Although the students were aware of the blood poison¡¯s terror, they still became eager when they smelled the fragrance.

    Devils always walked together with temptation.

    Ai Hui and his teammates waited to approach it until they were certain it was dead and unmoving.

    The ant¡¯s blood clotted, and the fragrance in the air gradually dissipated.

    "Ai Hui, the blood clot is bing solid," Lou Lan said. A yellow light shined in his eyes.

    Solid?

    They were all surprised. Ai Hui found a small wooden stick and poked the clot with it.

    Sure enough, the blood clots hadpletely solidified.

    "It¡¯s crystallization," Lou Lan said.

    "Crystallization? What¡¯s that?" Sang Zhijun asked.

    "The nature of the blood clot is changing into a crystal," Lou Lan exined.

    They could see that the clot was turning into a dark-red crystal that finally became as clear as a gem. Ai Hui knocked on it with the stick, producing a sound as if hitting against ss.

    "Is it poisonous?" Ai Hui asked Lou Lan.

    "No." Lou Lan shook his head.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up and looked at the body of the blood-traced ant as if it was a dead dire beast. To him, this was a hill of gold. During his time in the Wilderness, he was fighting against dire beasts for the majority of the time, and each part of a dire beast was useful, including the hair, fur, flesh, bones, tendons, and organs.

    In other words, there was not a single part that could not be exchanged for money.

    Would the body of a blood fiend be of simr value?

    Look at how clear the blood clot was! It had to be expensive.

    "Sir, can we take the blood-traced ant¡¯s body back for further study?" Ai Hui took the initiative.

    The elementalist couldn¡¯t help butugh. "This is a blood crystal. We¡¯ve found simr things after killing other blood-traced ants. Only they have blood that crystallizes, not the ordinary blood ants. The mayor¡¯s residence has been studying it for some time, but the results show that it has nothing to do with our elementalists. The carapace of the blood ant is solid but bes soft after its death, and the same with its bones and muscles¡ªthey easily be broken once the ant dies."

    "Let us have a try, sir. Can we take it?" Ai Hui asked insistently.

    "You can take it all." The supervising elementalist smiled generously. "We don¡¯t know how to use it anyway. Don¡¯t worry, after crystallization, the blood of the blood-traced ant is no longer poisonous. Maybe you¡¯ll find a way to utilize it."

    At once, Ai Hui said, "Thank you, sir," and quickly collected the blood crystals on the ground.

    After retrieving all of them, he ordered the team to step forward. During the battle, the elementalist and Ai Hui were the ones to use the most energy, while the others were still hale. The supervising elementalist also remarked that there would only be one blood-traced ant within an area.

    A blood-traced ant was like the king of an ant colony, and a king would always be lonely.

    Shi Xuemanmanded the team to continue tearingdown the houses.

    To all onlooking students, the performance of the A-1 unit was shocking.

 Chapter 198: Ordinary and Brilliant

    Chapter 198: Ordinary and Brilliant

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: CakeHermit

    "Prepare yourselves!" Shi Xueman ordered.

    They were not sure whether or not the solution they had thought ofst night would work, but they would give it a try anyway.

    Sang Zhijun looked nervous. Jiang Wei seemed calm and collected, but his hand that tightly clutched his bow revealed the tension in his heart.

    Unexpectedly, they didn¡¯t step forward.

    Wood-attribute students began to spread seeds of different colors on the ground, then rattans sprouted out of the earth and began to grow crazily. Water-attribute students ced misty clouds while earth-attribute students made quicksand in the interspace zones. In this way, the team was connected together and a was created with many obstacles. The moves were not powerful, but they covered all the areas the team upied.

    After they were done, only twenty people were left while all the others turned back and walked out of the pitfall area.

    Shi Xueman was not far from the shops. She gestured to Wang Xiaoshan, who immediately destroyed all the nodes of the shop.

    With a loud boom, the shop copsed, generating substantial amounts of dust in the air.

    Chuu... Chuu... Chuu...

    Dozens of red figures were ejected from the smog. They noticed Shi Xueman first and rushed towards her.

    Shi Xueman was well prepared. She turned back and dashed into the pitfall area without hesitation, followed closely by the blood ants running after her.

    Unexpectedly, the blood ants werepletely in shambles.

    The pitfall areas were very hard to deal with for the ants. Obstacles of different attributes were mixed up, each of which had a totally different kind of resistance. For the blood ants that were amazingly fast, even a small force could lead them astray.

    Those left in the area were the twenty people who were the most powerful. They didn¡¯t seek to fight actively and only needed to keep the ants in the pitfall.

    Sang Zhijun and Jiang Wei were leading nine archers. Once Sang Zhijun¡¯s Spiderweb Iron Pellets were shot out and entangled a blood ant, Jiang Wei¡¯s heavy arrow woulde together with another nine arrows and the blood ant in the middle of the spider web would be shot into a hedgehog.

    They were not attacking hastily. The fast speed of Sang Zhijun¡¯s shot now gave full y to its effect. Meanwhile, she was also taking on the overall control. She would shoot a String and Woodwind Arrow wherever there was danger.

    The String and Woodwind Arrow was not lethal, but it was effective to disrupt the attack of the enemies.

    Together with the others, Shi Xueman had carefully analyzed all of the problems exposed in yesterday¡¯s battle and discussed how to solve them. Today¡¯s arrangement was the result of their discussion. She knew she was only a rookie, so it was better to let everyone join the discussion. This way, they would also know clearly what they needed to do.

    At first, they had been a bit reserved and unfamiliar with each other, but as time went by, their cooperation improved greatly.

    What¡¯s more, since this was the second time for them to be on the battlefield, they had ovee the fear in their hearts and gradually gotten used to fighting.

    The students¡¯ efficiency and confidence had both been greatly improved.

    Shi Xueman felt happy from her heart. There was nothing more cheerful than seeing the discussion that she had initiated by herself go smoothly.

    She had almost been killed just before, but now she was fully enjoying the wild fighting and became the most eye-catching existence.

    Even the ugly Central Pine Armor could not hide her elegant and valiant figure. With Cirrus in her hand, she fought freely on the battlefield as if there was no resistance. As for the details of the pitfall, it was engraved in her memory and did not influence her at all.

    Each strike was mighty and powerful. Besides, as her control over her strength had improved, she could now maintain her elemental energy within her body very well. The blood ants that were struck down by her Cirrus all ended up exploding into a cloud of blood mist.

    Duanmu Huanghun was standing out of the pitfall area and practicing his [Viridescent Flower] at ease.

    He was good at control, but how could he willingly be a supportive yer?

    When did you see Big Brother Huanghun as someone else¡¯s assistant?

    That wouldn¡¯t help him defeat Ai Hui!

    His eyes were cold. The green twine twigs appeared and disappeared mysteriously in the pitfall area. The continuous fighting had a huge impact on him. At first, although his [Viridescent Flower] could dazzle the eyes of his enemies, it had not been very lethal. Thus, he had intentionally practiced in order to improve its lethality while maintaining its gorgeous appearance.

    Perfect talent must possess a perfect absolute art!

    The aloof and proud temperament, magnificent and lethal attack, unruffled stroll, and iparably handsome face constituted an attractive picture. Many female students had forgotten that they were still in danger. They couldn¡¯t help holding their breath and staring at Duanmu Huanghun.

    Shi Xueman was invincible, Duanmu Huanghun was proud and gorgeous, Sang Zhijun was at ease, and Jiang Wei was well-ordered in the battle. Their perfect cooperation was eye-catching. Even the supervising elementalist was stunned at the fighting prowess of each of the kids on the battlefield.

    Ai Hui was also surprised at their performance.

    Although there was still some immaturity, it was much better than yesterday. At least they were moreposed when facing the blood ants.

    And he could tell that the tactics had indeed been arranged with a lot of thought.

    He didn¡¯t know that the Iron Lady in blue and white was very talented in this aspect.

    As a girl, she was valiant indeed. Seeing the blood ants that had exploded into blood mist, Ai Hui felt a bit frightened. If he had never seen Iron Lady¡¯s face before, then judging only from the fight, he might have thought that the figure in the Central Pine Armor must have been a muscr and brawny woman.

    Females nowadays were bing more and more powerful. The "money-losing deal" could easily defeat himself with One Thousand Yuan and now the Iron Lady in blue and white was more skillful than he¡¯d expected. At first Ai Hui wanted to ask Iron Lady to give him somepensation for saving her life so many times. It shouldn¡¯t be for free!

    She should thank him with money!

    Besides, he¡¯d heard that her family was wealthy...

    But now, seeing the ferocious performance of Iron Lady, Ai Hui wisely gave up the idea. Apparently, he could hardly resist her attack with the spear.

    "Good job, Miss Shi!"

    "Good job, Bangwan!"

    "Good job, Miss Sang!"

    "Good job, Jiang Wei!"

    ...

    Lou Lan who was standing beside Ai Hui never stopped marveling at their performance. Ai Hui had been upset at the loss, and now hearing what Lou Lan said, he became more agitated and suddenly turned his face to re at Lou Lan.

    Lou Lan abruptly shut up. He shrugged and kept silent for a while, then stammered, "Ai Hui is the best of all!"

    Ai Hui, who had been angry just now, immediately became cheerful. He patted his head and praised him. "I really like your honesty, Lou Lan."

    The teammates were cooperating very well and soon destroyed the blood ants in thest few shops. When thest blood ant was killed, the crowd in the street burst into cheers.

    In Wang Shouchuan¡¯s room.

    All kinds of books were scattered on the floor. Wang Shouchuan¡¯s hair was white and in a mess, and his eyes were red. He was murmuring like he was in a nightmare. "How? How? Spell formation... spell formation..."

    "This is impossible!"

    "Elemental energy cannot reach that ce..."

    "She can¡¯t do that at her current base level..."

    "Ahhhh, how can I make it?"

    ...

    He fell on the floor and looked nkly at the ceiling. He felt he was a total failure. He had aplished nothing in his life and couldn¡¯t even help Yuqin to realize herst hope.

    He was immersed in strong feelings of weakness and despair.

    These days he hardly had any rest and was now overwhelmed with fatigue.

    He dreamed about the first time he¡¯d met Yuqin and the first time he¡¯d spoken to her. In his dream, he kept talking to Yuqin about his discoveries. They got married and...

    Numerous scenes kept circling in his head. He had already forgotten where he was.

    "Shouchuan, I need your help."

    Yuqin¡¯s ardent voice suddenly came into his mind and woke him up. He sat up on the bed. A gust of wind blew in and he felt cold. Only then did he realize that he was drenched in sweat.

    He unintentionally nced in the mirror and was dumbfounded by what he saw. His grey hair had all grown white and his wrinkled face looked unhealthy and red.

    Maybe he would die together with Yuqin.

    Suddenly, Wang Shouchuan felt relieved. He finally knew what he was most afraid of ¨C rather than death, what he was really afraid was life without her.

    He knew he didn¡¯t have many years left to live, but there was no more fear in his heart.

    "Yuqin, I¡¯ll help you!"

    Wang Shouchuan¡¯s turbid eyes suddenly lit up. He seemed to have gone back to his years of fearlessness. Youth and vigor were once again infused into his old body and inspiration began to gush out.

    He sat at the table and wrote something like crazy.

    Soon he had used up several pieces of paper. On the papers were his delicate designs. His burning life was the most magical ink that endowed the brush with glory. It was like the first ray of sunlight to shine into the darkness. It rose up into the sky and illuminated his ambitions in the quiet first half of his life together with the knowledge he had umted after days and nights of hard work. With light and heat, it wrote down his name in the sky of history.

    He felt that he was covered in the light and was full of energy.

    This was the best time he¡¯d ever had. It camete in his life together with his loved one¡¯s request.

    What a coward! He didn¡¯t have the courage to live alone. He only dared to die with his beloved woman.

    He didn¡¯t sleep, rest, or feel tired. More and more paper, which was with his body temperature and conveyed his love and ambition, was piled up in front of him on the table.

    Day and night, he didn¡¯t eat, drink, or rest for a second.

    When he finished thest paper, he smiled. Then he reorganized the papers, folded them, and put them carefully in a metal box. His movements were very gentle, as if the papers in his hands were the most valuable treasure in the world.

    To him, yes.

    He closed the box and pulled the rope on his table. The guard outside heard the bell and quickly came in. All of Wang Shouchuan¡¯s materials were in his study. The Mayor specially sent someone to protect him and apany him to where he lived.

    The guard was astonished to see Wang Shouchuan. He looked withered and his hair was all white.

    "Send it to the Jade Embroidery Workshop."

    His voice was hoarse and dry. He was too exhausted to say one more word.

    The guard suddenly saluted Wang Shouchuan with great respect.

    He knew the importance of the box, so he immediately spread his Cloud Wings and flew to the Jade Embroidery Workshop.

    Wang Shouchuan stared at the figure moving farther and farther into the sky. The light in his eyes gradually disappeared.

    His wrinkled hands held the doorframe tightly and his grey and cloudy eyes filled with stubbornness; Wang Shouchuan stood still and didn¡¯t fall down.

    He said to himself with a smile.

    Don¡¯t worry. I will wait with you until thest second... How can I let you leave alone?

 Chapter 199: Yan Hai

    Chapter 199: Yan Hai

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: CakeHermit

    Yan Hai stood in the distance and stared ardently at Ai Hui while he was collecting the blood crystals scattered on the ground.

    Central Pine City¡¯s study on the blood crystals had produced no useful discoveries. As a result, Yan Hai managed to get some blood crystals effortlessly. After taking four blood crystals, he found that the blood spiritual force within his body increased sharply. He now felt like he had infinite power.

    As long as he could get a few more blood crystals, he was confident that he could achieve a breakthrough.

    Unconsciously, he touched the scar on his left hand. It was a long scar that stretched from his wrist to his elbow. Back then, his whole left arm had almost been disabled, but fortunately, thanks to the unique techniques of the organization, it had recovered perfectly.

    He had been with the organization for a long time and once ran for the god apostles. Unfortunately, he was eliminated at an early stage; however, thanks to this early elimination, he was still alive. He¡¯d heard that in theter stages, all the participants had been killed by the six god apostles.

    This had also offered them a chance.

    He¡¯d epted the mission to go undercover in the Induction Ground. He hadn¡¯t chosen the metropolises because he¡¯d known that he was not powerful enough. With his meager ability, he could have done nothing in those cities. Here in the Induction Ground, however, he might have some opportunities.

    The organization¡¯s supernatural power was beyond his imagination. He was easily assigned to the Induction Ground with a perfect fake identity. Never once did anyone suspect him.

    Five years had passed.

    It was so long that he had almost forgotten his real identity, until the breakout of the blood disaster.

    Unexpectedly, the blood disaster started from the Induction Ground. He was thrilled and delighted, as he knew that it was a one in a million chance for him.

    The five years had not been an easy time and he had been too impatient to just wait. His assumed identity was a wood elementalist. To acquire the Blood of God for daily training, he¡¯d secretly nted some blood nts in his back room. As the results of earlier studies performed by the organization, the nts could only provide low-quality Blood of God.

    Therefore, his progress in training had been very slow.

    The outbreak of the blood disaster hadrgely boosted his training and now he was vering after the blood crystals. Having taken several blood crystals, he saw his blood trace begin to agglomerate. As long as the agglomeration could bepleted sessfully, he could be a formal member of the organization instead of a peripheral.

    He had to think up a solution.

    He knew of Ai Hui. In the current Central Pine City, few people didn¡¯t know of him. As the mayor kept advertising the brilliant achievements of the A-1 Unit, the team members, including Ai Hui and Shi Xueman, had be well-known. Even the Vanguard Training Hall was no longer a secret.

    People admired the huge rewards they got and worshipped their achievements and fighting skills.

    Ai Hui seemed to feel his gaze and turned towards him. Yan Hai immediately lowered his head. When he looked up again, Ai Hui¡¯s attention had already returned to the battlefield.

    Not in the mood to watch their fight, Yan Hai lowered his head and left quietly.

    He¡¯d just seen Ai Hui¡¯s amazing fighting skills and knew that he was definitely not Ai Hui¡¯s match, but that didn¡¯t mean that there was nothing he could do. Although his blood trace hadn¡¯t fully agglomerated, thanks to the unparalleled techniques of the organization, he possessed some unique capacities.

    He walked fast. It would not be long before the battle came to an end, after which Ai Hui and his teammates would return to the Vanguard Training Hall. If he could not make it to the Vanguard Training Hall before them, his n couldn¡¯t be carried out.

    He walked past the ruins and the empty streets. Now this city was either in battle or in ruins. He could see hardly any people on the streets.

    The smoke rising from the ruins made the scene more deste and unfamiliar.

    Yan Hai gave it a nce. He had been living in this small city for five years and had never seen anything like this before. The cause of all the aftermath was what he was going after. While thinking of these things, he felt a bit ufortable in his heart.

    But these emotions were meaningless. He soon forgot about them.

    Everyone had to live for themselves. Who could care so much?

    His gaze became crazily ardent again. This was only a temporary pain!

    Only death could bring new life. Only by burning everything could he destroy the ungodliness in the world.

    And only by destroying the decayed Avalon of Five Elements could a real, new empire be built.

    He had spent five years here and was very familiar with the city. It didn¡¯t take him much effort to find the Vanguard Training Hall.

    As soon as he arrived, he was stunned to see the totally different Vanguard Training Hall which had be like a hedgehog-shaped fortress. Then he remembered that there was an earth-attribute student in Ai Hui¡¯s team and that this new appearance was likely to have been made by him.

    He listened for a while at the door and confirmed that no one was in the training hall. Acent smile appeared on his face and he took a soybean-sized seed out of his pocket.

    He was disguised as a wood elementalist because that was what he had been before joining the organization. Although he hadn¡¯t made much progress in terms of blood training over the past five years, he¡¯d still figured out some usages of the blood spiritual force.

    The seed in his hand was the fruit of his hard work.

    The green surface of the seed was touched with a thin red streak. It was a fescue seed that he¡¯d modified using blood spiritual force. Fescue was amon kind of grass with strong reproductive abilities. It could be seen almost anywhere as long as there was soil. This kind of grass had a strong vitality and could take root and grow even in the gaps between bricks or on roof titles.

    The reason why he¡¯d chosen fescue was that it was inconspicuous. No one would notice if there was one more fescue in their yard.

    He threw the fescue into the courtyard of the training hall.

    Fatty had a long dream in which Lou Lan said that bathing in theva could train his fire elemental energy, so Ai Hui kicked him into theva at once.

    ......

    And then he kept bathing...

    Then he woke up from his dream and felt soreness all over his body, like he had really been bathing for a long time.

    Breathing heavily, Fatty looked around and was relieved only when his saw that it was his own room. Good thing that there was nova river!

    He thought it was sad that the reason why he¡¯d had such a dream must have been because of how the cold-blooded training maniac Ai Hui was giving him too many training tasks every day, which made training a haunting memory for him.

    ...

    Wait... no...

    Fatty noticed the hollow cockleburs on the floor and suddenly remembered what he¡¯d done. His face turned pale at once.

    He¡¯d drunk the chili fire oil!

    ...It was frightening that he¡¯d dared to drink the chili fire oil.

    Fatty was shocked with himself, but the next minute he began to feel proud about it. This proved that he was a real man. He made up his mind that, in the future, if he made a bet with Ai Hui, he would bet on nothing but drinking chili fire oil.

    Ai Hui would definitely not dare to do so.

    Fatty was proud that he could win against Ai Hui in some aspect. His whole life was now full of sunshine.

    When he strutted out of the room, he was surprised to see nobody in the courtyard. Where was everybody? Fatty¡¯s expression changed. Did they go out to fight without him? How long had he been sleeping?

    He hastily rushed to his heavy shield on the weapons shelf. All he knew was that if Ai Hui had any idents, he would fall on hard times.

    He grabbed the heavy shield with his big palm and was about to rush out when he felt that the shield seemed to be lighter than before.

    Right at that moment, something fell on his head.

    What?

    Fatty felt weird and looked around. There was nothing on the floor. Then, was it on his helmet? He took down the Central Pine Helmet from his head and saw grass on it ¨C it was fescue, amon kind of grass.

    How could a bit of grass fall on his head? It should have been something like a stone, not a bit of grass.

    Fatty was confused. When he was about to pull it out, a flower grew from the grass. Fatty was stunned again. How amazing it was to see a weed blossom just before his eyes at a speed he could see.

    Moreover, in the middle of the flower there was the pattern of an eye.

    Eye?

    Fatty¡¯s eyes lit up. Maybe this was a mutated fescue. This made sense to him. Fatty had been with Ai Hui in Wilderness for years and had seen countless nts, but none of the fescue had been like this.

    nts that had mutated were always valuable. Wood elementalists loved to collect and purchase mutated nts with which they could cultivate new species.

    Good! Anything that could be sold for a good price was good!

    Then Fatty became a bit upset. Since they were currently in a blood disaster, nothing could be sold for a good price.

    Hmm? Why was the eye moving?

    Fatty and the eye on the fescue looked at each other and both of them were stunned.

    This made Fatty¡¯s flesh creep and he immediately realized what had happened. Throwing away the helmet in his hand, he dashed out of the training hall.

    Yan Hai stood outside of the Vanguard Training Hall, confident in himself. As soon as the seed fell on the ground, it would take root and sprout. As he¡¯d expected, it did not take long before he could feel the seed begin to grow. Then after a while, feeling the weak fluctuation, he knew the fescue had blossomed.

    The blood spiritual force began to flow to his right eye, in which his vision turned all red. After a minute, the redness faded away and what he could see in front of him was a brand-new sight.

    Yet in his sight there was a person¡¯s big, fat face, and this guy was looking at him with agitation.

    What happened?

    Yan Hai paused for a while, then realized that someone was in the training hall! Damn it! Right at this second, he and Fatty looked each other in the eye and he clearly saw that the guy over there was like a cat that had sensed danger and stood its hair on end.

    No!

    Yan Hai¡¯s face turned pale. He couldn¡¯t care too much and immediately turned back to run out madly.

    "Stop!"

    Fatty¡¯s growl came from behind. Yan Hai didn¡¯t dare to look back and ran even faster.

    With the heavy shield and the armor, Fatty could not move fast and the distance between the two became farther and farther. Rage rising in his heart, Fatty threw away the shield in his hand and put his fists behind his back.

    Boom!

    Roaring fire erupted from his fists. It was fiercer than he¡¯d expected.

    He felt like he¡¯d been thrust forward by a wagon. Under the huge force, his head and neck were thrown back and his body was directly lifted up from the ground and pushed to the end of thene at an incredible speed.

    Fatty¡¯s fat face went pale.

    ......

    The fire and the speed... were a bit weird...

    There was nothing he could do but watch the guy¡¯s back get closer and closer. Without any reaction, he bumped into him like an out of control, fully-loaded transport wagon.

 Chapter 200: Painful Truth

    Chapter 200: Painful Truth

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X

    At the Vanguard Training Hall.

    Fatty was vividly telling them what had happened.

    "... I immediately realized what happened¨Csomeone was out there. It must be a thief! I shouted loudly and rushed out. The thief was running to the entrance of thene, so I just threw away the shield and ran after him. Since he was running extraordinarily fast, and I had no time to take off my armor, I decided to use my [Deadly Fire Dash], the speed of which, you know, is superb... But the thief was very cunning. He bounced himself away with the force of my collision. Then, I was tripped by a stone and fell on the ground. Humph! That guy must be having a hard time too. His bones must have been broken..."

    "That means you didn¡¯t catch him?" Lou Lan winked.

    "I did," Fatty said seriously and shrugged, "and then he escaped."

    ...

    Ai Hui did not hear their conversation, but stared at the fescue on the helmet. He knew somethings about nts, but had never seen a fescue like this. He put the grass beneath his nose and smelled slight fragrance.

    He looked grave.

    When he heard Fatty mention a thief, the first thing he thought about was whether the message tree was being targeted. The origins of both the message tree and the old prisoner were mysteries. As mortal enemies, the "Blood of God" group was very likely to be covertly looking for them.

    Maybe there were undercover spies from the Blood of God in the city?

    "Anything unusual?" Shi Xueman walked to his side.

    The smile on her face indicated her pleasant mood. The fighting today was smoother than she expected. More importantly, no one died or got injured, which made her very delighted.

    "No." Ai Hui shook his head. "There¡¯s the smell of the blood poison, but it¡¯s not strong."

    He passed the fescue to Shi Xueman.

    The spread of blood poison was already hard to resist and had created therge poption of blood ants. Sshes of poisonous blood could easily and severely infect nearby nts. The mayor had sent people to eliminate the infected nts, which led to the elimination of all nts at ater stage.

    Thanks to the quick response of the mayor, the spread of the blood poison was now much slower than in the wild. Consequently, this slower propagation led to less severe disasters.

    Shi Xueman took a nce and saw nothing special either.

    Ai Hui was afraid that the fescue carried the blood poison and asked Fatty to incinerate it.

    "Great progress, huh! Six pces already?" Ai Hui looked at Fatty up and down and was a bit surprised.

    "That¡¯s because I¡¯m talented!" Fatty tried to pretend to be calm, but the smile on his face and his narrowed eyes exposed thecency in his heart.

    "Good!" Ai Hui said admiringly and turned to Shi Xueman. "It seems that he hasn¡¯t adapted to his current state. Any idea how to help him?"

    Ai Hui knew that Shi Xueman was experienced in this aspect. She was better than the others here in terms of training knowledge.

    "No one can adapt instantly," said Shi Xueman before giving a rational suggestion. "I did see simr cases before. After one spends some time at their new level, he or she can get adapted naturally. For now, I suggest that Fatty undertakes some specially designed training, such as covering the surface of a shield with mes and keeping it steady for as long as possible¨Cat least two minutes."

    Ai Hui believed it was a good idea. Fatty¡¯s advantage was his strength. If the shield he used was ame, it would definitely be a great help to them.

    "Lou Lan, watch Fatty. 200 sets of [ming Shield]," Ai Hui said.

    "No problem, Ai Hui!" Lou Lan replied cheerfully.

    Fatty¡¯s heart shivered and he screamed, "Ai Hui, why don¡¯t you just kill me? 200! How can I have so much elemental energy?"

    Lou Lan said happily, "I have an idea! You can eat more hot peppers. You are sensitive and have a high affinity to fire elemental energy. You can replenish your elemental energy by eating hot peppers. This can improve your physique too. We have enough hot peppers in store."

    Fatty red at Lou Lan like he wanted to kill the sand puppet with his eyes and said woefully, "Lou Lan! Why do you always set me up! The Fire Enhancing Soup, the Dragon Soup, and the chili fire oil... I, I..."

    Ai Hui stopped Fatty from howling and said decisively, "Good. Let¡¯s just do it this way. Lou Lan, 200 sets."

    "No problem, Ai Hui!" Lou Lan took the mission happily.

    Leaving the howling Fatty behind, Ai Hui walked to the message tree and connected the leaf hanging around his neck back to the tree. He thought for a while, then began to write something down.

    "I¡¯m grateful to be able to contact you. We just killed a blood-traced ant today. Its blood traces were very vague. What¡¯s special is that its blood can crystallize, and we call the gem-like product blood crystal. For the moment, we don¡¯t know if it¡¯s of any use. The bad news: someone seems to be following us."

    He sat under the tree and waited for the other¡¯s reply.

    From time to time, the light of breakthrough appeared among the students who were in training. Nothing could train people or unleash their potential like a real fight.

    Ai Hui, who was sitting under that tree, did not attract their attention. He had done this many times, and they were already used to it.

    "I¡¯m d to know that you are still alive. The blood traces of blood fiends is directly rted to how strong they are. The clearer the blood traces are, the stronger they are. As to the blood crystal, I think I know. To a blood elementalist, the blood crystal is like elemental food to us or the spirit stone of the Cultivation Era. It contains an abundant amount of blood spiritual force that can greatly improve the training speed of blood elementalists. I suspect that the reason why the blood fiends were created is to provide blood crystals. I have not tested it before, so I cannot tell you if an elementalist can use blood crystals. If someone is watching you secretly, you need to contact me less. Please protect yourself. It is not possible for the blood disaster to end within a short period of time. Only by staying alive can you have the chance to do anything."

    Ai Hui read it carefully. Then, he picked up the leaf and again wore it around his neck.

    His movements were at ease and he looked just as calm as usual, but he was actually so shocked that his heart was like a stormy sea.

    The conjectures of the old prisoner stunned him, but his mind told him that maybe this was the real purpose of the Blood of God.

    Producing the blood nts was for the blood training of the blood fiends, which could produce blood crystals. Therefore, whether it was blood fiends or blood nts, they were all materials to make blood crystals.

    Oh, elementalists were also included...

    Blood ants ate elementalists to transform, after which the blood traces appeared and they grew into blood-traced ants which could produce blood crystals.

    Ai Hui felt chilled. He sensed that he had just lifted the veil of the disaster and saw the frightening truth underneath.

    How crazy and cold-blooded were they to have such horrible ideas and to create such disastrous blood poison.

    He sat on the floor, looking absent-minded.

    "Are you okay?" Shi Xueman was concerned.

    Ai Hui had been sitting nkly under the tree for about 10 minutes, which attracted her attention. She had never seen such an expression on Ai Hui¡¯s face before. It was abination of fear, loss, and unease.

    Ai Hui was brought back to reality. "It¡¯s nothing."

    Then he suddenly asked, "Aren¡¯t you afraid?"

    "Afraid?" Shi Xueman paused for a while. "Yes, I was at the very beginning. Now, I¡¯m much better. It¡¯s useless to be afraid. It¡¯s a life-or-death fight anyway. I don¡¯t need to think too much."

    Ai Hui was suddenly enlightened and discarded his fear.

    Yes, it was a life-or-death fight from the very beginning. Maybe they were regarded as materials, but so what? The enemies were strong and crazy, but so what?

    Give up fighting and surrender? Leave themselves at the mercy of the enemies and wait to be killed?

    There was no difference!

    Ai Hui patted Shi Xueman¡¯s shoulder unconsciously and said, "Iron Lady has an iron heart."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s body froze when Ai Hui put his hand on her shoulder, but after hearing his words, her face turned dark.

    Iron Lady...

    Ai Hui also realized what he said. Heughed embarrassedly and ran away as fast as he could.

    .....

    In the Jade Embroidery Workshop.

    Han Yuqin read through the draft carefully.

    It waspletely quiet in the workshop. The mayor and the dean sat in front of her, not daring to make the slightest noise.

    She caressed the paper as if it was her husband¡¯s face. Every letter on the paper was the fruit of his sweat and blood, and they shined brightly in her eyes.

    She was a bit crazy.

    Why was she attracted by him? Why couldn¡¯t she move her eyes away from him? Why did she give herself to him? Why had she never regretted her decision even though he had been ordinary throughout his life?

    The reasons were in each letter of this draft.

    She read every word of it carefully, then passed it to the mayor. "Just do as it says."

    Her voice was calm, but indubitable.

    "No problem!"

    Mayor Wang Zhen and the dean agreed at the same time. Master Han was now theirst hope.

    Wang Zhen added, "Please feel free to let us know if you need anything."

    "I¡¯m afraid it will take a long time to make all the things that are required." Han Yuqin replied calmly, "I will also need to iste from the world to be well prepared. Please notify me after all the key points are arranged."

    "Yes." They walked out of the room at once.

    "Mingxiu, I will now enter istion. You will watch over for me," Han Yuqin said.

    "Yes, master," Mingxiu said softly. She felt a bit uneasy for no reason.

    Wang Zhen and the dean flew back to the mayor¡¯s residence at the fastest speed and could not wait to read the draft. After finishing, their faces lit up.

    "Wonderful design! This is absolutely wonderful! Unbelievable! Really unbelievable! Shouchuan is a great talent." The dean was too excited to talk inplete sentences. There were many details that he did not really understand, but he knew the n was very likely to seed.

    Although Han Yuqin had previously promised them, they had just regarded it as another doubtful attempt, which was barely better than nothing. They did not have high hopes for it.

    Only after they saw the draft did they realize that this n was promising!

    There was nothing more exciting than hope amid despair.

    The dean calmed down from his excitement. He stared at theplicated design on the paper and was a bit concerned. "I¡¯m not sure whether we can make all these. They are all tooplicated. Let¡¯s ask the craftsmen?"

    "We have to!" Wang Zhen said decisively. "Call all the craftsmen together. We don¡¯t have much time, so we will do it as fast as we can!"

    All of Central Pine City was embroiled in hard work.

 Chapter 201: Dragonspine Infernoâ€™s Change

    Chapter 201: Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s Change

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    "Lou Lan, any findings?" Ai Hui asked in anticipation.

    The reason he was so adamant about bringing the blood crystal back was because he had the capable Lou Lan. Perhaps Lou Lan would find something.

    "Sorry, there¡¯s none, Ai Hui." Lou Lan shook his head. "This type of crystal body is different from all that I have seen to date. It has lost its toxicity and transformed into a very strange type of force, perhaps the blood spiritual force you were talking about, but there are no records of such force in my sand core. Ai Hui, apletely new material requires a lot of time and research before we can understand its use."

    Ai Hui was a little disappointed, but thinking about it, this was nothing strange. The mayor¡¯s people would have found something long ago if it was that easy.

    "Don¡¯t be sorry, Lou Lan. You¡¯re already very capable. Everyone respects and likes you," Ai Hui said sincerely.

    "Really?" Lou Lan opened his eyes wide, unable to believe Ai Hui¡¯s words.

    "Of course!" Ai Hui shouted suddenly, "Tell me, everyone. Is Lou Lan good? Who likes Lou Lan?"

    "Of course he¡¯s good!"

    "Lou Lan¡¯s the best sand puppet!"

    "I love you, Lou Lan!"

    "Lou Lan, I want to bring you home!"

    ...

    Lou Lan fell into a short daze before smiling widely, his eyes forming two crescent moons. He replied cheerily, "Lou Lan loves everybody too!"

    Excited, Lou Lan turned into a sand wheel. "Lou Lan healthcare is here!"

    Poof! The sand wheel dispersed,nding on and rolling around everyone¡¯s back.

    "Hahhaha, so ticklish!"

    "Hahaha!"

    ...

    Looking at everyone having fun, Ai Hui¡¯s cold gaze softened significantly. Ai Hui had never forgotten Lou Lan¡¯s words: "Who would remember a sand puppet?"

    A lot of people will remember you, Lou Lan.

    Ai Hui thought to himself.

    Shi Xueman shook her head rather helplessly. The training n she had formted for everyone had been disrupted by Ai Hui, but she could not bear to disrupt the scene of jubtion before her eyes short.

    The cruel nightly battles, witnessing herrades¡¯ deaths, and constant life-threatening situations were like an icy cold sky enveloped by dark smog. There was no ce to run. Everyone gritted their teeth and fought for survival.

    The frolicking students served as a sudden reminder that they were still a bunch of kids.

    She automatically looked toward Ai Hui and saw the coldness and bleakness in his eyes warm up, as if the sky was colored by sunlight.

    She was startled. It was her first time seeing such warmth radiating from Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Detecting a watching gaze, Ai Hui turned his neck. Seeing that it was Iron Lady, he hesitated for a little while, muttering to himself, "Should I say it?"

    "What do you want to say," Shi Xueman blurted out. When she finished her sentence, she felt slightly embarassed.

    "I¡¯ll say it then." Ai Hui walked directly toward Shi Xueman with a stern expression on his face, as if he had just made an important decision.

    Inexplicably, Shi Xueman grew nervous. She tried hard to remain calm and undisturbed, but her heart rate started to increase.

    Ai Hui walked to Shi Xueman¡¯s side before saying softly, "Uh... Iron... uh, goddess..."

    In Shi Xueman¡¯s book, "goddess" was a most ordinary word. From a young age, she had lost track of the number of people who called her that. Even within the team, everyone called her that. She knew that thispliment was based more on her appearance and was neither disgusted with nor fond of it.

    Yet, somehow, hearing Ai Hui address her as "goddess" made her heart beat even faster. Thud thud thud. The sound seemed to echo within her chest.

    "I¡¯ve saved your life a few times after all," Ai Hui said with a reserved look on his face. "As the saying goes, repay your life-saver with money. I¡¯m not ckmailing you, but we¡¯ve had our fatal encounters. It will be unreasonable for me to ask for much, so you can just..."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face was as ck as the bottom of a pot. She pointed her Cirrus directly at Ai Hui, frigidly goading him. "Let¡¯s have a match!"

    "Let¡¯s talk things over!" Ai Huiughed. "Where there¡¯s no business, there¡¯spassion. Hahaha, forget it if it¡¯s not possible. Forget it, hahaha..."

    Fighting with Iron Lady? Only if his brain was abnormal would he do something so silly, Ai Hui thought.

    Under Shi Xueman¡¯s angry gaze, Ai Hui slipped into a room, dejected.

    Sigh, his money-making dream was about to be shattered.

    It was not easy to earn money!

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell on the crystal on the table. He could not help butment the hardships of life. He had collected the blood crystal in hopes of making some money ,but it looked like that hope was shattered as well.

    As Ai Hui yed around with the blood crystal in his hand, he subconsciously ced his attention onto it.

    A ga luster had emerged from within the pure, translucent, and sparkling blood crystal. If examined closely, one would see a very fine crimson blood wisp. The blood crystal was solid and heavy. When knocked against the table, it made a sound simr to that of a stone.

    What surprised Ai Hui the most was the fact that the blood crystal had no odor, while the blood poison had a distinct fragrance.

    Lou Lan said the blood crystal was not toxic.

    It was very difficult to imagine that this red gem was actually made from fresh blood. This series of unimaginable changes made Ai Hui fear the Blood of God even more.

    The Blood of God was so subversive, and "genius" was no longer sufficient to describe the person who created all of this.

    No wonder the old fellows were beaten so badly.

    Recalling the old man¡¯s words, that the blood crystal contained blood spiritual force, jolted him. Perhaps he could try his Blood Bandage? He tried touching the blood crystal to the Blood Bandage and was disappointed by the Blood Bandage¡¯sck of reaction.

    Could it be that it was still full from its previous meal?

    After the blood refinement, the blood bandage seemed to have lost interest in the blood poison. Ai Hui knew that there must have been some changes that urred, but he did not know how to use the Blood Bandage. It merely served as a defensive tool for him at the moment. He had used its natural ability to resist sword injuries, saving himself from quite a few harmful incidents.

    Blood spiritual force... spiritual force?

    What else was associated with spiritual force? The sword embryo? Ai Hui did not dare to absorb the blood crystal because if something went wrong, even angels would not be able to save him.

    What else could he do about it?

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. Dragonfire Inferno!

    Seven artifact remnants were embedded in Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s sword body. What are artifact remnants? They were remnants of treasures and artifacts from the Cultivation Era. The remnants could not be corroded by the Silver Mist Sea. Since they were artifacts and treasures from Cultivation Era, they were rted to spiritual force

    Everyone either called them artifact remnants or ocean dregs, which reflected the two types of attitudes that people had regarding them. Ai Hui still preferred the name "artifact remnants" since they were able to survive thousands of years of corrosion. While they might not have much use, there was no doubt that these artifacts were of superb quality.

    Ai Hui held Dragonspine Inferno up.

    The seven red prismatic crystals were arranged in a row on its body.

    The prismatic crystals on the sword and the blood crystals were all red, but they carried very different color and luster. The prismatic crystals¡¯ shapes were more orderly, whereas the blood crystals¡¯ shapes were not structured at all.

    Due to the fact that the prismatic crystals were fished out from Silver Mist Sea, their origin was unknown and untraceable. Judging from their luster, however, they probably came from the same artifact.

    Ai Hui tried cing the blood crystal near the first prismatic crystal near the sword hilt.

    Bzzt!

    A wisp of electric current zapped through the blood crystal, numbing Ai Hui¡¯s fingertips.

    Ai Hui, however, could not care less about his tingling fingers. He stared at the sword body with his eyes wide open, fearing that he might miss some detail.

    The ga blood crystal started to melt into a pool of fresh blood before flowing and extending along the sword body. A small, distinct motion captured Ai Hui¡¯s attention.

    Was this spiritual force?

    The entire sword body was dipped in the red blood crystal liquid, which slowly seeped into the prismatic crystal.

    Bzzt bzzt bzzt!

    Tiny electric currents hovered around the sword body.

    The prismatic crystal was like an insatiably hungry and thirsty wild beast, absorbing the blood crystal liquid nonstop.

    When thest wisp of ga liquid entered the prismatic crystal, a stronger electric current flickered quickly from the first to thest prismatic crystal with a "bzzt" sound.

    When the electric current disappeared, Dragonspine Inferno became quiet once more.

    Ai Hui stared nkly before him at Dragonspine Inferno The smile at the corner of his lips grew bigger. He could no longer control himself andughed heartily with his head tilting up.

    "Hahaha..."

    Some timeter, after Ai Hui recovered himself, he inspected his sword meticulously.

    The once red prismatic crystal faded into a lighter color. If not for the fact that AI Hui was extremely familiar with his Dragonspine Inferno, this subtle change would not have been easy to detect. Moving closer, Ai Hui found a wisp of electric current. It was very fine and could only be seen after taking a closer look. It was present and frozen within each crystal, coincidentally forming a straight line.

    Only after staring at it carefully for a long time did Ai Hui notice that this wisp of electric current flowed back and forth, through and within the seven prismatic crystals. Since its speed was too fast, it gave the impression that it connected all of the prismatic crystals.

    Surprised, Ai Hui eximed inwardly, "How?"

    The seven prismatic crystals were not connected from the first to thest, but instead, each crystal had a considerable distance between them and the sword body was between them. Yet, this hair-like wisp of electric current was able to flow back and forth, disregarding the gaps.

    So this was an artifact from the Cultivation Era?

    How magical! Ai Hui could not help but feel fascinated. Whenpared to the Cultivation Era¡¯s glory, the Avalon of Five Elements today was merely a newborn.

    He jumped up, grabbed his Dragonspine Inferno and waved it around.

    No changes.

    He tried executing the [Oblique sh] and the sword body lit up. Concurrently, a wisp of electricity shed once within the sword ray before disappearing.

    It was effective indeed!

    Ai Hui was beyond happy. If the sword move carried electricity, it would be like a tiger that had grown wings. His fingers had been slightly numbed from the previous shock. Although the paralysis was not severe, it still worked. In an intense battle, any small changes could break the equilibrium.

    Possessing rich battle experience, Ai Hui had already thought of a few ways of using the electric current. Plus, from this transformation process, Ai Hui believed that if there were more blood crystals, the electric current could be more powerful.

    He tried another move.

    He wanted to observe how his Dragonspine Inferno would change if he operated his elemental energy to power his sword move.

    Was there anything more suitable than the [Crescent Moon]?

    He held onto Dragonspine Inferno and walked into the garden, where everyone had already resumed training.

    Ai Hui said in a deep voice, "I¡¯m going to test a move, please move away for a bit."

    Fatty reacted the fastest. Seizing the opportunity to ck off, he quickly found himself a spot at the corner while hugging his heavy shield.

    Everyone then stopped practicing and moved to the sides.

    All eyes were focused on Ai Hui and the sword in his hands.

 Chapter 202: Yan Haiâ€™s Losses

    Chapter 202: Yan Hai¡¯s Losses

    Trantor: Irene Editor: CakeHermit

    Yan Hai advanced in the darkness, half his body dully aching.

    The impact from that collision earlier had nearly caused his whole body to fall apart. Quite a few bones were broken. If not for his strong recovery ability, he would still be confined to his bed, paralyzed.

    His blood spiritual force was still shallow but his recovery ability already exceeded that of others. Thinking about the mystical skills set his heart on fire. If he could establish enough contributions, he could possess those mystical skills.

    He must have that blood crystal.

    Tonight was hisst chance. There was a mission the next day and everyone within the city had to battle, him included. Plus, his disguise was still useful for him.

    He did not enter upon arriving at the alleyway of Vanguard Training Hall. The ident from earlier had taught him that he couldn¡¯t afford to make the least bit of a mistake. The A-1 unit¡¯s strength exceeded his imagination. He couldn¡¯t defeat any one of them.

    He needed the blood crystal, not a battle.

    There were many ways to gain possession of the blood crystals, and battling was just one of them.

    He took out a small g; its face was badly damaged and its pole was left with only half a bone. On its face was a little demon painted with cinnabar. This was an object he had gotten hold of unintentionally while training. He had not known what it was initially, but after much researching and consulting of friends with rted experience, he found out that this small g was actually a spirit-beckoning banner.

    During the Cultivation Era, the spirit-beckoning banner was the mostmon treasure within the blood sects. It was generally used to train spirits, blood demons, and the like.

    It could develop a certain connection with the blood spiritual force within his body.

    As time passed, the spirit-beckoning banner became dpidated. To Yan Hai, however, it was still an outstanding treasure. It was also because of this that he realized the artifact remnants from the Cultivation Era were of use to him. Later on, hemittedly searched every ce that collected artifact remnants, but failed to find anything else he could use.

    He took out a small knife and slit his own arm, making a shocking cut.

    Fresh blood dripped on the banner in a steady flow and disappeared upon contact with it. The little cinnabar demon on the g then started to look more tender, beautiful, and alluring.

    Following the unceasing blood flow, Yan Hai¡¯s face turned rather pale.

    Suddenly, a red blood mist rose from the spirit-beckoning banner and amidst it, a faint and blurry little demon could be seen.

    Joy spread across Yan Hai¡¯s pale face. He sat cross-legged on the ground and shut his eyes.

    The silhouette of the little demon gradually faded and disappeared.

    This was his biggest card and also where his confidencey tonight. Able to conceal itself, the little demon was more than suitable for theft. If he could get the blood crystal, this amount of fresh blood sacrifice wasn¡¯t even worth mentioning.

    The little demon¡¯s field of vision was gray, ice-cold, and still. Yan Hai was adept in controlling it since it wasn¡¯t his first time.

    It drifted over the wall. Yan Hai saw everyone standing in a circle with Ai Hui in the center. He could see clearly as he was looking from above.

    He felt slightly puzzled. What were these fellows doing?

    He scanned the surroundings but did not see the blood crystal. To the little demon, the blood crystal was of great benefit. It was like a torchlight in the dark, very conspicuous.

    Then, all of a sudden, a wave of intense motion burst out from Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Not good! Had he been discovered?

    Yan Hai¡¯s heart started beating faster, but he tried hard to remain calm. That shouldn¡¯t be the case. The little demon beckoned by the banner had no elemental energy motion. It was impossible for even the dean of Central Pine Academy to detect its presence.

    He reckoned Ai Hui was about to test a skill or something.

    Yan Hai became more focused. Ai Hui hadn¡¯t disyed any moves since the start of the day, so he was also very curious about Ai Hui¡¯s abilities.

    Ai Hui was very excited.

    He did not expect the blood crystal to be able to activate the artifact remnants on the Dragonspine Inferno. The artifact remnants would cease to be. If the blood crystals could stimte certain treasures, then the remnants left in the Silver Mist Sea which had once been considered trash would be much more valuable. Their prices would also increase exponentially.

    It was a pity he had no money to start a business. Or? He could contact his master and mistress and perhaps earn more money at the embroidery workshop. Then again, he quickly startedughing involuntarily. He might not even survive this cmity, so why was he thinking about earning money?

    He should further develop his Dragonspine Inferno instead. As its power increased, his chances of survival increased as well. Plus, it could be seen that the Dragonspine Inferno was still far from reaching its limit. That meant that he needed more blood crystals, since the sword had more potential to improve.

    Ai Hui collected his thoughts.

    He was already fairly familiar with [Crescent Moon]. Using [Big Dipper] to operate it was the challenge.

    The seven pces within his body vibrated simultaneously and out of them flowed seven rays of elemental energy. Ai Hui prepared to converge them.

    Just then, without any sign, the sword embryo between his brows suddenly jolted.

    An indescribable feeling overtook Ai Hui¡¯s body. Cold. From head to toe, he felt a sense of coldness. His joy and excitement vanished as he became immersed in this unprecedented, cool state.

    Feeling something, Ai Hui turned his neck and walked towards the perimeter wall.

    There was clearly nothing, but he "saw" a mist-like presence.

    He didn¡¯t know what it was and could only feel its enmity.

    The elemental energy circting within his body became even fuller and richer. Before, Ai Hui had needed to multitask in order to control it, but now, everything went on naturally and smoothly.

    Ai Hui drew a graceful trajectory in the sky with the Dragonspine Inferno. At that moment, in the eyes of Shi Xueman and the rest, he was like apletely different person.

    He was merely waving the sword in his hand, but every movement was so co-ordinated and aesthetically pleasing that it brought about a casual freeness.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes lit up as she recalled the first time she saw Ai Hui¡¯s swordy. He wasn¡¯t bad then, but now he was bing and feeling more like an expert.

    Only after seeing for herself how he had changed bit by bit did she really understand how fearsome Ai Hui was.

    What was even more shocking was that each time Duanmu Huanghun felt pleased about his own progress, Ai Hui would quickly deal a blow to him. He¡¯d thought that his progress was already very speedy but Ai Hui¡¯s was even quicker.

    Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s grandeur, Duanmu Huanghun couldn¡¯t help but clench his fist.

    You¡¯ve already grown so much?

    How great! How exciting!

    Having such a strong rival like you is my greatest honor. I won¡¯t make you wait too long!

    Duanmu Huanghun felt his blood boil. Unprecedented battlelust agitated his body like raging mes, causing it to tremble slightly.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui struck out.

    The Dragonspine Inferno in Ai Hui¡¯s hand drew a bow-like crescent moon.

    The curvy sword ray shed across the sky, matchlessly fast.

    When Ai Hui looked towards him, Yan Hai jolted inwardly. He had been found! There was no time for him to figure out why and he quickly decided to turn and leave.

    Before he could take any action, a dazzling light ray rose and a strong fear overtook him. The little demon turned to leave, no longer under control. He knew that this was the demon¡¯s instinctive fear, as if there was something within the light ray that it was very afraid of.

    A crescent moon came towards him at breakneck speed.

    It was so fast that all he saw was a quick sh of light before feeling something run through his body.

    Closely after, a numbness spread throughout his body.

    He looked down and saw a hole in his chest area. A bright light ray flickered around its edges and like a dark me consuming a piece of paper, it continued burning non-stop.

    Was that... lightning?

    Yan Hai nkly stared at the silver light ray, extending and spreading unceasingly.

    He knew now why the little demon was so afraid. During the Cultivation Era, the undead, ghosts, and the like feared the sound of thunder most. Thunder and lightning were regarded as one of the most masculine forces between heaven and earth. It was the evil spirits¡¯ mortal enemy.

    But, why was there lightning?

    There was no lightning in the Avalon of Five Elements. Amongst metal, wood, water, fire, and earth, only water elementalists were associated with lightning. Their clouds and mists could develop lightning. The lightning between heaven and earth was then affected by clouds. Its violence and destructive force entered people¡¯s field of vision very early. Countless water elementalists had tried creating lightning, but until today, they were still unsessful in using lightning in battle.

    Lightning in the Cultivation World was entirely different. They were given a special name ¨C "Thunder Stars". There were many types of Thunder Stars. Blood refinement had Thunder Stars as well, such as the Scarlet Blood Thundergod and the like.

    But the Cultivation World was long gone. People today were no longer able to imagine what sort of existence the so-called Thunder Stars had been in the past.

    No, not lightning, but Thunder Stars!

    Yan Hai did not know why but this thought surfaced within his head and did not disappear.

    He stared firmly at the Dragonspine Inferno in Ai Hui¡¯s hand and when he saw the prismatic crystals on it, he finally understood. Artifact Remnants!

    But how did Ai Hui activate them? Probably not... by using blood crystals, right?

    The heart-wrenching pain caused Yan Hai to withdraw from the little demon¡¯s body and a small wisp of electric current continued to corrode its body. The little demon was like a piece of paper, slowly being eaten up by a dark me until there was nothing left.

    Yan Hai opened his eyes and disgorged a mouthful of fresh blood, his face a few shades paler.

    The spirit-beckoning banner in front of himbusted spontaneously without any fire. He couldn¡¯t extinguish it in time so the banner was reduced to ashes. Even the bone, serving as the g¡¯s pole, was no more.

    Yan Hai looked far into the alleyway in bitter resentment before turning to leave.

    He had lost a lot today. His one and only treasure was gone and he was also injured. Aspared to the blow he was dealt in the day, this psychological damage could not be repaired easily.

    Like an injured wolf, he disappeared into the night.

    In Vanguard Training Hall, everyone was discussing with excitement about how breathtaking Ai Hui¡¯s swordy was.

    The sword embryo between Ai Hui¡¯s brows fell into a deep sleep once again, and Ai Hui separated from that absolutely ice-cold state. He wondered what he had "seen" earlier. Why was the sword embryo¡¯s reaction so big? Did it sense danger?

    Ai Hui felt uneasy and immediately thought about the Blood of God. Thinking about the old prisoner, he wondered, had the Blood of God found him?

    That wouldn¡¯t be a good thing...

 Chapter 203: New Blood Fiends

    Chapter 203: New Blood Fiends

    Trantor: JL Editor: CakeHermit

    "Yan Hai, you arete." Team Leader was displeased.

    "I encountered a blood ant and sustained some internal injuries." Yan Hai exined.

    Although most of the blood ants in the city had been purged out, some blood ants still appeared sporadically and easily hurt people.

    Team Leader¡¯s face softened upon seeing Yan Hai¡¯s ghastly white face. "It¡¯s fine as long as you did not sustain any external injuries; if you had, I would have had to send you to istion. Everyone be more cautious. There are always some random blood ants. Our mission today is not very serious. The blood ants have been almost eliminated, we just need to keep guard on the underground tunnels. If any of us encounter any sneak attacks, send out a warning. Understood?"

    "Understood." The resounding answer was not unified. Everyone¡¯s morale was low.

    Team Leader did not say much as he was not in high spirits either. In the battle just yesterday, half of their troops were killed and only thirty-odd people managed to survive. While they had gotten more manpower, they still could not feel secure.

    It was like they were just sitting there awaiting death. It was depressing.

    Today they were standing guard at a small hill located in the west of the city. There were many tunnels there, courtesy of the blood ants. The mayor residence was helpless regarding all those underground tunnels. Even sealing up the tunnels was ineffective. What else could be used to ward off the blood ants?

    Everyone could only hope that the other blood fiends did not like to dig holes. The only fortunate part was that the blood ants had a small build. Thoserger blood fiends were unable to enter the tunnels which were as big as a fist. Nevertheless, there were still many potential threats. Some insects that were not toorge were still able to make use of the tunnel created by the blood ants to travel.

    The mayor residence had set up arge number of snares around the tunnels. Nobody knew if they would be able to hold back the blood fiends, so the vicinity of the tunnels was also guarded by people. Even if they were unable to hold back the blood fiends, they could at least warn the others.

    The small hill was positioned against the direction of the wind. Everyone hid in a corner where there was no wind.

    "Today is the fifth day, right?" Someone asked suddenly. "Are we really going to get reinforcements? Will it be another ten more days?"

    Everyone stayed silent. Nobody could answer this question and nobody dared to try.

    The mayor residence imed that the support troops would reach them after fifteen days. The higher-ups of the Avalon of Five Elements definitely wouldn¡¯t leave them in the lurch.

    Yan Hai turned his gaze towards the Team Leader.

    The two of them were neighbours and were on good rtions. When he¡¯d first arrived at Central Pine City, Team Leader had taken him under his wing. Out of all of Central Pine City, Team Leader was the one who he¡¯d want to survive.

    Yan Hai held Team Leader¡¯s conduct in high regards. Compared to his own timid and cowardly nature, he felt that Team Leader was better than him in many aspects. He did not have any talents and he had a weak temperament. Why else would he have been eliminated so early?

    He had thought more than once, perhaps he could influence Team Leader into bing a blood elementalist?

    He was slightly hesitant. He did not know if Team Leader would be willing to ept it.

    Yan Hai believed that the Blood of God was the best way to go. Given Team Leader¡¯s capability, he would be able to prove himself within the organization quickly; however, unlike him, Team Leader had a family to go back to.

    Yan Hai had been a member of Blood of God for a long period. He was clear of the boundary between the blood elementalists and the elementalists. Once the boundaryes between one and one¡¯s family, it would be the cruelest thing in the world.

    Some pain was worse than death.

    Unless it was as ast resort, he definitely wouldn¡¯t change Team Leader into a blood elementalist. Team Leader was a loyal and passionate person, aspects which were also his Achilles heel and might cause him more pain.

    He did not want Team Leader to me him, regardless of the reasons.

    The dead would be struggle-free while the living shoulder the burden. Sometimes, it was hard to determine which was better.

    "Have a good rest. I will take over," said Team Leader to Yan Hai.

    Yan Hai looked at Team Leader. He opened his mouth, but not a sound came out.

    Team Leader pat his shoulder and smiled at him.

    Having said that, he turned and walked to the vicinity of the tunnel entrance and sat down cross-legged.

    Yan Hai fell asleep amidst his thoughts. The little demon being beheaded had brought about a huge, negative impact on his state of mind.

    Suddenly, he was awakened by a mournful siren. He violently sprang up.

    "Be careful! Something is approaching!" Team Leader stood up and shouted the reminder.

    A ray of red light flew out from underground and passed through Team Leader¡¯s chest.

    "No!" Yan Han shrieked and his features twisted. He stood nkly. He saw the light going out of Team Leader¡¯s eyes. They became empty and his body dropped on the floor with a loud bang, sending dust flying up.

    The air was filled with endless miserable shrieks. Yan Hai could only turn a deaf ear to them. His pale and shrunken in face seemed to have lost its soul. He stared fixedly at Team Leader who was lying motionless on the floor.

    The red ray was like a strange sword ray. It was able to twist around freely in the air and was as fast as lightning.

    In a sh, the underground was filled with corpses.

    The red ray fell on the floor and surprisingly, it was a blood snake that was as thick as an arm. Its scales were red and it was covered with distinctive ck blood traces. Its blood red pupils did not have any hint of emotions. It stared at Yan Hai who was frozen in shock. A flicker of suspicion shed across its eyes. The prey in front it seemed to have the scent of their species.

    The blood snake fixed its attention on Yan Hai before catapulting and disappearing without a trace.

    .....

    The mournful siren was sounded simultaneously at a few ces in the city. It triggered everyone¡¯s nerves. They¡¯d just managed to suppress the blood ants and now there was a new surge of blood fiends.

    "We have no buffer time at all!" The dean wore a furious expression. "Five to seven days? Didn¡¯t you say they need five to seven days to transform? Damn it! The blood ants were attacking us from day one!"

    "This simply implies that we had misjudged them." Wang Zhen replied. "The current wave might possibly the first wave of thepleted transformation."

    "Attention! Six ces have issued the rm. The defending troops... were wiped out." The elementalist who came forward to make the report spoke with a trembling voice.

    Wang Zhen was silent for a moment before gravely saying, "What sort of blood fiend was it?"

    "Those that we could confirm right now would be blood snakes, blood rats, and blood butterflies," replied the elementalist.

    Wang Zhen muttered to himself, "The previous wave was all blood ants. It is a different type of fiend for this wave. It seems like every time theyplete a cycle of transformation, our pressure and stress increases. What about the blood traces?"

    "The blood traces were very distinct." The elementalist¡¯s eyes showed signs of fear. "They were even clearer than the traces on the blood ants."

    "Send the Elite Unit to hunt them down." Wang Zhen decided resolutely. Despite the worsening situation, he still held hope. He continued, "Group the students and the average masses. We need to have lookout posts in all the corners of the city. We need to know where exactly the blood fiends are located."

    "Yes!" The elementalists hurriedly replied.

    The Elite Unit was the nucleus of Central Pine City. It was the equivalent of the guards in the training hall. Compared to the average troops formed by the students and the masses, their capabilities were much stronger.

    The dean exhaled heavily. He knew Wang Zhen¡¯s original n. Wang Zhen initially predicted that he would only make use of the Elite Unit after nine days.

    It was four days earlier than they had intended.

    "Notify A-1 unit and have them prepare to attack." Wang Zhen suddenly said.

    "No!" The dean opposed. "They are still kids! Also, do not forget about their status!"

    Wang Zhen angrily said, "Status! Whatever status is not important now! Everyone has to participate in the battle! They have to battle, you have to battle, and I too have to battle. Everyone is fighting for themselves!"

    This was the first time the dean witnessed Wang Zhen flying into a rage. Yet, he replied calmly, "Do you think they arepetent enough?"

    The dean¡¯s calmness rubbed off on Wang Zhen¡¯s rage. He tried to tone down his temper and responded, "No idea. But I feel that they have potential. All along I have been paying attention to their progress. They are improving faster than we¡¯d expected and their adaptability is also better than we¡¯d thought. They are the best performing small team and also the team with the most potential. They might be the best hands we could have!"

    The dean was shocked. "You are going to bet on them?"

    "That¡¯s right." Wang Zhen continued gravely, "I have thought about all the possibilities. We are unable to get through the fifteen days. I only realised yesterday that there are only two variables in this death battle. The first variable is Master Han and Wang Shouchuan; I was surprised that Wang Shouchuan managed toplete the design. The problem now is whether or not Master Han will be able to implement it. Can we hang on until the day Master Han seals up Central Pine City?"

    The dean replied, "The other variable is the A-1 unit?"

    "Yes! I suddenly realised it when I saw them defeat the blood-traced ants. The A-1 unit is also a variable. Their potential is bigger than we had imagined and their progress is astonishing. Ai Hui has already attained seven pces. What was his cultivation level before the battle? Shi Xueman is also starting to expose her battle capability. It is the best amongst them. As long as she has adapted to battle, she will be our trump card. As for Duanmu Huanghun, look at his recent performance. He was practically a new person. The rest of the students have improved drastically as well. Why did I allocate so many resources to them? Because I am unsure of their limits. They are a group of talents and perhaps they will be able to create a miracle."

    The dean hadpletely calmed down. "Perhaps they might die. Would they be able to adapt to such a high intensity battle? That is something unknown to us."

    "But it is worth a gamble." Wang Zhen stared deeply at him. "If they die, then it implies that they were not our variables and none of us will be able to escape. Only through battle, constant sess, and getting stronger, would we be able to see the light at the end of the tunnel."

    The dean shook his head. "Nobody could improve so much in such a short period."

    "You have forgotten about the Battle of the Dawn." Wang Zhen continued indifferently. "Look. It was also fifteen days. History always has the tendency to be surprisingly simr."

    nkly, the dean said, "That was just a legend..."

    "It was not a legend." Wang Zhen gave him a nce. "Because I am a lucky survivor."

    The dean was dumbstruck.

    At that moment, an elementalist rushed over hurriedly. "I am here to report that the A-1 unit is suspected to be under attack by the blood fiends and they are in an intense battle right now!"

    Their expressions changed in unison.

    "There¡¯s no support team?" The dean asked anxiously.

    "The support team is still making its way over. Their station is located further away aspared to the Elite Unit." The elementalist cast a nce at them before he continued, "The nearest elementalist would also need a minimum of five minutes to rush over."

    Five minutes...

    The dean¡¯s expression became as white as sheet. In an intense battle, five minutes was enough to end everything. Even if he was to fly over from the mayor residence now, it would still take him ten minutes to get there.

    Wang Zhen smiled. "Look, you need not make a decision now."

    The dean red at Wang Zhen and soared into the sky. He was unable to let go of the students.

    The smile on Wang Zhen¡¯s face vanished. His gaze became filled with worry.

 Chapter 204: The Blood Worm

    Chapter 204: The Blood Worm

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    Ai Hui and the rest were caught up in a grueling battle.

    When one was down on his luck, his bad luck would just umte. A blood worm had emerged from the ground of the courtyard. The hard ground erupted as if it was a body of water. The traps they had set up previously werepletely useless and were ripped to smithereens.

    At first nce, everyone thought it to be a blood snake. But upon closer inspection, they could not help but gasp in terror.

    The blood worm was extremely hideous.

    It was thergest worm they had ever seen in their lives. Its body was thicker than the width of a bucket and at least twenty meters long. The blood worm had yet topletely exit the ground, and on sections of its body, thin, ck stripes could be seen in even distributions.

    Its gigantic body gave it terrifying strength. With one hit, even if it didn¡¯t cause death, there would at least be severe injuries as a result.

    Most troublesome of all were its natural attributes. It could move swiftly and nimbly through the ground, allowing it to attack from any angle. Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s ability to manipte the earth was nothingpared to this. As long as it was in the ground, it was astonishingly active without the slightest incoordination.

    When the blood worm suddenly shot out of the ground, a few unlucky students failed to dodge in time and were knocked into the air, incurring severe injuries from the impact. Fortunately, they were bruised but not infected by the blood poison.

    Ai Hui and a few others reacted quickly by entangling the blood worm.

    Worried about damaging the message tree, Ai Hui lured the blood worm out of the alley. Since the nearby houses were already in ruins, Ai Hui had no worries about thrashing the area further.

    On the surface of its body, there was ayer of bloody light, and beneath it, a covering of mucus. The bloody glow was able to withstand most attacks, but even if it were to be broken through, the mucusyer was able to deflect the attack smoothly.

    The trio thatprised Ai Hui¡¯s group attacked to no avail.

    This blood worm was much stronger than the blood ants; it appeared that the blood fiends were bing increasingly stronger.

    Ai Hui felt uneasy when he saw that their attacks had no effect on the blood worm at all. The blood traces on its body were much more distinct than the blood ant¡¯s, and its strength was clearly more terrifying as well.

    If not for his warning beforehand, the number of casualties would have been more devastating....

    Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, and Duanmu Huanghun were embroiled in a battle with the blood worm.

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun dispersed the students and arranged them strategically on the roofs of the abandoned houses.

    "Get ready!" Jiang Wei said with a deep voice.

    Every student held their ces and prepared to take action.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui and the others, who were well-coordinated, dispersed like scattered butterflies.

    "Attack!" Jiang Wei roared.

    Streaks of colorful lights fell upon the blood worm like raindrops, making for a spectacr scene.

    The results of their attacks, however, shocked everyone. The rain of light beams and arrows were either reflected by the blood light or slid off of the mucus. The blood worm remainedpletely unharmed.

    Ssh¡ªthe chili concoction was poured onto the blood worm¡¯s body, only to be immediately evaporated by the bloody glow.

    "Ai Hui, it¡¯s not afraid of chilies!" Lou Lan yelled.

    The smell of the chili concoction pervaded the air, but the blood worm did not show the slightest reaction to it.

    It seemed bad news followed one after another.

    "Ai Hui, my elemental energy can¡¯t prate through the ground!" Wang Xiaoshan cried fearfully.

    Only now did Ai Hui realize that the ground glowed with a red, bloody color. It made the terrain seem like a scarlet, watery surface that undted slowly with the blood worm underneath it.

    The crimson ground made Ai Hui more restless as he thought of the Garden of Life and the blood forest outside of the city.

    He had to stop it!

    Ai Hui became more resolved in his intent.

    If their attacks continued to prove useless against the blood worm, everyone would be dispirited, thereby making their next round of attacks even less impactful.

    Boom!

    The blood worm¡¯s body as thick as a bucket suddenly shot out of the ground with a loud bang.

    Ai Hui had long sensed the blood worm¡¯s approaching presence and ducked out of the way. With [Misty Strike] prepared ahead of time, he lunged forward ferociously with his Dragonspine Inferno.

    Rip!

    The Dragonspine Inferno materialized into a shooting star and pierced right through theyer of bloody light. Yet immediately after, an overbearingly slimy and smooth feeling could be felt on the tip of the sword, and Ai Hui¡¯s Dragonspine Inferno involuntarily slid off of theyer of mucus. It was as though he had pierced into a wall that was smeared with oil.

    It was the same as before when his attacks had been continuously deflected by thisyer of mucus. Until now, nothing seemed to work.

    Ruthlessness shined in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. At the moment his sword tip slid off, Dragonspine Inferno began to vibrate slightly. The seven pces in his body trembled with the activation of [Big Dipper].

    A strand of elemental energy was formed with unprecedented speed.

    A cold glint shed across Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    [Crescent Moon]!

    A brilliant crescent moon swiftly sliced through the blood worm¡¯s body.

    Pfff!

    A cloud of blood mist spurted out. Luckily, Ai Hui was wearing the Central Pine Armor, stopping the blood from spraying over his body.

    Ai Hui immediately retreated.

    The students behind him cheered. This was the blood worm¡¯s first sustained injury, and it gave everyone some hope for victory.

    At the following scene, however, everyone¡¯s cheers came to a sudden stop.

    The blood worm¡¯s mucus rapidly submerged the wound. Following which, the muscle tissues that were shed regenerated frantically with a visible speed. Its wound, which had previously been a bloody mess, had healedpletely.

    The recently boosted morale of the students immediately dropped to zero.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face darkened. The previous two moves had consumed a tremendous amount of his elemental energy, and yet they dealt negligible damage to the blood worm.

    Shi Xueman rushed forward to engage the blood worm, but her attacks simrly failed to deal any significant damage.

    Weakness. What was the blood worm¡¯s weakness? It must have a weakness!

    Ai Hui stared fixedly at the blood worm as he racked his brains. Any beast had a weakness.

    Ai Hui remembered at once the old man¡¯s words¡ªthat the blood traces may be the blood fiends¡¯ weakness.

    Blood traces....

    Ai Hui narrowed his eyes and carefully observed the blood worm¡¯s blood traces.

    They were ring-shaped and ovepped the ck stripes on its body. The width of each blood trace was about a palm-span, which seemed extremely thin on the blood worm¡¯s enormous body.

    Eh?

    Ai Hui counted carefully. There were nine blood traces.

    Nine?

    Was this a coincidence? Ai Hui thought to himself perplexedly. Nine was a special number during the Cultivation Era, and he couldn¡¯t be sure whether this was rted to the number of blood marks.

    The red glow on the surface of the ground continued to intensify, but Ai Hui noticed that the bloody light on the blood worm¡¯s body was significantly dimmer than before. Could it be that the intensifying red glow of the surface was rted to the dimming of the blood worm¡¯s bloody light?

    "Jiang Wei, st open the red ground!" Ai Hui screamed at the top of his lungs.

    Raindrop-like light beams enveloped the ground.

    Boom!

    The dazzling burst of light was apanied with a burst of sound.

    Chunks of red soil flew into the air, revealing an enormous pit in the ground and the body of the blood worm in it.

    The blood worm was clearly enraged. It twisted its gigantic body and swept it across the area.

    Its terrifying rampage forced everyone to retreat.

    Boom boom boom!

    The abandoned houses that stood above the ground of rubble werepletely demolished. Stones and bricks flew everywhere as explosions resounded through the air. The destructive power of the blood worm was formidable.

    Everyone was in a state of confusion, and it caused the formation of the unit to copse immediately.

    "Are there any ways to deal with it?" Shi Xueman appeared beside Ai Hui and asked anxiously.

    "There are some developments," Ai Hui said softly. "Enrage it and let it exhaust its energy."

    Without asking why, Shi Xueman engaged the blood worm straightaway.

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain was turning rapidly. He roughly understood the situation with the blood worm. It was indeed a troublesome opponent with its gargantuan body, strength, defense, and regenerative ability. However, this did not mean itcked weaknesses. For example, its destructive power was rather limited, which could be seen from the small number of casualties on Ai Hui¡¯s side¡ªnot many were severely injured by it.

    It must have been crucial for them to alter the terrain, or else they would not have drawn out such an enraged reaction from the blood worm.

    Bloody glow, mucus, blood traces.

    The bloody glow on the blood worm¡¯s body had dimmed significantly, with only a thinyer left. The main issue was theyer of mucus. It was slippery and thick, an impregnable armor. So long as they could break through thisyer of mucus, they would be able to attack the blood traces.

    There must be a way!

    Ai Hui encouraged himself. In the past, when he was in the Wilderness, he had witnessed many formidable dire beasts yed at the hands of humans¡¯ meticulous strategies.

    His eyes lit up at once, and he yelled, "Who has a freezing ability? Or any ice-freezing drugs?"

    The mucus was impregnable, but it was a liquid after all. Once it came into contact with the chilling cold, it would freeze and harden. And with theyer hardened hardened, its viscosity would drop until it could no longer endure the blood worm¡¯s tremendous strength.

    "I do!" Duanmu Huanghun replied.

    "Alright!" Ai Hui screamed. "The rest of you use ranged attacks!"

    At hismand, Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun unleashed a torrential pouring of arrows onto the blood worm as if their arrows cost nothing. They did not care anymore about the unit¡¯s formation; instead, everyone focused on channeling their elemental energy with all their might.

    The sky was raining with streaks of light.

    At this point, nobody held anything back in their attacks.

    "Ingrate, get ready!" Ai Hui snarled.

    Duanmu Huanghun almost tripped and fell down. This bastard!

    However, he could not be bothered with Ai Hui right now. He channeled all of the elemental energy in his body, revealing cloud-like patterns beneath his feet. Soon after, he flew through the air and appeared above the blood worm.

    Duanmu Huanghun was extremely imposing as he hovered in the air with swirling green flowers beneath his feet. That handsome face of his stared ruthlessly at the writhing blood worm, and the clothes on his body fluttered despite theck of air currents. The glinting of his eyes became brighter, resembling the stars in the night sky.

    From the battle¡¯s beginning until now, his [Viridescent Flower] had been unable to pose any threats to the blood worm. Against its gargantuan body, his vines were too feeble.

    When Ai Hui asked for someone with a freezing ability, he had responded without any hesitation. [Viridescent Flower] had a freezing move, [Symbol of Ice].

    Only, it was as pity that he hadn¡¯t fully mastered this move yet. Given his current base level, it would exhaust him to execute this move.

    But he did not think about such things and directly volunteered himself for the task.

    There was no time for hesitation.

    Suspended in the air, Duanmu Huanghun emanated a powerful aura, the elemental energy in his body channeled to the limits. He raised his arms, his slender fingers spread out like blossomed flowers.

    The elemental energy in his body followed an unfamiliar path.

    He was concentrated now more than ever before. The usually smooth elemental energy felt abnormally sluggish. He uncaringly continued to channel his elemental energy with great determination and urgency.

    Numerous green flowers flew from his fingertips and swirled around his body, resembling leaves that were swept up by the wind. They danced and aggregated until they formed a cascade of green flowers that spun rapidly around him.

    His lips curled into a crazed smile. The ruthlessness in his eyes resembled zing mes.

    How can a mere [Symbol of Ice]....

    Bright-red blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, lending an ethereal beauty to his pale-white, handsome face. The clothes on his body fluttered loudly as the cascade of green flowers swirled with increasing speed around his body.

    .... stop me, Duanmu Huanghun!

    In the air, Duanmu Huanghun smiled silently. Traces of blood stains could be seen on his neat and white teeth.

    The flower-like blossomed fingers suddenly froze, sending the cascade of green flowers in a deluge towards the blood worm.

 Chapter 205: [Viridescent Flower, Icy Fissure]

    Chapter 205: [Viridescent Flower, Icy Fissure]

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lis

    "I didn¡¯t expect the mayor to be a survivor of the Battle of the Dawn."

    The teacher speaking was Tao Yiwei, a good friend of Wang Shouchuan.

    He was the teacher with the best performance in the entire Central Pine City. Not only was he cool-headed duringbat, but he also led the students to achieve remarkable battle results. The continuous string of battles wore down his educated appearance, however, making the current Old Tao a different man altogether. Even his good friend, Wang Shouchuan, could not recognize him at first sight.

    Simrly, if Tao Yiwei saw Wang Shouchuan, he wouldn¡¯t be able to recognize thetter at first nce either.

    This blood catastrophe was like arge smelting furnace, and all those thrown in came out a different person.

    In the past, Tao Yiwei did not treat Wang Zhen with respect, but this time around, a tinge of respect could be sensed in his tone towards the mayor.

    As the two flew with all their might, they exchanged some words.

    "Yes." The dean sighed with sorrow. He used to think of Wang Zhen as an ordinary veteran retired from the front lines. Never did he expect him to have such an illustrious background.

    He suddenly recalled that when he asked Wang Zhen about his leg injury, all he¡¯d been told was that it happened ten years ago.

    Ten years ago, there was nothing more sensational than the Battle of the Dawn.

    Ten years ago, Ye Baiyi led 42 elite members and 80 reinforcement troops from the Icy mes Division against the boundless flood of dire beasts and held onto the ming Canyon for fifteen days.

    The battle began and ended at dawn, and thus it was given the name Battle of the Dawn.

    By the end, there were only six survivors.

    Corpses were syed about the ming Canyon, and the rivers flowed with blood. From that battle onwards, the canyon reeked of blood and remained barren forever.

    Ye Baiyi gained prestige from that battle and led a meteoric rise to the top of his profession. He eventually disced the disfavored Le Buyu as the division leader of the Icy mes Division at the age of twenty-two. Everyone went on to call him Icy mes Ye.

    He was written into the annals of history as the youngest leader of the Thirteen Divisions.

    The Battle of the Dawn was one of the most famous battles of the past twenty years. And in the past fifty, its devastating nature remained unmatched.

    The Avalon of Five Elements had long achieved a dominant position over the Wilderness. Hence, for the past few hundred years, territorial expansion had been their main priority. This is what made the Battle of the Dawn so memorable¡ªthere had been zero indication of the dire beasts¡¯ invasion, which threw them into a precarious situation.

    Upon hearing that Wang Zhen was one of the survivors of the Battle of the Dawn, their astonishment was unimaginable. It was no wonder Wang Zhen never disclosed his division.

    "I didn¡¯t expect it, I really didn¡¯t expect it." Tao Yiwei shook his head in disbelief. "The hero of the Battle of the Dawn actually came to our Central Pine City. It seems our city is a blessed ce."

    "It¡¯s a good thing for us." The dean used to think that Wang Zhen was leading poorly, but now that he knew his background, he immediately felt that the situation was far graver than he originally thought.

    Tao Yiwei replied, "He has a lot of confidence in the A-1 unit."

    He thought about Old Wang¡¯s disciple, Ai Hui. He was the only student of Central Pine City whom he was familiar with. He then recalled Wang Shouchuan¡¯s blueprint and felt only the greatest admiration for his old friend. Both master and student were extremely formidable.

    "It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t have enough confidence in them," the dean exined, remembering his previous objections. "But in the end, they¡¯re still kids. Who can be responsible for them if they are to meet with any mishaps?"

    "Maybe he thinks the A-1 unit can produce an Icy mes Ye." Tao Yiwei chuckled.

    "How can there be such a good thing?" The deanughed along.

    If one made a joke, the listener would treat it as a joke as well.

    Which division leader of the Thirteen Divisions wasn¡¯t an extraordinary individual? It was inurate to say that they were the thirteen most powerful individuals in the Avalon of Five Elements, but surely it wasn¡¯t wrong to say that they were some of the most powerful elementalists in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    For every one that became a leader of a division, everyone in the world would address them by their surname, followed by "division leader" out of respect.

    The division leader was not only the leader of a division that held power over life-and-death¡ªthey were also the spiritual emblem for that division. To be a division leader, they were required to have top-tier capabilities, and another was to have charisma. A subordinate would only be willing to follow and pour in their utmost effort for a good leader. If the leader was widely disapproved of, they would not be able to hold on to that position for long.

    By now, everyone¡¯s distrust towards Wang Zhen had disappeared.

    With a veteran who had gone through such a devastating experience like the Battle of the Dawn as theirmander, they still could not obtain victory, thus proving that the situation was indeed outside of their control.

    Suddenly, an energy wave from ahead caught their attention.

    "Wood elemental energy.... It¡¯s [Viridescent Flower]!" The dean¡¯s facial expression changed minutely as he blurted out, "Duanmu Huanghun!"

    The dean understood Duanmu Huanghun more than anyone else, and as such, he could immediately identify whom the energy wave belonged to. It was Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s genius that had built up the prestige of his Central Pine Academy¡ªhe was the number one talent in the school.

    Such a formidable disy of elemental energy far exceeded Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s base level.

    The dean was burning with anxiety.

    ......

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s fixed his rigid fingers at the blood worm.

    The green flowers that rapidly swirled around Duanmu Huanghun suddenly disappeared. With an ear-piercing sound like that of a shattering vase, numerous green flowers then exploded into green snowkes that engulfed the blood worm.

    A prating, haughty gaze overtook Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes. His mouth curled into a cold sneer before he clenched his fists.

    St!

    He spat out a mouthful of bloody mist. Even so, his facial expression did not change. It was as if the blood he expelled was not his own.

    The green flowers that exploded disappeared once more. Following which, numerous green flower patterns appeared on the scarlet body of the blood worm. The uneven verdant patterns that spread across the blood worm¡¯s body made it look as though it was made of green porcin.

    In the air, Duanmu Huanghun abruptly straightened his body. He did not bother to wipe the blood stains from his mouth. His tall and upright suspended form disyed an indescribable confidence.

    There was an impish smile on his devilishly handsome face, like that of a child who had done a mischievous deed.

    He elegantly pped his hands once.

    [Viridescent Flower, Icy Fissure]!

    Crack crack crack!

    Throughout theyer of mucus on the blood worm¡¯s body, numerous cracks appeared. It was like watching an iceberg crack and disintegrate upon itself.

    The blood worm twisted frantically from the pain caused by the frostbite.

    Crack crack crack!

    The crackling noises sounded more frequently and with increasing volume. In mid-air, Duanmu Huanghun resembled a refined magician who was waiting for his magic performance to unfold.

    Large chunks of ice fell from the blood worm¡¯s body¡ªthe frozen mucus.

    The naked body of the blood worm finally appeared before everyone¡¯s eyes.

    "Iron Lady, the blood traces!" Ai Hui roared as he surged forward.

    When Shi Xueman heard the two words ¡®irondy¡¯, she did not have any reaction except to grasp her Cirrus tightly, revealing the fury in her heart.

    [Oblique sh, Misty Strike]. Using all of his might, Ai Hui pierced his Dragonspine Inferno into the blood traces on the blood worm¡¯s body.

    The jabs from Shi Xueman¡¯s Cirrusnded on the blood worm like torrential rain, each motion surrounded by snow-white mist. With each strike on the blood worm¡¯s body, the sprays of blood becamerger andrger.

    Sang Zhijun also clenched her teeth and retrieved her Bunny Hair Arrow. Once the arrow was shot out, it materialized into a thin streak of light that pierced into the blood worm¡¯s blood traces.

    The blood worm¡¯s astonishing vitality was drained slowly, and it wrung its body agitatedly. For each strike on its body, that part shattered.

    Ai Hui was frenzied; the stabbing effect of [Misty Strike] was not useful in this situation. While he attacked with his [Oblique sh], he continued to actively dodge the blood worm¡¯s attacks.

    sh by sh, he hacked at a specific blood trace continuously.

    Pop!

    Suddenly, his Dragonspine Inferno hit nothing but air. A section of the blood worm¡¯s bucket-wide body was chopped off by Ai Hui.

    The students broke into cheers.

    Despite being cleaved into two, it refused to die. The two separate parts were writhing, but Ai Hui noticed that after chopping it apart, its powers had dropped significantly.

    Pop. Shi Xueman had chopped off another section.

    The rest of the students, who previously could not find an opportunity tounch their attacks, surged forward together. Even Fatty was overwhelmed by a fervor of unknown source and rushed ahead to attack the worm.

    With more manpower came more power. The students strictly followed Ai Hui¡¯s orders and hacked at the blood traces only. The blood worm with its nine blood traces was being hacked into ten pieces.

    Atst, thest strand of life disappearedpletely from the massive blood worm.

    The dean, Old Tao, and the elite unit arrived just in time to see everyone converging to hack at the worm.

    Seeing the ten separate sections of the blood worm¡¯s corpse on the ground, shivers crawled down their spines.

    They had heard about the A-1 unit¡¯s exceptional capability. Now that they witnessed it with their own eyes, the A-1 unit was truly terrifying....

    Exhausted to the bone, the students copsed to the ground as one.

    Even as the elite unit descended from the sky, nobody bothered with them. When Ai Hui saw them gathering around the blood worm¡¯s corpse, he reminded them, "Don¡¯t touch it. The blood crystals are ours."

    Instead of ring up at Ai Hui¡¯s impoliteness, themander of the elite unit merely said, "Don¡¯t worry, who wants the blood crystals? Not bad. All of you actually managed to kill a blood worm. It seems we can¡¯t underestimate this unit anymore."

    "You tter us. Sir, how do I address you?" Ai Hui replied weakly.

    "My surname is Zhang. You can call me Old Zhang." The man chuckled. "You don¡¯t need to introduce yourself. As of now, the A-1 unit is renowned. In the future, if we¡¯re ever in trouble and you happen to pass by, please lend us a hand. These blood crystals are our spoils of war from our previous battle. Let¡¯s form a partnership then."

    Ai Hui looked with surprise at Old Zhang. He felt that this person was rather nice and nodded. "Thank you for your gift then, Old Zhang. If we encounter you and your unit, we¡¯ll do our best to help you."

    Ai Hui did not want to promise Old Zhang anything. Even though the blood crystals were valuable, they were not worth their lives.

    "All right, we¡¯re considered friends then. Now, we still have another mission awaiting us, so we have to leave. Untilter." Old Zhang chuckled and left with his unit.

    Seeing the other party leave, Ai Hui rubbed his throat and said, "Lou Lan, clean up the blood crystals."

    "No problem, Ai Hui!" Lou Lan cheered.

    Ai Hui cast a nce at Duanmu Huanghun and said, "Ingrate, if you¡¯re not capable enough, then don¡¯t force yourself. Tsk, I thought you were confident, but I didn¡¯t expect that you were taking a gamble."

    Duanmu Huanghun didn¡¯t bother with Ai Hui. He greedily gulped in breaths of air as an indescribable excitement arose within him.

    Despite his severe injuries, he had relieved the pent-up anger inside his heart during the battle. He felt an indescribable contentment, and his body was extremely rxed.

    This was the life he wanted!

    This was the Duanmu Huanghun he knew!

    He didn¡¯t mind dying as long as it was a glorious death!

    He didn¡¯t mind dying as long as he garnered everyone¡¯s respect!

 Chapter 206: Yu Mingqiu

    Chapter 206: Yu Mingqiu

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    Yu Mingqiu was a man of tall stature. His long hair was tied up into a ponytail using a red hairband and his small and nted eyes made him look as if he would fall asleep at anytime. On the contrary, all the elementalists around him were on high alert. They had already reached the depths of the Induction Ground.

    "How much longer until we reach Central Pine City?" Yu Mingqiu asked while yawningzily.

    "Approximately three days¡¯ time," replied an elementalist after doing some calctions.

    "So sleepy." Tears welled up in Yu Mingqiu¡¯s sleepy eyes. "Life is tough. Rushing here and there, how many nights of sleep have we missed? Light equipment and little manpower; how can I be so low-profile, I am, after all, a division leader..."

    "Sir, you¡¯re only a vice-division leader," reminded one of his subordinates.

    "Oh, oh, oh... I¡¯m still a vice-division leader, huh." Yu Mingqiu chuckled while yawning again. "A blemish does not obscure a jade¡¯s lustre. In any case, vice-division leaders are always being dispatched for such situations. Haven¡¯t you noticed that only the vice-division leaders are being dispatched?"

    "All the division leaders are being stationed at the front line and they can¡¯t be moved," an elementalist replied. "Reportedly, the front line is rather unsettled recently and there has been continuous harassment from the barbarian tribes. There are already a few ces where fights have broken out."

    "Bullshit!" Yu Mingqiu snorted. "How long have we been fighting the barbarian tribes? Don¡¯t you know their actual capabilities? It¡¯s such a coincidence that they attack us at this critical point in time. Haha, they are definitely colluding with the mastermind behind the blood catastrophe. As far as I am concerned, the blood poison is what we should prioritize right now!"

    "Isn¡¯t the blood catastrophe a natural epidemic? You mean it¡¯s a man-made one?" The subordinate¡¯s face turned pale with fright.

    "You¡¯re right about that."

    "No wonder the blood fiends are getting stronger these days." the subordinate¡¯s tone was filled with worry. "We need to increase our speed. The other units might have already arrived."

    "It¡¯s impossible," Yu Mingqiu replied with irritation as he involuntarily yawned again. "No one can be faster than we are. They are heading out from the front line while we areing from our holidays. How can it be the same? It¡¯s a different scenario! Those old fogeys had betterpensate me handsomely for the time I have wasted. Otherwise, I will not let them off!"

    "But Sir, you¡¯re the one who wanted to go over..." the subordinate retorted.

    "Rubbish, I need to go and save Mingxiu. Otherwise, Senior will kill me." Yu Mingqiu took a sweeping nce at everyone. "How about I let you all go back now? The next time all of you are in trouble, there will be no need for me toe to your rescue, right?"

    Everyone remained silent.

    "Sir, are we those kinds of people?"

    "Sir, we have been following you for several days and nights!"

    "Sir, you are only thinking about Miss Mingxiu, right?"

    ...

    "All the while, I have been missing her," Yu Mingqiu repliedzily. "If not for her master¡¯s wrath, I would have gone to Central Pine City for my holidays and lived happily ever after with Mingxiu. I wouldn¡¯t even care for the position of division leader."

    "Mister Lu will beat you to death, no, he would not let you die that easily." The subordinate ch"It appears that Miss Mingxiu has rejected you a few times," the subordinate continued. "Actually, both of you are rather close. She treats you like her own elder brother."

    uckled.

    When Yu Mingqiu thought of his senior, he couldn¡¯t help but tremble in fear. If he was to fall into the hands of his senior, he would not be allowed to die easily even if he wanted to.

    "It appears that Miss Mingxiu has rejected you a few times," the subordinate continued. "Actually, both of you are rather close. She treats you like her own elder brother."

    With a look of disdain, Yu Mingqiu replied, "What do you know? Which girl in the world doesn¡¯t say that? Mingxiu¡¯s rejection is precisely why I see that there¡¯s still hope for me. It¡¯s normal for a nice and beautiful girl like her to be pursued by so many guys."

    "Then it will be very difficult for you," the subordinate replied after a long hesitation.

    "It¡¯s a pity that there¡¯s not enough time for Mingxiu and I to cuddle this time around." Yu Mingqiu put on an unhappy face. "There¡¯s also a small Junior who Master has just epted as his disciple, a brat from the Duanmu n. Why can¡¯t it be a female Junior? Really! Why can¡¯t Master spare a thought for the love lives of his two disciples? I don¡¯t care if Senior wasted his life by practising abstinence, but what about me? Do I need to waste my youthful years as well? Speaking of which, I feel really sad. Alright, since we are under the same Master, I don¡¯t mind saving my little Junior; but then, what about Shi Beihai¡¯s daughter? What does she have to do with me? He is from the North Sea Division whereas I¡¯m from the Deathgrass Division. We¡¯ve got nothing to do with each other."

    "So, we don¡¯t save them?" the subordinate questioned.

    "Hmm... we still have to save them." Yu Mingqiu gave a bitter-looking face. "I¡¯m afraid of Shi Beihai beating me up. He would definitely do it. Other than Master and Senior, none of us here are his match. If it happens, Master and Senior definitely won¡¯t help me."

    "Miss Shi is a great beauty," the subordinate reminded.

    "My heart belongs to Mingxiu!" Yu Mingqiu gave a slight cough. "I heard that she is an austere beauty. Oh, that means she is also an icy beauty. I think she¡¯s Senior¡¯s type of girl. I can forget about it. Anyways, I¡¯m doing this for everyone¡¯s sakes. We only have around one hundred people. How many people can we actually save?"

    "How many can we save?" The subordinate asked while looking at Yu Mingqiu. Yu Mingqiu¡¯s reply would decide the difficulty of the situation they were going to face.

    Everyone¡¯s gaze turned to Yu Mingqiu simultaneously.

    After a slight hesitation, Yu Mingqiu replied, "We will first help them with their defenses. If the defense can¡¯t hold, we will bring three people to retreat with us; they will be Mingxiu, Duanmu Huanghun, and Shi Xueman."

    He had to think of and be responsible for his subordinates. They had a total of one hundred men and the blood fiends were getting increasingly stronger. It would be very difficult for them to break out of a siege if it was necessary for them to do so. They did not have the capability to bring so many people out with them.

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief. The atmosphere of the unit brightened up once more. It was not a big problem for an elite unit like them to retreat with three people.

    Suddenly, Yu Mingqiu¡¯s eyes shrunk and he yelled, "There are enemies right in front of us, prepare for battle!"

    A massive red cloud was flying towards them at a terrifying speed.

    When the massive red cloud flew closer to them, they could clearly see that it was a bunch of oversized blood bats. The blood bats were huge in number, looking like a massive red cloud from afar.

    Yu Mingqiu shook his head and moaned. "There are birdsing from afar, prepare to feed them the melons!"

    A seed appeared out of thin air on his palm. As he channeled his elemental energy into the seed, it germinated, grew, blossomed, and bore fruits at a visible speed.

    Within seconds, two fist-sized, dark green, ripened melons appeared on his palm. The vines, stem, and roots of the melons had reduced to nothing but dust, leaving only a few pieces of leaves.

    These melons were called the Thousand Seeds Exploding Melons. The ¡®Thousand Seeds¡¯ referred to the huge number of seeds that it had inside of it. There were more than a thousand seeds in every melon. This melon was one of the ssic battle melons that the Deathgrass Division liked to use.

    Yu Mingqiu inserted two pieces of leaves into every melon.

    Everyone followed suit.

    With a frivolous look on his face, Yu Mingqiu blew his whistle and yelled, "Get ready!"

    "Fire in the hole!" Yu Mingqiu roared and threw the melons in his hands towards the iing blood bats.

    Everyone followed suit. Two hundred melons flew towards the iing blood bats with a whizzing sound.

    When the blood bats noticed the small ck dots that were flying towards them, they pped their wings and dispersed in all directions.

    Suddenly, the leaves that were inserted into the melons started pping. Like wings, the leaves pped faster and faster. The melons¡¯ flying speed increased abruptly, causing them to fly even faster.

    The deafening whizzing sound got increasingly louder, striking fear into one¡¯s heart.

    They were like shadows of death, ruthlessly plunging into the bunches of blood bats that did not manage to disperse in time. The melons then exploded with a loud bang. Hundred of thousands of seeds exploded in all directions. Every seed that pierced into the body of a blood bat exploded once more.

    The series of explosions wiped out the horde of blood bats like a violent storm.

    This wave of attacks certainly caught the powerful horde of blood bats by surprise. A tremendous amount of flesh and blood bat corpses fell from the sky. The previously cloud-like horde of blood bats had been reduced significantly in number.

    "There are no big birds in this world that would want to gnaw on grass after eating melons!"

    As Yu Mingqiu was reciting his poem, he loaded his bow with an arrow.

    Everyone broke out inughter, following which, they also loaded their bows with arrows while reciting, "There are no big birds in this world that don¡¯t want to gnaw on grass after eating melons!"

    A rain of grass arrows came pouring down from the sky.

    When the blood bats saw the iing weak-looking grass arrows, they did not bother to dodge and surged forward.

    At the instance when the grass arrows made contact with the blood bats, all of the arrows transformed into a huge grass, trapping the blood bats within them tightly. The grasss might look extremely fine and weak, but in actual fact, they were very sturdy. No matter how hard those blood bats struggled, they could not break free.

    The blood bats fell from the sky, resembling a rain of dumplings falling from the sky. Numerous thumps could be hearding from the ground.

    Stters of blood that resembled blossomed flowers were formed on the ground.

    In the blink of an eye, more than half of the cloud-like horde of blood bats were killed. The remaining blood bats lost their fighting spirit and retreated.

    Everyone wasughing happily as they kept their bows and arrows.

    "Sir, nice poem!"

    "This is a rare opportunity for us to use these lines. Everyone must memorize them properly!"

    "But Sir, bats aren¡¯t birds."

    ...

    Yu Mingqiu acted as if he hadn¡¯t heard them, then yed with the bowstring and sighed. "It¡¯s a pity that Mingxiu didn¡¯t see my heroism. Otherwise, she¡¯d definitely devote her life to me. The youngest division leader ever..."

    "Sir, it¡¯s vice-division leader!"

    "Okay, okay, I¡¯m a vice-division leader. I almost forgot about it. Every time I recite a poem, I be mentally exhausted."

    Yu Mingqiu put on an act and shook his head. No one had seen the tinge of worry in his eyes.

    After five minutes, a flock of blood sparrows emerged from the blood forest beneath them.

    The blood sparrows were not really powerful, but there was a huge number of them. Furthermore, theyunched a surprise attack from underneath, catching the elite unit by surprise. They were starting to have casualties.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s face darkened.

    After a few minutes, as they were passing through the clouds, a wave of blood falcons suddenly appeared and attacked them.

    The blood falcons were as fast as lightning. They caused the elite unit to have more casualties. The worst thing was that they had expended a huge amount of their resources and elemental energy.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s heart sank. It felt as if there was a huge, invisible silently entrapping them.

    This thought suddenly came to his mind. Could the Induction Ground be a bait?

    The blood catastrophe had started at the weakest ce, the Induction Ground where everyone¡¯s children were located. As such, the Thirteen Divisions must reinforce it. In this critical moment, the barbarian tribes had suddenlyunched an invasion against the front line, causing the situation to worsen. What followed was the same response from every division leader, which was to dispatch their vice-division leaders.

    On one side, the higher-ups must defend the front line; on the other side, they had to protect everyone¡¯s sons and daughters. Hence, they had to send the vice-division leaders for thetter task. The life of a vice-division leader was so miserable...

    Until now, a lot of people still thought that the blood catastrophe was a natural disaster.

    This was such a perfect n, Yu Mingqiu eximed in admiration silently.

    Encircling an enemy post in order to attack the reinforcementsing to its aid. Even when one recognized the trap, he or she would have already been caught in it.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s facial expression changed. Then, he said to his subordinate, "We must split ways. You all will break out of the siege while I will continue towards Central Pine City."

    "Sir!" the subordinate became worried immediately.

    "Listen to me." Yu Mingqiu¡¯s usually joking self hadpletely disappeared as he spoke solemnly. "We will split ways and all of you will return to seek reinforcements! Remember, stop the other divisions from following and try to make them do their best to unite together. There¡¯s a mastermind behind the blood catastrophe! I will go to Central Pine City. Don¡¯t worry, I will fly at my highest speed. The blood fiends will not be able to catch up with me. I will wait for your reinforcements in Central Pine City. Hurry up, I will cover all of you for awhile."

    Even though his subordinate was unwilling to do so, he did not dare to disobey Yu Mingqiu¡¯s order. Clenching his teeth, he turned around and flew off.

    Yu Mingqiu looked at the iing blood falcons and blew a whistle. An aura of killing intent rose in his nted eyes. "I really want to see who caused all these troubles? It¡¯s never easy to take advantage of me."

 Chapter 207: The Discussion on Blood Crystals

    Chapter 207: The Discussion on Blood Crystals

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Ai Hui and his counterparts were able to defeat the blood worm, but were mentally and physically exhausted at the same time. The previous order that required them tounch another wave of attacks had been cancelled as a result.

    The first thing Ai Hui did when he returned to the training hall was to run to the message tree and write down everything that had happened today. He carefully described the process of attacking the nine blood traces on the blood worm¡¯s body.

    At this critical stage, he no longer cared about the Blood of God as he might be killed by blood fiends at anytime. The threat of the Blood of God might be great, but it was not greater than the threat of being eaten by blood fiends on the spot.

    If he did not even know whether or not he would live to see tomorrow, why would he care about the day after tomorrow?

    The old man simply asked him to be careful and to survive this catastrophe. If necessary, he wanted Ai Hui to destroy the message tree and that piece of leaf. After all, any message tree could be used to contact him.

    Ai Hui was slightly disappointed. He wanted to know specific information about the blood fiends, such as their weaknesses, which would be helpful for his current plight.

    Although Ai Hui was disappointed, the fight against the blood catastrophe carried on, and he still had to depend on himself.

    The amount of blood crystals that the blood worm produced was far more than what the blood ants had yielded. Furthermore, the blood worm¡¯s blood crystals were also of higher quality. There are a total of 10 pieces of blood crystals. Every piece was thumb-sized, sparkling, translucent, and smooth. Even though the body of the blood worm was so huge, it had only produced 10 blood crystals. Ai Hui was cursing the blood worm repeatedly in his heart. What was the point of growing so big when it could only produce 10 pieces of blood crystals?

    The elite unit¡¯s leader, whose surname was Zhang, had given them three additional blood crystals. The quality of his blood crystals was not as good as the blood worm¡¯s. They must have been obtained from the blood ants.

    Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun, Sang Zhijun, Jiang Wei, Fatty, and Wang Xiaoshan were called over by Ai Hui. Perplexed, everyone looked at Ai Hui..

    "These are blood crystals." Ai Hui pointed at the blood crystals on the table.

    Everyone cast a baffled nce at Ai Hui. You don¡¯t say! Everyone knew that these were blood crystals...

    "I have discovered one of their uses."

    Everyone became alert at once with a look of curiosity on their faces. Initially, they thought Ai Hui wanted the blood crystals for mary reasons like before. They did not expect for him to find a use for the crystals.

    "What use does it have?" the straightforward Sang Zhijun blurted out.

    Shi Xueman took a nce at Ai Hui and felt utterly astonished. Was there anything that this fellow did not know? Even the mayor failed to find a use for the blood crystals, yet this fellow actually had.

    "All of you, take a look."

    Ai Hui put his Dragonspine Inferno on the table, picked up a blood crystal, and ced it on one of the prismatic crystals of the sword.

    The blood crystal rapidly melted and was absorbed into the prismatic crystal.

    Buzz. A strand of electricity sparked off between Ai Hui¡¯s fingertip and the Dragonspine Inferno

    Everyone widened their eyes as amazement rose upon their faces..

    A glint shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes as a pensive look appeared on her face.

    There were many things that Ai Hui could not exin to them, like the Blood of God, the old man, etc. As such, he could only lie to them. "Last time, I touched a blood crystal to the Dragonspine Inferno and this phenomenon urred. The prismatic crystal on the sword is an artifact remnant. What is an artifact remnant? It¡¯s a portion of an artifact that¡¯s left behind. This blood crystal is able to stimte the artifact remnant. I suspect the blood crystals might contain spiritual force."

    Simultaneous gasps of shock could be heard. Everyone knew exactly what spiritual force was.

    From the day the Avalon of Five Elements was established, there had been fanatics who were persistently trying to seek the remains of the Cultivation Era. The Avalon of Five Elements had directly progressed from the Cultivation Era. People were notpletely ignorant of the Cultivation Era. There were numerous records that contained information on various mystical spells and artifacts. The legacies of the Cultivation Era were very rare and precious, causing countless people to lust over them. The worth of just a miniscule portion of a Cultivation legacy was enough to surpass the value of the entire Avalon of Five Elements.

    However, no one had seeded until now.

    That was because of spiritual force.

    All artifacts and spells needed spiritual force to function. Without spiritual force, the mountainous heaps of artifacts might as well be thrown into the Silver Mist Sea. Without spiritual force, those apocalyptic supreme spells were just cheap-selling scraps and rubbish.

    Of course, if spiritual force could be found, those mountainous heaps of artifacts and spells would be mountain sized heaps of gold.

    While talking, Ai Hui shamelessly took another blood crystal and pressed it against his Dragonspine Inferno.

    "Let us see how many blood crystals the Dragonspine Inferno can absorb?"

    Everyone else¡¯s gazes were immediately captivated by the Dragonspine Inferno, with curiosity surging through their faces.

    After absorbing three blood crystals in a row, the Dragonspine Inferno could not absorb any more blood crystals. There was an astonishing transformation in the Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s appearance. The previously reddish-ck body of the sword had be silver-white in color. The sword was surging with silvery lightning sparks. The red prismatic crystals had be transparent and the lightning sparks within them were much more stronger than before.

    The entire sword was glowing with a white luster. One could tell that it was an extraordinary weapon with just a single look.

    The sword had be lighter and thinner as well. Its texture resembled that of metal instead of wood. The edge of the sword became much sharper. Even the previously crimson wave patterns on the de were reced by silver ones.

    "It¡¯s magical!"

    "Oh my god!"

    Cheers broke out. Everyone was bbergasted and even Ai Hui was shocked. His jaw dropped and a stupefied expression was fixed on his face. Was this his Dragonspine Inferno? If he had not seen the entire process of the transformation with his own eyes, he would never have thought that this gleaming treasure sword was his Dragonspine Inferno.

    Brandishing his new sword, Ai Hui felt something unusual from it.

    Indeed, even though the sword had be much lighter and thinner, Ai Hui did not find it unfamiliar. On the contrary, he was weirdly ustomed to the sword, as if it was part of his body.

    "Do you want to give it a try?" Ai Hui looked at Shi Xueman.

    "All right!" Shi Xueman replied without any hesitation, looking somewhat eager and excited.

    Such a transformation had exceeded the limits of her imagination. She was extremely interested in Ai Hui¡¯s sword.

    Ai Hui executed the [Oblique sh] and a streak of lightning shed across the air.

    Amazement rose in Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. It was so fast!

    Ai Hui¡¯s [Oblique sh] was approximately 33% faster than usual. This shocked Shi Xueman and she quickly pulled out her spear to deflect the iing attack.

    The streak of lightning and the Cirrus collided against each other.

    Ai Hui took two steps back. The weight of the Cirrus was indeed frightening. Furthermore, with the powerful spiralling effect of the spear, Shi Xueman¡¯s attack was violent and mighty.

    On the other side, Shi Xueman did not move a single inch.

    Upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s gaze, a weird look appeared on Shi Xueman¡¯s face. "My palm is a bit numb."

    So this is the feeling of being hit by a lightning-type attack...

    Shi Xueman felt rather curious. In the Avalon of Five Elements, lightning-type offensive methods were not really developed yet. This was her first time seeing a lightning-type attack. The numbness in her palm piqued her curiosity.

    The rest were curious as well. All of them jump forward, wanting to give it a try.

    "It¡¯s numb, it¡¯s numb!" Sang Zhijun yelled excitedly.

    "Eh, it¡¯s really numb," Jiang Wei felt incredulous.

    "It feels as if I have eaten a lot of peppers! Why does it feel worse than peppers? Even my face feels numb!" Wang Xiaoshan shouted.

    "That¡¯s because you never eat chillies before! If you eat enough chillies, not only your face will be numb, haha," Fatty spoke from his experience.

    "Your face will be numb if I stab a sword into it," Duanmu Huanghun said suddenly.

    ...

    It was as if everyone had found a toy. All of them were extremely excited.

    The direction that the discussion was going to... did not seem right...

    Ai Hui was stunned.

    He coughed softly and interrupted the ongoing nonsensical discussion, "All right, let us discuss how to make use of this unique characteristic of the blood crystals?"

    Everyone stopped talking and looked at him pensively.

    "Our target is to get out of this ce alive. Looking at the current situation, this goal is rather difficult to achieve. We are in deep water now. Even though the mayoral office keeps on emphasizing that there will be reinforcements, we still need to prepare for the worst. What if there are no reinforcements? What if the reinforcements are slightlyte?"

    Ai Hui said a lot of things in one go. However, there were a lot of things he left unsaid, like the Blood of God for example.

    He had a hunch that the reinforcements might not reach them smoothly. He did not know how to exin this to the other, and as such, he could only use the phrase "prepare for the worst."

    When he saw a contemtive look on everyone¡¯s face, he continued, "No one knows how to use the blood crystals yet. Can we use them to strengthen ourselves? How should we do it then? Everyone, let us think about these questions together."

    All of them nodded their head. They did not care about anyone else. What mattered the most was that they, themselves, survived.

    "We need to better understand the nature of the blood crystals first." Surprisingly, Duanmu Huanghun was the first to speak out. He then continued coldly, "It worked for your Dragonspine Inferno, but what about other artifact remnants? Do they work on artifacts? If so, what types of artifacts do they work on?

    "There are too few blood crystals." Fatty¡¯s face was sore. "With a scarcity of blood crystals, they will be gone in an instant if we try anything with them."

    "That¡¯s right." Sang Zhijun was reluctant as well.

    Shi Xueman collected her thoughts and said, "What Ai Hui said is right. If the reinforcements are able to reach us quickly, the blood crystals are not really that important. If the reinforcements arete or there are no reinforcements, then we will have plenty of blood crystals. Furthermore, we can ask other teams for their blood crystals as well. We can say we are investigating the uses of blood crystals. Huanghun and I will go and find the mayor. He most likely will agree to our proposal."

    Everyone nodded their heads.

    "We can investigate the crystals openly, including their effects on artifacts. I believe the mayor will help us to locate arge amount of artifacts and artifact remnants." Shi Xueman might not have a loud voice, but her words contained a convincing power. "Other than that, we will need cksmiths as well. We need help to embed the artifact remnants into weapons or to transform the artifact remnants into equipment."

    "Lou Lan can do it!" Lou Lan raised his hand happily.

    "Lou Lan is fabulous! You know everything!"

    "Almighty Lou Lan!"

    "Lou Lan, can you just directly tell us what you don¡¯t know?"

    "Lou Lan,e home with me!"

    Everyone was praising Lou Lan with liveliness.

    Lou Lan was very happy that everyone liked him.

    "After we finish with our investigation, we will report our findings to the mayor¡¯s office," Shi Xueman continued to exin. "Once Ai Hui¡¯s lightning sword appears, it will catch the attention of the mayor¡¯s office. We can¡¯t hide it. Rather than being forced to give it up, why not take the initiative? Furthermore, without the support of the mayor¡¯s office, our progress will be very slow. Also, if we report our findings to the mayor, we will be rewarded with merit points. If we do it before any of the others, we might be able to get Heaven Merit Points. And if we can survive this catastrophe, these merit points will be very useful to us. As for the gains we obtain before we submit our findings to the mayor, I believe he won¡¯t make things difficult for us."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s exnations were clear and precise, disying authority and convincing everyone.

    "Let¡¯s do it then!"

    Ai Hui made the final decision and cast a thoughtful look at Shi Xueman.

    For an irondy that had big boobs, she was rather smart.

 Chapter 208: Weak Aura

    Chapter 208: Weak Aura

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Yu Mingqiu spat out a mouthful of saliva. When he saw the flying beasts in the distance, his face darkened.

    The difficulty of the battles had far exceeded his expectations.

    These blood birds were far more troublesome than what he had anticipated. The most troublesome thing was that there was a huge number of them. In less than half a day, he had killed more than 10 blood birds that had nine blood traces on each of their bodies. He had encountered a variety of species such as falcons, vultures, etc. There were also a lot of species that he had never seen before. It was possible that these unknown species might have mutated after being inflicted with the blood poison, causing them to be drastically altered so that he was unable to recognize them.

    There were all kinds of odd-looking blood fiends, but all of them had one thing inmon¡ªthey had nine blood traces on their bodies.

    He might appear nonchnt on the surface, but he was an experienced and well-trained elite after all, so he definitely would not miss such an obvious characteristic such as the nine blood traces. He conjectured that the number of blood traces might have something to do with the base level of the blood fiends. Dire beasts also had such unique marks to indicate their base level.

    The nine traced blood birds were rather powerful, but in the eyes of Yu Mingqiu, who was a vice division leader, they were weak. However, there were truly too many blood birds, and they were very crafty. The soaring blood birds in the distance did not expect Yu Mingqiu to specialize in archery. After he killed several blood birds in one shot, these blood birds flew further away from him.

    To free himself from these blood birds, Yu Mingqiu flew down into the blood forest below him. However, the situation in the blood forest was even worse. Blood fiends surged toward him like tidal wave.

    He had no choice but to ascend to the sky again.

    To break free from the blood bird flock, he could only fly forward at his top speed. However, every time he was about to break free from the pursuing blood birds, he would encounter a new concentrated legion of blood birds that flew toward him from his front. He had no choice but to engage them in battle.

    Once he engaged, his flying speed would slow down.

    To kill each subsequent group of blood birds that were obstructing his forward path, he would exert himself strenuously and the pursuing blood birds behind him would catch up to him. In the end, the number of blood birds that surrounded him was gettingrger andrger.

    "Why am I so popr? Is it possible that I¡¯m considered handsome among the blood fiends?" Yu Mingqiu muttered to himself with a helpless look on his face.

    All along, he suspected that there was a mastermindmanding the fiends from the shadows. However, even after he racked his brain, he could not pinpoint the perpetrator. He had experienced countless battles of all sizes, but this was the first time he had encountered such an unusual situation.

    I will kill all these birds and see if you will reveal yourself!

    "The life of a handsome man is never easy!"

    Yu Mingqiu sighed with sorrow and helplessness as he thought about his life. With a jolt of his body, he suddenly appeared a few hundred metres away from a particr nine traced blood bird. Pulling the bowstring with all his might, he released his arrow and shattered its head in one shot.

    "Why wouldn¡¯t the blood birds be attracted to me too? Oh, you are male. Sorry. Regardless of the gender, a true handsome man will kill anyone, male or female."

    Killing two birds with one stone!

    "Perfect archery! Perfect man! A man that even Mingxiu can¡¯t resist! Luckily senior is not here...."

    Yu Mingqiu kept on uttering nonsense nonstop. His hands did not slow down. His body was as fast as lightning, darting left and right. The glint of his arrows appeared and disappeared unpredictably, yet they never missed their targets.

    In the blink of an eye, the entire sky was painted with blood and feathers were scattered everywhere.

    He cleared the horde of blood birds in exactly 10 minutes. Panting heavily, he had satisfied look on his face.

    "I¡¯m really pitiful. How can a perfect man like me do such heavy manualbor? It¡¯s really not appropriate."

    This time around, it appeared that he had stunned the shadowy mastermind. After flying for a long while, he did not encounter a single blood bird.

    As he continued to fly forward, he realized that something was off.

    He stopped flying and took a look at his surroundings. He was surrounded by a sea of blood forest and could not even see the end.

    His face turned pale white. Damn it! How could he forget such an important thing...

    This handsome man had a poor sense of direction...

    .....

    Shi Xueman understood the mayor¡¯s office very well. Together with Duanmu Huanghun, they headed to the government building. Even though Wang Zhen was very surprised that the A-1 unit was interested in the blood crystals, he still gave them all of his support.

    Not only did he grant them all of the blood crystals from the other units, he also dispatched a team of his subordinates to help them collect artifacts and artifact remnants.

    However, the mayor could not help them recruit cksmiths and they could not even find one.

    It was also at this point in time that Shi Xueman and the rest learned that the official strategy revolved around Master Han Yuqin¡¯s concept of "treating the city as a piece of cloth."

    At such a critical time, the efficiency of the mayor¡¯s office was extremely high. No one wanted to waste any time.

    When Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun returned to the Vanguard Training Hall, they discovered that the first batch of blood crystals, artifacts, and artifact remnants had already been delivered.

    The job of processing the blood crystals was fully given to Lou Lan.

    "Treating the city as a piece of cloth." Shi Xueman cast a nce at Ai Hui. "The designer of this n is your master, Wang Shouchuan. The administrator of this n is your mistress, Master Han Yuqin."

    When Shi Xueman heard about the concept of "treating the city as a piece of cloth," she was very surprised. Treating the city as a piece of cloth, what an imposing idea! If not for the fact that this n had been approved by the embroidery master Han Yuqin, Shi Xueman would have thought that it was a bullsh*t concept.

    No one had ever done something like this before.

    The one who designed the n was Wang Shouchuan, who was Han Yuqin¡¯s husband and Ai Hui¡¯s master. Other than this background information, she knew nothing about Wang Shouchuan and had never heard of his name before.

    She did not know the specific details, but when she saw how the mayor and the dean both praised the concept to high heaven and how all of the deployments revolved around this n, she felt extremely confident.

    "Master and mistress!" Ai Hui was shocked. However, he soon calmed down and spoke without any hesitation, "I absolutely believe in master and mistress. Tell me more about this concept."

    Upon discovering that his master and mistress were taking actions, Ai Hui immediately felt more at ease. His master and mistress were proud individuals. If they were willing to take action, it meant that they had confidence in what they were doing. Ai Hui was rather excited to see his master and mistress disy their magnificence.

    Shi Xueman exined, "Generally speaking, the entire n is split into two parts. The first part is to produce nine gigantic gold needles. Reportedly, the nine gold needles are extremely fine. Right now, the cksmiths are forging them with all their might. We will not be of any help for this part. Once the gold needles arepleted, they will be nailed to nine specific points in Central Pine City. This step will allow for the conduction and direction of the elemental energies in the city, forming awork.. Our mission will most likely be focused on the second part of the n."

    Ai Hui rubbed his palms together with an eager look on his face. "I hope the gold needles can bepleted soon."

    As a disciple of his master, he could not miss such a big event no matter what!

    This was the first time that Shi Xueman saw such a facial expression on Ai Hui. From her impression of Ai Hui, no matter what time it was, he was always calm and cool-headed. Many times, he was so calm that he seemed unreasonable.

    It was only at this moment that she saw Ai Hui express an emotion that belonged to their young age.

    "We have to endure through this period of time," Shi Xueman reminded. "The attacks from the blood traced fiends will get more and more ferocious. Our situation will be more dangerous and arduous as a result. The elite unit has suffered massive casualties. At the least, we have to endure until the day Master Han takes action."

    She felt slightly sad since the Shi n Training Hall had already had a few men that were sacrificed.

    Since the Shi n Training Hall¡¯s guards were morepetent than the average guards, they had been enlisted into the elite unit. Thest battle had a very high number of casualties.

    She was worried about Uncle Yong Zheng, but she did not use her status to influence the mayor despite her concern. The mayor might agree to protect Uncle Yong Zheng, but this would be considered an act of misappropriation and would only bring shame to both Uncle Yong Zheng and her family.

    The point of conscripting the whole city was to make sure that everyone contributed part of his or her strength and life. No one was exempt.

    After going through such an ordeal, everyone was extremely exhausted. Everyone was relieved after resolving the main problem. Even an irondy like Shi Xueman could not handle it.

    Duanmu Huanghun stood motionless at one side, resembling a stationary wooden stake. Upon closer examination, one would realize that this guy had actually fallen asleep. A strand of crystal-clear drool could even be seen on the corner of his mouth.

    Today, he waspletely worn out.

    Everyoney all over the hall, fast asleep.

    Ai Hui did not sleep. He sat cross-legged on the ground while holding the brand new Dragonspine Inferno in his hands. The more tired he was, the better time it was for him to train. If he could endure the extreme fatigue, his training results would be exceptionally good.

    In a state of extreme fatigue, one¡¯s mental state and thought process were scattered and disorganized. It would be very difficult for one to stay concentrated.

    Ai Hui, who possessed a sword embryo, was different from the others. The essence, breath, and spirit were used to nurture the sword embryo.

    The essence, breath, and spirit were incorporeal energies. A corporeal entity like the sword embryo was usually nurtured using incorporeal energies. Ai Hui¡¯s everyday training had established a solid foundation for this process.

    During his training, Ai Hui quickly felt that his sword embryo was behaving differently from usual.

    Its slow pulsation made Ai Hui feel as if he was in a creek between a valley. The sound of water flowing resounded through his ears. However, within a short of period of time, the sound disappeared and Ai Hui felt another type of pulsation.

    This one was extremely weak, resembling a lit candle ced in a windy area that would be extinguished at any moment.

    This was...

    Ai Hui calmed himself down and tried to understand what was going on. He filtered the undtions of elemental energy in his mind and tried to locate this extremely weak pulsation.

    Dragonspine Inferno!

    When Ai Hui found the source of the pulsation, seven weakly-lit dots of light appeared in his consciousness.

    Their luminosity was so weak that he could even differentiate them from one another.

    Their auras were simrly weak.

    The faint aura... a somewhat familiar aura... the sword¡¯s aura!

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted suddenly, almost causing him to lose his focus.

    These seven artifact remnants might have been part of a flying sword or a sword-rted artifact. Even though they had been corroded by the Silver Mist Sea for thousands of years, the remnants still emitted a faint tinge of sword consciousness after being stimted by a small amount of spiritual force. It was as if he had wiped off the dust from an ancient treasure, revealing its original radiance.

    Ai Hui was overjoyed.

    It was a lifelong dream for him to be able toprehend the sword consciousness that could only be found in the Cultivation Era.

    He suppressed his ecstasy, gradually calming his mind again.

    He was feeling the faintly discernible sword consciousness.

    There was absolute silence in the training hall.

    In the depths of the training hall, there was a room that was brightly lit.

    Lou Lan, who had been given a heavy responsibility, was busy going through experiments.

    "Deconstruction of the blood crystal, trial number 12. Sand core, begin recording. Test subject, artifact remnant number 12. Attempting to derive the unknown energy. Failure!"

    ...

    "Deconstruction of the blood crystal, trial number 37. Sand core, begin recording. Test subject, artifact remnant number 37. Attempting to derive the unknown energy. Sess. Beginning power analysis. Analyzing in process. Type of energy, unknown. Setting up a temte. It¡¯s called blood spiritual force. Undergoing deeper analysis..."

    ...

    "Ratio analysis between blood spiritual force and elemental energy, trial number 19. Sand core, begin recording."

    ...

    "Interaction between blood spiritual force and elemental energy. Sand core, begin recording."

    ...

    "Blood spiritual force and earth elemental energy are colliding against each other. Sand core, begin recording... Warning! Sand core is being invaded by the blood spiritual force! Defense mechanism of the sand core activated! Defense mechanism of the sand core failed! The sand core seal is being damaged! The sand core seal has been removed! Warning! Elemental energy in the sand core has been depleted... Substitution mechanism has activated. The sand core will begin to absorb the blood spiritual force... Absorbing the blood spiritual force in progress... Absorbing... Absorbing...

    ...

    "Absorptionpleted."

    "Midnight activated."

 Chapter 209: New Sword Moves and Elemental Energy Soup

    Chapter 209: New Sword Moves and Elemental Energy Soup

    Trantor: JL Editor: CakeHermit

    Ai Hui slowly opened his eyes and a bright ray of light flickered past them.

    Ai Hui could not get his mind off the sword ray that had triggered the lightning and thunder. That scene was simply too stunning.

    When he had been engulfed by the sword embryo, Ai Hui had witnessed the sword intent of the seven artifact remnants.

    Just that scene alone almost made him lose his mind.

    At that moment, there were only three words in his mind: ¡®Destroy the world.¡¯

    Thinking back to the times when he¡¯d read through the sword manuals, he¡¯d thought that the descriptions were simply too exaggerated; however, having witnessed first-hand that sword intent, he understood that the descriptions had not been exaggerated. Rather, they were too understated.

    ncing down at the Dragonspine Inferno in his hand, the silver ray was still dazzling; however, he was no longer able to detect the indistinct, feeble energy of the seven artifact remnants.

    Ai Hui was somewhat surprised that the sword embryo could absorb the sword intent. After pondering, he came to an understanding. If he were topare the simrities between the sword embryo and sword intent, then they were both categorized as part of the three essential life-sustaining energies.

    Ai Hui did not know whether or not his conjecture was right. In any case, it was how he understood it.

    He grabbed the Dragonspine Inferno and started his sword dance.

    His initial sword moves were slow and coarse. Sometimes, he would stop and ponder and make some adjustments. The sword moves always had some minute changes.

    He had read many sword manuals, but the sword manuals were just objects. Their descriptions of the sword moves were just limited to literature. There were many mysterious meanings behind the sword moves that were difficult to put into words.

    For a long time, he could only fumble about persistently, like grasping something in the dark and pondering about it.

    The moment the sword intent of the seven artifact remnants had been engulfed by the sword embryo, Ai Hui was able to experience the sword intent as it was during the Cultivation Era. While it was still simply too high-end for the current Ai Hui, it was still of an unusual significance to him. He could use it as a source of reference.

    He waved the long sword, asionally went forwards, and asionally retreated. He attempted different moves persistently and used such a method to sort out his recentprehensions and gains.

    Gradually, a change urred in his sword ray. The sword ray became smooth and no longer shed and disappeared. Instead, it was congregated and did not disperse.

    His heart was filled with immense happiness.

    So, it was like this... it was like this...

    Countless inspirations started to appear in his mind. He was ted and the sword moves changed continuously. The sword ray also changed ordingly.

    The silver sword ray became increasingly congregated and stayed in the air, not dispersing. Ai Hui made move after move and did not stop. The sword in his hand was getting increasingly fast.

    The silver ray was emitted continuously, like a moving electric snake. It lit up his stern face and devoted eyes.

    The rest of the people in the courtyard were startled. They could not help but watch while standing at the side.

    Shi Xueman was long alerted. She felt a unique, peculiar aura, one she had never experienced before. It felt like being high above the clouds, at a hard to reach, remote ce, where a lone figure bathed in sunlight walked as if he were flying and giving off an electric sensation.

    Following which, she saw Ai Hui who was practicing his sword dance.

    Ai Hui¡¯s figure was almost concealed by the intense, never-ending sword ray.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes widened. Oh gosh, what sort of swordy was this? Why didn¡¯t the sword ray disperse?

    Ai Hui was stillpletely absorbed in his sword dance. In a sh, the surrounding sword rays were like an ever-increasing pile of silver snow. His figure hadpletely disappeared within the silver sword rays.

    Then, in the next moment, a melodious sword chime was heard throughout the training hall.

    The sword rays which were like a pile of snow dispersed with a loud bang!

    The silver rays dispersed and filled up the sky. Ai Hui stood perfectly straight, like a long sword, and looked majestic.

    He gave a long exhale and, just like the sword ray, the joy in his eyes vanished. His eyes regained their usual cold gaze. His gains were huge. He¡¯d managed to understand three more sword moves: [Heavenly Thrust], [Uprising Moon], and [Ruined Clouds]. After some modifications, these basic moves were able to trigger elemental energy.

    [Heavenly Thrust] was a thrusting move, but was not as mighty as [Misty Strike]; however, its movements were more clean cut and the range wasrger.

    [Uprising Moon] was a move that required lifting the sword. Ai Hui made use of some of the techniques used in [Crescent Moon]. The tip was simrly moon shaped, although it was slimmer.

    [Ruined Clouds] made use of the resonance of the elemental energy. It had an osciting impact and could be used for both attack and defence. It could also be used to extricate oneself from a dangerous situation.

    Having gained three additional moves implied that Ai Hui now had more means with which to act. Usually, [Misty Strike] and [Oblique Cut] needed extra steps or other methods toplement the gaps. In a battle, it would cause Ai Hui to easilynd into a dangerous situation.

    However, Ai Hui¡¯s biggest gain was actually his understanding of the sword moves. This was the first time he could appreciate the sword intents, including those of the Cultivation Era. While the terrifying sword move had been far beyond hisprehension, he was still enlightened and it helped him a lot.

    When he¡¯d created [Misty Strike], he had understood the reasoning behind why sword moves required the ignition of elemental energy. In the Cultivation Era, they had ignited spiritual force. Despite this, he had stillcked understanding regarding resonance. After looking at the thunderous sword move, however, he had developed a new understanding regarding resonance. The sword ray which had been concentrated and not dispersed was a unique form of elemental energy resonance.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sword moves were like a ma. They attracted the elemental energy and formed a unique sword ray.

    As a result, the sword moves became more formidable. Ai Hui reckoned that [Misty Strike]¡¯s formidability was twice what it had been before, and this did not take into ount his faster reaction speed resulting from the improved Dragonspine Inferno.

    Ai Hui¡¯s strength waspletely transformed.

    Shi Xueman stared nkly at Ai Hui. That chappletely undermined all her knowledge. Since she was young, she had been surrounded by geniuses. Despite seeing countless geniuses, she has never met anyone like Ai Hui.

    His capability was changing daily.

    Shi Xueman suddenly thought, if Ai Hui has any enemies, they would definitely suffer.

    Duanmu Huanghun gave Ai Hui a nce. He lowered his head and looked at the [Viridescent Flower] circting around his hand. His mouth curled and his eyes flickered with intent to battle, like a zing fire in the dark.

    "Ai Hui!" Lou Lan rushed out of the room and ran to Ai Hui. He looked up and earnestly said, "Lou Lan seems to have be more brilliant."

    Ai Hui gave a heartyugh and patted Lou Lan¡¯s head. He pretended to be stern and said, "Lou Lan has always been the cleverest!"

    "Ai Hui, really?" Lou Lan¡¯s eyes was shining and filled with delight.

    Ai Hui rushed into the courtyard and shouted to the others, "Does everyone think that Lou Lan is the best?"

    "Of course! Who could be better than Lou Lan?"

    "When Lou Lan brings out his elemental soup, I will surrender!"

    "When Lou Lan brings out his elemental soup, everyone will surrender!"

    "When Lou Lan brings out his elemental soup, even the dead corpses on the battlefield will climb up and surrender again!"

    ...

    ......

    Lou Lan¡¯s smile was so wide that his eyes formed a crescent moon shape. He said delightedly, "Lou Lan would prepare elemental soup for everyone!"

    There was a short moment of silence and everyone started to rush over. Fatty was the most dramatic. He kneeled down and slid over impressively, emitting sparks due to the friction. He forced himself to the front and said righteously, "Lou Lan, please give me a chance to surrender!"

    After a moment, Lou Lan brought out a pot of brightly-colored soup. An unpleasant smell enveloped the ce. Everyone¡¯s expression turned slightly green. Just by the smell alone, it was enough to make them nauseated.

    "This is Lou Lan¡¯s newest creation. It is a specially concocted elemental energy soup based on the properties of the blood crystal. The pressing matter on everyone¡¯s minds right now is raising their base level. The blood crystal contains blood spiritual energy and is a unique source of strength. It can increase the effect of elemental food, furthermore, it consists of properties simr to the origins of wood elemental energy. It can eliminate internal injuries sustained from training. Except for its pungent odor, there are no other faults."

    Lou Lan spoke frankly and assuredly. His tone was filled with confidence. The pot of soup emitted a colorful vapor and the air was filled with a smell that made everyone nauseated. It made the atmosphere eerie and gloomy.

    Everyone looked at each other in dismay and there was a span of awkward silence.

    Ai Huiughed and said, "This is the first time Lou Lan created an elemental energy soup with such a foul smell. My interest is piqued."

    He walked to the big pot. He pinched his nose while taking a big scoop anddling out a bowl for himself.

    "Courageous Ai Hui!" Lou Lan said happily.

    "What can I do? Lou Lan is Ai Hui¡¯s sand puppet. While this soup looks scary, being your master, I need to show some support. This is the willy-nilly of life."

    Ai Hui spoke helplessly. He pinched his nose and with a martyr-like posture, he downed the soup in one gulp.

    The next moment, his eyes widened and his face turned green.

    Ai Hui felt that this was the most disgusting soup he had ever drunk. Even those medicines that were hard to swallow could be considered a delicacy whenpared to this soup. While he was downing the soup, he almost puked it out.

    Not giving him a chance to puke it out, the soup transformed into a ball of zing me.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes widened further. This is...

    The turbulent waves of elemental energy suddenly exploded and scoured his body. The quiet sword embryo was stimted and started jumping about crazily. Ai Hui did not have any time to react before the elemental energy in his body began the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    The amount of elemental energy was simply too much. It was too much to the extent that the Circtory Cycle Revolution was momentarily unable to fully absorb it.

    Part of the elemental energy seeped deep into Ai Hui¡¯s body. The remaining elemental energy was dispersed around the surface of his body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body emitted a faint silver light. Everyone was dumbfounded by the sight in front of them.

    Ai Hui could no longer care to speak. He held the sword hilt and single-mindedly concentrated on controlling his body¡¯s elemental energy through the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    The dumbfounded crowd regained their senses and rushed towards the pot. The ecstasy and the excitement on their faces could not be contained. So what if it was disgusting? As long as it could increase their elemental energy, they were more than willing to drink it.

    "Everyone must fully absorb it. The elemental energy in this soup is very suitable for absorption. Such an effect can only appear in top-quality elemental energy soup. The blood crystal is indeed a magical object..."

    Lou Lan exined while looking at Ai Hui. Lou Lan¡¯s sand core had recorded in detail the moment Ai Hui had stood up and drunk the bowl of soup while pinching his nose.

    "... Lou Lan is Ai Hui¡¯s sand puppet..."

    What a happy moment!

    Lou Lan has improved. Lou Lan will be able help Ai Hui more. What a happy moment!

    The ted Lou Lan transformed into a long tail made up of the word "willy-nilly" with a loud bang and danced around everyone.

    "Ho-Hey, All the best! All the best! All the best!"

    "Ho-Hey, willy-nilly! WIlly-nilly! Willy-nilly!"

    Lou Lan was so happy!

 Chapter 210: A Strange Outcome

    Chapter 210: A Strange Oue

    Trantor: JL Editor: CakeHermit

    Ai Hui circted the elemental energy with all his might, but after the seven pces were filled, the huge volume of elemental energy had nowhere to go to, so it started to surge towards his sky pce between his eyebrows.

    Due to the existence of the sword embryo in the past, his sky pce has not been activated.

    However, due to the huge volume of the elemental energy this time round, the powerful surge forcibly opened Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce.

    The moment the elemental energy entered the sky pce, Ai Hui started trembling. It was like his mind was suddenly crammed with countless objects. His mind was nk.

    If Ai Hui was still in a clear state of mind now, he would realise that it was as if there was a door opened slightly in his sky pce. Behind the door was a bottomless pit. Regardless of how much elemental energy was going in, it would be engulfed cleanly. The surge of the elemental energy continued for a few more minutes. There were no signs of the sky pce being filled fully. The surge of elemental energy towards the sky pce started to weaken.

    As Lou Lan observed Ai Hui surreptitiously, his yellow eyes flickered. He noticed the change within Ai Hui¡¯s body and immediatelydled a bowl of elemental energy soup and poured it into Ai Hui¡¯s mouth.

    Bang!

    The surge of elemental energy increased dramatically once again and continued to flow crazily towards the sky pce between his eyebrows. What was surprising was that Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce did not move a single jot and still did not show any signs of being filled to the brim.

    After a moment, the elemental energy started to weaken. Again, Lou Lan gave a bowl of soup to Ai Hui.

    After giving Ai Hui five consecutive bowls of elemental energy soup, the speed at which the sky pce engulfed the elemental energy started to slow down.

    "Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce is so formidable," Lou Lan muttered to himself. He was surprised.

    He knew that each bowl of elemental energy contained a shocking amount of elemental energy. As a result, he only allowed them to have one bowl each. If they drank too much of it, they would not be able to support the amount of elemental energy. There was a process that they had to go through before the elemental energy would be absorbed. To activate and expand, the eight pces needed time and effort. Those that base level were not high enough would not be able to handle too much elemental soup. In simpler terms, it meant that someone who wasn¡¯t in a good state of health would not be able to handle a strong tonic.

    The amount of elemental energy one bowl of soup contained should be the maximum amount one could handle. However, Ai Hui had drank six bowls.

    Ai Hui already had seven pces. The only pce not activated was the sky pce. Initially, Lou Lan thought that one bowl of elemental soup would be sufficient, but this had far surpassed his prediction.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce was very unusual.

    Lou Lan¡¯s yellow gaze flickered constantly. His curiosity was piqued. His sand core, Midnight, was rotating at a never-before-seen speed.

    Midnight was in a strange condition now.

    Midnight was created due to Master Shao¡¯s fruit ofbor. As Lou Lan¡¯s body was unable to ept such a formidable core, Master Shao sealed up most of the regions in the core. However, Midnight was now engulfing the Blood Spiritual Energy which resulted in the breaking of the seal.

    Midnight...

    How are you doing, Master Shao? Lou Lan misses you a lot.

    At this moment, Lou Lan¡¯s mind wandered.

    Midnight had undergone a wonderful change. The life essence that the blood spiritual energy contained had seeped into the lifeless sand core. The sand core now had the essence of life.

    If Lou Lan¡¯s sand core was a desert previously, it could be said that there was now an oasis in the desert.

    Lou Lan did not know if this was a good or bad change; he had yet to understand many of the changes. Based on the current situation, these changes enabled Lou Lan to be stronger. The ability of the sandcore had increased tremendously while not putting an additional burden on his body.

    The increase in ability was multi-purpose. He could transform more quickly, he could transform into moreplicated shapes, and he was also better in examining capability, etc.

    Now Lou Lan was using all of his might to examine Ai Hui. He could see many details that he had missed out on previously.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce was really strange. Once again, Lou Lan sighed.

    It wasmon to have stronger and weakerponents between the five residences and eight pces. However, the difference between the stronger and weakerponent was always within a specific limit. After all, the five residences and eight pces were one entity. Just like our left hand and right hand, while they might have a difference in strength, the difference was not too drastic. It was the same for the eight pces.

    After six consecutive bowls of elemental energy soup, Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce started to show signs of being full.

    The addition of the blood crystals increased the effect of the elemental energy soup by at least three levels.

    Lou Lan felt that the blood crystals would definitely be in huge demand in future. Even he was impressed by such an effect. The addition of blood crystals would increase the training speed of the elementalists drastically.

    Suddenly, Lou Lan experienced an intense wave motion. He turned his face around.

    It was Miss Shi Xueman!

    The intense wave motions were emitted. Water elemental energy started to converge towards her direction. Shi Xueman was like a whirlpool, constantly and continuously absorbing the water elemental energy rushing towards her.

    Shi Xueman was in the eye of the tornado, and there was a crazy gale at the training hall.

    Not long after, another intense wave motion was experienced. It was Sang Zhijun.

    Their breakthrough was expected. Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun had the best base levels amongst the rest. They were just one step away from the Eight Pces Completion. It would be strange if they did not break through after drinking such an outstanding elemental energy soup.

    Lou Lan was jubnt. It was such a pleasure to be able to help others.

    There were constant wave motions, and rays flickered from everyone¡¯s bodies. However, none of the waves were as strong as Shi Xueman¡¯s and Sang Zhijun¡¯s.

    Lou Lan focused his attention back on Ai Hui. Ai Hui was also a potential candidate to attain the Eight Pces Completion. However, Lou Lan was baffled. The absorption rate of the elemental energy from Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce has decreased drastically. This was a symptom of elemental energy being filled to the brim.

    However, there were no signs of a breakthrough. So strange......

    The yellow rays in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes shed faster.

    Shi Xueman opened her eyes and gradually regained the air around her. Her eyes exposed her happiness.

    She finally attained the Eight Pces Completion!

    The water elemental energy within the sky blended into one body. The previous eight pces were like eight small ponds that were interconnected. Now the elemental energy within her body was like an ocean.

    This was a good change.

    Every single movement was filled with elemental energy. She sensed that she was stronger than before. Even Cirrus, which she was holding on to, was as light as feather.

    She no longer needed to control the elemental energy within her body. The Circtory Cycle Revolution was automated. This implied that she would not need to train all the time. While the Circtory Cycle Revolution was slower than when she was having a fixed regime, over time, the umtion effect will be astonishing.

    From today onwards, she would finally be an official elementalist. She would be qualified to join the Thirteen Divisions, she would be able to conduct missions, she would be able to enjoy the relevant benefits.

    She was unable to describe how she was feeling. Many a times, Shi Xueman had envisioned herself being an official elementalist.

    To the people from Avalon of Five Elements, being an official elementalist was of a huge significance. It was a child¡¯sing of age ceremony. When you became an elementalist that was recorded in the books, you would no longer be treated as a kid. It meant that you now had the ability to talk to the adults. It also implied that you were responsible for your own life and you are required to assume the corresponding responsibility.

    Shi Xueman never thought that hering of age ceremony would be in the middle of a disaster, and in the middle of an imminent crisis like the blood battle.

    Life was so strange.

    Her gaze swept across everyone. Everyone had some form of breakthrough, but it was not enough for them to attain the Eight Pces Completion.

    Where¡¯s that person?

    Shi Xueman¡¯s gaze swept across the crowd and fell on the youth who was holding onto a sword and standing upright. Her mouth curved upwards. It was still that strange pose.

    In her heart, she was actually clear of the fact that the reason they were still alive now wasrgely due to Ai Hui. She had also noticed that while Ai Hui did not lead the team personally, people would still rush to listen every time he spoke up. And there were many positive traits found on Ai Hui: he did not withhold the information he had, he shared things rted to the blood crystal with everyone, and he was also reliable in times of crisis. She was already used to obeying hismands.

    However, some of the actions that he took made it difficult for her to have a favorable opinion of him.

    Thinking about it, Shi Xueman felt a surge of anger. She held on to her hatred. If this was the past, he would definitely have a tragic end now!

    She noticed Ai Hui¡¯s condition and felt that something was wrong. While she did not have the yellow rays like Lou Lan and was unable to see within Ai Hui¡¯s body, her background and wealth of experience implied that she had more knowledge and understanding on training than average people.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was raging with brilliant rays, like he could soar into the sky at any moment. This was a sign that his body was filled to the brim with elemental energy. For some unknown reason, while the light rays continued to grow stronger, there was an invisible barrier that he was unable to surpass.

    The raging rays of light were unable to rush out and started to dim.

    How could it be? She started to get anxious. It shouldn¡¯t be! Ai Hui had alreadypleted his seven pces, so he should be as sessful as her. Why was such a situation happening?

    There were negative impacts to the person that failed to achieve a breakthrough in the Eight Pces Completion. Not only would they fall behind others, it would also leave a shadow of failure in their heart. It would then affect their next attempt to break through. Those that attempted countless times would find that their sess rate would be inverted to their number of attempts. Even if they managed to achieve a breakthrough, there was still a possibility that it would negatively affect their training in the future.

    Impossible!

    In terms of character or experience, it was impossible. Those that failed to break through were usually those that were weak and did not have determination. Shi Xueman felt that there were few people who would be better than Ai Hui in this aspect.

    The light surrounding Ai Hui was getting dimmer. However, within his body, the rotation of the light rays could be vaguely seen. The Ai Hui now was like a rubber ball that was filled with water.

    When thest ray of light disappeared, Shi Xueman sighed silently. The attempt to break through was a failure.

    At that moment, a powerful wave motion erupted behind her.

    Shi Xueman turned and realised in astonishment that it was actually Duanmu Huanghun!

    She stared nkly for a moment. The brilliant rays rushed towards the sky and the eight pces blended into one. Wood elemental energy rushed in from all directions and caused a strong wind to howl across the courtyard.

    Within the brilliant rays was Duanmu Huanghun. His stance was imposing, his sleeve was fluttering without the aid of the wind, and his long hair was flying around.

    This fellow......had actually achieved Eight Pces Completion!

    Shi Xueman felt bewildered. She looked at Duanmu Huanghun, then she looked at Ai Hui. The person who was supposed to break through and attain Initial Completion did not manage to attain it, yet the chap that shouldn¡¯t break through managed to attain sess.

    What a strange oue.

 Chapter 211: Blood-traced Cat

    Chapter 211: Blood-traced Cat

    Trantor: JL Editor: CakeHermit

    "Stay behind and rest at the training hall if you are feeling unwell." Shi Xueman nced at Ai Hui, and her tone conveyed that she had no confidence in Ai Hui¡¯s current condition.

    Not only Shi Xueman, everyone could see that something was not right with Ai Hui.

    His steps were empty, unstable, and not the least bit agile like they were in the former days.

    The more capable someone is, the better they are at controlling their strength and gauging the distance. All of these meticulous traits seep into different aspects of their daily life. For example, the pace that they walk is even more uniform than by using a ruler to measure each step. Their sense of rhythm enables them to always be in their optimal condition. They are conditioned to be able to rx, but at the next moment they can give a fatal blow.

    All of these special traits could easily be seen on Ai Hui in the past.

    However, the current Ai Hui seemed to be apletely different person. His steps were uneven and he was staggering from side to side; he looked like a mess. One would even wonder if he was going to trip over his own shoes.

    Duanmu Huanghun shot Ai Hui a nce and said indifferently, "Do not try to be a hero and be a hindrance to uster."

    Heughed madly in his heart. Ha ha ha, he could finally use such a tone to talk to him!

    At that moment, Duanmu Huanghun was more than happy. How long had it been since he was awaiting such a day?

    Ever since meeting that scoundrel, Duanmu Huanghun constantly found himself at a disadvantageous position. Even if his capability was stronger, he would still be defeated by that scoundrel. In a state of muddle, he was healed by that chap. In a state of muddle, he was saved by that chap. In a state of muddle, he owed a huge debt to that chap.

    Duanmu Huanghun felt that the only reason he had not gone bonkers was due to his strong willpower.

    If Duanmu Huanghun had not made clear why Ai Hui was leading before the blood battle, the performance that Ai Hui exhibited after the blood battle was at another extreme end. It was so strong that it was hard to contest against.

    Duanmu Huanghun did not retreat. He had never once given up on his pride.

    Indeed he was someone with strong willpower.

    He finally managed to defeat Ai Hui. He gave an exhale and he felt that his mood could not get any better than this. Even his steps seemed to be flying.

    He felt that this was a turning point in his life. From this day onwards, he would start to surpass Ai Hui in all aspects.

    He was destined to be the final victor!

    Duanmu Huanghun lifted his head arrogantly, like a victorious hero that had just returned from a battle.

    "When will you return the money?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s question caught Duanmu Huanghun by surprise. It was like shooting a fatal arrow which stabbed Duanmu Huanghun directly in the heart.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s expression froze.

    "Could it be that you are not nning to return it? Let me tell you this: while there are many matters between us, you still need to return what you owe." Ai Hui¡¯s tone was filled with suspicion. Duanmu Huanghun felt humiliated. When the gaze of the others fell on him, his face heated up.

    He wanted to rush forward and punch Ai Hui. However, he still had his pride, so he forced the words out of his mouth. "I will return it to you once we are out of the Induction Ground."

    "You have said this many times." Ai Hui curled his lips, his face filled with despise.

    Duanmu Huanghun wished that he could dig a hole and hide. Despite being familiar with all of them, he was still ashamed when he was asked to return the money in front of everyone.

    Damn it, why didn¡¯t he have money? Poor Duanmu Huanghun was unaware that Ai Hui¡¯s mindset had rubbed off on him.

    Shi Xueman almostughed at Ai Hui¡¯s righteous and shameless look. She too wanted to ask when Ai Hui would return her money. However, given that she would expose her identity as the girl from the noodle store, she restrained herself.

    Ai Hui became more carefree after jeering at Duanmu Huanghun.

    There was indeed something queer about his condition.

    He felt that he was disorientated, and he was swaying while walking. It was mostly due to his sky pce. His sky pce was almost filled to the brim and it was jam-packed with the elemental energy. His brain seemed to be filled with water. Even a minute move would make it sway.

    When the elemental energy within his head swayed, Ai Hui would also sway about.

    In the past, he had experienced situations where he was unable to control his body. However, this was the first time that he experienced such a situation. While he was unable to control his actions in the past, he was still in a stable state of mind.

    However, a slight movement now would also send his world spinning.

    "Ai Hui, sorry," Lou Lan said softly, in a tone filled with regret. He did not expect such a situation to ur. He did not know what to do regarding the situation with Ai Hui¡¯s body either.

    "Lou Lan, you did not make any mistakes. You need not apologise," Ai Hui said firmly, and she continued nonchntly," It is just a small trial; it is a good thing"

    "Ai Hui, really?" Lou Lan opened his eyes wide and was somewhat surprised.

    "Of course." With a deep expression, Ai Hui continued, "For such an unusual person like myself, there will definitely be some aspects that are unusual as well. There is nothing strange."

    "Ai Hui is the best!" Lou Lan cheered.

    Not only Lou Lan, the rest of the people suddenly saw the light. They felt that Ai Hui was right. In their eyes, Ai Hui was never normal. There were many aspects of him that were not seen on the others. As such, it wasmon for him to have some difference in the process of achieving the Eight Pces Completion.

    Shi Xueman was convinced by such reasoning. There were many aspects of Ai Hui that she was unable to exin. Adding another aspect that she was unable to exin was nothing strange.

    Duanmu Huanghun did not know why, but he suddenly felt threatened. His victory did not seem too stable suddenly. It seemed like it would be taken away from him any time.

    He could not wait to start training and he would not let Ai Hui make aeback.

    "Ai Hui, there are blood-traced fiends in that direction."

    Lou Lan suddenly stopped and pointed to the street on the right. Everyone tensed up immediately.

    Their goal for this expedition was to kill the blood-traced fiends.

    The report on the blood crystal had been handed over to the mayor residence. While the mayor residence was distributing the rewards, everyone came to a unanimous decision to kill the blood-traced fiends. The purpose of the blood crystal was starting toe to light, and everyone¡¯s strength had increased tremendously. The blood-traced fiends were now like dire beasts to them.

    The blood crystal could increase elemental energy and could be used to create defense weapons.

    The situation had changed. Previously, they were unable to gain any benefits from battling with the blood-traced fiends. Now they were able to obtain the blood crystals, and in turn, the blood crystals would increase their capability.

    In other words, the appearance of the blood crystals increased their likelihood of survival.

    Ai Hui was shocked and surprised that Lou Lan could detect the blood-traced fiends from such a far distance. Lou Lan was unable to do this previously. But he did not question it too much. It was not unusual given that Lou Lan had researched the blood crystal and discovered the characteristics of the blood-traced fiends.

    Lou Lan was an all-purpose sand puppet.

    Fatty walked to the front of the troop. He was in high spirits and felt that he had limitless strength. Amongst the people, his base level had increased the most. He had already attained seven pces and was not far off from attaining the Eight Pces Completion.

    However, his increase in base level was aided by external forces like Lou Lan¡¯s elemental energy soup, chili fire oil, etc. It was not due to his training. While his base level was high, his battle capability was low.

    Thank goodness he was only required to defend. The higher base level had an obvious effect on his strength. The heavy shield on his hand seemed as light as a feather.

    Except for Shi Xueman, Sang Zhijun, and Duanmu Huanghun, the rest of them were more or less confronted with the same problem. Of course, Ai Hui was the worst off.

    After the row of them treaded cautiously for around 300 metres, they saw a blood-traced fiend.

    A red blood-traced cat was gnawing on the carcass on the floor. Upon seeing Ai Hui and the rest, it raised its head. The blood-traced cat was much bigger than the average cat; it looked like a leopard. Its four limbs were thick and solid, its red fur emitted a bewitching luster, and the ck blood traces decorated its whole body. The scarlet red cat stared coldly at them.

    "Nine blood traces," Ai Hui said softly. His eyes were still sharp and he could clearly see the number of blood traces at one nce.

    Everyone exhaled in relief. The blood worm that they killed had nine blood traces as well. They had sessfully killed one. Furthermore, their strength had increased, so they shouldn¡¯t be at a disadvantage.

    The blood-traced cat no longer looked at the carcass. Instead, it walked slowly towards Ai Hui and team.

    It lifted up its tail and walked measuredly and gracefully.

    Suddenly, it disappeared in front of everyone¡¯s eyes.

    "Fatty!" Ai Hui bellowed urgently.

    Bang!

    The shield on Fatty¡¯s hand was split into pieces, like it had been hit by a hammar. The pieces flew all around. Fatty¡¯s cowardly character saved his life. He was used to hidingpletely behind the heavy shield, and he never exposed his head.

    Fatty was frightened stiff by the huge disy of strength and shattered shield. He did not have any intention to resist and he followed the source of strength and rolled around on the floor.

    Fatty was like a ball being kicked around. In one breath, he rolled towards Ai Hui. The blood had left his face and his face was pale; he was terrified.

    Not only Fatty was scared out of his wits, everyone was frightened.

    The blood-traced catnded on the floor steadily. Despite its huge figure, it was nimble and light on its feet.

    Fatty had just increased his base level, so his strength was two times higher than usual. Yet he did not manage to withstand the impact when the blood-traced cat pounced. The iron shield, which was invincible in everyone¡¯s eyes, was also shattered into pieces. That pounce was simply too formidable, so everyone was intimidated.

    Both Ai Hui and Shi Xueman had nasty expressions.

    While the blood-traced cat was smaller than the blood-traced worm, it was much more dangerous and threatening.

    It was as fast as lightning and was extremely deadly. Only a few clearly saw the leap it did. The reason why it could create such an impact was due to its astonishing speed. Due to that scarily fast speed, a simple move could easily be a killer move.

    Furthermore, it was extremely agile. It immediatelynded on themppost after it leaped.

    But what Ai Hui was most afraid of was that this blood-traced cat was very crafty.

    Those ice-cold eyes were emotionless, yet it was smarter than any of the blood-traced fiends that Ai Hui had seen before. It was also cunning. That leap was a show of strength. The blood-traced cat was also testing the waters.

    It stayed a distance away from Ai Hui. It looked at them coldly, and unlike the rest of the blood-traced fiends, it did not rush towards them without a care in the world.

    Ai Hui knew that they had met an opponent that was hard to deal with.

 Chapter 212: Danger

    Chapter 212: Danger

    Trantor: Irene Editor: CakeHermit

    Ai Hui sized up the blood-traced cat before his eyes carefully. This was the cleverest blood-traced fiend that he had seen so far. There was a sense of calm within its ice-cold eyes instead of the blood-thirstiness evident in other blood-traced fiends.

    Ai Hui had a faint feeling that the cat was also sizing him up.

    Under the pressuring silence, they stood opposite each of other.

    The blood-traced cat had blood-red hair, but each strand was abnormally hard and thick like needles. Its paws were solid and wrapped up in fine fish scales. This was also the only part of its body that had scales.

    ording to Ai Hui¡¯s experience, fish scales meant strong defense. Iron hooves? Was this still a cat?

    Its sharp ws were like des that could easily pierce into solid ground.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell upon the cat¡¯s tail, which was as thick as a whip. A "whoosh whoosh" sound filled the air when the cat swept its tail, undoubtedly convincing Ai Hui of its strength.

    Life was full of surprises indeed. Ai Hui sighed.

    In the Wilderness, every dire beast was like an uncrossable, tall mountain. At that point, he absolutely did not imagine that one day he would casually bump into strange and extraordinarily strong dire beasts.

    The good thing was that everyone¡¯s skills had improved tremendously as well.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind was spinning rapidly. When dealing with this blood-traced cat, the most important thing was to restrain its speed. Otherwise, not to mention hunting it, he would get attacked.

    "I¡¯ll go first, you guys cover for me."

    Shi Xueman said suddenly while holding onto Cirrus, eager to give it a go. As a newly registered elementalist, she wanted to test her own abilities.

    The water nt-like fog on her back had now grown into a pair of snow-white azure wings. She took off the broken Central Pine Armor, revealing the blue-white war armor.

    Central Pine Armor had very low defensive power. After her battle with the blood wormst time around, it had be utterly dpidated.

    There it was, her snow-white azure wings, jet-ck and thick hair, exquisite blue-white war armor, and stainless Cirrus, whose body emitted white mist streamers. Her cold-as-ice appearance was suffocating to look at, and her bright and clear eyes disyed great confidence.

    She held onto Cirrus and ambled along as a representative.

    Filled with elemental energy, Cirrus hummed, as if responding to her. Cirrus was a top-notch Heaven-grade weapon, hand-casted by her father. She felt full of courage whenever she held it.

    The blood-traced cat gradually retreated.

    Everyone fell into a daze. Retreated...

    They hade across countless blood fiends, but it was their first time seeing one withdraw. Before, all of the blood fiends would directly pounce on their enemies upon finding them.

    A premonition arose in Ai Hui¡¯s chest.

    Suddenly, the blood-traced cat let out an expected whine. This wasn¡¯t a mournful sound. Then a wisp of incorporeal motion was emitted from its body.

    After two seconds, two incorporeal motions exploded simultaneously at two different ces.

    Ai Hui quivered before shouting, "It¡¯s calling backup!"

    Calling backup...

    Everyone¡¯s faces changed. No way...

    Why were the blood fiends bing more and more different?

    But they quickly got ready to battle any way, as Ai Hui¡¯s judgments were usually never wrong.

    Boom boom boom!

    The floor trembled. With his right hand, Ai Hui raised up enough dust to hide the sky and cover the earth. The noise of buildings copsing sounded incessantly, and with loud rumblings, the ground started to close up. Some blood fiends were frantically moving toward that side too.

    Boom!

    The house to his right exploded suddenly, and the fragmented bricks flew everywhere as if there was a storm. A red, short silhouette emerged amidst the raised dust.

    When the dust dispersed, a two-meter-long blood-traced lizard appeared before everyone¡¯s eyes. A dense, blood-like light circled around this lizard¡¯s body, spun non-stop, and was very destructive. The blood-traced lizard¡¯s body was wrapped in red fish scales. Seemingly forged by a mysterious metal, they carried a strong, golden luster.

    The blood traces on its body were very peculiar, like an irregr pattern formed by ck, warped characters. After counting, Ai Hui located nine blood traces.

    The blood-traced lizard had ice-cold,pletely emotionless eyes.

    Just then, a blood fog arrived quietly from their left. It moved in an observable speed and started fading as a petite, red blood fox appeared in front of everybody. It red at them with its red, ceramic-like eyes, giving them the cold sweats.

    Everybody¡¯s faces turned pale. They wanted to hunt for one blood fiend but never imagined that there would be three appearing together! No, the two that were summoned.

    Blood-traced fiends who knew how to fight in groups were bad news to Ai Hui and the gang.

    The tremendous pressure brought about by three nine blood-traced fiends was stifling and the air froze up.

    It was as if everyone had been doused with a pail of ice water. The joy from the earlier breakthroughs vanished into thin air.

    They had been battling for days, and not one was as ruthless as today¡¯s.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes flicked with light as he took a stride forward, saying cooly, "I¡¯ll deal with the small fox."

    This moment, Ai Hui took a deep breath before speaking. "I¡¯ll get the lizard."

    Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun turned over at the same time.

    Ai Hui quickly added, "The rest, please provide assistance."

    They turned back around. While Ai Hui wasn¡¯t in his best condition, it was manageable if he had everyone¡¯s support.

    The first to move was Duanmu Huanghun. He had long been impatient. Thinking about how he would be able to render Ai Hui speechless fired his whole body up.

    Reaching Initial Completion was a major breakthrough for him, and it changed the quality of his [Viridescent Flower].

    With a slight flick of his fingers, the viridescent flower coiling branch drilled its way out from the blood fox¡¯s paws, winding around the blood traces.

    The blood fox¡¯s paws stomped on the branch, crushing it with a bang.

    A strange smile appeared at the corner of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s lips. Without any movement, the shattered viridescent flower suddenly released an intense, cold air. Caught off guard, the blood fox¡¯s paws were covered with ayer of frost.

    The viridescent flower coiling branch trace and the ice trace switched around naturally without any pause. From this, it was obvious that Duanmu Huanhun¡¯s control of [Viridescent Flower] had improved greatly.

    Cold entering its body, the blood fox shivered and tons of blood fog surged out of its body. In the blink of an eye, its body waspletely concealed within the blood fog.

    The blood fog rolled up swiftly and went straight for Duanmu Huanghun like a rapacious beast.

    Duanmu Huanghun made a "hmph" sound and a viridescent flower cloud appeared below his feet. Then he made a few jumps in the air to dodge the blood fog. Following closely behind, the blood fog flew up as well and pounced on Duanmu Huanghun.

    The battle between Shi Xueman and the blood-traced cat was simrly intense.

    The newborn azure wings increased Shi Xueman¡¯s speed exponentially, but even then, she could barely keep up with the blood-traced cat¡¯s speed. The blood-traced cat¡¯s body was soft, as if boneless. It could turn and reverse in any direction like a bolt of strange, red lightning, reflecting and refracting within the building incessantly.

    It was Shi Xueman¡¯s first time meeting such an opponent, so she was highly-focused. She had to be. Any negligence, if she were to touch the red lightning even just a little for example, would lead to death or serious injury. The cat¡¯s iparable speed allowed it to execute each move fatally.

    Within just ten seconds, Shi Xueman¡¯s forehead was filled with sweat.

    She knew that she couldn¡¯t continue like that. She had to make a change, or once her body strength declined, she would never be able to follow the blood-traced cat¡¯s speed. When that time came, there would be no chance left tounch aeback.

    She spun Cirrus with both palms suddenly, before shouting in a clear voice, "Open!"

    The surging cloud of mist spread through the air like a deluge.

    The blood-traced cat charged into the cloud of mist and found it amiss immediately. The cloud of mist was not lethal, but it had remarkable buoyancy, which caused the cat to lose control over its body. But with a strange snap, the blood-traced cat stabilized itself by assuming a twisted posture. It dodged Cirrus¡¯ silent hit from within the mist.

    But quickly, the blood-traced cat found that the situation was turning for the worse. The cat, trapped deep within this soft, cotton-like cloud gas, was immobilized. More critically, the cloud gas that wrapped around it was rising non-stop.

    Having sunk into a dangerous situation, the blood-traced cat¡¯s hair was as straight as steel needles. Its body trembled violently and the needle-like hair shot out from all around like a rainstorm.

    Shi Xueman shook Cirrus promptly before drawing out a ring to block the iing needle rain.

    Just then, the red, needle-like hairs exploded simultaneously.

    Shi Xueman only felt a strange force breaking into her Cirrus ring. She flew backwards seven, eight meters before regaining stability. She stared at her broken cloud gas as a red silhouette descended.

    With this short showdown, both parties knew that their opponent wasn¡¯t to be trifled with.

    The blood-traced cat¡¯s tail stood erect and its hair was pencil-straight. It red unwaveringly at Shi Xueman, who was in midair.

    The hair on the cat¡¯s body was badly damaged and looked very ugly, but Shi Xueman dared not to belittle it at all. What she had thought to be a fatal blow had easily been undermined by the blood-traced cat.

    Surveying the whole battlefield, no one, be it Shi Xueman or Duanmu Huanghun, had fallen into a disadvantageous position.

    Except for Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was almostpletely suppressed by the blood lizard. For a few times now, he had nearly knocked against the blood ring around the lizard¡¯s body, causing him to sweat profusely out of fear. He saw with his own eyes how the blood ring had wrung and crushed iing rain arrows.

    The only person who could break through the lizard¡¯s blood ring was Sang Zhijun. But her arrows, upon passing through, no longer had sufficient power to even leave a scar on the fish scales.

    Ai Hui, who was experiencing vertigo, could not coordinate his Dragonspine Inferno properly, and his sword moves were crooked.

    If not for the fact that the blood lizard had a restraining fear of Dragonspine Inferno, he would have retreated.

    Ai Hui was anxious. What was happening to him? It would be difficult to withdraw if this continued, not to mention im victory.

    He gathered all of his energy, trying hard to control the elemental energy within his body.

    His sky pce had no elemental energy... no elemental energy...

    Ai Hui was hypnotizing himself non-stop, to force himself to ignore the blurriness and dizziness.

    He ced all his attention onto the seven pces, onto operating [Big Dipper], and onto the sword moves.

    [Oblique sh], [Heavenly Thrust], [Uprising Moon]...

    Bit by bit, he channelled his attention onto the disobeying Dragonspine Inferno in his hands.

 Chapter 213: Contrast and Standstill

    Chapter 213: Contrast and Standstill

    Trantor: JL Editor: CakeHermit

    Ai Hui never thought that there would be a day when he would be a burden. His current condition was horrible. He wanted to pass his role over to someone else, but no one was up to task. Fatty¡¯s heavy shield had been shattered to pieces in one blow and he was probably still scared out of his wits. Ai Hui knew Fatty well. Fatty was still far from qualified to be a shield bearer. It was already a miracle that he had been able to hang on for so long without being terrified.

    The impact was too strong, way more than Fatty could withstand.

    If he had just met these students, he could have treated them like grenades run for his own life without a second thought; however, after going through a few battles with them, he could no longer disregard their life and death.

    While the speed of the nine-trace blood lizard was notparable to the nine-trace blood cat, it was still much faster than most of the students. Its potential for attack was also terrifying. Even Ai Hui could not guarantee that he could withstand its direct attack.

    As such, the others must have also been incapable of taking a hit. If the nine-trace blood lizard charged into the middle of the troop, it would be like letting a tiger into a flock of sheep.

    Ai Hui needed to prevent the nine-trace blood lizard from breaking into the students¡¯ formation.

    He was relying on the Dragonspine Inferno now. From time to time, rays of lightning flickered from the sword. It exhibited significant utility. Unless it was a huge and powerful dire beast like the whale, most living creatures were fearful of lightning. It was as if they were born with an instinctual fear.

    Otherwise, based on Ai Hui¡¯s disarrayed attacks, he would have long been gobbled up cleanly by the nine-trace blood lizard.

    When was thest time he had been caught in such a difficult situation? Ai Hui did not know. While the nine-traces blood lizard was powerful, he hadn¡¯t yet despaired. He was used to being in such a poor state and then experiencing an unprecedented improvement.

    Ai Hui had experienced situations in which he was forced into a corner due to the opponent being too powerful as well as situations where his reaction speed could not keep up with his agile sword embryo state. This was the first time, however, for him to be unable to control his own body.

    To someone who was used to being in control, losing control over your own body was like being a swordsman and losing the sword on your hand.

    Still, he remained calm. The sword embryo enabled him to look like a swordsman and he still had hisst weapon, which was the calmness he had developed after having gone through life and death situations.

    He tried his best to disregard his disoriented state and the swaying elemental energy in his Sky Pce. He slowly managed to focus and transferred his attention to the Dragonspine Inferno in his hand.

    ording to his previous experiences, when he came across many distractions, he should focus on one particr thing. Only then would it be possible to remove the distractions.

    He forgot about [Big Dipper], forgot about elemental energy, and forgot about sword moves. His whole mind was fixated on the Dragonspine Inferno.

    For example, the tremble of the sword¡¯s body when the Dragonspine Inferno collided with the nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s blood ray. There was also the tiny vortex that was formed when the sword de cut through a stream of air.

    This was the first time he has ever been so focused on the Dragonspine Inferno. He noticed many details that he¡¯d missed out on before. Like how the body of the Dragonspine Inferno was not as straight as he¡¯d thought; it actually had a slight arc. The sword was also lighter than before due to being constantly refined by the electric rays. The original wooden de was filled with countless tiny pinholes that were even smaller than the tip of a needle. Large amounts of electric rays infiltrated through the densely packed, tiny pinholes and gathered on the de, then formed lightning that could be seen by the naked eye.

    When the Dragonspine Inferno and the red glow surrounding the nine-traces blood lizard collided, he saw the explosion of the lightning. Countless electric rays were infused into the red glow and destroyed it.

    However,pared to the intense red glow, the lightning was much dimmer.

    The red glow from the nine-trace blood lizard was, in fact, not a ball of red glow as could be seen with the naked eye. Instead, it was a ball of red glow that was rotating at high speed and was shaped like a sawtooth. Rotating at such high speeds made the red glow potentially destructive.

    After observing a few collisions between the Dragonspine Inferno and the red glow, Ai Hui jolted. The angle was wrong!

    Without thinking, he cut into the red glow with his Dragonspine Inferno and followed the direction of the rotation. All of a sudden, the Dragonspine Inferno prated right into the middle of the red glow. The electric ray from the sword de abruptly caused the blood trace to explode.

    A few traces of fine electric rays split and fell onto the nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s scales. The nine-trace blood lizard jumped in shock and retreated in a panic.

    Ai Hui did not bother to chase after it, instead standing nkly at a faraway ce. His attention was only on the sword.

    Sang Zhijun and the rest were pleasantly surprised. Ai Hui¡¯s performance was much better now. He could actually prevent the nine-trace blood lizard from reaching them; however, the atmosphere seemed rather queer. Ai Hui did not have his usual spiritual energy. Instead, he looked lifeless.

    He stood on the spot motionlessly, just like a puppet. He would only react when the nine-trace blood lizard attacked him.

    When he reacted, it was like he was another person. He was fast and precise. asionally, he dodged. asionally, he seized an opportunity to strike back. asionally, rather than a sword move, it looked like he was just waving his hand around. Regardless, the effect was on point.

    During that short span of time, Ai Hui portrayed himself as an exceptional swordsman.

    Once or twice, Ai Hui would gain the upper hand. Sang Zhijun and the rest could see that it was a good opportunity, but every time the nine-trace blood lizard retreated, Ai Hui would fall back into his lifeless state.

    Again and again, he lost many opportunities. Sang Zhijun wanted to shout a reminder to Ai Hui; however, seeing that Ai Hui was in a weird state of mind, she restrained herself.

    The contrast between the puppet-like Ai Hui and thepetent Ai Hui when he was entangled with the nine-trace blood lizard was drastic. Given that the contrasting behaviours wereing from the same person and urred in such a dangerous battle, it gave a strange feeling to those witnessing it.

    While it was a strange phenomenon, it was enough that Ai Hui had managed to stay in front of the nine-trace blood lizard.

    Without any qualms, everyone started to attack.

    The effect of Lou Lan¡¯s blood crystal elemental energy soup was extraordinary. The lowest base level amongst the troop was six pces. The majority of them had seven pces. Those that were like Jiang Wei had already activated the eighth pce and were just a step away from attaining the Eight Pces Completion.

    Relying on external forces to raise their base levels was considered disdainful to many and it would also be harmful for their future training; however, given that they were struggling between life and death, neither was a pressing issue for them.

    They first had to survive and would think about itter.

    The troop had yet to adapt to their higher base levels, but now that Ai Hui was on the frontline, everyone became more rxed. They were not as tensed up and their performance got better.

    The change in the students could be seen through the reactions of the nine-trace blood lizard.

    Their initial attacks had been messy and their stances dreadful. Gradually, their moves became more adept, the elemental energy became more concentrated, and the attacks became more coordinated; as such, they were more threatening.

    The red glow surrounding the nine-trace blood lizard started to look badly damaged and uneven. The nine-trace blood lizard was also aware of the danger.

    Suddenly, it turned around and leaped away.

    Sang Zhijun and the rest were stunned by such a move. Was it... escaping?

    Ai Hui stood as still as a puppet. He was not bothered at all.

    The nine-trace blood lizard only stopped after running for two hundred meters. It then turned around again and faced Ai Hui.

    A frightful ray flickered in its eyes. Ity on the ground, umting some energy before taking action.

    Suddenly, its four limbs shot out and the nine-trace blood lizard shot out like a released arrow, rushing towards Ai Hui. The ground trembled with every step it took. Its speed began to increase it became dramatically faster. In the wake of such speed, the surrounding red glow started to increase.

    The rumbling lingered on. It was as if Sang Zhijun and the rest of the students were standing on a vibrating drum. They could barely stand straight.

    In the blink of an eye, the red glow hadpletely concealed the nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s body. The red glow started to blur and the low hiss started to be high pitched. It was like a bullet had just been shot from a gun. Leaving a trail of red, it rushed towards Ai Hui with an imposing manner.

    The students¡¯ expressions changed drastically.

    "Block it!"

    Fatty rushed out of the crowd like a madman and threw himself towards Ai Hui.

    But he was a moment toote. Like a whizzing meteor, the nine-traces blood lizard had hit its target.

    No...

    Time seemed to standstill. They were blinded by the dazzling red radiance.

    Bang!

    A destructive power exploded at that moment. A gigantic sound wave and a surge of air engulfed the ce like a tsunami. Subconsciously, everyone aimed to protect themselves. The shattered stones were like arrows raining down on them. Those students that reacted slower experienced an explosion of blood.

    At that moment, however, no one could care. Their minds only had one thought, they were done for.

    Even the most optimistic person could not bear to think what the troop would be like without Ai Hui. Ai Hui had long be both the core and pir of the troop.

    Ai Hui...

    Like a whistling wall, the air waves brought along the dust and shattered stones to roll across the troop¡¯s bodies.

    The scene unraveled in front of their eyes.

    Hold on!

    Momentarily, those heartbeats that had stopped started to beat again like crazy.

    In the middle of a crack that resembled a cobweb and was around fifty meters in diameter, a youth was holding his sword horizontally. He used the sword to block the nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s dagger-like teeth.

    The nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s cold eyes almost popped out. It disyed shock, fear, and confusion. It did not understand what had happened.

    The scene seemed to have stopped in time. Not a single voice could be heard.

    Sang Zhijun and the rest were dumbstruck by the scene in front of them. They forgot to have any reaction. The scene in front of them had some strange power; it could suddenly grasp their hearts and make them beat like crazy.

    In the midst of the silence, Fatty¡¯s footsteps could be heard clearly.

    Moving against the air surge, Fatty became able to see more clearly. He started to slow down.

    In the centre of his shaky vision was a familiar figure. It was a figure that he had seen countless times in Wilderness.

    Ah... Ai Hui... didn¡¯t die...

    Fatty stayed rooted for a moment before rushing two meters behind Ai Hui.

    Afterwards... He saw that Ai Hui¡¯s sword was caught between the blood-traced lizard¡¯s sharp teeth. There were still traces of blood.

    It was not too far away from him...

    It was quite close...

    Fatty¡¯s pale face turned red and then back to pale. He violently turned around. With a blood-curdling howl, he rolled and crawled to rush forward.

 Chapter 214: Attack and Kill

    Chapter 214: Attack and Kill

    Trantor: JL Editor: CakeHermit

    Shi Xueman was caught in a tough battle.

    The nine-trace blood cat¡¯s speed was as fast as lightning. Shi Xueman barely managed to keep up by giving it her all. Furthermore, the nine-trace blood cat¡¯s agility also far surpassed hers. If not for the constant changes in [Hydromancy], she would have been in an even worse predicament.

    The nine-trace blood cat was different from the other opponents she¡¯d met before. It was nimbler and smarter. Cirrus was unable to y a big role here.

    She had to increase the speed at which she used her spear.

    Having gone through generations of developments, [Hydromancy] was currently a wide-ranging and profound training system. Each family¡¯s absolute art was not formed in a day, but instead consisted of countless years of hard work by the family members.

    The Shi Family still kept with the ancient tradition of being regted by the n elders. The numerous n elders from each generation weremanded by the oldest n elder. The n elders usually pay no attention to the affairs of the world, neither do they participate in family affairs. Instead, their sole mission was to constantly develop the absolute arts. They had different specialities. Using the family¡¯s resources, they made use of their gifts and dedicated their entire lifetimes to nurturing [Hydromancy].

    The umtion of knowledge throughout the generations caused [Hydromancy] to constantly expand. It was like a deep-rooted tree with many branches. Some branches that might look unremarkable would actually be a n elder¡¯s lifetime¡¯s creation.

    The spear move that Shi Xueman was using was called [Cloud Whale]. It was created by an n elder who roamed around the world three hundred years ago. It was not the best amongst all the moved in [Hydromancy], but it was her favorite and she had thrown herself into it. It was also because of this that her father had hunted down a humpback cloud whale to create Cirrus for her.

    [Cloud Whale] was not known for being lithe and graceful. Shi Xueman experienced a strain when she met with the nine-trace blood cat.

    Before today, she would have definitely been at a loss when meeting with such a formidable opponent. Now, she had slowly learned to battle. While she was unable toe up with a counter attack, she did not panic. Instead, she gave her all and tried her best to contend against the nine-trace blood cat.

    At that moment, she heard a loud bang.

    The sudden explosion of air surging and hissing shocked everyone present.

    Not just her, the sudden sound caused even the nine-trace blood cat to jolt in shock. Shi Xueman witnessed a stunning scene. There was a crack that resembled an over fifty-meter diameter circr cobweb. From a bird¡¯s eye view, it looked like a blossoming flower.

    In the centre of the blossoming flower was a youth holding a long sword guarding against the teeth of the nine-trace blood lizard. The diffusion of air waves blew around a huge amount of grey dust, like a retreating grey wave.

    Shi Xueman stood nkly for a moment. Just from that explosion of strength, she could determine how terrifying the nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s attack was; however, Ai Hui had managed to block it off. Ai Hui¡¯s figure was puny and his shirt was tattered and unclean. He looked like a mess, yet, his small figure stood upright. This was a scene that stirred their hearts and brought many to astonishment.

    This chap... Hadn¡¯t he failed finishing the Eight Pces Completion?

    How had he managed to block that attack?

    This chap...

    Unlike Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun was situated at a better location and witnessed the entire process. After the surge of air had swept away, he saw the upright Ai Hui and the nine-trace blood lizard which was unable to move even an inch. It was as if Duanmu Huanghun had just gulped some strong spirits.

    His handsome face became flushed as if he were drunk.

    A sense of excitement and an intent to battle that was hard to put into words led to an uncontroble tremble. Every inch of his skin was burning up. The raging inferno lit up the wastnd.

    His blood was raging under that strong inferno. His heart was churning with the strong intent to battle. He wanted to look up into the sky and blow a long whistle.

    His fists were tightly clenched and his nails turned white from the pressure. His trembling was like an electric current spreading throughout his whole body. He strongly restrained himself.

    Because this was a magnificent performance by Ai Hui and not him, Duanmu Huanghun.

    In that moment, his long, narrow eyes glinted with a strange yet frantic ray. Unconsciously, he licked his pale lips. This was a battle that he was looking forward to. This was the glory that he had been waiting for.

    He narrowed his eyes and rushed towards the nine-trace blood fox.

    Fatty¡¯s loud howls were as if a wolf had bitten him on his rear.

    Jiang Wei was the first to react. Releasing an arrow from his bow, he screamed and ran towards the nine-trace blood lizard.

    Only then, did the others start to react.

    Holding on to the Golden Silk Longbow, Sang Zhijun ced four sharp arrows close together. A ray of light shed past her eyes. The four arrows swiftly blended into one and became a brilliant ray of light.

    The nine-trace blood lizard was in a pathetic state. Its force had been met with force and it had received a tremendous impact. While it was still in a state of bewilderment, it was met with countless of attacks and was ced in a dangerous and difficult situation.

    Furthermore, as the red glow surrounding its body had dispersed, all these attacksnded solidly on its body.

    The rays immediately swallowed up the nine-trace blood lizard. It started to tremble violently and its disintegrated scales spattered around.

    As Ai Hui was in close proximity to the nine-trace blood lizard, everyone withheld their attacks for fear of affecting Ai Hui. Nevertheless, the waves of attacks inflicted serious damage on the nine-trace blood lizard. Its scales were all over the ce and its body was badly mangled. ck smoke was rising in spirals. It took the most hits on its abdomen, where there was now a thumb-sized hole out of which blood was flowing out. Sang Zhijun and Jiang Wei¡¯s masterpiece. Jiang Wei¡¯s arrow had cut open the nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s scales and Sang Zhijun¡¯s Arrow Fusion Technique hadnded on the exact same spot, piercing through the nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s abdomen.

    The nine-trace blood lizard disyed extraordinary vitality. Even though it looked battered and exhausted, it didn¡¯t look any less threatening. Its initially cold eyes had now be scarlet red. Its eyes contained a fury that caused heart palpitations.

    It gave a loud snarl. Not only did it not retreat, it brazenly tore at Ai Hui. The densely packed teeth sent chills through the people watching. The teeth were like huge metal shears and the thick neck contained a formidable brute force. Even before the nine-trace blood lizard had gone through the blood transformation, it had easily bitten a bison to death. The bison¡¯s huge body had been snapped in half by the lizard¡¯s teeth.

    Now it was even stronger and its teeth was sharper and harder. Even if there was a thick steel bar blocking its way, it could still break it effortlessly.

    It looked like the nine-trace blood lizard was going to bite Ai Hui. Ai Hui moved.

    He was so fast, his movements were a blur. The nine-trace blood lizard¡¯s vision blurred and a violent pain exploded in its mouth. Its tongue was like a blood ball that burst into a bloody mist. Blood started to immediately flow out of its mouth, which had be filled with the taste of fresh blood. It was the taste of its own blood.

    It had never before experienced such intense pain. It retreated. The pain controlled the blood-traced lizard¡¯s movements. It tumbled around on the floor to relief the pain, but to no avail. Fresh blood continued to flow out through the gaps in its remaining teeth. Its head constantly knocked on the floor. The floor quaked and stones shattered and flew.

    Sang Zhijun and the rest reacted much faster this time. Different forms of attacks were thrown towards the nine-trace blood lizard. Many arrows and rays of light enveloped the blood-traced lizard in a split instant.

    Without any restraints, the people threw in all their might and attacked like crazy.

    They did not dare to stop and they did not bother to conserve their elemental energy. If they did not grasp hold of this opportunity, any future attack from the nine-trace blood lizard could very well cause many deaths and casualties.

    Facing such a blood-traced fiend, they were not in a position to conserve their elemental energy. The fact that they could act with their elemental energy was already a good oue.

    Only after they had expended all their elemental energy and poured it onto the nine-trace blood lizard, did they stop their attacks.

    Everyone was panting for breath.

    The nine-trace blood lizardid motionless and everyone exhaled in unison.

    This round of attacks was fatal to the nine-trace blood lizard. No matter how strong its will to live was, it could not bear those crazy attacks from all over the ce.

    The poor nine-trace blood lizard did not have a single piece of intact flesh on its body.

    "It should be dead by now?" Fatty asked apprehensively.

    The yellow ray in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered. "Yes, it is dead."

    Fatty gave a long exhale. After a moment, he asked anxiously, "Is Ai Hui alright?"

    Lou Lan tilted his head. "Ai Hui is in a strange condition. Lou Lan is also unable to differentiate, however, he has no injuries. Let¡¯s not disturb Ai Hui. He needs to break away from that state of mind by himself."

    "As long as he is not injured." Fatty¡¯s gaze rxed. Thinking back to his pathetic state, he pleaded, "Lou Lan, do not tell Ai Hui I fled."

    "Why not?" Lou Lan widened his eyes. "Fatty was very brave."

    "It is no use being brave." Fatty¡¯s face was filled with grief and indignance. Could being brave reduce the amount of training? No!

    If Ai Hui found out about this, what would await him would be countless training assignments.

    The current training assignments that Ai Hui designed could cause Fatty to whine for days. Thinking back, life was better in the Wilderness. Ai Hui did not know then what training was. Otherwise, he definitely would not have had a chance to leave the Wilderness.

    Not as a result of being eaten up by the dire beasts; instead, he would have worked to death doing Ai Hui¡¯s training.

    Looking at his fat, Fatty was filled with grief and indignation. He has lost weight from all the training.

    "Was the blood crystal destroyed by us?" Sang Zhijun asked worriedly. The blood crystal was even more important than money.

    "Nope, just hand it over to Lou Lan!" Lou Lan said happily and confidently. He transformed into a sandstorm and rushed toward the mangled nine-trace blood lizard. The sandstorm wrapped around the blood-traced lizard and the flesh was quickly stripped off to expose the white bones.

    The sandstorm rotated constantly until only shattered bones remain.

    The sandstorm returned to everyone and transformed back into Lou Lan.

    Ding, ding, ding.

    A melodious chime could be heard. Lou Lan was holding a few more blood crystals. After checking, he happily announced, "These blood crystals¡¯ quality is even better than before!"

    The students cheered in unison.

    Soon enough, their gazes fell on the remaining two who were still in the midst of battle.

    Fatty stared for a moment before pping his thigh and shouting, "Hey! Lure the monster over and let Ai Hui kill it!"

    Sang Zhijun and the rest of the students¡¯ eyes brightened. Fatty¡¯s idea was good. Given Ai Hui¡¯s puppet-like state, no matter what rushed towards him, he would kill it without a second thought. Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun only needed to guard at the side. They could strike when the opportunity arises and it would be easier for them to gain victory.

    Fatty¡¯s shout immediately triggered the two¡¯s anger.

    Shi Xueman looked on coldly. To get help from that scoundrel? My goodness.

    The craze in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes became stronger. To be defeated by Ai Hui? Dream on.

 Chapter 215: A Frightened Tian Kuan

    Chapter 215: A Frightened Tian Kuan

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    "Did they really find out how to use the blood crystals?"

    The dean found it hard to believe what he had just heard. The researchers in the mayor¡¯s residence were all teachers, yet they had been unable to discover anything. It was not particrly shocking to hear that students were able to discover things faster than the teachers, but the speed at which the A-1 unit had aplished this was no mean feat.

    "It¡¯s been tested," Wang Zhen stated. "It¡¯s effective."

    Wang Zhen was taken aback when he first heard about it as well. He had not expected much when Ai Hui informed him that they wished to study the blood crystals.

    "Since they don¡¯t have an officially designated researcher, the aplishment will be considered as a group effort. Ai Hui and his core members will receive 400 Heaven Merit Points each, while the ordinary members will receive 100 Heaven Merit Points each. In addition, all members of their unit can each choose one inheritance."

    When announcing the A-1 unit¡¯s rewards, Wang Zhen felt a little envious. Troubled times were indeed the best times to umte merit and aplishments. It was hard to imagine the meritorious service required to earn 400 Heaven Merit Points during peacetime.

    But this contribution was indeed worthy of such a reward.

    Compared to thest time they were given a reward, the service rendered by the A-1 unit this time was much more impressive. Discovering the blood crystal¡¯s uses had far-reaching implications for not just battle, but also for the blood disaster as a whole. 400 Heaven Merit Points alone were honestly not a sufficient reward for such an enormous contribution. Under the present circumstances however, the higher ups probably could not award anything better. Although, Wang Zhen believed that the higher ranked authorities were beginning to keep an eye on Ai Hui and the others.

    They would have bright futures if they managed to survive this disaster.

    "The higher authorities have also requested for me to present them with suitable rewards." Wang Zhenughed bitterly. "How can there be anything good left? The supplies and items that we still have are not exactly useful. I guess we¡¯ll just have to reward them with more blood crystals."

    "Such an amazing group of youths," the deanmented solemnly. Thinking about their discovery, he soon perked up and said, "It¡¯s great that the blood crystals can provide suchrge benefits though."

    "Indeed!" Wang Zhen nodded. "All those mercenary people out there will put their best efforts into hunting the blood-traced fiends once they find out about the blood crystal¡¯s uses. The higher ups have already released an announcement informing everyone that blood crystals can be exchanged for Heaven Merit Points."

    The blood crystals¡¯ immense value would change many things.

    "How¡¯re the golden needlesing along?" the dean asked, deeply concerned. "This is the real key to victory."

    "It¡¯s not progressing very well," Wang Zhen replied truthfully, his face racked with worry. "Weck a lot of the materials required, especially since a lot of the stores have been reduced to rubble. Thus, we have to dig through the ruins to find the relevant materials. The number of blood-traced fiends within the city has increased, impeding our progress."

    "Ah, we need to hurry though." The dean sighed. "I wonder why the reinforcements aren¡¯t here yet. We¡¯re really running out of time."

    All Wang Zhen could offer in reply was an awkwardugh.

    Deep within the blood forest, a resting Tian Kuan was rudely awoken by the activity in the sky.

    He shook his head, attributing themotion to two blood birds fighting. Blood birds were sadly out of his reach.

    Tian Kuan had yet to fully recover from his injuries. That fellow from the Infantry Division had sacrificed his two arms to cause massive damage to Tian Kuan. Luckily for Tian Kuan, the fight had taken ce in this blood forest that was full of blood-traced fiends. Otherwise, his injuries would have been much worse.

    After devouring more than 20 nine-trace blood fiends, Tian Kuan had only managed to replenish half of his blood spiritual force. Nine-trace blood fiends were more capable of conscious thoughts, resulting in the emergence of territorial awareness and corresponding behaviours. As such, they were more spread out, and Tian Kuan had to travel longer distances between fiends.

    He was unable to tap into blood refinement beforepletely recovering.

    He regretted not learning the beast coercion spells. He would have been able to amass a huge number of nine-trace blood fiends by now if he had learned it, which would make for a really easy recovery meal.

    The others must have progressed far ahead of him by now.

    A huge explosion rang out in the sky, followed by brilliant res which lit up the sky and immense fluctuations of elemental energy. Tian Kuan was startled by the disy that signalled the presence of elementalists.

    Elementalists who still dared to venture this deep into the blood forest were definitely not to be belittled. If it was a group, they would most likely be a particr division¡¯s elites. If it was an individual, then it would be someone that Tian Kuan could not afford to provoke.

    He noiselessly leaped up a tree, hiding behind its lush cover to survey the skies.

    Tian Kuan was gobsmacked when he saw the figure fighting in the air.

    He immediately recognized that thenky elementalist was Yu Mingqiu, the vice division leader of the Deathgrass Division. Seeing this big-name target stirred him up. The contribution he¡¯d make if he took down a vice division leader...

    Tian Kuan eyes shed with greed and aggression, but he quickly calmed down.

    Even at full strength, he might not be able to handle Yu Mingqiu. With his present injuries, this was definitely not the right moment to strike.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s ominous gaze was locked onto Yu Mingqiu¡¯s opponent, who he recognized as Situ Zhong, the apostle that Tian Kuan disliked the most. Situ Zhong was treacherous, cunning, and merciless. He was someone that could not be trusted at all.

    Situ Zhong¡¯s ck robes fluttered in the wind, making him look like arge bat flitting through the sky. Tian Kuan knew that the blood-red patterns embroidered on Situ Zhong¡¯s huge sleeves were his trump card.

    Situ Zhong was a sly one. He hid among the blood birds, moving about erratically.

    Countless blood birdspletely surrounded Yu Mingqiu like a cloud made up of blood rather than water vapor.

    Tian Kuan was shocked by Yu Mingqiu¡¯s sudden disy of power.

    More than 100 green arrows of light burst forth without warning, piercing through the blood-red cloud in all directions. Situ Zhong¡¯s face turned pale and he began to flee. Tian Kuan shivered in fear as he watched the wretched-looking Situ Zhong escape, his ck robes riddled with small holes.

    Tian Kuan hid behind the tree trunk, afraid to even breathe too loudly. It was only after the two figures disappeared from his view that he cautiously re-emerged.

    That was too scary!

    Was that the strength of a vice division leader? No wonder their superiors did not want them to engage in directbat with elementalists that were equal or above this level. They had instead proposed to lure the stronger elementalists deep into the blood forest and ambush them with an army of blood fiends.

    He calmed his nerves, shifting his focus once again to his recovery. The scene that he had just witnessed made him realize that his original n would not work. Even if he managed toplete the next phase of his blood refinement, he still would not be able to handle someone as strong as Yu Mingqiu.

    He needed someone to aid him.

    The beast coercion spells provided the easiest means of creating unquestioningly obedient allies, but he had not learned them. Tian Kuan was an obstinate man, but he was no fool.

    A sh of inspiration hit him.

    He started to move after thinking through his new idea.

    Jade Embroidery Workshop.

    Mingxiu stood guard outside her master¡¯s door. She reported softly, "Junior has rendered great service again and was awarded 400 Heaven Merit Points."

    Her eyes revealed a hint of sadness. She had initially been unable to understand or ept her master¡¯s decision. Having been with her master for so long, however, Mingxiu knew her well enough to know when she had firmly made up her mind.

    Han Yuqin¡¯s cold, emotionless voice came from behind the door, "Your junior is better than you in that aspect."

    Mingxiu cheerily replied, "Junior has naturally be stronger than me."

    After a moment of silence, Han Yuqin slowly asked, "How¡¯s Shouchuan? Be honest."

    Mingxiu was caught off guard and bit her lower lip before she could bring herself to answer, "He¡¯s aged quite a bit."

    Han Yuqin heaved a heavy sigh. She kept silent for a long while before speaking again, "Don¡¯t let your junior know."

    Mingxiu¡¯s tender disposition took another blow as the sadness in her eyes deepened. Looking down, she said, "That¡¯s what he instructed as well."

    Han Yuqinughed softly before falling silent again.

    The elementalist in charge of delivering the mayor¡¯s reward had a weird expression when he delivered it to the A-1 unit¡¯s current location.

    At one spot, Ai Hui was standing motionless like a wooden puppet. Anyone who went near Ai Hui would be swiftly attacked by him.

    Duanmu Huanghun decided to give it a try and moved toward Ai Hui. He was almost stabbed in the throat.

    Bangwan was frightened stiff. His recent gains in strength had helped him to narrowly escape dangerous situation after dangerous situation. Nearly being stabbed in the throat, however, drenched his back with sweat. The lofty thoughts that he had after beating the nine-trace blood fox were all but gone.

    After ssmate Bangwan¡¯s demonstration, the rest of the students consciously made sure that they kept their distance from Ai Hui.

    "Is he experiencing spontaneous enlightenment?"

    "That¡¯s right," Shi Xueman replied, throwing up her hands in frustration. "There¡¯s nothing we can do."

    "I understand!" The elementalist nodded. He looked at the three blood-traced beast corpses on the floor that were still warm and realized just how strong the A-1 unit was.

    Everyone in the unit had be numb to receiving Heaven Merit Points. To these students, rewards that could not be cashed in immediately were not of much use. Nobody knew if they would still be around by the time they could actually use these points.

    However, the inheritances and blood crystals that were offered brought on cheers from the students.

    These two things were what they really needed.

    Shi Xueman promptly shut down all intentions to immediately pick out an inheritance. She pointed toward Ai Hui and exined, "We¡¯ll wait for him to wake up first."

    The students who were prepared to rush forward and im their rewards stopped dead in their tracks. Nobody moved up to choose an inheritance.

    ssmate Bangwan could not stand it any longer. He snorted, "I¡¯m not waiting for him since I have no need for an inheritance."

    Right after he spoke, Duanmu Huanghun walked over to a corner and began to train by himself.

    The elementalist from the mayor¡¯s residence who came to deliver the rewards was taken aback by the amount of respect that Ai Huimanded from the rest.

    It was an impressive achievement considering that this was a loosely-formed group.

    "No problem. You have until midnight to pick out an inheritance from the mayor¡¯s residence," informed the elementalist before he left.

    Seeing the elementalist leave, Shi Xueman asked Lou Lan, "Lou Lan, how many blood crystals do we have now?"

    "26 of them," Lou Lan answered. "We have 10 lower quality blood crystals that were given as a reward and 16 of higher quality that were obtained from the nine-trace blood fiends."

    Shi Xueman thought of the sword thrust that almost pierced Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s throat.

    Was Ai Hui not a little too stalwart?

    Wait a minute, it would be a waste not to make use of his current state...

    She thought about how she and Bangwan had spent so much effort killing blood fiends. Oh, I¡¯m also starting to call him Bangwan..

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes twinkled as she thought of a brilliant n.

 Chapter 216: Monstrously Powerful

    Chapter 216: Monstrously Powerful

    Trantor: YH Editor: CakeHermit

    Old Zhang, who had just returned from the mayor¡¯s residence, told everyone about the blood crystal¡¯s uses. Amotion promptly ensued.

    "No wonder that fellow wanted the blood crystals! He had it all nned out!"

    "We¡¯ve suffered terrible losses!"

    "What a scheming young man!"

    ...

    Everyone was engaged in a morous discussion. Hearing thesements annoyed Old Zhang. "Stop these ridiculous conjectures, the A-1 unit were the ones who discovered its uses! The higher authorities have rewarded them with four hundred Heaven Merit Points and the mayor¡¯s residence has given them additional rewards," he shouted, displeased.

    Old Zhang spoke out of admiration for Ai Hui. He hadn¡¯t thought much of Ai Hui when they¡¯d first met, but thinking back now, he had be acquaintances with someone impressive. As far as he could remember, no student had ever umted this many Heaven Merit Points before graduating.

    Everyone was momentarily stunned, but then quickly continued with their discussion.

    "Amazing! Those squirts are already so amazing at such a young age, just how much potential do they have?"

    "Theye from prestigious families, how can we bepared to them?"

    "We haven¡¯t lost much actually; we can always hunt for more blood crystals. It is more important that we build rtionships!"

    "Four hundred Heaven Merit Points are enough to request for a small leadership position in the Thirteen Divisions!"

    ...

    Old Zhang pped his hands and announced, "Listen to me."

    Everyone gradually fell silent and looked at Old Zhang. He was outspoken, magnanimous, andmanded the respect of everyone on his team.

    "I suggest that we go out and hunt some blood-traced fiends. Blood crystals can be used to strengthen ourselves, our weapons, and can be exchanged for Heaven Merit Points. The blood fiends are dangerous, but we are all mercenaries who chase riches and honor amidst danger. Hunting dire beasts isn¡¯t all that much safer anyway. All of you are braveds who live life on the edge of a de. Although money isn¡¯t of much use right now, Heaven Merit Points are still good stuff. So what if we die here in the Induction Ground, these are things that we can leave for our loved ones. Does everyone agree with me?"

    Old Zhang¡¯s words made everyone ponder deeply.

    Soon, sounds of affirmation began to ring out among the crowd.

    "Definitely! If we have to go out and hunt, we ought to hunt for blood crystals!"

    "None of the dire beasts that we can hunt are worth any Heaven Merit Points!"

    "Leaving some Heaven Merit Points for my kid sounds like a good idea. Perhaps he¡¯ll be able to be an official in the future and lead a stable life."

    "What¡¯s so good about bing an official? He could exchange those points for an inheritance! Inheritances that are exchanged with Heaven Merit Points are all excellent!"

    ...

    Old Zhang nodded his head in satisfaction. He gestured for everyone to quiet down and waited for the noise level to fall before continuing. "We¡¯ll follow the old reward distribution rules of the hunting units that everyone is familiar with."

    Everyone nodded in agreement. The hunting units were teams that specialized in hunting dire beasts. They had a very well thought out set of rules that governed reward distribution within each unit. Since everyone here had once been a part of such a hunting unit, they were very familiar with the established rules.

    "I¡¯m sure many other groups will have the same idea now that blood crystals can be exchanged for Heaven Merit Points," exined Old Zhang. "As such, we have to be alert and guard against other groups as well. Also, everyone here may be familiar with dire beasts, but none of us know much about blood-traced fiends. I¡¯d advise all of you to put your lives first and avoid engaging blood-traced fiends that are too powerful. There¡¯ll be more to hunt as long as we stay alive."

    Light-heartedughter could be heard from the crowd. These were practical words that they¡¯ve heard many times.

    Old Zhang¡¯s group was indeed not the only one which became more active following the announcement. Many others had set their eyes on the blood-traced fiends as well. Some were after wealth while others were in it to be stronger, still others did it for a chance to live. All these elementalists with different motives had the exact same target.

    Blood-traced fiends were no longer actively avoided. They were now actively sought after.

    The number of elementalists roaming the streets increased exponentially. The battles that they fought also became even more ferocious.

    Old Zhang carefully led his members in search of prey. He made sure to maintain hisposure, reminding himself that while blood crystals were very valuable, the slightestpse in attention would see his entire team destroyed by the vicious blood-traced fiends.

    "Boss,e and see this!"

    One of his front scouts cried out in rm.

    Old Zhang swiftly made his way forward. He saw a familiar figure dashing wildly down the street with a red blur hot on its tail. Everyone could recognize the person being chased, it was Duanmu Huanghun!

    Central Pine City¡¯s elementalists knew the academy¡¯s brightest students well.

    The A-1 unit?

    Old Zhang found it strange that Duanmu Huanghun was the only person around. Could they be in trouble? Why was he alone?

    "Let¡¯s follow them. Be on your guards."

    The line of elementalists cautiously advanced. They soon heard the unmistakable sounds of battle.

    The sounds caught their attention as they quietly moved ahead.

    Old Zhang was shocked to see the battle that was urring before him.

    Ai Hui was standing motionlessly in one spot like a wooden puppet and a wretched-looking nine-traced blood cat was chasing after Duanmu Huanghun.

    The fiend and the human were standing on opposite sides of the wooden puppet.

    The two appeared to be revolving around Ai Hui.

    What was going on?

    Old Zhang was dumbstruck by the incredibly odd sight.

    "Come on ssmate Bangwan!" Lou Lan cheered as loud as he could.

    "Don¡¯t be afraid Bangwan, Ai Hui won¡¯t ask you for money in his current state!" Fatty chimed in.

    "Go nearer!"

    "Ah, almost there, just a bit closer!"

    "Bangwan, what did you do to that cat? Why is it so intent on taking you down?"

    ...

    Shi Xueman folded her arms across her chest, seemingly enjoying the show.

    Duanmu Huanghun was sweating profusely. The blood-traced fiend that Shi Xueman had lured over earlier had beenpletely shredded by Ai Hui; however, this nine-trace blood cat that Duanmu Huanghun had found appeared to be too fast for this strategy. Duanmu Huanghun had almost been injured by it.

    Ai Hui¡¯s ridiculously small attack range meant that Duanmu Huanghun had to lure the blood-traced cat extremely close to Ai Hui in order to get it to attack him.

    Duanmu Huanghun was, however, hesitant to go near Ai Hui after almost being stabbed by him.

    The nine-trace blood cat continued to follow him in circles,pletely ignoring Ai Hui. Duanmu Huanghun was so frustrated that he wanted to scream. What kind of lousy blood-traced fiend are you? Can¡¯t you see that motionless target right there?

    I have to think of something...

    Duanmu Huanghun was struck by a brainwave. He cut his movement with a step forward, turning around to face the blood-traced cat before activating his [Viridescent Flower].

    Countless vines weaved together to form a huge in front of him.

    The blood-traced cat wasn¡¯t expecting something like this. Unable to react in time, it crashed into the. The blood-traced cat desperately wed at the vines, but to no avail. It only managed to break a few of them before bingpletely bound.

    The next moment, it was sent flying.

    The blood-traced cat was heading towards the motionless Ai Hui.

    Old Zhang almost cried out in shock. Was Duanmu Huanghun trying to harm Ai Hui?

    Stumbling through the air, the nine-trace blood cat noticed that it was getting closer and closer to Ai Hui. With a blood-red glint in its eyes, it shifted its limber body in midair as it prepared to pounce on him. ws as sharp as the de of a knife shot out of its meaty paws, menacingly reflecting the light.

    Ai Hui remainedpletely motionless, seemingly unaware of what was about to happen.

    What happened next shocked Old Zhang so much that his cry was stopped dead in his throat.

    Just as the nine-trace blood cat entered attacking range, a silver coloured sword ray appeared out of nowhere.

    A distinct ringing sound whistled through the air and was soon interrupted by the sound of des shing. Ai Hui¡¯s sword had collided with the nine-trace blood cat¡¯s ws.

    Before the sword ray could dissipate, another one emerged in the exact same spot.

    One more stroke!

    Old Zhang wondered if his eyes were ying tricks on him. The shing sounds were ringing out in such short intervals that they appeared to blend into one long, clear ring.

    Ping!

    The nine-trace blood cat¡¯s ws, despite being harder than steel, were reduced to dust.

    Almost simultaneously, a slender, crescent moon-shaped sword ray appeared on its abdomen.

    [Uprising Moon]!

    The nine-trace blood cat¡¯s abdomen had the highest number of blood traces. The crescent shaped sword ray prated the blood traces, opening a sleek wound on the abdomen.

    The blood-traced cat¡¯s pupils dted as its body became rigid.

    But this wasn¡¯t the end of the attack. Dots of light lit up its abdomen like a starry night scene.

    The wound on its abdomen was ripped open further, bing arge, gaping hole.

    An extremely keen sword ray then sliced its way out of the blood-traced cat¡¯s back.

    Thin pirs of blood spurted out of the blood-traced cat¡¯s back.

    Another sword ray emerged out of nowhere, striking the cat¡¯s neck. It pierced the blood-traced cat¡¯s muscr neck, emitting shards of lightning from within.

    All of the attacks, from the moment the blood-traced cat had entered Ai Hui¡¯s attack range to the moment it was sent flying off, were executed in a frighteningly short amount of time.

    Bang!

    Like a ragged sackbag, the nine-trace blood cat copsed to the ground. The sword ray on its neck exploded into a burst of radiance with a loud bang.

    The nine-trace blood cat was motionless.

    So was Ai Hui, who had returned to his wooden puppet state

    A deathly stillness followed.

    Old Zhang was struck dumb by the speed at which Ai Hui had decimated his opponent. He had never seen or even imagined that something like that was possible.

    He looked at the motionless figure and felt a shiver run down his spine. Such terrifying strength!

    What kind of swordy was that?

    He had never heard anyone mention something this powerful.

    Since the beginning, he had only wanted to make friends. He had heard of the A-1 unit¡¯s prestige and fighting prowess, but had never seen it for himself. It wasn¡¯t until today that he realized just how formidable Ai Hui was.

    Something as dangerous as a blood-traced fiend had been nothing in front of Ai Hui. He had thoroughly destroyed it before it even had a chance to fight back.

    So-called elite groups like Old Zhang¡¯s were probably nothing in front of Ai Hui as well.

    Old Zhang felt his heart quiver.

    Their performance wouldn¡¯t have been much better than the blood-traced cat¡¯s. He decided to warn the other groups to avoid having conflicts with the A-1 unit at all costs.

    Shi Xueman and the rest were taken aback as well. Her folded arms had fallen to her sides, her eyes filled with disbelief.

    This time around, Ai Hui¡¯s attacks were much faster and much more precise!

    He had executed three precise sword strokes in such a short amount of time, each one striking the exact same spot on the blood-traced cat¡¯s ws. That was how he¡¯d managed to turn them into dust.

    How was this bloke capable of improving even when in such an odd state?

    Witnessing what had happened left her feeling slightly ufortable. Ai Hui¡¯s performance was simply unimaginable.

    Duanmu Huanghun was dealt an even greater blow. He gaped at Ai Hui as though he had just seen a ghost.

    No one could exin the strange state that Ai Hui was in. Duanmu Huanghun felt that it was something simr to spontaneous enlightenment, but that monstrous strength... was he not experiencing breakthroughs?

    Duanmu Huanghun unwittingly tightened his fists. Ai Hui had just sliced a nine-trace blood cat like a melon, yet he himself hadn¡¯t aplished much else...

    Ai Hui¡¯s present state may be something out of this world but...

    Duanmu Huanghun doesn¡¯t need excuses!

    Damn it!

    The wide street waspletely silent.

    All of a sudden, a loud rumbling noise could be heard. The ground began to shake violently.

    Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun snapped out of their fright. Looking up, they noticed the huge column of smoke that was rising from a distance away.

    "It¡¯s the city gate!" Duanmu Huanghun yelled at the top of his lungs.

    "The city gate has been breached." Shi Xueman¡¯s voice shuddered.

    Everyone behind them went pale with fright.

    Although Central Pine City was vulnerable to underground attacks, blood fiends that could enter via that route were often small. The city¡¯s defenses were responsible for keeping therger blood fiends out.

    Once the city gate falls, however, therger blood fiends would be free to enter as they pleased. It would be aplete disaster.

    The ground was shaking. What was even more fear-inducing was that the tremors were getting closer.

    "Run! Blood fiends!"

    Screams of fear could be heard nearby. Nobody had the chance to react.

    A red flood washed its way onto the streets, engulfing everything in sight.

 Chapter 217: One Man Against Countless Numbers

    Chapter 217: One Man Against Countless Numbers

    Trantor: YH Editor: CakeHermit

    Tian Kuan didn¡¯t follow the horde of blood fiends into the city, instead choosing to observe it from outside. If he remembered correctly, this was a painfully ordinary city within the Induction Ground known as Central Pine City.

    As he neared Central Pine City, he noticed that its defenses remainedpletely intact. He became more guarded after making this observation since he had seen many other cities which wererger yet, had defenses that were much more dpidated.

    Surveying the area carefully, Tian Kuan noticed something peculiar. The blood-traced fiends near Central Pine City were all of a lower level.

    He now understood why the city¡¯s defenses were still in such good condition.

    Tian Kuan had hunted many blood-traced fiends on his way to the city and as such, was able to determine the blood-traced fiends¡¯ levels. There were arge number of wild beasts in the Induction Ground. Once they were infected by the blood poison, these beasts would continuously experience transformations and be much stronger as time passed.

    Theirrge numbers would allow them to eventually overwhelm the elementalists and be the new masters of the Induction Ground.

    The organization had never before attempted a blood fiend breeding operation of thisrge a scale. Tian Kuan believed that not even the higher ups knew what would result in the end.

    One thing he was sure of, however, was that they were not only racing against the Avalon of Five Elements, but with the blood fiends as well. If the blood elementalists were unable to keep up with the blood fiends¡¯ swift transformations, things will not bode well for them either.

    Once active, the blood poison brings with it a fundamental change. The changes it would cause were irreversible and uncontroble. Unleashing it was like opening Pandora¡¯s box, nothing could be said after the deed was done.

    While risky, it wasn¡¯t too different from most other big opportunities. Large opportunities were often hidden within huge risks. Besides, those who seek sess must inevitably tackle such risks.

    Death? Death was an inevitability.

    Tian Kuan despised those hypocrites who thought otherwise.

    He suddenly remembered that when the crazydy in red hade to his aid, it had been from this direction. Did she have something to do with the lower leveled blood fiends in this area?

    Tian Kuan couldn¡¯t detect any traces of her presence nearby. She must have left quite a while ago.

    His eyebrows furrowed in thought. Although he wasn¡¯t quite sure what had happened here, he was certain that this phenomenon hadn¡¯t urred naturally.

    Blood refinement?

    This was the most possible scenario since blood refinement requiredrge amounts of blood spiritual force. The amount of blood spiritual force contained within nts was minuscule and definitely not sufficient for blood refinement. Only arge number of blood fiends could provide the necessary amount of blood spiritual force.

    However, encouraging blood fiend transformation in such arge area was a slow process requiring an enormous amount of effort. Just how much blood spiritual force did that crazydy need to have done something like this?

    Tian Kuan calcted an approximate figure and quickly concluded that the amount of blood spiritual force here was beyond what she could handle.

    What was the real reason then?

    Tian Kuan couldn¡¯t think of anything else, so he turned his focus to the enigmatic little city in front of him. In order to prudently tease out some of its secrets, he decided to break down the city gate and lure the blood fiends into the city.

    The horde of blood fiends rushing inside would reveal any potentially dangerous individuals that resided within Central Pine City.

    The sudden destruction of the city gate plunged Central Pine City into a state of crisis. Groups of elementalists which had been on the hunt for blood-traced fiends ended up bing the hunted instead.

    Old Zhang stared at the iing wave of blood fiends in terror. "Run, quick!" he shouted.

    A pair of azure wings spread out from behind Old Zhang and he swiftly took to the skies. The other elementalists rapidly followed suit. Looking down from above, they could see the blood-red torrent gushing down the streets in their direction. The earth rumbled and the mountains shook; it was a fearsome sight to behold.

    At this moment, someone cried out in rm, "The A-1 unit! They don¡¯t have azure wings!"

    Old Zhang unwittingly looked down and saw the stranded A-1 unit shaking before the might of the horde. He could see the look of despair on their young, immature faces.

    "Damn it!"

    He couldn¡¯t help but swear.

    The raging horde that swiftly approached the street below appeared to have no end. No one dared to venture down to save the A-1 unit.

    It was toote!

    He shut his eyes in resignation.

    The A1-unit was in disarray, everyone was pale with fright. Although they had be much stronger, their fear stricken bodies still trembled before the destructive force that was headed their way.

    Theid bricks that made up the street were groaning under the immense force of the blood fiends¡¯ hooves. The thundering stampede caused the ground to quake intensely, making it difficult for Shi Xueman and the others to maintain their bnce.

    Everything that stood in the way of the blood fiends was reduced to dust. They raged on, crushing everyst building and causing ruin in their path; nothing could withstand their might.

    With their armor-like scales, forceful limbs, razor sharp teeth, and deadly gazes, the blood fiends charging towards the A-1 unit appeared to havee straight out of hell, bringing death and destruction with them.

    It was toote to retreat!

    "Prepare for battle!"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s voice was drowned out by the thunderous rumbling.

    Duanmu Huanghun looked paler than usual, but the fervor in his eyes burned brighter than ever. He understood that this could be his final battle and was ready to go all out.

    It would be a disgrace if he couldn¡¯t even put up a final struggle!

    The elemental energy within his body erupted as the [Viridescent Flower] began to blossom beneath his feet. The vines burst forth along the ground stealthily, fanning across the street like tripwires.

    Several blood fiends began to fall.

    Blood fiends were constantly being tripped by Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower]. Those that fell were quickly trampled over by the other blood fiends, ground to mincemeat before they could even make a sound.

    Shi Xueman threw everyst Vers Mist Pearl she had in front of her. The pearls transformed into a wall of fog which advanced towards the blood fiends.

    Upon contact, the fog seeped into the first ten blood fiends that were ahead of the horde. Their bodies instantly stiffened.

    Before the Vers Mist Pearls could exert their full effect, the affected blood fiends were mercilessly crushed to death by those behind.

    The red torrent never once showed any signs of slowing.

    "Fire!"

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun, together with the rest of the team, whipped out their bows and began to rain arrows on the blood fiends.

    Blood fiends were dropping like flies, but still the red torrent raged on, unobstructed. Nothing could stand in its way.

    The ground quaked even harder as the distance closed between the two sides. The horde of blood fiends was only fifty meters away from them.

    Shi Xueman and the A-1 unit could see the fiends¡¯ red eyes. Their hearts filled with despair and their minds nked. Their young eyes opened wide in terror.

    The trembling Fatty suddenly rushed towards the motionless Ai Hui and cried, "Ai Hui! Let¡¯s go!"

    A sliver of shock ran through Shi Xueman¡¯s body as she stared at the immobile wooden puppet in the centre of her field of vision. Ai Hui appeared to bepletely oblivious to the impending danger.

    No!

    She imagined the frail wooden puppet being shredded like a piece of paper in the wake of the stampeding horde.

    This scoundrel hasn¡¯t even settled his debts yet... You still need to pay off your debt...

    Her eyes were brimming with tears, blurring her vision. Fine, we all have to die anyway...

    Looking down from above, the elementalists witnessed the blood fiend horde drawing closer and closer to the group of youths. Twenty meters... Ten meters... Five meters...

    The puppet-like figure standing up to the almighty horde made for a visually striking scene.

    The formidable and the frail, the frantic and the still, the innumerable fiends against the lone figure.

    Nobody else knew, but the sword embryo had be active in response to the danger that was about to befall Ai Hui.

    Within a short span of time, the sword embryo¡¯s throbbing increased to an rming rate. It was frantically hammering away at record speed.

    The sword embryo¡¯s intense activity expanded Ai Hui¡¯s awareness away from his sword. Details that he could not perceive before surfaced in his mind¡¯s eye like an ind appearing in the middle of the sea.

    His sword wielding arm twitched ever so slightly as he awoke from his deep slumber.

    Three meters... Two meters... One meter!

    The red torrent finally crashed into the frail looking figure. At that moment, it was as though time stood still.

    The sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand reacted instinctively. An exotic chirping sound rang out from the Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s de as lightning burst forth from its densely-packed pores. A silver glow spontaneously shrouded the entire de,pletely covering it in dense silver lightning.

    As if he was ying the piano, his fingers grasping the sword hilt gracefully press downed one by one as he tightened his grip. He gently lifted the Dragonspine Inferno horizontally in front of his chest.

    The Dragonspine Inferno in his hand vanished.

    An impably brilliant sword ray blossomed in its ce. A massive [Crescent Moon] enveloped the coarse lightning as it arced through the air, slicing into the advancing horde.

    Exploding with the force of a thousand suns, a radiant ze lit up the entire space and momentarily blinded everyone within viewing range.

    The [Crescent Moon] was like death¡¯s scythe, instantly iming the lives of more than ten of the blood fiends nearest to Ai Hui.

    Electricity snaked through the mass of blood fiends, violently shocking those struck into numbness.

    Upon being blinded and shocked, arge number of the blood fiends subconsciously slowed down. Slowing down amidst this densely packed stampede was no different from seeking death.

    The blood fiends behind trampled those in front, plunging the entire area into chaos.

    Ai Hui was unaffected by the silver light. The only thing he could feel was the earth-shattering throbbing between his eyebrows. His heart was simrly beating at an insanely fast speed, matching the rhythm of the sword embryo¡¯s throbbing. His entire inner world shook along with the frantic pulsing.

    Amidst the activity within his mind, Ai Hui realized that time had slowed down considerably. His inner world appeared to have vastly expanded.

    The huge, lifeless bodies were carried forward by their inertia and continued moving towards Ai Hui.

    He sent them flying with a flick of his sword.

    Ai Hui¡¯s movements were extremely fast. The Dragonspine Inferno in his hand became a blur and could hardly be seen with the naked eye. He was an immovable reef, standing stoically against the iing wave of blood fiends. The red torrent was split down the middle the moment it rushed against the reef, splitting into two smaller torrents made up of blood, severed limbs and huge corpses that poured down its sides.

    The intense, rapid throbbing.

    The unbelievably fast sword strokes.

    Both were moving to the same tenacious rhythm.

    The blinding light dispersedpletely.

    Everyone stared dumbfounded at the sword wielding youth standing in the middle of it all. In that moment, his small silhouette looked muchrger than before. All they could see was a majestic, towering figure standing amidst the sea of red.

    One man stood alone against the seemingly endless horde of blood fiends. Retreat was not an option.

 Chapter 218: A Magnificent Performance

    Chapter 218: A Magnificent Performance

    Trantor: YH Editor: CakeHermit

    Tian Kuan swaggered into Central Pine City amidst the blood fiends. Hearing the distant sounds of fighting and seeing the thick columns of ck smoke brought a wry smile to his lips.

    He was doubly cautious after witnessing Yu Mingqiu¡¯s impressive strength. Were he at full strength, Tian Kuan was confident of escaping even if he was unable to defeat his opponent.

    While riddled with injuries, however, meeting someone as powerful as Yu Mingqiu would put him in an extremely unfavorable situation.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s abilities had greatly exceeded Tian Kuan¡¯s expectations. Tian Kuan had initially expected blood-traced fiends to pose a threat even to vice-division leaders, but from the looks of it, normal blood-traced fiends were not powerful enough.

    They needed more time.

    This was also why he¡¯d decided to sneak into the city. As of now, the blood-traced fiends were still inadequate when dealing with an opponent like Yu Mingqiu.

    The current situation was, however, only temporary. As the blood-traced fiends continued to transform over time, they would continuously be stronger. As a result, the Induction Ground would constantly be more dangerous. In contrast, powerful individuals like Yu Mingqiu did not usually experience vast increases in power over such a short period of time.

    Tian Kuan felt that the blood-traced fiends were beneficial indeed. Not only could they aid him in his training, they were also useful in dealing with elementalists.

    Ruins and rubble were the only things in sight. The entire city was aplete mess.

    Seeing the chaos he had created with his own hands made him feel an inexplicable sense of delight. He was absolutely fascinated that such a small offensive effort on his part was capable of destroying an entire city.

    At that point, he felt as though he was a god, capable of controlling the fate of the mortals beneath him. What a great feeling!

    So this is what it¡¯s like to feel all-powerful!

    He quickly suppressed his rising zeal, reminding himself that it was not yet time for him to be arrogant.

    He cautiously inspected his entire body to ensure that every single one of his blood traces were concealed. The blood traces on a blood elementalist were not usually visible, but would surface once they started to activate the blood spiritual force.

    Blood traces were a headache for both blood elementalists and blood-traced fiends. It was a double-edged sword, being both the source of their energy as well as their key weakness.

    The more formidable the blood elementalist, the fewer the number of blood traces present on his or her body. It was the same with blood-traced fiends.

    It was said that the blood traces would all disappear upon attainment of the highest realm. This was of course, just a myth. It was a purely theoretical conjecture and did not have much value when discussing something this new.

    Tian Kuan disguised himself as an ordinary elementalist.

    He suddenly heard the intense sounds of battle ahead. Curious, he quietly headed towards its source. He hadn¡¯t met any form of resistance after entering the city, which wasn¡¯t particrly surprising. After all, who could oppose such a terrifying horde of blood fiends?

    The sounds of the battleing from up ahead reflected its intensity. Tian Kuan thought of the slowed-down transformations urring in the city¡¯s vicinity. Could it be...

    He moved as lightly as an apparition.

    He was different from the others who had learned the beast coercion spells. Tian Kuan ultimately only believed in his own strength. All of his time, effort, and resources were spent wholly on himself. As such, he had an impressivemand over his own body.

    Using the environment as cover, he asionally adjusted his position. His figure faded significantly and blended well into his immediate environment. This was the technique [Shadow Body] that was derived from the [Blood Shadow Clone Spell] of the Cultivation Era. Blood spiritual force was a unique form of spiritual energy, distinct enough that it couldn¡¯t be tapped on to activate most Cultivation Era spells. The only way to utilize blood spiritual force was to adapt spells from the former blood sects.

    Blood spiritual force possessed the basic conditions necessary for spell activation, but it was impossible to use it effectively at Cultivation Era levels. The biggest obstacles were the meridians, since all meridian-rted studies had long been abandoned. In the past, cultivators would begin tempering their meridians from a young age, but this was something blood elementalists couldn¡¯t possibly achieve. Without the consistent tempering of the meridians, it was impossible to attain the levels of spellplexity achieved by the cultivators.

    Despite this, it was still possible to satisfactorily draw out part of a spell¡¯s power.

    With the help of the ruins, Tian Kuan managed to inch forward and take a good look at the battlefield. The sight before him made his pupils widen.

    Tian Kuan wasn¡¯t the only one who was shocked.

    Old Zhang and his team stared nkly at the scene below, their faces filled with disbelief.

    "Too... too fast!" murmured one of the elementalists. He waspletely distracted by Ai Hui¡¯s actions.

    That same thought reverberated through everyone¡¯s minds as they watched Ai Hui move at an impossible speed, the long sword in his hand blurring into an illusion.

    His moves were utterly different from the first strike that he had unleashed. His actions were now much faster and much more precise!

    The silver colored Dragonspine Inferno was swung at an untouchable rhythm. Ai Hui¡¯s sword strokes were constantly changing, from shing to flicking and even to pping...

    Each stroke was as fast as lightning, executed with the utmost precision and efficiency. The stampeding blood fiends were fatally injured uponing within range, but they continued to charge in despite their injuries.

    How Ai Hui handled his massive, charging opponents was truly astonishing.

    The Dragonspine Inferno would somehow always appear right where it was needed. Then with the exact amount of strength required, it would be swung, spun, flicked, or pped against the oing fiends. All sorts of seemingly unorthodox strokes were incorporated into Ai Hui¡¯s fluid dance, taking out the oing blood fiends before they could even put up any resistance.

    His pupils were dting and constricting at an rming rate. In his current state, Ai Hui was like an emotionless killing machine.

    Lightning-quick movements, extreme precision, and a despair-inducing stability to boot.

    The only thing Ai Hui could hear on the chaotic battlefield was the frantic throbbing of the sword embryo. Nothing could shake his resolve or break his focus, not even the angry bellowing of the blood fiends.

    "Oh my heavens!"

    Fatty wrapped his hand around his head, unable to believe what was happening.

    The ground was still trembling from the stampede which looked as though it was never going to end. However, the feeling of helplessness that the horde had brought upon them had vanished.

    The floor around Ai Hui was saturated with blood. Small streams of blood converged to formrger rivers. The rich, sweet smell of the blood poison pervaded the air around them, causing some people to choke.

    Fresh blood was flowing freely, but it seemed to avoid the immediate area around Ai Hui. Not a single drop of blood was found within a one meter radius around him.

    Shi Xueman was stupefied. She looked at Ai Hui, her mind aplete nk.

    She had never before thought that swordy would still be relevant in today¡¯s world. This was the first time she had seen swordsmanship of such a terrifying calibre. Ai Hui¡¯s relentless, lightning-quick strokes, impable uracy, and dazzling sword rays made her feel a little afraid.

    As blood continued to rain down and the fiends continued to snarl angrily, the grim figure continued to cut down lives like they were nothing. His rhythm did not waver one bit.

    Memories of Ai Hui suddenly surfaced in Shi Xueman¡¯s mind. She remembered the time when Ai Hui and Fatty had pettily fought over noodles, when Ai Hui had steeled his resolve to repay his debt of eighty million yuan, when he¡¯d plotted to hit Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s annoying face...

    The Ai Hui she remembered was remarkably different from this ice-cold killing machine in front of her. To think that he was this formidable...

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes were filled with overzealous excitement. Oh, oh, this is incredible! That speed! That precision! What a vicious stroke... I love it!

    To think you were actually this powerful!

    Duanmu Huanghun felt himself teetering on the verge of insanity. Having been rescued from the brink of death by such frantic yet precise swordsmanship made him unbelievably excited. He wanted to howl to release his agitation.

    So... he did it!

    "Ahahahaha..."

    He looked up at the sky and raised his arms to his sides. Craning his neck back, he howled like a wolf during a full moon.

    Everyst one of his nerves were trembling with excitement. The wanton massacre urring before his eyes stimted even the deepest regions of his psyche, destroying the restraints that maintained hisposure.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s madness prevailed over the silence that had washed over the A-1 unit. His fervor spread like a disease, infecting the other students who began to howl as well. The joyful feeling of renewed life, together with the graceful massacre in front of them gave an outlet for the feelings of dread and despair umted within their young souls.

    Oh how they¡¯d longed to release all that pent up frustration! Release the fear within their hearts and release the despair that they had held in for so long. The students howled with the passion and wishes that they held for the future.

    Using all of their might, the students cried out fervently in reverence of the lone, grim figure leading them towards the future!

    Even the esteemed Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun let go of their restraints, screaming and iling without any care for their images.

    The intense cries came like a sudden storm, ravaging the entire street and somehow drowning out even the sound of the stampede.

    Old Zhang was deeply amazed by Ai Hui.

    Other than his first strike, Ai Hui¡¯s sword strokes were very in. No, sinct was a better way to describe them. Each and every one of his strokes were executed with no margin of error.

    Old Zhang¡¯s experience allowed him to see beyond Ai Hui¡¯s sword strokes. Ai Hui¡¯s control of elemental energy was even more surprising.

    Those rapid sword moves of his required superb control of elemental energy in addition to excellent swordsmanship.

    Powerful techniques often requiredplex methods of circting elemental energy, something people referred to as elemental energy control.

    An old hand like him knew that simple moves were often capable of unleashing as much power as moreplicated ones.

    Ai Hui was the perfect example of this.

    The techniques executed by Ai Hui were all simple and unadorned, but he varied between arge number of them at an unimaginable speed. Old Zhang had no idea if this form of swordy had existed in the past, but he knew that the control required to perform such a feat was extremely difficult to achieve... It was way beyond anything he could perform!

    The A-1 unit¡¯s rallying cry could be heard from the skies.

    Old Zhang and his team smiled upon hearing their cries. They were young once and knew exactly how the youths below were feeling.

    Old Zhang whistled. "As elders, I think we should show these rookies how to properly cheer."

    Everyoneughed heartily.

    "Come! The youngd deserves our cheers!"

    Old Zhang banged on his chestte, leading the cheer. The rest of his team followed suit, banging on their armor, their shields, and their weapons in a uniform manner.

    The zealous, passionate cries of the A-1 unitbined with the hunting units¡¯ banging. The two sounds resounded against the blood fiends¡¯ thunderous stomping and their angry snarls. In the middle of this chaos, the sword embryo continued to beat on. The sights and sounds of the battlefield merged into one big magnificent performance.

    The sword in the young man¡¯s hand changed constantly.

 Chapter 219: Blood Birds in the City

    Chapter 219: Blood Birds in the City

    Trantor: YH Editor: CakeHermit

    The streets of Central Pine City erupted with cheers. Since the blood disaster began, very few asions could excite everyone like the current one.

    The blood fiends that were blocked by Ai Hui began to split up, wandering down the other streets and alleys, eventually spreading to other parts of the city. Direct shes between elementalists and blood fiends urred simultaneously in different parts of the city. Casualties on both sides were rising sharply.

    Fortunately, most of the blood fiends flocked towards the main street where Ai Hui was. The enormous benefits of the blood crystals also greatly reduced the elementalists¡¯ fear of the blood fiends.

    If not for these two factors, the number of casualties would have been much worse. Even so, innumerable lives were still lost to the intense battles happening throughout the city.

    The city had initially suffered heavy casualties, but after paying the price in blood, the elementalists learned how to better handle these powerful blood-traced fiends. People weren¡¯t afraid of the blood-traced fiends¡¯ raw strength, but rather, were afraid of the unknown. The blood-traced fiends¡¯ mysterious transformations, unique powers, and the blood poison they carried were all a mystery to most of the city¡¯s forces.

    As the number of battles under their belts increased, these unknown factors were unravelled one by one. The mystery shrouding the blood-traced fiends was fading away and the fear of them was rapidly diminishing.

    Dire beasts could be just as strong as these blood fiends, but people weren¡¯t so afraid of them.

    The elementalists came from all over the city, dispersing the main horde of blood fiends and surrounding them from all sides. They were applying dire beast hunting tactics to the current situation. Lives were constantly lost, but nobody took even one step back. Everyone waspletely immersed in the ughter.

    Retreat? Where could they go? There was no path for retreat!

    There was no alternative to fighting to the death. Destroying everyst blood fiend in the city was the only way to survive.

    The mayor¡¯s residence was quiet. The faint cries of madness and uniform knocking of shields in the distance did not disturb Wang Zhen in the least. He looked at the elite in front of him.

    Standing in front of him were the strongest elites in Central Pine City. Among them were teachers who had experienced and survived various disasters, experienced hunting veterans, and former elites of the Thirteen Divisions.

    Standing beside him was the dean.

    Central Pine City had no one else to rely on in the face of such a formidable enemy; this was the most powerful team that they could put together. To Wang Zhen, this team of "elites" was woefully weak. During the Battle of the Dawn, at least they¡¯d had Ye Baiyi and forty-two elite members of the Deathgrass Division.

    He was just an auxiliary soldier, and a retired one at that. How did he end up as a leader?

    Wang Zhenughed in resignation.

    He didn¡¯t expect this team to have to enter battle so soon, but the situation was critical and he had to make a swift decision.

    He was capable of mobilizing the entire city, turning Central Pine City into a giant meat grinder. He was willing to send the weaker students out to their deaths in order to deplete the blood poison. He was also more than willing to throw himself out there without the slightest hesitation when required.

    Having been to the battlefield, he knew that mercy andpassion to others or oneself were of no use out there.

    On the battlefield, those who feared death were often the first to die.

    "Our mission is to re-seal the gate. The A-1 unit seems to be attracting the main bulk of the blood fiends. As such, we will move along the inside of the walls and cut in from the sides. I don¡¯t care how it¡¯s done, as long as it¡¯s done in the end. We don¡¯t have much time left."

    Wang Zhen spoke swiftly and firmly. He only paused for a moment when he mentioned the A-1 unit. The A-1 unit had performed well beyond his expectations. He had to admit that seeing Ai Hui fend off the stampeding blood fiends had initially made him doubt his own eyes.

    If not for Ai Hui...

    Without Ai Hui, the horde of blood fiends would havepletely destroyed everything in front of them. The entire Central Pine City would have be their yground.

    Wang Zhen, who had experienced the Battle of the Dawn, understood that the most terrifying thing about the blood fiends was their overwhelming madness that seemed to crush everything.

    Ai Hui was somehow able to resist it.

    Wang Zhen had no idea how Ai Hui did it, but he¡¯d definitely seeded in resisting it.

    He suddenly thought of how the Battle of the Dawn had unleashed the wargod-like Ye Baiyi. Perhaps Ai Hui was Central Pine City¡¯s Ye Baiyi?

    This ridiculous thought hovered in his mind for a couple of seconds before it disappeared.

    When he¡¯d spoken to the dean, Wang Zhen had suggested that a miracle could happen. Deep down however, he¡¯d known that cing his hopes on a miracle wasughably stupid. All hopes on the battlefield were only derived from fighting and bloodshed.

    His gaze brushed over the group in front of him as he said solemnly, "We must re-seal the gate in the shortest time possible. As of now, flying blood fiends have yet to enter the city and we must aplish our mission before..."

    At that moment, he saw some blood birds flying in the distance. His expression changed slightly, but soon returned to normal. "Well, they¡¯re already here. All we can do now is to seal the gate as soon as possible and keep their numbers to a minimum. The dean and I will be leading this operation. We must seed at all costs. Let¡¯s go."

    Central Pine City¡¯s defences had always been robust, especially its air defence. This was the reason why they had been able to hold out until now.

    The previous incident where blood bats had infiltrated the city had prompted the mayor¡¯s residence topletely reform the city¡¯s air defences. Wang Zhen himself had presided over their design. Under his meticulous arrangements, the blood bats were unable to invade Central Pine City again.

    To think that there would now be blood birds within their airspace...

    Compared to the blood-traced fiends on the ground, the flying blood birds were a much greater threat. They were much more versatile and had more lines of attack. Even with the azure wings, it would take an expert to be able to defeat these flying blood fiends. To most elementalists, flying with the azure wings was just another technical ability. To the flying blood fiends however, flying was an evolutionary adaptation perfected over many millennia.

    To make matters worse, Central Pine City¡¯s air defences were built to withstand iing attacks. Attacks from within the city were much harder to deal with.

    Wang Zhen was worried, but he had more pressing matters to deal with. The longer they waited, the lower the possibility of resealing the city gate. If the gate remained unsealed, everyone would just be sitting ducks awaiting death.

    He grit his teeth, turned a blind eye to the sky, and led everyone towards the gate.

    Central Pine City had turned into arge battlefield.

    Old Zhang¡¯s team and the A-1 unit were fully engaged in battle. The two teams relentlesslyunched attacks at the horde of blood fiends being fended off by Ai Hui.

    There was no need to worry about dodging or defending, all they had to do was pour their elemental energy into all out attacks.

    The number of blood fiends was dwindling. This was in part due to the blood fiends at the back of the stampede snapping out of the mania that had initially consumed them. Upon realizing that there was no way through ahead, the blood fiends began to find other routes.

    The pressure on Ai Hui was greatly reduced, and the sword embryo¡¯s throbbing started to slow down.

    This was reflected in Ai Hui¡¯s slowing movements. His sword strokes had be much more visible and were now rtively easy to capture with the naked eye.

    Everyone was relieved that the situation had be less critical.

    Nobody knew that Ai Hui was beginning to feel slightly ufortable.

    Ai Hui¡¯s attention was still focusedrgely on his sword, but his bodily changes were starting to affect his mind. The constant depletion of the elemental energy within his body, had greatly reduced the lightness he felt in his limbs. Particrly, the frantic throbbing of the sword embryo had consumed a huge amount of elemental energy from his sky pce.

    The elemental energy within Ai Hui¡¯s body had almost bottomed out.

    Although the sword strokes he executed were notplicated and didn¡¯t consume much elemental energy, ying such arge number of blood fiends still required a good amount of elemental energy. Describing the entire street as a river of blood was not an exaggeration at all.

    In contrast to the depletion of his elemental energy, Ai Hui¡¯s essence, breath, and spirit were rising sharply.

    In order to maintain control over his body, Ai Hui had forced his mind to focus solely on his sword. If he hadn¡¯t been forced to the point of desperation, Ai Hui definitely would not havee up with such an idea. He probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to achieve such a deep level of focus either.

    This level of focus had allowed him to achieve a special state of mind.

    The sword manuals of the Cultivation Era referred to this state as "lucidity".

    Every minute change experienced by the sword was clearly noticed by him. For instance, the same simple oblique sh that he had executed countless times before was now perceived to a much greater detail. The vibration of the de, the flow of elemental energy, the movement of the air, and the changes taking ce when cutting into flesh...

    All these previously neglected or unseen details were now so vivid.

    The steady stream of blood fiends forced Ai Hui to continue fighting. The ongoing high-intensitybat heightened Ai Hui¡¯s perception. If the amount of detail in a single sword stroke was like a river, then the countless sword strokes that Ai Hui had performed was akin to a sea of information.

    Ai Hui gradually analyzed and absorbed the feedback that was constantly being generated. Making use of this information, he constantly revised and improved his swordy. Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship was quietly transforming.

    Such a transformation was extremely subtle. No one around had noticed anything different, not even Ai Hui himself.

    Just like that, Ai Hui had experienced the first turning point in his swordsmanship.

    As he processed more and more of the feedbacking from his sword, Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship continued to change. His power and presence were constantly on the rise.

    From an onlooker¡¯s perspective, Ai Hui¡¯s killing intent had be much colder and much denser.

    Just as Ai Hui was on the verge of experiencing a breakthrough, the number of blood fiends heading towards him decreased significantly. As the fighting intensity decreased, so too did his presence.

    All breakthroughs required a sustained effort to see through.

    The fall in his intent was the reason for the slight difort he was experiencing.

    It felt as though a violent storm which was about to take shape had suddenly begun to dissipate.

    Right at that moment, one of Old Zhang¡¯s team members suddenly eximed, "Bad news, blood birds!"

    Old Zhang was startled. Looking up and seeing the blood birds drained all color from his face.

    A few elementalists who were closer to the blood birds had no time to react and were swiftly pierced by the them. The blood birds flew through the air like red arrows.

    There were only a small number of elementalists in the air above Central Pine City. Old Zhang and his team were thus highly conspicuous and were immediately picked out as targets by the blood birds. Spreading their wings, the blood birds flew aggressively in their direction.

    Old Zhang¡¯s face was as white as a sheet.

    Hiding in the dark, Tian Kuan¡¯s eyes brightened.

 Chapter 220: Mini Lou Lan

    Chapter 220: Mini Lou Lan

    Trantor: Irene Editor: CakeHermit

    Honestly speaking, Tian Kuan felt that he had already found the most dangerous person in the whole of Central Pine City.

    When he was outside of the city and saw that the surrounding blood fiends were obviously transforming at a slower speed than those in other ces, he became more alert. He felt that there must be a special reason or some kind of special person for this to be happening.

    Now all his focus was on Ai Hui.

    Whether or not Ai Hui was the cause of this phenomenon, he was the most dangerous person in Tian Kuan¡¯s eyes. He felt that Ai Hui was dangerous not because he was formidable. Truthfully, while Ai Hui had proven that he was a valiant fighter, amongst all the strong contenders Tian Kuan had met, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t up to par.

    Whether it was Yu Mingqiu or the mysterious experts within the organizations, their skills far exceeded Ai Hui¡¯s abilities.

    But with Ai Hui, he felt a sense of danger.

    Tian Kuan chose a path different from others¡¯. The money he had obtained from sessive selections was all invested into his body. He only believed in himself and his body; he had never thought of relying on other forces.

    That was a stupid choice.

    He had suffered to no end because of that choice. He had no advantage in the beginning, and each victory came with bruises and scars. A few times, with serious injuries, he hade a hair¡¯s breadth away from dying. But he stood by his decision nevertheless, pumping resources into his own body and refining his blood continuously.

    His investment gradually started paying off.

    His body could endure the increasing grade of blood refinement, but he became crazier. The intensity of each blood refinement exceeded his body¡¯s safe limit. His stubbornness and rashness brought him a lot of trouble. For example, getting injured was an everyday thing. But these traits also brought him a lot of benefits. His body was much stronger than others¡¯, especially his recovery abilities.

    In other words, he had a more tenacious vitality.

    His opponents were always shocked to find out that many a times he had managed to survive despite his severe injuries. In fact, he had learned how to turn his injuries into opportunities, allowing him to im victory more often than not.

    But no one knew that he had yet another secret ability.

    That was his intuition when it came to danger.

    Under his unremitting perseverance, his body had undergone astonishing changes. Years of struggling between life and death had sharpened his danger-sensing ability.

    It had saved his life many times, allowing him to brush past death.

    In the first moments of him perceiving that Ai Hui was dangerous, he was still apuding his splendid performance while inwardly sensing a faint danger.

    Tian Kuan wasn¡¯t worried about the condition of his body, as he had been involved in many worse situations. He just needed time topletely recover, and he had a strong premonition that if he could recover this time, his abilities would take a leap.

    This was all thanks to the fearsome fellow in the Infantry Division.

    That fellow¡¯s final, all-out blow broke through his elemental energy limit. With extreme willpower, the elemental energy underwent a change Tian Kuan couldn¡¯t wrap his head around.

    At thest juncture, Tian Kuan detected his breakthrough.

    Almost instantly, he decided that risk had allowed the fellow to run elemental energy into his body.

    Li Wei¡¯s elemental energy was simply extraordinary, so much so that it damaged Kuan Tian¡¯s body significantly. With injuries exceeding his expectations, not only did Kuan Tian not get angry, he admired Li Wei. As for the anger on his face, it was merely a show for that crazydy.

    His body hadn¡¯t recovered fully because it was still stubbornly swallowing the elemental energy that contained strong willpower. Once the absorption of this unusual elemental energy wasplete, his body would then transform once again.

    That was for the future. All he could see now was the youth who was standing on a long street with a sword in his hand.

    This was because of the danger he felt ¨C a danger more intense than that of the elementalist from the infantry division. No one sensed the change in Ai Hui¡¯s swordy except for Kuan Tian.

    And the extremely cruel massacre that thoroughly subverted Kuan Tian¡¯s cognition. There had never been any psychological barrier preventing Kuan Tian from killing people; countless had died by his hands. But killing even one enemy now made his spirit waver. It could be from excitement, or from being relieved from a burden and so on.

    No matter how seasoned a killer, it was impossible to feel nothing.

    But the youth Tian Kuan observed on the street was absolutely still. No motions, excitement, or tension. It was an emotionless machinery massacre. Perhaps what he had harvested wasn¡¯t life but the grass target in the training ground.

    Tian Kuan felt danger, exceptionally intense danger.

    He would haveunched a sneak attack and gotten rid of that fellow if not for his injuries. But right now he couldn¡¯t because the youth¡¯s swordy filled him with fear.

    It was a swordy he had not seen before. A dangerous odor.

    Hiding in a dark corner, Tian Kuan thought hard about how to deal with that frightening ughter machine. No kind of trick had any meaning when put before such ughter machines.

    When the blood fiend appeared in the sky, Tian Kuan¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Speak of the devil!

    The blood fiend close by transformed at a slower rate. Tian Kuan suspected that it could be because there had been arge-scale blood refinement, which took away too much Blood of God from the nearby blood forest.

    Following the transforming and strengthening of the blood fiends, they be more territorial as well. Strong wild beasts had stronger territorial awareness aspared to weaker ones.

    This led to two oues.

    One was that they would disy intense hostility toward intruders. It was also their way of dealing with elementalists from Avalon of Five Elements.

    Another was that these increasingly powerful blood fiends would tend more to guarding their own territories instead of conveniently migrating.

    The blood fiends surrounding Central Pine City developed slowly, so they were of limited threat. Blood fiends from further away, however, would not leave their territories so easily.

    But there was an exception ¨C flying blood fiends.

    Central Pine City¡¯s perimeter was about sixty-two miles, which wasn¡¯t considered small to the blood fiends. A perimeter of about three hundred and ten was enough to contain extremely powerful blood-traced fiends. But to the flying blood fiends, travelling a few hundred miles was as easy as snapping fingers.

    It was difficult for flightless blood-traced fiends to advance, unlike the flying blood fiends, who coulde anytime.

    These blood fiends had definitely flown over from far away. Their strength was exponentially stronger that those infiltrating Central Pine City. All of them had nine traces, unlike those on the ground, who mostly had no coagted blood traces. Coagted blood traces were symbols marking blood fiends¡¯ and blood elementalists¡¯ step into the threshold.

    This was a batch of seven blood falcons with nine blood traces on their bodies. The leading blood falcon had a blood trace that was clearer than the rest, a sign that it was about to transform.

    Be it the blood fiends or blood elementalists, they will always start with nine coagted blood traces. As their skills improved and they transformed, the number of blood traces would gradually reduce. They would also shrink significantly, bing more refined.

    Blood traces were weaknesses.

    Blood elementalists with shallow skills would secure themselves in full armor. Following a rise in their skills, the blood traces would reduce in number and size, bing unnoticeable. Then they would start to dress normally.

    The appearance of the seven blood falcons immediately turned them into the focus of the entire battlefield.

    They were fast like lightning; not one elementalist was able to catch up with them. In fact, few managed to escape death since the falcons swept everything before their eyes.

    But to Tian Kuan¡¯s frustration, he realized that he did not know how to train enved beasts, so how could he get these blood falcons to attack the youth?

    He thought of an idea, but...

    He clenched his teeth and decided to do it!

    He was willing to pay any price to get rid of this dangerous fellow.

    He went around the ruins, killed a blood fiend with a fixed look on his face, and sucked its blood essence dry, leaving only its shriveled skin. He opened and entered it, effectively disguising himself as a blood fiend and blending into the crowd of blood fiends.

    While Ai Hui¡¯s actions slowed down, the number of blood fiends on the street reduced drastically. Victory was near.

    Exhausted, Fatty pestled his knees and took heavy breaths while staring at the corpse-filled street. "How many blood crystals will there be?! We can¡¯t let others have it easy!"

    Lou Lan stood at the side, recording Ai Hui¡¯s progress. The flickering yellow light in his eye stopped shing suddenly.

    Lou Lan stopped recording upon hearing Fatty¡¯sint.

    He felt that Fatty¡¯s words were reasonable, and blood crystals were very important to Ai Hui!

    "Leave it to me!"

    Lou Lan responded cheerily before turning into a pool of quicksand. The quicksand formed countless mini Lou Lans, one smaller than the other yet all remarkably true to life.

    The mini Lou Lans moved around Ai Hui and dashed into the battlefield. Because their legs were short, their movements looked a little...ical.

    Enormous in number, the mini Lou Lans permeated the battleground like a lump of sand.

    Like ants, mini Lou Lans surrounded the corpses on the ground. They cooperated and quickly crumbled a blood fiend¡¯s corpse, obtaining the blood crystal.

    One mini Lou Lan carried a blood crystal much bigger than himself over his shoulder, puffing and blowing as he withdrew.

    Suddenly, a shadow enveloped his sky.

    A strong, powerful beast leg descended from above. Boom, the mini Lou Lan instantly became a t sand cake and the solid blood crystal pierced into the ground. The blood fiend, oblivious to what it had just stepped on, simply left.

    The sand cake rapidlybined to reform a mini Lou Lan, who then grabbed onto the blood crystal, effortfully attempting to pull it out.

    The blood crystal was secured too tightly, so he couldn¡¯t get it out at all. Ten secondster, over ten mini Lou Lans gathered from all directions. Putting their strength together, they managed to pull it out of the ground.

    The mini Lou Lans cheered, apuded, and celebrated.

    The mini Lou Lan from before continued huffing and puffing as it transported the blood crystal back.

    No one, blood fiends included, noticed these creatures moving about at all.

 Chapter 221: Protecting Ai Hui!

    Chapter 221: Protecting Ai Hui!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    Fatty was dumbstruck, as the blood crystals around him kept on piling up. He looked like a fat rabbit that was nkly watching fat and juicy carrots popping out of the ground.

    Lou Lan was an assiduous individual, and his working efficiency was amazing.

    They were like ants moving homes, rapidly separating the blood crystals from the battlefield and bringing them over to Fatty¡¯s side. Their miniature body size allowed them to clear the battlefield of blood crystals without anyone noticing them.

    Tian Kuan, who was hidden among the blood fiends, had all his attention on the seven nine-trace blood falcons that were flying towards here. The seven blood falcons quickly dominated the sky, and the surrounding elementalists had disappeared. However, he was disappointed that these nine-trace blood falcons did not immediately attack Ai Hui. They were merely hovering about his head.

    Tian Kuan was getting anxious. However, he knew that the more powerful a blood-traced fiend was, the more clever it was. It was highly possible that these nine-trace blood falcons were afraid of the fighting capabilities disyed by Ai Hui.

    Tian Kuan was right. The gazes of the seven nine-trace blood falcons in the sky did not leave Ai Hui at all. Upon seeing Ai Hui annihting the flooding blood fiends as though he was chopping fruits and vegetables, they were terror-stricken.

    The reason why flying-type blood fiends were so powerful was because they could soar in the sky. When they were fighting against ground-based opponents, they would always gain an advantageous position over thetter. The vast sky was their biggest advantage. They could attack from any angle, and even if they failed, they could fly up into the sky and escape. Their opponents without wings could only nkly stare at them disappearing into the sky.

    However, God made everyone fairly. Even though they could fly and use the sky as their advantage, they still had weaknesses. Their bodies were extremely fragile, so any attacks that were insignificant to ground-based living things might be deadly to them.

    As such, these nine-trace blood falcons, which had developed intelligence, were extremely scared of Ai Hui. No matter how fast their flying speed was, they were still not faster than the dangerous youth¡¯s sword.

    However, they had rich hunting experience. They definitely did notck craftiness in the process of surpassing other falcons in terms of their base level.

    They were hovering unhurriedly over Ai Hui¡¯s head. No matter how powerful one was, he or she would be tired out eventually after being attacked continuously. Right now, all they needed was to wait for their target to tire out and deliver one fatal blow to him, then they could reap their rewards.

    This target contained an unprecedented tastiness. They smelled the fragrance of a breakthrough in this fellow. As long as they could devour this youth, his flesh, which contained an abundance of an unique elemental energy, would propel them into the base level of eight blood traces. They could be much more powerful than before.

    For the sake of this target, they needed to have enough patience.

    However, they did not know that there was someone who was more anxious than them on the ground.

    Taking just one look at the hovering nine-trace blood falcons, Tian Kuan knew what they were up to. However, he could no longer wait, as he saw with his own eyes how Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship kept on transforming.

    He was worried that if he dragged on any longer, Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship might have a breakthrough.

    The current level of his swordsmanship was already so dangerous and terrifying. If he made another breakthrough in his swordsmanship, how powerful would he be then?

    Tian Kuan did not know. He had never seen such formidable swordsmanship. Swordsmanship had been irrelevant in the Avalon of Five Elements for a long time, and he had never heard of any powerful swordsmanship inheritances. If this youth made a breakthrough, he would be very difficult to deal with.

    The thing that was causing him to trepidate in fear was the feeling of danger lingering in his mind. That feeling was so strong that he was willing to pay any price for it to go away.

    Even if he did not know any beast coercion spells, he still had a way to deal with it as long as he was willing to pay the price.

    Ruthlessness shed across his eyes.

    He took out a sharp knife that was flickering with a cold glint. Clearly, this knife was an unearthly object. With a flick of his wrist, the knife cut down on his arm. His movement was very slow. As the knife cut into his flesh, there was no spurting of blood. A tinge of agony arose upon Tian Kuan¡¯s face.

    Even so, his movement did not slow down and he cut out a two-fingers-wide piece of flesh. The weird thing was that his arm did not bleed. His flesh was rapidly regenerating in a visible speed. In the blink of an eye, the wound had fully healed, leaving a pinkish-red scar on his arm

    The piece of flesh that he had cut off was demonic red in color, giving off an extremely alluring and sweet fragrance.

    A wave ofmotion swept across the blood fiends around Tian Kuan. Their noses were twitching non-stop, trying to locate the source of the fragrance. However, Tian Kuan had long expected this situation. He quickly used his blood spiritual force to wrap up the piece of flesh.

    All he needed to do now was throw this piece of flesh onto Ai Hui¡¯s body. His flesh had an irresistible power over the blood fiends.

    The Blood of God in the bodies of the six of them belonged to the most outstanding batch of seeds that the organization had at that time. There were one hundred people that were imnted with the seeds of the Blood of God, but only the six of them survived.

    For a very long period of time, their uniqueness was not revealed. Later on, during an eliminationpetition among the seed-carriers, the ones that survived and won thepetition were the six of them as well.

    He only found out about thister on.

    Under the influence of the Blood of God, the six of them hadpletely different transformations from each other. No one knew that the seeds of the Blood of God in their bodies were of the same batch.

    Tian Kuan knew a bit more as he was often injured. The organization was also very interested in how an injured body transformed. From the words of a doctor that treated and observed him, he knew a thing or two about certain ssified information.

    For example, no one knew why the form for that unique batch of seeds was destroyed. The organization had tried numerous times to recreate that form, but they failed and could no longer reproduce the same type of seeds as the ones in their bodies anymore.

    As such, the six of them were special, and that was also why they had a special opportunity to do all of this.

    Due to him being injured frequently, Tian Kuan was able to discover that his flesh was fatally irresistible to the blood fiends. Elementalists and other seed-carriers would not react to his injuries, but if there were blood fiends around, the blood fiends would react in a terrifying way.

    There was a time where he almost died in the hands of a berserk blood fiend. It was also from then on that he learned how to conceal the aura of his wounds.

    He was used to using his wounds to create opportunities. Who would ignore such a unique characteristic? He had thought of ways to utilize the special characteristic of his wounds on more than one asion.

    As long as he could throw this piece onto Ai Hui¡¯s body, he could unleash all the blood fiends in the surroundings upon him immediately. The blood fiends would be more violent, more ferocious, and more formidable. Furthermore, the nine-trace blood falcons definitely would not miss this opportunity either. Just like the blood fiends, they could not resist the temptation of that piece of flesh either.

    But how should he throw it over?

    Tian Kuan thought for a moment. If he made a overhead throw through the air, he would just benefit the nine-trace blood falcons. Before the piece of flesh could evennd on Ai Hui¡¯s body, it would be snatched by those crafty nine-trace blood falcons.

    That meant he could only make a short distance, low arc throw.

    There was still a lot of space between the thick and solid limbs of those blood fiends. As long as he could find a bit of space, he could throw the piece of flesh onto Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Even if Ai Hui¡¯s reaction was fast and he stopped the piece of flesh with his sword, as long as the sword was stained with the aura of the flesh, he would be drowned by the flood of berserk blood fiends.

    And to ensure that he would seed, he decided to close the distance between him and Ai Hui.

    Concealing himself under the furs of the blood fiends, he moved forward silently. However, he did not notice that he stepped over an ant-sized mini Lou Lan.

    This mini Lou Lan was right in the midst of the battle. When Tian Kuan stepped over his head, his body suddenly froze. The eyes of the mini Lou Lan started to flicker. His teeny weeny brain began to work hard, thinking about the giant-sized figure that had just stepped over him.

    "Suspicious aura detected."

    Through his core, this message was broadcasted to all the mini Lou Lans. Lou Lan¡¯s sand core, the Midnight, had broken down into numerous microscopic sand grains, and each mini Lou Lan had one in his body. As such, they were able to transmit messages to each other. This was also why they were so well-coordinated.

    All the mini Lou Lans stopped what they were doing.

    The mini Lou Lan that was being stepped over by Tian Kuan did not give chase. Clearly, his short legs did not allow him to run fast. However, his non-stop flickering yellow-glowing eyes were locked on to that giant figure.

    No only him but all of the mini Lou Lans were locked on to Tian Kuan. All of their yellow-glowing eyes were flickering.

    Numerous messages were broadcasted among them.

    "Lou Lan ising, carrying out light analysis!"

    "Lou Lan ising, carrying out scent analysis!"

    "Lou Lan ising, carrying out elemental energy analysis!"

    "Lou Lan ising, carrying out blood spiritual force analysis!"

    ...

    "A unique type of blood spiritual force detected!"

    "Its name is unknown!"

    "Its characteristics are unknown!"

    "Its source is unknown!"

    All of the mini Lou Lans were scurrying around. If one were to look at the ground now, he or she would see strands of quicksand slithering around like a bunch of snakes.

    When Tian Kuan stopped in his tracks, these fast-moving strands of quicksandpletely stopped moving as well. They were scattered on the ground between Ai Hui and Tian Kuan.

    The frozen mini Lou Lans might appear extremely gentle and quiet; however, themunicationwork among them was massive and congested.

    "What will he do?"

    "I¡¯m so worried!"

    "Is that a secret weapon?"

    "He must be targetting Ai Hui!"

    "Lou Lan ising, protecting Ai Hui!"

    "Lou Lan ising, protecting Ai Hui!"

    "Lou Lan ising, protecting Ai Hui!"

    ...

    The messages that were broadcasted through the sand core had all be the same message, which was "Protecting Ai Hui!".

    Tian Kuan did not know that he was being targeted by numerous little sand puppets. He estimated the distance between himself and Ai Hui. Seven meters. A satisfied look appeared on his face. For such a close distance, even though his vision was constantly disrupted by surging blood fiends, he could still take good aim through the frequently appearing gaps.

    He had enough confidence tond the piece of flesh on Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    At this very moment, a gap appeared in the densely-packed blood fiends ahead of him. Tian Kuan saw Ai Hui.

    Now was the chance for him to make the throw!

    Tian Kuan¡¯s eyes lit up all of a sudden. Then he flung his arm and threw the piece of flesh at Ai Hui.

    "Now!"

    The messages in the sand core crashed and gave off countless sparks.

    Numerous mini Lou Lans jumped up high and towards that fast-flying piece of flesh.

    Tian Kuan was able to catch the timing urately. He had great control over his throwing strength as well. That piece of flesh was noiseless, flying towards Ai Hui silently.

    When Tian Kuan saw that the piece of flesh was about to hit Ai Hui, he became very excited. Even though he had paid a huge price to get rid of this fellow, he felt that it was worth it.

    Suddenly, a huge, basin-like mouth that was made of sand appeared in front of the piece of flesh and devoured it in one bite.

    Whoosh. The basin-like sand mouth disappeared into the boundless sea of blood fiends along with that piece of flesh.

    Tian Kuan looked as if he was being struck by lightning, dumbstruck and confused.

 Chapter 222: Symmetry Is Also A Form Of Beauty

    Chapter 222: Symmetry Is Also A Form Of Beauty

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    What was that just now?

    Tian Kuan almost rubbed his eyes to see if his vision was blurred. However, his logic eventually did not allow him to make such an embarrassing action.

    But the puzzlement still remained in his mind. What was that just now?

    The big mouth seemed to be made up of sand, could it be... a sand puppet?

    Since when did the sand puppet hide there? Why had he not discovered the sand puppet? How had the sand puppet known what he was going to do?

    Other than the view of the densely-packed blood fiends¡¯ backs, he could not see a single trace of the sand puppet.

    Furthermore... why was there a sand puppet?

    Tian Kuan could not help but look at Ai Hui. Concentrated metal elemental energy that was infused with an unique aura flowed from his body. Tian Kuan was sure that he did not make a mistake.

    A metal elementalist that brought along a sand puppet to the battlefield? That was ridiculous...

    Could there be an earth elementalist hiding in the shadows?

    Tian Kuan looked around vigntly, but made no discoveries. His senses were extremely sharp, so if there was anyone hiding in the dark, he could definitely sense it.

    However, when he thought about how he failed to sense the presence of the sand puppet, his confidence slightly wavered. He had encountered sand puppets many times in his life before, but this was the first time something like this happened.

    Where was the sand puppet?

    All he saw were blood fiends. His radar was unable to sense the slightest bit of the aura of a sand puppet. It was so weird! Tian Kuan felt puzzled. Previously, he could not sense the sand puppet, and right now, he could not locate the sand puppet. Could it be that he knew how to conceal himself?

    The mini Lou Lans did not know that Tian Kuan was looking for them.

    Currently, they were surrounding the unusual piece of flesh, securing it tightly. Every mini Lou Lan¡¯s glowing yellow eyes flickered rapidly. This piece of meat contained the Blood of God that they had never seen before.

    Because of the fact that Lou Lan had been studying the blood crystals, he had a deep understanding on the Blood of God as well. This piece of flesh had an aura that was different from any of the blood fiends they had encountered.

    The blood spiritual force that was wrapped around the piece of flesh waspletely absorbed by the mini Lou Lans in the blink of an eye.

    Upon absorbing the piece of flesh, the aura of the mini Lou Lans hadpletely disappeared. If Tian Kuan could see this scene, he would understand why he could not find Lou Lan.

    It was because the mini Lou Lans had emted a special ability of the blood spiritual force that was wrapped around the piece of flesh. After getting injured numerous times, Tian Kuan was able to develop his own unique type of blood spiritual force that enabled him to seal and hide his aura. This characteristic was unique to him and no one else had this ability.

    Tian Kuan named this ability [Shadowless]. Not only could this ability conceal the aura of his flesh and blood, but it could also conceal his own aura, enabling him to avoid detection his enemies¡¯ radar.

    After absorbing this unique type of blood spiritual force, the mini Lou Lans quickly decoded the secrets of the [Shadowless] ability and emted it sessfully.

    [Shadowless] was able to hide the mini Lou Lans and the piece of flesh from the rest of the world. Tian Kuan simply could not find them. He had never expected someone to emte his [Shadowless] and also never thought of how to counter it.

    Previously, when Lou Lan broke down into numerous mini Lou Lans, thetter¡¯s aura was extremely weak and scattered, preventing Tian Kuan from being able to sense their presence.

    After emting the [Shadowless] skill, the mini Lou Lans kept on analyzing this weird piece of flesh.

    "Sand core, begin recording. Type of Blood of God, unknown. Source, unknown. Name of blood elementalist, unknown..."

    The active mass of quicksand on the ground looked like dough that was being kneaded by a pair of invisible hands. The piece of flesh in the middle of the mass of quicksand was shrinking at an incredible rate.

    All the mini Lou Lans¡¯ glowing yellow eyes were flickering at an increasingly faster pace. Tremendous amounts of messages were transmitted to the sand core.

    The Midnight sand core¡¯s operating speed had be incredibly fast. The mysterious power from the piece of flesh allowed the sand core to operate at an all-out effort. The mini Lou Lans suddenly stopped moving. Their glowing yellow eyes formed waves of yellow phosphorescence that repeatedly swept across the piece of flesh.

    As the piece of flesh was scanned by the yellow phosphorescence, it started to melt and evaporate like snow. Eventually, it became a puddle of blood. This puddle of fresh blood was mixed with a faint silvery color. Under the yellow phosphorescence, the silvery color became unusually bright.

    The puddle of silvery-tinged blood continuously changed its form. It looked as if it was alive and had sensed danger, wiggling nonstop to resist the corrosion from the yellow phosphorescence.

    The mini Lou Lans¡¯ yellow phosphorescence kept on sweeping across the puddle of silver-tinged blood. It was as if they would not tire at all.

    In order to decode the puddle of blood, the mini Lou Lans hadpletely ignored the outside world.

    The mass of sand on the ground had be a lump of rock, remaining stationary.

    The overly suspicious Tian Kuan scanned through his surroundings many times but ended up empty-handed.

    Had the sand puppet left?

    He was unsure and hesitant. He felt uneasy knowing that there was a sand puppet hiding out there in the dark. He did not know whether or not the sand puppet wouldunch a sudden attack on him.

    However, Tian Kuan made up his mind very quickly and decided to give it another try. After this next attempt, whether he seeded or not, he would retreat.

    He felt danger from that cold-blooded youth. Yet, was it worth it for him to take such a huge risk and gamble his life against Ai Hui?

    Of course not!

    After making his decision, Tian Kuan clenched his teeth and cut off another piece of flesh from his other arm.

    Symmetry was also a form of beauty. He consoled himself while holding back the tears in his eyes.

    This time around, he used stronger blood spiritual force to wrap the flesh so that he could throw it through the air. Previously, the sand puppet had disappeared into the ground. As such, he was unsure whether the sand puppet was hiding in the ground or not.

    By using stronger spiritual force to channel the [Shadowless] ability, he could make sure that the piece of flesh would not be snatched by the nine-traced blood falcons before reaching the sword-wielding youth.

    Without any hesitation, Tian Kuan flung his arm and hurled the piece of flesh, which traveled in an arc through the air. The piece of flesh blended in with the sky that was filled with flying rubble and smoke as it flew toward Ai Hui.

    After throwing the piece of flesh, Tian Kuan immediately turned around and escaped like a slippery mudfish.

    At this moment, Ai Hui was extremely exhausted. The elemental energy in his body kept on diminishing, so he was in a precarious situation now. Before his elemental energy waspletely depleted, his rising momentum had already begun to fall. As more and more elemental energy was expended, his situation became increasingly dangerous.

    Fortunately, he did not break away from the mental zone he was currently in before his momentum hadpletely fallen. He continued to maintain his focus, focusing on his sword. He was still immersed in the multitude of fine details of his surroundings. Even though he was very familiar with the sword embryo, this was the first time that he encountered so many minute details regarding it.

    Ai Hui, who was already abnormally focused, was further captivated by this brand new experience.

    He greatly benefitted from this experience.

    Other than his swordsmanship bing more proficient, his movements had be much smoother and the perceptive range of his sword also increased significantly.

    Previously, his sword would only react if his opponent came within half a meter. Now, as his swordsmanship improved, this range had extended to exactly one meter.

    Unlike the perceptive range of the sword embryo, the perceptive range of the sword was a few hundred times more sensitive to fine details regarding his surroundings. Of course, from a fighting standpoint, the perceptive range of the sword had greatly increased Ai Hui¡¯sbat capabilities. Otherwise, he would not have survived the flood of blood fiends. However, from another perspective, the perceptive range of sword also imposed a huge burden on Ai Hui¡¯s body. Ai Hui need to stay focused in order to deal with the immense amount of minute details.

    If Ai Hui lost even the slightest bit of focus, he would break out of this special mental zone.

    At this moment, Ai Hui sensed that something entered within the perceptive range of his sword. He used the de of his sword as a bat and swatted the thing with lightning speed.

    When his sword made contact with the object, Ai Hui immediately that felt something was wrong. The thing was covered with ayer of unique blood spiritual force.

    Just as Ai Hui¡¯s swing was about tond on the target and break theyer of blood spiritual force, the sword in his hands seemed toe alive and made an strange maneuver, flitting across the surface of theyer of blood spiritual force.

    Numerous fine details appeared in Ai Hui¡¯s mind as his sword vibrated silently.

    This was exciting!

    The sudden appearance of a tremendous amount of tiny aspects that Ai Hui had never seen before exhrated him. The body of the sword moved closely along theyer of blood spiritual force, while countless information flowed into his mind like a river.

    Ai Hui disyed supreme swordsmanship. Strands of sparkling, glowing silk emerged from the radiance of his sword and entangled its target, but did not break it.

    Tian Kuan, who was just about to leave the scene, discovered that there were sounds ofmotion behind him. Involuntarily, he turned around to take a look.

    The scene that he saw almost made him spit out blood.

    Theyer of blood spiritual force was not broken? What kind of godd*mn swordsmanship was this?

    Everything that happened today was weird. Previously, the first piece of flesh disappeared into thin air. This time around, even though the piece of flesh he threw hadnded on its target, the outeryer of blood spiritual force was not broken!

    Tian Kuan felt that he was a patient individual since the beginning, but at this moment, he felt an indescribable irritation arising in his heart.

    For the sake of killing this youth, he had already cut off two pieces of flesh from his body, paying a price that he felt was more than enough . Even after paying such a hefty price, he still could not get rid of Ai Hui. One could imagine the exasperation he felt.

    If he knew from the start that things would turn out like this, he would definitely have kept a distance from that maniac and not cared whether or not he was dangerous.

    Upon seeing that he lost two pieces of flesh for nothing, Tian Kuan was desperate and sullen. Suddenly, a ruthless glint shed across his eyes. He channeled his blood spiritual force and one of his fingers exploded into a cloud of blood mist.

    At almost the same time, the piece of flesh that Ai Hui¡¯s sword had entangled exploded into a cloud of blood mist as well.

    All the blood fiends on the streets suddenly stopped moving. The gazes of the blood falcons in the sky froze as well. A dead silence swept across the street.

    However, the dead silencested for merely a second before a loud wave of mor suddenly erupted. All the blood fiends, including the soaring blood falcons in the sky, surged toward Ai Hui frantically.

    Hahaha...

    Tian Kuanughed madly in his heart. Upon seeing that Ai Hui was being flooded by the berserk blood fiends and that the nine-traced blood falcons were swooping down from the sky toward Ai Hui like missiles, he chuckled sinisterly, turned his body around, and walked away.

    You¡¯re dead!

    No one can save you now!

    You will be eaten by the blood fiends until there¡¯s nothing left!

    All your fanciful tricks will not be useless now!

    Tian Kian walked away from the scene satisfied. Even though he had paid a hefty price, it was a good thing to kill such a dangerous youth while it was still early.

    Right now, Central Pine City had be a yground to him.

    He did not stop to admire his art piece. Numerous past experiences had taught him to leave the scene as soon as his objective was achieved.

    Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks and his eyes widened. The expression on his face froze.

 Chapter 223: The Rupture Of The Sword Embryo

    Chapter 223: The Rupture Of The Sword Embryo

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    The piece of flesh entangled by the sword glow suddenly exploded. Ai Hui¡¯s sword was able to react instantly. The sword glow was like a wall, blocking the flying shrapnel from the exploded piece of flesh.

    The ground within one meter of Ai Hui was sparkling clean. Outside this one meter range, there were fragmentary pieces of flesh and blood all over the ground.

    If Ai Hui was lucid, he would have immediately sensed that there was a conspiracy. However, at this moment, Ai Hui¡¯s mind waspletely focused on his sword and he had lost the ability to think clearly.

    In fact, he did not have the luxury of time to think.

    The blood fiends suddenly became berserk, causing everyone¡¯s facial expression to change drastically. Previously, the momentum of the blood fiends¡¯ attacks were already terrifying. Now, the blood fiends hadpletely lost all their rationality and they looked as if they had been provoked to insanity by some intense stimulus.

    The berserk blood fiends¡¯ attacking power rose sharply, making them more terrifying than usual.

    This unforeseen event happened too suddenly. The rest of the group were unable to react in time. They could only look on nkly at the berserk blood fiends surging toward Ai Hui. The blood fiendspletely lost their sanity, trampling over each other as they surged forward. In the blink of an eye, nearly half of the blood fiends were injured. Even so, this did not stop them from rushing toward Ai Hui recklessly.

    Ai Hui...

    The previous joy of victory disappeared in an instant. Everyone¡¯s face turned unsightly, filled with terror.

    The hovering nine-traced blood falcons in the sky let out loud screeches. Spreading their wings, they streaked toward Ai Hui like a bunch of furious red arrows. Their terrifyingly fast speed made their screeches abnormally sharp.

    Ai Hui¡¯s surroundings were flooded with blood fiends.

    Previously, as his elemental energy depleted by a huge amount, the number of blood fiends decreased as well. As such, the threat of the blood fiends was lowered, causing his sword embryo¡¯s pulsation to decrease gradually. When these berserk blood fiends flooded toward him, however, there were a few blood fiends that came within one meter of Ai Hui¡¯s body, causing the sword embryo to feel threatened and pulsate frantically.

    As the sword embryo pulsated faster and faster, Ai Hui¡¯s sword moved faster and faster as well.

    Any blood fiend that traveled within one meter of him was met with a fatal streak of sword light. Like his sword, Ai Hui was emotionless and did not have the slightest bit of fear.

    In the blink of an eye, the surrounding blood fiends became corpses that piled up like mountains.

    Instead of decreasing, the number of blood fiends kept on increasing. The pulsating rate of the sword embryo continued to escte, getting faster and faster.

    Thump! Thump! Thump!

    Ai Hui was like a machine. The speed at which he executed his sword moves was increasing rapidly. The sword beams he created were like streaks of lightning, zigzagging through the air. The speed at which the sword beams faded could not even keep up with the speed at which Ai Hui executed his sword moves. The sword beams streaking around Ai Hui were bing concentrated and brighter, materializing into darting lights and shadows.

    Nevertheless, the blood fiends were still able to close in on Ai Hui.

    Within 10 seconds, the Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s range of motion had beenpressed to half a meter. Within these 10 seconds, countless blood fiends had fallen. Ai Hui was like a highly efficient harvester, wildly harvesting the lives of the blood fiends.

    His range of motion, or rather the sword¡¯s range of motion, or rather the sword embryo¡¯s range of motion was beingpressed bit by bit.

    The surging ice-cold sword beams could not stop these berserk blood fiends. They hadpletely lost their fear of death.

    The pulsating rate of the sword embryo continued to rise. Like a wild beast that had been pushed to the brink of death, it erupted with astonishing power. The sword beams produced by Ai Hui intensified abruptly, pushing his range of motion back to a meter.

    Almost instantly, however, his range of motion waspressed inward again.

    At a visible rate, his range of motion waspressed bit by bit. Half a meter, 40 centimeters, 30 centimeters...

    When his range of motion was reduced to merely 30 centimeters, the rapidly beating sword embryo suddenly ruptured!

    Boom!

    When the sword embryo suddenly ruptured, an invisible storm gushed through every single part of Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s absolute focus on his sword had been withdrawn.

    He felt as if he had woken up from a long and bizarre dream.

    His face was nk...

    The gaping bloody mouth of a blood fiend was merely inches away from his face. He could clearly see the bloodstains on those ghastly white teeth and the disgusting saliva that dripped down from the corner of its mouth. Ai Hui¡¯s face was sted by a whiff of the stench.

    There was another unknown blood fiend behind him. Its heavy breaths puffed over his neck like mini tornadoes, causing his hair to stand on end.

    The sharp screeches above Ai Hui¡¯s head sent a shiver down his spine. Did someone up there throw a javelin at him?

    Ai Hui quivered in fear as he cursed in his heart. How could a mere dream make things turn out like this?

    However, he had no path of retreat at the moment. He did not even have the time to curse and hesitate. At this critical junction, Ai Hui was unusually calm.

    His body had been emptied of elemental energy. The only thing that put him at ease was the indescribable confidence that he felt from the Dragonspine Inferno in his hand.

    The only thing he could do now...

    Before he could make any moves, an invisible energy wave suddenly flooded through every section of his body.

    Boom!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes became abnormally bright all of a sudden. He did not know that his pupils had be the shape of a biting cold de. The razor-sharp aura enhanced his vision, making it as keen as his sword. His scalp tingled, as if there was a pair of invisible hands that was forcefully pulling his hair. Traces of sword aura exuded from the pores on his skin.

    Numerous pin-sized holes appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s clothes in an instant.

    What was going on?

    An intense burst of aura sted toward the sky. It looked as if a legendary sword had been unsheathed.

    The blood fiends that were near Ai Hui froze. They felt as if there was a sword being pressed against their throat, head, and eyes.

    Boom! Rolling thunder roared in the sky. Tumultuous, ragged, dark clouds gathered from all directions and loomed over the city. Dazzling lightning danced in the thick and boundless sea of dark clouds. The sky above Central Pine City dimmed immediately, as if it was already night time.

    These unforeseen events all happened in one moment.

    The abnormal weather startled all of Central Pine City. Everyone gazed nkly at the rolling dark clouds that looked as if they were going to crash down on the city at any moment. No one had ever seen an apocalyptic scene like this before. At this point, the rampaging blood fiends in Central Pine City had their limbs soften in terror and sat down nkly on the ground.

    What was happening now?

    Shi Xueman and the rest were looking at the sky in a daze. This grandeur seemed... to being from Ai Hui...

    The frenzied look in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes became even more intense. He muttered to himself incoherently, "Abnormal natural phenomenon! There must be an evildoer! It turns out you¡¯re so powerful! Hahaha, good, good, good... Only an evildoer like you is fit to be the rival of I, Duanmu Huanghun! Hahahaha..."

    Everyone disregarded him.

    Shi Xueman and the others were dumbstruck, but everyone had a premonition that something amazing was going to happen.

    Swordsmanship? Was there such a powerful swordsmanship in this world?

    Tian Kuan, who had already escaped from the streets, froze for two seconds before raising his head up slowly. The rolling dark clouds above his head were so low that they looked as if they could be touched with his hand. The thick lightning bolts streaked to and fro through the dark clouds, resembling dancing silver dragons. The destructive aura of the lightning made him shiver in fear.

    The might of the lightning struck fear in all living things.

    Those weaker blood fiends were lying t on the ground, pissing and sh*tting involuntarily out of fear.

    Why...

    How could this be...

    Simrly, Tian Kuan was trembling. His gaze was filled with fear and disbelief. What level of opponent he was dealing with right now?

    Ai Hui had never experienced this before.

    He felt like he was a sword. Every part of his body corresponded to a part of a sword¡¯s body. He felt that his mind was as pure and concise as a sword, so sharp that nothing could block it. He felt that anything he grabbed¡ªthe wind in the air, the light from the sun, or even the lightning bolts in the dark clouds¡ªcould be a sword.

    Yet, he was not happy since his sword embryo had exploded.

    The sword embryo was formed using essence-breath-spirit. He had spent so much effort and time, and had even risked his life to nurture the sword embryo to this stage.

    Now, everything was gone.

    The energy wave that flooded his body was made of the essence-breath-spirit that he had been nurturing.

    At this moment, the level of his essence-breath-spirit were at its top form, disying an unprecedented might. Even though his body was emptied of elemental energy, it did not pose too much of a problem for him. Previously, while he was focused on the sword, the deluge of intricate data he received had propelled his understanding of swordsmanship and elemental energy to a whole new level.

    Ai Hui raised his head and looked at the rolling dark clouds and looming lightning. This abnormal phenomenon only appeared when the sword embryo was destroyed.

    Perhaps this phenomena arose because the sword embryo was having its most dazzling moment right now.

    Ai Hui carefully perceived his surroundings and all the minute details. This was thest blessing that the sword embryo had given him. The ruptured sword embryo had released all of his essence-breath-spirit. Looking at it from a different perspective, the essence-breath-spirit had evolved, which also meant that the sword embryo had ascended into a higher realm.

    Even though the current situation would notst very long, it was long enough for Ai Hui to glimpse the splendor of the sword embryo. Every bit ofprehension would help Ai Hui greatly.

    Ai Hui noticed a huge amount of specific aspects that he had nevere across before.

    For example, he noticed that there was a subtle bond between his Dragonspine Inferno and the lightning in the dark clouds.

    Knowing that the time was going to be up soon, Ai Hui sighed in his heart. His feelings were veryplicated. He had nurtured the sword embryo for the sake of surviving in the Wilderness. During his three years in the Wilderness, the sword embryo was of utmost importance to him. Without the sword embryo, he would not have survived.

    Was it finally time to say goodbye?

    Ai Hui felt an indescribable sadness in his heart. The Dragonspine Inferno let out a sorrowfulment as if it had sensed the anguish in Ai Hui.

    When Ai Hui heard it, he could not help butugh. He did not expect himself to be so emotional.

    Since it¡¯s time to bid farewell, I might as well do it in the most majestic way!

    Ai Hui suddenly raised his Dragonspine Inferno and pointed it toward the sky.

    Rumble!

    A dazzling lightning bolt struck down from the sky and hit the Dragonspine Inferno.

    The Dragonspine Inferno could not endure such a powerful lightning bolt and its surface started to melt like a burned candle. The only things that remained imposing and unwavered were the seven prismatic crystals. Numerous streaks of lightning were twisting and winding around them. It appeared as if Ai Hui was holding a sword of lightning.

    He took a huge step forward and flew up in the sky.

    The surging lightning passed through Ai Hui¡¯s sword and into his body. Then, the lightning was directed to the two pces in his hands and his earth pce. His breathing became clear and smooth. Like a well-maintained machine, every part of his body operated efficiently after being injected with lightning. Master definitely would not expect him to use lightning to channel the third move from the sword pill...

    As he swung his sword down, numerous lightning bolts suddenly struck down from the sky at the same time.

    Dust to dust, earth to earth.

    [Dust Fall]!

 Chapter 224: The Lightning Blade

    Chapter 224: The Lightning de

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    By the time Ai Hui woke up, three days had already passed.

    Lou Lan, who had been guarding beside his bed, happily yelled, "Ai Hui is awake!"

    Upon seeing Lou Lan first after opening his eyes, Ai Hui smiled too. "Hello Lou Lan!"

    "Hello Ai Hui!" Lou Lan was extremely happy. "Ai Hui, how are you feeling? The condition of your body is veryplicated now. Lou Lan does not know what is going on in many areas."

    "I¡¯m alright."

    Ai Hui smiled.

    The first thing he did when he woke up was to check on his sword embryo; however, he could only confirm that his sword embryo hadpletely disappeared. He could not sense the slightest bit of the sword embryo¡¯s aura.

    Even though he was somewhat disappointed, he remained calm and collected. After going through such a devastating life-and-death battle, all his so-called heroism and fighting spirit had disappearedpletely. Whatever world-shaking event that had happened had nothing to do with him. He did not even care about his gains and losses in the battle. He only had one thought when he woke up.

    It felt good to have survived the ordeal.

    He did not feel the same way towards the sword embryo. The sword embryo had been like apanion to him.

    No matter what, he still survived.

    It was a very lucky thing for him to have been able to survive the blood catastrophe until today.

    "Ai Hui, you have just woken up and your body is still very weak. You need to replenish your elemental energy urgently," Lou Lan said strictly. However, he quickly became joyful again and continued, "We have collected many blood crystals. They will be very helpful for your recovery process."

    "Thank you, Lou Lan." Ai Hui looked around and asked, "Where¡¯s Fatty? Where¡¯s everybody?"

    "They are still fighting the blood fiends," Lou Lan replied. "Ai Hui has been in aa for three days. The broken city gate has been sealed up; however, the blood fiends on the streets have not been cleared up yet. Everyone is very powerful now. Ai Hui will be very surprised when you see themter.

    "That¡¯s great." Ai Hui sat up and got down from the bed. His legs were somewhat wobbly, however, they still felt good and not too weak.

    "Everyone is back!" Lou Lan cheered. "Lou Lan will go and prepare some elemental soup for Ai Hui."

    Ai Hui walked out of the room and happened to see everyone entering the training hall.

    When Shi Xueman saw Ai Hui, her eyes lit up and her ice-cold face brightened up with radiance. Just as she was about to say something, a massive figure dashed past her.

    "Hahaha! I knew you would be alright! If I could survive and live well, how could you have possibly died?"

    Like a gust of wind, Fatty rushed forward and gave Ai Hui a forceful hug.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes widened. He felt as if he was being hugged by a grizzly bear. Fatty¡¯s arms were like thick steel bars, suffocating him. He could even hear his bones cracking.

    "Are you trying strangle your good brother to death?" Shi Xueman asked coldly.

    It was at this moment that Fatty realized something was not right with Ai Hui and quickly let go of him. With an embarrassed look on his face, he said, "Oops, I almost forgot that you are still recovering from your injuries. Hahaha..."

    "You haven¡¯t recovered fully yet?" Shi Xueman cast a nce at Ai Hui and asked.

    "I haven¡¯t." Ai Hui shook his head and spread his arms. "My body feels like bean curd now."

    "What did Lou Lan say?" With those words, Shi Xueman finally revealed her concern for Ai Hui. However, at this point of time, everyone was concerned with this question. No one felt that what Shi Xueman had asked was wrong.

    Sang Zhijun, the only girl other than Shi Xueman, had a pensive look on her face as her gaze switched between Ai Hui and Shi Xueman for a little while.

    "Lou Lan is preparing elemental soup for me now," Ai Hui replied upon noticing the concern and worry in everyone¡¯s eyes. He felt touched but was somewhat not used to this treatment.

    He changed the topic and said, "I have been in aa for three days. What¡¯s the situation outside now? Tell me about it."

    "You stunned everyone that day." Shi Xueman took a look at Ai Hui and said, "We did not expect you to have so many powerful moves. Do you know what everyone outside is calling you now?"

    "What are they calling me?" Ai Hui was shocked.

    "The Lightning de." A hint of a smile appeared in Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes, however, it soon disappeared and she returned to her usual ice-cold self. "You¡¯re worthy of this nickname since you brought down so many lightning bolts from the sky. That one huge lightning bolt you brought down made all the blood fiends lose their resistance. The mayor and his counterparts took advantage of the opportunity to seal up the city gate."

    "The Lightning de..." Ai Hui could not help butugh. He did not expect to get his first nickname in such a situation.

    "It feels good, right?" Shi Xueman saw the smug look on Ai Hui¡¯s face and felt somewhat unhappy. "However, it appears that the condition of your body is still very weak. They will be very disappointed."

    "What does their disappointment have to do with me? They aren¡¯t paying me money or anything." Ai Hui spoke as if it was a matter of course.

    The previously unhappy Shi Xueman was stumped by Ai Hui¡¯s sudden, irksome words. The change in his temperament was too fast...

    "Hasn¡¯t the city gate been sealed up already?" Ai Hui asked, puzzled. "Why are there still so many blood fiends in the city? And why do they need you all to fight them?"

    Shi Xueman returned to her senses and replied, "The number of blood fiends that poured into city is far too many. Even though the city gate is sealed up, there are still so many blood fiends left in the city. Our unit is the most powerful student unit in Central Pine City right now. As such, we have to step forward bravely to take on the blood fiends."

    "The most powerful student unit in Central Pine City?" Ai Hui was stunned. It was only at this moment that he re-evaluated everyone.

    Upon taking a closer look, he discovered that there was an immense transformation in everyone¡¯s fighting capabilities.

    Everyone had attained Initial Completion...

    "Did you guys eat some sort of elixir?" Ai Hui was dumbstruck.

    Unexpectedly, Shi Xueman nodded as if nothing strange had happened and replied, "Yes, we did!"

    "Eh?" Ai Hui was shocked again.

    Upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s nk look, Shi Xueman gave a bashful smile. It was as if the spring had arrived, melting the iceberg called Shi Xueman and releasing a myriad of colors that were indescribably beautiful.

    Ai Hui was shocked once more.

    In his mind, Shi Xueman was made up of ice-cold steel. Her entire body was constructed out of steel beams and she had a heart that was more cold-blooded than any man¡¯s. Ai Hui was frightened when he saw Iron Lady suddenly reveal such a lovely facial expression.

    "Blood crystals." Shi Xueman withdrew her smile and returned to her usual iceberg-like self. "Thanks to you, we were able to obtain many blood crystals from the battles on the streets. The number of blood crystals we collected far exceeded other units¡¯. We have used arge number of blood crystals to elevate everyone¡¯s fighting capabilities and base level, and that is why we have the most powerful student unit in Central Pine City. Sorry, I let everyone consume the blood crystals without your permission. Don¡¯t worry, I have recorded down the number of blood crystals used. I can deduct it from the debt of eighty... Oh, nothing. I will send a bill to you once we are out of this situation."

    She almost leaked out the incident of the eighty million yuan. For some reason, she did not want to expose her identity as the noodle house girl. Humph, she once again thought of thebel ¡®skank¡¯ that Ai Hui had given her.

    "No need." Ai Hui shook his head.

    "No need?" This time around, it was Shi Xueman who was shocked. With a doubtful look on her face, she asked, "What are you up to?"

    "I am just being kind. Irondy, how can you have such a reaction?" Ai Hui was in betweenughter and tears.

    "Since when are you ever kind? To you, nothing can bepared to money," Shi Xueman retorted bluntly. Ai Hui was at a loss for words. After a while, she suddenly realized what Ai Hui had called her and asked angrily with knitted eyebrows, "Did you just call me Iron Lady?"

    "Hahaha..." Ai Hui could onlyugh and quickly changed the topic. "So how have our unit¡¯s battle results been these past few days?"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face suddenly darkened and she replied, "We have lost nine men. It¡¯s my fault, Imitted many mistakes..."

    "Big Sister, it¡¯s not your fault!"

    "Yes, how are the casualties Big Sister¡¯s fault? How can there be no casualties on the battlefield?"

    "Big Sister, the sacrificed brothers will not me you! It¡¯s nobody¡¯s fault! Everyone tried their best!"

    "That¡¯s right. Without Big Sister our losses might be even greater."

    ...

    Everyone consoled Shi Xueman at once. Shi Xueman saw with her own eyes how everyone helped her. There were many areas that shecked in, however, even the blind could see that she had given them her all. She was always the one taking the lead. She was always the one who appeared at the most dangerous ces. She was always the one that took the most difficult missions.

    Even if there were casualties in the unit, no one had ever felt that it was Shi Xueman¡¯s fault.

    "I know." Shi Xueman unexpectedly nodded, then looked straight at Ai Hui. "However, if you¡¯re there, our performance will be even better."

    Everyone did not say anything and looked at Ai Hui.

    Everyone agreed with Shi Xueman.

    If one described Shi Xueman as diligent, courageous, and responsible, then Ai Hui could be described as cool-headed, reliable, and experienced. Ai Hui had never directly led them before, but his presence made everyone felt at ease.

    Ai Hui always made the right decision at the critical moment. He was irreceable.

    During the battle on the streets, everyone saw with their own eyes the terrifying scene of thousands of lightning bolts striking from the sky when Ai Hui swung down his sword of lightning. Right now, everyone treated him with even more respect. Even though their fighting capabilities had risen sharply and they were capable of bing legitimate elementalists, Ai Hui still held an unwavering position in their hearts.

    That fearsome scene was deeply engraved in their minds. They would remember that scene for their entire lives.

    No one saw Ai Hui as their equal, other than Duanmu Huanghun.

    Duanmu Huanghun was looking at Ai Hui with zing fire in his eyes. He was filled with eagerness and had decided that once Ai Hui recovered, he would be the first person that he would challenge!

    Such a formidable strike.,. When everyone thought back about it now, their blood could not help but boil!

    Duanmu Huanghun licked his lips involuntarily. His gaze looked as if they were staring at a prey.

    "Ai Hui, the elemental soup ising!"

    Lou Lan rushed over happily. In his hands there was a basin of glittering, silvery soup, resembling liquid steel.

    "I have used a lot of blood crystals. This soup can help Ai Hui to replenish his elemental energy quickly. Ai Hui, Lou Lan has be stronger and I have understood more about the blood crystals. This basin of elemental soup has maximized the power of the blood crystals. You have to finish this basin of elemental soup. Don¡¯t waste it. Ai Hui,e on!"

    Ai Hui did not notice Lou Lan saying that he had be stronger. All his attention was on the basin of elemental soup.

    A basin...

    A basin had to be used to hold elemental soup now?

    He suddenly thought of the fire oil-like elemental soup that Fatty had drunk and how he¡¯d spouted fire after doing so.

    Would he be something weird like that as well...

    A premonition arose in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

 Chapter 225: Various Remnants

    Chapter 225: Various Remnants

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    "What will happen to Ai Hui? Will he be more powerful?"

    Fatty looked at Ai Hui, who had just finished the basin of elemental soup, and asked Lou Lan involuntarily.

    "Definitely," Lou Lan replied with certainty. "Ai Hui has always been evolving, no matter what happens."

    Shi Xueman did not say anything. Her gaze was fixed on Ai Hui. It wasn¡¯t only her, everyone was looking at Ai Hui, who was seated cross-legged on the ground. They were holding their breaths for the fear of disturbing Ai Hui. Ai Hui¡¯s health was intimately rted to theirs. Right now, Ai Hui was the core of their unit. His health would have a direct impact on their future.

    It wasn¡¯t at all an exaggeration. A slight mistake on the battlefield would result in death.

    They had seen too many deaths. It was unknown whether or not even half of the students in Central Pine Academy had survived. Among all the units, the A-1 unit had the highest survival rating; however, if Ai Hui hadn¡¯t held the pass by himself against the flood of blood fiends during the battle on the streets, the A-1 unit would have been wiped out.

    Even those students who had previously hated Ai Hui wholeheartedly pledged their allegiance to him now.

    Ai Hui remained silent.

    The elemental soup that filled his stomach had materialized into elemental energy which flowed through every single part of his body.

    He... did not feel good at all!

    Traces of metal elemental energy were flowing throughout his body and the unique, sharp aura of the metal elemental energy caused him waves of pain. As the traces of metal elemental energy travelled through his body, they slowly transformed into sword-shaped elemental energy and their aura became significantly sharper. Ai Hui came to understand what it felt like to be pierced through by a sword.

    Since there was a huge number of metal elemental energy traces, the number of elemental energy swords forming was simrly huge. Currently, Ai Hui felt as if there were numerous mini swords travelling throughout his body.

    His body trembled involuntarily. His face had turned pale-white and pea-sized beads of sweat flowed down his forehead.

    "Lou Lan, what¡¯s going on?" Fatty asked anxiously.

    Lou Lan was also very surprised. His glowing yellow eyes flickered non-stop. If one took a closer look, he or she would realize that the yellow glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes was brighter than before.

    "There is a unique aura in Ai Hui¡¯s body. This aura is able to transform the metal elemental energy into a specially shaped energy. Other than this unique aura, there are also a lot of electric currents in his body. Right now, the condition of Ai Hui¡¯s body is veryplicated. Lou Lan has not thought of any good ideas yet. Come on Ai Hui!"

    If Ai Hui could hear what Lou Lan had said, he would praise thetter to high heaven.

    Lou Lan¡¯s diagnosis waspletely correct. Even though the sword embryo in Ai Hui¡¯s body had ruptured and was destroyed, the essence-breath-spirit that it had released still remained in his body. The invisible energy waves from the sword embryo¡¯s remnants were what was transforming the flowing metal elemental energy into the streaks of sword-shaped glints.

    This was not a good thing for Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui could easily absorb and store pure metal elemental energy in the eight pces; however, when the metal elemental energy traces transformed into elemental energy swords, they became more stable, making it hard for Ai Hui to absorb and store them.

    The more troublesome issue was the huge amount of leftover lightning in Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Hisst move, the lightning version of [Dust Fall] that had given Ai Hui the nickname "The Lightning de," had caused severe damage to his body. Arge amount of electric currents had filled Ai Hui¡¯s flesh and blood. Every time these electric currents burst forth, Ai Hui¡¯s muscles would be numb.

    This created huge difficulties for Ai Hui when he tried to control his body.

    Fortunately, Ai Hui was mentally prepared. A price definitely had to be paid if one experienced an outburst of power that far exceeded the limit of their base level. For Ai Hui, the price he¡¯d paid was both the destruction of his sword embryo and the induction of electric currents into his body. This price, however, was nothingpared to death.

    Even though the current situation seemed terrible, Ai Hui felt that it was much better than what he had expected.

    At least his body remained intact. He had not lost his limbs and his five residences and eight pces were undamaged and could still work perfectly. As long as these body parts were fine, the other problems could slowly and eventually be worked out.

    As the elemental energy swords continued to flow through Ai Hui¡¯s body, the sharp aura from the elemental energy swords caused the lightning remnants to zap. The piercing pain from the elemental energy swords and the numbing effect of the lightning remnants became inextricably intertwined.

    There were more and more elemental energy swords. The effect of Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup was indeed astonishing. The replenished metal elemental energy continued to transform into elemental energy swords that were scattered all over Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    What should he do?

    Ai Hui pondered deeply.

    Very soon, Ai Hui decided on a n. First, he could not let the elemental energy swords run amok in his body. The sharp and destructive aura of the elemental energy swords was not the reason why his body was damaged; the main reason for the damage was his letting the elemental energy swords run amok in his body.

    How could he contain them?

    Ai Hui thought for a while. Since they were elemental energy swords, he could deal with them the same way he dealt with a sword. Before, when he¡¯d still had the sword embryo, the sword embryo had automatically taken care of all the sword-rted elemental energy for him. Even though he did not have the sword embryo anymore, that did not mean that he could not do anything about the sword-rted elemental energy.

    After Ai Hui had received a huge volume of sword-rted fine details during the battle on the streets, his understanding towards swordsmanship had reached apletely new level. After absorbing the essence-breath-spirit from the sword embryo¡¯s rupture, his base level had temporarily reached an unimaginable altitude.

    He was like a disciple who had been temporarily possessed by his master and got to feel what it was like to be a high-level individual.

    This experience would not immediately improve his fighting capabilities, but it would definitely have a longsting effect on them. He could see what the higher realms of swordsmanship would look like in the future. This would y an important role in his future developments.

    ording to his understanding of swordsmanship, Ai Hui felt that the elemental energy swords could be controlled.

    Ai Hui, who had been trembling non-stop and had his face turned pale-white, suddenly opened his mouth and, with a hoarse voice that was filled with anguish, yelled, "Sword!"

    Sword?

    Everyone was stunned. Shi Xueman¡¯s reaction was the fastest. Her right hand shed across her waist and a cold glint flew towards Ai Hui. She then yelled coldly, "Catch it!"

    With a distorted facial expression, Ai Hui raised his hand. He still felt more or less alright as long as he did not move, but once he started moving, his body felt as if it was being pierced through by a sword. His eyes were closed but his hand still managed to catch the sword that Shi Xueman had thrown him.

    A faintly discernible smile appeared on Sang Zhijun¡¯s face. Even though Shi Xueman specialized in the spear and did not have the habit of carrying a sword, there was actually a sword hanging on her waist.

    At the very moment Ai Hui¡¯s palm made contact with the hilt of the sword, his previously distorted and anguished face suddenly calmed down.

    Everyone was shocked by this bizarre scene.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face was ice-cold like an iceberg, remaining emotionless; however, one could see that her eyes had lit up slightly.

    This was the unique part about Ai Hui.

    He was always hiding something special in him that he would not normally reveal. Sometimes he was a rascal, sometimes he was a miser, sometimes he was a loner, and most of the time he was an individual who ignored things that were of no concern to him. However, if a dangerous situation was to arise, he would be apletely changed man, revealing imposing fighting capabilities and captivating everyone¡¯s attention.

    This might be an insignificant move but it contained a mysterious power to it.

    When Ai Hui grabbed hold of the sword, his mind became tranquil and the agitated elemental energy swords in his body calmed down as well.

    The sword¡¯s numerous fine details gushed through his mind like a sh flood. The sword¡¯s texture, its weight, the sharpness of the de, etc. All these little details were clearly disyed in his mind.

    Ai Hui noticed this ability that he hadn¡¯t had in the past and became somewhat happy. It seemed that he had not only made losses, but gains as well.

    It was a pity that it was not the Dragonspine Inferno...

    Sorrow involuntarily arose in his mind. The Dragonspine Inferno was the sword that he was the mostfortable with and had used for the longest period of time. It was a pity that it had beenpletely destroyed when he¡¯d executed [Dust Fall]. The powerful lightning bolt had destroyed the sword body, leaving only the seven prismatic crystals.

    The sword currently in his hand seemed very ordinary. It had been picked up by Shi Xueman from a dead elementalist.

    However, it was still a sword.

    Ai Hui focused his attention on the sword. Even though he could not enter the miraculous mental state he¡¯d been in during the battle on the streets, he could still feel the elemental energy swords in his body be slightly sluggish.

    It was working!

    Ai Hui restrained his joy and started slowly brandishing the sword.

    His movements were very slow as he could not yet control his muscles, making him look like an awkward-moving wooden puppet. His movements were indescribably rigid and unsightly.

    Ai Hui did not care about it and focused on brandishing the sword.

    The elemental energy swords involuntarily transformed ording to the sword moves Ai Hui executed. Very soon, more and more elemental energy swords were beginning to move along with how Ai Hui brandished the sword.

    He was right!

    Ai Hui felt more confident and began to brandish the sword more seriously.

    Ai Hui had a deep understanding of the sword embryo. The elemental energy swords formed when the elemental energy was affected by the remnant energy waves of the sword embryo. The sword embryo had a direct reaction to anything that was rted to swords. Ai Hui was wondering whether or not the elemental energy swords preserved this unique characteristic of the sword embryo.

    The reality had confirmed Ai Hui¡¯s conjecture.

    As Ai Hui continued brandishing the sword, more and more elemental energy swords continued to gather, resembling densely-packed fish. Even though they were crowded together, they were very orderly. The pain Ai Hui felt in his body relieved significantly.

    Very soon, Ai Hui came across a new problem. How was he to direct these elemental energy swords into his eight pces?

    The elemental energy swords flowed endlessly. They did not stop at all when passing by the eight pces.

    Generally speaking, the eight pces had a powerful attractive force over elemental energy, causing it to stay in the eight pces involuntarily. Only by using certain special channelling techniques could the elemental energy be directed out of the pces to form moves.

    In Ai Hui¡¯s situation, it was theplete opposite.

    A terrifying amount of elemental energy was flowing through his body, and yet, it wasn¡¯t stopping at the eight pces. The eight pces werepletely empty. If the elemental energy was not stored in the pces, it would dissipate very quickly.

    Ai Hui knew that this was because the elemental energy in his body had transformed into elemental energy swords. The eight pces had a strong attractive force over pure elemental energy, but for elemental energy that had changed form, the eight pces would have zero attractive force.

    The thing was, as long as the remnant energy waves of the sword embryo were still in his body, the elemental energy would immediately transform into elemental energy swords.

    Without elemental energy to fill them up, the eight pces would shrink and close as time passed. This would cause his base level to drop sharply.

    What should he do?

    Ai Hui racked his brain as he brandished his sword.

    He thought of a daring n, but did not know if it would work.

    This time around, he was slightly hesitant and did not immediately begin carrying out the n.

    This n was slightly risky...

 Chapter 226: Sword Pill

    Chapter 226: Sword Pill

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Even though the n Ai Hui thought of was slightly risky, it was not at allplicated.

    Under the effect of the remnant energy waves of the sword embryo, the elemental energy in his body had transformed into elemental energy swords. However, these elemental energy swords had not actuallypleted their transformation yet.

    Ai Hui was not unfamiliar with this kind of elemental energy sword. In the past, the elemental energy he developed was of this kind. The only difference was that he used to have the sword embryo in the past. The palpitating sword embryo was like a heart, directing these elemental energy swords.

    With the sword embryo around, these elemental energy swords were extremely tame and could meticulouslyplete various operations without creating any negative effects on his body.

    In terms of managing his elemental energy, Ai Hui was overly dependent on the sword embryo. Especially toward the end, when the sword embryo became increasingly powerful, he reliedpletely on the sword embryo to manage his elemental energy.

    Given that the sword embryo had now been destroyed, he was able to control these elemental energy swords, but this was also the biggest problem he encountered so far. The sword embryo was the key to managing the elemental energy swords. Without the key, the elemental energy swords ran amok.

    It was impossible to recreate the sword embryo.

    He obtained the technique of developing a sword embryo by luck. Then, by coincidence, he sessfully nted the sword embryo¡¯s seed. Until now, he still did not exactly understand what had happened.

    From a different perspective, this might not be a bad thing. It was unexpected that the sword embryo would develop to such a stage. He was perplexed on how to train from today onward.

    The rupture of the sword embryo had temporarily raised his base level to a higher level while giving him experience that wouldst forever.

    Even though the remnant energy waves from the sword embryo could affect his elemental energy, the effect was minimal. Only a small portion of his metal elemental energy was sword-attributed.

    Since they had notpleted their transformation into elemental energy swords, why not intentionallypleted the process? This was Ai Hui¡¯s n.

    Right now, which aspects of Ai Hui were better than before? His understanding of swords.

    Hisprehension toward swords covered a wide range of sword-rted topics, which included types of swords, swordsmanship, how he channeled his elemental energy through his sword moves, etc. In other words, Ai Hui was acting as the role of sword embryo now.

    Of course, Ai Hui was still not on the sword embryo¡¯s level at the moment, which had been abnormally sensitive and instinctive to any sword-rted matters. This was also why he could not do anything with the elemental energy swords.

    However, what if he made these elemental energy swordsrger? And made them look like an actual sword? With a moreplete form?

    Would it make it easier for him to control them?

    Ai Hui felt this n was dangerous since no one had done it before.

    The elemental energy in the eight pces were pure in nature and were without form. This type of elemental energy was easy to manage and not harmful to one¡¯s body. As the elemental energy continued to seep into one¡¯s flesh and blood, his or her body would be stronger. The theory of body-tempering was exactly based on this logic.

    The moreplete the form of the elemental energy swords was, the sharper they would be, making it easier for them to damage one¡¯s body. Everyone wanted the flow of elemental energy in their bodies to be as smooth as a river, not as painful as getting pierced by numerous swords.

    Ai Hui was precisely worried about this. Would this n damage his body severely before it actually worked?

    All along, his five residences and eight pces were not firm and solid. Once a pce or a residence was damaged, he would be essentially handicapped.

    As for the problem of having difficulty or not being able to control thepletely formed elemental energy swords, Ai Hui felt that the problem was not necessarily unsolvable.

    As long as he could wield a sword in his hand, he had a way of controlling the sword energy. Ai Hui had the most confidence with regard to this issue.

    No one had ever thought of this n before, hence, no one could give him directions.

    After hesitating for two minutes, Ai Hui made his decision.

    If this had happened before the blood catastrophe, he definitely would not take this risk. He would seek help from Master, Mistress, the dean, or anyone else who was extremely knowledgeable and could give him pointers. Asking for advice was safer than taking the risk himself.

    Training was not child¡¯s y. A failure might result in an irreversible loss. It was not surprising for one to damage his residence or pce, be disabled, have a change in his temperament, or even die.

    If Ai Hui had enough time, he definitely would not take such a huge risk.

    However, the problem was that he did not have enough time now.

    He was not in a peaceful and safe Central Pine City, but was rather in the midst of the blood catastrophe and could die at anytime. If his body did not recover soon, he would be in a precarious situation.

    Now was not the time for him to rx and explore different options. There might be a chance that in the next moment a blood fiend would barge into the training hall and kill him on the spot.

    Ai Hui, who had been through the Wilderness, clearly understood the cruel reality of life. The more dangerous it was, the more everyone needed to disy their usefulness. One could only survived if he or she was capable.

    A king that lost power would soon be banished by his subjects.

    If a king could end up like that, why would an insignificant individual like him not end up the same?

    He knew that Lou Lan, Fatty, and Shi Xueman would definitely protect him, but everyone else was powerless to even defend themselves. A powerful blood fiend would wipe them outpletely.

    Life was like a game of poker. Those with more chips at hand could afford to go slow and steady. Losing a round would not harm them. Those with fewer chips, however,cked the luxury of time. Their only option was to bet their own lives at the gambling table.

    Fortunately, Ai Hui was used to having no chips. The so-called choice that he had to make was merely an illusion.

    He never had a choice in the first ce.

    If life was this way, then so be it. Whining and crying would only make one look weak. No one would pity him or help him. Life was like a battlefield, everyone had to brace themselves for the rain of arrows and the sh of swords. Cowards would always die first while the brave would advance by climbing over heaps of corpses.

    Anyway, it could not be worse than this.

    Ai Hui could only console himself like this. For now, he had not thought of any better ns. There might be some problems or repercussions in the future, but he did not care because he needed to have some self-defense capabilities first.

    Ai Hui felt absolutely naked without a sense of security.

    Without any hesitation, he started to brandish his sword. The elemental energy in his body began to flow as well. Just like how he developed his elemental energy in the past, he directed the energy from his body into the sword and then back to his body again, making a Circtory Circle Revolution.

    He used to do this with ease in the past, but now, without the sword embryo, the difficulty of this operation suddenly increased.

    The process was not really smooth. Ai Hui had to keep brandishing the sword in his hand to direct the elemental energy swords in his body.

    He put all his concentration on channeling the elemental energy and was extremely focused. The sword he wielded began to jerk nonstop. Yet, he stubbornly brandished his sword through all the jerking, as if he could not feel them at all.

    The elemental energy swords slowly flowed back from the sword in his hand to his body. They then continued through the eight pces and made a Circtory Circle Revolution.

    After a Circtory Circle Revolution waspleted, Ai Hui could feel that the degree of sharpness of the element energy swords slightly increased. Even though it was just a slight increase, Ai Hui was greatly encouraged by this since it happened like what he had predicted.

    The amount of elemental energy swords in his body was truly too tremendous. Only a miniscule portion of these elemental energy swords took part in the Circtory Circle Revolution.

    However, to Ai Hui, it was no doubt a good start.

    By the ninth Circtory Circle Revolution, Ai Hui finally felt a significant change in these elemental energy swords. They had be more nimble and smooth. The sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand was like a ma, having a mysterious attractive force over them.

    Ai Hui also discovered that sharper elemental energy swords were easier to manage. With a jolt of his mind, the elemental energy swords would quickly enter the Circtory Circle Revolution. Their speed was much faster than his elemental energy in the past.

    However, he soon discovered a problem. These elemental energy swords were too thin and small. At the same time, the amount of elemental energy swords that he needed to control was far too copious. This had created a huge burden on his mind.

    Perhaps he needed to gather them and makerger elemental energy swords? Could this reduce the number of elemental energy swords?

    Ai Hui, who had already gone all-out, made his decision without any hesitation.

    The hair-like elemental energy swords kept on gathering and fusing together, formingrger and thicker elemental energy swords. Such elemental energy swords looked like actual swords. Ai Hui tried to make them look like the daggers in the bronze sword box, causing them to appear abnormally graceful.

    Oh, the bronze sword box had been destroyed during the battle on the streets as well.

    Ai Hui did not dare to ck off at all. The more powerful and bigger the elemental energy swords were, the more dangerous they became. Ai Hui wondered, if he was to suddenly stop moving, would a bloody hole suddenly appear on his body?

    Next, a new problem arose in his mind. How could he store the elemental energy swords in the eight pces?

    The highly tense Ai Hui did not have time to sigh as he racked his brain for a solution. He had tried a few methods, but they did not really work. The elemental energy swords were abnormally smooth and exceptionally sensitive to the sword in his hand. A slight movement of Ai Hui¡¯s sword would cause them to make half a Circtory Circle Revolution.

    Ai Hui¡¯s method of using the sword to control the elemental energy swords in his body was far less efficient than the sword embryo¡¯s.

    The absolutely empty eight pces could not store the elemental energy swords at all.

    Ai Hui suddenly thought of the sword pill that Master had given him.

    The two moves, [Crescent Moon] and [Dust Fall], originated from it.

    Ai Hui had read many swordy manuals before and knew a thing or two about sword pills.

    The earliest swords pills were made by Cultivators by rolling up paper-thin, soft swords into a lump, resembling the size of mothballs. They could be hidden in the user¡¯s clothes or body, making them difficult to be detected. This was why they were called sword pills.

    Since these elemental energy swords were not easy to control, could he make them into sword pills?

    At this point of time, Ai Hui did not care about anything else and just carried on with his n.

    Swordsmanship had been irrelevant for many years and a lot of people had never even heard of sword pills, let alone making sword pills.

    Ai Hui needed to figure out everything by himself. He could only find the technique of making sword pills from the swordy manuals he had read before, but it was not possible for him to follow the manuals step-by-step. He could only get a rough idea of how to make sword pills from them.

    When he rolled an elemental energy sword into a sword pill, he quickly realized that its size was too small, making it very light and hard to control. Furthermore, the process of rolling an elemental energy sword into a sword pill was very unstable.

    Ai Hui now had a much deeper understanding toward swords whenpared to the past. Within a short period of time, he was able to identify the reason.

    He was not discouraged and started from the beginning again.

    He started forming thicker and bigger elemental energy swords again. He also created a huge amount of elemental energy swords again.

    Then, he controlled these elemental energy swords and formed a whirlpool with them. By swirling these elemental energy swords at a high speed and thenpressing them, he eventually formed a perfectly round sword pill.

    The sword pill levitated silently in Ai Hui¡¯s left hand pce, spinning continuously.

    The left hand pce was deste and the sword pill was pathetically small, but the corners of his mouth involuntarily curled into a bright smile.

    He felt that he had chosen the right n.

 Chapter 227: Bad News and Good News

    Chapter 227: Bad News and Good News

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    Ai Hui¡¯s confidence increased tremendously after he managed to sessfully seal the sword pill into his left hand pce.

    Now he needed to follow the same steps to "roll" the remaining elemental energy swords into sword pills.

    It was a big project that required a long span of focused attention and was as dry as dust.

    Due to the amount of time Ai Hui had spent roaming around the edges of death, concentration was now second nature to him, almost like breathing. Dull and repetitive content could easily make people lose their patience, but not for Ai Hui. He could concentrate for long periods of time.

    When he was concentrating, he did not care about others and would be fully immersed in his own world.

    As he was usually concentrating, in other people¡¯s eyes, it always seemed like he was disregarding them and paying no attention to their opinions.

    Indeed, he has never taken other people¡¯s viewpoints into ount. When he is caught within a wild beast¡¯s teeth and sharp ws, other people¡¯s opinions would not increase his likelihood of survival.

    As such, why not spend more time on improving himself? No one would be able to easily strip him of his personal improvements. He could change his fate by improving himself.

    Having his fate in his own hands gave him a sense of security.

    Ai Hui took pleasure in his task.

    He made many discoveries. For example, he realized that the remnants of the sword embryo¡¯s energy waves were the strongest in the sky pce. Thinking back to the sword embryo¡¯s former location, he realized that this fact was not strange. He also found that within both his hand pces and his earth pce, there was an abundance of electric currents. This was the result of using [Dust Fall] to draw lightning into both hand pces and the earth pce.

    He also discovered that within both his left and right hand pces, if the sword pills were rotated faster than a specific speed, the surplus electric rays would be stimted.

    What an interesting phenomenon. Ai Hui mentally noted it down and continued to "roll" the sword pills.

    After scanning the remaining amount of elemental energy, he assessed the number of sword pills he¡¯d created. He felt that he could be a grand pastry chef in the future.

    He¡¯d also considered forming eight whirlpools within the Eight Pces to absorb the elemental energy automatically. After all, whirlpools were steady structures; however, Ai Hui gave up the thought after recalling how the elemental energy ball in his body had previously been hard to absorb.

    If he managed to form whirlpools within his elemental energy pces, it would be easy for elemental energy to enter the elemental energy pces. It would, however, be difficult to extract the elemental energy from the pces afterwards.

    While the sword pills were not as effective or stable as whirlpools, they were easier to control. To Ai Hui, who no longer had the aid of the sword embryo, it was more important for him to be able to gain control.

    Shi Xueman and the rest had been waiting for a long time, but there were no indications that Ai Hui was going to stop. Everyone started to take breaks after hearing Lou Lan say that Ai Hui would still need a long time to recover. After going through an ardent battle, all of them were battered and tired. Nevertheless, Shi Xueman still sent someone to pass on the message that Ai Hui had woken up.

    Many were still waiting for the news.

    The battle on the streets had solidified Ai Hui¡¯s status and prestige in Central Pine City. The scene where thunder had filled the entire sky was unforgettable to all the survivors.

    Such a grand performance took everyone¡¯s breath away.

    Since the beginning of the blood catastrophe, Ai Hui was the one who rose to fame during the battle on the streets. He was the first person in Central Pine City to rely on his own strength to save everyone from the desperate crisis.

    Everyone was looking forward to having their own Ye Baiyi in Central Pine City to bring them out of the Induction Ground alive. Furthermore, after learning that their mayor was a survivor of the Battle of the Dawn, theparison stuck in their heads; It had spread throughout the city overnight.

    Ye Baiyi had not initially been known as Icy mes Ye.

    At the time of the Battle of the Dawn, Ye Baiyi had just been an ordinary team leader from the Icy mes Division.

    The cruel Battle of the Dawn had allowed Ye Baiyi to step onto a stage belonging only to him.

    The survivors in Central Pine City strongly believed that Ai Hui, who had participated in the battle on the streets, had the calibre to walk the same route.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hardborer background, the fact that he was still a first-year student in Central Pine City, and that he has yet to achieve the Initial Completion all pointed to him being a genius.

    But after the battle on the streets, Ai Hui had slipped intoa and this tugged at many of the people¡¯s heartstrings. Some of them were worried that Ai Hui had sustained serious injuries, while others were optimistic and felt that it was a sign that Ai Hui was going to have a breakthrough.

    Everyone was closely following Ai Hui¡¯s condition. That thin youth was shouldering their hopes of survival.

    "Our Ai Baiyi has awakened," teasingly said the mayor. He was in a good mood. After hearing too manyparisons between Ai Hui and Ye Baiyi, he decided to jokingly call Ai Hui as Ai Baiyi.

    Ai Hui¡¯s rise had reversed the situation. The city gates were once again sealed and the blood fiends had been utterly defeated. How could he not be in a good mood? If Ai Hui hadn¡¯t been around, what would it have been like that day? The mayor had previously prepared himself mentally to sacrifice half of the troops who were going to seal the door.

    The dean smiled, but then frowned while saying, "Such publicity would not be beneficial to his growth."

    He was also proud of Ai Hui. When he had given the original [Big Dipper] to Ai Hui, he had still had some reservations on doing so; however, everyone now praised him saying that he has good perception.

    "Let¡¯s focus on what¡¯s going on in the present." Wang Zhen passed a cup of water to the dean. "Everyone needs Ai Baiyi now. The higher authorities are considering Ai Hui¡¯s rewards. The number of Heaven Merit Points should be quite substantial."

    The dean took the cup and took a sip. He stayed quiet; he knew what Wang Zhen meant.

    Everyone needed a hero. Even if that hero might not create a miracle immediately, at least that hero could give them hope.

    He was unable to rebut and changed the topic. "How¡¯s the situation in the city?"

    "Pretty good." Wang Zhen¡¯s expression regained its usual sternposure. "While the number of casualties is still increasing, the trend is now going down. Most of them are the weaker students and citizens. Also, the appearance of the blood crystals allows us to increase the number of elites we have while raising our standard. If this trend continues, our situation will be better than before."

    "That¡¯s good to hear." The dean heaved a happy sigh of relief.

    "But there¡¯s bad news."

    The dean¡¯s heart skipped a beat and his smile froze on his face.

    "The support teams were attacked by the blood fiends." Wang Zhen continued, "They have suffered huge losses. Three support teams were fully destroyed and more than three troops lost half their members. One assistant leader has died and they¡¯ve lost contact with two others, including Sir Yu Mingqiu."

    "What?" The dean cried out in rm and his expression changed drastically.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s could rte to the dean¡¯s reaction. When he¡¯d first received the news, he too had reacted in the same way.

    He did not continue immediately, but gave the dean some time to digest the information. The dean looked dazed. After a long while, he looked up and asked nkly, "How did this happen?"

    Wang Zhen replied with a sigh, "We got lucky."

    The dean looked at Wang Zhen nkly.

    Wang Zhen quickly exined, "The blood fiends near Central Pine City were transforming at a slower speedpared to those around the other cities. Those troops that were sent as support were attacked by arge number of blood fiends. The highest level that they encountered was a seven-trace blood fiend."

    "Seven traces?" The dean¡¯s eyes almost popped out.

    After dealing with so many blood fiends, they had developed a better understanding towards the blood fiends¡¯ capabilities. The fewer the blood traces, the stronger the blood-traced fiend.

    Most of the blood fiends in Central Pine City had yet to show any signs of having blood traces. Nine-trace blood fiends were the next highest in number. They had yet to see any eight-trace blood fiends and there were already sightings of seven-trace blood fiends in other cities.

    The nine-trace blood fiends were already difficult to deal with. How much more difficult would it be to deal with a seven-trace blood fiend? It was no wonder all of the support troops met with destruction and huge losses.

    "We do not yet know the reason, but I believe that this is our luck. The rest of the cities are in a far worse situation than we are. Ny percent of the cities in the Induction Ground have already been invaded by the blood fiends." Wang Zhen¡¯s tone was grave.

    The dean was at a loss for words before stammering, "Then... How are they now?"

    "The higher authorities did not release any information, but you can imagine." Wang Zhen continued dully, "There will be even more casualties. They might have to await support while defeating blood fiends in the ruins of the city, or they might meet with aplete wipeout."

    The dean trembled, his face as white as a sheet.

    Seeing the dean¡¯s fearful gaze, Wang Zhen continued, "As such, we need to endure for a longer period of time than we¡¯d expected, which is why we need Ai Baiyi."

    He felt grateful. If they¡¯d heard this news before the break out of the long war, he too would have fallen into despair. Now that the situation had stabilized, it also increased his confidence in pressing on.

    "The good news is that the progress of the development of the golden needles has been smooth. Given the current speed, I reckon we still require two more days before thepletion of the golden needles. Master Han sent Mingxiu to hasten the progress. She is in her optimal state now and can start on it at any moment. ording to Mister Wang¡¯s n, if we are able toplete it, Central Pine City will be as sturdy as iron."

    The dean regained some color in his face. "What instructions have the higher authorities given?"

    "They hope that we can endure and press on." Wang Zhen nced at him before replying, "They have already sent a new troop to give us support, but it will require some time to arrive. The support force will be stronger this time around."

    In another corner in Central Pine City, the news that Ai Hui had awakened also woke up others.

    "He has awoken?" A hoarse voice sounded from behind the shadows in a secret corner.

    "Yes!" Yan Hai replied carefully, "He has just woken up. The rest of the details have not been passed down yet."

    "The Lightning de..." The person in the shadows walked out; it was Tian Kuan. He was fuming with rage and his gaze was filled with hatred, but also with a thread of fear. His face was pale. As the situation in the city stabilized, he became unable to take advantage of the crisis for his own benefit. The situation would be even worse if he had not found Yan Hai.

    Yan Hai did not dare to breathe. He knew how scary Tian Kuan was.

    Because of Tian Kuan, he dared not have any thoughts of resisting and listened to orders without any protests. Furthermore, he felt that this was a good opportunity for himself. Tian Kuan¡¯s identity was destined to be extraordinary within the group. To an outside member like himself, it would pave many roads for him in the future.

    "You have yet to bear any blood traces?" Tian Kuan shook his head, displeased.

    Yan Hai¡¯s expression changed in a sh. He knew how temperamental these people could be.

    At that moment, a blood crystal was thrown in front of him. The sparkling and translucent blood crystal captured Yan Hai¡¯s attention.

    An indifferent voice sounded over his head.

    "Hurry up and bear the blood traces. I have a mission for you."

 Chapter 228: Tian Kuanâ€™s Operation

    Chapter 228: Tian Kuan¡¯s Operation

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    In the darkness, Tian Kuan moved like a ghost in the shadows of the ruins.

    After being defeated by Ai Hui, he realized that he had underestimated his enemy. That juvenile, oh, he¡¯s called Ai Hui, was stronger than he¡¯d imagined. It would be hard to defeat such an opponent using simple and violent moves.

    Tian Kuan never avoided confronting his own mistakes. He believed that having a resolution to his mistakes was nothing shameful, rather, was worth celebrating. The dead did not have the chance to do so.

    He had survived such bitter battles andbat encounters. How could he be considered brainless?

    Fighting in close quarters required courage, capability, and knowledge. As one survived more battles, these traits became more apparent.

    Tian Kuan had been constantly reflecting and pondering upon his mistakes for the past two days.

    Through Yan Hai, he knew what was happening in Central Pine City like the back of his hand. He also held Ai Hui in higher regard.

    Even talents like Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun were under Ai Hui¡¯s shadow, so much that they willinglyplied to Ai Hui orders. Tian Kuan had been surprised when he¡¯d heard that. Even more so when he learned Ai Hui¡¯s background, being that he had been a hardborer and was also still a first-year student at the Induction Ground.

    Being a nemesis of the Avalon of Five Elements, the Blood of God had researched the Avalon of Five Elements intensively.

    The conflicting views between the new citizens and the members of the aristocratic families had long seeped into the Avalon of Five Elements; the Thirteen Divisions was no exception. Some of the troopsplied with tradition by only appointing disciples from aristocratic families as leaders, while on the other hand, the leaders of some other troops were all new citizens.

    For a new citizen without any background to be able tomand influential figures like Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun was to go against all the norms. The arrogance of the aristocratic families allowed them to treat capable new citizens as their right-hand men, but they would never ept them as their superiors.

    Tian Kuan held Ai Hui in higher regards. This incident emphasized Ai Hui¡¯s capability and that he was indeed a genius youth.

    After Tian Kuan calmed down, he quickly found a solution. There was no need for him to engage in directbat with Ai Hui, this would only put himself in danger. It was hard to predict the moves of genius opponents. They would always perform outstandingly in perceived dire situations and reverse the oue.

    To have a direct battle with a genius like Ai Hui was the ultimatest resort.

    Tian Kuan had sufficient manpower to help him.

    In his eyes, there were many loopholes in Central Pine City¡¯s defense system. Unlike Yan Hai and the others who were peripheral members, he had been painstakingly groomed by many of the elders from within Blood of God. These elders had summarised many aspects of the Avalon of Five Elements. Compared to the number of Elders who researched the new citizens and the conflicts between the aristocratic families, there were more Elders researching the training system in the Five Residences and Eight Pces as well as the defense mechanisms in the cities. After all, these findings would be used directly in battle.

    The fruits of those Elders¡¯bor had all been imparted to them.

    The Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ traditions were regted by the Elders. As nature would have it, they were also used against the Avalon of Five Elements as a kind of weapon by the Blood of God.

    Tian Kuan was proficient in the city¡¯s defense system. The city gate which Wang Zhen viewed as indestructible was as weak as tofu in Tian Kuan¡¯s eyes. It would be very easy for him to break through their defense system; however, the cautious Tian Kuan did not do so. There was a high possibility that his previous break-in through the city gates had raised suspicions. If traces of man-made destruction were found within the city again, Wang Zhen would definitely know that there was an enemy hiding within the city.

    Tian Kuan knew that the veterans of the Battle of the Dawn were not to be taken lightly.

    Compared to before, the strength within the city had also improved. After killing off the blood fiends that had entered into the city, arge amount of blood crystals had been obtained by the elementalists. As a result, the elite elementalists in Central Pine City¡¯s strengths improved tremendously.

    It had never urred to Tian Kuan that the blood crystals could actually be used to increase the elementalists¡¯ capabilities and that the effect would be so obvious. It was said that the efficiency of the blood crystals was one of the A-1 unit¡¯s contributions. He wondered what role Ai Hui had yed being the leader of the A-1 unit.

    After continuous investigations, Tian Kuan realized that it was due to the influence of Ai Hui that Central Pine City was still in a rather good condition. Ai Hui had yed both direct and indirect parts.

    Tian Kuan became extra cautious.

    It was fortunate that there were many loopholes in Central Pine City. Tian Kuan soon found a new target underground. Central Pine City¡¯s underground had long been destroyed. The first wave of attacks was by the blood ants, followed by the blood-traced worms. The rocks underground had been utterly destroyed and there were many holes left behind by the attacks.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s target was these holes that were connected to outside the city.

    He arrived at a ruin without a soul in sight. A huge tunnel could be clearly seen. This was the huge hole that had been left behind after Ai Hui and his team had defeated the nine-trace blood worm.

    Immediately, Tian Kuan noticed the recumbent parasol bell next to the tunnel¡¯s entrance.

    The recumbent parasol bell was a type of nt used for security purposes. It was short in height and was shaped like an open parasol, prostrate on the floor. The tip of the parasol had an unassuming warning bell flower. The ash-grey color of the recumbent parasol bell was simr to that of the stones. It does not stand out amongst the ruins, but Tian Kuan recognised it with a single nce.

    The recumbent parasol bell could release an invisible ultrasonic wave simr to a bat¡¯s ultrasonic sound. It was very weak and other living things would find it hard to detect. When a living being enters the waves¡¯ boundary, it would alert the rm. The warning bell flower on the tip of the parasol would then produce an urgent ring.

    Tian Kuan restrained his vital energy and his face became ghastly white, with the exception of his pupils which were like drops of blood. His body became ice-cold and his heartbeat came close to halting. Any signs of lifeing from his body vanished without a trace.

    Hended next to the recumbent parasol bell and the bell did not ring. This was the recumbent parasol bell¡¯s weakness. The invisible ultrasonic waves were only effective on living organisms and could not be used to defend against beings that did not produce signs of life.

    He looked around cautiously and did not see anyone around.

    Nowadays, no one in the city guarded the tunnels. There were simply too many tunnels. Most of them made use of nts simr to the recumbent parasol bell or sand puppets that had modified strength to guard around the clock. Sand puppets did not know what it was like to be tired and were more than suitable to conduct such a mission.

    While the continuation of the battles led to an increase in the injured and casualties, the lucky surviving elementalists were improving constantly.

    The continuous loss of lives had a tremendous impact on them.

    The sounds of battle could be heard from far away. The blood fiends in the city had not been purgedpletely and the battles were still taking ce.

    Tian Kuan took out a bag of bait that he had prepared beforehand. It had been created with the utmost care. He took out a blood crystal. Pain shed through his eyes, but he put the blood crystal into the bag of bait and threw it into the deep tunnel.

    He looked at the sunflower on his wrist. There were twelve petals. Two were yellow and the remaining were green.

    It was two in the morning.

    Tian Kuan was not repulsed by using items from the Avalon of Five Elements. Traces of the Avalon of Five Elements could be seen in many aspects of their lives. Also, there were many useful items which had been created by them. Items that could be used to tell time like the jade green sunflower were cheap, light, and easy to use. The minute sand from the Yellow Sand Corner gave precise timing as well. Also, the volcano at the Sparking ins would erupt with a variety of beautiful illusions at every hour. The concealed cloud paper from Palette Cloud Vige could not only be absorbed by any parts of the body, it could also disy time and be used to record knowledge among other things.

    Including the elders from the organization, they were used to using various items from the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Tian Kuan felt that the actions of the Avalon of Five Elements were rather contradictory. As much as the items were borate, they were meant for daily use. As long as you had enough power, you could easily snatch them over.

    When the sun was up, people in Central Pine City would enjoy a hearty meal.

    Tian Kuan did not halt his steps and disappeared into the darkness.

    Vanguard Training Hall.

    A full twelve hours had passed and Ai Hui had yet to show any signs of stopping. He was like a sand puppet that did not know the meaning of ¡®tired¡¯.

    The students who were done with their break looked at Ai Hui as he trained from afar. Their gazes were filled with curiosity and admiration. After twelve consecutive hours, Ai Hui did not pause for a break.

    ¡®The Lighting de¡¯ and ¡®Ai Baiyi¡¯ were the current hot topics within the team. All of them resonated deeply with them and were honored.

    After more experiences withbat in battles and the increase in their strength, the previously delicate students were more mature now. They observed Ai Hui while continuing their discussion in low tones, exchanging their insights from the battle.

    "He is improving, and at a very fast rate."

    A voice came from behind Shi Xueman. It was Duanmu Huanghun.

    Shi Xueman did not bother to turn her head and replied, "You are also not too bad."

    She no longer treated Duanmu Huanghun as someone she had to take care of. He had surpassed everyone¡¯s expectation after achieving the Initial Completion. Besides Ai Hui, Duanmu Huanghun had also improved drastically. Even Shi Xueman was pressured by the vast improvement from Duanmu Huanghun.

    Duanmu Huanghun was now ranked number three in the troops, after Ai Hui and Shi Xueman.

    There was a reason why the Eight Pces Completion was a watershed point to being an elementalist. Once the Eight Pces Initial Completion was formed, the barrier between the elementalist and the sky and earth elemental energy would be broken. Huge amounts of sky and earth elemental energy would enter the body and refine it. As a result, the body of the elementalist would improve by arge margin.

    However, thergest change did not ur in their physical bodies; rather, it was the effectiveness of the elemental energy training. The efficiency was tremendously improved.

    The elementalist and the elemental energy from heaven and earth would be more closely connected. The efficiency of elemental energy absorption would also increase tremendously.

    As such, elementalists achieving the elemental internalization,monly referred to as Supporting the Eight Pces. In this phase, the main task of the elementalist was to constantly expand the eight pces using therge amount of elemental energy. This in turn would also allow them to store more elemental energy.

    Following the expansion of the eight pces, they would gradually merge into one and the elementalist¡¯s body would mostly run on elemental energy. This was also the time to refine their pces and transform their residences in order to enter the next phase: elemental externalization.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eight pces were expanding at an astonishing speed. He was also more sensitive towards elemental energy. It was extremely useful to Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower]. He was practically improving everyday.

    Compared to Duanmu Huanghun, Shi Xueman¡¯s improvement was slower; however, she was not worried as she knew the reason why.

    She was the first to recover among the group. From the start, she had closely followed Ai Hui¡¯s situation. Ai Hui¡¯s standing in their team was important enough for her to pay such close attention.

    Shi Xueman suddenly became fixated. Duanmu Huanghun, who was standing next to her, also stood up straight unconsciously. The rest of the students also soon realized the situation.

    After brandishing his sword for more than twelve consecutive hours, there were finally some changes to Ai Hui¡¯s sword moves.

 Chapter 229: Opening the Palace Door

    Chapter 229: Opening the Pce Door

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    For the past 20 hours, Ai Hui had been immersed in his training, but his sword moves were clumsy. At times, he did notplete his moves or lost control of his strength andmitted all kinds of mistakes. He could practically write a book < A Complete Collection of Swordy Mistakes >.

    Ai Hui¡¯s movements were awkward and full of errors. It was difficult for people to associate him with his nickname "The Lightning de."

    Shi Xueman and the rest were used to it however. There were always all sorts of quirks when it came to Ai Hui.

    This was not the first time and would not be thest.

    While everyone was fully aware of Ai Hui¡¯s abilities and valor, it was a little difficult for them to endure seeing such a clumsy swordy as time went by. Even if they knew that a main course would definitely be delicious, it would be an unpleasant experience if they had to first eat terrible tasting appetizers one after another.

    Everyone became alert when a faint light ray started to gather on the longsword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand.

    They were filled with anticipation since Ai Hui¡¯s swordy was outstanding and often breathtaking.

    What no one expected was for Ai Hui¡¯s sword moves to remain disjointed in spite of the flickering sword ray. It was a tragic sight.

    "What is he trying to do?" Duanmu snorted.

    Even if the person executing such clumsy swordy was the person he wanted to defeat, wasting so much time watching it was uneptable!

    Even without looking at Duanmu Huanghun, Shi Xueman remarked, "You can¡¯t beat him anyway."

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body stiffened, as if an immobilization spell had been casted on him.

    A few minutes passed before he gradually turned his head around, his facial muscles twitching and eyes shooting mes.

    "Wanna fight?"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s icy words woke Duanmu Huanghun up, as if he¡¯d been hit by a basin of ice cold water. Fighting with Ai Hui did not scare him at all. Instead, he looked forward to it very much.

    But to fight with Shi Xueman...

    Duanmu Huanghun trembled at that thought, and his childhood trauma returned to him instantly like an enveloping ck cloud. He had seen with his own eyes how Shi Xueman made the bigger brothers and sisters wail and howl. This had also fueled his determination to seed.

    This childhood trauma was really a bit too overwhelming...

    Duanmu Huanghun groaned a little before turning his head back.

    Don¡¯t be fooled by his recent progress. He was still meek when it came to confronting Shi Xueman. Losing to Ai Hui was not a big deal because it would just feed his fighting spirit.

    But losing to Shi Xueman...

    That nightmarish scene would trigger his childhood trauma. It would be too terrifying.

    Ai Hui¡¯s nickname for her, "Violent Iron Lady," was simply an understatement!

    Humph, I shall not bother with women!

    Duanmu Huanghun looked down, half-embarrassed and half-ashamed.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eight pces were incessantly being filled with "sword pills." Elemental energy pills shaped like sword pills continued spinning at high speeds and were suspended within the elemental energy pces. Plus, Ai Hui found another benefit of the elemental energy pills¨Cthey were more precisepared to the wisps and threads of elemental energy he used in the past. This was a huge advantage in battles and was especially suited for Ai Hui¡¯s [Big Dipper].

    [Big Dipper] required seven identical amount of elemental energy, which was why it was a very challenging skill. Ai Hui had to simultaneously control seven pces and urately guide seven identical amount of elemental energy within an extremely short period of time and while inbat. This was a very demanding task for elementalists.

    It was much easier now since Ai Hui only needed his seven pces to control one elemental energy pill.

    Ai Hui paid even more attention when he was "rolling the sword pill," ensuring that each elemental energy pills was identical.

    This caused Ai Hui¡¯s rolling speed to reduce, but he felt it was very much worth it. Preparation work that could help in battle ought to be done no matter howplicated and tedious.

    A short battle determined life and death, and preparation work consumed time and energy, but one must survive to have time and energy.

    It took Ai Hui a whole 12 hours to get sufficient elemental energy, roll them into elemental energy pills and ce them within his eight pces. As the amount of uncontroble elemental energy within his body decreased, Ai Hui¡¯s sword ray became brighter and clearer.

    When thest elemental energy pill entered his sky pce, Ai Hui¡¯s body jerked.

    Eight pces shook at the same time and the high-speed spinning elemental energy pills suddenly froze. The next moment, a violent surge of elemental energy current flowed backward from between Ai Hui¡¯s brows.

    Something rumbled in Ai Hui¡¯s head, causing his mind to nk out.

    Just then, everyone saw a ray of light lighting up from between Ai Hui¡¯s brows. The dazzling light transformed into a whirlpool of light as countless wisps and threads of brightly-colored rays seemed to get sucked into it from thin air.

    "Sky pce?"

    Shi Xueman was stunned.

    Not just her, but Duanmu Huanghun, who was about to leave, was stunned too.

    When eight pces advanced from Initial Completion stage and attaining elemental internalization, elementalists would be able to sense the elemental energy of heaven and earth as well as guide it into the body. This process was known as [Opening of Pce Door], and each pce opened a different kind of pce door.

    Generally speaking, opening pce doors were for elementalists¡¯ strongest pces since the most tempered elemental energy pce had the keenest reaction to heaven and earth elemental energy. Furthermore, this was directly rted to the inherited training methods.

    For example, Shi Xueman opened the sea pce¡¯s pce door because she practiced the [Cloud Whale] techinque and mainly trained her sea pce. As such, her spear skills were powerful, while her elemental energy was mild and soft.

    Duanmu Huanghun practiced the [Viridescent Flower], but trained mainly his gate pce. The gate pce linked everything between heaven and earth. As such, the [Viridescent Flower] technique was named after its flexibility.

    Ai Hui opened the sky pce¡¯s ce door.

    Opening the sky pce was not that bizarre. A lot of inherited absolute arts, such as the famous [Eyebrow Heart Knife], focused on training the sky pce.

    But Ai Hui practiced the [Big Dipper].

    At the moment, people were still clicking their tongues in wonder since the [Big Dipper] demanded a lot from the practitioner. Seven strong pces were required, and it was only now that they realized Ai Hui had seven strong pces. Other than his sky pce, the rest were strong. They felt that while Ai Hui had low affinity with elemental energy, he had a rather rare constitution for possessing seven strong pces.

    In Ai Hui¡¯s hands, the [Big Dipper] was a formidable power that lived up to its fame and glory.

    If Ai Hui had opened a pce door from one of his strong pces, it would not be surprising or strange, yet it happened to be his sky pce that opened.

    Could it be that Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce had undergone more tempering than the rest?

    Everyone was confused, but not many were surprised when Ai Hui broke through Initial Completion to elemental internalization. The astonishing lightning version of [Dust Fall] disyed during the battle on the long street had already convinced everybody that Ai Hui was beyond ordinary elementalists, so it would not be surprising for him to also open his pce door.

    The light whirlpool between Ai Hui¡¯s brows continued swallowing the elemental energy that surged out from the air. Simultaneously, there were wisps of brightly-colored elemental energy dispersing from Ai Hui¡¯s surroundings. These were elemental energies that Ai Hui was unable to absorb.

    Ai Hui gradually recovered himself.

    The steady flow of elemental energy was heterogeneous, so it was very ufortable for him when all of it entered his body. Just by willing it in his mind, the elemental energy from his eight pces automatically started the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    The elemental energy pills, lustrous as pearl and jade, circted within his body.

    It felt different from before. Elemental energy used to feel like flowing liquid, but after bing elemental energy pills, they became more agile. This required Ai Hui to have better control so he had to be even more alert. Previously, he did not have to worry about the fluid elemental energy getting clogged when he was performing the Circtory Cycle Revolution, but now, if the elemental energy pills moved in a swarm, blockages were very possible.

    Ai Hui did not mind in the least. ced alongside its benefits, the costs were not worth mentioning.

    As the Circtory Cycle Revolution continued, wisps of elemental energy were absorbed by the operating elemental energy pills. They followed the pills in the cirction, as if they had smelled a simr odor.

    Ai Hui quickly took this opportunity to roll this elemental energy into pills since he needed them.

    Those that he did not require were dispersed from around his body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s Circtory Cycle Revolution was different from anyone else¡¯s. Not only was his cirction for eight pces, it was also for the sword in his hand.

    Wholeheartedly rolling elemental energy pills, Ai Hui did not notice that following the cirction, the elemental energy pills entered his sword before flowing back into his body.

    Each elemental energy pill contained sword aura. Ai Hui used the sword pill method to roll the elemental energy into pills, but the sword aura did not weaken because of this. Instead, it was more controlled than that of the original elemental energy swords.

    The elemental energy pills passed through the longsword during the revolution, causing it to tremble very slightly.

    The longsword was quietly undergoing changes.

    Ai Hui sensed the longsword¡¯s change 10 minutester. The sword aura within the elemental energy pills agitated the longsword nonstop. Now, Ai Hui had a keenprehension of the sword, achieving unprecedented progress.

    Perhaps the elemental energy pills were beneficial to the longsword?

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. Wanting to inspect the changes, he turned his attention to the longsword in his hand.

    The sword aura in the elemental energy pills kept stimting the longsword, and Ai Hui felt the sword bing increasingly sharp, so sharp that it could cut open anything. Yet, there was an indescribable, incorporeal obstruction.

    Ai Hui instinctively disliked thisyer of obstruction. He knew not what it was, but felt that it restricted the sword.

    What to do?

    Suddenly it clicked. Since the elemental energy pills could stimte the longsword, just increase the intensity!

    He sped up the cirction of the elemental energy pills within his body.

    Ai Hui was pleasantly surprised to discover that following an increase in speed of cirction of the elemental energy pills, the obstructiveyer became thinner.

    All of a sudden, Ai Hui felt his hands bing light as that invisible obstruction disappeared.

    Boom, Ai Hui¡¯s mind shook.

    While those present were still processing the strange fact that Ai Hui was opening his sky pce¡¯s pce door, a brilliant ray lit up and suddenly caught their eyes once again.

    They raised their head automatically and were dumbfounded upon digesting the situation.

    The light ray from Ai Hui¡¯s longsword continued to grow as the bright silver light transformed into a light whirlpool.

    Everyone felt a great sense of familiarity toward the next scene.

    The wisps of brightly-colored lights surged up from thin air and incessantly entered the silver light whirlpool.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes were about to drop onto the floor.

    A longsword... opening a pce door?

    Seeing that the light whirlpool on the longsword was the same as the one between Ai Hui¡¯s brows and that both were absorbing the heaven and earth elemental energy simultaneously, everyone was struck dumb.

    When it came to opening a pce door, no one had even heard of simultaneously opening two of them. Needless to say, no one knew that a sword could open a pce door as well...

    The silver light from the longsword and from between Ai Hui¡¯s brows shone so brightly that it illuminated each and every stunned face of those present.

    Even Lou Lan revealed a lifeless gaze, which was rare.

    Not a single voice could be heard in the training hall.

 Chapter 230: The Remaining Problems

    Chapter 230: The Remaining Problems

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    It had not urred to Ai Hui that the longsword in his hand could actually absorb heaven and earth elemental energy.

    However, he had no time to care about this now. He was engrossed in the thrill of reaching the Inner Element level. That enveloping, incorporeal barrier had suddenly disappeared, and he felt indescribably rxed.

    A whole new world presented itself in front of him.

    The dark, ice-cold elemental energy world was now fresh and lively. Metal, wood, water, fire, earth. Agile, warm, lively, ever-changing, and full of vitality. They were so richly colorful and brought endless changes,

    Ai Hui was like an ignorant youth who had just barged his way into a multi-colored, multi-faceted forest and saw the sunlight, dewdrops, and countless lifeforms.

    He was moved beyond words.

    The brightly-colored elemental energy was iparably attractive and had firmly captured Ai Hui¡¯s heart.

    At that moment, he had forgotten about battling and killing. He was like a curious young man, lingering and losing himself amid these five mutable elemental energies.

    It was hard to mull things over because the changes were too rapid.

    What attracted Ai Hui the most were the five delicate elemental rings. Each was connected head to tail, like perfect color rings. Each elemental ring was different, yet equally captivating. Their circtory changes were endless.

    The heaven and earth elemental energy was like a vast, boundless ocean. It rippled and drifted. Breathtakingly dazzling, these fine circtions were like pearls spread throughout the ocean.

    Ai Hui relished this moment, feeling the energy so clearly for the first time

    It was apletely different experience from that of the sword embryo. Thetter was a state of absolute calm and free from emotions, as if in his eyes, there was no life and death in heaven or on earth. Now, he was like a wistful fellow, able to deeply feel the exquisite changes urring within the elemental energy and sense the faintly discernable, yet omnipresent breath of life.

    With a pensive look on his face, Ai Hui figured that it was probably this breath of life that produced the diverse Avalon of Five Elements.

    Amid the vast ocean of elemental energy, Ai Hui also noticed a familiar odor. The specks of silver light were like fragmented and scattered stars. They were metal elemental energies.

    He could feel the metal elemental energy-rich ground beneath his feet, but this elemental energy was so substantial and heavy that stepping on top made him feel so small and insignificant.

    The elemental energy cleansed his body without interruption as he felt his body change. The metal elemental energy poured into his lungs and they became like strong and tough bellows made from metal membranes. Each expansion and contraction brought abundant vitality and powerful breaths. The wood elemental energy entered his liver and thriving life force flooded every single part of his body. The fire elemental energy filled his his heart, making each heartbeat warm and powerful like a smelting furnace as well as providing it with limitless force. Voluminous water elemental energy permeated his kidneys like a sudden convergence of cloud-mist from all different directions, producing quiet raindrops that nourished all living things.

    Change was so magical! Ai Hui eximed in admiration, deeply moved by the mystical creator of it all.

    The influx of heaven and earth elemental energy would not cause immediate changes to his body, but with consistent nourishment and time, his body would undergo an all-around improvement.

    It was also at this time that Ai Hui finally understood why few would engage in body tempering before achieving Initial Completion.

    After Initial Completion, the nourishment brought by the heaven and earth elemental energy into an elementalist¡¯s body was holistic. Tempering on this basis would then produce twice the result with half the work. Plus, the elementalist would be more sensitive to elemental energy after Initial Completion, enhancing the effect of tempering.

    Ai Hui was engrossed in the beauty of it all when he suddenly sensed that something was amiss.

    The longsword in his hand.

    The fact that it could absorb the heaven and earth elemental energy was shocking, but he had not had time to notice since he was too absorbed in the moment. He immediately roused when the longsword started to show precarious signs.

    When Ai Hui ced his attention back on the longsword, he instantly sensed trouble.

    This longsword was thrown to him by Shi Xueman. It was the most ordinary and standard kind of longsword. Heaven and earth elemental energy poured into the longsword violently and incessantly, quickly exceeding the sword¡¯s endurance level. A crack started to appear on the sword surface and the clear, bright light ray prated through it.

    More and more cracks surfaced.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart sank. This was the crucial moment of advancement. During a breakthrough, one could feel many subtle, wonderful things that were usually difficult to detect. It was a rare opportunity.

    Who knew that the longsword would not be able to handle the energy flow at this critical juncture.

    Damn it!

    Even Ai Hui, who was usually a calm fellow, felt like cursing now. He had thought that it was a good thing for the longsword to open the pce door but who would have thought...

    The number of cracks increased, and in the blink of an eye, the sword body was filled with dense fissures.

    Not good!

    The longsword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand exploded before he could even cry out in rm.

    In a sh, the longsword was ripped apart by the violent surge of elemental energy. The burst of elemental energy swallowed the shattered pieces, turning them into fine powder before they could even disperse.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body jerked. The light whirlpool in between his brows dimmed, but carried an indescribable familiarity, causing him to stare nkly.

    It was as if his mind had sprinted over a vast area of light, flown far away in the blink of an eye, withdrawn, and disappeared like lightning before fully experiencing everything.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes opened wide as he realized that that indescribable familiarity felt a little like the sword embryo¡¯s explosion, just much lighter and shorter.

    So short that he could not even react in time.

    He did not know why, but during that short moment, his mind felt something. Unfortunately, that scene shed past his head like lightning and left only fuzziness.

    It was as if underground...

    Ai Hui snapped out of it. Perhaps blood fiends wanted to infiltrate Central Pine city from underground, but he did not worry too much about it. While Central Pine City was not able to prevent blood fiends from encroaching from underground, the tight security would still be able to detect the first signs of danger.

    He was only concerned about himself right now.

    Only a bare sword hilt remained in his hand. The worst thing was that his moment of enlightenment had been disrupted.

    Everyone, not just Ai Hui, was startled by this sudden change of events. They were still shaken by the fact that Ai Hui¡¯s sword could open a pce door, but in the next moment, it exploded.

    For a moment, all were in a daze.

    Ai Hui reacted the fastest. Although he was annoyed, he checked his body immediately. This was partly due to his experience, since his training had always been rough and situations always emerged. Many things, such as the sword embryo, had been created carelessly and by chance.

    To him, having all kinds of situations surface from training weremon urrences.

    He was still able to keep calm in the face of problems.

    Shi Xueman and the rest were nervous. Being disrupted when undergoing a breakthrough had consequences. If lucky, there would simply be no breakthrough, but if unfortunate, one could get severely injured. Right now, having ced all their faith in Ai Hui, everyone wished that they were the ones who failed instead of Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s role was not receable. What they really hoped for was an intact and unharmed Ai Hui.

    No one dared to even exhale, for fear of disturbing Ai Hui.

    The atmosphere turned heavy and stifling.

    Ai Hui opened his eyes after a while.

    "How is it?" Shi Xueman could not help but ask, her eyes filled with concern.

    Ai Hui noticed the worry in Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes and his heart warmed up a little. Irondy was being petty for not paying him the money, but she was actually a decent person. He nodded his head. "Still okay."

    Still okay?

    Shi Xueman stared nkly for a little while before expressing her discontentment. "What does that mean?"

    "Still okay, meaning the result isn¡¯t too bad." Ai Hui noticed that Shi Xueman¡¯s eye was twitching. As if he had seen her steely muscles throbbing under the armor, Ai Hui was startled and added quickly, "It¡¯s moreplicated. Simply speaking, Initial Completion was a sess. There is an increase in elemental energy and it is mostly all sorted out, but there are many remaining problems with my body."

    Shi Xueman felt a little more at ease, but was still curious. "Remaining problems?"

    Just then, Ai Hui¡¯s right arm spasmed uncontrobly. This sudden change shocked everyone present, including Shi Xueman.

    "Look," Ai Hui didn¡¯t seem to mind as he said with a calm expression, "the remaining lightning within my body res up intermittently."

    In response for scaring him with her twitching eyes, Ai Hui decided to return the favor. "I am "The Lightning de," how can I not carry electricity? You¡¯d better stay far away from me, Iron Lady. Steel conducts electricity so don¡¯t me me if you get electrocuted."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eye started twitching again. Steel... but she endured. Focus on the greater situation!

    She continued, "Any methods to remove it? Any other issues?"

    "As for the remaining lightning, so far no. No big issues." Ai Hui saw Shi Xueman¡¯s face darken and quickly added, "There¡¯s something wrong with my sky pce, hand pces, sea pce, and elemental energy."

    "You call that ¡®no big issues?¡¯" Shi Xueman red at him, as if she saw a ghost. "There¡¯s something wrong with four out of eight pces and you¡¯re telling me there¡¯s no big issues? Something also went wrong with your elemental energy. Is there anything worse than this? Body as well. Any other parts of your body with no issue?"

    She simply could not understand. Each problem seemed extremely serious to her. This fellow was usually exceptionally calm and cautious, so why was he acting so thoughtlessly right now?

    Everyone was dumbstruck. They did not expect Ai Hui¡¯s body to be hit with so many problems. He was badly damaged.

    "Now that you mention it, it does seem pretty serious." Ai Hui smiled meekly. "Actually it¡¯s not that severe."

    He really did think that it was not serious. For example, his hand pces, sea pce, and body problems were rted to the remnant lightning. The problem with his elemental energy was that the elemental energy pills had not been tested, so the result was unknown. Finally, the sky pce¡¯s issue was rted to the sword embryo¡¯s remaining motions.

    Aspared to when he just woke up, his battle strength had recovered significantly. Things were taking a turn for the better.

    Throughout his training journey and experience, he had had to deal with even more challenging issues, so this was not a big deal to him.

    Things were really much better now that he was more knowledgeable. Plus, he was starting to understand a rough idea of the ongoing events.

    Just then, a mournful-sounding rm went off from far away.

    The sh of fuzziness from before came back to him.

    The blood fiends were indeed invading the city. He felt slightly at ease since the rms sounded.

    Soon, however, his pupils constricted. A bright red signal rocketed up and across the ck sky.

    Someone was asking for assistance!

 Chapter 231: Sandworms

    Chapter 231: Sandworms

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X

    The sudden distress signal surprised everyone.

    As the fighting continued, people in Central Pine City began to know more about the blood fiends and became more tactful when fighting with them. The ferocious and dangerous blood fiends were gradually losing their advantages. People now knew how to separate the blood fiends, how to cooperate with each other, and how to identify weaknesses.

    Human beings were good at learning and summarizing, a feature that was fully disyed in Central Pine City. As long as they found the weakness of a kind of blood fiends, the Mayor¡¯s residence would announce it to the whole city. Meanwhile, the method to deal with the blood poison spatter was also found, which had saved many lives.

    The blood crystals of the blood fiends were gifts of the war. Many elementalists hadrgely improved their ability after using the blood crystal. Whether clever or stupid, everyone knew that only stronger people were likely to survive.

    The situation in Central Pine City became more and more steady.

    The quick increase of the elementalists¡¯ fighting skills made it easier for them to deal with blood fiends. Therefore, it was now rare to see urgent distress signals. Even if an elementalist met with a rtively ferocious blood fiend, he would call thepanions nearby for help and carry out the tactics of a "wolf pack."

    Now, some bold elementalists were even beginning to set baits and traps to obtain blood crystals.

    On the other hand, there was a big difference between a distress signal and an urgent distress signal. Thetter only appeared in times of emergency. The issuance of an urgent distress signal meant that the fight was out of control and every second counted.

    Without hesitation, Shi Xueman grabbed her spear and asked calmly, "Who still has the strength?" There was firmness in her starry eyes.

    Many students stepped forward. Shi Xueman was prestigious in the team, and almost everyone else in the team had been helped or saved by her. When she asked, all students responded.

    "Me!"

    "And me!"

    ...

    Shi Xueman did not hesitate. She chose more than 10 people and said, "Follow me. Everyone else, please stay on guard and be alert."

    Those who were chosen walked to the side of Shi Xueman. They were very calm. None of them panicked.

    Jiang Wei immediately started to arrange sentries and lookout posts.

    Shi Xueman turned to Ai Hui and said coldly, "Take care of yourself."

    She gave Ai Hui a deep nce, then left with the students. Moving quickly, she soon disappeared in the darkness.

    Ai Hui dumbly watched Shi Xueman¡¯s back. The capability and skillfulness Shi Xueman had shown was out of his expectation. Compared with what she was like at the beginning of the blood disaster, she was now a totally different person.

    Then, Ai Hui realized something, and could not helpughing at himself: who wasn¡¯t?

    Even Fatty¡¯s attitude toward training was far more serious than before.

    Duanmu Huanghun was also with Shi Xueman, which made Ai Hui more relieved. They were both talents. While their level was not high enough, their fighting skills were already on par with the average elementalists. Furthermore, their levels had beenrgely improved in battle.

    In the Avalon of the Five Elements, a really powerful and experienced fighter could not be reced by a dozen average fighters. Likewise, in Central Pine City, the capability of all the elementalists added up together could not bepared to that of a single master in a real battle.

    That was why people had high hopes for Ai Hui.

    In addition to Ai Hui, all the other students were relieved too. They were busy with their own matters. Some were engaged in training, some were lost in thought, and the rest were discussing and learning from each other in groups. They were already used to fighting like veterans.

    Ai Hui contemted how to solve his own "problem."

    When Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun arrived, many elementalists were already there.

    "This is where we killed the blood-traced earthworm," one student said, but no one seemed to hear what he said.

    Their eyes were fixed on the scene, and all of them were dumbstruck by what they saw.

    The solid ground was now like quicksand, with a huge vortex slowly rotating in the middle. In the sand, something seemed to be moving. The debris of the nearby ruins was continuously drawn into the vortex and ground into sand.

    The diameter of the vortex was more than 100 meters. Such arge vortex visual impacted everyone present.

    What was more shocking was that it kept growingrger by devouring the ground adjacent to the area.

    The other elementalists were also stunned and frightened.

    Shi Xueman was the first to react. She asked loudly, "Who sent the signal?"

    "It was us."

    Some elementalists recognized Shi Xueman and they all came forward.

    Currently, the A-1 Unit was the most powerful team in Central Pine City, so the main members were well known to everyone.

    Shi Xueman breathed deeply to calm down, then asked, "How did you find it?"

    "We heard the rm of the recumbent parasol bell. When we arrived, we found that there seemed to be something in the hole, so we immediately attacked the hole, but it didn¡¯t help. Then, the ground became as soft as a dough, and a small vortex appeared..."

    Shi Xueman interrupted without hesitation, "Howrge was it?"

    "The diameter was only about 20 meters." There was still fear on these elementalists¡¯ faces. "We attacked the vortex, but it was of no use either. The vortex kept growing at a fast speed. There was nothing we could do but ask for help."

    "How long did it take to grow from 20 meters to what it is now?" Shi Xueman asked.

    "About 10 minutes."

    Shi Xueman was calm. Within only 10 minutes, it grew from 20 meters to 100 meters with no sign of stopping. Her gaze was fixed on the rotating sand vortex, as if she wanted to see what on earth was in it.

    Suddenly, she noticed something moving in the sand, something small.

    She turned to Duanmu Huanghun and asked, "Can you get one out?"

    Duanmu Huanghun nodded without saying a word. His face was solemn. He could feel strong earth elemental energy from the sand vortex and also wondered what the tiny things in it were.

    His fingers stretched like blooming flowers. The others could only see a blurred streak in the air that had an unspeakable rhythm.

    Above the vortex, a green twined vine abruptly appeared out of nowhere and pierced into the vortex.

    Then, it stretched taut under the strain. Just when everyone worried that the vine would snap, it contracted and pulled a struggling, tightly tied up worm out of the sand and into the air.

    When they saw clearly what it was, everyone¡¯s expression changed.

    "Sandworm!"

    The sandworm was asrge as a palm. Its t body consisted of many segmented limbs that allowed it to twist freely. Sandworms were horrible social creatures. Their t bodies were rigid like an iron spring leaf and could vibrate at a certain frequency. When tens of thousands or more sandworms vibrated together, the ground would fragment and be ground down to sand and dust.

    They could move easily in the sand.

    Sandworms were horrible predators, but their method of hunting was different from other beasts. The desertification of the soil and stones could make everything in the area, including nts and beasts, their food.

    These sandworms were dark red, a sign of blood poison infection.

    Sandworms seldom appeared above ground, because they disliked the light. Though there was less abundant foodpared to above, their territory was usually underground where there was no light.

    Shi Xueman looked morose. The time when sandworms were most likely to appear was the evening.

    And it was now the evening.

    The vortex continued growing. Its diameter currently exceeded 100 meters.

    The sandworm tied up by the twined vine squeaked. Suddenly, a streak of sand shot out from the vortex like a speedy tongue and precisely struck the sandworm suspended in the air.

    Duanmu Huanghun shivered as the twined vine broke. The sandworm disappeared.

    Everyone was dumbstruck once more. Fear appeared on their faces.

    The sandworms were experts on controlling the earth. They wererge in quantity, and nothing in the quicksand could threaten them. That was why they were all worried when they saw the sandworm.

    The vortex grewrger andrger, but no one had any idea how to deal with it.

    The quicksand that slowly churned was the best protection for the worms. It would be extremely hard to strike through the thick sand and hit the sandworms hiding beneath.

    Shi Xueman was worried. The appearance of the sandworms was very odd. They typically lived more than 2,000 meters under the ground and seldom surfaced.

    Now, however, they appeared in Central Pine City. She did not believe it was only a coincidence.

    She did not know why, but she was worried.

    The sandworms had to be stopped, otherwise all of Central Pine City would be turned into quicksand. By then, they would have nowhere to hide.

    Sandworms had almost no natural enemies, but this excludedhuman beings of course. Human beings had already studied these horrible creatures. There were many useful resources underground, but sandworms could devour them all. Therefore, in the eyes of elementalists, they were undoubtedly pests.

    The Shi family also had relevant records, which Shi Xueman still remembered.

    The Cirrus in her hand scattered and turned into a cloud of mist. It floated above the vortex and attracted the clouds in the sky from all directions.

    Shortly, the cloud above the quicksand became very heavy, like a ball of cotton that was saturated with water.

    More and more mist merged into the cloud.

    Whoosh.

    Finally, liquid poured from the cloud like a waterfall.

    The water flowed into the sand, and the ground immediately turned into sludge, slowing the rotational speed of the vortex.

    The sandworms sensed danger and moved in a frenzy, but no matter how they moved, they could only cause the mud to ripple without stopping the flow of water. Instead, it elerated the permeation of the water into the sand.

    Shi Xueman clearly remembered that sand worms loved dryness and disliked wet environments.

    The water from the cloud continued to flow into the sand vortex which had now be a quagmire.

    The sandworms could move flexibly in the quicksand, but in the sludge, they currently could hardly move or breathe. Soon, many sandworms suffocated to death, and the rest hastily burrowed their way deep under the ground, but the water flowed into the routes they drilled and permeated deeper.

    The dry sand soon turned to sludge and became softer and muddier.

    People around the mire began to cheer delightfully. No one thought the horrible sandworms could be killed so easily.

    Everyone looked at Shi Xueman in admiration.

    To their surprise, they found Shi Xueman¡¯s face was extremely pale, and her eyes were filled with fear.

 Chapter 232: Fattyâ€™s Confidence

    Chapter 232: Fatty¡¯s Confidence

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X

    Ai Hui had some ideas about his own body.

    Previously, his sky pce always went astray because of the existence of the sword embryo. As a result, although it had absorbed abundant elemental energy, he could not reach Initial Completion. After the sword embryo exploded, although the sky pce was still left with fluctuations, there were no obstacles any more, and Ai Hui naturally achieved the breakthrough.

    As for the elemental energy pills, it was more a problem of habit.

    The rotation of the elemental pills was very smooth, which meant that this procedure was feasible. Ai Hui did not know if anyone had ever derived the essence of how the sword pills functioned, but he knew that it was amon form. For example, the elemental energy bead was also in this form.

    An inheritance named the [Starry Sky] required the practitioner to coagte his or her elemental energy into the form of a bead.

    After the formation of Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy pillls, the traces of sword energy contained in the elemental energy were restrained, and its stimtion of the pces sharply weakened. The pills were more effective than he expected because the elemental energy was milder, or to be more urate, more stable than spiritual force.

    Previously, he thought that spiritual force was far more powerful than elemental energy, but now he had some new understandings. In some aspects, elemental energy was indeed inferior to spiritual force, but it also had its own advantages that spiritual force could not provide.

    For example, the changes of the five residences and eight pces were not as flexible and varied as the cultivators¡¯ meridians system, but it was simpler, stabler, and sturdy.

    Compared with spiritual force training, which was dangerous and unpredictable, elemental energy training was much safer. So far, due to the existence of the sword embryo, the elemental energy within Ai Hui¡¯s body had changed many times, but he was still in perfect condition.

    Taking a look at the swordy manuals and spells from the Cultivation Era, even for the cultivators from big sects that were known for their purity and righteousness, any carelessness in training was likely to lead them astray and cause to go crazy. The training of the sword embryo was even more dangerous. As for blood arts training, it was simply seeking life in the midst of death.

    Everyone in the Avalon of the Five Elements was training. Even though resources were limited, as long as they were persistent, their ability could gradually increase.

    Inparison to spiritual force, elemental energy was simple, safe, and easy to train or use. Everyone could train with a very slim chance of deviating.

    The Avalon of the Five Elements was created in a hopeless situation. Maybe such simple and safe energy was what they needed at that time.

    The reason why the elemental energy system was inferior to the spiritual force system was not because of its outdated ideology, but due to itsck of umtion. Elemental energy was like fertile soil. After a certain period of time, it could also produce fruitful harvests.

    For no particr reason, Ai Hui thought of the Old Territory. It was a pity that few people in the Old Territory practiced elemental energy.

    "Fatty, let¡¯s practice fighting." Ai Hui waved to Fatty.

    Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s words, Fatty ran to him without hesitation. He had a heavy shield in his hand that was taller than him. The shield was colorful, as if it had been patched up many times. The shield he used to use was destroyed, and this one was scrapped together with a shield he picked up somewhere.

    Lou Lan¡¯s skill was always trustworthy. Although it did not look appealing, it was secure enough.

    Heavy shield, heavy armor, heavy Fatty. When he ran, he was like a mobile mountain and the ground rumbled.

    "A Hui, no problem," Fatty agreed as he rolled his eyeballs, "but as a saying goes: financial matters should be settled clearly even between brothers. I can¡¯t do this for free. I¡¯ll be your training partner, and the debt between us is cancelled, okay?"

    Ai Hui looked Fatty up and down in surprise. Then, he smiled and said, "As long as you can stop me."

    "No problem!" Fattyughed. He thumped his chest and said confidently, "How can I ask you for money if I cannot stop you! You know I always remember the rules!"

    He was of course confident. The rewards for the blood crystals included inheritances. When Ai Hui was unconscious, everyone else had just reached the Initial Completion stage and went to the mayor¡¯s residence to select inheritances that were suitable for them.

    A heavy shield bearer who had attained elemental internalization was an important role in the team. To elerate Fatty¡¯s progress, Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun specially chose an inheritance that best suited Fatty and gave it to him.

    Both of them had family inheritances, so these extra inheritances were unnecessary for them, but they could help Fatty progress faster.

    Now Fatty owned three inheritances, the [Eternal Crucible], [Spinning Carapax Shield], and [Red River Belt]. They were all selected by Shi Xueman.

    Shi Xueman was experienced and well-informed in this aspect. No one knew which inheritances suited Fatty better than she did.

    The magistrate court was very generous this time. The inheritances were all refined arts which could be sold for a good price on the market.

    There were various kinds of inheritances on the market which could be roughly ssified into four categories. The most powerful one was undoubtedly the absolute art type, while the next level were called the extraordinary arts, which referred to an inheritance that had the potential to be an absolute art. The third level were the refined arts. In this level, the inheritances were unique with a degree of excellence. Lastly, the fourth level were the mostmon inheritances and named as ordinary arts.

    In each level, the inheritances were further ssified into two sses, A or B.

    The ssification of each inheritance had to be evaluated by professionals in each and every aspect. The extraordinary and absolute arts would be sent to the specialized ministry of the Elders Guild for further evaluation and authentication.

    To raise the level of one¡¯s inheritances was another important way to gain Heaven Merit Points.

    Whoever was able to develop an extraordinary skill to an absolute art would obtain a lot of Heaven Merit Points from the Elders Guild, even though the new absolute art would not be disclosed to the Elders Guild. The Elders hoped to encourage the continuous development of all kinds of inheritances in this way.

    If the developers were willing to sell such arts, they would receive an amazing fortune. The Elders Guild and each major family were all more than willing to purchase a brand new absolute art.

    Every year, many people became famous and wealthy by augmenting inheritances into absolute arts. From this process, many talented elementalists were attracted to and engaged in arts development.

    Ai Hui¡¯s [Big Dipper], for example, was a B-ss extraordinary art. If he could develop it into an absolute art, even if it was still B-ss, the money he would earn would be enough for him to spend for the rest of his life.

    The gap between an extraordinary art and an absolute art seemed small, but was in fact simr to an unbridgeable chasm.

    The three inheritances Fatty received were all refined arts.

    The [Eternal Crucible] was a body-tempering inheritance. Once one began to practice it, his or her body became like a crucible, with elemental energy like fire as well as blood and flesh like iron that underwent tempering day and night. Even without special training, the fire elemental energy within would continuously temper the body.

    The [Eternal Crucible] could enhance the physique of a fire elementalist in an all-round way. It was simple, but also riddled with many weaknesses. For example, it would take a very long time to see its effects due to its slow process.

    Just because of this weakness, it was only evaluated as a B-ss refined art.

    [Spinning Carapax Shield] was a shield-based inheritance that all elementalists could practice. It enabled one to stand as firm as a rock when attacked by eliminating the force of the attack through spinning power.

    Few elementalists preferred shield-based inheritances. Those who did were usually known for their physical strength, but the [Spinning Carapax Shield] required high technical skill.

    It was also a B-ss refined art.

    Among the three inheritances, only the [Red River Belt] was a A-ss refined art. With this art, fire elementalists could form a belt of fire like a floating red river that surrounded them, which was how it got its name. As an A-ss refined art, it had its unique aspects. Apart from the damage it could inflict on its enemies, the me could also absorb the scattered elemental energy from the enemies to strengthen itself.

    The [Red River Belt] was a good weapon in protracted wars, especially for shield bearers. Its value was more than the total price of the [Eternal Crucible] and [Spinning Carapax Shield]bined.

    If Fatty was left to his own devices, he would definitely have selected the most expensive arts, but Shi Xueman chose these three inheritances after careful consideration. She believed her selections would instantly improve his fighting skills.

    This was why Fatty was currently so confident.

    The others heard the conversation and crowded around the pair. This was Ai Hui¡¯s first actualbat training since he woke up, so they were all very curious.

    Fatty grabbed his heavy shield tightly and squared away. A light red belt of fire floated around him. He shouted loudly, "Come on!"

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s eyes lit up. Her family was important, although not as well renowned as Shi Xueman¡¯s family, and her horizons were much broader than most.

    It was not easy for Fatty to make so much progress within such a limited period of time.

    Ai hui borrowed a long sword from a student, tested it in his hand, then stood in front of Fatty.

    Although Fatty looked very confident just now and pretended not to care at all, he was in fact treating the situation as if confronted with a formidable enemy and totally hid himself behind the shield.

    Facing the human-shaped target, Ai Hui was not lenient at all. His sword hit the heavy shield hard.

    A spinning force came from the shield that twisted his sword. Ai Hui murmured in surprise, "Really better than before!"

    Fatty eximed lightly and did not dare to feel proud. Instead, he focused harder.

    With no more nonsense, Ai Hui stabbed out with the long sword again and again.

    They were all the simplest sword moves, such as the [Oblique sh] and [Misty Strike], but the speed was very swift. Bright sword rays shed through the air. In Ai Hui¡¯s hand, these simple sword moves sped up as the sword light strengthened..

    The unspeakable familiarity granted Ai Hui a feeling that each stab was within his control. He knew this was because of his deepened understanding of the sword. Still, he could not help being intoxicated with this enjoyable feeling.

    Ai Hui continuously adjusted each strike, and the power kept elevating. While others could hardly detect it, Ai Hui could clearly sense it himself.

    The onlooking students were attracted by his sword moves. They were simple, but natural and smooth.

    Fatty could feel the difference. He felt the force on the shield grow more and more difficult to offset. The force from each stab was not powerful, but was extremely sharp, as if it was about to pierce the shield.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯a arm tingled. With a weird convulsion, the sword move became ck.

    Ai Hui smiled bitterly. It was the lightning left in his body that stimted his blood and flesh, which led to his deformed move. Fortunately, it was not a real battle, or he would be in great danger.

    The numbnesssted only a minute, and Ai Hui soon recovered.

    After the warm-up, he had already be excited and decided to try to use his elemental energy.

    Ai Hui stabbed out again as before, but this time he wanted to use the [Big Dipper]. He then concurrently activated his elemental energy pills, and the seven pills set out simultaneously.

    His sword move suddenly ckened.

    It turned out that he miscalcted the speed of the elemental pills, which were much faster than that of the elemental energy before.

    Ai Hui tried again, but it was still ck. Again, the elemental energy pills failed to synchronize.

    Ai Hui stabbed more than 30 times and had consumed a lot of elemental energy, but never once did he seed. The elemental pills rotated rapidly in his body, so even a small deviation would lead to synchronization failure.

    Fatty remained cautious. He knew he could never be too careful in front of Ai Hui because he was fully aware of Ai Hui¡¯s ability.

    The next instant Ai Hui stabbed out, his eyes lit up.

    This was the first time that the elemental energy pills had synchronized. Like seven shooting stars from seven directions, they merged into the long sword in his hand at precisely the same time.

 Chapter 233: Take My Sword Attack

    Chapter 233: Take My Sword Attack

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X

    The instant the elemental energy pills merged into the long sword, they suddenly stretched and transformed into sword rays.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression changed a little as he knew something had gone wrong. Without any time to react, the long sword in his hand exploded into pieces.

    The others were scared by the sudden explosion. After a while, Ai Hui remained standing still and had not moved at all.

    "Are you okay, Ai Hui?" Jiang Wei asked.

    "Yes," Ai Hui smiled bitterly, "I just can¡¯t feel my body."

    The explosion of the sword stimted the lightning in his body, which paralyzed his muscles. After tens of seconds, he finally recovered from the numbness and could not help but wonder why the sword exploded.

    He borrowed another sword and tried again. Just like before, the sword once again exploded into pieces.

    Watching the swords explode one by one in Ai Hui¡¯s hand, the others were amazed.

    "Ai Hui is not a sword user, he is sword eater!"

    "What a sword-holic!"

    "Sword-holic? ... What do you mean?"

    "We call those who like to eat sugar ¡®sugar-holic¡¯ and those who love to drink alcohol ¡®alco-holic¡¯. Since Ai Hui loves to eat swords, he should be called ¡®sword-holic.¡¯"

    "Hahaha, okay then he is really a real ¡®sword-holic.¡¯"

    "I¡¯m really worried about the other swordsmen who will confront Ai Hui one day."

    "Why? Will they be defeated by Ai Hui?"

    "No, just think. The swordsman will shout ¡®take my sword attack¡¯ and then... Ai Hui really ¡®takes¡¯ his sword¡ªHe eats it up!"

    "Hahaha..."

    Hearing what they were talking about, Lou Lan was inspired. He transformed into many tiny swords flying in the sky and shouted, "Take my sword attack!"

    Ai Hui was embarrassed to hear their jokes and Lou Lan¡¯s shout, but he still cleared his throat and asked, "Who else has a sword?"

    The others burst intoughter.

    A student took the sword from his waist and threw it to Ai Hui. Heughed and said, "Ai Hui, this is thest sword left. If you eat this one, then there will be no more."

    Ai Hui touched his nose embarrassedly. He had not expected this either. The elemental energy pills were so difficult to control that as long as they merged into the sword, the sword would explode.

    He knew this was because he had not really understood the properties of the elemental energy pills, Additionally, the swords he used just now were all ordinary ones that could not bear the strong elemental energy.

    It was indeed a problem. With thest sword in hand, Ai Hui felt a bit awkward. Suddenly the stimtion to the lightning in his body red, and with a sh of inspiration,, he said, "Fatty, this time you attack me, and I¡¯ll defend."

    "Me attack you?" Fatty was confused "With what?"

    None of his inheritances were offensive. Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s request, Fatty did not know what to do.

    "You can hit me with whatever you have." Ai Hui encouraged him.

    "Then let¡¯s make it clear first. You cannot take revenge on me if I really hit you." Fatty¡¯s voice came from behind the shield.

    "I won¡¯t!" Ai Hui said solemnly.

    "Really?" Fatty still hesitated.

    "Of course!" Ai Hui became impatient. "Will you attack me or not?"

    "Of course!" Fattyughed. This was an aboveboard chance to beat Ai Hui. How could he miss it? He breathed deeply, grabbed the shield and smashed it hard at Ai Hui. Meanwhile, he shouted, "Ai Hui, take my shield attack!"

    Ai Hui narrowed his eyes. Fatty¡¯s attack was not skillful, but it was amazingly powerful with a ponderous whistle of wind.

    The shield seemed heavier than before.

    Ai Hui¡¯s judgment was correct. Although the shield was ugly, it was as heavy as 360 kilograms, which was twice the weight of the destroyed shield Fatty used to use. After reaching the Initial Completion stage, Fatty had advanced rapidly in physical strength. He felt the new shield was even lighter than the old one.

    The heavy equipment they had could not satisfy Fatty now. Plus, the [Eternal Crucible] would further enhance his strength.

    Ai Hui, on the contrary, had not seen obvious improvement to his physical quality after achieving Initial Completion. He was now more like a real elementalist, as the influence of elemental energy on his fighting capacity was greater than before.

    Ai Hui believed it was a good thing. As the elemental energy system matured, it would make his training smoother. Although the sword embryo was marvelous, by nature it was not fully grounded. Ai Hui could barely attain higher aplishments, especially in an era when elemental energy was dominant.

    Once the strength reached a certain level, the power would be beyond expectation.

    Ai Hui had nned to withstand Fatty with the sword, but he realized that a direct collision would definitely break the sword.

    Fatty¡¯s heavy shield was like a wall that blocked almost all the directions Ai Hui could move. As a result, he had to lie down and roll away awkwardly, narrowly dodging Fatty¡¯s attack.

    Fatty immediately became excited!

    Never once had he been able to make it so difficult for Ai Hui!

    He was greatly invigorated and waved the heavy shield crazily like a provoked ox. Sand and gravel were sent flying in the air during the intense situation.

    The onlookers had never seen Fatty so vigorous before and were all dumbfounded.

    Hearing the whistle of the wind, Sang Zhijun¡¯s face turned pale. Anyone who was hit, or even scaped by Fatty¡¯s shield would be severely injured, if not killed.

    Ai Hui continued awkwardly dodging Fatty¡¯s attacks.

    Bang!

    The ground quaked. Fatty¡¯s heavy shield smashed against the ground. Stones and bricks from the ground shattered into pieces like biscuits and sshed like heavy rain.

    Ai Hui knew he had nowhere to hide, so he waved the sword flexibly like a snake to protect himself.

    The sword rays exploded in front of him, each ray urately hitting an airborne stone.

    Tink, tink, tink!

    Sparks flew about, and the sound of shes could be heard here and there.

    Shrouded by sand and gravel, Ai Hui was as fast as wind. Sparks veiled his figure like a waterfall.

    Everyone was stunned. Ai Hui did not even use his elemental energy. How could he be so strong with his sword?

    Ai Hui stayed focused. The sword in his hand was like a part of his body, and together they created afortable scene. As his suppressed fighting intent finally broke out, he did not retreat, but rushed forward as the sword rays lit up like stars. For the onlooking students, it was really a feast for the eyes.

    Fatty growled in fury and suddenly lifted the heavy shield that was stuck on the ground.

    Ai Hui directly rushed at the shield that wasing toward him with huge force. The students could not help but cry out in shock. If Ai Hui really hit the shield, even if he did not die, he would be severely wounded.

    The shield came closer and closer, darkening Ai Hui¡¯s vision. He also knew how powerful the collision would be.

    If Ai Hui was in his previous condition, he would undoubtedly try to avoid the sh, but now that he was extremely eager to fight, he did not try to dodge. Instead, his rushing speed soared unexpectedly.

    The instant that he was about to contact the shield, a cold light shed in his eyes, and the sword suddenly stabbed out.

    A bright sword beam shot toward the shield at a weird angle. When it was about five inches away from the shield, it exploded silently and transformed into a soft and mild sword shower.

    °¬»ÔÉíÌåÒ»Õð,Ç¿´óµÄ³å»÷Á¦ÈÃËûµÄÊÖÕÆ¼¸ºõÒ»Âé,µ«ÊÇËûÒÀÈ»Ò§ÑÀ¿ØÖÆ³¤½£.

    The strong impact numbed his palm and agitated his body, but he still held the sword tightly.

    With the abstruse angle, the sword shower overcame the hardness with its softness. Like ducks and drakes, Ai Hui flew out near the surface of the shield.

    When Ai Huinded on the ground, screams and cheers resounded behind. Fatty was dumbfounded and still did not know what happened.

    Ai Hui was also excited by the sword move.

    He found himself unspeakably familiar with the sword now. The move was just a sh of inspiration, but it turned out to be perfect. Although the sword embryo had already disappeared, the familiarity andprehension of the sword had been permanently left within him. This made it easier and faster for him to study sword inheritances or practice sword moves.

    More surprisingly, the impact of the collision still made his palm numb, but a tiny current of electricity was absorbed by his right hand pce.

    The lightning that remained in his body was the most urgent problem to deal with. If he could not use his elemental energy, at least he could run away, but muscr paralysis was too dangerous. No matter he if was in a battle or running away, if his muscles locked up, he would definitely be killed.

    The lightning within his body was what caused this muscr paralysis. If the lightning could not be eliminated, then it seemed to be a good idea to lead it into his hand pces and earth pce.

    This was because the lightning in these three pces was very stable.

    Ai Hui was excited that there was finally a feasible solution. He tried to calm himself down and carefully reflected on the whole sequence that had just urred. Collision. Powerful collision. After the collision, his muscles lost control of the lightning, which was liberated and absorbed by the right hand pce.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. He grasped the sword with his left hand and jumped toward Fatty.

    "Come on Fatty. Once again!"

    The quicksand vortex had already be a sludge vortex. As the water kept pouring in, it almost became a muddy water pool. There were dead sandworms surfacing and floating on the water from time to time. The elementalists cheered in excitement.

    Duanmu Huanghun was the first to notice Shi Xueman¡¯s pale face. Realizing that something went wrong, he asked, "What happened?"

    Shi Xueman was about to say something when the water level suddenly began to decline. The water and suspended sediment flushed down along the tunnel.

    Muddy water flowed faster than quicksand, so the water level of the pool was declining at a rapid rate. The rumbling sound of water flowing into the tunnel could be heard from above the ground.

    As the water level kept declining, a giant sinkhole appeared.

    Without support, the edge of the sinkhole copsed and fell down, making the sinkholerger andrger.

    Everyone was stunned and frightened by the appearance of a sinkhole which was more than 150 meters in diameter. The sinkhole seemed bottomless, as if it led to hell.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s expression changed. He finally knew why Shi Xueman was so pale.

    The faint copsing sound from outside the city seemed to verify his spection.

    Compared to this broad underground corridor, the tunnels they previously found were all negligible. This corridor was as broad as 150 meters, and almost all blood fiends could easily pass through.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s pupils contracted when she smelled the fragrance in the air. Blood fiends!

    No! The blood fiends must be stopped!

    After the previous fight, Shi Xueman¡¯s face was not as delicate and wless as before, but was still firm and determined. Her thin and armored figure rushed out first. Ponytail swinging in the air, she held her white spear high like a g, raised her arm, and shouted, "Follow me!"

 Chapter 234: Flaming Ape

    Chapter 234: ming Ape

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X

    When Ai Hui and other students arrived, Shi Xueman was fighting fiercely with a ming ape.

    Ai Hui was stunned by the giant sinkhole, and he was even more shocked when he saw the ming ape in it.

    Obviously, this ape was different from other blood fiends.

    Its hair was not the color of blood, but light grey. This was the first blood fiend Ai Hui had ever seen whose hair color was not blood-red. Its blood trace was not big either. There were altogether nine blood traces, and each one was about the size of a palm, which was not big to a six-meter-tall ape. The shape of the blood traces was exquisite, like a me spreading all over its body. Ai Hui remembered that he saw simr spiritual traces rted to me in the swordy manual before.

    More shockingly, the nine traces were covered with thick hair, which was different from hair on other areas. It was hard and dense, like a bunch of steel needles.

    Protective Armor!

    The idea shed in Ai Hui¡¯s mind. He was astonished at the unbelievable speed of their transformation; it was as if they were making progress every day.

    The fighting was extremely fierce, and all the others had joined the battle as soon as they arrived. The archers led by Sang Zhijun and Jiang Wei had already shot out the first wave of arrows.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t join them hastily but was observing the ape carefully. His physical condition wasplicated. Although he had just found a way to deal with it, the lightning in his body had not been fully eliminated. That meant that muscle paralysis might happen any time. He wouldn¡¯t risk his life like this.

    Although the ape was six meters in height, it was not clumsy. Instead, it moved and jumped fast like it was flying.

    And its arms were extremely flexible and powerful.

    An elementalist failed to dodge and was hit by its punch. Hearing the crunch of the bones, everyone was filled with apprehension.

    The rain of arrowed shot by Jiang Wei¡¯s team enveloped the ape.

    It growled in fury and pped up toward the sky. Red mes appeared in its palm and created a ripple of mes in the air above it.

    The arrows hit the mes like straw being blown away in a storm.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression changed when he saw this.

    The ming p of the ape...

    Ai Hui felt very familiar, and an idea urred to him: is this the blood spiritual force? Thinking of this possibility, Ai Hui¡¯s face was gloomier than ever. Previously, the transformation of the blood fiends was only physical. Now it had developed to a higher level.

    From the Garden of Life to blood ants, and from blood-traced fiends to the nine-trace blood fiends. Even though this ming ape had nine blood traces, it was more powerful than the other nine-trace blood fiends.

    Ai Hui was frightened to see the transformation process of the blood fiends. Within such a short period of time, it had be so strong. What would happen if they were given more time?

    Weren¡¯t they afraid that one day the blood fiends would be so strong that even human beings could not defeat them?

    The ming ape¡¯s courage mounted as the fighting progressed. Covered with its protective hair, it could hardly be injured by the weapons. Besides, it moved fast and had infinite strength, and therefore it seemed invincible. The elementalists in Central Pine City had been confident as most of them had just achieved breakthrough and improvement. Now the appearance of the ape was like a basin of cold water poured down over their heads, making them aware of their childishness and ignorance.

    Shi Xueman looked very awkward.

    The ming ape was cunning. It jumped here and there, and the elementalists who were not that strong could not resist its attack at all. Several people died or got injured, and Shi Xueman had to spare time to provide help.

    Her spearsmanship was formidable and forceful. Therefore, the ape could not take advantage of her in direct confrontation. But in this way, her elemental energy was consumed rapidly.

    As the ape was under the impregnable protection, ordinary attacks could not hurt it at all, including Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower]. The ape also knew that Shi Xueman was its biggest enemy, so it totally ignored Duanmu Huanghun and spared no effort in attacking Shi Xueman to deplete her energy.

    No weakness!

    Ai Hui felt more and more desperate. Fixing his eyes on the ape, Ai Hui anxiously wanted to find a solution.

    The loud noise had already startled the whole Central Pine City. Rays of light kept rising into the sky. They were elementalists with azure wingsing from all directions.

    On the other hand, Tian Kuan, who started everything, was hiding in the dark. A sh of fervidity shed in his stare at the ming ape.

    It was a pity that he didn¡¯t learn the Beast Subjugation Technique, or the ming ape could¡¯ve definitely be his thug.

    To make a tunnel with the sandworms was indeed his n, but the ming ape was a surprise. The me-shaped blood traces contained the power of fire. This was an unique feature of having the ancestral characteristics stimted.

    Stimting the ancestral characteristics was one of the special effects of blood spiritual force.

    However, nowadays, most of the wild beasts had their ancestral characteristics removed through generations of breeding. Even if blood spiritual force could stimte the ancestral characteristics of blood fiends and unleash their potential powers, it was still hard to find blood fiends that had their ancestral characteristics stimted.

    He remembered the crazy woman that had a mastiff whose ancestral characteristics were stimted. The ancestors of this ming ape must¡¯ve possessed great power to control mes.

    Blood fiends with stimted ancestral characteristics had more potential. If they received specialized training, their fighting capacity could be amazing.

    At this stage, the blood fiends began to show some features of the ancient spiritual beasts. For example, their hair became as hard as iron under the continuous tempering and nourishment of the blood spiritual force. The higher-level spiritual beasts in the Cultivation Era could even block flying swords without getting hurt.

    Tian Kuan held the organization in reverence. Those who created the blood spiritual force were nothing but great.

    Spiritual force itself could easily scatter and disappear, but whenbined with blood, it became very stable. Tian Kuan even thought that if the blood spiritual force continued to develop like this, in thousands of years, would the world go back to the Cultivation Era?

    At the thought of this, he couldn¡¯t help but feel excited.

    It was such a great honor to be able to participate in the creation of a whole new world.

    Elemental energy was doomed to be weeded out!

    Just as the decayed Avalon of Five Elements was doomed to be destroyed!

    Tian Kuan clenched his fists. Feeling an upsurge of emotions, he tried to calm himself down. The streak of metal elemental energy was extremely obstinate and could not be devoured by his blood spiritual force.

    Then he remembered the brave man, and his face became gloomy.

    He could tell from the streak of elemental energy that if that guy hadn¡¯t died, he would¡¯ve achieved a breakthrough soon, and it was very likely to be the most formidable enemy.

    But fortunately, his arms were already disabled. Thinking of this, Tian Kuan was less anxious.

    Just at this point in time, the elementalists came to assist. Seeing the mayor and the dean, everyone was more or less relieved.

    The dean¡¯s expression changed when he saw the ming ape.

    Wang Zhen was more experienced. He immediately joined the fight without any hesitation. Howling loud, Wang Zhen stretched his azure wings and abruptly rose up high in the sky. When he reached about one hundred meters from the ground, he suddenly turned around and dove sharply.

    With the force of his dive, he shed with his sword.

    The dazzling light of the sword was like a silvery waterfall that fell sharply from the sky. The air was filled with his hostility.

    Shi Xueman stepped back without the least bit of dy. She was astounded by the attack, as she had never heard of the name of Wang Zhen.

    No one ever thought that such veteran could have such a thrilling attack.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s expression changed dramatically in the dark. His heart was filled with fear as he stared at the powerful sword gleam.

    Thank God he had been cautious enough. There were so many undiscovered talents in such a small city. This attack, just like the elemental energy in his body, had already reached the edge of a higher level.

    A survivor from the Battle of the Dawn could be so frightening!

    How many more experts would there be in the Avalon of Five Elements?

    This was the first time that he discovered that the Avalon of Five Elements was more powerful than he expected.

    Fear appeared in the ape¡¯s eyes for the first time. But as the sword gleam had already enveloped it, it had nowhere to escape to.

    In this critical moment, the ming ape was irritated. Thin mes suddenly appeared around its body, and its eyes became a sea of fire.

    The air was filled with its fury.

    The ming ape roared and punched towards the sword gleam with its fist.

    The huge ming fist and the silvery sword gleam got closer and closer.

    Boom!

    The mes exploded, and silvery sword gleam was also blown into pieces that flew in all directions.

    mes scattered on the ground and set everything on fire. The ground was also damaged by the sshes of the sword gleams.

    The ming ape stood spiritedly even though it was severely wounded and its mes were dim. On the other hand, Wang Zhen¡¯s hair and eyebrows were burnt. The sword in his hand was burning as if it was just taken out from the stove. But Wang Zhen didn¡¯t feel anything, and he was still holding the hilt tightly.

    The ming ape suddenly stomped down on the ground and disappeared.

    The next second, it abruptly appeared behind Wang Zhen and stretched out its palm toward him.

    Fast as the ape was, his palm was powerful. Wang Zhen would definitely be crushed if grabbed by it.

    Right at this moment, a colorful bubble appeared in front of the ape¡¯s palm.

    The ape punctured the bubble with his palm and fell into a trance. Although it immediately sobered up, just within this short period, Wang Zhen had backed up several meters away from it.

    It turned out to be from the dean, who knew that Wang Zhen¡¯s attack was drastic and needed a long time and space for preparation. Therefore, he was in disadvantage in such closebat.

    Then the dean also joined the battle and fought against the ape together with the mayor.

    Shi Xueman and others were kind of relieved. After fighting with the ming ape, they clearly knew of its ferociousness.

    But they had no time to rest, as someone cried out in panic, "Blood fiends!"

    Everyone got nervous when they heard the cry.

    Huge, booming sounds that scared everyone came from the bottom of the sinkhole. They were still dumbstruck by the ape.

    Just at this moment, someone suddenly shouted, "Attack the sinkhole from the sky!"

    They couldn¡¯t help but look at person who was shouting.

    "It¡¯s Ai Hui!"

    "The Lightning de!"

    "He is the Lightning de? He is young!"

    ...

    Ai Hui was speechless. These guys were still gossiping at such a critical moment. Without thinking too much, he waved his arms and shouted again, "Diving attack! Diving attack! The sinkhole!"

    He was inspired by the sh of the mayor.

    When he was hunting dire beasts in the Wilderness, he witnessed the diving attack of the elementalists. It was amazingly powerful. When fighting against agile and moving targets, it was not of much use, but against fixed targets, it was extremely effective.

    The sinkhole on the ground was like a cage to the blood fiends. Therefore, they were no different from fixed targets.

    The elementalists realized what Ai Hui was saying. They looked at each other and then began to regroup.

    "He is a bit young, but he¡¯s smart enough. No wonder he is called the Lightning de."

    "That¡¯s why he is named Ai Baiyi of Central Pine City."

    "I think he might be more promising than Ye Baiyi."

    "How shall we salute to the Lightning de?"

    "How about Lightning?"

    "Hahaha. Good enough!"

    ...

    The light of the azure wings lit up the night.

    Light spots with long tails came together from each direction. They flew higher and higher like great waves in the storm. As the wave consisting of light spots reached the highest point, it stopped and rushed down with a loud crashing sound.

    "Lightning!" someone shouted out loudly.

    Soon people began to respond, and the slogan of "lightning" could be heard here and there.

    Under the high diving speed, the wind blew so wildly that they could not open their eyes. But their morale was boosted, and the chaotic slogan gradually became one powerful and uniformed word.

    "Lightning!" "Lightning!" "Lightning!"

    Each furious shout was like a hammer smashing down heavily.

    "Lightning, lightning, lightning!"

    Like being bewitched, they no longer felt fear in their hearts. Fire was burning in their chests, and the suppressed fury and yearning for life were infused in their roars.

    The sky was shivering in the angry roar and the whistle of the Cloud Wings.

    With infinite hatred and hope, they came together as a light beam which instantly submerged the sinkhole.

 Chapter 235: The Blood Snake Vertebrae

    Chapter 235: The Blood Snake Vertebrae

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: CakeHermit

    Huge amounts of elemental energy exploded within the limited space of the sinkhole. The scene was spectacr.

    Boom!

    It was as if the whole city had been struck heavily by a hammer deep underground. The earthquake knocked many people to the ground. From the sky, horrifying fissures could be seen stretching into the distance like old tree roots.

    mes and lights gushed out of the sinkhole like a volcanic eruption. They rushed into the night sky and lit up Central Pine City.

    Everyone was stunned by the scene.

    Even the ming ape, mayor, and dean stopped fighting.

    The ape suddenly looked afraid. It was not afraid of fire, but that soaring me had awakened an instinctual fear.

    It turned tail and ran.

    The ming ape¡¯s reaction was totally out of the mayor and dean¡¯s expectations. By the time they realized what had happened, they could only see the ape¡¯s receding back. Even though it was escaping, its speed was no slower than their flying speed. Seeing its momentum, the elementalists along its escape route didn¡¯t dare to stop it.

    In the blink of an eye, it had rushed to the city¡¯s defensive wall. Without slowing down even a little bit, it directly crashed into the wall.

    Boom!

    It knocked a big hole in the wall. Having rushed out of the city, the ming ape looked back for a second and then disappeared into the darkness.

    Most people gave a sigh of relief.

    Elementalists of the earth and wood attributes hurriedly rushed to the big hole. They needed to repair it before the blood fiends attacked. The ape could break the wall so easily only because it had crashed into the wall from the inside. If it had been the other way around, then the wall would have been much more difficult to break.

    The city defense had yed an important role so far. Without it, the situation in Central Pine City would have been far more difficult.

    Tian Kuan was dumbstruck. This was the first time that he had seen a battle that involved so many elementalists.

    He looked at Ai Hui deeply. That guy was as outstanding as he¡¯d expected.

    Then Tian Kuan silently disappeared into the darkness.

    Wang Zhen floated down from the sky and went to look for Ai Hui. He believed Ai Hui¡¯s reminder had been the key to the battle. If the blood fiends had rushed into the city on arge scale, then the city would have been in great danger.

    He believed more and more that Ai Hui was like the Ye Baiyi of that time.

    In such a chaotic and dangerous situation, it was not easy to find an opportunity within such a limited timeframe. Even Wang Zhen himself hadn¡¯t thought of using a diving attack, which had proven to be very effective.

    As a veteran, Wang Zhen was sensitive to the tiny changes in the battlefield. The elementalists in the sky were all smiling proudly now.

    He nodded and remarked on their status in his heart.

    Morale was up!

    So far, this was the most sessful battle in Central Pine City. None of the elementalists who had participated in the diving attack were hurt or dead. Such a brilliant result definitely boosted the elementalists¡¯ morale.

    After the fight, Ai Hui, who had been the key to the whole battle, became well known throughout the city.

    He was no longer an insignificant young student. The speed of his transformation was even higher and the process was even shorter than that of the blood fiends.

    Heroes always emerged in trouble times. People would only show their startling brilliance at critical moments.

    Each time he thought of this, Wang Zhen would feel his own age and weakness, but he was fortunate to be able to witness the splendid beginning of such a promising youth in this world.

    As he had been looking for a long time without finding Ai Hui, he turned to someone nearby and asked curiously, "Where is Ai Hui?"

    The elementalist looked jubnt. He answered, "He went to clean up the battlefield."

    "Won¡¯t it be dangerous?" Wang Zhen was concerned.

    "No." The dean alsonded. He smiled and said, "It should be safe now. The sinkhole is like a huge stove; everything inside should have been roasted."

    Hearing what he said, Wang Zhen also smiled.

    Even iron and steel would have melted under such a terrifying attack.

    It was a pity that such tactics could not always be used in the battle. If it were not in the special environment of the sinkhole, it would not be so powerful.

    Ai Hui never fell behind the others when it came to battlefield cleanup.

    While others were still worrying if there was still any danger, he had already jumped into the sinkhole with Lou Lan. Inside the sinkhole, it was sweltering hot. The earth was permeated with traces melted things and a burning smell.

    Lou Lan was totally unaffected by the choking smells and smoke while Ai Hui didn¡¯t care about them. He had seen worse cases when cleaning up battlefields before. Compared to the possible spoils, this adverse environment was not worth mentioning.

    Most of the sinkhole had copsed, but luckily there were still passageways for them to walk through. The sinkhole that the sandworms had dug wasrge enough.

    Ai Hui walked carefully. As both of them could see in the dark, they noticed the dead bodies of sandworms everywhere on the walls of the passageways. The bodies were already scorched, but a tiny spot of red light like sand were left beside them.

    "What is this red light sand?" Ai Hui asked.

    Yellow light flickered in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes. "They are the blood crystals of the sandworms. To be precise, they cannot be counted as blood crystals yet, but are something like a blood crystal that has just formed. Ai Hui, these sandworms must have blood-transformed not long ago."

    "Not long ago?" Ai Hui was surprised. Confusion shed across his eyes.

    "Yes. Therefore, the blood crystal sand is not valuable," Lou Lan exined.

    Ai Hui followed Lou Lan closely with the grass sword in his hand. The underground was Lou Lan¡¯s world, where Lou Lan could move freely like a fish in water.

    Soon, Ai Hui saw the body of a blood fiend whose hair and flesh were all burnt into ashes.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes lit up. He stretched his hand into the ashes and pulled out a blood crystal.

    "Look Ai Hui! Blood crystal!"

    Ai Hui was overjoyed. "Finally!"

    As they went further in, there were more and more dead blood fiend bodies, many of which were not totally burnt into ashes but still looked frightening due to dehydration. To Ai Hui, however, it was just a piece of cake. He didn¡¯t feel ufortable at all.

    Not every blood fiend had blood crystals, and some blood crystals were buried underground. Nevertheless, Lou Lan found them all.

    Ai Hui grinned from ear to ear. Lou Lan was the best. He would never miss any blood crystals even if they were buried deep in the earth.

    Having seen too many miseries, Ai Hui was a bit apathetic, but the piles of bodies and ashes made him fearful. If these blood fiends had rushed into the city from the sinkhole, it would undoubtedly have caused severe casualties.

    Luckily, he had been quick enough to think of those tactics. Thinking of this, Ai Hui becamecent. After all, so many elementalists had been present. He¡¯d never thought he could take control before, but now he¡¯d done it.

    On the other hand, Ai Hui felt he totally had no need toe down here.

    Lou Lan was the one who was crazy at battlefield cleanup, and he was so careful that even Ai Hui felt ashamed for being inferior.

    "Ai Hui, I got one!"

    "Ai Hui, here here here!"

    "Ai Hui, there¡¯s one under your feet, about ten inches deep."

    ...

    "Lou Lan, good job!"

    "Lou Lan, you are so great!"

    "Lou Lan, you are the best!"

    ...

    Apart from "good" and "great", Ai Hui could not think of any other words to praise him.

    A former professional could only be a visitor in the sinkhole because Lou Lan was here.

    Ai Hui was bored. He looked around casually, and suddenly some faint light came into his sight. He was surprised and fixed his attention on a pile of ashes not far away. There

    seemed to be something glowing there.

    Curious, he walked towards it.

    To be honest, except for the blood crystals, almost all the other parts of the blood fiends were useless.

    This was the big difference between blood fiends and wild beasts. The essence of a blood fiend was its blood crystal. Although it could be strong and solid, once it was dead, its flesh and bones would be crispy like biscuits and could not be used at all.

    It was really a shame for blood fiends. Wild beasts were also beasts, but they were of great value from head to toe.

    Ai Hui walked up to the ashes and rummaged around.

    Then he touched something solid.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. He grabbed it and pulled it out.

    As he was familiar with beasts, Ai Hui could tell at a nce that it was the vertebrae of a blood snake. The blood snake had not been long and its spinal column was only about two meters in length. It was white in color with a texture like jade and porcin. Its surface was covered with thin, crisscrossed blood streaks like a densely-woven.

    The spinal column was flexible and could be curved at any angle. Each of the joints were closely meshed. Ai Hui was surprised at its weight. He roughly weighed it in his hand and it was at least forty-five kilograms. It was so heavy even though it was less than two meters long and as thick as one¡¯s wrist. Ai Hui wondered if it was made of metal.

    "These vertebrae are unique." Yellow lights kept flickering in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes. "They are almost as dense as thousand traces silverwood and brightlight iron. Bravo!"

    Ai Hui was startled, as he knew both thousand traces silverwood and brightlight iron were rare and valuable materials.

    Thousand traces silverwood was specially produced in Jadeite Forest. It was a kind of tree that grew slowly and needed wood elementalists to continuously infuse elemental energy into it. This material was white, bright, and very heavy. Before it grew to full size, each growth of one day and night would result in a silver ring in the horizontal cross section of the trunk. If the elemental energy infused into the tree was insufficient, then the silver ring would not form.

    It reached its full size when the number of silver rings was one thousand, after which each attribute of the wood would be greatly improved. Even if the wood elementalist spared no effort to cultivate the tree without any negligence, it would still take three years to grow it into a useful timber. Besides, its consumption of elemental energy was far more than other nts. As a result, it was undoubtedly of high value and high price.

    Brightlight iron was produced in the Brightlight City of the Silver Mist Sea. It could only be produced by an extraordinary craftsman using several materials. It was as light as a feather, but was extremely solid and shined with a saintly light.

    That was why Ai Hui was so surprised to hear that the density of the vertebrae was simr to that of the thousand trace silverwood and brightlight iron.

    He took a closer look at the vertebrae. The red blood traces on the white vertebrae were like a pattern; Ai Hui felt he must have seen it somewhere before.

    Anyways, the blood snake must have been extraordinary when it had been alive, maybe simr to the blood ape.

    The blood ape...

    Ai Hui finally realized why he thought the pattern looked familiar; it reminded him of the ming traces on the blood ape.

    He observed the blood traces on the blood snake¡¯s vertebrae. They were simr to the thunder traces mentioned in the swordy manuals.

    Thunder traces?

    An idea suddenly urred to Ai Hui. Could the vertebrae be a natural sword?

 Chapter 236: Run

    Chapter 236: Run

    Trantor: YH Editor: CakeHermit

    This idea filled Ai Hui with excitement.

    Ai Hui had experienced heartache at the loss of his mostfortable weapon, the Dragonspine Inferno. Its sturdiness had been its mostmendable trait.

    He had since turned into a sword consuming maniac, destroying sword after sword. Besides the difficulty he experienced in controlling his elemental energy, those swords weren¡¯t of exactly great quality either. Their inability to withstand his violent elemental energy was one of the main reasons why they were so easily broken.

    After the decline of swordsmanship, the number of people practicing swordy decreased as well. This naturally resulted in a small demand for swords. The Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s quality had been decent, but nobody had wanted to buy it.

    Everyone else¡¯s swords were carried more for show. They were mostly longswords made out of ordinary materials and couldn¡¯t withstand elemental energy that was too powerful.

    Ai Hui was left facing an awkward situation. There were no swords that he could effectively use.

    The Dragonspine Inferno¡¯s de had been destroyed, but the seven artifact remnants that had been embedded in the de remained intact. Calling down lightning with the Dragonspine Inferno had resulted in its seven artifact remnants being saturated with electricity. Ai Hui had thought of using these artifact remnants to create a new sword, but where would he find the time?

    The blood snake vertebrae felt good in his hands.

    Ai Hui managed to better understand the spinal column¡¯s unique properties after waving it for a while. To most people, controlling something as flexible as the blood snake vertebrae would be a challenging feat. For an expert in swordsmanship like Ai Hui however, their flexibility wasn¡¯t an issue. He was soon able to brandish them as he pleased.

    It¡¯s just a flexible sword!

    If one was able to ovee the difficulties associated with controlling them, the flexibility of the blood snake vertebrae was actually an advantage. It allowed the wielder to execute a greater range of unpredictable and unorthodox sword strokes, creating fatal opportunities that could easily be tapped on by expert swordsmen.

    "Is Ai Hui thinking of using it as a longsword?" Lou Lan asked curiously.

    "That¡¯s right, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s suitable?" Ai Hui replied.

    He handled the blood snake vertebrae fondly, waving them about as he pleased. With a single movement, Ai Hui made the blood snake vertebrae snap into ce. He thrust the vertebrae, which were now as straight as a pencil, into the air in front of him. A whistling sound could be heard as small, deep holes appeared in the wall.

    "It is indeed very suitable," Lou Lan replied, his eyes lighting up. "Lou Lan has never seen a material like this before. If Ai Hui gives me one small section of it, I can analyse it and then create a sword with it."

    Astonished, Ai Hui asked in response, "Lou Lan knows how to craft swords?"

    "I¡¯m not particrly proficient at it," Lou Lan replied, a little embarrassed. "Lou Lan has only read "The Creation of Famous Swords", "Deconstructing Arms","A Treatise on Elemental Energy in Weapons","Dire Beasts and Grass-grade Weapons", "A Record of Heaven-grade Weapons"..."

    Ai Hui dumbfoundedly listened to Lou Lan list out a small library¡¯s worth of books.

    After five minutes, Lou Lan finally finished reporting his reading list. Still a bit embarrassed, he stated, "Although my knowledge on the matter is limited, I¡¯ll try my best to help you!"

    Limited...

    The first half of Lou Lan¡¯s sentence left Ai Hui feeling weak in the knees. The second half however, moved him deeply. Clearly touched by Lou Lan¡¯s offer, Ai Hui replied, "Thank you Lou Lan! Lou Lan¡¯s standard is amazing! You¡¯re the best!"

    "Really?" Lou Lan asked, his eyes as round as a full moon.

    "Absolutely!" Ai Hui answered resolutely.

    Lou Lan cheered loudly. Scurrying about like a sandstorm, he then abruptly proceeded to clean up the battlefield.

    Ai Hui decided it was time to split the spoils from their previous battle. Because Ai Hui had yed an extremely crucial role, he took a share of five blood crystals.

    Shi Xueman had also contributed a lot and as such, received three crystals as her reward. She had fearlessly pitted herself against the blood ape and had proven indispensable in the battle.

    As more battles were fought against blood fiends, everyone began to get the hang of it. Thetest official announcement had stated that only blood-traced fiends with nine traces or less would produce blood crystals. Regr blood-traced fiends and blood fiends were only able to produce a softer variant known as blood resin.

    All of the elementalists that had participated in the battle were happy to receive a reward.

    "It¡¯d be great if all battles were just like today¡¯s!"

    "Quit dreaming, once is already a blessing."

    "You never know, Central Pine City has Ai Hui."

    ...

    Spoils of war were the most practical rewards since blood crystals could help them to swiftly increase their strength. With each increment came a greater chance of survival.

    The five blood crystals that Ai Hui received were of excellent quality. Out of these five blood crystals, the best one probably came from the blood snake. The blood snake vertebrae were also given to him as a reward.

    The blood snake vertebrae had attracted everyone¡¯s attention after the dean posited that they came from a blood fiend that had been almost as strong as the blood ape.

    The joy from receiving rewards was short lived.

    A new variant of nine-traces blood fiend had appeared.

    Everyone knew that the following battles would only be more intense.

    The mayor had sent teams of earth elementalists and fire elementalists to investigate the sinkhole in hopes of finding a way to seal it. From the way things looked however, this seemed unlikely.

    A line of students filed into the Vanguard Training Hall. Ai Hui noticed that spirits were low and after asking around, found out that three students had lost their lives. They were the first batch of students who had charged ahead with Shi Xueman. Although they were no longer afraid of fighting, seeing the constant sacrifice of theirrades¡¯ lives made them feel slightly depressed.

    No one knew when this blood disaster would end, just like nobody knew when the reinforcements would finally arrive.

    Seeing the blood fiends be stronger and theirrades falling one by one increased the students¡¯ stress levels.

    Ai Hui kept quiet. He knew much more about the disaster but didn¡¯t dare to tell them about it.

    He feared that they would lose theirst shreds of bravery upon knowing that the entire disaster was part of a plot aimed at destroying the Avalon of Five Elements.

    The reinforcements that had yet toe gave them a sense of hope.

    The moment Shi Xueman returned to Vanguard Training Hall, she locked herself up in the room.

    Ai Hui felt that he should console her, but didn¡¯t know how he should go about doing it.

    ¡ª¡ª It¡¯s not your fault? Casualties are unavoidable? Such words were meaningless at a time like this.

    Ai Hui suddenly thought of his Master and Mistress.

    How were they doing?

    Ai Hui had been fighting everyday since the outbreak of the blood disaster. Every single day was a struggle to stay alive, and every moment of respite was like taking a long deep breath before plunging underwater again.

    He hadn¡¯t had the time nor strength to worry about them.

    He thought of Mistress and Senior Mingxiu¡¯s strength and felt at ease; surely they were fine.

    Ai Hui never felt the need to worry about his Master and Mistress. Rather, he always thought that they were constantly worrying about him. For some reason however, he suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to visit them.

    He passed a bag of snake bones to Lou Lan, waved goodbye to everyone, and promptly left for the embroidery workshop.

    Ai Hui believed that he had be ustomed to death. He¡¯d thought that he had already tasted the deepest despair that he could experience. He had been under the impression that he could look death in the face and leave this world calmly.

    But as the people around him fell one after the other, he couldn¡¯t help but wonder what the next day would bring.

    So what if he knew that the blood disaster was a ploy executed by the Blood of God? Would that knowledge save him from the ever-changing blood fiends? When will the reinforcements arrive? Ai Hui thought it likely that the reinforcements had been ambushed by the Blood of God.

    If this disaster was all part of a n, an ambush would be extremely likely. If Ai Hui could think of this himself, surely the Blood of God would have thought of it.

    Nobody would expect the calm, optimistic Ai Hui to be so pessimistic on the inside.

    He knew much more than everyone else.

    Sometimes, ignorance really is bliss.

    Ai Hui sped off under the night sky. He had a stuffy feeling in his chest that he badly wanted to release. He had no idea how he could vent his feelings, so he ran with all his might.

    The wind blew across his face as the scenery on both sides of the street quickly disappeared behind him.

    Ai Hui rushed over to the embroidery workshop in one breath. By the time he reached his destination, his mood had lightened up a bit and his emotions had calmed down. What he saw however, gave him a surprise.

    The embroidery workshop¡¯s entrance was heavily guarded; sentries were positioned all over the ce.

    Although he had expected his Master and Mistress to be guarded, this amount of protection made him feel very uneasy. Central Pine City was low on manpower, yet the mayor¡¯s residence was willing to deploy so many guards here. Something was not right!

    Someone suddenly charged towards the entrance, giving the elementalists on guard duty a scare.

    The guards heaved a sigh of relief upon getting a clearer look at the intruder. Ai Hui was well known throughout Central Pine City, everyone could recognize him.

    "Ai Hui, you did an awesome job today!"

    One of the guards praised him loudly, initiating a series of agreements.

    "Simply awesome!"

    "I was tempted to join in myself!"

    ...

    Ai Hui stered a smile on his face, maintaining an exceptional calmness beneath his cheerful appearance. The strange circumstances had put him on high alert.

    Mingxiu came out of the workshop upon hearing themotion outside. Seeing Ai Hui, she smiled and called out, "Junior!"

    Ai Hui was shocked to see Senior Mingxiu so haggard. To him, Senior Mingxiu was someone who was always gentle, graceful, and humble. Haggard was one of thest things he would use to describe her.

    "Senior, why do you look so wan?" Ai Hui asked out of concern.

    While he remained expressionless, Ai Hui was already preparing himself for a fight. Was the mayor¡¯s residence trying to make use of his Master and Mistress? Were they forcing his Master and Mistress to do things against their will?

    A killing intent began to manifest within Ai Hui. Darkness and despair had long pushed Ai Hui to the edge. The strange situation that he was currently in had triggered an anger that dwelled deep inside him.

    Ai Hui held his Master and Mistress very dear and would go all out against anyone who dared toy a finger on them.

    He didn¡¯t think his life was worth much anyway, so be it if he died.

    Mingxiu¡¯s eyes revealedplex, conflicting emotions. She didn¡¯t know how to reply to him. Although her junior appeared to be extremely calm, she could see the despair and murderous intent in his eyes.

    She immediately knew that her junior had misinterpreted the situation. While she had been instructed by Uncle not to tell Ai Hui what was happening, her heart ached at the thought of her Master.

    "They have nothing to do with this," Mingxiu said while she struggled to control her emotions. "Master Han is in seclusion. You should go and visit Uncle instead."

    She had decided to disobey him in the end. Mingxiu knew Uncle didn¡¯t want Junior to worry, but she felt that it was too cruel to let Junior figure it all out only at the end.

    Besides, she secretly harbored a small hope that Junior coulde up with something.

    Junior was no longer that youth who needed her protection. He was now the Lightning de, the embodiment of Central Pine City¡¯s hope!

    Upon receiving his master¡¯s address, Ai Hui immediately took off at the speed of light.

 Chapter 237: Calm

    Chapter 237: Calm

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Ai Hui walked out of Master¡¯s residence.

    On the pitch-ck streets, the pumpkin street lights in Central Pine City had long been destroyed. There was neither starlight nor moonlight, only asional bright shes caused by elementalists on patrol as they flitted across the street. The ground beneath his feet was bumpy. Stepping on the crushed rocks and surface dust, all he saw were broken walls and ruins. All he heard was the echo of his footsteps.

    Master¡¯s haggard look appeared before his eyes. At first nce, Ai Hui could not believe what he saw and was angry, but when he knew the truth, all his anger disappeared into thin air. Master had be more long-winded, constantly dragging out and repeating his words. He could hear the guilt in Master¡¯s voice. Master felt he did not impart anything to Ai Hui and always said that he was unfit to be Ai Hui¡¯s teacher.

    Ai Hui listened carefully with a smile on his face.

    There was no fear of death in Master¡¯s hoarse voice. There was no annoyance and regret, only calmness and proudness.

    A withered life was like a faint ember left from a raging me, its brightness and warmth gradually dispersing.

    Ai Hui was very calm, so calm that even he, himself, was shocked. He felt no regret and sadness, only respect for his teacher.

    Perhaps it was because he had witnessed death too many times, so he viewed life and death differently from most people. Living was very important, but at times, it was not the most important.

    If Master could go back in time, he would have made the same decision again.

    Why did Master reject Mistress¡¯s earnest request?

    Ai Hui listened as Master prattled on, trying to exin himself. His wrinkled face radiated a dazzling spirit, an expression of his pride toward his achievement. Master dered that Mistress would most definitely be astonished by his result, and also mentioned that in her younger days, she used to look for him whenever she ran into problems.

    Master said he was telling the truth, repeating this a few times.

    Being able to exist in life¡¯s afterglow and feel that his life was not a waste... How perfect was this ending?

    Ai Hui did not me Mistress either. Her decision was worthy of respect as well.

    Ai Hui felt he would not have been able to do the same. He was not as selfless as Mistress, but at the same time, he felt that her choice was worthy of feeling deep veneration.

    No matter how sad and painful this was for the younger generation, it was these two elders who endured death and anguish.

    I must help Mistressplete her "treating the city as a piece of cloth" strategy!

    He was determined.

    Going back to the training hall, Ai Hui looked no different from usual.

    Shi Xueman came out from the room and looked at Ai Hui. "How are they?"

    "Not bad," Ai Hui answered naturally, looking her up and down. "You look pretty good yourself."

    Instead of replying, Shi Xueman continued, "I hear you need a training partner?"

    "That¡¯s right!" Ai Hui nodded. "Do you want toe along?"

    "Why? Are you afraid?" Shi Xueman provoked.

    Ai Hui touched his nose. Did Iron Lady eat gunpowder today? Heughed, saying, "I¡¯m afraid that I can¡¯t afford to pay you!"

    "It¡¯s okay, I¡¯ll pay you!"

    Shi Xueman snorted. Even before she finished speaking, a snow-white spear ray appeared before Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    The spearhead was so sharp that the space between Ai Hui¡¯s brows hurt. He quivered. Thisdy was being serious!

    He reacted quickly. With a flip of his palm, heshed his grass sword out like a whip to defend against the attack.

    While he did not block Iron Lady¡¯s attack directly from the front, the elemental energy within the spear body numbed his palm.

    He did not dare to operate his elemental energy. He really would not have any swords left to use if this grass one exploded.

    "It¡¯s ¡®The Lightning de¡¯ indeed... Fly!"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s voice carried a tinge of ridicule. She turned her body and thrusted her Cirrus from the other side of her body, firmly trapping Ai Hui.

    With a light hum, ripples surfaced in the air. The spear ray was definitely at least a meter away from him, but the air was so heavy and oppressing.

    Ai Hui¡¯s breaths stopped slightly as his eyes shone brightly. The grass sword in his hands lit up and a faint glimmer pierced the left side of the air in an oblique sh.

    Pzzt!

    As if a sharp de had ripped a cloth, the agitated spear ray seemed to have punctured a water bag, its strength leaking out.

    Ai Hui took this chance to struggle free. He jolted his body and escaped like a swimming fish, saying, "Then shouldn¡¯t you pay a little more? As humans, we can¡¯t be too petty. I¡¯ve saved your life a few times!"

    Shi Xueman could feel Ai Hui¡¯s slyness and mercilessness. It was her first time meeting such an opponent. His fighting style and sword moves were entirely different from other elementalists, but it was in her nature to brave through such situations.

    She smiled cooly. "No problem, I¡¯ll tip you if you fight a good fight!"

    Their battle was intense and caught everyone¡¯s attention.

    Whenpared to the duel with Fatty, there was much more pressure battling Shi Xueman. Other than gaining a slight advantage by starting with moves Shi Xueman was unfamiliar with, Ai Hui quickly fell into a disadvantageous position.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s spear move was called [Cloud Whale]. She changed her strategy upon noticing that Ai Hui¡¯s swordy was unusual. As if in water, each hit became increasingly slow-moving and congealed. The white spear ray congregated around her body like a white fog. It was strangely heavy and when struck by Ai Hui¡¯s grass sword, it sounded like grinding stone, with sparks flying in all directions.

    While the spear ray cloud-mist was airy and looked graceful, it was actually extremely powerful. Each block numbed Ai Hui¡¯s arms and gripping his sword became challenging.

    Ai Hui¡¯s stress level skyrocketed to the point where he was almost out of breath.

    The spear ray produced by the [Cloud Whale] technique looked like clouds, but actually contained a dreadful force. Once drawn within and trapped, the victim would be crushed into bits by this extremely heavy ray.

    Shi Xueman was initially a little worried about hurting Ai Hui, but upon realizing how cunning he was, her anxiety vanished as her moves became more merciless.

    Irondy was even more steely than before!

    Ai Hui barely dodged the spear body when a fog as thick as an arm rose suddenly, transformed into a cloud-spear, and rushed toward Ai Hui.

    In mid-air and unable to avoid it, Ai Hui could only sh against the cloud spear with his grass sword.

    ng!

    Ai Hui¡¯s arm shook, as if struck by a solid hammer. The blood and qi in his body became sluggish as he flew backward.

    Worse, this blow agitated the remaining electricity in his flesh. His whole body turned rigid and fell toward the ground like a scallion stalk.

    Boom!

    His head nted into the ground.

    Fortunately, he was trained in body tempering. Grief and indignation filled his heart.

    Pleased, Shi Xueman withdrew her spear. Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s unique posture, she could not control herughter. The gloom from earlier disappeared into thin air.

    "Remember to add the fees to the bill. Fill the tip section as you please."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s tone was livelier now, feeling a sudden sense of fulfillment. It was just like a scene from the legendary brothels. After the deed was done, the visitor would wave his hand in a domineering manner, doubling the brothel¡¯s earnings for the night!

    This was especially the case when her opponent was Ai Hui. She had been itching with irriation, but was unable to do anything about it. This rare experience was definitely therapeutic for her mind and soul!

    Hoots ofughter filled the air. Seldomly able to witness Ai Hui in such an embarrassing state, everyone enjoyed what they saw.

    Ten seconds passed before the leftover electricity was finally andpletely absorbed by his hand and ground pces. Ai Hui¡¯s numbed body started to recover, and like a straightened carp, he pulled his head out from the ground. If not for the fact that he cherished this grass sword... he promised himself to write an astronomical figure on that bill. To hit her with a ruthless blow!

    As he was stabilizing himself, Duanmu Huanghun appeared before him.

    "I heard you need a training partner?"

    In his room, Lou Lan was pouring his heart into researching the blood snake vertebrae.

    Outstanding ingredient!

    Lou Lan kept a record of the attributes of many ingredients, but the vertebrae of this blood snake were still very remarkable.

    Their firmness and hardness were as predicted. Although not outstanding to the point where they could be used to fashion Heaven-grade arms, but they were decent enough to be made into an Earth-grade weapon, the second best type. In fact, thousand traced silverwood and brightlight iron were some of the ingredients required to make Earth-grade equipment.

    Besides being fine ingredients, these blood snake vertebrae were also unique in many other aspects.

    For example, the blood traces on top were thunder traces, which contained the force of thunder and lightning. Lou Lan did not know how these thunder traces appeared on the blood snake, but thinking about the me traces on the blood ape¡¯s bodypelled him to specte that the blood spiritual force could induce the spiritual traces from the Cultivation Era. This could possibly be rted to the blood spiritual force¡¯s operating method, but there were too few samples for Lou Lan to analyze further.

    Thunder traces were the key to understanding why the blood snake vertebrae were so outstanding. Going through the thunder traces converted spiritual force into thunder and lightning force, which then coagted within the vertebrae. The force of thunder and lightning tempered the vertebrae continuously, improving its quality.

    Lou Lan hypothesized that the the flesh of the blood beasts from before were useless because they had no spiritual traces such as the thunder or me traces.

    The force of thunder and lightning was alluring, but once used up, this blood snake vertebrae be like rotten wood, unable to take a single hit.

    Either to lock the thunder and lightning force or to replenish it. For example, the seven artifact remnants on Ai Hui¡¯s Dragonspine Inferno contained shocking amounts of thunder and lightning force.

    These blood snake vertebrae had no affinity at all with fire, wood, and earth elemental energy, but it had moderate affinity with water and metal elemental energy. This was good news.

    There were many theories when it came to creating weapons. Some wereplicated, while others were simple. Simple ones would be like Shi Xueman¡¯s Cirrus¨Cwhalebone as the spear body and firmament iron as its head. It was difficult for this weapon, which was made from supreme grade ingredients, not to be ssified as a Heaven-grade arm. Although fashioning weapons was not Shi Xueman¡¯s father¡¯s forte, he sure made one hell of a Heaven-grade weapon.

    With clever designs, weapons made from average ingredients could also be unique and formidable. In reality, this type of weapon was more mainstream. Superb ingredients such as the whalebone and firmament iron were and would remain unseen by most.

    These blood snake vertebrae were good ingredients, but there was still a lot to consider. For example, they were shaped a whip and not a sword. They did not have a sharp edge, a rtively importantponent of a sword since it was needed to break armor and defenses. As a sharp weapon effective at breaking armor, only a little elemental energy was needed to split open solid and sturdy armors. Weapons without such a use meant that the elemental energy was usually ck andcking in the ability to injure or kill.

    Yet, the blood snake vertebrae could not be ground into shape. Once ground, the thunder traces on it would be destroyed.

    How then, could he form the spinal column into a sword de?

    Forget about the sword de? Lou Lan instantly negated this thought. He was going to make Ai Hui his first ever legitimate weapon so he had better do his best!

    What about the sword hilt? What ingredient to use?

    Loun¡¯s Midnight sand core was operating at an rming rate, the light in his eyes spinning nonstop.

 Chapter 238: A New Sword

    Chapter 238: A New Sword

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    A sword shrouded by an ash-gray cloud levitated silently above the table.

    The ash-gray cloud differed from the white cloud that engulfed the Cirrus in that it was much denser. Tiny streaks of lightning zigzagged through the cloud, resembling a small thunder cloud.

    The strip-like dark cloud looked like a sword sheath, but was actually not.

    Seven silver daggers meandered rapidly in the cloud like swimming fish. Each dagger was six centimetres in length. Their silver surfaces were so smooth that one could see his or her reflection in them. Each dagger was embedded with a lightning-based artifact remnant as well.

    The asional lightning sparks on the body of the sword were induced by the high-speed flight of the seven daggers.

    "It¡¯s so beautiful! Is this made of that snake vertebrae?" Shi Xueman could not believe her eyes and took a closer look. "Is this a sword? Does it need to be unsheathed?"

    "No need, Xueman, that is a honing cloud," Lou Lan exined seriously. "It¡¯s the de of the sword."

    The honing cloud was a special type of cloud. When one imbued it with elemental energy, it would produce a sharpening effect. The honing cloud was a special local product of Palette Cloud Vige. Palette Cloud Vige produced various kinds of weird clouds, such as heavy and dense lead clouds, colourful and gorgeous rosy clouds, green poison clouds, me-spouting fire clouds, etc.

    Just like the Jadeite Forest, where there were countless species of nts, Palette Cloud Vige had countless types of clouds. Only water elementalists could appreciate the spectacle of these clouds.

    "de? Using the honing cloud to make the de of the sword? That¡¯s a clever idea!" Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes lit up and praised, "Lou Lan is really fabulous!"

    "Thank you, Xueman." Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were smiling brightly, but soon after, his tone was filled with regret. "The snake vertebrae is highly functional and was a top-grade material. Looking at it from the five elements¡¯ perspective, it is both metal-attributed and water-attributed. Metal collects water, which is why I used the honing cloud to make the de of the sword. However, due to differences in the grade level of the materials used, the power of the snake vertebrae are not optimized. The sword tassel is made up of fire prairie stones, which are a low-grade material. Still, it¡¯s better than nothing. As for the seven daggers, they are made up of silver glow wood, which is strengthened by the water elemental energy in the honing cloud. The honing cloud and the silver glow wood are roughly the same grade, therefore,bining them provides a great boost to one¡¯s elemental energy. This sword can only be considered as a Mysterious-grade weapon. However, its unique lightning properties and the outstanding qualities of the snake vertebrae would make this sword a rather powerful Mysterious-grade weapon.

    "If the honing cloud was reced by heavenly honing cloud, the silver glow wood was reced by thousand-traced silvery wood, and the fire prairie stones were reced by molten core stones, then this sword will be an exceptional Earth-grade weapon. With the lightning properties, it would be considered a rare Earth-grade weapon."

    Everyone understood what Lou Lan was talking about. Even though they did not know how to specifically craft weapons, they still knew the fundamentals. The grading system for weapons was not asplicated as the ssification of food ingredients. The highest and most powerful grade were the Heaven-grade weapons, followed by the Earth-grade weapons, then the Mysterious-grade weapons, and finally the mostmon grade, the Grass-grade weapons.

    Other than unique materials, the grade of a weapon was usually dependent on its weight, sturdiness, and other physical attributes. However, the most important factor was still the avability of elemental enhancement in the weapon.

    The elements of metal, wood, water, fire, and earth made up aplete cycle, growing and multiplying without an end. The enhancement between the five elements was one of the most important characteristics of the five elemental energies. Weapons were based on this theory as well. Some types of elemental energy could enhance each other while some could restrain each other.

    If a weapon possessed all five elements and they enhanced each other, that weapon was considered a Heaven-grade weapon. Heaven-grade weapons had very low elemental energy consumption requirements for elementalists. Furthermore, they could produce many wondrous effects during the process of elemental enhancement.

    An Earth-grade weapon had one less element than a Heaven-grade weapon. There were only four elements in an Earth-grade weapon. This was why there was a huge disparity between a Heaven-grade weapon and an Earth-grade weapon. Having one less element, the elemental cycle was broken, disrupting the natural flow of the elements and differing in terms of quality.

    The disparity between an Earth-grade weapon and a Mysterious-grade weapon was not too big. A Mysterious-grade weapon wasposed of materials from three different elements. Hence, the power and variability of a Mysterious-grade weapon were inferior to an Earth-grade weapon.

    As for Grass-grade weapons, most of them were roughly-made and crude. They were made up of materials that usually contained only one element or two poorlybined elements on asion.

    In theory, weapon crafting seemed very easy, but in reality, the process required immense and meticulous attention. For example, materials that were of the same grade were preferred so as to achieve aplete enhancement process. The grades of the honing cloud and silver glow wood were much lower than the blood snake vertebrae, causing the weapon to be unable to fully utilize the metal elemental attribute of the blood snake vertebrae.

    Many wood materials actually contained more than one element. These kinds of material posed an extremely huge challenge to the weaponsmith, himself.

    The suitability and avability of materials, together with outstanding crafting techniques, could produce a good weapon. Some unique materials possessed exceptional qualities and did not need to take elemental enhancement or restrainment into consideration. However, professional weaponsmiths despised such reckless weapon crafting technique as they felt it would be a waste of good materials.

    Lou Lan was extremely unsatisfied with the sword, but Ai Hui¡¯s gaze had not left the sword for a second.

    This sword had many outstanding qualities, disying Lou Lan¡¯s skillfulness in crafting swords. For example, the use of the honing cloud as the de of the sword had perfectly resolved the issue of the blood snake vertebrae¡¯sck of a de. Ai Hui would not have thought of this even if he racked his brain.

    The honing cloud could bend and twist ording to the form of the blood snake vertebrae. It could be firm and rigid or soft and flexible.

    The design of the seven daggers was even more amazing. Their design was inspired by the bronze sword box and extremely marvellous.

    Within a short period of time, Ai Hui had thought of several new sword moves.

    For example, he could hide the daggers within the cloud, and if his opponent was to block his attack, the daggers couldunch a surprise attack to catch his opponent off guard. Furthermore, the seven prismatic crystals had a mysterious connection between each other, which meant that they could devise numerousplicated attackingbinations.

    Such a good sword!

    "Ai Hui, don¡¯t you want to give the sword a try?" Lou Lan nted his head and asked. "This sword doesn¡¯t have a name yet."

    Ai Hui held the hilt of the sword excitedly. The moment his hand made contact with the icy and sturdy blood snake vertebrae, his palpitating heart calmed down.

    When Ai Hui picked up the sword, it appeared to everyone that he had be apletely different person. An indescribable aura silently extended outward from Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    He looked very serene, but dangerous at the same time.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui grinned, revealing his white teeth and said, "I need a sparring partner. Who¡¯s willing to be my sparring partner?"

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes lit up immediately. He had witnessed the whole process of how Shi Xueman utterly defeated Ai Hui and wanted to add insult to Ai Hui¡¯s injury. Ai Hui was not stupid either as he rejected Duanmu Huanghun without hesitation.

    Ai Hui approached everyone except him.

    Duanmu Huanghun had been itching to beat Ai Hui into a pulp. If just by watching Ai Hui get pummeled had already made him so happy, how happy would he be if he got to personally beat Ai Hui up?

    Thinking about it, how much had he suffered in Ai Hui¡¯s hands so far?

    Duanmu Huanghun began to be restless, but he did not have a chance. No matter how many times he volunteered, Ai Hui pretended not to see him. As such, he became increasingly furious.

    When he heard Ai Hui say that he needed a sparring partner, Duanmu Huanghun volunteered himself without any hesitation. "Me!"

    When Ai Hui passed Duanmu Huanghun, thetter purposely mocked the former by saying, "You already have a sword, what excuse do you have this time?"

    "Since you insist,e on then," Ai Hui replied helplessly.

    Fatty turned his face around, unable to bear watching what was going to happen. However, in the blink of an eye, he whistled and yelled, "Everyone,e! It¡¯s a rare opportunity! Let us gamble and have some fun! Ai Hui and Bangwan, who are you betting on to win the fight? You are born with nothing and will die with nothing. One has to take a gamble in his or her life. A small amount of gambling is entertaining, but excessive gambling is harmful. I, Fatty, shall be the banker and will treat everyone fairly. It¡¯s okay if you don¡¯t have money now, we can put it on a tab."

    "I am betting on Bangwan! 500 yuan!"

    "Ai Hui hasn¡¯t recovered yet, I am betting on Bangwan! 800 yuan!"

    "Ai Hui is too anxious, he should rest for another two days first. I am betting on Bangwan too! 1,000 yuan!"

    "..."

    Everyone was stressed out after so many days of continuous fighting. Therefore, they jumped in joy when there was a rare opportunity for recreation.

    "I am betting on Ai Hui. 10,000 yuan!"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s cold voice rang across the air, catching everyone¡¯s attention. No one had expected Shi Xueman, who utterly defeated Ai Hui previously, to bet on Ai Hui to win the fight.

    Beads of cold sweat flowed down Fatty¡¯s forehead as he replied, "The maximum bet is 5,000 yuan."

    "5,000 yuan then."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s firmness caused a lot of students to hesitate in making their bets. When Fatty saw this, he intentionally asked Shi Xueman, "Big Sister must have never yed this before, right?"

    "Never," Shi Xueman shook her head. She had been extremely self-disciplined since young, how could she have gambled before?

    Upon hearing Shi Xueman¡¯s reply, all the students suddenly realized what was going on.

    So she was new to gambling, no wonder she bet on Ai Hui!

    Without any hesitation, they bet on Bangwan.

    Everyone¡¯s gaze was directed toward the two figures in the arena.

    Both Ai Hui and Duanmu had tremendous improvements in their fighting capabilities. From their auras, everyone had an inkling of what was going to happen. Both of them were abnormally calm.

    However, the next moment, both of them surged forward at the same time.

    Two shadows shed across the arena as the two figures who were previously stationary disappeared.

    Ai Hui¡¯s attack hit nothing but air.

    Duanmu Huanghun was hovering in the air while the lotus patterns slowly swirled under his feet. Ai Hui continuously rejected him in the past, so he could only watch the fights between Ai Hui and other students. As he watched the fights, he kept thinking: how would he deal with Ai Hui if he was the one fighting him?

    Duanmu Huang did not underestimate Ai Hui at aall. Even though Ai Hui had poor fundamentals and was limited in terms of elemental energy, his swordsmanship had improved immensely and reached an extremely formidable level. Tost so long against Shi Xueman without using any elemental energy was not an easy feat.Even Duanmu Huanghun had to admit that he could not have done so.

    After watching so many of Ai Hui¡¯s fights, Duanmu Huang made a big discovery.

    Ai Hui had a fatal weakness, which was that he could not fly. On the contrary, Duanmu Huanghun could.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s strategy was very simple. The first thing he would do was to fly up into the sky and then attack Ai Hui from there.

    His [Viridescent Flower] was capable of making long-ranged attacks.

    Upon seeing Ai Hui raise his head and look at him helplessly, Duanmu Huanghun could not help but smile wickedly and feel extremely happy.

    Finally, it¡¯s time for payback!

    Today is the day to pay back Ai Hui for all the humiliating times!

    The more Duanmu Huanghun thought about it, the more excited he got. The smile on his face involuntarily grew wider and wider. It was finally the day to y his inner demon! Today shall be the day that he surpassed Ai Hui. His smile eventually exploded into a howlingughter. "Hahaha! Ai Hui, have a taste of my [Viridescent Flower]!"

    His frenzy-filled eyes began to flicker. Surging elemental energy gushed through Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body. The slender fingers from both of his hands spread out like a blossoming flower. Numerous elegant shadows appeared momentarily and faded from his fingers.

    Green ripples appeared under Ai Hui¡¯s feet and extended outward. Ai Hui¡¯s body froze as if there was an invisible power confining him. Numerous green branches and tendrils emerged from beneath his feet. They grew at a terrifying speed, as if they were alive.

    The intertwining branches and tendrils eventually formed a cage around Ai Hui. Looking at it from the sky, it resembled a green openwork longevity lock.

    [Viridescent Flower, Perennial Lock]!

 Chapter 239: Perennial Lock and Elemental Energy Pills

    Chapter 239: Perennial Lock and Elemental Energy Pills

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Ai Hui was locked up in the green openwork cage, unable to move a single step.

    The seemingly slender branches and tendrils that made up the cage were actually abnormally tough and durable. Within the cage, an invisible force was crushing Ai Hui from all directions.

    The branches and tendrils that were nearer to the ground were abnormally thick and strong. The wrinkles on them looked as though they had been through hundreds of years of great changes.

    "Perennial Lock!" Shi Xueman was slightly shocked.

    "Is it very powerful?" Upon hearing how shocked Big Sister sounded, Fatty jumped up in surprise. Anything that had to do with getting rich would immediately energize him. "Is it a very well-known move?"

    "It¡¯s very powerful, but not really well-known because it¡¯s very difficult to master." Shi Xueman replied without shifting her gaze.

    Upon hearing this, Fatty became worried. He took a closer look and muttered, "I can¡¯t really tell if it¡¯s that powerful. It¡¯s just a grass cage after all. If it was me locked inside, I would just break out with force."

    "You would not be able to do it," Shi Xueman replied bluntly without shifting her gaze.

    Fatty knew that Big Sister was a practical individual and he did not feel humiliated by her words. On the contrary, he was worried about his money-making n and continued to argue. "I really see nothing terrific about it."

    "The terrific parts are unobservable." Shi Xueman was candid as usual. "Those branches and tendrils are entrenched a few hundred meters deep into the ground and are absorbing an unending stream of water elemental energy from the surrounding earth, strengthening and nourishing their bodies. Water nourishes wood. The reason why this move is called Perennial Lock is because as time passes, the lock will be more secure and stable. A Perennial Lock nted by a Master-level wood elementalist canst for hundreds of thousands of years without rotting. In the past, they used this move to lock up individuals that were guilty of terrible crimes."

    Shi Xueman was very familiar with various families¡¯ absolute arts, knowing everything about them.

    Upon hearing this, Fatty was dumbstruck. After a long while, he then opened his mouth again. "I¡¯m going to stay away from that pretty boy in the future. His family is indeed abnormal! No wonder his gaze is always that weird-looking."

    Shi Xueman talked rather loudly. Upon hearing what she had said, everyone became restless.

    "It turns out this move is so powerful!"

    "Fortunately, I bet on Bangwan. Seems like I¡¯m going to make a small profit on this bet!"

    "This time around, Fatty is going to suffer a huge loss, so much so that he won¡¯t even be left with his pants!"

    ...

    Fatty was slightly flustered, but he continued to be in denial and snorted. "All of you don¡¯t know Ai Hui well enough. He is the kind of person who wouldn¡¯t give up even when facing death. It¡¯s still too early to say that the pretty boy will defeat Ai Hui."

    Everyone could see the panic on Fatty¡¯s face and broke out intoughter.

    Everyone was envious of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s invincible move.

    As they had just attained elemental internalization, it was still a long while before they would be able to draw on and use the elemental energy in nature. Only those who had achieved elemental externalization could do so.

    Upon achieving elemental internalization, the barrier between the elementalist and nature was broken, greatly increasing his or her training efficiency. The main purpose of elemental internalization was to expand the eight pces, allowing them to be stronger and the elemental energy internalized within their body to be in abundance.

    After the eight pces could no longer expand, the elemental energy in one¡¯s body would undergo saturation, which was also known as the Advanced Completion. After reaching the Advanced Completion, one could attempt to attain elemental externalization.

    The so-called elemental externalization referred to the ability to draw on and use the elemental energy in nature.

    Compared the elemental energy in nature, the elemental energy in a human body was insignificant. In order for an elementalist to draw on the elemental energy in nature, a conductor would be necessary. That conductor was the physical body of the elementalist.

    The more robust the elemental energy in the body was, the easier it would be for him or her to establish a connection with nature.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s move was extremely high-level, so much so that Shi Xueman could not help but exim in admiration.

    To be able to draw elemental energy from nature while only having attained elemental internalization, it was apparent how extraordinary Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s genius and his [Viridescent Flower] were.

    Shi Xueman took a nce at the locked-up Ai Hui and pondered pensively. Even though Duanmu Huanghun was currently winning the fight, Fatty was right in the sense that giving up was not Ai Hui, that rascal¡¯s, style.

    All the students had underestimated the degree of prudence with which Duanmu Huanghun faced Ai Hui.

    Even though Ai Hui was being imprisoned and seemingly did not have the chance to make aeback, Duanmu Huanghun did not loosen his vignce at all. He had suffered under the hands of Ai Hui more than anyone else, and as such, he understood Ai Hui better than anyone else as well. There were several times in which he¡¯d thought his victory was assured, but then was thwarted by Ai Hui towards the end.

    Duanmu Huanghun might look crazy now, but he was not foolish.

    He was not at all stingy with his elemental energy. Various species of vines and tendrils frantically grew out from the cage and engulfed it.

    In the blink of an eye, the cage waspletely devoured by densely-packed green flowers, vines, branches, and tendrils.

    A fifteen-meter-tall green hill appeared in the arena. Everyone was dumbfounded as a shiver went down their spines.

    How many grievances did they have between them...

    Phew, phew, phew...

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s heavy panting could be clearly heard. The elemental energy in his body had beenpletely depleted; however, he did not feel tired or empty. All he felt was extreme relief. The gloominess that had been bottled up within him was cleared.

    "Hahahah..."

    Wicked, wildughter resounded throughout the arena.

    Duanmu Huanghun did not intend to fight a deadlocked battle with Ai Hui. He understood his opponent and himself clearly. Even though the amount of his elemental energy was far more plentiful than Ai Hui¡¯s, he knew he would eventually lose to Ai Hui if they engaged in a battle of attrition.

    This n had been meticulously designed by him.

    He¡¯d made use of his aerial advantage and caught Ai Hui by surprise. Then he started off with the move he had justprehended, the [Perennial Lock]. The enormous disparity in base level between Ai Hui and the [Perennial Lock] meant thetter was able to suppress the formerpletely. Following which, he would pour all his elemental energy into the battle, securing his victory.

    All along, he had been secretly observing Ai Hui¡¯s fighting characteristics.

    One of these characteristics had been locked onto by Duanmu Huanghun as he had witnessed it many times. Whenever one fought with Ai Hui, he or she should avoid pitting themselves against him using fighting tactics. This fellow was like a cockroach. If one could not defeat him with one blow and instead engaged in a deadlocked battle with him, the final victor would always be Ai Hui.

    After howling withughter for quite some time, Duanmu Huanghun finally stopped.

    "There¡¯s nothing to be done about it now. My elemental energy has beenpletely depleted and there¡¯s no way I can save you. You can enjoy your time in there for now. You have to wait until my elemental energy haspletely recovered before I can undo this huge cage."

    Duanmu Huang¡¯s voice appeared to be filled with sympathy but he wasughing deep down in his heart.

    It was too perfect!

    How many seeds had he nted to form this cage? Not even Duanmu Huanghun knew. The green flowers on the cage would continue to attack Ai Hui, not even stopping for half a second. Even though Ai Hui¡¯s life would not be in any danger, he would ¡®enjoy¡¯ the entire process!

    Duanmu Huanghun floated towards the ground slowly. All the students were looking at him in awe.

    Having only achieved elemental internalization, he could already disy a move used by elemental externalists. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s improvements had far exceeded their expectations.

    Duanmu Huanghun had never been more smug than he was now. The darkness that had engulfed him was lifted. The inner demon that had been pestering him was yed. The shadow that had been stalking him closely was ruthlessly destroyed by him.

    He felt a sense of extreme relief, as if he had eaten a fruit of immortality.

    He had to carefully savor this precious and beautiful moment.

    He stood bolt straight and looked as though he hadpleted an insignificant task. His white clothes fluttered in the wind. Even though his elemental energy waspletely depleted, his elegant and confident demeanor was not broken. A perfect performance must have a perfect curtain call!

    He was fated to be a perfect man!

    I¡¯m going to enjoy this moment...

    "No need."

    A soft voice rang clearly through Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s ears, despite the thickness of the green hill.

    Duanmu Huanghun was shocked, but then quicklyughed at himself. Such a stubborn inner demon... How can I be hearing such voices in my head even after I have obtained an absolute victory... How obstinate of me...

    He flicked his long sleeves gracefully. Just as he was about to wave goodbye to his stubborn inner demon, a lingering voice rang into his ears as if a ghost was whispering to him.

    "Are you ready?"

    Duanmu Huanghun froze and almost fell down. His eyes widened as a nk look appeared on his face.

    Ready?

    Ready for what?

    Wait a second... Shouldn¡¯t this fellow be in aa, in agony, struggling for his life, and resisting the cage with all his might?

    Howe he couldn¡¯t hear a single hint of agony in his voice? It was as if... as if he waspletely fine?

    Everyone had their eyes wide-open as they stared nkly at the fifteen-meters-tall green hill. Their faces were filled with incredulity as an unbelievable thought shed across their minds. Could it be that... Ai Hui was still capable of striking back?

    A nar beam of silver light shot out of the thick grass hill like a sharp de and went right through the blue dome of the heavens.

    Following which, another beam of silver light shot out of the green hill.

    Another beam shot out again...

    The sound of the green hill being pierced was very soft, however, at this moment, it resembled thunder in everyone¡¯s ears.

    Numerous streaks of light had shot out of the green hill.

    In the midst of dead silence, Lou Lan¡¯s cheerful voice suddenly rang through the air. "Ai Hui,e on!"

    Just as Lou Lan finished speaking, the grass hill exploded with a loud boom. A burst of dazzling silver light erupted in everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Buzzzz!

    The sound of lightning sparks approached like an iing tidal wave. The silvery sword glints were like wind, propelling the tidal wave forward. The youth¡¯s figure was fuzzy amidst the intense, silver light.

    Seven daggers flew and danced around Ai Hui¡¯s body rapidly, then eventually materialized into dazzling silver light orbs. The lightning sparks on the surfaces of these light orbs resembled wandering chains of lightning.

    The green flower patterns around Ai Hui vanished into thin air. The only thing that was still stubbornly standing was the [Perennial Lock]; however, it was being pushed outward by the silver light orbs, inting like a balloon.

    The faster the daggers flew, the more intense the sword glints got.

    Crack, crack, crack!

    The green vines and tendrils that formed the [Perennial Lock] began to snap and copse. The remaining sturdier ones frantically absorbed the water elemental energy from the ground. Ai Hui furrowed his eyebrows as the sword in his hand trembled furiously. He had no choice but to hold the sword with both hands.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s cage was far stronger than what he had expected. Previously, with the use of the [Big Dipper], he¡¯d blown up a grass sword with seven elemental energy pills. This time around, the number of elemental energy pills that Ai Hui used had already exceeded two-thirds of the elemental energy in his body.

    The cage had not exploded yet!

    However, Ai Hui did not have the slightest bit of fear. He could sense that this new sword could endure far more elemental energy than the previous ones.

    Let¡¯s see where your limit is!

    Ai Hui silently spoke to his sword. Without any hesitation, he poured his elemental energy into the new sword.

    One by one, the elemental energy pills unfolded, extended, and erupted. The sword was trembling furiously as its weight increased tremendously.

    In that moment, Ai Hui could feel that he was telepathically connected with the sword. He felt as if something was going to erupt out of his body. Without any hesitation, he slowly raised his sword.

    The next moment, a cold glint shed across Ai Hui¡¯s mind as he furiously swung down his sword.

    The silver light orbs suddenly exploded. The [Perennial Lock], which had been holding on strenuously, was devoured by the burst of silvery radiance and vanished in a puff of smoke.

    Upon getting rid of the restriction that the lock had ced on him, Ai Hui felt as light as a feather.

    The explosion of silvery radiance sent a terrifying sonic boom bursting in all directions.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was about tond on the ground, was unable to react in time. He could only nkly watch on as the burst of silvery radiance whizzed towards him

    Boom! A shadow flew across the air.

    A white-clothed figure was deeply embedded on the wall not far away, spread-eagled.

 Chapter 240: The Deadly Weakness

    Chapter 240: The Deadly Weakness

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    The night sky seemed to be covered with a ck veil while the gloominess in the air resembled an insoluble ck ink.

    All of Central Pine City was empty. The streets were filled with ruins and rubble. A few undestroyed pumpkinmps were giving off a dusky yellow light, shining upon the dpidated city.

    Two indistinct dark figures were walking through the ruins.

    Yan Hai was walking ahead of the other figure. He had lived in Central Pine City for many years. Even though the city had fallen to ruin, he still knew his way around.

    Ever since the day he¡¯d refined the blood crystal that Tian Kuan had given him, he had sessfully developed blood traces and be a legitimate blood elementalist. Tian Kuan also taught him a thing or two about [Shadowless], sharply increasing his fighting capabilities.

    The unprecedented abundance of power in his body had imbued him with absolute confidence. Furthermore, he had Sir behind him to provide support.

    He was walking erratically and the environment surrounding him was distorted. It was as if a thinyer of shadow had covered his surroundings, merging with the night scene and making it difficult for him to be seen clearly.

    They walked and stopped, walked and stopped, avoiding the patrolling elementalists along their way.

    They had arrived.

    Yan Hai stopped in his tracks, raised his head, and looked at the towering perimeter walls. The wall was covered with various species of densely-packed nts. Other than the mayor¡¯s residence, this was the most intact ce in all of Central Pine City: the casualty barrack.

    Yan Hai made a hand-signal behind his back. He remained prudent as usual.

    With the recent formation of the blood traces, his powers had gotten a lot stronger than before; however, the surviving elementalists in Central Pine City had also been strengthened. The A-1 unit and the Lightning de had gotten rather popr these days. The previous scene of numerous lightning bolts surging down from the sky had struck fear in him as well, so much so that he¡¯d almost copsed onto the ground. After that incident, he was filled with anxiety and worry. One careless mistake could cost him his life.

    He was not the only who was worrying. Initially, Sir was nonchnt towards the elementalists in the city; however, he had now also be fearful of them.

    However, Sir was truly someone who had lived through countless life-and-death battles. He¡¯d identified Central Pine City¡¯s weakness with one nce.

    If their n was sessful, the situation in Central Pine City would change immediately.

    Yan Hai felt that the sess rate of the n was very high. When he thought of this, his heart burned with fervor.

    The casualty barrack that was surrounded by towering walls was used to quarantine injured elementalists. A few thousand elementalists that had been infected by the blood poison were being locked up here. These infected elementalists gave the mayor a headache. Until now, he had yet to find a cure for the blood poison. He could not kill these inflicted elementalists or take a carefree attitude towards them. The only thing he could do was to quarantine them in order to prevent the blood poison from spreading.

    There was no other way except to drag out the situation. Everyone could only hope that the Elders Guild would quickly find a cure to the blood poison.

    The quarantine zone was heavily guarded; however, these walls were only used to keep the blood fiends out and prevent those severely inflicted elementalists within the facility from escaping. Central Pine City was low on manpower, hence, there was no extra manpower to guard the inflicted elementalists. To reduce the number of people taking care of the casualties, the casualty barrack was sealed off. The surrounding high walls and the thick, vine-made dome roof were used to cut off contact between the casualties and the outside world.

    Surveince nts and vines that could shackled the casualties were grown all over the casualty barrack. They were the most loyal sentinels. Once they discovered that an inflicted elementalist¡¯s condition had worsened and turned aggressive, the nearby vines would quickly bind him or her.

    With the surveince nts and the restricting vines ced in every corner of the facility, only three wood elementalists were needed to manage the ce. Casualties who went crazy could only act on their instincts and did not know how to use their powers. As such, they were not difficult to deal with.

    On the contrary, there were a lot of elementalists patrolling the surroundings of the casualty barrack. The higher-ups were worried that blood fiends would suddenly appear and damage the high walls surrounding it.

    For the past few days, Yan Hai¡¯s mission had been to observe and study the patrol schedule of the patrolling unit clearly. Other than this, he did not need to care about anything else.

    Two green pills appeared in Tian Kuan¡¯s hand. He ate one himself and passed the other one to Yan Hai. Under Tian Kuan¡¯s watchful eyes, Yan Hai ate the pill.

    "Use your spiritual force to dissolve it," Tian Kuan instructed Yan Hai in a low voice.

    Yan Hai quickly channeled the blood spiritual force in his body. He was shocked to discover that the red-colored blood spiritual force in his body had turned green in color. The blood aura that engulfed his body had disappeared and was reced by the fresh and clean aura of nts.

    Yan Hai was startled. The organization was indeed unfathomable!

    They actually had such good stuff!

    "You will lead the way," Tian Kuan instructed in a low voice once again.

    "Yes."

    A shiver ran down Yan Hai¡¯s spine. Not daring to hesitate any longer, he began to climb up the perimeter wall. The vine bells that could be found everywhere stayed quiet, looking as if they had fallen asleep.

    Two dark figures silently climbed the high wall, then prated the thick, vine-made dome roof.

    Yan Hai felt extremely amazed. Those highly dangerous and vignt vines did not seem to have noticed them.

    Sir must have prepared for them!

    He could not help but be filled with expectations. What would Sir do next?

    The loft where the three wood elementalists stood guard was located at the center of the casualty barrack. Thick, strong vines were packed in the areas surrounding the loft¡¯s windows. Being stationed at the highest point of the casualty barrack, the wood elementalists could monitor the wandering inflicted elementalists below. This position had the best view as they could clearly see everything in the courtyard of the facility.

    The countless vines were drooping downward like keen-eyed venomous snakes, prepared to bind any casualties that lost control at any time.

    Those elementalists who were inflicted with blood poison would show symptoms of beastification. As the blood poison got worse, the process of beastification would deepen. Eventually, those elementalists would lose control of themselves and turn into wild beasts.

    Their lives woulde to an end at that moment.

    Everyday, someone¡¯s life was terminated. Initially, the three wood elementalists had felt depressed and disturbed. Eventually, they became numb to it.

    What could they do about it? Human lives were just so insignificant in this blood catastrophe.

    Outside of the perimeter walls, there were many people being killed by blood fiends everyday. Inside the perimeter walls, there were also many people being killed by them.

    The harshest decisions were always made out of desperation.

    Sun Ke watched on as a snake-like vine tied up a berserk elementalist while another pointed vine pierced through the back of his head like a sharp sword. The terrifying blood color in that elementalist¡¯s eyes gradually dimmed.

    "We are probably the executioners among wood elementalists." Sun Keughed sarcastically at himself.

    "We¡¯re doing this for their own good," mumbled Wang Tongan, who was beside him.

    "I knew him personally. He was my neighbor and a good man." Sun Ke¡¯s tone got more sarcastic.

    Wang Tongan did not know how to console him.

    "You don¡¯t need to console me," Sun Ke muttered as he looked absent-mindedly at the courtyard. "I know what I¡¯m doing. I just hope that this blood catastrophe will be over soon."

    Wang Tongan felt that the atmosphere was getting tense and tried to change the topic. "What do you want to do after you get out of here?"

    "Start on my training again." Sun Ke turned his face around and replied, "I don¡¯t want to be a wood elementalist anymore. In the past, I chose to be a wood elementalist because I didn¡¯t want to kill people. I didn¡¯t expect that I would end up killing even more people."

    A shiver went down Wang Tongan¡¯s spine. Then, he patted Sun Ke¡¯s shoulder and said, "That¡¯s what I thought too. Do you want to take a rest?"

    "You go and have a rest first, I will try to stay awake for a while more. Anyway, Xiaozheng will be waking up soon." Sun Ke¡¯s facial expression returned to normal. "Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not that weak."

    "Alright then, I will go and take a break first. Yell for us if there¡¯s any situation." Wang Tongan nodded his head.

    "Go ahead, go ahead." Sun Ke waved his hand.

    Wang Tongan went to take a nap, leaving Sun Ke alone to observe the situation below. Even though there were so many vines around, it was still very exhausting for the three of them to oversee the enormous casualty barrack by themselves.

    They had tried asking the higher ups for more manpower, but their request had been rejected. There were a lot of casualties among the elementalists, causing a severe shortage of manpower. There was no way that the higher-ups could send reinforcements to the three of them.

    Currently, everyone knew that there was no cure for blood poisoning. Hence, a lot of injured elementalists would choose to die together with the blood fiends. Eventually, the number of injured elementalists that were sent to the casualty barrack was reduced sharply, allowing the three wood elementalists to cope with the duty of overseeing the facility.

    Sun Ke¡¯s attention was cedpletely on the courtyard below, not noticing the danger that crept increasingly closer to him from above.

    ....

    The mayor¡¯s residence.

    Wang Zhen looked at Ai Hui. This was the first time Ai Hui had taken the initiative toe to the mayor¡¯s residence. Ai Hui had asked for details about the n to ¡®treat the city as a piece of cloth¡¯, expressing his wish to help out in any possible way.

    "Shouchuan has taken in a good disciple," Wang Zhen praised.

    He was not saying this out of courtesy. His subordinates had long reported to him of Ai Hui¡¯s visit to Wang Shouchuan.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s impression of Ai Hui was that thetter was a very capable and talented young man, although he was also a moody and mncholic individual. Rather than behaving like any of the usual youngsters, he behaved like an old veteran who had been through a lot. He was also not someone who liked to meddle in other people¡¯s business. Not only that, if one was to give him a task, he would haggle over the reward. He would only agree to the task until he felt that the reward was enough.

    Wang Zhen was having a huge headache over this characteristic of Ai Hui.

    The thing was that with Ai Hui¡¯s performance getting increasingly better and him gaining a reputation, Wang Zhen could not get tough with him.

    Wang Zhen did not expect Ai Hui to take the initiative to offer his help. He knew that Ai Hui was doing it because of Wang Shouchuan; however, from this he could also tell that the rtionship between Ai Hui and his master was very deep.

    Ai Hui being willing to help was the best situation.

    Shi Xueman, who was standing beside Ai Hui, could not help but take a nce at thetter. She now realized that there was actually so much inside information regarding Ai Hui.

    "With your help, our rate of progress will increase," Wang Zhen said bluntly. "The golden needles are going to bepleted soon. The next task is to nail the nine needles in specific positions. Those positions are the nodes for the elemental energy surrounding Central Pine City. Once these nodes are activated, the elemental energy surrounding all of Central Pine City will transform. That means that the moment we nail the first golden needle, the subsequent needles have to be nailed into their respective positions within a day¡¯s time."

    "So the mayor wants to start nailing from the most difficult position?" Ai Hui asked.

    A look of admiration appeared on Wang Zhen¡¯s face as he replied, "You¡¯re indeed a quick-witted fellow. That¡¯s right, we will start with the most difficult one and then move on to the easier ones. This way we will reduce the risk. Therefore, we must nail the first golden needle at the most difficult position."

    "I¡¯m willing to take up this mission." Ai Hui volunteered without any hesitation.

    "The A-1 unit is willing to take up this mission." Shi Xueman volunteered without any hesitation as well.

    "Alright, then I will give all of you the most difficult mission." Wang Zhen walked to the map of Central Pine City and pointed to a dot. "You have to nail the golden needle at this location. On the day itself, specialized smiths will be following your unit. You all have to ensure their safety as well as your own. If the situation gets critical, it¡¯s okay to dy the mission by one or two days. If you all are injured, then it will be too dangerous for us to nail the remaining eight needles as well."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s gaze froze when she saw the point on the map.

    That ce was... Heaven Pit!

    Ai Hui nodded his head emotionlessly and replied, "No problem."

 Chapter 241: Dragonspine

    Chapter 241: Dragonspine

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman walked out of the mayor residence side by side.

    Ai Hui suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked at Shi Xueman with seriousness written all over his face.

    Upon noticing Ai Hui¡¯s weird behaviour, Shi Xueman stopped in her tracks and cast a puzzled look at him. She did not know if it was because Ai Hui had had a breakthrough, but his gaze was heart-piercing like a sword.

    Seeing that Ai Hui looked somewhat unnatural, Shi Xueman put on a calm-looking face and asked, "Is there a problem? In such a devastating disaster, no one can escape unscathed. Everyone is fighting for their own lives."

    "Thank you," Ai Hui suddenly opened his mouth and said.

    "Ahh..." Shi Xueman was at a loss. She had never heard the phrase "thank you"ing out of Ai Hui¡¯s mouth before. She had also never expected Ai Hui to thank her in such a situation.

    Just when she was about to say something, Ai Hui had already walked past her.

    At that moment, Shi Xueman felt really stupid. She nearly used her spear to stab that rascal¡¯s back.

    "Anyway, I might be grateful to you but don¡¯t expect me to reduce the debt you owe me."

    A string of awful words came from the guy that was strolling in front of her.

    The usual ice-cold look returned to Shi Xueman¡¯s face, and she remained silent as she followed behind him.

    At this point in time, the night had passed and dawn wasing. The horizon was suffused with white. The darkest moment had passed and the rising sun would expel the shadows with its light and heat, marking the start of a new day.

    It was time for the patrol unit to change shifts. Weariness could be found on the faces of the patrolling elementalists along the streets. Even though they were exhausted, they still greeted Ai Hui passionately.

    This seemingly skinny youth was the most popr figure in Central Pine City right now.

    "How do you intend to begin this mission?" Shi Xueman decided to break the silence between them.

    She knew Ai Hui was not an impetuous fellow, so he must have certain ns.

    "I will scout out the Heaven Pit first. The blood fiends that invaded the city recently came through the Heaven Pit. I have to determine exactly what is going on inside. I also need to find the cksmiths to enquire about what to take note of when nailing the golden needle. We don¡¯t have a second chance for this n."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice came from the front. Even though Shi Xueman could not see his face, she could imagine the serious look he had.

    "Count me in," Shi Xueman blurted out.

    The moment she blurted out these words, she felt embarrassed. Was she too straightforward?

    "Okay," Ai Hui responded bluntly.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s embarrassment immediately disappeared as her mouth curled into a smile.

    .....

    The quarantine barracks.

    When Yan Hai saw the three unconscious wood elementalists on the ground, his respect for Tian Kuan increased significantly. He had witnessed the entire process of how Tian Kuan finished off the three wood elementalists effortlessly.

    Tian Kuan threw one of the wood elementalists at Yan Hai¡¯s feet and unquestionably gave amand, "Have you learned the soul-binding spell I taught you? Try it now."

    "Yes!" Yan Hai replied obediently.

    The blood traces that he formed were different from Sir¡¯s. ording to Sir, this was due to the difference between their body aptitudes. He would have a different progression path from Sir¡¯s. Yan Hai was extremely envious of Sir¡¯s [Shadowless], but Sir would only teach him a few moves. The most important move that Sir taught him was the [Blood Soul-Binding Spell].

    The soul-binding spell was profound and extremely hard toprehend. Even after Sir¡¯s detailed exnation, he still did not quiteprehend it.

    Yan Hai did not like learning the soul-binding spell at all, but he did not dare to disobey Sir¡¯smand.

    A drop of brightly-colored fresh blood seeped out from his be. As it left Yan Hai¡¯s forehead, it materialized into a cloud of blood mist. The cloud of blood mist pierced through and entered the unconscious wood elementalist¡¯s be.

    The wood elementalist¡¯s body began to jerk and tremble violently. Tian Kuan made a squashing action with his hands, and the wood elementalist¡¯s body stopped moving, looking as if he was being restricted by a pair of invisible hands.

    Beads of sweat began to form on Yan Hai¡¯s forehead. The soul-binding spell was far too difficult for him.

    Pop!

    The wood elementalist¡¯s head exploded like a watermelon.

    Yan Hai stared nkly at this scene. Immediately, his stomach churned, and he could not help but puke wildly in a corner. He was not a newbie and had seen deaths before, however, this bloody scene was too much for him.

    "Again."

    Tian Kuan¡¯s voice was calm and t as he threw anotheratose wood elementalist at Yan Hai.

    Yan Hai was still puking, so Tian Kuan did not rush him.

    After a while, Yan Hai stood up with a pale-white face and turned to the second wood elementalist. Once again, the cloud of blood mist pierced through the be of the elementalist. This time around, Yan Hai¡¯s performance was a lot better than before. The wood elementalist was still convulsing, but not as violently as before.

    Suddenly, blood started to seep out from the corner of the wood elementalist¡¯s mouth. The color of his face rapidly turned ash-grey and the temperature of his body dropped instantly until it became ice-cold. His body waspletely devoid of life.

    "This is thest one. If you fail again, you will die with him."

    Even though Tian Kuan¡¯s voice was still calm as usual, one could sense the murderous intent within it. Yan Hai trembled in fear. He knew that Sir¡¯s patience had reached its limit. The pale-white color of his face was able to conceal his anxiety well. Otherwise, one could see his panic with one nce.

    He knew that if he failed at what Sir expected him to do, he would affect Sir¡¯s n and death would be the only way out for him then.

    This was thest chance.

    He took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and tried his best to calm himself down. After five minutes, he opened his eyes again.

    The cloud of blood mist prated the be of thest wood elementalist. Just like before, the elementalist¡¯s body still resisted it fiercely.

    Even though Tian Kuan sounded calm and nonchnt, he actually cared a lot about this situation. He needed to buy more time for his n to work. If he could not take control of a wood elementalist, he had no chance of carrying out his n. Opening the quarantine zone would only bring more chaos to Central Pine City, which was far from his ultimate goal.

    As long as it could buy him more time, he would be a step closer to achieving his final goal.

    It was a pity that he could not master the soul-binding spell and could only ce his hope on Yan Hai.

    Yan Hai¡¯s face was bing increasingly pale, his body was shivering non-stop, and he was drenched in cold sweat. The resistance of the wood elementalist on the ground gradually weakened.

    After a while, the wood elementalist suddenly opened his eyes.

    His eyes were scarlet in color, containing a hollow gaze.

    His eyeballs swivelled a few times and the scarlet disappeared. The hollow gaze also slowly disappeared and was eventually reced by his eye pupils. Other than looking a bit dull, there was nothing weird about his eyes.

    The wood elementalist, who was lying on the floor, quickly stood up and bowed toward Tian Kuan. "Sir!"

    "You did a good job."

    A smile appeared on Tian Kuan¡¯s face.

    As usual, the patrolling elementalists stopped 20 metres away from the quarantine camp. This camp was everyone¡¯s least favorite ce to visit. Everyone would rather battle with the blood fiends than see their family members and friends die in this ce.

    Despair, fear, numbness, devastation. This ce was a green colored hell.

    Even the patrolling elementalists were not willing to get too close to this green colored hell.

    One of the patrolling elementalists yelled from afar, "How¡¯s the situation inside?"

    After a while, a hole appeared on the high wall that was covered with vines and tendrils. Next, a head came out of the hole and replied, "Everything is fine as usual. Do you want toe in and take a look?"

    Upon hearing this, that patrolling elementalist quickly shook his head and answered back, "We are very busy. Bye."

    They did not want to stay any longer. Upon seeing the familiar face of Sun Ke, they turned around and prepared to leave. Everyone sympathized with the Sun Ke trio because this squad was tasked with executing their family members and loved ones. Just thinking about the torment that the three of them had to go through struck fear in everyone¡¯s heart.

    The figure behind Sun Ke kept on observing until the patrolling unit was gone.

    "They have left," Sun Ke said.

    If one listened clearly, he or she could hear that Sun Ke¡¯s voice was slightly deeper than usual. However, no one would notice such an insignificant difference during this chaotic period of time. Fatigue,ck of sleep, and low morale. Everyone would be different than usual.

    The previously nonchnt Tian Kuan began to reveal a tinge of craziness and excitement on his face. He walked to the window and looked at the countless pairs of scarlet eyes. With a voice that contained a tinge of expectation, he muttered, "Our n can begin now."

    .....

    On the fringe of the Heaven Pit, the morning sun cast the shadows of three figures.

    "The weather is beautiful." Shi Xueman squinted her eyes as she basked in the morning sun. Such beautiful weather was extremely rare these days.

    Lou Lan nted his head and asked Ai Hui, "Ai Hui, have you thought of a name for your new sword?"

    "Name?" Ai Hui replied as he observed the Heaven Pit, "Let¡¯s call it Lou Lan¡¯s sword."

    Lou Lant thought pensively before replying, "That does not sound too impressive."

    "Let¡¯s call it Ai Hui¡¯s sword then," Ai Hui answered without even thinking. His gaze carefully scanned every single section of the Heaven Pit. The terrain of the Heaven Pit was quite different from thest time they had visited.

    The continuous influx of blood fiends had significantly impacted the terrain of the Heaven Pit. There had been several mini Heaven Pits appearing around the city. The sandworms had hollowed out several areas beneath Central Pine City.

    "You¡¯re too perfunctory." Shi Xueman was unhappy with Ai Hui¡¯s attitude. "Lou Lan spent so much time and effort to craft this sword for you, how can you treat him like that?"

    Lou Lan was everyone¡¯s beloved. Shi Xueman wished that she could bring Lou Lan home. If she had a sand puppet like Lou Lan, she would treat him very well. Ai Hui¡¯s perfunctory attitude really infuriated Shi Xueman.

    "That¡¯s true." Ai Hui stopped what he was doing and pondered seriously before saying, "A snake can be considered a small dragon. Since the sword is made using the snake vertebrae, let¡¯s call it Dragonspine!"

    "This is a good name," Lou Lan¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Shi Xueman pouted and did not say anything else. From the way she looked at it, Ai Hui¡¯s creativity had reached its limit just bying up with this name.

    "Let¡¯s prepare to go down and see what¡¯s going on inside," Ai Hui instructed in a deep voice. "Lou Lan, remember to record the surrounding terrain and remind us of the location of the node. We have to find a suitable path down. I have already talked to the cksmiths, and the golden needle has veryrge dimensions. Its length is more than five metres and its diameter is around half a metre. Such a huge object would spell trouble if it enters a narrow space. Even though the golden needle is made of metal, it¡¯s still very fragile. It might not work if even a tiny bit of it is damaged."

    Lou Lan was a sand puppet and operating underground was a piece of cake for him. An average person would easily lose his or her sense of direction underground, but it was not a problem for Lou Lan. He could easily and rapidly identify his bearings underground.

    "No problem, Ai Hui," Lou Lan said cheerfully.

    "If we encounter any danger, when I say retreat, both of you have to listen to me and retreat. I will bring up the rear." Ai Hui¡¯s gaze shifted to Shi Xueman and added one more line, "I am confident that we wille back alive."

    "No problem," Shi Xueman nodded her head. With regards to this aspect, Ai Hui was indeed far more capable than her. This fellow¡¯s survivability was matchless.

    "Let¡¯s go!"

    Ai Hui was the first one to jump in. The pitch-ck Heaven Pit devoured him like the wide-open maw of a monster. His bright eyes were like the stars in the night sky, clear and firm.

    Following closely behind Ai Hui, Shi Xueman and Lou Lan jumped into the Heaven Pit.

 Chapter 242: The Transformation Of The Blazing Corals

    Chapter 242: The Transformation Of The zing Corals

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    "Be careful, the terrain has changed a lot," Ai Hui reminded Shi Xueman and Lou Lan softly, his voice containing a tinge of doubt. He found it hard to a establish connection between his impressions of this ce yesterday and today. Within a day, the depths of the Heaven Pit had changed beyond recognition. The unfamiliarity of this ce was not within Ai Hui¡¯s expectations.

    What exactly had happened here in a day¡¯s time?

    A shiver went down Ai Hui¡¯s spine as his face turned grave and stern.

    Shi Xueman was silently trembling with fear. She rarely saw such a facial expression from Ai Hui. A focused Ai Hui always seemed inhuman. Among their generation, Shi Xueman had never met anyone whose psyche wasparable to Ai Hui¡¯s. He was cold and firm like steel. He would have no fear or panic even if a knife was ced against his neck.

    Shi Xueman was not the only who felt this way, and everyone else felt the same about Ai Hui. She discovered this during a private discussion with the others.

    "Ai Hui, the nature of the surrounding boulders and rocks has changed. Their temperature is slight higher" Lou Lan¡¯s glowing yellow eyes kept flickering in the dark.

    "The temperature is higher than before?" Ai Hui reached out his hand and touched the cavern wall beside him. His hand felt warm. The weird thing was he did not feel that the temperature of the surrounding air was very high.

    "Is this caused by the explosion fromst time?" Shi Xueman asked curiously as she touched the soil.

    "No," Lou Lan shook her head, "the amount of fire elemental energy in the rocks and soil exceeds the amount fromst time around. The nature of the elemental energy given off by that explosion is veryplicated. It was not not purely fire elemental energy."

    "Are you able to find out why?" Ai Hui asked.

    "I need some time, Ai Hui," Lou Lan¡¯s glowing yellow eyes continuously flickered. He was the most familiar with matters like soil, rocks, and quicksand. The Midnight core was operating at full speed and was quickly able to identify something strange. "It¡¯s fire elemental energy. The soil has been eroded by an unique type of fire elemental energy. It¡¯s a rarely seen type of fire elemental energy, and its nature is slowly transforming."

    "Its nature is slowly transforming?" Ai Hui asked.

    "Yes, Ai Hui," Lou Lan¡¯s reply came very fast, "its nature is a mixture of fire elemental energy and fire spiritual force. Right now, it¡¯s transforming toward fire spiritual force, but the rate at which it¡¯s transforming is very slow."

    "Fire spiritual force?"

    This conclusion stunned Ai Hui and Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui shivered and asked urgently, "How slow is it? How long before the fire elemental energypletely transforms into fire spiritual force?"

    "Approximately 200 years, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied.

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman heaved a sigh of relief upon hearing the huge number. What happened 200 yearster had nothing to do with them. They were fine with it as long as the transformation did not take ce now. If the transformation was to take ce now, the pressure on them would increase and their chances of surviving would decrease.

    "Why did the fire elemental energy undergo transformation?" Shi Xueman did not seem to get it. "Isn¡¯t elemental energy very stable?"

    Any elementalist that had a bit ofmon sense would have such doubts. Even though everyone was very unfamiliar with spiritual force, they still knew that the nature of elemental energy was much stabler than spiritual force. That was a fact. Otherwise, the Avalon of Five Elements would exist.

    Right now, the stable elemental energy was trying to convert into unstable spiritual force. Thispletely defied logic.

    The flickering yellow light in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes calmed down gradually. He had alreadypleted his analysis. "Thervae, eggs, microorganisms, moss, and underground nts in the soil have been infected with the blood poison. They are devouring elemental energy and converting it into blood spiritual force."

    "Doesn¡¯t that mean the Avalon of Five Elements willpletely disappear in 200 years¡¯ time?" Shi Xueman¡¯s face turned deathly white.

    "If no preventative measures are taken, then yes, Xueman," Lou Lan answered bluntly.

    Ai Hui was speechless. He suddenly thought of the old prisoner. Initially, he frequentlymunicated with that old man, but as the situation worsened, Ai Hui purposely avoided contacting him. With the increased pressure to survive and the fact that the inside story he obtained from the old man was not helpful for the current situation, he only felt deeper despair.

    The inside story had nothing to do with him. All he wanted was to survive the blood catastrophe.

    From the words of the old man, Ai Hui understood a lot of things. The Blood of God had extremely huge ambitions, and their ultimate goal was to topple the Avalon of Five Elements.

    As such, the Blood of God developed the blood poison... the scary blood poison... the blood poison that could change the world...

    Ai Hui felt that the blood poison was the most terrifying creation in the world. It contained the power to change the world, striking both fear and amazement in one¡¯s heart.

    "So are we going to revert back to the Cultivation Era in 200 years?" Ai Hui sighed. If the world was to revert back to the Cultivation Era, there would be a lot of people joining the ranks of the Blood of God. This process would result in the deaths of many people.

    "No, we won¡¯t, Ai Hui," Lou Lan shook his head and answered confidently. "This is because the world would only be left with blood spiritual force, and blood spiritual force can¡¯t dissipate into the air like elemental energy. Blood spiritual force will have to coexist with all living things. All living things will undergo changes due to the blood spiritual force. Currently, lives are already changing. These changes are permanent. Lou Lan can¡¯t predict what the future will look like yet."

    Lou Lan sounded slightly distressed. It was as if he was unhappy with himself that he could not predict anything.

    "Even God does not know what the future will look like." Ai Hui encouraged him, "Lou Lan, you¡¯re already very impressive!"

    "Really?" Lou Lan¡¯s eyes widened, appearing very happy.

    "Of course!" Shi Xueman interjected. She had returned to her senses and decided to leave the vexing global issues to the Elders Guild. She looked at Lou Lan and continued, "Lou Lan is the best sand puppet! The perfect sand puppet! Everyone loves Lou Lan!"

    Whenever she saw Lou Lan, she would feel jealous of Ai Hui. Why did she not have such a good sand puppet?

    "Thank you Xueman!" Lou Lan replied cheerfully.

    "Let¡¯s go, we have to be careful," Ai Hui said in a low voice. "Lou Lan, lead the way."

    "No problem Ai Hui!" Lou Lan replied happily.

    Ai Hui stayed 10 meters behind Lou Lan. If they were to encounter any dangers, he couldunch an attack from Lou Lan¡¯s side in the shortest amount of time.

    Even though the ground was filled with fire elemental energy, it had no effect on Lou Lan.

    They ventured deeper into the Heaven Pit. Even the mayor was shocked when he learned that the first golden needle had to be nailed in the Heaven Pit. After consulting with Wang Shouchuan, thetter¡¯s answer was able to set them at ease. The deeper the golden needle was nailed, the better the effects would be. If they could bypass the possible dangers they might encounter in the Heaven Pit and nail the golden needle in the depths of the pit, it would very beneficial for the "treating the city as a piece of cloth" n.

    The depths of the Heaven Pit was farrger than they had expected it to be. The ce was like an enormous underground maze.

    Without Lou Lan, the difficulty of locating the node would have been many times harder.

    Suddenly, the path ahead was illuminated by a faint red glow.

    In a dark underground world, even a faint glow would appear extremely bright. Immediately, the walking speed of the trio slowed down. Everyone became unusually careful. It was abnormal for a glow to appear in the depths.

    What was ahead of them?

    Everyone was filled with uncertainty.

    Night vision was the basic ability of any subterranean beasts, just like how they were used to hiding in the dark. For a subterranean beast that dared to emit light, either it was powerful or it was trying to use the light as bait.

    Regardless what species they were, all of them were dangerous.

    The three of them slowed down and tiptoedquietly, afraid to make the slightest bit of noise.

    As they proceeded forward, the glow became brighter and brighter.

    The glow originated from the mouth of a cave. Ai Hui and the rest held their breaths as they got closer to the cave entrance and carefully peeked inside. The sight within the cave startled everyone.

    The red glow was produced by red, spear-like crystals. The ground and cave roof were lined with these densely-packed crystals.

    "They look like zing corals!" Shi Xueman cried out in rm.

    "zing corals?" Ai Hui asked.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face contained an indescribable surprise. She quickly exined, "zing corals are a special local product from the Fire Prairie. The ground beneath the Fire Prairie is filled with intertwining rivers ofva and the zing corals grow on the riverbeds of theseva rivers. zing corals are a very expensive type of fire elemental material.

    "Fire elemental material?" Ai Hui muttered to himself. Previously, the Heaven Pit¡¯s entrance contained a strong concentration of fire elemental energy. Now, this ce was filled with such a high-level fire elemental material like the zing corals. What changes was this ce going through exactly?

    "They are zing corals, Ai Hui." A red crystal appeared in Lou Lan¡¯s hand as the yellow light in his eyes began to flicker. "To be precise, these are blood poison-infected zing corals. Ai Hui, take a look, there are blood traces in these crystals."

    Ai Hui took a closer look. Indeed, there was a trace of blood in the transparent red crystal. It was rather obvious.

    "The usually slow-growing zing coral worms are growing at a very fast speed after being infected with the blood poison."

    Before Lou Lan could finish his sentence, several red crystals broke out of the ground, emerging in rapid session. They were quickly growing at a visible speed

    The growing process of the zing corals sent a shiver down everyone¡¯s spine, defying their logic.

    "During the initial stages, living things that are infected with blood poison will grow at a terrifying speed. When they start to form blood traces, their growing speed will reduce. This characteristic is unique to the blood spiritual force," Lou Lan exined. He had a deep understanding toward blood spiritual force.

    "So are you saying that the zing coral worms can form blood traces too?" Shi Xueman was shocked.

    "In theory, they can, but the smaller and simpler an organism is, the harder it will be for it to form blood traces," Lou Lan exined.

    "I wonder what the zing coral worms will look like if they develop blood traces?" Shi Xueman¡¯s voice quivered.

    "I don¡¯t know," Lou Lan shook his head.

    Suddenly, Shi Xueman thought of another issue and her face turned pale. "Then wouldn¡¯t the Fire Prairie be..."

    Given the horrifying speed that these zing corals were growing, what would the zing corals at the Fire Prairie be like?

    "As long as the first strain of blood poison appears, the zing corals will grow in huge bulks," Lou Lan exined. "Xueman, don¡¯t worry, so far there isn¡¯t any news of ces outside of the Induction Ground being infected with blood poison."

    Upon hearing this, Shi Xueman felt slightly at ease.

    "Are these zing corals still usable?" Ai Hui asked Lou Lan. zing coral was a high-grade material. It would be a good thing for them if these zing corals could still be used.

    "They are useless to us, Ai Hui." Lou Lan shattered Ai Hui¡¯s hope. "Their fast growth rate has sharply reduced their sturdiness, hence, they are very fragile. However, they are very useful to blood fiends. The zing coral worms may grow, reproduce, and die very quickly, but the blood spiritual force from the zing corals will continue to exist. The corpses of the zing coral worms contain the aura of life, enabling the blood spiritual force to be preserved.

    "In other words, the zing corals are nourishment for blood fiends?" Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed.

    "Yes, Ai Hui," Lou Lan answered with certainty.

    Ai Hui immediately knew that there would be consequences for barging into the "pasture" of the blood fiends. At the same time, he sensed that something was wrong.

    "Be careful!"

 Chapter 243: Lava Spider

    Chapter 243: Lava Spider

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    A beam of red light erupted from a cluster of zing corals and shot toward Lou Lan.

    Ai Hui¡¯s reaction was extremely fast. The Dragonspine in his hand immediately shed out to block the beam of red light.

    The tip of the sword collided with the red beam.

    Boom!

    The beam of red light exploded and an astonishing wave of energy erupted from the tip of the sword. With a groan, Ai Hui¡¯s body was thrown backward.

    Shi Xueman was able to respond with such a little amount of buffer time. Instead of catching Ai Hui, she jumped over him and thrusted her Cirrus outward. Moving together with her spear, she surged forward.

    Like a copsed sand statue, Lou Lan dissolved in a puddle of quicksand and moved out of the way.

    Shi Xueman was extremely fast, but just as she surged past Lou Lan, another beam of red light erupted from the cluster of zing corals.

    A cold glint shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. Not only did she not dodge the beam of red light, but she took the initiative and jabbed her Cirrus toward it. The beam of red light exploded once more. Shi Xueman¡¯s body swayed, but continued surging toward the cluster of zing corals.

    Another beam of red light erupted from the zing corals.

    Shi Xueman remained calmed. Her hair fluttered as she leapt into the air with her spear.

    The three consecutive beams of red light were deflected by Shi Xueman. Upon seeing this, Ai Hui was bbergasted. The shock wave from the explosion of the red light was enough to knock him off the ground, but the irondy could actually withstand it effortlessly.

    She was truly worthy of the nickname "irondy"...

    After Ai Hui¡¯s time spent admiring Shi Xueman ended, his body immediately copsed on the ground. Then, his left palm pushed off the ground as his body shot forward like an arrow released from a bow.

    His gaze was locked onto a ck figure within the cluster of zing corals.

    As Shi Xueman neared, the ck figure stirred restlessly. It jumped out of the cluster of zing corals and quickly retreated backward.

    Lava spider!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes dted. After spending three years in the Wilderness, he could identify many wild beasts and dire beasts. The millstone-sized spider in front of him right now was the renownedva spider.

    Lava spiders mainly lived inva-filled terrain and were rarely seen in other ces. They were dangerous hunters and their movements were extremely fast. They could hide in theva or camouge themselves with the rocks. The color and the texture of its back resembled a volcanic rock that had cooled.

    Lava spiders could also spurt out scorchingva, hence the name. Aspared to usualva, theva they spurted out was fused with elemental energy, making it hotter and more dangerous.

    Were those beams of red light actuallyva?

    Ai Hui was confused. Those beams of red light had moved too fast, so he could not see what exactly they were. However, the shock wave from the explosion of the red light was terrifyingly powerful.

    Returning to his senses, Ai Hui snuck up to theva spider from another side like a ghost.

    Suddenly, he felt an extremely faint wave of energy.

    Not good!

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. The cloud that shrouded his Dragonspine dissipated abruptly and engulfed his body.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    All the zing corals within the cavern exploded. Since the violent explosions took ce in a small and narrow cavern, the scene was extremely horrifying.

    Fireballs were flying everywhere while a scorching heatwave swept across the entire cavern.

    Ai Hui felt as if he was in a smelting furnace. The shock wave from the explosion contained immense power. When it hit Ai Hui, he did not dare to resist. He could only protect his vital parts and rx his body.

    Thump!

    He was swept up by the shock wave and smashed into a boulder heavily. He felt as if his entire body was going to fall apart. From his rich experience, he knew that even though this methodnded him in a pathetic state, it prevented him from getting severely injured.

    Before his body fully recovered, Ai Hui instinctivelyid prone and scuttled his way forward while sticking to the ground.

    At almost the same time, a shattering sound came from the boulder he had previously smashed into.

    Ai Hui trembled in fear!

    When one encountered a powerful dire beast, he or she should never stay in one ce for more than a second. A veteran once advised him that if he was on a battlefield, he should keep moving and never stop until he was dead. This was especially true for someone with weaker fighting capabilities.

    The body of Ai Hui¡¯s Dragonspine bent as its tip pointed at a boulder.

    A cold glint shed across the sea of zing mes.

    [Misty Strike].

    Swoosh!

    A deafening sonic boom resounded through the air. Afterward, a ng could be heard. It sounded as if the Dragonspine had hit a metal shield.

    From the sound alone, Ai Hui knew that his strike had not broken through the carapace on the back of theva spider. He did not dare to stay at his current position for too long. pping his palms on the ground, his body bounced upward.

    A strong gust sted against Ai Hui¡¯s body, causing him to fall back to his original position.

    Boom!

    A loud boom could be heard beneath him as crushed rocks flew in all directions.

    The zing mes in the cavern had not extinguished yet, so Ai Hui was unable to see anything. With a push off the ground using his hand, his body flew into the air. As he flew, he maneuvered his body into the correct posture based on his senses and channeled the [Big Dipper]. With a flick of his wrist, the Dragonspine carved an arc in the air.

    A crescent moon-like sword beam shot out from the sword and swiftly sted the ground below him.

    He did not care about the result of his attack. Tapping his foot on the roof of the cavern, his figure flew a few hundred meters away.

    The sea of mes had extinguished and the situation in the cavern returned to normal.

    The ground was aplete mess. Previously, theva spider had detonated numerous zing corals, with only a few dimly glowing ones left.

    Shi Xueman revealed herself as well. Her blue-white armor radiated a gentle glow,pletely undamaged. However, Shi Xueman¡¯s face looked somewhat nk. It was most likely due to the shock waves from the multiple explosions. It just so happened that she was in the center of the cavern. That was a ce that Ai Hui would never ever position himself. In such a small cavern, the shock waves from the explosions were bound to converge in the centre of the cavern. Even though Shi Xueman was protected by her armor and was uninjured, the impact from the explosions still hit her squarely.

    Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief. Even though he knew that Shi Xueman would definitely be okay in such a situation, he still felt relieved when he personally saw that she was uninjured.

    Experience was not as good as having good equipment! That blue-white armor must be very expensive...

    Ai Hui silently coveted Shi Xueman¡¯s armour, yet even so, he did not dare to look away from theva spider.

    So ugly!

    The blood traces of theva spider were not obvious. Ai Hui could barely see the blood traces on its belly. It seemed that the weakness of thisva spider was on its belly?

    This was the second blood fiend that Ai Hui encountered which did not have a red body. The first was the me-traced blood ape that he previously encountered. The fighting capabilities of these fiends were obviously stronger than the normal blood fiends fromst time. Ai Hui conjectured that as the blood fiends transformed and evolved to higher levels, the blood color of their bodies would disappear and return to their respective original colors. Only the blood traces would stay.

    ording to this conjecture, wouldn¡¯t the blood fiends¡¯ unique characteristics be unrecognizable as they evolved?

    Theva spider was an extremely ugly dire beast. Even after the blood transformation, it did not be prettier. The soles of its feet had webs. When it dived intova, it would pull its eight limbs beneath its belly. The webs on the its soles would allow it to move about in theva, while its belly was able to store a huge amount ofva. The abundance of elemental energy in theva would provide theva spider with an unending stream of energy. Lava was its weapon, and theva that it spurted out was swift like an arrow. After being blood-transformed, theva-spurting ability was further improved.

    Its abnormally hard and durable head looked as though it was covered with volcanic rocks. Ai Hui¡¯s [Misty Strike] barely left a white mark on it. Even when he utilized the more powerful [Crescent Moon], he had only left a single wound on its back.

    As Ai Hui saw the bright-red wound regenerating and closing up, a shiver went down his spine.

    When Ai Hui saw that theva spider was looking at him with so much hatred in its eyes, he knew that the enormous spider had locked onto him.

    Ai Hui stood in front of Shi Xueman and did not intend tounch any attacks. Shi Xueman had not recovered from the impact of the shock waves.

    She was slowly returning to her senses. All she needed was time.

    The wound on the back of theva spider had fully sealed, forming a ck scab that resembled the kind of blemish that could be found on boulders everywhere. Its eyes widened as its belly suddenly lit up with a red glow, looking as if there was a fire burning within it.

    A premonition arose in Ai Hui¡¯s mind. At this moment, however, he could not retreat and could only stand in front of Shi Xueman, bracing himself for any iing attacks. He clenched his teeth and muttered, "Irondy, you have to pay more money for me saving you..."

    Pop, pop, pop!

    Numerous beams of red light shot out from theva spider¡¯s mouth, resembling torrential rain.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hair stood on end as a strong feeling of danger engulfed his mind. All of his attention was instantly shifted to the airspace in front of him. This was the first time he could clearly see exactly what the beams of red light were.

    They were bean-sizedva globs. Since they moved too fast, they formed a streak of bean-sizedva as they flew through the air, resembling a beam of red light.

    Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy channeled frantically into his sword. The cotton-like honing cloud swiftly transformed into numerous small razor-de shapes that covered the body of the sword, resembling fish scales. Cold air was rising all around Ai Hui. Sword beams of all sizes were gathering on the sword, gradually bing more concentrated and sharper.

    Ai Hui was so focused that his facial expression turned exceptionally solemn. His wrist was so soft and flexible that it was as if there were no bones in it. The Dragonspine in his hand brandished smoothly through the air. Apanied by an unusual cadence, frigidly cold sword rays erupted from his sword.

    The ice-cold sword lights linked and formed a single long sword beam, resembling a gigantic dragon made up of numerous small des that flew and danced in front of Ai Hui. The de dragon¡¯s body sparkled with streaks of silvery lightning, appearing extremely eye-catching in the faint red glow of the cavern.

    Whenever a beam of red light made contact with the de dragon, an explosion would ur. The terrifying power from theva destroyed several portions of Ai Hui¡¯s sword light. Fortunately, Ai Hui¡¯s sword ray contained lightning bolts, which also destroyed several beams of red light. The powerful impacts from the continuous explosions, however, had almost caused Ai Hui to lose his grip on the sword hilt.

    Suddenly, a snow-white spear extended forward from behind Ai Hui, helping him to block the next iing red beam.

    "With a skill level like yours, you still dare to collect money from me?"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s sneer rang across Ai Hui¡¯s ears from his back.

    Before Ai Hui could retort, Shi Xueman flew past him like a gust of wind.

    Facing the torrential rain of red light, Shi Xueman did not show any sign of retreating. As the Cirrus in her hand danced and formed a light shield, she lowered her waist, bent her knees, arched her back, and surged forward!

    With the light shield in hand, she fearlessly surged toward the monstrous, hate-filled eyes and the deadly red light beams like an enraged lion.

    The careless mistake that she had made just now sparked the raging mes within her.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s talents were like his egoistic character, stunning everyone he came across. Regardless of when and where, he would always impress people with the magnificence of his talent.

    Shi Xueman was also known for her talent, but her situation was entirely different from Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s.

    She was born in a prestigious family, she had renowned teachers educating her, and she was born with exceptional potential. However, her scariest traitr was her harsh and strong self-discipline as well as her extraordinary endurance.

    The process of going through countless days of mundane, tough training to temper her body, coupled with exceptional resources and talent, would neither amaze nor impress others out of grandeur, but instead, it was so practical that it filled her opponents¡¯ hearts with despair.

    A burst of matchless strength erupted from the enraged Shi Xueman!

 Chapter 244: A Psychic Attack

    Chapter 244: A Psychic Attack

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    Raging mes throbbed in Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. Braving the storm-likeva, she charged atr theva spider.

    She had been attacked by theva spider immediately upon entering the cave. Although she was safe and sound thanks to her armor and Ai Hui¡¯s assistance, she felt extreme angst for havingnded herself in such a sorry state.

    The continuous high-intensity battles in the city had enhanced herbat experience so significantly that she felt she was bing a veteran fighter.

    Yet, before she could feel proud about this, reality hit her right in the face.

    Ai Hui, who entered the cave at the same time, clearly performed better.

    The explodingva collided incessantly with her dancing Cirrus, but did not raise any waves. The shockingly heavy Cirrus produced astonishingly dreadful power when spinning at a high speed. It stirred up a storm and overturned the soil in the cave. Its low whistle caused the whole cave to tremble.

    It was like a humpback whale swimming in deep space. Nothing could obstruct its path and each time it moved, its body carried enormous weight.

    Naturally, such mighty power came with a high consumption rate. Shi Xueman¡¯s elemental energy was declining at an rming speed.

    Theva spider was stunned by Shi Xueman¡¯s might, its face revealing fear. It shotva frantically while retreating slowly, ready to escape.

    Why would Shi Xueman let it go though?

    She charged forward at an even higher speed now, the white circr wheel disappearing. She took a stride and before her shadow on the ground vanished, her delicate figure appeared in midair. With both hands, she held Cirrus in a tight grip, its height surpassing her head. She exhaled deeply, the brightness in her eyes lit up as she targeted theva spider on the ground before crushing it ruthlessly with Cirrus.

    Buzz!

    The heavy hum was like the sound of an ancient giant swinging and striking with a hefty hammer. The airflow it created made people tremble.

    Fear was evident in theva spider¡¯s eyes as it suddenly screeched.

    Its shriek made Ai Hui feel like an awl had been drilled into his brain. There was a sharp pain in his head and a lifeless look on his face. He recovered very quickly, but his face changed drastically.

    A psychic attack!

    It was his first time experiencing this.

    He had heard from seniors in the Wilderness hunting teams that some powerful dire beasts could attack this way. He could still remember the dread in their eyes as they talked about it. Ordinary elemental energy attacks, no matter how powerful, would have a form and a quality. The most dangerous part of a psychic attack was that it was incorporeal and could hit someone even without their awareness.

    Plus, why would ava spider be able to do this? While these spiders were powerful, they most definitely did not possess such an ability.

    The moment Shi Xueman was struck mentally, Cirrus released a ball of gentle white light that wrapped itself around her.

    Shi Xueman appeared to bepletely unaffected as Cirrus smashed firmly onto the spider¡¯s back like a sledgehammer.

    Boom!

    The whole cave shook. Theva spider was like a wooden stake, pounded directly into the ground.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart chilled. He knew how much that strike hurt theva spider just as an observer. Searching his memories carefully, he was convinced that he had not done anything that truly offended this Iron Lady.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s residual anger made her lift Cirrus yet again, as if it was a club or sledgehammer.

    Boom, boom, boom. One powerful strike came after another, as if she was chopping firewood.

    Ai Hui bore witness to this act of violence as the ground started to sink in from her strikes. He could not resist scanning through all the memories and details in his brain again.

    Yeah, no problem. There was no serious feud between the Iron Lady and himself.

    He sighed a breath of relief and actually had lingering fear despite feeling as if he had been reborn.

    Within the figure cloaked in that exquisite armor hid a terrifying prehistoric dire beast.

    Shi Xueman only stopped to catch her breath after over 10 consecutive smashes. Theva spider had long been etched into the granite rocks, which were as tough as steel.

    It must be painful!

    Ai Hui moved closer to look at the meter longva spider embedded in the ground. Its ck, steel-like carapace was filled with web-like cracks. It was beautifully violent. Ai Hui asked with much sympathy and pity, "Is it dead?"

    "Look and you¡¯ll know," Shi Xueman said mildly, her slender fingers brushing aside the hair that fell in front of her face. Her movements were gentle, the earlier wildness absent.

    Cirrus¡¯s spearhead pierced through theva spider effortlessly.

    Shi Xueman lifted Cirrus up as if nothing had happened. "Dead."

    He really had not offended her right...?

    Ai Hui could not help but to ask himself once again: Why did he feel so uneasy?

    "Do not break the blood crystal." He decided to remind Shi Xueman anyway.

    "Find it yourself." Shi Xueman held onto Cirrus as she walked to the side and sat down.

    As her anger dissipated, Shi Xueman, who had recovered her peace, finally felt the post-traumatic stress.

    She nced at Cirrus. If Cirrus had not blocked theva spider¡¯s psychic attack, she would have been dead by now. Theva spider was right in front of her, so Ai Hui, who was behind her, would have been unable to save her at all.

    "Shi Xueman is so capable!" Lou Lan appeared, cheering loudly.

    "Lou Lan, clean this area up quickly," Ai Hui shouted as he stood beside theva spider. Ever since he realized that Lou Lan¡¯s butchering skills exceeded his, he had decided to leave it all to him.

    "Coming!"

    Lou Lan was always so happy.

    When it came to sweeping up the battleground, Ai Hui believed that even with 10 of him , he would not match up to one Lou Lan. Not long ago, he was still convinced that he was the veteran in this aspect.

    Luckily, the blood crystal was not broken and its quality was pretty good.

    Sadly, the spider¡¯s carapace was crushed by Shi Xueman. Lou Lan¡¯s processing standards had improved, and hepletely peeled the shell off the spider¡¯s abdomen. Lou Lan said that there were no internal organs in its abdomen. Instead the abdomen storedva and, hence, was best suited for fire elementalists to make ava pouch out of it. It wasmonly known as a "spider pouch."

    It might not look big, but its storage was much greater than therge fire tank Fatty carried around. Post blood-refinement, its quality became even more outstanding, far exceeding that of ordinary spider pouches.

    Fire elementalists¡¯va was more potent than naturalva, so the requirements for its container were higher. The better the receptacle, the more potent the fire elementalists¡¯va could be.

    Fatty¡¯s luck was not bad. Ai Hui felt happy for him.

    Not only would color-faded blood beasts be more powerful, their blood crystals would be worth much more and their bodies would strengthen significantly. Ai Hui guessed that these were the result of the blood spiritual force¡¯s tempering and strengthening processes. More often than not, the more outstanding ingredients came from elemental energy tempering.

    With regard to tempering, ancient blood-refinement had an obvious advantage.

    Even flying swords would not be able to take down refined vampires and drought demons.

    Blood beasts disyed the same traits. Their bodies were enhanced after undergoing blood-refinement. This wasn¡¯t as apparent for blood elementalists, but Ai Hui had only seen one blood elementalist after all. One thousand yuan¡¯s demonic temperament made it hard for people to associate her with toughness like copper skin and iron bones.

    That floating red skirt, eerie smile, and beautiful silhouette shed across Ai Hui¡¯s mind, bringing a chill down his spine.

    After cleaning up, everyone forged ahead. Shi Xueman had also recovered her strength by now.

    With the appearance of theva spider, Ai Hui and Shi Xueman became more cautious.

    Thinking back, theva spider was really sly. Right from the start, it had nned to lure them into the fire coral-filled cave and detonate the coral.

    It did not expect to meet a freak like Ai Hui, who would take advantage of it like that.

    Then, it met the crazy Shi Xueman and deliberately allowed her to get close so it could execute its killer psychic attack.

    Sadly, theva spider was just unlucky. Its psychic attack was ineffective against Cirrus, so it got killed instead.

    If there had been anyplications with these two circumstances, however, both of them would have been in danger today.

    No one could guarantee that their luck would be this good next time.

    Ai Hui remained vignt, but they never met anotherva spider along the way. Nheless, there were many blood-refined fire corals everywhere. Ai Hui felt it was weird that there were so many fire corals around. Plus, their growth rate should not be this fast?

    Ai Hui stopped in his tracks. "Could there be ava river below?"

    Lou Lan crooked his head while thinking. "Very possible. Fire corals andva spiders are organisms that live in theva zone. It is highly likely that there is ava river beneath."

    Ai Hui continued, asking, "Will there be other organisms in theva river?"

    Shi Xueman quickly caught onto Ai Hui¡¯s train of thought. While underground, theva river offered light and heat, so it was just like any water river orke above ground and would be a ce where subterranean organisms gathered.

    No matter how powerful, there would not be only one organism monopolizing anyva river.

    "There must be." Lou Lan nodded.

    "Lou Lan, take note of the concentration of fire elemental energy in the nearby region. We might be able to locate the general position of theva river. When nailing the gold needles, we must guard against fire elemental dire beasts. Oh, and blood beasts," Ai Hui muttered.

    "Okay." Lou Lan nodded.

    "Which way should we go now?" Ai Hui questioned.

    Lou Lan pointed at a rock wall. "This way. The ce to nail the golden needle is 400 meters down. I suggest we open up a passage directly. To go through the cave passage would be a long way, and it might lead to theva river. It would be safer for us to carve a straightforward opening."

    "Open up a passage directly?" Ai Hui was stunned. He examined the solid granite rocks. It was easy for him to break one piece, but to dig a 400 meter long passage was simply too much work considering that it had to be rather wide to fit the volume of the golden needle.

    "Indeed. Leave it to me." Lou Lan took up the task spontaneously.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. What he deemed challenging was a piece of cake for Lou Lan. Lou Lan was a sand puppet. Controlling earth elemental energy was his inherent ability.

    Ai Hui felt great pride.

    Is there anything in this world that my all-purpose Lou Lan can¡¯t do?

 Chapter 245: Wanna Be Human?

    Chapter 245: Wanna Be Human?

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    He Yong looked on listlessly at the densely packed vine creepers. They hung down like snakes, their ends slightly moving. They would flock to whichever wounded person who made any movement. He Yong was a brave wood elementalist. The vines he once treated as his partner were now indicting him cruelly.

    From his initial fear to his copse to the numbness he felt now, He Yong already knew he had no hope of surviving.

    At this point, he was actually less afraid. He was merely waiting for the Death God¡¯s arrival.

    Without hope, people were able to feel calm instead. Comin? There was nothing toin about. Death meant the end. Killing his partners with his own hands had brought greater and endless suffering.

    His trial had already started when he was infected with the blood poison.

    The blood poison spread inside his body and he felt a terrifying, ferocious beast awakening within. He would rather die a quiet death as a wounded soldier in the military camp than lose consciousness and start attacking humans like a wild beast. He would rather die than use this body to kill his friends and family.

    Death did not arrive immediately. The blood poison was still spreading.

    The moments before death often made people reflect on all that they had done in life. While he had not aplished anything significant his whole life, had not earned a lot of money, had not achieved great sess, and had some unfulfilled wishes, he was already very content.

    He had a cute child, a beautiful wife, and most importantly, they were still alive.

    He had pushed them aside at thest moment. Feeling proud of his bravery, there was no better ending than this.

    He was going to die, but they would live on nicely. That was enough for him.

    He felt lucky in fact. All he needed to do now was to enjoy hisst moments of glory as he waited for the arrival of death.

    The blood poison spread very quickly and he could feel the changes within his body. It was not weak. Rather, it was filled with power. Impetuous power. Thoughts of massacre and the intention to kill emerged in his head continuously, growing uncontrobly like wild weeds.

    His body was strengthening, his nails bing as sharp as feline ws. In the middle of the night, he could hear sounds of bones growing. His flesh was bing thicker, and his hair was growing at a visible speed. His voice became coarser, more turbid, and he even started howling lowly like a wild beast.

    His vision became blood red. He stirred restlessly. Any tiny bit of sound greatly provoked his murderous instincts.

    He started losing control over his body and would attack anyone who came near.

    He Yong noticed that his control was rapidly declining, but he was not that afraid. It happened to the other wounded people as well. The spread of the blood poison would beastify them, turning them into dangerous blood fiends who frantically attacked everything around them.

    At this time, the vines above his head would make the final judgment and end his life.

    He Yong knew that his time was almost up. The closer he came, the more he felt that death was a form of release. He could not control his body. His mind was filled with evil thoughts, unable to recall the beautiful moments of his life or the beautiful smiles on his wife and child¡¯s faces.

    What was the point of living like this? The thought that his family would see him in this ugly state made him tremble. Whenpared to that, death meant nothing.

    It was time to end everything.

    Come on!

    Yet, what he feared happened. The fluttering vines continued swaying leisurely above his head, as if he was not there.

    Kill me quickly!

    He shouted madly, but only angry, beast-like grunts came out of his throat.

    The vines above had no reaction whatsoever.

    Why?

    An insane bloodlust overtook his body and mind, exploding suddenly. The scarlet red world was like a tide that upied his vision and brain. His remaining rationality shrank into a corner, witnessing everything that was happening. His body felt so foreign and was no longer under his control.

    All of a sudden, he pounced on the person closest to him, his hands full of sharp nails that effortlessly pierced into the victim¡¯s body.

    What he got in return was a beast-like bellow.

    The whole camp turned into a cruel wrestling ring.

    Looking down at the fight that was currently raging, Yan Hai¡¯s heart was filled with frigid air. Thousands of people killing simultaneously... such a chaotic, bloody scene made his hands and feet icy. He had never thought of himself as a good person, but the sight before him still frightened him.

    What he feared more was the person beside him. The mastermind of it all, Sir Tian Kuan.

    Half had fallen in the blink of an eye. The wild beasts¡¯ angry grunts became sparser as well. Corpses and crisscrossing streams of fresh blood filled the ground. It was simply a bitter and bleak looking battleground.

    Tian Kuan fiddled with the nts unhurriedly.

    The densely packed vines grew swiftly, and like agile snakes, they dipped into the bloodpool. They suctioned and absorbed the fresh blood greedily, as if they were tasting a delicacy. Blood red wisps invaded the tender greenery, producing an exceptionally demonic effect.

    "This fresh blood is first-rate fertilizer. It cannot be wasted," Tian Kuanmented indifferently.

    Yan Hai quivered. "Sir, your subordinate is slow-witted. There¡¯s something I don¡¯t quite understand," he started to say, but not without hesitation.

    "Oh, what do you not get?" Tian Kuan replied casually.

    Yan Hai questioned carefully, "These wounded soldiers were infected by the sacred blood and are already our people. Isn¡¯t this... a pity?"

    "A pity?" Tian Kuan burst outughing. "You think it¡¯s a pity?"

    Yan Hai stammered, "What I meant was that if this many people were to team up, their power would bemendable."

    Tian Kuan smiled. "I only need useful people. There are many of them, but the majority are useless. I only need the cream of the crop. 50 of them is all I need."

    Yan Hui trembled inwardly, his legs fighting to remain straight. Cold sweat poured down his back.

    "Filtering 50 out from a few thousand is enough of a chance given to them." Tian Kuanughed lightly. "If they die, it only means that they were too weak. Only victors have the right to gain that opportunity."

    Yan Hai was full of regrets. How could he have forgotten? Sir became a victor himself by surviving such elimination methods.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s gaze fell onto the battlefield, the smile on his face growing.

    "Wanna be human? Not so easy."

    The number of survivors decreased as the vines became plumper and replete with fresh blood. They were like demonic, yet quick-witted, blood snakes.

    Only 50 were left on the field and those demonic blood red vines flocked toward them, binding them tightly. They were like wild beasts, yelling and struggling.

    "Look, these are the strongest 50. Only the victors will have a chance of survival." Tian Kuan paused, a smile breaking out. "And a reward."

    He extended one leg out of the window, and the blood red vines rushed over from all directions like a tide, forming a flight of stairs beneath his feet.

    With the aura of a ruler, Yan Hai descended the interwoven vine steps.

    Behind him, Yan Hai crept forward, his heart filled with reverence.

    Tian Kuan mumbled to himself, "No wonder so many people enjoy borrowing outside forces. It feels pretty good."

    The survivors raised their heads and red at Tian Kuan, their red pupils filled with indignation and wrath. They snarled at Tian Kuan.

    The anguished wailings of the wounded was a big blow to morale, so the quarantine camp made special arrangements. The vines produced a soundproofing effect, so earth-shattering bellows would not be heard from the outside at all.

    "Respect the strong yers."

    Tian Kuan¡¯s smile carried a tinge of callousness, emitting a rich bloody glow.

    The bloody glow was imposing and overbearing. Still bound by the blood vines, the anger in the survivors¡¯ eyes instantly vanished as fear took over, and they started trembled uncontrobly. Plop! All of them fell and crouched on the ground when the blood vines released their grip.

    Yan Hai¡¯s body was shaking as well. He finally knew how frightful Sir¡¯s abilities were.

    The bloody glow surrounding Sir made him fear andply. Not a single rebellious thought surfaced in his brain. The temperature of the blood within his body fell rapidly, as if he was in a cold, icy ce.

    "Congrattions, a new opportunity awaits. An opportunity is always given to the victor as a prize."

    That voice amid the bloody glow was imposing, yet enticing.

    He Yong was shivering from the chill. His body trembled. Just like how wild beasts react toward their predators, his urge to kill was gone and reced by obedience and fear, which instinctively settled in the deepest part of his body

    He lostplete control of his body.

    That remaining trace of reason shook amongst the tide-like scarlet red. He saw himself killing an unfamiliar elementalist who was close by as well as a friend of 20 years. One after another, some foreign and some acquaintances...

    His palms were covered in fresh blood.

    He was like a bystander, fearfully watching the crazy massacre. During that nonstop ughter, hisst bit of barely existing reason floated helplessly amid the raging tide of attacks. The thrill of killing was so distinct, so dreadful.

    No...

    He just wanted to die. To end it all.

    The red bloody glow enveloped his world, and the voice within said, "An opportunity is always given to the victor as a prize."

    Opportunity...

    The wild beasts started to stir, theirst thread of reason on the verge of copsing. What opportunity could it be?

    "How does it feel being like a wild beast? Uncontroble, killer instinct... does it feel very terrible? Do you want to gain control of it all? Gain control of your bodies? You can restart. Restart everything and regain control of everything. You can live on happily, start a new life, and be a human once again."

    "Wanna be human?"

    Amid the red light, that voice was at times misty and remote and at times up-close.

    "Wanna be human?"

    ...

    "Wanna be human?"

    Like an echo, he questioned over and over again.

    He Yongst trace of reason almost crumbled. Memories of his first meeting with his wife, how he taught his child to walk, how he blocked the blood fiends, and how he saw that his family was safe and sound shed across his mind. Peace befell his heart.

    Not everything can be restarted because not everything can be given up on.

    "No..."

    The wild beast¡¯s low howl was exceptionally clear.

    Tian Kuan was rather surprised. "What a pity."

    The blood vines suddenly stretched taut and pierced into the back of the wild beast¡¯s head, causing its body to stiffen as the luster in its red eyes faded. The blood vines withdrew, and the wild beast¡¯s corpse fell onto the ground. An indescribable calmness was evident on its hairy face.

    "Next."

    "Wanna be human?"

 Chapter 246: The Invulnerable Reason

    Chapter 246: The Invulnerable Reason

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X

    The atmosphere in the magistrate court was tense. Nine golden needles werepleted, stirring up much excitement, but also tremendous anxiety for everybody. Once the next part of the n started, there was simply no room for errors.

    To save time, the node at the Heaven Pit was handed over to Ai Hui and his group while the other eight nodes were distributed to other teams to investigate.

    Teams came back consecutively to report, and so far, there was only good news.

    The "treating the city as a piece of cloth" n was the key element for Central Pine City¡¯s survival. The mayor and dean ced high hopes on it. Honestly, the fact that things could drag on until now was already far beyond their expectations. This also gave them sufficient time toplete the "treating the city as a piece of cloth" n.

    Perhaps it was the session of good news that significantly lifted the dean¡¯s mood . His tone became lighter as well. "Only Ai Hui and his group are left now."

    "Yes, only their side is left," Mayor Wang Zhen spoke ruefully. Only they knew how hard it was to survive for this long.

    "I never thought you would task Ai Hui with the Heaven Pit." The dean felt somewhat woeful as well. He now had faith in Wang Zhen since things would have been worse if not for the decisions made by thetter during critical times.

    As if he had thought of something, Wang Zhenughed as he replied, "It wasn¡¯t easy at all to get Ai Hui to do something. We have been offering Heaven Merit Points, rewards, and training methods to entice him. There¡¯s no one in Central Pine City richer than him."

    The dean burst outughing too. "That¡¯s not too bad. At least you only gave out the rewards after receiving his services. You should¡¯ve seen what he was like when talking over conditions with me. No mercy!"

    With a smiling expression, Wang Zhen asked, "So you¡¯re trying to say that I must agree since he was finally willing to take on this responsibility?"

    "I just have no idea what¡¯s going on inside." Concern was evident in the principal¡¯s face. "We should¡¯ve gone with them."

    "Don¡¯t worry." Wang Zhenforted. "We¡¯ve not seen all of Ai Hui¡¯s abilities. Plus, Shi Xueman is with him so what could go wrong? That fellow has the level-headedness of a general. It¡¯s thanks to him, and not us, that the city is still standing."

    The principal nodded.

    Without Ai Hui, the consequences of the war on Long Street would be unimaginable. The oue of the Heaven Pit battle would have been different if not for Ai Hui¡¯s reminder to dive.

    Any hesitation at that point would have led to apletely different result.

    Twice, during desperate crises, it had been Ai Hui who pulled strongly against the crazy tides.

    "A chaotic world creates heroes, eh." Wang Zhen was somewhat moved. "Seeing the progress of that fellow, from a student to ¡®The Lightning de,¡¯ really reminds us of our old age. The world belongs to the youngsters now."

    The principal sighed. "Yeah, I only hope for them toe out of it safely."

    "They will." Wang Zhen¡¯s tone was exceptionally certain. "We persevered and sacrificed so many people not so we would just fail. We will start nailing the golden needles once Ai Hui and his people are back."

    In the dark subterranean world, the rolling waves of theva river carried bright, glittering sparks.

    Two silhouettes, one male and the other female, flew and fought at an extremely high speed. A green arrow ray and red bloody glow collided continuously in midair. Thedy was dressed in red and her poses were strange, appearing and disappearing in the air like a demon. The man was holding a bow and arrow while following closely behind, his movements as fast as lightning.

    Wherever they were, sand and rocks flew everywhere as they filled the air with fiery rain from theva river.

    It could be seen that neither dared to fight too recklessly since they were thousands of kilometers underground. If they fought too hard and triggered a copse around them, they would be buried alive. No matter how strong they were, there was no chance of survival if they were trapped.

    "Vice Division Leader Yu has been chasing me for five days. Are you my admirer? Following me so closely."

    The reddy¡¯sughter echoed between the rocks as a green arrow ray pierced through her body from behind. Yet, it did not prate her body, butnded among the rocks. The red silhouette in midair faded as it was actually an afterimage.

    "It¡¯s vice division leader."

    Deadpan, Yu Mingqiu corrected thedy¡¯s mistake as the bowstring in his hand moved lightning fast. An arrow ray was swiftlyunched at the red shadow that appeared from the other side, but again, it went through an afterimage and struck a wall.

    From the time he searched for her aimlessly to the time he reached her, he immediately noticed that her strength was linked to the blood poison in countless ways and pursued her even more actively.

    Thedy¡¯s appearance verified some of his conjectures. The blood poison disaster in the Induction Ground was a plot! He had wanted to capture and interrogate the opponent to find out more about the mastermind, but was shocked by her strength.

    Both had been fighting for five days and nights, but there had not been a winner so far!

    Yu Mingqiu had extreme confidence in his abilities since he was the vice division leader of a division after all. In all of the Avalon of Five Elements, his ability was among the top.

    Yet, he quickly found that his opponent¡¯s ability was not beneath his.

    What surprised him more was the fact that instead of elemental energy, her body contained a very foreign force. Blood poison, blood disaster, mysteriousdy, unknown force, misleading background...

    He was indescribably shaken, knowing he was on the brink of obtaining the truth.

    He had to take his opponent down no matter what. This exceptionally seductivedy in red was the biggest clue.

    Yu Mingqiu was like dogskin ster, pestering her nonstop and not giving up even after five days and nights of chasing.

    "Vice division leader? You really look down on me." Thedy in redughed gently and unreliably. "The Avalon of Five Elements is no fun, why not join us? I¡¯ll reserve a division leader position for you. This promise I can fulfill."

    "Vice division leader position... you¡¯re talking like it¡¯s real," Yu Mingqiu said dismissively.

    "Yes, the timing¡¯s just right. We are preparing to establish 13 divisions, so this is an extremely rare opportunity. If you miss it, it¡¯d be difficult to talk about the division leadert position. Perhaps Brother Yu will meet a few familiar faces. Not everyone is as stubborn as you."

    Yu Mingqiu was slightly shaken inside, but his movements were not sluggish. "Familiar faces? Come, tell me a few names and I¡¯ll see."

    "Hehe, join us and you¡¯ll know, Brother Yu."

    Both had been using such banter to sound each other out for the past five days.

    Thedy in red felt gloomy too. Her time in Central Pine City had not gone smoothly, and then she had to bumped into Yu Mingqiu and became tangled with him. Initially, seeing that Yu Mingqiu was exhausted, she had nned to capture him. Yet, Yu Mingqiu was outstandingly tough. Not only did she fail to defeat him, she got harassed by him.

    "I¡¯m so cool, yet you¡¯re trying to use a mere division leader position to get rid of me? Don¡¯t look down on me!"

    A whole chain of words flew out of his mouth rapidly as his arm movements sped up as well.

    Thedy in red did not drop her guard and easily dodged his attacks. "It¡¯s a pity that you¡¯re not interested, Brother Yu. Five days have passed. I wonder if the people waiting for your rescue are still alive or have fallen into the blood fiends¡¯ mouths. Seeing that you¡¯reing for me so relentlessly, we must be closely rted?"

    Yu Mingqiu burst outughing. "Unable to escape, it¡¯s depressing eh?"

    "I¡¯m just curious as to why you would chase after me so closely and diligently?" thedy in red asked with an innocent face.

    Yu Mingqiu answered righteously, "Because I¡¯m lost."

    "Lost..." Thedy in red was baffled by his reply and was unable to connect the dots.

    "Between going after you and finding my way, I think the former is easier." Yu Mingqiu¡¯s reason was invulnerable.

    "..."

    It was even moreplicated underground. Both were lost at this point and knew not where they were. Thedy in red moved forward and along theva river since there were numerousva river tributaries that were certainly unobstructed. On the other hand, those seemingly open, essible cracks and caves easily led to dead ends.

    She would have no choice, but to grapple with Yu Mingqiu if they reached a dead end.

    It was not her n to engage in a face-off with such a strong opponent right now.

    She did not want to waste any more time on Yu Mingqiu. While he seemed to be carefree on asion, his thoughts were often borate. Any slight carelessness on her part will allow him to mislead her easily.

    The determination disyed by Yu Mingqiu made her understand what kind of strength and abilities such a fearsome opponent possessed.

    What she needed now was time. If she had some more time, she could easily use her beast subjugation spells to subdue a powerful blood-traced fiend. With its help, she could then gain equal footing and attack Yu Mingqiu from there.

    Suddenly, she noticed a wispy, faintly discernable magma odor in the air.

    The nearestva river was about 50 meters away from where she was, and there was an open zone in the vicinity. This wisp of magma odor, mixed with blood spiritual force, produced unique undtions. The surrounding traces of zing corals being eaten jolted her mind.

    Lava spider!

    Judging from the leftover blood spiritual force undtions, it was a highly-transformedva spider. It was likely to be a "blood-faded"va spider.

    When the blood traces that the blood fiends developed started to stabilize, their blood-colored bodies would fade. They would then be termed "blood-faded" when their skin and fur recovered its natural color.

    Apletely blood-faded blood fiend looked no different from regr wild beasts, but were stronger and much more powerful. Blood-fading was a sign that the blood traces on the fiends¡¯ bodies were thoroughly stabilized. They would enter a whole new realm at this point.

    If she could engage the help of theva spider, she could definitely get rid of Yu Mingqiu.

    Killing a vice division leader was a considerably impressive contribution. If she had better luck and could capture him alive, she would have a heavyweight subordinate.

    No matter how loyal, one would not be able to resist the Blood of God.

    How could mere mortals resist it?

    With a twist of her body, she suddenly made her way into the narrow crevice.

    Yu Mingqiu was stunned. Not good! He chased after her hurriedly.

    For the past five days, thedy in red had been fleeing along theva river instead of threading through any crevices. Such a sudden change caught him off guard and slightly dyed his reaction time.

    This little dy caused him to lose sight of her upon entering the crevice.

    Luckily, there was only one path. Without a word, he sped forward.

 Chapter 247: Reunion of Old Friends

    Chapter 247: Reunion of Old Friends

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    "It¡¯s right in front, Ai Hui."

    Right after Lou Lan spoke, the wall in front of them suddenly melted and copsed, revealing a dark cavern.

    Behind the three of them was arge passage about seven meters high and six meters wide. The entire passage was an astonishing 400 meters in length and was created by Lou Lan alone.

    Lou Lan¡¯s exceptional abilities often left Ai Hui feeling like a tourist.

    Seeing Lou Lan¡¯s entire process first hand, Shi Xueman could not resist offering incessant praise. "Lou Lan is amazing! Wow, truly amazing! Lou Lan is definitely the world¡¯s most amazing sand puppet!"

    Creating a 400-meter passage this deep underground was no mean feat. The ground was lined with huge, solid rocks and building a tunnel of this scale would probably require at least 10 earth elementalists working for an entire night. Lou Lan, however, was able to do it with ease, leaving Shi Xueman in awe.

    Besides following the wrong person, Lou Lan did not seem to have any ws.

    Shi Xueman stared at Ai Hui angrily. She felt that Ai Hui was unworthy of such an amazing sand puppet, it was like casting pearls before swine! She imagined what it would be like if Lou Lan followed her home. Oh, what a fine time they¡¯d have!

    "Why are you ring at me like that?"

    The Iron Lady continued to re angrily at Ai Hui. Ai Hui felt that she was being ridiculous, especially since he had not even done anything to provoke her.

    "Hmph!" Shi Xueman snorted as she turned her gaze away.

    Ai Hui entered the cavern and began to examine his surroundings. This cavern was much smaller than the one with theva spider, but the golden needle was still able to fit in it.

    Lou Lan had found the right ce!

    Ai Hui could sense that the elemental energy here was much more vigorous than that of other ces.

    He had seen his master¡¯s n and recognized that the nodes involved were something that they had discussed before. His master believed that the world¡¯s elemental energies were not stationary, but ever flowing. Its slow movement was the reason why it appeared to be stationary.

    ording to his master¡¯s theory, the force driving these movements was the constant cycling of the five elements.

    This was the secret of the nodes. Here, the five elements cycled into a whirlpool of energy. The elemental energy around these nodes were influenced by its activity, making it flow.

    Current studies involving the five elements rarely touched upon this aspect, so there were not many full-fledged theories regarding the nodes. Many of his master¡¯s preliminary ideas were proven as a result of the current n¡¯s execution.

    His master had discussed his deepened understanding of the subject matter when theyst met.

    Ai Hui snapped out of his daze and began to inspect the cavern. It appeared to have been formed by flowing water, something evident from the stctites hanging above. The floor wasrgely uneven and was marked by many slippery gulches. There were two natural crevices situated at the corners of the cavern. A stream could be seen through only one of them, but the other was most likely formed as a result of water erosion as well. Ai Hui could hear the sound of flowing water through both of them.

    Small streams were probably responsible for shaping this interesting underground environment, whileva acted as its main source of light.

    Ai Hui felt extremely relieved that there were no zing corals around.

    Subterranean dire beasts were dangerous creatures to begin with and were even more deadly after turning into subterranean blood fiends. If the Iron Lady had not gone on a rampage against theva spider, Ai Hui would not have had much confidence in defeating it.

    Ai Hui could feel how different he had be.

    Without the sword embryo¡¯s state, Ai Hui¡¯s senses were not as keen as before. His perceptive range had reduced greatly, an immense disadvantage in this dark,plex, underground environment. On the bright side, his understanding of swordy had deepened tremendously, and he was now more conscious of his sword movements. At the moment of contact between his de and his target, Ai Hui could now react faster and more rationally than before.

    The unique sword pills of elemental energy in his body, coupled with his achievement of elemental internalization, had increased his strength by arge amount. The electricity that remained in his flesh had been channeled into his hand pces as well as his earth pce, imparting a distinct lightning vor to his elemental energy.

    All things considered, he was much more formidable than he used to be.

    Although he was more powerful, the enemies he had to face were simrly also bing more powerful. He often experienced situations where his improvements were practically cancelled out.

    Shi Xueman stuck closely to Ai Hui, ready to provide assistance when required. Having had experience in leading a team, she had be much more ustomed to cooperating with others. While it was difficult to persuade her to do certain things, Shi Xueman often quickly adopted practices that she deemed useful.

    Ai Hui decided to further examine the crevice for signs of activity. He would ask Lou Lan to seal it up if no such signs were found.

    The same would apply for the other crevice.

    Ai Hui felt a cold, biting wind blowing out from the crevice as he neared it. Instead of hastily entering it, Ai Hui stopped a short distance away, listening intently for any anomalies. Shi Xueman stood nearby, holding her breath. She knew that Ai Hui was much more experienced in such situations than her. Although she often looked at him with disdain, Shi Xueman had absolute faith in Ai Hui¡¯s decisions regardingbat rted matters.

    Nothing out of the ordinary was heard.

    Ai Hui walked closer toward the crevice. Just as he was about to enter the crevice, a premonition arose in his heart.

    His body reacted immediately. The limp Dragonspine in Ai Hui¡¯s hand immediately shot up and straightened like a cobra that had sensed danger as he swiftly stepped backward.

    Ding!

    Just as the Dragonspine¡¯s tip made contact, the seven sword pills of elemental energy within his body simultaneously exploded.

    Ai Hui flew backward as if he had been hit by a heavy blow.

    A gentle gasp of surprise could be heard from the crevice.

    Right after, a red sh shot out of the crevice directly at Ai Hui.

    Shi Xueman stepped forward with her spear raised and urately stabbed the red sh.

    The immense force of Cirrus managed to scatter the red sh, but the impact forced Shi Xueman several steps back.

    Both Ai Hui and Shi Xueman were slightly surprised that theirbined effort was so easily deflected. The two of them stood on opposite sides facing the cave while assuming an offensive stance.

    A reddish figure slowly walked out of the crevice.

    Ai Hui took a good look at the person walking out, and blurted, "It¡¯s you!"

    Thedy in red was surprised to see Ai Hui. "So it¡¯s you."

    Shi Xueman was amazed by thedy in red¡¯s beauty.

    She had a refined, wless face and a beauty that was suffocating. Her smoky eyes were reminiscent of mist floating gently above a body of water. The red robe that she wore was like a coil of crimson smoke that wrapped elegantly around her splendid figure. She looked like she had just walked out of a dense fog and was shrouded temptingly in mystery.

    Her fine, delicate, red lips lit up the dense fog and highlighted the fair skin on her exquisite corbone. The small movements her lips made when she breathed were incredibly seductive.

    Shi Xueman would describe her as unimaginably coy.

    Since her looks and behavior were always in the spotlight, Shi Xueman never thought much about appearances.

    Thisdy in red standing before Shi Xueman had somehow triggered a sort of awareness in her.

    The two of them had met before...

    This sudden realization hit Shi Xueman, and she inadvertently turned her gaze toward Ai Hui. She had no idea why she was looking at him, but the movement was instinctive.

    Shi Xueman felt the pressure enveloping her evaporate when she saw Ai Hui¡¯s body tense up in anticipation of a formidable opponent.

    She regained her focus and gripped her spear tightly. She was secretly rejoicing in Ai Hui¡¯s misfortune.

    Looks like this scoundrel had suffered in her hands before!

    This was the first time she had seen Ai Hui so tense in front of an enemy. Furthermore, the strength the reddy had just demonstrated was quite amazing.

    Shi Xueman, however, was not scared one bit. In fact, she was eager to engage.

    Thedy in red nced at Shi Xueman, a look of adoration glistening in her eyes. Shi Xueman¡¯s outwardly cold demeanor went well with her beautiful features. Combined with her resolute brows and the suave armor on her body, Shi Xueman was indeed a lovely sight to behold.

    "I see you¡¯ve found a new me so soon. What a heartless scoundrel."

    Thedy in red spoke faintly, with grief and heartbreak written all over her face.

    Ai Hui stared at her with unblinking eyes. He lowered his body ever so slightly as he adjusted his breathing. His five fingers drummed slowly against his sword hilt, rxing and tensing each digit at different intervals. He gradually rxed his stiffened body.

    He knew just how dangerous this enigmaticdy was, just how much power she really possessed.

    She was definitely high on Ai Hui¡¯s list of opponents he would not want to meet.

    It seemed however, that there was nowhere to run.

    "Be careful, she¡¯s a blood elementalist," stated Ai Hui.

    Shi Xueman was slightly taken aback upon hearing that. Blood elementalist!

    She had never heard of this term before, but she quickly understood who they were facing. Countless questions flooded her mind, but the most pertinent one slipped out of her mouth in a grave tone. "They are the ones behind this blood disaster?"

    "That¡¯s right," Ai Hui replied matter-of-factly.

    Thedy in red noticed the pair¡¯s unease and smiled slightly. Her gaze brightened as itnded on Ai Hui. "Your improvement is quite astonishing, and you¡¯re indeed someone worthy of catching my eye. You broke my heart when you left without saying goodbye. I never thought we¡¯d reunite again. Looks like it¡¯s heaven¡¯s will."

    Compared to that troublesome Yu Mingqiu, the young man in front of her was slightly weaker, but had way more potential.

    Theva spider¡¯s presence helped her to deduce that the crevice provided a clear path. Her sudden actions had enabled her to momentarily slow Yu Mingqiu¡¯s reactions, allowing her to utilize theplex geography of the caves to throw him off.

    She had nned to tame theva spider before killing or capturing Yu Mingqiu.

    She was not expecting to meet Ai Hui, much less see him improve this much.

    Ai Hui¡¯s ability to withstand the blood poison had surprised her greatly. Since then, she had not stopped wondering how Ai Hui managed to escape. She was shocked to see that he did not be a blood elementalist, but even more surprised so to see him improve by leaps and bounds.

    This fellow must be hiding something!

    A sinister glint shed in her eyes. Let¡¯s see if you manage to escape this time.

    Standing therergely unnoticed by thedy in red, Shi Xueman seethed with rage. She had always thought that the blood disaster was a natural disaster. Turns out it wasn¡¯t.

    How many had died in this disaster?

    I don¡¯t know!

    How many people were currently experiencing fear and despair at the hands of an imminent death?

    No idea!

    This was unforgivable!

    Shi Xueman¡¯s anger boiled over, and all she could see were mes of rage. Her heart was filled with pure, unadulterated hatred. Destroy her!

    She thrust her trusty spear forward without uttering a single word!

 Chapter 248: Tree Spiritâ€™s Blood

    Chapter 248: Tree Spirit¡¯s Blood

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    Shi Xuemanshed out hatefully, putting as much power as she could into the attack. The elemental energy within the cavern appeared to be greatly disturbed by this swift, impactful blow.

    Thedy in redughed lightly as she sashayed lithely into a wisp of red smoke.

    "You have to be more gentle, my dear, or we¡¯ll all be buried together. Wouldn¡¯t he like that though."

    Thedy in red teased Shi Xueman in a dreamy, rxed voice, making her blush.

    Cirrus¡¯ speartip stopped right in front of the cavern¡¯s rock wall, but its spear ray sliced deeply into the wall like a hot knife through butter. Shi Xueman sneered coldly and took a step back. She skillfully spun her spear backward, making its base face the ceiling. Her entire motion reminded one of arge whale pping its tail up into the air.

    The spear¡¯s base urately deflected the red sleeve that was stealthily flying toward the back of her head.

    The power within the spear¡¯s base exploded, ripping thedy in red¡¯s sleeve to shreds.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face darkened. Although she managed to hit thedy in red¡¯s sleeves, that attack had felt empty, as if she had missed.

    The scattered pieces of sleeves were constantly changing, eventually turning into a bunch of blood red butterflies. Their wings started lighting up with spots of brilliance, creating a gorgeous, multi-colored disy of radiance.

    "Oh dearie, you¡¯re so strong and so pretty to boot. I¡¯d totally be smitten by you if I was a man. I guess it¡¯s not surprising that he¡¯s moved on from me already."

    The colorful butterflies flew all over the cavern, their light lingered in the air and created a beautiful dreamscape that felt surreal, yet extremely lifelike.

    A dreamy voice drifted amid the flowing, captivating lights.

    Shi Xueman had never faced such an opponent before. She could not tell if the ever-changing butterflies were real or just an illusion. Additionally, no signs of thedy in red¡¯s elemental energy could be detected.

    As Shi Xueman slowly lost herself to the dreamy disy, Ai Hui suddenly swung his sword.

    His sword stroke was executed without warning and was aimed at a strange spot. Ai Hui had thrust his sword diagonally upward into the space beside him.

    The sound of metal shing against stone rang out.

    A shadowy curtain appeared before dispersing at the spot where Ai Hui appeared to have randomly stabbed. A red figure appeared from behind the illusion.

    Thedy in red was visibly astonished. She had not expected that Ai Hui was able to detect her true body.

    Not giving her any opportunity to react, Ai Hui rained several sword rays down on thedy in red with a flick of his wrist.

    She gracefully spun her red sleeves in the air and absorbed the harsh sword rays as they made contact.

    "Seems like I¡¯ve underestimated you," she said teasingly. "Come, follow big sister and you¡¯ll be rewarded with sweets."

    Her red sleeves spread out in front of her, turning into wisps ofzy, red smoke that drifted toward Ai Hui.

    Ai hui¡¯s hairs abruptly stood on edge. The red smoke looked innocuous and weak, but something about it made Ai Hui feel threatened. He arched his body like an angered wild beast, ready to attack.

    Instead of retreating, he took a short step forward with his left leg. His body unleashed a cold, sharp intent as the Dragonspine in his handshed out in front of him!

    A deep, clear sword ray appeared around his de, apanied by a melodious ringing sound. Seven daggers wove a web of lightning around it.

    Apanied by the silver lightning web, the biting cold sword ray plunged into the cloud of red smoke.

    The sword ray pierced through the red smoke, bringing the lightning web into contact with it. Like how a water droplet touching hot oil causes it to pop, an explosion urred the moment the lightning web and red smoke came into contact.

    Sssss!

    The wildly dancing Dragonspine caused arge portion of the red smoke to dissipate.

    Thedy in red let out a refined "hmph." She casually brushed off the sword ray, but was surprised by the lightning contained within it. Even more shocking was how damaging the lightning was against her.

    There were no elementalists, blood or otherwise, who could control lightning. She had nott expected something like this and almost fell prey to Ai Hui¡¯s attack.

    Her profound battle experience had saved her life. Having seen morebat than Ai Hui, thedy in red was especially adept at handling dangerous situations.

    She used her other red sleeve to strike the sword ray, making use of the force to help her rebound and disappear into the brightly colored lights.

    Ai Hui, himself, was taken aback by the lightning¡¯s effectiveness. Thedy in red had disappeared by the time he snapped out of it.

    He remained vignt while he thought things through.

    Since ancient times, the thunder stars had been blood refinement¡¯s greatest weakness. Blood refinement had always been the path and domain of those geared toward the more ghastly and demonic yin energy. Thunder stars on the other hand, were one of the strongest sources of yang energy and a natural counter to blood refinement.

    The written ounts regarding zombies, demons, and spirits often mentioned that they operated mainly at night. Electricity was also recorded as being their biggest fear.

    The electricity within his body had been absorbed and reformed by chance. To think its usefulness would be discovered today.

    If that was the case...

    Ai Hui nced at Shi Xueman after he thought of something.

    Shi Xueman immediately got the memo, gripping her spear tightly.

    Thedy in red cautiously remained in hiding. She was deeply shaken by the air of destruction that was present when the lightning burst forth.

    This was what caused her minor injuries.

    From when she first started nurturing blood spiritual force, she had never experienced such a situation before. Previously, nothing seemed to be capable of opposing her blood spiritual force.

    The streaks of lightning were more surprising than they were damaging.

    Even though lightning was effective against her blood spiritual force, Ai Hui¡¯s use of it was still underdeveloped.

    The irond beauty¡¯s strength had also startled her. Even though she had the upper hand, Shi Xueman¡¯s power made thedy in red remain on guard. She was well versed in the differences between elementalists¡¯ base levels and rather impressed by Shi Xueman¡¯s achievement at such a young age.

    Yet, the person who she was truly amazed by was Ai Hui.

    How many days had it been since theyst met?

    How did he be so powerful?

    Ai Hui¡¯s first sword stroke hadpletely thrown her off. She had no idea how he managed to hold his ground after executing an attack of that magnitude. What was even more shocking was the lightning contained within that sword ray.

    Ai Hui was but an ant to her when theyst met, easily squished to death. This time however, Ai Hui was actually strong enough to pose a threat to her.

    A killing intent momentarily crossed her mind. If she could not capture him, she would have no choice but to kill them.

    At his current rate of improvement, Ai Hui would soon be a huge pain in the neck. She certainly did not want to leave such a troublesome character alive.

    Right at that moment, thedy in red sensed danger.

    Noting that Shi Xueman understood his intentions, Ai Hui took a deep breath and began to channel his elemental energy.

    He activated both his hand pces as well as his earth pce, causing a silver glint to sh in his eyes. The Dragonspine in his hand slowly straightened and extended forward.

    Ai Hui¡¯s tense muscles and slow, deliberate movements made it appear as though the Dragonspine in his hand weighed a ton. His eyes stared dead ahead.

    The Dragonspine¡¯s de grew brighter and brighter as it inched forward.

    All of a sudden, the sword ray around the Dragonspine grew unbelievably bright. Countless lightning-shrouded sword rays shot off from the sword¡¯s de, fanning out in all directions. The entire cavern was lit up in an instant.

    [Dust Fall]!

    The scattered sword rays fanned out, covering the entire cavern in aplex web of silver lightning.

    The original [Dust Fall] created light, lively sword rays that scattered without much control. In Ai Hui¡¯s hands, however, the skill had gained new life. The surging lightning made the nimble technique much more violent and potent.

    Half of the multi-colored butterflies and shadowy illusions vanished in an instant.

    Thedy in red was momentarily stunned as she became exposed. Ai Hui¡¯s lightning-enhanced attacks were not as weak as she had initially thought. This sudden realization made her scoff at her own naivety.

    A spear ray was fast approaching her face.

    Shi Xueman had totally abandoned her fanciful techniques and poured all of her elemental energy into one clean, unadorned stab.

    Not a single shred of elemental energy was left in her body. In that instant, her focus waspletely locked onto thedy in red. All those lives that were sacrificed in front of her eyes, all the fear and despair that she had experienced, and every ounce of hatred and righteousness within her bones allowed her to bring out more power than she had ever unleashed before.

    All of her incorporeal energies were collectively incorporated into this relentless stab. It was all or nothing.

    The snow-white spear had the power of a whale.

    Thedy in red¡¯s eyes filled with apprehension, but it swiftly disappeared. Having participated in so many battles, her psyche was not something to be belittled.

    She extended her fingers and gently tapped the empty space in front of her. Her pale, slender fingers were as beautiful as a work of art.

    She unleashed a seemingly demonic power that engulfed all light in the cavern.

    The blood red smoke, colorful butterflies, shards of light, and shredded pieces of her red sleeve collected at her fingertips. Everything was swiftly condensed into a bright red drop of fresh blood.

    There were no traces of the charmingdy from before. Thedy in red now had a cold, austere presence.

    She flicked her perfectly sculpted middle finger.

    The droplet of blood sluggishly flew toward the spear ray.

    The entire process waspleted in the blink of an eye, but Ai Hui could clearly see each and every move.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes zed over in fear.

    He could not exin why, but a deep instinctive fear rose up from within his soul.

    He leapt toward Shi Xueman without further consideration.

    At the moment of impact, a barely detectable cracking sound could be heard. To Ai Hui and Shi Xueman, however, the sound was like a sudden p of thunder.

    The blood droplet ruptured, releasing streaks of blood. These streaks moved like tendrils and rapidly coiled their way up Cirrus.

    Shi Xueman felt her elemental energy rapidly depleting, it was as though there was a ck hole at the tip of her spear sucking up everyst bit of it.

    She wished she could withdraw her elemental energy, but it was toote. Her elemental energy was being devoured at a frenzied pace and waspletely out of her control.

    A sense of helplessness quickly overtook her when she discovered that she could not even toss Cirrus aside. The suction at the end of the spear was forcing the spear to remain in her hand.

    Thedy in red waved her sleeves. Hints of a wry smile could be seen on her pale face as she watched Shi Xueman struggle to no avail.

    Her expression changed to one of annoyance when she heard a piercing sounding from the other side of the crevice.

    Dang it!

    Yu Mingqiu!

    Although she had emerged victorious from this engagement, her injuries were not all that light. That droplet of [Tree Spirit¡¯s Blood] was extracted from innumerable blood trees and possessed a strong life force. The nurturing quality of the [Tree Spirit¡¯s Blood] was highly beneficial for her body. She could not bear to use it unless she had no other choice.

    Now that she had lost that precious droplet, her strength had decreased by quite a bit.

    She had no chance of beating Yu Mingqiu in her current state.

    In addition, she probably would not be able to escape if she were to engage Yu Mingqiu again.

    Without hesitation, thedy in red fled the scene.

    Yu Mingqiu, who had just emerged from the crevice, relentlessly chased after thedy in red. In his fervor, he hadpletely missed Ai Hui and Shi Xueman.

    Shi Xueman sunk deeper into despair as she watched the tendrils of blood creep up her spear toward her.

    Was she going to die here? Her heart sank.

    All of a sudden, a hand grabbed her spear.

 Chapter 249: An Overlooked Question

    Chapter 249: An Overlooked Question

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    Shi Xueman stared nkly at the hand on her spear, recognizing it as Ai Hui¡¯s.

    Her mind nked in that instant. Why? Why was it him?

    The hand that grasped the spear shook, generating an intense force that released Shi Xueman¡¯s grip from the spear and sent her flying. Why was he saving her?

    No!

    Tears fell down her cheeks uncontrobly while she screamed inside.

    The red tendrils of blood were like vines that could not stop growing. They continuously coiled around Ai Hui, as if they were trying to swallow him whole.

    All she could see was the side of his face. That thin, humble face betrayed no signs of emotion as the blood tendrils proceeded to devour him. He had not even taken onest look at her.

    Shi Xueman copsed on the ground, but immediately picked herself up in a bid to rush to Ai Hui¡¯s side.

    A familiar voice resounded through the cavern, causing her to freeze in ce.

    "Looks like I¡¯ve identally saved you again. Remember to record it on your tab."

    The mad, frenzied blood tendrils suddenly vanished without a trace, as though the entire thing had merely been an illusion. She could once again see the familiar face through the tears blurring her vision.

    "Hey, why are you crying? Are you trying to renege on your debt?"

    Ai Hui was shocked to see the Iron Lady¡¯s tearful face, particrly since this was the first time he had seen her cry. Shi Xueman had lost all of her usual loftiness and reminded Ai Hui of a young girl who had just been bullied.

    Ai Hui was a little bit embarrassed. He waved his hand and said, "Fine, fine, I won¡¯t charge you this time."

    Shi Xueman cried even harder, her tears falling like raindrops.

    Ai Hui scratched his head in puzzlement. As an irondy, her mind and body should both be as solid as iron. She must have been truly frightened by what happened.

    Just as Ai Hui was starting to get a headache, Shi Xueman gradually stopped crying. Ai Hui heaved a huge sigh of relief.

    Shi Xueman, who had stifled her tears, walked expressionlessly toward Ai Hui. She snatched Cirrus back from him and asked, "What happened to those blood tendrils?"

    "Women are indeed as fickle as the weather," muttered Ai Hui to himself before replying, "They were absorbed by my bandages."

    Shi Xueman finally saw the light. Every knew that the bandages Ai Hui wore were a gift from his mistress and were artifacts left behind by an ancient blood sect.

    No wonder he came to her rescue...

    She red coldly at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui rubbed his nose innocently, unsure of what he had done to provoke her again. This time however, he did not attempt to rify anything with her. His instincts told him that it was a terrible time to incur her wrath.

    Ai Hui shouted for Lou Lan at the top of his lungs, "Lou Lan! Lou Lan!"

    "Lou Lan¡¯s here," Lou Lan announced as he emerged from the rocks.

    "Is it possible to seal up these crevices?" Ai Hui asked.

    "Leave it to me," quipped Lou Lan as he immediately got to work.

    Ai Hui marveled at Lou Lan¡¯s ability to put everyone in a good mood. Lou Lan was still the best.

    Out of the blue, Shi Xueman inquired, "How did youe to know that blood elementalist?"

    "Our first meeting was outside the noodle shop. I waster captured by her during a scouting expedition and almost became a blood elementalist. Thank the heavens I have these bandages," recollected Ai Hui.

    Shi Xueman took a good look at Ai Hui. Sensing that he was hiding something, Shi Xueman proceeded to probe further. "What else do you know about the blood elementalists?" she asked.

    "Not much," replied Ai Hui, shaking his head. "They¡¯re backed by an organization that is very likely responsible for causing the blood disaster. This, of course, is merely my conjecture."

    He was unwilling to divulge any more knowledge since his conversation with the old prisoner would probablynd him in trouble.

    The reinforcements¡¯ dy led Ai Hui to conclude that the Blood of God had the upper hand. The old prisoner¡¯s group existed solely to take on the Blood of God, but ended up in a terrible state. From this, Ai Hui deduced that the Blood of God had infiltrated the Avalon of Five Elements and was possibly operating partially from inside. Ai Hui looked at the situation from the perspective of the Blood of God and decided that he too would have done the same.

    This would also exin why the Blood of God had such a thorough understanding of the weaknesses of the Avalon of Five Elements as well as why the reinforcements were taking so long to arrive. Everything appeared to be under the watchful eye of the Blood of God.

    Again, these were only his conjectures. There were still too many unknowns to be sure.

    Shi Xueman did not probe further as she felt that everyone was entitled to their own secrets.

    Hearing all this from Ai Hui, however, caused her brilliant mind to generate a good number of questions and scenarios. Her face a little paler than before, Shi Xueman asked, "So there won¡¯t be any reinforcements?"

    The more she thought about the situation, the paler she became. Looking at Ai Hui, she continued, "So the mayor¡¯s residence¡¯s insistence on the n of "treating the city like a piece of cloth" at the cost of Master Han¡¯s life is because they already know this."

    Ai Hui was hit by a sudden realization. How had he not thought of this? He had assumed that the n was carried out under his Mistress¡¯s insistence, but now understood that the city would not simply sacrifice an embroidery master like that.

    He was now able to confirm his guess regarding the reinforcements.

    "They won¡¯t be arriving anytime soon at least." Regaining hisposure, Ai Hui looked at Shi Xueman and asked, "Will the higher ups send help?"

    "Definitely," answered Shi Xueman firmly. She was more familiar with how the higher authorities worked than Ai Hui was. She continued, "They¡¯ll definitely send arge force with some masters within."

    "Not a single one of them has turned up yet," Ai Hui stated. "Where have all the soldiers and masters gone?"

    By this point, all the color had practically drained from Shi Xueman¡¯s face. "They must have met with some mishap. Perhaps they were attacked by blood elementalists."

    "How then do the blood elementalists know their route?" Ai Hui continued asking.

    Shi Xueman was white as a sheet. She opened her mouth and tried to speak, but the words would note. A momentter, she surmised, "They must have infiltrated our ranks."

    Ai Hui took a long, deep breath and heaved a long, deep sigh to release his pent up emotions.

    Shi Xueman seemed to be strongly affected by what she had just deduced. She understood why Ai Hui kept these things to himself and also knew why the mayor¡¯s residence would hide such matters. It was as though all her hopes were extinguished in an instant.

    There was a long pause before Shi Xueman spoke again. "Is this a nned rebellion?"

    "It¡¯s more than a rebellion," Ai Hui replied calmly. "They don¡¯t just want to wrestle power, they want topletely destroy the Avalon of Five Elements."

    "Why would anyone want to do that?" countered Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui did bit have an immediate reply to that. He subconsciously repeated, "Why would anyone want to do that?"

    This was a question he had overlooked.

    "Power, status, prestige, or wealth? What can they not achieve? Why do they want to destroy the Avalon of Five Elements?" borated Shi Xueman.

    With the Blood of God¡¯s power, these things were definitely easy to obtain. Be it bing a legitimate sect or secretly controlling the Avalon of Five Elements from the shadows, the Blood of God was definitely able to aplish both. If the Blood of God attempted a revival of the Cultivation Era, they would probably be able to rally arge number of supporters to their cause. The people of the Avalon of Five Elements were not against the idea of going back to the Cultivation Era. Its glorious history was still pretty fresh in everyone¡¯s minds.

    Why do they wish to destroy the Avalon of Five Elements? Why do they have to take so many lives?

    Ai Hui felt that the patient and far-nning Blood of God would have thought through their options before embarking on such a path. There must be a reason behind this destruction.

    "Unless they harbor a deep-seated hatred for the Avalon of Five Elements or there¡¯s something that they can only gain through the destruction of the Avalon of Five Elements," Shi Xueman raised her head andmented.

    "Is there such a thing?" asked Ai Hui.

    "I have no idea," she replied with a shake of her head.

    At that moment, Shi Xueman was glowing with wisdom. Ai Hui waspletely captivated by her beauty and only managed to regain his senses after a while. Wow, she was so pretty yet still so cold. It must be because her heart is not all that big.

    Ai Hui subconsciously looked at the thick breastte covering Shi Xueman¡¯s chest.

    Shi Xueman could sense that Ai Hui was staring at her. Hang on, where was he looking...

    Her body stiffened as certain memories surfaced and caught her unaware. Shi Xueman¡¯s face instantly turned a bright crimson.

    Iron Lady¡¯s reaction was so strange... Why was she acting all bashful... Weird.... I¡¯m morefortable with her usual expressionless self.

    Ai Hui coughed lightly and looked away. He promptly introduced a new topic. "Just who was the elementalist who managed to scare that woman away."

    Thedy in red¡¯s enigmatic powers had left scars in Ai Hui¡¯s mind. If thedy in red immediately fled upon seeing that guy, he must also possess formidable strength.

    "Oh that¡¯s Yu Mingqiu, the vice-division leader of the Deathgrass Division," Shi Xueman responded normally. "Your Senior Mingxiu¡¯s elder brother¡¯s junior."

    "A vice-division leader of the Thirteen Divisions!" eximed Ai Hui. "No wonder he¡¯s so powerful!"

    Ai Hui saw the Thirteen Divisions as a group that only the truly powerful could join. A vice-division leader in the Thirteen Divisions must be someone extremely formidable.

    "Yu Mingqiu..." Shi Xueman paused to think. "He¡¯s rather unorthodox."

    Ai Hui gave a nk stare and blurted, "What¡¯s that supposed to mean?"

    "You¡¯ll understand when the timees," stated Shi Xueman.

    Lou Lan had packed the crevices with earth,pletely sealing the two pathways.

    Ai Hui inspected the elemental energy within the cavern. Upon confirmation that the elemental energy in the cavern remained unaffected, Ai Hui and Shi Xueman headed back to the mayor¡¯s residence together.

    Entering the mayor¡¯s residence, the pair saw Yu Mingqiu in the seat of honor, having a chat with the mayor.

    As the vice-division leader of the Deathgrass Division, Yu Mingqiu ranked above the mayor and the dean.

    The mayor saw the two of them approaching and smiled, "They¡¯re back."

    Yu Mingqiu nodded. "I¡¯m relieved to see that Young Mistress Shi is safe and sound."

    "The pleasure is mine, Vice-Division Leader Yu!" Shi Xueman responded with a salute. Although the two of them knew each other, Yu Mingqiu¡¯s high rank demanded the appropriate amount of decorum.

    "And this is?" asked Yu Mingqiu as he looked at Ai Hui.

    The mayor cheerfully said, "He¡¯s Miss Mingxiu¡¯s junior, Ai Hui."

    The city¡¯s administration has always been looking out for Mingxiu. She was, after all, one of the few individuals in the city who hailed from an influential family.

    "Mingxiu¡¯s junior?" Yu Mingqiu blurted, his eyes lighting up. He enthusiastically stood up and walked toward Ai Hui, patting him on the shoulders. "That makes us family then. I¡¯ve just reached the mayor¡¯s residence so we still have a lot of time to visit Mingxiu. Mingxiu¡¯s junior is my junior! If you have any problems in the future, feel free toe find me, Brother Qiu! Do you want to join the Deathgrass Division? How about it? Brother Qiu will look after you!"

    Ai Hui was knocked silly by his overly passionate speech. He nkly replied, "I¡¯m metal elemental energy attributed."

    "Metal elemental energy?" said Yu Mingqiu. He racked his brains for a reply, trying to avoid offending any more people. He attempted tough the awkward situation away before sincerely advising Ai Hui. "Live well," ordered Yu Mingqiu.

    This guy was indeed... rather unorthodox.

 Chapter 250: Fallen Defenses

    Chapter 250: Fallen Defenses

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    45 people.

    Tian Kuan sorrowfully stared at the two rows of elementalists in front of him, his thoughts a mystery. Five of the 50 survivors had rejected life and chosen death instead.

    45 terrifying and imposing figures who appeared much swifter and fiercer than Yan Hai stood solemnly in front of Tian Kuan. Nothing was stricter than Death¡¯s screening process. This free-for-all involving thousands of people had definitely produced a group of true elites. Although they had just be blood elementalists, the aura they exuded was on a whole different level than Yan Hai.

    Tian Kuan detected a familiar scent in the air. The bloodthirsty glint in their eyes was exactly the same as the blood fiends and was something he could not be more familiar with.

    He was assessing them, and they were sizing him up as well.

    Tian Kuan knew that they would rip him to shreds the moment he revealed any sign of weakness. This bunch of wild beasts had no loyalty nor emotions. Only strength could guarantee their respect andmand their obedience.

    Tian Kuan heaved a long sigh.

    He disliked borrowing others¡¯ strength, but this was the only method that would give him enough confidence to carry out his ns.

    As he began to circte his blood spiritual force, Tian Kuan exuded an indescribable aura that permeated the entire area.

    The 45 survivors were terrified to discover that the blood spiritual force within their bodies was suddenly out of their control. Several of their faces became flushed red as they forcefully attempted to resist Tian Kuan¡¯s aura.

    One of the new blood elementalists felt his knees buckle, and the next thing he knew, he was kneeling down on the ground.

    The rest of them copsed on their knees one by one like dominoes.

    The sound of men falling to their knees continued until only a handful were still standing. The faces of those standing revealed the violent struggle urring within. Despite their best efforts, their bodies were eventually ovee by Tian Kuan¡¯s presence, and they too kneeled in front of him.

    From the beginning to the end, Tian Kuan¡¯s facial expression had remained as distressed as ever. To the newly minted blood elementalists kneeling before him, however, Tian Kuan¡¯s face was enigmatic, imposing, and dignified. His small, withered stature towered above them, exerting a pressure so great that they could not breathe.

    "Life is short and full of sorrow."

    He spoke as though he was sighing bitterly. "Life is tough. Most people don¡¯t deserve to be alive, while some people don¡¯t want to continue living. Life is an endless journey of pain. Just look at yourselves. None of you wish to obey my orders, but you don¡¯t have a choice. All of you are prime examples of life¡¯s suffering. Is there anything that isn¡¯t painful? Did you think that bing beasts would ease your suffering?"

    Yan Hai had long since prostrated himself at Tian Kuan¡¯s back. Tian Kuan¡¯s words made his heart race, but also made him realize that his master had actually been treating him quite nicely.

    The freshly baked blood elementalists were trembling uncontrobly while the blood within their bodies surged explosively.

    He was of course different from these guys. His loyalty toward his master was unquestionable!

    Yan Hai firmly believed that his master was aware of his loyalty.

    "Whoever can demonstrate their usefulness will be allowed to continue living."

    Tian Kuan looked even more worried. His words were targeted at his new recruits, but were also intended for himself. Up until now, he had not achieved anything noteworthy.

    He had no idea if the others had been earning brownie points, but he knew he did not have any.

    Failing to meet expectations would leave him in a bad ce. This was why he broke his own code and proceeded to recruit new allies.

    Only time would tell whether he would seed.

    He had aprehensive n.

    News of Yu Mingqiu¡¯s arrival swiftly swept across all of Central Pine City.

    A vice division leader from the Thirteen Divisions was someone highly regarded by most people. Furthermore, Yu Mingqiu was well known throughout the Avalon of Five Elements for his prowess. The arrival of such powerful assistance gave the people of Central Pine City hope for the future.

    Back in the mayor¡¯s residence.

    The mayor dismissed all unrted personnel so that he could have a private discussion with the dean and Vice ivision Leader Yu Mingqiu.

    Ai Hui stood rooted to the spot as though he had not heard the order to withdraw. Seeing that Ai Hui had no intention of leaving just yet, Shi Xueman also remained. Lou Lan stood in one corner, blinking his eyes.

    "Both of you may go back and rest. You still have the golden needle to handle tomorrow," informed Wang Zhen. He felt that the two of them were acting strange, so he smiled and continued, "Our scouts have found no issues with the other eight nodes. Both of you should take a good rest to prepare for your uing assignments."

    Ai Hui cheerfully asked, "Mr. Mayor, our reinforcements aren¡¯ting anymore, right?"

    Shi Xueman looked at Wang Zhen as well.

    Wang Zhen replied gravely, "Why are you spouting such nonsense? Isn¡¯t Vice ivision Leader Yu already here? A vice division leader from the Thirteen Divisions is here in person, wouldn¡¯t you consider that to be reinforcements?"

    "But Brother Qiu is here alone."

    Ai Hui took a quick nce at Yu Mingqiu. If he wanted to rely on a higher power, he would have to go along with some of Yu Mingqiu¡¯s whims, like calling him "Brother Qiu." Even though Yu Mingqiu was quite entric, his status and strength still made him a precious ally.

    "You should tell us the truth," blurted Shi Xueman.

    Wang Zhen was not too happy about being confronted like this.

    Ai Hui did not seem to notice that the mayor was on the verge of ring up.

    "A sharp individual like you is indeed worthy of being Mingxiu¡¯s junior." Yu Mingqiu suddenly burst out in heartyughter and broke the awkward atmosphere. "Since we¡¯re on the same side, I guess there¡¯s no need to hide the truth from you. Having one more person to help think of a solution isn¡¯t such a bad thing either. Perhaps the mayor could enlighten us on the current situation."

    Yu Mingqiu was the highest ranked person here, so nobody could refuse his request.

    "Okay, I shall ry the higher authorities¡¯ message. We won¡¯t be getting anymore reinforcements in the short term. All of the troops that were headed here have been ambushed by a mysterious person and suffered serious casualties. We have received confirmation that one vice divison leader has been killed in action."

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s eyes widened in shock. "Who was it?"

    "They didn¡¯t say, so I have no idea," said Wang Zhen, shaking his head.

    Yu Mingqiu was appalled by the damage they had suffered. He could not believe that a vice division leader had actually fallen! Throughout the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ history, the loss a vice division leader was an extremely rare urrence.

    His subordinates might have suffered the same fate...

    These thoughts had drained all color from Yu Mingqiu¡¯s face. He subconsciously clenched his fist tightly in a bid to control the intense sadness that welled up inside him.

    "Our goal now is to execute the ¡®treating the city as a piece of cloth¡¯ n. We have no other options besides this," Wang Zhen said in a nolens volens tone. "This is the only way we can buy ourselves more time. The higher ups should take note of therge casualties though and respond ordingly. Now that Vice Division Leader Yu is here, our city¡¯s strength has increased as well."

    Yu Mingqiu shook his head. "There is no increase whatsoever."

    "What do you mean?" replied both the dean and the mayor.

    "I chased a blood elementalist into the city and lost her after we both entered," growled Yu Mingqiu. "It was ady d in red. Her strength matched my own, but her skills and techniques were very odd. The energy she tapped into was strangely different from the elemental energy that we use. The two of them have met her and even exchanged blows with her as well."

    The dean and the mayor simultaneously turned to Ai Hui and Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui nodded, "We almost died at her hands."

    A sudden realization struck Yu Mingqiu. Giving his forehead a smack, he said, "You guys are pretty strong considering how you managed to escape from that she-devil."

    "We got lucky," Ai Hui hurriedly replied.

    Wang Zhen paled after listening to Yu Mingqiu¡¯s report. "You mean someone as strong as Vice Division Leader Yu has entered the city?"

    "Yup," Yu Mingqiu nodded.

    Wang Zhen¡¯s facial expression changed drastically as he shouted, "Not good!"

    Immediately after the mayor¡¯s exmation, sounds of explosions could be heard from all over the city.

    Everyone in the hall stared at each other nkly.

    One of the mayor¡¯s subordinates ran in hastily. "The city¡¯s defenses have fallen," he informed, visibly crestfallen.

    Wang Zhen forced himself to remain calm. "Which direction?" he asked.

    His subordinate stammered, "All, all of them."

    All of their defenses had fallen...

    Wang Zhen was struck dumb by the news, feeling as though he had just been struck by a bolt of lightning. Ai Hui and Shi Xueman looked at each other and saw the terror in the other¡¯s eyes. The destruction of the city¡¯s defenses meant only one thing¡ªthe blood fiends would be able to enter the city from any direction.

    There was nothing left to stop them!

    The city¡¯s defense was one of the main reasons why Central Pine City was able to hang on for so long. Aplete city defense was absolutely essential for repelling most of the blood fiends. This was especially the case for therger fiends.

    From now on, the elementalists in the city would have to face increased pressure.

    Blood fiend howls rose and fell like an orchestra. Large groups of them were quickly approaching the city from all directions.

    The high density of elemental energy within the city was like a delicious cake. Waves of delicious scents wafted out of the city, attracting every single blood fiend within its range. The blood coursing the blood fiends¡¯ veins made them strongly attracted to elemental energy. Much like how blood crystals were prized spoils of war for humans, humans were the prized rewards for blood fiends.

    "Oh my heavens, look up!"

    Everyone in the courtyard looked up and saw a huge blood red cloud heading toward the city at an rming speed.

    The sight made everyone pale with fright. Blood birds were rapidly approaching!

    Central Pine City had never suffered that much at the hands of blood birds because of the effectiveness of Wang Zhen¡¯s strategic air defenses. While they had not faced many blood bird attacks, the residents of Central Pine City knew of the threat they posed.

    Most of the city had been reduced to rubble so there was nowhere for people to hide.

    The city¡¯s elementalists were not skillful enough to fight aerial battles against blood birds.

    Yu Mingqiu suavely announced, "Leave the skies to me!"

    Even though he knew that thedy in red was waiting to ambush him at his weakest, he understood that there was no time to worry about her anymore.

    The Thirteen Divisions existed to protect the Avalon of Five Elements. He was here to protect the skies, the earth, and the people that lived within this space.

    He took pride in his role as a vice division leader.

    Yu Mingqiu spread his azure wings and soared into the sky. At least there was no chance of losing my direction up here.

    Wang Zhen stared nkly at the figure in the sky. He snapped out of his daze after several seconds and urgentlymanded, "Golden needles! We need to start getting the golden needles in ce! Now! We¡¯re running out of time!"

    Ai Hui looked up at the sky.

    Heavy-set blood clouds loomed over the city, blocking out practically all of the natural light. In front of the swarm was a lonely figure, or rather, a mere speck in the sky.

    Shi Xueman gripped Cirrus so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

    Ai Hui was momentarily overwhelmed by Yu Mingqiu¡¯s noble sacrifice. He smacked his lips and asked, "Where are the golden needles?"

    "The warehouse! The smith is there too! Hurry!" shouted Wang Zhen. "I leave the first node in your hands! Quick!"

    Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, and Lou Lan headed toward the warehouse without hesitation.

 Chapter 251: The Heat of Battle

    Chapter 251: The Heat of Battle

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    The new disaster came so suddenly that the people who had adapted well to the fighting were immediately plunged into the bloody battle. It was fortunate that the eruption of thistest disaster was not in the initial stages of the blood disaster.

    Those who had experienced the endless battles in the weeks up until now and managed to survive were the elites who had gradually be ustomed to battle. Both their mental and physical strength had vastly improved.

    When encountering danger, they did not panic, but rallied to fight back.

    However, serious casualties were abundant because the fighting had changed in nature and intensity. The city defences that once protected them had practically evaporated, leaving them utterly exposed to the blood fiends.

    Central Pine City had be a white-hot battlefield as battles raged on throughout the city.

    Contrary to the early stages of the blood disaster, wails and cries for help were now rarely heard. The survivors understood that wailing and crying were useless and that the only thing they could do was to fight to the end.

    Two main necessities were responsible for maintaining the will to fight. People were driven forward by the need to be more powerful as well as the need to survive.

    Staying alive was after all, the ultimate human dignity.

    The distance between the main hall of the mayor¡¯s residence and its warehouse was approximately 300 meters. While 300 meters would usually be considered a short distance, in the heat of battle it felt much longer.

    Just as they stepped out the front door, the piercing sound of weapons and attacks flying through the air could be heard. Soon after, a huge shadow could be seen heading toward them.

    Boom!

    The solid walls of the mayor¡¯s residence suddenly exploded inches away from Ai Hui. Bricks flew all over the ce, raining down on them like a deadly hail.

    A two-storey tall blood fiend was surrounded by elementalists. Their relentless attacks had made it lose its bnce, causing it to crash into the wall.

    The blood fiend¡¯srge body hit the ground hard, generating a terrifying impact that made the ground rock violently.

    The blood fiend¡¯s leftover momentum carried it all the way to Ai Hui, dragging huge chunks of stone along with it.

    A cold glint shed in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes as he silently thrust the Dragonspine in his hand forward. A frigid sword ray crossed the short gap between him and blood fiend and embedded itself in its throat.

    A pir of blood shot out of the blood fiend¡¯s throat as its body grew limp.

    Ai Hui nimbly stepped around the blood fiend¡¯s corpse and made a dash for the warehouse.

    They had encountered several groups of elementalists along the way, but simplycked the time to provide aid.

    Everyone was in a mad rush and unable to effectively form squads. There were, however, several small teams that effectively fought against the blood fiends by ganging up on them. Both man and fiend were consumed by the relentless ughter.

    Central Pine City had descended into hell.

    Ai Hui took the lead and rushed to the forefront. Shi Xueman followed closely behind, firmly gripping her spear in her hand.

    The warehouse was right ahead!

    All of a sudden, strong waves of elemental energy pulsed through the air. Brilliant light shed across the sky, highlighting the proud, solitary figure in the air.

    Ai Hui winced slightly. Although he had barely talked to Yu Mingqiu and was not exactly familiar with him, Ai Hui felt that Yu Mingqiu was truly worthy of being addressed as Brother Qiu. If they were to meet again, he would definitely willingingly address him as such.

    He continued to press on, a fire burning deep beneath his indifferent surface.

    Everyone, including his master, mistress, Brother Qiu, the mayor, the dean, and the A-1 unit was fighting for the future. Every single person, dead or alive, who was involved in this disaster was fighting for their own destiny and survival. In doing so, they were also fighting for Central Pine City¡¯s future.

    They were on the verge of copsing, and it felt as though the pressure of a single added straw would crush them.

    How could a person give up when even a beast would counter attack when cornered?

    Ai Hui abruptly elerated when he was 10 meters shy of the warehouse¡¯s main entrance. He leapt high into the air, curled into a ball, and mmed directly against the warehouse door.

    Ai Hui crashed into the warehouse together with the debris.

    He saw several frightened craftsmen inside the warehouse.

    "Where are the golden needles?" Ai Hui roared loudly, trying to be heard above the noise.

    Ai Hui was definitely the most recognizable face in Central Pine City at the moment. The craftsmen heaved long sighs of relief upon seeing him.

    One of the craftsmen took a step forward and asked loudly, "What is going on? Why does it seem so chaotic outside?"

    "The city defences have been destroyed! Grab the golden needle and get to the Heaven Pit." Ai Hui was practically shouting himself hoarse.

    When they heard that the city defences were destroyed, the craftsmen¡¯s faces sank. They most certainly knew what this meant.

    "What about the other golden needles?" the craftsman who first stood forward asked.

    "You should bring them to the Heaven Pit with Lou Lan first. I¡¯ll defend this ce and wait for Huanghun and the others!" Shi Xueman said solemnly. "We have an agreed upon signal, I¡¯m sure they¡¯ll arrive soon."

    Ai Hui nodded at her and firmly ordered the craftsmen, "Follow me!"

    Several craftsmen lifted a sturdy looking pir from one corner of the warehouse.

    This was the first time Ai Hui saw one of the golden needles and he could not resist taking a second nce at it. The needle¡¯s body had a brilliant ss-like ze that made it glow with an exotic metallic luster. More than five meters in height and more than half a meter in diameter, it was difficult to associate it with the word "needle." Instead, it was more simr to a house¡¯s support beam. Layers of intricate and sophisticated patterns were carved onto the metal column, making it a dazzling sight to behold.

    "If the patterns carved onto the golden needle are damaged, it¡¯ll lose its effectiveness," the chief craftsman spoke in a severe manner. "We used a rtively hard material called ss iron which is sufficiently strong and capable of withstanding geocentric me. It will, however, shatter easily if exposed to an impact of great magnitude. We only have nine needles. There are no spares."

    Ai Hui nodded inprehension as his eyes met those of the chief craftsman. He then hurried to lead the way out of the warehouse.

    Two craftsmen stepped up to carry the golden needle by its head and tail with the chief craftsman following closely by their side.

    Shi Xueman raised Cirrus in her hands as she watched Ai Hui and the others leave. A white ray shot up into the sky, forming the shape of a sword. This was the A-1 unit¡¯s signal for seeking assistance.

    Sending out the signal brought her some relief. She raised the spear in her hand and leapt onto the warehouse roof.

    Until support arrived, Shi Xueman had to defend the warehouse alone.

    She waspletely unafraid.

    Yan Hai hid in the dark with several blood elementalists in tow. Seeing the chaotic scene before him, he could not help but have mad respect for Sir. Tian Kuan¡¯s visit to the casualty barrack had been incredibly fruitful, allowing him to gain an additional 45 blood elementalists as followers. This greatly increased their fighting strength and enabled them to cause so much chaos from within.

    Yan Hai felt that he was different from the newly created blood elementalists. All of them were much stronger than him, yet Sir had chosen him as the team leader. Surely this meant that Sir trusted him more!

    Yan Hai was secretly pleased with himself. He reminded himself to perform well and live up to Sir¡¯s expectations.

    "Will they really not attack us?"

    The question came from Shi Wei, who was a rather well-known student in Central Pine Academy prior to bing infected. Many believed that he would have a bright future, but all that changed when he got injured.

    Shi Wei was a rookie, and as such, he was viewed unfavorably by Yan Hai. Yan Hai was keen to make his mark and felt that rookies like Shi Wei were a major hindrance to him. However, these blood elementalists were assigned to him by Tian Kuan, so Yan Hai could not object. He could not figure out just how someone like Shi Wei managed to survive the brutal ughter at the quarantine barracks.

    Even Shi Wei, himself, did not fully understand how he managed to survive.

    Afraid to relive that nightmare, he did not dare to think about it anymore. He just wanted to have a fresh start and continue living.

    He convinced himself that what he was doing was not wrong. Did he have any other choice? Apparently not.

    Watching the chaotic fights unfolding before his eyes terrified him, yet at the same time, brought him some relief. He felt a little ashamed when he thought of his ssmates and teachers struggling, but the mere feeling of being alive made him quietly delighted.

    He did not want to experience the mindless, uncontroble rage and bloodthirst of the beastly instinct ever again.

    Living dishonorably was still a kind of living.

    Despite his new position, Shi Wei was still rmed by therge number of blood fiends.

    "I¡¯ve told you before that it won¡¯t happen," chided Yan Hai. "We have a simr presence to that of the blood fiends, so they won¡¯t attack us as long as we don¡¯t attack them first. Did you not notice that none of the blood fiends that have walked past us have given us a single nce?"

    Shi Wei felt somewhat safer.

    "Are we just gonna sit here and twiddle our thumbs?"

    This time, Old Lei was the one asking. He was an elementalist from a hunting unit and had both strength and experience. ustomed to a life of killing and looting, his moral boundaries were extremely blurry. He was the fastest toe to terms with his new identity as a blood elementalist.

    Old Lei had more worldly wisdom than Shi Wei and knew that performing well was the most important task they had. He was a good judge of character who quickly took note of Tian Kuan¡¯s callous nature. He knew that Tian Kuan only converted them into blood elementalists to borrow their strength.

    Their lives woulde to an end once Tian Kuan felt that they no longer had value.

    Old Lei¡¯s ruthlessness made Yan Hai slightly uneasy around him.

    "We need to find a high-value target," informed Yan Hai. "Let¡¯s wait a while longer for the elementalists to further deplete their strength before striking. Things will be much easier that way."

    Old Lei sneered at him. "If you want to achieve great things, then you¡¯d better step up your game and stop looking for scraps. You think the battlefield will simply be littered with easy-pickings?"

    Old Lei did not give a hoot about Yan Hai. He could see that Yan Hai was really just a cowardly weakling. With his experience and seniority, Old Lei¡¯s words appeared to carry more weight among them. Several others nodded in agreement after hearing what he said.

    Yan Hai was so agitated that he almost spat blood. However, he did not dare to fall out with Old Lei. Right at that moment, his eyes lit up as he eximed, "Ai Hui!"

    "Who¡¯s that?" asked Old Lei, shaking his head. "I don¡¯t recognize him."

    Old Lei was injured fairly early on and was unfamiliar with Ai Hui.

    "The esteemed Lightning de, Ai Hui. He¡¯s one of the leading figures in Central Pine City. What a big fish!" Yan Hai¡¯s eyes sparkled greedily.

    "A leader?" Old Lei asked in disbelief. He pursed his lips at the sky and continued, "Did you mean him? Who would dare to consider himself a military leader in front of Yu Mingqiu?"

    The rest of them quietlyughed. Everyone had heard of the great Yu Mingqiu.

    Yan Hai turned pale with anger and scoffed. "Forget it. You can go challenge Yu Mingqiu if you dare."

    Old Lei looked up at the sky and felt a slight fear running up his spine. Yu Mingqiu was floating in the air, somehow able to keep an entire sky full of blood birds in check by himself.

    One man up against tens of thousands of enemies, refusing to let a single one of them pass through.

    Yu Mingqiu truly lived up to his reputation.

    "I hope this Ai Hui of yours has some value." Old Lei snorted before giving a hand signal to the others, dispersing them into different hiding areas.

    The group of blood elementalists had formed a circle of death and eagerly awaited for their prey.

 Chapter 252: Disappearance

    Chapter 252: Disappearance

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: CakeHermit

    Lou Lan was leading the way.

    Without his sword embryo, Ai Hui¡¯s ability to detect dangers wasrgely weakened. Fortunately, they still had Lou Lan. Under Lou Lan¡¯s lead, they twisted and turned along the streets and roads, but were always able to find a less dangerous route.

    Lou Lan was very sensitive to blood spiritual force; therefore, he could feel the blood fiends from a distance. This ability was currently ying an important role.

    If they really couldn¡¯t avoid a blood fiend, then the craftsmen would stop and hide themselves first, after which Ai Hui would sneak up on the blood fiends and kill them. Finally, they would be able to continue their forward march.

    Fortunately, the blood fiends they met were not at all strong.

    Gnashing their teeth and gathering their energy, the craftsmen behind them carried the gold needle and closely followed.

    At this moment, everyone was pushing themselves.

    "The sinkhole is not far away!"

    The leader of the craftsmen encouraged them loudly. The shout boosted everyone¡¯s spirits.

    Finally, they were just one block away from the sinkhole. Moreover, there were no blood fiends on the street.

    But then, Lou Lan suddenly stopped at the crossing, so Ai Hui and the craftsmen followed suit.

    Lou Lan said, "Ai Hui, there are five blood fiends there."

    "So many?" Ai Hui asked in surprise. He nced at the street and said, "But Lou Lan, I don¡¯t see any."

    "Then they are hiding somewhere."

    "So let¡¯s take another route."

    Lou Lan and Ai Hui were talking loudly. Hearing their discussion, the five people who were hiding to ambush the group were speechless. They¡¯d thought they were hiding well enough and didn¡¯t expect their enemies to notice their existence so effortlessly.

    How did Ai Hui¡¯s sand puppet find them?

    Blood fiends? They were regarded as blood fiends? Having just transformed from beasts to human beings, they were extremely disgusted to be treated as blood fiends from the bottom of their hearts, especially the young men like Shi Wei. He almost rushed out on impulse.

    They were all looking at Old Lei and waiting for his instructions.

    Old Lei was experienced enough to keep hisposure.

    Although he¡¯d beenughing at Yan Hai just now, he didn¡¯t underestimate Ai Hui at all. He was surprised that they¡¯d been seen through, but chose not to rush out.

    Young men like Shi Wei felt angry when they heard themselves being treated as blood fiends, but Old Lei believed this might be a good opportunity. They could take advantage of the mistake.

    He thought fast about how to use this advantage.

    Hearing Ai Hui say that they were going to the sinkhole, Old Lei became more rxed. The street they were hiding in was the only shortcut to the sinkhole. If they did not take this route, they would have to go a long way around.

    Old Lei was not at all in a hurry.

    He was also curious about the big pir, as he had a feeling that the pir must be something important. He was sent to the casualty barrack early, before the n of "treating the city as a piece of cloth" was announced, so he knew nothing about the gold needles. Still, his keen sense of smell made him realize that the pir was unusual.

    Meanwhile, seeing Ai Hui talking to his sand puppet, Old Lei was a bit surprised. It seemed that this sand puppet was unusual too.

    He became vignt about anything unusual.

    After a while, Ai Hui walked to the leader of the craftsmen and told him something. Since they were too far away, Old Lei couldn¡¯t hear it clearly, but he did see that the leader¡¯s expression was a bit weird.

    Weird?

    What had he said?

    Old Lei tried to guess the content of their conversation, but didn¡¯t have the slightest idea.

    Yan Hai red at Old Lei with enmity. I am the team leader, thought Yan Hai. Why was he being isted by the others?

    They must envy him for being trusted by Sir!

    We¡¯ll see. If the mission fails, then you will know how frightening Sir can be, thought Yan Hai to himself. He made up his mind that if this really happened, he would not intercede on their behalf.

    He had cursed Old Lei in his heart thousands of times, but as he was the weakest member and one who feared Ai Hui the most among the five, he didn¡¯t dare to rush out either. He witnessed the battle of the streets himself, the horrible scenes of which still haunted his dreams.

    Old Lei waited patiently. It was not at all necessary for them to rush out.

    In his eyes, it was their most critical moment. Once they were targeted by elementalists, they could only attract more enemies. The level of hatred elementalists had for blood elementalists and blood fiends was totally different. If they were discovered by an elementalist, only death would follow.

    That was why Old Lei didn¡¯t give any orders, so the others continued to wait silently.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t move for a while.

    Old Lei didn¡¯t move either. He was patient and calm, qualities he believed an experienced hunter should possess. He had been through too many battles, and with his rich experience in battlefields, he knew it was best for them to wait under such circumstances.

    After a while more, Ai Hui still didn¡¯t move.

    Old Lei began to wonder what this guy in front of him was doing. In such a chaotic and dangerous moment, the other elementalists were either putting up a desperate fight or hiding themselves. Despite that, Ai Hui was standing still in a ce threatened by a growing crisis and could be attacked by blood fiends at any moment. Was he thinking about the philosophy of life?

    This was weird!

    Old Lei thought hard, but still couldn¡¯t understand. He narrowed his insightful eyes and stared at Ai Hui as if he wanted to pierce him with his sharp stare.

    Wait! His eyes suddenly widened. Where was Ai Hui¡¯s sand puppet?

    The sand puppet that looked unusual?

    He nced over the whole ce, and was astonished to find that the sand puppet had disappeared right under their noses.

    Right at that moment, Ai Hui began to move.

    It appeared that after thinking for a long time, the stone man was finally bestowed life. Ai Hui moved and the three craftsmen who were carrying the pir also moved after him.

    A sh of vignce shed across Old Lei¡¯s eyes. Wait! The craftsmen were now standing at the spot where the sand puppet had disappeared?

    Then a craftsman disappeared.

    Hmm?

    And the pir disappeared.

    Hmm?

    And the other two craftsmen also disappeared.

    Hmm!

    Ai Hui turned around and waved his hands in Old Lei¡¯s direction, then also disappeared.

    They¡¯d noticed them long ago!

    Old Lei stood up abruptly and felt surprised and bewildered. He didn¡¯t know what had happened, but since they had already discovered his presence, it was meaningless to hide any longer. Thus, he decided to take the initiative to attack.

    Old Lei walked out from where he was hiding together with the others, whose expressions revealed their confusion.

    What they¡¯d seen just now was really weird.

    They walked cautiously toward where Ai Hui had been standing. They were afraid that Ai Hui was ying tricks to lure them out.

    When they walked closer, they were stunned to see a huge hole leading deep underground.

    Especially Old Lei, whose face was dark and red.

    "No wonder he is called the Lightning de. Hearing his name alone made us too frightened to move and they were able to effortlessly dig such a big tunnel under our noses. What a shame! I¡¯m wondering what others will say about us if they hear what happened today..."

    Yan Hai couldn¡¯t help taunting Old Lei. Actually, he was more than happy to see him being fooled. The more shameful Old Lei was, the happier he was.

    Bang!

    The next minute, Yan Hai¡¯s face was kicked hard. Like being bumped by a beast, he directly flew out and fell into a pile of ruins, losing consciousness.

    Old Lei drew back his leg as if nothing had happened, but the anger on his face made him look like a furious lion that would eat anything and anyone it met.

    The others saw this and all looked away at once.

    They also feared Old Lei¡¯s ruthlessness and cruelty.

    Without saying anything, Old Lei jumped into the tunnel, leaving the other three looking at each other in hesitation.

    "Should we just leave that guy alone?"

    "You want to take him with us?"

    "No. He is too talkative. It¡¯s annoying."

    "Then just leave him there."

    Having made up their minds, the other three jumped into the tunnel one after another and soon caught up with Old Lei.

    They were surprised at how broad the tunnel was. How had they dug such a deep tunnel within such a limited time? It was not an easy job even for a sand puppet.

    Shi Wei couldn¡¯t help murmuring, "Sand puppets are so strong nowadays?"

    Hearing his words, Old Lei scolded him in rage. "Shut up! Talk less!"

    Before he finished speaking, a cold light abruptly rose from under his feet as fast as lightening, and in the blink of an eye, was almost at his throat.

    An ambush!

    Old Lei was so scared that all his hair stood on end. He quickly stepped backward while crossing his hands in front of his throat protectively.

    Dragonspine was originally aiming for Old Lei¡¯s throat, but suddenly bent like a boneless snake and unexpectedly stabbed into his chest.

    Ding!

    The sound was like hitting a stone with iron.

    Ai Hui felt like he had stabbed an iron ingot. The sword pierced only two inches into the chest and couldn¡¯t go further.

    Old Lei¡¯s face was all red. Having blocked the stab, his raging energy and blood sloshed around in his chest.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t expect Old Lei¡¯s skin to be as solid as iron. Although he himself had attained [Copper Skin], he could not reach Old Lei¡¯s level. Nevertheless, since Ai Hui had made great progress in swordsmanship, when he felt the resistance from the sword point, he slightly shook his wrist before even realizing it.

    The sword vibrated like the tongue of a poisonous snake.

    Oblique sh.

    In less than one second, Ai Hui shed eight times like lightening. Without anyplicated changes, the moves were simple and fast. The improvement in his swordsmanship was thoroughly reflected in this attack.

    The sword rays of the eight shes ovepped like a high-speed, rotating circr saw.

    The Dragonspine that stuck in Old Lei¡¯s chest suddenly moved forward. Feeling heat in his chest, Old Lei looked down and only saw a blood mist exploding from his chest that blurred his vision.

    He growled in fury and kicked out hard with his right leg.

    But once again, there was nothing. Although Ai Hui was close, he was like a phantom.

    The next minute, he felt a stabbing pain in his leg; it had been pierced by the sword. He could even feel the parts of the sword that were piercing into his muscle.

    This sword was weird. It was a soft sword!

    He protected his head and throat. As long as these two were safe, he didn¡¯t need to worry about losing his life. Suppressing the fear rising in his heart, he quickly stepped backward.

    He could hear hispanions¡¯ scolding and steps behind him. They were not far away. As soon as they caught up, they could turn the situation around. They were advantageous in number and would be able to kill this damn Lightning de!

    Old Lei roared in his heart.

    He was protecting his head with his arms, but this also blocked his sight. Therefore, he didn¡¯t see the Dragonspine sneaking in the darkness like a poisonous snake, and didn¡¯t know that lethal danger was quietly approaching closer and closer.

    The sword rays around the Dragonspine were bing stronger. The sword was quivering slightly.

    When the sword point stabbed into the wound on Old Lei¡¯s chest again, it quivered fiercely and the sword rays reached their peak. The next instant, the umted energy gushed out from the sword point.

    [Crescent Moon]!

    A crescent moon formed, rushed forward, and exploded in Old Lei¡¯s chest.

 Chapter 253: Fierce Fighting in the Tunnel

    Chapter 253: Fierce Fighting in the Tunnel

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: CakeHermit

    Dong!

    The grave sound of an explosion sounded out from Old Lei¡¯s chest.

    A crescent moon prated Old Lei¡¯s chest and exited from his back together with a bloody mist. The blood elementalist who had rushed forward to help had no time to dodge and could only protectively cover his vital parts with his arms.

    Those who had survived the bloody fight at the casualty barrack were all cruel and ruthless people. The injury didn¡¯t freak the blood elementalist out, but infuriated him instead.

    With a stifled groan, he took the initiative to attack. Curving his body at a weird angle, he stepped on the vertical tunnel wall.

    He passed by Old Lei like a ghost, and before jumping onto the ground, bent his leg like a folding knife.

    He was fast; all these moves were done in the blink of an eye. Previously, he had been moving silently, but when his leg chopped down, the sharp whistle of wind it produced could be heard all over the tunnel.

    Puff!

    His leg cut down like a sharp knife and plunged into the ground. The solid rocks broke like bean curd.

    In the dark tunnel, the expression of the blood elementalist changed drastically.

    Nothing!

    How was it possible?

    His attack had been fast, without any dy, and had covered arge scope, so he had been pretty sure that he couldnd the blow on Ai Hui. Despite all that, he¡¯d failed.

    Where was Ai Hui?

    Did he withdraw immediately after seeding?

    Suddenly, he felt something at his back like a needle with a sharp chill in the air. His body froze and eyes widened in disbelief.

    He thought of one possibility.

    Ai Hui hadn¡¯t retreated. Instead, he¡¯d gotten closer to Old Lei in order to hide himself behind Old Lei¡¯s figure.

    That meant Ai Hui was right behind him!

    Even though Ai Hui was his enemy, the blood elementalist couldn¡¯t help but admire his reaction and flexibility. Meanwhile, a chill rose in his chest. Unlike Old Lei, he knew of Ai Hui but had still been confident because of his own rapid advance in fighting skills. This unimaginable improvement was supernatural and greatly helped build up his confidence.

    Therefore, even though their enemy was Ai Hui, he¡¯d still believed that they had a chance to beat him.

    Now, however, he finally realized how frightening and dangerous Ai Hui could be. They had been on the losing side of the confrontation since the very beginning and their moves and attacks had all fallen within Ai Hui¡¯s expectations.

    Ai Hui would have spoken highly of him if he¡¯d known that the blood elementalist figured everything out almost instantly, but he was now curled up and closely clinging to Old Lei¡¯s back.

    His sharp elemental energy had cut open the skin on the blood elementalist¡¯s back; the blood elementalist didn¡¯t even feel any pain because the sword ray was too sharp.

    The blood elementalist made a harsh decision. Before his pain started to spread, he stepped hard with the leg that was stuck in the ground and pushed himself backward. His back was pierced by the sword, but it also smashed into Ai Hui like a wall.

    Ai Hui hadn¡¯t expected him to be so resolute in killing him even at the cost of sacrificing his own life.

    Right at that moment, another blood elementalist caught up with them.

    This blood elementalist¡¯s fist was surrounded with red, bloody light, which made it look like a red drill. He punched Ai Hui using all his effort because he was freaked out by Ai Hui¡¯s swift and mysterious movement. A bloody light suddenly appeared around his body, arousing an upsurge in his power.

    He saw the space in the tunnel was limited, so he took the initiative to start a head-on confrontation with Ai Hui.

    This was because they had the advantage with their superiority in number.

    In the blink of an eye, Ai Hui was caught in a dangerous situation where he had enemies in front and behind him with nowhere to hide. At this moment, the Dragonspine in his hand suddenly bent like a spring. The force of the blood elementalist¡¯s backward attack almost pressed the sword to the limit.

    But with the sword buffering the impact, the blood elementalist¡¯s power wasrgely reduced.

    Then Ai Hui loosened his grip on the sword and it sprung out like a loosened spring. The huge sticity pushed Ai Hui backward. With force, his back that was near Old Lei¡¯s chest trembled violently.

    [Arching Fishback]!

    The tempestuous elemental energy and force from the Dragonspine sword swatted the unconscious Old Lei like a huge wave.

    Bang! Old Lei¡¯s chest was dented. In the next second, he flew out like a stone struck by a wildly running beast and heavily dropped to the ground.

    It was toote for the blood elementalist to reim his force, so his fist punched forward without any restraint.

    His fist surrounded by the bloody light collided forcefully with Old Lei.

    The frightening sound of broken bones reverberated throughout the tunnel.

    The wounded blood elementalist becamepletely discouraged and freaked out. All their attacks were within Ai Hui¡¯s expectations.

    Along with the force from the sword, he jumped forward with all his effort in hopes of escaping.

    He felt that the sword stabbed into his back was like a toothed saw, leaving behind great pain as it was pulled out. Despite this, he couldn¡¯t care. All he wanted to do was run away.

    He rushed forward and was about to break away from the sword, when he felt the saw-like bone sword suddenlye to life.

    The feeling was so strong that all his hair stood on end.

    An even stronger danger alert broke out in his heart. He had a hunch that his life wasing to an end.

    No!

    Feeling intense frustration, he knew that there was no way back. Streaks of bright blood traces lit up on his body, each of which was about the size of a copper coin. They spread all over his body, including his face, nape, and arms, and flowed slightly. If Ai Hui had the time to count, he would notice that the number of blood traces was exactly nine.

    As the blood traces lit up, the blood in his body boiled and became as bright asva. It sensed the external invasion and squirmed like a monster to rush at the Dragonspine sword stabbed in his back.

    He didn¡¯t know why he was doing this. It had not been long since he¡¯d gained the ability to agglomerate blood traces, but at this moment, his counterattack seemed toe from an intuition buried deep in his body.

    The blood in his body flowed quickly. If Ai Hui could see through him, he would have seen numerous blood streaks appear in his body that stretched from each of its corners to the point of the sword.

    When the blood touched the Dragonspine, it abruptly triggered a bizarre chime from the sword.

    The chime was like the hiss of a blood snake.

    The sword was excited to feel the smell of its kind.

    Meanwhile, the end of the bandage on Ai Hui¡¯s wrist also rose like a snake and twined weirdly around the sword hilt.

    The hissing chime stopped all of a sudden and the mysterious Dragonspine sword suddenly became like a stove poker.

    This happened so abruptly that even Ai Hui was surprised.

    The bandage!

    It had just absorbed the blood of the girl in red and Ai Hui hadn¡¯t had time to check if it had caused any changes.

    The bandage was a blood refinement object. Therefore, it could devour blood.

    This was not a secret, but just because of this feature, the bandage had saved Ai Hui¡¯s life many times.

    If it were not for the bandage, he would have already died in the blood disaster.

    That¡¯s why he had been keeping a watchful eye on it. After careful observation, he found that the bandage was bing more and more fastidious about blood.

    For example, it had no interest in the blood of ordinary blood fiends at all.

    It only acted when there was some special blood, such as the drop of the girl¡¯s blood, which was extremely weird.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t expect that the bandage would move this time and he felt the "fear" the Dragonspine held toward the bandage. That¡¯s right, if Dragonspine was a living thing, then it would feel "fear".

    Its unique quality was revealed in such specialties.

    All of a sudden, Ai Hui became curious about the bandage. What had it been in the Cultivation Era?

    It was a pity that Mistress had alsoe across it by ident and thus knew nothing about its origin.

    All these thoughts shed through Ai Hui¡¯s mind within an instant while the mysterious red blood shone and then quickly merged into the bandage. Then, like a sessful hunter, the bandage retracted silently and tied itself into a knot at Ai Hui¡¯s wrist.

    If he hadn¡¯t seen it himself, Ai Hui would have thought that what happened just now was his imagination.

    Ai Hui retook control of the Dragonspine and was surprised by the feeling at its point.

    The blood elementalist in front of him was totally lifeless. His blood traces which had been bright red were now grey and gloomy.

    Whoosh!

    Hearing the whistle of wind approaching from behind, Ai Hui stepped lightly to the side.

    Old Lei, who was limp and feeble from head to toe, flew past Ai Hui. Ai Hui could still see a streak of incredulity in his widened eyes.

    Seeing his twopanions killed within the blink of an eye, fear shed in the other blood elementalist¡¯s eyes and he shouted, "Shi Wei! What are you doing?"

    Before he could finish his words, Ai Hui rushed at him like a beast pouncing on its prey.

    The blood elementalist had to retreat step by step and put up a desperate fight to withstand Ai Hui¡¯s attack.

    The sword moves were as fast as a violent storm. There was nothing magnificent, but all the ordinary sword moves were fast, precise, and powerful.

    The Dragonspine seemed to be alive in Ai Hui¡¯s hand. It could bend freely and thrust out at a weird angle. What was more annoying were the seven small swords which were like a colony of bees that would sting anyone who showed the slightest w in his movements.

    In an instant, the blood elementalist was covered with wounds like a blood man.

    "Shi Wei, help..."

    The blood elementalist could never finish his words. The Dragonspine sword curved weirdly and slid into the gap between his arms.

    Puff!

    Blood sshed. The body of the blood elementalist stiffened as the sword pierced his throat.

    He fell on the ground with a loud crash.

    Shi Wei trembled all over. He never thought that Ai Hui could enjoy overwhelming superiority throughout the battle. He felt his throat dry up and stammered, "Ai Hui, I waspelled. I, I didn¡¯t want to be your enemy. Can, can you let me go..."

    Ai Hui knew his face. He said calmly, "I know you. You are a student at Central Pine Academy."

    Feeling soothed by Ai Hui¡¯s calm tone, Shi Wei spoke more fluently. "Great! I was afraid you wouldn¡¯t know me. Since we are ssmates, would you please let me go?"

    "If you want to survive, then surrender." Ai Hui looked into his eyes calmly and said in a low voice, "I will send you to Mayor¡¯s residence. You will not die, but will be observed and have the opportunity to get medical treatment."

    "No, I won¡¯t surrender..."

    Ferocity and cruelty flickered in Shi Wei¡¯s eyes. He was struggling.

    "Then one of us will die here, you or me." Ai Hui raised his sword and walked slowly toward Shi Wei.

    Seeing Ai Hui approaching put great pressure on Shi Wei, who was putting up ast-ditch struggle. The lights of fear and danger flickered on his face.

 Chapter 254: Ai Huiâ€™s Rage

    Chapter 254: Ai Hui¡¯s Rage

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: CakeHermit

    The re of the alert indicating that the city¡¯s defences were destroyed and the booming earthquake interrupted the A-1 unit team members who had been resting.

    The signal immediately caught their attention.

    "The warehouse of the mayor¡¯s residence!"

    Duanmu Huanghun knew the map of Central Pine City very well. He gave a precise judgment of the signal¡¯s location at once.

    Before orders were given, everybody already began to act.

    Fatty took his heavy shield and put down his face armor, Duanmu Huanghun began to adjust his clothes and limber up his fingers, while Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun arranged the bow strings and filled their quivers.

    In less than one minute, the A-1 unit was assembled.

    "Let¡¯s head to the warehouse of the Mayor¡¯s residence!"

    The A-1 unit members rushed out of the training hall like a flood.

    Just after stepping out onto the street, they became stunned by the number of blood fiends ahead of them. They regained theirposure before long and moved toward the warehouse of the Mayor¡¯s residence.

    Each of them was extraordinarily resolute.

    As the most powerful team in Central Pine City, they were like a sharp de.

    Fatty was armed to the teeth and walked in front with the heavy shield in his hands. The other members stood in two rows behind him. Once Fatty blocked a blood fiend¡¯s attack, they would rapidly rush out and kill it from two sides like scissors. Duanmu Huanghun stood in the air behind Fatty to take overall control. The everchanging [Viridescent Flower] kept disrupting the beasts¡¯ pace.

    The long-range attack team led by Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun was either keeping the other blood fiends from getting any closer or jointly killing those whose scope of movement was being restricted by the closebat fighters.

    "Release!"

    With each order given by Jiang Wei, a bunch of blood fiends would be killed by a rain of arrows and lights which fell to the ground withrge booming sounds. If the blood fiends they encountered were too powerful, they would shoot out one arrow using their joint effort, the power of which could be astonishing.

    They had be more and more familiar with tactics and had also improved their coordination. Now they were like a highly effective killing machine. No beasts could survive and bodies were left on the road wherever they went.

    The A-1 unit¡¯s performance greatly boosted the morale of the elementalists they passed along the way.

    The team was calm and didn¡¯t stop for a second, steadfastly heading toward the warehouse of the Mayor¡¯s residence.

    Not surprisingly, such a performance attracted the attention of the blood elementalists hiding in the dark.

    "The A-1 unit deserves its name!"

    "Shall we join the fight?"

    "Are you seeking death? They are right at their peak and we will only get our heads broken and bleed out."

    "Then we just watch and do nothing?"

    "No need to hurry. They are human beings, so they will tire and feel fatigue. We have so many blood fiends as our death squads, the A-1 unit will exhaust all their elemental energy against them. When they are tired and their elemental energy is used up, then it will be our harvest time."

    "Good idea!"

    In the air, Duanmu Huanghun suddenly turned his head and looked in the blood elementalists¡¯ direction.

    The blood elementalists immediately shut up. After a while, when they cautiously looked out, the A-1 unit had already left.

    "Is that Duanmu Huanghun? He is awesome!"

    "He found us!"

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s nce disenchanted the blood elementalists. They were now vignt about his capabilities.

    "Someone was hiding in the dark and peeping on us just now."

    Duanmu Huanghun suddenly told Jiang Wei.

    Jiang Wei was startled and asked, "Who?"

    "I don¡¯t know," Duanmu Huanghun said coldly. "Leave them alone. The first thing is to get to the warehouse as soon as possible. Humph, I knew those two guys were unreliable."

    Jiang Wei had already gotten used to Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s arrogance, so he said nothing and simply smiled and nodded.

    The team continued to move towards the Mayor¡¯s residence.

    At the warehouse gate, Shi Xueman was surrounded by three blood elementalists who were standing in a triangle formation.

    "Never thought we could catch such a big shot! Surrender now, goddess! I¡¯m too strong and will feel pity if I unintentionally hurt you," said the blood elementalist standing in front.

    The other two were also smiling unkindly. They nced up and down Shi Xueman, whose hot figure could not be hidden even though she was in the armor. Their greedy gazes that were fixed on Shi Xueman¡¯s splendid face revealed their dirty minds.

    In the past, Shi Xueman was a goddess in their hearts who was awe-inspiring and invible, but now that they knew there was no way back, they could no longer restrain their evil thoughts and inner lust.

    Staring at the one who had spoken just now, Shi Xueman felt he looked very familiar. He was tall and strong, a fine-looking man with sword-shaped eyebrows and star-like eyes. His clothes were already ragged, but Shi Xueman recognized that they were the uniform for guards in the Mayor¡¯s residence.

    Then she remembered his name, Liao Nan, one of the bodyguards from the mayor¡¯s residence. They¡¯d once fought together. She knew he used to be calm and taciturn, and the mayor put him in an important position. It was said that he¡¯d been woundedter.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s pupils contracted. "Casualty barrack? You were wounded soldiers from the casualty barrack?"

    "You¡¯re truly a goddess. They all say that women with big breasts are brainless. You have big breasts too, but you are not brainless," said another blood elementalist, voice dripping with sarcasm. He had a pair of triangle eyes and his eyeballs kept rolling.

    "You all became blood elementalists?" Shi Xueman was shocked.

    "Yeah." Liao Nanughed. "No one wants to die. Living in degradation is better than death. I¡¯m all alone and carefree anyway. It¡¯s not bad to be a great blood elementalist."

    "You don¡¯t hate them?" Shi Xueman asked.

    "For what? They have all died. Can hatred keep me alive?" Liao Nanughed again.

    "You destroyed the city¡¯s defences?"

    Liao Nan shrugged. "We are blood elementalists now. We do what blood elementalists are supposed to do."

    Shi Xueman clenched her Cirrus so hard that her fists became white.

    "Surrender now. You have no chance to win." There was no expression on Liao Nan¡¯s face. "If you are willing to join us, I believe Sir will give you a chance."

    "I¡¯m different from you," Shi Xueman said lightly.

    Liao Nan gave her a look of pity. "You will soon know that many results are worse than death."

    "Cut the crap! Resist if you can." The one with triangle eyes whistled flirtatiously. "You can shout out loudly. I¡¯ll like it."

    He had hardly finished speaking when the other blood elementalist could not hold himself back any longer and groaned while pouncing on Shi Xueman. This guy was like an iron tower, and his pulsing muscles indicated his unimaginable power.

    His stretched arms glowed with bloody light and reached out towards Shi Xueman like pliers.

    Shi Xueman seemed to be scared by his powerful pounce and stepped back subconsciously. The iron-tower blood elementalist¡¯s expression became more ferocious as he was aroused by the fear on Shi Xueman¡¯s face.

    Feeling hot and dry in his body, he couldn¡¯t help leaning forward. He was itching so badly in his heart that he couldn¡¯t wait to hold the goddess in his arms and abuse her.

    Just at this point in time, however, a cold light shed in Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. Her foot that was stepping back suddenly stopped and stretched forward, taking a step as fast as a sh. Then, swish! She disappeared from where she was standing.

    A figure appeared in front of the iron tower unexpectedly. More frighteningly, it was glowing slightly.

    At first the iron tower¡¯s face changed, but then he burst intoughter. He didn¡¯t try to dodge at all, and stretched his arms wrapped in bloody light to embrace her.

    He was confident he could mp down on her as long as he could catch her, and by then, Shi Xueman would be fair game. For this end, he wouldn¡¯t mind getting injured. His capacity to recover was good enough anyway.

    Streaks of blood traces appeared on his skin and he was covered with a strong bloody light which contained a metallic luster. He looked like a man made of iron and copper.

    He was confident; he could feel that his muscles were even more solid than metal.

    Cirrus stabbed into his body without any fancy tricks.

    Inside the tunnel.

    Ai Hui walked closer and closer, casting a shadow of death on Shi Wei. Shi Wei was struggling. He could not see any fluctuations on Ai Hui¡¯s emotionless face. Ai Hui was like a killing machine approaching him to take his life.

    The pressure was so strong that he felt as if he was being put on a guillotine, the de of which was slowly pulled up. The breath of death was so close; his death penalty was likely to be pronounced at any time.

    He felt he was going to copse.

    No! He didn¡¯t want to die twice!

    "I surrender!"

    He breathed heavily and didn¡¯t even notice that his clothes werepletely soaked by his own sweat. When he shouted out those two words, he felt relieved and rxed.

    No matter what would happen in the future, at least he¡¯d survived this time.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sword was at his throat, causing goosebumps to pop out on his skin, but to his relief, Ai Hui didn¡¯t kill him.

    "Tell me what you know."

    He could get no information from Ai Hui¡¯s poker face.

    ...

    After a while, Ai Hui finally finished his interrogation and Shi Wei heaved a sigh of relief. During the interrogation, Ai Hui asked many questions about the details and didn¡¯t give him any time to think. Some questions were also asked repeatedly. Moreover, as long as Shi Wei hesitated even a little bit, the sword would once again approach his throat.

    As a result, Shi Wei didn¡¯t dare to y any tricks and honestly told him everything.

    Then he rxed.

    Now he was not at all nervous, because he knew that what Ai Hui had said was reasonable. Keeping him alive could bring them more benefits, so they didn¡¯t need to kill him.

    But he had to better control his emotions. The intent to kill deep inside him could hardly be soothed, driving him to be extremely eager to initiate an attack.

    Meanwhile, the cowardice and fear made him struggle and not dare to take any action.

    Could he escape from Ai Hui?

    He believed it was almost impossible. Ai Hui reminded him of Sir Tian Kuan. Maybe he was not as powerful as Sir Tian Kuan now, but in terms of making their enemies desperate, they were quite simr. He took it for granted that Sir Tian Kuan¡¯s strength was unfathomable, but why was Ai Hui so powerful?

    He could not figure it out.

    Just when he was going out of his mind, he felt a chill at his throat and in the next second, he fell into infinite darkness.

    The headless body fell in a pool of blood while Shi Wei¡¯s head dropped on the ground and rolled away. His eyes were still open and his face was left with his astonishment before death.

    Ai Hui¡¯s figure merged into the darkness.

    After a while, he heard the fearful voice of the craftsmen¡¯s leader. "I thought you wouldn¡¯t kill him..."

    "I lied to him."

    Ai Hui was emotionless. Cold light flickered in his eyes in the darkness.

    He had appeared to be calm while asking Shi Wei questions, but deep down he¡¯d actually been greatly shocked. When he learned that the forty-five blood elementalists were those who had survived the internecine killing in the casualty barrack, he had already made up his mind. As one of the forty-five survivors, Shi Wei could not have possibly been as harmless as he¡¯d acted.

    The next move was so important that the slightest mistake could not be made. Ai Hui would not take the risk.

    But a furious fire burned inside his heart. He was more wrathful than ever.

    He must kill Tian Kuan!

 Chapter 255: Liao Nan

    Chapter 255: Liao Nan

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: CakeHermit

    The iron-tower blood elementalist stood like a statue in astonishment. The point of the snow-white Cirrus was stuck against his chest. Shi Xueman was still in position to rush forward, but remained motionless.

    The sounds of fighting were deafening in Central Pine City, but here at the warehouse gate, there was only dead silence.

    Liao Nan and the triangle-eyed blood elementalist¡¯s expressions were frozen. Their eyes were filled with shock and fear.

    The iron-tower blood elementalist looked down with difficulty, like rusty machine. Even such a simple action required almost all his effort. His eyes were vacant with astonishment and incredulity.

    The snow-white Cirrus was surrounded by white fog. The figure at the other end of the spear was blurred in his vision.

    The tip of the spear, made of Firmament Iron, was crystal clear, like a sapphire. Its de which was as thin as a cicada¡¯s wing reflected his pale face.

    On his chest, cracks spread like a spider web from where the spear point was poking.

    This... was really like broken porcin.

    His body turned out to be as fragile as porcin...

    He had always been confident in his body. Only now did he realize that such confidence was ridiculous.

    But it was toote to learn this, and the powerful attack had been too abrupt. He didn¡¯t feel rage or unwillingness, however, only freedom. Such an ending... was not bad for him.

    His body that was as heavy as an iron tower fell backward, throwing up a dust cloud. once again, everything fell into silence.

    Shi Xueman recovered her spear slowly. She looked tranquil, as if she hadn¡¯t done anything special. There was no trepidation or anxiety on her face. Her eyes were calm, as if she was in her own family¡¯s training hall.

    "As the descendant of the Shi Family, I¡¯m honored to have fought with you using the move [Cloud Whale]."

    Her voice was clear and sonorous. Waving Cirrus in her hand, the girl looked at them peacefully.

    A streak of fear shed across the triangle-eyed blood elementalist¡¯s eyes. Just now, he¡¯d said thosescivious words on purpose to get hispanion aroused, so that the idiot would initiate an attack first. He didn¡¯t care about that idiot¡¯s death at all, but Shi Xueman¡¯s strength was indeed outside of his expectations.

    That spear move just now was stunning.

    p, p, p.

    Liao Nan apuded. With excitement and admiration, the former mayor¡¯s bodyguard said, "I¡¯d heard of the Shi Family¡¯s inheritance, [Hydromancy], which covers everything rted to the water attribute. Having seen it myself just now, I have to admit that it really lives up to its reputation. That spear move was as powerful as a mountain and could hardly be withstood. [Cloud Whale] deserves its fame. What¡¯s more, the spear move is forceful. As a girl, you didn¡¯t weaken its power at all, and instead added to its glory. I really admire it."

    Liao Nan gave a salute with respect.

    Shi Xueman was indifferent. She stood still with the spear in her hand.

    The triangle-eyed blood elementalist said coldly, "Stop that nonsense. Let¡¯s fight back together."

    "Together?" Liao Nanughed out loud. "I dare not. The bad example is right in front of us. You¡¯d better go your way and I¡¯ll go mine."

    The triangle-eyed blood elementalist didn¡¯t really care about his words, simply giving him a grim smile and saying, "If so, then enjoy your time with your goddess. I¡¯ll leave first."

    Then he bent his knees and bounced up. Like a sh, he immediately disappeared behind the dpidated walls.

    Shi Xueman became less anxious in her heart and slightly moved her fingers that were tightly holding the spear. Although she had seemed to utilize that spear move effortlessly, in fact it had consumed a great deal of her energy. The surging energy and blood inside of her chest were only soothed after a while.

    That move was called [Broken Sea], indicating that the sea would be broken by the bump of a Humpback Cloud Whale. With this move, she could gather all her strength and elemental energy from the eight pces at the point of the spear, which would create an astonishing destructive power. The spider-web like cracks were its unique feature.

    The power of [Broken Sea] corrted with the number of elemental energies one could control. Every eight elemental energies would drive its power to a higher level.

    Shi Xueman was only able to control eight elemental energies.

    Practicing [Broken Sea] was extremely difficult, and only those who had achieved elemental internalization could do so. Shi Xueman was already pushing herself to utilize this move, after which she needed about thirty seconds to recover every time. During the recovery period, her fighting strength was zero.

    She had noticed the precautions the three blood elementalists took against each other, so she¡¯d decided to bet on her judgment. It was a risky bet, since if she was besieged and caught in a dogfight, the situation would be dangerous.

    Fortunately, she won.

    Her attack had scared the two who were still alive and one of them left. Now only Liao Nan was here and her strength had recovered, which was a perfect ending for her.

    But just as she felt a bit rxed, what Liao Nan said next made her nervous again.

    "I know you are buying yourself time."

    "I¡¯m familiar with the distress signal of A-1 unit," Liao Nan said with a spurious smile on his face.

    Shi Xueman was not swayed by him and tightly held Cirrus in her hand. As long as Cirrus was with her, there was nothing to fear. No matter how disadvantageous the situation was, she would not lose her courage.

    "Let¡¯s fight if you want!"

    The flickering light of the explosions in the distance lit up Shi Xueman¡¯s cold and perfect face, which attracted Liao Nan¡¯s attention like a ma.

    Liao Nan looked at her as if he was looking at the most beautiful masterpiece in the world. Suddenly, he said, "Do you know what happens when an elementalist is infected with blood poison?"

    "What do you mean?" Shi Xueman frowned.

    Liao Nan spoke in a rxed tone and even had a smile on his face, as if what he was saying had nothing to do with himself. "As long as you are infected by the blood poison, your mind will be eroded by it and you will finally descend into a beast. No, not beast, but half a beast and half a human being. You will have some remaining consciousness, but your body will be dominated by the beast. You will be irritable and eager to kill. Yes, you will not be able to control yourself. It¡¯s more miserable than death."

    Shi Xueman was shocked by what he said.

    To any survivor in the Central Pine city, the casualty barrack was something that no one wanted to mention. They didn¡¯t know how to face the fate of the casualties.

    Neither did Shi Xueman. It was too desperate.

    Therefore, hearing what Liao Nan was saying, her heart shivered.

    "The only way to stay alive at this point of time is to be a blood elementalist." Liao Nan paused and then burst intoughter. "I¡¯m not saying this to seek your sympathy. I¡¯m satisfied with what I am now. Of course, it was hard to ept at the very beginning, but now I have let it go. I¡¯m free from care anyway, so why not choose to stay in this world as another form of being?"

    Shi Xueman didn¡¯t say a word. Eyes downcast, she suddenly burst out with a strong intent to kill.

    "Oh, calm down." Liao Nan smiled. "I know what¡¯s in the warehouse. It will be terrible if you act on impulse and damage the things in there."

    Shi Xueman, who was about to rush out, suddenly froze. Yes, he was right. The gold needles in the warehouse must not be damaged. She saw the mayor and the dean leave in the direction of the embroidery workshop, so she could only depend on herself now.

    Now, Master Han¡¯s n of "treating the city as a piece of cloth" was their only hope.

    Compared with the golden needles in the warehouse, Liao Nan was of no importance at all.

    "Then let¡¯s continue." Liao Nan looked up to nce at the sky and leisurely said, "It¡¯s my great honor to talk with goddess like this. I never had such an extravagant hope before. That¡¯s why I said maybe there would be a chance if I change my way of being. Do you have any understanding of blood elementalists?"

    Shi Xueman felt a flicker of interest in her heart, but she didn¡¯t say anything.

    Liao Nan continued, "If one wants to transform from a blood fiend man into a blood elementalist, he has to be able to agglomerate blood traces. Hmm, the feeling was spectacr at that time. It was just like drifting up and down in the blood sea of theherworld, then hearing a voice calling your name. After that you can¡¯t help walking towards the shore, and once you step ontond, youe back to this mortal world."

    Shi Xueman only hoped that Duanmu Huanghun and the others would arrive sooner.

    Liao Nan was not annoying. Instead, he had an elegant and collected demeanor. Plus, she was very sympathetic about what he had encountered; nevertheless, she intuitively disliked him for no reason.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s figure appeared in her mind.

    That guy was not at all elegant and was always sarcastic and mean; however, you could always see the eagerness for life in that bastard¡¯s eyes. It was so strong and firm that nothing could influence it even a little bit. More importantly, there was not the slightest hint of confusion in his eyes.

    In Liao Nan¡¯s eyes, there was only confusion, decadence, and annoyance towards life.

    Was it because of what he had been through? Yes, it was understandable that Liao Nan might have be what he was today after such a traumatic experience.

    Not everyone was like that bastard who could never be influenced by anyone or anything!

    A glimmer of a smile shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s face.

    Noticing the smile on Shi Xueman¡¯s face, Liao Nan cheered up. With more sincerity, he said, "After you can agglomerate the god trace ¨C oh, I mean what you call the ¡®blood trace¡¯ ¨C then blood spiritual force can be produced and you be a blood elementalist. Not everyone is equally talented, so the blood elementalists are different too. Basically, there are three categories."

    Shi Xueman suddenly asked, "Which three?"

    Liao Nan smiled faintly. "The first is called god guard. A god guard¡¯s body is being constantly tempered by keeps by blood spiritual force, which,pared with elemental energy, is far more effective. Your training speed can bergely boosted and your body will be invulnerable. Neither swords nor spears would hurt you. Some gains great improvement in speed, some in flexibility, some in strength, and some in self-healing ability. Most blood elementalists ¨C about sixty percent ¨C fall into this category."

    "How about the second category?"

    "The second is called god shaman. They are more sensitive to the surrounding environment and are good atmunicating with the Nature. They can summon spirits and train blood demons. To be a god shaman requires a lot of talent, so only three out of ten people are qualified."

    "But the rarest category is god priest, who is well versed in psychi attacks. They can create illusions to control enemies¡¯ minds. Less than ten percent of blood elementalists can be a god priest. Their attack patterns are hard to predict. If you encounter them, you¡¯d better run for your life."

    This suddenly reminded Shi Xueman of the frightening girl in red. She was very likely to be a god priest.

    She suddenly asked, "Why are you telling me all of this?"

    Liao Nan raised his eyebrows and said with ease, "Although we belong to different sides, I don¡¯t want you to be killed so soon. The battle has just started and it¡¯s sure tost for a long time. If you die in the early stage, I¡¯ll feel lonely. I hope you can live longer."

    "I will. We belong to different sides," said Shi Xueman seriously, her eyes downcast. Then, she raised her head; her eyes were cold. "That means we are enemies."

    "Get beheaded!"

    The cold and clear voice was filled with power.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s spear stabbed out.

 Chapter 256: Liao Nan Beheaded

    Chapter 256: Liao Nan Beheaded

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X

    Liao Nan had not expected that Shi Xueman would suddenly take action. He was shocked to see the spear swiftly piercing toward him.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s super quick assault created a stream of lights that gradually erged in Liao Nan¡¯s eyes. Liao Nan¡¯s pupils constricted abruptly. As he rapidly retreated, his palm lit up with red light and pped at the spear, but it was instantly prated by the awl-like spear.

    With a muffled groan, Liao Nan sped up sharply and reappeared several meters away.

    He looked at the bloody hole on his hand and deeply asked, "Why?"

    "No matter what you say, we are enemies. So, why not cut the crap?" Shi Xueman said indifferently. Her voice was as chilly as the morning mist.

    Liao Nan asked, "As long as I¡¯m a blood elementalist, you just can¡¯t let it go? No exception?"

    "Maybe there will be." Her calm and clear voice revealed no emotion. Looking directly into Liao Nan¡¯s eyes, she said, "But it won¡¯t be you."

    "Apparently, it was all my wishful thinking." Liao Nan pulled himself together. Suddenly, a bloody glow shed in his eyes. "Then I won¡¯t be lenient anymore."

    Liao Nan took a step forward and disappeared unexpectedly.

    The look on Shi Xueman¡¯s face hardened. As the end of Cirrus shivered, she jumped upward abruptly.

    Clink!

    Sparks sshed in the air.

    Shi Xueman felt a st of powere through the end of the spear, which made Cirrus almost slip out of her hands. She grasped Cirrus with all her strength, spun in a circle as a result of the impact, and stabbed the spear again into the air.

    Clink!

    Another radiant spark bloomed in the air.

    This time Shi Xueman was prepared. After a slight jolt, she stamped hard, dashed like a lightning bolt, and once more stabbed the Cirrus skyward.

    A transparent ripple appeared in the atmosphere.

    The look on Liao Nan¡¯s face became serious. The spear move used by Shi Xueman seemed to not be fancy orplicated, but he could not help gravitating toward the spearhead. He saw an illusion that the space around the point of the spear was copsing inward Like a moth flying to a me, he could not stop his p from approaching.

    Clink!

    This time, the force generated by the spear was stronger than the previous ones. It was so powerful that Liao Nan lost feeling in his arms.

    Shi Xueman deserved to be called goddess!

    Liao Nan genuinely admired Shi Xueman in his heart. She was called a goddess not only because of her unparalleled beauty, but also due to her strength thatrgely surpassed her peers. Once, he had fought together with the A-1 Unit, so he had witnessed Shi Xueman¡¯s might. She was indeed strong at that time, but definitely could notpare to what she was today.

    The power he had obtained through death could not at allpete with the progress Shi Xueman had achieved. Was this the superiority of those so-called aristocratic families?

    Liao Nan¡¯s mind was filled with jealousy and a little bit of anger.

    He roared in fury, a bloody glow flowing around him. The speed of his attacks elerated, which generated red lights shining all over the sky.

    Shi Xueman stood calmly on the ground. Her moves slowed down, and each strike was extremely simple as well as lucid. With each move, a cloud of bloody glow faded away. Without the protection of the glow, Liao Nan¡¯s hands collided solidly with the spear.

    Liao Nan was rocked by every collision.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s moves became more and more fluent. She felt as if she was silently swimming in the stratosphere like a whale. There was no splendid radiance, but spectators could sense the iparable power hidden under the serenity.

    Shi Xueman found inspiration.

    The humpback cloud whale was the overlord of the sky. They had no natural enemies, which allowed them to freely swim in the sky without any obstacles. As the overlords, they did not need to care about other creatures¡¯ thoughts. All they needed to do was swim silently.

    I¡¯m the center...

    A brilliance emerged out from Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes as her spear moves became slower and crisper.

    Liao Nan sensed the pressure increasing steeply as if he was in a horrible whirlpool. Enormous power pressed against him from all directions. No matter how he changed his attacking angles, his hands would p upon the spear without exception. The force from the spear was so strong that each collision could numb his arms.

    What kind of spear move was this?

    Liao Nan now realized that Shi Xueman had be so strange and so strong.

    His mind was disturbed for a moment and so was the surrounding space. Liao Nan¡¯s expression changed, as he felt something was about to happen. The snow-white Cirrus dashed out from the clouds like a humpback whale. Then, without any fancy moves, it directly jabbed toward him.

    The ambient space seemed to freeze, and Liao Nan felt that he had no way to dodge.

    Taking a deep breath, Liao Nan¡¯s chest promptlypressed, while his arms grew much thicker and stronger. Veins crawled all over his hands,resembling a pair of blood-made gloves..

    Liao Nan gradually pushed out his hands while exhaling.

    When her spear and Liao Nan¡¯s hands shed, Shi Xueman¡¯s body was shocked, while Liao Nan¡¯s hands exploded like watermelons. The weirdest thing was that the blood gloves covering his arms abruptly wrapped backward before flying toward Shi Xueman.

    Liao Nan showed a sh ofcency on his face. As a blood elementalist, he could always recover as long as it was not a fatal wound. The blood elementalists who were good at healing could even restore themselves immediately.

    Liao Nan could not do that, but he did not care about it at all.

    As long as the blood could cover Shi Xueman, it would be impossible for her to get rid of it.

    After he awakened as a blood elementalist, some abilities hidden in his body had swarmed into his mind as memories. His blood was different from the others¡¯¡ªit could be separated from his body and absorb the elemental energy from other elementalists.

    When Shi Xueman saw the blood, her pupil suddenly constricted.

    The memory of the time in the tunnel emerged before her eyes. She had almost been swallowed by those crazy blood streaks. If it had not been for the bastard who saved her...

    An inexplicable mood rose in her heart, but she stopped it immediately. Killing intent shed in her eyes.

    Being beaten by the same problem twice was not her style.

    Withdrawing her Cirrus swiftly, Shi Xueman grasped it bizarrely¡ªshe gripped the end of the spear with one hand, the body of the spear with the other like she was holding a bamboo pole, and stabbed forward with a spin.

    Bang!

    Air exploded ahead of the spear, forming an air shield dome in the sky.

    Bang! The blood crashed on the dome air shield and was blocked by it.

    At the same time, Shi Xueman stepped back, easily breaking the attack of Liao Nan.

    She had been thinking a way to break an attack like this and finally came up with this solution. The most terrifying part of these blood streaks was that they could swallow and absorb elemental energy. That was to say, elemental energy was useless when facing the blood streaks.

    Therefore, she had to find another solution, which was the air shield. The theory behind an air shield was quite simple:press the air to form a dome shaped shield. The air shield was a popr technique. It provided a low level of protection, but when coping with something special like toxic smoke or mist, it had an outstanding performance.

    Blood streak attackscked great impulsive force, but they corroded elemental energy, which theoretically made the air shield the best choice for defense.

    Realbat also confirmed the theory.

    Liao Nan was shocked. He had not expected that Shi Xueman would easily break his killing move. He could not figure it out, but he realized that the situation was now quite dangerous for him. Consequently, he bit his tongue and transformed into a streak of bloody light, fleeing away as quickly as possible.

    Shi Xueman had not anticipated that Liao Nan would be so decisive. Before she could react, Liao Nan had already dashed dozens of meters away. It was toote for her to chase him.

    Just then, a strip of white de glow cut toward Liao Nan from behind a pile of ruins.

    It arrived so fast that Liao Nan was chopped into two parts before he even realized it.

    The upper part of his body flew several meters away before falling heavily to the ground.

    Wang Zhen came out from behind the ruins and walked to Liao Nan, who was still alive. Wang Zhen said seriously, "No matter what reason you have, betrayal is a capital crime. You were my bodyguard, so I will end your life."

    Then, he beheaded Liao Nan without any hesitation.

    Wang Zhen gave a thumbs-up gesture to Shi Xueman and said, "Good girl!"

    Shi Xueman was a little shy and asked, "How is Master Han?"

    Wang Zhen answered agreeably, "We arrived in time. There were five blood elementalists. The dean and I killed four of them. Thest one was severely injured before he escaped. Next, we escorted Shouchuan to the embroidery workshop. The dean is there with them and I came over to see how things are going."

    Only now did Shi Xueman notice that Wang Zhen¡¯s left arm dangled about his waist. Shocked, she asked, "What happened to your arm?"

    "It¡¯s not a big deal. Compared to what I have been through before, this is nothing," Wang Zhen said lightly before sighing. "I am no match for you youngsters. Nowadays the youngsters like you are marvelous. You are the leaders of the future."

    Shi Xueman was filled with deep respect for Wang Zhen. What he had been through, as he just mentioned, referred to the Battle of the Dawn.

    "How many blood elementalists are there?" Shi Xueman asked.

    "I have no idea." The mayor shook his head. His tone was sad, and his eyes were full of sorrow. "I went to the quarantine barracks. No one was alive."

    Shi Xueman was astonished.

    All of a sudden, the ground began to quake from the agitation of an elemental energy st. About two minutester, the elemental energy gradually became stable.

    Wang Zhen said merrily, "Ai Hui has inserted the first gold needle!"

    Knowing this, Shi Xueman¡¯s cold expression melted and her face beamed with joy.

    Duanmu Huanghun and the others also arrived at the warehouse at this point. When they saw that Shi Xueman was safe and sound, they felt a sense of relief.

    Fatty looked around and asked, "Where are Ai Hui and Lou Lan?"

    "They have just inserted the first gold needle sessfully." Shi Xueman said happily.

    Everybody else was excited to hear the news. Altogether there were nine gold needles, so there was still a long way to go before the final sess. However, the first victory was still a good sign. After a gold needle was injected into a vital node, it would integrate with the elemental energy of the universe. In that case, blood elementalists would not be able to destroy it anymore.

    Ai Hui brought his craftsmen back. They still looked excited.

    "Let¡¯s inject the second gold needle right now!" someone shouted.

    "It¡¯s not time yet." The leader of those craftsmen exined, "We can only do that after the first node bes totally stable. Then, we can activate the second node."

    "How long will it take?" Ai Hui asked.

    "No more than one day," the leader of craftsmen answered while shaking his head. "Based on the n, the time gap between inserting two gold needles should not exceed one day."

    Hearing that, everybody¡¯s excitement wore off. For them, the longer they waited, the more casualties they might suffer.

    "Then we wait. "Let¡¯s start to arrange our defensive line," Ai Hui said deeply andmanded Shi Xueman.

    Everybody looked at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui said with gravity, "Blood elementalists will definitely notice this big scale elemental energy fluctuation. I predict they may attack the warehouse."

    Everybody present knew that the most horrifying time of the battle in Central Pine City had begun.

    Next, no matter if it was day or night, even each second would be soaked in blood.

    Looking into the distance, Ai Hui had a feeling that they were under the watch of somebody hiding in the shadows.

 Chapter 257: A Handsome Guy Cannot Be Made An Enemy

    Chapter 257: A Handsome Guy Cannot Be Made An Enemy

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    Ai Hui was extra cautious. He sent someone to check out the situation, but did not find any tracks. However, at this point in time, he no longer had time to bother about those that were acting on the sly.

    Time was very precious.

    Once Ai Hui returned, he immediately took over themand of the A1-Unit. The warehouse was the core of the operation, so he started nning theyers of defense.

    After hearing Ai Hui report on the blood elementalists, the atmosphere became heavy, especially after hearing that there were no survivors in the quarantine barracks.

    Death was no longer scary. How many people had died in Central Pine City? The survivors were less than 50 percent of the poption now. They were used to seeing death. Nevertheless, they could not ept the fact when they heard the news.

    The injured soldiers from the quarantine barracks were once theirrades. Everyone felt guilty and upset that the injured soldiers could only wait for their deaths following their injuries from battle. Now, they still had to endure such cruel torment by being forced to kill each other.

    After Tian Kuan destroyed their bodies, he continued to destroy their faith and conviction.

    The A1-Unit only consisted of students. They were unable to imagine the cruel reality. When they heard that there were five survivors who gave up on their lives, they were no longer able to control their emotions and many of them sobbed silently.

    Wang Zhen seemed to age suddenly and was in a daze.

    While there were no alternatives to the quarantine barracks, he was still burdened by guilt as he was the one that gave the order. At the front line, no one would give up on theirpanions. Even when he broke his leg in the past, hisrades carried him back.

    He was unable to persuade himself that it was not his fault, but rather in service to the greater good and without other alternatives.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face was as white as paper. She trembled slightly, and there was a hint of fear in her eyes. She had never thought that there would be such a dreadful incident in the world and had not understood the suffering that Liao Nan had been referring to.

    Ai Hui stood quietly. He did not console them, nor did he know how to console everyone.

    One month ago, they were just normal students, merely naive and innocent teenagers.

    However, Ai Hui felt that he should say something. Not because he wanted to, but because time was running out.

    Life was cruel. It did not provide the time to digest sorrows.

    "I know that everyone is upset, but now is not the time to be upset. We do not have much time left."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice was clear and distinct in the midst of deathly stillness. Tearful faces looked up at him in a daze. In their eyes, Ai Hui was still calm as per his usual self. His thin, yet structured, face did not disy any hint of emotion.

    "The whole city knows about the n to treat the city like a piece of cloth. Tian Kuan and his team will definitely know about this too. The activity of the elemental energy waves was too obvious just now, and we are unable to hide it. Tian Kuan will definitely try to sabotage our ns."

    The indifferent voice was like a narrator exining an incident that had nothing to do with them. While it was harsh, the others still felt a sense of peace.

    "There are two ways for Tian Kuan to sabotage the n of ¡®treating the city like a piece of cloth¡¯. The first would be to destroy the gold needles. The second would be attacking Mistress."

    "That¡¯s right."

    The voice belonged to Wang Zhen, who stood rigidly. Wrinkles and signs of hardship could be seen on his face. While his face was pale, he did not forget his duty.

    His voice was hoarse, yet forceful. "Tian Kuan is relying on his subordinates and the blood fiends. They will use the blood fiends to expend our elemental energy and strength. Blood elementalists are the best at taking advantage of a crisis. We should not give them the opportunity to do that."

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell on the mayor. The mayor¡¯s gaze was steady, yet powerful, and he emitted an indescribable aura. It was like the mayor was emitting light. Ai Hui did not know why, but he thought of dried twigs burning.

    Burning?

    Ai Hui looked pensive.

    "The warehouse is not a good ce for defense. We should change it to the mayor¡¯s residence. I will fetch Master Han and Shouchuanter. We should reduce the areas that we need to guard. Gather the survivors. Let the streets be used by Tian Kuan. While there are many blood fiends, they are not organized. There are few blood elementalists, and they will definitely not use them to attack us. Their only chance to attack us is when we nail in the gold needles," Wang Zhen said all this in one breath.

    The mayor residence was only three hundred meters away from the warehouse and it was not really difficult for them to transfer the gold needles. The defense of the warehouse was much weaker than the mayor residence¡¯s. Considering the fact that they had to endure until all the nine gold needles were inserted, Ai Hui felt that it was better for them to move the needles to mayor residence.

    "Let¡¯s go and nail the gold needles." Shi Xueman took the initiative and stood up.

    The A1-Unit was currently the best squad in Central Pine City, and they were duty bound.

    Wang Zhen looked toward Ai Hui. He knew that Ai Hui¡¯s opinion was more important.

    "Alright!" Ai Hui replied. Wang Zhen heaved a sigh of relief.

    Ai Hui was someone who was very capable. Except for the fact that he did not have a strong sense of responsibility, he had no other faults.

    If only Ai Hui had a strong sense of responsibility like Shi Xueman!

    "Then it is decided!" Wang Zhen dered. Everybody scurried off and started doing what they were supposed to do.

    Wang Zhen walked out of the warehouse and looked up at the sky. He prayed silently, hoping that Vice Division Leader Yu could endure for a longer period of time.

    A loud p resounded from the heavens as green light enveloped the whole sky like a tornado.

    Countless dismembered limbs and body parts dropped down from the sky like raindrops, but there were none around Yu Mingqiu.

    At the moment, Yu Mingqiu¡¯s expression was filled with excitement, and his eyes were bright as he looked for new targets. Within the vicinity of 300 meters, however, there were none to be seen.

    "Eh, no more? That¡¯s it?" Yu Mingqiu muttered to himself.

    He did not lower his voice. Those who had better base levels could hear him clearly.

    Yu Mingqiu was not content. He lifted his bow and continued to search for targets. His bow was primitive. Three dark green branches as thick as his thumb were twisted and bent to form the body of a bow. The bow string consisted of slender vines, and there were still a few fresh leaves on the vine.

    This wooden bow was not eye-catching, but possessed an imposing name.

    Blue Dome of Heaven!

    When the Blue Dome of Heaven was first created, it immediately became famous throughout the world.

    The blood birds fled when they saw Yu Mingqiu approaching.

    There were some defects on Yu Mingqiu¡¯s azure wings, but he paid no attention to them. He flew in a circle, but there were no blood birds that dared to battle with him.

    He stood nkly, and after a moment, his crazyughter was heard throughout the sky of Central Pine City.

    "A handsome guy cannot be made an enemy!" [1]

    "How can anyone not understand such a simple theory."

    "When a man is standing, all the birds will flee!"

    Hisments wereced with disdain and they spread among Central Pine City¡¯s sky like a violent storm.

    The elementalists who were still hanging on strenuously had a boost to their morale.

    The dean was guarding the embroidery workshop, and his face was filled with admiration. He was also affected by Yu Mingqiu¡¯s valiant battle spirit.

    It was no wonder he was the youngest vice division leader in the Thirteen Divisions. His capability had no limit.

    However, after he heard Yu Mingqiu¡¯s speech, the knowledgeable dean paused for a moment. In a hesitant tone, he asked Mingxiu, "Amander cannot be made an enemy, what a nice phrase! He was referring to the word mander¡¯ right?"

    A smile appeared on Mingxiu¡¯s pale face, "He is referring to being a handsome guy."

    Dean: "..."

    Mingxiu looked up into the sky at Yu Mingqiu, who looked like a war god. When she was young, her big brother was always studying diligently and did not have time to y with her. It was Big Brother Qiu who yed with her, bringing her up to the mountains to catch birds and to the rivers to catch fish.

    So many years had passed, but Brother Qiu was still the same as before.

    Lost in thought, she suddenly thought of Li Wei, and her gaze grew dark.

    Currently, there was a woman at a corner on the ground who focused on Yu Mingqiu in the sky.

    Several times, the red-dressed girl wanted to make a move, but was hesitant. While Yu Mingqiu looked like he was in a pathetic situation, suchbat was truly exhausting. It was unfathomable that he could endure for so long.

    It was reasonable to say that Yu Mingqiu was like an arrow at the end of its flight.

    However, the red-dressed girl still had some doubts. Unlike the others, Yu Mingqiu¡¯s master was the best wood elemental Grandmaster. She understood how elementalists worked and knew how formidable a Grandmaster could be.

    Yu Mingqiu definitely had skills that could save his life as ast resort. However, looking at his condition, it was apparent that he had gone crazy. It was impossible to reason with a crazy person. If Yu Mingqiu had thoughts of destroying everything, she was going to die as well.

    Her injuries were quite substantial.

    Furthermore, she had a new target now. That target was Ai Hui.

    She was heartbroken when she was forced to use the [Tree Spirit¡¯s Blood] in the tunnel. However, her pain gave way to shock when she saw Shi Xueman. How was Shi Xueman still alive?

    When the [Tree Spirit¡¯s Blood] invaded one¡¯s body, the person would be a tree and grow rapidly.

    She never imagined that the [Tree Spirit¡¯s Blood] would fail. She jolted with shock when she saw Ai Hui and felt the aura of the [Tree Spirit¡¯s Blood] on himi.

    Immediately, she knew that Ai Hui was the key.

    She was stirred up by this discovery and more interested in Ai Hui than Shi Xueman. This was not the first time that Ai Hui had dispelled the blood poison. It was as if Ai Hui was very familiar with blood spiritual force and had many secrets.

    The highest probability was that there was some form of blood-refined artifact on Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    The blood-refined artifacts left behind after the Cultivation Era were the most well-preserved artifacts, but there were slight differences between blood spiritual force and actual spiritual force. As such, not all blood-refined artifacts were usable. Furthermore, ancient blood refinement was much more in depth than the current blood refinement that they practiced. There were many things that she did not understand.

    It was not an easy feat to find an artifact that she could use.

    However, Ai Hui was too alert. He seemed to have discovered that he was being spied on. The red-dressed girl was astonished. Ai Hui was constantly surprising her.

    To prevent alerting Ai Hui¡¯s attention, she retreated immediately.

    First, she decided to examine what exactly Ai Hui had just done. Just now, the elemental waves in the tunnel were very strange. She also saw a few blood elementalists. They had just awakened recently as blood elementalists and had not learned any spells. They could only battle based on their instincts.

    There was apetitor concealed in Central Pine City who was worthy of her.

    She did not show her face to herpetitor, hiding further instead. The threat of herpetitor wasparable to an elementalist. It was even more dangerous when herpetitor was at an advantage.

    She thought for a moment and decided to take a look at the source of the elemental waves. What were these fellows trying to do?

    [1] A y on the chinese word. Ë§ - can mean handsome ormander.

 Chapter 258: Dividing The Troops

    Chapter 258: Dividing The Troops

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    The red-dressed girl found the ce where the elemental energy waves originated. Surprisingly, it was the same ce where she crossed paths with Ai Huist time. Only then did she realize Ai Hui¡¯s objective of traveling to the tunnel earlier. Walking a few circuits around the location of the gold needle, she was puzzled. However, she was not worried as she knew that she had just arrived in Central Pine City, and there were many things that she was still unaware of.

    She walked out of the pit quietly. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the movement of a stone from the ruins not far away.

    Yan Hai woke up in a daze, aching all over. He was trapped in the middle of the rubble and surrounded by darkness. Slowly, he tried to recall what had happened. Instantly, he was filled with fury.

    That damn Old Lei!

    Wait until he returned. He would definitely report this incident!

    He exhausted his strength to climb out of the rumble. He was covered in dust and looked disheveled. This was simply too embarrassing. The hatred in his heart intensified. Old Lei was now ranked as an enemy. Yan Hai silently swore to himself that he would get his revenge!

    Upon climbing out of the debris, he was met with the ring sun and had to squint his eyes.

    "Blood elementalist?"

    A sweet voice sounded from above him.

    Yan Hai¡¯s body stiffened. Something was wrong. Out of the 45 blood elementalists, there were five females. However, this was not a familiar voice so it had to belong to an elementalist...

    Yan Hai¡¯s heart jolted when he thought that he had fallen into the hands of an elementalist.

    Looking foolish with his eyes closed, Yan Hai suddenly spun into action. Making use of both his hands and legs, he quickly shot out.

    His actions were as fast as lightning. The average person would not have time to react to his speed.

    Yan Hai did not meet with any obstructions for the first 10 meters. He involuntarily released his breath, but did not have the chance to rejoice when his body was suddenly pulled back without the ability to continue rushing forward.

    Yan Hai was terror-stricken and turned his head. A bright red silk cloth was wrapped around him like he was a dumpling.

    Following this, he felt a tug and flew backward. He fell heavily on the floor. It was a harsh fall and made his head spin.

    After a moment, Yan Hai regained some of his wits. Without hesitating, he got on his knees and begged, "Have mercy on me! Have mercy on me!"

    "I like people who know how to adapt to circumstances," a sweet andnguid voice rang across the air.

    Yan Hai gathered a few ounces of courage and lifted his head secretly to take a peek. He was dumbfounded by what he saw. Thedy in front of him was like someone who came out of a painting. She wore a red dress while looking beautiful and alluring. Hernguid and charming aura made his heart speed up involuntarily.

    How could there be such a beautifuldy in this world?

    Looking at Yan Hai¡¯s dumbstruck expression, the red-dressed girl covered her mouth andughed lightly.

    "Who is your master?"

    Her voice was enticing. However, upon hearing the word "Master," Yan Hai immediately regained his wits. While he felt dominated by the beauty of the red-dressed girl, his fear toward Tian Kuan was carved deep into his bones.

    Yan Hai asked in a trembling voice, "Who, who are you?"

    The red-dressed girl replied while smiling, "You have no right to ask questions as a captive. If you are unwilling to say, I will just hand you over to the elementalists of Central Pine City. Surely they would give you a hearty wee."

    Yan Hai¡¯s face paled.

    He would rather be killed than fall into the hands of Central Pine City¡¯s elementalists. The elementalists there hated blood elementalists to the core. If they saw a blood elementalist, they would tear him to pieces without a second thought.

    When he heard the two words "hearty wee," Yan Hai¡¯s face became even paler.

    The hatred between both parties was beyond any point of redemption.

    If it came to that day, it would also not be an easy task to simply die.

    Hold on!

    Yan Hai stammered, "Fairy, are you a blood elementalist too?"

    He rejoiced. That¡¯s right! If the red-dressed girl was an elementalist, she would have killed him long ago.

    "I am." The red-dressed girl smiled and creased her eyebrows. Her expression was adorable as she continued, "You have yet to answer my question?"

    Yan Hai blurted, "It is Sir Tian Kuan."

    When the words left his mouth, Yan Hai was filled with regret. He did not know what had happened, but it was like he was possessed. He did not think before answering.

    "Oh, Tian Kuan." The red-dressed girl suddenly seemed to see the light. She threw a dazzling smile at Yan Hai. "We have time to slowly discuss this. I am very interested."

    Her sentence had not yet ended when the red-dresseddy folded up her red sleeves and disappeared along with Yan Hai.

    Wang Zhen was very efficient. Along the way, he continuously gathered the younger elementalists. The battle raged in every corner of Central Pine City. At this point, none of the people held any hopes that they would remain unscathed. As a result, this made them more determined when fighting back.

    While the blood fiends caused many casualties, this did not kill the people¡¯s morale.

    Pretty soon, Wang Zhen gathered a group of elementalists and arrived at the embroidery workshop.

    After he exined the n to the dean and Mingxiu, he was surprised by their answer.

    "Mayor, you are very considerate, but my teacher is unable to move."

    Mingxiu bitterlyughed.

    "Unable to move?" Wang Zhen stood rooted to the ground. Next to him, the dean was also caught by surprise. It was also the first time he had heard of this news.

    "Mistress Han has been meditating since the start of the n." Mingxiu¡¯s voice trembled. "The n of ¡®treating the city as a piece of cloth¡¯ requires the ability of a Grandmaster. Mistress Han is merely a Master and there is still some disparity. Mistress Han has already started meditating and is unaware of the affairs of the world. She has instructed Mingxiu not to disturb her. When the nine specific nodes have been activated, she would naturally awaken.

    "Could it be that Master Han is trying to break through the Grandmaster barrier?" The dean turned pale with fright.

    "Apart from this, there were no other options." Mingxiu paused for a moment before she continued, "Mistress Han knows that there is not much hope. She instructed me to pass on the message to Mayor and Dean that if she fails to break through, she would stillplete the task of ¡®treating the city as a piece of cloth¡¯"

    By thest sentence, Mingxiu¡¯s eyes were red and teary.

    Wang Zhen and the dean stayed silent. They understood the true implication of thest sentence. If the breakthrough failed and Teacher Han still wanted toplete the n, she would have to pay a huge price. It was possible that the price would be her life.

    Compared to the chance of sess for breaking through to be a Grandmaster, there was a higher possibility of her losing her life.

    "If that is the case, we need to make some adjustments to our n." Wang Zhen cut straight to the point and said gravely, "Now, we have two areas that we need to guard. The first is the embroidery workshop and the second is the mayor¡¯s residence. We will do some simple division of the troops. The dean and I will take a group of people to guard the embroidery workshop. The mayor¡¯s residence and the gold needles would be handed over to Ai Hui. Let him know he can act as he deems fit."

    He had yet to finish his word when a few blood fiends were spotted at the end of the street.

    An elementalist soared into the sky and flew toward the mayor¡¯s residence.

    Now that the sky was guarded by Yu Mingqiu, it had unexpectedly be the safest ce in Central Pine City.

    Ai Hui sat on the rooftop of the mayor¡¯s residence and was greeted by a view full of ruins. Clouds of ck smoke rushed skyward. Ai Hui was all too familiar with thendscape before him. This was Central Pine City. This was their battleground.

    How could a soldier be unfamiliar with his battleground?

    Yet, Ai Hui was also familiar with another side of Central Pine City.

    The image of a peaceful, but lively, street shed past his mind. The streets were lined with shops and also many training halls. gs outside the training halls fluttered in the breeze.

    The scene that shed past in his mind seemed like it was just yesterday, but it also seemed like eons ago.

    Ai Hui missed those days, but he knew that they could no longer return to the past.

    Intermittently, sounds of explosion boomed out from many directions. The battle was still taking ce.

    The process of shifting from the warehouse to the mayor¡¯s residence was smooth, and they did not meet with any mishaps.

    Looking at Shi Xueman who was busying about, Ai Hui could not help but smile.

    The irondy was always meticulous, strictly impartial, and incorruptible. He was always assured when he delegated tasks to her. It was not that Ai Hui did not have a mind of his own. Rather, there were many misceneous things that he was unwilling to do.

    For example, how should they organize the newly joined elementalists?

    In such instances,pleting the task might not bring about the desired effect. However, if they did notplete the task well, the effect would certainly cause endless trouble. Ai Hui always steered far away from such tasks. In this aspect, however, Shi Xueman was always patient.

    Lou Lan sat next to Ai Hui.

    Initially, Fatty wanted to go up as well, but he was kicked down by Ai Hui. If Fatty were toe up, the rooftop would definitely copse.

    "Ai Hui, can we win?" Lou Lan tilted his head and asked.

    "Lou Lan has no confidence?" Ai Hui replied to Lou Lan with a question.

    Lou Lan replied, "Because Lou Lan has calcted and the probability of sess is very small."

    Ai Hui¡¯s interest was piqued. "Lou Lan you are so useful! You can even calcte this? Tell me, what are the odds of seeding?"

    Lou Lan replied, "Ai Hui, not even 10 percent."

    Ai Hui was somewhat surprised. "Such a small percentage?"

    He quickly responded while nodding his head, "Ok, seems like that is the case. However we can¡¯t help it. No matter how small the hope, there is still a hope. We still need to do our best. If we manage to get it right, then we will have made it. Even if there are a few deaths, we won¡¯t be on the losing end."

    "Ai Hui will not die!" Lou Lan said loudly and seriously.

    Ai Hui loudly chuckled. Lou Lan¡¯s current expression was like an innocent and naive child.

    "Lou Lan will help Ai Hui. Lou Lan will not let Ai Hui die!" Lou Lan replied earnestly.

    Ai Hui nodded his head while smiling. "Yes, yes, yes. Lou Lan is brilliant! With Lou Lan¡¯s help, Ai Hui will definitely defeat all the blood fiends and kill all the blood elementalists! And we will live until a ripe old age!"

    Sang Zhijun, who was in the courtyard, shouted, "Lou Lan,e back home with me if we seed!"

    This sentence sent the courtyard into chaos.

    "Zhijun, how could you snatch my Lou Lan?"

    "Big sister, while you are our respected and beloved big sister, we will definitely not concede regarding Lou Lan¡¯s case!"

    "Lou Lan, I love you!"

    "Lou Lan, I will find you a female sand puppet!"

    "That is too treacherous! Brothers, let¡¯s beat this chap into a female sand puppet!"

    ...

    ......

    Looking at the chaotic courtyard, Ai Hui could not help but smile. After themotion, the initially stern and restrained atmosphere became lively.

    Ai Hui was the most rxed when he was with Lou Lan. His guard would always disappear without a trace when Lou Lan was around.

    The elementalist who had just descended brought with him thetest news.

    Ai Hui heard the news that Mistress was unable to move, and that they had to guard both the embroidery workshop and the mayor¡¯s residence. If the mayor and the dean took a group of elementalists to guard the embroidery workshop, the task of guarding and cing the golden needles would fall on Ai Hui and the others.

    The situation was worse than he thought.

    However, Ai Hui maintained hisposure, looking the same as his usual self.

    Suddenly, a craftsman rushed into the courtyard. With a happy expression he dered, "The first point has stabilized!"

    Ai Hui gathered his thoughts and was preparing to jump down from the rooftop when the rm suddenly rang.

    Ai Hui stared ahead. The blood fiends had arrived.

    The blood elementalists had definitely arrived too.

 Chapter 259: The So-called Path

    Chapter 259: The So-called Path

    Trantor: JL Editor: X

    After hearing Yan Hai¡¯s stammering recount, the red-dressed girl finally made sense of the situation in Central Pine City.

    "Treating the city as ¡®cloth.¡¯ I can¡¯t believe that there¡¯s actually such a capable person in Central Pine City. Seems like I should hold them in higher regard. Central Pine City has concealed many talents. ¡®Treating the city as a piece of cloth¡¯, the Lightning de, the A-1 Unit, Wang Shouchuan, and Han Yuqin. It is incredible that all of them are from Central Pine City.

    "Yes, yes." Yan Hai nodded his head like a chick pecking on grains. He had recovered from his initial fear and realized that the red-dressed girl did not have any intention to kill him, so his brain immediately jumped into action. In a ttering tone, he continued, "Miss, you have such good foresight. If all the things you mentioned seed, it might actually leave a legacy in Central Pine City¡¯s history. However, as we are here, they will not have a chance to seed! Hahaha!"

    The red-dressed girl nced at Yan Hai. "You seemed to be rather confident."

    "Mydy, with you and Master Tian Kuan, the blood elementalists would definitely be confident." Yan Hai was buttering her up without a care in the world.

    "Tian Kuan?" The red-dressed girlughed coldly. "His base level has reached his limit."

    Yan Hai trembled and asked timidly, "Miss, what do you mean..."

    "You don¡¯t understand." The red-dressed gave a hmph and continued, "Previously, Tian Kuan took on an approach in strengthening himself and did not use any external force to help. The route that he chose is extremely dangerous. If there are any slight mistakes, he will fall into the deep abyss with no hope of reprieve. How did he manage to endure so many stages of god refinement? Because he was resolute and undaunted by death. As a result, he was able to persist and attain what he has today. However, due to his current injury, his mind is no longer as resolute, and he has lost his spirit. It is impossible for him to achieve any further achievements."

    When Yan Hai heard this, he had chills in his heart. He asked feebly, "Is it that serious? Sir Tian Kuan¡¯s capability is iprehensible. I am unable to tell..."

    God refinement was simply blood refinement. The blood elementalists felt that the word "blood" sounded too demonic and was not impressive enough. As such, they renamed it "god refinement." Following the increase of blood elementalists, such minute details were slowly gaining the attention of people, unlike in the past.

    Even the title of "god elementalist" was starting to get popr.

    "On what basis do you think you are capable of seeing it?" The red-dresseddy said bluntly, "The road of god refinement is extremely difficult and dangerous. While the road for an elementalist is long and slow, there are limits to the transformation. It is easy to train and mishaps seldom happen. However, the road for blood refinement is equivalent to climbing a precipitous cliff. While the view is iparable, you are met with many obstacles and dangers. You consider the word ¡®god¡¯ as a word that attracts people. Little do they know that there is actually a profound theory behind the word."

    Yan Hai listened attentively. He knew that such an opportunity was hard toe by.

    "What do we mean by god? Being detached from life and death as well as being one with heaven and earth like God! In this aspect, we are no different from the elementalists. They also believe that they have amon origin with heaven and earth and they will live forever. In short, they are following the path of the cultivators from the past. However, we are different. We walk in between the path of life and death. We treat life and death as an integral whole, that they are simr. Our theory is profound. Walking between life and death is akin to walking on a tightrope between high cliffs. Below our feet is an unknown abyss. In order to seed, our hearts and minds must be resolute. We must not hesitate, else we will definitely fall into an situation with no hope of reprieve."

    Yan Hai was rmed after hearing what she said and forced augh, "Wouldn¡¯t this mean that they are unable to make any mistakes?"

    "God makes mistakes too." The red-dressed girl continued unhurriedly, "Making a mistake is all right, and as long as the heart is resolute, there will be a chance to survive. To be alive after dying. To be a god overnight. This is something that is unique to us, blood elementalists. Compared to us, the training of the elementalists is much stupider."

    "Why are we still not able to match up against them then?" Yan Hai asked subconsciously.

    Through the red-dressed girl, he learned that his partners had died in the battle. He could not believe his ears. He could feel that after he became a blood elementalist¡ªoh, god elementalist¡ªhis strength had improved tremendously. Old Lei and the rest were even stronger than him. Otherwise, they would not have treated him like that.

    However, all four of them were dead.

    "You guys?" The red-dressed girl smiled. "Even though you have managed to grow the god traces and be a god elementalist, you have not practiced any god spells nor do you have any suitable weapons. If you are able to defeat the Lightning de just like that, then he isn¡¯t someone to be feared either."

    When Yan Hai heard that the opponent was the Lightning de, his bewildered expression cleared. His doubts were cleared as well. If Ai Hui was the one they were dealing with, then the conclusion was a given and nothing out of the norm.

    The Battle of Long Street had left ansting impact on Yan Hai.

    Yan Hai was d that he had managed to escape due to Old Lei¡¯s kick.

    "Regarding Ai Hui, how much do you know?" the red-dressed girl suddenly asked.

    "Not much," Yan Hai replied weakly.

    "Say what you know." The red-dressed girl¡¯s voice was melodious butmanded attention.

    "Yes." Yan Hai did not dare to miss out any details and narrated what he knew.

    .....

    The battle was in full force at the mayor¡¯s residence.

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman were jointly attacking a blood ape. This blood ape was the same ming ape that they had encountered in the Heaven Pit previously. It was defeated in Central Pine Cityst time and had barely managed to escape. Initially, the blood ape did not dare to enter Central Pine City. However, given that Central Pine City¡¯s defense were destroyed and the enticing lure of the elementalists, it gave into temptation and entered Central Pine City once more.

    They had had the aid of the mayor and dean previously, but at the moment, they had no other people to help them.

    Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, and Duanmu Huanghun rushed forward. The others were trying to stop the advancement of the other blood fiends.

    Compared to seeing it at a distance like earlier, Ai Hui was able to betterprehend the formidability of the ming ape at a closer proximity.

    Bang!

    Ai Hui¡¯s Dragonspine collided with the palms of the ming ape. At the point of contact, the Dragonspine suddenly curved, like a spring that waspressed. Chi, chi, chi. Seven small swords intertwined, formed a lightning, and flew toward the ming ape¡¯s face.

    The ming ape was fearful of the thunder and lightning. It lifted one of its palms to protect its face.

    Ding, ding, ding. The sound of the lightning colliding on the ming ape¡¯s palm was heard. The ming ape¡¯s palm was numb and the fear on its face became more intense.

    Ai Hui made use of the recoil from the Dragonspine and rebounded up into the air. When he was airborne, he felt that his right arm was numb. The ming ape¡¯s strength was incredibly shocking. He also confirmed something else.

    The mes had a suppressing effect on him.

    Was fire able to restrain metal?

    In the basics ss, enhancement and restraint of the five elements weremon sense, but these properties were also the most amazing transformations for the five elements. In previous battles, the traits of enhancement and restraint were not obvious. Following the increase in Ai Hui¡¯s base level, the concentration of elemental energy in his body also increased. His metal attribute became increasingly prominent. As such, the effects of enhancement and restraint became more distinct. If he were to achieve elemental externalization, the metal attribute in his body would be even stronger, while the effects of enhancement and restraint would be even more prominent.

    All living things had weaknesses and enemies.

    Ai Hui did not find this strange. He was thinking of how to counter this.

    A ferocious re shed past the ming ape¡¯s eyes. When it wanted to rush forward, the tip of a spear pierced at its throat. It had to halt its tracks and threw a fist toward the spear tip.

    Boom!

    A smothered, but loud sound was heard throughout the residence.

    The ming ape appeared sluggish as Shi Xueman retreated a few steps back. Both parties were reevaluating their opponent.

    The ming ape opened its eyes wide. It did not understand why the delicate figure in front of it contained such tremendous strength, but it was more concerned with the smell the other party was emitting. The smell of water.

    Just as fire restrained metal, the element that could restrain fire was water.

    Facing an opponent on equal ground whose attribute could actually restrain it, the ming ape was extremely fearful.

    Shi Xueman remained calm and collected. Her eyes sparkled like the stars. That collision had increased her confidence. Her strength was increasing practically everyday. Her gains from the blood crystals seemed to differpared to the others.

    Like the Cirrus she wielded, her looks were deceiving as well. Her petite body contained a tremendous amount of strength. asionally, she would worry that such a change was a bad thing.

    How can a girl just grow in strength? What happens if her legs be chunky? What happens if her arms expand?

    Of course, these were just fleeting thoughts. She fought everyday with all her might and had no time to seriously think about all these minor issues.

    Through that strike just now, she realized how much she had improved.

    After the battle with Liao Nan, she gradually started to find a battle style that belonged to her. The same set of spear movements could have a different effect when different people executed them. From a young age, she knew that people had to find a battle style that belonged solely to themselves, just like people had to find a pathway that only belonged to themselves.

    She thought that she was starting to find her own road.

    Her eyes brightened as she saw the fear in the ming ape¡¯s eyes.

    She took a step and thrust out Cirrus, courageously continuing her advance.

    The ming ape loosed ferocious roar and shot out its fist.

    Boom!

    The collision resulted in an even louder sound. Shi Xueman retreated further than before. Her arms were numb, but her eyes became brighter again.

    A drop of fresh blood seeped out of the ming ape¡¯s fist. Just when it was about to drip to the floor, the blood became a me that enveloped the ape¡¯s fist. The color became darker and emitted a high heat. The ground beneath the ming ape was burned red.

    Everyone was shocked into oblivion by the collision.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s figure was graceful. Even though her body was covered by the armor, it was unable to conceal her perfect figure. Regardless of the angle, Shi Xueman and the word "sturdy" did not seem to be corrted. She only emitted gentleness, albeit her gentleness was "cold."

    But... what did they just see?

    Dumbstruck, Ai Hui gaped. He had just shed with the ming ape. Even he, who had attained the level of [Copper Skin] through training, found it difficult to deal with the ming ape.

    Yet, Iron Lady could meet the ape¡¯s force with force.

    To meet force with force!

    Oh, to hell with it...

    Ai Hui was shocked speechless. Although he had always referred her to as "Iron Lady," he had never imagined that such a daintydy would be a brute force freak. To be able to meet the ape¡¯s force with force, if she was not a brute force freak, then what was she?

    She was a youngdy from an influential family who used elemental ingredients to rinse her mouth, alright?

    She was a talented goddess who had the ability to captivate countless men, alright?

    She was someone who practiced an abstruse and inexhaustible absolute art, alright?

    Why did she have to snatch the rice bowl from us, people who can only rely on brute force and are struggling to get by?

    The world was too cruel!

    Ai Hui sent a pitying nce in Fatty¡¯s direction.

 Chapter 260: Dilemma

    Chapter 260: Dilemma

    Trantor: JL Editor: CakeHermit

    Yan Hai watched the ongoing battle at the mayor residence from far away. His mouth was agape and he wore a shocked expression.

    A small and dainty youngdy and a ming ape which was as big as a small mountain collided repeatedly. The visual impact that it brought totally undermined any knowledge he¡¯d previously had.

    A freak was definitely hiding in that dainty body.

    That was what Yan Hai thought.

    Compared to the blood elementalists, the blood fiends had a greater advantage. They had gone through millions of years of transformation. The world bestowed upon them the rule of survival.

    The ming ape had already formed the god-traces. Those god traces allowed it to control me. It had transformed into apletely different creature. Its blood was hotter thanva and the energy it umted was distributed throughout its body. Just like smelting iron with fire, the original strong body of the ming ape became even stronger.

    Despite this, it was unable to restrain Shi Xueman!

    All of Central Pine City was in ruins. There were no high-rise buildings to obstruct his vision. He could clearly see the fierce battle that was happening at the mayor¡¯s residence from a far distance.

    In the battle, Shi Xueman fought more courageously.

    Cirrus was like a snow-white whale that charged around violently. There were no gaudy moves and the elemental energy was concentrated and held back. The weirdest part was that Cirrus did not produce any sound. It was like a huge whale that had its mouth wide open and could swallow up everything.

    "Such a brilliant goddess!" The red-dresseddy was slightly moved. "Her spearmanship is on a totally new level. It is no wonder that she is a genius from the Shi Family."

    To be on the next level indicated that Shi Xueman had started toprehend her training and was developing her own sense of style.

    In ordance with her age, Shi Xueman would be graduating from the Induction Ground this year. Even the red-dresseddy was impressed by the fact that Shi Xueman was able to achieve such a profound level in her spear movements at her age.

    "A totally new level?" Yan Hai was more shocked than the red-dressed girl. "How old is she? Isn¡¯t she graduating only this year?"

    "Hence, she is a genius," replied the red-dressed girl casually. "Look at them meeting force with force."

    "How can she possess such tremendous strength?" Yan Hai¡¯s heart was filled with many doubts and was stunned by such strength.

    Yes, all the elementalists who were watching the battle were also shocked by the visual impact.

    "Because she has a solid foundation." The red-dresseddy¡¯s tone held a hint of respect. "To be able to have such a solid foundation is not easy. You will understand this reasoning in the future."

    Yan Hai did not dare to ask further. Despite the fact that thedy was always smiling at him, he knew that she would not have any mercy on him, just like Sir Tian Kuan.

    The red-dressed girl¡¯s gaze shifted from the ming ape to the whole battleground. This was her first time seeing the A1-Unit in action.

    She was impressed by the A1-Unit¡¯s battle style.

    Snares and traps surrounded the perimeter of the mayor residence. She was astonished that a sand puppet was actually the one controlling the snares and traps. What blew her mind was that the sand puppet was extremely smart.

    The traps were not intended to kill or injure directly, but rather to dy the arrival of the blood fiends and create more opportunities for the team attacking from a further distance.

    The solid floor beneath the blood fiends¡¯ feet would suddenly be loose sand. These subtle changes affected them greatly.

    When that happened, the arrows would envelope the blood fiends like raindrops.

    About one third of the fleeing blood fiends would then fall into the snares.

    Those that managed to avoid the snares would encounter the second line of defense - the elementalists that formed a defence line around the perimeter. They formed a small group and constantly thrusted out attacks. They were like a sharp razor de which nobody dared to pass.

    The red-dressed girl slightly feared thebat ability that the A1-Unit disyed. Through Yan Hai, she knew that it was due to the blood crystals. The discovery of the blood crystals had changed Central Pine City¡¯s situation tremendously. The influence of the blood crystals was like a wave of ripples that kept expanding. In fact, it was having asting influence and impact on both sides.

    As the elementalists were unable to create elemental food with just the blood crystals, then if not for the fact that resources in Central Pine City had been depleted, the strength of the elementalists would have increased even more tremendously.

    The Blood of God was not the only force pushing the progress of the battle; the elementalists were also using all their means to quickly adapt to the new battleground.

    Due to the existence of the ming ape, there were no other strong blood fiends in the surroundings. The smaller and weaker blood fiends had been driven out by the ming ape.

    If there was a slightly stronger blood fiend, Fatty would rush forward to the front line. Those elementalists who were near him would then weave in like a pair of scissors and attack.

    Of course, Fatty did not know that Ai Hui wasughing at him in secret.

    Even if he knew, he would not want to prove himself. Even if the world copsed, shouldn¡¯t it be those who were taller and more capable that provide the support? In any case, there was Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, and Bangwan. He would just follow and drift along.

    Fatty held onto the shield and forcibly prevented the blood fiends from attacking.

    Currently, the impacts the blood fiends made were practically nothing to him.

    After a few consecutive sesses in blocking the blood fiends, Fatty¡¯s level of confidence increased tremendously. He was like a moving wall and the blood fiends had to pass him to attack the others.

    The strongest ming ape was being "attended to" by Ai Hui and Shi Xueman. The rest of the blood fiends wereckluster, most of them being injured or dead upon facing the retaliation of the A1-Unit.

    With the support of a few elementalists nearby, there were just a few blood fiends left. The blood fiends were on the losing end.

    Fatty started to ck off and was left with nothing much to do.

    If not for the fear of incurring Ai Hui¡¯s wrath, he would have wanted to start a small gambling den where he could gamble.

    Ai Hui was getting stronger and stronger. He should be able to have a better life in the future and definitely live to a ripe old age, Fatty thoughtzily. Fatty was happy and felt that Ai Hui deserved a better life. He was always so hardworking and attentive. Ai Hui has never harbored anyints as well.

    Whoo, he shall share some of Ai Hui¡¯s glory!

    The mayor¡¯s residence was the sturdiest building in Central Pine City. Fatty also needed to act as thest defensive wall around the mayor residence.

    The red-dressed girl was dazzled and impressed by the coordination of the A1-Unit. This was the first time that she witnessed such excellent coordination and they were just a group of students. If they were able to make it out alive, they would definitely be the backbone of the Avalon of Five Elements in the future.

    "Should we go forward and help?" Yan Hai asked.

    "Why should we help?" the red-dressed girl asked, astounded.

    "We are all blood elementalists..." Yan Hai replied feebly.

    The red-dresseddy merely shot a nce toward Yan Hai and did not show any signs of going to help.

    Yan Hai was aware that he had said the wrong thing and quickly shut his mouth. He did not dare to utter another word.

    The blood elementalists who were hiding in a corner were met with a dilemma. They had never imagined that the A-1 Unit would be such a strong and capable team. They were the best in Central Pine City.

    Yet, they had to attack!

    Another person who was ready to show his hand was Ai Hui. He had found a solution.

 Chapter 261: Ai Huiâ€™s Discovery

    Chapter 261: Ai Hui¡¯s Discovery

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    Ai Hui was surreptitiously observing the ming ape.

    No one dared to say that he or she understood the blood fiends well, including Ai Hui. Different blood fiends had different fighting capabilities and characteristics. One could only identify their specific weaknesses through observation.

    Shi Xueman and the ming ape were engaged in a furious battle, giving Ai Hui the opportunity to observe the enemy.

    The ming ape was undoubtedly powerful.

    Its six meter-tall body gave it terrifying strength, and instead of being slow and clumsy due to its sheer size, it was also nimble and agile. Its shiny metallic hair prevented it from getting injured easily and even though the ming ape appeared abnormally irascible and violent, its flickering eyes revealed its craftiness.

    Looking at it, the ming ape did not seem to have any weaknesses. In the Wilderness, this type of dire beast was the most troublesome and no one wanted to encounter it.

    However, Ai Hui knew that there was no such thing as a dire beast without any weaknesses in this world.

    He carefully observed the ming ape¡¯s every movement and the changes in its body. Shi Xueman¡¯s attacks were forceful and rapid, allowing no room for the ming ape to dodge. Both of them were fighting with brute force. Furthermore, due to the ming ape¡¯s elemental weakness to Shi Xueman¡¯s water element, it was not an easy task for the former to deal with thetter. The ming ape needed to go all-out in its attacks.

    Thanks to the ming ape going all-out, Ai Hui was able to pick up more details from its body.

    Especially its blood traces.

    Its me-shaped zing blood traces were covered by its thick and coarse hair, making them very difficult to spot.

    As the blood fiends continued to evolve, their bodies became more impressive, but not in the sense that their powers became stronger. Instead, their weaknesses were reduced in number. For example, the blood traces on low-level blood fiends were very distinct, but after they evolved to a higher level, their blood traces would be darker and less distinct. The ming ape¡¯s blood traces grew under its hair, making them extremely hard to spot. The hair also acted as a form of protection for the blood traces.

    Fortunately, the ming ape¡¯s blood traces could still be seen. Even though Ai Hui¡¯s eyesight was not as sharp as the sword embryo¡¯s, he still could capture many small details.

    Ai Hui noticed a weird phenomenon. The ming ape¡¯s blood traces were expanding and contracting faintly, as if they were breathing.

    Whenever this phenomenon happened, the mes on the ming ape would burn more intensely.

    The higher-ups were unable to provide much information on the blood traces, but there had been many discussions on them. Everyone fought blood fiends everyday, so they could directly experience and understand the blood traces for themselves.

    The mainstream belief was that the blood traces were the blood fiends¡¯ source of power.

    This idea matched very well with the old prisoner¡¯s conjecture. The old man felt that blood traces were the blood fiends¡¯ weakness.

    The ming ape¡¯s performance had verified these conjectures, however, just this information alone was not enough. Duanmu Huanghun did try using the [Viridescent Flower]¡¯s vines to attack the ming ape¡¯s blood traces, but to no avail. The ming ape did not mind its blood traces being attacked at all.

    At that moment, Ai Hui noticed an easily overlooked detail.

    The blood traces did not breath all at the same time. On the contrary, the breathing followed some kind of unique pattern. After observing a while more, Ai Hui knew he was right about the blood traces.

    For example, the first blood trace to light up was the one that was near the ming ape¡¯s heart.

    Ai hui suddenly realized something. The breathing pattern of the ming ape¡¯s blood traces reminded him of the Circtory Cycle Revolution in elemental energy training. If he reced the blood traces with the pces, wouldn¡¯t it be a Circtory Cycle Revolution?

    Could there be a mechanism like the Circtory Cycle Revolution in the body of the ming ape as well?

    A burst of excitement erupted within Ai Hui. The more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Spiritual force needed to be channeled through the meridians of a body using the Circtory Cycle Revolution as well. The current version of the Circtory Cycle Revolution for five residences and eight pces was based on the Cultivation Era¡¯s version.

    The only difference was that the Cultivation Era¡¯s version of the Circtory Cycle Revolution was much moreplicated and detailed.

    Ai Hui believed that the blood fiends¡¯ version of the Circtory Cycle Revolution would not be tooplicated. The blood elementalists¡¯ Circtory Cycle Revolution would be simrly simple. A body¡¯s meridians had to be slowly developed and expanded from a young age. They could not be fully formed in only a day¡¯s time. The few blood elementalists that Ai Hui had encountered used to be quarantined casualties. How could it be possible that they had had the time to learn something asplicated as the Circtory Cycle Revolution?

    If that was the case...

    A bold idea arose in Ai Hui¡¯s mind. Was it possible that the Blood of God borrowed the training system of five residences and eight pces from the Avalon of Five Elements?

    Initially, he felt his idea was ridiculous; however, upon second thought, he realized that it was possible. The greatest advantage of the five residences and eight pces¡¯ Circtory Circle Revolution was its simplicity.

    Ai Hui started to make conjectures based on this ridiculous idea and imagined the blood traces as pces. In other words, the ming ape had nine ¡®elemental energy pces¡¯ on its body.

    The energy channeling path should start at its heart, followed by its left abdomen, subsequently to its back, and then to its right knee...

    "Stab its right knee!" Ai Hui suddenly yelled.

    Shi Xueman was too slow and did not react in time. She did not expect Ai Hui to suddenly open his mouth. By the time she could react, it was toote.

    She had absolute confidence in Ai Hui.

    Even though that rascal¡¯s character might be terrible, he must have discovered something if he¡¯d yelled like that.

    The thing that surprised Shi Xueman was that Ai Hui had remained silent for thest few rounds of attacks against the ming ape. Initially, she and the ming ape were evenly matched, however, Ai Hui¡¯s distraction caused her to be immediately suppressed.

    The ming ape was abnormally sharp. When it sensed that Shi Xueman was distracted, it immediately exploded with a burst of strength. The ming ape bellowed and clenched both its fists. The blood trace on its back lit up and zing mes erupted, forming a pair of fire wings!

    Before it even finishing bellowing, the ming ape increased its speed sharply and surged toward Shi Xueman like a ming shadow.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who had not really done much during the battle, had a cold glint sweep across his eyes. He spread out his fingers like a blossoming flower in an instant.

    [Viridescent Flower, Perennial Lock]!

    Numerous [Viridescent Flower] vines shot out from the ground and devoured the fire-winged ming ape like green floodwater.

    A towering green cage stood tall and straight in the middle of the field.

    The Perennial Lock appeared too suddenly. Without a single sign, it appeared out of nowhere on the field.

    Boom!

    Surging oil-like mes gushed out of the Perennial Lock.

    The secured, green cage burst into a sea of fire, resembling a heap of burning dry grass. Duanmu Huanghun did not continue to attack. He did not have any advantage against the ming ape. He had achieved his objective by executing the Perennial Lock.

    A gigantic figure engulfed in mes walked out from the sea of fire.

    Its enormous body was filled with an imposing aura. As it moved forward, an aura of killer intent pervaded the air.

    Shi Xueman remained unflustered. Even when the ming ape looked so terrifying, the young pony-tailed girl did not show any intention of retreating.

    She held her spear tightly and slightly lowered her body, looking like a leopard about to pounce on its prey.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes became brighter and brighter.

    The ming ape bent its knees slightly and the mes in the air were extinguished. All of a sudden, a dazzling ze erupted through the air as the ming ape charged ferociously towards Shi Xueman.

    "Right knee!"

    Even though Ai Hui¡¯s voice was not loud, it could still be clearly heard amidst the deafening explosions and the ear-splitting roar of the ming ape.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes slightly lit up; however, the next moment, she squinted her eyes. The dazzling ze in the air was blinding her vision. Soon, her vision went dark as a gigantic figure appeared before her eyes.

    The ming ape¡¯s charging speed this time around was much faster than before!

    Without any hesitation or intention to retreat, she struck out her spear firmly. Cirrus shot forward like a whale swimming silently in the depths of the ocean.

    The surging and overpowering ze collided heavily with the streak of concentrated, white-colored spear glint.

    Both Shi Xueman and the ming ape subconsciously squinted their eyes, bracing for the iing explosion and shock wave. With two such terrifying forces colliding against each other, a colossal explosion was about to take ce.

    Crack!

    The sound resembled an egg shell being smashed.

    The white spear glint pierced through the surging ze and a wisp of blood mist spurted out. Without having enough time to dissipate, the wisp of blood mist was devoured by the ze.

    Everyone was shocked by this scene.

    They had thought that it was going to be a fierce collision, but it turned out like this in the end.

    The ming ape, which had lost its bnce, smashed heavily to the ground, causing crushed rocks and mes to fly everywhere. The ming ape¡¯s right knee and everything beneath it hadpletely disappeared.

    The ming ape¡¯s mes began to dim. It rolled in the rubble while howling in grief non-stop, looking extremely pathetic. It lookedpletely different from its previously domineering self.

    The epic turn of events caused everyone to be dumbstruck once again.

    The turn of events was far too abrupt!

    Duanmu Huanghun cast a nce at Ai Hui with a bewildered look on his face. He did not see what exactly had happened when Shi Xueman struck out her spear. He also did not understand why it had to be the ming ape¡¯s right knee. Why was there such a huge difference in demeanor between the current ming ape and its previous self?

    Countless questions ran through his head, but very soon, these questionspletely disappeared and were reced by a single statement¡ªShe is indeed someone I have to have to catch up to!

    Yan Hai, who had been observing from afar, was filled with shock. "Miss, what happened?"

    After a long while, he did not hear Miss¡¯s voice. Subconsciously, he turned his head around and he was dumbstruck.

    Miss¡¯s face was filled with indescribable incredulity. Her face was pale-white, looking as if she had seen a ghost. Her facial expression contained shock and even a hint of fear.

    Yan Hai muttered with a nk look on his face, "Miss..."

    Ai Hui walked to the ming ape and took a closer look at it.

    The ming ape was rolling on the ground and groaning, appearing to be suffering pain.

    At this moment, Shi Xueman also returned to her senses from her battle state. When she saw the ming ape in agony, she was astonished. Upon taking a closer look, she understood what was going on and her face turned slightly pale.

    The ming ape was in so much pain because the mes that engulfed it were burning its body.

    It hadpletely lost control of the mes on its body. The power that once belonged to it had be the cause of its death.

    The surging mes began to extinguish. The scary part was that the color of the mes was turning bluish. Like a melting candle, the ming ape¡¯s flesh melted, burned, and then disappeared.

    In the blink of an eye, a ghastly white skeleton and several blood crystals were left on the ground.

    Shi Xueman did not move. She looked on nkly as Ai Hui picked up the blood crystals and pounded the skeletal remains of the ming ape. Poof, the skeletal remains turned into ashes. The previously formidable ming ape had been reduced to ashes.

    Ai Hui picked out three remaining bone pieces from the ashes. These three bone pieces had irregr shapes. They were bright red, resemblingva that had notpletely cooled off.

    Holding them in his hands, they felt extremely hot.

    Ai Hui was somewhat unhappy. Why were the spoils of war always something Fatty could use? This had also happenedst time with theva spider!

    Shi Xueman was filled with doubt. Just as she was about to ask Ai Hui about it, she suddenly heard Lou Lan¡¯s warning.

    "Ai Hui, be careful!"

 Chapter 262: Protect Ai Hui!

    Chapter 262: Protect Ai Hui!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    A grey shadow wriggled forward along the ground. It was extremely slow. Using the surrounding rubble as camouge, it avoided everyone¡¯s attention.

    It suddenly stopped in its tracks and like water seeping into sand, the grey shadow permeated the shadows cast by a nearby pile of crushed rocks.

    The fall of the ming ape had captured everyone¡¯s attention. Even Ai Hui did not notice what was going on beneath his feet.

    "Ai Hui, be careful!"

    Lou Lan¡¯s warning sent a cold shiver down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. Before he could react in time, his feet sank downward as if he had stepped into quicksand. A gloomy and cold aura prated his legs and rapidly spread up his body.

    The turn of events had been too sudden, catching Ai Hui off guard. By the time he could react, both his feet had lost all feeling, bingpletely numb.

    What was that?

    The grey color extended through Ai Hui¡¯s legs. They now looked extremely odd and scary, resembling two dried-up branches.

    Ai Hui suddenly remembered Shi Wei mentioning that there was a type of blood elementalist that could summon and nurture blood demons. Could this be a blood demon?

    A chill entered his bone marrow, causing him to swiftly lose control of his body.

    Ai Hui tried channelling his elemental energy to expel the chilling grey shadow, but to no avail. The situation worsened instead. The elemental energy was like nourishment to the grey shadow, allowing it to spread through Ai Hui¡¯s body faster.

    In the blink of an eye, the grey color extended as far as Ai Hui¡¯s waist. The lower part of his body resembled a grey-colored, immovable stone statue.

    Everyone panicked.

    The previously cool-headed Shi Xueman was at a loss. What exactly was the grey shadow? What should she do? Ai Hui was just within her reach and yet, she did not know how to save him.

    Fatty¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. Without a second thought, he dashed wildly toward Ai Hui.

    The yellow light in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered frantically. He was doing his best to analyze the grey shadow. Suddenly, he took out a blood crystal, following which, his palm turned into quicksand and devoured it. The yellow light in his eyes became brighter.

    A trace of blood spiritual force was inserted into Midnight. Numerous mysterious veined patterns appeared on the translucent, sparkling sand core, causing it to operate frantically.

    In the distance, more and more blood elementalists were emerging from the dark and approaching the mayor¡¯s residence. This was their best chance to advance.

    Ai Hui was their most feared opponent, the one they least wanted to engage inbat. By suppressing Ai Hui, their pressure was significantly relieved.

    "So much for the legendary Lightning de."

    A repulsively ugly and sly-looking blood elementalist sneered. His facial expression was sinister and his smile contained a hint of evil.

    Meanwhile, Ai Hui felt as if there was an invisible, cold hand gripping his body tightly from within. He could not help but groan.

    At this moment, a sneer appeared on the sly-looking blood elementalist¡¯s face. All of a sudden, he yelled, "Kill Ai Hui first!"

    The other blood elementalists all rushed toward Ai Hui at the same time. It was no secret who the core of the A-1 unit was. Anyone who had witnessed the battle of the streets knew how dangerous Ai Hui was.

    Shi Xueman was very powerful, Duanmu Huanghun was very powerful, and the A-1 unit was also very powerful; however, in everyone¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui was the only one who could single-handedly change the oue of a battle.

    All the blood elementalists made the same decision and charged towards Ai Hui from all directions, resembling a rain of fast-flying arrows. Biting-cold killer intent filled the air as all the blood elementalists locked onto Ai Hui.

    Without any hesitation, Shi Xueman stepped out and stood in front of Ai Hui to defend him.

    Duanmu Huanghun descended from the sky and defended Ai Hui from another direction.

    The earth-quaking rumbles spontaneously came to an end as a thick, heavy shield plunged ferociously into the ground, causing soil to fly everywhere. The heavy shield was then steadily erected. Fatty used one of his shoulders to support the heavy shield and arched his body slightly, preparing to defend Ai Hui against the charge.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s hair stood on end. He felt somewhat suffocated and his body shivered involuntarily.

    The enemy had premeditated this; their goal was to kill Ai Hui!

    Ai Hui, who had triumphed in almost every single battle, was encountering an unprecedented danger.

    If anything was to happen to Ai Hui...

    Jiang Wei returned to his senses and cleared his throat. With all his might, he yelled, "Protect Ai Hui!"

    The A-1 unit looked as if they had just awoken from a dream; everyone¡¯s face was flushed.

    The enemy¡¯s target was actually Ai Hui!

    "Protect Ai Hui!"

    Everyone roared in anger. Closebat fighters rushed towards Ai Hui while ranged fighters pull their bowstrings with all their might.

    Twang, twang, twang!

    The sounds of bowstrings snapping resounded through the air. The sound was terrifyingly concentrated, resembling a storm. No one was holding back. They were going all-out on their attacks.

    The blood elementalists felt as if they had stirred up a ho¡¯s nest.

    The sky-covering rain of arrows troubled them greatly, on top of which, the imposing manner of the flooding students put an immense pressure on them. The blood elementalists felt as if they were dealing with a pride of angry lions that was about to rip them to pieces.

    The blood elementalist controlling the grey shadow involuntarily changed his facial expression. He was stunned by the A-1 Unit¡¯s grandeur.

    Yan Hai was also greatly stunned. It was a dog-eat-dog world among the blood elementalists, without the slightest bit of trust between them. Everyone guarded against each other instead. However, even in a life-threatening situation, the members of the A-1 Unit still went all-out to save Ai Hui.

    All of a sudden, Yan Hai felt envious of them.

    The A-1 Unit was indeed different.

    The red-dressed girl¡¯s gaze was filled with shock. She was surprised by how beloved and respected Ai Hui was. Her impression of Ai Hui was not that of a team yer. She saw him as antisocial and introverted, on top of which, he exuded an inharmonious aura. It was incredible that someone like him could garner so much trust and respect from everyone else.

    Every time she saw Ai Hui, she would have a surprise waiting for her.

    Ai Hui was like a renewable treasure chest. Every time she opened it, there would be a new treasure inside. What other secrets did this fellow still hold? The red-dressed girl was filled with curiosity.

    In terms of fighting capabilities, Ai Hui was inferior to Yu Mingqiu. Despite this, the red-dressed girl was more interested in Ai hui.

    That blood elementalist was a god shaman and his grey shadow was a very unique type of blood demon. This was the red-dressed girl¡¯s first time seeing it. Compared to spirit guards, god shamans were much rarer and the qualifications needed to be one were much higher.

    Blood demons were "fished" out of the Yellow Springs using a dark spell and the god shaman¡¯s soul as the bait. The wisp of evil aura that was "fished" out was the demon. Upon fusing with the god shaman, the demon would feed on his or her blood and eventually be a blood demon. Meticulous nourishment and tempering would make the blood demon increasingly powerful. To repay the god shaman, the blood demon would use its various remarkable abilities to assist him or her.

    ording to blood-refinement manuals from the Cultivation Era, there were ny-thousand species of demons in the Yellow Springs. The type of demon that a god shaman obtained depended on his or her soul¡¯s attributes. This was why the qualifications for bing a god shaman were much higher.

    The red-dressed girl could not determine how powerful the blood demon was; however, from the looks of it, it seemed quite extraordinary.

    If a god shaman was to possess a blood demon in the Blood of God, he or she would receive a lot of preferential treatment.

    What will he do?

    The red-dressed girl was rather curious.

    She did not care whether or not Ai Hui could ovee the blood demon. Even if he had all the talent in the world, if he could not ovee this trial, then what was the point of having high expectations for him?

    Ai Hui was very calm. He was meticulously analyzing the damages done to his body by the grey shadow.

    He was one hundred percent certain that this was one of the blood demons that Shi Wei had mentioned. Unfortunately, Shi Wei had not had much understanding towards god shamans. He¡¯d only known about blood demons. If it was any other ordinary individual, why would he or she know about such an ancient entity?

    However, Ai Hui knew.

    Swordsmen were a very weird type of Cultivator. They mastered swords and could use anything under the sun as a sword.

    Ai Hui was d that he¡¯d read many weird swordy manuals when he¡¯d been in the swordsman school. He had merely been reading them to while away time and had not expected to one day be saved by them.

    The blood demon was a dark entity, so its bane was light entities.

    Ai Hui jolted. It just so happened that his body contained a light entity: lightning bolts.

    He suddenly pointed his Dragonspine sword forward and brandished it. Since the lower part of his body was numb and could not move, his swordy looked extremely weird.

    Once his sword started moving, Ai Hui could feel the elemental energy being channelled. He was silently overjoyed.

    The seven daggers danced close to his body like swimming fishes. Numerous electric currents ran through his entire body. The electric currents were apanied by a strong paralyzing effect; however, Ai Hui felt energized as the feeling of being paralyzed waspletely different from having no feelings at all.

    The grey shadow was disintegrating bit by bit.

    That sly-looking elementalist¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. With his eyebrows beading with sweat, he yelled, "I can¡¯t hold on any longer, faster, kill him!"

    Currently, the battle was extremely intense.

    The blood elementalists did not expect the A-1 unit to put up such a fierce fight, resembling injured wild beasts that were making their final struggle. The A-1 unit¡¯s offense was extremely powerful, slowing the blood elementalists¡¯ progress. The resistance that the A-1 unit put up was abnormally tenacious.

    Upon hearing the sly-looking elementalist¡¯s yell, the blood elementalists knew that it was time for them to go all-out.

    Sir Tian Kuan had already mentioned that if they lost this battle, there would be only one ending for them.

    Some kind of wild beast¡¯s roar erupted from each blood elementalist¡¯s chest. Their bodies began to undergo a terrifying transformation. Like inted balloons, their body size suddenly increased and thick, coarse hair grew all over their bodies. Some had metallic skin, some had snake scales for skin, and some even had tree bark for skin. All their skins were extremely hard and durable. Razor-sharp ws grew out of their fingers and their eyes became hollow. Their blood traces turned unusually bright, emitting glows that were of various colors all over their bodies.

    Now, all of them looked like the ming ape as they became tremendously intimidating.

    "Kill!"

    An unclear yell apanied by howls and roars resounded through the air.

    One of the blood elementalists ran through the rain of arrows like a berserk rhinoceros and dashed towards the heavy shield beside Ai Hui.

    Previously, when Fatty watched the blood elementalists transform, his facial expression had already changed. Now, when he saw a blood elementalist charging wildly towards him, his face turned deathly pale.

    The ground trembled. Every step the blood elementalist took was immensely heavy, causing Fatty to almost lose his bnce.

    The blood elementalist¡¯s distorted, hair-covered face expanded rapidly in the terror-stricken Fatty¡¯s vision. The blood elementalist¡¯s scarlet eyes were filled with viciousness and his ghastly white teeth were extremely sinister.

    Fatty¡¯s limbs went soft and he almost sat down on the ground. His mind went nk and his legs subconsciously prepared to retreat.

    Suddenly, his body froze. The one behind him was Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui...

    It was as if lightning struck him and returned him to his senses. He saw the blood elementalist leap into the air with a callous look on his face, resembling a wild beast pouncing on him.

    Ai Hui, you must survive.

    The words that he¡¯d shouted at Ai Hui¡¯s back before entering the Avalon of Five Elements suddenly appeared in his mind.

    "AHHHHH!"

    He was like a wild beast that had been pushed to the brink of death, crying out hysterically. Every muscle in his body was trembling and his squinty eyes were tightly shut. His arched, thick body was firmly propped against the heavy shield and the soles of his feet were dug deep into the ground.

    Elemental energy erupted from his body.

 Chapter 263: Excitement

    Chapter 263: Excitement

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    Boom!

    A huge shock wave swept across the entire battlefield like a hurricane, covering up the other noises. Dazzling radiance erupted from the surface of the heavy shield and engulfed the battlefield, distorting the air space and blinding everyone¡¯s vision.

    The radiance dispersed while the sound of the collision still lingered in the air.

    The thick and solid shield could once again be seen.

    A deep indentation marred the shield¡¯s surface and the soil around it had disappeared. An astonishing, three-meter-deep trench had appeared beside the heavy shield.

    "Huff... Puff..."

    Heavy panting could be heard from behind the heavy shield. Fatty¡¯s body was trembling while his muscles twitched involuntarily. Dark red blood oozed out of his nose and mouth.

    Fatty was still propping his shoulder against the heavy shield. His eyes were fixated on the ploughed soil beneath his feet.

    His gaze was very weird. Even though it appeared dazed, it also contained zeal, incredulity, and excitement!

    Did he actually... block the attack?

    He really did block it...

    How did he do it?

    Fatty gathered his thoughts. His fear disappeared and was reced by confidence and excitement. It was as if he was being imbued with some kind of power; even his body had stopped trembling.

    For the first time in his life, Fatty felt that he was powerful.

    His gaze was resolute as he stood in front of Ai Hui, protecting him. In his memories, Ai Hui was always the one fighting ahead, holding back the enemies. Hiding behind Ai Hui during a fight had be Fatty¡¯s habit.

    It was not easy for him to step up to the challenge. He did not know whether or not Ai Hui would waive off his debt.

    Fatty spat out the blood in his mouth and restabilized the heavy shield in front of him.

    The blood elementalist who¡¯d attacked him also had bloodstains around his nose and mouth. His condition was no better than Fatty¡¯s. His gaze became abnormally vicious, staring at Fatty as if he wanted to devour him.

    In the past, if Fatty was to face such a sinister and vicious gaze, he would tremble in fear. This time around, however, he did not feel at all scared. He loosened his wrists and straightened his body, then, all of a sudden, he made a beckoning sign to the blood elementalist, taunting him to attack.

    Upon seeing what Fatty was doing, everyone was at a loss, especially the members of the A-1 unit. They were dumbstruck. Was this really Fatty?

    After making the gesture, Fatty suddenly felt weak. Was he crazy? Or was he trying to provoke the opponent?

    Smack! A sharp and crisp sound made everyone¡¯s face turn nk.

    Fatty had given himself a tight p to the face. The p was unusually loud and clear.

    What was this fellow doing?

    Fatty¡¯s previous two actions had baffled everyone. Even the blood elementalist in front of him was at a loss. After his beastification, his intelligence had dropped significantly, causing him to be unable to understand why Fatty would taunt him and then give himself a p immediately after.

    Could it be a pre-ritual to some kind of powerful move?

    The blood elementalist was in a daze, but very soon, the vicious and blood-thirsty look returned to his eyes.

    With a roar, he pounced towards Fatty again.

    Fatty quickly withdrew behind the heavy shield. Just as the blood elementalist was about to collide against the heavy shield, an evil smile shed across his eyes. The supposedly powerful and heavy collision became a light one instead. He rested his palms gently on the surface of the shield and prepared to use the strength from the charge to propel himself around the shield.

    However, he never expected the wall-like heavy shield to spin around all of a sudden.

    [Spinning Carapax Shield]!

    A sturdy and spinning shield-type inheritance appeared in Fatty¡¯s hands. Everyone¡¯s impression of Fatty was that of a cowardly,zy, and sly individual. Even though he was quite useful at times, there wasn¡¯t much about him that was attractive.

    Very few people knew that Fatty¡¯s training intensity was among the top three in the A-1 unit.

    Even Fatty himself did not know it.

    Since the day Ai Hui met Fatty, the former had been designing high intensity training ns for thetter. These training ns were even forced onto Fatty. With Lou Lan supervising his training, Fatty had no way out. Initially, Fatty had resorted to tricks to evade the training, but Ai Hui¡¯s strict punishments had prevented him from continuing to do so.

    After Fatty started to drink elemental soups, Ai Hui noticed his potential and silently increased the intensity of his training.

    Fatty, who did not know what was going on, could only clench his teeth and endure.

    Everyone liked seeing Fatty clench his teeth, but not without Lou Lan by his side supervising him and when he was enduring through his trainings. Usually, Fatty was a fun-loving and covetous fellow. He was always filled with an unusual happiness.

    No one had noticed Fatty¡¯s training intensity. Everyone only heard Ai Hui emotionlessly meting out punishments on him andughed it off. Everyone seemed to ignore the fact that Fatty had endured hundreds of sets of punishments that were meted out at the slightest pretext.

    The blood elementalist lost his bnce, looking as if he had stepped on a patch of slippery moss. Thump. His face smashed squarely onto the surface of the shield and his body spun along with the spinning shield.

    Fatty felt something smash into his shield. Following the instructions in the manual of the [Spinning Carapax Shield], he lifted the shield up and used the centripetal force from the spinning shield to m it heavily onto the ground!

    He had practised this move for an unknown number of times.

    He executed the move wlessly.

    If the move was uneptable, it definitely would not be able to escape from Lou Lan¡¯s eyes and more punishments would be waiting for him.

    Smooth, natural, and unforced.

    Snap!

    Some sort of sound rang across Fatty¡¯s ears. The spot where his shield hadnded did not feel like it was made of soil.

    Fatty quickly lowered his head to take a look. Surprisingly, there was a head on the ground looking at him fixedly. Fatty¡¯s eyes widened unexpectedly. His body quivered as the confidence he had previously vanished into thin air.

    Thump. Fatty¡¯s legs gave way and he fell on his butt.

    Goddamnit, why was there a head on the ground?

    It was at this moment that he realized that the blood elementalist had somehow ended up on the ground beside his feet, and that when he¡¯d mmed his shield down, it hadnded on the blood elementalist¡¯s neck.

    Given the immense weight of the shield, no matter how tough the blood elementalist¡¯s neck was, it would not be able to withstand the force generated from the mming of the shield.

    The snap he¡¯d heard just now was the sound of the blood elementalist¡¯s neck snapping.

    Upon seeing what had happened, the other blood elementalists¡¯ facial expressions changed. The snap they had just heard sent a cold shiver down their spines.

    Then, when they saw that Fatty was scared witless, they were filled with extreme hatred.

    How dare he pretend to be a pig to eat a tiger to this extent? It¡¯s too exaggerated!

    Given the ruthlessness of that move, they believed that they would have also failed miserably if they¡¯d been in the shoes of that blood elementalist. Right now, you still dare to pretend to be weak, are you trying to lure us next?

    A lot of blood elementalists looked down on Fatty¡¯s character, showing deep disdain for him. Despite this, not a single blood elementalist dared to charge in Fatty¡¯s direction anymore.

    Other battle fronts were bing extremely intense.

    As usual, Shi Xueman was fighting force with force. Even when facing three blood elementalists in one go, she had no intention of retreating. After abandoning all theplicated moves, her spearmanship became more prudent and systematic. Currently, she was adopting a defensive position, but the three blood elementalists did not yet back down.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s performance did not lose out to Shi Xueman at all. The form of his [Viridescent Flower] was ever-changing. Sometimes it erupted from the ground, sometimes it appeared out of thin air behind everyone, and sometimes it appeared in mid-air; it was appearing and disappearing unpredictably.

    The three elementalists looked somewhat helpless.

    They did not to dare to move too fast. First, if they moved too fast, they might get tripped by the numerous small green vines that suddenly appeared beneath their feet. Second, green flowers might suddenly appear and block their vision, causing them to lose their bnce. Losing their bnce was not an issue to them. The main issue was the killer move that followed up their loss of bnce. For example, if they moved too fast and their necks were caught by the green vines, they would lose their bnce and strangle themselves to death.

    They had never met such a treacherous opponent before.

    The two hundred meters that were between them and Ai Hui were the hardest two hundred meters they had ever travelled in their lives. There were traps set everywhere. The floating, white-clothed young man must have been the most despicable person in the world. Duanmu Huanghun casually set innumerable treacherous and deadly traps in session.

    Very soon, three blood elementalists realized that this fellow did not want to fight them head-on. Even though their opponent was treacherous, his firepower was not strong. The three of them could not be concerned with anything anymore and wildly charged forward; however, by the time they were about to reach Duanmu Huanghun, they had be battered and exhausted, then found themselves trapped in an encirclement.

    Duanmu Huanghun had been dying their pace so as to wait for the other members of the A-1 unit to arrive.

    The three blood elementals suddenly realized what was going on. So, this was that fellow¡¯s main objective! But then, they began to sneer silently. Even though a huge number of the A-1 unit¡¯s members had arrived, their individual fighting capabilities were obviously inferior to the three blood elementalists¡¯. Hence, there was no need for them to be scared.

    Just because there were more people on the enemy¡¯s side did not mean that the enemy would definitely win. If the enemy side¡¯s fighting capabilities were not on par, then there was no point in them having more people.

    The three elementalist failed to see the cold glint that shed across Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s long and narrow eyes.

    Very soon, the three of them realized that their anticipated massacre of the A-1 unit¡¯s members did not happen. After half a minute had passed, they had not managed to kill even one person. They felt as if they were caught in quicksand, extremely helpless. The unpredictable vines and green flowers were extremely powerful in such a chaotic battle.

    They did not expect Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s greatest strength to be not his offense, but rather, his control over the battle¡¯s tempo.

    Starting from the day Duanmu Huanghun had joined the A-1 unit, his [Viridescent Flower] had progressed through apletely unorthodox path which differed greatly from those of the other Duanmu family members.

    In the A-1 unit, Ai Hui was in charge of the unit¡¯s direction. Shi Xueman was in charge of the unit¡¯s offense and the one in charge of battle¡¯s tempo was this devilishly handsome, brash young man.

    The way he controlled the battle¡¯s tempo was very unique in the sense that he achieved control by disrupting his enemy¡¯s tempo.

    Duanmu Huanghun seemed to have a ir for destruction. He was naturally treacherous and did not look like someone who came from a prestigious family.

    No one had taught him how to do so. He was treacherous by nature.

    When the A-1 unit¡¯s members arrived, the battle came under his control. He licked his lips and a hint of zeal lit up in his eyes. He suddenly realized that this was the perfect chance.

    He was standing in front of Ai Hui and protecting him!

    Wasn¡¯t this the perfect chance to show off his fighting capabilities to Ai Hui?

    As Duanmu Huanghun thought of this, he became excited.

    That hateful fellow was always the one that showed off his fighting capabilities in front of him. Every time, all he could do was endure the humiliation.

    Today, he finally had the chance to reverse their positions! Hahaha!

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s handsome face was filled with zeal and excitement.

    Ai Hui, I know you¡¯re aware.

    Come on, open your eyes and take a good look at the most perfect [Viridescent Flower] in this world!

 Chapter 264: Impossible to Stop Halfway

    Chapter 264: Impossible to Stop Halfway

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    The [Viridescent Flower] was omnipresent. Enchanted green vines meandered about the battlefield unpredictably while lovely and delicate green flowers blossomed on them, resembling an ink wash painting, elegant and beautiful.

    Surprisingly, there was a wide variety of flowers. There were radiant chrysanthemums, beautiful peonies, ravishing plum flowers, and elegant orchids among others. They blossomed on the meandering green vines, blending in harmony.

    The flustered members of the A-1 unit calmed down. Only they knew that the different types of flowers had different meanings to them.

    The chaotic battle scene immediately became clear and orderly, sharply increasing their offensive threat.

    The blood elementalists quickly felt the change in the situation. If they had previouslypared their situation to being in a pool of quicksand, then their current situation could bepared to being in a meat grinder.

    Their opponent¡¯s offensive execution was clear and precise while their own offense was often disrupted.

    From the three blood elementalists¡¯ perspectives, the green vines had be exceptionally scary, resembling a monster that had countless tentacles.

    In the blink of an eye, there were several wounds on their bodies. Even though these wounds were not fatal, they were enough to make the blood elementalists felt a strong sense of danger.

    How did the A-1 unit be so powerful?

    The blood elementalists found it very difficult to ept reality. They knew about the A-1 unit before and had even had several interactions with them before bing blood elementalists. The three of them had been brimming with confidence before this battle as they¡¯d known about the A-1 unit¡¯s fighting capabilities.

    Despite that, what happened during the battle gave them a huge shock.

    How did the A-1 unit be so strong?

    A blood elementalist who could no longer hold on hurriedly sent out a signal to request support.

    "It¡¯s a pity." the red-dressed girl sighed faintly as she watched the battle from afar. Simrly, she could see the terrible situation Tian Kuan was in right now.

    Yan Hai was startled. He asked, "Miss, what¡¯s there to be pitied?"

    "I¡¯m pitying Tian Kuan," the red-dressed girl replied with a casual tone.

    "Sir Tian Kuan?" Yan Hai was startled again. "Don¡¯t tell me Miss feels that Sir Tian Kuan will lose this fight?"

    Yan Hai had a deep fear of Tian Kuan. He saw with his own eyes how Tian Kuan did the impossible. From his perspective, Sir Tian Kuan¡¯s powers were deep and unmeasurable. He also possessed terrifying schemes. How could an individual that possessed both brawn and brains lose?

    Even though the battle had entered a deadlock, the blood elementalists¡¯ side had not yet shown any signs of defeat. Why would Miss assert that Sir Tian Kuan would face defeat?

    Deep down, Yan Hai did not want Sir Tian Kuan to lose. He felt that Sir Tian Kuan had treated him quite well.

    "Do you know what we need the most right now?" the red-dresseddy suddenly changed the topic.

    Yan Hai did not know if the ¡®we¡¯ that Miss mentioned referred to the god elementalists or her and Sir Tian Kuan. He did not dare to ask and put on an attentive appearance.

    "It¡¯s a matter of heart." the red-dressed girl¡¯s eyes glittered like the stars in the night sky. "When the elementalists train, they consolidate what they have learned at every step. They have the talent needed to progress steadily. Having this talent allows them to start from a higher point; however, even with talent, they still diligently work hard. Persistent effort ovees all difficulties. For the path of a god elementalist, it¡¯s apletely different case. We don¡¯t talk about talent. It doesn¡¯t matter even if your body is scarred and battered. We travel between life and death, walking on a tightrope. We need the power of understanding. Life and death are unpredictable. The essence of the path of a god elementalist is to develop his or her mind."

    Yan Hai did not really understand what Miss was saying, but he knew that she was trying to teach him something. He felt extremely grateful and replied respectfully, "Your lowly servant will always bear Miss¡¯s words of wisdom in mind!"

    "This realization of mine came about identally." The red-dressed girl smiled. "It is thanks to Tian Kuan; without him, how could I havee up with these words of wisdom?"

    Yan Hai¡¯s face was filled with shock. He did not know how Miss¡¯s realization was linked to Sir Tian Kuan; however, he did know that he himself was too low-leveled. Right now, he still found it very difficult to understand these profound and mysterious words, but he had a feeling that Miss¡¯s words contained extremely powerful knowledge that might be of great help to him in the future.

    He did not dare to lose focus and kept repeating Miss¡¯s words in his mind, without missing a single one.

    The red-dressed girl returned o her usual demeanor and chuckled. "However, Tian Kuan is a ruthless and determined individual. He definitely will not admit defeat easily."

    "Miss, should we..." Yan Hai hesitated for a while before he continued speaking. "Provide some assistance to Sir Tian Kuan?"

    "Assistance?" The red-dressed girl shook her head and replied, "He doesn¡¯t need assistance."

    Yan Hui shut his mouth.

    The red-dressed girl cast a nce at Yan Hai and continued, "Tian Kuan¡¯s resolution must have wavered because of his injuries. That man from the Infantry Division was indeed an extraordinary individual. Tian Kuan must have already returned to his senses. If he wants to continue progressing, he must win this battle. Otherwise, he is destined to die."

    Upon hearing these words, Yan Hai was dumbstruck. He asked again, "Why can¡¯t he make aeback?"

    "Because this is the path he chose." The red-dressed girl was lost in thought. "He always put his life on the gambling table. It is because of his determination that he was able to make it so far. With his determination, he was able to survive the rounds of blood refinement. If he escapes, he will lose his determination and the gamble, so the next time he carries out blood refinement will be the day he dies."

    The red-dressed girl spoke thest sentence with absolute certainty.

    Yan Hai was blown away. He felt that the path of a god elementalist was profound and mysterious.

    "There is something that you must remember," the red-dressed girl said faintly.

    Yan Hai hurriedly bowed his head respectfully and replied, "Please enlighten your lowly servant."

    "You have toplete the path you chose even if it¡¯s going to kill you," the red-dressed girl said inly.

    A shiver went down Yan Hai¡¯s spine. These words were enlightening. He seemed to have realized something. The blood in his body began to boil, something that he had never felt before. Yan Hai stood on the spot and did not move a single inch of his body, resembling a wooden statue.

    The red-dressed girl cast a nce at him, then withdrew and shifted her gaze to the battle in the distance.

    Hiding in the dark, Tian Kuan¡¯s face was ashen.

    The battle he¡¯d expected to be an absolute victory suddenly entered a mysterious deadlock. Before the battle, he had emphasized Ai Hui. He felt that Ai Hui was the most threatening individual in the A-1 unit. As long as he could get rid of Ai Hui, the rest were just a mob that would fall like dominoes. In the end, he did not expect the most threatening Ai Hui to fall into a trap while the rest of the A-1 unit, whom he had previously regarded as a mob, erupted and put up a strong fight.

    Should he take action himself?

    Tian Kuan¡¯s face was filled with uncertainty, unable to make a decision. There were still four blood elementalists beside him. Should they take part in the battle?

    He had invested a lot this time around. He already felt that it was overkill to use eight blood elementalists against a mere A-1 unit; however, the eventual oue waspletely outside of his expectations.

    He did not intend to reveal himself. Yu Mingqiu was like a sharp sword that hovered in the sky, waiting to strike at any moment. Tian Kuan had personally witnessed Yu Mingqiu¡¯s prowess. He did not want to give his life for Yu Mingqiu to test his arrows.

    Yu Mingqiu being caught up by the blood birds in the sky was a God-given chance to Tian Kuan. It was the reason why he had nned this operation. Furthermore, for the sake of this operation, he had deployed a total of twelve blood elementalists. The rest of the blood elementalists were carrying out their respective missions in various parts of Central Pine City.

    The death rate of the blood elementalists matched well with what he had expected.

    When people first became blood elementalists, their fighting capabilities would rise sharply; however, since they did not train with their new powers at all, they would not know how to use them. Even though their fighting capabilities were greater than those of the ordinary elementalists, they were too few. Sending forty-five blood elementalists into the enormous Central Pine City was like throwing a handful of sand into ake; it disappeared in the blink of an eye.

    At the moment, he could only sense the presence of twenty-eight blood elementalists.

    It would not surprise him if the missing blood elementalists had been killed. He did not consider them to be of importance.

    They were merely used to create chaos in Central Pine City.

    What Tian Kuan did not expect was that there were some blood elementalists who escaped from the battle. They had disappeared into the woods outside of the city. If not for the fact that the battle was getting increasingly intense, Tian Kuan would not let them off. Right now, however, he did not have the time to pursue them.

    This was a painful lesson for Tian Kuan. It was far too difficult for him to supervise forty-five people. He had underestimated the situation and also did not have the relevant experience to conduct such a strategy. The biggest reason for his failure was that he¡¯d chosen an unfamiliar strategy at such a critical moment.

    With Yu Mingqiu¡¯s arrival, his n was further disrupted.

    The blood birds in the sky were supposed to y an important role in his n. Central Pine City had never before faced a legitimate aerial threat. The sudden appearance of the blood birds would have been enough to cause devastating losses in the city.

    He had not expected Yu Mingqiu toe and single-handedly clear out the sky above Central Pine City. Without the biggest, aerial threat, the survivors in Central Pine city were able to organize themselves and fight against the blood fiends. All of them were very experienced in dealing with blood fiends. Even though there was a huge number of blood fiends, the survivors did not copse like Tian Kuan had expected.

    This had also directly caused huge losses among the blood elementalists. Their enemy was not really powerful, but they had an advantage in terms of manpower.

    It was all that goddamn Yu Mingqiu¡¯s fault!

    Tian Kuan cursed Yu Mingqiu an unknown number of times; however, at this point of time, no matter how much he cursed, it would not help the situation at all. Given the current situation, it was impossible to stop the operation halfway. He was somewhat vexed. He was far too anxious.

    The n of ¡®treating the city as a piece of cloth¡¯ needed nine golden needles to be nailed in nine specific locations. Right now, only one had been nailed and there were eight more left. He would have enough time to strike, but eight of his blood elementalists were currently being held up by the A-1 unit. If he gave up now, the eight blood elementalists would die for nothing.

    Losing another eight blood elementalists would worsen his situation.

    After hesitating for a while, Tian Kuan made his decision and gave the signal to attack.

    The four blood elementalists hiding nearby him moved silently to the battlefront like four ghosts.

    After devouring the blood crystal, the glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes suddenly stopped flickering, following which, the bright glow in his eyes began to dim and be dark-red. His dark-red eyes made his pale-white mask calmer and more callous. At this moment, he was like a statue, not moving or making any noise.

    There was no wind, but Lou Lan looked as if he was disintegrating into a gust, sweeping up a sandstorm.

 Chapter 265: The Reappearance of [Dust Fall]

    Chapter 265: The Reappearance of [Dust Fall]

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Without any warning sign, a sandstorm swept across the battlefield.

    The surroundings suddenly darkened and everything seemed to be spinning. This caused the blood elementalists that were charging toward Ai Hui to lose their sense of direction.

    What was going on?

    The four elementalists turned pale with fright. Theirmunication link with Tian Kuan had beenpletely cut off. Right now, they felt as if they were in a desert where sand was endlessly blowing everywhere.

    In other people¡¯s eyes, the battlefield had be extremely weird. The sandstorm swirled around the four elementalists, blinding their vision. This caused them to move clumsily and looked extremely hrious.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s eyes widened as his facial expression changed drastically.

    How could a sand puppet have such a technique? This was a blood elementalist¡¯s technique by right!

    Elementalists used elemental energy, so their attacks were actually variations of elemental energy. Blood elementalists were different. Blood spiritual force was an energy thaty between spiritual force and elemental energy. It was about tempering the mind and using the body as a vessel to contain it.

    If one described what the elementalists practiced as fullness, then what blood elementalists practiced could be described as emptiness. Blood elementalists were specialized in illusion-rted techniques. Since they also specialized in tempering their minds, they also had an extremely strong resistance against illusion-techniques.

    All four blood elementalists had fallen into the trap. Could the person that set off the sandstorm be some kind of elite from the organization?

    If that was the case, how would Tian Kuan not feel shocked and afraid?

    Simrly, the red-dressed girl, who was watching the battle from afar, was bbergasted as well. Bewilderment could be seen in her eyes. That technique was a typical blood elementalist¡¯s technique. Why would it appear in this ce?

    Her gaze then shifted to the spot where Ai Hui¡¯s sand puppet had been standing just now. Surprisingly, that spot was empty.

    A sand puppet that knew how to execute a blood elementalist¡¯s technique?

    Previously, the red-dressed girl knew something was unusual about the sand puppet, but she could not put her finger on it. It was not until now that she was truly shocked.

    It was already weird for a metal elementalist to bring along a sand puppet. It was even more weird that the sand puppet knew how to use a blood elementalist¡¯s technique...

    She looked at the motionless Ai Hui and felt intrigued by him. This fellow seemed to have a lot of enigma to him.

    "I hope you don¡¯t die too early." The red-dressed girl¡¯s mouth curled into a smile.

    A wisp of sand blew past Ai Hui¡¯s ears.

    "Ai Hui, Lou Lan can onlyst for three minutes."

    Lou Lan¡¯s voice rang across Ai Hui¡¯s ears before the wisp of sand disappeared.

    Three minutes.

    Ai Hui remained calm, looking as if he had not heard what Lou Lan said. The sword in his hand did not stop moving at all. Looking at him now, other people would have thought that he was resisting the blood demon, but no one knew that he was actually feeling out the blood demon instead of resisting it.

    The Cultivation Era had long passed, ancient books had decayed, and inheritances were destroyed. No longer relevant in the current times, the legacy of the old world had changed beyond recognition.

    But why the Blood of God?

    It was because the Blood of God not only wanted to revive the glory of the Cultivation Era and inherit the wealth from that era, but they also wanted to transform the ancient powers and create new powers. The Blood of God was ambitious. To them, the practice of blood refinement from the Cultivation Era and the wood elementalists from the Avalon of Five Elements were their soil and nourishment, respectively. They had long since made up their minds to create something of their own.

    Initially, Ai Hui thought that the God of Blood¡¯s objective was to overturn the Avalon of Five Elements. However, as time passed, his way of thinking changed. He felt that the God of Blood not only wanted to topple the Avalon of Five Elements, they also wanted to establish their own empire and start their own era. There might even be a possibility that they wanted to establish an era thatsted for millions of years like the Cultivation Era.

    Ai Hui did not know why he would think this way, but he definitely felt strongly about it.

    Was the blood elementalist¡¯s blood demon simr to the one mentioned in those swordy manuals? Ai Hui did not know, so there was therefore nothing better than experiencing it for himself.

    At this moment, Ai Hui was abnormally calm. He was trying out different methods to test the blood demon¡¯s reaction.

    The aura of chilliness was an important characteristic of the blood demon. It was not a typical chill. Extremely bone-piercing, it resembled the cold wind that rushed from the depths of an ice cavern,. It had already been verified that elemental energy was useless in expelling the blood demon. Initially, Ai Hui thought the blood demon could devour elemental energy. However, after studying it for some time, he discovered that it actually corroded elemental energy. After being corroded by the blood demon, elemental energy would lose its vitality and be uncontroble.

    To an elementalist, this unique characteristic of the blood demon was extremely dangerous and deadly.

    It was obvious that the human body had no resistance against blood demons. Even a tempered body could not stop a blood demon from invading it. Ai Hui, however, discovered something peculiar¡ªthe blood demon actually reminded him of the sword embryo. However, instead of possessing the blood demon¡¯s aura of chilliness, the sword embryo possessed a razor-sharp aura.

    Ai Hui seemed to realize something.

    The sword embryo was formed by essence, breath, and spirit. Could the blood demon be formed by something like these as well?

    Those swordy manuals had mentioned that demons were formed by nine spirits. The two words "nine spirits" were far too vague for Ai Hui to make any sense out of them. On the contrary, he knew more about essence, breath, and spirit as he had nurtured a sword embryo before.

    It was a pity that the manual was worn-out and did not containplete information on the sword embryo. As such, there were a lot of areas that he did not really understand.

    He noted down this observation as he felt it would be a good starting point for him.

    Blood demons loved the presence of vitality. From Ai Hui¡¯s conjecture, if a wood elementalist was to encounter a blood demon, it would be a headache for him or her. Among the five types of elementalists, the one that was most unafraid of the blood demon would be a fire elementalist. The scorching mes in a fire elementalist¡¯s body were the bane of the ice-cold blood demon. On the contrary, the vitality within a wood elementalist¡¯s body was nourishment for the blood demon.

    It was about time!

    Ai Hui opened his eyes, straightened his back, and swung the Dragonspine in his hand upward. Suddenly, a formidable aura erupted from Ai Hui¡¯s body in all directions!

    Seven daggers floated around him. The tip of his sword was pointed up at sky, remaining motionless.

    Like a sword that had been unsheathed, a biting-cold sword glow froze the surrounding air.

    At this point in time, Tian Kuan, who had been contemting whether or not he should personally take action, looked at Ai Hui dumbfounded. The nightmare-like memory had flowed through his mind like a sh flood.

    The red-dressed girl¡¯s eyes widened as she lost control of her facial expressions, looking as if she had seen a ghost.

    Beside her, Yan Hai¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. That familiar aura prompted his face to turn deathly white. He stuttered, "The Battle of..."

    In the sky, Yu Mingqiu was like an impregnable fortress, effortlessly ripping the iing waves of blood birds into pieces.

    Holding on by a single breath, his body was extremely exhausted,.

    He was even surprised at himself for singlehandedly guarding the sky above Central Pine City for so long.

    "Can I get promoted to the position of division leader this time around?" he muttered while panting heavily.

    His throat felt as if it had been doused in mes and smoke. He took out a jade-green bean and stared at it for a long while before popping it into his mouth. After a while, the color slightly returned to his face.

    Hisst heavenly elemental bean. There would be no more of this bean in stock. All right, even if there were more avable supplements, they would note in the form of these heavenly elemental beans.

    The division was not wealthy enough to provide him with heavenly elemental beans. He had bought these heavenly elemental beans with his own money. Each bean cost 10 Heavenly Merit Points.

    In total, he bought 10 heavenly elemental beans, which amounted to 100 Heavenly Merit Points. He felt pain in his heart on the day he bought them, but now, he hated himself for buying so few. Heavenly elemental beans were the highest grade food that replenished elemental energy. Breeding them required time and effort. Furthermore, they could only be raised by extremely powerful wood elementalists. As such, they were extremely expensive.

    Even the crack troops of the 13 Divisions would not be able to afford them. Only someone like Yu Mingqiu could afford them.

    A trace of vitality returned to his eight dried-up pces.

    He straightened his body and looked at the distant horizon. It was a pity that there were no clouds. Soaring freely through the boundless sea of clouds was an invigorating activity. Every time he saw the sea of cottony clouds, he wanted to dunk his head in.

    The sky was devoid of clouds, and the sun was scorching hot.

    Suddenly, his facial expression froze while he involuntarily shifted his gaze to the ground.

    It had been quite a while since hest observed the situation on the ground. It was not that he did not want to observe, but rather, he did not have the time to do so. Regardless, he was a nonchnt individual. The sky was his and the ground was theirs. If they could not hold on to the ground, then so be it.

    The energy undtions from the ground... were extremely weird!

    Yu Mingqiu was able to locate the source of the energy undtions very quickly, and he was stunned once more. They came from Mingxiu¡¯s junior.

    All of a sudden, his vision was blocked by a cloud that seemed toe from nowhere.

    Wait, why was there a cloud?

    A glint shed across Yu Mingqiu¡¯s eyes. His gaze swept across the area without discovering anything. There was not a single cloud in sight.

    On the ground, Ai Hui pointed his sword upward. Swoosh. The seven daggers that were hovering around him shot skyward and buried themselves in the sea of thick clouds.

    As the seven daggers entered the thickyer of clouds, numerous silvery lightning snakes sparked off in the clouds and frantically gathered toward the seven daggers. In the blink of an eye, the seven daggers were surrounded and engulfed in densely-packed, stacked lightning bolts.

    The seven daggers resembled seven spindles that were fully wound with silvery threads.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up abruptly as a solemn look swept across his face. At this moment, his entire body was dazzling with radiance, preventing anyone from looking at him with their naked eyes. His clothes fluttered on their own without the presence of the wind, appearing extremely imposing. Right now, he looked like a deity that had descended from the heavens.

    Suddenly, he swung his Dragonspine downward.

    [Dust Fall]!

    The seven daggers in the sky were attracted by the motion of the Dragonspine and hurriedly shot down.

    Buzz. Seven dazzling and space-distorting lightning bolts struck down from the sky. The aura of destruction that engulfed the city was cleared instantly, bringing light and warmth to the city.

    One of the lightning bolts struck Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body twitched, and he felt an indescribable difort. The blood demon in his body dissipated instantly without even having the chance to wail in pain.

    The body of the blood elementalist that was controlling the blood demon trembled as blood flowed out of his seven orifices. Then, he copsed on his back and became lifeless.

    The other six blood elementalists were struck by the lightning bolts. Their bodies froze and were severely injured. Apparently, lightning was the bane of blood spiritual force. This was the first time they had been struck by lightning bolts. They could not help but want to escape. In the end, two escaped while the remaining four died.

    Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun had witnessed this move before, but the lightning bolts this time around were much slimmer than the ones from the Battle of Long Street. The lightning bolts that time were indeed spectacr.

    Meanwhile, out of the three men that Lou Lan had entangled, two were killed and one escaped with grievous injuries.

    In the sky, Yu Mingqiu was startled. Did the clouds below him just rumble with thunder?

    After a while, the clouds dissipated. The scene on the ground entered his vision and his facial expression froze.

    The battle had ended?

    The battle had ended after a mere thunder p?

    How could these fellows end the battle with just a thunder p? Howe the battle in the sky would not end despite him fighting almost to death? It was not fair! Who was the division leader here? Oh, wrong, vice division leader... He almost forgot again...

    The red-dressed girl was petrified. She could hear Yan Hai muttering absent-mindedly, "... of Long Street."

    The aura from the lightning bolts had caused her to palpitate in terror. Even though the aura was not really that strong, it was enough to strike her with fear.

    The Battle of Long Street...

    She had heard these five words several times and felt an indescribable reverence for them.

 Chapter 266: Success

    Chapter 266: Sess

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Even though Ai Hui¡¯s [Dust Fall] was much weaker than the one from the Battle of Long Street¡¯s, its intimidation factor to the blood elementalists was much stronger. These blood elementalists were still casualties from the quarantine barracks then, so they had not witnessed what had happened during the Battle of Long Street.

    Lightning was a natural bane to blood elementalists, striking fear in them. The arrogance derived from the sharp increase in their fighting capabilities had received an enormous blow. This had at least calmed the chaotic Central Pine City, boosting everyone¡¯s moral. Even though there were daily casualties among the survivors in Central Pine City, nobody¡¯s confidence wavered. They strongly believed that the time for victory would soone.

    This surging morale allowed them to drive the blood fiends out of Central Pine City once more.

    The n to "treat the city as a piece of cloth" was unexpectedly proceeding smoothly. The lightning bolts from the sky had struck fear into the blood elementalists¡¯ hearts. This allowed the A-1 unit to nail the gold needles without any further obstruction from the blood elementalists.

    Some of the members conjectured that the blood elementalists must have realized that things were not going too well for them and escaped into the woods outside of the city.

    From the continuous battles, everyone had obtained a lot of blood crystals. However, the other materials in Central Pine City had already run out. Without these materials, the blood crystals could not be directly absorbed. Otherwise, everyone¡¯s fighting capabilities could rise to a higher level.

    Not only did these materials run out, but the supplies in Central Pine CIty were running low as well, especially weapons. Right now, Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun, and the other archers did not dare to be excessive with their arrows since there was no more spare ammunition.

    Regarding the food supply, the situation was a bit better, but only a bit better. During the initial period of the blood catastrophe, there were many casualties. This reduced the consumption of the food supply and allowed it tost until now, but the food supply was still considered low. Wang Zhen had no choice but to deploy some manpower to search for food among the ruins. Due to the presence of blood fiends, however, their efficiency was quite low.

    Anyone who possessedmon sense would know that the n to "treat the city as a piece of cloth" was thest hope. Otherwise, they would starve to death.

    The blood crystals were very valuable and could be exchanged for Heaven Merit Points. However, as of now, they were rather useless. Ai Hui had a multitude of blood crystals, but all he could do was look at them. Luckily, Lou Lan could still use them.

    Ai Hui was a bit shocked that Lou Lan could use the blood crystals, but there was nothing to be surprised about since Lou Lan was different from other sand puppets to begin with.

    As for Shi Xueman and the other, they kept on praising Lou Lan. Omnipotent Lou Lan!

    "The seventh gold needle!" Ai Hui muttered to himself as he watched the gold needle being nailed to the ground. The faces of people around him shone with radiance.

    "Ai Hui, two more gold needles!" someone yelled, sparking off a wave of cheers.

    Everyone followed Fatty in chanting Ai Hui¡¯s name. After going through so many trials and tribtions together, the A-1 unit¡¯s members treated each other like brothers.

    It had been three days since the previous battle. Seven gold needles had been nailed and everyone could clearly sense that the elemental energy field in Central Pine City had changed. It was as if the elemental energy that had been lying dormant in the city had awakened, causing the air to filled with energetic elemental energy.

    Every survivor¡¯s face was filled with confidence and fighting spirit. The darkest time had passed.

    The blood fiends were bing increasingly stronger, and the number of casualties continued to rise. Battles continued to ur, and there were still people dying every now and then. However, despite all of this, the survivors¡¯ confidence remained unwavering. They strongly believed they would obtain victory.

    The vigorous elemental energy in the air was like fresh, clean air. It nourished everyone¡¯s wound riddled bodies.

    Everyone also discovered that their training efficiency rose significantly.

    Yu Mingqiu, who guarded the sky, could clearly observe the situation on the ground. Watching over from above, he could see that the blood aura that engulfed Central Pine City was bing fainter. It was as if the elemental energy that surrounded the city had undergone a tremendous transformation.

    Yu Mingqiu was extremely surprised.

    His master was a Grandmaster, so the knowledge and experience that he had been exposed to were extraordinary. However, even so, he had note across such a phenomenon before. The energetic elemental energy in the air condensed and flowed in an indecipherable manner, forming an unique cycle that even Yu Mingqiu, himself, found iprehensible.

    Yu Mingqu immediately realized its usefulness. The vigorous elemental energy field was good for training!

    If there was another city like the current Central Pine City, where the elemental energy field was so vigorous, it would attract countless elementalists. In the Avalon of Five Elements, any ce that was good for training would be packed with people.

    One such ce was the Silver Mist Sea.

    From the Silver Mist Sea, powerful currents of metal elemental energy flowed downward through the great Silver Mist River to Palette Cloud Vige. 70% of the poption and 90% of the cities were gathered on the two coastlines of the Silver Mist Sea.

    This was all due to the fact that the closer a city was to the Silver Mist Sea, the better it would be for its inhabitants¡¯ training and its production efficiency. The powerful currents of elemental energy from the Silver Mist Sea were a necessity to workshops and factories, just like how fire was essential to a smithy.

    One unique characteristic of elemental energy was that it was very stable in nature. In other words, it was not vigorous enough. When it was not vigorous enough, the rate at which it could be absorbed and used was very low, resulting in a low training efficiency for elementalists.

    Everyone knew about this weakness of elemental energy and had been thinking of ways to resolve it. Establishing the Avalon of Five Elements was one of the many ways. Take the Silver Mist Sea as an example. Countless damaged weapons were thrown into the river valley to excite the metal elemental energy within them before the river delivered the vigorous metal elemental energy to the entire Silver Mist Sea.

    This was a grand engineering project. The current Silver Mist Sea and Silver Mist River were formed through generations of umted effort and hard work.

    Yet, other than the two river banks of the Silver Mist River, the other ces within the Silver Mist Sea were sparsely popted and unsuitable for living. Currently, the two river banks of the Silver Mist River were well-developed and did not have much emptynd.

    If those other ces were like the current Central Pine City, they would definitely attract a huge number of elementalists. Regardless of their profession, elemental energy was the basis for elementalists. Farmers were not the only ones that needed Mother Earth for their livelihood, as elementalists also needed her. Even though the Silver Mist Sea contained an immense amount of energy, it still faced the risk of its energy beingpletely depleted. For example, ack of discarded artifact remnants would directly cause ack of metal elemental energy in the Silver Mist Sea.

    A lot of cities could forge the same gold needles that Central Pine City had forged. Central Pine City was just an insignificant small town with limited resources in the Avalon of Five Elements. If the city could be poprized...

    Yu Mingqiu was very excited. If all of these could be achieved, then Central Pine City would be well-known for making such a great contribution.

    He remembered the mayor had previously mentioned that the designer and implementer of this n were Ai Hui¡¯s master and mistress, respectively. Mingxiu¡¯s junior was indeed extraordinary.

    Yu Mingqiu was not stupid enough to ask for the n details. Right now, what mattered the most was getting through this crisis. He believed the higher-ups would not turn a blind eye to the impact that the gold needles had on Central Pine City¡¯s elemental energy field

    Simrly, Ai Hui did not ignore the impact of the gold needles either. He waved his arm and instructed, "Everyone, make good use of the time to train and recover your energy."

    Everyone was used to him not saying anything motivational. On the contrary, they felt at ease. After working together for so long, everyone was connected on a deep level with each other. Without any hesitation, they started training.

    "Lou Lan, supervise Fatty," Ai Hui instructed Lou Lan without even turning his head.

    "No problem, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied cheerfully.

    Ai Hui was quite shocked by the fact that Fatty was previously able to kill a blood elementalist. He clearly knew Fatty¡¯s fighting capabilities. Other than brute strength, Fatty did not have many spectacr skills. Usually, he was timid andzy. How would one not find it surprising that he killed a blood elementalist by himself?

    It seemed that Fatty did have some potential.

    Promptly, Ai Hui increased Fatty¡¯s training intensity and ignored his grumbles.

    Ai Hui, himself, also tried to make full use of the time he had.

    His fighting capabilities had improved greatly, especially his swordsmanship. Other than thest move of the sword pill, he was very proficient in executing the [Crescent Moon] and [Dust Fall]. [Crescent Moon] was used as a long-ranged offensive weapon. Even though the lightning bolt ability of the [Dust Fall] technique had an intimidating effect, its destructive power was not as impressive as the [Crescent Moon]¡¯s in reality.

    Of course, it was a different case for the blood elementalists. Lightning was the natural bane of the blood elementalists, so the [Dust Fall] was extremely threatening to them.

    He had some ideas about thest move of the sword pill, [Night Epiphyllum], as well. However, he was still far from sess.

    Ai Hui was not anxious. Day by day, his understanding toward swordsmanship grew. The sess of [Dust Fall] had significantly and especially enlightened him. [Dust Fall] differed from the usual sword moves. It more closely resembled the sword moves that the ancient swordsmen used.

    Naturally, whenpared to the moves of those swordsmen, its power was much weaker.

    The improvement in swordsmanship could only be achieved through persistent hard work. Ai Hui was still working on this himself. As his understanding toward swordsmanship increased day by day, he started to devise more and more basic moves like the [Oblique sh] and [Misty Strike].

    With the destruction of the sword embryo, his swordsmanship instinct had actually be stronger instead. However, his instinct was still filled with uncertainty. To purely depend on instinct was to wager his life on a gambling table.

    Ai Hui did not want to do that. Instinct could help him create more basic sword moves, allowing him to have a deeper understanding of swordsmanship.

    He did not know how other people trained, so he could not think of anything else other than sticking to this stupid method.

    There were very few sword inheritances nowadays.

    He had not collected the inheritance that the mayor previously rewarded him and wanted to collect it only after he left this ce, provided he was still alive by then. Learning a new inheritance in a short period of time would not be of much use to him at his current critical junction.

    Sometimes, due to all the blood crystals and Heaven Merit Points, Ai Hui would think about life as a moderately wealthy person if he survived this catastrophe.

    If he really survived this catastrophe, he nned to return to the Old Territory with Fatty.

    His dream of bing an elementalist had been achieved, and he also experienced being a hero. The other troublesome issues should be left to those geniuses to settle.

    Upon witnessing the deaths of countless people and an entire city reduced to ruins, Ai Hui realized there were indeed ces that were worse than the Wilderness.

    He should bring master and mistress and find a ce to lead a simple life.

    Master was like a candle flickering in the wind, old and ailing. When mistresspleted the n of "treating the city as a piece of cloth," the damage inflicted to her body would most likely be irreversible as well.

    Yeah, the Old Territory was quite good. He did not have any family members, so he could move somewhere near Fatty. He also had some money and could bring master and mistress back to the Old Territory and open an embroidery workshop there. Senior Mingxiu woulde along of course.

    Right now, Ai Hui¡¯s biggest wish was to apany master and mistress through the twilight years of their lives.

    He nced at the snow-white bandage, which was wrapped around his wrist tightly, and discovered that there was a blood trace on it.

    This was left by the mysterious drop of blood from the red-dressed girl. The shape of the blood trace was somewhat weird, resembling an eye. Ai Hui did not know if this was just a coincidence or something peculiar.

    All right, he would have to wait until everything was over before investigating it.

    Everything would have to wait until he lived through this catastrophe.

 Chapter 267: Shattered Blood Traces

    Chapter 267: Shattered Blood Traces

    Trantor: YH Editor: X

    Tian Kuan did not give up.

    He was someone who had returned from the verge of death. The obstacle he currently faced was nothingpared to what he had experienced in the past and was not enough to throw him into despair.

    There were 16 blood elementalists under hismand, but half of them were injured.

    While blood elementalists were much more tenaciouspared to regr elementalists, their capabilities were still affected by injuries.

    The consecutive failures that these injured blood elementalists had faced were a huge blow to their morale. With morale at an all time low, more and more of them were deserting from Tian Kuan. This batch of blood elementalists were elites who were carefully selected, and as such, had very keen intuitions.

    They were quick to figure out that Tian Kuan¡¯s method of controlling them had loopholes and managed to exploit these to escape.

    Seeing theirrades escape sent the morale of the remaining blood elementalists plummeting even further. Loyalty to the group was dead. Those that remained would definitely seize any opportunity to slip away.

    What went wrong?

    Tian Kuan could not figure out why nothing was going ording to n.

    "Sir, your face?"

    A surprised voice rang out from among the blood elementalists.

    My face? What¡¯s wrong with my face?

    Tian Kuan subconsciously touched his face and felt something wet. His hand froze.

    Aghast, the other blood elementalists looked at Tian Kuan.

    Tian Kuan looked at his fingers and saw that they were stained with blood. The blood was a dusty-red color and had a foul rotting stench. His eyes revealed a deep, troubling fear while his fingers trembled slightly.

    He could tell without looking that the blood traces on his face had be like the withered rings of a rotting old stump. The traces had broken in many ces, bing shattered and leaking the dull, greyish-red blood that stained his hands.

    Shattered traces!

    Tian Kuan¡¯s mind nked as he fully registered what was happening to him.

    The skin on his forehead shrivelled up rapidly, forming deep-set wrinkles that densely covered his entire forehead. His head full of ck hair gradually turned white while hisrge biceps shrank and his spine hunched. In the blink of an eye, Tian Kuan had aged several decades.

    The blood elementalists who witnessed this transformation stepped back in horror. It was as if they were staring at a monster.

    Not knowing what was going on served only to amplify their fears.

    "Shattered blood traces? Why? Why is this happening?"

    Tian Kuan¡¯s dry, hoarse voice was filled with fear and panic. His tone hadpletely changed.

    He was utterly racked with fear and felt like a cornered beast.

    Shattered traces were an indication that a blood elementalists¡¯ training had gone down the wrong path and something feared by all blood elementalists. Ruptured blood traces marked the beginning of the end as the blood elementalist would lose the power he had attained. The vital energy of the blood would begin to seep out via these broken blood traces, causing the blood¡¯s color to dull. Over time, the blood elementalist¡¯s blood would turn into a clear liquid. At this point, the blood elementalist¡¯s life woulde to an end.

    The shattering of blood traces only urred when one¡¯s training had gone horribly wrong.

    Where had he gone wrong?

    Tian Kuan forced himself to calm down,pletely ignoring the blood elementalists who were already fleeing in all directions.

    The other blood elementalists were scared off by Tian Kuan¡¯s transformation. The biggest constion that forming blood traces had given them was their increased strength. After seeing Tian Kuan¡¯s abrupt deterioration, they finally understood that the path of a blood elementalist was not that easy after all. In fact, it was even riskier.

    Although training as an elementalist was rtively slow, it was much safer and would definitely not result in something this terrifying.

    They were unsure of what would happen to Tian Kuan, but were certain that he was unusually weak at this point.

    A few of the blood elementalists stared at Tian Kuan with hatred in their eyes.

    None of the survivors were grateful to Tian Kuan. In fact, their hatred toward him was something they all shared.

    Because of Tian Kuan¡¯s umted strength, they were afraid that he would have some sort of a backup n. A few of them hesitated for a moment before deciding to slowly retreat. They took off for the forest the moment they saw Tian Kuan¡¯s groggy, weakened state.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s vitality continued to decline as he carefully sieved through his memories to recall his recent actions. He remembered something that immediately roused him from his thoughts.

    Why had everything he attempted to aplish end unfavorably ever since he entered the city? Because he had chosen the wrong path right from the get go. He had never attempted to recruit strength from external sources before. Although he appeared to have nned everything adequately and appeared to have aplished his recruitment easily, everything was actually pretty messed up. He could clearly see the hatred burning in the eyes of the deserters and knew that they would tear him into pieces at the earliest opportunity.

    When did this begin?

    His battle with that Infantry Division warrior had left him physically injured and mentally shaken. Soon after, he chanced upon Yu Mingqiu gravely wounding Situ Zhong and became even more rmed. After entering Central Pine City, he witnessed the Battle of Long Street, which made him feel even more fearful.

    Retreating step after step had created fear in his heart, making him filled with trepidation. Although it looked as though everything was within his control, obtaining strength from external sources was the clearest sign that he had lost confidence in himself.

    This was his inner demon.

    As his self-confidence wavered, his inner demon grew stronger. He was soon overwhelmed by fear.

    The precarious bnce between life and death was ever so mysterious. As his blood spiritual force transformed, this bnce tipped over, resulting in the loss of his attained power and the rupturing of his blood traces.

    It would seem that his will had been robbed from him during that fateful encounter with the Infantry Division warrior. Tian Kuan had lost his indomitable spirit.

    His pupils suddenly became clear as he extended his legs and leaned on his left arm. Tian Kuan¡¯s stance made him look like a three-legged beast. He twisted his body and tapped his right fist against his tailbone.

    Pop!

    A crisp popping sound could be heard as a bloody glow appeared on his tailbone.

    One by one, he tapped each vertebrae in his spine, causing a series of popping sounds and blood-colored lights to appear on his back.

    Tian Kuan stood up and straightened his spine. The wrinkles on his face hadpletely vanished, and his skin regained its original moisture and smoothness. Only his full head of white hair remained.

    The spinal blood had saved his life.

    As a god guard, Tian Kuan¡¯s training focused mainly on his body. He would store traces of blood within his vertebrae during his daily practice. He had only done this as a backup n, but little did he know that it would save his life today.

    Despite training for so long and undergoing round after round of blood refinement, the spinal blood he had managed to store was merely as thin as a strand of hair.

    Although the amount of spinal blood was minuscule, the power it possessed was incredible. Once utilized, it swiftly stabilized his condition.

    Tian Kuan sighed lightly. He used to think that he was a fearless person, but he finally realized just how much of a coward he really was.

    Was this a bad thing? Tian Kuan did not think so. Rather, he felt that it was something favorable. Detecting his cowardice and better understanding himself at this early point was a good thing.

    Perhaps this was the real purpose of training.

    Moreover, it was not as though he had no chance.

    He could defeat his inner demon by achieving victory.

    The reversal of life and death. Coming back from the dead was what Tian Kuan was capable of aplishing.

    Victory was the one true exnation for everything.

    Tian Kuan suddenly raised his head. The elemental energy waves in Central Pine City had be unusually intense.

    Ai Hui¡¯s small group was nailing in the ninth gold needle.

    Tian Kuan walked unhurriedly through the ruins.

    "The ninth gold needle," muttered thedy in red.

    Having witnessed her transformation with his own eyes, Yan Hai looked at thedy in awe. Her presence had be ever so fleeting and unpredictable. It was as though she had be one with the dense mist amid mountaintops, mysterious yet ephemeral.

    Thedy had grown much stronger.

    He had never seen her train but could feel the changes she had undergone. Yan Hai inexplicably thought of something that thedy had previously said to him.

    Although it was beyond his understanding, Yan Hai knew that the key to her progressy within it. He secretlymitted the words to memory, noting that he could not grasp it because his level was too low.

    "Remarkable."

    Thedy in red looked impressed. She looked up at the sky and watched the waves of light dancing aboutyer afteryer. This light show was the result of the intense elemental energy fluctuations.

    Still looking up, thedy in red abruptly said, "It¡¯s time for us to go."

    "Go?" asked Yan Hai, at a loss.

    "Withdraw from Central Pine City," thedy in red exined as she retracted her gaze. "The entire city¡¯s elemental energy has been activated. The sky, the earth, and even the nts. We¡¯ll have to retreat further away so as to avoid being trapped within it.

    Thedy in red and Yan Hai quietly left Central Pine City. They found a mountain that directly overlooked the city and began their observation.

    When the ninth gold needle was fully nailed into ce, the vibrantly chaotic patterns in the sky above Central Pine City abruptly changed into a brilliant whirlpool of multi-colored light. The different colored lights fused and expanded, slowly spreading across the sky and bing more distinct.

    Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. The five elemental energiesbined to form a perfect five element ring in the sky.

    The abnormally powerful elemental energy waves roused Yu Mingqiu from his exhaustion. He had reached his physical limit and could not help but wonder how he actually managed to guard the city¡¯s sky with his strength alone.

    As the battle on the ground raged on, so did the battle in the sky. Toward the end, Yu Mingqiu was fighting purely by hisbat instincts.

    This ordeal was finally over...

    He shakily descended back to ground level,nding heavily with a stagger and plopped backward right onto his rear.

    His gaze swept up to look at the five element ring in the sky as he sat there, too tired to even lift a finger.

    After putting in so much effort, he wondered if there were any bonus rewards awaiting him...

    It¡¯s not going to be my problem if things start to go awry again. The most handsome person is going to sleep now...

    Darkness swiftly engulfed him the moment he closed his tired eyes.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s wretched-looking state gave everyone around a shock. They heaved a huge sigh of relief when he started snoring loudly. His performance over the past few days had earned everyone¡¯s unwavering respect. The city could not possibly havested so long without him protecting the sky, let alone have had the chance to install the needle.

    The five element ring in the sky started to stabilize.

    The ferocious blood fiends became terrified and hastily escaped the city.

    Looking down from the skies, one would see the red tide rapidly receding out of the city.

    After a moment of silence, loud cheers rang out all over Central Pine City.

    Amid the cheering, an exhausted Ai Hui sat heavily on the ground.

    Master, Mistress, the nine gold needles are in ce...

    In his mind¡¯s eye, he saw his master excitedly exining the n to "treat the city like a piece of cloth" and subconsciously smiled.

    Around him, his team members were all over the ce. The A-1 unit had carried out the most important missions in this battle. They had relentlessly pressed onward, tapping into everyst bit of energy and breath they could muster. Now that their missions werepleted, they could finally copse and take a breather.

    Although they werepletely drained, everyone¡¯s eyes were glued on the Jade Embroidery Workshop.

    The Jade Embroidery Workshop opened its tightly sealed door.

 Chapter 268: Counterattack

    Chapter 268: Counterattack

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Pranav

    Han Yuqin felt as though the whole of Central Pine City¡¯s eyes were on her. She wore a solemn expression, and the subtle wrinkles on her face had vanished¡ªit was as if she had suddenly reversed time and returned to being twelve years old. The elemental energy within a three-meter radius around her was simr to crackling volleys of firecrackers, and the exploding rays of light were blossoming like stars in the night sky.

    It was as if she was surrounded by a silver river where countless stars were born and destroyed. As she unhurriedly advanced, Han Yuqin resembled a spirit descending into the human world, her strong aura enveloping the whole city. The five element ring, which was swiveling in the air, suddenly froze.

    The city¡¯s elemental energies were utterly calm; they were all subdued by her alone.

    Her movements were gentle; the ground beneath her feet quietly graced hernding like a bowing earth dragon. The paths on both sides became adorned with budding nts and blooming flowers, and in the blink of an eye, numerous fruits could be seen sprouting on branches. Unknowingly,yers of cloud gathered in the sky and rain began to gently drizzle down like threads of silk. A ray of sunshine, surrounded by mes, pierced through the clouds andnded on her body. Golden wind swept across her back, transforming into a silver cape.

    Such a breathtaking scene was happening live before everyone¡¯s eyes.

    The guards knelt to the ground. Even Wang Zhen and the dean were in a half-bow position; only Wang Shouchuan remained standing.

    Wang Shouchuan¡¯s aged face was glowing, and his eyes were unable to conceal his adoration.

    Although he was ustomed to his wife¡¯s usual brilliance, no moment couldpare to the scene before his eyes. His wife was now like the world¡¯s most beautiful fairy. Her stunning face, which was surrounded by stars, easily overwhelmed him, and the memories of his youth started to uncontrobly flood his mind.

    Wang Shouchuan observed his wife with sentiment as she ascended into the air with light steps.

    With such a wife, it could be said that he had lived his life with no regrets. By being able to fulfill her request and push her up the stage at this moment, it could be said that he had lived his life with no regrets.

    Yes, he had no regrets.

    Wang Shouchuan gave a content smile.

    Han Yuqin understood her husband¡¯s smile. She looked at her aged man with clear eyes, which were as soft as water, and bowed. "Thank you, Husband."

    Her expression then became solemn once again. "Mingxiu, follow me. It may benefit you in the future."

    "Yes." Mingxiu¡¯s eyes were red as she responded in a low voice.

    The star-like specks of light from the five element ring resembled waterfalls of light. The light had transformed into a colorful flight of steps in front of her¡ªit was as if a rainbow was hanging down from the sky.

    Central Pine City was absolutely silent; everyone was stunned by what they had seen. Was this the power of a Grandmaster? The elemental energies of Nature were tamed like her servant, obeying hermands.

    Ai Hui was in shock. He looked on nkly as his mistress departed. Was this a Grandmaster? The operation of Nature¡¯s elemental energies hadpletely deviated frommon sense; his understanding of elemental energy had been overturned. Theoretical descriptions of a Grandmaster¡¯s power could notpare to the profound experience in real life.

    Central Pine City¡¯s elemental energies were now in his mistress¡¯ hands.

    Nobody was able to utilize even a bit of elemental energy. In other words, the whole city was under his mistress¡¯ control. She could easily kill anyone within the city; executing a massacre wouldn¡¯t require any effort.

    It was only now that Ai Hui finally understood why thend under a Grandmaster¡¯s watch was unshakeable.

    Perhaps a Grandmaster wasn¡¯t any much different to those strong figures in the ancient cultivation world.

    Kuan Tian raised his head and nced at Han Yuqin before retracting his gaze. There was a flickering, ominous glint in his eyes. Even if he were to confront an extremely powerful person like Han Yuqin, he would not cower in fear.

    He had nowhere to retreat.

    Right now, he was only relying on the spinal blood he had umted to sustain himself. If he escaped now, his blood traces would thoroughly crumble, and the fresh blood in his body would transform into dead blood before finally bing clear water.

    All trace of his existence in this world would disappear, and even his soul wouldn¡¯t have a chance to escape.

    He had to win. Only victory would allow him to reverse his fate. Even if he couldn¡¯t make aplete recovery, he could at least stabilize his blood traces. In the past, he had felt that the way of God was difficult and dangerous, but it was only now that he genuinely understood its unpredictability and murderous nature.

    He could feel the blood spiritual force within his body being rejected by Central Pine City¡¯s elemental energy, and the elemental energy in the air was akin to incorporeal knives that incessantly cut him. Wounds continued to appear on his face, arms, and body, and as he moved forward, he resembled a ragdoll covered with scars and bruises. His body was crisscrossed with countless fresh, red scars.

    What was strange, however, was that not a single drop of fresh blood seeped out of these wounds.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change¡ªit was as if he had no sense of touch.

    He knew he had to hurry up since the city had already begun to show signs of rejecting blood spiritual force. Once Han Yuqin started, he would be in a worse situation as the rejection would grow even more intense.

    Tian Kuan was like a shadow as he silently advanced. He knew that this was hisst chance. With unprecedented focus, he executed his [Shadow Figure] with much better skill than usual.

    He appeared outside the embroidery workshop without attracting any attention.

    The workshop¡¯s guards were kneeling to the ground, and everyone¡¯s focus was on Han Yuqin. Wang Zhen and the dean were gazing at the sky in shock. There wasn¡¯t anyone else within a three-meter radius around Tian Kuan.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s target was Wang Shouchuan.

    Han Yuqin was currently exuding a terrifying momentum, causing Tian Kuan to acknowledge that he definitely wasn¡¯t her match. However, by now, all the gold needles in Central Pine City had been erected, and only by blocking Han Yuqin could this whole n be stopped.

    What could he use to stop a Grandmaster?

    Wang Shouchuan!

    Only by taking him down could he possibly stop Han Yuqin. Her earlier gaze was clearly brimming with longing and emotions¡ªit was obvious that she wouldn¡¯t sit silently and watch Wang Shouchuan die in his hands.

    Mingxiu had been Tian Kuan¡¯s initial target, but unexpectedly, Han Yuqin had taken Mingxiu with her, leaving him with only one choice ¡ªWang Shouchuan.

    It was much easier to control an old man with no fight left in him.

    Tian Kuan held his breath, and his eyes turned into an empty, ashy color as his body transformed into a shadow. The shadow had no temperature and heartbeat; all signs of life vanished.

    This shadow stuck closely to the ground and slowly approached Wang Shouchuan.

    When Tian Kuan had been small and weak, this method of attack was his expertise. And as he grew stronger, this move became much more destructive.

    There wasn¡¯t anything awe-inspiring about [Shadow Figure], but in his hands, it became exceptionally dangerous.

    "Is this a Grandmaster?"

    Wang Zhen muttered to himself as he stared absent-mindedly at Han Yuqin, who, at this moment, was like a spirit that had descended to Earth.

    It wasn¡¯t only him. The dean by his side was in a simr daze. His mouth was open, but no sound came out. The sight before them was simply too breathtaking and impactful.

    A few moments earlier they had been battling with the blood fiends, but in the blink of an eye, the entire situation had reversed. The blood fiends had retreated in a tide. Victory had never felt so real. The n of ¡®treating the city as a piece of cloth¡¯ had been well-supported by them to begin with, but to speak to truth, they had been concealing their confidence because they had no other choice.

    But now, victory was right before their eyes. Looking at the goddess-like Han Yuqin, no one could question her n any longer.

    He suddenly sensed something.

    At the same time, Han Yuqin, who was already in midair, felt something as well. Her face changed slightly as her gaze hardened.

    The dean jerked his head and saw a ck, shadowy ball springing up from the ground and pouncing towards Wang Shouchuan.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s view of Wang Shouchuan magnified rapidly. Almost simultaneously, a stone wall rose steeply from the ground and obstructed his path. Densely packed and sharp stone thornsy atop the wall. An ominous glint appeared in Tian Kuan¡¯s eyes, and he let out a low growl, like that of a wild beast on the verge of death. Without dodging, he crashed head-on into the stone wall.

    Bang!

    The stone wall shattered, and from the rubble, a ck shadow shot out and struck Wang Shouchuan.

    Han Yuqin, who was floating in midair, suddenly turned around.

    As Tian Kuan struggled to stand up, his abdomen ached¡ªhe had been stabbed by a thick stone thorn. It was as if he felt nothing, though, as he gripped Wang Shouchuan¡¯s neck with one hand and used the other to pull the thorn out from his body. He then carefully ced Wang Shouchuan¡¯s figure in front of him, his palm firmly grabbing onto his neck.

    An eerie arc formed at the corner of his mouth and became increasingly curved.

    Sess... He had seeded!

    The silent smile gradually turned into an unbridled, wildughter that resounded throughout Central Pine City.

    Both Wang Zhen and the dean¡¯s faces became a deathly white as they understood Tian Kuan¡¯s intent. Despair crawled up onto their faces.

    Throughout his entire life, Tian Kuan had never felt as happy as he did now. So what if you¡¯re a Grandmaster? So what if I made the whole city my enemy?

    Hisughter suddenly stopped. He grabbed Wang Shouchuan and started to float upwards slowly.

    "I¡¯m sorry I disrupted your show, but this is good as well. We can have a nice talk."

    The whole city could hear the arrogance and satisfaction in his voice.

    Her face ashen, Han Yuqin roared, "Let him go!"

    Tian Kuan¡¯s fingers punctured Wang Shouchuan¡¯s throat, who resembled a choking fish as his body trembled and jerked uncontrobly.

    Her husband had never suffered in such a manner¡ªhe was just a normal husband. Han Yuqin¡¯s heart was also trembling.

    Mingxiu¡¯s face paled as she covered her mouth with her hands. Tears blurred her vision.

    "Why? Is this heartbreaking? What a loving couple," Tian Kuanmented leisurely.

    He had already taken the initiative and grabbed ahold of his own destiny. And just like in the past, he was always the final victor. So what if you¡¯re a Grandmaster?

    His thoughts were remarkably clear, and his body flourished with vitality. Taking a quick nce at his previously declining condition, he discovered that his blood traces were speedily stabilizing. His flesh was like dry mud being moistened by the rain. The familiar strength returned to his body.

    What a fascinating feeling.

    Victory was so sweet.

    When Ai Hui saw Tian Kuan and his teacher, it was as if his head had been dealt a massive blow. All was ck before him. But just after a second, he quickly recovered, and an indescribable fury exploded within him.

    He had never before felt such rage. Never before.

    He obviously understood Tian Kuan¡¯s intention, and he knew what was about to happen. And it was precisely because he knew that that his body began to involuntarily shiver. He had never before felt such fear.

    He would rather face his own death than what was going to happen next.

    His whole body was shuddering and shaking.

    The entire A-1 unit was stunned by the sudden change of events; in fact, the whole city was dumbfounded. Earth-shattering bellows immediately followed after a short period of deathly stillness.

    "Release him if you have the guts!"

    "Bastard!"

    "I¡¯m going to hack you to pieces!"

    Tian Kuanughed aloud as he witnessed the explosion of the elementalists and the deafening mor. It felt so good to see these helpless people, who viewed him as their enemy, be unable to do anything. It felt so good to crush and bury all their hopes.

    Such despair was enchanting!

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face was beyond pale. She looked at the sky in disbelief and was at a loss.

    She looked toward Ai Hui subconsciously. She did that whenever she felt a loss for what to do.

    Ai Hui was still trembling and breathless¡ªit was as if he was drowning.

    His shaking hand groped around subconsciously, and upon touching the Dragonspine Inferno, it was as if he had grabbed hold of a life-saving rice straw. He fumbled about, his shaking palm stroking the sword¡¯s de.

    It was only when he found the sword¡¯s hilt that his trembling hand finally calmed down.

    Ai Hui, too, had now calmed down.

    He was going to save his master.

 Chapter 269: A Devastating Ending

    Chapter 269: A Devastating Ending

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    "You stay here."

    After giving a brief instruction, the red-dressed girl floated towards Central Pine City like a wisp of red smoke.

    The turn of events for Tian Kuan had been too sudden. She could not help but go to take a look.

    It would be a pity if she didn¡¯t join in the fun.

    She was very clear on what Tian Kuan was going to do next. She was more curious about what Ai Hui¡¯s reaction would be.

    Ai Hui¡¯s background was no secret, everyone in Central Pine City knew about it. Right now, he was a legendary figure in Central Pine City, everyone¡¯s favorite topic to chit-chat about in their free time. Obtaining all of Ai Hui¡¯s information was a piece of cake.

    He came from the Old Territory and spent three years in the Wilderness asborer. He then entered the Induction Ground as an overaged student. Eventually, he became the disciple of Wang Shouchuan and learned embroidery from his mistress.

    Reportedly, Ai Hui had a deep rtionship with both his master and mistress.

    He would definitely take action!

    Her interest in Ai Hui far surpassed anyone else¡¯s. That fellow could not be analyzed logically as he always came up with different surprises. No one knew what he was going to do next.

    Holding the Dragonspine, Ai Hui dashed towards Tian Kuan¡¯s location.

    The sound of wind surged past his ears like thunder. At this point of time, Ai Hui felt abnormally calm. He held his sword, slouched his body, and flew along the dpidated street. It was as if he did not feel the fatigue from the previous battles.

    His brain was working at an unprecedented speed as he tried to think of a way to save his master.

    There must be a way!

    He told himself that.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s purpose in holding Master hostage was to stop Mistress frompleting the n of ¡®treating the city as a piece of cloth.¡¯ Mistress had an unyielding character and the only way for Tian Kuan to make her surrender was to torture Master.

    Ai Hui forced himself to focus on thinking through the situation. He did not dare to be distracted as any moment of distraction would cause him to feel a heart-twisting pain.

    His facial expression resembled that of a granite statue, motionless and without emotion.

    There was no point feeling angry or sad now. At this point in time, what he needed to do was stay calm, achieve absolute calmness. Letting his emotions affect his decision would be totally unhelpful to the current situation.

    He forced himself to stay calm and allowed the palm that was clenching the sword hilt to turn white.

    He first had to get close to Tian Kuan because hecked long-range offensive attacks. The sudden attack would only work if he could prevent Tian Kuan from sensing his presence.

    Very soon, Ai Hui confirmed his n of attack and decided to approach Tian Kuan silently from the right side of his back. Even though he needed to make an extra effort to reach that position, he did not mind as it would be advantageous to his attack. Tian Kuan was using his right hand to hold his master. If he could attack fast enough and hack Tian Kuan¡¯s right shoulder, he might be able to save his master.

    He was not feeling too well. His body was extremely weary and his elemental energy was almost depleted. Despite this, he still decided to get close to Tian Kuan first.

    Only by getting close to Tian Kuan would he then have the opportunity to strike.

    Ai Hui suppressed hisst trace of anger. Like an experienced hunter, he started to close in on his prey.

    He did not think about what would happen if he failed. Various ns appeared in his mind and he tried to find the loopholes in each n.

    There was only one chance with no room for failure.

    He lowered his waist and used the debris as cover, beginning to execute his n.

    "We have nothing to talk about."

    Han Yuqin¡¯s facial expression returned to normal and her tone was tranquil and calm.

    "My husband might be in your hands, but if you think that you can use him to threaten me, that would be a big mistake. We have lived for many years and as long as we can save Central Pine City, we don¡¯t mind sacrificing our lives. Let him go and I promise to let you leave this ce."

    "Let me leave this ce?" Tian Kuan smirked. "I think Master Han has mistaken my intention. I¡¯m the one who would let all of you leave this ce. You see, all along we haven¡¯t had many conflicts between us, so why bother fighting amongst ourselves? As long as all of you are willing to retreat from Central Pine City, you all will be able to leave this ce safely and Teacher Wang will also be safe and sound."

    His tone was calm and unhurried. Even though he was facing a Grandmaster, he did not show the slightest bit of fear, disying an elegant demeanor. He could feel the blood spiritual force in his body transforming. An endless stream of energy was flowing into the depths of his body.

    A feeling of euphoria gushed into him.

    He was overjoyed. If he could obtain victory, he would definitely attain a breakthrough in his base level.

    "Since you¡¯re so arrogant, there¡¯s nothing for us to talk about," Han Yuqin replied with a solemn tone. "My husband and I each have one foot in the grave. If we die, then so be it."

    "Die?" Tian Kuan put on an astonished face, as if he¡¯d heard something incredible. "Why would I let both of you die? How can a dead person have value? Furthermore, there are many things in this world that are more terrifying than death, and I happen to be specialized in them."

    Following which, his left hand pulled up Wang Shouchuan¡¯s left palm and spread his fingers.

    Crack!

    One of Wang Shouchuan¡¯s fingers had been crushed.

    Wang Shouchuan¡¯s body squirmed. The intense pain made him want to struggle, but the hand grabbing his throat was like a metal pincer, rendering him immobile. He could not make any sound and his body trembled uncontrobly.

    "Bastard!" Anger erupted upon Han Yuqin¡¯s face. Her aura of killer intent pervaded the air.

    "You see, it¡¯s just the beginning and Master Han already can¡¯t take it," teased Tian Kuan. "Do you wish to kill me now? It seems giving your husband some enjoyment is a good idea. How? Do you want to give it a try?"

    Crack!

    Another of Wang Shouchuan¡¯s fingers was crushed.

    Han Yuqin¡¯s entire body trembled and the elemental energy around her began to undte. Her cape fluttered and the heavenly glow that was shining on her became unstable.

    "You have been husband and wife for so many years, it would be too cruel if you were to kill him with your own hands, but what can you do about it? This world is supposed to be cruel. You can¡¯t do it, right? Actually, if you think about it, how can the life of an old fogey bepared to the lives of the many people here? If he dies, then so be it. Doesn¡¯t everythinge with a price?"

    Han Yuqin trembled even harder. The glowing, multi-colored stairs beneath her feet started to dim.

    The cracking sound rang across Ai Hui¡¯s ears. Ai Hui stopped in his tracks, but quickly recovered his pace. His facial expression did not change and his movements remained silent, appearing as though he was unaffected by what was going on.

    He reached his target¡¯s position.

    He raised his head and looked at Tian Kuan in the sky.

    Right now, Tian Kuan was not only holding his master¡¯s neck with his right hand, his left hand was also holding his master¡¯s left hand. There was no point in only hacking off Tian Kuan¡¯s right arm.

    The worst thing was that the elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body had depleted.

    When the golden needle was being nailed, the A-1 unit had encountered several blood fiends and had fought an intense battle. Everyone, including Ai Hui, was extremely exhausted.

    There must be a n.

    Ai Hui told himself.

    "Do you need help?"

    A faint voice suddenly came from behind Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui froze. He abruptly turned around and the beautiful image of a red-dressed girl appeared before him. Her long red sleeves were drifting like two traces of red smoke. Her beautiful eyes looked deeply at Ai Hui and her luscious red lips curled into an alluring smile.

    It was her!

    One Thousand Yuan!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eye pupils dted.

    "You¡¯re the first one topliment me and say that I¡¯m beautiful, even though I paid one thousand yuan for it." the red-dressed girl blinked her eyes intently. "Perhaps we can make a deal."

    Ai Hui stared at her, not saying a single word.

    "Don¡¯t stare at me like that, you look so fierce." the red-dressed girl put on an innocent look and stuck out her tongue. "You don¡¯t have much time left."

    Suddenly, a ravishing scarlet plum blossom appeared on her snow-white forehead. The blood plum blossom drifted out of her forehead andnded in her palm. Its bright shine resembled that of her red lips.

    "This costs more than one thousand yuan. Once you eat it, you will be capable of killing him off. Of course, since this is a deal, there¡¯s a price to pay. I will collect some interest from you." The red-dressed girl¡¯s face turned white while her gaze seemed to be in stupor.

    Ai Hui did not respond.

    "Even though I am somewhat taking advantage of your current situation..." The red-dressed girl¡¯s smile became increasingly sweet. "You don¡¯t have many choices left. This is your only way out."

    The glistening plum blossom disyed an indescribable demonic aura.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s excited voice resounded through the air, sounding as if he had thought of something fun. "I have just thought of a better way."

    He squinted his eyes and a sinister sneer appeared on his face. Han Yuqin¡¯s reaction was far more intense than he¡¯d expected. The elemental energy surrounding Han Yuqin was bing chaotic. From this, Tian Kuan hade up with a conjecture, that Han Yuqin¡¯s status of Grandmaster was a temporary one. She did not go through a legitimate breakthrough!

    She must have used some special technique to temporarily raise her base level.

    Right now, her emotions were under intense provocation, causing her to lose control of her temporary base level and elemental energy. On the contrary, the blood spiritual force in Tian Kuan¡¯s body continued to rise. He was excited as he sensed that he was about to achieve a breakthrough.

    In his eyes, Han Yuqin was like a whetstone. One could onlye across a pseudo-Grandmaster level whetstone serendipitously.

    Achieving victory in this confrontation was the key to his breakthrough!

    It would be a memorable event for him to use the corpse of a pseudo-Grandmaster as a stepping stone to achieve his breakthrough.

    He gave a pondering smile, resembling an executioner tightening the noose on a prisoner¡¯s neck.

    "How about I turn him into a blood elementalist?"

    A drop of blood seeped out from Tian Kuan¡¯s fingertip and stayed there like a dewdrop.

    Pfff. Along with the drop of blood, Tian Kuan¡¯s taut finger suddenly plunged into Wang Shouchuan¡¯s shoulder.

    "I¡¯m actually doing this for his own good. His vitality is weak and he doesn¡¯t have many days of life left. Bing a blood elementalist will allow him to live a bit longer. You see, both of you can still spend the rest of your lives together. Such a heartwarming scene. An elementalist and a blood elementalist living together to a ripe old age in conjugal bliss."

    Han Yuqin¡¯s face was filled with agony. The dazzling rainbow stairs below her feet hadpletely copsed. The elemental energy around her body started burning with a crackle.

    Even her hair looked as if it was burning, gradually disappearing.

    "Shouchuan, you must help me."

    This was her favourite sentence that she had always said to Wang Shouchuan when they were young. She was always arrogant and brash, but as long as she said this sentence, he would never reject her. Countless memories swept through her mind like a tidal wave. The more heartwarming they were, the more pain she felt.

    It was because of her that he ended up like this.

    Ignited by the chaotic elemental energy, her overflowing tears were mixed with blood and fire, flowing down her cheeks.

    Tian Kuan released the hand that was grasping Wang Shouchuan¡¯s neck and held his arm instead.

    Terrifying streaks of blood traces appeared on Wang Shouchuan¡¯s face. He shrieked in pain, "Kill me, kill me!"

    "Kill you?"

    "We will have to see if Master Han is ruthless enough to do it or not." Tian Kuan sneered as he tightly held Wang Shouchuan¡¯s body.

    "Kill me..."

    Wang Shouchuan¡¯s scream became a blur.

    Upon hearing his master¡¯s scream, Ai Hui emotionlessly took the glistening blood plum flower and popped it in his mouth.

    Just as the red-dressed girl revealed an insidious smile, Ai Hui said coldly, "I will destroy the Blood of God."

    The red-dressed girl¡¯s smile froze.

    Blood of God... How did he know about the Blood of God?

    Ai Hui did not look at her anymore. Clenching the Dragonspine in his hand, he turned around and faced Tian Kuan¡¯s direction.

    His body was filled with a mysterious power, emitting an unusual ice-cold aura.

    His craggy face had deep and distinct lines, looking grave and stern. He appeared as if he was witnessing a farce that had nothing to do with him,pletely emotionless.

    Mistress was on the brink of copse...

    An image of his master unting his n like it was some kind of treasure appeared In Ai Hui¡¯s mind. The pride on his master¡¯s face seemed to tell Ai Hui that he had no regrets if he died as long as he could help his wife.

    His master¡¯s body was struggling non-stop. His low, deep shriek was filled with agony, despair, and the desire to die.

    Since he desired death, would he have no regrets only if he died? He would rather be dead than see his works destroyed? He would rather be dead than see his pride crushed?

    Just yesterday, Ai Hui had still been thinking about bringing his master and mistress to the Old Territory and opening an embroidery workshop there for them, to apany them through their twilight years.

    There were no more twilight years.

    Ai Hui felt that he had fallen into an endless abyss. The freezing darkness engulfed him, but he knew that there was onest thing he had to do.

    He had to defend the pride of his master and mistress.

    The red-dressed girl¡¯s eye pupils shrunk abruptly when Ai Hui disappeared into thin air. Given her strength, how could she not see how Ai Hui disappeared?

    The sky suddenly darkened as night fell upon the city.

    Splendid radiance blossomed in the dark night.

    When the Night Epiphyllum blossoms, the dark night shall descend.

    Numerous epiphyllum flowers floated down from the sky, forming a rain of light that resembled a poignant painting.

    Tian Kuan¡¯s eyes suddenly shrunk. The blood spiritual force in his body erupted. Just as his body was about to go to work, it froze abruptly.

    He lowered his head and looked at his chest. A sword had pierced through his chest. His eyes were filled with disbelief.

    Wang Shouchuan¡¯s body rxed and looked at the de sticking out of his chest. He recognized it as Ai Hui¡¯s sword. The struggle on his face faded like a receding tide. A peaceful look appeared upon his face as blood foam spurted out from his mouth.

    His mouth curled into a smile. He could not see Ai Hui, but he still spoke with an unclear tone. "Good boy."

    Han Yuqin stared nkly at Wang Shouchuan.

    Wang Shouchuan turned his head with difficulty. His vision was blurry and he could only see a vague figure. He felt as if he had returned to the day he¡¯d first met her when he was just eighteen years old. The timid young man had not dared to look her straight in the eyes.

    They¡¯d walked together and grown old together.

    But it was a pity that they couldn¡¯t die together.

    He used hisst bit of strength and waved goodbye to her.

    Upon seeing Wang Shouchuan closing his eyes peacefully, Han Yuqin¡¯s tears once more flowed out uncontrobly. A long whistle resounded through the air. Intense, sword-like sunlight pierced through the thickyer of cloud and darkness once more. mes started to burst into existence around her body. The Five Elements Bracelet hovering above her head started to spin.

    The elemental energy burned her body. She looked like a phoenix standing in the midst of zing mes, serene and majestic.

    Her delicate hands glided through the air and a beam of light shot out. That was her thread and needle.

    Numerous beams of light gathered from all directions and swirled around her body, resembling a shoal of fish that frolicked in the sea.

    Her slender, snow-white arms rose above her head as she spun her body, looking as if she was dancing and singing.

    Shouchuan, this is what you taught me.

    Shouchuan, this is the work that you put your heart and soul into.

    The light beams swirled along with her body, then shot up into the sky, flying swiftly towards every corner of Central Pine City, and plunged into the ground. Central Pine City was like an enormous piece of cloth while the light beams were throbbing needles and threads, shuttling back and forth through the city.

    The red-dressed girl¡¯s facial expression changed dramatically and she hurriedly retreated.

    The color of blood that had engulfed Central Pine City faded. nts and trees emerged from the ground and grew rapidly at visible speeds, spreading the color of lush green throughout Central Pine City. The debris and ruins began to wiggle. Then, as if there were a pair of invisible hands moving and repairing them, the debris disappeared and the buildings returned to their initial state, as good as new.

    Time seemed to be turning back.

    Central Pine City had returned to its former glory.

    A dazzling glow engulfed all of Central Pine City.

    Tian Kuan, who was pierced by the Dragonspine, disintegrated into ashes before he could even scream in pain. Wang Shouchuan¡¯s body also disintegrated into ashes, leaving one intact arm behind.

    Ai Hui instinctively caught his master¡¯s arm and descended from the sky.

    A lustrended beside Ai Hui. It was Han Yuqin. Her body was engulfed in mes and her flesh continued to melt. She looked at Ai Hui and said, "Good boy, Master and Mistress need to thank you."

    Her gaze contained an array of emotions. Gratitude, thankfulness, pity, and worry.

    If not for Ai Hui, everything that they had worked so hard for would have gone down the drain. All the lives that were sacrificed would have been meaningless. The pain and suffering Ai Hui had to go through for making this decision far exceeded what anyone could imagine.

    Ai Hui pursed his lips tightly.

    "Ai Hui, you are very capable, help Mistress to take good care of your Senior Mingxiu."

    "Master!" Mingxiu sobbed.

    Han Yuqin took Wang Shouchuan¡¯s arm from Ai Hui. As usual, she tightly interlocked her fingers with Wang Shouchuan¡¯s. With a gentle look on her face, she reminded Ai Hui, "Mistress has to go now. Ai Hui, Mingxiu, bury me and your Master together."

    A burst of mes shot up into the sky. Her body waspletely devoured by the mes. Only the hand that was holding Wang Shouchuan¡¯s hand did not burn.

    When the mes had extinguished, two tightly sped hands remained.

    Ai Hui was stupefied. He carefully picked up the pair of tightly interlocked hands.

    A bean-sized drop of rainnded on his hand. In the blink of an eye, torrents of rain came pouring down. In a short period of time, the city was shrouded by rain and fog.

    The n of ¡®treating the city as a piece of cloth¡¯ was a sess. The five elemental energies in Central Pine City had united. Blood fiends and blood elementalists could no longer stay in the city. Central Pine City was finally safe. However, not a single bit of joy could be found on anyone¡¯s face. No one had expected thest battle to be so devastating.

    Upon witnessing how Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqin sacrificed themselves and died in such a manner, everyone was filled withplex feelings.

    Shi Xueman looked at Ai Hui with concern; he was digging a grave in the rain. He rejected everyone¡¯s help and dug the muddy, water-filled grave together with Mingxiu using their bare hands.

    Shi Xueman simply could not imagine the pain and grief Ai Hui was feeling now.

    Fatty suddenly blurted out, "In the Wilderness, whenever I dug a grave, Ai Hui would never help me. He doesn¡¯t help dead people dig their graves. He always said that it doesn¡¯t matter if a dead person is buried or not."

    Everyone was speechless.

    Ai Hui carefully ced the pair of tightly interlocked hands into the grave and then properly covered them up with soil. Mingxiu handed over a wooden tablet and Ai Hui wrote the inscription ¡®The Grave of Master and Mistress¡¯ on the wooden tablet in crooked handwriting.

    He carefully stuck the wooden tablet into the soil.

    He kneeled before the grave and stared at it, allowing the rain to smack him across his face like a stone statue.

    He had lost his master and mistress.

 Chapter 270: Three Years Later

    Chapter 270: Three Years Later

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    Three yearster.

    Silver Mist Sea, Peace City.

    Peace City was a new and developing medium-sized city at the lower reaches of the Silver Mist River.

    Ny percent of the cities in the Silver Mist Sea were distributed across the Silver Mist River. The size of a city depended on the reach of the river it was located at. There were a total of forty-two cities in the upper reaches of the river and more than half of them wererge-sized cities. The city located at the far end of the river¡¯s upper reaches, which was also considered the center of the Silver Mist Sea, was called Silver City. This city was thergest city in the entire Silver Mist Sea.

    At the middle reach of the river, the number ofrge-sized cities reduced sharply. They were reced by dispersed small-sized and medium-sized cities.

    At the lower reaches of the river, it was hard for one to even see a medium-sized city. The river¡¯s lower reaches were mainly filled with small towns.

    There was nothing weird about this. Towards the lower reaches of the Silver Mist River, the metal elemental energy in the river became extremely thin. After the metal elemental energy was divided among numerous cities in the middle reaches and upper reaches of the river, only leftover metal elemental energy was leftover for the river¡¯s lower reaches. Naturally, capable and experienced elementalists were not willing to stay in such an area.

    Nowadays, the water level of the Silver Mist River was continuing to drop. The sessive battles over thest three years had caused the collection of artifact remnants to be increasingly difficult. Without arge supply of artifact remnants, the amount of metal elemental energy in the Silver Mist Sea declined sharply every year. This could be verified by the number of times the Silver Mist Sea opened its sea lock per month. Before the blood catastrophe, the sea lock would open twice, once at the start of the month and again at the end of it. Surging metal elemental currents would carry a huge amount of artifact remnants and flow along the expansive river channel that led to Palette Cloud Vige. Nowadays, however, the sea lock of the Silver Mist Sea would only open once a month. Today¡¯s metal elemental currents could not bepared to those of the past.

    Peace City¡¯s flourishing had started two years ago.

    In the past, Peace City was rather famous for its special local product, ckshell mica. ckshell mica was a unique cross-bred species between mica species from the Silver Mist River and Peace City. As they were ck in color and contained the gloss of shellfish, they were named ckshell mica. ckshell mica was a fantastic dual-type material; it was both metal attributed and water attributed.

    The reason why Peace City could be the only medium-sized city in the lower reaches of the Silver Mist River was its strategic geographical location. It was located on the border of the Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige.

    During the three years of war, instead of withering, Peace City prospered. It had jumped from a small-sized city to a medium-sized city, all thanks to its strategic location

    Compared to the Silver Mist Sea, Palette Cloud Vige was less affected by the war.

    Unlike the Silver Mist Sea, which needed a huge amount of artifact remnants to generate metal elemental energy, Palette Cloud Vige¡¯s cloud spring did not need man-made means to increase its supply.

    The Avalon of Five Elements was only left with the Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige. Between these two ces, their rtionship had be much tighter and their trade ties had strengthened significantly.

    Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner had fallen into the hands of the Blood of God. Due to the enmity between the Avalon of Five Elements and Blood of God, the possibility of them having trade rtions was zero.

    It was a different scenario for the Jadeite Forest. When the Jadeite Forest first established independence, the Avalon of Five Elements reacted strongly. However, with Grandmaster Dai Gang overseeing the ce, the Duanmu family¡¯s support, and thepletely intact Deathgrass and Truewood Divisions, the Avalon of Five Elements, whose power had been greatly reduced, could not do anything about the Jadeite Forest.

    The higher-ups of the Avalon of Five Elements also realized that it would be disastrous if they were attacked from both sides. Hence, they took the initiative to disy goodwill towards the Jadeite Forest.

    Simrly, the Blood of God also did not want to be attacked from both sides and thus also needed to get into Jadeite Forest¡¯s good books.

    Reportedly, the Blood of God and Avalon of Five Elements had sent out their own diplomatic missions to win the support of Jadeite Forest. Even if they could not win Jadeite Forest¡¯s support, they could at least prevent them from supporting the other side.

    The Jadeite Forest was benefitting from both sides and did not have to worry about its trade being cut off.

    The products from Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner were transported to Jadeite Forest, then from Jadeite Forest to Palette Cloud Vige, and finally to the Silver Mist Sea. Despite the rtions among the three factions, this trade route was unusually busy.

    Being situated at a spot the trade route must pass through, Peace City flourished rapidly.

    Numerouspanies would set up branches and warehouses in these small towns where trading caravans would pass.

    Sea Pacific Enterprise was considered a rather powerfulpany.

    Not having many customers in the afternoon, Su Qingye felt extremely sleepy.

    A shop assistant walked over and said, "Qingye, I heard that Dragonrise Training Hall has opened a branch here. Tomorrow is its opening day and there¡¯s going to be a performance. Do you want to go together to take a look?"

    "Dragonrise Training Hall? The one in Silver City?" Su Qingye became slightly awake.

    "Other than the one in Silver City, where else is there a Dragonrise Training Hall?" The shop assistant sneered.

    "I¡¯m not going." Su Qingye shook his head. "Tomorrow I¡¯m going to the training hall to practise my swordy."

    "Qingye, don¡¯t you intend to switch to a different training hall? Given Dragonrise Training Hall¡¯s capability, you will definitely be better off there!" The shop assistant egged Su Qingye on.

    "I¡¯m not switching," Su Qingye mumbled.

    "Alright then, I shall go myself." The shop assistant shrugged his shoulder.

    Su Qingye was an elegant and handsome young man. He was kind-hearted and affable. He was not harsh and snobbish towards his subordinates and hence, everyone liked him and behaved more casual around him.

    After being disturbed by the shop assistant, Su Qingye¡¯s sleepiness hadpletely disappeared.

    At his age, he should have been attending school at the Induction Ground, but after the start of the blood catastrophe three years ago, the Induction Ground had be a disaster area. There were not many survivors from that ce. In the past, children that were of appropriate age had to study at the Induction Ground. With the loss of the Induction Ground, everyone had no ce to attend school.

    The Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner had fallen into the hands of Blood of God, the Jadeite Forest had be an independent faction, and the Thirteen Divisions had undergone assassinations, mutinies, ambushes, terrible losses, and many rebuilding processes. Given these sessive major events, coupled with the three consecutive years of war, how would the higher-ups have the time to think about rebuilding the Induction Ground?

    The loss of the Induction Ground had resulted in the rise of training halls. Unlike those influential aristocratic families, most families did not have an abundance of resources and famed teachers. Training halls had be their only option.

    Even though these training halls could not bepared to the Induction Ground, they were still able to teach the students a lot of things. Furthermore, these training halls taught their students very practical techniques that could be used in an actual battle, which was extremely suitable for the current situation.

    The flourishing of Peace City attracted many elementalists to set up training halls. Right now, there were hundreds of training halls in Peace City. Every month, prominent training halls would set up branches there.

    In many people¡¯s eyes, Peace City¡¯s market possessed great potential.

    Initially, Su Qingye had not attended a training hall and instead worked at his family-ownedpany. Sea Pacific Enterprise was not really huge and did not have many customs. His parents felt that it would be best if he did not fight on the front lines and inherit their business instead.

    However, the war did not show any sign of ending and instead became increasingly intense as the days went by.

    The war between the Avalon of Five Elements and Blood of God had extended from Yellow Sand Corner and the Silver Mist Sea to the Old Territory. The huge poption of the Old Territory and the enormous amount of artifact remnants there had be the resources that both sides fought for desperately. The unresolvable enmity between the two sides reached a boiling point.

    The internal situation of the Avalon of Five Elements had also be unstable. The conflicts between the new citizens and the aristocratic families became increasingly fierce. During the process of rebuilding the Thirteen Divisions, there were rumors that the candidates for division leaders were being selected from aristocratic families. This had stirred up strong resentment among the new citizens. Jadeite Forest seized the opportunity to bring in a prominent figure selected from the new citizens.

    In such unstable times, the livelihood of businesses was severely threatened. Trade routes were no longer safe, the number of desperate crime-doers increased, and public security began to worsen.

    The worst thing was, it was very difficult to hire guards.

    Lives were lost at a terrifying rate on the front line. Those who were capable would be deployed there. The Thirteen Divisions, which held an abundance of resources, also held a huge captivating power over those talented and ambitious young men.

    Joining the war was the fastest way for one to progress in power and status. Those who stood out during the blood catastrophe three years ago had be powerful and prominent individuals in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    This was something that one could not achieve during peacetime.

    Blood-filled war provided ambitious individuals with a grand tform on which they could perform.

    Those capable elementalists were not willing to stay in a small ce like Peace City. Thosepanies that were under the wings of the aristocratic families did not need to worry about these problems. Those small-sized and medium-sizedpanies like Sea Pacific Enterprise, on the other hand, needed to settle these problems by themselves.

    In chaotic times, those who were rich but did not have the ability to protect themselves would be targets for covetous people.

    On a particr day, a terrifying crime urred in Peace City that shocked the entire city.

    Red Jewel Enterprise had hired a batch of guards, but it turned out that the guards were bandits in disguise. Theirpany was robbed of everything and all of the three hundred members in their n were killed.

    The next day, Su Qingye found himself a training hall to enroll into.

    The safest way was to train and nurture their own guards.

    The training hall that Su Qingye had enrolled in had a very weird name. On the first day of his enrollment, he¡¯d already felt that the teacher was someone who had an entric temperament.

    That training hall was opened three years ago in Peace City, not too long after the blood catastrophe broke out. It was one of the first few training halls that were set up in Peace City.

    It was a small training hall, with only one teacher and a sand puppet.

    The teacher was very young, around twenty-plus years old. It was likely that that he¡¯de to Peace City to set up a training hall after he¡¯d been injured during the blood catastrophe. That was before Peace City had flourished.

    There was also a workshop in the training hall. Su Qingye felt that the teacher was more interested in the workshop than the training hall itself.

    Perhaps the workshop was the teacher¡¯s full-time job and the training hall was his part-time job?

    Su Qingye was not in the mood to look after the shop. After saying goodbye to one of the employees, he left. When the young master wanted to slip away from his job, the employees of course did not dare toin.

    Su Qingye stepped onto the street and summoned his sand puppet, which then transformed into a sand leopard. Su Qingye mounted the sand leopard and rode it.

    Three years ago, when Su Qingye¡¯s father saw that the teacher had a sand puppet, he mistook him for an earth elementalist and paid a considerable amount of tuition fees for his son to enroll in the training hall. When Su Qingye¡¯s father found out that the teacher was a metal elementalist, he was extremely vexed, but since the tuition fees had been paid, his father had no choice but to give the training hall a try.

    Su Qingye had stayed in that training hall until today.

    Actually, the sand leopard was not really suitable for riding as its movements were extremely jerky. Despite that, Su Qingye felt that riding on a sand leopard was cool.

    The streets were bustling with activity. The prosperous Peace City did not have any trace of having been through a war. Other than the fully-armored elementalists that flew through the sky, bringing about the smell of war and blood, this ce was like Xanadu.

    Su Qingye had asked the teacher before, what was war like? In the end, he¡¯d been punished by the teacher to do six hundred sets of quicksand lunges, causing his legs to turn numb. He almost had to crawl home.

    From that day onward, he did not dare to ask about this kind of thing anymore. He became even more curious. After all, his teacher was only twenty-plus years old.

    After making several turns, he finally arrived at a secluded area and a dpidated warehouse-transformed training hall appeared before him.

    Beside the main entrance of the training hall, there was a huge wooden signboard that had three words written on it.

    Swordsman Training Hall.

 Chapter 271: The Lost Time

    Chapter 271: The Lost Time

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    The crude bathtub was filled with a ck medicinal water, giving off a pungent smell that pervaded the air.

    Suddenly, the tranquil water surface bubbled as a craggy, stern-looking face slowly floated up. The ck medicinal water slid off both sides of the face, resembling a sea monster that emerged from the sea.

    Ssh.

    A half-naked guy sat up from the bathtub.

    "Ai Hui, how do feel?" Lou Lan asked as the dark red glow in his eyes kept on flickering.

    "Very terrible," azy voice replied.

    As Ai Hui stood up from the medicinal water, the ck liquid trickled along his well-defined muscles as it flowed. His body was not powerfully built and even looked somewhat lean. However, any movements he made or any slight twitches of his muscles would involuntarily release a dangerous aura.

    On the left side of his dripping wet chest, there was an image of a glistening, beautiful, blood-colored plum blossom.

    "25% of my elemental energy has been devoured by it."

    Ai Hui stepped out of the bathtub, picked up a clean towel from the wooden rack, and wiped off the medicinal water on his body. With a casual tone, he said, "One Thousand Yuan must have been a loan shark in her previous life. The interest she collects is even more ruthless than mine."

    "Lou Lan believes that student Bangwan wouldn¡¯t think so," Lou Lan replied with a serious look on his face.

    Ai Hui, who was putting on his clothes,ughed out loud. "An immoral fellow like him has no right to criticize others. How¡¯s our ingrate doing recently?"

    "From the news, he doesn¡¯t seem to be doing well." Lou Lan continued, "Recently, there has been quite a lot of news regarding student Bangwan."

    Immediately, Ai Hui became excited. "Choose some headlines and tell me."

    With a bang, Lou Lan transformed into a row of rolling words made of sand.

    "The Jadeite Prince Spent His Whole Night In A Brothel!"

    "The Jadeite Prince Heavily Drunk!""

    "The Jadeite Prince Drowning His Sorrows With Alcohol!"

    Ai Hui was slightly shocked. "He owes someone money again?"

    With a bang, Lou Lan transformed into another row of rolling words.

    "Duanmu Kang: My Son Is A Prodigy!"

    "Dai Gang: Huanghun Is A Genius, He Needs To Find A Girl That Can Match Up To Him."

    "The Avalon Of Five Elements: Jadeite Forest And Avalon Of Five Elements Are Of The Same Roots, We Ought To Cement The Old Ties By Marriage."

    "Blood Of God: In This New Era, The Duanmu Family Needs To Bring In A Contemporary Young Mistress."

    "Jadeite Forest: We Will Take These Opinions Into Serious Consideration."

    Ai Hui could not help butugh when the image of Duanmu Huanghun drowning his sorrows with alcohol appeared in his mind. He was rejoicing in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s misfortune. "Hahaha, he has to pay for whatever mistakes he made."

    "Qingye is here." Lou Lan transformed back into his usual form with a bang.

    When Su Qingye walked into the training hall, the first thing he saw was an eye-catching message tree that looked extremely ancient. Every time he saw this message tree, he could not help but purse his lips. The teacher was so young, but why was he so old-fashioned?

    This message tree looked like a defective product that was picked up from a rubbish heap.

    Nowadays, there were various types of cool and trendy message trees. Some were decorated with dazzling lights, while others could even simultaneously project images and talk. His teacher¡¯s ancient message tree, which only allowed written messages, had been outdated for an unknown number of years.

    His teacher was like an old man.

    Su Qingye cursed his teacher silently in his heart. However, when he saw his teacher, he quickly straightened his body and greeted him respectfully, "Teacher."

    Ai Hui nced at him and asked, "There¡¯s no lesson today, so why are you here?"

    "Teacher, Dragonrise Training Hall is setting up a branch in this city," Su Qingye replied enthusiastically.

    "Dragonrise Training Hall?" Ai Hui shook his head. "Never heard of it before."

    Su Qingye widened his eyes and stared at his teacher. However, his teacher¡¯s facial expression remained calm, appearing not to be lying at all. Su Qingye raised his voice and asked, "Teacher, howe you don¡¯t even know about Dragonrise Training Hall? It¡¯s one of the biggest training halls! It¡¯s a mega training hall that has more than 50 branches!"

    "Is it? Wow, they are really powerful!" Ai Hui raised his eyebrows and put a surprised look on his face. However, his acting skills were too poor, and he did not seem sincere at all.

    "Teacher, how can you be so unambitious?" Su Qingye was slightly annoyed.

    "It seems that you are very free." Ai Hui looked at Su Qingye intently. "Today is such a beautiful, sunny day. Let¡¯s see, what would be the most suitable thing to do on such a day?"

    The moment Su Qingye saw his teacher¡¯s gaze, he could sense that something was not right. Then, upon hearing his teacher¡¯s question, he immediately turned listless. He lowered his head and replied listlessly, "Training."

    "That¡¯s right!" Ai Hui¡¯s face brimmed with approval.

    He turned around to Lou Lan and instructed, "Lou Lan, give him 200 drill sets of the sand puppet counter technique. He can go home and have his dinner only if he sessfully counters more than half of the attacks."

    "No problem, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied cheerfully.

    The sand puppet counter technique was one of the mostmonly-used survival techniques for earth elementalists. This technique involved using the sand puppet as a shield to block an enemy¡¯s attack before carrying out a counter-attack.

    The difficulty of this technique was very high. Whenever a sand puppet was attacked, especially when the attacker was very powerful, the connection between the sand puppet and the earth elementalist would be broken. Hence, it would be very difficult for the earth elementalist to use the sand puppet to carry out a counter-attack afterward.

    He had to sessfully counter more than half of the attacks...

    Su Qingye¡¯s face turned ashen, and he stammered, "Teacher, tonight there will be guestsing over to my house, so I can¡¯t bete..."

    "For the sake of your guests, you must put in more effort!" Ai Hui made an encouraging gesture and cheered him on.

    "Qingye,e on!" Lou Lan happily cheered for Song Qingye as well.

    Ai Hui waved his hand and left the training hall.

    Peace City had changed significantly since the day he first arrived. When he had just arrived, Peace City was just a small town like Central Pine City. Now, it had be a prosperous city that bustled with activity.

    The city was mostly made up of water elementalists and metal elementalists. Most wood elementalists had chosen to seek refuge in the Jadeite Forest with the Duanmu family as their leader. Meanwhile, the ambitious Deep Sea Enterprise, which was mainly established by new citizens, was trying to build amercial empire.

    As for fire elementalists and earth elementalists, their situation was now extremely dire. After the Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner fell into the hands of the Blood of God, materials that could be easily bought in the past were currently very hard to find on the market. The dire situations of the fire elementalists and earth elementalists had even affected the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ rebuilding ns for the Thirteen Divisions.

    This was also why the higher-ups of the Avalon of Five Elements tacitly allowed trade between the Blood of God, the Jadeite Forest, and the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Even though trade existed, the prices of various materials had be much more expensive than before. The less affluent earth elementalists and fire elementalists could only go to the Wilderness and hunt for dire beasts.

    For the past three years, Ai Hui had been observing the Blood of God from the shadows.

    The Blood of God¡¯s methods were far more vicious that he had anticipated. The surrender of the Icy mes Division had also exceeded everyone¡¯s expectations. The Icy mes Division¡¯s division leader, Ye Baiyi, used to be everyone¡¯s idol in the Avalon of Five Elements. No one had foreseen him leading the Icy mes Division to surrender to the Blood of God.

    Nowadays, whenever Ai Hui thought of how people in Central Pine City used to call him "Ai Baiyi," he could not help but sigh.

    The Ardent Flower Division was an unyielding division, but they eventually came to a grisly end. Everyone in the division, including the division leader and vice division leader, was killed.

    The Mountain King Division and Lordsand Division fell into the hands of the Blood of God almost without any resistance. When the Blood of God brought the family members of the two divisions onto the battlefield, both the divisions crumbled effortlessly.

    However, after the unscrupulous and ruthless Blood of God conquered the Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner, their style of operation changed.

    The Blood of God began to actively promote god elementalists, provided free materials, and built God Academy. Every child that was of a certain age had to start practicing god elementalism. They opened official positions to the public and groomed those talented god elementalists. They disregarded the family backgrounds of the candidates and attracted a lot of citizens from the Old Territory. In addition, they also banned their people from using elementalists to practice god elementalism and reced the source with blood fiends so as to obtain blood crystals.

    In three years¡¯ time, the public perception of the Blood of God had changedpletely.

    The higher-ups of the Blood of God were extremely mysterious. The one who usually took care of the Blood of God¡¯s daily matters was a young man named Bei Shuisheng. Reportedly, he was frequently sick since young and was an extremely fragile individual. Nheless, he still managed to gain the trust of the emperor of God Nation.

    All of the bold and decisive measures were carried out by him. In the Blood of God, he was known by many as the "little advisor." In the Avalon of Five Elements, he was known as the "sick tiger." Most elementalists feared of him. In the Blood of God, Bei Shuisheng enjoyed high prestige and was revered by many. Even though there were countless talented individuals in the Blood of God, all of them still obediently followed his orders.

    Under the management of Bei Shuisheng, the Blood of God was bing more prosperous with each passing day.

    On the contrary, the Avalon of Five Elements was on the decline. The conflicts between the new citizens and the aristocratic families were growing increasingly intense as the days passed. Theck of training grounds for earth elementalists and fire elementalists had be a serious problem. The estrangement between the Old Territory and the Avalon of Five Elements, caused by the thousands of years of aloof and remote regard by thetter toward the former, had put the Blood of God in an advantageous position over the Avalon of Five Elements in their war. The Avalon of Five Elements could not win the trust and support of the Old Territory¡¯s citizens. The promation of independence by the Jadeite Forest and Avalon of Five Elements¡¯promise on this issue had encouraged many powerful aristocratic families to work toward their own independence as well. Even the notion of expanding and bing an independent state in the Wilderness had attracted many families. No matter where or when, the notion of upying and bing the king of a piece ofnd would always hold a captivating power over anyone.

    Whenpared to the thriving Blood of God, the Avalon of Five Elements was like a critically damaged wagon.

    Whether or not the Avalon of Five Elements emerged victorious or defeated, Ai Hui did not care at all. His enemy was the Blood of God.

    Compared to three years ago, the Blood of God had now be a colossus. Its resplendence outshone the Avalon of Five Elements, but Ai Hui had not forgotten about the Battle of Central Pine City,

    There was still a lush and verdant city that stood empty and alone amid the sea of blood.

    Initially, the Avalon of Five Elements tried to propagandize the Battle of Central Pine City. As the war progressed, however, there were more and more epic battles as well as more and more emergent heroes. The Battle of Central Pine City was soon forgotten by many. Few people still remembered the lone city situated in the war-torn, blood-filled Induction Ground.

    Only when Shi Xueman¡¯s name was mentioned would people remember the existence of Central Pine City. After all, that was the battle that made her famous.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s greatest achievement in the Avalon of Five Elements during the past three years was bing the disciple of one of thest extant great Grandmasters, An Muda.

    Besides the irondy, the rest of the A-1 unit was also doing quite well. asionally, Ai Hui would see their names appearing in the news. The Blood of God was extremely vicious in attacking the Induction Ground to directly exterminate the younger generations of the Avalon of Five Elements, cutting off their reserves. The A-1 unit, which had the best war achievements among all student units, became the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ main target to nurture and foster. One could anticipate that the members of the A-1 unit would be the backbone of Avalon of Five Elements in the future.

    Ai Hui felt happy for them.

    As for Fatty, after he returned to the Old Territory, he had been leading a satisfying life. He was still a kind soul after all, gathering the family members of theborers that died during their three year stint in the Wilderness. He then formed a stronghold with them and started a business.

    Reportedly, his business mainly dealt with artifact remnants and had expanded significantly, bing rather lucrative.

    On ount of Duanmu Huanghun, the Blood of God did not seek trouble with Fatty either. Thus, he had been leading afortable life.

    After knowing that everyone was leading a rather good life, Ai Hui was very happy.

 Chapter 272: See You Later

    Chapter 272: See You Later

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X

    Ai Hui casually waltzed into a particr shop.

    When the boss of the shop saw Ai Hui, he immediately yelled, "Brother Wang!"

    "Has the thing I want arrived?" Ai Hui asked amicably. His fake name was Wang Han, which he came up with tomemorate his master and mistress.

    "It has arrived, it has arrived. Whatever Brother Wang wants, I will rack my brains to get it for you," the boss replied excitedly. The boss had a round face and a pair of pea-sized eyes that were filled with cheerfulness. Whenever he talked, his entire face would be unusually animated.

    However, Ai Hui did not dare to underestimate the boss based on his jovial character. After staying for nearly three years in Peace City, he had yet to have an adequate understanding of the boss.

    There were numerouspanies in Peace City, and none of their backgrounds were simple. It was a pity that Qingye¡¯s family only dealt with big businesses, else he would patronize the Sea Pacific Enterprise.

    The boss took out a box, ced it on the counter, and pushed it toward Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui opened the box, and a chilly gust sted his face. In the box, there was a square-shaped ice brick. The ice brick was sparkling and translucent, a bit smaller than the box itself, and gave off wisps of frosty white gas. Inside the ice brick, there was an ink-ck cloud frozen within.

    "Star-sinking Ink Cloud, one of the best ink clouds. It is stronger and more durable than ck clouds. Since it is very heavy, it can¡¯t be used to make azure wings, yet it¡¯s very suitable for making small-sized shields, such as buckler shields or arm guards. Its strength lies in its malleability, but its weakness lies in its low defensive rating whenpared to those customized defensive materials."

    The boss talked nonstop. He was familiar with all kinds of materials. What impressed Ai Hui the most was that the boss would not only praise the strengths of a particr material, he would also borate on its weaknesses. He was a businessman with a good conscience.

    "How much?" Ai Hui closed the box and asked bluntly.

    "200,000 metal elemental energy points or water elemental energy points. If you have fire elemental energy points or earth elemental energy points, then it will be 100,000 points of each."

    "All right, do I pay now or can I use weasel bristle arrows as mortgage?" Ai Hui nodded his head. The price was reasonable. Peace City was very close to Palette Cloud Vige, and there was an endless stream of trading caravans that travelled to and fro between these two ces. As such, the local products from Palette Cloud Vige were not that expensive.

    Nowadays, the Avalon of Five Elements used elemental energy and blood crystals as its currency.

    After the war broke out, the previous currency hadpletely copsed. Elemental energy storage bean pods allowed elemental energy to quickly rece the traditional yuan as currency. Training, war recovery processes, workshop machinery, and everything else needed enormous amount of elemental energy. This was why elemental energy could be used as currency.

    Since the Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner had fallen into the hands of the Blood of God, there was a scarcity of fire elemental energy and earth elemental energy. Therefore, these two energies were worth a lot more.

    After the Blood of God promoted the rearing of blood fiends and started the mass-production of blood crystals, blood crystals quickly became their currency.

    Sometimes, life worked in a funny way. Even though the Blood of God and the Avalon of Five Elements were arch-enemies, both of them used the other¡¯s currency as well. Blood crystals y a significant role in elementalist training and the god elementalists needed to use elemental energy for their training as well.

    "Weasel bristle arrows!" the boss answered without hesitation as a wide smile spread across his face. He had been waiting for Ai Hui to say this.

    "20 weasel bristle arrows. I will have them sent to you in a few days¡¯ time," Ai Hui replied.

    Weasel bristle arrows were actually an upgraded version of the bunny hair arrows. Since they were more powerful than bunny hair arrows, their price was higher as well.

    "No rush, no rush." The boss beamed. "Brother Wang¡¯s weasel bristle arrows are really powerful. It¡¯s just that its name is somewhat awkward-sounding. ¡®Weasel bristle¡¯ soundsmon. Right now, everyone has given it another name, See You Later"

    "See You Later?" Ai Hui was baffled.

    "Hahaha, weasel bristle arrows are known as ¡®10,000 point arrows¡¯. When you buy this arrow, you will lose tens of thousands of points. It¡¯s so expensive, so who would use it unless it¡¯s the most critical moment? Even if one wants to use it, he or she will only use it during theter part of the fight. Hence, the arrows were renamed as See You Later," the boss chuckled.

    (Note: In Chinese, See You Later sounds like ¡®ten thousand point arrows. It¡¯s a pun)

    "See You Later, this is a good name." Ai Hui found it funny as well.

    "Brother Wang, can you give me slightly more arrows?" The boss whined, "Every month you give me so few arrows, and I don¡¯t even have enough for my regr customers. Nowadays, I don¡¯t even think about how to make money off these arrows, but rather, I think about how not to offend my customers. Last month, there was a regr customer that I have known for 10 years, and he almost destroyed my store just because I didn¡¯t have enough of these arrows to sell to him. I really can¡¯t offend anymore customers."

    "Don¡¯t think I don¡¯t know how much you sell one arrow for. You can earn at least 10,000 points for one arrow, which is a lot more than what I received. Boss, put yourself in my shoes, I still have to take care of a training hall." Ai Hui cast a look of disdain at the boss.

    "Your training hall?" A disdainful look appeared on the boss¡¯s face this time around. "How much money can you make with that training hall? How many students do you have? You¡¯re not doing a decent job! Why don¡¯t you take advantage of the ongoing war and earn more elemental energy points? Nothing is more practical than elemental energy points. The more you have, the sooner you can heal the injury in your body. You¡¯re still so young, and you can¡¯t continue wasting your life like this."

    Ai Hui had bought a lot of medicines from this shop and did not hide the fact that he was injured.

    Ai Hui merely smiled and did not retort the boss. The wound to his body could not be solved with elemental energy points alone. Even now, he and Lou Lan had not yet determined what exactly this blood plum blossom was. It appeared to be a parasite that was devouring Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy, greatly slowing down Ai Hui¡¯s training progress. However, the surprising thing about the blood plum blossom was that it kept on improving Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s strength, reaction time, level of sensitivity, and other physical attributes had improved significantly. The weirdest part about this whole process was Ai Hui¡¯s recovery ability. His recovery ability was simr to that of a blood elementalists. Any open wounds he had would rapidly close up and heal without leaving a single scar.

    As long as he could not get rid of the blood plum blossom, half of his life would be in the hands of One Thousand Yuan.

    At this moment, a lightly armored woman entered the shop and asked, "Boss, do you have See You Later?"

    Upon hearing this, the boss winked at Ai Hui. Ai Hui smiled, picked up the box, and prepared to leave.

    "I¡¯m very sorry, you have to make a reservation for See You Later. The process of making the arrows is very difficult andplicated, so there¡¯s a limit to how many can be produced in one batch."

    The boss spread out his arms with a helpless look on his face.

    As Ai Hui walked past the woman, he was able to take a closer look at her. She wore purple light armor, and her short hair made her looked neat and tidy. She looked somewhat pretty, but seemed a bit arrogant.

    "30,000 points per arrow, do you have it or not?"

    Ai Hui stopped in his tracks as his face turned red.

    "Umm... Customer, pleasee in and we will talk about it." The boss immediately conceded to the woman.

    Ai Hui cursed in his heart. This bastard obviously still had a stock of the arrows, yet he dared to say that he did not enough even for his regr customers. Bullsh*t!

    After Ai Hui walked past the woman, he turned around and silently mouthed two words at the boss.

    Price increased!

    The boss¡¯s face turned white as he understood what Ai Hui meant.

    Feeling pleased with himself, Ai Hui pushed open the door and left the shop.

    After leaving the store, Ai Hui did not immediately go back to the training hall and walked toward the river bank.

    By the time the Silver Mist River flowed to Peace City, the river water had be very thin. The silver river water began to turn halfway transparent as well. This was something that could not be helped. The Silver Mist River flowed through countless cities in the upper reach. It was already considered lucky that the river was not totally cut off by the time it reached Peace City.

    An elevated passageway that connected the two opposite riverbanks was built to make things easier for people that wanted to collect water or fish artifact remnants from the river.

    People no longer called the discarded artifacts "sea remains." They just called them "artifact remnants." Artifact remnants could be used to make things such as weapons, defensive equipment, armor, or azure wings. The emergence of blood crystals immediately made artifact remnants extremely valuable.

    The shores on both sides of the river were filled with people. Today was the day that the sea discharge was supposed to arrive.

    In the past, the sea lock of the Silver Mist Sea was opened on the first day and the fifteenth day of the month. Now, the sea lock was only opened once a month on the first day. Since Peace City was located on the lower part of the Silver Mist River¡¯s lower reach, it was already the seventeenth day of the month by the time the sea discharge arrived.

    Usually, there were few artifact remnants in the Silver Mist River. Despite the dilution of the sea discharge by the people living in the upper reach, this was the only chance for the people living in Peace City to make profits off of it.

    Luckily, the metal elemental currents in the Silver Mist River were razor-sharp. There was no way people could throw a fishing into the river to haul up artifact remnants. Otherwise, there would be nothing left for the citizens of Peace City.

    Naturally, the Silver Mist Sea contained the greatest number of artifact remnants. However, the Silver Mist Sea was extremely deep, making it difficult for one to angle for these artifact remnants. Furthermore, the entry fee for the Silver Mist Sea was very expensive because only Heavenly Merit Points would be epted. 200 Heavenly Merit Points would allow one to stay in the sea for a day and a night. How much profit an individual could make would depend on his or her capabilities. Regardless, not many people would do such thing since 200 Heavenly Merit Points was a huge sum of money.

    Instead of finding a ce to sit down, Ai Hui walked up the flight of stairs leading to the mountain beside the elevated passageway.

    This flight of stairs was not that tall, only around 50 meters. After walking up this flight of stairs, there was a leveled hillside with various sized Three Leaves Bamboo Carts parked upon it.

    Ai Hui walked up to the smallest Three Leaves Bamboo Cart and yelled, "Hey, Old Gao!"

    A tall and very skinny man, Old Gao had a small pinch of a goatee under his chin. His eyes were squinty and nted, resembling the eyes of a thief. When he saw Ai Hui, he chuckled. "Ha, I knew you woulde. Just now, I rejected a few guys who wanted to rent my cart just to wait for you toe."

    "Great! Don¡¯t worry, I will pay more for the fare," Ai Hui smiled.

    Old Gao had excellent driving technique. His control over the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart was unusually stable, and Ai Hui was his regr customer.

    "It¡¯s okay if you don¡¯t pay for the fare." Old Gaoughed. "With a single nce, I could tell that the few guys who wanted to rent my cart just now are newbies. They can¡¯t bepared to you, you¡¯re the legendary King of Anglers. Every month I have to depend on your red packet to survive. Recently, my business has not been too good. If it was in the past, when there were two sea discharges per month, I would have led afortable life."

    ording to the custom here, anyone who was able to haul up artifact remnants would have to give a red packet of money to his or her driver. This meant that these wood elemental drivers would benefit from their customers¡¯ good luck as well.

    Among the artifact remnant anglers here, Ai Hui was a rather famous one. He would only appear when the sea discharge arrived and would have a good haul every time. All the anglers called him the King of Anglers, which implied that he would never go home empty-handed.

    Upon seeing Ai Hui, many people standing nearby began to walk over and greet him. These people were mostly businessmen that bought the artifact remnants that were hauled up. Every time, Ai Hui would sell the artifact remnants directly to them if he did not need the remnants.

    Since Ai Hui was renowned for angling up artifact remnants, these businessmen paid great attention to him.

    Ai Hui mixed easily with these people. Even though these businessmen were not tycoons, they were still travellers who frequently obtained bizarre and fantastic artifacts.

    There were also a few unfamiliar young men that took a second nce at Ai Hui.

    After Old Gao finished smoking, he patted his cart and said, "Brother Wang, get ready. It¡¯s about time."

    Ai Hui plucked a grass straw from the ground and put it in his mouth to chew. Then, he jumped into the bamboo cart with the box in hand. His ears were extremely sharp as he could already hear the roar of the sea dischargeing from afar.

    The moment Old Gao stepped into the cart, his jovial demeanor disappeared and was reced by solemness.

    The Three Leaves Bamboom Cart gracefully flew up from the ground, resembling a lithe and agile swallow.

    The rest of the Three Leaves Bamboo Carts on the hillside started their engines as well. The whooshing sound from the spinning clover above the roofs of the carts started to blend together. Like a pitch-ck colony of bees, they flew above the river.

    As Ai Hui¡¯s cart soared above the river, he could clearly see a dazzling silver tidal wave surging toward them from the upper reach of the river.

 Chapter 273: King of Anglers

    Chapter 273: King of Anglers

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    Old Gao¡¯s Three Leaves Bamboo Cart was a cheap, two-seater model. In his hands, however, it was unusually lithe.

    Not a single bit of the upward thrust force generated by the high-speed spinning clover on the cart¡¯s roof was wasted. As the body of the cart leaned forward slightly, the cart flew forward like a dragonfly skimming across a pond.

    Old Gao did not gather with other people and flew toward the upper reaches of the river.

    Ai Hui noticed that a Three Leaves Bamboo Cart was following behind them. The people on the cart were the unfamiliar ones from earlier, but he did not really care about them. Ever since he became the King of Anglers, there would be people following him whenever he was angling for artifact remnants. Some felt that he was lucky while others felt that he knew where all the good spots were. Hence, they thought that nothing could go wrong as long as they followed him.

    Ai Hui did not really mind these people following him. After all, he did not own the river and the river was so huge. Where they wanted to go had nothing to do with him.

    After a few times, however, these ¡®stalkers¡¯ realized that their profits did not increase much and so the number of people following Ai Hui decreased significantly.

    This must have been the first time that these unfamiliar-looking youths hade to Peace City. The rumors about Ai Hui must have piqued their interest. Ai Hui knew their driver, Old Li, who was a well-known bbermouth in the area. The quality of his bamboo cart was much higher than Old Gao¡¯s, but his driving techniques were inferior.

    Ai Hui withdrew his gaze after taking a nce. He was happy to see these kinds of spectators. People like them were usually potential buyers. They were willing to part with their money and would buy anything that piqued their interest.

    They were getting closer to the sea discharge. The deafening roar of the sea discharge resounded through the river, masking all other sounds.

    "Get ready!"

    Old Gao yelled at the top of his voice.

    Ai Hui remained silent. All the distracting thoughts in his head disappeared in an instant.

    At this moment, the people on Old Li¡¯s cart broke out in discussion.

    "If you all want to watch people angling for artifact remnants, it¡¯s much better to do it in Silver City. Such a small wave, it¡¯s so boring," grumbled a youth that was around fifteen years old. As he grumbled, he rolled his eyes as well, revealing his impatience and arrogance.

    "Shut up, you¡¯re the only one who grumbles. If you don¡¯t want to watch, then get lost," an older guy berated that youth.

    The youth quickly shut his mouth. Clearly, he was afraid of this older guy.

    The leader of this group was a girl. She was beautiful, graceful, and gentle-looking. Like a bright moon surrounded by a myriad of stars, she sat in the center of the group of people. She spoke gently with a smile on her face. "Aspared to the elders in the family, we are of very little value. If we know of any way to help the family, then we should do it. There are so many talented individuals hidden in this world. Wouldn¡¯t it be a good thing to serve our family?"

    "I can¡¯t see anything special about this guy," the youth continued to grumble, refusing to admit his mistake.

    "Peace City is located at the lowest part of the river¡¯s lower reaches. This is where the number of artifact remnants in the river is at its smallest. Despite this, that person is still able to obtain the nickname ¡®King of Anglers¡¯ and is known by many as an extraordinary talent. If we can hire him and bring him to Silver City, how big of a haul would he have? If we bring him to the Silver Mist Sea, how big of a haul would he have? It¡¯s easy to obtain blood crystals, but it¡¯s difficult to obtain artifact remnants. Tell me, did your weapons and armor drop from the sky?" The girlughed softly, not feeling annoyed at all.

    The youth was speechless. After a while, he then apologized. "All right, I was wrong."

    A look of admiration appeared on everyone¡¯s faces.

    The girl continued, "In chaotic times like these, we are like a boat sailing against the current. If we don¡¯t forge ahead, we will be driven back. If we don¡¯t strengthen and distinguish ourselves from the rest, we will be eliminated and devoured by society. There are many reputable talents in this world, and it¡¯s very difficult to hire them. These extraordinary individuals keep a low profile, which is actually good for us. Good preparation is the key to sess. The elders are racking their brains for the family. We, as the younger generation, should do everything to the best of our ability and not ck off."

    "Big Sister is right!"

    A look of embarrassment appeared on everyone¡¯s faces.

    The girl chuckled when she saw everyone¡¯s reactions. At that moment, Old Li cast a nce at them and blurted out, "I can tell that all of you are the descendants of prestigious families. However, it¡¯s not that easy to hire Brother Wang."

    Upon hearing this, a few young ones among the group became unhappy. The girl, however, did not show any sign of anger. On the contrary, she asked with curiosity, "Oh? What do you mean by that?"

    Old Li remained silent.

    Upon seeing Old Li¡¯s reaction, the older guy immediately understood what was going on. He threw an elemental energy bean that was worth 500 points at Old Li and said, "You better not entertain us with some rumors you heard from other people."

    While controlling the bamboo cart, Old Li turned around and caught the bean, appearing as if he had eyes in the back of his head. Following which, he chuckled. "I definitely wouldn¡¯t dare to do that. Let¡¯s see, everyone in this area knows about Brother Wang. Of course, today isn¡¯t the first day that everyone knows him as the King of Anglers. Previously, there were a lot of people trying to hire him. Reportedly, betting on anglers is getting popr among the cities in the upper reaches, and a lot of people from those cities took an interest in Brother Wang¡¯s angling skills. They were willing to pay him 200,000 elemental energy points per month, on top of which there would have been a red packet for every artifact remnant that he hauls up. Even outsiders like us were green with envy when we saw what was being offered to him."

    "He rejected them?" Astonishment shed across the girl¡¯s eyes. For an elementalist that had merely attained elemental internalization, a month¡¯s sry of 200,000 elemental energy points was a huge amount. Such a sry was enough to hire a veteran elementalist who had attained elemental externalization.

    It was very difficult for an elementalist who had merely attained elemental internalization to draw such a sry.

    There were many elemental-internalized elementalists who earned more than 10,000 points. The average starting sry for an elemental-externalized elementalist was around 80,000 points. For those elementalists who were veterans or had unique skills, they could draw a monthly sry of 200,000 points. Some powerful individuals could even draw a monthly sry of more than 500,000 points.

    "He rejected them." Old Li shook his head and looked somewhat proud. "Hees here once every month and every time he has a haul. If he¡¯s lucky, he can make around tens of thousands of points off the artifact remnants. He has a training hall and a workshop, so he doesn¡¯t need to put himself under that kind of restriction."

    "That¡¯s true." Not only did the girl not retort to Old Li, but she also nodded her head in agreement. Then, she changed the topic and asked, "He has a training hall?"

    "Yes, he opened his training hall before Peace City became so prosperous; it was actually the first training hall in the city, but he doesn¡¯t really put much effort into it. The enrollment fee is expensive, so he doesn¡¯t have many students." Old Li sighed. "Even though he doesn¡¯t take my cart, I¡¯m not angry with him. There¡¯s nothing I can do about it. After all, Old Gao has better driving skills than me. Brother Wang is a nice person. Oh? He¡¯s going to start soon."

    Old Li¡¯s words caught everyone¡¯s attention. They shifted their gazes in unison toward the front.

    They were still skeptical of the rumors about Ai Hui.

    Old Gao¡¯s driving techniques were extremely good. He could fly the cart very low and still maintain its stability. The surging metal elemental energy in the Silver Mist River was razor-sharp. As the cart got closer to the surface of the river, the metal elemental energy¡¯s effect on the cart would be stronger, significantly increasing the difficulty of controlling the cart.

    Ai Hui was wearing very weird-looking gloves on his hands. On every one of the glove¡¯s fingers, there was an extremely fine silver thread. The silver threads were very long and all of them were rolled up. The tip of each silver thread was split into five hooks, resembling a soft w.

    Wearing the gloves, Ai Hui began to throw down the silver threads.

    Ai Hui was extremely focused as the ten silver threads entered the river. At this point in time, the height of the sea discharge was less than 100 meters.

    The bamboo cart was flying extremely low, appearing to be level with the peak of the sea discharge.

    On Old Li¡¯s cart, the older boy nodded his head and said, "He¡¯s snatching the peak. He¡¯s rather skillful."

    The peak of the sea discharge had the biggest impact and contained the most artifact remnants. However, the metal elemental energy at the peak had the highest vtility, so the difficulty of hauling artifact remnants out of it was also extremely high.

    Those who dared to "snatch the peak" were usually skilled anglers.

    Ai Hui was fully concentrated as the sea discharge was about to crash into him. The razor-sharp metal elemental energy was like numerous daggers whizzing in the air. The bamboo cart was almost level with the sea discharge and looked as if it would be hit.

    If they were to get hit by the sea discharge, they would definitely die.

    Only those whose base levels were above the Master level would survive a fall into the Silver Mist River. The razor-sharp metal elemental energy could easily shred one to pieces.

    Boom!

    The shiny sea discharge resembled a tidal wave of countless knives that were dazzling in the light. It brushed past the bottom of Old Gao¡¯s bamboo cart with a distance of merely a few centimeters.

    Ai Hui did not lose the slightest bit of his concentration. He was extremely confident in Old Gao¡¯s driving skills.

    Suddenly, the 10 silver threads that were connected to his gloves tightened as an enormous force passed through them. Ai Hui¡¯s hands remained motionless.

    Within the sea discharge, the hooks on the tip of each silver thread spread open and transformed into powerful ws. The ten ws were very close to each other, lining up in a row. Ai Hui slowly channeled his elemental energy into the silver threads. The spread-open hooks on the tip of every silver thread resembled the flexible tentacles of an octopus.

    Suddenly, one of the tentacles made contact with an object. The silver thread the tentacle belonged to immediately shot upward with the w tightly holding onto the object.

    Following this, another silver thread made contact with an object and Ai Hui instantly reacted to it, grabbing it with the w of that particr silver thread!

    Boom!

    The sea discharge whizzed past Old Gao¡¯s cart. After waiting a while longer, Ai Hui did not haul up anything else.

    After procrastinating for a while, Ai Hui flicked his wrists upward and the 10 silver threads rolled back up to him. Two artifact remnants were caught by the silver threads.

    "Haha, two red packets!" Old Gao whistled.

    Ai Hui took a look at the artifact remnants in his palms. Both of them were not really huge, around the size of his thumb. One was bronze-colored while the other one was ck. Ai Hui shook his head and said, "The artifact remnants are getting smaller and smaller."

    "It¡¯s considered not bad that you still managed to haul up some artifact remnants," Old Gao replied. "It¡¯s getting increasingly difficult to collect artifact remnants these days. In the past, they used to be rubbish that no one wanted, but now they have be so expensive. If this goes on, I think that all the artifact remnants in the river and the sea will be gone. Reportedly, people are throwing metal elemental ores into the Silver Mist Sea. How can that bepared to artifact remnants?"

    Ai Hui carefully put down the two artifact remnants and threw two elemental energy beans toward Old Gao. The color and luster of these elemental energy beans were different from the usual ones. These beans were dazzling with a golden radiance. These were the elemental energy beans that were worth 10,000 points each.

    Before the blood catastrophe, elemental energy beans were rare objects that could only be exchanged with Heaven Merit Points.

    As the war progressed, the supply of elemental energy beans waspletely used up. The Elders Guild spent a huge amount of manpower and resources into developing the technology to mass-produce elemental energy beans. Even though they did not manage to develop consumable elemental energy beans in the end, they did manage to develop elemental energy beans that could store energy.

    This type of elemental energy bean could not replenish elemental energy simply by eating it; however, they could store elemental energy that had been refined. The elemental energy in these beans could then be transferred into one¡¯s body through the Circtory Cycle Revolution when he or she was training or resting.

    Even though the beans could not be used directly during battles, they were still very practical. Initially, a lot of elementalists channeled their elemental energy into the beans during peacetime and then used the beans to replenish their elemental energy when they rested during battles.

    Eventually, everyone began to use the beans to exchange for items. Eventually, this practice was poprized and the elemental energy beans became a form of currency in the world of elementalists.

    Old Gao was grinning from ear to ear. He¡¯d made 20,000 elemental energy points in a day, an achievement that everyone would be envious of.

    "Let¡¯s go back now."

    "Alright!"

    The people on Old Li¡¯s cart were dumbstruck.

    How could it be possible?

    The girl was also shocked. Angling for artifact remnants was seen by many as a job that required a lot of patience. Before one could have a haul, he or she must wait for a long period of time.

    Given Ai Hui¡¯s speed... was he snatching the artifact remnants?

    The girl could not help but take a look behind her. On both river banks, densely-packed anglers had not even started angling, and yet, Ai Hui had already gone home.

    King of Anglers!

 Chapter 274: Demonic Remnant and Unyielding Bamboos

    Chapter 274: Demonic Remnant and Unyielding Bamboos

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: CakeHermit

    Ai Hui was slightly disappointed that the group of people on Old Li¡¯s bamboo cart did not approach him to buy the artifact remnants. He had no idea that they had not yet recovered from the shock of seeing his performance just now.

    On the contrary, the businessmen waiting on the hillside were used to seeing such a performance. They crowded around Old Gao¡¯s bamboo cart before it evennded.

    For arge city like Silver City, there were many more artifact remnants in the market. The pavilion closest to the water enjoyed the moonlight first. Ever since people discovered the value of artifact remnants, the contest over artifact remnants had be increasingly intense.

    The Silver Mist Sea was under the tight control of the Elders Guild and various aristocratic families could not get a share of it. As such, whenever the sea lock was opened and the sea discharge was released, various families woulde forth and plunder the river. The most lucrative part of the vast Silver Mist River¡¯s upper reaches had been divided among the various aristocratic families. If one was to look down from the sky, he or she would realize that this part of the river was marked with various aristocratic families¡¯bels, forbidding outsiders from angling for artifact remnants.

    Simrly, the middle reaches of the Silver Mist River could not avoid facing the same fate. The most lucrative parts of the middle reaches were being upied by various local tyrants.

    The Silver Mist River was like a mouth-watering cake. The aristocratic families took therger portions of the cake while the tyrants took the smaller portions.

    Even the Elders Guild had their hands bound and could do nothing about this situation. After all, they had the entire cake in the Silver Mist Sea.

    It was very difficult for even adept anglers to base their livelihood on artifact remnant angling if they did not join the aristocratic families or the local tyrants.

    There were also some new citizens uniting together to take part in this contest. They might be able to put up a fight against the local tyrants, but against the powerful aristocratic families, they simply stood no chance at all.

    For the past three years, countless bills to ban aristocratic families and tyrants from hegemonizing the river had been submitted to the higher-ups, but none of them had passed.

    The new citizens were very unhappy, but could not do nothing about it.

    Peace City, the city located at the lowest part of the river¡¯s lower reaches, had even fewer artifact remnants avable to them. Most of the artifact remnants sold on the market were acquired from the cities at the upper reaches. Naturally, their prices were exorbitant.

    Every time, the artifact remnants that Ai Hui hauled up would fetch pretty good prices.

    Eventually, he sold the bronze-colored artifact remnant for 120,000 points. As for the ck artifact remnant, he kept it as he could sense a cold aura of killer intenting from it.

    That was a demonic remnant!

    A demonic remnant was an artifact remnant that possessed a vicious aura of killer intent. Demonic remnants were the remnants of ancient sanguinary weapons and the murderous aura they possessed was highly concentrated.

    Demonic remnants were highly favoured by god elementalists. If a god elementalist was to possess a demonic remnant, he or she would save effort and produce better results in nurturing blood demons. There were also some god elementalists who increased their blood demons¡¯ strength by feeding them demonic remnants.

    The rising Blood of God was rich and powerful. They had numerous nouveau riche and could directly increase the price of demonic remnants, making them extremely expensive.

    Demonic remnants were also equally very useful and important to elementalists, especially in the aspect of weapon forging. Currently, the most popr weapon forging technique was to fuse artifact remnants and blood crystals.

    "Brother, can I take a look at the artifact remnant in your hand?"

    An unfamiliar voice suddenly rang through the air, raising the eyebrows of the surrounding artifact remnant businessmen. Excitement shed across some of their faces. They knew Ai Hui¡¯s temperament very well; he would only sell things that he did not need.

    Ai Hui cast a nce in the direction of the voice and to his surprise, it came from that group of people that were following him just now. They had returned to the hillside while he was trying to sell his bronze-colored artifact remnant.

    The voice belonged to a seemingly earnest man.

    "I¡¯m sorry, this is not for sale."

    Ai Hui shook his head at the man.

    "Is that a demonic remnant? I need a piece of demonic remnant urgently. If Brother can part with it and sell it to me, I will be extremely grateful to you. You can quote me a price, be it elemental energy points, blood crystals, or materials." The man did not give up on Ai Hui¡¯s demonic remnant.

    Demonic remnant!

    Upon hearing these two words, the surrounding businessmen broke into amotion. Everyone¡¯s eyes lit up. A demonic remnant was actually hauled up in Peace City! They knew about the value of demonic remnants very clearly.

    Ai Hui was slightly vexed. He did not expect the other party to be so persistent and even recognize it as a demonic remnant.

    The burning gazes from the surrounding businessmen gathered on Ai Hui. He calmed down and replied, "Yes, this is indeed a demonic remnant."

    The surrounding businessmen exploded into a frenzy.

    "Brother Wang! You have to sell it to me! I want this piece of demonic remnant! Give me a price!"

    "What do you mean by you want it? Brother Wang, how long have we known each other? Today, you do as you see fit. Regardless of how much money you quote, I want this piece of demonic remnant! Give me a price!"

    "300,000 points!"

    ...

    The scene descended into chaos.

    "Everyone shut up!"

    An arrogant roar exploded like a thunderp in everyone¡¯s ears. Everyone was overwhelmed with shock. This roar was surging with elemental energy. Whoever let out this roar was extremely powerful.

    A teenager who was around 15 years old pushed the crowd aside and spoke in an arrogant and unhappy tone. "How dare you all vie with us? Are you all tired of living!?"

    Even though he was very young, he was adept in his mastery over his elemental energy. His background was definitely not simple. Everyone who did business here was a shrewd individual and could tell that the group of people was not to be provoked.

    The teenager walked toward Ai Hui and snorted. "I want this piece of demonic remnant!"

    Ai Hui unhurriedly kept the demonic remnant into his clothes.

    Upon seeing this, the teenager¡¯s face flushed with anger. Just as he was about to open his mouth and say something, an older boy beside him stopped him and pulled him behind his back. With an apologetic look on his face, the older boy told Ai Hui, "I¡¯m really sorry, I have failed to discipline this kid. This demonic remnant is really important to me and my younger brother is just being anxious for me. Sir, please forgive him if he has offended you. I am willing to pay 500,000 elemental energy points for this piece of demonic remnant. Sir, are you willing to part with it and sell it to me?"

    The surrounding businessmen did not say anything. 500,000 points for a piece of demonic remnant was a reasonable price.

    Rich and powerful!

    Everyone was d that they had not offended this group of people just now.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face rxed slightly. This older boy did not seem too irksome, and 500,000 points was indeed a pretty good price.

    Ai Hui thought for a while and replied, "Forget about the elemental energy points. If you want this piece of demonic remnant, exchange it for 12 unyielding bamboos."

    Unyielding bamboo was an extremely rare and high-grade material. Its biggest strength was its sturdiness and durability. It could withstand a terrifying amount of force without bending at all. The bamboo got its name from its unyielding nature.

    One unyielding bamboo was usually priced at around 40,000 points. 12 unyielding bamboos would amount to 480,000 points. It might appear that Ai Hui was suffering a loss¡ªin actual fact he was making a gain. asionally, one could find two or three unyielding bamboos on the market, however, it was nearly impossible for one to buy 12 unyielding bamboos in one go.

    Unyielding bamboos needed to be grown in an extremely harsh natural habitat and the sess rate of the ordinary elemental externalized wood elementalists who produced them was very low. They could only be produced by wood elementalists that were well-experienced and adept in the mastery of elemental energy.

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s request, the surrounding businessmen did not say a word. They could afford to pay 500,000 points, but 12 unyielding bamboos were not something they could fork out in such a short period of time.

    The older boy was slightly startled by Ai Hui¡¯s request. but he nodded his head without any hesitation. "No problem. However, I don¡¯t have the unyielding bamboos with me now. I¡¯ll have to trouble you toe along with me to the Evergold Enterprise."

    To other people, getting 12 unyielding bamboos might be a problem. To him, however, it was a piece of cake.

    At this moment, realization dawned upon the surrounding businessmen. Evergold Enterprise was the number one enterprise in Peace City. It had strong, robust financial resources and an enigmatic backer. Reportedly, the enterprise was tightly linked to some influential figure in Silver City.

    Everyone broke into a discussion. Could these people be the young masters of Evergold Enterprise?

    Ai Hui did not expect them to be from Evergold Enterprise. He had stayed in Peace City for nearly three years, and he definitely knew about Evergold Enterprise. Evergold Enterprise had a rather good reputation, and he did not really hear many scandals about them.

    "Okay." Ai Hui nodded.

    Along the way, the older boy kept making insinuations, but Ai Hui remained unmoved. Ai Hui, however, managed to learn something. The older boy¡¯s name was Fu Renxuan and the seemingly arrogant teenager¡¯s name was Fu Yongwu. ording to Ai Hui¡¯s observation, the decision-maker of the group was the girl who had not spoken a single word the whole time.

    He caught Fu Renxuan shifting his gaze to the girl a few times.

    This group of people should be from Silver City.

    There were a few times where Fu Renxuan hinted at hiring Ai Hui, but when he saw that Ai Hui remained unmoved, he shut his mouth and did not talk about it anymore.

    When they reached Evergold Enterprise, Ai Hui received the 12 unyielding bamboos, bid them farewell, and left the ce.

    When Fu Yongwu saw Ai Hui walk out of the main entrance, he asked puzzledly, "Big Sister, I thought we wanted to hire this fellow?"

    The girlughed bitterly and replied, "All the while, he didn¡¯t show any sign of interest and did not lower his guard. There¡¯s no way we can persuade him. Furthermore, it might not be a good thing if we do manage to hire him."

    Fu Yongwu was even more puzzled and asked again, "Why? Given his artifact remnant angling skills, I think he¡¯s even better than that old fogey!"

    The girl sighed softly and replied, "Precisely, he is too good. How much money would we have to give him until he finds it appropriate? If he hauls something every time in Peace City, then the number of artifact remnants he would haul up in our part of the river would definitely be a lot. If we don¡¯t give him enough money, he will not be happy. If we give him too much money, our family will not agree to it. We can never pay an angler too much money. What about other anglers? Once the status quo is broken, the other anglers will definitelyin about it. Don¡¯t tell me we have to solely depend on him in the future? What if he leaves us? We have such a big family and we are like a huge boat that needs stability tost a long time. Breaking the customs for a short-term gain is like suddenly breaking the oars of a boat after having travelled thousands of miles. We would be mixing up our priorities."

    Fu Yongwu was speechless. Even though he was an impulsive individual, he was not stupid. He was clever enough to understand what the girl was trying to say in an instant.

    "This person is very smart. He knows that his capabilities will bring him troubles in Silver City. No one will dare to hire him or let him fall into the hands of others. That¡¯s why he came to a ce like Peace City. Every month, he will not make a huge profit or attract attention to himself. His age is around the same as mine. He is an experienced and cool-headed individual. We can¡¯t underestimate him."

    "How is he experienced and cool-headed? I can tell with a single nce that he is a boring person. He never talks at all," Fu Yongwu mumbled.

    "Even if we can¡¯t hire this capable individual, we can still befriend him." The girl smiled.

    "I will pass down the instruction." Fu Renxuan nodded.

    After leaving Evergold Enterprise, excitement was written all over Ai Hui¡¯s face. Today was a lucky day. He had not expected to obtain the troublesome unyielding bamboos so smoothly.

    Just the thought of the Star-sinking Ink Cloud and unyielding bamboos made him felt exuberant.

    When Ai Hui reached the training hall, Qingye had already gone home.

    "Lou Lan, let us get ready to work!"

    "Ai Hui, have you gotten all the materials?"

    "I have gotten the Star-sinking Ink Cloud and the unyielding bamboos."

    "Lou Lan ising!"

 Chapter 275: Visitor

    Chapter 275: Visitor

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: KLKL

    The workshop was aze with lights.

    Ai Hui had spent a long time preparing for this, especially for the materials. The Star-sinking Ink Cloud and the unyielding bamboos were thest two important materials.

    In the Heavy Sand Crucible that was purchased for a high price, nine red flowers, resembling the shape of mes, were piled up in order like a tower.

    Those were fire flowers picked up from the ck in at the foot of the Cbash Mountain in the Fire Prairie.

    Every September, the Cbash Mountain would spew out mes that covered the whole ck in like a heavy snow. Once the mes fell on the earth, they would take root and grow into delicate fire flowers.

    The Cbash Mountain eruptions usuallysted for a whole month. When it was October, the immense ck in, that used to be dested, would be covered with bright red fire flowers. The towering Cbash Mountain rose straight up in the distance, the peak of which was always shrouded by smoke and clouds. Together with the sea of red flowers, the whole picture was indeed a feast for the eyes.

    Every year in October, many visitors would go to the Fire Prairie to enjoy the sight of the flower sea on the ck in.

    Although deste, the ck in contained fire elemental energy in its soil, which was exactly what the fire flowers needed for growth. The blooming period for fire flowers was not fixed. It could be as short as a few days, or as long as many years.

    Flower pickers would start their work in October to look for mature blooms in the sea of fire flowers.

    Although the Fire Prairie was now in the hands of the Blood of God, it kept erupting every year, and fire flowers could still be seen in the markets.

    The quality of fire flowers was dependent on the number of petals it had. The flowers with three petals were of the lowest quality, while those with nine were of the highest.

    What Ai Hui used were six-petaled fire flowers.

    Water from Silver Mist River ran through the conduit of the crucible and dropped on the fire flowers.

    The stacked fire flowers then began to burn. The me was not intense, but very stable and quiet. Besides, it could burn for a long time ¨C usually more than ten hours.

    Lou Lan threw a green elemental energy bean into the mes. The bean contained one thousand points of wood elemental energy, and the mes began to turn a bit transparent in the crucible. Then Lou Lan kept throwing the rest of the beans, and after he threw the twenty-secondth one into the crucible, the mes becamepletely transparent and could hardly be seen with naked eyes.

    But Lou Lan could still see it clearly. He reminded Ai Hui, "The fire is very stable."

    Hearing what Lou Lan said, Ai Hui began to put the materials one by one into the crucible. He¡¯d gotten the materials ready long ago.

    Silverlight Iron, ckshell miica, blood crystals and so on.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes kept flickering. Whenever Ai Hui put in some materials, he would throw in some elemental energy beans of different colors.

    Elemental energy of different attributes surged in the crucible, and the color of the liquid inside kept changing too. It was sometimes deep blue, sometimes bright purple and maybe sometimes rust red.

    They were very well coordinated, and everything had gone smoothly so far.

    The liquid in the crucible became as clear and transparent as water.

    "Perfect!"

    Ai Hui licked his lips. He was a bit excited to see the clear fluid concoction inside the crucible. But he also knew that as for the whole n, there was still a lot to do.

    Lou Lan held the Heavy Sand Crucible and poured half of the concoction out into the ice tank.

    Then he threw twelve of the unyielding bamboos into the crucible and kept boiling.

    Blub blub blub.

    Small bubbles came out of the unyielding bamboos now and then.

    Starting from now, the unyielding bamboos needed to be heated in the concoction for six hours.

    Ai Hui carried the box with the Star-sinking Ink Cloud inside to the ice tank.

    Ai Hui opened the box. The dark and heavy Star-sinking Ink Cloud was quietly frozen in the ice cube. Star-sinking Ink Cloud was one of the clouds with the highest densities. Its name indicated that even stars would sink if they struck against the cloud.

    The mostmon usage of Star-sinking Ink Cloud was to make armors and shields, especially scale armors. Apart from its outstanding protective properties, Star-sinking Ink Cloud had excellent ductility like y, and could be moulded into any form.

    Ai Hui broke up the ice cube and threw the Star-sinking Ink Cloud into the ice tank.

    Soaked by the fluid concoction, the Cloud began to diffuse like an ink stick, producing streaks of ck substances in the liquid.

    Ai Hui widened his eyes and stirred the liquid with a hair-thin silver wire. An extremely thin thread of ck silk was lifted up.

    Ai Hui quickly pinched the ck silk and infused his elemental energy into it. The thin silk solidified in the air. Then he tied a knot at a spinning wheel with this ink cloud silk proficiently.

    Next, he turned the spindle with one hand, and put the other hand softly on the ink cloud silk. Elemental energy flew along his fingers into the silk at a constant speed.

    Ai Hui¡¯s metal elemental energy quickly hardened the ink cloud silk.

    Anyone who saw this scene would be so shocked that their jaws would ricochet off the ground.

    Reeling silk from cocoons was a skill that embroiderers were proficient at. And now Ai Hui had carried it forward. This was one of Ai Hui¡¯s most familiar skills, and as soon as he¡¯d thought of Star-sinking Ink Cloud, this idea urred to him.

    Since the Star-sinking Ink Cloud could be made into any form, like y, why couldn¡¯t it be made into silk?

    With Lou Lan¡¯s help, this bold idea was finally realized.

    Ai Hui did it all with great uracy, no matter if it was the infusing speed of elemental energy or the speed with which he turned the spindle.

    Ai Hui was definitely an expert in reeling silk.

    His masterpiece, the weasel bristle arrow that was called "See You Later", was an upgraded version of the bunny hair arrow and was more powerful. To make this kind of arrow, he also needed to keep reeling silks with even greater difficulty.

    The shape of a gem cocoon was like a gemstone. After it was melted into liquid,plicated techniques would be needed to produce thin silks out of it.

    But no one ever heard of someone reeling silk from Star-sinking Ink Cloud.

    Ai Hui was focused. Neither his gestures nor his elemental energy had any fluctuation. Even his breath and his heart beat were so stable as if he was a machine.

    Lou Lan was observing the mes carefully. The surface of the unyielding bamboos in the crucible began to turn crispy with many small holes like a honeb.

    Time slipped away quietly.

    When Ai Hui began his work, Su Qingye, exhausted, walked slowly step by step to go back home. His sand puppet was even more frazzled. It fell loose on the ground and was crawling like a turtle after him.

    Suddenly, it urred to Su Qingye that today was the day when his teacher would go to fish for treasures, upon which he was very vexed.

    Watching his teacher fishing for treasures was always his favourite. Although he had watched it many times, he never felt bored. His teacher was different from anyone else - the treasure-fishing process was very short, but it was extremely amazing.

    Especially when Qingye saw the jealousy on other anglers¡¯ faces, he would feel verycent.

    If he had remembered this earlier, he would never have mentioned the Dragonrise Training Hall. Now he was assigned more training courses, and he would even miss the treasure-fishing.

    What bad luck!

    His teacher was definitely a demon. The amount of training he arranged for Su Qingye always made him reach his physical limit. Even his sand puppet would be exhausted to the extent that it had no strength to maintain its form at all and fell apart every time.

    His sand puppet was kind of disappointing. Su Qingye felt disheartened.

    Just look at his teacher¡¯s sand puppet. He was skillful and smart. When practicing with Lou Lan, Su Qingye always felt like he himself was the sand puppet.

    So far he hadn¡¯t had the chance to practice with his teacher, not even once. His teacher said he could practice with him when Su Qingye could defeat Lou Lan.

    Okay. This was something too far away, and he didn¡¯t need to think about it for now.

    When he saw the signboard of his family¡¯s enterprise "Sea Pacific Enterprise", he was so happy that he almost burst into tears.

    Su Qingye moved slowly into the gate. Seeing his miserable look, the assistants were all delighted and guffawed loudly. Although Su Qingye was their young master, he was so good-tempered that no one was afraid of him. He himself was not angry either, as he knew in fact they were just envying him.

    The school fee was very expensive, and out of the whole enterprise, he was the only one who could afford it. The swordsman school had been open for a long time since there was no other training hall in Peace City. Therefore, its business was supposed to be flourishing, but the name, "swordsman" made it sound unreliable. Besides, most people shrank back at the sight of its high cost.

    Maybe it was because Su Qingye had arrived home, he felt his energy had more or less recovered.

    Sea Pacific Enterprise was not a major enterprise in Peace City, so it was notrge. The shop and their house was in one building connected by a passage, shop in the front and residence at back.

    Su Qingye, who was still very tired, walked toward the residence.

    He wanted to discuss with his father to ask if he could get a more powerful sand puppet. He had already been training so hard.

    There was no one in the living room. If his father was not in the living room, he must be in the study.

    It suddenly urred to him that there would be guests today, and his father had told him to stay at home. Therefore, he decided to snoop around first to see what was happening. Just as he had walked stealthily to the door of the study, he heard the cold and clear voice of a woman from inside the room.

    "Yellow Sand Corner and the Fire Prairie could hardly be taken back within such a short period of time, and the earth and fire elementalists were very dissatisfied. The Elders Guild was also badly battered. Some time ago, there was a proposal to establish a lesser Avalon of Five Elements within a scope of five cities, so that earth and fire elementalists can have somewhere to practice. And in this way we can retain some wood elementalists too. The earth and fire elementalists are still concerned about joining the Blood of God ¨C after all, not very many people are eager to be god elementalists. The wood elementalists are more than willing to go to the Jadeite Forest."

    "That means..."

    Su Qingye clearly heard some wild excitement in his father¡¯s voice.

    "Yes, it¡¯s Peace City. To build a lesser Avalon of five elements, we must first of all have two connected cities, one is of metal attribute and the other is of water attribute, which makes Peace City and Cloud Ridge City the only choices. As to the remaining three cities, we need to open up the Wilderness to build the cities of wood, fire and earth. In this way, the five cities will be connected end to end and once again a harmonious five elemental cycle will be created. Only by doing so will elemental energies be produced endlessly. Unless something unexpected happens, the possibility that the Elders Guide will pass the proposal is higher than seventy percent."

    "That¡¯s why so many people came to Peace City recently..." Su¡¯s father suddenly understood why.

    "They all have different sources, and came to take up a ce for themselves. Sea Pacific Enterprise is one of the earliest enterprises, so you really have a head start..." suddenly the woman stopped talking, and shouted loudly, "Who?"

    Su Qingye who was focused on overhearing their conversation shuddered from hearing the shout. In the next instant, the door of the study was totally pulverized, and Su Qingye was shrouded by piercingly cold light.

    Su Qingye¡¯s mind was nk, and he reacted by instinct.

    The sand puppet that had fallen loose behind him suddenly jumped in front of him, and meanwhile he rolled away on the ground.

    The ray of light pierced the sand puppet, leaving a deep hole on the ground. The sand puppet, with a big hole in his chest, abruptly transformed into a sand spear and stabbed toward the woman.

    "Qingye!" Su Qingye¡¯s father was startled.

    A thin and white hand pped the spear apart effortlessly, and then a short-haired woman¡¯s neat and tidy face appeared in Su Qingye¡¯s line of sight.

    When she heard the name, her expression was rxed, but she still looked surprised.

    The sand puppet counter technique...was good!

 Chapter 276: Work Completed

    Chapter 276: Work Completed

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: KLKL

    The ck-colored ink cloud silk had a fine and smooth texture. Ai Hui tried to pull it hard but it didn¡¯t break.

    Then he put the ink cloud silk on a sheet of iron and chopped it hard with his Dragonspine. After a sh of sword light the iron sheet broke in two, but the silk was still intact.

    "Ai Hui, this is a great sess!"

    Lou Lan said cheerfully.

    "Yes, we¡¯re half done." Ai Hui put the silk in front of him and observed it carefully. Seeing no marks on the silk at all, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help smiling.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes widened, "Ai Hui, you are really skillful. No one has ever reeled silk from a Star-sinking Ink Cloud. This is an extraordinary invention."

    "Oh, really? Not even once?"

    "Of course not! Ai Hui, I¡¯ve never seen a record of it in any book."

    "If so, how shall I price it to match its value?"

    "You want to sell it? I thought you are going to use it yourself." Lou Lan¡¯s eyes widened in confusion.

    "Oh, I mean in the future." Ai Hui closed his eyes and his expression indicated his self-satisfaction, "In the future, it will definitely sell for an amazing price..."

    Lou Lan nced at the crucible and interrupted Ai Hui¡¯s imagination. "Ai Hui, the unyielding bamboos are ready."

    Ai Hui abruptly came back to his senses.

    Lou Lan picked out the unyielding bamboos from the crucible.

    The surface of the twelve unyielding bamboos was covered with small honeb-like holes, and its original color of cast-iron ck had turned grey.

    Lou Lan held one unyielding bamboo in his left hand, making a fist with his right hand to hold the other end of the bamboo.

    Hiss. His right fist suddenly transformed into quicksand that was revolving around the bamboo at a high speed. It was polishing the bamboo like a high-speed grinding wheel.

    Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle!

    The workshop was filled with stridtion and sparks.

    Lou Lan looked down at the bamboo attentively. The light in his eyes flickered rhythmically. His moves were stable and well-ordered.

    A thin, glittery, silver-colored bamboo appeared in Lou Lan¡¯s hands.

    The silvery bamboo now was as thin as a finger. It only weighed one-third of its original weight, but was six times stronger than before and could bear amazing power. Besides, its tenacity was greatly improved, and could be bent like a bow. All these features were totally different from what it originally was, and no one could associate this new kind of material with unyielding bamboos.

    Ai Hui began his work too.

    He wove the ck-colored ink cloud silk along the thin bamboo sticks.

    Ai Hui was very proficient and skillful as if he had done this many times before. It was true, as this scheme was decided after lots of discussion with Lou Lan. Compared with the previous material processing, the weaving technique was the easiest part because he could practice it beforehand.

    Ai Hui had practiced many times, and was very confident he could finish it perfectly.

    The bamboo sticks had sessfully thinned out, taking shape in Lou Lan¡¯s hands, then they were given to Ai Hui and quickly disappeared in the ck ink cloud silks.

    Once he had started, Ai Hui¡¯s yful expression was all gone. Instead, he was fully focused and his eyes were glittering.

    Having polished all twelve bamboos, Lou Lan began to enjoy watching Ai Hui¡¯s techniques. The ink cloud silks jumped here and there with Ai Hui¡¯s flexible fingers between the bamboo sticks moving aesthetically at an amazing rhythm.

    Embroidery had a far-reaching influence on Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was not really an embroiderer, but the embroidery skills and theories were like fertile soil that kept producing nutrition for him.

    A big ck wing appeared in front of Ai Hui.

    Even though the whole work was not finished yet, this wing alone had shown its distinguished qualities and glory. Different from ordinary azure wings which were light and agile, it was heavy and powerful like the wing of a demon from hell.

    Ai Hui was so skillful!

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were full of admiration and worship. Actually Ai Hui had bought several azure wings from markets before for practice. As Peace City was the city of Silver Mist Sea that was the closest to Palette Cloud Vige, it was convenient to buy azure wings here.

    But Ai Hui was not satisfied with any of the wings he bought. So he finally decided to make a pair of azure wings himself.

    As a result, Ai Hui and Lou Lan began to study the method of making azure wings. But Lou Lan didn¡¯t expect that Ai Hui would choose Star-sinking Ink Cloud as the raw material.

    This was probably thest material one would use to make azure wings. But in Ai Hui¡¯s unconstrained design, it was perfect.

    Woven together by the ink cloud silk, the twelve unyielding bamboos constituted the ck skeleton of the wing. If it was fully stretched, the length of the wing was more than six meters. It now looked like the wing of a ck bat that exuded an aura of ferocity and massacre.

    Ai Hui sighed in relief. And fatigue appeared on his face.

    He had been working for four hours before he finally finished weaving. This speed was achieved only after more than twenty sessions of practice beforehand.

    "The skeleton is finally finished!"

    Ai Hui stretched himself. The elemental energy within his body was used up.

    Lou Lan brought the elemental soup that he had prepared, and Ai Hui drank up every single drop before he wiped his mouth and began to admire his masterpiece.

    Lou Lan said sincerely, "This is beautiful, Ai Hui!"

    The thin, unyielding bamboos were like the skeleton of the stretched wing. If one took a closer look, he could see on the translucent surface of the wing manyplicated but delicate patterns, some of which could only be seen at certain angles. These embroidery patterns were not for decoration only, but could also facilitate the flow of elemental energy.

    Ai Hui named it elemental trace. It originated from his teacher, Wang Shouchuan¡¯s n of "treating the city as a piece of cloth" that he designed for Central Pine City.

    In this n, there were a lot of carefully-designed patterns to dredge and guide the flow of elemental energy. Ai Hui had in mind every detail of the n, and had been trying to perceive and understand its deeper implications for the past three years. With Lou Lan¡¯s help, he had gained a lot from it.

    When making the See You Later that had been selling very well in the market, Ai Hui also utilized simr techniques ¨C he wove the special patterns with gemstone silk which could significantly improve the power of the arrows.

    Ai Hui knew that there were spiritual traces in Cultivation Era, and god traces for god elementalist. Therefore, he simply called this pattern elemental trace.

    He also knew that the original copies of his teacher¡¯s n, including the structural drafts of the nine gold needles, were all sent to the Elders Guild.

    Ai Hui felt his elemental energy was almost recovered when the day began to dawn. That was when they realized that they had been working for a whole night.

    Ai Hui said with a high spirit, "Lou Lan, is the gemstone silk ready? Let¡¯s finish altogether!"

    "Yes, it¡¯s ready!" Lou Lan brought out a box which was full of gemstone silks.

    The gemstone silks looked like ss fibers but were more shiny and attractive. The silks in the box were all three inches long.

    Gemstone silk was the silk produced by gemstone silkworms, and it was the main material needed to make [See You Later]. Gemstone silkworms were very ugly , and their skin surface was all grey with numerous ck spots. But their cocoons were extremely beautiful like gems, hence its name.

    The gem cocoon was very solid. After the silk took shape and hardened, it continued to crystalize. That was how the silk gained gem-like luster and intensity. Gemstone silk was made through a process of melting gemstone cocoons into liquid, wire drawing and crystallization. That was why the length of gemstone silk was always short ¨C usually no longer than half a meter.

    For the next step, Ai Hui had to do it together with Lou Lan.

    They both were proficient at weaving gemstone cocoons and ink cloud silk. Soon they both made a ck leaf in their hand.

    The leaf was about three-inch long and resembled the shape of a sword. The gemstone silk, which was harder, became the veins of the leaves, while the ck ink cloud silk constituted their bodies. Even on the surface of the three-inch leaf, exquisite elemental traces could be clearly seen.

    They didn¡¯t stop at all, and continued to weave.

    As time went by, there were more and more leaves like these. Finally, when the number reached three hundred and sixty, which was a lucky number, they stopped.

    Then they attached the ck-colored leaves to the translucent azure wing, which changed its appearance. As the number of leaves that were attached to the wing increased, the azure wing became more and more full-fledged.

    "Done!"

    Ai Hui and Lou Lan high fived.

    Both of them were enchanted by their borate work.

    Previously, the ck yarn wing with a clear skeleton awoke a sense of danger, but now with the leaves, it became much milder. With the thickly dotted leaves, which looked like real feathers, the azure wing resembled an ordinary ck wing of a bird. The luster of the gem silk also added to the brightness and delicacy of the dark Star-sinking Ink Cloud.

    "Ai Hui, it¡¯s beautiful!" Lou Lan admired.

    Ai Hui also marveled, "Yes, for such a good azure wing, I¡¯m wondering how much we can sell it for."

    "Aren¡¯t you going to give it a try?"

    "I¡¯m going to sleep!" Ai Hui stretched and yawned in fatigue, feeling quite sleepy, "Wait until I wake up. Lou Lan, no matter what happens, don¡¯t wake me up."

    "No problem, Ai Hui." Lou Lan said in a cheerful tone.

    When the sun began to rise, the quiet Peace City gradually became bustling and lively. The assistants of thepanies opened their gates and cleaned up their doorways. More and more people flowed into the streets. The fully-loaded bamboo carts took off one after another. They constituted mighty fleets in the sky and started their journeys.

    Huaijun looked up at the numerous bamboo carts in the sky and was actually enjoying the new experience. Compared with the Peace City, the Silver City was more prosperous. But it was too enormous and delicate. Everyone there was extravagant and everything was luxurious. In contrast, the Peace City was much simpler, but more lively.

    She was d that she came to Peace City.

    Su Qingye was already used to this kind of scene, "It¡¯s not the weekend today. Otherwise, there would be even more bamboo carts."

    Huaijun turned her eyes back to him and asked, "Has your teacher woken up by this time of the day?"

    "Of course!" Su Qingye nced at his aunt, "In Peace City, even kids have woken up by now."

    His father told him that she was his aunt. Su Qingye felt awkward, as they were of simr age. However, having witnessed the powerful fighting capabilities of this aunt, Su Qingye didn¡¯t dare to say anything.

    Butst night Aunt Huaijun spoke highly of his sand puppet¡¯s counter technique, which made his father very gratified. Besides, as his aunt had already destroyed the sand puppet, his father finally agreed to buy him a new one.

    Earlier this morning, his aunt said she wanted to pay a visit to his teacher.

    Huaijun could sense from his tone that Su Qingye was not convinced. But she didn¡¯t pay much attention. Instead, she asked, "Qingye, what kind of person is your teacher?"

    At the mention of his teacher, Su Qingye immediately became excited. He began to brag about how skillful he was, and about his unparalleled swordsmanship and how he got the nickname of King of Anglers.

    Light flickered in Huaijun¡¯s eyes.

 Chapter 277: Target

    Chapter 277: Target

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: KLKL

    Su Qingye was never aware that he had an aunt.

    And now, all he knew was that this aunt was from Silver City. His father told him that she was a capable person, and asked him to learn from her and follow her directions in training. She would give him training directions? Su Qingye didn¡¯t really take it seriously. He hadn¡¯t even finished half of the training tasks arranged by his teacher. Compared with Hua Xiaoyun and Zhou Wen, who were hispanions in the training hall, he was already the slowest.

    Hua Xiaoyun was a water elementalist who lived in the adjacent Cloud Ridge City and came to the training hall twice a week. She could alwayse up with cunning ideas, and Su Qingye believed she was the cleverest of them three.

    Zhou Wen was a person of few words and he was of metal attribute. Ever since he learnt from his teacher that keeping his sword in hand could improve his proficiency, he had never put his sword aside, even when sleeping.

    Of the three students, Su Qingye was the most unlucky one, as he was of earth attribute.

    Nowadays earth and fire elementalists were fellow sufferers. Those without wealth and power could hardly survive in such an era. Su Qingye was the slowest in training of them three, for which he was always depressed.

    Finally there was someone who would like to listen to hisints, so he poured out his grievances all at once.

    Huaijun was a bit curious, "Your teacher only teaches swordsmanship? Then how do you get trained? You all practice the same inheritance of sword?"

    "Of course not. We are of different attributes." Su Qingye took it for granted, "I practice Sand Puppet Swordsmanship, Zhou Wen practices Heavy Swordsmanship, and Hua Xiaoyun Rosy Cloud Swordsmanship."

    Huaijun was surprised, "Three inheritances?"

    Su Qingye shook his head, "My teacher said they¡¯re not inheritances, but only training ns."

    Huaijun uttered a sigh of relief, and thought to herself that she was probably thinking too much. Although swordsmanship was bing increasingly popr and had attracted more students these years, there were still very few well-known inheritances of swordsmanship so far.

    Su Qingye continued, "Our teacher said we are still young, and the most important thing is toy a solid foundation, with which we can create our own inheritances of swordsmanship."

    Speaking of this, Su Qingye¡¯s eyes were filled with longing.

    Huaijun couldn¡¯t helpughing out, "Create your own inheritances? That¡¯s not as easy as you imagine. This is nonsense!"

    Su Qingye was unhappy, "Nonsense?"

    "Isn¡¯t it?" Huaijun asked disapprovingly, "All the inheritances are passed from generation to generation and have gone through constant improvement during the process before they be what they are today. How can your teacher think it¡¯s so easy to create an inheritance? Who does he think he is? At first I thought he was different. But now it seems that he is only a swaggerer. So forget it. Let¡¯s go home."

    "You go home yourself. I¡¯ll go to the training hall." Su Qingye was extremely angry. But since his father had asked him again and again to listen to what his aunt said, he tried to calm himself down and replied coldly.

    "You don¡¯t need to go to a training hall with such a teacher." Huaijun said patiently, "You are still young, and haven¡¯t seen the real world outside or a real expert. It¡¯s easy for you to be cheated by someone¡¯s ndishments. You can just learn from me. It will be much more effective than any deceitful teacher."

    Su Qingye¡¯s patience ran out and he said, "I¡¯ll never learn from you!"

    Having said this, Su Qingye ran away without looking back.

    Huaijun was a short-tempered person without much patience. Seeing Su Qingye¡¯s obstinacy, she didn¡¯t even bother to persuade him. Although she had promised his father to help Su Qingye on his training, she was more than happy now that she didn¡¯t need to, since this was Su Qingye¡¯s own decision.

    Therefore, she began to stroll through Peace City alone. The See You Later arrows she bought yesterday aroused her interest in this small border town.

    The ten See You Later arrows had been packed and sent to the Silver City in a trade caravan. She bought them not for her own use, but on someone else¡¯s request. She¡¯d never heard of such a weird name before. It was said that the arrows were popr within a small circle. It was always out of stock and very hard to buy. A noble who heard that she wasing to the Peace City specifically asked her to buy some for her.

    Since it was a noble¡¯s request, she didn¡¯t dare to slight it, and began searching for it the first day she arrived.

    Seeing the busy trade caravans, she thought to herself that maybe she could get some useful stuff here. Besides, she would stay here for a long time anyway, so it was necessary for her to get familiar with the city.

    The Silver City and the Peace City were at the two ends of the Silver Mist River, but they were of totally different local customs and practices. She had abundant travelling experience, had been to numerous ces and watched the decline of many cities. The three-year war had a profound influence. While everywhere else was destitute and going through economic depression, the flourish and vigor of the Peace City cheered her up.

    Suddenly, she noticed a group of people ahead. It was led by a graceful, prettydy surrounded by her youngpanions.

    They were also here.

    She was surprised, and lowered her head, walking past them as if she was going somewhere in a hurry.

    "...I never expected we could get a demonic remnant. We are so lucky!"

    "Yeah. Fortunately Big Sister insisted on watching them fishing, otherwise we would have just missed the opportunity!"

    "That King of Anglers is really skillful..."

    Huaijun heard their conversation andughter, and the words "demonic remnant" caught her attention. Before she came to her senses, the crowd of people had already left.

    When Su Qingye, who was filled with anger, arrived at the training hall and heard the yelling inside, his rage suddenly disappeared.

    Having been practicing like this for almost three years, he felt training was already a part of his life. All his rage and distracting thoughts were gone, and instead the only thing he was thinking about was ¨C Zhou Wen was earlier than him again!

    He felt a bit unhappy.

    As soon as he walked into the training hall, he caught sight of a thin figure. Of all the three students, Zhou Wen had the most straitened family background. His parents had passed away. As an orphan, he couldn¡¯t even afford the tuition, so he had to sell himself to their teacher for ten years to pay off the tuition.

    Their teacher was too good-hearted.

    Su Qingye was born in a merchant family. He knew that in such troubled times there were too many orphans like Zhou Wen who had nothing at all . Zhou Wen was unsociable and entric. All he did everyday was practice like crazy, and simply treated everyone else like air.

    What made Su Qingye most dissatisfied was that this guy was far more hardworking than himself. However, his foundation was too weak, so his overall capacity was the weakest of them all. The strongest one was Hua Xiaoyun. It was said that her grandmother once served in Rainbow Division andter retired due to injury.

    "Good morning, Qingye!"

    Su Qingye was happy to hear Lou Lan¡¯s cheerful voice. He smiled and replied, "Morning, Lou Lan."

    They all liked Lou Lan very much, especially Su Qingye. He was an earth elementalist, and his affection towards the sand puppet was like an instinct.

    Su Qingye asked, "Lou Lan, is Teacher in?"

    "He is having a rest." Lou Lan answered, "Qingye, you have finished fifty four percent of your training n. Keep going!"

    Su Qingye suddenly remembered his aunt¡¯s words for no reason, and asked, "Lou Lan, is it difficult to create an inheritance?"

    "Yes, Qingye." Lou Lan nodded, "Any inheritance is the result of profound umtion of practice and talent."

    Su Qingye was confused, "Then why did Teacher asked us to create our own inheritances in the future?"

    "Do we give up simply because the thing we are going to do is difficult?" Lou Lan asked, "We do something not because it is easy, but because it is our objective, don¡¯t we?"

    Su Qingye¡¯s face flushed with embarrassment.

    Suddenly he heard a sniff from someone beside him, and it turned to be Zhou Wen who stopped practicing, held the sword in his hand and looked at Su Qingye with scorn. He said coldly, "Coward."

    Su Qingye became furious, "Zhou Wen, are you looking for trouble?"

    Zhou Wen was emotionless, "I hope you will not whine for mercy."

    "Oh, so I think we can adjust our training n today. How about a realbat match?" Lou Lan¡¯s smiling eyes were like two crescent moons.

    "Sure!" They both blurted out simultaneously, which made them dislike each other more.

    "Where is your sand puppet, Qingye?" Lou Lan asked.

    Su Qingye was a bit upset and said, "It was destroyed yesterday."

    "If so, to be fair, let¡¯s do this in the sandpit. Zhou Wen, will you please use a soft sword? Is that fine?" Lou Lan asked.

    "No problem!" Su Qingye answered loudly. He was thinking fast to bnce the advantages and disadvantages. Although his ability wasrgely reduced without the sand puppet , fighting on sand was advantageous to him. Besides, Zhou Wen usually practiced with a heavy sword, so he could not adapt to using a soft sword within a limited period of time, which was also in Su Qingye¡¯s favor.

    Zhou Wen simply said, "Okay."

    Seeing that they both agreed, Lou Lan said with a broader smile, "The result of the confrontation will be kept in your records."

    Hearing what Lou Lan said, both of them became more serious.

    The results of daily confrontations was worth arge proportion in their performance score, and would directly influence their teacher¡¯s final judgment of their performance. Anyone whose performance was scored as excellent would get their teacher¡¯s special tuition, have Lou Lan as training partner and be awarded with equipment tailored by the teacher.

    The heavy sword Zhou Wen was using was a reward.

    "Start!"

    Hearing the word, the two figures immediately came to blows.

    A crowd of people walked past thene. An assistant wearing the costume of Evergold Enterprise was leading the way.

    When they arrived at the gate of the training hall, the assistant said reverently, "Sir, this is the training hall of Wang Han."

    "Thanks!" Fu Renxuan said. The assistant got a tip from him and left happily.

    The crowd looked at the dpidated training hall up and down. The gate of the training hall was open, and they could hear shouts from inside now and then. But apparently there were very few people in it.

    "Swordsman Training Hall."

    Fu Yonghao looked at the wood board and read it out aloud. Then he frowned and said, "This is a training hall? It¡¯s so shabby. How can you open up a training hall just by hanging a name board in front of a shabby warehouse?"

    Yesterday they had asked the person in charge of the enterprise for information about Wang Han, and learned that Wang Han had a training hall in the Peace City. They were all interested in taking a look. After all, his performance at the Silver Mist River was so amazing yesterday.

    But when they came to his training hall in high spirits, it was a great disappointment to see nothing but this poor warehouse.

    A streak of disappointment shed in thedy¡¯s eyes too, but she soon adjusted herself and smiled, "Since we are here anyway, let¡¯s go inside and have a look."

    Then she walked towards the gate first. Seeing this, the others had to follow her lead and walked in.

    In the training hall, they saw two youngsters fighting against each other fiercely, and a sand puppet was standing by. The sand puppet said nothing, but only gave them a nce and then turned back to watch the two students fighting.

    Only two students...

    Fu Yonghao was speechless. This was the worst training hall with the least students he had ever seen. He thought of the Dragonrise Training Hall in the Silver City which was magnificent and majestic almost like a small city.

    Thedy¡¯s eyes fixed on the two students.

    As if no one was around, the students were totally uninfluenced and devoted themselves to the confrontation.

    After a while, thedy couldn¡¯t help but let out a soft yelp of surprise.

 Chapter 278: The Youth in the Cold Palace

    Chapter 278: The Youth in the Cold Pce

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: KLKL

    The towering pce looked solemn and majestic.

    Emotionless god guards stood at each side of the pce gates like sculptures. They looked tinypared to the tall and grand gates. Looking into the pce through the vermeil pce gates that were open wide, one could see no end, only gates after gates.

    The pce was empty. There were no guards on patrol or maidservantsing in or out.

    The floor of the pce was made of burnished ckish gold tes. Under the sunshine, the glittering surface added to its luxuriousness. Inparison, the stone carvings along the road were unadorned and simple. The lifelike images on the stone carvings depicted devils in the haunted night. The devils all looked ferocious, vicious, gloomy or cunning.

    The whole pce was extremely silent. No sound could be heard, but anyone in it could sense an unspeakable pressure.

    Even the blood fiends didn¡¯t dare to utter a sound, but were only crouching at the top of the wall quietly.

    Deep in the spacious pce and under the dome, a youth with long hair trailing over his shoulders was sitting at the high throne silently. The dense patterns of blood spread from every corner of the hall to the high throne located at the center of the hall.

    The youth looked gentle and frail. His eyes were closed, and his face was pale. The most arresting part was his long hair that flowed to his waist, the ends of which were as white as snow.

    He was Bei Shuisheng, the well-known Sick Tiger of tje Blood Nation.

    No sound could be heard inside the pce. Only incenses were burning.

    The youth slowly opened his eyes. His dark pupils were cid and deep.

    Suddenly something ck flew inside the pce. It turned out to be a vigorous goshawk with dark red eyes. The goshawknded on the long desk in the pce and spitted out a red blood ball.

    The young man forced a smile. His pale face made him look even frailer. He left his seat and walked to the table. His loose ck robe that dragged on the floor was spotlessly clean.

    "It¡¯s so inconvenient without message trees," the youth murmered.

    The Blood of God had been trying to create their own message trees, but achieved no sess so far.

    There were huge differences between blood spiritual force and elemental energy. Therefore, the message tree couldn¡¯t be used in God Nation. Previously, someone proposed to make use of elementalist captures to re-enable the functioning of message trees, but taking confidentiality into consideration, the proposal was denied. Now in Blood of God, letters were usually passed by blood birds, which was a very primitive methodpared with the message tree.

    The Avalon of Five Elements had a history of more than one thousand years. In this aspect, the Blood of God was still weak in its foundation. Even though in terms of fighting capacity, it was not inferior to the Avalon of Five Elements at all, there were still gaps in other aspects.

    Bei Shuisheng had ordered to increase manpower on this, but so far the progress was still slow. He himself was clearly aware that it was useless to push them anyway. The message tree was the result of many years of study and another few hundred years of improvement.

    If there was anything in the Avalon of Five Elements that couldpete with the Cultivation Era, the message tree must be one of them.

    The Blood of God even tried the paper crane that was utilized in Cultivation Era, butpared with message trees, its efficiency of message delivery was still slower. Although the paper crane was not a perfect choice yet, it was still usable in the context that the creation of message trees in the Blood of God was slow. After all, blood spiritual force was also spiritual force, and could power the paper cranes without limitation. The key problem was materials.

    However, at the moment, blood birds were a safer choice.

    Bei Shuisheng raised his hand and touched the blood ball with his pale and thin finger, and the blood ball immediately transformed into a bloody light and merged into his body.

    Bei Shuisheng closed his eyes and read it carefully. After a while, he opened his eyes andughed out gently, "Lesser Avalon of Five Elements? How did they think of it? But it¡¯s a good idea anyway. Interesting."

    He began to write something fast at the table. Before long, he finished writing and folded the letter carefully. The goshawk flew in front of him and swallowed the folded letter before it spread its wings and flew away.

    The goshawk was like a signal indicating the start of a day. Afterwards, blood birds kept flying in and out, bringing various matters to his table.

    He stretched himself first before devoting himself to work. His reading and writing speed was fast, and the instructions andments he wrote were short and concise. The whole process was as smooth as flowing water.

    After about two hours, he stopped and rubbed his temples, looking tired and exhausted. Then he stood up and walked down from the high throne to stretch him limbs.

    The work for today was done. He could take a rest.

    The sunshine was cast on the ground from outside the gate, drawing a clear-cut boundary between light and shadow behind the gate.

    Bei Shuisheng stopped and sat down in the shadow absent-minded. This was his favorite daily activity. He only spent two hours dealing with his work every day, and for the rest of the day, he would look outside the pce like this.

    He had ordered to open all the gates so that he could look out.

    Gates after gates. He could see no end of the long ckish gold te pavement and the stone carvings. The outmost gate in his eyes was only the size of a sesame seed.

    The outside world was the same size as a sesame seed to him too.

    He rested his chin in his hand, and looked at the outside world fascinatedly. Sometimes he smiled with some expectation, as if something interesting urred to him.

    The high dome roof behind him was cold and lonely.

    ......

    At Swordsman Training Hall in Peace City.

    Fu Yonghao was impatient. Why did they have to watch two kids fighting against each other? He couldn¡¯t bear to stay here, even for one more minute.

    The warsted for three years, and many things were different from before. The cruelty of the war was pressing on everyone¡¯s heart like a mountain. Under such pressure, the pace of life had be much faster. Whether it was training or life, it was no longer what it was like in those years.

    In the past, an elementalist who had attained elemental externalization could be counted as a master-hand. Nowadays, however, the number of such elementalists had more than tripledpared with three years ago. Everyone was practicing desperately and spared no efforts to find shortcuts to a higher base level. Blood crystals, elemental food...anything that might be helpful to training had already been studied so many times by numerous people.

    In troubled times, your strength was the only thing you could depend on to survive. Those who fell behind would only be eliminated.

    To be eliminated meant death.

    But since Big Sister didn¡¯t say anything, no matter how impatient Fu Yonghao was, he dared not make any trouble, as he always regarded her with reverence and fear.

    The confrontation ended up in a draw. Su Qingye and Zhou Wen first used up their elemental energy, and then their physical energy. Neither of them could ept such a result, but the only thing they could do now was sitting in the sandpit weak and limp and ring at each other in fury.

    Having announced the result, Lou Lan looked towards the group of people and said, "Nice to meet you. Wee to Swordsman Training Hall. Anything I can help you with?"

    Fu Renxuan, who was rtively older in age, asked, "Is Mr. Wang Han here? We heard that this training hall was opened by him and we are here to visit him."

    "I¡¯m sorry. He is having a rest, and may not be able to meet you." Lou Lan expressed his regret.

    Fu Yonghao had been bored to death for too long. Hearing what Lou Lan said, he immediately became angry, "What does that guy want to do? How dare he send a sand puppet to..."

    "Shut up!" Thedy stopped him harshly.

    Fu Yonghao ducked his head at once and dared not say anything else, although his face was still filled with anger.

    Thedy bowed slightly to Lou Lan and said, "I sincerely apologize for my brother¡¯s rudeness."

    "It¡¯s alright" Lou Lan shook his head, "But my master cannot meet you indeed. Would you pleasee again next time?"

    "If that¡¯s the case, we will pay a visit some other day."

    Thedy was very polite. Then the rest of the crowd left after her.

    As soon as they stepped out of the training hall, Fu Yonghao couldn¡¯t help murmuring, "Big Sister, do we have to do this? It¡¯s simply a shabby training hall..."

    Thedy¡¯s face looked dark, "Yonghao, if you continue like this, you will get into trouble sooner orter!"

    "Same old story." Fu Yonghao whispered disapprovingly.

    Then thedy turned to Fu Renxuan, "What do you think, Renxuan?"

    Fu Renxuan was a modest person. He thought for a while and said, "Although the two students were not skillful enough, their swordsmanship is rather exquisite."

    A streak of disappointment shed across thedy¡¯s eyes. Although Fu Renxuan was sober and modest, his ability was only mediocre and could hardly take over the family business. Meanwhile, Fu Yonghao was too irritable and flippant. If he could not change his character through hardship, he could hardly achieve any sess.

    It was a pity that she herself was a female.

    "One of them is an earth elementalist, and the other a metal elementalist. The earth elementalist had no sand puppet with him, but could utilize the sand in the sandpit to motivate his sword moves. The metal elementalist was using a soft sword, but if you took a closer look, you would see that his sword movement was drastic and he apparently used it as a heavy sword. The sword was a soft sword, but his moves were heavy."

    Having heard Big Sister¡¯s analysis, the impatience on their faces was gone.

    "Whether it was sand sword and soft sword, the sword gleams were very clear. But did you notice that there was hardly any fluctuation of their elemental energy. Besides, taking their elemental energy level into consideration, I have to say that the duration of their confrontation was too long."

    Fu Renxuan¡¯s face became solemn, "After Bis Sister pointed it out, we do realize so."

    Fu Yonghao was unwilling to admit so he said, "They are just two kids. Do you have to treat them so seriously?"

    Big Sister replied, "The tiny elemental energy fluctuation and long confrontation duration indicated their high efficiency in the usage of elemental energy. What kind of person cares about the usage efficiency of elemental energy? Only those who have been in actualbats many times. Therefore, it seems that their teacher, Wang Han, must be a person of superb swordsmanship and has abundant realbat experience. Besides, this person is also good at fishing artifact remnants, but chooses to dwell in such a remote and unknown city. He is not simple at all."

    "You are right," Fu Renxuan agreed, "we have never heard of this name either."

    Thedy suddenly said, "Yonghao, you also practice swordsmanship."

    Fu Yonghao was a bit confused at first, then he was a bit excited and asked. "Why? Do you want me to test his ability?"

    "No." she shook her head and said, "You will bring money and gifts to the training hall and learn swordsmanship from Wang Han, starting from tomorrow."

    These words shocked everyone present.

    Fu Yonghao almost couldn¡¯t believe his ears and stammered, "I, I go to the training hall..."

    "Yes." Thedy nodded and said indubitably, "This Wang Han¡¯s swordsmanship is excellent. You must study hard from him."

    Fu Yonghao was vexed, "Big Sister..."

    "I have already decided."

    Thedy said without looking back at him.

    In the Swordsman Training Hall, Ai Hui woke up with a start.

    Face looking pale, he stood up, walked to the mirror and took off his clothes.

    The blood plum flower on his chest became hot and more beautiful.

    "Ai Hui, it¡¯s transforming." Lou Lan was standing at the gate, and his eyes were glittering. Then he passed a leaf to Ai Hui and said, "News from the message tree."

    Ai Hui put on his clothes and took the leaf. Danger flickered in his narrowed eyes.

    With the Dragonspine in his hand, he strode over to his azure wings.

    "Lou Lan, I¡¯ll be going out for a while."

    "Okay, Ai Hui."

 Chapter 279: Starry Gem Swordwings

    Chapter 279: Starry Gem Swordwings

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: KLKL

    Fierce wind howled past his face.

    Ai Hui was excited about these new azure wings, the force of which hadrgely exceeded all the azure wings he had ever used.

    The new azure wings that he designed together with Lou Lan had a beautiful name - Starry Gem Swordwings. Different from other azure wings that were agile and light, it weighed twenty three kilograms, which was over five times heavier than normal azure wings. Meanwhile, the force it could produce was as amazing as its weight.

    It could generate spectacr force, and its carrying capacity could bepared with that of some transport wagons.

    Its tremendous force allowed Ai Hui to fly at a much faster speed. However, this enormous advantage in terms of speed came at the expense of its turning and hovering ability. Compared with ordinary azure wings, the Starry Gem Swordwings were less flexible and stable when turning and hovering.

    But Ai Hui thought it was worth it, because he was more used to the one-strike-to-death way of fighting. Dogfight was not his style.

    Unlike other azure wings, its extreme design could provide high speed, but it also increased the difficulty in control and the pressure to his body. However, those were not Ai Hui¡¯s concerns, because his body was different from ordinary people. The blood plum blossom had changed his body, which made him more like a blood fiend in human shape, so he could easily bear the shock waves brought by the high speed of the new azure wings.

    The leaves on the wings were three hundred and sixty pieces of small swords, for which Ai Hui had particrly designed special moves.

    In order to enhance the sharpness of the small swords, Ai Hui mingled a mass of gemstone silks in them. The power of See You Later arrows already proved how sharp this kind of silk, that was made from Ai Hui¡¯s special reeling techniques, could be.

    And the other purpose of adding the gemstone silks was to disguise himself.

    The appearance of the sword wings and the texture of the Star-sinking Ink Cloud were out of the ordinary and too conspicuous. The gemstone silks were effective in covering up these features, for it possessed the unique characteristic of producing halos of different colors. These halos could shield the texture of the Starry Gem Swordwings.

    Ai Huinded somewhere in the wild where nobody was around.

    The azure wings on Ai Hui¡¯s back turned into snow white and shined with holy and pure white radiance. When they pped, the wings would generate luminous spots which were starry and white, creating a beautiful scene.

    Ai Hui smiled. He took out an elemental energy mask and put it on his face, which turned him into a gloomy middle-aged man with a scar on his face.

    For the sake of safety, Ai Hui didn¡¯t purchase one from the market. Instead, he asked Lou Lan to make this elemental energy mask.

    Ai Hui took off his clothes and wore them inside out. The original insideyer was as white as snow, and now it made him look pure and holy.

    Then he infused his metal elemental energy into his hair, which immediately changed silvery white. Those rough short hairs were like pieces of small swords. His asionally squinted eyes, together with the scar on his cheek, signalled danger.

    He unwound the Dragonspine from around his waist and took a broadsword that was wider than his palm.

    He flew again into the sky at a slower speed, with the Starry Gem Swordwings pping rhythmically. He seemed extremely unruffled.

    Silvery hair, broadsword, white clothing, cruel scar, cold eyes and glowing wings.

    Wherever he went, he was too distinctive to be forgotten.

    The elementalists and trade caravans on the way were attracted by him and wondered about his identity. Ai Hui was not disturbed by them at all. Before long, he arrived at the Cloud Ridge.

    The Cloud Ridge got its name because of the clouds winding around those endless mountains all year round. It was located at the border between the Silver Mist Sea and the Palette Cloud Vige. Having flown past the Cloud Ridge, Ai Hui saw the Palette Cloud Vige in front of him.

    Those soaring mountains were not obstacles for elementalists. Flying over the Cloud Ridge, Ai Hui felt a st of cool, refreshing mist blowing on his face. This was not the first time that he had flown over the Cloud Ridge, but he enjoyed diving in the sea of clouds every time.

    The trade caravans normally flew over the sea of the clouds at a higher altitude where they could see further and travel safer.

    Flying over the Cloud Ridge and tracing the meandering mountain downwards, he saw a busy city, which was Cloud Ridge City. Like all cities along the trade routes, thanks to the flourishing of trade nowadays, the Cloud Ridge City and the Peace City had grasped the opportunity to develop rapidly. The scale of the two cities had been expanding almost every day.

    The Cloud Ridge City was free from wars. There was only prosperous trading and bustling trade caravans.

    Some trade caravans that prepared tond in the Cloud Ridge City started to descend, but the majority continued their journey without stopping. They were fully loaded with local products of Silver Mist Sea and flew to cities farther away like the Jadeite Forest and the Blood of God.

    For those who believed in money, wars didn¡¯t just result in ruins and destruction, they also brought opportunities and wealth.

    Ai Hui also flew to the Cloud Ridge City breezily.

    This time his destination was Magic Cloud City.

    Ai Hui knew very little about the city, except that it was located in the bd of the Palette Cloud Vige. It was far from here, and Ai Hui didn¡¯t know the exact route to the city, so he decided to travel with the trade caravans that were heading in the same destination. In this way, he could be morefortable and save more time on the way.

    Ai Hui was familiar with the Cloud Ridge City because one of his students, Hua Xiaoyun, used to live here.

    Ai Hui¡¯s appearance was quite remarkable and attracted the attention many passers-by, but no one dared to walk close to him, because he looked dangerous and irritable.

    The air was filled with mist here, so water elemental energy was very active. The humid climate was a feature of the Palette Cloud Vige. Therefore, the luxuriant nts in the Palette Cloud Vige were only second to the Jadeite Forest.

    Fruit trees along the two sides of the roads bore an abundance of fruits that were fresh and tender.

    If someone felt thirsty, all he needed to do was inject a bit of elemental energy into a fruit tree, and then some fruit would drop. However, taking fruits without permission would get you fined over twenty points of elemental energy.

    Ai Hui was in no hurry, so he wandered idly on the street.

    The Palette Cloud Vige was famous for its variety of clouds. Underground fountains sprayed throughout the year, bringing a great amount of mist into the air, which eventually became unique clouds above the fountains. The fountains here were all different in nature, which resulted in different kinds of clouds.

    Picking clouds needed special techniques. Different picking methods were applicable to picking different clouds. Cloud pickers here were as numerous as fishermen at the Silver Mist Sea.

    Cloud Ridge City wasn¡¯t superior for the number of fountains. But the city was the home to the evesting sea of clouds, which was the best ce for picking clouds.

    Because the sea of clouds had a long history, those who were lucky enough might have the chance to pick cloud crystals that were also known as Aged Cloud Ice. The formation of a cloud crystal required hundreds of years¡¯ nourishment from the mist, so they only existed in ces which were suffused with mist throughout the year, like Cloud Ridge City. But even in such ces, Aged Cloud Ice was still rare. As a result, finding some in the sea of clouds was not easy at all.

    Local residents often tried their luck in the sea of clouds, but few of them seeded.

    The price of Aged Cloud Ices was astronomical. Ai Hui had thought of adding some into the azure wings, but once he knew the price, he immediately gave up on the idea.

    The Peace City and the Cloud Ridge City were located on the two sides of a mountain, but they possessed quite different styles and atmospheres. Even the habits of people living in these two cities were disparate.

    Most residents in the Cloud Ridge City were water elementalists, who were mild and had a good temper. In contrast, most residents in the Peace city were metal elementalists, who were straightforward and aggressive like fire elementalists, but not exactly the same. Whenever metal elementalists had conflicts, they sought the direct solution of fighting each other without saying much. On the other hand, when fire elementalists had conflicts, they would squabble fiercely before fighting, and then put up a fight in a big way until the surroundings were all on fire.

    Nevertheless, those conclusions were not applicable to everybody. For example, Shi Xueman, a water elementalist, had a tough temper, while Fatty as a fire elementalist was as timid as a hare.

    Ai Hui was lucky, for he quickly found a trade caravan that passed by the Magic Cloud City. Their destination was the Jadeite Forest. Although the frozen rtionship between the Avalon of Five Elements and the Jadeite Forest had started to improve, those who had the ability to trade between them must have a remarkable background.

    Getting a ride with an enterprise was verymon.

    The passenger had to pay certain fees, and most trade caravans were willing to pick them up since getting one more passenger wouldn¡¯t cost them much.

    But certain examinations were necessary before a trade caravan agreed to offer a lift. After all, the world was not at peace and there were more and more bandits nowadays. It would be troublesome for a trade caravan if they picked up a bandit identally.

    Large enterprises had less to worry about in this aspect, because they had renowned aristocratic families as their supporters. Their force of protection was strong enough to deal with normal bandits.

    The warsted for only three years, and the Thirteen Divisions had already attracted a variety of outstanding figures like a ma. Joining the Thirteen Divisions was the best choice for thosepetent figures. Apart from goodpensation, there were a lot of rarities as well as many inheritances and even absolute arts that only existed in the Thirteen Divisions.

    Few bandits were renowned masters, although in recent years the situation was changing.

    ""

    "May I know your name and where are you heading to please?"

    Judging from Ai Hui¡¯s appearance, the manager of the trade caravan knew he was not a normal person, so he was very polite.

    ""

    "I¡¯m Chu Zhaoyang, heading to Magic Clouds city."

    His indifferent voice contained an indescribable chilliness with a pressurizing aura.

    Zhaoyang stood for the rising sun, while Huanghun stood for nightfall. Meanwhile, there were two "mu" (which means "wood" in Chinese) in the character for Chu, which was one "mu" more than in Duanmu. Ai Hui believed the new name he made up was smarter than Duanmu, Huanghun¡¯s name. That was definitely his deliberate trick.

    ""

    The manager looked surprised and delighted, "Are you the Silverwheel Swordsman?"

    Chu Zhaoyang, the Silverwheel Swordsman, was featured with silver hair, white clothes and silver wheel-like sword. He was one of the swordsmen who rose to fame in thest two years.

    Since swordsmanship became popr two years ago, a batch of powerful swordsmen suddenly emerged.

    ""

    Ai Hui said deeply, "Yes. When do we set off?"

    Chu Zhaoyang was Ai Hui¡¯s false identity. In the past three years, he had done plenty of things under this identity, which made Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s name more and more well known.

    Ai Hui was satisfied with the result. An arresting fake identity was easier to get people¡¯s trust than a real one without fame.

    It was better to deal with dangerous things with caution.

    ""

    The manager was excited, "We are going to set off tomorrow morning. It¡¯s our great honor to have you with us. This way please. Madam will be happy to know that you are here."

    ""

    Ai Hui said indifferently, "Leave me alone."

    He cast two elemental energy beans worth one thousand points of elemental energy towards the manager and walked away.

    Ai Hui exuded a killing aura, and all the passersby on the way chose to stay away from him.

    The manager had no intention of charging him at the beginning. After all, building up a good rtionship with the famous swordsman was a better choice. But when he caught the view of Ai Hui¡¯s back, he opened his mouth and said nothing. Those celebrities were normally rebellious and moody. This Chu Zhaoyang was apparently a ruthless one. If they irritated him, good things might turn into bad things.

    He had to let his mistress know about that immediately.

    The manager ran to report to her at once.

 Chapter 280: Chapter 280 - The Auspicious

    Chapter 280: Chapter 280 - The Auspicious

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    The swirling clouds that encased the mountain peak behind him were just like a peaceful horizon over arge ocean. The morning fog had yet to clear.

    Yet, the little city had already started to bustle with activity. Wood elementalists had begun to replenish their elemental energy while shop assistants were hard at work transporting goods. One bamboo cart after another were gathered together as they prepared to set off.

    By the time Ai Hui arrived, the caravan had alreadypleted their preparations.

    The steward who had been keeping watch quickly made his way forward. "Sir, this way please."

    He led Ai Hui to a shockingly massive Fiery Floating Cloud. The steward noticed that Ai Hui was assessing it and respectfully said, "Madam informed us that you are a valued guest. How could we possibly disregard you? Please."

    The fire-red magic cloud exceeded seventy meters in length and was over twenty meters tall. Strands of red clouds continuously rolled up and dissipated into the air, a gorgeous sight to behold.

    Quietly parked at the za, the Fiery Floating Cloud was incredibly eye-catching.

    Ai Hui was able to deduce the financial resources of the trading caravan just by looking at the majestic looking cloud in front of him. The sheer amount of material needed for it alreadymanded a great price, let alone thebor required toplete it.

    Walking towards the front of the stairs, Ai Hui suddenly asked, "Does this Fiery Floating Cloud have a name?"

    The steward courteously replied, "Auspicious."

    "Great name."

    Ai Hui nodded his head and walked up the stairs, his face as calm as ever.

    Taking on the role of Chu Zhaoyang these past three years had ustomed him to handling such situations.

    Walking into Auspicious, Ai Hui was dazzled by the decorations inside. There were no resplendent crystal chandeliers and no soft, magnificent fur carpets on the floor. There was, however, a gentle breeze and an elegant screen. Ai Hui could see only a graceful silhouette through the screen, nothing more. The imperceptible fragrance that lingered in the air perked him up quite a bit.

    This amazing fragrance which calms the mind and replenishes elemental energy wasn¡¯t something that money could buy.

    The well-trained servants bowed uniformly to greet him.

    Ai Hui was secretly surprised. Suchvishness reminded him more of influential families thanmercial enterprises.

    However, Ai Hui didn¡¯t concern himself too much about it. Who cares what sort of organization it was, he was only here to ride the boat. Upon reaching Magic Cloud City, he would leave without a word.

    Going around the screen, he saw ady standing by the window, silently observing the busy situation outside.

    In one corner stood an old servant who gave Ai Hui quite the shock. In his heart, Ai Hui noted that the old servant¡¯s presence had been practically undetectable. Previously, Ai Hui had only noticed the figure behind the screen.

    Such things rarely slipped past Ai Hui¡¯s keen senses.

    This old servant was pretty impressive!

    The old servant was dressed in a simple blue robe and was impably groomed. He stood attentively at one corner and took a tall, yet rxed posture.

    The old servant appeared to notice Ai Hui¡¯s gaze and bowed to apologize.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression returned to normal as he returned the bow. Unable to detect the old servant¡¯s elemental energy fluctuations, Ai Hui was unable to fully grasp his strength. Comparing base level alone though, the old servant was probably at least two levels higher than he was. After some thought, Ai Hui decided that considering the chamber ofmerce¡¯s financial strength, it¡¯d be even weirder if they didn¡¯t have an expert holding the fort.

    This "Madam" mentioned by the steward must be someone who was highly respected.

    Ai Hui was fascinated by this Fiery Floating Cloud since it was his first time on one this huge. Although the cloud looked thick andpletely opaque from the outside, one could look out from inside the cloud without any hindrance whatsoever.

    Thedy heard some noise and immediately spun around.

    Ai Hui felt his field of vision be much brighter

    Thedy had a delicate and exquisite oval-shaped face. Her fair and defined neckline, coupled with her hair worn in a high double bun imparted upon her an air of elegance. Her eyes lit up upon seeing Ai Hui. "It is with great fortune that I managed to chance upon the Silver Wheel Swordsman here in Cloud Ridge City. Your humble servant (not really a servant, it¡¯s a way of referencing herself down in front of an esteemed person) Xiao Shuren, has actually met Mister Chu before."

    Ai Hui bowed slightly to return her gesture.

    Xiao Shuren smiled and continued, "There¡¯s still some time before we set off, kindly take a seat Mister Chu. I hope you don¡¯t mind my embarrassing attempt at tea art."

    "Much appreciated." Ai Hui graciously epted her offer and sat down.

    Ai Hui only knew how to gulp the tea down, how was he supposed to fully appreciate Xiao Shuren¡¯s exquisite tea brewing skills? The only thing going through his mind was just how little tea there was in each cup. Such a small mouthful of tea wasn¡¯t enough for him to taste anything.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s smile never once left her face and as the saying goes, never beat a person who is full of smiles. What¡¯s more, Ai Hui was about to hitch a free ride on their boat so he effortfully restrained himself and patiently sat still.

    After about ten minutes, the trading caravan finally set off.

    The Fiery Floating Cloud gradually floated off the ground and was unexpectedly stable. The experience of flying on such a huge Fiery Floating Cloud was extremely refreshing for Ai Hui, especially the unobstructed view that he had from within it. He could see everything outside the cloud, from the bamboo carts around them to the scenery on the ground.

    Xiao Shuren was an understanding individual. Upon noticing Ai Hui¡¯s curiosity, she brought the Fiery Floating cloud to a higher altitude, avoiding the bamboo carts and widening Ai Hui¡¯s field of view.

    The cloud was so stable that if not for the passing scenery, Ai Hui would think that they were stationary. A light breeze was constantly blowing through the cloud, making him feel carefree and rxed.

    After enjoying the experience for a while longer, Ai Hui asked, "May I know where my room is?"

    Xiao Shuren shouted for another servant, "Bring our esteemed guest to his room."

    Ai Hui followed the servant to the guest room. The room¡¯s decorations left him feeling warm andfortable. Although it wasn¡¯t considerably luxurious, the room was huge and had a special area for training.

    The servant informed, "Mister Chu, this ship also has a specialized training hall which you may feel free to use."

    Ai Hui nodded, feeling quite satisfied. He instructed, "Kindly do not call for me if there is nothing important."

    "Understood," the servant quickly replied.

    Ai Hui closed the doors and promptly sat down to meditate. He knew that time was a scarce resource and had long adapted himself to practicing anytime, anywhere. Ai Hui would have attained elemental externalization if the blood plum blossom wasn¡¯t constantly consuming his elemental energy. Despite the presence of the blood plum blossom, Ai Hui was still able to achieve elemental internalization through hard training.

    He needed onest step before he could attain elemental externalization.

    The blood plum blossom made him a little worried because it appeared to undergo some sort of transformation as his base level rose. It now frequently became boiling hot, and Ai Hui would feel his mind throbbing whenever this happened. He had a feeling that the blood plum blossom would undergo a tremendous change when he finally achieved elemental externalization.

    Although this hidden danger was present, Ai Hui had no intention of giving up. Achieving elemental externalization held more attraction than avoiding the potential dangers of the blood plum blossom.

    Attaining elemental externalization would bring his power to a whole new level.

    He dismissed all his distracting thoughts and concentrated on his training.

    Back in the ship¡¯s hold, Xiao Shuren retracted her smile. She gently held up her teacup and leisurely asked, "He Lao, do you think this Chu Zhaoyang is real?"

    Standing in one corner, He Lao replied, "I can¡¯t say for sure if he¡¯s real or not, but he is quite alert. What I find strange though, is his low base level. He has yet to breakthrough to elemental externalization."

    "Yet to attain elemental externalization?" Xiao Shuren asked, momentarily stunned. She subconsciously continued, "Could this person be an imposter?"

    Elemental externalization was bing more and more mainstream in today¡¯s world. How could an expert like Chu Zhaoyang have only attained elemental internalization?

    "On the contrary, I feel that he is the real Chu Zhaoyang," answered He Lao. "An imposter wouldn¡¯t possibly have such a ring loophole."

    "It is hard to believe that the Silverwheel Swordsman has only achieved elemental internalization," replied Xiao Shuren, clearly impressed. She had faith in He Lao¡¯s judgement.

    "It is indeed rarely seen," He Lao nodded. "But outstanding swordsmanship or certain special inheritances can result in such a phenomenon. From what I know, there are more than ten inheritances that suppress base levels in their initial phases."

    Out of nowhere, Xiao Shuren asked softly, "Does He Lao think he¡¯s a threat or just someone harmless?"

    "It is still unknown at the moment whether he is a friend or a foe." He Lao lowered his volume. "But if he¡¯s going up against us, I¡¯m sure he¡¯ll surely give himself away soon enough. You have handled him well so I suppose he¡¯ll only go after the caravan if he wanted to cause trouble. Furthermore, he¡¯s on our ship. We¡¯ll be able to take him down if he tries anything funny."

    He Lao spoke easily and showed no sign of worry whatsoever.

    Xiao Shuren smiled. "I would only dare to take such risks with you around."

    He Lao chuckled. "You¡¯re too kind, madam. If this journey goes smoothly, we¡¯ll have ovee all the difficult issues in our way. Nothing will stop us from achieving sess. Without your hard work and detailed nning, the chamber ofmerce would most certainly not have been able to achieve its position today. To us, this journey is like a fight to the death. Please rest assured that I will risk my life to make sure these goods are delivered."

    He Lao¡¯s voice became firm and resounding towards the end of his speech.

    The servants and bodyguards behind them remained unperturbed.

    Ai Hui was deeply immersed in his training. Over time, the blood plum blossom more frequently entered a boiling state and these states weresting longer and longer as well. It had initially urred once a month, but it soon became once a week and then once every three days.

    It was now happening every other day.

    The blood plum blossom was incredibly unorthodox. It waspletely different from all the other blood elementalist techniques that he had encountered before. Even his tried-and-tested lightning had no effect on the blood plum blossom. Ai Hui had tried to utilize the lighting in his elemental energy to bombard the blood plum blossom. Upon realizing that it was capable of absorbing his lightning, Ai Hui immediately stopped and was scared out of his wits.

    Ai Hui had to carry out high-intensity practice every single day to maintain his current base level.

    The blood plum blossom ceaselessly devoured elemental energy and did not give Ai Hui any respite.

    Ai Hui had managed to maintain his elemental internalization for one and a half months but had yet to reach the critical point for a breakthrough. Attaining elemental externalization was a huge leap from elemental internalization. With it came apletely new level of understanding. People often got stuck at elemental internalization, unable to break through to elemental externalization. Prolonged periods of stagnation at this level could even cause one¡¯s base level to fall.

    Logically speaking, Ai Hui shouldn¡¯t be out and about during this period of time since undergoing a breakthrough might leave him in an awkward situation. The slightest issue could send his efforts down the drain or in worse cases, cause him to be injured.

    He had obediently spent thest one and a half months in Peace City by Lou Lan¡¯s side. Ai Hui felt at ease with Lou Lan around.

    However, he had no choice but to leave and pursue the leads he found regarding the blood plum blossom.

    He couldn¡¯t be at peace as long as the blood plum blossom remained. Although it was only devouring his elemental energy for now, Ai Hui had a nagging feeling that it would eventually start going after his life. He had to find a way to deal with it soon.

    Beautifuldies were known to be ruthless.

    Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy training wasn¡¯t making progress. He knew that bing overly fixated with achieving a breakthrough would eventually see him splitting hairs.

    Recalling that the servant mentioned something about a training area on the ship, Ai Hui picked up his broadsword and decided to practice his swordsmanship instead.

    Regardless of the type of weapon, practice was the key to perfection.

    Ai Hui was delighted to find the training hallpletely empty. Enjoying the peace and quiet, he quickly got to work.

    The past three years saw him scouring through countless swordy manuals for a greater understanding of various sword seals and sword techniques. His understanding of swordy grew more profound with each passing day. He began to have more and more original thoughts surrounding swordsmanship as well.

    His swordsmanship was on a whole new level.

    Ai Hui was absolutely immersed in his training.

    He did not notice the elegant figure watching him from outside the training hall.

 Chapter 281: Karakorum

    Chapter 281: Karakorum

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    When thest sword ray vanished, Ai Hui came out of his highly-concentrated state of mind.

    p, p, p! A round of apuse sounded.

    Interrupted, Ai Hui, who was still feeling the high from his training, raised his head somewhat unhappily only to realize that it was Xiao Shuren.

    "Sir, your swordy is exquisite. I have never seen anything like this. It¡¯s a new experience and a great honor. May I know the name of that swordy?"

    It was as if Xiao Shuren¡¯s eyes were emitting light. Her originally beautifulplexion carried an extra luster now. Her face was full of admiration, making it difficult for people to refuse.

    Xiao Shuren had confidence in her beauty. It was well-tested and had never before failed her. Whenever she pulled this move, all the men would look at her as if they wanted to swallow her up. They would never reject any of her requests.

    "Heh heh."

    Ai Hui chuckled. It was a pity that he had an elemental energy mask on. The scar on it, coupled with its fake smile, carried an indescribable gloom and coldness.

    Heh heh?

    Xiao Shuren was stunned. What did that mean?

    Although she had been through many significant asions, she was now at a loss and did not know how to continue.

    An awkward silence ensued.

    As though there was no one around, Ai Hui kept his sword and prepared to exit.

    Xiao Shuren reacted, a fog rising in her eyes. As if she was going to cry, she asked in a pitiful voice, "Did I disrupt your training?"

    "That¡¯s right."

    Ai Hui answered matter-of-factly.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s body turned rigid. That¡¯s right... What¡¯s right? Her cherry lips opened slightly, herplexion stiff. The speech she had prepared so meticulously was stuck in her throat, unable toe out. She had met so many reputable fighters, and no matter how displeased they might be, they would still smile and respond politely with: "Why do you say that, Miss? It¡¯s such an honor to have you interested."

    Why were there such crude and unfeeling people in this world?

    In that moment, this was all Xiao Shuren could think.

    Following which, she thought, perhaps it was because she wasn¡¯t beautiful today?

    If Ai Hui could hear her thoughts, he wouldment his misfortune. Miss, just throw out a few hundred thousand elemental energy points and he would be overeager topliment your angelic beauty. Not to mention the swordy¡¯s name, you could even get him to impart the skills with some negotiations.

    Thinking back, this was the same as how he treated One Thousand Yuan. There was no pressure at all for him to do the same thing again.

    However, the guard at the entrance became agitated. "Outrageous! How dare you treat Madam so rudely!"

    A guard dashed over aggressively. A righteous indignation filled his heart upon seeing his mistress being wronged.

    Seeing this person charging over, Ai Hui¡¯s pupils shrank. He was unable to determine the man¡¯s intention, but as a seasoned fighter, he absolutely would not act passively.

    With a turn of the broad sword in his hand, he became like a spinning top as a round, silver disk swiftly appeared before this guard.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s face changed greatly as she shouted at the top of her lungs, "Stop!"

    The guard only felt the anger of the silver sword ray sweeping over. An intense bloodlust shrouded his whole body as a sky-piercing whistle seemed to approach him.

    He had never before seen such an overbearing swordy or felt such biting bloodlust. His mind wentpletely nk.

    Without any warning, the silver, raging wave dispersed like bubbles and left only the dumbstruck, pale-looking guard standing on the field.

    Ai hui¡¯s silhouette had already disappeared.

    Only at the end did Ai Hui realize that he was still on someone else¡¯s boat. He restrained his attack.

    Seeing that Ai Hui was gone, Xiao Shuren regained herposure. She also had no idea where He Lao came out from.

    "He Lao, what do you think?" Xiao Shuren asked calmly, without the slightest fear or panic.

    "Shouldn¡¯t be an enemy," He Lao muttered.

    Xiao Shuren nodded. That was also what she thought. If an enemy had the intention to invade their circle, he would think of a way to get close to them, pull strings, and even gain their trust. However, that fellow was so cold and clearly expressed his disinterest in getting close to them.

    She asked directly, "Did you notice anything about his swordy?"

    "Never seen it before." He Lao shook his head. "The sword ray was like a silver disk, imposing and strong. Shocking indeed. With that outstanding sword technique, it¡¯s no wonder he could make such a big name for himself despite not having yet achieved elemental externalization. I can see that he has already mastered element internalizationl and he can breakthrough to Elemental Externalization at any time. Once he breaks through to elemental externalization, his strength will naturally increase exponentially. Only, he has too heavy a murderous spirit."

    Xiao Shuren seemed to be moved by his words. "He Lao has such high praise for him!"

    He Lao replied, "Although swordy has been slowly recovering its glory for the past two years and there are many swordsmen, only a few are able to attain a higher level of skills."

    Xiao Shuren asked thoughtfully, "Could Chu Zhaoyang be from Karakorum Sword League?"

    Karakorum Sword League was an organization that had been established in these two years. Members boasted of being the sessors of the Karakorum Sect. Karakorum sect was an ancient and faraway sword sect in the Cultivation Era. It had ruled the Cultivation Era for over thousands of years and had a long history.

    The influential appearance of Zuo Mo ended the regime of the Karakorum.

    But as time passed, the swordsmen started regarding Karakorum as the orthodox sect, instead of the more powerful and legendary Void Sword n.

    There were countless powerful sects that emerged throughout the history of the Cultivation World, but none had ever been as legendary and resplendent as the Void Sword n. Not only did they raise an exceptional evildoer like Zuo Mo, they had also raised geniuses like Wei Sheng, Gong Suncha, and many more. There had been supreme beings, unequalled swordsmen, and champion war generals. Every single disciple was impressive and well-known.

    Capability wise, the Void Sword n never fell below third ce, but it wasn¡¯t a pure swordsmanship sect. Other than Senior Wei Sheng, Zuo Mo¡¯s training wasplex and Gong Suncha was famous formanding in battles.

    As such, it wasn¡¯t surprising that swordsmen viewed Karakorum as the orthodox sect.

    Regardless of whether they were borrowing the reputation of Karakorum or of the Void Sword n, it wasn¡¯t of much use in the elemental energy era. They were simply too ancient and distant. If recovering the glory of the Cultivation Era seemed attractive, recovering the swordsmen¡¯s glory was a little nonsensical. No one admired them for using Karakorum¡¯s fame, but people mocked them excessively instead.

    Nevertheless, the performance of the Karakorum Sword League shocked everybody. In these two years, the swordfighting trend was closely rted to the promotional efforts of the Karakorum Sword League. They had gotten hold of a batch of swordsmanship inheritances and attracted and recruited arge number of elementalists in an unbridled manner. Then, after some introductory swordy manuals started circting in the market, elementalists found them formidable, instantly triggering the start of the swordfighting trend. Elementalists willing to join Karakorum Sword League would receive guidance from powerful swordmasters. They wouldn¡¯t have to pay such a huge price to learn even higher level, inherited swordy as well.

    The sword manuals circted by Karakorum Sword League were evidently written by experts, and as such, attracted a lot of conjectures from all over. Unexpectedly, however, Karakorum Sword League remained very low-profile and did not make any big news.

    ording to minor sources, however, there were a number of influences who ced their focus on Karakorum Sword League, but to no avail. Of course, these rumors hadn¡¯t been verified and no one knew if they were true or false.

    The swordsmen were linked to Karakorum Sword League in countless ways.

    Upon witnessing Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s excellent swordy, Xiao Shuren naturally associated it with Karakorum Sword League.

    "If he¡¯s from there, he probably holds a high rank," He Lao muttered. "Karakorum Sword League usually keeps a low-profile and the higher ups are even more mysterious, but since you mentioned it, I actually think it¡¯s highly possible."

    Meeting Xiao Shuren¡¯s gaze, He Lao said in a low voice, "It¡¯s not strange at all if Karakorum Sword League came for this."

    Xiao Shuren was stunned for a moment before her expression changed slightly. How could she have forgotten such an important thing? She mulled it over for a bit, her expression worsening. "Karakorum is definitely interested in it!"

    She was very certain now, that Chu Zhaoyang was definitely a swordsman from Karakorum Sword League!

    He Lao muttered once again, "Where did Karakorum Sword League get the news from? Supposing that he is a member, why did he act so indifferently?"

    "They have many feelers and sources of their own. If Chu Zhaoyang is from Karakorum Sword League, why was he so cold?" Xiao Shurun repeated He Lao¡¯s words. She had been managing the chamber ofmerce for so many years, had garnered deep respect from all the members, and had surpassing talent. "Either he¡¯s just a senseless person who has no knowledge of swords, or he doesn¡¯t even need toe close to seize the goods. Or, perhaps he was monitoring us and how many more thieves there are?"

    The more Xiao Shuren thought about it, the more rmed she was.

    He Lao was rmed and fidgety as well. "Let¡¯s take him down? Or else our whereabouts will be exposed?"

    Xiao Shuren calmed down, her gaze flickering. "No, perhaps we can make use of this."

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t know that his performance had actually led them to the Karakorum Sword League. Had he known, he would not know whether tough or cry.

    In the room, Ai Hui was coiling the bandage very seriously.

    He wrapped the bandage around his chest. It had a certain restraining effect when used against the blood plum blossom. This was the only discovery made in roughly three years. The bandage was a gift from his mistress, and heter discovered that it could swallow fresh blood. In the war of Central Pine City, the bandage had developed an eye-shaped pattern.

    Later on, unintentionally, Ai Hui found out that cing the bandage near the boiling blood plum blossom caused it to cool down quickly.

    Ai Hui then realized that the bandage could restrain the blood plum blossom. He¡¯d be wild with joy at the time, but hister discovery calmed his feverish mind.

    If he used the bandage to suppress the blood plum blossom¡¯s break out, it would work for a short period of time before the flower red up even more intensely.

    Ai Hui had no way out at this point. This wasn¡¯t Peace City.

    The boiling blood plum blossom made him irritable and increased his murderous intent. If he hadn¡¯t held back at the final juncture, that guard would have been sliced in half by his sword.

    But the murderous intent, which had appeared within a split second, had alerted Ai Hui.

    This operation was very crucial and mistakes were unpardonable. Keeping calm was key. An overpowering bloodlust would only turn him into a butcher, and butchers typically did not live long.

    In these three years, he had tried "feeding" the blood bandage.

    Chu Zhaoyang wasn¡¯t someone who hadn¡¯t kill before. In this chaotic world, poprity was derived from grappling and killing.

    The bandage reacted only thrice. It was exceptionally picky and was no longer that "hungry bandage" that took in everything. Having consumed three tonics, the blood eye on the bandage now had an eyebrow.

    He was curious how did the blood bandage really look like in the Cultivation Era.

 Chapter 282: Meridian Sand

    Chapter 282: Meridian Sand

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Themerce team flew continuously for numerous days and all was calm.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t be bothered making friends with Xiao Shuren and the gang and just stayed in his room to meditate. Being stuck on the edge of a breakthrough was simply too irritating but Ai Hui also knew that he shouldn¡¯t rush it. Being hasty made things worse.

    Sometimes, he would sit and stare by the window and enjoy this rare feeling of contentment. He had been hustling and bustling for these three years and often wandered along the boundary between life and death. There was no time for him to appreciate the scenery and be lost in thought.

    He had never forgotten about revenge.

    He had been woken up many times from nightmares. The bloodstained Dragonspine and Teacher¡¯s chest...it was like yesterday. Whenever he woke up at this point in the dream, an inexpressible grief and pressure befell him. It was as if the pitch ck, deep night had engulfed the fields, making it impossible to struggle free.

    Falling into the abyss was his choice. He wouldn¡¯t hesitate at all if given another chance.

    The abyss and the dark night were neither able to rescue nor destroy him.

    The Blood of God was so tremendous, even more so than how it looked on the outside. It was deep and profound. Ai Hui took only Lou Lan and the message tree from Vanguard Training Hall when he left Central Pine City. He had a better understanding of the Blood of God than most, and he knew how it was good at being forbearing and unscrupulous.

    Compared to it, Ai Hui was like a tiny cricket with no power to exact revenge. Hope was slim.

    But when it came to certain things, it was more about whether he wanted to do it, rather than whether he could seed.

    Luckily there was Lou Lan.

    Thinking about Lou Lan made the corners of his lips turn up. Lou Lan was even stronger than before but remained pure and genuine. His vigorous, energetic voice always made Ai Hui feel encouraged.

    Suddenly, the rm went off, startling Ai Hui.

    He looked out of the window and noticed a ball of white cloud flying toward him rapidly from afar. It looked aggressive and did not seem to harbor any good intentions. But the team¡¯s reaction was fast. The transport wagon ced Auspicious right in the center.

    Elementalists with azure wings flew out one after another.

    Ai Hui involuntarily furrowed his brows.

    The situation did not seem right.

    That ball of white cloud wasn¡¯t a Fiery Floating Cloud but one that belonged to a water elementalist. The team¡¯s reaction was too quick, as if they¡¯d already expected something like this to ur. Their defense was put up in a matter of seconds.

    Ai Hui shivered when his gaze fell upon those guards.

    Their elemental energy waves were stable and steady, and the azure wings on their backs emitted a solid light, seemingly attesting to their abilities. They were obviously elites and had clearly attained elemental externalization.

    Such significant backup made it impossible for Ai Hui to believe that this wasn¡¯t prenned.

    At this point, Ai Hui already knew that he was just afraid of getting dragged into this whirlpool, even though he had no idea what kind of whirlpool it was.

    Recalling well, he couldn¡¯t help butugh and rejected the thought that this could be a trap. From start to finish, he¡¯d been making his own choices so no one was to me.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t know if he was lucky or unlucky.

    He started to understand why he was being invited onto this Fiery Floating Cloud. It wasn¡¯t because he was reputable, but rather because the other party wanted to keep him around.

    Indeed... a little embarrassing!

    Ai Hui touched his nose and stayed well-behaved in his room.

    Any action on his part might be regarded as threatening.

    He had a keen sixth sense and could vaguely detect the whiff of a faintly discernible odor outside the door. He Lao¡¯s silhouette surfaced in his mind. Ai Hui did not expect He Lao to spy on him personally. That old fellow¡¯s capability was unmeasurable and Ai Hui did not wish to provoke him.

    Ah, who knew that taking this vessel would lead him to this.

    Ai Hui sat leisurely by the window, watching the events unfold like a bystander.

    The team¡¯s disy of strength was really something.

    Ai Hui remembered the name of the enterprise ¨C"Great Wei Enterprise". He had never heard of it before. Having stayed in Peace City for three years, he¡¯d heard of most chambers, big or small, operating on the trade route. Even though he wasn¡¯t aware of every single enterprise, if the name had appeared a few times more often, he would¡¯ve heard of it at least.

    Yet, he was certain that he¡¯d not heard of Great Wei Enterprise.

    It was unknown whether or not the other party was heading towards Jadeite forest. Ai Hui was somewhat puzzled and decided to find an opportunity to slip off midway. His priority was to head over to Magic Cloud City so he had no time to waste on Great Wei Enterprise.

    The arriving water elementalist was strong and he was hiding among the clouds without revealing his face. The cloud was about as big as Auspicious and looked like a huge monster, its momentum tumultuous and oppressive.

    "Who hase?"

    A guard from the enterprise spoke loud and clear.

    The other party did not respond. Instead, countless bright arrows shot out from the clouds toward the guards.

    The guards did not panic. They each did what they did best. Some used weapons to brandish a sheet of lightscreen, some were surrounded in eggshell-like light screen, while othersid out a sheet of sea of fire. Ai Hui was dazzled by them all.

    Ding ding ding!

    The concentrated collision sounds never stopped. When the specks of light hit the guards¡¯ surrounding light rays,

    Ai Hui saw clearly the shocking power of the light arrows. They were raindrops the size of green beans, were uncountable and covered an extremely wide area. The rain fell incessantly, filling the skies with sharp whistling noises.

    Ai Hui smacked his lips. This was truly arge-scale moving fort.

    Attaining elemental internalization opened the ess between the Nature and the human body. Upon attaining elemental externalization, an elementalist can borrow the elemental energies from the Nature to increase his powers. Where vapor filled the air, like in Palette Cloud Vige, water elementalists would undoubtedly best be able to unleash their powers.

    When faraway, the environment yed a major role in affecting one¡¯sbat abilities.

    The water elementalists at sea, earth elementalists in the desert, wood elementalists in the forest, fire elementalists in the midst of earth fire and metal elementalists in the city... you were never to cross paths with them there unless necessary. They were enemies no one wanted to face.

    This person trained with clouds and mist. Where there was plenty of vapor, his abilities rose dramatically.

    But the guards of Great Wei Enterprise weren¡¯t willing to be passive. They spread their azure wings and dispersed, before flying toward that ball of cloud from all directions.

    They were like an agile flock of birds drawing handsome light traces in the sky, their murderous intent intense.

    A blue fireball was thrown into the clouds.

    Boom!

    Like cotton, the cloud burst into mes, the blue ze spreading across the clouds.

    "[Icy mes]!"

    A stifled groan sounded from within the clouds as they shook strongly like the vibrations of huge drums and gongs, causing everybody¡¯s ears to go numb.

    Ai Hui was astounded as well. Up till now, he had discovered nine types of [Icy mes] and the inheritances of these nine types of [Icy mes] were all in Icy mes Division at Fire Prairie.

    [Icy me], as the name implied, was cold. Generally water restrained fire, but [Icy me] was water¡¯s mortal enemy.

    Ye Baiyimanded the [Icy mes] Division with help from the Blood of God, and took with him practically every elementalist that practiced [Icy mes]. Although Elders Guild had a backup copy of every [Icy mes] inheritance, the most proficient practitioners of [Icy mes] in this present age were all under the Blood of God.

    The Elders Guild had wanted to rebuild [Icy mes] Division for a long time now but had been unable to do so because of this.

    Tradition was treasurable for sure, but no matter how much it tried to rece old with new, the Thirteen Divisions were forever the real masters .They could exchange skills and learn from one another. With many people training together, there were sufficient supplies of materials to create all kinds of new experiments.

    As such, in this aspect, Avalon of Five Elements was behind by over ten years, or even longer.

    "Such a pity that [Icy mes] Division betrayed Avalon of Five Elements!"

    A cold groan sounded from within the clouds as an immeasurable amount of water vapor gathered from all directions and inted the cloud at a shocking speed. Where it was in contact with the [Icy mes], it transformed into a cloud whip and belted towards the elementalists in the sky.

    The cloud whip burned continuously but also grew at an even faster speed.

    The guards¡¯ faces changed. Even the fire elementalist who threw the [Icy mes] was shocked as well and he quickly retreated. Getting [Icy mes] on himself meant trouble.

    Countless bright de lights flew toward the small mountain-like cloud like fast javelins, their sharp, silver arrow light apanied by balls of raging mes.

    But it had no effect, as if a y ox had just entered the sea and disappeared.

    Among the many offensive attack moves, the balls of raging mes seemed unremarkable. The clouds and mist swallowed it up in one mouthful.

    Icy mes was slightly more troublesome as the raging mes would only be restrained by a water elementalist. These elementalists were having a headache.

    Sure enough, the raging mes continued shrinking and melting. p! They copsed and a ball of clear, yellow sand flowed out.

    This lump of yellow sand was abnormally dry. Once it fell andnded among the clouds, it started to absorb the surrounding vapor rapidly.

    It was like a yellow bottomless pit, as an immeasurable amount of clouds and mist were ingested non-stop.

    "Meridian sand!"

    The hidden, mysterious water elementalist between the clouds was, for the first time, emotionally stirred. He felt a hint of fear.

    Meridian sand was known to be the driest sand and was an extremely precious type of earth sand. It was made of sand, soil and mainly rock, and had the widest range of uses in all sand types. Yellow Sand Corner was known for producing all kinds of sand but even then, Meridian sand was extremely umon there.

    Ai Hui, who had been observing leisurely, stood up for the first time, his eyes opened wide.

    Umon meant expensive!

    Ai Hui was stunned by Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s way of handling business. Because of Lou Lan, Ai Hui had a much better understanding of sand types and materials. Lou Lan had a very big sand core but his body hindered his performance. Ai Hui had always wanted to upgrade Lou Lan¡¯s body, so he was very aware of the market situation with regard to sand materials.

    Ever since Yellow Sand Corner fell into the hands of the enemy, the price of sand materials rose at least five times and some good materials just kept getting more and more expensive, without limit. Mostly, materials were out of stock and he couldn¡¯t buy them even if he wished.

    Meridian sand was one of those.

    If he could give Lou Lan the Meridian sand, Lou Lan would instantly be the water elementalists¡¯ mortal enemy.

    This was an material that Ai Hui had not even dared to set his heart on obtaining, yet Great Wei Enterprise actually used it for battling. Watching it made Ai Hui bleed inside. He wanted so badly to dash up and fight the water elementalist, then snatch the sand over.

    A pity it was being abused this way.

    Meridian sand¡¯s formidability was astonishing. The small, mountain-likeyers of cloud were actually being firmly sucked in by a small lump of meridian sand, unable to struggle free at all.

    The clouds shrank rapidly and the water elementalist¡¯s body was finally revealed. It was a middle-aged man, his face overwhelmed with shock at this point.

    Losing the clouds as a shield, he had no strength to resist at all.

    A few guards had already closed in on him from different directions, ready to nab him alive.

    Suddenly, the middle-aged water elementalist revealed an eerie smile as a pool of fresh blood spilled out of his mouth.

    The guards¡¯ faces changed greatly. He increased his speed and charged over but the water elementalist was no longer alive.

    Just then, He Lao¡¯s voice sounded. "Mister Chu, Madam¡¯s requested a meeting with you."

    Ai Hui shivered inwardly, his scalp going slightly numb.

 Chapter 283: Alighting

    Chapter 283: Alighting

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    All was the same. The same seat, same incense, the old servant standing in the same corner and Madam Xiao¡¯s movements were as graceful and cheery as before.

    The painting-like scene was inexpressibly quiet. The atmosphere was subtle, as if a fog was floating in the air, carrying a certain tension.

    Madam Xiao spoke suddenly, "What do you think, Mister Chu?"

    "What do you mean?" Ai Hui responded. He was somewhat stunned by her stupid question.

    "That earlier battle. Could it be that you have no thoughts on it?"

    "Thoughts? My thoughts aren¡¯t important and I do not wish to get involved." Ai Hui conveniently added, "I have other matters to attend to and was just nning to bid goodbye."

    He would be a fool if he hadn¡¯t already understood the other party¡¯s apprehension. Although he wasn¡¯t clear as to what was going on exactly, he could tell from the battle crew¡¯s allocation that this was going to be a maelstrom.

    This wasn¡¯t something he could deal with. Plus, he had more urgent matters to handle so how could he waste any more time here?

    It was best to get away from this maelstrom as soon as possible.

    Madam Xiao stared intently at Ai Hui. He sounded genuine with his words, his expression truthful.

    Could it be that Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s blending into the caravan was really without ulterior motives?

    "Mister Chu¡¯s swordy is excellent. Perhaps you¡¯re from Karakorum?"

    "No." Ai Hui shook his head.

    Madam Xiao seemed disappointed. The initial stages of Karakorum¡¯s establishment was at precisely the same time its poprity surged, so those walking outside would never conceal their identity. She had wanted to borrow the assistance of Karakorum but her hopes were dashed now.

    "If Mister Chu is worried, just feel free to stay for a few days before heading for Magic Cloud City. I¡¯ll send you back to your room."

    There was no doubt in her voice, and unknowingly, He Lao appeared by his side.

    Ai Hui shivered inside. This old man was of a different level and was not someone he should ever provoke.

    He knew it was pointless to say anything now and he was feelingzy anyway, so he went straight back into his room.

    Things were not over.

    This battle was just the prologue. Waves of elementalists charged forward like ants. While Great Wei¡¯s preparation was sufficient, injuries quickly appeared and the number of casualties kept increasing.

    The most severe loss urred on the fourth day, when eight guards died and six got injured. This elementalist was superbly powerful and in the end, the old man had to take on the task of inflicting a heavy blow to the opponent.

    Benefiting from three years of extensive travel, Ai Hui knew quite a lot about the more reputable strong yers.

    He recognized this person.

    Shi Youguang became famous more than twenty years ago and was truly a capable earth elementalist.

    The old man¡¯s abilities shocked Ai Hui greatly. He had long felt that he was iprehensibly strong but did not expect him to be

    powerful. Shi Youguang¡¯s sand puppet waspletely destroyed by the old man and even Shi Youguang was badly injured.

    Ai Hui was secretly d that he did not try anything funny with that old man.

    But it seemed that the old man was injured as well. Shi Youguang¡¯s sand puppetunched a counterattack before dying and its strike was very sharp and powerful.

    Witnessing a battle between experts enlightened Ai Hui greatly. It was a great learning experience. The might of elemental externalization was thoroughly disyed by the two of them.

    Especially that direct control of heaven and earth elemental energy, which fueled them with abundant elemental energy and increased their endurance exponentially. Plus, they had a profound understanding of elemental energy and sometimes, weaker moves became outstandingly solid and powerful in their hands. It really opened up Ai Hui¡¯s horizons.

    Suddenly, he heard a knock on the door.

    He opened the door and He Lao said while carrying a pouch in his hand, "We¡¯re changing direction so you¡¯ll have to be on your own for theter part. This is a gift prepared by Madam. She¡¯s tired and won¡¯t be sending you off."

    The old man shoved the pouch into Ai Hui¡¯s hands.

    Ai Hui instantly knew what was going on. What gift? He was simply a bit of bait, asked to dig his own grave. No wonder he wasn¡¯t allowed to leave these past few days. It was to save him for this moment.

    A bitter struggle had just broken out in the day, and in the middle of the night a member leaves slyly with such an obvious pouch, evidently trying to escape.

    It wasn¡¯t clear how many pairs of eyes were secretly watching. Would he be able to escape?

    He had to run if he wanted to live. The faster he ran, the better he would be able to lure the elementalists away.

    Truly a cruel woman!

    Ai Hui did not expect to get himself into this situation just by boarding this vessel. But he knew that if he did not agree, he was going to perish in this room today.

    Looking at the old man¡¯s gloomy appearance, it seemed clear that his murderous instincts had been triggered.

    "Pay up," Ai Hui spoke suddenly.

    The old man was stunned. He had expected Chu Zhaoyang to either be in rage or be silent or even rebel. Asking for money was beyond his imagination.

    "I paid two thousand elemental energy points as part of the transport fare and now you¡¯re just going to tell me that I have to get off? Vition of the deal meanspensation. I¡¯m not being unreasonable, am I?"

    "How much elemental energy am I going to consume if I fly? Plus, the route is unsafe, what if I bump into a thief? How am I going to replenish myself with such a high consumption rate? What if I fall into the hands of the thieves? It would be a blow to the reputation of your enterprise."

    The old man stood by the door like a statue, stupefied.

    He turned around and left after a few seconds.

    Ai Hui abruptly retrieved a seemingly unimpressive stone from the pouch and channelled a wisp of elemental energy inside. The stone instantly lit up but the slight glimmer vanished quickly.

    Ai Hui stuffed the stone under his bed before returning to the door, standing motionlessly.

    Not long after, the old man returned and threw a bag of elemental energy beans towards Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui opened the pouch. It was filled with sparkling elemental energy beans. The silver colored light was mesmerizing and the rich metal elemental energy odor hit him in the face. Each bean was very plump, sparkling and translucent. It was of a decent quality, far beyond ordinary elemental energy beans. Ai Hui immediately understood that these were rare essence elemental beans.

    It contained even purer elemental energy and each bean costed more than five thousand elemental energy points, ten times more than an ordinary elemental energy bean.

    As if no one was around, Ai Hui started counting the number of beans. There was a hundred.

    "What a big move," he said suddenly without any ruthlessness since it was meaningless and not of any help in the current situation.

    He put the beans away properly, carried the pouch and walked to the cabin door.

    It was already open and the wild wind was whistling. It was pitch-dark outside but he did not stop or hesitate. He leaped forward.

    Ai Hui detected a few odors approaching him as soon as he made the leap. Without hesitation, he threw the pouch away.

    A few approaching ck shadows turned around immediately and dove for the pouch.

    Ai Hui did not utilize his azure wings yet but instead, allowed himself to drop. When he was about ten meters away from reaching the ground, the azure wings on his back spread open suddenly.

    The bright wings instantly became as dazzling as a torch. The powerful force resisted his downward momentum and slowed his body down before applying power.

    His whole body was like a sword of light, stuck to the ground and advancing violently.

    He had counted the number of beans not to estimate their worth but so as to give himself time to think of the possible scenarios that could happen and how he could deal with them upon exiting the vessel.

    He was very clear about how dangerous the situation that he was about to face was.

    As such, the first thing he did was to dispose of the bag. While this did not remove suspicion, it could attract the hidden enemies¡¯ attention, again giving him more time to react.

    Great Wei¡¯s caravan flew in the sky so their pursuers would, too, stay in the air. Relying on his legs would not get him to Fiery Floating Cloud.

    That being said, the number of enemies on the ground should be minimal.

    Ai Hui¡¯s series of responses had been observed by Madam Xiao and He Lao.

    "Chu Zhaoyang really has skills. He is able to adapt and is as sly as a fox." Madam Xiao eximed in admiration and couldn¡¯t help but sigh, "Not sure if what I¡¯ve calcted is right or wrong." If Chu Zhaoyang lived, enemies would flock to the enterprise.

    "Why me yourself, Madam?" He Lao responded before adding indifferently, "This guy is not bad indeed, but he¡¯s far from being able to be an enemy of the enterprise. An elementalist that has yet to attain elemental externalization is not a cause for worry, Madam. But, his azure wings aren¡¯t bad at all. They¡¯re speedy. Hopefully he¡¯d be able to help us attract more people."

    The stone Ai Hui left under his bed became brighter suddenly.

    He Lao felt its intense elemental energy wave move and his face changed. "Not good..."

    Boom!

    Ai Hui smiled upon seeing the sudden blossoming of splendid mes amid the darkness.

    That seemingly ordinary stone was an explosive created by Lou Lan from the blood crystal. It was rtively harmless to elementalists who had yet to attain elemental externalization, but was extremely suitable for destroying constructions or causing a stir.

    Items Lou Lan produced were always reliable.

    It wasn¡¯t that easy to deceive him!

    The caravan was in chaos. Countless guards ran out in session as a small half of the vessel had been blown off. Under He Lao¡¯s protection, Madam Xiao remained uninjured. But she looked on at the mess before her, at the remains of her tearoom and at the night sky, her face turning ashen.

    This ball of me was simply too eye-catching. Plus, it was Auspicious that had been blown up. Most of the hiding elementalists were attracted by the sight before them.

    By now, Ai Hui was already miles away.

    The instant the me blossomed, the dazzling azure wings on his back turned pitch-ck suddenly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s silhouette merged into the darkness.

    Looking down from the sky, one could see the silver sword light advancing close to the ground and disappearing suddenly.

    He Lao was simrly ashen-faced.

    He did not expect to be blindsided by Chu Zhaoyang. Thetter¡¯s words were like a p to his face. It stung.

    He turned around and red at that violent silver light.

    "This damned bastard!"

    These words escaped through the gaps between his clenched teeth.

    As he finished, that pencil-straight light vanished into thin air.

    The old man¡¯s face was filled with malevolence as it froze up suddenly.

    Without any signs at all, that silver light disappeared into the dark.

    All of a sudden, he recalled his mistress¡¯s words. Sly as a fox. He felt that it was greatly true at this point. He smelt a whiff of an indiscernible odor and was startled. He shouted in a stern voice, "Protect Madam!"

    Losing Auspicious instantly changed their situation for the worse.

    Ineffably, a tinge of remorse surfaced in his chest. But there was no time for regrets. A fierce battle ensued.

 Chapter 284: Ambush

    Chapter 284: Ambush

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui concealed the light of his azure wings. The initial whistling of the wind stopped abruptly and the surging force of the wings soften and calmed down. Not only that, he was like a snake, constantly changing his direction and advancing in a haphazard manner.

    The faraway, dazzling light behind him would asionally illuminated his silhouette but he never once looked back.

    He no longer cared if the Great Wei¡¯s caravan lived or died.

    He was already unlucky enough to get tangled in such trivial matters. It was simply a waste of his precious time to continue getting involved with the other party. He had things on hand and had no energy to waste on this.

    Whether or not the Great Wei¡¯s caravan could survive, it would depend on their luck.

    Thinking about the elemental energy beans in his possession, Ai Hui felt that he had gained a little after all.

    Unknowingly, he had already flown a few hundred miles. In order to get rid of his pursuers, he had deliberately altered his route as he felt like it. He wasn¡¯t familiar with the route anyway so it did not matter where he went.

    A thread of light had already started emerging in the sky.

    He flew on for most of the night, which felt like an extremely long time. Even Ai Hui felt rather tired and his speed had declined quite a bit. Nevertheless, his vision was clear as day.

    Flying close to the ground, about seven, eight meters away, easily allowing him to hide between the rocks and forest.

    Seeing a small slope in front, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. He flew up and when he reached the top, he saw a rock.

    This is an ideal ambush location.

    He flew to the bottom of the rock, took off his clothes quickly, wrapped it around a stone slightly smaller than him, and ced it under the rock.

    He then flew away from the rock to a nearby tree. The thick treetop concealed him thoroughly.

    He grabbed the broadsword tightly and tossed an elemental energy bean into his mouth. Essence elemental beans contained exceptionally pure elemental energy, and the best way to consume it was to absorb and refine it slowly. Using it the way Ai Hui was doing now is a waste of valuable resource since he would only be able to utilize less than ten percent of its essence.

    But Ai Hui¡¯s did not seem sorry. He felt a wisp of pure elemental energy circting within his body and felt refreshed immediately. Sure enough, this deserved to be called the essence elemental bean. It was said that elementalists who had attained elemental externalization would directly produce essence elemental beans when they had no money. It was this easy for high level elementalists to earn money.

    It was his first time "abusing" an essence elemental bean like this. The result was exceptionally good.

    The strand of pure element within his body, released by the elemental energy bean, was congealed and gluey like mercury. When it circted, his five residences and eight pces were rejuvenated. It was inexpressiblyfortable and his fatigue vanished

    He crouched on the tree trunk, his eyes drooping low. His broadsword hung down, its tip pointing toward the ground. His breath was nearly undetectable, his body not moving a single jot. He was like a seasoned hunter, patiently awaiting the appearance of his prey.

    There was a brief instant, when he was on the run, where he captured a wisp of extremely weak wave of motion.

    This wisp of undtion was very faint and passed in a sh but it was as if Ai Hui had met a big enemy. He pretended not to sense it and continued on , changing directions non-stop. Even after flying unceasingly for a long time, he wasn¡¯t sure if he had managed to ditch the other party.

    Ai Hui knew he had crossed paths with a troublesome opponent.

    As he was advancing forward, he was searching for a solution. His eyes lit up when he saw the slope, in particrly the terrain behind it .

    Ai Hui waited for a whole ten minutes and when he captured a wisp of odor, he knew that prudence had saved his life once again.

    He remained highly focused, waiting for the right opportunity.

    Their locations changed constantly. The prey became the hunter, but the hunter was oblivious to this fact. Having flown for such a long time, both werergely exhausted and since the pursuer had to identify the target¡¯s direction , their energy consumption was even greater.

    Through the thick tree crown, Ai Hui finally saw his pursuer. Although it was blurry, that face startled him. Shi Youguang. He thought that Shi Youguang, who had been badly injured by that old man, was already far away. He did not expect him to be so persistent.

    He didn¡¯t know what it was that Great Wei had in possession for Shi Youguang to be so determined, not giving up despite his severe injuries.

    In fear of being detected, Ai Hui squinted his eyes, leaving only two slits open.

    Shi Youguang looked extremely tired and his movements were evidently much slower than before he was injured. His injuries must have been very serious. On second thought, if Shi Youguang didn¡¯t get hurt, he wouldn¡¯t have chased after him. Ai Hui knew very well that if he were to face unwounded Shi Youguang, there was no way he could win.

    Shi Youguang flew up the slope and immediately saw the perfectly positioned rock.

    That was the ideal ambush spot.

    That fellow wouldn¡¯t beying in ambush, waiting to take me down right?

    Shi Youguang was being cautious. The chase made it clear that the fellow was very sly and had lots of tricks up his sleeves. He had merely attained elemental internalization, but managed to get him, a strong elementalist that had attained elemental externalization, all tired. There had been a few times where he almost lost sight of the fellow as well.

    It would¡¯ve been too embarrassing if that did happen.

    Luckily that fellow was of a lower realm and wasn¡¯t as capable. Otherwise, Shi Youguang would¡¯ve turned around.

    Shi Youguang knew well that with his injuries, it was already impossible to profit from the puppeteer-like Great Wei Enterprise. If he was just a little careless, his life would be jeopardized. But he had already invested so much and even got hurt so it would be a massive loss if he were to give up now.

    Shi Youguang had nned to take down a lone-moving, injured elementalist to recuperate his losses.

    He then saw Ai Hui jumping out of the Fiery Floating Cloud, but did not take action since there were quite a few fearful yers who made a move. Who knew, that guy was iparably sly and disappeared in a sh.

    Shi Youguang then made his move quietly. Few knew that he was good at chasing and those who knew were already dead. It was rare for earth elementalists to be good pursuers but Shi Youguang had the skills to differentiate the changes in the ground elemental energy.

    Ground elemental energy was like a calmke, and when an elementalist hovered over, ripples formed on the water surface. To others, these ripples were disordered but to Shi Youguang, they were information.

    The earth elemental energy on the ground looked very messy but many ripples made it clear to him that his target had flown straight to where the rock was.

    Shi Youguang was good at ambush to begin with, so he could tell right away that where the rock was, was the perfect spot.

    His opponent had detected him.

    Shi Youguang was somewhat surprised but quickly calmed down. His target¡¯s cunningness exceeded every single elementalist he had met before. It shouldn¡¯t be strange even if that fellow managed to detect him.

    But if that was all to that fellow¡¯s abilities, so what if he knew where he was?

    Trying toy an ambush? How naive!

    A mocking smile appeared on his face as he advanced confidently toward the rock. While his elemental energy had been greatly exhausted, he knew his opponent¡¯s was too.

    Even though his condition wasn¡¯t good, he did not feel pressured since he was dealing with a worn out, elemental externalized elementalist. The disparity in realm is not easilypensatable.

    There was still no movement behind the rock. Howposed.

    Admiration shed across his face. To be honest, while his target wasn¡¯t considered very strong, his abilities in other aspects were actually umonly outstanding.

    Cunning, shockingly calm, and collected.

    If his target had been slightly stronger, Shi Youguang would¡¯ve aborted his mission.

    But now, the admiration in his eyes turned into ruthlessness. Die!

    Where the rock was, a bottomless pit appeared suddenly as the surrounding soil seemed toe alive. Mud vines appeared above the pit to form a big cage, covering the pit.

    Ai Hui went for it the moment Shi Youguang made a move.

    He was like a noiseless bat, diving down for Shi Youguang from the treetop.

    When the mud vines above the pit took shape, Ai Hui was already less than thirty meters away from Shi Youguang!

    Shi Youguang suddenly realized what was going on and his face changedpletely. He had been tricked!

    The rock was just a diversion!

    His target¡¯s shrewdness turned his body cold, but for him to be this reputable, Shi Youguang had experienced countless battles. While his situation was precarious, he knew that the thought of escaping would undermine his will and allow his opponent to take advantage of it.

    There was a subtle aura around the battle between strong yers.

    Once his state of mind swayed, his abilities would be affected greatly. Coupled with the fact that he was injured, he would undoubtedly die.

    His only chance of survival was to meet his target face on!

    Whatever trap became useless since it boiled down to abilities.

    Shi Youguang was shook, as if he was apletely different person. His whole body oozed ferocity. Instead of retreating, he suddenly pounced on Ai Hui, his body transforming into a clump of quicksand in midair.

    A head seemed to be floating atop a pool of quicksand.

    And on Ai Hui¡¯s back, a sharp earth spear was raised, just like how a poisonous snake raised its head in the darkness, ready to deal a fatal blow.

    They were less than fifteen meters away from each other.

    Shi Youguang couldn¡¯t help but was slightly distracted by his target¡¯s eyes. Those eyes were cold, still, and without the least bit of panic and helplessness.

    Not good!

    Shi Youguang¡¯s heart sank a little as a bad feeling rose within his chest. Before he could react, a ring silver light exploded right before his eyes.

    This ball of light was so dazzling that he lost his sight right there and then. Everything was white.

    Ai Hui channelled nearly half of the elemental energy within his body into the Starry Gem Swordwing and it exploded with an extremely splendid silvery light!

    They were too close and the silver light appeared too suddenly, effectively striking Shi Youguang, who was unprepared.

    Amid the ring light, a bright yet non-conspicuous and silent sword light emerged.

    The broadsword was soft and easy, making a sh across Shi Youguang¡¯s neck.

    The head floated up lightly and unhurriedly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy had been maxed out and as he was descending, his legs softened and he almost kneeled on the ground. The battle was short but Ai Hui had put all his wisdom and skills to use.

    His body was empty but the moment he touched the ground, he dashed over to Shi Youguang. Within thirty seconds, Ai Hui had already imed all the loot.

    He wasn¡¯t out of practice!

    Ai Hui swept all the spoils of war and flew away speedily.

    The silver light from before was simply too dazzling and could¡¯ve very possibly attracted other elementalists¡¯ attention.

 Chapter 285: Panicked State

    Chapter 285: Panicked State

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Not even ten minutes after Ai Hui left, two lightflows broke through the sky as two silhouettes, one male and one female,nded on the ground.

    The man was tall and handsome, his eyes exceptionally clear and bright. He held a longsword and his gestures were graceful but fear-evoking.

    "Shi Youguang!"

    Shock was evident in thedy¡¯s voice as she realized that the head on the ground belonged to Shi Youguang. His expression was sinister and his eyes were wide open, a clear sign that he died with a remaining grievance.

    The man squatted to inspect Shi Youguang¡¯s head. The sh was cleanly done and there was no signs of sloppiness. Looking at the headless corpse not far away, the man imagined the fight scenario in his head and his expression turned grave. "Outstanding swordy!"

    Thedy asked curiously, "Perhaps one of your people? A swordsman from Karakorum?"

    The man shook his head. "I heard that the thief is called Chu Zhaoyang. Not one of us. But we did observe him. His skills are pretty good, just that he has a low base level and has yet to attain elemental externalization. Looks like he¡¯s actually much more powerful than we first thought."

    Karakorum always had much interest in swordsmen who somewhat famous.

    The man continued, "I had thought initially that Great Wei¡¯s words were a diversion tactic but seeing Shi Youguang¡¯s corpse now, I¡¯m quite convinced."

    Thedy asked in shock, "Don¡¯t tell me you too, believe Great Wei¡¯s excuse?"

    "It¡¯s a fact that Chu Zhaoyang managed to defeat Shi Youguang, so he¡¯s really not as simple as we thought. He has some hidden abilities. Moreover, he has a lot of wisdom. There¡¯s no way Great Wei would destroy Auspicious, which means that explosion was Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s doing."

    "Is he really that powerful?" Thedy asked in disbelief.

    "Judging from his head and body, that fatal sh easily snapped Shi Youguang¡¯s neck. His head did not receive a big impact since it did not float far. It is extremely challenging to execute such a heavy blow in a light manner during a frontal confrontation."

    The man then flipped Shi Youguang¡¯s corpse over. His sword mastery was excellent and he could naturally tell that the perpetrator had an outstanding level of skills.

    Shi Youguang¡¯s body waspletely naked and thedy turned her head in revulsion.

    "Shi Youguang is not a simple fellow as well. Look at his corpse. A third of it had be sand."

    The man reached his hand out to press on Shi Youguang¡¯s skin and a portion of quicksand emerged. It was a strange sight. A few minutes after dying, the elemental energy within a body undergoing sandification would gradually dissipate and the area of sandification would transform into quicksand.

    "He actually transfigured his own body?" The girl¡¯s voice became louder suddenly, her face full of fear.

    Body modification was taboo yet by no means extinct.

    Essentially, elementalists¡¯ training was an energization process which deepened the elemental energy within their bodies. The faster the energization, the greater the elemental energy storage, which meant a better mobilization of the heaven and earth elemental energy.

    At the beginning, body modification was used to help disabled elementalists. Its effectiveness then became apparent since not only did the elementalists¡¯ abilities not decline, they actually became more powerful.

    Elementalists who transfigured their bodies could garner tremendous force in a short period of time and their initial training speed far exceeded that of the average elementalists. Some extremists began to use pure ingredients to modify their bodies in order to expedite the energization process.

    For a period of time, it was fashionable to have had one body modification done.

    But as the number of body modifying elementalists increased, malpractice and abuse set in.

    No matter how exquisite the ingredients¡¯ grade was, they were ultimately man-made. The human body was rather amazing. With further developments, the foreign, man-made matter started getting rejected more apparently by the human bodies.

    The fatal part was that such repulsion would affect one¡¯s intelligence and temperament. Many elementalist who had undergone modifications started acting strange and irritable, and started developing a liking for ughter. Within a short period of time, many cases of violence by transfigured elementalists shocked the whole Avalon of Five Elements. Eventually, the Elders Guild personally ordered the Thirteen Divisions to hunt and take down those transfigured elementalists.

    From then on, transfigured elementalists were regarded as taboo and whoever followed their path would be killed.

    Hence, thedy was seriously in shock when she realized Shi Youguang was actually a transfigured elementalist.

    The man wasn¡¯t surprised by her reaction. Instead, he nodded, "And that¡¯s why I said Chu Zhaoyang isn¡¯t simple."

    Thedy was now convinced. Transfigured elementalists were much stronger than normal ones and their survival means were weirder as well. Chu Zhaoyang must not be weak if he managed to take down a transfigured elementalist.

    "Then let¡¯s head to Magic Cloud City?" Thedy asked.

    The man shook his head. "No, let¡¯s keep our eyes on Great Wei Enterprise."

    He muttered to himself, eyes flickering with wisdom and quick-wittedness. "There¡¯s something suspicious here. If Chu Zhaoyang was a thief trying to blend into the Great Wei¡¯s caravan and finally defeated Shi Youguang down upon crossing paths when he was trying to escape, his first reaction should be to flee far away as opposed to loot. Of course, it¡¯s possible that he¡¯s a money grubber but chances are low. Such a wise and crafty person should be able to control his emotions well. I¡¯m starting to doubt Great Wei."

    He raised his head and revealed a confidence smile. "Let¡¯s watch. If the item is in Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s hand, they would definitely find a way to get it back. That will help us locate him as well. If they were lying, they would find ways to leave."

    Thedy said sweetly, "I¡¯ll listen to you!"

    Ai Hui had been flying non-stop and as fast as lightning for a whole day and night, changing directions a few times midway. When he was certain that no one was following behind, he stopped by an empty valley to rest.

    He could feel his whole body falling apart.

    After descending, he found an isted corner before popping another elemental energy bean into his mouth to drive his elemental energy for the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    That short fight had engaged all his wisdom, experience and, perseverance and strength such that he almost copsed from exhaustion during that moment of victory. However he dared not stay long and quickly fled all the way here like a stray dog.

    A stray dog was a stray dog. He had no poise but surviving was more important.

    To fly a day and night straight in that worn out state, Ai Hui had beenpletely relying on his excellent willpower. But he had already reached his limit. These past three years, he had been involved in many battles of different scales but he never allowed himself to fall into such a pitiable state.

    The pure essence of elemental energy was like gluey mercury, circting within his body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was like dried up mud, which tirelessly and diligently absorbed moisture from the rain.

    He seemed to have lost consciousness. It was his instinct driving the Circtory Cycle Revolution. One after another revolution transformed the pure elemental energy into wisps that entered his five residences and eight pces, and his limbs and bones. They were being absorbed by the flesh and Ai Hui¡¯s withered body began to sprout and flourish once again.

    An unknown number of revolutionster, the wisps of elemental energy steadily seeped out from every corner of Ai Hui¡¯s body to rejoin the Circtory Cycle Revolution. Following it, they gradually turned into elemental energy sword pills, which were unique to Ai Hui.

    When Ai Hui woke up, he felt as though his whole body had been cleansed. It felt indescribably empty and pure.

    When he checked the elemental energy within his body, the elemental energy sword pills made clear, crisp sounds and the odor became abnormally introverted. If the pills from the past were somewhat thorny, the pills now were perfectly round and smooth without any sharpness.

    There was vigor within his body. His whole person became exceptionally clear and pure.

    It was his first time experiencing something like this.

    Just then, Ai Hui¡¯s body jolted and his mind rumbled, as if a big gate had been opened within.

    He seemed to have seen countless silvery light pouring out like a flood from Silver Mist River, drowning him in an instant as his mind went nk.

    All of a sudden, the area between his brows lit up and a silver whirlpool gradually took shape. Elemental energy from the his surroundings came pouring into the whirlpool from all directions.

    The elemental energy first entered and filled the sky pce, so much that Ai Hui¡¯s brain felt overfed and was about to explode.

    Ai Hui¡¯s remaining thread of consciousness told him that the most important thing to do now was to start the Circtory Cycle Revolution!

    Following the Circtory Cycle Revolution, the congested sky pce finally found an opening for drainage.

    The influx of elemental energy was simply too high, causing Ai Hui¡¯s circtory cycle revolution to lose control.

    A huge volume of elemental energy was like a havoc-wrecking deluge, destroying everything in its path and flooding whatever possible openings and crevices. The speed of the Circtory Cycle Revolution far exceeded what was usual.

    A ck, fishy-smelling matter started seeping out of Ai Hui¡¯s skin. This continued for a period of time before the ck substance gradually faded.

    By now, Ai Hui had already recovered his spirits and could feel the elemental energy within his body filling up. The absorption of elemental energy by his sky pce had also slowed down quite a bit and the whirlpool between his brows started to shrink.

    Once the whirlpool between his brows closed uppletely, he would attain elemental externalization!

    Just then, the blood plum blossom in Ai Hui¡¯s chest lit up with a devilish bloody glow and started wildly sucking in elemental energy. The circting elemental energy, which had practicallye to a stop, began operating once again and the whirlpool between his brows, which had started to close up, stopped shrinking.

    The sudden change of events caught Ai Hui off guard.

    The blood plum blossom was like a bottomless pit, greedily and incessantly swallowing elemental energy. The elemental energy within his body started operating quicker and quicker. What frightened Ai Hui more was the fact that the elemental energy whirlpool between his brows had actually started to erge.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body had already been cleansed by the elemental energy and if the energy continued pouring in, his body would gradually copse andbust under the powerful current.

    Overdoing was as bad as insufficiency.

    The surrounding elemental energy formed a halo around Ai Hui and elemental energy within a radius of about two miles gushed wildly toward the valley. An underground metal vein of ore exuded silk threads of silvery light, which seeped out towards Ai Hui, who was above ground.

    Ai Hui tried all sorts of ways but the current within his body did not slow down and the blood plum blossom wasn¡¯t affected all as it continued absorbing the elemental energy avariciously.

    What oozed out from Ai Hui¡¯s skin was no longer that ck, fishy-smelling matter but drops of fresh blood. In the blink of an eye, Ai Hui looked as if he was covered in blood .

    Ai Hui¡¯s skin started to crack as silvery light seeped out. It looked exceptionally scary.

    Just then, the all along quiet bandage seemed to have smelled the odor of a prey.

    It moved.

 Chapter 286: Woman in Red, She Yu

    Chapter 286: Woman in Red, She Yu

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The blood-colored eye on the bandage lighted up slightly and looked alive. It seemed as though there was a pair of invisible hands untying the knot around Ai Hui¡¯s wrist.

    Sha sha sha was the sound made by the bandage rubbing against the shirt. The bandage was like an agile snake, coiling around Ai Hui body as it moved.

    Its tip started to tremble slightly like a snake that sniffed around constantly.

    It quickly appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s chest. The blood plum blossom must have swallowed up a significant amount of elemental energy for it to look this plump and tender. Its petals reached out, as if it was going to peel off from Ai Hui¡¯s chest.

    The bandage shot out like a white, sharp sword, and entered the heart of the blood plum blossom suddenly.

    The flower trembled, as if breaking free, but was unable to no matter how hard it tried.

    A fine wisp of blood thread extended along the bandage and entered the blood eye .

    The blood eye¡¯s light brightened significantly. The initial blurry and stiff eye now burst with life and carried a different kind of grace.

    The flower¡¯s extended petal withdrew into Ai Hui¡¯s body again. It¡¯s once tender, beautiful and lifelike appearance withered and dulled, bing a dark red color.

    The light cracks on Ai Hui¡¯s body faded quickly and eventually vanished.

    The light whirlpool between his brows shrunk rapidly until it closed up as well.

    At this point, the blood bandage was full and satisfied. It withdrew from the blood plum blossom and returned to its original position, knotting itself up around Ai Hui¡¯s wrist.

    Jadeite City was located at the core of Jadeite Forest and was the biggest city. Ever since Jadeite Forest was established, instead of falling into a slump, this area became livier. Everything went well and business within Jadeite Forest flourished. The families involved in its establishment recovered from their initial worry and became highly confident.

    Power, status and so on were easily attainable for these core families.

    Quan family was one of the mightiest families in the whole of Jadeite Forest.

    There were three main supreme families.

    The most reputable and unsurpassable n would be the Duanmu household.

    Duanmu household was the most well-known family within Avalon of Five Elements and possessed a lot of inside information. Furthermore, Duanmu Huanghun was Dai Gang¡¯s disciple. Jadeite Forest never would¡¯ve been possible without Duanmu household¡¯s support.

    Other than the Duanmu family, there were two otherparable families and one of them was Lu family. Lu family used to be pretty influential in the past but still not as much as Duanmu family. Now, with the chance to contribute to the establishment of Jadeite Forest, Lu family made a great leapt and became one of the most supreme families.

    Like Duanmu family, Lu family had a disciple under a Grandmaster. Not only was Lu Chen Dai Gang¡¯s disciple, he was the first disciple. Even Duanmu Huanghun had to address him as Senior when they meet.

    Able to squeeze its way into the top ranking families without Duanmu Household¡¯s inside information, Lu family had not only Lu Chen to thank but also Lu Feng. That year where Deathgrass¡¯s division¡¯s leader Zheng Yuanhong refused to surrender, the whole division underwent a blood purge. Thereafter, Yu Mingqiu left his vige and Deathgrass Division fell into a downward spiral.

    At the time of cmity, Lu Feng undertook the role of leading Deathgrass Division.

    It was this appointment which people were not optimistic about but the results were extraordinary favorable. Lu Feng was outspoken, straightforward and loyal. Within a short period of time, he managed to reorganize and transform the atmosphere of the division, tidying up the previous ruins.

    Other than Duanmu and Lu family, there was yet another family that stood at the peak of the food chain ¨C Quan family.

    If one were to say that Duanmu family set Jadeite Forest in ce and Lu family took the opportunity to drive their influence, then Quan family bore the first evildoer. The Deep Sea Enterprise, created by Quan family, was the biggest underground organization that had everymodity under the sun.

    Although Quan family was wealthy, they had no power and did not bear any top-notch fighter. Since ancient times, merchants were theckeys of tyrannical aristocratic families. They had plenty of money but were without status.

    The head of Quan family, Quan Weide had his own interpretation of the situation and initiated a provocation regarding the establishment of Jadeite Forest. And in order to gain the approval of Duanmu family, Lu family and Grandmaster Dai Gang, Quan Weide spontaneously offered Deep Sea Enterprise.

    The merchants of Jadeite Forest ridiculed Quan Weide¡¯s action and felt that he was simply being silly. Handing over his own chamber ofmerce was like trying to draw water with a wicker basket. The greedy families would definitely take thorough advantage of him and reduce him to nothingness.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that not only did Quan Weidie not get swallowed up, a few big families joined hands to enter Deep Sea Enterprise. They invested arge amount of money and manpower to expand it.

    From then on, the trading world also became Jadeite Forest¡¯s national policy.

    More importantly, Quan Weide was Deep Sea Enterprise¡¯s authority figure. Just like Lu family, Quan family shot their way up to be one of the most reputable families that carried the money bag of Jadeite Forest. Even Dai Gang encouraged him to do a proper job and Quan Weide did not disappoint. Under his leadership, Deep Sea made astonishing gains, filling the big families¡¯ pockets with money and so, they were especially courteous to Quan family as well.

    It¡¯d been said recently that Dai Gang might be taking in an unofficial disciple from Quan Family. This was buzzing news that drew many visitors to the household.

    Quan residence was filled with visitors tonight as well. The wine and food were intoxicating and the lights were bright and splendid, as if it was day time. More than half of Jadeite Forest¡¯s most important figures were here and their usual stern faces were reced by cheeriness. asionally they raised their sses to celebrate and enjoy this moment of recklessness and tipsiness. Many hoped to mingle with familiar-looking people, going forward to start chats.

    And beyond the high perimeter walls, so many people were racking their brains trying to get in.

    Quan family feasts were usually well-known since Quan Weide enjoyedvish fun and many other fresh things. Over time, the family also became a ce for many children from influential families to hang out. They held an astonishing record of hosting a party for over two hundred days straight.

    Tonight¡¯s feast was exceptionally grand. Quan family had spent many days preparing for this.

    When ady in red appeared, the whole household quietened down. That beautiful and tender face had already gotten the gentlemen holding their breaths.

    Her blooming red clothes floated gracefully like smoke, carrying a tinge ofnguidness and charm. It was as if there was a pair of invisible hands that grabbed everyone¡¯s hearts.

    Quan Minglong, who stood beside her, was looking at this goddess-likedy passionately as well.

    Thedy in red smiled sweeting, instantly brightening up the whole hall.

    Quan Minglong¡¯s heart was beating so fast, as if a voice was booming inside. He must have her! No matter what, he must have her!

    This voice was raging within his chest like a fierce storm. Quan Minglong radiated a whole new kind of vigor as he¡¯d just found the biggest desire of his life.

    Thedy in red was unaware of how the gentleman beside her was feeling but she wouldn¡¯t care even if she did. She did not have time to care since so many men were interested in her any way.

    She handled the scene skillfully, giving the right amount of smile, words and charm.

    Everyone who met her couldn¡¯t help but admire and praise her inwardly. The emergence of Blood of God was indeed not a fluke.

    Thedy in red, She Yu, was indeed out of the ordinary.

    She Yu was sent by Blood of God on a diplomatic mission. She had heard that Duanmu Huanghun was of a marriageable age and Blood of God hoped to build ties with Jadeite Forest through marriage.

    Quan Minglong was somewhat jealous. If he was Duanmu Huanghun, he would immediately ept the proposal. Thinking about how the host was still indulging in fun while here he was burning inside, Quan Minglong¡¯s spirits fell instantly.

    Everything will change once he became Dai Gang¡¯s disciple!

    "By sending such a beautiful angel like yourself on a mission, God Nation is just trying to get poach Jadeite Forest¡¯s best talent over to Blood of God!"

    A steady and grave voice sounded and others started muttering in low voices. Guests who stood beside the old man immediately moved aside to make space for him. A rather stout middle-aged man went forward slowly. He was an authority figure of Jadeite Forest, Gong Wenyou.

    Quan Minglong quickly bowed. "Uncle You!"

    "You¡¯re here too, Minglong." Gong Wenyou said as he gave Quan Minglong¡¯s shoulder a pat.

    She Yu blinked her eyes. "Mister Duanmu and I have had the chance of meeting. I really hope you¡¯re right, Sir. That way, Mister Duanmu will not treat me so harshly."

    Her words shocked everyone present. Gong Wenyou was rather surprised as well. "Could it be that Miss She Yu and Duanmu had a conflict?"

    She Yu smiled yfully. "There was a time when I happened to be near Central Pine City."

    Everyone suddenly understood and momentarily, there was an awkward silence.

    The blood disaster in Induction Ground was a taboo topic within Jadeite Forest. The peaceful rtionship between Jadeite Forest and Blood of God caused much controversy within Jadeite Forest since many sons from Jadeite Forest families had lost their lives in the blood disaster.

    While both aligned with each other for mutual benefits, the hatred did not disappear.

    Gong Wenyou knew as well that this topic was not discussable and so he simplyughed it off. "You youngsters go ahead and get close to one another. There¡¯s no need to care about us old fellows. Minglong, I¡¯ll leave Miss She Yu to you. I¡¯ll hold you responsible if anything goes badly!"

    Quan Minglong was overjoyed. "Yes!"

    She Yu smiled as she gave Gong Wenyou a respectful bow before following Quan Minglong to join the gentlemen from respective families. The youngdies present observed She Yu curiously, whereas the young masters acted restlessly as if they¡¯d been injected with chicken blood.

    She Yu casually yed along with her perfect smile.

    Suddenly, her heart trembled as a peculiar sensation hit her arm.

    She remainedposed as she casually ced her left hand over her left arm. Over her clothes, she could clearly feel the blood plum blossom on her arm emerging from her skin, as if it was floating up to the water surface.

    She got distracted momentarily. The many things that happened three years ago and the frightening images surfaced within her mind. For three years it seemed that Ai Hui had vanished from this earth and she had practically forgotten about this.

    Who would¡¯ve expected the flower to bloom only after three years.

    At that time when she was shaken by Ai Hui, she picked an opportune moment to nt a seed. Now that the seed was actually about to mature, she was somewhat surprised butrgely pleased.

    The seed took less than three years to mature, a sign that Ai Hui had outstanding innate skills. But it also proved that her foresight was urate. Then, she had ced heavy faith on Ai Hui and had to pay a high price for it.

    It was all worth it.

    The long destroyed secret technique reappeared in her hands. If this news was to spread, it would definitely cause a huge sensation.

    She Yu was excited, her eyes bright and clear.

    Suddenly, a voice rang.

    "Did Miss She Yu encounter something happy? Care to share?"

 Chapter 287: What Happened?

    Chapter 287: What Happened?

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Quan Minglong¡¯s words caught everyone¡¯s attention.

    A smile appeared on She Yu¡¯s face. "I feel really happy to meet everyone."

    The smile on her face was genuine and her gorgeous eyes were glittering. Her absolutely ravishing face was brimming with sincerity, making everyone believed that she meant her words without the slightest doubt.

    However, at this point of time, she was actually cing all her attention on the blood plum blossom on her arm. She could clearly feel the petals of the blood plum blossom extending outwards. The petals were already protruding halfway out of her arm. Once the plum blossom was fully protruded from her skin, it would fall off her arm.

    No one knew how excited she was deep down.

    Once the plum blossom fell off, it would be an exceptional priceless treasure in the whole of Nation of God. It would be a supreme elixir that everyone yearned for.

    Once she swallowed the plum blossom, she could effortlessly rise through the premier ranks in the Nation of God.

    Right now, what she needed to do the most was not to attract any attention to herself. For any blood elementalist, this plum blossom was an irreceable priceless treasure that could directly raise his or her base level significantly.

    If the High Priest was to know of its existence, even he himself would covet after it.

    In the past, she used to despise and disdain people looking at her with such burning envy. However, at this moment, she was extremely pleased by these gazes.

    Was there better cover than hiding among these people? If those old foxes were around, she would have let the cat of the bag. The rest of the diplomatic mission were at least twenty metres away from her, it would be impossible for them to sense it.

    The smile on her face became increasingly alluring

    Quan Minglong could not help but feel overjoyed and smiled, "It seems that Miss She Yu gets along with us quite well."

    At this point of time, even fools could tell that Quan Minglong was very interested in She Yu.

    "Has anyone realized that when Miss She Yu and Mr Quan stand together, her radiating beauty and his imposing dignityplement each other really well? Sigh, there¡¯s really too much pressure standing beside these two individuals. It¡¯s okay if we lose out to them in terms of capabilities. However, right now, even our looks lose out to them. Someone please help us!"

    A person in the crowd shook his head and sighed, putting on a self-pity look on his face.

    Quan Minglong was delight as an aloof smile appeared on his face. Why didn¡¯t he find this guy so pleasing to the eye in the past?

    "Can we even bepared to Brother Minglong? He is the first young master of the Quan family!"

    The surrounding people started flooding the Quan Minglong with tters. The Quan family was powerful and influential. As the first young master of the Quan family, Quan Minglong was always highly ttered wherever he went.

    Quan Minglong was born in a family of merchants. His father had enforced strict discipline on him since he was young, and as such, he was not tainted by bad business ethics. His father also knew that if one did not have any fighting capabilities, he or she would not survive and excel in an era of killing and bloodshed. Since the day Quan Minglong was born, he had disyed extraordinary talents and had be the main focus of the Quan family to nurture and groom.

    As a child, Quan Minglong trained diligently everyday. Even though Quan family was well-known for its extravagance, Quan Minglong was not fond of indulging himself in such habit.

    Usually, those who wanted to bootlick Quan Minglong to win his favor were not able to seed as Quan Minglong did not endorse such behaviour. However, today Quan Minglong seemed to be a changed man. Apparently, he was very happy and was beaming with joy. Thus, everyone started to flood him with tters.

    She Yu, who had been smiling brightly on the surface, suddenly felt a shiver went down her spine. The blood plum blossom that was emerging from her arm had stopped in its tracks!

    What happened?

    Before she could find out what had happened, the blood plum blossom began to sink back into her arm.

    She became anxious instantly.

    What was going on? What exactly had happened?

    The blood plum blossom did not hear the the cries in her heart and continued to sink back into her arm. The speed at which it was sinking was much faster than usual as well.

    She Yu had never panicked like this before. The exceptional priceless treasure that she was about to get her hands on was disappearing right under her nose. Her mind went into a nk and she was stunned.

    Even though she was surrounded by a morous crowd now, like a bright moon that was surrounded by a myriad of stars, she felt as if she was in a boundless wilderness, lonely and isted. The feeling of losing something she just obtained felt so terrible. The turn of events was so devastating that she thought how ridiculous it was for her to feel so happy and excited just now.

    Disappointment engulfed her like a ck hole, leaving her isted and helpless.

    Quan Minglong noticed the smile on She Yu¡¯s face had disappeared and she looked slightly pale. He was preparing to ask her what had happened.

    "In a few months¡¯ time, Brother Minglong is going to be Master Dai¡¯s disciple. Come on,e on, let us congratte Brother Minglong beforehand."

    She Yu¡¯s body turned cold. The blood plum blossom hadpletely sunk back into her arm. Her arm became smooth once again and her face had turned deathly white. She was being yed by fate.

    She felt extremely terrible.

    It just so happened that she heard someone was talking about congratting Quan Minglong and her patience in putting up with everyone copsed instantly. She coldly snorted,

    "Disciple-in-name? If my memory serves me right, Duanmu Huanghun is thest official disciple of Dai Gang?"

    A dead silence swept across her surroundings. Everyone widened their eyes and stared shockingly at She Yu.

    Quan Minglong¡¯s face turned ashen.

    At this moment, She Yu also realized she had said something wrong. However, she was toozy to exin as she did not care about these people at all.

    With a cold and indifferent look on her face, she bowed and bade everyone farewell, "I¡¯m sorry, I feel unwell and I have to leave in advance."

    After finishing her sentence, She Yu turned and left the ce without bothering about anyone.

    .....

    A valley in the wild.

    Ai Hui woke up and opened his eyes unhurriedly. At the instance when he opened his eyes, he was stunned. There were numerous glowing wisps floating before his eyes, resembling a veil of mist.

    These glowing wisps were elemental energy.

    Traces of wood elemental energy were emitting from the nts and trees around him. The closer one got to the ground, the stronger the earth elemental energy he or she could feel. In the midst of the earth elemental energy, one could also see speckles of silvery light. Those were the metal elemental energy from the ore veins under the ground. The water elemental energy in the sky was flowing with the moving clouds. asionally, one could see a few faint traces of water elemental energy lingering in the valley. The naked boulders that made up the mountain peak was emitting a red glow. That was the fire elemental energy. That must be the fire elemental energy that was left over from theva that formed the boulders in the ancient past.

    The morning sunshine scattered fire elemental energy all over the valley. The fire elemental energy was faint but its range was extremely wide. It also contained a trace of wood elemental energy.

    The whole world was vivid, animated and full of vitality.

    Elemental externalization!

    He had attained elemental externalization!

    Ai Hui was overjoyed. A wide grin spread across his face. Eventually, he was grinning foolishly to himself.

    Then, he suddenly remembered that the blood plum blossom almost killed him when he was about to achieve a breakthrough. How did he survive after that? Did the blood plum blossom spare his life? Ha, what a joke. One Thousand Yuan¡¯s heart was extremely vicious, she only wanted to kill him, not spare him.

    The bloodstains all over his body indicated how dangerous his condition was at the time when he was achieving his breakthrough. Everything was not a misperception.

    He quickly took off his clothes and looked at his chest. The blood plum blossom was still there. Other than its color bing slightly fainter, there were not much changes.

    Slightly fainter?

    Ai Hui was baffled. From his understanding towards things that were rted to blood elementalists, the brighter the color of something was, the more dangerous it was. Why did the color of the blood plum blossom became fainter? What had happened?

    Ai Hui examined his body and remained confused. He then thought of how the blood bandage had saved his life in the past. Could it be the blood bandage?

    He took off the blood bandage and examined it. When he saw the blood eye on it, he immediately knew what was going on.

    The blood eye hadpletely transformed.

    The color and luster of the blood eye did not change but it gave Ai Hui apletely different feeling, an indescribable one. It was as if the blood eye was a living thing. Ai Hui could not help but take a closer a look at. His gaze gradually became nk and a surprise slowly crept upon his face. He stared nkly at the blood eye, motionless.

    After an unknown amount of time, Ai Hui returned to his sense abruptly as a cold shiver went down his spine.

    Astonishment shed across his face.

    The sunset in the distant dyed the entire valley in orange. The sunset glow was dazzling and golden-bright, extremely beautiful. The evening breeze was cool and refreshing, and yet, Ai Hui felt his body was doused in chilliness.

    Just a moment ago, it was still early morning. Now, it was already sunset.

    He did not seem to have any recollection of what happened between then and now. He did not even feel the passing of time at all.

    An indescribable fear engulfed Ai Hui.

    The blood bandage... the blood eye... it was indeed an extraordinary object!

    In the past, he already knew that the blood bandage was an extraordinary object, but it was only at this moment that he realized that it was far more powerful than what he expected. Even though he had already attained elemental externalization, he still fell into its trap. The blood bandage was indeed an evil object.

    Mistress never would have thought that her blood bandage was so powerful.

    When Ai Hui thought of his mistress, his fear towards the blood bandage immediately reduced significantly. His gaze became much gentle as well. No matter what, the blood bandage had saved his life several times. So what if it was an evil object?

    Ai Hui patted the blood bandage and said, "Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t lose you."

    After the fright from the blood bandage, Ai Hui¡¯s ecstasy over his attainment of elemental externalization had dampened a lot.

    He thought about the spoils of war he looted from Shi Youguang. At that time, he was in a hurry to escape, hence, he did not really see and check what they exactly were.

    Since he was free now, he might as well arrange and ount for the spoils of war.

    Shi Youguang had been a reputable expert for many years, he definitely had an immense amount of wealth. At least, he was not as poor as Ai Hui himself.

    He took out the items one by one.

    Initially, there was a bunch of earth elemental materials, presumably for sand puppets. There were also a few rare items that made Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. He had been thinking for quite long on giving Lou Lan¡¯s body an upgrade. However, earth elemental materials were in high demand and those high-grade ones were extremely expensive.

    Meteoric sand was an extremely dense and heavy material. It was a well-known heavy sand and had a special ability of breaking armor. The meteoric sand was produced in the depths of the thick sand sea in Yellow Sand Corner. This type of heavy sand were only flushed out of the ground by quicksand asionally. They were very rare and could not be found on the market. They were usually used to make the offensive parts of sand puppets, such as their fists.

    Soft sand, also widely know as dough sand, was a very unique type of sand. They behaved like dough, which shape could be easily changed. Using this type of sand to make a sand puppet, the sand puppet¡¯s body could be pulled as long as noodles without breaking. Soft sand was produced using y. Even though y and sand were both earth elemental materials, they hadpletely different characteristics. Soft sand was usually produced at the border of sand sea and wastnd.

    The other materials were of high grade as well. It was clear that Shi Youguang¡¯s sand puppet was of high grade tool.

    He was an expert that had been reputable for many years! Could he afford to be so petty with his money? How could he have the nerve to be petty with his money in the first ce? What would other people say of him if he was to be so petty with his sand puppet? Would he dare to use his sand puppet if he was to be so petty with him? Would his sand puppet still be capable of protecting him? (Sarcastic tone)

    Ai Hui was over the moon. Even though he had made a small name for himself after going through all kinds of battles during thest three years, this was the first time he made such bountiful gain.

    As the proverbs in Avalon of Five Elements said,

    A horse won¡¯t get fat if it doesn¡¯t secretly chomp on grass at night, a man won¡¯t get rich if he doesn¡¯t have a windfall!

    If you ask me how mncholy I am now, I can tell you I feel like a poor man who is gifting his head away. [1]

    When Ai Hui took out thest item, he was so excited that he jumped up from the ground.

    Note:

    [1] This is an altered version of a line from Li Yu¡¯s poem in the Song Dynasty. Basically, this line means that it¡¯s useless for one to kill a poor man as he or she will not be able to reap any benefit.

 Chapter 288: Sand Compass And Bad Reputation

    Chapter 288: Sand Compass And Bad Reputation

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    It was a palm-sized sand te that was covered with densely-packed vein patterns and characters, resembling apass.

    Its name was called sandpass.

    Sandpass was one of the greatest inventions by earth elementalists. It was created by the great earth elemental master Luo De seven hundred years ago.

    Before Master Luo De, people treated the flow of the elemental energies in the Nature like ¡®water¡¯ and ¡®air¡¯. Master Luo De was the first one to propose that when the concentration of an elemental energy had reached a certain point, the nature of its flow started to change fundamentally.

    At that time, Master Luo De¡¯s theory was unconvincing and a lot people thought that he was indulging in his own fantasy.

    However, eventually, Master Luo De was able to use his ingenuity and creativity to prove his theory.

    Sandpass was the what he used to prove his theory.

    Lou De realized that entire Avalon of Five Elements sat on a huge continent. Even Jadeite Forest, which consisted of numerous inds, shared the same continent as the other four elemental factions. This implied that the earth elemental energy at any ces in the Avalon of Five Elements were interconnected, forming a massive base of earth elemental energy beneath the Avalon.

    Deep under the ground, the concentration of such immense amount of earth elemental energy was extremely high. This knowledge formed the basis of the proof to his theory.

    As such, he created the sandpass.

    Beneath the ground, he opened up a stable earth elemental space. Every earth elemental space would have a particr sandpass that it corresponded to.

    On the Mid-autumn festival seven hundred years ago, under the invitation of Master Luo De, the Jadeite City was packed with elders, division leaders and elementalists. Everyone in the Jadeite City turned up as they wanted to witness the miraculous night.

    Under the watchful eyes of the people, Master Luo De and the Great Elder jointly ced a mooncake that contained thetter¡¯s token onto the sandpass. Following which, the mooncake was slowly devoured by the quicksand on the sandpass.

    The sandpass was immediately ced in an unique metal box that was being sealed up afterwards. Then, the metal box was being taken by the fastest flying elementalist at that time, Zhou Mingkui, who was also known as the "Hurricane of the North Sea", to the biggest city in Silver Mist Sea, Silver City. He traveled day and night and flew towards his destination in his fastest speed

    And at this point of time, the Silver City was already fully packed with people. They were stretching their necks, waiting anxiously for the arrival of Zhou Mingkui.

    Two dayster, when Zhou Mingkui descended from theyer of clouds in the sky, draped in the first glimmer of dawn and mist, the people in Silver City exploded into cries of joy.

    The bone-tired Zhou Mingkui took off the metal box on his back and passed it to the mayor of Silver City.

    Under everyone¡¯s attentive gaze, the mayor opened the metal box and took out the sandpass and ced it on the ground. Holding their breath, everyone looked on as the sandpass transformed into a very small sand whirlpool. Following which, a piece of mooncake emerged from the sand whirlpool. At this moment, everyone cried out in surprise.

    To the mayor¡¯s surprise, when he broke apart the mooncake, he saw the Great Elder¡¯s token.

    The mayor held the Great Elder¡¯s token up high in the air. However, at this point of time, his surroundings had already broken into an uproar. Surging waves of deafening cheer almost overturned this time-honored city. Everyone understood that this day would definitely go down in history. They also knew that this day signified theing of a new era. The creation of sandpass enable people to have a treasure box that could open anywhere and anytime, not restricted by the dimensions of space and time.

    Master Luo De became everyone¡¯s hero, receiving supreme prestige and a terrifying amount of wealth.

    Those earth elementalists that followed Master Luo De kept on improving the sandpass. They made it more safe by adding a lock to it, increased its space, reduced its construction cost and etc.

    However, until now, sandpass was not something that ordinary individuals could use.

    Even Ai hui had only heard of it and not seen it before. However, it was appropriate for him to feel so excited. After all, a fugitive like Shi Youguang would hide his most valuable things in it.

    Unlocking the sandpass might be a problem to many but not Lou Lan. To him, unlocking the sandpass was a piece of cake.

    The technology of sandpass might be improving, but so did the technology of unlocking it as well. Ai Hui knew of elementalists that knew how to unlock a sandpass. If he used the identity of Chu Zhaoyang, he could definitely find people to unlock it for him. However, by doing so, it would be very difficult for him to maintain secrecy.

    Ai Hui looked forward to seeing what kind of treasure would be kept inside the sandpass. If the items that Shi Youguang brought along with him were already so valuable, the item that he stored in the sandpass would definitely be an even more valuable treasure.

    Wiping off the saliva stain on his mouth, Ai Hui carefully kept the sandpass.

    It was already nighttime but Ai Hui did not want waste any time. He had already wasted a lot of time.

    He needed to find out where the nearest town was to determine his current location.

    Luckily, it was already nighttime and theyer of clouds in the sky had cleared. This enabled him to quickly locate a dimly-lit ce in the distance after flying up to the sky.

    The pair of azure wings on his back spread and he flew in the direction of the dimly-lit ce in a burst of light.

    He could feel something different with his body. The elemental energy in his body was surging violently, increasing his flying speed sharply. At this moment, he realized why everyone only cared about base level. He felt so powerful just by achieving elemental externalization. Even though he was flying with reservations, his current flying speed had already surpassed the highest speed he achieved in the past.

    Ai Hui became excited and increased his speed to its maximum. He felt like an extremely sharp sword that was slicing madly through the air.

    It was too fast!

    His current speed was at least twice his top speed in the past. The Starry Gem Swordwings was able to withstand the test. Even when Ai Hui was flying at such a high speed, the Starry Gem Swordwings did not tremble the slightest bit. Not only that, Ai Hui could also feel the pair of azure wings still had potentials that had yet to be unveiled.

    The thing that amazed Ai Hui the most was the metal elemental energy in the wind kept on gathering around him, forming a metal elemental force field around him.

    The wind around him was not metal wind and only contained a small amount of wind elemental energy. After a while, the metal elemental energy surrounding Ai Hui increased and was extremely spectacr.

    With the metal elemental energy surrounding him, Ai Hui felt unusuallyfortable. Not only did the metal elemental energy negate the violent wind that was sting against him, it also greatly reduced the amount of elemental energy his azure wings exhausted.

    Ai Hui knew that achieving elemental externalization would allow one to use the elemental energies from the Nature but this was the first time he experienced it.

    It was also at this moment that he felt fear when he thought about the fight with Shi Youguang. He now then realized how lucky he was to be able to kill Shi Youguang. If not for the fact that Shi Youguang was severely injured beforehand, his sand puppet was destroyed and he underestimated his enemy, Ai Hui would not stand a chance against him.

    Luckily, he eventually defeated Shi Youguang and attained elemental externalization. The thrill from his extreme flying speed made him felt on top of the world.

    It felt truly blissful to have a life like this.

    After flying for approximately half an hour, a brightly-lit city appeared in his sight.

    At this time, the air traffic had be much more busy. Ai Hui saw a lot of elementalists with a flustered look on their faces. He did not activate the silvery light on his azure wings as it would be very eye-striking at night. He used a ck-colored glow that was surrounded by swirling traces of metal elemental energy, preventing people from getting a clear view of him.

    He turned his body and lowered his flying speed and flew towards the city.

    After a few minutes, hended in the city.

    He finally knew where he was after enquiring with a pedestrian.

    Rain City.

    Ai Hui knew about this city. There were two given exnations for the origin of its name.

    The first one was that this city was located in an area where there was an abundance of water elemental energy. This caused a buildup of thick clouds and frequent urrence of heavy rain, and hence, the name "Rain City" was given to this city. The second one was rted to the ancient [Rain Spell]. The [Rain Spell] was a spell that existed in the Cultivation Era. This spell wasmonly used for growing crops. Reportedly, the weather of Rain City used to be bright and sunny whole year long. The first mayor that the Elders Guild sent here to establish tige in the city was obsessed with [Rain Spell]. He wanted to develop an inheritance that was of simr nature to [Rain Spell]. One day, he identally seeded in doing so and caused an immense amount of rain clouds to form continuously over the city. Eventually, the climate of the city became cloudy and rainy and itsted until today.

    The reason why Ai Hui knew about [Rain Spell] was that many swordy manuals he read had mentioned about it before. Reportedly, the first man who mastered this spell in the Cultivation Era was called Zuo Mo. However, there were also a lot of swordy manuals that stated historical records of Zuo Mo practising the [Rain Spell] were unofficial and inurate.

    Usually, when a spell was much more distinguishable when it was associated with a legendary figure. However, when that particr legendary figure lived in the ancient past, debates over the uracy of the historical records would arise.

    After buying a map in a shop, Ai Hui was able to understand the specific location of Rain City. There were five cities in between Rain City and his destination, the Magic Cloud City.

    However, Ai Hui did not intend to travel with caravans. Right now, he was running tight on time. If he was to encounter any trouble again, he would really bete.

    He decided to fly straight to Magic Cloud City from Rain City by himself.

    Since Ai Hui had just attained elemental externalization, he was extremely confident with his capabilities. Now, he had the confidence to do things that he felt were impossible in the past.

    As Ai Hui walked out of the shop, he suddenly sensed something. After achieving elemental externalization, all his senses had be sharper significantly.

    Not far away, there was a man staring furtively at him.

    Ai Hui feigned ignorance and casually walked into a secluded alley.

    The man¡¯s eyes lit up. After a while, he followed Ai Hui and walked into the alley as well. However, when he saw the alley was empty, he was stunned. When he noticed there was a side road deep within the alley, he hurriedly ran over.

    Just as he turned the corner, a powerful force sted upon him. His body flew across the air and mmed forcefully onto a wall.

    His eyes dimmed and he became dizzy. When he returned to his senses, he realized a sword was ced upon his neck. The ice-cold de of the sword sent a cold shiver down his spine. In an instant, his face turned deathly pale.

    After a period, Ai Hui left the alley. He took off his mask and revealed his true self. The color of his eye-striking azure wings had turned muddy yellow,pletely indistinguishable.

    He had killed the elementalist who followed him just now. Ai Hui was extremely vexed by what he had found out from that elementalist via torture.

    Right now, there were rumors everywhere saying that Chu Zhaoyang infiltrated the Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s caravan, Auspicious, to steal an ancient treasure and blew up the caravan to make his escape afterwards. The Great Wei Enterprise had ordered the arrest of Chu Zhaoyang and put a bounty on him everywhere. The amount of the bounty was extremely generous, prompting countless people into searching for Chu Zhaoyang.

    An individual who merely attained elemental internalization could actually escape from the numerous experts in Great Wei¡¯s caravan. Because of this, everyone now knew of the name "Chu Zhaoyang".

    The information that Chu Zhaoyang was heading to Magic Cloud City had spread everywhere as well. Even though a lot of people felt that was a diversion tactic by Bandit Chu, there were still many people guarding the road to Magic Cloud City. Not only that, there were many people in the vicinity of the incident searching for Chu Zhaoyang.

    In the Rain City, there were also many elementalists looking for Chu Zhaoyang.

    That killed elementalist unexpectedly saw Ai Hui¡¯s face and found him looked somewhat simr to the picture on the bounty. As such, he decided to follow Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face turned ashen as anger zed within him.

    In the end, he still fell into the Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s plot!

    He spent three painstaking years to build the identity of Chu Zhaoyang. It took him great pains to build a great reputation that would not attract much attention for Chu Zhaoyang.

    Right now, the reputation of Chu Zhaoyang was tainted and his three years of painstaking effort hadpletely gone down the drain. One could imagine how infuriated Ai Hui was.

    The thing that troubled him the most was this turn of events would have great impact on his subsequent operations.

    Until now, he did not know the impact was a positive one or a negative one. He could only bitterly smile to himself.

 Chapter 289: A Turn of Events

    Chapter 289: A Turn of Events

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    After changing back to his original appearance, a calm look appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face. He swaggered along the street and no one cared about him at all.

    Nowadays, Ai Hui was slightly wealthy. Naturally, he had no qualms about buying things. He found the shop he was looking for, went in, replenished his equipment, and left the shop without any hesitation. No matter how chaotic the situation had be, he still had to get to Magic Cloud City first before he could decide on doing anything.

    Along the way, no one noticed him. No matter which angle one looked at him from, he bore no resemnce to Chu Zhaoyang. He had a youthful face, muddy yellow azure wings, and attained Elemental Externalization. No one would suspect him of being Chu Zhaoyang.

    However, Ai Hui was still extremely vexed. Along the way, he encountered several people who asked him whether or not he had seen a middle-aged man with a pair of silver-colored azure wings. It was at this moment that he realized how infamous Chu Zhaoyang had be.

    He had a deep hatred for Great Wei Enterprise.

    They¡¯d better not bump into him. Humph.

    After a few days, when Ai Huinded in Magic Cloud City, before he could even keep his azure wings, he heard a sneer from nearby.

    "Another fellow who fantasizes about getting rich. Does he think Chu Zhaoyang is really that stupid? Why would hee here when he knows that there are so many people waiting for him? Bandit Chu purposely came up with this diversion tactic and has already made his escape!"

    "Money is the root of all evil! Look at him, he¡¯s still so young. It¡¯s understandable why he¡¯s doing this."

    ...

    When Ai Hui heard the whispers between the two men, he stumbled as he wasnding on the ground.

    Alright, I will pretend I never heard what they said.

    Ai Hui consoled himself. However, after he had walked a few meters, he started to feel really ufortable. Everyone on the street had their eyes twinkling brightly, skeptically and warily examining each other. There were even some people who asionally twitched their noses to sniff at each other, looking extremely like hunting dogs.

    Having travelled extensively for so many years, this was the first time Ai Hui came across such a scene.

    Everyone was mad...

    Ai Hui was filled with helplessness and agony. How could hemunicate with others like this? When he saw the wanted poster on the street and saw the astronomical reward of ten thousand essence elemental beans being offered, for a moment, he had the urge to give himself up to Great Wei Enterprise.

    Troublesome!

    No matter how dull Ai Hui was, he still knew how troublesome the situation he faced was.

    Ai Hui felt unsure about his contact. If he was also interested in capturing Ai Hui for the reward or coveted the so-called ancient treasure, then Ai Hui would be in danger.

    At this very moment, Ai Hui heard someone yelling, "Caught! Caught!"

    Ai Hui could feel that the street was about to erupt into amotion.

    "Has Chu Zhaoyang been caught?"

    "Who caught him?"

    "Where? Where? Which bastard was so lucky?"

    ...

    Everyone was annoyed. They could only look on helplessly as the windfall of ten thousand essence beans disappeared into thin air.

    "No, it¡¯s Great Wei Enterprise that was caught. The ancient treasure was in their hands all along and the Chu Zhaoyang incident is a cock-and-bull story set up by them!"

    "Woah, the Great Wei Enterprise is so cunning! Thief crying thief!"

    "Too treacherous! Serves them right! I have said it before, how can Chu Zhaoyang be so stupid? If he really wants to steal something, why would he tell other people about his destination?"

    "You don¡¯t say? That¡¯s hindsight! Aren¡¯t you here in the end?"

    "Why are you all still talking about Chu Zhaoyang? What exactly is the ancient treasure? It¡¯s in whose hands now?"

    "Karakorum!"

    "Karakorum is rich this time around!"

    Upon hearing the bits and pieces of everyone¡¯s discussion, Ai Hui was betweenughter and tears. Nothing could describe what he was feeling now. First, he boarded a caravan and was made a scapegoat. Then, the incident got blown out of proportion. In the end, Great Wei Enterprise got into big trouble.

    He rejoiced in Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s misfortune. They deserved it.

    Great Wei Enterprise never expected themselves to screw up this badly.

    Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief. He had spent so much effort building the identity of Chu Zhaoyang and this identity was extremely important to his subsequent operations. He would vomit blood if he could not use it anymore.

    This incident reminded him that he should make a few more identities. Preparedness averts perils. In case something like this happened in the future again, he would not be stuck with just one identity.

    Instead of going straight to the meeting point, he stayed in Magic Cloud City.

    After two more days, no one talked about Chu Zhaoyang anymore. The whole city was filled with heated discussions on Karakorum and the ancient treasure. Some said that the ancient treasure was actually an ancient sword art that had belonged to Karakorum in the past. Some also said that the ancient treasure was an exceptional elixir. There was not only one, but a hundred of them.

    Anyway, the main idea of every discussion was that Karakorum struck a windfall and swordsmanship was going to make the big time.

    Ai Hui also learned that almost all of Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s experts had been killed. The captain, Madam Xiao, was nowhere to be found and no one knew whether or not she was alive. A lot of peoplemented at the thought of her. It would be a pity if such a great beauty died just like that.

    It would be a real pity if she was just nowhere to be found, Ai Hui mumbled to himself.

    He thought about how he had been set up by them. Alright, now he did not even have the chance to take revenge after being made a scapegoat for so long. Of course, he had long forgotten about the one hundred essence elemental beans they had given him that day.

    After making sure the coast was clear, Ai Hui put on Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s elemental mask and walked onto the street.

    "Eh, isn¡¯t that Chu Zhaoyang? Sigh... There go my ten thousand essence elemental beans."

    "Forget it. He was able to blow up the Auspicious and escape. You will only be seeking death if you take him on."

    "Forget it, he¡¯s not worth it."

    ...

    Upon hearing these words, Ai Hui was finally at ease. It was just that he felt these people seemed to be looking at him with disdain. Perhaps it was his misperception.

    After roaming around the city for quite a while and making sure no one was following him, Ai Hui walked into an alley. After making several turns, he reached a huge residence. Therge vermillion entrance doors were tightly shut. Ai Hui knocked on the door.

    After a while, the door opened and a muscr man appeared. When he saw it was Ai Hui, he said expressionlessly, "You¡¯rete."

    "There¡¯s nothing I could do about it," Ai Hui replied helplessly. "You should know about my situation."

    The muscr man grinned and stepped aside for Ai Hui to enter.

    Ai Hui walked into the courtyard and looked around. The courtyard was unadorned and filled with various kinds of flowers and nts. Deep down, however, Ai Hui knew that these beautiful flowers and nts were actually hidden killing machines.

    This muscr man, who looked like a cksmith, was actually a wood elementalist, a very powerful one. Ai Hui had once witnessed a rather powerful guy try to fight with this wood elementalist and end up dying on the spot.

    He did not know the muscr guy¡¯s real name. Everyone called him Hua Kui (In Chinese, it means Queen of Flowers).

    Whenever Ai Hui thought about the muscr man being named Hua Kui, his hair stood on end.

    "The rest have left." Hua Kui cast a nce at Ai Hui and said, "Since you have a valid reason this time around, the higher-ups won¡¯t pursue the matter of you beingte. However, this shall not be taken as a precedent."

    Ai Hui furrowed his eyebrows and his face turned ashen. "Of course. I know this."

    Hua Kui was not angry and smiled. "It seems like you have attained elemental externalization. Congrattions."

    He had never seen anyone in the organization that had merely attained elemental internalizationplete so many missions before.

    "My reward," Ai Hui replied, not wanting to waste any time.

    "You did a great job for yourst mission. The higher-ups have decided to double your reward." Hua Kui passed a piece of leaf to Ai Hui. "This is the information on the secret arts of blood elementalists that you wanted. Actually, given your scope of authority, you have no right to read this information, but the higher-ups made an exception for you. Of course, this information is from three years ago. It is unknown whether or not they have developed other secret arts during these three years. Remember, don¡¯t leak this information out. I don¡¯t need to remind you of the consequences."

    Excitement arose in Ai Hui¡¯s heart. The information from three years ago was more than enough for him.

    He acted nonchnt and kept the piece of leaf. Then, with an unhappy tone, he said, "It seems like you have a lot to say today."

    Hua Kui chuckled and continued, "The second reward is an opportunity for you to learn something new."

    "An opportunity to learn? A swordsmanship inheritance?" Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. "Don¡¯t use some trash to fool me."

    Hua Kui smiled and replied, "For a swordsmanship inheritance, you will have to depend on yourself. However, we can send you to Karakorum to train in [Sword Formation] for a week. How about it? Are you interested?"

    "Karakorum is our ally?" Ai Hui¡¯s eyes shrunk.

    Hua Kui smiled and did not say anything.

    Three years ago, when Ai Hui left Central Pine City, he brought along the message tree in Vanguard Training Hall. The organization that the old prisoner was a part of was called Assembly of Patriarchs. This organization was the arch-enemy of the Blood of God. The enmity between the two organizations could be traced back to the ancient past.

    Ai Hui knew that one man was not enough to deal with the Blood of God. He had too little knowledge of the Blood of God.

    Since the old prisoner¡¯s organization was the arch-enemy of the Blood of God, then they must have a lot of information about them.

    Furthermore, the old prisoner had told Ai Hui that the blood plum blossom on his chest must be a secret art of the blood elementalists.

    However, when Ai Hui suggested joining the Assembly of Patriarchs, the old prisoner had raised a strong objection. This surprised Ai Hui. The old prisoner did not give him many details, but he revealed his suspicion andck of trust towards the organization. This made Ai Hui realize that there was more than meets the eye with regards to the organization.

    Putting the blood elementalist¡¯s secret art that was on Ai Hui¡¯s body into consideration, the old prisoner and Ai Hui decided to use a fake identity for thetter to use to enter the organization. The old prisoner used to be a core member of the Assembly of Patriarchs and he knew everything about the organization.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ stringency and prudence exceeded Ai Hui¡¯s expectations. If not for the old prisoner¡¯s assistance, Ai Hui¡¯s situation would have been very dangerous.

    With the old prisoner¡¯s guidance, Ai Hui started from the position of an external member and rose through the ranks. After spending two years in the organization andpleting numerous missions for them, he finally became an official member.

    Deep down, Ai Hui suspected a long time ago that Karakorum was tightly linked to the Assembly of Patriarchs. Swordsmanship inheritances!

    When Ai Hui first discovered that the Assembly of Patriarchs possessed a huge amount of swordsmanship inheritances, he had been startled.

    Swordsmanship had been irrelevant for many years. Even sword moves like the three moves from his sword pill were extremely hard to find. As such, how could Ai Hui not feel shocked when he suddenly discovered an organization that possessed so many sword inheritances?

    Ai Hui soon realized that the Assembly of Patriarchs had been experimenting with their swordsmanship inheritances and obtained a lot of desirable oues. What surprised him the most was that the outside world had zero knowledge about what they were doing at all. It was at this moment that he realized that he had underestimated the Assembly of Patriarchs in the past.

    With the sudden appearance of Karakorum, Ai Hui suspected that the Assembly of Patriarchs might have something to do with Karakorum. He could not help but feel suspicious about the sudden appearance of a long-lost sword art in an organization that specialized in swordsmanship.

    Today, his doubts had finally been confirmed.

    Hua Kui did not admit nor deny it. He merely cackled. "Sword Formation was a secret sword art of Karakorum. Even though it can¡¯t bepared to the sword arts in the Cultivation Era, it is still very powerful. Every time it is activated, two hundred essence elemental beans will be consumed. It is usually reserved for those core disciples to practise. You have made a bountiful gain this time around."

    Two hundred essence elemental beans!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes widened in an instant.

    "I will go!"

 Chapter 290: Back Home

    Chapter 290: Back Home

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    The clean and unadorned room did not have a lot of furniture nor decorative items. The old-fashioned table was filled with ancient blotches of peeling paint. The elm wood, which made up the pirs of the room, was rustic and firm. On the white wall, there was a hanging scroll ced upon it. Two words were written on the hanging scroll with forceful strokes: Beihai.

    Plip, plop, plip, plop. The sound of raindrops falling on the eaves of the roof could be heard.

    Two cups of steaming hot tea were ced on the table, separating the father and daughter sitting opposite each other.

    Shi Beihai wore a blue-colored robe. His facial features bore a resemnce to Shi Xueman¡¯s, but his expression was grave and stern, looking as if he was carved out of a coarse boulder. His neatly trimmed beard exuded vigor and hardiness.

    Looking at his daughter who bore a resemnce to himself, Shi Beihai could not help but think of histe wife. Her gaze had been much gentler and more heartwarming. He picked up the cup of tea and took a sip. The aromatic bitterness of the tea diffused in his mouth. If his wife was still alive, she would definitely not have wanted him to raise Shi Xueman like this.

    Shi Xueman did not drink the tea. Her father liked bitter tea, the most bitter kind. She was not used to drinking bitter tea as she preferred sweet-tasting tea.

    "How do you feel about Duanmu Huanghun?" Shi Beihai suddenly asked.

    "Little Brother Huanghun?" Shi Xueman though of the rumors that had been circting around and seemed to understand what was going on. "Don¡¯t tell me the Elders Guild is trying to matchmake me with him?"

    "Someone mentioned it." Shi Beihai nodded.

    "I¡¯m not interested," Shi Xueman replied bluntly.

    "Got it." Shi Beihai took another sip of tea and cast a nce at his daughter. Even though his daughter had concealed her anger rather well, he could still sense it.

    He smiled in his heart while his face had a nonchnt look. "I have already dispatched the guy who mentioned it to the front line."

    Shi Xueman felt a hint of warmth in her heart, but was also slightly worried at the same time. "Will anyone say that you are disregarding the general interest?"

    She disliked office politics, but that did not mean that she did not knew what was going on among the higher-ups of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    "I am Shi Beihai."

    His indifferent tone contained an overwhelming aura of dominance.

    He was more than qualified to say such words. Ever since the Thirteen Divisions had copsed, the status and importance of division leaders had far surpassed what they had been in the past.

    Even though the Avalon of Five Elements preserved the organizational structure of Mountain King, Lordsand, Icy mes, Ardent Flower, Deathgrass, and Truewood, these six divisions only remained in name and had died out in reality. Meanwhile, assassination attempts had beenunched on the division leaders of the remaining North Sea, Rainbow Raiment, Sky Edge, and Infantry not too long after the blood catastrophe broke out. Only the division leaders of the North Sea and Rainbow Raiment Divisions had survived the assassination attempts. The division leader of the Sky Edge Division had been killed while the Infantry Division¡¯s division leader was severely injured and had yet to recover. The strength of the four divisions had reduced significantly.

    The vice-division leaders suffered an even more terrible fate. Four of the vice-division leaders were either severely injured or dead.

    The only thing that set the Elder Guilds at ease was that three central divisions were stillpletely intact. Otherwise, the Avalon of Five Elements would not know how to withstand the military offensive of the Blood of God.

    Shi Beihai then continued, "We shall leave the issue of political marriage to the Elders Guild. For now, you have to make some preparations. I have decided to let you lead the diplomatic mission this time around."

    "Why? I¡¯m not good at negotiating." Shi Xueman was slightly puzzled.

    Indeed, Shi Xueman was not good at negotiating. She was better at fighting while risking her life with real swords and spears on the battlefield.

    "The one leading Blood of God¡¯s diplomatic mission is She Yu. As such, I thought you might be interested in going."

    Upon hearing the name She Yu, Shi Xueman nodded without any hesitation. "I will go!"

    She had been through many battles in the past three years, but her most memorable one was still the Battle of Central Pine City. Even when she thought about it now, her body would tense up involuntarily. She did not know how many times she had dreamt of Ai Hui kneeling in front of that grave in the torrential rain.

    Shi Xueman could not forgive She Yu for taking advantage of Ai Hui¡¯s misfortune at the most critical juncture.

    When Shi Xueman returned to her room, she sat in front of the window and stared nkly at the sky.

    After a while, she walked to the message tree in the courtyard and fixed her eyes on the piece of age-old leaf. Numerous thoughts formed in her head, but she did not know what to say to him.

    Suddenly, she broke intoughter and wrote: "When are you returning my eighty million yuan?"

    She felt an indescribable joy when she thought of the image of Ai Hui being in agony after receiving the message. Every month, she would send him a message to urge him to repay the debt. This was such a great amusement for her, especially during hectic and tiring days.

    Haha, money-losing deal!

    To this day, Ai Hui still did not know that the ¡®money-losing deal¡¯ he had been talking about was her. She felt that she was very quick-witted. Ai Hui thought he could hide from everyone, but he did not know that the message tree he had brought with him had had one of its leaves plucked off.

    Oh right, she was the one who had plucked the leaf.

    However, that was not important as long as she could urge him to repay his debt!

    After writing down her debt-chasing message, Shi Xueman felt her mind clear up. Right now, the Avalon of Five Elements was unstable, having both internal and external problems. As the daughter of Shi Beihai, she was also caught in the maelstrom; however, everyone knew that Shi Beihai loved his daughter. Given his domineering character, no one dared to mess with her. Even so, she still frequently felt mentally and physically exhausted.

    Her father was as staunch and strong as a boulder.

    Sometimes, she wondered if anyone around her was as strong as her father. Perhaps Ai Hui was the only one? She did not know when Ai Hui would be able to walk out of his nightmare.

    Shi Xueman became lost in her thoughts.

    .....

    Ai Hui made it back to Peace City looking travel-worn. He was soon shocked by the bustling sight before his eyes.

    Did hee to the wrong ce?

    The outside of the city was filled with densely-packed people resembling colonies of ants. Trees were being cut down, ground was leveled, ditches were dug, and canals were built. Countless fully loaded bamboo carts were flying back and forth through the air. Heaps of items were piled everywhere.

    Fortunately, Ai Hui saw some familiar faces and knew that he hadn¡¯te to the wrong ce.

    Avoiding the crowds, Ai Hui entered the city and returned to his training hall.

    "Lou Lan!" Ai Hui yelled at the top of his voice.

    A crowd of mini Lou Lans ran out of the house holding sand letters that were many times bigger than their body size.

    The sand letters read, "Wee back, Ai Hui."

    Ai Hui burst into a heartyughter. Seeing Lou Lan always made him happy.

    The sand letters dissolved and transformed back into Lou Lan.

    "What¡¯s going on outside?" A puzzled look appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face. "Just now, I saw arge-scale construction happening outside. Are they trying to build something?"

    "I heard they are trying to build a lesser Avalon of Five Elements, Ai Hui," Lou Lan exined. "They want to provide a ce for fire elementalists, earth elementalists, and wood elementalists to train, so they are building a lesser Avalon of Five Elements. To build it, they are going to connect five cities together. Peace City and Cloud Ridge City have already been confirmed as two of the five cities."

    "No wonder there are so many people." Ai Hui realized what was going on. "Peace City is too small, so they need to expand it, huh? We do need a lesser Avalon of Five Elements, otherwise everyone will leave this ce. Although, Peace City will be much livelier from now on."

    Three years ago, the reason he¡¯d chosen toe to Peace City was that this ce had fewer inhabitants and was quieter than other cities.

    He had not expected the main trade route to pass through Peace City, making it a strategic trading hub. With Peace City now being confirmed as one of the five cities in the lesser Avalon of Five Elements, this ce would definitely be more prosperous and busy in the future.

    "Yes, Ai Hui. Recently, there are many foreigners pouring into Peace City," Lou Lan replied.

    "Haha, we are foreigners too." Ai Hui chuckled. "Did anything happen while I was away?"

    "There are three things, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied. "The first is that a person named Fu Yongwu has requested to be your disciple. He has already been here twice."

    "Fu family?" Ai Hui was slightly shocked. Touching his chin, he muttered, "What are they trying to do?"

    "Lou Lan doesn¡¯t know." Lou Lan shook his head innocently.

    "He still came twice." Ai Hui pondered. "Is that considered sincere? Lou Lan, how much is our enrollment fee?"

    "One thousand elemental energy points, Ai Hui."

    "We are that cheap?" Ai Hui furrowed his eyebrows. With the essence elemental beans in his pouch, he no longer cared for this small amount of money. "Since he is already so old, the enrollment fee will be different for him. Ten thousand elemental energy points and two essence elemental beans."

    "Alright, Ai Hui." Lou Lan did not raise any objections and continued, "Second thing, someone wants to buy our training hall. His offering price is five hundred thousand metal elemental energy points."

    "Not selling!" Ai Hui rolled his eyes. "He wants to buy such a huge ce for just five hundred thousand elemental energy points? Is this guy stupid? How dare hee here and try to take advantage of us!"

    Ai Huipletely forgot that he¡¯d only paid one thousand five hundred elemental energy points for this ce three years ago.

    This ce used to be Su Qingye¡¯s family¡¯s warehouse, but since it was located in a secluded area, it was not used very often. At that time, Ai Hui had needed a huge ce near the Silver Mist River, so he¡¯d chosen this area.

    Then, because Su Qingye¡¯s father knew that Ai Hui had wanted to open a training hall, he¡¯d decided to send Su Qingye to Ai Hui¡¯s training hall. Thus, Su Qingye became Ai Hui¡¯s first student.

    After bing a part of the lesser Avalon of Five Elements, Peace City¡¯s status would rise sharply. One could see that Peace City would definitely be arge-sized city, as well as one of the most important cities of the Avalon of Five Elements in the future. So why did the higher-ups want Peace City to be expanded? That was because the current Peace City could no longer hold and sustain the many elementalists. Thend prices in Peace City had skyrocketed an unknown number of times. Using his toes, Ai Hui could also see thatnd in Peace City would be extremely expensive in the future.

    As such, if he sold his training hall now, wouldn¡¯t he suffer a huge loss?

    Ai hui definitely would not agree to a bad deal.

    "Alright, Ai Hui." Lou Lanpletely agreed with Ai Hui and continued, "Third, the message tree has a new message for Ai Hui."

    "Who sent the message? What does it say?" Ai Hui asked casually.

    "Miss Debt," Lou Lan replied cheerfully. "She asked about when you are going to return the eighty million yuan."

    Ai Hui¡¯s face turned ashen in an instant. "This money-losing deal is killing me. She has to do this to me every month. This is really killing me. I shouldn¡¯t have let her pluck that piece of leaf from the message tree."

    "Ai Hui, are you trying to renege on the debt?" Lou Lan widened his eyes.

    "Am I that kind of person?" Ai Hui put on a righteous front and yelled, "Tell the Fu family that the enrollment fee is four essence elemental beans! No discount!"

    "Alright, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied happily. "There¡¯s nothing else from me. How did Ai Hui do this time around?"

    It was at this moment that Ai Hui raised his eyebrows and yelled with excitement, "Ha! I made a huge gain this time around!"

    "Ai Hui, really?" Lou Lan¡¯s face was filled with surprise.

    "Look, what are these?" Ai Hui smirked as he took out the things to show Lou Lan.

    "Meteoric sand! Soft sand!" Lou Lan¡¯s voice was brimming with surprise. With these two materials, his body could be upgraded substantially. Right now, his body could not keep up with the operating speed of his sand core, Midnight. He had no choice but to limit Midnight¡¯s operating speed to a very low range.

    He could be of more assistance to Ai Hui after upgrading his body!

    "Are you breathless already? They are merely meteoric sand and soft sand." Ai Hui smirked and took out another object to show Lou Lan. "Look at this!"

    "Sandpass!" Lou Lan¡¯s eyes opened even wider.

    Feeling pleased with himself, Ai Hui threw the sandpass at Lou Lan and said, "That¡¯s right! However, it hasn¡¯t been unlocked yet. I will have to depend on you to unlock it."

    "No problem Ai Hui!" Lou Lan loudly acknowledged Ai Hui with the demeanor of a soldier. "Leave it to Lou Lan!"

 Chapter 291: I Donâ€™t Like Your Face

    Chapter 291: I Don¡¯t Like Your Face

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Ai Hui sat in front of a table in a pitch-ck room.

    He had already ced the prepared film-spitting tortoise on the table. The film-spitting tortoise was slightly bigger than Ai Hui¡¯s palm. On the surface of the tortoise shell, there was a streak of dark-red blood trace.

    The film-spitting tortoise was a product developed by the Blood of God. Even though the Avalon of Five Elements and Blood of God were arch-enemies, the elementalists were still fond of using products developed by the Blood of God. What an irony.

    The Blood of God excelled at breeding and rearing blood fiends. They had bred a lot of new species that had not existed in the past. Some species were actually very useful, such as the film-spitting tortoise.

    The creation of the film-spitting tortoise had led to a decrease in the use of mirage bean pods. Mirage bean pods had already been reced by film-spitting tortoises in high-end markets. The quality of the film projected by a film-spitting tortoise was much clearer than that of a mirage bean pod.

    This had created huge losses for the wood elementalists in Jadeite Forest. As such, the wood elementalists were extremely anxious to breed more remarkable species of nts. In the past, the wood elementalists made big bucks off the mirage bean pods and now they were facing an extremely powerfulpetitor.

    Regardless, to an ordinary person, usefulness mattered more than anything else.

    Ai Hui fed the film-spitting tortoise a few elemental beans. Even though it was a blood fiend, it had an insatiable thirst for elemental energy.

    When the film-spitting tortoise ate the elemental beans, the blood trace on its shell began to glow. The green-colored tortoise shell immediately became mixed-colored. The color of every section of the shell was different; they were colorful and gorgeous. The colorful sections glowed and dimmed rhythmically, looking as if they were breathing.

    Ai Hui took out the piece of leaf that Hua Kui had given him and ced it before the film-spitting tortoise.

    The film-spitting tortoise stretched its neck andpletely devoured the piece of leaf. Crunch, crunch.

    The Blood of God was Ai Hui¡¯s mortal enemy, yet he was using their film-spitting tortoise. Ai Hui found it hard to describe what he was feeling now. The only thing he could think of was that the piece of leaf could only be used and seen once. This was for the sake of maintaining confidentiality.

    After eating the leaf, the film-spitting tortoise turned motionless.

    Even though Ai Hui had used the film-spitting tortoise several times, he still felt the film-spitting tortoise was somewhat dumb.

    The rhythmically glowing tortoise shell suddenly released a burst of light, following which, a beam of light erupted from one of the sections on the tortoise shell and shot into the air. One by one, the colorful sections of the shell lit up and beams of light shot out.

    All the beams of light converged at a point in the air twenty centimeters above the tortoise shell. An image formed and went from a blurry state to a clear one in an instant.

    "Blood Elementalist Secret Arts Database." Upon seeing these few words, Ai Hui became energized and his body involuntarily straightened up.

    There were descriptions of numerous blood elementalist secret arts, but each description was a brief one. Some of them even mentioned the origins of these secret arts, none of the information included anything about how to practise and master those secret arts.

    Ai Hui stared at the information very carefully. The Blood of God was not only the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ enemy, they were also his mortal enemy.

    Only the Assembly of Patriarchs, which had been fighting the Blood of God for hundreds of years, would possess so much detailed information about them. This information could not be found outside and was extremely valuable.

    This was the main reason why Ai Hui had wanted to join the Assembly of Patriarchs. He knew that he would have limits if he chose to fight the Blood of God single-handedly. He needed to understand his enemy well if he wanted to take revenge, just like how a hunter must understand his or her prey.

    On the other side of the training hall, Lou Lan waspletely focused on unlocking the sandpass.

    The glow in his eyes kept flickering while his sand core, Midnight, operated at full force.

    The master and his sand puppet were working back to back with extreme focus. At this point in time, the training hall was filled with absolute silence.

    .....

    The most famous high-end brothel in Jadeite Forest had a weird name, Circle of Flowers.

    The Circle of Flowers was located in the northeast corner of Jadeite City. That area used to be a crater, with the terrain caving inwards like a bowl. Every time it rained, the crater would be quickly filled with rainwater. Once it was summer, it would be a breeding ground for mosquitoes and flies, causing the air to be filled with stench. No one had been interested in that plot ofnd.

    No one expected that a ring-shaped building could be built there after terrain was dredged for a few hundred meters and then miraculously transformed. Fresh spring water was directed into the crater and flowed around the ring-shaped building endlessly, forming a well-known Ring River. With such an unique architectural style and a weather-resistant barrier in ce, it immediately garnered a lot of poprity on the day it was opened.

    If one considered Quan¡¯s night feast as the gathering ce for influential government officials, then Circle of Flowers could be considered as the gathering ce for wealthy merchants. As long as one was wealthy enough, he could have unlimited pleasure in the Circle of Flowers.

    Delicacies, fine alcohols, beauties; anything that one desired could be found here.

    If one wanted to vent his anger or stress, he could go to the free-duelling arena beneath the Circle of Flowers. If one wanted to gamble, the Circle of Flowers had thergest casino in Jadeite City for his pleasure. The Circle of Flowers was well-known in the Avalon of Five Elements for its money-squandering establishments.

    A purple-clothed, frivolous-looking youngster was talking animatedly. "None of you know how much those people wanted to kneel down and bootlick Quan Minglong that day. Hahaha, in addition, Quan Minglong is blind! He actually took a fancy to She Yu! At least twenty members of the Quan family had died in the Induction Ground. He¡¯s such a forgiving guy!"

    Wu Qirong¡¯s face was filled with worry. He looked around anxiously and lowered his voice. "Ziyi, speak cautiously!"

    "Cautious my foot!" Ziyi agitatedly stood up. Not only did he not lower his volume, he raised his voice instead. "Did I say anything wrong? How many of our people have died in their hands?! Are we going to treat them as if nothing happened? Political marriage! Political marriage my foot!"

    The guests seated at the surrounding tables shifted their gazes in unison towards Yu Ziyi¡¯s direction. Wu Qirong panicked and tried to pull Yu Ziyi back into his seat. "Ziyi, you¡¯re drunk!"

    Yu Ziyi had yet to lose hisst bit of sanity and sat down grumpily. He and Wu Qirong were lucky to have made it out of the Induction Ground alive. After witnessing so many of their family members and friends die in the blood catastrophe, how could they so easily forget their hatred for the Blood of God?

    Yu Ziyi¡¯s words garnered a lot of approval from the surrounding guests.

    There were also some guests who were infuriated by Yu Ziyi¡¯s words. They wanted to confront Yu Ziyi, but when they saw the guy sitting beside him, their facial expressions changed and they quickly withdrew.

    As if he had never heard Yu Ziyi¡¯s grumblings, Duanmu Huanghun picked up his wine cup and drained it in one gulp. His devilishly handsome face contained a tinge of morbid paleness. His hair was in a mess and his eyes were in a daze. A strong smell of alcohol surrounded his body.

    Everydy that walked past Duanmu Huanghun would look at him with pity, wishing that they could pull him to their chest and cuddle him.

    There was nothing new about Duanmu Huanghun drowning his sorrows with alcohol everyday. It was not only the citizens of Jadeite Forest who knew about this issue, even the Avalon of Five Elements and Blood of God were well aware of it.

    Cup by cup, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face became increasingly pale and the mncholy in his eyes became more and more obvious.

    He¡¯d rather stay in the smoke-filled and blood-soaked Central Pine City than stay in Jadeite Forest for one more day.

    Central Pine City, the ce that had been overrun with blood, appeared in his dreams countless times. Death, struggle, and fear were always unforgettable. Simrly, the happy times that he¡¯d spent with everyone were also unforgettable.

    However, the decision that his family and his master had made for him turned these unforgettable memories into a joke.

    He did not have the strength nor a method to resist the decision. The entire family benefited from it, while he was the biggest ¡®beneficiary.¡¯

    Is this fate? His mouth curled into a bitter smile.

    Fate... He suddenly thought of Ai Hui. A mysterious thought crept into his mind.

    If it was Ai Hui, what would he do?

    His fingers that were fiddling with the wine cup froze as he became lost in thought.

    Fate was really too cruel to that bastard...

    Ai Hui¡¯s expressionless face involuntarily appeared in his mind, but in the blink of an eye, that expressionless look turned into a smirk filled with disdain. In his mind, that disdainful smirk was so clear, so hateful.

    Suddenly, for some unknown reason, Duanmu Huanghun felt that it was ridiculous for him to wallow in self-pity.

    How could he lose to that bastard?

    All of a sudden, he stood up. His face still looked drunk, but his eyes were unusually limpid. "Let¡¯s go!"

    Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong were stunned.

    "Go?" Yu Ziyi asked with a pair of sleepy eyes. "What time is it now?"

    "It¡¯s only eight o¡¯clock." Wu Qirong was puzzled as well. What¡¯s going on with Brother Huanghun? ording to their usual routine, this was only the beginning.

    Duanmu Huanghun ignored them, stood up, and walked down towards the basement. He wanted a good fight all of a sudden. There were various types of arenas in the basement and numerous experts. After being in a slump for so many days, he needed an epic fight to revitalize himself and expel the perplexity that he was feeling.

    There was only one thought in his mind. How could I lose to that bastard?

    As Duanmu Huanghun walked down the staircase, his vision became clearer and clearer. Even though he was still walking with a bit of a stagger, his aura became sharper.

    Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong, who were following him, were shocked. Both of them looked each other in the eyes and quickly caught up to him.

    At this moment, Duanmu Huanghun heard a voiceing from below.

    "She¡¯s too much! She should thank the gods for Brother Minglong taking interest in her. Does she really think that she is a goddess? Humph, she doesn¡¯t know what¡¯s good for her."

    "She¡¯s so arrogant at such a young age. Blood of God? They still have toe and beg us in the end, right? If they are so capable, then don¡¯te looking for help from Jadeite Forest! Minglong treated her with so much respect, yet she reciprocated with nothing but arrogance. She doesn¡¯t know that we are not to be trifled with. How dare she act so arrogant in our territory! Is she tired of living? What did she say again?"

    "Disciple-in-name? If my memory serves me right, Duanmu Huanghun is thest official disciple of Dai Gang." Someone mimicked She Yu¡¯s words to perfection.

    Just as that person was about to add in another sentence, which was something along the lines of "a disciple-in-name can still make her kneel in front of him if he wants to," an indifferent and arrogant voice came from above them.

    "Is she wrong to say that?"

    Quan Minglong, who was drinking his wine dejectedly, raised his head in an instant while his eyes surged with fury.

    A white-robed guy with a handsome, pale-white face slowly walked down the staircase. His chin was slightly raised as he stood high and looked down at the people below, not trying to conceal the arrogance and disdain in his eyes.

    The one who had been mimicking She Yu became tongue-tied and froze on the spot.

    When the surrounding guests saw Duanmu Huanghun and Quan Minglong, they quickly kept quiet, but their gazes continued to shift towards the direction of the duo involuntarily.

    Quan Minglong stared at Duanmu Huanghun. One by one, these words left his clenched teeth: "What does Young Master Duanmu mean by those words?"

    "What do I mean by those words?" A smirk appeared on Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s pale-white face. He leaned his slightly drunk body over the hand railing of the staircase, waved his hand, and spoke in an arrogant and condescending tone. "I don¡¯t like your face."

    Quan Minglong¡¯s face turned ashen. He stood up slowly and replied, "Today, I have to seek guidance from Young Master Duanmu."

    "Are you even fit to do that?"

    Duanmu Huanghun sneered. Without taking a second look at the fuming Quan Minglong, Duanmu Huanghun took a step forward and disappeared like a ghost. Quan Minglong¡¯s facial expression changed slightly. Just as he was going to brace himself for an iing attack, a blur shed across his eyes and he lost sight of his target.

    Duanmu Huanghun appeared in the air above the Circle of Flowers. Following which, he shot upward like aet and flew to the sky above Jadeite City.

    "She Yu, do you dare toe out and battle me?"

    A cold and arrogant voice sted across Jadeite City like thunder.

    Everyone in the Circle of Flowers, including Quan Minglong, had their facial expression change drastically.

 Chapter 292: Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art

    Chapter 292: Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    In the dark, Ai Hui carefully looked through the blood elementalist secret arts database. Eventually, he found the secret art for the blood plum blossom on his chest.

    [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art]. This was a blood elementalist secret art that existed only in theory and had never before been used in practice. Reportedly, this art was based on the Cultivation Era¡¯s [Flower Demon Secret Art] and blood sects¡¯ [Nine Tripod Cauldron Secret Art].

    The requirements for one to practice this secret art were extremely stringent.

    The one who cast the spell was known as the flower master while the one whom the spell was cast upon was known as the flower ve.

    The flower master needed a powerful soul, while the flower ve needed a vigorous life force.

    To practice this secret art, the flower master had to first form two seeds. One seed was to be ced in the flower master, himself, while the other was to be ced in the flower ve. The seeds were formed using the essence blood and spirit of the flower master. Once the formation of the seeds waspleted, the flower master¡¯s strength would be greatly reduced. On the other hand, the seed was greatly beneficial to the flower ve. In a short period of time, the seed could sharply raise the flower ve¡¯s strength. The flower ve¡¯s body would be cleansed until it was free of all impurities.

    When the flower ve was in the process of being inocted with the seed, he had to be willing to do so. Otherwise, the seed would either be destroyed or the flower ve would explode and die.

    Once the inoction was sessful, the flower ve would be like a plot of soil, providing the seed with an endless stream of nutrients. Even though the flower ve¡¯s energy would be devoured by the seed, the seed would also provide the flower ve with immense powers in return. Eventually, the flower ve would find himself addicted to the powers that the seed provided him, unable to free himself from the addiction.

    The seed in the flower ve¡¯s body was an Embryo of Emptiness, which would grow into a Flower of Destruction. The seed in the flower master¡¯s body was an Embryo of Fullness, which would grow into a Flower of Life. Both flowers wereplementary embodiments of Yin and Yang. When the flower ve¡¯s embryo had matured, it would be the Flower of Destruction and fall off his body. By then, the flower ve¡¯s life force would bepletely devoured, and he would eventually die. On the other hand, when the flower embryo on the flower master matured, it would be a Flower of Life and drop off from his body. The Flower of Life would contain all the life force, elemental energy, the three incorporeal energies of essence, breath, and spirit, as well as the soul of the flower ve, bing a supreme treasure.

    The flower ve and the Flower of Destruction were the sacrificial offerings.

    Upon reading this information, a cold shiver went down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. He had never heard of or seen such evil secret art.

    The information did not mention any methods to undo the secret art.

    Perhaps even the Assembly of Patriarchs would not believe that anyone could master such a secret art.

    Ai Hui went into a daze before returning to his senses after a while. He tried to suppress his fear and carefully read through and memorizing the remaining information on the secret art.

    This information broadened Ai hui¡¯s knowledge of blood elementalists and their secret arts. The blood elementalist secret arts were weird and unique. The ideas behind these secret arts were ingenious and evil at the same time, causing him to exim in admiration. Whenpared to these secret arts, the mysterious technique of developing a sword embryo did not seem that mysterious anymore.

    However, the database had also mentioned that most of the secret arts were only theoretically possible. Some were restorations of secret arts from the ancient blood sects and some were newly developed by the blood elementalists.

    Ai Hui heaved a long sigh. When he raised his head and looked out of the window, the sky was speckled with the luster of dawn.

    Another night had passed.

    At this moment, Ai Hui suddenly heard Lou Lan screaming happily, "Ai Hui, Lou Lan did it!"

    Ai Hui was stunned. Then, a joyful look appeared in his face. He tiptoed, backflipped, andnded gracefully beside Lou Lan.

    On the ground beside Lou Lan, there was a swirling whirlpool of quicksand. The quicksand whirlpool kept on swirling as the heart of the whirlpool caved in.

    Ai Hui rubbed his hands as his impatient-looking eyes surged with greed. "Let¡¯s see what treasure the famous Shi Youguang has for us!"

    "Ai Hui! Come on!" Lou Lan yelled, brimming with expectation.

    Ai Hui reached his hands into the heart of the whirlpool. After a while, he pulled out a box.

    He opened the box and found that it was filled with sparkling essence elemental beans. There were roughly 200 of them.

    "This is the way to go! How can the great Shi Youguang be a poor fellow? Does that even make sense?

    When Ai Hui saw these essence elemental bean, his eyes glittered like a hungry wolf¡¯s.

    He continued to feel around inside of the quicksand whirlpool with his hands. After a while, he dug out a piece of crystal. Inside the crystal, there was a faintly discernible light flowing about.

    "An inheritance?" Ai Hui squinted his eyes and identified the item. Then, he casually threw it to Lou Lan and asked, "Lou Lan, take a look. What inheritance is it?"

    Lou Lan¡¯s palms transformed into a puddle of quicksand and engulfed the piece of crystal. The red glow in his eyes flickered for a while and he replied, "Ai Hui, it¡¯s the [Earth Elemental Deciphering Technique]. This technique can decipher the chaotic earth elemental energy waves on the ground and obtain relevant information. For example, this technique enables one to track the path that someone recently took, identify the types of ore veins underground, etc."

    Ai Hui thought about how he racked his brains and still could not escape from Shi Youguang. The [Earth Elemental Deciphering Technique].

    "Can Lou Lan learn it?"

    "No problem, Ai Hui," Lou Lan replied.

    "Lou Lan should learn it then." Ai Hui chuckled. "Next time Lou Lan will be my tracking master."

    "Yes, Ai Hui!" Upon knowing that he could help Ai Hui in a new way, Lou Lan was overjoyed.

    Next, Ai Hui pulled out a yellowish tome entitled . Upon seeing this book, Ai Hui suddenly came to a realization. "No wonder Shi Youguang was so powerful. He was a transfigured elementalist!"

    Upon learning that he had killed a transfigured elementalist, he felt rather pleased with himself.

    "I will give this to you as well, even though you have no use for it." Ai Hui threw the book to Lou Lan. Body transfiguration was specifically designed for elementalists and was worthless to sand puppets.

    Lou Lan took a closer look at it and replied, "Alright, Ai Hui. Lou Lan will treat it as updating my knowledge base."

    Subsequently, Ai Hui pulled out a pile of stuff that was mostly earth elemental materials. Currently, there were more than enough materials to upgrade Lou Lan¡¯s body.

    Even though there weren¡¯t many things that Ai Hui could use, he was still very happy since these things could be used by Lou Lan.

    "Oh, oh, there¡¯s onest thing. Is this a letter?" Ai Hui pulled out a letter from the quicksand whirlpool. "By the way, does Lou Lan know how to bind a sandpass? If you know how to do it, then we won¡¯t need to bring our luggage along when we travel in the future."

    "Ai Hui, Lou Lan knows how to do that!"

    "Lou Lan is great! All right, this really is a letter." Puzzled, Ai Hui looked at the letter in his hand. "Who still writes letters nowadays? Wouldn¡¯t it be much more convenient to use a message tree? Sigh, how good would it be if the skank wrote letters instead? Then, I wouldn¡¯t need to be vexed by her every now and then."

    "Yes, Ai Hui," Lou Lan agreed with Ai Hui.

    "I like your honesty, Lou Lan! Haha, let¡¯s see what¡¯s written in this letter?" Ai Hui flipped open the letter in his hand and read it. Subsequently, he eximed in surprise, "Wow, I couldn¡¯t tell that Shi Youguang had such wide connections."

    The letter was not really long and mainly asked Shi Youguang to think of a way to snatch the ancient treasure from the Great Wei Enterprise, exined how important that ancient treasure was, etc.

    Judging from the tone of the letter, the sender and Shi Youguang were very familiar with each other. One could sense an authoritative undertone from the sender as well. This implied that the sender was of a higher status than Shi Youguang.

    Ai Hui did not find this weird at all. After all, transfigured elementalists had always been looked down upon by people. There would also be underground organizations that epted them for who they were, mutually benefiting each other in various ways.

    It was a pity that the letter did not mention what exactly the ancient treasure was. Ai Hui was extremely curious about this so-called ancient treasure. The Great Wei Enterprise had suffered a lot and lost almost everything because of this ancient treasure.

    In the blink of an eye, Ai Hui put all of these thoughts out of his mind. The so-called ancient treasure had nothing to do with him.

    Lou Lan was currently sorting out the various materials and treasures. Upon seeing Lou Lan working hard and seriously, Ai Hui could not help but smile. This time around, he had gained more than he had expected, especially with regards to the earth elemental materials. Lou Lan¡¯s body could now be significantly upgraded.

    He looked forward to an upgraded Lou Lan. How powerful would he be then!

    Actually, Ai Hui felt that the current Lou Lan was already very powerful. For thest three years, if Ai Hui had not had Lou Lan, he would have led a miserable life. The only reason Ai Hui could continue improving while his elemental energy was devoured by the blood plum blossom was because Lou Lan kept on making elemental food for him.

    Ai Hui did not bother Lou Lan and began to think about the blood plum blossom on his body.

    He had regained his calm. The [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was mysterious and unpredictable. The database stated that no one had seeded in perfectly executing this secret art yet.

    One Thousand Yuan was far more powerful than he expected.

    Ai Hui felt fear and worry, but he did not harbor a grudge toward her.

    It had been a deal.

    At that point in time, did he not know that the blood plum blossom was something harmful? Yes, he knew. The irondy and the others hated One Thousand Yuan for taking advantage of his misfortune. However, from Ai Hui¡¯s point of view, what One Thousand Yuan did was fair. Was One Thousand Yuan obligated to help him? No, she was not.

    There¡¯s no such thing as a free lunch.

    Back then, he was like a penniless gambler who had lost it all. Other than his wretched life, he had nothing left.

    Without One Thousand Yuan¡¯s blood plum blossom, he would not even have had the power to make his final decision.

    Actually, Ai Hui felt grateful for this deal since it helped him to fulfill his master and mistress¡¯s wish. He was willing to pay any price just to fulfil this wish. Any price.

    However, despite feeling grateful for the deal, Ai Hui did not intend to resign to his fate. Right now, whether One Thousand Yuan got what she wanted or Ai Hui broke free from the curse would depend on their individual capabilities.

    A deal was supposed to be risky!

    A cool-headed Ai Hui had recovered the rity of his mind.

    Even though the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was powerful and mysterious, that did not mean it did not have any ws. The rtionship between flower master and flower ve resembled that of master and servant, but there was no guarantee that the ve would be dominated by the master.

    The Flower of Life and Flower of Destruction were embodiments of Yin and Yang. They affected each other and restricted each other.

    For example, One Thousand Yuan definitely would not want Ai Hui to die. If the flower ve was to die, the flower master¡¯s body would begin to devour itself. In mild cases, the flower master would be a handicapped person. In severe cases, the flower master would die.

    This was an important factor that Ai Hui could take advantage of.

    If he purposely went to some dangerous ces, would One Thousand Yuan followed him? His life was wretched anyway. If he really died, then so be it. On the contrary, One Thousand Yuan enjoyed a sublime status in the Blood of God and had boundless prospects. Wouldn¡¯t it be a pity if she died?

    So what if she didn¡¯t want to die?

    Then she had to sit down and have a good discussion with him!

    How aboutpensating me with some capable bodyguards? Nah, bodyguards would be rather inconvenient for me. It would be more practical topensate me with essence elemental beans. If not, I¡¯m fine with blood crystals and blood cores as well.

    How could I feel safe without money? How could I livefortably without money?

    You must pay me some remuneration for helping you grow your flower.

    All right, all right, let¡¯s not talk about the remuneration right away.

    If you don¡¯t nourish me, how can I provide enough nutrients for your flower! How would the nutrients be enough!

    Once Ai Hui started to think clearly, ideas flowed into his mind endlessly.

    The Yin and Yang rtionship between the Flower of Life and Flower of Destruction could be taken advantage of as well. Since the Flower of Destruction was a projection of the Flower of Life, if he could control the Flower of Destruction , then wouldn¡¯t it be possible for him to control the Flower of Life as well?

    Sure, it might be unlikely for him to control the Flower of Life, but what about affecting it? Could he affect the growth of the Flower of Destruction and Flower of Life?

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes became brighter and brighter.

    The [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was indeed a good thing!

 Chapter 293: The Sha Family

    Chapter 293: The Sha Family

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    The city woke up from its deep sleep as the night scene receded into the horizon.

    After working hard for the whole night, Ai Hui let out a yawn. He had yet to fully understand the nuances of the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art]. He did have some ideas about it, slightly setting his mind at ease.

    He would first need to test out whether or not One Thousand Yuan would be injured if he died, or rather, if she would care about him. Controlling the Flower of Death might sound easy, but in reality, Ai Hui had no idea how to execute it.

    The game had just begun.

    After greeting Lou Lan drowsily, Ai Huiy down and fell into a deep sleep. For the past few weeks, he had been travelling nonstop, and his mind was stretched taut. Only when he came home could he then rx.

    The esoteric [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art], the ancient treasure, the Great Wei Enterprise, the Assembly of Patriarchs, and everything else had been cast to the back of his mind. Right now, he only wanted to sleep until the end of time.

    Lou Lan did not disturb Ai Hui.

    After sleeping for an unknown amount of time, Ai Hui vaguely heard someone quarrelling in his dream.

    "... Four essence elemental beans? Ha! Why don¡¯t both of you rob a bank instead? I have never heard of any training hall that dares to quote such a price..."

    "It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t have essence elemental beans. I just don¡¯t want to get scammed by the both of you! Do you think I¡¯m stupid?"

    "Do both of you think that you¡¯re some big shot? How dare you both take me for a fool! Wait and you shall see!"

    ...

    Soon after, Ai Hui again faintly heard someone quarrelling in his sleep.

    "Not selling? 500,000 elemental energy points is enough for you to make a huge profit!"

    "People who are too greedy don¡¯t usuallye to a good end. I think both of you should reconsider your decision."

    "Ask your master toe out now. What¡¯s the meaning of letting a sand puppet deal with me!?"

    The person talking was getting increasingly agitated, and his voice grew louder and louder. Ai Hui, who was in a stupor, could no longer carry on sleeping. Awakened by the noise, Ai Hui¡¯s face turned gloomy. All he wanted was to have a good sleep, but he kept getting disturbed by other people. Even a gentleman would get angry at this point.

    Wait, was Ai Hui a gentleman?

    He stood up and walked out of the warehouse. From a distance, he saw an obese middle-aged man, who seemed to be a butler. As he spoke, his face was filled with anger and his arms waved through the air from time to time.

    When the obese butler saw Ai Hui, he became even more agitated. He walked aggressively toward Ai Hui and asked rudely, "Are you the owner of this training hall?"

    Ai Hui tilted his head and looked at him.

    "Let me tell you! No matter what, today you¡¯re selling this training hall to me! If you¡¯re tactful enough, you can still get 500,000 elemental energy points. If you¡¯re not tactful, don¡¯t me our Sha Family for being ruthless. Your daddy, I, havee across plenty of trash like you. How dare you put on airs in front of our Sha Family! You must be tired of living!"

    "Sha Family? What Sha Family?" Ai Hui looked baffled.

    "What Sha Family?" The obese butler replied with arrogance, "There is no sand that the Sha Family can¡¯t make into sand puppets!"

    "Oh, that Sha Family," Ai Hui came to a realization.

    He had heard of this Sha Family before. They were also known as the home of sand puppets and specialized in making sand puppets. There was a famous saying: "There is no sand that the Sha Family can¡¯t make into sand puppets," which meant that any type of sand could be refined and manufactured into sand puppets in the hands of the Sha Family.

    The obese butler looked extremely pleased with himself. He cast a haughty look at Lou Lan and said, "Our Sha Family is upright and fair. By buying your dpidated warehouse for 500,000 elemental energy points, you will have made enough profit. Lad, don¡¯t be too greedy. I¡¯m afraid you won¡¯t have the appetite to digest if we give you too much. If we can reach an agreement today, we will even exchange your sand puppet for a free Earth Dragon sand puppet from the Sha Family. I¡¯m sure you know the price of an Earth Dragon sand puppet."

    Ai Hui put on an innocent look and replied, "Exchange? You might as well just give me an Earth Dragon."

    "No!" the obese butler answered in a stern tone. "If I do that, I will be taking on a huge risk. If the higher-ups find out about this, I will be in deep trouble. I need to take your lousy sand puppet so I can keep the same number of sand puppets in my warehouse. This way, the higher-ups won¡¯t be able to tell what I have done..."

    Thump!

    The sole of Ai Hui¡¯s footnded squarely on the obese butler¡¯s face, sinking deeply into his fat, pudgy face.

    As if he rammed by a wild beast, the obese butler flew out of the training hall¡¯s entrance.

    The facial expression of the Sha Family¡¯s guards changed drastically. "How dare you!"

    One of the guards reached out to catch the butler. The butler was Madam¡¯s rtive and had gained the trust of both Master and Madam. Hence, he had extremely high authority in the family. If anything was to happen to the butler, all of them would be in deep water.

    Just as the guard made contact with the body of the flying butler, his facial expression changed.

    The guard felt a violent force pass through his body. By now, it was already toote for him to respond. The body of the butler collided heavily with his body.

    Bang!

    Both of them smashed into the wall. Crash! The wall copsed like a pile of toy building blocks, burying the two.

    Ai Hui withdrew his leg and muttered, "How dare you say my Lou Lan is a lousy sand puppet. You must be tired of living."

    At this moment, the rest of the guards summoned their sand puppets.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gazended on these sand puppets and asked Lou Lan curiously, "Lou Lan, are these Earth Dragons?"

    The sand puppets looked very weird. Even though they had a humanoid form, their spines were swollen. Each section of their spinal column could be clearly seen. The Earth Dragon sand puppets were entirely ck in color. Their limbs were thick and solid, but not swollen. Their gazes were cold and austere.

    "Yes, Ai Hui." Lou Lan exined as if he was reciting from a book, "Earth Dragons are the Sha Family¡¯s elite sand puppets. They are mainlyposed of matt ck sand, square stone, and gray y. They have powerful strength, outstanding survivability, formidable fighting capabilities, and are very obedient. Their weakness lies in their sand core. Their sand core is made up of Thousand Water Stone, which is not particrly intelligent."

    Lou Lan¡¯s words sent a cold shiver down the spines of the Sha Family guards.

    At a loss, they looked at each other. Who exactly were these people? Why were they so familiar with Earth Dragons? The Earth Dragon sand puppets were new sand puppets that were developed only 500 years ago. Their construction blueprints were the Sha Family¡¯s well-kept secret, and they were the main sale product nowadays.

    A furious look shed across the guard leader¡¯s eyes. He yelled angrily, "Audacious spy! How dare you spy on our sand puppets! We will not forgive you! Everyone, shoulder to shoulder. Advance!"

    The guard leader knew that the butler was was a petty individual. If they returnedpletely unharmed, the butler definitely would bear grudges against them. The guard leader also could tell that the training hall¡¯s owner was someone not to be trifled with, and as such, he charged him with a crime first.

    Whether or not they won this battle, the Sha Family would have an excuse to denounce him afterward.

    No matter how powerful the training hall¡¯s owner was, he still could not contend against the Sha Family.

    Upon seeing the iing sand puppets and hearing the guard leader¡¯s words, Ai Huiughed coldly. Ai Hui was experienced enough to know what the other party was up to just by listening to his words.

    "Lou Lan, freeze the Earth Dragons.

    "Okay, Ai Hui!" Lou Lan replied cheerfully as his eyes began to glow.

    All along, he could not help Ai Hui much during battles. He often reminisced about the blind battle that he previously fought with Ai Hui. Finally, he could fight alongside Ai Hui again!

    Over the past three years, Ai Hui was not the only one improving. Lou Lan had improved as well. Even though Lou Lan¡¯s body could not bepletely upgraded due to theck of materials, he still managed to absorb many blood crystals and blood cores and also made many minor alterations to himself.

    Lou Lan was still unfamiliar when it came to dealing with elementalists, but when it came to dealing with sand puppets, Lou Lan was an expert.

    Since he was a sand puppet just like the Earth Dragons, he knew everything about their moves.

    It was more than enough for Lou Lan to know that the Earth Dragons¡¯ weaknessy in their sand core. Furthermore, he even knew that their sand cores were made up of Thousand Water Stone. As such, he knew properties of the cores and how to make them sluggish. He also knew that if the concentration of elemental energy between the matte ck sand and gray y was lower than a certain critical point, these two materials would repel each other.

    Lou Lan dissolved into a pile of sand and seeped into the ground.

    Just as the Earth Dragons were about to reach Ai Hui, they suddenly froze, looking as if a freezing spell had been cast on them.

    The glow in the Earth Dragons¡¯ eyes continuously lit up and extinguished. After around 10 seconds, the square stones on the Earth Dragons¡¯ backs loosened and fell to the ground.

    The faces of the Sha Family guards became ashen as they looked nkly upon this scene. What had happenedpletely defied their logic.

    Why...

    When they saw Ai Hui striding toward them, they started to panick. They tried to put on a brave front and asked, "What... what are you trying to do?"

    Ai Hui grinned and revealed his teeth. "Since all of you are my guests, you will have to stay here today."

    He did not give these earth elementalists any chance to react. Like a lightning bolt, he knocked them out in the blink of an eye.

    Ai Hui silently shook his head. He really did not know what these earth elementalists were thinking. Nowadays, earth elementalists were in such a dire situation, yet they still had the nerve to do things so arrogantly. Weren¡¯t they seeking death?

    "Lou Lan, tie them up!" Ai Hui waved his hand.

    "No problem, Ai Hui!"

    Simultaneously, countless voices came out from all corners of the courtyard.

    Pea-sized mini Lou Lans emerged from the ground and yelled cheerfully in unison, "Lou Lan ising!"

    Happily, they rushed to the fainted earth elementalists and jumped on their bodies.

    A few mini Lou Lans carried ropes that were thicker than their bodies, threw them on top of those elementalists, and yelled together, "Lou Lan, catch the rope!"

    The several mini Lou Lans standing on top of the fainted elementalists spread their arms and yelled together, "Lou Lan caught it!"

    "Lou Lan is beginning to tie a knot now!"

    "Lou Lan haspleted tying the knot!

    "Lou Lan is preparing to carry him!"

    "Lou Lan ising!"

    "Lou Lan ising!"

    "Lou Lan ising!"

    ...

    Upon seeing the bustling scene, Ai Hui was deeply moved. The scene very much resembled the expansion project outside of the city...

    In the blink of an eye, the Sha Family guards and the butler were tied up.

    Ai Hui was very sly. When the butler said he wanted to trade Lou Lan for an Earth Dragon, Ai Hui knew that they would not peacefully resolve the issue. Even though the butler was fat, he was sharp-sighted. He could tell that Lou Lan was an extraordinary sand puppet and coveted him.

    Even though the Sha Family was currently in a dire situation due to the loss of the Yellow Sand Corner, they were still very powerful. If Ai Hui had not attained elemental externalization, he would be very fearful of them.

    However, since he had attained elemental externalization, his fighting capabilities had improved tremendously and his confidence was greatly boosted.

    The poor were not intimidated by the rich. It would only spell trouble for a rich and powerful family like the Sha Family to encounter a fellow like Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui liked to keep a low-profile and did not like to stir up trouble, but that did not mean that he was afraid of causing havoc. No matter how powerful the Sha Family was, were they more powerful than the Blood of God?

    Since they could not resolve the issue peacefully, Ai Hui had to resort to his fists.

    Recently, there had been an increase in criminal activity in Peace City. With the establishment of a lesser Avalon of Five Elements, Ai Hui knew that many people would be interested in his plot ofnd.

    In the city, there were very few properties that were as big as his training hall.

    There were a lot of people eyeing his training hall. If he disyed any sign of weakness, plenty of greedy individuals would pounce andpletely devour him.

    Ai Hui was hoping that this training hall would sell for a good price. The Sha Family was trying to scam him!

    Looking at the empty entrance of the training hall, he gave a sinister smile while his eyes glittered with the glow of essence elemental beans.

 Chapter 294: Rising Storm

    Chapter 294: Rising Storm

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The news that the Sha family had been beaten up spread across the whole of Peace City as if it had wings.

    The undercurrent surged in Peace City. It was apparent from the number of property transactions that close to seventy percent of houses in the city had new owners. The power of money, fist and authority were disyed vividly through different ways. Lucky home owners could earn a big sum of money and unlucky ones would find themselves in a worse situation. While it wasn¡¯t to the extent of bing bankrupt or losing lives, injuries weremon.

    Peace City was like a feasting ce, fertile and repleted.

    Peace City was a small ce and yed no impressive roles. It couldn¡¯t provoke fellows that had a strong background. As for other matters, it was fine as long as they did not go overboard. Going overboard would bring shame to the family and they still wanted to keep their reputation. Most families would choose to offer a pretty decent price along with some threats in order to achieve their goals.

    A little bit of money meant nothing to big families. There was no need toplicate matters over such an insignificant amount of money.

    While there were many undercurrents in Peace City, it was buzzing with activity on the surface and there was no sensationalized news. As such, the news of the Sha family getting beaten up created such a big stir.

    Some felt rueful over the Sha family¡¯s decline.

    The Sha family from three years back had still been a well-celebrated family in the Avalon of Five Elements. Yet, in just three years they fell into poverty and were taken over by a small and remote training hall. The whole affair would make you sigh.

    The upation of Yellow Corner Sand was a devastating blow to influential earth elementalist families. It only took three years for the Sha family to lose their power and fall into such decline. In another three years there might not even be a Sha family anymore.

    It was no wonder the Sha family was so desperate. They had no choice.

    A pity the Sha family wasn¡¯t in luck and had stumbled.

    The news of Wang Han and the swordsman school had already reached the desks of respective homeowners. There wasn¡¯t anything noteworthy about the news other than the interesting nickname, ¡®King of Anglers¡¯, given to Wang Han.

    It was said that Wang Han had just attained elemental externalization so how great could he be?

    Could it be that the Sha family¡¯s abilities had already reached such a frail state? Some people were secretly affected. Although they couldn¡¯t make sand puppets without sand, there were still many good things about the Sha family. At least the manufacturing method was invaluable.The Elders Guild would absolutely disallow only metal and water elements to exist long term. It was evident from the establishment of the small Avalon of Five Elements that Elders Guild was trying. Their determination was apparent as well.

    One could tell, from the construction of the small Avalon of Five Elements, that Elders Guild had already realized that regardless if it was the Fire Prairie and Yellow Corner Sand, upied by Blood of God, or the independent Jadeite Forest, none would return to the hands of the Avalon of Five Elements any time soon.

    The war would not end soon and once the small avalon seeded, the rebuilding of the Avalon of Five Elements would immediately begin.

    As long as the Elders Guild pushed through the challenging phase before them and gained strength, the situation would improve greatly.

    The difficult situation faced by earth, fire and water elementalists was only temporary. They would recover their elemental energy upon the reconstruction of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    These families were at their weakest right now, which meant that now was the best opportunity to swallow them up. If these weakened families were taken over now, the spoils of war during the rebuilding of the Avalon of Five Elements would earn them arge sum.

    Quickly, many families became restless and threatening.

    Evergold Enterprise.

    "Four essence elemental beans?" asked the Fu family¡¯s elder sister.

    Fu Yonghao replied angrily, "Yes, Sister. This man is crazy about money! Treating me as a fool? I was so angry that I almost quarreled with them."

    "So did you give them to him?" thedy asked while looking at him.

    Fu Yonghao felt weak from his sister¡¯s gaze but answered firmly, "Of course not! I¡¯m not stupid!"

    His sister shook her head. "Four essence elemental beans in exchange for a fair chance to get close to him. What¡¯s bad about it?"

    "In any case, I don¡¯t want to be ughtered like an idiot!" Fu Yonghao stiffened his neck and repeated indignantly.

    The Fu family¡¯s elder sister asked directly, "Then have you seen the Sha family¡¯s battle process?"

    "I¡¯ve seen it." Fu Yonghao felt at ease upon seeing that his sister wasn¡¯t angry. He continued, "I left the alley and saw them not far away. I heard the housekeeper mumbling something about buying over the training hall and immediately knew that they were going after Wang Han."

    His sister asked hurriedly, "How?"

    Out of curiosity, others looked over as well.

    Fu Yonghao had a strange expression. "Wang Han did not look very impressive, but his sand puppet was pretty capable. The guards¡¯ Earth Dragons were all defeated by Wang Han¡¯s sand puppet.

    "Taken down by Wang Han¡¯s sand puppet?"

    This oue was surprising.

    "Yeah." Fu Yonghao was puzzled too. "Isn¡¯t the Sha family well-known for their sand puppets? While Earth Dragons are not considered first-rate sand puppets, they are pretty good atbat. How did they get defeated by a single sand puppet so easily? Has the Sha family really fallen into such a sorry state?"

    Fu Renxuan couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Where¡¯s Wang Han¡¯s sand puppet from? Isn¡¯t he a metal elementalist?"

    Fu Yonghao spread his hands out.

    "Regardless, the Sha family can only brace themselves." the Fu family¡¯s elder sister added, "If they cower now, they will have to sumb to their fate of getting swallowed up. Not only do they have to win, they have to win beautifully in order to intimidate those greedy fellows."

    Fu Yonghao¡¯s eyes lit up. "A good show¡¯sing up!"

    Swordsman Training Hall.

    "Ai Hui, am I really going to start upgrading my body? It¡¯s going to require a very long time." Lou Lan spoke.

    "How long?"

    "Six to eight days."

    "Oh okay, start as soon as possible once you¡¯re ready."

    "But what would you do if enemies appear?"

    "Hah, don¡¯t worry, what¡¯s there to be afraid of? We¡¯re in school!"

    ...

    Ai Hui really wasn¡¯t worried. He wouldn¡¯t be so sure if they were in some other ce, but since they were in Swordsman Training Hall, he was highly confident.

    This was his home ground.

    As someone who was always cautious, he ced much more importance on his nesting ce aspared to most people. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t be able to sleep in peace.

    Ever since he left Central Pine, he had umted a significant number of Heaven Merit Points. He was supposed to get an inherited manual but with additional points, he exchanged it for an absolute art manual for training sky pces.

    He then used the rest of his points to obtain all sorts of umon ingredients.

    And he used most of these ingredients to make elemental food for upgrading Lou Lan¡¯s body and for Dragonspine tempering. For Ai Hui to be able to progress steadily in spite of the Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Technique Art, these ingredients yed an important role.

    The remaining ingredients were used in his training hall.

    All the resources were taken away by the Elders Guild for Wang Shouchuan¡¯s [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] n during the war of Central Pine City. Even Wang Shouchuan¡¯s daily notes that had been found were kept safely. The Elders Guild saw these pieces of information as treasures and were highly secretive about them.

    No one would¡¯ve thought that there was still someone who remembered theplicated and meticulous proposal from that time.

    And that person was Ai Hui.

    He had been in touch with Teacher¡¯s ideas on a regr basis, and when the proposal was out he visited Teacher, who exined it all to him without stopping. As such, Ai Hui had a much deeper understanding of the whole n since he¡¯d been following up with it from start to end.

    The n was so grand and full ofplex scenarios, things that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t able nor required to try. Thus, he specially made smaller scaled, simplified versions to fix up the hall and increase security.

    As his understanding of sword mastery and Teacher¡¯s theory deepened steadily, he continued improvising the instations.

    No one would¡¯ve thought that this shabby-looking training hall had its own mysteries.

    Even people like Su Qingye, who practiced here regrly, did not sense anything abnormal.

    When Ai Hui knew that there might be danger, he informed all the students that sses would stop for half a month so as to prevent getting involved in this affair.

    Lou Lan started upgrading his body and the hall quieted down.

    Ai Hui did not waste any time as well. He had just broken into external externalization, which was the best time to train. The change in elemental energy offered him a different revtion.

    Attaining elemental externalization meant that elementalists could directly engage Nature¡¯s elemental energies, precisely the reason for their formidability.

    For example, currently, Ai Hui could engage elemental energy from within a radius of fifty feet. As he upgraded his level of training, this range would widen as well.

    Attaining elemental externalization was merely the beginning. There was a huge difference between being able to engage elemental energy from within a radius of fifty feet versus from within a radius of thousands of feet.

    Along with a deeper understanding of elemental energy, elementalists would not only be able to increase their control over arger area, they would even be able to engage elemental energy that was not of their own element.

    The finest thing about the five elemental energies was how they affected one another.

    Nature¡¯s elemental energies in itself resided in circtions. Those Masters were able to convert other elemental energies into the one that they needed.

    This was also the reason why although Han Yuqin¡¯sbat abilities weren¡¯t as strong as Yu Mingqiu, she was able toplete the [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] n. When one¡¯s base level was high enough, elemental energy was no longer divided. In her hands, any type of elemental energy could be converted easily.

    Of course, this was the ultimate goal for elementalists. None had been able to achieve it so far.

    ording to recent rumors, the person closest to reaching this goal was grandmaster Dai Gang.

    To Ai Hui, these were beyond his reach. He had just attained elemental externalization and was a thorough rookie. Many experiences were still very foreign to him.

    He could feel the elemental energy in the ground beneath his feet dragging him along.

    The elemental energy flow waspletely different from before. Ai Hui was full of curiosity, his eyes flickering brightly.

    As he moved, the Dragonspine started operating slowly.

    Within these three years, if there was one area which he improved the greatest, it would have to be his sword mastery.

    He had already attained a higher mastery level when he was still in Central Pine. Three years of perseverance, fumbling and bitter trainings really refined his swordsmanship.

    He did not use Heaven Merit Points to exchange for the sword techniques. He did not care for those.

    But Karakorum¡¯s swordy really made his eyes light up.

    Nevertheless, his own fighting style had started to infuse with his swordy. Learning swordy from others would instead be disadvantageous.

    He could borrow them as references but could notpletely imitate them.

    What he needed to do now was to persevere.

 Chapter 295: The Three Smalls

    Chapter 295: The Three Smalls

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    "How can we help Teacher?"

    Hua Xiaoyun was thirteen years old but her cute, apple-shaped face was currently filled with worry. Her body was frail, as if the wind could easily blow her away. The brown curls on her head were the most eye-catching. Her fluffy hair resembled that of a poodle. Because of this, she was oftenughed at and called Little Hua Doggy.

    She was a feeble but kind girl. Upon hearing that Teacher had offended the Sha family, she got extremely worried and specially made a trip down to Peace City from Cloud Ridge City via Three Leaves Bamboo Cart, in search of Su Qingye and Zhou Wen.

    Zhou Wen held onto his heavy sword without a word.

    Su Qingye listlessly teased his new sand puppet. After his previous sand puppet¡¯s reported the expenses, his father finally bought him a new one. Because of Su Huaijun¡¯s praise of Su Qingye, his father was more than happy to get him a new and much more improved sand puppet.

    At the beginning, Su Qingye was extremely pleased with his new sand puppet since it was much stronger than his previous one.

    But when he found out that an argument arose between Teacher and the Sha family, Su Qingye became gloomy.

    His new sand puppet, Cuttlefish, was a product of the Sha Family.

    Fate was fooling with people. Su Qingye¡¯s child-like face was now full of sorrow as he sighed toward the sky.

    "Say something you guys!" Hua Xiaoyun spoke urgently. "Why aren¡¯t you guys talking! I¡¯m so worried!"

    "Teacher doesn¡¯t need our help," the mysterious Zhou Wen said all of a sudden.

    "Are we just going to sit and watch? Teacher has to deal with so many enemies. What if he can¡¯t handle them?" The more Hua Xiaoyun thought about it, the more worried she got.

    "We¡¯re so weak, how are we going to help him?" Su Qingye was a businessman¡¯s son after all and had rich life experiences. "What we should do now is make sure that we don¡¯t be a burden and a cause for worry."

    Having said that, Su Qingye felt sullen himself.

    Stupid Sha family!

    How hateful!

    "Then what¡¯s going to happen to Teacher?" Hua Xiaoyun asked on the brink of tears.

    "I trust Teacher." Zhou Wen said.

    "Me too." Su Qingye consoled, "Don¡¯t forget that there¡¯s still Lou Lan. Lou Lan is powerful. We wouldn¡¯t be able to win against him even if we joined forces."

    Just then, a group of hooligans appeared from not far away. After some brief eye contact, they walked over with bad intentions.

    "Hey, take out all your money!"

    As the three of them were too preupied with worrying, the gangsters had already surrounded them when they were finally able to react.

    Zhou Wen stood up coldly and kept Hua Xiaoyun close to him.

    Su Qingye wrinkled his brows and berated, "Who are you guys? You all look unfamiliar. Why? Coming all the way here to cause trouble?"

    While Sea Pacific Enterprise wasn¡¯t considered big, it had been standing for many years and the local societies and businesses were beyond familiar with it. Su Qingye had been interacting with these people since he was young and had no fear. What kind of storm could a small city like Peace City cook up?

    Su Qingye was more than certain that he¡¯d not seen these people before.

    There was an influx of foreigners into Peace City recently and security had be less ordered.

    "How arrogant!" The lead gangster stepped out, an evil green appearing on his face. "You¡¯d better take out all your money now if you don¡¯t wanna get beaten up. Or else, don¡¯t me us for being impolite!"

    "We can give you the money, but you have to let us go." Su Qingye said while fishing out money.

    Seeing that Su Qingye gave in, the hooligan let his guard down momentarily, saying, "Don¡¯t y any tricks and you¡¯ll be fine..."

    Even before he could finish speaking, he felt a sharp pain in his thigh.

    He looked down and saw a sand sword jutting out from his thigh as fresh blood poured out.

    Before he could react, his little brothers had already fallen into a pitiful state.

    Zhou Wen had alreadypletely powered his sword. It was like a solid hammer. Taking a hit would usually cause a sore, bone-shattering sound. While he did not look strong on the outside, he was as brave as a fierce tiger.

    Hua Xiaoyun followed closely behind as the swords made from fog became agile and sharp arrows, unceasinglynding on their enemies¡¯ bodies and leaving wounds.

    "You¡¯re courting death!"

    The leader had a sinister look on his face but right in front of him, Su Qingye was all smiles. Even before he could react, his other thigh got stabbed as well.

    Plop!

    The gang leader¡¯s legs turned weak and he sank to his knees.

    A sand lock chained around his neck transformed into a cor, where sawteeth were spinning slowly around the inner side of it.

    "Stop!"

    Su Qingye spoke up as the sawteeth tightened suddenly and a blood streak surfaced on the gang leader¡¯s neck.

    The gang leader turned pale as he quickly instructed, "Stop! All of you, stop!"

    Seeing the state their leader was in, the rest of the gang hesitated a little before stopping.

    Bang bang bang!

    Ferocious Zhou Wen had no intention to stop. Instead, he charged forward and took down the remaining hooligans in the blink of an eye.

    The gang leader¡¯s expression worsened. He knew he had provoked the wrong person and lowered his noble head.

    Su Qingye asked calmly, "How long have you guys been in Peace City?"

    The gang leader answered in all honesty, "Three days."

    Chuckling, Su Qingye asked, "Three days and you guys are feeling restless already?"

    The leader hurriedly replied, "I must be blind to have offended you all..."

    "Heh heh, let¡¯s talk things over." Su Qingye changed the topic suddenly. "Who asked you guys toe over?"

    The gang leader¡¯s expression changed slightly but he remained silent.

    Zhou Wen and Hua Xiaoyun exchanged nces.

    "I thought it was strange. Coming for money straight away, how ignorant! Not even a greeting or an excuse, do you take me for a fool?" Su Qingye smiled coldly. He was very familiar with how things went on the street. "You better be honest with us or I¡¯ll kill you. Heard of Huang Dahai? Entering someone else¡¯s territory, have you paid your respects? Still have the guts to rob? You¡¯ll get seriously hurt if I hand you over to him. He would have to thank me and invite me to attend the ritual!"

    Upon hearing Huang Dahai¡¯s name, the gang leader¡¯s face turned a deathly white.

    Huang Dahai was the big boss of a few streets nearby and was vicious and merciless. If the gangster fell into Huang Dahai¡¯s hands, he would have a miserable ending. The gangster¡¯s body shook uncontrobly at the mere thought that Huang Dahai might deal with him cruelly.

    He bit his teeth. "Yes..."

    A green light shed abruptly and hit the gang leader right between his brows.

    A grunt sounded and ended spontaneously. There was a bloody hole in between his brows as blood flowed down.

    This sudden change of events stunned Su Qingye for a while. Because Teacher attached much importance to realbat, the three of them were used to confrontation. He had fought before, but killing people...

    The gang leader on the ground was no longer breathing, his eyes wide open and expressionless. The emptiness was ufortable to bear.

    Su Qinye nked out.

    Boom! A huge force knocked him down, which also allowed him to snap out of it.

    It was Zhou Wen!

    He had left a pit in the ground.

    Habitually silent, Zhou Wen lived in an even harsher environment and thus had a higher psychological endurance than Su Qingye.

    He was fighting against the attacker whounched the sneak attack now.

    Soon, Hua Xiaoyun threw herself out there as well. Her fish-like cloud sword made concentrated shuffling sounds. The frail-looking brown-haired girl was actually stronger that she appeared.

    p! Su Qingye gave himself a p, shame filling his chest.

    Cuttlefish seeped into the ground and went for the opponent like a pool of ink.

    The attacker was a middle-aged man. He had an average appearance, a face that would fade in a crowd. However, he was exceptionally strong, taking on three opponents by himself, yet maintaining the upper hand.

    Zhou Wen¡¯s subtle sword strokes were effortlessly blocked off by the man. The man could also easily dodge Hua Xiaoyun¡¯s crafty cloud sword, as if he¡¯d long predicted its moves.

    Cuttlefish¡¯s speed increased and in the blink of an eye, it was already under the man¡¯s feet.

    A pool of ink wrapped around his legs.

    Su Qingye saw the sneer in the man¡¯s eyes. Boom! The man did not move his legs but the ck ink around them exploded into a puff of sand.

    Their opponent was simply too powerful!

    His realm, fight and even battle experience far exceeded theirs.

    "If you meet an enemy that¡¯s too powerful, don¡¯t run. You can¡¯t outrun him. Keep in mind what I¡¯m about to teach you..."

    Teacher¡¯s words suddenly floated into Su Qingye¡¯s conscious mind.

    Su Qingye remembered these words very clearly since Teacher made sure to exin the content to them when they were all present. Teacher wasn¡¯t very responsible in the sense that he appeared and disappeared unpredictably, and just mostly wasn¡¯t around. Lou Lan was the one who had been monitoring their trainings. They really liked Lou Lan and felt he was more like a teacher.

    Su Qingye was somewhat vexed. They¡¯d never tried practicing what Teacher had taught them.

    His rtionship with Zhou Wen wasn¡¯t considered friendly and Hua Xiaoyun only visited twice a week so no one had thought of practicing the drill together.

    They could only push their way through, even if it was beyond their abilities...

    "Three elements!"

    Su Qingye shouted suddenly and dashed behind Zhou Wen. The dispersed ink sand on the ground assembled and moved toward him as if it was attracted by something.

    Upon hearing Su Qingye¡¯s loud roar, Zhou Wen retreated suddenly without the slightest hesitation.

    He stood about ten feet to Hua Xiaoyun¡¯s right as Su Qingye stood about thirty feet to her left.

    The three of them formed a polyline angle.

    Their opponent did not interrupt them. Instead, he observed them calmly.

    "... A pentagon has five points. The three of you upy three connecting points. Remember, Hua Xiaoyun right at the front, followed by Zhou Wen and finally Su Qingye..."

    At this moment, Su Qingye was beyond thankful for his daily trainings.

    Teacher had strict requirements when it came to their sense of space. He felt that having a precise sense was very helpful in battles. As such, the three of them had undergone countless extra trainings and punishments. Basically, they suffered quite a lot of hardships to perfect this part.

    And finally, in this moment, all their hard work would be put to good use.

    Without any adjustments, Su Qingye knew their positions werepletely urate.

    Teacher, you must mean what you say...

    Su Qingye prayed inwardly to each and every god he knew. His hand movements were super fast, his arms unupied. The ck ink sand shuffled its way up off the ground and formed a sphere, which spun around between his arms.

    Gathering all the elemental energy within his body, Su Qingye made a strong push with his arms and the fast spinning ck sand ball in front of his chest transformed into a ck sand sword, flying toward Zhou Wen.

    Zhou Wen had a stern expression on his face as he used both hands to grab his sword. Silhouette like a bow, he thrusted his sword unhurriedly.

    A silver bright glow swiftly lighted up.

    The ck sand sword, as if attracted by something, flew toward the sword light from Zhou Wen¡¯s attack.

    The moment the ck sand sword shot into the bright sword light, the light dimmed and an indescribable grandeur shrouded the whole ce.

    The sword ray appeared in front of Hua Xiaoyun in a sh.

    Hua Xiaoyun condensed six cloud swords and like vines, they wound around this sword ray.

    The middle-aged man¡¯s face changed greatly.

    Just then, the sword ray made a shocking transformation.

 Chapter 296: Probe

    Chapter 296: Probe

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    All the force within the sword ray collided with the vine-like cloud sword.

    Poof!

    The cloud sword swiftly turned into a ball of fog that was even more dazzling than a rainbow, but in the blink of an eye, the splendid fog was torn apart into thin sword rays.

    Su Qingye and gang were stunned by this sight. They were the most beautiful sword rays ever.

    The thin sword rays were as if they¡¯d been ground into mica sheets, overflowing with light and brilliance like the world¡¯s most beautiful colors. There were specks of golden sand on top that appeared to be moving about.

    The sword produced a sweet-sounding sword chime, which spread across the whole city like surfacing ripples.

    Upon hearing the sword chime, Ai Hui, who was meditating, lowered his gaze and spread open his azure wings. He flew up and saw the splendor from far away. Without hesitating, he dashed toward that light.

    Not just him, but many elementalists could be seen flying in that direction.

    Opposite the three students, the middle-aged man¡¯s face hadpletely changed. He saw the overflowing aura of death emitted by the beautiful sword ray.

    Beautiful things were usually fatal. He¡¯d seen poisonous snakes and beautiful women, but in front of these sword rays they paled inparison. Whether it was beautiful or fatal, how did these three bratsmand such a sword ray?

    There was a second where his heart was filled with regret. He regretted offering his support and underestimating his enemies.

    In a sh, the hesitation in his gaze was swept away and reced with unwavering determination. His experience taught him that the more dangerous a situation was, the more he had to risk his life. Any hesitation or fear would lose him his chances of survival.

    With a bellow, the elemental energy within his whole body started circting and rich metal elemental energy crawled from the ground up his body.

    Elemental externalization!

    Another egg-sized y figure appeared in the middle-aged man¡¯s hand.

    Concentrated earth elemental energy was channeled into the mini y figure and it shattered with a p, transforming into a ray of light before disappearing.

    Rumble!

    A huge rumbling sound emerged from underground as a huge sandstone arm surfaced aboveground.

    It was over ten meters long and extremely thick and solid. Three people would be needed to surround it and still wrap their arms around each other.

    While it seemed slow-moving, all this had happened in an instant.

    The enormous palm spread its fingers wide like a big web and grabbed toward that splendid, yet fatal sword ray.

    Boom!

    The sword ray shot into the giant palm and the palm closed up.

    The middle-aged man sighed a breath of relief, but the next moment, his face changed yet again.

    Countless beams of light broke through the giant palm and shot out as fragmented rays, each of which were extremely dangerous.

    The middle-aged man was unable to dodge and a blood streak appeared on his shoulder. He had actually felt no pain when the fragmented ray swept past, a sign that the shattered ray was beyond sharp.

    The giant palm, at this point, looked badly damaged and only four fingers remained.

    The middle-aged man looked terrible. He was dealing with three schooling brats with his Elemental Externalization realm, but was still forced into this pitiful state. His face was scorching red.

    The giant sandstone palm wriggled about, and in a sh, another finger grew out and the palm was just as good as before.

    The middle-aged man had a malevolent look on his face as he said viciously, "Good! Very good! Let¡¯s see what other tricks you have up your sleeves!"

    The three kids turned pale. They had already consumed theirst bit of elemental energy and were on the verge of copsing. Their faces were white as a sheet but no one pled for mercy.

    "... This move is pretty formidable, but most importantly, it causes a big enough scene."

    Su Qingye gasped roughly for breath as he muttered to himself non-stop. Teacher, you¡¯d better be reliable...

    It seemed that he could only reduce his fear by doing this.

    "Tremendous elemental devil palm, how impressive!" The cold voice sounded from the sky.

    Hearing this, Su Qingye¡¯s tensed nerves loosened up immediately as he plopped to the ground.

    A short-haireddy descended andnded in front of the kids. It was actually Huaijun.

    Su Qingye was full of gratitude towards his aunt right now. He shouted obediently, "Aunt."

    Huaijun ignored him and looked the middle-aged man right in the face, then said in all coldness, "Why? Sha Wuyuan, do you dare not reveal yourself? Or does the Sha family only dare to do such shady acts?"

    The middle-aged man took the elemental energy mask off his face, revealing a meager, apathetic face. "I heard Sea Pacific Enterprise will be operating here for a long time toe. I¡¯ve been so curious as to who would have such foresight to prepare theyout so early on. It¡¯s a great honor to be able to meet you today."

    Huaijun remained unmoved. "Sea Pacific Enterprise is not big, but we will not tolerate any humiliation. You¡¯ve actually attacked the younger generation, so there¡¯s no way around this, both families will have to settle all scores today no matter what."

    There was a jade bamboo as thick as a thumb in her hand. It was a fresh, green jasper jade bamboo and there were even a few bamboo leaves hanging on top of it.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s pupils shrank. "Su Huaijun!"

    He said slowly, "I was wondering which Su family it was. Turns out you are from the Sanmu Su family. My bad, my bad. We have been at peace and close like family. This misunderstanding was caused by my hastiness and I¡¯d almost disrupted our harmony. I heard you¡¯re an earth elementalist. This sand puppet, Shadow, is a little gift from me. Please ept it, Sir."

    The Shadow was a precious treasure among the sand puppets produced by the Sha family. It was difficult to obtain even before Yellow Sand Corner was taken over. Unfortunately, it was unlikely that the current Sha family would be able to produce many of these Shadows anymore.

    Huaijun¡¯s face softened slightly as she said to Su Qingye, "It¡¯s okay, stop now."

    Su Qingye gave Sha Wuyuan a hateful look, but knew he had to listen. He could tell that while his father was the one managing the enterprise, his aunt held a more admirable position.

    Sha Wuyuan heaved a sigh of relief.

    Within the information gathered on Wang Han, Sea Pacific Enterprise was Sha family¡¯s only doubt. Su Qingye was Wang Han¡¯s student. What kind of rtionship did Wang Han and Sea Pacific Enterprise have? Who was backing up Sea Pacific Enterprise?

    The ways of the world were chaotic, enterprises without any backing wouldn¡¯t be able to survive. For being able to live in Peace City for so long, Sea Pacific Enterprise must have its backing.

    Sha Wuyuan had bribed the gangsters to target Su Qingye in order to scout out information about the Su family and to get a gauge of Wang Han¡¯s standards.

    Who knew the gangsters would be so useless, causing him to have to deal with the kids himself. Su Huaijun¡¯s choice to end the fight made him feel rather embarrassed as well.

    The good thing was that he¡¯d already gotten the answer he wanted the most.

    The whole Sha family knew that they simply couldn¡¯t afford to lose this time. Once they lost, it was inevitable that they would be swallowed up. Sha family¡¯s decline in the past three years had been observed by many, and Yu Wei had been the one bracing the family.

    If they lost, theirst semnce would be taken down and Sha family¡¯s vulnerability would bepletely exposed, revealing exactly how weak they were. The wolves in wait would pounce on them without hesitation and swallow them whole.

    The Sha family simply couldn¡¯t lose.

    This put them under extreme pressure.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s gaze was shrewd and ruthless. He could feel the whole of the Su family¡¯s attitude from Su Huaijun¡¯s bearing. Su Huaijun did not mention Wang Han at all from start to finish.

    The Su family did not want to get involved in the dispute between the Sha family and Wang Han!

    This was the oue he wanted, so he felt much more rxed now. As long as the Su family did not chime in, what kind of storm could Wang Han raise alone?

    Almost losing his life, Su Qingye wasn¡¯t nning to let things go so easily, but his aunt had no intention of making a move. He rolled his eyes and shouted out loud, "There are three of us!"

    Su Huaijun gave him a look, warning evident in her eyes.

    Sha Wuyuan was taken by surprise, but he¡¯d been around for a long time. Seeing that Su Huaijun red but did not outright oppose Su Qingye, he said calmly, "The other two kiddos, five hundred elemental energy points each. A little gift from the bottom of my heart. What do you think, Miss Su?"

    Su Qingye¡¯s gaze fell upon a silhouette within the crowd and was stunned for a bit.

    Su Huaijun nodded. "Okay."

    Zhou Wen burst out, "Who wants your money!"

    Surprise filled Su Qingye¡¯s face. He knew how poor Zhou Wen was, yet this fellow actually had backbone despite his horrible personality. He quickly pulled Zhou Wen and winked at him vigorously. Zhou Wen did not really understand what Su Qingye was trying to do, so he just shut his mouth and said nothing.

    Su Qingye winked at Hua Xiaoyun this time and she nodded subtlely.

    It wasn¡¯t the first time Sha Wuyuan had heard an angry rebuke like the one made by Zhou Wen. With a slight smile, he threw a bag of essence elemental beans toward Su Huaijun before turning around to leave.

    Without opening it, Su Huaijun threw the bag to Su Qingye before leaving as well.

    The sky was packed with observing elementalists. The resounding sword chim from earlier had rmed all of them.

    "Who would¡¯ve thought that Sea Pacific Enterprise has the Su family backing it up!"

    "Sanmu Su family is also a well-known family."

    "Why didn¡¯t they go to Jadeite Forest?"

    "We have to say something good about Avalon of Five Elements. The Avalon¡¯s never treated these families badly."

    "Things are going to get lively in Peace City. The Sha family, Su family, and perhaps other families are also here."

    ...

    Tongues were wagging in the sky as the Sanmu Su family suddenly emerged from beneath the water¡¯s surface, causing a stir.

    Fu Renxuan was moved. "I can¡¯t believe the Su family is here too, but it makes sense. The earth elemental, fire elemental and wood elemental families are all waiting for the construction of the lesser Avalon of Five Elements."

    The Fu family sister turned around suddenly to ask Fu Yonghao, "Was that move worth four essence elemental beans?"

    Fu Yonghao¡¯s face turned red and he kept silent.

    The move from earlier was beyond breathtaking. Although people only saw the aftermath of the sword ray and heard the sword chime, they were all shaken by the swordy. Thinking about it again, this impressive swordy was executed by three immature and inexperienced babies. How deep were Wang Han¡¯s sword mastery and achievements?

    Upon noticing this, Fu Renxuan hurriedly smoothed things over. "Who knew Wang Han¡¯s sword master would be this excellent. Wonder if it has anything to do with Karakorum?"

    The Fu family big sister seemed lost in thought as shemented suddenly, "Sha family is likely going to have a difficult time."

    No one was surprised and Fu Renxuan couldn¡¯t help but add, "Perhaps Sister thinks Wang Han can win this battle?"

    Fu Yonghao blurted, "Sister, you overestimate Wang Han! The Sha family is a big family after all. A skinny camel is still bigger than a horse. Can one person like Wang Han overturn the whole family? Unbelievable!"

    The Fu family big sister did not answer. Instead, she gazed at Sha Wuyuan¡¯s disappearing figure and said faintly, "Acting cowardly before the battle. Not a good omen."

    No one noticed a figure left the crowd quietly and followed far behind Sha Wuyuan.

 Chapter 297: Silent Strike

    Chapter 297: Silent Strike

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Although Sha Wuyuan had embarrassed himself somewhat, he had still obtained the result he¡¯d wanted and,pared to victory, a blow to his pride meant nothing.

    Ultimately, the Sha family was still a big family. It was absolutely not an easy task to migrate and redevelop the whole family.

    Those managing now were only the vanguards.

    Sha Wuyuan felt that he had enough power since there was just one person in the so-called swordsman school. If not for the association between Sea Pacific Enterprise and Wang Han, Sha Wuyuan would¡¯ve gone straight to the front door.

    He was in a foreignnd, so it did not hurt to be more cautious.

    After probing came a thunderous fury. Only then would the world be able to witness the Sha family¡¯s power, and only then could the family crush the ingrates¡¯ desire to take them down.

    Amidst the steady flow of people moving about the busy streets, a heroic spirit rose suddenly within Sha Wuyuan¡¯s chest.

    Having been poverty-stricken for three years, members of Sha family had been indecisive and at a loss, but also held in a certain enthusiasm. The construction of the mini Avalon of Five Elements finally gave them some hope.

    The Sha family of the past had been beyond well-regarded. The no-puppet-without-sand, mighty and well-celebrated Sha family had carried an unparalleled influence amongst all wood elementalists. Countless numbers of them had travelled thousands of miles to visit the family to request for a sand puppet. When the Sha family had been about to release a new series of sand puppets, all the business giants had responded instantly by waiting anxiously outside the Sha family¡¯s door.

    The current situation was all thanks to that damned Blood of God!

    The im over Yellow Sand Corner had not only caused the Sha family to lose its most important raw material supply, but had also swept away all its power in Yellow Sand Corner. Close to seventy percent of the Sha family¡¯s power had been in Yellow Sand Corner, so its upation greatly damaged the family¡¯s strength.

    Otherwise, the Sha family wouldn¡¯t have fallen into such a predicament!

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s thoughts started to float away.

    During the decaying, bleak period of war, the big-scale construction in Peace City was exceptionally attention-grabbing and spirit-raising.

    There was an endless stream of people brushing past him, their faces full of urgency but also carrying an unique type of liveliness, just like the Peace City which was full of vigor.

    Just then, a warning signal rose in Sha Wuyuan¡¯s chest.

    Even before he could react, he felt a sudden, sharp pain in his lower back.

    A wisp of sharp elemental energy had pierced into his lower back!

    Not good! Sha Wuyuan¡¯s face changedpletely. The enemy was so good at concealing their odor that Sha Wuyuan wasn¡¯t even able to detect them standing by his side.

    The moment the elemental energy invaded his body, the elemental energy within his body started resisting. This wisp of elemental energy was like a sharp awl, however, and broke open his elemental energy to destroy his body effortlessly. Pop, a faintly discernable sound rang in his ears like a p of thunder.

    p!

    Densely packed cracks started surfacing on a round-headed mini sand puppet that hung on Sha Wuyuan¡¯s neck. Shortly, it shattered into a pool of quicksand and spilled onto the ground.

    His stand-in puppet!

    Fear and anger flooded Sha Wuyuan¡¯s heart simultaneously. The shattering of the stand-in sand puppet meant that the earlier blow would¡¯ve killed him if not for the puppet. The stand-in sand puppet was the Sha family¡¯s supreme puppet. It was absolutely not for sale and had nobat abilities. Its only use was to help its owner take a blow during a disaster.

    Every single one of the ingredients needed to manufacture a stand-in sand puppet was extremely precious, and the secret method used in the production process would overdraft the creator¡¯s life. Even during its peak, the Sha family had not produced many of these stand-in puppets. The one on Sha Wuyuan¡¯s neck was one of the three left in the family.

    Sha Wuyuan knew that the most important thing was not to attack the opponent or attend to his injury, but to increase the distance between the enemy and himself. Only then would he be able to unleash his power and gain the opportunity to strike back.

    Ignoring the acute pain in his lower back, he suddenly charged toward the side of the street.

    Ai Hui felt the elemental energy that he¡¯d released get absorbed by something as a feeling of emptiness came through.

    Stand-in sand puppet!

    Ai Hui immediately understood because thanks to Lou Lan, he had a rather deep understanding of sand puppets. Why wouldn¡¯t Ai Hui know about the stand-in sand puppet? It was a rare gem among all sand puppets. He was rather shocked that such a precious item would be in Sha Wuyuan¡¯s hands.

    Stirred up by the Sha family¡¯s riches and overbearing attitude, Ai Hui attacked more ruthlessly.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s sudden dash forward sent the streets into chaos.

    There were people all around, but that did not give Sha Wuyuan a sense of security. The wisp of faintly discernable odor followed behind him like the undispersed soul of a deceased person. It was like a bone gangrene.

    A chill went down his spine and overtook his whole body.

    He dared not turn around, but dared not hesitate as well. There was no time for him to open his azure wings since the enemy was a proficient assassinator. Currently, it was as if he was standing on the edge of a cliff. Any mistake would mean a horrible death.

    The elemental energy within his body rushed frantically toward his back. Ayer of thick, sandy soil armor appeared on his back, growing visibly to the naked eye.

    A ruthless expression shed across Sha Wuyuan¡¯s face as he ran madly for his life. He had no intention to stop. He arched his back, covered with the sandy soil armor, as if he was raising a thick and solid shield and charged backwards with full force!

    The next moment, Sha Wuyuan¡¯s face changed thoroughly.

    There was nothing but emptiness behind him!

    How was that possible?

    Wasn¡¯t the opponent following close behind? Had it been an illusion? No! It definitely wasn¡¯t an illusion!

    While Sha Wuyuan was feeling bewildered, a sword ray as bright as stars rose high into the air from beneath his feet.

    Sword ray!

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s pupils shrank as he realized who the perpetrator was.

    Wang Han! Swordsman Training Hall¡¯s owner, Wang Han!

    Was this fellow crazy? How dare he...

    A fellow he¡¯d never paid attention to, a fellow that was as good as dead to him had actually... actually initiated an attack on the Sha family!

    What was the Sha family? A huge monster dominating the food chain. A sneeze by the Sha family would cause many to tremble in fear. Today, however, he had actually been harassed by an insect-like, powerless fellow!

    This slight to his dignity seemed to forebode the Sha family¡¯s decline. Disappointment and humiliation shed past Sha Wuyuan¡¯s heart, apanied shortly by an intense fury. His rage was so intense that he couldn¡¯t help but shake uncontrobly.

    How gutsy! What a daredevil!

    Not only did Sha Wuyuan not dodge, he charged toward the sword ray with a bellow.

    In front of the ray, the thick, sandy soil armor was like paper. The pain in his abdomen seemed to have turned Sha Wuyuan into a wounded wild elephant as he started acting even crazier.

    With a flip of his hand, a yellow glowing ring appeared on his palm.

    [Heavy Soil Ring]!

    This skill formed a confinement area with a radius of about a hundred feet. Those trapped within would feel their bodies be exceptionally heavy. Sha Wuyuan was particrly skillful with this move. He could make his enemies feel as if their bodies were twenty-six times heavier!

    Those confined would be unable to move a single step and their heavy bodies would make even breathing a challenging task.

    Unknowingly, a giant arm rose up from the ground far behind Sha Wuyuan. With its fingers spread open, the palm swatted at Ai Hui like a huge web.

    A shadow descended upon Wang Han¡¯s head. The giant palm was pressing down towards his head with a horrifying whizzing sound.

    An evil grin appeared on Sha Wuyuan¡¯s face.

    Let¡¯s see where you¡¯re going to run!

    Boom!

    The giant palm pped down fiercely and everything within a fifty foot radius, Sha Wuyuan included, turned into fine powder.

    The solid ground rose up like a soft water surface and an intense shockwave carried and sted the shattered rock pieces in all directions at a shocking speed.

    "Hahaha..."

    Wildughter sounded from underground. Sha Wuyuan was still in one piece as he emerged from the sandy giant palm, looking as if he were floating up to the water¡¯s surface. The fresh blood oozing out of his abdomen was a horrible sight, but he did not care at all.

    Earth elementalists usually disliked air warfare because their elemental energy became thinner once they left the ground. As for earth elementalists in the realm of elemental externalization, they were like a firm fort, difficult to destroy as long as their feet did not leave the earth.

    The weakening effect was stronger in the city because he was unable to control as much elemental energy as when he was in wild areas. To Sha Wuyuan, however, this was sufficient.

    He felt very clearly that he¡¯d managed to trap the opponent!

    The power of the devilish, giant elemental energy palm could pulverize all living things!

    The passers-by observing from afar were all terrified and in awe, making himugh uncontrobly. That was all. He had thought that Wang Han had powerful tricks, but that was all.

    Hisughter spontaneously came to an end as he suddenly felt danger from somewhere below. He spread his azure wings hurriedly and charged toward the sky.

    A sharp, curved sword ray shot out from the giant elemental devilish palm.

    The palm was like a lump of soft dough, splitting into two around the ray.

    Sha Wuyuan opened his eyes wide, his expression stiffening up. His giant palm wasn¡¯t just an earth elementalist¡¯s inheritance, but also a sand puppet. It was just that this sand puppet had a unique form. It was in the shape of a giant¡¯s arm. It possessed unmatchable power and force, and was exceptionally solid. Even a diving, high speed javelin would not be able to damage it at all.

    Yet, it had actually split because of a sword ray...

    What kind of sword ray could possible have such formidable power?

    Fear overtook Sha Wuyuan like an oing darkness, abrupt and boundless.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body and bones were about to fall apart as his limbs went weak and his forehead started buzzing. He had suffered greatly from that hit by the giant elemental devilish palm.

    But thanks to One Thousand Yuandy!

    If not for the remodeling effect the blood plum blossom had on his body, the fact that his body was much stronger than others and that he had the protection of the blood bandage, that hit would¡¯ve sent him to hisst breath instantly.

    The elemental energy within his body recovered faster than his flesh and shortly after he lost control, his speed returned to normal, allowing him to execute [Crescent Moon]!

    The [Crescent Moon] today was more powerful than it had been when he was still in Central Pine City.

    Be it his understanding of swordy or the vigorousness and purity of the elemental energy within his body, both had improved tremendously and iparably.

    Ai Hui thought about how to im victory with his weakened limbs. His body was numb and he could only utilize elemental energy. This was undoubtedly the most dangerous moment.

    Just then, he suddenly noticed a change in Sha Wuyuan¡¯s expression. His eyes lit up.

    Perhaps...

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart shook as the sky pce between his brows started operating.

    His body jolted and a devilish glow lit up in his eyes.

    A few fine threads appeared within Ai Hui¡¯s field of vision like floating fishing lines in water. Each ¡®fishing line¡¯ tip was connected to a mini Dragonspine sword that swam silently like a fish and vanished in mid-air.

    Fear overtook Sha Wuyuan¡¯sst wisp of fighting will and so he turned around to flee.

    Just then, the silent strike happened.

 Chapter 298: Sha Wuyuanâ€™s Death

    Chapter 298: Sha Wuyuan¡¯s Death

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    A fine sword ray shed before Sha Wuyuan¡¯s eyes.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s face turned pale in fear. He felt his enemy was everywhere, appearing and disappearing, at times before him and at times behind him. He simply couldn¡¯t guard against such unpredictability.

    All he wanted to do now was escape. The further the better. Hatred grew within his heart. He nned to show his best hands when he got back and that damned fellow Wang Han would have nowhere to run.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s attack was beyond vicious and once he¡¯d decided to escape, he did it without the least bit of hesitation or sloppiness.

    Protecting his vital organs with both arms, he operated the elemental energy within his whole body as if he was getting ready for battle. With a bellow and a spread of his azure wings, he charged forward!

    Bang!

    A sword ray that was directed at his throat hit his arms, causing sparks to fly in all directions.

    Sha Wuyuan noted that this fine sword ray was much less powerful than the one from earlier.

    At this point, elemental energy was circting within his whole body. He wasn¡¯t operating any high-level moves, but rather [Sand Armor], which was a skill most earth elementalists knew. It was a staple, inherited skill that was actually considerably practical when in the realm of elemental internalization. Sha Wuyuan was in the realm of elemental externalization, so the ordinary [Sand Amor] was impressively formidable in his hands.

    It appeared as if his whole body was heavily armored as the light ray was circting. The veined patterns on the armor were exquisite and clear. A true armor indeed.

    The most praise-worthy aspect of the [Sand Armor] was that there were no blind spots. It could form sessfully wherever the elemental energy could reach and circte.

    Ding, ding, ding!

    Fine sword rays hit his body continuously but were unable to break his sand armor. Sha Wuyuan could finally calm his worried heart. He did not know if that curved sword ray was his opponent¡¯s fatal move, but at this point, being almost exhausted, he dared not gamble. These consecutive hits left quite a major trauma in heart and mind.

    Going back for assistance was still the safer choice...

    Just then, the wound on his abdomen ached suddenly.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s body stiffened as there seemed to be something that pierced into his abdomen.

    He was frightened soulless and his face turned deathly pale.

    The sand armor covered every corner of his body, but he had forgotten about his wound. Where there was a wound, elemental energy would not be able to circte smoothly, and thus it became the armor¡¯s only vulnerable spot.

    A sword ray had entered his body through the wound.

    Sha Wuyuan did not understand how his opponent could do something so unimaginable. What technique was this? No, what swordy?

    He now knew he had been defeated thoroughly without a chance of overturning the situation. Between life and death, he had to make a choice. Decisively, he said, "I surren..."

    The words that were about toe out stopped suddenly.

    Flying at high speed in mid-air, Sha Wuyuan¡¯s eyes flew wide open and his body went rigid. He lost control of his wings and, like a bird with a broken wing, dove straight down into the signboard of a roadside shop.

    Crash! Both Sha Wuyuan and the signboard smashed onto the ground.

    rmed cries could be heard on the street and no one dared approached the scene. Those who recognized Sha Wuyuan turned pale.

    The devilish ray in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes gradually dimmed and his numbed qi and blood started to recover.

    Shortly after, hended beside Sha Wuyuan.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s eyes were wide open andpletely absent of life. A grievance-filled death. Without needing to check, Ai Hui knew that the fellow was already as dead as could be. The mini sword that had entered his abdomen had already destroyed his body.

    No one could, under any circumstances, survive this.

    Without dy, Ai Hui skillfully swept up all the valuables from Sha Wuyuan¡¯s lifeless body.

    Getting up, he saw a pale belonging to a shop assistant whom he recognized as Zhang. With a flick of his fingers, an essence elemental bean fell before the assistant. "Money to fix the signboard."

    He then turned around to leave.

    He moved fast as lightning and vanished into the crowd in the blink of an eye.

    Before, Ai Hui had held the Sha family¡¯s housekeeper and guards captive merely to collect a ransom. However, seeing how Sha Wuyuan had attacked Su Qingye and gang, he felt the desire to kill.

    While the three smalls were not his official students, three years of interaction had built a certain level of affection.

    Ai Hui could more or less guess Sha Wuyuan¡¯s intention towards the three smalls, but that was unimportant. What was important was the fact that Ai Hui would absolutely never tolerate people hurting those around him.

    Since it was going to be a death match, you should die first.

    Ai Hui¡¯s logic was simple and practical.

    Alone, Sha Wuyuan was the ideal target to sneak an attack on. Ai Hui had confidence in his assassination skills.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs was an underground organization, so naturally it did notck skills for assassinations. Ai Hui had never thought that he was gifted since he had a poor affinity with elemental energy. If not for Lou Lan¡¯s elemental energy soup, his energy growth would be as slow as a tortoise. Swordy wise, he had also been a mess. Aspared to those who had started creating their own absolute art even before they hit twenty, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t considered great.

    But when he¡¯d been introduced to assassination techniques, he¡¯d found his talent for the first time.

    He wasn¡¯t sure if it was because he had trained with the sword embryo or because he had been battling in the Wilderness for three long years, but he had a keen intuition when it came to sensing danger. His calmness, patience, and perseverance made him an even more dangerous assassin.

    This was also the reason why Chu Zhaoyang, who had achieved only elemental internalization, could gain a decent reputation.

    Sha Wuyuan never would have thought that Ai Hui would attack him so soon, so timing wise, Ai Hui had already gotten the upper hand. If he couldn¡¯t even get rid of Sha Wuyuan at such an opportune moment, it just meant that their disparity in skills was too wide.

    Then Ai Hui would immediately take Lou Lan and flee to the other end of the world.

    Su Huaijun sat herself down upon bringing the three smalls back to Sea Pacific Enterprise¡¯s training hall. The kids were in low spirits and a sulky mood. Without straightening anything out, Su Huaijun instructed, "Do not leave the hall these few days. I will ask for letters to be sent to your families and they will pick you up."

    The kids ignored her, but she did not mind as long as they did not cause any trouble.

    She had Su family¡¯s interests at heart. Getting involved in this battle brought no benefits to the family.

    Not just the Su family, but no family would get themselves tangled in this war.

    Wang Han simply overestimated his abilities.

    She shook her head and reached for a teacup.

    Just then, Su Qingye¡¯s father dashed in, looking flustered. "Sha Wuyuan was killed by Wang Han."

    The teacup stopped by her lips as Su Huaijun¡¯s face froze up. She spoke up not long after. "What happened?"

    "After parting with you guys, he was secretly followed by Wang Han and eventually got taken down in the middle of the street. He died on the spot."

    Father Su¡¯s voice was trembling.

    The three kids¡¯ eyes lit up as they gave each other a look. They saw the same excitement in each other¡¯s eyes.

    Su Huaijun¡¯s mind was buzzing non-stop and only one voice echoed within.

    Wang Han had actually initiated an attack on Sha Wuyuan!

    How daring! How ruthless! How crazy!

    It wasn¡¯t any secret that the Sha family was after Wang Han, but it was beyond her imagination that as the weaker party, Wang Han had actually dared to make the first move.

    An indescribable shock overtook her, but when she calmed down, she realized how exquisite Wang Han¡¯s move was.

    She had to admit that she had belittled him. He was actually such a powerful and fierce character!

    Back in his own training hall, Ai Hui was sure that he would face the Sha family¡¯s outburst.

    He¡¯d better prepare for it.

    Lou Lan was upgrading his body. If he hadn¡¯t been, Ai Hui would have gotten his assistance and not killed Sha Wuyuan personally.

    He was used to being hands-free. Now that he had to deal with these things, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help butugh bitterly.

    Dashing into the warehouse, he opened a chest lying in a corner. The boss of the shop he frequented would go crazy if he were to see this open chest!

    The chest was filled with weasel bristle arrows,monly referred to as ¡®See You Later¡¯.

    Why wouldn¡¯t the boss go crazy? When had See You Later evere in a whole chest? Selling eight or ten arrows was like dripping blood. As such, every time the boss sold See You Later, he would feel an inevitable sense of guilt. There would always be a devil-like voice urging him to sell one less arrow. Just one less arrow...

    When the boss finally became determined to sell them, that voice started shouting, raise the price a little, just raise it a little...

    The whole chest was filled with See You Later and Ai Hui hadn¡¯t kept records on the exact number. Each time he made them, he would keep a third aside for rainy days.

    Who knew that rainy day would reallye.

    Ai Hui took out another chest that was much smaller. It was as small as a jewellery box.

    Upon opening it, all kinds of light rays shone through the cracks at the edges.

    There were manypartments inside the chest and each contained a piece of artifact remnant. The box was full of artifact remnants. There were around forty pieces of them. They were of different shapes and sizes, and were evidence of the King of Angler¡¯s military sesses.

    Within eachpartment was abel indicating that these remnants had been analyzed.

    While Lou Lan¡¯s Midnight sand core was unable to operate at full force, it could still do many things like analyzing artifact remnants. These remnants must be of excellent quality for them to have survived the test of time. Other than that, there must have been some kind of seal that allowed them to be preserved during the elemental energy era.

    These seals were what Lou Lan had been trying to analyze.

    Although they were in poor condition, the research value was still exceptionally high in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes.

    Lou Lan had already drawn out many badly damaged seals and even then, they were extremelyplex. In this elemental energy era that ced simplicity and practicality above all things, no elementalist would waste time and effort on something so fruitless, just as how few would practice swordy like Ai Hui.

    The reason why Ai Hui was interested in these seals was because he found simrities between them and some of Teacher¡¯s ns.

    Teacher¡¯s [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] had been veryplex and he knew every detail inside out. He would even ponder over it at times.

    This was the only way he could reminisce about his Teacher.

    The forty artifact remnants all had different kinds of seals, which gave Ai Hui sufficient options.

    He had a few backup ns on hand that he and Lou Lan hade up together. He offered ideas while Lou Lan perfected the details. When it came toplicated and dull details and calctions, no one could settle them better than Lou Lan.

    Ai Hui took out whatever essence elemental beans he had. There were a few hundred.

    The biting cold rays of See You Laters, the brightly-colored remnants¡¯ glow, and the soft light of the elemental beans lit up the whole warehouse along with Ai Hui¡¯s somewhat agonized but resolute face.

    He had sacrificed everything and returned to the state of poverty that he lived in before the blood catastrophe broke out. He would lose too much if he created too small a stir. It¡¯s time to intensify the storm!

 Chapter 299: God-subduing Peak

    Chapter 299: God-subduing Peak

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The golden wind whistled above the sea of clouds, and under the jade blue dome of heaven. The sunlight here was much more ring and zing aspared to when it reached the ground.

    A rarely seen mountain peak was flying speedily. Elementalists that flew past it looked at it with curiosity in their wide open eyes.

    The topography of the mountain peak was precipitous. From its waist down, the mountain was enveloped by clouds so it looked as if a big sheet of cloud was propping a mountain peak.

    There was a metal-made silver pond on the summit and the pond water was so clear that the bottom of the pond could be seen. The walls surrounding the pond were engraved withplicated, silvery patterns. Light circted within these patterns along the walls, one round after another relentlessly.

    The pond spurted a steady flow of water. The fine vapor which was floating around the summit converged with the sunlight to form a rainbow.

    The overflowing pond water meandered down and along the windings of the mountain to form a waterfall. From afar, it looked like a snow-white stretch of shining silk. Pouring into the clouds, the waterfall formed mist ceaselessly.

    The mountain peak was lined with shade-providing trees and the tough and solid old vines hung down, reaching within the clouds and mist like an anchor and chains hung off a ship. Threads and wisps of wood elemental energy flew into caverns of the mountain. Deep within the caverns there was ragingva and its entrance flickered with a zing red glow, resembling the breathing and heartbeat of a mythical animal.

    Nineva caves could be found throughout the mountain and they were connected by a silver line, as if they were stars of a constetion in the sky.

    There were a few terraces of different heightsid out disorderly on the mountain peak. There were buildings everywhere: A pavilion, a pagoda, an arrow tower and an ice castle hidden at the foot of the mountain amid the clouds and mist. The most eye-catching was a pce located beside the silver pond on the summit.

    Each building emitted different, faint light rays. They were the metal, wood, water, fire and earth elemental energies.

    The emitted lights blended in with one another to form a huge dome of light that enveloped and wrapped over the whole peak. Thisyer of faint light cover was close to being transparent, but asionally a magnificent light ray would sh across the top of the cover, reminding people of the dome¡¯s existence.

    The mountain moved steadily, the biting cold metal wind unable to defeat it.

    There were four vermilion words, ¡®Guardian of Five Elements¡¯ engraved on one of the cliff walls. The calligraphy was strong and powerful.

    Next to the words was the emblem of Elders Guild, a mark that showed that this mountain belonged to them.

    "It¡¯s all thanks to you, or else we would have to travel by the bamboo cart and not feel asfortable."

    The man who spoke up stood on the peak admiring the scenery. He couldn¡¯t feel the gale and shake at all. He could only feel the sea of cloud beneath his feet moving backwards as fast as lightning.

    He was tall and had long arms. He looked older than he was, which contributed to the majestic aura that surrounded him even as he stood casually.

    Shi Xueman looked at Jiang Wei from behind. They hadn¡¯t met for three years and Jiang Wei had be even more mature and stolid. She had more inside news and knew that many of the higher ups thought highly of this man, the young leader of a small team in Sky Edge Division, and his future.

    Sang Zhijun was very happy to see Jiang Wei as well since they¡¯d been partners for two years and got along well.

    Three years ago, after Ai Hui¡¯s departure, Jiang Wei rejected Shi Xueman¡¯s invitation and joined Sky Edge Division alone. He worked his way from the bottom as a soldier, up to the small team leader that he was currently.

    Sang Zhijun took up the role of Shi Xueman¡¯s assistant and helped her to organize and manage the troops.

    Sang Zhijun introduced, "This is a newly manufactured God-subduing Peak. It is faster than Fiery Floating Cloud and has greater defense andbat power. This is, in these past few years, Elders Guild¡¯s greatest achievement. The release of Guardian of Five Elements sent Fiery Floating Cloud and bamboo carts to the bin. Elders Guild used this on a diplomatic mission in order to disy its power. You can tell who it¡¯s going to be used against just by its name "God-subduing Peak".

    Jiang Wei¡¯s eyes lit up. "Who knew Elders Guild kept something this good hidden!"

    Blood of God called itself God Nation and practitioners were called god elementalists, so it went without saying that "God-subduing Peak" aimed to deal with them.

    Shi Xueman agreed. "Although they based it on Master Wang¡¯s theory, Elders Guild must have its own talent for them to be able to fashion something so great."

    Jiang Wei was stunned. "Which Master Wang?"

    Knowing she had been unclear, Shi Xueman exined, "Ai Hui¡¯s teacher, Wang Shouchuan. Elders Guild has already decided to confer the title of "Master" on Wang Shouchuan, except that they have yet to announce it. The n of [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] had been sent to Elders Guild as top secret. I¡¯ve heard that over these three years, Elders Guild has been concentrating their research on it, and indeed, results have been produced."

    Ai Hui, Wang Shouchuan...

    The stifling image of the final war of Central Pine automatically surfaced in Jiang Wei¡¯s mind, causing him to feel all sorts of emotions rising in his heart. Wang Shouchuan wasn¡¯t a well-known individual with memorable aplishments. What was Ai Hui¡¯s reaction upon hearing this news?

    Thinking about that unique fellow, Jiang Wei couldn¡¯t help but inquire, "Where¡¯s Ai Hui? Haven¡¯t heard about him as if he¡¯s evaporated from this world."

    Shi Xueman replied, "That fellow will live very well, wherever he is."

    Jiang Wei felt at ease. "Haha, that¡¯s true."

    The name "Wang Shouchuan" carried a certain graveness and braveness and wasn¡¯t suitable for casual chit-chat, so Jiang Wei initiated a change in topic. "God-subduing Peak requires how many elementalists? Are there any minimum requirements in terms of the elementalists¡¯ realms? When will the frontline be equipped with it?"

    Sang Zhijun answered in all familiarity, "Elementalists have to attain elemental externalization and any element type will do. A minimum of five is required to control it, but approximately fifty will be needed to unleash its full potential. Of course, this is in the case where there¡¯s no expert. If there are experts, less manpower is required. A Master can control the whole God-subduing Peak alone. As to when the frontline will be equipped, I¡¯m not too sure."

    Shi Xueman added, "The second God-subduing Peak is about to bepleted and will be given to Sky Edge Division. The name your division suggested to Elders Guild has already been approved. Sacred Blood. I heard that the name originated from the remains of a book, which talked about the bizarrend, where Sacred Blood was the first demonic sword. There was a row of small words, ¡®consume the Sacred Blood to know its taste¡¯, on it. Your division leader really liked this sentence. Elders Guild felt that this name symbolized the determination involved in this death match between the Avalon of Five Elements and god elementalists."

    Jiang Wei muttered, "Sounds too aggressive."

    "God-subduing Peak is a good thing but whether or not it is able to change the oue of the war, we can only find out afterbat. The problem now is that God-subduing Peak consume ingredients too fast. Even the usually ample supply of cloud material is starting to be a problem. The cloud-based material produced by Palette Cloud Vige has been stuffed into all of it, causing the market price to rise exponentially. If this supply problem isn¡¯t solved soon, God-subduing Peak will not be able to be engaged extensively at the frontline, and a third will not be produced in the near future.

    Shi Xueman pointed out this bottleneck calmly.

    "It¡¯s always a good thing." Jiang Wei was a practical guy. He had always been on the frontline and understood it better. "The people needed something to boost their morale. At least they know that Elders Guild is actually doing something instead of plotting against one another."

    Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t help but feel concerned. "The soldiers at the frontline had such low morales?"

    "Very low." Jiang Wei added helplessly, "We haven¡¯t clenched any decent victories, and lost Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie instead. Many enemies used to be friends and no one wanted to fight. Not just us, but the other side as well. Jadeite Forest is independent as well so people are more separated now. Sigh, the conflict between new citizens and influential families is more intense than ever."

    Shi Xueman stayed quiet for a while before asking him to continue.

    "Blood of God is putting in a lot of effort to rope in new citizens. Furthermore, the process of elementalists converting into blood elementalists is much more safer and easier now. Blood of God promises that these elementalists could bring their families along and even raise their family names. The new citizens from Old Territory mostly had families, so being able to take them along to live better lives wavered their decisions naturally. You definitely know more about the aristocratic families than I do."

    Shi Xueman did indeed.

    Ever since Jadeite Forest became independent, it had undoubtedly set an example for the aristocratic families. Although, having learnt their lesson from previous mistakes, Elders Guild held even stricter control over Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige. But the vast Wilderness carried unlimited opportunities.

    Shi Xueman knew much more. She hesitated before speaking softly, "Elders Guild is considering whether or not to grant people the liberty of building cities in Wilderness."

    Sang Zhijun gave an rmed cry as Jiang Wei stood dumbstruck.

    It pained Shi Xueman to say this but she did anyway, quietly, "To the higher ups, it¡¯s enough for the frontline to persevere. What¡¯s the point of snatching Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie back? Elementalists can be god elementalists but not the other way round. Thend there¡¯s already been corroded by blood poison. It cannot be restored even if we get it back."

    Seeing Jiang Wei¡¯s soulless expression made Shi Xueman crestfallen as well.

    Getting Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie back had been their war slogan and Jiang Wei had witnessed countless people sacrificing their lives for this. The fact that this was merely a scam was hard for Jiang Wei to digest.

    Jiang Wei asked suddenly, "If that¡¯s the case, why fight against Blood of God? Why not negotiate instead?"

    "Blood of God is not down for negotiation." Shi Xueman shook her head. "Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s strange? The speed at which the blood poison is corroding Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie is so fast, but have you heard of the Wilderness being corroded?"

    Jiang Wei was stunned.

    Giving him a look, Shi Xueman continued, "While the reason is still unknown, Elders Guild is certain that the blood poison is unable to invade the Wilderness."

    Jiang Wei understood it quickly. "So the Blood of God can only expand in our direction?"

    "Yes. Blood of God has three directions to expand itself: Silver Mist Sea, Old Territory and Jadeite Forest, but ultimately it will be us," Shi Xueman added, "On the contrary, if we are unable to rebuild the Avalon of Five Elements and the elemental energy is unable to circte, it will only wither, causing us to weaken. So, we can only advance in the direction of the Wilderness and obtain resources from there. Breaking sufficient grounds would allow us to rebuild the Avalon of Five Elements."

    Thinking about his own mission, something dawned upon Jiang Wei. "Lesser Avalon of Five Elements was a trial?"

    "Yes." Shi Xueman continued, "The frontline is a protective screen to obstruct Blood of God¡¯s expansion. It¡¯s purpose is to win more time for the reconstruction of the Avalon of Five Elements. Elders Guild created God-subduing Peak in the hope that it can stand guard and advance forward steadily, so as to reduce the number elite troops needed on the frontline. The Elders Guild also hopes to find a method to destroy the blood poison in the Wilderness."

    All at once, the three fell into silence.

    Only silence was appropriately describing theirplicated emotions. There was disappointment, hopefulness, uneasiness, indecisiveness, and more so, they were at a loss.

    The future was clear to none, like a faraway ce that was enveloped by a thick fog.

 Chapter 300: The Allure of Red Muslin

    Chapter 300: The Allure of Red Muslin

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Sha family did not attack them directly, this took Ai Hui by surprise.

    They must be preparing for a big move!

    He had to be better prepared. Unassured Ai Hui was like a diligent bee. The details he had been toozy to ponder over are filling his mind up.

    He was still unaware that Sha Wuyuan, whom he murdered, was the in charge of Sha family¡¯s branch.

    After Sha Wuyuan¡¯s death, Peace City¡¯s Sha family branch was leaderless. Plus, Ai Hui¡¯s ruthlessness intimidated the remaining people and none of them dared to make a move.

    What made them feel more at ease was the fact that Sha family¡¯s elite troops were all deployed and were rushing to Peace City without resting at all.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s violent death on the street shook Sha family greatly.

    With a big dip in Sha family¡¯s strength, Sha Wuyuan was considered the cream of the crop. Or else, he wouldn¡¯t be sent to lead the fight and be the in-charge.

    It wasn¡¯t Sha Wu Yuan¡¯s death that shocked Sha family but the absolutely unrestrained and powerful attack Wang Han had disyed.

    In the eyes of Wang Han, Sha family meant nothing.

    This was a ruthless and firm, exceedingly strong, reckless yet calm and meticulous enemy!

    Sha family was having a headache already.

    Enemies like Wang Han were those they did not want to provoke. Even when the family was at its peak, these kind of enemies were to be avoided, as learnt from past mistakes.

    There used to be a well-celebrated An family that developed an animosity towards a misfortuned earth elementalist. For twenty years, that elementalist harassed and attacked the family perpetually. An family brought together many to hunt him down but he was extremely crafty and managed to escape every time. What followed was an even more intense revenge operation as An family branch kept getting wrecked. Their disciples were killed and the enterprise was burnt.

    Each revenge added a wound to the colossal An family.

    After twenty years of feud and blood loss, the colossus finally sumbed and copsed. On the twenty second year, this earth elementalist secretly persuaded seven less powerful ns to join forces to dismember An family, causing it to perish.

    No one knew this period of history better than Sha family since they had been one of the seven ns. Sha family¡¯s sudden rise in status also attributed to that military campaign against An family.

    Revenge exacted, the earth elementalist went on to be a grandmaster five yearster. He then epted Elders Guild¡¯s invitation and became the leader of Lordsand Division for twelve years. Within these twelve years, Lordsand Division leapt its way up from the bottom, into bing the head of the Thirteen Divisions. The younger generation he carefully natured was as brilliant as he was and in the next sixty years, Lordsand Division maintained its position as the top three.

    Historically speaking, this earth elementalist was a legendary Grandmaster, whom countless other earth elementalists worshipped greatly, and his name was Mo Qishi, Lord Mo of Sand.

    Leading Lordsand Division, Mo Qishi charged to the frontline. It was a piece of news that shocked the Wilderness, immediately causing them to pull back over 900 miles. He was then crowned Lord Mo of Sand, a name that rose to extreme fame. An family¡¯snd had already became ruins where weeds grew rampantly and filled with jackdaws¡¯ calls. The bones that covered the fields were left unburied.

    If Sha family knew how powerful Wang Han was, they would never have provoked him.

    It was a pity that this world did not allow what ifs.

    Sha family¡¯s only choice was to calm the dangers before the bloom of Wang Han¡¯s feather wings. The family¡¯s current situation was even more dangerous than that of An family¡¯s.

    Sha family was like a patient gasping for oxygen. They could not afford to fail.

    But their enemy was craftier than they had imagined. He had seen through their weakness.

    "Ah, if you ask me how mncholy I am now, I can tell you I feel like a poor man who is gifting his head away!"

    A sorrowful cry sounded in the shabby training hall. Ai Hui looked at the organized spoils of war in front of him, his face full of anxiety. Didn¡¯t Sha Wuyuan have a high position in the family? A significant figure?

    ¡®Sha Wuyuan, Sha Wuyuan... Are these scraps that you carried around worthy of your identity?"

    Aspared to Shi Youguang, the items found on Sha Wuyuan was simply unpresentable.

    Sha family was really in a bad state, as evident from Sha Wuyuan¡¯s belongings. There wasn¡¯t even a sandpass. Ai Hui stroked his chin as he was thinking about how he could get rid of the mncholy caused by his poverty-stricken self.

    He was crazily poor!

    War was indeed a gold-swallowing monster. Although he did not once hesitate when fixing up the ce, once it waspleted he felt a piercing pain. It was like he was a starving beast, searching for food everywhere.

    Since Sha Wuyuan was to be stationed here first, he should¡¯ve prepared many things including money.

    Yet, Sha family had yet to make a move. They were most likely still on the road preparing their big move, which required time.

    Wouldn¡¯t Sha family branch be empty at this time?

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up and without a word, he dashed into the warehouse and pulled the fat housekeeper out. Even before he could question anything, the fat housekeeper started pissing in his pants, his tears carried the music down his nose. As if pouring beans out from a bag, he revealed everything he knew.

    Sha Wuyuan was the in-charge of Sha family branch and also the strongest member within the frontline troops. Sha family branch was located at apound in the east of the city, where there were huge volume of goods and money. Their mission was to construct the house ahead of time for the arrival of Sha family¡¯s main army force.

    This fellow even revealed the exact positions of the guards in full details.

    The information he forced out of the fat housekeeper proved his assumption right. The branch was meaningless and Sha family was in a bad state. Ai Hui could even gauge the strength of Sha family from Sha Wuyuan¡¯s position in the household.

    Being cautious, Ai Hui questioned a few other guards and received unanimous information. The housekeeper wasn¡¯t lying.

    Without hesitation, Ai Hui took this fleeting chance and headed towards the Sha family branch when the sky turned dark.

    There were no starlight amid the pitch ck sky. The Starry Gem Swordwing Ai Hui carried with him transformed into a deep ck color allowing Ai Hui to silently glide across the sky like a big ck bat.

    The city below was brightly lit and filled with pedestrians. The construction site outside the city was buzzing with activities.

    What a great time for murder and arson!

    Shortly, Ai Hui arrived and stopped above Sha family¡¯spound.

    The yard was a typical one within this locality, which had a garden that was roughly two acre big. Previously thend in Peace City wasn¡¯t worth much, but highly priced these days.

    Thepound was also brightly lit and dog barks could be heard asionally. There was an elementalist guard standing atop the arrow tower, which was built at thest moment. There was an inexpressibly tense atmosphere that surrounded the wholepound.

    Sha Wuyuan¡¯s death caused panic to the branch. Everyone was feeling jittery and extremely nervous.

    Ai Hui saw gaps and loopholes everywhere. For example, there wasn¡¯t any warning indicator neither was a light zone that showed where flying was prohibited built.

    Ai Hui chose not to infiltrate. Instead, he chose a more provoking move.

    The Starry Gem Swordwing on his back opened up in a swift movement and he shot up into the sky like a sharp arrow.

    Ai Hui only stopped when he was thousands of meters above. The golden wind up in the sky was bitingly cold, just like knives. However, it no longer caused any disturbance to him.

    Holding the Dragonspine, Ai Hui loosened up his body, allowing it to drop like a meteorite.

    His descending speed increased continuously as he fixed his gaze on thepound that he was about tond on.

    His wings were majestic and motionless. A spark lit up at the edge of the wings, illuminating Ai Hui¡¯s cold eyes. His grave as stone face was filled with murder lust.

    The spark became brighter as Ai Hui¡¯s speed increased continuously.

    People on the ground started to notice something peculiar in the sky and many stopped to look up. The spark that was descending was like a meteor that lit up people¡¯s faces, causing them faintly discernable.

    Their eyes were all wide open.

    That was...

    A whistle sounded and in a sh, the sky rumbled and shook, as if there was a hurricane rolling in and sweeping across Peace City.

    Countless people rushed out of their rooms and looked towards the sky.

    Boom!

    The sparks surrounded Ai Hui burst into mes. The fiery ze that flickered and swayed amid the surging airflow was like a demonic fire fromherworld, enveloping Ai Huipletely.

    The rumble was deafening and Ai Hui, who was wrapped in raging mes, had cold-as-ice eyes that were expressionless, deste and deep.

    Suddenly, a speck of ray lit up from the depths of his dark as night pupils. It was as if a little glow had just lit up in a faraway, absolutely dark ce.

    Ai Hui used his sword suddenly.

    He thrusted the sword out unhurriedly. Dragonspine was as heavy as a thousand catties and the elemental energy in his whole body was stimted to its greatest point as every bit of his muscle was engaged. Sweat poured out but it evaporated into mist in the blink of an eye, and the mist disappeared into the raging ze.

    In the eyes of the audience below, the ball of mes seemed to be stretched, by a pair of invisible hands, into an elliptic shape with its front being slightly sharp.

    The strange thing was, as the mes dimmed gradually, the sword ray burned even fiercer, like a red hot branding iron.

    Just then, the silhouette wrapped in mes revealed itself.

    Rushing out of the room and looking up into the sky, Su Huaijun shouted as her pupils shrunk, "It¡¯s him!"

    Wide in shock, the three young ones simultaneously cried out in rm while looking at that figure in the sky, "Teacher!"

    Fu family members were all stunned upon witnessing this scene. Fu Yonghao called out in surprise, "Wang Han!"

    The rest were all overwhelmed with shock.

    By now, those in the Sha familypound had gotten a clear view of that meteor-like figure in the sky and were all panic-stricken. They were like a nest of ants, frically gathering close together.

    The sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand trembled incessantly but did not take away his focus. His control over the sword was now instinctive thanks to the arduous trainings he had been through. His move had been majorly improvised but his profound umtion were like dried firewood, ready to ignite and ze up the moment an inspirational spark appeared.

    The elemental energy circted within his body.His sword seemed to possess a boundless, attractive force as all of the newly born mes entered Dragonspine¡¯s sword ray.

    The hurricane-like rumbling turned into a mosquito-like lingering sound and finally into a silence that belonged to the night. Everyone couldn¡¯t help but to hold their breaths as the whole scene unfolded before them. They were bound to remember this for life.

    The figure that dove down from the the vast dark sky carried a red hot sword ray, and the aftermath it stirred up was like a long, dull red muslin that covered several hundred meters.

    As the whistling sound gradually softened, the red muslin seemed particrly alluring.

    Time seemed to stop at this point where amid the silence, people were staring nkly at the breathtaking scene that happened in the sky.

    The more beautiful things were, the more dangerous it was.

 Chapter 301: Caught Off Guard

    Chapter 301: Caught Off Guard

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    When Ai Huinded along with the red muslin that filled the sky, he thrusted his red sword ray into Sha family¡¯spound.

    Thump. A dull and somewhat heavy sound rang. The next moment, the eye-grabbing red ray lit up suddenly. The ball of red glow illuminated the night sky radiantly.. Those with their eyes wide opened were unable to avoid it and were temporarily blinded and eximed rmingly.

    Their eyesight only recovered secondster.

    Far away, Sha family¡¯spound was extremely quiet. What was happening?

    Many were curious but dared not dash forward to look. Wang Han¡¯s powerful sword move was simply too terrifying. Plus, he had chosen to charge straight for the family like a death god figure. They couldn¡¯t help but revere him.

    Who exactly was this guy who concealed such dreadful powers?

    "This is it, how am I going to bargain with him in future? How am I going to run my business?" The shop owner held both hands to his head and his face was pale, but quickly, as if he¡¯d thought of something, his face turned red and his eyes lit up. "Aren¡¯t Sha family¡¯s belongings all going tond in Wang Han¡¯s hands? I¡¯ll probably earn something by disposing them for him? This Wang fellow is going to strike it rich. Sigh, this is a new tyrant. I shall prepare a few good items for our new tyrant."

    The boss was extremely familiar with Ai Hui and knew what hecked.

    There were always bolder elementalists who had more confidence in their abilities, so they flew slowly towards Sha¡¯spound.

    When they were close enough to get a glimpse of the yard, they fell into great shock.

    There were no intact corner. It was as if the big yard had been plowed over and over again by steel andva as there were holes and burnt marks all over the ce. The flipped soil were ck and there was steaming out of it.

    The arrow towers had been torn apart into countless chunks and none of the guards were still standing. Their bodies were filled with burnt bloody holes. It was a pitiful sight.

    The walls surrounding the yard were broken into pieces as well. There were countless gaps, big and small, and there were signs of melting within those gaps.

    Wherever he looked there were fragmented remnants so it was imaginable how intense and concentrated of a blow they had been dealt with.

    There was no trace of Wang Han in thepound.

    Ai Hui was awfully busy in the underground warehouse. It was located underground and hence undamaged, much to Ai Hui¡¯s relief.

    In the center of the warehouse was a quicksand whirlpool that constantly circted. The core of the whirlpool was like a fish¡¯s mouth, opening and closing.

    Ai Hui turned into a diligent porter, throwing things into the whirlpool speedily. Sandpass was indeed a miraculous object. The entrance of the whirlpool was definitely small but no matter what he threw in, the whirlpool swallowed them up.

    Ai Hui was very well prepared. He knew clearly where the valuable items were. He was like a gust of wind, sweeping the warehouse empty in the blink of an eye.

    The most valuable objects were kept in the sandpass. His biggest reward was two trunks of essence elemental beans, which was Sha family¡¯s Peace City branch¡¯s initiation funds.

    There were also many expensive earth elemental materials around. Sha family was a wealthy and powerful family after all.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t be bothered packing the leftover big objects that were of little worth.

    After keeping thepass properly, Ai Hui walked out of the warehouse openly.

    Murdering without arson was simply unprofessional.

    With a jolt of Dragonspine sword, its sharp end glided across the sky. Boom, a line of me set off in the sky andnded behind him, into the room full of holes.

    His move instantly subdued the restlessness of some people. Creating a fire was easy but only for fire elementalists. Wang Han, a metal elementalist, had relied on his swordsmanship to generate mes in such a rxed and natural motion. The depth of his swordsmanship and achievements was evident and fear-inducing.

    The wisp of me was exceptionally hot and the house quickly became a raging inferno, coating the sky with the color red.

    Under the watch of everybody present, Ai Hui returned to his usual calm and cool self without the least bit of uneasiness.

    A man with his sword walked, as if he was strolling casually in the park, to the entrance of the badly crumbledpound as the ze behind him soared.

    He noticed the many observers and something clicked. This was a good opportunity! He scanned the area and saw a broken wooden board not far away. He went over to pick it up and found himself a burnt chunk of a small wooden stick.

    The surrounding elementalists were beyond amazed, guessing what Wang Han was about to do.

    They only saw Wang Han brushing a few words on it before throwing the small wooden stick away. Carrying the wooden board to the copsed entrance, he picked a spot to hang the board.

    A row of words could be seen on the board.

    "Swordsman Training Hall, special tuition rate, a hundred essence elemental beans!"

    The onlookers: "..."

    Hidden in the crowd, Fu Yonghao almost choked on his own saliva. A hundred essence elemental beans? Why don¡¯t you rob somebody? It was four beans previously! How can such an unscrupulous businessman exist in this world! Eh, seemed like I¡¯m focusing on the wrong thing...

    In that period of silence, Ai Hui admired his own advertorial board. Come to think of it, this was the first time he¡¯d actually promoted the training hall.

    Thereupon, Ai Hui swaggered away amid the silence of the onlookers, leaving only the fiery ze and an advertorial board on that broken door behind.

    The morning sunlight came as scheduled, dering that it was a cloudless day.

    Having checked his inventory of spoils of war through the night, Ai Hui was simply too excited to sleep. The items, piled up like a mountain, brought extreme bliss and made it difficult for one to look away.

    Murderers and arsonists were rich indeed!

    All of Ai Hui¡¯s investments paid off quickly. Those two trunks of essence elemental beans were enough to dazzle him. Moreover, that pile of ingredients was worth a scary amount of money. What surprised Ai Hui was those twenty sand puppets whose models he couldn¡¯t recognize.

    He knew that these puppets were the newly and sessfully manufactured model, Earth Sentinel, that had yet to be released in the market. Sha Wuyuan either brought twenty of these along to strike a deal with other ns or because they had some special uses. After all, many elementalists were not easily swayed by money. Plus, it would be more appealing if there was only one instead of twenty sand puppets.

    Because it was a new release, there were only thirty of those in the whole Sha household. Now, twenty had fallen into Ai Hui¡¯s hands.

    Although Ai Hui did not know what models they were of, being shrewd, he could still distinguish the differences they had from ordinary sand puppets.

    Feeling pleased, Ai Hui came out of the warehouse to wee the sunlight. It made him feel iparably contented and he couldn¡¯t help but start to stretch. Sha family had bettere a few dayster. yBy then, Lou Lan would¡¯vepletely upgraded his body and he would have more confidence. The set up in this garden would be more formidable under Lou Lan¡¯smands.

    Of course, he believed that Sha family wasn¡¯t so sluggish. If they were so slow, the family would¡¯ve perished a long time ago.

    This wasn¡¯t the era of peace after all. Fighting and killing were the norm in this chaotic world. People who wasn¡¯t fully alert would die quickly.

    Gazing into the distance, Ai Hui¡¯s body suddenly stiffened up.

    He stared at a ck dot far away. After a while, that dot magnified significantly. A mountain peak. It was moving extremely fast and in a sh, it was already close by.

    The huge mountain whizzed over in an rming speed. The pressure it brought was stifling and even someone as mentally strong as Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but was a little shaken up.

    Guardian of Five Elements!

    The four red words on it was absolutely domineering.

    Peace City was like a startled beast as it turned dead quiet all of a sudden. But when people saw Elders Guild¡¯s emblem on the mountain peak, Peace City came alive!

    Ai Hui stared nkly at that mountain peak, as if his soul had been drawn out of his body.

    It was undoubtedly his first time seeing it but a strong sense of familiarity rose within his heart.

    The silver pond at the summit must haveyers uponyers of circling veined patterns; images of the cascading waterfall and the hidden meandering river drew themselves out in his mind; he even knew that there must be a thousand and eight hundred trees; the vines were in multiples of six; there were nine faintly discernibleva caverns that supposably shared the same core; pce, pavilion, arrow tower, pagoda; he knew there was a building amid the clouds that were dragged along by the bottom of the mountain......

    He knew why he was so familiar with it and he knew why he would know those set ups. It was because he had already memorized thatplicated proposal with all his heart and knew every detail inside out.

    He was caught off guard. Like a feather, he was being pulled into the warmth and sunshine amid that remote, mini city.

    Tears rolled down, blurring his vision.

    Master, Mistress.

    .....

    On the God-subduing Peak, Jiang Wei was bidding goodbye to Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun.

    "Peace City is just ahead. We won¡¯t be stopping so fly there yourself." Shi Xueman said, slightly apologetically.

    Jiang Wei was rather surprised. "So rushed? I was even nning to host both of you for a couple of days as a friendly gesture."

    "How are you a host when you¡¯re a foreigner?" Shi Xuemanughed and took a look at the thick smoke rising from the east side of the city. "It doesn¡¯t seem peaceful here eh, looks like you¡¯ll have to get busy. I¡¯m busy too, I have to help Bangwan seek justice."

    Shi Xueman¡¯sst sentence carried a murderous spirit.

    Jiang Wei was rmed. "Something happened to Huanghun?"

    Although Duanmu Huanghun was in Jadeite Forest, both parties were loyal to their masters. Jiang Wei did not think this was Huanghun¡¯s fault.

    "Just received the news."

    Sang Zhijun passed a report to him.

    "Duanmu Huanghun openly challenged She Yu, suffered a bitter defeat!"

    A murderous look shed across his face upon seeing these few words. Of course he remembered that She Yu participated in the war of Central Pine. He recovered himself and returned the report. Laughing, he said, "Do it on my behalf as well."

    "Sure!" Shi Xueman agreed readily.

    "Then we¡¯ll get going."

    Jiang Wei waved and rose into the air before flying towards Peace City.

    God-subduing Peak whizzed speedily past and above Peace City with a heavy whistle before disappearing far away.

    When Jiang Wei left the peak, there was an equally lofty group that descended from Fiery Floating Cloud.

    When they arrived at the marked site and saw the thick fog and ruins, the corpses and advertorial board on the badly damaged door, their eyes instantly turn bloodshot and the veins on their head were like they were popping out.

    "I want to know everything that had happened!"

    The leader of the group squeezed these words out from the gaps between his tightly clenched teeth.

 Chapter 302: The Society of Excellence

    Chapter 302: The Society of Excellence

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong stared at Duanmu Huanghun, looking as if they had seen a ghost.

    At this point of time, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s appearance was extremelyical. His usual handsome face that even women would be envious of was swollen and bruised. Many sters were stuck to his face in a disorderly manner, making it almost unbearable to look at.

    However, Duanmu Huanghun seemed to be in a good mood as he wolfed down his food.

    Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong cast a nce at each other. Both of them sensed an unusual auraing from Brother Duanmu.

    Something was not right!

    The news of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s terrible defeat had been spread throughout the Jadeite Forest. Various rumors were spreading everywhere in the city. Those who rejoiced in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s misfortune said that he had overestimated his capabilities and he was just fishing forpliments. Some also said that he had thoroughly embarrassed the Jadeite Forest.

    Even as observers, Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong felt extremely pressured by the incident. They could sense a huge storm was brewing in the Jadeite City.

    However, as the person that was directly involved in the incident, Duanmu Huanghun behaved as if nothing had happened.

    Coming from a powerful and rich family, Yu Ziyi knew that nothing would go terribly wrong. On the other hand, Wu Qirong was like a faithful little brother to Duanmu Huanghun, and hence, he was deeply worried, "Brother Huanghun, next up... what should we do?"

    "What do you mean by what should we do?"

    Duanmu Huanghun looked baffled.

    Yu Ziyi began to look restless. Wu Qirong braced himself and continued, "This time around, we failed so terribly. Everyone is somewhat worried..."

    Duanmu Huanghun put down his chopsticks and replied solemnly, "I have indeed lost."

    Upon seeing Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s reaction, a cold shiver went down Wu Qirong¡¯s spine. He quickly said, "Everyone makes mistakes. Defeats are verymon in the battlefield..."

    He could not continue his sentence as Brother Huanghun was looking at him with an eye-piercing gaze. Wu Qirong felt as if he was going to die soon.

    "It¡¯s better for me to lose the battle," Duanmu Huanghun said suddenly.

    "Ah!" Wu Qirong and Yu Ziyi let out a gasp of surprise at the same time. They looked at Duanmu Huanghun for a while before looking at each other.

    Had Brother Duanmu Huanghun sustained a head injury?

    Duanmu Huanghun continued inly, "Only by losing to her then I can know how far do Ig behind her."

    Wu Qirong and Yu Ziyi were stunned.

    "I will defeat her in the future."

    Duanmu Huanghun looked as if he was talking about something casual. His facial expression was calm as he fiddled with the wine cup in his hand, "For the past three years, I have been troubled by many things, leading an unhappy life. I always felt that I was being yed by fate. There are a lot of things that I don¡¯t like but I felt like I should bear them on my shoulders, as though my fate had already been decided. However, I understand now."

    "If one works for it and he doesn¡¯t seed, then it can be said that his fate had already been decided. However, if one never even tries then serves him right."

    "One can either choose to let others control his life, or he can choose to control others¡¯ lives."

    Duanmu Huanghun drained the cup of strong liquor in one gulp and a burst of mes burned through his throat to his heart.

    His severely bruised face curled into a charming smile. At this point of time, his limpid eyes did not bother to conceal the craziness and fervor within them.

    He suddenly asked, "Have both of you forgotten about the Induction Ground?"

    Wu Qirong and Yu Ziyi shuddered in fear.

    "Honestly, I can¡¯t forget that ce," Duanmu Huanghun muttered, "I have often dreamed about the Induction Ground, our battles with the blood elementalists, and the process of my fellow students being eaten alive by the blood fiends. However, right now, we have to sit alongside them, drink with them, and tter them. Ah, I still have to marry a blood elementalist."

    Wu Qirong and Yu Ziyi¡¯s faces became distorted with anger, clenching their teeth. Both of them made it out alive from the Induction Ground and had deep hatred towards the blood elementalists.

    "Of course, right now, I¡¯m a trash and trash¡¯s opinions don¡¯t matter." Duanmu Huanghun looked at the both of them and continued, "I¡¯m already in this state but what about the both of you? Ziyi, if your family wants you to marry a blood elementalist, what will you do? Qirong, if the higher-ups want you to be the subordinate of a blood elementalist, what will you do?"

    Wu Qirong heaved a long sigh and replied, "Brother Huanghun, I will follow whatever you say!"

    Yu Ziyi nodded his head as well, "Huanghun, just tell us whatever ns you have in mind. I will rather die than to marry a blood elementalist."

    "I still don¡¯t have an exact n yet," Duanmu Huanghun shook his head, and then continued, "There¡¯s one thing we have to make sure and that¡¯s to make our opinions matter to everyone."

    Both of them looked nkly at Duanmu Huanghun.

    Duanmu Huanghun racked his brain. Suddenly, he thought of Ai Hui. What would that bastard, Ai Hui do if it was him in this situation?

    After thinking for awhile, he seemed to have some ideas, "First, we need to have strength. Only powerful individuals¡¯ opinions would matter to everyone. We can¡¯t waste our lives like this, we have to start training."

    Upon finishing his sentence, Duanmu Huanghun felt his face burning. Upon realizing he had been wasting his life for the past three years, he felt ashamed of himself.

    Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong nodded their heads heavily.

    "Next, we need to have manpower. Unless we have reached the level of my Master, otherwise, it is still about having strength in numbers." Duanmu Huanghun continued, "We will form a club that only epts survivors from the Induction Ground, regardless of their backgrounds. Everyone will train together and I will hire a famous teacher to give everyone pointers. Everyone will help each other in the process. Once we be stronger, our opinions will then matter."

    Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong looked at each other, seeing the excitement in each other¡¯s eyes.

    Yu Ziyi chuckled, "I like this idea! Huanghun, pick a name for this club!"

    "Let¡¯s call it Society of Excellence," Duanmu Huanghun blurted out.

    Upon finishing his sentence, Duanmu Huanghun was dumbfounded. He did not expect himself to pick this name.

    He did not have much memories of the Society of Excellence. The memorable memories that he had of the club were the two instructors, Zhou Xiaoxi and Li Wei. It was a pity that both instructors had died in the Induction Ground.

    "Nice name!"

    "Nice!"

    Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong were energized.

    The Society of Excellence was a student club that existed in every city in the Induction Ground. It was a club that was exclusive to Induction Ground. Since the Induction Ground had been destroyed, the Society of Excellence was destroyed as well.

    The Society of Excellence. There was no better name than this. This name reminded them of the Induction Ground and the blood catastrophe.

    The Induction Ground might be extinct after the blood catastrophe but not the Society of Excellence. In the hands of a bunch of youngsters, the Society of Excellence was rising from the ashes.

    At this point of time, the Society of Excellence did not catch anyone¡¯s attention.

    .....

    The God-subduing Peak had given Ai Hui a huge shock.

    His understanding towards God-subduing Peak even surpassed Shi Xueman¡¯s. Before Shi Xueman and her counterparts even knew about the mightiness of the God-subduing Peak, he could already imagine how powerful it was.

    The God-subduing Peak was a war machine that was specially designed for huge situations.

    He could see the numerous marvels surrounding the God-subduing Peak. Even if one gave him enough materials and manpower, he could not have built something like the God-subduing Peak. He had no idea how much elemental energy was involved in the process of building the God-subduing Peak.

    Another thing was its structure.

    Even if he had many materials, he would not have known how to build God-subduing Peak. He does not have enough experience to understand its structural blueprint.

    Alright, for a poor fellow like him, there was no point talking about the God-subduing Peak¡¯s structural blueprint. Such a money-losing issue was not something he could think of now.

    His train of thought was cleared up all of a sudden.

    When he looked back at his own formation, he felt that it was an ugly-looking junk.

    He knew of his own shorings. His understanding towards elemental energy was still shallow. He remembered every detail of his master¡¯s n but he was far from really understanding the concept behind it and how it worked.

    The idea of "treating the city as a piece of cloth" was inspired by the spell formations in the Cultivation Era. Its¡¯ effect was very simr to that of spell formations. His master¡¯s n wasplicated yet perfect, like an art piece.

    It was so perfect that Ai Hui did not know where to start studying it. It looked and behaved like a living thing, so much so that Ai Hui could not add anything to it or remove anything from it. He simply couldn¡¯t make any changes to it.

    Luckily, there was an expert who made it possible for him to witness an application of his master¡¯s theory in the God-subduing Peak. All the questions he had in the past had been answered.

    The most important thing was the God-subduing Peak had disyed to him how his master¡¯s theory could be applied.

    The creator of the God-subduing Peak would not have thought that someone could have so many insights just by taking a nce at his creation.

    Ai Hui began to ponder about it.

    The mightiness of the God-subduing Peaky in its Cycle of Five Elements and vigorous elemental energy. Like a terrifyingly powerful volcano, it contained boundless amounts of elemental energy. It was built with top-grade materials, superb techniques and powerful elementalists. After going through a perfect building process, the Cycle of Five Elements was formed within it. The five elements were in harmonious bnce and a perfect structure was achieved. It had no obvious weaknesses and its offensive capabilities were terrifying.

    The God-subduing Peak was so mighty that Ai Hui could not see any weaknesses in it even until now.

    He definitely would not have so much money, rare materials, elemental energy or superb techniques.

    As such, it was not possible for him to build something like the God-subduing Peak.

    When one¡¯s strength was not adequate, he would usually face defeat.

    Only byunching a surprise attack then he could have a chance of winning.

    An extremely strange formation was like a sharp de, possessing a tremendous amount of destructive power. However, if his enemy was able to see through the formation, then he or she would be able to break it easily. Whether it was the Cultivation Era or the Elemental Era, this was general knowledge that everyone knew about.

    How could he prevent the enemy from seeing through it?

    There was only one way and that was to use something that the enemy was not familiar with.

    With a jolt of his mind, Ai Hui thought of his swordsmanship.

    Swordsmanship was merely poprized two years ago. It was still rather new and unfamiliar to the entire Avalon of Five Elements. Furthermore, Ai Hu¡¯s swordsmanship was self-learned.

    Why not... built a sword formation?

    The moment this idea emerged in his head, it stuck there.

    He thought of the sword formation because the Assembly of Patriarchs wanted to reward him by sending him to Karakorum to train in their sword formation. He had never seen a legitimate sword formation before. His understanding towards sword formations mainly derived from swordy manuals.

    If he wanted to use his master¡¯s theory to build a sword formation, how would he go about doing it?

    Ai Hui unknowingly felt somewhat excited.

    If setting up a spell formation was a test of his understanding towards his master¡¯s theory, then setting up a sword formation would be a test of his knowledge on swordsmanship.

    Since he was building a sword formation, he would need many swords.

    Ai Hui only had Dragonspine and Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s Silver Broadsword. Furthermore, Silver Broadsword still could not be used. If he revealed anything by ident, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s identity¡¯s value might be lost.

    However, this was not the first time Ai Hui encountered such situation. After being poor for many years, he naturally had ways to deal with it.

    Ai Hui suddenly thought of his weasel bristle arrows.

    After thinking about it for a moment, he was sure that the arrows could be used. After solving the most important issue, Ai Hui became even more excited!

    Very soon, he realized that he did not need to overhaul and rebuild his formation. All he needed to do was to make certain alterations to it and he could implement his own ideas into it.

    Hence, Ai Hui began to build his first ever sword formation.

 Chapter 303: The Sha Guards

    Chapter 303: The Sha Guards

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    "Swordsman Training Hall, Special Price: One Hundred Essence Elemental Beans!"

    Sha Wuduan stood in front of the dpidated wooden board and listened to his subordinate¡¯s report of the investigation results. His eyes had never left the wooden board for a single second.

    As the leader of the Sha Family¡¯s elite unit, Sha Wuduan would be extremely eye-striking wherever he went. He was more than two meters tall and his body was muscr and sturdy. His bulging bronze muscles were bursting through his tight-fitted clothes. His eyes were very small and squinty. Instead of containing the urge to seek revenge, his eyes contained an abnormal calmness and steadiness.

    He did not spend too much effort on investigating the destruction of the Sha Family¡¯s branchpound as there were too many observers.

    Every detail regarding the incident were clearly presented before Sha Wuduan. The culprit was Wang Han, an elementalist that had attained elemental externalization. His swordsmanship was superb and he used a high-altitude diving technique to cause the destruction. He was also able to use fire-type sword moves.

    The ruins of the Sha Family¡¯s branchpound and the corpses lying everywhere had proven this point. Every sh inflicted upon the victims left behind a high-temperature charred mark.

    From this, Sha Wuduan conjectured that Wang Han was a fire elementalist, not a metal elementalist. He felt that a metal elementalist would not be able to unleash such scorching fire attacks.

    Wang Han¡¯s capabilities did not surprise Sha Wuduan. If he could kill Sha Wuyuan and attack the Sha Family¡¯s guarded branchpound, there was nothing odd with his capabilities. For someone that dared to mount a sneak attack on Sha Wuyuan, what was attacking the Sha Family¡¯s branchpound to him then?

    Instead, there was another news that caught Sha Wuduan¡¯s attention.

    The Sky Edge Division¡¯s elite unit, which had been ordered to oversee Peace City, had arrived. A lot of people had seen them descended from the God-subduing Peak and entered the mayor residence in Peace City. Roughly within these two days, they would have taken over the mayor office and took over the control of Peace City.

    Sha Wuduan knew that he had to be fast if he wanted to seek revenge.

    The captain of the Sky Edge Division¡¯s elite unit was Jiang Wei. Sha Wuduan had heard of this name. This fellow was rather reputable in the Sky Edge Division and was viewed by many as a young man with bright future. The fact that Jiang Wei was chosen to oversee Peace City showed Sha Wuduan that he was highly valued by Sky Edge Division. Once the lesser Avalon of Five Elements was sessfully established, his mission of overseeing Peace City would greatly decorate his resume.

    Peace City used to be a small border city at the lowest part of Silver Mist River¡¯s lower reach. The mayor office was very weak and could not resist against the invading powerful prestigious families.

    In the current Avalon of Five Elements, the Elder Guilds could no longer solely depend on their stature to suppress these brazen prestigious families.

    Sha Family needed to take action before Jiang Wei officially taken control of the public security of Peace City.

    If the Sha Family was to take actions after Jiang Wei officially took over the city, they would openly challenge Jiang Wei. Sha Wuduan was not worried about Jiang Wei, but rather, he was afraid of offending the Sky Edge Division and Elder Guilds. If he took action before Jiang Wei¡¯s official takeover of Peace City, even if he blew up the incident, he could say that he was unaware of the neww. Worst came to worst, he could make use of his personal connections to think of a way out.

    A ruthless glint shed across Sha Wuduan¡¯s calm-looking eyes.

    He looked around at his subordinates. After taking a break, everyone looked much energized. As they were rushing for time, they could not travel using the slow-moving Fiery Moving Cloud. Instead, they had to fly using azure wings and travel day and night.

    Long-distance raid was a huge challenge to an elementalist¡¯s willpower and elemental energy. Even though Sha Wuduan¡¯s subordinates showed some signs of fatigue on their faces, they still maintained their neat and orderly formation.

    "I know everyone had worked very hard and are very tired, but we don¡¯t have time to rest. If Wang Han knows we had arrived, there¡¯s a possibility that he might escape. Listen to mymand, advance to the Swordsman Training Hall and kill Wang Han to avenge the Sha Family!"

    All the elite troops of the Sha Family stood up in unison. Their faces were filled with sinister kill intent.

    When Sha Wuduan led the Sha Family¡¯s elite unit to the alleyway of Swordsman Training Hall, various families¡¯ informants received the news in an instant. After witnessing the epic performance from Wang Han yesterday night, everyone was extremely interested in the uing battle.

    In a blink of an eye, Sha Wuduan discovered that they were surrounded by many observers.

    These observers looked from a distance and did not attempt to get any closer. asionally, Sha Wuduan could hear discussions that made him clenched his fists in anger involuntarily.

    "The Sha Family is really in a slump!"

    "That¡¯s right. Nothing can be done anyway, the Yellow Sand Corner had already fallen to the Blood of God. What else can the Sha Family do?"

    ...

    Before he came here, Sha Wuduan¡¯s master had already reminded him that victory was a must. Victory was the only way to ensure the survival of the Sha Family. Sha Wuduan promised his master but it was only until now that he realized his master¡¯s worries were not unwarranted.

    Not only must he win this battle, he must do it in a beautiful and epic fashion!

    Only by doing this then he could intimidate those who were after the Sha Family.

    The signboard of the Swordsman Training Hall could already be seen at the end of the alleyway.

    Sha Wuduan maintained hisposure and gave a stopping hand gesture. The elite unit behind him immediately stopped.

    If one counted the number of members in the unit, he or she would realize that there were twelve people, including Sha Wuduan.

    "Muster the troops from the sandpit."

    Sha Wuduan ordered. The elite unit immediately channeled their elemental energy and the ground beneath their feet turned into a yellow-colored sand sea. Sand puppets began to climb out of the sand sea continuously.

    These sand puppets were fully-armored. Their armors were fully filled with fine decorative designs. A huge "Sha" was written on the back of each of their armors.

    Every sand puppet looked exactly the same. After they climbed out of the sand sea, they stood quietly and motionless, resembling a battalion of well-trained soldiers.

    Initially, the observers were still exuberant. However, very soon, they began to cry out in rm.

    The sand puppets emerged from the sand sea in a seemingly endless stream.

    Densely-packed armored sand puppets upied more than half of the alleyway. All of them were in a neat and orderly formation.

    There was a battalion of one hundred and twenty armored sand puppets. They were motionless and expressionless. The demonic yellow in their eyes were flickering in unison.

    The sea of yellow sand beneath their feet looked as if it was alive, slowly wiggling and climbing up the bodies of Sha Wuduan and the eleven members of the Sha Family¡¯s elite unit.

    The yellow sand engulfed their bodiespletely, only exposing their eyes. The yellow sand continued to wiggle and transformed into exquisite armors that were simr to the ones on the sand puppets. A huge "Sha" was written on back of each of their armors.

    The twelve elementalists¡¯ eyes were flickering with the same yellow glow as the sand puppets¡¯.

    No one could clearly differentiate the earth elementalists from the sand puppets.

    Such a creepy sight sent a cold shiver down the observers¡¯ spines.

    "The Sha Guards!" someone yelled in astonishment.

    Many of them came to realize that the Sha Family was serious this time around!

    The Sha Family was famous for their sand puppets. There was not a single type of sand in the world that they could not make into sand puppet. Among so many types of sand puppets in their arsenal, there was one unique type of sand puppets, the Sand Guards. The outside world knew little about this type of sand puppets. However, every time the Sha Family encountered crises, the Sha Guards would always appear.

    So these were Sha Guards!

    Everyone widened their eyes as they were afraid to miss out on any fine details regarding the Sha Guards.

    Boom!

    As the Sha Guards took a step forward in unison, the earth shook and the mountains trembled.

    At this point of time, those doubtful observers had their faces turned white and their bodies were trembling in fear.

    Boom boom boom!

    Every movement the Sha Guards made were sharp, precise and uniform.

    Every step they took gave off a thunderous boom. If it wasn¡¯t witnessed with their own eyes, they would have thought there was a gigantic ancient beast walking towards Peace City.

    A 132-men battalion of armored sand puppets was advancing in a neat and orderly formations. Their movements were sharp and uniform, giving off a surging aura of killer intent. Their eyes were flickering with a devilish yellow glow in unison. Their faces were emotionless, as if they were a battalion of lifeless killing machines, sending a cold shiver down everyone¡¯s spine.

    Only their thunderous footsteps could be heard in the midst of dead silence in the alleyway.

    Su Huaijun¡¯s face turned pale-white. She clenched her fists so hard that they turned pale. She kept telling herself not to be intimidated by the Sha Guards¡¯ terrorizing aura.

    An intense feeling of helplessness engulfed her.

    They were unstoppable!

    Anything that was standing in the way of this lifeless robotic army would be crushed to death.

    After taking a few deep breaths, Su Huaijun regained herposure and some rosiness returned to her pale-white face.

    However, what she saw next stunned her. The twelve earth elementalists that she locked onto previously had vanished into thin air. The formation of the entire army did not seem to have any changes. However, she knew that the twelve elementalists had left their original positions. She did not know how they did it. Usually, for a high-leveled elementalist like her, it was very difficult for someone she locked onto to escape from her sight. Furthermore, she did not once blinked her eyes!

    The Sha Guards were indeed formidable!

    With an imposing stance, the Sha Guards advanced towards the Swordsman Training Hall slowly and steadily.

    Even as the Sha Guards got closer and closer to the entrance of the training hall, the Guards did not slow down their advancing speed. They continued to walk uniformly with their eyes blinking at the same frequency. It was as if they did not see the training hall in front of them.

    It was as if there was nothing but just a mere praying mantis that was in their way.

    At this very moment, everyone realized the Sha Guards were going to raze Swordsman Training Hall to the ground just like this! They wanted an awe-inspiring victory to show off Sha Family¡¯s might.

    Yes, everyone understood what they were doing. Even so, they were still shocked by Sha Family¡¯s formidable disy of strength.

    Without even executing any moves, the Sha Guards had already made everyone believed that Wang Han would face an imminent death!

    All the observers had their eyes wide open. Even though they knew the Sha Family was showing off their might, they did not want to miss out on a single detail.

    The Sha Guards had reached the entrance of the Swordsman Training Hall.

    The Sha Guards did not stop and continued to advance.

    Boom. The main door of the Swordsman Training Hall was sted to smithereens. Like crispy biscuits, the walls surrounding the training hall were easily crushed to fine powder.

    Like an unstoppable flood of steel, the Sha Guards charged into the courtyard of Swordsman Training Hall.

    The various training equipments in the Swordsman Training Hall were being stomped and crushed to smithereens.

    Boom boom!

    Wang Han was standing at the entrance to the main hall of the training hall, motionless and alone. He looked especially helpless and did not make any retaliation. Perhaps he was shocked by the might of the Sha Guards that he had lost the ability to think. Or perhaps he knew that all his tricks would be useless against this unstoppable army of Sha Guards.

    Every step that the 132-men Sha Guards took was filled with power and viciousness, causing the ground to tremble.

    Wang Han stood alone with a sword in his hand. His eyes were closed, looking fragile and helpless.

    The contrast between the two parties was extremely distinct, so much so everyone felt this battle was one-sided and Wang Han was extremely foolish.

    The battle had ended.

    At this very moment, just as thest Sha Guard entered the training hall, Ai Hui opened his eyes in an instance.

    He plunged his Dragonspine into the ground and countless dazzling light spots appeared in every nook and cranny of the training hall. Following which, fine beams of light shot out from the light spots, making the training hall looked as if it was covered with glowing spider webs.

    An interweaving light web appeared and revolved beneath Ai Hui¡¯s feet unexpectedly. Subsequently, the countless fine light beams began to rise towards the sky.

    The battle had just begun!

 Chapter 304: Sword Chime And Swirling Sandstorm

    Chapter 304: Sword Chime And Swirling Sandstorm

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The hovering fine light beams energized everyone.

    Wang Han was starting to retaliate!

    This was what everyone wanted to see. The Sha Guards were so powerful that everyone felt that Wang Han had slim chances of winning. It would be dull and boring if Wang Han just ced down his weapon and surrendered.

    Wang Han was not a fool, but rather a vicious and merciless expert. As such, why would he had stood there and waited for his death? The skydiving fire sword move that he executed yesterday night lit up the entire night sky and stunned everyone, giving rise to an unrealistic expectation in everyone¡¯s heart.

    What would Wang Han¡¯s retaliation be?

    Fine light beams shot out from the ground towards the sky and stood tall and upright, looking like glowing light webs. The light webs were stackedyer uponyer,pletely enveloping the air space above the training hall. The top of the stack of light webs was narrow while the bottom was wide. It looked like a gigantic bronze bell.

    Everyone¡¯s gaze was captivated by it. Wang Han¡¯s offensive methods had always managed to lit up everyone¡¯s eyes, however, they were still slightly doubtful. The Sha Guards were indeed terrifyingly powerful, but at least everyone still managed to understand what their offensive was . As for Wang Han¡¯s offensive method...... no one understood it at all!

    Even the experienced and knowledgeable Su Huaijun and the Fu family werepletely lost.

    Suddenly, the light webs started to tremble in unison.

    An unexpected clear and melodious sword chime resounded through the training hall.

    A biting-cold chill struck everyone¡¯s heart. It was as if a sharp reflective sword had pierced through the back of their necks, sending agony down their skins and bones. Those who were brave and firm had their hair stood on end. Whereas, those who were timid and soft could not help it but tremble in fear.

    "Sword chime!"

    Su Huaijun widened her eyes abruptly.

    Sha Wuduan¡¯s feelings were different from the outsiders. The Sha Guards felt that their visions were blurred and their world was spinning. The unstoppable Sha Guards stumbled.This was the first time chaos and disturbance broke out in their neat and orderly formation.

    The sharp and ethereal sword chime was like a soft yet powerful energy wave, surging to and fro in the sword formation.

    This skill was called [Sword Chime], an inheritance that originated from Nine Tones Sword Sect. After studying it extensively, Ai Hui was able to bring back this melodious ancient music.

    For the past three years, Ai Hui had never stopped studying and learning from the swordy manuals that he had read before. These ancient swordy manuals were like fertile soil to him, providing him with an endless stream of nutrients. He had restored numerous lost and broken sword moves. Some sword moves were derived and developed from it, whereas, some were imitated and transformed into his own moves. At the end of the day, no matter what he did, he gained a lot.

    [Sword Chime] was one of the many moves he learnt.

    The [Sword Chime] was the only move in the entire Nine Tones Sword Sect¡¯s swordy manual that Ai Hui restored. Ai Hui did not know whether or not it was simr to the original [Sword Chime]. However, its unique chime of sword did contain the simr wondrous power as the original¡¯s.

    In order to perform the [Sword Chime], the use of the unique flying swords from the Nine Tones Sword Sect was needed.

    "The Nine Tones Sword Chime rings and the nine swords shall be unsheathed."

    Back in those days, the Nine Tones Sword Chime that hung in the swordsman school in the Old Territory was said to be the sect treasure of the Nine Tones Sword Sect.

    The Nine Tones Sword Sect was an illustrious powerful sect in the past.

    "When the nine swords are unsheathed, the heavenly music will break through the void."

    One could see how mighty and powerful they were in the past.

    [Sword Chime] needed at least nine swords to be unsheathed at the same time to work. Hence, after Ai Hui restored it, he had yet to find a way to use it in actualbat. It was only when he built this sword formation that he realized [Sword Chime] could be used here.

    The clear and melodious sword chime resembled the soft tinkling of the wind chimes hung below the roof, extremely pleasant to one¡¯s ears. However, deep down, the sword chime actually possessed an intense killer intent.

    Sha Wuduan abruptly discovered there was a dy in the channeling of elemental energy in his body.

    The sand on some of the Sha Guards¡¯ bodies began to tremble, showing signs of instability.

    What kind of swordsmanship was this?

    Sha Wuduan felt that his opponent¡¯s swordsmanship was freakish and unprecedented. This mellifluous sword chime was able to unsettle one¡¯s mind.

    However, Sha Wuduan was a powerful veteran that had survived countless bloody battles, and as such, he was able to think of a solution in an instant. In Avalon of Five Elements, there were inheritances that involved unsettling one¡¯s mind. Those elementalists who mastered their sky pce were specialized in carrying out mental attacks.

    Mental attacks...

    Sha Wuduan furrowed his eyebrows. Normal attacks would bepletely useless against the Sha Guards. On the contrary, mental attacks posed to be a troublesome problem for Sha Wuduan.

    He did not seem to understand Wang Han at all. He was a fire elementalist that was proficient in swordsmanship and specialized in developing the sky pce. Thisbination seemed weird to him.

    Sha Wuduan did not have the luxury of time to think. Elementalists that were specialized in developing their sky pce were tricky and sly. They had various bizarre tricks up their sleeves. He had to react fast because if he gave his opponent too much time, the Sha Guards would fall and would be subdued.

    Elementalists that specialized in mental attacks had weaknesses as well, for example, they had frail bodies.

    It was highly possible that the scene before them might be an illusion. This was the mostmonly-used technique among the various types of mental attacks. Powerful illusions could shut down an elementalist¡¯s six senses, which would caused him or her to lose the ability of judgement and made grave tactical errors.

    However, no matter how real an illusion was, it was still an illusion.

    Something that was fake would never be real.

    Sha Wuduan ignored the spinning world in front of him. As long as his feet was on the ground, he would not lose his confidence. Whether or not the scene before his eyes was real, the fact that they were in the training hall was real.

    "Swirling Sandstorm!"

    The 132-men battalion of Sha Guards roared angrily in unison.

    The yellow light beneath their feet began to float and drift. The surging quicksand started to cover the web-like light beams on the ground, which resembled the tidal waves in the sea. The Sha Guards stood imposingly and motionlessly. Following which, the rolling quicksand gathered in the mid-air and pieces of stones appeared amidst the quicksand. The stones kept on growing in size, which becamerger. Eventually, the stones became millstone-sized and rolled in the raging torrent of quicksand.

    At this point of time, the few sand pits in the training hall, which were prepared for Su Qingye¡¯s training purpose, had beenpletely devoured by the Sha Guards. After devouring the sand pits, the torrent of quicksand increased significantly in its size and might.

    Strong and violent winds swept up and swirled around the Sha Guards.

    The millstone-sized stones and the quicksand were swept up from the ground by a violent gust of wind. The deep and low whizzing sound produced by the torrent of quicksand intimidated everyone. Eventually, the torrent of yellow quicksand materialized into a terrifying yellow-colored sand veil. Along with the millstone-sized stones, thick sand veil covered the Sha Guards and expanded outward all of a sudden, resembling a gigantic sand tornado.

    Boom!

    A huge tree in the corner of the training hall was smashed by the flying stones in the air. Before it copsed to the ground, the whizzing torrent of quicksand and stones had already left numerous densely-packed holes in the sturdy truck of the tree.

    Crack!

    The huge tree could not withstand the spinning sand veil and shreddedpletely to smithereens in the air.

    Deep down, Ai Hui was d that he kept the message tree, otherwise, it would definitely be destroyed.

    The brown-colored swirling sand veil destroyed everything in the training hall like a crazy beast. The [Sword Chime] did not have any effect on a gigantic beast like this.

    Not only did the high-speed swirling sand veil had high destructive power, it also blocked off the chime of the sword.

    The sand veil was like a high-speed spinning millstone, if anyone was to be sucked into it, he or she would have zero chance of surviving.

    Ai Hui did not expect his [Sword Chime] to be countered by a simple move like the [Swirling Sandstorm]!

    However, how could the sword formation that he meticulously built contained only one type of attack?

    Were the sand and stones the key to the might of [Swirling Sandstorm]? No, it was the wind!

    Being a metal elementalist who was trained with the metal winds in the Suspending Golden Pagoda, Ai Hui was extremely familiar with the nature of wind.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up.

    He pulled out his Dragonspine from the ground and shook the sword hilt softly. The daggers that swirled around Dragonspine flew towards every nook and cranny of the training hall, resembling agile swimming fishes.

    Pop pop pop!

    Essence elemental beans ruptured and surging elemental energy gushed into the sword formation. All the artifact remnants lit up and theyers of light webs above Ai Hui¡¯s head dispersed, which caused the gigantic glowing bell to copse. If Ai Hui was to raise his head at this very moment, he would see every light web had transformed into a light spot. Even though it was daytime, they still looked like stars in the sky.

    Every light web shot a silvery light beam that converged at the Dragonspine in Ai Hui¡¯s hand.

    The Dragonspine was engulfed by an intense silvery light, resembling a silver-colored burning torch, dazzling and ring.

    A burst of metal elemental energy surged into the sky, as if a sharp sword was thrusting toward the blue dome of heaven.

    Instead of feeling surprised, Sha Wuduan felt overjoyed. The enemy had abandoned his uncanny sword moves and was relying on the elemental energy that he was familiar with. That was equivalent to seeking his own death!

    Ai Hui held the Dragonspine in his hand and dashed towards the swirling sand veil. Just as he was about to collide with the swirling sand veil, he thrusted his sword into the sand veil all of a sudden and swirled along with it.

    The thrust did not seem to contain any force and looked extremely ordinary.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body flew into the air and swirled along with the spinning sand veil. Before hended on the ground, he twisted his body, flew towards the sand veil and thrusted it with his sword in the simr fashion as before.

    Everyone, including Sha Wuduan, were baffled and was unsure of what Ai Hui was doing.

    Every thrust he executed was ordinary and did not contain the slightest bit of destructive power.

    Ai Hui¡¯s movements were abnormally fast. In a blink of an eye, he had swirled around the sand veil and thrusted it with his sword several times.

    His Dragonspine had lost almost half of its metal elemental energy.

    Su Huaijun¡¯s eyes lit up, "Nice!"

    Sha Wuduan sensed something was up. As the metal energy poured into the spinning sand veil, the violent wind that swirled the sand veil gradually became metal wind. Even though the insertion of metal elemental energy had caused the wind speed to increase, Sha Wuduan realized he was losing control of the spinning sand veil.

    Something was not right. Just as he was about to disperse the sand tornado, Ai Hui took action.

    All six artifact remnants emitted a glow at the same time!

    Suddenly, an astonishing chilliness erupted beneath the feet of the Sha Guards.Unexpectedly, the Sha Guards were caught off guard and became a battalion of ice statues. Even Sha Wuduan was frozen.

    Not good!

    Chilling frost engulfed his body, freezing his elemental energy.

    The high-speed swirling sand tornado lost control and exploded abruptly.

    The frozen Sha Guards became the perfect target. The high-speed spinning sand veil was mixed with razor-sharp metal elemental energy, bing terrifyingly powerful. Pop, pop, pop. In an instant, the neat and orderly Sha Guards had their bodies filled with holes.

    The millstone-sized stones were like cannonballs, heavily smashing a few unfortunate Sha Guards into powder. When a sand puppet was smashed, he would be reduced to a pile of yellow sand. However, when the pile of yellow sand was mixed with fresh blood and decapitated limbs, that was not a sand puppet, but a fallen earth elementalist.

    Sha Wuduan was most powerful among the Sha Guards. Within a short period of time, he had recovered the control over his elemental energy. The scene before him exasperated him intensely. Only half of the Sha Guards were left standing. Those who copsed were mainly earth elementalists. Three earth elementalists had already died and the rest were severely injured.

    "Kill him!"

    Sha Wuduan pounced towards Ai Hui as his angry roar resounded through the air. The rest of the Sha Guards followed his suit and yelled angrily, "Kill him!"

    All the Sha Guards flew into the air, resembling a huge that covered the sky.

    Ai Hui, who had nowhere to run to, stayed calm and stood up, shook off the yellow sand on his body. It was a huge taboo for earth elementalists and sand puppets to leave the ground.

    Ai Hui raised his Dragonspine and pointed it towards the iing flood of enemies.

    The fine light webs that filled the training hall had disappeared, which revealed Ai Hui¡¯s main formation.

    Su Huaijun cried out in rm, "See You Later!"

 Chapter 305: â€œSee You Laterâ€ Sword Formation

    Chapter 305: ¡°See You Later¡± Sword Formation

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The sound of an intense battle could be heard from a distance. Even from afar, he still felt a slight tremble on the ground.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s face turned ashen as he entered the mayor residence.

    Standing in front of him, the old mayor nagged long-windedly, "You see, they just don¡¯t know when to stop. My wife told me that they don¡¯t take me seriously and I couldn¡¯t care less. Now that you have arrived, I can peacefully find a ce to enjoy my life in retirement. Sigh, Murphy¡¯sw¡ªwhat can go wrong will wrong. All I want is to enjoy my life in retirement and that¡¯s why I came to Peace City. However, Peace City became a bustling trading hub and a city of strategic importance, attracting and pulling everyone here. I know myself very well..."

    Jiang Wei bade farewell to the old mayor and flew toward the battle site with his soldiers.

    He knew that he did not have any background and if these powerful prestigious families and tyrants were not suppressed at this very instant, no one would care about him.

    However, he was not here to enjoy his life in retirement.

    .....

    See You Later!

    This was the first time Su Huaijun saw so many See You Laters. She always thought that See You Laters were kept in exquisitely-made wooden boxes and there would not be more than ten of them. Every time she went to buy See You Laters, the boss would always tell her that the arrows were out of stock. It was only after she agreed to pay extra, those unscrupulous businessmen would then put on a heart-aching look on their faces and slowly took out a few arrows.

    However, right now, the sky was filled with densely-packed See You Laters. Su Huaijun was dumbstruck with this sight.

    How could this fellow own so many See You Laters!

    Suddenly, something struck Su Huaijun¡¯s mind. Upon remembering that See You Laters were made in Peace City, a bold thought emerged on her mind. Could this fellow be the one that produced See You Laters?

    See You Laters were in popr demand in Peace City. However, since Su Huaijun¡¯s primary weapon was not a bow and arrows, she had not seen the real power of See You Laters.

    Given its costly price, the power of See You Laters should be extraordinary. Su Huaijun thought pensively.

    Su Huaijun was not the only one that identified the See You Laters in the sky, many onlookers did too and let out a wave of rmed cries. Those who did not know what See You Laters were quickly asked the person standing beside them.

    What¡¯s so special about the arrows in the sky?

    Very soon, See You Laters will be justified to these people why its price was so expensive!

    A colorful zed radiance swirled around each and every See You Later, giving off a soft ringing sound that resembled the chime of sword.

    Those elementalists who had previously used See You Laters had their eyes light up. Top-grade arrows!

    When a See You Later was being used, it would release a unique ringing sound that resembled the chime of sword. This was often used as an authentication method to examine the authenticity of the arrows. Because of its costly price, there was an abundance of imitation of See You Laters on the market. However, not only were these imitations not powerful, the unique sword chime wasn¡¯t released when used.

    A streak of zed radiance shed across the sky and disappeared.

    The next moment, an arrow emerged from the chest of a Sha Guard in the air. Following which, a colorful zed glowing sphere rose from the chest of the Sha Guard. If one took a closer look, he or she could see that the glowing sphere was spinning rapidly, resembling a round-shaped rainbow cotton candy.

    Subsequently, the spinning glowing sphere disappeared, leaving a basin-sized cavity in the Sha Guard¡¯s chest.

    It only took one shot topletely destroy the sand puppet¡¯s sand core. Whoosh. The body of the sand puppet copsed into a pile of quicksand and fell from the sky.

    So this was See You Later!

    If the tinkling sound of the sword chime wasn¡¯t stopped, the zed radiance would not have faded.

    At this very moment, Sha Wuduan was in a dire straits.

    The soul-reaping sword chime caused him to tremble with fear. What kind of offensive tactic was this? He had never seen such arrows and he sensed danger from its mighty power. If it wasn¡¯t for the sand puppet next to him that dashed forward and blocked the arrows, during this critical moment, he would have breathed hisst.

    Every arrow imed one life or destroyed one sand puppet.

    Sha Wuduan knew this could not go on any longer. He clenched his teeth andmanded twenty sand puppets to fly up into the sky at the same time to form a sand barrier, which protected the heads of Sha Wuduan and the rest of the earth elementalists.

    Boom!

    One of the sand puppets self-detonated. A burst of dazzling yellow light erupted and a powerful shockwave broke out, severely disrupting the flight path of many See You Laters.

    Sha Wuduan felt an extreme heartache. The sand puppets that served as Sha Guards were specially made. Each of their cost prices were extremely expensive. The annoying thing was that most of the materials used to build them could no longer be found. This implied that they were irreceable.

    Right now, as long as that goddamn bastard was killed, everything would be worth it!

    Sha Wuduan¡¯s face waspletely covered by his sand armor, and hence, he became unnoticeable when he blended into the formation of sand puppets.

    Just as both of them got closer and closer to each other, Ai Hui suddenly turned around. His movements were sudden and fluid.

    Trying to escape?

    Sha Wuduan sneered. He had already expected that his opponent would not stay in the same spot and get surrounded by the sand puppets. Poof, poof, poof. Several sand puppets transformed into a huge mass of quicksand, forming an inescapable " in the sky. No matter which direction their enemy ran to, he would not be able to escape from this !"

    Ai Hui, who had already turned around, stomped the ground forcefully with his feet.

    Crack.

    The meticulously-built trap mechanism beneath his feet had been broken and deactivated by him.

    After Lou Lan¡¯s inspection and verification, the artifact remnants ced within the trap mechanism was verified to be an ancient seal that was either rted to "Wind Resistance" or "Divine Movement". However, its effect was yet to be discovered.

    In this day and age, everyone had little understanding towards ancient seals. Furthermore, the seals within the artifact remnants had undergone the erosion of time and dispersal of spiritual force. Most of them were badly damaged, having only an extremely tiny portion left.

    Ai Hui prayed in his heart, "Lou Lan bless me!"

    The barriers between essence elemental beans, blood crystals and the artifact remnants were broken. The ancient seal appeared once more on thisnd. A wisp of green light swirled around his legs, he felt as light and lithe as a feather.

    It was magical!

    The ancient spiritual force, seals and spells were extremely profound in nature. This was the first time Ai Hui used the ancient seal from the Cultivation Era. It felt entirely different from elemental energy.

    However, at this point of time, his encounter wasn¡¯t important. He squatted down slightly and jumped towards the air.

    Swoosh!

    Ai Hui¡¯s vision blurred. When he clearly saw his surroundings, he was shocked. He was already fifty metres away from the ground in the air.

    When Ai Hui lowered his head and saw the flight path of his See You Laters being disrupted by the self-detonation of the sand puppets, he twisted his body and dived downward.

    Meanwhile, when Sha Wuduan lost sight of Wang Han all of a sudden, his facial expression changed drastically and a strong feeling of danger arose in his heart.

    Without even thinking, he brought the rest of the Sha Guards along with him and drilled into the ground.

    However, there was an unexpected ayer of barrier beneath the ground. This prevented them from drilling and digging into the ground.

    At this very moment, a deafening mournful sword chime exploded above his head.

    Sha Wuduan¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. The terrifying sword chime caused him to feel an unprecedented danger. An intense feeling of danger engulfed him, prompted his hair to stand on end.

    Boom!

    The sand barrier above his head suddenly exploded. A mournful sword chime descended from the sky.

    Like a legendary bird that spreaded it¡¯s wings, Ai Hui descended from the sky with his sword raised in his hand. Numerous radiance-zed See You Laters were attracted to the Dragonspine in his hand. Like a gigantic school of fishes, they flew nimbly through the air while Ai Hui¡¯s Dragonspine acted as the leader of the school of fishes.

    Ai Hui felt an indescribable contentment.

    This was sword formation!

    Within the sword formation, every See You Later had a connection with the Dragonspine in his hand. If it was any other individual, he or she would have found it difficult to control. However, this was what Ai Hui needed and specialized in. From the day he started to use the Red Dust Swordbox, Ai Hui had developed an interest in the use of a normal-sized sword to control many small swords.

    On its own, a See You Later was already very powerful. Right now, being brought together, their power became even more terrifying!

    Ai Hui¡¯s body waspletely engulfed by a colorful zed radiance, circled by numerous See You Laters. Amidst the torrent of sword chime, he felt an indescribable excitement.

    Like a frail piece of paper, the sand barrier above Sha Wuduan¡¯s head was easily pierced through.

    Sha Wuduan couldn¡¯t care less and hurled five sand puppets at Ai Hui at the same time. At the very instant they made contact with Ai Hui, they self-detonated once more.

    Like an inted balloon, a burst of yellow glow erupted and expanded outward. Following which, Ai Hui used his See You Laters and punctured the burst of yellow glow in one shot.

    A few of Ai Hui¡¯s See You Laters had been broken down into colorful zed glowing luminous bubbles, gradually vanished into thin air.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    The sand puppets looked as if they had gone mad, flying toward Ai Hui and self-detonated in front of him.

    The shock wave from the self-detonation of the sand puppets was rather powerful. Every sand puppet was able to destroy a few of the See You Laters that circled Ai Hui. It was as if Ai Hui and Sha Wuduan were fighting a battle of attrition.

    Boom!

    When thest See You Later was destroyed, Ai Hui¡¯s head was hit by the shock wave from a sand puppet¡¯s self detonation. He let out a groan and his body flew backward.

    A tinge of blood seeped out from the corner of his mouth. His enemy did not seem too well either.

    There were only twenty-three Sha Guards left and all of them were severely injured.

    Sha Wuduan gave a sinister smile. Without See You Laters, Wang Han had nothing up his sleeves to fight against him. Even though there were only twenty-three Sha Guards left, six of them were earth elementalists. He had enough confidence to y Wang Han.

    From his perspective, See You Laters was Wang Han¡¯s trump card and his greatest reliance.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui maneuvered his body in the mid-air and flew towards a corner of the courtyard. Just as his feet barely made contact with the ground, he plunged his sword directly into the ground.

    Pop. The soft popping sound made Sha Wuduan¡¯s facial expression changed slightly as a premonition crept up his heart.

    Ai Hui was abnormally swift and agile. Like a dragonfly, he skimmed swiftly across the training hall. Every time his feet made contact with the ground, there would be a soft popping sound given off.

    Even though Sha Wuduan wasn¡¯t aware of what his enemy was doing, he knew that he must stop him.

    As such, the rest of the Sha Guards dashed towards Ai Hui at the same time.

    Some transformed into quicksand, while some transformed into mini sandstorms. Some even transformed into sand spears for theirrades to throw at Ai Hui.

    There were a wide range of attacking methods, which widen one¡¯s horizon.

    One by one, essence elemental beans, blood crystals and artifact remnants kept on rupturing. The surging elemental energy transformed the training hall into a raging sea of elemental energy. All the artifact remnants had been activated and glows of various colors lit up in every nook and cranny of the training hall.

    After fighting for his life this long, Ai Hui knew that there was no point holding back now.

    Sha Wuduan felt that he was going crazy soon!

    Different colored glows kept on lighting up and Sha Wuduan knew they belonged to artifact remnants. This fellow actually had so many artifact remnants! There was one thing that he found inconceivable. Was this fellow crazy to squander his resources that recklessly? How could he have squandered so many artifact remnants?

    Various weird-looking glows and seals formed an utterly chaotic performance in the training hall. Icy frost, violent winds, lightning bolts, sword glints, spear auras, etc hadpletely flooded this small training hall.

    Those Sha Guards that just dashed toward Ai Hui had encountered a cosmic catastrophe.

 Chapter 306: Break Even

    Chapter 306: Break Even

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Even though Ai Hui had put in so many years of his savings, he did not show the slightest bit of heartache or reluctance. With a cold and indifferent look on his face, he did not retreat and continued attacking. With a swing of the Dragonspine in his hand, a crescent moon-shaped sword glint shot out and hit the chest of a swaying Sha Guard.

    That Sha Guard was spliced in half and he copsed onto the ground. After he twitched for a few seconds, the Sha Guard became a pile of sand.

    Ai Hui understood the physiology of sand puppets very well. The main weakness of a sand puppety in its sand core. Once the sand core was broken, the sand puppet would die. If one could not destroy a sand puppet¡¯s sand core, the sand puppet would have an abnormally tenacious survivability.

    The next instant, Ai Hui appeared on the other end of the training hall like a ghost. Following which, he executed the [Heavenly Thrust] and shot out a star-like energy beam at another Sha Guard¡¯s chest.

    Plop!

    A spurt of blood shot out from that Sha Guard¡¯s chest.

    This time around, the Sha Guard who was attacked was an earth elementalist. The glow in his eyes disappeared and everyst bit of vitality in his body was gone. Then, he copsed onto the ground, facing upward.

    Why would Ai Hui waste the opportunities created by using so many artifact remnants? He knew the arrangement of the courtyard by heart. In the midst of the chaotic streaks of radiance, he nimbly darted to and fro across the courtyard, striking down the Sha Guards one by one.

    One moment he was in front of the battalion of the Sha Guards, the next moment he was at the back of the battalion, appearing everywhere at almost the same time.

    His swordsmanship was extremely ruthless. Every strike he executed would definitely y one Sha Guard. In a blink of an eye, Ai Hui had killed six Sha Guards and two of them were earth elementalists.

    The intensity of the battle had caused all the observers to raise their eyebrows in shock.

    Wang Han¡¯s sessive attacks were unwavering and ruthless, which sent a cold shiver down everyone¡¯s spine. No one had expected the battle that they previously thought was one-sided to reach such extremity.

    Without much effort, the initial 132-man battalion of Sha Guards had been reduced to eighteen Sha Guards. More than half of these eighteen Sha Guards were severely injured.

    Luckily, I never made an enemy of Wang Han. This was what a lot of people were thinking at this moment.

    If they were the ones who attacked the Swordsman Training Hall, they would not do any better than the Sha Guards. Even if the Sha Family could take down the Swordsman Training Hall at the end of the day, they would have suffered a huge loss by then. Right now, the Sha Family had already lost. This was a battle whereboth sides had suffered greatly.

    Wang Han should be proud of himself for pushing the Sha Family to the brink.

    However, everyone could tell that the artifact remnants was Wang Han¡¯sst trump card. Wang Han had used more than ten artifact remnants in one go. Suchvishness had stupefied everyone, including the Fu family.

    When everyone thought of Wang Han¡¯s nickname, King of Anglers, they then realized that the gains he made for the past few years had far exceeded their expectations. Furthermore, with the addition of the numerous See You Laters, Wang Han¡¯s expenditure in this battle was indeed outrageous.

    Upon seeing amount of resources he had invested in this battle, even the members of those prestigious families were trembling in fear, feeling heartache for Wang Han.

    However, Wang Han¡¯s performance had ended.

    When Sha Wuduan saw the remaining sparse Sha Guards, he felt devastated. From this battle, he knew that the Sha Family had fallen. Even if he could kill Wang Han, he still could not save the Sha Family from its imminent fate.

    He felt grieved and despair. Before he came here, he was brimming with confidence that he could save the Sha Family from its imminent crisis, help it to establish a foothold in Peace City and pave the path for its restoration.

    However, right now, thest hope for Sha Family had withered in his hands.

    Despair, self-me, and guilt hadpletely destroyed his rationality. In his heart, there were only anger, hatred, insanity, and mindlessness. His bloodshot eyes were staring firmly at the deft figure.

    He must kill this bastard!

    Sha Wuduan gave a secretmand and the remaining eighteen Sha Guards suddenly spread their arms and held each other¡¯s hands.

    Dazzling yellow light lit up beneath their feet. The ground began to fissure and countless cobweb-like cracks started to spread outward.

    "Sir!"

    "No...."

    The few earth elementalists¡¯ faces turned deathly pale and they cried out in rm. However, no matter how much they cursed or begged, they could not move as the yellow sand from the ground slowly crept up their bodies.

    The scattered sand in the training hall started to flow towards the Sha Guards like water. The sand within the sand pits, which were prepared for Su Qingye to train in, flowed out and flew towards the Sha Guards in an endless stream.

    Not a speckle of sand was left in the huge sand pits.

    In a bizarre fashion, the yellow sand wiggled up the Sha Guards¡¯ bodies and began to pile up.

    Within seconds, the eighteen Sha Guards had been drowned by the yellow sand, forming a twenty meters tall sand mountain in courtyard. The weird thing was the sand mountain was wiggling non-stop, looking as if there was something rolling within it, making one¡¯s blood ran cold.

    "Devouring the soldiers to build a Sand Sentinel, Sha Wuduan is insane!" the Fu family¡¯s eldest daughter¡¯s face turned pale.

    Not only her, but everyone that was witnessing this scene had their faces turned deathly pale.

    "Devouring the soldiers to build a Sand Sentinel" was a technique that wasmonly used on sand puppets. It involved making the sand puppets devour each other to form a more powerful Sand Sentinel. A Sand Sentinel was more than ten times stronger than a Sha Guard. It was extremely huge in size and was considered arge-scalebat sand puppet. And because of its terrifying destructive power, the Elders Guild banned the use of Sand Sentinels. Without permission from the Elder Guilds, no one was allowed to build a Sand Sentinel under any circumstances.

    As such, wasn¡¯t Sha Wuduan insane for building a Sand Sentinel in the re of the public?

    Even though the Elders Guild was not as powerful as it was in the past, the Sha Family was still finished for viting the Elders Guild¡¯s ban.

    Furthermore, there were a few Sha Guards who were not sand puppets but earth elementalists being devoured as well. A monster like this had never existed before. A lot of people widened their eyes to take a clearer look as they were afraid of missing out on any details. Especially for those earth elementalists, this unprecedented scene had provided them a lot of information on Sand Sentinels.

    Every time the sand mountain wiggled, a terrifying aura would be released and it spread throughout the area.

    The onlookers¡¯ facial expression changed drastically as if they themselves were in a perilous situation. The energy undtions from the sand mountain were bing increasingly stronger and its imposingness was rising continuously. An endless stream of elemental energy was drained from the ground by the sand mountain.

    Every time the sand mountain wiggled, its outline would be a bit more distinct.

    The quicksand on the surface of the sand mountain was swiveling at ease. It was as if there was a pair of invisible hands sculpting the sand mountain¡¯s body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face turned white. He was trying very hard to suppress his urge to escape.

    If not for the fact that Lou Lan was upgrading his body now, AI Hui would have already escaped with Lou Lan without a trace.

    Since he was the nearest to the sand mountain, the energy waves emitted from the sand mountain were pounding his mind continuously like torrential tidal waves. He felt that his body was bing heavier and heavier and he knew this was caused by the waves of elemental energy pounding against his mind. All he could do now was to clench his teeth and endure it.

    He grasped his sword with both his hands and guarded his mind tightly. The elemental energy in his body was carrying out a series of Circtory Cycle Revolutions.

    Suddenly, his sky pce was erupted with a brilliant burst of light. A wisp of me stood imposingly and motionlessly in his sky pce.

    [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp]. This was an absolute art that he exchanged for a huge amount of Heaven Merit Points from the Elders Guild.

    [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] was an extremely rare sky pce-based absolute art. Since it only developed the sky pce, its uses were rather one-dimensional. Some of these uses included breaking illusion, protecting one¡¯s mind, refining inner demons and etc.

    The purpose of Ai Hui obtaining the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] was to deal with One Thousand Yuan. One Thousand Yuan specialized in mental attacks. If he was slightly careless, he would fall into her traps, making it impossible for him to defend against her.

    Ai Hui was extremely worried about this.

    After spending such a huge price on this precious absolute art, Ai Hui naturally practised it diligently and relentlessly. Very soon, he experienced the benefits of practising [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp]. His mind became clearer and calmer,pletely free of disturbances.

    The most surprising thing was [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] actually improved his body constitution. All along, his body constitution did not match well with elemental energy. As such, there was a time where he was being told that he could not be an elementalist.

    Eventually, even though his strength had increased sharply due to various opportunities and lucky encounters, his body constitution did not improve and remained the same. With a bad body constitution, he would absorb a smaller amount of elemental energy at a slower rate than the others from drinking the same bowl of elemental soup.

    However, body constitution was innate and there was nothing much he could do about it. When he knew that [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] could improve body constitution, he naturally put in more effort into practicing it. The process of improving body constitution was very slow but he was still very content with it.

    He had read from ancient records that [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] was inspired by [Skyheart ming Lotus], a spell that originated from the famous sacred shrine in the world of Dhyana, the Suspending Temple.

    Cultivation Era¡¯s Dhyana disregarded natural endowments and took pity on all living things. It also emphasized on sharpening and training one¡¯s mind and nature.

    However, this absolute art was not very popr in the Avalon of Five Elements. Since the day it was created, only elementalists practiced it. There was no elemental master that had practised it previously. The fact that it only developed the sky pce made many elementalists refrained from practicing it. Furthermore, this absolute art did not possess any offensive capabilities, making it unpopr in the practicality-focused Elemental Era.

    Out of the three elementalists that had practiced this absolute art, two of them had left behind their memoirs of the absolute art. When Ai Hui was exchanging his Heavenly Merit Points for the absolute art, he exchanged for the memoirs as well. These memoirs were extremely helpful to him.

    As the elemental energy waves from the Sand Sentinel continued to collide against Ai Hui, his body began to emit a faint red glow, solemn and serene.

    Elementalists were extremely sensitive towards the stability of the elemental energy in the surroundings. When the elemental energy in the surroundings was too unstable, the elemental energy in one¡¯s body would be affected too. He or she might even lose control of the elemental energy in his or her body. As such, even those powerful elementalists did not dare to step into areas that elemental energy field was unstable.

    A gigantic humanoid sand puppet was formed.

    "Die! Die! Die!"

    Apanied by a burst of surging elemental energy, an unclear hysterical roar resounded through the air, resembling thunderps. Immediately, it felt as if the elemental energy field of Peace City had been stirred by a huge invisible hand. ck clouds started to form in the sky and the earth began to shake. The magma deep within the ground was bing restless and unstable. Sand and stones were flying up into the air, while metal wind was blowing violently. It was as if the Judgement Day had arrived.

    Jiang Wei felt startled and angry when he saw the gigantic monstrous sand puppet as he was flying through the air at a high speed.

    How dare you devour soldiers to build a Sand Sentinel!

    You must be tired of living!

    This Sand Sentinel was extremely enormous. On its gigantic head, its eyes that were bigger than a door frame were flickering with a demonic yellow glow. Intense earth elemental energy was flowing frantically through its body. An armor was forming on its body with a visible speed.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. This monster¡¯s aura and strength had caused him to tremble involuntarily.

    However, he did not stop and continued to fly towards the Sand Sentinel.

    He had the responsibility to take care of this city and he could not possibly ignore what was going on now.

    His soldiers clenched their teeth and followed tightly behind him. No one was deserting him.

    As they flew nearer to it, they could see the terror of this enormous monster. The elemental energy waves it was releasing were like violent gales, smashing trees and stones.

    Jiang Wei flew towards it with great difficulty.

    So unlucky of him to encounter such incident the moment he arrived at Peace City...

    Suddenly, at this moment, Jiang Wei heard someone talking. Jiang Wei was shocked. How could there be someone so near to the Sand Sentinel! He resisted against the terrifying energy waves and pushed a few meters forward. The voice became much clearer. However, this voice seemed... somewhat familiar.

    "...they should be starting to sprout now. Don¡¯t tell me that bastard sold me fake seeds? I spent two hundred thousand elemental energy points on them. If he really did scam me, I will destroy his store!"

    "Hahaha, they are sprouting, they are finally sprouting! Have a taste of my drought fire lotuses!"

    "I have not nourished you and dug a sand pit for four hours in vain."

    "I have to remind Lou Lan not to eat strangers¡¯ sand when he goes out."

    Numerous fresh and verdant lotus leaves grew throughout the enormous body of the Sand Sentinel, making it looked extremelyical. The lotus leaves were frantically sapping the earth elemental energy in the Earth Sentinel and began to grow at a terrifying speed. In the blink of an eye, the lotus leaves had grown as big as a bath tub. The color of the lotus leaves turned red and lotus flowers started to bloom, resembling a sea of mes on the Earth Sentinel¡¯s body.

    The glow on the Sand Sentinel¡¯s body began to dim. Its body of sand started to dry up and was filled with cracks and crevices. The ming lotus flowers started to withdraw and transform into bright red lotus seed heads. The bright red color of the lotus seed heads deepened and became dark-red.

    "Phew, I finally break even!"

    Jiang Wei stared nkly at the familiar figure, who was standing in front of the elemental energy-deprived Sand Sentinel, as he wiped off the beads of sweat from his forehead and heaved a sigh of relief.

 Chapter 307: Troubles Lie Ahead

    Chapter 307: Troubles Lie Ahead

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Wang Han became famous overnight.

    Sha Wuduan led an army of Sha Guards to destroy the Swordsman Training Hall and got his armypletely demolished, making everyone¡¯s jaws drop. Even those who were confident in Wang Han¡¯s abilities did not expect this to happen. Furthermore, this time around, Sha Family had utilized all of their elite troops and even brought out the Sand Sentinel. In the end, they still lost terribly, shocking everyone.

    The sword chime, the See You Laters and the artifact remnants had amazed everyone, especially in thest moment where he used the drought fire lotuses to defeat the Sand Sentinel. It was a sh in the pan.

    No one knew the Sand Sentinel could be defeated using such method!

    Being on the ban list of the Elders Guild said a lot about how dangerous and powerful a Sand Sentinel was. The usual offensive methods were useless against a Sand Sentinel as it had many sand cores. It could be defeated only when all of its sand cores were destroyed at the same time. A Sand Sentinel¡¯s absorption rate of earth elemental energy was terrifyingly fast. It could repair its body by absorbing an endless stream of earth elemental energy.

    And if it decided to self-detonate, half of Peace City would be destroyed.

    The fearsome powers and formidable survivability of the Sand Sentinel made it a nightmare for one to face in the battlefield. No one had ever found an effective way to deal with it before this.

    "Why did you think of using drought fire lotus? How did you know they will devour sand?" Jiang Wei asked curiously.

    Jiang Wei was filled with admiration for Ai Hui, who mixed the seeds of drought fire lotus in the sand pits and reaped his harvest after the Sand Sentinel absorbed them along with the sand.

    The drought fire lotus was an unorthodox and infamous species of nt. The ground within ten miles from where it was grown would be dry and barren.

    And because of this fact, it was very difficult to cultivate drought fire lotus. One drought fire lotus would consume up to ten miles of earth elemental energy. Once a plot ofnd was barren, no nts could be grown on it anymore.

    Every plot ofnd in the Avalon of Five Elements was earned through diligence and blood from the Wilderness. Hence, why would the higher-ups tolerate the growth of drought fire lotus? The Sand Sentinel was like a small mountain that was made up of earth elemental energy, which made it the best soil for drought fire lotuses to grow in. Earth elemental energy was highly addictive to drought fire lotuses, so they could deal a fatal blow to the Sand Sentinel.

    The logic behind it was not difficult to understand. After everything ended, everyone gradually realized what was going on.

    Brilliant creativity did not necessarily have to beplex, but rather, it was about being filled with the dazzle of wisdom and knowledge. Otherwise, why would the methods used to defeat a Sand Sentinel have been so limited before this battle?

    Instead of feeling surprised at Ai Hui¡¯s closely interlinked arrangements in the battle, like the others, Jiang Wei was unconcerned.

    This fellow was already so powerful when he was in Central Pine City.

    "I¡¯m being forced to do these things," Ai Hui was very happy to see Jiang Wei. However, when the topic of money was mentioned, he was filled with heartache, "When a poor man like me is being pushed to dire straits, how could I not think of some ways to break even? Otherwise, after this battle is over, I might even have to pawn my clothes. Isn¡¯t the Sha Family famous for their sand puppets? Howe their sand puppets aren¡¯t as smart as my Lou Lan? Stupid sand puppets are easy to deal with. However, I really didn¡¯t expect them to bring out the Sand Sentinel. I really have to thank them for that, otherwise, how can I break even? Do you know how much earth elemental energy one drought fire lotus needs? Eh? This might be a good way to earn money. I can ask Lou Lan to make a few Sand Sentinels and I can grow some drought fire lotuses..."

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were sparkling as he continued to talk.

    Jiang Weiughed softly. The moment he saw Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression, he immediately knew what evil tricks this fellow was up to. However, Ai Hui did seem slightly happier than when he was in the Central Pine City.

    When Jiang Wei thought of the pressure Ai Hui had to face in Central Pine City, he could not help but sigh silently.

    For thest three years, he had asked himself this question countless times. If he was in Ai Hui¡¯s shoes that day, would he have had the courage to take on all that responsibility? Or would he even be capable of taking on all that responsibility?

    No, he would not.

    "Where¡¯s Lou Lan?" Jiang Wei looked around.

    Ai Hui returned to his senses and replied, "He is currently upgrading his body. It will take him a few more days toplete the process."

    "Sigh, it seems like there¡¯s no chance for me to drink Lou Lan¡¯s soup," Jiang Wei gulped down his saliva, looking slightly disappointed.

    Ai Hui chuckled and Jiang Weiughed as well.

    Jiang Wei started to talk about what he had been doing and what battles he had taken part in during thest three years. For some unknown reason, Jiang Wei did not like to talk to Shi Xueman about such things. However, when it came to Ai Hui, Jiang Wei would take the initiative to spill the beans to him.

    He also talked about what Shi Xueman, Sang Zhijun and the rest of A-1 unit¡¯s members had been doing for the past three years.

    Ai Hui did not speak and listened attentively. He could sense the excitement in Jiang Wei¡¯s tone.

    Both of them were filled with the joy of their reunion.

    When Ai Hui heard that the irondy and Sang Zhijun were on the God-subduing Peak, he could not help but feel regretful. If he knew they were on the God-subduing Peak, he would go and say hi to them. Then, when he heard that Duanmu Huanghun were defeated by She Yu, his eyes flickered and his fists clenched involuntarily.

    This was the first time in the past three years that Jiang Wei had talked so much.

    While talking to his heart¡¯s content, Jiang Wei ordered his subordinates to buy them some alcohol.

    The soldiers looked surprised at their captain. Usually, their captain was extremely self-disciplined and would never touch a single drop of alcohol. What happened to him today?

    With alcohol to liven things up, both of them were chatting non-stop, dancing and gesticting with joy. When Ai Hui heard that everyone was doing quite well, he was overjoyed.

    This type of friendship could only be developed through life-and-death battles, those who had never experienced it would not understand how it felt.

    Within a short period of time, both of them were dead drunk.

    They were not intoxicated from the alcohol, but rather from the happiness derived from a reunion ofrades-in-arms.

    Both of them had no idea how dead drunk they were. Countless citizens of Peace City had trouble falling asleep.

    .....

    Sea Pacific Enterprise.

    "Found it!" reported Fu Renxuan. "Jiang Wei, a survivor from the Central Pine City. After leaving Central Pine City, he joined the Sky Edge Division. Because of his outstanding military service, he was promoted to a small captain. Jiang Wei¡¯s fighting style is firm and steady, possessing exceptional abilities. He is highly recognized by his higher-ups. This can be seen from the fact that they transferred him from the front line to Peace City. Furthermore, he has a rather close rtionship with Shi Xueman as both of them wererades-in-arms during the Battle of Central Pine City. This time around, he arrived at Peace City by taking the God-subduing Mountain." Fu Renxuan reported solemnly.

    Jiang Wei held great power by leading a team to take over the mayor¡¯s residence. From the task given to him, one could tell that he had boundless prospects. As for Shi Xueman, she was known to everybody.

    "Wang Han and Jiang Wei have an extraordinary rtionship. I have just received news that both of them were drinking and chatting merrily for the entire night. ording to our investigation, Wang Han arrived at Peace City three years ago. That happens to be the time when the Battle of Central Pine City ended. We suspected that Wang Han might be a survivor from Central Pine City. This possibly exins his rtionship with Jiang Wei. However, when we searched through the database of the Battle of Central City, we did not find anyone with the name Wang Han. Soon after, we suspected that Wang Han might be a false name. Eventually, we managed to determine his real identity. His real name is Ai Hui."

    "Ai Hui?" Fu Yongwu had a pensive look on his face, "I have heard of this name somewhere before."

    "It¡¯s him!" Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter muttered as her face turned pale.

    Fu Renxuan¡¯s face became pale as well. With a slight tremble in his voice, he continued, "Ai Hui, a citizen from the Old Territory. He worked as aborer in Wilderness for three years. He is one of the two survivors from that batch ofborers. He is an average individual with mediocre natural capabilities. After he finished his stint at Wilderness, he applied to study in Induction Ground. Eventually, the Induction Ground made an exception and epted him as a student. Subsequently, he received Teacher Wang Shouchuan¡¯s recognition whoter epted him as a disciple. After the blood catastrophe broke out, Ai Hui led a team and fought desperately to save Central Pine City. He had achieved outstanding military merit and obtained the nickname, the Lightning de..."

    Fu Yongwu finally responded and cried in rm, "That renegade-cum-murderer!"

    "Shut up!" Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter sternly berated Fu Yongwu, a rarely-seen sight.

    "Am I wrong to say that? Isn¡¯t he the one who killed his master with his own hands?" Fu Yongwu retorted.

    The Battle of Central Pine City was a distant and fuzzy memory to many people. In the past three years, there had been numerous major battles. However, the incident where Ai Hui killed his own master still remained fresh in countless people¡¯s memory.

    Ai Hui, a highly controversial fighting genius, had single-handedly saved Central Pine City. However, when he killed his master with his own hands at the critical junction, it stirred up a huge controversy and provoked countless debates over the incident.

    Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division had tried to enlist the fighting genius but there were a lot of strong objections from the people within the two divisions. There were even some people who said that they would beat up Ai Hui if he was to enter the Thirteen Divisions.

    However, in the end, Ai Hui did not join the Thirteen Divisions and vanished without a trace, seemingly as if he had disappeared from the world.

    No one had expected Ai Hui to be in Peace City.

    The Fu family¡¯s oldest sister stared coldly at Fu Yongwu and reminded him, "If you don¡¯t want to create trouble for our family, you¡¯d better keep your mouth shut."

    "I don¡¯t think it¡¯s as bad as you think, Big Sister. What makes you think he can create troubles for us single-handedly?" Fu Yongwu defended himself.

    "That¡¯s what the Sha Family thought too," Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter replied coldly.

    Fu Yongwu was speechless.

    After thest battle, the Sha Family was destroyed,pletely destroyed.

    They witnessed how the unstoppable Sha Guards were decimated by Ai Hui with their own eyes.

    Fu Yongwu was rash but he was not stupid, "This Ai Hui is indeed a strange individual. How can he be so powerful when he has just attained elemental externalization! It doesn¡¯t make any sense! I don¡¯t understand how he won the battle. Didn¡¯t you say he is an average individual with mediocre natural abilities? If that¡¯s case, why is he so powerful?"

    "He is an individual who saves the entire city by himself, it¡¯s normal that you can¡¯t understand him," the Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter answered coldly.

    Fu Yongwu knew that he had offended his big sister and quickly begged for forgiveness, "Big sister...."

    "You better not offend him, he is a dangerous man," The Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter was concerned about Fu Yongwu and reminded him once more with a serious tone.

    "Big sister, don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t spout any nonsense outside," Fu Yongwu quickly replied.

    "This time around, Peace City is going to be lively," Fu Renxuan felt a slight headache as well, "This time around, Ai Hui has more than five drought fire lotuses. Since when does the market have so many drought fire lotuses? There¡¯s going to be a lot of people drooling over them. Drought fire lotus has always been unseble due to theck of market for it."

    At this point of time, a subordinate hurriedly brought a piece of intelligence to the Fu family¡¯s oldest sister.

    After she read the report, sheughed bitterly, "This time around, more fuel is going to be added to the fire, things are going to get serious."

    Upon reading the report, Fu Renxuan could not help butugh bitterly as well.

    "The Elders Guild has agreed to confer the title of Master on thete Wang Shouchuan of Central Pine City. Master Wang Shouchuan assumed the position of teacher in the Central Pine Academy for several decades, working diligently and sweating blood and tears everyday. Not only did he y an important role in the Battle of Central Pine City, his theory is extraordinary and contains the wisdom of our ancestors. It is deeply meaningful..."

    If the Fu family could determine Ai Hui¡¯s background, that implied other people would be able to do so as well.

    This decision of the Elders Guild had awakened many old slumbering memories that could push Ai Hui to the heart of the struggles in the Avalon of Five Elements...

 Chapter 308: The Pagoda of Hidden Edge

    Chapter 308: The Pagoda of Hidden Edge

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Silver City was a city located at the upper most reach of the Silver Mist River. It was also thergest city in the Silver Mist Sea.

    There was a grand dike standing between two tall and imposing mountains,pletely level with the peaks of the two mountains. The dike was more than three thousand metres tall, making the lofty mountain range surrounding it lookparatively small and unintimidating.

    The Silver Mist Dike was one of the most magnificent constructions in the Avalon of Five Elements. After generations of reinforcements, its height kept increasing. Its constructionsted for eight hundred years. The construction was officiallypleted when the highest point of the dike leveled with the two peaks of the mountains beside it.

    The most striking part of the Silver Mist Dike was its gigantic sluice gate.

    Like an enormous prehistoric monster, it was lying dormant and only woke up from its slumber on the first of every month. The roaring Silver Mist River would pour down in torrents, bing a massive waterfall. When sunlight was reflected upon it, it resembled a powerful surging waterfall that was made up of countless silver swords.

    Beneath the Silver Mist Dike was a mountain range. On the two sides of the Silver Mist River, there were densely-packed pagoda forests. Pagodas were some of the mostmonly seen structures on the banks of the Silver Mist River. They also possessed the unique characteristics of the Silver Mist Sea. Most of these pagodas were shining with a metallic lustre, resembling swords that were pointing towards the sky when seen from afar.

    Thends on both sides of the Silver Mist River were extremely expensive. This was the best area of the Silver City and every plot ofnd was being fully utilized. Hence, the pagodas, which was a type of structure that was seldom found in other ces, became the emblem of the Silver City and Silver Mist Sea.

    Silver Mist Sea was heavily-guarded to prevent anyone from trespassing. In many people¡¯s eyes, it was an extremely mysterious ce. A one-time entry would cost a considerable amount of Heaven Merit Points.

    The airspace of Silver Mist Sea was restricted to flying and was guarded by patrolling elementalists as well.

    The world that was shrouded by boundless silver mist behind the majestic Silver Mist Dike was not as cold as what everyone thought, though very few people knew it. In contrast, it was abnormally bustling with activity.

    There were also very few people who knew that there were three inds in the Silver Mist Sea.

    Each of the three inds had a pagoda. These pagodas were called the Elders Pagodas, especially designed for the metal-attributed Elders from the Elder Guilds. Metal-attributed Elders would live and train in these pagodas, freely making use of the metal elemental energy there. From this, one could see how imposing and prestigious the Elders Guild was.

    The training efficiency in Elders Pagodas was countless times better than the outside world¡¯s. Only an Elder could enjoy such superior privileges.

    And because of this, every term¡¯s contest for the cings in Elders Guild was extremely intense.

    There was a rule that every term of Elders Guild could have at most three Elders with the same elemental attribute. This was for the sake of bringing the five elements into bnce in the Elders Guild.

    In reality, this current term¡¯s Elders Guild only had two metal-attributed Elders.

    The three pagodas were called Pagoda of Purity, Pagoda of Refinement and Pagoda of Hidden Edge. Currently, only Pagoda of Refinement and Pagoda of HIdden Edge were upied by the Elders. The Pagoda of Purity had been empty for many years.

    Each of the other two Elders Pagodas did not just house one Elder. On the contrary, the two Elders Pagodas were overpopted.

    The thirteen Elders were highly revered and powerful. Everyday, there were plenty of important matters and trivial issues for them to decide on and settle. The elders alone could not even finish dealing with so many things.

    Other than the Elders themselves, there were other people living in the Elders Pagodas too. It was the greatest honor for those who could be there to listen to the Elders¡¯ teachings or wait on the Elders. As such, these people were extremely proud of themselves. They were specifically known as pagoda attendants.

    If the Sky Edge Division and the Infantry Division were the backbones of Silver Mist Sea, then the three Elders Pagodas were the brain of the Silver Mist Sea.

    At this point in time, the Hidden Edge Pagoda was silent and solemn, except for one lively voice.

    "Wow, he¡¯s really extraordinary. After vanishing without a trace for thest three years, the moment he appeared he yed a Sand Sentinel. Drought Fire Lotus? Why didn¡¯t I think of that?"

    All the pagoda attendants stood silently with their heads lowered.

    The voice came from a ten metre tall silver glowing cocoon. The silver glowing cocoon was made up of concentrated metal elemental energy. Wisps of metal elemental energy were obtained from the silver mist through the weapons hung under the roof eaves at each level of the pagoda, and then gathered at the pagoda¡¯s apex. Subsequently, the wisps of metal elemental energy materialized into a silvery elemental energy pir that descended from the apex of the pagoda and formed this silvery glowing cocoon.

    The glowing cocoon might seem stationary but in actual fact, it was spinning at a terrifying speed.

    Within the glowing cocoon, there was a skinny figure seated in a cross-legged position. He was one of the members of the current term¡¯s Elders Guild, Yuchi Ba.

    The metal elemental energy that the Elders could not finish absorbing would be dispersed in the pagoda. Hence, the concentration of metal elemental energy within the pagoda would be very strong, providing huge assistance for training the pagoda attendants.

    However, at this moment, no one was absorbing the metal elemental energy. Everyone was listening attentively to the Elder and trying to understand the implications behind his words. The pagoda attendants had followed Elder Yuchi for many years. They knew that Elder Yuchi had always admired Ai Hui.

    Three years ago, Elder Yuchi had already thought about enlisting Ai Hui into the Sky Edge Division. Even though he had retired from the position of division leader of Sky Edge Division so many years ago, he still had an enormous influence over the Sky Ege Division.

    In the end, Ai Hui did not join the Sky Edge Division and the issue ended up with nothing definite. However, they did not expect Elder Yuchi to still bring it up again.

    "A genius will always be a genius. He¡¯s always surprising me," Yuchi Ba muttered. After pondering for awhile, he suddenly opened his mouth and said, "If I remember correctly, once the Elders Guild decides to confer the title of Master on someone, his or her descendants will be rewarded ordingly as well, right?"

    "Yes," a forty year old woman answered expressionlessly, "His descendants must be within three generations of him. Besides this, his descendants can only be rewarded once by the Elders Guild."

    "A merit will always be a merit, a mistake will always be a mistake. We have to be fair in handing out rewards or punishments. Pass down my orders and settle this issue."

    "Yes, what order shall the rewards be of?"

    "Master Shouchuan has made an extremely huge contribution. Of course we will prepare rewards of the highest order for his descendants. Make sure this is well-publicised. Anyone who has yed a role in Master Shouchuan¡¯s meritorious service will be rewarded too. The Elders Guild will not treat his disciples and descendants unfairly."

    "Yes!"

    "Promote Jiang Wei by one rank as well. He will continue to oversee Peace City."

    "Yes."

    Yuchi Ba did not say anything else.

    The Pagoda of Hidden Edge returned to a state of absolute silence once more.

    .....

    Peace City.

    Ai Hui woke up with a hangover. His head felt heavy and his body was aching dully.

    Thest time he drank was when he was still in the Wilderness. At that time, they would always bring some alcohol along with them to expel chilliness from their bodies. After leaving the Wilderness, he had never touched a single drop of alcohol again.

    The reunion with Jiang Wei yesterday night was fabulous.

    When the soldiers that were guarding the training hall saw that Ai Hui had woken up, they bowed and greeted him, "The captain is worried that someone mighte here and cause trouble for you, so he specially asked us to stand guard here and wait until you are awake. Since you¡¯re already awake, we shall take our leave. Goodbye."

    These few soldiers were very respectful to Ai Hui. Firstly, it was because the abilities Ai Hui disyed were really powerful. Secondly, they could tell that Ai Hui¡¯s rtionship with Jiang Wei was extraordinary.

    After they¡¯d bidden farewell to Ai Hui, they left immediately. Having just arrived at Peace City, they had a multitude of issues to tackle.

    Ai Hui felt a tinge of warmth in his heart. He knew Jiang Wei cared about his safety and ordered his soldiers to stand guard at the training hall. When he saw hispletely devastated training hall, he could not help but chuckle bitterly.

    The entire training hall was almost destroyed. Even half of his warehouse had copsed. All of the captives from the Sha Family had died in the process. Sha Wuduan did not hold back his offensive attacks on Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s n to use the captives to make money hadpletely gone down the drain.

    If not for the fact that Lou Lan¡¯s seclusion area was well-hidden and heavily-defended, Ai Hui might really be worried that the Sand Sentinel would affect Lou Lan¡¯s upgrading process.

    Upon thinking back to the battle, he felt that the whole process was hair-raising and extremely dangerous. A slight mistake would cost him his life. Furthermore, when he thought about the materials and money he had expended, he felt heartbroken.

    Luckily, he had the drought fire lotus seeds. They were a pleasant surprise to him.

    He never thought that the drought fire lotuses could bear fire lotus seeds. All along, he only nned to use the drought fire lotuses¡¯ ability of devouring earth elemental energy to deal with his enemy and achieve victory.

    The conditions needed in order to make drought fire lotuses bear lotus seed heads were extremely demanding. Even those naturally grown drought fire lotuses might not ever bear the lotus seed heads. That was because the surrounding earth elemental energy was not sufficient, causing them to die of malnourishment.

    Ai Hui did not expect the Sha Family to bring out the Sand Sentinel. He also certainly did not expect the Sha Guards to devour each other and form the Sand Sentinel. This concentrated the earth elemental energy within their Sand Sentinel to a point which exceed the usual Sand Sentinels¡¯ energy.

    The drought fire lotus seed heads came as a surprise to him. There wasn¡¯t just one of them, but five.

    Ai Hui carefully took out the drought fire lotus seed heads.

    He had never touched such high-grade material before. He could not help but look at them with curiosity.

    Naturally, the seeds that were borne from such extreme nts were extraordinary. The drought fire lotus seed heads were the size of a baby¡¯s palm. They were smooth and soft, and they were dark-red in color. The seeds within them could be seen clearly as well. Every seed was covered with a thick and solid outer shell. Indistinctly, one could see a wisp of fire flickering within each seed. That wisp of fire was called lotus heart.

    Drought fire lotus was a wood-attributed nt and it fed on earth elemental energy. However, the fruits that it bore were purely fire elemental in nature. One could not help but praise the Creator for creating such a wondrous nt.

    The wisp of fire was a dry fire.

    Anything in this world that possessed twopletely opposite elemental attributes was usually considered an extremely valuable material.

    The most valuable part of the drought fire lotus was those dry-fire-made lotus hearts.

    Ai Hui did not know much about fire-attributed materials as he was metal-attributed. As for Lou Lan, he needed earth-attributed materials. The reason why Ai Hui knew about fire lotus seeds, was because the lotus hearts of the fire lotus seeds were top-grade materials for training the sky pce.

    Among the five residences and eight pces, the sky pce was the most special and mystical one. The sky pce was usually involved with psychic attacks.

    However, one¡¯s mind was formless and was extremely difficult and dangerous to develop. This was also the main reason why there were very few people that specialized in developing their sky pce.

    Everyone knew the benefits of having a powerful sky pce. Even if ordinary individuals did not dare to develop their sky pce, they would still think of ways to improve it. As such, a top-grade material. like the fire lotus seeds, naturally became the material that was highly sought after by people.

    The fire lotus seeds were extremely useful for an elementalist like Ai Hui who specialized in developing his sky pce.

    Ai Hui carefully plucked out a fire lotus seed from one of the drought fire lotus heads. As the fire lotus seed made contact with his hand, he did not feel any burning feeling, but rather, an ice-cold one. The color of its outer shell was dark-red, so dark that it almost looked ck. As Ai Hui lifted it closer to his eyes to examine it, he discovered that there were fine veins growing all over it that could not be easily seen by the naked eye.

    When Ai Hui tried to determine what these veins were, the elemental energy in his body suddenly began to surge, giving him a shock. He immediately closed his eyes and did not look at the veins on the outer shell anymore.

    At this moment, the skin of the fire lotus seeds in his hand suddenly emitted a faint glow.

 Chapter 309: Skyheart Flaming Lotus Lamp

    Chapter 309: Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The faint light lit Ai Hui¡¯s face up and he felt the thread of warmth flow between his brows.

    In the sky pce, a lotus flowermp suddenly glowed brightly as the me in the centre of the petals became bright and concentrated. A roll of golden scripture surrounded and circled around themp fire. The words on the scripture were unclear no matter how closely Ai Hui tried to look. Following the circling of the golden scripture, an indistinct and faintly discernible sutra-chanting voice echoed through his sky pce.

    Wisps of ck smoke grew and were released from all parts of his body, moving quietly like a beast upon smelling something fishy.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face was quickly enveloped by ayer of thick ck smoke. It was as if he was wearing a mask made of fog. The ck smog wriggled like little weird and dangerous poisonous worms. Cold and malevolent, it rushed unceasingly towards the space between Ai Hui¡¯s brows.

    The ck fog curled up within his sky pce as the lotus flowermp pulsed unhurriedly. The circling golden scripture surrounding the mes spun just like before, making a full circle. The ck smoke burned cleanly andpletely at mere contact with the scripture and mes.

    But, as if feeling nothing, the ck smog continued pouncing on the lotus flowermp within Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce.

    The smog enveloping Ai Hui¡¯s face gradually faded.

    The malevolence reduced greatly as an indescribable peace and calm started to appear on his face.

    He would be surprised and unable to recognize himself if he could see his face now. The grave lines on his previously stone-like face started to soften and loosen up. The sharpness from before was gone and the space between his brows carried a sense ofpassion.

    It was said that the inspiration for the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] originated from the Suspending Temple¡¯s meditation form.

    Ancient meditation meant inner peace, calmness and freedom from suffering.

    It was hard to tell how much time had passed.

    Ai Hui woke up slowly from this tranquility and was surprised to feel an inexpressible sense offort in his whole body. It was as if he had been cleansed thoroughly, both inside and out.

    Completely thoroughly. Right, this was the feeling.

    Even his bones felt lighter. Ai Hui supposed he could start to float if there was a gust of iing wind.

    This was the first time he¡¯d felt this rxed and at peace so even he himself was rather shocked.

    After observing his condition thoroughly, he fell into even greater shock. The qi and blood flow in his body was exceptionally smooth and full of vigor. Unlike the sluggishness from before, it waspletely unobstructed now. Even the little internal and hidden injuries within his body were gone at this point.

    [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] had its own unique qualities which enabled it to cultivate the sky pce independently and be an absolute art.

    It could bring inner peace and calm to people. While there was not much use for this on the battlefield, it was a fundamental inherited nourishment. It could purify one¡¯s body continuously to purge any contamination within the body, so as to improve the body¡¯s constitution. It was said that upon mastering it, one could start practicing the legendary "Skyheart Pure Body", which was intimately connected with elemental energy.

    Of course, this was only a legend. Until now, there hadn¡¯t been anyone who¡¯d practiced "Skyheart Pure Body".

    But the older generations that practiced absolute arts lived long.

    Compared to the unique aspects of [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp], this absolute art faced much more apparent abuses. While it could improve one¡¯s body constitution, it was a very slow process where a day felt like ten years. The practicing elementalists would have been above forty years old by the time they were almost done mastering it and had greatly improved their affinity with elemental energy.

    If a practitioner had already missed the golden age for training, even if doing it could improve his aptitude, it wouldn¡¯t be of much use.

    Ai Hui chose [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] mainly because it was cheap. All along, very few people practiced this technique, so the number of Heaven Merit Points needed for this was the lowest aspared to many other absolute arts. Once he reached the realm of nine lotus petals, he could effectively restrain psychic attacks, preventing evilness from invading.

    Blood of God¡¯s psychic attacks were strange, ever-changing and difficult to guard against. It was very important for Ai Hui to possess this ability to curb the attacks.

    Improving his body constitution was just a convenient bonus.

    But things were all different with the fire lotus seeds.

    Ai Hui stared with his bright eyes at the drought fire lotus seed heads on his hand and counted them meticulously. There were five, some big and some small, and there was a total of ny-two lotus seeds.

    His thoughts fell on the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] in his sky pce. It had a total of five petals and one of them was slightly smaller than the rest. And before this, Ai Hui clearly remembered that there were only four petals on that lotus flowermp.

    The efficacy of the fire lotus seeds far exceeded Ai Hui¡¯s expectations.

    If he were to absorb all ny-two fire lotus seeds, what base level could his [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] reach?

    Without hesitation, Ai Hui took a fire lotus seed and started practicing.

    He focused and felt the growth of the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp]¡¯s fifth petal more clearly this time. On his fourth fire lotus seed, the fifth petal was as big as the rest. Themp¡¯s me was much stronger and brighter than before.

    That roll of golden scripture revolving around the mes changed the most. It became more condensed and carried a more solemn breath.

    ording to what he had learnt from practicing for years, Ai Hui knew that it was time to stop. He needed time to adapt to hispletely new body. Good preparation was the key to sess when it came to all breakthroughs. Blindly relying on external objects would bring rapid progress but only in the beginning. As one reached a higher base level, the hidden dangers developed from having a weak foundation would break out.

    In this aspect, Ai Hui was exceptionally calm, neither arrogant nor impatient.

    The Circtory Cycle Revolution felt super smooth as the elemental energy evidently flowed much faster than before. Ai Hui was pleasantly surprised to find out that the elemental energy sword pills within his body became gentler with each cycle.

    From before, there was a thread of sharp sword consciousness that remained in the pill. It felt as if there was a round rock with thorns moving within his body, which unknowingly gave him slight injuries. These fine bruises umted and turned into internal injuries over time.

    Such internal injuries were difficult to treat and they destabilized elementalists¡¯ fundamentals as well.

    One cycle after another caused Ai Hui to lose track of time.

    The sharpness throughout his body faded with each cycle. He had the same face and body but his whole body and temperament had changed thoroughly. The old Ai Hui was like an unsheathed treasure sword, shivering and conspicuous within a crowd.

    Ai Hui now became more and more introspective, as if the treasure sword had a concealed sharpness and protection, making it less garish than before.

    Ai Hui¡¯s greatest experience was the fact that his control over his elemental energy had improved once again.

    When an elementalist achieved elemental externalization, his elemental energy would improve greatly, but at the same time such progress demanded more when it came to his control techniques.

    This was also a meticulous and delicate skill so Ai Hui wasn¡¯t the least bit anxious.

    From early morning to evening, Ai Hui had been deep in mystical thoughts and had forgotten about the time.

    A cheery voice sounded.

    "Ai Hui, Lou Lan is here!"

 Chapter 310: Lou Lanâ€™s Upgrade

    Chapter 310: Lou Lan¡¯s Upgrade

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Lou Lan didn¡¯t change much.

    Ai Hui noticed Lou Lan¡¯s eyes first. His eyes were now clear and bright, and heartwarmingly pure. Upon closer inspection, one could see a very mild, yellow halo reflected within his clear pupils. It was difficult for the naked eye to notice. The halo was extremely sensitive as it shrunk and expanded slightly.

    Ai Hui circled around Lou Lan once andmented, "Lou Lan¡¯s eyes became brighter."

    "Yes, I learned [Earth Elemental Deciphering Technique]. And there¡¯s this, Ai Hui."

    Lou Lan raised his arms cheerfully. Ai Hui could see the ordinary yellow sand turning ink ck. It carried an intense gold luster.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. "Meteoric Sand?"

    "Yes," Lou Lan exined, "I used all of the meteoric sand to refine my hands so they won¡¯t burn in mes and are resistant to sword injuries. Be it in making elemental food or in battling, I will be better able to assist you."

    "That¡¯s amazing!" Ai Hui cried out.

    "There is silk floss sand and many other ingredients in my body now, so my morphing and fighting abilities are much stronger. My body can now unleash seventy percent of the Midnight¡¯s abilities.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t sure of the connection between morphing and fighting strength. His concentration was on theter part of Lou Lan¡¯s sentence. He was rather shocked. "Seventy percent? Is Midnight sand core that powerful?"

    "I¡¯ve not found any core better than mine," Lou Lan dered proudly but his tone dropped shortly. "I wonder how Master Shao is doing? I have not heard from him in a long time."

    Seeing child-like Lou Lan being sad, Ai Hui patted his head and consoled him. "There are things that people have no choice but to do. This shows how brave Master Shao is."

    Lou Lan raised his head, his eyes opened wide. "Will sand puppets experience such things?"

    "Of course." Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help butugh. "Won¡¯t youe to my rescue if I am in trouble?"

    Lou Lan said loudly, "Don¡¯t worry, Ai Hui. I will definitely save you!"

    "Hahaha, you¡¯re still the best, Lou Lan... Bah, how inauspicious! Why would I be in trouble?" Ai Hui said with a wretched face. He then thought about the fire lotus seeds and took a lotus seed head out abruptly. "Lou Lan, look at this."

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes lit up at the sight of the lotus seed head. "Drought fire lotus seed head, fire lotus seeds!"

    "So? Any suitable elemental soup in mind?" Ai Hui asked and started drooling.

    "Yes, Ai Hui," said Lou Lan. Thinking for a short while he continued, "But more ingredients are needed. We don¡¯t need so much. Thirty fire lotus seeds and the shell of the lotus seed head will be sufficient. Ai Hui, can we use the rest of the fire lotus seeds to exchange for other things?"

    "No problem!" Ai Hui readily approved.

    Just then, Ai Hui saw Jiang Wei standing by the door with a rather unpleasant expression on his face.

    Walking in and seeing Lou Lan, Jiang Wei¡¯s face brightened up significantly. "Long time no see, Lou Lan!"

    Lou Lan replied cheerily, "Long time no see, Jiang Wei."

    "What happened?" Ai Hui enquired.

    With a bitterugh, Jiang Wei responded, "Ai Hui, your identity has been found out."

    "Oh." Ai Hui replied simply.

    Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s t response, Jiang Wei couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Aren¡¯t you worried?"

    "Worried about what?" Ai Hui asked instead, "It¡¯s going to be revealed someday. We know each other, a little effort is all it takes to trace my identity. It¡¯s no big deal. Plus, so what if my identity is exposed? Will someone find me bringing trouble?"

    Jiang Wei answered anxiously, "I¡¯m worried about Blood of God."

    "Blood of God?" Thinking about the blood plum blossom in his body, he replied, "Other than She Yu, no one from there will find me."

    As long as She Yu wasn¡¯t a fool, she would never, on her own ord, reveal information about the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Technique Art] in her body. Not only would she conceal it, she would protect her own life. Otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t just be wasted effort but even her own safety would be an issue.

    If a strong yer from Blood of God knew about this, he would simply kidnap She Yu and him alive and wait for his blood plum blossom to fall out in order to retrieve it.

    That would then be a dreadful period where neither living or dying was bearable.

    Such a smart person like One Thousand Yuan would not miss this fact.

    Although he wasn¡¯t aware of how confident Ai Hui was, Jiang Weiid his worried heart to rest. He had almost given himself a p upon hearing the news. He knew that Ai Hui would be the first victim since his identity had been exposed. While he didn¡¯t know why Ai Hui concealed his identity in Peace City, he also knew that he must¡¯ve had his own reasons.

    Jiang Wei was beyond vexed. Why didn¡¯t he think of waiting for a quiet time to connect with Ai Hui?

    Ai Hui saw through Jiang Wei¡¯s anxiety andughed, "Don¡¯t worry about it. I got rid of Sha Wuyuan, so there will definitely be people checking on my identity and it was only going to be a matter of time before they found something out. But since I¡¯ve been exposed, please help me with something."

    "Go ahead and tell me." Jiang Wei calmed down as the same steadiness from before returned to his face.

    In Central Pine City, Ai Hui always had all sorts of ideas. Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s expression, Jiang Wei knew Ai Hui had an idea already.

    "Since I¡¯ve been exposed, we might as well announce it publicly. You can release my true identity and it¡¯s best that the whole city hears it. At the same time let them know our another piece of news, that I¡¯m nning to dispose of my fire lotus seeds."

    "You¡¯re going to use fire lotus seeds?" Jiang Wei turned pale before dissuading, "You must keep it cool. Things like fire lotus seeds cannot be bought at all right now. You should keep them for yourselves."

    "I don¡¯t need that many." Ai Hui exined, "I n to exchange the surplus for essence elemental beans and other ingredients that I need. You know, this war with Sha family hollowed me out and I¡¯m broke to death."

    Jiang Wei muttered, "How many are you nning to take out?"

    "There were ny-three and I used five so there¡¯s eighty-eight now. I¡¯m going to keep thirty for myself so there¡¯s fifty-eight to be sold. I will write down a list of items that I need. My priority is to exchange for things that I require, then I¡¯ll sell the rest to the highest bidder."

    "Okay! The whole city will know of these two matters today." Jiang Wei gave Ai Hui a nce. "You must beware of your safety. Do not act tough. This is a signal for help, so use it when you¡¯re in danger."

    Jiang Wei handed a signal arrow to Ai Hui but was still a little worried inside. He had been through the controversy surrounding Ai Hui years ago.

    This time, Ai Hui was going to reveal himself on his own ord. Conflicts might arise if people were reminded of past events.

    Jiang Wei was determined that he would not just sit and watch if anyone, no matter who, came to seek trouble.

    They were still weak and young at that time, but now they were not without strength.

    No one knew what that war was about better than they did.

    Ai Hui could see the determination in Jiang Wei¡¯s eyes and felt his heart warming up. He took the arrow, saying, "New product eh, I¡¯ve not seen it before. Don¡¯t worry, I just killed Sha Wuyuan so most will not dare to trouble me. If they doe, I will not let them off easily."

    Jiang Wei smiled upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s confident face.

    Yeah, since when had Ai Hui been an easy target?

    "Then I¡¯ll go get busy! Bye, Lou Lan!" Without any superfluous words, Jiang Wei waved goodbye.

    "Bye, Jiang Wei!"

    Seeing Jiang Wei¡¯s disappearing figure, Lou Lan said suddenly, "Ai Hui, everyone¡¯s pretty good."

    "Yeah." Ai Hui nodded. "Lou Lan, you gotta start working. Our training hall needs to be reorganized and tidied up."

    "No problem." Lou Lan responded lightheartedly, but when he saw Ai Hui picking up a broken wooden block and walking towards the main entrance, he couldn¡¯t help but ask, "You are..."

    "Choose a new price!"

    Ai Hui replied without even turning his head.

    Soon, there was a newly hung wooden board on the main entrance of the swordsman training hall that said: " Fees, two hundred essence elemental beans per person."

    Publicity, good or bad, was still publicity. If he did not use this chance to jack the price up, he would simply be letting down his empty purse and conscience.

    Ai Hui shook his head and swaggered his way back in.

    God-subduing Peak flew speedily as the shadow casted by its summit swept past violently like a beast stuck to the ground. rmed cries could be heard wherever God-subduing Peak passed.

    Whenever she had the time, Shi Xueman would be practicing since, counting just training venues alone, there were about seven. There were also quiet rooms designed for meditation and there were wide ones for actual practicing of skills.

    A stern looking middle-aged man in grey garments and cloth shoes stood perfectly straight, his short hair stiff like steel wires. His short mustache was well-managed and he looked clean overall. His gaze was like lightning as he observed Shi Xueman, who was practicing in the training hall.

    There were no wisps of elemental energy waves around Shi Xueman. Her moves looked very ordinary.

    The middle-aged man looked on in admiration nevertheless. Indeed, within the Shi family, she was the one who was most likely going to continue Shi Beihai¡¯s legacy. Not even a strand of Shi Xueman¡¯s elemental energy overflowed as she contained it well inside. What seemed like ordinary spear moves were actually difficult to execute and control.

    Upon attaining elemental externalization, the barrier between elementalists and Nature¡¯s elemental energies was broken, and utilizing the energy became second nature to the elementalists.

    Yet, Shi Xueman did the very opposite. She controlled her elemental externalization without releasing it. Such training allowed her spear mastery to go to an even higher base level.

    Shi Xueman held her spear vertically beside her as the fog lingered on around her whole body, surging ceaselessly without scattering.

    She opened her eyes, exhaled deeply and the surrounding fog started to dissipate. She then walked toward the exit.

    The middle-aged man praised her, saying, "Soon enough, among the younger generation, no one will have better spear mastery than you do."

    "You tter me, Uncle Cui. Please guide me along." Shi Xueman replied respectfully, satisfaction absent from her face.

    Uncle Cui was the real deal in God-subduing Peak. He was Master Cui Tianzheng. Without a master overseeing it, no one would dare to underestimate such a heavy weapon like God-subduing Peak.

    Cui Tianzheng was very close to Shi Beihai and was asked by him to guide Shi Xueman since he had the qualifications.

    Cui Zhengtian said in a low voice, "You may becking in certain areas but even jades have their ws so don¡¯t worry about it. You have a strong foundation that no one canpete with. You are on the right track, so as long as you remain patient and continue this way, you can rise up to be one of the strongest."

    Shi Xueman bowed. "I¡¯ll remember your wise words well."

    Cui Tianzheng gave a slight smile. "I¡¯ll practice with you from tomorrow onwards."

    Shi Xueman was overjoyed. "Thanks, Uncle Cui."

    Uncle Cui caught sight of Sang Zhijun, who was standing not far away. With a "Go get busy", he turned around and left.

    Only when Cui Tianzheng was no longer in sight did Sang Zhijun rush over to give her report. "Xueman, look!"

    She took the report over and gave it a few nces. Her eyes lit up and blurted out, "So he¡¯s here!"

    Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s open deration of his identity, she felt somewhat suspicious. "What is this fellow trying to do?"

    She knew clearly that Ai Hui was someone who would not get up early if there were no benefits, so he definitely wasn¡¯t the kind to act without thinking.

 Chapter 311: Fervor

    Chapter 311: Fervor

    Trantor: JL Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    "It turns out that Wang Han is The Lightning de! No wonder he is so brilliant! The Sha Family has met their opponent and now they¡¯re done for."

    "The monster that killed his teacher with his bare hands? It is a pity I am not strong enough. Otherwise how can I let such a person exist in this world?"

    "The magnificent Lightning de is going incognito in our Peace City. What are his intentions? Could it be that our Peace City has some sort of hidden treasure?"

    "Even if there are any hidden treasures, they are not for you to take."

    "He could actually bear to use a good object like the fire lotus seed! I can¡¯t get over it!"

    "If not that, then what could he have done? Wait till thepletion of the lesser Avalon of Five Elements, and the reemergence of the fire elementalists materials? They might not be able to produce such a good material like the fire lotus seed!"

    "Stop dreaming. Even if the lesser Avalon of Five Elements were to bepleted, you would have to wait an eternity for them to produce such high grade materials like the fire lotus seed."

    "I heard that there is some fool that brought along two hundred essence elemental beans to seek an apprenticeship with him!"

    "You are the fool, he is a nouveau riche after all!"

    "To be an apprentice for such an infamous person? If he is not a fool, what is he? If I was rich, I¡¯d..."

    "Wait till you are rich!"

    "See You Later was actually created by him, he is so awesome!"

    "I wonder if we can buy more?"

    At the moment, there was only a name buzzing around Peace City - Ai Hui. He was like a whirlpool, attracting everyone¡¯s attention and being the topic of their conversations.

    Those who adored him praised his impressive battle sess and performance in Central Pine City unbridledly. It was due to Ai Hui that Central Pine City was saved from a disaster. Ai Hui was the most prominent figure in the earlier stage of the blood disaster. He single-handedly killed the blood elementalist Tian Kuan, who was one of the core members on the kill list of the Avalon of Five Elements for a long time. Even those who were under Tian Kuan had exceptional capabilities.

    Those who had an intense hatred for Ai Hui described him as an ingrate who resorted to unscrupulous means, turning on his teacher to gain credit. Furthermore, his teacher treated him like his own son. How could he be so cruel? What a cold and heartless personality!

    Previously, Peace City also had even more famous personalities. However, this was the first time that they had someone that was so controversial. With the topics of See You Later Arrows, King of Anglers, Fire Lotus Seeds and more, Ai Hui became the headline of every conversation starter.

    Regardless of whether they understood, or whether they liked it, people wanted to join in the conversation.

    Evergold Enterprise.

    "Obliterated soul wood, this is a good object! Ites from the century old immortal soul tree. It is then chopped into wooden strips with dimensions three inches long, about two inches wide and one inch in thickness. If you deposit them in the water of the Yellow Springs, those that transform upon contact with water are ash firewood, and those that float atop are overcast firewood. Those that are half-submerged are withered soul wood. Only the ones that arepletely submerged and sink right to the bottom are obliterated soul wood. A century old immortal tree can only produce no more than three obliterated soul wood pieces. As such, it is extremely precious."

    The person who said that was a middle-aged man with a goatee. He looked skinny and shriveled but his gaze was bright and lively. His family name was Hu and he was known as Mr Hu. He specialized in many times of precious natural resources and his knowledge was extensive. He had just arrived at Peace City the night before.

    "The amethyst sword reeds are unusual as well. Sword reeds can be seen everywhere and are extremely ordinary. If the sword reed is not of a certain age, it will be delicate and weak. There are few sword reeds that can grow for more than a hundred years. However, when a sword reed manages to grow over a hundred years, it has many impressive uses. It would be able to absorb the essence of the other vegetation around its surroundings and use the essence for itself. If there are amethyst mica nearby, after thirty odd years it will transform into amethyst sword reeds. The sword reeds will be fully purple in color and can be used as a material in many weapons."

    Mr Hu spoke assuredly and he was radiant with delight. He liked talking about such unusual objects and when he started on the topic, he could go on and on.

    He went to sleep after he arrived the night before. He was being summoned by Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter early in the morning and he rushed over hurriedly. The young mistress gave him a list filled with many different materials. She wanted him to introduce a few materials that were rarely seen. While he was still not clear about the situation, he managed to exin it to her in detail as per his expertise.

    Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter was intelligent and imposing. She was trusted by the owner of the house and her authority was almost on equal standing with the family head. She brought up a few of her younger brothers as well and she was well-loved and respected. The family head was often rueful that she wasn¡¯t born as a boy. Otherwise, he would have an heir.

    Mr Hu was even more motivated when he saw that the Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter nodded from time to time and did not show any signs of impatience.

    After Mr Hu stopped, the Fu Family¡¯s oldest daughter praised him, "Mr Hu is indeed knowledgeable. After hearing what you have said, I have learnt a lot."

    Mr Hu was ted while he hurriedly denied the praises.

    Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter continued, "I still have a question to ask. Would it be worth it If I used these to exchange for the fire lotus seeds?"

    "Fire lotus seeds?" Mr Hu paused for a moment before saying, "Drought fire lotus?"

    "Yes!"

    "Exchange it!¡¯ Mr Hu said without hesitation and with an agitated expression, "You do not know but within the perimeter of where the drought fire lotus grows, the soil is dried up and there are no signs of life. It originated from the Wilderness and after meticulous breeding from the wood elementalists, they managed to get a few seeds. Some of the wood elementalists started to grow it but it led to the extermination of living things within a perimeter of five hundred metres, which resulted in a disaster. The elders were furious and forcefully exterminated and prevented the breeding. The drought fire lotus is easy to grow but it requires much ground elemental energy to produce any fire lotus seeds. It is extremely difficult. Now, the seeds of the drought fire lotus are mostly used by the wood elementalists as some sort of weapon. However I have not heard of anyone that is willing to sell off fire lotus seeds yet."

    Mr Hu said all these things rapidly. He paused momentarily, "As such, the fire lotus seed is extremely out of the ordinary. It is usually used to train your sky pce as well. One effect of the fire lotus seed is to strengthen your state of mind. Those who have weak willpower usually are those who have a weaker state of mind. As such, it is easy for them to be taken advantage of by external forces. If their mindset is strong, then their willpower will be strong as well.

    The Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter had maintained aposed face all this time but finally showed a surprised reaction and said, "There¡¯s such an effect?"

    Mr Hu had also toned down at that moment and replied, "Yes, this is not a secret and there are many who know about it. However, this knowledge is useless to most as the fire lotus seed is elusive.

    Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter forced a smile and said, "This is going to be interesting."

    Mr Hu stared nkly at her while saying doubtfully, "Could it be that someone is disposing of the fire lotus seed?"

    Young Mistress nodded her head, "Yes, there is a total of fifty eight. It is up to us to see how many we can get our hands on."

    "Fifty......Fifty eight?" Mr Hu felt light-headed and his face was flushed like he was drunk.

    "Since Mister thinks that we should exchange for it, our family will try our best to get it." The young mistress said solemnly.

    At that moment, the smile on her face was gone. Her gaze was resolute and her back was straight. Her petite figure radiated power and influence. Everyone was scared into submission and bowed in response.

    "I need to consult you for one more thing." The Fu family¡¯s young mistress muttered, "From this list of things, what do you think are the intentions and objectives of the person who wrote it? For example, is it for refinement and what sort of refinement is it for?"

    Mr Hu shook his head and said, "Your humble subordinate is unable to tell. I might need to gather some experienced artisan and we can discuss it together?"

    Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter bowed slightly, "Thank you for your help."

    "No need to thank me," Mr Hu hurriedly bowed back in return and was awed. The young mistress was always respectful and never had any haughtiness about her.

    Looking at Mr Hu¡¯s retreating figure, Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter suddenly turned around and told Fu Yonghao, "Previously you failed in bing Ai Hui¡¯s student. Do not fail this time."

    Fu Yonghao was at a loss and said, "Ah...Older sister..."

    "Work hard at the training hall."

    "Older sister... I..."

    .....

    Swordsman Training Hall.

    Ai Hui stared in surprise at the shop owner. That old face was more than familiar.

    While he had already released the list of things for a long time, he had never imagined that the first person to trade would be the boss of the store.

    "Definitely Boss, I can¡¯t believe it. You are like the sage that disguises himself as an ordinary person."

    The shop owner gave a simple and honest smile, "It is nothing aspared to you. I am just trying to make ends meet, trying to make ends meet."

    Ai Hui did not bother with the formalities. He took the box and threw it towards Lou Lan.

    He did not ask further. Everyone had their own secrets.

    He knew of the store owner¡¯s background. In the past, he used to purchase different types of materials from this store owner. At that time, he already felt that the store owner had a vast range of resources. Now, he knew that he had underestimated the store owner. The store owner¡¯s background was even more extensive than what he had guessed. While everyone else was yet to react, the store owner had alreadye over to do a trade. Ai Hui was impressed by this.

    Lou Lan took a nce and told Ai Hui, "Ai Hui, this is obliterated soul wood. There is no problem with the quality and there is a total of three."

    The store owner said cheerily, "Lou Lan has good foresight."

    "Three?" Ai Hui nodded his head and took out three fire lotus seeds. He wrapped them up in a piece of scrap paper that he randomly found and thrusted it at the store owner.

    The store owner¡¯s cheeks twitched, "Can¡¯t you put it in a proper box?"

    This was a precious natural resource!

    How could he just use a random piece of paper to wrap up the priceless fire lotus seeds? Even an unscrupulous businessman like the store owner was unable to stand his way of handling them.

    "Are you going to pay for the box?" Ai Hui countered.

    The store owner also felt that he had wasted his breath. He was clear about Ai Hui¡¯s character. His expression suddenly cleared and a smile lifted up his cheeks "Hey little king, when should we meet up to create See You Later? You have to leave enough for me! We have so many years of friendship..."

    Nobody knew that the shop owner took away with him three fire lotus seeds. Just like nobody knew that he came.

    When the shop owner left, Ai Hui¡¯s mood lifted. At least it was a good start.

    After a moment, he heard Lou Lan shouting from the outside, "Owner, someone is seeking knowledge."

    Ai Hui was happy! There is business! A sessful business is equivalent to two hundred essence elemental beans!

    However, when Ai Hui saw the face of the person, his face became doubtful, "It is you!"

    "So what if it is me?" Fu Yonghao said rudely and threw a money pouch towards Ai Hui, "Two hundred essence elemental beans."

    Ai Hui took over the money pouch and counted it. He raised his head and said, "You! Two hundred essence elemental beans is not enough!"

    Fu Yonghao said indignantly, "What do you mean? Didn¡¯t you write down the price on the door?"

    Ai Hui said righteously, "You are over-age, so naturally you should pay a higher fee. Give over another one hundred essence elemental beans."

    "You!" Fong Yongwu was almost spitting fire now. But when he thought of his older sister being angry at him, he trembled and forced the words out of his mouth, "If you want that additional hundred, I will give it to you."

    With a disdainful expression, Ai Hui said reluctantly, "Alright, since you are so sincere, I will make an exception and ept you as a student. Come on, call me Teacher!"

    Fong Yongwu was so angry that his neck turned red.

 Chapter 312: A Group of People

    Chapter 312: A Group of People

    Trantor: JL Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    "I can¡¯t believe it is actually him."

    Su Huaijun gave a soft sigh. While her emotions were in a mess, she felt a sense of relief as well. How could an unknown being defeat the Sha family? After knowing Wang Han¡¯s true identity, she was more at ease. To her, information on Wang Han was the most important, regardless of what his background was.

    "What should we do next? Should Qingye still go to the training hall?" Father Su was feeling conflicted as well.

    No matter how controversial Ai Hui might be, his prestige and capability were proven. Before, the Three Smalls had been able tobine forces and block one of Sha Wuyuan¡¯s moves. This was sufficient to prove that Ai Hui was good at teaching his students.

    He was not highly regarded in his family, otherwise he would not have been sent to Peace City many years back. He was extremely happy that Qingye was able to practice under a famous master. At the same time, he was also worried that this might sh with his family¡¯s interest. He had been doing business for a long time and knew howplicated Ai Hui¡¯s background was.

    Su Huaijun did not have the least bit of hesitation and said, "Let¡¯s go and see our master."

    Looking at father Su¡¯s happy, yet worried expression, she knew he had some doubts. She quickly said, "You need not worry about it. Even though there are many disputes over Ai Hui, you should not underestimate the people supporting him. Those that make him an enemy are extremely foolish."

    Su Qingye¡¯s father was surprised. "He has such capability?"

    "The ce which bore the brunt of the blood disaster was the Induction Ground. None of the students managed to survive and the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ backup strength was heavily cut off. These people from Central Pine City went through such a hard battle and performed tremendously. How are they not valuable? Those lucky survivors from the battle, especially those in the A1-unit that was led by Ai Hui, have gained a lot in these three years. A few of them have ascended rapidly and Jiang Wei is one of them. The Thirteen Divisions which was severely impacted will definitely be rebuilt in the future. The many vacancies that will open up will probably be filled by those from the A1-unit."

    Su Huaijun seemed to have thought of something and sat in silence. Following which, she sighed "Ai Hui¡¯s prestige in the eyes of the survivors from Central Pine City is something we will never be able to understand."

    "Old Xu, guess who is near Peace City?"

    "You have heard the news? Ge Laohei is here! I have already requested something from him."

    "You are so efficient! I only received the news today. Thank goodness we finally have news of him."

    "Yes, it has been three years. Time flies. If not for the fact that I am really busy, I would have gone to Peace City myself. Mingfeng has already left for Peace City. You can look for him too."

    "Alright, I will go look for them."

    "Peace City! He is in Peace City!"

    "I did not manage to thank him personally previously. I have always been thinking about it."

    The dazzle of the message tree periodically lit up within the crowd of people. Those who had partners in the same city gathered and formed an evenrger group. They sat together drinking wine while reminiscing about the past. The blood and fire from three years ago contributed to their fear and despair. They talked about witnessing their own rtives and those students lying in a pool of blood. Soon, tears started rolling.

    The more they drank, the more drunk they got. They cried andughed together.

    The memories that were buried deep inside their hearts surfaced. The longing for their family members had never ceased and was ignited by the alcohol.

    They sobbed silently.

    They had their arms around each other¡¯s shoulders while singing at the top of their voices.

    They were like a herd of wild wolves that shouted towards the sky, "Lightning de! Lightning de! Lightning de!"

    None of them had forgotten the Central Pine City of three years ago, just like none of them will ever, ever forget the lonely silhouette of the youth who faced the blood fiends during the Battle of Long Street. They would never forget the person who fought in the battle in the Heaven Pit. Simrly, they were unable to forget the scene where that youth stabbed the enemy in the back while soaring in the sky. They could not forget the back view of that youth who kneeled in front of the tombstone under the torrential rain.

    It was a figure they would never, ever forget, and a feeling that only they could understand.

    That was enough for them.

    .....

    She Yu leaned on the railings and unknowingly caught a glimpse of a silhouette walking hurriedly. She gave a light gasp in surprise.

    Quan Minglong who was next to her looked over as well and said smilingly, "Ah, Master Duanmu. After Young Master Duanmu lost to mydy, he set up a society called the Society of Excellence. Compared to the past, he is keeping a low-profile now.

    The rtionship between Quan Minglong and She Yu became tense after he was mocked in public by She Yu. For an unknown reason, however, She Yu personally visited him and apologised. She also attempted to butter him up whenever possible at the various public areas. Pretty soon, his initial hard feelings towards her dissipated.

    Hearing the words "Society of Excellence", her body turned rigid and she gave a sigh. Duanmu Huanghun had yet to forget about the Induction Ground.

    She suddenly thought of Ai Hui. That chap should still remember too, right?

    The hatred between Ai Hui and the Blood of God was deeper than the ocean.

    However, who would care about the deep hatred of a flower ve?

    She pretended to be surprised and said, "God Nation and Jadeite forest was just about to form a sincere coboration. The Society of Excellence is ill-timed."

    Quan Minglong said harshly, "Isn¡¯t that the case! There are many higher-ups who are displeased with him. However, he usually acts like that. He is usually arrogant and despotic, he does not take the big picture into ount. Let¡¯s see how he salvages the situation in the future!"

    She Yu covered her mouth andughed daintily. "I can smell the jealousy over here."

    Quan Minglong let out a huge guffaw and was not the least bit angry. Instead, he liked being teased by She Yu. All the other women who talked to him always spoke respectfully to him.

    He continued, "I have no other choice. He is the Jadeite Young Master as well as a genius, so he can afford to neglect his responsibilities. People like me, however, still need to work hard."

    While saying the above, Quan Minglong¡¯s face was proud. In fact, he had the ability to be proud. Prior to knowing She Yu, he¡¯d lived life like a monk who was obsessed with training. In the Quan family famous for living it up, he was like a weirdo.

    After witnessing first-hand the battle between Duanmu Huanghun and She Yu, he realized the disparity between him and Duanmu Huanghun in strength was not too far apart. This spurred him further. Also, Duanmu Huanghun breaking hearts everywhere he went enforced his notion that Duanmu Huanghun was the perfect example of someone who was not serious.

    Every time he saw She Yu¡¯s beautiful and alluring face, a ball of fire rose in his heart. He wanted to be stronger, he wanted to defeat Duanmu Huanghun, and he wanted to get the beauty in front of him.

    Facing Quan Minglong¡¯s greedy and passionate gaze, She Yu lightly ruffled her fringe. Hearing Quan Minglong¡¯s heavy breathing, she said carelessly, "Life is so boring. Does Minglong know about anything interesting recently? Share so we can pass the time."

    Quan Minglong let out a smile. He was already prepared for this. "There are actually two items, and they are both rted to our Jadeite Young Master."

    Astounded, She Yu said, "Minglong, say it quickly!"

    She Yu¡¯s look of anticipation allowed Quan Minglong to feel that his hard work had not gone to waste and he replied, "The diplomatic mission from the Avalon of Five Elements is about to arrive and the one leading the team is Shi Xueman, who once fought alongside our Jadeite Young Master. She Yu, you are going to have a new opponent now. I heard that they have also brought with them a powerful weapon called God-subduing Peak."

    "God-subduing Peak?" She Yu was slightly surprised, but gave a coldugh. "Let¡¯s see how they are going to subdue us."

    "Many of them are displeased that the Elders are using such a method to showcase their power," Quan Minglong replied.

    She Yu blinked while saying, "Shi Xueman is a one in a million beauty. Doesn¡¯t Minglong want to take a look?"

    Quan Minglong replied firmly, "I only have She Yu in my eyes. Nothing can waver my heart!"

    She Yu¡¯s nce wandered and she asked, "What about the second item?"

    A flicker of disappointment shed across Quan Minglong¡¯s eyes. He had expressed his admiration toward She Yu many times, but has never received a response. He knew that he should not rush into this and regained hisposure. "Our Jadeite Young Master had anotherrade who has also recentlye into the picture. It is the person who killed his own teacher and who is currently very famous. Birds of a feather indeed flock together. Looking at the Jadeite Young Master¡¯s choice of friends, we can see his character..."

    "Are you referring to Ai Hui?"

    Quan Minglong was somewhat surprised that his words were stopped so abruptly. Then he realized that She Yu¡¯s expression was rather strange. He continued, "So She Yu has heard about this incident before. It is indeed Ai Hui. Many of the people from the Avalon of Five Elements do not want to meet him. Apparently, many of the Elders were extremely disdainful of him. The Sha Family is also in decline. They actually lost to a scum like Ai Hui. Ai Hui had been living undercover for three years. If not for the Sha Family, everyone would have forgotten about him."

    He suddenly thought of something. She Yu had been at the battle in Central Pine City. "Could it be that She Yu has met him before?"

    She Yu¡¯s expression was flickering. She was not listening to what Quan Minglong was saying.

    The first thing she thought of was the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art]. Subsequently she thought of how she had almost achieved sess, but ultimately failed. Previously, she was anxious that she could not manage to find any trace of Ai Hui despite using all her resources. Now that Ai Hui was gaining everyone¡¯s attention, however, she became even more worried and anxious.

    Damn it!

    Is that chap crazy? Doesn¡¯t he know that his reputation was poor?

    She thought of how her investment might go to waste and became frantic because their lives were tied. If Ai Hui was to meet with any mishaps, her life would also be lost.

    She had never been passive; instead she had been looking for Ai Hui on the sly, not daring to be the least bit mboyant.

    Even when she¡¯d been unable to find him, she hadn¡¯t been worried.

    As long as the Flower of Life did not ignite, even though she might meet with some injuries, it would not be life-threatening. The Flower of Life would only ignite when the Flower of Destruction ripened. Currently, almost nothing could prevent the ripening of the Flower of Destruction.

    Despite this, the Flower of Life had been about to ignite, but was not yet ripened.

    It was the problem she worried about the most.

    Even for a person who was usually calm andposed, when she thought about the fact that she might lose her life at any moment due to that damn chap, her thoughts went into a whirl and she felt the chills.

    What should she do?

    Ask for help? Nobody would be able to help her. If any blood elementalist was to learn that her [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was sessful, she would be amb waiting to be ughtered.

    No! She will not let any mishap befall Ai Hui!

    Ruthlessness shed past her eyes. She calmed down and her mind rotated at high speeds.

 Chapter 313: Dragonrise Training Hall

    Chapter 313: Dragonrise Training Hall

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    "This is a little gift from us. It is Qingye¡¯s good fortune to be able to receive your guidance!"

    The father of Su Qingye respectfully offered Ai Hui two hundred essence elemental beans while Su Huaijun silently sized him up. Su Qingye opened his eyes wide in admiration as excitement filled his face. The Sha family was so powerful, yet they¡¯d crumbled in front of Teacher.

    In the past, his aunt had always been wary of Teacher, but now that she remained silent, Su Qingye felt rather pleased.

    Plus, he could now focus on training in Swordsman Training Hall since his father no longer required his assistance at the shop.

    Ai Hui looked at the money pouch in Mister Su¡¯s hands but did not ept it. He shook his head, saying, "No need, Qingye¡¯s tuition fees have already been paid. Qingye, go train. The rest, please go back."

    Su Qingye was moved. He knew Teacher would treat them differently from the rest! He nodded and rushed into the training hall excitedly.

    Under Lou Lan¡¯s maintenance, the training hall regained its originalyout. No signs of damage could be seen.

    Father Su and Su Huaijun made eye contact. They were both rather surprised. Ai Hui¡¯s money grubbing nature was a topic of ridicule in Peace City, but he had actually rejected their money. No matter how hard they tried to wrap their heads around this, they simply couldn¡¯t understand.

    Mister Su did not know what to do. He used to feel unconstrained in front of Ai Hui, but today, in front of the same person, he felt an unprecedented pressure oppressing him.

    Delighted, Su Qingye greeted Lou Lan loudly. "Morning, Lou Lan!"

    Lou Lan replied happily, "Good morning, Qingye. Work hard today!"

    "I will!" Su Qingye hoisted his fist and ran towards the sandbox.

    Hearing the voices behind him, Ai Hui felt happy inside but kept a straight face. He nodded at the two visitors before turning around to leave.

    "Why don¡¯t they have to pay the fees?"

    Fu Yonghao¡¯s unhappy voice sounded.

    "It¡¯s none of your business!" Ai Hui replied casually before walking past him.

    "You..." Fu Yonghao seethed with anger.

    Shortly, Ai Hui returned and told him, "Almost forgot. I¡¯m your teacher now so please mind your manners."

    Fu Yonghao opened his eyes wide and red at Ai Hui, but saw not even the least bit of guilt on his face.

    Ai Hui waved at Su Qingye. "Come over here."

    Su Qingye rushed over immediately. "Teacher!"

    "This is your junior. Go teach him some basics."

    Fu Yonghao couldn¡¯t believe his own ears. His face stiffened up. Jun... junior?"

    Ai Hui said with a stern face, "He¡¯s too old. His life will be hopeless if he continues this way. Double the training intensity temporarily. Lou Lan has many matters to attend to so you¡¯ll be in charge of supervising him."

    Su Qingye¡¯s young and tender face glowed, as if he was a soldier who¡¯d just received an important mission. He patted his chest and said reassuringly, "Don¡¯t you worry, Teacher, I will look after him properly!"

    Ai Hui left in satisfaction without even looking at Fu Yonghao, who was dumbstruck at this point.

    Coincidentally, Zhou Wen and Hua Xiaoyun arrived. Upon seeing them, Su Qingye shouted happily, "Quick,e over! We have a junior!"

    With regard to the fight against Sha Wuyuan, the three smalls were feeling much better now.

    "Shut up! Who¡¯s your junior?"

    Fu Yonghao suddenly lost his temper. He flew into a rage, turning around to leave.

    "Hey, Junior, you¡¯ve not finished your training..." Su Qingye called out hurriedly.

    Fu Yonghao cursed. "Training my ass, you really think you¡¯re great, don¡¯t you!"

    The Three Smalls made eye contact before simultaneously pouncing on him.

    "You guys better not force me! Hey, you¡¯re really hitting me! You guys are dead! Ahhhh..."

    Fu Yonghao¡¯s bitter cries echoed throughout the training hall.

    In the warehouse.

    Lou Lan was analyzing the clips from Ai Hui¡¯stest battle. Every fine detail was recorded from start to finish. If not for the fact that there were sufficient mirage bean pods inside the hall, it would have been challenging to obtain such clear images.

    Lou Lan had been analyzing them for a long time. There was a faint light ray in his eyes. The gentle glow resembled the light of dawn.

    His core, Midnight, had gotten stronger after he was upgraded.

    Lou Lan was the one who¡¯d sorted out the veined patterns Ai Hui had previously collected. It was thanks to his help that Ai Hui could fix up the sword formation.

    Ai Hui stood beside Lou Lan, quietly observing the whole battle process.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but get stirred up by the lighting up of the sword formation. When it came to sword formations, Ai Hui¡¯s understanding wasn¡¯t great since there were too many areas which were badly damaged. His knowledge of them was sloppy at best.

    When he saw God-Subduing Peak, a few hazy thoughts urred to him and shortly became clear.

    Ultimately, [Treating the city as a piece of cloth] had merely been a spell formation. They¡¯d had to sort out all the city¡¯s nodes, drill the gold needles into them, and then let the city¡¯s elemental energy flow in a regted pattern. Afterwards, Mistress was the key to activating the spell formation.

    Central Pine City was the first ce in Avalon of Five Elements that had a spell formation being casted and it was elemental spell formation.

    The nucleus Teacher had referred to was the exquisite andplicated vein patterns on the nine gold needles. Ai Hui called them the elemental traces.

    Even now, AI Hui still found it difficult to imagine. A city¡¯s elemental energy flow was beyondplicated, so how had Teacher figured them out? He¡¯d even managed to cleverly connect them to form a perfect spell formation.

    Teacher was simply too great!

    Yet, he himself had yet to thoroughly understand these elemental traces.

    Deep admiration and a little distress enveloped his heart and mind.

    Ai Hui snapped out of it when the images closed up. Lou Lan was done with his analysis. He handed a movie bean, which contained his analysis, to Ai Hui. Rather than analysis, it was more like a breakdown of events. Lou Lan could present many fine details to Ai Hui and help him with trivial calctions and so on.

    He just was unable to help when it came to theprehension of details. Ai Hui had to do that on his own.

    When it came to this part, every time, Ai Hui would feel that he wasn¡¯t smart enough.

    The highest building in Dragonrise Training Hall was Skydragon Pavilion. One could overlook the entire training hall when standing on it.

    On the pavilion, the teachers were drinking their tea in silence. Their expressions did not look good.

    Seeing that half a day had passed without any visitors, Ren Haitong, who was standing in front of the railings, couldn¡¯t help but say, "What happened exactly? Why is business so bad all of a sudden?"

    There was a fang-bearing silver dragon embroidered on Ren Haitong¡¯s garment, which indicated his position in the training hall. Teachers in Dragonrise Training Hall had a strict ranking system where the most ordinary teachers wore a ck dragon on their shirt and those one level up wore a green one. The next few levels would wear red, silver, gold, and jewelled respectively.

    Only the owner of the Dragonrise Training Hall, Yang Zhen, wore a jewelled dragon. He was a legitimate metal elemental master. As the overseer of thepound, no one dared to provoke or seek trouble with him.

    Gold dragon teachers were usually the hosts of different halls, whereas silver dragon teachers were strong, reputable yers, and also the core strength of Dragonrise Training Hall.

    Other teachers kept quiet. No one dared to provoke Ren Haitong when he was in a temper.

    Business had been extremely poor these few days. While the ce wasn¡¯tpletely deserted, the number of students enrolling had drastically declined.

    Before then, business had been prosperous. Dragonrise Training Hall was a big hall with branches in cities that were slightlyrger than the Silver Mist Sea. The general headquarters located in Silver City was also extraordinarily grand. There were as many disciples as there were clouds, with nock of noble people.

    A truly influential family would naturally have plenty of guidance from famous masters. If they were to suffer a reversal of fortune, however, or if they weren¡¯t as superb, it would be difficult to receive beneficial nurturing from their own elders.

    An outstandingly reputable training hall like Dragonrise Training Hall was naturally extremely popr due to the number of good teachers. It had inherited practical moves and students improved significantly within a short period of time, attracting a lot of public praise. Sons from noble families would even frequent it regrly, seeking to improve their battle experience with friendly matches.

    To the citizens of Peace City, the opening of a new branch of such a well-recognized and well-liked training hall was beyond appealing. From its opening day, people had been arriving in an endless stream to register for lessons.

    Following the confirmation of the news regarding the mini Avalon of Five Elements, a huge volume of visitors flocked to Peace City, bringing even more business every day to Dragonrise Training Hall.

    Nevertheless, everything changed when the Swordsman Training Hall¡¯s owner revealed his identity.

    Dragonrise Training Hall initially hadn¡¯t been bothered by this. The ridiculous price of two hundred essence elemental beans was simply a joke! Who would¡¯ve expected that people would still go! Upon investigating, they realized that it was a noble visitor from the Evergold Enterprise. Unable to get a good grasp of that person¡¯s identity, Dragonrise Training Hall did not dare to act recklessly.

    Luckily, no one else had been foolish enough to spend so much money. Yet, their own business had strangely been declining.

    Ren Haitong became angrier the more he thought about it. "st it, it¡¯s all because of that stupid Swordsman Training Hall! Tsk, people might be afraid of that Ai fellow, but I¡¯m not!"

    The branch master of Peace City¡¯s branch, Miao Hai, sat calmly on his seat of honor with his eyes shut, pretending not to hear anything.

    Nevertheless, he was in a poor mood as well. Being sent over to Peace city was a heavy responsibility for him.

    The training hall had spent arge sum of money to obtain inside information before opening the branch in Peace City. He knew this was a once in a lifetime opportunity for him. Without the support of this training hall, it was going to be challenging for him to upgrade himself in this era where resources were bing scarce.

    Despite this, he did not act blindly without thinking. Ai Hui¡¯s identity was sensitive, and the ming lotus seeds he¡¯d thrown out had stirred up the whole city.

    He wasn¡¯t afraid of Ai Hui¡¯s abilities, but at the same time, he knew very well howplicated the situation was in Peace City.

    A subordinate rushed over to Miao Hai¡¯s side and said in a low voice, "Master, there¡¯s news from headquarters."

    Miao Hai suddenly opened his eyes and sat up straight. He took the wooden case over, opened it, and took the tree leaf from within. There were no words on it. His heart trembled a little. This was news to be kept confidential. Headquarters would only use such a method when they had important instructions to ry.

    He channeled a wisp of elemental energy into the tree leaf and words started appearing on its surface.

    Shortly, the handwriting gradually faded and vanished.

    Miao Hai carefully ced the empty leaf back into the case.

    Upon raising his head, he noticed that all eyes were on him.

    With his usual expression, he said indifferently, "Go. On the next written war challenge, state that I admire The Lightning de¡¯s excellent swordsmanship and will make a visit three dayster to request a match."

    His words caused an uproar among the teachers.

    Some couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Could it be that headquarters..."

    Miao Hai waved them off. "Don¡¯t ask too much. Follow my orders. Remember, spread the news."

    The teachers dared not ask too much. They moved hurriedly to make the necessary arrangements.

 Chapter 314: A Jinai

    Chapter 314: A Jinai

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The news quickly spread all over Peace City thanks to the efforts of those involved.

    Jiang Wei got hold of the news early on and felt somewhat anxious. He knew of Dragonrise¡¯s good reputation of course. It was the first time in the Avalon of Five Elements that a battle master had established a training hall. Among his colleagues, there was nock of sons from Silver City¡¯s influential officials. He¡¯d heard that Dragonrise Training Hall¡¯s background was far from simple.

    Citizens coined this match the battle between the training halls. Dragonrise Training Hall wasn¡¯t willing to let Swordsman Training Hall snatch their limelight and was determined to re-establish their reputation through this method.

    Jiang Wei wasn¡¯t sure why, but he smelled dangering from the seemingly honorable war between the training halls.

    In three years, not only had he been on the front line and participated in countless battles against the blood elementalists, he also witnessed many scheming fights. ces which seemed unremarkable were usually unexpectedly dangerous.

    Jiang Wei straightened out his thoughts once more but found nothing amiss.

    He heaved a sigh of relief. Perhaps he was just being overly suspicious.

    The soldiers under him reported that someone was here to visit.

    He stopped himself from overthinking, got up and walked to the main hall, where a tall and sturdy man stood in the center. Upon getting a clear look, Jiang Wei couldn¡¯t help but smile. He walked forward with big steps and gave a solid hug to the visitor. "A Jinai! Long time no see! I¡¯m so happy to see you!"

    A Jinai grew a thick, forest green beard. He had deep set, brown eyes and a high nose bridge. These features were the evidence of his Grass n¡¯s blood from the Old Territory.

    Grass n was one of the better ns in Old Territory, because each year there would be at least some youngsters who would qualify to enter the Avalon of Five Elements. Most of them moved on to be wood elementalists upon entering the avalon.

    A Jina used to be Jiang Wei¡¯s team leader, but was promoted to the back as he¡¯d sustained an injury from aplishing a meritorious deed for the team. A Jinai took great care of Jiang Wei in the past, so naturally Jiang Wei was extremely d to see his ex team leader.

    "Looks like I¡¯ll have to call you master soon," A Jinai¡¯s resoundingughter filled the hall. "Elders Guild must really have faith in you to hand such a huge responsibility over to you!"

    Jiang Wei smiled. "Don¡¯t tease me, A Jinai. I¡¯m not living asfortably as you. You¡¯re living the life of an immortal."

    "How so? I¡¯m so busy I could die." A Jinai saw the doubt in Jiang Wei¡¯s gaze and smacked his head. "I forgot to mention that I¡¯m no longer a civil servant but am moving about and around the Ling¡¯s residence."

    Jiang Wei was slightly taken aback but congratted him instantly. "How amazing for you to be socially connected to them. No wonder you look so well-nourished."

    Influential families were further divided into different ranks. There were two top-notch metal elementalist families in Silver Mist Sea, being the Ling residence and Gong residence. Their statuses were simr to that of Shi family and Lian family of Palette Cloud Vige. These four families were currently the most well-guarded residences in the whole of the Avalon of Five Elements. Earth, metal and wood elementalists were all declining in strength and struggling badly.

    It wasn¡¯t easy to be epted by the Ling residence. These influential families held up unimaginably high barriers against outsiders. But simrly, their capabilities were beyond imagination.

    Although A Jinai tried hard to restrain himself, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a little pleased. "I¡¯m still far from your level. Plus, you¡¯re still a single man. I wonder how many people have their eyes on you. Haha, you¡¯re shy now, have a sweetheart?"

    Jiang Wei gave a bitterugh. "I¡¯m on the front line everyday so how is that possible?"

    A Jinai pped his palms together,ughing, "That¡¯s good!"

    Jiang Wei said, displeased, "Such gloating. Looks like we will have to talk with our fists."

    This was A Jinai¡¯s catchphrase from years back. Jiang Wei¡¯s voice imitation cause A Jinai to burst into heartyughter.

    Laughter faded as A Jinai said with a chuckle, "You¡¯re a raremodity now. The second daughter of Ling Third Master is about your age and there¡¯s nothing to say about her looks other than that she¡¯s as beautiful as a fairy. She really admires you after hearing about you. How about that? Such an opportunityes only once in a blue moon!"

    Jiang Wei said in all seriousness, "Stop joking with me, A Jinai. What have I aplished? I¡¯m unworthy of her."

    Instead of getting angry, A Jinai smiled. "In the past, definitely not. But your prospects are boundless now that you are likely to win sess and recognition in future. It¡¯s not at all strange that the Ling family thinks highly of you."

    Jiang Wei shook his head. "I¡¯ve no intention of talking about love matters now."

    "This is not about love." A Jinai wiped the smile off his face and said solemnly, "You must know that there will not be such a chance again if you miss it. You need to get recognition from the Elders Guild, but your current background is not good enough. You can only enter a noble position if you marry Ling Third Master¡¯s second daughter and borrow her power."

    Jiang Wei remained silent.

    A Jinai couldn¡¯t help but try to persuade him earnestly once more, "You¡¯ve been through many things so why are you still so naive? How can you be safe in this chaotic, tough world when you are all alone with no backing from anyone? You¡¯re far from the center and are unaware of lots of insider news. You do know of God-subduing Peak right?"

    Jiang Wei nodded. "I¡¯ve seen it."

    A Jinai added, "What do you think of it?"

    Jiang Wei replied with a low voice, "Treasure of the nation!"

    "That¡¯s right," A Jinai gave a nod. "A few of those on the front line will provide a solid defense. The next few years will be for the avalon to recuperate and umte strength. Rebuilding the lesser Avalon of Five Elements and Thirteen Divisions are two of the agendas. The top priority is Master¡¯s Glory.

    "Five hundred high-aptitude youngsters with sufficient moral characters will be selected in the so called Master¡¯s Glory to receive special training from Elders Guild and eventually be Masters."

    "How is this possible! How can a Master be cultivated so easily?" Jiang Wei shook his head.

    A Jinai questioned, "The power of Elders Guild is unfathomable. It¡¯s not something we can figure out. Take God-subduing Peak for example, have you ever imagined that something like this could actually be made?"

    Jiang Wei was quiet.

    God-subduing Peak was indeed very impressive . As a seasoned soldier with rich experience, he knew very clearly that if this big fellow were to be on the frontline, it could be of tremendous use and help.

    "I might as well share some insider news with you. You¡¯re one of the five hundred seeds. But have you thought about it? What happens when these people appear? How many empty seats will there be after reconstruction of the Thirteen Divisions? It will be difficult to get a good position if you don¡¯t have any backing. You might get eliminated even with good qualifications. I¡¯m not trying to scare you," A Jinai watched Jiang Wei attentively before continuing, "Perhaps other families will find you, but who offers better terms than the Ling residence? Who¡¯s stronger than them? Ling residence is an influential family with a seat in Elders Guild."

    Jiang Wei asked all of a sudden, "Is Ai Hui one of the seeds?"

    With Jiang Wei looking straight at him, A Jinai hesitated a little before shaking his head. "No."

    "But why?"

    "I¡¯m not in the position to ask for details," A Jinai shook his head before adding, meaningfully, "I know you¡¯re a sentimental person and you¡¯re not going to like what I¡¯m about to say, but I still have to remind you. Stay away from him if you wanna climb up."

    "I understand." Jiang Wei looked calm, without any hint of joy or anger. "A Jinai, this issue is too important. I¡¯ll need some time to consider."

    A Jinai nodded and warned, "You¡¯re a smart man. I believe you¡¯ll make the right decision. Do not reject an influential families¡¯ symbol of peace. Not now, not ever. This world belongs to them."

    "Thank you, A Jinai."

    Jiang Wei walked A Jinai to the door. Seeing A Jinai¡¯s disappearing figure, Jiang Wei turned around and went back into his room.

    He felt that he¡¯d understood certain things.

    He took out a carefully preserved pile of leaves and started writing.

    .....

    "Dragonrise Training Hall?"

    Ai Hui read the written challenge over and over again but could not wrap his head around it. "Lou Lan, have we ever met them?"

    Lou Lan answered in all certainty, "No."

    "So they¡¯re just bored?" Ai Hui tossed the written challenge aside, mumbling to himself, "Challenging as he pleases? Is there such a thing? Lou Lan, go hang a sign: Five hundred essence elemental beans per challenge."

    Fu Yonghao, who was initially just listening in to their conservation couldn¡¯t help but jump in, "Five hundred essence elemental beans? Why not just rob somebody?"

    Ai Hui looked at him as though he was looking at a fool. "It is tiring to rob. How good is it to have people bringing money to our doorstep!"

    Fu Yonghao became flustered. "You..."

    Ai Hui turned around and asked the Three Smalls, "Is he done with his training?"

    "No," they shook their heads in harmony.

    Harboring ill intentions, Ai Hui instructed, "I¡¯ll double your trainings if he doesn¡¯t finish his today."

    Fu Yonghao blew up. "Despicable..."

    Before he could finish his words, he was manhandled by three pale-faced kids. They were aware that Teacher meant every word he said and definitely wasn¡¯t joking.

    Ai Hui shook his head, muttering, "There¡¯s a problem."

    He was in the limelight for recently defeating the Sha family so what kind of concussed brains would want to find trouble with him at this point in time?

    Unless there was a deep feud, ordinary conflicts would not push them to knock on his door now. Ai Hui simply could not believe that they were initiating a battle when there was no strong animosity between both parties. Something must be going on.

    But whether or not that was the case, friendly matches weren¡¯t a problem as long as they came with the money.

    If they weren¡¯t going to pay up but still came over to challenge, he would have to take the money from them himself!

    Ai Hui quickly forgot about this matter.

    The signboard on the hall¡¯s entrance obviously became another hot topic of the city. It was the first time people heard that epting challenges could actually be chargeable.

    Everybody was moved by Ai Hui¡¯s money-making talent. He was a natural profiteer and waspulsively money-minded.

    Branch Master Miao had apparently been feeling extremely terrible thest two days and many teachers had been unlucky enough to step on his toes and receive a dressing-down.

    Everyone was very curious as to what would happen to Miao Hai.

    Was he going to pay up? Or not?

    They realized that whether or not he took the money out, it was going to be extremely embarrassing.

    Even gambling dens started to take bets. Will he pay up? Will he challenge sessfully? Betters were all eager to find out.

    In regards to these rumors, Ai Hui only smiled and paid no heed to them. He was baffled by another matter.

 Chapter 315: Aristocratic Families and New Citizens

    Chapter 315: Aristocratic Families and New Citizens

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui was wondering about the fire lotus seeds. Several days had passed, but no one else came to buy them.

    Fire lotus seeds were supposed to be hot sellers, as many people came to ask about them and were interested in them. Judging from the situation then, it shouldn¡¯t be this unmarketable.

    He would look into this when he had time.

    Having finished today¡¯s training, the three students and Fu Yonghao teetered home.

    Before leaving the training hall, Su Qingye suddenly went up to Ai Hui and whispered, "Teacher, my dad said you must be cautious with the challenge."

    Ai Hui paused for a second and then patted Su Qingye¡¯s head, "Got it. Go home now boy."

    Seeing Su Qingye leaving, Ai Hui was absorbed in thought.

    Suddenly, the message tree began to flicker.

    Ai Hui came back to his senses and walked to the message tree. He was surprised to see the message. It was from Jiang Wei.

    When Jiang Wei leftst time, he asked Ai Hui if he could take a leaf of the message tree with him. At that time Ai Hui was marveling that Jiang Wei was being as cautious as before. They were now in the same city. If anything happened, he could just fly here to convey the message. Why bother to use the message tree?

    "The challenge is dangerous!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s face looked extremely grave. The message was a scrawl. It seemed that Jiang Wei wrote it down in a hurry.

    Together with what Qingye had said just now, Ai Hui knew that there would be something fishy.

    A dangerous light flickered in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    "Don¡¯t go to the training hall for the next couple of days."

    Hearing what Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter said, Fu Yonghao paused for seconds before he realized what it meant, and asked "Why?"

    Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter said, "Isn¡¯t Miao Hai going to challenge Ai Hui?"

    Fu Yonghaoughed out loud, "Are you kidding me, Big Sister? How stupid is Miao Hai to challenge Ai Hui with five hundred essence elemental beans? I have to say that Ai Hui¡¯s demand is really shameless. I¡¯ve seen so many people, but he is the most shameless one."

    Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter put down the teacup in her hand and gave him a nce, "Who told you Miao Hai isn¡¯t going?"

    Fu Yonghao was surprised.

    The gates of Dragonrise Training Hall were wide open. Twenty teachers stood in two rows to see Miao Hai off.

    The person walking in front of Miao Hai was Ren Haitong, who was holding a te in his hand, on which there was a pile of glittering essence elemental beans like a hill.

    Miao Hai was calm and unruffled. He was wearing a crimson armor and carried on his back an iron box that was around his height, exuding an imposing manner.

    The teachers shouted in concert, "Branch Master is bound to win!"

    .....

    The mayor¡¯s residence of Peace City was heavily guarded with sturdy soldiers.

    But inside the mayor¡¯s residence the atmosphere seemed extremely harmonious. Three people were drinking and chatting cheerfully at a table.

    A Jinai was good at maintaining a pleasant atmosphere. As long as he was present, there would be no awkward silences. The one sitting beside him was Huo Yaliu, Jiang Wei¡¯s direct leader. Captain Huo, who used to be serious and taciturn, was now beaming with smiles and toasted with them again and again. Captain Huo was born in a small family. Now that he had an opportunity to build a rtionship with those in the Ling residence, he would definitely try his utmost best.

    Captain Huo arrived all of a sudden with his subordinates to take over the mayor¡¯s residence.

    Jiang Wei looked just as usual without any anger or joy. As long as A Jinai proposed a toast, he would drink up the wine in one gulp.

    A Jinai was drunk. With hazy eyes, he said, "Wei, I know you are feeling ufortable in your heart, but I¡¯m doing this for your own good. You are too emotional and impulsive. I know this step that I take is not noble, but I have to. So I apologize to you here. Wei, we have been friends for years. You can rest assured that I wouldn¡¯t do this if I had no confidence. When the battlees to an end, you will be promoted for sure."

    Hearing what A Jinai said, Captain Huo also raised his ss and said with jealousy, "Wei, your future is boundless. Don¡¯t forget me by then."

    Jiang Wei raised his ss and drank a toast to them, saying, "Thank you for your blessings. But I actually know Ai Hui very well. I don¡¯t think Miao Hai can defeat him."

    A Jinai was ted to see that Jiang Wei was not getting angry. Heughed out and said, "Wei, you should know that to those big shots, we are just like ants. Even though Ai Hui is of higher capability, he is just a bigger ant than most. The reason why he could defeat Sha Wuduan wasrgely due to his wealth. But now, he has run out of money, and there¡¯s nothing he can depend on."

    A Jinai said jauntily, "He has fire lotus seeds, and thought that everyone would scramble to buy them. But he didn¡¯t know that as long as the higher-ups gave the order, no one would dare to buy from him. This is what aristocratic families can do. As I told you, Jiang Wei, the world is theirs."

    Captain Huo nodded repeatedly as he totally agreed with A Jinai. His family was sort of influential locally, but they were of the lowest ss in the pyramid of aristocratic families.

    Jiang Wei drank up again and praised, "That¡¯s really aprehensive n."

    A Jinai, having drunk up thest drop in the ss too, was tipsier. "Not only this. The roads of Peace City and the sky above have all been blocked, and anyone passing through will be strictly checked. As soon as Ai Hui¡¯s identity was exposed, the higher-ups had started to take precautions against him, in case those whom Ai Hui has helped before hear the news ande to help."

    Jiang Wei spoke loudly, "This is wise. Come on, cheers!"

    They both drank up again.

    Jiang Wei put down his winess and asked in a slurred voice, "A Jinai, I have a question that I haven¡¯t been able to figure out for a while. You must answer it for me today."

    A Jinaiughed out loud and squinted at him, "You want to know why they have to crack down on Ai Hui like this?"

    Jiang Wei nodded and blurted, "Yes. I don¡¯t know why. Why can¡¯t they recruit him?"

    A Jinai raised his ss to Captain Huo, "This is not weird at all. Even Captain Huo can see through it."

    Captain Huo drank the wine in his ss, wiped his mouth and said, "It¡¯s simple. Ai Hui is a new citizen, and his reputation among the new citizens is too high. Therefore, he must die. Back then, the whole Induction Ground was almostpletely destroyed, which has definitely led to a gap in the talent reserve. Thergest number of survivors are in Central Pine City, and the higher-ups will depend on you the most in the future. Many of the key talents like you are survivors from Central Pine City, right? They now call all of you the Central Pine Faction. Ai Hui has just exposed his identity, and so many people areing to him. You can see how highly admired he is among you guys."

    "What will the higher-ups think about this? If he was born in an aristocratic family, then it¡¯d be good for him because he could be the leader of the next generation. But he is a new citizen, which means he is a snake in the grass to the higher-ups. If he stands out among his fellows in the future, and you all follow him, will you still work for the higher-ups? It¡¯s fine to have new citizens in the team, but they cannot be leaders. Otherwise, no one will obey themand of the aristocratic families."

    Hearing what he said, Jiang Wei was at a loss.

    Captain Huo continued, "Wei, you are different. Once you marry the Ling Third Master¡¯s second daughter, you will be a member of theirs and your future will be boundless. Besides, if you want, maybe you can even start your own aristocratic family."

    Jiang Wei came back to his senses, andughed. He proposed a toast to Captain Huo, "Captain Huo, you are absolutely right. Cheers!"

    Captain Huo burst intoughter while drinking the wine in his ss.

    Jiang Wei was so drunk that he could not even sit steadily. Heughed and asked, "Then why do they still need new citizens? The aristocratic families can simply abandon them."

    "Haha, of course not," A Jinai was already resting his head on the desk. Hearing what Jiang Wei said, he struggled to sit up and answered, "Aristocratic families don¡¯t have enough men. Without new citizens, who will do the dirty work?"

    Jiang Wei shook his head and sighed, "This is...the reality!"

    A Jinai said, "Reality? Haha...Good point! The aristocratic families are never built in a day. Nobody knows how much hardship they have been through. But as long as they are in power now, they are the rulers. For our future, we new citizens must follow their leadership."

    Captain Huo alsoughed loudly. He held up his ss and said in a rough voice, "For our future!"

    "For our future!"

    The two raved in a high voice.

    A Jinai flushed in excitement.

    Jiang Wei beamed with smiles.

    No one noticed that under the table, his fist was clenched tightly.

    .....

    "As per your requirement, here are five hundred essence elemental beans. Although the challenge today is only an exchange of fight skills, I will spare no effort, as this is the way in which I show my respect to you. You don¡¯t need to show mercy either. If I can witness the essence of your swordsmanship, I have no regrets even if I die."

    Miao Hai¡¯s voice was loud and vigorous like thunder that could be heard throughout Peace City.

    In the sky above Peace City, two figures stood still face to face.

    Ai Hui spread his Starry Gem Swordwings in full. The ck wings were glittering under the sun like the wings of the devil.

    Miao Hai didn¡¯t use his azure wings. Instead, he was standing on a cloud, which was his cloud deck. The crimson armor sparkled like morning glow, shrouding him and his cloud deck. The iron box was put to his side.

    "Sure!"

    Before he finished saying the word, Ai Hui had disappeared in the sky.

    Miao Hai looked solemn, eyes downcast. Suddenly he grabbed the iron box and smashed it on the cloud, and with a thundering sound, an intangible shock wave swept down in all directions with a loud crash.

    Ai Hui appeared again out of nowhere and bumped into the shock wave. Like an agile bird, he stepped slightly on the shock wave and then disappeared again.

    On the cloud deck, the big iron box was open wide, inside there were seven javelins altogether.

    The crimson tips of the javelins were thin and sharp as if they had been saturated in blood. The shafts of the javelins were covered with blue and silvery streaks. This kind of javelin was made of more than twenty materials that were integrated by supreme elemental energy.

    Someone shouted out loudly in surprise. "It¡¯s Baneyer!"

    "Baneyer javelins!"

    This greatly excited the bystanders and caused a stir. Among all javelins, the Baneyer were rare treasures. Its maker had originally intended to make a set of Heaven-grade javelins, but failed due to ack of materials. Still, the Baneyer was top gradepared to other kinds of javelins, and was therefore called the "Best Javelin" among Heaven-Grade javelins.

    It was amon way of fighting, to throw javelins when diving.

    But this meant that javelins were consumables. Therefore, not many people were willing to waste too much good material on them. That was why javelins of high grade were not often seen.

    This time Miao Hai chose to use cloud deck instead of azure wings, which was an even rarer tactic. This meant that he hadn¡¯t considered dodging at all, which revealed his confidence in his javelin attacks.

    Ai Hui also understood this. The red light of Miao Hai¡¯s armor indicated his strong defensive power.

    Miao Hai reached out his hand and grabbed the first javelin. His palms were like cattail leaf fans, which were farrger and wider than ordinary people¡¯s palms. The instant he had the javelin in his hand, his eyes opened widely, and terrifying power burst out from his body.

    His muscles tensed up, making his figurerger than before like a giant.

    Dazzling golden light suddenly burst out from the javelins. Before anyone could clearly see his movement, the golden light rippled like water and the javelin disappeared.

    In that instant, Ai Hui, who was standing hundreds of meters away, sensed great danger.

    Without any hesitation, Ai Hui shook his waist and the Dragonspine in his hand sshed starry lights into the space in front of him.

    Just at this moment, he unleashed ten [Heavenly Thrust]s!

 Chapter 316: Gale Bat Slash

    Chapter 316: Gale Bat sh

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Compared to three years ago, Ai Hui¡¯s [Heavenly Thrust]s were much more massive and powerful now. Bright stars flew out of nowhere, absorbing light around them and emitting splendid brilliance.

    Ai Hui casted ten [Heavenly Thrust]s within the blink of an eye, which fully demonstrated the progress he had made within the past three years.

    A streak of ring golden light appeared among the stars and prated Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    An undefeatable power came from the tip, bending his sword like a bow. Ai Hui gave a stifled groan.

    It was so powerful!

    Seven small swords circled around the tip of the Dragonspine like a cyclone, weaving a dense of sword rays that could catch its target.

    Immense elemental energy exploded at the tip of the sword.

    Then, like hitting a spring, Ai Hui bounced away and suddenly disappeared in the sky.

    The next moment he appeared again, he was already over a hundred meters away from where he had been standing. He looked as calm as usual, but in his heart he was greatly shocked.

    His hand that was holding the sword was numb.

    The javelin looked ordinary, but in fact was extremely heavy. Ai Hui believed it must be more than one hundred kilograms.

    At that time, Ai Hui didn¡¯t know the javelin was the Baneyer, but his estimation was very precise. The weight of each of the Baneyer javelins was one hundred and fifteen kilograms.

    Miao Hai¡¯s elemental energy was already strong and ferocious. Coupled with the heavy weight of Baneyer, the power of just one attack was unimaginable.

    This was the first time that Ai Hui had met with such a violent opponent who was good at long-range offense moves. Miao Hai hadpletely abandoned any flexibility in his tactics, and focused on vigorous long-distance attacksbined with a strong defense. Ai Hui didn¡¯t have to think hard to know that the red glow shrouding Miao Hai was undoubtedly hard to break through.

    ying to one¡¯s utmost advantage and making up for one¡¯s weakness by using better equipment was nothingplicated, but it was effective. You could see that Miao Hai was an experience fighter.

    Experienced fighters tended not to useplicated tactics. Instead, they always preferred simple but effective methods.

    It was impolite not to make a return for what one received. Also, you would not know how hard the weapon was if you didn¡¯t try.

    After a sh of the Dragonspine in the air, a bright light appeared on the sword. It transformed into a moon-shaped sword ray and flew out abruptly.

    [Crescent Moon]!"

    A crescent moon dashed through the air soundlessly.

    All those years ago, he had to exert himself for this sword move, but now it was totally a piece of cake for Ai Hui.

    "Good move!" Miao Hai shouted loudly. Armor ttering, he put his hands together and looked down. The red light that was shrouding the cloud deck was gilded with golden beams. Behind Miao Hai, a towering figure could be vaguely seen.

    This was nothing profound, but was a verymon inheritance for metal elementalists, called [Vajra Barrier]. Many people practiced [Vajra Barrier], but only those who were extremely persevering and had reached the highest level could summon a [Vajra Body]. Therefore, those who were known to have seeded in summoning a [Vajra Body] were very rare.

    Once the [Vajra Body] was summoned, although it was only a phantom figure, it looked so powerful and solemn that nothing could do the slightest damage to it. The elemental energy in the air was almost stifling.

    In front of the mountain-like [Vajra Body], the cold and clear crescent moon was like a moth darting into the fire.

    The crescent moon looked slow but was actually moving very fast. It transformed into a flowing light and dashed against the red light surrounding the cloud deck.

    The red light was rolling like mist and swallowed the crescent moon. Acent smile had just appeared on Miao Hai¡¯s face before it froze.

    The crescent moon suddenly transformed into dozens of stars, and drilled into the red light like slippery and sharp eels.

    [Shattered Moon, Dotted Stars]!

    Caught off guard, Miao Hai was awkward and almost failed to maintain the [Vajra Body] behind him. The red light started to flow, and the [Vajra Body] stretched its arms and grabbed at the sword rays, which suddenly darkened in the red light and then died down.

    The start of the confrontation between these two dazzled every bystander¡¯s eyes.

    Miao Hai¡¯s javelin was used in a violent and fierce way while Ai Hui¡¯s Crescent Moon was silent and cool, but dangerous. If Miao Hai was the burning sun at midday, then Ai Hui was the silent moon at night.

    The pr contrast between the twopletely different ways of fighting left a deep impression in everyone¡¯s heart.

    It was a rare sight to see the confrontation of two experts.

    Miao Hai, who was standing on the cloud deck, no longer thought lightly of Ai Hui. He realized that it would be an arduous fight today.

    Holding the second Baneyer in hand, he didn¡¯t throw it immediately.

    Ai Hui took the initiative. Stretching his Starry Gem Swordwings, he bounced out like a flying arrow. With the huge strength provided by the Starry Gem Swordwings, Ai Hui¡¯s flight speed was as fast as a sh.

    With the same momentum, Ai Hui waved his Dragonspine. A moon-shaped sword ray appeared and dashed toward the cloud deck.

    Ai Hui¡¯s figure kept flickering in the air. He was not flying straight, but was zigzagging forward. Every time he popped up, a [Crescent Moon] was used.

    Different from the silent [Crescent Moon] from just before, now the moon-shaped sword rays flying in the air were whistling shrilly like dozens of lunar bats, flying from all directions toward the cloud deck.

    On the cloud deck, Miao Hai looked solemn. He turned his wrists and put his hands together, holding the javelin horizontally in front of his chest.

    The [Vajra Body] behind him bowed its head and closed its eyes. It was also putting its hands together like Miao Hai.

    Golden light burst out from the cloud deck, and ayer of golden light, like a colored ze, suddenly contracted. Under the light, Miao Hai¡¯s crimson armor was being gilded and became statelier.

    nk, nk, nk!

    Moon-shaped sword rays hit the red light of the cloud deck, sounding out a roar like a sword smashing a huge copper bell.

    Miao Hai staggered. He was surprised at the pureness of Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy, as he didn¡¯t expect that Ai Hui¡¯s sharp sword rays could prate his protection and cut his defense like a knife. Was it [Big Dipper]?

    This guy¡¯s swordsmanship was frightening indeed!

    Miao Hai marveled. He knew the swordsmanship of Karakorum, which was nothing like Ai Hui¡¯s. It was hard to say whose was superior, but each sword move Ai Hui used was aimed at killing with nothing gaudy about it.

    Fortunately, as a Heaven-grade weapon, the Unbreakable Hellfire Armor he was wearing lived up to its reputation. It could well restrain the attack of metal elementalists. The red light that was shrouding the cloud deck was the hellfire emitted by this armor. It was not natural fire, but a recently-developed me that could only be made with ten kinds of fire flowers from Fire Prairie, together with Thousand-face Ghost Tree Burl cultivated by Blood of God.

    Both of the materials were produced in Blood of God, but they were sold to the Jadeite Forest, where wood elementalists made them into hellfire and sold it to the Avalon of Five Elements at a high price.

    Hellfire could greatly restrain metal elemental energy, and therefore was known as the bane of metal elemental energy.

    If it weren¡¯t for the protection of the armor, Miao Hai would be uncertain about the result of the confrontation. Those who survived the blood disaster and made a name for themselves could not be easily dealt with.

    But still, however tough he was, as long as he was an enemy of the big shots, he was a dead meat!

    Ferociousness flickered in Miao Hai¡¯s eyes, and the Baneyer javelin suddenly scattered and transformed into dots of golden light, which didn¡¯t disappear, but stayed still in front of his chest.

    His unclenched fist grabbed the javelin, the golden light of which was reflected in his eyes and gilded his pupils. Between the golden light, however, he could see a silvery spot was bingrger fast.

    It was not moving straight!

    The silvery light left a weird arc traced in the air. The arc was about to fall down when it turned upwards abruptly. Shrouded by the t sword ray, Ai Hui flew fast across an invisible surface of water.

    He was unpredictable!

    Miao Hai¡¯s hair stood on its end. He grabbed one more Baneyer and held it vertically in front of his chest. Then the javelin scattered and transformed into countless light spots.

    Ai Hui had already mastered the sword move [Gale Bat de]. Now,bined with his sh attack, it had evolved into the move he was now using, which was called [Gale Bat sh]!

    From the moment when this bit of inspiration had urred to him, it took Ai Hui a whole month to sessfully design the new sword move, and six months in total to perfect his ability to use it.

    A Jinai who was watching the fight in the courtyard had bepletely sober and cried out, "What is this sword move?"

    "I don¡¯t know either." Jiang Wei tried to sound as calm as usual, but inside his heart, he was extremely excited.

    Captain Huo¡¯s drunkenness was gone too. His face was pale. Seeing the weird sword move that was disregarding of any conventional wisdom, he had a premonition about the result of the fight.

    Not only they, but all the others in Peace City were also shocked by the [Gale Bat sh].

    A bystander could better feel both the wonderful and weird sides of the arc. Ai Hui in the t sword ray was dangerous, even lethal like a ghost assassin.

    Su Qingye was totally dumbfounded. His eyes lit up and were full of admiration.

    Su Huaijun who was standing beside him also kept her gaze fixed upon Ai Hui in fear of missing any details.

    Fu Yonghao¡¯s eyes widened as if he was looking at a demon.

    Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter couldn¡¯t believe what she saw and murmured, "Bad times make monsters of men..."

    Miao Hai, who was faced with this move, knew how powerful it would be, and therefore didn¡¯t dare to take it lightly. As the light cross had already appeared in front of his chest, he quickly pushed his hands forward.

    The light cross copsed with a loud crash and transformed into two enormous circling, roaring, golden-light dragons that consisted of countless small light shuttles. The dragons hovered and suddenly dashed towards the oing Ai Hui.

    Covered with sword rays all over his body, Ai Hui suddenly gained height and left an arc in the air, avoiding a face-to-face collision with the dragons. Then he descended rapidly and punctured the abdomen of the golden dragons like a sword.

    Boom!

    Numerous light shuttles fell on the sword ray like heavy rain, making the sword ray dim and unstable.

    Ai Hui knew that at this moment, if the sword ray surrounding him copsed, he would definitely be immediately riddled by the light shuttles.

    The Dragonspine shed again and again like crazy at an incredibly high speed. More sword rays appeared after each sh and merged into therger sword ray. The sword ray from [Gale Bat sh] had just been lit up by the new sword rays when more light shuttles crashed against it and dimmed it down. In this way, it lit up and dimmed again and again.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t know how many times he had shed. His mind was extremely focused.

    Suddenly, his view became open and clear. All he could see was red light.

    He had pierced through!

    Ai Hui had no time to cheer for this. He was less than ten meters away from Miao Hai, and could even clearly see the stunned expression on Miao Hai¡¯s face, as if he couldn¡¯t believe that Ai Hui had already gotten so close to him.

    Miao Hai seemed to wake up all of a sudden. He knew that now came the critical moment. Having made up his mind, he tore up the priceless Unbreakable Hellfire Armor he was wearing.

    A bright red hellfire leapt up silently like red demons from hell, devouring Ai Hui who was shrouded by [Gale Bat sh]¡¯s sword rays.

 Chapter 317: Defeating the Hellfire

    Chapter 317: Defeating the Hellfire

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The billowing hellfire immediately devoured Ai Hui like a red fiendish monster.

    Miao Hai sighed in relief.

    War was always the best catalyst for self-improvement. Within three years, the normal training method had undergone enormous and profound changes. God elementalists¡¯ preference for elemental materials and the elementalists¡¯ study and utilization of blood crystals had greatly improved both sides¡¯ learning speeds and destroyed the conservative scruples between them.

    Many achievements had been made within these three years, one of which was the hellfire.

    Adopting the essence of both elementalists and god elementalists, the formidable hellfire was known as Fire of Demon. The name ¡®hellfire¡¯ was a word used by elementalists who practised meditation in the old days. The elementalist who created hellfire so named it to indicate its profoundness.

    Almost all elemental energy could be the fuel of hellfire, which meant that hellfire was invincible to all elemental energy.

    The Thousand-face Ghost Tree Burl would form when a tree took in arge amount of the souls of blood fiends.

    The high-quality Ghost Tree Burls were produced in the Induction Ground, where trees took in many elementalists¡¯ souls. But instead of encroaching on this bloodstained ce, they sent a lot of god priests and soothed the souls at every corner of the Induction Ground. They imed that they had no option but to start the life-or-death war by then. But now that people had passed away, they should no longer suffer in misery.

    Many people knew that this was just a gimmick, but the reputation of Blood of God did improve because of this act.

    The souls of the dead blood fiends contained within the Ghost Tree Burls was the reason why the hellfire was so formidable.

    Unable to avoid the sudden explosion of the hellfire, Ai Hui was immediately trapped in mes. His facial expression changed dramatically when he realized that the mes were burning along the [Gale Bat sh] sword ray.

    The [Gale Bat sh] sword ray was like dry firewood soaked in the oil and was burning rapidly.

    Just at that moment, the sky pce between his eyebrows was suddenly activated, and a tiny point of light appeared. It turned out to be the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp. The lotus was spinning slowly and lit up Ai Hui¡¯s body with faint red light.

    Compared with the bright color of the hellfire, the red light of Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp was too faint to be noticed.

    But it was this faint light that kept the hellfire out of Ai Hui. Without hesitation, Ai Hui stretched his Starry Gem Swordwings in full and flew straight up into the sky like a sharp arrow.

    Whoosh!

    A figure rose up from the sea of fire, leaving a trace of mes behind him.

    Miao Hai was dumbstruck and his facial expression changed sharply. How was it possible? This was hellfire! No one had figured out how to defeat it yet. How could Ai Hui survive the hellfire?

    Meanwhile, Ai Hui¡¯s survival also gave rise to chaos on the ground below.

    "Oh my god! How did he make it?"

    "How can he resist the hellfire?"

    The bystanders went ballistic like boiling water.

    But those who had been observing the fight secretly now also stirred in the exciting and tense atmosphere.

    "What is the red light on him? We have never seen this before!"

    "Quickly go and check what other inheritances Ai Hui had practiced!"

    "Sir, Ai Hui once exchanged Heaven Merit Points for [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp], an absolute art."

    "So the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] can defeat hellfire. This is a great discovery. Our previous study towards hellfire was in the wrong direction. Now pay attention to absolute arts concerning state of mind. Try to purchase them as early as possible before their price goes up. The price of hellfire will decline soon. Get them sold quickly."

    ...

    Those with business acumen had started making arrangements ordingly at once. The reason why the price of hellfire had been held high for a long time was because it was regarded as invincible so far.

    Once its weakness was found, the threat of hellfire would bergely weakened.

    Ai Hui flew up and looked at the tiny ck spot down there in the upper air, his heart still fluttering with fear. The battle just now was a narrow miss. If it weren¡¯t for the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp, he would have already lost his life.

    The red hellfire was still writhing restlessly in the sky. It didn¡¯t die out, but was burning up the elemental energy in the surrounding air.

    After about half a minute when all the surrounding elemental energy was burnt up, it began to be dim and finally died down.

    The hellfire was indeed formidable!

    The spread of hellfire broke out all of a sudden without any signal beforehand, and Miao Hai was good at making moves at the right time. Ai Hui had no time to react at all just now.

    The fear from barely escaping his death made Ai Hui breath the fresh air greedily like it was a luxury.

    After a few deep breaths, Ai Hui recovered from the shock and returned to normal. His escape meant that the situation between the two sides had totally changed.

    Without the armor, Miao Hai was barely under protection. Plus, the cloud deck itself could not move flexibly. As a result, Miao Hai was the fish on the chopping board, and Ai Hui only needed to take onest strike.

    Up in the sky, Ai Hui stretched his Starry Gem Swordwings in full and began to dive.

    As his speed increased, bright mes began to appear at the tip of his sword. Then the tip shivered slightly, and the mes were attracted by the sword. Soon the sword with mes became as red as hot irons.

    Exmations were heard at different corners of Peace City at the same time.

    Su Qingye cheered loudly, "It¡¯s that move!"

    Su Huaijun who was standing beside him knew what he was talking about without exnation.

    And at the same time, Fu Yonghao also blurted out, "It¡¯s that move!"

    Miao Hai¡¯s face became pale. He could clearly see what Ai Hui was thinking.

    His situation was very tough.

    When he heard the thrilling whirr, when he saw the heaven fire appear at the tip, he thought of the fiery sword ray that fell down from the sky a few nights before.

    The power of the sword move frightened everyone in Peace City. After it had struck, the courtyard of the Sha n was almostpletely destroyed.

    Escape?

    Miao Hai never thought of escape. Compared with azure wings, the cloud deck was as slow as a turtle. Where could he escape to? He knew he was being used as a pawn, and there was no way back. Those higher-ups who were watching him behind his back were the real yers.

    Fortunately, he still had four Baneyer javelins.

    Miao Hai took the javelins out from the box, and stuck them on the cloud deck.

    No happiness or sadness could be seen on Miao Hai¡¯s face. It seemed that he was not concerned about the foreseeable danger at all. His big palms swept across and grabbed one javelin in each palm. Then he leaned backward, bending his strong body like a bow. Every muscle was glowing with golden gloss.

    The elemental energy was surging, the javelins quivering like they could fly out if they had not been firmly gripped by those hawkbill-like hands.

    There seemed to be an invisible wall in front of Miao Hai, who stepped on the wall and ran in big strides while throwing out the javelins, one by one, forcefully towards Ai Hui.

    Boom, boom!

    Two tremendous rumbles resounded, like the loudest thunder in the sky, and golden light exploded in front of the tip of Ai Hui¡¯s sword, hindering his speed to some extent.

    The golden waves of elemental energy ejected needle-shaped golden rays that spread out at a fast speed.

    Miao Hai did a backward somersault, and staggered when hended. The two [Vajra Thunder]s he¡¯d just utilized were killing moves of absolute art and were energy-guzzling. However, even the [Vajra Thunder] that usually never failed to prove its power only slowed down Ai Hui¡¯s speed for a while.

    He smiled hopelessly. He had been too arrogant and shouldn¡¯t have underestimated Ai Hui.

    But thinking of the higher-ups behind him, who also belittled Ai Hui, he felt less depressed.

    At that moment, he knew that there was no hope for himself to win. That meant he must die. Only death could give the higher-ups a satisfying answer. A pawn who was ready to die should die heroically, so that those who had families could earn them a considerable amount ofpensation, and those without families could earn themselves a glorious ending.

    He grabbed thest two javelins. Different from before, this time he was holding the tips in his hands.

    The crimson tips were extremely thin and sharp, and Miao Hai¡¯s hands were dripping with blood. The javelins seemed to enjoy drinking the blood and became more delicate and charming.

    He crossed the two javelins in front of his chest, red blood trickling down along the shafts in spirals.

    He didn¡¯t take action immediately, but was looking up at the sky and waiting for thest opportunity.

    However, he didn¡¯t notice there were seven small swords in the distance cruising silently like swordfishes in deep sea.

    They were so inconspicuous that no one ever noticed them.

    Everyone¡¯s attention was on the reckless figure diving from the sky, apanied by a curtain of red light and fiery, dazzling sword rays.

    But at this moment, as if summoned, the seven small swords flew towards the cloud deck silently from each direction.

    Still, no one ever noticed their presence.

    Miao Hai, standing on the cloud deck, stared at Ai Hui focusedly. He knew he had only one chance.

    Whether it would result in his death or survival, he only had thisst chance.

    But he wasn¡¯t discouraged at all. Instead, he somehow became excited. He couldn¡¯t say that his life was without regret, but he hadn¡¯t wasted it either. Maybe he had been idle for too long, and now at this life-or-death moment, his heart that had been long at rest was stirring.

    His eyes were as sharp as a sword. He could clearly see Ai Hui¡¯s stone-cold face behind the sword rays.

    Thisd had a bright future!

    Come on!

    He was more excited than ever, like a drunk man ¨C his face was red, and body was quivering.

    Suddenly, something appeared in sight abruptly. They were seven glowing small swords in a circle.

    Miao Hai paused, and a thought urred to him ¨C he must have seen a simr scene somewhere before.

    The quivering of the small swords produced a clear chime, making Miao Hai¡¯s vision blur and his mind go absent.

    He remembered! The light webs he used to defeat Sha Guards...

    [Sword Chime]!

    The chime of the swords lingered in the air. The zing Dragonspine approached closer and closer with a thrilling whistle as expected.

    In thest minute before he was devoured by the zing sword rays, Miao Hai suddenly became sober.

    Even though Ai Hui was absolutely on the more advantageous side, he still chose not to use his insidious moves just in case something happened. What a smart yet callousd!

    He wanted tough out loud when he thought about how the higher-ups would feel about dealing with such an annoying guy.

    His figure withered away in the zing sword rays.

 Chapter 318: Coming!

    Chapter 318: Coming!

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    "This guy is cunning."

    On an unnoticed roof, a man with long hair murmured while looking up at the red, muslin-like sword ray gradually falling from the sky outside the city. He was tall and wore a long ck robe. His face was covered with a bronze mask and only his eyes could be seen. The pupils were silvery rhombuses like the tip of an arrow, which was very rare.

    "Insidious," ady who was standing beside the man said coldly. In her eyes there was still a trace of shock.

    The way thedy dressed was unique. She wore her hair in an exaggerated bun. It was a high, tower-shaped bun that leaned back, with throwing knives inserted into it. It resembled a crown and also the horn of a unicorn. Together with her thin waist, attractive breasts, long and slender legs and delicate but cold face, her image was very impressive with massive visual impact.

    A group of men were standing behind the two. They were silent and still, and looked indifferent as if they were statues.

    "Let¡¯s go!" ordered the man with silvery rhombus pupils coldly, and flew away before everyone else.

    .....

    At the mayor¡¯s residence.

    A Jinai looked pale, cold sweat trickling down his back. He never thought that Ai Hui could kill Miao Hai in a direct confrontation!

    For this fight, Miao Hai was equipped with [Unbreakable Hellfire Armor] and Baneyers. To deprive Ai Hui¡¯s of making money, the superiors forbade anyone to purchase fire lotus seeds from Ai Hui, so that he would have no money to prepare for the confrontation. And to make him more helpless, they blocked all the roads of Peace City and put Jiang Wei under house arrest. They even chose a battlefield out of the city just in case Ai Hui would set traps.

    A Jinai had made every arrangement he could think of. He didn¡¯t belittle Ai Hui at all.

    With such detailed preparation, how could he fail?

    Captain Huo, who was standing beside him, was also dumbstruck, as if he had lost his soul.

    Now, Jiang Wei was the only one who was happy and at ease. He nced at the other two and couldn¡¯t help serving himself a ss of wine and drinking it off cheerfully. He knew that it was the worst idea to try to get Ai Hui killed in a fight.

    That guy was best at fighting!

    A Jinai suddenly said loudly with a tough attitude, "Captain Huo, this guy killed Miao Hai in public. He should be arrested and brought to justice!"

    Captain Huo¡¯s facial expression changed, but soon he made up his mind. They had gone so far, and now except for riding on Ling Residence¡¯s coattails, he had no other options. Therefore, he said determinedly, "I¡¯ll do it right now!"

    Jiang Wei suddenly mmed his wine ss on the table heavily, stood up and said coldly, "Peace City is under my administration. Captain Huo, I¡¯m afraid you are acting beyond your authority."

    A Jinai looked at Jiang Wei gloomily, "Jiang Wei, I¡¯d like to remind you that one wrong move will lead to a grave mistake."

    Jiang Wei didn¡¯t flinch, "A Jinai, you are no longer the steed of Grass n. But I am still Ai Hui¡¯s brother. if you want to do so, then you¡¯ll have to kill me first. My fellowrades of Sky Edge Division, Captain Huo is interfering in the affairs of Peace City without Elders Guild¡¯s permission. He has already made a mistake. Don¡¯t you want to stop him before he does it again?"

    Captain Huo¡¯s soldiers looked at each other in confusion. They all looked hesitant.

    A Jinai knew things were not going well, but he had made up his mind and said, "Jiang Wei, why are you so stubborn. If so, then don¡¯t beg for my mercy. Take him down!"

    No one moved.

    Captain Huo was also in a panic. If the n failed this time, he would lose everything. As Jiang Wei¡¯s words had apparently affected his subordinates, he also reproached them loudly, "Why don¡¯t you move? A Jinai has Elders Guild¡¯s secret order!"

    His words created a disturbance. Someone shouted, "Then show us!"

    With a hideous grin on his face, Captain Huo said, "How dare you disobey my order! Are you are so eager to die?"

    A Jinai smartly said, "Elders Guild? Elders Guild belongs to the aristocratic families. So what are you afraid of? If you render them outstanding service this time..."

    Just at that moment, he heard a coldugh.

    "Elders Guild doesn¡¯t just belong to aristocratic families."

    Two figures were standing on the wall of the mayor¡¯s residence quietly. Before the one who was speaking had finished his words, many figures appeared and besieged the Mayor¡¯s residence.

    "Vic... vice division leaders!"

    Someone cried out.

    A Jinai¡¯s face turned pale. How could both vice division leaders have arrived?

    The one with silvery rhombic pupils was the vice division leader of Sky Edge Division, Tong Gui. And thedy with the knife bun was the other vice division leader, Yu Jin.

    Why would theye?

    Captain Huo was shivering all over. He looked frightened and his teeth were chattering.

    "I never expected we¡¯d have traitors in Sky Edge Division. This is disappointing." Tong Gui stared at Captain Huo as if looking at dead meat, "You know what to do. I don¡¯t want to get my hands dirty."

    Captain Huo knew he could not escape today, so he smiled bitterly and said, "I beg for mercy for my family members. Please consider the contributions I have made in these years and let them go."

    Having finished his words, he transformed his elemental energy into a sword and stabbed himself in the heart. His body froze and his eyes gradually became empty. Then he fell on the ground, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth.

    A Jinai, on the other hand, became more sober than ever, "So you had made preparations long ago, and were waiting for us to swallow the bait."

    Tong Gui looked at A Jinai, and said in a bass voice, "You¡¯ve been with Sky Edge Division for a long time. Why do you work for the Ling residence now?"

    A Jinaiughed out furiously, "Winner takes all. Cut the crap. Now I die here, but someone will avenge me. Jiang Wei, this world belongs to the aristocratic families..."

    A throwing knife prated his heart.

    Tong Gui smiled ironically at A Jinai, who could not say anything anymore. "This world belongs to the aristocratic families? Did you even ask us?"

    Jiang Wei looked at what had happened in front of him nkly. He had been in Sky Edge Division for almost three years, but this was the first time he had seen the vice division leaders. And since the features of the two vice division leaders were very conspicuous, no one could impersonate them.

    He could not be counted as smart, but he kind of understood something from the conversation between A Jinai and Tong Gui.

    On the other hand, he was still grieved to see A Jinai¡¯s death. Now they were on different sides, but in those days A Jinai had helped him a lot. If it were not for A Jinai, he would have already died in many previous battles.

    Tong Gui¡¯s eyes fell on Jiang Wei with recognition, "You¡¯re not bad."

    Jiang Wei didn¡¯t feel happy. He simply bowed and said, "I beg you, Sir, to allow me to bury A Jinai."

    Yu Jin, who hadn¡¯t said anything so far, replied, "Approved. He¡¯s dead anyway."

    "You can leave now. We have many things to deal with."

    Hearing Tong Gui¡¯s voice from behind him. Jiang Wei paused, and wondered what else they had to deal with.

    .....

    Standing in the air, Ai Hui looked at the mess on the ground and sighed, thinking that Miao Hai was strongest opponent he had met in thest few years.

    The challenge was different from previous battles. It was like a big exam.

    In the fight with Shi Youguang, he was in the dark, while his enemy was in the open, and he won by ambush and sneak attacks. But the fight today was a one-on-one confrontation, during which he could not take advantage like that any more.

    The battle didn¡¯tst long, but it was extremely dangerous, especially the hellfire. If it were not for the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp], he¡¯d have already lost.

    In this fight, he had also done his utmost. The [Gale Bat sh] and [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] that he had practiced long and hard, and [Sword Chime] and [Soaring mes, Cascading Muslin] that he onlyprehended recently had all been utilized in this fight.

    The fightsted only a short period of time, but it was a battle of wit and courage. The mental and physical pressure was tremendous.

    Now as the battle came to an end, Ai Hui felt that he had used up everything he owned, which seldom happened to him.

    He felt that anyone could defeat him now.

    Miao Hai waspletely destroyed by Ai Hui¡¯sst move, [Soaring mes, Cascading Muslin], and both his spirit and body had vanished. Even his cloud deck was destroyed and turned into fog that dissipated into the air. The only things that were left were the Baneyers.

    Ai Hui picked up the two Baneyers and sighed. Miao Hai was not a vile guy, but he was an excellent opponent. It was a pity that he almost didn¡¯t leave anything behind. So Ai Hui reluctantly had to take the two javelins Miao Hai left in memory of this opponent.

    Therefore, under the gaze of everyone of the city, he carried the javelins and flew back to his training hall groggily.

    Ai Hui looked exhausted and his azure wings were pping heavily.

    It seemed that crossing the city had taken all his effort.

    A puzzled look appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face.

    This was not what he had expected. He thought that by now, someone should have jumped out and used him of being heartless and cruel, and then a group of people woulde to take him down.

    But why was there no one?

    No follow-up? That was it?

    Even if there was no brotherhood between the conspirators, didn¡¯t they have brains? That was all they could think up?

    If so, the rest of the tricks he had arranged would be wasted!

    Ai Hui felt remorseful about the money he had used and the time he had spent with Lou Lan on this follow-up arrangement.

    And now it was wasted?

    Ai Hui still could hardly believe this result. He knew that it was less likely he¡¯d get anything useful from Miao Hai, but he thought they would definitelye to retaliate. So he had made delicate arrangements in hope of getting some benefits this way.

    But he now knew that this hope seemed no longer achievable, which meant that in this fight, he only got two Baneyers in reward. Of course the whole set of Baneyers was of great value, but now as he only had two of them, it wasn¡¯t worth much.

    Thinking about the essence elemental beans he had spent, Ai Hui almost cried. What a money-losing deal!

    Because of this, everyone in Peace City saw something very weird. Although Ai Hui was the one who won the fight, he looked mncholy and not the slightest hint of happiness could be seen on his face.

    Those observing businessmen were also confused.

    But they were calm enough. They were also all waiting, including Sea Pacific Enterprise and Evergold Enterprise. The purchase prohibition on Ai Hui¡¯s fire lotus seeds was given from the superiors. The shrewd businessmen knew that the Ling residence must have been involved in this.

    As the Ling residence had taken action, it would not stop so easily.

    So everybody was waiting.

    Just at that moment, a group of people appeared in the sky far away and were flying towards Ai Hui at a fast speed.

    This excited everyone, especially Ai Hui, who began to think about how to act his part well enough to lure them into his trap.

    The group of people soon came in front of Ai Hui. Their clothes were all embroidered with the badge of Elders Guild.

    Finally!

    The bystanders said to themselves in their hearts, and widened their eyes.

    Finally!

    Ai Hui said to himself, and began to prepare to feign defeat.

    A middle-aged man, who looked cold and gloomy, stepped forward and asked, "Are you Ai Hui?"

    Ai Hui pretended to be suffering from severe injuries, and asked with fright and vignce, "Who are you?"

    The middle-aged man stared at Ai Hui. The flicker in his eyes looked fierce. Then he took out a round insignia.

    The insignia was about the size of a palm, with a red word, "Order", on the front and the badge of Elders Guild on back. This was called the Elders Guild Order, and it would be used only when the order to be conveyed was officially issued by the Elders Guild.

    The bystanders were surprised. The Ling residence had connections everywhere!

    Ai Hui was desperate. If the maniptor was Elders Guild, then he¡¯d better pack up his things and prepare to run.

    The middle-aged man unclenched his fist and the insignia was suspended in the air. The moment he pointed to it with one finger, the insignia began to shine with glorious radiance, and an old, but dignified voice could be heard all over the city.

    "As agreed by the Elders Guild, I hereby announce that Wang Shouchuan, the deceased teacher of Central Pine Academy, is honored with the title of Master. As a teacher of Central Pine Academy, Master Shouchuan had been working conscientiously with perseverance and consistency for decades. He had yed a key role during the battle in Central Pine City. Besides this, the school of thought that he created was unique, unprecedented and meaningful..."

    Ai Hui was shocked.

    The others¡¯ facial expressions changed too.

    Although they had already known this information, the Fu family¡¯s Big Sister and her brothers were also surprised. They didn¡¯t expect that it would be announced at this time in this situation. They were further shocked by what they heard next.

    "His great deeds blessed every one of us. And his disciple, Ai Hui, followed in his footsteps and devoted himself to studying his teacher¡¯s theories. He had killed the Sand Sentinel to prevent people in the Peace City from suffering. This is a brilliant contribution. Therefore, Ai Hui is awarded as follows..."

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck.

    Everyone else in Peace City was also dumbstruck.

 Chapter 319: A Belated Reunion

    Chapter 319: A Bted Reunion

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui was in a daze at Swordsman Training Hall.

    He had been awarded with an absolute art for metal elementalists, a Heaven-grade weapon, a thousand essence elemental beans and a thousand Heaven Merit Points.

    The Elders Guild¡¯s rewards petrified Ai Hui, not because it was too little, but because it was too much. Ai Hui instinctively felt something was wrong with the rich rewards.

    One who was unountably solicitous was hiding evil intentions.

    There was no free lunch. What lied behind such abundant awards must certainly be a big pitfall. A lot of things were beyond his expectations. For example, Miao Hai¡¯s avengers didn¡¯te after him, and the awards of the Elders Guild were even more of an anomaly.

    He hardly had any contacts with the Elders Guild.

    Ai Hui was quite bewildered. Suddenly, he was disturbed and came to his sense.

    There was a burst ofmotion at the gate while a bunch of people rushed toward him.

    Ai Hui was refreshed. Finally!

    He whispered, "Lou Lan, get ready!"

    Lou Lan nodded vigorously, "Ai Hui, Lou Lan is ready."

    As long as Miao Hai hadn¡¯t made any further moves, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t feel relieved. He didn¡¯t believe at all that the maniptor behind Miao Hai would ept being defeated so easily.

    Ai Hui was not worried about the retaliation attacks. What was worrying was theck of them.

    Now at his own training hall, he didn¡¯t even have to feign defeat.

    Ai Hui picked up his Dragonspine and was ready to encounter the enemy.

    However, when he saw clearly the first person breaking in, he came to a halt. Because the one in front of him looked familiar, but for a while he couldn¡¯t recall where he had seen him before. After Ai Hui saw the second personing in, he paused again, as he found that this guy was familiar to him as well.

    "Ai Hui!"

    "A Hui!"

    ...

    ...

    The excited calls came one after another, which suddenly made Au Hui recall his memory. He finally realized why they looked so familiar.

    For a moment, his memory was drawn back to the city soaked in blood, where he could still smell the smoke of gunpowder and hear the screaming of the people fighting in battle. He felt unspeakably cold and sad, as if being caught in heavy rain for a long time.

    After a shiver, those cold feelings and memories faded like tidewater. He came back to reality.

    "It¡¯s all over." He told himself.

    Those standing in front of him were so excited. Their eyes were filled with tears, reflecting the warmth of sunlight.

    Ai Hui smiled.

    "You are...ck Ge!"

    "You are Ming Feng!"

    ...

    ...

    "Lou Lan, it¡¯s been a long time!"

    "Ming Feng, Lou Lan is so happy to see you!"

    "So shall we have elemental energy soup today?"

    "Of course! Leave it to Lou Lan!"

    ...

    ...

    They hugged and gave high fives to each other. Sweet smiles bloomed on every face.

    The noise of dense traffic went on and people constantly joined the reunion.

    .....

    A high building, not far from Swordsman Training Hall.

    "What a warm situation! Compared to those cold, pitiless aristocratic families, this is so much more tender." Tong Gui said with emotion, "Have you recorded it all?"

    A subordinate beside him said promptly, "Yes, we arranged enough workhands. Don¡¯t worry, they are all very skilled."

    A deep sound emerged from behind the copper mask, "We are responsible for letting everybody know the truth."

    "No problem!" a subordinate said reverently, "We have arranged for extra people to get in touch with those survivors and asked them how they felt when Ai Hui was called the murderer of his teacher. They all expressed their rage."

    Tong Gui turned his face, "Did you encounter any resistance on taking over the checkpoint?"

    Yu Jin said indifferently, "Yes, three people were dead and two wounded."

    "So, they should already get the information." Tong Gui nodded and turned his face back, "These mirage bean pods must be sent out today."

    "The first batch was already sent out." The subordinate said reverently, "Tomorrow morning they will be on the shelves of all bean pod shops. We have reserved all the best ces."

    Jiang Wei listened to their talking silently.

    "You are promoted."

    He heard Tong Gui¡¯s voice.

    Jiang Wei came to his senses but didn¡¯t seem happy. He asked in a low voice, "Have you been preparing for this from a long time ago?"

    "It¡¯s

    , to be more urate," Tong Gui corrected him and his voice sounded as deep as the echo in the valley, "Although I don¡¯t want to admit it, to be frank, we are on the disadvantageous side. So we¡¯d better get prepared."

    "Why are you doing this?"

    "Because we don¡¯t want to give up our future without putting up a fight."

    .....

    Morning sunshine always brought a stream of coolness. But to those diligent ones who enjoyed the soberness and freshness brought by the cool air, it was the start of an exhrating day.

    Wang Xiaoshan got up early as usual.

    This was a habit he¡¯d developed when he was in Central Pine City. Ever since he¡¯d met Ai Hui, he kept being assiduous, even if he was now in charge of military supplies. He worked at arge military warehouse. He could get this popr position thanks to his contribution in the Central Pine City war as well as Shi Xueman¡¯s connection.

    Wang Xiaoshan was different from other warehouse managers. He was diligent and kept a low profile, and hardly participated in social engagements. He was so indulged in his earth elemental construction method that many of his men called him "mud manager". He wasn¡¯t mad about the nickname, but was proud of it instead.

    His father was a craftsman of mud and it was well-reasoned for him to carry on his father¡¯s career. He knew clearly that he could get this position not because he waspetent or outstanding, but because of Shi Xueman¡¯s help.

    He had no outstanding merits, just as he couldn¡¯t be a good helper to Ai Hui and other friends in those years. It might be the reason why he indulged in earth elemental construction method. Deep in his heart, he had an unreachable dream to help Ai Hui and other friends by being a master in earth elemental construction method.

    Every morning, while breathing the cool air, he would always remind himself that the idea was ridiculous.

    Well, it was ridiculous indeed.

    He was no longer the teenager who loved ying with mud at that time. Having been a mud manager for three years, he understood many things.

    This was a mud pond where mudfish could live, but not dragons.

    He might be too pessimistic. Shi Xueman was a good person, he thought. He knew that if Shi Xueman asked for his help, he would never refuse. However, he would not help Shi Xueman of his own initiative, maybe because Iron Ladycked nothing. He was not sure about that. But the picture of Ai Hui kneeling in the heavy rain was rooted deeply in his head.

    He couldn¡¯t figure out why. It was neither sympathy nor admiration. Instead, he thought many things fell on Ai Hui¡¯s shoulders alone, when they should have been dealt with by everybody. Was it a sense of guilt or feeling lost? No, not like that. In fact, he wondered, if he could do more, would the result be any different?

    Wang Xiaoshan admitted he was irresolute. Even if three years had passed, he couldn¡¯t feel relieved.

    However, irresolute as he was, it shouldn¡¯t impact his daily life.

    Like every other day, he came to a bean pod shop that he was familiar with. The boss was cing the new bean pods on shelves. Wang Xiaoshan asked casually, "Any new message bean pods?"

    Mirage bean pods were not the only mirage products on the market for long. In the high-end market, film-spitting tortoises, with a higher level of safety and sharpness, had reced mirage bean pods. Sensing the crisis, the wood elementalists didn¡¯t give up. They had been improving the mirage bean pods, resulting in the exploding bean pod tree, a brand-new breed.

    They grafted the traditional bean pod trees onto breeding trees, a kind of tree with strong vitality, and got a newly transformed breed - exploding bean pod trees that could duplicate plentiful mirage bean pods within a short period of time.

    An exploding bean pod tree could produce tens of thousands of mirage bean pods, whichrgely brought down the cost of mirage bean pods. Due to the sharp decline in cost, a new thing was brought out: message bean pod.

    At the beginning, people recorded interesting things in life using message bean pods and then sold it in markets. Soon, some people found business opportunities in it, such as the Dragonrise Training Hall. A teaching course from Yang Zhen, the owner of Dragonrise Training Hall, in message bean pods had been sold over four million times, and was still on sale now.

    Before long, many professional elementalists emerged, who made a living by recording frontline battle progress, new trends of the Elders Guild and disasters in mirage bean pods. The message bean pods became more and more popr, becausemon people could afford to buy them due to their low price, and the specialty stores of bean pods were everywhere.

    Recently, the poprity of message bean pods gave rise to a professional message-collecting group, called message vige. Each message vige produced its own message bean pods including several message beans with different contents.

    Seeing Wang Xiaoshan, the boss of the bean pods shop smiled warmly and said, "Good morning, Manager! We have new arriving message bean pods. You must check them out. They are definitely going to be popr, for the content was about The Lightning de!"

    Wang Xiaoshan didn¡¯t expect that, "The Lightning de? Ai Hui?"

    "No wonder you can be a manager. You can even remember a figure from ages ago!" the boss of the bean pods shop said tteringly, "He is a controversial figure. In those years, people argued about him drastically. Now they have things to argue about again."

    Ai Hui...

    A figure from ages ago... Yes, it¡¯s ages ago.

    Wang Xiaoshan said without hesitation, "I will have one of each kind!"

    Then he went back to his room hurriedly and shut the door.

    In the dark room, he stared at the mirage nkly.

    "As agreed by the Elders Guild, I hereby announce that Wang Shouchuan, the deceased teacher of Central Pine Academy, is honored with the title of Master. As a teacher of Central Pine Academy, Master Shouchuan had been working conscientiously with perseverance and consistency for decades. He had yed a key role during the battle in Central Pine City. Besides this, the school of thought that he created was unique, unprecedented and meaningful..."

    "His great deeds blessed every one of us. And his disciple, Ai Hui, followed in his footsteps and devoted himself to studying his teacher¡¯s theories. He had killed the Sand Sentinel to prevent people in the Peace City from suffering. This is a brilliant contribution. Therefore, Ai Hui is rewarded as follows..."

    "An absolute art for metal elementalists, a Heaven-grade weapon, a thousand essence elemental beans and a thousand Heaven Merit Points."

    A beautiful woman appeared on the mirage.

    A beautiful woman might not be convincing, but she was at least attractive enough to keep people listening. Moreover, the topic itself was hot.

    The gorgeous woman talked vividly and movingly.

    "The significant award by the Elders Guild is unexpected, but does make sense. Needless to say, Master Wang and his wife earned great achievements. Everyone living in the Avalon of Five Elements should remember the miracle that they created in Central Pine City at the expense of their lives. In those years, Ai Hui earned great achievements on the battlefield as well. After fading out for three years, he reappeared with a lofty stance. As the sessor of Master Wang, Ai Hui bears pressure far beyond the amount that his age should take. The rumor of Ai Hui being the murderer of his teacher hurts our hero the most. Just as people in those years shouldn¡¯t forget that Master Wang and his wife fought for the city at the cost of their lives, now we shouldn¡¯t forget as well that when we were isted, a young hero stood out and led us to fight to the end. At the most crucial moment, he was fearless and bore all the responsibility and criticism. He saved us."

    "He is used of being ruthless for sacrificing his teacher in exchange of this feat. At the same time, he is admired as a tragic hero, who assumes the unbearable heaviness of his fate and lives in seclusion for three years. So, what is the truth? Only the survivors in Central Pine City know. They witnessed the whole process of the miracle in Central Pine City, from the beginning of the crisis to the ending. When the information that Ai Hui was living in seclusion in the Peace City spread, how did those survivors in Central Pine City react to it?"

    "We noticed that many survivors in Central Pine City came to visit Ai Hui. We were lucky to record the event of their meeting. There were tears in their eyes. They hugged and sent regards to each other excitingly."

    "This is a bted reunion!"

    The gorgeous woman in the mirage choked with sobs.

    "We also interviewed several survivors in Central Pine City for their opinions on Ai Hui being called the murderer of his teacher. They all believe it¡¯s nder and feel angry about it. For those who are interested, please watch the C bean and D bean in this bean pod, ¡®Under the Name of Survivors¡¯..."

    Thinking that Ai Hui could get rid of the usation of murdering his teacher, Wang Xiaoshan felt extremely excited.

    Exactly at the same time, when he saw Ai Hui whom he had been thinking about all the time, he smiled with tears in his eyes.

    Long time no see, Ai Hui!

 Chapter 320: Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge

    Chapter 320: Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    sh!

    A clear, shattering sound could be heard. Perhaps it came from the pot on the master¡¯s table, which cost 2,000 elemental energy beans, or from the crooked-neck porcin vase outlined in gold on the wall shelf. While the servants quietly waited outside to clean the mess, there were still a few precious decorative items that remained intact inside the master¡¯s room.

    The heavy breaths sounded like the roars of a trapped beast.

    The red sandalwood carved door was made by a famous craftsman. Itsplicated and exquisite grass pattern swept the sword. The emblem protecting the Ling residence was a soaring golden eagle with its wings spread open.

    The Golden Eagle Study Room is an important ce in the Ling residence. Many influential strategies that deeply affected the Avalon of Five Elements were born here. Currently, the tightly closed door was like a steel cage that trapped an angry and violent wild beast.

    And a beast tamer.

    Madam Ling sat on a chair beside the tea table, turning a blind eye to the mess on the ground and the wild beast¡¯s roars. Her gorgeous, waterfall-like silk dress really entuated her slim waist and body. Above her half-revealed, delicate corbone was her long, snow-white neck. As if there was no one around, she sipped on her tea slowly and indifferently.

    The rough breaths gradually stopped as the bulging veins on the angry man¡¯s forehead disappeared. His bloodshot eyes became clear once again. He walked in big steps before he stopped in front of thedy, grabbed the teapot, raised his head, and gulped arge amount of tea noisily.

    The man put down the teapot, wiped his mouth, and said in a low voice, "It must be that old fellow, Yuchi Ba. He has yet to give up. How is the situation outside now?"

    Madam Ling put her teacup down gracefully and replied with her pleasant voice, "There aren¡¯t many talking about Ai Hui being a murderer that killed his master anymore. He is once again seen as a hero. In fact, many are suggesting that he should bepensated. Another piece of bad news is that after word spread that Ai Hui could being out of his seclusion, members of Central Pine Faction, which had already been swayed, go back on their words now. Even those who¡¯d agreed to join the aristocratic families are now backing out."

    The man opened his eyes wide. "Are they fools? Withdrawing as they please? Is this a game? Do they think we can¡¯t deal with them?"

    Madam Ling sipped on her tea, before saying, "It is true that we can¡¯t do anything to them. Just today, a few have already tendered their resignations and are preparing to head to Peace City. They were all previously A-1 unit members."

    The man nked out for a moment and found it hard to believe. "Are their brains damaged? What can a positionless fellow offer them? Power? Prospects? Wealth? Absolute arts? Nothing!"

    Madam Ling drank her tea unhurriedly. "Underestimating your enemy... are you insulting yourself?"

    The man sneered. "My enemy? Hah, do you really think Ai Hui is qualified to be my enemy? Only Yuchi Ba has the right."

    "But the one raging is you." Madam Lingughed softly, not the least bit bothered by the man¡¯s ashen face. She asked, "Perhap you can kill everyone in Central Pine Faction to ease your anger?"

    The man calmed down. He had to admit that it was useless to be angry at this point. He was unable to take Central Pine Faction down since the Elders Guild would not allow it.

    "Ai Hui¡¯s sudden rise is unstoppable now." Madam Ling hit the nail on the head. "Yuchi Ba and his gang chose him to be the future leader of the new citizens. I have to say this move of Elder Yuchi is very beautiful. He¡¯s using this method to help Ai Hui clear his bad name as a murderer."

    The man clenched his teeth and said, "I should¡¯ve killed that kid long ago!"

    "Many people are after his life, but he¡¯s still living well." Madam Ling put her tea cup down and looked at the man. "Those who want his life aren¡¯t able to find the chance. Ai Hui is more vignt than we think. He left suddenly three years ago, changed, and concealed his identity. A wise choice, judging from the current situation."

    The man was filled with bloodlust. "It¡¯s not toote."

    "You better stop this dangerous way of thinking," Madam Ling warned sternly. "I do not want to wake up one day to the news of my children getting killed. In the past, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t a member of the New Citizens Faction, so killing him will not bring about any dispute. Now, as a selected sessor of the faction, my children will sink into the vicious cycle of revenge if he gets assassinated. Yuchi Bai is not an unarmed and defenseless old man."

    The man knew Madam Ling was right, but felt somewhat indignant. "Then what should we do now?"

    Madam Ling had been waiting for this question. A charming smile appeared at the corner of her mouth. She said gently, "We have a lot of time. Ai Hui is popr, but positionless. They are trying to push up him, but they also have to choose a suitable seat for him. For example, he can enter the Sky Edge Division and eventually get promoted to be the division leader. Even if things proceed smoothly, it will take a few years¡¯ time."

    The man nodded his head repeatedly.

    "The more important question is if Ai Hui is willing?"

    The man was stumped by this funny question. He shook his head. "Hahaha, don¡¯t be ridiculous. Would anyone be unwilling? Who wouldn¡¯t be willing to achieve instant sess?"

    Madam Ling blinked. "You have to ask Ai Hui."

    The man was stunned.

    Just then, the doorbell rang.

    Dong, dong, dong.

    A servant¡¯s voice was heard from outside the door two secondster. "Master, there¡¯s a new report."

    .....

    Swordsman Training Hall was already a lively gathering ce by now. Without needing Ai Hui¡¯s instructions, the guests had already prepared the bonfire, started to grill the meat, and brought wine over. Everybody was taking in big pieces of meat and big bowls of wine while chatting endlessly, crying, andughing at times.

    "Really, Ai Hui?" Lou Lan looked at Ai Hui with his eyes wide open and filled with surprise.

    "That¡¯s right." Ai Huiughed. "Since everyone¡¯s so cordial, we have to do our part by returning the favor. Take out all the fire lotus seeds. Prepare a bowl of elemental soup for everyone, Lou Lan. Everyone misses it. I can¡¯t sell those anyway."

    "Leave it to me!" Lou Lan reassured happily. "I¡¯m so happy to see everybody today! I will work hard to prepare a bowl of Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge!"

    "Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge?" Ai Hui burst intoughter and asked curiously, "Sounds like a pretty potent porridge. What effect does it have?"

    Lou Lan exined, "All five types of elementalists can consume it. It raises people¡¯s spirits and noticeably fixes internal injuries, increases one¡¯s connectivity with elemental energy, and strengthens their elemental foundation. It helps both the physical body and elemental energy greatly."

    "Good stuff!" Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up while drooling.

    Lou Lan was a little hesitant. "But we¡¯re missing quite a few ingredients. Although we can find substitutes, the porridge will be less effective..."

    Jiang Wei, who¡¯d been listening in on their conversation was unable to hold back anymore. "What ingredients do you need? Make a list Lou Lan. Everyone will think of a solution!"

    Jiang Wei¡¯s usual steadiness waspletely absent as anticipation filled his face.

    "That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right, we will all think of a solution!" Ming Feng spoke up while swallowing his saliva, a sound that was ear-piercing.

    Ai Hui stared nkly at the bunch of eager fellows. They ran off like a gust of wind upon receiving the ingredient list, leaving him alone at that spot and ignoring him.

    "Hey, hey, hey, fire lotus seeds are expensive. Aren¡¯t you guys touched by my generosity..?"

    Before he could finish his sentence, everyone had already left and not even their shadows could be seen.

    Minutester, the news of Lou Lan preparing Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge, which used fire lotus seed as the main ingredient, spread among all Central Pine survivors present at the party and caused amotion.

    "Fire lotus seeds! Oh my god! How much money is that?"

    "What¡¯s important is that Lou Lan is preparing it himself! Hahaha, we did right bying. What a gain! Oh my! I can¡¯t control my drool, what should I do?"

    "Judging by its name, it must be very powerful! Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge! Damn it, who grilled this meat? Why does it taste so bad?"

    "Didn¡¯t you just praise my grilling skills earlier?"

    "Missing ingredients? Hah, quick gather them everyone!"

    "Gather, gather, gather!"

    "For Eight Treasures Porridge!"

    ...

    News about Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge spread around in the blink of an eye!

    Upon hearing it, survivors from Central Pine City quickly gathered ingredients and flocked over from other cities.

    "Manager, your ingredients are ready!"

    "Are you going to participate in the Eight Treasures Porridge feast? Is The Lightning de really that great?"

    "Ai Hui is really amazing!"

    Wang Xiaoshan carried with his many bags, big and small, and boarded the Fiery Floating Cloud with an excited heart. He was going to get to Peace City as quick as he could. He heard that practically all of Central Pine¡¯s survivors had already departed on their journeys, rushing over from all directions to join in the reunion party.

    Ai Hui did not expect his random idea to blow up so much. Within a short period of time, the Swordsman Training Hall¡¯s Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge feast had already spread widely across the Avalon of Five Elements. Even the list of ingredients was disseminated widely.

    As one of the most in vogue figures currently, Ai Hui was a target of interest to many news viges.

    Many cooking masters, who were proficient in cooking elemental food, deduced the porridge¡¯s recipe after analyzing the ingredient list.

    Perfect!

    This was the word that came out of people¡¯s mouths the most. The porridge¡¯s effectiveness was simr to that of a legendary divine medicine that could cure all illness and extend life.

    While there were people who tried replicating the porridge, they were shocked to find out that the main ingredient, fire lotus seeds, was not purchasable at all.

    Advocation from many news viges triggered the interest of some resolute people.

    .....

    sh!

    Yet another sound of something being shattered and an angry snarl traveled from within the Golden Eagle Study Room.

    "Bribery! Undisguised, in bribery!"

    The mayor¡¯s residence.

    Seeing the racket outside Swordsman Training Hall, Tong Gui said ruefully, "Using so many fire lotus seeds to buy people¡¯s hearts. What a big move! That little fellow is treacherous, but in a different way. It¡¯s all because of those people who are so loyal to him. Even Jiang Wei did not attract any attention when he walked into the training hall."

    Detecting the unhappiness in Tong Gui¡¯s voice, Yu Jin responded coldly, "All the divisions have already received a total of 12 resignations and they¡¯re all from Central Pine Faction."

    Tong Gui was stunned and only opened his mouth after a little while. "Okay, so that means Jiang Wei isn¡¯t that bad. At least he did not resign. Looks like we underestimated the influence he has over this crowd."

    Yu Jin replied, "We¡¯ve yet to ask for his opinion."

    Tong Gui fell into a daze once more before saying bitterly, "Okay, looks like we are going to go get a bowl of porridge and whatever else we can."

 Chapter 321: Same Boat

    Chapter 321: Same Boat

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    "Think you guys can just do as you like?"

    A messy haired old man guarding the door shot a side nce at Tong Gui and Yu Jin. He leaned against a big, glossy ck wine jar and strange bubbling noises could be hearding from inside.

    Without retorting the two vice division leaders, Tong Gui and Yu Jin, bent over slightly and listened respectfully.

    "Do you know how much blood and sweat I¡¯ve poured for this bowl of porridge? That¡¯s right, blood and sweat. I found the people and contacted them, but they refused to agree no matter what. Said something about the portion being big, but barely enough! Was I gonna give up just like that? Of course not! I found out that they werecking in ingredients. Let me tell you that someone with willpower will not give up so easily!"

    Tong Gui¡¯s copper mask did not give off its usual cold luster. Instead, it looked as if it was going to melt soon. Meanwhile, Yu Jin¡¯s high bun looked like a frosted carrot.

    The old man became increasingly excited and radiant as he spoke. His saliva flew everywhere.

    "I saw that they had yet to gather the best quality canna flowers, hahaha. Coincidentally, I knew that the leader of a bandit crew was in possession of them. I set off that very night so you can tell how important this was. The canna flowers might fall into the hands of others if I were to dy my journey any longer. After a night of work I wiped the whole crew out. For the next two hours I searched the whole mountain and finally found this precious canna stump. What do you say, does it sound easy?"

    It could¡¯ve been because of the zing sun that beads of sweat dripped onto the floor from the edge of Tong Gui¡¯s mask and that Yu Jin¡¯s back was soaked.

    The old man sighed. "Not easy! In exchange for this stump, they finally agreed to give me a bowl of porridge, but what do you know? They sent me out here to guard the door. I was furious. Asking a person of my status to guard the gate? But on second thought, wouldn¡¯t all my previous effort be superfluous if any brat simply stumbles over and tries to get a bowl of the porridge that I¡¯ve worked so hard for? That little fellow, Ai Hui, made sense. If more peoplee over, wouldn¡¯t my share be reduced?"

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin sweat poured profusely.

    Satisfied, the old man asked them, "What do you guys say? Does it make sense?"

    "Yes, yes, yes, Senior. You¡¯ve worked so hard. No one should freeload!" Tong Gui agreed repeatedly.

    "You¡¯re a sensibled." The old man heaved a long sigh as a nostalgic look appeared on his face. "Old fellows like us have been slogging our whole life for the Elders Guild, but after sustaining a full body of internal injuries the Elders Guild tosses us aside. How mournful! Since I¡¯m finally getting my hands on a bowl of porridge, I¡¯m going to be direct. If the old fogeys from the Elders Guilde over for a free ride, they¡¯re going to have to fight me first!"

    Tongue-tied, Tong Gui shuddered slightly. "Senior, you... you..."

    Under the attentive gaze of the old fellow, Tong Gui clenched his teeth and continued, "... arepletely right!"

    The old fellow was mollified. "Hahaha, well done! You ain¡¯t too bad,d. Decent abilities. What vice division leader... you can totally be a division leader!"

    Amid the old man¡¯s candidughter the duo fled in fear.

    Breaking news: The Green Dragon Bandits that took over Green Dragon Mountain for years have all been wiped out. Their corpses and valuables are lying everywhere. "Venerable Volcano" is the current suspect.

    Tian Huzun, 64 years old, nicknamed "Venerable Volcano," fire elemental master.

    He was one of the former candidates for the division leader position of the Ardent Flower Division. Because of his irritable nature, he lost control in a duel, killed somebody, and withdrew from thepetition. He then went solo and epted all kinds of missions, umting a worth of 330,000 Heaven Merit Points. He was seventh on the recent list of wealthiest men.

    At 46, Tian Huzun tried and failed to be a Grandmaster. Instead, his old injury reappeared and infrequently rpsed.

    The friendship between Tian Huzun and Le Buleng ran deep. They had fought numerous times.

    This report was sent to the study table of every residence and those who had seen it either gnashed their teeth or kneaded their head in worry. No one wanted to face Tian Huzun as an enemy. He had outstanding achievements, was very reputable, and was strong. Furthermore, he had a fiery temper and was easily triggered.

    It was normal for a disagreement to lead to a fight. These people were all too familiar with this and were not shocked when a bloodbath urred due to conflict.

    The key was that they might not win.

    These people banked on real abilities instead of hope. They were all old foxes, sly and tough.

    Yet, everyone knew that his internal injury was the main reason why Tian Huzun had failed to break through. In order to heal these injuries, Tian Huzun would make an enemy out of anyone.

    Madam Ling eximed in admiration, "This young fellow is simply too crafty!"

    After a short while, feeling somewhat stifled, Family Head Ling said begrudgingly with a pale face, "Withdraw! Get all of them back here!"

    Upon returning to the mayor¡¯s residence, Tong Gui immediately flipped out and started cursing, "Treacherous! Too treacherous! How dare he ask Tian Huzun to guard the door! Base, cheap, and cunning!"

    Yu Jin added, "Ought to be killed!"

    Tong Gui jolted. "Indeed! How do we kill him?"

    After a short silence Yu Jin spat, "Suicide."

    "..."

    "Too treacherous, too cunning!"

    Ai Hui shook his head sorrowfully. "I did not expect something like this from you."

    No one on the outside would have imagined that having Tian Huzun guard the door was not Ai Hui¡¯s idea. It was the brainchild of the seemingly honest, innocent, calm, and reliable Jiang Wei.

    Jiang Wei simply smiled.

    Whenpared to Ai Hui, he was more aware and knowledgeable about theplexity of the current situation. More and more people gathered at Swordsman Training Hall. It was like a ma, attracting Central Pine City¡¯s survivors who had assembled from all directions.

    The crowd grew and, while everyone was cheering wildly, the more clear-headed ones were already pondering over some profound issues.

    To outsiders, they were amunity. In their hearts, they were also amunity.

    When Ai Hui stood up, people who were scattered everywhere got in touch, as if brought together by invisible threads. In normal times they would disregard such connections, but when Ai Hui made an appearance, they were shocked to realize that the connection they shared was actually this strong.

    They were amunity indeed. Amunity more tight-knit than they, themselves, or anyone else had imagined.

    For three years, they had been working hard at their own posts. They were far from being shrewd and ruthless, but were no longer naive and ignorant. The surging undercurrents and lurking dangers served as a constant reminder that the outside world was very real and daunting.

    They needed to face up to their own strength, and they needed to face up to their own ideas.

    Aristocratic families or new citizens?

    What would they gain and what would they lose?

    Ai Hui had not expected things to turn out this way. His initial idea was beyond simple. Seeing that everyone was happy, he thought it was fine to share the leftover fire lotus seed with everybody.

    The fact that the Eight Treasures Porridge had caused such an uproar left even the originator dumbstruck.

    A smile followed.

    Eating the porridge happily and training without mishap.

    What did the battle between new citizens and aristocratic families have to do with him? What did the future of the Avalon of Five Elements have to do with him? He was just a minor character without the will to carry the burdens of the world. He was also incapable of saving those trapped in the abyss or the fire pit.

    He had but one mission. Revenge.

    This was the only thing he had to aplish in this life, regardless of sess, failure, or death. The moment his Dragonspine pierced through his teacher¡¯s chest, his tiny life had been bestowed with the color of fresh blood.

    Yet, he did not wish for the others to apany him. He knew that this was a brutal journey with no return route. He did not want them to step into the abyss with him. All he wanted was for them to live on properly.

    With a slight smile, he listened to the ongoing discussion quietly without expressing his opinions.

    Perhaps the waves would return to their usual serenity when their enthusiasm blew over.

    Jiang Wei was the first to sense Ai Hui¡¯s calmness.

    They sat on the roof and looked over the training hall that was illuminated by the bonfire. People were still arriving every day, resulting in the hall being soaked in a perpetual merriment.

    Jiang Wei gazed at the distant mayor¡¯s residence and spoke suddenly, "Ai Hui, are you afraid of dragging us down?"

    Ai Hui did not know what to say.

    Jiang Wei added, "Ai Hui, are you of the opinion that hatred toward the Blood of God involves only you?"

    Ai Hui remained quiet.

    "It is not, Ai Hui." Jiang Wei continued in a low voice, "Other than the fact that we weren¡¯t forced to kill our own teacher, we¡¯re all no different."

    Ai Hui shuddered.

    "Our teachers, ssmates, friends, and rtives have died in Central Pine City." Jiang Wei¡¯s voice was a little hoarse at this point as he continued with a slightly trembling voice, "How many have died? We don¡¯t even know. You¡¯re not the only one seeking revenge. All of us are after it and have never forgotten. These people shall not die for nothing and bleed for nothing. How can revenge simply be forgotten?"

    "Ai Hui, do you really think we will be able to put aside the hatred and live on peacefully? The Elders Guild can do that. They have control over the Avalon of Five Elements and countless citizens. A small city is negligible as far as the state of the Avalon of Five Elements is concerned. They can tell themselves that they are doing it for the greater good of the Avalon of Five Elements, but we can¡¯t. We¡¯re unable to forget. Not now. Not in future. Not ever."

    "Central Pine City could have recovered its appearance with the "Cloth City" n, but would it have revived the corpses? Could the lost lives be recovered? Would our rtives and friendse back? Even now, we can¡¯t forget thatnd full of corpses and blood. People were falling to the ground nonstop. We still remember the fear and dread. We can¡¯t tell ourselves that this was a war and that we deserved it. We¡¯re unable to tell ourselves that this was war so just forget about it and live peacefully ever after."

    "F*ing war!"

    A sinister look shed across Jiang Wei¡¯s face.

    "Why would you think that revenge belongs only to you? Why did so many people resign? Because we did not forget about revenge? It¡¯s because we know that the Elders Guild is only after stability. New citizens or aristocratic families, we are going to pay blood with blood!"

    "Ai Hui, we¡¯re in the same boat," Jiang Wei concluded with these words, regained hisposure, and jumped off the roof.

    Ai Hui sat motionlessly on the rooftop.

 Chapter 322: Call Me Sister

    Chapter 322: Call Me Sister

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    Outside Jadeite City, the floating mountain peak pressed down on everybody¡¯s hearts like a big rock, suffocating them.

    Every passerby couldn¡¯t help but raise their head for a look at the lofty mountain peak. Under the sunlight, the words "Guardian of Five Elements" gave off an impression of boundless prestige and austerity. A ray of light would sh past asionally, reminding people of its danger.

    The God-subduing Peak entered Jadeite Forest and wherever it passed it evoked intense panic.

    The high officials and aristocratic families who had initially called for an alliance with Blood of God all vanished without a trace. And the elders, whom Shi Xueman invited on board to tour around and view the demonstration of its attacking power, were all ashen-faced with worry and unease.

    People with foresight understood that the appearance of God-subduing Peak would thoroughly change the battle form.

    Shi Xueman did not care too much since she was distracted by thetest news. Everything from the exposure of Ai Hui¡¯s identity, the destruction of Sha Guards and the public peddling of fire lotus seeds, to Miao Hai¡¯s challenge, Elders Guild¡¯smendation, the mirage bean pod that swept across the whole Avalon of Five Elements, and the attention-grabbing Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge.

    And she was still in high spirits, buying all the message bean pods with news about Ai Hui.

    The rest of the time she strolled in Jadeite Forest City, looking around and buying things.

    The sky was a dark blue color and the beautiful sunlight prated the lush forest, illuminating this jadeite green city. The season of blooming flowers hade again, with pink petals appearing like pieces of dreamy feathers drifting in the wind and making crisp bell sounds. It was the most beautiful season in Jadeite Forest. At night the feather flowers would emit a faint pinkish fluorescence. They were like night fairies.

    Walking under the bright sunlight and falling petals, amid the busy streets and crowd, Shi Xueman felt cheerful. She carried big paper bags that contained pastries she¡¯d purchased along the way. There were long forest baguettes and soft, sweet viridescent balls and seasonal fresh flower biscuits. There was also a fluffy, fragmented pale-blue wild flower that was given to her as a gift from the bakery boss.

    She walked into an alley and arrived at the entrance of a house. She knocked on the door.

    Creak. The main door opened and the person behind it looked at her, smiling. "You¡¯re quite early today."

    Shi Xueman smiled slightly. "I have nothing else to attend to anyway."

    She held onto the bags and stepped inside, closing the door behind her.

    Beside the main door was an old, broken wooden board that had the words "Society of Excellence" on it.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was training, saw Shi Xueman walking in. He couldn¡¯t help but mockinglyment, "People might think you¡¯re here for a holiday trip. Isn¡¯t it inappropriate for you to be idling like this? You¡¯re an honorable person in charge of a diplomatic mission after all."

    Shi Xueman tossed the snacks around to everyone while answering, "I¡¯ve aplished my mission. To intimidate you all with God-subduing Peak. What else do you want me to do? Find a wife for you?"

    Duanmu Huanghun stopped his training and responded in a resentful tone shortly, "Solve your own problems first. Don¡¯t forget that you¡¯re Iron Lady."

    Shi Xueman handed out thest pastry and rolled up the bags, throwing them into the bin. After that, she warmed up her fists and sneered, "Do you know why I¡¯m so early today? I¡¯m here to put you in order. If you can¡¯t even beat that She woman, why are you acting all mighty in front of me?"

    Being wise, the others held their pastry in their mouths and paved a space for them.

    Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong were the quickest.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face paled. He feigned coldness, shouting, "I¡¯m a gentleman. I will not fight against a woman! The rtionship between Jadeite Forest and the Avalon is very subtle. Do not jeopardize your mission. As Duanmu family¡¯s..."

    Shi Xueman remained unmoved. She raised her chin and kneaded her fists. "Call me sister!"

    Duanmu Huanghun flew into a rage. "Do not be a bully, Shi Xueman. This is Jadeite Forest. You don¡¯t want to provoke me..."

    Shi Xueman approached him while cracking her knuckles and stretching her shoulders. An unfathomable gush oftent elemental energy surfaced like a sea with a dangerous aura.

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Shi Xueman seemed to have grown taller. Tall enough to obstruct the sky and cast a devilish ck and dangerous shadow. Through the gaps between her teeth she smiled eerily, "Call me sister!"

    Duanmu Huanghun was like a frightened kitten, the hairs on his body standing on end. The recent, torturous training had sharpened his mental state and pushed his essence-breath-spirit to its peak. He narrowed his eyes, dangerous light rays flickering within. His voice was as cold and heart-piercing as a knife as he released his concealed and fatal blow in a straightforward manner, "Fine!"

    The cold winter turned to warm spring as Duanmu Huanghun broke into a big smile. "Sister Xueman!"

    Dead silence.

    Thud. The pastries in Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong¡¯s mouths fell onto the floor as they stood motionlessly with their jaws wide open. Those around them were dumbstruck as well.

    Brother Huanghun...

    The dangerous aura Shi Xueman had been emitting just a moment ago vanished in a puff of smoke.The raging sea returned to its usual calmness in an instant as the sunlight pierced through the ck clouds above the sea.

    A bright, sunshine-like smile appeared on Shi Xueman¡¯s face. "Did you call me Iron Lady earlier?"

    Duanmu Huanghun replied righteously, "Back in the day when Ai Hui came up with that nickname for you, I was strongly against it. However, my position was lowly and my words didn¡¯t carry much weight. He was domineering and out of control, absolutely unrestrained and evil. You must teach him a lesson, Sister Xueman!"

    Gentleness returned to her face as she said, "You don¡¯t have to tell me that."

    Expressionless, Duanmu Huanghun turned to Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong. "It seems like the training schedule is too empty since you two are so free. Double the training today."

    That scoundrel¡¯s method is really handy!

    Quivering, Yu Ziyi and Wu Qirong turned pale. They looked pleadingly at Shi Xueman.

    Shi Xueman sighed. "Should we discuss the training load? Would tripling it be more reasonable?"

    Shi Xueman was well aware of how Ai Hui had done it in the past.

    Everybody¡¯s face turned whiter as they hurriedly sneaked away, leaving only the four of them in the courtyard.

    Shi Xueman turned around suddenly, "Aren¡¯t you guys going for the porridge feast?"

    Duanmu Huanghun answered after a short silence, "I¡¯m afraid we might make thing more troublesome if we go."

    Shi Xueman knew that he was speaking the truth.

    Under the circumstances, the Avalon had been forced to rope Jadeite Forest in. Jadeite Forest, which had just revolted against the Avalon, was regarded as traitorous in the eyes of Elders Guild. Because of its rtionship with Jadeite Forest, the Elders Guild would do anything to ensure Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s safety if he appeared in the Avalon. However, this did not mean that the Elders Guild would tolerate his other behaviors.

    Because of his special background, it was easy for his actions to be misinterpreted, and yet he had no power to defend himself. Even if the Elders Guild worried about their association, they could send people to escort him back to Jadeite Forest.

    Shi Xueman spoke up. "I never expected him to stir up something so huge."

    "I¡¯m curious as to what path he¡¯ll take." A strange smile emerged on Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face. "Ai Hui and his gang do not understand the filthy affairs that are going on between the aristocratic families and the new citizens, but we do. In Elders Guild¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui and his gang are together with Central Pine Faction. Such a big group operating as the backbone of the Avalon of Five Elements... how fun."

    Shi Xueman shot him a sideways nce. "Are you gloating?"

    Duanmu Haunghunughed. "I¡¯m looking forward to seeing what that fellow will do. Don¡¯t you think that whatever matter he bumps into, he¡¯s always making the unpopr choice?"

    Shi Xueman smiled. "True."

    Duanmu Huanghun kept his smile and added coolly, "There¡¯s no space for Ai Hui in the aristocratic families. Joining New Citizen Faction would be meaningless too. Otherwise, why would Ye Baiyi rely on Blood of God for support?"

    Shi Xueman remained silent.

    "Ye Baiyi figured out that there¡¯s no future for New Citizen Faction. It¡¯s been over a thousand years. The connection between Avalon and Old Territory has long been severed. Resources are required for the training of elemental energy. When there were ample resources, talented practitioners were picked out from Old Territory to add new blood to the Avalon of Five Elements, which is a good thing. Now resources are so scarce that even its own people are facing shortages. How was it going to gather anything for Old Territory? Old Territory is now a burden to the Avalon of Five Elements. It has been a burden ever since before the construction of the new Avalon of Five Elements waspleted. But abandoning Old Territory is equivalent to thoroughly abandoning its roots, so how did the new citizens do it?"

    Duanmu Huanghun spoke calmly but his words hit the nail on the head.

    An intense helplessness rose in Shi Xueman¡¯s heart. She knew that he was right.

    "The aristocratic families will win since they are purer. They are the only ones who will have the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s interests at heart. New citizens will lose because they have to tend to everything. They are unable to think from both perspectives of the Avalon of Five Elements and Old Territory."

    Gloom took over Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s handsome face. "Old Territory belongs to Blood of God. I don¡¯t know who created blood elementalists. Damn it. Blood elementalists do not consume much resources, which means that people from Old Territory can train. Those who are unable to train can choose to train as blood elementalists. Who do you think these people would choose?"

    A mocking look appeared on his face as he pointed to the horizon where God-subduing Peak was. "Can¡¯t you already tell from that big fellow the Elders Guild hase up with? They¡¯re trying to stop the war, right? Using this big fellow to seal off the front line before reconstructing the Avalon of Five Elements. Heh heh, they never would¡¯ve thought that Blood of God also can¡¯t wait for the battle to end so that they can take possession of Old Territory. How many people are there in Old Territory? How many times that of the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s poption? Ten percent of the poption is going to be blood elementalists. Hahaha, Elders Guild¡¯s waiting to be ughtered! A bunch of short-sighted morons!"

    These words fell on Shi Xueman¡¯s ear like a sudden p of thunder. Her limbs were cold. She asked, "Any solutions?"

    Feeling jittery inside, Duanmu Huanghun responded, "What solutions can I possibly have? Go and ask Ai Hui."

    At that he became distracted. On second thought he felt he was a little mental. Ai Hui was rather powerful but far from being able to solve such issues.

    Noticing Shi Xueman¡¯s pale face he sighed, "Don¡¯t think too much. Let the big guys fret. She Yu is preparing to slip away tonight, probably because she¡¯s figured out the Elders Guild¡¯s intention."

    Shi Xueman asked abruptly, "How do you know?"

    "Inside news." Duanmu Huanghun waved his hand.

    Shi Xueman walked toward the door without turning her head back. With murderous eyes she yelled, "I¡¯m gonna kill that bitch!"

    Duanmu Huanghun was stunned, but his face quickly changed. He shouted for her while making chase.

    "Hey hey hey! Don¡¯t be rash, don¡¯t be rash... Count me in!"

 Chapter 323: Watch the Door

    Chapter 323: Watch the Door

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Cui Tianzheng observed Shi Xueman. He could vaguely see Shi Beihai¡¯s spirit in her perseverance and stubbornness. They even had the same disregard forw and nature.

    "Have you considered the consequences?"

    His tone was peaceful.

    "I did." Shi Xueman said calmly as she met Uncle Cui¡¯s gaze.

    "Bringing Duanmu Huanghun on board and revealing God-subduing Peak¡¯s secret. Using God-subduing Peak without permission, killing Blood of God¡¯s diplomatic mission in Jadeite Forest... Have you thought about Elders Guild¡¯s reaction?"

    Shi Xueman answered in a low voice, "I did. These were my selfish decisions. No one else is to be med so I¡¯m willing to take all responsibility for my actions."

    Cui Tianzheng looked at her meaningfully. "Why are you so anxious? With your current speed, you can take over your father in another ten years. Twenty years after, and the future of the Avalon of Five Elements will belong to you all. You just have to follow the order. Everything is yours. Be it taking revenge or returning favors, you can act ording to your wishes."

    "I know," Shi Xueman nodded. "but I also know that once I ept these things, I will have to obey them. I will have to ept whatever task they give me, whether I like it or not. It¡¯s not mine if I don¡¯t ept it. They need people who are willing to conform."

    Duanmu Huanghun, who was standing beside her,ughed silently. He was born into an influential family and knew exactly how Shi Xueman felt.

    The one wearing the crown must bear its weight. Good things were either too difficult to get a hold of, or obtained at the expense of everything else.

    Cui Tianzheng pleaded earnestly, "Youngsters need patience. What can¡¯t be done once you have the power? You have a long life ahead of you."

    Shi Xueman shook her head. "I will be old by then. I should do what the twenty year old me wants to when I¡¯m twenty, do what the thirty year old me wants to when I¡¯m thirty, and do what the forty year old me wants to when I¡¯m forty. I should do whatever, whenever I feel like. There¡¯s no point waiting. I won¡¯t be able to do anything when I¡¯m old."

    Duanmu Huanghun was startled by her words.

    Cui Tianzheng asked helplessly, "Aren¡¯t you afraid of dragging your father down?"

    Shi Xueman blinked. "Those were my father¡¯s words."

    Cui Tianzheng sat mute, only shaking his head after a long time. "Both father and daughter are really worrisome. Okay then, since my duty is to ensure that God-subduing Peak does not fall into enemy hands. You¡¯re in charge of everything else, so I¡¯ll leave it up to you."

    As a Master, Cui Tianzheng held a high position. As for God-subduing Peak being snatched away? He wasn¡¯t the least bit worried. Even if Dai Gang were to attempt it personally, he would have to pay a huge price in order to seize it.

    "Let¡¯s go then."

    Shi Xuemanmanded straightforwardly.

    Citizens of Jadeite Forest were shocked to see God-subduing Peak light up suddenly in the night outside the city.

    Whoosh whoosh. The thick and solid old vine was like a chained anchor, freshly pulled up from the sea. On its faint, transparent glowing shield, streaks of dazzling light scars were flickering non-stop.

    The giant peak sailed unhurriedly in the sky with its intense elemental energy waves dispersing in the air. The gale swept that across Jadeite City and God-subduing Peak was a gradually migrating elemental energy windstorm.

    Could it be that God-subduing Peak was really going to attack Jadeite Forest City?

    An intense fear shrouded the city.

    .....

    Outside Peace City.

    A typical yet eye-catching Old Territory-style caravan could be seen.

    It was different from the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s. Old Territory was home to a vast jumble of people. The pace of living was slower and many customs and habits from the cultivation era remained here. Of course, in the eyes of people in the Avalon of Five Elements, those traditions were in patches and useless.

    There was a shortage of resources and elemental energies was scarce. Additionally, it used to be the core of the Cultivation Era, so there were many artifacts and grotto-heavens left behind by the sects that were now seen as garbage.

    Old Territory¡¯s patchy style had always been this way ¨C the upper body was covered in sturdy armor that was refined by body-tempering sect from thirty thousand years ago, and the lower body was covered in skirt armor fashioned by some sect from seventy thousand years ago. People carried a cult-ish chopper from an unknown period and they either had a priest hat or conical bamboo hat on their head. Shoes were the most cumbersome; only overflowing luck would allow someone to find a matching pair.

    Most wore different shoes on both feet and businessmen racked their brains over this issue. For example, if one had Tigerhead Wind-resistant Shoe on the left foot and Greendragon-On-Cloud Shoe on the right, thebination is called Walking Dragon, Sprinting Tiger. Other shoes like Idlecloud Wild Crane, Double Sword and ming Wind Assistance could fetch a good price.

    But in these past few years, due to wars, prices rose ridiculously. It was absolutely impossible for things to be like in the past, where items were sold by weight.

    Even Silver Mist Sea, which was unlocked twice every month, changed to just once a month. In order to prevent the volume of water from dropping too low, Silver Mist Sea tried to empty out the golden ores to increase the metal elemental energy in the sea.

    Old Territory¡¯s patchy style had been a topic of ridicule in the Avalon of Five Elements. To them, it represented retrogress, poverty and decay.

    Nevertheless, when the Old Territory caravan appeared outside Peace City, many pairs of eyes turned bloodshot. That seemingly patched up bit of treasure was actually worth quite a lot today.

    All thanks to that damned Blood of God!

    Blood of God practiced blood spiritual force so some artifacts could still function in their hands. This led directly to a price hike in those artifact remnants.

    People¡¯s eyes were red but no one dared to do anything. For any caravan to move about so boldly in the Avalon of Five Elements, it must not be an easy target. A few guards from the caravan were legitimate elementalists with decent abilities. They were swift and fierce, and their gears were impressive.

    "Screw it, why am I feeling a little nervous? Let me have a sweet to calm my nerves."

    The leader of the caravan was a solidly armored fatty. He took a malt candy out and popped it into his mouth with a cackling sound.

    I have to show Ai Hui the result of three years of hard work!

    I haven¡¯t just been doing nothing these three years!

    A Hui, get ready to be shocked!

    He chomped the candy down, gnashing his teeth. He¡¯d been suffering for three bitter years for this moment. He took a deep breath and stopped a passerby.

    "Excuse me, may I know how to get to Swordsman Training Hall?"

    .....

    Swordsman Training Hall entrance.

    There were two more figures beside Venerable Volcano this time. Devilish Tong Gui and icily arrogant Yu Jin were in difort. The duo had urgently gathered a batch of precious ingredients, finally getting the chance to get a bowl of congee.

    But they were called out by Tian Huzun to watch the door with him even before they could step into the training hall.

    When Venerable Volcano spoke, none dared to disobey.

    The pitiful Sky Edge Division¡¯s vice division leaders had never guarded the door for anyone. With eyes on them, both felt ufortable all over.

    Yet, Tian Huzun directed them non-stop and they had no choice but to lower their heads and obey.

    "...Don¡¯t let anyone in easily. This is our principle. Look, you guys went to so much effort but have yet to drink the porridge. Others got it so easily, can you bear this? If I were you guys, I wouldn¡¯t be able to. Hmm, since Old Yuchi is here, let¡¯s just fight first. It¡¯s not like we haven¡¯t fought anyway."

    Cold sweat poured out of their bodies as they tried to breathe as quietly as they could.

    Tian Huzun became excited, waving his hand in big motions. "The trick to guarding is to control your eyes! Like a staring contest, you need a fierce gaze so those who are trying to take advantage will cower upon meeting your gaze. As the saying goes, a gentleman is magnanimous whereas a vile person conceals his intention. Hey! Who let you in?"

    Already in front of the entrance, the middle-aged man jumped up in fright. His face changed upon getting a clear view of who the three men by the door were.

    The middle-aged man instantly gave a charming look and dashed toward Tong Gui and Yu Jin, saying respectfully, "But Tong Gui and Yu Jin? I¡¯m He Cheng, a teacher of Dragonrise Training Hall. The hall owner heard that Miao Hai¡¯d challenged Ai Hui to a battle without reporting to the headquarters and was furious about it. In order to apologize, he specially sent your humble one to prepare a gift that expresses our sincere apologies toward Sir Ai Hui. Who would¡¯ve thought that I¡¯d be lucky enough to bump into you masters here. How honored..."

    He Cheng¡¯s tone was passionate and he spoke really fast.

    "Dragonrise Training Hall..." A ray of light shed across Tong Gui¡¯s eyes as he made eye contact with Yu Jin.

    Dragonrise had a profound background. The owner, Yang Zhen, wasn¡¯t somebody they were willing to provoke.

    Tong Gui was about to open his mouth when he heard Tian Huzun¡¯s impatient voice, "Put the things down and leave."

    He Cheng flew into a rage. "You old fellow, I¡¯ll have you know that this is the owner¡¯s good intention..."

    Bang!

    A foot smashed into He Cheng¡¯s face. As if he¡¯d been knocked right over by a sprinting, violent, wild beast, he flew more than thirty meters away, losing consciousness.

    Tong Gui¡¯s pupils instantly shrunk. That leg...

    He¡¯d seen it clearly. There was a golden dragon symbol on He Cheng¡¯s garment. He was a golden dragon teacher. If that teacher wasn¡¯t able to block that kick, would he himself have been able to dodge it?"

    Tong Gui broke out in a cold sweat. He wasn¡¯t the least bit confident.

    Tian Huzun casually picked up the items off the ground. They were the gifts He Cheng had carried with him. The old man was extremely displeased. "That fellow is great and all, except that he¡¯s a stingy miser and will not stand losing out at all."

    Fatty, who¡¯d arrived at the entrance and witnessed the scene, was dumbstruck.

    The caravan guards had the same pale look on their faces.

    A thought struck the guard leader, causing his expression to worsen. He whispered in Fatty¡¯s ear in a low voice, "That old man is Venerable Volcano, Tian Huzun. He¡¯s a Master! The masked man is Sky Edge Division¡¯s vice division leader, Tong Gui, and Yu Jin is the woman beside him, a vice division leader as well."

    "Watching the door is a small matter. How are you gonna aplish anything great if you can¡¯t even handle something so trivial..."

    The old man lectured endlessly.

    Sweat meandered down Fatty¡¯s chubby face as his clothing became soaked with it. Fear filled his beady eyes.

    Watching the door...

    Ai Hui¡¯s doormen actually consist of a Master and two vice division leaders of a division!

    Why were his calves shaking?

    Was he in the wrong ce?

    "Excuse me three gentlemen, is... is this Ai Hui¡¯s Swordsman Training Hall?"

    Fatty¡¯s voice was trembling uncontrobly but no one behind was mocking him. They were in a worser mental state. Before a Master and two vice division leaders, it was already very brave of those who dared talk to them without kneeling down.

    The old man gave him a look. "That fellow said he has a fat friend named Qian Dai. Is that you?"

    "Yes yes yes!" Fatty answered agitatedly. In this split second, he felt a sense of pride and hadpletely forgotten that he was here to brag.

    The team members beside him stood up straight, puffing their chests out with a proud expression on their faces.

    "You can go in, but not the rest."

    The old man gave a wave.

    Really watching the door...

    Fatty swallowed his saliva with some difficulty, quickly bending at his waist in agreeance. Damn it, he had never seen such a VIP!

    But another thought quickly filled his mind. Ai Hui was rich now!

    Oh my, I¡¯m going to be rich too!

    Walking into the hall muddle-headed, Fatty heard a joyful voice suddenly.

    "Long time no see! Fatty, I¡¯m so happy to see you!"

    Fatty jerked a little before raising his head.

    He saw that familiar figure standing before him, smiling and Lou Lan cheering at him with his arms raised.

    Countless figures gathered before him. There were people from the Wilderness and Central Pine City. Tears blurred his vision and when he could see clearly again, Fatty¡¯s mouth trembled as he started to cry.

    "Ai Hui!"

 Chapter 324: Impossible To Understand

    Chapter 324: Impossible To Understand

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    "Nonsense!"

    An angry boom echoed through the meeting room. Great Elder seldom got angry on the monthly Bigtree Meeting.

    The Bigtree Meeting was the most highly regarded meeting in all of the Avalon of Five Elements. Every Elder had to participate in this monthly gathering. Because the Elders were powerful and busy figures, it was difficult for all of them to assemble. As such, the Avalon forked out a tremendous sum to grow 13 elder trees.

    Each elder tree had only 13 leaves and each leaf was about the size of a tabletop. It could project an Elder¡¯s silhouette onto the leaf surface such that he appeared to be standing on it.

    As such, this monthly Elders Guild meeting was coined the Bigtree Meeting.

    "Look, using God-subduing Peak without permission, attacking the Blood of God¡¯s diplomatic mission, and causing heavy losses. Over 20 dead! Triggering panic throughout the Jadeite Forest! And kidnapping Duanmu Huanghun! Look at our diplomatic mission teammander! This is the future leader whom we¡¯d selected! What are we doing?"

    "Is there such a thing? Is that girl crazy?"

    "This must stop! How are we going to function if peoplee in and do as they please? I suggest severe punishment!"

    "It must be severe! Youngsters like her need to be taught a good lesson, but we¡¯d have to inform Shi Beihai first!"

    The Elders were talking fervently over one another.

    Just then, an Elder¡¯s expression turned strange as he spoke, "Wait, everybody."

    The other Elders turned around sessively.

    "A report from Shi Beihai came earlier. Everyone should see it."

    "North Sea Division member, Shi Xueman, has seriously broken the rules. She was willful, irresponsible, and has severely affected the interests of the Avalon of Five Elements. After a discussion, the North Sea Division has agreed to expel Shi Xueman as a disciplinary action."

    The Elders looked at each other in confusion and did not know what to say. Everyone quieted down.

    Shortly, an Elder slowly started to speak up, "Why is Shi Beihai being so rash? Don¡¯t youngsters all make mistakes? It¡¯s normal for them to be impulsive. A little polishing should do the trick."

    "Yeah, it¡¯s over, already over. Why the need to go this far!"

    "I¡¯ve seen Xueman grow up and she¡¯s always been sensible and clever. She¡¯s been through the blood battle of Central Pine, and her animosity toward the Blood of God did get the better of her, but it shouldn¡¯t be surprising. She¡¯s young after all."

    "The panic in the Jadeite Forest isn¡¯t a bad thing from what I see. Weren¡¯t we trying to intimidate them by sending the God-subduing Peak there? We did well!"

    "Shi Beihai is really too rigid and harsh!"

    ...

    The Elders had a headache.

    As the division leader of North Sea Division, Shi Beihai had the power to make such a decision. Even as elders, they weren¡¯t able to stop him. However, they really did think highly of Shi Xueman and saw her as the leader of the next generation. Shi Beihai¡¯s direct deration of her discharge would damage her future prospects heavily, especially in the next election.

    Some Elders held flickering gazes since they were secretly pleased.

    In thepetition among the new generation, Shi Xueman was leading significantly and everyone saw it as foregone conclusion. Who would¡¯ve imagined that she would actually do something as silly as this to withdraw from the race and ruin her own future.

    Elders with outstanding sons within their families started to get restless.

    Seeing the change in the Elders¡¯ expressions, a bitter smile appeared on the corner of Yuchi Ba¡¯s mouth. His ns had beenpletely messed up.

    Flying at full speed, the God-subduing Peak was like a wave-splitting whale, smashing the sharp, bitingly cold wind into pieces that flew in all directions. Even as it was moving at such a high speed, however, the God-subduing Peak remained as motionless and stable as a boulder.

    The sea of clouds in front was thick and the mountain range could only be seen from the bottom.

    "Cloud Ridge is just ahead." Sang Zhijun smiled gleefully. "It¡¯s great that we¡¯ll be able to make it in time for Lou Lan¡¯s porridge feast."

    Including Shi Xueman, there were many other Central Pine survivors who¡¯d tendered their resignation together and had received approval.

    "Is it worth it?" Duanmu Huanghun asked suddenly. He simply could not understand what these people were thinking.

    "Of course!" Shi Xueman answered bluntly. "Just thinking about being able to reunite with everyone makes me super happy. I don¡¯t know why but I¡¯m just so happy. No messy andplicated matters. No distracting thoughts and qualms."

    "Yeah." Sang Zhijun smiled as well. "In the past, I thought that battling blood elementalists and beasts was tiring and terrifying, but aftering out, I realized that there were many things that were more tedious and horrifying than those."

    Duanmu Huanghun felt rather envious.

    "Don¡¯t forget that you¡¯re a hostage!" Shi Xueman red at Duanmu Huanghun, but was unable to stifle a smile. "You have a good brain and many evil tricks up your sleeves, so think hard about what everybody should do. Ai Hui will whack you if you can¡¯te up with any good solutions."

    "Hostage?" Duanmu Huanghun reacted. "Yeah, I got kidnapped. The Jadeite Forest is asking you guys what the Elders Guild wants?"

    "Oh well." Shi Xueman blinked before saying, " I forgot to tell you that I¡¯ve been expelled from the North Sea Division."

    "Ex... expelled by the North Sea Division?" Duanmu Huanghun almost lost his voice. "Is that even possible?"

    "No choice. That¡¯s what you get when you have a great father. Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve already written a letter to inform him that you¡¯re doing fine."

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes lit up. Yeah, he was a hostage. Did that not mean that he was free? He felt cheery instantly, as if the bright sunlight had driven away the dark clouds and night sky. He was inexplicably agitated.

    He was finally experiencing the happiness that Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun had just been talking about earlier.

    That¡¯s right, simply happy!

    All of a sudden, he was looking forward to his future and became overwhelmed by it all.

    The God-subduing Peak flew past Cloud Ridge and descended rapidly, charging into the boundless pitch-ck sea of clouds. Amid the whistling wind, they held their breaths as if waiting for something.

    Crashing through the sea of clouds and thest wisp of fog, a bustling city entered their field of view. Everybody cheered in harmony.

    "Uncle Cui, I¡¯ll leave the God-subduing Peak to you. We¡¯ll get going now!"

    Shi Xueman bid Cui Tianzheng goodbye confidently before grabbing Duanmu Huanghun and leaping out.

    "Let go! I can fly by myself!"

    "Shut it! Such a pesky hostage!"

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s resentful voice and Shi Xueman¡¯s chiding tone filled the air.

    "Bye, Master Cui!"

    Sang Zhijun and the others bowed, smiled at everyone else, and cheered before running toward the edge of the summit and leaping down.

    Cui Tianzheng smiled slightly. How good it was to be young!"

    Cui Tianzheng suddenly felt a fondness toward these youngsters. He felt the thriving vitality they possessed. Apletely different kind of vigor whenpared to that of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    When he looked at the vastnd and the distant blue sky, he was filled with hope all of a sudden.

    .....

    Swordsman Training Hall entrance.

    "Shi Xueman was being expelled from North Sea Divsion?"

    A member of the Sky Edge Division quicklynded before Tong Gui and gave his report in a low voice. Tong Gui opened his eyes wide and even Yu Jin¡¯s never-changing face revealed a hint of shock.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin were genuinely shocked. Shi Xueman¡¯s poprity had been rising daily for three years. She had long since been referred to and acknowledged as the number one member of the new generation.

    Of noble origin, Shi family was one of the longest standing aristocratic family in the whole history of Avalon of Five Elements. Furthermore, Shi Beihai was the division leader of North Sea Division and had overflowing power.

    Be it her family background, abilities, or character, she was number one without contention.

    Almost everyone opined that she would exceed her father¡¯s aplishments and be the future leader of the Avalon of Five Elements. New citizens thought so as well.

    New citizens had never thought of fighting against the aristocratic families for that position because they were simply too weak. They upied only three out of 13 seats in the Elders Guild. Neutral Faction held three as well and the remaining seven seats were taken by the respective aristocratic families. Basically, when it came to decision making, the families could easily put ns into effect without any hindrance.

    New citizens absolutely did not think about fighting for the first position. They merely hoped to expand their freedom of speech.

    Their previous target was Jiang Wei, but they realizedter on that Ai Hui was the better candidate.

    The aristocratic families were worried that Ai Hui would steal Shi Xueman¡¯s limelight, whereas new citizens focused on the unique rtionship between those two. Ai Hui had better abilities than Jiang Wei, and his reputation and influence were not things Jiang Wei couldpete with. Plus, Shi Xueman had even once assumed the role of Ai Hui¡¯s assistant.

    Shi Xueman had more respect for Ai Hui than for Jiang Wei.

    When Shi Xueman took charge of the Avalon of Five Elements in future, they could push Ai Hui into the Elders Guild. That way, Ai Hui would undoubtedly have decent speaking power, something the new citizens intended.

    Yet, in just one night, circumstances had changed drastically.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin were caught unprepared. They had a clearer picture of Old Ba¡¯s idea.

    In this way, previous ns fell through just like that. If Shi Xueman did not be the Avalon¡¯s leader, Ai Hui¡¯s value would drop greatly as well.

    Even worse, it was difficult for Ai Hui to be a threat to Shi Xueman. Toward other candidates, however, it was a different story.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin had splitting headaches.

    This could lead the aristocratic families to erroneously think that the new citizens were after the first position. If unresolved, new citizens would bepletely suppressed by the aristocratic families. This was precisely what the new citizens wanted to avoid.

    If both parties broke out in a full-fledged fight, the new citizens were sure to lose.

    What now?

    Both of them were at a loss. Things changed too quickly, catching them off guard.

    Suddenly, a group of people appeared in the alleyway.

    "I have not seen Lou Lan in a long time. I miss him!"

    "Lou Lan healthcare!"

    "I want porridge!"

    ...

    Wait. Tong Gui and Yu Jin¡¯s pupils shrank immediately as they fixed their gaze on the foremost, beautiful figure.

    Shi... Shi Xueman!

    They made eye contact and saw the shock in each other¡¯s eyes.

    Shi Xueman, who had just be expelled by the North Sea Division, was actually in Peace City to visit Ai Hui¡¯s Swordsman Training Hall. Beside her was her assistant, Sang Zhijun. And could that person she was carrying... be Duanmu Huanghun?

    No way...

    They both felt as if they¡¯d been struck by lightning as their minds turned nk.

    What was going on?

    Why was it getting harder and harder for them to understand?

 Chapter 325: Porridge Almost Done

    Chapter 325: Porridge Almost Done

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    The news that Shi Xueman was expelled and was heading for Ai Hui¡¯s Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge feast spread across Avalon of Five Elements like a wildfire.

    The whole Avalon was in an uproar.

    As the number one of the new generation, Shi Xueman was the most perfect goddess in the eyes of ordinary people. She was born into a noble family, trained hard since young, homeschooled, well-mannered, tenacious, and responsible. She had never ever had any negative publicity.

    As if the news of her abrupt expulsion was not already earth-shattering, her appearance at the Swordsman Training Hall in Peace City triggered endless wild thoughts.

    Many people felt that it was a pity since it was now impossible for her to be the next leader. None of the sessive Great Elders of the Avalon of Five Elements had ever made such a grave mistake.

    Other than regret, people also felt curious as to what Ai Hui was like as a person.

    When Central Pine survivors from all over gathered in Peace City, everyone saw how much influence Ai Hui had over these people. Even Shi Xueman came, pushing Ai Hui¡¯s poprity up a few notches.

    Because of this matter, no one talked about the master murderer incident anymore. Would Shi Xueman still have came if Ai Hui was really such a vile character?

    The most troubling issue was still regarding the New Citizen Faction.

    Without the support of the new citizens, Ai Hui was merely a rootless duckweed. No matter how popr he was, he would be no different from Tian Huzun and unable to contend for the position of the next Great Elder. The aristocratic families viewed this as insignificant.

    Yet, with the support of the new citizens, Ai Hui was highly likely to be the next Great Elder, thus bing a threat.

    In other words, if the new citizens supported Ai Hui, it was equivalent to them dering their intention of taking the position of the next Great Elder. Undoubtedly, that would lead to a full-on protest from the aristocratic families¡¯ side.

    On the other hand, if they gave up on Ai Hui, it meant that they would be offending the whole Central Pine faction. To the aristocratic families, they would still have sufficient power even without the Central Pine faction. To the new citizens, however, losing the Central Pine Faction, where 90% of the members were new citizens, would cause a long-term loss.

    To the new citizens, it was a tough decision to make.

    To Ai Hui and gang, they had no time to worry about these fights and schemes.

    Shi Xueman and her group¡¯s arrival pushed the party atmosphere to a new high.

    The core group of Central Pine survivors were all here.

    Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun, Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun, Wang Xiaoshan, and the A-1 unit. One could easily imagine the excitement and joy this reunion brought.

    The busiest was Bangwan.

    "Bangwan, I heard you got defeated by One Thousand Yuan?"

    "Bangwan, I heard you¡¯re here as a hostage?"

    "Bangwan, I heard you got intoxicated in brothels every night?"

    "Bangwan, I heard you¡¯re looking for a wife? Want us to help you arrange a blind date?"

    "Bangwan..."

    "Big Sister is still the best! Or else Bangwan would still be getting drunk in brothels!"

    Lou Lan was busily boiling the Eight Treasures Porridge.

    There was a big iron cooking pot, andplicated patterns were drawn on the ground. It was a spell formation. Up until now, the earth fire had already been burning for a whole 10 days. More than 1,000 elemental essence beans and 200 blood crystals had been consumed, while the number of precious ingredients thrown in was uncountable.

    In all of Lou Lan¡¯s elemental cooking career, this was his first time taking on such arge-scale project.

    On one hand, seeing expensive ingredients carelessly being thrown into the pot everyday made Fatty¡¯s heart ache, but on the other hand, the fragrance drifting out of the pot made him drool freely.

    Fatty could not endure it any longer. "Lou Lan, how much longer do you need?"

    "It¡¯s almost done." Lou Lan cheered on, "Go, go, Fatty, hang in there."

    Fatty was a fire elementalist, and over the past three years, he had never stopped training. He had long since attained elemental externalization and could help Lou Lan brew the Eight Treasures Porridge.

    But, Lou Lan¡¯s preparation method was quite different from the others.

    The drawings on the ground were spell formations were called elemental energy formations, and they were products Ai Hui had researched ording to his master¡¯s theories. Fatty did not quite understand elemental energy formations, but as a fire elementalist, he had a deeper understanding of mes than most.

    The mes used to cook the Eight Treasures Porridge were from the subterranean earth fire, but Fatty could guarantee that he had never seen such fierce mes. Plus, the mes were exceptionally condensed. He could no longer feel any heatwaves upon walking mere steps away from the fire.

    As a fire elementalist, he knew just how difficult this was.

    These three years, other than his artifact remnant business, he had not been the least bitzy when it came to training. He was no longer that insensible and ignorant newbie. He was no longer thatzy fatty who wanted to lie down all day to bask in the sun.

    Lou Lan was a sand puppet made for controlling earth, not fire elemental energy.

    The concentrated, zing me before his eyes came from this so called elemental energy formation. Having done business for three years, Fatty saw things very differently now. One look and he could tell that this elemental energy formation possessed an immense value.

    "Ai Hui, this elemental energy formation is good stuff. Are there any other types?"

    Ai Hui looked at Fatty, somewhat bbergasted. He never thought that Fatty would the first person to notice its value. He asked curiously, "What do you think this is good for?"

    "Many things!" Fatty¡¯s spirit rose. "I¡¯ve never seen such a powerful earth fire. It can be used to forge metal and brew elemental soup. If it¡¯s too expensive, can¡¯t we find cheaper ingredients to make a fire pool? Even if we use it to breed Inferno Dragonsnakes, we will strike it rich. Fire type ingredients are very valuable since the Fire Prairie is gone and other earth fire aren¡¯t powerful enough. Plus, isn¡¯t the lesser Avalon going to be reconstructed? There will be fire elemental cities, so fire elemental ingredients will be in great demand. We will make huge profits by obtaining batches of those ingredients."

    "Sure, Fatty. I see that the past three years have not been wasted." Ai Hui sized Fatty up andmented in shock, "You did not reduce in size, but your knowledge and experience have increased decently, eh."

    "Just a little less than you." Fatty acted humble, but the satisfaction on his face simply could not be concealed.

    Still, after seeing the luxurious lineup of door guards, Fatty felt it was better for him to be less showy.

    Just then, Lou Lan reminded them, "The porridge is almost ready!"

    Ai Hui and Fatty¡¯s attention was immediately drawn to the aroma that filled the air. The porridge in the big pot was like glueyva, bubbling nonstop. As each bubble burst, the fragrance in the air thickened.

    The training hall turned quieter as everybody¡¯s gaze fell to where Lou Lan was standing. How sweet smelling!

    Gulp.

    The sound of someone swallowing his saliva rang loud and clear through the hall, but no oneughed at him since they could all feel their saliva starting to overflow.

    The light in Tian Huzun¡¯s eyes brightened. He felt touched. He had the strongest abilities and could tell better than anyone else that this exotic, delicate fragrance was not an ordinary scent, but a type that was made up of extremelyplex elemental energy.

    Elemental energy¡¯s delicate fragrance!

    No one else would recognize this, but being experienced and knowledgeable, Tian Huzun had seen it before from the strongest dire beast he had ever encountered in his life!

    A deep space sperm whale!

    By chance, he had met a deep space sperm whale, thousands of miles up in the sky. The sight of the whale swimming about leisurely was unforgettable. Wherever it passed, a delicate fragrance curled up like fallen petals.

    That exotic, delicate fragrance was elemental energy!

    Elemental energy fragrance was different from other forms. One would still be unable to block it off even if he or she shut off your sense of smell. This fragrance was essentially made up ofplicated, ever-changing elemental energy.

    Tian Huzun clearly remembered that he was looking at that whale with eyes wide open As it swam past him, his mind went nk momentarily.

    He was pleasantly surprised. Before, he was still somewhat in doubt, but at this point, he was 100% sure that this porridge was really extraordinary!

    No one could resist this delicate fragrance.

    Other organisms, not just humans, had no power to resist such a scent as well.

    "Ai Hui, I¡¯m going to throw the fire lotus seeds in now!"

    Lou Lan¡¯s voice roused Ai Hui. Putting in the fire lotus seeds was thest step. Ai Hui did not forget Lou Lan¡¯s reminder that this step might cause an ident.

    Ai Hui asked Lou Lan what might happen, but Lou Lan was also uncertain since he had never cooked such an expensive elemental cuisine before.

    "Be alert, everybody."

    Ai Hui shouted at the top of his voice, asking everybody to stand guard.

    He was unsure what situation would arise, but it was always better to be prepared.

    Shi Xueman and the others quickly regained their alertness, and their faces changed slightly. They stood guard in their respective positions. They had always hadplete confidence in Ai Hui¡¯s judgments. While they did not know why he asked everyone to be on guard at this time, everyone knew that something was definitely going to happen.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin¡¯s eyes met, and they both saw the bafflement in each other¡¯s eyes. Could it be that someone was here to steal the porridge?

    Nevertheless, Tian Huzun picked up that greasy fire vat without a word and hovered into the air gracefully. At this moment, there was a solemn look on his disheveled face.

    Perhaps there really was such a turn of events?

    Right now, all of Lou Lan¡¯s attention was on the big pot. The light in his eyes flickered as he concentrated.

    His fingers moved quickly as fire lotus seeds appeared and disappeared out of sight. Moving very naturally, the shadow of his fingers was like a blossoming flower. The sight of elemental energy surging between his fingers was dazzling.

    The outer shells of the fire lotus seeds were like a mixture of ice and snow, revealing the red ceramic-like lotus seed kernels. In the center was a wisp of weak me, the lotus seed core.

    The sparkling and translucent fire lotus seed kernels drew a beautiful parab before falling into a bubble that had just burst.

    Whoosh. A wisp of me red up from the porridge. An astonishing elemental energy wave spread with a loud rumble.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered incessantly, his fingers moving rapidly as he peeled the shells off the fire lotus seeds and threw them into the big pot one after another.

    Wisps of mes rose as the elemental energy waves grew increasingly intense.

    Each elemental energy wave triggered additional waves from the surrounding elemental energy. Quickly, these waves extended throughout Peace City and the elemental energy of the whole city stirred.

    Everybody in Peace City put down what they were doing and looked toward the Swordsman Training Hall in shock.

    Thump, thump, thump!

    Beating powerfully, it was just like a giant heart.

 Chapter 326: Lesser Tribulation

    Chapter 326: Lesser Tribtion

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Boom, boom, boom!

    As if a monster was underground, the ground shook along with the elemental energy waves.

    The audience in the hall couldn¡¯t stand properly on their feet. They nced around and saw the shock in each other¡¯s eyes.

    Ai Hui asked aloud, "Lou Lan, what¡¯s going on?"

    "It might be a Lesser Tribtion! Ai Hui!" Lou Lan replied loudly.

    What was that? Everybody was stunned. They¡¯d never heard of such a thing.

    Lesser Tribtion? Ai Hui was also stunned. He¡¯de across this term a lot in ancient books from the Cultivation Era. Lesser Tribtions had beenmon in that era. For example, when cultivators broke into higher realms, all sorts of Tribtions might befall them. The birth of some powerful weapons and elixirs could also face Tribtions.

    In the cultivators¡¯ understanding, Tribtions were God¡¯s test.

    There were Great Tribtions and Lesser Tribtions, and some powerful Tribtions which intimidated even the strongest cultivators. During that Cultivation Era, countless cultivators were destroyed, physically and mentally, by these Tribtions.

    Later on, the cultivators started regarding Tribtions as a form of reaction when the resonance of elemental energies urred. The birth of powerful weapons often triggered a response from Nature¡¯s spiritual force; that was the so-called Tribtion.

    Now, however, it was the Elemental Era and there wasn¡¯t any spiritual force, so why would there be a Tribtion?

    Was it possible that elemental energy could create Tribtions?

    Was this Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge so amazing that it could trigger a Tribtion?

    As Ai Hui was feeling skeptical over this, the ground shook.

    Boom!

    A heavy sound rang from underground as the training hall¡¯s ground suddenly sank. Countless cracks suddenly appeared on the surface, just like a spider web.

    Everyone was frightened by this sudden change of events.

    "This is an Earth Elemental Tribtion!" Lou Lan shouted.

    Boom. With another sound, the hall sank further down. It was as if a pair of invisible hands was underground, forcefully dragging them downward.

    The strange thing was that, despite the intense shaking of the ground, that big pot of porridge remained motionless, without even a single drop overflowing.

    Ai Hui asked urgently, "Lou Lan, any solution?"

    Lou Lan stared at the ground, his eyes flickering quickly. Shortly, he replied, "The earth elemental energy underground is isted from the surrounding elemental energy, so we have to break this barrier in order to connect them!"

    While Ai Hui did not reallyprehend, Wang Xiaoshan got it instantly. "Let me try!"

    He crouched down and ced both palms on the ground. The underground earth elemental energy surfaced and he immediately felt the barrier Lou Lan was talking about. Where the training hall was located and its surroundingnd used to be a whole entity, but now they were like pieces cut out from a cake, isted from the elemental energy in the surrounding ground.

    The earth elemental energy deep underground had be exceptionally active, increasing its attractive force and causing the unconnected training hall to sink unceasingly.

    The ground surface around Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s palms suddenly turned soft like mud and a section rose up and instantly hardened into rock. Countless lumps of mud flew up from a quagmire in front of him like wyverns and a bridge made of rocks was quickly created.

    The other end of the rock bridge reached the ground outside the training hall.

    The moment the bridge waspleted, the ground jerked and stopped sinking.

    Wang Xiaoshan remained expressionless as he started building the second rock bridge. Upon construction, the ground started to rise slowly. Upon the construction of the third bridge, the invisibleyer of barrier between the training hall and the surrounding soil started to melt like ice.

    Two minutester, the cracks on the ground vanished and the swordsman training hall returned to its usual condition, as if nothing had happened.

    Everybody heaved a sigh of relief at the same time.

    Lou Lan reminded everybody, "Eight Treasures Porridge contained all five elements, so there might be five types of Tribtion."

    "That was Earth Elemental Tribtion, so what¡¯s the next one?"

    "How magical, this Eight Treasures Porridge is so powerful that it could bring about a Tribtion!"

    "Eye-opening!"

    "Hey, do you feel a little hot?"

    Everyone fell into a short daze as they immediately noticed that the surrounding temperature had gone up by quite a bit.

    "Fire Elemental Tribtion?"

    But where was the fire going toe from?

    The sunlight seemed to be getting more ring. Wait, the Sun?

    Everyone started getting a sense of things and quickly raised their heads. Unknowingly, the clouds, which were once above their heads, were no longer there. Instead, the zing sunlight cascaded down.

    It grew increasingly intense and, all of a sudden, a spark shed across the sunlight.

    Fire Elemental Tribtion indeed!

    Fatty was just about to speak when an excited voice boomed. "Let me!"

    Tian Huzun carried the greasy fire vat and appeared above the audience¡¯s heads the next moment.

    The citizens of Peace City looked on in shock as a piercing light beam descended from the sky, enveloping Swordsman Training Hall. The beam became increasingly bright and sparks started to shed past. A minuteter, the sparks turned into bright orange mes that descended like rain.

    rmed cries sounded simultaneously.

    What was that?

    Peace City¡¯s citizens were overwhelmed with shock.

    Tian Huzun, who had positioned himself above the training hall, felt inexpressibly excited as the light in his eyes grew. He had a premonition that this Eight Treasures Porridge would be extraordinary. Such exceptional phenomenon urred even before the porridge was fully cooked.

    Plus... these mes were good stuff!

    Tian Huzun inhaled deeply, his elemental energy surging. His once crooked and stubby body appeared a little taller and mightier now, and there was no anger on his face. He wrapped the vat with both arms, his body slightly crouching. His overall posture was akin to that of a golden toad carrying a jar that swallowed light.

    Then came a longughter, bold and at ease.

    "Come,e,e, everybodye over to my bowl!"

    The fire raining down from within the light beam flew towards and into Tian Huzun¡¯s fire vat. The red glow from the greasy vat brightened dramatically like a heated iron vat.

    The fire rainsted for a whole five minutes. Tian Huzun¡¯s fire vat did not seem all thatrge, but it was like a bottomless pit, taking everything in without any sign of overflowing.

    When thest bits of fire rain flew into the vat, the splendid light beam copsed without a sound as countless fragments flew about like snow, disappearing into the vat in the blink of an eye.

    Tian Huzunughed out loud,nding on the ground with the fire vat in his hands.

    The big fire vat was like a raging volcano. The mes rolled around inside and those nearby could feel the heatwavesing from it.

    "Stay further away. It¡¯s notpletely refined yet so don¡¯t me me if you guys get hurt."

    Tian Huzun was beyond satisfied.

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice sounded abruptly. "Half each!"

    Tian Huzun¡¯s body stiffened but he responded nonchntly, "What do you mean, half each?"

    Ai Hui gave a bitter smile. "If you don¡¯t offer my share, don¡¯t me me if I do the same."

    Tian Huzun knew he couldn¡¯t keep it from Ai Hui and could only say, "You¡¯re not even a fire elementalist so what do you need this for?"

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t be bothered. "Are you giving it or not?"

    Tian Huzun was bleeding inside but he clenched his teeth and replied, "Yes! Half each!"

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin were utterly shocked by what they¡¯d just seen. It was even more mind-blowing than whatever Tribtions had just urred. Ai Hui had actually talked to Tian Huzun so boldly? Ai Hui had actually threatened Venerable Volcano!

    Ai Hui stopped caring about Tian Huzun as he turned his attention to Shi Xueman. "Iron Lady, it will be your turn soon."

    Earth Elemental Tribtion, Fire Elemental Tribtion... if nothing went wrong, the next should be Water Elemental Tribtion.

    The reappearance of this nickname caused Shi Xueman to feel somewhat familiar, yet embarrassed. She shot Ai Hui a death re, snorted, and grabbed hold of her Cirrus as she made her preparations.

    Ai Hui muttered to himself, "Iron Lady¡¯s temper is rising, eh!"

    Fatty yed along, saying, "Everyone¡¯s just been expelled and aren¡¯t feeling good, so don¡¯t pour salt on their wounds, Ai Hui!"

    "Oh, is that the case!"

    Shi Xueman was this close to dashing over and giving them a good beating.

    Just then, dark clouds gathered from all directions and quickly turned pitch ck. The intense pressure made everyone feel as if a great enemy was approaching.

    But time passed without any movements. No lightning, rolling thunder, or rainstorms.

    It was beyond silent.

    Quickly, Ai Hui and the gang sensed something amiss; it was simply too quiet!

    Fatty felt somewhat sleepy. Something within his body was draining away slowly as his eyelids got heavier.

    "Stay awake people!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s shout woke Fatty up with a quiver, but soon after, his whole body felt weaker and weaker as his eyelids became heavier and heavier.

    "Do not sleep, this is and of fantasy!"

    Ai Hui shouted once again, anxiety rising within his chest. He too, had almost fallen asleep. Just then, his Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp had activated itself, thus jolting him awake.

    The Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp¡¯s spontaneous activation made Ai Hui realize that this was thend of fantasy.

    While the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp could shield him from the effects of the fantasnd, it wasn¡¯t able to do the same for the rest.

    What to do?

    Ai Hui caught a glimpse of Irondy from the corner of his eye and was stunned. She held onto her spear, her eyes clear and bright. She seemed to bepletely unaffected by the illusion.

    "Let me!"

    The Cirrus in Shi Xueman¡¯s hand transformed into a ball of mist. It started spinning and bing a whirlpool.

    Hissss!

    Threads of bright light rays appeared amidst the darkness. They gathered from all over and entered the mist-formed whirlpool in Shi Xueman¡¯s hand.

    It was as if the mist-formed whirlpool was infected with the clouds, causing it to be bright and multi-colored. Shi Xueman maintained an extremely stern expression.

    When thest wisp of light entered the whirlpool, Shi Xueman opened her palms and caught it.

    p!

    The mist-formed whirlpool reappeared and turned into a cloud spear, one that waspletely different from Cirrus. A pitch-ck, veined pattern was now on the spear¡¯s snow-white body. There was an additional multicolored cloud within the azure spearhead.

    Ai Hui could see the grave expression on Shi Xueman¡¯s face.

    As if noticing Ai Hui¡¯s troubled gaze, Shi Xueman blurted, "I¡¯m fine."

    Ai Hui gave her a nod. "Don¡¯t be careless," Ai Hui reminded.

    Feeling the concern in Ai Hui¡¯s voice, Shi Xueman felt indescribably delighted. She nodded in understanding.

    The surrounding darkness retreated like waves and the dark clouds overhead vanished.

    Many woke up, as if from a dream, not knowing what had happened. People like Tian Huzun and Tong Gui, however, had serious faces as they were aware of the danger that had just passed.

    Yu Jin suddenly spoke up. "It was an illusion."

    "Yeah, a very powerful illusion." Tong Gui spoke from behind his mask. His tone was grave as he¡¯d experienced its power for himself.

    Just that... the Central Pine FAction was indeed extraordinary!

    In aplex frame of mind, he diverted his gaze toward Ai Hui.

    Everyone was feeling tense. Two more Tribtions!

 Chapter 327: Distributing the Porridge

    Chapter 327: Distributing the Porridge

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Duanmu Huanghun was feeling unreasonably nervous, but he was also somewhat excited.

    What would the Wood Elemental Tribtion be?

    He had no idea since he¡¯d never heard of Tribtions. The three that had happened earlier really widened his horizons. Tension, anticipation, and the feeling of the unknown were foreign, yet stimting.

    He thought of Jadeite Forest all of a sudden. Over there, he had power, a high status, countless servants, and inexhaustible wealth, but living with that rigid lifestyle full of fake smiles and etiquette meant that corner fights were inevitable. Comradery was dirt cheap and virtues were dazzling gold leaves attached to decayed, dried up bones.

    That beautiful cage was the battleground for ravenous wolves and hyenas.

    In Jadeite City, everything could be made into a deal. Emotions like hatred could be bnced against benefits and interests, but Duanmu Huanghun did not know how to convert such emotions.

    He preferred it here, where the air was filled with joy and gratitude.

    The intense wood elemental energy waves pulled him back to reality.

    des of grass broke through the ground and grew at crazy speeds. They struggled free from the soil and flew toward the big pot like green darts.

    Everyone responded very quickly as they reached out their hands to stop the iing grass.

    The grass des released blood-curdling shrieks and transformed into balls of mist upon being struck. Everyone¡¯s hair stood on end; it was their first time hearing such miserable shrieksing from grass des.

    When thest de was struck down, the cries stopped.

    The green mist rose in spirals within the training hall. It did not dissipate, but surrounded and circled the big pot instead. They spun faster and faster, causing an ear-piercing, mournful whistling sound that resembled the bawling of a certain wild beast.

    What in the world?

    Everyone was bewildered.

    It was even more strange that no matter how hard they tried, they were unable to break up the green fog. The gale only heaved it upward without dispersing it. Tian Huzun had initially thought that his mes could restrain the green fog, but who knew that they would be ineffective!

    The faint fog thickened and squirmed about like a monster, revolving non-stop around the Eight Treasures Porridge.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes, which had been shut a moment ago, opened wide as shock filled his face.

    He automatically shifted his gaze to Lou Lan. What kind of porridge was he cooking exactly?

    Not only him, but other wood elementalists in the hall were also startled.

    When he saw Ai Hui and Shi Xueman¡¯s distrusting gaze, he spoke up. "These wood elemental energies have changed. To be precise, a certain vitality contained within them has been activated so general methods used against wood elemental energy will be useless."

    Shi Xueman looked on pensively. She was homeschooled and had solid and practical knowledge.

    Ai Hui, on the other hand, was baffled. Other than metal elemental energy, he was only familiar with earth elemental energy, and this was only because of Lou Lan.

    Duanmu Huanghun understood that to other elementalists, the wood elementalists¡¯ field of "vitality" was very difficult to understand. The "vitality" that wood elemental energy contained was something that differentiated it from the other elemental energies and it was also the most profound aspect of wood elemental energy..

    After some thought, Duanmu Huanghun exined, "That certain vitality has been aroused by the elemental energy odor from the Eight Treasures Porridge. It can undergo metamorphosis if it swallows this porridge. The wood elemental energy will then regroup and form a new life. To put it inyman¡¯s terms, it could be an entity like that of the ancient flower demon."

    The green fog surged and released a head-numbing howl. As if knowing that the porridge wasn¡¯t ready, it only continued circling around the big pot.

    Ai Hui recalled the written ounts from the ancient books. "It¡¯s developing spiritual consciousness?"

    "It¡¯s simr, but notpletely identical." Duanmu Huanghun added, "These wood elemental energies can only exist for a short period of time. If they do not seize the porridge sessfully, they will dissipate. I¡¯m not too sure what will then be of the entity, but the wood elemental energy will reorganize its body constitution."

    The audience was horrified upon hearing Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s exnation.

    Together with the fear, however, was also anticipation, since the Five Elemental Eght Treasures Porridge had far exceeded their expectations.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin made eye contact and detected the same shock in each other¡¯s eyes. They¡¯d been in the battleground for a long time and had seen and experienced all sorts of strange things, but it was their first time seeing the scene that was unfolding before them.

    Ai Hui asked, "Any solutions?"

    Duanmu Huanghun nodded. "Yes, but we have to wait a little while. It can only cause chaos now since its spiritual consciousness has not yet been activated. When the Eight Treasures Porridge is about to finish cooking, its energy waves will intensify and that will be our chance."

    He stopped talking and started preparing by sprinkling something in certain positions.

    The surging green fog did not seem to see or care about what Duanmu Huanghun was sprinkling.

    Tong Gui squatted down, moved closer out of curiosity, and realized that they were bamboo stems. He was quickly stunned to see that these shoots were all dried up and did not have the least bit of life in them.

    What¡¯s so useful about dried up bamboo stems?

    Everyone looked on curiously.

    Duanmu Huanghun then proceeded to drop a drip of rootless water on each dried-up shoot, a process that puzzled everyone.

    The gluey and thick Eight Treasures Porridge bubbled as the red color gradually disappeared. The elemental energy that each burst bubble released was exponentially stronger than the ones before.

    The storm-like green fog started to intensify, its cries ear-piercingly high and loud.

    Just then, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s every movement caused a ball of green glow to light up under his feet. Immediately following this, viridescent flower vine traces made their way out of the green glow like swimming green dragons.

    A bamboo stem was wrapped within each viridescent flower vine.

    Eh?

    Tong Gui¡¯s pupils shrank. Each bamboo stem¡¯s position had been calcted carefully. If one were to look down from the sky, it became apparent that each vine was like the flower petal of a viridescent fresh flower that was blooming, and Duanmu Huanghun was standing right in the middle.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s pupils became two mini viridescent flowers that rotated unhurriedly. An indescribable coldness oozed out from his body.

    [Viridescent Flower Eyes]!

    He raised his palms suddenly and the vines wrapping around the shoots flew up from the ground and floated in midair.

    Whoosh. The blossoming flower beneath his feet started spinning.

    Hisssss!

    The dried-up bamboo shoots absorbed the green fog ferociously, and as if sensing danger, the fog¡¯s screech became even more mournful. In spite of that, it continued to be sucked into the shoots.

    The shoots turned plump at a speed observable to the naked eye.

    The green fog slowed down and its howls gradually vanished.

    [Viridescent Flower Command]!

    Thick vitality seemed to overflow from within the bamboo shoots. Suddenly, green buds sprouted out of them. Verdant, glistening bamboo shoots rose up little by little, shedding off their skin and growing leaves.

    In the blink of an eye, the training hall became a verdant bamboo sea.

    The leaves and branches swayed along with the rustling of the wind. It was a beautiful scene.

    Everybody¡¯s jaws dropped. They wondered, was this whole scene still part of the illusion from earlier? There had been all kinds of inconceivable changes that did not make sense to them!

    Amid the rustling of the wind, the bamboo sea, like raised curtains, faded away unhurriedly.

    Was this really an illusion?

    Eh? No!

    All eyes were on a small section of bamboo branch that was fluttering in midair. A few fresh green leaves were hanging from the branch. The vast bamboo sea disappeared, leaving only this little branch that fell onto Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s open palm.

    Joy shed across Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes. With a turn of his palm, the branch vanished as well.

    The Duanmu family¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] was indeed unfathomably strange.

    Tong Gui eximed in admiration but was on guard at the same time. Duanmu Huanghun did not look like a hostage at all. His abilities were even more immeasurable than rumored. Rethinking She Yu¡¯s victory over Duanmu Huanghun, could it be that She Yu was really that powerful? Or perhaps Duanmu Huanghun chose to conceal his skills?

    At this point, heughed bitterly to himself. Everybody had underestimated the Central Pine Faction.

    One more Tribtion was left and practically everyone breathed a sigh of relief. As this thought surfaced within their minds, the Metal Elemental Tribtion arrived spontaneously.

    There wasn¡¯t any sign at all.

    Cracks started appearing on the ground surrounding the big pot. These cracks were like wounds created by sharp des, crisscrossing and densely packed. They formed a circle, keeping the big pot in the center.

    Boom!

    Metal wind violently surged up through the cracks.

    Lou Lan reacted quickly by withdrawing from the metal wind¡¯s range just in time.

    The concentrated metal elemental energy dyed the wind silver-white. A solid, bitingly cold metal wind screen covered the Eight Treasures Porridge.

    It was Ai Hui¡¯s first time seeing such a terrifying metal wind. Where did this winde from? It was practically a wind screen made up of countless de rays!

    Yet, he did not panic. Metal wind was something he was rather familiar with after all, since he¡¯d borrowed it for training in the past. Only it hadn¡¯t been as intense as the wind currently before his eyes.

    He held onto the Dragonspine and walked around the circr wind screen.

    His gaze fell upon the crisscrossed cracks on the ground. His eyes lit up.

    What people saw as intertwined, random cracks were not so in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. The cracks seemed alive to him. Were they not like scars left by a sword?

    He subconsciously moved his sword along the crisscrossed marks.

    Eh?

    There was clearly nothing on the sword tip, but it moved sluggishly as if it were underwater, making his heart churn.

    Having read countless swordy manuals, Ai Hui was astonishingly efficient since he knew those disordered cracks thoroughly. He knew, however, that this wasn¡¯t the time to polish his moves. Breaking the wind screen was top priority.

    Eh?

    Noting down every point of the cracks, Ai Hui realized that this chaotic sphere looked very much like... the sword formation he himself had fixed up.

    Could it be...

    Ai Hui shook. It seemed increasingly possible.

    If it was a sword formation, then this...

    Ai Hui continued drawing and dancing with his sword and people knew that he must have found something. They held their breaths in fear of disrupting his train of thought.

    "Ai Hui, we¡¯re running out of time!"

    Lou Lan¡¯s urgent voice interrupted Ai Hui¡¯s thoughts.

    No time!

    Ai Hui clenched his teeth. Silhouette like smoke, sword extending out like electricity, he charged toward the wind screen with a sword ray as bright as ten stars.

    sh!

    Like ss, the wind screen shattered loudly.

    Ai Hui nked out. Sess?

    A figure rushed to his side. It was Lou Lan.

    Elemental energy bubbled out from the big pot of crystal clear, gluey porridge. The wisps were like colorful fog slowly flowing.

    The brightly colored fog blossomed into colorful flowers upon reaching about a meter away from the pot. Each flower was about the size of a thumb and dissipated in the air in a sh. Some appeared as others faded, creating a beautiful image.

    As each flower shattered, a wisp of indescribable fragrance was emitted. Aspared to the delicate smell from before, this one was much weaker.

    But this faint fragrance entered right into people¡¯s hearts and spleens, as if cleansing their bodies and purifying their spirits.

    Everybody couldn¡¯t help but swallow their saliva. Their noses twitched and their necks stretched.

    Tian Huzun¡¯s eyes were practically shining like a torch in the dark night.

    "Get ready everybody! Time to distribute the porridge!"

    Lou Lan called out joyously, attracting a round of cheers.

    "Bangwan, ice bowl!"

    "Coming!" Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s spirits rose.

    [Viridescent Flower, Icy Fissures]!

    Innumerable ice blocks burst open and before they reached the ground, the mini knife-like vines cut them speedily, causing bits and pieces of ice to stter everywhere, forming ice bowls one after another. When the ice bowl carvings were formed, the vines suddenly turned into soft springs that flung the bowls toward Lou Lan.

    Thedle in Lou Lan¡¯s hand moved fast like lightning yet light like a dragonfly brushing over water, pouring the perfect amount of porridge into each bowl.

    Ice bowls filled with porridge flew toward and stopped in front of the crowd.

    Without a word, they cupped the ice bowl carefully and started eating the porridge in small bites.

    Upon entering their mouths, the Eight Treasures Porridge instantly transformed into a warm stream that permeated their bodies. The five residences and eight pces within started to operate. The elemental energy in their bodies raged incessantly like boiling water.

    Those with even just a little experience knew that it was time to execute the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    They hurriedly downed the whole bowl. Slurp, slurp.. With no time to savor the taste, they quickly sat cross-legged on the floor. They did not expect the energy of the Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge to be this mighty.

    Ai Hui was also caught off guard.

    As he swallowed the porridge, his whole body started to burn and turn red like a cooked prawn. He did not sit down, but took out his Dragonspine instead and started to execute his unique Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    Although the sword embryo was long gone, he preserved this peculiar way of executing the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    The brightness of the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp within Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce increased sharply.

 Chapter 328: Discussion

    Chapter 328: Discussion

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The porridge feast in Peace City became a trending topic as news travelled around with a marvelous speed.

    The different phenomenons that urred during the cooking process really broadened everybody¡¯s horizons. Elementalists specializing in elemental food were all focusing on research. In order to witness the legendary Tribtions, many made special trips to purchase a message bean pod, causing a rise in sales of message beans in every store.

    Silver Mist Sea, Pagoda of Hidden Edge.

    "Was it really that magical?" Yuchi Ba¡¯s curious voice sounded from the light cocoon.

    Tong Gui stood in front of the cocoon and answered respectfully, "Yes, it was very mystical. Old Tian¡¯s old injury healedpletely and while my elemental energy did not increase, I could feel my mental state bing much more stable and concise."

    Yuchi Bamented in praise, "There¡¯s actually such a capable person among Ai Hui¡¯s subordinates."

    Tong Gui reported, "Yes, he is a sand puppet named Lou Lan. I don¡¯t know which expert created him came from but he¡¯s smart and extremely talented. In Central Pine City, he kept by Ai Hui¡¯s side and was very familiar with the rest of the gang as well."

    "Go investigate." Yuchi Ba said in a low voice, "I¡¯ve not heard of a sand puppet who is such an expert at cooking elemental food. Making elemental food that triggered Tribtions, isn¡¯t he an elemental food master then? Being able to create such a powerful sand puppet, there¡¯s no way that earth elementalist is an obscure figure."

    "Yes." Tong Gui agreed. Hesitating, he asked, "Old Ba, this Ai Hui... how and what are we going to do with him next?"

    Yuchi Baughed. "The rain must fall, thedies must marry. Let him be."

    "Ah?" Tong Gui was stunned. So much effort had been spent on creating this situation, was he going to just let it go like this?

    "Shi Xueman seeks shelter from Ai Hui and the position for the next Great Elder is vacant now. All aristocratic families are fighting hard for this position so who has the time and energy to care about him?" Yuchi Ba¡¯s tone was filled with ridicule. "As long as we don¡¯t take Ai Hui in as our own, all will be peaceful. Just wait, they might even try to get us involved."

    Tong Gui said urgently, "But, the backbone of each division in Central Pine has been taken away by Ai Hui. Isn¡¯t this a messy situation? And there¡¯s Master¡¯s Glory. Is Ai Hui getting a ce? If not, I¡¯m afraid many from Central Pine will not join as well. Old Ba, your humble servant has been staying in Swordsman Training Hall for a few days now, and I feel that these people are very united and have already developed the ¡®all for one, one for all¡¯ attitude."

    "What¡¯s the rush?" Yuchi Baughed again. "The cooked meat is in the pot so where else can it go? And so what if Ai Hui and his people moved together? Where else can they go? As long as they remain in the Avalon of Five Elements, we will have our options. Since they¡¯re so adamant on seeking revenge on Blood of God, they can¡¯t rely on Jadeite Forest."

    Tong Gui¡¯s eyes lit up.

    "Youngsters are often impulsive. Aren¡¯t we also seeking revenge on Blood of God? But the time just isn¡¯t right yet. Ai Hui is just a male eagle that has to be tamed, or else how is he going to listen to us? How is leading a whole bunch of people an easy task? Money, resources, inheritance... does he have them? People are practical creatures. Whenradeship is obliterated, there will be nothing left after some time."

    Tong Gui nodded his head repeatedly. "Old Ba is wise! Ai Hui can only break in and inhabit the Wilderness if he wishes to provide shelter and support for so many people."

    "Youngsters have to be polished or how else would they understand the vastness of the world? How are the aristocratic families going to find time to care about him? They hold the same opinion that since the cooked meat is already in the pot, making a move earlier orter will yield the same result. As long as Ai Hui experiences a little setback, Central Pine City will copse. That is when everyone will make a move. Aristocratic families are different from us. They have no interest in Ai Hui but they have their eyes on Central Pine Faction. These youngsters need a little fine-tuning."

    Yuchi Ba said leisurely, "Don¡¯t be anxious. We have nothing but time. The fight between aristocratic families is not going to conclude any time soon."

    .....

    A heated discussion was in progress in Swordsman Training Hall.

    "Are we going to choose Aristocratic Faction or the New Citizen Faction? Right now, it seems that the new citizens are friendlier..."

    Before finishing, Shi Xueman interrupted by repeating Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s earlier judgments. Everyone nodded their heads in agreement as she spoke.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s words were convincing as they hit the nail right on the head.

    "There¡¯s no need to mention the Aristocratic Faction. They¡¯re busy fighting for... the position sister Xueman discarded." Duanmu Huanghun sighed softly, his voice taunting. "God-subduing Peak is so mighty that the internal strife can carry on without a problem. The New Citizen Faction deems the situation to becklustre. As the fights within Aristocratic Faction be fiercer, their loss will increase along with the opportunities avable to the New Citizen Faction. As such, they will not lure us in now to avoid provoking the Aristocratic Faction."

    Everyone¡¯s faces were ashen as the atmosphere was rather stifling.

    Only Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige were left in the Avalon of Five Elements so Elders Guild was still battling internally. It was bitterly painful.

    "They don¡¯t care at all. To them, people like us, high in number but weak in strength, are good practice targets. Plus, it¡¯s too easy to deal with us. They just have to find someone to get rid of Ai Hui and we will all fall apart. If they take action again, it¡¯ll be like plucking perfectly ripe fruit ¨C effortless."

    Duanmu Huanghun continued, "We don¡¯t even have to consider Jadeite Forest. Even I am unwilling to return to that ce."

    These words silenced everyone further. The future seemed so bleak.

    Thinking about the conversation he had with Shi Xueman that day, Jiang Wei spoke up. "We can inhabit the Wilderness and construct a city that belongs to us. Ai Hui is very familiar with the Wilderness so if we can hunt more dire beasts, Lou Lan can prepare more elemental food and our skills will improve quickly."

    Everyone¡¯s eyes lit up.

    "What if Elders Guild wants to take it back?" Duanmu Huanghun asked. "We can build a city, but with a simple order Elders Guild can revoke it. The Elders Guild may not deal with the aristocratic families since they¡¯re their own people, but what about us? When the internal battle is over, our good days are too."

    Ai Hui spoke suddenly. "We can sell that city to an aristocratic family and move to Old Territory."

    Everyone was in shock. Old Territory?

    "Don¡¯t forget the purpose of our reunion. We are here to seek revenge." Ai Hui said in a low voice, "The Avalon is urgently undergoing reconstruction now, so there won¡¯t be a war with Blood of God for the time being. We can only head to Old Territory if we want to battle with Blood of God. Old Territory is where the key strategy to attacking Blood of God lies."

    Fatty looked cheerful. Going to Old Territory was a good thing since his family was still there.

    "What about resources?" Duanmu Huanghun questioned. "Why did the Avalon abandon Old Territory? It¡¯s because there aren¡¯t much resources. How are we going topensate for that? Where are we going to get our regr training and battling supplies? Plus, it is surrounded by enemies from three corners. Anyone can attack us in that battleground. What are we going to do if Avalon of Five Elements and Jadeite Forest stab us in the back?"

    Ai Hui kept quiet. Duanmu Huanghun made a lot of sense and he was unable to refute this reasoning.

    But he wasn¡¯t angry. Such a big matter wasn¡¯t going to be easy naturally. "Let¡¯s make use of these few days to train as much as we can and digest the medication. Fists work better than anything else. We¡¯ll take our time to think of solutions. I¡¯m sure we wille up with something."

 Chapter 329: The Fall Of Cloud Ridge

    Chapter 329: The Fall Of Cloud Ridge

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Scarlet Sand Forest was a small city at the border between Jadeite Forest and Blood of God. Beyond this city, there was Fire Prairie, a territory of God Nation now.

    She Yu was leisurely sipping her tea. Beside her, Jadeite Forest¡¯s decision maker, Gongwen You, had a rxed look on his face as well.

    The recent vicious attack by the God-subduing Peak on Blood of God¡¯s diplomatic mission had caused the diplomatic mission to suffer heavy casualties. Jadeite Forest was severely embarrassed by this incident. The higher-ups of Jadeite Forest were extremely infuriated. Not only did they want the Elders Guild to give an exnation for the incident, they also requested that someone be dispatched to escort the Blood of God¡¯s diplomatic mission.

    As such, Gongwen You was being dispatched to escort the diplomatic mission.

    At this moment, a report was being sent to him.

    After he read the report, a vexed look appeared on his face. After a long while, he sighed and passed the report to She Yu and said coldly, "Your henchmen have seeded."

    After She Yu read the report, she sighed as well, "What a pity, the brave warriors of God Nation. However, it¡¯s still worth celebrating. We shall use tea in ce of alcohol and toast to this victory."

    Gongwen You stayed calm and did not move.

    She Yu was not angry. She finished the cup of tea herself and said leisurely, "This time around, our partnership is wless. Mr Gongwen has indeed worked very hard. Without Mr Gongwen, this victory would not be possi..."

    "Enough!" Gongwen You interrupted She Yu and flew into a rage.

    She Yu merely smiled, "Does Mr Gongwen feel that you have let down the Avalon of Five Elements? After all, you are born of Avalon of Five Elements, it¡¯s hard for you not to think of the good old days. However, the Avalon of Five Elements is outdated and the Elders Guild is obsolete. They are fundamentally old and decadent. Take a closer look, do you see howzy they are? The God Nation¡¯s warriors did not even meet any resistance. Oh! They have much more important things on their minds now. That future empty crown is much more important than establishing a lesser Avalon of Five Elements."

    Gongwen You stared at She Yu, resembling a furious lion that was going to pounce on its prey at any moment.

    She Yu smiled sweetly and continued, "Jadeite Forest is no longer part of the Avalon of Five Elements. Mr Gongwen, where does your loyalty lie?"

    Like a punctured balloon, Gongwen You immediately calmed down and replied, "Forget it, I¡¯m going to have a bad reputation this time around."

    "Why does Mr Gongwen say that? I can see that Mr Gongwen has worked your heart out for Jadeite Forest. You¡¯re a meritorious servant of Jadeite Forest."

    Gongwen You regained hisposure and replied, "Pardon me for being unreasonable. It will be better for us if the Elders Guild continues to be like this."

    "As long as God Nation and Jadeite Forest continue to coborate with sincerity, it will just be a matter of time before the Avalon of Five Elements copses. The God Nation is willing to build an evesting friendship with the Jadeite Forest." She Yu said grimly.

    "An alliance with God Nation does not really benefit Jadeite Forest. The Avalon of Five Elements doesn¡¯t need to be too powerful nor too weak. As long as everyone is harmonious, then our business can thrive." Gongwen You shook his head.

    She Yu raised her eyebrows and replied, "The Elders Guild might not think like this. If they knew the operation this time around is being supported by Jadeite Forest, I¡¯m afraid..."

    Gongwen You burst into aughter. However, his portly face was filled with disdain, "Are you trying to threaten me? So what if they know? Are they going to attack Jadeite Forest? Right now, they are the ones who are begging us, not the other way around."

    "I wouldn¡¯t dare," She Yu smiled, "No matter what, God Nation and Jadeite Forest have a pleasant coboration this time around. In the future, our rtionship might even be closer."

    This time around, she hadpleted her mission wlessly.

    Sending a diplomatic mission to Jadeite Forest was a sham. Their real motive was to capture the attention of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    "Pretending to advance along one path while secretly going along another" was a simple stratagem that always worked.

    Another thing that made her even more happy was that Ai Hui was safe and sound.

    .....

    Peace City, Swordsman Training Hall.

    Duanmu Huanghun furrowed his eyebrows and thought pensively. Even though his questions had hit the nail on the head, he did not feel any sense of achievement. Identifying the problems was easy, but solving the problems was difficult.

    Which path should they take?

    Duanmu Huanghun understood how important this question was to them more than anyone else. Both he and Shi Xueman were from aristocratic families, however, their situations werepletely different. He had seen more dark and treacherous plots and experienced more failures than Shi Xueman.

    The others were seizing the moment to train, digesting the beneficial effects of the Eight Treasures Porridge.

    Everyone knew that an opportunity like this was hard toe by. If not for Ai Hui, they would not have enjoyed such exceptional Eight Treasures Porridge. Amongst them, only Bangwan and Iron Lady were capable of eating such a delicacy without the help of Ai Hui.

    Take a look at Venerable Volcano. He had paid such a huge price for just one bowl of porridge. Before he left, he even bade farewell to Ai Hui personally and promised that he would definitely help him if he was to encounter any troubles.

    Yu Jin stayed motionlessly in her training state. The aura emitting from her body became increasingly concentrated.

    In conclusion, Lou Lan¡¯s Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge had two obvious beneficial effects.

    The first obvious effect was that it helped in healing old injuries. Veterans like Tian Huzun and Yu Jin, who both had been through hundreds of battles, had umted countless internal injuries inside their bodies. These old injuries were usually situated in the depths of their bodies, or ces that elemental energy was hard to reach, making it very difficult for them to heal them. Not only would these internal injuries affect their fighting capabilities negatively, they would also obstruct their training progress.

    The second obvious effect was that it improved elemental energy¡¯s connectivity within one¡¯s body. Apart from Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun, the rest had rather ordinary elemental energy connectivity. If not for the abundance of blood crystals obtained during the Battle of Central Pine City and Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soups, everyone¡¯s fighting capabilities would not have reached their current level.

    Improving one¡¯s connectivity with elemental energy would help him or her greatly in terms of future developments. This effect would be on full disy during one¡¯s everyday training.

    In terms of mind and sky pce, Ai Hui and Shi Xueman were the only ones who benefited from the porridge. There were little improvements in this aspect for the rest.

    Suddenly, a soldier ran hurriedly into the training hall and came before Lord Yu Jin. He hesitated, thinking whether he should speak or not.

    Yu Jin opened his eyes and asked indifferently, "What¡¯s the matter?"

    "Sir Yu Jin, Cloud Ridge City is in trouble!" the soldier answered hastily.

    "Cloud Ridge City?" Yu Jin was slightly surprised, but she maintained hisposure and asked again, "What happened?"

    "Blood elementalists have been discovered in Cloud Ridge City!"

    Yu Jin widened her eyes abruptly. She quickly stood up as an ominous premonition arose in her heart.

    Blood elementalists had been discovered in Cloud Ridge City?

    Ai Hui, Shi Xueman and the rest stopped what they were doing. They could see the worry in each other¡¯s eyes.

    .....

    Cloud Ridge City.

    Yu Jin stood beside the Cloud Ridge City¡¯s mayor and listened to his ount of the incident.

    "... When our men discovered them, they did not run away. They probably knew they couldn¡¯t put up a fight and all of them self-destructed and died. Subsequently, I¡¯m afraid that there might still be blood elementalists lurking around the city and so I ordered a thorough search of the city. To our surprise, we did find some in the city. However, they are rather strong-willed and self-destructed the moment we found them. None of them were alive. We have yet to discover the reason why they are here..."

    Yu Jin¡¯s face turned ugly and interrupted the mayor, "Where are the locations that they self-destructed?"

    "There are several ces..."

    "Lead the way!"

    Suddenly, at this moment, they heard someone yelling, "Look at the sky!"

    Yu Jin raised her head abruptly and her facial expression changed drastically.

    A demonic color of blood was spreading throughout the evesting sea of clouds above Cloud Ridge City. The color of blood was spreading extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, half of the sea of clouds was blood red in color.

    "Blood poison!"

    Two words came out of Yu Jin¡¯s clenched teeth.

    On the third day of the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge Feast, neen blood elementalists self-destructed in Cloud Ridge City.

    The blood poison was spreading throughout the city with a terrifying speed. The sea of clouds above Cloud Ridge City had turned into a sea of blood. Yu Jin immediately ordered the entire city to evacuate quickly, preventing arge-scale disaster from taking ce. The healers who arrived at the scene in haste had failed to purify the blood poison. Eventually, they found out that this was a brand new version of blood poison. This version was far more potent and it had a greater destructive power.

    To prevent the blood poison from spreading to other ces, Tong Gui and Yu Jin joined hands and smashed open the Cloud Ridge Mountain, allowing theva within it to erupt for three straight days and flood the the blood poison-infected Cloud Ridge City. The Cloud Ridge City had disappearedpletely.

    Upon witnessing this sight, the citizens of Cloud Ridge City burst into tears.

    Eventually, this disaster was known to many as "The Fall of Cloud Ridge".

    Ai Hui and the rest looked at the sky and watched the Cloud Ridge Mountain erupt. The Armageddon-like scene silenced everyone.

    Just like this, the Cloud Ridge City disappeared from the map.

    .....

    During the Elders Guild¡¯s emergency meeting, the atmosphere was extremely sombre.

    "ording to our investigation, this attack was nned. The blood elementalists came through stolen trading caravans and avoided our detection.Right now, there are two questions. Did the Blood of Gode up with a new method of disguise? And did Jadeite Forest y a part in this incident?

    "Definitely! We have investigated the ces where the blood elementalists self-destructed. All of these ces are vital areas. Clearly, the attacks have been meticulously nned. Without help from Jadeite Forest, the Blood of God would not have known so many details. Furthermore, those stolen trading caravans are tightly linked to Jadeite Forest."

    "I suggest we do a thorough investigation on the trading caravans. If the Blood of God can infiltrate the Avalon of Five Elements that easily, then we have ourselves to me. Resources might be important, but I don¡¯t want us to be fearful everyday just because of resources."

    "I support that idea!"

    "I second that!"

    ...

    "So how are we supposed to negotiate with Jadeite Forest now? Start a war?"

    The other Elders remained silent. They obviously knew that Jadeite Forest had something to do with this incident, however, they did not dare to open their mouths and say they wanted to wage war on Jadeite Forest.

    What would happen if they waged war on Jadeite Forest? If Jadeite Forest became a turncoat and joined the side of Blood of God, the Avalon of Five Elements would have zero chance of winning this war.

    If they didn¡¯t wage war on them, should they just let the incident go like this?

    "We can¡¯t start a war with them."

    The Great Elder began to talk. His eyes were filled with the vicissitudes of life. "We don¡¯t have the evidence to prove that they yed a part in this incident. Even if we did, we can¡¯t start a war. We will ignore Jadeite Forest first, and we must retaliate against the Blood of God. Send the God-subduing Peak to the front line. We must secure a victory to redeem our reputation."

    The other Elders nodded their heads in unison.

    The Great Elder continued with a deep voice, "Our real issue is, since Cloud Ridge City has been destroyed, our n for a lesser Avalon of Five Elements has failed. What should we do now?"

    The metal-attributed Peace City and the water-attributed Cloud Ridge City were the cornerstones for the n of establishing the lesser Avalon of Five Elements. By building another three cities, a lesser Five Elemental Cycle could be established. The conditions for building a lesser Avalon of Five Elements were extremely strict. One missing city would result in the failure of this n. Every city¡¯s elemental attribute and location was supposed to be fixed.

    The loss of the water-attributed Cloud Ridge City implied that the Five Elemental Cycle could never be achieved. This also meant that the n of setting up a lesser Avalon of Five Elements hadpletely failed.

    Cities like Peace City and Cloud Ridge City were chosen based on their ideal strategic locations. Other than these two cities, the remaining three cities¡¯ locations were perfect as well.

    Such ces were hard toe by.

    All the Elders became silent once more.

    That¡¯s right, the main issue they faced now was the failure of the n to establish a lesser Avalon of Five Elements.

 Chapter 330: The Four Seasons of the God Nation

    Chapter 330: The Four Seasons of the God Nation

    Trantor: YH Editor: X/TYZ

    The road leading into the God Nation was lined with blood trees on both sides. They stood tall and imposing, like monsters waiting to attack.

    Taking in the familiar sweet scent made She Yu feel great.

    The first batch of blood trees that were used to spread the blood poison had been turned into fertilizer after they had produced seeds. The blood trees she now saw were germinated from those seeds. These second generation blood trees had grown rapidly in the past year and were now extremelyrge.

    This insane rate of growthpletely defied thews of nature.

    It was flowering season and blood tree blossoms could be seen everywhere. Scarlet was thendscape¡¯s dominant color, which made it lookpletely different from the Avalon of Five Elements. The flowers were not in shades of red though. They were mostly a deep ck or a dull white, with the asional sky blue. Many people enjoyed plucking these flowers as decorations for their homes.

    A delicate yet intoxicating fragrance filled the air as She Yu gently plucked one of the ck flowers. This scent was enjoyed by god elementalists, but would drive normal elementalists mad.

    By this time next year, the trees here would be filled with fruits. Further refinement of these fruits would turn them into a type of natural blood crystal that could be used to enhance a god elementalist¡¯s training. Known as jade fruits, they were slightly different from the blood crystals nurtured within blood fiends.

    She Yu was looking forward to the appearance of the jade fruits. The sessful growth of jade fruits would further strengthen the God Nation¡¯s rule.

    The domestication of blood fiends as a means to obtain blood crystals was the main reason why the God Nation was able to stabilize so quickly. Being able to farm blood crystals allowed the God Nation to convert elementalists on a massive scale. With the arrival of the jade fruits, the God Nation would have even greater amounts of resources to further strengthen their position.

    The higher ups had also attached great importance to this event and had already begun preparations to harvest these fruits on arge scale.

    The God Nation¡¯s winter, which came once every four years, would arrive one month after the harvest. Blood trees would swiftly wither away after their fruits were harvested. They would turn into ash, transforming the entirendscape. The once vibrant and colorful sight would quickly be a world of gray ash soon after the great harvest. Because of this, the God Nation¡¯s winter was known as the "Winter of Ash."

    The God Nation¡¯s vitality was splendid, but short.

    The Winter of Ash was a long season and the citizens would have to bear with the dull, lifeless environment for almost a year.

    During this period, however, the people had important things to do. They would have to scour through the ashes to find new life¡ªthe blood tree¡¯s seeds. The gathered seeds would be sent to a special facility for assessment. Seeds that were determined to have a great degree of transformation would be kept and sowed after Winter of Ash. Those that did not be stronger would be destroyed.

    Only the strong survive. This was the God Nation¡¯s number one rule.

    After the Winter of Ash came the popping spring. Blood trees would sprout and grow to immense heights during this season thatsted for a year. This season was named as such because the trees would grow so fast that popping and crackling noises could be heard from all over.

    Next was the resplendent summer, a season of blooming flowers. The flowers were so radiant that they shone brightly even at night.

    It was presently the resplendent summer.

    The autumn of jade fruits came after.

    Each cyclested for four years, and up until now, the God Nation had yet to experience one full cycle. One of the high level advisors in the pce had told her that the first generation of blood trees were out of sync with the cycle. This new generation should begin to settle into the correct rhythm.

    The God Nation was indeed a young nation.

    All of a sudden, the ground trembled. A group of armored wolf riders appeared with a bang. Their mounts were the famous ardent flower night wolves.

    Night wolves were native to the Fire Prairie and had a sleek coat of jet ck fur. The Beast Venom Temple had created a new breed of night wolves that had red flowery patterns strewn across their ck bodies. Ardent flower night wolves wererger and much faster than steeds. They had incredible endurance as well and were reportedly able to continuously charge forward for 10 days and 10 nights.

    The Beast Venom Temple was unsatisfied with the ardent flower night wolves as their true aim was to breedrge flying beasts. They felt that nothing onnd could evere close topeting with something that could fly.

    The Beast Venom Temple had adopted the name of these wolves from the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ Ardent Flower Division.

    Ardent flower night wolves became wildly popr in the God Nation immediately after they were released. These beasts were cheap, easy to maintain, and extremely hardworking.

    The ardent flower night wolves used by high ranking officials were of the best grade and had immense fighting prowess in addition to the aforementioned advantages. They were extremely well suited for battle with a rider, never backing down once the fight had started.

    "Congrattions, the Young Master is extremely delighted by your performance. He has specially ordered us to ride down and give you a proper wee! Salute!"

    nging sounds could be heard as the other riders raised up their weapons to salute She Yu.

    She Yu bowed slightly in return and replied, "It¡¯s all thanks to His Highness¡¯s meticulous arrangements. Has he been well?"

    The rider said cheerfully, "His mood has improved ofte, and he has been going out into the sun quite a bit more than before."

    "That¡¯s good to hear. the Young Master¡¯s health is of utmost importance," said She Yu, her voice carrying a tinge of joy.

    There was only one person who carried the title of "Young Master" throughout the entire God Nation. He was the "Sick Tiger of the Blood Nation" Bei Shuisheng. The Young Master had been afflicted with a strange sickness since he was a young and had almost died from it several times. Bei Shuishengter met the Holy Emperor. Being a man who cherished talent, the Holy Emperor painstakingly saved him.

    After the God Nation was founded, the Holy Emperor built a pce for the Young Master. He filled it with all sorts of artifacts that were capable of maintaining the Young Master¡¯s life force. Although his condition gradually stabilized, the Young Master could never leave his pce.

    The Young Master called his new home the "Cold Pce" and often joked that it was even colder here than in the ones built to incarcerate imperial concubines that had flouted the rules.

    When his mood was good, the Young Master enjoyed sunbathing by the pce¡¯s main entrance. Those who knew him well quickly picked this up and used it as an indicator for his mood.

    Everyone loved and respected the Young Master for his huge contributions to the God Nation. The Holy Emperor was too engrossed in his training to handle the nation¡¯s affairs. As a result, most of the nning, strategies, andws were the work of the Young Master. Instigating Ye Baiyi to defect was also his idea, and it was one that he managed to carry out with great sess.

    After Ye Baiyi converted, the Young Master gave him control of the army and ordered for a pce to be built for him.

    Ye Baiyi did not let the Young Master down. He reformed the entire army and began to devise military tactics that were suited to the god elementalists¡¯ fighting style. Under his reforms, the God Nation¡¯s military was able to stabilize the situations at the front lines.

    The Young Master was also behind many other highly important actions, such as the exorcism of the Induction Ground and the widespread domestication of blood fiends.

    Every now and then, She Yu would think of how great it would be if the Young Master waspletely healthy again.

    She Yu arrived at the cold pce three dayster.

    Azy youth was lying down behind the main hall¡¯s doorway, basking in the sliver of sunlight that came through the open doors at an angle. Beside him was a teapot with a long handle and half a cup of tea.

    She Yu walked up to the doorway and noticed a neatly ced floormat with a table on top of it. On the table sat aplete tea set.

    The two of them sat on opposite sides of the doorway.

    A grin appeared on Bei Shuisheng¡¯s pale face as he chipped, "I¡¯m sorry but you¡¯ll have to do it yourself."

    She Yu smiled sweetly and started to boil some water to brew the tea.

    "Come, tell me about the interesting things you saw on this journey. Being stuck in this lousy ce is boring me to death," said the young man, his eyes filled with wonder.

    She Yu felt a tinge of heartache as she looked at the young man in front of her. In that moment, the almighty the Young Master appeared to just be an ordinary boy. A smile crept up on her lips, and she gently spoke, "Nothing much happened, really. The Jadeite Forest is also experiencing a flowering season¡ªa season where plume flowers are in full bloom. Plume flowers look like pink feathers and give off a melodious ringing sound when scattered by the wind. I suppose girls are more interested in stuff like that. At night though, the God Nation is much more beautiful..."

    The young man listened intently, not uttering a single word as he did so.

    After a while, he picked up his teacup and brought it to his lips. "The tea has turned cold," he muttered with a frown on his face.

    He opened the teapot and saw that it was empty.

    "Bring me some hot tea."

    Half of the long-handled teapot crossed the doorway toward She Yu.

    She finally understood why the Young Master used a teapot with such a long handle.

    She Yu hurriedly grabbed her pot of freshly brewed tea and walked to the doorway.

    The Young Master warmly reminded, "Be careful not to cross the threshold. You won¡¯t be able to handle the things inside."

    She Yu carefully poured the freshly brewed tea into the long-handled teapot.

    The Young Master swiftly downed a cup of tea and said, "Please continue. The world outside of this pce is indeed interesting."

    She Yu told him about Duanmu Huanghun getting drunk in a brothel and challenging her to a fight.

    The Young Master called him a proper man.

    When she mentioned that Duanmu Huanghun had reorganized the Society of Excellence, the Young Master sighed.

    She moved on to talk about Shi Xueman¡¯s use of the God-subduing Peak to ambush the diplomatic mission, much to the Young Master¡¯s delight. He frantically pped his hands and praised Shi Xueman¡¯s boldness.

    The Young Masterughed heartily when he heard about the conflict between the new citizens and the aristocratic families, calling them a bunch of clowns who had long lost their edge.

    She spoke of how Shi Xueman was discharged from the North Sea Division after kidnapping Duanmu Huanghun and made her way to Peace City instead. She Yu continued her story, talking about Ai Hui¡¯s Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge Feast and how all the members of the Central Pine Faction flocked from all over with the ingredients they needed for the porridge.

    The Young Master had a faraway look as hemented that the Central Pine Faction must be made up of truly loyal friends.

    She got to the part where the Venerable Volcano dragged two vice division leaders and stood guard at the door for a bowl of porridge. All this talk about the Eight Treasures Porridge made

    The Young Master salivate as he imagined just how amazing it must taste. He muttered that if they ever caught Lou Lan he would definitely get him to cook lots of porridge.

    The Young Master was d to hear that their operation in Cloud Ridge City was a sess.

    "I¡¯m d we didn¡¯t choose Peace City as our target. It would be a waste if such an interesting group of people were killed just like that."

    She Yu stared nkly at the Young Master.

    The Young Master stretched his back and picked up the long-handled teapot. Standing up, he said, "All right, rest time¡¯s over. Back to work. Everyone¡¯s living such colorful lives, so I guess I have to strive hard too. Thanks for the nice, long chat. I¡¯m sorry I can¡¯t send you off."

    The young man beamed. "All the best!"

    He waved at She Yu before returning to the darkness.

 Chapter 331: City Expansion Order

    Chapter 331: City Expansion Order

    Trantor: YH Editor: X/TYZ

    Peace City was devastated. The bustling construction site had be deathly quiet.

    People sat listlessly among the materials that were scattered all over the unfinished construction site. Cloud Ridge City had been destroyed overnight, and the n to build the Lesser Avalon of Five Elements had gone with it. All hopes had been dashed.

    Everyone was stuck in a daze.

    The spirits of those in the Swordsman Training Hall had plunged greatly.

    Witnessing an entire city copse with their own eyes would certainly make anyone feel absolutely wretched. Moreover, this destruction was caused by their sworn enemy.

    Shi Xueman walked up to Ai Hui and informed, "The results of the investigation are out. The blood sacrificial warriors were specially created by the Beast Venom Temple."

    "Beast Venom Temple? What do they do? The name sounds positively ghastly,"mented Fatty, who could not help shiver as he thought about it.

    Without lifting his head, Ai Hui said, "It is where the Blood of God nurtures and creates blood fiends and other strange things. It has existed for a long time, and consists of the core members of the Blood of God. The earliest blood poisons were created by them. The Beast Venom Temple prides itself on the creation of ever stranger things, and its members are high up on the hierarchy."

    Shi Xueman could not help but look at Ai Hui. She was quite surprised that Ai Hui was this familiar with the Blood of God. She, herself, had not even known that the blood poisons were created by the Beast Venom Temple. Thinking further, she deduced that Ai Hui had probably delved deeply into the Blood of God¡¯s working as part of his ns for exacting revenge.

    Fatty looked unwell as he spoke, "But isn¡¯t it terribly ruthless to sacrifice people like that?"

    "Would the blood disaster in the Induction Ground have happened if they weren¡¯t ruthless?" asked Sang Zhijun.

    Considering that the Blood of God had never respected the sanctity of life, there was nothing to be surprised about.

    Fatty was horrified. "What can we do then? All they have to do is send a couple of these blood sacrificial warriors and it¡¯s over?"

    Ai Hui shook his head, "It isn¡¯t that easy to create blood sacrificial warriors since the process requires people who have an extremely high endurance. The subjects are usually less talented blood elementalists. They would be infused with fresh blood that came from all sorts of blood fiends. This seemingly inhumane process is one of the Beast Venom Temple¡¯s favorite methods. Ancient methods of creating the strongest poisons involved pitting venomous insects against one another in a small box. The one that survived the massacre would naturally be the most vicious."

    Everyone¡¯s faces lost some color. Listening to Ai Hui¡¯s brief exnation gave them the creeps.

    Ai Hui continued, "The chosen blood elementalists¡¯ bodies work the same way as the box while the different types of blood are like the venomous insects. Using this method, the Beast Venom Temple has been able to create various types of blood sacrificial warriors. However, the sess rate is very low since most blood elementalists cannot endure the toxicity of the blood fiends¡¯ blood."

    Fatty felt his mouth go dry. "What will happen to those who cannot endure it?"

    "What do you think?" retorted Ai Hui.

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s face was drained of color. "That¡¯s terrible! Have they lost everyst shred of their humanity? How can they simply disregard human life like that!"

    "No wonder the name ¡®Beast Venom Temple¡¯ gave me goosebumps," uttered Fatty, his voice quivering a little.

    "It is pretty ghastly, but not exactly what you guys are thinking," said Ai Hui while he shook his head. "The creation of blood sacrificial warriors is merely a tiny part of the work they do, and the scope of their research is extremely extensive. They are the reason why the Blood of God was able to establish themselves so rapidly. Domesticating blood fiends as a source of blood crystals was one of their brilliant ideas. The Beast Venom Temple is highly regarded among the Blood of God."

    Shi Xueman could not help but ask, "Why?"

    "They do not directly intervene in the God Nation¡¯s affairs, but constantly provide new types of blood fiends such as the ardent flower night wolf. The god priests of the Beast Venom Temple also make their rounds throughout the God Nation to guide its people on how to harvest jade fruits, a type of blood crystal that is grown on trees."

    "Grown on trees?"

    Everyone¡¯s eyes were wide open with shock.

    The Blood of God¡¯s workings were extremely mysterious and bizarre to most people.

    "Since this harvest only urs once every four years, nobody can say for sure how big an impact it¡¯ll make. As long as it goes well, the Blood of God¡¯s power will further consolidate. Meanwhile, look at our Elders Guild, heh."

    Ai Hui scoffed with disdain. He did not disguise his scorn for the Elders Guild.

    Everybody felt a slight panic upon being reminded of the Elders Guild. The Blood of God was actually surging forward while the members of the Elders Guild were busy infighting.

    "It¡¯s actually not a bad thing." Duanmu Huanghun coughed, waiting for everyone¡¯s attention before continuing, "I¡¯m talking about about the lesser Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ failure. The lesser Avalon of Five Elements n isn¡¯t something new and is actually just a rehash of an old n that was stored away for many years. This n was drawn up shortly after the founding of the Avalon of Five Elements as a fallback if their fight against the Wilderness failed. After the Avalon of Five Elements became more and more stable, the n was shelved in the Induction Ground and quickly became forgotten. Considering that the entire Induction Ground was destroyed by the blood disaster, the Elders Guild must have spent a lot of effort to dig up this n from elsewhere. Little did they expect the Blood of God to act so swiftly and ruthlessly."

    Duanmu Huanghun continued, "The requirements for building the lesser Avalon of Five Elements are very stringent. The biggest challenge for the Elders Guild now is to find a suitable location as soon as possible. I¡¯m guessing that they¡¯ll encourage more people to go into the Wilderness to search for such a ce. This is the only choice they have at the moment. Failing at this will cause the fire, wood, and earth elementalists to rebel."

    Just as he finished hisst syble, Jiang Wei hurriedly walked in and announced, "The Elders Guild has just issued thetest Bigtree Decree."

    Everyone turned their attention toward him.

    Every Elder had the power to send out a decree, but the Bigtree Decree was an order that could only be passed if all the Elders agreed to it at a Bigtree Meeting. In the Avalon of Five Elements, it was a mandate of the highest degree.

    "The Elders Guild has issued a city expansion order: any family, group, or individual who registers with the Elders Guild will be permitted to build a city in the Wilderness. Since cities in the Wilderness do not have the typical elemental energy system in Avalon of Five Elements, the Elders Guild has decided to sell the blueprints for building all five types of elemental energy pool. As long as they can build their own elemental energy pool, each city will be able to operate independently. The cities constructed will belong to the settlers, themselves."

    "In addition, the mayor of the first city to build and operate elemental energy pools of all five elements will be the next Great Elder of Elders Guild."

    Jiang Wei finished the announcement in one breath.

    Everyone instantly turned to look at Duanmu Huanghun.

    His mouth was wide open in surprise.

    "Wow, who would have thought that you¡¯d have such foresight!" Shi Xueman eximed excitedly. "Looks like you¡¯ve been actively engaging in petty political discourses during these past three years!"

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes almost rolled out of their sockets. Was this how you praise people?

    Upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s awestruck face, however, Duanmu Huanghun felt much better. After suffering all that humiliation due to him, Duanmu Huanghun finally managed to amaze Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui rubbed his chin pensively and muttered out loud, "Looks like the Elders Guild is risking everything on this!"

    Everyone nodded their heads spontaneously. Although the aristocratic families were powerful, they were still under the control of the Elders Guild. Now that the Elders Guild was allowing them to build their own cities, it meant that they would be able to set up their own independent regimes.

    Furthermore, even the position of the next Great Elder was up for grabs. The Elders Guild actually had the drive to take such bold actions.

    Duanmu Huanghun sneered. "Drinking poison to quench the thirst. They won¡¯t be able to take their power back once it¡¯s been given away. If everyone has their own city, who is going to give a hoot about the Elders Guild? The Elders Guild has to consider the welfare of all elementalists, but the aristocratic families are more likely to only be concerned with themselves. Take the Shi family for example. All they need is a water elemental energy pool. By giving up their absolute control over elemental energy, the Elders Guild is giving up their power as well. Nheless, the Elders Guild doesn¡¯t have any other choice. What they are trying to do is to subtly tell everyone that they no longer have the power to control everything and that everyone needs to find their own way forward."

    Wry smiles could be seen throughout the group. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s words were harsh, but they were the truth.

    "The elemental energy in the Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige have dwindled significantly. If the lesser Avalon of Five Elements isn¡¯t ready in a few more years, these two ces will wither away. The Elders Guild is probably trying to divide these issues and take alternative steps to address each one."

    As he continued his speech, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s voice changed from one of contempt to one of helplessness. Compared to the prospering Blood of God, the Avalon of Five Elements was like the setting sun, destined to fade away.

    Ai Hui shook his head defiantly. "There can be no construction without destruction. We¡¯ll just have to make a new path if the current one cannot be trod upon."

    Shi Xueman asked, "What about us?"

    All of the others, including Duanmu Huanghun, were looking expectantly at Ai Hui for an answer.

    Ai Hui thought for a moment before replying, "Everyone needs to find out more information first. The Bigtree Decree has just been announced, so things will take a while to happen. Developing a city in the Wilderness isn¡¯t a simple task, so we¡¯ll need to make preparations."

    All of them nodded their heads in response to Ai Hui¡¯s reply and immediately got to work. They tapped into their differentworks to get as much information as they could.

    Ai Hui fell into deep thought.

    Come to think of it, things were really as Huanghun said. The Elders Guild had run out of options. The destruction of the lesser Avalon of Five Elements left the Elders Guild in a bad state.

    The Avalon of Five Elements was hanging by a thread.

    The five elemental cyclical system was truly ingenious, but a single missing link would affect the entire cycle. In the short term, the wood, fire, and earth elementalists would be the ones giving the Elders Guild the greatest amount of pressure. However, if the cycle continued to be broken, then in the long run, even the strength of the metal and water elementalists would be lost.

    The Silver Mist Sea had already begun to dry up.

    The present Avalon of Five Elements was like a wounded person, weakening as the blood continued to pour out of his wounds. Was he going to wait for death or fight for life before his blood ran out?

    The Elders Guild chose to fight, but could this n really save the Avalon of Five Elements?

    Nobody knew.

    Something this big was not going to be so easily addressed by an individual. It was better to just focus on something more realistic.

    Upon hearing about the decree, the aristocratic families and new citizens would both rush to develop the Wilderness. The benefits promised by the Elders Guild were sufficient to motivate everyone. Just the reward for being the first mayor to establish a five elemental city was already enough to spur the aristocratic families into overdrive.

    It looked like there were wise men in the Elders Guild!

    Wasn¡¯t building a city that had all five elements operating pretty much the same as building the lesser Avalon of Five Elements?

    Ai Hui now understood that the Elders Guild had turned the internal conflict into a publicpetition. Furthermore, the end goal was still the creation of the lesser Avalon of Five Elements.

    Location was the key factor in building a five elemental city. The location had to contain extremely pure forms of all five elements that were in the right amounts and in the right ces before they could be incorporated into a cycle.

    Ai Hui was struck by a sudden sh of inspiration. Perhaps there was someone who knew about this.

    The old prisoner!

 Chapter 332: Clues

    Chapter 332: Clues

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    A dark and empty gallery deep within the Beast Venom Temple.

    Two god shamans were engaged in a quiet discussion as they walked.

    "Did you know? The iron man was moved to the blood pool this morning under the elder god priest¡¯s special order."

    "That¡¯s good, I hope he regains his consciousness soon. It¡¯s a waste for someone as tough as iron man to be a blood sacrificial warrior."

    "I agree, but who knows when he¡¯s going to wake up. It¡¯s extremely strange that he has obvious responses towards external stimuli but simply doesn¡¯t wake up. To think he was just going to be used as an expendable, but now nobody wants him to die. One hundred and eight types of fresh blood. The previous record was only sixty-two types!"

    "Perhaps he has something in his heart that he just can¡¯t let go of. What a terrifying resolution that must be, if his will is still intact despite being infused with one hundred and eight types of blood. Is he from the first batch of blood sacrificial warriors?"

    "Yeah, it was before this ce even existed."

    "If I remember correctly, that batch of blood sacrificial warriors were made from maimed individuals?"

    "Yes, they were all elementalists who failed to transform into god elementalists. Recycling is all the rage, you know."

    "That¡¯s probably why he doesn¡¯t want to wake up."

    "That¡¯s true, it¡¯s quite the dilemma. Do you think he¡¯ll eventually wake up?"

    "Maybe, maybe not. Who knows."

    ...

    The two silhouettes gradually faded out of sight as their voices became fainter.

    At the bottom of a deep, crimson pool surrounded by countless troughs filled with blood, a motionless figure was faintly visible.

    .....

    Swordsman Training Hall.

    Ai Hui thought of the old prisoner because a n like the lesser Avalon of Five Elements was probably hatched by an ambitious organization like the Assembly of Patriarchs. The old prisoner had an amazing wealth of knowledge and even used to have a high position in the Assembly of Patriarchs. The likelihood of him being exposed to rted matters was, as such, rtively high.

    "... Someone in the organization has indeed done research on this. The idea of leaving the Avalon of Five Elements has been yed around with several times in the past. Because of this, someone has broached the subject before. Later on, however, the rtionship between the Assembly of Patriarchs and the Avalon of Five Elements became increasingly tight and this idea was never mentioned again."

    "I have seen the description of a ce in the Wilderness that was suitable for the establishment of a five elemental city back when I¡¯d looked through one of the seniors¡¯ notebooks. There was also a sketch apanying the information. A pity this was too long ago and my memory has blurred. What¡¯s more, I wasn¡¯t particrly interested in the Wilderness back then, so I only gave it a cursory nce."

    "If you want to find out its exact location, you¡¯ll have to make a trip to headquarters. This particr notebook should be kept on the seventh floor of the headquarters¡¯ Hall of Ancient Records, its author has the surname Xiao. I¡¯vepletely forgotten any other details. I hope this is sufficient to help you."

    Headquarters?

    Ai Hui hesitated for a moment. He knew that as Chu Zhaoyang, he was qualified to join headquarters. Hua Kui had mentioned it to him several times, but he never once agreed.

    The rtionship between the old prisoner and the Assembly of Patriarchs was a strange one. He was sometimes very proud of them and sometimes very angry with them. Every now and then, he would sigh deeply when he spoke of the organization.

    Ai Hui privately guessed that the old prisoner most likely betrayed them or somehow got expelled. He wondered what rtionships inside the Assembly were like, but the old prisoner always refused to talk about it.

    The old prisoner was nice, but very cautious. He was on alert most of the time and never spouted nonsense. The advice he gave wasrgely pertinent and worldly, and his guidance had been indispensable to Ai Hui¡¯s progress during these three years. Like Master Shao, he was an elementalist not geared towards fighting.

    Nothing had been heard from Master Shao yet. It was as if he had suddenly vanished from this world.

    Lou Lan missed Master Shao a lot, and worried about him constantly. Master Shao had, after all, been a big part of Lou Lan¡¯s life ever since he could remember.

    The message tree lit up again.

    "Judging from the current situation, building a five elemental city shouldn¡¯t be your goal. For those who are weak, having too sumptuous a meal is no different from taking poison. Although the Elders Guild has made such amitment regarding the selection of the next Great Elder, only those whose foundations are strong enough will be capable of holding onto the post firmly. You won¡¯t be able to build a five elemental city or hold the position of Great Elder if you don¡¯t be much stronger first."

    Ai Huiughed. The old man was too conservative, but he had good intentions in mind.

    Ai Hui quickly wrote on the leaf. "Rest assured that I do not covet the position of Great Elder, and have never once thought of lording over a five elemental city; however, having control over a five elemental city is incredibly enticing for the aristocratic families. I believe it would be a good investment if I can sell one off at the opportune moment. A pauper dying of poverty pays his respects to the great prisoner."

    That¡¯s right, Ai Hui never thought of fighting for the position of Great Elder. This simply wasn¡¯t something he hankered after.

    However, he wasn¡¯t sure whether this n would work out.

    As more and more people returned to Swordsman Training Hall, the information collected started to pile up.

    The prices of various materials were soaring on the markets. All the enterprises were desperately acquiring materials. The elemental energy pool blueprints were already avable for purchase from the Elders Guild, but at a price of one thousand Heaven Merit Points. Hunting groups¡¯missions were easily up tenfold, but those that were highly reputablemanded evenrger sums of money. Despite these exorbitant prices, almost all of the hunting groups had been signed by various aristocratic families. The first wave of elementalists had already made their way into the Wilderness.

    All of a sudden, the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s broken spirit seemed to have been restored.

    "The elemental energy pool costs one thousand Heaven Merit Points, what a ludicrous price! The Elders Guild is ruthless."

    "Shall we start moving? I see so many others frantically rushing into the Wilderness."

    "Nah, I don¡¯t think so. Not many people can afford to buy the blueprints anyway."

    "Nobody¡¯s even bothering about the elemental energy pool. Anyone willing to go into the Wilderness can make a ton of money. Themission for average elementalists has gone up five times already. Who is going to remain here?"

    "But it¡¯s risky."

    "There are so many of us, even the dire beasts will be afraid."

    Everyone was engaged in lively discussion about the current situation.

    Ai Hui called Shi Xueman, Duanmu Huanghun, and a few others to one side. Lowering his voice, he said, "I need your opinion on something. Do you think we¡¯d be able to sell a five elemental city at a good price?"

    "Five elemental city? Sell?"

    They were all staring at Ai Hui nkly.

    Shi Xueman was the first to respond. "Do you know something? Have you found the right location?"

    Ai Hui thought for a moment before saying, "There¡¯s a chance, but it¡¯s not certain."

    Everyone was in high spirits. A five elemental city wouldmand the highest reward the Elders Guild had offered.

    Fatty immediately asked, "If you had a five elemental city, why would you want to sell it? Why not just directly take the position of Great Elder and rule over the entire Avalon of Five Elements?"

    "Moron!"

    Everyone spoke out in universal contempt.

    Duanmu Huanghun said, "Selling is a good idea since influential families would be willing to pay almost any price to buy one. What I¡¯m afraid of is that they may attempt to take it by force. I have looked through the Elders Guild¡¯s instructions and nothing on it disallows snatching."

    Other people were also worried. After three hard years of tempering, they were no longer the ignorant teenagers they had once been. They knew very well that if the benefits wererge enough, people would be willing to take bigger risks. Whether it was the influential families or the new citizens, they would all be the same.

    Ai Hui said, "Then I¡¯ll give the city to Irondy and let her be the Great Elder."

    Everybody¡¯s eyes lit up. With the Shi family¡¯s status and Shi Beihai¡¯s immense influence, anyone wishing to snatch the Shi family¡¯s assets would be out of their minds.

    Fatty winked at Ai Hui. "Hey, check out this guy¡¯s generosity. The Lightning de is really something else, giving a city to ady as gift."

    The others turned their faces aside.

    Shi Xueman cracked her knuckles and clenched her fists. "Do you really miss my beatings that much, Fatty?"

    Fatty turned pale at the thought of the irondy¡¯s fists meeting his face. With a ttering smile, he quickly praised, "Sister Xueman, how can you be given any ordinary gifts? You should be given an entire city at least. Ouch, ouch..."

    Staring at Shi Xueman¡¯s iron fists, Fatty fled like a terrified rat. Everyone elseughed heartily

    After the humorous exchange, Duanmu Huanghun took a good look at Ai Hui and said, "Actually, Iron... Sister Xueman would make a pretty good Great Elder. With our reputations and the Shi family name as our backing, we will have enough leverage..."

    "I disagree," Shi Xueman snapped. "The moment I make use of my family¡¯s influence to step up to that position, a lot of things will move beyond my control. I would be stuck in the same position I was before being expelled, what¡¯s the point in that?"

    Everyone was dumbfounded. It was indeed true that if Shi Xueman hadn¡¯t gone out and done some reckless things, she¡¯d definitely be next in line to be the Great Elder. Going back to square one after doing so many things, what¡¯s the point in that?

    "Alright, publicly break all ties with the Shi family then. I believe the other aristocratic families won¡¯t go on the offensive so soon anyway." Duanmu Huanghun continued, "I can¡¯t say the same for everyone else though."

    Sang Zhijun coldly eximed, "It¡¯s not like we¡¯re made of mud!"

    Having this discussion helped Ai Hui to rify his thoughts. He said, "It¡¯s okay, we can start finding bidders after the construction of the fourth elemental energy pool. We don¡¯t have to wait until the entire city has been built to start selling. This way, we¡¯ll have ample time and it won¡¯t be so eye-catching. As long as we let others know that we n to eventually construct a five elemental city, I believe we¡¯ll be able to sell it."

    Everyone nodded in agreement.

    For the influential families, a semi-finished five elemental city was more suited to their needs. They would dly throw more money into the project to finish building the remaining elemental energy pools.

    Ai Hui left quietly after affirming the feasibility of the n.

    Shi Xueman and the others continued to stay in Peace City. Peace City was, after all, located at the border, making it a very convenient location to enter and exit the Wilderness. Besides, they could make use of the time together to build up their camaraderie. They hadn¡¯t fought together in three years and would do well to catch up with one another.

    Most of them had served stints in thebat divisions, especially those who were a part of the A-1 unit. In terms of base level orbat experience, all of them had be way stronger than before.

    As they became more familiar with one another, everyone quickly regained the rapport that they once had.

    Swordsman Training Hall that had captured everyone¡¯s attention soon becamepletely disregarded.

    The city expansion order had caused some kind of frenzy. Countless people were pouring into the Wilderness. All the message trees were constantly filled with messages regarding the Wilderness.

    The messages were about things such as: Several families have begun toy the foundations for their cities, who will be the first toplete theirs? Some lucky kid managed to take down a dire beast that was wounded by others and made a fortune off it.

    The Avalon of Five Elements was brimming with action.

 Chapter 333: A Test

    Chapter 333: A Test

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Droves of elementalists were all over the ce. The sky was filled with bamboo carts that looked like swarms of bees.

    Everyone hadpletely dismissed the bleak future, looking short-sightedly at the exciting missions they were about toplete. Everybody talked and dreamt of a better life.

    Ai Hui watched coldly from the sidelines.

    The Avalon of Five Elements had built their advantage over the Wilderness for hundreds of years. People were still afraid of the deepest parts of the Wilderness, but as long as one didn¡¯t venture too far in, the Wilderness was really just an expansive hunting ground.

    Where else would all the dire beast materialse from? How else could so many hunting groups continue to thrive?

    The fear of the deepest areas in the Wilderness was all in their minds. They were only afraid because no one else had set foot there before. If the elementalists truly wanted to delve deeper, dire beasts wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything to stop them. What¡¯s more, the Thirteen Divisions had joined the hunting groups in the Wilderness. Combined, their strength would be more than sufficient to take down any dire beasts they encountered. It looked as though the Avalon of Five Elements was primed to take over the Wilderness.

    This was the most popr view of the masses.

    Ai Hui, who had spent three years in the Wilderness, knew how outrageous this idea was.

    The elites of the Thirteen Divisions were definitely much more powerful than the elementalists in the hunting groups, but this wasn¡¯t necessarily a good thing.

    Why did the hunting groups recruit so many untrainedborers from the Old Territory? Even with the appalling death rate of theborers, why weren¡¯t they stopping?

    The dire beasts¡¯ sensitivity to elementalists was far beyond the elementalists¡¯ sensitivity to dire beasts. In other words, dire beasts were born with much keener sensing abilities. The more powerful the elementalist, the more outstanding they would appear in the Wilderness.

    Only those with strength as impressive as the Grandmasters and Masters could make the dire beasts flee without even putting up a fight. All other elementalists below the rank of Master would attract stronger andrger amounts of dire beasts the stronger the elementalists were.

    Having had so many encounters with dire beasts, Ai Hui knew that they weren¡¯t as stupid as people believed. In fact, the dire beasts were extremely cunning and sharp, banding together to fight againstrger groups of elementalists.

    This was the main reason why Ai Hui didn¡¯t rush to send everyone in.

    The first wave of elementalists would definitely suffer the heaviest casualties.

    Sensational news was constantly being spread through the grapevines. All these fake news stories were probably being spread intentionally. All these passionate people rushing in probably didn¡¯t know that they were just being used as cannon fodder.

    Ai Hui guessed that the Elders Guild was probably in on this, but chose to let it slide.

    To the Elders Guild, using such an approach to reduce the number of elite elementalists lost was a great idea.

    Ai Hui shook his head as he didn¡¯t have the power to dissuade these people. They werepletely blinded by wealth and merits.

    He hurried along at a moderate pace, leaving the main road at times to explore and trudge along the mountain paths. He took his time to advance, slotting in time to train along the way. He had ample time and did not need to hurry.

    Well into the night, Ai Hui stood on top of a cliff and faced a sea of clouds. He held onto his sword while he stood motionless. Starlight bathed his entire body, making him shimmer.

    If one looked closely enough, he or she would realize that Ai Hui was utterly motionless. In actual fact, his body was quivering almost imperceptibly with every breath he took.

    The Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp in Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce was rotating slowly. The scriptures surrounding themp¡¯s me flowed around like light. Ai Hui¡¯s bodily rhythm, his breathing rhythm, as well as the me¡¯s rhythm, were all synchronized.

    Soft light shined through the circr scripture, magnifying the words. The magnified words cycled throughout his body unobstructed. These words from the scripture had a strange pull on the starlight, making it congeal and create ayer of light on Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    The Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp in his sky pce had gained an additional two petals, bringing the number from four to six. Looks like Lou Lan¡¯s Eight Treasures Porridge was indeed effective.

    Attaining all nine petals would allow one to achieve the [Skyheart Pure Body], which protects it¡¯s user from all evils and grants the ability to break all illusions.

    Ai Hui could feel the changes in his body. The soft, bright light and the circting scripture text were constantly coursing through his flesh. He would asionally see tiny puffs of ck smoke rising and disappearing in the blink of an eye.

    His mind and body had a translucent quality to them and felt extremely pure.

    Ai Hui was inexplicably surprised. This phenomena was mentioned in the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp¡¯s scripture and was called [zed Body]. While [zed Body] couldn¡¯t match up to the [Skyheart Pure Body], it already granted him some interesting benefits.

    He intuitively begun a Circtory Cycle Revolution and felt the elemental energy sword pills within his body be even more refined. They had lost all traces of their sharp edge and now flowed smoothly throughout the revolution. A faint attractive force was now present between the elemental energy sword pills, turning them into somewhat of a ne made of maic pearls.

    In addition, Ai Hui¡¯s body seemed to contain a whirlpool within it that generated a suction force on the elemental energy in the environment. This was indicative of his now increased rates of improvement and recovery.

    As the ck mist dispersed, Ai Hui¡¯s flesh and blood felt much purer. Although it didn¡¯t increase his strength, his muscles and tendons were evidently more resilient than before. His physical strength also appeared to recover at a much greater rate than before.

    His [Copper Skin ]had transformed as well. It was now the colour of jade and had a shiny new lustre.

    Ai Hui felt extremely refreshed; it felt as though he was back in the sword embryo¡¯s state. His sixth sense felt unnaturally keen, allowing him to capture even the slightest changes in his surroundings.

    The metal winds atop the cliff were very strong. While they contained only weak traces of metal elemental energy, the winds were unyielding and ceaseless.

    Metal elemental energy from the surroundings was umting around Ai Hui¡¯s body. His body was soon surrounded by countless silver needles, giving one the impression of arge school of whitebaits swimming relentlessly around him. As the silver glow grew brighter, the starlight became dimmer.

    Unknowingly, Ai Hui¡¯s mind wandered off with the wind.

    Floating and sinking, rising and falling, gathering and scattering; Ai Hui no longer knew where he was.

    He was abruptly awoken by an intense beam of light that shone right into his eyes.

    Ai Hui saw the rising sun leap out from beneath the sea of clouds. The orange sunlight illuminated his face from the horizon as he smiled at the majestic sight before him.

    He sheathed his sword and stood up. The entire night¡¯s worth of practice did not leave him the least bit sore. Instead, he felt unspeakably refreshed and at peace.

    It had been a while since he achieved elemental externalization, butst night¡¯s experience waspletely different from anything he had experienced before. He was thoroughly intrigued by it.

    Achieving elemental internalization required constant practice over long periods of time. Elemental externalization required a profound understanding of the heavens and the earth; the blind umtion of elemental energy was no longer of any use.

    Many elementalists were unable to be ustomed to this external connection with the environment.

    Rxing his control on the surrounding metal elemental energy, Ai Hui watched it slowly disperse into the wind. He jumped off the cliff and spread his Starry Gem Swordwings, soaring through the air before plunging into the sea of clouds.

    After flying for hundreds of kilometers, he finallynded at noon.

    He was lucky to catch a bharal for lunch. He lit a bonfire and started to roast it ording to Lou Lan¡¯s teachings. Under chef Lou Lan¡¯s tutge, Ai Hui¡¯s cooking skill had be pretty good.

    The aroma of the various spices mixed with the bharal¡¯s grease was simply irresistible.

    Travellers passed by every once in awhile. They all appeared to be heading towards the Wilderness.

    "Are you the Silverwheel Swordsman, Mr. Chu Zhaoyang?" asked a middle-aged man who happened to be passing by. He looked like a housekeeper.

    Ai Hui felt a bit helpless. He had met several groups of people who greeted him along the way. The whole incident with the Great Wei Caravan had made him famous and widely recognized.

    Ai Hui stared at the roast, carefully rotating the grill without lifting his head. He replied, "I am indeed Chu Zhaoyang, do you need something?"

    "My master would like to ask whether Mr. Chu is heading into the Wilderness. If Mr. Chu is going in, my master is willing to pay..."

    Ai Hui interrupted the housekeeper. "I¡¯m not going into the Wilderness."

    This again...

    Along the way, he had met a couple of guys who wanted to hire him.

    After a satisfying lunch, Ai Hui decided not to waste anymore time on the ground and flew directly to Silver City, his destination.

    Hua Kui¡¯s meeting locations were always different. Ai Hui was surprised that they were going to meet at Silver City this time around.

    Due to their past discussions about having him join the headquarters, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but wonder if the Assembly of Patriarchs had their headquarters here in Silver City.

    Ai Hui had been to Silver City twice. Both times, however, he had had matters to attend to and so entered and left the city hastily.

    Heading towards the exact address given to him by Hua Kui, Ai Hui managed to find him swiftly. Once again, they were meeting in a courtyard filled with vast varieties of nts and flowers.

    Hua Kui was very pleased to see Ai Hui. Among his acquaintances, Chu Zhaoyang was the most eye-catching individual. Hua Kui saw him as someone truly worthy of further grooming. From the information he received from the organization, Chu Zhaoyang seemed like someone who had a deep feud with the Blood of God.

    Hua Kui curiously asked, "Why do you suddenly want to join the headquarters when you weren¡¯t willing to do so previously?"

    Ai Hui knew that while Hua Kui appeared to be asking this casually, his response would determine whether or not he could join the headquarters. He was, however, well prepared to answer something like that. "The incident with the Great Wei Caravan helped me to realize something - it is difficult to survive without a strong backer."

    Hua Kui burst out inughter. "I believe you were just terribly unlucky that time, but what you say is true. If you had joined the headquarters then, the issue with the Great Wei Caravan would have been settled with a single order. Joining the headquarters isn¡¯t going to be simple, I¡¯m afraid. You¡¯ll have to pass a test first."

    "What kind of test?"

    Ai Hui had already guessed that there would be a test.

    "You have to find a way to join the Karakorum Sword League." Hua Kui continued, "It¡¯s just nice that you haven¡¯t used your opportunity to practice the Karakorum Sword League¡¯s sword formations."

    Cold fear gripped Ai Hui¡¯s heart. How did he know about this? Clearly they had someone within the Karakorum Sword League. Ai Hui nonchntly asked, "Isn¡¯t it easy to join the Karakorum Sword League?"

    Hua Kui exined, "It¡¯s only easy to be an ordinary external disciple. You need to find a way to get into the main institution. Once you¡¯re a part of them, you pass the test. If you fail, you¡¯ll have to wait until next year."

    Ai Hui promptly nodded. "I understand."

 Chapter 334: Karakorum Sword League

    Chapter 334: Karakorum Sword League

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Silver City was also known as Pagoda City. As the most elite city in the entire Silver Mist Sea, every inch ofnd was filled with wealth. The tall pagodas blended well with the other buildings and had gradually be arge part of Silver City¡¯s unique style.

    Looking down from a bird¡¯s eye view, one could seerge numbers of pagodas everywhere, each and every one them standing tall like swords that were pointing towards the sky. Bamboo carts, Fiery Floating Clouds and elementalists with their azure wings spread opened shuttled amongst these majestic pagodas. In the distance, the sparkling Silver Mist River loomed. The towering dams in the upper reaches and the mountains appeared to cover half of the horizon. This view was simply breathtaking.

    Being thergest city in Silver Mist Sea, Silver City consisted of 13 towns of varying sizes. The furthest town was 220 kilometers away from Silver City and the nearest was 26 kilometers away. Every town was rtively busy and buzzed with enough activity to rival that of a small city.

    The headquarters of Karakorum Sword League were located in a small, obscure town.

    Ai Hui initially thought that Karakorum Sword League would be well-known throughout Silver City. However, upon reaching Silver City, he realised that the locals had limited knowledge of Karakorum Sword League.

    Rather, the Dragonrise Training Hall was the most influential ce in Silver City.

    The location of headquarters of Dragonrise Training Hall was proof of this. Situated within Silver City itself, the training hall covered quite a bit ofnd area. Its buildings were lofty and grand, giving the area an extraordinary presence.

    Money alone wasn¡¯t sufficient to create such a spectacr training hall in Silver City. Solid backing was definitely needed as well.

    Inparison, Karakorum Sword League was much more low-profile. Ai Hui¡¯s curiosity towards Karakorum Sword League didn¡¯t change because of this.

    Karakorum Sword League was directly responsible for the recent rise of swordsmanship¡¯s poprity.

    It was rumoured that the chief of Karakorum Sword League was a highly skilled youngdy with a mysterious background. She had also created numerous swordsmanship inheritances and therefore had the power to nurture a new generation. But as with all rumours, it was difficult to determine their reliability.

    The further away one got from Silver City, the less pagodas could be seen. In their ce stood low courtyards and shorter buildings.

    The headquarters of Karakorum Sword League were rtively old and must have been around for many years. Copsed and shabby structures were everywhere, but the owners did not seem to be interested in repairing them.

    Countless broken swords were strewn about the ce, many of which were stabbed firmly into the surrounding walls and green ceramic tiles. Some were coated withyers of rust, while others shone brightly.

    Racks made from bamboo poles lined both sides of the stone road that led up to the main gate. The racks were filled with grass swords ced out to dry.

    A gust of wind blew past, causing the grass swords to ring out in harmony. The crisp, ringing sound was rather pleasing to Ai Hui¡¯s ear.

    After walking two steps, Ai Hui saw the craftsmen who were handling the grass swords dip them into vats of ck starch before swiftly taking them out. These shining ck grass swords were then hung onto the bamboo pole.

    Rows of bamboo racks were stretched across a few hundred feet in a spectacr disy.

    Although Karakorum Sword League¡¯s location was a little remote, it was not deserted at all. Groups of youngdies with long swords hanging from their waists would brush past Ai Hui from time to time. They would talk about their gains and losses and discuss the day¡¯spetitions.

    Ai Hui was already enjoying the atmosphere - it reminded him of Central Pine Academy.

    There was no trace of the hustle and bustle found in the rest of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    The word "Karakorum" was written on the top portion of the main gates. Ai Hui found the handwriting rather familiar but couldn¡¯t figure out where he had seen it before.

    Stepping through the gates, he found his field of vision widened. Every single training ground was filled with people practicing their swordy.

    There was a teacher allocated to each one, lending their expertise and guidance to the students practicing within.

    Upon seeing Ai Hui scanning the area, one of the youths in charge of attending to guests walked up to him. "Honored Guest, is there anything I can help you with?"

    The youth looked no older than sixteen. A sword hung limply at his waist, and he looked pretty nimble.

    Ai Hui took a small sword about three inches long and said, "I¡¯m here to experience the sword formations."

    The youth took a quick nce at the small sword and repeatedly nodded, "Those who hold the small sword token are Karakorum¡¯s distinguished guests. Please,e this way. We have six types of sword formations, which type would our honored guest wish to experience?"

    "Six types?" asked Ai Hui, slightly taken aback. He never imagined that there would be several types of sword formations.

    Upon hearing the surprise in Ai Hui¡¯s words, the youth suddenly disyed a strong sense of pride. "The swordsmanship of our leader is unrivalled. All six types of sword formations were invented by her and we¡¯ll probably have even more in the future."

    "Truly impressive," replied Ai Hui sincerely. Come to think about it, he couldn¡¯t even create aplete sword formation, yet here they had already invented six types. He couldn¡¯t help but feel impressed.

    No wonder they dared to use Karakorum¡¯s name, their leader must be pretty powerful.

    The youth had a favourable impression of Ai Hui. He continued, "The sword formations are good for the training of swordsmanship. However, it is extremely pricey and ordinary people probably cannot afford it. Since you have the small sword token, you¡¯ll be able to experience three types of sword formations."

    Ai Hui asked curiously, "Don¡¯t you usually use the sword formations?"

    "How can I possibly afford it?" the youth uttered as he shook his head. "Activating a sword formation requires blood crystals and essence elemental beans. Hang on, not just any essence elemental beans, they must be of the highest grade."

    High-grade essence elemental beans contained much more elemental energy than ordinary ones. Furthermore, the elemental energy within was also much purer, which was why they were priced so highly.

    A high-grade essence elemental bean was worth twenty ordinary ones, although the market for them was extremely vtile.

    High-grade essence elemental beans were expensive and had a low production rate. As such, people in general didn¡¯t use them.

    The beneficial effects of high-grade essence elemental beans were significantly better than that of the ordinary essence elemental beans, but the discrepancy wasn¡¯t exactly twenty times, as the difference in value might imply. More often, they were used to refine weapons or manufacture elemental food to enhance the product¡¯s quality.

    "Doesn¡¯t that make it super expensive?" Ai Hui asked as he raised the small sword token in his hand. "How much is this worth?"

    The youth shook his head again and replied, "I don¡¯t know the specific price, but it¡¯s definitely worth quite a hefty sum. The thing is, you may not be able to buy it even if you have lots of essence elemental beans."

    Ai Hui followed the youth and walked along the training grounds. He inquisitively asked, "How¡¯s the standard of the teachers here? Are their rates high?"

    "The teachers are without a doubt the best you can find," answered the youth haughtily. "Other ces like Dragonrise Training Hall might be stronger in other aspects, but in terms of swordsmanship, they aren¡¯t even worth mentioning. The price is reasonable, only five essence elemental beans per year, something that most people can afford. Of course, this is only for the daily lessons given by the teachers. If you¡¯d like to learn swordsmanship inheritances, you¡¯d naturally have to pay more."

    "Reasonable indeed," nodded Ai Hui. "Looks like there are quite a lot of students."

    A fee of five essence elemental beans per annum wasn¡¯t expensive, especially since Karakorum was located around Silver City.

    The youth held his head so high that his chin almost pointed towards the sky. "Of course! Karakorum Sword League in Silver City is the best ce to learn swordsmanship inheritances. Everyone knows this!"

    Just then, a man and ady walked out from the backyard.

    The man was charismatic, dashing and gracefully wielded a longsword in his hand. Thedy by his side had a demure and refined presence.

    Thedy¡¯s face was filled with indignation as she eximed, "This woman does not know her ce. Ah Xian, you saved her from those people yet she treated you with such disrespect! This is too much!"

    The man was however not angry at all. He replied, "Don¡¯t be angry, Junyu. Her behaviour isn¡¯t exactly out of sorts either. We saved her with the intention of taking a reward, which wasn¡¯t particrly well-intentioned of us anyway. If I hadn¡¯t heard that the ancient treasure she possesses is a swordy manual, I wouldn¡¯t have concerned myself with this. Besides, she¡¯s probably still grieving over the unexpected massacre that befell the Great Wei Enterprise."

    "That¡¯s true. The attackers were absolutely vicious," sighed thedy. "Although, such things have been happening since ancient times. Talented people will always draw others¡¯ jealousy, sometimes resulting in their family¡¯s misfortune. I guess she¡¯s quite pitiful too. Ah Xian, do you think someone will find their way here?"

    "Junyu, you shouldn¡¯t be worried since Karakorum is not an easy ce to break into. Nothing will happen as long as they don¡¯te. But if they do, we¡¯ll just have to take revenge for her and get rid of them all," said the man confidently.

    After hearing this, thedy calmed down and diverted her gaze. Softly, she said, "Isn¡¯t that Chu Zhaoyang?"

    The man stopped in his tracks while his eyes followed thedy¡¯s gaze. His eyes immediately lit up, "He really is Chu Zhaoyang!"

    The two of them used to track Shi Youguang and stumbled upon his body soon after Chu Zhaoyang had killed him. Upon further inspection of the body, they were deeply shocked by what they had seen.

    Thedy felt a little surprised. "He¡¯s very powerful."

    The man made a sound in agreement, "Check out his pace and breathing rhythm, they¡¯re both very rxed, butpletely in sync. Also, there is hardly any trace of his elemental energy around him. Doesn¡¯t it feel like a sword hidden in its sheath?"

    "Yes indeed," agreed thedy, astonished. "His entire body is shrouded by a faint metal elemental energy that appears to be well-concealed. This elemental energy around him seems to extend a good distance away from his body as well... He¡¯s discovered us!"

    Sure enough, Chu Zhaoyang turned to face them.

    The man felt a shiver down his spine. It seemed like Chu Zhaoyang was much more powerful than he¡¯d thought. He had heard that Chu Zhaoyang had only recently achieved elemental externalization, but upon seeing him for himself, he knew that this wasn¡¯t true.

    With a gentle smile on his face, the man took the initiative to greet Ai Hui. "Are you the Silverwheel Swordsman Chu Zhaoyang, Brother Chu? I¡¯m Qin Xian, and this is my fiancee Lian Junyu. I wasn¡¯t expecting to see Brother Chu here in Karakorum, it¡¯s such an honour."

    "A good day to both of you," replied Ai Hui with a smile. The other party¡¯s friendly manner made Ai Hui less wary. "A friend gave me this small sword token, which allows me to face Karakorum Sword League¡¯s sword formations as a learning experience."

    Qinxianughed, "Brother Chu, you¡¯re too humble. The Silverwheel Swordsman is well-known by everyone."

    Ai Hui self-deprecatingly said, "Being known by everyone isn¡¯t exactly something worth boasting about."

    Qin Xian and Lian Junyu both smiled.

    The youth who had been bringing Ai Hui around was momentarily stunned. He had most certainly heard of the Silverwheel Swordsman Chu Zhaoyang who had risen to fame amidst the incident with the Great Wei Enterprise and his various other exploits.

    Qin Xian addressed the youth, "Go attend to your other tasks, I will take care of Mr. Chu."

    The youth made an indiscernible sound and immediately ran off. He was so excited that he couldn¡¯t wait to tell his friends about what had just happened. Although they couldn¡¯t enter the sword formation training area, they were still able to watch from the outside.

    Being able to see such a famous swordsman in action was an extremely rare opportunity, maybe even once in a lifetime.

    In the blink of an eye, news about Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s visit to Karakorum Sword League¡¯s sword formations spread like wildfire.

    Be it the teachers or the pupils, everyone immediately stopped what they were doing and rushed towards the sword formation training area.

 Chapter 335: Sword Formations

    Chapter 335: Sword Formations

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    "All six sword formations were created by Chief. Some were developed when she was younger while ying games, and others were new discoveries made in recent years. The newest one is less than three months old. It is Chief¡¯s sudden conception that was built only after a long discussion with everybody. Karakorum is different from most training halls. We rarely get involved in concrete battles. You can see us as a training hall that researches on and promotes sword mastery."

    Qin Xian stood in front, introducing and guiding the way. He spoke slowly but not imposingly. His voice was refreshing and his elegant demeanor was admirable.

    Lian Junyu, who followed behind him, looked at him affectionately.

    Ai Hui was absorbed in Qin Xian¡¯s exnation. It was rather different from what was rumored.

    "There is a main and an external institution in Karakorum. The main institution is where the teachers do their research on inherited swordys. We don¡¯t have many of those, and those that we do have are not of a high level, so there¡¯s no need to mention absolute arts. We usually train and ponder over ideas on our own, but we gather once a week to share knowledge and skills. Everyone says whatever they want, so arguments aremon. However, no one gets angry since they are all used to it. If anyone has a new idea, he will also gather everybody immediately to discuss it. Karakorum¡¯s sword-rted discussions are unique to us and hard to find elsewhere."

    Ai Hui raised his eyebrows. "What do you do if there¡¯s any absolute art that you do not wish to divulge?"

    Qin Xian smiled. "We will not force it of course, since absolute arts are used to save one¡¯s life. Honestly speaking, our swordsmanship inheritance are still of a lower grade, except for Chief¡¯s, which is slightly higher. Aspared to the absolute arts from aristocratic families, we aregging far behind. We don¡¯t really regard absolute moves or what not as important, but our first swordy absolute art is taking shape."

    Ai Hui was stirred. "How impressive."

    Very impressive.

    Till now, swordsmanship inheritance offered nothing great, and it was needless to talk about absolute arts. If an absolute art can emerge from an swordsmanship inheritance, it will definitely cause amotion.

    Even though swordsmanship had declined, they still had some influence over people. These were the brilliant results umted over millions of years and left by the Cultivation Era.

    If Karakorum birthed the first ever absolute swordy, it would indeed live up to its name.

    "I¡¯m ashamed to say this, but this was aplished by Chief¡¯s own efforts. We couldn¡¯t help much at all." Qin Xian felt rather embarrassed. He continued, "The external institution is where swordys are passed down. Whether a person has a foundation or not, we are willing to impart knowledge to them. If we meet a talented and impoverished person, fees are waived. Most practitioners are taken care of by teachers in the external institution. Teachers in the main institution will go over and give a weekly, four-hour lecture about swordsmanship. They will share information as they please, as a means of contributing to the promotion of swordsmanship.

    Ai Hui was in genuine admiration. "Karakorum Sword League is indeed a noble one!"

    To judge a person, one must observe what he does and not what he says.

    No matter what rumors were said about Karakorum, the fact that Karakorum Sword league coulde this far was indeed worthy of respect.

    Ai Hui practiced with swords but had never thought about promoting swordsmanship. Even if he did open a training hall that taught swordsmanship, it was merely to conceal his identity. He truly respected Karakorum¡¯s efforts, regardless of their motives, in promoting swordsmanship.

    Qin Xian smiled slightly. He¡¯d said so much as he had his own ideas. Chu Zhaoyang was an excellent swordsman. If recruited into the main institution, he could assist them greatly inpleting their first swordy absolute art.

    "The sword formations are just ahead."

    Six sword formations entered Ai Hui¡¯s field of vision and he couldn¡¯t help but stop in his tracks and open his eyes wide. "Grass swords?"

    Karakorum Sword League¡¯s sword formations werepletely different from the one he¡¯d arranged.

    Each formation was formed by grass swords. Some were inserted into the ground while others were ced in midair. Some of the grass swords cruised like fishes whereas other were faintly discernable. But there was one sword formation, which contained a pure, concentrated sword consciousness that Ai Hui could feel. Some were massive like mountains, some were sharp and harsh, some moved swiftly like wind while others were extremely unpredictable.

    Qin Xian said softly, "Deriving the sword formations consume too much materials. Since we can¡¯t afford materials that are too expensive, we might as well use grass swords. The cost is lower and we make them ourselves so that reduces the overall cost even further."

    Ai Hui finally realized that the grass swords he¡¯d seen being dried outside the entrance were meant for the sword formations.

    Using grass swords to derive a sword formation was indeed a decent idea so Ai Hui was impressed. The sword formation he¡¯d fixed up in the training hall consumed way too much to the point where he¡¯s practically used up all his fortune, evidence that deriving sword formations this way was unsuitable.

    Using grass swords could really minimize the production costs. Of course, there were disadvantages of using grass swords, since they wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand too much elemental energy. In that sense, the power of the sword formation was reduced greatly as well.

    This was also probably the reason why Karakorum Sword League used these sword formations for training and practicing.

    "How do I start?" Ai Hui turned around and asked Qin Xian.

    "Stand in the middle of the sword formation. You¡¯ll need to use another grass sword." Qin Xian exined while handing Ai Hui a different sword. "Which sword formation would you like to start with?"

    Receiving the sword, Ai Hui felt a sense of familiarity. He¡¯d been using a grass sword for so many years so it was easy for him. "Let¡¯s start from the first one."

    Qin Xian nodded. "Okay, you can just step inside anytime and when you¡¯re stationed, the sword formation will be mobilized."

    Hearing that, Ai Hui started walking towards the first sword formation.

    Many youngsters, upon receiving the news, had gathered around the sword formation. They¡¯d heard that Silverwheel Swordsman, Chu Zhaoyang, wasing to experience the sword formation so all of them rushed over. Swordsmanship hadd been in decline for many years. While it did be a slight trend in recent years, there hadn¡¯t been many famous swordsmening out of it. Silverwheel Swordsman was one of the more outstanding practitioners so these young and budding swordsmen had all came to observe.

    Qin Xian and Lian Junyu kept their eyes wide open as well since they were both very curious about Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s abilities.

    Ai Hui held onto the grass sword and walked into the first formation.

    There were thirty-six grass swords inserted into the ground randomly and only half of the sword bodies were above ground. Ai Hui was extremely familiar with sword manuals from the Cultivation Era so he knew immediately, upon seeing the positions of these swords, that the formation had beenpleted in ordance to the Plum Blossom Numerology.

    The Plum Blossom Numerology had been used extensively in swordys during the Cultivation Era. Many swordys involved thisw, making it one of the staples.

    But was the Plum Blossom Numerology functional in the Elemental Ea?

    Ai Hui was in doubt but concealed it with his usual expression. He held the sword straight and remained calm.

    To the bystanders, holding a sword turned Chu Zhaoyang into a different person. If they were to say that Chu Zhaoyang was the sheath of a treasure sword, now that the treasure sword was unsheathed, his abilities were out there for all to see and there was a cold aura surrounding him, making him seem sharp and dangerous.

    Knowing when they saw something good, Qin Xian and Lian Junyu¡¯s eyes lit up.

    The students did not say anything but they automatically held their breaths.

    ng!

    A sword chime sounded as one of the grass swords inserted into the ground trembled before flying out.

    A sword shadow shed across the sky.

    Without panicking, Ai Hui took a slight step forward and thrust the grass sword in his hands forward cleanly.

    Ding!

    Ai Hui¡¯s grass sword hit the sword shadow urately.

    Just then, another sword chime rang from behind him. Without turning around, AI Hui pulled his sword behind his back, and as if there were eyes on his back, he managed to aim and strike the sword shadow precisely.

    ng ng ng. The sword chimes fell incessantly on the ears as the densely packed sword shadows enveloped Ai Hui like a swarm in midair.

    Ai Hui appeared unhurried. His sword moves were neither fast nor gaudy andplicated. Each move was simple, practical and urate.

    Lian Junyu couldn¡¯t help but exim in surprise, "Such solid swordsmanship."

    Qin Xian kept quiet but his eyes said it all. It was obvious when an expert made a move. Ai Hui¡¯s sword moves weren¡¯t at all garish but the more this was the case, the more apparent it became that Ai Hui had a profound understanding of swordsmanship.

    Standing in the middle, Ai Hui was trying to grasp the sword formation.

    Ai Hui had no idea that the Plum Blossom Numerology could be used this way.

    After some handling, the ground beneath his feet was in reality a sword scabbard. Thirty six grass swords were inserted into the same sheath. On normal days, these thirty six swords were ced into the ground for nourishment.

    If he guessed correctly, there must be a hidden spring underground which supplied water elemental energy and wood elemental energy.

    The Plum Blossom Numerology could be operated together with water elemental energy, producing something marvelous. This was something Ai Hui¡¯d never explored before so he made sure to take note of it. He could impart this to Hua Xiaoyun and get her to mull over it herself.

    Cloud Ridge City, where Hua Xiaoyun¡¯s house was located, had already been transformed into scorched earth. Her family was killed in that catastrophe so Ai Hui naturally would not just sit back and watch.

    The well-nourished grass swords blended into one another, as if they shared a core.

    If Ai Hui had seen such a sword formation in Central Pine City, he definitely would¡¯ve been flustered.

    Over the past three years, his elemental energy had been growing slowly because of the blood plum blossom. However, his swordsmanship improved so fast it could be said that he¡¯d be a whole different person.

    Ai Hui understood that if the sword formation operated this way, the thirty six grass swords would increase in speed and be increasingly difficult for the center person to handle. In other words, if a swordsman were to get caught up in the sword formation, he would find himself in a troublesome situation if he did not find the key to breaking the sword formation within five minutes.

    This excited Ai Hui. He wanted to see how far he could persevere.

    Clink clink clink!

    The sword shadows became increasingly blurred as the sword chimes in midair started to be loud and clear.

    Within the sword formation, the grass sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hands started to blur as well. It struck continuously and forcefully, causing sparks to fly in all directions. Nevertheless, Ai Hui¡¯s body remained steady and motionless like a rock.

    "Seven minutes."

    Qin Xian checked the time repeatedly. He was well familiar with the sword formation. This sword formation wasn¡¯t difficult to break. It only tested swordsmen¡¯s understanding of the Plum Blossom Numerology. If one understood it, it was rtively easy to break the formation. This formation gave the subject three minutes and once time was up, the swords¡¯ power would rise to an unresistable level. The longer it dragged on, the mightier the grass swords became.

    But it¡¯d already been seven minutes and the sword shadows were moving at a speed so fast it was difficult for the naked eye to catch. The sharp, echoing sword whistles were soul-shattering.

    Clink clink clink!

    The sounds of grass swords crossing paths became louder and higher in pitch.

    Boom. A heavy explosion sounded suddenly.

    The ground shook and dust filled the air. It was as if the whole sword formation had been torn apart by an invisible hand. Thirty-six grass swords flew all over the ce like dried seedlings in a crazy storm.

    A figure holding onto a sword walked slowly out from amid the smoke and dust.

 Chapter 336: Madam Lingâ€™s Guess

    Chapter 336: Madam Ling¡¯s Guess

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    Only half a section of the grass sword was left in Ai Hui¡¯s hand but Ai Hui stood steady and dust-free.

    Amid the sea of silence, he threw away the sword in his hand and said with ease, "Please get me a new sword."

    As if awakening from a dream, the teachers standing at the side hurriedly handed over their swords to Ai Hui and felt embarrassed upon realizing that many others had also offered their swords.

    Ai Hui took a sword from the nearest teacher and thanked him.

    He then gave the others a slight bow. "Thank you everyone."

    People were only nowing back to their senses and a mor broke out.

    The students were excited and in disbelief. Many had both hands on their heads as they mumbled about things that they, themselves, could not hear. They had seen many who managed to break the sword formations, especially the first one since it was the easiest. The fastest record was a minute and ten seconds.

    So far, Chu Zhaoyang was the slowest contender.

    Yet, it was this fact that shook thempletely. They had never seen a sword formation being destroyed and falling into ruins. The same voice echoed in all their minds, "How¡¯s that possible?"

    How was that possible?

    Qin Xian opened his eyes wide as the same question filled his mind. He already had an idea when he saw that seven minutes had passed, but to have that scene unfold right before his eyes was still a shocking experience.

    Lian Junyu had both hands over her mouth, and her face was overwhelmed with shock.

    The grass swords had scattered all over the ce due to the surging force from the formation. It was as if a violent beast had just trampled across this area.

    Ai Hui felt rather embarrassed. "I am so sorry to have destroyed the sword formation. I¡¯m willing topensate."

    He had no choice and had been pondering how to carry out his mission of sneaking into the main institution. His conclusion was that he needed to impress and shock them.

    It appeared that he had aplished his goal.

    However, toe over to someone else¡¯s territory, make use of their sword formation, and still act so arrogantly, was this not considered bullying?

    Okay, maybe a little, but toplete his mission, he really could not care that much! Plus, why did he feel... slightly pleased? That final blow had really given him an adrenaline rush.

    Hey, hey, hey, calm down. Unlike Fatty, he was not an immoral fellow!

    Qin Xian reacted byughing joyously. "Don¡¯t say that, Brother Chu. We are more than happy that it¡¯s broken since it means that we, the swordsmen, are powerful. Do not feel apologetic. You¡¯ve really opened up our eyes. This experience is far more valuable than the sword formation and also proves something."

    He deliberately pause before continuing in a deadpan manner, "It was the right choice to use grass swords when deriving a sword formation."

    Those around roared withughter, and even Ai Hui could not resist revealing a slight smile.

    It had to be said that Qin Xian was an extremely charming fellow. He was likeable and approachable.

    "The next formation then?"

    "To the next!" Qin Xian added as a reminder, "Please do not go easy, Brother Chu. It¡¯s fine if you destroy it. It will teach the younger ones a little something¡ªthat there¡¯s always a higher mountain to climb. Plus, grass swords aren¡¯t expensive and they¡¯re easily receable."

    Thest sentence caused the crowd to erupt intoughter once more.

    Ai Huiughed out loud. Carrying the grass sword, he walked upright and unafraid toward the second sword formation.

    With unhurried steps, Ai Hui felt carefree and rxed Looking from the back, however, there was a mighty aura that surrounded him. Those who witnessed this sight could not help but feel admiration.

    .....

    The Ling residence, Golden Eagle Study Room.

    The servants all knew that the family head would only call for his wife if he had met with a challenging situation.

    ording to the rules set by the older generation, the women in Ling residence were not allowed to enter the study. However, when it came to this particr madam, there was no restriction at all. The servants felt it was reasonable. Even the housekeeper who had served the residence for over 50 years and across two generations felt it was reasonable. No one had an objections.

    Madam Ling had proven too many times that she was knowledgeable, experienced, and a good judge. When the old family head was still healthy, even he was full of praise when it came to this daughter-inw of his.

    When Madam Ling was young, she was not considered the most notable young aristocrat.

    Back in the day, the most famous figure, also referred to as "Flower of Aristocratic Families", was Ye Lin. Ye Lin was born into the most respectable family in all of the Avalon of Five Elements andter married the only son of the Elders Guild¡¯s Great Elder.

    However, Madam Ling was different. She relied on her own wisdom and personality to win the hearts of everybody. She had the perfect family, and her children grew up well. Her virtuous character was well-known to the aristocratic families. Her husband treated her with utmost respect, and everyone in the household adored her deeply.

    There were people in the Ling residence who talked behind the family head¡¯s back and were let off with a few warnings. However, those who talked bad about the madam were undoubtedly going to get a beating.

    "Have you found out what it is exactly?" Madam Ling sipped her tea and asked unhurriedly, "How can it be an ordinary object if Dai Gang set his eyes upon it?"

    "Opinions differ." Family Head Ling Sheng anxiously continued, "Some mentioned that it is a secret swordy called [Transcendence] from the Void Sword n. Some said it¡¯s a blood-refining spell, while others said it¡¯s an important treasure belonging to Karakorum, or even a demonic artifact. There are also people who believe that it is an immortality pill. We nned to enter from the Great Wei Enterprise, but they reacted very aggressively and those people did not hold back so..."

    Madam Ling ced her tea cup down and sighed. "Why must we take action? Didn¡¯t we agree that no action should be taken unless absolutely necessary? Don¡¯t keep using those people. They¡¯re too murderous."

    Ling Sheng replied in embarrassment, "I¡¯ve already given them a scolding, but you know what kind of people they are too. It¡¯s difficult for them to control themselves when they see blood."

    He borated, "There¡¯s still some benefits. I heard that that the Great Wei Enterprise has obtained this ancient treasure for quite a long time now. The enterprise has a good rtionship with the Duanmu family and they had even presented a gift to the family before. You do remember what happened next right? Back in the day, Dai Gang epted Duanmu Huanghun as his disciple all of a sudden, and the Duanmu family specially selected a bunch of gifts for Dai Gang. The thing that Great Wei Enterprise gifted Duanmu family is likely to be in Dai Gang¡¯s hands."

    "From what you¡¯ve said, that¡¯s actually possible. Otherwise, why would the Great Wei Enterprise get noticed by Dai Gang?" Madam Ling said thoughtfully as she mumbled to herself. "The Great Wei Enterprise nned to send the ancient treasure to the Jadeite Forest, but the news was leaked, attracting many who lusted over the treasure. Why didn¡¯t Dai Gang send reinforcements at that time? Could it be that he hadn¡¯t figured out what was going on? Yeah, probably. This means that the Great Wei Enterprise might not know what the treasure is for. Dai Gang did not hesitate to request the help of an enterprise of Avalon of Five Elements to search for this treasure. Evidently, it is extremely important to him. Tell me, with his current status, is there anything he would sacrifice everything to obtain?"

    Having thought for a long time, Ling Sheng shook his head. "Can¡¯t think of anything. Dai Gang is now a Grandmaster. He¡¯s the god of the Jadeite Forest, so what could he possibly not have?"

    A lightbulb went off in Madam Ling¡¯s head. She shouted excitedly, "Great Grandmaster! What if the treasure he¡¯s looking for could make him a Great Grandmaster?"

    Ling Sheng sat dumbstruck. After some time, he stammered, "Is there something so magical in this world?"

    Madam Ling questioned him instead of answering. "Then tell me, other than this kind of object, what else could be attractive enough for Dai Gang?"

    Ling Sheng stared absent-mindedly for a long time, muttering to himself, "How can there be such a treasure?"

    Deep down, he had already internalized his wife¡¯s judgment, but it was simply too shocking for him. He soon came up with another question. "If it¡¯s so important to Dai Gang, why doesn¡¯t he personally make a move?"

    The moment these words left his mouth, he knew he had just asked a foolish question.

    Indeed, his question put Madam Ling in a bad mood. "An Muda isn¡¯t dead yet."

    Ling Sheng felt embarrassed once again.

    There could never be two tigers on one mountain. This was especially the case for Grandmasters. Between Grandmasters, they were natural enemies and both parties could feel each other¡¯s presence from thousands of miles away. Dai Gang¡¯s infiltration into the Avalon could be concealed from everyone except An Muda.

    Grandmasters were the real treasures of a powerful nation. Once they were deployed, that would be the decisive battle.

    Unless Dai Gang was insane, he would absolutely never enter the Avalon of Five Elements.

    "An Muda doesn¡¯t have many years left ahead of him," Ling Shengmented.

    This was also the reason why he would contact Dai Gang in secret. It was to leave an escape route for the Ling residence. The death of An Muda would break the equilibrium between both sides and no one inside of the Avalon would be able to stop Dai Gang.

    An Muda was too old. No one knew how much longer he would live.

    Everyone understood that the moment of An Muda¡¯s death would be the moment when everything changed.

    Anyway, the Ling residence was not the only family leaving a way out for themselves.

    "If this item is so important to Dai Gang, and he¡¯s determined to win it over, then the Ling residence wouldn¡¯t be the only family he¡¯s utilizing. We must grab this opportunity to gain merit so as to rise above the rest." Madam Ling¡¯s voice was ice cold. "Is she in Karakorum?"

    Whenever Madam Ling used this murderous tone with him, Ling Sheng would feel an indescribable excitement and would want more than anything to pounce on and ravage her.

    He licked his lips. "Yes! She¡¯s in the Karakorum Sword League and is said to be a big beauty. Presumably, Karakorum Sword League heard about the [Transcendence] secret swordy and wondered what it was for, but it¡¯s a pity they have yet to find its whereabouts and can only keep her confined at home."

    Madam Ling asked, "What is Karakorum Sword League all about?"

    She had heard of this name, but was not concerned. Other than the aristocratic families located there, Silver City was a ce where generations of families were reced quickly.

    Water-like Silver City, iron-made aristocratic families.

    "What history? What history could a bunch of idiotic sword lovers have? Swordsmanship has long been thrown into the trash, yet there are always people who are trying tomemorate it. Those who associate themselves with swordsmanship are all fools."

    Madam Ling responded with a straight face, "Just like Ye Lin."

    Ling Sheng was astounded. "Widow Ye Lin must have bullied you quite a bit in the past for you to hold such a deep grudge."

    "Capture that beauty." Madam Ling could not be bothered with him. Her face remained ice cold as she spoke, " The treasure must be where she is. Karakorum Sword League may be unable to locate it, but we¡¯re not as useless."

    Ling Sheng was no longer able to hold himself back. With a cry he pounced on her like a wild beast in heat.

 Chapter 337: Uninvited Guests

    Chapter 337: Uninvited Guests

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    Ai Hui was deeply shaken by Karakorum Sword League¡¯s sword formations.

    He had broken through the second formation as well. To be exact, it had been destroyed. Nevertheless, Ai Hui was not the least bitcent. The second sword formation waspletely different in style from the first.

    The moreplicated the sword formation, the mightier it was.

    Although they were just grass swords, that feeling of having a de on his back still caused him to break out a cold sweat. He appeared calm, but inwardly, he felt far from it. The reasoning behind the second formation was entirely different from the first as it used firewind swords.

    When it came to the third formation, Ai Hui was already feeling the pressure. He recalled what Qin Xian mentioned earlier, about how some sword formations were created while the chief was ying games when she was young.

    When she was young...

    Games...

    All right then. He got rid of any sense of satisfaction. Yes, this meant that he really was not an immoral character, unlike Fatty.

    Ai Hui¡¯spetitive spirit had been triggered.

    Being the weakling in other aspects was something that Ai Hui was used to, but not when it came to swordsmanship. He had spent a significant amount of time and effort on training and on searching for functional objects amid the vast, boundless garbage heaps. He would find it difficult to ept if he could not even defeat a game that someone created at a young age.

    Entering the third sword formation, Ai Hui was already certain that the Chief of Karakorum Sword League had a more holistic understanding and knowledge of the swordsmanship.

    The third sword formation was actually a military-type swordsmanship.

    Military-type swordsmanship appeared in the early days of the Cultivation Era, but were quickly reced by moreplex swordys from swordy sects. Only with the resurgence ofrge military units had military-type swordsmanship risen once again.

    Military-type swordsmanship was unique in that it involved straightforward moves. Each blow was sharp, murderous, and without any excessive shifts.

    With a flip of the sword in his hands, Ai Hui obstructed a sword that came for him from above. The strong impact made his wrist tremble. Before he could take a breather, another sharp presence locked onto him. He spun around abruptly, thrusting the grass sword out at a slight angle.

    With a slight tremble, a faint glow appeared on the grass sword.

    ng!

    The sound of metal colliding was painful to the ears.

    The grass sword rose up and shot backward.

    Ai Hui did not cower at all. With a twitch of his sword, he charged toward that recoiling grass sword. His strikes were in, and after 12 consecutive hits, he struck the tip of that grass sword.

    The de of the recoiling grass sword split like a solid bamboo being forced open.

    Crack!

    The grass sword brokepletely, transforming into chaff that drifted away.

    Ai Hui lowered his body and dodged a grass sword that came at him from behind before chasing after it. With a flick of his wrist, a silver glow appeared. A silver sword wheel became entangled with the grass sword in front of it.

    Shattering explosions sounded as the grass sword within the silver wheel snapped off inch by inch.

    Ai Hui¡¯s desire to win was so strong that he had no idea that those outside the sword formation were already bbergasted by what they had witnessed.

    Stupefied, Qin Xian suddenly turned around to ask his fiance, "Is he really going to destroy every sword formation?"

    Lian Junyu did not even close her eyes for an instant. "It seems like he does have that intention."

    Suddenly, they both reacted together by turning their heads and making eye contact.

    The Karakorum Sword League¡¯s sword formations had been open to public for quite some time now. They had given away many small swords and sold even more. This could be considered as one of the Karakorum Sword League¡¯s important sources of ie. For the longest time, those who were able to break through three formations were allowed to enter the main institution and be registered teachers.

    Break, not destroy.

    The best record so far was four formations. Even the chief had mentioned that she might not sessfully break through all six if it was her first time trying.

    Notice! Break! Not destroy!

    Breaking through and destroying were twopletely different concepts. To break through meant to find a loophole in the sword formation and escape. To destroy, not only must the challenger find the loophole, he also had to attack the formation in order to shatter it.

    Sword formations had many loopholes that could only be broken though.

    To destroy... no one had even done that.

    Even before the other students and teachers could process this, they were already shaken by Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship. All sorts of cries and screams could be heard continuously.

    "Oh dear, how did he do that?"

    "Did anyone see how many sword moves Ai Hui unleashed? Nine or ten?"

    "It¡¯s 12!"

    "Too... too crazy. How can anyone in this world do this?"

    "I¡¯m starting to see stars!"

    Amid all the excitement, a silver sword wheel lit up, bringing the chatter to its highest pitch.

    "Silver wheel! Silver wheel!"

    "Silverwheel Swordsman!"

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s nickname was Silverwheel Swordsman, so this silver wheel was naturally his signature move. How could the students not feel moved when they actually got to witness a famous swordsman disying his signature move?

    Ai Hui was unaware of themotion outside. He was totally in the zone and only had eyes on the grass swords within the sword formation.

    Crack crack crack!

    After the third grass sword was entangled, the whole sword formation was no longer able to keep up and it copsed. The remaining grass swords burst into mes, and in the blink of an eye, the ze engulfed the sword bodies, turning them all into ashes.

    The third sword formation had been destroyed.

    The whole hall quieted down when this scene ended.

    The audience looked at Ai Hui with respectful, but not agitated nor shocked, eyes.

    To the audience, the image of Chu Zhaoyang wielding a grass sword seemed to be a majestic, towering mountain and an extremely admirable sight.

    Ai Hui¡¯s fiery fighting spirit surged. The sword formation had already copsed, but he had no wish to stop yet. He walk toward the fourth formation with the grass sword in hand.

    Qin Xian, who was trailing, opened his mouth and prepared to stop Ai Hui.

    This was enough validation. Destroying three sword formations was a feat only he and the chief of Karakorum Sword League could aplish. Although the formations were made up of grass swords, the cost was not low.

    Deep down, Qin Xian already saw Chu Zhaoyang as member of his group, so there would be many opportunities in future for him to experience the sword formations. Plus, they could tackle them peacefully. Why was there a need to be so violent... They were all money...

    Lian Junyu was quick enough to stop Qin Xian. "Notice his state of mind," she reminded.

    Qin Xian snapped out of it, stared at Chu Zhaoyang, and immediately realized that something was amiss. Chu Zhaoyang was bing increasingly vigorous, and they could feel his intense battlelust even from far away.

    Qin Xian had experienced being in such a state.

    To put it simply, it was an indescribable excitement and passion that a fighter felt whenpeting against an evenly-matched opponent.

    The stimtion of violence was another easy way of exining it.

    Since Chu Zhaoyang was in such a state, it was unsurprising that he entered the fourth formation without even giving anybody a second nce. He was in a senseless state, indicating the beginning of a breakthrough.

    This state was one that could be discovered, but not sought.

    Qin Xian instantly shut his mouth as his eyes filled with anticipation. It was clear to him that six sword formations in exchange for an opportunity for Chu Zhaoyang to break through was definitely worth it! Everything else aside, Chu Zhaoyang would then owe them a favor.

    The more esteemed people were, the more they ced an importance on favors. They would avoid owing favors, but at the same time, they would definitely pay them back when necessary.

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s abilities were already greater than what he had imagined, so what kind of standard would he reach if he were to undergo a breakthrough?

    He had no idea, but he knew that if Chu Zhaoyang did experience a breakthrough, they were going to strike it rich.

    .....

    A group of uninvited guests appeared in Small Leaf Town.

    "Have you run a check on Karakorum Sword League¡¯s background?" The burly-looking leader asked in a low voice. He looked ordinary and had no striking traits. He was the type that could blend in and disappear into a crowd, but when he narrowed his eyes, a thick bloody smell automatically oozed out.

    "Nothing great." A petite man shook his head.

    Someone beside themughed softly. "How great would it be? Opening a training hall in such a remote ce. If Karakorum Sword League really was something, why would it be established in such a ce rather than in the city?

    The rest nodded their heads in agreement. These words made too much sense.

    Training hall owners with greater abilities would naturally pick livelier ces to open their training halls since the livelier the ce, the better the business.

    "The chief of Karakorum Sword League Isn¡¯t around," the petite man said somewhat regretfully. "I heard that the chief is a young girl. She never ever removes her veil, but she has a gorgeous figure with curves in all the right ces. There¡¯s no doubt that she¡¯s a great beauty, heh heh."

    Someone immediately stirred restlessly, saying, "And that Xiao Shuren, eh. She¡¯s a great beauty too. We should not forget about her."

    "Yeah, what a waste to let them go."

    Enraged, the boss suddenly yelled, "Shut it, all of you!"

    Everyone fell silent out of fear.

    The big man narrowed his eyes like a tiger hungry for human flesh as he coldly said, "I¡¯ll say the ugly words first. Keep your pants on. If anyone screws up, I will personally extract his brain and kill his whole family."

    No one dared to utter a sound. They all knew that their boss was truly furious.

    The burly-looking boss surveyed his people, and no one dared to meet his gaze. "This is Silver City. Is Silver City a ce for us to create trouble? Know your ce. You think those aristocratic families are good people? They¡¯ll be the first to get rid of us if anything happens."

    Finishing this sentence, he slowed down, adding, "We need to get this done in the shortest time possible. Let¡¯s capture Xiao Shuren and leave immediately. Do not stir up any trouble at all. Since the chief of Karakorum Sword League isn¡¯t around, let¡¯s cut the bullsh*t and head straight for it."

    The petite man hurriedly asked, "Boss, should we wait for nightfall?"

    "No." The boss lowered his voice. "There could bepetitors, so let¡¯s stay alert and make our move."

    Upon hearing that there were other people of the same trade, their faces changed and all of them suddenly stood up straight and became vignt.

    The boss looked pleased. "Let¡¯s go. To the Karakorum Sword League."

    The gang arrived at the Karakorum Sword League¡¯s entrance and immediately felt suspicious.

    There was no one standing by the big entrance.

    "Let¡¯s go in and see," the boss said in a low voice.

    The well-prepared gang walked through the entrance, but the ce was still empty, and not a single soul was present.

    The boss¡¯s gaze fell upon the petite fellow, and thetter quickly said, "Boss, it was full when I came previously."

    Just then, an rmed cry sounded from somewhere.

    A murderous look shed across the boss¡¯s eyes as he said without hesitating, "Go. Let¡¯s go and have a look."

    They started walking toward the sword formations.

 Chapter 338: Yin Yang Sword Formation

    Chapter 338: Yin Yang Sword Formation

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    No one noticed these uninvited guests as everybody in the hall, students and teachers, was standing around the sword formation.

    Ai Hui, who was in the middle of it, was also unaware of the situation outside.

    He was in trouble. It was the fifth sword formation.

    That earlier cheer was from when he destroyed the fourth sword formation.

    The fourth was Big Dipper sword formation, an obvious modification of Cultivation Era¡¯s Big Dipper sword formation.

    Ai hui had read more than one swordy manual involving Big Dipper. Plus, he practiced the inheritance of [Big Dipper] so naturally, he understood it better than most.

    Nevertheless, he still came across a minor problem. Aspared to his understanding of Big Dipper, the creator had an even deeperprehension of the whole system. Ai Hui had been suppressed for a good eight minutes before getting a chance to retaliate.

    He used up a tremendous amount of strength. Clink, clink, clink! Finally, the fourth formation was shattered.

    But the moment he stepped into the fifth formation, he fell into a tough spot.

    This was actually a Yin Yang sword formation!

    Ai Hui was astonished. Could it be that Karakorum¡¯s understanding of swordsmanship had already reached such a level? There was Yin Yang in primal chaos, and it transformed into five elements. It appeared that Yin Yang was simpler, but when it came to practice the simpler things were actually harder.

    The same idea applied to battles. The simpler the reasoning, the harder to fancify it. But when done, it would be extremely powerful.

    This sword formation was like that as well.

    The Yin Yang grass swords were like a shoal of fish cruising around Ai Hui¡¯s body. It looked harmless and ordinary, but the more harmless it looked, the more dangerous it really was.

    Ai Hui¡¯s state of mind and awareness werepletely shut off from the outside world, as if there was an invisible wall isting him from it. What was even more unimaginable was that these Yin Yang grass swords brought such turbulent flows that disrupted and warped his perception.

    The perception he¡¯d been relying on all this while waspletely failing him. His sense of position and speed were wrong because of the distortion produced by the turbulent flows.

    Ai Hui had never been in such a situation before.

    Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp was powerless since this wasn¡¯t an illusion created by a psychic attack.

    Outside the formation, Qin Xian subconsciously sighed a breath of relief. "Looks like he¡¯s going to be stuck in this one."

    Not knowing why, he felt as though a weight was lifted off his mind. Quickly, he realized that he wasn¡¯t the only one feeling this way. Lian Junyu, too, sighed, "Yeah, it¡¯s simply too shocking but luckily Yin Yang formation is obstructing him."

    "Chief¡¯s mentioned that Yin Yang sword formation was an idental discovery. After building it, she spent quite some time to find the solution to it." Qin Xian added in admiration, "To be able to reach this stage, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s power is undeniable. Destroying four sword formations is an impressive feat that hasn¡¯t been done before."

    "What a pity. Such a good opportunity for a breakthrough." Lian Junyu continued regretfully, "If he was in a slightly weaker sword formation, he just might be able to do it."

    Breakthroughs usually urred under pressure, but if the pressure was too great, not only was it difficult to break through, it might cause injuries.

    Sufficient umtion, an opportune moment, the appropriate level of pressure...Only when all conditions were suitable would one be able toplete a breakthrough. Breakthroughs were challenging because of this.

    "There¡¯s no choice, this is life." Qin Xian agreed in disappointment.

    If Chu Zhaoyang did break through and be more capable, it would be even more advantageous for Karakorum. But failure had its own benefits too. It showed Chu Zhaoyang the power of Karakorum¡¯s swordsmanship, which would make it easier to keep him as a teacher in the main institution.

    Qin Xian was already thinking about how he could persuade Chu Zhaoyang to stay.

    Just then, he sensed something, jerked his head up, and looked toward the Yin Yang sword formation.

    A big man looked at the imprable crowd before giving a petite man a look. The petite man hurriedly shook his head, expressing his confusion.

    Deep down, the petite man was crying about his bad luck. All had been normal when he¡¯d snuck over to investigate. Boss hated it most when people deceived him. If Boss developed suspicions about him and killed him in a moment of fury, he wouldn¡¯t even get the chance to plead for justice.

    The petite man felt Boss¡¯s displeasure, but even before he could speak up, Boss reached his arms out to push through the crowd.

    Those who were shoved aside were furious and were about to disy their annoyance, but seeing that the group wasn¡¯t one to be provoked, they swallowed the curse words that almost left their mouths.

    Boss continued pushing his way in and his subordinates followed closely behind.

    Suddenly, someone from the crowd starting scolding but Boss turned a deaf ear to it. Others dared not to get as angry as they pleased.

    Reaching the inner crowd and getting a clear look at the situation, Boss finally sighed a breath of relief.

    If he¡¯d made his way in only to see Xiao Shuren¡¯s corpse, he definitely would have lost it.

    Since what he saw had nothing to do with his mission, he decided not to waste any more time. The news that there might be people with the same motives shocked him greatly. Who else did Xiao Shuren provoke?

    He was even more alert at this point and did not wish to be sidetracked any further. Catching Xiao Shuren was top priority.

    As he was about to leave, Boss felt something and turned his head around instinctively, looking toward the sword formation.

    A splendid silver ray blossomed within it.

    This silver ray was so piercing to the eyes that even the vignt boss was caught off guard and blinded by it.

    Could it be a trap? His heart was jumping and as he was about to move, a terrifying aura soared from within the formation.

    The big man¡¯s heart tightened and the little rationality that was left in him kept him on his feet.

    Crack!

    A sound like a shattering cier sounded from underneath his feet that made hearts palpitate. It seemed to explode by his ear, causing his hair to stand on end.

    His whole body turned rigid. He was motionless and felt that any movement on his part would provoke his murderousness and turn himself into dregs.

    If he could see right then, he would¡¯ve realized that not only he, but everyone else was experiencing the same thing.

    The timid ones fell onto the ground as their knees went soft and gave way.

    Inside, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were so bright they couldbust and the grass sword was wrapped up in the dazzling silver light. He was like a gust of wind, moving swiftly and forcefully within the formation and amid the ring silver rays. The sword rays were like long strands that were pulled out from melted silver liquid.

    The strange thing was that these silver, strand-like sword rays seemed to have imprinted themselves in the sky and there was no sign of them vanishing.

    The grass sword in his hand was like a bottomless pit. The elemental energy within Ai Hui¡¯s body was surging wildly toward the sword, and every hair-like strand consumed a shocking amount of elemental energy.

    But it was as if Ai Hui was unaware. The blinding silver light shone on his face, turning it into a white sheet. It also entuated his stone-like features, making them seem even more cold and solid.

    Only his pupils shone brightly, in spite of the already dazzling, blinding silver light. They were so clear, distinct and memorable.

    His sword moved delicately yet imposingly.

    It was as if Ai Hui was holding a brush rather than a sword.

    The sword rays drawn in midair were densely packed and intertwined. Even if they were put in front of people, no one would understand them. Even Ai Hui did not.

    But he remembered every detail very clearly.

    How could he forget about the metal wind sword screen that rose from the ground in the final Metal Elemental Tribtion from the Five Elemental Eight Treasures Porridge feast? Each crisscrossed metal wind sword trace was engraved into his heart. He felt the dense sword consciousness amid the seemingly chaotic sword rays. The metal wind sword screen proved its strength.

    It was part luck that he managed to break the screen. He thought back to that scene many times and felt lingering fear.

    He¡¯d tried figuring out these disordered sword rays but hadn¡¯t been able to find any clues.

    Except this time, he thought about the sword rays from the metal wind sword screen.

    The change of Yin and Yang was simple and mysterious at the same time. He felt that the only thing he could fight against was the metal wind sword screen.

    Since there were no clues, he was going to duplicate itpletely!

    This sudden thought jolted Ai Hui into action since he couldn¡¯te up with any other method. Without hesitation, he began drawing the metal wind sword screen¡¯s messy sword rays.

    These messy rays seemed to have a bizarre power. When the first ray was drawn in the sky, the turbulent flows of Yin and Yang that were everywhere instantly weakened significantly.

    This gave Ai Hui a huge confidence boost.

    Following which, however, Ai Hui bumped into an unexpected situation. The messy looking sword strokes consumed way too much elemental energy.

    He felt that the sword in his hands was like a starving leech, desperately sucking away his elemental energy.

    Ai Hui knew that he mustn¡¯t stop. Once he did, the iplete sword rays would copse. Moreover, he had a feeling that once the sword rays copsed, the causal effect would be extremely terrifying and wasn¡¯t something he could endure at that moment.

    The Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp operated at full force and every elemental energy sword pill within his body was mobilized.

    As the turbulent flows were held down, Ai Hui reconnected with the external elemental energy. Threads and wisps of metal elemental energy shot out from the wind into Ai Hui¡¯s body, and into his sword following his Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    The grass sword was like an ever-starving monster, greedily swallowing up every trace of elemental energy.

    In the wind, the abundant metal elemental energy was being sucked away violently.

    The leaves on the ground rolled up and the wind became stronger.

    The well-replenished grass sword shone even brighter. Not only was Ai Hui being enveloped within this splendid silver light, his body was surrounded by a silverish white halo of metal elemental energy.

    Everyone regained awareness when the wind became so strong that their clothes started to make sounds. The ring silver light rapidly faded and everybody channeled their elemental energy into their vision and finally saw the ongoing situation clearly.

    The metal elemental energy amid the crazy wind spiraled down like a tornado and circled around Ai Hui¡¯s body. His sword moved naturally and each stroke was clean and carried a tinge of indescribable vor and mystery.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression did not change but his vigor rose continuously.

    Not good, the big man thought. Where did such a powerful fellowe from? At this point, he was already set on withdrawing from the scene. The person involved had unmeasurable powers and those messy sword rays made him feel fear and trepidation.

    An experienced person like him had an acute sense of danger.

    Just then, Ai Hui stopped suddenly with a final stroke. It wasplete.

    Time seemed to stop at this point.

 Chapter 339: Elemental Energy Suffocation

    Chapter 339: Elemental Energy Suffocation

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Thest stroke was like the final brushstroke of a picture scroll. Within the Yin Yang sword formation, the messy sword rays formed aplete ring.

    The roving Yin Yang grass swords slowed down and time seemed to stop at this moment.

    The ring, made up of disarrayed sword rays, was like a nest built of tree branches picked by a bird. It emitted a delicate light ray that shone on the stationary Yin Yang grass swords, making them appear like a flock of motionless birds.

    The fine and drawn-out whistle burst forth from deep underground, as if a monster had been awakened.

    The next moment, the Yin Yang sword formation seemed to have sensed danger and started spinning wildly. The Yin Yang grass swords brought wave after wave of turbulent flows. The ck and white, criss-crossed flows were like ck and white fishes, advancing dauntlessly toward the disordered sword ring.

    At the same time, the surging metal wind sprayed out from within the messy sword rays.

    The metal wind collided head on with the ck and white, crisscrossed Yin Yang turbulent flows.

    Ai Hui was almostpletely exhausted from the metal wind sword ring, which was emptying out all his elemental energy. It was getting so difficult for him to even move his fingers that he could only watch on helplessly.

    He saw an unforgettable sight.

    The chaotic rumbling of the turbulent flows came endlessly, wave after wave. The simplest ck and white.. no, the simplest Yin and Yang grew and multiplied without end in this simple criss-cross pattern.

    The metal wind that was swept into these ck and white, crisscrossed flows disappeared rapidly. The flows that swallowed the wind constantly tangled with one another and fused into each other, eventually extinguishingpletely.

    Ai Hui, who had his eyes wide open, witnessed the whole process, from the birth of the turbulent flows, to how they got tangled with each other, and how they finally welded together and were destroyed.

    All was so simple, yet so profound that Ai Hui was deeply attracted to what he¡¯d seen unfolding before his eyes. He made sure to keep his eyes open in fear of missing any detail. He stared on with undivided attention.

    The metal wind from underground surged violently and unendingly. The Yin Yang turbulent flows thrived under the continuous agitation of the metal wind.

    But Ai Hui quickly realized that along with the incessant interweaving motions, the Yin and Yang of the grass swords started to converge unceasingly.

    It seemed as if Ai Hui had started to understand something.

    Ai Hui was so engrossed in the mysticality of it all he did not feel that anything was amiss.

    The onlookers outside the sword formation, however, saw a different scenario. The silver wind pir, that carried an ear-piercing whistle, soared into the sky, drowning Ai Huipletely. The Yin Yang sword formation released a rumble that shook the sky as it spun so wildly and quickly that it was difficult for the naked eye to process.

    The sword formation was like a cup attached to the ground, sucking and locking the metal wind in.

    The metal wind hit against the sword formation ferociously.

    The whistling of the wind and the rumbling of the sword formation blended together, but one could clearly feel the two thoroughly different elemental energy waves surging within. It was like two huge monsters tearing at each other.

    Sparks flew and electricity flowed like a silver snake. The colorful splendor was like an overturned paint bottle.They were like fireworks, some appearing while others faded away, magnificent and dazzling.

    A mysterious sense of fear arose in everyone¡¯s mind.

    Blended into the crowd, the big man reacted the quickest. His face changed greatly as the fear within his eyes could no longer be concealed.

    He felt as if he was stuck in a pile of quagmire and unable to move, or as if he was underwater, suffocating. He knew that this was a sensory illusion that was caused by a reduction in the concentration of the surrounding elemental energy.

    Reduction in concentration of elemental energy...

    He stared deadly at the main culprit ¨C sword formation!

    It was like a vacuum, frantically sucking in the surrounding elemental energy.

    Not only him but Qin Xian and the gang were unable to keep a straight face as they too could feel the elemental energy being emptied out.

    Many students were unaware of this. Their mouths were wide open as they looked on at the changing colors and the deafening sword formation.

    Elementalists that had achieved elemental externalization were no longer obstructed by the invisible wall between their bodies and Nature¡¯s elemental energies. And because of this, they became more sensitive toward external elemental energies. They would more or less absorb some heaven and earth elemental energy even as they breathed. The absorption became more apparent when they were executing their Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    Elementalists that had achieved elemental externalization were like fishes while Nature¡¯s elemental energies were like water.

    Once the surrounding elemental energies thinned, elemental-externalized elementalists would feel difort, but not to the point where they really suffocated.

    There was a specific terminology for this sensory suffocation ¨C"elemental energy suffocation".

    Elemental energy suffocation would appear in battles at times.

    The nature of battles between elemental-externalized elementalists was to fight for control over Nature¡¯s elemental energies. Such a contest was extremely intense. The mysterious interaction between the five elements wouldplicate the fight, making it difficult to gain an absolute advantage.

    Other than that, an elementalist must be able to extract his or her surrounding elemental energies at an insane speed in order to create elemental energy suffocation.

    As such, elemental energy suffocation was often seen as an art executed by Masters.

    The elemental-externalized elementalists felt increasingly ufortable. Their eardrums were about to burst and the sky was spinning around in their heads. There were even some who started to hallucinate.

    While the elemental energy surged within his body, Qin Xuan responded by calling out swiftly, "Retreat! Move back, everybody!"

    As if awoken from a dream, people started retreating.

    Only after withdrawing about a hundred feet did everybody start to loosen their tensed bodies.

    The big man was bewildered. Just then, someone from beside him called in a suppressed voice, "Boss!"

    He turned around.

    Fear was written all over the petite man¡¯s face and bloodstains could be seen below his nose.

    He looked at the other subordinates and they were all in fear, but he felt unwilling to leave just like that. He clenched his teeth, saying, "Let¡¯s look around a little more. We will leave if we¡¯re no match."

    The others simultaneously heaved a sigh of relief.

    Seeing this, the big man felt somewhat displeased, but on second thought, he felt relieved too. These people had been following him for many years. They were brave and good at fighting since the weaker ones had already been eliminated. They acted this way simply because the scene before them was really pretty scary.

    Elemental energy suffocation was a rare phenomenon that went far beyond their expectations.

    °¬»Ô²»ÖªµÀÍâÃæµÄ¶¯¾²,ËûÕýºÃ´¦ÔÚ·çÑÛµÄÎ»ÖÃ°ëµã½ð·ç¶¼Ã»ÓÐ.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t aware of the situation outside. He was standing in the eye of the tornado, where no metal winds were present.

    He took in all details before his eyes.

    The Yin Yang turbulent flows formed an endless cycle of engendered existence.

    The metal wind opened his eyes to a whole new world. He saw even more clearly this time, that the unprecedented power of the wind was due to the metal elemental energy within. It wasn¡¯t wispy and strand-like, like in ordinary wind, but rather a whole unique kind of sword ray.

    This type of sword ray was special because it was made up of many scattered and fragmentary sword rays.

    Each crack on the sword ring released a sword ray that took a different shape. They looked like pieces of broken porcin.

    The amazing thing was that, together, these seemingly irregr shapes formed aplete sword ray.

    It looked like a mosaic sword ray, made from joining fragmented porcin pieces.

    The fragmentary porcin sword ray was astonishingly mighty. It resisted the Yin Yang turbulent flows well, despite the fact that the turbulent flows were extremely mutable. The fragmentary porcin sword ray hit the hardest on its first strike, and after, the ray would shatter but not fall apart. The pieces became countless small des that formed a powerful current, endlessly twisting and breaking the Yin Yang turbulent flows.

    What a powerful sword ray!

    Yin Yang turbulent flows and the fragmentary sword ray were both so exquisite. Ai Hui imitated the Yin Yang grass swords at times and the fragmentary porcin sword ray at times, as if intoxicated.

    He had forgotten about victory. The marvelous changings around him were so captivating that he wanted so bad for time to stop.

    But Ai Hui¡¯s hope was shattered quickly. He noticed that the Yin Yang turbulent flows were starting to wane. Shortly, he realized that the sword formation was vacuuming the nearby elemental energy. The surrounding elemental energies had been emptied out, but the sword formation¡¯s consumption of it was still high and rapid. Without the necessary replenishment, the sword formation started to disy signs of copsing.

    Ai Hui felt somewhat regretful. Was it going to end like this? He had yet to understand the turbulent flows and fragmentary porcin sword ray fully...

    All of a sudden, a bold idea came to him. Was it possible for him to assist the sword formation to regain a new equilibrium between both sides? That way, wouldn¡¯t he gain more time to observe and emte it?

    Immediately he became excited. He started thinking carefully about how he was going to help strengthen the sword formation.

    He knew the root cause of the weakened structure. It was because the materials used were of a very low grade. Yin Yang grass sword swallowed the surrounding elemental energies to sustain its Yin and Yang essence, but when the elemental energies couldn¡¯t catch up, the essences would gradually disappear during the developmental process of the turbulent flows. Eventually, the Yin Yang grass swords would all turn into ordinary grass swords. Essentially, the core problem was the grass swords¡¯ limited ability in absorbing the surrounding elemental energy.

    Since it wasn¡¯t possible to alter the grass swords¡¯ nature, what else could he do?

    Ai Hui thought of something suddenly. What if he could supply the sword formation with Yin Yang sword rays? Would that increase its ability to absorb elemental energy?

    At this point his body had already recovered, more or less. Without hesitation, he thrusted the grass sword in his hand and two sword rays, one Yin and one Yang, flew simultaneously into the sword formation and toward the dancing grass swords.

    Ai Hui could feel the sword formation stabilizing a little. Feeling pleased, he struck unceasingly, imitating the Yin Yang sword rays.

    The sword formation started to gain strength. Yes! It started to take in the surrounding elemental energy once again.

    The big man could only stare nkly as the terrifying elemental energy suffocation urred yet again!

    The faces around him changed too.

    Qin Xian fell into a daze and only regained his senses after some time. He found it hard to believe that they were experiencing the suffocation again, when they were already more than a hundred feet away. Did this not mean that the scope of absorption had increased...?

    "Retreat further!" he shouted.

    What exactly was going on?

    Fifty feet!

    Everyone withdrew another fifty feet, freeing themselves from the difort. However, they were still feeling bewildered and uncertain.

    Coming to a stop, the audience started discussing in low voices and with faces of disbelief.

    "What just happened? Is his elemental energy suffocation bing stronger?"

    "What a scary sight."

    "Where did Chu Zhaoyange from? Why is he so formidable?"

    "He seems stronger than rumored."

    ...

    "Boss!" The petite man¡¯s voice trembled a little as he called out with a pleading look.

    If elemental energy suffocation was a Master-level move, then whose move was that? The move that increased the range of elemental energy suffocation?

    The big man was also considering leaving, but then he thought about the importance of their mission. With an unpredictable expression, he squeezed four words out from the gaps of his tightly clenched teeth. "Wait a while more!"

    Just then, the sword formation changed again.

 Chapter 340: Where Are They?

    Chapter 340: Where Are They?

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    Ai Hui realized suddenly that as the sword formation grew stronger, the Yin Yang turbulent flows gradually regained an advantageous position and started to suppress the metal wind.

    Ai Hui started to think again. Could he strengthen the metal wind?

    Again, without hesitation, he decided to try, but how?

    The Yin Yang sword formation covered a wide area, but the change in Yin and Yang was extremely basic because the grass swords could only endure so much. It was precisely because the change was on such a very basic level that Ai Hui was able to quickly understand the sword formation¡¯s evolution under the stimtion of the sword ring metal wind.

    On the other hand, the sword ring metal wind, or fragmentary porcin sword rays, were much more difficult to understand. Under the bombardment of the sword formation, however, Ai Hui was able to witness the marvel within.

    The sess from earlier gave Ai Hui courage. He struck the moment the fragmentary porcin sword ray wasplete. With a shake of his grass sword, a sword ray entered the fragmentary porcin sword ray, appearing to give it an additional porcin piece.

    The sword ray became slightly more powerful.

    Ai Hui thought this was pretty interesting. He tried supplying the "porcin pieces" from different positions, which all resulted in differing degrees of strength increment.

    Ai Hui memorized each move and its result. It was as if he had just opened the door to a whole new world.

    Engrossed, Ai Hui noticed that the sword formation was starting to fall into an inferior position.

    He then started to strengthen it.

    Ai Hui alternated between strengthening the sword formation and the metal wind.

    People outside were all dumbstruck. The range of elemental energy suffocation increased continuously at a constant tempo.

    15 feetster, the area affected increased 1 feet by 1 feet...

    What situation was this?

    Those who witnessed this scene looked bewildered and uncertain. They could not wrap their head around the situation within the sword formation.

    Hua Kui, who blended into the crowd, was bbergasted as well. He knew that Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s skill had always been decent, which was why thetter had been selected by him to be an important nurturing target.

    Yet, as far as Hua Kui knew, Chu Zhaoyang was merely a decent warrior and definitely not the strongest.

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s current disy of talent and power made Hua Kui¡¯s jaws drop.

    Chu Zhaoyang had soared ever since he attained elemental externalization. He improved astonishingly fast, leaving everyone stupefied.

    It was not the first time Hua Kui had seen something like this. Thinking back carefully, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s splendid performance was not strange.

    Generally speaking, simr situations often happened to elementalists who had umted experience, but were stuck at a certain juncture. Because of their profound and long umtion of wisdom, they usually progressed rapidly the moment they broke through.

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s experience as a swordsman was extremely profound. While it was surprising that he took a long time to reach elemental externalization, it did not affect Hua Kui¡¯s evaluation of him.

    Hua Kui could not help but feel somewhat excited.

    He suddenly noticed that it was a marvelous decision to invite Chu Zhaoyang into the sword league. Having attained elemental externalization stage, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordsmanship progressed rapidly. How could Karakorum not be interested in someone like him?

    Things progressed just as he had predicted. No, even better. He had thought that Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s ability to break one or two sword formations was alreadymendable. Who knew that he could actually destroy several sword formations...

    Legend had it that the Karakorum¡¯s chief was a genius swordsman, but it seemed to Hua Kui that Chu Zhaoyang was on par.

    All was well, except for those uninvited guests.

    He squinted and scanned the crowd, a murderous glint shing across his eyes. From one look, he was shrewd enough to tell who the dangerous ones were.

    The ordinary looking big man, along with his gang, were the infamous Yellowsand Bandits. This group of bandits was ruthless. The Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s massacre was executed by these fellows.

    In another corner, a fellow who looked like a simple merchant was Jiao Dafeng, another ruthless character. The three brothers from the Jiao family were inseparable, so the other two had to be hiding nearby.

    The harmless-lookingdy standing by the wall reminded him of a dangerous name.

    ...

    After filtering all the suspicious and dangerous targets, his face instantly turned grave. He¡¯d heard some rumors, but had not expected the situation to turn out like this.

    He knew that these people were here for Xiao Shuren. Could it be that the ancient treasure Xiao Shuren had obtained was actually an important artifact?

    He decided to investigate when the time came.

    For now, his priority was to protect Karakorum. Weighing his abilities against the people here, it would not be a problem for him to defeat any one of them. Unfortunately, with so many opponents, he was unable to manage them all at once, which created a thorny situation.

    He could not help but tremble at the thought of the punishment that awaited him if he failed the mission.

    The organization never had the least bit of patience and mercy toward failures.

    He really had been caught off guard!

    Hua Kai¡¯s gaze fell upon the sword formation once again and was slightly startled. Perhaps this fellow could give him a nice surprise. His rich experience told him that Chu Zhaoyang was possibly undergoing a period of enlightenment.

    For someone who had so much umted knowledge and experience like Chu Zhaoyang, a sudden enlightenment would increase his abilities exponentially.

    There were diligent people who achieved sess through constant perseverance and there were also overnight prodigies who seeded without effort.

    Hua Kui quickly weighed the matter in his mind.

    Ai Hui, with his increased strength, was in the open. Karakorum¡¯s Qin Xian and Lian Junyu had decent abilities. He was in a hidden spot so even if he could not protect everyone around him, this did not mean that it was a lost cause.

    Eh?

    Hua Kui raised his head suddenly, looking toward the sword formation.

    Countless bright light rays swam vaguely within the formation. The silver metal wind was bright and dazzling. The everchanging sword formation released a horrifying amount of pressure and caused everyone to feel breathless, as if they had been pressed down by a huge rock.

    The sky was covered by dark clouds that had unknowingly gathered from all directions. A glimpse of lightning could be seen.

    This was...

    Hua Kui opened his eyes wide in shock.

    Boom!

    A ring wind pir soared skyward from within the sword formation, straight into the sinister ck clouds.

    The elemental energy surge hadpletely surpassed what the grass swords could endure. The dancing swords started exploding sessively like firecrackers. They exploded into countless colorfully fragmented rays that hovered around like fog.

    What was strange was the fact that the sword formation had not actually copsed.

    The mobile and fragmented rainbow of rays faded bit by bit. With the colors gradually dimming, the rays transformed into a multitude of ck and white whirlpools.

    The whirlpools were attracted by a bizarre force and started shooting into the wind pir. The silver wind pir started to transform into many ck and white eddies that attracted and circled around one another, getting all tangled up.

    Clink!

    A crisp, shattering sound rang across the field.

    The whistling wind pir was like a fragile piece of porcin that shattered inch by inch. The broken wind pir pieces that were now ck and white floated up like feathers, as though raising a theater curtain.

    A silhouette slowly entered the audience¡¯s field of view.

    Those present experienced the same illusion. It was as if they had been shed by an extremely sharp sword, but because of its keen edge, they could not feel any pain. All they felt was a slight chill in the ces they were cut.

    Qin Xian¡¯s face changed, as if a storm raged in his heart.

    Sword consciousness! This was sword consciousness!

    Legend had it that when an ancient swordsman¡¯s aura reached a certain level of concentration, it became like a substance that could cause the skin of others to feel pain, making them felt as if they were being shed by a sword. This was sword consciousness.

    Every muscle in Qin Xian¡¯s body was so excited that they were trembling. He didn¡¯t expect that he could witness the legendary sword consciousness with his own eyes one day.

    The sharp, bitingly cold, and substantial aura enveloped the whole area.

    Yet, the fellow emitting this terrifying sword consciousness did not look at them at all.

    He stood on tips of his toes with his straightened body arched slightly backward. As he faced the sky, his right hand dangled naturally by his side while wielding the sword.

    There were no superfluous sword rays, but this scene was still filled with an inexplicable tension. It felt as if there was an invisible hand that gripped everyone¡¯s throat and choked them. It also felt like a kind of magic that attracted everyone¡¯s gaze like a ma.

    Suddenly, underneath his raised head, he scanned across the field with apathetic eyes.

    Those who made eye contact with him trembled inside and felt a sting in their eyes.

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s gaze was literally sharp!

    There were no emotions in his eyes. Calmly overlooking the crowd, he stood god-like, aloof, and remote.

    Faces in the crowd changed. Those with guilty consciences felt as though they were being exposed and unable to cover their tracks.

    The Yellowsand Bandits fell into a daze, his back drenched in sweat. All his toughness evaporated. In a trembling voice he cried out, "Withdraw! Withdraw immediately!"

    The only thing he could think of was to stay as far away from this monster as possible! Escape his line of sight!

    No one reacted to his order. He suppressed his fear with great difficulty. He turned around, only to see his subordinates¡¯ pale faces and their shuddering bodies as well as hear the chattering of their teeth.

    The big man gave the petite man two tight ps before thetter finally regained his senses.

    "Withdraw! Everyone withdraw!"

    Completely exhausted, they squeezed their way out of the crowd.

    Jiao Dafeng¡¯s face was as white as a sheet. He staggered out and the other two brothers also ran away battered and exhausted.

    The harmless-lookingdy was no longer at the corner by the wall.

    Ai Hui was in a bizarre state of mind. He raised the silver broadsword in his hand. His movement was very slow, as if the sword he wielded was extremely heavy.

    With each inch raised, there was a fragmented ray that shot into the silver sword, slightly brightening it.

    Raised half way, the silver sword exploded with a loud rumble as it was no longer able to endure the power.

    Ai Hui shook a little. The frightful aura that enveloped the field suddenly vanished without a trace.

    Ai Hui felt the strength in his body emptying. His legs gave way as he fell onto the ground.

    As if smashed by a hammer, his head started buzzing loudly. He had no control over his body and was unable to even move his fingers.

    The feather-like fragmented rays that floated all over the sky disappeared together with the sinister ck clouds. The skys were clear, while the sun was shining bright. It was as if the apocalyptic urrence had just been an illusion.

    When Hua Kui finally recovered from his shock, all he felt was regret. He knew that Chu Zhaoyang had failed to break through.

    As he nced through the crowd of people, his eyes almost fell out. Where is he? Where are they?

    All the dangerous targets he had previously picked out were gone.

    Hua Kui regained his bearings five secondster. He turned his head and looked at Chu Zhaoyang, his gaze bingplicated.

 Chapter 341: Patriarch Grass, Silverfold Plum

    Chapter 341: Patriarch Grass, Silverfold Plum

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    Just like that, Chu Zhaoyang became a hot topic.

    Silver City citizens were broadminded and experienced, so he was merely a topic for them to discuss leisurely over dinner and tea. The majority of the residents agreed that swordsmanship counted for almost nothing when it came to the training system of the Avalon of Five Elements. Sword formations were merely paltry toys made by old fogies who were unwilling to give up on the glory of the ancient swordsmen.

    What praise was there for a fellow who rose to fame as a wanted criminal who had made an unexpected mistake?

    The Ling residence, Golden Eagle Study Room.

    Ling Sheng looked so gloomy that water could be squeezed out of his face. He had just been talking about how there was nothing in Karakorum for them to fear, but in the blink of an eye, reality hit him square in the face. He felt as if someone had just given him a tight p, and his face still heatedly stung from it.

    He clenched his teeth and said, "Those morons actually got intimidated by Chu Zhaoyang!"

    Madam Ling was not angry. Instead, it appeared that she had noticed something interesting as her eyes flickered. She picked up the report, which she had already looked over many times, and read it word by word. "Could it be that Chu Zhaoyang knows what Xiao Shuren¡¯s ancient treasure is?

    Ling Sheng paused slightly before raising his head abruptly. He asked gloomily, "What do you mean?"

    "He previously created a bunch of problems when he rode The Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s Fiery Floating Cloud." Madam Ling waved the piece of paper in her hands, adding, "And now he¡¯s at Karakorum. Xiao Shuren¡¯s there too. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s too much of a coincidence?"

    While Ling Sheng felt moody, he was no fool. On the contrary, in terms of temperament and wisdom, he surpassed most people, especially since he wielded power over the residence.

    The fury in his eyes vanished into thin air as he lowered his voice and muttered, "Coincidental indeed. If he knows about the ancient treasure that Xiao Shuren possesses, he is definitely an object that we can exploit."

    They had been curious all along. What exactly was this treasure that Dai Gang was so interested in?

    If it could offer Grandmasters the chance to be great grandmasters, could it also elevate a Master into a Grandmaster?

    There were no Grandmasters in the Ling residence, but there were quite a few Masters. There was only a single word that differed between the two, but in actual fact, they were worlds apart.

    The highest a Master could achieve was to be a division leader or the Great Elder of Elders Guild.

    A Grandmaster, on the other hand, could rule the a region.

    Without a doubt, the Jadeite Forest belonged to Dai Gang. The Avalon of Five Elements belonged to Grandmaster An Muda if An Muda said so.

    This was a Grandmaster.

    As long as they lived, no one, except another Grandmaster, could defy their will.

    If there was a Grandmaster in Ling residence...

    Just the thought of this possibility made Ling Sheng ready to pay any price to realize it.

    Madam Ling asked, "What¡¯s Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s history?"

    Ling Sheng regained his senses and shook his head. "No results yet. He had too minor of a reputation and had been without a fixed residence. He behaved mysteriously, so I reckon it would be difficult to find any useful information. It¡¯s even difficult to judge if this identity of his is real or false. Where do you n to start?"

    "Whatever we can think of, the other families will as well. So you¡¯re right, Chu Zhaoyang is now a target for exploitation." Madam Ling continued, "We can assume that many invitations have been sent to him. No matter what he chooses, the ancient treasure in Xiao Shuren¡¯s hands is the crucial issue in the end. We still have to think of a way to capture him. There¡¯s only one treasure chest, but there might be more than one key."

    Ling Sheng wrinkled his brows. "There must be many eyes watching Karakorum right now."

    "Don¡¯t be impatient." Madam Ling smiled meaningfully and said, "I have a feeling that Chu Zhaoyang still has a surprise for us."

    .....

    The Karakorum Sword League.

    Chu Zhaoyang was enjoying the supreme treatment. The Silverheel Swordsman had long since be a teacher of the main institution and was given a courtyard of his own. Many teachers visited in an endless stream, hoping to receive guidance and tips, to the point where a queue had formed.

    For consecutively destroying five sword formations, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s poprity within Karakorum skyrocketed.

    When a veileddy appeared by the doorway, the crowd moved aside and bowed.

    "Chief!"

    "You¡¯re finally back, Chief."

    ...

    The veileddy slightly nodded her head toward them.

    Ai Hui was quite curious. The Karakorum Sword League¡¯s chief was called the "Karakorum Savant". No one knew her name, but judging from her outfit, she appeared angelic and magical.

    The ordinary veil on the Karakorum Savant¡¯s face was obviously thin, but itpletely concealed her face. She wore a navy and white robe that was loose, yet entuated her graceful figure.

    "Nice to meet you, Mister Chu. I¡¯ve heard of your magnificent feat on my way back. I can only regret that I wasn¡¯t able to witness such a spectacr event."

    The Karakorum Savant¡¯s voice was clear, carrying a certain sternness and loftiness.

    Ai Hui stood up to bow. "Nice to meet you. You tter me. I¡¯m still far behind you in terms of attainments. I heard that you want to create the first absolute art for swordsmanship. I have always been interested in swordsmanship ever since I was young, so this grand undertaking is something I simply can not miss. Please forgive me for turning up without an invitation."

    "You¡¯re too modest sir." The Karakorum Savant spoke in a clear voice, "Even I am unable to do what you¡¯ve done."

    She took out a wooden case and handed it over to Ai Hui. "Inside is my first draft. There are many areas to consider, so please be generous with your advice andments."

    Ai Hui was moved. She had handed over theption to him so openly, without the slightest intention to conceal anything. Such breadth of mind and boldness were not qualities most people could possess.

    The Karakorum chief had not reached her current level without reason.

    Ai Hui respectfully received the case and gravely said, "Many thanks. I will give it my best."

    The Karakorum Savant bowed slightly and said in her clear voice, "Then I will not disturb your rest any longer."

    The Karakorum Savant left, and upon seeing this, the teachers also started bidding their goodbyes.

    In a sh, Ai Hui¡¯s courtyard was back to its peaceful and quiet state.

    A voice chimed behind him before Ai Hui could even open the case. "Your performance really shocked me."

    Ai Hui¡¯s body stiffened, and the hair on his body stood on end, but he quickly rxed. "You scared me."

    Turning around, he saw Hua Kuiughing at him.

    Ai Hui trembled inwardly. He had not been able to judge Hua Kui¡¯s abilities. Now, it seemed that Hua Kui was stronger than Ai Hui had guessed.

    Was this a warning?

    He asked with his usual expression, "How is that? My mission is alreadypleted, so how about joining the headquarters?"

    "Congrattions, it has been approved." Hua Kui grinned. "Your performance was more or less wless. This is yours."

    Ai Hui caught the wooden case Hua Kui threw to him and opened it. Inside was a small ss bottle half-filled with soil. A de of grass grew within. A very ordinary de of ss.

    "What is this?"

    "Patriarch grass." Hua Kui seemed to have predicted Ai Hui¡¯s reaction. Laughing, he said, "It is our token and also a way to stay in touch."

    Patriarch grass? Token? Ai Hui was bewildered. He tossed and turned the bottle, but no matter how he looked at it, it was just an ordinary de of green grass.

    Hua Kui was amused by Ai Hui¡¯s movements and burst intoughter once again. "Hahaha, of course it¡¯s not going to work this way. You¡¯ll need to use the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ unique fusion elemental energy."

    "Fusion elemental energy?" Ai Hui felt dizzy from hearing all the foreign terms that Hua Kui threw at him.

    "It is different from any existing type of elemental energy. It¡¯s a unique creation from our Assembly." Hua Kui exined proudly, "Only those who join us will be able to learn it. The method of training fusion elemental energy is inside. You can use the patriarch grass once you¡¯ve learned this, and we will be able to contact each other through it. You can also use it to read books and records that have been umted by the organization over hundreds of years. Then, you¡¯ll know how mighty the organization is. Before us, the so called aristocratic families aren¡¯t even worth mentioning."

    Finishing his sentence, Hua Kui threw Ai Hui an oddly shaped sword. "You did really well this time. This Silverfold Plum is your reward."

    Ai Hui grabbed it. The moment it reached his hand, he felt a vigorous jolt. A good sword!

    The Silverfold Plum was silvery white all over and shaped like a chopped section of a plum tree branch. Its body was crooked and strong, while its surface was bumpy like old tree bark. The sword tip was actually made of three vivid, lifelike silver plum flowers. Their stamens trembled, and on the whole, the sword looked splendid and magnificent.

    Seeing Ai Hui fondling it with admiration, Hua Kui was pleased as well. "This Silverfold Plum was forged by a master within the organization. It was made directly from artifact remnants fished out from deep within the Silver Mist Sea. Uponpletion, it was immediately kept in a Heaven-grade weapons storehouse and has never appeared outside, so you don¡¯t have to worry about its origin."

    "This is a Heaven-grade weapon?" Ai Hui was beyond surprised.

    "That¡¯s right." Hua Kui nodded. "You will have a lot of time to experience its marvels. The organization will treat you well as long as you¡¯re diligent. Your next mission is to stay in Karakorum, gain the chief¡¯s trust, and keep her safe."

    Hua Kui said with a stern face, "I heard that Dai Gang is interested in something that Xiao Shuren has, so evil characters from all over have started toe out one by one. You have to be vignt as Karakorum is likely to be attacked within these two days, but don¡¯t worry, because organization is prepared. Tsk, else these aristocratic families will think they can hide the truth from the masses."

    "Xiao Shuren? The Great Wei Enterprise? Ancient treasure?" Ai Hui¡¯s expression turned strange.

    He thought back to the unpleasant experience when he was a wanted criminal.

    Hua Kui could not help butugh. "You should know that in the eyes of these aristocrats, you¡¯re an object for exploitation."

    Ai Hui was befuddled. "Why?"

    Hua Kui was overjoyed. "You tangled with the Great Wei Enterprise and now you¡¯re here in Karakorum where Xiao Shuren is. Is this a coincidence or not? It would be weird if you did not know any inside information about the ancient treasure, hahaha!"

    Hua Kui was totally gloating over Ai Hui¡¯s misfortune.

    Chu Zhaoyang fell into that sticky situation with the Great Wei Enterprise precisely because he was on his way to meet Hua Kui. Currently, he entered Karakorum under the direct orders of Hua Kui¡¯s mission. What inside information?

    Seeing Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s dumbstruck face, Hua Kui rejoiced even more.

 Chapter 342: Fusion Elemental Energy

    Chapter 342: Fusion Elemental Energy

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Beyond the noble doors were ces as deep as the sea. With a thousand years of inherited history, the aristocratic families were full of mystery in the eyes of people.

    In Silver Mist Sea, no ns could surpass the reputations of the Ling and Gong residences. They were the strongest giants, standing right at the top of the food chain. Then there were the Zeng, Fu, Jin and Zhong families. While they had shorter and less illustrious histories aspared to the Ling and Gong families, these four had a considerable amount of influence in Silver Mist Sea.

    The Zhong residence had been declining over the past ten years and was left with only an vice division leader from the Infantry Division to keep up appearances. Many felt that if ten years was all it took for the Zhong residence to reach this state, another ten would eliminate them from the big four list.

    But life was unpredictable. The sudden movement of Blood of God inflicted heavy damages on the Sky Edge and Infantry Divisions. The Infantry Division, specifically, first lost its division leader in battle, andter on lost its vice division leader due to severe injuries. Zhong Houjun then became the only remaining higher-up in the Infantry Division. He¡¯d suffered pretty heavy injuries himself, but had been lucky to survive and recover fully.

    During the reconstruction of the Infantry Division, Zhong Houjun instantly became a hot candidate for the new vice leader position. Be it in qualifications or abilities, no one else was on par with him.

    The Zhong residence¡¯s prospects immediately turned up and people were sighing over the family¡¯s good fortune.

    But this was just anticipation. No matter how popr a candidate was, it was a separate matter from being a legitimate division leader. Plus, due to the Elders Guild¡¯s city expansion order, it seemed to the people that the Elders Guild¡¯s priority would be to open up the Wilderness and not to rebuild the thirteen divisions.

    Did the Avalon of Five Elements have the ability to rebuild the Thirteen Divisions? No one really knew.

    The Zhong residence had tight security. In a deep corner of the courtyard was a darkroom.

    "What¡¯s the current situation?" an ordinary lookingdy asked in a low voice.

    Ai Hui and Duanmu Huanghun would be thoroughly shocked if they were here, because this voice was extremely familiar to them. It was the voice of She Yu.

    She Yu had just arrived in Silver City.

    No one knew that long before the blood catastrophe happened, the Zhong residence had already been infiltrated and seized by Blood of God. The reason why Infantry Division suffered such huge losses was precisely because Zhong Houjun coordinated with both internal and external forces. And with his injuries at that time, he had managed to fool people and remove suspicions.

    And when one party became independent, the Zhong residence received an order from Blood of God to draw close to Jadeite Forest.

    The news of Dai Gang and the ancient treasure immediately caught the attention of higher-ups in Blood of God. Because of She Yu¡¯s outstanding performance in Jadeite Forest, she was once again given a mission. She wore a special mask that concealed her identity. Without elemental energy waves, no one would notice her.

    Zhong Houjun was about forty years old. He had a squarish face, stately bearing and a natural mighty appearance. He said in a low voice, "We¡¯re not too sure what the ancient treasure exactly is. We¡¯re not the only n getting involved. Quite a few fellows appeared at Karakorum previously. If not for Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s moment of enlightenment, they might have gotten hold of it already."

    "Chu Zhaoyang?" She Yu had been reading relevant reports and found this name rather familiar. "The Chu Zhaoyang who appeared at Great Wei¡¯s Caravan?"

    "Yes." Zhong Houjun nodded. "He has a mysterious background and is a sword expert. I wonder if his sudden appearance in Karakorum is coincidental or nned."

    "We will find that out very soon." She Yu was interested in another matter. "Who is Chu Zhaoyang battling against?"

    Zhong Houjun shook his head. "There¡¯s no battle. Chu Zhaoyang has destroyed five of Karakorum¡¯s sword formations consecutively. The abilities he¡¯s disyed frightened every passerby away. Our people were there at that time and they witnessed the whole thing."

    This piqued She Yu¡¯s interest even more. "Oh, he mustn¡¯t be ordinary, to be able to scare people off with his skills. Any images?"

    "No, they were all stunned and no one thought about recording anything."

    She Yu nodded her head. "Must have been a spectacr sight. What¡¯s the situation now?"

    "ording to inside news, quite a few people will take action in the next two days." Zhong Houjun asked, "Do we need to make a move?"

    She Yu smiled slightly. "Do not be impatient. Let¡¯s go watch how things y out first."

    Thedy before him was clearly average looking, but somehow herugh charmed him greatly.

    He did not know who she was but he knew that people from Blood of God were always mysterious and cold.

    .....

    Karakorum Sword League. In a courtyard that stood on its own.

    Regaining his senses after the pleasant Silverfold Plum surprise, Ai Hui thought back to what Hua Kui said about the reading of ancient books through the patriarch grass. He felt a sudden premonition.

    This waspletely different from what that old man had said.

    "This set of notes should be kept in the seventh floor of the Hall of Ancient Records. The author¡¯s surname is Xiao."

    Where was the Hall of Ancient Records? Where was the seventh floor?

    Both parties saidpletely different things, but thinking about how the old man had been imprisoned for so many years, it wouldn¡¯t be surprising if the general headquarters had changed location in the past several decades.

    Ai Hui only hoped that he would be blessed enough to find Senior Xiao¡¯s notes.

    But before that, he needed to analyze [Fusion Elemental Energy] first, since it was required to active the patriarch grass.

    Because of the old man, probably, Ai Hui¡¯d always felt that the Assembly of Patriarchs wasn¡¯t very strong. It had a loose structure and nothing to offer, except that they were more familiar with Blood of God.

    But now, Silverfold Plum made him realize that the assembly was wealthier and more imposing that he¡¯d imagined. And the fusion elemental energy that he¡¯d never heard of shocked him even more.

    Fusion elemental energy wasn¡¯t any type of elemental energy but a blend of the five elemental energy types.

    This subverted everything Ai Hui knew.

    How was this possible?

    Who could simultaneously train five kinds of elemental energies? Even training two was unheard of. The current five residences and eight pces system was extremely mature and there would be different Circtory Cycle Revolutions, but there wasn¡¯t any inheritances that required practicing two or more types of elemental energies.

    Ai Hui was scared witless. It was as if he was reading dark books from dissenting sects.

    Fusion elemental energy believed that everyone had five elements in them and no one was purely of one elemental energy type, so it was only natural that they practiced all five elements.

    The way to practice it was even stranger. It had something inmon with the system of five residences and eight pces. No. To be precise, their only simrity was that they both had five residences.

    Other than that, they had nothing else inmon.

    Fusion elemental energy required the practitioner to train five residences of the heart, liver, spleen, lung and kidney simultaneously. What was more odd, was the fact that fusion elemental energy trained only the residences but not the pces, as if the eight pces did not exist.

    Such peculiar way of training elemental energy actually existed. It was simply unheard of and Ai Hui felt that it really widened his horizons.

    The five residences formed the ring of five elements, where elemental energies engendered one another in a marvelous cycle.

    A continuous deepening of fusion elemental energy would form ring patterns, like that of a big tree¡¯s age rings. The five elemental ring patterns could rinse incessantly and temper the practitioner¡¯s body, gradually channeling every organ and flesh into the five elemental ring patterns, allowing it to grow and multiply infinitely.

    When the whole body was fully consisted of the five elemental ring patterns, the process wasplete and known as [Fusion Body].

    Inside a [Fusion Body] was an endless cirction of the five elemental ring patterns, and any elemental energy that entered the body would blend into the ring patterns, restraining all elementalists.

    Ai Hui was lost for words, his face clearly in shock.

    This was apletely different train of thought, but Ai Hui did not find any loopholes within it.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯s five elemental ring patterns had thoroughly subverted the system of five residences and eight pces.

    The more amazing thing was that practicing fusion elemental energy did not sh with the practicing of five residences and eight pces at all. Seeing this made Ai Hui realize why such a powerful training method was unheard of. No one would notice as long as the practitioner did not use it.

    The old man wasn¡¯t loyal. He knew of such an amazing training method but chose to keep it quiet.

    Ai Hui decided to ckmail the old man when he got back. He must extort something from him at least.

    The book Hua Kui gave him covered only the basics and nothing too radical. He figured that he would have to continue contributing to the Assembly before he could get better information.

    The Assembly of Patriarch¡¯s abilities far exceeded Ai Hui¡¯s expectations.

    Aristocratic families were powerful because they had control over absolute arts. They constantly modified and deepened the absolute arts, making them more formidable but easier for practitioners to grasp.

    In this world, those with bigger fists would live better. Aristocratic families possessing absolute arts could nurture elementalists with big fists more easily.

    Creating a training system would increase the Assembly¡¯s might. The exceptional disguise of fusion elemental energy smelled like a conspiracy to Ai Hui.

    The book Hua Kui gave him had only a few thin pages, covering the most basic of the basics.

    The training of fusion elemental energy was simpler and smoother than Ai Hui¡¯d predicted.

    Four hourster, Ai Hui opened his eyes and could feel his long suppressed heart, liver, spleen and kidneys bing stronger, as a faint wisp of elemental energy flowed between the five residences.

    Fusion elemental energy had a very unique aura that brimmed with an intense life force!

    That was the aura of life, which waspletely different from the elemental energy he had been training in the past. He had never felt such a solid breath of life. Even his body became livelier and more agile.

    The fusion elemental energy that he had just trained was extremely weak, but sufficient to activate the patriarch grass.

    The only wisp of fusion elemental energy was channeled into the patriarch grass.

    The patriarch grass glowed faintly. Each leaf had anotheryer like a velvety halo of light and Ai Hui was captivated. A fog that came from nowhere engulfed the surrounding walls and furniture and a spacious and solemn lobby took shape rapidly amid the fog.

    It was hazy in the lobby due to the surrounding fog. It moved very slowly and fuzzily.

    There was someone standing in the middle of the lobby. Upon seeing Ai Hui, he said with a slight smile, "Hi, Swordsman."

    Ai Hui could tell from one look that it wasn¡¯t a human but a sand puppet standing before him.

    Swordsman was Ai Hui¡¯s name within the Assembly of Patriarchs. Other than Hua Kui, who knew his real identity, the other members only knew him as "Swordsman".

    The sight before him was so illusory yet real.

    Ai Hui was dumbfounded.

 Chapter 343: Grass Hall

    Chapter 343: Grass Hall

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Immediately, the Assembly of Patriarchs seemed more powerful and mysterious in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. This was not something that an ordinary organization could achieve.

    Furthermore, the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ ability to develop apletely new energy system, fusion elemental energy, had disyed its amazing strength and umted wisdom over the years.

    Wealth could be earned in one night, but things like fusion elemental energy and patriarch grass needed a long period of time and the effort of numerous geniuses¡¯ to be developed. The amount of manpower and resources expended to develop these two things was astronomical.

    What Ai Hui saw from the Assembly of Patriarchs was only the tip of the iceberg, and he was already shocked.

    He guessed that the technology of patriarch grass might have been developed from message trees, but it definitely needed more improvements. Ai Hui had already regained hisposure, "Hi, how may I address you?"

    Because of Lou Lan, Ai Hui clearly knew how tomunicate with a sand puppet. The method ofmunicating with a sand puppet was actually very simple. One could just speak his or her mind and ask any questions. There was no need for one to adorn his or hernguage nor be tactful with his or her words. It was better for one to be as direct as possible when it came tomunicating with a sand puppet.

    "You can call me Manager."

    "Okay, Manager," Ai Hui addressed the sand puppet ordingly, "Can you introduce this ce to me? This is my first time here."

    "Alright, Swordsman," Manager nodded and waved his right hand. The great, serene hall and the countless hall pirs behind him disappeared and materialized into a ck mist. Following which, the ck mist transformed in a wall. Pieces of wooden bs were hanging on the wall. Small, densely-packed words were written on the wooden bs, giving off an extraordinary glow.

    Manager began to introduce the ce, "This ce is known as the Grass Hall. From today onwards, missions will be issued from this ce. Upon joining the headquarters, you will be supervised by the headquarters even if you¡¯re not online. The difficulty of the missions will directly correspond to your base level. Right now, due to special circumstances, you already have one mission and that is to protect Karakorum Sword League The reward forpleting the mission can be obtained from here as well."

    Upon hearing these words, Ai Hui was extremely shocked, "This ce is real?"

    "If you think that this ce is real, then it is real," Manager¡¯s words were rather abstruse. He then continued, "We will give you a key. This key is a specially processed earth elemental hoop. You can activate it from any ce, at anytime to obtain your rewards."

    "A sandpass?" Ai Hui asked.

    Manager nodded his head and replied, "It is a device that¡¯s much moreplicated than a sandpass. To be exact, it is also known as sea urchin sandpass. It is a brand new type of enchanted sandpass. Every sea urchin spine corresponds to an earth elemental space. Currently, the Assembly of Patriarchs and Elders Guild are the only ones that possess this device."

    "The Elders Guild has it too?" Ai Hui widened his eyes. He felt a lot of his perspectives regarding the Assembly of Patriarchs had beenpletely overturned after joining the headquarters. He used to think that Elders Guild was decaying and decadent. He did not expect them to possess such a powerful device.

    "Yes," Manager did not exin much about the Elders Guild and continued, "In the future, you can sell your spoils of war and purchase weapons and inheritances in Grass Hall as well."

    Manager waved his hand and the wall behind transformed into ck mist.Dazzling artifacts appeared and hovered within the ck mist, looking extremely magnificent. Ai Hi almost drooled upon this magnificent sight.

    "There are absolute arts too," Manager waved his hand again and countless light orbs hovered behind him. Each light orb had a faint shadow flickering within it. Manager continued, "In Grass Hall an absolute art will be twenty-five percent cheaper than a simr one sold by the Elders Guild, and it¡¯s one level higher in terms of quality in Grass Hall. We ept Heaven Merit Points as payment as well. Our prices are much more fair than the market prices too.

    Ai Hui was bbergasted. To his surprise, this ce sold Elders Guild¡¯s absolute arts at a cheaper price and epted Heaven Merit Points as payment. He was speechless.

    "Of course, you can also buy training techniques for fusion elemental energy here. In addition, you are allowed to purchase our Heaven-grade weapons too. We also have the Hall of Ancient Records, where the seniors¡¯ knowledge, reading notes and travel notes are contained. Most of the ancient records are free to read, only a small amount of them charge a fee."

    Upon hearing the words "Hall of Ancient Records", Ai Hui quickly asked, "Can I take a look?"

    "Of course," Manager waved his hand and the ck mist behind him transformed into a tall, unadorned bamboo tower. Four bold and forceful words were written on it, "Hall of Ancient Records".

    Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief upon seeing that the tower had multiple levels. His gaze fell upon the seventh level.

    "Can I enter?" Ai Hui pointed to the Hall of Ancient Records.

    "No problem," Manager nodded his head, "However, I have to remind you that your current amount of fusion elemental energy only allows you to stay in Grass Hall for up to one hour. If you want to stay longer, please continue to work hard to develop your fusion elemental energy."

    "Thank you for your reminder," Ai Hui bade Manager farewell and entered the Hall of Ancient Records.

    As Ai Hui reached the entrance of the bamboo tower, he suddenly stopped in his tracks. His gaze fell upon the words "Hall of Ancient Records", which were inscribed on a wooden signboard.

    The handwriting of these words... seemed somewhat familiar...

    Wait, didn¡¯t he feel the handwriting of some other word was also familiar previously? He quickly remembered that it was the word "Karakorum" written on the wooden signboard hung above the entrance of Karakorum Sword League.

    He carefullypared the handwriting between the four words "Hall of Ancient Records" and the word "Karakorum". Indeed, their handwritings looked remarkably simr.

    The simple and forceful brushstrokes contained an unrestrained sword glint, conveying a sharp and intense killing intent.

    "Hall of Ancient Records" and "Karakorum" should have be written by the same person. However, why would he feel a sense of familiarity from these words? He must have seen this handwriting somewhere in the past. Ai Hui was very confident about his intuition. After racking his brain, he finally knew why he found the handwriting of these words familiar.

    Vanguard Training Hall.

    There was a signboard hung at the entrance of Central Pine City¡¯s Vanguard Training Hall as well. When he first moved to the training hall, the signboard was covered in dust and cobwebs. He had to clean it before hanging it on the wall of the lobby. The handwriting of the words "Vanguard Training Hall", "Hall of Ancient Records" and "Karakorum" looked remarkably simr to him, and as such, he felt that he had seen the handwriting somewhere in the past.

    Could the inscriptions on these three signboards be written by the same person?

    If that was the case, things were getting more interesting.

    The owner of Vanguard Training Hall was called Heng Bingfeng and he had disappeared for many years. Given the fact that the ancient message tree at the training hall was able to connect with the old man, there was a high possibility that Heng Bingfeng might be from the Assembly of Patriarchs.

    If the inscription on the wooden signboard of Karakorum was written by Heng Bingfeng, it only showed two things.

    First, Heng Bingfeng was still alive.

    Second, Heng Bingfeng was still in the Assembly of Patriarchs, or his rtionship with the Assembly had yet to break. There was a very deep rtionship between Karakorum and the Assembly of Patriarchs. This was also why Hua Kui wanted Ai Hui to protect Karakorum.

    Ai Hui had decided to ask the old fellow about Heng Bingfeng after he returned to the Swordsman Training Hall.

    Several bizarre thoughts emerged in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    After leaving Central Pine City many years ago, Heng Bingfeng had vanished without a trace and never returned. He left such an important message tree in the training hall and he did not evene back to retrieve it. This somewhat puzzled Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui also thought of Master Shao. In his mind, Master Shao had always been a very mysterious individual. The more he knew about Master Shao, the more powerful he felt Master Shao was. Every sand puppet Ai Hui had encountered, including Grass Hall¡¯s Manager, was not as powerful as Lou Lan. Then, there was also the sand core, Midnight, of which Lou Lan could not fully utilize its powers.

    Was it a coincidence that Master Shao lived beside Vanguard Training Hall? What was the rtionship between Master Shao and Heng Bingfeng?

    Ai Hui could not help but shake his head. It seemed that the more he knew, the more doubts he had.

    "I¡¯m very sorry, your fusion elemental energy has run out, you will have to leave the Grass Hall. Goodbye, Swordsman."

    Manager¡¯s voice rang across Ai Hui¡¯s ears and he returned to his senses. Before Ai Hui could react, his vision blurred and his surroundings disappeared.

    The glow of the patriarch grass vanished and he was back in his room.

    It appeared that fusion elemental energy was the key to establishing a foothold in the Assembly of Patriarchs.

    The information he obtained today was somewhat too much. The unfathomable depths of the Assembly of Patriarchs and the conjecture regarding Heng Bingfeng had overwhelmed Ai Hui greatly.

    After around ten minutes, he finally calmed down. For someone who had powerful self-control like Ai Hui, this kind of situation seldom happened to him.

    He threw all these distracting thoughts to the back of his mind. Actually, both Karakorum and the Assembly of Patriarchs had nothing much to do with him. The Assembly of Patriarchs was only a channel for him to gather information. With the addition of Grass Hall now, this process became much more efficient.

    Right now, the most important thing for him to do was to find that notebook as soon as possible.

    He guessed that the old fellow would be more interested in the topic of Heng Bingfeng.

    After Ai Hui regained hisposure, he flipped open the prototype inheritance that Karakorum Savant had passed him. Very soon, he became engrossed in it.

    Karakorum Savant had great achievements in the field of swordsmanship. Unlike Ai Hui, who learnt swordsmanship by putting together various pieces of knowledge from everywhere, Karakorum Savant seemed to have learnt swordsmanship systematically. Ai Hui could see some of his own techniques in the inheritance. For example, [Oblique sh] and [Heavenly Thrust]. There was also a move that was somewhat simr to his [Crescent Moon] but much weaker in power.

    The inheritance also contained a lot of Karakorum Savant¡¯s insights into swordsmanship. For example, it specifically talked about the transformation of Yin and Yang, enlightening Ai Hui on this topic.

    Ai Hui waspletely engrossed in it. This was the first time he saw such a systematic and detailed swordy manual.

    Even though there were several areas that needed further improvements, the contents of the swordy manual were enough for it to be considered a prototype. In an era where swordsmanship was irrelevant, this inheritance was extremely valuable.

    Like a drug addict, Ai Hui waspletely obsessed with the swordy manual.

    There were some ideas mentioned in the manual that Ai Hui had already verified, but there were also some that he had never thought of. These novel ideas threw him into a deep thinking process. Whenever he understood something or came across a marvellous insight, he could not help but exim in admiration. Those areas that he could not understand distressed him, causing him to furrow his eyebrows and mumble to himself. In order to focus onprehending the inheritance, he shut his door and declined to meet any visitor.

    All the teachers in Karakorum Sword League knew Chu Zhaoyang was reading a prototype inheritance. Everyone was filled with the expectation that Chu Zhaoyang could add on more insights and knowledge to this iplete inheritance.

    Numerous pairs of eyes were staring at the tightly shut door.

    .....

    Silver Mist Sea, Pagoda of Hidden Edge.

    A domineering old voice emitted from the light orb, "What do you think about this proposal?"

    Tong Gui bowed and answered, "It¡¯s an opportunity for us. We can secretly send some people over."

    "Then we will send unknown individuals."

    "Yes. But I¡¯m afraid that we can¡¯t stop them and will blow up the issue."

    "If they can¡¯t be stopped, then they can¡¯t be stopped. It¡¯s their business and it got nothing to do with all of you. Your mission is to make sure Silver City is safe."

    "What about the Great Elder..."

    "Don¡¯t worry, the Great Elder is still the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ Great Elder."

    "Subordinate understands."

 Chapter 344: Night Attack On Karakorum

    Chapter 344 - Night Attack On Karakorum

    The darkness of night engulfed the earth. On this dark night, the moonlight was barely visible.

    Hua Kui nced at the tightly-shut door of the courtyard. This action was rather eye-catching.

    A lofty-looking guy that wore a golden mask on his face sneered at Hua Kui. "It appears that our little friend has no intention ofing out. Hua Kui, I heard that you¡¯re his guide? Your foresight doesn¡¯t seem too good."

    Before Hua Kui could reply, a guy who was seated beside him and drinking alcohol alone chuckled. "Prince has rather good foresight. I heard that the young fellow you brought in had attracted some enemies, causing you to flee for 4,000 miles? Both of you are evenly matched, so the two of you can have a good talk with each other."

    Hua Kui fiddled with a piece of a leaf from the potted nt beside his feet and replied, "Cab, we are still better than you. Until now, you haven¡¯t even brought in a single person. If you don¡¯t bring in fresh blood within the next five years, you will be expelled from the Grass Hall."

    The guy who was drinking was called Jiu Gui [1]. Those who were familiar with him called him Cab.

    Prince felt a sense of schadenfreude and chirped in, "I didn¡¯t expect the cab to still be empty. No wonder you¡¯re jealous of us. You can¡¯t even have a good conversation with us about this topic."

    Jiu Gui downed his drink in one gulp and changed the topic. "What do you think the rtionship is between Karakorum and the Grass Hall?"

    A solemn look immediately appeared on Hua Kui¡¯s face. "Cab, just keep on drinking your alcohol and don¡¯t ask any questions that we are not supposed to ask."

    "Hua Kui, you¡¯re being too prudent. There¡¯s no harm in talking about it. Even though the Grass Hall provides a lot of rewards, we are still doing a job. This time around, the situation is rather dire, and the enemies we are expecting will not be ordinary individuals."

    The leaf that Hua Kui was fiddling with trembled. Annoyed, he replied, "Prince, you and your inauspicious mouth."

    Jiu Gui chirped in as well, "Sigh, if you have told me earlier that Prince wasing, I definitely would not havee. You¡¯re truly deserving of the name ¡®Inauspicious Prince.¡¯ Anyway, how¡¯re the preparations going on Xiao Shuren¡¯s side?"

    "The preparations have been made." Hua Kui nodded his head.

    Upon hearing these words, the other two immediately felt relieved. Hua Kui might look imposing, powerful, and reliable, but in reality, he could be rather careless at times.

    "I can¡¯t wait for our little friend to take action." Jiu Gui shook his head and shot a seemingly drunken look at a distant part of the sky.

    Hua Kui and Prince stood up at the same time.

    A few shadows flew across the sky above Little Night Town, overlooking the brightly-lit town beneath them.

    "How is it possible that a mere Chu Zhaoyang can frighten them to such a state? A bunch of bums."

    The person who had just spoken was standing atop a Fiery Floating Cloud. His face was of twopletely contrastingplexion. The charred and dry left side of his face appeared to have previously been burned by fire. His zing, flickering eyes looked exceptionally bright in the dark night. Beside him, there was a half-a-meter tall, three-legged cauldron with a crow design engraved on it. Dark-redva slowly churned within the cauldron.

    This person was called Fire Crow. No one knew what his real name was. He was infamous and guilty of monstrous crimes. His hands were covered in the blood of numerous lives. Even though he had countless enemies, he still led a carefree life.

    Beside him, there was a person that was fully covered by a cloak. He remained silent and flew through the sky like a ghost.

    Ye Shuang did not try to conceal his disdain and hatred toward Fire Crow at all. If they were in another ce, he would have ughtered this troublesome fellow. The moment he returned this favor, he would be a free man and owed nothing to nobody.

    His weapons were very unique. In each of his hands, he held a golden wheel. In the center of each golden wheel, there was nothing but a handle. The edge of each golden wheel was filled with sharp densely-packed teeth. The dark-red color of the teeth made the golden wheels look as if they feasted on fresh blood.

    Fire Crow knew Ye Shuang disliked him, but he did not care at all. He grinned at Ye Shuang. However, when a grin appeared upon that face of his, he looked exceptionally terrifying.

    A delicate newbie like Ye Shuang would not survive very long on the battlefield.

    There were three people in total, and they were not familiar with each other. They did not have the intention of coordinating with each other either. Fire Crow directly made his stance clear. "Each person takes on one opponent. We will fight them individually."

    After finishing his sentence, Fire Crow flew directly downward without even waiting for the other two to reply.

    The other two also had no intention of coordinating their offense. They flew toward the Karakorum Sword League separately.

    A zing streak shot down from the sky and flew toward the Karakorum Sword League like a burning meteor.

    At that moment, the half-drunk Jiu Gui let out a hup and heaved a mouthful of white mist. Like an inted balloon, the white mist expanded as the wind blew and transformed into a house-sized white cloud in the blink of an eye.

    The fast flying ze shot into the white cloud in a sh. Afterward, the white cloud burst into mes with a loud bang, disintegrating into ashes along with the ze.

    In the sky, Fire Crow¡¯s eyes froze. From the attack of his opponent, Fire Crow could immediately tell whether he was an expert or not. The other party was no pushover.

    Fire Crow licked his lips as a tinge of excitement appeared upon his face. He was never scared of his opponents being too powerful. He only feared that they were too weak and posed no challenge to him.

    Smacking the cauldron beside him, raging mes surged out of it and shot skyward. The raging mes were dazzling and splendid, illuminating all of Little Night Town and making it look as if it was daytime. The mes also caused Fire Crow¡¯s sinister-looking half-charred face to appear even more terrifying. A grin appeared upon his face.

    Three fiery birds flew out of the raging mes in the cauldron. Apparently, they were three crows conjured from fire. Their bodies intertwined as they dived toward the ground.

    Mournful screeches engulfed the sky above the Karakorum Sword League in an instant.

    Jiu Gui broke into a heartyugh. "A grape wine so fine that a cup gleams at night. To drink on I¡¯d love, but for the summons to fight!"

    Intoxicated, he picked up the wine cup from the table and spilled its contents into the air.

    The sparkling and translucent beads of wine rolled in the air. Suddenly, concentrated water elemental energy erupted from Jiu Gui and vaporized the beads of wine into a cloud of mist. Crackling chords of a lute yed from the mist. Subsequently, a neigh from a steed rang out, and a mist-formed rider abruptly surged out of the fog.

    The horseman raised his sword and charged forward with lightning speed. Eventually, it transformed into a shadowy streak.

    Meanwhile, the three screeching ming crows in the sky suddenly exploded into countless ming sparks.

    A cold glint shed across Fire Crow¡¯s eyes. He spread open his right palm, and a ming protective screen appeared before him.

    A shadowy streak blurred through the air. The charging horseman hacked his longsword heavily against the zing fire screen. The anticipated boom from the sh was not produced. The fire screen copsed swiftly like a piece of soft paper and engulfed the misty horseman.

    The horseman only managed to struggle briefly before vanishing into thin air with a pop.

    Grave expressions appeared on the faces of Jiu Gui and Fire Crow.

    On the other side.

    The ghost-like cloaked man had encountered trouble as well.

    He stopped in his tracks and looked at the potted nt not far away from him. It was a hibiscus. Even in the dark night, its beauty and brilliance could still involuntarily captivate his attention.

    He shifted his gaze and looked around elsewhere.

    Potted nts were well spaced out around the courtyard. All of them were ced in noticeable positions. Some were also ced at the corners of the perimeter walls. At a nce, this ce looked like a normal courtyard with nothing out of ordinary. This was also why the cloaked man did not care too much about the potted nts.

    He was slightly surprised that his opponent would deploy such ordinary-looking potted nts.

    However, they were merely potted nts after all. Even if they contained powerful nts, he would not be afraid of them.

    He walked directly to the pot of hibiscus and stomped it to smithereens.

    He did not encounter any resistance, and the pot of hibiscus had no reaction either.

    An ordinary potted nt? The cloaked man became vignt all of a sudden. On a battlefield, the more harmless and ordinary a deployment looked, the more dangerous it was.

    Eh?

    Suddenly, his pupils contracted. He did not know when, but the crushed hibiscus had taken root on the ground. Right now, the hibiscus was glistening and alluring. There was not the slightest bit of dirt or mud on it. Its previously crushed stems and leaves hadpletely recovered.

    Something strange was going on!

    He felt that his control over the surrounding elemental energy was gradually declining.

    Had he been isted from the elemental energy in the environment?

    Then, he saw a tall and sturdy man standing 30 meters away from him. Like an experienced gardener, the man was pruning the potted nts around him.

    The cloaked man strode toward the burly man.

    As long as he could kill this man, these potted nts would be ineffective against him.

    The potted nts around Hua Kui were arranged in an irregr arrangement that had a charming effect. If Ai Hui was to witness this sight, he would be dumbstruck. He would not have expected Hua Kui to hide his killing intent within these pruned potted nts.

    The battle between Ye Shuang and Prince was much more intense.

    Both of them were metal elementalists.

    Ye Shuang¡¯s golden wheels were like two dazzling golden dragons, surging and whizzing through the air to disy their impressive might. The dragon roar that the golden wheels produced contained a secret art. This roar was able to numb the blood in one¡¯s body, causing his or her elemental energy lose control.

    Prince wore a golden mask on his face. His hands wielded a great sword forged from pure gold, which had a length that was about equal to his height. He had no swordsmanship to speak of, as he was just purely hacking and shing at his enemy.

    With an incredibly fast speed, each hack was heavier than the previous one.

    Every hack released a streak of brilliant golden light. Since his hacking speed was too fast, before the previous streak of golden light could disappear, the next streak of golden light had already formed. This caused streaks of golden light to umte. Eventually, his entire body was shrouded in surging golden light, resembling a gigantic golden-glowing hurricane.

    This golden-glowing hurricane unreasonably sted at Ye Shuang.

    Ye Shuang¡¯s golden dragons collided with the golden-glowing hurricane and let out waves of dragon roars, but the dragons could not stop the hurricane which was bing increasingly thick.

    Not a single tinge of panic could be found on Ye Shuang¡¯s face. He did not look like a rookie at all.

    At this point in time, all of the Karakorum Sword League teachers were startled by the ongoing battles. When everyone saw the intensity of the battles and how the battles were surging with violent elemental energy, their facial expressions changed drastically. The fighting capabilities of the teachers were not worth mentioning in such battles.

    "Quickly run!"

    It was not known who shouted these words. Everyone looked as if they had woken up from a dream and started to hastily run away from the ongoing battles.

    In an exquisite courtyard.

    A beautiful woman gazed at a streak of zing mes that soared through the sky. The sound of intense battles fell incessantly on her ears. Surging elemental energy waves in the air sent a cold shiver down her spine.

    "These people are here to abduct me?" Xiao Shuren asked softly.

    The Karakorum Savant did not look at her. She sat cross-legged on the ground with her sword ced before her. She replied coldly, "That¡¯s right. Dai Gang wants your ancient treasure, and a lot of people are willing to risk their lives for him."

    "Treasuring a jade ring bes a crime for even an innocent man. This saying is spot-on." Xiao Shurenughed bitterly.

    "What you want, what you get," Karakorum remained unmoved.

    Xiao Shuren regained herposure and replied, "Pardon me, but haven¡¯t you always wanted the ancient treasure?"

    To Xiao Shuren¡¯s surprise, the Karakorum Savant shook her head and replied, "I don¡¯t want it anymore."

    "Are you afraid of Dai Gang?" Xiao Shuren stared at the Karakorum Savant.

    "Yes, I¡¯m afraid," the Karakorum Savant replied.

    Her face was still covered by a veil. Even though her features were masked, one could see the unwavering calmness within her eyes.

    Xiao Shuren lowered her head and looked slightly downcast. After a while, she raised her head as she returned to her senses.

    The Karakorum Savant nodded her head in silence. Xiao Shuren might appear weak and delicate, but her will and determination far surpassed those of many men. She was truly a woman that had managed an enterprise for many years.

    Xiao Shuren suddenly asked, "Where¡¯s Chu Zhaoyang? I heard he¡¯s here. I am very happy that I can meet an old friend here. I¡¯m the one who was in the wrong during our previous encounter, and I feel really guilty. If I get to meet Mr. Chu, I have to apologize andpensate him.

    "You better know your ce. Since I don¡¯t want the ancient treasure, my sword will not hesitate to y you," the Karakorum Savant said coldly.

    Xiao Shuren was not afraid of this threat, smiling gracefully. "If I die, the ancient treasure will definitely be in the hands of the Savant. Clearly, the Savant can¡¯t bear to kill me. Eh? Given such a huge ruckus, why hasn¡¯t Mr. Chu appeared yet?"

    The Karakorum Savant did not bother with Xiao Shuren. Instead, her gaze shifted to the courtyard where Chu Zhaoyang resided, feeling slightly puzzled.

    Note:

    [1] Jiu Gui is liquor cab in Chinese.

 Chapter 345: Sword Glint And Tranquil Night Breeze

    Chapter 345: Sword Glint And Tranquil Night Breeze

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    To be a true Master, one must fulfill two conditions. The first condition was to reach the Three Elemental Realm. The second condition was to create an absolute art. These two conditions were mandatory.

    After one attained elemental externalization, he or she would have to focus on controlling and channelling elemental energy from the natural environment. Elementalists that had attained elemental externalization must first learn how to control the elemental energy of their base type. For example, Ai Hui, who was a metal elementalist, could control the metal elemental energy in the wind or the scattered metal elemental energy in the ground.

    As an elementalist¡¯s control over elemental energy improved, not only could he control the elemental energy of his base type, he could also draw and convert other types of elemental energy that engendered his base type.

    For example, after Ai Hui had increased his base level, he could draw and convert earth elemental energy into metal elemental energy, thereby strengthening himself.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Perennial Lock] made use of this logic as well. He drew water elemental energy from the ground to nourish his own wood elemental energy.

    This was also known as the Two Elemental Realm.

    After attaining Two Elemental Realm, an elementalist could eventually draw one more elemental energy type to strengthen himself. This was the Three Elemental Realm. For example, if Ai Hui reached the Three Elemental Realm, he could draw and convert fire elemental energy and earth elemental energy into metal elemental energy.

    The ability to draw and utilize all five types of elemental energy was the mark of a Grandmaster. Dai Gang, a Grandmaster, was surrounded by only wood elemental energy.

    The unique characteristic of Three Elemental Realm was the reason why it became one of the two necessary conditions for bing a Master. When an elementalist reached the Three Elemental Realm, he was no longer restrained by the cycle of the five elements.

    If Ai Hui was to attain the Three Elemental Realm, he would be able to control fire, earth, and metal elemental energies. In the past, fire elemental energy happened to be the bane of his metal elemental energy. As such, if he attained the Three Elemental Realm, he would no longer be restrained by fire elemental energy. This also implied that his control over natural elemental energies had reached a new level.

    Reaching Three Elemental Realm allowed one to be filled with vigorous elemental energy. The inheritances that everyone practiced were focused on where this vigorous elemental energy could be used and applied. Inheritances could disy an elementalist¡¯s level of understanding toward elemental energy as well.

    The ability to create an absolute art indicated a deep and unique understanding that an elementalist had toward elemental energy.

    An absolute art was a way for one to exhibit the "path" he chose to embark on.

    It was hard to determine the strength of an individual who was below the level of a Master. Some people had a low elemental energy level, but a strongprehension of elemental energy. On the contrary, there were other people whose strength could easily be determined just by engaging them in battle.

    Right now, there was an unknown number of eyes looking from the shadows at the ongoing war in Karakorum.

    Fire Crow was an infamous viin As such, his fighting capabilities were obviously powerful. Having achieved the Three Elemental Realm allowed him tounch his attacks continuously. Nheless, even though Jiu Gui was only at Two Elemental Realm, he did not show any sign of being in a disadvantageous position against Fire Crow. He had an abnormally deep understanding ofs elemental energy. His moves were extraordinary and transcended worldliness.

    Meanwhile, the mysterious-looking cloaked man was actually a transfigured earth elementalist!

    Very soon, Hua Kui could feel the pressure from the cloaked man. His opponent could transform his body at will. Furthermore, his body was made up of an unknown material that gave it immense strength as well as the ability to turn invisible and vanish into thin air.

    If not for the traps that Hua Kui had put in the potted nts, he would be in deep trouble. Even so, his current attacks were not really effective against the cloaked man. He had yet to discover the weakness of his opponent.

    Both of them were in a deadlocked position.

    Meanwhile, the battle between Prince and Ye Shuang was extremely dangerous and sent sparks and mes in all directions.

    Both of them were fighting force with force.

    Ye Shuang had been suppressed by Prince from the beginning of the battle. Now, he was slowly pulling back the battle. His sleeves werepletely torn, revealing two muscr arms in the air. It was at this point in time that the onlookers noticed a dragon tattoo on each of his arms. Suddenly, the dragon tattoos looked as if they came to life. Their eyes gave off a faint glow that pulsated rhythmically.

    The might of Ye Shuang¡¯s golden wheels became increasingly terrifying.

    Prince behaved as if he had not even noticed what was going on with Ye Shuang. The golden-glowing hurricane around his body became thicker and thicker.

    The six individuals locked inbat were extremely powerful. Those who covertly watched the ongoing battles were shocked.

    Out of the sixbatants, they only recognized Fire Crow. They knew nothing about the remaining five.

    The cloaked man was a transfigured earth elementalist. Transfigured elementalists were shunned individuals who lived in the dark. As such, there was nothing unusual about the cloaked man being unknown. As for Ye Shuang, one could tell that he was a rookie with a nce. Hence, it was also normal that not many people knew about him.

    On the other hand, the three defenders of Karakorum were terrifyingly powerful. Their moves were weird and constantly changing. Most importantly, they had richbat experience. After having been through countless battles, how was it possible that they were just some ordinary individuals?

    However, none of the onlookers knew who these three people were. Those who were well-informed could only link these three with some fragmented information.

    However, all the onlookers knew one thing for sure: Karakorum was not as weak as they thought.

    A lot of people became solemn as they thought of this, but no one had given up the hope of obtaining the ancient treasure.

    Everyone knew that no matter how powerful Karakorum was, it still could not contend against the superpowers.

    How many families had taken part in this struggle? Nobody knew the exact number, but they definitely knew that it was huge.

    No matter how powerful Karakorum was, under such a situation, their members would be constantly exhausted and weakened. Eventually, they would reveal their vulnerability.

    As long as they were patient and waited long enough, they would be able to strike out and reap the fruit of another¡¯s hard work after Karakorum¡¯s experts were eliminated. Everyone felt that they were the strongest hunter, that they would obtain the ultimate victory.

    A shadow silently approached Xiao Shuren¡¯s courtyard.

    Suddenly, a streak of sword glint swiftly appeared. Its dazzling radiance illuminated the dark night in an instant.

    A dazzling sh flew across the air as a human head flew up into the sky. After a moment, blood spurted into the air as a headless corpse fell heavily to the ground, twitching nonstop.

    Everyone was stunned by the streak of sword glint.

    They had never seen such a dazzling, sharp, and crisp sword glint before.

    A long time ago, swordsmanship had copsed and was made irrelevant by the elemental energy system.

    It was only now that the sword glint reminded everyone of the iparable glory of swordsmen.

    Was this true swordsmanship?

    No one could clearly identify that sword move. Even Xiao Shuren, who was standing beside the Karakorum Savant, was dumbstruck and overwhelmed with shock. She waspletely unable to see how the Karakorum Savant had unleashed her sword move.

    The Karakorum Savant sheathed her sword. The veil on her face prevented anyone from seeing her expression, but it was obvious that her eyes were still as tranquil and calm as before.

    It was at this point in time that everyone remembered where they were right now.

    "Karakorum..."

    This name was a new face for the swordsmanship that used tomand reverence and respect in the distant past.

    Could it be that swordsmanship was on the rise again?

    "Karakorum."

    Those hidden onlookers muttered this word repeatedly, revealing fear and excitement on their faces.

    Karakorum!

    Fire Crow was the first one to turn around and retreat. He had no confidence in withstanding that previous sword move.

    The cloaked man did not hesitate to escape either. He transformed into a cloudy sandstorm and flew across the air. After flying several hundred meters away from Karakorum, he turned back into his original form and vanished into thin air in the blink of an eye.

    After hesitating for a while, Ye Shuang clenched his teeth and turned around to escape as well.

    The concealed onlookers scurried back to where they came from like a bunch of rats.

    The Hua Kui trio looked at each other. They could see the astonishment in each other¡¯s eyes. The Karakorum Savant¡¯s amazing sword move had left an unforgettable memory in their heads. They had not expected such an intense battle to end in this fashion.

    The battle arrived abruptly and ended abruptly as well. Peace and tranquility returned to the Karakorum Sword League once again.

    At this moment, the creaking sound of a door opening could be clearly heard in the quiet Karakorum Sword League.

    Everyone turned around at the same time.

    The door to the courtyard was pushed open, and Ai Hui stood at the doorstep looking absent-minded. His body wobbled, looking as if he could be blown away by a gust of wind at anytime. With a nk look on his face, he surveyed his surroundings. Clearly, he had not returned to his senses after delving into the world of swordsmanship.

    After a while, his eyes slowly regained their focus.

    "Eh? What happened? How did things be like this? Why did you demolish the floor and walls for nothing?"

    Ai Hui looked surprised by the Karakorum Sword League that had changed beyond recognition. Everything was messed up with debris everywhere. A few lone figures stood nearby.

    "Eh? Hua Kui, why are you here? Oh? Are you waiting for me? Has the mission started? Are these two your assistants?"

    Ai Hui suddenly realized what was going on.

    Hua Kui remained silent as his face turned extremely grave.

    Jiu Gui coughed softly, walked to Hua Kui, and patted his shoulder. "Hua Kui, your little fellow is rather interesting. He will have a bright future."

    "Hua Kui, it¡¯s okay. Your rating is very high."

    The rtionship between a mentor and a rookie was extremely tight. Usually, a rookie¡¯s performance would have a direct impact on his or her mentor¡¯s rating.

    If a rookie performed really badly, his or her guide¡¯s rating would be reduced.

    After being teased by Prince and Jiu Gui, Hua Kui¡¯s face turned even uglier.

    However, he was a shrewd individual after all. He regained hisposure after a while and asked calmly, "Did you fall asleep just now?"

    "Ha, how could I fall asleep?" Ai Hui quickly shook his head. "I was too engrossed in reading a swordsmanship inheritance. Is the mission going to start soon?"

    Hua Kui could not be bothered with him and replied expressionlessly, "Not yet."

    "It seems that I came out too early." Ai Hui let out a yawn. Since his body was on the verge of copsing, he simply just sat his a** down on the ground.

    "What progress have you made?" Hua Kui asked casually.

    "Great progress. It¡¯s truly amazing. I didn¡¯t expect that swordsmanship could be used in such ways..." Ai Hui yawned incessantly. He had made huge progress and obtained a lot of revtions. Countless marvellous ideas were spinning in his head. Like a piece of knotted rope, he had a lot questions that he could not untangle. He vaguely remembered that he had a very daring and powerful idea, an idea that would shock everyone...

    His brain processed slower and slower as sleepiness continuously seeped into him.

    How could he be so tired after reading a swordsmanship inheritance for a while...

    Before the fatigued Ai Hui could understand why, he fell into a deep sleep.

    Apparently, he had not realized how many days and nights he had spent reading the swordsmanship inheritance. The continuous excitement and deep thinking had greatly exhausted his physical energy. In reality, his body was extremely weary.

    Facing the sky, he sprawled on the floor and slept.

    After a moment, his snores pervaded the tranquil night breeze, resembling the loud and rhythmic croaks of a frog in pond.

 Chapter 346: A Shameless Person

    Chapter 346: A Shameless Person

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    It was two dayster when Ai Hui finally learned about the epic battle that night.

    It was not that Ai Hui was slow on the uptake, but rather, it was because he had slept for two days and two nights straight.

    On the first night, his snores were like the croaks of a frog in a pond in the summer, refreshing and pleasant. Two straight days and nights of his snores, however, were considered irritating, so much so that one wanted to sprinkle poison all over the pond to kill the frog.

    The human race has always been heartless.

    The frog, however, had not forgotten its mission.

    Ai Hui¡¯s schedule was fully packed. His most important task was to find Senior Xiao¡¯s notes in the Grass Hall¡¯s Hall of Ancient Records. The only way to increase the duration of time he could spend in the Grass Hall was to develop his fusion elemental energy diligently. In between developing his fusion elemental energy and searching for Senior Xiao¡¯s notes in the Grass Hall, he would practise his swordsmanship.

    His life was busy and fulfilling. He simply had no time to care about other things, and he was not interested in them either.

    Meanwhile, Karakorum had be extremely lively.

    Currently, Karakorum Sword League was thrust into the limelight. Its reputation surpassed even that of Dragonrise Training Hall.

    The battle in Karakorum that night had caused a sensation in all of Silver City.

    Karakorum Savant¡¯s sword move was being described by everyone as divine and supernatural. The three mysterious experts had also disyed the unfathomable depths of the Karakorum Sword League.

    The climax of the incident happened when the identity of the headless body was exposed.

    He was the leader of the Yellowsand Bandits, Chi Zun.

    The Yellowsand Bandits had been going on a rampage for many years,mitting all kinds of heinous crimes. Even though they had taken countless lives, they were still outside the reach of thew. They were very powerful. Their leader, Chi Zun, was a genius in his youth. He had been viewed by many as a genius that could be a Master in the future. Unfortunately, he eventually suffered a devastating injury and his strength decreased greatly, causing him to lose the opportunity to be a Master. Because of this setback, his nature changed drastically and he sank further into depravity day by day.

    Even though he could not be a Master, due to his immense talents, his strength still far surpassed that of ordinary elementalists. Within a few years, he became an infamous bandit leader.

    In the past, the Yellowsand Bandits had been a bunch of petty thieves. Under Chi Zun¡¯s leadership, they gradually became a group of notorious bandits that struck fear into people¡¯s hearts.

    Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s strength was rather good, but they were still exterminated by the Yellowsand Bandits. This showed how vicious and powerful the Yellowsand Bandits were.

    Nevertheless, the notorious Chi Zun was ultimately beheaded with a single sword move. How could a sensation not stir up in Silver City?

    Just defeating or killing Chi Zun might not prove much, but beheading him with a single sword move could only mean one thing. A Master!

    Only a Master could achieve such a feat.

    An ordinary Master would not have sent everyone into a frenzy. What the mysterious Karakorum Savant practised was swordsmanship.

    A master swordsman!

    The first master swordsman in the history of the Avalon of Five Elements!

    The decline of swordsmanship began when the Avalon of Five Elements was established. As the Elemental Era began, swordsmanship became useless and irrelevant. There were only some youths that continued to adore it for its grace and past glory. Elementalists viewed those self-proimed "master swordsmen" as just a bunch of clowns.

    Its decline went so far that there was a hypothesis stating that those who liked swordsmanship were a bunch of ignorant people that liked to daydream.

    No one could verify the worth of swordsmanship.

    asionally, when one or two stunning sword moves were ced together with exquisite and fully-developed inheritances, the former would look insignificant and frail.

    The mainstream idea was that swordsmanship had died out.

    The fact that there had never been a legitimate master swordsman verified this idea. A Master needed to seek his or her own "path"; however, no Master had ever sought the "path" of swordsmanship. This showed everyone that swordsmanship could no longer exist in the world.

    Now, however, a master swordsman had appeared.

    Everyone¡¯smon understanding towards swordsmanshippletely changed in an instant.

    It was not that swordsmanship did not contain a "path", but rather, no one had found it yet!

    Silver City went into a frenzy. The Silver Mist Sea went into a frenzy. The Avalon of Five Elements went into a frenzy.

    Even the Elders Guild immediately sent someone tomend Karakorum. The Elders Guild was willing to provide Karakorum Sword League with various resources, help them increase their influence, and offered its collection of swordy manuals among other things.

    Those bad elements that had hidden in Karakorum Sword League¡¯s surroundings suddenly vanished into thin air.

    The Karakorum Sword League immediately became the holynd of those elementalists who loved swordsmanship, which in turn resulted in Little Night Town bing extremely lively. Swordsmanship had everyone¡¯s new favorite field to train in. In the extravagant andvish Silver City, numerous rich and powerful families employed a swordy teacher. They behaved as if not having a swordy teacher was something to be ashamed of.

    Incidentally, even Karakorum Sword League¡¯s swordy teachers had be hot in demand.

    Under such circumstances, people began to remember Chu Zhaoyang, who had previously destroyed five sword formations in a row

    "Teach swordsmanship at someone¡¯s residence?"

    Ai Hui, who was being disturbed, did not try to conceal his annoyance at all.

    The old prisoner had told him that the notes were on the seventh floor of the Hall of Ancient Records. Ai Hui had thought that he could easily find it with such precise information, but when he arrived at the seventh floor of the Hall of Ancient Records, he soon realised how naive he¡¯d been.

    Looking into the distance, there was no end to the rows of bookshelves. Every bookshelf was filled with tattered books and ash-colored papers. Many areas on the seventh floor were disordered and in a mess. It was unimaginably hard to find Senior Xiao¡¯s notes in this ce. The worst thing was that he did not have enough fusion elemental energy to stay long in the Hall of Ancient Records. As such, he had to train hard to develop his fusion elemental energy.

    He wished that the amount of time he had could multiply, then someone had to ask him to teach swordsmanship at someone else¡¯s residence.

    He would not agree even if Karakorum Savant was the one to ask him!

    Even though Karakorum Savant was wearing a face veil, Ai Hui could still see her helplessness.

    Karakorum Savant continued to exin, "In the past, this family took good care of me and treated me as one of their own. If not for the fact that I¡¯m busy right now, I would have gone personally to show my sincerity."

    Ai Hui remained unmoved, maintaining a look of innocence in his eyes.

    Hua Kui, who was standing behind Karakorum Savant, kept sending Ai Hui signals with his eyes. Ai Hui turned a blind eye to them. After all, he was not the one who had been cared for by that family.

    "I¡¯m very clear of the Karakorum Sword League¡¯s teachers¡¯ standards. The more I think about it, the more I feel that Brother Chu is most suitable for this job. I hope that Brother Chu can help me out..."

    "No! I¡¯m very busy; there are a lot of things I have to do!" Ai Hui rejected her without any hesitation.

    Hua Kui¡¯s face turned extremely ugly as he stared at Ai Hui fiercely. Ai Hui continued to pay him no attention.

    "Brother Chu..." Karakorum Savant wanted to continue persuading Ai Hui, but she had never been one to fawn on others and did not know what to do.

    Hua Kui quickly interjected. "Savant, give me a moment and let me have a talk with Brother Chu."

    "Alright, I shall wait outside then," Karakorum Savant replied, feeling relief.

    After Karakorum Savant left the courtyard, Hua Kui sputtered in Ai Hui¡¯s face. "Didn¡¯t you see my eye signals? Why can¡¯t you agree? She merely asked you for a bit of help and you act like this. What¡¯s the meaning of this?"

    "I¡¯m very busy, how would I have enough time to help her?" Ai Hui replied.

    "You? Busy? Every day you hang out in the Hall of Ancient Records, how¡¯s that considered busy? And you¡¯re not in the training section. What are you looking for in the seventh floor¡¯s misceneous section?"

    A cold shiver went down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. It appeared that someone was already observing him; however, he had already expected this to happen. A newbie like him who visited the Hall of Ancient Records every day would indeed easily arouse suspicion.

    "I am, of course, looking for treasures," Ai Hui replied expressionlessly.

    "What treasures?" Hua Kui¡¯s face was filled with suspicion.

    "There are so many seniors¡¯ notebooks and records; If I search carefully, I¡¯ll definitely find something good," Ai Hui replied in a deadpan manner.

    "There are so many absolute arts you can learn, why are you still searching for treasures?" Hua Kui was still filled with doubt.

    "Do I have enough Association Merit Points? Do I have enough money?" Ai Hui gave Hua Kui a look of disdain.

    Compared to the Elders Guild, the Grass Hall¡¯s artifacts and absolute arts were not only cheaper, but the way to buy them was also more flexible. One could use Association Merit Points, money, or Heaven Merit Points to purchase them.

    The exchange rate between Heaven Merit Points and Association Merit Points was one to one. From this, Ai Hui felt that the Assembly of Patriarchs was really generous for aligning with the Elders Guild regarding such matters.

    Hua Kui was speechless, especially when he heard the line, "Do I have enough money?" He began to sympathize with Ai Hui. "I never expected you to not only be a rookie, but also a poor man. This is all the more reason to agree to this job. You don¡¯t have money, right? You also don¡¯t have Association Merit Points, right? I can give them to you!"

    Ai Hui looked at Hua Kui suspiciously. "Do you have money? I¡¯ve known you for so long, yet you¡¯ve never even treated me to a bowl of noodles."

    "Fifty fusion elemental energy beans and two hundred Association Merit Points." Hua Kui was very straightforward.

    Ai Hui was momentarily stunned.

    Fusion elemental energy beans were an unique product of Grass Hall. These beans contained fusion elemental energy and could speed up the development of fusion elemental energy. Ai Hui still remembered the price of these beans. Each fusion elemental energy bean cost two high-grade essence elemental beans.

    Two hundred Association Merit Points were equivalent to two hundred Heaven Merit Points. Ai Hui knew their worth very clearly. Grass Hall¡¯s products were priced a lot cheaper than the Elders Guild¡¯s. As such, two hundred Association Merit Points were worth a lot more.

    "Pay first!" Ai Hui reached out his hand.

    "Do I look like someone who will owe you anything?" Hua Kui looked at Ai Hui with disdain.

    Upon seeing Ai Hui remain unmoved, Hua Kui passed him the fusion elemental energy beans while sulking. "In any case, I¡¯m still your guide, can you give me some face and not be so mercenary?"

    Ai Hui carefully kept the fusion elemental energy beans and replied, "I¡¯m a rookie and a poor man."

    Hua Kui restrained himself from giving this fellow a tight p. After taking a deep breath, he started speaking again, "Be careful. This time around, there are other people too. Remember, once you reach that ce, don¡¯t ask questions you¡¯re not supposed to ask and don¡¯t look at things you¡¯re not supposed to see."

    "Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t be a busybody. I still need to search for treasures in the Hall of Ancient Records." Ai Hui nodded.

    "Didn¡¯t I just give you Association Merit Points?" Hua Kui furrowed his eyebrows.

    "I¡¯m a rookie and a poor man." Ai Hui gave him an innocent look.

    Hua Kui could no longer stand this fellow and turned around to leave.

    After a while, Karakorum Savant entered the courtyard looking extremely happy. "Thank you so much, Brother Chu. Don¡¯t worry, Brother Chu, that senior of mine is a very nice person. Brother Chu, if you have any difficulties, feel free to tell me."

    "As a member of Karakorum, it¡¯s my bound duty to make some contributions to Karakorum. Since I will be there to teach swordsmanship, I can¡¯t embarrass the name of Karakorum, but my sword is not really up to standard for this job..."

    Hua Kui widened his eyes. Did you eat the Silverfold Plum or something?

    Without any hesitation, Karakorum Savant passed her sword to Ai Hui. "This is a newly-forged sword. I shall gift it to Brother Chu."

    Ai Hui quickly epted the sword and replied, "Chief, you¡¯re too generous. You can just give me a grass sword, really..."

    Hua Kui was dumbstruck. He had never seen such a shameless person before.

 Chapter 347: [Six Moons]

    Chapter 347: [Six Moons]

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Elegantly, his sword drew sparks.

    Excellent sword, excellent sword! Ai Hui praised the sword in his heart.

    Even though it was not as good as the Silverfold Plum, it was still a premium sword. The colors of snow and cherry blossoms fused together, giving the body of the sword a rarely-seen faint pinkish glisten. The sword was so light and graceful that it felt weightless, extremely suitable for a girl to use. The sheath of the sword was exquisite and gorgeous, clearly the work of a famous swordsmith. On the sheath, there were two words written in seal script, "Snow Cherry."

    Ai Hui estimated that this sword could be sold for three hundred Heaven Merit Points without much difficulty. There were very few swordsmen, but even fewer good swords. Karakorum Savant was truly the chief of Karakorum, anything she gave was of high quality.

    Should I sell it while I give swordsmanship lessons? Ai Hui pondered to himself.

    A good sword like this belonged to whoever was destined for it!

    If one did not have at least four hundred Heaven Merit Points, how could he or she be destined for it?

    Ai Hui stretched his shoulders. In order to sell the Snow Cherry for a good price, he decided to put on a good performance and promote Karakorum¡¯s swordsmanship. He did not want to let down Karakorum Savant.

    After stretching his shoulders, Ai Hui sat down and asked Hua Kui, "It sounds like it will be far away. Which residence are we going to?"

    "You will know when the timees." Hua Kui had an irritated look on his face.

    "Actually, all of you don¡¯t need to send me. Can¡¯t you just give me the address? I can go there myself." Ai Hui wasn¡¯t annoyed by Hua Kui¡¯s tone.

    The Fiery Floating Cloud beneath his feet wasn¡¯t any ordinary product. It looked very normal and ordinary from the outside, but as for the inside, one could tell that its master paid great attention to design and quality when making it.

    "Who says we are sending you off?" Hua Kui rolled his eyes. He was beginning to regret his decision to be this scumbag¡¯s guide.

    "Xiao Shuren is being kept in the trunk?" Ai Hui asked.

    "You are quite sharp." Hua Kui was slightly surprised.

    Even though Hua Kui had not said anything, Chu Zhaoyang still knew that it was Xiao Shuren. He felt rather impressed.

    "This Fiery Floating Cloud is more luxurious than the Auspicious I destroyedst time. Furthermore, you are here as well. Why would Karakorum spend so many resources? Xiao Shuren can be the only reason."

    Hua Kui nodded his head. Just as he was about to praise Chu Zhaoyang for being smart, Chu Zhaoyang changed the topic. "So now we have to talk about the escort fee. You see, I have gone to great lengths to apany you in escorting Xiao Shuren. What a big risk I¡¯m taking! I¡¯m a rookie and a poor man..."

    "Get lost!" Hua Kui could not stand Ai Hui and flew into a rage.

    "Hey, hey, hey, don¡¯t think you can scold me just because you¡¯re my guide." Ai Hui widened his eyes.

    Hua Kui decided to close his eyes and ignore this scumbag.

    Very soon, the Fiery Floating Cloudnded in an unadorned and serene courtyard.

    This ce was not located in the centre of Silver City. Instead, it was located in a remote corner of Silver City. A simple and unadorned manor like this was rarely seen in the extravagant andvish Silver City.

    Even though Ai Hui did not know which family this residence belonged to, he could sense the aura of a rich and powerful aristocratic familying from within.

    Ai Hui descended from the Fiery Floating Cloud. The green ceramic tiles beneath his feet looked extremely old. The surrounding walls were overflowing with aged vines and green moss. Everywhere was filled with traces of extreme aging.

    A long-established family.

    This was the first thought that came to Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    A butler that had been waiting for their arrival bowed slightly and greeted Ai Hui respectfully. "Are you Mister Chu? You must have had an arduous journey. Your living quarters have already been prepared. Do you want to take a rest first? Madam is currently out on business; she will be back by tonight. Madam hopes to have dinner together with Mister Chu, will you be able to make it?"

    "No problem." Ai Hui nodded. "Bring me to my living quarters first."

    "Okay." The butler nodded at a servant on one side. That servant quickly came forward and the butler instructed him, "Bring Mister Chu to bamboo garden."

    "Yes," the servant replied respectfully.

    The butler turned back and spoke to Ai Hui once again, "If Mister Chu needs anything, feel free to tell me."

    Ai Hui smacked his lips in silence. This was his first encounter with such a meticulous and strict butler. Ai Hui did not really like such aristocratic families, but fortunately, he just needed to put on a good act as a teacher. The most important thing for him to do was to sell the Snow Cherry for a good price. Oh, wrong, he had to find the one destined for Snow Cherry.

    For Xiao Shuren to be sent to this ce, this family must have a deep rtionship with Chief...

    As Ai Hui followed the servant to bamboo garden, he asked the servant curiously, "May I know the surname of this family? I havee in haste and Chief did not have enough time to brief me."

    As the servant continued to lead the way, he replied respectfully, "Our family¡¯s surname is Ye."

    Ye? Ai Hui racked his brain. He did not know of any aristocratic families in the Silver Mist Sea that had the surname Ye. From the looks of it, however, this family was definitely a first ss aristocratic family.

    After replying to Ai Hui, the servant did not speak anymore and focused on leading the way. Ai Hui also did not ask anymore questions. He began to focus on training with fusion elemental energy. With the fifty fusion elemental energy beans, his training efficiency would improve significantly. Besides this, he also hoped he could find Senior Xiao¡¯s notes sooner so that he could leave Silver City. For some reason, he had a premonition that a maelstrom was approaching Silver City.

    The ancient manor was extremely huge; Ai Hui followed the servant for more than ten minutes before arriving at the bamboo garden.

    Ai Hui silently trembled with fear. Every plot ofnd in Silver City was extremely expensive. He did not expect this residence to be so gigantic.

    Bamboo garden was a lone court. The surrounding bamboos were swaying slightly, looking especially elegant. The necessities provided wereprehensive. The things that satisfied Ai Hui the most were the customized meditation room and the training arena. Even though they were not really huge in size, they were more than enough for Ai Hui alone.

    Since Ai Hui was alone and had not brought a lot of luggage, he began to start training.

    As for where Xiao Shuren was ced or how powerful the Ye Residence was, Ai Hui did not care at all. The Ye Residence was far more quiet than he¡¯d expected it to be. This was a good ce for training. It just so happened that he had a premonition that a maelstrom was going to hit Silver City. As such, he was exceptionally happy to have a quiet and serene ce to train.

    After developing his fusion elemental energy, entering the Grass Hall, andpletely depleting his fusion elemental energy in the Hall of Ancient Records, Ai Hui headed to the training arena in the courtyard to practise his swordsmanship.

    He was not at all surprised that Karakorum Savant was a master swordsman.

    He had finished reading the inheritancepiled by Karakorum Savant, and even though there were several areas which were vague and unclear, he could sense that Karakorum Savant had found the essence of swordsmanship.

    He was slightly envious of her.

    Despite this, he did not immediately practise his swordsmanship ording to the inheritance. It was not that Ai Hui was prideful and wanted to create his own absolute art, but rather, this inheritance was far frompletion.

    Ai Hui estimated that Karakorum Savant would need at least twenty years to perfect eighty percent of this absolute art. The remaining portion would have to be constantly polished and improved by the future generations.

    This was where the strength of the absolute arts of aristocratic familiesy. Their absolute arts had been polished by many generations and continued to develop, bing nearly perfect.

    Even though Karakorum Savant¡¯s inheritance was still crude and iplete, it could serve as a verification for Ai Hui¡¯s theories and stimte him. Ai Hui¡¯s level of swordsmanship was not low. Furthermore, after a long period of trial and error, he gradually formed his own style of swordsmanship.

    For example, Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy sword pills were extremely unique. He was the only one who hade up with the idea; it hadn¡¯t been done before.

    Karakorum Savant¡¯s inheritance provided Ai Hui with great revtions. Her outlook towards swordsmanship was very systematic. There were a few times where Ai Hui eximed in admiration. Her ideas were well-exined and were justified by various teachers. Ai Hui could tell that Karakorum Savant hadpiled everyone¡¯s knowledge in this inheritance, no, this swordy encyclopedia.

    She was trying to revive swordsmanship...

    This thought shed across Ai Hui¡¯s mind, but soon, he thought of the word "Karakorum" and felt at ease. If Karakorum Savant did not want to revive swordsmanship, why would she name her school "Karakorum"?

    The crudelypiled swordy encyclopedia gave Ai Hui endless inspirations. He felt he¡¯d had a revtion.

    Indistinctly, he could sense a new sword move forming in his mind. He had sensed this faintly discernible feeling on more than one asion when he¡¯d been flipping through the swordy encyclopedia.

    This made him excited.

    He was familiar with this kind of feeling. Holding Snow Cherry in his hand, he jumped into the training arena.

    Without much deliberation, he brandished his sword ording to that feeling.

    Time passed bit by bit and he becamepletely lost in his own world. Sometimes, he would stop what he was doing, furrow his brows, and ponder without moving his body for a long time. Sometimes, he might engage in a disarrayed swordy, staggering everywhere.

    Gradually, the sun began to set. The bamboo garden was dyed orange by the afterglow of sunset.

    Suddenly, a sharp glint shed across Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. He took an explosive step forward and unsheathed his sword!

    A blurry energy ripple swept up to the tip of the pinkish Snow Cherry. The air surrounding the tip of the sword became distorted. Six palm-sized crescent moons shot out from the energy ripple.

    A piece of bamboo leaf that had been swept up by the wind was shed by the six fleeting, weird sword glints. This was only the beginning. The biting cold sword glints suddenly gathered and burned fiercely, engulfing the piece of bamboo leaf.

    The bamboo leaf-turned fine green powder vaporised into a green smog in the air. It gradually became faint and disappearedpletely.

    The six fine crescent moons swirled around Ai Hui¡¯s body. His eyes lit up like the stars in the sky.

    [Crescent Moon] was a very practical move, but it was too straightforward and was easily seen through by his opponents. Furthermore, as Ai Hui became stronger, [Crescent Moon]¡¯s destructive power became increasingly insignificant.

    Ai Hui brandished Snow Cherry lightly and the six crescent moons flew along with it. He flicked his wrist and pointed the sword downward.

    The six crescent moonsbined into one and Ai Hui felt his elemental energy freeze, following which, a brilliant and powerful sword glint suddenly appeared.

    A paper-thin sword gash appeared on the ceramic ground beneath Ai Hui¡¯s feet. If one did not look closely, he or she would not see it; however, no one knew that this gash was actually more than thirty meters deep.

    Holding the sword in his hand, Ai Hui flicked his wrist upward. A powerful sword glint shot out from the gash on the ground and separated into six crescent moons once more, then danced around Ai Hui.

    Not bad, not bad. Ai Hui was very satisfied. Regardless of strength or flexibility, this move was much better than [Crescent Moon].

    Furthermore, Ai Hui discovered that he had used a very small amount of elemental energy to execute this move.

    This move shall be called [Six Moons]. Ai Hui was already thinking about how to utilize [Six Moons]. For example, he could use it as a diversion tactic. Or maybe he couldbine the six crescent moons into one and split them up before making contact with his opponent¡¯s weapon.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui felt some movement from the ground beneath his feet.

    Eh?

    Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

    Surging water gushed out from the gash in the floor,pletely soaking Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui immediately responded to it. His sword move must have hit an underground spring.

    It was his first day here and he¡¯d already spoilt something... Things were not going well...

    Ai Hui was flustered. The water flow was very strong and it was very difficult for him to clog up the gash. If only Lou Lan was here, he could have solved this problem within a second.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui heard footsteps approaching. Not caring about anything else, he clenched his teeth and stomped his foot. Boom. A two-meter wide crevice appeared.

    It was finally clogged up.

    Having arrived at the doorstep a moment ago, the servant was startled by the loud boom. After a while, he began to speak, "Mister Chu, it¡¯s time for dinner. Madam and the guests are already waiting for you."

    When the servant saw Ai Hui¡¯s drenched appearance, he was bbergasted.

    "It¡¯s dinner time? Let¡¯s go, let¡¯s go, it just so happens that I¡¯m hungry now." Ai Hui gave him an innocent smile.

    With a nk look on his face, the servant followed Ai Hui as he walked out of the courtyard.

    Karakorum is Kunlun( À¥ÂØ) in Chinese. Kunlun Sect is a martial arts sect that is found in many Wuxia stories. This sect is famous for their swordsmanship.

 Chapter 348: To Hell With It!

    Chapter 348: To Hell With It!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui, who was busy fixing the damaged floor, forgot to use elemental energy to dry his clothes. As such, when he appeared at the dining hall in drenched clothes, the lively dining atmosphere quieted down in an instant.

    There was a dignified and beautiful woman sitting at the seat of honor. A surprised look shed across her alluring eyes but she soon regained herposure. Ai Hui¡¯s gazended upon an old woman who was standing by in attendance behind the beautiful woman.

    A cold shiver went down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. The old woman might appear inconspicuous, but Ai Hui could sense that her strength was of an unfathomable depth.

    After a momentary silence, the guests then broke into an uproar.

    "Such a boorish fellow, how dare hee for dinner in this manner?"

    "That¡¯s right, he really has no manners!"

    "How can a guy who doesn¡¯t even have basic manners teach us swordsmanship?"

    "It seems like Aunt Ye has made the wrong judgement this time around."

    ...

    Murmurs rang inside Ai Hui¡¯s ears. He noticed the guests were mainly kids that were around ten or more years old. He had to teach these brats swordsmanship?

    Eh? Ai Hui soon noticed some familiar faces among the guests.

    The gorgeous Xiao Shuren was extremely eye-catching amongst the crowd. When she saw Chu Zhaoyang, her eyes involuntarily lit up.

    Ai Hui was puzzled. Didn¡¯t Chief send her here to put her under house arrest? Why would they treat her like a guest now?

    Ai Hui also knew the girl sitting beside Xiao Shuren. She was Qin Xian¡¯s fiancee, Lian Junyu.

    When Lian Junyu saw Ai Hui, she smiled and winked at him. She did not make a fuss over Ai Hui¡¯s appearance. After all, she had personally witnessed how Ai Hui destroyed five sword formations in a row and she was very confident in Ai Hui¡¯s capabilities. It was normal for talented people to have some entricities.

    When Ai Hui saw Lian Junyu wink at him, he did not know what she meant. However, it did seem like a sign of goodwill to him. Hence, he winked back at her.

    Then, when Ai Hui saw another two familiar faces, he groaned silently. Isn¡¯t that Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter? And isn¡¯t that cold-looking fellow Qingye¡¯s aunt? Is she called Huaijun or something?

    Ai Hui felt numb. If it was anyone else, he would not have cared much. However, Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter and Huaijun stayed in Peace City and they had met his true self before. If they recognized him, he would be in deep trouble.

    The old man had reminded him many times that he should not let the Assembly of Patriarchs know his true identity. Otherwise, things would be very problematic for him.

    To hell with it!

    Why would he encounter acquaintances here?

    If he had known earlier this would happen, he would not havee to this ce to teach swordsmanship!

    At this moment, a teenager beside Madam Ye mumbled, "Mum, Xiaobao is hungry."

    Madam Ye¡¯s son?

    The teenager was around fifteen years old. He looked rather handsome but his facial expression seemed somewhat half-witted.

    "Since Xiaobao is hungry, we will have our dinner now," Madam Ye told Xiaobao gently. Then, she spoke to Ai Hui, "Mr Chu, please take your seat. I¡¯m not sure what Mr Chu likes to eat, please forgive me if the dishes are not to your standard. Whatever Mr Chu likes to eat, feel free to order the servants to make it. Don¡¯t be shy."

    Madam Ye seemed to be highly revered by these people. Whenever she spoke, these proud and arrogant young masters and mistresses would be well-behaved.

    Without even giving a bow, Ai Hui burst into loudughter, "Madam, you¡¯re too courteous. I¡¯m fine as long as there¡¯s meat."

    After finishing his sentence, he sat his ass down and started gobbling the food as though there was nobody else present.

    The surrounding young masters and mistresses felt ufortable in an instant. Since they were young, they had been taught proper dining etiquette. This applied to their surrounding friends as well. Since when had they ever met such a boorish individual?

    One by one, those who sat near Ai Hui walked away from him with a look of disdain on their faces.

    Ai Hui, whose face was gleaming with oil from the food, heaved a quiet sigh of relief. He was especially happy when he saw a disgusted look sh across the face of Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter from the corner of his eyes. Following which, he began to eat with more aggressiveness.

    He was most worried about Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter. Even though they had not had many interactions before, her shrewdness and capabilities had left a deep impression on him.

    He did not have much of an impression of Qingye¡¯s aunt, Su Huaijun.

    Who exactly was Madam Ye?

    "I¡¯m going crazy, who wants to change seats with me? The sound of this fellow eating resembles thunderps!"

    "I can¡¯t take it anymore, can¡¯t he be more civilized?"

    "Oh my god, he did not spit out the bone! He ate the entire chicken drumstick without spitting out the bone!"

    ...

    On the other side of the table, Xiaobao was looking at Ai Hui with his eyes wide open.

    Ai Hui noticed Xiaobao¡¯s gaze. Being in a rxed state, he had sensed that Xiaobao was slightly mentally challenged.

    Suddenly, Xiaobao opened his mouth and said, "You look as if you¡¯re having a great meal! Let uspete to see who can eat faster!"

    Upon seeing Xiaobao filled with expectation, Ai Hui¡¯s gaze slightly softened and he replied cheerfully, "Come,e,e, let¡¯spete!"

    Xiaobao was overjoyed. Immediately, he lowered his head and began to stuff food into his mouth.

    Ai Hui could not stand to be outdone. He had been scared of taking part in an eatingpetition.

    Everyone looked nkly at these two persons, especially Chu Zhaoyang. Everyone looked puzzledly at him. Xiaobao suffered from an illness when he was born. This caused a problem in his mental development as he grew up. Currently, his intelligence level was only equivalent to a three years old kid¡¯s.

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s intelligence level doesn¡¯t seem that high as well....

    Amidst the loud rumbles of both of them gobbling up food, Madam Ye¡¯s gentle voice could be heard constantly, "Xiaobao, eat slower, don¡¯t eat too fast..."

    The rest of the guests were like wax statues, staring nkly at the two of them gobbling up food.

    Phew. Both of them stopped eating at the same time. They could not eat anymore.

    The two of them looked at each other several times. Heroes appreciated one another.

    Everyone heaved a deep sigh of relief. For civilized and refined people like them, who ate their meals without making any noises, this scene was no doubt hugely torturous to them.

    Initially, they still could ridicule Chu Zhaoyang. However, after Xiaobao joined in, all of them shut their mouths and stared on nkly.

    No one was interested in eating dinner anymore.

    Ai Hui copsed against his chair. He was so full that he could not move, "Can I have some tea? I¡¯m a bit thirsty."

    Lian Junyu could not help but turn her face away. This was far too embarrassing. Even she could not tolerate such behaviour from Chu Zhaoyang. The rest of the guests were annoyed. They had never seen such a crude individual!

    On the contrary, Madam Ye was smiling. She then ordered one of her servants, "Go and bring some tea here."

    "Yes, Madam," the servant quickly went to pour some tea.

    Xiao Shuren looked interestingly at Chu Zhaoyang. She clearly remembered Chu Zhaoyang wasn¡¯t so boorish thest time he was boarding Auspicious. Why did he seem to havepletely changed today?

    When Chu Zhaoyang saw her, he was slightly surprised. Clearly, this was the real Chu Zhaoyang.

    She was a shrewd individual. Even though she was doubtful, she did not show it on her face at all. Furthermore, she clearly knew of the situation she was in now. Staying here seemed to be better than staying in Karakorum Sword League. Madam Ye was very friendly to her, but in reality, she was still a prisoner.

    Xiao Shuren remained calm and collected. Her gaze casually swept across the crowd, but she failed to observe anything important.

    The dinner¡¯s leftovers were cleared and the tea was served.

    Other than Ai Hui and Xiaobao gulping down the tea, the rest of the guests were motionless. They were looking at Chu Zhaoyang with contempt. Since when was the dining table a ce to drink tea?

    Today was definitely not a happy day for them.

    Madam Ye casually picked up the teacup in front of her. After taking a sip, she put it back down and her gaze swept across everyone. Then, she began to speak with a gentle voice, "Recently, swordsmanship has been very popr. Since all of you are very interested in swordsmanship, I have invited Karakorum Savant to my residence to teach everyone. Maybe some of you might have a ir for swordsmanship."

    Madam Ye changed her tone slightly and continued, "However, Karakorum Savant is busy and she doesn¡¯t have the time to teach all of you. Therefore, she rmended Mr Chu Zhaoyang toe in her ce."

    With a smug look on his face, Ai Hui raised his right hand and waved to everyone.

    p, p, p. Xiaobao was pping enthusiastically.

    Ai Hui gave Xiaobao a thumbs-up. The friendship built out of an eatingpetition was indeed extraordinary.

    Upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s reaction, Xiaobao pped with even more enthusiasm.

    Everyone¡¯s face turned ugly as if they had swallowed a fly. Lian Junyu was filled with embarrassment. Chu Zhaoyang was not really young. When he was in Karakorum Sword League, he was still alright. Why did he behave like this today...

    Madam Ye had a panoramic view of everyone¡¯s facial expressions. With a stern voice, she continued, "I know why all of you are here today. Actually, if you don¡¯te, it won¡¯t affect your chance of being selected. After all, everyone here is an outstanding genius of the younger generation in the Avalon of Five Elements. All of you will definitely be selected. I am just a woman, and have no power to interfere with such an important matter."

    Everyone was bolt upright and remained silent. Whoever believed these words was stupid.

    Madam Ye smiled and continued, "Therefore, I hope everyone can treat this as a break and rx. Swordsmanship is on the rise these days and none of you have made contact with it before. Therefore, I invited Mr Chu to teach all of you swordsmanship. Maybe some of you might have a ir for swordsmanship. It would be a pity if you neglect it. Of course, all of your respective family absolute arts are very powerful. However, you still can further improve yourself by exposing yourself to new things and epting criticism from others. Give the popr swordsmanship a try and it might bring you some revtions."

    "Madam, you¡¯re right."

    To Ai Hui¡¯s surprise, after Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter showed her support for Madam Ye, the rest of the guests followed suit.

    Ai Hui was slightly puzzled. Selection? What kind of selection would make these pampered young masters and mistressese all the way here? Even the shrewd Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter was not excluded.

    Furthermore, why did Madam Ye want these people to learn swordsmanship?

    The more Ai Hui thought about it, the more puzzled he felt.

    Alright, why does he need to think so much? He should quickly think of a way to get out of here. Otherwise, if his identity was revealed, he would be in deep trouble. Ai Hui had already decided that he would intentionally put up an inferior performanceter. These fellows had been tolerating him for so long. They must be feeling very angry deep down. As such, when he screwed upter, they would definitely heckle him. When that moment came, he could act dejected and leave this ce earlier.

    He did not really care about being embarrassed.

    Who would be the first one to humiliate himter?

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze swept to and fro across the crowd, trying to find his target.

    This guy seems shrewd, he might not want to defeat me. Oh? How about this one? His eyes look sly and squinty, he is a good choice...

    "Actions speak louder than words. Why not everyone try for themselves? I will give all of you a chance to challenge Mr Chu and see his capabilities for yourself."

    Upon hearing Madam Ye¡¯s words, everyone turned restless. A lot of people stared at Ai Hui with vicious looks on their faces.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. The chance is here.

    It was time to test his acting skills!

    "Of course, this challenge can¡¯t proceed without a reward. I have a pair of gloves here. This pair of gloves is one of the representative works by thete embroidery master, Han Yuqin. It¡¯s called Star Reaper. You must have heard of its name before. Anyway, I shall not be so long-winded, we will just treat this pair of gloves as the reward."

    An uproar broke out among the crowd. Everyone¡¯s eyes lit up, feeling extremely eager to give it a try.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted and his entire body froze.

    Mistress...

 Chapter 349: I Will Give The Sky To You

    Chapter 349: I Will Give The Sky To You

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    "It¡¯s just a trial and I don¡¯t want all of you to destroy this old manor of mine. Therefore, everyone will have to wear a Suppression Bracelet. There¡¯s no need for you to execute those ultimate moves that exhaust a lot of elemental energy. Who is up first?"

    Madam Ye¡¯s tone was rxed as her gaze swept across everyone.

    Expressionless, Ai Hui stood in the arena while holding the Snow Cherry, looking like a statue that gave off an austere aura.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s eyes lit up.

    She had a deep impression of Chu Zhaoyang. Emotionless, decisive, calm and collected, always nning his next killing move. Auspicious was destroyed by him. If not for him, she definitely would not have led such an arduous life like this.

    The current Chu Zhaoyang was exactly the same as the one from her memory.

    The change in Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s demeanour began from the moment Madam Ye announced the reward.

    Xiao Shuren thought pensively. It seemed that only practical benefits could move Chu Zhaoyang.

    Honestly speaking, she also did not expect Madam Ye to be so generous. She actually used a rare artifact like Star Reaper as a reward for such an ordinarypetition.

    Was this the might of a legitimate aristocratic family?

    Xiao Shuren felt a cold shiver go down her spine.

    A tall and sturdy teenager stepped out, "I will be the first one."

    A delightful look appeared on Madam Ye¡¯s face as she encouraged that teenager, "Gui Hu, good job!"

    Everyone began to cheer for that teenager.

    "Ah Hu,e on!"

    "Defeat him!

    "Let him have a taste of your strength!"

    ...

    The teenager grinned as a glint of battle fervor shed across his eyes.

    Among this group of young masters and mistresses, Gui Hu¡¯s family background wasn¡¯t really impressive. However, he was brave, aggressive, determined and resolute. He clearly understood how important this opportunity was and he had to make an all-out effort.

    As Gui Hu spread his arms, all his muscles bulged out of his clothes. His fingers were like iron pincers, giving off a bright metallic lustre. Vigorous elemental energy flowed through his blood vessels. Blub blub blub. His blood vessels sounded like a monster swallowing its saliva. A violent and powerful aura was emitted from his body.

    All the teenagers had their faces turned solemn as they silently trembled in fear.

    Gui Hu¡¯s body tempering had actually reached such a high level. His body had attained Silver Marrow Completion and was beginning to step into Golden Blood Completion.

    Copper Skin, Iron Muscles, Steel Bones, Silver Marrow, Golden Blood.

    When one attained Golden Blood Completion, it implied that his or her level of body tempering had been maxed out.

    A look of approval appeared on Madam Ye¡¯s face as well. The painstaking work that was needed to achieve such a high level of body tempering would make one flinch.

    Such determination was hard toe by.

    "Big Chu,e on!" Xiaobao suddenly yelled.

    An awkward silence swept across the arena. No one expected Xiaobao to cheer for Chu Zhaoyang.

    From the arena, Ai Hui waved to Xiaobao. He casually brandished the Snow Cherry in his right hand, looking as if he was stretching his joints.

    Ai Hui remained expressionless. No one could tell what he was thinking.

    "This fellow is indeed motivated by only wealth," the old woman whispered to Madam Ye with a smile on her face, "If Madam never took out the Star Reaper as a reward, this fellow would be thinking of ways to leave this ce."

    "Being avaricious is not a weakness. As long as one is wise and just, it¡¯s okay even if he or she is avaricious," Madam Yeughed involuntarily.

    "Madam is right," the old woman nodded her head, "Now we don¡¯t need to be worried that he won¡¯t reveal his true skills. It¡¯s a pity Karakorum Savant is not free, otherwise it would be much better to let her teach these kids instead."

    "Chu Zhaoyang is no different from her," Madam Ye continued, "Let him put up a good show for everyone."

    "Yes," the old woman replied.

    At this moment, Gui Hu bent his knees slightly and jumped straight for the arena. He flew twenty metres through the air andnded steadily in the arena. Just this move alone sent the crowd into an uproar. Everyone could clearly see that Gui Hu¡¯s leap did not use any elemental energy at all. The leap depended solely on his physical strength. This showed how powerful his physical body was.

    Viciousness was written all over Gui Hu¡¯s face as his copper bell-like eyes stared at Ai Hui. Just as he revealed a sinister smile and was about to speak, Ai Hui suddenly asked, "Are you ready?"

    Gui Hu¡¯s rhythm was disrupted and he froze. At this moment, Ai Hui struck out.

    A streak of crimson sword light gleamed suddenly before Gui Hu.

    Apparently, Gui Hu had underestimated Ai Hui¡¯s degree of slyness. He could only cross his forearms and protect his face.

    Unexpectedly, the sword gleam suddenly curved and pierced towards Gui Hu¡¯s chest.

    Gui Hu¡¯s reaction was extremely fast. With one hand protecting his throat, he spread open the palm of his other hand and aimed for the sword gleam with lightning speed.

    His palm was brimming with elemental energy, making it imprable.

    He caught it!

    Gui Hu was overjoyed. The strength of his palm was terrifyingly powerful. There was once he broke an enemy¡¯s weapon with his bare hands. The moment he caught his enemy¡¯s weapon, he would gain control over the tempo of the battle.

    However, right now, he felt as if he had caught a mud fish that was slipping out of his hand.

    A sharp and intense gush of chilliness suddenly sted his body. Gui Hu¡¯s heart tightened as if it was being frozen by the st of chilliness.

    The sword gleam was heading straight for his heart.

    Gui Hu was shocked and enraged. He opened up his palm and tried to smack the body of the sword.

    It was as if Ai Hui had expected Gui Hu¡¯s attack. The crimson sword suddenly sprung up.

    Bang!

    A crisp explosion resounded through the air.

    Together with his sword, Ai Hui plunged into the ground. His Snow Cherry was stuck in the ground, looking extremely pathetic.

    "He¡¯s not really that good!"

    "That¡¯s right, he dares to be our teacher with that kind of standard?"

    A disapproving look appeared on many people¡¯s faces.

    Gui Hu¡¯s body was sent flying into the air by the recoil. He heaved a sigh of relief. The chilliness from Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s sword created a misperception in him that he was going to get pierced. Fear still lingered in him.

    However, that fellow must not have enjoyed his attack as well.

    Gui Hu was feeling slightly pleased with himself. He lowered his head and looked at the ground. When he saw Chu Zhaoyang pull his sword from the ground and stretch his shoulder, he felt even more pleased with himself.

    On the ground, Ai Hui was stretching his shoulder while looking at Gui Hu in the sky,

    This boy¡¯s strength is rather huge!

    His shoulder was sore and numb. This fellow¡¯s strength was terrifying. Ai Hui felt Fatty might be the only person to beat this guy in terms of strength.

    Looking in the direction that Gui Hu was falling, Ai Hui exerted force through the balls of his feet and dashed forward. On the way, he passed the sword to his left hand.

    When Gui Hu saw Ai Hui dashing to the spot where he was going tond, he did not panic, and just bent his legs and sucked in his stomach.

    A streak of sword gleam shot up from the ground towards him.

    Sure enough. Gui Hu sneered. The elemental energy in his entire body began to surge. Suddenly, his bent legs straightened abruptly and he shot down with his feet pointing downward.

    The anticipated collision did not ur. He felt as if he hadnded on an stic web. He went deeper and deeper, and then...

    The surrounding scenery became a fleeting blur. He was being sprung up into the air once more!

    This time around, he flew even higher up than before, at least eighty metres above the ground. From his perspective, Chu Zhaoyang had be a tiny figure.

    Gui Hu was at a loss. Around him, there was nothing but air. A mysterious panic began to extend throughout his mind. He had no azure wings!

    Without azure wings, hecked the ability to fly.

    Actually, even if he had azure wings, they would not be of much use. Flying had always been his shoring as he ced all his attention on body tempering. He felt that his body alone could crush and destroy everything.

    However, right now, he could not find anything to hold onto or step on in the empty sky.

    Without something to hold onto, he was like a massive weight. No matter how massive or sturdy he was, he was still a weight that could be smashed to pieces if hended on the ground.

    Gui Hu wasn¡¯t stupid. He immediately knew what Chu Zhaoyang was trying to do. His facial expression changed drastically but he still could not think of any solution.

    On the ground, Chu Zhaoyang was stretching his shoulder once more. Clearly, the odd sword move he executed just now was taxing to his body. This gave Gui Hu a glimpse of hope. The higher he sprung up, the stronger the collision force would be on the way down. How many more times could Chu Zhaoyang catch him?

    Ai Hui stretched his left arm and passed the sword to his right hand.

    When he raised his head and looked at the sky, he saw Gui Hu had turned from panicky to calm and collected. When Gui Hu got into the same previous position and prepared to dive down, a grin shed across Ai Hui¡¯s face.

    Alright, I will give you the sky.

    Without any hesitation, he appeared directly below Gui Hu.

    Just like before, a simr sword gleam appeared. Gui Hu channelled all his elemental energy as he bombarded the sword gleam.

    And just like before, he felt as if he hadnded on a solid but stic. Once again, the sprung him up into the sky. This time around, he flew up even higher.

    Gui Hu continued to bombard Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui continued to spring Gui Hu up into the sky.

    After a few rounds, Gui Hu, who was being sprung up into the sky, still wanted to continue. Suddenly, Chu Zhaoyang yelled from below, "Hey, I am not catching you this time around."

    Can¡¯t hold on anymore? You¡¯re dead. Gui Hu sneered in his heart.

    His body continued to ascend through the air. When he looked back at the ground, Chu Zhaoyang had be a small ck dot.

    Ai Hui stepped far away from the spot that Gui Hu was going tond on.

    Eh? Why was he so far away from the ground?

    More than two hundred metres above the ground...

    Gui Hu suddenly realized what was going on and his face turned deathly pale. More than two hundred metres above the ground!

    Even if his body tempering had attained the level of Silver Marrow Completion and his body wasparable to that of a dire beast, he would still be smashed to smithereens when falling from two hundred metres above the ground.

    The more frightening thing was that the scenery on the ground was expanding rapidly in his vision as he fell towards the ground...

    He had nevere so close to death before.

    "Ahhhhhhh....."

    A blood-curdling scream resounded through the air.

    A figure flew across the air out of nowhere and caught the falling Gui Hu. To Ai Hui¡¯s surprise, it was the figure that had directed him to his living quarters.

    Not bad.

    Ai Hui cast a nce at the servant. In his eyes, the Ye Residence had be increasingly inscrutable. A random servant already possessed such arge amount of strength. Was this the might of a true aristocratic family?

    The onlookers were dumbstruck. A lot of people had yet to know what was going on,

    However, when they saw the gaze of Ai Hui, their faces turned solemn. Everyone who faced Gui Hu before knew that it was impossible to defeat him so easily.

    When the servantnded on the ground, one could see the deathly pale face of Gui Hu. He had yet to recover from the fear of encountering death.

    p, p, p!

    Apuse could be heard. It was Madam Ye. With her face brimming with admiration, she stood up and pped loudly, "Marvellous! Outstanding! Not only does Mr Chu have amazing swordsmanship, your strategy is exceptionally unique as well! Ingenious!"

    Xiaobao was at a loss. However, when he saw his mother start pping, he pped with enthusiasm as well.

    Xiao Shuren had seen Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s fighting methods before. However, when she saw them once more this time around, she was still filled with astonishment.

    Following which, Madam Ye turned her head around and encouraged the pale Gui Hu, "Ah Hu, don¡¯t be too discouraged. Losing to Mr Chu today is a good thing for you. Isn¡¯t losing to him better than losing to your enemies in a real battlefield? You¡¯re so young and yet you have developed your body tempering to such a refined level, you will definitely have a limitless future."

    "Thank you Madam for the pointers!" Gui Hu returned to his senses and thanked Madam Ye.

    "Drink some tea, have a rest and take a look at other people¡¯s performances. Who is up next?

    "Me!"

    A cold and calm voice rang across the air. A pretty and petite figure appeared on the arena. It was Su Huaijun!

    Ai Hui had a slight headache.

 Chapter 350: What Tier?

    Chapter 350: What Tier?

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Su Huaijun held a jade bamboo stick in her hand. The verdant bamboo stick seemed to be made of jasper. The few pieces of verdant and glistening leaves on it swayed lightly, looking as if they had just fallen off a bamboo tree.

    Sanmu Su Family.

    Ai Hui did not know much about the Sanmu Su Family. All he knew was that this family was a well-known family in Jadeite Forest in the past. Eventually, they left Jadeite Forest and stayed in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    From the restraining fear Sha Wuyuan had for Su Huaijun previously, he could tell that Sanmu Su Family was rather powerful.

    There were too many aristocratic families in the Avalon of Five Elements. Unless he personally knew members from a particr aristocratic family, like how he knew Duanmu Huanghun and Shi Xueman, he would definitely not know the social status of that family.

    After spending three years with Su Qingye, Ai Hui knew his character very well. To Ai Hui, a person¡¯s character mattered the most. As for a person¡¯s family background, he did not really care.

    Ai Hui had heard from Su Qingye that his aunt was very powerful.

    He certainly did not expect he would face her one day.

    Standing opposite him, Su Huaijun had a solemn look on her face. After watching Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s previous performance, she did not dare to underestimate him.

    "Mr Chu, your guidance will be appreciated," Su Huaijun said with a deep voice.

    Ai Hui brandished the Snow Cherry in his hand as his brain went to work. Su Huaijun and Fu family¡¯s oldest daughter had seen the real Ai Hui in action before. To prevent them from finding out his true identity, he could not use the same sword moves that he¡¯d used in the past.

    He was somewhat d that he had just read Chief¡¯s sword encyclopedia and learnt a lot from it.

    Ai Hui was slightly excited. He had not officially sorted out the insights he gained and most of them were still scattered and fragmentary. With such an excellent sparring partner now, it was an extremely rare chance for him to do it now!

    Which move should he use?

    "Give me a moment," Ai Hui said subconsciously.

    Su Huaijun was stunned. This was the first time she¡¯d encountered such a situation. Did her opponent just ask her to wait in the middle of apetition?

    All the onlookers went in an uproar.

    "Ha, he dares to ask for a moment?"

    "Don¡¯t tell me he wants to use the toilet! Hahahaha, that¡¯s a lousy excuse!"

    "If you¡¯re afraid, just admit defeat! Stop wasting everybody¡¯s time!"

    "Maybe he has some crafty plots!"

    ...

    In the arena, Su Huaijun felt slightly embarrassed. Wasn¡¯t it embarrassing to challenge someone like this? Since young, she had been through a lot ofpetitions and she had never been so embarrassed like this before.

    Ai Hui, who had been in deep thought, suddenly had his eyes light up. He had thought of a good move to use. Then, he raised his head and told Su Huaijun, "I¡¯m ready."

    Ready...

    Su Huaijun nodded her head with a nk look on her face, "Mr Chu, your guidance will be appreciated."

    "Here Ie," Ai Hui boasted shamelessly. However, he did not move forward and stood at his original spot. Following which, he flicked the Snow Cherry in his hand.

    The air around the pinkish tip of Snow Cherry suddenly became distorted. The sword tip looked as if it was emitting energy ripples. Suddenly, six palm-sized crescent moons shot out from the energy ripples.

    [Six Moons]!

    Ai Hui¡¯s newly developed move.

    Su Huaijun¡¯s eyes shrunk as all her distracting thoughts disappeared.

    Themotion from the onlookers hadpletely disappeared as well. Everyone widened their eyes and looked at the six dancing sword gleams. Even though the sword gleams were only palm-sized, their razor-sharp aura was able to engulf the entire arena. They were fast and nimble, resembling six flying bats. They flew so fast through the air that one could only see their afterimages.

    What kind of swordsmanship was this?

    Before the onlookers could resolve their doubts, Su Huaijun had already sensed the danger that was approaching and she began to move.

    A glint shed across Su Huaijun¡¯s eyes and she pointed her jade bamboo stick towards Ai Hui.

    A burst of green light erupted from the jade bamboo stick and exploded in the air. The burst of green light transformed into a green-colored glowing that suddenly appeared on top of Ai Hui.

    The faint green glow from the was in perpetual motion, dancing and flowing. The area it covered was extremely huge.

    All the onlookers bolted upright. They did not expect Su Huaijun to start off with an ultimate move. [Inescapable Net] was one of Sanmu Su Family¡¯s ultimate moves. The threads that made up the green were as thin and fine as hairs, making the look as if it would break any moment. In reality, they were imprable by swords or spears. No matter how hard one tried to escape from it, he would still be a trapped fly.

    Chu Zhaoyang raised his head and looked at the glowing that was floating down slowly. He looked as if he was dumbfounded at the sight of the glowing, remaining motionless.

    The slow-moving speed of the green glowing was just an illusion.

    Those who had sharp eyes had already noticed that a few strands of green glow from the were already embedded in the ground.

    Chu Zhaoyang was finished.

    This thought shed across everyone¡¯s minds. Once [Inescapable Net] embedded its roots in the ground, no one could break from it.

    The glowing started to expand and be thicker. In the blink of an eye, the glowing looked as if it was made up of thick and solid vines. Surprisingly, pieces of verdant bamboo leaves began to grow on the glowing.

    Chu Zhaoyang stared nkly at the sky above his head.

    Disdain and disappointment appeared on the faces of the onlookers one by one. Thispetition had already ended. Chu Zhaoyang had admitted defeat.

    Every bamboo leaf was like a single razor de. When the bamboo leaves started to fall, a great danger descended upon Chu Zhaoyang. If this was a real fight, the trapped Chu Zhaoyang would be sliced to smithereens.

    The countless bamboo leaves gave rise to countless killing intents.

    A disappointed look appeared on Su Huaijun¡¯s face as well. Previously, after she saw how Chu Zhaoyang defeated Gui Hu, she still thought that he was rather powerful. That was why she decided to challenge him. However, she did not expect him to stay motionless and fail to put up any resistance. Apetition like this was far too boring.

    Suddenly, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s murmurs rang across her ears. She was stunned.

    "Which tier should I start from?"

    "Forget it, I will start from the first tier. Save time and brainpower."

    Tier? What tier? Su Huaijun¡¯s mind was filled with doubt. She widened her eyes and looked at the trapped Chi Zhaoyang. Could it be that... he had some countermoves?

    Such a pity, it¡¯s toote for any countermoves!

    She felt pity for Chu Zhaoyang in silence. Once the [Inescapable Net] embedded its roots in the ground, anyone who was trapped inside the had practically zero chance of breaking out of it.

    Chu Zhaoyang continued to mumble to himself. He did not look at Su Huaijun and brandished his sword by himself.

    "Thirty-six plum blossoms are easier to count but I don¡¯t have thirty-six now. I only have six now, maybe I can make a simplified version."

    The six sword gleams swirling around Chu Zhaoyang suddenly began to spin faster. Swoosh swoosh swoosh. Deafening sonic booms resounded through the air. The six sword gleams intertwined together in the air. Woosh. The bamboo leaves that were falling towards Chu Zhaoyang were grinded to smithereens by the six sword gleams.

    Su Huaijun¡¯s eyes lit up. She could sense an unpredictable killing intenting from the intertwining sword gleams.

    Interesting!

    The onlookers broke into discussion as well.

    "What kind of swordsmanship is that?"

    "I¡¯m not sure."

    "It¡¯s toote."

    "That¡¯s true!"

    ...

    Indeed, the six sword gleams swirling around Chu Zhaoyang were gradually suppressed by the falling bamboo leaves.

    At this moment, Su Huaijun heard Chu Zhaoyang murmuring again.

    "It¡¯s not powerful enough. Seems like I got to move it up to the second tier."

    Second tier?

    The doubt in Su Huaijun became stronger. This time around, she was sure that she hadn¡¯t wrongly heard his words. What exactly is second tier?

    The six sword gleams suddenly transformed. Zoom. Intertwining wind and mes were swirling around Chu Zhaoyang now, appearing brilliant and powerful. Every sword gleam was apanied by intertwining wind and mes. They were moving extremely fast and giving off scorching heat.

    Numerous bamboo leaves burst into mes with a loud rumble.

    The [Inescapable Net] was being stimted. This time around, not only bamboo leaves grew out of it, but there were bamboo branches growing out of it as well.

    Deafening sonic booms rang across the air. The bamboo branches were like arrows, piercing through the protective screen of wind and mes in an instant.

    "Eh? It still can be transformed? The third tier!"

    Su Huaijun felt that she was going to go crazy soon. Third tier... what exactly is third tier?

    None of the onlookers were talking now. Even though they could hear Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s murmurs, they could see the sessive changes of his sword moves. They noticed the current situation was far from what they had expected it to be.

    Chu Zhaoyang seemed like...he had the power of resistance.

    But it might just be his final struggle.

    The onlookers quickly came to this conclusion. After all, this was the [Inescapable Net]. Even if Gui Hu was the one that was trapped in it, he would not be able to break out of it.

    When Chu Zhaoyangpletely depleted his elemental energy, he would be a ve to the [Inescapable Net] like a physically exhausted wild animal.

    However, Ai Hui was actually immersing himself in the pleasure of simting sword formations.

    The sword formations that he had destroyed previously were extremely exquisite. The feelings of simting sword formations and destroying sword formations werepletely different. A sword formation could be destroyed just by identifying its loopholes and weaknesses. However, to simte a sword formation, one needed to have a deep understanding towards swordsmanship and sword formation.

    "Okay, there¡¯s something wrong with this area. Alright, I have to increase its power."

    "I get it now, there¡¯s something else in this area."

    ...

    Ai Hui, who was lost in his own world, continued to mumble to himself. The number of crescent moons he had now could not bepared to the number of grass swords used in the sword formation. As such, it was not an easy task to simte the sword formation. If not for those few detailed descriptions and exnations on sword formations in Karakorum Savant¡¯s swordy encyclopedia, Ai Hui would not have had such a deep understanding of sword formations.

    Because of the quantity issue, there were a lot of limitations in using just six crescent moons to simte a sword formation. However, the six crescent moons were sword gleams and they were naturally more powerful than grass swords. New insights made Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up.

    The powerful and ever-changing [Inescapable] forced Ai Hui to speed up his thinking process. He was racking his brain on how to increase the power of his sword formation.

    A dead silence swept across the onlookers. Everyone was staring in shock at the arena. They no longer had the thought that Chu Zhaoyang would face an imminent defeat.

    During the previous sword formation, Chu Zhaoyang had disyed how swordsmanship could be used in a battlefield.

    Everyone felt as if they were in a battlefield. They could see corpses and blood everywhere. Thousands of men and horses were fighting and colliding against each other. A feeling of devastation engulfed them.

    Even though they were young masters and mistresses from prestigious families, most of them had seen blood before. However, they had never seen such devastating and desperate swordsmanship before.

    Chu Zhaoyang, who was trapped in the [Inescapable Net], was like a valiant general that was fighting with his life, bold and powerful.

    Chu Zhaoyang suddenly stopped what he was doing.

    "It¡¯s still not working... That means I have to move it up to the fourth tier!"

    Su Huaijun had already be numb at this point of time.

    Fourth tier... what was he doing?

    The fourth tier was the [Big Dipper Sword Formation]. This was also the sword formation that Ai Hui had the most understanding of. However, he only had six crescent moons. [Big Dipper] needed a total of seven entities to work.

    Suddenly, Ai hui hit upon an inspiration. He could count himself as one entity and there would be seven entities in total.

    The [Big Dipper Sword Formation] was being channelled noiselessly. Ai Hui stood in the centre of the formation with his eyes flickering.

    The [Big Dipper Sword Formation] gave him apletely different feeling. For the previous three sword formations, he could clearly sense their tardiness and see their loopholes.

    He could infuse some of the marvellous ideas from these three formations into his own swordy but he could notpletely simte them.

    However, Ai Hui could feel that [Big Dipper Sword Formation] was not a sword formation, but rather, a sword move!

    That¡¯s right!

    The six sword gleams flew rapidly through the air. Ai Hui, who was standing in the middle of the formation, emitted a glow from his eyes.

    No matter how the sword gleams danced and flew, the aura of [Big Dipper] continued to exist.

    Very soon, Ai Hui could see the marvel of this move.

    It was as if the Big Dipper, in the depths of space, had shot out a streak of starlight. A faint lingering aura of death spiralled around the streak of starlight, cold and awe-inspiring.

    The trembling Su Huaijun was overwhelmed with horror. She immediately made a hasty retreat!

    Her [Inescapable Net] copsed with a loud bang. An intense sword gleam engulfed the entire arena like a sh flood.

    Everything that stood thirty metres within Ai Hui waspletely obliterated to a fine powder.

    Not a single voice could be heard.

 Chapter 351: Sincerity

    Chapter 351: Sincerity

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    "I concede defeat," Su Huaijun announced straightforwardly, breaking the silence.

    Ai Hui recovered his senses and smacked his lips, as if wanting to continue. He had been engrossed in the battle and many ideas were still running through his mind, so it was simply too dissatisfying to end it now.

    Without giving Su Huaijun another look, he scanned across the floor and asked urgently, "Who else? Hurry!"

    Those who made eye contact with Chu Zhaoyang only felt their hearts tremble as they instinctively tilted their heads down. Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s gaze was like a sharp, electric sword that pierced deep into their hearts, giving them the illusion that a hole had been drilled within them.

    A word surfaced in everyone¡¯s minds: Unstoppable!

    Fully inspired, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were about to explode. He was stuck at a crucial point and bing anxious.

    "What? Is there nobody with any guts at all? Are all of you scared?" Ai Hui rambled impatiently.

    What disappointed him greatly was the silence that followed. He did not realize that the more arrogant he sounded, the more the crowd felt that he had strong confidence and unfathomable powers. Sanmu Su family¡¯s [Inescapable Net] was not the strongest skill and also was not wless. There was a decisive opening if one was able to utilize the interval just before the deployed..

    Shattering the inescapable into pieces after it had deployed and trapped its target was unheard of.

    The spectators believed that they did not have such capabilities.

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s strange sword techniques really opened their eyes and even excited them.

    Could this be the real abilities of a swordsman?

    Su Huaijun realized that she had been disregarded and felt displeased, but at the same time, she embraced her defeat. She was just about to ask what exactly Chu Zhaoyang meant by the number of tiers when she heard his shady, malicious voice.

    "Since you guys are noting to me, I¡¯lle to you guys."

    Su Huaijun¡¯s face froze.

    Chu Zhaoyang soared with his long sword. Like a tiger pouncing on a flock of sheep, he broke his way into the crowd with an evil grin.

    She was dumbstruck and bbergasted.

    "Ow, stop hitting, Teacher! Stop!"

    "You¡¯re unmatched. Respect!"

    ...

    Xiao Shuren was in shock too. She had seen countless of matches, but none were as preposterous as the spectacle before her eyes.

    Just as the old woman beside Madam Ye was about to make a move, Madam Ye smiled and said, "You need not stop him."

    Ai Hui became angrier the more he fought. There had been contenders who retaliated initially, but none resisted now. They either slipped away or merely howled in grief upon getting attacked. The girls looked at him with teary eyes, as if offering themselves to him willingly.

    Was there any fellow who was not a troublemaker?

    With his body built like an iron tower, Gui Hu wrapped his head with his hands and crouched down on the ground like a squirrel.

    Looking at Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s death god-like appearance and sensing his murderous spirit through his piercing gaze, the people were scared witless. If Teacher forgot to hold back and chopped them into pieces, would they not be the ultimate losers?

    Ai Hui firmly held onto the sword hilt, his stomach full of ire.

    Just a little more...

    He felt the inspiration in his mind disappear by more than half. Inspiration did not emerge that often, and as he calmed down, it meant that his active thoughts regained their calm.

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Teacher Chu¡¯s expression softened, and the terrifying aura surrounding his body gradually disappeared as well.

    They collectively heaved a sigh of relief as the respect and admiration in their gazes grew stronger. Since the beginning of the Avalon of Five Elements, those with abilities were respected and had the greatest clout. They used to doubt Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s skills, but now that they had seen for themselves, there was no longer any suspicion.

    Calm down... calm down...

    Ai Hui exhaled a deep breath as he restrained his urge to spar with the olddy beside Madam Ye. That woman¡¯s abilities were simply unfathomable.

    His life was more important!

    Ai Hui reverted to his usual self, sheathed his long sword, and walked toward Madam Ye.

    The olddy beside Madam Ye appeared vignt. Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s earlier performance had already made him a threatening target in her eyes.

    Amid the olddy¡¯s cautious gaze, Ai Hui tookrge strides and stopped in front of the tea table that was beside her. He held the teapot to his mouth and gulped the tea straight down without a word.

    No one mocked his boorishness and poor etiquette.

    The noble sons and daughters sincerely stood on either side.

    p, p, p. Madam Ye apuded once again. "Mister Chu¡¯s performance was really amazing and an eye-opener. It is your good fortune to be able to learn from Teacher Chu. I hope you guys will put in the effort and not waste such a good opportunity."

    The youths called out in unison, "Yes, Madam!"

    Madam Ye nodded her head in satisfaction. "Teacher Chu, I¡¯ll leave them to you. Please give the housekeeper the names of those who try to goof off or resort to tricks."

    The students trembled in fear.

    They clearly knew that Madam¡¯s words were directed at them.

    Ai Hui bowed slightly. "All right, Madam."

    The students were startled. Teacher¡¯s temper was not too good either. If he did give their names to the housekeeper, they wouldpletely lose their qualifications.

    Madam Ye smiled sweet-temperedly. "Thank you for your trouble, Teacher Chu."

    She then turned to face Xiao Shuren, stopped smiling, and said, "It¡¯s peaceful, quiet, and also the safest ce here. Feel free to move about within thepound, but please avoid leaving to prevent unnecessary misunderstandings."

    Xiao Shuren responded respectfully, "I will never forget your kindness for providing me shelter. Please do not worry, Madam. I will not take a step beyond this property."

    Madam Ye looked pleased. "That¡¯s good. Do not worry, you will naturally regain your freedom when the storm passes. Just be patient."

    Xiao Shuren bowed. "I understand. Thank you Madam."

    Madam Ye bade her goodbye and left with Xiaobao.

    Ai Hui looked at Xiao Shuren.

    Xiao Shurenbed her fringe and remarked tartly, "Long time no see, Mister Chu."

    Ai Hui looked at her and could not help but feel sorrowful. "I did not expect to meet you here, Madam."

    The ancient treasure became such a hot topic that Ai Hui had even heard about the Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s pitiful state. How could one not sigh over the fact that Xiao Shuren, who recently had a retinue following her around, was now reduced to this solitary, prisoner-like state?

    Xiao Shuren could tell that Chu Zhaoyang sympathized with her and felt regretful. While she felt as though her heart was being pricked, she kept a straight face and bowed deeply. "Please ept my bow as an apology for causing you trouble and offending you."

    Ai Hui did not dodge, epting her apology instead. "I ept it, so let¡¯s forget about past grievances. The road in front is going to be difficult. Please take good care of yourself, Madam."

    Xiao Shuren met Ai Hui¡¯s gaze and could feel the sincerity within him. Her nose ached as tears almost flowed out.

    He did not make things difficult for her or mock her downfall, but chose to leave the past behind and proved that he had an open heart. She felt extremely regretful for the way she had set him up.

    If the Great Wei Enterprise was still around, Ai Hui would definitely exact revenge and would not show the least bit of mercy, be it on the lone Madam Xiao or the Madam Xiao who had a retinue.

    To take revenge on Xiao Shuren now was totally meaningless.

    As they say, a man of character knew what to do and what not to do!

    He diverted his gaze toward the people standing respectfully before him and sternly said, "Madam ces high hopes on you guys, so I hope you all will do your best to be outstanding swordsmen and not disappoint her."

    Everyone answered together, "Yes!"

    The servants standing around nodded their heads in agreement as their gazes toward Ai Hui became much friendlier. Speaking on Madam¡¯s behalf,Ai Hui really seemed to know how to behave.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s gaze flickered as she thought about certain matters.

    With a solemn expression on his face, Au Hui continued, "So how can you perfect your swordy? As the saying goes: to do well, one has to sharpen his tools first. To be an outstanding swordsman, you will have to choose a suitable and good sword! With the decline in swordsmanship, however, a good sword can be difficult to find. As your teacher, I can¡¯t bear to see you guys empty-handed, so I can only resign myself to part with this treasure and hope for a brighter future for you."

    The servants were stupefied.

    The noble sons and daughters too.

    "This sword, Snow Cherry, is two feet and seven inches long, weighs seven kilograms, and was made by a famous craftsman! It has a crimson sword body, and like cherry blossoms falling onto the snow, it is beyond beautiful. Using it to practice will produce twice the results with half the effort. Plus, it belonged to the first ever master swordsman in the history of the Avalon, the Savant from Karakorum.. The Karakorum Savant and I discussed sword theories and enjoyed our time so much that she gifted me this sword."

    "As a teacher, it is my job to educate and clear your doubts! What is this sword whenpared to your future? Of course, treasures should not be given out easily. This godly weapon willnd in the hands of the most sincere. Its base price is 300 Heaven Merit Points or the equivalent in essence elemental beans. Bartering is allowed. Absolute arts, treasures, and Heaven grade weapons are also epted!"

    Dead silence filled the courtyard.

    The noble sons and daughters stood frozen.

    Calmly, a bone-chilling voice rang in the audience¡¯s ears.

    "Sincerity is the most important trait when learning sword skills from me. Only when there¡¯s sincerity within the heart can there be sincerity within the sword! What skills are you going to learn without sincerity? What future are you going to have? Go home instead!"

    Future... go home...

    Everyone quivered. These words jolted them to their senses.

    Although they did not understand why Madam Ye wanted them to master the sword, they must learn it since that was what she demanded! They would lose their qualifications if they left this ce and their future would bepletely bleak.

    Those with more agile minds were even guessing if this was Teacher Chu or Madam Ye¡¯s idea. Or perhaps this was Madam¡¯s test for them?

    Yes! It must be Madam¡¯s test!

    Gui Hu said in a low voice, "Teacher, I¡¯m the most sincere! 300 Heaven Merit Points! Please hand the godly weapon to me!"

    Which one of these people had not grown up in an environment full of trickery and corruption?

    Who would be that naive?

    "Thinking about getting this authentic heirloom weapon for 300 points? What do you treat Teacher as? Teacher, I¡¯m more sincere. 400 Heaven Merit Points!"

    "Is this what you guys call sincerity? I can¡¯t look at this any longer. Teacher, I¡¯m willing to take out a Heaven grade armor!"

    ...

    Xiao Shuren stared nkly at the strange sight before her.

 Chapter 352: Madam Yeâ€™s Background

    Chapter 352: Madam Ye¡¯s Background

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    "What does she mean? What is she trying to say? Despicable!"

    A sharp, hysterical voice traveled from the Golden Eagle Study Room as the servants stood outside quietly in fear. From what they remembered, they had never seen Madam lose control.

    Inside the study room, Madam Ling¡¯s face was beet red, her long hair spread out like angry water nts, and her chest heaved.

    She red at her own husband with a vicious gaze, as if looking at a mortal enemy.

    Ling Sheng quivered and tilted his head subconsciously to avoid eye contact.

    Madam Ling gradually stopped panting as her anger faded. She regained her usualposed and virtuous self. She held the teacup up gently, ced it by her mouth, and pursed her lips, revealing their plumpness and fresh red color.

    "Finally, Ye Lin no longer wants to be alone." Ling Shengughed grimly.

    Ling Sheng hesitated for a moment before asking, "But why? Is Widow Ye relying on Dai Gang? Or the Blood of God? Impossible. Could it be that she¡¯s interested in the ancient treasure? Xiao Shuren entering the Ye residence means that she will be attacked from all sides. Widow Ye isn¡¯t such a brainless person."

    "You¡¯re not wrong." Madam Ling nodded. She knew very well that her long time rival was not an easy target and said coldly, "If she was interested in the ancient treasure, she would¡¯veunched a sneak attack instead of creating such a hugemotion. Where did she get her confidence from?"

    Ling Sheng cried out in rm, "Could it be the Great Elder?"

    Madam Ling¡¯s faced changed, and as they made eye contact, both could see the shock in each other¡¯s eyes.

    They were already convinced that this matter was incited and instructed by the Great Elder or there was no way Ye Lin would be so mboyant about it.

    If this was true, what message was the Great Elder trying to convey?

    Both were smart people who quickly grasped the significance within, and their expressions worsened.

    .....

    Grass Hall, seventh floor.

    Ai Hui diligently thumbed through note after note. While he was still unable to find the notebook the old man was talking about, he had gained a lot.

    In fear of missing something, he chose to flip through the books one by one.

    All kinds of strange notes and bizarre personal letters expanded his horizons, and he often read them with keen interest and pleasure.

    For example, he saw many kinds of travel notes written by seniors who had stayed many years in the Wilderness to seek their fortunes. Some spent more than 10 years going to the deepest part of the Wilderness and even found antique relics. These relics were very simr inposition to those from the Avalon of Five Elements, so these seniors made a bold guess that the Avalon had its origins in this ce.

    There were all sorts of simr spections, which made Ai Hui feel that the seniors from the Assembly of Patriarchs were not as reliable in the past.

    Of course, these were just interesting topics to talk about.

    Ai Hui also saw some notes regarding fusion elemental energy. These notes recorded some initial thoughts on it as well as all sorts of conjectures. He could tell that fusion elemental energy definitely was not studied by one person, but by many researchers. Only through a significantly long period of analyzing had fusion elemental energy be what it was known as today.

    The more Ai Hui thought about it, the more apprehensive he became toward the Assembly of Patriarchs. They were not as simple as he had thought.

    The words on the notes he was holding started bing blurry. Ai Hui knew that his fusion elemental energy was nearly exhausted. Although he wanted to continue reading, he had no choice but to exit the Grass Hall.

    The scene before him vanished in a puff of smoke, while the green and the tender Patriarch grass sprouted up, full of vitality.

    Still not enough fusion elemental energy, Ai Hui thought as he shook his head and walked out of the room.

    The sun shone brightly outside. Ai Hui squinted his eyes and saw a group of people practicing hard in the training grounds.

    A few fellows with sharp eyes immediately adopted a more focused look during training upon seeing Teacher Chu¡¯s appearance.

    They had never seen a teacher like him.

    Teacher was strong, irritable, and wild, especially when he charged toward them during the match. If he was merely this, he would just be a weedy man. Such weedy people were all cannon fodder, fated to die by the hands of others.

    Yet, Teacher Chu absolutely was not a weedy person. He waspletely despicable and treacherous, seeking and prioritizing nothing but personal profit.

    Among the students, even the stingiest fellow had already spent over a hundred heaven merit points on Teacher Chu. Teacher Chu charged fees for all kinds of made up things like "sincerity." Just hearing this word made everyone ache.

    Ever since the copse of the Avalon¡¯s currency, it had quickly been reced by essence elemental beans. Other than that, the deal allowing Heaven Merit Points to be used instantly turned it into the highest-end currency, causing a rapid cirction.

    As the highest-end currency, its value was extremely high.

    Most of the students had never spent so many Heaven Merit Points, so the ache they felt was beyond piercing.

    What angered them more was the fact that Teacher Chu was iparablyzy. He often arranged a big bunch of training content and made them self-practice while he, himself, would go back to his room to sleep.

    He even encouraged them to snitch on anyone that goofed off. Such a contemptible and crafty trick was as disgusting as the fake smile on his face.

    Ai Hui was strolling leisurely along the sides of the training arena. He felt that the life he was leading now was really good.

    With only two days of effort, he had already received 1,400 Heaven Merit Points, an amount that would cause many to be envious. Plus, he could be idle and did not need to watch them all day long. Such good days were simply toofortable.

    These rich and hardworking students were the best!

    As he scanned across the training ground, his gaze finallynded on Xiaobao.

    Xiaobao surprised him the most. He had wisdom like that of a child, but was gifted and matchless in swordsmanship. He was naturally very sensitive to swords, and the level of his swordy was already rather solid.

    Only after asking Xiaobao did Ai Hui find out that he had been taught by ady. Despite Ai Hui¡¯s continuous questioning, Xiaobao was not able to share her name. Ai Hui guessed she was the Karakorum Sword League¡¯s chief. It seemed that Chief was rted to Madam Ye, so she probably visited frequently. It would not be a surprise, then, that she imparted skills to Xiaobao.

    Ai Hui spent the most effort guiding Xiaobao.

    Xiaobao had the heart of a young child and was kind and naive, traits that Ai Hui liked the most.

    Ai Hui nced across the field and his gazended on the "Fu" family¡¯s oldest daughter. No, "Fu" was a false surname. Her real surname was Fu(note: written differently in chinese), Fu Sisi.

    Fu Sisi was theplete opposite of Xiaobao when it came to talent. Her talent in swordy was iparablycking. While she was exceptionally diligent, she improved the slowest among all students.

    Previously, Ai Hui was worried that Fu Sisi would be able to recognize him, but now, he realized that he had been worrying pointlessly, so heid his worried heart to rest.

    He had heard some rumors about Fu Sisi these past two days.

    The Fu family¡¯s position was way above the aristocratic families that other students came from. No one couldpare. She was always the most eye-catching person around and always attracted the most discussion.

    Sanmu Su Family, where Su Huaijun was from, was either declining daily or simply not as good it used to be. To her family, the opportunity to participate in the Master¡¯s Glory program was extremely precious.

    Madam Ye¡¯s capabilities shocked Ai Hui. Of course, he knew about the Master¡¯s Glory program. It was Elders Guild¡¯s most spirit-raising project.

    He had not expected Madam Ye to control an admission slot in Master¡¯s Glory. More than one it seemed.

    With the Fu family¡¯s standing, receiving an entry slot was like hammering a nail into an iron panel, but their entry was for Fu Yonghao, Ai Hui¡¯s former student, not Fu Sisi. A marriage had been arranged for Fu Sisi, and it was rumored that she was unwilling, so the Master¡¯s Glory became her only chance to escape.

    Even those superior to the Fu family would not be able to overlook the existence of a master. In other words, a master¡¯s worth far exceeded the value that Fu Sisi¡¯s arranged marriage would bring.

    Such a pitiful girl.

    Ai Hui looked at her sympathetically before turning his head.

    Just then, there was a disturbance among the diligently training noble sons and daughters.

    "Great Elder!"

    "It¡¯s the Great Elder!"

    ...

    Suppressed cries could be heard since they were too excited. They had not expected to see the Great Elder in the Ye residence. It gave them full confidence in this training session.

    Ai Hui was stunned. He shifted his gaze and saw Madam Ye standing beside an old man with snow-white hair and a stern face. He was surrounded and well-protected by guards.

    This was the Great Elder? The Great Elder of the Avalon of Five Elements?

    Ai Hui had spected a lot about Madam Ye¡¯s background, but being rted to the Great Elder was simply beyond his imagination!

    Who had the most authority in the Avalon? The Great Elder!

    The Great Elder was no mere Elder. He became a Master at the age of 28 and was regarded as one of the candidates who had the highest chance of bing a grandmaster. He then joined the Elders Guild and was the only Elder who never assumed amanding role. When he turned 40, he started wielding power and became the head of the Elders Guild. Ever since then, his position had never been threatened.

    Since all of his heart was ced on government affairs, he had yet to enter a higher realm. His senior, on the other hand, fulfilled his long-cherished wish by bing a Grandmaster during the Great Elder¡¯s second year of leading the guild.

    This senior was one of the strongest grandmasters around, An Muda.

    The Great Elder had the most power in all of the Avalon of Five Elements, period.

    "Grandfather!"

    Upon seeing the old man from afar, Xiaobao shouted cheerfully before dashing over.

    Ai Hui jolted. He finally understood why these youngsters woulde over here to join in the training.

    It was not the Great Elder¡¯s first time in the Ye residence, so he was very familiar with this ce.

    Feeling the bright and beautiful sunlight, he was in a good mood. He strolled along while saying in a warm voice, "It¡¯s been hard on you to ask you to step in personally."

    "Don¡¯t say that." Madam Ye responded respectfully yet amiably, "It¡¯s no trouble. Having everyone over here in harmony is a good thing too."

    The old man nodded. "It¡¯d be great if they¡¯re as far-sighted as you. Heh heh, I¡¯m not dead yet, but they already can¡¯t wait to collude with Dai Gang. If it¡¯d been five years back..."

    There was a murderous tone in his voice.

    Madam Ye quickly soothed the situation. "Why bother with people like them?"

    "Yeah, there¡¯s no way." Great Elder sighed. "I¡¯m old, the Avalon can no longer rise, and this is it. Don¡¯t count on them. They have no minds of their own. We will still have to rely on the young generation so guide them and don¡¯t hold back."

    His gaze fell on the youngsters.

    "Grandfather!"

    When he saw Xiaobao, who was covered in sweat, running over, his stern gaze immediately softened and turned friendly. "Slow down, slow down. What are you running so fast for?"

 Chapter 353: The Ye Residenceâ€™s Origin

    Chapter 353: The Ye Residence¡¯s Origin

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    There was a nameless valley 90 miles south of Silver City. Since it was far from the main road, human¡¯s footprints were rare and vegetation was very lush. The whole valley was rather hidden.

    Xiao Laosan¡¯s triangr eyescked their usual vitality. Not only him, but the people around him, who were swaying unsteadily from side to side, all felt dispirited and listless.

    Since Chi Zun¡¯s death, the Yellow Sand Bandits had really be became a sheet of loose sand.

    They ran away from Little Night Town for several nights ago and sought shelter in this obscure valley, but there was a huge divergence in opinions as to what they were going to do next.

    Some hoped to take revenge, some hoped to rally the gang, while others thought it was better to run as far away as possible.

    No one could convince anyone else.

    The Yellow Sand Bandits rose from being a bunch of nobodies to a group of impressive, dauntless bandits all thanks to Chi Zun.

    Everyone wholeheartedly epted that Boss Chi was the most prestigious person in the Yellow Sand Bandits. His death meant that the pir of the crew was no longer around. As no one else was up to his standard when it came to leading the team, the whole situation became chaotic, with some fiery-tempered fellows almost resorting to their fists.

    Everyone was at a loss and feared for their future.

    "Loose sand indeed."

    A charming,nguid voice sounded from the mouth of the valley without warning.

    "Who?" Xiao Laosan lurched as he asked in a stern voice.

    The rest stood up in unison and looked maliciously toward the mouth of the valley.

    A graceful, lovely silhouette stood at the valley entrance. Thisdy had an ordinary appearance, but an extremely sensual figure, and her fluttering red dress attracted a lot of fanciful imagination.

    Thedy smiled sweetly. "Your new boss."

    A few strong men instantly burst intoughter. Harboring evil designs, they closed in on her withscivious looks.

    "Little girl, apany me well and you can be the boss."

    "Boss, better be good in bed eh."

    ...

    Xiao Laosan¡¯s pupils shrank. While inwardly cursing their idiocy, he took steps backward without a word instead of advancing.

    Coming over alone and facing a bunch of tigers and wolves, thisdy wasposed and not the least bit afraid. She was certainly not someone to provoke.

    Thedy advanced with a sinister smile.

    A short momentter, everyone was staggering and howling in grief. Only the woman in red stood steadily among them.

    "From now on, I¡¯m your new boss, Fairy Chi."

    .....

    Ai Hui led his lifefortably in the Ye residence. The Great Elder¡¯s appearance boosted the youngsters¡¯ enthusiasm. They practiced crazily even without Ai Hui¡¯s supervision.

    Ai Hui liked it when others sought him for guidance. All teachers liked students who were eager to learn.

    Lecturing fees, instructing fees... There was no reason why dispelling doubts should not be charged.

    His Heaven Merit Points were rising slowly but steadily, and before he knew it, he already had 1,600. Madam Ye was unaware of these fees. If not for the fact that he had agreed to go to the Wilderness with all of them, he felt that his current life was pretty decent. He had never earned so many Heaven Merit Points before.

    Ai Hui shucked a few bamboos to make a big parasol and ced it at the training ground. He then took out a wooden couch from his room and added a short coffee table next to it. When he felt bored, he would lie on the couch, snack on a frozen dessert, and watch the sweaty youngsters train under the hot sun. The vitality of youth and the zing heatpletely moved him.

    Xiao Shuren appeared daily, watching everyone practice as she stood under the parasol like a servant waiting for orders. Initially, Ai Hui was not used to it, but soon, seeing that she kept quiet all the time, he started disregarding her presence.

    A tall and sturdy figure walked toward him, and he was surprised to see that it was actually Hua Kui.

    Xiao Shuren left upon seeing a stranger.

    Hua Kui nced over at Xiao Shuren as she exited before turning around and seeing Ai Hui¡¯s carefree appearance. His expression turned strange as hemented, "You¡¯re enjoying life, aren¡¯t you!"

    Ai Hui saw this as jealousy and offered his dessert. "Same old, same old. What are you here for?"

    "I brought herbs." Hua Kui took the dessert and gulped everything down in one mouthful. Shortly, he spoke up, "I see that you¡¯ve not offended Madam Ye."

    Ai Hui could feel his concern andughed deliberately. "You make it sound as though Madam Ye bites."

    Hua Kui let out a coldugh as he scanned his surroundings. Seeing that the coast was clear, he said in a low voice, "You¡¯ll know in future how big of a deal Madam Ye is. She is reclusive and does not like to show herself in public, but once she speaks up, no one dares disobey. The Grass Hall too. Madam Ye is a VIP of the Grass Hall. Her requests are conveyed to us by the Great Elder, himself."

    Ai Hui had a look of understanding. "The Great Elder¡¯s daughter-inw."

    Hua Kui shook his head. "Not just that. Her background is not to be trifled with. She probably treats you favorably because of your identity as a swordsman."

    Ai Hui asked curiously, "Perhaps she¡¯s a swordswoman herself?"

    "Remember that deep groove along the entrance of the Induction Ground?" A look of respect shed across his face. "Thest swordsman, Ye Huitang, was her ancestor."

    Ai Hui stammered, "Ultimate... Ultimate defense line?"

    There was a 1 meter wide and 200 meters long groove in front of the Induction Ground¡¯s metal gates. It had been the ultimate defense line during the darkest era for humans in the Wilderness.

    During the crucial moments before the start of the Avalon of Five Elements, enemies came like the tides, and the situation was precarious.

    Under desperate circumstances, thest reputable swordsman dealt a most resplendent blow to the enemy leader. This effectively boosted the morale of the defenders, allowing the team to persevere and ultimately open up the Avalon.

    When Ai Hui had been admitted back then, he had especially visited that "ultimate defense line" to admire and pay respects.

    "Yes, that." Hua Kui said in a deep voice, "The Ye n was well-respected. Madam Ye¡¯s husband died at the front line during her pregnancy. Madam Ye was in serious sorrow, causing her to prematurely give birth to an inherently weaker baby. Not only did she not remarry, she ced all her efforts into raising Xiaobao, never giving up on treating him. Her requests for the Grass Hall have basically involved all sorts of herbs. It¡¯s been over 10 years already. For this, the Grass Hall has always been well taken care of by Madam Ye, or else it would not be what it is today."

    Ai Hui could not help but feel deep veneration for her. Be it the legendary swordsman Ye Huitang or Madam Ye, both were worthy of respect.

    He also came to realize the reason why Madam Ye was particrly interested in swordsmanship. She came from a family of swordsmen.

    "I¡¯m making a trip to the Wilderness, so be careful in the meanwhile." Hua Kui reminded, "Something seems to be amiss in Silver City. Do not get involved."

    "Don¡¯t worry, I don¡¯t like meddling in others¡¯ businesses." Ai Hui reassured before asking, "What¡¯s the situation in the Wilderness now?"

    "Countless casualties." Hua Kui¡¯s expression turned grave and sour. "It was reported that there had already been many waves of dire beast attacks and more than half of the hunting team perished, so the team was more or less destroyed. If not for the fact that a few Masters rushed to the scene in time to stabilize the situation, the team could¡¯ve been utterly crushed.

    Hui Kui did not forget to warn Ai Hui again. "Do not enter the Wilderness now."

    Both chatted for a bit before Hua Kui bid goodbye and left.

    Ai Hui felt overwhelmed. Just a simple casual chat gave him so much information to digest. The Ye residence¡¯s history startled him beyond belief. The devastation in the Wilderness was expected, but to hear it for himself was still a rather sorrowful feeling.

    Many ordinary citizens were so agitated by this upsurge that they ignited balls of zing mes to burn down the trees, grass, and also themselves.

    There was nothing new under the sun.

    It was not the first time such a thing had happened in the Avalon¡¯s history, and it would not be thest either.

    Although he told himself repeatedly that he had nothing to do with this, he somehow felt suffocated and anxious.

    He rose from the couch and walked into the practice ground withrge strides, surveying the situation with evil intentions.

    "Everyone has been training very hard recently, so in order to encourage you guys, I¡¯ve decided to guide each of you through actualbat with me, free of charge. Such opportunities knock but once. Miss it at your own loss."

    Ten minutester, everyone was lying on the ground.

    Ai Hui felt entirely free from worry, his expression jolly as he prepared to leave.

    "Teacher."

    Fu Sisi¡¯s voice sounded from behind him.

    Ai Hui stopped in his tracks and looked toward her suspiciously.

    Fu Sisi clenched her teeth and rose from the ground. "I would like to choose a suitably advantageous sword, but do not know how to do this. Could you take some time to select it for me?"

    Ai Hui felt it was somewhat unfortunate that there was only one Snow Cherry, or else it would be good if he could sell one to Fu Sisi.

    As a well-known family in Silver City, the Fu family had wealth and power.

    Ai Hui shook his head and said aloofly, "I¡¯m very busy."

    "200 Heaven Merit Points!" Fu Sisi blurted out.

    Without a word, Ai Hui supported Fu Sisi and asked with a smile spanning his whole face, "Where to?"

    This was the type of person that he adored. People who solved problems simply by throwing money!

    Walking out of the Ye residence, Fu Sisi sank into silence.

    Ai Hui did not rush either since he had already been paid the Heaven Merit Points, so he only had to follow through. He enjoyed the scenery along the streets with some interest. He had been to Silver City a few times, but had never taken a leisurely stroll around.

    There were many shops along the streets, which opened up Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. Each shop was decorated to look splendorous and majestic, with the shop assistants dressed neatly and without even a thread loose or hair out of ce. The pedestrians he saw on the streets were mostly dressed luxuriously too.

    Indeed, this was the biggest city in Silver Mist City.

    He followed Fu Sisi into a weapon shop. Due to the bedazzling jewels that covered the weapons on disy, AI Hui never would have thought that this exceptionally exquisite shop actually sold weapons.

    Every weapon was exhibited in a fine crystal disy case. The perfectly adjusted lighting brought out and entuated the brilliance and vibrant details of each weapon.

    Seeing all of this, Ai Hui could not help but drool. He was someone who had seen enough good things, but these weapons turned him feverish nevertheless.

    After seeing the price, Ai Hui felt as though someone had stuffed a big lump of ice cubes in his head, cooling him down.

    Even the cheapest weapon cost 2,000 Heaven Merit Points.

    At that very moment, he finally understood reality. While the fragrance of wine and meat drifted out from homes of the wealthy, the poor froze to death on the streets.

    Thinking about how he felt satisfied after earning 1,600 Heaven Merit Points, Ai Hui felt indescribably ashamed. He was going to raise his prices!

    "How¡¯s this one?" Fu Sisi asked Ai Hui, pointing at a ck longsword right in the center of the hall.

    Ai Hui followed her gesture, and as he was about to speak, he felt something unusual.

 Chapter 354: Life Is A Performance

    Chapter 354: Life Is A Performance

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    Footsteps could be heard as a group of people entered the shop.

    Ai Hui was about to turn around when Fu Sisi continued asking, "You haven¡¯t told me how this sword is?"

    Since he had taken her money, he should do what he was supposed to. Instead of turning around, he inspected the ck sword andmented a secondter without hesitation, "Decent sword."

    Could he be wrong?

    2,500 Heaven Merit Points. How could he be wrong!

    Ai Hui had initially thought that the Silverfold Plum in his hands was an extremely good sword, but in front of this ck sword, it was not evenparable. It would already be pretty good if the Silverfold Plum could be sold for 1,500 Heaven Merit Points, but in front of this valuable sword priced at 2,500 points, it still paled inparison by quite a bit.

    "You have such a good eye!" the manager quickly praised. "This was made by a weapon master, He Tuze, and is a Heaven-grade weapon. Master He was not pleased with it, so he melted in a huge volume of blood crystals and jade fruits before adding 36 expensive herbs to fashion this Blood Ink Sword. After 30 days of forging and a huge expenditure, this Blood Ink Sword was finallypleted. This sword is neither metal nor wood. It does not repel against any element types. It is naturally sharp and indestructible. The main reason for its high cost is that it has an extremely rare property. It is psychic!"

    "Psychic?" Ai Hui asked in shock.

    He often saw many passages in different sword manuals talking about famous swords being psychic. Swords with spirit weremon knowledge in the Cultivation Era, and it was said that long hours of practice would cause a sword to develop a special existence, known as sword spirit. Some manuals written by sects even said that there were ways to nourish this spirit. There were also some sword manuals that could make the sword spirit appear as a corporeal existence. For example, the sword, Transcendence, created by God King Zuo Mo¡¯s senior Luo Li, was like this.

    When the Elemental Era came around and swordsmanship declined, the sayings about swords being psychic were forgotten.

    Thus, when someone suddenly mentioned that this sword was psychic, how could Ai Hui not be shocked?

    "Yes. On the day this sword waspleted, its aura cried out for three days straight. Ordinary people could not even get close to it, and in order not to hurt customers, the shop had to spend a huge sum to make this crystal case seal to lock in the sword aura. Master He said that the treasure sword would pick its owner and would be owned by the fated one. We took it out in part to test this."

    The shopkeeper expertly knew how to promote his goods. After his exnation, even Ai Hui, who was very low in funds, was stirred.

    "Why not you try it? I¡¯ll give it to you if the treasure sword chooses you," Fu Sisi said.

    Ai Hui looked at her doubtfully. Something was wrong! 2,000 Heaven Merit Points was definitely a significant sum, so why would she spend them on him for no reason?

    "Who is he, Sisi?"

    An angry voice boomed from behind, and Ai Hui immediately understood what was going on.

    The task of helping to pick out a sword was an excuse. In reality, he was being used as a shield.

    What a cliche plot. Did aristocratic families all enjoy doing such things?

    Ai Hui turned around casually.

    An angry, smart-looking man red at him. Beside him were a few gloomy looking fellows who were also staring at him.

    "Who is he, Sisi?"

    ording to the recent news, Ai Hui could easily guess who the speaker was.

    Ling Xiao, the noble son of the Ling residence. It was said that both families hoped for them to get together. If that was it, things would have been simpler, but Fu Sisi expressed intense objection and other families did not wish to see this union either.

    Fu Sisi was the most outstanding among the younger generation of the Fu family. The other sons had few aplishments.

    The Ling residence was already powerful to begin with. If the Fu family was to enter the picture, they would pose too big of a threat.

    While it had not been Ai Hui¡¯s intention to wind up in such a whirlpool, it seemed that there was no way out. As his mind spun quickly, AI Hui instantly saw through the crux of the matter.

    Madam Ye represented the Great Elder, Fu Sisi was using such a method to oppose the marriage, and the Fu family was hesitating over what move to make with regard to Fu Sisi¡¯s resistance. Otherwise, how could a girl like Fu Sisi disobey her family¡¯s will?

    The Fu family¡¯s hesitation was not unreasonable. It was a good thing to be able to connect with the Ling residence by marriage, but the Great Elder was not one to be provoked.

    Ai Hui, himself, was a teacher in the Ye residence. In their eyes, he was naturally a person of the Ye residence. To engage in conflict with Ling Xiao and incite contradictions was not really a wise strategy, Ai Hui thought. How could the Ling residence sit and watch as such a big gift like the Fu family slipped away? The family was most likely closing in step by step, wanting to actualize the marriage before anything else.

    The youngdy¡®s way of fighting for herself was indeed smarter than her brothers¡¯.

    "Who is he, Sisi?" Ai Hui asked, imitating Ling Xiao¡¯s tone with a surprised look on his face.

    Behind his back, his right hand pointed toward the Blood Ink Sword at the side.

    Since he was already rolled up in this, the real problem was how he could reap the maximum benefit. He was well prepared. If it appeared that the youngdy would not get the upper hand, he would retreat immediately. He would not do anything to save face nor would he get all angry over a beautifuldy.

    Fu Sisi had not expected that Chu Zhaoyang would be so cooperative and became slightly distracted by this. When, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s finger, which pointed at the sword, her eye twitched.

    2,500 Heaven Merit Points!

    Was this fellow insane?

    She could invite a Master to help her for 2,500 Heaven Merit Points!

    Did this fellow really think he was worth 2,500 Heaven Merit Points?

    "This man here is Young Master Ling Xiao," Fu Sisi exined before turning around to Ling Xiao. "He¡¯s Chu Zhaoyang."

    She ced one hand behind her back and open up her fingers, making a five sign.

    Ai Hui sneered inwardly. 500 Heaven Merit Points for bringing me such big trouble? What do you treat me as!

    "I see. Nice to meet you, Young Master Ling!"

    Ling Xiao¡¯s face was full of gloom. mes could be seen pulsing in his eyes. He was extremely angry.

    Young Master... he...

    "Young Master" instantly disyed the distance between Fu Sisi and himself.

    This adulterous pair!

    Ling Xiao was raging.

    His mother demanded that he use whatever means to grab hold of Fu Sisi.

    While it was true that Fu Sisi was beautiful, had he not seen all kinds of women? In his eyes, Fu Sisi was his prey, and the chase was merely an interesting hunt. His so called adoration for Fu Sisi was only a tool in this hunt.

    Yet now, his prey hadnded in someone else¡¯s hands.

    He kept quiet as his murderous spirit rose in his chest.

    Ai Hui ced all his attention on bargaining with Fu Sisi.

    Eventually, both agreed to a price of 1,000 Heaven Merit Points.

    Ai Hu was pleased. These few days, he had already swindled whatever points he could from the young aristocrats. He got about 200 to 300 Heaven Merit Points from some and 600 to 700 Heaven Merit Points from others.

    With the original 200 Heaven Merit Points he had already been paid, he earned a total of 1,200 Heaven Merit Points.

    Previously, Ai Hui had racked his brains over the sale of the Snow Cherry before finally milking 1,400 Heaven Merit Points out of it. With an addition of 300 Heaven Merit Points to these 1,200 Heaven Merit Points, he could already afford another Silverfold Plum.

    Suddenly, as if the dark clouds had dispersed and the sun shone brightly, Ling Xiao beamed. "I seem to have heard of your name from somewhere. I wonder where you are currently working at?"

    Ai Hui was somewhat surprised. Why had he not made a move? Ling Xiao was more shrewd than Ai Hui had imagined, but this made sense. He could not be a simple person since he was able to force Fu Sisi into such a pitiful state.

    Life was a performance. Ever since Ai Hui took on the identity of Chu Zhaoyang, his stature rose greatly day by day.

    Full of shame, Ai Hui said, "I have aplished nothing. Fu Sisi has been the one helping me, so how can I just sit and watch when she¡¯s been so loyal to me? I came over to Silver City in order to spend the nights with her. I¡¯ve been in luck so far and am currently a teacher."

    Fu Sisi stared nkly at Chu Zhaoyang as goosebumps started surfacing.

    Upon hearing the word "teacher," Ling Xiao instantly let his guard down and sneered. "So he¡¯s living off a woman."

    "Your words are too..." Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s face changed as he red at Ling Xiao. Five secondster, he said in disappointment, "You got me there. I¡¯m so useless, yet Sisi chooses to stay by my side. The heavens, sun, and moon could testify how I feel about her. There¡¯s mutual support through thick and thin. Sisi, can you feel it?"

    Finishing his sentence, Chu Zhaoyang looked passionately at Fu Sisi.

    He had been blindsided by Fu Sisi. While he had not lost out in terms of heaven merit points, this did not mean that he enjoyed being blindsided. How could he let Fu Sisi off so easily?

    Fu Sisi wanted to kill herself. Her hair was standing on end and she felt terrible, as if she¡¯d just swallowed a fly. She was beyond regretful. Why did she seek Chu Zhaoyang? She was so disgusted by it all and felt horrible.

    Why had Ling Xiao, who had always been the aggressive sort, not taken action as soon as he could? Why was he spewing so much nonsense?

    Her face was red from anger, but she forced herself to suppress it. She lowered her head and asked, "Why are you talking about this now?"

    Seeing that Fu Sisi¡¯s face blushed red and that she bowed her head down so bashfully, Ling Xiao¡¯s guards¡¯ expressions changed. They knew their master¡¯s temper too well.

    Ling Xiao was about to explode!

    The fact that his prey hadnded in someone else¡¯s hands was already maddening, yet this adulterous pair dared to disy their affection and passion for each other in public. Thinking about how his prey had been yed with by someone else countless times, but still adopted such an ice-cold attitude toward him, the fury within his chest burned through whatever self-control he had left.

    Ling Xiao¡¯s face looked twisted as heughed nastily. "Kill this coward!"

    Ling Xiao¡¯s guards pounced forward with a cry.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s face changed slightly. Just when she was ready to shout "run," Chu Zhaoyang appeared before her and started putting on an act. He shouted passionately, "Run, Sisi!"

    The guards surrounded and closed in on them.

    "Run? None of you shall run!"

    Ling Xiao was pleased with this cat and mouse game.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s face paled a little, but she forced herself to remainposed. She asked coldly, "Ling Xiao, do you dare to attack me?"

    Ling Xiao responded warmly, "Sisi, don¡¯t worry, I¡¯m not going to touch you. I¡¯m still waiting to marry you. I won¡¯t kill your little boyfriend either. I will soak him in a salt jug and make sure he witnesses our marriage."

    Fu Sisi¡¯s expression worsened, fear evident in her eyes.

    "You¡¯re utterly heartless and inhumane! Ling Xiao, let me ask you!"

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s voice was filled with fear as he shook uncontrobly, before he had a sudden change in tone.

    "Why not a sugar jug?"

    Everyone was stunned.

    Splendid and dazzling sword rays erupted swiftly.

 Chapter 355: Off Guard

    Chapter 355: Off Guard

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    Chapter 355 - Off Guard

    Ling Xiao¡¯s guards had not expected Ai Hui to initiate an attack. They were distracted by his question, and before they could even react, the sword rays suddenly came toward them like balls of splendid fireworks that exploded right beneath their eyelids.

    Caught off guard, they were bedazzled.

    rmed cries mixed in with curses as the guards hurried to disy their strongest defensive moves. A light screen appeared in front of some, while others used weapons and stood before Ling Xiao.

    No one withdrew. Behind them was their young master.

    The Ling residence¡¯s rules were strict. Severe punishments awaited those who failed to protect their young master.

    Amid the dazzling sword rays, a pair of eyes remained still, and the hands holding the Silverfold Plum were steady and urate. Following the sword momentum, Ai Hui hunched over like a stealthily-moving ck cat under the night sky, not making the slightest sound.

    Moves with flourishing and blinding brilliance were mostly illusory and empty, whereas the simple, subtle, and inconspicuous moves were mostly the real deal.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sword rays belonged to thetter group.

    Ai Hui, who rushed forward, was like a tiger invading a flock of sheep. It extended its sharp ws and bared its fangs. Not only could the Star Reaper Gloves increase his agility 10 fold, it also significantly increased his ability to mobilize elemental energy.

    His speed of attack was twice as fast as usual, and taking his realm into consideration, such an increase was a qualitative leap.

    With a tremble of the Silverfold Plum and like the meandering of lightning, [Six Moons] was unleashed!

    Six palm-sized, arched sword rays sprayed out swiftly from the tip of the sword.

    With a turn of his wrist, the sword hilt rotated.

    The Silverfold Plum rotated like a clock hand as the six arched sword rays seemed to be pulled in circles by an invisible thread.

    Ai Hui¡¯s new understanding of the [Big Dipper]!

    The guards felt a cooling sensation behind their necks as the sharp sword consciousness prated their skin, causing their bodies to turn rigid.

    There was a palm-sized sword ray sticking behind every guard¡¯s neck.

    Their faces were ashen as they stood motionless. The piercing sword consciousness made their hair stand on end. They had no doubt that with any slight movement on their part, the sword rays would slice and separate their necks from their heads.

    No one had clearly seen what just happened.

    Circumstances were reversed in the blink of an eye.

    Ling Xiao was dumbstruck and had not regained his senses.

    Fu Sisi, too, was still in a daze. Her mouth was slightly open, and she had on a look of disbelief.

    This...

    She knew that Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s abilities were decent, otherwise he would not have gotten into Madam Ye¡¯s good books. It was not surprising for him to defeat Gui Hu and Su Huaijun as well. How could he be a teacher if he could not even beat his students?

    Those without outstanding abilities would never have the right to teach in aristocratic families.

    Yet, she never would have thought that the conflict woulde to an end this quickly. The guards by Ling Xiao¡¯s side were not nobodies. Since young, Ling Xiao had been arrogant and despotic, often causing trouble. Afraid for his safety, Madam Ling assigned guards to protect him. While they were not Masters, they were extremely capable.

    Ling Xiao, who finally regained his senses, turned pale. The Chu Zhaoyang in front of him was like apletely different person.

    There was even a faint smile hanging by his lips, but there was no warmth in that smile. What gave him palpitations was the fact that Chu Zhaoyang emitted a dangerous aura.

    This was an extremely dangerous fellow.

    Composing himself, Ling Xiao spoke up, "Who exactly are you?"

    "Chu Zhaoyang," Ai Hui answered with his usual expression.

    What Ling Xiao saw, however, was sarcasm and mockery. Being rather shrewd, he calmed down, saying, "Such good skills. Unlike a teacher."

    Ai Hui removed his sword and the arched rays behind the guards¡¯ necks dissipated into the air. He said with all smiles, "I teach swordsmanship in the Ye residence."

    Ye residence!

    Ling Xiao¡¯s pupils shrank and many things started to add up. He gave Fu Sisi a look before saying, "No wonder she¡¯s always going to the Ye residence. It¡¯s because of you. But even the Ye residence won¡¯t be able to defend you for starting a fight with me."

    Ai Hui was not mad. He replied without thinking, "Perhaps I will be a master swordsman someday? Hey, you got to think about it. I must have something in me or why would Sisi follow me around so loyally?"

    Ling Xiao¡¯s facial expression turned slightly sour. What Chu Zhaoyang had just said hit him right where it counted.

    ording to his understanding of Fu Sisi, she definitely would not fall for an incapable person. If Chu Zhaoyang really was gifted, things would be different.

    A young, talented, and loyal man marrying into the Fu family would give the weakening family a new lease on hope.

    Plus, he was a teacher in the Ye residence and had Madam Ye and the Great Elder¡¯s support. While Ling Xiao had always been proud of his own family, he had nothing to boast about in front of the Great Elder.

    Simrly, even a Master would not count for anything in front of the Ling residence.

    The most important thing was to figure out if this was the Great Elder¡¯s intention!

    If so, he would have to reevaluate everything. Otherwise, he would just have to get rid of Chu Zhaoyang and the problem would easily be solved. He had to find out who the Ling residence was really facing in order to take decisive action. Dragging this matter any longer might lead to more unpredictable changes.

    "If that¡¯s the case, we have to fight fair." Ling Xiao smiled generously. "My love for Fu Sisi is genuine, so how can I give up halfway? I believe she will make the right decision."

    Finishing his words with a smile on his face, he gave them a slight bow before leading his guards away.

    About 20 meters away from the shop, Ling Xiao¡¯s smile vanished as he ordered his guards coldly, "Go find out everything about Chu Zhaoyang."

    "Yes!"

    On the way back to the Ye residence, Ai Hui counted his heaven merit points joyfully. "Goods delivered, bill settled!"

    He had a huge sum of 2,600 Heaven Merit Points on him in total. Putting things into perspective, the blueprint for an elemental energy pool cost 1,000 Heaven Merit Points, and Ai Hui could now afford that Blood Ink Sword.

    But Ai Hui could not bear to do so.

    He was going to the Wilderness soon, and there were many other things which required Heaven Merit Points.

    Relishing his riches, Ai Hui¡¯s footsteps were significantly lighter. Fu Sisi, who was walking beside him, held her head down silently as she was deep in thought.

    As the Ye residence¡¯s gates came into sight, Fu Sisi asked suddenly, "Are you interested in bing the Fu family¡¯s son-inw?"

    Ai Hui was stunned. He turned around and looked at her as if he was looking at a fool. "Do you think I¡¯m stupid?"

    Fu Sisi continued, "10,000 Heaven Merit Points."

    Ai Hui looked at her in disdain. "Who are you trying to scare? I can¡¯t even sell you for 10,000 Heaven Merit Points."

    Fu Sisi responded calmly, "Although the Fu family is not as capable as the Ling residence, it is still not an ordinary family without any foundation. If not Heaven Merit Points, there will always be treasures suitable for you. If you don¡¯t like me, you can still seek outside pleasures after marriage. All I need is a status."

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s earlier disy had shocked her. She realized that everyone had been underestimating his abilities. The Fu familycked a pir of support right now.

    And she saw huge potential in Chu Zhaoyang.

    Chu Zhaoyang had innate sword skills that exceeded her imagination. Coupled with the Fu family¡¯s financial resources, he could be a Master within a short period of time.

    Most importantly, she could use this reason to convince her family.

    "This ends now. It¡¯s been purely business between us. I have no interest in a t figure girl like you. Plus, am I so free as to provoke the Ling residence? Are you taking advantage of the fact that I¡¯m new to Silver City? I¡¯ve already helped you once for the sake of Heaven Merit Points. We will announce our breakup when we get back. I do not want to be assassinated in the middle of the night."

    He felt pleased that his words had Fu Sisi speechless. He shot a nce back out of the corner of his eyes. He¡¯d long noticed that there were people following them from afar.

    Ai Hui inhaled deeply before putting a grieved look on his face. He pointed at Fu Sisi with a trembling hand and turned his pitch up a notch, saying, "Marry into your family? I¡¯ve said it before. Do not mention such things to me. I, Chu Zhaoyang, am a capable man. How can I marry into your family? me it on my ignorance for misjudging you! From today onward, let us not cross paths. All ties shall be broken. Go on your way, while I go on mine."

    Fu Sisi fell into a daze, but reacted shortly after. She looked at him with a bitter smile.

    He noticed those following them had be restless, excited, and evidently relieved. He could tell that Ling Xiao was absolutely not going to let the matter rest. The Ling residence was practically a tyrant in this city. Offending them meant the end of peaceful nights.

    Money making was important, but he had no ns to get into trouble over it.

    He had limited time. Other than practicing, he had been searching for that notebook in the Grass Hall, so where would he find the time to y house with these young aristocrats?

    His acting had improved though!

    Ai Hui winked at Fu Sisi, d that he had gained the upper hand once again. This woman was very scheming, and he had almost been made a fool. If he had not put an end to this affair, he would most definitely be expecting a visit from an assassin tonight.

    Fu Sisi looked gloomy as she stared coldly at Ai Hui.

    Just then, a gentle voiced sounded from close by, "You guys..."

    At a cross street not far away, a person could be seen on her way back to the residence. Madam Ye looked at the both of them with suspicion.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart jumped. Not good.

    A grim smile appeared at the corner of Fu Sisi¡¯s lips. Her eyes turned red quickly and tears started spilling out generously. Crying loudly, she dashed toward Madam Ye and threw herself into her arms, bawling nonstop.

    "What happened? What happened exactly? Don¡¯t cry, tell me what¡¯s going on. I¡¯ll help you!"

    Madam Yeforted Fu Sisi gently.

    "Huuuu..."

    "Huuu... I¡¯ve known him for many years and we had something good going on. Huu..."

    "He¡¯s not made a name for himself, but not once did I abandon him. I bought sword manuals for him and trained with him. Finally he made progress, so I asked him toe over to Silver City in order to be with him. Huuu..."

    "He... he wants to end all ties with me. Wants... wants me to go my own way... Huuu..."

    A murderous glint shed across her face as she threw piercing nces at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was speechless this time. His body stiffened up like a statue.

 Chapter 356: Gift Him A Blow

    Chapter 356: Gift Him A Blow

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X/TYZ

    The atmosphere was grave and suffocating.

    There was a very stern expression on everybody¡¯s faces. The main hall was absolutely quiet and only Fu Sisi¡¯s sobs could be heard.

    Ai Hui lowered his head. All eyes were on him, and it felt as though he was being stabbed by knives.

    Madam Ye¡¯s usual smile vanished as well. She spoke with a stern face and threatening look on her face, "I did not expect you two to have this kind of rtionship. It isn¡¯t something for me to get involved in, but when one of you is calling me aunt and the other is a teacher in my residence, I can¡¯t just sit and watch as if it¡¯s none of my business. So let¡¯s talk. What are you two nning to do?"

    What?

    Ai Hui felt like dying. If he¡¯d known that this 1,200 Heaven Merit Points was going to be so troublesome, he absolutely wouldn¡¯t have epted it. But on second thought, it was a huge sum and it would be unrealistic of him to expect a smooth ride.

    With this thought, Ai Hui was set.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s feeble voice sounded in the hall.

    "I... I¡¯m not actually expecting anything. If he doesn¡¯t want to marry into the family, so be it. We could¡¯vee up with solutions together so why was he so quick to sever all ties?"

    Ai Hui instantly felt the looks thrown at him bing sharper and more murderous.

    Ai Hui was crying bitterly inside. What a scheming woman!

    Her wretchedness immediately evoked great sympathy! What would you do if this youngdy had already resorted to such trickery?

    He was in big trouble!

    His head throbbed.

    It was his first time meeting such ady.

    Money-losing Deal was the most candid and readabledy. She would spare you the trouble of guessing and just show you with her fists. One Thousand Yuan was the most unpredictabledy. She was vicious and sly. There was no need to guess her thoughts since it would be fruitless. Fu Sisi surprised him the most. She was, in reality,pletely different from how she appeared. She looked harmless and upright, but was in fact dangerous and secretive.

    Thinking about his time in Peace City when he had even thought that thisdy was generous and graceful.

    How naive and silly he had been.

    Madam Ye turned her gaze to Ai Hui and asked, "Zhaoyang, what do you say?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain was spinning rapidly. This was definitely a big hole and jumping into it would mean broken bones and a horrible death. The Ling residence, the Fu family and the Ye residence were all big shots. If he were to enter this massive maelstrom, his small frame would be torn apart in no time.

    But he must not offend the Ye residence either, since he had not obtained the notebook yet.

    Ai Hui could infer much from Hua Kui¡¯s attitude toward the Ye residence. He suspected that the Assembly of Patriarchs was highly dependent on Madam Ye¡¯s care. Otherwise, why would the Grass Hall fawn over her?

    If he offended Madam Ye, he would definitely cause trouble in the Grass Hall, making it even more difficult for him to find the notebook he had been looking for.

    It was wiser to offend her after getting ahold of those notebook.

    What should he do now?

    Just then, the housekeeper rushed in.

    "Teacher, Young Master Ling Xiao has been attacked by an assassin and is seriously injured. His guards are all dead."

    Everyone was shocked beyond belief. They looked toward Fu Sisi and Chu Zhaoyang in unison.

    Madam Ye¡¯s expression changed a few times. The couple had just parted ways with Ling Xiao and now he was severely injured by an assassin. There was something seriously amiss here.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s face turned as white as a sheet. She did not want to marry Ling Xiao out of fear that the Fu family would be swallowed up by the Ling family. Since thetter was strong while the former was weak, the Ling residence had an excuse to deal with the Fu family now that Ling Xiao was seriously hurt.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression worsened. He had just gotten into a brawl with Ling Xiao, and Ling Xiao was attacked soon after. How was he going to clear his name? Plus, the Ling residence would not even care if he was the one behind the assassination. A small shrimp like him was best used as a warning against potential perpetrators.

    Another guard spoke up urgently. "Madam, the Ling residence¡¯s people are here and wish for you to hand them over. They assert that both of them are involved in Ling Xiao¡¯s assassination attempt."

    Fu Sisi¡¯s face paled even more. She had not expected things to y out this way. The Ling residence¡¯s agitation was akin to that of a crazy beast, and the Fu family could very possibly be the first sacrifice.

    Ai Hui felt thoroughly down on his luck, but he remained calm since he was already prepared to escape. He would have to think of an alternative method of obtaining the notebook from the Hall of Ancient Records.

    The pitiful Chu Zhaoyang was going to feel to the other end of the world soon.

    Thinking about how the false identity he had fostered over the years was about to die, all he could do was sigh.

    As the saying goes, people die for money while chickens die for food. This applied to his alias as well.

    Madam Ye replied coldly, "The Ling residence is really demanding. Do they think they¡¯re the Elders Guild? Or do they see me as a widow who can be trampled on? Tell their people to get an order from the Elders Guild beforeing over."

    Ai Hui gave Madam Ye an astonished look. She was usually soft and gentle, but right now, she sounded extremely domineering. It all made sense now since he was a teacher in the Ye residence. In front of the Ling residence, the Ye residence would definitely not appear weak. Without concrete evidence, Madam Ye would protect the family with all that she had instead of surrendering.

    Ai Hui rxed immediately.

    Who would attempt an assassination at such a critical juncture?

    .....

    The streets were in a chaotic state, and the ground was still covered in bloodstains and corpses, disying the evident intensity of the battle. People observed from afar because no one dared toe close to the scene. They discussed in low voices instead. Which family had been brave enough to pull the Ling residence¡¯s beard? Some felt rueful over Silver City¡¯s plight. How long had it been since such a huge incident happened here?

    A few figures whizzed down from the sky andnded.

    The two persons turned out to be Tong Gui and Yu Jin. Seeing the Ling residence¡¯s emblem on the guards¡¯ uniform, their gazes changed. They saw the surprise in each other¡¯s eyes.

    Dealing such a huge blow to a Ling residence¡¯s descendent in Silver City... how far would they have to trace this matter back to?

    Fights between aristocratic families were irreconcble, but there was a certain mutual understanding. For example, not assassinating the sons of the families was an unwritten rule. To the aristocratic families, a momentary benefit could not be ced on par with the continuation of a family¡¯s genealogy. Families rose and fell, but the continuation of the family line never failed to bring hope.

    Any family that broke this unwritten rule would be the target of public criticism.

    Now, such a vile thing had actually happened in Silver City.

    Both could feel a storm brewing.

    Yu Jin checked the guards¡¯ corpses and said rapidly, "The perpetrator must have blended into the crowd and attacked from the side. There were also archers lying in ambush above the shops on both sides of the street. The attack was very intense, and they had no time to retaliate. The opponent¡¯s target was Ling Xiao. Look at the arrowheads."

    The densely packed holes on the ground formed a circr, but irregr shape.

    Most arrows had been blocked by the guards¡¯ bodies, but the attack was concentrated, so Ling Xiao¡¯s injuries must be pretty significant." Yu Jin rose and looked at Tong Gui. "They want him dead."

    Tong Gui muttered to himself, "Who would want his life?"

    Yu Jin gave no answer, but continued, "The perpetrator is very experienced. The arrows he used are ordinary and without any symbols."

    Just then, a subordinate came forward to give his report. "Sir, after checking with those nearby, they mentioned that there were numerous perpetrators. Uponpleting their task, they escaped through the underground canal.

    Tong Gui immediately ordered, "Form a group to check on each and every exit of the underground canal. Take suspicious characters down. Send another group to search within the canal."

    "Yes!"

    The subordinate flew off immediately.

    Yu Jin gave Tong Gui a look. "Only local families would be familiar with such a canal."

    Immediately uponpleting his sentence, a bunch of aggressive fellows, led by Ling Sheng, dashed over.

    Without even looking at the both of them, Ling Sheng walked toward the corpses with an ashen face and started examining them.

    Shortly after, he stood up and looked at them coldly. "If I recall correctly, the Sky Edge division has recently been in charge of Silver City¡¯s defense. The Sky Edge division has evidently been neglecting its duty for such a nasty thing to happen here. The division must take responsibility. You guys wait."

    Tong Gui respondedzily, "As you wish."

    Ling Sheng was furious. His eyes spat fire, but he said nothing and led his team away instead.

    Seeing Ling Sheng¡¯s disappearing figure, both also started to realize the severity of this matter.

    "They are heading toward... the Ye residence?"

    "It¡¯s been rumored that a swordsmanship instructor got involved with Fu Sisi and both had just been in conflict with Ling Xiao before he was attacked. Earlier, the Ling residence sent people to the Ye residence to get ahold of the suspects, but were rejected by Madam Ye."

    "Is Ling Sheng nning to barge in?" Tong Gui shook his head. "Things are about to get real messy."

    .....

    The Ye residence.

    Ai Hui thought hard about who the perpetrator could be, but to no avail. All right, no point in thinking if it¡¯s not working out. Silver City¡¯s waters ran too deep. For a small shrimp swimming in the big ocean, there were other things to worry about. Letting his worried heart calm down, Ai Hui loosened his mind.

    Objectively, the Fu family and him were all victims. There was no evidence to prove their rtions, and Madam Ye absolutely would not back down. If the Ye residence was unable to protect Fu Sisi and himself, the Great Elder¡¯s authority and power would be obliterated, something uneptable in the eyes of the Great Elder.

    This gave the Fu family an opportunity to rely on the Great Elder¡¯s support.

    Seeing Fu Sisi return to her usual state, Ai Hui knew that this scheming woman had realized this too.

    Just then, a furious voice roared from the sky, "Ye Lin! Hand over that adulterous pair and I¡¯ll disregard this matter!"

    The voice was like exploding thunder, its volume reaching far and wide.

    Ling Sheng, who was in the sky, brought along a bunch of murderous-looking guards. Looking mighty and powerful, it seemed as though he was ready to crush this old house into pieces.

    Unexpectedly, Ye Lin retained her usual disposition and even had a faint smile on her face. Except that this smile was exceptionally cold.

    "Our ancestors were right: the kind get bullied," she mumbled to herself with a casual expression on her face. "I¡¯m the only widowed mother in the Ye residence, so people often think they can trample on me as they wish. They forget the Avalon¡¯s origins. They forget that all elementalists owe their lives today to the Ye family!"

    Finishing her sentence, her expression turned cold and murderous.

    "Gift him a blow."

    A loud rumble could be heard in the Ye residence. It was as if a monster had been awakened from a thousand years of deep sleep.

 Chapter 357: Are You Willing?

    Chapter 357: Are You Willing?

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    Shiiiiing!

    At first, the sound of a sword being unsheathed was fine and soft, causing one to focus and listen to it carefully. Suddenly, the sword chime increased in volume, bing sharp and reverberating. Upon hearing it, one would feel as if his or her heart was being pierced by a sword.

    Ai Hui¡¯s hair stood on end, resembling an rmed cat. An indescribable feeling of danger enshrouded his body. He felt as if a glimmering razor-sharp sword was being pressed against the back of his neck. His hand subconsciously gripped the Silverfold Plum on his waist.

    He was overwhelmed with shock.

    This was...

    A streak of sword gleam shot out from an ancient well in the back garden of the Ye Residence. The streak of sword gleam was not really dazzling, but the sky suddenly darkened at this point in time. The azure sky and the scorching sun looked as if their colors had faded, bing ashen. The only thing that remained bright was that streak of sword gleam.

    Upon sensing that something was not right, Ling Sheng turned around to escape. However, the streak of sword gleam was extremely fast. In the blink of an eye, it had caught up with Ling Sheng. He let out a blood-curdling screech as his left arm was cut off, causing him to be drenched in blood.

    "The blood feud between the Ye Family and the Ling Family willst for generations, and it will only end if one of us is dead!"

    Ling Sheng¡¯s figure disappeared into the distance, but his vile curses continued to resound through the air.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face turned pale. After a long while, he finally regained hisposure. He simply could not describe the shock he felt. That sword gleam¡¯s aura alone was enough to freeze his entire body. As the head of the Ling Family, Ling Sheng was at least a Master. Even a Master had lost an arm to stay alive against that streak of sword gleam. If Ai Hui was in Ling Sheng¡¯s position, he would have zero chance of surviving.

    Ai Hui thought about the sword gleams he had seen before, but none of them wereparable to the one from the Ye Residence. The sword gleam that the Karakorum Savant used to kill Chi Zun was earth-shattering and could be considered the apex of the present age¡¯s swordsmanship.

    However, it still paled inparison to this one.

    When this sword gleam shot out, it did not leave any trail of smoke, fire, or aura, yet it could dominate all living things.

    Ai Hui returned to his senses and looked at the others. Everyone else reacted worse than him. Their facial expressions were nk. Apparently, they had not recovered from the shock of that sword gleam.

    "Xiaobao, follow me," Ye Lin said solemnly.

    Xiaobao acknowledged and quickly followed behind his mother.

    Ye Lin brought Xiaobao out of the main hall and walked to an empty space outdoors that faced the back garden. Next, she kneeled down and bowed. Xiaobao did not seem to understand what was going on, but when he saw his mother kneel down, he followed suit.

    "Mighty Ancestor, thank you for protecting your descendants today. I¡¯m Ye n¡¯s Ye Lin. My husband died when his son was still young. Today, a powerful enemy arrived at our doorstep and brought dishonor to our family. I had to summon you to punish him. Sorry for disturbing your peaceful slumber. Mighty Ancestor, please keep me and my son safe and sound. Ye Lin will kowtow to you now."

    With a solemn look on her face, Ye Lin kowtowed three times. Upon seeing what his mother did, Xiaobao kowtowed three times as well.

    Ai Hui was bbergasted. Could it be... that streak of sword gleam was left behind by Ye Huitang?

    A thunderbolt struck Ai Hui. No wonder the sword gleam was so terrifying and powerful. Even a Master like Ling Sheng was defeated by such a blow and had to lose an arm to stay alive.

    Amazing!

    Ye Huitang¡¯s era was a millennium ago.

    What kind of sword gleam could be sealed for a millennium? If Ye Huitang could do this, how powerful was he actually? In the records that Ai Hui read before, most of them mentioned that the st swordsman" was an aged hero who no longer possessed any strength. Having no options left, he had to use thest bit of his vitality to unleash the ultimate sword move.

    However, it was at this moment that Ai Hui realized that what was written in those records might be inurate. The depths of Ye Huitang¡¯s strength were more unfathomable than he expected! Suddenly, Ai Hui returned to his senses. No, it was he who had misinterpreted those records.

    As Ai Hui thought of the line mentioned in the swordy manual, that "the enemy leader was in by a single sword move," he involuntarily became lost in thought. Was this sword move just like that streak of sword gleam?

    The depths of the Ye Residence¡¯s might were indeed terrifying!

    Madam Ye stood up and wiped off the dust on Xiaobao¡¯s knees. The olddy beside her returned to her senses and said to Madam Ye with a worried tone, "Madam, I¡¯m afraid the Ling Residence will not take this incident lying down."

    "Afraid?" Madam Ye chuckled. "Didn¡¯t you hear him say that the blood feud between the Ye Family and Ling Family willst for generations, and it will end only if one of us is dead? Regardless, you don¡¯t need to be too concerned about a mere Ling Residence."

    The old woman wanted to say something, but she hesitated. She knew her master was a decisive individual and might already have a n.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s face was deathly pale. She knew she had gone overboard in provoking the Ling Residence this time around. The Ye Residence was powerful and had the backing of the Great Elder. For Chu Zhaoyang, as long as he stayed in the Ye Residence, the Ling Residence could not do anything against him. Therefore, the enraged Ling Residence would go after the Fu Family first.

    At its peak, the Fu Family could not contend with the Ling Residence, let alone a Fu Family that was now on the decline.

    Trembling in fear, she kneeled down and begged Madam Ye, "Madam, please save the Fu Family!"

    Madam Ye sighed deeply without saying anything.

    Ai Hui could see that Fu Sisi was truly scared now. Her entire body shivered in fear, looking like quail that was crouching on the ground. When Ai Hui saw this scene, he could not help but feel sad for her. Fu Sisi had always been a shrewd and confident individual. Since when had he seen her in such a panicked and fearful state? The fighting and plotting between aristocratic families were indeed dangerous.

    Even though Ai Hui felt sad for Fu Sisi, he still had no intention of speaking up for her. Right now, he was having a headache over how to break free from this maelstrom. He really did not want to get involved in the struggles between aristocratic families. He knew everyone here was vicious and despicable. For the sake of their families, they would not even mind getting married to a stranger.

    This must be the price of enjoying the benefits of being in an aristocratic family.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui thought of Shi Xueman. Shi Xueman did not seem to have these characteristics.

    Oh? How did irondy survive all these years? She had a good father. Ai Hui felt that this was the key reason why she did not possess these qualities.

    Fu Sisi begged piteously, "Madam, please save the Fu Family! From today onward, everyone in the Fu Family will be at your disposal and will not hesitate to go through fire or tread on water for you!"

    Madam Ye smiled and helped Fu Sisi up from the ground. With a kind and gentle tone, she replied, "Don¡¯t be anxious, Aunt Ye watched you grow up. Why would I not take care of you? Aunt Ye is pondering how to get us all through this crisis?"

    Fu Sisi heaved a sigh of relief as a grateful looked appeared upon her face. "Thank you, Aunt Ye!"

    From Ai Hui¡¯s perspective, Madam Ye was not pondering at all. Obviously, she was waiting for Fu Sisi to state where her family¡¯s loyaltyy. It appeared that Madam Ye was trying to absorb the Fu Family. Fu Sisi was an intelligent girl and knew what Madam Ye was trying to do. There were no other options for the Fu Family except to hug the Ye Residence¡¯s legs. At this point of time, which family dared to provoke the Ling Residence by protecting the Fu Family?

    In the end, whether it was the Ye Residence or the Fu Family, it had nothing to do with me. Ai Hui thought to himself.

    Just as Fu Sisi began to feel nervous, Madam Ye continued, "It has been a while since Ist visited your residence. Aunt Ye and Xiaobao want to stay at your residence for a few days What do you think?"

    "Thank you, Aunt Ye! The entire Fu Family will put up grand preparations for your arrival!" Fu Sisi replied with great respect.

    Madam Ye turned around and said to Ai Hui, "Teacher Chu, you will follow us as well."

    "Me?" Ai Hui was stunned.

    Madam Ye smiled to Fu Sisi. "You see how happy he is. I think he still cares about you. We will discuss your issue when we are at your residence."

    Fu Sisi lowered her head, looking extremely shy. "I will let Madam make all the decisions."

    Ai Hui was startled. This girl¡¯s acting skills were terrifying. However, he currently had no time to care about Fu Sisi¡¯s acting skills and was racking his brain to find a method to reject Madam Ye. If he was to go to the Fu Family, would he not be amb in a tiger¡¯s den? How would he find a wife in the future?

    "I think there¡¯s no reason for me to go," Ai Hui replied with a solemn tone. "The students¡¯ swordy training has reached a critical junction. If their training stops now, wouldn¡¯t all their effort go down the drain..."

    "Stop? Are you thinking about cking off?" Madam Yeughed. "They will being along. The Fu Family is a huge family, and they have many training arenas and rooms. Sisi, it won¡¯t too much of a hassle for you, right?"

    Fu Sisi smiled and replied, "Madam, your words are too ttering. It will be more lively if everyone goes together. This is what Sisi has been hoping for. Sisi and everyone enjoys a harmonious rtionship, and all of us are best friends. Please treat my home as your own when you arrive."

    Best friends my foot!

    Ai Hui almost burst out in rage. All of you are fighting and plotting against each other. Do you think I am blind?

    Madam Ye¡¯s gaze shifted to the youths as an affable smile appeared on her face. "What about all of you? Are all of you willing toe? Don¡¯t force yourself if you really don¡¯t want to."

    Everyone nodded their heads vigorously.

    "Of course we are willing to go!"

    "We will go wherever Madam wants us to go!"

    "Sorry for the troubles, Sister Fu."

    ...

    Ai Hui did not know that what happened today would have a huge impact on these people. After all, Ai Hui was not from an aristocratic family, so hecked understanding toward the significance of the current situation. These young masters and mistresses were extremely sensitive to changes in the situation.

    Madam Ye¡¯s disy of might implied that she was prepared to step into the spotlight.

    The smile on Madam Ye¡¯s face might appear affable and kind, but in reality, this was a dangerous and critical moment.

    It was time for them to pick a side.

    Fortunately for them, from the moment they stepped foot in the Ye Residence, they had already picked their side. Now, it was merely time for them to officially state where their loyaltyy. When thest person finished speaking, everyone looked at each other and smiled. The intensepetitive atmosphere had lightened up significantly. They belonged to the same camp now.

    Except for Ai Hui.

    A lot of gazes fell upon Ai Hui. The quiet Teacher Chu seemed to be out of ce.

    Ai Hui realized that his situation was bing precarious once more.

    He did not act recklessly and maintained hisposure.

    At this moment, the butler ran over to them in a haste.

    "Madam, there is updated news. Many bodies and tools have been found in the underground canal. After verifying the bodies¡¯ identities, they were found to be the Yellow Sand Bandits. None of them survived. It has been suspected that they were being silenced by someone."

    "You reap what you sow. Who can they me?" Madam Ye replied leisurely.

    "Xiao Shuren will be very happy when she hears this news." The old woman smiled.

    When she saw the puzzled look on Madam Ye¡¯s face, she quickly exined, "The entire Great Wei Enterprise was massacred by the Yellow Sand Bandits."

    "I see." Madam Ye nodded her head. After a while, she instructed the old woman, "Tell Xiao Shuren to go with us as well. She is also a pathetic individual."

    Madam Ye suddenly looked as if she remembered something. Then, she turned around and looked at Ai Hui and asked, "Teacher Chu, what do you think?"

    Ai Hui clenched his teeth and replied, "I will let Madam make all the decisions."

 Chapter 358: Pearblossom Pavilion

    Chapter 358: Pearblossom Pavilion

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    If one had to choose the most unique structure in the Avalon of Five Elements, it would undoubtedly be Pearblossom Pavilion.

    In the cold deep space above the area where humpback cloud whales lived, there was a six-hectare wide tform of clouds floating silently. On the top of the cloud tform, there was a small courtyard with green roof tiles and white walls that stood alone in the upper atmosphere. A small curvy path made up of wooden nks extended from the entrance of the courtyard to an octagonal pavilion situated at the edge of the cloud tform.

    Pearblossom Pavilion was where Grandmaster An Muda lived.

    An Muda liked serenity. As such, he built Pearblossom Pavilion at a high altitude.

    At this point in time, there were two people sitting across from each other in Pearblossom Pavilion. One of them was a white-haired old man who slouched on his chair, the other was a valiant-looking girl who sat upright.

    The old man was An Muda, thest Grandmaster in the Avalon of Five Elements. The girl seated opposite him was his disciple, Shi Xueman.

    An Muda was very happy to see his disciple. He had been smiling the whole time since he met her.

    The wrinkles on his face were very deep, resembling ravines that were formed by the gushing river water of time as it eroded thend of life. His thick eyelids always reminded Shi Xueman of a pair of tortoise shells that were filled with spots and traces. His eyes were turbid and dim. Shi Xueman remembered only a few times that his eyes lit up, causing one¡¯s heart to palpitate. His long snow-white hair resembled cascading clouds falling from the sky.

    The appearance of Shi Xueman¡¯s master had never changed from the first time she met him.

    However, when she saw her master today, she felt a tinge of an aura of defeat from him. This tinge of aura might be weak in nature, but it was extremely eye-striking in the pure and sparkling Pearblossom Pavilion.

    She suddenly understood why her master would ask her toe visit him. An unsuppressable sorrow filled her heart. Even a Grandmaster like him would be defeated by Father Time?

    "Master has heard of your issue. That unior of mine is not very happy with you and your father. Hahaha." An Muda chuckled.

    When An Muda thought of the scowling look on his junior¡¯s face, he could not help but burst intoughter

    Shi Xueman knew that An Muda¡¯s junior was the Great Elder. When she saw her masterughing to his heart¡¯s content, she smiled and poured some tea for him.

    An Muda¡¯s snowy eyebrows shrugged lightly, looking extremelyical. "Master feels that you don¡¯t need to care about them. Do whatever you like to do. You have a good nature and a good father. Master can¡¯t lose out to your father and has to be a good master to you as well. Hahaha."

    An Muda was very satisfied with this disciple.

    He then continued happily, "I¡¯m not at all worried about your future. You have a different path from everyone else. The path you¡¯re walking is a grand one. If you continue to train like this, sooner orter you will be a Grandmaster. Master¡¯s style doesn¡¯t suit you. Therefore, I have not given you many pointers so far."

    If the outside world was to know An Muda¡¯s evaluation of Shi Xueman was so high, everyone would be very shocked. Usually, all An Muda said about his disciple was something along the line of "she was a nice girl."

    Shi Xueman was slightly surprised. This was also the first time she had heard her master giving her such an evaluation.

    Very soon, she regained herposure and bowed lightly. "Disciple understands."

    "I never taught you many things, so I can¡¯t let you call me Master for nothing. After I pass away, this Pearblossom Pavilion shall belong to you. Treat it as a present from Master."

    Immediately, Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes became red and her nose started to sniff. "Master..."

    An Muda waved his hand and continued, "Don¡¯t react like this. Ever since Master became a Grandmaster, I have set myself apart from my rivals and enjoyed a happy life. My entire life has not been wasted. Furthermore, I am not dying soon. The reason why I asked you toe this time is because I have a few things to remind you."

    Shi Xueman choked with emotions. After a while, she quickly raised her head and sat upright. With a solemn tone, she said, "Master, tell me!"

    "Master can live for another two to three years, so you don¡¯t need to be so worried. The first thing I want to talk about is your training. I know you have resigned from your position and have lost your opportunity to take part in Master¡¯s Glory. I want to remind you that even if you have the opportunity to participate in Master¡¯s Glory, don¡¯t do it. It will sh with the path that you are on," An Muda said smilingly.

    "Disciple will remember it!" Shi Xueman replied solemnly.

    An Muda waved his hand and continued, "No need to be so serious. The second thing is that during this period of time, the Elders Guild will do two things. They will build a God-subduing Peak and promote Master¡¯s Glory with all their might. By doing these two things, even if I pass away, the Elders Guild would still possess the ability to defend itself. Since you have left the North Sea Division, you don¡¯t need to care about the Elders Guild anymore."

    "Yes."

    "Also, if one day the Avalon of Five Elements really copses, all of you shall return to the Old Territory.

    Shi Xueman was extremely shocked. She stared nkly at her master.

    "Don¡¯t look at me like that," An Muda said cheerfully. "I¡¯m just saying if it happens. The situation is not that critical right now."

    After remaining silent for a while, Shi Xueman asked, "Why the Old Territory?"

    "That¡¯s the origin." An Muda appeared to be in a trance. He stared into the distance as if he was looking forward to something.

    While Shi Xueman digested the words of her master, she gazed outside of the pavilion as well. Separated by the vast empty space, the Silver Mist Sea beneath the pavilion appeared blurry to her. Invisible energy waves were defusing in the empty space beneath her. Those were the traces left by a humpback cloud whale swimming in the upper atmosphere.

    The Old Territory was an extremely unfamiliar ce to her.

    Why did Master want her to go to the Old Territory? Could going to the Old Territory keep her safe and alive? What origin?

    Shi Xueman was unsure. Just as she was about to open her mouth and ask again, An Muda suddenly turned around and said, "It¡¯s everyone¡¯s origin."

    .....

    The residence of the Fu Family was brightly lit. The servants ran about like gushing river water, appearing to be extremely busy.

    The Fu Family had prepared the highest level of reception for Madam Ye and her counterparts. The grand weing banquet that the Fu Family prepared made it seem like they were celebrating the New Year.

    The banquet itself was extremely lively. Without a doubt, Madam Ye was seated at the seat of honor. Seated beside her was the head of the Fu Family, Fu Huaien. Ai Hui saw his cheapskate student, Fu Yongwu, and his brother, Fu Renxuan.

    There was a drunk fellow named Jiu Gui and a lecherous guy called Prince.

    Ai Hui did not expect them to know him and was puzzled by this fact for quite a while. It was only when they mentioned Hua Kui that Ai Hui knew they were from the Grass Hall as well. This further proved that Madam Ye had a deep rtionship with the Grass Hall since two of their experts were members of her entourage.

    The Fu Family had never held a banquet for so many people before. The long table extended from the great hall to the main entrance.

    The dinner was extremely sumptuous and the dishes were alluring. However, Ai Hui did not have the mood to eat at all. He absent-mindedly grabbed a few mouthfuls of food as he racked his brain to think of a way to escape from here.

    The news of the assassination attempt on Lin Xiao had spread throughout Silver City. Every family was on tenterhooks.

    The Fu Family¡¯s guards were on high alert. Meanwhile, the olddy that served Madam Ye was unfathomable. There were more than a few times Ai Hui caught her surveying him. The faint tinge of scrutiny behind her gaze made him feel as if there was a sword ced behind his neck.

    The great hall looked extremely lively, but in reality, everyone¡¯s attention was ced upon Madam Ye and Fu Huaien. All of them had their ears perked up.

    Madam Ye had an affable smile on her face, giving one the feeling of warmth. After talking to her for a while, Fu Huaien waspletely overwhelmed by her. He had heard of her when he was young. However, after she got married, there was no more news of her. She led a low-profile life and was seldom seen in the public.

    With the backing of the Great Elder and her shrewdness, what was there to be worried about?

    Fu Huaien held up a full wine cup and gave Madam Ye a toast, "Madam is indeed an extraordinary individual. Huaien is willing to y a second fiddle to Madam. From today onward, the Fu Family will follow Madam wholeheartedly and be at your disposal!"

    After finishing his sentence, he downed his cup in one gulp.

    "What disposal? You are being too courteous. From today onward, we are all one big family."

    Madam Ye did not allow herself to lose to a man. She poured herself a full cup of wine and downed it in one gulp.

    Fu Huaien was extremely touched by the Madam Ye¡¯s respect toward him. He immediately downed three straight cups of wine.

    The fate of the Fu Family was set after joining the Great Elder¡¯s camp.

    The atmosphere in the hall became harmonious and lively. Everyone was drinking and toasting each other to their hearts¡¯ content.

    Suddenly, an arrogant voice rang across the room.

    "Since today is a good day, how can we just drink alcohol alone. Let¡¯s have a bout to liven things up even more! Madam, may I have your permission please!"

    A youth stood up and walked to the center of the hall. To everyone¡¯s surprise, it was Fu Yongwu.

    He bowed respectfully to Madam Ye and then to Fu Huaien.

    "I have long heard that Fu Yongwu is exceptionally talented. Today, I can see that you¡¯re indeed an outstanding individual," Madam Ye praised him.

    Fu Huaien was greatly consoled upon hearing Madam Ye¡¯s praises for his son.

    Madam Ye held up her wine cup and continued loudly, "Yongwu is right! First, there was the blood catastrophe. Then, there was the mutiny of the Jadeite Forest. The Avalon of Five Elements has never been in such a perilous situation for the past millenia. We are walking on eggshells, and our nation is on the verge of copsing. What can we do? Only by being brave, only by taking up arms, and only by having a positive attitude can we save ourselves from this crisis and have a clear conscience! Cheers!"

    She raised her head and downed her drink in one gulp.

    Everyone was fired up as their emotions went out of control. All of them stood up and yelled together, "Cheers!"

    Even Ai Hui felt a sense of respect toward Madam Ye. He silently praised Madam Ye in his heart. She was able to boost everyone¡¯s morale with just words alone, bringing a brand new attitude to them. Upon seeing the reverence and zealotry in the surrounding people¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui simultaneously developed a sense of admiration and vignce regarding Madam Ye.

    The atmosphere was extremely lively. Everyone¡¯s gaze was directed at Madam Ye at the same time.

    With a smile on her face, Madam Ye continued with an attractive tone, "Of course, the Avalon of Five Elements cannot just depend on the old fellows like us. It needs the younger generation as well. All of you are the pirs, the future, and the hope of the Avalon of Five Elements. Since you want to liven things up, there has to be rewards. For the previouspetition, I took out the Star Reaper. This time around, the reward is an elemental elixir."

    The entire hall burst into an uproar.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face froze. He was shocked by Madam Ye¡¯s generosity.

    Elemental elixir! It¡¯s an elemental elixir!

    A so-called elemental elixir was an elixir that was made from the essence of a high-grade dire beast. After refining and processing it, the elemental energy within the elemental elixir could be directly absorbed by an elementalist.

    This was also the only use for elemental elixirs.

    The olddy walked into the hall holding a te in her hand. On the te, there were five elemental elixirs that were ofpletely different colors and gave off five different lusters. The noisy hall became quiet in an instant. Everyone¡¯s face was filled with incredulity.

    Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Five types of elemental elixirs!

    "The ultimate victor can choose one of these five elemental elixirs."

    Madam Ye¡¯s words were like adding fuel to mes, causing the hall to burst into an uproar again. Everyone¡¯s gaze was filled with frenzy.

    Should he do it...

    Ai Hui was gulping his saliva as an internal struggle took ce within his head.

    "I challenge Chu Zhaoyang!"

    Ai Hui was stunned and raised his head subconsciously.

    With an arrogant look on his face, his cheapskate disciple was pointing his sword at him.

    Ai Hui was instantly overjoyed.

 Chapter 359: A Renowned Master, A Brilliant Disciple

    Chapter 359: A Renowned Master, A Brilliant Disciple

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    The atmosphere in the Ling Residence was extremely depressing. Everyone felt tense.

    Madam Ling stroked Ling Sheng¡¯s face lightly as her tears continuously flowed down her cheeks. Earlier today, there was an assassination attempt on her son, causing him to be severely injured and falling into aa from which he had yet to wake. Subsequently, on the same day, her husband¡¯s right arm was chopped off, simrly rendering him in aatose state.

    Her world copsed just like this.

    She heard footsteps behind her. The butler stood at the doorstep with a worried look on his face. He was about to say something, but then hesitated.

    "Spit it out, what more bad news do you have for me?" Madam Ling regained herposure.

    "The namelist that we submitted for Master¡¯s Glory has been declined by the Elders Guild," the butler bowed and reported the news.

    "All right, excuse yourself. I need some time to calm myself down," Madam Ling said inly.

    The butler did not dare to say anything else. He bowed and carefully closed the door before he left the room.

    There was no one else in the room. In front of the bed, she stood up and walked to the dressing table. Looking at the pale and haggard woman in the mirror, she began to dress and groom herself.

    Very soon, the woman in the mirror became gorgeous and charming once more.

    Her slim and white hand grasped a colored ssmp on the dressing table and turned it lightly. An entrance to a tunnel suddenly appeared in the corner of the room. Holding up her magnificent long dress, she stepped into the tunnel and walked down a flight of stairs.

    The tunnel smelled terrible. Poisonous insects like centipedes and scorpions could be seen everywhere. Madam Ling¡¯s facial expression remained the same, appearing as if she had never seen them at all.

    After walking for some time, she heard a moring from the tunnel exit. She came before the exit, unlocked the door, and lightly pushed it open. When the door was opened, the volume of the mor increased significantly. She found herself in a private room. Concealing the secret door to the tunnel in the private room was a hangingndscape painting that reached the floor.

    No one would expect that this thriving and prosperous restaurant would hide a tunnel that was connected to the Ling Residence. The owner of this restaurant had no rtionship with the Ling Residence at all.

    In the private room, food and drink had been set up on the table. There was a middle-aged man eating and drinking by himself.

    The man had a squarish face with a pair of thick eyebrows. He looked imposing and ferocious. He was a regr customer in this restaurant, and all the employees were very familiar with him. He was the head of the "number one training hall," Dragonrise Training Hall, Master Yang Zhen.

    Upon seeing Madam Ling, the man sighed, "It has been hard on you."

    Madam Ling walked to the seat opposite Yang Zhen and sat. With an indifferent voice, she replied, "This is life."

    Yang Zhen put down his wine cup and asked, "What do you want me to do? Assassinate Ye Lin? I¡¯m afraid that is very difficult to achieve. The old servant by her side is as powerful as me."

    A sneer appeared on Madam Ling¡¯s face. The bitter resentment in her eyes was intense and distinct. She replied, "Can you make someone regret by killing him or her? No. The only way to make her regret is to make her lose everything she has now."

    Yang Zhen looked slightly doubtful. He picked up his wine cup, took a sip, and tasted it slowly in his mouth. Then, he replied, "I can¡¯t think of any ways to make Ye Lin lose everything she has."

    "Who has never done anything stupid when they were young?"

    Madam Ling passed Yang Zhen a piece of paper.

    Yang Zhen took over the piece of paper and looked at it. Immediately, he was overwhelmed with shock. "Is... Is this true?"

    "What do you think?" Madam Ling retorted.

    Yang Zhen became silent and drank his wine. After a long while, he raised his head and asked, "What do you want me to do?"

    "Spread this out." Madam Ling fumed with rage between gritted teeth. "I want everyone in the world to know the true colors of this sl*t!"

    The hand that Yang Zhen used to hold the piece of paper trembled lightly.

    .....

    The residence of the Fu Family.

    Fu Yongwu¡¯s sudden challenge to Chu Zhaoyang shocked everyone, while Madam Ye¡¯s encouragement and generositypletely lit up the atmosphere of the hall.

    Everyone¡¯s gaze fell on Chu Zhaoyang.

    Jiu Gui, who was drinking by himself, and Prince, who was hitting on the girls around him, stopped what they were doing at the same time.

    Prince asked curiously, "What do you think of this young fellow¡¯s strength?"

    Jiu Gui¡¯s hazy and intoxicated eyes opened up slightly. With a drunken voice, he replied, "Hua Kui is such a picky fellow. Anyone that he chooses is more or less capable."

    "It¡¯s a pity that this fellow never fought the previous time." Prince said with regret in his voice.

    Jiu Gui heaved a deep sigh of intoxicated air, "We will get to seeter. It¡¯s an elemental elixir. If not for the fact that I am too embarrassed to fight for it with these youngsters, I would have gone for it."

    "I, myself, want to go for it too." Prince sighed as well. "The depth of the Ye Residence¡¯s might is really unfathomable. I heard that the rewardst time was a pair of [Star Reaper Gloves]. This time around, she actually took out elemental elixirs as a reward. When we were young, did we ever encounter such good stuff?"

    The two of them were filled with envy.

    Under everyone¡¯s gaze, Ai Hui stood up unhurriedly, walked to the center of the hall, and asked, "You want to challenge me?"

    Fu Yongwu stared fiercely at Ai Hui. He could tell that this cold and gloomy middle-aged man, who could not even stand up straight, was not a person of good character. How was hepatible with his elder sister?

    "So you¡¯re the one who has been bugging my elder sister?" Fu Yongwu asked coldly.

    Ai Hui was stunned. He pointed his finger at his own face and asked with incredulity, "Me? Bugging your elder sister?"

    He almost spat out a mouthful of blood. He finally understood how it felt to be called a thief by a thief. He wished he could hug his cheapskate disciple¡¯s legs and beg him to let him off. Good disciple, I beg you to ask your elder sister to let Master off!

    If your big sister let Master off, Master will leave without even wanting the elemental elixir.

    It¡¯s a pity Ai Hui could not...

    Ai Hui flicked the Silverfold Plum in his hand and looked at his cheapskate disciple with a regretful gaze. Life was always filled with so many moments of helplessness.

    When Fu Yongwu saw Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s gaze, he was stunned. He felt that Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s gaze looked somewhat familiar. Suddenly, he realized why this was so. Did Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s gaze not look somewhat simr to his teacher, Ai Hui¡¯s?

    Fu Yongwu became enraged all of a sudden.

    If it was Teacher Ai Hui that looked at him like this, he would not mind. Even though he was gradually set apart from Teacher Ai Hui due to family reasons, his respect toward him had not decreased the slightest bit. Teacher Ai Hui had aplished so many extraordinary feats. The moment he saw that Teacher Ai Hui could rally multitudes with a single call, he knew of his importance in everyone¡¯s heart.

    Coincidentally, Chu Zhaoyang was also a teacher that taught swordsmanship.

    Don¡¯t think you can look at me like this just because you¡¯re a teacher!

    Fu Yongwu stared ferociously at Chu Zhaoyang. Not backing off, he said, "I advise you to give up on my elder sister. Humph, you¡¯re a toad that¡¯s lusting after a swan¡¯s flesh. Look at yourself. Do you think you¡¯repatible with my elder sister?"

    Chu Zhaoyang suddenly became furious, "Hey, can you then tell me how am I not notpatible with her?"

    With a disdainful look on his face, Fu Yongwu replied, "Do you still need me to tell you? Look at how beautiful my sister is and then look at how ugly you are. Since the ancient times, married couples¡¯ families were always well-matched in term of social status. Let me ask you, are you from a prestigious family?"

    "No." Ai Hui shook his head.

    Fu Yongwu continued, "Since your family background doesn¡¯t match her, how can I watch her jump into a living hell with you? I heard that you¡¯re a swordy teacher. I myself have practiced swordsmanship for some time as well. Let¡¯s have a bout."

    He stepped into his fighting stance and drew his sword and pointed it at Ai Hui. "Come!"

    Ai Hui examined his stance and felt slightly surprised. Fu Yongwu¡¯s stance was well-guarded and bnced. It seemed that he had been practicing hard every day.

    "Not bad," Ai Hui nodded his head.

    "My master is the renowned Ai Hui, the Lightning de. I heard that your swordsmanship is very powerful, but in my heart, my master is the best."

    "His name is Ai Hui?" Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s face turned pale with fright.

    "That¡¯s right!" Fu Yongwu replied proudly.

    "I have heard of Lightning de Ai Hui¡¯s superb and outstanding swordsmanship," Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s face was filled with adoration. Following which, the look of adoration on his face became a regretful one, "It¡¯s a pity he is not in Silver City. Otherwise, I would want to have a drink with him and discuss swordsmanship. Fine, fine, fine. Since you¡¯re the Lightning de¡¯s disciple, you must be rather outstanding as well. A renowned master, a brilliant disciple. I shall concede defeat then."

    A dead silence swept across the hall abruptly.

    Prince¡¯s facial expression and movements froze. The meat that was wedged between his chopsticks fell on the table, but he waspletely oblivious to it. Beside him, Jiu Hui choked on his wine, and his entire face turned red.

    Everyone else was caught off guard and became dumbfounded.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s facial expression turned ugly. However, she regained herposure very soon.

    Currently, the Fu Family had already seeded in hugging Madam Ye¡¯s legs and formed a feud with the Ling Residence. Given the current situation, she did not need to use Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s status as the Ye Residence¡¯s swordy teacher to protect her family.

    Chu Zhaoyang had a mysterious background. His methods of doing things were cunning and unpredictable.

    Did he not know what Madam would think of him?

    Right now, the Fu Family was hugging Madam Ye¡¯s legs tightly. What mattered the most was Madam Ye¡¯s attitude toward them.

    Fu Sisi nced at Madam Ye. Upon seeing that Madam Ye was smiling cheerfully and in good mood, Fu Sisi felt relieved.

    Fu Yongwu had not expected Chu Zhaoyang to admit defeat as well. He could not help but feel shocked. However, very soon, he returned to his senses. Could it be that his persuasive power had increased?

    He was overjoyed. His gaze toward Chu Zhaoyang immediately became much friendlier. Other than being ugly, poor, and having a lousy family background, Chu Zhaoyang was a rather good guy.

    He coughed softly to break the silence. Then, he spoke with a dignified voice, "It¡¯s a good thing for everyone that you cane to your senses. Even though you can¡¯t be my brother-inw, we still can be brothers. Your problems shall be my problems as well! Whoever finds trouble with you is equivalent to finding trouble with me!"

    "You will be a loyal friend! Brother, you are indeed very kind! In the future, if I encounter any problems, I shall find you for help!" Chu Zhaoyang gave him a thumbs-up.

    "No problem!" Fu Yongwu smacked his own chest.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s gaze was fixated on Chu Zhaoyang. She felt puzzled and mindful at the same time. What was Chu Zhaoyang up to this time around? She knew how avaricious Chu Zhaoyang was. There was no reason for him to be enticed by 1,000 Heaven Merit Points, but not by the precious elemental elixir!

    Was he worried about the Ling Residence?

    The Ye Residence and Ling Residence hadpletely fallen out with each other. There would be a series of confrontations between these two families. Chu Zhaoyang did not need to be afraid of the Ling Residence at all.

    Was there something that she missed out on?

    When Chu Zhaoyang casually walked back to his seat, an awkward silence swept across the previously vibrant hall. No one knew how to react to this surprising oue.

    Chu Zhaoyang cupped his hands in salute and began to immerse himself in the food.

    Gui Hu and the rest looked at each other in dismay. They were puzzled since they were aware of this teacher¡¯s morality and conduct.

    It was a fact that he had no shame. However, he did not seem like someone who could ignore the enticement of an elemental elixir.

    Instantly, the young members of the Fu Family looked at Chu Zhaoyang with disdain and contempt.

    After a short period of awkward silence, the hall bustled with activities once more. No one could ignore the allure of the elemental elixirs. There were a few times when Ai Hui noticed that someone was secretly observing him. However, each time, he acted like he did not know, and he did not try to look for that person.

    Could it be that he had be a hotmodity as well?

    Ai Huiughed bitterly in his heart as he continued to immerse himself in the food.

    The atmosphere was extremely lively. The entire hall was filled with the smell of alcohol and toasts could be heard incessantly. Those taking part in the bout were fighting fervently, disying all kinds of spectacr abilities. On the two sides of the long table, servants were continuously shuttling to and fro, bringing out good wine and delicious food in an endless stream.

    Ai Hui, who was indulging himself in the food, suddenly froze.

 Chapter 360: Reunion

    Chapter 360: Reunion

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    Silver City was really not a good ce to be.

    This was not the first time Ai Hui had such a feeling. It was as if he was born to loathe this ce.

    At this point in time, the dining hall was like a boiling cauldron of voices. Faces were intoxicated. Anything that was put into one¡¯s mouth was either delicious food or fine wine. Anybody that one saw with his eyes was a beauty.

    In this ce, other than getting drunk and making a ruckus with everyone, there was nothing else one could do. Everyone¡¯s face brimmed with joy,pletelycking in vignce. Everyone knew what distance to maintain from each other to make sure they, themselves, were safe and that the other party wasfortable.

    Just like the fine wine and delicious food, exquisite lies and fake smiles could be found everywhere.

    Aspared to tonight¡¯s banquet, thest party Ai Hui had in the Swordsman Training Hall was simple and crude. A party that was specially for savage people, to be exact.

    Everyone had had their arms around each other¡¯s shoulders while eating, drinking, babbling nonsense. There had been no elegance to speak of. No one had to worry about bragging and talking about their troubles. If one wanted to cry, then he or she would cry. If one wanted tough, then he or she wouldugh. Everyone had acted like an idiot.

    Ai Hui had never missed that moment more than now.

    In this ce, everyone put on a mask and tried their best to outperform each other. An exquisite crystal chandelier hung high above their heads, looking grand and resplendent. Even though there were so many people around Ai Hui, he still felt lonely.

    Silver City was like an exceptionally beautifulke. The surface of theke was like a mirror, reflecting the image of the sky perfectly. However, beneath the tranquilke, there were numerous invisible whirlpools. These whirlpools were the prestigious aristocratic families.

    The aristocratic families¡¯ influence could be found everywhere in Silver City. Their tentacles had extended to every nook and cranny of Silver City.

    The moment one stepped into Silver City, he or she would be swept into one of these whirlpools. No one could avoid this fate. It was normal tock the freedom to act independently in this ce. Even the mighty Madam Ye and Fu Huaien were in this situation as well.

    Silver City might look like an beautiful and alluring painting, but in reality, it was a pale and hollow painting. Just like how the beautiful and visionary speech that Madam Ye previously gave had already been forgotten by everyone. Everyone looked to the two individuals battling in the arena with their bloodshot, intoxicated eyes.

    Other than immersing himself in the food, what else could Ai Hui do?

    He wished he could leave this ce now.

    He was not someone who would back away from any problem or danger he encountered. However, for some unknown reason, in this brightly-lit, fully-packed, and bustling dining hall, his urge to run away and leave this ce became even stronger.

    Unfortunately, he had not found the notebook yet.

    He continued to gobble up the food. Only by doing this could he get rid of the bad feeling within him.

    At this moment, a feeling of extreme danger suddenly arose in Ai Hui¡¯s heart, freezing his body momentarily. After one second, his body loosened up. He pretended to drink water and raised his head, slowly scanning his surrounding.

    The feeling of danger was extremely strong. The premonition in Ai Hui¡¯s heart did not disappear and became stronger instead.

    Ai Hui appeared no different from the rest. However, he was extremely focused, and his body was preparing itself for something to happen. If anything bad was to happen, he would be ready to strike.

    The feeling of danger became faintly discernable. Ai Hui, an experienced individual, knew that the danger was not targeting him. The weird thing was that he indistinctly sensed a familiar aura.

    If the danger was not targeting him, then who was it targeting?

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain began to operate rapidly as his gaze continued sweeping across his surroundings. Suddenly, a thought shed across his mind. Who was the one that was most likely to be assassinated?

    Ai Hui turned his head around abruptly and looked at Madam Ye, who was seated at the seat of honor.

    If a crisis urred, the one who was most likely to be targeted... must be Madam Ye!

    Madam Ye was chatting happily with Fu Huaien. The unfathomable old woman guarded her from behind. Her vignt gaze scanned through her surroundings every now and then.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were extremely sharp. He immediately noticed a servant that was getting closer to Madam Ye. The servant was holding a te of piping hot food, appearing as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

    Was he being too paranoid?

    At this moment, the servant happened to turn around and face Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eye pupils shrunk. The servant¡¯s eyes contained a tinge of blood-red demonic glow.

    The Blood of God!

    Horrified, Ai Hui stood up abruptly and yelled, "Be careful!"

    He finally understood why he sensed danger. He was extremely sensitive to blood spiritual force. His instinctive hatred for the Blood of God was embedded within his body.

    The old woman reacted the fastest. Just as Ai Hui stood up, she was already protecting Madam Ye.

    When the servant saw that his surprise attack had failed, a look of determination appeared on his face.

    His body inted rapidly like a balloon, and his face became distorted, appearing extremely hideous.

    "What is that?"

    "Oh my god!"

    The old woman¡¯s facial expression changed drastically.

    10 meters away from her, the inted servant exploded with a loud boom

    A ring red light momentarily blinded everyone. A terrifying aura engulfed the entire dining hall. Blood-curdling screams and cries of rm could be heard incessantly.

    Ai Hui reacted extremely fast. Immediately, he flipped up the ironwood table in front of him with his foot and crouched down. The table acted like a big shield in front of him.

    Thud, thud, thud!

    The sound of densely-packed collisions fell nonstop on his ears. Numerous bumps began to appear on the bottom of the sturdy table. Pieces of torn flesh rapidly flew by him like arrows that wereunched from a bow.

    The people surrounding Ai Hui copsed in an instant.

    The air in the dining hall was pervaded with the uniquely sweet smell of blood poison. Ai Hui¡¯s eyes suddenly reddened. His inner hatred for the Blood of God caused him to involuntarily tremble. The entire hall seemed to be shrouded in a red blood mist.

    At this moment, the blood plum blossom on Ai Hui¡¯s chest trembled, freezing his body.

    This was...

    Ai Hui widened his eyes. He suddenly realized that One Thousand Yuan was nearby!

    The old woman received the most damage from the servant¡¯s explosion. She had endured more than half of the impact from the st. Her hair was dishevelled and blood flowed out from the corner of her mouth, making her look extremely pathetic.

    "Protect Madam!"

    The old woman let of a bellow and a miserable shriek at almost the same time. Amid the blood mist, two figures could be seen separating upon making contact.

    Not good!

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. He felt really stupid. Other than Madam Ye, who else could One Thousand Yuan possibly target?

    With a pair of ring eyes, the old woman stood motionlessly in front of Madam Ye.

    Suddenly, a streak of blood shot out from her neck. Following which, blood began to flow out of her neck like gushing spring water. She then copsed onto the ground with a loud bang.

    Was... was she dead?

    Ai Hui was bbergasted. The old woman¡¯s strength was unfathomable, and he suspected that she was at least at the level of a Master. However, a Master like her had just copsed right in front of him. Even a Master could be so fragile when hit with a carefully nned assassination attempt.

    For the first time, panic was written all over Madam Ye¡¯s face. When she saw the old woman copse to the ground, the panic on her face turned into fear.

    Out of the corner of his eye, Ai Hui suddenly saw a weird-looking figure dashing silently toward Madam Ye.

    One Thousand Yuan!

    She was trying to kill Madam Ye!

    "Stop!"

    "Be careful!"

    Jiu Gui and Prince both cried out in rm. They were seated at the entrance and far away from Madam Ye. As such, when they witnessed this horrifying scene, they were unable to do anything, regardless of how much they wanted to. They could only cry out a warning.

    Damn it!

    Without hesitation, Ai Hui dashed forward. Sticking close to the wall, he pounced forward like a ferocious tiger. As he flew up into air, he unleashed a snow-white sword gleam that streaked across the dining hall.

    Fu Yongwu was very lucky. Because of the location where he was seated, his brother, Fu Renxuan, had blocked most of the attack. However, this unforeseen event still left him in shock.

    Suddenly, a dazzling cold sword gleam shed across his eyes.

    He quickly returned to his senses and saw Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s tiger-like back and the biting-cold sword gleam.

    The image of the silvery light expanded rapidly in Madam Ye¡¯s vision, A terrifying killing intent overwhelmed her, causing her brain and body to freeze.

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s cold scarred face suddenly increased in size from her perspective. His pair of eyes were filled with a deep-rooted hatred and the viciousness of a predator. The dazzling sword gleam was so cold that it did not contain a single tinge of warmth.

    Is he... trying to kill me?

    The fear on Madam Ye¡¯s face grew at a visible speed, resembling the expanding ripples on a pond after a rock had been thrown into it.

    The figure that silently dashed toward Madam Ye flicked her hand.

    Clink!

    At the instant when Ai Hui made contact with the figure, the Silverfold Plum in his hand appeared as if it had been pierced into a whirlpool of void. A powerful attractive force was sucking him into the whirlpool. The glow in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes flickered and that mysterious force disappeared.

    At this moment, Ai Hui was certain that thedy disguised as a servant girl was She Yu!

    The Demonic Girl of God Nation!

    Wearing an elemental mask on her face, She Yu looked like an ordinary servant girl. However, as her eyes lit up, a tinge of liveliness shed across her in-looking face

    The servant girl¡¯s mouth curled into an enigmatic smile. Her tongue involuntarily licked her luscious bright-colored lips, resembling a predator that had discovered traces of its prey.

    So you were here!

    The surging energy wave from the collision knocked Madam Ye a few steps back. When she stabilized herself, she noticed a figure was standing in front of her and protecting her. By this point, Madam Ye had realized that Chu Zhaoyang had just saved her. A tinge of gratitude appeared within her eyes.

    Jiu Gui spat out a cloud of wine mist. A horseman dashed out of the wine mist and charged at servant in front of Chu Zhaoyang.

    Prince flew up into the air and raised his great sword over his head. Locking on to his target, he pumped all his energy into this attack!

    The third person to react was actually Su Huaijun. She waved her hand and threw out her jade bamboo stick.

    The bamboo sticknded beside Madam Ye¡¯s feet and began to grow. Following which, a green-colored light screen was released and enshrouded Madam Ye.

    She Yu winked at Ai Hui. Then, her body trembled in an odd way, looking as if she was breaking away from some kind of restriction. Suddenly, the charging wine mist horseman and Prince¡¯s overhead sh bothpletely lost their target.

    The enemy was initially there, but they could not urately target her.

    The empty space in front of Chu Zhaoyang pissed off Prince so much that he almost vomited blood.

    Meanwhile, the wine mist horseman dissipated into the air.

    Under everyone¡¯s watchful eyes, the servant girl vanished into thin air.

    Those who saw this sight felt a cold shiver run down their spines.

    Only Ai Hui saw what She Yu silently mouthed to him before she disappeared. The chilliness within his heart became more intense.

    "I will be back for you."

 Chapter 361: Painstaking Investigation

    Chapter 361: Painstaking Investigation

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    The residence of the Fu Family was filled with anguished wails.

    The dining hall was messy and chaotic. Casualties could be found everywhere. The impact of the servant¡¯s self-destruction was not thatrge, but the incident had happened too suddenly. Being caught off guard caused devastating losses.

    It merely took tens of seconds for merriment to turn into bereavement.

    The one who suffered the greatest loss was Madam Ye.

    With a sorrowful pale-white face, she kneeled beside the body of the old woman. She used trembling fingers to close the old woman¡¯s wide ring eyes. This was the first time Madam Ye hade so close to death. She was literally a few steps away from death. If not for her loyal old servant using her body to protect her, Madam Ye would also be lying in a pool of blood right now.

    She stared at the body of the old woman as her eyes filled with intense grief. The old woman had followed Madam Ye for many years and had gained her trust. Madam Ye treated her as part of her family.

    The death of a Master dealt a huge blow to Madam Ye¡¯s strength.

    "Give her an honorable burial," Madam Ye said to a servant in a low voice.

    Madam Ye stood up from the ground. There were a lot of things that she needed to do. The Fu Family had just pledged their allegiance to her and immediately received such a huge blow. The Fu Family¡¯s confidence was definitely wavering.

    Madam Ye was sure that the Fu Family did not know anything about the surprise attack on their residence. This was because most of the casualties were members of the Fu Family.

    Even Fu Huaien, who had been near Madam Ye, was severely injured by the impact of the explosion.

    The Fu Family had suffered a crippling loss and might not be able to recover from this setback.

    She could not let the Fu Family copse just like this.

    The quest for talent needed a vast amount of effort and resources. If the first family to pledge allegiance to her copsed just like this, how would the other families still dare to join her?

    Madam Ye shuttled to and fro among the casualties. She arranged medical treatment for them and maintained order in the hall. Very quickly, even though the number of casualties did not decrease, everyone¡¯s morale had soon been elevated. Fear and panic had been subdued.

    Prince walked over and patted Ai Hui¡¯s shoulder. "Good job!"

    Ai Hui returned to his senses and understood that Prince was referring to blocking the recent assassination attempt. "It¡¯s nothing. It¡¯s my duty to do so," Ai Hui replied.

    Jiu Gui nodded his head in approval at Ai Hui as well.

    If anything was to happen to Madam Ye, both of them would be severely punished. Madam Ye and the Grass Hall had a deep rtionship. Since they had been in the Grass Hall for a much longer period than Ai Hui, they naturally knew more things.

    Ai Hui scanned his surroundings as his mind filled with suspicion and doubt.

    Why was One Thousand Yuan in Silver City? What exactly did One Thousand Yuan want?

    To assassinate Madam Ye? Ai Hui did not think so.

    The assassination attempt was abnormally brief and precise. No matter how one looked at it, it was meticulously nned. Not only did it cause Madam Ye to lose an expert, it almost ended her life as well.

    However, for some reason, Ai Hui felt that there was something wrong.

    He calmed himself down and slowly sorted out his thinking process. It was during the daytime that Madam decided toe to the Fu Family¡¯s residence. The assassination attempt took ce on the night of the same day. This meant that One Thousand Yuan had approximately half a day¡¯s time to prepare for this assassination attempt, unless she had already been hiding in the Fu family and the assassination opportunity just happened to present itself.

    However, Ai Hui felt that the possibility of this happening was too low.

    If this was not the cause, then that meant One Thousand Yuan had the support of a local family who was powerful and influential. Only a powerful and influential local family could obtain the news of Madam Ye¡¯s visit and infiltrate the Fu Family in such a short period of time.

    Could it be the Ling Residence?

    Logically speaking, the Ling Residence was the main suspect. It would not be unusual for this assassination attempt to be part of their revenge against the humiliation and losses they had just suffered. However, Ai Hui still felt that something was amiss about this conjecture.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui thought of the assassination attempt on Ling Xiao. His body froze as he seemed to catch on to something.

    The assassination attempt on Lin Xiao was the shpoint for the animosity between the Ye Residence and the Ling Residence.

    Assassination attempt on Lin Xiao... Assassination attempt on Lin Xiao...

    Ai Hui caught ahold of the main point. Was the assassination attempt on Lin Xiao nned by One Thousand Yuan? When this idea shed across Ai Hui¡¯s mind, his mind jolted abruptly. If this was the case, then many things could now be exined.

    The Ling Residence was the representative for aristocratic families, while Madam Ye was the representative of the Great Elder and the Elders Guild. A fight between these two parties would cause the Avalon of Five Elements an immense loss of strength.

    Weakening the Avalon of Five Elements was something that the Blood of God had always wanted to do.

    However, other than causing Madam Ye to lose an expert, the assassination attempt this time around did not yield very many results. Furthermore, the assassination attempt also exposed the Blood of God¡¯s involvement in this incident. Everyone could identify the blood poison used in the attack.

    Revealing the existence of the Blood of God¡¯s spies in Silver City would caused One Thousand Yuan more harm than good.

    Unless...

    At this moment, he heard Jiu Gui yell, "Be careful, the enemy has not left yet!"

    Everyone, including Ai Hui, became tense!

    Despicable!

    The enemy pretended to leave the area and hid in one corner, waiting for the right opportunity to strike again.

    Jiu Gui spat out a cloud of wine mist. A horseman emerged from the wine mist and charged toward the corner of the room. Suddenly, in the previously empty corner, a few figures appeared out of thin air.

    When the infiltrators realized that they were exposed, two of them charged at the wine mist horseman and the rest split into two groups that started attacking everyone.

    The situation immediately became dangerous.

    Most of the injured were lying on the ground. Everyone¡¯s attention was ced on treating the wounded. The sudden outbreak of fighting sent everyone into a panic.

    All of the Fu Family¡¯s guards ran forward to stop the enemies. However, what happened next frightened everyone. The guards dropped down one by one, resembling wheat stalks that had been reaped.

    At this point in time, Fu Sisi¡¯s face had already turned pale-white. The heavy losses that the Fu Family suffered today made her feel horrified. Initially, she wanted to carve a new path for the Fu Family and prevent them from being annexed by the Ling Residence. However, she did not expect that the new path would be so cruel and devastating.

    "Stop them! Protect Madam!" Fu Huaien stepped forward and roared with a stern voice.

    Among the many generations of family heads, Fu Huaien¡¯s aptitude was considered average. Whenpared to the young and inexperienced Fu Sisi, however, he was still very capable. When he saw his family guards copsing one by one, his eyes surged with rage. With a roar, he pounced on the enemies.

    The absolute art of the Fu Family, [Green Dragon Art], was on full disy.

    When Fu Sisi saw her bloodied father dash forward, tears flowed down her cheeks.

    Fu Huaien¡¯s skin ignited with surging elemental energy. Cracks began to appear on his skin. These cracks emitted a green glow and looked like green dragon scales growing out his body. The sclera of Fu Huaien¡¯s eyes turned green as his eye pupils disappeared.

    A terrifying aura shot into the sky.

    When Fu Huaien enter the battle, the copsing defensive line was immediately strengthened. In a single breath, Fu Huaien killed six enemies. The whole process resembled a fruit cutting process, shocking everyone in the hall.

    Could Fu Huaien... be a Master?

    Ai Hui looked at Fu Huaien in shock. He had fought against these enemies before and knew how powerful and vicious they were. Just three of these enemies were enough to tie him up and make him feel immense pressure.

    Where did One Thousand Yuan find these powerful and vicious experts?

    By this point, Fu Huaien had entered a zone. There was a vast difference in his strength before and after his transformation.

    Jiu Gui and Prince were amazed. They were now certain that Fu Huaien had reached the level of Master.

    "Defend! His transformation won¡¯tst long!" An indifferent voice could be heard from the enemy line.

    The enemies¡¯ faces remained gloomy. Apparently, when they heard that Fu Huaien¡¯s transformation would notst long, they heaved a sigh of relief. Within a short period of time, Fu Huaien had in seven of theirrades.

    Fu Huaien detested these people. These people almost caused the Fu Family to be consigned to eternal damnation. As such, he was very ruthless to them.

    Both Jiu Gui and Prince were engaged in hard battles as well. Their opponents were specialized in mounting joint attacks in groups of five, causing the two of them to be in deep trouble.

    "Fine, fine!"

    Standing on the flight of steps, Madam Ye¡¯s face was gloomy. Saying "fine" two times in a row clearly showed that she was enraged.

    "The Ling Residence is indeed evil. How dare they use Sacrificial Guards against me!"

    Madam Ye hit the nail on the head about these people¡¯s background.

    When everyone heard the term "Sacrificial Guards," their facial expressions changed drastically. Sacrificial Guards were the elite units of the Ling Residence. Every one of them was specially chosen afteryers of trials. They were trained together from young, hence, they were well-coordinated.

    At this point in time, Jiu Gui and Prince realized what was going on. Their opponents were not powerful, but they could pester the two of them and tangle them up.

    A cold-looking man yelled indifferently, "So the Ye Residence has pride and honor, but my Ling Residence doesn¡¯t? Today, I want one of your arms to seek vengeance for my brother!"

    Ai Hui did not know of the background of these "Sacrificial Guards," but when he heard the words "Ling Residence," he was startled.

    He finally knew what One Thousand Yuan was trying to do.

    She framed the Ling Residence and the Ye Residence for her plot!

    By framing the Ling Residence with the crime of colluding with the Blood of God, it would deepen the enmity between the Ling Residence and Ye Residence. The death battle between the Ling Residence, which was a powerful representative of the aristocratic families, and the Ye Residence, which was a representative of the Great Elder and the Elders Guild, would cause internal disorder and devastation in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Colluding with the Blood of God to kill Madam Ye would result in zero chance for both sides to reach apromise.

    Vicious!

    Ai Hui broke out in cold sweat as he trembled with fear. A mere scheme like this could cause a huge fissure in the seemingly grand and magnificent Avalon of Five Elements.

    Demonic girl!

    One Thousand Yuan¡¯s shrewdness far surpassed his.

    When Ai Hui thought of her parting words to him, he felt a cold shiver down his spine.

    Should he leave Silver City as soon as possible?

    Silver City was a really dangerous ce. A moment of carelessness would cause him to meet with a tragic end.

    Ai Hui was prepared to make an escape. The Sacrificial Guards were gaining an advantageous position in the battle. If Madam Ye¡¯s old servant was still alive... Ai Hui suddenly thought of something. What if One Thousand Yuan¡¯s target was never Madam Ye but the old servant with an unfathomable depth of strength?

    The more Ai Hui thought about it, the more he felt that it was possible. If Madam Ye died by the hands of the Ling Residence, it would widen the rift between the aristocratic families and the Elders Guild and cause the Great Elder to lose his rationality.

    To ensure that the Ling Residence was capable of hurting Madam Ye, the powerful and unfathomable old servant was killed.

    The demonic girl was too scary!

    "As long as there¡¯s one member of the Fu Family still alive, you can forget about hurting Madam Ye!"

    Fu Huaien¡¯s roar was like a thunderp.

    "Vowing loyalty and devotion to your new master so soon?" The cold-looking man sneered. "The Fu Family is like a dog. Are you even qualified to bark at me? Kill him!"

    Suddenly, Fu Huaien said, "From today onward, the head of the Fu Family will be Fu Sisi. Madam Ye, Sisi is still young. Please guide her along."

    Afterward, Fu Huaien suddenly pped the back of his head, and a green light erupted from the back of his head.

    The cold-looking man¡¯s facial expression changed drastically.

 Chapter 362: Finally, Overflowing Inspirations

    Chapter 362: Finally, Overflowing Inspirations

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    Surging green light flowed through Fu Huaien¡¯s body. He was rapidly losing his vitality, looking as if his soul had left his body. Green dragon scales grew on his body. His eye pupils became ice-cold,pletely devoid of emotions.

    When the dragon scalespletely covered his body, an awe-inspiring aura engulfed the hall. The air seemed to freeze at this moment.

    Fu Huaien became like a monster that was fully covered with dragon scales. Two short horns protruded out of his forehead.

    The cold-looking man¡¯s face changed drastically. He quickly roared, "Be careful!"

    What was this? The [Green Dragon Art] had such a move? No one knew about it. The reason why the Ling Residence racked its brain to annex the Fu Family was to obtain this [Green Dragon Art]!

    The cold-looking man looked slightly worried.

    The [Green Dragon Art] was extremely powerful. Other than elemental energy, it also depleted blood and qi. The Ling Residence had an absolute art called [Swallow Moon]. This absolute art happened to be a top-grade art that nourished blood and qi. Itplemented well with the [Green Dragon Art]. If one could fuse these two absolute arts together, the [Moon-swallowing Green Dragon Art] might be a transcendent absolute art!

    An absolute art and an heir were the keys to the perpetuation of a family. If these two keys could be preserved, then the family could be preserved. Even if a family did not have other resources, it could still survive with the birth of a genius.

    A transcendent absolute art was a deadly enticement for the Ling Residence.

    No one had expected so many unforeseen events.

    By going against the Great Elder, the Ling Residence would definitely note to a good end. However, after what happened today, everyone had lost their sense of logic. Other than fighting each other to death, there did not seem to be any other options.

    When the cold-looking man saw Fu Huaien burning his own vitality to unleash the skill, he knew that a blood feud had been formed between the Ling Residence and the Fu Family. The hope of obtaining the [Green Dragon Art] waspletely dashed.

    With a flick of his body, Fu Huaien materialized into a streak of green light that shed across the sky. At the same time, blood-curdling screams could be heard.

    A fist-sized bloody hole appeared on the bodies of two Sacrificial Guards. Before the two could react, they copsed face down onto the ground. Fu Huaien was so fast that he could not be seen by the naked eye. Like an odd-looking snake, he rapidly slithered in and out of the crowd.

    Blood-curdling screeches could be heard incessantly. Fu Huaien was on a killing rampage.

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck. When these families started to go all-out, it was a terrifying sight to behold. Unlike his abnormally swift movements, Fu Huaien¡¯s breathing was calm and stable like a sleeping dragon. The sound of his breaths were not loud, but they sounded like thunderps to everyone. With every breath he took, the surrounding elemental energy would be sucked dry.

    Many people in Silver City were rmed by the noises, flew up into sky, and looked in the direction of the Fu Family¡¯s residence.

    The brightly-lit residence of the Fu Family looked as if it housed a horrifying monster that devoured elemental energy from the environment. Every time it inhaled an immense amount of natural elemental energy poured into the Fu residence like floodwater.

    The facial expression of the onlookers changed drastically.

    Master!

    Only a Master could cause such an astonishing phenomenon.

    Was that not... the Fu Family?

    When everyone recalled the news of what had happened during the day, they suddenly realized what was going on. There were mixed reactions toward the current events. Some people flew toward the Fu Family¡¯s residence in haste, but most families chose to look at the ongoing battle from afar.

    The collision between the Ling Residence and the Elders Guild was like a battle between two colossi. A direct confrontation between two powerful forces like this had rarely been seen in the history of the Avalon of Five Elements. If an ordinary individual was sucked into this maelstrom, he or she would be shredded to pieces in an instant.

    Many people were deeply worried. Could the Avalon of Five Elements withstand the battle between these two powerful families? After this battle, what would be of the Avalon of Five Elements?

    No one knew what would happen. It was as if there was nobody that could stop these two behemoths.

    When the surrounding elemental energy waspletely depleted, it became a extremely miserable for the elementalists in the vicinity. To the Sacrificial Guards, not only was this torture, it was a nightmare as well.

    Every time the rhythmic breathing was heard, a body would copse.

    Possessing a speed so fast that it sent despair into one¡¯s heart andpletely dominating the surrounding elemental energy, Fu Huaien was definitely winning the battle right now. The Sacrificial Guards had been through extremely harsh training, and they had extreme willpower and fighting spirit. However, when they faced Fu Huaien¡¯s continuous attacks, their defensive line faltered and was on the verge of copse.

    Ling Yun¡¯s facial expression changed.

    Fu Huaien was burning his vitality and could notst long. Initially, Ling Yun hoped to endure until Fu Huaien¡¯s dragon body crumbled, but he could not wait any longer now. Once the defensive line formed by Sacrificial Guards copsed, he would be defeated.

    The deployment of the Sacrificial Guards by the Ling Residence would definitely lead to many criticisms. However, if the Ling Residence could not obtain revenge even after they utilized the Sacrificial Guards, then it would spell much deeper trouble for them.

    The Ling Residence¡¯s prestige would suffer a devastating decline. Their allies and vassal families would feel that the Ling Residence was strong in appearance, but weak in reality if theycked the ability to even retaliate. No one would pledge allegiance to a weak family, just like how no one would choose a weak family as an ally.

    In this predatory world, the weaklings would be food for the predators.

    A look of determination appeared on Ling Yun¡¯s face. As a member of the Ling Residence, not only did the fate of the Ling Residence depend on him, but the fate of the Ling Family¡¯s descendants as well.

    A high-profile battle like this would definitely attract a lot of attention. He had to resolve this battle in the shortest time possible. If Ye Lin¡¯s reinforcements were to arrive, this mission would be aplete failure.

    The Fu Family was not the only one that possessed desperate measure like the [Green Dragon Art].

    Ling Yun¡¯s hair turned snow-white at a visible rate before beginning to stand upright and point skyward. His skin rapidly turned pale-white as well. A dark red mark, which was bright and glistening, appeared on his be.

    With a twist of his body, a streak of white light shed across everyone¡¯s eyes and collided ferociously with the fleeting green light on the battlefield.

    Boom!

    The impact from the collision crushed the surrounding sturdy walls and half of the courtyard into fine powder.

    Everyone was shocked by the impact of the collision between the twobatants. They quickly retreated from the dueling duo.

    Both of them fought each other with force, neither prepared to back away.

    Everyone¡¯s attention was on the battle between Fu Huaien and Ling Yun.

    No one had noticed that Chu Zhaoyang, who was in a deep trouble in one corner of the courtyard, was beginning to show signs of turning the tables.

    No one other than Xiao Shuren.

    Xiao Shuren had been secretly observing Chu Zhaoyang.

    Ai Hui had never fought with enemies that specialized in joint attacks. Due to his inexperience, he was caught up in a bitter struggle from the start.

    Thebined assault from the three people put immense pressure on Ai Hui, forcing him into a passive position. However, such a pressurized situation also stimted Ai Hui¡¯s fighting spirit. He had an unswerving determination and was not afraid of pressure. Pressure forced him to be more focused. He had no choice but to think at a faster speed as well as use extreme and risky moves to win the battle.

    The form of his swordy began to change.

    Thest time Ai Hui fought with Su Huaijun, he had to restrain a lot of his inspirations. After a few days, he tried to regain the inspirations he had touched upon the fight, but failed to do so. The inspirations and ideas just shuttled to and fro in his brain until today or, to be exact, until just a moment ago.

    The joint attacks from the three opponents were well-coordinated. The time interval between each attack was very short, so short that Ai Hui almost could not ward them off. To break out of this predicament, Ai Hui had to execute his sword moves faster than his opponents¡¯ attacks!

    As fast as a lightning bolt, the Silverfold Plum moved nimbly and gracefully in his hand. His [Six Moons] technique was changing its form endlessly. Streaks of silvery light swirled around him, appearing and disappearing at random.

    His swordy was notplicated, but simple and clean. Usually, one would find it extremely hard to withstand his attacks.

    The three person team that attacked Ai Hui wasining incessantly. The dancing streaks of sword gleam flew at an extreme speed and came from all sorts of weird angles. A moment of carelessness would cause one to be injured by them.

    In the past, Ai Hui could control flying daggers. However, these daggers were made up of solid matter while the [Six Moons]¡¯s sword gleams were formed by elemental energy. The sword gleams were as light as a feather and several times faster than the flying daggers.

    As such, the difficulty of controlling the sword gleams was also higher.

    As Ai Hui¡¯s control over the sword gleams improved, the [Six Moons]¡¯s destructive power increased sharply as well. Ai Hui, who previously was outnumbered, began to turn the tables on his enemy. The three Sacrificial Guards looked as if they were facing seven swordsmen in one go.

    This was not the only breakthrough Ai Hui had obtained. Along with Ai Hui himself, the six crescent moon shaped gleams formed by the Silverfold Plum just happened to form the exact number of entities needed to activate the [Big Dipper]. As his ability to control the sword gleams increased, his understanding of sword formations escted in an instant.

    Other than the [Big Dipper Sword Formation], how many more variations could the Silverfold Plum and the six sword gleams derive?

    Next, he thought of the [Fragmented Porcin Sword Formation]. What would the power of a simple [Fragmented Porcin Sword Formation] be like?

    How about the [Yin Yang Sword Formation]? Could the Silverfold Plum be used as a central axis while the six sword gleams formed three Yin Yang rings? Or could he form three huge circr Yin and three huge circr Yang sword gleams?

    If he excluded the Silverfold Plum, then would it not be possible for the six sword gleams to attempt the [Plum Blossom Count]?

    ...

    Inspirations popped up in his brain one by one. The long-awaited feeling of contentment overwhelmed Ai Hui. The movement of the Silverfold Plum became increasingly refined, swift, and erratic. There were times where wind and fire would arise, while other times a dancing rain of razor-sharp sword consciousness would form.

    His brain was overflowing with inspirations. Ai Hui, who waspletely absorbed in his enlightenment, could not stop what he was doing. The Silverfold Plum became alive in his hand and came up with unpredictable forms of swordy.

    The three pitiful Sacrificial Guards were continuously ravaged by Ai Hui¡¯s sessive unpredictable sword moves. There were a few times when they were about to call for help, but Ai Hui¡¯s offense would weaken and give them a chance to gasp for breath. This happened several times. Eventually, they began to suspect that Chu Zhaoyang was doing this on purpose,

    They felt as if there was a noose on each of their necks, tightening and loosening at random.

    By now, Ai Hui did not know what he was doing. He waspletely immersed in the inspirations in his mind.

    Slowly, the three Sacrificial Guards realized that Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordy was not really stable. Could he be trying out new sword moves on them? The three of them felt somewhat humiliated, but heaved a sigh of relief at the same time. Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordsmanship was really powerful and really unpredictable. If he was in his peak form, the three of them would have been dead.

    As Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordy became stable once more, the noose around their necks tightened.

    The three Sacrificial Guards clenched their teeth and endured the iing attacks. From their experience, if they could endure a bit longer, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordy would cken very soon.

    Clink, clink, clink!

    The densely-packed sounds of the collisions between the sword gleams and their weapons was suffocating. The thing that struck terror in three of them was that Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordy did not cken. Instead, it became increasingly sharp and precise.

    Swish, swish, swish!

    Three human heads flew up into the air at the same time. A terrified look still remained on their faces.

    A few streaks of white light intertwined in the air. The razor-sharp sword gleams looked as if they were even going to rip a hole through the dimensions of space.

    Ai Hui¡¯s vision became clear and bright once more.

    At this moment, there was an earth-shaking explosion.

    Ling Yun¡¯s right arm was severed, dripping fresh blood all over his body. He red at Fu Huaien, who was standing opposite him.

    The body of Fu Huaien, who was covered in dragon scales, began to copse. His legs were fracturing into numerous green crumbs. The disintegration process began from his legs and traveled upward.

    His green glowing eyes had regained the warmth of a human, but it was time for him to bid farewell.

    He smiled at his tearful daughter. Just as he opened his mouth and was about to say hisst words, the disintegration process reached his face.

    Before he could say anything, he disappeared along with the wind.

 Chapter 363: Three Huge Yin And Three Huge Yang Sword Rings

    Chapter 363: Three Huge Yin And Three Huge Yang Sword Rings

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    When Ai Hui saw a real person disintegrating into the air like a wisp of smoke, he felt an indescribable shock and a faint tinge of sadness. He had seen many deaths. Some were heroic, some were tragic. The withering of a life was like the withering of a flower. However, when the next spring arrived on the earth, the withered flower would blossom once more, but not the withered life.

    There were four seasons in life. The spring of adolescence, the summer of youthfulness, the autumn of confidence, and the winter of obsolescence. However, there would only be one cycle of life.

    What kind of reason would make one¡¯s death justifiable?

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze was fixated on thepletely empty sky. Suddenly, heughed at himself. Since when did he be so mncholy?

    He did not know whether or not Fu Huaien vanishing into thin air had caused him to feel an indescribable calmness.

    As if he had sensed something, Ai Hui turned around and noticed that Xiao Shuren was staring and smiling at him. Ai Hui felt slightly puzzled. Ever since thest time this woman tried to plot against him, he had be wary of her.

    He had long since decided not to pay any attention to Xiao Shuren. He did not want to have anything to do with her. He had zero interest in the so-called ancient treasure. All he wanted to do was to find the godd*mn notebook and leave this scary ce as soon as possible.

    In this city, a Master would pop out whenever a family fought for its survival. This reality was far too much for a bum like him to handle.

    In one day, he had witnessed a Master-level family head¡¯s arm being chopped off, the assassination of a Master-level bodyguard, the disintegration of another family head, and the severing of an arm of the leader of the Sacrificial Guards. As for the grunts that had died, their number was uncountable.

    It was too scary!

    The front line was child¡¯s y whenpared to Silver City.

    At the front line, a Master was considered an important figure who possessed powerful fighting capabilities. Every Master had an impressive entourage of guards and these guards were in charge of all the mundane tasks. The death of a Master would be a devastating loss to an army.

    However, in Silver City, it looked as if there was an abundance of Masters.

    If all the Masters from these prestigious and powerful families were sent to the front line, the current situation of the Avalon of Five Elements might have been different.

    Ai Hui felt somewhat dejected. The Blood of God was flourishing and full of vitality. On the contrary, the Avalon of Five Elements was riddled with internal strife. All of its precious fighting capabilities were wasted on these internal disputes.

    The disparity between the two parties was clear and distinct.

    As such, how could Ai Hui, an individual who had a deep hatred for the Blood of God, not feel dejected?

    He forced himself to calm down and let out a deep breath. His vision had regained its rity. This time around, what he saw and heard in Silver City had made him greatly disappointed in the Elders Guild. The disappointment reinforced the belief of depending on himself rather than depending on others.

    Right now, he wished he could leave Silver City and return to that small peaceful border city. He wanted to fight and seek sess together with his friends.

    No one knew that Ai Hui thought of so many things in such a short period of time. Even if they knew, would they care about him? From their perspective, Ai Hui was being sour grapes for having such thoughts.

    Now that Fu Huaien had perished, the opponent¡¯s next move would be...

    Without hesitation, Ai Hui dashed toward Madam Ye.

    Before the notebook was found, Madam Ye could not die yet!

    When Ling Yun saw Fu Huaien dissipating into the air, a tinge of respect arose in his heart. However, he still heaved a sigh of relief. Before he arrived, he never expected for Fu Huaien to put up any resistance against him.

    When he scanned the entire area and did not find the old servant of Madam Ye, he felt slightly puzzled. It was no secret among the aristocratic families in Silver City that the old servant was a Master.

    Eh?

    Suddenly, his gazended upon a body on the floor. It belonged to that mysterious olddy. Apparently, she had died.

    Ling Yun was overjoyed. He had not expected for his greatest hindrance to have been killed by someone else!

    "Who are you, viin!? How dare youmit such violent crimes in Silver City!"

    A figure flew toward him with extreme speed. The surging elemental energy within that figure¡¯s thunder-like roar sent a cold shiver down Ling Yun¡¯s spine. If Ling Yun was to engage in a deadlocked battle now, the situation would not be favorable to him. The absolute art he used was going to expire soon. Once the absolute art expired, he would fall into a state of weakness. This state of weakness wouldst for exactly seven days and was the price he had to pay for using the absolute art.

    That figure must be one of Ye Lin¡¯s reinforcements.

    Ling Yun did not have enough time to determine which expert had killed Ye Lin¡¯s old servant. Right now, Ye Lin was at her most vulnerable. A chance like this was extremely rare.

    A killing intent shed across his eyes, and his body suddenly vanished into thin air.

    As for the young fellow who dashed toward Ye Lin, Ling Yun did not care about him at all. His main target was Ye Lin!

    His pale-white palm acted as a sword and carved a mysterious arc in the air in the direction of Madam Ye.

    A dazzling glow emitted from his palm before an awe-inspiring sword glint shot out from his palm and flew toward Madam Ye. The transparent sword glint was like a thin slice of mica. It looked extremely beautiful, but contained a deadly danger within it.

    Ai Hui, who had reached Madam Ye, could sense a piercing killing intent descending from the sky. The killing intent was so strong that his entire body froze.

    An unprecedented sense of danger suddenly erupted in Ai Hui¡¯s heart. He immediately understood that if he could not ward off this attack, today would be his death date.

    He stopped and turned around smoothly with fluid movements. He ced the Silverfold Plum before his body. Three huge Yin and three huge Yang sword rings that were made from six sword gleams slowly swirled around the vertical silvery sword. Mysterious energy waves emitted from the intertwining Yin and Yang sword rings.

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s eyes suddenly became unusually bright, resembling the stars in the night sky. The cold, scarred face unleashed an elegant aura of purity at this moment.

    The descending sword glint collided with three huge Yin and three huge Yang sword rings.

    ng!

    Ai Hui¡¯s hand trembled, causing him to lose control of his sword. He was knocked back three steps before he could stabilize himself. The radiance of the three huge Yin and three huge Yang sword rings dimmed, and they looked as if they would copse at any moment.

    His palms were numb and the qi and blood within his body was vibrating. His ears were ringing loudly, causing him to be temporarily deaf.

    Was this the might of an attack from a Master?

    The joy and excitement he derived from his previous revtions regarding his sword moves had extinguished. He immediately became clear-headed. Ai Hui had richbat experience. He had a clear judgement of the strength disparity between himself and Ling Yun.

    There was no way he could stop Ling Yun.

    He took in a deep breath of air and stabilized the elemental energy within his body. Then, he stretched his numb palms. The Star Reaper Gloves produced waves of warmth. Eventually, his palms regained their flexibility. The advantage of wearing an elemental mask was that it made his facial expression looked as calm andposed as usual.

    Out of the corner of his eye, he saw that Jiu Gui and Prince wereing his way and felt slightly relieved.

    In the sky, Ling Yun could not believe his eyes. The attack that he was so confident in was warded off by his enemy! The ultimate attack that he had used all his strength to unleash was actually warded off by an unknown youngster!

    His base level was so low and his elemental energy was so weak. He could not even bepared to an ordinary Sacrificial Guard. How was this possible...

    He stared nkly at Ai Hui.

    This weak-looking guy was the one that warded off his attack? Those ck-and-white sword rings were what kind of sword move? He had never seen or heard of them before.

    At this point, Ling Yun was engulfed by an intense feeling of frustration. His eyes were lifeless, and his mind was in disarray. He still could not believe that he had just missed such an exceptionally good chance.

    This fellow...

    Ling Yun¡¯s eyes rapidly regained the color of life. As a Sacrificial Guard, he was not someone who would give up easily. He might be very vexed that he had missed such a golden opportunity, but now was not the time for to him to feel regret.

    When things did not go well, one should try his best to escape unscathed. When one could not escape unscathed, he should try his best to conserve his strength.

    He passed down an order to his subordinates.

    Three determined-looking Sacrificial Guards emerged from the crowd. Suddenly, the bodies of these three Sacrificial Guards turned silvery-white, resembling metal men. They flew up into the sky andunched a two-pronged attack against the iing expert.

    "Get lost!"

    A thunder-like roar resounded through the air. The iing expert was as fast as a lightning bolt. He unleashed a burst of firm and powerful fist gleam with a loud rumble.

    The three Sacrificial Guards did not retreat and continued to advance forward. One person directed the silver luster on his body to his fingertip and pointed his finger forward. Another person directed his silver lustre to his right palm and swung his right palm as if it was the de of a sword. Thest person gathered his silver luster in his right fist and punched his fist forward.

    With a loud bang, the powerful whizzing fist gleam from the iing expert exploded.

    "[Sacrificial Strike]!" a yell could be heard from air.

    The three Sacrificial Guards disintegrated to countless silvery crumbs, which fell through the sky like silver snow.

    The [Sacrificial Strike] was most famous killer move of the Sacrificial Guards. The technique was derived from the name of the Sacrificial Guards as well. It was a technique that every Sacrificial Guard had to learn. This technique involved sacrificing one¡¯s life to unleash a terrifyingly powerful attack.

    Many of the Ling Residence¡¯s enemies had died from this move.

    The arriving expert was an imposing middle-aged man. Currently, there was a lingering fear on his face. A hole could be seen in one of his sleeves. If he had not unleashed his previous punch with all his strength, he would have failed in his mission today.

    The Ling Residence¡¯s Sacrificial Guards were truly suicidal warriors. They would throw away their lives without any hesitation. Almost every family was extremely fearful of the Ling Residence¡¯s Sacrificial Guards.

    Soon after, the rest of the Sacrificial Guards disappeared into the darkness like a receding tide.

    This scene had shocked many people. Previously, they still thought that by hugging the Great Elder¡¯s legs, they would not need to worry about the Ling Residence. Now, however, they finally knew how dangerous and frightening the Ling Residence was.

    If they were given a chance to choose again, they might not have the courage to participate in this conflict. Every time two colossi fought, there would be countless corpses beneath their feet.

    However, those who had already boarded the boat had no chance of disembarking from it.

    The arrival of the reinforcements and the retreat of the enemies loosened up everyone¡¯s taut mental state. At this moment, Ai Hui smelled a faintly discernable tinge of a sweet smell.

    His eye pupils suddenly dted. One Thousand Yuan had not left yet!

    She was hiding in the dark!

    A strong feeling of anxiety forced the speed of Ai Hui¡¯s thinking process to increase significantly. Who was her target? Madam Ye? No! If her target was Madam Ye, she would have killed her given that there were so many opportunities for her to do so. Who exactly was her target then?

    She wanted to create internal strife within the Avalon of Five Elements by aggravating the enmity between the Ye Residence and the Ling Residence...

    Ai Hui trembled and dashed forward instantly!

 Chapter 364: Sir, Can You Open The Door First?

    Chapter 364: Sir, Can You Open The Door First?

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X/TYZ

    Just as everyone heaved a sigh of relief and rxed their stressed minds, Ai Hui suddenly pounced forward like a nimble cheetah.

    Ai Hui¡¯s movements were very swift and his sword gleam was even swifter

    In the mid-air, the Silverfold Plum¡¯s sword gleam was like a dazzling silvery lightning bolt, brightly illuminating Xiaobao¡¯s nk face.

    Chu Zhaoyang was going for Xiaobao!

    In an instant, Madam Ye¡¯s face turned deathly pale.

    The middle-aged man who had just arrived to reinforce Madam Ye drastically changed his facial expression. He had not expected such an unforeseen event to happen right under his nose. The sword gleam was too fast. He was caught off guard and could not react in time.

    The illustrious sword gleam outshone the remaining lights in the residence of the Fu Family. It was so bright that it lit up the night sky. Its overpowering sharpness and bone-piercing chilliness momentarily froze everyone.

    Xiaobao was terrified and stood motionless.

    The sword gleam brushed past Xiaobao¡¯s face. A few strands of his hair were shredded to smithereens by the slipstream spiralling around the sword gleam.

    Did the attack... miss?

    Everyone widened their eyes as they did not know what was going on. Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordsmanship was legitimately powerful. There was no reason for him to miss such a short-ranged attack.

    40 centimeters behind Xiaobao, a brightly-colored mini vortex suddenly appeared out of thin air without any warning.

    The sword gleam brushed past Xiaobao¡¯s face and collided heavily against the brightly-colored mini vortex.

    Boom!

    Like a balloon that popped, a crisp and clear sonic boom resounded through the air. The shock wave from the collision erupted in all directions. Xiaobao let out a blood-curdling scream as his body rocketed up into the air.

    The middle-aged man in the sky shed across the air and caught the flying Xiaobao. Following which, hended beside Madam Ye and quickly examined Xiaobao¡¯s body. When he saw that Xiaobao was merely bruised by the shock wave, he felt relieved.

    The middle-aged man was enraged. The person whounched the sneak attack was vile. How dare this person do such a thing under his nose!

    She Yu, who was so confident in her attack, had not expected it to fail!

    Furthermore, the one who warded off her attack was Ai Hui.

    A bitter sigh spiralled in the air like a wisp of smoke.

    "Destined nemesis, destined nemesis..."

    Before the voicepletely disappeared, She Yu had already vanished into thin air. It was as if she had never even been here at all.

    Everyone felt a cold shiver down their spines. The other party was able to appear and disappear unpredictably, and her methods were unforeseeable and unguardable. Even now, they did not know who the other party was.

    "She¡¯s gone," the middle-aged man standing beside Madam Ye said in a deep voice.

    Then, he turned around to face Madam Ye and bowed his head. "Is Madam injured? Yuchi Qingshan has arrivedte!"

    The man had a dignified look on his face and the hair at his temples was snow-white. He was the younger brother of Elder Yuchi Ba, Yuchi Qingshan.

    Back when Yuchi Qingshan was young, he had assumed the position of vice division leader of the Sky Edge Division.

    The current vice division leader of the Sky Edge Division was Yuchi Ba¡¯s adopted son, Tong Gui. Meanwhile, Yu Lin was Yuchi Qingshan¡¯s adopted daughter.

    "Thank you for the assistance, Mr. Qingshan! Otherwise, my son and I would have reunited with my dead husband today," Madam Ye thanked Yuchi Qingshan with a mournful look on her face.

    Yuchi Qingshan had a headache. Initially, he had not wanted to take part in the strife between the Ling Residence and the Ye Residence. If not for the fact that the Sky Edge Division was stationed in Silver City and was responsible for Silver City¡¯s public order, he would not havee. If anything was to happen to Madam Ye in Silver City, the Sky Edge Division would not be let off. Tong Gui and Yu Lin would have been punished as well.

    "I am d you¡¯re safe and sound." Yuchi Qingshan then changed the topic. "The person who just mounted that sneak attack has a weird attacking method and does not emit any elemental energy undtions. He might be a blood elementalist."

    "The incident happened so fast that I couldn¡¯t even clearly see what was going on!" Madam Ye was choked with sobs. "Granny She has been taking care of me since I was a child. Today, she died by the hands of an evil scheme. If it was done by a blood elementalist, there will definitely be leftover traces of blood poison. Can I implore Mr. Qingshan to check if there are any traces of blood poison on the body of Granny She?"

    Yuchi Qingshan was shocked. The old servant who attended Madam Ye had an unfathomable depth of strength. She was just as powerful as him. Even so, she was murdered. With a solemn look on his face, Yuchi Qingshan walked to Granny She¡¯s body and squatted down to examine it. Soon, he nodded his head and said, "There are indeed traces of blood poison!"

    "At the end of day, the fight between the Ling Residence and the Ye Residence is like a mere family tiff. When a family has many members, it is unavoidable to have asional disagreements. After all, we are one big family. Our enmity will eventually be resolved as time goes by. However, why are there blood elementalists among the Ling Residence¡¯s Sacrificial Guards?"

    With tears still flowing down her cheeks, an incredulous look appeared on Madam Ye¡¯s face.

    Immediately, Yuchi Qingshan knew the Ling Residence was in trouble.

    "I am not an ungrateful person. Mr. Qingshan saved my life and I shall never forget it. I will report this incident to the Elders Guild and let them make the decision. When the timees, the Elders Guild might inquire Mr. Qingshan about this incident. I¡¯m sorry for troubling Mr. Qingshan."

    Madam Ye bowed respectfully to Yuchi Qingshan.

    Yuchi Qinghshan quickly returned a bow and replied, "Madam, you¡¯re being too courteous. When the Elders Guild inquires me about this incident, I will speak and report truthfully."

    The Ling Residence had already lost this battle. Having blood elementalists among their Sacrificial Guards was something that the Elders Guild could not tolerate. The Elders Guild could tolerate the Ling Residence¡¯s collusion with Dai Gang, but definitely could not ept their collusion with the Blood of God.

    Yuchi Qingshan could anticipate that a gigantic storm was going to break out in Silver City. The seats in the Elders Guild would face great changes as well. He was thinking that he needed to immediately discuss this issue with his elder brother. It might be an opportunity for them.

    The Elders might be very divisive on other issues, but all of them were unanimous in their attitudes toward the Blood of God.

    They would never ever tolerate or appease the Blood of God!

    Yuchi Qingshan shifted his gaze to Ai Hui and asked curiously, "Sir, your swordsmanship is indeed terrifying. May I know your distinguished name?"

    Filled with gratitude, Madam Ye introduced Ai Hui. "Mr. Chu Zhaoyang is my family¡¯s swordy teacher. Even though he is not particrly famous, his swordsmanship is superb. If Zhaoyang was not present today, I¡¯m afraid that Xiaobao and I would have..."

    "So you¡¯re the Silverwheel Swordsman, Mr. Chu Zhaoyang!" Yuchi Qingshan nodded his head respectfully. "Tong Kui and Yu Lin told me how outstanding Lightning de Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship was when they were in Peace City. Today, after witnessing Mr. Chu¡¯s swordsmanship, I have to say yours is far better than Lightning de Ai Hui¡¯s."

    Initially, when Ai Hui heard Yuchi Qingshan mentioning his name, his heart thumped with anticipation. However, when he heard Yuchi Qingshan¡¯sst few words, he did not know whether tough or cry. Still, he regained hisposure and cupped his hands in obeisance. "Thank you for your praises. My chief from the Karakorum Sword League is the one with the truly extraordinary and godly swordsmanship."

    "The Karakorum Savant¡¯s swordsmanship ushers in a new era and is unequalled in her time!" Yuchi Qingshan showed a deep veneration for the Karakorum Savant.

    Masters were usually well-respected and revered. However, the first Master in any field alwaysmanded an incalcbly greater degree of respect and reverencepared to ordinary Masters. Even though the Karakorum Savant had just stepped into the realm of Master, she had already be a well-known individual. Her reputation far exceeded any ordinary Master¡¯s.

    The anguish and suffering that a pioneer had to undergo qualified him or her to enjoy these fruits of sess.

    When the Sky Edge Division¡¯s elites arrived, everyone finally felt at ease. Under the protection of Sky Edge Division¡¯s elites, Madam Ye and her entourage returned to the Ye Residence. Tong Gui and Yu Lin were part of the the protection team as well. The fact that they did not recognize Ai Hui made him felt at ease.

    Fu Sisi rejected Madam Ye¡¯s invitation to follow her back to the Ye Residence.

    "Before my father passed away, his final words are for Sisi to be the head of the Fu Family. Now that my home has been half destroyed and every member of my Fu Family is feeling anxious and fearful, how can I, the symbol and leader of the family, abandon them and enjoy the luxury of peace and safety alone? Without the Fu Family, there would be no Fu Sisi. Sisi has to take up the responsibility of a family head and repay my family for raising me!"

    Ai Hui looked at the red-eyed Fu Sisi, whose face was filled with stubbornness, in surprise. Even though this woman was practical and shrewd, she was a responsible individual.

    Madam Ye touched Fu Sisi¡¯s hair and nodded her head. "Having such will and responsibility shows that your father¡¯s effort in grooming you was not in vain. Don¡¯t worry, Aunt Ye has seen with my own eyes what your father did. The Fu Family will not be destroyed. The Fu Family will only be more prosperous. This is Aunt Ye¡¯s promise to the Fu Family."

    Fu Sisi could no longer restrain her emotions, threw herself into Madam Ye¡¯s arms, and started wailing in anguish.

    Madam Fu requested for Yuchi Qingshan to deploy an elite unit from the Sky Edge Division to safeguard the Fu Family for two days. Naturally, Yuchi Qingshan immediately agreed to this costless favor.

    Under the protection of the Sky Edge Division¡¯s elite unit, Madam Ye and her retinue returned to the Ye Residence that very night. At this point in time, the experts that the Great Elder deployed had reached the Ye Residence as well. Finally, everyone felt relieved.

    Everyone had a mournful look on their face. They had been through the most frightening day of their lives.

    The battle between two top-notch aristocratic families was brutal and cruel.

    More than half of Su Huaijun¡¯s peers had died.

    The good news was that Madam Ye had announced that all of them had obtained the qualifications to join Master¡¯s Glory. Every one of them would be rewarded as well. Su Huaijun, who had performed outstandingly during the battle, had received a wood elemental elixir and an absolute art. These two rewards caused everyone to turn green with envy.

    After the Jadeite Forest dered their independence, the prices of wood elemental materials and ingredients had skyrocketed. A wood elemental treasure like the wood elemental elixir could not even be found on the market. Only the powerful and influential aristocratic families possessed them.

    Madam Ye was even more generous toward Ai Hui, who had saved her and Xiaobao.

    Three metal elemental elixirs, 10,000 Heaven Merit Points, and one treasure that Ai Hui could freely choose from the Ye Residence¡¯s treasury. Ai Hui was also allowed to read any swordy manuals and encyclopedias that the Ye Residence owned.

    An unexpected windfall!

    Madam Ye¡¯s generosity almost caused Ai Hui to faint.

    By now, he knew that he had underestimated these aristocratic families. Initially, when he first saw the in and old-fashioned Ye Residence, he had thought that maybe they were a slightly poorer aristocratic family.

    Poor?

    When the butler led Ai Hui to the Ye Residence¡¯s treasury, he realized how naive and ignorant he had been.

    "Our treasury was built five years after the Avalon of Five Elements was established. It took three years to be built. The first family head was a swordsman, so he kept many flying swords and swordy encyclopedias. The subsequent family heads had different preferences, so the treasures in the treasury begin to increase in variety. Every family head has to abide by a traditional custom set by the first family head: no more than 10 artifacts can be put in the treasury during his or her lifetime. One must know that a family head of the Ye Residence is well-respected and highly revered. The treasures he or she hase across in his or her lifetime are countless. As such, it is extremely hard for a family head to choose 10 treasures to put into the treasury!"

    The butler grieved andmented as he shook his head. He looked as if the treasury had missed out on so many treasures because of this custom.

    Ai Hui could hear one underlying message in the butler¡¯s words. unting your wealth! tantly unting your wealth!

    "However, a custom will always be a custom. What can one do about it? This means a family head can only choose the best, the most expensive, and the most precious treasures to be stored in the treasury! Every family head regards the limit of 10 treasures as their ultimate goal. Each of them does not want to lose out to his or her predecessor. Anything that goes inside the Ye Residence¡¯s treasury is definitely a treasure and is the best treasure."

    You are so good! Continue to show off!

    "The custom has been continued for a millenia. Throughout the history of the Ye Residence, other than the seven family heads who encountered unexpected cmities, the rest have seeded in the goal of selecting ten treasures for the treasury. Their treasures are on full disy in the treasury. Throughout the history of the Ye Residence, you¡¯re the thirteenth guest to enter the treasury."

    A fancy-style of unting your wealth!

    Continue to show off if you are capable of doing so! I want to see how far you can go!

    "Out of the previous twelve guests, five have assumed the position of the Great Elder before, four were Grandmasters, and the remaining three were illustrious individuals. Some of them were revered by the world and had countless disciple, some were so fearsome that they could contend against the Elders Guild for years, some were so shrewd that they could dominate the Avalon of Five Elements with words alone, and others were so smart and evil that they could manipte the Elders Guild from behind the scenes."

    Lou Lan once asked me why my eyes were glittering. I told him there was someone unting his wealth to me.

    "You¡¯re the thirteenth guest to enter the treasury, so you¡¯re destined to be an extraordinary individual in the future."

    Standing at the doorstep of the treasury, the butler¡¯s face brimmed with sincerity and solemness.

    Suddenly, a thought shed across Ai Hui¡¯s mind. He had taken on the responsibility of caring for everyone in the world. He was a being that descended from the sky to save the world!

    Even Ai Hui, who was a shameless individual, had been defeated by such a high level of unting.

    "Sir, can you open the door first?"

 Chapter 365: Treasury

    Chapter 365: Treasury

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    The Ye Residence¡¯s treasury had neither golden floor tiles nor exquisite crystals. There was no magnificent and ornate velvet. The treasury¡¯s design was simple and generous and its green-tiled wooden shelves were uneven. The soft light allowed observers to admire the exceptional pieces from all angles.

    Standing inside the treasury, Ai Hui was in awe.

    Ai Hui finally understood the meaning behind "millennium family." The treasury wasn¡¯t big. It was more like a small storehouse with roughly five to six hundred wooden racks. If it was a storehouse, it would be the world¡¯s most valuable storehouse.

    Each treasure emitted a pure and gentle radiance. Multi-colored rays intertwined and reflected off the walls, brightening up the whole treasury.

    The ordinary looking shelves were, in fact, used to seal up prohibited treasures. If not for these shelves, the elemental energy waves released by the treasures would mix together, causing the whole house to shatter into pieces.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze regained its brightness as he inhaled deeply, calming his inner agitation.

    The butler did not expect Ai Hui to regain his senses so quickly and was rather surprised. The Ye Residence¡¯s butler position wasn¡¯t like its counterpart in other residences. It was strictly an inherited status. The butler¡¯s son would start learning the ropes from his father at the age of ten. When the butler turned old, the son would be in his prime and take over his father¡¯s role as the new butler. After nurturing and educating them from a young age, these sons were most definitely loyal to the Ye Residence.

    The butler was one of the dearest and most reliable members of the family and was trusted with a lot of confidential information.

    In the butlers¡¯ historical records, each guest tour had been observed and noted down, wherein valuable guests were all depicted as being dumbstruck and bedazzled upon entering the treasury. Some were even in a daze for more than five minutes. It must be said that these guests had all been outstanding fighters and held great power and influence. The Ye treasury was evidently amazing for causing them to temporarily lose their souls.

    Generations of butlers enjoyed seeing these powerful figures¡¯ nk faces. It made them feel proud and honored.

    Yet, Chu Zhaoyang had managed to regain his senses after a mere 22 seconds.

    This surprised and displeased the butler. A guest had finally arrived and he was naturally going to record and note down his time for future generations to read. Thinking about how his guest was stunned for only 22 seconds made him somewhat unhappy. This 22 seconds wasn¡¯t the shortest time, but it was within the top three.

    He asked with a straight face, in a respectful tone, "Mister Zhaoyang, do you need a few introductions?"

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s status in the Ye Residence was constantly on the rise. He had saved Madam and the young master¡¯s lives, so even if he had a bad name and was evil, the Ye Residence would still regard him as a VIP.

    People started calling him ¡®Mister Zhaoyang¡¯ instead of ¡®Teacher Chu.¡¯

    Ai Hui never would have thought that the butler would care about how long he had been stunned. He shook his head. "It¡¯s alright, I¡¯ll look around myself."

    Quickly, he noticed quite a few empty frames and asked out of curiosity, "Why are these unupied?"

    The butler exined, "Some were given away while others are being used by the previous family head. The first family head once said that no matter how good a treasure is, it is useless if not used. It is good to like and cherish treasures, but using them when necessary is a bliss for the future generations. Apart from the first family head, there have been no more Grandmasters. Because sessive family heads enjoyed making friends, treated people with passion, and were generous and fair, the residence has managed to expand until today."

    Ai Hui praised, "Mister Huitang is great. The residence is great."

    The Ye Residence¡¯s first family head, Ye Huitang, was also thest swordsman. Not only was he strong, he also knew his way around life and theter generations did not disappoint.

    The ancestors were well-celebrated while the descendants were humble and kept a low-profile. Sessive family heads were good atworking, straightforward, fair, kind, and charitable.

    For a family with such a rich history, there must be something unique about it.

    The power the Ye Residence was able to utilize was greater than appearances led one to believe.

    The butler smiled slightly. "Madam would like to have you select anything from the treasury. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask me. I have been managing this treasury, so I am familiar with every single item. Of course, I would like to seek your cooperation in preventing thieves, and ask that you do not divulge any of this information."

    Ai Hui nodded. "I understand."

    The treasures in the case emitted different types of light. Although still separated by the seal, Ai Hui could nevertheless feel how frightening the faint elemental energy waves were. Items that could be called treasures were either retrieved from the Wilderness or were formed from special elemental energy, and they usually carried a rich, surging elemental energy. This was also the reason why they were called treasures. Just like the treasures from the Cultivation Era, they were usually filled with spiritual force.

    On the contrary, there were few treasures without many elemental energy waves. These treasures were inherently unique. Some had special characteristics, like a blue wisp of me that Ai Hui noticed. There was a clear shadow flickering within the me. This blue wisp did not have any elemental energy waves, but it made Ai Hui¡¯s hair stand on end.

    He couldn¡¯t help but inquire, "What me is that?"

    The butler looked at it before answering, "Blue Soul Fire. Legend has it that a human soul is trapped within it. It is a piece that belongs to the seventh family head, who found it among historic relics when he was out exploring the world at a young age. The sessive family heads became really interested in it, but no one has managed to unfold its secrets."

    Ai Hui felt that the figure inside the me was watching him, and while he was a gutsy person, it sent a chill through his bones.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui stopped in front of a big tree and asked in shock, "Is this... a

    message tree?"

    It seemed as though the butler was very pleased by Ai Hui¡¯s surprised look. He replied in a mild manner, "Yes, this is a message tree. To be precise, it is the first message tree."

    Ai Hui opened his eyes wide. "The first?"

    "Yes!" The butler tried to soundposed but his pride couldn¡¯t be concealed. "Its advent greatly changed the avalon while also significantly altering our lifestyles. The family head at that time saw the revolutioning, so he spent a huge fortune to purchase it. While its practical value isn¡¯t as high as other treasures, it has witnessed the change of an era, and so is extremely precious."

    Ai Hui stared nkly at the message tree. His heart swelled with the realization that this message tree was exactly the same as the one he¡¯d taken away from Vanguard Training Hall.

    Pride quickly turned into relief, as it was apparent that Madam Ye and the Assembly of Patriarchs shared a deep rtionship. ording to the Ye Residence¡¯s style of handling affairs, it wasn¡¯t at all strange that she had such a good rtionship with the assembly. It was even possible that this tree was brought over from the assembly.

    Perhaps the elementalist who had invented this tree was from the assembly?

    The Assembly seemed to hold more power than he¡¯d thought.

    The butler was unaware of the many thoughts that were running through Ai Hui¡¯s mind, but seeing his astonished face pleased him very much.

    Such ¡®one and only¡¯ treasures like the first message tree were not things money could buy. This was a real disy of a family¡¯s influence.

    "Your residence is really terrific."

    Mister Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s praise and admiration fed the butler¡¯s pride and joy.

    Ai Hui continued walking forward and quickly realized that many of the swords were rusty and difficult to use.

    Noticing this, the butler exined, "These swords are mostly treasures from the first family head¡¯s generation. Seven of out ten treasures are swords. Some are still spiritual in nature, while others were once well-known. When elemental energy was first created, these swords contained spiritual force, but as generations passed, thest bit of spiritual force dissipated, leaving these swords rusty and obsolete. Because the first family head really adored these items, they have been kept all this while."

    Ai Hui was fascinated.

    Being good at discerning thoughts from bodynguage, the butler added, "I do not rmend that you choose a sword. The swords from the cultivation era are mostly unusable. Swordsmanship has resurfaced these two years, so the contemporary master craftsmen are only just starting to attempt building treasure swords. Treasure swords from the past, no matter their significant history or how exquisite they are, are of no practical use in battles."

    Ai Hui was slightly disappointed, but very grateful. "Thank you!"

    What the butler said made a lot of sense.

    Swordsmanship had declined over a long period of time and sword users were pathetically few in number. So far, no famous swords had been created by famous craftsmen either.

    Finishing his words, the butler gave Ai Hui time to look around.

    To any individual, choosing a treasure from such a dazzling line up was extremely challenging. Each treasure had its own appeal and many contained intense elemental energy waves. Separated by the seal, Ai Hui could still feel the sharp consciousness of the elemental energy waves, as though they were about to pierce through the seal.

    A few times, Ai Hui palpitated with eagerness. Some ingredients were extremely valuable. If he could find a skilled workman to fashion a sword out of them, it would definitely be an exceptional sword.

    Ai Hui forced himself to hold back. He decided that no matter what he saw, he would first tour the whole treasury before making a decision.

    The butler nodded as he observed Ai Hui. Chu Zhaoyang was a man of extreme willpower. Each treasure was shockingly enticing and some could even aid elementalists to enter a higher realm. Few had been able to browse the whole gallery before selecting something.

    Madam had initiated this tour not only to repay his kindness for saving her life, but also to build a good rapport with him. The Ye Residence often used this method to ensure its continued existence.

    Madam made such a decision because she really looked favorably upon Chu Zhaoyang. Experience had taught sessive generations that they must not be petty when investing in a talented individual. They would reap exponential benefits if they invested at the right time, when the talent was still nameless.

    The butler did not know if Chu Zhaoyang had good prospects, but greatly admired his determination.

    Ai Hui stopped in his tracks.

 Chapter 366: Selection

    Chapter 366: Selection

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Mister Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s sudden halt attracted the butler¡¯s attention.

    The butler was very curious as to which treasure Mister Chu would pick. Although each and every item in the treasury was rare, they had their own merits and drawbacks. Each family head had different financial circumstances and luck, so the items they had collected were also different.

    The butler, who was in charge of managing the treasure, knew every treasure inside out, but if Chu Zhaoyang did not ask him, he would not mention it.

    He knew very well that people like Chu Zhaoyang had their own views, and if he were to question them, it was best not to insinuate anything.

    Madam must have other reasons for taking such a big gamble, so it was wiser for him to observe more by himself.

    When faced with many choices, a person¡¯s final decision often said a lot about his or her personality. Especially when the choices were so expensive, personality traits often became magnified.

    What would he choose?

    The butler narrowed his eyes, his inquiring and deep gaze falling upon the figure that came to a halt.

    It appeared that Chu Zhaoyang had finally found his target, or something must have attracted his attention.

    Eh?

    The butler quickly realized that things were not as they seemed, because Chu Zhaoyang started looking everywhere, as if in search of something.

    Indeed, Ai Hui was searching.

    Earlier, the bandage that Ai Hui hadpletely forgotten about had reacted. It was a gift from Mistress and its history had always been a mystery. Until now, it had saved his life many times. Previously, it had revealed a tendency to devour blood, but following the emergence of the blood eye pattern, the bandage started to lose interest in blood.

    It was as if it had fallen into a deep slumber, with no signs of movements.

    It was still resistant to injuries. Ai Hui had tried to destroy it using all sorts of methods, but to no avail. He had no idea how Mistress had been able to break it into two. Because it was such an outstanding protective gear, Ai Hui kept it on him as thestyer of defense. It had been extremely functional.

    Naturally, Ai Hui was beyond shocked when the bandage that had been lying dormant for a long time started to show signs of life.

    He kept a straight face, but was already in search of the treasure that had triggered the bandage¡¯s response. Ai Hui was very curious about the item that could provoke a reaction from it. Could it be an item that had been blood-refined?

    Ai Hui saw the bandage as being extremely inhospitable. It even was particr about the quality of blood that it consumed. It had no interest in ordinary blood.

    Looking around, the glittery lights had him feeling dizzy.

    The bandage was still.

    Had he imagined it?

    Ai Hui tried taking two steps forward and the bandage moved a little.

    Ai Hui was startled. The first time might have been a mistake, but if it happened a second time, it couldn¡¯t be a coincidence. There must be something that the bandage was interested in within the treasury.

    Feeling the butler¡¯s gaze on him, Ai Hui slowed down his pace, pretending to browse through the treasures in front of him.

    The butler felt somewhat suspicious. He¡¯d thought that Mister Chu Zhaoyang had already set his eyes on something, when in fact, he¡¯d just been looking around.

    He followed behind Mister Chu Zhaoyang patiently. The chance to admire the Ye Residence¡¯s rich collection was hard toe by. There had been guests who really took their time to appreciate every single item in the treasury from start to finish.

    Ai Hui continued pretending, stopping every two steps to admire the items. He would ask about items he wasn¡¯t familiar with and the butler would answer ordingly and in great detail.

    Even as the bandage¡¯s reaction grew stronger, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but drool upon seeing all these treasures. Each was matchless in preciousness and rarity, having been made from the best materials by the greatest Masters. Any randomly selected item would cause a sensation when taken outside.

    Seeing the passion in Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s eyes, the butler felt proud and pleased. He¡¯d long guessed that this selection process would take quite some time. If given such a rare opportunity, he too would make use of it to the fullest. It would be an extreme waste if he were to pick the wrong item since there would never be a second chance.

    Alright, the bandage¡¯s reaction is weakening. Wrong direction.

    Ai Hui pretended to be attracted by another treasure and switched paths. He finally found the right direction after a few consecutive switches.

    Now, the bandage wound around Ai Hui¡¯s body was moving slowly, like a snake.

    Its reaction was getting stronger.

    Ai Hui avoided looking urgent. He kept a calm face and continued appreciating the treasures along the way and asking rted questions. The thirst in his eyes, however, was genuine.

    Just like that, Ai Hui and the butler passed case after case before stopping at the deepest section of the treasury.

    Seeing Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s gaze fall upon the shelves in the furthest corner, the butler spoke up. "This is the first family head¡¯s collection. They¡¯re mostly swords, but are basically useless now."

    He thought that Mister Chu Zhaoyang had his eyes on these swords. He was a swordsman after all, so it shouldn¡¯t be surprising, but as he¡¯d mentioned, these rusty treasure swords were only good for being put on disy for future generations to admire.

    Mister Chu Zhaoyang diverted his gaze away from the swords somewhat regretfully.

    It must be said that the first family head was thest, pure swordsman and he was extremely picky when it came to selecting swords. These ancient swords were obsolete now, but one could vaguely see the brilliance they had possessed in the past. Some carried an indescribable sombreness that made it torturous for the butler to clean.

    Suddenly, Mister Chu Zhaoyang pointed at a stone statue beside an ancient sword. "What is its origin?"

    The statue looked very ordinary and was carved from a whole piece of granite. The sculpting was simple and raw, as if the statue had been chopped out using a big axe. Its face was blurry and looked like a semi-finished product.

    Yet, this crude looking statue had an inexpressible, implicit charm that observers couldn¡¯t turn their eyes away from.

    Ai Hui felt strange the moment his eyesnded on it. He had a strong willpower and even practiced [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp], so he wasn¡¯t someone who could be enticed easily. Despite this, his gaze and state of mind were still focused on this stone statue.

    The butler retracted his gaze immediately. "This stone statue was obtained by the first family head in his early years, by chance. It isn¡¯t clear whether or not someone carved it out. It is an antique from the Cultivation Era. It has no name, but the first family head said that with its heavenly charm, it must be extraordinary and should be kept in the treasury."

    The bandage¡¯s reaction toward the statue was exceptionally intense, as if it wanted to pounce on it.

    The statue did not seem to be blood-refined, so Ai Hui felt suspicious as to why the bandage was responding so strongly to it.

    There must be something strange about the stone statue!

    On second thought, if the statue wasn¡¯t at all magical, would Ye Huitang have ced it in the treasury?

    Without hesitation, Ai Hui pointed to it and said, "I choose this."

    Giving Mister Chu Zhaoyang a look, it seemed that the butler wanted to say something, but decided against it.

    Upon seeing that, Ai Hui asked, "Is it not possible?"

    "Not that. Madam has already instructed that you can select any item." The butler shook his head. "This stone statue, seemingly a gift from heaven, has been in the treasury for the longest time. The first family head would often be immersed in studying it, and sessive family heads too, wanted to unlock the secret within it. Much time and energy had been employed, but there hasn¡¯t been any result so far."

    "Thanks for your guidance." Ai Hui cupped his hands and offered his thanks before continuing, "I¡¯ll choose it then. Out of so many treasures, this caught my eyes the most. With Madam¡¯s elemental elixirs, my base level isn¡¯t a matter of concern. There are countless gems in this treasury, but no suitable sword. After some thought, I feel that this treasure is pretty decent. If lucky, I might even be able to unravel the marvels within?"

    The butler felt that Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s exnation made some sense, other than the part about unraveling the statue¡¯s marvels. Had there been any unintelligent family head in the whole of the Ye Residence¡¯s history? Sessive family heads had failed to unravel its secrets, so how was it going to be an easy task?

    Of course, he had to be civil about it. "With your wisdom, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be able to unlock its mystery. Please do enlighten your humble servant when that happens. The secret of the stone statue has been torturing generation after generation."

    Ai Huiughed. "Haha, thanks. I will!"

    The butler ced his palm on the case and engaged his elemental energy. A light shed and the seal¡¯s glow disappeared.

    Ai Hui could tell that these seals were extremely borate. It wasn¡¯t going to be easy for intruders to break them. Ai Hui had also long noticed that the materials used to build this treasury were special and had a restraining and suppressing effect against elemental energy.

    Situated in Silver City, which housed many experts and Masters, it could be said that the Ye Residence¡¯s defense was very solid. Even capable intruders would find it impossible to infiltrate without a soul knowing. If they moved too tantly, they would attract city guards, powerful fighters, and even the Elders training deep within the Silver Mist Sea.

    The bandage quieted down immediately when Ai Hui took possession of the stone statue, but Ai Hui could still feel the restlessness and desire beneath its calm state.

    The stone statue was about two feet tall and because it was made from ordinary granite, Ai Hui felt its weight to be as light as air. Like jade and unlike granite, it was cool to the touch, but no matter how Ai Hui looked at it, it was most definitely an ordinary piece of granite. He couldn¡¯t help but click his tongue in wonder.

    The butler smiled as he watched Mister Chu Zhaoyang tossing and turning it around.

    "Do you still want to look around?"

    "It¡¯s alright! Since I¡¯ve already made my choice, I shall stop to spare myself the heartache!"

    "Hahaha, you¡¯re right!"

    .....

    Study room.

    Madam Ye asked in interest, "What did he pick?"

    The butler answered respectfully, "The nameless stone statue left by first family head."

    "Stone statue?" Madam Ye asked in shock. She¡¯d thought of many treasures that Chu Zhaoyang might have picked, but not once did she imagine that he would actually select that obscure stone statue.

    The butler repeated Ai Hui¡¯s exnation for his choice to Madam Ye, word for word.

    Madam Ye looked much more rxed now, but instructed nevertheless, "Pay more attention."

    The butler retreated knowingly.

 Chapter 367: Stone Statue

    Chapter 367: Stone Statue

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Carrying the statue back to the bamboo garden, Ai Hui closed the door before cing it on his table. Like a snake, the impatient bandage charged forward and coiled itself around the stone statue.

    Ai Hui almost let out augh; the stone statue looked like a silly, lifeless mummy. Its heavenly charm was all gone.

    Perhaps there was something powerful hidden within the statue?

    Ai Hui was very curious. Of course, he already knew the power of the bandage, but for the family heads of the Ye Residence to have been stumped over the statue for so many years, it most definitely wasn¡¯t a simple object.

    Ai Hui dared not look down on aristocratic families at all. Their umted power was shockingly deep, be it in terms of riches, treasures, or even their grasp of elemental energy.

    The construction of the treasury and the method of sealing the cases were things he¡¯d never seen before.

    Perhaps the family had no outstanding representatives, but their hard work contributed to the session of each generation for hundreds and thousands of years. Along the way, their umted experiences were intimidatingly profound and and extensive.

    Aristocratic families were the people standing at the peak of the Elemental Era.

    The bandage had actually responded to a secret these people weren¡¯t able to unravel. How exciting!

    Eh?

    Ai Hui suddenly stood up straight, his eyes glowing.

    The face of the stone statue was starting to melt.

    A change was urring!

    Ai Hui became very agitated, but calmed himself down quickly. Pricking up his ears and listening, the coast was clear. The stone statue had no elemental energy waves. It was like a candle that, upon heating, melted gradually.

    Ai Hui stared intently at that statue. It most definitely was ordinary granite, he¡¯d checked carefully!

    Had his eyes deceived him?

    As the statue¡¯s face melted, its coarse lines smoothed out and its uneven face softened significantly. The blurred facial features became more distinct.

    Seeing the face of the statue bing delicate and refined, that faint heavenly charm became more intense. Ai Hui waspletely captivated, as if the stone status was a gaze-swallowing whirlpool. Ai Hui stared nkly at it, unable to turn his eyes away.

    The stone statue in his vision started to turn blurry.

    The world turned hazy as the sky merged with the ocean. He saw an unending chain of massive mountains, steep and majestic. The ancient trees reached high up into the sky, the fields were vast, and all kinds of unusual beasts were running and flying around.

    Ai Hui guaranteed that he¡¯d never seen any of these unusual beasts. Having stayed in the Wilderness for such a long time, he could be considered an expert when it came to recognizing most of the wild and dire beasts. These unusual beasts were even more primitive and barbarous, definitely foreign to him.

    Scanning across the towering mountains and precipitous ridges, his gazended on a small valley.

    From what he saw, Ai Hui reckoned this valley¡¯s terrain was very suitable for outdoor camping.

    There was a meandering brook, its stream small so flooding wasn¡¯t a concern. The mountains on both sides served as partitions. They were steep and made of granite. The valley was wide, yet its mouth was extremely narrow, making it a ce that was easy to guard and difficult for intruders to attack.

    There was a fence made of thick, solid logs at the valley mouth. What use could such a crude defensive measure have? Ai Hui couldn¡¯t wrap his head around it. Inside, there was a tent made of animal skin and cogon grass, and within it were people lighting a fire for cooking and skinning the wild beasts. It was a rather lively scene.

    Savage tribe?

    Ai Hui seemed to have thought of something.

    Observing for a little while, Ai Hui felt that the savages had tedious lives. They were uncivilized and appeared quite ignorant. When Ai Hui and gang were in the Wilderness, their lives had been arduous too, butpared to these savages, they were much better off.

    Some timeter, the tribal chief took out a sheet of animal skin and drew a rough human figure on it with charcoal and beast blood.

    His strokes were very crude. Saying that it was a human figure was partially a guess.

    The animal skin painting was propped up by a tree branch and stones were piled up to form a simple sacrificial table. The chief butchered a wild beast, ced it on the table as an offering, and led the worshipping process as everyone started kowtowing.

    Years passed and the chief kept changing. The clothes worn by tribe members underwent developments too, from the initial animal skin to sackcloth. The drawings on the animal skin gradually became clearer and started to carry a unique, heavenly charm.

    Heavenly charm?

    Ai Hui reacted suddenly. Could it be...

    He took a closer look at the human figure on the animal skin and found that it was indeed simr to the stone statue.

    With changes to the animal skin, the tribesmen became increasingly pious and offered sacrifices more regrly. As the offerings grew, the human figure on the skin became more exquisite and lifelike.

    The tribe, having been through years of campaign, was now influential and powerful. City walls were built and he overlooked them all.

    Enemies infiltrated into the sacrificial hall and burned the animal skin.

    The chief transmitted an order, seeking treasures from respective cities in order to create and refine a demonic god portrait. Gathering treasures, reputable priests, painters, and warlocks from all over into the hall, after twenty-two years of blood, sweat, and tears, a new demonic god portrait was finallypleted.

    Campaigns against enemies and for power began abruptly as well.

    In the span of sixty years, countless captives were detained and offered as sacrifices.

    The heavenly charm of the demonic god portrait intensified, making it terrifying to look at.

    More years passed as the tribe rose and fell, prospered and fell into decline. However, that portrait remained undamaged. It was always as good as new and sacrifices were constantly being offered to it.

    On a windy, rainy night, a lightning bolt from outside the windows illuminated the dark, spacious sacrificial hall and also that portrait that hung down from the wall.

    The demonic god¡¯s eyes moved and a smile surfaced on the corner of its mouth. This smile carried an evil energy, making its gentle face appear increasingly flirtatious and enticing.

    Suddenly, a leg extended out from the portrait.

    The demonic god had actuallye alive. He moved his body, seemingly interested in all that was going on. All of a sudden, as if he sensed something, he raised his head and looked in Ai Hui¡¯s direction.

    Seeing the demonic god¡¯s eyes momentarily disrupted Ai Hui¡¯s line of thought.

    Just then, the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp sensed danger and abruptly started operating, allowing Ai Hui to regain a trace of rity. He tried with all his might to shut his eyes and block off his vision.

    Hu... hu...

    His rough breaths were like moving bellows, causing Ai Hui to sweat profusely. That moment of struggle had practically exhausted all his strength.

    He calmed down five minutester, but not without some lingering fear. He¡¯d always thought himself to be firm and invulnerable to evil disturbances, especially after training his Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp. He could remain unmoved even when facing One Thousand Yuan.

    Just then, however, his mental state had beenpletely out of his control. He couldn¡¯t think at all. If not for themp, he wouldn¡¯t have even been able to shut his eyes.

    It was Ai Hui¡¯s first time experiencing something so strange, terrifying, and dangerous.

    Unlike realbat, psychic attacks couldn¡¯t be warned against. Any slight inattentiveness would lead to an attack, causing one¡¯s body to lose all control. The mind would not be able to overpower the body to execute even the most basic resistance. The victim would bepletely at the enemies¡¯ disposal.

    He never wanted to experience this ever again.

    Demonic god...

    Shortly after, Ai Hui¡¯s body tensed up as the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp circted unsteadily. He gathered all his focus so that whenever something felt amiss, he would shut his eyes again.

    He slitted his eyes and looked outside.

    Ah!

    He saw a stone statue.

    Where was the sacrificial hall? Demonic god?

    Ai Hui was stunned. Had he been dreaming? Those scenes he¡¯d just witnessed were too vivid. It felt as though he¡¯d lived thousands of years alongside the tribe and demonic god.

    But at this moment, he was still in his room.

    Fantasy? Possibly!

    But such a lifelike fantasy...

    Ai Hui looked at the time and realized that not even half an hour had passed.

    How mystical. That dreamlike sequence had simply been too real and he could still recall all the fine details. The mirage bean pods sold in markets couldn¡¯t bepared to what he¡¯d just seen.

    He felt somewhat regretful, but also relieved. The scene in which the demonic god had walked out of the portrait left a deep impression on him; he still had some lingering fear.

    His gaze fell upon the stone statue and his pupils suddenly shrank.

    The stone statue on the table looked exactly like the demonic god!

    Ai Hui remembered the demonic god¡¯s appearance clearly, there was no mistake. The statue was, at this moment, no longer that crude piece of stone but extremely refined and lifelike.

    It had a graceful figure, its waist appearing weak and delicate and its upper body masculine. It had an androgynous face with a soft outline, but a masculine nose and lips. Its eyes were cold, but the outer corners curved out beautifully.

    It was Ai Hui¡¯s first time seeing such androgynous and conflicting features that somehow managed to fit nicely together, leaving a deep impression on him.

    Exactly the same!

    Was that vision the demonic god stone statue¡¯s doing?

    It was possible!

    Was that the origin of this stone statue? Ai Hui was quite convinced since there was no other possible exnation.

    He never imagined that there would be such a story behind the stone statue. Ai Hui clicked his tongue in wonder and looked all over the statue.

    The statue was now exquisite and lifelike, but its heavenly charm was gone. It looked like an ordinary stone statue.

    So, the heavenly charm had contained the statue¡¯s history, Ai Hui suddenly realized.

    No matter how he looked at it, however, the demonic god statue was still just the demonic god statue and the granite was still the granite. There were no changes. Had he just spent so much effort just to get a fine stone statue?

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t know whether tough or cry.

    What he saw next, on his bandage, shocked him.

    Its blood eye was gone; it had regained its previous white color and was now empty.

    Seeing the two snow-white bandages on the table, a thought came to him as he unfolded them andid them t, then pieced them together. He remembered that they were originally one piece when he¡¯d first seen them.

    When ced alongside each other, the middle sections started to fuse together, forming a piece of white cloth.

    This was actually possible?!

    Ai Hui opened his eyes wide as he¡¯d never thought they could be welded together.

    Wait a minute!

    Ai Hui¡¯s body stiffened. He stared nkly at the white cloth on the table as an image of the demonic god portrait hanging in the sacrificial hall emerged in his mind.

    After the demonic god walked out of the portrait, it became a sheet of white, and its size... was approximately the same size as the white cloth in front of him.

    The bandage... was the canvas of the demonic god¡¯s portrait?

 Chapter 368: Rumors

    Chapter 368: Rumors

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Silver City was in an unstable state.

    Madam Ye and son were almost murdered, causing the Great Elder, who often concealed his feelings, to fly into a rage. Evidence of the Ling Residence colluding with blood elementalists pushed them into a passive state. Ling Residence denied it tly, but the development of affairs went against their favor.

    "Are you guys just going to sit and wait for death?"

    The person who spoke wore a ck cloak that covered his whole body. His voice was stiff and monotonous, awkward for the listeners.

    Ling Sheng red at the other party. Ling Xiao had just woken up and his face was pale. Although he had lost an arm and lost a lot of blood and energy, his elemental energy hadn¡¯t been affected. His injuries, however, were very severe. The five residences and eight pces were badly damaged and he would be unable to train from that day onwards. Even if he was Ling Xiao, the noble son of Master Ling, he would be useless if unable to train.

    Madam Ling appeared calm, but the white hair on her temples revealed her anxious and haggard heart.

    "Does Grandmaster Dai have any solutions?"

    "As long as he doesn¡¯t die, Grandmaster Dai will be able to do something." The cloaked man trembled unpleasantly. "Even if his whole body is damaged, he won¡¯t die as long as his brain is intact."

    The man lifted his cloak, revealing his body.

    Ling Sheng and Madam Ling looked at the man in shock, their eyes wide open.

    The man grinned at them, but their eyes were filled with fear. The man before them wasn¡¯t human-like. His body was made from a mix of grass cord and lotus, and only his brain was that of a human.

    "I never thought that I¡¯d be able to live until today. Although this doesn¡¯t feel like living, I feel pretty good. I forgot to tell you guys my name. I¡¯m Qing Feng. Doesn¡¯t it sound like a servant¡¯s name? Haha, I¡¯m actually a servant."

    Qing Fengughed merrily, but his voice remained rigid and rough. Hisughter was unpleasant to hear, blood-curdling, in fact.

    Madam Ling spoke up after a while. "The two arts, [Grasscord] and [Lotus Chiropractic Technique] that Grandmaster Dai founded are indeed freakish and brilliant."

    Qing Feng shook withughter. "What are you two going to offer Grandmaster Dai for this?"

    Madam Ling answered solemnly, "We will not forget about him. Xiao Shuren is currently in the Ye Residence, so the time is not yet right."

    Qing Feng responded very directly. "Then what are your ns? What happened is disadvantageous for your side."

    "Don¡¯t worry, we¡¯ve already taken action." Madam Ling¡¯s eyes were cold. "Great Elder has already forgotten that he needs the support of the aristocratic families. They are the pir of the Avalon of Five Elements. When the situation gets increasingly chaotic, who¡¯s going to be able to reinstate order?"

    Qing Feng trembled once again. "I see that you guys are prepared."

    Madam Ling answered dully, "An old tree¡¯s roots extend deep down."

    .....

    Silver City became chaotic very quickly. Battered corpses and blood filled the streets every morning. The situation became increasingly intense as attacks spread across the whole city. When night fell, fighting noises and mes could be heard and seen in every corner.

    A unit leader of the Sky Edge Division was attacked during his patrol and died from severe injuries.

    The family head of the slightly reputable Huo family died of sudden poisoning, and evidence found at the scene pointed toward the Gong Residence. The Gong Residence held an unyielding attitude towards usations as a few families joined forces and reported the Gong Residence to the Elders Guild.

    idents in the form of tant attacks and poisonings urred consecutively and increasingly within small families. While there wasn¡¯t any concrete evidence pointing toward the Gong Residence this time, smaller families still cooperated and started pressuring the guild to investigate the matter.

    Disorder spread unceasingly, sending citizens into a state of panic.

    The situation reached its peak when the Zeng and Zhong Residences fought. There had already been bad blood between both families, but this time, a conflict between servants fed their feud and before they knew it, things escted quickly to the point of no return.

    The number of families getting involved multiplied and the Sky Edge Division did not daree out; the patrolling teams had been ambushed whenever making their rounds.

    Silver City waspletely out of control. Everyone was in danger and all kinds of rumors started emerging and breeding like flies.

    Most rumors were about Madam Ye. The power she had disyed had long been circted without restraint. Some news even said that the Great Elder¡¯s n to put Madam Ye in charge of the Master¡¯s Glory was to let her nurture henchmen who would give her power.

    The most sensational rumor was that Madam Ye¡¯s son was born to another man instead of her deceased husband.

    The source of this rumor was unknown, but it very quickly spread rhythmically. The Great Elder¡¯s family members were all born talents. Families above the Ye family had also never produced any mentally challenged offsprings. Madam Ye¡¯s son, however, was born mentally challenged, hence fueling suspicions.

    Other rumors even said that before Madam Ye¡¯s marriage, she had lived in seclusion for more than a year, and that this was actually a ruse to fool people; someone imed to have seen her travelling in Jadeite Forest with a man. There was a released clip that was very blurry, but the figure within bore a remarkable resemnce to Madam Ye. The man beside her was tall and gigantic in stature, unlike that of her schrly and delicate husband.

    The Great Elder had been under great pressure, but not once did he lose his cool and get as angry as he did today.

    He stared at the clip, his fists clenching automatically.

    Initially, he had scoffed at the rumors, but upon viewing the clip, he started feeling suspicious. The manners of the woman in the clip were indeed very simr to Ye Lin¡¯s. It was a fact that even he was unable to deny.

    Thinking about his deceased son, the Great Elder felt as if a knife was being twisted in his heart.

    Shortly, he loosened his fists, his eyes cold and sharp.

    No one could deceive him. No one!

    Thump, thump, thump. Someone was knocking on the door. He raised his head, the sharpness in his gaze disappearing as his expression returned to normal.

    His tone carried the same grandeur. "Come in."

    A subordinate opened the door, reporting respectfully, "Madam brought Xiaobao over and wishes to see you."

    Great Elder¡¯s heart shrank but his face remained unchanged. "Let them in."

    A momentter, Madam Ye and Xiaobao walked in. Seeing Great Elder, Xiaobao shouted in delight, "Grandfather!"

    Madam Ye bowed. "Father."

    Great Elder chuckled. "Why are you guys here? Xiaobao, let me see if you got any skinnier."

    "No, Xiaobao became stronger recently!" Xiaobao puffed his chest with a proud look on his face.

    Great Elder burst intoughter.

    Madam Ye stood at the said, smiling at their conversation.

    After asking Xiaobao about his recent activities, Great Elder ordered a servant to bring him out for some food. Xiaobao left obediently and the servant closed the door carefully upon walking out.

    Silence filled the room.

    Great Elder observed that his daughter-inw appeared calm and easy, not the least bit abnormal.

    Madam Ye spoke unhurriedly with a smile at the corner of her mouth, "There¡¯ve been a lot of rumors about me spreading and I¡¯ve dismissed them with augh, but those that say Xiaobao isn¡¯t your son¡¯s, I can not sit idly and watch."

    With a wave, Great Elder warned, "The town rumors shouldn¡¯t be taken seriously, don¡¯t be affected by them."

    "If the rumors are about me, I will not mind, but Xiaobao is still young and naturally has a tough life. It would be better for him if these rumors were dispelled as soon as possible." She bowed and said respectfully, "Please invite all the Elders to test if Xiaobao carries our family¡¯s blood. Our family¡¯s [Sinuous Aqua Body] is pristine and unique."

    Great Elder lowered his voice. "There¡¯s no need."

    Madam Ye continued to bow, never raising her head. "Please grant my wish. Xiaobao has a long life ahead of him. Even if these critics get things straight, theirments would still leave a scar on Xiaobao. What¡¯s the point of us doing so much? As a mother, I¡¯m unwilling to allow him to bear the criticisms. The test will set everything right. Mouths will shut when the truth is revealed."

    After muttering to himself for some time, Great Elder spoke up slowly. "All right! Since you¡¯re so insistent, we shall do that. Don¡¯t worry, anyone who tries to smear Xiaobao will not be let off."

    .....

    The Ling Residence received the news quickly.

    Ling Sheng was rather shocked. "Widow Ye is going to publicize the test?"

    He looked at his wife with uncertainty. "Is your news urate? She must be very confident if she wants to publicize it."

    Madam Ling was also somewhat swayed, but quickly calmed down. "She¡¯s just bluffing. The truth cannot be false, so let¡¯s see what she¡¯s up to. Since she¡¯s already set a date, it is our chance."

    Qing Feng asked in a strange voice, "What chance?"

    "The chance to seize Xiao Shuren." Madam Ling continued, "If Ye Lin is going to bring Xiaobao for the test, she¡¯s definitely going to be escorted by a strong guard. When the house is empty, that¡¯s the best time for us to strike. ording to inside news, Ye Lin does not value Xiao Shuren as she¡¯s not interested in the ancient treasure."

    Qing Feng responded, "The earlier we get her, the faster we can heal young master."

    Ling Sheng made eye contact with his wife and both saw the determination in each other¡¯s eyes.

    .....

    Zhong Residence, secret room.

    She Yu was listening to Zhong Houjun¡¯s report.

    "I¡¯ve followed your orders and created some conflicts with the Zeng residence. There are casualties on both sides. Silver City is in chaos now and it started with the Ling Residence¡¯s strike. Later on, attacks becameplicated and difficult to distinguish. Respective families are all very vignt. Some suspect that the Ling Residence was creating trouble on the sly, some reckon that the residence has secret connections, while others even suspect that the new citizens are sowing discord since Yuchi Qingshan¡¯s appearance was way too coincidental. Following your instructions, we did not make any moves, so no one suspects us."

    Zhong Houjun admired this Blood of God¡¯s envoy greatly. She was unpredictable and her hot and cold way of dealing with things was astonishing to see.

    Without exerting much effort, she had managed to turn the Ling Residence and the Great Elder into mortal enemies, sending Silver City into a state of disorder.

    No one would¡¯ve thought that this unprecedented unrest was orchestrated by this woman before him.

    She Yu was very pleased. "Very good. The Zhong Residence and your contributions will not be forgotten by Mister Bei. He will treat you guys well. Looking at the current situation of the Avalon of Five Elements, I believe you can tell who¡¯s going to have thestugh."

    Zhou Houjun answered without hesitation, "Yes! The Zhong Residence vows loyalty and devotion to Mister Bei! To God Nation!"

    This chaos in the Avalon of Five Elements disappointed him very much, but also made him even more determined to follow the Blood of God.

    She Yu looked satisfied. She asked directly, "Have you found people?"

    Zhong Houjun reassured hurriedly, "Done. They¡¯re all professional and not from the Zhong Residence."

    "Don¡¯t worry. You guys are not going because I do not want your identities to be exposed and not because I don¡¯t trust you all." She Yu added, "We might bump into Dai Gang¡¯s people, but I¡¯m looking forward to it slightly. He¡¯s determined to obtain the ancient treasure. How exciting."

    "Dai Gang¡¯s people!" Zhong Houjun shuddered before asking somewhat suspiciously, "Why isn¡¯t Ye Lin bothered by this?"

    "She plots too much and is too ambitious." She Yuughed coldly, "She probably already checked Xiao Shuren¡¯s background when thetter was still in Karakorum. Not only that, but reunions with old friends and what not are the most exciting."

    Her radiant eyes flickered.

 Chapter 369: Metal Elemental Elixir

    Chapter 369: Metal Elemental Elixir

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Compared to the turmoil outside, the Ye residence was much more peaceful.

    The current situation was messy. Students had been told to return home, so the Ye residence was empty.

    Ai Hui could feel that the atmosphere in the house wasn¡¯t too good. He sensed that the servants were talking under the table, and since Ai Hui had keen ears, it did not take much effort for him to figure that they were discussing the rumors revolving around Madam Ye and Xiaobao.

    Xiaobao wasn¡¯t the biological son of the deceased Master Ye?

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. These people had too much time and would do anything to win those internal strifes.

    He had no time or effort to waste on such nonsensical rumors. The stone statue had returned to its original state and did not react to anything. Even its initial heavenly charm was gone.

    Are you going to give me just one episode after I¡¯ve spent so much effort to get ahold of you?

    Ai Hui stared at the bandage and stone statue unkindly. If they were alive, he would smash them against the brick wall.

    When the bandage had been removed from the stone statue, it split into two pieces again and they coiled themselves around Ai Hui¡¯s body like a snake, even knotting themselves. Many a time Ai Hui felt that the bandages were very spiritual and alive.

    The stone statue did look more exquisite, but was useless.

    To a practical snob like Ai Hui, useless things were naturally treated as less. As such, the once mighty and impressive demonic god portrait was thrown aside by Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui ced his attention on the metal elemental elixir. He had received a total of three metal elemental elixirs from Madam Ye.

    These metal elemental elixirs came from high-level dire beasts, so none of the beasts producing them were weak. Such dire beasts were generally left alone by hunting teams; the hunters would even flee at the mere sight of them. Only elemental masters had the ability to hunt them down. Many new elemental masters would visit the Wilderness to hunt for these high level beasts as not only did doing so allow them to practice their inheritances, but it also helped them toy the foundations of their training in the future.

    Bing a Master meant that the elementalist had entered a higher level ofbat capability, so upon joiningbat divisions, he or she would receive better treatment and privileges; the assistance rendered by aristocratic families thereafter would also be rather shocking. The masters¡¯ training costs, however, also rose significantly. Ordinary elemental food and ingredients were no longer effective for them. In other words, the elemental energy within their bodies was purer than that found in most ingredients.

    This was also the reason why elemental masters were preyed on by high-level dire beasts.

    The three metal elemental elixirs were of different sizes, with the biggest being the size of a fist while the smallest was the size of an egg. Their shapes were also irregr. Each metal elemental elixir was covered by silver, hair-like threads. They were densely packed and formed a veryplicated but fine decorative design; these weremonly known as elixir traces.

    Many elemental masters believed that elixir traces represented a certain rule of elemental energy. Some aristocratic families and the Great Elder had researched them, but had formed no conclusive theories thus far.

    Metal elemental elixirs needed to be kept in special light-swallowing sand cases. They could not be out in the air for a long time or they would develop intense elemental energy waves that altered theposition of the elemental energy in the nearby region.

    It was Ai Hui¡¯s first time taking the elemental elixir, so he was excited but also slightly nervous.

    Elemental elixirs were undoubtedly good items, but absorbing them was a test for elementalists. The surging elemental energy contained within was umted over a long period of time by the dire beasts, so it was exceptionally pure.

    Being pure meant that the elemental elixir would be more difficult to absorb.

    Furthermore, the remnant fiendish aura was another issue. The beasts which produced the elemental elixirs were vicious and must have gobbled up countless beasts and elementalists. Other than containing pure, surging elemental energy, the elemental elixirs also carried huge volumes of remnant fiendish aura.

    This remnant energy was adverse to elementalists and a hindrance to the absorption process.

    Elemental elixirs were the quickest way to raise one¡¯s elemental energy realm since the elemental energy they contained was much purer than that found in any other part of the beasts¡¯ bodies.

    Ai Hui had always beengging in this aspect because his body¡¯s aptitude was naturally terrible. If not for the elemental food prepared by Lou Lan, Ai Hui wouldn¡¯t have attained Elemental Externalization so easily. The good thing was that the ss body of his Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp, uponpletion, improved his aptitude significantly.

    It was a pity that Lou Lan wasn¡¯t around, otherwise he would know how to eliminate the fiendish aura from the elemental elixir.

    He could only rely on himself now.

    Without Lou Lan, Ai Hui felt as though a storm was brewing. He had to grab hold of whatever time he had to upgrade his abilities, so as to protect his own life.

    It was fortunate that he had already trained the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] as it could possibly help to remove the elemental elixir¡¯s fiendish aura.

    Themp in his sky pce turned much brighter as it operated fully. Ai Hui swallowed the smallest elemental elixir.

    Boom!

    The surging elemental energy exploded suddenly with a howl like that of a tyrannical beast, then rushed into Ai Hui¡¯s brain, causing his mind to turn nk. His frail elemental energy was like paste in front of even stronger elemental energy.

    Ai Hui had underestimated the strength of the elemental elixir.

    In reality, when most young aristocrats consumed the elemental elixir, there would be an apanying senior to prevent them from experiencing what Ai Hui was experiencing now. No matter how talented a genius was, they weren¡¯t worth a mention before this fearful energy that had been umted by dire beasts over hundreds of years of ughter.

    Ai Hui knew only the benefits of the elemental elixir, not the right way to consume it. When it came to precious treasures like these elemental elixirs, ordinary folks might never get the chance to see one, let alone learn about the minute details involved about consuming one. That information circted among aristocratic families only.

    If Ai Hui could see what was going on in his body, he would realized that wisps of ck fog were seeping out from amid the elemental elixir¡¯s elemental energy.

    The Skyheart ming Lamp operated unceasingly to remove some of the fog, but more quickly emerged.

    The fog gathered without dissipating and formed a mighty beast, which appeared blurry but emitted intense disdain, arrogance, and a dense, ice-cold, murderous spirit.

    The beast suddenly opened its mouth and silently bellowed towards the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp.

    The Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp¡¯s mes shook once before dimming significantly.

    Out of control, the metal elemental energy scattered within Ai Hui¡¯s body and ck fog seeped out. The fog gathered and did not dissipate at all. It was a horrifying sight.

    Just then, in a corner, the eyes of the demonic god statue glowed slightly.

    Suddenly, the fog-formed beast appeared to be frightened, as if it¡¯d seen a most terrifying enemy. It struggled wildly, but there seemed to be an invisible lock holding it down, preventing it from breaking free.

    The stubborn ck fog pointed towards the stone statue. The fog appeared to be very attracted to the statue as it continuously extended and stretched towards it frantically, like water nts.

    The frontmost wisp of ck fog entered the slightly opened mouth of the statue.

    The demonic god statue¡¯s eyes glowed brighter.

    Staring nkly, Ai Hui heard a dire beast¡¯s anguished wailing.

    It was a howl filled with despair and fear.

    Ai Hui quivered and snapped out of his daze. What he saw next made his jaw drop.

    Innumerable wisps of ck fog seeped out of his pores to form ck hair-like threads that eventually ended up in the statue¡¯s mouth.

    Demonic god statue...

    He watched on helplessly as the statue swallowed the ck fog incessantly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body shook as thest wisp of ck fog left it and an indescribablyfortable and light feeling rose from deep within his body.

    This was...

    Overwhelmed, Ai Hui felt very suspicious, but quickly lost the desire to ponder over the stone statue. Without the fiendish aura, the force of the pure metal elemental energy was also immediately released. It became small knives that circted throughout his body, causing him to feel sharp pains all over.

    The metal elemental energy released by the elemental elixir was much purer than Ai Hui had imagined.

    Fortunately, he was quite experienced when it came to things like this. Long ago, starting from his time in the Suspending Golden Tower, he¡¯d had to refine even purer metal elemental energy.

    Ai Hui was good at persevering and being patient.

    He stood up with some effort while holding onto the Silverfold Plum Sword. Without being showy, he got into afortable position. Enduring the acute pain, he started operating his one and only Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    Most people required a quiet room for this as they had to be in a very rxed state of mind. It was hard to imagine anyone being able to do it under such terrible conditions.

    For Ai Hui, however, it had always been this way.

    While this pain was not like anything he¡¯d felt before, he got into the momentum of things gradually.

    The Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp, which had been restrained by the ck fog earlier, regained its vigor. Its light started to circte within Ai Hui¡¯s body, illuminating his flesh and making it appear ssy.

    The sky dimmed slightly, but Ai Hui¡¯s ss-like body continued to glow and operate.

    The blood plum blossom on his chest started moving. It could feel the abundant elemental energy; it was exactly what it liked. Just then, the bandage around his chest stuck itself onto the blood plum bosom, instantly calming it down to a motionless state.

    Wisps of silver fog oozed out from Ai Hui¡¯s pores. They were like soft cow hair needles, needle-like but also fog-like. The absorption process consumed part of the elemental energy. The amount of elemental energy consumed was directly linked with the body¡¯s aptitude. The better the body¡¯s aptitude was, the lower its elemental energy consumption and higher its absorption efficiency would be.

    While Ai Hui had already mastered [ss Body], he still lost about twenty-five percent of the elemental energy. Thick metal elemental energy circted throughout his whole body like an enveloping ball of silver fog.

    The stone statue remained still this time. The silver fog seemed to be of no interest to the statue. The glow in its eyes vanished and the statue returned back to its charmless, ordinary granite rock-like state.

    Time passed slowly as Ai Huipleted one Circtory Cycle Revolution after another.

    At dawn on the second day, a faint glow appeared outside the windows and on the horizon far away. The room was still dark, but a ssy sculpture of a human figure, seemingly fresh out of the oven, could be seen. The glow had yet to disperse and he was still surrounded by silver fog. He was like thunder and lightning amid the thick clouds.

    He quivered suddenly before slowly opening his eyes.

    Those eyes were peaceful and deep, like the night sky still lingering on the horizon.

    He¡¯d stepped into the Second Elemental Realm.

 Chapter 370: The Will

    Chapter 370: The Will

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Upon stepping into Second Elemental Realm, Ai Hui could clearly feel his control over elemental energy improving greatly. There were even fine traces of elemental energy swirling around his body.

    Ai Hui knew that this phenomenon was urring due to his being unable to absorb and emit elemental energy with ease, as he had just achieved the breakthrough.

    Even after achieving the breakthrough, he wasn¡¯t particrly overjoyed. On the contrary, he was abnormally calm. He seemed to be lost in thought as he looked at the dawn sky outside the window.

    Human beings¡¯ understanding towards the world was ever-changing. Men from the Cultivation Era used to think that the world was made up of spiritual force. In the current Elemental Era, men felt that the world was made up of various elemental energies.

    From mankind¡¯s perspective, the world was ever-changing.

    Perhaps from the world¡¯s perspective, it was mankind that was ever-changing.

    Ai Hui returned to his senses when the first trace of sunlight shone through the window and into his eyes. After stretching his arms and feet, the elemental energy within his body surged. The abundance of power within his body made him feel as if he could capture a tiger alive.

    Stepped into Second Elemental Realm had also boosted his fusion elemental energy level. It was a happy surprise to him. Despite spending so many days in the Grass Hall, Ai Hui still could not find the notebook; however, he did not be impatient and continued to look through the ancient records one by one.

    Now, even Grass Hall pretended that they didn¡¯t see him searching through the ancient records almost every day.

    As time went by, his fusion elemental energy depleted and was about to run out. Ai Hui lifted his gaze from the book in his hands. Just as Ai Hui left the Ancient Hall of Records and was about to leave Grass Hall, Manager called for him.

    Slightly surprised, Ai Hui asked, "Is there anything that I can help you with?"

    During the trips to Grass Hall these few days, other than greeting Manager, he had not really talked with him.

    "Hua Kui is dead," Manager said bluntly. "He doesn¡¯t have any family members. ording to his will, he is leaving you all his inheritance."

    Manager passed Ai Hui a key.

    Ai Hui was stunned momentarily. After a while, he returned to his senses. He took the key, thanked Manager, and left.

    After leaving Grass Hall, Ai Hui stood motionless, in a daze.

    He¡¯d entered the Assembly of Patriarchs with a strong sense of purpose. He¡¯d known Hua Kui for a few years, but had not developed a friendship with him. Even when Hua Kui became his guide, he did not really feel anything for him. Being a member of the Assembly of Patriarchs, he needed to make sure his identity was not exposed at all times.

    Ai Hui had always felt that Hua Kui knew about his disguise, but then he loosened up as he realized that the Assembly of Patriarchs did not really care about aliases.

    Deep down, he had never treated Hua Kui as someone he could rely on.

    As such, when Manager told him that Hua Kui left him with his inheritance, he was slightly shocked. To Ai Hui, one¡¯s inheritance was usually left to his or her closest family members.

    Ai Hui did not expect himself to have held such an important ce in Hua Kui¡¯s heart. Not only did this fact surprise him, it also put him at aplete loss. He did not feel the same way about Hua Kui.

    Ai Hui could ept death calmly. From the Wilderness to Central Pine City and from the outbreak of the blood catastrophe to now, he had seen a lot of people die almost every day. There was nothing strange or unusual about death.

    Death was the ultimate end of one¡¯s life. Facing the news of someone¡¯s death, he might feel sad, but not overly sad. As long as he or she did not die the way his master and mistress had died, then it would still be alright. If he was the one to die, then how it happened would not matter to him at all.

    Right now, he did not want to die because there were still things that he had not yet aplished.

    There were times when he would worry about death.

    For instance, if he died, who would he leave his inheritance to? Lou Lan? Lou Lan was a sand puppet, would money be useful to him at all? If he died, Lou Lan would be rather pitiful. Then, should he leave his inheritance to Fatty? Leaving his inheritance to Fatty made him feel as if he was feeding a huge meat bun to a dog. Iron Lady probably wouldn¡¯t care about his money. Maybe he could ask her to help repay his debt. Ha, why would he need to care about repaying his debt when he was already dead?

    Ai Hui finally returned from his daze andughed at himself.

    After thinking for a while, he found a wooden board and used his sword to carve two words, "Hua Kui", into it. He would use the wooden b as Hua Kui¡¯s spirit tablet. In a huge household like the Ye Residence, burning incense was an everyday task. As such, he easily found some incense sticks.

    Following which, he lit up a few incense sticks for Hua Kui.

    After epting Hua Kui¡¯s inheritance, he had to do something for him.

    "Hua Kui, as your hands are full of blood, it¡¯s most likely that you can¡¯t enter Heaven. I hope you can still grow and cultivate flowers in Hell. At least that way you can resume your old trade and live a happy life."

    After kowtowing to Hua Kui¡¯s spirit tablet, Ai Hui walked out of his room and was sprinkled with sunshine.

    At this point of time, he did not want to do anything. Hey down on a rattan chair and basked in the sunshine.

    Without his students, the ce was quieter. Even the servants became slightly ck. What happened recently had dealt a huge blow to them. The usual paradise-like Ye Residence suddenly became the centre of a gigantic maelstrom. All of them felt extremely nervous and uneasy.

    The sunlight began to turn harsh, however, Ai Hui remained motionless. Rxingpletely was a type of pleasure for him.

    Suddenly, his hand grasped the Silverfold Plum.

    .....

    All the influential figures had gathered at Silver City.

    From the Elders Guild alone, there were already four people in attendance. Great Elder, Yuchi Ba, Elder Song, and Elder Ling. Other than that, there were also Yuchi Qingshan, Zhong Houjun, Gong Residence¡¯s family head, Zeng Residence¡¯s family head, and Ling Sheng with his wife.

    Ling Sheng¡¯s gaze was bitter and enraged while Madam Ling¡¯s was as calm as usual. In front of the four Elders, they were just insignificant individuals.

    Needless to say, Great Elder was the leader of the Elders Guild. Elder Ling was the leader of the Aristocratic Faction while Elder Song was the number two figure in the Aristocratic Faction. Both of them were bosom buddies. Meanwhile, Yuchi Ba was the leader of the New Citizens Faction.

    All of them surrounded a gigantic pool. In the central of the pool, there was a tform on which only one person could stand. The pool¡¯s surroundings were fully carved withplicated and fine decorative designs that flickered with light. The water within the pool was multicolored and the colors were clearly distinctive, looking like strips of brightly-colored ribbons.

    "I am sorry for bringing inconvenience to everyone over such a small matter."

    Great Elder saluted and thanked all the people present. Everyone did not dare to hesitate and quickly stood up to return Great Elder¡¯s salute.

    "However, Lin-er said that gossip is a fearful thing. As a mother, she doesn¡¯t want Xiaobao to be disturbed by the rumor in the future. Therefore, I have to bring an end to this issue. Xiaobao is my only grandson. Ever since his birth, he has led troubled life. His father died young and I¡¯m not frequently in Silver City to take care of him. As such, I feel extremely guilty and have to brazenly invite everyone here today.

    Yuchi Ba opened his mouth and spoke first. "This rumor is mean and evil. Great Elder, don¡¯t take it to heart. All of us have watched Xiaobao growing up since he was a baby. He looks exactly like his father, how can he not be his own child?"

    Yuchi Ba had a pair of naturally scowling eyebrows, resembling King Kong with ring eyes. At this point of time, his face was brimming with resentment and anger.

    Elder Ling had a refined appearance. His eyebrows were drooping and his mustache was long. With a gentle voice, he advised, "That¡¯s right. When I heard this rumor, I immediately knew it was a lie. Don¡¯t we know Lin-er¡¯s character? Furthermore, the Ye Residence¡¯s family values are matchless."

    Everyone agreed with what he said.

    Ye Lin smiled and half rose from her chair to thank everyone.

    "Everyone, I believe there are a lot of people in this world that are capable ofing up with lies," said Great Elder.

    "That¡¯s true!"

    "You¡¯re right!"

    All the Elders nodded.

    With a deep and solemn tone, Great Elder continued, "If Xiaobao is not a member of the Gu Family, then it would mean our family values have been corrupted and that we have humiliated the world; however, if it¡¯s proven that the rumor is a lie, I will not let Xiaobao receive injustice for nothing. My only grandson has been severely sick since he was born and has led a troubled life. I hereby swear that I will use whatever methods to seek revenge for him!"

    A cold shiver went down everyone¡¯s spine. They knew that Great Elder was truly enraged this time around. Given his status, one could tell how angry he was to say such words.

    Elder Ling cast a nce at Ling Sheng and thetter shook his head subtly to signal that the rumor was not his doing. Upon seeing that, Elder Ling felt slightly at ease. As long as the rumor had not been spread by members of his family, no one could me it on the Ling Residence.

    If it had been another family that had colluded with blood elementalists to attack the Fu Family and Ye Lin and her son, then that family would definitely be destroyed. With the backing of Elder Ling, however, the Ling Residence would not be affected by the so-called "evidence."

    As long as this rumor had not been started by Ling Sheng, Elder Ling could just wait and see a good show.

    If the rumor was a lie, then it would not affect them in any way. If the rumor was true, then things would get interesting. Elder Ling, who had been thinking of ways to neutralize Great Elder, realized that if the rumor was true, then it would create a good opportunity for him to do so.

    To everyone, the look of bitter resentment and hatred on Madam Ling¡¯s face was normal. Ye Lin had chopped off one of Ling Sheng¡¯s arms. The feud between them was unsolvable.

    Great Elder¡¯s prestige was matchless. Elder Ling was no pushover as well. With the addition of the New Citizen Faction¡¯s Yuchi Ba, the situation was extremely subtle.

    When Xiaobao saw that everyone¡¯s gaze was on him, he felt slightly afraid. He hid behind Ye Lin and said, "Mama, Xiaobao is scared."

    "Xiaobao, don¡¯t be scared, Mama is here." Ye Lin stroked Xiaobao¡¯s head gently.

    Xiaobao felt slightly more at ease, but he still clutched Ye Lin¡¯s clothes and was unwilling to let go.

    When Great Elder saw this scene, he felt as if his heart was pierced by a sword, but then he hardened his heart and said, "Let¡¯s begin. Xiaobao, stand on the tform in the centre of the pool."

    Xiaobao continued to hide behind Madam Ye.

    "Xiaobao, be good. Listen to Grandpa and stand on the tform in the centre of the pool. It will not hurt at all," Ye Lin said with a gentle voice.

    Xiaobao turned his face and asked, "Really? It will not hurt?"

    "It¡¯s really not painful."

    The gentle smile on his mother¡¯s face calmed Xiaobao down, following which, he sobbed. "Xiaobao shall go then, Mama must wait for Xiaobao."

    "Mama will not go anywhere and wait here," Ye Lin reassured Xiaobao.

    "Xiaobao is the bravest! Xiaobao is scared of nothing!"

    Xiaobao closed his eyes and encouraged himself loudly. Then, he opened his eyes and walked towards the tform.

    When everyone saw this scene, feelings of empathy rose in their hearts. Whether it was their Gu Family or the Ye Residence, they were all top aristocratic families. They did not expect their younger generation to be reduced to this.

    To an aristocratic family, nothing was more important than its heir and inheritance.

    How could a mentally challenged individual carry such an enormous family on his delicate shoulders?

    Some people could not help but harbor evil thoughts. Even though Great Elder was powerful and influential, he still did not have a qualified sessor to carry on his undertakings at this old age. This was Great Elder¡¯s deadliest weakness.

    Great Elder looked deeply at Xiaobao. He opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

    Following which, he cut his finger and let his blood drip into the pool.

 Chapter 371: Powerful Enemies

    Chapter 371: Powerful Enemies

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui sat up from the rattan chair. He could sense someone was nearby.

    A faint, seductive voice suddenly rang acrossed his ears, "You¡¯re truly worthy of being my chosen one. Thest time I left in a rush, but today we shall have a good, intimate time together."

    "Long time no see," Ai Hui grinned, appearing rather fearless.

    A lightning-fast silvery sword gleam erupted without any warning.

    "I¡¯ve been expecting you to do this. I know how ruthless you are. If you can even kill your own master, why wouldn¡¯t you kill me now?" Like a ghost, She Yu was maneuvering and dodging Ai Hui¡¯s sword gleam with ease.

    Ai Hui turned a deaf ear to She Yu. His facial expression did not change but his sword gleam became increasingly intense. Having just achieved a breakthrough, his essence-breath-spirit was at its peak. One Thousand Yuan was trying to use her words to disrupt his mental state but her words actually made him even more powerful. He had never regretted killing his master with his sword three years ago.

    He would be sad, he would grieve, but he would never regret it.

    Six crescent moons were dancing in the sky and they were apanied by streaks of odd-looking sword gleams. Meanwhile, the buzzing sound of Silverfold Plum rang incessantly through the air. Even though it was not loud, it would still cause one to tremble in fear.

    A red figure was darting in and out of the fleeting streaks of sword gleam, appearing and disappearing like a wisp of smoke.

    Clink, clink, clink!

    The brief and repetitive sounds of collisions could be heard constantly. The flying sparks gave the two hazy figures a demonic sense of beauty and an awe-inspiring aura of killing intent.

    Aspared to three years ago, Ai Hui¡¯s strength had improved tremendously. Simrly, She Yu¡¯s strength had also increased sharply. Three years ago, She Yu was unpredictable. Three yearster, She Yu was still unpredictable.

    Three years ago, when he fought One Thousand Yuan, all he could feel was a deep sense of helplessness. However, right now, he finally had the capabilities to put up a fight with her!

    A sense of fervor arose in Ai Hui¡¯s heart. Sword moves poured out of him like a torrential river.

    She Yu was seemingly smiling, but really she was shocked.

    When they were still in Central Pine City she¡¯d already thought highly of Ai Hui¡¯s future, even though his aptitude was not really outstanding. However, now that she looked at Ai Hui again, she knew that he definitely would have a great future given his outstanding mind, cool-headed mentality and diligence.

    She was still shocked by Ai Hui¡¯s improvements.

    Even though his sword gleams were not fast, they came out in huge numbers. Furthermore, his sword gleams intertwined among each other, seemingly containing a mysterious force within them. She Yu tried to block a few streaks of sword gleams and noticed that her palms went numb, sending a cold shiver down her spine.

    As the seed of Blood of God and a rare God Priest, the God Nation had spared no effort in cultivating her. She learnt the most profound and high-leveled techniques and spells in Blood of God.

    [Star Divine Hallucination] was the most profound and the most difficult spell to learn in God Nation. Up till now, she was only the second person to master it. The first person who¡¯d mastered this spell was Holy Emperor.

    [Phantom] and [Smoke Saunter] were twopletely different spells. Shebined these two spells and granted herself the ability to be half-phantom, half-smoke. Bybining these two spells, her attacks were unpredictable and impossible to defend against.

    Not only that, she¡¯d also mastered a spell that only a god shaman could practise, [Demonic Nine-step Dance]. Bybining this spell with [Phantom] and [Smoke Saunter], she created the unique [Phantom Smoke Dance]. Every movement she made would create distortion in the space surrounding her, making her almost omnipotent.

    She had fought with many elementalists and had seen many absolute arts before. However, Ai Hui¡¯s sword gleam waspletely different from the others¡¯ absolute arts.

    When the attacks from the usual absolute arts entered the distorted space surrounding her, most of them would be disced. However, She Yu discovered her [Phantom Smoke Dance] had very little effect on Ai Hui¡¯s sword gleam. Ai Hui¡¯s dazzling sword gleam contained a mysterious force that rendered her [Phantom Smoke Dance] ineffective.

    The sword gleam had another characteristic that was trouble for She Yu.

    The sharpness of the sword gleam.

    This was absolutely something that She Yu had not expected. Fundamentally, blood spiritual force was spiritual force. Even though blood spiritual force could not bepared to the pure spiritual force of the Cultivation Era, it was still more powerful and of a higher level than elemental energy. When blood spiritual force collided with elemental energy, the former had an extremely huge advantage over thetter. This was also the main reason why blood elementalists could maintain superiority over elementalists during battles.

    The only time where elemental energy was more powerful than blood spiritual force was when an elementalist became a Master, and the structure of his elemental energy was enhanced greatly.

    She Yu discovered that Ai Hui¡¯s sword gleam remained abnormally firm and strong, even when it collided with blood spiritual force.

    So this was swordsmanship?

    She Yu clearly knew that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t at the level of a Master yet. She immediately came to realize that swordsmen might be the biggest threat to Blood of God in the future. There was a high possibility that Blood of God¡¯s superiority in fighting capabilities mighte to an end.

    Now, she slightly regretted that she¡¯d nted [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] on Ai Hui. Otherwise, she would have killed Ai Hui at all costs.

    Swordsmanship, which had been obsolete for so many years, should continue to stay obsolete. By staying obsolete, it would benefit Blood of God in the long run.

    However, [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art]...

    She was having a headache. This time around, she had to capture Ai Hui alive and bring him back to Blood of God at all costs. Ai Hui had be her greatest weakness. Luckily, she was the only one who knew this.

    If She Yu knew that Ai Hui had already found out about [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art], she would die of pure regret.

    "Go and find Xiao Shuren."

    When She Yu finished her sentence, a few figures appeared on top of the surrounding walls.

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed. The aura of these people was powerful and fierce. Their strength wasparable to Jiu Gui¡¯s and Prince¡¯s, However, Jiu Gui and Prince had followed Madam Ye on her trip. At this point in time, Ye Residence had almost zero defenses.

    Following which, those figures flew towards the court that Xiao Shuren was staying in.

    Suddenly, an extremely awful voice resounded through the air, "Keke, all of you get lost."

    A wall of vines suddenly blocked their path. Numerous streaks of green light shot out from the wall. These streaks of green light were actually straight and sharp rattans. A faint and sweet aroma was emitted from them, proving that they were highly toxic.

    The elementalists that were flying towards Xiao Shuren¡¯s court changed their facial expressions drastically, and they quickly dodged out of the rattans¡¯ way.

    She Yu had just struggled free of Ai Hui¡¯s sword gleam, when her eyes froze momentarily. "Grass puppet!"

    "I don¡¯t like that name," Qing Feng shook his head. His torso was made up of thick, solid grass tendons and white-colored lotus roots. Atop that torso was a human head, making him look extremely creepy.

    "I am Qing Feng," he grinned.

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck. This was the first time he saw such a monster. Suddenly, he thought of Shi Youguang. Actually, this grass-lotus puppet was no different from a transfigured earth elementalist¡¯s. One was from an earth elementalist, the other a wood elementalist.

    Now that he thought of it this way, he felt relieved.

    Body transfiguration was a forbidden art. Its process wasplicated and high-leveled. Ai Hui did not favor this method of increasing one¡¯s strength as well.

    "Such an interesting thing," She Yu¡¯s eyes flickered.

    The Beast Venom Temple would be very happy if she could capture and bring this thing back. Beast Venom Temple loved all kinds of weird stuffs.

    Furthermore... it seemed like Dai Gang was determined in obtaining the ancient treasure!

    She Yu felt more and more curious. What exactly was the ancient treasure? A Grandmaster actually wanted it so bad that he was willing to obtain it at all costs.

    "Interesting thing?" Qing Feng shook his head, "Today, you¡¯re going to die here."

    At this moment, a cold sneer resounded through the air.

    Even though it was just a sneer, it felt as though the surrounding elemental energy was being stirred by a pair of invisible hands.

    She Yu¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. A master!

    Her gaze was locked on the old man beside Qing Feng. That old man was actually a Master!

    There¡¯s trouble this time around!

    Very soon, she understood what was going on. After she forced them into dire straits, the Ling Residence had no choice but to hug Dai Gang¡¯s legs.

    Since they wanted to hug Dai Gang¡¯s legs, they had to get Xiao Shuren for him.

    Upon seeing what was going on, the elementalists that She Yu had hired started to feel the urge to retreat. They did not expect to encounter a Master in the mission this time around.

    One of them opened his mouth and said to She Yu, "This mission is too dangerous, pardon me for being powerless. Goodbye!"

    The others retreated without any hesitation.

    The old man ignored those elementalists who had just retreated. He knew that his main target was Xiao Shuren. As long as he could get Xiao Shuren, he wouldn¡¯t care about other small matters.

    As long as he got Xiao Shuren it would be alright, even if the Ling Residence fell out with Elders Guild. If Dai Gang personally invited Ling Residence to join him, what could Elders Guild do?

    An Muda was old and dying, while Dai Gang was at his peak. Would Elders Guild be so stupid as to fall out with Dai Gang over the Ling Residence?

    Elders Guild and Dai Gang were merely vying for power. Both parties were elementalists. Ultimately, there was nothing that could not be solved.

    From the perspective of aristocratic families, if they had served and worshiped An Muda in the past, why couldn¡¯t they do the same to Dai Gang as well?

    If An Muda passed away, other than Dai Gang, who was there to stop the Holy Emperor of God Nation? Even if Elders Guild didn¡¯t think for themselves, they would still think for their future generations, right?

    Just like She Yu, Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. The energy fluctuation from the metal elemental master had a huge impact on him. All the surrounding metal elemental energy was out of his control. He felt as if he was in a turbulent, stormy sea.

    So this was a Master....

    "Brother Chu, let us join hands. We can split the ancient treasure evenly!"

    Goddamned demonic girl!

    Ai Hui cursed She Yu in his heart. When Qing Feng and the old man¡¯s gazended upon him, he knew something was wrong. He quickly exined, "All of you can continue what you¡¯re doing. I have zero interest in the so-called ancient treasure!"

    After he finished his sentence, he wanted to make an escape.

    "So you¡¯re Chu Zhaoyang?" the old man squinted his eyes as his voice was filled with a chilling, killing intent, "So you¡¯re the one who fought with Xiao-er over Fu Sisi?"

    "It¡¯s a misunderstanding! It¡¯s definitely a misunderstanding! All along I felt that Brother Ling and Miss Fu were a match made in heaven!" Ai Huiughed.

    "I heard that both of you are deeply in love, but it turns out that the two of you are just cowards," the old man had a disdainful look on his face. However, the killing intent within his eyes did not decrease in the slightest. "My poor Ling-er is still unconscious even now. How can the both of you still be alive? Today, I shall seek revenge for Ling-er!"

    Ai Hui sighed in his heart. Men died in the pursuit of wealth, and birds died in the pursuit of food. The price of avarice was death. These were truly words of wisdom.

    If he¡¯d known at the time that the small amount of money he¡¯d made would bring him so many troubles, he would have stayed away from Fu Sisi.

    "It seems like we will either live or die together!" She Yu chuckled.

    Ai Hui knew what She Yu¡¯s words actually implied, but he acted as if he did not know anything. [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] had a lot of areas that could be exploited.

    If he could not escape, then he could only fight.

    Ai Hui was not confident about facing a metal elementalist master. As such, he quickly yelled, "I will take on the grass-lotus puppet and you will take on the old man!"

    "Deal!"

    Before She Yu even finished her sentence, both of them struck out at the same time.

 Chapter 372: An Enraged Qing Feng

    Chapter 372: An Enraged Qing Feng

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui had never seen a grass-lotus puppet before. However, he thought that a grass-lotus puppet should be something simr to a sand puppet. The performance of a sand puppet was usually closely linked to the character and fighting style of its master.

    Ai Hui did not know Dai Gang well. All he knew was that Dai Gang was Bangwan¡¯s master, but there was nothing very special about their rtionship.

    However, Ai Hui had a rich amount of experience in handling sand puppets. Lou Lan was his number one training partner.

    Since a grass-lotus puppet and a sand puppet were very simr, a grass-lotus¡¯s mechanics should be simr to a sand puppet¡¯s as well.

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain was working rapidly.

    For example, a sand puppet¡¯s body was usually quite big. Most of their bodies had a unique ability. Some could change their forms, some were very sturdy, some hid numerous weapons within them and so on.

    Qing Feng¡¯s body was made up of grass tendons and lotus roots.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze was first directed at Qing Feng¡¯spletely exposed grass tendons. Could the grass tendons be his weakness? Generally speaking, grass-type materials were not sturdy and hard.

    With a jolt of his mind, Ai Hui brandished his Silverfold Plum and the six dancing streaks of sword gleams formed an odd-looking arc in the air.

    Upon seeing this, Qing Feng spread his palm and his five fingers grew in length frantically. Eventually, his fingers became five thick rattans that shot towards the sword gleams in the sky.

    Ai Hui was very familiar with this type of attack. Wasn¡¯t this attack something like Bangwan¡¯s [Viridescent Flower]?

    With a flick of his wrist, Ai Hui shed his Silverfold Plum downward. The six streaks of sword gleams shot towards Qing Feng. Suddenly, the sword gleams changed direction in the air and flew through the gaps in between Qing Feng¡¯s five rattan fingers.

    Qing Feng did not expect Ai Hui to be able to control the flying sword gleams.

    The six streaks of sword gleams were like six nimble swallows, slicing Qing Feng¡¯s naked grass tendon joints.

    ng, ng, ng!

    Sparks were flying everywhere.

    The grass tendons were much more tougher than Ai Hui expected. When the sword gleams sliced them, it merely left a small and fine mark on them. However, Ai Hui was not discouraged. If these grass tendons were exposed like this, that meant they had definitely been through some process and possessed excellent resistance.

    Furthermore, this was a grass-lotus puppet that was produced by Dai Gang. Ai Hui did not think that a Grandmaster would make such an amateur mistake in his work.

    With a twist of his body, Ai Hui flitted by Qing Feng in a nted position. The movement of the Silverfold Plum in his hand was changing.

    The six crescent moons dispersed again and swirled toward Qing Feng.

    Once again, Qing Feng tried to block them, but failed. These palm-sized sword gleams were a lot faster and nimbler than he thought.

    ng!

    The crisper and louder sound of Ai Hui¡¯s attack hitting Qing Feng rang across the air. In fact, there was also a sound produced by the six streaks of sword gleams colliding together. However, due to the extremely short time interval between the two sounds, it sounded as if there was only one sound.

    The six streaks of sword gleams had sliced the same position on Qing Feng¡¯s grass tendons at the same time!

    This attack disyed Ai Hui¡¯s brilliant and outstanding control over his sword gleams.

    The grass tendons were sliced off!

    Ai Hui was overjoyed. However, when he saw the severed grass tendons begin to wiggle and connect back together with the wound starting to heal, the joyful look on his face disappearedpletely.

    "So this is swordsmanship? Interesting!"

    Qing Feng shook his head. He did not seem to care about his grass tendons being sliced off.

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain was working speedily. Grass tendons had regenerative powers. Alright, that was nothing unusual. A lot of wood elementalists possessed this type of inheritance. A war of attrition was something that wood elementalists specialized in.

    The good news was that his sword gleam was able to deal damage to Qing Feng¡¯s grass tendons.

    What about the lotus roots?

    Ai Hui tried to attack Qing Feng¡¯s lotus roots, but soon realized that the lotus roots were harder and sturdier than the grass tendons. His sword gleam could not even leave a single mark on them.

    He decided that he shall attack the grass tendons then!

    Ai Hui kept on brandishing his Silverfold Plum. Every now and then, there would be six streaks of sword gleams shooting towards Qing Feng.

    The number of sword gleams surrounding Qing Feng was increasing gradually. Seen from a distance, it looked as if there was a gigantic school of fish swimming and dancing around Qing Feng.

    Qing Feng tried to use his grass rattans to whip the sword gleams, but they were too fast and nimble for him to hit them.

    Very soon, Qing Feng realized that something was not right. These sword gleams were flying faster and faster and he felt like he was trapped in a tornado. Woosh! A streak of mes suddenly ignited within the tornado.

    Very soon, the tornado became brighter and brighter and the sword gleams flew faster and faster.

    [ming Wind Sword Formation]!

    When the swishing sound of the sword gleams and the whooshing sound of the mes merged together, they created a sound that struck fear into one¡¯s heart. A ming tornado shot into the sky and engulfed Qing Feng.

    Phew, Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief. This sword formation should be able to deal some damage to Qing Feng.

    At this moment, the [ming Wind Sword Formation] suddenly exploded with a loud bang, revealing the figure within it.

    "Very interesting."

    An awful voice echoed through the air.

    Ai Hui was stupefied. Qing Feng¡¯s head, limbs and all his grass tendons had withdrawn into his lotus root body¡¯s torso. The [ming Wind Sword Formation] did not do any damage to him, other than leaving traces of burn marks on his white-colored lotus root torso.

    Qing Feng was like a man made of rubber bands. His head, limbs and grass tendons extended out of his lotus root torso in a grotesquely weird way.

    He could... do this?

    Qing Feng stretched his body and shook his head, saying, "If your capabilities are only this much, you won¡¯t survive today."

    After finishing his sentence, Qing Feng crouched his body slightly. His thick and strong grass tendons resembled a bunch ofpressed springs.

    Ai Hui widened his eyes abruptly.

    Swoosh! Qing Feng became a blur and appeared before Ai Hui. Like a bunch of vipers, ten grass rattans attacked Ai Hui from different directions.

    Ai Hui¡¯s reaction was extremely fast. Instead of retreating, he moved forward and attacked. He crouched his body slightly and then dashed forward like a cheetah. The elemental energy within his body had been channeled to its maximum level. The Silverfold Plum in his hand went for Qing Feng¡¯s head directly!

    He did not integrate anyplicated techniques for this attack. This attack was a simple, piercing strike!

    When he was trying to survive, he would go all-out. This simple-looking piercing strike was actually extremely powerful and vicious.

    Qing Feng felt a strong sense of danger when he saw a cold glint shed across Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. He did not expect Ai Hui to go all-out on his offense. As such, he was caught off guard andnded himself in a dangerous situation..

    Upon seeing that he could not avoid Ai Hui¡¯s attack, Qing Feng suddenly opened his mouth to reveal two rows of shiny sawteeth. That two rows of sawteeth were flickering with a horrifying cold glint.

    ng!

    Two rows of dazzling sawteeth bit onto Silverfold Plum tightly.

    The powerful force from the inertia caused Ai Hui to lose control of his body and he swung up into the air like a ragdoll.

    Ai Hui did not expect Qing Feng to modify his teeth. Apparently, the two rows of shiny sawteeth were a sharp weapon made up of precious materials.

    Crack, crack, crack!

    Cracks began to appear on the two rows of sawteeth. However, at this point of time, Ai Hui had already used up his momentum. A premonition arose in his heart and he quickly withdrew his sword and retreated.

    ng, ng, ng!

    A few spear-like grass rattans pierced the position that he was previously at.

    Crash! As Ai Hui withdrew his sword, countless fragments of Qing Feng¡¯s sawteeth flew out from his mouth and scattered in the air.

    Ai Hui pulled away, distancing himself from Qing Feng. He was panting heavily. Even though the exchange was short, it was extremely dangerous. A moment of hesitation would have cost him his life. Such a short and intense exchange depleted his physical energy and strained his mind greatly. At this point of time, he could only feel numbness in his limbs.

    Qing Feng was a powerful grass puppet.

    His defensive capabilities were very powerful and he could heal himself. His thick and strong grass tendons were like a bunch of springs. His lotus-root torso was extremely light, making him as fast as a gust of wind. Even the teeth in his mouth were a weapon.

    Damn it! He was truly a fully weaponized creature!

    Ai Hui¡¯s n on defeating Qing Feng through elemental energy fell through as well.

    Metal overcame wood. This was a natural interaction The reason why he¡¯d chosen Qing Feng as his opponent was because he wanted to make use of this natural interaction. The rtionships among the five elements could be very effective against an opponent that had not reached the level of a Master.

    Initially, Ai Hui still thought that he might have some advantage over Qing Feng. However, after that previous exchange, Ai Hui realized he waspletely wrong. Qing Feng¡¯s wood elemental energy was extremely weird. Ai Hui¡¯s metal elemental energy could not restrain Qing Feng¡¯s wood elemental energy at all.

    Could Qing Feng be a Master-level grass puppet?

    Don¡¯t tell me he is that powerful....

    Ai Hui groaned in his heart. He did not dare to get distracted and fixated his gaze on his opponent. Even though his previous attack had shattered Qing Feng¡¯s teeth, he did not do any practical damage to him.

    Such a pity...

    A chance like that would not ur again.

    Furthermore, that attack seemed to have infuriated Qing Feng.

    That¡¯s right, Qing Feng was indeed enraged. His gaze was cold as he spat out his shattered teeth. His metallic tooth fragments were mixed with traces of blood. The previous dangerous exchange had left a tinge of fear lingering in him. However, he still felt more anger than fear.

    Initially, he treated this battle as a cat-catch-mouse game. In the end, he almost got killed by the mouse. As such, why would he not be angry?

    "I em koing do shre yoou do peethes..."

    Ai Hui, who was feeling tense and anxious, could not help butugh. However, when he saw the killing intent in Qing Feng¡¯s eyes, he quickly exined, "I didn¡¯tugh at you intentionally. Really, I didn¡¯t do it on purpose. It¡¯s not your fault that you don¡¯t have teeth! Come, follow after me, ¡®I¡¯m going to shred you to pieces!¡¯"

    Qing Feng¡¯s face swiftly became red with anger. He let out a beast-like roar, "Go ann dlie!"

    Ai Hui almostughed until he copsed.

    It was a surprise to him that he could infuriate Qing Feng.

    However, when Ai Hui saw what Qing Feng did out of the corner of his eyes, he was so scared that he retreated in haste.

    Qing Feng withdrew his palms and grass tendons, leaving two holes at the end of his lotus root forearms. At this moment, he began to emit a green glow. A strong feeling of danger engulfed Ai Hui.

    Pop, pop, pop!

    The sound of beans exploding suddenly resounded through the air.

    Qing Feng¡¯s two arms were spinning frantically as numerous lotus seeds rained down on Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui brandished his Silverfold Plum with all his might. The six crescent moons around him formed a protective screen for him. The impact of those lotus seeds was extremely terrifying. After a while, the protective screen formed by his six crescent moons copsed.

    Ai Hui had a very fast reaction. He quickly unleashed another six crescent moons.

    Qing Feng¡¯s intense offense caused Ai Hui to gasp for air. All he could do was unleash the six crescent moons repeatedly to block the iing lotus seeds.

    However, he did not notice that when those lotus seeds were warded off andnded on the ground, they immediately burrowed into the dirt. As for those lotus seeds that missed him, they burrowed straight into the ground.

    A lot of lotus seedlings emerged from the ground. Theyy t on the ground, resembling water lilies floating on a pond. The ground was bing soft and transforming into a swamp rapidly..

    By the time Ai Hui felt that something was not right beneath his feet, he realized that he was stepping on a lotus leaf.

    Lotus leaf?

    At this point of time, the torrential attacks had disappeared. Ai Hui knew something was not right, and raised his head. All he saw was boundless lotus leaves.

    Fifty meters away, Qing Feng was standing on a single lotus leaf. He was chuckling as he withdrew his lotus root arms.

    Not good!

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression suddenly changed drastically.

 Chapter 373: Lotus-leaf-made Mouths

    Chapter 373: Lotus-leaf-made Mouths

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui was groaning in his heart.

    Suddenly, the lotus leaves beneath his feet transformed into big, sinister, green-colored mouths. The inside of every mouth was a dark void, resembling a gateway to theherworld. Even with scorching sunlight shining on him, Ai Hui¡¯s hair still stood on end.

    A terrifying, attractive force erupted from the huge mouths. Ai Hui¡¯s body trembled. He could feel the elemental energy in his body was out of his control and was flowing towards those mouths.

    Ai Hui was bbergasted. After he stepped into the Two Elemental Realm, his control over his elemental energy had be very strong. Even though most of the time he could not control the elemental energy in his surroundings, he could still maintain a great control over the elemental energy within his body. A situation like this seldom happened to him

    His surroundings rapidly became dark.

    Even the sunlight was being devoured by the huge lotus-leaf-made mouths.

    What kind of weird technique was this?

    A cold shiver went down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. He had to take off from the ground immediately! He spread the Starry Gem Swordwings on his back and flew towards the sky.

    However, what happened next set him in fear and trepidation.

    The darkness beneath was rising and catching up to him swiftly. Like the darkness from theherworld, the surrounding light was being devoured with a horrifying speed. The speed of the rising darkness was much faster than Ai Hui¡¯s flying speed. In an instant, the darkness surpassed him, rising over him into the distance.

    Ai Hui was in a void of darkness now. A beam of sunlight shone on his head from above him.

    Half of his body was being illuminated but no shadow was produced. The beam of light continued on its path towards the boundless void beneath his feet. The worst thing was the beam of light was shrinking rapidly.

    Ai Hui felt as if he had fallen into a huge drawstring bag and the beam of light that was shining on his head was shrinking due to the drawstring being pulled and tightened.

    No matter how much effort he put in, he could not get closer to the mouth of the drawstring bag above him. The opening was bing smaller and smaller.

    When thest trace of sunlight vanished, the sky above Ai Hui¡¯s head had disappeared and his surroundings were engulfed by darkness. Only the huge lotus-leaf-made mouths beneath his feet were still emitting a faint glow. However, very soon, the mouths started to close one by one. All of them had withdrawn back into the void of darkness like nimble jade snakes.

    When thest traces of faint light disappeared, there was nothing left except for the void and darkness.

    Dead silence. Absolute dead silence. Ai Hui could hear his own heartbeat. The speed at which his elemental energy was depleting was bing increasingly fast. Eventually, it was so fast that Ai Hui became panicked.

    An unknown amount of time had passed.

    Ai Hui seemed to lose his gauge of time. He sensed something was amiss. To a veteran with richbat experience like him, sensitivity towards time was an instinct to him.

    However, at this point of time, his instincts had failed him!

    Before Ai Hui could understand what was going on, he suddenly heard a sound.

    Thump, thump, thump!

    It sounded as if someone was beating a drum. With every hit of the "drum", the sound got louder and louder. It was so loud that Ai Hui¡¯s head was throbbing.

    Wait, wasn¡¯t that the sound of his own heartbeat?

    He was stunned. Whatever happened here was filled with a weird aura.

    The sound of heartbeats became increasingly loud, so much so that he felt he was flooded by it. Suddenly, he realized that his fingers did not seem to follow hismands. By the time he could react to it, a feeling of numbness was spreading throughout his body.

    His entire body froze.

    In the dead silent void, Ai Hui was like a motionless statue.

    Like a venomous snake, the feeling of numbness drilled into his brain. He could feel that his thinking process was gradually bing sluggish and numb.

    Helplessness arose within his mind. The strength disparity between him and Qing Feng was so great that he could not even retaliate.

    The grass-lotus puppet created by Dai Gang was so powerful!

    Ai Hui remained motionless. Like a corroded gear, his brain was operating with sluggishness and difficulty. He felt as if he was taking countless years to even let out a sigh of regret.

    His stationary eyes stared nkly at the void in front of him.

    She Yu did not expect herself to be so passive today.

    Even though Old Ling was a Master, his strength was not enough to push her into such a difficult situation. Her attention was mainly focused on the green glowing ball. Every single lotus leaf emitted a beam of green light. All the beams of green light converged in the air and formed a green glowing ball.

    Chu Zhaoyang was motionless like a statue in the green glowing ball. His eyes were hollow and devoid of any life.

    She wondered whether or not Ai Hui was still alive in the green glowing ball.

    What inheritance was this?

    She shivered with cold. Anything or anyone that was rted to Dai Gang wasplicated in nature. Even a grass-lotus puppet built by Dai Gang was so terrifying...

    No wonder Holy Emperor was most scared of Dai Gang.

    This was no secret among the higher-ups of God Nation.

    Holy Emperor referred to An Muda as a pile of dried up bones. Every time the name of An Muda was mentioned, Holy Emperor would snort disdainfully. As a Grandmaster, An Muda still let the Avalon of Five Elements fall apart. Holy Emperor saw this as ipetence.

    On the other hand, Holy Emperor feared and admired Dai Gang at the same time. He viewed Dai Gang as a powerful enemy.

    Before today, She Yu did not really have a high regard for Dai Gang. She felt that he was not qualified of bing Holy Emperor¡¯s enemy. She was fortunate to be taught by Holy Emperor before, and therefore she clearly knew how unfathomable Holy Emperor¡¯s strength was. However, the terrifying capabilities that Qing Feng disyed today had certainly startled her.

    She clearly knew how difficult it was to deal with Ai Hui.

    Strength-wise, Ai Hui was much weaker than her. However, every time she fought with Ai Hui, he would give her so much trouble.

    Ai Hui was extremely vignt and cunning. Whenever he was in dire straits, he would be extremely determined and ruthless and fight with all he had. A moment of carelessness would cause her to be severely injured. The Ai Hui from three years ago was already very hard to deal with. The current Ai Hui was even harder to deal with.

    Hence, when She Yu saw Ai Hui stay motionless like a statue in the green glowing ball, she was extremely traumatized.

    Luckily, Ai Hui had not died yet.

    Without batting an eyelid, she flitted to and fro among Old Ling¡¯s attacks like an ever-changing wisp of half-smoke-half-phantom.

    Old Ling¡¯s face was slightly pale. Qing Feng had already gained the upperhand, but he had not even taken down his opponent yet. This made him feel ashamed. After all, he was a Master, how could he lose to a grass-lotus puppet?

    Old Ling¡¯s offense became increasingly aggressive. This caused She Yu¡¯s situation to be increasingly difficult.

    A smile appeared on Qing Feng¡¯s face. He cackled, "Such powerful skills? This can only mean that you¡¯re one of the seeds of God Nation. And since you¡¯re a girl, that means you¡¯re Red Dress She Yu."

    She Yu was overwhelmed with horror. There was nothing unusual about finding out who she was. However, the seeds of God Nation were confidential and unknown to many. Even in the internal department of God Nation, there were not many people who knew about it. How did Qing Feng know about it?

    Could it be... Dai Gang?

    Dai Gang actually knew so much about God Nation!

    She Yu¡¯s first thought was that there was a traitor in the internal department of God Nation. However, she shut down this notion very soon. No traitors could avoid Holy Emperor¡¯s eyes.

    "I heard that She Yu is a great beauty. No wonder your figure is so good. It¡¯s a pity I don¡¯t want to be a woman. I¡¯m wasting such a good body."

    Qing Feng¡¯s voice was cackling and abnormally awful. Right now, his voice was leaking and unclear.

    Upon hearing Qing Feng¡¯s words, She Yu¡¯s blood ran cold. Could Dai Gang rece Qing Feng¡¯s grass-lotus body with a human body?

    The only human part on Qing Feng was his head. Wouldn¡¯t that mean Dai Gang could switch heads?

    This kind of forbidden art had not even been developed yet in God Nation¡¯s Beast Venom Temple.

    Having been distracted, she was almost injured by Old Ling¡¯s attack.

    Qing Feng shifted his gaze from She Yu to Ai Hui, who was still trapped in the green glowing ball. After examining Ai Hui for a while, he could not help but gasp in admiration, "This body seems not bad."

    The more Qing Feng looked at Ai Hui¡¯s body, the brighter his eyes grew. This was body was simply perfect.

    Ai Hui had a well-proportioned body frame and his muscles contained terrifying power. Even his eyeballs were sparkling and translucent. Qing Feng had never seen such a perfect body.

    Qing Feng was overjoyed. He then chuckled loudly, "Hahaha! How unexpected! It¡¯s really unexpected! I actually found the body I need in this ce. With this body, I can be human again! I want to be human again! Hahaha!"

    Qing Feng suddenly stoppedughing. He turned around, looked at She Yu and grinned, "Speaking of bing human again, don¡¯t the blood elementalists always keep elementalists as captives to interrogate them?"

    His voice was already awful. This made his words sound even more frightening.

    She Yu shuddered in fear. After getting grazed by Old Ling¡¯s attack, there was a deep cut on her left arm. The cut was so deep that her arm¡¯s bone could be seen. At this moment, the corner of She Yu¡¯s eyes suddenly caught sight of something. She turned, slightly shocked.

    Inside the green glowing ball, Ai Hui remained stationary like a statue. However, within the depths of his hollow eyes, a needle-like radiance was silently appearing. Upon seeing this, She Yu¡¯s eyes lit up.

    After floating in the void of darkness for an unknown period of time, Ai Hui¡¯s consciousness was slowly returning. Even though he was still very sluggish, he did notpletely lose his ability to think.

    Was the void of darkness an illusion?

    As this thought emerged in his mind, the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] in his sky pce began to operate.

    It was operating very slowly. A wisp of a small me rose from the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp].

    After this, the operating speed of the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] started to increase slowly. The light from the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] slowly scanned Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Whoosh!

    Suddenly, a faintyer of mes appeared all over Ai Hui¡¯s body. The mes were extremely weak and appeared almost colorless. However, when theyer of mes appeared, Ai Hui felt his entire body be lighter all of a sudden. His sluggish mind became much clearer in an instant.

    Ai Hui immediately calmed down.

    Since the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] worked, this proved that the void of darkness he was in was an illusion. [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] specialized in breaking illusions. It was exceptionally effective against this kind of illusion. What happened next also verified Ai Hui¡¯s conjecture.

    Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

    Wisps of ck smoke rose around Ai Hui¡¯s body. His body began to emit traces of weak mes. These weak mes looked as if they could burn the void of darkness.

    After a while, Qing Feng lost interest in the battle between She Yu and Old Ling. He already felt extremely content about capturing such an outstanding body. If he could bring Xiao Shuren back to Grandmaster Dai, that would be perfect!

    If he achieved such a great meritorious service for Grandmaster Dai, the Grandmaster would rece his body with the perfect body of Ai Hui.

    No, there was no such word as ¡®perfect¡¯ in Grandmaster Dai¡¯s dictionary. Nevermind, Grandmaster Dai could make his already perfect body even more perfect.

    He would be more powerful as well!

    When Qing Feng thought of bing more powerful and having a new body, an excitement swept across his mind.

    As his gazended upon Xiao Shuren¡¯s court, a sinister smile appeared on his face.

    Suddenly, he sensed something was amiss. He turned his body around abruptly and looked at the green glowing ball above the ground of lotus leaves.

    Both of them looked at each other in the eyes.

 Chapter 374: [Nether Lotus Glow]

    Chapter 374: [Nether Lotus Glow]

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Beast Venom Temple.

    The figure lying at the bottom of the blood pool was motionless, resembling an ancient monster in slumber.

    A middle-aged man stood beside the blood pool and observed the bottom of it. The man was approximately forty years old. He was thin and weak looking,his face was pale-white and his eyes were sunken. The schr¡¯s robe that he wore was wrinkled.

    This seemingly haggard and sloppy middle-aged man had single-handedly established Beast Venom Temple. He was also the one who devised the blood catastrophe that struck Induction Ground. A lot of policies in God Nation today were nned by him.

    He was the master of Beast Venom Temple, Nangong Wulian.

    Nangong Wulian stared at the figure lying at the bottom of the blood pool. Without turning his head, he asked, "How many times have you changed the blood water?"

    One of his subordinates quickly replied, "Six times. We have to keep on increasing the concentration of the blood water. Up till now, the concentration of the blood water has broken the all-time record, so much so that it has surpassed the concentration used for most of the blood fiends. Will it be too dangerous?"

    The most important material in the blood water of the blood pool was blood core. Blood core was a material that was of a higher grade than a blood crystal. It could only be produced by using high-level blood fiends. The price of a blood core was not cheap in God Nation as well. For a blood pool like this, the number of blood cores used was astonishingly huge. And Beast Venom Temple was the only department that could spare no effort in carrying out such an operation.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s eyes lit up with a demonic glow, as if he was admiring an exceptional treasure. Without turning his head, he replied, "Continue to increase the concentration. Don¡¯t underestimate his limit, he will be a legend in Beast Venom Temple."

    His voice seemed to contain an indescribable excitement and anticipation.

    After a slight hesitation, the subordinate replied, "It seems that he does not want to wake up."

    Nangong Wulian burst intoughter as his eyes filled with fervent joy, "Don¡¯t worry, he will wake up. I have already found the key to wake him up and I have spent a lot of effort finding it."

    All of his subordinates looked at each other with nk looks on their faces.

    "Everyone has a weakness. If one loves money, then you give him money. If one valuesradeship, then you will useradeship to move him."

    A water coffin was carried over and ced beside the blood pool. Indistinctly, one could see a female figure lying in the water coffin.

    "Even though I don¡¯t know how to make grass-lotus puppets, my understanding towards human anatomy far surpassed Dai Gang¡¯s," Nangong Wulian muttered. He shifted his gaze from the water coffin to the blood pool and grinned, "This is my present to you. As long as you are willing to open your eyes and start a new life, she will be yours."

    The blood pool remained tranquil, resembling a smooth mirror. The figure lying at the bottom had no reaction.

    Nangong Wulian chuckled and turned around to leave.

    After a few minutes, the peaceful blood pool suddenly tossed and turned frantically.

    .....

    An intense battle was a disaster for the ancient Ye Residence. Its old structures had received irreversible damage and the fragments of its old, moss-covered walls could be seen everywhere.

    Upon sensing that Ai Hui had notpletely lost the ability to retaliate, She Yu became energized and focused on fighting Old Ling. Gradually, she recovered from the difficult situation she was in previously.

    Qing Feng¡¯s awful voice could be heard incessantly, making one feel as if his or her head was going to explode.

    The beams of green light from the lotus leaves on the ground became thicker and stronger. These beams of green light converged at the body of Ai Hui.

    Faint mes were emitted from Ai Hui¡¯s body. When the beams of green light made contact with the mes, they immediately turned into wisps of ck smoke.

    What kind of me was this?

    Qing Feng widened his eyes. He could not believe what he had just seen.

    Since he was a grass-lotus puppet, he naturally did not have the system of five residences and eight pces. However, his master was an exceptional genius. Using the technique of making elemental elixirs from dire beasts as a reference, his master produced a man-made elemental elixir for him. Possessing the man-made elemental elixir, Qing Feng could train like a dire beast. Furthermore, after his master made some modifications to him, his training efficiency was higher than the usual dire beasts¡¯.

    Elementalists had a wide variety of fighting styles and the system of five residences and eight pces was just a framework. Everyone used the framework differently and uniquely. The training method and fighting style of a dire beast was much more simpler. A dire beast usually had a few killing moves and these killing movesplemented their natural instincts. Daily training would make their strength terrifyingly powerful.

    Qing Feng, being a grass-lotus puppet, had a human head. His killing moves were extremely powerful. With three ultimate killing moves and a unique and unmatched grass-lotus body, he possessed the strength of a Master.

    And [Nether Lotus Glow] was one of his three ultimate killing moves.

    These lotus seeds were not the usual lotus seeds. They were the lotus seeds of the extremely rareher lotuses. Reportedly, theher lotuses only grew in the Yellow Springs of Netherworld. They were exceptionally precious. Of course, no one knew where the Yellow Springs was. In reality,her lotuses grew on deadnds that werepletely devoid of life and vitality. For example, a necropolis.

    Dai Gang had obtained theher lotus seeds in Qing Feng¡¯s body by chance when he was roaming across Wilderness in the past.

    Theher lotus seeds might havee from Dai Gang, but [Nether Lotus Glow] was created by Qing Feng himself. Even Dai Gang marvelled at this technique. After so many years, countless experts had been killed by this move.

    From Qing Feng¡¯s perspective, even though Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordsmanship was rather good, his base level was only at Second Elemental Realm. The moment [Nether Lotus Glow] was unleashed, his hands would be tied and he would only wait to be captured.

    As such, when Qing Feng saw his time-tested ultimate killing move facing resistance from Chu Zhaoyang, he was startled.

    [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] was not a very well-known inheritance and not a lot of people practiced it. When Qing Feng saw the weak mes on Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s body, he did not recognize them.

    Luckily, he intensified the strength of [Nether Lotus Glow] and the mes on Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s body became much weaker.

    Qing Feng heaved a sigh of relief. This was the first time he¡¯d encountered such a situation.

    Qing Feng might appear muddle-headed and careless, but in reality, he was extremely cunning and paranoid. He did not like to fight with unknown enemies. Even though he was a grass-lotus puppet that trained like dire beasts and had many marvellous tricks up his sleeves, he still had weaknesses.

    His body was not as strong and sturdy as a dire beasts¡¯. If he was struck by a brutal attack, his body could get damaged easily.

    Once his body was damaged, he had to return and stay in his master¡¯s lotus pond for a long time to recover fully.

    He did not like staying in the lotus pond at all. His entire body would be lodged under the sloshy mud with only his head left outside. That was a terrible experience.

    Usually, if he sensed something was not right, he would immediately retreat and wait for a new opportunity to strike again.

    Even though Qing Feng had loosened up, his gaze still did not leave the trapped Ai Hui.

    He did not go and capture Xiao Shuren immediately. Since the situation was well under his control, how was it even possible for her to run away?

    Ai Hui noticed that [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] was beginning to dim. The surrounding emptiness and darkness was boundless. Gradually, the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] dimmed and its operating speed became very slow.

    The glimmer of hope he had just seen was being extinguished in an instant. However, Ai Hui¡¯s mind did not falter because of this. At this point in time, his mind had already returned to its normal state.

    What should he do?

    Ai Hui was exceptionally calm. His brain was operating very fast as he thought of ways to break out of the green glowing ball.

    [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] suppressed illusions and psychic attacks. Since it worked against the void of darkness, this meant that the surrounding emptiness and darkness was some kind of illusion.

    This illusion was so real that Ai Hui could not even budge the slightest bit when he tried to move his body,

    The [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp]¡¯s operating speed decreased. This showed that the other¡¯s party¡¯s psychic attack was very strong and the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] was being suppressed.

    His body was imprisoned but his mind was free. What else could he do?

    Eh? Ai Hui suddenly realized that the elemental energy in his body could still flow. Previously, he felt that his elemental energy was being devoured. Apparently, that was also an illusion.

    It was incredible to see an illusion being so real.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up when he knew he could still channel his elemental energy. But every time his elemental energy reached the periphery of his body, the elemental energy could not proceed on. This applied to his palms as well. When the elemental energy reached his palm, it could not escape his palm and entered the Silverfold Plum.

    His elemental energy could only flow within his body...

    Ai Hui was slightly disappointed. If his elemental energy could not enter Silverfold Plum, he could not utilize his swordsmanship.

    Almost all of his fighting capabilities were based on his swordsmanship. The inability to utilize his swordsmanship was equivalent to him losing more than half of his strength. Furthermore, with the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] being suppressed, he lost the tiny bit of strength that he was left with.

    The situation was bing worse. However, Ai Hui did not intend to give up just like this.

    He kept on channeling the elemental energy within his body and the elemental energy flowed faster and faster. Ai Hui wanted to see if the elemental energy could break through the confinement of the illusion. An illusion spell that could confine elemental energy had surpassed the usual illusion spells in terms of strength and level.

    Ai Hui¡¯s movements immediately caught Qing Feng¡¯s attention.

    When Qing Feng saw what Ai Hui was doing, he could not help butugh. He was very proud of himself.

    He stepped on the lotus leaves and walked nearer to the green glowing ball. He widened his eyes and admired his masterpiece.

    The fact that Ai Hui could still channel his elemental energy was a trap set up by Qing Feng on purpose. Just as Ai Hui had expected, the illusion wasn¡¯t any ordinary illusion. He certainly did not expect that what he had encountered was a type of illusion poison.

    Nether lotus seeds grew in ces which had the highest concentration of aura of death. These ces were also known as gateways to theherworld. The green light emitted by the lotus leaves was actually a bizarre mixture of light and smoke.

    The light could imprison Ai Hui and create illusions, but it was not deadly. The deadly thing was the smoke. The smoke was a formless and invisible poisonous smoke. It could seep into an elementalist¡¯s body without him knowing.

    The faster the elementalist channeled his elemental energy, the faster the poisonous smoke would seep into his body and the stronger its toxicity would get. It would draw the elementalist nearer and nearer to his death.

    Qing Feng purposely designed the green light to only imprison an elementalist¡¯s body and not the elemental energy within his body. By designing the green light this way, an imprisoned elementalist would see this as his only chance to escape and keep on channeling his elemental energy. Doing this would only give the poisonous smoke the chance to strike.

    Therefore, when Qing Feng saw that Ai Hui kept channeling his elemental energy, he broke intoughter. It was a pity that his smile was extremely ugly and weird-looking.

    The numbness caused by the poisonous smoke was very subtle, making it difficult for one to sense it. However, Ai Hui could immediately sense something was wrong.

    When Ai Hui was in Wilderness in the past, other than the sword embryo, poison was the greatest helper. He had spent a lot of time and effort studying and using poison. As such, he was extremely sensitive to the presence of poison.

    When the first trace of poisonous smoke entered his body, he could already sense it.

    Poisonous!

    The first thing he did was to stop channeling the elemental energy in his body. He knew of a lot of poisons that could use elemental energy as a medium of travel to spread throughout a body.

    At this moment, a trace of weird energy suddenly emerged from his body.

    Ai Hui was stunned. Wasn¡¯t this fusion elemental energy?

    In order to spend a longer time in the Hall of Ancient Records, Ai Hui trained diligently to develop his fusion elemental energy. His training progress in fusion elemental energy had improved extremely fast.

    The trace of fusion elemental energy pounced towards that trace of poisonous smoke, like a predator that spotted its prey.

 Chapter 375: The Opportunity To Live

    Chapter 375: The Opportunity To Live

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The reason why Ai Hui had developed his fusion elemental energy was so he could enter the Grass Hall to find that notebook.

    In his eyes, the person who created fusion elemental energy was a genius. Developing fusion elemental energy was equivalent to developing five elemental energies at once. This defied the current system of developing only one elemental energy at a time. A lot of theories and designs rted to fusion elemental energy were eye-opening and marvellous.

    Even though Ai Hui marvelled at fusion elemental energy, he did not spend much time or effort on studying it in depth.

    Being heterogeneous might not be a good thing to an elementalist.

    Ai Hui¡¯s attention was mainly ced on swordsmanship. There was no limit to what he could learn from swordsmanship and he was just getting started on this path. The swordsmanship of today was not as prosperous and flourishing as it was in the past. As such, there were not many references or teachers that he could learn from and he had to learn a lot of things by himself. This required a lot more energy than for other more prominent fields, where one could just learn and copy vishly.

    As for Master¡¯s [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth], how could he lose it? Using [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth], a powerful weapon in God-subduing Peak had been created. Simrly, the [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] was deep and profound and there were a lot of areas that Ai Hui had yet to understand.

    Ai Hui was fully aware that a person¡¯s energy was limited. He knew that he himself wasn¡¯t a genius and he did not want to waste too much time on developing fusion elemental energy.

    Fusion elemental energy might be powerful, but it was not what he wanted to develop.

    Hence, when a trace of fusion elemental energy suddenly appeared and pounced towards the trace of poisonous smoke, Ai Hui was shocked.

    As the fusion elemental energy wrapped around the poisonous smoke, thetter, which was previously invisible, suddenly emitted a strong decaying aura of death.

    Ai Hui seemed to have seen countless white skeletons rise from the decaying mud. Any living beings nearby lost their vitality rapidly and were reduced to grey ashes.

    What kind of poison was this?

    Ai Hui, who was very knowledgeable on the topic of poison, had his facial expression change drastically. He could immediately sense how dangerous and frightening this unknown poison was.

    The trace of fusion elemental energy that wrapped around the poisonous smoke swiftly transformed into a cloud of bright, multi-colored mist. After this, the multi-colored mist engulfed the poisonous smoke.

    Like a chameleon, the cloud of mist kept on changing its color, and was extremely beautiful.

    The aura of death suddenly reduced sharply.

    The multi-colored mist was like the natural enemy of the poisonous smoke.

    Ai Hui widened his eyes and focused his attentionpletely. After a while, he seemed toe to a revtion.

    The fusion elemental energy contained all five elements. It happened to form a cycle of five elements that grew and multiplied without an end.

    Even though the mysterious poisonous smoke¡¯s toxicity was overpowering, it was still part of the five elements. As long as it was part of the five elements, it would be affected by the fusion elemental energy¡¯s cycle of five elements. When it entered the cycle of five elements, its elemental nature would be evoked and it would be broken down by whichever element it was typically restrained by.

    No matter how deadly a poison was, once its elemental nature underwent changes, its physical nature would undergo changes too. When this happened, the poison¡¯s toxicity would be removed.

    Did that imply fusion elemental energy was the bane of all poisons?

    Theoretically, this was true. Once something¡¯s elemental nature underwent changes, its physical nature would undergo changes as well.

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain was operating vigorously. Without any hesitation, he quickly channeled his fusion elemental energy.

    Suddenly, the amount of fusion elemental energy in his body increased sharply. Ai Hui felt his body be lighter. His previously unmovable body regained its mobility.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted. This method was effective!

    The changes taking ce within the lotus glow could not slip past Qing Feng¡¯s eyes unnoticed. He saw Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s body suddenly light up with a dazzling, multi-colored glow. Aspared to the previously weak mes, this multi-colored glow was able to make Qing Feng feel extremely ufortable.

    What was that?

    Qing Feng felt bewildered and nervous. This was the first time that he¡¯d felt this way.

    His instincts told him that this multi-colored glow might cause harm to him.

    Clink, clink, clink!

    It sounded as if an ice chunk was being hit by numerous needles, striking fear into one¡¯s heart. Qing Feng¡¯s eyelids twitched as he stared at the green glowing ball. Densely-packed light spots suddenly appeared on the surface of the green glowing ball.

    That was...

    The needle-head sized light spots began to inte and be coin-sized, multi-colored spots in an indescribably weird way.

    The multi-colored spots were expanding at a visible speed. In the blink of an eye, the green glowing ball transformed into a multicolor-spotted glowing ball, resembling a huge soap bubble that was under the sun.

    Pop!

    The bubble popped and revealed an uninjured Chu Zhaoyang.

    They made eye contact.

    Qing Feng¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. He suddenly realized that the distance between him and Chu Zhaoyang was...

    Too close!

    Damn it!

    Previously, Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordsmanship had left a deep impression on him. As such, he knew how dangerous it was to be so close to Chu Zhaoyang. Without any hesitation, Qing Feng made a hasty retreat.

    A streak of sword gleam lit up.

    When the retreating Qing Feng saw that the sword gleam was only palm-sized, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    Eh? There was one more streak of sword gleam. No, there were two more...

    Very soon, Qing Feng discovered that something was not right. The number of sword gleams was increasing rapidly. In the blink of an eye, a mass of sword gleams was formed. Like a school of fish, the mass of densely-packed sword gleams shot towards Qing Feng.

    There was one more thing that caused him to tremble with fear. These fragmentary sword gleams had assembled together to form an unblockable, powerful force and it was locked on to him!

    Qing Feng¡¯s face paled. Damn it. What the hell was this thing?

    The mass of sword gleams were getting closer to him. He felt more and more appalled. Even though these sword gleams were fragmentary, their aura had fused together well. The aura was solid in nature, biting cold and sharp and it was heading straight for his head.

    In a moment of desperation, he couldn¡¯t care less and plunged himself deep into the sloshy mud beneath the lotus leaves.

    At the same time, the glow of the lotus leaves intensified and a screen of green-colored light appeared above the lotus leaves.

    The mass of fragmentary sword gleams collided violently with the green-colored light screen.

    Boom!

    The sound of the collision resembled a thunderp.

    The front part of the mass of sword gleams exploded into countless fragments that rained torrentially all over the ce. The green-colored light screen began to wobble, and then trembled violently. Finally, the light screen could no longer hold on and shattered.

    The rear part of the mass of sword gleams plunged ferociously into the sloshy mud.

    Boom!

    The sloshy mud flew up high into the sky while the fragmented sword gleams rained down on the lotus leaves. Without protection from the green-colored light screen, the lotus leaves were extremely fragile. In an instant, they were punctured with countless holes and their stems were broken.

    She Yu and Old Ling, who were engaged in a fierce battle with each other, were rmed by what happened on the other side.

    The sloshy mud that flew up in the sky came flying down like a rain of arrows and covered everything in mud.

    Both of them stopped fighting at the same time and quickly pulled away from each other. They waved their hands to protect themselves from the torrential mud rain. The rain-like mudnded on the surrounding walls and made densely-packed popping sounds. Numerous honeb-like holes were created on the walls.

    She Yu and Old Ling shifted their gazes in unison to the area where the explosion had just urred.

    The verdant green that filled the courtyard had disappeared. Broken branches and torn leaves were scattered everywhere. Sloshy mud was everywhere on the surface of the ground. A gigantic pit was formed in the center of the courtyard. Qing Feng stood in the middle of the pit, appearing extremely pathetic.

    At this moment, incredulity and fear appeared on his face. He could not believe a fellow who had only just reached Two Elemental Realm could unleash such a powerful and frightening attack.

    However, the fear and incredulity he felt soon turned into pain.

    Only half of the lotus leaves were left in the badly damaged courtyard. When Qing Feng saw the leaves dispersed everywhere, he could only think of three words.

    A heavy loss!

    Approximately one-third of hisher lotus seeds had beenpletely destroyed and theseher lotus seeds were unrestorable. He only had threepletely intacther lotus seeds left! As for the remainingher lotus seeds, they had to be thrown into the Well of Netherworld to be nourished and restored.

    Agonizing pain spread throughout his body as an angry flush rose from Qing Feng¡¯s neck all the way up to his head.

    Theher lotus seeds were not easy toe by.

    When Grandmaster Dai was young, after he obtained the first batch ofher lotus seeds from the depths of Wilderness, he painstakingly built the Well of Netherworld. Only after he¡¯d built the well could the number ofher lotus seeds slowly increase.

    If everyher lotus seed was converted into money, the amount of money yielded would be astronomical.

    Any damagedher lotus seed would make Qing Feng feel as if his heart was bleeding. The heavy loss that he suffered this time around made him felt as if he was being pierced by a sword. In this case, his heart was not bleeding but spouting out blood!

    "Gie! Gamn it! You fhall gie!"

    Qing Feng¡¯s words were still unclear, yet filled with an intense killing intent.

    He swayed his head as he tried to look for Chu Zhaoyang. He wanted to shred that bastard to smithereens.

    However, even after he scanned through every nook and cranny of the courtyard, he still could not find Chu Zhaoyang.

    With a pair of bloodied eyes, Qing Feng aggressively flew up into sky. He swept his eyes across the area and still could not find Chu Zhaoyang.

    Qing Feng calmed down slightly. It was not possible for Chu Zhaoyang to escape in such a short period of time.

    At this moment, Old Ling yelled anxiously, "Xiao Shuren! He is going to hold Xiao Shuren hostage!"

    Qing Feng¡¯s facial expression changed slightly. His anger-filled mind calmed down abruptly.

    Before he embarked on this mission, his master had exhorted him to bring the ancient treasure or Xiao Shuren back to him, no matter what.

    Qing Feng clearly knew that all he had was owed to his master. His master¡¯s interests were of paramount importance.

    Until now, he still remembered the angelic voice that rang across his ears when his body was in anguish and his eyes were filled with blood.

    "Do you want to continue to live?"

    Henceforth, he had be the monster now, a grass-lotus puppet.

    He did not like being a grass-lotus puppet. Very often, he felt that he was like a monster. His master told him that he could be a human again only if he found a suitable body.

    Bing a human again held an absolute temptation over him.

    However, he must first fulfil his master¡¯s interests. Whether he could be human once more or remained as a grass-lotus puppet, he must not defy his master¡¯s orders.

    His master had seldom reminded him of his mission with such solemness. As such, Qing Feng knew that he definitely had toplete this mission at all costs.

    If he lost theher lotus seeds, his master still could grant him more.

    However, if he failed toplete the mission, he would fall out of favor with his master.

    What was the point of having a useless grass-lotus puppet around?

    All his anger disappeared without a trace in an instant. The cunning grass-lotus puppet had returned.

    This time around, he had encountered a troublesome opponent.

    After Ai Hui had unleashed the fragmentary sword gleams, his elemental energy was almost depletedpletely. Therefore, he turned and ran without any hesitation. He did not even have the time to see what his attack had done.

    He waspletely uncertain about the power of [Fragmented Sword]. This was the first time he¡¯d used [Fragmented Sword] in a real battle. He did not have much time to decide what to do. A slight hesitation could have caused him to lose the chance of making any moves at all.

    The strength of the grass-lotus puppet was definitely at the level of a Master.

    Ai Hui made a precise assessment of Qing Feng.

    Ai Hui did not try to escape directly. The strength disparity between him and Qing Feng was too great, it was impossible for him to try to escape.

    The cool-headed Ai Hui thought of a lifeline at this instant.

    Xiao Shuren!

    As long as he could hold Xiao Shuren hostage, Qing Feng would not dare to attack him for fear of injuring Xiao Shuren. Ai Hui could tell that Qing Feng was determined to capture Xiao Shuren alive.

    Like a flying arrow, he flew into Xiao Shuren¡¯s court.

    Xiao Shuren was not shocked to see him. On the contrary, she was smiling at him.

    Ai Hui was startled. However, there was no time for him to hesitate at this moment. He could hear Qing Feng¡¯s roaring from outside. Like a lithe bat, hended behind Xiao Shuren and ced his Silverfold Plum on her throat.

    Xiao Shuren did not resist him and looked smilingly at him.

    Upon seeing this, a cold shiver went down Ai Hui¡¯s spine.

    Step by step, Qing Feng moved closer to the court. With a chilling voice, he said, "Let go of her and I shall spare your life..."

    Just as Ai Hui was about to open his mouth to speak, he suddenly sensed something and raised his head to look at the sky.

 Chapter 376: Destiny

    Chapter 376: Destiny

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    In Silver City, high in the sky, there was a man and a woman floating on a cloud.

    The woman¡¯s deep green and white robe was fluttering loudly, while the veil on her face was drifting in the wind behind her. Karakorum Savant was holding a sword with one hand. The silver-white azure wings on her back were light and dazzling. They were covered with exquisite feather-shaped patterns, looking unimaginably beautiful.

    Beside her, there was a tall and burly man. He was wearing a silver-white mask on his face. The mask was so well-polished that it looked sleek and glossy. There was a simple and unadorned word engraved onto his forehead, "Infantry".

    Behind the mask, his exposed eyes were deep and reserved.

    The most attractive part of his body was his arms. He had a pair of muscr, metallic arms. From his shoulders down, everything was made of metal. The joints were elegantly built. Mysterious andplicated veined patterns were engraved all over his two arms.

    Simrly, the azure wings on his back were also silver-white in color. However, his azure wings had a bigger framework and were sturdier and stronger than Karakorum Savant¡¯s.

    "Senior, let¡¯s go down."

    Karakorum Savant¡¯s voice was very light, so much so that it sounded as if it could be carried away by the drifting wind. Beneath her veil, her beautiful eyes emitted a faint glow that seemed to bring an indescribable sense of hope.

    The burly man could hear her light and gentle voice clearly. He nodded his head and replied, "I will be at the front. Take care of your safety."

    "Ok," Karakorum Savant replied.

    The burly man spread the azure wings on his back. Like a vigorous winged dragon, he swooped down from the sky.

    As the thick and solid azure wings pped, they produced a heavy wind sound.

    His speed increased. The eyes that his silver-white mask exposed remained deep andposed.

    As he got nearer to the ground, the azure wings on his back withdrew. Like a meteor, he was approaching the ground at a terrifying speed. His entire body was lit up with a dazzling ze. The ze was flickering non-stop and the light it emitted was reflected in his eyes.

    The sharp sound of wind rapidly became deep and trembling. The ze became increasingly intense as it was stroked by the fluttering wind. The deep, trembling, whizzing sound of wind wasbined with the whirring sound of the intense ze.

    Everyone on the ground immediately sensed something strange and raised their heads.

    A faintly discernable figure that was engulfed in mes was falling from the sky like a meteor. His momentum was terrifying.

    Everyone¡¯s facial expressions changed drastically. This person did not show any sign of slowing down. On the contrary, he was still increasing his speed.

    A simr thought appeared in everyone¡¯s mind. Was this man crazy?

    Flying down at such a high speed would make it impossible for him to slow down before hended. The powerful impact would smash his body to smithereens on first contact.

    The flight speed of the fire-engulfed figure did not change the slightest bit. The two eyes that his mask revealed were calm and deep.

    Following which, his body began to transform. An intense, metallic luster rapidly extended over the surface of his body. In the blink of an eye, his entire body was covered with an intense, copper-yellow luster.

    [Copper Skin]!

    The most basic level of body-tempering lookedpletely different on his body. The copper-yellow luster gradually became brighter, eventually bing silver-white in color. The clothes on his body emitted a silver-white luster as well, as if they were made up of thin pieces of silver. Under the illumination from the ze around his body, his clothes became blinding to the eye.

    Everyone¡¯s facial expressions changed. Without any hesitation, they quickly retreated to safety.

    This fellow was going tond without slowing down his speed!

    A streak of ze descended from the sky with 10,000 newtons of force.

    Boom!

    An earth-shaking explosion erupted and released a terrifying shock wave that was mixed with mes and debris. The shock wave rushed towards everyone like a whizzing iron wall filled with chaotic elemental energy.

    She Yu disappeared into the air like a wisp of smoke and appeared a hundred meters away from the explosion.

    Old Ling shrieked and flew towards the sky abruptly. His figure flew higher and higher before barely avoiding the whizzing, violent shock wave.

    Ai Hui¡¯s reaction was extremely fast as well. He could already sense the presence of the person when they were still in the sky. Then, when the person began to swoop down from the sky, Ai Hui immediately knew what he was trying to do.

    Ai Hui knew because he had used a simr type of move before. The only difference was Ai Hui used a sword move to negate the recoiling impact, while the man used his body to do it.

    Previously, Ai Hui was already very impressed by Gui Hu¡¯s tempered body. However, in front of this freak, Gui Hu¡¯s tempered body was not even worth mentioning.

    This was too sick!

    At the first instance, Ai Hui dragged Xiao Shuren along with him and made a hasty retreat.

    Initially, Xiao Shuren still did not know what was going on. However, when she saw the descending streak of ze in the sky, her facial expression changed. As she retreated with Chu Zhaoyang, she saw the surrounding walls in the courtyard being destroyed by the shock wave. The walls copsed and a wave of debris flew towards her like a grey-colored monster that was baring its fangs and brandishing its ws at her.

    In an instant, her face turned deathly pale.

    At the most critical moment, her vision went dark. She had being dragged into a tall drain by Chu Zhaoyang. The whizzing shock wave blew over the top of her head while the ground trembled. Xiao Shuren¡¯s mind went nk as her body shivered with cold involuntarily.

    The one who suffered the most was Qing Feng. He had just sustained huge losses after being severely injured by Chu Zhaoyang. Hence, when such a powerful attack suddenly came, he could not react in time. As the violent shock wave swept across the courtyard and hit him, he felt as if he had collided head-on with a monster that was charging wildly.

    With a groan, he suddenly burrowed his feet into the ground. Like a tree that had embedded its roots deep into the earth, he held on tightly to the ground.

    Crackle, rattle. The rain-like debris hit his body and produced sparks that flew in all directions. His body was swaying violently but luckily his feet had grown roots to stabilize his body by force.

    He felt that he had been swept into a hurricane.

    Crack, crack, crack!

    Every second felt like forever.

    Huff, puff, huff. Qing Feng was panting heavily as he held on tightly to the ground. At this moment, he looked extremely pathetic. The previously bright and clean surface of his lotus roots was covered with cracks now.

    When he raised his head, the cracks on the surface of his lotus roots disappeared and became as good as new. However, Qing Feng knew that it was only the surface that had recovered. In reality, his body was severely damaged. After he returned home, he would have to stay in the lotus pond for a period of time to have his bodypletely healed.

    However, now was not the time to think about that.

    His gaze was fixated on the half-crouching, silver-colored, burly man in the middle of the courtyard.

    The entire body of that man emitted an intense, metallic luster. He looked like a metal man that was cast out of silver. His sturdy muscles resembled the most perfect masterpiece of a ssical sculptor.

    Any pose he made was filled with the beauty of power.

    The most attractive part of his body was his silver-colored metallic arms. The exquisite veined patterns on his arms exuded an indescribable surrealness. By taking a single nce at them, Qing Feng could tell that they had been made by a master.

    When the silver-colored burly man stood up straight, Qing Feng could see the simple and unadorned word carved on his forehead.

    "Infantry!" Qing Feng¡¯s pupils dted.

    Infantry Division was one of the Thirteen Divisions. Was the word "Infantry" engraved on his forehead referring to Infantry Division? What unique meaning did it convey?

    Suddenly, a phantom appeared behind the silver-colored burly man. It was She Yu and her eyes were filled with killing intent.

    Simrly, when she saw the word "Infantry" on the man¡¯s forehead, her heart skipped a beat. Certain secret information emerged in her mind and her killing intent arose all of a sudden.

    A cold shiver went down She Yu¡¯s spine as she sensed something was wrong.

    A cold and sharp aura locked onto her from above her head.

    The other party had an ally with him!

    She made a prompt decision. Following which, her body became light and wavy, like a willow branch fluttering in the wind. Suddenly, her body split into three phantasms that flew away in three different directions.

    A cold dazzling sword gleam descended from the sky. Its crisp and clear sword chime gave off an aura of killing intent that engulfed the ce.

    The three phantasms could not escape in time and were pierced by the sword gleam. They vaporized into three clouds of ck-colored mist and vanished into thin air.

    A hundred meters away, She Yu was looking with fear at the veileddy that was holding a sword.

    Karakorum Savant!

    The first master swordsman in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    When everyone saw Karakorum Savant, everyone immediately thought of one name, Madam Ye!

    Karakorum Savant¡¯s rtionship with the Ye Residence was very deep. Was it a coincidence, or was it pre-nned that Karakorum Savant brought such a powerful assistant all of a sudden?

    Everyone¡¯s faces turned slightly ugly.

    Old Ling¡¯s gaze was fixated on the silver-colored burly man. He looked like he¡¯d thought of something and his facial expression changed slightly. With killing intent in his eyes, he suddenly said, "Shall we join hands?"

    At this point of time, arrogance could no longer be found on Qing Feng¡¯s face. He replied, "Let¡¯s kill these two persons first!"

    "I second that," She Yu smiled lovably.

    The three of them immediately spread apart and surrounded the two people.

    The silver-colored burly man did not show any sign of fear and remained calm and cool-headed. Karakorum Savant held her sword firmly as her gaze remained calm andposed as well.

    Ai Hui dragged Xiao Shuren along with him and hid behind a half-destroyed wall. He felt that life was really unpredictable. Just a moment ago, She Yu was engaged in a bitter battle with Old Ling. But now, they had joined hands.

    When Ai Hui saw his chief and the silver-colored burly man, he instantly felt at ease. The two of them were really too powerful!

    However, for some unknown reason, the silver-colored burly man gave Ai Hui a mysterious sense of familiarity.

    .....

    At Beast Venom Temple, the hall where the blood pool was situated was spacious and empty.

    The scarlet red, thick and bloody water in the pool had be clear without any impurities.

    There was a man lying at the bottom of the pool. His body was naked and his eyes were tightly closed. His long ck hair was scattered and wavy, resembling graceful seaweed at the bottom of a sea.

    He slowly opened his eyes. The world gradually became clearer in his vision. Through the clear water of the pool, he saw a beautiful mural on the domed ceiling. The mural depicted the story of a man who defeated a monster and kept it as a pet. It showed red-colored blood, a blood-stained weapon and numerous hollow tree trunks that were flowing with blood. He seemed to have seen his own destiny.

    He sighed in his heart as his body slowly rose from the pool.

    When his head left the surface of the water, cold and crisp air filled his lungs. The familiar water elemental energy that filled his body had disappeared and was reced by a unfamiliar power.

    It was a type of scorching and surging power that made him stronger than before.

    He did not feel surprised or happy at all. All he felt was emptiness and despair.

    ¡®Since I have already epted it, I can¡¯t be wishy-washy about it,¡¯ he told himself.

    His gazended upon the water coffin on the side of the pool. His heart skipped a beat when he saw the vague yet familiar figure lying in the water coffin.

    He stood up and stepped onto the surface of the water. Under his feet, the water was like a level road.

    He walked to the water coffin and stared at the girl lying within it. That beautiful and familiar face made him feel as if he had gone back to the past.

    If only... things could go back to the way they were, then how good would that be...

    "I¡¯m very sorry. When we found her, her body was already badly injured and iplete. Luckily, she hasn¡¯t died yet."

    A voice came from behind his back.

    The voice belonged to a shabby-looking schr. It was the master of Beast Venom Temple, Nangong Wulian.

    The man did not turn his head and asked, "Have you healed her?"

    Nangong Wulian smiled, "It¡¯s very difficult, I can only try my best."

    "What do you need me to do?" the man asked inly.

    Nangong Wulian threw him a red-and-ck mask and he caught it.

    The color of the ck was deep and dark like the night sky, while the color of the red was zing like scorching mes.

    "From today onwards, you are the Red Devil!"

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s fanatic voice echoed through the spacious and empty hall.

    Without saying a word, under the gazes from the hero and the monster in the mural on the domed roof, the man put on the red-and-ck mask.

 Chapter 377: An Old Friend

    Chapter 377: An Old Friend

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui dragged Xiao Shuren along with him and hid behind a wall. All his attention was caught by the intense battle.

    Chief and Silver Soldier could actually withstand thebined offenses from Old Ling, Qing Feng and She Yu.

    Karakorum Savant¡¯s robe was fluttering and her veil was dancing. Her beautiful eyes remained calm andposed. The elegance of the first ever master swordsman had been disyed without restraint. The sword in her hand emitted an extreme chilliness. Every time she brandished her sword, she would unleash a sword gleam that criss-crossed in the air.

    Ai Hui had no choice but to admit that Karakorum Savant¡¯s swordy and her understanding of swordsmanship were better and more powerful than his.

    For example, sword formations. Ai Hui always utilized sword formations in his sword moves as he felt that sword formations would be an important aspect of swordsmanship in the future. Butpared to Ai Hui, Karakorum Savant¡¯s sword moves could disy traces of sword formations at will.

    She used sword formations with more flexibility and ease than Ai Hui did. One could tell that her understanding of swordsmanship was much deeper than Ai Hui¡¯s.

    Furthermore, her fighting style lit up Ai Hui¡¯s eyes as well.

    Her body moved along with her sword.

    Her body seemed to be weightless, behaving as if she was the tassel that hung on her sword hilt. As her sword moves lit up and whizzed towards her target, she hid herself behind the sword gleam and flew along with it.

    Immediately, AI Hui could see the marvel behind this unique fighting style.

    The range of a sword gleam was not as far as an arrow¡¯s. However, in terms of short-distance explosive power, it was much stronger than an arrow¡¯s. Apanied by the sharpness of a sword gleam, this kind of explosive power was extremely deadly at short distances.

    And by hiding herself behind the sword gleam, she could reduce her exposed surface area, making it nearly impossible for her enemy tond an attack on her. Karakorum Savant¡¯s enemy had to first destroy the sword gleam before he or she could attack her.

    Of course, this kind of fighting style had its weakness too.

    Even though this fighting style was fast and precise, it was too straightforward andcked variability. As long as the opponent could dodge the sword gleam andunch an indirect attack, they could obtain the opportunity to injure Karakorum Savant.

    However, with Silver Soldier by Karakorum Savant¡¯s side, this kind of simple and direct fighting style immediately became extremely powerful.

    Karakorum Savant moved like a flying treasure sword that swirled around Silver Soldier. At this point of time, Silver Soldier was surrounded by a streak of sword gleam that was striking its enemies from all directions unpredictably.

    Silver Soldier¡¯s burly body was like an unreasonable monster. When an ordinary attacknded on his shiny silvery body, it could not even leave a single scratch on him. His metal-made arms were changing its form unpredictably. Sword, fist, hammer, polearm, axe, truncheon....

    A variety of moves were unleashed in an innumerable session.

    However, even so, this was not enough to cause trouble for his opponents. The most troublesome aspect of his offense was that his variety of moves was apanied by a straight-on and explosive attacking style. This type of offense was overwhelming and terrifying for his opponents.

    No one dared to fight him head-on. Old Ling, who was metal-attributed just like Silver Soldier, had his face turn ugly after exchanging a few blows with him.

    Qing Feng was suppressed by him until the point that he no longer had any fighting fervor in him. Right now, he only focused on dodging Silver Soldier¡¯s attacks. After hisher lotus seeds were severely damaged by Ai Hui, he¡¯ lost his trump card and his strength had reduced sharply. This put him in an extremely pathetic state.

    Karakorum Savant swept up streaks of biting-cold sword gleams around Silver Soldier. There were a few times where She Yu tried to mount a sneak attack on Silver Soldier but failed to find an opening to attack. Instead, she was almost injured by the swirling sword gleams.

    The injury that Old Ling had previously inflicted on She Yu was making her movements sluggish at this point of time.

    Even when Karakorum Savant and Silver Soldier fought against three experts at once, they did not sumb to a disadvantageous position. Ai Hui could not take his eyes off the intense battle.

    To be able to see such an intense battle between experts was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It was highly beneficial for Ai Hui to be able to observe and learn from the battle while on the sideline.

    Ai Hui was not surprised at Karakorum Savant¡¯s superb swordsmanship. However, he was slightly shocked at how powerful Silver Soldier was. From what he knew of Infantry Division, they were not really popr among the public.

    Even though Infantry Division was part of Thirteen Divisions and was one of the two major metal elemental divisions, their status differed greatly from Sky Edge Division, the other metal elemental division.

    Sky Edge Division¡¯s fighting capabilities were more outstanding and their inheritances were more formidable than Infantry Division¡¯s. There were a lot of areas in which Sky Edge Division was better than Infantry Division. Honestly speaking, Infantry Division was a borers¡¯ division. The missions and things they did were strenuous and unrewarding.

    There were many reasons why Infantry Division was not popr. However, the main reason was their choice of training specialization. Infantry Division specialized in body-tempering. Out of so many specializations, body-tempering was the most challenging and arduous.

    At the initial stage, practicing body-tempering was rtively less difficult. However, as one progressed along this path, the difficulty of practising body-tempering increased sharply. Furthermore, when it came to battles, the elementalists from Infantry Division would usually y the role of meat shields in the front line. This caused their casualty rate to be extremely high. The tasks they did were difficult and tiring. It was no wonder that they were so unpopr.

    And because of all these reasons, Infantry Division was the lowest ranking division among the Thirteen Divisions.

    Ai Hui knew little about Infantry Division. The only person he knew from Infantry Division was Brother Li Wei, whom he¡¯d first met in Central City.

    As this thought emerged in his mind, Ai Hui was suddenly stunned.

    He raised his head abruptly and started at the view of Silver Soldier¡¯s back.

    Countless fragmented memories appeared in his mind. These blurred fragmented memories began to stack on top of the silver figure.

    Ai Hui stared nkly at the silver, burly figure and found him to be more and more familiar.

    Brother Li Wei... He did not!

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind went nk upon realizing that Li Wei did not die.

    Three years ago, when the blood catastrophe had just broken out, there were only two elites from Thirteen Divisions. They were Li Wei and Zhou Xiaoxi. Zhou Xiaoxi was the one that apanied Ai Hui and the other students to Garden of Life. After the blood catastrophe broke out, Zhou Xiaoxi, who was then infected with blood poison, had to seek reinforcements for the students by himself. Eventually, he met with a mishap and died. As for Brother Li Wei, he¡¯d disappeared without a trace after taking part in an operation.

    Senior Mingxiu had grieved over Li Wei¡¯s death for a long time.

    He did not expect Brother Li Wei to still be alive...

    Ai Hui¡¯s gazended upon Li Wei¡¯s metallic arms. It was then he remembered that Brother Li Wei lost his arms during the fight with Tian Kuan three years ago. Eventually, Ai Hui calmed himself down from the excitement. The silvery figure looked more unfamiliar than familiar.

    He was exuding such an invincible and overbearing aura. Brother Li Wei had changedpletely.

    Brother Li Wei was not the only one who had changedpletely. If the old Brother Li Wei saw what he had transformed into now, he would be surprised as well, right?

    In troubled times, everything was changing every day. Every life was as fragile as a de of grass. If one did not want to die, he or she had to be stronger at all costs.

    Would Brother Li Wei still remember Senior Mingxiu?

    The excitement in Ai Hui¡¯s heart had disappeared and was reced by an indescribable tinge of sadness.

    He did not want to know the answer at all.

    Suddenly, Xiao Shuren, who was in his embrace, fidgeted and said, "You are hugging me too tight."

    Ai Hui returned to his senses and warily tightened his sword against her neck. Previously, in a moment of desperation to avoid the impact from Li Wei¡¯snding, he¡¯d dragged Xiao Shuren with him and made a hasty retreat.

    At this point of time, both of them were in a rather dubious position. To restrain Xiao Shuren and prevent her from getting injured by the shock wave, Ai Hui pressed her against his chest and ced his Silverfold Plum on her neck.

    "Don¡¯t move about!"

    Ai Hui warned her coldly. He loosened his grip as he could hear Xiao Shuren had slight difficulty breathing properly.

    Xiao Shuren panted heavily. She looked extremely pathetic now. Her head and face were filthy with dirt and her fringe was messy. Even so, her beauty still could not be concealed.

    Ai Hui was extremely wary of her. Every movement Xiao Shuren made, he would react to it. No matter what ancient treasure she had, he did not care about it at all. This woman was cunning and vile. A slight moment of carelessness would cause him to fall into her trap.

    "Let¡¯s make a deal," said Xiao Shuren calmly as sheposed her breathing.

    "You better not y any tricks," Ai Hui said coldly as doubt filled his mind.

    "A person who is about to die has no reason to do that," Xiao Shuren smiled sadly and continued, "Don¡¯t tell me, does Mr Chu still think that I can continue to live?"

    Ai Hui was stunned.

    .....

    On the tform at the center of the pool, Xiaobao had a nk look on his face. He did not know what was going on.

    Bendy strips of dazzling light appeared on his body. These translucent light strips swirled around his body like meandering roads on a mountain.

    [Sinuous Aqua Body]!

    This was a body constitution unique to the Gu Family.

    Great Elder widened his eyes. One could see the excitement and happiness in his eyes.

    One by one, everyone on the side of the pool widened their eyes as well. Nine sinuous traces! It was the most outstanding level of body constitution in [Sinuous Aqua Body]

    Very soon, a look of marvel appeared on their faces.

    However, they also felt that it was a great pity for a mentally challenged boy to have such an excellent body constitution. The gods were really too cruel to the Gu Family. However, even if Xiaobao wasn¡¯t too smart, as long as he was physically healthy and he could make use of his natural gift, his future would be limitless with the backing of Great Elder.

    The Gu Family was unlikely to go so far as to go without having a qualified sessor to carry on its undertaking.

    A look of disappointment shed across Elder Ling¡¯s face.

    Great Elder was very emotional. Even though he tried to suppress his emotions, those who knew him well could still see how emotional he was. The malicious rumor that had been spreading thest few days had taken a toll on his mind. Even though he kept telling himself that it was only a plot set up by his enemies, he was still disturbed by it.

    His only son had died young and his grandson was born with a mental disability. These no doubt made him feel forlorn. However, no matter how big of a weakness Xiaobao had, he was still his only grandson and mental support.

    The vicious rumor found his weakness so easily.

    At this point of time, Great Elder looked at Xiaobao with a gaze which was filled with a mixture of love and guilt.

    When he shifted his gaze to Madam Ye, he felt even more guilty. All these years, his daughter-inw had been taking care of Xiaobao by herself, and she still had to go through such unredressed injustice. However, he knew that he was mainly responsible for this incident as well. He had a lot of things that he wanted to say, but could not do so.

    Madam Ye understood how he felt and smiled gently. Even at this point of time, she was stillposed and virtuous

    Elder Ling cast a nce at Elder Song, who shook his head to imply that the result was real. Elder Ling was extremely disappointed. He thought he would obtain a good opportunity this time around. If Great Elder¡¯s family was involved in a scandal at this point of time, Great Elder would not be able to stay in his position for long.

    Even though Elder Ling was disappointed deep down, his face was brimming with joy. He said in a loud voice, "I told you so. We watched Lin-er grow up, how can we not know her character?"

    Yuchi Ba smiled, "That¡¯s right. Why would one doubt Ye Residence¡¯s family values? Their family values are matchless! I can¡¯t fathom how there are people who actually believe in such an absurd rumor. This time around, with everyone present as witness, no one can harass Xiaobao with such a rumor again."

    The speaker had no particr intention in saying this, but the listener read his own meaning into it. Great Elder felt more guilty upon hearing what Yuchi Ba said. However, he still felt more anger than guilt. With a cold voice, he said, "Everyone, please be my witness. If I find out who started the rumor, I will not hesitate to punish him ruthlessly."

    "Indeed! That person has to be punished! A rumor like this is far too malicious!"

    "The person who started this rumor is too malicious! The person deserves to die!"

    The rest agreed as well.

    Madam Ling¡¯s face turned deathly white. She stared at Xiaobao and could not believe her eyes. How could it be? How could it be? She definitely would not make a mistake!

    Madam Ye smiled as usual. Her gentleness could make one enchanted with her.

    At this moment, a scout from Sky Edge Division walked to Tong Kui and whispered something in his ear. Tong Kui¡¯s body froze momentarily. Then he walked silently to Yuchi Ba. Everyone present was an influential individual and all of them were shrewd and sharp. At once, they knew something was wrong.

    A premonition arose in Great Elder¡¯s mind. He withdrew his smile and asked, "What has happened?"

    Yuchi Ba nodded his head and told Tong Gui, "Report everything to Great Elder."

    Tong Kui bowed and replied, "Yes. Ye Residence has been attacked."

    An absolute silence descended upon everyone.

 Chapter 378: The Ancient Treasure

    Chapter 378: The Ancient Treasure

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The fierce battle sounded nonstop but Ai Hui¡¯s attention waspletely on Xiao Shuren¡¯s words.

    "Madam Ye¡¯s strategy is brilliant, I¡¯m impressed." Xiao Shuren¡¯s voice was full of praise, "First was the empty residence after Madam took Xiaobao out. And the ancient treasure I have on me is a bait to attract intruders, especially those from the Ling Residence. Karakorum Savant and this Silver Soldier are her assistants and their mission is probably to tangle the enemies."

    Upon hearing her words, Ai Hui automatically looked toward the battleground.

    He¡¯d not felt it previously, but upon hearing Xiao Shuren¡¯sments, he couldn¡¯t help but notice some of these clues. "Why?" he asked, unable to bear his curiosity.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s tone carried admiration. "Because Madam wishes to use this opportunity to annihte the Ling Residence. Madam Ye put on a weak front in regard to the relentless spreading of rumors involving Xiaobao. When the truth gets out, the grievances she felt before would intensify, evoking more sympathy from the people. And if people saw how the Ye Residence is being bullied, what would they think?"

    "They would only feel that Madam Ling went overboard and that the orphan and widow are extremely pitiful. If Ye Residence is really weak, there might not be anyone who would dare stand up for her. But there¡¯s Great Elder behind Madam Ye. Great Elder is beyond furious about the rumors that smear Xiaobao¡¯s reputation so it¡¯s inevitable that he will take action. And if Great Elder teaches the Ling Residence a lesson, would anyone stand up for them? No. This is true power."

    Xiao Shuren saidughingly, "Madam Ye will have everyone see for themselves. Look, it¡¯s the Ye Residence. The residence that houses all elementalists with the surname Ye, an orphan and a widow is about to be razed to the ground by the Ling Residence. Aren¡¯t they wretched? Aren¡¯t they pitiful? Shouldn¡¯t the Ling Residence die?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart turned cold. These people¡¯s shrewdness and cunningness was absolutely frighteningly.

    "Ling Residence is done for." Xiao Shuren sighed softly. "And the bait? It will be handed over to Elders Guild of course. Ye Residence, being sensible, has no interest in the ancient treasure at all. Why wouldn¡¯t the Elders Guild be enticed by the ancient treasure, when even Dai Gang is drooling over it and they can shut everyone¡¯s mouth with it?"

    Ai Hui remained silent. He wasn¡¯t proficient in crafty plots and maniptions, but he wasn¡¯t foolish. He understood what Xiao Shuren was saying about the gains and losses involved.

    And unfortunately, Xiao Shuren was right.

    "Actually, I¡¯ve been thinking about some questions for the past few days. How did Ind myself in the Ye Residence? It was because I fell into the hands of Karakorum chief, and her rtionship with Madam Ye wasn¡¯t superficial. Why did I fall into the hands of the chief? Because rumor had it that the ancient treasure was rted to swordsmanship. And where did that rumore from?"

    "Don¡¯t you find it too coincidental, Mister Chu?" Xiao Shuren asked with a smile.

    Ai Hui found it unbelievable. "Could it be Madam Ye?"

    "I have no proof," Xiao Shuren said faintly. "But if that¡¯s the case, our Madam Ye is really not a simple character."

    Her next sentence was even more shocking. "Only two people from Great Wei Enterprise know about the ancient treasure. One is already dead and the other is me. Other than that, there¡¯s only Dai Gang. If my theory is valid, I¡¯m afraid that Madam Ye¡¯s people are beside Dai Gang."

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck. Reason told him that Xiao Shuren¡¯s guess was simply too out of this world, but somehow, intuition told him that it was possible.

    "Isn¡¯t our Madam Ye amazing?"

    Xiao Shuren spoke with admiration and regret. While shebed this theory out from threads and traces, it was very difficult for her to link it with this single mother who had raised a handicapped son for over ten years.

    "I do not want to fall into the hands of the Elders Guild. Plus, I have personal matters to take care of, so I¡¯m willing to hand over the ancient treasure. I only seek yourpassion."

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s tone was sorrowful.

    Ai Hui shook his head. "I¡¯m not interested in the ancient treasure."

    The ancient treasure was a big inconvenience that brought bad luck to its possessor. Countless people had died because of it, including those who perished in the Great Wei Enterprise massacre.

    There were still many things Ai Hui had to do, so he did not wish to get involved. If he did get involved, he wouldn¡¯t be able to aplish anything anymore.

    Xiao Shuren was rather shocked and also extremely surprised. She could tell that Chu Zhaoyang was speaking the truth.

    She let out a distressed, bitterugh. "Those who heard about the ancient treasure scrabbled for it like moths for a me. Who would¡¯ve expected you to deem it as trash."

    Ai Hui did not respond.

    No one disliked treasures. Himself included, but in this world there were always things more important than money and wealth.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s tone changed. "A virtuous man should have the ancient treasure, so I¡¯m giving it to you."

    Before Ai Hui could open his mouth, Xiao Shuren¡¯s next action had him dumbfounded.

    She stuck her palm into her own chest!

    Was shemitting suicide?

    Ai Hui was extremely shocked, but he reacted quickly and noticed that there was no blooding out from her chest at all.

    He cried out involuntarily, "Transfigured elementalist?!"

    "I had been severely injured and almost lost my life. To survive, I had to transform my body into sand," Xiao Shuren exined gently. The image of her drawing her tender, snow-white palm out from her snow-white chest carried an inexpressible, devilish beauty.

    There was a trace of satisfaction and craftiness in Xiao Shuren¡¯s tone. "They did not expect that I would ce the ancient treasure inside my body."

    Ai Hui had not expected that too.

    Her snow-white palm opened, revealing two transparent and wless crystals.

    Each was about the size of a finger and in the centre of each was a drop of golden liquid.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t take his eyes off of them. The golden liquid within was swiveling and changing in countless exquisitelyplicated patterns. He could feel its extraordinariness.

    Before he could react, a white cloth flew out from his palm swiftly, and like an agile white snake it coiled itself around the crystals.

    Ai Hui was stunned.

    Xiao Shuren was taken aback as well but she dismissed it with a smile. "It¡¯s for you anyway."

    Regaining his senses, Ai Hui immediately felt a headache. He hadn¡¯t intended to get involved in this inconvenience, but s, it came and stuck itself onto him like a stubborn stain, unable to be removed.

    The bandage was very interested. Could it be that the golden liquid inside the crystals was some kind of blood?

    Gold-colored blood was very rare.

    Ai Hui looked on helplessly as the bandage went on to swallow its food, a sight scarier than a tiger seizing its prey. He said, "Do you have any unfulfilled wishes, Madam?"

    Xiao Shuren became excited. "You¡¯re a good man of honor indeed, Mister Chu!"

    Man of honor?

    Ai Huiughed in spite of himself. He shook his head, replying, "I¡¯m no man of honor. Men of honor die early. I would like to live a little longer. Cut to the chase, tell me."

    Xiao Shuren, too, understood that time was tight. She responded speedily, "At that time, I was worried that something would happen, so I had the caretaker take my young son out of the enterprise to live in another city with a different identity. Now that Great Wei Enterprise is gone and nothing remains, I can only beg that Mister Chu epts him as your disciple."

    Ai Hui did not agree immediately. He muttered, "I¡¯m homeless and miserable, and the things I doe with danger. Not only will he suffer, he might also lose his life if he follows me."

    With a steady gaze, Xiao Shuren spoke up. "Is there any permanent haven in this chaotic world? Silver City was a beautiful city that flourished but with some dried grass and a fire, it has now turned to ashes. This is all that I can do to help him. Whether or not he lives well from now on, it¡¯s his life."

    Upon hearing that, Ai Hui nodded his head solemnly. "In that case, I¡¯ll agree."

    Xiao Shuren heaved a sigh of relief and handed her son¡¯s address and the caretaker¡¯s name to him. She also gave him a keepsake.

    Ai Hui recorded the information and felt rather curious. "Why me?"

    Xiao Shuren replied, "You put aside your own safety to save Xiaobao. You havepassionation."

    Ai Hui then understood that with her wisdom, tactics and ways of doing things, she was not a simple person. He couldn¡¯t help but feel admiration for her.

    A group of tiny ck dots appeared on the faraway horizon. Looking around, Ai Hui realized that people were also closing in from other directions.

    The Ye Residence had been surrounded.

    Till now, Xiao Shuren¡¯s conjecture had been proven right, impressing Ai Hui even further. "What ns do you have next?"

    Since she¡¯d guessed Madam Ye¡¯s n, she must be prepared.

    Xiao Shurenbed her fringe, answering, "Just hand me over to Madam Yeter on."

    Ai Hui felt somewhat suspicious. Xiao Shuren had mentioned earlier that she did not want to fall into the hands of the Elders Guild.

    Xiao Shuren smiled slightly. "My heart had been damaged from past injuries and I have to change the sand material every two months. But I¡¯ve not changed it for four month so my time is limited, there¡¯s no cure."

    Ai Hui understood instantly and kept silent.

    "Please do not feel sad. I am beyond happy that you¡¯re willing to ept my request." Xiao Shuren consoled him genuinely without the least bit of sorrow. "The people on this side only know about the ancient treasure, but as to what it is exactly, they aren¡¯t clear. Although Dai Gang never said it outright, I believe he knows what these crystals are. They are extremely important to him, so he will not step down. I¡¯m afraid that as a Grandmaster, he would have special means to get what he wants, so please be careful."

    Ai Hui nodded. "I will."

    As the crowd grew close, Madam Ye, Great Elder and some others¡¯ silhouettes could be seen clearly.

    "The dust has settled." Xiao Shuren seemed to be sighing and reminiscing at the same time. She smiled suddenly. "I¡¯ll not bid farewell. The bad thing about transfigured elementalists is that we die uglily."

    Before Ai Hui could respond, Madam Ye¡¯s voice sounded, "Mister Chu, please release Madam Xiao!"

    Ai Hui took away the sword on Xiao Shuren¡¯s neck.

    Many of them exhaled in relief.

    Immediately after, countless burning and avaricious gazes fell upon Xiao Shuren. The rumors about the ancient treasure had many palpitating. How could something that Dai Gang had spent so much effort and strength in obtaining be anything ordinary?

    Freed, Xiao Shuren looked ecstatic upon seeing Ling Sheng and his wife. She cried out urgently, "Save me Master Ling! Dai Gang said that you..."

    She caught herself in time and closed her mouth immediately.

    The expressions of those present changed instantly. They looked toward Ling Sheng and a look of enlightenment shed across their faces. The Ling family was here to seize Xiao Shuren on Dai Gang¡¯s behalf!

    People from the Ling family turned pale. It was okay to have secret connections with Dai Gang, but they absolutely must not publicize it.

    Ling Sheng red at Xiao Shuren and saw the hatred and pleasure in her eyes. He then recalled how Great Wei Enterprise was destroyed with his own hands.

    This woman had finally found her chance for revenge.

    His expression worsened. It was his doomsday.

    "Elder Ling, anything else to say?"

    Great Elder¡¯s tone was t, joy and anger absent. But everyone knew that he was seriously furious.

 Chapter 379: The Tides Turn

    Chapter 379: The Tides Turn

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Elder Ling¡¯s throat was dry. He looked at his close friend Elder Song, whom he had known for decades.

    Elder Song stood still and expressionless, with no intention to speak up for him.

    Elder Ling had given up. If even Elder Song would not help, the others definitely wouldn¡¯t as well.

    Yuchi Ba announced, "I think Elder Ling is no longer suitable for his role as an Elder in the guild. As such, I propose to dismiss him from his formal duties."

    Yuchi Ba was the leader of the New Citizen Faction, while Elder Ling led the Aristocratic Faction. The two were rivals, so he didn¡¯t feel any guilt about adding insult to injury.

    Elder Song momentarily fell silent before suddenly speaking, "I second the motion."

    Elder Ling¡¯s face turned ashen. Any proposal required the support of two elders before it could be brought up for voting by the Elders Guild. Although he knew he had little chance of emerging unharmed this time, he didn¡¯t think that the fatal blow would be delivered by his most trusted friend, Elder Song.

    Elder Song sat quietly and averted his gaze, deliberately avoiding Elder Ling¡¯s eyes.

    The Great Elder said tly, "We will vote during the next meeting. Elder Ling will have to wait to hear the verdict."

    Elder Ling did not resist, as resistance was futile. He and the Ling Residence were finished. The Aristocratic Faction had always been behind him, and Elder Song was someone he trusted deeply. Now, he realized that they had switched sides long ago.

    His gaze fell on the dull and in looking Great Elder. He suddenly had suspicions that the Great Elder was the true mastermind, even though Yelin was the one who¡¯d pulled the trigger.

    Only the Great Elder was capable of taking down the Ling Residence without any bloodshed.

    Elder Ling trembled slightly when he looked upon the mountain peak floating in the sky. The majestic God-subduing Peak seemed to sparkle brilliantly under the sunlight. This one had yet to have anything written on it, indicating that it had just been constructed.

    Beneath the God-subduing Peak was the Ling Residence.

    Such ruthlessness!

    Elder Ling felt as though he had been stabbed in the heart. He shut his eyes in despair, as all ideas of fighting to the death vanished from his mind.

    The God-subduing Peak was like a guillotine hanging ominously over the Ling Residence. If he were to have any thoughts of resistance, the entire Ling family and its legacy would be erased from the Avalon of Five Elements forever.

    Elder Ling looked as though he had aged several decades. He said, "Tianjiang is willing to ept whatever decision the guild makes. Considering our many years of working together, I hope that you¡¯ll spare my family."

    The other Elders were too shocked to speak. They were taken aback by the Great Elder¡¯s ruthless moves. Nobody had expected the Great Elder to just simply deploy the newly constructed God-subduing Peak like that!

    What was more frightening was that no one knew of the Great Elder¡¯s ns to make use of the God-subduing Peak prior to this. They had spies stationed throughout Silver City, yet none of them were able to provide any information.

    The Great Elder had appeared to switch to a policy of non-interference over these past few years. He was hardly involved in any of the conflicts between the various factions. The other elders now realized that the Great Elder hadn¡¯t changed one bit.

    The tiger was merely taking a nap.

    The Great Elder said tly, "As long as the Ling Residence is willing to cooperate with the Elders Guild¡¯s investigation, we will not treat them unfairly.

    Thest shred of hope in Elder Ling¡¯s eyes dimmed as his final plea for mercy was turned down.

    Elder Song came forward and sealed Elder Ling¡¯s elemental energy. Elder Ling epted his fate solemnly.

    Following Madam Ye¡¯s instructions, Ai Hui stood beside her and XiaoBao.

    Having witnessed the cruel fights between the aristocratic families, Ai Hui felt even morepelled to leave. The bright sunshine was unable to give him any warmth, making Silver City feel like an extremely depressing ce to be in.

    The Avalon of Five Elements only had Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige left, yet these people were still involved in merciless internal fighting.

    Countless other families happily struck at those aristocratic families that had copsed. Such disgusting and ridiculous behaviour appeared to be driven purely by jealousy andpetition.

    The Avalon of Five Element¡¯s precious remaining fighting power was constantly being wasted by internal conflicts. If these forces were instead channeled to the front lines, they¡¯d probably be in a much better state.

    It didn¡¯t matter much to him.

    Ai Hui was increasingly missing hispanions in Peace City. He did not like Silver City one bit.

    Ai Hui now understood how difficult it was to work with people who had different goals.

    Keeping his emotions in check, Ai Hui secretly observed the audience. He was worried about She Yu.

    The [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was going to cause him trouble again.

    It would be problematic if She Yu was caught by the Elders Guild.

    His head started to hurt.

    "No! You can¡¯t do this!" screamed the pale-looking Madam Ling. "They¡¯ve all been fooled by you! Ye Lin! You liar! You skank! I saw that man with my own eyes..."

    Madam Ye expressed incredulity.

    Amotion broke out.

    To think Madam Ling was the source of the rumors!

    Two elites from the Sky Edge Division swiftly stepped forward and restrained Madam Ling.

    Using elemental energy, they rendered her unable to speak. The scene became all the more dreadful as Madam Ling¡¯s face became twisted with agony from being unable to voice out her grievances.

    Just as everyone heaved a sigh of relief, the Sky Edge Division elite who was standing on Madam Ling¡¯s right sprang into action.

    Bang!

    A sh of silver light, as quick as lightning, smashed into the other elite¡¯s body.

    Caught off guard, he had no means of defending himself. Blood sshed everywhere and he died on the spot.

    The attacker grabbed Madam Ling and fled the scene.

    Everybody was stunned by the events that were unfolding before their very eyes. They werepletely blindsided and nobody could even react.

    The attacker was incredibly fast, demonstrating power far beyond that of any Sky Edge Division elite.

    Recovering from the initial shock, Yuchi Ba snorted, "Let¡¯s see how far you can go!"

    He extended his palm towards the figure that was now fairly far away. There were no visible signs, but a slight fluctuation of elemental energy could be felt.

    A sharp ray suddenly appeared half a foot behind the attacker.

    The ray took the form of a skull with razor sharp teeth. Ghostly cries and haunting howls filled the air, creating an eerie atmosphere.

    Ai Hui could not help but shudder in fear when he felt the elemental energy in his body fluctuating uncontrobly.

    The Elders had such incredible strength!

    Just before the ray could strike him, the "Sky Edge Division elite" swung his right palm behind him.

    A thunderous roar resounded through the air.

    A silver dragon shot out his palm and rammed head on into the ghastly skull behind him.

    Boom!

    A dazzling bright light burst forth from the point of collision.

    A vast expanse of white washed over the entire area. Nothing could be seen.

    After a second, the blinding, silver light disappeared.

    However, Madam Ling and the attacker were nowhere to be seen by the time everyone¡¯s vision was restored. What made everyone even more furious was the fact that the mysteriousdy and the grass-lotus puppet had taken the chance to flee as well.

    "It¡¯s Yang Zhen! Yang Zhen from Dragonrise Training Hall!"

    Yuchi Ba was enraged. Dragonrise Training Hall was Silver City¡¯s, as well as the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯rgest training hall. Yang Zhen, a master ofbat, was its chief.

    The profound rtionship between Dragonrise Training Hall and the Ling Residence was not a secret. In fact, Dragonrise Training Hall was close to many families. However, nobody expected that Yang Zhen would dare to risk universal condemnation just to rescue Madam Ling.

    Great Elder ordered in a grave tone, "Seal the entire Dragonrise Training Hall and investigate the matter thoroughly. Since the rumors came from the Ling Residence, Yang Zhen is likely to be the aplice. Send out an order to arrest Yang Zhen and Madam Ling!"

    Just as Tong Gui was about to execute the order, Yuchi Ba eximed, "You¡¯ll go personally!"

    Ling Sheng¡¯s face was drained of all colour.

    Earlier, Madam Ling¡¯s hysterical scream had exposed her as the source of the rumors.

    The Ling Residence was doomed!

    Those who initially still had somepassion for the Ling Residence no longer did.

    Such vicious rumors and they turned out to havee from the Ling Residence!

    Using unscrupulous means was not umon, but getting caught meant losing the trust of all others.

    The Ling Residence was now facing such a situation. Nobody would be willing to lend them a helping hand.

    Upon seeing She Yu escape, Zhong Houjun felt a burden lifted off his shoulders. However, as his gazended on Silver Soldier, his expression turned grave.

    The Zhong family had a long history, and Silver Soldier reminded him of some rumors he had gotten wind of. Zhong Houjun was ted to be the next division leader of the Infantry Division, but with the appearance of this guy, things were not looking good for him.

    The mysteriousdy and the grass-lotus puppet had fled. Old Ling had lost every bit of fight he had in him. He remained listless and passive as the guards led him away.

    The battle had ended, and the Ye Residencey in ruins.

    Everyone¡¯s attention was fixed on the Karakorum Savant and Silver Soldier.

    The Great Elder smiled, "I¡¯ve seen the Karakorum Savant before, but it¡¯s my first time seeing this hero with such extraordinary skills. Yelin, would you please introduce him to us."

    Madam Ye smiled in return and replied, "All of you must be making wild guesses right now. His mentor¡¯s family name is Heng, and the Heng family has many quirky rules. Silver Soldier has inherited the Heng¡¯s Infantry bloodline. The Karakorum Savant is his junior. She has inherited the Heng family¡¯s Sky Edge bloodline. However, she has an innate passion for swordsmanship and is the first ever master swordsman."

    Silver Soldier and the Karakorum Savant bowed to the elders in respect.

    The Elders quickly returned the gesture.

    Elder Song eximed, "Ah, disciples of a prestigious family! ording to past records, the Sky Edge and Infantry originate from the Heng family. Looks like this is indeed true. The preservation of the Heng¡¯s heritage deserves our utmost admiration. Looking at our young brother here with his Infantry inheritances made me wonder if the Infantry Division actually produced a new talent! But no, his heritage is much purer than that!"

    Both Yuchi Ba and Zhong Houjun did not look pleased.

    The Sky Edge Division¡¯s division leader had not recovered from his serious injury. At present, the division was led by the two vice division leaders Tong Gui and Yu Jin. As the first ever master swordsman and a disciple of Heng family, the Karakorum Savant was well-qualified to be the head of the Sky Edge Division.

    The Infantry Division was in an even worse state. Zhong Houjun was the only one left to take over the division. After seeing Silver Soldier¡¯s strength, however, he no longer had the confidence to do so.

    Moreover, this name made Zhong Houjun feel like vomiting blood. ording to their practices, only the division leader of the Infantry Division was qualified to be addressed as "soldier".

    And here was this guy, calling himself Silver Soldier and possessing such a pure heritage. Zhong Houjun was simply not on par with him.

    The Great Elder was about to wrest control of two divisions, but nobody dared to say anything.

    The older, the wiser, it seemed. He was still the Great Elder after all!

    Ai Hui looked at Silver Soldier up close and was a hundred percent sure that the man hidden behind that mask was Brother Li Wei. He was very sure that Brother Li Wei and the Karakorum Savant¡¯s mentor was the long lost Heng Bingfeng from the Vanguard Training Hall.

    He felt extremely vexed. It was as if the threads of fate were linking them all together.

    What lied ahead?

    Nobody knew.

 Chapter 380: Leaving

    Chapter 380: Leaving

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui observed Silver Soldier - his position beside the Karakorum Savant, the way he talked leisurely with the Elders - and saw a man born destined for great things.

    His mild sorrow began to fade and was soon reced by a slight tinge of happiness.

    Regardless of how the lines of fate intertwined, regardless of what Brother Li Wei had experienced during these tumultuous three years, being alive was a good reason to be happy.

    Ah, I should find a time to visit Senior Mingxiu.

    Ai Hui thought to himself.

    After talking to the Elders, the two of them went back to see Madam Ye.

    The Karakorum Savant respectfully addressed her, "Aunt Ye."

    Silver Soldier bowed, "Madam."

    Ai Hui noticed that they addressed Madam Ye differently. The way things looked, Heng Bingfeng appeared to be closely rted to the Ye Residence. Ai Hui guessed that Heng Bingfeng must have been a core member of the Assembly of Patriarchs, just like the old prisoner. No wonder Madam Ye seemed to be closely rted to the Assembly of Patriarchs as well.

    Madam Ye beamed at the two of them and began to introduce Ai Hui, "This is Mister Chu Zhaoyang. He has exceptional swordsmanship and previously saved Xiaobao and I. We¡¯re all one big family and I¡¯d like for the three of you to know each other better."

    Karakorum Savant said to Silver Soldier, "Zhaoyang has excellent swordsmanship, and I hope that he can assist me inpiling a swordsmanship encyclopedia."

    Ai Hui humbly replied, "My swordsmanship cannot bepared to that of Chief. My thanks to the two of you for saving my life in the nick of time."

    "Brother Chu, you are too humble. We¡¯d have been in deep trouble if you hadn¡¯t dealt such a heavy blow to the grass-lotus puppet," replied Silver Soldier.

    Madam Yeughed, "Alright, alright, all this modesty is making me tired. Give me a moment, we¡¯ll speak againter."

    She turned towards Xiao Shuren and said, "Madam Xiao, you must have been frightened. We still need you to cooperate with the Elders Guild in their investigation of the matter. I sincerely apologize."

    After hearing what Madam Ye said, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but nce at Xiao Shuren. She hadpletely preempted Madam Ye¡¯s actions.

    Xiao Shuren did not look at Ai Hui, her eyes were fixed on Madam Ye instead. The corner of her mouth curved up in contempt as she spoke, "Madam, are you burning bridges now? Didn¡¯t you promise to ensure my safety when I disclosed the location of the treasures? Are you trying to go back on your words?"

    All eyes were on Madam Ye. Suspicion filled the air.

    Ai Hui mused that she was really cunning!

    Xiao Shuren¡¯s move was truly brilliant.

    Madam Ye immediately stopped smiling and said in a serious manner, "Madam Xiao, are you trying to mislead the public? Wrong move. Don¡¯t forget that there¡¯s still the Judgement Division, and you won¡¯t be able to fool them. I urge that you think before you speak."

    Her rebuttal greatly reduced the number of suspicious looks from the crowd.

    Surveince, Judgement, and Dread were the ever mysterious three central divisions. The Surveince Division was specialised in gathering intelligence, the Judgement Division gave unparalleled judgment, while the Dread Division was also known as the "King of Warfare".

    Once the Judgement Division became involved in an investigation, attempting to falsify information would only end badly. The Surveince Division had a myriad of methods at its disposal. It was practically impossible for any criminal to evade their inquisition.

    Xiao Shuren became even more sarcastic. "That¡¯s true, why should a high and mighty person like you keep your promise to a small fry like me? You used me as bait, and even used me as Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s shield. But a word of warning, Mr Chu Zhaoyang, even though you¡¯ve saved their lives before, she has never truly considered you as one of them. Why else would she leave you alone in Ye Residence?"

    Madam Ye furrowed her brows, "What a load of nonsense!"

    She felt an ominous premonition as she looked into the lucid eyes of this seemingly insane woman.

    ¡®Spouting rubbish like that, isn¡¯t she worried that I¡¯ll just finish her off right now?¡¯

    Unless...

    Madam Ye¡¯s heart was beating wildly.

    Ai Hui silently observed Xiao Shuren since he already knew what she was going to do. Xiao Shuren had not looked at Ai Hui the whole time, but Ai Hui knew that whatever she was doing was meant to remove all suspicions from him. After this, nobody would think that Ai Hui had the ancient treasure.

    Even though he already knew that Xiao Shuren didn¡¯t have long to live and was doing all these things for her son, Ai Hui invariably still felt sad about what was about to happen next.

    "An ancient treasure that even Grandmaster Dai covets. It was first rumoured to be rted to the swordsmanship, and shortly after itnded in the hands of Karakorum. Next thing you know, I was sent to the Ye Residence. Madam Ye, isn¡¯t this too much of a coincidence? Since you¡¯ve spent so much effort obtaining it, I hope you manage to utilize it well."

    Her words immediately made everyone else suspect Madam Ye again.

    An eerie smile appeared on Xiao Shuren¡¯s face.

    Madam Ye suddenly shouted, "Stop her, she¡¯s going tomit suicide!"

    Just as she finished her sentence, Xiao Shuren¡¯s body began to crumble into a pool of sand. The upper half of her bodyy in the sand, her beautiful face was like that of a lifeless doll.

    "Transfigured elementalist!"

    The crowd was stunned by this sudden turn of events.

    Madam Ye stared nkly at the sand, recovering after a moment. She had a perplexed look on her face.

    Her n had gone perfectly, and the Ling Residence was finished. To think that this Xiao Shuren would give her a direct hit just as she was about to enjoy her sweet victory.

    Madam Ye knew she was in big trouble.

    It was going to be hard for her to maintain her innocence and prove that she didn¡¯t know anything about the ancient treasure. What¡¯s more, now that it was exposed, her rtionship with Chu Zhaoyang was going to be equally difficult to exin.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯sst offensive was merciless.

    Since she was already dead, Madam Ye found it hard to get angry. She instead felt some admiration for thedy.

    The entire ce was dead quiet.

    Xiao Shuren¡¯sst move had left everyone deeply shaken.

    Soon after, one of the many bodyguards beside the Great Elder walked towards the pool of sand. He crouched down and grabbed a handful of it. After examining it for awhile, his face lit up in realization.

    "The sand within her body hasn¡¯t been changed for quite some time. She was doomed anyway."

    Everyone now understood why Xiao Shuren hadmitted suicide - she had known that her time was almost up.

    Even though Madam Ye had already guessed the reason, she still felt extremely annoyed. Why didn¡¯t she examine Xiao Shuren earlier? She would definitely have been able to discover that she was a transfigured elementalist if she had done so.

    While her final frenzy managed to convince some people, it wasn¡¯t able to win over all of them.

    Despite that, the seeds of suspicion were now firmly nted and would be difficult to eliminate.

    Regardless, dead men tell no tales, and Xiao Shuren was no longer around for questioning.

    Madam Ye remainedposed. To her, this was just another inconvenience.

    She wasn¡¯t some powerless civilian. Without solid evidence, who would dare to openly question her?

    Rumors and suspicions were only devastating against the weak. They werepletely useless against those in power, just like sparrows chirping away in the darkness. A little noise could be heard every now and then, but they presented no harm whatsoever.

    Except for the Great Elder and her, the rest of them were sparrows.

    Today¡¯s drama had pried opened everyone¡¯s eyes. They had just witnessed the copse of a one-thousand-year-old influential family, the appearance of descendents from the Heng family who had disappeared for many years, the chief of Dragonrise Training Hall sacrificing everything to save Madam Ling, as well as the final, sorrowful, yet resolute, counterattack of Xiao Shuren.

    All of them were dazed, and the Elders had a grim look on their faces. They knew that a storm was brewing.

    The Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ power hierarchy would change dramatically.

    But all these things had nothing to do with Ai Hui, and he took the opportunity to leave the Ye Residence.

    The recent spate of infighting was considerably disturbing to Ai Hui, who had not seen anything like that before. He had previously thought that Silver City would be an easy ce to make money, but had since realized the true costs involved. The slightest mistakes could easily cost him his life.

    The Ye Residence was severely damaged. Madam Ye had brought Xiaobao to stay at the Great Elder¡¯s other vi to avoid the chaotic situation.

    Madam Ye invited Ai Hui along, but he politely rejected. He imed that he needed to further explore his recent breakthrough in base level.

    Madam Ye thought that Ai Hui was still brooding over Xiao Shuren¡¯sst words. She smiled faintly and didn¡¯t probe further. After all these days of contact, she understood that Mister Zhaoyang was a pragmatic person.

    Who is able to offer a higher price than me? Who dares to offer a higher price than me?

    She would soon find out.

    Madam Ye gently told Chu Zhaoyang to train well since she might require his assistance in the future.

    Karakorum Savant invited Ai Hui to stay in Karakorum Sword League for a short while so that they could learn from each other andpile a swordsmanship encyclopedia.

    This suggestion tugged on Ai Hui¡¯s heartstrings, but he rejected the invitation. He did not like Silver City one bit and wanted to leave this ce as soon as possible. He had been contemting whether to catch up with Brother Li Wei, but after some deliberation, he decided that it wasn¡¯t a good time to do so.

    Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s identity was aplex matter.

    However, taking into consideration the rtionship between Karakorum Sword League and the Assembly of Patriarchs, Ai Hui didn¡¯t say much else. He only mentioned his recent realizations and how he¡¯d like to reflect deeper on them. Once the dust had settled he¡¯de back to swap pointers.

    He wasn¡¯t going to get barred from entering the Hall of Ancient Records before he found those notes.

    Although Karakorum Savant felt slightly disappointed, she was still extremely understanding. However, she kept emphasising repeatedly that Mister Chu must eventually return to aid in theption of her swordsmanship encyclopedia.

    Ai Hui bade farewell to the crowd and ventured out of the city alone.

    Karakorum Savant noticed her senior looking at Chu Zhaoyang quizzically. Slightly worried, she asked, "What¡¯s wrong?"

    Silver Soldier was roused from his contemtion. He shook his head, "Nothing, just thinking of an old friend."

    "A friend?"

    "Yeah."

    Ai Hui was a good distance away from Silver City. He felt like someone who had just sessfully escaped from prison, feeling unspeakably free and relieved.

    The treasures of Silver City weren¡¯t meant for him, and he no longer cared for them.

    Silver City may be a paradise for others, but it was a hell for him.

    The Starry Gem Swordwings pped powerfully against the strong winds, creating a trail of lightning as he flew through the clouds while the sun shone beautifully in the sky.

    Ai Hui felt agitated. The suppressed emotions he had felt over the past few days were now gushing out like an exploding volcano.

    Amidst the strong gales, Ai Hui screamed and howled at the top of his lungs. Awful singing? Who cares as long as I¡¯m enjoying myself! No rhythm? Who cares as long as I¡¯m happy!

    Singing loudly with sword in hand, Ai Hui felt like he could go anywhere.

    He¡¯d enjoy his time with the others, taking revenge, fighting and exploring with them.

    Before old age and death arrived. YOLO.

 Chapter 381: Recouping Losses

    Chapter 381: Recouping Losses

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    A long, arduous journey filled with trials and tribtions.

    After flying consecutively for three days and three nights, Ai Hui finally stopped in his tracks andnded in a hidden valley. He continuously shifted his location during the journey to ensure that no one was following him.

    After experiencing days of heavy rain rushing on the road, Ai Hui looked rather haggard, but his eyes were unusually bright. They shone like two endlessly burning mes, which could not be wiped out by the rain.

    As he brushed the gloominess aside, Ai Hui felt like he was born anew.

    The elemental energy within his body was depleted and he desperately needed a rest.

    Silverfold Plum in hand, he heaved a heavy sigh and started a Circtory Cycle.

    A sharp hissing sound could be heard as Ai Hui absorbed strand after strand of metal elemental energy. A spring of clear water began to gurgle out of the dried earth around him, shooting into the air and whirling around his body. The water condensed itself into balls of elemental energy sword pills which became a part of the Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    A white mist slowly creeped over Ai Hui¡¯s body, shrouding him in a cloak of fog. Rain began to fall from the sky, each drop vaporizing as they came into contact with the mist.

    If there was a metal elementalist flying in the vicinity, he would notice that the impending storm¡¯s metal winds were being channeled into this small valley.

    A circle of light that had two distinct colors could be seen on the ground beneath Ai Hui¡¯s feet. A brown colored outer ring surrounded a white circle.

    The outer ring of the circle was extremely dense earth elemental energy. The brown color faded towards the centre of the circle, which was purely silver in colour. The pure silver circle in the middle was metal elemental energy.

    In the Second Elemental Realm, Ai Hui was able to transform earth elemental energy into metal elemental energy. This meant he could control both types of elemental energy.

    As he recovered his elemental energy, the stress on his body rapidly decreased and Ai Hui¡¯s mind became more lucid. He had clearly improved after his experience in Silver City. Having been through all sorts of physical and emotional obstacles, Ai Hui was now much more resilient.

    Having a clear mind and understanding one¡¯s self was essential to achieving a higher level of consciousness.

    He experienced a slight improvement in his control of elemental energy as well.

    Ai Hui was enlightened. He realized that achieving elemental externalization meant that a deep understanding of one¡¯s own spirit was required in addition to a profound understanding of elemental energy.

    He remembered something he¡¯d once read in a book.

    ¡®A strong body needs an equally mighty soul.¡¯

    The Circtory Cycle Revolution was executed in perfect order.

    The round, spinning elemental energy sword pills were his secret weapon. The explosive power granted by the elemental energy sword pills were the reason why his sword skills were so powerful.

    With his attention focused on the Circtory Cycle, he soon discovered a problem.

    The elemental energy within his body was exceptionally dense. After reaching the Second Elemental Realm, his control of ambient elemental energy was greatly enhanced. He had since been able to increase the concentration of elemental energy around him. However, his rate of absorption did not increase much.

    This was not surprising. In fact, this was a problem that all elementalists would eventually face.

    Attaining elemental externalization meant that the body had already reached the upper limit of the amount of elemental energy it could store. The rate of absorption would also be at its maximum. The body of an elementalist was like a valve, and by the time he achieved elemental externalization, this valve would have been opened to its maximum capacity. Most people found this amount adequate, and instead focused on controlling elemental energy that was external to the body.

    Ai Hui had a different perspective.

    During his battles, he noticed that the control of external elemental energy was directly affected by the elemental energy within the body. If the elemental energy within his body was depleted, his control over external elemental energy would likely be lost as well.

    In a high intensity battle, the ability to quickly restore elemental energy significantly improvedbat effectiveness. There were only two known ways to improve recovery speed. The first was to expand the "valve", and the other was to increase the power of extraction. The power of extraction came from one¡¯s Circtory Cycle Revolution. The faster the revolution of the cycle, the faster the rate of absorption of elemental energies. However, this speed could not simply be increased at will, since external elemental energies contained arge amount of impurities. Continuous, effortful refinement through the use of the Circtory Cycle was necessary to properly purify external elemental energies.

    If the cycle was too fast, impurities might remain in the elemental energy during absorption. Elemental energy that was not pure enough could be extremely harmful to elementalists.

    Since increasing the speed of the Circtory Cycle Revolution wasn¡¯t possible, could the "valve" berger?

    A bold idea suddenly sprang out of his mind. Was this possible? Ai Hui was captivated by his own idea and he promptly began to explore its intricacies.

    The Circtory Cycle Revolutionrgely involved the five residences and eight pces within the body. As such, elemental energy from the surroundings must go through the body before it could be fully incorporated into the Circtory Cycle Revolution,

    Hang on!

    Ai Hui remembered that his Circtory Cycle Revolution was different from others¡¯. In addition to the five residences and eight pces, his Circtory Cycle Revolution had an additional aspect - his sword.

    This was a practice he had continued with even after the sword embryo had shattered. Back when he still had the sword embryo, holding a sword had helped to improve his control of elemental energy.

    Absorbing elemental energy through the sword instead of his lungs and skin? Would it not greatly increase the Circtory Cycle Revolution¡¯s efficiency?

    Feeling motivated, Ai Hui began to test his hypothesis.

    He had tried to absorb elemental energy directly from his sword before, but it wasn¡¯t particrly effective. This time round, Ai Hui stopped all other parts of his body from absorbing elemental energy before attempting to directly absorb elemental energy via the Silverfold Plum.

    What happened next gave him a surprise.

    Metal elemental energy from his surroundings umted around him. The sheer amount of it gave him a shock.

    The Silverfold Plum was forged from metal and as such had an extremely high affinity for metal elemental energy. Metal elemental energy flowed easily into the sword, and not even the slightest resistance could be felt.

    Humans were creatures of flesh and blood. Even if their bodies was fully tempered, they were still made of flesh. As such, despite being stronger and having a higher affinity for metal elemental energy than usual, Ai Hui¡¯s tempered body would still never be able to match up to pure metal¡¯s affinity for metal elemental energy.

    However, Ai Hui soon ran into new problems. The amount of ambient elemental energy was toorge, and the Silverfold Plum quickly became saturated with elemental energy. The excessive amount of elemental energy caused an obstruction in the Circtory Cycle and the revolution ground to a halt.

    The Silverfold Plum appeared to encounter some issues as well. It exuded an intense, dazzling light, as if the entire de was covered in ayer of mercury. A continuous buzzing sound could be heard.

    It was overburdened.

    Metal was the material that contained the greatest amount of metal elemental energy. Metal that was formed in areas rich in metal elemental energy would constantly be bathed in it. This process greatly increased the grade of the metal, and could even make it transform.

    However, all kinds of metal still had a limit on how much metal elemental energy they could withstand. A sudden influx of excessive metal elemental energy could cause it to blow up.

    Silverfold Plum was a high-grade product from the Assembly of Patriarchs that was as powerful as Heaven-grade weapons. This meant that it should be able tost till Ai Hui became a Master.

    The stronger an elementalist, the purer and more explosive the elemental energy. Weapons made of ordinary materials were unable to withstand such pure and powerful elemental energy.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t expecting his idea to work this well, to the point where even the Silverfold Plum would be overloaded.

    He hurriedly forced the excess elemental energy out of the Silverfold Plum.

    Ai Hui then started his second attempt. This time, he tried to slow down the speed of his Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    A thin strand of elemental energy flowed from the Silverfold Plum¡¯s de into Ai Hui¡¯s right hand pce and seamlessly became integrated into the Circtory Cycle. As it flowed through the cycle, the thin strand of elemental energy was condensed into sword pills.

    Afterpleting one revolution, the elemental energy sword pills were now flowing back into the Silverfold Plum.

    The first elemental energy sword pill to enter collided with the external elemental energy that was being absorbed through the Silverfold Plum. The strands of elemental energy began to wrap around the rapidly rotating elemental energy sword pill, increasing it¡¯s size. The same thing happened to the subsequent elemental energy sword pills.

    These new elemental energy sword pills would then continue flowing within the Circtory Cycle.

    As he continued with the process, Ai Hui soon discovered that he was unable to speed up the de¡¯s absorption of elemental energy. The Circtory Cycle would be jammed once the amount of elemental energy being absorbed was increased.

    Increasing the recovery rate of elemental energy wasn¡¯t going to be that easy after all.

    However, Ai Hui was not disappointed by this. He waspletely focused on the elemental energy sword pills within his body. A few of them were veryrge, almost twice the size of those he was previously able to form.

    Up till then, he had never once thought of formingrger elemental energy sword pills.

    Ai Hui wondered what new changes these erged elemental energy sword pills would bring.

    After finishing onest revolution, Ai Hui opened his eyes. Sure enough, his judgment was correct. He took slightly longer to recover his elemental energy this way.

    He decided to experiment with the erged elemental energy sword pills.

    With a flick of his wrist, the Silverfold Plum emitted a brilliant sword ray across the empty space in front of him.

    [Heavenly Thrust]!

    A small hole silently appeared in a rock that was about twenty feet away .

    Ai Hui could sense the difference from this move alone. The erged elemental energy sword pills were much more explosive - it felt as if he was firing a cannon.

    He flew over to the rock and inspected it. His move had bored a clean hole right through the 3 meter wide rock. Ai Hui was pleased with the power he had just unleashed.

    Taking to the sky, he executed the [Heavenly Thrust] again.

    A slender sword ray soared through the air like an arrow.

    The ray flew a good two hundred meters before gradually fading away.

    His eyes lit up in delight. Right up to that instant, [Crescent Moon] had been his only long range attack. Skills like [Six Moons] had a maximum range of only thirty meters.

    The [Heavenly Thrust] he¡¯d just executed was very simr to shooting an arrow. However, the sword ray produced was even sharper and quieter than an arrow.

    On the other hand, it¡¯s range was pathetic whenpared to a bow and arrow.

    A master bowman could easily hit a target a dozen miles away.

    So far, the record stood at a hundred and fifty seven kilometers.

    It was set more than six hundred years ago, when a master bowman managed to kill a dire beast with one shot at that range. This feat took the world by storm and made archery immensely popr. It was then that careers as long-ranged assassins took off as well.

    Insane shots like these were, of course, extremely taxing to fire. Even a Master wouldn¡¯t be able to fire more than a handful of them over short periods.

    Ai Hui was satisfied with the two hundred meters he had gained.

    Moreover, this was only the beginning. He was confident that he could improve even further.

    While he may not have been sessful in increasing his recovery rate, Ai Hui unexpectedly managed to greatly enhance his attacking range.

 Chapter 382: Seeds

    Chapter 382: Seeds

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    With his elemental energy restored, Ai Hui was feeling refreshed, just like the treasure sword that had been inserted into its sheath, its vigor contained.

    Even the rain, that had been pouring consecutively for days, was gradually stopping. The thick clouds overhead cleared, revealing the clean sky. The bright and beautiful sun shone down along with a slight breeze, and a cozy and slightly intoxicating feeling spread throughout his body.

    Howfortable.

    Basking in the beautiful sunlight after days of pressure rxed his bodypletely.

    Ai Hui casually chose a t grass surface to sit on, before plucking a de of grass to chew on.

    The unripe taste of the grass spread throughout his mouth as he studied the crystals in his hand meticulously.

    They were transparent and wless, without the least bit of impurity. Examining them closely, Ai Hui noticed that he was actually unable to confirm if they were actually crystals, since he¡¯d never seen such pure ones before.

    The sunlight shone down on the golden liquid, instantly producing a faint golden halo. Strangely, thisyer of golden halo changed irregrly likeyers of flickering, delicate ripples, fading and reappearing, and multiplying without end.

    How beautiful!

    Ai Hui gasped in surprise. While he felt that he wasn¡¯t an artistic person, he couldn¡¯t help but be mesmerized by this ever-changing halo.

    While admiring it, Ai Hui noticed something amiss.

    He¡¯d suspected before that the golden liquid was blood from a certain monster, thus attracting the bandage¡¯s interest. But Ai Hui suddenly realized that if that were really the case, the bandage would¡¯ve swallowed them mercilessly instead of keeping them.

    Were the crystals encasing it obstructing the bandage?

    Wrong!

    Perhaps the bandage had been wrapped around his body for a long time, so it had developed a faint connection with Ai Hui.

    He suddenly recalled that the bandage did this exact same thing to that demonic god stone status! The moment this idea popped up, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up and a bold thought surfaced in his head. Is there any link between these items?

    The more he spected, the more he thought it was possible.

    He quickly opened the sandpass to retrieve the stone statue. Previously when he had consumed the metal elemental elixir, the statue had been of great use to him as it sucked all of the elixir¡¯s fiendish aura away, cutting his pain short.

    Otherwise, just eliminating the fiendish aura alone would have required much effort and energy on Ai Hui¡¯s part, not to mention that it was a very dangerous process too.

    The moment Ai Hui took the statue out, the bandage slithered, like two white snakes, down his body. Two bandages joined together unhurriedly to be a big white cloth. It slid underneath the statue, as if worried that the statue would get dirty.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart turned cold from witnessing this strange sight.

    The statue and bandage carried a tinge of evilness. If not for the fact that the bandage was a gift from Mistress and had been with him for a long time, Ai Hui most definitely would¡¯ve been on guard.

    Seeing the bandage at work made him miss her again.

    Emotional people were like warmth that surrounded an ice-cold object, or a slight glimmer amid the lonely void.

    Even if the bandage was really evil, AI Hi would find it difficult to detest it, since to him, righteousness or evilness was insignificant. He¡¯d never felt himself to be important. It made no difference whether there was another good or bad version of him in this world.

    However, to him, some feelings were more important than himself.

    He ced the two crystals on the white cloth.

    Ai Hui felt that the sight before him was pretty interesting. It was as if he had just given the statue some offerings, and all that was left to do was pray. Yet, the statue did not seem the least bit grateful or appreciative. It gave the same, aloof look.

    Could he be wrong?

    Ai Hui was having a headache. Guessing wasn¡¯t his forte. He picked up a crystal and ced it by the statue¡¯s mouth, mumbling, "Old demon, be sporting, give one a try!"

    The stone statue remained unmoved, as if despising the food of mere mortals.

    Still wrong?

    Or was he supposed to crush the crystal?

    Ai Hui was slightly spooked.

    He had a feeling that the golden liquid within the crystal was something extraordinary, and extraordinary objects usually meant money and risk. Good things were valuable of course, but what if it was a potent poison?

    Ai Hui knew himself well. His current abilities had given him a chance against the grass-lotus puppet and She Yu. But against ancient evil, he simply wasn¡¯t qualified enough.

    And of course, these crystals had to be the "ancient treasure".

    ¡®Alright,¡¯ he thought. He would not achieve anything from inaction. He would smash one and see, since he¡¯d gotten this "ancient treasure" by luck anyway.

    Considering that fact, he felt more calm instantly.

    Getting into the moment, Ai Hui smashed the crystal hard.

    Crack!

    The crystal broke open immediately and the golden liquid seeped out. Ai Hui carefully ced the liquid on the bandage.

    The bandage had always been extremely interested in, and thirsty for, fresh blood, especially stronger ones.

    What made Ai Hui¡¯s eyes fall out was the fact that the bandage showed zero interest in the golden liquid. The golden liquid was like a dewdrop on a lotus leaf. It was round as a ball, bright and dazzling. Without the crystal¡¯s protection, the golden liquid rapidly formed a ball of condensed, golden fog. The sunlight shone on the fog, reflecting its vibrant rays. It was very beautiful.

    Those abstruse ripples became more exquisite upon touching the sunlight. Their movements were indeterminate and Ai Hui couldn¡¯t take his eyes off them.

    Suddenly, the golden fog surged and pulled out into a fine, long thread of fog.

    As if awakened from a dream, Ai Hui raised his head and looked toward the statue.

    He saw the demonic god¡¯s eyes open slightly as its gentle, androgynous face carried ayer of exotic luster. Then, its mouth opened slightly.

    Ai Hui shuddered. Something was happening indeed!

    The fine golden thread of fog entered the demonic god¡¯s mouth steadily, its needle-like golden luster lighting up the statue¡¯s pupils.

    The aura of the stone statue was undergoing rapid changes as an ancient, bleak odor pervaded the air.

    When thest wisp of golden fog entered the statue¡¯s mouth, there was nothing left on the bandage.

    Ai Hui inspected the demonic god stone statue curiously in anticipation. What sort of changes would ur now that the statue had swallowed this drop of golden liquid?

    Suddenly, the demonic god¡¯s eyes lit up in a ball of golden glow. Ai Hui opened his eyes wide for fear of missing any details.

    The golden glow transformed into two balls of golden whirlpools. Unguarded, Ai Hui found himself getting swept into it. All he could feel was the sky spinning before him as the surrounding scenery skimmed past him at flying speed.

    Not again?

    Having experienced this once already, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but curse inwardly. But at the same time, he was no longer as terrified. He was somewhat curious as to what kind of images the demonic god statue was going to present him.

    He lept back in time once again.

    Some time passed and all of a sudden, Ai Hui saw the demonic god.

    It floated above a valley, fixing its eyes somewhere far away. Ai Hui automatically looked toward that faraway ce and the blurry scene became clear immediately.

    Countless sword rays cut across the sky and scarily thick lightning dove down like silver snake monsters. Underground mes soared into the sky and collided with the lightning bolts, sshing mes all over the sky like floating cherries and painting the sky red.

    The flying swords brought blinding rays that filled the sky, making the sky looked as if it got shed into pieces.

    Ai Hui was stupefied. His heart palpitated.

    He¡¯d never seen something so spectacr. The sun had lost its splendor as the mountain range was shattered. Sword scars stretched over hundreds of miles as the ocean seethed and the mes burned boundlessly.

    ¡®This is... a battle between ancient cultivators?¡¯ Ai Hui thought absentmindedly.

    When he first saw God-subduing Peak, he¡¯d felt that it was the most powerfulbat weapon. But ced in this battlefield, the majestic and imposing God-subduing Peak became as insignificant as dust.

    So the descriptions in those swordy manuals were true...

    Ai Hui was deeply moved.

    He gradually calmed down upon seeing the same shock and absent-mindedness on the demonic god¡¯s face.

    The battle ended and the ground waspletely smashed, but the demonic god had a great harvest. Remnant treasures, secret arts, and so on...

    The demonic god did not leave the valley, as his abilities grew stronger. He was preparing to leave.

    But when his strength grew to its peak, he suddenly felt the heavenlyw starting to crumble as the spiritual force weakened. He realized that the copse was inevitable and the spiritual force would eventually vanish.

    He sat, deep in thought, in the valley through many long years.

    The way he had been formed was very unique and different from conventional cultivators. This gave him a chance for survival amid the copse of the heavenlyw.

    A chance for survival in the far future.

    For someone who¡¯d lived as long as he had, a thousand years of waiting wasn¡¯t uneptable. He gathered his essence blood and soul and formed ten drops of true blood of God, which were also known as the ten seeds.

    During the afternoon of the seeds¡¯ formation, the intense sun shone overhead, but the sky darkened momentarily and the sun was dull and lightless, like a blown out candle in the wind.

    Ten drops of blood of God bore the weight of his resuscitated wish, and were sprinkled over different corners of the earth.

    And his body turned into a statue.

    Ai Hui finally understood the history of the golden liquid!

    It was actually the genuine blood of God!

    Thinking about the blood of God made Ai Hui feel suspicious. Could the origin of the blood of God be rted to the demonic god?

    Alright, he was thinking too much.

    It¡¯d been over a thousand years since mankind had stepped into the elemental era, and the demonic god was after something of the Cultivation Era. Only the heavens knew if it still contained some power!

    Wait!

    Ai Hui suddenly recalled that the bandage appeared to be able to restrain the blood poison and even swallow it.

    This... isn¡¯t a coincidence right?

    Ai Hui was somewhat uncertain. Just then, the skies started spinning, and once again it felt as if he¡¯d been swept into the whirlpool as the surrounding light receded speedily.

    Ai Hui steadied his body as he opened his eyes. Everything was back to normal and he was amazed to find out that he was still standing in the exact same spot, not even a step off.

    His gaze fell subconsciously onto the stone statue.

    He was stunned.

 Chapter 383: Choice and Path

    Chapter 383: Choice and Path

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    The stone statue was gone, reced by ck armor.

    Ai Hui had never seen this type of armor.

    It looked like a human skeleton, its whole body made up of a type of unknown ck bone. It was dark and rough. These ck bones of different sizes were actually naturally woven together. Completely sealed off, the skull had a slightly indented surface and its empty eye sockets were like two ck whirlpools, mildly captivating. A ring of sharp bone grew on top of the head, pointing straight at the sky like a crown.

    There was a pair of wide, ck wings attached to the back of the armor. Thin, ck spicules grew on the solid framework and covered it like ck feathered wings.

    Rough, evil, strong... what a freak!

    Ai Hui swallowed his saliva with some difficulty. Thinking about what he¡¯d just seen made his heart feel weak. There¡¯s no way this ck armor is the demonic god¡¯s body... right?

    A body bing an armor... How economical!

    No matter how he looked at it, the ck armor before his eyes possessed an evil aura that suited viins guilty of heinous crimes.

    Ai Hui felt his mind was in a state of confusion as there was too much information to take in. The scenes he¡¯d seen were likely to be messages left by the demonic god.

    But, demonic god reviving? Sounded like a load of bull crap.

    Alright, since that was the case, he would y along seriously.

    He sorted his thoughts out ording to his own understanding of these chaotic, primitive, blurry and strange images.

    The bandage used to be the canvas which the demonic god was painted on, and the demonic god came alive and walked out of the portrait after some thousands of years of worship. Some time passed again and the demonic god realized how terrifying the world was, upon witnessing a big battle between cultivators. And the demonic god was spooked!

    At this point, Ai Hui paused and suddenly felt that the demonic god wasn¡¯t very scary after all. His tensed heart loosened up significantly.

    A demonic god that knew fear seemed less threatening indeed.

    After being frightened, the demonic god stayed devotedly in the valley and even cleaned up the battlefield and picked up a bunch of artifacts remnants, remnant books about spells and so on.

    Momentarily, Ai Hui felt close to the demonic god. They spoke the samenguage and even the cleaning up of the battlefield was something he did often.

    The demonic god trained diligently for countless years and when he finally felt a surge in his abilities, he got ready to step out of the valley. Yet, he realized that the skies were about to fall apart and the spiritual force in the world was dissipating. Thus, unwilling to die just like that, the demonic god started preparing his revival n, in the hope of dodging this major ordeal.

    Ai Hui felt an indescribable sympathy toward the demonic god. Havingnded in this plight, he did seem a little pitiful.

    He¡¯d undergone thousands of years of formation before arriving on this world, and had been frightened, by the cultivators¡¯ battle, into residing and training in the valley for yet another thousands of years. And as he was finally about to leave, the heavenlyw started to crumble...

    Pitiful. How pitiful!

    Ai Hui looked at the ck armor ruefully before cing it simply into the sandpass. He also ced the remaining drop of the demonic god¡¯s blood back into the sandpass.

    To feel sorrowful was one thing and to gloat was another. Ai Hui had not lost his reason.

    He was dealing with a demonic god.

    It would be foolish of him to underestimate a demonic god.

    Was what he¡¯d seen real? Debatable. It was certain, however, that regardless of authenticity, the images were what the demonic god wanted him to see.

    The demonic god could easily pull him into that fantasnd, so surely he could also easily create confusing scenarios. If those scenes were false, what would the demonic god¡¯s intentions be?

    Ai Hui did not want to risk his life testing the demonic god¡¯s limits.

    Especially in regards to his revival n, the demonic god would definitely achieve it by hook or by crook. The liquid sealed within the crystal was the demonic god¡¯s blood and also the seed for his revival.

    How would the demonic god be revived?

    Ai Hui felt that the likeliest method was to seize another¡¯s body!

    Perhaps he was thinking too much, but Ai Hui did not want to take the risk. Except, the bandage had been following him for a long time and had even saved his life, so it was definitely safe.

    However, be it the blood of the demonic god or the ck armor, nothing was certain about them.

    Ai Hui¡¯s abilities were going through a period of steady improvement. To be exact, it was currently in a skyrocketing phase, so it wasn¡¯t worth taking this risk.

    Choosing the demonic god¡¯s blood could either bring him instant sess or leave him with no hope of reprieve.

    Ai Hui hoped that he would never need to use them because that would mean that he was in a perilous situation, so precarious that he had to ce his bets on them.

    Ai Hui was delighted. It was as if he¡¯d finished a film from the mirage bean pod, and the story within was a very memorable one which filled him with sorrow and tears.

    At least the scene was rather huge.

    The battle scene between the cultivators was really shocking. Seeing the sky-shattering rays produced by the swordsmen really made Ai Hui¡¯s own sword rays seem like tiny bean sprouts.

    The pleasure he¡¯d felt from his recent breakthrough vanished in a puff of smoke.

    Shaking his head, Ai Hui sat himself down again, activated the patriarch grass and entered Grass Hall. As usual, he stepped into the Hall of Ancient Records to look for information. The fusion elemental energy within his body was about to be used up, but he still wasn¡¯t able to find anything.

    He saw that there was still half a shelf left to look through, but this time he wasn¡¯t overly impatient. Instead, he felt hopeful.

    Having witnessed the cultivators¡¯ battle, Ai Hui¡¯s restless heart regained its calm.

    Many things seemed insignificant when viewed from a historical perspective. How many people today would even remember the names of those cultivators who had the ability to destroy the world?

    Legends belonged to heroes, and he was just an ordinary man.

    He checked through the information steadily and trained steadily. He did his utmost best every single day, and left worrying about the oue to the future.

    Feeling peaceful, Ai Hui waited for his elemental energy to recover before starting his sword training.

    He¡¯d read the swordy manuals and had witnessed the swordsmanship of Karakorum Savant, the first ever master swordsman in the whole of the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s history. He had also seen the exceptional sword consciousness sealed within the Ye Residence, he¡¯d crashed his way through sword formations, fought with the Ling residence, She Yu and even the grass-lotus puppet, Qing Feng...

    He had learned a lot and felt more appreciative. He needed time to confirm the swordsmanship insights he¡¯d gained during this period.

    As such, Ai Hui stayed in this nameless valley to search for the notebook, train, ponder and consume the elemental energy from the remaining elemental elixirs.

    His days were extremely packed, but he did not feel tired at all. In fact, he felt very enriched. His method of using his sword to absorb elemental energy had been perfected and named [Sword-style Breathing Technique].

    The elemental energy sword pills were strengthening non-stop, along with the range from which Ai Hui¡¯s sword rays could attack. The range had increased from its initial six hundred feet to over nine hundred feet.

    These few days, Ai Hui had been using this move to hunt, and the nearby prey in flight had all been taken down.

    Swordsmanship wasn¡¯t like archery. Ai Hui had no intention of blindly increasing his range of attack.

    The most unique aspect of swordsmanship was its variability. In the Cultivation Era, swordsmen produced the most variable kinds of systems. Ai Hui had to find his own, and this was the greatest problem he was currently facing.

    His sword moves weren¡¯t weak. With the addition of [Sword-style Breathing Technique], his moves became even more outstanding. But his moves, from [Heavenly Thrust] to

    [Oblique sh], [Crescent Moon] to [Six Moons] and [Dust Fall], [Night Epiphyllum], [Gale Bat sh], [Red Muslin], [Sword Chime], [Fragmented Sword], [Three Yin Yang Sword Ring] and so on, did not form a system. Some were moves from the sword pill, while others were created in passing. They were all powerful moves but were very scattered and did not form a system.

    Ai Hui tried to form his own system, a huge task to undertake. There wouldn¡¯t be any effect short term but it was extremely important to him in the long run.

    Karakorum Savant served as the best example.

    Yet, his circumstances were more challenging than Karakorum Savant¡¯s. Her swordsmanship originated from the Ye Residence, and Ye Lin had been perfecting this project unceasingly for generations. Thus, Karakorum Savant had been practicing thepleted system of swordsmanship since young. She became the first ever master swordsmanrgely due to Ye Residence¡¯s swordsmanship inheritances. The hard work of many generations finally bore fruits.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t so lucky. From the time he¡¯s stepped into the Wilderness to the day he met Karakorum Savant, whatever insights he¡¯d gained in regard to swordsmanship were obtained personally.

    He was walking a different path.

    Ai Hui was very clear of the fact that his path was different from that of Karakorum Savant. He would read swordy manuals and try to understand sword formations, but instead of imitating, he tried developing his own moves from hisprehension of things.

    This was an arduous, rugged path, but Ai Hui did not hesitate at all.

    As Ai Hui was training hard in the valley, the Avalon of Five Elements was experiencing raging turbulence.

    The series of changes dazzled everyone.

    The battle between the Ling and Ye families erupted and then ended abruptly. Great Elder¡¯s profound scheme and terrifying means of doing things intimidated numerous aristocratic families. Elder Ling resigned from his post in the Elders Guild and was dispatched to the front line. Such a huge residence disappeared just like that. Its sudden copse had everyone sighing and feeling terrified.

    Were there aristocratic families who dared to believe they were stronger than the Ling family?

    But the Elders in the Elders Guild were mostly reserved and dared not to act rashly.

    Madam Ye¡¯s prestige soared. Because of her splendid performance in this "riot", she started moving to the foreground. She received her first mission to host Master¡¯s Glory.

    No one had objections. Great Elder was in his most powerful state now, so standing up to him now meant death.

    Many were guessing that Great Elder wasying a path for Madam Ye. As the host of Master¡¯s Glory, wouldn¡¯t she also be half a teacher of the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s future Masters?

    Great Elder did not pull back. What he did next confirmed people¡¯s guess.

    Great Elder headed toward the Pagoda of Hidden Edge, which was deep within Silver Mist Sea, to have a deep, overnight conservation with Yuchi Ba before leaving the next morning.

    Three dayster, Karakorum Savant was appointed as the division leader of Sky Edge Division and she was renamed "Karakorum Pris".

    Two more days passed and Silver Soldier became the division leader of Infantry Division. Fame followed merit and he started rebuilding hisbat division.

    Within a short period of time, a small team that had surrounded Madam Ye appeared within the people¡¯s field of vision. The pathid down for her by Great Elder was a clear disy of his intentions.

    Soon after the cirction of Madam Ye¡¯s brave speech, she became an overnight sensation, leaving many to look forward to her performance.

    Just as everyone was waiting for Madam Ye to take action, Madam Ye did something that shocked the world.

 Chapter 384: Awkward Silence

    Chapter 384: Awkward Silence

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Peace City, Swordsman Training Hall.

    "Morning, has everyone seen thetest news through the mirage bean pod?" Fatty pulled a chair out and sat down before shouting, "Lou Lan, a cup of tea, thanks!"

    "Morning Fatty, any sugar for you?"

    Fatty smiled widely. " More, please. Thanks, Lou Lan."

    Among these people, they had to fawn and favor Lou Lan the most, since he had control over their elemental food.

    Lou Lan poured a cup of tea and ced it in front of Fatty after adding some sugar. "Fatty, your tea."

    "Fatty, you have to cut down on sugar," Sang Zijun persuaded. "You¡¯re severely overweight."

    Fatty took a big gulp without the least care in the world. "Little Sang Sang, life is shoooort," he cried, dragging out thest syble.

    Jiang Wei sipped on his tea beforementing, "What Madam Ye has done has probably made her rather popr, but at the same time she¡¯s probably offended all the other aristocratic families."

    His indifferent tone carried a trace of admiration.

    In these past two days, Madam Ye announced her n of Master¡¯s Glory and opened it to the whole of the Avalon of Five Elements. Anyone could enter Master¡¯s Glory regardless of their origin and background as long as they were gifted, capable, and passed the initial selection.

    Immediately upon the release of the news, it captured the whole Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s attention.

    The aristocratic families kept quiet, but the new citizens were celebrating.

    The treatment of new citizens was iparable to aristocratic families in all aspects. Past selections had always favored the aristocratic families and the new citizens had long felt resentful. But at that time, the Avalon of Five Elements did not believe in internal worries and foreign aggressions, so the higher-ups did not pay attention to the new citizens¡¯ appeals. In regard to their attitude toward new citizens, the higher-ups were split.

    Some felt that new citizens upied the majority of the Avalon of Five Elements and so they had to be treated better since they were the future of the Avalon of Five Elements. Others, however, believed that the new citizens were unable to represent the Avalon of Five Elements. They were often associated with Old Territory and hence unable to truly fight for the Avalon of Five Elements. Ye Baiyi was the best example.

    Madam Ye¡¯s move evoked an intense response from the new citizens because they saw it as a new beginning.

    Jiang Wei was a new citizen and naturally admired Madam Ye¡¯s conduct.

    Duanmu Huanghun sneered. "Don¡¯t be naive, is it really open to the public just because she says so? She¡¯s already made deals with other aristocratic families. They have a silent agreement and she¡¯s merely cating the public with these words. But, this woman is formidable indeed."

    Jiang Wei knew that Duanmu Huanghun was right but he didn¡¯t mind. He was worried about something else. "I wonder if she can stabilize the situation? Is Master¡¯s Glory really that powerful?"

    "Do not participate in it."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s voice sounded from behind the group. Her hair was wet and a white towel was hung around her neck. She¡¯d juste out of the shower after a training session.

    Lou Lan was very happy to see her. "Morning, Xueman. Breakfast for you?"

    Shi Xueman smiled. "Morning, Lou Lan. One set please. Thank you!"

    A gossipy expression shed across Fatty¡¯s face. "Any inside news?"

    Those around had a curious look on their face too. Why would Iron Lady say that? They knew that she had special news and connections.

    "My teacher warned me repeatedly." Shi Xueman tore the pastry into smaller pieces and ate them seriously.

    The atmosphere instantly became solemn. Shi Xueman¡¯s teacher was Grandmaster An Muda. A Grandmaster¡¯s repeated warnings about Master¡¯s Glory toward his student surprised everyone.

    Shi Xueman continued, "Teacher¡¯s words have always been more reserved, but I understand the meaning behind them. Do not ask me for the reason because I don¡¯t know either. Teacher did not mention it."

    Everyone pondered over her words.

    Shi Xueman turned toward Duanmu Huanghun. "Didn¡¯t your teacher say anything, Bangwan?"

    "No." Duanmu Huanghun shook his head and said self-mockingly, "My teacher... Hah, he¡¯s most probably forgotten about me already. But that¡¯s good too, or else I wouldn¡¯t be standing here."

    "Ignore Master¡¯s Glory. Although I think Madam Ye is powerful, only time will show the results." Shi Xueman added, "The situation at the front line isn¡¯t too good."

    "What happened?"

    Everyone was more concerned about the front line than theplicated internal fightings and schemings that were going on in Silver City.

    Shi Xueman ate her pastry seriously without even lifting her head. "There¡¯s a powerful figure named Red Devil in Blood of God now. We¡¯ve lost a lot because of him."

    Jiang Wei asked in shock, "Even Shi Beihai?"

    Shi Xueman ced her food down and answered gravely, "It appears that he is avoiding a fight with Father by keeping away from Father¡¯s protection zone. Cloud Cicada Division sustained greater losses, with a few captains and a vice division leader injured, so Father suspects the opponent is an acquaintance."

    Everyone looked extremely solemn.

    The captains of the Thirteen Divisions were all the cream of the crop. They were basically powerful yers with excellent skills. As for the vice division leaders, they were either Masters or pseudo Masters. Yu Jin and Tong Gui, for example, were just a step away from bing Masters and could break through at any time.

    Duanmu Huanghun asked abruptly, "Are thebat masters activated yet?"

    Shi Xueman replied, "Yes but the opponent is very sly and seems to be very familiar with our habits, hence they escaped a few times. Plus, the Masters who have had a match with him are very worried as his skills are improving extremely quickly."

    The daily affairs of abat division were mostly managed by three vice division leaders. When a vice division leader became a Master, they could either choose to continue serving their role, or if they wished for more time to train, they would bebat masters.

    Combat masters had nothing much to take care of so they had ample time to train, and adequate resources were provided as well. Only important missions would require them to step up.

    For those who were certain about going down the training path, bing abat master was a very decent choice.

    Even the division leaders had to show respect toward thebat masters. The former had no power to press thetter into service, and the number ofbat masters in abat division would depend on the capability of the division leader.

    North Sea Division used to have only onebat master, but after wielding power, Shi Beihai managed to increase the count to six. He quickly won the support of his troops and North Sea Division lept to the top within a short period of time.

    Jiang Wei asked, "What about God-subduing Peak?"

    His experience on God-subduing Peak had left a deep impression.

    "The opponent¡¯s found its weakness and Father is really worried about this." Shi Xueman added, "God-subduing peak is very powerful but isn¡¯t very effective when dealing with a single, small target."

    Duanmu Huanghun spoke up after some thinking, "They might have been told by Ye Baiyi. No one would be more familiar with your father and his subordinates than him."

    The situation at the front line was what everyone was concerned about. Failing to keep hold meant a disaster for everyone. How could there be intact eggs when the whole nest had copsed?

    An awkward silence filled the table.

    In response, Wang Xiaoshan hurriedly changed the topic, "How¡¯s the Wilderness expansion projecting along?"

    "Luckily we weren¡¯t the first batch to go," Fattymented with an exaggerated look on his face. "You don¡¯t know how many died there, it was disastrous."

    Dunmu Huanghunughed grimly. "The higher-ups meant for this to happen. It doesn¡¯t matter how many cannon fodders lose their lives."

    Another awkward silence took over as no one knew what to say.

    Shi Xueman finished her food, pulled out her chair and stood up. "I¡¯ve gathered some inheritances and absolute arts so go choose from them yourselves. We have to use whatever time we have to train before Ai Huies back! Lou Lan, supervise Fatty."

    Lou Lan cheered, "No problem!"

    With a defeated look on his face, Fatty asked, "Why me again?"

    "Do you want to learn the absolute arts?"

    "Yeah..."

    "Then practice hard. Lou Lan, draw up a training n!"

    "No problem!"

    Duanmu Huanghun seemed to have realized something and started mumbling to himself, "I know! The aristocratic families suffered great losses and are starting to face a manpower shortage. They would need to replenish themselves with new, fresh blood in order to live on! No wonder no one objected to Madam Ye¡¯s n..."

    Everyone looked at him before resuming their respective work.

    Awkward silence.

    Standing in the training hall¡¯s garden, everyone looked at the mountainous pile of books and was astonished. They looked at Shi Xueman somewhat suspiciously. To the aristocratic families, absolute arts were the real riches. They were the key to their continued existence.

    "Most of these are from my family¡¯s collection. I took all of them out with the permission of father. They¡¯re yours to keep so please treasure them and practice hard."

    Everyone looked at her but no one dared to make a move. Even Fatty, the money grubber, had a solemn look on his face.

    Shi Xueman looked carefree. "This is all of the family¡¯s inheritance, but what would be of the family if the Avalon of Five Elements is destroyed? These books won¡¯t mean anything when that happens. They would be no different from the artifact remnants left over from the Cultivation Era. In that case, we might as well make use of them when they¡¯ve still got value. There¡¯s nothing to lose."

    The doubt vanished from the faces of those who were listening, and was reced by smiles and excitement. Everyone was looking forward to it.

    "Haha, if only aristocratic families were as good as Iron Lady¡¯s family!"

    "That name is not for you to call! Kneel before your goddess!"

    "Long live the Goddess!"

    ...

    A faint smile appeared on Shi Xueman¡¯s face. She set the gaze far away, worry somewhat filling her heart.

    How was Ai Hui doing? He shouldn¡¯t be in trouble right?

    At this point, sheughed involuntarily.

    Why was she even worried about that when she should be worrying about the trouble her people might cause him?

    She said, in all alertness, "From today onwards, increase your training capacity by thirty percent."

    Cheers instantly turned into cries.

    "Nooo, Goddess!"

    "You¡¯re asking us to die!"

    Shi Xueman responded with a steady face, "I will train with you guys and increase mine by forty percent."

    "Ahh let me die. I don¡¯t want the absolute arts anymore."

    "Ahhhhhhh, my ideal goddess is gone just like that. Scary Iron Lady has returned!"

    No one knew when, but Duanmu Huanghun was already squatting before the pile of books.

    "I¡¯ve seen this."

    "Learned this."

    "Seen it."

    "Done it."

    ...

    "Eh, this is new. Yes, I haven¡¯t seen it. Interesting. Oh, I¡¯ve read it."

    Awkward silence.

 Chapter 385: A Small World

    Chapter 385: A Small World

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    There was no ending in learning.

    Ai Hui rubbed his eyes. After reading for a long time, he felt exhausted. But about one fourth of the books on this level were still left unread.

    It seemed that luck was not on his side this time.

    Now what worried him the most was that the reading note had disappeared. After all, so many years had passed, and anything could happen. Of course, during these days of reading, Ai Hui had gained a lot. The fantastic ideas, the wondends deep in the Wilderness and the disappearing legends and customs hadrgely broadened his horizon.

    Well-written books could be read with pleasure, and time flew very fast. But even if the books he fell on were the types that he didn¡¯t really like, he would still force himself to finish them, because he didn¡¯t want to miss anything.

    When he was about to leave, Manager suddenly said, "Wait a minute. Here¡¯s a letter for you."

    A letter?

    Ai Hui paused, and then asked with curiosity, "Where?"

    A luminous ball appeared in Manager¡¯s hand, in which there was a letter.

    Ai Hui took the ball. As soon as he touched it, he knew who¡¯d sent it: it was Prince. The luminous ball was created with elemental energy and had Prince¡¯s special mark.

    In the Elemental Era, it was easy to change one¡¯s appearance or name, but there was one thing that could not be forged, which was elemental energy. Each elementalist¡¯s elemental energy had unique features.

    Just as there were no two identical leaves in the world, there were no two elementalists with the same elemental energy.

    Even if there were two people who were of the same attribute, and who practiced the same inheritance, there would still be apparent differences between their elemental energies. Its uniqueness enabled identity authentication through elemental energy, which was a significant method of identity verification in the Elemental Era.

    The luminous ball was Prince¡¯s way of delivering letters. It was like the mud seal of a letter, which would no longer be intact when the letter was read. So the existence of the luminous ball indicated that no one had ever read the letter.

    There were also luminous balls that had certain passwords. If anyone who didn¡¯t know the password wanted to open it with force, the letter inside would explode or be devoured by fire.

    Ai Hui reached out to the luminous ball, breaking the ball to get the letter. Then he began to read it carefully.

    In the letter, Prince said he was informed of Hua Kui¡¯s death, and knew Ai Hui must be very grieved. He also reminded Ai Hui that the Assembly of Patriarchs would recruit many new members as it was expanding, and thepetition would be more fierce. If anything happened, Ai Hu could directly contact him or Jiu Gui. Besides that, he mentioned that there was a task in the Wilderness, and asked if Ai Hui wasing with them.

    Having finished reading the letter, Ai Hui folded the letter and asked Manager, "How can I write back?"

    Manager took out a brush and paper and said, "When you finish, seal it and give it to me. I¡¯ll deliver it to him."

    Ai Hui nodded, and soon began to write, saying that everything was going well, and wished them good luck and a safe journey. He didn¡¯t know what else to say.

    Just like he hadn¡¯t opened the things Hua Kui left him, he didn¡¯t think he and Hua Kui were so close. But Hua Kui¡¯s former friends, Prince and Jiu Gui, did treat him very well.

    Actually Ai Hui didn¡¯t know how to face them.

    Many new faces had appeared in the Assembly of Patriarchs, which indicated its rapid expansion. Ai Hui knew that the Assembly of Patriarchs was under the support of Madam Ye. Now it was a good time for her, so she didn¡¯t even need to lift a finger to help them. Besides, Madam Ye had deep connections to the Assembly of Patriarchs as both Heng Bingfeng and the old prisoner were the previous backbones of it. Ai Hui did suspect long ago that Heng Bingfeng was a rtive of Madam Ye. Otherwise, why would Karakorum Savant call Madam Ye "aunt"?

    Madam Ye also needed the help of Assembly of Patriarchs to step up.

    Each side took what they needed.

    Ai Hui was d to see the smooth development of the Assembly of Patriarchs. Although the management of the Assembly of Patriarchs was still a secret, one thing was for sure - the Assembly of Patriarchs and the Blood of God were sworn enemies. As the proverb goes, the enemy of one¡¯s enemy is his friend. The more powerful the Assembly of Patriarchs was, the more troubles the Blood of God would face.

    Ai Hui left the Grass Hall, and nned to get moving after a quick rest.

    He had been making progress in elemental energy level every day. Now that the two metal elemental elixirs had been fully absorbed, his level was further improved. He had the feeling that he would be able to reach Second Elemental Realm very soon.

    These days his elemental energy had been growing extremely fast, like a jetpack.

    If the elemental elixirs could be made into elemental food by Lou Lan, it would be more fully usable. Besides, Lou Lan could remove the impurities of the elemental elixirs to reduce its potential risks. The way Ai Hui used the elemental elixirs could be counted as extravagant. Fortunately, the demonic god statue, which was called demonic god armor now, could also absorb the fiendish aura of the elemental elixirs.

    It would be great if there was one more elemental elixir. If only he had elemental elixirs, he would be confident that he¡¯d be able to make it to the Third Elemental Realm.

    Then he shook his head and smiled. When did he be a discontent person? Elemental elixirs were priceless treasures that were hard to find. The fact that he had already taken three elemental elixirs was a rare opportunity. He shouldn¡¯t waste more time on such wishful thinking.

    He reminded himself not to indulge on improving his elemental energy level depending on external stimuli only.

    The process of training was boring and insipid, and the progress one could make every day was so little that it was almost unnoticeable. Therefore, training was also to hone one¡¯s heart and spirit. A person who was not steadfast and tough, but had only strong elemental energy could be defeated as easily as poking a soap bubble.

    Ai Hui decided to leave the valley.

    Having flown for five to six hours, a vige appeared in the wood.

    The vige was small both in size and poption, and looked destitute. There was only one inn with a few guests. The owner of the inn was taking a nap at the front desk.

    Ai Hui woke up the owner.

    The owner opened his eyes nkly, but immediately became sober when he saw there was a guest. He smiled and asked, "You want to check in?"

    "Find a clean room for me." Ai Hui threw an elemental energy bean to him.

    The owner caught the bean and smiled even kinder. "I¡¯ll get the best room for you."

    Ai Hui waved his hand. "The room can be preparedter. Get me something to eat first."

    Having stayed in the mountains for such a long time, he was missing having delicious food very much.

    The elemental energy beans were well spent. The owner soon got him dishes that filled the whole table. Ai Hui sat in the hall alone, glutting himself with the delicacies.

    Having dined to satiety, Ai Hui chatted casually with the owner, "You don¡¯t have much business here, do you?"

    The owner sighed in despair, "This inn was started by my grandpa, and now it¡¯s been passed to me. I never thought that it would be closed by my hands. But there¡¯s nothing I can do in such troubled times. You see, there are hardly any people in the vige."

    Ai Hui asked in thought, "They¡¯ve all gone to the Wilderness?"

    "Yes." The owner was morose, "If I were younger, I would have gone with them. Before the blood catastrophe broke out, everything was fine. But the warsted for several years, and business became worse and worse. Our vige does not have any specialties. So there¡¯s no hope."

    Ai Hui fell into silence.

    The war could make small cities like Peace City flourish, but it brought more destruction and ruins. The life of the residents of many cities and towns became hard. Without the Yellow Sand Corner, the Fire Prairie and the Jadeite Forest, they lost three material-producing ces. This also implied that they lost three markets.

    Most of the industries were shrinking, and most of the elementalists had nothing to do. Now the destitution of all walks of life could be seen anywhere in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    The experience and progress he had achieved in these years had broadened Ai Hui¡¯s horizon and strengthened his mind.

    He stayed in the inn for only one night, and he was the only guest. There was a message tree in the inn, through which Ai Huimunicated with the Swordsman Training Hall and informed them of his current situation. He also told them that it would take him a while to get back.

    Hearing the Iron L say that everyone was practicing hard, Ai Hui was relieved.

    He left the vige early the next morning.

    Having flown hundreds of miles away from the vige, Ai Hui suddenly changed his direction and rushed into a cloud. In the cloud, he took off his elemental mask, and his Starry Gem Swordwings returned to ck. Then, he changed from his Star Reaper Gloves to a different pair and switched his Silverfold Plum back for his Dragonspine.

    When Ai Hui flew out of the clouds, his appearance had totally changed.

    Although he had detected and confirmed that no one was around, he still remained cautious.

    He decided to pay Senior Mingxiu a visit. He would be going to the Wildernesster, and didn¡¯t know how long he would spend there. When he saw Li Wei, he couldn¡¯t help thinking about Senior Mingxiu, and decided to pay her a visit.

    When he thought of Senior Mingxiu, Ai Hui felt guilty.

    Before Mistress had passed away, she told Ai Hui to take good care of Mingxiu, but Ai Hui failed to fulfill his promise. Ai Hui didn¡¯t live close to Mingxiu. Many of the things he did were too dangerous, and he didn¡¯t want her to be involved.

    But he had been in contact with her.

    Mingxiu didn¡¯t go back to the Lu family, but was living in Asakusa City, a city that was not far away from the border of Jadeite Forest and Palette Cloud Vige.

    She was running an embroidery workshop there and the business was good. The Lu family was so powerful that Ai Hui didn¡¯t worry about Mingxiu¡¯s safety in the Jadeite Forest at all.

    Stretching his Starry Gem Swordwings in full, Ai Hui flew to Asakusa City like a big bird.

    On his way, he witnessed many destitute cities. The once flourishing streets were now empty. The prosperity of the past was now gone, like yesterday. The most striking impression on Ai Hui was the decrease in poption. Now only the elderly and the children were left, and all the youngsters and adults had gone to the Wilderness.

    They needed to create their homnd in the Wilderness, which was a hard journey. In the process, many people would sacrifice their lives. They came one after another, like tides that aimed to wash the Wilderness and turn it into a fertile in.

    The issuance of the city expansion order meant that the management had abandoned the idea of rebuilding Avalon of Five Elements, and that Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige were abandoned too.

    In their eyes, the Wilderness was the only hope.

    Were the civilians thinking the same? No one knew.

    They had no choice.

    Well, he was not a hero anyway. He didn¡¯t have the power to save anyone from their sufferings.

    Suddenly he looked ahead, as he sensed a strong flow of elemental energy. There was a fight!

    Ai Hui wanted to avoid whoever was there, since he was not interested in poking his nose into other¡¯s business. But suddenly his expression changed and he looked weird. It seemed that they were flying toward him now.

    Bad luck!

    After a few breaths, two figures appeared in front of him.

    The one who was running in the front was a young man. He was extremely panicky. And the one chasing after him looked fierce.

    But the moment he saw the chaser clearly, Ai Huiughed out loud.

    It was indeed a small world.

 Chapter 386: A Free Gift

    Chapter 386: A Free Gift

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Zhao Boan was fleeing for his life and his brain waspletely nk.

    He had just witnessed his caravan being cleared up within a very short period of time. Yes, it was "cleared up", as if the guards he¡¯d hired with arge sum of money were nothing more than rubbish and were cleared up immediately by a broom.

    And his enemy was only one person.

    Zhao Boan¡¯s heart was like dead ashes.

    He had spent all his savings and a huge loan he borrowed in order to knock together this caravan, which was fully loaded with wood elemental materials. If he¡¯d managed to make it to the Wilderness, he could have made at least ten times profit.

    If he seeded, he would be famous. But if he failed, he would be doomed eternally.

    The huge amount of debt would kill him. All the creditors woulde to him and take away everything he had, including his life.

    He didn¡¯t want to die.

    He tried to negotiate with the looter and implored him to let him go. But the looter seemed to have heard nothing. All his guards had run for their lives, as life was the most critical thing at this critical moment.

    Zhao Boan, however, could not escape. Without the goods, he was dead meat anyway.

    Pale-faced, he was shivering all over and was stammering to beg for mercy. But the next scene he saw made him desperate.

    The person removed his cloak, and it turned out to be a grass-lotus puppet. It opened the carriage gates of the Three Leaves Bamboo Carts and poured all the materials into its mouth. Its grass and lotus body was not strong, but was like a bottomless pit that could never be filled.

    The grass-lotus puppet poured the wood elemental materials from each cart, one by one, into his mouth.

    Zhao Boan became more and more desperate. When half of the materials were gone, Zhao Boan knew he was finished.

    But as soon as this idea urred to him, he was no longer afraid, and suddenly broke out into curses.

    He was not good at cursing at all, but he racked his brains to collect all the curses in his mind and used them on the puppet.

    The grass-lotus puppet was stunned, and came to his senses only after a while. He was irritated, and rushed towards Zhao Boan furiously.

    Zhao Boan thought he no longer cared about life or death, but when he was faced with the ferocious grass-lotus puppet, his mind went nk and all his courage was gone. He howled in fear and turned to run at once.

    The instinct to survive didn¡¯t leave him any room to think further.

    Zhao Boan never knew that he could run so fast, like a mad dog. Even the grass-lotus puppet was left far behind him.

    Just at this moment, he noticed that someone was not far in front of him. Like a drowning man who grabbed a straw, he would not miss the chance and shouted loudly, "Help! Help!"

    Qing Feng also noticed the figure in the front, but he didn¡¯t intend to stop at all. He was also outraged.

    His mission hadpletely failed. The Ling Residence copsed, the ancient treasure was missing, Xiao Shurenmitted suicide, Qing Feng himself was severely injured, and theher lotus seeds suffered a great loss.

    Qing Feng had been working for Grandmaster Dai and had aplished numerous tasks. This was the first time that he had been so awkward. He was an arrogant guy, and the failures were a p in the face.

    He was furious and resentful.

    If his opponent was Karakorum Savant, he would not be so furious. After all, it would be normal for him to lose to the first ever master swordsman ever.

    But who was Chu Zhaoyang?

    A nobody!

    He was wounded by a nobody¡¯s sword!

    Not only his body, but his mind and spirit had also been wounded by this ident. These days he always woke up with nightmares at midnight. Fragmentary mind and spirit were taboos for elementalists, because mental recovery was far more difficult than physical recovery.

    The sky pce had always been the most mysterious pce.

    Moreover, Qing Feng was a grass-lotus puppet. His body was not his own, but consisted of grass and lotus, and therefore rejected his mind in many aspects. Many of his weird behaviors were due to such rejections.

    Usually he had to take medicine to restrain these adverse reactions.

    The medicine was prescribed by his master, who once told him frankly that so far he could not solve the problem of adverse reactions.

    After the injury, all the adverse reactions that had been restrained before immediately reappeared. Qing Feng realized that his body was like a broken machine that went out of control now and then. Sometimes his hands and feet came loose and became knotted grass ropes, or his body lost bnce. Such incidents urred endlessly. Otherwise he would have already killed this little bug.

    The wood elemental materials he had devoured hadrgely restored his elemental energy. Although not as effective as his master¡¯s mud pool, the wood elemental energy he extracted from the materials was nourishing for his body.

    This ce was far away from the dangerous Silver City. So there was nothing to fear.

    Silver City was really horrible. It seemed to be a shabby house that might fall down at any moment, but once you stepped into it, you would find that crisis and traps were everywhere.

    Seeing the figure ahead, Qing Feng didn¡¯t pay much attention. He wouldn¡¯t bother to kill them both.

    It was a pity that eating human beings could not restore his elemental energy. Qing Feng licked his lips in disappointment.

    Wood elemental materials were hard to find, but elementalists were everywhere.

    Qing Feng was annoyed that Zhao Boan cried for help and hid behind some passer-by.

    Little Bug, if you thought that anyone ispetent to fight against me, then you¡¯re too naive!

    With a grim smile, Qing Feng said ambiguously, "I didn¡¯t want to kill you. You asked for it!"

    Qing Feng opened his palms and the grass cords stretched and almost covered Ai Hui like five whips.

    He was wounded by Chu Zhaoyang, which made him resentful towards all swordsmen. Now that he saw a bone sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand, his killing intent was stronger than ever.

    Ai Hui was happy when he realized, after a nce, that Qing Feng hadn¡¯t recovered from his injuries. Ai Hui had absorbed two elemental elixirs in thest few days that greatly improved his elemental level. Moreover, he was devoted to in summarizing his understandings whichrgely improved his swordsmanship.

    So he shouted loudly, in a simr tone to Qing Feng, "I didn¡¯t want to kill you. You asked for it!"

    And the Dragonspine directly confronted the grass cords.

    Qing Feng was surprised by Ai Hui¡¯s shout, and became more furious.

    Their speeds were very fast. The five grass cords constituted a thick and swept towards Ai Hui like a violent storm. But to his surprise, his enemy was not slower than him at all.

    The thick sounds of crashing was like rain rattling on banana leaves.

    Ripples of elemental energy appeared, spread and were smashed between them.

    At this moment, Qing Feng realized something weird. This guy¡¯s swordsmanship was good!

    He couldn¡¯t figure it out why so many strong swordsmen had emerged all of a sudden. They seemed to be neck and neck, but Qing Feng already wanted to quit, since he hadn¡¯t fully recovered and he still feared swordsmen from the bottom of his heart.

    So once he encountered a master-hand, he wanted to escape.

    But then he noticed, in fear, an attraction to his grass cordsing from the guy¡¯s sword. His grass cords were sucked in, making him unable to escape.

    What kind of swordsmanship was it?

    He felt more fearful.

    But Ai Hui felt fine. After all, Qing Feng had a solid foundation and great strength. The grass cords that stretched from his fingers were like the tentacles of an octopus that were extremely flexible and fast.

    Ai Hui realized that his stabs could hardly follow the grass cords¡¯ speed. He had never met with an enemy whose attacks were so fast. With such a high frequency, there was no time for him to use any fancy moves, and he could only fight back with the basic stabbing attack.

    Crack, crack, crack!

    Sounds of explosions could be heard up in the sky. Each collision was apanied by a light that flickered between the two.

    Realizing that he was on the disadvantageous side, he put his other hand into the fight. Ten grass cords immediately caught Ai Hui unprepared and whipped him several times.

    Qing Feng was overjoyed. The ten grass cords attacked towards Ai Hui at the speed of lightning.

    Ai Hui was awkward dodging the attack and was almost pierced by the cords several times.

    This made Qing Feng more excited. As long as his enemy was pierced by his grass cord, his blood could be drained within a short period of time.

    The ten grass cords were even more faster and transformed into an illusory image.

    Crack, crack, crack!

    The sound became louder, and the light shrouding Ai Hui became brighter.

    One second, two seconds...five seconds...ten seconds...

    Qing Feng found, in astonishment, that Ai Hui was wobbling and seemed as if he was about to fall, but he never really fell.

    Damn it! Why?

    Qing Deng began to feel anxious. His elemental energy was being consumed fast. He had umted this energy from the elemental materials he had just devoured.

    Once his elemental energy was used up, he could not even run for his life.

    So he suddenly started an even faster attack that suppressed Ai Hui and made him very awkward. But this time, he didn¡¯t hesitate and decided to turn and run at once.

    Wheeze, wheeze, wheeze...

    Ai Hui was soaked in sweat. This was the first time that he¡¯d encountered such a high-frequency attack. If it were not for the improvement of his swordsmanship, he would be doomed this time.

    But luckily, he managed to withstand the attack. When his enemy¡¯s moves were at their fastest, he totally reacted with his instincts. The speed at which he stabbed with his swords was faster than his thinking.

    Under such high pressure, Ai Hui could feel the change in his moves. His stabs became faster, and the gestures and angles of his attack became more reasonable.

    Ai Hui, soaked in sweat, breathed heavily. He stared at Qing Feng who was running away as if he was a priceless treasure.

    Trying to escape?

    Ai Hui smiled evilly. No precious things could escape from him!

    pping his Starry Gem Swordwings, he rushed forward like lightning.

    The Dragonspine was as flexible as a snake. It stabbed forward and kept dispersing the air in front of Ai Hui to reduce the resistance. Thus, Ai Hui¡¯s speed was again raised to a higher level.

    Qing Feng, who was fleeing, heard the thundering sound behind him. He turned back and was scared by what he saw.

    Behind them, Zhao Boan was dumbstruck to see that the grass-lotus puppet that was trying to kill him was now running for his life in a huge panic.

    And then, the swordsman also rushed out at an amazing speed. He watched the swordsman speeding up and up and up in a supernatural way. Suddenly, after a deafening thunder, the air around him suddenly exploded, creating a ring-shaped shock wave.

    The ring-shaped shock wave seemed to freeze in the air, but the figure in the circle disappeared.

 Chapter 387: A Deal

    Chapter 387: A Deal

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Bang!

    Qing Feng felt as if he was bumped by a wildly running beast from the back. The huge impact greatly distorted his body. He flew out, body almost parallel with the horizon. The azure sky was reflected in his zed eyes.

    What on earth happened?

    The impact made him confused.

    In the air, Ai Hui was still in the motion of swaying his Dragonspine like he was swaying a hammer. He exerted all his strength, and even his shoulders were numb. Seeing Qing Feng who was thrown away in the sky, he slowly breathed out in relief.

    Wheeze, wheeze, wheeze...

    Ai Hui was breathing heavily in the air. Sweat gushed out from each of his pores all over his body like springs. His clothes were all soaked in sweat as if he was just pulled out of the water.

    After a while when Ai Hui could finally calm his breathing and his chest, which expanded and contracted, became stable, he shook his body, and the sweat transformed into white fog that rose up and disappeared in the sky.

    The sudden attack just now was only a variant move he thought of during the emergency. At that point, his speed had reached the highest level, and the huge pressure from the wind was like an iron wall. Piercing the wind wall with his sword was only an impromptu action, and it turned out to be surprisingly effective.

    But on the other hand, the move consumed too much energy, and for an instant Ai Hui felt that his body was almost torn apart by a huge force.

    He decided to improve this moveter. If he could make a breakthrough in this, his opponents on the battlefield would definitely be taken by surprise.

    Calming himself down, Ai Huinded near Qing Feng.

    It was a coincidence that Qing Feng happened to fall into the caravans. He was the one who was holding the power over Zhao Boan¡¯s life just now, but he was likely to be killed at any minute. On this day, Qing Feng experienced the transience of life.

    His body was totally scattered by Ai Hui¡¯s attack. The grass cords fell on the ground in a mess, some of which were attached with a lotus root.

    Crack, crack, crack. The grass cords convulsed now and then like eels. The scene looked very weird.

    Qing Feng hadpletely lost control of the grass cords. Now he was like an octopus with a human being¡¯s head.

    Qing Feng said with hatred, "Grandmaster Dai will not let you off!"

    Ai Hui burst intoughter, and then managed to hold it back and said like a hooligan, "What can I do? I didn¡¯t want to kill you. You asked for it."

    Qing Feng didn¡¯t know what to say and his face flushed. He said with hatred, "Then kill me! I don¡¯t want your humiliation!"

    Ai Hui seemed surprised. "Kill you? Why shall I kill you."

    Hearing what he said, Qing Feng was a bit relieved. Although he was talking tough just now, deep in his heart he was really afraid to die. So he said at once, "Then let me go. I¡¯ll pay you back. How much do you want?"

    "Let you go?" Ai Hui shook his head, "What if youe back to take revenge on me? You work for Grandmaster Dai whom I dare not provoke."

    Qing Feng¡¯s face became gloomy. "Then what do you want to do?"

    Zhao Boan ran to them in gasps. He heard their conversation and said loudly, "Sir, don¡¯t listen to him. As long as he devours wood elemental materials, his elemental energy will be restored."

    Qing Feng¡¯s expression changed drastically. He intentionally chatted with Ai Hui to divert his attention, and meanwhile was stretching his grass cords to the goods in the caravan. But now his n was revealed by Zhao Boan.

    This made him very angry, "You are dead meat!"

    A grass cord suddenly bounced and rushed straight towards Zhao Boan like a flying arrow.

    Suddenly, with a cracking sound, the grass cord was again hit and thrown away by Ai Hui.

    "What an arrogant captive! I like your temper!"

    Ai Hui againnded near Qing Feng, and looked at him with a spurious smile.

    Qing Feng was frightened in his heart, but still said in a threatening manner, "What do you want to do? Let me tell you..."

    Ai Hui interrupted him and said fluently, "Grandmaster Dai will not let me go. I know."

    Being interrupted, Qing Feng was embarrassed and his face flushed.

    Then Ai Hui turned to Zhao Boan, "You said his body can recover with the wood elemental materials?"

    Zhao Boan said cautiously, "Yes, Sir. You see, half of the goods on the caravan have been devoured by him."

    Ai Hui murmured, "I see."

    But his next move totally astounded Zhao Boan. He lifted up Qing Feng with his sword and threw him into the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart.

    Smashing into the goods, Qing Feng felt dizzy, and it took him a long time toe to his senses. But the moment he realized that he was surrounded by wood elemental materials, he rejoiced with wild excitement and began to devour the materials crazily without saying anything.

    The scattered grass cords began to gather towards its body.

    Having devoured the materials in several carriages, Qing Feng returned to what he was like before. While he was eating busily, his eyeballs were rolling.

    Soon there were less than half of the goods left in the carriage, and Qing Feng, who was eating, suddenly turned to run.

    But this time he didn¡¯t fly up to the sky. Instead he was running wildly towards the forest. The grass cords constituting his legs dispersed, and he was like a fast-moving spider.

    The moment he was about to rush into the wood, an expression of great joy appeared on his face.

    Suddenly, he was caught by a chill in the air.

    Qing Feng¡¯s body froze. The chilled air apanying the sword almost made him frozen. Ai Hui¡¯s aura of killing intent covering him was so real that he knew if he dared to move, the killer move would immediately arrive.

    "You..."

    Qing Feng trembled in fright.

    "I know, Grandmaster Dai will not let me off," Ai Hui said lightly.

    The joke made Qing Feng feel as if he was in the icehouse.

    He didn¡¯t understand why he always encountered swordsmen with strong fighting skills. This guy standing in front of him came out of nowhere, but was even stronger than Chu Zhaoyang.

    "Come here."

    His tone was rxed but indubitable.

    Qing Feng stepped back tamely. He was dejected, but was also a bit relieved. He was sure now that the swordsman didn¡¯t want to kill him.

    Although he didn¡¯t know exactly why, he was sure it was not because of Grandmaster Dai.

    The killing intent totally disappeared as if it was just his imagination.

    The swordsman smiled like a friendly boy next door. But this made Qing Feng more scared.

    "Your move just now was good. Come on, let¡¯s try again."

    Ai Hui¡¯s tone was soft and even encouraging, which, however, made Qing Feng even more fearful and desperate. His enemy¡¯s face was so young, but was like a demon in his eyes. Qing Feng was trembling, and wondering why the guy who came out of nowhere could be so strong.

    Young and strong as he was, this guy was more sophisticated than people of his age.

    But even so, he would not obey any of hismands, Qing Feng thought.

    But the words on the tip of his tongue were swallowed back, and he blurted out, "Try...try what?"

    But as soon as the words were out of his mouth, Qing Feng felt extremely ashamed. After all he was a follower of Grandmaster Dai. How could he be frightened by a young guy.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t know what Qing Feng was thinking. He gesticted with the stab move, "This one. You are my sparring partner now. if you can do a good job, I¡¯ll set you free."

    This was a great humiliation to him. My God! How could the dignified Qing Feng be some small potato¡¯s sparring partner?

    Who was he? Qing Feng! A violent, and wicked guy who held the power to take other¡¯s lives, and who had killed numerous people! Now a kid regarded him as a sparring partner?

    If this could be tolerated, what else couldn¡¯t?

    Better die standing than live kneeling.

    He was an outstanding person when alive. And he would be the hero of all the ghosts after he died.

    With an impulse, he blurted out, "Really?"

    After having said this, he couldn¡¯t wait to p himself on the face. His face was now flushed as if a fire was burning beneath.

    Ai Hui blinked and said sincerely, "Of course. A gentleman always keeps his promises."

    Then he further lured him, "You see, I can provide you with enough wood elemental materials. Why do we have to fight against each other? There¡¯s no hatred or rancor between us, right? I need a sparring partner, and I¡¯ll pay you. This is a fair deal, or a business transaction, isn¡¯t it?"

    Qing Feng was kind of persuaded by him. His mission hadpletely failed this time. He didn¡¯t know what his master would do to him. This was a question he had not thought about before.

    Before he left, his master had told him again and again that they could afford no failure this time.

    Now he had to go back empty-handed, and his body was so broken - theher lotus seeds were also destroyed and it would take a long time and many precious materials to restore it to its previous status. Besides, his mind and spirit were also disturbed. Even if his body recovered, he could hardly recover to his best condition.

    His master would not waste so many precious materials on a useless puppet.

    This was the worst day of his life. And it came earlier than he thought.

    Qing Feng felt dejected, but also a bit relieved.

    The destiny awaiting him made him quail. Therefore, the fact that he could not go back made him feel relieved, and a bit at a loss too. After all, it was his master that gave him this second life. He was grateful for his kindness, and was used to following themands of his master to kill one after another. Actually he didn¡¯t know what to do in the current situation.

    Being silent for a long time, he suddenly said, "If I want to leave one day, you cannot stop me."

    Ai Hui answered quickly, "No problem! Then let¡¯s make it a deal!"

    "Okay," Qing Feng said. Then he walked to the caravan and began to devour the goods left in the carriages.

    Ai Hui was satisfied. After all, it was difficult to find a good sparring partner. Those too weak could not improve his strength, but no strong fighters were willing to be a sparring partner.

    Then he looked at Zhao Boan, who was standing aside in shock, "I¡¯ll buy all your goods. How much?"

    The situation was changing too fast for Zhao Boan to understand. Wasn¡¯t it a life-or-death fight just now? Why did they be so harmonious at this moment?

    Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s question, he suddenly came to himself and said, "I¡¯m willing to follow you, Sir!"

    He became disillusioned with his previously unrealistic dreams from today¡¯s experience. Now he knew that in troubled times, without strong fighting skills, one¡¯s fortune would be gone sooner orter.

    Ai Hui was surprised, but didn¡¯t refuse. Instead, he asked, "What are you good at?"

    His horizon had beenrgely broadened. He knew his limits, and knew that many things should be done by others, especially by people with that particr profession. His fellows at the Swordsman Training Hall were good at fighting, but not at other things.

    Ai Hui felt inspired. Maybe he needed to recruit some experienced people, such as cksmiths and businessmen.

    No city could be built by fighters and killers alone.

 Chapter 388: Sharpening Skills

    Chapter 388: Sharpening Skills

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Zhao Boan was born to a merchant¡¯s family. His father was a small itinerant merchant. Now the family property was in his hands, but the business environment had be harder than ever.

    Small merchants needed a stable society. To them, troubled times were like natural disasters were to peasants. They could hardly fight against them.

    Now was the time for bandits and robbers to rise, because one could earn more by robbing than by doing business. If you had strong fighting skills, you could protect yourself and make a fortune, but if not, then you could only be a target for bandits.

    The trade route between Jadeite Forest and the Avalon of Five Elements had not been formally recognized by the Elders Guild, which meant that it was still a smuggling route. Despite this, the caravans were secure as they all had aristocratic families backing them.

    To small traders like Zhao Boan, however, participating in the smuggling business was like dancing on the edge of a de. Any carelessness might send them down the road of destruction. As a result, Zhao Boan hadn¡¯t dared involve himself in such practices, but nowadays, business was getting increasingly worse as trade in the Jadeite Forest was almost entirely monopolized by Deep Sea Enterprise. If he didn¡¯t do anything, his family would go bankrupt by next year.

    Overtaken by circumstances, Zhao Boan made his decision. He borrowed a considerable amount of money from his rtives and sold all his possessions to purchase a caravan of goods.

    However, he didn¡¯t expect the situation to be even worse than he¡¯d imagined.

    After the city expansion order was issued, elementalists from the Avalon of Five Elements all left for the Wilderness, leaving depressed and dpidated cities and towns behind. The decline in poption and the transfer of the enterprises¡¯ power forced the guards to focus on the Wilderness.

    This led directly to a state ofwlessness and havoc caused by bandits and robbers. They were almost everywhere in the cities, like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.

    The caravans of therge enterprises were heavily guarded; no robbers dared to attack them. Instead, they focused on robbing small merchants like Zhao Boan.

    Zhao Boan had been forced to spend heavily to hire guards for protection.

    Although they did not have the qualifications to be caravan guards during peacetimes, Zhao Boan had no alternatives and was forced to hire them.

    Unfortunately, he had been too unlucky and met the grass-lotus puppet, which was even worse than robbers. After the first round of confrontation, except for those who had been killed, the rest of the guards all fled for their lives.

    Zhao Boan became desperate and thought he would be killed for sure, but unexpectedly, he met his new boss.

    Yes, he had been hired by Ai Hui and was now his manager.

    At the time, seeking refuge with his boss was the only choice he could make, butter he felt that his new boss was good. When his boss learned that he¡¯d borrowed a lot of money from his rtives, he generously paid him an amount equal to half the goods and told him to repay the loan first.

    This alone was enough to make Zhao Boan grateful. He was now willing to die for Ai Hui without saying a word.

    Two years ago, morals had not been as terrible as they were today. Elders Guild was still influential and powerful then. This year, however, especially this half of the year, righteousness and justice no longer seemed to exist and the rules of society quickly copsed. It was like an avnche; once theyer of snow covering the mountain peak copsed, it poured down with a roaring sound and an unstoppable momentum.

    The strong overlooked those beneath them while the weak were as minor as mites. They were bullied more and more often, almost everyday. Bandits and robbers were everywhere, but no one stopped them.

    Nowadays, a robber could be praised and called a righteous robber as long as he didn¡¯t kill anyone during a robbery. It was perfectly justified for the strong to take your belongings without paying.

    Anyone capable had already gone to the Wilderness.

    Except for pivotal huge cities like Silver City, the Silver Mist Sea, and Palette Cloud Vige, the rest of the cities were like dried up corpses. The Elders Guild didn¡¯t bother to pay them any attention and just left them to rot and die.

    The rotten atmosphere could not give birth to vigor; it would only attract vultures that were fond of carrion.

    His boss had done more than he could.

    Zhao Boan nced at Qing Feng in fear. He knew that he¡¯d better not provoke this monster, especially so after hearing from his boss that Qing Feng was a follower of Grandmaster Dai. Hepletely gave up the idea to revenge.

    In the Jadeite Forest, no one dared to disobey Grandmaster Dai. He was the god of Jadeite Forest, and even his followers were beyond the reach of ordinary people.

    It seemed that his boss was not afraid of Grandmaster Dai. He was a bit worried at first, but when it urred to him that his boss was not a member of Jadeite Forest, he was more or less relieved.

    His gaze focused on his bossr, who was training.

    Zhao Boan marveled; he had never seen anyone more hardworking than his boss. No, the word "hardworking" was not enough to describe his boss¡¯s training. It should be "crazy."

    His boss seemed to be extremely stubborn about power. When he was practicing, it was as if he was possessed by the devil.

    This made Zhao Boan more relieved. In these troubled times, nothing couldfort one better than strength.

    He stood reverently aside and waited for his boss¡¯s training to end.

    Ai Hui was more focused than ever and the Dragonspine moved so fast that naked eyes could hardly follow it. In front of him, grass cords flew like ghosts, making whistling sounds that could get on your nerves.

    Tinkle, tinkle, tinkle!

    Each collision between the Dragonspine and the grass cords would produce sparks.

    After a while, Ai Hui was soaked with sweat and white fog slowly rose from his body, but as if he felt nothing, he simply moved his sword faster. Standing opposite him, Qing Feng¡¯s mood wasplicated and hard to describe.

    This guy¡¯s sword moves were a bit faster than yesterday. Although it was not readily apparent, Qing Feng was sensitive enough to feel it.

    Qing Feng had always been described as a monster by others, but now he felt that those people had just never met this guy here. This guy was the real monster.

    Since he¡¯d agreed to be Ai Hui¡¯s sparring partner, only one hour had passed before he was made to work.

    Qing Feng waspletely unprepared. Although they had made a deal, shouldn¡¯t they start the next day?

    An hour¡¯s training had drained every bit of his energy and his mind was totally nk. Fortunately, his boss was generous enough to supply him with food. After devouring all the materials, he more or less recovered.

    Coming back to his senses, Qing Feng realized that being a sparring partner was not an easy job.

    Unfortunately, it was toote. After only two hours, he realized that he had still underestimated the difficulty of this business.

    He was asked to spar with Ai Hui again.

    When he heard the guy call, his face almost froze and he wondered if he¡¯d heard wrong. He clearly remembered how that guy had been lying on the ground as tired as a dog just now. When he nkly turned his face and saw the energetic Ai Hui, he thought he might have a problem with his eyes.

    Then Qing Feng finally learned what a nightmare was.

    Basically, he could only rest for two to four hours before being asked to train. The frequency was abnormally high.

    It went on like this for a consecutive three days. Qing Feng finally couldn¡¯t bear it. The training was driving him crazy. Even when he¡¯d been training before, he¡¯d never been so crazy. He didn¡¯t understand why his boss had so much energy and why he fought so hard.

    To Qing Feng¡¯s ears, Ai Hui¡¯s voice was like that of a demon.

    Moreover, he marveled at Ai Hui¡¯s progress. He improved at a speed Qing Feng had never seen before. As a sparring partner, he could sense more clearly than anyone else how horrifying it was every day.

    His pressure increased day by day.

    He was bing more and more proficient in using grass cords each day, from using one at a time, to five, six, and seven...

    During thest fight, Ai Hui had been awkward when resisting Qing Feng¡¯s attacks using ten grass cords, and was whipped several times. Now, however, Qing Feng knew he would no longer be able to whip Ai Hui at all, no matter how many grass cords he used.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sword moves became more and more simple, but his speed became increasingly fast and fluent.

    Qing Feng was not stupid. He knew Ai Hui wanted to sharpen his swordsmanship, but what surprised Qing Feng was that Ai Hui thought of doing so at such a young age. Other people his age were all practicing inheritances or absolute arts.

    Ai Hui was just a young man, but Qing Feng felt that he couldn¡¯t see him through at all.

    "Stop!"

    Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s shout, Qing Feng came back to his senses and immediately stopped.

    Ai Hui sat on the ground and his sweat flowed in a stream beneath him. His breath was so heavy that he sounded like bellows. Qing Feng was extremely tired as well. Hey on the ground without caring about his image at all. He did not even want to move his fingers, no, grass cords.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heavy breathing finally died down and his nk eyes returned to normal.

    He struggled to stand up with the Dragonspine in his hand, then began his unique Sword-style Breathing Technique.

    Fizz, fizz, fizz.

    The sound of inhtion could be heard around the sword, like a snake hissing, making people feel scared and nervous. The metal elemental energy around them converged from all directions and soon infused into the sword.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face became ruddy again and his breathing became stable, until it was finally soundless.

    Time flew by quietly. When Ai Hui opened his eyes again, he looked mild.

    He stretched his limbs and waved his sword. Seeing several sword rays sh in the air, Ai Hui lookedcent. Qing Feng was indeed a good sparring partner. His grass cords gave him huge pressure.

    To block such intense attacks, Ai Hui had to continuously revise how he attacked and the flow of his elemental energy. Previously, he had taught himself sword moves ording to the ancient swordy manuals using trial and error, but had never wondered if there was room for improvement.

    Some details were continuously adjusted and improved to make his moves faster and more urate. That was why Qing Feng could feel Ai Hui¡¯s progress every day.

    This was because Ai Hui was indeed improving every day, which he himself could feel.

    Having tasted the benefits, Ai Hui wondered if he could improve things other than swordsmanship in this way. He kept this idea in mind and decided to think about it further after the training for this period.

    Faster moves meant you could gain advantages faster in a fight.

    He nced at Qing Feng, who was apparently too tired to stand up. Hey on the ground with his grass cords scattered around him, like he had just been ravaged.

    Qing Feng¡¯s elemental energy recovery was not as fast as Ai Hui¡¯s. The Sword-style Breathing Technique was Ai Hui¡¯s exclusive secret and the reason why he could bear highly-frequent practices like this. Although his sword breathing had not yet reached the efficiency level Ai Hui expected, the elemental energy it absorbed was stable and cid enough.

    Seeing Zhao Boan standing aside, he walked to him and asked, "How is it going? Any progress?"

    After days of interaction, Ai Hui believed Zhao Boan was apetent man, so he told him what he was thinking and asked him to look into it for him.

    It seemed that he had brought back some news.

 Chapter 389: Inquiring Information

    Chapter 389: Inquiring Information

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ/CakeHermit

    Zhao Boan said reverently, "Boss, we are close to Crooked River City, where craftsmen are the most reputable. I heard that the living conditions of the local craftsmen is not good, especially in recent days. One reason is that they are short of raw materials and it¡¯s hard to collect all the ingredients, among which the wood elemental materials are the easiest to find, but the earth and fire elemental materials have almost disappeared from the market. As a result, they cannot produce anything but simple and primary goods. The other reason is that the trade route is cut off now and the total poption has dropped, so buyers are very few. Now, their ies can barely support their families, which has driven many people to find opportunities in the Wilderness, although the majority are still hesitating about it."

    Hearing what he said, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t understand. "What is holding them back?"

    Zhao Boan exined, "The climate of the Wilderness is unpredictable and there are no cities of a proper scale located there. Even if they go, they do not have the ability to build a workshop in those conditions. In addition, there have recently been many casualties in the Wilderness. It will be extremely risky for them since they cannot protect themselves if they run into danger. That¡¯s why they are still hesitating."

    Ai Hui said in a low voice, "We will be going to the Wilderness in the near future. If anyone wants to go with us, we can guarantee his or her safety. In your opinion, what kind of craftsman do we need?"

    This answer excited Zhao Boan. Although he foresaw that Boss would go to the Wilderness, he was still thrilled when he admitted it in person.

    Taking a deep breath, he calmed down and said after thinking for a second, "My understanding of Boss is limited, so I can only give opinions from my point of view. The Wilderness is home to numerous dire beasts that will be our daily targets for hunting, so elementalists who have the ability to turn dire beast corpses into food are essential to our team."

    Ai Hui nodded and said, "We don¡¯t need extra hands on that."

    Ai Hui could deal with the dire beasts and Lou Lan was good at cooking.

    Zhao Boan continued, "We need masons for building camps and constructing a city."

    Ai Hui nodded again, "We have an expert in that field as well."

    Wang Xiaoshan was outstanding and trustworthy in that respect, for he had been practicing his skill throughout these years.

    That did not surprise Zhao Boan. His boss seemed wealthy, so it was impossible that he was all alone. He continued, "In that case, we need several craftsmen who can produce weapons, especially weapon craftsmen who are familiar with metal elemental energy and Grass-grade weapons, craftsmen who are familiar with wood elemental energy. Also, we need farmers with high-standard skills so that more people can count on them. Besides these, two physicians specializing in wood and water elemental energy respectively are also required. Herbalists are also essential to us, because the Wilderness will be short of all kinds of herbs for a long period of time."

    Ai Hui thought about it and asked, "What is the current price for hiring these elementalists?"

    Zhao Boan hadpiled a detailed andprehensive report. "Different prices for different professionals. The price for physicians is the highest, and the better physicians have already been employed by others. ording to the market, to hire a physician, we have to pay about five hundred Heaven Merit Points each year for at least 3 years. After all, Wilderness is our destination, so risks are unavoidable."

    Ai Hui was shocked by the price, "So expensive!"

    Then it would be one thousand five hundred Heaven Merits Points for three years, which was a great deal of money.

    He had twelve thousand Heaven Merit Points with him in total, so that was a tenth of his wealth altogether.

    Zhao Boan nodded. "That is so. Physicians have always been popr because they are vital to every team. Physicians with rich experience have long since been hired."

    Ai Hui said without hesitation, "We have physicians. How about others?"

    Lou Lan was equipped with high-standard healing skills.

    Zhao Boan rxed and continued, "Good. The physicians within our pool of choice barely meet the average standard. As for the other professionals, herbalists are not cheap - about three hundred Heaven Merit Points per year. The Jadeite Forest has almost all the high-ss herbalists, but normally they are not willing to go to the wilderness. Farmers are easy to find, but the superior ones also live in the Jadeite Forest. Their price is eptable, which is one hundred Heaven Merit Points per year. We need at least five. Those who can nt elemental energy beans will cost even more, at least five hundred Heaven Merit Points per year, and are hard to find. Grass-grade weapon craftsmen and weapon craftsmen can be hired at two hundred Heaven Merit Points per year. Their price is cheaper because Grass-grade weapon craftsmen can only produce low-level weapons and weapon craftsmenck the necessary materials."

    Ai Hui did the math and said, "We need an herbalist, five farmers, a Grass-grade weapon craftsman and a weapon craftsman, which makes the price amount to one thousand two hundred Heaven Merit Points per year."

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t bother to count in farmers who could nt elemental energy beans.

    Zhao Boan reminded Ai Hui, "Those prices are only for the average professionals. Superior ones would charge double or even higher. Besides, we¡¯d better get a cook, because the Wilderness is short on elemental energy beans. It will be more practical for us to take elemental energy food to support our practice."

    Ai Hui smiled and said, "We have an excellent cook."

    Who could be a better cook than Lou Lan?

    Ai Hui thought for a second. "You are from the Jadeite Forest, so you should be familiar with Asakusa City."

    Zhao Boan responded quickly, "Yes."

    Ai Hui said, "Our destination is Asakusa City, so we will hire farmers and herbalists there. We can seek out weapon craftsmen and Grass-grade weapon craftsmen in the cities we will pass by on our journey. If there are any proper ones, we can hire them."

    Ai Hui and Lou Lan were capable of making weapons, but Ai Hui couldn¡¯t spend much time on doing so. Producing weapons would cost too much time that could be used to practice and Lou Lan was already overloaded.

    Zhao Boan nodded and bore it in mind.

    "Are you going to the Asakusa City?"

    Qing Feng asked from behind Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui turned around and said, "Yes, do you have enemies there?"

    Qing Feng didn¡¯t answer and was lost in his thought.

    Crooked River City was a small city located on the riverbank of the branch of the Silver Mist River. The city was surrounded by the river on three sides; it encircled the city in an "n" shape and the city had been named after it.

    This unique feature of thendscape infused Crooked River City with intensive metal elemental energy, which was beneficial to producing weapons. That was why the city was home to plenty of weapon craftsmen and Grass-grade weapon craftsmen.

    The weapons of Crooked River City enjoyed a certain reputation in the Silver Mist Sea.

    Unfortunately, as a branch channel, the Crooked River¡¯s metal elemental energy was weaker than that of the trunk stream. Although the advantage of thendscape improved its metal elemental energy, it was hard for the city to further enhance its metal elemental energy.

    Workshops along the Crooked River were all closed except for a few. The whole ce was deste.

    In order to practice, Ai Hui found an independent courtyard so that others would not be scared by Qing Feng¡¯s appearance. Zhao Boan was sent to inquire about the market information and hire weapon craftsmen and Grass-grade weapon craftsmen.

    Oddly enough, the Elders Guild had issued an order to arrest She Yu, but there was no such thing for Qing Feng.

    Ai Hui was curious, so he led the topic to it. "Those from the Blood of God are under surveince in the Avalon of Five Elements. Why can you be so free as a disciple of Grandmaster Dai?"

    Qing Feng smirked. "Who dares? Although Madam Ye hasined about Grandmaster Dai out loud, she still doesn¡¯t dare to make any trouble with him. An Muda is about to die, so if Grandmaster Dai is offended and wants to strike the Avalon of Five Elements, no one would be safe."

    Ai Hui was shocked that An Muda was about to die. This would trigger turmoil in the Avalon of Five Elements. The Avalon of Five Elements could stay peaceful not because of the Elders Guild or God-subduing Peak, but because of An Muda. What would it be if An Muda died?

    This was beyond Ai Hui¡¯s imagination.

    Ai Hui was shocked by the news and his mind wandered the whole day because of it. He finally understood why the Elders Guild had issued the Master¡¯s Glory and the city expansion order. This was the reason.

    Without its patron saint, the Avalon of Five Elements would confront an even tougher situation.

    By nightfall, Zhao Boan had not yet returned and Ai Hui returned to his senses.

    Qing Feng mocked, "Your subordinate must have fled."

    Ai Hui guessed that Zhao Boan must have encountered some ident, because after getting along with him for several days, he believed that Zhao Boan didn¡¯t intend to leave.

    "Don¡¯t count on me. I¡¯m your sparring partner, not your subordinate."

    Qing Feng was gloating obviously.

    Ai Hui nced him and said, "You¡¯d better stay here. If you run away, I will report you to the Elders Guild. Let¡¯s see if they really are that scared of Grandmaster Dai."

    Hearing that, Qing Feng¡¯s face turned pale. Creating such a disturbance in Silver City, he had been worried all this time that the Elders Guild would hunt him down. Although he was not in the arrest order, he¡¯d heard from the others that the Elders Guild was very likely to choose to arrest him as well. Qing Feng¡¯s power wasrgely reduced now. If he encountered any powerful elementalists, he would be defeated easily.

    The thought of running away hadpletely vanished from Qing Feng¡¯s mind. By staying with Ai Hui, he at least didn¡¯t need to worry about his safety.

    Ai Hui flew to the district where many weapon craftsmen lived and asked the shop owners about Zhao Boan. It didn¡¯t take him too long to figure out what had happened.

    Zhao Boan had been kidnapped!

    Ai Hui¡¯s face grew serious.

    Although Zhao Boan was the newly hired manager, he¡¯d already became a member of the team. A team member being kidnapped triggered Ai Hui¡¯s intent to kill, but he didn¡¯t show his anger. Instead, he focused on asking about the minute details of the situation.

    "What a sad story! Many years ago, Old He produced a Heaven-grade weapon, but it led his whole family to ruin. Some members of the family died and others were severely injured. Only one blind son survived. The son, Blind He, is a brilliant guy. Although blind, he produced a Heaven-grade weapon. Unfortunately, this news was discovered by the bandits of Sky Capital Peak, so they kidnapped him. Your manager unluckily happened to encounter the kidnapping and was also brought away. Don¡¯t bother to think about saving him. Those from Sky Capital Peak are all cruel killers. You will also be killed if you insist on going there. No one here would try to challenge them. Gosh, how can we survive in such troubled times..."

    Blind He¡¯s workshop was in a total mess, almost ruined.

    In Peace City, the impact of war only influenced the price ofmodities. Here, within less than one year, the public security had declined sharply. Bandits were everywhere and could even openly kidnap people. The residents here were too afraid to contend with them.

    Ai Hui knew that as time went by, the situation here would only get worse. The city would be left behind and be a nest of chaos and sin.

    No one could change it.

    Ai Hui thanked the shop owner and left.

    Ai Hui walked back to the street. Having confirmed the location of Sky Capital Peak, he disappeared into the dark night.

 Chapter 390: Sky Capital Peak

    Chapter 390: Sky Capital Peak

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Even though Sky Capital Peak had a "peak" in its name, it was actually a vast stretch of mountain range in reality. It had numerous karst caves and its terrain was extremelyplicated. Those who were not familiar with the area would get lost easily.

    In the dark night, a few figures lying in ambush in the shadows were whispering to each other.

    "Brother Ning, will they reallye?"

    "Definitely. We are really unlucky. We only wanted to kidnap Blind He, but then the manager popped out of nowhere. Tell me, if you lost your manager, would you look for him? From the manager¡¯s words, it seems like his master is rather powerful. We have to be careful."

    "I will listen to Brother Ning."

    "Alright. Don¡¯t panicter on and listen to mymands. Don¡¯t be afraid."

    "Brother Ning, don¡¯t worry, this is not our first time."

    "Shh, he is here."

    Ai Hui flew one round around the sky above Sky Capital Peak. Upon seeing that there was not a single trace of lighting from the mountain, he conjectured that the robbers must be hiding within the karst caves. He did notnd directly on the mountain itself, but rather, at the foot of the mountain.

    He silently advanced along the terrain of the mountain.

    He was going at a very high speed. The precipitous terrain did not seem to have any effect on him.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui raised his head and looked in a certain direction. He could sense someone was spying on him from in the dark.

    The other party was prepared for him!

    Knowing that he could not mount a sneak attack, Ai Hui tantly flew forward at top speed.

    Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!

    Sharp whizzing sounds suddenly rang across the air. A few streaks of arrow gleams shot towards Ai Hui from different positions of the mountain.

    Seven arrows!

    In the blink of an eye, Ai Hui urately identified the positions of where the arrows were shot from. A cold shiver went down his spine. The positioning of the seven arrows was ingenious. The seven arrows were locked onto the areas that he would possibly try to move into.

    The other party was a veteran.

    Ai Hui immediately made a judgement in his mind. His hand moved swiftly into action and a sword gleam streaked across the air.

    Training continuously for the past few days had sharply increased his attacking speed. This improvement was very obvious in such a sudden situation. The tip of his Dragonspine urately struck the first arrow.

    Keeping his arm stationary, he flicked his wrist gently, drew a minute arc in the air with his Dragonspine and struck the second arrow.

    Making use of the forceing from the tip of his sword, he sprung Dragonspine upward and struck the third arrow from an oblique angle.

    Ai Hui was one-hundred percent focused.

    Clink, clink, clink!

    Concentrated sounds of collision rang across night sky. The process was a feast for the eyes. Sword gleams were blossoming in the dark night. The sparks produced from the collisions between the sword gleams and the arrow gleams floated before Ai Hui¡¯s eyes like a cloud of shining mist.

    Phew. Ai Hui finally breathed out. His hand felt slightly numb. The force from the seven arrows put together was not something to be reckoned with.

    The arrows would likely have been shot out from some kind of trap-like mechanism. He could not sense any elementalist¡¯s aura.

    He was very satisfied with the seven strikes that he¡¯d unleashed just now. This proved that his recent training was effective. In the past, he would have been able to ward off this type of attack as well, but he certainly could not have done it with such ease. In the past, he would strike three or four arrows and find an opening to escape. He definitely could not strike down all arrows.

    This scene left the robbers dumbstruck.

    "Brother Ni... Ning, this guy is very powerful!" said the robber, his voice trembling slightly. It sounded as if he was stuttering.

    The robber who was called Brother Ning was very shocked as well. After all, the traps were set up by him. He had meticulously set up the traps in such a way that they would attack the possible areas where the enemy would move to. No matter which direction his opponent moved to avoid an arrow, he or she would be hit by a follow-up arrow.

    He absolutely did not expect the other party to strike down the arrows instead of avoiding them. This caused his traps to fail.

    "He¡¯s an expert."

    Brother Ning¡¯s voice wasposed. This made the others felt a lot more at ease. Brother Ning was their backbone. As long as Brother Ning could hold his own, they felt they would have a chance at victory.

    "However, this is only the beginning."

    A cold glint shed across Brother Ning¡¯s eyes in the dark. His voice contained a strong sense of confidence.

    Everyone felt energized as Brother Ning¡¯s confidence motivated them. They had followed Brother Ning through countless battles, and they had obtained victory in every single battle. They respected and had absolute confidence in Brother Ning.

    Ai Hui scanned his surroundings warily. The traps set up by the other party were well thought out. A moment of carelessness would cause him to fall for them.

    After waiting a while, there were no more arrows shooting at him.

    The precipitous Sky Capital Peak was like a gigantic monster hiding within the darkness, containing countless dangers and a murderous intent.

    Ai Hui did not wait any longer and continued to advance.

    A weird feeling came from beneath his feet.

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed slightly. Oh no... Before he could react in time, the seeds buried deep within the ground beneath his feet suddenly exploded. A few demonic-looking green vines erupted from the ground and wrapped themselves around Ai Hui¡¯s feet.

    Beast-trapping grass seeds!

    This was a very useful type of grass seed. Once something made the slightest contact with the seed, its husk would break instantly and a grass vine would grow frantically out of it to wrap itself around the nearest living thing. In the hands of a powerful wood elementalist, the beast-trapping seeds could strangle a ferocious wild beast to death.

    The grass vines kept tightening their grip on Ai Hui, slowly digging into his skin.

    Ai Hui could not struggle at all. At this moment, a huge, dark-green came flying down on his head.

    Green mes spiderweb!

    Green mes spiderweb was produced by green mes spiders. The spiderweb was dark-green in color and more than ten meters long. The dark-green color flowing along the spiderweb came from a very deadly, poisonous fire. A tiny amount of it was enough to pose an extreme danger to an elementalist. It could seep under one¡¯s skin rapidly and infect his elemental energy, causing the nature of his elemental energy to change drastically.

    The poison fire was extremely dangerous to an elementalist. The probability of an elementalist getting killed by it was extremely high. Even if he did not die on the spot, the nature of the elemental energy within his body would change abruptly, causing him to be in anguish.

    For example, a metal elementalist¡¯s body was both filled with and made up of metal elemental energy. This way, his inner body and physical bodyplimented each other very well. However, if the metal elemental energy within his body suddenly became another type of elemental energy, his body would strongly reject the new elemental energy.

    When an elementalist¡¯s body and the elemental energy within his body shed, the pain he suffered was worse than being tortured by the cruelest torture machine.

    Ai Hui did not dare to let the green mes touch his body. He made small movements with his arm, and then with his arm he held his Dragonspine upright.

    A faint red-colored sword gleam, that resembled a red muslin cloth, was released from the tip of his sword.

    [Lesser Red Muslin]!

    [Red Muslin] was the move that he¡¯d used to destroy the Sha Family¡¯s residence. At that time, he used the momentum from the high-altitude dive to unleash that breathtaking sword move.

    At that time, the impact of [Red Muslin] almostpletely razed the Sha Family¡¯s residence to the ground.

    [Lesser Red Muslin] was developed from [Red Muslin]. Since he was in a confined space now, [Red Muslin]¡¯s destructive power was greatly reduced. Hence, he named it as [Lesser Red Muslin]. Even though [Lesser Red Muslin] was not as powerful as [Red Muslin], it required less time to be unleashed. This, in turn, increased the difficulty of unleashing the move sharply. Despite this limitation, the practicality of the move had increased tremendously from [Red Muslin]¡¯s.

    [Lesser Red Muslin] was proof of Ai Hui¡¯s improvements in his swordsmanship. This new move proved that his swordsmanship had moved on to a higher level.

    In the night sky the red-colored, muslin-like sword gleam was like an illusion. It flew gracefully towards the green mes spiderweb.

    When the red sword gleam made contact with the green mes spiderweb, surging elemental energy erupted through the air with a loud bang. Following which, the elemental energy transformed in a violent and chaotic burst of mes. Even though the green mes spiderweb was very dangerous, it did not have high durability. It was shredded to smithereens on the spot by the violent burst of mes.

    Directional impact was an important characteristic of [Lesser Red Muslin].

    The robbers on the mountain saw a huge burst of mes rise into the sky. As it rose higher and higher, it suddenly exploded into a drizzle of mes that sprinkled all over the mountain, resembling a gigantic fire umbre.

    The rain-like mes disappeared rapidly into the night sky.

    Tranquility and darkness returned to the sky once more.

    Amotion broke out among the robbers. Their traps had been destroyed once again.

    "He is troublesome!"

    "Since when did Crooked River City have such a powerful individual?"

    "Who knows him?"

    "I don¡¯t"

    The leader of the robbers, Brother Ning, did not say anything. His face had turned slightly ugly. He had spent a huge sum of money on the green mes spiderweb and beast-trapping grass seeds. Initially, he still thought he had the victory in the bag. He did not expect the other party topletely destroy his traps.

    He felt slightly anxious. He had provoked a powerful fellow this time around.

    Beads of perspiration appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s forehead. Whenever he was being attacked, he would be extremely focused and felt nothing else. However, this time around, he was slightly afraid. The traps on this mountain were in an innumerable session.

    When Ai Hui hacked at the grass vines, he realized that the grass vines were unusually strong. He did not sever even a single grass vine, making him feel slightly shocked.

    He channeled his elemental energy and severed all the grass vines with a few shes.

    Brother Ning¡¯s heart was bleeding. The losses he suffered this time around were huge.

    If the beast-trapping grass seeds¡¯ grass vines were not destroyedpletely, he could sprinkle a specially concocted restoration potion on them to restore them to the state of beast-trapping grass seeds. From there, they could be used again. However, if the grass vines were badly damaged, the seeds which they grew from could no longer be used.

    Ai Hui took a deep breath and continued forward.

    This time around, he learnt his lesson. It seemed that he was advancing as usual, but in reality, his feet were not touching the ground. He was actually hovering slightly above the ground. The Starry Gem Swordwings on his back were pping indistinctly.

    He no longer saw the other party as just a bunch of ordinary robbers.

    Ai Hui was specialized in setting up traps. The two traps that he¡¯d just consecutively encountered did not seemplicated, but they were very powerful and dangerous. From these two traps, he could gauge the strength of the other party.

    However, he did not show any signs of retreating. Instead, he plucked up his courage and continued forward.

    Along the way, there were rugged rocks that resembled oddly-shaped monsters in the dark night, surrounding him with killing intents.

    Suddenly, out of the corner of his eyes, Ai Hui saw some rocks vibrating on the ground.

    At this moment, the rocks in other areas began to vibrate as well. Soon, all the rocks on the mountain were vibrating, resembling monsters that had woken up from their slumber.

    All the rocks within his line of sight were vibrating. The scene appeared extremely weird.

    Before Ai Hui could understand what was going on, those numerous vibrating rocks began to rise from the ground. To his astonishment, the rocks subsequently fused together and formed humanoid rock monsters everywhere on the mountain.

    Rock puppets!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyelids twitched. Rock puppets were the lowest ranking among all the earth elemental puppets. Their rank was even lower than that of sand puppets. The only good thing about them was that they had huge strength. They were usually used by earth elementalists asborers.

    Other than having huge strength and the ability to throw rocks, the rock puppets¡¯ fighting capabilities were not really powerful.

    However, when they appeared on mountains, they would pose a great hassle to anyone who encountered them.

    Rumble, rumble. The earth shook. With clumsy-looking and abnormally heavy footsteps, the rock puppets flooded towards Ai Hui from all directions.

 Chapter 391: An Old Friend

    Chapter 391: An Old Friend

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Ai Hui felt that the entire mountain beneath his feet was trembling.

    Normally, anyone who encountered such a situation would be shivering with fear. However, Ai Hui did not. Even though these rock puppets looked frightening, they paled inparison to the Sha Guards, let alone a Sand Sentinel.

    Ai Hui spread the Starry Gem Swordwings on his back and flew up into the sky abruptly.

    The rock puppets on the ground began to throw rocks at Ai Hui. The millstone-sized rocks were emitting a faint glow as they flew towards Ai Hui like torrential rain.

    Ai Hui was shocked by this scene.

    He hastily pped his Starry Gem Swordwings and disappeared from his current position.

    When a piece of rock brushed past Ai Hui¡¯s body, he broke out in a cold sweat. If he was hit by that piece of rock, he would not be able to tolerate the pain even if his body had be strong and sturdy now.

    He realized he had underestimated these rock puppets. Apparently, their fighting capabilities had been upgraded.

    The rocks that the usual rock puppets hurled were not imbued with elemental energy. That was because the base level of rock puppets was very low and they did not possess any elemental energy. However, all of the rocks that these rock puppets threw had been imbued with elemental energy.

    Someone was controlling them from the dark.

    In the sky, Ai Hui quickly discovered that the entire mountain was filled with rock puppets. They might have looked very messy, but in reality, they were in order and their attacks were orchestrated. For a moment, Ai Hui looked to be slightly helpless in the sky. He had no choice but to fly higher. When he saw the mountain was filled with densely-packed and chaotic rock puppets, he felt a slight headache.

    Should he use [Red Muslin]?

    Ai Hui shook his head and rejected this idea. He was uncertain if [Red Muslin] could beat so many flying rocks being hurled at him. He felt that it would be rather painful if his physical body collided against so many flying rocks. He couldn¡¯t believe that he could defeat a fearsome Sand Sentinel, but not a bunch of mere rock puppets.

    Ai Hui began to admire this brigade of robbers.

    The other party did not do much for this trap other than upgrading the rock puppets¡¯ base level, increasing their numbers greatly and finding a suitable terrain to create a trap that was difficult to escape from.

    If he wanted to enter the karst cave, he had tond on the mountain. By doing this, he would be surrounded and attacked by the overwhelming number of rock puppets.

    Such a thoughtful bunch of robbers.

    Now, Ai Hui was filled with interest towards this brigade of robbers. However, he had to resolve the issue in front of him now.

    Inside the karst cave, the robbers¡¯ morale was boosted sharply.

    "I knew he wouldn¡¯t break this rock puppet formation!"

    "That¡¯s the ultimate move of Brother Ning. Tell me, who is able to break it?"

    Everyone started talking at once and their voices were filled with excitement. Ai Hui¡¯s outstanding performance against the previous two traps was somewhat nerve-racking for them.

    "Keep your guards up, the battle hasn¡¯t ended yet," Brother Ning reminded them in a low voice.

    Everyone shut their mouths.

    Brother Ning observed the figure flying in the sky outside and found that he looked slightly familiar. Then, he shook his head. He did not have the time to think about such a thing now. He had a premonition that the other party would not give up just like this. He felt somewhat vexed too. If he had known that the other party was so troublesome, he would not have kidnapped the manager as well.

    Suddenly, Brother Ning¡¯s eyes froze. The other party started to dive down from the sky.

    Ai Hui felt as if he was flying through a rain of rocks. He kept on changing his flight path as he avoided those flying rocks narrowly every now and then. He was more and more sure that these rock puppets were indeed controlled by someone. There were a few times where the rocks appeared right in front of his flight path and he almost crashed into them. Rock puppets did not have the intelligence to predict his flight path.

    When the robbers saw Ai Hui fly aimlessly for a few rounds in the air, they heaved a sigh of relief.

    The enemies they encountered in the past were all the same. They would flew a few rounds in the sky and if they still could not find any opening, they would take the initiative to leave.

    As long as they had no blood feud with them, why would anyone waste so much time on a bunch of robbers? The more powerful an elementalist was, the more precious his time was. Time was money. These words of wisdom were indeed true.

    For a small ce like Crooked River City, there were very few experts. asionally when they encountered one, they would use this tactic to exhaust that expert¡¯s patience and force him or her to take the initiative to leave.

    After all, they were just a bunch of robbers. They did not care about their reputation.

    Brother Ning¡¯s gaze had not left the other party once. Even though the mountain was pitch-ck and they were separated by a huge distance, he could see the facial expression of the other party.

    The other party was grinning.

    Suddenly, Brother Ning¡¯s mind jolted as a strong sense of danger engulfed him. He yelled involuntarily, "Be careful!"

    At this moment, Ai Hui suddenly increased his speed and lowered his flying altitude. Everyone quivered and controlled the rock puppets, making them hurl rocks hastily at Ai Hui.

    However, Ai Hui made a turn toward an unexpected direction and increased his speed abruptly. All of a sudden, a thunderp-like explosion resounded through the sky.

    Ai Hui¡¯s figure suddenly disappeared!

    The unforeseen event shocked all the robbers.

    Brother Ning¡¯s facial expression changed drastically, "Quickly retreat! He has discovered our position!"

    Brother Ning turned around and dashed towards the depths of the karst cave. Now he realized that the other party had not been circling in the air aimlessly, but rather, he was searching for them.

    Boom!

    The concealed cave entrance suddenly exploded. Surging elemental energy gushed in like a torrential flood with a loud bang.

    All the robbers flew up in the air and mmed heavily against the cavern walls. They felt extremely dizzy and their visions blurred. After a long while, they still could not stand up straight.

    In the cave, there was a figure holding a sword. He looked extremely prominent among the swaying and wobbly robbers.

    "We surrender."

    A hoarse voice rang across the air. Brother Ning stood up from the ground. His face was brimming with agony.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze swept across everyone and felt slightly surprised. He wasn¡¯t surprised at how strong these robbers were, but rather, how weak and fragile they were.

    They had very little and shallow elemental energy in their bodies. The only strong one was the guy who had just initiated their surrender. He should be the leader of this brigade of robbers. However, even he had merely achieved elemental externalization.

    This bunch of low-leveled and weak robbers were able to give him so much trouble?

    The killing intent within Ai Hui¡¯s heart had disappeared. Not wanting to waste his breath on these people, he asked bluntly, "Where¡¯s my man?"

    The robber who was known as Brother Ning replied, "He¡¯s inside and he¡¯s alright. I will lead the way. If you want to kill someone, kill me. The only request I ask of you is to let them off. They have just arrived here from Old Territory and they didn¡¯tmit any heinous crimes."

    "Brother Ning!"

    "Let¡¯s die together!"

    A few of the robbers returned to their senses and became extremely agitated.

    "All of you shut up!" Brother Ning roared.

    Ai Hui could tell that Brother Ning was well respected among these people. Everyone immediately shut their mouths after Brother Ning told them to do so.

    Ai Hui was very surprised. No wonder these people were so weak. Their strength would not evenpare to the strength of those students in the Induction Groundst time.

    Ai Hui remained calm and collected. "They are from Old Territory? Since when could people from Old Territory enter Silver Mist Sea anyhow?"

    "Not long after the city expansion order had been enacted, the border no longer had any guards anymore. One can make it here as long as he or she can cross the Lava River. Since it¡¯s difficult to cross the Lava River, we have to use Three Leaves Bamboo Carts to fetch them over. This way is much easier."

    Ai Hui had a lot of questions, but he did not ask them immediately. He merely said, "Lead the way and don¡¯t y any tricks."

    "Understood."

    Brother Ning nodded his head and led the way.

    Ai Hui had a whole new level of respect for the leader of the robbers. He remainedposed even after he had surrendered. He was rather capable considering he led a bunch of weak individuals into giving Ai Hui such a big headache.

    Very soon, Ai Hui saw the tied-up Zhao Boan. Beside Zhao Boan, there was a very young man who was being tied up as well. That young man¡¯s eyes were tightly shut. He must be Blind He.

    When Zhao Boan saw Ai hui, he was extremely emotional. "Boss!"

    Even though he believed his boss woulde and save him, he was still very emotional when he saw his boss appear before him.

    With a swipe of his sword, Ai Hui severed the ropes tied around Zhao Boan and Blind He.

    "Give me a moment, I have something to ask them," Ai Hui said to Zhao Boan.

    Then, Ai Hui turned around and asked Brother Ning, "Are there a lot of people here from Old Territory?"

    "Yes, there are a lot of them here. Initially, there were some new citizens who went back to fetch their fellow nsmen over. Later on, some people began to start businesses of illegal immigration. As such, there are more and more people from Old Territorying here." Brother Ning replied.

    "Why do they want toe here?" Ai Hui asked.

    After Ai Hui finished his sentence, he realized he asked a stupid a question.

    "The concentration of elemental energy here is higher," Brother Ning exined inly, "Even though it¡¯s not as high as it was in the past, and it will still continue to drop in the future, it¡¯s still higher than Old Territory¡¯s. In the past, everyone could only dream abouting to the Avalon of Five Elements. New citizens like us are luckier, however, most of our nsmen are still in Old Territory. Since the Elders Guild has given up on this ce, we decided to bring our nsmen here. At the end of the day, this ce is still better than Old Territory."

    Ai Hui felt slightly sad. He was also from Old Territory, even though he did not have any family members there.

    After staying silent for awhile, he asked again, "Do a lot of people be robbers?"

    "Basically, yes," Brother Ning said in a low voice, "Even though Elders Guild is not here, there are still a lot of people from the Avalon of Five Elements here. No one wees us and we can¡¯t enter the city. Even if we want to buy something, no one is willing to sell anything to us. The currency of Old Territory is not worth anything here and we can¡¯t find any jobs as well. They feel that this is their homnd and as long as they are here, they won¡¯t wee us."

    Ai Hui was speechless. This was an intractable problem.

    He knew that the situation would continue to worsen. The deep estrangement between Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ people and Old Territory¡¯s people had intensified over a thousand years. Even new citizens had difficulty integrating into the society of Avalon of Five Elements. It was impossible for them to integrate into the upper ss of Avalon of Five Elements, even though they make up a rtively huge portion of the poption of Avalon of Five Elements.

    "Have you thought of going back?"

    "No," Brother Ning shook his head, "I don¡¯t want them to turn into blood elementalists. I have been through the blood catastrophe in Induction Ground and I hate Blood of God. Blood of God has been devouring Old Territory."

    When Ai Hui heard the word "Induction Ground", he quickly asked, "What¡¯s your name?"

    "Gu Tianning."

    Ai Hui found this name somewhat familiar. He was a student that was of a rather remarkable ranking in Induction Ground. If he hadn¡¯t remembered wrongly, this student was defeated by Bangwan before. It was not easy for Gu Tianning to survive the blood catastrophe in Induction Ground.

    A smile appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face. "I didn¡¯t expect to meet a fellow schoolmate here, my name is Ai Hui."

    Gu Tianning widened his eyes and became emotional in an instant, "It¡¯s you! Yes, I should have known it was you. No wonder I find you familiar! You¡¯re Ai Hui from Central Pine City, the Lightning de! You and your unit are indeed powerful. Your unit had the most people who made it out alive of Central Pine City. Our unit was not that lucky. Only sixteen of us made it out alive. My teacher and fellow students all died. At that point of time, I thought I would die as well. Then, my teacher saved me..."

    Initially, there was a smile of joy on his manly-looking face that was derived from his reunion with an old friend. But as he continued his story, tears began to flow down his cheeks drip by drip.

    All of a sudden, the grey memories that were buried deep within his mind were suffused with the color of blood.

    He could not continue.

    All he wanted to do now was to hold back his tears.

    His smile was trembling. He used all his might to control his facial expression and make it look calm. It was as if he tried to stay calm as he faced the feelings of regret, reminiscence and anguish from those bloody memories.

    Tears flooded his cheeks silently.

 Chapter 392: Blind He

    Chapter 392: Blind He

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ/KLKL

    Zhao Boan felt that he was really stupid.

    His boss was actually Ai Hui!

    Even though he lived in Jadeite Forest, he still knew who Ai Hui was. There was a period of time where the mirage bean pods of Ai Hui were spread around. Everyone knew about his history and achievements. Born as aborer, got epted into the Induction Ground as an exception, the key yer in the Battle of Central Pine City, the current leader of Central Pine Faction.

    After staying low for several years, he had risen once more.

    Zhao Boan felt as if he was in a dream. In this era, those who had excellent reputations were powerful individuals, and those who could establish a faction were definitely heroes.

    Even the almighty heir of the Duanmu Family in Jadeite Forest and disciple of Grandmaster Dai, Duanmu Huanghun, followed Ai Hui as well.

    In Zhao Boan¡¯s eyes, Duanmu Huanghun was definitely an extraordinary individual.

    Zhao Boan could not help but cast a nce at his boss. That absurdly young face exhibited a calmness that surpassed his young age.

    Zhao Boan could roughly understand the low-volume conversation between his boss and the robber leader. The robber leader was a student of Induction Ground in the past and his brigade of robbers had just illegally immigrated from Old Territory to Silver Mist Sea. His boss was from Old Territory and he naturally sympathized with these people from Old Territory. However, Zhao Boan also knew that this issue was unresolvable.

    Gu Tianning had regained hisposure. If not for the fact that his eyes were still slightly red, one definitely could not tell that this burly-looking man had just cried his eyes out.

    When Gu Tianning¡¯s nsmen heard that Ai Hui was also from Old Territory, the wariness in their eyes disappeared in an instant and became much more amiable.

    Ai Hui followed Gu Tianning to the depths of the karst cave and arrived at an area where they spent their daily lives.

    In the damp and gloomy karst cave, nsmen who were sitting in meditation were everywhere. When Gu Tianning walked in, all of them stood up. Most of them were still very young. They looked curiously at Ai Hui and his counterparts.

    "The elderly nsmen don¡¯t want to move, therefore, those who havee here are the youngsters in the n. Even though it¡¯s toote for them to train now, it¡¯s still generally better than staying in Old Territory." Gu Tianning said with a low voice.

    "Everyone is earth-attributed?"

    Gu Tianning nodded his head and replied, "Basically, yes. We can¡¯t go to Yellow Sand Corner. Even though Silver Mist Sea is metal-attributed, there is a Silver Mist River. Since we are staying in the mountain, the concentration of earth elemental energy here is rather strong and much better than Old Territory¡¯s.

    This ce was indeed better than Old Territory. Ai Hui knew what it was like in Old Territory.

    The concentration level of elemental energies in Old Territory was very low and the training efficiency there was so low that it raised one¡¯s hackles. Not only was the concentration level of elemental energies in Old Territory very low, the materials and equipment avable there were pathetically little.

    When a person from Old Territory was selected to enter Induction Ground, he or she would stay in Avalon of Five Elements forever. There were extremely few elementalists that would return to Old Territory and build training halls to train the locals after they grew old.

    Once an elementalist returned to Old Territory, not only would he be unable to train, it would be difficult for him to maintain his current base level as well.

    Ai Hui was not surprised at all that people from Old Territory would illegally immigrate to this ce. Compared to the poor and barren Old Territory, a piece ofnd that was abandoned by Elders Guild would still be considered rich and fertile.

    Ai Hui could see that the youthful faces of Gu Tianning¡¯s nsmen were brimming with hope.

    Ai Hui suddenly thought of thoseborers that had died in thebor camp and became silent. After a while, he raised his head and said, "Perhaps I can help all of you to raise the concentration level of earth elemental energy here."

    A surprised look shed across Gu Tianning¡¯s eyes. Before he could say anything, his nsmen began to crowd around and break into a lively discussion with everybody talking at once.

    "Really?"

    "That¡¯s good!"

    "Our training efficiency can be increased now."

    Gu Tianning quickly chased them to one side and said, "What are all of you doing here? Quickly disperse and start training."

    Peace and silence returned to Ai Hui¡¯s surroundings once more.

    Gu Tianning could not help but ask, "Really?"

    "It¡¯s just an idea. However, I can¡¯t promise you that it will work," Ai Hui smiled.

    Gu Tianning rubbed his hands and said with excitement, "We can try first, what if it seeds? What do you need us to do? We will fully cooperate with you!"

    "I only have a rough idea so far. I need to go back and think about it in detail. I also need to prepare certain things. All of you stay here for the time being and don¡¯t go out."

    Without any hesitation, Gu Tianning replied, "Alright, I shall wait for your good news!"

    Ai Hui brought Zhao Boan and Blind He with him and flew back to Crooked River City.

    Along the way, Zhao Boan could not help but ask, "Boss, can you really raise the concentration level of elemental energy?"

    He had never heard of the idea of increasing the concentration level of elemental energy in the surroundings. If this idea was possible, then wouldn¡¯t anyone be able to train anywhere in this world?

    "Yes," Ai Hui gave a simple one-word reply and did not say anything else.

    When they reached the tavern, Qing Feng was already very impatient. "Did you really need so much time to deal with a bunch of robbers?"

    He was extremely curious as he knew Ai Hui was strong. Even though it was due to the sharp decrease in his strength that allowed Ai Hui to dominate him like this, Ai Hui¡¯s strength was still very powerful to begin with.

    Ai Hui could not be bothered with Qing Feng. After he put down Zhao Boan and Blind He, he said to Zhao Boan, "Start from the beginning."

    Zhao Boan quickly exined how he had made enquiries about weapon craftsmen, how he met Blind He and how they ended up in the hands of Gu Tianning and his counterparts. Ai Hui listened carefully as his gaze fell upon Blind He.

    Throughout Zhao Boan¡¯s narration of what had happened, Blind He remained silent.

    Blind He lookedpletely different from Ai Hui¡¯s impression of a weapon craftsman. Unlike the usual fat and burly weapon craftsmen, Blind He looked thin and weak, and his face was pale-white. His eyes had always been closed. He looked more like a delicate and frail schr rather than a weapon craftsman.

    "May I know Mr He¡¯s full name?" Ai Hui asked politely.

    Blind He, who was sitting on the floor, bowed slightly and introduced himself, "My full name is He Wei. Sir, are you the Lightning de, Ai Hui?"

    Ai Hui returned the greetings and replied directly, "Yes, I am Ai Hui."

    At this moment, Qing Feng jumped up in shock, "So you¡¯re Ai Hui. I have heard of your name before. No wonder your swordsmanship is so powerful. You are definitely on par with that guy whose surname is Chu. It¡¯s a pity that I didn¡¯t make it in time for your porridge feast. Such a pity."

    Due to the constant reporting of news through the message trees, everyone knew about Ai Hui¡¯s feats in Central Pine City. He was considered an influential figure.

    A man¡¯s reputation would follow him throughout his entire life like his shadow. Qing Feng¡¯s embarrassment disappeared in an instant. There was nothing embarrassing about getting defeated by Ai Hui. Then, when he thought of Ai Hui¡¯s recent improvements, he couldn¡¯t help but click his tongue in amazement. No wonder, no wonder....

    Blind He regained hisposure and replied, "Sir, if you need a weapon craftsman, why not allow me to offer my services to you."

    His voice was calm and steady, sounding as if he was talking about something casual.

    Upon hearing these words, Zhao Boan could not help but look at Blind He. Previously, he had talked until his jaws ached, and Blind He still wouldn¡¯t agree to his request. Now, when he saw Blind He rmending himself to his boss, he was deeply moved by his boss¡¯s reputation.

    Ai Hui was slightly pleased with himself as an indistinct smile appeared on his face.

    This life had been tough on him so far! It was finally the day for him to actually make some gains with his reputation!

    Ai Hui could not help but ask, "May I know what¡¯s the reason?"

    "My parents died in the blood catastrophe," Blind He replied.

    Ai Hui withdrew the smile on his face and said solemnly, "Understood. I heard that Mr He has forged one Heaven-grade weapon before?"

    "Two to be exact," Blind He replied as if there was nothing unusual about it.

    Zhao Boan and Qing Feng were shocked. As long as one could forge a Heaven-grade weapon, he or she would be qualified for the title of "weaponsmith". "Weapon craftsman" might differ from "weaponsmith" by one word, but the difference between their statuses was immensely huge.

    There was a lot of luck involved in forging a Heaven-grade weapon. Most weaponsmiths could only forge one Heaven-grade weapon in their lifetime.

    Most of the weaponsmiths had been hired by various powerful aristocratic families. Only an aristocratic family could provide ample precious resources for a weaponsmith to practise his forging skills constantly. Only with the right conditions and amount of resources could a weaponsmith then improve and be a master weaponsmith.

    For someone who had forged two Heaven-grade weapons, his strength definitely surpassed any ordinary weaponsmiths¡¯.

    Ai Hui was very surprised and happy. Initially, he thought it would be good enough if he could hire a weaponsmith. However, he¡¯d managed to encounter an outstanding weaponsmith in the end. Even though he was very happy, he still warned Blind He, "We will be heading toward the Wilderness and it will be very dangerous and arduous on the way there. Mr He might want to think over this issue properly."

    "I can agree now so as to save time," Blind He replied calmly. "However, my price will not be cheap. I want one thousand Heaven Merit Points for my yearly sry. Sir, you should think over this properly before hiring me. I also have another request. That is, you, Sir, and other people shall not interfere with my work."

    Ai Hui, who had always been a miser, was unusually decisive this time around. He replied, "I have no problem giving you a yearly sry of one thousand Heaven Merit Points. As for the issue of interfering with your work, we will definitely not do that. However, if an emergency arises, then we may have no choice but to do that."

    "Sir, don¡¯t worry. When an emergency arises, overall interests naturallye first." Blind He agreed.

    Upon hearing that, Ai Hui replied, "We havee to an agreement then. Right now, I need Mr He to forge something for me."

    "I wonder what it is?" Blind He asked.

    "Its design is ratherplicated, I really don¡¯t know how to describe it," Ai Hui felt slightly embarrassed.

    "No problem, Boss can just draw a blueprint for me," Blind He replied inly. His way of addressing Ai Hui had changed automatically.

    Ai Hui knew Blind He must have some unique methods, hence, he began to draw the blueprint. To everyone¡¯s surprise, he drew a pir with numerous exquisite decorative patterns on it. Every decorative pattern was uniquely drawn by Ai Hui.

    "You can just ce the blueprint in front of me."

    Ai Hui quickly ced thepleted blueprint in front of Blind He.

    Facing the blueprint, Blind He reached out his right hand and spread out his palm.

    Suddenly, the center of his palm lit up with a silvery glow, which extended and became a silvery glowing line. The line opened up and revealed a silver-colored eye. Then, the eye shot out a faint white light that engulfed the blueprint in front of him. Immediately, the blueprint projected a hologram into the white light. It was a hologram of the pir drawn on the blueprint. The hologram of the pir was spinning slowly and one could observe it from all angles.

    This method stunned everyone, including Ai Hui. Previously, he was thinking, ¡®How could Blind He look at the blueprint if he was blind?¡¯

    "Understood."

    Blind He¡¯s indifferent voice pull everyone back to their senses. The faint white light disappeared as the silver-colored eye in the centre of his palm slowly closed. The drawing of the pir on the the blueprint had disappeared, leaving a piece of nk paper again.

    Blind He continued, "The materials needed for this pir are rather easy to find. How many pirs does Boss need?"

    Ai Hui returned to his senses and replied, "Twenty."

    "I canplete them by sunset tomorrow," Blind He replied.

    Ai Hui almost thought he¡¯d heard Blind He wrongly. Naturally, the rest did not know what this pir was. However, Ai Hui knew clearly what it was. This pir followed the original design of the gold needles used for [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] in Central Pine City three years ago. However, the pir was a simplified version of the gold needles. Even though it was a simplified version, Ai Hui still made some modifications to its design. The decorative patterns on the pir were extremely exquisite andplicated-looking.

    Complete twenty pirs by sunset tomorrow?

    Ai Hui absolutely could not believe what he heard until he saw Blind He¡¯s smithing process with his own eyes.

 Chapter 393: Excavation

    Chapter 393: Excavation

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The stone materials Zhao Boan bought were stone cuboids that were as tall as a full-grown man.

    Blind He squatted in front of the stone cuboids. He did not start working immediately, but merely felt the coarse stone cuboids with his hands.

    It was at this moment that the onlookers noticed his palms were snow-white and sparkling, and his fingers were slender and long. Every movement he made with his hands was filled with an indescribable sense of beauty.

    Blind He¡¯s slim figure resembled a bamboo pole, appearing as if he was extremely delicate, but now, he seemed to have be apletely changed man. His eyes were tightly shut, and his face was solemn. Currently, he was exuding an aura of extreme confidence. It was as if he was confident in every move he made.

    The onlookers were infected by his overwhelming confidence. They involuntarily held their breaths and widened their eyes.

    Blind He¡¯s long and slender fingers slid gently across the stone cuboids like a bamboo branch skimming across a smooth water surface.

    He withdrew his palms and stood up straight. Then, he spread his legs slightly apart and extended his two hands with his palms facing down over the stone cuboids.

    A silver eye appeared on each of his palms, followed by a white glow that shot out from the pair of eyes and engulfed the stone cuboids. Suddenly, numerous tiny objects began to form within the faint white light.

    These glittering, silver tools were very borated. Drill bits, saws, chisels, etc. There was a huge number of each item. Just counting drill bits, there were ten of them. Some were as thick as a person while some were smaller than a toothpick. This equipment appeared to be controlled by a pair of invisible hands, flying and dancing around the stone cuboids. Even though there was a huge number of them, they were working in an orderly manner and were not at all messy.

    Every now and then, the stone cuboids would release flying sparks and stone fragments. However, not a single noise was made.

    The coarse and rough stone cuboids became circr stone pirs. Decorative patterns were forming on the stone pirs at a visible speed. Subsequently, with a perceptible speed, these patterns became increasingly fine and distinct!

    The whole process was smooth and natural, warming and delighting one¡¯s heart and eyes, respectively. It was unusually precise and exhibited a matchless sense of beauty.

    Within two hours, a stone pir that was covered with fine veined patterns appeared before Ai Hui. Ai Hui walked closer to take a clearer look. The stone pir was wlessly made, and the detail of its vein patterns had exceeded his expectations.

    Ai Hui was trembling with astonishment. However, at the end of the day, he still felt more joy than astonishment. It was extremely worth paying a yearly sry of 1,000 Heaven Merit Points for such an exceptional weaponsmith!

    Blind He¡¯s performance had not ended yet.

    He took an even shorter amount of time to make the second stone pir. Within one hour, he hadpleted the second stone pir. The time taken for the third stone pir was reduced once again. His final speed was maintained at two stone pirs per hour.

    Within 12 hours, he hadpleted all 20 stone pirs. Right now, it was only noon.

    Everyone was shocked by Blind He¡¯s skills after witnessing the whole process with their own eyes. From the first stone pir to thest stone pir, their eyes had not shifted away from Blind He.

    Qing Feng was no doubt the most knowledgeable among all of them. Even he eximed in admiration, "I can¡¯t believe there is such an expert in a small ce like Crooked River City. I havee across many weaponsmiths, but I have never seen such skills before. Incredible, incredible!"

    He uttered "incredible" twice in a row to describe the shock he was feeling.

    Meanwhile, Zhao Boan stuttered, "You¡¯re indeed brilliant!"

    Blind He just sat silently on one side. Other than have a slightly pale face, he looked no different from his usual self. The praises from everyone did not seem to cause any changes to his facial expression.

    "It is an eye-opening experience," Ai Hui praised. Then, without saying anything unnecessary, he continued, "Since the stone pirs have beenpleted, I will move out now. Boan and Mr. He, go and see if there are anything else that we need to buy. We will not be staying in this ce for too long. Oh, please remember to buy a Bamboo Cart."

    Zhao Boan quickly replied, "Yes."

    Blind He stood up quietly and stood beside Zhao Boan.

    Ai Hui had Qing Feng haul the stone pirs, while he carried Qing Feng and flew toward Sky Capital Peak.

    "Are you afraid that I might harm them?" Qing Feng suddenly sneered.

    "That¡¯s right," Ai Hui replied bluntly without denying it.

    Qing Feng flew into a rage. "Do I look like someone who will go back on my word?"

    "You have to ask yourself that." Ai Hui remained unmoved.

    Qing Feng froze.

    Ai Hui knew how cunning and treacherous Qing Feng was. Even though Qing Feng did not seem to have any chance of making aeback, Ai Hui still would not lower his guard against him.

    "I am already in an impasse. I don¡¯t even know what are you afraid of?" Qing Feng asked coldly.

    "Nothing can go wrong by being a bit careful," Ai Hui replied casually.

    Qing Feng was speechless.

    Gu Tianning had been waiting on the mountain. When he saw Ai Hui¡¯s figure, he was overjoyed. He had heard of Ai Hui¡¯s reputation, but had never interacted with him when they were in the Induction Ground. He did not have much confidence in Ai Hui¡¯s promise.

    Gu Tianning ordered his nsmen to handle the stone pirs and reminded them to be careful and not to ruin them. Every Gu nsman cautiously and gently carried the stone pirs as if they were holding precious porcin wares.

    Qing Feng took a sweeping nce at the Gu nsmen and said disdainfully, "The quality of the people you¡¯re encountering is getting lower and lower. I can¡¯t believe you spent so much effort on such a bunch of weak fellows. Are they from the Old Territory? Ahh, I get it. You¡¯re from the Old Territory as well. No wonder you¡¯re willing to help them. However, there are so many people in Old Territory. Are you able to help them all?"

    Most of the Gu nsmen that made it to Sky Capital Peak were youngsters. Hence, when they heard Qing Feng¡¯s words, they red at him angrily.

    Ai Hui could not be bothered with Qing Feng and replied bluntly, "You better shut up."

    Qing Feng flew into a rage, "I am a follower of Grandmaster Dai, how dare you behave so rude toward me!"

    The Gu nsmen who had been ring at Qing Feng quickly withdrew their gazes. Even though they had not spent a long time in the Silver Mist Sea, they still knew who Grandmaster Dai was.

    Even Gu Tianning cast a bewildered look at Qing Feng.

    "Have you forgotten the pain after your wounds recovered?" Ai Hui sneered.

    Qing Feng became terrified at once. Initially, he thought Ai Hui was a carefree lone wolf who was not afraid of Grandmaster Dai. When he discovered Ai Hui¡¯s identity, he expected Ai Hui to be afraid of provoking Grandmaster Dai.

    However, he now realized that Ai Hui did not seem to care much about Grandmaster Dai.

    Qing Feng was confused. Was Ai Hui really not afraid of Grandmaster Dai? He was not a carefree lone wolf. Furthermore, he was the leader of the Central Pine Faction. Was he not scared of causing troubles for the Central Pine Faction?

    Or was this fellow already thinking of silencing him?

    Qing Feng gulped his saliva with difficulty as a tinge of fear arose in his heart. He was a paranoid individual. Just now, he purposely said those words to feel out Ai Hui. Qing Feng thought that his mission was a well-concealed secret and that Ai Hui did not know he had fallen out of favor with Grandmaster Dai. Clearly, he did not realize Ai Hui was Chu Zhaoyang.

    The result he had gotten disappointed him greatly.

    Ai Hui did not seem to have any respect for Grandmaster Dai. He did not know whether Ai Hui was extremely daring or if he had someone¡¯s backing. Regardless of the reason, disrespecting Grandmaster Dai would not benefit him in any way.

    Ai Hui could not be bothered with Qing Feng. As long as Qing Feng did his job properly as a training partner, Ai Hui would not purposely make things difficult for him. However, if Qing Feng was up to no good, he would kill him on the spot.

    As for Grandmaster Dai, he was still something that was too far for Ai Hui to think about.

    When Qing Feng saw that Ai Hui was not afraid of his threat, he quieted down.

    The way that Gu Tianning and his counterparts looked at Ai Hui could not help but change again. Gu Tianning knew about Ai Hui¡¯s past achievements. Now, he realized that Ai Hui was far more powerful and unfathomable than he had expected.

    This made Gu Tianning and his counterparts feel filled with hope and expectations for Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui did not think so much. All he wanted to do was to help them. As for the people that were still in the Old Territory, they were the responsibility of the Old Territory¡¯s native heroes. Ai Hui did not think that he was a hero. The outside world might praise him to the skies, but he knew how much he was really worth.

    "We need earth fire. Is this ce the deepest karst cave?" Ai Hui asked Gu Tianning.

    "There is still a deeper one," Gu Tianning quickly replied.

    After finishing his sentence, he began to lead the way. He and his counterparts knew all about the karst caves in Sky Capital Peak.

    With Gu Tianning leading the way, they advanced toward the depth of the karst cave. Within a short period of time, they reached the depths. They could hear sound of underground rivers. Usually, the deepest parts of karst caves would contain underground rivers.

    Gu Tianning did not stop and continued moving forward. As he walked, he said, "This region is filled with underground rivers. The region where earth fire can most likely be found is at the deepest cavern."

    As they advanced forward, the cavern became smaller and narrower. The surrounding cavern walls had be dry as well. The air was pervaded with a faint smell of sulfur.

    Ai Hui was energized. His n could only be carried out if he had earth fire.

    Finally, they came to a small cavern that could only fit three to five people. The temperature of this cavern was also much higher than the other caverns.

    "This is the ce."

    Gu Tianning looked expectantly at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui examined his surroundings and nodded his head in silence. This cavern should not be far from the earth fire.

    "This is the ce I¡¯m looking for. Excavate this cavern and make it bigger and wider. How many people do you have?" Ai Hui asked.

    "56," Gu Tianning replied swiftly.

    "Expand this ce until it can fit 100 people. Excavate through four directions and maintain the height of the cavern at around 3.5 meters."

    Gu Tianning acknowledged Ai Hui and quickly got everyone to work. Even though their base level was low, they had developed elemental energy before. Furthermore, the elemental energy they developed was earth elemental energy. Underground rocks were simr to the ordinary rocks above the surface. When everyone worked together, the process became faster.

    After around four hours, they had already expanded the cavern to the point that it could fit 100 people.

    Gu Tianning ced some glowing stones on the surrounding walls of the wide and spacious cavern to serve as lighting. The cavern was illuminated in an instant.

    These glowing stones contained a small amount of elemental energy that enabled them to give off light. Other than that, they did not have many uses and were very cheap.

    Ai Hui pointed to the center of the cavern and instructed, "Dig a fire well at this spot. The diameter of the fire well should be around 1.5 meters."

    "Yes."

    Without any hesitation, Gu Tianning started digging at the center of the cavern. He was an earth elementalist, so the hard underground rocks were like soft mud to him. Meanwhile, his nsmen kept on transporting away the underground rock that he had dug up.

    As he dug deeper and deeper, the underground rocks got hotter and hotter. The color of the rock had turned from green to ck. Beads of perspiration began to appear on Gu Tianning¡¯s forehead.

    Bang.

    The sound of an underground rock cracking resounded through the air. A sh of red glow emitted from the crack.

    After the cracked underground rock was removed, a dazzling red light shot out from the fire well and lit up the entire cavern with a bright red color. The temperature of the cavern rose rapidly. The low-level Gu nsmen could not tolerate the heat and began to retreat from the cavern.

    Gu Tianning heaved a sigh of relief. "I¡¯m d I did not fail you."

    Unwittingly, he used boss-subordinate tone.

    "All of you leave the cave now."

    "Yes."

    Gu Tianning quickly led his nsmen out of the cave. While he guarded the entrance, he kept on looking curiously into the cave.

    Qing Feng stood at the entrance of the cave with a curious look on his face. Initially, he still did not know what was going on. Now, he knew that Ai Hui wanted to help the Gu n by increasing the concentration of earth elemental energy in this ce.

    He did not believe in this n. Briefly increasing the concentration level of elemental energy in a ce was not difficult. The difficult part was maintaining the increased level of elemental energy. This would require a huge amount of high-grade materials. The gains simply could not make up for the losses.

    The Gu n was in a destitute state. How could they afford high-grade materials?

    Qing Feng disapproved of this n in his heart.

    Suddenly, he froze. He had just that remembered that Ai Hui¡¯s master was Wang Shouchuan.

    The Wang Shouchuan who came up with [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth]!

 Chapter 394: Success

    Chapter 394: Sess

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "Wang Shouchuan, who had been working diligently and conscientiously throughout his life, probably did not expect that hisst brilliance would have such a deep impact on the world. The Elders Guild conferred the title of Master on him without knowing that his research possessed the power of changing the world. They did not know this even after they built the God-subduing Peak using his knowledge. Perhaps the Elders Guild did not care about this at all. Seizures of power, fighting, and scheming among one another had depleted their time and energy, causing them to lose interest in knowing how the world would change. Far away from them, Wang Shouchuan¡¯s disciple, Ai Hui, who had a bit of fame at that time, understood the value of his master¡¯s research and became a forerunner in the field of elemental energy development. It was certainly unnecessary to borate on how Ai Hui¡¯ster aplishments were engraved in everyone¡¯s memory."

    ¡ª¡ª

    The emergence of the God-subduing Peak had made a lot of people realized the value of Wang Shouchuan¡¯s research. However, all of his research was confiscated by the Elders Guild and not a single piece of paper was left. The God-subduing Peak was a powerful and precious war machine, so it was heavily guarded. It was extremely difficult for someone to get close to it, let alone study it.

    The Elders Guild was very pleased with themselves for their fast reaction in confiscating Wang Shouchuan¡¯s work.

    However, everyone overlooked one person: Ai Hui.

    Logically speaking, no one would overlook Wang Shouchuan¡¯s disciple. However, everyone quickly realized that [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] was Wang Shouchuan¡¯sst-minute, custom-made n and that the science behind it was poles apart from his earlier theories.

    At that point in time, Ai Hui was still fighting with blood fiends and blood elementalists. By the time he first came into contact with the n, he was already preparing to lead a team to execute it. The science behind [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] was extremelyplicated and there were many blueprints on it. The Elders Guild did not believe that anyone could memorize everything about it in such a short period of time. All the craftsmen that were involved in building the gold needles were taken away by Elders Guild as well.

    Furthermore, Ai Hui was only interested in swordsmanship. He was a typical fighting elementalist.

    No one expected Ai Hui to not only memorize all the blueprints, but also to know the n inside and out. For the past three years, he had never stopped studying the n. To him, this was thest gift that his master had left him. If he did not understand it at all, how was he fit to be his master¡¯s disciple?

    There were two key points to setting up [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth]. The first one was to find the nodes of elemental energy, and the second one was to form the elemental traces.

    The regions where elemental energy was distributed were important and would affect the flow of elemental energy. This logic applied to regions where multiple types of elemental energy existed as well.

    Wang Shouchuan named these regions as nodes. If one wanted to control the elemental energy of a particr ce, he or she would have to control the node of this region first.

    So how does one control a node? Here was the second key point, elemental traces.

    Elemental traces were nothing new to this time and age. The theories behind them were based on the spiritual traces from the glorious Cultivation Era. Forbidden arts, spells, and refinement of equipment were applications of spiritual traces.

    Wang Shouchuan was not the first person to research elemental traces. There were countless people before him that desired to find the most important power of the Elemental Era, but they eventually failed to do so.

    The reason why Wang Shouchuan seeded was that he was the first who understood the importance of nodes. The energy level of elemental energy paled inparison to that of spiritual force. Thus, only at nodes would the energy level of elemental energy be higher than the spiritual force. This was where the elemental traces would be formed.

    Right now, Ai Hui was finding these nodes.

    He had personal experience with finding such nodes. All the gold needles from the original [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] n were personally nailed by him.

    In other people¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui was just pacing around the cavern nonstop. There would be times where he stopped for a while and drew a circle on the ground with his sword.

    They did not understand what Ai Hui was doing, but they could see the solemn look on his face. Everyone could not help but hold their breaths in anticipation.

    For two hours, Ai Hui paced around in the cavern. More and more circles appeared on the ground.

    When Ai Hui drew hisst circle, he stopped and heaved a sigh of relief.

    Then, he told Gu Tianning, "Nail the stone pirs 30 centimeters deep into these circles."

    Gu Tianning acknowledged Ai Hui and quickly set off to work. He noticed ayer of perspiration on Ai Hui¡¯s forehead and realized that he had exhausted a lot of energy just by pacing around the cavern for the past two hours.

    "Let me do it as well!" Qing Feng volunteered.

    He was filled with curiosity and wanted to see what was so special about the stone pirs and the circles that Ai Hui drew.

    However, when he nailed a stone pir into a circle on the ground and saw that there was no reaction, he was slightly disappointed.

    When all 20 stone pirs had been inserted into the ground, the initially spacious cavern looked cramped and small. At this moment, everyone noticed that the positions of the 20 pirs did not correspond to one another. They were randomly scattered all over the cavern, appearing to be in disarray.

    A lot of people felt apprehensive. They really could not see the use of these stone pirs.

    Ai Hui found a corner, sat down ,and called out to Gu Tianning, "We need to wait for two hours."

    Gu Tianning walked over to Ai Hui and sat beside him. He was not worried that Ai Hui was just talking big about increasing the concentration level of elemental energy in this ce. Why would someone spend so much effort if he was just talking big?

    Ai Hui did not have the free time to do that. If someone said that Ai Hui was trying to scam them, then what would be the point of him scamming them if they had nothing and were poor to begin with?

    The two of them began to chit-chat. It had been a long time since Ai Hui had left the Old Territory. He did not know what the current situation there was like.

    Upon seeing that Ai Hui was interested in the situation of the Old Territory, Gu Tianning tried his best to tell him more about it.

    The advancement of the Blood of God in the Old Territory was not smooth at all. Since the people in the Old Territory possessed a tiny amount of elemental energy, the speed at which the blood elementalists developed their blood spiritual force was very slow. Furthermore, the Blood of God still needed a very long period of time before they could fully absorb the Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie. This was also one of the reasons why the Blood of God was not anxious about their expansion in the Old Territory.

    Whenpared to the decaying Avalon of Five Elements, the Old Territory was less impacted by the Blood of God because the Old Territory was poor and barren to begin with.

    For the past few years, after the copse of the Induction Ground, youngsters from the Old Territory did not have the chance to even be selected for schooling. This caused a lot of youngsters to feel disappointed. For thest 1,000 years, no matter how much everyone disliked the Avalon of Five Elements, gifted youngsters from the Old Territory were always given a chance to study in the Induction Ground and change their fates.

    The Elders Guild, which could hardly look after itself, no longer cared about the Old Territory.

    Gu Tianning was very worried that these gifted youngsters would swear allegiance to the Blood of God.

    When Ai Hui heard Gu Tianning¡¯s worries, he could not think of any good solutions either. Nowadays, with a shortage of resources, price intion, the issue of rebuilding the Thirteen Divisions, and the project of constructing God-subduing Peaks, how would the Elders Guild have the strength to care about the Old Territory? Ai Hui, himself, was a poor fellow too.

    Two hours of idle conversations passed just like this.

    "The stone pirs are changing color!" someone cried in rm.

    The cry of rm interrupted the chit-chat session between Ai Hui and Gu Tianning and made everyone look in the direction of the stone pirs.

    At this moment, the granite stone pirs had be dark-red in color, resembling heated iron pirs.

    The weird thing was that the temperature of the cavern had not increased by much. The dark-red stone pirs rhythmically lit up and extinguished.

    As Ai Hui walked among them, a look of satisfaction appeared on his face. It seemed that the positions of the nodes he found were rather urate. Setting up the stone pirs was merely the first step. They absorbed the fire elemental energy from the earth fire and converted it into earth elemental energy.

    If one took a closer look, he or she would realize that rich earth elemental energy was gathering at the top of each of the stone pirs.

    Ai Hui took out 20 Earth Sentinels from his sandpass. These were the spoils of war that he obtained after defeating the Sand Sentinel. An Earth Sentinel was a particr sand puppet model from the Sha Family. Their quality was first-ss and considered one of the best sand puppet models currently avable.

    When Gu Tianning and his counterparts saw the 20 Earth Sentinels, their jaws dropped. After the Yellow Sand Corner was annexed by the Blood of God, the prices of sand puppets had been continuously climbing. With a single nce, one could tell that these Earth Sentinels were of superior quality and that their prices were extremely expensive.

    Furthermore, there were 20 of them... How much would that cost?

    The sound of heavy gasps resounded through the cavern in unison. The faces of the Gu nsmen were bright-red. They wished they could pounce on the Earth Sentinels.

    Qing Feng was an individual who had experienced avish lifestyle. As such, he was not fazed by the mere 20 Earth Sentinels. However, he was rather curious about what Ai Hui was going to do next. The dark-red glow of the 20 stone pirs was pulsating rhythmically, and he could sense the powerful auras of fire elemental energy and earth elemental energy from them. He could also feel another mysterious aura within them as well.

    Ai Hui picked up a Earth Sentinel and ced it on top of a stone pir.

    Following which, something weird happened.

    The Earth Sentinel melted and became a pool of quicksand that flowed down the stone pir. After a while, the pool of quicksandpletely engulfed the stone pir. Like a yellow snake, the quicksand wrapped around the stone pir and kept on swirling around it. Its swirling speed became faster and faster.

    Eventually, the quicksand became a high-speed spinning sand tornado that engulfed the stone pir and gave off a vibrating buzzing sound.

    The sand tornado began to grow taller and taller. The top of the sand tornado opened up and the border of its mouth started to extend outward, resembling an umbre that was being opened up.

    Gradually, more sand tornadoes were formed with their mouths opened up and extended outward.

    The buzzing sound of the sand tornadoes was intolerable. Other than Gu Tianning and Qing Feng, the rest retreated in panic and stayed away from the cavern.

    Gu Tianning¡¯s face turned white. He felt that his entire body was trembling violently, causing him to feel extremely nauseous.

    Excitement swept across Qing Feng¡¯s face as he widened his eyes. He was afraid of missing out on any details of the process. Until now, he still did not know what was going, but this did not stop him from acknowledging that the scene before him was spectacr.

    Ai Hui had inherited Wang Shouchuan¡¯s knowledge!

    This thought shed through his mind.

    When thest sand umbre opened up, the 20 sand umbres extended toward each other and fused together, appearing as if they were attracted to each other like mas of the opposite prity. When thest gap was closed up, all the vibrating buzzing sounds suddenly disappeared. A dome-shaped sand canopy was formed at the roof of the cavern. The 20 sand tornadoes supported the dome-shaped sand canopy like 20 pirs.

    If one took a closer look, he or she could clearly see that ripples were formed continuously on the dome-shaped sand canopy.

    The sudden moment of silence stunned everyone.

    Very soon, Gu Tianning yelled in rm. His voice was filled with ecstasy "The concentration level of the earth elemental energy is rising!"

    The rest of his nsmen rushed into the cavern. Cries of rm and surprise resounded through the air incessantly.

    "Oh my god, it feels sofortable!"

    The concentration level of the earth elemental energy is still rising!"

    Shocked, Qing Feng stared at Ai Hui. He had not expected Ai Hui to seed!

    At this point in time, Ai Hui felt a sense of achievement. This was the first time he put his master¡¯s theories into practice. Even though it was a simple process of convert fire elemental energy into earth elemental energy, it was still not easy to create a well-distributed amount of rich earth elemental energy.

    The earth elemental energy within the stone pirs was transferred to the dome-shaped sand canopy and gushed out from the countless grains of sand. This in turn caused the concentration of earth elemental energy in this area to rise.

    Gu Tianning was unable to control his emotions. Since when had he trained in such an area that contained so much earth elemental energy?

    A lot of Gu nsmen embraced each other and cried tears of joy. The concentration level of elemental energy in the poor and barren Old Territory was pathetically low. After they arrived at Silver Sea Mist, they did not know what to do next and their future was bleak. The earth elemental energy in Silver Mist Sea might be more concentrated than Old Territory¡¯s, but the ce was still metal-attributed after all.

    It was only until now that their bodies were filled with immensely rich earth elemental energy. This was a scenario that they did not even dare to dream of.

    "Brother Gu, I havepleted setting up this ce. However, there is one w with this ce that Brother Gu must take note of."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice rang across the air in an untimely manner.

    When everyone heard that there was a w with this ce, their palpitating hearts stop momentarily in unison.

 Chapter 395: Overflowing Elemental Energy

    Chapter 395: Overflowing Elemental Energy

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The cavern suddenly quieted down. Everyone looked anxiously at Ai Hui in unison.

    Gu Tianning took in a deep breath of air and appeared slightly calmer, "Brother Ai, please tell us what¡¯s wrong!"

    Aspared to the rest of his nsmen, Gu Tianning was more knowledgeable and experienced. He knew the Avalon of Five Elements wasn¡¯t the paradise that everyone from Old Territory thought it was. He knew this wasn¡¯t the most advanced technology right now, but he also knew that it was not easy to set up such a wonderful training ground. Having one or two weaknesses was normal. On the contrary, it wouldn¡¯t be right if there were absolutely no weaknesses.

    Otherwise, wouldn¡¯t there be training grounds like this everywhere?

    Ai Hui replied with a solemn look on his face, "The concentration level of earth elemental energy will keep on increasing. If the elemental energy can¡¯t be consumed in time, the grains of sand will be heavier and the sand canopy will eventually fall. So everyone has to make good use of their time to train and to make sure they don¡¯t let the elemental energy overflow."

    Don¡¯t let the elemental... elemental energy overflow...

    Gu Tianning was stunned momentarily. He thought he¡¯d heard wrong. Not only he, but the rest of his nsmen were stunned as well. They were always inck of elemental energy. Now, suddenly someone was telling them the elemental energy would overflow...

    "Brother Ai, stop joking..." Gu Tianning muttered.

    "I¡¯m not joking." Ai Hui had a serious look on his face and said, "All of you have to quickly absorb the earth elemental energy surging out from the sand canopy. If the earth elemental energy umtes and overflows, the sand canopy will copse."

    Gu Tianning¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. He turned around and roared, "What are all of you waiting for! Start training! Make good use of your time and start training!"

    The Gu nsmen immediately went into a state of panic and hastily sat down to meditate and train.

    When Qing Feng, who had seen various aspects of society before, saw what happened, he could not help but feel slightly envious. "You¡¯re making it too convenient for these poor bums. Now that they have fallen into a pile of sh*t, they can fill their stomach with it!"

    Gu Tianning was smiling and feeling extremely content. He did not get angry even after hearing Qing Feng¡¯s words. Other than feeling slightly annoyed that they were being called bums, he was actually quite happy as Qing Feng spoke his mind!

    Actually, Ai Hui was partly joking about the w. Gu Tianning wouldn¡¯t believe him anyway. But both of them never expected that this w-cum-joke would keep on increasing the Gu n¡¯s training efficiency till the point where they eventually became sessful in the future.

    "Brother Ai, hold on."

    After Gu Tianning finished his sentence, he went away for a while and came back with a wooden box on his hand.

    He passed the wooden box to Ai Hui and said gratefully, "These are some artifact remnants that we obtained by chance. Initially, we intended to ask Blind He to make us a Heaven-grade weapon using these artifact remnants. But right now, we don¡¯t need them. This is a small present from us to thank you, please don¡¯t be courteous with us. The Gu n will forever remember your kindness for giving us a new lease on life. In the future, if Brother Ai needs any help from us, the Gu n will not hesitate to go through fire and tread water for you!"

    Without any hesitation, Ai hui took over the wooden box and bade farewell to Gu Tianning, "Thank you very much, Brother Gu. It didn¡¯t take much effort, you¡¯re wee, Brother Gu. I¡¯m from Old Territory as well. Even though my capabilities are limited, I will still do whatever I can to help. I still have things that I need to attend to, and I shall bid you farewell here. This is my message leaf. If Brother Gu wants to find me for anything, you can contact me through a message tree. I will stay in Crooked River City for a few days. If you have anything that you need help with these few days, you can find me at Crooked River Tavern."

    Gu Tianning carefully took over the message leaf.

    Ai Hui carried Qing Feng and spread his Starry Gem Swordwings like the gigantic wings of a roc. He rose into the sky with Qing Feng and flew into the distance.

    Gu Tianning stood motionlessly as he watched the tiny ck dot disappear into the distance.

    On the way back, Qing Feng suddenly said, "Giving such a treasure to a bunch of weak and frail fellows, don¡¯t you feel you¡¯ve suffered a loss? If you are willing to present a treasure like that to Grandmaster Dai, no matter what you want, Grandmaster Dai will agree to it! What in this world is Grandmaster Dai not capable of doing?"

    "I want my master and mistress toe back to life."

    Qing Feng was speechless.

    Refusing to submit to Ai Hui, Qing Feng continued after a while, "A person who is dead is unable toe back to life. One should always move forward in life. Why do you have to be so obstinate?"

    Ai Hui was slightly surprised by Qing Feng¡¯s words. Then he replied, "I thought you said a dead person could at least be like you?"

    Qing Feng shook his head and replied, "There¡¯s nothing good about being something that is neither dead nor alive like me."

    "Why?" Ai Hui was surprised.

    "I can¡¯t do whatever I want and I am created to be used by someone else," Qing Feng replied. "It doesn¡¯t matter if one lives in degradation and drags out their ignorable existence. Aren¡¯t most people living like that as well? It also doesn¡¯t matter if one has a body that he can¡¯t control. Aren¡¯t there many disabled people in this world as well? However, if one¡¯s memory is erased every now and then, what¡¯s the difference between him and a sand puppet?"

    Ai Hui was speechless.

    For the remaining part of the journey, both of them didn¡¯t talk to each other.

    Carrying Qing Feng in his arms, he flew back to Crooked River Tavern.

    When they arrived back at the tavern, Zhao Boan had already bought back a Three Leaves Bamboo Cart. Its price was extremely cheap as it was second-hand. Not many trade routes went through Crooked River City, as such, there weren¡¯t many transportation businesses and a huge number of Three Leaves Bamboo Carts were avable for sale.

    However, Ai Hui did not prepare to leave at once. Recently, his swordsmanship had improved by leaps and bounds and he did not want to disrupt his excellent training momentum. As such, he decided to stay in Crooked River City for a few more days, and made good use of the time to train with Qing Feng so he could achieve the next breakthrough soon.

    .....

    Silver City.

    The debris in the Ye Residence had not been cleared up yet. Everywhere was littered with broken wall fragments. From the amount of debris in the Ye Residence, one would instantly know how intense the multiple battles that took ce that day were. During daytime, there would be a lot of servants clearing up the debris. During the night, everywhere would be filled with guards.

    Right now, Madam Ye was gaining reputation day by day. She had be a powerful and influential figure in the Avalon of Five Elements. However, since she had to host Master¡¯s Glory, she was extremely busy and she had to travel nonstop. It had been many days since she¡¯dst returned to the Ye Residence.

    The Ye Residence still needed a long period of time before it could return to its former self.

    The night was quiet and tranquil. One tall figure and one short figure were standing on a heap of debris in the Ye Residence. The guards in the distance could not sense their presence at all.

    The tall figure looked as if he was standing on a pair of stilts. His clothes were huge and airy. His face was deathly pale and his cheekbones were sunken, resembling a dried corpse. His gaze swept across his surroundings and his nose was twitching every now and then. He shook his head and said, "Xiao Shuren self-detonated in this spot."

    The short figure could not help but ask curiously, "But I can¡¯t sense the aura of the ancient treasure. Could it be that the ancient treasure isn¡¯t with her?"

    The short figure was short and round, resembling a watermelon. His nose was bright red, looking extremely joyful.

    "No, it must be with her," the tall figure shook his head and replied.

    He inserted his fingers into the debris. After he took them out, there were a few grains of sand between his fingers. He then continued, "Her body had undergone transfiguration before. She had ced the ancient treasure within her body. These grains of sand contain the aura of the ancient treasure. Judging by the time, the ancient treasure was still in her body before she died. Whoever came into contact with her before she died is the greatest suspect."

    Upon hearing these words, the short figure replied, "Who came into contact with her before she died? Chu Zhaoyang! He was holding Xiao Shuren hostage!"

    The tall figure replied with a deep voice, "That¡¯s right, he is the biggest suspect. Furthermore, he left Silver City immediately after the incident. This makes him an even bigger of a suspect."

    "How do we carry out our investigation on him?" The short figure looked worried. "We have suffered a huge loss this time around. Recently, none of the families would dare to contact us, not to mention how we wouldn¡¯t go seeking their help. The two of us alone are not capable of tracking down Chu Zhaoyang."

    "That¡¯s Grandmaster Dai¡¯s business," the tall figure replied without any hesitation. "We will just report our findings and then more powerful people will take over the case. I will chase down Demonic Girl and you will go after Qing Feng. Until now, he hasn¡¯t made any contact with any enterprise. I guess he is trying to run away."

    "Alright! Qing Feng¡¯s body has been marked, he can¡¯t run away," the short fellow agreed. Then, he asked again, "Are you confident in handling Demonic Girl?"

    "She can¡¯t run away." The tall figure was veryposed.

    "We shall split up."

    The two figure split up and flew off in different directions without the guards in Ye Residence noticing at all.

    .....

    Crooked River City.

    Ai Hui was extremely focused. The sword gleam from his Dragonspine was fast like a lightning bolt as it warded off the iing torrential grass vines.

    Now, Ai Hui could already ward off the ferocious attacks from Qing Feng¡¯s 15 grass vines. He could feel the improvements he had made. His attack speed had be faster as well.

    Having an increase in attack speed, his degree of control of his elemental energy increased sharply too. This allowed his sword moves to be moreplete and perfect. Furthermore, the process of switching between sword moves and the flow of his elemental energy also became much smoother.

    Every day, he would train, ponder and search for the notebook in the Hall of Ancient Records. In other people¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui¡¯s life was as dry as a monk¡¯s ascetic life, but still admirable.

    Another person who was leading an ascetic life was Blind He. Blind He was a very quiet individual. He would always sit in one corner by himself and his hands would always hold something. He might hold a piece of wood, a rock, or a metal ingot in his hands. No matter what he held in his hands, he would always carve something on it and treat it as carving practice.

    Anything that he held in his hands would be smaller bit by bit and eventually became a small heap of fine powder. After this happened, he would take out another block of material and repeat the process again.

    Meanwhile, ever since Zhao Boan found out his boss was Ai Hui, he worked extremely hard. Every day, he would go out and see if there was anyone that was worth hiring. Eventually, he managed to hire a craftsman who forged Grass-grade weapons.

    Mo Zhong was a miserable-looking old man. He also brought along his granddaughter, who was around seven to eight years old.

    Initially, Zhao Boan wanted to hire a Grass-grade-weapon weaponsmith but there weren¡¯t any in Crooked River City. In the end, he only managed to find a Grass-grade-weapon craftsman and he wasn¡¯t too satisfied with him. If Ai Hui showed the slightest bit of disinterest in Mo Zhong, Zhao Boan would fire him straightaway.

    However, he did not expect the reserved and mysterious Blind He to praise Mo Zhong¡¯s capabilities in forging Grass-grade weapons.

    Eventually, Mo Zhong decided to stay after Ai Hui agreed to pay him a yearly sry of 300 Heaven Merit Points.

    Ai Hui felt that his swordsmanship had reached a teau and it was very hard for him to make any improvements for the time being. As such, he decided to leave Crooked River City and headed for Asakusa City.

    The Three Leaves Bamboo Cart rose in the air.

    Even though Zhao Boan had weak fighting capabilities, he was still a wood elementalist from Jadeite Forest and he was adept in driving the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart. Meanwhile, Qing Feng was an abnormally fast driver. With both of them taking turns to drive the bamboo cart, they did not really feel tired at all.

    Of course, Qing Feng grumbled throughout the whole journey. He kept on stressing that he was a sparring partner, not a driver.

    In order to get to Asakusa City earlier, Ai Hui decided to take a shortcut

    If they went by the usual route, they had to fly across Silver Mist Sea to Peace City. From there, they would enter Palette Cloud Vige. After they flew across the entire Palette Cloud Vige, they would reach Asakusa City.

    As such, Ai Hui wanted to take the shortcut.

    By taking the shortcut, they would cross the Lava River from Crooked River City and enter the Old Territory. From there, they could fly straight to Asakusa City. This route could greatly reduce the travelling time.

    Ai Hui wanted to see what the Old Territory looked like now.

    But it was not only him. The rest were curious as well.

 Chapter 396: Bitterstone Seeds

    Chapter 396: Bitterstone Seeds

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    When Ai Hui and his counterparts flew across Lava River, a lot of people crowded around their bamboo cart. These people thought this was a bamboo cart for stowaways. However, just as soon as they appeared, Qing Feng, who was sitting at the driver seat, began to whip them and chase them away with his grass vines.

    However, on the behalf of Ai Hui, he did not try to injure them.

    It was at this moment that these Old Territory¡¯s citizens realized the bamboo cart was not for stowaways and there were honorable elementalists sitting in it. They turned green with envy when they saw Ai Hui and the rest.

    Having a panoramic view of this scene, Ai Hui did not feel happy at all.

    After a while, everyone began to feel difort as the surrounding concentration level of elemental energy was too low. In the Avalon of Five Elements, whether one was in Wilderness or a city, he or she would be surrounded by an abundance of elemental energy. Everyone was ustomed to those environments.

    However, the elemental energy concentration level in this ce was unusually low. Everyone felt as if the elemental energy within their bodies was escaping into their surroundings.

    Qing Feng could not help but ask, "How do people live in this kind of ce?"

    "The poption of Old Territory is ten times more than the poption of Avalon of Five Elements," Ai Hui replied inly.

    Qing Feng decided to shut his mouth. If he provoked Ai Hui, then Ai Hui might make him suffer again.

    Ai Hui felt very ufortable as well.

    If one attained elemental externalization, he could control the elemental energy in a particr region. However, what would happen to him if the surroundings were filled with little or no elemental energy? He would feel breathless and his elemental energy would keep on draining without any chance of replenishment.

    Ai Huiughed bitterly in his heart. He did not expect himself to face such a situation upon returning to the Old Territory.

    "My elemental energy is draining faster than usual. What do I do if my elemental energy ispletely drained?" Qing Feng grumbled.

    "I have elemental beans."

    Ai Hui¡¯s words made everyone feel at ease. As long as they had elemental beans, they could replenish elemental energy. And as long as they could replenish their elemental energy, no one could threaten them.

    The region surrounding Lava River was barren. As they flew deeper into the depths of the Old Territory, the vegetation on the ground became more luxuriant.

    Everyone curiously stuck their heads out of the bamboo cart and looked at their surroundings. Apart from Ai Hui, this was the first time that everyone else hade to the the Old Territory. Actually, Ai Hui also found the surroundings to be unfamiliar.

    Ai Hui felt embarrassed to even talk about it. When he was still in the Old Territory, he did not go to the countryside at all. He also knew nothing about the nts and animals beneath the ground. However, he was extremely familiar with the nts and dire beasts in the Wilderness.

    When it was evening, their Three Leaves Bamboo Cart had tond on the ground as Qing Feng and Zhao Boan¡¯s elemental energy waspletely depleted.

    Ai Hui had to admit that he underestimated the situation in the Old Territory.

    The speed at which their elemental energy was depleting was faster than he expected. If they were in the Avalon of Five Elements, Qing Feng and Zhao Boan could fly for two to three days straight.

    However, Ai Hui did not give up. He had another purpose for entering the Old Territory this time around.

    He thought of the discussion that everyone had had about Central Pine Faction¡¯s future direction back in Swordsman Training Hall. Ai Hui told everyone that the Old Territory would be the key area for their battle against Blood of God in the future. That was because the Old Territory had the human resources and artifact remnants that Blood of God needed urgently.

    This idea was suggested by Ai Hui. As such, Ai Hui now wanted to see if this idea was possible or not.

    From the look of it, the Old Territory was an extremely unsuitable ce for elementalists to be stationed for long. Due to the low concentration level of elemental energy, elementalists would make progress only with great difficulty. Previously, Ai Hui had already known that the low concentration level of elemental energy in the Old Territory would impact elementalists. However, he did not expect the impact to be so great.

    If this was the case, they would not be able to execute their expansion n into the Old Territory.

    Wait!

    Suddenly, Ai Hui thought of something. He asked Qing Feng, "How do the three central divisions that are stationed in the Old Territory solve the issue of the low concentration level of elemental energy?"

    "God knows," Qing Feng mumbled.

    The rest had nk looks on their faces.

    Ai Hui noted this down in his mind, intending to ask Iron Lady to find out more about the three central divisions. If the three central divisions could be station here, that implied they had a solution for the low concentration level of elemental energy in this ce.

    Furthermore, if elementalists encountered this problem in the Old Territory, what about blood elementalists? Blood elementalists practised blood spiritual force. Since spiritual force had a higher energy level than elemental energy, that meant blood spiritual force would be drained at a higher rate than elemental energy. That also implied that blood elementalists would have a harder time surviving in the Old Territory than elementalists.

    Was this perhaps the reason why Blood of God¡¯s expansion into the Old Territory was not sessful, even now? Even the nts in the Old Territorycked elemental energy. This would cause the power of blood poison, which used elemental energy to proliferate, to reduce greatly.

    Ai Hui was excited. He already found it hard to survive here and his enemies found it even harder to do so. This was a huge advantage to him.

    Theynded beside a creek. The flowing water of the creek was bubbling and there were pebbles all around the creek. In the distance, there were a few huge rocks as well.

    Very soon, Ai Hui and the rest found a piece of tnd to set up camp.

    Zhao Boan was a travelling merchant and he had travelled extensively. For him, camping in the wild was nothing out of ordinary and his camping skills were adept.

    Qing Feng ran to the creekside and caught a few fish.

    Aspared to the dangerous fish in Wilderness, the fish here were not only small, but they were not aggressive at all. The fish in Wilderness were extremely aggressive. If one encountered a fish-type dire beast, it would spell trouble for him or her. The rivers in Wilderness were ces where massacres took ce. A low-level elementalist would not dare to get close to a river in Wilderness.

    Even though the fish here did not contain elemental energy, they still tasted very fresh and delicious.

    After they finished eating the fish, the color of the sky dimmed gradually. The glow of sunset shone upon their bodies. Due to theck of water elemental energy, the clouds in the Old Territory were not as thick as the ones in the Avalon of Five Elements. As such, the sky in the Old Territory was usually cloudless.

    Ai Hui noticed Blind He had a fist-sized pebble in his hand and he was carving it. Apparently, he picked it up from the creekside.

    Ai Hui could not help but smile.

    He often admired focused individuals like Blind He.

    Mo Zhong had brought along his granddaughter on this trip. At first, he was still worried that his granddaughter might not get used to their new lifestyle. However, he had not expected his granddaughter to be even more daring than him. She was filled with curiosity towards her surroundings.

    The small girl was called Mo Buyu. Initially, she was slightly shy and constantly on her guard. After she familiarized herself with everyone, she became much more active. She would pluck grass stalks, climb up onto rocks, and even try to catch river crabs in the creek. Mo Zhong could not do anything about her.

    Ai Hui enjoyed the glow of the sunset as distant memories shed across his mind. He thought about the times when he was still in the swordsman school in the Old Territory. Usually, around this time of day, he would bring a chair to the courtyard and sit down to read his swordy manual.

    At that time, he did not possess any elemental energy. He only knew how to enjoy the satisfaction and tranquility derived from the cool breeze.

    Clink.

    Suddenly, a crisp and clear sound echoed through the air.

    Ai Hui¡¯s thoughts were disrupted. He followed the direction of the sound and realized that it was made by Blind He.

    Blind He had a weird look on his face. The pebble in his hand had been carved and reduced to the size of a finger. Stone crumbs were all over his clothes and his face.

    Ai Hui felt slightly puzzled. Did the sounde from Blind He¡¯s hands?

    Previously, he had closely observed the way Blind He carved materials. Even those hard metal ingots would melt like butter and crumble like biscuits in his hands. All the materials would be reduced to a pile of fine powder without the slightest bit of noise.

    "Boss, look at this!"

    Blind He yelled and threw the finger-sized pebble at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui felt slightly puzzled and caught it.

    When Ai Hui caught it in his hands, he felt that something was unusual about it. When the tiny pebble was ced on his palm, it felt dense and heavy, resembling a metal ball. Ai Hui tried to channel a trace of elemental energy into it and realized it was very difficult for the trace of elemental energy to go through it.

    He furrowed his eyebrows and pinched the pebble. The shape of the pebble remained the same.

    Its degree of hardness was very high!

    Ai Hui whipped out his Dragonspine and a streak of sword gleam shed across the pebble. Ai Hui could feel an obvious sluggishness in the shing motion. The thing that surprised him was that his sword gleam did not shatter the pebble, but only split it in half.

    Ai Hui was very shocked. Given the current sharpness of his sword gleam, he still could not shatter the pebble!

    Only upon his second try could he then shatter the pebble. The inner part of the pebble was slightly darker in color and smoother in texture than its surface. If Blind He had never practised his carving skills on this pebble, no one would know how hard the core of the pebble actually was.

    Blind He found another pebble from somewhere. Both of his hands were flickering with light as fine stone powder fell on the ground with a rustling sound. After a while, a stone that was even smaller than the previous one appeared in his hand. At this moment, a serious look appeared on his face. A thin beam of light shot out from his fingertip and he began to carve it.

    Qing Feng let out a soft gasp of surprise. He saw what was going on and used the grass vines in his hand to take a pile of pebbles from the creekside.

    He chose a pebble and whipped it with one of his grass vines. Immediately, the little pebble was shattered, revealing the slightly darker core within it. Subsequently, he whipped the entire pile of pebbles violently with his grass whips and shattered all of them to smithereens. Then, he collected the cores that were leftover.

    Mo Zhong brought his granddaughter along and quickly ran over to see what was going on. Mo Buyu was inquisitive, while Mo Zhong was extremely sensitive to materials, as he was a Grass-grade-weapon craftsman.

    He picked up the inner core of a pebble and examined it closely with his eyes. His eyes were darting non-stop. Suddenly, he did something weird. He stuck out his tongue and licked it.

    "Boss, this is a stone core."

    Mo Zhong¡¯s voice was filled with certainty and surprise.

    Ai Hui did not expect Mo Zhong to know anything about it. He could not help but ask, "Stone core?"

    "Ancient records have mentioned that there are cores within stones. These stone cores are as hard as metal. When one first tastes a stone core, he or she will taste saltiness and bitterness together. Subsequently, its taste will turn purely bitter. As such, they are also known as bitterstone seeds."

    Upon hearing Mo Zhong¡¯s words, Ai Hui gave it a taste. Indeed, he tasted saltiness and bitterness at first. Quickly after, he could only taste bitterness.

    It was magical!

    As a citizen of the Old Territory, Ai Hui knew nothing about bitterstone seeds at all. He asked, "What uses does a bitterstone seed have?"

    "This is the first time I¡¯ve seen one in real life too. I have to study it before I can identify its characteristics and uses. However, since it¡¯s a new type of material to us, there are definitely some uses for it," Mo Zhong replied respectfully.

    "Thank you for your trouble," Ai Hui nodded his head.

    "It¡¯s part of my duty," Mo Zhong quickly replied.

    Ai Hui cast a nce at Blind He and saw him carving something on the stone core with all his attention. The surface of the stone core on his hand was covered with many finely veined patterns. Suddenly, Ai Hui noticed there were beads of perspiration on Blind He¡¯s forehead. He could not help but take a closer look. Usually, no matter what material Blind He was holding, he would easily and skillfully carve something on it.

    This was the first time Ai Hui saw such a strenuous look on his face while he was carving something.

    Ai Hui picked up a bitterstone seed as well. He was filled with curiosity towards this material. Apparently, the bitterstone seeds were notpatible with elemental energy at all. They were extremely repulsive towards elemental energy

    Could they be used to make weapons? But they did not seem to be strong enough.

    How about shields? Alright, the bitterstone seeds were too tiny.

    Then what could they be used for? Ai Hui was racking his brain.

    This was a brand-new type of material, unknown to everyone. No one knew what opportunities were contained within these bitterstone seeds. It was absolutely great news to Ai Hui. This also made Ai Hui realize that the Old Territory was not as barren as he thought.

    Would there be other materials that were unknown to people, like the bitterstone seeds?

    This thought excited Ai Hui in an instant.

 Chapter 397: An Impromptu Trip

    Chapter 397: An Impromptu Trip

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Everyone¡¯s interest had been piqued and they began to look for other materials, hoping to discover something unique.

    After searching the whole night, no one found any unique materials like the bitterstone seeds. However, the bamboo cart was still filled with various unknown stones, timbers, nts and animal bones. Ai Hui intended to study them when they reached Peace City, or after they had arrived at the Wilderness.

    When the sun rose, everyone was so tired that they sat on the ground motionlessly.

    Even someone like Ai Hui, who had a physically strong body, felt fatigued. Their elemental energy depleted faster in this ce than when they were in the Avalon of Five Elements. Simrly, the physical energy also depleted at a faster rate too.

    Ai Hui had mentally noted down that he must find a solution to this problem before he came to Old Territory again in the future. There was certainly a solution to this problem, otherwise, how would it be possible for the three central divisions to station themselves here long-term?

    As Ai Hui thought about the three central divisions, he felt something was amiss. The three central divisions were widely regarded as the three most powerful divisions, and they were the ones that led the Thirteen Divisions. Logically speaking, they should be stationed in vital, central areas, but why were they stationed in Old Territory?

    It would beplete bullshit to say that Elders Guild valued Old Territory.

    Ai Hui intended to ask Iron Lady or Bangwan about this when he went back. Both of them should know the reason behind it.

    Even though it was painful for his wallet, Ai Hui still took out his essence elemental beans and asked everyone toe over, "We can only absorb the elemental energy from these essence elemental beans for the time being."

    Essence elemental beans were extremely expensive. Using these to regain elemental energy would indeed hurt one¡¯s wallet. Currently, Heaven Merit Points were the most approved form of currency. As long as Elders Guild did not copse, Heaven Merit Points would still be a powerful currency. Simrly, essence elemental beans were used as a form of currency as well. If Elders Guild copsed, elemental energy beans would continue to exist in this world. No matter what happened, everyone still needed elemental energy to survive.

    Basically, Heavenly Merit Points were used in a few, high-end markets while essence elemental beans could be used everywhere.

    Now was toote for regret. Old Territory¡¯s impact on their elemental energy had exceeded Ai Hui¡¯s expectations. It was not a bad thing to experience it for himself. Ai Hui said these words to console himself. Other than this minor issue, they weren¡¯t met with any serious troubles. This trip to Old Territory could be considered as setting out in advance to make the necessary arrangements. This could prevent the main party from being ill-prepared when they came here in the future.

    Just as Ai Hui thought that there wasn¡¯t any serious problems, an unforeseen situation happened.

    "There are only this many wood essence elemental beans?"

    Qing Feng counted the essence elemental beans and looked at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui had two hundred plus essence elemental beans, but most of them were metal elemental and water elemental. There were only twenty-six wood essence elemental beans. This implied that Qing Feng and Zhao Boan would each get thirteen wood essence elemental beans.

    Ai Hui began to reflect on himself. He was really ill-prepared for the operation this time around.

    After muttering irresolutely to himself for a while, Ai Hui made a decision, "You will take all the wood essence elemental beans since your elemental energy usage is higher than Boan¡¯s. We will cancel the original n of staying here. Right now, we fly straight to Asakusa City at full speed. Are twenty-six wood essence elemental beans enough?"

    After pondering for a moment, Qing Feng shook his head and replied, "It¡¯s hard to determine now. If we encounter any situation along the way, then this amount is definitely not enough."

    Upon hearing these words, Ai Hui continued, "We will fly towards Palette Cloud Vige then. It¡¯s much nearer this way. We will fly along the Lava River. If we run out of essence elemental beans, we will fly across Lava River and enter Palette Cloud Vige."

    He did not choose to backtrack. They had already entered the Old Territory and it would be a waste of time and resources if they didn¡¯t explore it.

    No one had any objections and Ai Hui began to distribute the essence elemental beans.

    Since all the wood essence elemental energy beans were given to Qing Feng for him to drive the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart, Zhao Boan had no choice but to endure theck of elemental energy in his body.

    When everyonepleted absorbing the elemental energy from the essence elemental beans, the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart rose into the air and flew towards Palette Cloud Vige.

    .....

    Several days had passed. A plump and short figure appeared beside the Lava River and there was a surprised look on his face.

    Qing Feng actually hid in Old Territory?

    After having second thoughts, his facial expression returned to normal. Other than Old Territory, where else could Qing Feng escape to? As long as he was in the Avalon of Five Elements, he would be tracked down by them. Qing Feng clearly knew about this. Escaping to Old Territory was his only option.

    However, could he survive if he escaped to Old Territory?

    There was no way for him to replenish his elemental energy here. This ce was like a dead end for him. Qing Feng only had himself to me.

    Not only did he fail to obtain the ancient treasure, the fall of the Ling Residence also caused Deep Sea Enterprise to suffer a huge loss and sharply reduced its influential power over the Avalon of Five Elements.

    The worst thing was that the few families who used to keep in contact with their enterprise refused to do so nowadays. These families were mainly the ones that provided Deep Sea Enterprise with intelligence on Elders Guild. Right now, the intelligence gathering ability of Deep Sea Enterprise had decreased significantly.

    Deep Sea Enterprise had stringent rules and regtions and was fair in giving out rewards and punishments. Failing such an important mission would result in absolute death for Qing Feng. If Qing Feng still had family members, they would be implicated as well.

    The plump and short fellow turned around to return to the enterprise to report his findings.

    .....

    A rarely seen Three Leaves Bamboo Cart was flying through the air in the deste Old Territory. The whirring sound produced by the pping of the three leaves on the bamboo cart rmed the wild beasts in the forest and caused them to run in all directions in panic.

    There were more and more timbers and stones piled onto the bamboo cart, all of which were collected by everyone along the way. Every piece of stone or timber had been marked with the location of where it was found. If they were to discover anything unique about a particr material in the future, they would know where it was from and this made the gathering process easier.

    Since there was ack of earth elemental energy in Old Territory, Ai Hi could not use his sandpass. All the materials they gathered had to be put on the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart.

    Even though the trip to Old Territory this time around was done in haste, Ai Hui had learned a lot of new things. He had worked as aborer in Wilderness for three years and spent nearly a year as a student in Induction Ground. After the blood catastrophe broke out, he left Central Pine City and stayed in Peace City under a disguised identity for three years. Now, another half a year had passed.

    It was almost eight years since he¡¯d left Old Territory.

    Eight years was not a short period of time to anyone.

    When Ai Hui was in the Avalon of Five Elements, other than reminiscing about the times he¡¯d spent in swordsman school, he seldom thought of Old Territory. Before he arrived at the swordsman school, he wandered about Old Territory in a desperate plight. He did not have a home and he was poverty-stricken. He did not know when that kind of life started for him. It appeared that he had been leading this kind of life since the day he was born.

    He did not have any family members in Old Territory. As such, there was nobody and nothing for him to reminisce about.

    All kinds of situations had happened on this impromptu trip to Old Territory and most of them got to do with the low concentration level of elemental energy in the surroundings. However, to Ai Hui¡¯s surprise, unlike the deste cities in Old Territory, the wilderness of Old Territory was full of vitality.

    The concentration level of elemental energy in surroundings was very low but nts continued to grow and wild beasts continued to breed.

    Sometimes, Ai Hui felt that this ce was not a vassal state of the Avalon of Five Elements, but rather, apletely different world of its own.

    Having ack of elemental energy, Ai Hui could not carry out his usual trainings or enter the Grass Hall. There was no way for him to use the message tree as well. How did the three central divisions convey messages to Elders Guild? If one needed to differentiate directions, he or she had to use the traditionalpass.

    Ai Hui meticulously noted down these questions. If they really were toe to Old Territory in the future, the answers to these questions would be very important.

    However, Ai Hui discovered something unique. In Old Territory, the speed at which fusion elemental energy was depleting was much slower than elemental energy¡¯s. Amidst his surprise, Ai Hui was thinking about whether or not it was due to the five elemental cycle in fusion elemental energy. The five elemental cycle grew and multiplied without an end. To a certain degree, this could prevent the fusion elemental energy from escaping one¡¯s body. If this was the case, a killing machine that possessed the five elemental cycle like God-subduing Peak would be very suitable for Old Territory.

    All these were Ai Hui¡¯s conjectures. Since he could not verify them now, he noted them down as well.

    Not having enough essence elemental beans would put Ai Hui and his counterparts in a precarious situation. Especially Qing Feng, whose body was formed of elemental materials, had a high usage of elemental energy. In Old Territory, a ce where the concentration level of elemental energy was low, Qing Feng was like a fish that had left the water. An intense feeling of suffocation engulfed him incessantly.

    Not needing Ai Hui¡¯s supervision, Qing Feng drove the Three Leaves Bamboo Cart, day and night, like a madman.

    Sometimes, they would pass by some of Old Territory¡¯s cities. Most of these cities were very small in size and they were widely scattered. A city like Silver City was rarely seen. In Old Territory, flying was considered a very powerful ability. Very few people possessed the ability to fly. As such, the structures in Old Territory were very short and there were very few tall buildings. asionally, one could see a few pagodas. These pagodas were from the Cultivation Era and they were covered with traces of age and time.

    There were a lot of ruins in Old Territory. Even now, the ruins of grotto-heavens were found asionally. For the past two years, the prices of artifact remnants had been rising continuously. Elders Guild was not the only one who was buying them, the Blood of God was doing so as well.

    A quick nce and a hasty passing-by was enough to wake the countless memories of Old Territory in Ai Hui.

    The Three Leaves Cart flew across the sky of Old Territory.

    They flew at top speed for a few days and nights. When everyone saw the bright-red Lava River in the distance before the wood essence elemental beans ran out, they heaved a sigh of relief. There many people around the Lava River. They were the citizens from Old Territory and all of them were waiting for a chance to steal across the border to Avalon of Five Elements. From the sky, the people below them looked like ants. When the Old Territory¡¯s citizens saw their Three Leaves Bamboo Cart, amotion broke out. Some people were waving their arms frantically while some were screaming at the top of their voices. All of them looked extremely agitated.

    The citizens of Old Territory viewed the Avalon of Five Elements as the shore they had to get onto, while the citizens of the Avalon of Five Elements ced their hope on Wilderness.

    Which one would be the shore they reached then? Who knew?

    The Three Leaves Bamboo Cart did not stop and flew across the Lava River. It flew away from the fervent gazes and anxious shouts of the onlookers. After they flew across the Lava River, everyone was energized by the vigorous elemental energy from their surroundings. Their dried-up bodies were being nourished by the elemental energy in the air. Qing Feng quickly found a t piece ofnd tond on.

    Everyone jumped down from the bamboo cart and began to carry out Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    Ai Hui used his Sword-style Breathing Technique. The hissing sound of wind from his Dragonspine was remarkably striking. Elemental energy flowed in from all directions and entered Ai Hui¡¯s body through his sword. The elemental energy formed numerous huge sword pills that whirled around within his body. Traces of elemental energy seeped into his muscles and nourished them. If an elementalist that specialized in body-tempering spent too much time in Old Territory, and his musclescked the nourishment of elemental energy, the tempered muscles would degenerate.

    Not too longter, a few Three Leaves Bamboo Carts flew over. These bamboo carts were for conducting illegal immigration businesses. When they saw Ai Hui¡¯s Three Leaves Bamboo Cart, they thought Ai Hui and his counterparts were of the same trade. However, when they realized Ai Hui¡¯s base level was a lot higher than theirs, they quickly came over to greet him.

    Those who ran illegal immigration business were usually elementalists that possessed Three Leaves Bamboo Carts. Their strength was average and most of them used to do transportation businesses in the past. Since the trade routes nowadays were broken, they could not carry on with transportation businesses. Since they were not powerful either, they did not dare to head to Wilderness as well. They could only rack their brains to find a new lease on life.

    In times of chaos, strength was everything.

    They stood respectfully at one side while waiting for Ai Hui and his counterparts toplete their Circtory Cycle Revolutions.

 Chapter 398: Grass Bandits

    Chapter 398: Grass Bandits

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Qing Feng watched Ai Hui attentively as his sword-style breathing technique posture was simply too odd. While he¡¯d already seen it many times, he just couldn¡¯t help but feel curious. Elemental energy was being absorbed through the sword and added into the circtory cycle revolution. He¡¯d never heard of such a technique.

    He¡¯d always felt that Ai Hui kept many secrets and behaved mysteriously, but when he tried to recall, he realized that Ai Hui¡¯s actions appeared very normal. What he found weirdest was the fact that he felt a sense of familiarity around Ai Hui, as if he¡¯d seen him somewhere before. But his memory failed him regrly, so even if he felt that he¡¯d seen something before, he simply couldn¡¯t remember the details.

    Ai Hui was thest toplete his circtory cycle revolution as his sword-style breathing technique needed more time than a regr cycle.

    Seeing that the others were waiting for Ai Hui toplete his circtory cycle revolution, the waiting elementalists instantly understood that Ai Hui was the leader of this group.

    Ai Hui opened his eyes and saw the elementalists standing respectfully by on side, and knew what was going on.

    But he was still not used to receiving such treatment.

    Because of these elementalists here, Ai Hui knew that they were in Palette Cloud Vige and were still quite far from Asakusa City, a fact that made everyone happier.

    Ai Hui asked more about the stowaway business, about how good it was, how many people they could stow away in a day, and so on. These elementalists knew that the small businesses wouldn¡¯t be targeted by this group, so they answered candidly.

    It was through this that Ai Hui gained some insights into the stowaway business.

    They could make seven to eight trips a day, but they weren¡¯t without dangers, especially during the boarding process. It was easy for idents to happen when there was a crowd. They took flight the moment they sensed something amiss. And theyined more than once about how poor the people from Old Territory were, and how the only thing they could offer as payment was artifact remnants. As such, all they could umte at the end of the day was a pile of old remnants.

    The good thing was that the value of these remnants had increased significantly and were easier to sell. The cumbersome part was that they had to head towardrger cities in order to find merchants who would buy them. A lot of their time was spent on this.

    Ai Hui took out some elemental energy beans and gave them to the elementalists as his transportation fee.

    The elementalists were beyond joyful. They hurriedly reminded him that there was a group of Grass Bandits lurking at the edges of Jadeite Forest, waiting to ambush caravans, so he should be extremely careful.

    Bidding them goodbye, Ai Hui waited for the man driving Three Leaves Bamboo Cart and headed toward Jadeite Forest.

    On the cart, Ai Hui asked Zhao Boan, "Do you know anything about Grass Bandits?"

    Zhao Boan quickly answered, "I know a little. The group was created by Zheng Xiaoman, who was ex-Deathgrass Division¡¯s Division Leader Zheng Yuanhong¡¯s adopted daughter. Deathgrass Division had refused to surrender to Da Gangi, and was massacred. It was said that someone secretly leaked the news, so Zheng Xiaoman and some principal members escaped the misfortune and named themselves Grass Bandits. There hadn¡¯t been much movement from them before, but now that the number of citizens in Palette Cloud Vige has reduced, they¡¯re bing more active. Many elementalists, who are displeased with Grandmaster Dai, joined upon hearing the news, so the group has been pretty influential recently. Grass Bandits was most ruthless toward caravans from Deep Sea Enterprise, letting neither the goods nor their people off. They will extort money from big enterprises and let them pass, while they are harmless to small enterprises."

    From his speech, it was apparent that he rather admired the Grass Bandits.

    Ai Hui was somewhat surprised. "These Grass Bandits seem pretty decent?"

    "Not bad indeed," Zhao Boan exined. "Although Zheng Xiaoman was a fiery character, she never harmed the innocent. Grass Bandits have strict and righteousws of conduct, much better than the current Deathgrass Division. Grandmaster Dai often istes himself, but the greedy fellows beneath him are trying to damage his reputation."

    Ai Hui asked, "Deep Sea Enterprise?"

    "No!" The anger in Zhao Boan¡¯s tone increased a few folds. "Deep Sea Enterprise gets their hands on all big and small businesses going on in Jadeite Forest. If you want to earn money, you have no choice but to join them, or they will smear your business, seek trouble or frame you. They are unscrupulous in all ways. But if you join them, a big cut of the profits goes to them and gifts must be offered monthly, so your hard work amounts to little eventually. Plus, your whole family will be under strict restrictions in all aspects of life. Any mistake that you make will implicate your family too."

    Qing Feng stared nkly for a while before asking, "It¡¯s that serious?"

    Zhao Boan looked at him. He¡¯d heard Qing Feng calling himself one of Grandmaster Dai¡¯s fellows and couldn¡¯t help but mock him, "Those under Grandmaster Dai are naturally flowery, but they are extravagant, wasteful and without substance. Why would they care about our wellbeing? We¡¯re merelymoners."

    Ai Hui asked, "With Deep Sea Enterprise¡¯s abilities, it shouldn¡¯t be difficult to eliminate the Grass Bandits right?"

    Zhao Boan shook his head. "Just the opposite. Deep Sea Enterprise has lost many battles and can¡¯t do much to the Grass Bandits. The backbone of the peoplees mainly from the old Deathgrass Division. They have a rich family history and imparted many skills, and they are good at handling military affairs. Plus, either out of affection for the Grass Bandits or hatred toward the enterprise¡¯s avariciousness and ruthlessness, many people in Jadeite Forest secretly ry news and information to the Grass Bandits. The enterprise has punished many families for this, but they are unstoppable."

    Ai Hui nodded. "So now that there are fewer people in Palette Cloud Vige, Elders Guild isn¡¯t bothered that the Grass Bandits have more freedom to move."

    Zhao Boan answered confidently, "Yes, don¡¯t worry, Sir. As long as it¡¯s not Deep sea Enterprise, the Grass Bandits will not make things difficult for us."

    Ai Hui shook his head. "It¡¯s better that we don¡¯t bump into them."

    He just wanted to visit Senior Mingxiu and did not want toplicate things.

    Qing Feng spoke up suddenly, "Let¡¯s bid our goodbyes if you guys are going to Jadeite Forest."

    Ai Hui was taken aback. "Why?"

    Qing Feng replied frankly, "Grass Bandits has nothing against you all, but they will not let me off. Plus, the moment I set foot into Jadeite Forest, Deep Sea Enterprise has its way of tracking me down with their forbidden arts. I see that your sword skills have been stymied by a bottleneck and it¡¯s meaningless to train with me, so let¡¯s bid farewell."

    Ai Hui thought over his words for a bit and felt they were logical. He stood up, saying, "Since that¡¯s the case, goodbye. Take care of your safety and let¡¯s not turn into enemies, hopefully."

    Qing Feng shook his head. "Why would I do that? You are eventually going to be a Grandmaster and will have a limitless future ahead of you. I¡¯m not one to overestimate my capabilities. Farewell!"

    Finishing his words, he flew down from the cart and disappeared in another direction.

    Ai Hui watched attentively for a bit before retracting his gaze. In this chaotic world, peoplee and go like duckweeds. Nature messes with people so who could tell the future?

    Without Qing Feng, only Zhao Boan was left controlling the cart.

    Zhao Boan¡¯s speed was evidently much slower than Qing Feng¡¯s, but Ai Hui did not rush him. He pondered over swordsmanship and analyzed them, and when they pitched camp, he would enter Grass Hall to continue his search for the notebook.

    Entering Grass Hall each time, Manager would rmend a few missions to him. The development of the Assembly of Patriarchs had been going extremely well, so the range of missions received was much wider than before. Plus, due to public appraisal between aristocratic families, there was a shortage of manpower. Manager even handed him a letter written by Madam Ye.

    In her letter, Madam Ye told him in all earnesty that there were few whom she could trust over there, and hoped that he would go over to help. She then implicitly suggested that she had much power and influence, and could offer him greater prospects and so on.

    Ai Hui returned a letter, saying that he had decided to travel the world to hone his swordsmanship. He thanked her for her recognition and added that he would express his gratitude if there was a chance and so on.

    As for the rmended missions, he rejected them all.

    His daily life was exceptionally simple.

    Blind He and Mo Zhong had no time to care about him as they ced all their heart into the cart¡¯s tree roots, logs and stones. In Old Territory, they were deficient in elemental energy and were unable to analyze these materials. Now that there was nothing bothering them, they immediately threw themselves into the research.

    Before this, they¡¯d neither been to Old Territory, nor been in touch with materials from there. To them, it was like a whole new world.

    Silent Mo had a lively personality but was quiet and focused when it came to work. She had inherited Mo Zhong¡¯s craftsmanship, and while she seemed inexperienced, it was obvious that she had real talent. She had a natural intuition when it came to nts and for a grass-grade weapon craftsman, this was the greatest gift.

    Weaponsmiths and grass-grade weapon craftsmen were slightly different in that one forged weapons with metal element, whereas the other forged them with wood element. Other than that, they had many simrities.

    Blind He was usually a taciturn person, but when theorizing with Mo Zhong he became a chatterbox and his words were harsh. Mo Zhong, on the other hand, was honest and sincere, but when discussing refinement, he became an angry person who was adamant about his ideas. Any slight disagreements with him and he¡¯d look as if he was about to throw his fist.

    While Zhao Boan came from a family of itinerant merchants, Ai Hui thought that he was much more of a schr than a qualified merchant. The good thing was that despite hisck of experience, Zhao Boan had been influenced from a young age and had been through practical training. As such, he gradually became a seasoned merchant too.

    The deste scenes along the way were graver than those in Silver Mist Sea.

    The once busy trade routes were mostly empty and only a few caravans could be seen. This was partly due to the havoc the Grass Bandits had been wrecking, but it was more so the fact that the number of people in Palette Cloud Vige had decreased. The cities along the way fell into a slump and caravans¡¯ profits were scanty.

    They could only make significant profits if they transported the goods to the Wilderness. Otherwise, they basically had nothing to earn. But it was a risky task as there were too many bandit attacks. Plus, the Wilderness was no peacefulnd. For the groundbreakers, their lives were already on the table, so there wasn¡¯t any way they could resist the temptation of the goods in the caravans. They could easily and willingly take that risk out of desperation.

    The closer they got to Jadeite Forest, the fewer caravans they saw.

    Zhao Boan reminded Ai Hui that they¡¯d already stepped into the territory of the Grass Bandits.

    Although Zhao Boan seemed rather confident in the Grass Bandits from the way he spoke about them, Ai Hui could still tell that he was somewhat nervous.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t too worried about himself. He was worried about Senior Mingxiu, who was in Asakusa City. She was from the Lu family and her brother, Lu Chen was one of Grandmaster Dai¡¯s oldest disciples, so even if the Grass Bandits did not hate her to the bone, they would not let her off easy, that was for sure.

    Plus, if they could seize her, they would be able to ckmail the Lu family and demand a ransom.

    He hoped there were enough guards around her. With the Lu family¡¯s status in Jadeite Forest, they probably wouldn¡¯t neglect her safety.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t sure if he was feeling slightly uneasy due to the fact that he was about to meet her.

    He had Zhao Boan stop in the closest small town and wait for his return.

    He¡¯d decided to fly into Asakusa City himself to speed things up.

 Chapter 399: Encounter

    Chapter 399: Encounter

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui¡¯s Starry Gem Swordwings pped powerfully. Ai Hui was like a giant crane soaring high up in the sky. Amid the humming of the wind he focused his gaze far away.

    The distant, green forest extended on and on and Ai Hui couldn¡¯t see where it ended. Its vastness was admirable. A slight wiggle for it was like a big, furious wave, its surging force overflowing.

    Jadeite Forest had never been this formidable.

    Be it Elders Guild or Blood of God, both held it in high regards.

    With a Grandmaster who was at his peak overseeing it, Jadeite Forest was like a green monster and no one could ignore its power.

    Ai Hui was startled as the closer he got to the forest, the more he felt it was different. The Nature¡¯s elemental energies were different from that in other ces.

    Jadeite Forest¡¯s elemental energies were flowing toward a certain direction, and it seemed as though there was a bottomless pit in that area, constantly absorbing the energy.

    The energy flow was very slow. He wouldn¡¯t have sensed it if not for the fact that Ai Hui had knowledge about his teacher¡¯s theories, and was extremely sensitive to the flow of elemental energy.

    Generally speaking, Nature¡¯s elemental energies rarely flowed toward one direction. Instead, they would intertwine through many, tiny, turbulent flows. The energy flow here was abnormally neat.

    Where are these energies flowing toward?

    Ai Hui was full of curiosity.

    Such arge-scale energy flow would require a terrifying force. Only an area like Silver Mist Sea could create such a huge motion. But Silver Mist Sea, blocked by a dam, had only managed to umte such strength through over a thousand years of expansion. Jadeite Forest wasn¡¯t like that in the past. Who could have developed a scene like this within such a short period of time?

    There was only one person of course. Grandmaster Dai Gang!

    Only Grandmasters¡¯ profound and immeasurable knowledge and power could produce such a breathtaking sight like this.

    Could it be that Grandmaster Dai was trying to build a miracle like that of Silver Mist Sea?

    Furthermore, Ai Hui had yet to figure out how to recycle elemental energy. If the energies in thisrge-scale flow weren¡¯t recycled, this ce would have long be an elemental energy desert, like Old Territory.

    Nevertheless, Jadeite Forest had not dried up so there must be something special about the way elemental energy channeled. Ai Hui was brimming with curiosity now. This unexinable method of energy flow interested him greatly. Teacher¡¯s n of [treat the city as a piece of cloth] essentially controlled elemental energy flow through nodes and elemental traces.

    Was Dai Gang using this method as well?

    But this wasn¡¯t the time to delve into it.

    Ai Hui noticed a group of people flying in his direction from far away. There were about ten of them.

    Grass Bandits?

    Ai Hui was rather curious, but seeing that they did not slow down, his gaze sharpened.

    "This path is blocked! Retreat quickly!" Someone shouted from over there.

    Ai Hui furrowed his brows and raised his voice, "I¡¯m heading towards Asakusa City, if you guys could make it easier..."

    Upon hearing that, a cold gleam shed across the lead elementalist¡¯s eyes. He cried out in a stern voice, "Dubious intentions, arrest him! Resist and you shall be killed instantly!"

    The Grass Bandits split up and got into their formation quickly. They formed three sections and the few in the middle section pounced on Ai Hui, while the other two groups closed in from both sides to prevent him from escaping.

    Ai Hui had not expected their response to be this aggressive. He then thought about how he had mentioned Asakusa City. Could it be that the Grass Bandits were doing something in the city?

    A murderous glint shed across his eyes.

    If the Grass Bandits were doing a big operation in Asakusa City, the only thing Ai Hui could think of was that they were targeting Senior Mingxiu. From Zhao Boan¡¯s description, Ai Hui felt no malice toward the Grass Bandits, in fact he felt sympathetic. But if it involved Senior Mingxiu, Ai Hui absolutely would not relent, no matter who the opponents were.

    Senior Mingxiu was Ai Hui¡¯s Achilles¡¯s heel.

    Ai Hui¡¯s temperature decreased abruptly, emitting traces of coldness. Seeing the iing groups, he narrowed his eyes and pped his Starry Gem Swordwings forcefully, his body dashing straight for the people in front.

    Ai Hui¡¯s move rmed this group of Grass Bandits instantly.

    "Watch out!" The elementalist at the front shouted. He took the lead and threw pine needles toward Ai Hui.

    The flying needles exploded and split up. One became two and two became four...

    In the blink of an eye, closely packed pine needles flew toward Ai Hui like dark green drizzle. Each needle had a wisp of fine green fog. It was a type of highly toxic poison.

    The other elementalists were in shock. They did not expect their leader to execute such a fatal blow the moment he attacked.

    Not only did [Autumn Drizzle] have plenty of pine needles, the area it covered was very wide, leaving enemies with no ce to escape to. After a long period of refinement, pine needles could break elemental energy, and the fine wisp of green fog that was wound around them was highly poisonous. It had a very good affinity for elemental energy and could easily infiltrate it and enter the enemies¡¯ bodies.

    Ai Hui had no intention of dodging them, causing everyone to rx their beating hearts.

    As the distance between the needles and their target closed in, even the head elementalist smiled. ording to the effective range, his target was no longer able to escape.

    Ai Hui had never thought of escape.

    He increased his speed further and the familiar wind barrier reappeared as he thrusted his Dragonspine repeatedly. The results of his sparrings with Qing Feng were thoroughly evident in his strikes. They were faster and sharper, and three consecutive thrusts were all it took to shatter the barrier.

    Ai Hui felt his body be lighter.

    The Grass Bandits, who thought they¡¯d seeded, became dizzy as the pine needle rain disappeared suddenly.

    A hole appeared in the densely packed needle rain, facing them directly.

    A blurry silhouette appeared before them and the sharp and fast sword momentum overwhelmed them. An explosion resounded like rolling thunder from deep with the cloudyers, arriving a littleter.

    The leader of the Grass Bandits opened his eyes wide as his pupils dted. He cried out in rm, "Stop..."

    Ai Hui was like a ferocious tiger breaking free from its cage. With an indistinct shadow, his rainbow-like sword gleams drew breathtakingly cold light traces that went straight for the leader.

    The other Grass Bandits, as if awoken from a dream, were pale faced, but proceeded to defend out of instinct.

    Multi-colored light screens appeared before them and before things could stabilize, the sword rays struck them like meteors from outer space.

    Upon breaking the wind barrier, Ai Hui¡¯s speed was so fast that he couldn¡¯t change moves. But at such a terrifying speed even a small stone had shocking destructive power, so he didn¡¯t need to change moves.

    Boom!

    A dull, drum-like sound resounded throughout the ins as all the light screens copsed in a split second and the fragmented rays vanished into a surging puff of colored fog.

    Under the strong impact, four elementalists were being tossed about and started spurting blood.

    Four were injured with one hit!

    The faces of the other bandits changed greatly and they threw themselves on Ai Hui simultaneously. One of them hoisted his arm up and shot an arrow towards the sky. The arrow travelled miles up and with a cry it transformed into a huge ball of me. At such a height, the bright red, eye-catching me could be seen from far away.

    Ai Hui shot a nce over and knew that they were calling for backup but he did not mind.

    Guessing that Senior Mingxiu was likely to be in danger, Ai Hui¡¯s murderousness intensified.

    With a bend of his body, he pounced on the remaining few Grass Bandits. He was fast as lightning and his moves were sharp, without the least bit ofpassion. Executing [Six Moons], he drew six fatal arcs which emerged quietly in unguarded spots, looking like six deadly bats in the sky.

    Fresh blood spattered everywhere as a few Grass Bandits held onto their throats with their eyes were wide open.

    "No!"

    The leader had a look of desire on his face but in the next moment, his eyes bulged out as a sword ray pierced through his throat, squirting blood foam out.

    Ai Hui did not hold back. He had not nned to provoke them, but their attack had been too sudden. He was not afraid of offending them, and he would not ce his hopes on them being courteous and moderate.

    None of the twelve Grass Bandits survived.

    Ai Hui was not in the mood to collect the spoils of war. He held onto his sword with a cold expression on his face as he continued his journey toward Asakusa City.

    While he was expressionless and apathetic, the murderous spirit enveloping his whole body was so thick that it seemed substantial.

    The gale whistled past as Mistress¡¯sst words echoed in his ears. If anything happened to Senior Mingxiu, he would never be able to forgive himself. The war of Central Pine City, the rainy night and the color of blood buried deep within his memory came back to him and spread throughout his whole body.

    He felt as though he had returned to the final battle in Central Pine City.

    The thick, ck sky and the fresh blood mixed together. He looked at the blurry figure in the sky, his heart sinking bit by bit. On the verge of desperation, he tried with all his might to search for a chance until he realized that he was in a plight with no way out, and hisst trace of hope was lost. Then, a sudden grief and sadness overtook him and destroyed him in an instant.

    Peace came after grief. There was a certain constion in knowing that whatever he did would not be enough to save him from despair.

    He had fallen into an abyss, lightless and isted.

    It all felt clear to him.

    A murderous spirit engulfed Ai Hui. He was like a dried up mummy, walking out from his rotten grace with the aura of death lingering around him.

    Many closely packed ck dots appeared on the horizon. More Grass Bandits hade upon seeing the signal for help.

    Ai Hui turned a blind eye to it. Alone, he held onto his sword and flew toward that very direction.

    There were about three hundred of them and the leader was a towering and fierce looking man. Seeing that Ai Hui was alone and that he wasn¡¯t trying to avoid them, but was insteading for them, the leader knew that he must be a strong fighter.

    Plus, they did not see any of their own elementalists. Needless to say, they could tell just how disastrous the situation had been.

    While he looked crude and forthright, he wasn¡¯t rude and impetuous. He was extremely calm.

    Provoking a strong fighter was thest thing these Grass Bandits wanted. Many of them had died because of that. Some enraged Masters were taken down immediately. Others started feuds but let their opponents slip away, eventually losing their lives when those opponents became stronger and came back for them.

    Bandits were bandits. What kind of bandits would they be if they were living harmoniously and amiably?

    Real bandits were those who were pleased to avenge, kill for property and plunder like the wind.

    They weren¡¯t afraid of death to begin with, and killing was amon urrence. It was kill or be killed.

    No matter how powerful the fellow before them was, he wasn¡¯t a Master. Since that was the case, they would not give him the chance to be a Master.

    "Kill!"

    With the burly man¡¯s order, three hundred Grass Bandits sped up. Sharp, non-stop hissing noises sounded like waves as murderous spirits permeated the whole ce.

    With an aura of death lingering around Ai Hui, he advanced forward, carrying an apathetic expression like that of a death god when walking out of hell.

 Chapter 400: Big Biscuit and Red Muslin

    Chapter 400: Big Biscuit and Red Muslin

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Zheng Xiaoman was the leader of the Grass Bandits and Cao Ning was her right-hand man, just as Cao Ning¡¯s father was Zheng Yuanhong¡¯s. Both families had been been acquainted for a long time and their friendship wasn¡¯t ordinary. Once again, they escaped the bloodbath of Deep Sea Enterprise together and they strongly trusted in each other.

    Cao Ning was a brave and attentive character with outstanding capabilities and a shrewd gaze.

    The stranger before him was faintly familiar looking and he felt as though he¡¯d seen him somewhere. But at that point, he had no time to entertain that thought, since once the battle started, he was going to use his sword to talk.

    Three hundred people besieged one man, giving him no chance to flee. He heaved a sigh of relief before worry set in. If that man came over so boldly, he must have something up his sleeves.

    Cao Ning increased his guard and the iing Ai Hui sank down suddenly.

    The distance between them decreased and everyone¡¯s hearts tensed up continuously. Ai Hui¡¯s abrupt move caused some of the more tense Grass Bandits to react instinctively.

    Cao Ning¡¯s face changed slightly. He wanted to make a sound to stop them but was toote.

    Quite a few of hisrades had already struck and some others quickly joined in upon seeing that.

    "Ooh... My goodness!"

    Initially, the cries were fragmentary. Soon, they became clearer and more resounding.

    The sight of three hundred people releasing an attack was beyond spectacr. Multi-colored elemental energy light rays gathered together like surging waves. Ai Hui threw himself forward and the hiss that filled the sky abruptly increased in pitch, drowning their bellows.

    Cao Ning did not look too good. Their attack appeared mighty but was in fact far from passable. For them to have survived in this chaotic world and resisted Deep Sea Enterprise, they naturally had their own means of existing. Their attacks were skillfully coordinated and ingenious. Those who weren¡¯t of the level of Master absolutely wouldn¡¯t be able to directly withstand the elemental energy current amassed by hundreds of elementalists. Plus, under their meticulous arrangement, their scope of attack was extremely wide, so it was difficult for their target to escape once they were close enough to him.

    Even Deep Sea Enterprise hadn¡¯t managed to take advantage of them.

    This was the correct way of battling ¨C the way Cao Ning had been taught since young, so he had precise control over this type of battling method.

    What this meant was that in the battling aspect, the current Deathgrass Division couldn¡¯tpare to the Grass Bandits.

    But Cao Ning looked grave at this point as his opponent was slyer than he had expected. His sudden downward movement was made with perfect timing. Not only did he disrupt their momentum, he also triggered some impetuous members to strike first, throwing the team¡¯s rhythm off.

    Any elementalist could do what he¡¯d done but the key was to grasp the correct timing. His opponent was evidently a seasoned fighter with rich experience.

    An absolutely simple move could actually lead to an extraordinary oue.

    An expert!

    Their seemingly powerful attack was unlikely to intimidate him.

    Indeed, Ai Hui, who had made that sudden drop, rose upwards suddenly and flew straight for the Grass Bandits from the side. His azure wings pped full force but the hissing elemental energy current was approaching him at a rapid speed.

    A trace of joy was seen in Cao Ning¡¯s eyes. It was toote for his opponent to escape from this wave of attacks!

    While this wave of attacks was somewhat messy, it was of a tremendous volume, so once the target was caught in its ripples, it was very difficult to escape.

    Suddenly, Cao Ning noticed his target¡¯s posture.

    Ai Hui¡¯s posture was very unique. His azure wings stuck close to his back and his body was extended. The sword in his hand swallowed and spat light rays like a swordfish migrating deep underwater at a high speed.

    Cao Ning¡¯s pupils contracted.

    The elemental energy current appeared to be swallowing the target, but then he vanished from his line of sight suddenly.

    This...

    Cao Ning had seen many speedy elementalists. During his time in Deathgrass Division, their scouting speed was usually astonishing. Some could even leave a lifelike afterimage in the sky. Some moved like fog while others could conduct long distance raidssting for days. But he¡¯d never seen such a valiant and short-range sprint.

    For that split second, he was actually unable to catch sight of his opponent¡¯s silhouette.

    A dyed boom sounded.

    Cao Ning was stunned. Wind barrier?

    Did he break the barrier in that moment?

    He raised his head abruptly, fixing his gaze on the left side of the sky. The zooming afterimage was like a ck dot.

    So fast...

    Was he escaping?

    He did not know why, but this thought rxed his tensed mental state. When he came around to react to it, he couldn¡¯t help but mock himself. Although his opponent¡¯s attack was very brief, his performance had far exceeded theirs. He had a profound understanding of battling and had a perfect grasp on timing.

    This was the kind of enemy he had hoped not to meet, because even if they did win, a substantial amount of damage would be inflicted on them. Cao Ning thought about who his opponent might be. To possess such skills, he mustn¡¯t be someone nameless.

    Upon failing their first wave of attacks, the team readjusted themselves, albeit in an unorganized manner.

    It was always like that when it came to battling. The moment they lost the upper hand, it meant that their rhythm was also disrupted. If it had been the former Deathgrass Division that was in their position, the team would¡¯ve been able to readjust themselves quickly because of their experience and cool-headedness.

    A pity Grass Bandits were Grass Bandits and the Deathgrass Division, the Deathgrass Division.

    Alright, even the current Deathgrass Division wasn¡¯t as impressive as before.

    Cao Ning also felt that he¡¯d been over-demanding. Although the team was somewhat disorganized, they were still adjusting and their daily trainings hadn¡¯t been for nothing. He reced his focus onto the target high in the sky. Eh?

    His opponent was already in position and facing them. This is...?

    Cao Ning and Ai Hui made eye contact.

    Not good!

    Cao Ning realized in an instant that his opponent hadn¡¯t nned to flee. He was going to attack!

    His Starry Gem Swordwings spread open mightily and Ai Hui swooped down like a falcon.

    His posture diving down was extremely sharp and agile. The grass bandits below were taken aback, messing up the team¡¯s formation once again.

    "We have a lot of people!" someone shouted, instantly giving the team a confidence boost. That was right, there were three hundred of them.

    "Kill!"

    "Get rid of him!"

    The crowd was stirred. A few archers initiated an attack, shooting raindrop-like arrows toward the figure in the sky.

    Cao Ning knew things were bad. The opponent was a seasoned battler with rich experience. Once he gained an upper hand high in the sky, it wasn¡¯t going to be easy to stop him.

    Ai Hui dove down fast, his figure rapidly swaying and his flight path instantly bing strange and unpredictable.

    Ai Hui¡¯s rapid speed brought an oppressive atmosphere to the sky, where many Grass Bandits felt themselves being locked into ce. They were trying wildly to attack and stop him but they couldn¡¯t even get hold of the corner of their enemy¡¯s garments. Intense fear caused them to lose all coordination. They battled individually, creating aplete mess.

    Ai Hui, on the other hand, was like a nimble fish, dodging the raindrop-like light rays.

    His swiftly moving figure producedyers of aftershadow, which magnified within everybody¡¯s field of vision and became increasingly daunting.

    His apathetic and cold face carried not the least bit of warmth. There was no malevolence, no clenching of teeth. He was exceptionally calm.

    Amid the countless elemental light beams, his unusual calmness became jarring.

    It was fear evoking.

    Even Cao Ning shuddered. His judgment had once again been overthrown. How many times had it been today? He couldn¡¯t remember but he knew that he¡¯d provoked a truly ruthless person.

    "Big Biscuit!"

    He shouted with all the voice he had. Because he used too much force, the veins on his neck and forehead surfaced. It was a scary sight.

    A faint, red muslin appeared at the tip of the sword held by the swooping figure.

    Old Five was the backbone of the team and also a member of the younger generation of Deathgrass. In the team, there were a total of six members who were like him. They were all well-coordinated and had outstanding battle tactics, as well as rich family histories. They instantly understood Cao Ning¡¯s intention.

    They had to block off the opponent¡¯s attack or there was going to be a bloodbath.

    As if their hearts were linked, the six of them executed their own defensive moves simultaneously. They practiced different inherited arts but knew guarding moves. Wood elementalists emphasized control and guarding techniques needed training.

    Six multi-colored light screens with different thicknesses stacked over each other, like a zed, thousandyered biscuit.

    This move was named [Ovepping Defense], a standard battle technique of Deathgrass, but everyone liked calling it "Big Biscuit". Cao Ning had been following his father since young and under his influence, he too, started calling it big biscuit.

    The six light screens were not stacked randomly but instead, meticulously arranged in a way whereby some were solid and others were flexible. That way, they would be able to keep off the opponent¡¯s attack more effectively.

    Ai Hui appeared unconcerned, but the Dragonspine in his hand was trembling rapidly.

    The red muslin was spreading and bing increasingly vivid. It was about ten meters long. It was as if he was wearing a long, dull red muslin belt while descending from the sky.

    [Red Muslin]!

    Having seen Brother Li Wei¡¯s domineering move in the past, Ai Hui had made some minor adjustments to create this move. Brother Li Wei¡¯s body was iparably strong, so coupled with a soldiers¡¯ inherited art, thebination was indestructible. Launching such an explosive attack was extremelyplementary.

    With Ai Hui¡¯s [Red Muslin], it was the sword which bore the attack. His body wasn¡¯t strong enough to endure such a terrifying attack.

    Upon witnessing Brother Li Wei¡¯s attack, Ai Hui thought to himself, "How can I increase the force of the impact?"

    His speed increased unceasingly as the sword in his hand underwent changes. Because of Qing Feng¡¯s apanied trainings, Ai Hui¡¯s execution was much more concise and efficient, thus allowing him to significantly increase the number of blows. Furthermore, with better controlling ability, Ai Hui was able to shorten the length of the red muslin, making it more formidable.

    Previously, Ai Hui¡¯s red muslin could clearly be seen by the whole of Peace City but now, it was only about ten meters.

    The reduction in length made it denser and sturdier.

    Ai Hui was like a meteorite falling from the sky, and the soft and gentle red muslin belt around him smashed onto the light screen forcefully.

    Bang!

    When his speed reached its peak, the impact it brought was exceptionally terrifying. The power contained in the red muslin belt exploded at the same time.

    In a split second, the sixyers of light screen had been pierced and the Big Biscuit shattered with a loud rumble.

    The enormous recoiling force made Ai Hui dizzy, but he knew that this was a crucial moment so he forced himself to stay calm. He thrusted the Dragonspine sword, which he held tightly in his hands, toward the crowd.

    The force of the thrust was extremely tremendous, as evident from a few additional cracks that appeared on the sword.

    Cao Ning and his gang were in a much worse state. The force of the impact had injured them on the spot. [Red Muslin], still yet to release itsplete power, stirred up a burst of bloody rain onto the troop when it hit them. A few unlucky elementalists were blown into pieces even before they could utter a cry. The tremendous force of the impact threw them all into a state ofplete chaos.

    What was worse was that their enemy had crashed into their formation.

    The thing Cao Ning dreaded the most had happened after all.

    The tiger had invaded the herd!

    These words emerged in his mind.

    Killing close-range required a lot of willpower and courage, something ordinary elementalists weren¡¯t able to do. Plus, now that the opponent had intruded, his soldiers would refrain from attacking in fear of hurting their own people. Their hands were tied in that case, and their opponent could easily take advantage of them.

    But at this point, it was toote.

    What Cao Ning had to do now was to cling onto his enemy so as to allow his people to regain the upper hand in terms of numbers.

    He gritted his teeth and charged toward Ai Hui, who wasing for them, set to kill.

 Chapter 401: Killing Numbly

    Chapter 401: Killing Numbly

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    When Ai Hui stuck himself onto his opponent¡¯s back, his somewhat trembling wrist had already regained stability and his expression had returned to its original calmness. That blow from [Red Muslin] had mostly been endured by his sword. Although Ai Hui used many techniques to dissolve the impact, the remaining force still made his wrist numb.

    From the corner of his eyes he noticed Cao Ning and the gang charging toward him, but his hands moved without the least bit of hesitation or inuracy. With a flick of his wrist, the sharp sword ray pierced directly into his opponent¡¯s back while his body was like a swimming fish, nimbly making his way into the crowd.

    The Grass Bandits were a mess. They knew that their enemy had intruded and in a panic they rushed, one after another, to defend. The disordered group hindered Cao Ning and a few other backbone fighters, aiding Ai Hui¡¯s shield against them.

    Ai Hui was extremely fast. Be it his attack or body movement, he was going to finish it quickly and regardless of the battle oue, he wasn¡¯t going to stay unnecessarily long.

    He executed a simple [Heavenly Thrust] with his Dragonspine and sword rays flew toward the crowd like raindrops. Some smashed onto the defense barrier, producing sparks, while others collided with the grass rattan, causing leaves to fly everywhere. Some entered the bandits¡¯ bodies, causing blood to stter.

    In reality, these sword rays did not cause great damage. Instead, it triggered mass confusion and panic.

    Ai Hui knew very well that one could only catch fish in muddy water.

    No one noticed that Ai Hui was drilling his way through the crowd like a swimming fish. The number of leaf des on the ck wings on his back was reducing in number. ck tree leaves fell silently from his Starry Gem Swordwings like small ck fishes cruising underwater.

    Ai Hui had spent a lot of effort on building the Starry Gem Swordwings and he was finally able to unleash its potential.

    A ck shadow shed past, causing Cao Ning to feel dizzy.

    His pupils shrank. What was that?

    A ck leaf!

    ck...

    He suddenly thought of the wings on his opponent¡¯s back. He scanned his surroundings quickly and saw countless ck leaves floating close to the crowd. Lights were flickering, explosions rang across the skies and angry cries could be heard everywhere. Amid this chaotic scene, no one noticed these rather motionless ck leaves.

    Cao Ning spotted the enemy within the crowd and noticed that his ck wings had disappeared and only the skeletons were left.

    He quickly understood what was going on and his face paled.

    "Be careful..."

    Before his frightened but loud voice could be heard, the quietly floating ck leaves moved suddenly.

    Each leaf was a mini ck sword and Ai Hui¡¯s Starry Gem Swordwings had a total of three hundred and sixty tree leaves, which equated to three hundred and sixty mini swords.

    The three hundred and sixty mini swords moved simultaneously.

    The ck sword rays were like rain, intertwining in the sky and forming a deathly ck light.

    Anguished shrieks sounded simultaneously and a huge amount of blood sttered all over the ce at the same time.

    Ai Hui¡¯s premeditated move revealed its malicious fangs with its first blow. Ai Hui had progressed tremendously and was no longerparable to when he¡¯d first created the swordwings. But when he was creating it, he had already taken his future progress into consideration.

    Even then, Ai Hui did not expect this move to be so formidable.

    It was his first time operating so many mini swords and hence he was unable to exercise precise control over them. The good thing was that there were many enemies and he was alone withoutpanions, so he need not worry about hurting the wrong people. His opponents were unguarded so whether or not his attack was fatal, this battle would end as long as their speed was quick and their power destructive enough.

    The majority of the Grass Bandits did not notice the tiny ck leaves and some even thought that Ai Hui¡¯s wings were faling apart as they weren¡¯t able to endure the intense battle. As such, they were caught off guard when the sword rays rose up violently.

    Ai Hui seeded on his first blow. Not daring to hesitate he quickly summoned his mini swords back.

    Without the mini swords, the buoyancy of his skeletal wings was patheticallycking. He would fall into a miserable plight if the situation before him lost its flexibility.

    Countless ck leaves flew onto Ai Hui¡¯s back from all directions, like many wiggling ck snakes.

    "Stop him!" Cao Ning bellowed, the horrifying situation making his eyes pop. He¡¯d never seen such a terrifying scene. The sight of over a hundred people spurting blood was beyond impactful.

    Intense fear enveloped him. His opponent¡¯s abilities, and even his ruthlessness, had far exceeded his expectations. He killed people as if he was picking dried grass. Even as a bandit, Cao Ning¡¯s heart felt cold.

    Who exactly had they offended?

    The scary sight before his eyes hadpletely aroused Cao Ning¡¯s determination. No matter how big a price they had to pay, even if this bunch of people were all to die, they must kill that fellow!

    If that fellow was ying hide and seek with them in future, they would not be able to live another peaceful from then on.

    In actuality, Cao Ning was frightened. Although Ai Hui¡¯s attack seemed dreadful, only just over thirty people lost their lives. Other elementalists weren¡¯t badly injured and their battling abilities weren¡¯t badly affected. There were also many who guarded themselves vigntly and managed to avoid getting struck by the mini swords.

    But regardless of whether they were injured or not, they were taken aback by this sudden move.

    From the start of the battle up till now, their opponent had been alone. Yet, the rhythm of the battle had been under his control all this time. The number of casualties on their side continued to increase but that fellow remained unhurt.

    Ai Hui¡¯s strength and agility intimidated the grass bandits, effectively destabilizing their morale.

    The Grass Bandits were very different from Deathgrass Division.

    Although Zheng Xiaoman and Cao Ning had rich family resources and hoped to train and develop Grass Bandits into another Deathgrass Division, it was just wishful thinking. They¡¯d learnt from their experienced older generations when it came to selecting and training members, but what they created was still a group of roving bandits. Perhaps they were stronger than regr bandits, but they were still far away from bing a legitimatebat division.

    At least Grass Bandits had courage, were swift and wear fearful.

    Upon seeing that Ai Hui¡¯s wings were notpletely filled and that his movement was affected, a few grass bandits charged over without hesitation.

    Like a javelin, the grass rattan shot out, releasing a sharp whistle.

    A handful of grass seeds were thrown toward Ai Hui. As long as they were within three meters of him, they would burst into bigs, effectively trapping him.

    A green snake, formed from strange green ripples, passed through the crowd silently and pounced on Ai Hui.

    But he was faster than all of them.

    It wasn¡¯t that Ai Hui had long predicted their moves. He was just very aware of his w and chose not to bet his life on the assumption that his enemies were going to ignore it.

    He swatted his Dragonspine downward in a light movement. With a p, as if hitting a water¡¯s surface, his body shook and an injured grass bandit appeared beside him.

    There was a bloody hole on the bandit¡¯s neck. This small injury was practically non-existent to him. He growled and many grass rattans appeared around him, moving toward Ai Hui like the tentacles of an octopus.

    p, p, p!

    The sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand urately struck all of the grass rattans. The bandit¡¯s body stiffened as a sword ray shot through a grass rattan, pierced his chest and exited from his back.

    Ai Hui¡¯s legs were like springs. He stepped on the grass rattan forcefully like an agile cheetah, and with a change of direction, he entered an empty spot in between two grass bandits.

    The ck leaves formed a ck snake that flew nimbly toward the skeleton wings on Ai Hui¡¯s back. The leaves quickly adhered themselves onto the wings.

    Ai Hui was fast like lightning. His outstanding body was of an important use in this crucial moment. In that small space, his body¡¯s burst of energy made his movements exceptionally quick.

    At times, he would borrow the power of his Dragonspine. He would also borrow the momentum gained from his thighs or use his enemies¡¯ bodies as a shield.

    He was like a demonic bolt of lightning, traveling back and forth through spaces between his enemies. His cool-headedness allowed him to make the most suitable choices amid this chaotic battle. His ability to react quickly also allowed him to deal with unforeseen circumstances with ease.

    Wherever he passed, fresh blood sttered.

    His sword rays were always striking the enemy¡¯s vital points from unexpected angles.

    Cao Ning and his gang were chasing wildly behind, but Ai Hui was like a slippery loach, always finding ways to dodge them and throw them off. At the same time, he was like a wandering death god, urately and efficiently collecting souls with ack of regard for anything else.

    The Grass Bandits fell from the sky like dumplings.

    The once densely packed team was now much sparser, and in the blink of an eye there were less than two hundred of them left, and many of them were injured and dripping blood.

    Fear started creeping onto their faces. They were all desperate criminals, but seeing the number of lives being taken away so rapidly had their hearts and limbs turning cold nevertheless. Whatever courage they had vanished in a puff of smoke.

    Ai Hui had that same expressionlessness stered onto his face, and his sword thrusts were still fast and precise, without the slightest wavering.

    The Starry Gem Swordwings on his back were back to normal, with all the leaves back in ce. Mobility restored, Ai Hui was like a tiger that had grown wings, his sword moves became much swifter.

    [Six Moons] appeared as six scythes, like that of a grim reaper. They would harvest a soul the moment a weakness was being exposed.

    Suddenly, someone started to flee.

    Once an avnche urred, it became difficult to contain. This was a unique characteristic of the bandits. No matter how surly bandits were, they crumbled easily when met with danger. Yet, the Thirteen Divisions had to, time and time again, battle until there were only a few people left and a definite victory was won.

    Cao Ning and Zheng Xiaoman might have been able to duplicate the discipline and code of conduct of the former Deathgrass Division, but they were unable to instill in them the spirit of Deathgrass.

    What were they fighting for?

    For the ce where all power and weakness originated from.

    When things were going smoothly, they saw it as a joke that was being yed on them. There was no need for reason when there was talent. Only at the end of the road did they realize that there were always things that made them afraid, unwilling and unable to retreat even if a de was held close to their eyes.

    The mental breakdown hit them hard. To the grass bandits, this battle was merely a one-sided massacre. They¡¯d seen for themselves how Ai Hui, alone with a single sword, killed their people numbly and indifferently.

    But not everyone was feeling defeated. Cao Ning and more than ten other people stood where they were and surrounded Ai Hui, trapping him in the middle. They red at him like wolves on grasnd.

    Influenced by their older generations, they had been kids with lofty aspirations. Even if fate made it tough for them, even if Nature yed tricks on them, and even if their faith had been destroyed, they stood strong and proud, their courage and valor unwavering.

    They weren¡¯t afraid to die in a battle!

 Chapter 402: Fight Till The End

    Chapter 402: Fight Till The End

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Many of the Grass Bandits who¡¯d fled turned around and observed the battle from afar. They were afraid of receiving punishment upon return. What if Cao Ning and the others imed victory? It wouldn¡¯t be too hard for them to escape even if Cao Ning lost. If so many of them dispersed like birds, how could their opponent, alone, chase all of them down?

    They scattered around, keeping their gazes on Cao Ning and the gang.

    Cao Ning red firmly at his opponent¡¯s young face. He still found it hard to believe that this young fellow, close to his own age, could defeat almost all of his people.

    Through his gritted teeth he asked, "Who are you, Sir?"

    Ai Hui kept an indifferent face, as if unconcerned about the fact that he¡¯d been surrounded. "I¡¯m Ai Hui."

    Cao Ning opened his eyes wide. He finally understood why that fellow looked so familiar.

    The Lightning de¡¯s mirage bean pod had spread across the whole Avalon of Five Elements and Jadeite Forest as well. And why wouldn¡¯t the Grass Bandits located between Jadeite Forest and Palette Cloud Vige know about it? In fact, at that time, Cao Ning couldn¡¯t help but praise that good fellow.

    Ai Hui¡¯s performance in the battle of Central Pine City was admirable even to those who were judgemental.

    Aplicated look shed across the faces of not only him, but of the other bandits as well. They¡¯d all seen the clip and were aware of Ai Hui¡¯s past achievements.

    Only after their real-life match did they realize that Ai Hui¡¯s abilities were much stronger than what awas reflected in the movie beanpod.

    A person¡¯s reputation was like the shadow of a tree ¨C never disappearing. Ai Hui showed potential in bing Central Pine Faction¡¯s leader. While the faction never did address him as their leader, they assembled from all around to serve him whenever he appeared.

    If he wasn¡¯t a leader, who was?

    Cao Ning took a deep breath, suppressing his murderousness. He said in a low voice, "The Lightning de, why do you take Grass Bandits as your enemy?"

    Ai Hui thought it funny, but kept a straight face. Instead, he asked, "Why did you guys block my path?"

    Cao Ning thought back to their earlier actions and felt that things had gotten inconvenient.

    Thinking about the help signal, he realized that it must have been because of the conflict his subordinates had gotten into with Ai Hui. But none of those who called for help survived, so he wasn¡¯t able to know exactly what had happened before he arrived.

    He did not mind losing a small team; the problematic part was the fact that they¡¯d offended a strong fighter. Other than the main yers from the team, all other Grass Bandits were merely cannon fodder. In this messy world where people were like grass, mere cannon fodder was easily receable. He was more agitated because the small team leader was someone he thought highly of.

    He asked in the same low voice, "There had been a misunderstanding but why did you have to kill all of them? We know about The Lightning de, and if the team from earlier had known about your identity, why would they have made things difficult for you?"

    Ai Hui looked at him before responding, somewhat mockingly, "That was not what your noble subordinate said. Resist and be killed was what they said. After thinking about it I was certain that I could not allow that to happen, so killing them was the only way out."

    Cao Ning replied harshly, "Seems like you¡¯re belittling us, with no desire to dissolve the misunderstanding or give us a proper exnation. In that case, we will have to talk with our swords and fight till the end!"

    "Fight till the end?" Ai Hui nodded. "Alright, I did not say all that wanting to resolve this misunderstanding. I¡¯m also uninterested in your exnation and words. I just want to let you know something."

    He scanned slowly across the observing Grass Bandits with a piercing gaze, his voice sonorous and impactful.

    "I, Ai Hui, am heading toward Asakusa City to visit Senior Mingxiu. Those who obstruct my path shall die and those who stop me shall be killed. Senior Mingxiu stays away from worldly affairs, so whoever tries to do her harm will have to face me afterwards. I will do whatever it takes to track and destroy him and all three generations of his family. Just to let you know!"

    Thest sentence seemed to echo, rising in spirals along with the surge of elemental energy, causing those present to turn pale.

    Silence.

    There was an ominous glint in Cao Ning¡¯s eyes when he muttered softly, "So you¡¯re here for her..."

    A few others made eye contact and a vengeful look appeared on their faces.

    A murderous looking Ai Hui lowered his head suddenly andughed. "There, a simple test was all it took."

    With an intense murder-lust filled smile, Ai Hui¡¯s body shot forward toward Cao Ning in a swift manner.

    Confirming his suspicions, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t the least bit ted. He would rather have guessed wrongly and would rather have been overly sensitive.

    Grass Bandits had ns for Senior Mingxiu indeed!

    Before, he had no malice toward the Grass Bandits. There was nothing strange about getting to the top by ridding oneself of those at the bottom, just like the poor folks, Gu Tianning and so on. In this chaotic world, there was no disguise. Thew of the jungle became even more direct and bloody.

    The feud between Grass Bandits and Deep Sea Enterprise would make one sigh.

    To Ai Hui, that was nothing. Whether or not Grass Bandits was admirable, good or evil, it had nothing to do with him. He wasn¡¯t the guild and wasn¡¯t required to determine others¡¯ fate. He need not rule the world.

    His world was very small and only a few people existed within it.

    Whether those outside it lived or died, whether the world lived or died, he did not care.

    Such was his rtionship with the Grass Bandits. Before this, they were neither friends nor enemies and had nothing to do with one another.

    But Senior Mingxiu was included in his small world, so whoever made her their enemy made him theirs as well. Those who targeted her, targetted him too.

    He did not care if people treated him as an enemy. He wouldn¡¯t take it to heart. In fact, when killing, he could even understand where they wereing from. No one had it easy, right?

    But he could never forgive those who try to harm his senior. No, rather than being unable to forgive, he couldn¡¯t stop himself detesting them.

    He seldom developed such intense emotions, but when those in his world were involved he just couldn¡¯t control the hatred within.

    It was just the way he was, selfish and narrow-minded.

    He was like a stingyndlord, guarding whatever barrennd he had. He was just a nobody and had little tolerance.

    But once his limitednd had intruders, Ai Hui¡¯s counterattack would be exceptionally ferocious and reckless. No matter how strong his opponents were, he wouldn¡¯t hesitate to charge toward them like moths toward mes.

    His world was barren and deste to begin with and the things he cherished were few, so why wouldn¡¯t he protect them with all that he had?

    The hatred emerging from deep within his heart had no influence over his actions. He kept his usual calmness, throwing himself and his enemies onto the chessboard.

    Ai Hui¡¯s objective had never been this resolute. He just wanted to kill all of them right now.

    Facing Ai Hui, who was charging toward him, Cao Ning rushed forward with a growl. The elemental energy within his whole body was bubbling. Earlier, Ai Hui had been slippery, like a loach and Cao Ning couldn¡¯t even grab hold of his clothes. He could only watch him slip away and ughter his members. It was only natural, then, that mes were raging within his heart.

    Right now, Ai Hui chose to meet force with force, striking those below him. They had the advantage in terms of numbers, and regardless of how strong Ai Hui was, he wasn¡¯t a Master. He was still in Second Elemental Realm after all, so no matter how powerful his inherited arts and skills were, his elemental consumption was significant and definite.

    Cao Ning practiced [Three Sun Hatchets of Aoki]. He had a tall, naturally powerful and sturdy frame, which was extremely well-suited for this absolute art. Practically every generation of the Cao family had served Deathgrass Division and had rich battling experience.

    Cao Ning held onto two solid hatchets, a stopgap for the Cao family¡¯s most valued Three Sun Hatchets since they¡¯d fallen into Deep Sea Enterprise¡¯s hands.

    His moves were well-controlled, each axe producing a big sheet of green light. These green lights were firm and forceful. Ai Hui¡¯s sword rays fell onto them, but only sparks lit up. His rays were unable to deal a blow to them at all.

    Furthermore, they did not disperse immediately upon appearing, causing Cao Ning¡¯s surroundings to be covered inyer uponyer of green lights that became increasingly thick. His whole body waspletely engulfed in the lights, which became an iparably solid armor.

    Ai Hui executed different moves consecutively, but was unable to shake up these dense green lights.

    Some others made eye contact before moving forward to surround Ai Hui.

    One of them reached about twenty to twenty five meters behind Ai Hui before throwing a handful of grass seeds forward. In order not to catch Ai Hui¡¯s attention, he did not shoot them directly at Ai Hui. Instead, the seeds floated toward him slowly like how duckweeds would on water.

    The others started attacking as well.

    Suddenly, the elementalist who was carefully controlling the seeds shuddered, as if being spotted by a lurking poisonous snake.

    Cold air tingled the back of his neck. With his rich battling experience, he just knew that he was in trouble. Not good!

    With a hand summoning elemental energy, he patted his neck at lightning speed, but to no avail as nothing had been struck.

    A moon-shaped sword ray about the size of a palm coiled around his neck and spun.

    A head fell onto the ground.

    The grass seeds lost control in mid air and exploded like stir-fried beans.

    Cao Ning, who was surrounded by the green lights, shouted with his eyes popping, "Old Five!"

    He realized at this point that he had fallen into Ai Hui¡¯s evil n!

    Ai Hui had long figured out their intentions.

    Cao Ning would cling onto the enemy while the rest mounted sneak attacks. This strategy was something they were very familiar with. Ai Hui pretended not to sense it and appeared as though he¡¯d been distracted by Cao Ning when in fact he had his eyes on the others. The time that the remaining few got ready to attack was exactly the time they had their guard down.

    [Six Moons] was like a silent killer, dealing them a fatal blow.

    Fresh blood sttered everywhere simultaneously once again, but the areas of attack were different. Some were wounded in their necks and hearts while others were hit in their lower vital organs, extremely treacherous and vicious on Ai Hui¡¯s part.

    The sudden form reversal had everyone dumbstruck.

    Cao Ning sensed danger and the odor of death. Even during the night of the bloodbath, the aura of death wasn¡¯t this intense and palpable.

    He was going to die here today, he thought all of a sudden.

    The Lightning de indeed, living well up to his name, Cao Ning thought in admiration, without the least bit of regret.

    They had been nning this strategy for a long time. Lu Mingxiu was their enemy and so was the whole Lu family. Who could stand alone in this chaotic world? Who could iste themselvespletely? A white cloth that was stained with blood was no longer a white cloth.

    They had to take revenge! They had to live!

    Cao Ning was obdurate. Determined to fight with his life on the line, the elemental energy within his body surged as he threw the two axes toward Ai Hui with all the strength he had. Cracks started to appear on the surface of the axes, revealing a dazzling green light beneath. As the cracks started to peel off, the light became increasingly brighter.

    A carefree smile appeared on Cao Ning¡¯s face. He was finally going to die!

    To die for a greater cause... It was worth it!

    Xiaoman, live on! Avenge us!

    He grabbed both axes, his flesh rupturing inch by inch, but he seemed to feel nothing. He utilized all the strength he possessed in his body as fresh blood sprayed out. The two solid axes, wrapped in green light, got closer and closer.

    As long as two balls of green light touched, [Three Sun Hatches of Aoki] would end in a final blow.

    [Duo Sun Destruction].

    A strange sword chime sounded overhead and Cao Ning¡¯s movements became rigid. He got distracted and his eyes zed over.

    [Sword Chime]!

    Regaining awareness, Cao Ning saw that his green lights had already collided.

    His final thought upon getting swallowed up by the boundless green light was this: What a pity...

 Chapter 403: Great Waves

    Chapter 403: Great Waves

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The news of Ai Hui heading towards Asakusa City spread like a hurricane. Bandit brigades of all sizes on the borders of Palette Cloud Vige and Jadeite Forest knew of this news.

    Before this incident, even though the Lightning de was rather reputable, everyone merely viewed him as a hero whose image was built by Elders Guild. Three years ago, Ai Hui¡¯s base level and strength was still very low. Furthermore, he was still a student. His achievements might be impressive, but the ones who¡¯d really put thest nail to the coffin in the Battle of Central Pine City were actually Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqin.

    Many had believed that Central Pine Faction¡¯s absolute allegiance to Ai Hui was due to his outstanding charisma.

    Until this battle happened.

    Grass Bandits and Ai Hui hade face to face and a grave conflict ensued between the two sides. Ai Hui was not injured at all, while the Grass Bandits suffered disastrous losses and sustained over two hundred deaths. This was the first time the Grass Bandits had encountered such a situation since their establishment. Furthermore, the death of Cao Ning by Ai Hui¡¯s hands awed various outstanding heroes and raised Ai Hui¡¯s reputation to a new level.

    Everyone had no choice but to see the legendary Lightning de in apletely different light.

    The strength of the famous Lightning de was actually so powerful!

    He single-handedly took on all of the Grass Bandits and ughtered them with total disregard for their lives. He¡¯d in one of their keymanders and routed his men. These aplishments had certainly shocked everyone. The number of deaths in this battle also demonstrated another side of the Lightning de. Simrly, this result also shocked everyone.

    A lot of people had realized that the Lightning de was somebody that was not to be provoked.

    Another person who became famous from this battle was Mingxiu.

    Lu Mingxiu led a low-profile life in Asakusa City. Furthermore, the Lu family was under secret protection. Very few people knew of Mingxiu¡¯s true background.

    In the past, the area surrounding Asakusa City was like a tranquil and peacefulke. However, Ai Hui threw a huge rock into it and swept up great waves. The sensation caused by Ai Hui caught various powers, that were hiding in the dark, off guard. The sereneke had been disturbed.

    Before Ai Hui even reached Asakusa City, the impact of this battle had already spread across the state.

    The stronghold of the Grass Bandits was very far from Asakusa City. One would need to fly for two days and two nights straight to get there. For thest two years, in a time of chaos, the expansion of the Grass Bandits had been very fast. From the initial thirty members, their numbers had grown to over four thousand members.

    The current Grass Bandits had be an influential powerhouse on the border of Jadeite Forest.

    The stronghold of the Grass Bandits had grown from a few tree houses to a heavily-guarded stockade that had a perimeter of over five kilometers.

    The canopy of numerous tall and imposing trees had covered the sky. If they were to be invaded by their enemies, the canopy would emit a protective light screen that possessed outstanding defensive capabilities.

    Additionally, the branches that were near the canopy were overgrown with bone umbre reishi.

    The bone umbre reishi was a type of reishi mushroom that was specially cultivated for defensive purposes. Its cap looked like a round te and was covered with veined patterns. Since it looked like an umbre made up of bones, it was called bone umbre reishi. Each bone umbre reishi had five to ten bone arrows grown within it. Whenever they encountered enemy attacks, they would fire these bone arrows continuously.

    Vines could be seen everywhere on the trees, and cbashes of various colors were also hung on some of these vines. These cbashes were the famous cbash cannons. They could shoot out the cbash seeds within them. The color of a cbash cannon represented its elemental type.

    Beneath the thick and dense canopy, the houses were neatly built. Pumpkinmps that emitted a gentle glow could be found everywhere. As such, the stronghold was not at all dark even if it was beneath the thick and dense canopy.

    If a stranger came to this ce, he or she would have thought this was an encampment of a wood elementalbat division. In reality, this stronghold was in fact built based on the standards of abat division.

    The discussion hall was formed by four extremely sturdy and durable diamond fleabane trees. Their trunks and branches hadpletely fused together to form a gigantic hall.

    The discussion hall was not really spacious. It could only hold up to seventy to eighty people. Out of these people, twenty of them were Zhen Xiaoman¡¯s trustedrades that had been part of the Grass Bandits since the beginning.

    "Who exactly is the one that leaked out the news?"

    "How did Ai Hui know that we want to target Lu Mingxiu?"

    "It must be that Ai Hui had already gotten the news beforehand and he rushed over just for her."

    Everyone was talking at once and all of them were in the state of panic. The n to kidnap Mingxiu was devised by them meticulously. However, before the n was even carried out, it had been leaked to the outside world. How could everyone stay calm?

    Bang! Smashing her fist on the table, Zheng Xiaoman roared angrily, "Everyone shut up!"

    Zheng Xiaoman was around twenty-five years old. She was tall and thick. She could not be considered a beauty. However, her coarse and wild temperament, as well as her outstanding stature always made her the focal point of everyone¡¯s eyes.

    The Grass Bandits was single-handedly established by Zheng Xiaoman and she was highly respected. Everyone shut up and the discussion hall was so quiet that one could even hear the sound of a pin dropping on the floor.

    When Zheng Xiaoman thought of Cao Ning, a tinge of sadness shed across her eyes. She raised her head and spoke with a voice that was filled with hatred, "We will put aside the issue of Lu Mingxiu first. We can¡¯t let Old Cao die for nothing and we have to seek revenge for him! Until we have sought our revenge for Old Cao, don¡¯t talk to me about other issues!"

    After finishing her sentence, she stomped out of the discussion hall without turning back.

    Everyone in the discussion hall looked at each other nkly.

    A lean man seated at one corner of the hall swept his gaze across everyone asionally while a pensive look appeared on his face.

    Boss¡¯s words had made everyone feel ashamed and embarrassed. Subsequently, all of them dispersed from the discussion hall.

    Remaining calm and collected, the lean man returned to his home. Upon checking that no one was following him, he closed and locked the door.

    "Why could Ai Hui get this news?" a voice suddenly sounded off behind him

    The lean man already knew there was somebody behind him. Upon hearing these words, he sneered, "I should be the one asking this question. For the past few days, the stronghold has beenpletely disconnected from the outside world and no news or information could travel out of this ce."

    Hiding his face in the shadow, the cloaked figure replied coldly, "My side will never divulge this information."

    "Nevermind, it¡¯s not the time to talk about this. So what do we do now? Boss has already made it clear that we will not do anything if we don¡¯t seek revenge for Cao Ning. Our deal is going to fall through soon," the lean man replied with impatience.

    "A mere Lightning de is enough to scare all of you to this extent?" the cloaked figure in the shadow mocked.

    "Alright then, you shall go and kill the Lightning de and I will pass his head to Boss. We can immediately start nning now." The lean manughed coldly.

    The cloaked figure was speechless.

    Cao Ning was in and his three hundred followers were either killed or severely wounded. This was indeed an impressive aplishment.

    The cloaked figure muttered to himself irresolutely. Following which, he softened his tone, "We really have to think of a way. We can¡¯t nkly watch on as this great deal falls through."

    The lean man¡¯s facial expression became solemn as well. He knew this deal was something that the Grass Bandits definitely could not give up on.

    .....

    Jadeite Forest.

    A Fiery Floating Cloud that bore the emblem of the Lu family was flying at top speed in the sky. Apparently, heading for Asakusa City. Upon seeing that the Fiery Floating Cloud bore the emblem of the Lu family, the bamboo carts along the way quickly got out of its way. One could see how powerful the Lu family was in Jadeite Forest.

    Within the Fiery Floating Cloud, in a simple and unadorned study room, an imposing man was immersed in his work. An old servant was standing in one corner of the room.

    An unending stream of subordinates were entering and exiting the room, stacking his tables with countless reports. Everyone that entered or exited his room was extremely careful. They tried to make as little noise as possible for fear of disturbing their division leader.

    The person who was immersed in his work was the current division leader of Deathgrass Division, Lu Feng.

    Without raising his head, he asked, "Have you prepared the gifts for Mingxiu?"

    The silent old servant standing in the corner of the room quickly replied, "The gifts have already been prepared. All of them are Miss Mingxiu¡¯s favourite items. Textiles that have been passed down for past generations, some famous paintings and an ancient artifact remnant."

    "Artifact remnant?" Lu Feng¡¯s hands trembled.

    "It should be a g and it is badly corroded. However, the embroidery on the g is extremely exquisite. I think Miss Mingxiu will like it and I made my own decision to add it as one of the gifts," the old servant replied respectfully.

    "Well done," Lu Feng praised the old servant.

    After staying silent for a while, Lu Feng continued, "Since you have worked diligently in handling your daily chores, I will not treat you unfairly. Ask that nephew of yours to report to the division next month."

    A look of happiness appeared on the old servant¡¯s face and he quickly thanked Lu Feng, "Thank you, Sir!"

    At this moment, one of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinate ran into the room hastily, "Sir, this is the report that I have just received and it¡¯s rted to Miss Mingxiu. I sent it over here as soon as possible."

    "Rted to Mingxiu? Pass it to me now!" Lu Feng stopped what he was doing and raised his head. He had a majestic appearance. His lips were thin and long and his nose bridge was high and imposing. His forehead was sparkling and prominent and his eyes were bright and full of expression.

    After taking the report, Lu Feng began to read it carefully. Following which, he could not help but let out a gasp of surprise, "Cao Ning was killed?"

    The more he read the report, the more shocked he felt. More than two hundred out of Cao Ning¡¯s three hundred followers were either killed or severely wounded. This forced Cao Ning to use a move that ensured mutual destruction. However, in the end, not only was Ai Hui uninjured, but all of Cao Ning¡¯s trusted subordinates were killed.

    Lu Feng definitely knew about Cao Ning.

    The Grass Bandits were Deathgrass Division¡¯s arch-enemy. Lu Feng had been thinking of ways to deal with them. However, the Grass Bandits¡¯ fighting capabilities were outstanding and they were swift moving. Cao Ning was one of the Grass Bandits¡¯ generals but Ai Hui was actually able to take him down single-handedly. From the number of casualties, Lu Feng could tell that Ai Hui was a vicious and merciless individual that killed people with total disregard for their lives.

    Without raising his head, Lu Feng ordered the old servant, "Go and bring me Ai Hui¡¯s file."

    "Yes!" the old man quickly replied.

    Very soon, the file containing information about Ai Hui was ced before Lu Feng. Afterparing the file to the report, Lu Feng discovered that there was a huge difference between what was being reported on both of them.

    On the file, it was written, "Base Level: First Elemental Realm. Evaluation of Strength: Weak. Strengths: Charismatic, good at winning over people¡¯s hearts, well-supported by many people."

    Lu Feng ripped the file to shreds and instructed the old servant, "Rebuild the file on Ai Hui."

    "Yes!" A cold shiver went down the old servant¡¯s spine.

    Lu Feng sat down and delved deep into his thoughts. He began to strum his fingers on the table subconsciously. Of course, he knew about Ai Hui. He knew everything about Mingxiu and the people around her. Ai Hui and Mingxiu had a close rtionship. However, a few years back, Ai Hui was still very weak and he did not think of making friends with Ai Hui.

    He did not expect Ai Hui to be so powerful in such a short period of time!

    He picked up the report again. He knew everything that was written in it by heart without even looking at it. This report had given him a huge shock.

    He let go of his emotions and pondered over this issue carefully. Very soon, he came to a decision.

    The report had stated that Ai Hui had reached Second Elemental Realm and the speed of his progress was terrifyingly fast. However, the thing that shocked Lu Feng the most was that Ai Hui single-handedly killed Cao Ning and ughtered more than half of his subordinates.

    The talent forbat that Ai Hui had disyed was extremely powerful. Taking his age into ount, Lu Feng predicted that the possibility of Ai Hui bing a Master in future was very high.

    Suddenly, he raised his head and said, "Prepare a gift for Ai Hui."

    "Yes, what standard should the gift be of?" the old servant asked.

    "The highest standard," Lu Feng replied without any hesitation.

    The old servant was stunned by Lu Feng¡¯s words. He looked slightly troubled and replied, "I¡¯m afraid... it¡¯s a bit too rushed."

    Lu Feng cast a nce at him and said, "Get it done."

    The old servant trembled. He summoned his courage and replied, "I will get it done right away!"

 Chapter 404: Entering The City

    Chapter 404: Entering The City

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Ai Hui did not stop flying and headed straight for Asakusa City at full speed.

    Asakusa City was a small border city. It was of a simr size to Central Pine City. Due to the rise in illicit businesses, it had flourished significantly; however, as the illicit businesses had taken a hard hit recently, the city became rather deste.

    With a bad economy, there were many idlers on the streets. They filled the city in small groups, chatting with one another.

    Most likely because of the recent increase in bandit activities, Asakusa City¡¯s defence system was on high alert. The treetop of the towering and imposing ancient tree emitted a faint green glow. Defensive ancient trees had been nted in strategic positions around Asakusa City. Altogether, they formed a defensive light screen.

    Defensive ancient trees only had one purpose: to defend. Their roots were embedded deeply into the ground. A defensive ancient tree could grow to over two hundred meters in height. As its height increased, so would its defensive power.

    In Jadeite Forest, the first thing that every city built was a defensive ancient tree. Defensive ancient trees that were in their premature stage had weaker defensive power, but as time passed, their defensive power would continue to increase.

    The light screens formed by defensive ancient trees were useful in protecting a city from aerial attacks.

    Even though Asakusa City was not really huge, it was an extremely old city. It had three defensive ancient trees that were over one hundred meters tall. These three defensive ancient trees had extremely strong defensive power. Any ordinary bandits that wanted to invade a city like Asakusa City were simply indulging in wishful thinking.

    Actually, Ai Hui felt that wood elementalists were the most suitable ones to build cities in the Wilderness. Defensive ancient trees could only be cultivated by specialized wood elementalists. If a defensive ancient tree was cultivated by a wood elemental master, its defensive power would be even stronger.

    Given the current rtionship between Elders Guild and Jadeite Forest, however, asking these two factions to join hands was being even more delusional than the bandits that wanted to invade Asakusa City.

    Ai Hui only knew that his senior¡¯s embroidery workshop was somewhere in Asakusa City and had to ask around for its exact location. He descended from the sky andnded at the city gate.

    The guard at the city gate looked at himzily. Ai Hui did not care about him at all. When a city was not under attack, the guards at the city gate would always behave like this.

    All of a sudden, the guard¡¯szy gaze froze. His hand involuntarily pulled on hisrade¡¯s sleeve.

    His daydreamingrade returned to his senses and asked with irritation, "What?"

    He noticed hisrade¡¯s gaze and followed its line of sight...

    Oh, an ordinary-looking fellow. His base level is only at Second Elemental Realm. Isn¡¯t this kind of individual found everywhere? What¡¯s the fuss about? Erm, he still uses a sword. A swordsman... with ck-colored azure wings... a slightly familiar face...

    He was dumbstruck.

    Ai Hui did not really care about the two guards looking at him, but felt slightly ufortable when the two guards¡¯ gazes fixed onto him. He turned his face around and asked bluntly, "Is there any problem?"

    The two guards returned to their senses. Their faces turned deathly white as they kept on shaking their heads.

    Ai Hui cast a puzzled look at both of them, but since they were not finding trouble with him, he did not care about them and walked right through the city gate.

    The entrance into the city was very long, resembling a dark and gloomy tunnel.

    Exiting the tunnel was like walking out of the darkness, as Ai Hui was engulfed by sunlight. The mor of the streets was filled with an aura of vitality. Ai Hui shut his eyes and enjoyed the warmth of the sunlight. The lively aura of vitality made him feelfortable.

    Holding his sword in one hand, he spread his arms wide open and looked as if he wanted to embrace this world.

    The sunlight was warm andfortable as usual. The lively mor of the streets seemed to be slightly softer than just now.

    It got slightly softer once more...

    Silence.

    Dead Silence.

    What had happened? Ai Hui was stunned. He did not sense any signs of impending doom or the presence of an expert.

    Ai Hui quickly opened his eyes to see what happened. Following which, he froze.

    Everyone on the street looked as if they were being cursed by a petrification spell. They were motionless. The weird thing was that their gazes were fixated on him.

    Silence. An awkward silence.

    Ai Hui subconsciously looked at himself.

    Oh, my clothes are slightly tattered, old, and dirty. What else? I did not wear my pants wrong...

    He raised his head.

    Whoosh. The previously statue-like figures came to life and ran off in a panic like rmed birds. A few of them were so terrified that they tripped and fell before scrambling away.

    Before Ai Hui could react, the previously bustling streets had be empty.

    Dead silence.

    The dumbstruck Ai Hui took a long while to return to his senses.

    How do I ask for directions now?

    .....

    One hourter, Mingxiu was reprimanding Ai Hui inside the embroidery workshop.

    "You¡¯re no longer a teenager but a leader now, why are you always so rash? Well done, now everyone in the city knows what you did. All I want is a peaceful life and you have to mess it up. Today, the manager who is in charge of sending materials to us didn¡¯t even dare to raise his head to look at me. He was so scared that he almostid on the floor to talk to me. He didn¡¯t even dare to ept payment from me. I had to spend nearly half an hour to persuade him to take the money. You tell me, how am I going to carry on my business if this goes on?"

    "Do you know what everyone is calling you now? Death god! Executor! They¡¯re saying that you have total disregard for the lives you take! You have really scared me this time around."

    "Your aura of death is too strong! You only know how to resort to violence when things don¡¯t go your way. How long have you not been practising embroidery? It¡¯s not that I want to nag at you, but it¡¯s time for you to grow up and stop resorting to violence for everything. You¡¯re not young anymore. Even if you want to kill people, you have to do a clean job out of it. Why did you leave so many survivors this time around?"

    "Do you need me to help you?"

    Initially, Ai Hui had an obedient look on his face. Every now and then, he would say, "Yes, yes, you¡¯re right," or "Why didn¡¯t I think of that?" or even something like, "The next time I see them, I will be polite and amiable and talk about life with them."

    However, as he continued to listen to Senior Mingxiu¡¯s nagging, his facial expression became more and more nk. When he saw Senior Mingxiu got more and more excited in nagging him, the nk look on his face became even more distinct.

    Mingxiu was very pleased with herself. Within seconds, she turned back to her usual gentle self. She softened her tone and said with a demure voice, "Junior, no one understands your temperament more than I do. To be able to make you take action, they must be the ones who provoked you first. To be able to make you treat them so ruthlessly, they must have provoked you quite badly; however, killing people is still a sin after all. Killing people will demonize you. Junior, don¡¯t be like them. Be more forgiving and treat people with kindness. Don¡¯t endanger yourself. Furthermore, how can I let you draw your sword when you¡¯re in Jadeite Forest? Wouldn¡¯t that make me a useless Senior?"

    Her tone was as gentle as water. Ai Hui felt weak just by listening to her.

    "Don¡¯t make this kind of mistake in the future again, okay? Master and Mistress are not around, so Senior has to take good care of you."

    "Yes," Ai Hui replied obediently.

    The female embroiderers of the embroidery workshop were peeking at Ai Hui. Their eyes were filled with curiosity as they discussed him in a low volume.

    One female embroiderer¡¯s face was filled with infatuation. "So he is the Lightning de? He doesn¡¯t look fierce or ruthless at all! He is so cute!"

    "Cute? Do you know how many people he has killed? There are enough corpses to fill up the entire embroidery workshop," another short-haired girl sneered.

    Upon hearing these words, an uproar broke out among the rest of the female embroiderers. The way that the short-haired girl described the scene was too vivid.

    "If I have nightmares tonight, it¡¯s all thanks to you!"

    "How can you say such frightening words! It¡¯s scary!"

    "Oh my god, how do I work overnight shift in the future?"

    After hearing these words, the short-haired girl¡¯s face also turned slightly pale. Apparently, she had been frightened by her own words.

    A female senior embroiderer looked deeply worried. "Boss is even fiercer than him. She has already scolded him for so long. I really hope she doesn¡¯t piss him off. What if he decides to create a ruckus in the workshop?"

    "Then all of us will be killed like a bunch of chicks."

    The infatuated girl¡¯s eyes lit up and she replied, "Am I the only who thinks that he is cute? Look at how bright his smile is!"

    "I¡¯m sure his smile is also that bright when he kills someone," the short-haired girl sneered and blurted out.

    "Are you trying to keep us from having a peaceful sleep tonight?"

    "Beat her up!"

    "Hehe, me too!"

    "No point begging for mercy now, I will support everyone!"

    The female embroiderers raised a huge ruckus.

    Time did not seem to have had any effects on Lu Mingxiu. Her gentleness made Ai Hui feel a sense of warmth and familiarity. Standing in the embroidery workshop with all the female embroiderers looking curiously at him brought him back to the day when he¡¯d first stepped into Mistress¡¯s embroidery workshop in Central Pine City.

    It was then that Ai Hui realized that the arrangements of his senior¡¯s embroidery workshop were exactly the same as his mistress¡¯s.

    Senior must miss Mistress very much.

    "Come and help me out. Recently, the deadlines are rather tight and there are a lot of orders. We don¡¯t have enough employees as well. Luckily, you are here."

    "Alright!"

    All the female embroiderers were dumbfounded when they saw the legendary executor, Ai Hui, obediently pick up a needle and start to help out. Every now and then, their boss would continue reprimanding him.

    "Your skills are too rusty!"

    "Wrong, wrong! Here! You wouldn¡¯t havemitted such a mistake in the past."

    "The way you hold your needle is wrong!"

    When Mingxiu saw the serious look on Ai Hui¡¯s face and his rusty hand movements, her gaze turned gentle and warm. If Master and Mistress were still alive and saw Junior¡¯s aplishments, they would definitely be proud of him.

    A lot of memories emerged in her mind.

    When she thought of how Junior had passed Mistress¡¯s test, how he¡¯d blown up the embroidery workshop and contracted a huge debt, and how concentrated he¡¯d been when spinning silk from the cocoons, her lips curled into a loving smile.

    The days she¡¯d spent in Central Pine City had be her most beautiful memories. There were Master, Mistress, and Junior. All of them had been together with her.

    A guy with a thick and broad back was with a girl with a sweet and sincere smile on her face.

    When Lu Feng arrived at the embroidery workshop, this scene was exactly what he saw. He was bbergasted. Not just Lu Feng, but all the subordinates behind him were also frozen like a bunch of y figurines.

    After a while, Lu Feng returned to his senses and shifted his gaze to Mingxiu. With an apologetic tone, he said, "Recently I¡¯ve been busy with work and couldn¡¯te and visit you. Mingxiu, please forgive me."

    Ai Hui cast a curious look at Lu Feng. Who is this fellow?

    "Second Brother, you are being too polite," Mingxiu replied with indifference.

    Ai Hui cast a nce at Senior Mingxiu. The moment he saw Senior Mingxiu¡¯s facial expression, he knew that this fellow had no chance. He¡¯d seen how sweet and gentle Senior Mingxiu¡¯s smile was when she¡¯d been together with Brother Li Wei in the past.

    Wait, did he hear incorrectly? Just now, Senior had called him "Second Brother," right? Ai Hui felt so curious that his heart was about to jump out!

    Lu Feng looked as if he did not sense Mingxiu¡¯s indifference as he maintained the smile on his face. Shifting his gaze to Ai Hui, he said with a bright tone, "Is this Mingxiu¡¯s Junior Ai Hui, who is also known as the Lightning de? I have long heard that Mingxiu has a junior who¡¯s a genius. Having met you today, you are indeed worthy of your reputation! An extraordinary individual!"

    Immediately, Ai Hui withdrew his disdainful gaze.

    Such a thick-skinned individual, this fellow is not simple!

 Chapter 405: Wintry Jade Blade

    Chapter 405: Wintry Jade de

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Even though Lu Feng was very warm, Ai Hui still had his reservations about him. Whoever Senior dislikes, I dislike!

    "Mingxiu¡¯s junior is also my junior! I shall call you Junior Hui. From today onwards, we are a family. Feel free to ask me if you need help with anything. Since this is the first time we are meeting, I have prepared a small gift for you. Junior Hui, please don¡¯t decline my kind intentions."

    Lu Feng enthusiastically passed Ai Hui a long, rectangr wood box. The wooden box was exquisite. Its surface was neatly embedded with dark green fish scales which gave off an elegant lustre, looking unspectacr yet luxurious.

    Ai Hui nced at Mingxiu and she winked at him.

    "Junior has exquisite taste," Mingxiu said inly.

    Lu Feng smiled and did not seem to be at all flustered by her words.

    Ai Hui immediately understood what Lu Feng¡¯s facial expression meant. He opened up the wooden box and found a sword lying in it.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. He grabbed the sword hilt and held the sword before his eyes to examine it closely.

    The sword was dark green in color. Its texture felt unique, seemingly carved out of a dark green jade. The wave-like dark veins on the sword ovepped each other, looking like a body of limpid autumn waters moving under the sun; it was extremely beautiful. The body of the sword was straight and thick while its de was thick and blunt; however, when Ai Hui channeled a trace of elemental energy into the sword, two extremely sharp sword gleams appeared on both sides of the de.

    The material that made up the sword hilt felt like metal, but was not. The sword hilt was extremely heavy, causing the sword¡¯s center of gravity to shift towards it. This made wielding the sword effortless. Almost instantly, Ai Hui knew that this sword was very suitable for carrying out stabbing and piercing attacks. The sword hilt was covered with unknown fish scales, making it extremelyfortable to hold. Ai Hui did not want to let go of the sword.

    "Good sword!" Ai Hui blurted out.

    He channeled his elemental energy into the sword and it gave off slight vibrations. These slight and indistinct vibrations involuntarily formed a resonance with the elemental energy in his body, sparking off the desire to fight in him.

    This was a Heaven-grade weapon!

    The smile on Lu Feng¡¯s face became wider as he cast a nce of approval at the old servant standing in a corner. It was not an easy task to prepare a satisfactory gift in such a short period of time.

    "This sword is called Wintry Jade de. It¡¯s the first treasure sword forged by master weaponsmith Wei Hong and I came across it by luck. I have long heard that Junior Hui¡¯s swordsmanship is superb and extraordinary. Giving a treasure sword to a hero will bring out the best in both!"

    "Oh, Second Brother is too courteous. Then I shall ept this sword."

    Ai Hui carefully took the Wintry Jade de and winked at Senior Mingxiu.

    Whoever Senior dislikes, I dislike! Even if I epted his gift, I still dislike him!

    When Mingxiu saw the scoundrelly look on Ai Hui¡¯s face, she almostughed out loud. She knew her junior¡¯s character extremely well.

    When Lu Feng saw Ai Hui ept the gift and the appearance of a rarely seen smile on Mingxiu¡¯s face, he was overjoyed. He had given Mingxiu many gifts in the past, but nothing had caused her to smile like this.

    Lu Feng engaged in a little self-reflection. It seemed that Mingxiu and her junior had a very deep rtionship. How had he not realized this earlier?

    Luckily it wasn¡¯t toote yet!

    The smile on Lu Feng¡¯s face became even friendlier. He patted Ai Hui¡¯s shoulder cordially and said, "What¡¯s there to be polite about with your Second Brother?"

    Following which, he gave Mingxiu her gifts. Mingxiu conveniently ced the gifts on the table without taking a second look at them. This action reinforced Lu Feng¡¯s resolution to use Ai Hui to improve his rtionship with Mingxiu.

    At this moment, Ai Hui noticed that Lu Feng¡¯s unit of subordinates were looking at him. Their bodies emitted a fierce and powerful aura. From the faint energy wavesing from their bodies, Ai Hui could tell that their strength was not to be underestimated and that they had richbat experience.

    Every now and then, their gazes would hold an eagerness and the desire to fight him.

    At this moment, a tall and burly man stood out and said, "Sir, do you want to try out your new sword? I can be your sparring partner."

    His tone contained a hint of arrogance, sounding as if he was challenging Ai Hui.

    For the past few days, the Lightning de had been rather reputable in this region. Everywhere they went, they would hear Ai Hui¡¯s name. News of his feat of single-handedly massacring the Grass Bandits had spread to various cities nearby. All of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates were elites of the Deathgrass Division. Every one of them was proud and arrogant. Naturally, they were unhappy with Ai Hui¡¯s growing reputation.

    "Don¡¯t be so rude towards Junior Hui! Behave yourself!" Lu Feng reprimanded the burly man.

    Even though the man withdrew, he still looked at Ai Hui with an arrogant gaze.

    Initially, Ai Hui did not really care about him; however, when he saw a hint of anger sweep across Senior Mingxiu¡¯s eyes, he said, "I really want to try out this new sword, but the sword doesn¡¯t have eyes. It wouldn¡¯t be good if I identally injure you."

    Upon hearing these words, the burly man broke out inughter and mocked, "I have fought an unknown number of battles. I am not even afraid of death, why would I be afraid of getting injured? I am only afraid of injuring you identally. If I injure you, I will be scolded by Sir."

    The intention to provoke Ai Hui in his words was very obvious.

    "Shut up!" Lu Feng red at the burly man, following which, he turned around and told Ai Hui, "Junior Hui, don¡¯t mind this brainless fool. He is very good at charging into and breaking through enemy lines, but he is brainless. All he knows is how to make trouble for me."

    Ai Hui realized that these people were used to charging into and breaking through enemy lines; they were a bunch of arrogant and valiant individuals. From their arrogant and despotic attitudes, Ai Hui could tell that they must have brought a lot of troubles to Senior Mingxiu and her embroidery workshop. If even a friendly and gentle individual like his senior disliked them, then one could certainly tell how irritating they must be.

    Previously, Ai Hui had also noticed something else. One of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates looked at the workshop¡¯s female embroiderers continuously, and when his eyes met theirs, their faces turned white with fear. Apparently, they were terrified of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates.

    Ai Hui smiled. "Second Brother is being too serious. Only a true hero has such a straightforward nature. Why would a true man be afraid of getting injured? Only by engaging in a real fight can a weapon then disy its true capabilities. I am truly interested in trying out this new sword gifted by Second Brother."

    "Er...." Lu Feng pretended to be hesitant.

    He wanted to see Ai Hui¡¯s capabilities for himself as well. After all, he only knew the rumors about Ai Hui. Rumors couldn¡¯t beat watching him in action with his own eyes. His strategy for dealing with Ai Hui would change ording to his actual strength.

    Ai hui continued, "Of course, it is not possible for me to fight with him."

    Upon hearing this, a mocking look appeared on the burly man¡¯s face. A simr look of contempt also appeared on the rest of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates¡¯ faces. They felt Ai Hui had bragged so much just to withdraw at thest moment.

    Lu Feng felt slightly disappointed as well. Just as he was about to say something, Ai Hui spoke again, "After all, I am a slightly reputable individual now. Where will I hide my face if the news of me bullying an unknown individual like him spreads to the outside world?"

    Mingxiu chuckled when she saw her junior talking nonsense with a straight face.

    Lu Feng was stunned.

    The burly man¡¯s face flushed with anger and his eyes looked as if they could spit me. After being called an "unknown individual," a strong sense of humiliation engulfed his body like zing mes; he felt as if he was going to explode. He clenched his fists so hard that they produced cracking sounds.

    The rest of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates¡¯ faces turned ugly. Ever since the rebuilding process of the Deathgrass Division began, all of them had achieved countless aplishments. As such, it was natural for them to be infuriated after being humiliated by Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui put a reluctant look on his face. "Therefore, I have to trouble Second Brother to find an assistant for him. Eh? I think this fellow looks rather extraordinary. How about him then? Even though defeating two unknown individuals isn¡¯t something to be proud of, it¡¯s still not that embarrassing. I hope Second Brother can grant me this wish. Reputation doesn¡¯te by easily and I need to depend on my tiny bit to make a living."

    The lean guy Ai Hui had chosen was the one who had previously been checking out the workshop¡¯s female embroiderers.

    The lean guy did not expect to be chosen. Soon after, he stepped out and sneered, "An unknown individual like me really wants to learn a thing or two from you. I want to see how sharp the sword of a reputable individual is."

    Ai Hui¡¯s words had also made Lu Feng¡¯s face turn slightly ugly. These trusted elites of his had been specially chosen by him. They had followed him through countless battles and were his pride. He did not expect Ai Hui to look down on them, but after all, he was someone that had a renowned status. Very soon, his facial expression returned to normal and he shifted his gaze to Mingxiu to ask, "Mingxiu, can you persuade him not to do this?"

    Even though Mingxiu was slightly worried, her facial expression remained the same. She replied indifferently, "I think what Junior said is right."

    Actually, she knew that these two were not some unknown individuals.

    The burly man was called Huo Dun. He specialized in spearmanship and his attacks were both ferocious and precise. Among Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates, he was always the one who led the charge against their enemy lines. He was brave and valiant. The lean one was called Xiao Sen. He specialized in using grass seeds and his attacking methods were cunning and unpredictable.

    All of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates were experts that had been hired by him after he became the division leader of the Deathgrass Division. All of them had rued countless military achievements, but due to theck of overall experience and exposure, they were not well-known. Regardless, they were still considered elites among elites.

    These powerful subordinates were directly connected to why Lu Feng could control the Deathgrass Division with absolute power.

    Lu Feng nodded and said, "Since this is the case, both of you shall do your best to learn from the Lightning de. Weapons don¡¯t have eyes. You can¡¯tin if you suffer from any injuries. Mingxiu, what do you think?" One could not tell whether Lu Feng was happy or angry.

    "I agree."

    Mingxiu¡¯s voice was calm. She would be lying if she said that she wasn¡¯t worried about Ai Hui, but she had a lot of confidence in her junior. She knew that her junior was gifted inbat. Since he had agreed to this sparring session, he must have the confidence to defeat them. Her junior would never seek to impress others by bragging about his capabilities.

    "Alright, a battle between experts can also be considered a grand asion. Let us find a location and not destroy Mingxiu¡¯s embroidery workshop," said Lu Feng.

    "No need, there is a training arena in my embroidery workshop. Follow me," replied Mingxiu.

    She led everyone to the backyard and a training arena appeared before their eyes.

    The arena was very big and was surrounded by specially made protective fences on which hung numerous cloth strips. These cloth strips were covered withplicated-looking designs that emitted a faint glow. Four defensive ancient trees were nted at the four corners of the arena. Even though the defensive ancient trees were still young, the glow they gave off was enough to engulf the entire arena.

    "I didn¡¯t expect the embroidery workshop to have such a beautiful arena," remarked Lu Feng.

    The protective glow from the four defensive guardian trees and the cloth strips hanging on the fences formed a powerful protective light screen around the arena. Unless one was a Master, he or she would not be able to break through this protective light screen.

    Mingxiu ignored him and opened up the arena.

    Without any hesitation, Huo Dun and Xiao Sen entered the arena. Every now and then, both of them cast a malicious nce at Ai Hui.

    "Be careful," Mingxiu reminded Ai Hui.

    "Don¡¯t worry." Ai Hui smiled.

    Holding the Wintry Jade de in his hand, Ai Hui strode into the arena.

 Chapter 406: [Fragmented Sword] vs. [Swirling Dragon]

    Chapter 406: [Fragmented Sword] vs. [Swirling Dragon]

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The feeling of holding the Wintry Jade de in his hands felt really good andfortable. Ai Hui actually enjoyed holding it.

    His Dragonspine had been forged back when he was still in Central Pine City. Now, it had already be slightly unusable. After the intense battle with the Grass Bandits, cracks had formed on the body of the sword. Using the Silverfold Plum would expose his identity as Chu Zhaoyang, making it unsuitable for him to use it as well. He had been troubled over this issue for quite a while.

    The best feeling in the world is when someone passes you a pillow while you¡¯re dozing off.

    Ai Hui cast a grateful nce at Lu Feng. I will definitely disy the might of the Wintry Jade de and teach your subordinates a lesson!

    As Huo Dun and Xiao Sen stepped into the arena, the look of anger on their faces was reced by a solemn one. Both of them were veterans that had been through countless gruesome battles. They knew that anger had no ce in a fight.

    The positions where they stood were well-coordinated as well. One was standing in front while the other was standing behind. Holding a thick vine spear in his hand, Huo Dun was standing in the front. Xiao Sen stood at an inclined angle behind him. In between his fingers, there were different types of grass seeds as he prepared to attack at any moment.

    They were indeed experts!

    Ai Hui praised them in his heart. His facial expression was calm as he channeled his elemental energy into the Wintry Jade de. The sword vibrated slightly, resembling a wild beast pawing the ground before it charged toward its prey.

    The reason why Ai Hui chose to fight two opponents at once was not because he was trying to show off. He actually had something else in mind.

    After training with Qing Feng, Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship had improved tremendously. He could sense these improvements from his battle with Cao Ning. Recently, he was on a spree where his improvement rate was exceptionally high. The more battles he went through and the stronger the enemies he encountered during this period of time, the better it would be for his growth.

    This was the main reason why he chose to fight two people at once.

    Another reason was that Ai Hui could sense that Lu Feng was pressuring Senior Mingxiu, which he did not like. Whether Lu Feng behaved like this because of his nature or because of the authority and power he had, Ai Hui still did not like the way he was treating his senior. Ai Hui was worried that Lu Feng might use certain forceful measures on Senior Mingxiu in the future.

    Senior Mingxiu had spent a lot of time and effort on the embroidery workshop. It was unlikely that she would leave the workshop so soon. Furthermore, her home was in the Jadeite Forest and Ai Hui would depart for the hazardous Wilderness very soon, so he was very worried about her.

    Senior Mingxiu would stay in Asakusa City for a long period of time. Even though Senior Mingxiu would be under the protection of her oldest brother, Lu Chen, and no one would dare to touch her, Ai Hui still decided to intimidate Lu Feng to dissuade him from harming his senior in the future.

    Ai Hui could see that Lu Feng was a strongly ambitious and unscrupulous individual.

    He wanted to let Lu Feng know that no one could harm Senior Mingxiu with him around. He wanted to let Lu Feng know that his rage was not to be trifled with.

    In an era where brute strength dominated, fear and worry could only be eradicated by force.

    Ai Hui had a calm look his face as he slowly brandished the Wintry Jade de in his hand.

    Even though this was the first time he wielded it, he did not feel tardy using it at all. Instead, the Wintry Jade de was like part of his body.

    It was indeed a work of a master weaponsmith. Ai Hui mentally noted down the name of Wei Hong.

    The vibrating Wintry Jade de looked as if it was summoning the god of fighting. The killing instinct in Ai Hui intensified. Without fooling around, he flicked his wrist and a few streaks of sword gleams were released from his sword that shot toward Huo Dun and Xiao Sen like flying arrows.

    The base level of the Wintry Jade de was higher than the Dragonspine¡¯s. As such, the sword gleams it produced were different from the Dragonspine¡¯s. This also meant that the Wintry Jade de¡¯s sword gleams had a higher destructive power.

    Facing the iing streaks of sword gleam, Huo Dun took a heavy step forward and charged toward Ai Hui. It appeared as if he never saw the iing whizzing sword gleams.

    Just as the streaks of sword gleam were about to hit him and leave a few huge holes in his body, a grass seed suddenly exploded in front of him. The grass seed transformed into a basket-sized, gray air bubble.

    The gray air bubble blocked the whizzing streaks of sword gleams and disintegrated them and itself at the same time.

    Huo Dun had anticipated this to happen. His movements were not slowed down and his charge was unaffected.

    The sword gleams released by Ai Hui were warded off by Xiao Sen¡¯s grass seed.

    Every time Huo Dun took a step forward, his aura intensified and his elemental energy undtion became stronger. By the time he was near Ai Hui, the intensity of his aura had reached a terrifying level. His entire body was like a parcel stuffed with raging mes. As he exhaled, a burst of swirling elemental energy erupted from his thick spear and pierced toward Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. At this point of time, his eyes resembled the stars in the night sky.

    Good spearmanship.

    This spear move was extremely powerful. It could be considered the best among the moves he had seen before. The weakness of the slow build-up of this move was offset by hisrade¡¯s help.

    Ai Hui did not have any intention of going easy on them.

    Upon witnessing such an unique spearmanship, the fire within Ai Hui¡¯s heart burned with more fervor. He took a powerful step forward and his Wintry Jade de moved like flowing water. His sword move did not seem very fast. Every movement he made with his sword was clear and distinct. Every time he brandished his sword, a different sword gleam would be shot out. The different-shaped sword gleams that he shot out resembled fragmented pieces of porcin.

    The slow movement of his sword was an illusion. In the blink of an eye, 13 sword gleam streaks shaped like porcin shards shot out and formed a sword screen that braced for Huo Dun¡¯s terrifying spear move.

    When thest streak of sword gleam inserted onto the sword screen like a piece of a jigsaw puzzle, the screen suddenly trembled as the elemental energy in the arena froze.

    [Fragmented Sword]!

    Ai Hui¡¯s strongest offensive sword move.

    Meeting brute force with brute force. Ai Hui did not bother to use other strategies.

    [Fragmented Sword] collided head-on with the zing spear move. A slight dazzle erupted from the collision. The dazzle was only pinhead-sized, yet it had blinded everyone.

    The sound of the collision was seemingly devoured by the dazzle

    Even with the protective light screen of the defensive ancient trees, the onlookers could feel the impact, and their facial expressions changed drastically. All of them were shocked by the scene before their eyes. What kind of swordsmanship was this?

    After about 10 seconds, everyone regained their vision.

    They saw Ai Hui¡¯s figure appearing all over the arena like a phantasm. The sword gleam from his Wintry Jade de shed across the air every now and then, warding off Xiao Sen¡¯s grass seeds.

    Upon taking a closer look, they discovered Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were closed!

    When the [Fragmented Sword] and Huo Dun¡¯s attack collided, Ai Hui knew that Xiao Sen, who was standing at the back, would mount a sneak attack. This was because he knew that it would be the best chance for Xiao Sen to do so.

    Executing the [Fragmented Sword] technique exhausted a huge amount of elemental energy and was when his body was at its weakest. Before the collision took ce, he had already closed his eyes.

    As anticipated, Xiao Sen indeed mounted a sneak attack. However, having prepared for it, Ai Hui was able to react to it calmly.

    Even though Xiao Sen¡¯s grass seeds were unpredictable, their destructive power was rather limited. They might be very useful as a form of support, but as a main offensive weapon, they were pretty weak and useless.

    This gave Ai Hui the breathing room to recover his elemental energy.

    Ai Hui¡¯s way of dealing with the grass seeds was very effective. Since the grass seeds were very unpredictable, he did not allow them to get close to him at all. He simply made stabbing motions with his sword and shot out sword gleams.

    At the moment, Ai Hui was like an archer. Like flying arrows, his sword gleams urately shot down the grass seeds in midair. One by one, the grass seeds exploded and could not do anything against Ai Hui. Just in case some of the grass seeds would release poisonous gas when they erupted, Ai Hui destroyed them with his sword gleams and followed up by forming a powerful gust of wind with his sword to blow the erupted grass seeds back to his opponents.

    Ai Hui quickly gained the upperhand in the battle and headed for Xiao Sen.

    Xiao Sen had not expected Ai Hui to anticipate his sneak attack. Without the protection of Huo Dun, he became unusually weak and fragile. Since he was unable to contend against Ai Hui, he could only continuously dodge. However, he had good dodging techniques and was abnormally slippery. There were a few times Ai Hui thought he was going to sessfully pierce Xiao Sen, only to narrowly miss.

    Xiao Sen might have done a good job in avoiding Ai Hui¡¯s attacks, but he did not lower his guard at all. His face was deathly pale. There were a few times when his heart stopped beating because Ai Hui¡¯s sword gleams were mere centimeters away from his neck.

    His opponent was like a vengeful ghost that refused to go away.

    The thing that scared Xiao Sen the most was that his opponent was beginning to grasp his dodging patterns. His dodging techniques were what he was the most proud of. The elemental energy within his body flowed differently from ordinary people, as such, he could make many movements and maneuvers with his body that defied logic.

    Huo Dun looked extremely miserable. His entire body dripped with blood, while a section of the spear in his hand had broken off.

    He was at a loss. His [Swirling Dragon] technique had never failed before. No one had ever dared to directly sh against his [Swirling Dragon]. Whenever he encountered dire beasts, he had always used this move to finish them off.

    What kind of sword move was that?

    Along with the terrifying vibration, the sword move that resembled fragmented porcin reappeared before his eyes.

    "Old Huo!"

    Xiao Sen¡¯s rmed shriek woke Huo Dun up from his stupor, and he quickly turned around. When he saw the battered and exhausted Xiao Sen running about in the arena, he instantly returned to his senses.

    Holding his broken spear, Huo Dun roared and charged toward Ai Hui.

    Outside the arena, Lu Feng and his counterparts heaved a sigh of relief. With Huo Dun returning to his senses, they saw a new glimpse of hope in the situation. The prior unforeseen event had urred too abruptly. Everyone had yet to regain theirposure.

    No one had expected both parties go straight for a head-on collision instead of testing each other out!

    This logic-defying battle tempo stunned all the onlookers. By the time they returned to their senses, the battle had bepletely lopsided. When Lu Feng and his counterparts saw Ai Hui chasing after Xiao Sen all across the arena, their faces turned extremely ugly.

    It was only now, when Huo Dun re-entered the fight, that everyone could feel at ease.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up when he saw that Huo Dun was still capable of fighting.He immediately turned his body around and pounced on Huo Dun.

    Ai Hui had the upperhand in the collision between the [Fragmented Sword] and [Swirling Dragon]. This was because the [Fragmented Sword] was a ranged attack, while Huo Dun had to follow along with his attack.

    As such, Ai Hui was able to avoid the impact of the collision, but Huo Dun had to endure the full brunt of the impact. Huo Dun¡¯s body might appear to be drenched in blood, but if one wiped away his blood, he or she would discover that there were no wounds on his body. The blood on his body had directly seeped out of his skin.

    Even Ai Hui slightly admired Huo Dun¡¯s ability to withstand the [Fragmented Sword]

    Huo Dun roared and pierced his spear toward Ai Hui. This attack was not as powerful as the [Swirling Dragon], but it arrived from an extremely awkward angle, resembling a poisonous dragon striking out from its dwelling.

    In the midair, Ai Hui spun his body around and struck the iing spear with his Wintry Jade de.

    The anticipated sound of a collision did not happen. Suddenly, Huo Dun¡¯s spear became soft and flexible like a piece of rope and snaked toward Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s reaction was extremely fast as he jerked backward.

    Bang!

    A shadow flew past him as the strong gale that apanied it inflicted an extreme pain to his face.

    Bang, bang, bang! At this moment, explosions continuously erupted around him.

    Xiao Sen threw out 20 grass seeds in one go. All of them simultaneously exploded around Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was in danger.

 Chapter 407: Cut Some Slack?

    Chapter 407: Cut Some ck?

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Why did they always say that realbat could sharpen the fighting capabilities of an elementalist?

    It was because in realbat, one would encounter various types of elementalists and fighting styles. In realbat, one would also face bizarre and unpredictable situations that forced him or her to progress, think faster, and react quicker. As long as one could survive realbat, he or she would gain a new level of understanding toward the type of enemy he or she had just defeated.

    Life-and-death situations could unleash one¡¯s potential, allowing him or her to make incredible moves, disy wondrous creativity, and possess unimaginable endurance. During peacetime, one could never achieve these.

    These were all because of fear, intense fear. Mankind had an instinctive fear of death. Whether it was a man or woman, an elderly or a youth, a genius or a mediocre individual, it made no difference. All of them had an instinctive fear of death.

    And right now, Ai Hui could feel the instinctive fear of death.

    The 20 grass seeds exploded at the same time, so there was not a single gap in between the explosions for him to escape!

    Even at this point in time, Ai Hui could not help but admire the precision and viciousness of Xiao Sen¡¯s attacks. The 20 grass seeds had various types of effects. There were spiderwebs, clouds of poisonous smog, flying masses of needles, etc.

    No matter how one looked at it, Ai Hui had nowhere to escape to.

    Even if he managed to break out of the surrounding explosions, Huo Dun¡¯s deadly strike would be waiting outside for him.

    At this moment, Ai Hui, who was falling through the air while facing the sky, did something that no one expected.

    He curled up his body and fell ferociously toward the ground. At the instant when his back made contact with the ground, he abruptly arched his back.

    [Arching Fish Back]!

    Even though Ai Hui had not used this move for quite a long time, he was still adept when using it now. The hard work that he had put in day and night outside of the Suspending Golden Pagoda had made this move instinctive.

    The surface of the ground silently crumbled into fine powder, resembling crumbs from crushed crisp biscuits.

    When Ai Hui was still in Central Pine City, his elemental energy was very weak. Now that he had reached Second Elemental Realm, the strength of his elemental energy had increased several hundred times!

    Boom!

    All of the onlookers lost their bnce. It was as if someone had heavily mmed a gigantic hammer on the ground.

    Huo Dun and Xiao Sen felt the direct impact of Ai Hui¡¯s move. The ground beneath their feet trembled. A powerful dusty shock wave suddenly erupted in the arena like a gray ring.

    The first thing that was hit by the shock wave were the grass seeds. Like weak and delicate rice straws, the grass seeds were dispersed and shattered by the shock wave.

    What kind of move was this?

    Huo Dun and Xiao Sen¡¯s faces paled as they quickly put up their defenses.

    As the shock wave swept past them,their bodies trembled, but they were still safe and sound. Both of them were stunned. They were not surprised by how powerful the shock wave was, but rather, how weak it was!

    However, in the next moment, their facial expressions changed.

    The shock wave that swept across the area was apanied by an immense amount of dust. Currently, the entire arena was shrouded in dust.

    Not good!

    Xiao Sen was an expert in sneak attacks. As such, when he discovered he was surrounded by dust and that his vision was impaired, he knew something was wrong. He channeled his elemental energy and moved toward Huo Dun¡¯s location. This was the only way he could survive.

    Suddenly, three streaks of green sword gleam silently emerged from the fog of dust.

    The three streaks of sword gleam were executed marvellously in the sense that they locked onto the position he was heading to.

    Xiao Sen, whose mental state was stretched taut, suddenly stopped in his tracks. His body bent awkwardly like a piece of paper. Without making use of any external force, he changed his direction abruptly and headed for another direction.

    He had just used his dodging techniques to change the oue of the situation and heaved a sigh of relief. Sess!

    Luckily, his opponent had not figured out his dodging techniques. This was the first time he encountered such a powerful opponent. Ai Hui¡¯s keen observation was indeed terrifying. Xiao Sen suspected that if the battle continued, Ai Hui might figure out his dodging patterns.

    Suddenly, Xiao Sen had a premonition, and his facial expression changed drastically.

    Not good!

    An excrutiating pain erupted through his lower body, and he could not help but release a blood-curdling scream. His body curled up as the elemental energy in his body went into chaos. Hispletely lost control over his body andnded heavily on the ground like a sandbag.

    Xiao Sen¡¯s scream came too suddenly and sounded extremely dreadful. Everyone¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. Xiao Sen¡¯s scream had set off their fear and trepidation. Everyone knew Xiao Sen was a tough individual who would not have screamed if it was a normal injury.

    "Stop it!" Lu Feng yelled in panic.

    Huo Dun¡¯s face turned deathly white as well. Since he was closer to Xiao Sen, he was more frightened than the rest upon hearing Xiao Sen¡¯s scream. Huo Dun had richbat experience and knew that this fog of sand was the enemy¡¯s greatest cover. Huo Dun adopted an impregnable defensive stance and used his vine spear to sweep up a gust of wind to blow the dust away.

    Immediately, he could see clearly within a ten meter range.

    Suddenly, a figure shot out from the fog of dust. To Huo Dun¡¯s surprise, it was Ai Hui, who was moving together with his sword.

    Huo Dun clenched his teeth as killing intent swept across his eyes. Unwilling to retreat, he simply pierced his vine spear at Ai Hui.

    All of a sudden, his vine spear split into five thinner vine spears that simultaneously pierced toward Ai Hui!

    Apparently, his vine spear was made up of five thinner vine spears. Usually, he would use it as a single vine spear. Only when a critical situation arose would he split it into the five thinner vine spears. Usually, this move would work perfectly in a critical moment of battle.

    However, he did not expect Ai Hui¡¯s body to change direction and fly over his five vine spears.

    [Gale Bat sh]!

    Huo Dun¡¯s face froze as his eyes widened with incredulity. How could Ai Hui increase his speed to such a terrifying level without a single sign?

    A sword gleam shed past his vine spears.

    "Ahh!"

    Huo Dun let out a blood-curdling scream. His right arm flew up into the sky as blood incessantly spurted out of his right shoulder.

    The sand and dust hadpletely settled, revealing the entire arena.

    Ai Hui was the only one standing in the huge arena. His Wintry Jade de was not stained with a single drop of blood. Not far away, Huo Dun was half-kneeling on the floor while holding his right shoulder. He had an anguished look on his face. Meanwhile, Xiao Sen was lying on the ground and howling in pain. His body was curled up, resembling a dried shrimp. The lower part of his body was drenched in blood.

    Mingxiu was bbergasted. She knew her junior¡¯s strength had increased greatly but she still had not expected that he was actually so powerful!

    Even though Ai Hui was fighting against two people, he was not injured at all, while the opponents were severely injured.

    Lu Feng and his counterparts had ashen faces. They could not believe what they had just seen. No one knew Huo Dun and Xiao Sen¡¯s strength better than them. Both of them suffered a crushing defeat despite joining hands to fight Ai Hui!

    Ai Hui calmly walked out of the arena and stood beside Mingxiu. "Senior, your arena needs to be repaired."

    It was at this moment that Mingxiu saw an enormously deep hole in the center of the arena, which looked as if it had been created by a falling meteor. She suddenly thought of Ai Hui¡¯s [Arching Fish Back] and remembered the marks that he left outside of the Suspending Golden Pagoda.

    So, Junior had already grown to such a level...

    She was deeply moved.

    One of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates flew into the arena and checked on Huo Dun and Xiao Sen¡¯s injuries. Following which, he shook his head at Lu Feng. Lu Feng¡¯s face immediately nched. How would he not know that these two had beenpletely incapacitated?

    Xiao Sen¡¯s vital body part had been severely injured, and it was unknown that whether or not he would survive. Even if he survived, his nature would drastically change. Meanwhile, Huo Dun¡¯s right arm had been severed. How could he still wield a spear in the future?

    For a moment, the rest of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates sympathized with them. Their eyes zed with fury as they red at Ai Hui, wishing that they could rip him apart.

    "Sir, do you not think your attacks were too ruthless!" someone yelled with hatred.

    A tinge of rage shed across Mingxiu¡¯s face. Just as she was about to say something, Ai Hui held her back.

    He turned around and replied calmly, "Is it? It¡¯s on the behalf of Second Brother that I spared their lives. It seems that I should have killed them to live up to my reputation of having total disregard for human lives."

    Everyone¡¯s facial expression changed as they trembled with fear. It was at this moment that they remembered that this seemingly calm and indifferent man was an executor who massacred people without blinking.

    Ai Hui smiled at Lu Feng. "I am a straightforward individual. I will pay a debt of gratitude if I need to and will seek revenge if I need to. Second Brother gifted me this treasure sword, so I have to think on behalf of Second Brother. The Grass Bandits desired to harm Senior Mingxiu, so they deserved to be killed. Haha, this issue has not been settled yet. Sooner orter, I will still have to go and deal with them. I would rather cut the weeds andpletely eliminate the roots than cut them some ck. Second Brother, what do you think?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s smile and words made everyone¡¯s hair stand on end. One could sense a strong sense of killing intent in his words. They had met all kinds of ruthless people before, but they had never encountered someone like Ai Hui who spoke so lightly of killing people.

    Everyone was speechless. They knew this seemingly young fellow was a merciless individual who was not to be trifled with.

    Lu Feng had a very stiff look on his face. He forced a smile and said, "Junior Hui is indeed an extraordinary hero."

    "Second Brother is the true hero. You¡¯re a division leader and hold great power and wealth. Everyone envies you. Everything about Second Brother is great. The only thing that you lose outpared to me is that I live my life as I please and I fight alone. If I want to kill somebody, I kill somebody. If I want to walk away, I walk away."

    By now, Lu Feng had already regained hisposure, and he chuckled. "I really envy Junior Hui! Every day, I¡¯m busy with work and fussing over trivial matters. How can a person be carefree and happy like you?"

    Both of them shook hands happily. One could not see any ill-feelings between them.

    After chatting for around two hours, both of them unwillingly ended their conversation as Lu Feng and his men bade farewell to Ai Hui and his counterparts.

    Ai Hui even personally sent Lu Feng and his counterparts to the entrance of the embroidery workshop.

    As Ai Hui watched Lu Feng and his men walk into the distance, the smile on his face disappeared and a keen look shed across his eyes.

    Suddenly, an intense pain spread across his ear. Apparently, Mingxiu was wringing his ear.

    "Tell me, where did you learn this bad habit from? Hehe, killing people with total disregard for their lives, right? So you only learned how to fight and kill after you grew up? Ah! You have be so bad after just a few years! Where has my innocent junior from the past gone to? Now you even learned how to boast! One against two! Arrogant, huh! You would rather cut the weeds andpletely eliminate the roots than cut others some ck, right! Tsk, tsk, such domineering words!

    "Hey, hey, hey!, Ouch, ouch, ouch! Senior, don¡¯t use so much strength! Ouch! We can discuss this nicely. Yes, yes, yes, I will cut them some ck, I will cut them some ck! I will do whatever they want!"

    Mingxiu released Ai Hui¡¯s ear from her hand as her voice reverted to her usual gentle and refined tone. No one had expected her to do this.

    Ai Hui grimaced in pain and heaved a sigh of relief.

    "Junior."

    Senior Mingxiu¡¯s tone was gentle and soothing. She gently brushed the dust off from Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    A cold shiver sped down Ai Hui¡¯s spine as he froze like a y figurine. "Senior, feel free to order me around!"

    "After thinking about it, Senior thinks that it¡¯s better for you to clear the weeds."

    "..."

 Chapter 408: Using a Pretext to Make a Fuss

    Chapter 408: Using a Pretext to Make a Fuss

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    In a room within the Fiery Floating Cloud, Lu Feng¡¯s roars were so loud that they could tear off the roof.

    "He is trying to give me a warning! He is trying to give me a warning! Who does he think he is! How dare he try to give me a warning! I know what he¡¯s trying to say! Bastard! All of you are a bunch of trash! Can¡¯t even defeat a premature bastard! Trash! Morons! Bums!"

    "I want to kill him! I want to kill him!"

    "Who does he think he is! Who does he think he is!"

    ...

    Crackle! Rattle! The sound of things breaking could be heard incessantly. Eventually, only a heavy panting sound could be heard. It was as if there was a wild beast in the room.

    The faces of everyone outside the room turned white. This time around, they had really screwed up and embarrassed Sir. They could tell from Ai Hui¡¯s words that he was trying to give Lu Feng a warning, but none of them dared to challenge him. What had happened to Huo Dun and Xiao Sen terrified them greatly.

    After a long period of time, the heavy panting sound in the room disappeared.

    The door opened.

    Lu Feng walked out of the room and his facial expression had returned to normal. "Where are those two morons? How are their conditions?"

    "Xiao Sen¡¯s wound has stopped bleeding. However, due to the severity of his injury, he will most likely be disabled for the rest of his life. As for Huo Dun, his right arm has been frozen and can be re-attached to his body. However, from today onwards, it can only be used for simple daily tasks and not for fighting anymore. Furthermore, the medical expenses...."

    "Those two morons!" Lu Feng yelled vehemently. However, he managed to regain hisposure very soon. "What medical expenses? Make sure they recover! Prepare the pension for both of their families and arrange lighter jobs for both of them, even though they have thoroughly embarrassed me... Bloody morons!"

    "Sir is magnanimous!" the old servant quickly said.

    The rest of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates also yelled, "Sir is magnanimous!"

    A grateful look appeared on all of their faces. Even though Huo Dun and Xiao Sen werepletely incapacitated, Sir was still willing to treat them with kindness. He had indeed treated them with extreme benevolence. In a division, those who were from wealthy and powerful families could obtain their pension easily. However, those who were of amoner background would be constantly dyed from getting their pension. Disregarding these people was nothing out of the ordinary for the high-ups.

    "Magnanimous my foot!" Lu Feng¡¯s rage had yet to subside. "All of you, keep your spirit up. It is normal to lose sometimes. I am not angry that Huo Dun and Xiao Sen were defeated. Being not as skilled as others is nothing to be ashamed of. However, if you are intimidated by others, then that is something to be ashamed of. Look at the terrified look on all of your faces! How can all of you be afraid of him when there are so many of you here. At that moment, I almost want to go up against him myself."

    All of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates lowered their heads in shame.

    "Think about it, have I ever mistreated any of you before? Do you know how many people are envious of your status and sry? Aren¡¯t people out there gossiping about what all of you do to deserve these? They say Deathgrass Division is Straw Bag Division and that all of you are undeserving of your status and sry. Are all of you from powerful and rich families? No. Your strength is rather good, but there are plenty of people like you out there. Other than me, who will hire you? Other than me, who will give you such a high sry? Without me, all of you are like the dead dogs on the streets! What do you have? A pathetic life! Do you want to go back to the days when you had nothing at all? If you don¡¯t want to, then work hard and do your best! If you¡¯re alive, you will enjoy a high position and great wealth! If you¡¯re dead, I will take care of your families! If you don¡¯t want to work hard and do your best, then get lost! I don¡¯t want to take care of trash!

    "All of you are a bunch of wolves! Do you know what a wolf does? A wolf will take one or two bites of its enemy even if it is dying! Look at yourself now!

    "Get lost!" Lu Feng shouted.

    Bang!

    The door mmed shut loudly.

    All of Lu Feng¡¯s subordinates were ashamed and resentful at the same time. Their faces were flushed and they were panting heavily. Everyone looked at each other and saw the zing mes in each other¡¯s eyes.

    Upon returning to his room, Lu Feng regained hisposure as a smile appeared on his face, without the slightest trace of anger? Ever since his Deathgrass Division was established, everything had been smooth sailing for them and they seldom encountered any setbacks. As such, these fellows had becent. He had been wanting to teach them a lesson for a long time, but could not find the right opportunity to do so.

    This opportunity came at the right time. Half of his rage was real, while the other half was making use of the current situation as a pretext to make a fuss. Even if his subordinates died, he wouldn¡¯t mind the humiliation, let alone if they were injured. The feeling of humiliation was not enough to make him lose his mind.

    As an adopted son of the Lu family, he had been bullied and looked down on for an unknown number of times since he was young. People only looked at how fortunate he was. They did not see how he was being neglected and looked down on.

    His heart had already be as cold as steel.

    Ai Hui had given him a huge "surprise".

    It was at this moment that Lu Feng realized the Lightning de he previously ignored was not a simple individual. The wisdom and tactics that he disyed had shocked Lu Feng. He knew that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t a rash individual and certainly wasn¡¯t a smooth-talker.

    Lu Feng seemed to understand why Central Pine Faction would follow Ai Hui¡¯s leadership.

    There were a lot of new citizens in Central Pine Faction. There were also members from first-ss aristocratic families like Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun. He was not familiar with Shi Xueman. As for Duanmu Huanghun, he had been observing him from the dark for quite some time. Duanmu Huanghun was a highly intelligent individual. Other than being slightly emotional and sensitive, every aspect of him was great. Whether it was his innate gifts or his intelligence, they were extremely astonishing.

    There were actually so many outstanding individuals that were willing to follow Ai Hui.

    Lu Feng was drooling over the talents that Ai Hui had and wished he could snatch them over. When he looked at Ai Hui¡¯s subordinates and then looked at his own ones, he could see the huge difference in the quality between them.

    However, he would definitely surpass Ai Hui!

    Lu Feng involuntarily clenched his fists tightly.

    After a while, he loosened his fists and took out a small wooden box from one of his drawers. A stack of palm-sized cards was ced inside the wooden box. On the top of the stack of cards, there was a card with the name "Lu Chen" written on it

    Lu Feng drew another card and solemnly wrote down two words.

    ¡ª¡ª Ai Hui.

    .....

    Embroidery workshop.

    Ai Hui and Senior Mingxiu were talking about Lu Feng.

    "Second Brother was adopted by our family when he was still very young. In the beginning, he was bullied terribly. I felt very sorry for him and so I asked my father to help him. When we were young, we enjoyed having a rather great rtionship. He would take good care of me. However, that was when we were around four to five years old. After that, I went to the embroidery workshop in Central Pine City and learnt embroidery from Mistress. Since then, we have not been in contact much and we grew apart. I often heard my n members praising him. They said that even though he is not as gifted as First Brother, he is brave and tenacious.

    "After that, he somehow became the division leader of Deathgrass Division and he began to rebuild the division. These few years, he has done a remarkable job in rebuilding it. However, there are still a lot of critics saying that he is not capable of the job. Even his higher-ups don¡¯t agree to him using the title of ¡®Deathgrass Lu¡¯. It¡¯s most likely that he became the division leader of Deathgrass Division without the approval of his higher-ups. He is rather stressed too."

    Senior Mingxiu¡¯s tone contained a tinge of sadness. She continued, "I only met him again when I came to Asakusa City to build my embroidery workshop. I disliked him the first time I met him. From his eyes, I could tell that he was extremely ambitious and unscrupulous. I don¡¯t like these kinds of people."

    Ai Hui nodded his head and replied, "Even though this is my first time meeting him, I can also sense that he is an ambitious and unscrupulous individual!"

    Ai Hui knew that Senior Mingxiu was exceptionally intelligent and he was not worried about her. He could tell that Senior Mingxiu disliked Lu Feng based on why she would like Brother Li Wei. At that time, Brother Li Wei was merely a member of the Infantry Division. His status paled inparison to Senior Mingxiu¡¯s. However, Senior Mingxiu did not care about it at all and still liked him.

    The main thing was that Brother Li Wei was a genuine and candid individual.

    When Ai Hui thought of Brother Li Wei, he hadplex feelings. The Brother Li Wei of the past had be Silver Soldier now.

    Mingxiu smiled and continued, "You don¡¯t need to worry about me too much. Even though First Brother seems like a nonchnt individual, no one dares to oppose him. Even the n leader is scared of him, let alone Lu Feng. First Brother loves me dearly and he will take good care of me."

    Now that Ai Hui thought about it, he agreed with his senior too. Senior Mingxiu¡¯s first brother was White-robed Divine Physician, Lu Chen. He was also Dai Gang¡¯s eldest disciple. Lu Chen¡¯s influence and reputation in Jadeite Forest were undeniable. Anyone that wanted to harm Mingxiu would not ignore Lu Chen¡¯s existence.

    Suddenly, a tinge of doubt arose in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    Weren¡¯t the Grass Bandits scared of Lu Chen¡¯s rage when they decided to target Senior Mingxiu? The Grass Bandits must have known the deep rtionship between Senior Mingxiu and Lu Chen. If that was the case, why did they still target Senior Mingxiu? Unless... Unless they had a way to deal with Lu Chen¡¯s rage?

    The only one in the entire Jadeite Forest that had the capability of stopping Lu Chen was Dai Gang.

    However, Grass Bandits and Dai Gang were arch-enemies, how was it possible that they¡¯d joined hands?

    No, there was one more possibility!

    The Grass Bandits¡¯ target was Lu Chen!

    When this emerging thought shed in Ai Hui¡¯s mind, he felt that the Grass Bandits were crazy!

    Not only was Lu Chen a wood elemental master, his healing skills andbat skills were exceptionally outstanding. Out of Dai Gang¡¯s three disciples, Lu Chen was his favourite disciple. On more than one asion, Dai Gang had said that Lu Chen resembled his younger self.

    Being a member of the Lu family, he was wealthy and powerful. His healing skills were superb and he had healed numerous experts before. He had great rtionships with everyone and even Dai Gang paled inparison to him in regards to this aspect. The moment Lu Chen asked for help, a lot of people would certainlye forward to his assistance.

    It was not a difficult task for Lu Chen to raze the Grass Bandits to the ground. Where did they get the confidence to target Lu Chen?

    Upon realizing that the Grass Bandits were not as simple as he thought, Ai Hui decided to stay in Asakusa City for a while longer. He did not care what plots the Grass Bandits were hatching. As long as he destroyed all Grass Bandits, all their plots would be strangled to death in their cradles.

    He indeed had to cut the weeds and eliminate the rootspletely.

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression remained the same as he made his decision. He changed the topic and asked, "Senior, have you reached the level of Master in embroidery?"

    The embroidery-rted question immediately captured Mingxiu¡¯s attention. She replied with a distressed tone, "I feel like I am very close to achieving it. However, there is this area that I have stagnated in for quite some time."

    Upon hearing that, Ai Hui could not help but ask with deep concern, "Which area? Tell me about it, perhaps I can give you some advice."

    For one to be a Master, he or she must create his or her own absolute art. This applied to the field of embroidery as well. Mingxiu had to create her own embroidery technique. Han Yuqin was excellent with regards to this aspect. She had created more than ten embroidery techniques by herself. Her embroidery works had a special name, Rainbow Embroidery.

    It was not an easy task for one to create his or her own embroidery technique.

    Senior Mingxiu cast a disdainful look at Ai Hui and replied, "Look at your embroidery level, other than spinning silk from cocoons, what else do you know? Based on your level, you want to offer me advice?"

    "Senior, you have underestimated me. I have travelled extensively and I am very knowledgeable. I might be able toe up with one or two ideas for you," Ai Hui boasted shamelessly.

    "You have indeed be a bad boy. Your words have be flippant and insincere. My loom is spoilt. A hero that has travelled extensively, helping me to fix it." Mingxiu replied with contempt.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face was brimming with confidence as he walked to a non-operating loom and asked, "Is this the one? Leave it to me. I can easily fix this small problem."

    "That is a shredder."

    "No wonder it looks so ugly."

    "..."

 Chapter 409: Mr Small Ai

    Chapter 409: Mr Small Ai

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    "In the past, all the looms in Mistress¡¯s embroidery workshop were made by Master and they were very easy to use. Before I left Central Pine City, I even went back to Jade Embroidery Workshop and found the most intact loom to bring here. I don¡¯t know which part of it is spoilt. Initially, it worked very well and smooth. However, it soon became stuck. I have found some cksmiths to take a look at it, but they just can¡¯t fix it. I have tried other models of looms but I am just not used to them."

    Mingxiu recalled the past fondly as she spoke these words.

    "This is made by Master? Master knows how to make looms? I have never heard of this from him before."

    "Yes," Mingxiu nodded her head, "Almost everything in Mistress¡¯s workshop was made by Master. Mistress will request for something and Master will make it. As the disciple of Master, it¡¯s time for your test now. Little fellow, work hard."

    Ai Hui was already standing in front of the loom that his master made and examining it very carefully.

    This was actually the first time Ai Hui examined a loom so closely.

    When he was in Central Pine City, he was specialized in spinning silk from cocoons. After arriving at Peace City, he was still spinning silk from cocoons to make See You Laters. Ai Hui was merely a rookie in the field of embroidery.

    Fortunately, the science behind a loom was notplicated.

    Thanks to the weaving experience that he¡¯d learned from his mistress in the past, Ai Hui was able to understand how a loom worked in an hour¡¯s time.

    In the past, Ai Hui used a very basic type of weaving technique called [Twin Weaving Technique]. This technique involved weaving horizontally and vertically at the same time. [Twin Weaving Technique] was the fundamental of almost all weaving techniques. Most of thoseplicated weaving techniques were just evolved versions of [Twin Weaving Technique].

    The loom was made of a table with a pond-like hollow in the centre of it. Surrounding the tabletop was a square-shaped needle trough. Needles of all sizes were arranged neatly within the needle trough, resembling ships parked at the harbor.

    On each side of the loom, there was an imprint of a palm. An elementalist needed to ce his or her palms on the imprints to channel elemental energy into the loom.

    Ai Hui ced his palms on the imprints and channeled his elemental energy into the loom.

    The pond-like hollow in the centre of the loom emitted ayer of faintly glowing membrane, like a pond that was filled up with water. Then the needles gave off a faint glow. The glowing needles were slowly ejected from the needle trough, resembling small ships that were leaving the harbor. The tyer of glowing membrane was like the surface of the sea outside the harbor as the needles travelled back and forth on the membrane. Dazzling, fine streaks of light were created as the needles moved randomly on the membrane. These streaks of light looked as if they were tangled up terribly.

    Under the guidance of the needles, the silk yarn was rapidly woven into a piece of cloth.

    Aspared to the cloths he woved in the past, this piece of cloth was of a much higher quality.

    Ai Hui could not take his eyes off the weaving process. The needles were moving at an extremely fast speed. An embroidery craftswoman would need to take years of practise to move the needles with such a terrifying speed.

    Ai Hui could also see that there were a huge number of needles in the loom. This implied that the loom could executeplicated weaving techniques. The more needles there were to be controlled in a loom, the more demanding it would be on the embroidery craftswoman that was using it.

    Interesting!

    The dazzling streaks of light interwove with the yarn silk. The elemental energy and the yarn silk had reached a magical bnce.

    Ai Hui eximed in admiration. He felt that the apparatus in front of him was very exquisite. He thought of the pile of rubbish that his master ced in his courtyard and the armor that evaluated one¡¯s eight pces. His master seemed to like ying around with various bizarre objects. To be able to see his master¡¯s opus and have a taste of what his master had been through in the past created a deadly temptation for Ai Hui.

    The most difficult part of weaving was controlling the needles. Even though the needles in the loom looked confusing to one¡¯s eyes, they actually moved in a systematic manner.

    When Mingxiu saw her junior had turned a deaf ear to her andpletely forgotten about her existence, she pursed her lips, smiled and silently left the room.

    Ai Hui was half-squatting as he attentively stared at the fast-moving needles on the glowing membrane.

    Crack!

    Suddenly, the needles on top of the glowing membrane lost control and flew around like headless flies. Very soon, the yarn silk was tangled up terribly.

    Ai Hui furrowed his eyebrows but soon loosened them up. He stopped channeling elemental energy into the loom and the glowing membrane disappeared. The glow on the needles disappeared too as they fell into the hollow.

    Where had gone wrong?

    Unconsciously, Ai Hui tried over and over again.

    Mingxiu did not disturb Ai Hui. She knew that once her junior was in the zone, he would bepletely lost in his own world. She made an inspection round of her embroidery workshop, just like how she did in the past. Actually, her motivation for starting an embroidery business was more just so she could continue a routine that she was used to, rather than because she was pursuing a personal goal. Since she was very young, she had been helping her mistress to manage her embroidery business. Every little detail of the embroidery workshop helped her to rx.

    A travel-worn butler entered the workshop. When he saw Mingxiu, he heaved a sigh of relief, "Miss!"

    "Why is Uncle Yu here?" Mingxiu looked slightly surprised.

    Uncle Yu was the Lu family¡¯s butler. He had served the Lu family for decades and watched Mingxiu grow up. As such, the family head of the Lu family trusted him very much.

    Uncle Yu quickly exined, "During this period of time, a lot of people have visited our residence. Upon hearing that the Lightning de was visiting Miss, all of them wanted to make friends with Mr Small Ai and invite him to our residence. Family Head has told us not to worry about other families. However, since a VIP like Mr Small Ai is here in Jadeite Forest, our family has to invite him to our residence. Mr Small Ai and Miss are both disciples of Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqin, therefore, he is part of our family as well. We have a special rtionship with him and we definitely can¡¯tmit any faux pas."

    Mingxiu furrowed her eyebrows and asked, "How do they know Junior is here? And why are they calling him Mr Small Ai?"

    Uncle Yu chuckled and replied, "Mr Small Ai is so famous, yet he is still so young. Everyone feels that calling him Mr Ai Hui would make him sound very old. As such, they have decided to call him Mr Small Ai. The news of Mr Small Ai ughtering the Grass Bandits has been spread throughout Jadeite Forest. Everyone has suffered a lot at the hands of Grass Bandits. Therefore, when they heard of Mr Small Ai¡¯s feat, they rejoiced in his victory. All of them said that it¡¯s a matter of time before Mr Small Ai bes a Master. They even said that he might be a Grandmaster in the future. Furthermore, he is the leader of Central Pine Faction and his future is limitless. They hope to make friends with him so that they can keep in contact in the future."

    Mingxiu was shocked. Her junior had unconsciously be a celebrity.

    Even though she did not care about what was going on in the n, she roughly knew what these people were up to.

    Jadeite Forest and Elders Guild had an unique rtionship. Ever since Grandmaster Dai established independence, even though Jadeite Forest and Elders Guild were set against each other, their rtionship wasn¡¯t really tense.

    After all, Grandmaster Dai was at the prime of his life while An Mu was in his twilight years. One couldn¡¯t say for sure whether or not Elders Guild and Jadeite Forest would join hands once again in the future. On the contrary, Elders Guild and Blood of God were arch-enemies.

    Ai Hui¡¯s past achievements were what made him the leader of Central Pine Faction. The feat he had achieved in his battle against the Grass Bandits hadpletely eradicated the doubts that everyone had about his strength.

    If a leader was not powerful enough, his followers would not have confidence in him. In an era where brute force mattered the most, the strength of a powerful individual could change the world. This world would always belong to someone like Grandmaster Dai.

    Numbers did not matter to a formidable being like Grandmaster Dai.

    Everyone below the level of Grandmaster would not differ much from each other. It was true that a Master was much more powerful than an ordinary elementalist, however, a Master dying on the battlefield was also amon urrence.

    Only a Grandmaster could contend against another Grandmaster.

    Dai Gang had personally disyed the power, wealth and strength of a Grandmaster.

    People now realized that the best investment to make was in a future Grandmaster. Bing a Grandmaster was extremely difficult and the probability of bing one was extremely low. However, if one seeded in bing a Grandmaster, they would reap an astronomical amount of gains.

    In other words, Ai Hui had finallye out from under everyone¡¯s radar. He was one of their candidates that would most likely be a Grandmaster. Every family desired to make friends with a genius that had the possibility of bing a Grandmaster in the future.

    What kind of person could be a Grandmaster? This was a difficult problem that all aristocratic families were troubled over. It was very difficult to determine whether or not an individual would be a Grandmaster based on factors like his strength, his innate talents, his teachers, etc. However, there was one essential factor that everyone would look at the most. This essential factor was age. The younger an individual was, the more time he had to reach the level of Grandmaster.

    The younger a genius was, the more favored he or she was.

    Among so many geniuses, Ai Hui was not especially young. However, he possessed a rather impressive reputation and numerous des for someone of his age.

    The road to bing a Grandmaster was arduous and relentless. A moment of carelessness would consign a candidate to eternal damnation. A mentally weak genius would always be the first to fall among the batch of candidates for Grandmaster.

    Having a rather impressive reputation, an outstanding resume, a firm and ruthless nature, and talents that were disyed in his recent improvements had not turned Ai Hui into an arrogant individual, but rather, attracted some ¡®fans¡¯ to him.

    Mingxiu was indifferent to fame and glory naturally. She had zero interest in the scramble for power and wealth, otherwise, she would not have settled in Asakusa City and focused on managing her embroidery workshop.

    "Junior has no interest in making social connections," Mingxiu said as she shook her head.

    "Family Head said that if Mr Small Ai is not free, then he shall not disturb him. Family Head has specially prepared a small gift for him and asked me to pass it to him." Uncle Yu replied politely.

    "I will pass it to him," Mingxiu replied.

    Naturally, she was very happy that her family valued her junior. However, she did not wish her junior to be distracted by so many trivial matters. Her junior¡¯s strength had improved greatly and he should be focusing on his training now.

    "There¡¯s a request from a particr family that Family Head is unsure whether or not he should agree to. Eventually, he decided to ask me to convey the message and let Mr Small Ai decide for himself." Uncle Yu paused for a while before continuing his sentence, "Duanmu family wishes to meet Mr Small Ai."

    Mingxiu was stunned momentarily. She just remembered that Duanmu Huanghun was "kidnapped" by Shi Xueman and taken to Peace City.

    Obviously, everyone knew what the "kidnap" was all about. The news of Duanmu Huanghun living a carefree and happy life in Peace City had already been spread throughout Jadeite Forest.

    The Lu family and Duanmu family were very close. As such, she knew a lot of things about Duanmu Huanghun. In the past, because of Ai Hui, she also came across the name "Student Bangwan" and both of them had gotten closer since then. She felt that it was better for Duanmu Huanghun to stay in Peace City than in Jadeite Forest.

    "I will go and ask him. Uncle Yu, stay in the embroidery workshop for the time being," Mingxiu replied.

    "Sorry for bothering you, Miss," Uncle Yu smiled.

    Following which, he left discreetly.

    Mingxiu felt slightly excited as she strode towards the warehouse. Had Junior fixed the loom? If there was someone in this world that could fix the loom, that person must be her junior. After all, he was the disciple of Master!

    When she entered the warehouse and saw Ai Hui lying on the ground and fixing the loom, she could not help but smile.

    However, when her gazended upon the loom, her face froze.

 Chapter 410: Glimmer of Autumn Moon

    Chapter 410: Glimmer of Autumn Moon

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Tranted by: TYZ

    Edited by: Kevin

    Chapter 410 - Glimmer of Autumn Moon

    The appearance of the loom hadpletely changed. No matter how Mingxiu looked at what Ai Hui was fiddling with, she could not link it to an ordinary loom.

    If this thing was a loom, it would be the oddest looking loom in the world.

    Whenever the previous loom was switched on, the hollow at the centre of it would be filled with a glow, resembling the peaceful surface of a sea. In the current loom, the hollow had disappeared and was reced by a peak-like object.

    "Wait for a while more."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice came from beneath the loom. Apparently, he had crawled under the base of it.

    After a while, Ai Hui crawled out from the base. His entire body was covered in dust, but he not mind at all. "It¡¯s fixed!" Ai Hui said cheerfully.

    "You have fixed it?" Mingxiu had a puzzled look on her face.

    "Yes," Ai Hui nodded his head with confidence. When he noticed Mingxiu¡¯s facial expression, he immediately knew what she was thinking. He replied with satisfaction, "Oh, I feel that the previous loom has a lot of room for improvement and I conveniently made some modifications to it. When Master made this loom, a lot of theories that he applied to it were not fully developed yet. As such, the previous loom can be considered an outdated version."

    Mingxiu was filled withplex feelings. To her, this was not only a loom but an inheritance tomemorate her master and mistress. Originally, she did not wish for anything on this loom to change at all, as she did not care whether or not the loom was useful. If it was a random cksmith who wanted to make this many modifications to it, she would not have allowed it.

    However, the one who modified it was her junior, a person who had the same sentiments as her towards the inheritances from their master and mistress.

    "I think Master and Mistress would want us to carry forward their theories, not leave them in the corner of a warehouse for us tomemorate them with."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice was very calm. The sentimental feeling in Mingxiu¡¯s heart was soothed by Ai Hui¡¯s voice. She smiled saying, "Junior is right. Junior,e and introduce me to this brand-new loom."

    Looking pleased with himself, Ai Hui replied, "In the previous loom, the operating path of every needle is fixed. Master has created a brilliant yetplicated setting for them. However, this setting has a w, that is, its low operating efficiency rate. The modifications I¡¯ve made are inspired by God-subduing Peak. Look at its shape, does it look somewhat like the God-subduing Peak? God-subduing Peak¡¯s elemental energy flow follows the five elemental cycle that grows and multiplies without an end. Using it in the loom, it optimizes the use of elemental energy. Then, how do we move the needles? I solved this issue by using the theories behind sword formations. Can you see that every needle actually resembles a small flying sword? A sword formation can make swords doplicated maneuvers and its operating efficiency is extremely high. Unlike swords, the difficulty of controlling the needles is much lower. The loom will work as long as you can stabilize the flight path of the needles."

    "It¡¯s so powerful?" A doubtful looked appeared on Mingxiu¡¯s face.

    "This is a brand-new model. Its efficiency rate far surpasses the previous model. If Senior doesn¡¯t believe me, you can give it a try." Ai Hui said proudly.

    "I will definitely give it a try," Mingxiu cast a nce at Ai Hui, "If your modifications fail, that means you have destroyed Master¡¯s and Mistress¡¯s inheritance. Ahhh..."

    Mingxiu¡¯s words made Ai Hui feel bad. However, he was very confident with his modified loom. "Do you want me to give it a try first?" Ai Hui asked.

    "No need," Mingxiu rejected Ai Hui¡¯s offer with confidence. She had been trained in embroidery since she was very young. She had fiddled with all kinds of new looms in the market and she was extremely knowledgeable in this aspect.

    She ced her palms on the imprints and channeled her elemental energy into the loom. A buzzing sound came out of the loom as the mini peak on the table suddenly shot out a few finger-sized beams of light. Then a radiance was emitted from the peak and flowed down the peak like liquid. Everywhere it passed through began to buzz loudly.

    Mingxiu suddenly yelled in surprise, "Oh my god! There are so many needles!"

    Mingxiu understood a lot of types of looms very well. The science behind each loom was quite different. However, the logic behind the number of needles would always be the same. The more needles there were, the higher the grade of the cloth that was produced.

    The previous loom that was left behind by her mistress had a total of one hundred and eight needles. This was already a huge amount. Now, there were so many needles within the peak that Mingxiu could not tell how many there were.

    This entire peak was made up of needles!

    Ai Hui¡¯s proud voice rang across Mingxiu¡¯s ears.

    "Nine hundred and seventy-two needles. This is already the limit of its capacity . If more needles are added in, the size of the loom will be terrifying."

    Mingxiu was thoroughly shocked by the number of needles in the loom. For a moment, she forgot to channel her elemental energy into the loom and the buzzing sound immediately became softer.

    Upon seeing this, Ai Hui quickly reminded her, "Don¡¯t stop. Since this loom has more needles, you must channel enough elemental energy into it to activate the needles."

    Mingxiu¡¯s mind jolted. She quickly regained herposure and continued to channel her elemental energy into the loom.

    The shock she felt had yet to disappear. An unprecedented feeling arose in her mind. To her surprise, she discovered that she could easily sense the specific position of every needle.

    Every single position of the nine hundred and seventy-two needles could be clearly sensed!

    Mingxiu felt incredulous. How did her junior do it?

    Just as this question shed across her mind, a whizzing sound rang across her ears. Traces of fine glowing silk erupted from the peak. They were so resplendent that she was entranced by them.

    Wait!

    This indescribable feeling of familiarity came silently and suddenly.

    This was... [Waterfall Weaving Technique]?

    Her junior¡¯s irritating and proud voice rang across her ears again.

    "Do you find these needles familiar? Since there are too many needles, the usual weaving technique will not work. That¡¯s when I thought of Mistress¡¯s [Waterfall Weaving Technique]. Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t know Mistress¡¯s masterpiece?"

    "I don¡¯t know? Of course I know!"

    However, Han Yuqin, the person who created [Waterfall Weaving Technique], controlled a total of nine hundred and forty-seven needles! Up till now, she held the record for the most number of needles controlled at once.

    This loom had nine hundred and seventy-two needles. That was twenty-five more needles than her mistress¡¯s record!

    Mingxiu felt that her brain was in chaos. Her ten years worth of experience and knowledge about embroidery had been overturned in an instant.

    "Focus!"

    Ai Hi¡¯s reminder brought Mingxiu back to her senses. She took in a deep breath of air and got rid of the distracting thoughts in her head. Following which, her gaze became focused.

    Wisps of light rose from the peak, resembling a school of fish that were swimming nimbly and swiftly. An observer would see a dazzling and gorgeous waterfall falling down the peak.

    The focused Mingxiu could immediately sense the marvels of the loom. [Waterfall Weaving Technique] was a technique that she was very familiar with. Even though she could not control nine hundred and forty-seven needles like her mistress, she could still control six hundred needles. There were very few people of her age and base level that could achieve this feat.

    However, she had never controlled so many needles before. The surprising thing was that she did not feel it was strenuous at all to control so many needles. The pain of controlling several hundreds of needles hadpletely disappeared. These needles were unusually tame and obedient. Every needle would react the instant she jolted her mind.

    Mingxiu became excited as she understood what this meant.

    Elemental energy flowed into the loom in an unending stream. Traces of fine needle gleams were swirling around the peak and interweaving with each other, releasing a magnificent burst of sparks in every direction. Deafening sonic booms, hollow sounds of wood and hissing sounds created by the silk yarns rubbing against each other were produced at random.

    Ai Hui was entranced by the process.

    The needles were moving in a very shocking way. The way the elemental energy fluctuated had certainly amazed him as well. Even though he was the one that created this loom, he could never weave at such a level.

    Senior Mingxiu¡¯s achievements in the field of embroidery were disyed in great detail at this instance.

    A piece of pure white cloth was formed and it swirled around the peak like a huge, snow-white fish. Countless brilliant glimmers of various colors gathered at the tail of the cloth. Needles were flying around each other with a terrifying speed at the tail of the cloth. Looking from afar, the cloth looked like a huge, snow-white fish that had a tail like colorful fireworks.

    The length of the cloth was slowly increasing.

    The elemental energy in the air was slightly changing as well. The moving piece of cloth absorbed elemental energy from its surrounding as the elemental energy undtionsing from it became stronger and stronger. Like a whirlpool, the swirling piece of cloth was devouring its surrounding elemental energy endlessly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face disyed astonishment. Anything that could cause changes in Nature¡¯s elemental energy was definitely an extraordinary object!

    Ayer of faint glimmer enshrouded the white-colored cloth.

    The needles gleaming at the tail of the cloth became increasingly magnificent. Beads of perspiration appeared on the tip of Mingxiu¡¯s nose and her forehead. Her gaze remained focused.

    Ai Hui was slightly nervous as well. He knew that when a piece of cloth was about to be finished it was at its most critical stage, and this moment was where mistakes could be made the easiest. At this stage, Mingxiu was already very tired and the elemental energy in her body had been almostpletely depleted. A moment of carelessness would cause her to fail and waste all the effort she had put in.

    Destroying the entire bolt of cloth while one was finishing it up was amon urrence in the world of embroidery.

    The densely-packed needle gleams began to give off fine, whizzing sounds. The whizzing sounds got louder and louder. At this moment, the needle gleams were moving at a speed that human eyes could not see while the whizzing sounds had turned into crisp and deafening sonic booms.

    The deafening sonic booms made Ai Hui so nervous that he was gasping for air.

    When thest streak of needle gleam pierced through the white cloth, all the sonic booms disappeared.

    The piece of white cloth hovered above the peak while its entire body was emitting a glow. The glow was actually concentrated elemental energy.

    Mingxiu lifted up her palms as she gasped for air. Her forehead was dripping with perspiration but her eyes were filled with excitement.

    "Impressive! Impressive! I didn¡¯t expect myself to weave Glimmer of Autumn Moon!"

    Ai Hui froze momentarily. After a while, he returned to his senses and asked with incredulity, "This... this is Glimmer of Autumn Moon?"

    In any case, Ai Hui had spent a reasonable amount of time in the embroidery workshop to know what Glimmer of Autumn Moon was. Glimmer of Autumn Moon was a top-grade cloth material. Naturally, it could emit a gentle and cold glimmer, resembling the magnificent glimmer of an autumn moon.

    The concentrated elemental energy surrounding the hovering white cloth gradually disappeared and became a gentle glimmer, resembling the glow of a moon. Nothing could be more beautiful than the glimmer.

    Mingxiu was mesmerized by the piece of white cloth as well. "Yes, this is Glimmer of Autumn Moon."

    Every top-grade cloth material had its unique characteristic. Glimmer of Autumn Moon could only be produced using nine hundred or more needles at the same time. The weaving technique required for this cloth was extremelyplicated. Since Mingxiu could only control up to six hundred needles, the piece of cloth she produced was actually Glimmer of Moon, which was a grade lower than Glimmer of Autumn Moon. The lustre of Glimmer of Moon did not contain the cold gleam that Glimmer of Autumn Moon uniquely possessed. Furthermore, the uses and prices of these two materials was extremely different.

    Mingxiu never expected her first bolt of Glimmer of Autumn Moon to be produced in such a situation.

 Chapter 411: Mingxiuâ€™s Breakthrough

    Chapter 411: Mingxiu¡¯s Breakthrough

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Uncle Yu was resting in the room, pondering over things.

    He could obtain the family head¡¯s trust because he knew how to use his brain by analyzing the family head¡¯s thoughts. He felt that an eligible subordinate had to be able to see and think more, and figure out the higher-ups¡¯ true intentions in order not to mess up.

    A pity he hadn¡¯t seen Ai Hui earlier.

    He was very curious about Ai Hui since rumors involving him had been on the rise, as if he had quickly entered the radars of people all over. The residence had been unconcerned about him previously, because, in spite of his position as little Miss¡¯ junior, his abilities were simply toocking.

    Lacking in abilities was another phrase for trash.

    Although news of Ai Hui¡¯s doings in Peace City had been spread extensively, it wasn¡¯t worth mentioning in front of the big figures. Many felt that because of Ai Hui¡¯s ipetence, people like Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun were bound to rece him in future. The internal disorder within Central Pine Faction was predestined.

    But recently, everyone had been dismissing their previous standpoint, since Ai Hui had disyed great powers and astonishing progress.

    There were quite a number of families, like the Lu residence, who had been analyzing Ai Hui¡¯s progress from the porridge feast up till now. It allowed them to shockingly conclude that his abilities indeed took a major leap within this short period of time.

    If Ai Hui could keep up with this pace and have people like Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun by his side, Central Pine Faction would instantly be a force not to be reckoned with.

    The Lu family had an advantage in this aspect since there was an unbreakable bond between Ai Hui and Mingxiu. He¡¯de over especially for her, evidence that they were close like siblings. As long as the Lu family did not act recklessly, they would always be ahead of the others.

    The key now was for the family to express their sincerity and maintain a friendly rtionship with him.

    He suddenly recalled that two of Second Young Master¡¯s subordinates had been severely injured from a conflict they¡¯d had with Ai Hui. This news made him furrowed his brows. He would have to remind Second Young Master not to go overboard.

    Second Young Master adored the little Miss. Many knew that the family head held an ambivalent attitude toward it.

    But Uncle Yu knew the person the family head really took a fancy to was Yu Mingqiu, who was missing. Yu Mingqiu and Miss had been childhood friends. Plus, he was the junior of First Young Master and a disciple of Dai Gang. Who could be a better candidate than him?

    But while Miss was quiet and contented, she would make sure the whole city knew of her opinions whenever she had one. Plus, she was about to be an embroidery master, so the family would require a lot of support from her. As such, her opinions weighed heavily on the family head. On top of that, a noble man admired her greatly. If the family ced considerable weight on the little Miss¡¯ opinions, Yu Mingqiu¡¯s words were basically sacred.

    He was rather worried about Second Young Master. Although Second Young Master was diligent, he was overly impatient.

    Suddenly, Uncle Yu stood up. Where the embroidery workshop was, an intense elemental energy wave was soaring into the sky.

    A look of joy appeared on his face.

    The female embroiderers rushed out, the same joy evident on their faces.

    .....

    In the courtyard of a house located in another corner of Asakusa City, a few big fellows, who were talking in low voices, stopped suddenly to look at the sky.

    "That is... Lu Mingxiu¡¯s embroidery workshop!"

    "She¡¯s experiencing a breakthrough!

    The few of them looked around and saw the shock in one another¡¯s eyes. They¡¯d not expected Lu Mingxiu to undergo a breakthrough at this time.

    "What do we do? Are we going to just sit and watch?"

    The leader was calmer. He responded, "We¡¯re here to seek information, not to get involved in other issues. Boss is still waiting for us to get back. Lu Mingxiu can¡¯t run away!"

    "How can we let such a rare opportunity slip? I disagree!"

    A tall, grim fellow with long arms stood up, saying, "One shot is all it takes."

    The rest immediately fell silent. The grim looking man was called Ban Yan, one of the strongest fellows in the Grass Bandits. He had perfected his bow techniques and countless people had died from his arrows.

    The leader clenched his teeth. "You only get one shot! The rest of you, disperse first!"

    The others did not resist and left without fooling around.

    .....

    In the warehouse, havingpleted [Glimmer of Autumn Moon], Mingxiu did not immediately stop but instead, closed her eyes while standing in the same spot, soaking in and reminiscing about the feeling from earlier.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. He¡¯d felt the change in the elemental energy within Senior Mingxiu¡¯s body and became speechless.

    Mingxiu had, for the longest time, been just a step away from bing a Master, but was stuck and unable break to through.

    Earlier, it had been her first time controlling so many embroidery needles so it was very fresh to her. Especially since the flow of the needles waspletely integrated, like the natural movement of running water, it shocked and stimted her greatly.

    So embroidery needles could be this smooth flowing!

    After all, Ai Hui had limited achievements when it came to embroidery. He hadn¡¯t modified this loom from the perspective of an embroiderer but instead, he¡¯d done it with his understanding of elemental energy and Teacher¡¯s theories. Also, he¡¯d blended in his knowledge of sword formations to create this unique loom.

    All of this impacted Mingxiu significantly. The feeling of inspiration surged like an erupting volcano and whatever questions she¡¯d been puzzling over were easily solved.

    She relished in it all,pletely engrossed.

    The dried up elemental energy within her body moved suddenly, as if a turning point had emerged. The surrounding elemental energy surged wildly toward her, making increasingly huge motions as all the energy flowed backward and into her body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face changed greatly. The elemental energy around him had been vacuumed out!

    Despite the fact that he was in the Second Elemental Realm and that he had a very strong control of his surrounding elemental energy, the energy was still being sucked away uncontrobly.

    This is...

    A light bulb went off in his head. An ecstatic look shed across his face as he rushed out of the warehouse.

    Only then did he realize that people were already crowding around outside and that many of them had their eyes on him.

    Uncle Yu saw him too. He¡¯d seen Ai Hui¡¯s mirage beanpod and recognized him immediately. The elemental energy waves within the warehouse were obviously Miss¡¯ doing but now that Ai Hui was here, could it be that Missus¡¯ breakthrough had something to do with him?

    The others looked on with curious gazes.

    Along with the increasingmotion within the warehouse, everyone had no choice but to retreat further. Elemental energy gathered from all over and headed toward the warehouse like a hurricane.

    Boom!

    The strongly resistant tile roof ripped apart and shattered as the whole warehouse shook.

    The female embroiderers turned pale.

    Ai Hui, on the other hand, was filled with joy. Master! Senior was bing a Master!

    He raised his guard quickly, however, as his face tensed up. He wouldn¡¯t be this nervous if he was in her shoes.

    Nothing must happen at this time!

    Just then, Ai Hui sensed a dangerous odor and like a cat, his hair stood on end. He retrieved his sword instantly, suspiciously surveying the surroundings but finding nothing peculiar despite scanning every corner within his field of vision.

    Ai Hui was in a highly nervous state. It was his first time experiencing something like this.

    Uncle Yu was the first to notice his unusual behavior. He raised his guard immediately. Could it be that someone was trying to disrupt Miss¡¯ breakthrough? Better safe than sorry, he yelled hurriedly, "Stay away, everyone."

    Right then, quite a number of citizens had already been rmed. With such a hugemotion, anyone in the city would¡¯ve sensed it as long as they weren¡¯t daft.

    "Is Miss Mingxiu attaining the level of Master? Asakusa City is about to have a Master too!"

    "Great teachers produce great disciples. Seeing how Han Yuqin was such a formidable Master, Miss Mingxiu is sure to excel as one too."

    "Could it be that Ai Hui knew that she was about to break through and hence came over specially to protect her?"

    "Possible. But why would she seek help from far away? Isn¡¯t the Lu family¡¯s power fearful enough?"

    "True."

    ...

    Seeing that Ai Hui hadn¡¯t rxed at all, Uncle Yu felt even more nervous. Just then, upon seeing a few swift and fierce figures appearing, he finally let out a breath of relief.

    Mingxiu¡¯s safety was an issue since she lived in Asakusa City alone. As such, the Lu residence had specially arranged some men to protect her from the sly.

    "Uncle Yu!"

    The guards heaved a sigh of relief as well, upon seeing Uncle Yu.

    Without letting his guard down, Uncle Yu shouted sternly, "Be alert! Someone might cause trouble."

    The guards shuddered and answered hurriedly, "Yes!"

    They would all be dead if something were to happen to little Miss at this time. They stiffened their faces, sweeping their sharp eyes over the surrounding crowd. Wherever they looked, the crowd quietened down out of fear. These guards were clearly the elites of the Lu Residence so to provoke them was to dig their own graves.

    The embroidery workshop was about to face a great enemy, currently located in another corner of the city.

    In the courtyard, Ban Yan took out his bow with a solemn expression on his face. His bow was ash-colored, and appeared to be made from a kind of rotten wood block. However, the bowstring was blood red in color, exceptionally eye-catching.

    The arrow was over a meter long and emerald in color, resembling a mini javelin. The arrow was made from three fine rattan vines twisted together. It was aesthetically pleasing, with its perfectly straight and slender form. There were three thumb-sized, ck fruits spinning around the arrowhead and the arrow tail was carved like a golden feather, vivid and lifelike.

    The leader couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Are you confident?"

    Ban Yan responded coldly, "Within 5kilometers, sess is guaranteed."

    The big fellow knew he¡¯d asked for nothing the moment the question left his mouth. They were less than two miles away from the embroidery workshop so there was no way Ban Yan would miss. Ban Yan had even sessfully struck a wood elementalist from five miles away.

    Ban Yan wrapped his fingers around the golden arrow tail, ced it on the bowstring and pulled the bowstring in one go. His moves were indescribably pleasing to the eye.

    He did not release the bow immediately. Instead he shut his eyes tight and remained motionless like a statue.

    Only the three ck fruits continued spinning around the arrow head.

    A long timeter, he opened his eyes suddenly and at the same time, with a cry, his whole body rose in green mes. The green mes extended from his arm to his fingers and onto his bowstring, causing a devilish red glow to appear on it. Mixed in with the green mes, the overall sight was unexinably eerie.

    The green mes spread to the arrow and bow, and when it reached the arrow head, the three ck fruits turned into burning red metal balls, emitting a bright red light.

    Ban Yan was, at this point, extremely imposing and lofty. Exhaling, he released the bowstring in a swift manner.

    The arrow quickly transformed into a tiny speck of light, disappearing into the horizon.

 Chapter 412: Two Masters Under One Roof

    Chapter 412: Two Masters Under One Roof

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    The Lu Residence¡¯s guards acted cautiously, as if a great enemy was approaching.

    "There shouldn¡¯t be any fools right?"

    "Shut it! It¡¯s always good to be careful."

    "No suspicious targets."

    "No suspicious targets."

    ...

    Uncle Yu nced over at the reverse flowing elemental energy and breathed a sigh of relief. He could tell that the most dangerous period had past and that Miss¡¯s elemental energy waves were gradually stabilizing.

    Just then, an intense uneasiness rose within his heart, abruptly alerting him.

    A shadow shed across the corner of his eye. So quick!

    That was... Ai Hui!

    Ai Hui¡¯s intuition toward danger grew, and he could feel the bitingly cold and terrifying blood lust. More importantly, he had locked onto the position where it wasing from¨Cthe sky!

    He reacted extremely fast. Both legs sprang off the ground, and his whole body was like a loosed arrow, shooting into the sky.

    A speck of cold ray appeared before Ai Hui, who was now in midair, causing his pupils to shrink.

    How fast!

    Right then and there, simply no words were able to describe the swiftness of the sword ray that appeared in front of him. Without any time for consideration, Ai Hui had instinctively brandished his sword.

    Without any false or fancy moves, Ai Hui executed the simplest and most basic sword thrust!

    Facing such an intense crisis, Ai Hui struck nine times in one breath!

    Due to the practical training with Qing Feng, the improvement in Ai Hui¡¯s execution speed was clearly disyed at this instant. He was extremely speedy and managed toplete nine strikes within such a short period of time.

    Without holding back, he attacked with all the strength he possessed!

    To the average person, there was only a single sword ray. A strangely resplendent and dazzling sword ray appeared in the sky all of a sudden. It was so bright that even the sun paled inparison.

    The three fruits exploded instantly upon getting hit by the first sword ray, but even before they dispersed, the second sword ray followed closely behind. And then the third, fourth...

    Nine sword rays struck the arrow consecutively, all within an exceedingly short amount of time.

    It was a bizarre sight.

    An abrupt explosion urred in front of the sword ray. It was as though the surging devilish mes had smashed onto ayer of invisible elemental energy and were unable to advance. The mes emitted burning heat and dripped from the sky likeva.

    "Lava fruit!" Uncle Yu¡¯s expression changed as he involuntarily cried out.

    He was experienced and knowledgeable, hence he was able to recognize at first nce that these scarlet,va-like mes were actuallyva fruits. Lava fruit was an extremely dangerous material and highly explosive. If elemental energy was first channeled into these fruits, the range of the resulting explosion would expand.

    All it took for the embroidery workshop to fall into ruins was a singleva fruit.

    And the perpetrator had used at least three!

    Uncle Yu¡¯s face turned ashen. The opponent had actually usedva fruits and definitely wanted Miss¡¯s life. Who was this vicious person? Uncle Yu was shocked and furious at the same time. He had watched Miss grow up, so it was only natural that he felt strong affection for her. Plus, Miss stayed away from worldly affairs and never made enemies, so who in the world wanted her dead!

    As if drunk, Ai Hui swayed as he descended, but no oneughed at him right now. His sword thrusts had left them dumbstruck.

    That solid strike against theva fruit arrow... what technique was that?

    The impact from the explosion of the threeva fruits was appalling. Ai Hui¡¯s right arm went numb and the qi and blood within his body churned violently. He had no strength left to battle.

    Uncle Yu, who had just recovered from his shock, rushed forward.

    Ai Hui pointed in the direction of the iing arrow. "That way, about one and a half miles. He¡¯s injured."

    Having no time for questions, Uncle Yu quickly ordered two guards to pursue.

    Ai Hui¡¯s right arm was still numb and fear rose within his heart. That arrow was simply too frightening. He felt that it was unbelievable that he had actually been able to block that terrifying arrow!"

    In the courtyard, as if inflicted by a heavy blow, Ban Yan spat out a mouthful of blood, his face white as sheet. "Run, quick!"

    The leader turned pale with fright. Without a word he pulled Ban Yan up and fled. Fear filled his heart. He had thought about the possibility that Ban Yan would fail, but had not expected him to be injured.

    Shortly after they disappeared, two figures descended from the sky.

    Seeing the blood stains in the courtyard, their eyes lit up.

    "Here!"

    "He¡¯s injured!"

    They saw the joy in each other¡¯s eyes. If the perpetrator had been unhurt, they would absolutelyck the courage to chase after him. Those able to hit their target from a few miles away were definitely strong individuals and not people they would want to provoke. Since the enemy had lost so much blood, however, it was a golden opportunity bestowed by heaven!

    "Chase!"

    Both left hurriedly.

    In the courtyard of the embroidery workshop, Ai Hui¡¯s whole right arm was swollen and looked like a radish bloated with water. Ai Hui crinkled his brows. Poison? His arm was still numb, and his hand pce was unresponsive as well. He used his left hand to grasp the Wintry Jade de.

    "Mister Ai, this is my family¡¯s antidote. It was refined by our First Young Master. Lava fruit is very toxic and can easily inflict internal injuries."

    Uncle Yu promptly delivered a transparent, jade green bamboo joint. There was only one section, about the thickness of a thumb. A pill could clearly be seen inside.

    Just from the look of it, Ai Hui knew that it was considerably valuable!

    Afraid to dy, he stuck his sword into the soil and used his left arm to retrieve it. He then proceeded to smash the bamboo joint somewhat regretfully.

    This was a jasper bamboo, sold by joints.

    Extravagant! Wasteful!

    The light fragrance of the pill entered his nose, and he could not help but swallowed his saliva. Ai Hui ced the pill, refined from unknown herbs, into his mouth. It melted instantly without leaving any dregs.

    A wisp of refreshing energy spread throughout every part of his body. He trembled involuntarily and was soon shocked to realize that his right arm had regained its feeling. The swelling reduced rapidly, and his arm quickly returned to normal along with his right hand pce.

    How effective!

    Seeing its effectiveness, Uncle Yu started to rx. Ai Hui was an important guest. If anything were to happen to him, they were all going to be punished without fail.

    Boom!

    The warehouse, which was in imminent danger, was finally unable to endure the elemental energy st and transformed into countless shattered pieces that flew everywhere.

    Mingxiu¡¯s silhouette entered everybody¡¯s field of view. She had a gentle and refined demeanor, fluttering long hair, delicate and pretty face, and eyes a bright as stars, but right now, her bearing was imposing and lofty, producing an air of invibility.

    Everyone understood that a new embroidery master had just been born. Considering who her teacher was, this came as no surprise, but to witness it for themselves, they could not help praising her. She really was a fairy-like figure.

    Quickly, many started to notice the table and the artificial rockery.

    What was that?

    Many looked on curiously since the whole warehouse had been destroyed by the wild elemental energy. Only this table and artificial rockery were intact.

    "What is this?"

    "No idea. A treasure probably, or else why would she preserve it?"

    "Definitely not any ordinary treasure. What treasures does the residence not have? Why would they protect that one at this crucial time?"

    "Probably an embroidery object. Miss Mingxiu, no, we have to call her Master Lu now."

    "The Lu brother and sister, two Masters under one roof. How impressive of the Lu Residence. There¡¯s nothing exceptional about having Masters within a residence, but to have two in the direct lineage? The Lu Residence¡¯s geomancy is done right!"

    "Indeed! And they¡¯re both so young. The Lu family¡¯s fortune has just started!"

    Uncle Yu also noticed the table and artificial rockery beside Miss, but quickly diverted his attention toward her. Happiness filled his face as pride suffused his heart.

    The second Master of the Lu Residence was born!

    This news spread like wildfire across Jadeite City, causing a sensation.

    Uncle Yu felt somewhat rueful. Miss¡¯s position in the family will shift. Her attitude toward matters will not be overlooked from now on. She had been quiet and content since young, stayed away from worldly affairs, and everybody loved her. After following Han Yuqin, she became even more sensible and business-minded. More than once, the family tried to get her to return home. With regard to her marriage, many had opinions about it.

    There would no longer be any of those vexing matters to fret over from now on. Miss would be free.

    The Lu brother and sister, two Masters under one roof. If this news spread, the Lu Residence would once again upy the spotlight. Judging from the siblings¡¯ characters, however, Uncle Yu did not know whether tough or cry. They enjoyed peace and were uninterested in worldly affairs. If one wasmitted to handling the family affairs, wouldn¡¯t there be nothing left for Second Young Master?

    He shook his head. This major matter was not something a mere servant like him should think about.

    The turbulent elemental energy waves around Mingxiu gradually calmed down. Her fluttering hair fell gently in ce as the external imposing aura faded as well.

    She opened her eyes and smiled, looking at everybody.

    Uncle Yu bowed. "Congrattions, Miss!"

    The other guards cheered in unison, "Congrattions, Miss!"

    The audience quickly bowed and made their salutations, crying out loud, "Congrattions, Master Lu!"

    Mingxiu returned their bows. "Thank you everyone."

    "Master Lu¡¯s bearing is really worth learning!"

    "Yeah, not the least bit arrogant. Wonder who¡¯s going to be the lucky fellow to marry her!"

    The crowd ceasely praised, each offering their ownpliments.

    Mingxiu walked toward Ai Hui and said in all seriousness, "Thanks, Junior!"

    Ai Hui scratched his head. "I¡¯m not used to you being so solemn, haha!"

    Without smiling, Mingxiu expressed her gratitude. "If not for you, I really don¡¯t know when this breakthrough would happen! Your contribution is the greatest!"

    Ai Hui smiled inwardly and was just waiting for her to say, "I really don¡¯t know how to express my gratitude" so he could uprightly answer her with, "You can convert my service into money."

    Instead, Mingxiuughingly changed her tone, "Since we¡¯re all family, let¡¯s speak like one. I¡¯m your senior and you¡¯re my junior, so I¡¯ll cut the formalities."

    Ai Hui had a sluggish expression on his face. His opened fingers were hanging in midair as he stood motionlessly.

    Upon seeing this, Mingxiu pursed her lips and smiled lightly, but her smile broadened like ripples and eventually erupted into a fit ofughter.

    Uncle Yu smiled too. He was somewhat shocked since he seldom saw herughing this heartily. Plus, the thing she said about Ai Hui contributing the most, could it be that this breakthrough was also thanks to his efforts?

    It seemed like Master had underestimated this guy¡¯s potential.

    He regained an awareness of his surroundings upon hearing the sounds made the gnashing of Ai Hui¡¯s teeth.

    "ounts must be kept! Gratitude isn¡¯t important, money is!"

    "Junior, if not for me, how would you have been able to repay Teacher¡¯s debt? How can you be so ungrateful?"

    "Heh, then I¡¯ll take this loom away."

    "This was left behind by Teacher, how can you take it away? Oh yeah, you haven¡¯t given it a name yet."

    "Oh right. What should I call it? Fish Waterfall Machine? God-subduing Peak Loom? Hah, let¡¯s call it Needle God Peak! Our loom is the God-subduing Peak of all looms!"

    "Junior, you just might get beaten up if you keep going on about the God-subduing Peak in Jadeite Forest..."

 Chapter 413: Farewell

    Chapter 413: Farewell

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    Grass Hall, Hall of Ancient Records.

    Ai Hui was busily browsing through the collections. Many guests hade forth in an endless stream upon receiving news about Mingxiu¡¯s embroidery master attainment. Ai Hui happily withdrew himself to the backyard to continue his search.

    Just when he thought he was going to go home empty-handed, his eyes lit up. The handwriting on the notebook he was holding was careless and almost illegible, but his eyes widened in fear of missing a single word nevertheless.

    When he had almost finished flipping through this stack of the collection, Ai Hui finally found the notebook that the old man had been talking about. The old man correctly remembered the author¡¯s name. The notebook indeed belonged to someone with the surname Xiao, but the only difference was that these notebook were actually aption of different records.

    Ai Hui rejoiced. He would have missed this collection for sure if not for the fact that he had flipped through each and every book from start to finish.

    Suppressing his excitement, he attentively skimmed over the notebook.

    The old man was right. The notebook did talk about And with all five elements.

    "Sixteenth, cloudy, strong wind. Met a pterosaur dire beast yesterday, fought and won after half a day,pletely exhausted. Found a valley to recuperate and there were many red rocks. The slopes were precipitous. Trekked two miles to arrive at a wide clearing. It was and containing all five elements and each position was specially marked out.

    "Ninth, heavy rain, couldn¡¯t see anything beyond 100 meters. Chased by two unknown dire beasts, entered deep into the forest by mistake, and found and containing all five elements."

    "Twentieth, night. The moon was bright and stars sparse. There was a red glow flickering at the mountain peak. Thought a treasure was being born, went closer only to realize that it was actuallyva in a volcano. There was low-lying ground at the side of the mountain peak that contained all five elements. The five elements bred and flourished, starting from the fire element. Bizarre."

    ...

    Ai Hui finished reading every word and felt increasingly impressed. Alone, Senior Xiao had entered deep into the Wilderness, was surprised to chance upon and with five elements, and started to pay attention. Later on, he would mark the position whenever he spotted and with five elements.

    There were a total of six locations mentioned in the notebook.

    Ai Hui was ecstatic. He had thought that one region would be good enough, but there were actually six. However, the words at the end of the notebook made his heart sink.

    "Lands of five elements, containing all five elements, form an integral whole. They circte and recycle, with some regenerating and others extinguishing. There¡¯s been a slight change as the bnce is disrupted. Five elements wiped out. How many of these preciousnds will survive the test of time? I¡¯m old and past my prime, no longer youthful. I¡¯ll take in what I can as I go wherever I can with thepany of my sword. I¡¯ll ride the wind and leave no regrets even as my hair turns white."

    The message was clear. The bnce of thesends with five elements was very fragile. They could not be restored the moment this equilibrium broke.

    How many of those six regions remained?

    A sense of urgency overcame Ai Hui as he memorized the six locations written in the notebook. He decided that he would return to Peace City immediately afterpleting his goals in Asakusa City.

    He did not exit the Grass Hall right away. Instead, as if nothing had happened, he ced the notebook back in their original position, took out another book, and started reading. He only left when the fusion elemental energy within his body had beenpletely exhausted.

    When he left the Grass Hall, the embroidery workshop was finally mor-free, but this was because the workshop was refusing visitors.

    Ai Hui saw the tiredness in Mingxiu¡¯s face.

    Mingxiuughed bitterly. "Receiving these guests is even more tiring than breaking through."

    Ai Hui responded, "Getting cramps from receiving too many gifts is only natural. I¡¯m nning to go out for a walk for a few days."

    Mingxiu looked and him before asking, "Because of the Grass Bandits?"

    Ai Hui had not expected her to see through him and did not deny it either. He replied bluntly, "If not for me, you would¡¯ve been in danger. Although their motive is unclear at the moment, it¡¯s a fact that they were aiming for you."

    Mingxiu smiled sweet-temperedly. "So you want to make the first move?"

    Ai Hui nodded. "That¡¯s right!"

    "You¡¯re my junior indeed. Your reasoning is logical." Mingxiu fiddled with her fringe and asked in a different tone, Now that you¡¯vee to Jadeite Forest, how can I, your senior, allow you to go out to fight and even murder?"

    Ai Hui shook his head. "That¡¯s what a junior should do..."

    Mingxiu smiled gently. "Why would I put on a brave front before you? After hearing about the sneak attack, First Brother was extremely angry. News has just arrived saying that he¡¯s bringing six other battle masters to get rid of the whole group."

    Six, sixbat masters?"

    Ai Hui was stunned andpletely shocked. Sixbat masters..."luxurious" was no longer a sufficient description for such an arrangement. He could only describe it as "terrifying."

    From what he remembered, Senior¡¯s first brother was schrly and refined, a gentleman who bemoaned the state of the universe and pitied the fate of mankind. Who would have thought that he could be this terrifying.

    Mingxiu exined, "First Brother feels that there¡¯s another conspiracy within, so he had to use this earthshaking method in order to intimidate the sneaky evildoers."

    Earthshaking indeed. Intimidating indeed...

    Ai Hui had no opinion at this point. Thinking about a lineup of six battle masters made his eye twitch, but at the same time, he waspletely relieved. With such an "earthshaking" brother, Senior¡¯s safety in Jadeite Forest was no longer a cause for concern. Lu Chen¡¯s uing operation would make those who have designs on Senior reconsider.

    The heaviest weight was lifted off his chest. Feeling rxed, heughed. "Things are indeed different when you have such a great brother!"

    Mingxiu stretched and repliedzily, "We¡¯re closed already, so let¡¯s study this loom over the next few days. There are still many areas that I can¡¯t seem to figure out. Perhaps the secret to attaining Grandmaster is within."

    Ai Hui righteously rejected, "I¡¯m not as free as you. I have to find people."

    Mingxiu was taken aback. "Find people? What people?"

    Ai Hui then told her about his n to enter the Wilderness with Iron Lady and said that he needed herbalists and farmers.

    Mingxiu had a nk look on her face and only regained her senses after some time. "That¡¯s true. There¡¯s no ce that suits you better. It¡¯s a man¡¯s role to aplish goals, but please be careful. They have all been yourpanions at one point and haveplete trust in you, so do not let them down."

    Ai Hui reassured her with a serious expression, "Yes!"

    Mingxiuughed. "Leave the sourcing of the herbalist and farmers to me."

    It made sense, so Ai Hui agreed gratefully, "Thank you, Senior."

    Mingxiu was quick in carrying out this favor. The next day, a herbalist and five farmers appeared at their door. They looked honest and had a reserved look on their faces.

    "Mister Zhou is a veteran herbalist, has over 20 years of experience managing a herb farm, and is able to grow most herbs. His sry will be 500 Heaven Merit Points a year. If he breaks into the realm of master herbalist, his pay will increase to 2,000 Heaven Merit Points a year and a fifth of the farm¡¯s yield. The five farmers are all decent, and Mister Tian here can grow elemental energy beans. Mister Tian¡¯s sry will be 500 Heaven Merit Points a year while the rest will be 100 a year." She added, "They¡¯ve been sourced by First Brother."

    What this implied was that these people had no associations with the family.

    Ai Hui was pleasantly surprised. The herbalist and farmers before him were much better than what he had wished for.

    Without hesitating, Ai Hui cried, "I¡¯ll take all of them!"

    While 1,400 Heaven Merit Points was over his budget, they were worth it. A farmer who was able to nt elemental energy beans was hard to find. It was even harder for him to find a herbalist who was about to experience a breakthrough.

    Everyone exchanged bows.

    Ai Hui did the same. "Nice to meet you all."

    Mingxiu waited for the ceremony to end before saying, "Since you¡¯re set on your ns, I shall not keep you any longer. I¡¯ve already arranged for a Fiery Floating Cloud, and the things on board are for you to keep. Do let me know your location in the Wilderness when you settle down."

    Ai Hui greatly admired Senior Mingxiu¡¯s generosity and sincerity She was never bashful and high-maintenance.

    He sincerely bowed. "Thank you so much, Senior. I¡¯ll leave now. Take care."

    The Fiery Floating Cloud, having transported a whole load of goods, had long since been waiting in the garden. Ai Hui was not overly sentimental either as he quickly boarded with the herbalist and farmers and waved goodbye to Senior Mingxiu.

    Mingxiu waved enthusiastically.

    Fixing her eyes on the disappearing Fiery Floating Cloud, she was somewhat lost in thought.

    Uncle Yu could not help but chime in, "Miss, why didn¡¯t you make him stay a little while longer?"

    Mingxiu replied dully, "He¡¯s carrying a heavy burden: Born to be heroic and well-known, oveing all obstacles within the Wilderness, and having no regard for anyone. How could he fall into this maelstrom?"

    Uncle Yu shuddered. Miss¡¯s words carried a deeper meaning, and he knew that it was not something he could grasp. After thinking for a bit, he changed the topic. "Where are the people from the Duanmu family?"

    Mingxiu shook her head. "Let them settle their own matters."

    Uncle Yu left it at that upon hearing her response. Instead, he asked curiously, "What are your ns?"

    Mingxiu¡¯s gaze fell upon the loom as a smile appeared at the corner of her mouth. "Rebuild the workshop."

    Uncle Yu nodded. "That¡¯s indeed necessary. It¡¯s quite badly damaged."

    Mingxiu corrected him, saying, "No, I¡¯ll build a workshop in Jadeite City."

    The familiar workshop had been destroyed and thrown into disorder, while Teacher¡¯s loom was beyond recognition. She had just entered the realm of master, and everything was changing and bing part of the past.

    The image of a silhouette kneeling before a grave under the pouring rain made her heart ache. She did not know how many times she had med herself for being weak and indecisive during that time. She dared not imagine the pain and despair Ai Hui had felt when stabbing that sword.

    She knew very well how she had been holding up for the past few years. She could not imagine how Ai Hui had kept it together since the pain he felt must have been a hundred times worse.

    Now that there were expectations set for him, he stood up once again. Those so-called heroes probably referred to people like Junior.

    People who were as brave as him, she thought to herself.

    Ai Hui was shocked by the pile of supplies on the Fiery Floating Cloud. All kinds of seeds, wood elemental ingredients, wood elemental energy beans, defensive equipment, and weapons. They were all of outstanding quantity and quality. Other than those, there were blood cores, blood crystals, and jade fruits. It was extremely challenging to gather so many materials within such a short period of time.

    Ai Hui was beyond moved. Not only was the value of the goods astonishing, Senior had spent a lot of thought on these supplies.

    After taking Zhao Boan and the others onboard, the Fiery Floating Cloud headed straight for Peace City.

    Seeing the faraway horizon, a myriad of strong feelings filled Ai Hui¡¯s heart. He was looking forward to the future. He was about to have a brand new beginning.

    Little did he realize that this brand new beginning was not just for him.

    It was for the world as well.

 Chapter 414: Crossing Over

    Chapter 414: Crossing Over

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Lemon Camping Ground was seldom as lively as today. Many had walked out from their tents and wooden houses. It must be a big troop.

    Lemon Camping Ground was an forward camping ground located at the edge of the Palette Cloud Vige. It was famous for its wild lemon trees found nearby.

    Ever since the city expansion order was issued, respective forward camping grounds were greatly excited. They were temporary camps built at the fringe of the Wilderness, the final supply station for those who were about to enter deep within the Wilderness.

    They housed mostly small merchants and some elementalists who¡¯d retreated from the Wilderness, who made a living there.

    When Lemon Camping Ground was first built, it was bustling with activities. Back then, Elders Guild had just dered its city expansion ns, and everyday, mirage bean pods shared a story about how a penniless pauper found an unremarkable stone from the Wilderness and sold it for a heavenly sum upon his return to the city, hence he became a wealthy person overnight.

    This story brought about many fanatics who rushed forth to the Wilderness, as if treasures could be found in every corner.

    But the cruelty of the Wilderness quickly dealt these ignorant people with a heavy blow. There were many casualties and the fever died down gradually. People then realized that not only did the Wilderness offer opportunities and wealth, it was also lurking with dangers.

    Nevertheless, the huge influx of elementalists had significantly expanded the volume of human activities within that region.

    Following that, several mini cities were built like the sprouting of bamboo shoots after a rain. Although these cities were very small, they possessed an elemental energy pool which attracted surrounding elementalists, causing the forward camping grounds to decrease in poprity.

    Lemon Camping Ground was in a better statepared to the others, since the city closest to it was about a hundred and eighty miles away. Because it was situated further in, it was basically thest depot. Nevertheless, its poprity was still affected.

    What had arrived was a majestic team of groundbreakers. There were at least a few hundred of them.

    Were they nning on establishing cities?

    Li Yuanliang sized up the team rather curiously.

    Generally speaking, one could tell the scope of a team¡¯s mission by looking at the scale of it. An exploration team would not usually have over twelve members. The greater the number of people, the easier it was to attract unwanted attention from the dire beasts and encounter ambushment.

    A team of hundreds of members usually meant that positions had already been marked and they were ready to build the cities.

    It¡¯d been over a year since the order had been issued. As long as they hadn¡¯t been destructed, most expansion teams that were slightlyrger-scaled had most likely started on their construction. Currently, many cities were already significantly developed. The new ones for example, had already gathered a huge volume of new citizens, and already surpassed two hundred thousand people. Wild Pce City, built by Silver Mist Sea¡¯s governmental residence, housed over a hundred and fifty thousand citizens and became famous for it¡¯s capability to modify the elemental energy pool.

    Several months prior to that, Elders Guild had announced that Silver Mist River was going to be cut off, causing amotion within Silver Mist Sea. When the river stopped flowingpletely, the mist that had initially filled Silver Mist Sea dissipated. It was the first time, since the construction of the Avalon of Five Elements, that the silts lying on Silver Mist Sea¡¯s seabed saw the Sun. Elders Guild then organized a cleaning up of the seabed, which were silted with artifact remnants and migrated to the Wilderness after extracting all of the remnant pieces.

    Everyone understood that this meant that Elders Guild¡¯s n to build cities in the Wilderness was unstoppable.

    Two months ago, the consequences of cutting of Silver Mist River worsened. The mouth of Palette Cloud Vige¡¯s spring started to dry up significantly and the water elemental energy in the air deconcentrated rapidly. But currently, only a few of them could be seen in Palette Cloud Vige.

    To prevent wood elemental energy from declining, Jadeite Forest started to nt trees extensively and attempted to channel the water elemental energy from the sea to nourish the forest. The sea was on the other side of the forest, a geographical location blessed by heaven but so far, the channeling process hasn¡¯t been progressing.

    If one were to overlook the forest from the sky, he would be able to see countless clusters of small towns scattered in the border region that Wilderness shared with the Silver Mist Sea and the Palette Cloud Vige.

    Could it be an expansion team dispatched by a certain family?

    After their positions were steady, the aristocratic families moved about more frequently. They had rich resources and manpower, and weren¡¯t satisfied with such small cities.

    But Li Yuanliang was shocked to see someone whom he recognized from that group.

    The Lightning de, Ai Hui.

    For a period his mirage bean pod had been spreading wildly butter on, there were no news of him. But no one really minded since such sagas were merely temporary in this mayhemic era.

    He¡¯d stopped at the camping ground.

    Li Yuanliang went forward and greeted him cordially, "Wee wee, it¡¯s an honor to be able to meet The Lightning de here. I¡¯m Li Yuanliang, may I know how can I help you?"

    Ai Hui cupped his hands in greeting. "Nice to meet you! We are going to station ourselves here for a night and set off tomorrow. Sorry to disturb."

    He then threw over a small pouch containing elemental energy beans.

    Li Yuanliang caught it and upon feeling what was inside, a smile shed across his face. "Not at all not at all, you can use any empty ground nearby. Do let me know if you require any assistance."

    "Thank you." Ai Hui turned around and ordered, "Pitch camp."

    Without a word the team dispersed.

    An unremarkable looking fellow lightly patted the ground with both his hands. The ground shook and a y city wall rose up.

    In the blink of an eye, a miniature city made from four six meter tall walls appeared before Li Yuanliang and others¡¯. Four twelve meter tall buildings were built on four corners.

    Just then, a thin looking but elegant youth casted a handful of grass seeds within the y walls. Momentster, pointy ck thorns and thistles grew and covered the walls. The coarse and solid looking barb was beyond intimidating. The youth flew to the top of one of the buildings and nted a tuning grass. Four different vegetations were nted on each building, evidently for different purposes.

    The whole process was done openly so those who saw it happened were left in awe.

    Within the short period of time, a strictly guarded camp appeared before their eyes. These fellows were well-trained and weren¡¯t simple people.

    The team entered in a line as a few fierce looking elites stood outside the buildings, vigntly scanning the surroundings.

    They had no idea what methods were used but they couldn¡¯t hear anything from the outside.

    A broad faced fellow walked to Li Yuanliang¡¯s side and looked at the heavily guarded camp. "Where are they from? Very elite."

    Li Yuanliang asked, somewhat bbergasted, "You don¡¯t know about The Lightning de?"

    The broad faced fellow shook his head. "Nope, powerful?"

    Li Yuanliang gave him a look before saying, "My advice to you is to give up whatever you have in mind. Do not try anything funny."

    The broad faced fellow shook his head again. "I¡¯m not that bold. There¡¯s so many of them and none should be provoked. They¡¯re here to build a city. Tell me, is this going to be beneficial for our camping ground?"

    Li Yuanliang¡¯s eyes lit up. "You think fast! It will be good for us if they build their city here. They¡¯re going to stop by here often and we¡¯ll more or less be able to gain some profits."

    Within the y walls.

    Everyone sat down to rest as Jiang Wei exined the situation. In regards to the six targeted stepping points, he¡¯s been following Ai Hui from the start so he was extremely familiar with them.

    "Lemon Camping Ground is ourst supply station. There isn¡¯t any good resting ce further down. Please take this time to rest. From tomorrow onwards, if things proceed smoothly, we will reach our destination in about five days."

    Fatty asked curiously, "What¡¯s considered smooth?"

    "It¡¯s smooth if we don¡¯t bump into dangerous dire beasts." Jiang Wei smiled bitterly. "We took twelve days previously because of those beasts. From tomorrow onwards, we are going to enter battle mode so please be mentally prepared."

    This exploration process for the six potential locations took a whole four months as Ai Hui brought only Iron Lady, Jiang Wei, Bangwan and Lou Lan. Previously, someone suggested to split the group up to explore respective spots but the idea was turned down by Ai Hui. While he knew that everyone¡¯s abilities had improved tremendously, they¡¯d never been to the Wilderness after all.

    In the Wilderness, at times, experience was more practical than abilities.

    Facts proved Ai Hui¡¯s apprehensions and worries were a necessity as the five of them almost lost their lives several times within the past four months of exploration. It was throughout this period that Iron Lady and the others truly experienced the dangers of the Wilderness.

    Only one out of the six locations was still and of five elements. Even if it was the only spot left, there were many other issues. Nevertheless, after much consideration, the team decided to build the city there.

    While the issues were tricky to handle, it was even more difficult to get hold of and with five elements. So far, even with the innumerable cities being built, they hadn¡¯t heard of one that contained all five elements.

    Just this point alone was sufficient for them to take a gamble.

    After a night of rest, everyone felt energized, their weariness vanished.

    A few children, weapon masters, herbalist and so on were told to stay in Fiery Floating Cloud while all kinds of supplies and materials were piled in other corners.

    The battle crew, all fully armed, surrounded Fiery Floating Cloud as if they were expecting the arrival of a great enemy.

    Li Yuanliang and the broad faced fellow saw them off.

    The broad faced man asked, "How many of them do you think will survive?"

    "I don¡¯t know." Li Yuanliang shook his head. "But I hope they all do."

    The broad faced fellow was rather surprised. "Eh, Old Li, you¡¯re kind hearted now?"

    "Or else who¡¯s going to give us the money in future?" Li Yuanliang asked as a matter-of-factly. His gaze followed the disappearing team and said momentster, "I¡¯ve seen their mirage bean pod. They¡¯re decent fellows."

    As the team left the camping ground, the atmosphere tensed up.

    Not only them but even Ai Hui was very nervous. It was his first time leading so many new hands deep into the Wilderness so the pressure on him was tremendous. In spite of how he was feeling, there was no indication on his face at all, which actually made people feel calm andposed.

    "Bangwan, use the tuning grass to listen for any sounds of activities."

    "Iron Lady, guard the side."

    "Fatty, hold the shield properly and don¡¯t nce all around."

    The team¡¯s speed wasn¡¯t fast and asionally they bumped into a few small dire beasts. Soon after their initial fluster, everybody quickly adapted to the situation. Their attacks became much more orderly. Practice would never rece realbat since many issues would only surface during real battles.

    But they¡¯d been unlucky, getting caught in a rainstorm, lost their way and had to take a detour.

    But the team did not fall into disorder. In fact, because of these small setbacks, everybody became even more serious. They weren¡¯t beginners but experts who¡¯d experienced realbats. It was just that they had not been to the Wilderness but even then, they adapted quickly.

    Everybody found a spot at the valley to rest and to take shelter from the wind.

    Sitting down, Ai Hui caught a glimpse, from the corner of his eye, of a red light that shed past. His expressions changed as he yelled, "Enemy attack!"

 Chapter 415: Lava-spitting Beast

    Chapter 415: Lava-spitting Beast

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui¡¯s warning made the team tensed up and everyone stayed vignt, as if awaiting a big enemy.

    A red glow shed across and hit Fatty¡¯s shield.

    Dong, a stifled sound rang.

    Fatty was trembling, his face flushed as though he was drunk. He staggered backwards before his legs gave way, causing him to fall onto the ground. A spider web-shaped crack appeared on the surface of his shield.

    Piang, the shield shattered, its fragments scattering all over the ground.

    This scene had everyone turn pale.

    Fatty¡¯s strength surpassed everyone in the team yet he¡¯d failed to resist the blow from that red glow. And no one could clearly see what exactly was that red glow.

    Another red glow shed across and struck Fiery Floating Cloud.

    Dong!

    The defense cover of Fiery Floating Cloud had been activated all along so it managed to block off that glow.

    They then saw clearly that the red glow was actually a ball of redva. It slowly flowed down from the protective cover.

    Ai Hui reacted the quickest, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Lava-spitting beast! Hide behind Fiery Floating Cloud, everyone!"

    Then he picked up Fatty and quickly went over to the other side of the vehicle. Upon seeing that, everyone else followed suit.

    Yet another red glow struck onto the defense cover. With another dull boom, Fiery Floating Cloud rocked.

    Ai Hui was beyond frustrated. Theva balls spat by the beast were as mighty as cannons. Slightly weaker bodies would shatter into pieces if they were hit by them.

    He¡¯d previously seen ava-spitting beast destroyed a camp bit by bit in the past. At that point in time, he¡¯d never expected himself to encounter such a beast himself.

    "We have to take it down!" Ai Hui turned his head and shouted to Iron Lady, "A few more hits and Fiery Floating Cloud won¡¯t be able to hold up."

    Iron Lady raised her brows. "How?"

    "I¡¯m going to distract it," Ai Hui replied speedily, "and you need to try to get close to it. Your attacks will be effective."

    Luckily, Iron Lady¡¯s water elemental energy could restrain a fire elemental wild beast like this one.

    Without hesitation Iron Lady agreed.

    Within the short span of their conversation, the beast had already spat twova balls and Fiery Floating Cloud¡¯s defense cover was evidently dimmer.

    Ai Hui took a deep breath and rushed out from the back of the vehicle.

    He had no choice but to fly upwards. Theva balls spat by the beast moved rapidly and were too difficult to dodge. It was wiser for him to interfere with its aim.

    With aplicated topography like this valley¡¯s, he could move about more nimbly on the ground rather than in the sky.

    Ai Hui crouched slightly like an agile wolf and dashed towards the mouth of the valley in a zigzag pattern.

    Lagging five seconds behind him, Shi Xueman flew forward from the other side. She followed the way he positioned himself and changed directions constantly to avoid getting hit, her high speed made her hair flutter.

    Shielded by the Fiery Floating Cloud, everyone retreated slowly in search for another hiding ce.

    Ai Hui, who was the first to rush forward, had indeed managed to capture the beast¡¯s attention. A ball of red glow shot past him but not without brushing across his body.

    Boom, a big sheet of soil was raised off the ground as ck smoke rose from a big scorched hole.

    Ai Hui kept a straight face.

    The beast¡¯s enormous body was like ava-filled flood bag. When quiet, it was like avake but when faced with enemies, it¡¯s hidden snouts will be extended and sprayed them with itsva. Theva-spitting beast had two types of snouts, one long and one short. The long one was extremely formidable and terrifying but its uracy pales inparison with the short snout, which was the exact opposite.

    Theva-spitting beast could not fly high but floated and moved easily in mid air. Having lived amid theva for a long time, its eyes had already deteriorated. Nevertheless, its perception was still very keen.

    Even tiny targets couldn¡¯t escape his sharp senses.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart stirred. Perhaps he could make use of this. Ai Hui kept changing direction at a high speed and ck leaves flew up from the Starry Gem Swordwings on his back, dispersing like many nimble fishes. They drew strange arcs in the sky, which whizzed toward theva-spitting beast from all directions.

    While he was running, Ai Hui could feel the dy in the beast¡¯s movement. Although it was a very short dy, Ai Hui managed to catch it.

    The red glow appeared once again but what Ai Hui did not expect was for it to shoot toward Shi Xueman¡¯s direction.

    By now, Shi Xueman had already followed Ai Hui into the Wilderness a few times so she was rather experienced and had been careful as she was dashing and switching directions. The red glow swept, about a meter away, went past her, causing her to tremble.

    Ai Hui rushed towards her, shouting, "It¡¯s sensitive to water elemental energy!"

    Lava-spitting beasts were purely fire elemental beasts that lived amid theva. They absolutely abhorred water elemental energy.

    Being exceptionally intelligent, Shi Xueman understood immediately and three short water candles appeared on her hands. She channeled water elemental energy into those candles and upon lighting them up, they transformed into balls of vapor. As they left her palm, they became an exact copy of Shi Xueman, dashing forward with that same posture.

    In a sh, three vapor forms of Shi Xueman appeared by her side.

    Smart, Ai Hui praised inwardly.

    Previously, Shi Xueman never would had used water candles, a move she deemed inferior and harmless. After she followed Ai Hui around the Wilderness a few times, she realized thatbat strength solely wasn¡¯t sufficient at times. Many seemingly unremarkable moves usually had great potential.

    The vapor images formed by the water candles could easily be distinguished by capable elementalists but not the wild beasts. All theva-spitting beast could perceive was the water elemental energy that it loathed so much.

    With her current abilities, controlling the vapor image was extremely easy for Shi Xueman.

    And the people being shielded by Fiery Floating cloud were already hiding in another corner. Everyone heaved a sigh of relief and were ready for battle. They did not wish to see Ai Hui and Shi Xueman risked their lives .

    Duanmu Haunghun had a grave look on his face. Proud and arrogant, he felt extremely unpleasant that he wasn¡¯t able to be of any crucial help.

    Without a word he retrieved a grass seed from his waist pouch. He unfolded his palm, allowing the seed to roll onto the center. He channeled wood elemental energy into the seed, which caused it to sprout and to grow quickly. A few secondster, a jade crystal grass appeared on his palm.

    He said coldly, "Archers shooting beyond a two mile range, tear a leaf and swallow it."

    Sang Zijun and Jiang Wei made eye contact before tearing out a leaf each and which was then swallowed. A few other decent archers came over and did the same.

    Entering their mouths, the leaf transformed into a green liquid.

    Sang Zijun couldn¡¯t help but ask, "What is this?"

    "Eagle Eye Grass. Time is limited, only thirty seconds."

    The archers flew off immediately.

    Sang Zijun eximed, "I see it!"

    The rest jolted as they spotted the beast too. Their visions had sharpened significantly and they could see Ai Hui and Shi Xueman sprinting at the faraway valley. They could even spot Shi Xueman¡¯s vapor figures from where they were.

    Jiangwei said gravely, "Let¡¯s not waste time."

    He drew out a shockingly long arrow and the others followed suit.

    Ai Hui¡¯s ck swords were the fastest. They were like a group of ck bees, which appeared over the beast¡¯s head. Feeling threatened, the beast started to sprayva unceasingly from its short snout.

    It¡¯s short snout was exceptionally precise. In the blink of an eye, Ai Hui¡¯s ck leaves shattered into pieces, stinging his heart badly.

    But the ck leaves had a number advantage. While many had been destroyed, there were a lot more to intervene with the beast¡¯s attack. What Ai Hui did not expect, however, was that the ck leaves brought no substantial harm to the beast, only causing concentrated nking sounds uponnding on its body.

    Just then, sharp whistling sounds rang across the sky.

    As theva-spitting beast sensed danger, it raised its short snout and quickly spurted a huge volume ofva. Theva left its snout and opened up like a web,yer uponyer, which formed a redva shield above it.

    ng!

    An arrow pierced through the shield, which revealed its head.

    ng ng ng!

    Theva shield trembled continuously.

    An extremely low whistle sounded and theva shield crumbled. An arrow struck the beast¡¯s body with astonishing force. Dong, it pierced the beast¡¯s round body.

    Theva-spitting beast let out a sharp shriek as mes rose, which burnt the arrow in split seconds. Theva within its body surged and its wound was quickly patched up, although the color of its new skin was obviously darker. It looked like a scar.

    Theva-spitting beast stopped suddenly.

    As he sensed danger, Ai Hui called out, "Be careful!"

    An unprecedentedly bright ball of red glow shot out from the beast¡¯s snout like a red saber and towards Shi Xueman.

    Shi Xueman reacted the moment Ai Hui shouted. She twisted her body and threw herself in another direction.

    Boom!

    An area of approximately two hundred square meters were raised by an invisible pair of hands as fresh red mes burst and mixed together like an advancing ssh of molten iron. The three vapor figures had no time to struggle and were quickly enveloped and destroyed by this wave of terror.

    Ai Hui was overwhelmed with shock. The horror of the thundering fire elemental energy surge could be felt even from afar.

    Iron Lady¡¯s face changed slightly as well. She would¡¯ve been struck if it weren¡¯t for the fact that she¡¯d reacted immediately upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s warning. Having followed Ai Hui regrly into the Wilderness for the past few months, she was highly convinced of his acute judgements. Several times, her belief that Ai Hui¡¯d made a mistake was ultimately proven wrong as Ai Hui had been correct.

    Regaining his senses, Ai Hui realized that he had unknowingly closed the distance between theva-spitting beast and himself.

    He was supposed to be the screen and Shi Xueman the main assaulter. Yet, Shi Xueman had sessfully lured that beast¡¯s attention and had given him the chance to strike.

    That terrifying blow from earlier took a rather heavy toll on theva-spitting beast. The red glow within its whole body was visibly dimmer.

    Although water elemental energy attacks were effective against the beast, it had the ability to restrain metal elemental energy attacks.

    But Ai Hui believed in his swordsmanship.

    He was unprecedentedly focused as the elemental energy within his body surged and every piece of flesh waspletely adjusted.

    Without the slightest dy, he brazenly thrusted his sword.

 Chapter 416: Natureâ€™s Precious Land

    Chapter 416: Nature¡¯s Precious Land

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    A sword ray made from many fragmented pieces stabbed forward with a sharp hiss.

    [Fragmented Sword]!

    Ai Hui¡¯s [Fragmented Sword] was quite different from before. The ray was now half the bulk but consisted twice as many fragmented pieces.

    With more fragmented pieces, more speed was required during execution, and a smaller bulk meant that it had morepressed elemental energy.

    Ai Hui was much stronger than before; he hadn¡¯t been frittering away his time.

    Sensing danger, theva-spitting beast blew up its body like a balloon and floated backwards as its short snout sprayed wildly at the sword ray.

    Balls of red glow flickered incessantly as they struck the sword ray consecutively. Yet, as eachva ball hit the ray, it splitted cleanly into two.

    With its sharp whistling and unstoppable nature, the fragmented sword ray was like a rare treasure sword that could easily break through obstacles.

    When the fragmented sword ray reached theva-spitting beast, its round body released a dazzling red glow as the zingly condensed fire elemental energy formed ayer of solid defense cover.

    Sss!

    The sound of a knife shing across a piece of cloth was heard.

    The fragmented sword ray broke through the ming cover and shot the beast¡¯s body in a swift manner.

    Pfff, a sound alike to the shing of cowhide could be heard.

    Another scar, more distinct this time, appeared on the beast¡¯s body, causing it to stiffen. The next moment, a piercing whine swept over the whole area like a high-rise tide.

    Redva splurt out from its wound and its balloon-shaped body deted rapidly.

    Theva-spitting beast turned around and floated away as its two snouts extended backwards and sprayed mes in a steady flow, its speed gradually increased.

    Ai Hui immediately realized that it was trying to escape!

    But he¡¯d expended more than half of his elemental energy in his earlier pursuit for a destructive [Fragmented Sword] blow, leaving his body weak and empty and unable to recover in time. He could only watch as the beast sped up.

    A white figure whizzed across, along with a spear as her long ck hair fluttered.

    It was a in, non fanciful thrust that produced no whistling but managed to hit the beast nevertheless. Theva-spitting beast¡¯s body, as if struck by lightning, instantly exploded with a boom.

    Like rain,va sprayed at the direction where it had been fleeing.

    Shi Xueman stood victorious.

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck. Iron Lady¡¯s skills were bing increasingly terrifying. That ordinary-looking thrust made it apparent that she¡¯d already perfected her control over all her elemental energy, which kept it contained yet powerful.

    Her execution had reached the realm where it appeared light as feather yet struck solid as a mountain.

    Ai Hui felt that her current abilities were already of a Master¡¯s standard but she¡¯d somehow been suppressing her base level. When asked, she mentioned that this was a special kind of training method.

    Alright, Ai Hui was actually envious.

    While he had been progressing significantly, there was still a rtively long path for him to be a Master.

    Ai Hui regained his senses, shouting, "Clean up!"

    The tense atmosphere lightened up. Dire beasts were extremely dangerous but if a victory yielded, rich will be harvested.

    Fatty flew over and reminded everyone, "Do not miss any pieces of skin andva."

    Everybody burst out inughter. It was their first time collecting war spoils from dealing with such a powerful beast without any casualties so they were all in high spirits.

    Dire beast is full of treasure. How true a phrase.

    Theva-spitting beast had yet to refine fire elemental elixir but its skin was a fire elemental ingredient of supreme quality. Its snouts could be reactivated by skilled workmen, and were the best defensive weapons when it came to guarding the cities. Even theva in its body was extraordinary. It had been harvested from earth fire and was therefore, through constant refinement, it would be richer and purer. In the market, each gram was sold for an rming price.

    Lava-spitting beasts lived in and of ample earth fire. Rarely straying away from their homes, they were extremely difficult to hunt.

    The gang swept everything within a meter radius, not overlooking any fragmented pieces at all. Their actions clearly expressed what it meant for one to be influenced by his or her environment.

    Ai Hui was rather moved, "I did not expect that I would¡¯ve had the opportunity to hunt down ava-spitting beast..."

    No one responded.

    Among the team, Iron Lady already possessed a standard equivalent to a Master¡¯s. Ai Hui and Duanmu Huanghun excelled as well. While the others were slightly weaker, they were all in the Third Elemental Realm. Plus, none of them werecking in standard. In fact, they made an outstanding city expansion team.

    Only Lou Lan praised loudly with an approving look on his face, "Ai Hui is amazing!"

    No one let down their guard. They rested and recovered their elemental energy on the spot.

    The thick fire elemental energy in the valley was exceptionally eye-grabbing. Lava-spitting beasts¡¯ breath would disperse weaker dire beasts.

    Elemental energy in the Wilderness was in a mix, so to everyone, training efficiency was drastically reduced as they needed a longer time and more revolutions in order to recover their elemental energy.

    The team set off upon full recovery. They were in the right direction since they bumped into ava-spitting beast. Their destination was exactly a ce where earth fire surged.

    The team did not meet any dangerous dire beasts again. Instead, they were caught in a rainstorm once again. Rainstorms in the Wilderness were much colder. It was bone-chilling. Advancing through a storm like this required active elemental energy to withstand the cold, hence, elemental energy consumption was very high. And because the elemental energy amid the rain was very disordered, the team could had easily lost their way.

    Having learnt from their previous experiences, the team stopped in a cave on the cliff to wait it out.

    No one had expected Wang Xiaoshan to be the most useful person in the Wilderness. A simple technique of turning rocks into y had been perfected and was made magical by him.

    Drinking Lou Lan¡¯s brewed soup in the cold night was simply a wonderful indulgence.

    The rain went on for a whole night and was taken over by a clear and boundless sky the next day, raising everyone¡¯s spirits. Nevertheless, no one dared to fly high as the extremely strong dire beasts residing in high altitudes weren¡¯t monsters they could contend against right now.

    Fiery Floating Cloud was only a few feet above ground and the gang scattered around in pairs, strongest with the weakest, strictly guarding.

    A few days were all it took for everyone to feel the difference between the Wilderness and Avalon of Five Elements. Take the rainstorm as an example, rainstorms in the Wilderness were more powerful, cold and even more dangerous. In the avalon, rainstorms had no effect on their flight. They could still pass through cumulonimbus clouds and fly freely.

    Ai Hui was at the far front. There were many extremely dangerous nts and he had to remind the gang to avoid poisonous nts, swamps and so on.

    The Wilderness was a ce where experience reigned supreme. Even with master-like abilities, one would not survive long in the Wilderness without experience.

    Apart from dangerous dire beasts, there were many hidden poisonous insects,which was a pain in the ass. Although Ai Hui was equipped with insecticides, there were some poisonous insects that were immune to it and hence unaffected.

    After twenty days of arduous travelling, they had finally reached their destination. In the Wilderness, teams consisted of more than ten members operated in diminishing efficiency.

    It was difficult to calcte the exact number of attacks they had been subjected to. The only d worthy fact was that they hadn¡¯t met any other dangerous dire beasts aside from thatva-spitting beast.

    Fatty looked at the towering and fuming volcano before him, his eyes lit up. "Is that our destination?"

    The fire here was exceptionally rich, a good training ce for him.

    Sang Zijun disliked the sulfur smell very much. "This stinks", she said while crinkling her brows.

    Fatty responded with a drunk look on his face. "Stinks? Not at all! Such a beautiful fire elemental energy odor."

    Ai Hui ignored both of them. He brought everyone across a mountain range and pointed towards the front. "This is the ce!"

    Crossing over the range, everybody looked over and were pleasantly surprised.

    The huge valley was enveloped in a thinyer of mist. The lush green forest could faintly be seen and even the babbling of river streams could be heard.

    "How magical!"

    "How can there be such a lively and flourishing ce near a volcano?"

    "Is it dangerous inside?"

    The gang was excited. Other than fire elementalists like Fatty, no one liked the blistering hot and barren volcanond.

    "Already checked. No dangers." Shi Xueman, too, broke into a smile. She remembered how happy she was to see this valley when she apanied Ai Hui over to explore.

    Ai Hui was excited as well since he¡¯d finally brought everyone over safely. In time, they were going to build a city in this valley. A city that belonged to them and a city that was going to be the foundation of their future.

    "Alright, this is our territory now." Ai Hui dered. "Go down and take a look."

    He led the way as others followed suit, excitement evident on their faces.

    Upon entering the valley, it was as if they¡¯d been transported into an entirely different world. The unpleasant sulphur smell waspletely gone. The air within the valley was filled with the scent of grass and flowers. The exterior of the valley appeared to be engulfed in mist but the mist seemed to be milder and did not affect their vision at all on the inside.

    The terrain in the valley was uneven so they were able to spotkes, grasses and trees.

    With a closer look, one would notice that the valley¡¯s shape was like an irregr pentagon and could be divided into five sections. Its topography was also structured in a way that promoted the engenderment of the five elements. It was like a shrunken Avalon of Five Elements.

    A mound was located at the highest terrain, it was likely formed from umted volcanic ashes. Under it was a weird, rugged cave. They did not know where it led to and the subterranean metal wind blew day and night, causing a weird whistle asionally. The metal wind exited from the cave swept across the area, producing many gorges in a fan-like manner over time. These gorges were extremely glossy and carried a metallic luster as if the cave had sprayed silver lines outside.

    Following these silver gorges of uneven thickness, the metal wind plunged straight into a mini waterfall located mid-mountain, creating a big sheet of mist. It was this mist that enveloped the valley.

    The smallke was situated at a low-lying area of the valley. Abundant underground water rushed out from cracks on the waist of the mountain, forming a small waterfall that eventually formed a small and clear jade-greenke.

    By theke was the lowest-lying piece ofnd. Grass and vines filled the ground and a few tall trees grew sporadically. The brimmingke water formed small brooks that covered the whole area.

    Beside the grasnd were raised ck rocks in wrinkled folds. Red glow could faintly be seen within the folds as they emitted great heat. Not even a de of grass grew on those rocks.

    This naturalnd of five elements had everyone enchanted.

    Nature¡¯s preciousnd!

 Chapter 417: Difficulties Starting Out

    Chapter 417: Difficulties Starting Out

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Seeing the preciousnd with their own eyes had undoubtedly boosted the gang¡¯s morale. Even without Ai Hui¡¯s instructions they dispersed to survey the surroundings.

    Benefits of having enough people were made apparent here since quickly, all kinds of information were gathered one after another. Soon, everyone had a rough understanding of this preciousnd, which surprised them even more.

    The volcano sat in the west of the valley and would not block off the morning sun. This was also an important reason why the nts could grow so healthily here. This valley¡¯s formation and the engenderment of the five elements relied on many natural coincidences.

    Ample earth fire supplied unlimited elemental energy like an energy source powered by the elemental energy cycle. There were countless tunnels and holes underground, a key condition for the metal wind to flourish. It was also a coincidence that the metal wind came out from an exit beside the volcanic ash mound, and on the eastern part of the valley, the waterfall that flowed out from the cracks on the cliff carried water elemental energy. Having the high and low-lyingnd in the west and east respectively also gave the valley sufficient sunlight for nts to grow. With consistent vegetation growth, there would be endless amount of wood elemental energy. It could take root in the valley and stabilize the whole elemental energy cycle.

    It took many coincidences from the nature to develop this preciousnd; nothing was dispensable.

    The longest distance from east to west was about 2.5 kilometers, and 2 kilometers from south to north. The ce wasn¡¯t considered big but was more than enough for now. They could always expand outwards in future, when necessary.

    What shocked them even more was the fact that the highest tree in the valley was actually an defensive ancient tree, approximately fifty meters tall, grown for defense. Judging from time, it was probably nted by Senior Xiao.

    Perhaps Senior Xiao had hoped that one day this valley would be used by future elementalists.

    The defensive ancient tree strengthened the valley¡¯s defense, proving the phrase "trees grown by predecessors would be shades forter generations" right.

    Ai Hui and the gang had already done their preliminary checks and made initial ns before they came over.

    "Wood-type defense will be constructed, using this defensive ancient tree as core. ording to our n, Bangwan will be in charge of this." Ai Hui looked over at Duanmu Huanghun and asked in a deliberately uncertain tone, "Will you be able to handle it, Bangwan?"

    Despite being aware of Ai Hui¡¯s tactic, Duanmu Huanghun still felt blood rushing to his head. In an instant his white face turned flushed, as if blood was about to seep out. He shouted in fury, "You watch out!"

    After that he turned around and flew towards the tree.

    In mid air, Duanmu Huanghun felt his anger rising. He must show Ai Hui a little something! Whatever dog crap Lightning de, I¡¯ll let you know who¡¯s the real talent!"

    Plus, he had already made preparations beforeing over!

    Imagining Ai Hui kowtowing in front of his masterpiece gave Duanmu Huanghun an adrenaline rush. He had inexhaustible energy in him. Excited, a devilish blush appeared on his white, handsome face as his eyes emitted an unnegligible ray.

    Seeing Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s aggressive departure, Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t help but be annoyed. "Provoking him again!"

    Ai Hui replied joyfully, "What a good deal, getting him all fired up without spending a single cent."

    Shi Xuemanughed before asking, "What¡¯s my task?"

    "Bring a few down to the cave and explore." Ai Hui kept the smile on his face and reiterated in all seriousness, "This is our territory now so safety over everything."

    Iron Lady was the strongest so this mission was hers toplete.

    "Got it." Shi Xueman nodded resolutely before turning around to make her selection.

    Fatty the meat shield was a definite choice. An outstanding meat shield was a great asset to the team.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell onto Wang Xiaoshan. "You¡¯ll have to work a little harder, Xiaoshan. With the defensive ancient tree, there¡¯s temporarily no need for city walls but we will have to build everybody¡¯s homes first."

    Wang Xiaoshan agreed immediately. "No problem, Ai Hui! I¡¯ll just build them ording to the initial n?"

    Ai Hui nodded. "Yes, just follow that and don¡¯t get the directions wrong."

    The locations of each house were strategically arranged. Houses in different regions would have different properties to suit different types of elementalists. They were also positioned in a way to stabilize the elements¡¯ frail engenderment process.

    For example, houses in the wood elemental energy region would be constructed with wood, while houses in fire elemental energy region would be built with special volcanicva.

    Wang Xiaoshan nodded and left hurriedly. Building houses for a few hundred people wasn¡¯t an easy task. Even if he came prepared, he needed to work fast.

    The farmers and herbalists were already searching for suitable areas for cultivation.

    Grass-grade weapon craftsman Mo Zhong was also scouting for areas that would be suitable for nting sword reeds and so on.

    Weaponsmith Blind He and Lou Lan were examining the earth fire since Blind He needed it to refine weapons, while Lou Lan needed it to brew elemental food and soup.

    After delegating jobs for the rest of the group, Ai Hui started on his own task.

    His job was unique¨Cmodifying the mist stirred by the metal wind. The moment he realized that the mist enveloping the valley was a result of the metal wind, an idea popped up in his mind.

    Fantasnd!

    The mist blown up by the metal wind surrounded the whole valley. It was definitely the best material since it was condensed and did not disperse. There had always been a close rtionship between mist and fantasynd.

    Here they faced the greatest threats, not from Blood of God or elementalists but dire beasts. With their current abilities, bumping into dire beasts who had yet to produce elemental elixirs wasn¡¯t so big a deal. On the other hand, if they were to meet those that had done so, they wouldn¡¯t be able to withstand it.

    It would be best if they could deceive the beasts.

    If it was impossible, coupled with the valley¡¯s defense, the mist would make it difficult for the dire beasts to pinpoint their target urately.

    Battles were never about both parties standing still. It¡¯s not about you stabbed me once and I returned the favor.

    Many times the so-called advantage stemmed from an umtion of tiny details.

    Since his previous inspection, Ai Hui had already been thinking about how toplete this illusion and finally, a rough idea came upon him.

    After a thorough investigation of the mini waterfall flowing out from the cracks, he was quickly satisfied. He started carving on the rocks, marking out spots before fixing Color m Pearls that he had prepared beforehand on the cliff.

    Color m Pearls were a kind of water elemental material that lived on the seabed and were produced by mshells. When a bright ray casted onto the pearls a bizarre illusion would be created, just like a mirage.

    Color m Pearls were extremely unorthodox, but Ai Hui needed many of them so he relied on Iron Lady¡¯s family to purchase them.

    He had thirty-six of them with him. They were like thirty-six elemental energy needles, stuck on the cliff, instantly filling it with overflowing colors and brilliance. Ai Hui then fixed an elemental energy bean in the middle of the pearls.

    Thirty-six Color m Pearls immediately lit up in drizzles of colors, which gathered to form a sheet. The colored lights altered unceasingly and gradually formed a cylindrical shape, where the colors appeared to flow within its body continuously.

    As if attracted by the colorful cylinder, the mist underneath was sucked into it.

    Hu, a soft sound was heard.

    A wisp of colorful me rose from the cylinder that looked like a colorful candle.

    That was right. Ai Hui was borrowing the idea of water candles. The me was bright and colorful but made from water vapor. However, the materials he used were better and his design was borate, allowing this "water candle" to be far more effective than ordinary ones.

    The me rose in spirals, producing wisps of colored mist that continued to circle within the valley, along with the metal wind.

    If you looked down from the outside, you could see that the colored mist enveloping the valley were undergoing changes. Quickly, the valley would seem to vanish into thin air and blended in together with the surrounding ck volcanos. No matter how closely you look you won¡¯t find any abnormalities.

    Nevertheless, no one in the valley was affected. In fact, no one sensed the changes in the mist.

    Ai Hui did not stop after finishing his first task. The missions awaiting them were arduous. This extremely preciousnd had all five elements, which meant that they would need to build five elemental energy pools. Metal, wood, water, fire, earth. Each elemental energy would require an elemental energy pool of their own.

    Ai Hui and the gang contributed mostly on this aspect. One blueprint was enough but five sets of materials were needed.

    Lou Lan carefully leveled off the creases from the ck volcanic rocks, which revealed the dark red rocks. He continued to dig inwards and finally reached the redva within.

    Blind He reached his palm into theva for a short period of time, and had sustained no injury at all upon taking it out.

    He shook his head. "Not hot enough."

    Lou Lan eximed in shock, "He Wei, you¡¯re amazing! Such a hot earth fire isn¡¯t enough for you? Ai Hui and I haven¡¯t used anything like this before!"

    Blind He responded warmly, "Nothing amazing."

    He liked Lou Lan a lot. He appreciated his delicious elemental soup and his ever cheerful voice. With Lou Lan around it was as if he was basking in the sun. His blindness caused him to be extra sensitive to the outside world so he could feel Lou Lan¡¯s genuinity.

    He felt that Boss was really lucky to have such a great sand puppet.

    Lou Lan shook his head. "Really amazing. The heat here could breed fire-winged serpent eggs."

    Blind He was somewhat embarrassed. "Oh yeah?"

    "Yes." Lou Lan looked around, the red glow in his eyes flickering incessantly. "If the temperature here isn¡¯t high enough then... there! Found it!"

    Lou Lan¡¯s cheer brought out a slight smile at the corner of Blind He¡¯s mouth.

    Lou Lan walked in front as Blind He¡¯s feet left the ground, floating slowly behind.

    Lou Lan stopped and said in certainty, "Here!"

    Blind He stopped as well. Surprise was evident in his pale, thin face as he shut his eyes tight. He did not feel that there was anything special about this area. He had extremely sharp senses when it came to his surroundings ashe could sense even the slightest differences between temperatures. If the earth fire was even stronger, the temperature here was only a little higher than other ces.

    But he did not speak up. Instead he floated quietly at the side with a gentle smile on his face. It did not matter even if Lou Lan had made a little mistake.

    "I¡¯m going to start!"

    At that he transformed into a high speed spinning sandsaw that buzzed loudly.

    Sparks flew everywhere the moment the sandsawnded on the ck volcanic rocks.The rocks were super thick and solid but it was as if the sandsaw had an invisible hand, cutting it cheerfully and unceasingly. Shortly a precise square cut out was created.

    With a slight smile still kept on his pale face, Blind He looked rather sluggish.

 Chapter 418: A Languished Top Student

    Chapter 418: A Languished Top Student

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    A perfect square that looked as if it was drawn using a ruler appeared on the ck-colored rock.

    Pop. Lou Lan transformed into a fork and pierced effortlessly into the centre of the square on the rock. It felt as if he was piercing into a piece of stewed pork belly. Apanied by Blind He¡¯s astonished gaze, the fork trembled and pulled out a cube of ck rock wobbily.

    The thickness of the back rock cube was at most one meter. It was thicker than what Blind He had expected. The bottom of the ck rock cube was dark-red and it was still dripping withva. For some reason, when one looked at it, he or she would think of a chunk of red braised meat that was dripping glistening braised sauce.

    Of course, Blind He couldn¡¯t link it to a chunk of red braised meat. He was only surprised at the temperature of the earth fire in the square-shaped hole.

    Heat waves sted his face. Without using his hand, he could clearly gauge the temperature of the earth fire here. The earth fire in this area was much hotter than the previous area¡¯s.

    However, he was still a meticulous weaponsmith.

    Blind He floated down slowly from the air and kneeled on the ground. He inserted his fair and wless palm into the square-shaped hole and shut his eyes tightly with a solemn look on his face.

    With a bang, Lou Lan transformed back to his usual form and looked curiously at Blind He.

    Lou Lan also knew how to forge weapons. However, his forging skills still paled inparison to Blind He¡¯s. Most of Lou Lan¡¯s knowledge of weapon-forging came from books. When Master Shao was still around, he spent all his resources on upgrading Lou Lan¡¯s sand core. This was how Lou Lan¡¯s Midnight came about. As for Lou Lan¡¯s second master, Ai Hui, he was also a poor bloke. However, in the process of making See You Laters, Lou Lan had gained a decent amount of experience in weapon-forging.

    Lou Lan was like a baby that was filled with curiosity towards everything new.

    This characteristic of Lou Lanpletely set him apart from his master Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was a practical individual. Whether or not he would be interested in something depended on the utility of thing itself. If it was something that he deemed useless, he wouldn¡¯t be bothered looking at it. However, if it was something that he deemed useful, he would be abnormally greedy and thirsty for it and would try to obtain it at all costs.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were flickering with a red glow. He was recording and analyzing Blind He¡¯s elemental energy flow. Even though there were multiple areas that he did not understand, he still recorded the entire process patiently.

    The new sand core was exceptionally powerful. Lou Lan could feel the surging power that it contained, which resembled the unpredictable, calm and tranquil sea. Even though he still had not figured out how to activate and use this powerful force, up till now, all his abilities had not reached Midnight¡¯s limit.

    Sometimes, Lou Lan would wonder why Master Shao named the new sand core as Midnight. Midnight was the darkest moment of a day and the darkest moment of nighttime. Was the name implying that the sand core was as unpredictable as the darkest moments of nighttime or as bright as the daybreak that woulde after midnight?

    Did Master Shao fulfill his wish? How was his life now?

    Distracting thoughts shed across Lou Lan¡¯s sand core. Sometimes, Lou Lan felt that he behaved lesser and lesser like a sand puppet. It was really abnormal for a sand puppet to have distracting thoughts.

    His gaze returned to Blind He.

    Blind He withdrew his palm and stood up slowly. "Let¡¯s build the smelting furnace here."

    After settling a huge issue, Lou Lan was very happy. "We shall build the smelting furnace ording to Ai Hui¡¯s design?"

    "Yes," Blind He replied.

    "Lou Lan shall begin then!" Lou Lan said cheerfully.

    A faint smile appeared on Blind He¡¯s pale face. He did not say anything, but he was filled with expectations. The earth fire in this area was abundant. This was the best spot to build a smelting furnace. Furthermore, the design of the smelting furnace had been improved by Ai Hui¡¯s modifications.

    That¡¯s right. This was the first time he met a metal elementalist that knew how to modify a smelting furnace to such a sessful extent. Even though they had only roughly tested out the modifications, the trial was enough to prove that the fire power of the smelting furnace did increase significantly.

    No wonder Elders Guild would confer the title of Master on Wang Shouchuan. The standard of abilities Ai Hui disyed had certainly enlightened Blind He.

    Blind He was filled with anticipation for the resulting mes produced by the modified smelting furnace coupled with the abundance of earth fire.

    Clink, thud, clink! Lou Lan¡¯s movements were very fast. Very soon, the building process was in full swing.

    Shi Xueman and her counterparts returned to the valley without good news nor bad news.

    The inside of the cave was shaped like an inverted trumpet. The entrance of the cave was small but the inside of the cave was enormous in size. And the powerful metal wind was formed precisely because of the unique shape of the cave.

    There were numerous passageways in the cave. This was also why Iron Lady and her counterparts had to turn back. Scouting a cave was an arduous process that would take up a lot of time.

    There were pros and cons to having a cave that was connected to the outside world. The terrain of the valley was small and narrow. It would be impossible for them to escape if someone had blocked the entrance of the valley. The good thing of to have a cave connected to the outside world was that it provided the best escape route for them. However, the bad thing about the cave was that it also provided a route for dire beasts to invade the valley.

    Therefore, appropriate arrangements had to be made.

    Iron Lady looked at the drifting fog that dazzled with a sh of radiance every now and then above the valley. A look of amazement shed across her eyes.

    Was this inspired by water candles?

    Sometimes, she really wanted to crack open Ai Hui¡¯s head and see what was contained inside of it.

    She saw that Ai Hui was busy, hence, Iron Lady did not disturb him. She began to deploy sentries and patrols around the valley. Right now, they were situated in the depths of the Wilderness where danger might ur anytime.

    Meanwhile Duanmu Huanghun was leading a team of wood elementalists to perfect the wood elemental defense system. Various types of seeds were meticulously nted in different positions. Using their wood elemental energy, the wood elementalists were able to speed up the growth of the seeds. Within two days, there were lots of young sprouts around the defensive ancient tree.

    If Ai Hui was an unorthodox elementalist, then Duanmu Huanghun would be an orthodox elementalist. Due to the talent he disyed since young, his family had ced high hopes on him. Duanmu family was one of the oldest families in Avalon of Five Elements. Since young, Duanmu Huanghun received the most traditional and orthodox education.

    If Duanmu Huanghun never met Ai Hui or encountered the blood catastrophe, he would have graduated from Induction Ground as the best student and became a role model for all the students in Induction Ground.

    His style of defensive arrangements were very traditional. One could even say it was a ssical style. His style of defensive arrangements waspletely different from his arrogant and elitist nature.

    In the hands of a so-called genius, any theories or styles could shine brightly and amaze everyone in the world.

    Initially, the rest of the wood elementalists did not find anything special about Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s defensive arrangements. All they could see was that some of his requirements were too demanding and unnecessary.

    For example, every nt must be of a certain distance from each other or the order in which the wood elementalists sped up the growth of the seeds must be correct. On the contrary, the concoctions that Duanmu Huanghun used to prepare these nts weremonly-seen and ordinary. There were nothing special about these concoctions at all.

    However, as time passed, everyone began to shut up. All theirints had disappeared. Everyone sincerely admired Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s defensive arrangements. They had been convinced by his genius.

    If this was a wood elementalist¡¯s homework or examination in Induction Ground, Duanmu Huanghun would have received full marks. Everyone believed that even the teachers in Induction Ground could not have handled this task better and more impressive than Duanmu Huanghun.

    Perfect! Meticulous! Impregnable!

    His defensive arrangements did not seem topliment each other, but in reality, they did fit together perfectly. The ideas behind his arrangements were ingenious and the details involved were brilliant. Jiang Wei and his counterparts had been through multiple battles before and they had richbat experience. As such, they were familiar with storming heavily fortified positions.

    However, when they faced Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s defensive arrangements, their faces turned white with fear.

    Up till now, no matter how hard everyone tested and rehearsed, they could not find a single loophole in his defensive arrangements.

    Just by the make of the distribution chart of the seeds that had been nted and looking at it, everyone¡¯s eyes tangled up. At this point of time, all the wood elementalists then remembered that Duanmu Huanghun was the legendary top student of Induction Ground.

    Didn¡¯t everyone say that he hadnguished? Didn¡¯t everyone say that he fooled around in brothels day and night? Didn¡¯t everyone say that he was utterly defeated by She Yu?

    All the wood elementalists submissively followed behind the top student, sowing seeds and channelling their elemental energy.

    After being crushed by Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s superb intelligence, everyone seemed to have gone through a mental rollercoaster. Right now, all of them were filled with anticipation. They could not wait to see the facial expression of their enemies when they encountered these fully grown defensive nts.

    Duanmu Huang¡¯s facial expression remained calm. However, deep down, he was actually extremely pleased with himself.

    The time and effort he spent were not in vain!

    He had long thought of how to build an impregnable defense system for the valley. All he wanted was to give Ai Hui a big shock.

    Duanmu Huanghun casted a nce of haughty disdain at Ai Hui. When he saw Ai Hui examined the ground full of sprouts, his mind became restless and his lips curled into a haughty smile.

    Hehe, you must be shocked, right!

    Suddenly, Ai Hui furrowed his eyebrows and said, "Everyone, stop!"

    A look of excitement shed across Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face. The chance is here. He nonchntly asked, "Is there anything wrong?"

    The rest looked at Ai Hui with a puzzled look. From their perspective, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s defensive arrangements were perfect.

    Ai Hui looked at Duanmu Huanghun and asked, "Have you figured out how much wood elemental energy would these arrangements need after three days?"

    Everyone still remained baffled. However, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s facial expression had already changed drastically.

    At this moment, all he wanted to do now was to find a hole and hide in it.

    Damn it!

    How could he overlook such an important issue!

    After the growth of these seeds had been sped up, their elemental energy usage would increase sharply. Furthermore, there was a limit to how much wood elemental energy that this wood elementalnd could provide. It definitely could not support the growth of so many nts.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s mental arithmetic ability surpassed everyone¡¯s. In a blink of an eye, he had alreadyputed the result. The critical point would not be reached on the third day, but rather, 3pm in the afternoon of the second day.

    Once the supply of wood elemental energy could not keep up with the growth of the nts, the nts would not developed healthily. After they were fully grown, their powers would decrease sharply.

    "All of you have to wait until my wood elemental energy pool is ready," Ai Hui told them.

    After the wood elemental energy pool was built, the supply of wood elemental energy would then rise sharply.

    After finishing his sentence, Ai Hui hastily left to take a look at the building progress of the smelting furnace. He had modified the design of elemental energy pool that Elders Guild had provided. There were a lot ofponents to be forged. Therefore, he needed the smelting furnace to be built first. Furthermore, he had to consult Blind He on some of theponents needed for the five elemental energy pools.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face turned ck, resembling the bottom of a wok.

    An extremely strong aura of anger emitted from his body, causing the rest of the wood elementalists to steer clear of him.

    At this point in time, they definitely must not provoke Duanmu Huanghun.

 Chapter 419: An Chouchou

    Chapter 419: An Chouchou

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The smelting furnace that Ai Hui had modified was very different from the usual smelting furnaces.

    The body of his smelting furnace wasrger than the usual smelting furnaces, resembling a house that sat on top of ava pit. On the roof of this smelting furnace, there were twelve flying pipes that resembled inverted bull horns. Surrounding the smelting furnace, there were twelve small fire pits. Each fire pit would shoot out a curved stream of mes, which would then enter the flying, inverted-bull-horn-shaped pipe corresponding to that fire pit. Upon entering the flying, inverted-bull-horn-shaped pipe, the stream of mes woulde out from the other end of the pipe and shoot towards the centre of the smelting furnace.

    Eventually, twelve curved streams of mes would gather in the center of the smelting furnace. The mes within the smelting furnace were white-hot and dazzling.

    Even if one stood far away from the smelting furnace, he or she could feel the terrifying heat of it.

    Everyone was looking at Blind He and the smelting furnace with curiosity and amazement .

    Blind He was standing in front of the smelting furnace. He rolled up his sleeve and revealed his fair arm. Following which, he ced his palm into the furnace, which was then engulfed by the scorching and brilliant mes. Suddenly, a glowing eye appeared in the hollow of his palm. Then, the eye emitted a beam of silvery white light. The scorching mes did not seem to be able to cause any damage to Blind He¡¯s palm.

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Blind He¡¯s strength was unfathomable and his entire body exuded the air of an extraordinary expert.

    Ai Hui was even more formidable for being able to hire such a formidable weaponsmith.

    Actually, Blind He was not as calm and collected as what his facial expression was showing. Deep down, he was unusually excited.

    The quality of the mes in the smelting furnace far exceeded his expectations!

    To a weaponsmith, high-level mes was something they longed for. The higher the base level of the mes, the higher the base level of materials it would be able to melt. Those truly capable weaponsmiths would always forge their weapons in Fire Prairie. The base level of the earth fire in Fire Prairie was extremely high. It was most suitable for forging weapons. That was also why the cities of Fire Prairie were built underground. Being underground, the cities would be able to better utilize the earth fire.

    High-level mes!

    He had never seen such high-level mes

    He forcibly regained hisposure and asked, "What kind of mes is this? Does it have a name?"

    Ai Hui was stunned momentarily and shook his head, "No."

    "Give it a name," Blind He replied.

    Actually, Ai Hui felt that as long as the smelting furnace wasplete, he did not really care about the name of the mes. However, he knew that Blind He¡¯s temperament and nature was not like an average person¡¯s. Therefore, Ai Hui decided to treat him with deference and replied casually, "Since this kind of me is formed by clustering earth fire, and its color is whiter than the usual mes, let¡¯s call it White Cluster mes."

    With a serious look that contained a tinge of sincerity on his face, Blind He replied solemnly, "Then it shall be called White Cluster mes."

    Upon seeing the nonchnt look on Ai Hui¡¯s face, the rest did not care much about the mes too. But no one had expected that White Cluster mes would make an immense reputation for itself in the future. Eventually, it would be carried forward by future generations and a series of high-level cluster mes would be developed.

    In the future, there would be an addition of the title "Creator of High-level Cluster mes" to Ai Hui¡¯s resume, and he would be revered by countless weaponsmiths.

    Only Blind He seemed to have vaguely realized this.

    "As long as you¡¯re happy," Ai Hui did not care about the name of the mes at all. Following which, he asked, "When can we start the forging process?"

    "Let me get familiar with the smelting furnace first."

    After finishing his sentence, Blind He did not pay attention to Ai Hui anymore. He only cared about adjusting the smelting furnace.

    "Does He Wei need Lou Lan¡¯s help?" Lou Lan widened his eyes and asked.

    "Thanks Lou Lan!" Blind He smiled at Lou Lan.

    Upon seeing this, Ai Hui rubbed his nose. Even as the employer, he did not get the same level of respect and fondness as Lou Lan from Blind He.

    .....

    Newlight City was a city designed and built for new citizens. It was also the secondrgest city in Beyond Avalon. Elders Guild had named the Wilderness regions that were expanded into and developed as Beyond Avalon.

    Back then, the number of cities in Beyond Avalon had exceeded ten thousand. However, most of the cities were pathetically small. Thergest and most top-rate city was Skyheart City, which was built by Elders Guild.

    That day, Yuchi Ba came as the representative of Elders Guild to inspect Newlight City. He was standing at the highest pagoda. As Yuchi Ba looked at the continuous stretch of buildings in the distance, his facial expression became solemn.

    The faces of the few Elders from New Citizen Faction standing behind him turned emotional.

    Standing beside Yuchi Ba, there was a short fellow. His body was fat and round and his legs were stout. The luxurious-looking robe on his body was tightly stretched, making one worry that it would burst any moment. On his round, biscuit-like face, there were two squinty eyes that resembled two fine slits. His facial expression was solemn, but the attire on his body made him look ratherical.

    He had an odd name, An Chouchou.

    However, no one dared tough at him.

    Among the new citizens, An Chouchou had be a legend. His strength was very weak and he had not even attained elemental externalization yet. No matter how one looked at him, he or she could not see any worth in him.

    However, he was the mayor of Newlight City now.

    No one knew where Elder Yuchi had found him. Initially, when Elder Yuchi gave such a heavy responsibility to an unknown individual like him, everyone raised their objections. When the internal department of New Citizen Faction saw him in person, everyone was disappointed. Even the Elder who¡¯d previously supported Elder Yuchi prepared to raise his objections when he saw An Chouchou.

    However, after having a debate with An Chouchou, the entire internal department of New Citizen Faction was shocked by him.

    No outsider knew what An Chouchou exactly said in that debate. There were countless different versions of what he had said circting everywhere. From that day onwards, An Chouchou defeated his opponents and became the person in charge for New Citizen Faction¡¯s city-building project.

    And reality had proven that An Chouchou did not let the Elders in New Citizen Faction down.

    This unprepossessing fatty, who merely attained elemental internalization, had made Newlight City into the second biggest city in Beyond Avalon.

    An Chouchou tiptoed and stretched his neck with difficulty. Even so, one could barely see his neck.

    "It¡¯s beginning!" someone yelled in rm. Everyone became excited in an instant.

    Brilliant lights blossomed from the spires of the pagodas situated at the edges of the city. The lights began to extend ande together, forming ayer of pure and holy light around the border of Newlight City. Theyer of light slowly rose into the air and transformed into a silvery light screen. It extended towards the sky, appearing as if a piece light muslin cloth had been pulled over the sky of Newlight City.

    The enormous Newlight City was unusually quiet. On the streets and rooftops of houses, everyone was stretching their necks and staring at the light screen that was extending towards the sky.

    When the light screen reached the other side of the city and merged with theyer of light from the pagodas there, a powerful elemental energy hurricane suddenly erupted from all the pagodas.

    A breeze swept across Newlight City.

    The light screen stabilized, looking as if a huge, transparent, bell of ss had been ced over Newlight City.

    YAY!

    Everyone in Newlight City exploded into a frenzy. Numerous cries of joy broke out from every nook and cranny of the city. At this point of time, Newlight City was like an erupted volcano. Joy was written all over the faces of everyone.

    Newlight City¡¯s greatest defensive structure, Pagoda Screen, had beenpleted. From that day onwards, the defense of Newlight City improved to a new level.

    The citizens of Newlight City were overjoyed because the safety of their homes had been improved greatly. In Wilderness, where they were surrounded by danger, nothing made a person more happy than having safety.

    Newlight City was the second city after Skyheart City to have aplete defensive system. This would greatly boost Newlight City¡¯s reputation and attract more new and powerful citizens to the city.

    Aspared to Skyheart City¡¯s Five Peaks, Pagoda Screen was more innovative.

    In the early stages of building Skyheart City, Madam Ye suggested an extremely daring idea. She wanted to use five God-subduing Peaks to form a brand-new city defense system. This was how Five Peaks came about. Madam Ye¡¯s Five Peaks was not simply about putting five God-subduing Peaks together. There were a lot of marvellous and intricate designs to it. Reportedly, this proposal was given to Madam Ye by one of her subordinates named Ma Shiji.

    Ma Shiji had a mysterious background. No one had heard of him before. This person had an extremely deep understanding of Wang Shouchuan¡¯s research works and theories.

    Even though Yuchi Ba was an Elder of Elders Guild, he could not deploy a God-subduing Peak to Newlight City without explicit approval. Luckily, Wang Shouchuan¡¯s research works and theories were in high demand. Apparently, the birth of God-subduing Peak had poprized Wang Shouchuan¡¯s research works and theories. Even though Elders Guild tried its best to withhold this information from the outside world, the information continued to leak. Since the leakage of the information could not be stopped, Great Elder decided to sell the information on [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] to the public. Its price was exorbitant.

    However, for aristocratic families and powerful forces, they did not mind paying such a small price for it.

    Pagoda Screen was built upon Wang Shouchuan¡¯s theories but it was developed and produced by New Citizen Faction.

    This was something that Yuchi Ba was extremely proud of.

    "It has been hard on you, Chouchou!" Yuchi Ba turned around and thanked An Chouchou with gratitude, "From today onwards, new citizens finally have a home."

    Everyone surrounding Yuchi Ba became very emotional. All along, new citizens had not been well-received in the upper society of the Avalon of Five Elements. The conflicts between new citizens and old citizens had never ceased before.

    Simrly, Elders who were new citizens in Elders Guild were always at a disadvantage.

    "Not hard at all!" An Chouchou replied solemnly, "No one else has the boldness and drive of you and your fellow Elders. If I was in elsewhere, I might not have been able to work hard even if I wanted to."

    Elder Yuchi was very pleased with himself. An Chouchou was personally nominated by him. Therefore, when An Chouchou did a good job, he felt proud as well. With an affable look on his face, Elder Yuchi asked amiably, "Do you have any issues that are troubling you? Feel free to tell me if you do."

    "Chouchou is somewhat ambitious," An Chouchou gave Yuchi Ba a bow before giving a bow to the rest of the Elders as well.

    Yuchi Ba withdrew the smile on his face and signalled to Tong Gui and Yu Lin. Tong Gui and Yu Lin quickly instructed their subordinates to fall back and guard the area to prevent anyone from eavesdropping.

    A solemn look appeared on the other Elders¡¯ faces too. All of them knew An Chouchou definitely had something astonishing to say. Now, everyone no longer dare to underestimate this short fatty. All along, no one had confidence in the construction of Newlight City. They med it on theck of experience and resources that the Elders in New Citizen Facton had. However, now Newlight City had surpassed everyone¡¯s expectations and became the secondrgest city. An Chouchou had yed the main role in this achievement.

    Some of the outsiders had called him Ugly Idol.

    After bowing to everyone, An Chouchou straightened his body. Even though he was the shortest in height among everyone, he looked the most majestic and towering out of all of them.

    "Right now, Newlight City has beenpleted. As long as all of you can manage it properly, it will be the holynd for new citizens in the future. However, it¡¯s difficult to achieve anything without sufficient support. Even after Newlight City has been built, we are stillcking the cities for the other four elements."

    "We know the benefits of having cities for all five elements. However, the regions around here are not suitable for building cities of the other four elements. The distance between each city is too far. The elemental energies can¡¯t react each other well."

    A smile appeared on An Chouchou¡¯s face as he replied, "Chouchou has a premature idea."

 Chapter 420: Energy-stabilizing Pillars

    Chapter 420: Energy-stabilizing Pirs

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui squatted at the volcanic crater and looked at the surging red-coloredva beneath him. Waves of scorching heat hit him in the face while a strong smell of sulfur choked his nose and mouth.

    He squinted his eyes and carefully and examined the fire elemental energy below him. The surgingva had made the fire elemental energy look as if it was in total chaos. However, Ai Hui knew this was not the case in reality.

    This volcano was out of the ordinary and it did not have a name. Since they were going to be staying here for a long time, they had toe up with a name for it. Thus, everyone had decided to call it ckfish Mouth Volcano.

    The volcano was like a huge ck-colored fish that jumped halfway out of the ground. The fish head was facing the sky while the volcanic crater was the mouth of the ck-colored fish.

    Pop!

    A sharp and clear popping sound exploded behind Ai Hui. He returned to his senses with a start and turned his head around.

    A ball of sand had rolled to the volcanic crater from the valley and exploded in the air not far away from Ai Hui. It exploded into a clear and distinct line of words made of sand in the air.

    "Ai Hui, meal time!"

    At the end of the line of words, there was also a vivid and lifelike sand portrait of Lou Lan. In the sand portrait, Lou Lan was wearing a chef¡¯s robe with a wok in one hand and adle in the other hand. Thedle in his hand was pointing to the line of words. On his face, that was covered by a mask, his eyes had curled into two curved slits.

    Ha. Ai Hui could not help butugh.

    Lou Lan was getting more and more fancy.

    Due to having maintained his facial expression for a long time, Ai Hui¡¯s face muscles were slightly rigid. He rubbed his numb face and jumped down from the volcanic crater. Following which, the Starry Gem Swordwings on his back spread with a whizz. Like a huge, ck-colored eagle, he swooped down from the sky and flew towards the valley.

    Looking down from the sky, he could not see the valley. He could only see a continuous stretch of mountain range that was formed by the rocks of the ck volcano.

    As Ai Hui flew closer to the surface of the ground, he did not lower his speed. The scene of him smashing into smithereens did not happen as he flew right through the rocks and disappeared.

    A slight chill sted him in the face as he flew through ayer of fog-formed mirage. The scenery in front of him transformed as an exuberant valley appeared right before his eyes.

    The first thing Ai Hui saw was Fatty licking his te. The rest were busy eating as well. Other than Lou Lan, no one raised their heads to look at him. Gulping his saliva, Ai Huinded beside Lou Lan.

    Lou Lan served Ai Hui the long-prepared elemental food and yelled, "Ai Hui, it has been hard on you!"

    "Thank you, Lou Lan," Ai Hui carefully took over the food.

    An alluring fragrance seeped into Ai Hui¡¯s nostrils as his mouth uncontrobly overflowed with saliva. Like the rest, Ai Hui wolfed down his food.

    Even though he had eaten Lou Lan¡¯s food many times, he still felt extremely blissful whenever he had his meal cooked by Lou Lan.

    At that point of time, a lot of people were thinking, "Ai Hui is not important at all, the most important person is Lou Lan! Lou Lan is the morale-booster! Wherever Lou Lan points hisdle at, we will go through fire and tread on water for him! Ai Hui? Who¡¯s that! How can someone like him enjoy the delicious food that Lou Lan makes? Why don¡¯t we split his share among ourselves? We can eat more of Lou Lan¡¯s food that way then..."

    Those who had finished their meals were staring fiercely at Ai Hui. They were struggling with their emotions. Should they snatch the food from the tiger¡¯s mouth?

    "Ai Hui, did you make any developments today?"

    Lou Lan¡¯s voice rang across Ai Hui¡¯s ears. His face was nearly buried in the bowl of food. Everyone¡¯s gaze was fixated on his back.

    "I still need some more time..." Ai Hui replied unclearly with food stuffed in his mouth.

    Being situated in the mountain range of the ckfish Mouth Volcano, the valley had an abundance of fire elemental energy. Right now, Ai Hui¡¯s biggest problem was to figure out how to use this fire elemental energy.

    In theory, as long as theyout where the five elements could engender each other was formed, any type of elemental energy could be the fountainhead of the five elemental cycle. However, this was only proven in theory. In reality, there were still many limitations as to how one could utilize elemental energies.

    ckfish Mouth Volcano had an abundance of fire elemental energy. However, the fire elemental energy was extremely violent. If Ai Hui wanted to use fire elemental energy, he had to first understand its nature. Just like what his master had told him in the past, he had to find the nodes of the fire elemental energy first.

    Only by understanding how the fire elemental energy was distributed in the area and by identifying the nodes could Ai Hui then put a leash on the ferocious "beast" and tame it.

    The defensive system for the valley and the elemental energy pools had been built. All these needed a huge amount of elemental energy, which would being from this volcano.

    Right now, they still did not dare to explore the surrounding terrain. If they were to encounter any formidable dire beasts, they could not even retreat back to the valley.

    That was because the valley did not have any defensive capabilities. The fog merely provided them with an illusive mirage.

    Ai Hui quickly finished up his food, leaving the food bowl spotless. The gazes that were gathered upon him shifted elsewhere immediately. Ai Hui raised his head from the food bowl with satisfaction.

    After Ai Hui returned to his senses from the delicious food, he looked around and asked, "Where¡¯s Blind He? How¡¯s his progress?"

    "He is still making energy-stabilizing pirs. Since we need a huge number of them, he is still working on them and has not had his meal yet."

    The energy-stabilizing pir was a structure designed by Ai Hui. It was somewhat simr to the sand pirs that Ai Hui made for Gu Tianning.

    The name of "energy-stabilizing pir" was given by Blind He. Ai Hui thought that Blind He found the name of "White Cluster mes" was given too negligently. Therefore, he decided to let Blind He choose the name this time around.

    Upon hearing Lou Lan¡¯s words, Ai Hui was stunned. This was the first time he¡¯d met someone who was able to resist Lou Lan¡¯s delicious food. Such a high level of focus was indeed formidable. A tinge of shame arose in Ai Hui¡¯s heart. Whenparing himself to Blind He, he felt slightly inadequate.

    However, when Ai Hui saw everyone else, the tinge of shame in his heart disappeared into thin air. He said solemnly, "Where¡¯s his share of food? I will help him finish it!"

    "No, Ai Hui," Lou Lan shook his head, "He Wei has forged so many energy-stabilizing pirs and his elemental energy has been greatly depleted. He needs to replenish his elemental energy in time."

    Ai Hui was defeated by Lou Lan¡¯s bright and clear gaze. Heughed unctuously and replied, "Ahh, that¡¯s true, I forgot about that. Otherwise, I would have given him some of my share."

    Disdainful sneers broke out around him, unrestrained.

    Ai Hui red at Iron Lady. What are youughing at?

    "Finished."

    Blind He¡¯s weary voice suddenly rang across Ai Hui¡¯s ears. Like a weightless ghost, he slowly drifted from Ai Hui¡¯s side to Lou Lan.

    Blind He¡¯s unique way of walking resembled the drifting of a ghost.

    His seemingly weightless body hovered a few centimeters above the ground and moved forward slowly, resembling a ghost. Initially, when everyone saw him moving around like this, their hairs stood on end. However, as time passed, they got used to it.

    Blind He was blind and he created this moving method. Since there were too many obstacles on the ground, hovering a few centimeters above the ground would allow him to avoid these obstacles. Moving around at a slow speed allowed him to utilize his sharp sense of awareness. With a sufficient amount of time, he could avoid obstacles like huge trees or walls.

    Ai Hui was stunned. He blurted out, "So fast?"

    In Ai Hui¡¯s modified design n for the five elemental energy pools, each elemental energy pool would need twelve energy-stabilizing pirs to be set up. Since they had five elemental energy pools, they had a total of sixty energy-stabilizing pirs.

    The design for these energy-stabilizing pirs was much moreplicated than Gu Tianning¡¯s sand pirs. Initially, Blind He said that he would need at least five days toplete building sixty energy-stabilizing pirs. In the end, he¡¯d unexpectedlypleted them in two days.

    Blind He ignored Ai Hui and smiled at Lou Lan, "Thank you, Lou Lan."

    Following which, Blind He began to eat his food slowly. After a while, he suddenly said, "The mes are good."

    It was at this moment that Ai Hui realized the White Cluster mes was the reason why the energy-stabilizing pirs could bepleted so fast.

    He did not expect the White Cluster mes to provide such great help to the forging process. This certainly surprised him greatly. Ai Hui was not really well-versed in the art of weapon-forging, however, he certainly knew what it meant when five days¡¯ worth of work waspleted in just two days.

    He was palpitating with eagerness. If he could bring about such a huge impact just by modifying a smelting furnace, what would happen if he applied his master¡¯s theories on other things?

    He suddenly realized that his master¡¯ theories had had more potential than what he had expected. Ai Hui was filled with pride and longing for his master. When Ai Hui recalled that his master was a nobody when he was still alive, he made a firm resolution to promote and develop his master¡¯s theories and research works.

    Brimming with emotions, Ai Hui flew towards the smelting furnace.

    The sixty energy-stabilizing pirs were piled up like a small mountain in front of the smelting furnace. Ai Huinded on the ground and examined the energy-stabilizing pirs carefully.

    As Ai Hui understood his master¡¯s theories more and more, his new designs of the energy-stabilizing pirs became smaller and smaller in size. Their effects were more remarkable as well.

    Every energy-stabilizing pir was as thin as the size of a fist. Each pir was one meter in length. Different materials were used for different elemental types of energy-stabilizing pirs. Some were made up of silvery metal, some were carved out of wood and some were made up of rocks. All of them were extremely exquisite and their bodies were covered withplicated and mysterious veined patterns. A faintly discernible glow was circting through these veined patterns silently, looking like an art piece.

    "Beautiful!"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s voice rang across the air as shended beside Ai Hui. She was admiring the energy-stabilizing pirs as well.

    "Let¡¯s go and set up the elemental energy pools," Ai Hui was high-spirited.

    The rest had also gathered around them by now. Setting up the elemental energy pools was no doubt the most important thing for them to do. With a sufficient supply of elemental energy, their defense system could be activated and they no longer needed to ward off dire beasts with their physical bodies.

    The effects of Ai Hui¡¯s modified smelting furnace were remarkable. Everyone was filled with anticipation. What would Ai Hui¡¯s modified elemental energy pools be like?

    Everyone in the valley went into a frenzy as all of them stopped what they were doing.

    Ai Hui decided to set up the water elemental energy pool first. His partner for this task was Iron Lady.

    Theke in the valley was not really big. Ai Hui had already identified the locations of the nodes.

    Under Ai Hui¡¯s instructions, Iron Lady nailed the energy-stabilizing pirs in the bottom of theke. This was a task that needed to be carried out meticulously. Not only must she urately nail the energy-stabilizing pirs in the exact spots, she must also make sure that the pirs were not damaged at all.

    A solemn look was upon Shi Xueman¡¯s face as she cautiously nailed the twelve energy-stabilizing pirs into the nodes. Doing this caused her to be drenched in sweat.

    When thest energy-stabilizing pir was nailed, Shi Xueman heaved a long sigh of relief. Her tense mind was finally able to rx. Now she was only scared of doing something wrong.

    Now that she thought of how Ai Hui nailed all the golden needles to execute [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth] in Central Pine City, she felt that Ai Hui could handle stress and pressure very well.

    At this moment, the ground suddenly trembled.

    Shi Xueman returned to her senses. Everyone¡¯s gaze was directed at the smallke.

    At this point of time, the usually tranquilke was rolling and surging, resembling ake of boiling water. Powerful water elemental energy was spreading throughout the valley.

    Ai Hui looked slightly nervous and yelled, "Stay on guard!"

    Powerful elemental energy undtions could attract dire beasts easily. However, Ai Hui and the rest were already prepared for this scenario. If a dire beast really appeared, they would have someone to lure it away.

    Everyone was feeling extremely tense now. Fortunately, no dire beasts appeared.

    The boilingke began to change.

 Chapter 421: Elemental Energy Pools, One By One

    Chapter 421: Elemental Energy Pools, One By One

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The surface of the previously boilingke suddenly became sleek and smooth like a mirror. It looked like a hand had smoothened out a creased bedsheet. Wisps of mist rose from the surface of theke, making theke looked like a misty fairnd.

    A small mass of cloud formed in the air seven meters above the surface of theke, resembling a lump of soft cotton candy.

    No one had ever seen such a mini cloud that flew so low to the ground. Its reflection was projected on the tranquil surface of theke, resembling a phenomenon that could only be found in fantasnd. Shi Xueman, Sang Zhijun and a few other girls wished they could touch it.

    The level of theke decreased visibly while the mass of the cloud increased with a visible speed. As the mass of the cloud increased, the cloud slowly rose towards the sky.

    Disappointment shed across the girls¡¯ eyes. After the mass of the cloud had increased, it was no longer as cute as its previous smaller self. At this moment, the size of the cloud was somewhat simr to theke¡¯s. It had flown to a height that was level with the highest point of the valley.

    "It¡¯s raining," Sang Zhijun¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Everyone reached out their palms at the same time. A soft drizzle, as fine as hair, rained down from the sky. In the blink of an eye, the area around theke was draped in a misty rain.

    The concentration level of water elemental energy in the area increased significantly. A slight chill engulfed the area, making it looked as if they were in the misty depths of a mountain. The peculiar thing was that the misty rain only covered a small area surrounding theke and would not extend beyond that by the slightest bit.

    Shi Xueman closed her eyes to feel the air around her. After a while, she opened her eyes and said, "The concentration level of water elemental energy has increased by approximately ten percent."

    Upon hearing Shi Xueman¡¯s words, Ai Hui replied, "The concentration level of water elemental energy here is too low. Using the elemental energy pool alone won¡¯t increase the concentration level greatly."

    An elemental energy pool did not have the ability to create something from nothing. It could not generate elemental energy on its own and there were a lot of requirements in building it. A suitable location for building it was more important than anything else.

    For example, an area that had a high concentration level of metal elemental energy would be suitable for building a metal elemental energy pool.

    An elemental energy pool worked in the way that it would first absorb all elemental energies from its surrounding. Then, it would preserve its target elemental energy and filter out other types of elemental energy. By doing this, the concentration level of its target elemental energy in the surroundings would increase.

    The valley was generally low in water elemental energy, therefore, the water elemental energy pool could not work to its full effect. However, since the water elemental energy in theke was pure in nature, it satisfied the requirements for a water elemental energy pool to work. Simrly, an elemental energy pool needed to consume elemental energy for it to operate. If the concentration level of a particr elemental energy was too low, the elemental energy pool would not work.

    This was also why some ces were worthless, even though they had all five elemental energies.

    Ai Hui anticipated that this would happen and he had exined it to everyone beforehand. As such, all of them were not really disappointed.

    Sessfully setting up the water elemental energy pool was only the first step. There were still four more elemental energy pools to be set up. The fire elemental energy pool would be set up thest.

    One could tell that Ai Hui was an ambitious individual despite his low-profile nature. His design ns hadpletely disyed his lofty aspirations.

    The wood elemental energy pool would have to depend on Duanmu Huanghun.

    Duanmu Huanghun worked extremely fast. He knew the design n for the wood elemental energy pool thoroughly. With regards to this aspect, he was better than Shi Xueman. The first time he saw Ai Hui¡¯s modified design n for the wood elemental energy pool, he was bbergasted. However, two dayster, he understood all the details clearly. By the third day, he could evene up with suggestions to improve the design. This proved that he had a deep understanding of the structure of the elemental energy pool.

    The use of drifting jadesword bamboos was his suggestion and it was epted by Ai Hui.

    Right now, Duanmu Huanghun was cultivating drifting jadesword bamboos. He nted them near the brook so as to ensure there was a sufficient amount of water elemental energy flowing into the bamboo forest.

    Before this, Duanmu Huanghun had already nailed the twelve energy-stabilizing pirs into the ground.

    The body of a drifting jadesword bamboo was long and thing. Its bamboo leaves were long and narrow like the de of a sword. The bamboo was jade-green in color. These were the reasons why it was called drifting jadesword bamboo. The bamboo leaves of drifting jadesword bamboos fell throughout all four seasons. When they fell and drifted in the air, they resembled dancing butterflies, looking extremely beautiful.

    There would be swishing jade-green bamboos, the whispering of the wind and the sword chimes from the fallen leaves.

    Such beautiful scenery...

    Other than its good-looking appearance, Duanmu Huanghun had chosen drifting jadesword bamboos for its other advantages too. Drifting jadesword bamboos were naturally suitable for being used in sword formations. They had defensive capabilities that could kill enemies. The bamboo leaves were also an excellent type of weapon. If there was an ample amount elemental energy in the future, they could sell the bamboo leaves to create a source of sizeable ie.

    Because of this suggestion, Ai Hui began to see Duanmu Huanghun in a new light.

    Duanmu Huanghun could sense it and was extremely pleased with himself for a long time. He thought that Ai Hui was finally bowled over by his superb aesthetic sense. Unexpectedly, Ai Hui was already inquiring about questions like how much a piece of bamboo leaf would cost, how big the bamboo forest would be, what would be the output value and etc.

    The drifting jadesword bamboos were nted on both sides of the brook. Ai Hui applied some of the insights he¡¯d obtained from [Yin Yang Sword Formation] on them as well.

    The forest of one hundred and eight drifting jadesword bamboos, each with the width of a thumb, would be split into half by the brook. On each side of the brook, there were six energy-stabilizing pirs. If one looked down at the forest from the sky, he or she would see the shape of Yin and Yang.

    Even for someone like Duanmu Huanghun, it was extremely exhausting to nt one hundred and eight drifting jadesword bamboos.

    When he nted thest drifting jadesword bamboo, the nature of the wood elemental energy in the area began to transform. Unlike the turbulent transformation of the water elemental energy previously, the wood elemental energy¡¯s transformation was very calm and gentle.

    The drifting jadesword bamboos were growing at a visible speed. Section by section, the bamboo grew longer while the jade-green bamboo leaves grew on the branches continuously.

    After around one hour, the sparse, young bamboo sprouts began to look somewhat like a bamboo forest. The bamboo leaves looked like tiny jade-made swords that hung on the branches of the bamboos.

    At this moment, a bamboo leaf fell and drifted across the bamboo forest.

    After a bamboo leaf broke away from the branch of a drifting jadesword bamboo, it would drift in the air forever, not touching the ground at all. Eventually, it would vaporize into a puff of wood elemental energy and dissipate into the air. This was how the word "drifting" in its name came about.

    "It¡¯s beautiful," Shi Xueman could not help but say.

    "We can make money off them as well!" Ai Hui quickly added in, "Once there are more of these bamboo leaves, we can gather them. I have already done my research. When the wood elemental energy in the bamboo leaves bes more concentrated, the bamboo leaves will be clear and pristine like pieces of jade. They will be worth more money that way. We will earn a huge ie just by selling the bamboo leaves every year!"

    A vision for the future appeared in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    All the wood elementalists entered the bamboo forest to experience it for themselves. This could be an ideal ce for them to meditate in the future. The wood elemental energy in the bamboo forest was clearly more concentrated than in the other areas¡¯. Furthermore, the wood elemental energy in the bamboo forest was flowing in some kind of unique way. There was a tiny difference between the two bamboo forests. The difference was subtle and thought-provoking. Some sharp wood elementalists wished they could stay in the bamboo forest forever.

    However, right now, they could not do so.

    The wood elementalists reluctantly walked out from the bamboo forest. Before the entire set of design ns was executed, all the five elemental energies in the valley would be extremely weak.

    The job of setting up the earth elemental energy pool was left to Wang Xiaoshan.

    The hillock was made up of soot from the volcano and it was extremely sturdy and thick. However, it wasn¡¯t much of a problem to Wang Xiaoshan. Even though his fighting capabilities were not as good as the others, his construction skills far surpassed everyone else.

    The shape of the earth elemental energy pool was octagonal. There would be a stone-made energy-stabilizing pir in each corner of the earth elemental energy pool.

    The other four pirs would be ced in the direction of the metal wind cavern.

    When the earth elemental energy pool was set up, the ground in the centre of the eight energy-stabilizing pirs suddenly became soft and caved in, forming a hole that was of an unfathomable depth. The hole resembled a deep well.

    Through the hole, loud rumbles could be heard from the depths of the ground, sounding as if there was an army with thousands of men and horses marching underneath.

    The rumbles got increasingly close while the ground shook more and more violently.

    With a loud boom, quicksand erupted from the hole like a fountain. Very soon, the quicksand began to flood the surface of the ground and kept on extending outward.

    Quicksand gushed out from the hole endlessly. Using the other four energy-stabilizing pirs as direction markers, a portion of the quicksand slowly flowed towards the entrance of metal wind cavern. A small river of quicksand was formed.

    Wang Xiaoshan could not contain the joy on his face as he stood on the quicksand. The earth elemental energy made him felt extremelyfortable. In the blink of an eye, the earth elemental energy pool¡¯s surroundings was fully covered with quicksand.

    Lou Lan curiously asked Ai Hui, "Ai Hui, will this ce be the next Yellow Sand Corner in the future? Lou Lan has never been to Yellow Sand Corner. Master Shao said that Yellow Sand Corner has many types of sand materials."

    Ai Hui blinked his eyes and replied, "You might be right. Give it another one thousand years and there will be a sea of yellow sand here."

    When the rest heard Ai Hui¡¯s words, they could not help but roll their eyes. Was Ai Hui trying to bully Lou Lan just because he was innocent and naive?

    "Ai Hui, really? If that¡¯s the case, Lou Lan must make sure this ce canst for another one thousand years," Lou Lan widened his eyes and replied happily.

    "Alright, this shall be Lou Lan¡¯s territory in the future. All of you better not vie with him over this area," Ai Hui put on a solemn look on his face and announced.

    "Thank you Ai Hui! Thank you everyone!" Lou Lan was overjoyed.

    The rest cast a look of disdain at Ai Hui. They had never seen such a shameless individual before. How could he even lie to the kind-hearted Lou Lan! One thousand years? Sigh, Lou Lan is really innocent and naive!

    Shi Xueman, San Zhijun and the rest were filled with jealousy. They wished they could take Lou Lan for their own.

    The earth elemental energy pool had been set up and the entire earth elemental section of the valley would be sandy. This process would continue slowly as time passed. But if there was an abundance of earth elemental energy, this process would speed up greatly.

    Ai Hui was duty-bound to set up the metal elemental energy pool.

    Everyone was amazed by Ai Hi¡¯s actions.

    He carried twelve elemental energy pirs and a huge bundle of See You Laters on his back. Following which, he closed his eyes and his body slowly floated up into the air. At this point of time, he resembled Blind He who drifted around like a ghost.

    He slowly rose into the air and reached a point that was twenty meters above the ground. Everyone was holding their breaths.

    Suddenly, he stopped rising and took out a silver-colored energy-stabilizing pir. He used his fingers to hold one end of the energy-stabilizing pir. Naturally, the pir drooped down and pointed towards the ground.

    Under everyone¡¯s watchful gaze, he let go of the pir.

    Everyone widened their eyes in an instant. To their surprise, the heavy pir stayed motionlessly where it was. It was as if there was an invisible tform supporting it.

    However, there was really nothing there!

    Ai Hui carefully unbundled the See You Laters on his back and took out one arrow. Following which, he pointed the tip of the arrow at the top end of the energy-stabilizing pir such that the arrow and the pir formed a wide angle.

    Once again, he let go of his hand and the See You Later stayed motionlessly where it was.

    Ai Hui took out the second See You Later and ced it beside the first arrow while pointing its tip at the top end of the energy-stabilizing pir at the same time. When he finished cing the twelfth See You Later, he¡¯d formed a circr canopy of See You Laters. Suddenly, each of the twelve See You Laters emitted a faint silvery glow. The twelve silvery glows came together and formed a silvery light screen.

    A silvery glowing umbre floated silently in the air.

    Ai Hui did not take a break. One by one, the silvery glowing umbres were propped up in the air.

    Twelve silvery glowing umbres hovered in the air above everyone¡¯s heads, looking extremely beautiful.

    Everyone suddenly realized that the piercing metal wind had disappeared. Numerous gentle air vortices appeared in their surroundings. Apparently, these silver-colored air vortices contained an extremely high concentration level of metal elemental energy. Each of them resembled an impish sprite.

    Everyone was dumbstruck by this sight.

    Ai Hui¡¯s words became exceptionally loud and clear.

    "Now we are left with the fire elemental energy pool."

 Chapter 422: Skyheart City

    Chapter 422: Skyheart City

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    While Newlight City was making triumphant progress, Skyheart City did not stand still without advancement as well.

    Skyheart City remained indifferent when they heard of the sess of Pagada Screen in Newlight City. That¡¯s right. Indifferent. Skyheart City was a city where the rich and powerful aristocratic families gathered. To them, Newlight City was just a city with weak foundations and it would suffer a total copse after a few rounds of attacks from powerful dire beasts.

    Furthermore, what was so powerful and special about Pagoda Screen?

    At this point of time, the construction of the newest elemental energy pool was about to begin in Skyheart City.

    "This new elemental energy pool will produce a result that is fifty percent better than the old model¡¯s. The building process will take about three months. Once the new elemental energy pool is built, the size of Skyheart City will expand again. When the timees, we will attract a huge number of elite elementalists here. They will be the nucleus of the Avalon of Five Elements."

    Madam Ye was speaking with assurance beside Great Elder. At this point of time, she was doused in glory and honor. Her body was exuding magnificence and brilliance. The Elders behind her looked at her respectfully. She was like a bright moon surrounded by a myriad of stars. Who would have expected the pitiful-looking widow from not long ago to be the woman who held the highest authority in Skyheart City today?

    It was no longer a secret that Great Elder wanted to give Madam Ye absolute authority over Skyheart City. In fact, this process was already beginning. Those Elders who had good foresight had already made their moves.

    It wasn¡¯t that no one raised objections to Great Elder¡¯s decision. But Madam Ye had shut up all her critics with the capabilities that she disyed. Right now, there were only some obstinate and conservative Elders that still raised objections. They were saying that Great Elder¡¯s decision did not conform to traditions.

    However, in the face of an imminent crisis, who would care about traditions?

    In fact, those people who¡¯d initially raised objections against Madam Ye gradually changed their perspectives towards her. Didn¡¯t Madam Ye do a great job? Aspared to the slow-reacting Elders Guild, Madam Ye¡¯s efficiency was much higher. Otherwise, Skyheart City would not have be thergest city in Beyond Avalon in such a short period of time.

    The aristocratic families were overjoyed that Newlight City was beneath them.

    The thriving Skyheart City had brought in waves of migrating aristocratic families. Those aristocratic families that initially ventured into Wilderness on their own eventually bowed their heads to Madam Ye in a servile manner after encountering endless obstacles and seeing Skyheart City had progressed so well.

    Madam Ye not only let bygones be bygones, she also invited them with open arms. After struggling in the cruel and cold Wilderness, these fragile and weak aristocratic families were extremely touched by Madam¡¯s gestures.

    Because of this, Madam Ye¡¯s public reputation had risen significantly.

    In many people¡¯s hearts, Madam Ye had obtained the people¡¯s mandate. Some fanatics even called her "Empress." The powerful Ling Residence had long been forgotten by the people and became part of the unwanted history.

    Great Elder clearly looked much older than he wasst year. His eyes were sunken and the wrinkles on his face had be deeper, resembling deep trenches. His eye pupils had be turbid. It was only when a rare glint shed across his eyes that people remembered this old fogey was still in absolute control over this piece ofnd.

    Madam Ye was holding on to Great Elder. She smiled, "The new elemental energy pool doesn¡¯t have a name yet. Everyone is waiting for you to give it a good name."

    Great Elder looked at the prosperous city before his eyes and a gratified look appeared upon his face. He sighed with sorrow, "I have been wondering whether or not I made the right choice by authorizing the Wilderness Expansion Order and throwing away the territory left by our ancestors. Every time I think of it, I feel as if a knife is being plunged into my heart.

    He gradually increased his volume as his turbid gaze became sharp and clear, "However, what can we do? This is the reality of the situation we are in now. If we make changes, we might survive. If we don¡¯t make any changes, we will definitely not survive! Today, after taking a look at Skyheart City, I suddenly realize that the difficulties and dangers we have encountered are merely the path that our ancestors walked on before. The difficulties that our ancestors encountered were much more tougher than ours. However, they were still able to ovee all obstacles and take on the great task of establishing the Avalon of Five Elements. Since the ancestors¡¯ blood runs in my body, how can I be a death-fearing individual that holds a sinecure?"

    Everyone lowered their heads in shame.

    Great Elder looked at the sky, appearing to be lost in thought.

    No one dared to say anything. A dead silence descended upon them.

    "An Muda¡¯s life ising to an end soon," Great Elder suddenly said.

    Amotion broke out as a look of fear and panic arose on everyone¡¯s faces. This rumor had been spreading around like a forest fire, but no-onepletely believed it. Several families that kept in contact with Jadeite Forest in secret were not really worried as well.

    Everyone still carried a tinge of hope. After all, An Muda was a Grandmaster, maybe he coulde up with a way to extend his life?

    However, when this news came out of Great Elder¡¯s mouth, everyone knew for sure that An Muda¡¯s life was indeeding to an end.

    A dead silence swept across the crowd. All of their faces were deathly pale. Hearing this news with their own ears had dealt a huge blow to them.

    "This new elemental energy pool shall be called "An Muda". Let¡¯s hope that it can safeguard the Avalon of Five Elements, like what An Muda did," Great Elder could not suppress the grief on his face. Not only was An Muda the Grandmaster of the Avalon of Five Elements, he was also his older brother.

    The atmosphere was dead and depressed. Suddenly, someone began to weep.

    Great Elder straightened his crooked back abruptly as his sunken eyes widened with rage. He said with a stern voice, "What¡¯s there to cry about? Can crying prolong An Muda¡¯s life? Can crying keep the Avalon of Five Avalons intact? Such a disgrace! An old fellow that has been safeguarding all of you is going to die soon. Look at all of you, looking like a bunch of timid quails!"

    Madam Ye hurriedly reached out her hand to pat Great Elder¡¯s back to calm him down.

    Great Elder¡¯s rage subsided significantly as his gaze became sunken once more. With a softened tone, he continued, "Old fogeys like us are going to die soon. All of you have to continue walking this path on your own in the future. Whether you die or survive, it will depend on your individual capabilities. I tell all of you this news to let you know that time is running out."

    After Great Elder finished his sentence, he unenthusiastically said, "All of you, take your leave now."

    The rest looked at Madam Ye and she waved her hand to signal them to take their leave. Following which, everyone bade farewell and left.

    The surroundings became silent in an instant.

    "Father-inw, why do you have to be so angry with them? Anger will harm your body. You can¡¯t depend on these people to do anything. It¡¯s already good enough if they don¡¯t create any troubles," Madam Ye said gently.

    "I¡¯m angry at them precisely for not living up to my expectations. All of theme from powerful families and their ancestors are heroes. Why is everyone trash when ites to this generation?" Great Elder sighed.

    "There are a few who are not bad," Madam Ye consoled Great Elder.

    Great Elder did notment on her words. Then, he spoke with gratitude, "Lucky you¡¯re here. Otherwise, I can¡¯t imagine what will happen to us. It¡¯s a good thing that they listen to you now. However, it¡¯s still not enough. I told them the news of An Muda because I want them to be afraid. Now that they are afraid, they will listen to whatever you say. The new citizens are bing more ambitious and they are untrustworthy."

    "Lin-er appreciates Father-inw¡¯s painstaking efforts," Madam Ye replied gently.

    "How¡¯s Master¡¯s Glorying along?" Great Elder asked.

    "It¡¯s proceeding smoothly. The first year, which is the most dangerous stage, has already passed. There are around thirty-seven people that can¡¯t adapt. Out of these thirty-seven people six did not survive."

    "Look at the big picture, don¡¯t be soft-hearted," Great Elder reminded Madam Ye.

    "Lin-er will bear this in mind."

    Suddenly, Great Elder looked as if he thought of something and asked, "I remember Wang Shouchuan still has a disciple, right?"

    "Yes, his name is Ai Hui. He was personally chosen by Wang Shouchuan as his disciple. It¡¯s a pity half a yearter the blood catastrophe struck," Madam Ye quickly replied.

    "It¡¯s really a pity," Great Elder¡¯s face was filled with disappointment.

    He was feeling that it was a pity Ai Hui spent too little time studying under Wang Shouchuan. What could he possibly learn in half a year¡¯s time? Wang Shouchuan¡¯s theories were in high demand now. God-subduing Peak, Skyheart City and elemental energy pools were created based on Wang Shouchuan¡¯s theories and research works.

    Smart individuals would know that Wang Shouchuan¡¯s theories and research works were changing the world at a terrifying speed right now.

    "It¡¯s really a pity," Madam Ye continued, "Ai Hui and the survivors of Central Pine City have gathered together. They called themselves Central Pine Faction. Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun are in it too. Reportedly, Duanmu Huanghun was kidnapped by Shi Xueman. During that period of time, Jadeite Forest had been asking us for an exnation for a long time."

    "Is Shi Beihai behind this?" A vignt look swept across Great Elder¡¯s face.

    "I¡¯m not sure," Madam Ye replied with prudence.

    "What are they doing now?" Great Elder asked bluntly.

    "Some time ago, they were spotted at a ce called Lemon Camping Ground. This ce is in the east of Palette Cloud Vige. It is located in the depths of Wilderness." Madam Ye recalled. Luckily, she had a highly retentive memory, otherwise, she would not have remembered this unremarkable piece of intelligence.

    "Take note of Shi Beihai," Great Elder said with a deep voice.

    "Yes," Madam Ye made a mental note.

    Suddenly, Great Elder became infuriated, "Out of everyone from the aristocratic families, Shi Beihai was the most obedient. In the end, he still turns out like this. Devotion on the outside but opposition on the inside. Simply outrageous!"

    "This is not the first day he¡¯s acted like this," Madam Yeughed bitterly.

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Shi Beihai was a weirdo. No one knew what he was thinking and what he wanted. Most of the time, he kept a low-profile and his existence waspletely unnoticeable. However, when one tried to pressure him, he or she would not get anything out. Other than boundlessly loving his daughter, this person did not leave much of an impression on other people.

    "This is why I let him be a division leader," Great Elder replied inly.

    ......

    The valley, ckfish Mouth Volcano.

    Ai Hui was encouraging Fatty, "Just do it ording to what you have practised so far. Didn¡¯t I ask Lou Lan to arrange many practices for you? Just rx and don¡¯t worry. There¡¯s nothing scary about it. It won¡¯t eat you, right?"

    "I¡¯m afraid that I might break the energy-stabilizing pirs..." Fatty answered with a wobbly voice as his legs trembled.

    Upon seeing the terrified look on Fatty¡¯s face, Ai Hui was filled with anger. Smack. He pped the back of Fatty¡¯s head and said, "If you continue to behave like this, you¡¯re going to be dead today!"

    "Ah Hui, if I mess it up, don¡¯t me me..." Fatty was crying miserably.

    "I will not me you! No one will me you! It¡¯s okay as long as you try your best!" Ai Hui was trying to suppress his anger.

    "Ah Hui, why do you have to set up the fire elemental energy poolst? Why do you have to choose me to set it up when there are so many fire elementalists around? If I mess it up, you will definitely me me, beat me and..." Fatty was still trembling with fear.

    After persuading for nearly an hour, Ai Hui finally lost his patience and exploded with rage, "I¡¯m going to beat you now!"

    Fatty curled his body up on the ground with his hands covering the back of his head. Iron Lady quickly ran over and stopped Ai Hui.

    Ouch! My chest hurts! How can she elbow my chest so hard! Iron Lady has such huge strength...

    Ai Hui heaved a deep sigh. When he turned around and saw Lou Lan, his eyes lit up. He beckoned to Lou Lan, "Lou Lan."

    "Ai Hui, do you need Lou Lan¡¯s help?" Lou Lan widened his eyes and asked.

    "I¡¯m very hungry, make us some elemental soup," AI Hui winked at Lou Lan.

    "No problem, Ai Hui!" Lou Lan yelled.

    From the corner of his eyes, Ai Hui saw Fatty¡¯s ears twitch. Following which, Ai Hui sneered, "Lou Lan, go and make the elemental soup. We will drink the soup first. Fatty will only drink the soup whenever he is done with the fire elemental energy pool."

    Fatty stood up with grief and indignation written all over his face. He looked as if he was going to the battlefield while facing death with equanimity.

    "I will kill whoever drinks my share!"

 Chapter 423: Are You Looking for a Fight? Come On, Come On

    Chapter 423: Are You Looking for a Fight? Come On, Come On

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Trembling with fear and trepidation, Fatty finallypleted setting up the fire elemental energy pool. The fire elemental energy pool was shaped like a mini volcano and was about a man¡¯s height. If one took a closer look at it, he or she would notice that it looked somewhat simr to ckfish Mouth Volcano.

    The mini volcano continued to spout mes. The concentration of fire elemental energy in the surroundings rose sharply. Simrly, the temperature of the surroundings increased significantly. Pleasure andfort were written all over the faces of the fire elementalists. Meanwhile, the rest quickly retreated from this zing hot ce.

    Ai Hui was about to ask Fatty how much the concentration level of fire elemental energy had increased, but when he turned around, Fatty was already squatting in one corner and hungrily devouring his soup. The look of satisfaction and prudence on his face made Ai Hui smile involuntarily.

    Such a useless fellow!

    Luckily there were still other fire elementalists avable.

    "The concentration level of fire elemental energy has increased by three times! Oh my god! Training in this ce feels so good!"

    "I want to be a fire elemental master!"

    The air was dyed crimson, a distinctive feature of having extremely concentrated fire elemental energy in the surroundings. The fire elemental energy that was given off by the fire elemental energy pool was extremely pure in nature, making it very suitable for fire elementalists to train with.

    Suddenly, a brilliant ball of mes shot out from the fire elemental energy pool. Like a feather, it gently and gracefully floated to the ground. When itnded, instead of extinguishing, it transformed into a dazzling zing flower.

    "Fire flower?" Shi Xueman was startled.

    She ran over and squatted to take a look, following which, she yelled in excitement, "It¡¯s really fire flower!"

    Each petal was as thin as paper, bright-red in color, and shaped like a ball of mes. Its ck-colored stem was thick and short. Its texture felt exactly like that of volcanic rock.

    The rest reacted immediately upon hearing the news and crowded around Shi Xueman. A look of joy appeared on their faces. Fire flowers were a unique material found only in Fire Prairie. Ever since Fire Prairie was annexed by Blood of God, fewer and fewer fire flowers were appearing on the market.

    Upon seeing the fire flower, everyone felt happy and deeply moved. Who would have expected to see fire flowers in this nameless valley?

    Another ball of mes shot out from the fire elemental energy pool and swayed as it floated to the ground.

    No one could take their eyes off the flowers. Most of them had never seen a fire flower from Fire Prairie before and would not be able to see one in the future either.

    "When I was young, my grandfather brought me to Fire Prairie once. It just so happened that Cbash Mountain erupted and mes rained down from the sky, engulfing fifty kilometers around the mountain. On the ground, there were numerous fire flowers. When we arrived, there was nothing on the ck-colored ins. In a night¡¯s time, fire flowers grew and filled the ins. It was a breathtaking sight to behold. People rushed in from all directions to gather the fire flowers. Everyone was in high spirits, looking as if they were celebrating a festival. It¡¯s a pity that we will never witness that kind of grand asion again," Shi Xueman recalled fondly.

    A faint sadness engulfed everyone¡¯s heart. They felt unusually sad when they thought of the fallen Fire Prairie. The excitement and joy they felt earlier diminished significantly.

    "Be careful, don¡¯t touch their roots. I really didn¡¯t expect to find fire flowers here. A windfall indeed! Fence off the area thirty meters within the fire elemental energy pool. Fire flowers are extremely valuable. Now we have one more source of ie! And of treasures! This really is and of treasures!" Ai Hui¡¯s voice broke the emotional moment.

    The emotional and grief-filled atmosphere was immediately spoiled.

    "Why are you thinking of money all day long?" Shi Xueman red at Ai Hui.

    "Duh? What will happen if we have no money? Everyone will be cold and hungry. Money is justice!" Ai Hui replied and gave Shi Xueman an innocent look.

    "If money is justice, then what about owing people money?" Shi Xueman sneered.

    Upon hearing "owing people money," Ai Hui felt an indescribable guilt. Suddenly, he thought of Eighty Million Yuan. All he knew was that Eighty Million Yuan was still alive and she would prompt him to repay his debt every now and then; however, they had not yet actually met. Thinking about it now, he felt rather puzzled. Every time he asked Eighty Million Yuan where she was, she would never answer him.

    Other than this matter, Ai Hui had nevermitted any shameful deeds. It was bing a secret worry for him.

    Poverty stunts ambition!

    Once I am rich, I will repay the debt with interest, lest you haunt me like a ghost every now and then!

    "Justice might arrivete but it will never be absent," Shi Xueman snorted.

    Ai Hui felt as if his secret had been revealed. Fying into a rage out of humiliation, he said, "Are you looking for a fight?"

    Shi Xueman sneered as she took the red hairband from her wrist and calmly tied up her long hair. "Come on,e on."

    Ai Hui touched his aching chest and felt slightly nervous in an instant. This woman had such huge strength...

    Immediately, a look of disdain appeared on his face and he replied, "Childish!"

    After finishing his sentence, he turned around and yelled at the meddlesome onlookers, "Why are all of you standing here! Go and take a look at the elemental energy pools!"

    "Ah Hui, how can a man say no to a girl?" Someone yelled out.

    "True Hero Ai Hui, Big Sister is asking you for a fight," heckled another person.

    "Ai Hui is asking, where can they fight?" Another person joined in the fun.

    "Bed..."

    An aura of death engulfed the air. Shi Xueman¡¯s hand was already touching her Cirrus.

    Everyone roared withughter and dispersed instantly like a bunch of rmed birds. Most of them had spent thest three years as members of various divisions. They were no longer the innocent students they used to be.

    Shi Xueman held her spear and stood in an imposing manner. The faint blush on her beautiful and alluring snow-white face set off a contrast that made her looked even more gorgeous, so much so that her murderous-looking gaze disyed a tinge of gentleness and sweetness.

    Puzzlement was written all over Ai Hui¡¯s face. He was still thinking of the word "bed" that had ended all the heckling instantly.

    What¡¯s fighting got to do with beds? Beds have so little space...

    He subconsciously cast a nce at Iron Lady. Following which, his body froze. Ai Hui had never seen Iron Lady in this manner. He¡¯d always felt that Iron Lady was an iron warrior who possessed terrifying fighting capabilities. She was cool-headed, brave, and fearless. She was definitely a trustworthyrade and a good partner.

    Right now, there was an indescribable fascination about Shi Xueman. Like a ma, she firmly attracted Ai Hui¡¯s gaze. He was dumbfounded by her.

    When Shi Xueman noticed Ai Hui looking at her, her slightly blushing face suddenly turned bright red. She looked like blood would seep out from her face at any moment.

    "What are you looking at? Are you looking for a fight?" She said fiercely to Ai Hui.

    The moment she finished speaking, she knew she¡¯d said something wrong. Right now, she wished she could find a hole and hide in it.

    Ai Hui returned to his senses and blurted out, "You looked quite pretty just now."

    After Ai Hui finished his sentence, he knew something was wrong as well. Iron Lady was going to flip out!

    He smacked his head and eximed, "Oh! I forgot to do something important!"

    Following which, he turned around and ran away in a panic.

    An aura of death erupted behind Ai Hui. He trembled in fear and ran even faster.

    Am I tired of living? How can I praise an iron warrior like Iron Lady for being pretty? How can I humiliate a true warrior like her?

    Feeling fearful, Ai Hui touched and checked his body. Luckily, there weren¡¯t any spear gashes.

    Oh my god, why did I think Iron Lady was pretty? Since when did my taste be so bad?

    I used to have great taste in the past. Why did it turn out like this?

    After thinking it through, Ai Hui came to the conclusion that he had been influenced by the sissy Bangwan.

    That¡¯s right, it must be him!

    Currently, Ai Hui was doing serious, deep self-reflection.

    The fire elemental energy pool was thest elemental energy pool to be set up and was also the most important one. Fire elemental energy would be the fountainhead of propulsion for the five elemental cycle. As long as there was an endless stream of fire elemental energy, the five elemental cycle would grow and multiply without end.

    The concentration level of fire elemental energy would continue to increase. The air would be dyed crimson, looking as if a piece of red-colored muslin was draped over the air.

    When the concentration level of fire elemental energy reached its limit and could no longer rise, the surplus fire elemental energy gushed towards the earth elemental energy pool. The concentration of earth elemental energy then began to increase continuously. The amount of quicksand gushing out of the earth elemental energy pool increased. Eventually, the hillock became a sand dune.

    When the earth elemental energy¡¯s concentration level continued to increase, the air became dry and the sand dune increased in size. When the earth elemental energy¡¯s concentration level reached its limit, the narrow river of quicksand started to flow.

    The river of quicksand flowed towards the metal wind cavern.

    The metal wind cavern was situated at a lower ground level than the sand dune. The quicksand gathered around the entrance of the metal wind cavern, which looked as if it had put on a ring made of quicksand.

    The wind speed of the metal wind in the metal wind cavern became stronger.

    Ai Hui was extremely familiar with metal wind. The wind speed of metal wind could be determined just by listening to the nature of its whizzing sound. If the wind speed increased, the whizzing sound of the metal wind would be sharper and more intense.

    The metal wind became stronger and stronger.

    The ear-piercing whizzing sound had be deep and low. The deep-sounding booms made everyone tremble in fear and trepidation. There was also an obvious change in the color of the metal wind.

    The metal wind gave off an abnormally bright metallic lustre. Every now and then, one could even see silvery lines within the metal wind.

    However, no matter how violent the metal wind was, the twelve silvery umbres hovering in the air stayed motionless. When the violent metal wind collided against these silvery umbres, they were broken down into numerous gentle-spinning air vortices.

    Ai Hui felt an indescribable sense offort. Streaks of faint silvery light swirled around his body. These streaks of silvery light were metal elemental energy.

    He had never been to a ce that had such high concentrations of metal elemental energy. At this point in time, he was filled with an extremely strong sense of achievement. He felt that all the hard work he¡¯d put in was not in vain.

    He immediately restrained himself from carrying out a Circtory Cycle Revolution. He could not start training now. He had to wait for the other elemental energy pools to stabilize before he could truly train at ease.

    When Ai Hui sensed that the metal elemental energy¡¯s concentration level had reached its limit, he quickly flew over to theke.

    Shi Xueman was already keeping watch at thekeside. She looked normal and calm. Ai Hui sneaked a nce at her and felt at ease when he had made sure that Iron Lady would not suddenly attack him.

    Shi Xueman did not look at Ai Hui. It was as if she did not see him.

    The surplus metal elemental energy gushed into the mini waterfall. The waterfall did not be stronger, but the color and the lustre of theke began to change. Theke became sparkling and clear, resembling a gigantic sapphire.

    The cloud above theke began to change as well. It became spotlessly white and thick.

    The misty rain became denser as the fine raindrops drifted and danced in the air. One could feel an abundance of water elemental energy entering his lungs every time he took a breath.

    Ai Hui raised his head and stared attentively at the transformation of the cloud.

    Shi Xueman closed her eyes and reached out her palm to experience the vigorous water elemental energy in her surroundings.

    Two figures stood side-by-side at thekeside that was shrouded in misty rain.

    The rest of the people dispersed. They looked at each other and smiled.

    Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief and withdrew his gaze. He was relieved when he saw the condition of the cloud was very good. Following which, he could not help but sneak a peek at Iron Lady, who was standing beside him and had her eyes closed.

    He almost gave himself a p on the face. It appeared that he had not done enough self-reflection just now.

    The guilty Ai Hui began to tiptoe toward the bamboo forest.

    Ai Hui walked past Iron Lady behind her back.

    On Shi Xueman¡¯s beautiful snow-white face, the eyshes on her closed eyelids flickered unnoticeably.

 Chapter 424: Central Pine Valley

    Chapter 424: Central Pine Valley

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    The wood elemental energy pool in the bamboo forest operated smoothly. Nothing went wrong.

    The awkward atmosphere between Ai Hui and Shi Xueman had finally disappeared, appearing as if nothing had happened. Ai Hui had enough of his mysterious feeling of guilt. He did not even know why he felt guilty. After all, he did not owe Iron Lady any money!

    This was something that continued to trouble Ai Hui. From his understanding of himself, he would only feel guilty when he owed other people money.

    If Shi Xueman knew what Ai Hui was thinking, she would have sneered at him nonstop.

    After three days, the elemental energies in the five elemental pools finally stabilized.

    The valley lookedpletely different from before.

    If one looked down at the valley from the sky, he or she would discover that the entire valley had been divided into five zones, each with a distinct color. The water elemental zone was like a dreand shrouded in misty rain. The wood elemental zone was covered with lush and verdant trees. The fire elemental zone was a piece of naked, crimsonnd. The earth elemental zone had a prominent, yellow-colored sand dune. The metal elemental zone gave off a bright metallic lustre.

    The five elemental zones werepletely different from each other.

    In the center of the valley was an empty circr space. This space was where everyone lived together. The point of them living together was to enable them to react aptly to sudden situations. If all of them lived separately in the valley, then they would easily get caught in individual battles if they were attacked by dire beasts. Safety would be everyone¡¯s main priority for the time being.

    Ai Hui was still pondering over this issue.

    As the elemental energies became plentiful, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s nts began to grow frantically, bing verdant and lush. The glow that the defensive ancient tree emitted became brighter while its defensive capabilities became more powerful.

    However, Ai Hui still felt that these were not enough.

    The area of the valley was toorge. The defensive coverage of just one ancient defensive tree could not cover such a huge area. Wood elemental defense systems had the unique characteristic of being directly connected to time. As time passed, the wood elemental defense system would gradually be stronger. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s defense system was wless, but it still needed time before it could takeplete effect.

    However, the dangerous dire beasts would not wait for their defense system to bepletely set up.

    Not only did they need to guard against dire beasts, they also needed to guard against other elementalists. This valley possessed all five elements. If the news were to spread out, the valley would attract powerful and covetous elementalists, including the Elders Guild.

    No one could resist such a powerful temptation.

    Even if Iron Lady¡¯s father was to try to protect them, he would not be able to single-handedly contend against so many people.

    Shi Beihai would be unable to protect the valley, let alone bums like them.

    The Wilderness Expansion Order clearly stated that whoeverpleted building a city possessing all five elements first would be granted the position of Great Elder, but Ai Hui and his counterparts knew that this was too good to be true. Just because one was named Great Elder, would he or she really be the Great Elder? Could he or she then govern the Elders Guild without any obstacles? Stop dreaming!

    Ai Hui and his counterparts had no interest in the position of Great Elder. It was worthless to them.

    Originally, the n had been to sell this city, but now no one could bear to do so. This city had high concentrations of elemental energy and exceptionally fertilends. Where could they find such a ce again after selling it?

    They might put it up for sale in the future, but definitely not now.

    They needed to think about how to safeguard the city. Ai Hui and his internal department hade to amon understanding that they could not let the outside world know about the existence of Central Pine Valley before they developed enough defensive capabilities.

    Central Pine Valley was the name everyone hade up with for the valley. It was to remind them not to forget where they¡¯de from.

    Ai Hui wanted to turn Central Pine Valley into an impregnable fortress. Doing so would make those covetous elementalists think about the heavy price they would have to pay if they were to invade Central Pine Valley. Only then would they negotiate and do business with Ai Hui.

    The rest understood this as well. Everybat elementalist was training with all their might. It would be a waste if they did not train hard in such a perfect training ground!

    Meanwhile, the herbalists and farmers were preparing to grow herbs and elemental beans respectively. They were extremely enthusiastic and hardworking. They had never seen such fertilends before. They could cultivate any types of herbs and elemental beans in this ce. One should take note that the prices of fire elemental resources and earth elemental resources were exorbitant nowadays.

    With such high concentrations of elemental energy, they were very confident that they could cultivate high-grade herbs and high-grade elemental beans. If they could do this, the valley would not need to worry about ack of financial capabilities. Even the herbalists and farmers themselves would benefit.

    They were filled with gratitude towards Miss Mingxiu.

    At this time, nothing was more important than joining a faction with a bright future. Unless one was a Grandmaster, his or her individual strength would be extremely insignificant.

    After spending some time together, all of them grew to love being in this team. No one asserted his or her authority and there were noplicated etiquettes to follow. Those who were capable would be respected. In battles, everyone was taken care of and no one would be neglected. Furthermore, with Ai Hui and his friends taking care of the front line, what was there to be worried about? Could this ce get any better?

    They were already envisioning the countless aplishments they would achieve in the future.

    Everyone was extremely busy. Not an idle soul could be spotted. Even the children were helping out.

    Wei An followed behind everyone. His body was thin and weak, resembling a bamboo pole. He had left his aunt who had been taking care of him since he was very young to follow his teacher. Naturally, he knew who the legendary Lightning de was. When Ai Hui suddenly visited Wei An at his house and told him that he was his teacher, he felt as if he was dreaming. If not for the fact that Ai Hui¡¯s face was rather recognizable, he would have thought that he had encountered a swindler.

    Wei An certainly had not expected his aunt to agree to Ai Hui¡¯s request without any hesitation after seeing the token Ai Hui gave her.

    Following which, he¡¯d boarded a Fiery Floating Cloud and was sent to this valley.

    The period of time he spent here felt like a dream. Even until now, he still felt that he was in a dream. Fortunately, there were other children in this valley as well. Otherwise, he would be bored to death. Su Qingye and the rest were longtime disciples of his teacher. Since he came thetest, he was the youngest disciple.

    Being the weakest and the youngest disciple, everyone took great care of him .

    Wei An had only been through some basic training in the past. His strength paled inparison to that of his seniors. Other than the daily trainings, they had to follow Grandpa Mo Zhong to cultivate nts like sword reeds.

    Everyone in this ce worked very hard. No one dared to idle around.

    The busiest person was his teacher. Wei An seldom saw his teacher take a rest. Sometimes, he did not even have the time to teach them. Whenever this happened, Lou Lan or Aunt Xueman woulde and teach them.

    Wei An felt that Aunt Xueman was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen, but they still liked Lou Lan more. Other than teaching them, Lou Lan would supervise their trainings and give them snacks.

    When Wei An thought of snacks, he could not help but start drooling. He could never let the hateful Uncle Fatty see that he had snacks, otherwise, Uncle Fatty would use his malt candies to "swap" with their snacks. Wei An heard that Uncle Fatty and his teacher had been through numerous life-and-death situations in the past. Wei An could not understand why their characters were so different.

    Uncle Fatty always liked to idle around. Furthermore, he was so fat...

    Fortunately, there was Lou Lan to supervise Uncle Fatty and stop him from idling.

    Wei An¡¯s teacher was the most hardworking man he had ever seen. Everyone admired his teacher. When he grew up, he wanted to be someone like his teacher.

    Wei An raised his head to look at the small ck dot at the volcanic crater of ckfish Mouth Volcano. He could not see the ck dot clearly, but he knew it was his teacher.

    His teacher had already stayed at the volcanic crater for a day and a night.

    .....

    Ai Hui was finding the nodes for fire elemental energy in the volcano.

    They ultimately had to depend on the volcano to ward off dire beasts and elementalists.

    The volcano contained a boundless amount of fire elemental energy. It was their greatest resource.

    Before they could use the immense fire elemental energy of the volcano, however, they first had to identify the nodes within it.

    Despite this, due to the surgingva, the high temperature, and the terrifying destructive power of the violent fire elemental energy, even Ai Hui did not dare to step into theva. This was the mostplicated elemental energy flow Ai Hui had ever encountered. Since the fire elemental energy was extremely violent, Ai Hui¡¯s perceptive energy could not reach the depths of theva. The fire elemental energy in the depths of theva was unusually turbulent.

    Ai Hui heaved a sigh. He knew that he still could not fully grasp the energy flow of the fire elemental energy in the volcano with his current capabilities.

    He had to wait until he reached the level of Master before he could utilize the elemental energy of the volcano. As Ai Hui thought of this, he felt that he was too greedy. One step at a time.

    Upon realizing that his idea was unrealistic, Ai Hui immediately changed the direction of his thinking process. A usible defensive design n quickly emerged in his mind.

    He thought of theva-spitting beast that they had previously encountered. Among the spoils of war, there were two intact spitting snouts.

    Perhaps he could think of some uses for these two spitting snouts...

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Blind He was fiddling with the White Cluster mes. He was feeling slightly bored. Right now, there were a lot of things to be done in the valley. Everyone was busy with either training or cultivating nts. No one needed him to forge any weapons.

    By having nothing to do, Blind He felt that he was wasting such high-grade mes; however, the amount of materials that they had brought on this trip was limited. They only brought the bare necessities. There was still some time before they searched for new ore veins. Furthermore, since the valley was cut off from the rest of the world, he could not buy any materials.

    Blind He felt that if the city expanded in the future, the smelting furnace could be rented out.

    The White Cluster mes were burning for nothing now. Such a waste. Whenever Blind He thought of how the high-grade mes were being wasted, he felt as if his heart was bleeding.

    Who wants to forge something? If you don¡¯t need weapons, I can forge farming tools as well!

    Blind He had already put away his ego and aloof attitude. Asking a master weaponsmith to make farming tools? What a joke!

    Very soon, the news of Blind He¡¯s willingness to forge farming tools spread among the farmers and herbalists. Everyone thought they heard the news wrongly. Their farming tools, such as hoes and sickles, needed to be forged specifically.

    Then again, there weren¡¯t master weaponsmiths that would lower themselves to forge farming tools.

    As such, when Blind He told everyone his intention, all the farmers and herbalists came over anxiously, including Mo Zhong.

    Blind He took over a hoe and examined it. With an indifferent voice, he said, "Its sharpness is passable. Hmm, the materials to upgrade it are not of high-grade. Alright, I get it. Elemental energy needs to be channeled into the de of the hoe. It can¡¯t be too sharp, otherwise, it will damage the roots of the nts."

    Blind He¡¯s casual remarks won everyone over easily. He was truly a Master. Anything he said hit the nail on the head.

    "Thank you, Master He. Master, sorry for troubling you." The farmer bowed respectfully to Blind He.

    "No big deal," Blind He replied inly.

    Following which, he picked up the hoe and ced it in the White Cluster mes. The white-colored mes spurted over the surface of the hoe while Blind He continued turning his wrist. He was adjusting the angle from which the White Cluster mes were spurting at the hoe. The surface of the hoe became bright red. As Blind He¡¯s wrist continued to turn,yers of wave-like patterns began to appear on the surface of the hoe.

    The hoe became smaller and the glow on the hoe¡¯s de also disappeared, but all the farmers¡¯ eyes turned red at this moment. They had rich experience and could tell that the hoe¡¯s quality had improved by one grade with a nce.

    "Thank you Master He! Thank you Master He!" The farmer thanked Blind He incoherently.

    "No big deal," Blind He blurted out and continued involuntarily, "Is one hoe enough? How about five hoes? Each for one type of elemental energy. Don¡¯t all of you want to grow all five types of elemental energy beans?"

    The farmers were stunned. They had never heard of anyone willing to forge such a high-grade hoe for every element.

    A covetous-looking herbalist ran over. "Master..."

    "No big deal. Is it enough? I thought there were five types of elemental energy? What about herb baskets? Cannot be forged? Nonsense! I shall forge it for you! Do you need a millstone? No big deal. Equipment for forging Grass-grade weapons? No big deal. One set? Do you want a spare set? Troublesome? No, it won¡¯t be troublesome. No big deal."

 Chapter 425: Scarletfire Flying Foxes

    Chapter 425: Scarletfire Flying Foxes

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    By the time Ai Hui came to Blind He to talk about his idea, Blind He had already satisfied his cravings for using White Cluster mes. As such, now he responded indifferently to Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui felt that Blind He seemed to be unhappy with him ever since he¡¯d met Lou Lan.

    Eh? Why was he unhappy with him?

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t wrap his head around it. He had not really offended Blind He before.

    If Blind He wasn¡¯t blind, he would have rolled his eyes. How could someone like Ai Hui have such a good sand puppet in Lou Lan? Fortunately, Blind He had not forgotten that Ai Hui was his employer and his sry was paid by Ai Hui.

    However, after he used the eyes on his palms to scan Ai Hui¡¯s design n, he was startled. "You want to useva-spitting beast¡¯s snout?"

    Ai Hui could not help but praise Blind He in his heart. Blind He was indeed a Master. He knew Ai Hui¡¯s intentions with a mere nce at this design n.

    However, Ai Hui did not praise Blind He openly and asked, "How? Can you make it?"

    When it came to work, Blind He immediately went into his zone. He became apletely different person and his nonchnt attitude disappeared without a trace. He sat up straight with his back bolt upright and his facial expression turned cold. His perception became sharp and his entire body was brimming with confidence.

    "This area needs to change, this area as well. I roughly understand your n. This area can be changed in this way. You see, am I right?"

    As Blind He was exining to Ai Hui, a rough structure model was forming in his hands.

    The more Ai Hui listened to Blind He, the more he admired him. When Ai Hui took over the structure model, he adted Blind He, "The strength of a Master is indeed formidable!"

    One could tell whether or not a person was an expert just by looking at his actions. Even though Blind He had notpletely understood Ai Hui¡¯s idea, his rich experience allowed him to give a lot of valuable suggestions. These suggestions stemmed from Blind He¡¯s years of umted experience, something that Ai Hui wascking in.

    Theoretically, Ai Hui had memorized the entire [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth]. During Ai Hui¡¯sst visit to his master before he died, his master still talked long-windedly to him about some of his theories. Furthermore, even before Elders Guild began to study Wang Shouchuan¡¯s research works and theories, Ai Hui was already immersing himself in [Treating The City As A Piece Of Cloth]. At that point of time, Ai Hui did not realize the brilliance of his master¡¯s theories. He was only studying them based on one very simple mentality. He was his teacher¡¯s only student, how couldn¡¯t he know his teacher¡¯s theories and research works?

    After studying his master¡¯s theories for quite some time, Ai Hui had a deeper understanding towards them now.

    In practice, Ai Hui still faced the problem of hisck of experience. He couldn¡¯t do anything about this problem. After all, he did not have many opportunities to practise and there was no one to guide him along. For example, he could understand the science behind God-subduing Peak, but he did not know how to build it. Other than knowing that an immense amount of materials was needed to build it and how these materials coulde together to create the highest possible destructive power, Ai Hui knew nothing else.

    Only if he possessed a huge number of skilful cksmiths, like Elders Guild, could he then build a powerful war machine like God-subduing Peak.

    Blind He¡¯s superb attainments in his craft were extremely important to Ai Hui at this point of time. This could be seen in the energy-stabilizing pirs. Blind He¡¯spleted energy-stabilizing pirs were finer than the ones in Ai Hui¡¯s design n. The slight reduction in the thickness of the energy-stabilizing pirs was derived from a countless amount of experience and wisdom.

    Ai Hui¡¯s previous unhappiness had vanished without a trace. It was alright for a Master of his level to treat him with slightly less respect.

    Suddenly, the warning rm rang in the middle of their discussion.

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression changed. He quickly ran out and looked at the sky.

    A bat-like dire beast was circling in the sky above the valley.

    Scarletfire flying fox!

    Scarletfire flying fox was a type of dire beast that lived in caverns that were near a volcano. Their faces looked like a fox¡¯s and they had pointed mouths. Their bodies had a wide, darkish red membrane that allowed them to fly.

    Even though their flying ability was not as good as a real bat, they were very clever. They were extremely nimble and agile when they were running on the ground as well. A scarletfire flying fox¡¯s nose was very sensitive. Even though the fog-formed mirage of the valley had deceived their eyes, they still could detect the smells of elementalists with their noses.

    They circled in the sky above the valley as they were not sure what was beneath them.

    Ai Hui had a headache when he saw the scarletfire flying foxes. The scarletfire flying foxes were not powerful, but they liked to operate in arge group. If one of them was provoked, the rest of the group would be provoked as well. The consequences of that were worse than poking a hos¡¯ nest.

    Ai Hui signalled to everyone not to do anything rash.

    Shi Xueman furrowed her eyebrows. She was having a headache too, "Why are there scarletfire flying foxes here?"

    "This is a volcanic terrain. There are more fire elemental dire beasts here," Ai Hui replied in a helpless tone, "Luckily it¡¯s just a bunch of scarletfire flying foxes. If it was a group ofva-spitting beasts, this valley would be razed to the ground."

    Upon hearing the rm, Jiang Wei and the rest ran over.

    "What shall we do?" Sang Zhijun was unhappy with this situation, "Are we going to let them circle above our heads like this?"

    Initially, Ai Hui wanted to find something to assail their nostrils with. Scarletfire flying foxes had sensitive noses and this was something they could make use of. However, when Ai Hui¡¯s gaze swept across the distant mountain ridge, a cold shiver went down his spine.

    Ai Hui had just spotted a red glow. He subconsciously knew that he had just seen the eyes of some dire beast!

    He was sure that he was not mistaken. He took a deep breath and carefully scanned the mountain ridge with his eyes.

    Shi Xueman cast a puzzled look at Ai Hui. Ai Hui was motionless and he was staring at somewhere with his pair of fixed eyes. It was as if he was frightened by the scarletfire flying foxes. However, Shi Xueman knew that Ai Hui would not be afraid, even if there were a few hundred scarletfire flying foxes.

    She looked at the direction Ai Hui was staring in but she could not see anything.

    At this moment, Ai Hui heaved a sigh of relief, "Phew, I almost missed it. There is a rockback earth dragon!"

    "Rockback earth dragon?"

    Rockback earth dragon was not of the same level as scarletfire flying fox. It was more dangerous. Rockback earth dragon had four stout and short limbs. Its head was shaped like a triangle, resembling the head of a giant frog. Its back was ck in color, cragged, and had a rocky texture. It looked as if it was carrying a fake mountain on its back. This was how rockback earth dragon got its name.

    Rockback earth dragon was a dire beast that lived in the depths of earth fire. It had immense strength and it could knock down those slightly smaller peaks. It also loved to devour the fire marrows within theva.

    "Our auras are beginning to attract the dire beasts from nearby. The scarletfire flying foxes are the advance party while the rockback earth dragon is here to spy on us. If we don¡¯t put up a powerful front, they will invade this ce."

    "The dire beasts are so clever?" Sang Zhijun was slightly surprised.

    "These dire beasts are old and experienced. What¡¯s so clever about them? They are just cunning. If you¡¯d encountered those really clever dire beasts, they would not have used scarletfire flying foxes as their advance party."

    "We have a lot of people with us and most of us are quite powerful. The aura of our elemental energy will definitely attract the dire beasts nearby. In the eyes of the dire beasts, all of us are human-shaped elixirs," Ai Hui maintained hisposure as a tinge of worry swept across his eyes, "Everyone, brace yourself. This will be a tough battle. However, the more powerful we disy our strength to be, the more they will be scared of us and the safer we will be then."

    Ai Hui knew that they were not the only ones that had attracted the dire beasts, but the five elemental energy pools in the valley as well. Pure elemental energy was a huge supplement, not only for elementalists, but for dire beasts as well. They could not hide such powerful elemental energy undtions from these sensitive dire beasts. Now that Ai Hui thought about it, he realized he had overlooked a lot of things.

    The earth fire that a huge volcano like ckfish Mouth Volcano contained definitely nourished a huge number of fire elemental dire beasts. He was too greedy as he tried to get everything done at once. Now that he had encountered a problem which was too difficult for him to handle, the time and effort he spent on building arge-scale defense system had gone to waste.

    At this point, it was toote for him to think about all these things.

    Ai Hui calmed himself down and got rid of all the distracting thoughts in his head. A tinge of ruthlessness swept across his eyes. He quickly instructed, "Ask Master He to quickly finish up theponents that I asked him to make. All nonbat units hide under the defensive ancient tree. As for the rest, prepare for battle."

    Everyone in the valley started to work.

    "Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun will lead the archers to set up a formation on the sand dune. Fatty, you will lead some people to guard the front position of their formation. If there¡¯s any scarletfire flying foxes approaching them, you have to block it for them."

    Ai Hui looked at Fatty.

    Fatty looked slightly scared but he still nodded his head, "I understand."

    "I will be careful. Ai Hui, don¡¯t worry," Fatty added.

    Ai Hui patted Fatty¡¯s shoulder and turned to Shi Xueman and said, "Both of us will go and kill the scarletfire flying foxes first. How about this? Do you want to bet who can kill more scarletfire flying foxes?"

    A tinge of fire shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. She replied bluntly, "Alright."

    Following which, Ai Hui turned around and told the rest, "After we kill these few scarletfire flying foxes, there will definitely be many more toe. I will think of a way to lure them into the valley. Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun and all the archers, make sure all of you are prepared andunch a frontal assault. There¡¯s no need for you to hold back. Attack with all your strength and send them into chaos. Bangwan, prepare as many high-grade grass seeds as you can. Once Bangwan takes action, the rest will follow me and Iron Lady to charge the enemy lines. Everyone understand?"

    "Understood!

    Everyone had a serious look on their faces. They knew the uing battle would be extremely important. Even hunting groups did not dare to attack a group of scarletfire flying foxes head-on. However, Ai Hui and his counterparts had to do this. Otherwise, the dire beasts would join hands and they would be in deep trouble then.

    An austere and nervous atmosphere arose in the valley.

    Everyone had richbat experience. Furthermore, they had spent a lot of time carrying out offensive drills. Whether it was setting up formations or carrying out preparatory work, they were adept at it.

    This uing battle would be the biggest battle they¡¯d encountered ever since they entered Wilderness.

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman stood side-by-side as an absolute silence descended upon the valley.

    Shiiinnng! Ai Hui unsheathed his Wintry Jade de and held it beside Shi Xueman. Shi Xueman smiled with her eyes as she passed her Cirrus to her left hand and used it to touch Wintry Jade de lightly.

    Clink!

    A crisp and sharp clink resounded throughout the valley as two figures ascended into the sky together.

 Chapter 426: Well-coordinated

    Chapter 426: Well-coordinated

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui knew that if they did not disy their strength in this battle, the dire beasts hiding in the dark would pounce on them. Powerful dire beasts were very cunning. Bullying the weak and avoiding the strong was one of their key characteristics.

    Therefore, not only must they kill this bunch of scarletfire flying foxes, they also must do it in a fearsome fashion!

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain was working extremely fast. The Starry Gem Swordwings on Ai Hui¡¯s back gave off ayer of faint glow as their operating power reached its maximum.

    Like a streaking arrow, Ai Hui shot out from the fog-made mirage.

    The scarletfire flying foxes were circling over the valley. They were feeling slightly puzzled. The ck rocks beneath them weren¡¯t any different from their surrounding terrain but they could smell the scent of humans from within them.

    A cold streak of sword gleam appeared below them.

    The scarletfire flying foxes dispersed in panic.

    Suddenly, the streak of sword gleam exploded into a mass of rain-like sword gleams that sted towards the scarletfire flying foxes like a huge.

    Pop pop pop. A few bloody holes appeared on the bodies of two slow-moving scarletfire flying foxes. Their blood spurted everywhere.

    Scarletfire flying foxes lived in caverns that were situated nearby a volcano and they devoured fire elemental energy to survive. A scarletfire flying fox was around the size of a dog. It was not really powerful but it was extremely agile and nimble on the ground. It had a fire sack within its body that converted fire elemental energy into a unique type of scorching me. This type of unique me was called scarlet fire.

    Scarlet fire was stable and easy to use. As such, many fire elementalists loved to use this type of fire. Since it was extremely hard to hunt down scarletfire flying foxes, the market price of scarlet fire was very costly.

    In the hands of scarletfire flying foxes, the stable scarlet fire could be a very powerful weapon. One of their powerful moves was called scarlet fireball. The egg-sized scarlet fireball was dark-red in color. Any slight contact with it could cause it to explode.

    One of the scarletfire flying foxes had its fire sack punctured, causing scarlet fire to leak out from it. In the blink of an eye, the leaking scarlet fire exploded into a burst of zing fire and engulfed the scarletfire flying fox.

    The traces of white mist from Shi Xueman¡¯s spear gleam spiralled forward rapidly and went in between two scarletfire flying foxes.

    Like a bunch of white-colored whips, the traces of white mist sucked the two scarletfire flying foxes into them.

    After being struck by the traces of white mist, the two scarletfire flying foxes exploded into a rain of blood with a loud bang. It was as if they were being struck by lightning.

    The whip-like traces of white mist were made up of concentrated elemental energy, possessing terrifying destructive power. Once they entered the body of a scarletfire flying fox, they would explode at its weakest body part.

    This was Shi Xueman¡¯s typical attacking style. It looked ordinary and wasn¡¯t dazzling at all. However, the destructive power it contained was horrifying. Only abat veteran would know how powerful it was.

    Out of the four scarletfire flying foxes, not a single one survived.

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman looked at each other and they could see the solemness in each other¡¯s eyes. Before the scarletfire flying foxes died, an invisible elemental energy wave had erupted.Without any doubts, both of them knew that this elemental wave was a distress signal.

    After ten seconds, a ck-colored cloud rose from the other side of the mountain ridge and flew towards them with a terrifying speed.

    "They areing," Ai Hui told Shi Xueman without shifting his gaze.

    "Ok," Shi Xueman acknowledged Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui stretched his wrist and released a few sparks from his sword. With an emotionless look on his face, he said, "Let¡¯s exhaust their scarlet fireballs first."

    He did not want to test the immature defense system of the valley with scarlet fireballs.

    "Alright," Shi Xueman replied.

    Following which, both of them flew towards the army of scarletfire flying foxes.

    In the shortest amount of time, they increased their speeds to the maximum. Both of their speeds were simr as they flew forward side-by-side. Ai Hui involuntarily cast a nce at Iron Lady, who was beside him. He felt that both of them had coordinated quite well with each other today. They were rather well-coordinated after all!

    Shi Xueman noticed Ai Hui looking at her and asked, "What are you looking at?"

    "Iron Lady is rather energetic today, huh!" Ai Hui replied cheekily.

    "Are you implying that I¡¯m usually not energetic?" Shi Xueman replied expressionlessly.

    "I¡¯m saying you¡¯re more energetic than usual! Battles would always make one energetic! Here theye!" Ai Hui chuckled.

    Ai Hui raised his volume abruptly as he said thest three words "Here theye". Excitement arose upon his face. He had never thought that one day he would face an army of scarletfire flying foxes like now!

    This felt extremely good.

    Less than six hundred meters away from the ck-colored cloud, they could already clearly see the densely-packed scarletfire flying foxes that would make one¡¯s hair stand on end.

    Numerous red, glowing spots appeared in their line of sight.

    A cold shiver suddenly went down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. At this moment, the strong sense of danger had created a strange feeling of excitement in him. Every inch of his muscles was twitching and burning right now.

    At this moment, it just so happened that Ai Hui and Shi Xueman were looking at each other.

    Shi Xueman saw the excitement and battle fervor on Ai Hui¡¯s face and Ai Hui saw the glittering star-like eyes on Shi Xueman¡¯s face.

    All of a sudden, a knowing smile appeared in both of their eyes at the same time.

    Like a dragon that emerged from a sea of clouds, Cirrus flew towards Ai Hui. Like a star that fell from the sky, Wintry Jade de flew towards Shi Xueman.

    The sword and the spear collided.

    A terrifying force erupted at that instant. Like two rubber balls colliding against each other, both of them bounced apart ferociously.

    The force was so great that both of them looked as if they¡¯d just disappeared into thin air.

    Boom!

    The next moment, rain-like scarlet fireballs flooded the position that both of them previously were at.

    The scarlet fireballs missed their targets and bombarded the mountain ridge below, causing countless deafening explosions to go off continuously. The mountain ridge was shrouded in smoke and dust and the ground beneath it was shaking.

    After the smoke and dust dispersed, everyone in Central Pine Valley could see a huge chunk of the rocky mountain ridge disappeared. It was as if a huge spoon had scooped a spoonful of rocks from it. The hole was three hundred meters deep, resembling a mini valley. Pieces of huge rocks surrounding the hole were copsing.

    Everyone¡¯s face turned white. Now they understood why no one dared to provoke the scarletfire flying foxes. How many scarlet fireballs had they shot out just now? No one could grasp the exact number. Its area of damage was extremely huge. If one was to get caught in the attack, he or she would not be able to escape. A small city would not even be able to withstand a single scarlet fireball.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s facial expression turned ugly. He was the one that understood the defense system of Central Pine Valley the best. Right now, their defense system could withstand, at most, three waves of attack of such a degree.

    A cold shiver went down Ai Hui¡¯s and Shi Xueman¡¯s spines.

    However, both of them did not have the luxury of time to be frightened at this moment. A slight moment of negligence in battle would result in a defeat. In a high intensity battle like this, defeat would lead to only one result, death by being shattered to smithereens.

    The two of them had no time to think about any ns. That was because the army of scarletfire flying foxes had split into two smaller armies. Two arc-shaped armies of scarletfire flying foxes flew towards Ai Hui and Shi Xueman separately.

    After the two of them witnessed the destructive power of the previous wave of scarlet fireballs, they did not dare lower their guards at all. If they were hit by the rain-like scarlet fireballs, they would face absolute death. Furthermore, the scarlet fireballs were extremely huge in number and their area of effect was extremely huge. It would be very hard for Shi Xueman and Ai Hui to dodge the scarlet fireballs.

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain was operating at a very fast speed. The destructive power of the scarlet fireballs was extremely powerful and there were many scarletfire flying foxes. The only weakness of the scarletfire flying foxes that they could make use of was their poor flying ability.

    At the same time, Ai Hui realized that they had to exhaust more of the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ fireballs. Otherwise, the valley would be razed to the ground after a few more waves of bombardment by the scarlet fireballs.

    If they wanted to exhaust the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ scarlet fireballs, they could not let the scarletfire flying foxes think that they couldn¡¯t hit them. In other words, Ai Hui and Shi Xueman had to get closer to the scarletfire flying foxes

    This was the time to test their dodging ability!

    Luckily, the fire sacks of the scarletfire flying foxes were not huge and they could not contain too much scarlet fire.

    Ai Hui was very calm and his mental state was unwavering. He began to make continuous maneuvers in the sky.

    The pressure on Ai Hui decreased significantly after the scarletfire flying foxes split up into two smaller armies. Furthermore, the scarletfire flying foxes had poor flying ability. These two factors had given Ai Hui a lot of confidence. Ai Hui was extremely nimble and deft. Not only could he change direction horizontally, he could also change direction vertically.

    There were a few times that the scarletfire flying foxes became dizzy after they tried to lock onto the constantly maneuvering Ai Hui.

    Only by locking onto Ai Hui would their scarlet fireballs work. That was the only way they could form an urate rain of scarlet fireballs.

    Ai Hui, who had been changing his flight path constantly in the air, suddenly stopped and spurted towards the army of scarletfire flying foxes. His change of direction was very sudden and his flying speed was extremely fast.

    Just as he was about to collide with the scarletfire flying foxes, he twisted his body and drew an arc in the air. The Wintry Jade Sword in his hand whipped across the air frantically and released a burst of sword gleam.

    The scarletfire flying foxes had strong offense but weak defense. Since they had weak defense, Ai Hui did not need to use a powerful attack against them. This meant Ai hui¡¯s [Heavenly Thrust] would be useful in this scenario. Facing such a crowded formation, [Heavenly Thrust] would work better than [Six Crescent Moons] as it had stronger piercing power.

    A torrential rain of sword gleams erupted from Ai Hui¡¯s sword and sted towards the densely-packed scarletfire flying foxes.

    At the same time, the scarletfire flying foxes shot out their scarlet fireballs that flew towards Ai Hui in a rain-like formation.

    Ai Hui¡¯s Starry Gem Swordwing pped and he flew along the rain of scarlet fireballs in an awkward arc.

    However, Ai Hui got too close to the rain of scarlet fireballs and he saw a scarlet fireballing at him at a rapid speed.

    Ai Hui¡¯s pupils dted abruptly. At this point of time, his Starry Gem Swordwings¡¯ operating power had already reached its maximum. He could no longer make another maneuver.

    Damn it!

    Without thinking, Ai Hui ced his Wintry Jade de horizontally in front of his chest. Six crescent-moon-shaped sword gleams formed in front of his sword in a dazzling manner. Following which, the intertwining streaks of sword gleam transformed into six ring-shaped sword gleams. A mysterious aura suddenly erupted from the ring-shaped sword gleams.

    Three huge Yin and three huge Yang sword rings!

    The scarlet fireball flew into the centre of the six sword rings.

    At this moment, Ai Hui¡¯s concentration had reached an unprecedented level. A cold glint shed across his eyes as he stared tightly at the scarlet fireball within the sword rings. He could clearly feel the violent fire elemental energy contained within the scarlet fireball. This was caused bypressing the usually stable scarlet fire numerous times.

    However, Ai Hui was able toe up with a solution in an instant.

    At this moment, the huge sword rings erupted with a burst of radiance. Six streaks of sword gleams shot out at a terrifying speed.

    The surprising thing was that the scarlet fireball did not explode and it looked as if it had fallen into a puddle of quicksand. The intertwining sword gleams created traces of pulling force. These traces of pulling force were not strong, but gentle.

    The traces of gentle pulling force caused the scarlet fireball to spin in the sword rings.

    Ai Hui widened his eyes as he increased his focus. He came up with this solution at thest minute. He was unsure whether or not would it work.

    The scarlet fireball within the sword rings began to spin faster and faster.

 Chapter 427: Well-coordinated Once Again

    Chapter 427: Well-coordinated Once Again

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The three huge Yin and three huge Yang sword rings were a seldomly seen defensive move in Ai Hui¡¯s arsenal.

    The trip to Silver City was the turning point for Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship.

    In Karakorum Sword League, he had witnessed various impressive sword formations. He also read the iplete swordy encyclopediapiled by Karakorum Savant, who was now known as Karakorum Pris.

    The swordy encyclopedia was divided into six chapters, Variations, ming Wind, Anatta, Big Dipper, Yin Yang, and Life-and-Death.

    The ¡®Variations¡¯ chapter discussed the numerous variations in swordy. ¡®ming Wind¡¯ discussedplementary forces. ¡®Anatta¡¯ talked about how one¡¯s swordsmanship should be decisive and unrelenting.

    ¡®Big Dipper¡¯ talked about how the Big Dipper had shifted and how the stars had moved. ¡®Yin Yang¡¯ was about the marvels of Yin and Yang. ¡®Life-and-Death¡¯ discussed deep and profound questions in-depth. But Karakorum Pris did not have many insights on thest chapter as well.

    From the content of the sword encyclopedia, Ai Hui could see that Karakorum Pris was an ambitious individual. She wanted topile a bible on swordsmanship that would be passed on for thousands of years.

    Whether or not Karakorum Pris could do it, Ai Hui still respected and admired her for having such a great ambition.

    The three huge Yin and three huge Yang sword rings was developed on Ai Hui¡¯s trip to Silver City. It was derived from the chapter on Yin Yang in the swordy encyclopedia and [Yin Yang Formation]. This move had saved Ai Hui¡¯s life by warding off an attack from a Master.

    For the past year, Ai Hui¡¯s understanding towards swordsmanship had increased day by day. Like an artisan, he had been constantly polishing his swordsmanship.

    Ai Hui learnt his swordsmanship by himself and there were a lot of areas that he was still unclear of. However, as he spent more and more time in practising his swordy, his understanding towards swordsmanship increased and his skills improved. The sword encyclopedia and the various sword formations in Karakorum Sword League had helped him a lot. He began toe up with his own system that conformed with his swordsmanship.

    The three huge Yin and three huge Yang sword rings were being improved constantly.

    Within the sword rings, the scarlet fireball released a trace of red glow with a hissing sound. As the hissing sound continued incessantly, the number of traces of red glow umted. Like a potato that was being peeled rapidly, the scarlet fireball was quickly bing visibly smaller and smaller.

    Pffff.

    The scarlet fire ball was destroyedpletely.

    Ai Hui loosened his facial muscles as beads of perspiration appeared on his forehead.

    The entire process took only a tiny amount of time but Ai Hui had still exhausted a significant amount of mental energy as he was required to stay highly concentrated all that time. Even so, he was still very happy that the sword rings could stop the scarlet fireball.

    Upon feeling slightly at ease, Ai Hui whipped his Wintry Jade de through the air and he abruptly rose higher into the sky with a crisp swooshing sound

    The scarletfire flying foxes were too densely-packed. The burst of sword gleams that Ai Hui shot out had inflicted heavy casualties on them. However, he was fully upied at that moment to witness the scene.

    Like a water bird that skimmed the surface of ake, Ai Hui flew gracefully through the air.

    How¡¯s Iron Lady doing so far?

    Ai Hui was slightly curious but he was not worried. Iron Lady was more powerful than him. If he could handle the scarletfire flying foxes, there was no reason for Iron Lady to fail. Ai Hui had never linked Iron Lady with the word "weak" before. On the battlefield, she was a trustworthyrade.

    The Starry Gem Swordwing on Ai Hui¡¯s back pped as he rose higher into the sky. His field of vision expanded as he flew past the ck-colored mountain ridge beneath him. He directed his gaze towards the other side of the battlefield.

    A blue-white figure entered his line of sight. Scarletfire flying foxes were constantly dropping from the sky behind her.

    The scarletfire flying foxes were extremely clumsy when they faced the nimble Iron Lady.

    Iron Lady¡¯s azure wings were much lighter and nimbler than Ai Hui¡¯s. Starry Gem Swordwings were heavy and powerful. In terms of power, they were definitely much better than Iron Lady¡¯s azure wings. However, in terms of maneuverability, they paled inparison to Iron Lady¡¯s azure wings.

    How could he make use of the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ clumsy nature?

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted as a daring thought emerged in his brain.

    At this moment, Shi Xueman happened to cast a nce at Ai Hui. Quickly, Ai Hui made a hand signal and pointed to his front-left. Following which, the screeches of the scarletfire flying foxes erupted behind him, causing him to change his direction abruptly.

    Ai Hui did not know whether or not Iron Lady had seen his hand signal. His movements did not slow down and he changed his direction a few times in a row. There were too many scarletfire flying foxes and their attacking range was very wide. As such, they just needed to tweak the angle of their flight path by a bit and Ai Hui would be within their line of sight. Ai Hui had no choice but to keep changing the direction of his flight path.

    Only by changing the direction of his flight path constantly could he then prevent the scarletfire flying foxes from locking onto him and break free from their line of sight.

    After Ai Hui finished a few maneuvers in a row, he was panting slightly. It was rather strenuous for Starry Gem Swordwings to make continuous maneuvers. Furthermore, ever since they Starry Gem Swordwings were damaged, he had not had the opportunity to fix them. The maneuvers had consumed his energy greatly.

    Ai Hui finallypleted his series of maneuvers and shifted his gaze in the direction of Shi Xueman. His eyes lit up at what he saw.

    Iron Lady was flying towards the direction that he was pointing at!

    She understood his intention.

    Aspared to Ai Hui, who was already panting, Iron Lady appeared calm, her hair was neat and tidy, and her movements were lithe.

    However, Ai Hui did not have the time to admire Shi Xueman now. The Starry Gem Swordwings on his back erupted with a burst of radiance and shot towards his destination.

    If one looked down at them from a higher height, he or she would see two figures being followed by two ck-colored floods of scarletfire flying foxes. The two figures kept on changing their directions while the ck floods behind them were pursuing them tightly. Unwittingly, the two figures were getting closer and closer to each other rapidly.

    The two ck floods were getting closer to each other as well, but their fervent eyes did not notice itpletely. They might have a certain level of intelligence but their killing instinct hadpletely taken over their minds like raging mes at this moment.

    Ai Hui flew in an arc and his movements looked slightly sluggish. He had yet to break from the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ line of sight.

    Numerous dark-red glows lit up behind him.

    At this moment, Ai Hui changed his direction again. The scarletfire flying foxes did not fire the scarlet fireball in each of their mouths. They somewhat identified Ai Hui¡¯s flying patterns and changed their direction ording to his. The speed of them changing their direction was slightly slower, but they were certain that their prey could not avoid their attacks given their wide attacking range.

    Now is the time!

    Without any hesitation, the scarletfire flying foxes fired the scarlet fireball in each of their mouths! The dark-red glows suddenly intensified in brightness and became densely-packed.

    Boom!

    The sound created by the huge number of scarlet fireballs being fired at the same time struck fear into people¡¯s hearts. A ring red brilliance suddenly erupted behind Ai Hui.

    At the same time, densely-packed red glows lit up in front of him as well. Simrly, they gave off a horrifying sound.

    The red glows in front of Ai Hui became brighter and brighter, turning into a red brilliance that engulfed his vision. In the midst of the red brilliance, the image of a valiant-looking figure was expanding in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    Ai Hui¡¯s lips curled into a smile. She was truly an irondy!

    The distance between Ai Hui and Shi Xueman was closing rapidly. Numerous scarlet fireballs were following tightly behind them.

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman looked at each other and smiled.

    It was as if time had frozen for them.

    Ai Hui was very happy. Iron Lady must¡¯ve been happy because of their good coordination as well. He merely made a hand signal and both of them could coordinate perfectly. It was as if they had been partners for many years.

    Wintry Jade de and Cirrus collided against each other once more. Perfect coordination!

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman flew towards each other in a straight line. As they got closer to each other, they abruptly soared upwards at the same time.

    The scarletfire flying foxes realized they were going to get caught in a head-on collision with theirrades and the scarletfire fireballs. They were panic-stricken and their formation went into a chaos. Sharp screeches resounded through the air incessantly.

    They wanted to escape but it was already toote. In the face of the fast-flying and densely-packed scarlet fireballs, they were extremely clumsy.

    The two masses of scarlet fireballs collided against each other in the air and released a dazzling burst of ze. Most of the scarlet fireballs flew past each other and smashed heavily into the two ck-colored floods of scarletfire flying foxes.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    Huge bursts of zes and radiance dyed the sky red. The incessant deafening explosions resembled thunderps within the depths of storm clouds, striking fear into people¡¯s hearts.

    The scene was exceptionally spectacr, causing even Ai Hi and Shi Xueman to be dumbstruck.

    The scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ charred bodies fell from the sky like dumplings. Most of them were ripped to shreds by the violent shock wave. The fact that the fragile scarletfire flying foxes couldn¡¯t withstand their own scarlet fireballs was indeed an irony.

    Cries of joy broke out in Central Pine Valley.

    No one had expected Ai Hui and Shi Xueman to be able to create such heavy casualties in the ranks of scarletfire flying foxes. All of them were dazzled by the battle. Children like San Xiao and Wei An were jumping and yelling in excitement. Their faces were filled with pride and adoration for Ai Hui and Shi Xueman.

    However, not everyone in the valley behaved like this. There was an indifferent-looking individual, Duanmu Huanghun!

    Duanmu Huanghun hovered above the bamboo forest, appearing as if he was standing on a green-colored sea of bamboos. He was trying his best to keep his facial expression calm but he still could not hide the flickering mes in his eyes.

    He¡¯d let this fellow take the limelight again!

    He subconsciously ignored Shi Xueman and stared at Ai Hui with a pair of zing eyes. He did not know whether or not it was the traumatization he¡¯d received from Ai Hui in Central Pine Academy that caused him to act like this. As long as he saw Ai Hui was in the limelight, he would be triggered.

    No, there was a switch in his head!

    Once this switch was flicked on, his brain would only hold one thought.

    He must not lose to that fellow!

    A strong sense of battle fervor spread throughout his body like a forest fire. Duanmu Huanghun withdrew his gaze and his face turned ashen. He snorted with disdain while his robe fluttered, even though there was no wind.

    A green-colored glow rose from the sea of bamboos beneath his feet, resembling the mist above the surface of a sea. This green glow was the pure wood elemental energy.

    The wood elemental energy became increasingly concentrated and slowly swirled around Duanmu Huanghun. Bamboo leaves from the bamboo forest began to rise up into the air as well. Like numerous jade-made tiny swords, they swam and danced silently in the green-colored mist

    After Duanmu Huanghun withdrew his gaze, his facial expression became focused. He took out a bag of grass seeds and scattered the grass seeds all around him.

    The grass seeds hovered in the green mist and moved along with the flowing wood elemental energy.

    Very soon, the bag of grass seeds was emptied. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s facial expression did not change as he took out another bag of grass seeds and scattered them around him. His movements were smooth-flowing like water. He looked extremely casual but one could tell from his facial expression that his ordinary-looking movements weren¡¯t easy to carry out.

    Everyone in the valley was focused on Ai Hui and Shi Xueman in the sky. No one noticed that Duanmu Huanghun had already scattered a lot of grass seeds above the bamboo forest.

    As the number of grass seeds being scattered increased, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s gaze became increasingly excited and zealous. His devilish, handsome face looked charmingly demonic.

 Chapter 428: Whereâ€™s the Promised Chemistry?

    Chapter 428: Where¡¯s the Promised Chemistry?

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui had not expected the coordination between Iron Lady and himself to actually cause such a colossal amount of damage.

    When the aftermath of the explosion dispersed, fear and confusion could still be seen on the faces of the sparse scarletfire flying foxes in the sky. Approximately only half of the scarletfire flying foxes survived.

    The scarlet fireball was simply too powerful, as its explosion reached across an extremely wide range.

    Who would¡¯ve thought that heaven had blessed the scarletfire flying foxes with such strong scarlet fireballs, but such frail bodies and even an exceedingly revengeful character.

    The fear and confusion in their eyes vanished and was reced by hatred. Deep-rooted hatred!

    That disastrous impact taught the scarletfire flying foxes a big lesson. They did not return to their originally concentrated formation but dispersed instead. They also did not continue their chase but flew toward the valley instead.

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman¡¯s faces turned grave simultaneously. Only half the scarletfire flying foxes were left but there were still over three hundred of them. Especially since they were moving separately now, the pressure brought by the whole crowd of them was tremendous.

    They looked at each other before dispersing swiftly.

    They harassed and disrupted the big team of scarletfire flying foxes from different directions, but only those closest to them were affected. The whole team was still flying toward the valley slowly but steadily.

    Ai Hui felt a sense of urgency. If these scarletfire flying foxes were to appear overhead and release a few waves of scarlet fireballs, the valley would be razed to the ground.

    What should they do?

    Ai Hui racked his brains searching for a solution but to no avail.

    He took a deep breath. The more tense a situation was, the more he had to remain calm. Only then would he be able to find a way to solve the issue. Nervousness would only consume time and energy.

    Ai Hui had considered the fact that while there was the vapor illusion disguising the valley, the scarletfire flying foxes would simply blow up the ground with their scarlet fireballs.

    The scarlet fireballs would instantly expose the disguise.

    Face the scarletfire flying foxes head on? Ai Hui denied this n since the scarlet fireballs were extremely fast and not many from the gang could withstand or dodge them. Facing their rainscreen-like attack would only cause more casualties and damages.

    The scarletfire flying foxes were determined to attack the valley, so no matter how Ai Hui and Shi Xueman tried to intervene, they continued toward the direction in which the elementalist¡¯s odor was the richest.

    The atmosphere in the valley became tense as everyone could sense the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ resoluteness. Ai Hui and Shi Xueman¡¯s perfect guidance was due to the fact that they had managed to attract the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ attention. Now that the scarletfire flying foxes were clear-headed they were no longer lured by them.

    The scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ intelligence shocked everyone.

    Having seen the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ power, no one believed that the valley¡¯s defense would be able to withstand so many fireballs. The only thing in the valley that they could count on was the defensive ancient tree. Other nts needed more time to grow.

    If the scarletfire flying foxes did not charge into the valley, Ai Hui¡¯s previous n would be fruitless. Judging from the situation, it wasn¡¯t very likely that the scarletfire flying foxes would enter the valley. These clever dire beasts were very alert and would not go down until the disguise of the ground was removed.

    Everybody had a solemn expression on their faces. The battle that was about toe was going to be exceptionally challenging.

    Having three hundred scarletfire flying foxes was like having ck, gloomy balls of cloud floating toward the valley, doubling the pressure the gang felt. But while the atmosphere was extremely grave and tense, no one panicked in fear since they were all experienced by now.

    A battle between elementalists and dire beasts was crueler than a battle between elementalists only, since it always ended with the death of the defeated.

    A lightbulb lit up in Ai Hui¡¯s head. He shouted at Shi Xueman, who wasn¡¯t very far off, "Return to the valley!"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes, which had practically not left Ai Hui from the start, lit up. She rxed her tensed heart and mind as well. From the time she¡¯d realized that the situation was worsening, she¡¯d been waiting for Ai Hui toe up with a solution. Ever since the blood catastrophe, Ai Hui had always been the one providing answers whenever they faced problems.

    In certain aspects, Shi Xueman was no different from the rest of the gang. They had a kind of blind trust in Ai Hui.

    Hearing his voice abruptly lightened her tensed heart. She knew that Ai Hui must have found a viable solution.

    Her figure disappeared and at the same time, Ai Hui felt his whole body tighten, realizing shortly after that he¡¯d been grabbed by Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui¡¯s face flushed, his heart about to crumble.

    What a joke! He could fly by himself! No matter how tough Iron Lady was, how could she grab him? How was he going to face people? Where¡¯s the promised chemistry? Did she not understand what respect was? Did she not understand what a real man was?

    "Hey, hey, hey, let me go. Release me, I can fly by myself!"

    In spite of Ai Hui¡¯s struggling limbs, Shi Xueman responded, deadpan, "You¡¯re slow."

    Nevertheless, the corner of her eyes curved as she couldn¡¯t help but smile.

    Ai Hui, as if struck by lightning, stiffened up.

    You¡¯re slow... He was actually unable... unable to refute this!

    He¡¯d been mocked by Iron Lady!

    When Ai Hui realized this cruel fact he wanted to cry. Didn¡¯t everyone agree to have a mutual understanding? Didn¡¯t they promise to fight the battle together, shoulder to shoulder? What about the ¡®you¡¯re made of iron and I¡¯m made of steel¡¯?

    Feeling dejected, Ai Hui turned limp like a dead fish, allowing the gale to prate his heart. But the situation was tense now and his idea required Shi Xueman¡¯s implementation.

    He needed to use this time to tell her what to do but with their strange postures, he would have to roar for her to be able to listen clearly.

    He had to get slightly closer... more importantly, this position was seriously too embarrassing!

    Ai Hui grabbed onto Shi Xueman¡¯s wrist to borrow some strength. His body was like a nimble snake and he crawled upward with his limbs as if climbing a tree. He turned around and grabbed hold of her body.

    Hah! Ai Hui was rather pleased. This position was much better than the previous one.

    Caught off guard, Shi Xueman turned rigid and her mind went nk.

    Ai Hui suddenly felt them plunging downward and was frightened. "Hey! We¡¯re dropping!"

    Shi Xueman quivered and regained her senses, her azure wings spreading open once again, bringing them back up.

    Using all his limbs, Ai Hui was hanging onto her body like a sloth onto a tree. She felt feverish. No one had ever held her so tightly before and she¡¯d never been this intimate with a man.

    Wait a minute. A memory surfaced in her mind.

    Amid the darkness a figure locked onto her from behind, his arms steel-like. Then...

    Then... another image invaded her brain.

    Those despicable arms!

    All of a sudden Shi Xueman¡¯s nervousness and anxiety vanished. He was merely grabbing her.

    Wait. Why was she at this stage whereby grabbing was eptable?

    She bit her lips hard, her heart in a tremendous muddle.

    Ai Hui did not know that his actions would cause such a huge impact on Shi Xueman. He was still slightly traumatized from their earlier plunge. They were hugging onto each other at this moment, their postures abnormally ambiguous. The good thing was that they were now close enough!

    Ai Hui¡¯s mouth was just by Shi Xueman¡¯s ear.

    He quickly ryed the details of his n to her, speaking rapidly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s tone was very calm as usual, which helped Shi Xueman clear whatever distracting thoughts she had from her head. She was now clear-headed and her expression returned to normal.

    Ai Hui felt her change as her body, initially rigid as tree trunk, loosened up.

    Without time to overthink, the both of them arrived at the valley mouth.

    They were slightly ahead.

    Still hanging off of Iron Lady¡¯s body, Ai Hui was determined to get a new set of top-notch azure wings the moment he had enough money!

    He was still d that he¡¯d been smart enough to alter their positions. Entering the valley while being grabbed by his cor would simply have been too embarrassing.

    They were like a sharp sword, diving through the mist and into the valley.

    The audience in the valley was stunned.

    "Ai Hui is amazing!"

    "Aren¡¯t they progressing too quickly?"

    Seeing how everyone was looking at them, Shi Xueman kept biting on her lips, forcing herself to remain calm. Battle first, battle first, she thought to herself.

    ...

    Ai Hui¡¯s face was covered by Shi Xueman¡¯s hair so he couldn¡¯t see clearly. He shouted at the top of his lungs, "Change of ns! Archers, get ready!"

    As if awakened from a dream, everyone regained their focus, albeit with a strange expression on their faces. Could it be that their posture was part of the n?

    Luckily they had confidence in Ai Hui¡¯s judgments and so they prepared themselves attentively.

    Carrying Ai Hui, Shi Xueman descended from the sky like a sharp arrow,nding steadily by theke that was covered with fog.

    "Bamboo cart has reached its station, passengers get ready to alight."

    Shi Xueman imitated the brief station announcement in a clear, confident voice without any shyness.

    Ai Hui burst intoughter. Iron Lady was really interesting. He jumped off while asking, "What about the fare?"

    A leg appeared behind Ai Hui¡¯s head without warning.

    Bang! Ai Hui, who was unprepared, got kicked into theke.

    Shi Xueman left him with a snort before turning around to leave.

    Crash! Ai Hui flew into a rage out of humiliation as his furious voice sounded from theke, "Hey!"

    Shi Xueman was satisfied. She flew toward the mist-controlling Color m Pearls. Thirty-six of them had been fixed onto the waterfall cliff. They were the key to controlling the mist.

    The haze and misty rain, as if blown by the wind, moved toward and gathered around Shi Xueman. The water elemental energy within the whole water element region was under her control.

    Ai Hui was rather nervous as he kept his eyes on Iron Lady.

    Only she could utilize such a huge amount of water elemental energy.

    Above, the gloomy crowd of scarletfire flying foxes had reached them after seeing the two figures flying down amid the rocks. They did not prepare tond, but instead got ready to drop their scarlet fireballs.

    Just then, a highly abundant amount of water vapor rose from the valley like a monster opening its bloody mouth wide, effectively swallowing them up.

    They suddenly realized that they were surrounded by many of the elementalist they¡¯d seen earlier!

    Ambush!

    Having umted their power, the scarletfire flying foxes released their scarlet fireballs toward those elementalists.

    They only realized that they had fallen into a trap when the scarlet fireballs passed through the elementalists¡¯ bodies!

    This was Ai Hui¡¯s idea. Since the scarletfire flying foxes did not enter the valley, he would expand the illusion to disrupt them.

    Bang, bang, bang!

    They¡¯d sprayed the scarlet fireballs in a moment of desperation, forgetting that around them were their ownpanions, instantly causing explosions everywhere.

    The mes blossomed upward like a devilish red flower as the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ shrieks drowned amid the incessant explosions.

    Just then, Jiang Wei and Sang Zijun¡¯s rain-like arrows whistled through the air.

 Chapter 429: Victory

    Chapter 429: Victory

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The arrows filled the sky like rain and whizzed into the mes and into the crowd of scarletfire flying foxes.

    No one had imagined that Sang Zijun would be the one to deal the strongest blows. In the face of such dire beasts, who attacked strongly but defended weakly, Golden Silk Longbow¡¯s shocking speed carried a huge advantage.

    She single-handedly shot out consecutive streaks of rain-like golden silk arrows.

    The scarletfire flying foxes dropped one after another, sprinkling fresh blood all over the ground like raindrops, as the incessant whines of the scarletfire flying foxes rang across the field.

    The scarletfire flying foxes fell intoplete disorder.

    Ai Hui had alreadye out from theke and couldn¡¯t care less about the fact that he was drenched. He yelled, "Bangwan!"

    A cold snort was all he heard.

    Duanmu Huanghun, who had long umted enough power, channeled the wood elemental energy surrounding him and swept it over the huge volume of grass seeds like a green python, raising them high into the air before throwing them right at the scarletfire flying foxes.

    p, p, p, p!

    The sounds of beans being fried filled their ears momentarily.

    The grass seeds burst no matter what they touched. The scarletfire flying foxes that had yet to regain focus from all this confusion were quickly hit by these destructive seeds.

    There were simply too many seeds and even Duanmu Huanghun had no idea exactly how many he¡¯d thrown out. He¡¯d practically utilized whatever usable amount he had on him.

    His wildness was without reservation. If they did not survive this ordeal, it did not matter how many grass seeds he had remaining.

    The scarletfire flying foxes fell in session. Some were even struck by a few kinds of grass seeds and had all kinds of vines appearing on around their bodies and winding like spider webs, making them look like dumplings.

    Nevertheless, wild Duanmu was never a passable sidekick since he had always wanted to be the lead character.

    After the grass seeds came the mini, sword-like, jade green bamboo leaves that were hidden behind the seeds.

    Whimpers came after the explosions of the concentrated grass seeds. It was as if beautiful women were ying the flute in the bamboo forest under the moonlight. However, amid the mellow tunes was a quietly rising murderousness.

    The drifting and floating bamboo leaves were as sharp as sword des.

    scarletfire flying foxes that were wrapped up by the seeds had no time to struggle free as they were quickly killed by these silent, yet powerful assassins. The leaves pierced the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ bodies effortlessly without getting any bloodstains on them, remaining ever new and jade-green.

    About to lead his team in the attack, Ai Hui suddenly noticed that there weren¡¯t any targets left in the sky.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s knees went weak, causing him to fall onto a bamboo branch bottom first. This attack required a scary amount of control over the wood elemental energy and he knew that he only had one chance to attack, so he¡¯d channeled all his elemental energy into it. His body was now an empty vessel as sweat, albeit dyed, poured out from every part of his body. His pale cheeks were now flushed and his sweat meandered down his face. His breaths were heavy, like moving bellows and he had absolutely no energy to even lift a finger.

    But when he saw the amazement and lifeless expression on Ai Hui¡¯s face, he couldn¡¯t help but let out augh. Except before he couldugh properly, it turned into an intense bout of coughs.

    Everyone looked toward the sky.

    After a moment of silence came thunder-like cheers.

    Everyone was moved as the joy of having survived filled their chests. They were really being put under tremendous pressure upon seeing the number of scarletfire flying foxes that they had to deal with and the formidability of their scarlet fireballs.

    No one would¡¯ve thought that the battle would proceed and end so smoothly with them reigning in a victory.

    Ai Hui turned around and looked toward the bamboo forest, where he saw Duanmu Huanghunughing, wild and proud. Iron Lady, too, was close to being exhausted. In order to interfere with more scarletfire flying foxes, she¡¯d used up all her water elemental energy.

    Ai Hui flew up into the sky and saw a few lonesome scarletfire flying foxes attempting to escape. His eyes lit up.

    Scarletfire flying fox cave!

    They¡¯d battled so diligently and consumed so much, but their harvest was unjustifiable. The scarletfire and fire sacks of the scarletfire flying foxes were the most valuable. There was no need to consider the scarletfire since they¡¯d practically be scarletfire bullets and were all used up. It was the same for the fire sacks since most of the scarletfire flying foxes were killed by explosions, arrows or bamboo leaves so there wouldn¡¯t be many well preserved fire sacks.

    Ai Hui, now out of the crisis, immediately felt the pain. As such, when he saw the scarletfire flying foxes desperately trying to flee he immediately thought of the cave that they lived in.

    It seemed like not many had gone into the caves of scarletfire flying foxes!

    But it made sense. These scarletfire flying foxes lived in a colony and were revengeful dire beasts that even the hunting teams avoided provoking, since they could all be destroyed if they were careless.

    The scarlet fireballs were simply too powerful.

    Ai Hui shouted at those below, "A few of you, follow me to their cave!"

    In a split second a group of them rushed up. They were members who had been arranged to deal the final blows. They¡¯d expected more from the toughest mission, but did not even manage to secure any soup. Feeling regretful, it was only natural that they would be the first to volunteer upon hearing that there was a follow up mission.

    Ai Hui selected a few decent members who had faster speeds. The rest would stay in the valley to guard it from sneak attacks by other dire beasts.

    With a firm look on his face, Fatty spoke up, "Ai Hui, I¡¯ll go too!"

    Collecting spoils of war was simply Fatty¡¯s favorite pastime. Just thinking about it made his eyes shine.

    "No!" Ai Hui replied disdainfully. "Why are you trying to join the buzz when you fly so slowly?"

    Fatty gave a bitter look. "You can¡¯t be so heartless. During our time in the Wilderness, when have I ever been absent from the clean ups?

    Ai Hui was already immune to Fatty¡¯s tactics. He shouted to Lou Lan, "Keep an eye on him!"

    "No problem, Ai Hui!"

    Fatty yelled indignantly, "Mister Ai, are you just going to disown me? Are you feeding our years of friendship to the dogs? You¡¯d better give me a proper exnation!"

    Ai Hui bore his teeth as he responded, "I¡¯ll clear things up with you today!"

    Fatty sensed that the situation was amiss and got frightened. He smiled meekly before saying, "Brother Hui, calm down, we can talk things over slowly. There¡¯s no using of fists among brothers. You¡¯re really hitting! Ow, easy, easy! I¡¯m wrong, I¡¯m at fault, it¡¯s my bad! Brother Ai! Father Ai! I¡¯m going to flip if you keep hitting me! I¡¯m about to flip! The scarletfire flying foxes are escaping..."

    Hisst sentence convinced Ai Hui. "I¡¯ll teach you a lesson when I¡¯m back!"

    He then led the team and made chase.

    Fatty let out a sigh of relief. He¡¯d pulled a fast one fortunately and saved himself by luring the enemy!

    He raised his head and saw Lou Lan looking back at him. He walked toward Lou Lan with a solemn expression on his face. "Lou Lan, Ai Hui asked you to keep an eye on me."

    Lou Lan opened his eyes wide. "Yes he did."

    Fatty continued seriously, "Lou Lan, I¡¯ll promise not to go anywhere if you bring out your elemental food."

    Lou Lan blinked. "Really?"

    Fatty was secretly delighted but kept a straight face, replying in a righteous manner, "I¡¯m a man of my word!"

    Lou Lan cheered. "Then we have a deal!"

    Lou Lan brought out pieces of elemental food and ced them in front.

    Fatty swallowed his saliva greedily, his heart bursting with joy. "You¡¯re still the best. There¡¯s so much! I¡¯ll enjoy them."

    Fatty reached his palm out but was blocked by Lou Lan. Fatty asked in shock, "Didn¡¯t we have an agreement? You¡¯re going back on your words!"

    Lou Lan shook his head. "You asked me to bring them out, which I did. I kept my word."

    "Then why are you stopping me?"

    "I did not agree to let you eat them."

    Fatty wanted to run himself over. Why! Why did he make such a fatal mistake! The pain of being able to look but not eat was more unbearable. The enticing fragrance filled his nostrils, yet he wasn¡¯t able to taste them. Fatty was convinced that this must be the world¡¯s cruelest punishment.

    "Fatty, do you want me to keep these? You don¡¯t look good."

    "No! Even if I can¡¯t taste them, I¡¯m going to look all I want! I can still smell their fragrance!"

    Fatty¡¯s voice was filled with struggle and determination. He sprawled out in front of the food, his eyes wide open.

    Ai Hui led the small team and followed the remaining two scarletfire flying foxes.

    The entrance of the elementalists into the Wilderness turned it into an even more brutal ce. Elementalists were all dire beasts¡¯ number one enemy.

    The scarletfire flying foxes weren¡¯t fast enough, so Ai Hui and his team quickly caught up and were following them from far behind. The scarletfire flying foxes were already beyond frightened, so all they wanted to do was to return to their warm and safe cave, and couldn¡¯t care for anything else.

    Ai Hui paid attention along the way and noticed that the ce where he¡¯d been ambushed by the rockback earth dragon was now empty. He did not notice any other beasts¡¯ odor. The earlier battle had raised too big of amotion, so few dire beasts would provoke the scarletfire flying foxes. The scarletfire flying foxes had frail bodies but were powerful in their attacks. Plus, with that many of them, there could easily be trouble.

    The rockback earth dragon, too, would not initiate an attack on the scarletfire flying foxes.

    Following far behind, Ai Hui and gang maintained a strong defensive stance. Danger lurked in every corner of the Wilderness. The seemingly barren and deste ckfish Mouth Volcano was home to many dangerous dire beasts. Any slight negligence could possibly cost them their lives.

    Over the mountain range, the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ cave was no more than three miles away from Central Pine Valley.

    The close proximity shocked Ai Hui. It was no wonder these scarletfire flying foxes appeared near the valley.

    But this fact increased his vignce. He would have to conduct a thorough exploration of ckfish Mouth Volcano once the valley¡¯s defense was constructed.

    How could one sleep soundly knowing that his territory was susceptible to invasion?

    If there were powerful fire beasts, he must think of a way to get rid of them. Just a rockback earth dragon was enough to give all of them a headache.

    Suddenly, the scarletfire flying foxes flew down and into the rocks.

    Ai Hui and gang flew closer and realized that there was a deep crack behind the rocks. The crack was about six meters tall but its width was wide enough for a person to go through.

    Ai Hui stood in front since he was the strongest and had the most experience.

    The cave mouth was narrow but it was actually wide and big inside. It was spacious and the ceiling of the cave was about twenty meters above the ground. No one could¡¯ve imagined how such a narrow opening could lead to such a huge paradise.

    It was very dry inside the cave and there was a faint sulphur smell as well, the most distinct feature of caves near the volcanoes.

    Advancing into the cave, Ai Hui did not walk quietly on tiptoe. He knew that the scarletfire flying foxes had incredible hearing and must have already sensed their presence the moment they stepped in. What they had to do now was to guard against the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ sneak attacks.

    The passage within the cave was curvy and uneven. The scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ excrement could be seen everywhere. Fortunately, there wasn¡¯t any odor or else the smell within the cave would be even worse.

    Ai Hui did not feel any obvious air movement, a clear sign that this was a cave with only one opening.

    He dared not let himself be even the least bit careless.

 Chapter 430: Hellfire Pagoda Cannon

    Chapter 430: Hellfire Pagoda Cannon

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The sneak attacks he¡¯d been expecting did not happen.

    When Ai Hui and gang reached the deepest part of the cave they finally caught sight of the two surviving scarletfire flying foxes. They were already at theirst breaths and were severely injured. Flying into their cave had exhausted theirst bit of energy.

    Thisnd was probably the batmunity¡¯s ce for activities and rest. The cave was shaped like a copper bell, narrow on the top and wide at the bottom, its height not exceeding sixty meters. A vague, dark red glow could be seen through the cracks on the ck, rugged cliff. The fire elemental energy within the cave was plentiful, no surprise why the scarletfire flying foxes chose to reproduce and inhabit this ce.

    The cave was absolutely empty. save for a huge pile of ash-colored skeletons in a corner, covered in dust and spiderwebs.

    Thest two scarletfire flying foxes were killed by Ai Hui and everyone finally let their tensed hearts down. Ai Hui called them over to flip the mountain of skeletons.

    Lifting the dust-filled skeleton mountain, they noticed that most of the bones belonged to the scarletfire flying foxes. The scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ bones were easy to recognize since their bodies were very small. Ai Hui recalled how some wild beasts that were about to die would select a certain spot to await death.

    Judging from the luster on some of the bones, it could be concluded that the scarletfire flying foxes had been residing in this cave for many years.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. He found a dark red pearl among the pile of bones. The pearl was about the size of an egg and was warm to the touch. He wiped off the dust on the surface and the pearl¡¯s dark red color reflected in his eyes.

    "Fire elemental elixir!"

    Ai Hui was indescribably shocked. He¡¯d used elemental elixirs before and could tell from one nce that the dark red pearl he was holding onto was indeed an elemental elixir.

    Ai Hui rejoiced. They were right toe here! He was also d that these bunch of scarletfire flying foxes had yet to formte their own elixirs or else they situation would¡¯ve been much more precarious.

    If he were to say that level of Master was the dividing line between a powerful elementalist and an ordinary elementalist, the possession of an elemental elixir was the dividing line between a powerful dire beast and an ordinary dire beast.

    Dire beasts that could produce elemental elixirs possessed many mystical qualities. They were much more dangerous and clever.

    An elemental elixir was extraordinarily expensive, so upon seeing it the gang¡¯s faces lit up in joy and they started searching around. Shortly, someone found another elemental elixir from within the pile.

    In fear of missing out, everyone searched long and carefully, such that their bone picking movements became much more nimble.

    Bones of scarletfire flying foxes that died from old age were known as ming bones, a decent fire elemental ingredient. When a scarletfire flying fox reached the end of its lifespan, the scarletfire within its fire sacks would be at its strongest. As it inched closer to death the fire would surge out from the sack and burn its flesh and fur, eventually leaving only aplete set of skeletons. Having gone through the scarletfire¡¯s burning and tempering, the quality of the bones increased drastically, hence the name "ming bones".

    But because the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ bones weren¡¯t robust, they were only considered to be of a decent quality even after the upgrade.

    At the end of their search, Ai Hui and gang picked five fire elemental elixirs out.

    Their faces were brimming with joy. Fire elemental elixirs were good stuff. If they were to sell them, each elixir would fetch a sky-high price. Many would be willing to purchase them at five thousand heaven merit points each. But Ai Hui had no ns to sell them because what was the point of having money at this moment? The priority should be to improve their abilities, since without skills they wouldn¡¯t be able to survive.

    This victory hade after a fierce battle process and involved much luck. Any slight incautiousness would¡¯ve caused the whole of Central Pine Valley to fall into eternal damnation.

    Scarletfire flying foxes weren¡¯t the most powerful dire beasts around. The rockback earth dragon was even stronger and harder to deal with.

    Passing Lou Lan the five fire elemental elixirs would provide a huge boost to the fire elementalists in the team, allowing them to enter a higher realm.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui noticed a section of thick and solid bone and picked it up after a short pause. The bone was exceptionally robust and heavy, with the thickness of a bowl¡¯s mouth and the length about a meter and a half. The two ends were of an irregr, round shape, probably the leg bone of a certain dire beast.

    The bone was spotlessly white and very beautiful. Ai Hui knocked it and heard a metallic sound, which revealed its solidness. What surprised Ai Hui was the fact that a few chops from his Wintry Jade de left no scars on the bone. It was still surprising, even though he did not channel any elemental energy into his hits.

    Plus, it was really strange to find a bone, not belonging to a bat, among the pile of flying foxes¡¯ bones.

    Ai Hui said to the rest, "Find more bones of this type."

    Everyone, too, noticed that the bone Ai Hui was holding was special. They dispersed in search of simr bones and ended up with four of them in different sizes. The biggest one had been found by Ai Hui and the smallest one was only half a foot long and was thin as chopsticks.

    If not for the identical color and aura, Ai Hui wouldn¡¯t be certain that these four bones came from the same species of dire beast. What kind of dire beast would have such strange looking bones?

    He couldn¡¯t tell what was special about these bones and would have to hand them over to Blind He for analysis when he returned. In the past, he had thought that he was half an expert when it came to dire beasts, but after seeing what Blind He could do, he realized he wasgging far behind.

    Keeping the bones that belonged to an unknown beast and packing numerous ming bones, Ai Hui and gang made their way back.

    Ai Hui was being cautious as usual. He¡¯d already found their first goal, which was to rule ckfish Mouth Volcano and dominate it!

    The battle that urred not long ago made ckfish Mouth Volcano appear tranquil, which was a rare sight. Ai Hui and gang did not bump into any trouble on their return journey.

    The dire beasts, including other rockback earth dragons, were already aware that their neighbors weren¡¯t weaklings. But the naturally antagonistic rtionship between dire beasts and elementalists would not see any changes just because of the destruction of the scarletfire flying foxes.

    Ai Hui and gang arrived safely at the valley, allowing everyone to finally let out a breath of relief.

    Their harvest pleased everyone further, especially the fire elementalists, who were filled with anticipation.

    Ai Hui¡¯d wanted to ask Blind He to analyze the four pieces of bones, but seeing that he was busy forging parts that he needed, Ai Hui chose not to disturb him.

    Central Pine Valley could finally take a breather, but no one dared to ck off at all.

    Their battle with the scarletfire flying foxes consumed a lot of their water and wood elemental energy. Although it was a single attack, Shi Xueman and Duanmu Huanghun had mobilized the maximum amount of elemental energy possible.

    And the five elemental energies within the valley had been in equilibrium, causing the elemental energy concentration to reach a trough these past few days. Ai Hui estimated that the valley would need three days of replenishment to restore its energy concentration¡¯s usual state of equilibrium.

    It was as if they were expecting a mortal enemy for three days, and if nothing cropped up, the valley¡¯s defense would finally be restored.

    Another good piece of news was that the parts Ai Hui needed were ready.

    Upon hearing that Ai Hui wanted to fix up something new, everybody abandoned what they were doing and ran over to join the buzz.

    nking sounds could be heard as Ai Hui was hard at work.

    He¡¯d piled the parts up not far away. They were all items forged by Blind He, and quality wise there was nothing much for Ai Hui toin about.

    Ai Hui had long been used to being watched and so his actions weren¡¯t the least affected.

    First, he chiseled a fire well mouth, the redva shining upon his face, making it appear bright red in color. His eyes were so focused, as if there were mes burning within. He then started to put the parts together in a swift manner, as if he¡¯d long visualized how the final product would look like.

    As the parts came together slowly, everybody finally saw some development.

    It was actually a pagoda!

    Following the capping of the roof, a ck pagoda appeared before their eyes. It was about ten meters tall and had three stories. Its entire body was forged from a mix of volcanic rock and metal.

    At the tower peak was a stem of round tube which everyone found familiar looking.

    Wasn¡¯t that the long, spraying snout that belonged to theva-spitting beast?

    The long snout on the top of the pagoda changed angle constantly and was very nimble.

    Ai Hui had a satisfied look on his face. pping his hands he dered, "Finished!"

    The audience, who¡¯d long felt impatient, started crowding over and discussing.

    "What¡¯s that?"

    "The long snout that belonged to theva-spitting beast!"

    AI Hui was pleased. He cleared his throat gently and answered earnestly, "This is a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon!"

    "So it spitsva like theva-spitting beast?"

    Ai Hui quietened the crowd. "We¡¯ll do a demonstration now so you guys will see for yourselves."

    Everyone became silent and looked on in anticipation.

    Fatty was called over since the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon required a fire elementalist to control it. Fatty went inside the spacious tower, where each level was over three meters tall. Getting inside was effortless despite his bigger size.

    The ck pagoda cannon turned red rapidly like burning steel. A wave of heat surfaced instantly and spread to its surroundings.

    The others moved away.

    Suddenly, a bright earth fire rose up the six pirs in spirals before entering the eaves of the first storey. Shortly after, mes surge up the pirs on the second storey. The mes were brighter than before, appearing whitish.

    This scene seemed quite familiar as well.

    Someone shouted, "White Cluster mes!"

    It was no wonder everyone felt that this sight was familiar. Wasn¡¯t this the smelting furnace Ai Hui¡¯d made for Blind He? Their eyes fell subconsciously onto Blind He. He was floating in mid air, looking unconcerned.

    They quickly noticed that the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon was more powerful that the furnace since the earth fire had undergone three amassments. The mes got increasingly white with each level and everyone could feel the terrifying power the mes contained.

    When the mes gathered at the thirdyer they were snow-white and actually seemed cold. But everyone was aware that they were in fact unbelievably hot.

    Blind He appeared extremely calm, but his heart was actually greatly stirred.

    The White Cluster mes seemed to be a genius¡¯s invention. He¡¯d not expected Ai Hui to give him an even bigger surprise so quickly. The appearance of thisyered cluster meant that the mes could be upgraded again. To him, this was beyond ingenious.

    After three levels of amassments, the aura released by the white mes made Blind He palpitate. As a weaponsmith, he was exceptionally sensitive to the auras of mes. Just from smelling the emitted aura he knew that the white mes, having gone through threeyers of amassments, were no longer endurable by ordinary materials.

    Ordinary ingredients would instantly be destroyed under such powerful mes.

    If a threeyered amassment produced such good results, what would sixyers do? What about nine?

    A whole new world seemed to be opening its door for him with a loud bang.

 Chapter 431: Snow Lava

    Chapter 431: Snow Lava

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Not everyone was as far-sighted as Blind He. Their eyes were fixed on the spray snout on the pagoda roof.

    They were curious and excited. Since the pagoda cannon was actually called a cannon, it should work simr to theva-spitting beast. Theva spat by the beast was shockingly formidable and had left a deep impression on them. If the pagoda cannon was anything like the beast, it meant that valley¡¯s defense had been added with ava-spitting beast. This could enhance its attacking powers.

    Gulu-gulu! The sound ofva being extracted was heard, intensifying the curious looks on everybody¡¯s faces.

    Only Fatty, who was inside the pagoda cannon, could clearly see what was going on. Theva was being extracted from the fire well before being tempered within the White Cluster mes, its volume rapidly shrinking.

    Standing outside, Ai Hui exined, "Theva will undergo three phases of tempering, causing it to shrink significantly but also increase in quality. As to how much its quality will improve, we will only know after some tests. Oh, the pagoda cannon can temperva consistently on normal days so it will be ready for battles. I feel that temperedva is a very good fire elemental material. Wonder if it¡¯s possible to sell? I¡¯ll get Blind He and Lou Lan to evaluate when the timees. We will have an additional ie source if it¡¯s seble."

    Everyone was used to Ai Hui¡¯s habit of linking everything to money.

    People who did not know him would definitely think that he was the president of an enterprise, opening his eyes wide at the sight of profit.

    Iron Lady had a different perspective. "How powerful is it?"

    After some thought, Ai Hui answered uncertainly, "We would have to try it to know. We got to wait for a bit more. There¡¯s ava reservoir in the pagoda to store temperedva so there¡¯s no need to do it at thest minute when there¡¯s a battle. But we will have to wait for the first batch to bepleted before firing the first cannon."

    Ai Hui answered her freely, as if nothing had happened between them. Ah, he¡¯d done it in battle and under urgent circumstances. As an outstanding fighter, how could he have bothered about these minor details?

    Nothing had changed between Ai Hui and Iron Lady on the surface, but what went on in their minds wasn¡¯t clear to outsiders.

    The only change was that they knew not to talk about bamboo cart in front of Iron Lady and not to mention that Ai Hui was slow unless they wanted to get beaten up. Both of them had solid fists and a bad temper so they wouldn¡¯t get any exnation even after enduring the beating.

    These two guys were really unfathomable.

    The spray nose on the pagoda started to rotate, catching everyone¡¯s attention. They opened their eyes wide, in fear of missing any detail.

    Boom!

    The sound of the cannon blowing off wasn¡¯t loud at all in spite of their expectations. It was really soft and if the pagado cannon had been further away, they might not have heard it at all.

    A splendid white light shot out from the cannon barrel, toward another mountain ridge outside the valley.

    It was definitely nowhere as mighty as theva-spitting beast. The oppressive hissing made by the beast when spittingva was sky-shaking.

    Just as everyone was getting slightly disappointed the white light struck the mountain ridge far away.

    There wasn¡¯t any of the predicted boom, rising smoke or earthquake.

    It was as if nothing had happened.

    But Shi Xueman¡¯s pupils shrank suddenly. Without a word she flew toward that mountain ridge speedily. Upon seeing her go, the rest followed in unison. They knew that she must have noticed something.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell upon that mountain range and fell into a short daze. Lagging half a beat he immediately took flight.

    The mountain ridge was about two miles away from the valley, a distance that required little time and effort to reach. Everybody got there in the blink of an eye.

    Upon reaching it, everyone took in a breath of cold air, disbelief evident on their faces.

    There was a table-sized tunnel in the mountain ridge that reached all the way to the other side. The pagoda cannon had actually bored a hole through the whole mountain ridge!

    While the light had struck a weaker region, the rocks that had been sted off were forty meters thick.

    Boring through three to six meters of rock wasn¡¯t so big of a deal.

    But no one was able to st through forty meters of rock. There was a hole the rough size of a table and the glossy inner wall had a melted ceramic texture, a clear sign that the strike was not only shockingly forceful but also shockingly hot.

    No one dared to imagine what such a terrifying attack would do to a person.

    Would the defensive ancient tree¡¯s energy screen be able to withstand such an attack?

    Duanmu Haunghun thought this over and the conclusion he arrived at distorted the expression on his face. Perhaps once? He noticed Ai Hui¡¯s satisfied look and felt even more displeased.

    Amid the shock, everybody was cheering and celebrating.

    With such a strong firepower, just one hit was more than sufficient to send the dire beasts crying.

    This murderous weapon could catalyze their establishment in Central Pine Valley. No matter how powerful a dire beast they met, they would be able to defend themselves. This fact instantly took a whole load of pressure off their chests.

    Seeing everybody¡¯s excitement, Ai hui called out softly, "The Hellfire Pagoda Cannon can also shoot mes."

    His words caught everyone¡¯s attention immediately.

    "Shoot mes?"

    "How?"

    They then followed Ai Hui excitedly back to the tower.

    The mes sprayed by the cannon were White Cluster mes, but because of theyers of clustering the result was a me of small volume, about a foot long or so.

    Having witnessed theva attack, the audience had high expectations of the mes. Upon seeing this pathetically short and white me, all of them gave Ai Hui a strange look.

    Ai Hui looked very embarrassed. He did not expect the mes to be this tiny.

    But he had thick skin andughed it off.

    Blind He, on the other hand, felt that a foot long mes were just right for tempering some high grade materials. With threeyers of clustering, the mes were more powerful than his White Cluster mes. But they did not have many rare materials. Ordinary materials were forged by the smelting furnace and would not be able to endure such a strong me.

    As long as it works, Ai Hui thought and quickly forgot about his embarrassment.

    He had one more spraying snout and it mustn¡¯t be wasted. Ai Hui started building his second Hellfire Pagoda Cannon. Having gained experience, Ai Hui and Blind He¡¯s speed was clearly much faster.

    They took only one day toplete the second pagoda cannon. For convenience¡¯s sake the new cannon was called "short pagoda cannon" and the first one was called "long pagoda cannon".

    Short pagoda cannon attacked much more frequently than long pagoda cannon, but its range and power of attack was much smaller and hence more suitable for short-range defense. Having learnt his lesson, Ai Hui did not add a me shooting function on the short pagoda cannon.

    The two pagoda cannons were like two guardians, defending the valley and securing peace. The grave atmosphere, that once enveloped the valley, had lightened up significantly. The merryughter of a few children, especially, made the valley livelier.

    Life seemed to have gone back on track as the elemental energy was gradually recovering. All kinds of nts started undergoing a growth spurt and the valley was overflowing with the charms of spring.

    Having undergone the long pagoda cannon¡¯s tempering, theva was of a superb quality and its body was only one twelfth its original volume. Its fresh, red color was now a splendid white. Peculiarly, its initially viscous texture was now fluid and flowed like water.

    No one had seen such ava before, and as usual, a name should be given to it. With their previous experience, everyone automatically disregarded Ai Hui despite the fact that it was his contribution.

    Ultimately thispletely new type ofva was named Snow Lava.

    Ai Hui muttered to himself non-stop. That name wasn¡¯t any different from the one he had in mind so how dare they ignore them.

    Nevertheless, everyone ignored him.

    The long pagoda cannon could produce about three liters of snowva whereas the short one could produce two.

    Much practice was necessary to teach everyone how to control the cannon. At least three liters of snowva would be consumed so only two would be left.

    Although the quality of snowva was decent, no one knew how much money it was worth.

    Time had been flying past for the fire elementalists in the valley. One of the five fire elemental elixirs had already gone into their tummies. Not only did their elemental energy improve greatly, they also got to enjoy the fire elemental soup specially brewed by Lou Lan.

    The only challenge was that the pagoda cannon wasn¡¯t easy to control. Training everyday really consumed a lot of their elemental energy and they were all close to copsing. The mes from the pagoda cannon were of an extremely high grade, so exercising any control over it was very difficult.

    What surprised Ai Hui was the fact that Fatty performed the best in this aspect.

    Ai Hui had to interrogate him by grabbing him before he spilled the reason. He felt safer in the pagoda cannon and hence was at ease. Another reason was that whenever he was close to exhaustion, Lou Lan would give him a little elemental food. The more tired he was the more he would get.

    Fatty sneaked guilty nces at Ai Hui as he spoke.

    Ai Hui knew not whether tough or cry at Fatty¡¯s exnation, but on second thought he had just found a method to deal with Fatty in future!

    Blind He had never seen bones like the four Ai Hui and gang had picked from the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ cave so he couldn¡¯t be sure what kind of dire beast those belonged to.

    Peace was restored in the valley. The daily bombardment of the cannons also quieted the surrounding beasts. While they were still unable to walk across ckfish Mouth Volcano, no beasts dared to have their sights on the valley as well.

    The situation seemed stable, so all they had to do was to continue their development ns patiently. However, a new problem arose shortly.

    The resources in the valley were running out!

    Lou Lan couldn¡¯t even gather sufficient ingredients for his elemental soup. Blind He was facing the same problem. No matter how ample the team¡¯s initial preparations were, there were still many incalcble aspects.

    Just the elemental energy pools alone consumed a significant amount of resources.

    Central Pine Valley was a closed one, so resources did not replenish themselves. The more they used, the less they had left. While the medicinist and farmers had already started sowing the seeds, time was needed for those to grow.

    The team had to replenish the goods. They were about to embark on their first trading journey.

    Everybody had already spent most of their Heaven Merit Points on the previous batch of materials and had little points left. They needed to sell produce from the valley in order to earn some points to buy other goods.

    This was also going to be their experimental journey, albeit a month ahead of schedule.

 Chapter 432: Fairy Devil Palace

    Chapter 432: Fairy Devil Pce

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    A snarl, seeminglying from a beast on the verge of death and who was slightly trembling, could be heard. There was pain and wildness in that growl, which echoed throughout Beast Venom Temple, piercing throughyers of wall and dispersing into the clouds.

    The people in Beast Venom Temple quickly dropped what they were working on. They seemed to be listening, their expressionsplicated. They were shocked, sympathetic and in fear.

    "You¡¯re like an exceptional dire beast, Sir!"

    "What dire beast! Sir is the Devil himself, Red Devil."

    "Not human, that¡¯s for sure. How can any human reach this stage?"

    "Is the biscuit ready? Give some to Xianzi. She¡¯s loyal and honest. I hope Sir Red Devil can lead a peaceful life, or else, what is Xianzi to do?"

    "It¡¯s already been prepared. How can I forget about Xianzi? Ahh. It¡¯s not easy being Sir. It¡¯s like raising a kid. Teaching Xianzi how to talk, walk and be a sensible person. Were they a married couple?"

    "Definitely, otherwise why would Sir be so kind to Xianzi?"

    "Sir and Xianzi are both good people but they were born under an unlucky star."

    "It¡¯s a chaotic world, who isn¡¯t suffering?"

    They sighed and lost the mood to talk.

    The sunlight that day was ring. As the pce hall doors opened one by one, a tall and sturdy figure wearing a ck and red mask walked out from the darkness, his ck cape surrounding him like the night sky. Sweat could be seen on theshes of the eyes behind the mask. His blue, seawater-like pupils were steady and motionless, but beneath these deep blues was a faint blood color.

    "Congrattions, Sir."

    The guards outside the door bowed simultaneously with their heads lowered, the zeal and worship on their faces unconcealed.

    This figure, appearing to be shrouded by darkness, had broken the previous record of Beast Venom Temple. It was his twenty-first time undergoing blood refinement. No one could even begin toprehend this number. Even the Holy Emperor was greatly moved and bestowed him with countless treasures before his refinement.

    Today, Red Devil has be Beast Venom Temple¡¯s emblem.

    Each time one went through blood refinement was like charging through hell.

    Steel-like willpower wasn¡¯t enough to bring the blood refiner back from hell. Countless iron men had died from explosion. Red Devil really was a miracle. A living miracle.

    No one knew how he¡¯d done it.

    But he did.

    He did not reek of blood at all. He stood at the entrance, his gaze pouring down. He was like an unmeltable ink block, blocking off all sunlight.

    A group of powerful looking guards, dressed in armor tings, whizzed down while supporting a woman in red andnded in the temple. The golden g represented the Blood of God¡¯s supreme Holy Emperor.

    The temple guards kneeled down with a panicked cry. Only Red Devil stood motionless.

    Thedy in red was She Yu. Her gaze fell upon Red Devil. While she looked indifferent, she was actually beyond shocked. Red Devil was obviously standing about ten meters away, but she felt only emptiness.

    Twenty-first blood refinement... simply too terrifying.

    She dared not forget her manners, bending her head down respectfully. "Congrattions, Master! His Majesty had heard of your sess and was very excited about it, mentioning that our nation has another pir. He¡¯d specially instructed me to congratte you and gift you a pce hall, ny thousand god cores, three hundred carts of jade fruits, ten thousand servants. Daily expenses will be allocated to you by the pce. His Majesty wishes to be Xianzi¡¯s godbrother and wants me to ask for your opinion."

    As if he¡¯d heard nothing, Red Devil threw his gaze far away and stood still like a statue.

    She Yu maintained her posture, not daring to move even the slightest. She was dumbstruck in fact. It felt as if the surrounding air had been frozen. She seemed to mistakenly feel that any slight movement on her part would result in an instant blood ssh.

    She would have blown him up if it had been anyone else who was being rude, but at this point She Yu simply couldn¡¯t get herself to feel resentful.

    Anyone who had the ability to survive twenty-one blood refinements had the right to be rude. Sir Red Devil was now one of the most powerful people in the whole of God Nation.

    A beautiful figure charged into the temple and upon seeing Red Devil her eyes lit up. She shouted cheerily, "Little Devil!"

    Her tender yet crisp voice carried a deep yearning and admiration.

    The icy atmosphere melted instantly as the dull sunlight regained its dazzle. She Yu and the rest rxed their muscles only to find their backs filled with sweat.

    The beautifuldy rushed over and stopped before Red Devil, putting her pitiful looking face close to his. She pleaded, "Little Devil, stop undergoing blood refinement."

    Thedy looked over twenty years of age but her voice resembled that of a seven or eight year old child, tender and crisp.

    All the graveness and darkness had vanished, as if a dire beast had quietly retracted its sharp ws or a hedgehog had ttened all its spikes, in fear that she would be hurt the slightest.

    The king, who had returned from war, took down his crown, ced his scepter down, untied his sword, removed his war clothes and washed himself.

    Without all the halos, Red Devil looked ordinary.

    He ced his warm palm on her tear-stained cheek, gently removing them. Thedy shut her eyes, revealing an expression simr to that of a rxed kitten.

    "Alright, I won¡¯t do it anymore."

    He reassured her in a low voice, a slight smile appearing on his face.

    With her eyes closed Xianzi acknowledged his words with a face full of joy.

    A good whileter he answered without even turning his head, "I¡¯ll thank His Majesty on the behalf of Xianzi."

    She Yu let out a breath, exultation filling her heart. She responded deferentially, "His Majesty will be ecstatic to know. I shan¡¯t disturb your rest any longer. I¡¯ll ask to be excused."

    At that she left quietly with her guards.

    "Thanking His Majesty on my behalf?"

    "You¡¯re about to have a powerful brother."

    "Is it you, Little Devil? But I don¡¯t want Little Devil to be my brother."

    "Haha, it isn¡¯t me of course."

    A pair of guards entered the pce with a huge pile of gifts, bowing respectfully. "Congrattions, Sir! Mister Bei¡¯s heard about your sess and was unable to contain his joy. He specially instructed us to bring you some congrattory gifts..."

    Yet another group entered the courtyard as the head greeted, "Congrattions, Sir! I¡¯m the person in charge of War God Pce and am here to present you with a little something on behalf of my master. He couldn¡¯t stop praising you upon hearing about your sess, calling you a heroic youth..."

    Group after group entered to congratte Red Devil and offer gifts, filling up the courtyard quickly.

    As though nobody was present, Red Devil paid no attention at all. His gentle and warm gaze was only focused on the beautiful face in front of him.

    "We¡¯re about to have a pce. You are going to name it."

    "Really? Let¡¯s call it Devil Pce!"

    "But Xianzi¡¯s living in it? Let¡¯s call it Fairy Devil Pce."

    "Little Devil, I¡¯m hungry..."

    The sunshine was perfect now.

    .....

    In Skyheart City, citizens suddenly noticed that there were many elementalists from Infantry Division and Sky Edge Division walking on the streets, emitting an unusual trace of odor. People became more careful as they knew that something major was likely to happen whenever such a situation arose.

    Madam Ye stood guard before the bed couch, her eyes red. Xiaobao had fallen asleep while leaning on the edge.

    On the bedy an unconscious old man.

    This old man wielded the most power in the Avalon of Five Elements but was missing his former might. He was merely an old man who was almost reaching the end of his road.

    No different from any other old person.

    Worry was evident in one servant¡¯s eyes. She urged in a low voice, "Madam, please get some rest. I¡¯ll keep watch. You haven¡¯t had any rest since yesterday."

    Madam Ye shook her head. "I¡¯m fine."

    Ady in a veil walked into the room with a long sword in her hand. Seeing Madam Ye she called out softly, "Aunt Ye."

    Madam Ye let out a breath upon seeing her guest. "How is it? How¡¯s the situation outside?"

    This young lookingdy was today¡¯s Karakorum Pris.

    "We¡¯ve already sealed Skyheart City off. Families are still at peace but they¡¯re all asking around so I reckon it will be difficult to hide it for long. Elder Yuchi from Newlight City had fallen ill as well and is unable to return to Skyheart City as scheduled. We suspect that he¡¯s already gotten hold of the news."

    Having learned through experience over a period of time, thedy was no longer the chief of Karakorum Sword League but a division leader of Sky Edge. She did seem more capable and experienced.

    Madam Ye couldn¡¯t help but let out, "That old fox!"

    She massaged her forehead.

    Just then, a weak cough was heard from above the bed, startling the two of them. They turned their heads to the side immediately. Great Elder was slightly awake.

    "Father!"

    "Great Elder!"

    Sorrow filled their hearts. The Great Elder, who used to dominate the Avalon of Five Elements, did not even have much energy to cough.

    Great Elder opened his eyes slowly. The glimmer in his eyes was like a candlelight in the wind, causing much worry that it could go out at anytime.

    His voice was frail and carried a bit of a self-mocking tone, "Looks like I¡¯ll leave before Junior, how unexpected. But this is good too. He¡¯s a Grandmaster after all and I¡¯m just an ordinary man."

    Madam Ye responded softly, "You have to stay strong, Father. Everyone¡¯s waiting for you to lead us again. You¡¯re our backbone."

    The Great Elder did not answer. He was rather absent minded. Countless images appeared before his eyes. He¡¯d had the glory of ruling over the world. Every one of his strategic decisions affected and changed the Avalon of Five Elements. But thinking about how they had to resort to struggling their way into the Wilderness, an intense guilt rose within his chest. He did not know what he¡¯d done wrong.

    But he knew that he must have done something wrong.

    As the Great Elder, he was definitely ountable for the plight of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    His faint breaths contained an inexpressible guilt, remorse and nkness.

    He said, somewhat at a loss and somewhat relieved, "Avalon of Five Elements is yours from now onward. You¡¯re stronger than me. Maybe you¡¯ll think of a solution. Do not lose to Blood of God."

    Madam Ye reassured unhesitatingly, "We won¡¯t lose to them."

    Her voice carried such an intensity that sent Karakorum Pris and the servants trembled inwardly. Madam had always beenposed, virtuous and sweet-tempered. It was their first time seeing Madam so resentful.

    But thinking about her dead husband and her muddleheaded boy, everyone was relieved.

    The Great Elder¡¯s eyes lit up a little. "Order the three central divisions to withdraw from Old Territory and defend Skyheart City. Have the three division leaders meet me. Order North Sea Division tounch an attack against Blood of God. There¡¯s a need to boost the morale of the Avalon of Five Elements. Tell Shi Beihai not to worry about casualties. The three central divisions will provide assistance when the timees."

    Karakorum Pris shuddered and couldn¡¯t help but take a quick glimpse at Aunt Ye.

    Madam Ye stood up immediately. "I¡¯ll get to it right now."

 Chapter 433: Clearwater City

    Chapter 433: Clearwater City

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Yuchi Ba looked at the distant, flourishing city with fear and bewilderment in his eyes.

    Up until now, the situation had been very optimistic.

    From now on, all of their hope and fate was ced in this newly-built city. There was no other way out for them.

    The other Elders beside him looked absent-minded as well. Their faces contained an unconceble worry.

    When the news of Great Elder being seriously ill was disseminated,Yuchi Ba knew that the fragile bnce of power in Elders Guild would be immediately toppled. The conflicts and divergences between new citizens and aristocratic families could no longer be concealed.

    Both parties would try to limit each other¡¯s strength and authority. No one would be able to stop the copse of Elders Guild.

    Yuchi Ba knew that Madam Ye was shrewd and formidable, but he still did not think that she could pull Elders Guild out of this critical crisis.

    How could the prestige that Great Elder had built up over his lifetime be reced by a neer just like this?

    New citizens were filled with both fear and respect for Great Elder.

    Yuchi Ba had fantasized about taking over the position of Great Elder numerous times. However, when he knew that Great Elder was gravely ill, his first reaction was to panic.

    Where would their path lie in the future? What would happen to Newlight City in the future? Where could he lead the new citizens to? Were they able to withstand Blood of God?

    He did not know the answers to all of these questions.

    Now he truly understood that there was an uncrossable gap between him and Great Elder.

    Initially, everyone resented Great Elder. Whenever things went wrong, they would direct numerousints at him. However, now that Great Elder suddenly copsed, they came to the realization that he was the pir supporting everyone.

    In the past, New Citizen Faction felt that Great Elder was their number one enemy. However, now that Great Elder was on the verge of copse, instead of rejoicing, they were feeling deeply troubled.

    "Great Elder truly lived up to his status. He was a ruthless individual," Yuchi Ba regained hisposure, "Shi Beihai is in trouble."

    The other Elders understood what Yuchi Ba was trying to say.

    The New Citizen Faction and the Aristocratic Faction were clearly at odds. Both parties had rtively strong foundations. Neutral Faction would most likely be devoured by Aristocratic Faction first. Being a member of Neutral Faction, Shi Beihai was neither favored by New Citizen Faction nor Aristocratic Faction.

    This could be seen from Great Elder¡¯s order as well. Great Elder sent the three central divisions to guard Skyheart City, but he¡¯d sent Shi Beihai to attack Blood of God. Obviously, he was trying to diminish Shi Beihai¡¯s strength.

    Another Elder could not help but ask, "Can we win over Shi Beihai? We used to have a rather good rtionship with the Neutral Faction."

    Aristocratic Faction always made up the majority of Elders Guild. As such, New Citizen Faction often coborated with the Neutral Faction to contend against Aristocratic Faction.

    The rtionship between New Citizen Faction and Neutral Faction was rather harmonious.

    "We can try, but we can¡¯t have too high of an expectation. Even though Neutral Faction sympathizes with New Citizen Faction, they are mainly made up of aristocratic families as well." Yuchi Ba replied with a nonmittal tone.

    Taking a deep breath, Yuchi Ba continued, "From today onwards, Elders Guild ceases to exist except in name. We have to depend on ourselves for our future. If we are powerful, we can do anything we want. If we are weak, even if the Aristocratic Faction don¡¯t devour us, Blood of God will not let us off. Everyone, please work hard."

    Everyone bowed respectfully and replied, "Yes!"

    Yuchi Ba¡¯s eyes were zing as he spoke with an aggressive tone, "Right now, since the situation hasn¡¯t been fixed, we will wait for Tong Gui and Yu Lin toe back and build abat division that can safeguard Newlight City. We will have abat division that belongs to the new citizens."

    He turned and said to Chouchou with a deep voice, "Prepare to execute your n."

    "Yes!" Chouchou¡¯s chubby face was filled with excitement.

    .....

    The news of Great Elder being severely ill did not only affect the higher-ups. Its effects were spreading and developing gradually.

    Clearwater City, situated in the east of Palette Cloud Vige, was not affected much by the news. The locals¡¯ lives still went on as usual.

    Clearwater City was a medium-scale city. It was also the nearest medium-scale city to Central Pine Valley. Even so, Ai Hui and his counterparts needed to go on an arduous journey of twenty-six days to reach there.

    In Wilderness, the distance between each city was exceptionally long. Dangers lurked everywhere and they needed to be vignt at all times for surprise attacks by dire beasts. Other than the developed trade routes set up by the fewrge-scale cities nearby, the rest of the cities stillcked the capabilities to solve this issue.

    There had been situations where trading caravans were being attacked by dire beasts. Some cunning and vicious dire beasts were even specialized in hunting elementalists.

    Those small-scale cities thatcked sufficient defensive capabilities would be the main targets for dire beasts. Some dire beasts even formed groups to attack these small-scale cities. In areas where the situation was critical, organised attacks were beingunched upon some small-scale cities. The dire beasts that carried out these organized attacks were able to form elemental elixirs.

    Mankind had no choice but to invade Wilderness. Like their ancestors, they were trying to establish a new home for themselves.

    This war had just begun. Who was the real prey? Who was the overlord of Wilderness? Only time would tell.

    The number of small-scale cities was decreasing sharply as they were starting to gather to form medium-scale torge-scale cities. This trend was bing an undeniable reality. Some people even predicted that onlyrge-scale cities would survive in Wilderness in the future.

    Clearwater City also gradually strengthened itself and became a middle-scale city under such circumstances. The city kept on expanding and it would be arge-scale city very soon.

    Other than being a rtively short distance away from them, the healthy economy of Clearwater City was another reason why Ai Hui and the rest chose toe to this city.

    Clearwater City owed its healthy economy to its mayor, Qiao Meiqi.

    Before Qiao Meiqi built Clearwater City, he possessed a powerful and rich enterprise, Meiqi Enterprise, Qiao Meiqi knew how to manage his business properly and he had deep rtionships with some aristocratic families. For example, he and the Gong Residence¡¯s eldest young master, Gong Chengxiu, were bosom buddies.

    When the Wilderness Expansion Order was announced, Qiao Meiqi knew that the futurey in Wilderness. Without any hesitation, he decided to build a city in Wilderness and his decision was supported by the Gong Residence.

    After expending a huge amount of time and effort zing a new trail into Wilderness, Qiao Meiqi finally built Clearwater City in the east of Palette Cloud Vige.

    After Clearwater City was established, he actively supported people to open up trade routes and start businesses. He even offered highly-priced bounties for the surrounding dire beasts. After annexing a few small-scale cities that were defeated by dire beasts, Clearwater City strengthened rapidly. Now, Clearwater City had be a prosperous city.

    Dangers could not stop people¡¯s desire for wealth.

    Clearwater City was hugely appealing forbat elementalists. As long as one could hunt down a dire beast, he or she could obtain a huge bounty. The purchase prices for dire beast materials were very fair and generous as well. Those capable elementalists could obtain prestige and wealth in Clearwater City.

    Having a huge amount of dire beast materials also attracted many trading caravans to the city.

    Among the crowd of trading caravans and travellers, Ai Hui and his counterparts were not really noticeable. This time around, there was only Ai Hui, Iron Lady, Lou Lan and Zhao Boan.

    Ai Hui and Iron Lady were in charge of safety for this trip. Zhao Boan was in charge of handling business deals and Lou Lan was in charge of replenishing supplies.

    Central Pine Valley¡¯s exports were pathetically little. Other than the snowva, they only had some fire sacks from the scarletfire flying foxes. These were their spoils of war. They had very few intact fire sacks. Ai Hui and his counterparts could only gather forty of them.

    The cleverest housewife could not cook without rice. How could they buy or trade for anything if they did not have exports to sell in the first ce?

    Ai Hui thought of the ming bones in the scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ cave and ordered everyone to bring them back. Even though the selling price for the ming bones was not high, there were a huge number of them.

    All the ming bones had been tempered with the smelting furnace¡¯s White Cluster mes to increase their quality. The base level of Hellfire Pagoda Cannon¡¯s Snow Cluster mes was too high for the ming bones. They could not take it and were reduced directly to ashes.

    After the ming bones were tempered, their quality had clearly upgraded. Blind He¡¯s interest was piqued and he used some of these ming bones to create a few unique weapons.

    However, all of these weapons were fire elemental ones and they were only suitable for fire elementalists. They did not need to worry about market demand for fire elemental weapons. After Fire Prairie was annexed by Blood of God, there was a shortage of fire elemental materials and production of fire elemental weapons was stopped. Right now, the market prices of fire elemental weapons were exorbitant.

    When everyone heard of this news, all of them became very excited.

    Especially Iron Lady, this was the first time she was doing business and this was apletely new experience for her.

    In the past, she had never fussed over money. Her family would give her anything that she needed. The price of her clothes and her daily necessities was exorbitant. She did not understand the concept of money in the past. Otherwise, she would not have offered up her Calming Indigo Bracelet as coteral for the money for a bowl of noodles.

    However, now she would be happy over the small sum of profit that everyone was going to make.

    Generally speaking, the cities in Wilderness were smaller than the cities in the Avalon of Five Elements. The cities in Wilderness ced emphasis on their defence first. The smaller a city was, the easier it was to defend it.

    Most of the cities in Avalon of Five Elements were built after Avalon of Five Elements hadpletely stabilized. A stable social environment allowed them to not think so much about the issue of defence. This was why the cities in Avalon of Five Elements could be so big.

    Clearwater City was considered a middle-scale city in Wilderness, however, its actual area was smaller than Peace City.

    Even though the city was small, its poption was a lotrger than Peace City¡¯s.

    Everyone was puzzled about how so many people were gathered in such a small city.

    Every now and then, a group of draught beasts would pass by them with a jingle. This was the first time Ai Hui and his counterparts saw these draught beasts. They had thick limbs and they had a circle of thick and strong bone spikes growing out from the edge of their wide backs. The circle of bone spikes acted as a huge basin for people to ce their goods within it.

    These draught beasts had a huge amount of strength and exceptional endurance. They were very cheap to rear as well. Since they looked like they carried a huge basin on their backs, they were called load basin beasts.

    The rise of load basin beasts began after the Wilderness Expansion Order was announced.

    In Wilderness, it was much more difficult to obtain elemental energy than in Avalon of Five Elements. Transporting vehicles like Three Leaves Bamboo Carts and Fiery Floating Clouds required drivers to expend a huge amount of elemental energy. They were gradually reced by load basin beasts. Furthermore, the air space above Wilderness was lurking with dangers everywhere. Travelling on ground was much safer than travelling through air.

    Reportedly, load basin beasts were somewhat rted to Blood of God.

    It was reported that load basin beasts were initially a failed experimental blood fiend that Beast Venom Temple bred. Soon after, they were sold to a businessman whoter brought them to Wilderness. Very soon, people began to discover their worth. They used forbidden spells to induce reproduction and multiply their numbers. After a few generations of the load basin beasts being bred, the blood poison within their bodies became more and more diluted. Eventually, the load basin beasts no longer contained any trace of the blood poison.

    Strangely speaking, blood poison was invincible in the Avalon of Five Elements, spreading everywhere without much difficulty. In Old Territory, it spread and progressed much slower. In Wilderness, it could not even spread at all.

    One could not help but be amazed at how mysterious this world worked.

    Groups of load basin beasts that were carrying tons of goods walked on the road. Elementalists that were draped in animal hides were riding on top of these load basin beasts. Copper bells were hung on the bone spikes of the load basin beasts, producing jingling sounds as they walked through the market.

    Ai Hui and the rest felt as if they had returned to the primitive ancient times.

 Chapter 434: Bargain

    Chapter 434: Bargain

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    For the past two years, the world had undergone great changes.

    These changes had impacted various aspects of the cities, for example,modities. A huge amount of dire beast materials could be found on the market. Two years ago, these dire beast materials were considered raremodities. Nowadays, they could be found almost everywhere. The products that could be produced or obtained readily two years ago were in scarcity now. For example, the prices of artifact remnants had increased more than ten times in thest two years. Sometimes, they could not even be bought on ount of their exorbitant prices.

    Those who¡¯d barged into Wilderness to vie for territories with dire beasts without sufficient preparation had gone through countless cruel struggles. The mysterious Wilderness was filled with unknowns. For example, unknown species and unknown ores. These mysterious unknowns might provide either boundless wealth or nothing at all.

    The endless stream of new materials emerging on the market had given rise to a group of appraisers who were specialized in appraising these unknown materials.

    Most of them used to be smiths with rich experience and knowledge in various materials in the past. It was initially because they could not get any jobs and were very free that they decided to help people to appraise these unknown new materials. Soon after, someone identified the business opportunity behind this and changed his profession to being an appraiser.

    Usually, a material¡¯s selling price was decided by an appraiser¡¯s evaluation of it. As such, an appraiser viewed his reputation and authority with great importance. Once his reputation suffered a blow, it would be very hard for him to regain everyone¡¯s trust.

    Clearwater City, which possessed a healthy economy, was filled with appraisers. The most famous and authoritative appraiser in Clearwater City was Appraiser Kang Ding.

    Kang Ding was not a smith in the past. He was the disciple of a smith for fifteen years. In these fifteen years, he carried out basic treatments on various materials every day.

    Even though he did not be an outstanding smith, he had fifteen years of experience in handling materials. This allowed him to give exceptionally precise evaluations of materials.

    Changing his profession to an appraiser allowed him to do what he was best at.

    Kang Ding rose to fame around one year ago when he appraised a brand-new type of beast bone. That was a very unique type of beast bone. It had a honeb-like structure and its texture was soft. One could crush it into a fine powder with a little bit of strength.

    At that time, other than Kang Ding, all the other appraisers gave it an appraisal grade of "Inferior". This result implied that the bone was a type of material that could not be used to forge any equipment. Perhaps it could only be used as fertilizer for soil and was basically worthless.

    The emergence of a huge amount of new materials had rendered the conventional grading system for materials obsolete. Everyone was trying toe up with a new grading system.

    Kang Ding was not affected by other appraisers¡¯ evaluations of the beast bone. Fifteen years of experience told him there was something extraordinary about that piece of delicate beast bone. Three dayster, he gave his evaluation and it caused an uproar in the public. The grade he gave was "B-Excellent".

    Upon receiving the news of Kang Ding¡¯s appraisal grade, the other appraisers flew into a rage and denounced Kang Ding. They imed that Kang Ding had some insider rtionship with the owner of the beast bone for giving the grade of "B-Excellent" to such a trashy material

    Under everyone¡¯s watchful eyes, Kang Ding took out a bottle of metal elemental floral water and sprinkled it over the piece of beast bone. Following which, something miraculous happened to the piece of beast bone. A faint golden lustre erupted from the deathly white beast bone and dazzled everyone¡¯s eyes.

    The nature of the beast bone had undergone a terrifying transformation as well. The previously delicate and weak beast bone had be tough and solid, so much so that a sword couldn¡¯t even leave a scratch on it. Furthermore, it could float in the air without evernding on the ground like a feather.

    The owner was exceptionally excited. He named this unknown piece of beast bone as Kang Ding Feather Bone. Eventually, twelve Kang Ding Feather Bones were being bought by Mayor Qiao Meiqi for an astronomical price.

    The owner of the Kang Ding Feather Bones wanted to pay Kang Ding ten times the usual appraisal fee but Kang Ding rejected him tactfully and epted the normal fee.

    This incident helped Kang Ding to attain an extremely good reputation. If it was a greedy appraiser that appraised the beast bones, he might have bought the beast bones from the owner at an extremely low price and then resold them to earn a huge profit.

    From that day onwards, Kang Ding became the most authoritative appraiser that charged the highest appraisal fee in Clearwater City.

    He even established his own appraisal shop, Kang Appraisal Shop.

    The appraisal fee was not a big issue to Ai Hui and the rest. They handed over their items to Kang Appraisal Shop and went to explore the market in Clearwater City.

    They were filled with curiosity towards this city.

    Even though the city was smaller than Peace City, its poption was five timesrger than Peace City¡¯s. It was hard to find a corner in the city that was cold and isted. This had something to do with one of Qiao Meiqi¡¯s policies as well. Clearwater City did not collect city admission tax.

    Cities like Skyheart City and Newlight City were good for elementalists to train in, as they had a high concentration level of elemental energy. However, not everyone could stay there. Anyone who entered these two cities had to pay a city admission tax first. Only the elites could establish a foothold in these huge cities.

    By exempting the city admission tax, Clearwater City had attracted a huge number of elementalists.

    Qiao Meiqi was fully aware that a sufficient human poption was the basis of a prosperous economy. Clearwater City was situated in an isted location, which was a huge disadvantage. However, Qian Meiqi¡¯s painstaking efforts to manage Clearwater City had made it far more prosperous than most of the other cities in Wilderness.

    The market in Clearwater City was bustling with noise and excitement andpletely filled with people. Since the market was not spacious enough, many people ced their goods on the ground and hawked them. Most of these people had just returned from the Wilderness. They did not have many goods and the quality of their goods was not high. If they sold them to shops, they would not make much profit. As such, they decided to set up their own makeshift stores on the streets.

    Many people liked to shop here as a lot of the things sold here had been appraised.

    Not everyone could afford the expensive appraisal fees.

    There were a lot of times where one would buy a seemingly good item only to discover that it was worthless after having it appraised. Every time this happened, the one who got scammed would feel extremely regretful.

    Whether or not a person could pick up a good item in this market had to depend on his luck and foresight. However, not everyone could handle such a situation calmly and peacefully. Elementalists that roamed Wilderness were mostly hot-headed and brash. It was normal for elementalists to resort to violence when things went wrong.

    Even so, Clearwater City still enjoyed good public order.

    On the surrounding towers, fully-armoredbat elementalists would scan the city with their eyes every now and then. If they discovered anyone who was creating a nuisance, they would descend from the sky and arrest that person. If the troublemaker tried to resist, the guards would have the right to kill him on the spot.

    After a few incidents of tough love, all the elementalists in the city became well-behaved. After all, they understood that they were here to make business deals.

    Ai Hui and his counterparts were extremely eye-catching among the crowd.

    The focal point was Shi Xueman. She was tall and slim and her face was beautiful and alluring. The decorative motif on her blue-white armor was magnificent, highlighting her perfect figure. She carried a magnificent spear on her back and her frosty gaze would asionally sweep across her surroundings.

    Clearwater City was located in the depths of Wilderness. The living conditions in Wilderness were extremely terrible and those elementalists that lived here were mainly boorish and intrepid individuals. How often could they see such a gorgeous girl? Every pair of eyes was fixated on Shi Xueman.

    Something bizarre happened. Everywhere Shi Xueman went, the mor would freeze like ice.

    Shi Xueman had been used to this kind of situation since she was young. When she was in Induction Ground, she was already a goddess that was widely adored. With a rxed facial expression, she walked with confidence beside Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui teased her, "Tsk tsk, our Iron Lady is truly formidable. She is way more formidable than any of our killer moves. Iron Lady, you will be in charge of bargaining with the vendorster. They might even give us some freebies."

    Shi Xueman was already used to Ai Hui¡¯s shameless and avaricious character. However, she felt that Ai Hui¡¯s words made sense. Since they were so poor now, it would be best for them to save as much money as possible. She nodded her head and replied solemnly, "I don¡¯t know how to bargain. So how do you bargain? Teach me, do I use a sword or a spear?"

    Ai Hui stopped in his tracks. Use a sword or a spear...

    He could envision Iron Lady cing a sword on a vendor¡¯s neck with an ice-cold look on her face while asking coldly, "Half price, are you selling it?"

    The scene was beautiful...

    Ai Hui gave a soft cough and replied, "Actually I shall leave it to the professionals. Boan, I shall leave it to you."

    Zhao Boan quickly nodded his head and replied, "Don¡¯t worry, you can leave it to your subordinate."

    He was afraid of replying too slow. When he heard Miss Shi Xueman¡¯s words just now, his facial expression froze. After spending so much time with her, he knew that Miss Shi would really do this kind of thing. If she really did this kind of thing, they would be in deep trouble.

    Eventually, the market regained its bustle. Even though there would be people looking at Ai Hui and his party every now and then, they did it in a very subtle way. In times where public order could break down easily, a girl who dared to roam around in Wilderness must be very powerful. Furthermore, everything on Shi Xueman¡¯s body looked extraordinary. Those who were sharp could tell that she came from a remarkable background.

    She had a servant, a guard, a butler and a sand puppet.

    The guard looked somewhat arrogant. How dare he walk alongside with his mistress...

    If Ai Hui knew that people thought he was Iron Lady¡¯s guard, he would be seething with anger.

    However, at this point of time, his attention was on the goods ced in the stores on both sides of him. There were many things that he had never seen before. Simrly, Lou Lan was filled with curiosity too. Lou Lan had seen almost every material sold in Central Pine City. However, most of the things sold here were not recorded in the books he¡¯d read. He found them to be very fascinating.

    Ai Hui and Lou Lan stopped and squatted down at almost every store to look at their goods. A human and a sand puppet were conversing in high spirits.

    "Lou Lan, do you know what is this?"

    "Ai Hui, Lou Lan has not seen it before. Boss, may I know what this is?"

    ...

    "Lou Lan, this looks rather delicious."

    "Ai Hui, this cannot be eaten. This is the poison sack of a smoke beast."

    ...

    "Lou Lan, this mud is very sticky."

    "Ai Hui, this is an earth elemental material, unceasing mud. It is a very practical earth elemental material. It has excellent ductility. It can be pulled into a very fine string to be used as a drawstring for a bow."

    Upon hearing Lou Lan¡¯s words, the vendor could not help but exim in admiration, "Brother, your sand puppet is very formidable."

    "Is that why Boss wants to give us a discount?" Ai Hui took advantage and answered cheekily.

    The vendor chuckled, "Alright, since you¡¯re quite an interesting fellow, I shall give you a twenty-percent discount. I will give you a twenty-percent discount for whatever you choose."

    Ai Hui was energized.

    "But your goods are still more expensive than the other stores, even after the twenty-percent discount," Lou Lan suddenly chirped in.

    "Don¡¯t say such nonsense," the smile on the vendor¡¯s face froze.

    Lou Lan lifted up his fingers and replied with a serious look on his face, "The sixth store from our left sells an owl plume for forty elemental energy beans. Boss, if you give us a twenty-percent discount for an owl plume here, it will be forty-five elemental energy beans. The ninth store from our right sells an owl plume for thirty-eight elemental energy beans. The body of that plume is thick and strong. The feathers are fine and durable without any ws. It is of a high grade. The fifteenth store from our right..."

    The vendor was dumbfounded. After a while, he suddenly grabbed the unceasing mud on the ground and passed it to Lou Lan, "I will give it to you for free!"

    Lou Lan happily took over the unceasing mud. The two eyes on his mask curled into two curved, smiling slits as he stood up and thanked the vendor politely, "Thank you, Boss!"

    As the vendor watched Ai Hui and his party walk away, he muttered to himself, "That sand puppet hase alive..."

 Chapter 435: Your Mistress

    Chapter 435: Your Mistress

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Kang Ding arrived at his appraisal shop as usual.

    He put on a silvery ck working apron that was made out of a cowhide from a three-year-old sharp-horned ink cow. After going through a unique sewing process, it gave off a silvery ck metallic lustre. The most valuable part of a sharp-horned ink cow was its cowhide. The cowhide was covered with natural vein patterns that flowed with a thinyer of elemental energy. This thinyer of elemental energy allowed the cowhide apron to protect its wearer from reactive and dangerous materials.

    This working apron costed Kang Ding one hundred and fifty essence elemental energy beans.

    Currently, elemental energy beans and essence elemental beans were much more valuable than they were two years ago.

    There was practically no trade route between Wilderness and Jadeite Forest. In Wilderness, one had to grow his or her own elemental energy beans and essence elemental beans.

    This made it harder for mankind to obtain elemental energy in Wilderness.

    As Kang Ding¡¯s prestige increased, his workload increased sharply as well. However, he still insisted on handling all his work by himself. After all, his customers¡¯ wealth and his own reputation were on the line.

    He began his work proficiently and appraised the items in the order they were sent to him.

    Once Kang Ding started to work, his facial expression became unusually focused. Every movement he made was meticulous. He was filled with passion towards his job. Aspared to being a disciple of a smith, this job was much more interesting and offered him a greater sense of achievement. He felt very grateful for this job. Thanks to this job, his life had be better. The respect and reverence from everyone made him understand how valuable he was.

    The passionate Kang Ding had developed many new and odd appraising methods and formed his own appraising system.

    His movements were natural and smooth-flowing like water, aesthetically pleasing to whoever was watching him work.

    Right now, he was a reputable appraiser with rich experience. He had appraised a lot of unknown materials from numerous goods owners and vendors.

    After one hour, more than half of the materials on the table had been appraised.

    Suddenly, a package waiting to be appraised caught his attention.

    He first saw a piece of ming bone. Even though it looked slightly different from the ordinary ming bones, he could still recognize it at one nce. He took out the piece of ming bone and examined it carefully.

    ming bones were the bones of scarletfire flying foxes and they were considered a pretty good type of fire elemental material. However, the most valuable parts of a scarletfire flying fox were its scarlet fire and fire sack. ming bones were its most worthless part.

    However, this piece of ming bone had been tempered before and its base level had increased. The person who tempered it was pretty high-leveled and the me he used was perfect. The performance of this piece of ming bone had clearly been upgraded without any lingering damage.

    He wrote down "C-Ordinary" on the appraisal grading slip.

    The ordinary ming bones were mostly graded as "D". This piece of ming bone was given a grade of "C" due to the excellent workmanship on it.

    The old grading standards for materials were no longer suitable for the current times as the world had changed too much. Every appraiser¡¯s grading standards were different. Up until now, a unified grading system had not been formed yet.

    Kang Ding appraised a material based on two things, its physical nature and its elemental nature. Physical nature referred to physical characteristics such as toughness, weight, durability etc. Elemental nature referred to elemental characteristics such as elemental energy capacity, elemental energy purity level, special elemental effects etc.

    From the best grade to the worst grade, there were four grades, A, B, C, and D. Each grade was further ssified into "Excellent", "Good", and "Ordinary".

    Kang Ding estimated the selling price for such a piece of ming bone to be, at most. fifty elemental energy beans, and that was given the fact that fire elemental materials were in scarcity nowadays.

    For the other party to have brought a piece of ming bone to be appraised, they must have a huge amount of them.

    Was it possible that they wiped out an entire n of scarletfire flying foxes?

    Kang Ding was somewhat curious. After all, his conjecture wasn¡¯t baseless. Whether it was ming bones, fire sacks, or the more expensive scarlet fire, they were in scarcity on the market.

    Groups of scarletfire flying foxes spelled disaster.

    He thought of a regr customer who often purchased low-level fire elemental materials in bulk. This kind of ming bone was suitable for him. He did not immediately notify that regr customer, but merely noted it down.

    Due to Kang Appraisal Shop¡¯s prestige and authority, many enterprises kept their eyes on it. If there were any good materials, they would get the news first-hand. Kang Appraisal Shop had connections with many huge enterprises. This was why so many people got their goods appraised at Kang Appraisal Shop, so that their goods could be rmended to those huge enterprises.

    Of course, Kang Ding was only in charge of appraising materials and setting up connections between sellers and buyers. He would definitely not interfere with the price negotiations.

    These issues came after the appraising stage. He regained his focus and opened up the second package.

    There was a thumb-sized transparent bamboo bottle. Inside the bottle, there was a crystal-clear liquid.

    Kang Ding¡¯s eyes lit up.

    The transparent bamboo bottle was made up of colorss bamboo. The body of a colorss bamboo was bright and colorful like a piece of colored ss, extremely gorgeous. Colorss bamboos that were colorless and transparent were considered to be top quality. Colorss bamboos were usually used to make containers. These containers could not be damaged by fire or water easily and they would not affect the nature of the substances they were holding as well. Colorss bamboos were the best material for making containers.

    However, colorss bamboos took very long to cultivate and they were very costly. Generally speaking, colorgrass bamboo containers were mostly used to hold valuable substances.

    Boom. When he took off the lid of the colorss bamboo bottle, a mass of red-colored, zing cloud gushed out of it.

    Just as the mass of zing cloud was about to hit Kang Ding, his cowhide apron suddenly gave off ayer of faint glow and blocked the zing cloud.

    Kang Ding remained calm as a look of amazement swept across his eyes. Such a powerful aura of fire elemental energy!

    Taking off the lid already produced such a weird effect, what exactly was the crystal clear liquid in it?

    Given his experience, he could roughly guess that it was a kind of fire liquid. Fire liquid was a necessity for fire elementalist to train with. Most of the fire elementalists would carry a container-like vat or cbash to hold the fire liquid.

    The mostmonly-seen fire liquid wasva. A lot of types of fire liquid used by elementalists were concocted using special methods. There were many types of fire liquid and most of them had high viscosity. Kang Ding had never seen such a crystal clear fire liquid before.

    This was a brand-new type of fire liquid!

    Kang Ding¡¯s eyes lit up. As an appraiser, there was nothing more exciting thaning across an unknown material.

    .....

    The market of Clearwater City.

    Han Li¡¯s gaze had never left that beautiful and frosty girl. Even though she was most likely from an influential family, he had not shown any fear at all. An infatuated look was upon his face. The girl did not talk much but her ice-cold nature had a deadly enticement over him.

    When he thought of conquering a girl like this, his heart was zing with mes.

    Han Li¡¯s partner noticed his odd behaviour.

    His partner had amon-looking face and there was nothing special about his body. If he stood among the crowd, he would be practically unnoticeable. However, at this moment, his eyes were flickering with wariness. He lowered his voice and reminded Han Li, "Don¡¯t cause any trouble, we are not here to have fun."

    "Why would I cause trouble in front of such a beautiful girl?" Han Li chuckled.

    After finishing his sentence, Han Li walked towards his prey.

    His partner felt helpless and he could not do anything to stop Han Li.

    Shi Xueman bent down and pointed to a blue pearl in the stall and asked, "Can I pick it up and take a closer look at it?"

    The vendor was a boorish man. When he saw such a goddess-like girl, his face turned bright-red. He stuttered, "You... you can."

    Shi Xueman picked up the blue bead and looked curiously at it. This was the first time she¡¯d seen such a pearl. The pearl was around the size of a thumb. It was sparkling and translucent, resembling a sapphire. She could sense a strong aura of water elemental energy within it. Initially, she thought it was some kind of elemental elixir from a fish-type dire beast. However, she rejected this conjecture very soon. She had a water elemental elixir back at home, therefore, she knew that a water elemental elixir was of a higher base level and contained more vigorous water elemental energy than this pearl.

    "I will buy this pearl."

    Suddenly, a male voice came from behind her.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes turned around at the same time. The voice belonged to a tall, young male who was around twenty-seven years old. He smiled at Shi Xueman and gave a light bow, "Miss, is it possible for you to part with this pearl and let me have it?"

    Ai Hui nced at the sword in the man¡¯s hand and withdrew his gaze.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s gaze stopped at the man¡¯s face for a second before turning to the vendor and asked, "How much is this?"

    Upon hearing this, the vendor quickly replied, "Fifty essence elemental beans."

    "I¡¯m not going to sell it to him, I¡¯m selling it to you," the vendor added on.

    Shi Xueman felt that the vendor was rather cute and smiled, "Thank you, Boss."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s invigorating smile looked as if it could melt ice and snow. Even Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up.

    A nk look shed across Han Li¡¯s face. Han Li was suffocating, appearing as if his heart had been assassinated by Shi Xueman¡¯s smile. However, he regained hisposure very soon. There was a voice screaming in his heart, ¡®You must get her!¡¯

    Just as Shi Xueman was about to pay for the pearl, Han Li threw a pouch at the vendor, "I didn¡¯t know there was such an alluring smile in this world. Miss, you are a once-in-a-lifetime beauty. It¡¯s my luck to be able to witness such a beauty like you with my own eyes. This pearl shall be my small gift to you."

    Shi Xueman did not bother to look at him. Suddenly, Ai Hui blurted out, "It¡¯s merely fifty essence elemental beans. Do you think we need you to pay for it?"

    Han Li was shocked. He was still afraid that the other party would ignore him. As long as the other party ignored him, things would be easier. He continued, "Brother, you¡¯re right. Fifty essence elemental beans are not enough to represent my feelings. What else does your mistress want to buy? I will buy everything for her!"

    Your mistress...

    Zhao Boan was stunned.

    Ai Hui was stunned as well. However, he quickly returned to his senses and replied, "There are still a lot of things that my mistress wants to buy. Since you want to court her, I shall give you a chance. But I¡¯m afraid that your wallet might be too small and can¡¯t handle what she wants. Or are you a miser?"

    Han Li replied with confidence, "There is an old saying, all the gold that a man spends can be earned back again. Wealth is merely a worldly possession, I will do whatever it takes to see your mistress smile. Brother, don¡¯t worry, I am rich enough to do that."

    Shi Xueman knew Ai Hui was up to no good and she decided not to say anything.

    "Really? Lou Lan, do you still remember all the good things that we came across just now?" Ai Hui put on a doubtful look on his face.

    Lou Lan nodded his head obediently and replied, "I still remember them, Ai Hui."

    Ai Hui?

    Han Li found this name somewhat familiar. However, he soon put his doubt aside. After all, this fellow was just a servant.

    "Let¡¯s go and witness the sincerity of this mister," Ai Hui said and smiled.

    Han Li smiled. Like a gentleman, he replied sincerely, "I am truly sincere towards your mistress. Heaven and earth can vouch for my sincerity."

    Deep down, Han Li was delighted and sneering. You can spend all my money. The more the merrier. Do you think you can get my money so easily?

 Chapter 436: The Wicked Servant

    Chapter 436: The Wicked Servant

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Han Li¡¯s face became uglier and uglier.

    The hateful servant, along with his sand puppet, was milking him dry. Every store they passed by closed down.

    When Han Li took out hisst elemental energy bean, his face had turned ashen. Finally, he could no longer take it and yelled, "Enough!"

    Ai Hui put on a nk look on his face and replied, "But we haven¡¯t bought enough... There are still a lot of things that we need."

    Ai Hui gave Han Li an innocent look. After a while, he acted as if he came to a realization and said, "Eh? No more money? Sigh, you should have told me you don¡¯t have anymore money. Now you¡¯re embarrassed, right? Sigh, Brother, you¡¯re an honorable individual after all, don¡¯t do such an embarrassing thing in the future again. Come on,e on, I will return everything. Give me a moment."

    Ai Hui ran to a nearby store and used one elemental energy bean to buy a piece of rag.

    Ai Hui carefully spread the rag on the ground and ced all the things he had bought with Han Li¡¯s money on it, piling everything up like a small hill

    With lightning speed, Ai Hui finished cing all the things on the rag and heaved a sigh of relief. Following which, he said sincerely to Han Li, "Brother, you don¡¯t have much money now and it¡¯s all my fault for not knowing your situation. I don¡¯t think we can get any refunds for these things. Hmm, since we are here, you can set up a store and get back as much money as possible. Now that I think about it, at least you can earn some travel expenses and we can get to know each other."

    Han Li¡¯s face reddened as his body trembled with anger. Even after he¡¯d been through so many different situations in his life, he still felt ashamed and wanted to find a hole to hide in at this point of time.

    Up to this moment, how could he not have known that he was being fooled by the other party?

    Furthermore, since the other party did not want to keep the things, he couldn¡¯t find an excuse to be angry with them as well.

    He suppressed the anger within his heart and forced a smile, "Brother, you¡¯re being courteous with me. These things..."

    Before Han Li could finish his sentence, Ai Hui interrupted him with an indignant tone "Sigh, Brother, why are you still so stubborn at this point of time? A true man has to be flexible. How can you be stumped by such a small problem. This is a good ce to set up a store. I believe you will earn some travel expenses within a short period of time. Brother, if you¡¯re capable, you might even be able to make a small fortune."

    By the time Ai Hui finished his sentence, his indignant tone had changed to a caring one. Ai Hui put on an encouraging look on his face as he patted Han Li¡¯s shoulder.

    Han Li was at aplete loss. He had a nk look on his face as he stood there motionlessly.

    Shi Xueman watched the entire incident unfolded from a bystander¡¯s point of view. She finally knew how evil Ai Hui could be!

    When she heard Ai Hui¡¯sst sentence, she almost broke intoughter.

    Previously, she was still very curious about how Ai Hui would conclude this situation. She could tell that the other party had bad intentions and she expected them to break into a fight eventually. To her surprise, Ai Hui, being a pain in the neck, did not cause any unnecessary trouble. As Shi Xueman watched Ai Hui¡¯s performance, she tried her best to suppress herughter.

    Since she was young, there had been countless boys that had tried to fawn over her. She had seen various methods these boys used to demean each other in front of her. However, none of them could put up such a marvellous performance like Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was different from other guys. Other guys would try their best to show how chivalrous and how kind they were in front of her. Ai Hui was the only one who did not conceal his wickedness from her.

    Such an evil guy!

    Shi Xueman eximed in admiration. With an emotionless look on her face, she took out the blue pearl and ced it on top of the heap of unwanted things. She had just plunged a knife into Han Li¡¯s already bleeding heart.

    Han Li felt a gush of blood rushing to his brain. His entire brain was buzzing and he could not think of anything.

    He was at aplete loss.

    Should he blow himself up now? He wanted to do this, but his rationality told him that this would be a bad choice. The surrounding guards had been looking vigntly in his direction. If he made any wrong moves, he would attract these guards to him. He was not afraid of them, but rather, he was on a mission now. As such, he could only suppress his anger.

    If he caused trouble in the market now, he would be expelled from the city and he would fail his missionpletely.

    Right now, he was filled with resentment and regret. Why didn¡¯t he make some preparations before he took action?

    It was that hateful servant¡¯s fault!

    That fellow had been waiting for him to fall into this trap!

    That goddamned servant!

    Han Li¡¯s face was bright red as fury engulfed his mind. He stared at Ai Hui and his party, who had walked off without minding him at all. If Han Li¡¯s gaze could kill people, Ai Hui¡¯s body would be filled with holes now!

    Everyone in the market was looking at Han Li. Mockingments rang across his ears incessantly, tormenting his mind that was going to go insane.

    "Haha, this idiot is being fooled."

    "He deserves it! No one asked him to act like a wealthy man! From his arrogant face, I can tell that he is up to no good."

    "How dare he try to pick up girls with such skills? He should start a store and make an honest living here, hahaha."

    ...

    Han Li was going to go crazy soon. He had be the biggest joke in the entire market. Everyone was looking at him with mockery. Even his partner turned around andughed at him behind his back without any intention of helping him out of this embarrassing situation.

    Bastard!

    The infuriated Han Li unsheathed his sword and shed the pile of unwanted things in front of him.

    A streak of resplendent sword gleam was suddenly released from his sword. All theughter in the market came to an end abruptly.

    When Han Li unsheathed his sword, the surrounding guards stoppedughing. The sudden streak of resplendent sword gleam caused their pupils to dte involuntarily.

    In the midst of a dead silence, Han Li sheathed his sword. With an ice-cold look on his face, he walked through the market. Everyone in the market subconsciously made way for him to walk through.

    Pffff. A soft burst sounded through the air, resembling the sound of a water bubble popping.

    The heap of unwanted things on the rag had been reduced to a pile of ashes. Following which, it burst into colorful mes. The colorful mes were formed by a mixture of elemental energies.

    Everyone, including the surrounding guards, was stunned. Their eyes were widened and their facial expressions froze.

    They did not expect the fellow, whom they¡¯d just mocked, to be so powerful. The surrounding guards looked at their leader for instructions, but he merely shook his head and signalled for them not to be meddlesome. Han Li destroyed his own things so they had no reason to confront him.

    Han Li¡¯s face was gloomy as his eyes flickered with the ze of anger.

    You shall wait and see. I, Han Li, will seek revenge for the embarrassment you have given me today!

    Han Li¡¯s partner shyly walked up to him. Just as he was about to speak, a pnded on his face. Smack! The loud and crisp p resounded throughout the market. The impact from the p sent Han Li¡¯s partner flying in the air. Following which, hended on the ground and stayed there motionlessly.

    Han Li left immediately without looking at his fainted partner.

    Ten seconds after the devil-like figure had left, the quiet market began to regain its liveliness.

    "Such a terrifying fellow," the guards eximed in fear.

    "That¡¯s right, he is too cruel."

    "I think I know who he is. He is Han Li!" The guard leader¡¯s facial expression turned slightly ugly as well.

    Hiss. Everyone took in a gasp of cold air.

    At this point of time, the guard leader stood up and said, "Keep your eyes on the market, I have to report this to the mayor."

    Every mayor cared about the experts that entered his or her city. The presence of an expert posed an uncertainty to a city. One major battle could destroy a city. No mayor would remain indifferent to an expert that could pose a threat to his or her city¡¯s safety.

    An ally or a foe could determine whether they lived or died.

    Only by bing stronger could one gain more respect.

    .....

    Kang Appraisal Shop.

    Kang Ding¡¯s apprentices were peeking at him. Today, their teacher seemed weird. From morning until now, their teacher kept on gasping with surprise. They had never seen their teacher behave like this before. From their impressions of their teacher, he had always been a solemn and meticulous individual.

    Was it possible that he hade across something good?

    They were filled with curiosity. What kind of good thing could make their teacher gasp in surprise like this?

    Inside Kang Ding¡¯s room, he had finallypleted his appraisal of the crystal-clear fire liquid. His face was filled with incredulity as he muttered to himself, "A refined fire liquid, it¡¯s actually a refined fire liquid?"

    The difference between a natural fire liquid and a refined fire liquid was that the former could only be found in small amounts while thetter could be mass produced.

    In an instant, Kang Ding knew what the other party¡¯s intention was for having this fire liquid appraised. The other party had a huge supply of fire liquid.

    Not only that, the other party must also have mastered the method for refining this unique type of fire liquid. This also implied that the other party could produce a steady supply of this fire liquid.

    This was extremely important to any city.

    The crystal-clear fire liquid was the most outstanding fire liquid that Kang Ding had ever seen. Ever since Fire Prairie had been annexed, the supply of fire liquid on the market was scarce. Expanding into Wilderness alleviated the situation significantly. Several volcanoes had been discovered and a lot of fire elemental cities had emerged around them.

    From that point onwards, the supply of fire liquids on the market increased slightly. However, the supply still did not meet the demand. Such a small amount of fire liquid would be sold-out in an instant.

    Most of these fire liquids were low in base level and they were mainlyva. Even deepva was also scarce.

    All those fire liquids paled inparison to this crystal-clear fire liquid.

    "A-Ordinary". This was the final appraisal grade he gave to the crystal-clear fire liquid. He had appraised more than one hundred types of fire liquid and this fire liquid was the only one with grade "A".

    He could imagine how muchmotion this fire liquid would cause when it appeared on the market.

    He was proud of himself for being able to appraise this fire liquid personally.

    Kang Ding became excited. A few buyers that might be interested in this fire liquid had alreadye to his mind. Whoever could afford this fire liquid would not be an ordinary individual.

    No matter who bought it, Kang Ding would receive a portion of the profits made as well.

    He earned the profits fair and aboveboard and he had no qualms about it.

    He did not want to drag the issue any longer and walked to a short message tree in the corner. Following which, he began to write down the same content on different message leaves.

    "A-grade refined fire liquid. Those who need it,e to my shop quickly."

    This message tree could only transmit messages within Clearwater City. in reality, message trees, which weremonly used in Avalon of Five Elements, faced great obstructions in Wilderness. The distance that messages could travel had been reduced greatly. Connections with the nearby cities could still be established, but anywhere further than that and the message trees would be useless.

    After Kang Ding finishing writing to all the enterprises that might be interested in the fire liquid, he felt much relieved.

    Even so, he still looked very excited.

    After a few seconds, the pieces of leaves lit up one by one with words appearing on them.

    "Arriving soon!"

    "Coming!"

    "Give me ten minutes!"

    ...

    Kang Ding smiled. So this is the might of an "A-grade" fire liquid.

    Very soon, his appraisal shop was crammed with people.

    He did not like liveliness, but he still had to work regardless. Kang Ding could still take a break for a few minutes and he sat down. Just as he was about to ce thispleted appraisal job aside, his hand felt something else left in the package.

    Kang Ding was stunned. The other party still had something else for him to appraise?

    An unknown piece of beast bone appeared in his hand.

 Chapter 437: Stupefied

    Chapter 437: Stupefied

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    What a pity. Kang Ding¡¯s desire to identify the beast bone now was quickly shattered because of the visitors that came knocking one after another, disallowing him to continue his study.

    A few minutester the shop was filled with people. Kang Ding scanned the room and noticed that some of the enterprises which he hadn¡¯t notified were here as well. They¡¯d probably heard the news since these fellows were well-informed.

    Those who came weren¡¯t of low ranks. They were, at the very least, major persons in charge and they¡¯d all brought along appraisers from respective enterprises. Each in charge had a solemn expression on their faces. The A-grade liquid was worth getting involved in.

    During an era where there was a fire liquid deficiency, there was never an over-emphasis on the significance of an A-grade fire liquid.

    There wasn¡¯t any more space in the shop, but visitors came in an unending stream. Kang Ding felt a headache upon realizing that he¡¯d underestimated people¡¯s interest in the high grade fire liquid.

    Without any better options he said, "There¡¯s a bigger room outside, let¡¯s go there."

    He did not wish to offend any enterprise, big or small.

    There had been more than one enterprise that came to look for him, seeking first-hand, exclusive news and that were willing to offer a bountiful reward.

    Kang Ding rejected them since he was very clear about his own position. Once he branded himself as an associate of a certain enterprise, it was going to be difficult to gain trust from others. The entrusters would also lose confidence as well thinking that he was servicing a certain enterprise, andcked fairness.

    As such, whenever he had something good, Clearwater City¡¯s main enterprises would be informed so he had decent rtionships with respective enterprises. None of them were willing to offend him, in fear of losing their rights to acquire news.

    The big room outside the shop was originally a warehouse, but was modified into a ce to receive his entrusters. It was very spacious inside, but the crowd filled it up nevertheless.

    There was no noise as respective witnesses were all looking on in all seriousness. Those apanying were even more cautious. The atmosphere within the room was grave and solemn.

    Kang Ding stood on the stage. Knowing what those below were thinking, he kept himself from being superfluous, and instead took the colorss bamboo out directly. There was still about a quarter of fire liquid left in it.

    "This is a new kind of fire liquid. Till now, I¡¯ve not seen anything simr in any records. It¡¯s very clear, like water, and looking at it from outside the bottle, it¡¯s difficult to imagine that it¡¯s actually a kind of fire liquid. It¡¯s made fromva."

    The crowd stirred. The liquid in the bottle was as clear as water, so it was difficult for them to associate it with sticky, redva.

    "It¡¯s not clear how this type of fire liquid is being refined, but what¡¯s certain is that it¡¯s been through repeated refinements. We have no concrete information, but I predict it to have gone through over ten refinements before reaching such a clear and transparent state."

    Admiration and confidence was present in Kang Ding¡¯s tone.

    "Being able to be ssified as A-grade, this fire liquid¡¯s most unique feature is its pureness and highly perfected state. It has no impurities at all, hence its transparency. At the same time, the fire elemental energy it contains is of an extremely high grade, which is why I believe it¡¯s been through multiple refinements. If it serves as a fire liquid, it can practically blend in with any other fire liquids. In other words, a few drops of it is enough to raise the grade of a fire elementalists¡¯ ordinary fire liquids."

    The crowd stirred even more now. They were all proficient business people and understood what this meant.

    It meant that more people could utilize this kind of fire liquid.

    The rich could use all their fire liquid on this type of new fire liquid, whereas poorer fire elementalists could also purchase a few drops to upgrade their own fire liquid.

    Before finishing his exnation he threw an even heavier surprise toward the audience below. "If it doesn¡¯t serve as fire liquid, fire elementalists of Master level and above can consume it directly to quickly replenish their fire elemental energy. There¡¯s no side effect."

    Boom! The crowd below dispersed in an instant.

    Each face was filled with agitation. They¡¯d already seen a golden light path from earlier and now they saw an even more dazzling and luxurious path.

    It might be difficult to pick out the richest people, but masters were definitely the richest bunch.

    They were all of high statuses and countless people were willing to pay them huge sums in exchange for protection. Money to them was just a number. And wasn¡¯t this type of fire liquid, with its ability to immediately replenish their fire elemental energy, considered a life-saving item? When it came to guarding their lives, cost wasn¡¯t an issue at all.

    And with this, what an enterprise could acquire wasn¡¯t just money, but also a master¡¯s friendship.

    A Master¡¯s friendship was much more important than money.

    Before the city expansion announcement, society had been stable and orderly. Under Elders Guild¡¯s suppression, being a Master wasn¡¯t a great deal. Which family did not have at least a few Masters under their roofs?

    In the Wilderness, however, whatever order there was copsed and Elders Guild had no time to oversee things as well as before. Powerful Masters then became the real despots.

    Luckily, Masters weren¡¯t as powerful as Grandmasters, who were able tough at the world beneath their feet and disregard the huge number of elementalists.

    But a Master did gain more privileges. Their words carried more weight. No city chief would carelessly dismiss a master¡¯s opinions. It was ten times more expensive to engage a Master now.

    This was the new era.

    In this context, a Master¡¯s requirements instantly became top priority. This was no different from the situation in Jadeite Forest, save for the fact that the strongest yer in Jadeite Forest was Dai Gang, a Grandmaster, and his needs were always the most important needs.

    Upon hearing that this type of fire liquid could be consumed directly by Masters, everyone had trouble restraining themselves.

    Amid their excitement, they felt rather curious as well. If it was a rare and special treasure they could simply attribute its existence to luck. However, this magical fire liquid had been refined, so who was the refiner?

    Who could produce such a high grade fire liquid?

    Such a high grade fire liquid would most definitely be produced in low quantities. How many drops were there?

    Doubts filled their hearts and at the same time, they were thinking about how to win this intensepetition.

    Their heads were aching, but soon there was no time for that.

    Kang Ding looked at the record chart in his hand, saying, "The entruster lives in Cotton Tree Tavern. Mister Ai."

    The moment he finished his sentence, sounds of chairs crashing down were heard as some anxious people were already rushing forward.

    Ai Hui did not know that Cotton Tree Tavern was already packed. His gang was still strolling leisurely. That brief episode at the market had been long forgotten.

    The market was a ce to get a hold of goods, but they needed them inrge quantities, which only enterprises supplied. Most importantly, they had no money. They had to sell off some goods.

    Ai Hui and gang had sold their fire sacks. The market value of scarletfire flying foxes¡¯ fire sacks was stable and each was sold at about a hundred essence elemental beans.

    The main use of fire sacks was to refine fire pouches.

    Fire sacks weren¡¯t as big as fire vats. They were more portable, but weren¡¯t able to store sufficient fire liquid. Since there was ack of fire elemental materials, the forty sacks on Ai Hui¡¯s hands were quickly sold off.

    Four thousand essence elemental beans gave Ai Hui and gang their first ie.

    It would¡¯ve been a generous amount if it had been one elementalist to possess all of it. But for it to belong to a whole city, it was merely a cup of water on a burning cart of firewood.

    ming bones were priced much lower than the fire sacks. One piece was worth only twenty elemental energy beans. Mind you, elemental energy beans and not essence elemental beans!

    The exchange rate between essence elemental beans and elemental energy beans changed daily. An essence elemental bean could be converted into three hundred elemental energy beans today. The conversion rate was significantly lower than before since elemental energy beans were more valuable these days. This also highlighted the fact that the Wilderness needed more lower grade elemental energy beans than higher grade and purer ones.

    The market price of ming bones meant that the pile of bones they¡¯d brought weren¡¯t even worth forty fire sacks.

    Ai Hui¡¯s intestines were turning green from regret. If he¡¯d known that fire sacks were this valuable, he would¡¯ve treated the flying foxes with more care. When facing the bats, he¡¯dpletely forgotten how difficult a situation they were being put in.

    Ai Hui was a little anxious. Where were they going to get the money?

    He felt a different kind of pressure.

    In the past, he was only responsible for himself and, at most, Lou Lan and Fatty. Now, hundreds of people and a whole valley were involved, so the pressure was definitely different. If they did not earn enough money and weren¡¯t able to replenish their goods, all work would held back. There wouldn¡¯t be elemental food to provide and trainings would be affected.

    Being a leader wasn¡¯t easy!

    Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s frowning face, Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Should I ask my family for assistance?"

    Shi family had valuable inside information so providing some funding wasn¡¯t a big problem.

    Ai Hui shook his head. "We¡¯ll continue to think of solutions, the appraisal result isn¡¯t out yet. It¡¯s not that simple to borrow money from your family. It doesn¡¯t matter if we owe you money but owing your family money would be troublesome."

    Shi Xueman kept quiet. He was right.

    Father would be d to support her when it came to her own affair, but things became inconvenient when her family was involved. The money belonged to the family, so many pairs of hands would reach out for payment if they were to borrow money from the family. She wasn¡¯t in favor of using her family¡¯s money as well, unless there was absolutely no choice.

    Wait a minute. It didn¡¯t matter if the money belonged to her? Was he not nning to return that eighty million yuan?

    Shi Xueman red at Ai Hui.

    Lou Lan spoke loudly and confidently, "Ai Hui will think of something!"

    At that, Ai Hui¡¯s worries were forgotten. He raised his brows,ughing, "You have foresight, Lou Lan!"

    Shi Xueman, who was staring at him just a moment ago, couldn¡¯t help but smile too.

    The tavern wasn¡¯t far off from the alley.

    At the entrance of the alley Ai Hui stopped.

    There was a huge crowd in front blocking the whole path. Many pulled their cors and waited excitedly, their faces flushed.

    Ai Hui asked uncertainly, "Have wee to the wrong ce?"

    He remembered very clearly that their tavern was located in a remote spot and its surroundings were rather unfrequented. It wasn¡¯t this lively before.

    Zhao Boan had a suspicious look on his face. He looked around, saying, "I think it¡¯s here."

    Ai Hui looked at Lou Lan. There was no way Lou Lan would get them lost.

    Before Lou Lan could speak, the crowd noticed the gang standing by the entrance. Quickly, all eyes were on them.

    Ai Hui cleared his throat, feeling as if he was being watched by a pack of wolves with rapacious and thirsty eyes.

    "He¡¯s here!"

    "Is that him?"

    "Go ask!"

    ...

    The crowd stirred and gushed, flood-like, toward Ai Hui and gang.

    What was going on?

    Standing by the alley entrance, Ai Hui was stupefied.

 Chapter 438: Rules

    Chapter 438: Rules

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Calm down... calm down...

    Zhao Boan repeatedly encouraged himself. Seeing the dense crowd raised his heartbeat. Heavens have pity on him, he was merely a small merchant and had never seen such a scene.

    Cotton Tree Tavern was just a small guesthouse, its narrow lobby about to explode because of this crowd. The boss, who was initially displeased, quickly became friendly and even offered tea upon seeing major figures.

    Of course, everyone ignored him and rushed toward Zhao Boan instead.

    "Snowva right? Is that what it¡¯s called? Can I buy it now?"

    "How much is it? Is there a special price for bulk purchase?"

    "How do we establish a long term business rtionship with you?"

    ...

    The crowd asked their questions all at once. The alleyway was bustling.

    A few in charge from big enterprises sat at a corner without a word. They looked on cooly as those small enterprises moved about eagerly, trying to secure the lowest price.

    They shifted their gaze to Shi Xueman, bewilderment rising within their chests.

    Among the gang, Shi Xueman was undoubtedly the most eye-catching person, since she was very beautiful. Plus, she was out in this world alone so she must have outstanding abilities and a powerful background. Her clothing and armor were evidence of that.

    Who was she?

    The managers were racking their brains, trying to search for simr targets in their minds.

    When they first realized that the owner of the fire liquid was staying in an unknown guesthouse, they figured he must be hard pressed for money. They formed an alliance privately, agreeing to ce pressure on the owner.

    They¡¯d cooperated many times for simr matters. Their enterprises were the three biggest ones in Clearwater City. Once they made a joint decision, other enterprises dared not disobey.

    But seeing Shi Xueman made them uncertain.

    They made eye contact and agreed to wait it out.

    Ai Hui mumbled softly, "Luckily Zhao Boan is here or else us non-businessmen would be at a loss."

    Shi Xueman rolled her eyes involuntarily. She¡¯d wanted toment that he was the real unscrupulous businessman, but seeing him looking all innocent and sincere she knew it would¡¯ve been a waste of time talking to him. This fellow had the thickest skin ever.

    Lou Lan nodded his head repeatedly. "Yes, Ai Hui¡¯s right."

    Shi Xueman wanted to turn around. How could you say such unconscientious words? However, she felt more envious than anything else. Ay, this fellow is really lucky to have Lou Lan!

    Seeing the crowd closing in, Ai Hui licked his lips, his eyes lighting up. "Snowva is actually A-grade! Hahaha, Lou Lan, we¡¯re going to be rich."

    Lou Lan smiled widely, his eyes forming two lines. "Ai Hui, we¡¯re going to earn lots and lots of money."

    "That¡¯s right! Lots and lots indeed!" Ai Hui answered excitedly, waving his hand. "We¡¯re going to have money so what do you want, Lou Lan? I¡¯ll give it to you!"

    Lou Lan opened his eyes wide. "Really?"

    Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t endure it any longer. "Whatever you want, I¡¯ll buy it for you now, Lou Lan."

    Lou Lan opened his eyes even wider and eximed even more gleefully, "Really?"

    Ai Hui was displeased. What¡¯s the big deal? Acting so arrogantly just because you have the money? Teasing other people¡¯s sand puppet just because you have the money? Ai Hui decided to use reality to teach Iron Lady a lesson.

    He snorted and said in all self-righteousness, "I want it too!"

    Shi Xueman was slightly taken aback. She was shocked by his shamelessness.

    Ai Hui felt more than aplished knowing that he was responsible for the exciting expressions that emerged on Iron Lady¡¯s ice-cold face.

    Zhao Boan seemed satisfied and had gradually calmed down from his initial fluster and confusion.

    He was born into a merchant family after all. How could he have possibly missed the fact that they were in possession of a raremodity after seeing themotion before him?

    He¡¯d apanied Ai Hui and gang to the market for the past two days and hadn¡¯t seen even a drop of A-grade fire liquid. B-grade fire liquid was sold at ten essence elemental beans per drop so for how much should he sell snowva, which was a grade higher?

    He had no idea, but did not make it apparent.

    Zhao Boan smiled. "It¡¯s been a long time since an A-grade fire liquid made an appearance in the market. It is very difficult to determine its price value. In order to allow more people to utilize snowva without spending excessively, we are going to auction them off in batches. Don¡¯t worry, everyone. We¡¯ve prepared enough, so hopefully everyone will get to purchase some."

    A few major managers made eye contact and saw the haze in their eyes. Auction was their most hated sales method since it meant that they were likely to pay much more than needed.

    Bullshit like "everyone will get to purchase some" did not cool the crowd down. They weren¡¯t dumb. Even if snowva was a refined fire liquid, the refining process required much manpower and resources, and was definitely challenging.

    In this era where ordinary fire elemental energy materials were in deficit, no supply of A-grade fire liquid could satisfy the market demand.

    Zhao Boan continued, "Of course, other than holding auctions, we are very willing to work with capable enterprises. We need to procurerge volumes of goods. Here¡¯s a list for everyone to see what your enterprise has to provide. Enterprises able to supply us with more goods at better prices will be on our priority list for the sale of snowva. We will also offer you a special price and consider establishing a long term cooperation."

    Faces of a few major managers cleared up slightly. These conditions were targeted at big enterprises.

    When they took the list over their gazes stiffened. The numbers had given them a shock. They were all experienced and could tell a lot just from looking at this list.

    Personal training would not require this much material. They were convinced that there was a city behind these fellows.

    Only a city would consume this much material.

    They had a grave expression on their faces. Their wish to push prices down disappeared instantly. The opposite party was more than what he¡¯d revealed. And Zhao Boan did talk about establishing a long term cooperation, which moved these big enterprises.

    If their enterprises could sell A-grade fire liquid steadily and for the long term, their influence would increase exponentially.

    The few enterprises that had a secret agreement immediately turned hostile.

    A few major managers were about to stand up when a cold voice rang from the entrance of the tavern. "I heard someone¡¯s selling A-grade fire liquid here?"

    The cold voice was like a breath of cold wind, blowing through the tavern lobby. The lobby, lively just a moment ago, was now in dead silence.

    A skinny, bamboo-like figure appeared by the door.

    He walked forward, as if no one was around, and the crowd opened up a path for him.

    He was thin and ugly. His face resembled that of a horse and his features were t, as if drawn on. His expression was very cold and terrifying. Five big fellows followed behind, each fierce and ominous looking. The elemental energy waves radiating from their bodies carried strong murderous spirit.

    The tall and skinny man was Yang Wuchang, nicknamed Fickle Yang. He was a terrifying scoundrel from Clearwater City, known to extort and ckmail, collect protection fees, poll tax and do the dirty on other viins. Basically, he did not shrink from any crimes.

    His was ruthless and domineering. Those who made him an enemy either died dubiously or disappeared.

    Even though he¡¯d offended many people, he was living free and unfettered because he had solid backings.

    Master Yang Xiaodong, consecrated by Clearwater City, was his uncle.

    Even the mayor, Qiao Meiqi, had to bow down to Yang Xiaodong.

    Yang Wuchang was aware of the power he had, but nevermitted sabotage when it came to the mayor¡¯s properties. He knew that his uncle wasn¡¯t interested in his insignificant ie but if there were any rare items or objects that appeared mysterious, he would immediately present them to him.

    He¡¯d done it a few times in fact. Seeing how sensible his nephew was, Yang Xiaodong protected him even more.

    Yang Wuchang also borrowed his uncle¡¯s might to get fighters onto his side. The notorious guys following behind him were known as the "four fickle devils". Evilness stained their hands. The hands that killed countless lives.

    Yang Wuchang strutted in and threw out a money bag. "I¡¯m buying all of the fire liquid."

    Faces around him turned ashen, but because of Fickle Yang¡¯s evil reputation no one dared utter a sound.

    Zhao Boan looked at the money bag on the ground. Just by listening to the sound it made he knew there couldn¡¯t be more than a hundred essence elemental beans inside. He responded coldly, "Did you not hear the rules? I¡¯m not selling!"

    "Rules?" As if he¡¯d just heard a joke, Yang Wuyangughed it off, his expression abruptly turning malicious. "You¡¯re here in Clearwater City and you want to talk rules with me? I¡¯ll let you know what rules are!"

    Before he finished his sentence Yang Wuchang reached his palm out toward Zhao Boan.

    Zhao Boan¡¯s teeth would shatter if this hitnded.

    p!

    A resounding p sounded.

    Zhao Boan remained motionless. Yang Wuchang flew backward like an empty bup bag.

    No one knew when, but Shi Xueman¡¯s ice cold figure had appeared in front of Zhao Boan and that resounding p was produced by her.

    Ai Hui stood behind her, mocking, "Is this the rule? What a good rule!"

    He wasn¡¯t the least bit embarrassed about hiding behind a woman¡¯s back, his voice cheerful and satisfied, as if that p had been let loose by him.

    The onlookers looked at him disdainfully.

    Wicked servant!

    As a servant, how could he let his master take actions personally? What was he for then?

    Shi Xueman¡¯s p shook everyone present.

    Faces changed and even a few managers from respective enterprises turned pale. They knew that their fire liquid was about to slip through their fingers.

    When had Yang Wuchang ever suffered such humiliation?

    This turn of events came too suddenly and shockingly, causing the lobby to fall into dead silence within ten seconds.

    Yang Wuchang was out of it, his ears buzzing non-stop. He regained his senses ten secondster, half his face swollen like a bun. He flew into a rage. "Are you idiots waiting for death? Kill this slut! Do not let anyone off!"

    As if awakened from a dream, the four devils saw the malevolence and murderousness in their master¡¯s eyes and knew that he was thoroughly pissed.

    They looked at each other before drawing their weapons and pouncing on Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui had no intention of assisting her. Instead, he stood behind her watching in sympathy and admiration at the four quickly approaching figures.

    Did you call her a slut? You guys are daredevils.

 Chapter 439: A Very Angry Iron Lady

    Chapter 439: A Very Angry Iron Lady

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The chillness Shi Xueman emitted was piercing. The temperature within the tavern lobby dropped abruptly.

    She was angry.

    Those in the lobby had long dispersed. They¡¯d known that something terrible was going to happen the moment Yang Wuchang walked in. Yet, they never would¡¯ve expected that this outsider had actually dared to give him a tight p.

    Too crazy!

    Their faces were white as a sheet. All they wanted to do was to stand as far as possible. A furious Fickle Yang spoke no reason, so those involved in this would definitely be dead.

    Yang Wuchang had very decent abilities. He¡¯d merely been careless earlier. He was different from other rich fellows who enjoyed life all day. While he was a lowly scum, he never didpromise on his own training. Plus, his uncle was abat master and often guided him, so his abilities were rathermendable.

    He threw himself toward Shi Xueman.

    To the elementalists, thesest two years of training had been the hardest. Elemental energy deficiency was a problem that the majority of the elementalists faced. Things changed ever since Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner fell into the hands of the enemy. The five elemental cycle of life and the concentration of elemental energy in Silver Mist Sea, Palette Cloud Vige and Jadeite Forest was starting to decline.

    In the first two years, the change wasn¡¯t as severe. Silver Mist Sea, Palette Cloud Vige and Jadeite Forest possessed thousands of years of umted elemental energy, and as the saying goes, a thin camel is bigger than a horse, they continued operating tenaciously.

    However, three years passed and the umted elemental energy continued to be used up, to the point where it couldn¡¯t be effectively replenished. As such, the concentration of elemental energy started to drop drastically. The mist in Silver Mist Sea thinned and rivers stopped flowing. Palette Cloud Vige¡¯s springs started drying up and Jadeite Forest was also conducting effortful searches for solutions.

    When their umted energy was about to be exhausted, the situation worsened quicker than people had imagined. Elders Guild attempted to use the lesser Avalon of Five Elements to bring more vitality, but to no avail.

    The enactment of the city expansion order marked the end of the era of Avalon of Five Elements. After a thousand years of elemental energy nourishment, elemental energy was no longer easily obtainable and no longer cheaply-priced.

    People had to establish cities in the Wilderness and build elemental energy pools in order to barely sustain themselves.

    That¡¯s right, barely sustain.

    How many elementalists had been sacrificed because of the city expansion? No one could keep proper count. Each city¡¯s cost was extremely high so it wasn¡¯t without reason that many cities collected high taxes from people entering.

    Even then, any city¡¯s elemental energy concentration wasn¡¯tparable to the past.

    Many were stuck in their current base level and unable to achieve breakthrough.

    There was a popr saying spreading in the market now. From the beginning of the city expansion order, they¡¯d entered Elemental Destion Age. This "destion" referred to both the Wilderness and also famine, since the elemental energy was drying up.

    So the city expansion order was regarded as the beginning of the Elemental Destion Age. That year also became the first year of reign for elemental destion.

    Could they ever return to the era of Avalon of Five Elements? No one dared to have such extravagant hopes anymore. What about recovering the fallen Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner? You must be joking!

    God Nation¡¯s power was on the rise each day, and yet the Avalon of Five Elements had to resort to seeking shelter in the Wilderness. Protecting themselves was already a challenging task.

    The Avalon of Five Elements was deteriorating fast, leaving people at a loss for words. All they could do was sigh in resignation.

    It was difficult for them to enter a higher base level, but at the same time their battle abilities were obviously improving. Aspared to the peaceful and worry-free lifestyle in the Avalon of Five Elements, the Wilderness was full of fresh blood and danger. Weaklings were buried there. Only the strong prevailed.

    Although his uncle was a Master, Yang Wuchang had never ckened off when it came to training.

    This punch was apparently very well controlled, its elemental energy contained. While he looked arrogant and despotic, he was actually very clever and knew how not to overstep his boundaries and irritate the city chief or even trigger an investigation.

    Clearwater City wasn¡¯t just consecrating one Master.

    The sinister look on Yang Wuchang¡¯s face disappeared and was reced by a thick, murderous and cold aura. He was like a whole different person now.

    The elemental energy surrounding him surged toward Yang Wuchang¡¯s right fist. Fwoom! His right fist rose in mes, rolling intensely, transforming into a brightly colored, suspended tiger head. Its deep roar sounded like a ferocious, hissing tiger that wasing out of the forest.

    Just this hand alone revealed Yang Wuchang¡¯s solid foundational skills.

    [Tiger Roar]!

    [Tiger Roar] wasn¡¯t considered the finest inheritance, but its most unique point was that each strike had to take the shape of a tiger. The tiger-head-like energy st, from Yang Wuchang¡¯s punch, was splendid and fierce, vivid and lifelike.

    The abrupt roar seemed to have exploded right by the audience¡¯s ears, causing their hairs to stand on end. The calves of those standing near were trembling.

    Those caught off guard were mentally shaken!

    But Shi Xueman remained motionless, her ice cold eyes lighting up. She perceived more than the rest.

    Within a three meter radius from where Yang Wuchang was standing there wasn¡¯t any elemental energy at all, since all of it had been drawn away by his fist. This strange phenomenon was hauntingly familiar. Elemental energy suffocation!

    She never imagined she would be able to see this phenomenon happening on a hooligan.

    But that was all.

    Yang Wuchang¡¯s vile conduct had angered her already and she quickly enlightened them as to what level of an opponent they¡¯d just provoked.

    Shi Xueman did not retrieve Cirrus from her back. Instead, she ced her right palm horizontally, faced down, in front of her chest like a knife.

    Ss!

    The strange sound seemed to havee from the movement of wind from deep within a cave. Ayer of light appeared on her snow-white and wless palm.

    It was as if a gust of wind had just started blowing throughout the whole lobby as the cbash lights hanging on the lobby beams dimmed into a dull yellow, like they could extinguish at anytime.

    What followed after was an indescribably intense feeling of suffocation.

    A few managers¡¯ eyes were about to pop out, their expressions plentiful and varying.

    This... elemental energy suffocation!

    They¡¯d never experienced such an intense and overbearing elemental energy suffocation. In fact, they felt as though the elemental energy within their bodies was about to be drawn out. This suppression made them feel an instinctive fear.

    Yang Wuchang¡¯s eyes revealed fear. He opened his mouth, attempting to call for help but he had no voice. The surrounding space affected by the elemental energy suffocation broke everything that touched it. The tiger head that enveloped his right fist started to distort.

    In the contest of elemental energy he had fallen into an unfavorable position and he knew what it signified.

    Boundless fear, like the violent sea, was about to drown him.

    To others, the air around Shi Xueman seemed to be warping.

    Ai Hui was, at that moment, in shock and admiration. Iron Lady¡¯s in, non-technical move only disyed her superb control over elemental energy!

    The moment this ability,pletely honed through an umtion of experience, was developed, it could throw people into despair even without technique.

    At that point, Shi Xueman and Ai Hui did not realize what effect this move would produce.

    The elemental energy pool in Clearwater City was arge one. Qiao Meiqi came from a rich family and did not hesitate to splurge on this water elemental energy pool, thergest within the region.

    The sky above Clearwater City was covered in a thickyer of mist, formed from water elemental energy. It also served as the city¡¯s defenseyer, which could transmit sunlight but block off the spying eyes of flying dire beasts.

    A moat, connected to an underground spring, surrounded the city and flowed unceasingly.

    Rain sprinkled over the surface of the moat, as if pulling up the curtains around the city. The ring-shaped rain screen outside the city constructed an environment with sealed elemental energy, diverting the obstructed water elemental energy outward. It also possessed great defensive power.

    And every day, there were elitebat elementalists stationed amid the cloud defenseyer above the city. These elementalists were tasked to guard against attacks from flying dire beasts and to monitor alterations in elemental energy within the city.

    This wasn¡¯t the era of peace. Bandits were on the rampage and the city had to be vignt at all times.

    Tu Xiaojun was training among the clouds as usual. He was a water elementalist and being stationed in the cloud defenseyer was a lucrative job. The water elemental energy within the cloud defenseyer was twice as concentrated as that within the city.

    The only regrettable thing was that he had to check for changes in the city¡¯s elemental energy every hour, hence disrupting his trainings. But he had noints and work mustn¡¯t be dyed.

    Tu Xiaojun, who¡¯d just detached himself from his circtory cycle revolution, was checking for energy changes as usual.

    The concentration of elemental energy wasn¡¯t consistent throughout the city. Some key regions possessed much denser elemental energy. Examples included the mayor¡¯s residence, Masters¡¯ residences and so on.

    Living high, a panoramic view of Clearwater City could be taken in. With such a magnificent field of vision, it was easy for Tu Xiaojun to check, at a nce, the concentration of elemental energy in respective regions

    As a water elementalist, he was extremely sensitive to the water elemental energy concentration. One look was all he needed. Within his field of vision, ces with denser energy would be bluer and ces with a lower concentration would appear dimmer.

    He scanned across the whole city unhurriedly and did not notice any abnormalities.

    Eh?

    He paused. There was a white space down in the northwestern part of the city.

    He wrinkled his brows, thinking that there was a battle going on.

    The white dot indicated that the concentration of elemental energy was practically zero, a rare phenomenon.

    While many were stuck in their base levels over the past two years, their battle standards had increased greatly. The legendary elemental energy suffocation, which had once been almost unattainable, was now in sight and reachable.

    Survivors were not weaklings.

    But white dots formed from elemental energy suffocations were usually small, rarely expanding over a twelve meter radius. When seen from above, that area appeared no bigger than a needle point.

    The front line separating Clearwater City and the Wilderness was the cruelest ce where blood and courage were most abundant.

    It wasmon for any disagreement to result in flying fists.

    But everyone exercised careful control since the guards weren¡¯t vegetarians. They needed to be swifter and fiercer when dealing with these powerful fellows.

    Overall, Clearwater City was a ce with decent security. The mayor was a businessman and absolutely abhorred disorder.

    Also, since the city had two consecrated Masters, evildoers had to think twice before attacking.

    The number of consecrated Masters in a city was directly rted to the city¡¯s abilities.

    Wait!

    That white dot was increasing in size. Tu Xiaoqun was stunned and couldn¡¯t help but take a closer look.

    It¡¯d grown in size indeed!

    This area of elemental suffocation covered over thirty square meters!

    Over thirty square meters of elemental energy suffocation!

    Tu Xiaoqun understood what level of abilities this dot signified. He was going through familiar names in his mind, trying to figure out who was responsible for it.

    Before he could get a name out the white dot below grew yet again. Over fifty square meters!

    Fifty square meters!

    Tu Xiaojun inhaled a breath of cold air.

    What happened next was even more unbelievable and shocking.

    Sixty square meters... eighty square meters, ny square meters, a hundred and fifty square meters...

    It was as if there was a thirsty monster, greedily swallowing up all the surrounding elemental energy.

    Tu Xiaojun was frightened and his face was colorless. Both Masters were out of town... He stared nkly for a few seconds before ringing the emergency rm frantically.

    The mournful rm tore through the city, thoroughly invading every corner of it. There was only one possibility.

    Intrusion of a powerful enemy!

 Chapter 440: Mist Cage

    Chapter 440: Mist Cage

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The guards came from all corners of Clearwater City. Fear and anticipation filled their faces as they were about to face a situation that they had only been practicing for.

    They took to the skies and managed to locate their target swiftly.

    The target was extremely eye catching.

    A ck hole lurked in the northwestern corner of the city. It was frantically sucking in elemental energy from all directions.

    Elemental energy suffocation!

    Clearwater City¡¯s guards were of the highest calibre. Elementalists who joined their ranks had to be powerful, skillful, and rich inbat experience. Clearwater City only recruited guards with superior qualities, and applicants were mostly of a certain calibre. Those who eventually rose above thepetition to be guards of Clearwater City were definitely among the very best.

    However, colour drained from these elite guards¡¯ faces when they saw their target.

    They knew what elemental energy suffocation was, and many of them had already mastered it. But the chaotic way in which the ck hole before them expanded made them slightly afraid.

    This range...

    Only a Master was capable of something like that!

    On any other ordinary day, they wouldn¡¯t be this flustered, since Clearwater City had consecrated two Masters for protection. Unfortunately, today was one of those rare asions when both Masters were away.

    There was usually at least one Master keeping watch over the city.

    It appeared that the enemy knew exactly when to strike.

    Everyone looked pale, but they gritted their teeth and flew towards the area of emergency. The present situation did not look good, but a prestigious job like this was hard toe by. They had achieved their standing today by emerging victorious in a fiercepetition. Fleeing instead of fighting would definitely cost them their job, and there won¡¯t be any second chances.

    A guard with a tarnished reputation would never be employed by any city. No man would put his life and wealth in the hands of a coward.

    Inside the tavern, Yang Wuchang¡¯s face turned ashen. He knew that this was the end.

    He had been extremely cautious all this while, and had effortfully avoided the big shots. He had a clear understanding of thew of the jungle, which dictated that only the strong survive. Even having an uncle who was a Master couldn¡¯t guarantee anything. In the eyes of most people, Yang Wuchang was arrogant and defiant. What they didn¡¯t notice was that he never set foot in the richer districts and never provoked sectors that were thriving. He only ever targeted corners that these people probably didn¡¯t even know existed.

    Cotton Tree Tavern was a nearby budget tavern. Only the poorest of people would stay in such a ce.

    When he learnt that the target was staying there, he couldn¡¯t control his greed any longer.

    Even so, he did not let his guard down. Yang Wuchang had gone after Zhao Boan only after he was sure that the guy was a servant.

    He had it all thought out.

    What¡¯s a little extra suffering to a servant?

    If the other party was someone remarkable, he would simply lower himself and apologize. He was sure that the other party would let the matter go out of respect to his uncle.

    Nobody would risk offending a Master over a mere servant.

    However, it seemed like he had miscalcted. He did not expect the other party to react so fiercely, going so far as to give him a tight p.

    Yang Wuchang had never been so humiliated before. Infuriated, he had responded with even greater force.

    He soon realized his folly. As he lost control over his own elemental energy, Yang Wuchang became filled with fear.

    His eyes were focused on his adversary¡¯s palm. It grew brighter by the second and was now almost as bright as the sun, making his eyes tear involuntarily.

    Yang Wuchang¡¯s body instinctively tried to turn around. Like an agile cat, he immediately shifted his stance.

    Escape!

    A strong suction force suddenly grabbed him from behind. It felt like an invisible palm was gripping him hard,

    A Master!

    Fear was swiftly spreading through Yang Wuchang¡¯s body. He was no stranger to this feeling, it was the same kind of fear that he experienced whenever he went up against his uncle. A casual attack by his uncle was enough to send his mind racing, making him feel like there was nowhere to run.

    Yang Wuchang bit down on his tongue. The severe pain, along with the strong taste of blood, gave him a moment of rity. He ripped the blue water droplet off his neck and crushed it with all his might.

    With a pop, the blue water droplet turned into arge bubble that encased Yang Wuchang within. The bubble was very thin and almost imperceptible to the naked eye. No one would have noticed it if not for the ripples that asionally appeared on the bubble¡¯s surface.

    Yang Wuchang finally managed to break free from the immense suction. Given to him by his uncle, the Mist Cage couldst for up to four hours upon activation.

    Bang!

    An explosive sound sted through the air as a streak of dazzling light whipped at the bubble. The impact sent the bubble flying through the tavern¡¯s front doors at an insane speed.

    Yang Wuchang felt the world around him spin and lost all control of his body.

    Loud ringing filled his ears while he slumped in a daze. It was quite a whileter before he realized that the bubble had be embedded in a wall. Realizing he was still alive, Yang Wuchang felt a wave of happiness rush through his body.

    Shi Xueman was slightly shocked by the bubble¡¯s durability. Taking a second look at it, she realized that it was the work of a Master.

    She calmly strolled out of the tavern and headed towards the bubble.

    A spark of interest lit up in her cold eyes. She was excited to see a master water elementalist¡¯s creation up close.

    Yang Wuchang had just recovered from his daze when he noticed Shi Xueman walking towards him. The curiosity in her eyes gave him a bad feeling. Trembling, he hastily said, "Misunderstanding, this is all a misunderstanding!"

    Shi Xueman ignored him. She looked up and noticed that there were many elementalists advancing to their position.

    Out of nowhere, Ai Hui appeared behind her, "These are guards from Clearwater City."

    "It¡¯s a misunderstanding, really!" Yang Wuchang mopped his face and whimpered. "My uncle is Master Yang Xiaodong, you can ask around to verify. I deserve to die for offending you, but please give my uncle some face and let me repay you for my transgression!"

    He had seized the slightest opportunity to bring up his uncle¡¯s name.

    He was truly frightened this time.

    Ai Hui saw Shi Xueman brush her hand against Cirrus that was strapped against her back. He said, "Go finish him off, I¡¯ll handle these guys."

    Shi Xueman retracted her palm. Acknowledging Ai Hui¡¯s words, she continued to walk towards Yang Wuchang.

    Yang Wuchang cried out in despair, "Spare me please Madam! Mercy! Surely a great person like you won¡¯t bother with a lowlife like me! I must have been blind..."

    Shi Xuemanpletely ignored him. She stood silently in front of the bubble, her beautiful eyes unusually bright. She was intrigued by the Mist Cage and very much wanted to explore its capabilities.

    "Identify yourselves! Stop whatever you are doing!"

    One of the guards shouted down at them. Their sheer numbers gave them courage.

    Ai Hui stroked his chin as he rolled the Wintry Jade de in his palm. He had no intention to attack, but the day¡¯s events reminded him of something. The A-grade fire liquid was highly coveted, and others would jump at any chance to rush them. The only way to deter these greedy people was to scare them back with a disy of pure power.

    A show this big was going to be a pain.

    Ai Hui was motivated by the thought of earning some more money. He called for Lou Lan, "Lou Lan, grass sword!"

    "Coming, Ai Hui."

    Lou Lan answered loudly and threw a bundle of grass swords to him.

    Ai Hui grabbed the bundle, separated them and methodically inserted them into the ground.

    Thump!

    The earth trembled and the mountains swayed.

    Shi Xueman suddenly gave the bubble a good, solid punch. Yang Wuchang, who was still inside, felt as if he had been struck by lightning.

    The guards who had rushed over were furious when they found Shi Xueman continuing with her assault. They nced at each other before diving towards her.

    Shrill howls resounded throughout Clearwater City. More than a dozen streaking lights sped towards Shi Xueman like unstoppable arrows.

    Ai Hui waspletely immersed in cing the grass swords in the ground and was blissfully unaware of the approaching guards.

    Ai Hui put thest sword in ce just as the guards were right above his head. Surrounding him were thirty or so grass swords that were sticking out of the ground at all angles.

    Ai Hui stood in the middle of the swords and looked up at the sky.

    His eyes shone faintly, like stars in the night. He solemnly mumbled to himself.

    "My dear swords, please let us make more money."

    .....

    In the mayor¡¯s residence, Qiao Meiqi¡¯s face turned ghastly pale when he heard the rm wailing.

    He felt embarrassed that his guests had to witness this unpleasant situation.

    There were two guests sitting in front of him, an old man and a youngdy. The youngdy was about eighteen or neen, naive and innocent. The elderly man was lying on a long couch, eating snacks non stop while humming a tune.

    The mayor¡¯s residence entered defensive mode.

    The river that surrounded the mayor¡¯s residence created a water screen that enveloped the entire ce.

    Qiao Meiqi gloomily asked, "What¡¯s happening? Who sounded the rm?"

    His subordinate quickly reported, "It was from the cloud defenseyer, Tu Xiaojun is on duty today."

    Qiao Meiqi calmed down slightly. He remembered Tu Xiaojun as a steadfast individual.

    Further updates came two minutester, "A fight broke out in the northeast corner. We have detected elemental energy suffocation across arge area, its range is about 150 meters. Our troops are rushing over as we speak."

    The old man who was busy snacking paused and sat up. An elemental energy suffocation of such a scale implied that someone who was almost as strong as a master was involved.

    Qiao Meiqi felt a chill running down his spine. He asked, "Is it Han Li?"

    His subordinate reported, "No, not Han Li. It¡¯s ady who we have yet to identify."

    The youngdy became excited upon hearing that the other party was a woman. "Uncle Qiao, let¡¯s go check it out!"

    Qiao Meiqi looked at the old man, who nodded. "I would like to take a look as well."

    Qiao Meiqi felt relieved. With them around, things shouldn¡¯t get too out of hand.

    He stood up and sneered, "Let¡¯s go and take a good look at these ¡®heroes¡¯!"

 Chapter 441: The Bigger the Scene, the Bigger the Earnings

    Chapter 441: The Bigger the Scene, the Bigger the Earnings

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Han Li was rmed by the siren. He furrowed his brows and walked faster, following the direction the guards were flying in. He did not take to the sky after the rm sounded, as the sky of the city had be a no-fly zone. Unauthorised flyers would be treated as the enemy and attacked violently.

    He wondered who the assants were.

    It wasmon to have disturbances in the city, but to have the rm activated was another matter.

    If the situation was minor, the invaders would merely be punished as unwee guests. Those who caused major disturbances would be seen as an enemy of the city and would be marked for death.

    Who could it be?

    Could it be an enemy of Qiao Meiqi? Han Li¡¯s heart skipped a beat. He walked faster and thought that if this was the case, he might be able to make use of the situation.

    Boom! Boom! Boom!

    A dull, rhythmic sound, like the beating of a drum, could be heard. Han Li was keenly aware of the vibrations moving along the ground. He immediately associated it with heavy weapons, such as heavy hammers or siege rams.

    He hopped lightly onto the roof of a shop and from there, gently bounced across several other roofs until he reached a higher vantage point.

    There were guards forming up in the sky above the city. Even Han Li, who was only there to take a peek, could feel the tremendous pressure.

    The guards were about to act.

    He focused his mind. He was curious to see who the troublemakers were and was contemting if he should lend them a helping hand. While the saying "an enemy of my enemy is my friend" wasn¡¯t always true, actual circumstances usually didn¡¯t stray too far from it.

    Han Li¡¯s eyes opened wide with shock when he looked towards the source of the sound.

    A beautifuldy d in blue and white armour was continuously punching a thin bubble. The guy within the bubble waspletely knocked out.

    Visible ripples would appear on the bubble whenever her snow-white fists struck it.

    Boom! Boom! Boom!

    Han Li was transfixed. He was unable to associate this beautiful, esteemeddy with the sledge hammer-like blows she was dishing out. He recognized the thin bubble as being a Mist Cage, something that only a handful of people were able to create. One of them was Master Yang Xiaodong.

    Han Li had read about Yang Xiaodong before he came and so knew that the man in the bubble wasn¡¯t him. The Mist Cage was still intact, but theydy¡¯s terrifying power was able to prate it.

    The man in the bubble waspletely overwhelmed by the armour-ddy¡¯s powerful blows. He was unconscious and foaming at the mouth.

    Was there a need for this much force?

    Despite her terrifying disy of force, Han Li actually had thoughts of flirting with her. A momentter, he snapped out of it and shuddered. Just what was he thinking!

    Was an ancient dire beast hidden within that graceful body?

    Flying overhead, more guards arrived. They were bewildered by the chaos below them.

    Being more resilient and powerful than the rest of the guards, the head guard regained hisposure in half the time. He recognized the man in the bubble as Yang Wuchang, the nephew of Master Yang. He had heard of the man¡¯s many shady misdeeds and despised him greatly. The head guard however, still had a duty to fulfil. If Yang Wuchang was to die under his watch, Master Yang might me him for dereliction of duty.

    He ordered, "Hands off!"

    By then, the other guards had recovered from their shock as well. They looked at Shi Xueman with fear. Although they were afraid, they didn¡¯t dare to retreat. Unable to advance or retreat, the guards fanned out and surrounded the area.

    Thedy below continued tond blow after blow. It was as though she hadn¡¯t realized what was happening.

    "I¡¯ll have to take action if you don¡¯t stop!"

    The head guard wavered a little inside. He wasn¡¯t as confident as he looked or sounded, but at this point he had no choice but to advance. He gritted his teeth and signaled his men to get ready.

    "Hey, hey, hey, am I really that unremarkable?"

    Anguid voice came from below.

    Ai Hui felt a little annoyed that he had been overlooked. There were so many people yet not a single one had bothered to look at him even once. He¡¯d created such an eye-catching scene yet waspletely ignored.

    Although Ai Hui wasn¡¯t someone who sought fame and attention, he still felt really unhappy about this.

    It doesn¡¯t pay to be too nice...

    Before he even finished his sigh, the Wintry Jade de in Ai Hui¡¯s hand had already traced out several sword rays. Oddly, they didn¡¯t vanish, but instead lingered in the air.

    Haphazardly inserted into the ground were a prettyrge number of grass swords. A soft, high-pitched whistle could be heard from the grass swords that were trembling in unison.

    Upon noticing Ai Hui¡¯s movements, the guards became aggressive. They couldn¡¯t quite exin it, but the sight of Ai Hui made them feel threatened.

    "How dare you!"

    "What insolence!"

    ...

    The guards cried out and gathered into arge mass. Below, an innocent-looking young man shed a bright smile as he gracefully brandished his sword.

    A faint light erupted from the sword¡¯s de, dancing around the guards.

    "Wee!"

    The young man¡¯snguid voice momentarily lulled the guards into a false sense offort.

    His soothing voice was soon swept away by the grass swords¡¯ high-pitched whistle.

    The guards could see bright spots in the sky around them that looked like stars amidst a lightless night sky. Out of nowhere, immensely sharp sword rays began to fly towards them at a high speed.

    Without thinking, the guards instinctively dodged and attempted to deflect the attack.

    The anticipated attack, however, did not take ce. The piercing rays vanished, as if they had never existed.

    Have we been fooled?

    After they recovered, the guards noticed that there were many grass swords floating around them. The grass swords were nimbly weaving their way amongst them, like agile fishes swimming down a river.

    What was happening?

    Utterly confused, none of the guards were able to figure out what these grass swords were for. They were emitting a faint light, but did that even matter? Grass swords were weak and unsuitable forrge scale attacks.

    What¡¯s more, the grass swords didn¡¯t seem to have any intention of attacking them. They merely drifted through space,pletely ignoring the guards¡¯ existence.

    Han Li was so distracted by Shi Xueman that he was taken aback when he heard Ai Hui speak.

    He would never forget that mockery-filled voice for as long as he lived!

    Looking towards the direction of the sound, he saw Ai Hui standing in the middle of many grass swords.

    Han Li was deeply annoyed.

    The smirk on that fellow¡¯s face was incredibly detestable!

    One of the guards had enough of his games and prepared to rush down.

    He felt resistance the moment he tried to move. It was as though they were all suspended in some sort of liquid, making it difficult to move.

    He quickly shouted, "Be careful, something¡¯s not quite right!"

    The others were finally waking up from their daze. They were disconcerted upon discovering that their physical and elemental energy movements were hampered.

    "Crap!"

    "Let¡¯s break out!"

    Their immense collectivebat experience allowed the guards to quickly think of a solution. They coordinated their efforts and aggressively attempted to fly out of the area.

    Ai Hui nonchntly stayed on the ground. He nced at Shi Xueman who was still happily punching the bubble, and felt a bit sorry for the guy inside.

    He retracted his gaze and looked upwards when he detected the guards¡¯ movements.

    Shi Xueman is obsessed with the bubble.

    It¡¯s rare to see my good friend here actually show interest in something... Please stop trying to disturb her...

    "The bigger the scene, the bigger the earnings," Ai Hui murmured, as he drew a circr sword ray in the air with the Wintry Jade de. An indescribable feeling pervaded the air around him.

    The faint light from the floating grass swords began to change. Half of them were shining even brighter, while another half became much dimmer, as though they were covered by ayer of fog.

    The two distinct versions of the grass swords intertwined with each other, creating strange, undting waves.

    The airborne guards had a grim look on their faces. If they were previously stuck in water, they were now rapidly sinking into quicksand. The resistance they felt was ten times greater than before!

    "Elemental energy suffocation!"

    Tu Xiaojun, who was standing guard in the cloud defenseyer, was mortified.

    Beneath him, a circr void was expanding wildly. This one was somehow even more terrifying than the elemental energy suffocation from before.

    Two hundred and ten meters...Two hundred and forty meters ...Three hundred meters..

    The huge expanse of nothingness below him left his limbs numb with cold.

    The mayor and the others, who¡¯d just flown over, arrived just in time to see the grass swords flying up into the sky. They hadn¡¯t thought much about the grass swords.

    The old man soon picked up on the mysterious elemental energy waves that were propagating through the air.

    "Be on your guard! The other party is very powerful!"

    It was as if the old man had be someone else. His hair was standing on end and his gaze was as solid as a rock. He was emitting strong elemental energy fluctuations and not a trace of his typically leisurely manner could be seen.

    Qiao Meiqi knew that something was up. For the old man to say something like that, the other party must be incredibly strong.

    ¡ª¡ª A Master!

    He took a deep bow and begged, "Respected elder, you must save us! All of my assets are in Clearwater City. I¡¯ll be left with nothing if it¡¯s ruined."

    The old man looked at the youngdy gravely as he sighed, "Don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ll not let them mess around."

    "Uncle Qiao, you shouldn¡¯t be too worried," the youngdy gently reassured Qiao Meiqi.

    Hearing the old man¡¯s words made Qiao Meiqi feel slightly more secure. All they needed to do was to survive for the next two days until the Masters returned. Qiao Meiqi wondered whether he had offended someone recently and was reminded of some gossip he had picked up some days before.

    The old man lowered his tone, "I¡¯ll go take a look."

    Han Li, who was perched atop a high roof, was as pale as a sheet. He stared at the floating grass swords in utter disbelief.

    Hailing from the Karakorum Sword League, he naturally knew exactly what he was looking at. Anyone who had stayed for an extended duration in Karakorum would definitely recognise this.

    Yin Yang Sword Formation!

    However, he had no deeper understanding of it beyond mere recognition.

    He once believed that he would be able to break through the enigmatic Yin Yang Sword Formation, but the sight in front of him shattered everyst shred of that belief.

    The Yin Yang Sword Formation was truly beyond hisprehension. It appeared to exist in a realm beyond Karakorum¡¯s understanding.

    Han Li¡¯s world had been turned upside down.

 Chapter 442: Old Friend

    Chapter 442: Old Friend

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The dancing and circling grass swords drew a cylindrical area of over sixty cubic meters in the faraway sky. It looked like a huge, invisible wind pir with circles of ripples raging back and forth within. The guards floated and sank but were unable to struggle free.

    The closer they got the more the interwoven and fluctuating wave motion brought fear and trepidation, even to the old man beside Mayor Qiao Meiqi.

    The wave motion was indistinct and unpredictable. Weaker elementalists were unable to sense it, but the old man felt its threat. Even when sensing unfamiliar forces, Masters would still be able to instinctively detect the danger within.

    Their understanding of force far exceeded ordinary elementalists.

    The old man was rather curious. Who could it be?

    He nced slightly toward the mayor and wondered to himself, ¡®When had this guy offended such a powerful opponent?¡¯ He had a high position in the Gong residence and was seldom kept from secrets. In this era, however, carelessly antagonizing others wasn¡¯t a wise choice.

    Qiao Meiqi was worried sick, sweat unknowingly surfacing on his forehead. He had a majestic appearance, face squarish and broad, that gave him an air of grandeur even without trying. He was definitely not an ordinary businessman, since it wasn¡¯t easy to build a friendly rtionship with the son of an official. Many times he¡¯d made people forget his identity of a great merchant.

    But a hostile enemy of Master level had to enter the city when both consecrated Masters weren¡¯t around. This was worse than the invasion of the Wilderness.

    The dancing and circling grass swords in the sky were like a leisurely swimming arrowfish that carried little malice. Upon seeing the guards¡¯ clumsy moves and blunders, however, a coldness rose from Qiao Meiqi¡¯s tailbone and spread throughout his whole body.

    He tried his best to keep cool, asking, "Look, what is that?"

    The old man was knowledgeable, but did not answer immediately. He observed for some time before responding, "It looks like a kind of sword formation, but one of such scale is rarely heard of.

    "Sword formation? Isn¡¯t that something from Karakorum Sword League?" Qiao Meiqi raised his brows, fire flickering in his eyes. "Could it be Han Li at the bottom?"

    Hearing Han Li had just caused trouble and seeing Karakorum¡¯s sword formation, it wasn¡¯t surprising that he would associate one with the other. He appeared to be seething, but was actually relieved. As long as they were certain Karakorum Sword League was involved, the Gong residence would not just sit and watch.

    It was only after Karakorum¡¯s chief became Sky Edge Division¡¯s division leader, Karakorum Pris, that her secret rtionship with Madam Ye gradually became apparent.

    Karakorum Pris did not emerge alone, but brought along newly recruited soldiers.

    As a despot, Qiao Meiqi naturally wasn¡¯t someone with a simple brain. He¡¯d understood that with Great Elder falling sick, Madam Ye was now unstoppably powerful.

    Karakorum¡¯s Han Li¡¯s appearance in Clearwater City made people ponder and question.

    Qiao Meiqi felt calm instead, since Gong Residence would not sit idly as Madam Ye roped them in. Qiao Meiqi had no intention to rely on Madam Ye as well. He had a few decades of friendship with the Gong Residence so the trust they shared was foundationally deep.

    Plus, Qiao Meiqi was clear that Madam Ye¡¯s army was well-trained and powerful and her subordinates were valiant. If he were to go over to her side at this time, he wouldn¡¯t be able to reap much benefits and wouldn¡¯t be much valued, so why would he do that?

    Clearwater City was remotely located, deep within the Wilderness, so within such a short period of time, repairing the situation was beyond Madam Ye¡¯s abilities.

    Han Li¡¯s appearance in Clearwater City... he¡¯sing for Gong Residence!

    Qiao Meiqi quickly found the crux and came to a realization. The rtionship between the Gong Residence and Madam Ye was already hostile, and now they were establishing themselves in the few aristocratic families, doing as they please without adhering to Madam Ye¡¯s order. This was made apparent when they constructed Pcefield City instead of entering Skyheart City.

    Heposed himself. The battle between Gong Residence and Madam Ye wasn¡¯t something a person of his rank should participate in.

    As the target flew closer, the old man and youngdy cried out simultaneously.

    "It¡¯s him!"

    "It¡¯s her!"

    Qiao Meiqi snapped out of it instantly. Were they acquainted?

    In charge of the Yin Yang sword formation, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but howl at Iron Lady. "Done?"

    He was answered with an even more intensive whisking that sounded like metals nging, a intivement.

    Finally, a loud crash, surpassing all previous sounds, was heard. Ai Hui breathed a sigh of relief.

    While his Yin Yang sword formation was powerful, grass swords were still grass swords and were unable to be sustained for long. He attacked because there was more to gain. It would be embarrassing if things backfired.

    Iron Lady pulled back and returned to Ai Hui¡¯s side without even looking at Yang Wuchang, who was lying unconscious on the ground and bleeding from his nose and mouth.

    Just then, the circling grass swords in the sky started ming. There were white mes and ck mes. In the blink of an eye they turned to ashes.

    That strange, invisible force disappeared all of a sudden and the trapped guards instantly felt their bodies loosen up as the resistance all around vanishedpletely.

    Below, Ai Hui and Shi Xueman stood back to back, holding a sword and a spear respectively.

    Making such a big scene and disregarding their honor... no one would take it lying down.

    There was no need to worry about not having the chance to speak. With a sword and with skills, anyone would get a chance to speak up.

    Only weaklings¡¯ voices would be drowned out.

    Without turning his head Ai Hui asked, "How did it feel?"

    Shi Xueman replied, "Very sturdy."

    She hesitated for a bit, but added nevertheless, "Thatst one was gratifying."

    Ai Hui burst intoughter. It was difficult to imagine such wordsing out of Iron Lady¡¯s mouth. She sounded like a mischievous little girl who¡¯d just done something naughty.

    The guards in the sky were raging at this point, their eyes on fire. They¡¯d been immobilized by their opponent in the eyes of everyone. It was utterly embarrassing.

    Right at this moment someone shouted, "Stop it!"

    The guards who were about to attack turned rigid. That imposing voice was beyond familiar to them. The mayor!

    They turned around and saluted, "Mayor!"

    Before Qiao Meiqi could speak, the two old and young people beside him flew down.

    "Sister Xueman!"

    "So it¡¯s you!"

    The familiarity in their tones made Qiao Meiqi let all his guard down. Wait a minute, Sister Xueman? Who could have a little princess of the Gong Residence address her that way? A name came up to him suddenly, causing his eyes to open wide.

    Ai Hui looked at the luxuriously clothed man in front of him and asked in puzzlement, "You are...?"

    He found the old man vaguely familiar looking but had no idea where he might¡¯ve seen him. Even his voice sounded familiar.

    Seeing that Ai Hui had not recognized him the old man was somewhat pleased. "No recollection eh? I drank some of your porridge before."

    Drank his porridge? Ai Hui reacted all of a sudden, his eyeballs about to fall out. "Volcano Old Man!"

    The old man smiled in satisfaction. "Can¡¯t recognize me eh, have I changed a lot?"

    Ai Hui clicked his tongue in wonder. "Couldn¡¯t recognize you indeed. You were like a beggar when Ist met you, but now you¡¯re acting all elegant. I can tell from one nce that your clothes are expensive stuff!"

    Upon hearing the words "acting all elegant" Qiao Meiqi trembled slightly. He raised his head forcefully and look toward Ai Hui like a madman.

    How dare he say that to a Master? Not just any Master but bad-tempered Venerable Volcano. Was he trying to die?

    What threw him off even more was the fact that Venerable Volcano wasn¡¯t the least bit offended.

    He smiled, saying, "I have recovered and was able to live on, thanks to your porridge. I wanted to look for you guys after to return the favor but it slipped my mind, hahaha."

    He seemed to have felt that forgetting someone else¡¯s kindness wasn¡¯t something to feel embarrassed over.

    Ai Hui did not mind it. He smiled, "That¡¯s not true. If not for the fact that you guarded the door, we wouldn¡¯t have been able to enjoy the porridge."

    Just then, Shi Xueman brought an innocent and unaffected girl over. "This is Ai Hui, we all call him Ah Hui. This is Yaoyao, Gong Peiyao. She is Uncle Gong¡¯s daughter, we used to y together in the past"

    Gong Peiyao greeted hurriedly, calling out respectfully, "Brother Ah Hui."

    Ai Hui returned the greeting, "Yaoyao."

    Shi Xueman recognized Venerable Volcano at this point and was rather shocked. "You changed so much."

    Venerable Volcanoughed out loud. "The youngdy¡¯s eyes are working better after all. Better than yours."

    Shi Xueman had already pulled Yaoyao to another side.

    "Lou Lan, this is Yaoyao."

    "Hi, Yaoyao. I¡¯m Lou Lan, very pleased to meet you."

    "Wa, Lou Lan is so cute! Can I hug you, Lou Lan?"

    "Of course!"

    "Wah, you¡¯re so soft! Do you wanna hug him, Sister Xueman?"

    "I"m not a little girl like you!"

    "You don¡¯t want to? Really? He¡¯s so soft andfortable to hug! Why are you so soft, Lou Lan?"

    "There are two reasons. Firstly, I¡¯m made of millesimal soft sand. Secondly, my sand core is constantly optimizing and I can simte about three thousand four hundred and sixty different sand textures."

    "Lou Lan, Lou Lan! Can you be a bed?"

    "Yes I can!"

    Boom, a sand bed appeared before the two of them.

    Gong Peiyao threw herself on it, instantly bing excited. "Ahhhhhh so soft! Lou Lan is so amazing! Quick,e up, Sister Xueman!"

    Shi Xueman was rather tempted, but looking at her surroundings she decided to resist the urge. She coughed, "Get up quick, Yaoyao. You shouldn¡¯t act like this..."

    "I¡¯m not getting up, I¡¯m not getting up, I¡¯m not getting up..."

    Shi Xueman pulled her up with one hand, ignoring her squirms and struggles. She said, somewhat embarrassed, "Sorry to have made you suffer, Lou Lan. Yaoyao has always been mischievous."

    Lou Lan broke into a wide grin. "Not at all, I¡¯m very happy."

    Qiao Meiqi was now in front of Ai Hui. He spoke cordially, "I did not expect to see the renowned Lightning de over here. Your presence really brings light to my city. I¡¯m deeply honored. My name is Qiao Meiqi and I am guilty of calling myself the mayor. Unable to take care of my people properly, I feel utterly ashamed. Really sorry to have caused you an unhappy experience. Please do me the honor and give me a chance to make up for my negligence."

    Yang Wuchang woke up from hisa, but upon hearing the humble tone in which the mayor was addressing them with, he cked out once again.

 Chapter 443: The Grief of Balls

    Chapter 443: The Grief of Balls

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The mayor¡¯s residence was bustling with noise and excitement that night. The ill-feelings between everyone had disappeared. People were toasting each other whileughing and cheering happily. Qiao Meiqi was exceptional at adjusting the atmosphere of a social setting. The atmosphere of the banquet was very lively now.

    Everyone had heard of the renowned Lightning de. In front of the wealthy and powerful Shi family and Gong family, the local rich men were nobodies.

    "So you own the A-grade fire liquid?"

    Venerable Volcano asked impatiently, looking as if he was about to run up to Ai Hui¡¯s face.

    The lively banquet quieted down in an instant. Among the invited guests tonight, many of them were presidents of enterprises. They had obtained the news of the fire liquid at an earlier time. Those who had a general knowledge of business knew the worth of an A-grade fire liquid.

    Qiao Meiqi knew very well how to conduct a business. Simrly, he knew the worth of an A-grade fire liquid. However, instead of withholding the news, he released the news with great fanfare. He¡¯d invited numerous enterprises to the banquet that night.

    He clearly knew what was important and what was not. The A-grade fire liquid might be important, however, it paled inparison to the worth of Ai Hui¡¯s presence. Furthermore, there had been some misunderstandings previously and this banquet would be the best chance to remedy everything.

    Qiao Meiqi had a smile on his face the whole time. Every now and then, he would fawn over Ai Hui and advertise his fire liquid to everyone.

    "It¡¯s A-grade refined fire liquid," Qiao Meiqi added motionlessly.

    All the guests became restless. The word "refined" implied that the fire liquid could be produced indefinitely. Everyone loved treasure, but most treasures were exhaustible. To businessmen, the only way to make money was to sell something that was inexhaustible.

    Ai Hui looked at Qiao Meiqi with surprise. This mayor was indeed a shrewd individual.

    "Mr Kang knows this fire liquid the best. Why don¡¯t we have Mr Kang give us an introduction of it?" Qiao Meiqi smiled.

    Qiao Meiqi clearly knew of Ai Hui¡¯s intentions so he invited Appraiser Kang Ding to this banquet. With Kang Ding¡¯s endorsement of the fire liquid, everyone would not have no qualms about purchasing it.

    Everyone¡¯s gaze was directed at Kang Ding. He stood up to greet Ai Hui and Qiao Meiqi and began the introduction, "It¡¯s my honor to have Mr Ai Hui ce his faith and trust in me. Right now, I will introduce snowva¡¯s characteristics to everyone..."

    Everyone, including Venerable Volcano, listened to Kang Ding attentively.

    Ai Hui raised his cup and gave Kang Ding a toast. Kang Ding smiled and raised his cup to return the toast.

    Both of them smiled at each other and downed their wine cups.

    Such a shrewd individual.

    The same thought arose in both of their minds at the same time.

    Every now and then, an rmed cry would ring across the meeting hall. A-grade fire liquid was seldomly see on the market. Kang Ding was fully aware of his role. His introduction of the snowva was filled with flowerypliments. Of course, being an A-grade fire liquid, the snowva deserved suchpliments.

    As the fine wine slid down his throat, a fragrant and burning sensation erupted in his chest.

    Ai Hui seldom drank alcohol. However, he felt a rare satisfaction at this moment.

    Beside him, Iron Lady was whispering something to Gong Peiyao. Wrong, Gong Peiyao was whispering something to Iron Lady. Like a bottle of glue, the little princess from the Gong Residence had been sticking to Iron Lady and chattering nonstop since the moment she met her.

    The bright, swaying light, the tipsiness from the fine wine and the mor from the guests in the meeting hall made Ai Hui feel as if his mind was shrouded in mist.

    Since the atmosphere is so lively, I should be able to sell the snowva for a good price...

    Ai Hui did not know whether it was because of the tipsiness from the fine wine or because his pressure was relieved that his entire body felt rxed.

    Every step I took, they are all still vivid in my mind.

    My heart is filled with regret, my life is filled with tears.

    The hardships of beginning an undertaking.

    Is it easy? No, it¡¯s not. Is it hard? It¡¯s very hard.

    What if I could restart my life? Which path would I choose?

    It will still be the same.

    One who holds the sword feels fear. One who bears responsibility is tied down. One who seeks revenge has difficulty in recovering from his wound.

    Since when have I forgotten the warm sunshine, the cool breeze, the tranquil morning, the whooshing sound of Three Leaves Bamboo Carts, the sleepy shop assistants, the dancing smoke from the kitchen chimneys... in Central Pine City?

    Ai Hui¡¯s turbid eyes slowly regained their rity and his hazy vision became clear once more.

    At this moment, someone asked, "May I know how much does the snowva cost?"

    Ai Hui raised his wine cup and took a sip. Just as he was about to speak after moistening his lips with the wine, someone interrupted him.

    "No matter how much it costs, I want all of it!" Venerable Volcano roared with his eyebrows raised.

    At this point of time, no one dared to say anything. Whether it was because of his status as a Master or because he had the backing of the Gong Residence, these businessmen did not dare to offend him.

    Ai Huiughed involuntarily, "You want all of it? Do you have enough money?"

    Venerable Volcano replied proudly, "You have underestimated me. When I attained the level of Master, your balls were not even fully grown yet."

    Laughter broke out in the meeting hall. Ai Hui gave a soft cough as a tinge of embarrassment appeared on his face.

    Hey, hey, hey, you better leave your insults off my balls.

    Old fogey!

    Deep down, Ai Hui was fuming with rage. On the surface, he put on a nonchnt look and replied, "You want all of it, right? On the ount of our deep rtionship, I shall give you a discount. One hundred essence elemental beans per drop, what do you think? I¡¯m not scamming you!"

    "Alright. There¡¯s some conscience in you after all. Give me one hundred and eighty drops!" Venerable Volcano replied.

    He was a fire elemental master and he was very familiar with the market prices of various fire elemental materials. This price was not expensive at all. Even B-grade fire liquid costed around twenty essence elemental beans per drop.

    "One hundred and eighty drops?" A mysterious smile appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face.

    Venerable Volcano looked slightly worried and replied, "You don¡¯t have one hundred and eighty drips? Sixty drops will do for me as well."

    Even though high-grade fire liquid was sold in drops, they could not be used in singr drops. In the terminology of fire elementalists, there was a very special term used for drops, which was called "seal". "Seal" was used as a unit of measurement for many types of fire liquid. One seal of fire liquid was equivalent to around twenty drops of fire liquid.

    A tiny amount amount of fire liquid was useless to a fire elemental master like Venerable Volcano.

    An ordinary individual definitely could not afford to use an A-grade fire liquid for battles. However, for a Master, this wasn¡¯t much of a problem. One hundred essence elemental beans per drop. Therefore, a seal of fire liquid would only cost at most two thousand essence elemental beans.

    If a Master decided to spend money, he or she definitely would not just spend a few thousand essence elemental beans only.

    Take Venerable Volcano as an example, he was definitely capable of forking out tens of thousand of essence elemental beans. That was merely his monthly sry.

    Tens of thousand of essence elemental beans were an immense sum of ie in a small city.

    A Master, who was at the top of the food chain, was a representation of wealth and prestige. Each city did not have many Masters. Other than the fact that they were hard to find, their exorbitant sries made it hard for one to hire them as well.

    A Master was like a beast that devoured money. Other than having to pay them sries, one had to offer them various rare food ingredients and materials and provide them with sufficient elemental energy too.

    Clearwater City was considered wealthy to be able to sustain two Masters.

    Deep down, Ai Hui was surprised at how wealthy Venerable Volcano was. However, he was still slightly annoyed that he was being looked down on by him. Following which, Ai Hui yelled, "Lou Lan, let¡¯s show this old man something."

    "Ai Hui, here."

    Lou Lan took out a basket-sized, ck-colored volcanic rock ball. The volcanic rock ball was generating waves of heat.

    The old man chuckled with raised eyebrows, "Woah, such a big ball. I shall take back my words just now! Lad, your balls are quite huge after all! Huge!"

    After finishing his sentence, the old man shook his head andughed even louder.

    Ai Hui felt like smashing the volcanic rock ball onto the old man¡¯s face. He restrained himself and muttered silently to himself, "Money is a devil, money is a devil..."

    Following which, he unsheathed his Wintry Jade de and carved a circle on the volcanic rock ball. With a flick of the tip of his sword, a circle-shaped piece of rock flew out.

    Crystal-clear mes gushed out of the hole on the volcanic rock ball.

    Venerable Volcano yelped and appeared beside Ai Hui and snatched over the volcanic rock ball. The snowva within the volcanic rock ball remained motionless. Theyer of volcanic rock was thin and theva within the rock ball was crystal-clear.

    "Not bad! How much snowva is there inside this volcanic rock ball?"

    "One liter!"

    "I want all of it!"

    "Pay the money first!"

    Everyone stretched their necks and looked nkly at the volcanic rock ball. They wished they could snatch it over from the old man¡¯s hands now.

    "Do you think I won¡¯t be able to pay you this small amount of money?" Venerable Volcano replied with irritation.

    "Pass me the money and I will hand it over to you," Ai Hui sneered without any intention of submitting to the old man.

    Venerable Volcano red at Ai Hui. Even so, Ai Hui did not submit to him and red back at him.

    Everyone was shocked by this scene. They had never seen anyone that dared to go up against a Master directly like this before. Lightning de was indeed vicious. One should try his or her best not to provoke a vicious individual like him.

    "Humph, how much?"

    "One liter is equivalent to five hundred drops, so that will be fifty thousand essence elemental beans."

    Venerable Volcano gritted his teeth as he felt heartache. After all, this was worth a month¡¯s sry. Even though he had a high ie, his expenditure was high as well. Ordinary elemental food no longer had any effects on him. As such, only high-grade elemental food was useful for his training.

    Venerable Volcano didn¡¯t expect himself to give in and clenched his teeth, "Here!"

    He could only eat ordinary elemental food for the rest of this month now. However, now that he had A-grade fire liquid, he was filled with satisfaction while tears ran down his cheeks.

    Of course, the old man had not brought tens of thousands of essence elemental beans with him. Instead, he brought high-grade essence elemental beans. Each high-grade essence elemental bean was equivalent to roughly one hundred regr essence elemental beans. Naturally, this exchange rate could change at any moment.

    When Ai Hui obtained the five hundred high-grade essence elemental beans, he was exceptionally excited. Regardless of elemental energy purity level or elemental energy capacity, essence elemental beans paled inparison to high-grade essence elemental beans. Ai Hui had an urge to absorb these high-grade essence elemental beans on the spot. Nowadays, who would be so free to cultivate high-grade essence elemental beans? Only a wealthy aristocratic family like the Gong Residence would spend so much time and effort in cultivating such high-grade essence elemental beans.

    These high-grade essence elemental beans could have been from their stockpile as well.

    The Gong Residence was indeed rich and powerful. Ai Hui¡¯s eyes flickered. He couldn¡¯t do the same thing with the Shi family as he was too close with Shi Xueman. However, for the Gong Residence, why shouldn¡¯t he make a huge profit off them? After all, they were the ones who offered themselves to him.

    Let me milk this old fogey dry!

    The smile on Ai Hui¡¯s face became more affable. He reached out his hand and told Lou Lan, "Lou Lan, one more ball!"

    He was unusually excited.

    Lou Lan replied happily, "Ai Hui, here!"

    When the second volcanic rock ball appeared, the atmosphere in the meeting hall became lively all of a sudden. Everyone¡¯s eyes were filled with shock. There¡¯s more snowva!

    Ai Hui casually carved a hole on the volcanic rock ball and teased Venerable Volcano, "I can sell this to you as well! Do you want to buy it?"

    A look of distress appeared on the old man¡¯s face. However, very soon, he clenched his teeth and replied, "I¡¯ll buy!"

    Ai Hui grinned. Suddenly, his smile vanished into thin air.

    "Lou Lan, more balls!"

    "Lou Lan, more balls!

    "Lou Lan..."

    A row of volcanic rock balls were ced neatly in front of Ai Hui. All of them were burning with crystal-clear mes, resembling a line of soldiers waiting to be inspected.

    The old man was dumbstruck.

    Everyone was dumbstruck.

    A dead silence descended upon the meeting hall.

 Chapter 444: Sold Out

    Chapter 444: Sold Out

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    An unusual silence descended upon the meeting room.

    Everyone recovered from their shock but they did not speak at all. All of them were digesting the information presented within the scene in front of them.

    Twelve liters of snowva, including the two liters sold to Venerable Volcano, were ced in front of everyone. Undoubtedly, these twelve liters of snowva had shocked everyone. ording to the price set by Ai Hui just now, one liter would cost fifty thousand essence elemental beans. As such, twelve liters of snowva would cost six hundred thousand essence elemental beans.

    Even Qiao Meiqi, who was used to encountering big situations and wealthy people, could not stay calm at this moment.

    The number of essence elemental beans involved was astronomical.

    This astronomical number was thought-provoking.

    Everyone no longer doubted the fact that Ai Hui possessed a refinement method to mass produce snowva. Otherwise, he would not have so much snowva.

    A refinement method that mass produced A-grade fire liquid!

    A lot of people began to breath heavily. Even the seemingly impish Gong Peiyao could not help but widen her eyes at this moment. She clearly knew what this meant. The snowva was an unbeatable moneymaker.

    There were surprised gazes, greedy gazes, pensive gazes and sympathetic gazes. However, everyone was keeping quiet.

    It was as if the crystal-clear mes contained a mysterious power that froze their mouths and the air.

    Ai Hui smiled in the midst of the silence. He casually picked up a wine cup from the table but then realized that it was empty. Being toozy to pour himself another cup of wine, he took Iron Lady¡¯s untouched cup of wine and downed it in one gulp.

    The wine slid down his throat and a burning sensation erupted in his chest.

    With a cold glint in his eyes, Ai Hui stood up and picked up his sword and walked towards the centre of the meeting hall.

    Every¡¯s eyes converged on him.

    His sharp gaze slowly swept across the meeting hall. At this point of time, Ai Hui resembled an unsheathed sword, cold and sharp. Everyone felt as if Ai Hui¡¯s gaze could pierce their bodies. A cold shiver went down their spines as they subconsciously avoided his gaze.

    "Initially, I intended to sell the snowva through auction but I didn¡¯t expect the Mayor to treat me with such magnificent hospitality. I am indebted to him and I can¡¯t thank him enough. Since everyone is so happy and it¡¯s such a good day today, I shall not wait for the auction anymore. The selling price for the snowva shall be the same as before. You can use essence elemental beans or materials to pay for them." Ai Hui said with a loud and clear voice.

    Immediately, amotion broke out among the crowd.

    The price of fifty thousand essence elemental beans for one liter of A-grade fire liquid was rather enticing. If it was sold through auction, it could easily fetch an auction price that was twice the current selling price. This implied that they had a higher profit margin now.

    A-grade fire liquids were extremely scarce on the market. As such, they did not need to worry about the demand for it. Some of them had even thought of suitable buyers for it already. If they could sell the snowva to Newlight City or Skyheart City, they could even get ten times their usual profits.

    They were waiting and calcting in their hearts.

    Ai Hui remainedposed. The reason why he¡¯d changed his mind and decided to sell the snowva at a low price rather than selling it at an auction was because he suddenly understood the situation everyone was in.

    The snowva was very valuable in the market now and Central Pine Valley was able to mass produce them. However, rather than trying to find a high selling price for the snowva, what they needed to do now was to quickly open up a market for it. Following which, they had to obtain more essence elemental beans and use them to exchange for more resources.

    They needed to increase their strength fast.

    Ai Hui could see greed and desire in many people¡¯s eyes. The snowva was a sure moneymaker that held a deadly enticement over anyone with any powers. As long as they could obtain the refinement method for snowva, their strength could rise sharply in a short period of time.

    For sure, when the news of snowva spread to the outside world, there would be people trying to find out about the city they had built and the refinement method for making the snowva.

    These people would rack their brains to achieve these goals by hook or by crook.

    Even Masters would covet this moneymaker.

    Ai Hui knew that they were in a race against time. Only by making sure they had sufficient self-defense capabilities, before those covetous individuals knew of Central Pine Valley¡¯s existence, could they then protect this moneymaker.

    So they must act fast!

    The faster they sold the snowva, the quicker they would grow stronger.

    Ai Hui was clear-headed. By the time he thought of the crux of the issue, his back was drenched in sweat. Right now, he was rejoicing. He was d that the two Masters in Clearwater City weren¡¯t in the city now and they were dealing with Venerable Volcano instead. Otherwise, they might¡¯ve been in deep trouble.

    If Qiao Meiqi bore malice towards them, he would definitely have the capability to detain them with the help of his two Masters.

    Tackling the root of the problem was always the best solution.

    Ai Hui looked very calm. Only by staying calm could he make other people feel that he was unfathomable and not easily predictable.

    If he behaved slightly flustered, these people would engulf him like sharks that had smelled blood.

    "A good product like this is rare."

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s voice broke the silence. With a wide smile on his face, he stood up and saluted Ai Hui. Following which, he said, "Since no one wants to say anything, then don¡¯t me me for being too greedy. I will buy five liters of the remaining ten liters of snowva. As for the materials that Mr Ai Hui needs, I will procure them via various channels. It would be an extraordinary humiliation and shame to Clearwater City if we let Lightning de return home empty-handed."

    Ai Hui had to admit that Qiao Meiqi was a very formidable individual.

    This man was able to move calmly towards the prevailing position at the most critical moment. Furthermore, he did not covet petty profits and always thought of the big picture. He had an extraordinary breadth of mind.

    Upon hearing Qiao Meiqi¡¯s words, the rest of the crowd heaved a sigh of relief and followed suit.

    "It¡¯s our loss if Mr Ai Hui can¡¯t buy anything from a business hub like our Clearwater City! Our enterprise will purchase one liter and we will try our best to obtain the resources that Mr Ai Hui needs."

    "I want one liter! Mr Ai Hui, I have seen your list of resources, no problem!"

    "I want one liter too! Our enterprise will do our best to get what Mr Ai Hui needs!"

    ...

    In the blink of an eye, all of the remaining snowva was sold.

    Ai Hui could not help but express his gratitude to Qiao Meiqi, "Mayor, I will always remember your kindness. From today onwards, Clearwater City is my friend."

    Ai Hui had to return this favor.

    If not for Qiao Meiqi, these enterprises would not have gone all out in buying Ai Hui¡¯s snowva. Qiao Meiqi was truly worthy of being the mayor of Clearwater City. His influence over Clearwater City was unmatchable.

    Furthermore, Ai Hui could also sense that the number of the surrounding covetous gazes had reduced significantly after Qiao Meiqi had spoken.

    Everyone here was shrewd and sharp. Even though they did not know exactly why the mayor would think so highly of Ai Hui, they would not do anything stupid after seeing that the mayor had made his stand.

    Ai Hui had yet to find out Qiao Meiqi¡¯s real intentions. However, from the look of it, Qiao Meiqi did not seem to have any malice towards Ai Hui and his party.

    After the snowva was sold out, the mood was dampened significantly and all of them left one by one. The banquet hade to an end as well. A lot of people approached Ai Hui and tried to find out the location of his city, but Ai Hui merely smiled at them.

    When most of the businessmen had left, Kang Ding walked towards Ai Hui and said, "Mr Ai Hui, do you still remember you have one more item that you¡¯ve entrusted to me to appraise?"

    Ai Hui thought of that unknown beast bone and quickly asked, "How about it? Is the result out?"

    Ever since Ai Hui found the unknown beast bone in the pile of scarletfire flying fox bones, he had been racking his brain to find out which beast it came from. The texture of the beast bone was rather outstanding. It could not be easily damaged by any weapons.

    Kang Ding¡¯s face was filled with regret as he took out a package and passed it to Ai Hui, "I¡¯m very sorry. My knowledge is too shallow and I can¡¯t determine which beast ites from."

    Ai Hui took over the package. The beast bone within it was in good condition. Since even Appraiser Kang Ding did not know where it came from, it most likely belonged to a dire beast that was extinct or a dire beast that had migrated to the depths of Wilderness.

    "There¡¯s a limit to anyone¡¯s capabilities. Furthermore, there are numerous species of dire beasts in this world. Mr Kang, don¡¯t be too hard on yourself," Ai Hui consoled Kang Ding.

    Kang Ding smiled, "Mr Ai Hui, there¡¯s no need for you to console me. There are too many things and creatures unknown to us. Elementalists¡¯ understanding towards Wilderness is still very shallow. However, even though I can¡¯t recognize which beast it is from, I was still able to discover some interesting features of it that might interest you."

    "I¡¯d like to hear about them," Ai Hui was slightly curious.

    "While I was appraising it, I found out that its fire attributed nature is hidden, as if it¡¯s being covered by ayer of hard crust. If you truly want to understand its characteristics, you will have to break through theyer of crust." Kang Ding exined.

    "How do I break thisyer of crust?" Ai Hui asked.

    "Since it¡¯s a fire elemental material, the best way to break it is with fire. Since you can mass produce snowva, that means you have very high-grade mes. You can try using high-grade mes to burn through it. Of course, this is just my assumption. Whether it will work or not, I¡¯m not sure. Furthermore, by doing this you will risk damaging the beast bone. Think twice before you try this method." Kang Ding answered.

    Ai Hui nodded his head solemnly and replied, "Yes, I will."

    He was thinking of using White Cluster mes to burn it and see what would happen to it.

    After settling the issue, Kang Ding bade farewell to Ai Hui and left.

    At this moment, Qiao Meiqi walked towards Ai Hui and said, "Mr Ai Hui, you might have to stay in Clearwater City for some time. I will need a few days to prepare the resources. The amount of resources you need is far too massive."

    Ai Hui knew Qiao Meiqi wasn¡¯t exaggerating.

    It was not possible for a purchase that was worth six hundred thousand essence elemental beans to bepleted in a short period of time. This purchase was thergest business deal in the history of Clearwater City.

    "Many thanks to you, Mayor, for your help today," Ai Hui expressed his gratitude to Qiao Meiqi.

    "I should be the one thanking you for taking care of my Clearwater City. We are going to make a huge ton of money off such a huge business deal this time around. I am a businessman and I built Clearwater City so that I can do business at ease," Qiao Meiqiughed cheerfully.

    Qiao Meiqi was right. Such a big business deal was rarely seen in Clearwater City. He bought five liters of snowva in one go and this would allow him to make a terrifying amount of profit.

    "Mayor, I am thinking of giving the exclusive dealership of snowva to Clearwater City, what do you think?" Ai Hui suddenly said.

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s body trembled while his eyes lit up brightly all of a sudden. With excitement, he replied, "Really?"

    Even Venerable Volcano was startled upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s words. Gong Peiyao¡¯s jaw dropped involuntarily as incredulity filled her face.

    Is this guy mad? Doesn¡¯t he know how much profits he will lose by doing this?

    The next moment, a strong sense of jealousy arose in her heart.

    That¡¯s right! Jealousy!

    So much money!

    She looked at Uncle Qiao and it was like she¡¯d seen an enormous piece of meat pie fall from the sky and drop on his face!

 Chapter 445: Conditions And An Unforeseen Event

    Chapter 445: Conditions And An Unforeseen Event

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui remained calm. "Yes, I have this intention. Is the Mayor willing to agree to this deal?"

    At this point in time, Qiao Meiqi¡¯s facial expression was solemn, "Yes, I am very willing to agree to this deal. What are your conditions?"

    Ai Hui nodded his head and replied, "I have a few conditions."

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s facial expression rxed. It was normal to have some conditions for business deals. He would have suspicions if there were no conditions at all. With a deep voice, Qiao Meiqi replied, "I¡¯d like to hear about the details."

    "The first condition, for every transaction, payment using essence elemental beans cannot exceed thirty percent of the full amount of the transaction. The remaining amount has to be paid using various resources. We don¡¯t care where Mayor obtains the resources from. We will provide you with a list of the resources we need," Ai Hui said.

    Qiao Meiqi did some mental calctions and nodded his head, "If the resources that are used for the payment do not exceed the value of one million essence elemental beans, then it shouldn¡¯t be much of a problem. Other than my own trade route, I will form a Clearwater Trade Association with other enterprises to obtain other trade routes as well. However, if the amount of resources exceeds the worth of one million essence elemental beans, this deal will be very difficult to pull off. After all, the location of Clearwater City is rather isted. It is not an ideal business hub."

    Ai Hui smiled and replied, "It won¡¯t be that much."

    One million essence elemental beans was equivalent to twenty liters of snowva. At this point in time, It wasn¡¯t much of a problem for Central Pine Valley to produce this amount of snowva. However, if a huge amount of snowva appeared on the market, the price of snowva would decrease sharply.

    "That¡¯s good then," Qiao Meiqi heaved a sigh of relief, "Right now, A-grade fire liquids are in really severe scarcity. However, ordinary people might not be able to afford them at the current price. Furthermore, most of the fire elementalists are not very rich now. These factors will affect the sale of snowva. I feel that we shouldn¡¯t put up more than ten liters of snowva on the market every month for the time being. We still need time to expand the market for snowva."

    "Alright, we will settle on ten liters of snowva every month for the time being," Ai Hui agreed.

    What Qiao Meiqi said made sense. This was also why Ai Hui decided to give him the exclusive dealership of snowva. With regards to managing a business, Ai Hui and his counterparts paled inparison to Qiao Meiqi. Furthermore, the amount of resources that Central Pine Valley needed was massive. It was practically impossible for Ai Hui and his counterparts to obtain these resources all by themselves.

    Right now, the most important task for everyone, including Ai Hui and Iron Lady, was to train.

    Especially Ai Hui himself.

    Iron Lady had purposely suppressed her base level. This was a very unique training method. In reality, her strength was already equivalent to a Master¡¯s.

    If there were two Masters in Central Pine Valley, any average strength person would not dare to mess with them.

    As such, it was very important for him to increase his strength.

    This was also why Ai Hui was willing to give the exclusive dealership of snowva to Qiao Meiqi. Their time was very precious and he did not want to waste it on the issue of selling snowva.

    Even though Ai Hui was a money grubber, he clearly understood that wealth would only push Central Pine Valley to death if they did not have sufficient strength.

    "What about the second condition?" Qiao Meiqi asked.

    "The second condition is rted to the delivery method. I hope you can deliver the goods to our forward operating base," Ai Hui continued.

    Qiao Meiqi did not agree immediately and asked carefully, "Where is your forward operating base?"

    "Lemon Camping Ground," Ai Hui replied.

    Upon hearing this, Qiao Meiqi was slightly surprised. He cast a nce at Ai Hui and said, "I didn¡¯t expect your city to be located even deeper in Wilderness than us."

    Qiao Meiqi knew where Lemon Camping Ground was. Therefore, he could guess that Ai Hui¡¯s city was in the depths of Wilderness.

    Ai Hui continued to ask, "So what do you say?"

    "If it¡¯s at Lemon Camping Ground, then there shouldn¡¯t be any problem," Qiao Meiqi replied.

    Ai Hui reached out his palm for a handshake and smiled, "So we have reached a deal?"

    A smile spread across Qiao Meiqi¡¯s face as he reached out his palm to shake Ai Hui¡¯s hand, "Deal!"

    Both of them looked at each other and smiled.

    Qiao Meiqi knew he could make a massive profit from this huge meat pie. By importing and exporting snowva and various resources, he could make money off of both sides. Ai Hui did not have enough time to trade to individuals and found this troublesome to do. On the contrary, he had plenty of time and did not find it troublesome at all.

    Ai Hui felt that he had made a gain as well. Even though he had lost out on a huge amount of profit, he had saved a lot of time from agreeing to this deal.

    There were many advantages of setting Lemon Camping Ground as the delivery point. They could conserve their manpower, cut short the journey for collecting the delivery, and they were more familiar with the area around Lemon Camping Ground as well.

    They could also avoid covetous individuals that were trying to find out the exact location of Central Pine Valley.

    The exact location of Central Pine Valley would be found out sooner orter. However, theter this day came, the better it would be for Ai Hui and the rest.

    Ai Hui had made up his mind that once he returned to Central Pine Valley, he was going to supervise everyone in carrying out an intense training regime. Without sufficient strength, they would not be able to preserve the refinement method for snowva.

    This period of buffer time was exceptionally important to them.

    The excited Qiao Meiqi could not help but go straight to work. The amount of resources that Ai Hui needed was immense. And searching for these resources was much more troublesome than just giving Ai Hui essence elemental beans.

    Venerable Volcano examined Ai Hui with aplicated look on his face.

    Ai Hui cast a nce at him and said, "Old fogey, what¡¯s with this facial expression? Are you implying that the price I sold the snowva to you for is too expensive, or the price I sold to Qiao Meiqi is too cheap?"

    Venerable Volcano shook his head and replied emotionally, "No, it¡¯s just that I didn¡¯t expect you to have grown to this level. You¡¯re amazing."

    He was shocked by Ai Hui¡¯s performance today.

    It was very hard for him to link this Ai Hui, who had a sense of propriety and knew how to grasp the situation well, with the Ai Hui that had hosted a porridge banquet for everyone in Peace City.

    The current Ai Hui had an indescribable sense of calmness and bearing.

    He was decisive, did not covet petty gains, and was able to defuse dangerous situations in the blink of an eye. After bringing Clearwater City on board, no one would dare to trouble Ai Hui and his counterparts without taking Clearwater City into consideration.

    Such a cunningd!

    Venerable Volcano shook his head and smiled to himself. Youngsters nowadays are getting more and more cunning.

    .....

    Under tight protection, the luxuriously dressed, purple-robed Jiao Shien returned to his home. On the way back, all his guards were on high alert.

    Other than being vignt, all the guards¡¯ faces were also filled with pride and glory. Apart from the mayor, there were only five enterprises that had bought the snowva. If one was familiar with Clearwater City, he or she would realize that these five enterprises were thergest enterprises in Clearwater City. Being one of these five enterprises, the Jiao Enterprise¡¯s strength and reputation in Clearwater City was top-notch.

    A bunch of Jiao Enterprise¡¯s employees were waiting at the main hall of the house.

    Jiao Shien walked into the main hall and sat in the seat of honor. Everyone stepped up to congratte him one by one.

    A look of satisfaction appeared on Jiao Shien¡¯s face. Being among the first batch to buy the snowva symbolized the social status of his enterprise.

    After everyone took a look at the snowva, Jiao Shien said with a in tone, "The other party does not need essence elemental beans. He prefers materials and supplies. Everyone put in more effort to obtain these resources and don¡¯t bring disgrace to our enterprise."

    All the employees bowed and acknowledged Jia Shien¡¯s words.

    Jiao Shien waved his hands and continued, "Everyone, go and do your work. I don¡¯t need anyone here."

    The employees bowed and walked out of the main hall in a line.

    The huge main hall became empty once more. Jiao Shien did not show any intention of leaving the main hall and continued to sit on the chair while drinking his tea.

    "You have done a good job."

    Suddenly, a delicate voice resounded through the main hall.

    Two figures mysteriously appeared in the empty main hall.

    There was a man and a woman.

    The man was short and he was holding a dark-green vine staff. His face was haggard and he looked as if he was around fifty years old. His eye sockets were huge but they were empty, looking extremely horrifying.

    On the contrary, the woman was tall and slim and her legs were long and slender. Her face was shaped like a peach and her limpid and bright eyes looked as if they could steal people¡¯s souls.

    "Sir! Madam!" Jiao Shien stood up hurriedly.

    The woman walked towards the snowva. Filled with curiosity, she reached out one of her fingers and dipped it into the crystal-clear snowva. "So this is snowva!"

    "Madam, don¡¯t do that!" Jiao Shien¡¯s face turned pale with horror.

    The woman¡¯s finger began to burn in a wisp of mes. In the blink of an eye, her pale white fingerbone could be clearly seen. Thedy did not show any signs of being in pain. With a flick of her finger, the mes on her finger were extinguished. Brand-new flesh was already growing back on her pale white fingerbone at a visible speed. Within a short period of time, her finger became snow-white and tender once more, showing zero signs of being burnt at all.

    Jiao Shien was dumbstruck.

    The blind old man stood in front of the snowva and reached out his palm and ced it on the snowva. After a while, he gasped in surprise, "An excellent fire liquid! How much money have you spent on it?"

    Jiao Shien looked as if he had just woken up from a dream and quickly replied, "Fifty thousand essence elemental beans."

    The blind old man replied, "This price is rather good. Do you know the refinement method for it?"

    "I don¡¯t know," Jiao Shien shook his head.

    "How is it? It¡¯s very valuable, right?" the woman said cheekily, "If we can get the refinement method for it, it will be a legitimate moneymaker for us. You will have enough money to take care of your people for rest of their lives."

    The old man did not care about her and carried on examining the snowva.

    After a long while, the blind old man withdrew his palm and replied with a hoarse voice, "Excellent fire liquid. It¡¯s worthy of being an A-grade fire liquid. I am in."

    "This business has no cost price. Once we get the refinement method for it, we have no worries for the rest of our lives. Let¡¯s split the refinement method fifty-fifty."

    "Alright, fifty-fifty."

    The blind old man nodded his head.

    Jiao Shien was extremely excited as a greedy look shed across his face. The worth of even half of the refinement method was incalcble. Once they seeded in obtaining the refinement method, Jiao Enterprise would be the most powerful and wealthy enterprise. He no longer needed to fear Qiao Meiqi.

    A flush appeared on Jiao Shien¡¯s face as his breathing became heavy.

    Suddenly, his body froze.

    A dark-green vine pierced through his heart.

    "It¡¯s better to have less people who know about this kind of matter," the blind old man said indifferently.

    Jiao Shien looked nkly at his bosses. The woman smiled at him without showing any intention of saving him. Following which, Jiao Shien became dizzy and his vision became fuzzy. Then, he copsed on the ground.

    Until the point where his consciousness hadpletely disappeared, he still could not understand why he was killed.

    The woman spread her arms innocently and said, "I have said before that this is not a trap. Brother Long, do you believe me now? All I want is to obtain the refinement method for the snowva."

    "Such a vicious heart. He must have been blind to have served you wholeheartedly," the old man sneered.

    "You¡¯re indeed right. I also don¡¯t understand why so many people are willing to serve me wholeheartedly. Brother Long, don¡¯t think of hogging the entire proceeds from the refinement method." The woman smiled.

    "Hogging?" The blind old man shook his head, "No one can hog such a gigantic piece of meat."

    "Seems like Brother Long has agreed to my proposal?"

    "After we seed in obtaining the refinement method, you will go your way and I will go mine."

    "No problem."

    "Then how should we handle this?"

    "How can you kill someone without setting fire to the ce as well?" the woman chuckled, "As for this snowva, we will of course split it fifty-fifty. I know how to behave myself."

    Raging mes engulfed Jiao Enterprise, lighting up the night sky of Clearwater City.

 Chapter 446: Han Liâ€™s Challenge

    Chapter 446: Han Li¡¯s Challenge

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    "Something happened to Jiao Enterprise?"

    When Ai Hui received this news in the early morning of the second day, he was slightly shocked. He had been thinking about the uses for [Yin Yang Sword Formation] for the whole night and came up with some new ideas.

    Ai Hui was rather bold in his path to pursue swordsmanship. He had not received a systematic education on swordsmanship and this kept him from being bound by too many restrictions. As he kept on learning, he found a new path of swordsmanship that belonged to him. He valued his own ideas. Even if his ideassted for merely a second, he would still try to gain some insights from them.

    "Yes, Mayor is already on his way there and will be back soon. Please wait for a moment," the guard replied politely.

    "Yesterday night I saw a ze in the direction of Jiao Enterprise," Shi Xueman whispered to Ai Hui.

    "Ai Hui, Lou Lan saw it too," Lou Lan said with a solemn tone too.

    "Alright, got it," Ai Hui nodded his head.

    His facial expression turned grave. Was it a coincidence that a fire broke out at this point of time? He remembered that Jiao Enterprise was one of the enterprises that had bought the snowva.

    Was someone creating trouble?

    Ai Hui went into deep thought. However, he had limited knowledge of Clearwater City and could not think of anyone who would do this kind of thing.

    He decided to wait for the mayor toe back before thinking about it again.

    After a while, the mayor and his counterparts had returned. To Ai Hui¡¯s astonishment, Gong Peiyao and Venerable Volcano had gone along with the mayor too. Ai Hui realized that Qiao Meiqi and the Gong Residence had an extraordinary rtionship. Their rtionship was far deeper than what outsiders had expected.

    Ai Hui stood up and weed them, "What happened? Did you make any discoveries?"

    With a gloomy look on his face, Qiao Meiqi shook his head and replied, "No, I have not made many discoveries. The corpse has been incinerated. I suspect the victim might have overturned the snowva and burned himself in it. The snowva has disappeared without a trace. However, there are some remnants of the snowva¡¯s aura in the air."

    "Only Jiao Shien is dead, everyone else in Jiao Enterprise was not harmed," Venerable Volcano interjected, "All the bricks and bs at the scene have been incinerated. The aura of snowva in the air is very strong. The fire should have been caused by the snowva."

    "Snowva can¡¯t create such a huge fire," Ai Hui furrowed his eyebrows.

    "I don¡¯t know about that. A fire liquid like snowva is very dangerous. If it¡¯s not a fire elementalist that handles it, a slight moment of carelessness can lead to a terrible tragedy," Venerable Volcano shook his head.

    "ording to the employees of Jiao Enterprise, after Jiao Shien spoke to them, he stayed in the main hall by himself. This is his daily habit," Gong Peiyao added at this point in time.

    "Don¡¯t worry, I will fork out the resources that Jiao Enterprise owed you. I have known Old Jiao for many years, so I will still help him out at this point of time," the mayor said.

    Ai Hui did not reject Qiao Meiqi and asked, "Is it possible that someone is plotting something in the dark?"

    The mayor and Gong Peiyao looked at each other. Following which, the mayor replied, "We are worried about this as well. Due to Han Li¡¯s appearance in Clearwater City, we suspect it has something to do with Madam Ye."

    "Who is Han Li?" A nk look appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face.

    "You make a fool out of him at the market and you still act as if you don¡¯t know him?" the mayor chuckled.

    Ai Hui came to a realization. "Oh, it¡¯s him! However, this is really my first time hearing his name. Mayor, pardon me for being ignorant, but can you give me a brief introduction about this guy?"

    Upon seeing that Ai Hui really did not know who Han Li was, Qiao Meiqi began to exin to him, "Han Li is a rising swordsman and he is from Karakorum Sword League. He is widely regarded by many as the one who will most likely be the second master swordsman. Reportedly, he is much more powerful and talented than the Silverwheel Swordsman, Chu Zhaoyang."

    Ai Hui was stunned when he heard the name "Chu Zhaoyang".

    Shi Xuemanughed silently to herself on one side. With a calm and collected tone, she asked, "He is more powerful than Chu Zhaoyang?"

    Upon noticing the change in Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression, Qiao Meiqi thought Ai Hui was annoyed by his words. He hurriedly said, "Chu Zhaoyang isn¡¯t really that impressive. Those who said he is the second best swordsman in the world are merely ignorant individuals. After witnessing Brother Ai¡¯s swordsmanship, I feel that Han Li is not a big deal after all.

    At this moment, a long and loud whistle suddenly sounded off outside the mayor¡¯s residence.

    "I¡¯m Han Li from Karakorum Sword League. I heard that the renowned Lightning de has arrived in Clearwater City and I¡¯m here to learn a thing or two from you! The path of swordsmanship is solitary and arduous. It inspires me to see someone like Brother Ai, who takes on the same path as me. I hope that Brother Ai can be generous enough to give me a chance to spar with you."

    Everyone in the mayor¡¯s residence froze. Qiao Meiqi stared nkly at Ai Hui.

    Gong Peiyao and Venerable Volcano looked as if they had seen a ghost.

    Ai Hui was very surprised when he heard Han Li challenging him. However, he did not bother with him and shifted his gaze to Gong Peiyao and asked, "Is the Gong Residence on bad terms with Madam Ye?"

    "The Gong Residence has no interest in the disputes between aristocratic families," Gong Peiyao answered with prudence.

    Gong Peiyao was no longer the little girl of the past. Now, she looked extremely mature and experienced.

    Even though Gong Peiyao did not give a direct answer, Ai Hui understood the meaning behind her words. Apparently, the Gong Residence was trying to stay out of the disputes between aristocratic families by not kowtowing to Madam Ye.

    However, even if the trees longed for peace, the wind would never cease. Why would Madam Ye let off a powerful family like the Gong Residence that had a massive influence over the aristocratic families?

    After Ai Hui had gotten to know Madam Ye personally, he knew that the seemingly virtuous and dignified widow was actually a ruthless and decisive individual.

    However, that was the Gong Residence¡¯s business and Ai Hui did not have any intentions to meddle in it.

    The Gong Residence¡¯s attitude made Ai Hui understand why the mayor and the rest thought that Han Li hade to Clearwater City to stir up trouble. When the chief of Karakorum Sword League became the division leader of Sky Edge Division, the Karakorum Sword League automatically became a force that Madam Ye could trust and rely on. The Gong Residence had anticipated that Madam Ye would not be willing to take things lying down.

    Han Li¡¯s voice was surging with elemental energy and it could be heard throughout the city.

    Everyone was staring at Ai Hui. They were very curious about whether or not Ai Hui would ept the challenge.

    Standing outside, Han Li was not discouraged. He yelled the same words once more. Upon hearing his thunderous voice, a lot of people came out of their houses to see what was going on.

    Han Li was an exceptionally talented swordsman that became very famous recently after defeating numerous experts in Skyheart City. Simrly, Ai Hui was of greatly renowned as well. One year ago, he¡¯d single-handedly inflicted heavy losses on the Grass Bandits in Jadeite Forest. The famed snowva was brought about by Ai Hui as well.

    Everyone jumped on the rooftops of their houses and flew towards the mayor¡¯s residence. Not only could they enjoy a show, the show had some heavyweight stars as well.

    Under numerous gazes, Han Li remained calm and grasped his sword hilt tightly as a look of determination swept across his eyes. Ever since he saw Ai Hui executing Karakorum Sword League¡¯s [Yin Yang Sword Formation, no, a [Yin Yang Sword Formation] that was moreplicated and exquisite than the one in Karakorum Sword League, he knew Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship wasparable to his.

    At this moment, he had thrown all his missions to the back of his mind.

    He only had one desire in his mind and that was to have a good fight with Ai Hui. He wanted to see what another swordsmanship expert was like.

    In Karakorum Sword League, his swordsmanship was unbeatable. Currently, other than Karakorum Pris, no one could match up against him in terms of swordsmanship.

    It was so difficult for him to encounter a swordsmanship expert. As such, he was extremely excited. He could only think of two things.

    Sparring! Discussion on swordsmanship!

    Undying determination, evesting passion, this was his path of swordsmanship.

    Inside the mayor¡¯s residence, Gong Peiyao looked at the unconcerned Ai Hui and asked unwittingly, "Ai Hui, you¡¯re not intending to ept the challenge?"

    "Why should I ept the challenge?" A puzzled look appeared upon Ai Hui¡¯s face.

    Gong Peiyao was speechless. Unwilling to ept Ai Hui¡¯s answer, she asked again, "Aren¡¯t you worried that other people will think you¡¯re not as good as Han Li?"

    Ai Hui cast a nce at her and replied, "What have other people¡¯s opinions got to do with me?"

    Gong Peiyao was stunned by Ai Hui¡¯s words and she did not know how to react.

    "You¡¯re still young. When you¡¯re older, you will understand that time is money. You won¡¯t give your money to someone who has nothing to do with you, right? Then why are you wasting time on them?" Ai Hui continued with a solemn tone.

    Gong Peiyao was dumbstruck.

    Shi Xueman, who was holding back herughter, turned her face around.

    Qiao Meiqi looked startled. Apparently, this was the first time he¡¯d heard someone interpret the phrase "time is money" like this. He was unable to refute Ai Hui at all.

    After holding herself back for quite a while, Gong Peiyao clenched her teeth and asked, "How then will youe to ept the challenge?"

    "Pay me money," Ai Hui said as if it was a matter of course, "Shouldn¡¯t he pay me money if he is wasting my time? My time is very precious and the price for my time is very high. I am an expensive individual!"

    "What if I pay you money?" Gong Peiyao gritted her teeth.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up and put on an aloof look on his face, "Hmm, that depends on how much you pay me. I am an expensive individual. You see, if he wants to learn a thing or two from me, I have to charge him a school fee. If you want to see me and him fight, that means I am putting up a performance for you and I have to charge you a performance fee. When an expert of my level performs for you, it¡¯s a disservice to me. Since it¡¯s a disservice to me, the performance fee will be higher. I can¡¯t ept a low performance fee. It¡¯s not that I look down on you and think that you don¡¯t have enough money."

    "How much?" Gong Peiyao asked annoyed.

    "Since we have known each other for so long, I shall give you a discount. The price of two liters of snowva. As long as you can pay up now, I will beat him up on the spot for you," Ai Hui replied.

    Gong Peiyao was shocked. The price of two liters of snowva was equivalent to one hundred thousand essence elemental beans. She naturally did not have such an amount of money.

    She cast a piteous look at Shi Xueman, crying for her help

    A smile appeared in Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes as she replied, "Don¡¯t look at me like that, he was always this self-interested."

    This was the first time Gong Peiyao had came across such a weird fellow. She continued angrily, "What about your honor? What about your reputation?"

    With his face filled with contempt, Ai Hui replied nonchntly, "Can these two things be exchanged for money? They can¡¯t, right? If they are things that can¡¯t be exchanged for money, what¡¯s the point of having them? Lou Lan, let me ask you, do you want honor and reputation or do you want money?"

    Lou Lan crooked his head and thought about the question. After a while, he replied with a serious tone, "Lou Lan wants Ai Hui."

    "Hahaha, Lou Lan is still the best," Ai Hui beamed with joy.

    "Lou Lan, what about me?" Shi Xueman chirped in.

    Once again, Lou Lan crooked his head and answered with a solemn tone, "Lou Lan wants Xueman."

    "Xueman likes Lou Lan too," A sweet smile that could melt icebergs appeared on Shi Xueman¡¯s face.

    "Lou Lan, what about me? What about me?" Gong Peiyao hurriedly reached out her arms and asked.

    "Yaoyao, you¡¯re wee to y with me anytime," Lou Lan replied with a solemn tone.

    Gong Peiyao¡¯s face was filled with jealousy as the maturity she disyed earlier vanished into thin air. She shrieked frantically, "Ahhhhh! Why don¡¯t I have a sand puppet like Lou Lan!"

    At this point of time, everyone had already forgotten about Han Li who was still standing outside the mayor¡¯s residence.

    A smile appeared on Qiao Meiqi¡¯s face as he looked at all of them having fun together. A look of admiration shed across his face as his gazended upon Ai Hui.

    In the past, Qiao Meiqi could not understand why Shi Xueman and the rest would follow a nobody like Ai Hui. However, after getting to know Ai Hui personally, he had to admit that he was a very interesting individual.

    Han Li¡¯s challenge to Ai Hui resounded through the air for the third time.

    Everyone looked at each other andughed. That¡¯s right, why should they waste their time on someone who had nothing to do with them?

 Chapter 447: The Death Of Great Elder

    Chapter 447: The Death Of Great Elder

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Yang Xiaodong did not expect such a terrible mess to await him upon his return to Clearwater City.

    Yang Wuchang had created a huge trouble for him. The mayor sent for him to reprimand him, which he seldom did. Afterwards, the mayor still wanted him to apologize to Ai Hui.

    Yang Xiaodong felt somewhat gloomy. He was a Master and had to apologize to someone who wasn¡¯t. If not for the fact that he knew the mayor¡¯s character very well, he would have fallen out with him.

    After making some enquiries, however, he finally learned who his nephew had offended.

    Shi Beihai¡¯s daughter, Shi Xueman!

    Yang Xiaodong was scared out of his wits. Shi Beihai!

    Even though he and Shi Beihai were both Masters, the disparity between their strengths and statuses was extremely wide. Yang Xiaodong finally understood why he had to apologize to the other party. Wait, wasn¡¯t he supposed to apologize to Ai Hui?

    Who is this Ai Hui? He did not act rashly and made some enquiries once more. It was then that he realized that Ai Hui was the leader of the Central Pine Faction, that Shi Xueman was a member of the Central Pine Faction, and of the sensational snowva.

    Even though he was a water elemental master, he still knew the worth of an A-grade fire liquid. A hint of greed shed across his mind. Why wasn¡¯t he the one who possessed the valuable snowva?

    Within the blink of an eye, however, this hint of greed vanished into thin air.

    The information he¡¯d obtained was very detailed. Other people might not realize it, but as a Master, Yang Xiaodong realized that Shi Xueman waspletely capable of making the breakthrough to be a Master. For some unknown reason, she was suppressing her breakthrough.

    As for Ai Hui¡¯s strength, Yang Xiaodong was still unsure how to measure it. He had never seen anything like the [Yin Yang Sword Formation] and so could not determine Ai Hui¡¯s strength. The fact that Ai Hui had refused Han Li¡¯s challenge, however, had be the main topic of idle conversations in Clearwater City.

    With the backing of a colossus like Shi Beihai and the Central Pine Faction, he had no chance of contending against the other party.

    A wise man would submit to circumstances. Yang Xiaodong went straight to the mayor¡¯s residence and sincerely apologized to Ai Hui.

    The atmosphere between both parties was rather harmonious.

    Yang Xiaodong knew he was in the wrong and lowered his tone. Ai Hui was also not foolish enough to offend a Master over such a small issue.

    This unhappy incident was forgotten just like that.

    Yang Xiaodong heaved a sigh of relief. He was rather satisfied with his life in Clearwater City and did not want to change his home for the time being. He even gave Yang Wuchang a warning, instructing him to stay well-behaved.

    Qiao Meiqi had built a Master¡¯s residence for each of his two Masters. Yang Xiaodong¡¯s was in a corner of Clearwater City. He liked tranquility and there weren¡¯t any buildings around his residence.

    He entered his residence as usual.

    Along the way, his servants stopped and greeted him one by one.

    He climbed the flight of stairs and walked straight to the study room. Usually, if he encountered any difficult problems, he would lock himself in the study room to ponder them alone.

    Just as he ced his hand on the doorknob and was about to enter the room, he suddenly froze mid-motion.

    "Xiaodong, you really have poor vignce."

    A deep, hoarse voice came from the study room.

    Upon hearing this voice, Yang Xiaodong raised his head abruptly as an emotional look swept across his eyes. Without any hesitation, he pushed open the door and entered the room. Within the study room, the back view of a short man holding a staff appeared before his eyes.

    .....

    This was not the first time Ye Baiyi had an audience with the Holy Emperor.

    In the high dome-like sky was a figure who appeared to be sitting amidst the clouds. Before the Holy Emperor¡¯s face were energy undtions that made his face look fuzzy. The oppressive aura he released was far stronger than it had been in the past, making the onlookers beneath him feel as if there was a knife at the back of their necks.

    Ye Baiyi knew that the Holy Emperor had already suppressed his energy undtions.

    The Holy Emperor led a reclusive life and seldom asked about daily matters, yet still possessed absolute authority. In the face of absolute authority, no one dared to show any intention of rebelling against the Holy Emperor.

    On one asion, there had been an official who had performed his job poorly and incurred the wrath of Holy Emperor. At that time, the sky had been dyed scarlet and the air had zed with searing mes. That official had been devoured on the spot without any remaining dregs.

    No one had anyints about Holy Emperor. Absolute power gave rise to absolute order. Nothing was more important than this for the newly established God Nation.

    The Holy Emperor had a mysterious origin. Even God Nation¡¯s internal department knew almost nothing about him.

    Bei Shuisheng was one of the few people who knew a thing or two about Holy Emperor, but he seldom spoke about it. The Sick Tiger of God Nation never left his cage, the piercing Cold Pce.

    Ye Baiyi did not know Holy Emperor¡¯s purpose in calling him over.

    Currently, God Nation had harvested its first batch of jade fruits, of which there were countless numbers. The internal department of God Nation was steadily strengthening. Compared to the Elders Guild and Jadeite Forest, God Nation¡¯s strength was no doubt the best.

    "Official Ye, how is the ongoing battle at the front line?

    Holy Emperor¡¯s voice echoed through the sky from a distance. The voice was imposing and domineering, causing the air to tremble.

    "Reporting to Your Majesty, the situation at the front line is stable. There are victories and defeats for both our side and the enemy¡¯s side," Ye Baiyi reported with honesty.

    "Is the opposing general Shi Beihai?" Holy Emperor asked.

    "Yes," Ye Baiyi replied.

    "Does Official Ye have confidence in obtaining victory?" Holy Emperor asked again.

    "No, I have no confidence," Ye Baiyi summoned his courage and replied.

    Softughter sounded from above Ye Baiyi, but it sounded thunderous in his ears. Ye Baiyi¡¯s heart sank. Holy Emperor was known for his moodiness. If Ye Baiyi was unlucky, he would be in deep trouble.

    However, Ye Baiyi did not expect to hear the Holy Emperor¡¯s next words. With a cheerful tone, the Holy Emperor replied, "I know that Shi Beihai is a courageous and resolute individual. He is a valiant general. It¡¯s a pity that this valiant general is not under me."

    Ye Baiyi somehow did not know what Holy Emperor was thinking. It was obviously something regretful, but he said it with such a cheerful tone.

    Ye Baiyi did not dare to question further.

    Holy Emperor stoppedughing and his tone became solemn once more. "If I want Official Ye to annihte the North Sea Division, how many people will you need?"

    Ye Baiyi replied with a deep voice, "It¡¯s hard to determine the exact number. The North Sea Division has aplete organizational structure and is very powerful. Other than the North Sea Division, the Elders Guild also has a few rather well maintainedbat divisions. Especially the three central divisions, their strength is unfathomable. Once Elders Guild sees that the North Sea Division is in danger, they will definitely send out reinforcements. Once this happens, we will be engaged in a long, drawn-out and deadlocked battle against them. Your Majesty, we cannot yet determine the oue..."

    "What if Shi Beihai doesn¡¯t have reinforcements?" Holy Emperor interrupted Ye Baiyi.

    "No reinforcements?" Ye Baiyi was stunned. Suddenly, he understood what Holy Emperor meant and a cold shiver went down his spine.

    "Official Ye, if the North Sea Division doesn¡¯t have reinforcements, how do we annihte them?" Holy Emperor¡¯s voice sounded as if it was drifting aimlessly in the clouds.

    Ye Baiyi fell silent as he felt an indescribable sadness. After a while, he raised his head; his eyes were red. With a hoarse voice, he replied, "Shi Beihai is brave and shrewd. Other than engaging him in war of attrition, there is no other way. One soldier for one soldier, one general for one general."

    Holy Emperor gave a soft chuckle and said, "One soldier for one soldier will do, there¡¯s no need for us to sacrifice our generals. God Nation has sufficient soldiers. With Official Ye leading our troops, how can we lose this battle? All the armies in God Nation are avable for Official Ye to use and deploy. No matter how many soldiers we lose, I only have one request."

    Ye Baiyi bowed and replied, "Please tell me your request, Your Majesty."

    "I want to see the head of Shi Beihai."

    The crazy and domineering voice resounded through the air like surging mes. It was as if the air was being hit by a heavy hammer, creating a buzzing sonic boom that caused the entire pce to tremble.

    Outside the pce, the sun became blood red.

    .....

    Skyheart City looked as if it had be a ck and white world, devoid of any colors.

    Everyone was mourning. A candle was lit at the door of every house. As night fell, the candles in the city became brighter, resembling the countless stars in the night sky.

    Great Elder had passed away.

    Emissaries from various cities had gathered at Skyheart City to pay their respects to the deceased Great Elder.

    With regards to Great Elder¡¯s death, everyone was feeling extremelyplicated. Having been in power for so many decades, he did not reallymit any irreversible mistakes. He even had a few admirable achievements. Despite all this, the fall of the Avalon of Five Elements happened entirely in his hands.

    Facing the menacing Blood of God, the Elders Guild had been slow and senile in its reactions, like Great Elder. The foundation of the Avalon of Five Elements had been destroyed in his hands.

    Now, they could only struggle to survive in the Wilderness.

    The prosperous age of the Avalon of Five Elements seemed like it was just yesterday. The state that elementalists were in now was miserable.

    Had Great Elder been ipetent? Who other than Great Elder could save the Avalon of Five Elements from this desperate crisis? Who could lead everyone to the light?

    Not only was everyone feeling sad over the death of Great Elder, but they were also feeling worried for their own futures. The future was now shrouded in heavy winds and torrential rain; which path should they now follow?

    No one knew the answer and it only made them more sad.

    Great Elder passed away in the second year of Elemental Destion Age. It marked the end point of the Elders Guild that had ruled Avalon of Five Elements for thousands of years. Only three Elders attended Great Elder¡¯s funeral.

    Even the emissaries sent by powerful aristocratic families like the Gong Residence were unknown and insignificant individuals.

    Aspared to the absolute authority and supreme status Great Elder had held while he had been alive, the turnout for Great Elder¡¯s funeral made one sigh in sorrow.

    Madam Ye¡¯s face turned ashen.

    Everyone knew an era had ended; this was the beginning of a new era.

    The isted Clearwater City appeared to have nothing to do with the maelstrom, but Ai Hui and his counterparts still heard the news of Great Elder¡¯s death at the first instance.

    The Gong Residence¡¯s unique way of transmitting messages allowed them to obtain the news almost immediately.

    Everyone was feelingplicated now.

    As an important figure who represented the past era had left this world, everyone could not help but sigh in sorrow.

    Gong Peiyao was deep in thought. Madam Ye and the Gong Residence had an irreconcble rtionship. With Madam Ye in power, she would not let the Gong Residence off easily.

    Gong Peiyao was preparing to go home, but a message from the Gong Residence told her to stay in Clearwater City.

    Whether it was in Skyheart City, Newlight City, or the Gong Residence¡¯s Pcefield City, it was unusually quiet. It was so quiet everywhere that it was as if nothing had happened. A terrifying storm seemed to be brewing.

    Now was the calm before the storm.

    Ai Hui thought that they would not be affected since Clearwater City was very far away from Skyheart City.

    Unbeknownst to him, however, the undercurrents of Great Elder¡¯s death were silently surging toward them...

    .....

    Han Li had be a madman. Everyday he would go to the mayor¡¯s residence to challenge Ai Hui, and everyday thetter would turn a deaf ear to him,pletely ignoring him.

    Failing once again to get Ai Hui to ept his challenge, Han Li returned to his inn.

    He was in a very bad mood. He did not expect Ai Hui topletely ignore his challenge.

    "Han Li, you have forgotten about your mission."

    A sweet and delicate voice rang across the room. It belonged to a tall, slim woman.

    Han Li immediately grasped the hilt of his sword, but soon loosened his grip. With an ugly facial expression, he snorted, "Don¡¯t talk to me about the mission, I¡¯m not in the mood right now"

    "You merely failed in getting Ai Hui to ept your challenge, right? I have a way to make him ept your challenge." The woman smiled.

    "How?" Han Li became energized.

 Chapter 448: As You Wish

    Chapter 448: As You Wish

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Ai Hui had a headache. He could not understand why such a senseless individual was in this world.

    He rubbed his temples and asked with extreme annoyance, "So Han Li wants a publicpetition?"

    The mayor¡¯s face turned ugly as he replied, "Yes, he said that if you don¡¯t ept his challenge, he will disrupt your business of selling snowva by sending threat letters to those enterprises that bought it."

    "Is this fellow crazy?" Ai Hui widened his eyes and almost blurted out vulgarities. "Why does he insist on fighting with me? Doesn¡¯t he know that it won¡¯t make him any money? What exactly is he thinking about? If he doesn¡¯t want to make money, then fine by me, but now he is threatening me and keeping me from making my money!"

    When Gong Peiyao saw the helpless look on Ai Hui¡¯s face, she was secretly happy. She chuckled. "I didn¡¯t expect Han Li to be such a sword fanatic. Ai Hui, you have to understand the mentality of a sword fanatic. Sword fanatics don¡¯t care about money."

    The rest of the people looked like they were watching a show.

    In fact, everyone felt that Ai Hui¡¯s unique money-minded mentality was weird and unusual. From their perspectives, a challenge like Han Li¡¯s was of great significance. It was tightly linked to one¡¯s honor and reputation and represented one¡¯s pursuit of perfection in his or her art.

    Everyone was filled with disdain towards Ai Hui when he connected the challenge to money andined about not making any, but their disdainful looks had no effect on the thick-skinned Ai Hui.

    Normally, they could not do anything to Ai Hui. Now, all of them were very happy that someone had found his weak spot.

    With a solemn look on his face, Ai Hui turned around and said to the mayor, "Why don¡¯t we send someone to kill him? It is better for someone like him, who is disrupting our business, to die."

    The mayorughed bitterly and replied, "I do not think this is justifiable. He only wants to challenge you and swap pointers on swordsmanship. If we kill him, who will dare to deal business with us in the future?"

    "This is not a good n." Shi Xueman shook her head.

    She was born in a family that ced great emphasis on honor and glory. Since she was young, she had never backed away from a challenge. Furthermore, those who dared to challenge other people were usually praised for their spirit.

    Ai Hui did not care about Iron Lady¡¯s opinion as he knew that she was a straightforward individual. He turned around and asked the mayor, "Is snowva our business?"

    The mayor was a businessman and quickly understood what Ai Hui meant. With a straightforward tone, he replied, "That¡¯s right, Han Li threatens our business and you shouldn¡¯t be the only one to bear the consequences. Feel free to tell me your requests."

    "Since he wants to challenge me so badly, I will give him a chance; however, I am interested in neither honor nor reputation. I can ept his challenge provided there are enough incentives for me to do so. Mayor, you will be in charge of providing the incentives. You provide the money while I provide my strength. What do you think?"

    "No problem, it¡¯s a reasonable request." The mayor chuckled.

    He felt that Ai Hui was an extremely interesting individual. He behaved more like a businessman than the mayor himself.

    Gong Peiyao widened her eyes and stared at Ai Hui. After a while, she turned around and said to Shi Xueman, "Oh my god, Sister Xueman, how can you even put up with such a miser?"

    "He is poor," Shi Xueman replied with ease.

    Gong Peiyao became speechless.

    Ai Hui spread his arms, feeling joyfully proud of himself.

    When Venerable Volcano saw the cheeky look on Ai Hui¡¯s face, he could not help but burst out inughter. He felt that Shi Xueman¡¯s indifference and Ai Hui¡¯s cheekiness were a perfect match.

    Only Gong Peiyao was still puzzled. Shouldn¡¯t Ai Hui be angry that Sister Xueman called him poor? People she had encountered in the past felt humiliated when they were called poor by others. Why does Ai Hui look so happy, as if he is being praised?

    Such a weird duo.

    Mayor Qiao Meiqi was very efficient. When Han Li heard that Ai Hui had epted his challenge, he was overjoyed. As for the condition of the incentives, he epted it without any hesitation.

    The issue was settled in thete afternoon of the day itself.

    The battle would begin in the early afternoon of the second day, but out of fear of destroying the city, the battle site was set outside of it. The incentive that Han Li provided was a piece of peacock gold while Qiao Meiqi provided a bottle of clear water.

    The two items were extraordinary and both were of a higher grade than snowva.

    Peacock gold was a newly discovered metal. It was bright, colorful, and gorgeous, resembling the feathers of a peacock. Peacock gold had a grade of "A-Excellent" and was extremely expensive.

    Meanwhile, clear water was a unique product of Clearwater City and only a very small amount was being produced. Simrly, it had a grade of "A-Excellent." It was formed from the purest water elemental energy. By providing this bottle of clear water, one could see Qiao Meiqi¡¯s sincerity.

    Iron Lady¡¯s ice-cold face seldom showed any emotions, but when she saw the bottle of clear water, a rare hint of amazement appeared on her frosty face.

    Ai Hui noticed the change in her facial expression.

    On the second day, with the zing sun high in the sky, all the residents of Clearwater City turned up for the battle.

    The news of Ai Hui epting the fight had spread throughout Clearwater City. Life in Clearwater City was extremely arduous. There weren¡¯t many recreational activities. This was the first time such a high levelpetition took ce in Clearwater City.

    Even though the two participants of this battle weren¡¯t Masters, they had exceptionally high prestige.

    Han Li was a rising swordsmanship genius and was revered by many. He had defeated several experts in a row and was considered a representative figure of swordsmanship.

    Ai Hui had be famous even earlier than Han Li. His reputation as the Lightning de began during the Battle of Central Pine City. It had been five years since the Battle of Central Pine City.

    Aspared to the spotlit Han Li, Ai Hui had not been in spotlight much recently. Most people knew Ai Hui from the movie beans two years ago, but those movie beans did not show much of his capabilities. They rather focused on his impact on the Central Pine Faction.

    A lot of people knew who Ai Hui was, but they did not know how powerful his swordsmanship was.

    The sky above Clearwater City was densely packed with people. Those who wanted to get a better view of the battle flew even higher into the sky, but none of them were higher than the heavily guarded clouds. As the mayor of Clearwater City, Qiao Meiqi had the special right to spectate from the clouds. Along with Shi Xueman, Gong Peiyao and the rest all sat on the solidyer of clouds.

    Venerable Volcano and Yang Xiaodong were also there.

    Even though both of them were Masters, Venerable Volcano had a higher prestige and was more powerful than Yang Xiaodong.

    "The epic battle is about to begin. Junior is very curious. Senior, who do you think will win this battle?" Yang Xiaodong asked casually.

    "Who do you think will win, Master Yang?" Venerable Volcano asked Yang Xiaodong back.

    "Both of them are very powerful and they are simrly specialized in swordsmanship. It¡¯s really hard to determine who will win, but if we are talking about the probability of winning the battle, I will vote for Han Li. After all, Han Lies from Karakorum Sword League, the holynd of swordsmanship," Yang Xiaodong muttered.

    There were a few people nodding in agreement.

    A person¡¯s background yed a very important factor in others¡¯ evaluation of him or her. Karakorum Sword League had already produced a master swordsman. In many people¡¯s eyes, Karakorum Sword League was the holynd of swordsmanship where all the elite swordsmen gathered. By distinguishing himself from the rest of the swordsmen in Karakorum Sword League, Han Li had disyed his strength. On the contrary, Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship was unorthodox.

    Deep down, Venerable Volcano agreed with Yang Xiaodong¡¯s evaluation, but due to his close rtionship with Ai Hui, he did not say that he would be defeated. He merely said, "Since both of them are swordsmen, let their swords do the talking."

    At this moment, Gong Peiyao asked Shi Xueman curiously, "Sister Xueman, who do you think will win?"

    "Ai Hui," Shi Xueman replied bluntly.

    Gong Peiyao was shocked at Shi Xueman¡¯s absolute certainty. "Sister Xueman has so much confidence in him?"

    Surprised, Qiao Meiqi, Yang Xiaodong, and the rest of thepany looked at Shi Xueman. They had not expected Shi Xueman to give such a confident reply.

    A look of reminiscence appeared on Shi Xueman¡¯s cold and beautiful face, and she appeared as though she was lost in thought. After a while, she suddenly said, "When ites tobat, he has never lost."

    Everyone was stunned by these words.

    Some people scoffed at her, thinking that these were just boastful words, but others appeared to be in deep thought, looking as if they were thinking about something.

    No one dared to retort to Shi Xueman. Shi Xueman had the honorable status of nobility and was a great beauty. With the addition of her strength, no one dared to embarrass her.

    "Let¡¯s see our Brother Ai disy his might." Qiao Meiqi smiled.

    Everyone¡¯s gaze was directed at the two figures facing each other in the sky outside the city.

    For the past two years, swordsmanship had been on the rise, and although many people began to learn swordsmanship, a high-level swordsmanshippetition like this was rarely seen. A lot of people opened their mirage bean pods and prepared to record this legitimate battle between two swordsmen.

    When the both of them were together, the onlookers realized that they had a few simrities.

    For example, their physical builds. Neither of them were overly tall and muscr, nor overly skinny and weak. Their body builds were well-proportioned. They were also both very quiet. They looked confident as their robes fluttered in the wind.

    If one took a closer look, however, he or she would realize that there was a difference in their temperaments.

    Han Li appeared to be quiet, but his eyes contained a zing zeal and sincerity. He did not try to conceal his battle fervor.

    Ai Hui also appeared quiet, but his eyes contained an ice-cold indifference, not showing any emotions at all.

    At this moment, Han Li was extremely excited as he surged with battle fervor. With a loud and clear voice, he asked, "May I ask where Brother Ai learned his [Yin Yang Sword Formation]?"

    "I learned it on my own," Ai Hui replied inly.

    Ai Hui could not reveal his identity as Chu Zhaoyang.

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s words, the mes in Han Li¡¯s eyes burned more intensely. "Brother Ai is indeed a rare genius. Karakorum Sword League also has a [Yin Yang Sword Formation], but it is not as good as yours."

    Ai Hui was slightly surprised as he found this fellow much more pleasing to his eyes.

    Not a lot of people could openly admit that their families¡¯ skills and knowledge were not as good as those of others.

    Han Li bowed respectfully to Ai Hui and said, "I am excited to be in this position to fight with you. Pardon me if I have offended Brother Ai in any way. Having witnessed your supreme swordsmanship, I will have regrets for the rest of my life if I don¡¯t get to spar with you. I hope that Brother Ai will not hold back. To pursue the path of swordsmanship, I am prepared to die!"

    Han Li¡¯s eyes seemed to contain a boundless sea of surging fire, giving off an aura that made one palpitate in fear.

    Excitement gushed upon Ai Hui.

    This was the first time Ai Hui encountered a zealous and sincere swordsman like Han Li. He unknowingly felt touched. Perhaps those legendary swordsmen from the Cultivation Era had been zealous and sincere like him.

    The cold and detached look on his face disappeared like the melting of an iceberg and was reced by a grave and solemn look.

    Ai Hui raised the Wintry Jade de in his hand and pointed it at Han Li. Suddenly, a sharp glint shed across his eyes, resembling a sword being unsheathed. Elemental energy gushed out of his body and his robe fluttered even though there was no wind. Three words came out of his mouth with pauses in between.

    "As. You. Wish!"

 Chapter 449: [Red Dust]!

    Chapter 449: [Red Dust]!

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Two figures could be seen entangled in the sky and colliding rapidly.

    A dazzling sword ray shed across the sky from time to time like a shooting star. The blossoming rays were at times like sprinkling raindrops, falling over the deserted mountain outside the city and leaving seemingly bottomless holes.

    Han Li¡¯s azure wings, Flowing Wind Wings, were light green in color and very nimble.

    Ai Hui felt the pressure.

    His Starry Gem Swordwings were powerful and heavy, but were not made for such small scale and close quartersbat. Plus he had been unable to repair the damage from before due to theck of ingredients.

    Basically, the Starry Gem Swordwings were no long able to keep up with Ai Hui¡¯s abilities.

    Han Li¡¯s Flowing Wind Wings were light and fast. They left a long and beautiful trail of faint, green mist in the air. The wings gave Han Li a speed and agility advantage. Without wasting it he cruised around Ai Hui without stopping. Amid the continuous and diverse moments of the sword moves. the faint green sword ray whizzed toward Ai Hui from a crafty angle.

    Ai Hui was very calm. The Wintry Jade de was exceptionally nimble and its moves came naturally as Ai Hui blocked Han Li¡¯s attack.

    Six palm-sized moon des circled around Ai Hui efficaciously. In Ai Hui¡¯s hands, [Six Moons] was strangely hard to fathom.

    [Six Moons] emerged from one of the three moves, [Crescent Moon], from the sword pills. but it was much moreplex and exquisite.

    Han Li was highly guarded against [Six Moons] as he had almost been injured by one of the sword des. Frightened, Han Li quickly pulled away and did not dare to follow so closely.

    He had never seen such a peculiar sword technique. Contrasting his alertness, he felt more excitement.

    What other weird moves would he have?

    Stimted, Han Li decided to pressure Ai Hui even more. Silver rays lit up around his body to form a closed wheel. The eye-piercing rays were like silver spikes.

    The spiked silver wheel was like a meter dial on a clock. Han Li extended his arm to form a straight line with his sword. His body was the axis, while his sword and arm were the clock hands that agilely spun around.

    The sword swept past each silver spike, producing a nging sword chime and brightening the body of the sword ray.

    A crisp sword chime sounded incessantly.

    Ai Hui sensed changes happening behind him as an extremely sharp sword consciousness firmly locked his body down. An intense sense of danger enveloped his body. His figure rose suddenly as he charged toward the sky.

    With a light swoosh Han Li waved the silver-d sword in his hand.

    A silver light shed past.

    A sharp sky-shattering sound rang without any warning, as if a nail had been hammered into Ai Hui¡¯s forehead. The Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp from Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce brightened dramatically, and the ache vanished instantly.

    Ai Hui jolted. He knew that he was unable to rely on his azure wings to break away from Han Li¡¯s attack.

    Slightly, but rapidly trembling, he made a loud cry as he thrusted the [Wintry Jade de] in the opposite direction.

    Pieces of tiny sword rays sprayed out from the tip of the sword and assembled into a fragmented sword ray before facing the silver light head on.

    [Fragmented Sword]!

    The silver light collided with the fragmented sword ray.

    Closing in, Han Li¡¯s expression changed. The fear and trepidation he felt made him aware of the extreme danger he was in. Suddenly, he forcefully pped his [Flowing Wind Wings], practically diving perpendicrly downward.

    Boom!

    A dazzling light ray blossomed on the top of his head as the copious elemental energy storm smashed into Han Li¡¯s back like a heavy hammer.

    As if receiving a push from behind, Han Li¡¯s speed increased.

    Already prepared, Ai Hui bent his knees slightly to gain momentum and shot about 30 meters up like a rocket.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    The sound of rolling thunder rang loudly before dispersing.

    Fear and shock could be seen in faces of the observing elementalists. The battle intensity, especially its tempo, had far exceeded their imagination and many things were urring beyond what the naked eye could see. The previous tangle, resistance, and probing could be described with one word¨C"fast." Things happened as fast as lightning, and it was too much for the eyes to take in. The tension was suffocating, as depicted in swordy books.

    The powerful explosion and impactful collision shook them to the core.

    When the light ray blossomed, it was as if there was an additional sun in the sky. The fluctuating waves forming ripples in midair.

    Those above the protective mistyer had a grim expression on their faces.

    Venerable Volcano muttered to himself, "This kid is improving very quickly."

    It had been less than two years since the porridge feast. He clearly remembered the ability level that Ai Hui had possessed during that time. The Ai Hui before him now was like a whole different person.

    How did he achieve this?

    Venerable Volcano found it hard to believe. Ai Hui was not gifted and, while training the [Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp] technique could improve one¡¯s constitution to a certain extent, it should not turn one into a genius.

    Swordsmen were a type of elementalists as well, so there was not a fundamental difference in the elemental energy that they trained with. Affinity with elemental energy was the determining factor when it came to an elementalist¡¯s progress.

    This point alone meant that Han Li was much stronger than Ai Hui.

    Yet Ai Hui actually had the upper hand!

    Both shared the limelight in the previous probing and entanglement, but in this direct collision, Ai Hui was at an advantage.

    In the sky, Ai Hui¡¯s body was extended like a legendary roc. On the ground, Han Li¡¯s face was ashen. He had underestimated the force of the collision between the sword rays.

    Yang Xiaodong¡¯s face was grave. Ai Hui¡¯s abilities were greater than he had expected. Earlier, elemental energy suffocation had urred around both of them, but their speed in changing position was simply too quick.

    Gong Peiyao looked on speechlessly. Ai Hui was amazing!

    Shi Xueman did not appear very surprised. She had fought the scarletfire flying foxes alongside Ai Hui and was aware of his abilities. No one noticed that Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were exceptionally bright, with a trace of joy evident.

    Ai Hui had improved once again...

    Simrly, no one noticed Lou Lan, who was standing behind the crowd. The flickering, red glow in his eyes was everchanging. The sand core within his body was operating at an rming speed.

    Han Li raised his head and reflexively looked toward the sky.

    He stood at the bottom of a conical pit that had a diameter of over 10 meters. The pit was formed from the impact of hisnding.

    The zeal in his eyes burned with increasing ferocity. The moon des were strangely unpredictable, and although the sword ray that seemed to be assembled from fragments had stopped transforming, its power was astonishing, yet he did not know why.

    The styles of the two moves werepletely different.

    While they were far away from each other, Han Li¡¯s line of sight collided with Ai Hui¡¯s.

    Ai Hui looked him in the eye before swooping down.

    Han Li jolted, his fighting spirit intensifying. Show me whatever powerful moves you¡¯ve got!

    Diving down at a rapid speed, Ai Hui constantly altered the oblique angle in which his Wintry Jade de shed. Red flowing mes blossomed from the sword tip.

    The whizzing of the wind was deafening, but Ai Hui wasn¡¯t the least bit affected. He was thoroughly focused as his Wintry Jade de transitioned through unimaginable angles.

    The red flowing mes rose up like a muslin curtain.

    The momentum of his dive was terrifying.

    Han Li, who was still on the ground, had no intention of dodging. In fact, his legs were stuck firmly in the ground since he had no intention of leaving his spot. A high spirited smile appeared at the corner of his lips, revealing his desire to battle.

    [Red Muslin]!

    Han Li had seen this move before. He had no idea what Ai Hui called it, but he named it [Red Muslin].

    This move had appeared in Ai Hui¡¯s mirage bean pod clip. It was precisely this move of his that razed the Sha family¡¯s courtyard to the ground. Others might be more interested in the legend of The Lightning de, but Han Li, who was determined to be a swordsman, ced all his attention on this move.

    He pondered over it for a long time. Ai Hui had disyed a deep foundation when executing this move.

    At that time, he had thought about how he would defend against the [Red Muslin].

    Han Li ced his sword by his side, his palms sped the hilt, and his was face solemn. Light rays appeared under his feet, circling unceasingly like a light whirlpool.

    If Han Li was known as "a genius who could possibly be the second ever master swordsman," how could he not possess a killer move of his own?

    Swords of light surfaced and rose from the light whirlpool underneath his feet.

    The booming and rumbling of thunder filled the sky, causing the air to vibrate.

    An astonishing amount of pressure closed in on everyone, as if it was about to shatter the ground into pieces.

    Was this merely due to the [Red Muslin]?

    Behind the flowing mes, an intimidatingly bright ray emerged in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. The ray was a very controlled, sharp, and cold one.

    No one noticed that the six moon des had started circling.

    Minute traces of bright light surfaced in the sky from the fluttering brilliance of the moon des.

    They looked as if they could break at anytime as they wound around the red muslin. The raised and dispersed red muslin was drawn in bit by bit.

    Whenpletely coiled around the muslin, the light traces turned the red muslin into an enormous red flowing me sword.

    The six moon des stuck closely to the sword¡¯s surface, spinning rapidly. The silver light ray chaotically roamed between them, giving the sword a silveryer of electric web.

    The whizzing sound vanished all of a sudden, and this enormous flowing me sword became silent.

    Han Li had not expected Ai Hui to be this sly.

    This was not the [Red Muslin]!

    Thetest changes in the red muslin emitted a dense killing intent. It felt as if he was in a world of deathly stillness as sounds disappeared. He felt as if his elemental energy had be significantly more sluggish.

    Elemental energy suffocation!

    Han Li quivered. Elemental energy suffocation was not a big deal, but an elemental energy suffocation that was able to affect the operation of his elemental energy was not ordinary.

    This new [Red Muslin] seemed extraordinarily mighty!

    Yet, he was no weakling himself. Han Li narrowed his eyes and bit his tongue, causing a mouthful of fresh blood to spurt onto the sword before him.

    The light ray on the sword body brightened drastically as the light whirlpool beneath his feet resumed operating. The suspended light swords had been like a forest. They now moved swiftly like a shoal of fish circling and crisscrossing around him.

    Then, the light whirlpool started to change. Some swords dimmed, while others brightened. It was as if they were ying tag and frolicking, or as if their changes were unfolding naturally.

    An enormous Yin Yang fish swam unceasingly beneath Han Li¡¯s feet as the surrounding light swords circled nonstop. The sword formation was dense.

    He looked ecstatic.

    Ai Hui¡¯s [Yin Yang¡¯s Sword Formation] had impacted him tremendously. He had been on the verge of a breakthrough for the longest time, but seemed to be separated by ayer as thin as window paper. It was not until he felt the huge pressure that Ai Hui inflicted on him that he achieved enlightenment.

    Come on!

    He looked toward the sky, his battle lust overflowing!

    Ai Hui, who was in the sky, saw the [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation] on the ground with his keen, cold, and calm eyes.

    With his long fingers sping the sword hilt, he thrusted it downward with a gentle movement.

    [Red Dust]nded noiselessly.

 Chapter 450: Han Liâ€™s Transformation

    Chapter 450: Han Li¡¯s Transformation

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    The red light descended from the sky andnded on the [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation].

    The rapidly spinning moon des carried fine, multiplying thunder webs. They were like sharp drill bits, approaching, twisting, and shattering the light rays, all in the blink of an eye.

    Light swords flew out from the ever shifting [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation]. They were like fish leaping out of the fountain, one after another.

    The light swords operated even more wildly, They entered the red glow of the sword formation and instantly underwent an indescribable sluggishness. It was as if they had gotten themselves trapped in a quagmire.

    Han Li was no longer looking at Ai Hui. Instead, he obsessively observed the incessantly moving Yin Yang Fish beneath his feet. He had seen and read about the Yin Yang Fish in an ancient sword manual, but had not expected it to be this earth-shaking.

    At this moment, he had totally forgotten about the battle.

    He stood nkly in the sword formation, his eyes never leaving the Yin Yang Fish. He felt cheerful, admiration, joy, and grief as his body underwent this baptism.

    It was as if he had seen light and shadow, love and hate, life and death, spring and autumn, reincarnation...

    It turned out that the Yin Yang wasposed of two fish that were linked at their heads and tails. One was born as the other was extinguished. It was difficult to individualize them.

    He waspletely absorbed.

    Having witnessed Ai Hui¡¯s Yin Yang sword formation, Han Li felt its extreme power and was motivated. This [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation]] was his new result, one that was superior to Ai Hui¡¯s Yin Yang sword formation.

    He was not worried about the battle.

    The moment the [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation] took shape, strong confidence filled his body and mind. He did not think that Ai Hui was able to break this formation because even he, himself, was unable to do so. The [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation] was his most outstanding work so far.

    The invisible resistance of the sword formation was 10 times stronger than that of Ai Hui¡¯s.

    Once a person fell into the sword formation, he or she would be trapped by the interweaving Yin Yang force. For elementalists, they would immediately lose control of their body and be confined. Time would pass as the Yin Yang force continuously corroded their bodies until they lost any signs of life. Injuries inflicted by the Yin Yang force could only be neutralized and cured by Yin Yang force.

    Another unique aspect about Yin Yang force was that it was sustainably powerful because it multiplied without end. If one did not break through it the first time, the task became impossible as it would only be stronger.

    Han Li was exceedingly certain that Ai Hui¡¯s "[Red Muslin]", even with any new changes, would not be able to destroy his [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation].

    He was not as confident, however, that a Master would fail to break his formation. It was difficult to understand the ways and strengths of a Master before bing a Master and experiencing it firsthand.

    But there was something he had thorough confidence in.

    It was impossible for those below the level of Master to break his formation!

    Ai Hui was strong, but he was not a Master after all, so how could he possibly do it?

    In the next moment, the sword formation shook violently with a huge boom, snapping him out of his reverie. Confused, he raised his head. What had happened?

    Before he could react he was blinded by dazzling white sheets.

    Out of nowhere, a wisp of electricity stuck his body, causing it to tremble and turn numb.

    Han Li was stupefied.

    Observers were basically as confused as Han Li. They could not wrap their heads around the situation. Only a few had clearly captured the earlier scene.

    There was a dense crowd beneath Clearwater City¡¯s cloudyer. In an inconspicuous corner stood a blind man and a talldy that werepletely enthralled by the battle.

    The talldy could not help but cover her mouth in rm. With teary eyes, she waspletely overwhelmed with shock.

    The blind man looked expressionless, but he grasped onto his cane as if his life depended on it, and his hand trembled. It was as if his forehead had been brutally hammered and he had not even realized that he was mumbling to himself. "Lightning! It¡¯s lightning!"

    Above the cloudyer, Yang Xiaodang jolted up, evidently frightened. He felt a destructive force, one that was so terrifying that he wanted to stay clear of it.

    Venerable Volcano was stunned as well. Lightning was one of the most masculine and domineering forces. It was also a power that elementalists had yet to tame. Having seen the violent lightning shes and rolling thunder, many yearned for such iparable strength, but few seeded. Even to this day, lightning-type inheritances were pathetically few. They were practically the favorites on the market.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes lit up. "[Dust Fall]?"

    While in Central Pine City, she was extremely familiar with the three moves from Ai Hui¡¯s sword pill. [Crescent Moon] was modified into [Six Moons], while [Night Epiphyllum] was the move he used to end his master¡¯s life, so he stopped using it ever since.

    Only [Dust Fall] remained.

    Shi Xueman had a very deep impression of [Dust Fall]. Ai Hui had used it to save everyone during the bloody Battle of Long Street. Blood fiends feared the aura of lightning so Ai Hui used it often.

    Lou Lan spoke up suddenly, "It¡¯s abination of [Soaring mes, Cascading Muslin], [Six Moons], and [Dust Fall]."

    Mixing sword moves was not an easy task. If done well, the resulting move would naturally double in strength and be more exquisite. If done poorly, not only would its power decrease, it would leave many loopholes and put the elementalist in danger.

    Ai Hui had done an extremely fine job ofbining the three moves.

    They could clearly see that the six rapidly spinning moons were slowing down and weakening. Suddenly, the thunder web connecting all six moons exploded.

    Lightning was one of the scariest forces in the natural world, and in that moment, it disyed its terrifying destructiveness.

    Silver snakes danced in disorder.

    The surrounding light swords gave way to an empty region of about several squares.

    Yin Yang force could multiply nonstop, but it required time. Even if the light swords were continuously flying out from the Yin Yang Fish, they were unable to fill this gap.

    Without a sound, an enormous red sword shot into the empty space.

    Boom!

    Orange mes blossomed together with the release of the absolutely terrifying, built-up force. It was as if a heavy hammer had smashed into the ground, causing its surface to pulse.

    The unrestrained and brutal mes flowed like wildly charging dire beasts, tearing and shattering the light swords.

    Ai Hui, who was in the sky, coldly looked down under his feet as the orange mes blossomed, spread, and burst through the sword formation, eventually swallowing it up. An enormous ming flower blossomed on the ground.

    The rising heatwaves soared and the explosive shockwaves rapidly spread outward like ripples. Wherever they passed, the rocks shattered, mountains copsed, and the ground split, leaving bottomless cracks that extended across several miles.

    Ai Hui spread his azure wings, flying up even higher.

    He looked very calm, without the least bit of joyous victory on his face.

    In actual fact, he did not find it worth celebrating. Han Li¡¯s [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation] was indeed superior to his. Given time, Han Li¡¯s formation would only be stronger.

    The [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation] was still at its weakest, while the full potential of [Red Dust] had already been unlocked, so it was difficult to improve it further.

    Han Li had already grasped a way of doing things.

    Yet, what was his style? Ai Hui was at a loss.

    Ai Hui¡¯s killer move was extremely powerful, but he knew that his moves were very heterogeneous, so forming a system that connected them was unlikely. Han Li chose Yin Yang. What should he choose?

    A figure shot up from amid the mes. It was Han Li.

    Han Li was in a sorry state. Only half of his Flowing Wind Wings remained, his garments were torn and tattered, half of his eyebrows were burned, his face was filthy with grime, and there were bloodstains on parts of his body.

    Yet, he was not the least bit discouraged or dismayed. Instead, he was in great spirits, emitting an indescribably glow.

    He saluted from afar. "Thanks for being lenient."

    He looked sincere. It was from the bottom of his heart.

    Ai Hui returned the salutation and shook his head. "Brother Han¡¯s abilities made it so, I was extremely lucky."

    Han Liughed. "I lost and you won. Why so polite? The battle today was like a monastic practice. I have been enlightened and benefited a lot. It has also allowed me to see the future of swordsmen and how vast and boundless the future of swordsmanship is."

    Ai Hui listened quietly and felt somewhat envious.

    Han Li¡¯s eyes were as clear as water and free from distracting thoughts. He was like a whole different person, like a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis.

    He had a solemn expression on his face. "Before today I was muddled, drifting with the waves and going with the flow. I was born in a fleeting time and had been trapped in dangerous situations, constantly worrying about daily affairs. Today, I finally understand what I have to do from now on. The marvel of swordsmanship is boundless and requires a lifetime of dedication."

    Ai Hui could feel Han Li¡¯s devotion and was genuinely happy. "Congrattions, Brother Han!"

    Han Li also could fell Ai Hui¡¯s sincerity. With bright eyes, he said, "Although I have lost today, I have already advanced. If Brother Ai cks off, you¡¯re going to be left far behind."

    Ai Hui¡¯s heroic spirit vanished as he burst intoughter. "The next time we meet will be the day I defeat Brother Han once again!"

    Han Liughed as well. "Such a heroic speech. I¡¯ll wait and see. I¡¯ll bid you farewell for now. See you again!"

    Ai Hui replied, "Have a pleasant journey."

    All of a sudden, Han Li said in a low voice, "The Assembly of Patriarchs has its eyes on you. Be careful, Brother Ai."

    With that, he turned around and flew off.

    Ai Hui looked at Han Li¡¯s disappearing silhouette and appeared to be lost in thought, but was actually overwhelmed with shock.

    The Assembly was watching him? Why? Because of the snowva or because they had found out about Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s identity? Or were there other schemes?

    Clearwater City. Seeing Han Li flying further and further away, the talldy¡¯s face turned ugly.

    The blind old man could not help but mock. "That¡¯s all there is to the Assembly. I thought you guys had more control over Han Li. Haha!"

    The talldy¡¯s expression returned to normal. "Without Han Li we still have Zhang Li and Wang Li. You didn¡¯t think we were cing our hopes solely on Han Li, did you?"

    The blind old man snorted. "I hope you mean what you say and those words aren¡¯t just nice to listen to."

    The talldy smiled. "Don¡¯t be angry. You need money, and so do we. We have the same goal. Rest assured. How can we let this money tree slip away from our fingers?"

    The blind old man¡¯s expression loosened up slightly. Just thinking about the snowva made his heart palpitate eagerly. He said faintly, "Then how are you guys going to take action? That Ai fellow is a tough nut to crack Plus, there¡¯s that woman from the Shi family too. Attacking head on isn¡¯t such a good idea."

    The talldyughed softly. "We can¡¯t do that of course. We have a more clever method. It isn¡¯t that difficult."

 Chapter 451: What Are They Here For?

    Chapter 451: What Are They Here For?

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui¡¯s victory was beyond the expectations of the majority of people.

    When Ai Hui returned to Clearwater City, people were looking at him with greater veneration. They moved aside automatically and the female elementalists¡¯ gazes were filled with extraordinary splendor.

    "Congrattions, Brother!"

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯sughter echoed through the clouds as he descended with a group of people. The guards beside him were full of admiration and respect.

    As they said, skill deserves respect. There was no doubt.

    In the past, people were more interested in Han Li, who was coined a genius. However, after witnessing the whole battle and seeing that Ai Hui hadpletely suppressed and defeated Han Li, they finally realized how powerful Ai Hui really was.

    Winners won everything. Respect, riches, power.

    Yang Xiaodong cried out, "Miss Shi mentioned that Brother Ai has never ever lost any battles. I found it hard to believe at first, but today I have seen for myself how masterful you are during a battle!"

    Ai Hui smiled modestly. "How can I talk about being masterful in front of Master Yang? My limited swordsmanship is merely something fresh."

    Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t help but give Ai Hui a second look. She felt it strange. Why is this fellow being so honest today? It¡¯s not his usual style.

    Yang Xiaodong shook his head. "I do not praise easily. Brother Ai¡¯s skills are already at the next level. You can easily be a Master. Plus, you¡¯re still so young and your future is boundless. You¡¯re not somebody old people like us canpare to."

    There was unconcealed envy in his speech.

    Being young brought unlimited possibilities. There was a huge difference between someone who became a Master at thirty and at fifty. A thirty year old Master had a few decades to work toward bing a Grandmaster, whereas it was unlikely for a fifty year old Master to improve much because of their stagnating vigor.

    Venerable Volcano patted Ai Hui on his shoulder. "Not bad! Thatst strike frightened me. What¡¯s the name of that move?"

    "[Red Dust]."

    Venerable Volcano was stunned. "That¡¯s a strange name but it doesn¡¯t matter. Rolling red dust can nibble away bones and souls, and produce plentiful of lightning bolts."

    The more he thought about it, the more he thought there was to [Red Dust].

    Ai Hui felt a little embarrassed and wanted to exin that [Red Dust] was actually abination of [Red Muslin] and [Dust Fall].

    Qiao Meiqi came over and said in a loud voice, "We¡¯re going to properly celebrate your return and victory tonight!"

    Upon hearing this, Ai Hui hurriedly replied, "Thanks for your kindness, Mayor, I really appreciate it. But I still have things to ponder over from that earlier battle, so please find me a meditation room to sort out my thoughts."

    Qiao Meiqi was in high spirits. "You¡¯ve got something from it? Then I¡¯ll have to congratte you more. Meditation room? No problem!"

    He¡¯d long thought it over clearly. The stronger Ai Hui was, the better their business became. He¡¯d guessed that Ai Hui was short-handed. As for trivial matters, Ai Hui had no energy to bother. He had greater ambitions.

    Qiao Meiqi wasn¡¯t worried that Ai Hui had too big of an ambition, only that he did not have enough. He was interested in the things Ai Hui wasn¡¯t, as long as he could earn a profit.

    The skills and potential Ai Hui had disyed made Qiao Meiqi willing to do all he could to maintain their friendly rtionship.

    If Ai Hui could be a Master at twenty plus and have Shi Xueman by his side with Central Pine Faction behind him, they could, at the very least, protect a whole city. Plus, with such a money-spinning and powerful weapon like snowva, they would only be stronger with time.

    Shi Xueman spoke up suddenly. "I¡¯ll keep guard."

    Hearing that, Gong Peiyao looked at Shi Xueman, her eyes flickering.

    Rumor had it that Shi Xueman had already set her heart on Ai Hui. Many scoffed at this news, but most believed it. Otherwise, why would she follow him? How could the mere Central Pine Faction have space for someone like her? Even if she had stayed in Central Pine Faction, she should¡¯ve be the leader. How could it have been Ai Hui? It was simply not right and unimaginable for her to be an assistant to Ai Hui.

    So it¡¯s true, Gong Peiyao thought to herself.

    Gong Peiyao had been following Shi Xueman since she was young and she knew how cold a person she was. But Shi Xueman¡¯s feelings had been exhibited through her offering to stand guard the moment Ai Hui said he wanted to be in seclusion.

    The rest could see this too, but being experienced and well-acquainted with the ways of the world, they said nothing.

    The meditation room Qiao Meiqi arranged for Ai Hui was in the residence¡¯s basement. It was extremely quiet and well-guarded.

    Seeing the guards retreat, Ai Hui shut the door.

    Shi Xueman asked, "What happened?"

    Ai Hui was rather surprised. "How do you know something happened?"

    Shi Xueman answered dully, "You won, but you aren¡¯t happy and you didn¡¯t even ask about the rewards. It¡¯s unlike you."

    Lou Lan agreed, "Yeah."

    Ai Hui looked at the door and Shi Xueman reassured him that there wasn¡¯t anyone outside.

    Ai Hui said in a low voice, "Before he left, Han Li warned me that Assembly of Patriarchs is watching us."

    Shi Xueman looked alert. "Assembly of Patriarchs? Are they still checking Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s identity? Or is it something to do with Xiao Shuren?"

    Only Iron Lady and Lou Lan knew about Chu Zhaoyang. Ai Hui had brought a small child, Wei An, and no one knew he was Xiao Shuren¡¯s son. He used to be called Xiao An, but in order to avoid suspicions, Ai Hui renamed him Wei An, tomemorate Great Wei Enterprise.

    Shi Xueman had also seen that strange, demonic god armor and that golden drop of liquid sealed within the crystal. She could tell from one nce that they were extraordinary, but was unable to point out their origin.

    She then specially investigated the situation and the information she obtained had her trembling inwardly.

    Dai Gang could promise everything to every aristocratic family, without regard for costs and consequences, in order to obtain these items. ording to the Shi family¡¯s probing, Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s destruction was, in countless ways, connected to Madam Ye. Also, with She Yu contesting them, practically all influencers were fighting over these item.

    What were these items exactly?

    Ai Hui, Shi Xueman and Lou Lan had been researching for a long time, but there was still insufficient information.

    No one dared to lift the ban before getting a clear idea of what the golden liquid was. Wasting a treasure would only cause people¡¯s hearts to ache, but if it contained demonic qualities, unknown dangers might arise too.

    They did gain insights about the demonic god armor however.

    Lou Lan had spent a lot of time on this, and with the help of his Midnight sand core, he finally figured out some of the unique qualities of the armor.

    Facts had proven that Ai Hui made the right choice by not wearing the armor at that time.

    The demonic god armor emitted a kind of ck mist. It was a strange kind of force that could stimte the wearer and improve his skills tremendously. However, it would also continuously draw upon his energy.

    ording to Midnight¡¯s analysis and spection, only Masters could resist such a corroding force, and a key was required to propel this demonic god armor.

    And that key was the blood bandage.

    Lou Lan had already concluded that the golden liquid, demonic god armor and blood bandage carried the same aura. They came from an integral whole.

    Upon hearing what Ai Hui said about the assembly, Shi Xueman immediately thought of Xiao Shuren¡¯s ancient treasure and felt nervous.

    Ai Hui said in a low voice, "I don¡¯t know. I did not inform the mayor in fear that the Assembly of Patriarchs would infiltrate from his side. The Assembly of Patriarchs always gets things done, by hook or by crook."

    Ai Hui, who had once infiltrated the Assembly of Patriarchs, understood their style well.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs was like a killer organization that existed for money. They would be engaged as long as money was involved.

    Shi Xueman muttered, "The Assembly of Patriarchs isn¡¯t in too good of a conditiontely. They seem to have fallen out with Madam Ye and received a significant blow."

    Ai Hui fell into a short daze before responding, "Madam Ye? But they share a friendly rtionship with Madam Ye."

    Shi Xueman exined, "When Madam Ye was reorganizing Skyheart City, she raided the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ headquarters. A reliable news source has it that the Assembly of Patriarchs has information that can be used against Madam Ye. They¡¯ve been working together for so long after all."

    "Let¡¯s forget about Madam Ye." Ai Hui shook his head. "Our Madam Ye holds a lot of power now and certainly has no time for trivial matters. If the Assembly of Patriarchs sustained serious damage, they would be in need of a huge sum of money. It won¡¯t be surprising, then, that they have designs for our snowva."

    Shi Xueman asked directly, "What now?"

    Lou Lan added, "Ai Hui, I¡¯ll go ask around."

    "No!" Ai Hui and Shi Xueman countered in unison.

    "But Ai Hui needs to close himself off." Lou Lan opened his eyes wide, his expression serious. "The elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body is bubbling. He needs to calm them down or he will get injured, and if it¡¯s serious his base level would drop."

    Shi Xueman turned her head suddenly and grabbed Ai Hui¡¯s hand to check his body¡¯s condition. She¡¯d thought that he wanted to avoid the crowd. It was only now that she realized his body wasn¡¯t doing too well.

    "Hey, hey, hey, men and women shouldn¡¯t be this close. Even though we¡¯ve hugged..." Ai Hui blurted out, without any sense of shame.

    Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t be bothered with him. Soon, her facial expression worsened. She loosened her grip and said resolutely, "You must recuperate immediately, I¡¯ll stand guard."

    "I know my own condition. It¡¯s no big deal..."

    The next moment he was being pulled up off of his feet by Shi Xueman.

    Ai Hui raged. "You may kill me, but you cannot humiliate me. Are you trying to pick a fight, Miss Shi?"

    Shi Xueman responded coldly, "I¡¯ll use only one hand."

    At that she pulled him into the meditation room and threw him on the ground.

    "Ow! Iron Lady. You and I, we¡¯ve got a problem..."

    Bang!

    Shi Xueman had shut the door.

    The meditation room waspletely soundproof, so those outside could hear nothing at all.

    Lou Lan said in all seriousness, "I¡¯m going to get information, Xueman. Be back soon."

    Shi Xueman looked at him without a word.

    Lou Lan opened his eyes wide. "I¡¯m very capable, Xueman."

    A warm smile appeared on Shi Xueman¡¯s unchanging, iceberg-like face. "Go ahead, Lou Lan. I trust you!"

    Lou Lan was joyed, his eyes taking the shape of crescent moons. He cried out, "Thanks, Xueman. I¡¯ll give it my all!"

    With that he transformed into a pool of sand and disappeared into the ground.

    Shi Xueman smiled slightly and the dusky entrance seemed to brighten up a little.

    Her smile shed like a glimmer in the night.

    She returned to her icy, wordless self. She untied Cirrus from her back and ced it beside her, sitting upright by the door.

 Chapter 452: Disturbance

    Chapter 452: Disturbance

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    An unremarkable looking private house.

    The blind old man sat in the shadow, his withered body quietly swallowing the light rays and deepening the shadows. His vacant eyes carried a strange glimmer, like a will-o¡¯-the-wisp in the dark,te night, swaying silently and gently.

    He stroked his staff with his pale, wrinkled palms, producing a hair-raising rustling sound, like that made by a snake slithering through crisp leaves.

    The talldy sat far away with a smile on her face. Those unfamiliar with her watery eyes would think that her face was filled with sensuality and passion. But it could be seen from her slightly tensed body, in a position that made it easy to stand up, that she was afraid of the old man.

    The old man had this might.

    He had been well-known for a few decades, and even inparison to the Venerable Volcano, he wasn¡¯t inferior in any respect. His name wasn¡¯t prominent among ordinary people and many were unaware of what he knew. In the dark world, however, he was a strong figure known to everybody.

    Northern Underworld King, Mister Dou.

    No one knew what his real name was, but everything he did would shake heaven and earth.

    Before the city expansion order, Masters weren¡¯t receiving as good a treatment. Every rich and powerful family looked after a few of them, but many Masters were unwilling to attach themselves to those families. They were unyielding and untamed. Coupled with their tyrannical abilities, any slight disagreement would have them drawing their knives out. At that time, quite a number of Masters blended into the underworld as assassins, robbers and so on.

    But most of them kept a low-profile. Naturally prideful, they seldom attacked, a reason why they weren¡¯t very famous among the ordinary crowd.

    But the aristocratic families during that time did suffer under their hands.

    The talldy¡¯s background wasn¡¯t ordinary either. Her nickname was "Autumn Water". The Assembly of Patriarchs had been expanding at an rming rate over the past two years and had recruited a bunch of valiant elites, the twelve brilliant and well-known Patriarchs.

    Patriarch was a position filled only by the most outstanding elite. Being a Master was a prerequisite.

    Autumn Water was the Ninth Patriarch.

    The Patriarchs were only engaged for the most important missions.

    This was one of the reasons why Mister Dou was willing to cooperate. He could tell that the Assembly of Patriarchs was determined to win.

    Mister Dou said, " I heard that your Assembly of Patriarchs isn¡¯t doing too well recently. Madam Ye isn¡¯t going to leave the matter at that. How many Patriarchs are dead?"

    His voice was hoarse and sounded like the chafing of leather. It was a voice that made people instinctively feel ufortable.

    Autumn Water did not mind. "Three. Widow Ye is destroying the bridge after she crosses the river. Women are selfish."

    She spoke as if the death of the Patriarchs was of no relevance to her.

    Mister Dou¡¯d thought that she would have masked this matter, since it was a piece of news that he¡¯d spent a decent amount of effort in obtaining. Her casual acknowledgement of it made him think.

    He tried to sound things out a few times. "Then does your side still have the capability to finish this business?"

    Autumn Waterughed lightly. "There¡¯s one more Patriarch who will arrive within three days so don¡¯t worry."

    Mister Dou pulled his mouth before saying dully, "So we¡¯re just going to wait like this?"

    He was feeling rather anxious.

    The longer things dragged on, the further the news about snowva would spread and the greater the number of eyes would be fixed on this gold mine, increasing theirpetition. This was also why he wanted the battle to take ce in Clearwater City and not during Ai Hui and gang¡¯s return journey.

    No one knew where their city was or which path they would take to return. It was the Wilderness after all, and if Ai Hui went straight for the deepest part of the Wilderness, should they make chase or not?

    cing hopes on their return journey would yield unpredictable results. All sorts of idents could ur. It wasn¡¯t a wise choice.

    He felt apprehensive about Ai Hui¡¯s skills. Together with Shi Xueman, a bigger trouble ensued.

    Autumn Water replied confidently, "Rx, we have people in the mayor¡¯s residence. No movement can escape our eyes. Ai Hui is still recuperating. He¡¯s pretty badly injured but I suggest that we don¡¯t deal with him."

    Mr Dou asked faintly, "Then who?"

    Autumn Waterughed softly. "That little girl in the Gong Residence."

    Mister Douughed coldly. "There¡¯s Venerable Volcano beside her. Plus, provoking the Gong Residence will cause no end of trouble."

    Autumn Water was rather surprised. "Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re still afraid of the Gong Residence? You shouldn¡¯t be. To think that you used to look upon these rich aristocratic families as if they were swines and sheep, ughtering them as you please. How thrilling."

    "Not worthwhile." Mister Dou kept a calm expression, as if unoffended. "While I would like to fish up a sum, causing a feud with the Gong family is simply too big a price to pay."

    Declining toment, Autumn Water said instead, "If Ai Hui doesn¡¯te out, what are you going to do? It¡¯s better to make a move on the mayor but Qiao Meiqi and Ai Hui aren¡¯t that close so Ai Hui might not hand over snowva¡¯s refining method."

    Mister Dou kept silent.

    Autumn Water wasn¡¯t wrong. Gong Peiyao really was a more suitable target. Shi family and Gong family shared a deep rtionship so Shi Xueman would never sit and watch Gong Peiyao falling into danger.

    While snowva brought tremendous profits, he believed that Shi Xueman would choose Gong Peiyao.

    But if things were to be done this way, the matter was going to blow up.

    Kidnapping Gong Peiyao would mean offending the Gong Residence and forming an unending feud with them. The Gong Residence was one of the three superpowers alongside Madam Ye and New Citizen Faction, so one could well imagine the dire consequences of offending them.

    The world now wasn¡¯t like that during the era of the Avalon of Five Elements. Aristocratic families held many advantages but also faced many restrictions. The ways of the current world rendered aristocratic families, like the Gong Residence, worry-free. Many things that weren¡¯t easily done in the past posed no problems today since no one cared.

    A worry-free and unrestrained Gong Residence was like a dire beast free from shackles and chains.

    Unless it was absolutely essential, he had no wish to provoke such a monster.

    But thinking about the profits Snow Lava brought, he couldn¡¯t help but feel tempted.

    He spoke up after a long silence, "Wait a bit more. Let¡¯s reassess the situation when your backup gets here."

    Autumn Water nodded. "Okay, but we have to dy their transaction time."

    Mister Dou replied, "I¡¯ll instruct them."

    .....

    Mayor¡¯s residence.

    Qiao Meiqi was under much pressure.

    He hadn¡¯t managed to gather all the materials needed to exchange for snowva. He¡¯d lost his temper more than once, but that brought little results and progress remained slow. Qiao Meiqi was born into a family of merchants and hence was extremely sensitive to efficiency. From information passed to him through various channels, it seemed that someone was obstructing their material collection process.

    Qiao Meiqi was having a headache. Who was it?

    His first guess was that it was highly likely that the news about snowva had spread and someone had set his eyes on it. He sent people to investigate, but no news came back thus far.

    He suppressed the jitters within his heart and asked Yang Xiaodaong, who was beside him, "Is Ai Hui not out yet?"

    Yang Xiaodong shook his head. "Nope. He¡¯s probably got a big gain."

    Just then, Gong Peiyao and Venerable Volcano dashed in. They did not look good.

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s heart made a loud thump as he stood up hurriedly. "What happened?"

    Gong Peiyao bit her lips. "Great Elder passed away a few days ago."

    Qiao Meiqi couldn¡¯t help but cry out in rm. Not only he but Yang Xiaodong, too, revealed a face of shock.

    Even the stupidest person knew that Great Elder¡¯s death meant that thest rope around the cities¡¯ necks was gone. Nevertheless, no one felt happy. Disregarding the Great Elder¡¯s achievements and mistakes, he was still thest leader who was able to guide the masses.

    Now that he was no longer around, anything rted to him was thoroughly finished.

    What did the future hold? No one knew.

    Clearwater City was located in such a remote area that this news took several days to arrive. Skyheart City was probably already in a state of chaos by now.

    Skyheart City was indeed a mess.

    The disturbance started from disputes between diplomatic mission teams from respective cities and things worsened from there.

    mes soared in the night sky as battling noises fell incessantly on the ear.

    Fresh blood and blood-filled corpses covered the streets the next morning.

    Things were getting increasingly intense. Two small families had been wiped out and only a mess had been left in the houses. The houses had beenpletely plundered.

    It was said that there were evil thieves who infiltrated the diplomatic mission that had nock of Masters. These people were very crafty and did not face Sky Edge and Infantry divisions head on.

    Bothbat divisions had just been built and were still rtively weak. Only the division leaders were Masters. They were unable to attend to many things at the same time and did not manage to achieve anything. Eventually, Madam Ye decided to call them back.

    All kinds of rumors flew around.

    Some said that Madam Ye wanted to get rid of dissidents but couldn¡¯t do it openly so she had to resort to such methods.

    Others said that these thieves were had juste from the front line, with over ten roving thieves gathering, and that they had been lusting after Skyheart City, the biggest city, for the longest time.

    Citizens in Skyheart City were anxious and aristocratic families dared not dispatch their Masters in fear of having their homes wrecked.

    The Great Elder¡¯s mansion was the most luxurious and well-guarded ce in Skyheart City. The elites of Sky Edge and Infantry Division were all guarding it and even the two division leaders were keeping watch.

    Madam Ye sipped on her tea. "All checked?"

    Her subordinate answered respectfully, "All checked. A few Elders are participating in this."

    "What about the roving thieves?"

    "They¡¯re close by. About sixty miles away from here."

    "The news about roving thieves is urate. Many have gathered and are approaching Skyheart City. The news that Grandmaster An Muda has no power to reverse the situation has also spread. No one can stop them."

    Many citizens in the city started packing their things and got ready to flee.

    Madam Ye felt rather regretful. "Colluding with both inside and outside? Do they really disapprove of me this much?"

    "They¡¯re short-sighted and blinded by greed..."

    Madam Ye shook her head and sneered, "I know they¡¯re not. They just don¡¯t believe that I can remedy the situation because I¡¯m a woman! Do they think they¡¯re able to then?"

    Yes she found it ridiculous.

    Didn¡¯t these people think about who they were going to put on top after taking her down?

    They were just a bunch of blockheads who wanted to stop others from obtaining what they weren¡¯t able to.

    What disappointed her was the fact that the few Elders who used to support her chose to watch from the sidelines. This was the real reason that made her fall into such passiveness.

    No Elder openly supported her.

    This being the case, there wouldn¡¯t be any more Elders from now onward.

    Her cold eyes flickered but her tone was exceptionally gentle and calm. "Have the three central divisions enter the battlefield and pacify the mutiny."

 Chapter 453: Ai Huiâ€™s Own Path

    Chapter 453: Ai Hui¡¯s Own Path

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Whether it was openly or discreetly, many were paying attention to Ai Hui¡¯s recuperation. No one noticed, however, that the sand puppet beside him was gone.

    Even Gong Peiyao, who adored Lou Lan, was focused on the news of Great Elder¡¯s death and had no mood for ying with Lou Lan.

    A rustling sound could be hearding from the underbrush in an empty corner of Clearwater City.

    Shortly after, a faint and cheerful voice sounded from the bushes.

    "No one on the left."

    "No one on the right."

    A momentter, a finger-sized Lou Lan made his way out of the bushes.

    "Keep watch from the rooftop, Lou Lan!"

    "Keep watch from the alley mouth!"

    "Watch the left side, Lou Lan."

    "Watch the right side, Lou Lan."

    A few mini Lou Lans called out to each other, one after another, before turning around and running off. One jumped to the rooftop and hid within a crack between the tiles. Two ran to the junction of two walls by the alley mouth and stood watch, one for the right and the other for the left side.

    "Lou Lan¡¯s here!"

    "Lou Lan¡¯s here!"

    ...

    Cheerful shouts sounded incessantly as, one after another, Lou Lans started threading their way out from the bushes. They dashed toward one another joyfully and their mini bodies joined together and expanded to eventually be one big Lou Lan.

    Having recovered his appearance, Lou Lan¡¯s glowing red eyes flickered non-stop. He was processing every mini Lou Lan¡¯s feedback. After a short while he muttered to himself, "There¡¯s nothing in this region. To the next, Lou Lans, let¡¯s go!"

    Lou Lan did not use any clever method. What he used was actually silly.

    He¡¯d separated the whole city into different sections and upon reaching each region, he would scatter into many mini Lou Lans and scour the region like sand. Mini Lou Lans would remember the conversations they eavesdropped on and the people¡¯s faces. Finally, the information the mini Lou Lans gathered would be summarized.

    Such a huge amount of information would cause ordinary sand puppets to overheat. But Lou Lan¡¯s sand core, Midnight, could sort out all this information effortlessly.

    If there was any suspicious target, Lou Lan would arrange a mini Lou Lan to stand guard. No one would pay attention to a tiny pile of yellow sand hiding on the ceiling beams, under the bed, within the cracks between bricks or in a dark corner of their rooms.

    There¡¯d never been such a sand puppet.

    What people generally knew about sand puppets was that they were all about the same size and had about the same abilities. The bigger the body the stronger in battle they usually were. An example would be a Sand Sentinel, because the bigger its size the more the sand core could do.

    Sand puppets weren¡¯t suitable spies since they weren¡¯t quick or smart enough. They weren¡¯t good at disguising themselves too. When sand puppets were first invented, people were easily deceived. Now, an extra pool of sand would alert everyone.

    No one used sand puppets to spy nowadays, unless the earth elementalist really had no team-mates to rely on.

    Lou Lan¡¯s method depended solely on Midnight¡¯s capability, so while it wasn¡¯t clever it was extremely effective.

    It worked also because Clearwater City did not cover a big area. If Lou Lan were to use this method on a big area like Silver City, he would need at least ten to fifteen days to investigate.

    Lou Lan, who had arrived at the newest area, repeated the steps.

    He found something this time.

    .....

    The mayor had paid an enormous sum to build the underground meditation room. Not only was it soundproof, it had been reinforced by an earth elemental master. No matter how violent things went on inside, the meditation room was indestructible.

    Only mming sounds could be heard from the meditation room.

    Ai Hui¡¯s whole body was red as his blood surged and his head steamed. It was as if he¡¯d just been taken out from the oven.

    He held onto Wintry Jade de and walked around the room barefoot, waving his sword from time to time. Sword rays flew out from its tip and struck the fortified walls, causing impacted spots to light up.

    The elemental energy within his body was like boilingva. It was losing control.

    To Ai Hui, using [Red Dust] had simply been too forced. Han Li¡¯s judgment wasn¡¯t wrong. No one under the level of Master would be able to break his [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation].

    And [Red Dust] was actually a Master-level move. It was his first time using it since conceptualizing it.

    Ai Hui¡¯s judgment was very urate as well. When he saw Han Li¡¯s [Yin Yang Fish Sword Formation] he knew that ordinary moves weren¡¯t going to be effective and the only usable move was [Red Dust].

    But how could there not be a price to pay for using a Master-level move when he wasn¡¯t a Master yet?

    The surging and disorderly elemental energy within his body was the consequence of forcefully using [Red Dust]. If he was unable to tame the elemental energy, his five residences and eight pces would be damaged. If it was serious, his base level would drop.

    But how was he going to calm the elemental energy down?

    Ai Hui tried operating Circtory Cycle Revolution but to no avail.

    He then tried exhausting all his elemental energy but still to no avail. The newly born elemental energy continued to be in a chaotic state, unable to be suppressed.

    What could he do?

    Ai Hui panted heavily while his brain spun rapidly.

    He suddenly recalled the contents from some notes he¡¯d read. The notes were left by a senior from the Hall of Ancient Records. In his attempt to search for Senior Xiao¡¯s notes, Ai Hui¡¯d practically flipped through every single book in that hall. He¡¯d been helpless at that time, but because of that he¡¯d gained many strange insights and all sorts of preposterous sounding ideas. Also, he got to read more about rare treasures and all kinds of weird situations.

    Ai Hui read them as he read storybooks, just like how he¡¯d done for swordy manuals left from the Cultivation Era.

    He suddenly recalled a situation described by the senior. It was precisely what he was facing now.

    How did that senior resolve the issue?

    Ai Hui racked his brain and wanted so hard to open it up. He¡¯d only read through them very briefly out of interest. Now, he was depending on thatst straw of hope and was afraid of missing that moment of realization. He wrinkled his brows, pondering hard.

    After a long time Ai Hui finally remembered the contents.

    That senior did face the same situation as him. He remembered it so clearly because the writer described every detail very meticulously. However, the senior did not share the method to resolve it. Instead, he mentioned that this happened to him the night before he became a Master.

    Wait, the night before a breakthrough?

    Ai Hui received a jolt. Was it going to happen to him too?

    This thought calmed his restless heart significantly and his almost burning body cooled off a little as well.

    After calming down, Ai Hui¡¯s mind spun quicker.

    What should he do if this was indeed the sign of a breakthrough?

    There were two conditions for an elementalist to be a Master. He must satisfy the elemental energy¡¯s base level requirement and create his own absolute art. Ai Hui had already fulfilled the first condition. What about the second?

    All of a sudden, Ai Hui¡¯s understanding of a Master seemed to have skewed.

    The keyword in the second condition wasn¡¯t "absolute art" but one¡¯s "own art".

    Ai Hui fell into a daze.

    His own...

    He realized that he¡¯d never thought about this before. His mind went to Han Li. Han Li¡¯s choice was clear at first nce. He¡¯d chosen the "Yin Yang" path. Ai Hui felt it a decent choice. Yin Yang appeared simple but was profound, unpredictable and everchanging.

    What was his own path?

    Ai Hui sunk into a deep, reflective state andpletely forgot about his difort.

    He¡¯d seen quite a number of absolute arts and swordy techniques. He thought about Karakorum chief¡¯s ambitious swordsmanship encyclopedia, all-inclusive and diverse. Ai Hui thought about them one by one and felt even more bewildered.

    Any force would be shockingly mighty with consistent practice and reflection. Each type of force had its own allure.

    He started to understand the idea that finding his own path was the key to bing a Master. This world was too huge and there were too many types of forces. Yet, human energy was limited. In order to grasp the true essence of the force, he¡¯d had to give things up along the way since only focus and devotion could take him further.

    Which kind should he choose?

    Ai Hui felt calm now. He knew that his choice was going to influence his future greatly.

    It was an important decision.

    Ai Hui starting thinking about why he wanted to be an elementalist. His idea was simple at that time. He just wanted to survive. Three years in the Wilderness showed him that elementalists had a much higher chance of survival aspared to theborers.

    He had been muddleheaded and merely wanted to live on. Being able to live was good enough.

    It wasn¡¯t until he met his master, mistress and senior that his dull life started to brighten up.

    It wasn¡¯t because of the cold sunlight that shone down through cracks on the houses as he walked soullessly on the streets after the closure of Swordsman Training Hall. It was the warm and bright sunlight, apanying the cool breeze, that fell before the drowsy-eyed fellow who was sweeping the entranceway, the peaceful morning in Central Pine City where smoke rose up from kitchen chimneys in spirals.

    Patter.

    Amid the loneliness, sounds of water droplets falling filled the dark, meditation room.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were shut tight. Tears willfully made their way to the corners of his eyes before flowing down his cheeks.

    He¡¯d found his answer.

    A colorless image surfaced before his eyes.

    In a street that wasn¡¯t very wide, tide-like blood fiends were trampling about. It was a blood-colored flood. A youth grasping a sword stood motionless in the center of the street like a reef.

    The sharp, cold sword cut everything before it. Fresh blood sttered and limbs of blood fiends flew in all directions.

    The rich, choking, bloody smell seemed to have traversed through time and memory, hitting him.

    The image blurred but the sword became heavier.

    Only the blurry sky remained. Countless silver rays descended from the sky, illuminating the dark, cruel world.

    The blood fiendsy limp and lost on the ground and the powerful red flood turned into soft red soil. Indistinct cheers sounded like andslide or a tsunami. It was so vague, yet reassuring.

    Darkness took over once again. It was so quiet that he could hear his own heart beating.

    ...

    "Do you know what people call you?"

    "What?"

    "The Lightning de! Descending from the sky with so many lightning bolts. You frightened everybody. That big lightning storm made all blood fiends drop their resistance and the mayor took the chance to block off the city gates."

    "The Lightning de..."

    ...

    "Ai Hui, blood fiends are afraid of the aura of lightning."

    ...

    "Yeah."

 Chapter 454: Conspiracy

    Chapter 454: Conspiracy

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Clearwater City guards interrogated passing caravans vigntly. Recently, each respective enterprise faced a whole series of issues. If their goods were not dyed, the funds or channels were problematic.

    The goods that were meant for exchange with snowva were only half processed.

    There was an invisible hand disrupting them from behind.

    Qiao Meiqi had seen all kinds of dangerous situations and was very knowledgeable in that aspect. Although his investigations brought no results, he could smell the odor of a conspiracy. He immediately ordered guards to question people entering and leaving the city. They had to check for city medals on registered elementalists of Clearwater City. The city medal was a management method used extensively following the city expansion order and the construction of new cities.

    In order to obtain a Clearwater City medal, elementalists had to register to get their names into the database. They had to get their elemental energy tested as well and a detailed analysis would be kept. They also had to reside in Clearwater City for a least a year.

    Unfamiliar looking faces would be strictly interrogated. There were specialized elementalists outside the city gates, in charge of testing neers¡¯ elemental energy, base level and so on. With such tests, even Masters were unable to conceal their abilities.

    Caught off guard, many neers protested against the rigorous tests. A few even tried to cause trouble and were killed on the spot. Witnesses then kept quiet out of fear.

    Qiao Meiqi had a premonition that someone was preparing something, and that now was the calm before the storm.

    He¡¯d personally ryed an order with such a serious tone that practically the whole city was awaiting the arrival of the enemies.

    Even Yang Xiaodong was supervising the scene to prevent any idents. The other consecrated Master of Clearwater City was still uncontactable somehow, causing Qiao Meiqi to feel more uneasy.

    As the only Master left in Clearwater City, Yang Xiaodong had limited power to intimidate enemies.

    Qiao Meiqi had spent a huge fortune building the city¡¯s defenses. Even a Master would be unable to attack efficiently. Plus, there was Master Yang Xiaodong standing guard.

    The guards gged down a caravan that wasn¡¯t big and only had just over ten load basin beasts. However, some carriedpletely screened off tents on their backs. It was a garish sight.

    A few guards questioned, "Where are you guys from?"

    A manager from the caravan rushed forward and said in a ttering smile and tone, "Cold Rock City. What is going on, Sirs? I¡¯ve never seen such a disposition of troops before."

    The guards looked suspicious. "Why haven¡¯t I seen you if you¡¯ve been here before? Do those belong to the enterprise?"

    The manager replied hurriedly, "Look at what you¡¯re saying. You¡¯re a noble person and are busy with official business. I¡¯m just a lowly worker from Li n Enterprise. The goods inside were ordered by Master Yang."

    The guards made eye contact upon hearing the words "Li n Enterprise" and "Master Yang". They knew that Li n Enterprise and Master Yang shared a deep rtionship and the materials Master Yang needed had always been purchased from the enterprise.

    Just then, a man whom the guards recognized as Master Yang¡¯s servant, strode over without getting obstructed. He looked furious, hair all over his face. "Such a shilly-shally enterprise, spreading your bad luck to me at that. Master Yang has asked if the goods are here yet. Why are they only arriving now? How long has it been already!"

    The manager apologized hastily. "It¡¯s not that I did not try my best, but we met a few dire beasts on the way and fell into critical danger..."

    The servant interrupted coldly, "I¡¯m not here to listen to your grievances. Go find Master Yang if you have the energy to whine. Send those goods in and the ounts will be settled with you by Master Yang."

    The manager wept and pleaded non-stop but the servant looked on, ashen-faced and absolutely careless.

    Having witnessed this, the guards made eye contact and no one went forward. Weren¡¯t they seeking death if they were to provoke Master Yang at this time? Master Yang was supervising the city from above and Clearwater City would lose its footing if they offended him.

    Li n Enterprise¡¯s load basin beasts then entered the city gates amid pleads and cries but no one went forward.

    The load basin beasts quickly reached Li n Enterprise¡¯s entrance and went straight in without stopping. The enterprise gate only closed after thest load basin beast entered.

    No one noticed a few shadowsing out of the tents and disappearing.

    Deep within the enterprise was an inconspicuous looking house.

    Autumn Water, with her tall figure and huge watery eyes, looked as though she could steal people¡¯s souls. She said tenderly, "You really have your ways. Who would¡¯ve thought that Master Yang is one of your people. We have more confidence now."

    Mister Dou responded coldly, "Cut the crap."

    He looked scary with his empty looking eyes and withered face. He emitted a sinister odor and spoke with a hoarse voice, sending chills down people¡¯s spines.

    Autumn Water did not get angry. Sheughed softly, saying, "This is the Seventh Patriarch, Jiu Gui."

    [Jiu Gui - literally meaning ¡®Liquor Cab¡¯ (The skill he practiced was rted to liquor)]

    Beside her stood azy looking schr, who looked like a teacher. His eyes were narrow and hazy, as if intoxicated. Jiu Gui cupped his hands together andughed gently. "I¡¯ve heard of your glorious name, ¡®Northern Underworld King¡¯ for the longest time. It¡¯s an honor to meet you."

    "I¡¯ve heard of you." Mister Dou said expressionlessly. "Clearwater City is a water elemental city and the path you followed is, after all, a subdivision of water, so this city is a good ce for you to unleash your potential."

    "You tter me." Jiu Gui took out a long table and ced the wine pot and cups on top. Without raising his head he said, "Would you like to try some, Mister Dou?"

    Mister Dou answered coldly, "No need."

    Jiu Gui wasn¡¯t angry. Heughed cheekily, "Then I¡¯ll help myself."

    At that he poured himself a cup and took a mouthful of it, his face appearing intoxicated. "This is life!"

    Old Dou remained aloof, his expression the same. He did not get angry because of Jiu Gui¡¯s unruly behavior. Elementalists turned Masters were all outstanding characters and had all kinds of temperaments. When one became a Master, being able to follow one¡¯s heart was the most important principle.

    He asked in a deep voice, "I wonder what ns Assembly of Patriarchs has in mind?"

    The Assembly of Patriarchs had dispatched two Patriarchs, but the others¡¯ elemental energy waves were also exceptionally stable and calm. They were all extremely capable elites. The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯s power was indeed noteworthy.

    Jiu Gui pointed at Autumn water without lifting his head. "Ask her."

    Autumn Waterughed before adding, "I¡¯ve got to ask Old Dou about the rules. Master Yang is crucial to us. I wonder what rtionship you two share?"

    As if he hadn¡¯t heard theter part of her sentence, Mister Dou said faintly, "My rules are simple. We already have four Masters, so no fancy moves are needed. We can meet them head on. Venerable Volcano moves solitarily and hence is not a cause for concern. Plus, we can sabotage the cloud defenseyer now. Those people below are all chickens and dogs."

    As if he hadn¡¯t caught Mister Dou¡¯s words, Jiu Gui helped himself to the drink, his face filled with enjoyment. Only a trace of bright light that shed across his hazy eyes made his extraordinariness apparent.

    Autumn Water smiled delicately. "That¡¯s a good way. That Ai fellow is in seclusion so that¡¯s not an issue, but you have forgotten about Miss Shi. She¡¯s a tricky one. I¡¯m worried since you¡¯ve been unable to take action. It¡¯s not easy to avoid offending the Shi family and the Gong Residence.

    Mister Dou kept quiet. Autumn Water had nailed his Achilles heel.

    Indeed, he had no wish to offend the Gong residence or the Shi family. The Gong residence was a better choice, since Gong Peiyao did not have muchbat strength and killing a consecrated Master wasn¡¯t going to be a problem. On the other hand, trouble ensued if anything happened to the Shi family¡¯sdy, Shi Xueman.

    Shi Beihai was a division leader and in a position of power. Plus, Shi Xueman¡¯s master was Grandmaster An Muda.

    News of An Muda¡¯s decline had long been spreading all over every city, but as long as he was still alive no one dared do anything to Shi Xueman.

    A Grandmaster at hisst breath was still a Grandmaster.

    They were all Masters, but they had no confidence in defending themselves from a blow dealt by a dying Grandmaster.

    Old Dou threw the ball into Autumn Water¡¯s court. "What should we do?"

    Autumn Water smiled charmingly. "From what I can see, Gong Peiyao is the way to go. Shi Xueman is simply too capable and she isn¡¯t weaker than a Master. It will be tricky. Things might blow up if we actually go for her instead, and we don¡¯t want any injuries or even deaths. Ai Hui is her old lover so she will protect him with her life. I heard she¡¯s standing guard outside the meditation room Ai Hui is recuperating in. Tsk tsk, how affectionate."

    She added, "Byparison, Gong Peiyao is a much easier target. As long as someone lures Venerable Volcano away, won¡¯t Gong Peiyao just be at arm¡¯s length? She grew up with Shi Xueman and their families share a deep rtionship, so Shi Xueman will definitelypromise and hand over the form of snowva. We¡¯ll return Gong Peiyao to them afterwards. Isn¡¯t it perfect?"

    Mister Dou muttered to himself for a bit before setting his mind onto this n. He asked in a cold voice, "When do we move?"

    Autumn Water¡¯s big, watery and bright eyes flickered. "They¡¯re tired from their journey and are going to rest and continue tomorrow night. What do you think?"

    Mister Dou nodded. "Okay! Tomorrow night it shall be!"

    As soon as he finished his sentence his face changed. He turned his neck swiftly and looked toward the walls outside the courtyard. In a stern voice he shouted, "Who is it!"

    There were a few potted nts on the walls.

    Mister Dou waved his cane in the direction of the walls and the potted nts shattered instantly.

    Amid the shattering, a pea-sized yellow bodynded and jumped over the walls.

    The faces of those present changedpletely. They¡¯d actually failed to detect a spy and leaked such a crucial discussion!

    Damn it!

    Everyone was cursing inwardly and the walls turned into fine powder.

    Yet, that pea-sized yellow figure was nowhere to be seen anymore.

    Being knowledgeable and experienced, Mister Dou called out sharply, "It¡¯s a sand puppet! It mustn¡¯t be far. Take one direction each! I¡¯m going east."

    In such a critical moment, Autumn Water did not hesitate at all. "Jiu Gui, west. I¡¯m going south. You guys go north. Kill every sand puppet and earth elementalist youe across."

    The drunk look on Jiu Gui¡¯s face vanished and everyone started dispersing.

    Autumn water flew up and toward the south.

    In an alley about half a mile north from Li n Enterprise, the red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered as if he¡¯d sensed something. Then came a pea-sized mini Lou Lan pouncing onto him.

    The pea-sized Lou Lan shouted, "Bad guys are here, run quick!"

    Lou Lan extended his palm and grabbed onto pea sized Lou Lan, effectively merging it into his body. With a sh of his eyes he immediately retrieved the information from before.

    "There!"

    A few figures appeared overhead.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered and Lou Lan¡¯s body melted like snow and seeped into the ground in the blink of an eye.

    A few light rays exploded in the spot where Lou Lan had just disappeared but there was nothing in the big pit that formed from the explosion.

    Whoosh. Autumn Water appeared by their side and asked gloomily, "Where did he escape to?"

    "Into the ground."

    "Thinks he can escape just like that?" Autumn Water gave a bitter grin, her face ice-cold.

    There was a bronzentern in her hand.

 Chapter 455: Lou Lanâ€™s Idea

    Chapter 455: Lou Lan¡¯s Idea

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Autumn Water channeled elemental energy into the bronzentern she was holding and a wispy, bean sized me lit up. The me shot out a green light ray that shone onto the ground.

    The green ray was very weak, but the illuminated spot on the ground quickly became transparent and the maze-like sewerage system appeared before their eyes.

    The rest were startled as it was the first time they¡¯d seen something like this.

    Autumn Water¡¯sntern, "element-chasingntern", was a weapon used to track enemies. Elemental energy would be needed to track sand puppets who¡¯d fled this way since there would be traces left behind, unconceble before the element-chasingntern.

    The green light followed the elemental energy traces and moved rapidly.

    Where the light passed the ground, it returned to normal. When the light shone on the thick, solid ground it became crystal clear and so did the underground structure.

    Suddenly,the shadow of a pool of sand appeared on the ground before everybody¡¯s eyes.

    "There!"

    Everyone reacted instantly. As Autumn Water held onto herntern, the rest went forward and fusion elemental energy¡¯s unique, brightly-colored light rays shot toward the ground like raindrops.

    Moving stealthily underground, Lou Lan had sensed the light ray. He was extremely sensitive to changes in elemental energy, even more so than Ai Hui.

    In the moment the light shone onto the ground Lou Lan immediately moved further down. Passing through theplicated sewer, he continued moving downward, closer to the city stabilizer blocks.

    Benefitting from his previouswork scouting and monitoring, Lou Lan was very familiar with every corner of Clearwater City.

    Feeling the danger overhead, Lou Lan immediately activated the city stabilizer blocks¡¯ seals.

    The deep ck city stabilizers lit up.

    Each city wouldy city stabilizer blocks underneath to prevent underground dire beasts from entering into the city.

    During the blood catastrophe in Induction Ground, many cities had been invaded by blood fiends from underground. Having learnt a painful lesson from that, cities fortified their underground defense system by adding arge amount of elemental trace seals, whichbined with elemental energy to strengthen it.

    And Clearwater City¡¯s city stabilizers were even more well-configured.

    Qiao Meiqi was rich and powerful, and spared no effort in ensuring that Clearwater City was uncopsible. The city¡¯s defense was made up by two sections, one above ground and one under. Above, the cloud defenseyer blended well with the sprinkling water screen. They were like an overturned bowl, covering the citypletely and tightly.

    Underground, the city relied mainly on city stabilizers. In order to strengthen their resistance, each block was engraved with the most updated elemental traces. Some versions of the traces had been used on God-subduing Peak as well. The Gong Residence had exerted themselves in this aspect.

    Other than that, Qiao Meiqi had especially set aside arge sum of money to build an elemental energy pool to supply the city stabilizers with elemental energy, which significantly strengthened their power.

    Lou Lan was extremely familiar with elemental traces, since Ai Hui often asked him to analyze theposition of elemental traces. Triggering the elemental traces on the city stabilizers couldn¡¯t be easier for Lou Lan.

    However, those above ground still had no idea what kind of sand puppet they were dealing with.

    They were oblivious to what was about toe.

    The light rays, released by the few elites of the Assembly of Patriarchs, shot toward the pool of sand beneath the ground like sharp knives cutting into tofu.

    They did not want to rm the city guards so they avoided making amotion. It wasn¡¯t the time to attack yet. While they had the enterprise¡¯s shielding, they¡¯d traveled a long way after all and weren¡¯t in the right state to battle. They needed time to recover from their exhaustion.

    Although there wasn¡¯t a hugemotion, they did not relent. They could not believe that a sand puppet could actually dodge their attacks.

    Fusion elemental energy¡¯s power and might was highly destructive. Any pure elemental energy was like tofu in front of fusion elemental energy.

    The green light locked onto that pool of sand despite its constant downward movement.

    The brightly-colored light rays followed right behind and were rapidly closing in.

    As they were about to overtake, the sand figure vanished suddenly.

    Autumn Water was shocked. What happened?

    The element-chasingntern had never slipped, so why did the opponent disappear all of a sudden?

    As she was lost in thought the transparent ground warped like a surging water¡¯s surface. The me in the element-chasingmp trembled and swayed violently like a candle me in a storm.

    Pop. The candle me exploded with sparks.

    The sudden change of events caught Autumn Water off guard.

    The element-chasingntern was a high-grade item made by the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯s craftsman. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that she had performed outstandingly in a crucial mission, she wouldn¡¯t have gotten the chance to use it. Ever since thentern fell into her possession it had never slipped. This was the first time ever that she¡¯d been in a situation like this.

    But Autumn Water was a Master, after all, so she reacted quickly. Thentern tracked elemental energy waves. Even the smallest ripple couldn¡¯t escape its senses so there was only one possibility to exin this situation ¨C the elemental energy waves were overly-intense.

    Overly intense...

    Autumn Water¡¯s face changed. Before she could issue a warning a big piece of the solid ground rose up, as if a monster was about to drill its way out.

    "Quick..."

    The raised ground was like a crispy biscuit, breaking into many pieces as a faint blue light shot out from the cracks.

    The surging water elemental energy broke through the ground effortlessly. A water pir soared and exploded in mid air, causing hundreds of thousands of raindrops to sprinkle down.

    Standing too close to the pir, two Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯s elites weren¡¯t able to dodge the rain in time and their bodies were soon filled with dense, honeb-like holes. The weirder part was that their honeb-like corpses had no bloodstains on them. Not only did these water droplets, that were made from water elemental energy, take away their lives, they took away all the moisture from their bodies.

    Mister Dou, Jiu Gui and the rest of the gang were all searching for earth elementalists. Generally speaking, once sand puppets moved too far from their owners, their movements became clumsy and their reactions slow. This sand puppet acted nimbly so there must be an earth elementalist controlling it. Upon seeing the sand figure, Autumn Water locked onto it once again, they were relieved. They needed to get rid of the hidden earth elementalist.

    But at that point in time the sudden surge of water elemental energy frightened everybody.

    Mister Dou burst out in anger, "Are you guys crazy? Why did you activate the city stabilizers?"

    The elites wanted to cry but no tears came out. They weren¡¯t the ones activating the city stabilizer blocks. The blocks were buried deep down, so it just was impossible for them to do it.

    No one was in the mood to listen to their exnation however. Everyone knew they were in trouble.

    Indeed, a mournful rm rang and echoed throughout the whole city.

    Autumn Water turned pale. She trilled, "What now?"

    Mister Dou spoke up with an ominous glint in his eyes, "It¡¯s do or die, move it! Attack the mayor¡¯s residence!"

    A few of them made eye contact . Their n had already fallen through so they had no other choices. The further they dyed, the more passive they would be. While it wasn¡¯t the best time to attack, since they weren¡¯t sufficiently prepared, their targets were even more unprepared. Plus, with four Masters by their side, they did have the upper hand.

    "Mayor¡¯s residence!"

    The few of them flew toward the residence without hesitating.

    They had no time to waste on a tiny sand puppet. Time was of the essence.

    The victors gained everything whereas the losers were left with nothing.

    The rm sounded and the guards in the cloud defenseyer tensed up instantly.

    One of them cried out loud, "Master Yang, intruder alert!"

    Yang Xiaodong went over and asked in a low voice, "Where?"

    The guard answered hurriedly, "Wei River Street."

    Master Yang¡¯s voice followed. "I see it."

    Crack.

    The guard saw ck as he lost consciousness.

    Without even looking at the broken-necked guard, Master Yang turned around and disappeared.

    The other guards were stunned as a chill rose up their spines. Master Yang was a traitor! They turned around in hopes of escape, but they too saw ck and fell to the ground one after another.

    Yang Xiaodong¡¯s silhouette resurfaced as a tinge of worry shed across his eyes. He knew they must have met with an unexpected situation, or else they wouldn¡¯t have chosen to act at this point in time.

    And it was just an impudent attack.

    He could tell with a nce that they were advancing towards the mayor¡¯s residence.

    Head on?

    At this point he, too, threw all concerns aside. His eyes were filled with hatred. Head on then!

    He conveniently shattered the cloud that was controlling the cloud defenseyer, and everything shattered into bits and pieces like ss.

    The ever-present cloudyer that enveloped the city started to melt like snow and disappeared rapidly. Blue sky appeared over the city and the water screen outside weakened and vanished eventually.

    Citizens who found it strange raised their heads to look. They did not understand what had happened.

    Were dire beasts invading the city?

    Qiao Meiqi was rmed as well. He went up to the balcony and looked at the cloudless sky, his face turning strange.

    He had a premonition that something bad had happened.

    Fear enveloped him.

    Just then, Yang Xiaodong came flying over with a panicked look on his face. Qiao Meiqi¡¯s heart sank. Master Yang¡¯s anxious state gave him an idea of how grave things were. Nevertheless, he was feeling somewhat calm, just as how victims grabbed onto theirst straw of hope when drowning.

    QIao Meiqi asked in an unstable voice, "What happened, Master Yang?"

    Yang Xiaodong yelled as he flew in, "Intruders have entered the city with errant intentions! They¡¯re extremely powerful, so quick, find somewhere to hide, Mayor!"

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s pupils shrank as he looked toward the faraway sky.

    In an instant, right after he activated the city stabilizer blocks, Lou Lan dodged to the side, knowing exactly which spots were safe. He listened to the conversation overhead and until he could no longer sense the presence of those people, he returned to the surface.

    He looked up in the sky and understood that the opponents had alreadyunched their attack.

    Ai Hui and the rest were still unaware of the situation!

    Being unprepared, they would easily get struck, especially since Yang Xiaodong was a traitor.

    But Lou Lan did not know how to fly and his speed was much slower than his enemies.

    How should he inform Ai Hui?

    He cocked his head and racked his brains. The red light in his eyes shed. He¡¯d thought of an idea. While he wasn¡¯t certain of its effectiveness, he could only try.

    A pool of yellow sand rose into the sky like a cannonball.

    Boom!

    An unusual, resounding explosion sounded throughout the city. The yellow sand exploded and formed a row of words in the air.

    "Yang Xiaodong is a traitor. There are three other Masters!"

    The words were exceptionally eye-catching. After the row of words was a vivid and lifelike image of a mini Lou Lan. He was wearing a chef¡¯s apron, raising a pot with one hand and holding a spat in another.

    On the balcony with his pupils shrunk, the mayor looked at the faraway sky and ordered in a stern voice, "Stop him!"

    The other guards saw the words in the sky. With an angry howl they immediately went to seek out Yang Xiaodong. "Leave quick, Mayor!"

    A few other guards escorted the mayor away in a panic.

 Chapter 456: Jiu Gui Takes Action

    Chapter 456: Jiu Gui Takes Action

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Yang Xiaodong stared gravely at the rising water screen in front of the mayor¡¯s residence. The entanglement by the few guards just now gave the mayor¡¯s residence enough time to activate the water screen defense system.

    By the time the rest arrived, everyone¡¯s faces turned ugly. Their sneak attack had be an all-out attack. This increased the risk and uncertainty of this mission.

    "What happened?" Yang Xiaodong asked with a deep voice.

    Mister Dou knew it was better for him to exin the situation and replied, "Someone eavesdropped on our n."

    Yang Xiaodong slowly regained hisposure and looked at the distant sky. The line of sand-made words had disappeared. It was that line of sand-made words that exposed his identity.

    "Is it Ai Hui¡¯s sand puppet?" he asked.

    Yang Xiaodong had a deep impression of Ai Hui¡¯s sand puppet. As Gong Peiyao liked Lou Lan very much, Yang Xiaodong could not help but take notice of him as well. Lou Lan was too smart for a sand puppet.

    Mister Dou nodded his head.

    "Ai Hui is metal-attributed, why would he have a sand puppet?" Yang Xiaodong was slightly confused.

    The rest were puzzled as well. Due to the fact that only earth elementalists could control sand puppets, the use of sand puppets by other types of elementalists was unpopr. A sand puppet that was not controlled by an earth elementalist would be very stupid and was practically unusable.

    "Could he be a transfigured earth elementalist?" Jiu Gui interjected.

    Some extremely transfigured earth elementalists would modify more than ny percent of their bodies, so much so that they resembled sand puppets.

    Autumn Water shook her head. Her beautiful eyes flickered as she answered with certainty, "No, he is a sand puppet, not a transfigured earth elementalist."

    She had personally crossed swords with Lou Lan and she was very certain that she was facing a sand puppet, not a transfigured earth elementalist. Now, she was very interested in the sand puppet named Lou Lan. She had nevere across such a unique sand puppet.

    She had already made up her mind to capture that sand puppet after everything had been settled.

    Lou Lan, such a nice name. It just so happened that shecked an interesting toy to y with.

    No one knew that Autumn Water was already nning on capturing Lou Lan. However, when they thought of the series of unfortunate events that had happened, they became silent.

    Autumn Water noticed the depressing atmosphere around her and started talking, "Let¡¯s not care about that sand puppet. Right now, we have no way out. Only by taking down the mayor¡¯s residence and capturing Gong Peiyao or Ai Hui, can we then obtain the refinement method for snowva. Everyone, do you know how much an A-grade fire liquid is worth?"

    Usually, her voice was gentle and alluring. However, at this point of time, it sounded forceful and motivating, energizing everyone.

    Now, all they needed to do was to take down the mayor¡¯s residence and they would get what they wanted. There were four Masters in their team. Even if the mayor¡¯s residence had activated its defense system, they merely needed to put in a bit more effort before they eventually took it down.

    The cloud defenseyer in the sky had already beenpletely destroyed. As such, they did not need to worry about it.

    "Let me do it," Jiu Gui volunteered.

    Yang Xiaodong and Mister Dou stood aside for him. They were very curious about how powerful the Seventh Patriarch was. ordingly, Jiu Gui was more powerful than Autumn Water.

    Mister Dou had experienced Autumn Water¡¯s strength before. He did not know how powerful Jiu Gui was to be able to outshine Autumn Water.

    Even though both of them were partners, their trust for each other was very limited. All along, they had guarded against each other.

    Upon seeing that the water screen was set up, everyone within the mayor¡¯s residence felt slightly more at ease.

    Qiao Meiqi was timid and scared of death. At the same time, he was extremely wealthy. As such, he had spared no expense in building a defense system for his residence. Theyer of water screen appeared to be very thin but its defensive power was exceptionally strong. It was directly connected to the water elemental energy in the underground rivers.

    The motivation for him building Clearwater City here was tightly linked to the favourable natural advantages of this ce. Beneath Clearwater City, there were several underground rivers that provided an abundance of water elemental energy and they could even produce Clear Water. This was truly a blessed water elementalnd.

    With an abundance of water elemental energy flowing into the mayor¡¯s residence, the defense system was nearly impregnable.

    Venerable Volcano appeared in the main hall and asked solemnly, "What happened?"

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s face turned deathly white but he did not lose hisposure, "Yang Xiaodong colludes with outsiders to conspire against us!"

    Venerable Volcano looked through the water screen and heaved a cold breath. "Three Masters?"

    He could sense a simr aura from the other party.

    At this point of time, Qiao Meiqi hadpletely regained hisposure. He loosened himself from his guards¡¯ support and said, "With the addition of Yang Xiaodong, they have a total of four Masters."

    The look on Qiao Meiqi¡¯s face was malevolent. With his eyes filled with hatred, he gritted his teeth and roared, "I must kill Yang Xiaodong the traitor! I have to seek revenge for my guards!"

    At this moment, the eyes of the few guards beside him turned red and teary. They saw with their own eyes how Yang Xiaodong had killed theirrades.

    Venerable Volcano did not say anything. With four Masters outside, they were definitely in a disadvantageous position.

    Venerable Volcano¡¯s gazended upon the old man holding a vine staff with empty eye sockets. Suddenly, he thought of someone and his facial expression changed. He walked directly to the balcony and yelled towards the sky, "Are you Northern Underworld King, Mister Dou?"

    "I didn¡¯t expect Venerable to be able to recognize me. Venerable, I trust you have been well since west met," Mister Dou replied with a deep voice.

    A hoarse and awful voice drifted across the air, making it unbearable for people to listen to.

    Venerable Volcano¡¯s face turned solemn as he replied, "Everyone minds their own business. Can you tell me, what¡¯s the reason Mister Dou hase to attack us?"

    "I am here for the sake of money and I don¡¯t wish to hurt the innocents. We will leave as long as you hand over the refinement method for snowva."

    Yang Xiaodong was expressionless. Autumn Water and Jiu Gui looked at each other.

    Venerable Volcano realized what was going on and his heart sank. Ai Hui would definitely not hand over the refinement method as the snowva was of great importance to him. Venerable Volcano knew Ai Hui¡¯s temperament. It had always been Ai Hui taking advantage of others, not the other way around. It was impossible for anyone to take advantage of this fellow.

    Ai Hui might appear cheeky and impish, but in reality, he was an extremely steadfast and stubborn individual. Back in the days, when Venerable Volcano was trying to get a bowl of porridge from Ai Hui, he had done some research on the Battle of Central Pine City. As such, he clearly knew about Ai Hui¡¯s temperament. Furthermore, Shi Xueman, who was extremely resolute and stubborn too, was here as well.

    Venerable Volcano would definitely not pressure Ai Hui.

    The Gong residence was his employer, but he still owed Ai Hui a favor.

    To Venerable Volcano, the person whom he owed a favor to was far more important than his employer.

    "I see. It¡¯s a pity I am not the one who makes this decision so I have to discuss it with the rest. May I know who are the other two Masters?" Venerable Volcano replied calmly.

    "These two are Patriarchs from the Assembly of Patriarchs," Yang Xiaodong said inly.

    He purposely revealed the identities of Jiu Gui and Autumn Water to make sure they would not back out of this mission.

    Autumn Water smiled and did not bother about Yang Xiaodong¡¯s move. She bowed and greeted, "Nice to meet you, Venerable! I am the Ninth Patriarch of the Assembly of Patriarchs, Autumn Water."

    "I¡¯m the Seventh Patriarch of the Assembly of Patriarchs, Jiu Gui," Jiu Gui bowed and greeted Venerable Volcano as well.

    "All of you are indeed talented and youthful, bing Masters at such a young age. I feel really old," Venerable Volcano praised them.

    Autumn Water smiled sweetly, "Venerable has a well-known reputation and I have admired you for a long time. As a form of respect to you, as long as you can hand over the refinement method for the snowva, we will definitely not harm anyone."

    "We will have to discuss about it first," Venerable Volcano muttered.

    Autumn Water did not agree to his request and looked at Mister Dou.

    Mister Dou nodded his head and replied, "As a form of respect to Venerable, give him an hour to think about it."

    Venerable Volcano replied, "Thank you, everyone."

    After Venerable Volcano finished his sentence, he returned to the main hall. Everyone was looking at him at this moment.

    "Why are all of you looking at me?" Venerable Volcano asked.

    Gong Peiyao¡¯s face turned white as she replied, "Sister Xueman and the rest will definitely not agree to their request. Furthermore, these people are not to be trusted."

    "Of course I know about these things," Venerable Volcano chuckled.

    "Then...."

    "Having an hour to dy their attacks is better than having none," Venerable Volcano replied.

    Everyone realized what was going on.

    After thinking for a while, Venerable Volcano said, "Go and notify Miss Shi, all of us are in the same boat now."

    Qiao Meiqi quickly instructed one of his guards to notify Shi Xueman in the underground meditation room.

    After a while, Shi Xueman hurried over to the main hall.

    After Shi Xueman finished listening to everyone¡¯s recounts of what had happened, she asked, "How about Lou Lan? Is he back?"

    Qiao Meiqi shook his head and replied, "Once the water screen is activated, we are disconnected from the outside world. Lou Lan can¡¯t enter the mayor¡¯s residence. Luckily he used the sand-made words to alert everyone about the intruders. Everyone arrived here pretty fast, Lou Lan should be alright."

    Shi Xueman regained herposure. Shi Xueman¡¯s gaze swept across everyone as she asked, "What do all of you think we should do?"

    Venerable Volcanoughed bitterly in his heart. If they did not give a good answer, thisss was going to flip out. He gave a soft cough and replied, "I will disagree with anyone who suggests to hand over the refinement method for snowva. I haven¡¯t forgotten that I still owe thatd a favor."

    "We will fight them to the death!" Qiao Meiqi gritted his teeth.

    "Everyone joins hands and fights them together," Shi Xueman nodded her head.

    Very soon, one hour had passed.

    "Let¡¯s attack now," Mister Dou said inly.

    Jiu Gui nodded his head and stepped forward with a t wine sk in his hand. There was a reluctant look on his face, but he still opened the lid of the wine sk and drank a few mouthfuls of the wine inside.

    The wine sk contained his specially concocted Dragoncry Spring Wine. More than half of his ie had been spent on concocting this fine wine.

    Dragoncry Spring Wine was his trump card. Usually, he would be reluctant to use it but he had to take it out at this point of time.

    An intoxicated flush appeared on Jiu Gui¡¯s face. His eyes became hazy and his body began to sway. Traces of mist were being emitted from his body, pervading the air with an unusual wine fragrance.

    A mysterious aura of might was given off by his body.

    Yang Xiaodong and the rest were surrounding him, and their hairs stood on end.

    In everyone¡¯s eyes, the seemingly wobbly, schr-like man looked like a horrifying dire beast that had descended from the prehistoric era.

    This was definitely not a misperception!

    The elemental energy surrounding Jiu Gui began to undte violently. His swaying body in the air was giving off a vibrating buzz. He resembled a massive, unknown dire beast that was pping its wings.

    Jiu Gui¡¯s hazy eyes suddenly widened. Oddly, his intoxicated pupils became almond-shaped, resembling the eyes of a serpent. They werepletely devoid of warmth and emotions.

    He opened his mouth and let out a neigh-like sound. The sound waspletely inhuman, resembling an angry roar of an unknown dire beast.

    Everyone there was an experienced veteran, but they had never heard this kind of sound before.

    A tinge of fear appeared on Autumn Water¡¯s face.

    Suddenly, Jiu Gui¡¯s figure vanished into thin air.

    The next moment, a loud boom resounded through the air as the water screen in front of the mayor¡¯s residence trembled violently.

    A sonic boom exploded in the air.

    Within the mayor¡¯s residence, everyone¡¯s facial expressions changed drastically. Their ears were ringing, as if their ears were being punched. Those servants who were of lower base levels had blood seeping out of their mouths and noses.

    Gong Peiyao uttered a yelp and fell to the ground. Venerable Volcano¡¯s face turned grave as a surprised look shed across his eyes.

    He had never seen such a weird Path of Master.

    The loud sound was produced when the other partynded a punch on the water screen. It was a punch that contained pure power, without any techniques involved.

    At this moment, the previously frail-looking Jiu Gui was exactly like a prehistoric dire beast that possessed abination of terrifying strength and speed.

    Venerable Volcano could not see this monster¡¯s figure with his eyes. All he could see was a blurry afterimage.

    Venerable Volcano was shocked. What is this Path of Master?

 Chapter 457: A Swap Between Master And Slave

    Chapter 457: A Swap Between Master And ve

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Boom, boom, boom!

    Earth-shaking, loud booms resounded throughout Clearwater City. Every boom caused the earth to tremble violently. The entire city was shaking and its residents were escaping the city in panic.

    The sh of Masters could destroy the city and the area of effect would be very huge.

    The skinny Jiu Gui put up a terrifying disy of power. A series of intimidating neighing sounds resounded through the air as a fleeting afterimage appeared and disappeared at random in the sky.

    Every punch he unleashed was not fanciful at all. Theynded heavily on the water screen. Jiu Gu was like a city sieging machine, his punches were filled with terrifying strength.

    Initially, there were merely undting ripples on the water screen. Subsequently, the water screen began to tremble. Now, sshes of water erupted from the water screen with every punch thatnded on it.

    "The water elemental energy pool has half of its energy left!"

    A guard who watched over the water elemental energy pool in the mayor¡¯s residence yelled. His voice was trembling with fear.

    The water elemental energy from the underground rivers was being directed to the water elemental energy pool in the mayor¡¯s residence to power the water screen. The water elemental energy was depleting at a much faster rate than what they had expected.

    Venerable Volcano¡¯s facial expression became solemn. The skinny fellow¡¯s body seemed to contain boundless energy. He was very different from the conventional Masters that Venerable Volcano had encountered before. Most Masters were focused on the understanding and applications of elemental energy.

    Unknowingly, a feeling of strangeness arose in Venerable Volcano¡¯s mind.

    Since when had the world undergone so many changes? He did not know. Even the training system had changedpletely these days. New developments and things were appearing every day.

    Conventional ideas were being toppled constantly while new ideas began to dominate the world.

    Even though aristocratic families were still very powerful, they were no longer invincible like they were in the past. All of them were in their twilight years. Venerable Volcano had a deep rtionship with the Gong residence, otherwise, they would not have given him offerings. He had seen how powerful and arrogant the Gong residence was in the past. But the current Gong residence wasn¡¯t that insufferably arrogant anymore.

    Furthermore, now was the Elemental Destion Era.

    As Venerable Volcano put away his distracting thoughts, a voice suddenly rang across his ears.

    "It¡¯s the legendary [Sky Pce Possession Technique]. The skill uses wine as a medium to activate it and it is an ingenious skill. The elemental energy in his body is very unique as well. It should be the unique fusion elemental energy from the Assembly of Patriarchs."

    The voice belonged to Shi Xueman.

    Venerable Volcano¡¯s eyes lit up as he realized what they were dealing with. "So it¡¯s [Sky Pce Possession Technique]. I have heard about it before. Reportedly, it had been lost for many years. I didn¡¯t expect it to reappear in the hands of the Assembly of Patriarchs."

    Venerable Volcano could not help but look at Shi Xueman. Youngsters nowadays are really formidable!

    "Sister Xueman, do you have any ways of countering it?" Gong Peiyao asked hurriedly.

    "[Sky Pce Possession Technique] has a very long history, but it is a weird and unpredictable skill. It is very risky and dangerous for one to practise it as well. Ever since it was created, only a small number of people have sessfully mastered it. Outsiders know very little about this skill. I merely know a thing or two about it."

    Everyone pricked up their ears to listen to Shi Xueman.

    "The wine that he drank should have been specially concocted and it contains the breath of a mutated dire beast. The breath of a mutated dire beast can stimte his sky pce. By using this skill, his sky pce will treat his body as a mutated dire beast¡¯s. The bodies of most elementalists like us contain only one element, while dire beasts are heterogeneous in nature. Fusion elemental energy contains all five elements and it suits the unique characteristic of the skill. His body might look frail and skinny, but it actually possesses the fighting capabilities of a mutated dire beast."

    Shi Xueman paused for a while before continuing, "The most powerful part of [Sky Pce Possession Technique] is that it allows its practitioner to possess the abilities of a dire beast without losing his or her consciousness."

    Hiss. rmed gasps broke out in their surroundings.

    This was the first time that most of them had heard of [Sky Pce Possession Technique]. All of their faces turned ugly.

    The deafening booms sounded as if someone was using a huge hammer to knock their foreheads continuously.

    "[Sky Pce Possession Technique] has its weaknesses as well."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s words energized everyone.

    "Even though he possesses the abilities of a mutated dire beast, he still has the physical body of an elementalist. Even with the help of fusion elemental energy, he is still very far from being a real mutated dire beast. He can¡¯t keep on unleashing those powerful attacks, otherwise, his body willpletely copse."

    "Are his attacks now considered powerful?" Gong Peiyao could not help but ask.

    Shi Xueman shook her head and replied, "I¡¯m not sure, it will have to depend on the mutated dire beast that possesses him. From his aura, I can¡¯t tell which dire beast it is."

    Qiao Meiqi looked at Shi Xueman and asked, "So what will we do now?"

    "We will wait," Shi Xueman answered.

    Qiao Mei nodded his head continuously and took in a deep breath of air. "We will wait for them to exhaust their energy before we take action."

    Even though a Master was very powerful, this did not mean he or she couldn¡¯t be defeated. Everyone was feeling scared, but they were not feeling despair. The guards in the mayor¡¯s residence were the elites in Clearwater City. Right now, there were still around fifteen of them left. If they fought with all their might, they still had a chance of winning this battle!

    At this point of time, Qiao Meiqi had fully disyed the ruthlessness and decisiveness of apetent businessman.

    When Qiao Meiqi¡¯s guards saw that he was not afraid of death, they became less fearful as well.

    They would wait! They would wait until their enemies were exhausted before they took action.

    A glint of hatred shed across their eyes.

    However, no one knew that Shi Xueman¡¯s purpose for asking them to wait was different from what they thought.

    The underground meditation room was trembling.

    The power from Jiu Gui¡¯s punches was immense. Dust kept on falling from the trembling ceiling of the meditation room. However, in the darkness, Ai Hui could not feel anything.

    He looked as if he was being possessed, walking around the dark meditation room bare-footed. He kept on shing the air with his Wintry Jade de, leaving streaks of sword gleams in the air.

    Sometimes, he would stop moving momentarily and pondered about something with knitted eyebrows. Sometimes, he would keep on brandishing his sword. His sword gleams were inplete disorder, making him look like a childish kid that was scribbling carelessly on the wall with a pencil.

    Whatever happened outside did not affect him the slightest bit.

    The boiling steam cloud around his body kept on reducing in size.

    Boom. An impact that was more powerful than before urred. Even the soundproof meditation room could not block off the loud boom.

    At the same time, a silvery lightning arc shed across the darkness.

    In the midst of the deafening booms, the lightning arc released by the sword tip illuminated Ai Hui¡¯s face and limpid eyes in the darkness. He wasn¡¯t lost, hesitant, helpless or confused. The lightning arc gave off a resplendent glow, resembling bright stars in the night sky that overlooked the vast earth.

    He did not bother about the loud booms outside. In fact, he did not even hear them.

    Ai Hui ced all his attention on the streak of lightning arced on the tip of his sword, staring at it without looking away for even a slight moment.

    He had never observed or experienced lightning at such a close distance.

    Ai Hui did not know that the previous loud boom was the sound of the water screen being broken. The battle on the surface was extremely intense at this moment.

    As time passed, the lightning arc on his sword became increasingly hot and dazzling.

    At the same time, there was another battle ongoing in Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    More and more lightning streaks were formed in Ai Hui¡¯s body. They were remodelling his body. This was a process that all Masters had to undergo. This was also one of the reasons why a Master was so powerful.

    The lightning streaks became increasinglypact. It was as if a silvery chainmail had been draped over Ai Hui¡¯s body. When those lightning streaks flitted across the blood plum blossom on his chest, the blood plum blossom trembled, resembling a frightened monster that was digging into Ai Hui¡¯s body with all its might.

    The movement of the blood plum blossom immediately caught the lightning streaks¡¯ attention.

    One by one, the streaks of lightning ensnared the blood plum blossom. As the blood plum blossom continued to dig into Ai Hui¡¯s body, the lightning streaks that ensnared it increased in number. Buzz, buzz. Cracks began to appear on the blood plum blossom¡¯s petals.

    A red-colored blood mist gushed out from the cracks. However, the next moment, the blood mist became entangled inyers of lightning streaks and was destroyedpletely.

    The blood color of the blood plum blossom faded as silvery lightning streaks gushed in. The cracks on the petals of the blood plum blossom began to heal. Eventually, it became a silver-colored plum blossom. One could even see fragmentary lightning streaks flitting across the petals.

    At this moment, in the depths of the distant God Pce, She Yu¡¯s body suddenly froze.

    She lifted up her sleeve abruptly. On her snow-white arm, the dark-red blood plum blossom was gradually sinking into her skin.

    "No!"

    She let out a yelp as fear filled her eyes.

    The blood plum blossom had caved in towards the depths of her body!

    She was frightened out of her wits.

    She Yu, who had mastered [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art], clearly knew what was happening when this situation urred.

    The Flower of Destruction and the Flower of Life were representations of Yin and Yang respectively. Under normal circumstances, the Flower of Life was the master while the Flower of Destruction was the ve. However, this status quo would not always remain. Under special circumstances, if the flower ve¡¯s power became stronger or could restrain the flower master¡¯s, the positions of the flower ve and the flower master would swap. This logic was simr to the fact that Yin and Yang would swap positions under special circumstances.

    However, the conditions needed in order for this event to take ce were extremely strict and demanding. This would only take ce when the strength of the flower ve was exactly one base level higher than the flower master¡¯s.

    How could he be stronger than her? And by exactly one base level?

    She Yu, whose face was deathly white, felt as if she was being locked in an icehouse as her body trembled involuntarily.

    No, there was one more possibility!

    Ai Hui¡¯s power was restraining her power!

    What exactly did he do?

    Fear kept on engulfing She Yu.

    Right now, the Blood of God was thriving and unsurpassable. On the battlefield, god elementalists had held dominance over elementalists. The fact that blood spiritual force restrained elemental energy was no longer a secret. In terms of training, Blood of God had a huge advantage over elementalists as well. The ripening and harvesting of jade fruits and the abundance of blood cores and blood crystals made god elementalists stronger with each passing day.

    The birth of Red Devil was one of the epitomes of Blood of God¡¯s greatness.

    She did not understand what was going. What kind of power could restrain blood spiritual force?

    How could there be a power in this world that could restrain blood spiritual force?

    She felt helpless as she did not know what to do.

    What could she do?

    She did not want to be the flower ve. If she was to be the flower ve, her life would be ced in the hands of the flower master. She would be the fertile soil for the flower master. All her hard work, vitality, essence-breath-spirit and soul would be devoured by the Flower of Destruction. She would be a supreme treasure to be used for the flower master¡¯s training!

    When She Yu thought of the fact that her life was going to vanish in a puff of smoke, her body became ice-cold. A piercingly cold shiver went down her spine, causing her to tremble non-stop in fear.

    No!, She definitely must not be a flower ve!

    She must beg His Majesty for help!

    His Majesty must have a solution!

    She was like a person that was drowning and holding on to herst lifebuoy.

    Like a madwoman, she dashed towards the door. The afternoon sun was exceptionally dazzling, casting a snow-white light through the door. Her feet stopped right on the thin line separating light and darkness.

    Her body was swaying as intense fear engulfed her pale-white face.

    Suddenly, she tore apart the front of her red dress.

    On her snow-white, perky breasts, there was a glistening, blood-red plum blossom.

    Far away, in a dark meditation room, a silver-colored plum blossom silently appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s left arm.

 Chapter 458: Battles Of Masters (1)

    Chapter 458: Battles Of Masters (1)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Lou Lan¡¯s head popped out from behind a half-destroyed wall. He blinked his eyes and looked at the distant, intense battle near the mayor¡¯s residence.

    He had not left yet, Why would Lou Lan leave first when Ai Hui and Xueman were still there?

    The red light in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes kept on flickering.

    The lightning-fast afterimage in the sky was like a ferocious dire beast. It kept on colliding against the water screen. Every collision caused the earth to shake. The wall in front of Lou Lan had copsed because of those collisions.

    Clearwater City waspletely empty. All its residents had escaped to a mountain outside the city. That was the mountain where the fight between Ai Hui and Han Li had taken ce. Everyone on the mountain was looking at the distant Clearwater City with deep worry in their eyes. There were many people crying at this moment. Even though Clearwater City was built merely two years ago, it had be a home to many people who longed to live a peaceful life.

    In times of chaos, peace was an extravagant privilege!

    They could not afford to offend any of the Masters in the sky. Even if their home was destroyed, what else could they do other than cry their hearts out?

    The lives of lowly individuals like them were as fragile as des of grass.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    The boomsing from afar sounded like thunderps.

    The atmosphere inside the mayor¡¯s residence was very tense.

    The guard who was watching over the elemental energy pool yelled, "The elemental energy pool has twenty percent of its energy left!"

    Shi Xueman turned a deaf ear to him. With a calm and collected tone, she said, "From now onwards, everyone listens to mymands."

    Venerable Volcano did not feel belittled. Instead, a look of admiration swept across his eyes. Shi Xueman was indeed like her father. Without any hesitation, Venerable Volcano replied, "Okay!"

    Qiao Meiqi agreed as well. "Everyone shall listen to Miss Shi¡¯smands. Those who disobey her will be killed on the spot!"

    "The elemental energy pool has fourteen percent energy left!"

    The voice of the guard who was watching over the elemental energy pool was trembling. If the elemental energy pool dried up, the water screen would shatter with a loud bang.

    An uproar broke out in the mayor¡¯s residence.

    Shi Xueman remained calm and collected. However, she had begun to speak with a faster speed. "The other party doesn¡¯t have any earth elementalists. Mayor, Yaoyao, all the women and children, head down to the underground meditation room. You, you shall be in charge of leading all the guards."

    Shi Xueman chose a seemingly calm-looking guard to lead the rest of the guards.

    "All of you stay behind me. Every time you attack, you must lock onto a target and attack that target together," Shi Xueman said to that guard.

    A lot of guards¡¯ faces turned red. Even though they knew Shi Xueman was much more powerful than them, they still felt embarrassed for having to stand behind a woman.

    "The elemental energy pool has ten percent energy left!"

    Qiao Meiqi and the rest quickly scrambled towards the underground meditation room. Shi Xueman looked at Venerable Volcano and asked, "Venerable, can you deal with Northern Underworld King?"

    "Alright!" Venerable Volcano replied with dignity.

    His whole life had been rough. He had undergone countless moments of both glory and misery. At his age, he was no longer scared of death.

    Simrly, Shi Xueman was calm and collected. And like she had said, she stood in front of all the guards.

    She stood there with a spear in her hand and her hair drifting in the wind.

    "The water screen is going to break!"

    Just as she finished her sentence, a boom that was louder than all the previous collisions resounded through the air. Like a shattered bell ss, the water screen copsedpletely and a surging air current swept across the main hall. Shi Xueman¡¯s cape fluttered violently in the wind.

    With calmness in her beautiful eyes, Shi Xueman casually took off the cape on her body and let the strong wind blow it away, revealing her blue-white armor.

    The fully-armored, beautiful and alluring girl plunged her Cirrus in the ground beside her feet.

    She took off the red hairband on her wrist, raised her beautiful, ice-cold face and calmly tied up her long, drifting hair. Her pursed red lips gave off an austere aura. Plunged vertically into the ground beside her feet, her Cirrus was vibrating non-stop due to the surging air current, giving off a loud buzzing sound.

    The magnificent dome roof of the mayor¡¯s residence shattered with a loud bang. Stone pirs and beams that were supporting the roof copsed, causing crushed stones to fall like rain.

    The pony-tailed girl raised her elegant eyebrows and a determined look shed across her beautiful eyes. Following which, she reached out her hand to grasp the Cirrus beside her.

    She had decided to release the restraint on her base level!

    The moment her soft, slim and snow-white hand grabbed her Cirrus, a powerful aura suddenly erupted from her with a loud rumble.

    The crushed rocks and beams falling above her head froze in the air, as if there was a pair of invisible hands catching them.

    Shi Xueman brandished her spear casually.

    The frozen, crushed rocks and beams above were reduced to fine powder and became a grey-colored shadow. Behaving like a gigantic hammer, the grey shadow swept across the remaining walls surrounding the main hall and crushed them to smithereens!

    The main hall had transformed into an open-air terrace.

    Thud, thud, thud!

    Holding Cirrus in her hand, Shi Xueman walked forward slowly. Mist began to form and swirl erratically around her body. Every step she took, her aura increased in intensity.

    In the sky, the facial expressions of Autumn Water and her counterparts changed drastically.

    All of them did not dare to underestimate Shi Xueman. She was born in an aristocratic family and her father was Shi Beihai. Since childhood, her talents were exceptional and she was extremely strict with herself. Reportedly, a lot of Elders in Elders Guild had felt that Shi Xueman was a candidate to be the next Great Elder. However, no one expected Shi Xueman to abandon her bright future and follow Ai Hui, causing a lot of people to feel pity for her.

    Autumn Water and her counterparts could sense how powerful Shi Xueman was. However, they did not know why she wanted to restrain her base level.

    As such, they had treated her as a Master since the beginning.

    However, Shi Xueman¡¯s strength was far more powerful than they¡¯d expected.

    How could it be?

    How old was she? How could she possess such fundamentally sound and terrifying powers?

    When Shi Xueman released the restraint on her base level, all of them were stunned. That was because Shi Xueman was extraordinary.

    Most of the youngsters that attained the level of Master were well-versed in their understanding towards elemental energy.

    However, Shi Xueman waspletely different from the rest. She did not solely depend on her innate gifts. From her aura, one could tell that she had put in hours of hard work into her training and her powers were fundamentally sound and wless, so much so that they caused her enemies to despair.

    The swirling mist around her body was spotlessly white like snow, but it appeared as if it was heavy and solid.

    Something was wrong!

    All along, Mister Dou hadn¡¯t wanted to offend the Shi family. Now that he saw how powerful Shi Xueman was, he did not want to be the Shi family¡¯s enemy even more. As such, he took the lead and said, "Venerable, let the youngsters fight it out. Old fogeys like me and you should swap pointers with each other."

    Venerable Volcano burst out inughter and replied, "Come on,e on. Old Dou, today we shall put up a great performance."

    Venerable Volcano flew up into the sky. Following which, he waved his hand casually and shot a cluster of zes towards Mister Dou. The cluster of zes looked extremely ordinary. However, Mister Dou did not lower his guard and plunged his vine staff into the ground.

    When the vine staff was plunged into ground, countless root hairs grew at its bottom end. Meanwhile, leaves and green sprouts began to grow on the top half of the vine staff. In the blink of an eye, the vine staff had transformed into a gigantic tree.

    Oddly, when this gigantic tree appeared, the sky began to darken.

    The zing sun that hung high in the sky dimmed significantly, resembling the setting sun during dusk.

    Mister Dou had a unique Path of Master that was derived from this Northern Underworld King Tree!

    This tree could devour all the light in its surroundings.

    The cluster of zes released by Venerable Volcano kept on emitting a dark-red glow as it flew through the air. However, as it flew closer to the gigantic tree, its brightness became more and more dim. By the time it reached the tree, its glow hadpletely disappeared, revealing its true from. It was actually a handful ofva. At this point of time, theva had cooled down and became a piece of rock. With a pop, it was reduced to ashes in the air.

    "You¡¯re truly worthy of being called Northern Underworld King!"

    Venerable Volcano praised. His previous attack was merely used to feel out Mister Dou¡¯s strength. However, now he could see that Mister Dou was really powerful.

    "Venerable, there¡¯s no need for you to hold back," Mister Dou said inly.

    A serious look appeared on Venerable Volcano¡¯s face. Like a lead ball, he plunged into the ground with a soft popping sound.

    After a while, a bump suddenly rose on the ground¡¯s surface with a loud rumble. Following which, more and more bumps appeared on the ground¡¯s surface. Rumble, rumble, rumble. It was as if there were tens of thousands of horses stampeding across the city.

    A volcano rose from the ground not far away from the mayor¡¯s residence with a visible speed.

    Surging, thick smoke from the volcanic crater hid the sky and covered the earth while raging, scarletva erupted from the volcano.

    Venerable Volcano¡¯s Path of Master was [Volcano]!"

    Venerable Volcano could directly harness the earth fire deep in the ground and form a volcano.

    Boom!

    A gigantic ball of mes, that was ten meters in diameter, erupted violently from the volcano. It shot towards the Northern Underworld King Tree with a terrifying force and whizzing sound.

    The Northern Underworld King Tree became darker and darker, looking as if it was shrouded in ink-ck darkness.

    Traces of red glow were being pulled out from the fireball and absorbed by the Northern Underworld King Tree. The glow of the fireball dimmed rapidly. Eventually, theva within it cooled down and it became a round-shaped rock ball.

    Pop!

    Intertwining cracks appeared on the surface of the rock ball and a dark-red glow gushed out from those cracks.

    The outer shell of the rock ball shattered and revealed a fireball within it. Even though the fireball had be smaller in size, its glow was brighter and hotter.

    When the fireball flew into the zone of darkness around the Northern Underworld King Tree, its speed suddenly reduced significantly. In a sh, the glow of the fireball was extinguished and became a rock ball once again.

    Just as a relieved look appeared on Mister Dou¡¯s face, the rock ball exploded with a loud bang and brightly-colored, dancing mes erupted from it.

    The explosion was too close to the Northern Underworld King Tree!

    Even though the Northern Underworld King Tree had a ring of darkness as its protection, a few of its leaves were still burned.

    A distressed look appeared on Mister Dou¡¯s face. The powers of the Northern Underworld King Tree had a direct connection to the number of leaves it had. Not only was the growing process for the leaves unusually slow, the tree also needed to devour an immense amount of light just to grow a single leaf.

    The battle had just begun.

    The battle between two Masters was long and bitter!

    The battle between Mister Dou and Venerable Volcano appeared as if it had no impact on everyone else.

    Yang Xiaodong looked at the mighty Shi Xueman below, as a tinge of regret creeped into his mind. He couldn¡¯t believe that she was so powerful. However, he threw these distracting thoughts to the back of his head very soon. He was given life by Brother Dou. He would never reject Brother Dou¡¯s request for help.

    Back in the day, Brother Dou had lost his eyes when saving his life.

    And if worse came to worst, he would return his life to Brother Dou.

    When Yang Xiaodong thought of this, he felt relieved and regained hisposure.

    "Kill him!"

    Suddenly, the mayor residence¡¯s guards on the ground bellowed in rage. Countless light beams shot towards Yang Xiaodong who was in the sky.

    All the guards loathed Yang Xiaodong, the traitor, and their first target was him. They still remembered Shi Xueman¡¯s instructions. All of them had to lock onto the same target andunch their attacks together.

    They were filled with expectation as they widened their eyes. They couldn¡¯t wait to see Yang Xiaodong¡¯s blood sshing across the air.

    Just as their torrential attacks were about to hit Yang Xiaodong, a mirror-like gleam shed across his body.

    Densely-packed, transparent prism pirs hovered upright around Yang Xiaodong, resembling a huge forest of prism pirs. These prism pirs were formed from water elemental energy. They were pristine and crystal-clear, containing rushing water that was flowing silently.

    The whizzing beam of gleam pierced into the forest of prism pirs. Unexpectedly, it changed its direction and was deflected one meter away from Yang Xiaodong.

    Yang Xiaodong¡¯s Path of Master, [Refraction Forest]!

 Chapter 459: Battles Of Masters (2)

    Chapter 459: Battles Of Masters (2)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Yang Xiaodong seldom took action himself. The guards of Clearwater City were rather powerful elites. Clearwater City was located in the depths of Wilderness and the living conditions here were extremely dreadful. Elementalists that could survive here were neither weak nor stupid.

    After quelling a few brawls in the past, Clearwater City¡¯s public security had been pretty good since then. They also did not encounter any powerful enemies from the outside world. As such, Yang Xiaodong seldom appeared in public.

    Everyone was more familiar with his nephew, Yang Wuchang instead.

    Yang Xiaodong¡¯s betrayal had caused all the guards to loathe him. All of them felt that he was someone who merely fished for fame. However, [Refraction Forest] made them realized that Yang Xiaodong was still a Master, despite his vile character.

    Yang Xiaodong broke out in a cold sweat as well.

    Apparently, thebined attack from the guards was premeditated. If he had not not activated [Refraction Forest] just in time, he would have been destroyed by those densely-packed attacks.

    A ze of rage suddenly ignited in the panicked Yang Xiaodong¡¯s heart. Having lived like a prince for a long time, he had never encountered such a dangerous situation. It had also been quite a while since someone provoked him like this. Even the mayor Qiao Meiqi talked to him in a polite and respectful tone.

    Yang Xiaodong snorted coldly and the densely-packed prism pirs around him began to move.

    Immediately, countless light beams were reflected off the forest of prism pirs, flickering erratically and dazzling people¡¯s eyes.

    The guards could not help but squint their eyes. These light beams were unusually dazzling, making them feel as if their eyes were being pricked by needles.

    On the ground, there were a lot of water stains that were formed when the water screen copsed. At this moment, these unremarkable water stains were extremely deadly, behaving like pythons that were hiding in the dark.

    Silently, the water stains gathered together and transformed into numerous, thin ice spears with extremely sharp tips. Without making any noise, they shot towards the guards. At this instance, the sky was filled with dazzling and fascinating light beams, distracting the guards from the impending doom on the ground. The ice spears on the ground were like pythons hiding in the darkness, slowly revealing their poisonous fangs.

    Just as the ice spears were about to pierce through the bodies of the guards, a wisp of mist suddenly appeared. Like a nimble-moving snake, it shed across the guards.

    The wisp of mist was only as thick as a thumb, but it was exceptionally strong. In the blink of an eye, the sneaky ice spears werepletely smashed.

    In the sky, Yang Xiaodong looked at Shi Xueman with shock in his eyes.

    However, Shi Xueman did not have the time to bother about Yang Xiaodong. In front of her, Autumn Water had begun to take action too. She threw out a ragdoll which consisted of five different colors: white, green, ck, brown and red.

    The ragdoll looked as if it was made using patches rags that were of five different colors. Its mouth was made up of stitches, making it looking sinister and scary.

    When the ragdollnded on the ground, it melted like snow and formed a five-colored light spot on the ground¡¯s surface.

    Autumn Water¡¯s eyes flickered as she smiled, "Come out, King!"

    The shape of the light spot on the ground began to distort. Following which, a short figure climbed out of the light spot. The figure resembled a seven year old child. Its entire body was slick and slippery, looking as if it had been dyed with a multi-colored fluorescent paint. Its face was t and multi-colored as well. It had no eyes, ears or nose. It only had a strip of stitches as its mouth.

    When the King appeared, an eerie aura engulfed the entire ce.

    "Kill!"

    The guardsunched their second wave of attacks.

    Since their attacks were ineffective against Yang Xiaodong¡¯s [Refraction Forest], they changed their target and locked onto the multi-colored, man-like doll.

    Boom!

    Dazzling streaks of light engulfed the short and stout doll.

    The violent explosion set the guards¡¯ minds at ease. The odd-looking, short doll should be destroyed by such a concentrated,bined attack.

    However, when the light and smoke cleared away, the guards¡¯ facial expressions changed drastically.

    Not only was King not injured at all, it had increased significantly in size as well. Its stitch-made mouth began to spread apart.

    It was smiling.

    Upon seeing this, the guards were overwhelmed with horror. This weird doll could devour all types of elemental energy.

    [King] was Autumn Water¡¯s Path of Master. Fusion elemental energy¡¯s unique characteristic of not being restrained by any types of elemental energy had been put on full disy by Autumn Water.

    This was King, the doll that could devour all types of elemental energy.

    Shi Xueman was roused.

    Her mind was filled with killing intent.

    She had discussed with Ai Hui about fusion elemental energy before. Both of them felt that fusion elemental energy was an extremely powerful force. It had the potential to be an enormous energy system on its own.

    Their conjecture had been verified by what she had just seen. Jiu Gui¡¯s [Sky Pce Possession Technique] waspletely different from Autumn Water¡¯s [King]. However, both were remarkable and unfathomable.

    They did not expect the Assembly of Patriarchs to be their enemy.

    Shi Xueman moved extremely fast and appeared out of nowhere beside the doll. With two currents of mist swirling around her Cirrus, she thrusted it towards King.

    The King¡¯s reaction was very fast as it reached out its hand and grabbed the tip of Shi Xueman¡¯s spear.

    Cirrus and King¡¯s hand collided together. At the same time, the mist swirling around Cirrus was heading towards King too.

    The spear tip pierced through King¡¯s palm but it looked as if it felt nothing. Its other hand extended like a rope and lunged towards Shi Xueman.

    However, at this very moment, the mist from Cirrus struck the doll¡¯s palm.

    Boom!

    The doll¡¯s body and its pierced palm disappeared all of a sudden. It was as if a charging, wild beast had mmed into King, causing it to fly backwards through the air.

    Autumn Water¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. She vanished into thin air and appeared beside King.

    King¡¯s colorful right forearm had disappeared. It only had half its right arm left.

    Shi Xueman slowly retracted her Cirrus. This was her Path of Master, [Cloud of Firmament Iron]!

    "Firmament iron is made up of a very simple raw material, water. The method of forming it is very simple as well,pression. As long as you canpress one thousand buckets of water into one single bucket, firmament iron will be produced. Cloud can bepressed into water, water can bepressed into firmament iron. What about a cloud that is made up of firmament iron?"

    "After putting in an immense amount of hard work, even the most ordinary technique can be magnificent."

    "Water can be iron, ice can be steel!"

    "For the Shi family, inheritances and absolute arts do not form the foundation of our greatness. It¡¯s our lofty ambitions to put in hard work and the solitude thates along with it that forms our greatness. It¡¯s all about putting in more hard work, even after you have put in tons of hard work!"

    "Focus on your spearmanship and don¡¯t care about other things."

    "This world has nothing to do with you."

    After Shi Xueman released the restraint on her base level, a colossal amount of water elemental energy gushed into her body. The elemental energy level in her body kept on rising while her aura kept on intensifying.

    Shi Xueman remembered her father¡¯s words and intentionally restrained her base level all this while. She absorbed the water elemental energy and released the clouds within Cirrus. Following which, shepressed the clouds into water and thenpressed the water. She repeated this process over and over again without finding it a hassle. Her goal was topress Cirrus¡¯s clouds into firmament iron and shatter it into numerous tiny granules. Ultimately, she would use these granules to reconstruct the clouds of her Cirrus and form the real Cloud of Firmament Iron.

    This process was much harder than her father¡¯s process of forming firmament iron. Her workload was a lot more than her father¡¯s as well.

    Until now, she had never formed the real firmament iron.

    However, her spear clouds were already extremely heavy, so much so that they were heavier than steel. The power of her spearmanship had be extremely terrifying as well. Even her most ordinary spear move was exceptionally deadly and formidable.

    This was Shi Xueman. She was an individual that never cut corners and always chose the most challenging path. She overcame all obstacles along her path and progressed steadily.

    She had neither the brilliance of a genius, nor an amazing creativity.

    But her greatness always caused despair in people, as they did not know how to withstand it.

    Autumn Water¡¯s face turned pale-white with agony. Her life was connected to King. If King died, she would die as well.

    This was the unique characteristic of a Path of Master. Path of Master was intolerant of hesitancy and indecisiveness. One could only be a Master by pursuing a path that he or she believed in andmitted his or her life to.

    How could one be a Master by fluke?

    Viciousness returned to Autumn Water¡¯s face as she channeled fusion elemental energy into King¡¯s body with all her might. King¡¯s severed right arm began to wiggle and a brand-new forearm regenerated rapidly.

    When Yang Xiaodong saw this, he was overwhelmed with horror.

    Autumn Water¡¯s King set him off in fear and trepidation. It could actually devour its enemy¡¯s elemental energy. King was the bane of all elementalists!

    Shi Xueman was even scarier. Her spear move was in and simple, but it was extremely deadly.

    Yang Xiaodong could not understand why such a simple-looking spear move was so powerful.

    The guards returned to their senses and began to attack Yang Xiaodong.

    Even though Yang Xiaodong¡¯s [Refraction Forest] could deflect their attacks, it was still better than the doll that could strengthen itself by devouring their elemental energies. They felt that Yang Xiaodong was a better target.

    Yang Xiaodongposed himself. He had decided to ce his attention on these guards.

    Shi Xueman could not leave the open-air terrace, otherwise, the guards behind her and the people in the underground mediation room would suffer. When she saw that King was knocked back far away by her spear move, she took in a deep breath of air and thrusted her spear forward.

    Hiss!

    It sounded as if the air was being ripped apart by the thrust of her spear.

    Two long and slender streams of cloud intertwined like two white snakes and shot towards Autumn Water.

    Far away, Autumn Water, who had been channeling fusion elemental energy into King, changed her facial expression drastically. At this moment, a shadow appeared in front of Autumn Water.

    Boom!

    A deafening explosion resounded through the sky as the air in front of Autumn Water suddenly exploded.

    A frail-looking man stood in front of Autumn Water with an indifferent look on his face. His almond-shaped pupils did not have any emotions. His entire body was emitting an intense, savage aura.

    Jiu Gui had regained his energy.

    Bombarding the water screen had put an enormous strain on Jiu Gui¡¯s body. When the water screen copsed, Jiu Gui had no choice but to rest. However, since Jiu Gui possessed the abilities of a mutated dire beast, he was able to regain his energy at an incredibly fast speed. Most of the mutated dire beasts possessed a powerful regenerative ability. All of them had an extremely vigorous and strong vitality.

    At this point of time, Jiu Gui did not seem tired at all.

    In the sky, Jiu Gui vanished into thin air and appeared before Shi Xueman in almost the same moment.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s Cirrus mysteriously appeared in front of him.

    Jiu Gui dodged slightly to his side and his w-like fingers lunged towards Shi Xueman¡¯s spear. When his fingers made contact with the clouds spiralling around Cirrus, his body was knocked back over thirty meters. Shi Xueman¡¯s body sank into the ground as countless cracks appeared on the ground beneath her feet, resembling two huge spiderwebs.

    Jiu Gui disappeared once more.

    Shi Xueman thrusted her spear forward once more.

    Boom!

    Another explosion broke out. Dust beneath Shi Xueman¡¯s feet flew up into the air and engulfed her. Once again, Jiu Gui was knocked back thirty meters into the air.

    Jiu Gui¡¯s fingers became oddly distorted, but he did not care about them at all and charged towards Shi Xueman once more.

    Autumn Water observed all the ongoing battles from one side. No one took notice of her as a gleam shed across her eyes.

    Having regained its fighting capabilities, King silently sank into the ground like a puddle of mud.

 Chapter 460: Battles Of Masters (3)

    Chapter 460: Battles Of Masters (3)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The meditation room lit up and darkened at random.

    A dark-green sword was engulfed by countless streaks of lightning that resembled numerous long and slim, silvery water nts. Suddenly, a lightning arc that was as thick as a thumb extended from the sword towards the depths of the darkness, illuminating more than half of the room.

    His face was clearly defined when the flickering light shone on it. His firm and sharp nose and his brow ridge were flickering with silvery lines. In the darkness, his lips merely appeared as a faintly discernible, cold line, resembling the distant horizon of the wilderness in the night.

    Within his eyes, there was a dark, deepke that contained the reflection of a starry sky.

    The reflection of the starry sky was staring at the sword in front of it.

    ced perfectly upright, the de of the sword happened to split his field of vision exactly in half, resembling an abyss-surrounded, narrow pathway that led to the depths of an unfathomable darkness.

    The streaks of lightning on the sword had filled this path with thistles, thorns and swords.

    As he stared at the lightning streaks, the sword and the darkness, his breathing remained slow and steady without a single sign of trembling.

    I should not be distracted when trekking along a precipitous path. I have to endure the agony of walking through a path that is filled with thistles and thorns. I should not leave empty-handed when walking through a path that is lined with swords. In the darkness, as long as I can y my enemy, there¡¯s no need for me to care whether or not there is light.

    Yes, this is the way.

    Lightning erupted from the sword and his palms felt an intense pain, as if numerous needles had sprouted out from the hilt of his sword. Even so, he tightened his grip on the hilt of his sword. Ai Hui¡¯s face remained indifferent as usual. His goal wasn¡¯t based on a sudden impulse.

    He¡¯d set this goal a long time ago and it had never changed.

    The path to power always came with agony.

    The elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body was undergoing drastic changes. They were remodelling.

    In the Cultivation Era, lightning was the most dominant power. It was also one of the powers that had an extensive range of applications. Almost every sect had its own lightning-rted techniques. However, when it came to the Elemental Era, where spiritual force disintegrated and elemental energy prospered, lightning became a forgotten power. People only knew of it as the wrath of nature, and that it lived in the depths of the sky and clouds.

    Before Ai Hui, there were countless elementalists that had tried to harness the power of lightning but ultimately failed to do so. Ai Hui was mainly inspired by the artifact remnants in Dragonspine Inferno and [Dust Fall].

    The artifact remnants within Dragonspine Inferno contained an ancient seal. It was a lightning seal that was left behind from the Cultivation Era. At that time, Ai Hui used the blood crystal to activate the lightning seal.

    It wasn¡¯t until the Battle of Long Street that he used [Dust Fall].

    If onepared the lightning seal to a one-thousand-year-old rusty lock, then [Dust Fall] would be the key to that lock.

    [Dust Fall] was one of the three moves in the sword pill.

    When Wang Shouchuan gave the sword pill to Ai Hui back in the day, he definitely never thought that the tiny sword pill would have such a deep impact on Ai Hui¡¯s life.

    [Crescent Moon] gave rise to [Six Moons], which became one of Ai Hui¡¯s most used moves. [Dust Fall] became one of the driving forces that gave rise to Ai Hui¡¯s Path of Master. [Night Epiphyllum] was used to end his master¡¯s life, leaving a deep and painful scar in his heart. Ai Hui had told himself never to use [Night Epiphyllum] in his life again.

    Were these events his fate?

    One by one, the elemental energy sword pills in his body shattered. More and more lightning streaks were produced. Their thickness increased continuously as well.

    Ai Hui¡¯s lightning-tempered flesh began to spasm and tremble at this moment. The lightning streaks were far too powerful, even the flesh at the innermost part of his body was affected.

    The lightning streaks became increasingly stronger while his flesh trembled more and more violently. Not only was Ai Hui¡¯s body being tempered by the lightning, it was limatizing to the lightning as well. His body had to limatize to the lightning, otherwise, it would disintegrate.

    Luckily, he was metal-attributed.

    This was the only thing that Ai Hui was d about.

    Ai Hui controlled his breathing and maintained its stability. He imagined himself as a sword, a metal sword that was being forged in a lightning-filled smelting furnace.

    More and more elemental energy sword pills were shattered. Like a surging, silvery river of lightningva, the lightning streaks flowed through his body with the Circtory Revolution Cycle. They flowed very slowly and everywhere they passed through was destroyed thoroughly.

    Ai Hui was the first person to experience the destructive aura of the lightning streaks before his enemies could. His body was shivering involuntarily. He wanted to bellow in rage and howl in agony but he couldn¡¯t make any sound.

    He had anticipated the agony and decided to endure it. However, when the moment finally came, he still wailed, moaned and shivered in pain. These were unavoidable.

    He had neither a strong faith nor a grand ambition. At this point of time, he only had an instinct, the instinct to survive.

    His mind was nk and his body was out of control. He had not choice but to be brave and endure whatever wasing his way.

    Frantic elemental energy gushed towards Ai Hui. The glow from the surrounding walls began to flicker frantically. Long shadows were being pulled out from them and absorbed by Ai Hui¡¯s body. This phenomenon was caused by the gradual disintegration of the seal on the walls due to a strong suction force.

    The earth elemental energy beneath Ai Hui¡¯s feet was frantically gushing towards Ai Hui. A brown-colored earth elemental ring appeared beneath Ai Hui¡¯s feet. The inside of the earth elemental ring gradually became silver-colored. Earth engendered metal. The newly converted metal elemental energy quickly rushed into Ai Hui¡¯s body, but it was still not enough.

    At this point of time, Ai Hui¡¯s body was like an insatiable and avaricious beast. The elemental energy that it had just devoured was insignificant and insufficient.

    Very soon, the perimeter of the earth elemental ring began to expand continuously and became scarlet in color. The temperature of the meditation room started to increase as well. The scarlet ring kept on expanding and became a fire elemental ring. Fire engendered earth.

    Now, the metal elemental energy in his body had surpassed the limit of his previous elemental energy capacity. The lightning streaks flowing in the elemental energy within his body became increasingly concentrated.

    The first one to sense Ai Hui¡¯s abnormality was Venerable Volcano.

    He realized a portion of the earth fire had been involuntarily channeled to a particr ce. To his surprise, that ce was the underground meditation room. Initially, he was shocked. However, very soon, his shock became ecstasy. He did not expect Ai Hui to attain a breakthrough at this critical moment.

    If Ai Hui could be a Master, they would have one more Master on their side and their chances of winning this battle would greatly increase.

    Immediately, Venerable Volcano increased the intensity of his offense.

    Mister Dou was able to sense Venerable Volcano¡¯s action very quickly.

    Ahh, Venerable Volcano is fighting with all his might...

    Mister Dou quickly retaliated with increased intensity as well.

    A chain reaction set off and the overall intensity of the ongoing battles increased.

    The fierce, ongoing battles concealed some fine details.

    Qiao Meiqi, Gong Peiyao and those whocked fighting capabilities were waiting at the entrance of the underground meditation room. The atmosphere was very tense and everyone was feeling nervous. Explosions from above the ground¡¯s surface fell incessantly on their ears and the ground kept one trembling violently.

    The pumpkinmps in the basement kept swaying, looking as if they would fall any moment.

    Qiao Meiqi was feeling vexed. Clearwater City was his baby and his home. After this battle, even if they won, Clearwater City would be badly damaged. One could imagine how he felt when he saw his baby being harmed continuously. Furthermore, he had ced all his fortune on building Clearwater City.

    Gong Peiyao¡¯s face was slightly pale as well. However, she was still able to console Qiao Meiqi, "Uncle Qiao, don¡¯t worry, my father definitely will not treat your situation with indifference. The Qiao family and Gong family have been on good terms for so many generations, we will definitely help you out."

    Qiao Meiqi gave a bitter smile. He did not want to be consoled by a small girl and gritted his teeth and replied, "Don¡¯t worry, Uncle Qiao will not be defeated so easily! It¡¯s no wonder why all the enterprises previously faced obstructions in obtaining the resources that Ai Hui needs. The Assembly of Patriarchs was creating trouble in the dark! Assembly of Patriarchs, I will definitely seek revenge on you!"

    "It¡¯s a pity you¡¯ll no longer have the chance to do so."

    Suddenly, a sweet and gentle voice rang across the air from a corner in the darkness.

    With a drastic change in his facial expression, Qiao Meiqi roared, "Who¡¯s that?"

    A multi-colored doll slowly emerged from the ground.

    The colorful King wasn¡¯t looking at Qiao Meiqi. Its t, eyeless and noseless face was looking at Gong Peiyao who was standing behind Qiao Meiqi. Suddenly, its stitch-made mouth split apart, "Miss Gong, Older Sister has been looking for you for a very long time. Don¡¯t worry, Older Sister can¡¯t bear to hurt you. Come and stay with Older Sister for a few days."

    When a lovely and delicate voice came out of the sinister-looking doll¡¯s mouth, everyone felt a cold shiver go down their spines.

    Gong Peiyao¡¯s face turned white as she raised her head abruptly and asked, "Are all of you here for me?"

    The stitch-made mouth of the doll opened and closed as it replied, "Hehe, Older Sister will never let off such a good thing like the snowva. Recently, I¡¯ve be quite poor."

    Qiao Meiqi was a businessman who had been through vicissitudes of fortune. At this moment, he had already regained hisposure. With a deep voice, he replied, "What does the Assembly of Patriarchs want? Do you want to deal with Madam Ye? An enemy of my enemy is my friend. No problem, I can agree on behalf of the Gong residence. There¡¯s no need for you to resort to such a method to obtain the snowva. We can prevent any misunderstandings from happening between the Assembly of Patriarchs and the Gong residence."

    The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ long-term partner, Madam Ye, had dealt a huge blow to them. Even their headquarters had been annihted, causing them to sustain huge losses. The first time Qiao Meiqi obtained this news, he had a premonition. Could it be that Assembly of Patriarchs wanted to kidnap Gong Peiyao and pressure the Gong residence into confronting Madam Ye?

    No matter what, Qiao Meiqi couldn¡¯t let anything happen to Gong Peiyao here. He and Gong Peiyao¡¯s father were lifelong buddies and he treated Gong Peiyao like his own niece.

    "Don¡¯t worry, as long as all of you cooperate with me obediently, I won¡¯t hurt you."

    The sweet and delicate voice sounded unusually pleasant as it gave off elemental energy undtions silently. A nk look appeared on the faces of Qiao Meiqi and the rest.

    Inside the meditation room, Ai Hui¡¯s body suddenly trembled.

    His elemental energy, which contained a boundless amount of lightning streaks, flooded into his sky pce.

    The hovering Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp in Ai Hui¡¯s sky pce sensed a danger and its glow intensified. It began to revolve quickly, giving off a high intensity glow.

    However, even so, the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp was exceptionally weak and ipetent against the flood of lightning streaks that were filled with a destructive aura.

    The glow from the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp managed to withstand the flood of lightning streaks for only a short moment. Then, the flood of lightning streaks devoured the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp with a loud bang, resembling the sound of an air bubble being punctured. The Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp vanished in a puff of smoke and had ceased to exist.

    At this point of time, Ai Hui, who had been struggling strenuously all this time, managed to obtain a moment of rity.

    Heughed bitterly in his heart. His elemental energy sword pills were gone and his Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp had disappeared as well. It was a fresh start for him.

    In the next moment, his consciousness was flooded.

    After devouring the Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp, the turbulent flood of lightning streaks strengthened significantly. The metal elemental energy that was mixed with lightning in his sky pce became even more vigorous.

    Furthermore, there seemed to be something forming in both of Ai Hui¡¯s hand pces and his earth pce.

    As usual, the boundless, impure elemental energy flowed through the path that it was most familiar with and headed towards the most unique area of Ai Hui¡¯s sword-style breathing technique.

    His sword.

    In the darkness, the glow of Wintry Jade de suddenly intensified as a lightning snake, the thickness of an arm, coiled around it.

    Wintry Jade de chimed.

    It waspletely different from Ai Hui¡¯s previous clear and melodious sword chime.

    It was loud and thunderous, resembling a muffled thunderp that sounded off in the depths of the clouds.

    Ai Hui woke up. Lightning streaks were reflected in his clear and limpid eyes, resembling lightning bolts that streaked across a cloudless and starry night sky.

    A terrifying aura erupted from his body abruptly.

    The meditation room¡¯s wall, where its elemental energy had beenpletely devoured, exploded outwards with a loud bang.

 Chapter 461: Battles Of Masters (4)

    Chapter 461: Battles Of Masters (4)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    The wall of the meditation room suddenly exploded with a loud bang.

    Along with dust and rubble, the terrifying air current from the explosion swept across everyone like a pulverizing iron wall. As it stood nearest to the wall, King bore the brunt of the explosion.

    By the time it realized what was going on, the air current had already hit it.

    Before it could react, it was hit squarely by the air current. Like a heavy hammer, the powerful impact mmed heavily against it. Its body went out of control and flew backwards through the air. Bang. It collided against the wall behind it.

    The rest weren¡¯t any better off than King. They lost control of their bodies and fell all over the ce.

    Immediately, King struggled to get back on its feet. After all, it was imbued with Autumn Water¡¯s Path of Master and its strength far surpassed that of the others. King and Autumn Water were telepathically connected, so thetter was able to immediately learn what happened.

    "Capture Gong Peiyao!"

    King got up and locked onto Gong Peiyao, who had fallen on the ground. King¡¯s movements were extremely fast and nimble as it waspletely unaffected by the impact of the solution. Like a flying arrow, it charged towards the dazed Gong Peiyao.

    At this time, the others were dizzy and wobbling because of the explosion¡¯s impact, so none of them stepped forward to stop King.

    King¡¯s palm closed in on Gong Peiyao. As long as they could capture Gong Peiyao, they would seed in their mission. Mister Dou and Yang Xiaodong did not know that the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯s actual target was Gong Peiyao. Autumn Water¡¯s original n had been to use Han Li to seduce Gong Peiyao. Han Li, however, became entirely preupied with sparring with Ai Hui and neglected his mission.

    Autumn Water had put a lot of time and effort into ensuring the sess of this mission. Clearwater City had a huge number of guards and a powerful defense system. It was impossible to capture Gong Peiyao using ordinary methods.

    When Autumn Water saw that she was about to seed, an overjoyed look appeared on her face.

    At that moment, however, a gleaming streak shed across the air in front of King. A destructive aura made King instinctively came to a halt.

    King was very sensitive to different types of aura. Since its body possessed all five types of elemental energy, none of the elemental energies could deal any severe damage to it. On the contrary, it could devour all five types of elemental energy. As such, it had a huge advantage when fighting against an elementalist.

    Despite this, it sensed danger from the aura of the sword gleam.

    Before King could make a move, it realized that its own aura was being targeted by something, following which, It was engulfed by a feeling of danger. This time around, Autumn Water, who was telepathically connected to King, turned pale.

    Autumn Water was petrified. What kind of aura was that?

    Her brain was processing extremely quickly. The first thing that came to her mind was Ai Hui.

    Could it be that Ai Hui had be a Master?

    Her heart sank, but she felt such a coincidence couldn¡¯t happen...

    The ongoing battles aboveground were very intense and had be deadlocked. Venerable Volcano and Mister Dou were evenly matched and it would be difficult to determine the oue of their battle within a short period of time. Meanwhile, Yang Xiaodong and Jiu Gui could not suppress Shi Xueman even though they had joined hands. If Ai Hui was to be a Master, they wouldpletely lose the overall battle.

    However, Autumn Winter did not have time to think about this problem.

    King was being continuously attacked!

    Autumn Water¡¯s face turned pale. What was going on beneath the ground?

    Gong Peiyao struggled to sit up straight. She looked nkly at the meditation room that had one of its four walls missing.

    A figure was standing in the darkness. The figure¡¯s face was unclear and he was holding a sword fully imbued with lightning streaks, appearing extremely dazzling. The glow from the lightning streaks illuminated the vibrating air around the figure, making his body look slightly fuzzy.

    The figure¡¯s face that was hidden in the darkness seemed to turn and look in her direction.

    All the lights in the basement had been destroyed and everything was dark. The lightning-imbued sword gave off an ice-cold glow in the darkness. Other than the glow from the sword, there was also the bright and colorful fluorescence of King¡¯s body.

    Gong Peiyao did not understand what she was seeing. Strangely speaking, the sword was in Ai Hui¡¯s hand, but she could not see any part of his body other than the sword and the palm that he was holding it with.

    Gong Peiyao was speechless. She waspletely stunned by Ai Hui¡¯s aura.

    King sensed that its own aura was being targeted and quickly dashed towards the exit.

    Its bright and colorful fluorescence was unusually striking in the dark.

    At almost the same time, however, a shadow appeared behind Ai Hui.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s figure, hidden in the darkness, seemed to move. A resplendent streak of silvery lightning abruptly erupted in Gong Peiyao¡¯s eyes and she subconsciously uttered a yelp. The sudden burst of dazzling lightning blinded her, engulfing her eyes with nothing but bright whiteness.

    Boom!

    The ground trembled. Something seemed to hit the ground heavily.

    Ai Hui swung his sword like a mace and struck the shadow behind him with it heavily. The whole motion was as smooth as flowing water, appearing as if he had anticipated the sneak attack.

    At this moment, the colorful fluorescence from King, who was frantically running away, began to dim gradually. Its movements also slowed down until it eventually became a frozen mud statue and copsed to the ground, creating a huge pit in the process.

    An ordinary elementalist would easily fall for such a deceptive move, but due to his frequent training sessions with Lou Lan, Ai Hui was used to seeing and experiencing such deceptions.

    Initially, Lou Lan had not been used to using such deceptive moves, but as he spent more time with Ai Hui, he became corrupted by him. Furthermore, Lou Lan was very intelligent and his moves were much more deceptivepared to King¡¯s. Even Ai Hui had to be alert when facing Lou Lan, otherwise, he would easily fall for his deceptive moves.

    King was severely injured.

    It was lying face up in a huge pit, resembling a dead fish. Its stitch-made mouth had split open. Every now and then, lightning streaks would appear on its body, causing its limbs to twitch.

    This was Ai Hui¡¯s first battle after mastering the Path of Lightning. The result was extraordinary.

    Ai Hui looked at the lightning-imbued sword in his hand and the corner of his mouth curled up, revealing a bitter smile. No one saw him smiling as he was concealed in the darkness. Holding the sword hilt caused a pricking sensation in his palm. The Wintry Jade de was imbued with the terrifying power of lightning.

    Deep down, Ai Hui was d to possess the sword-style breathing technique, otherwise, the amount of lightning in his body would exceed his capacity limit. When that happened, he would most likely explode and die or disintegrate into ashes.

    The sword-style breathing technique had directed a huge amount of the lightning in his body to the Wintry Jade de, relieving the pressure on his body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s advancement to Master level was only halfwayplete.

    He couldn¡¯t care much about it at this time. He had smiled bitterly just now as the lightning-imbued Wintry Jade Sword had begun to show signs of melting.

    The Wintry Jade de could not handle the huge burden imposed on it.

    Furthermore, Ai Hui was unable to absorb the lightning from the Wintry Jade de back into his body. His body was like dynamite now.

    In a battle, he couldn¡¯t care about too many things.

    Ai Hui cast a nce at the twitching King and bluntly plunged his sword into King¡¯s chest.

    It felt pretty good to reduce the amount of lightning in his sword.

    Lighting bolts that were as thick as an arm travelled around King¡¯s body. King¡¯s limbs twitched more intensely, but after around ten seconds, King¡¯s twitching began to slow down until it stopped moving altogether.

    King¡¯s body was reduced to a puddle of colorful mud.

    Buzz buzz. Densely packed lightning streaks swam and danced on the puddle of colorful mud. Subsequently, the puddle of colorful mud became scorched ck and disintegrated into ashes.

    King disappeared from this worldpletely.

    After Ai Hui pulled his sword out of the ground, the pricking sensation from the sword hilt reduced significantly. The tip of the sword also seemed to have stopped melting.

    He heaved a sigh of relief in his heart.

    The person who had given him the Wintry Jade de wasn¡¯t exactly a nice person, but the sword was still a good sword. It was currently impossible for him to find a better sword than the Wintry Jade de.

    The more powerful one became, the more demanding he would be of his weapon. Only high-level weapons could endure elemental energies that were of high purity levels. Furthermore, the Path of Lightning that Ai Hui had mastered was extremely destructive, causing heavy damages to his weapon.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was filled with elemental energy that was mixed with lightningva, causing him to feel as if he would explode at any moment.

    He moved with extreme caution. He was afraid that if he made any huge movements, the elemental energy in his body might explode. Right now, instead of the safe elemental energy sword pills, his body contained the lightningva-mixed metal elemental energy.

    The worst thing was that the metal elemental energy in his body continued producing lightning and Ai Hui did not know how to stop the process.

    A huge amount of lightningva was forming in both of his hand pces and in his earth pce. Ai Hui knew that this had something to do with [Dust Fall] as this skill required both his hand pces and earth pce to work.

    Now was not the time to think about this. Ai Hui took in a deep breath of air and started walking carefully.

    The rest were dumbstruck.

    King had been destroyed with a single blow.

    At this moment, however, Ai Hui was carefully ascending the flight of stairs.

    He moved extremely slowly and his facial expression was unusually solemn. It was as if the flight of stairs beneath his feet was his arch-enemy.

    Aboveground, blood seeped out from the corners of Autumn Water¡¯s mouth. Her eyes were filled with fear. Before she could know what happened, she had already lost contact with King. There was only a deep fear in her mind. King had been defeated with a single blow...

    She could not imagine what had happened. Her face was pale-white and her mind was nk.

    King was made up of extremely precious materials. Since it possessed all five types of elemental energy, none of the five elemental energies was its weakness. This was one of the reasons why she could be the Ninth Patriarch with the use of King. If she used King as a shield, it would not be easy to destroy it even for a Master-level attack.

    Furthermore, King could devour all types of elemental energy. In its body, there was a five elemental cycle that allowed it to break down and devour attacks that were of any type of elemental energy.

    In past battles, King would only get stronger and stronger without being injured. If they carried a small-scale attack, King would always stand in front of the unit and act as a meat shield. This n had never failed before.

    King was also specialized in carrying out psychic attacks. These odd moves would usually work in critical moments.

    She really could not imagine what kind of attack could defeat King with one blow. She stared at the entrance to the basement as her body trembled involuntarily. Fear was devouring her mind, but she still wanted to see what was going on below!

    Suddenly, the air surrounding the basement¡¯s entrance began to distort.

    It was as if there was a fire in the basement and heat waves were gushing out from the entrance.

    An indescribable aura suddenly appeared. Everyone fighting aboveground had extremely sharp senses and all of them immediately stopped moving. This aura was something that they had never encountered before. They found it somewhat familiar and unfamiliar at the same time.

    All of them stopped fighting and shifted their gazes towards the basement entrance at the same time.

    The air surrounding the entrance became more and more distorted. A fuzzy figure appeared before everyone¡¯s eyes.

    A powerful aura pervaded the air, causing everyone to feel fear and trepidation.

    This was the first time an emotion appeared in Jiu Gui¡¯s unmoved almond-shaped eyes.

    It was fear.

 Chapter 462: Victory

    Chapter 462: Victory

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Dead silence and stunned gazes greeted Ai Hui when he walked out with a snail¡¯s pace and a cautious look on his face.

    The air surrounding him loudly crackled, as if there was an invisible fire burning and trembling violently.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was shrouded in an air current, appearing fuzzy to everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Everyone was looking at the lightning-imbued sword in Ai Hui¡¯s hand. They couldn¡¯t believe what they had just seen and looked as if they had seen a ghost.

    Lightning!

    They knew Ai Hui¡¯s nickname was "Lightning de," but they seldom linked it with real lightning. Even when the survivors of Central Pine City recounted the Battle of Long Street, other people would merelyugh. Everyone understood the term "lightning" as a metaphor to describe Ai Hui¡¯s courage and dominance on the battlefield.

    However...

    At this moment, the streaks of lightning curling around Ai Hui¡¯s sword seemed to be telling them how ignorant they were. For a veteran with rich experience like Mister Dou, this was far beyond hisprehension of the term "lightning".

    If they weren¡¯t remembering incorrectly, Ai Hui was the first Lightning Master in the history of the Avalon of Five Elements!

    They were petrified.

    Anyone who was a "first in history" for something definitely could not be considered normally.

    This person was extraordinary.

    How could a person who would leave his name in the history of the Avalon of Five Elements be an ordinary individual?

    Mister Dou was much calmer than the others. Yang Xiaodong had already shown signs of retreating.

    Autumn Water¡¯sst bit of hope disappeared. Her body stopped trembling as she was engulfed by boundless despair. Her limbs were ice-cold; she had never felt this cold before. She finally understood why King had been defeated in such a short period of time.

    Her eyes were hollow and despondent. Cracks began to appear in her sky pce as her base level dropped. [King] was her Path of Master and she had put her blood and soul into it. When King died, the pir supporting her base level copsed.

    Simrly, deep reverence and fear appeared in Jiu Gui¡¯s serpent-like eyes at this moment.

    His Dragoncry Spring Wine allowed him to be possessed by an ancient great dragon; however, even the ancient great dragon was filled fear and reverence when confronted with lightning. These feelings were passed on to Jiu Gui.

    When Jiu Gui shifted his gaze to Autumn Water and sensed her aura rapidly weakening, he knew it would be impossible to win today¡¯s war.

    A shadow shed across the sky and Jiu Gui appeared beside Autumn Water. He picked her up and abruptly flew towards the outskirts of Clearwater City.

    Jiu Gui¡¯s actions were very sudden without any forewarning. Quick and straightforward.

    By the time anyone could react, he and Autumn Water were hundreds of meters away from the city.

    Mister Dou, who had remained calm all this time, changed his facial expression. Meanwhile, Yang Xiaodong¡¯s face had turned ashen. Both of them had not expected the Assembly of Patriarchs to escape without informing them first.

    Mister Dou was so angry that he almost cursed. His [Northern Underworld King Tree] had formidable power and could both attack and defend, but it had one weakness; its mobility was very restricted. Once it had taken root, it would take around half a minute for its user to withdraw it and the process was rather troublesome.

    Usually, half a minute was not considered long, but in an intense battle, it was exceptionally important. One¡¯s enemy wouldn¡¯t even give him or her a few seconds to catch a breath, let alone half a minute to retreat.

    This was why Mister Dou seldom fought solo. If not for the fact that the Assembly of Patriarchs had paid him a very huge sum of money and that snowva could fetch a terrifying price, he would not have taken action.

    He had not trusted the Assembly of Patriarchs, which led to him bringing along Yang Xiaodong.

    He and Yang Xiaodong had an extraordinary rtionship and absolute trust in each other.

    Now, however, Mister Dou was filled with regret as he had pulled Yang Xiaodong into this trouble.

    Initially, he had thought that both of them could make a massive amount of profit off of the snowva. This profit could even feed them for the rest of their lives. The main driving factor was that their chances for sess on this mission were extremely high. There was no reason why four Masters would be unable to take down the mayor¡¯s residence. Furthermore, with Yang Xiaodong as their spy, wasn¡¯t it in the bag?

    The initial development of the situation wasn¡¯t too far from Mister Dou¡¯s expectations. They were in an advantageous position.

    In a blink of an eye, however, the situation was overturned. The Assembly of Patriarchs was actually frightened out of their wits and abandoned them to make their own escape.

    Right now, they only had two Masters to deal with the other side¡¯s three Masters and the "first ever Lightning Master."

    It was obvious which side had the upper hand.

    All Mister Dou could feel was agony. With a deep voice, he said, "Xiaodong, leave first!"

    Yang Xiaodong did not move.

    "Xiaodong, there¡¯s no point in us dying together. If you live, you can still help me take care of the stronghold." Mister Dou sighed.

    Yang Xiaodong¡¯s body trembled.

    Mister Dou looked as if he was reminiscing as he continued to speak with a hint of grief in his voice, "Out of all of my followers, you are the most sessful. Some have died and some are injured. The children are still young and I¡¯m worried about them. I leave them to you. Help me take good care of them."

    Yang Xiaodong¡¯s eyes turned red.

    No one would expect Mister Dou, who was an underworld overlord that murdered people without batting an eye, to have adopted so many orphans.

    Yang Xiaodong was one of the orphans he had adopted.

    In his heart, Mister Dou was his big brother. Back in the day, Mister Dou lost his eyes to save his life.

    After Yang Xiaodong grew up, Mister Dou expelled him from the stronghold. This was a traditional custom. Mister Dou felt that they should lead a decent life and not indulge in fights and killing every day.

    After Yang Xiaodong was expelled from the stronghold, he changed his identity and led a new life. Yang Wuchang was actually his adopted son, but he publicized him as his nephew.

    Yang Wuchang was also an orphan. The first time Yang Xiaodong saw him, he¡¯d thought of himself and Mister Dou.

    No one had expected Yang Xiaodong to eventually be a Master.

    Before Yang Xiaodong could reply, they were interrupted by a voice.

    "Do you think this is a market where you cane and leave as you wish?"

    The voice belonged to Ai Hui.

    However... his voice sounded very weird.

    The cautious Ai Hui had remained stationary for fear of agitating the lightning streaking throughout his body. He did not even dare to move his facial muscles. Gritting his teeth, he squeezed the words out.

    When Shi Xueman noticed Ai Hui¡¯s abnormal behaviour, a worried look swept across her eyes.

    Mister Dou¡¯s attention had been on Shi Xueman all this time. Suddenly, he roared, "Faster, run!"

    Yang Xiaodong clenched his teeth and frantically flew away. In the blink of an eye, he had disappeared.

    Ai Hui was shocked. Now he realized that a Master was not only powerful, but his or her observation skills were exceptionally sharp. When a Master discovered something was wrong, he or she would definitely make an escape without dilly-dallying. Ai Hui seldom saw a Master that would fight to his or her death.

    However, when Ai Hui thought about it again, he felt that this made sense. How could a brash fool be a Master? An individual could be a Master only if he or she was gifted, diligent, smart, and lucky.

    When Ai Hui thought of this, he felt slightly pleased with himself.

    He looked at Mister Dou and felt eager to test his new abilities. He did not think the doll he had already killed was powerful. Right now, he wanted to find someone powerful on whom he could test his newly improved swordsmanship.

    This old fogey looked quite strong.

    Ai Hui¡¯s piercing gaze constantly swept across Mister Dou¡¯s Northern Underworld King Tree as he thought about how to attack it.

    Mister Dou noticed Ai Hui¡¯s gaze and remainedposed, without any fear.

    "I surrender."

    These sudden two words stunned everyone, including Ai Hui.

    An unusual silence descended.

    Mister Dou took the initiative and walked out from the defensive range of his Northern Underworld King Tree. "I surrender," he repeated.

    This scene put everyone at a loss.

    "Iron Lady!" Ai Hui yelled at the top of his voice.

    Shi Xueman appeared beside Mister Dou, tied him up, and shackled his elemental energy. Mister Dou did not resist. Upon losing its master¡¯s control, the Northern Underworld King Tree reduced rapidly in size and, after a few minutes, became an unremarkable vine staff.

    One could not see any fear on Mister Dou¡¯s face. He was indeed not afraid of anything. All along, before the Wilderness Expansion Order had even been announced, a Master¡¯s position in society had always been high and mighty. When a Master initiated a surrender, no one would vent his or her anger by killing the Master.

    This was one of the many precious advantages of being a Master.

    Even if a Master did not want to take part inbat, their immense knowledge and deep understanding towards elemental energy were exceptionally valuable. Every Master had to have identified his or her Path of Master and his or her understanding towards elemental energy necessarily far surpassed any ordinary elementalist. They definitely had gone through a huge number of battles and had richbat experience.

    If they were to be teachers, any family or force would be extremely eager to hire them.

    Therefore, Mister Dou did not worry about his safety at all.

    They might ce some limitations on him, but there wouldn¡¯t be any problems with his life and safety.

    At this moment, Ai Hui gave Shi Xueman an eye signal and said cheekily, "If you cut the weeds, you must eliminate the roots!"

    Shi Xueman ce the tip of Cirrus at Mister Dou¡¯s throat.

    Upon seeing this, Venerable Volcano, who had just gotten up from the ground, turned pale with fright. A Master who had surrendered could not be killed. This was an unwritten rule. Other than how precious a Master was, his unique status yed an important factor as well. If Mister Dou was killed after he had surrendered, it would rouse the ire of other Masters.

    Just as he was about to stop Shi Xueman, Ai Hui yelled, "Master Yang,e out now!"

    Mister Dou was shocked, but he forciblyposed himself.

    No one came out.

    Venerable Volcano now understood Ai Hui¡¯s intention.

    "Master Yang, I will count to three. If you don¡¯te out, I will kill this old fogey."

    A man with a gloomy face walked out from behind a half-destroyed house around one hundred and fifty meters away. It was Yang Xiaodong.

    Mister Dou¡¯s facial expression changed.

    Venerable Volcano looked at Ai Hui with astonishment. That house should be out of Ai Hui¡¯s line of sight and was more than one hundred and fifty meters away from him. Furthermore, there were many obstacles within this long distance. How could Ai Hui have discovered Yang Xiaodong?

    "You won¡¯t dare to kill him," Yang Xiaodong said with a deep voice.

    "We will see. If you don¡¯t surrender within ten seconds, I will kill him," Ai Hui sneered.

    After Ai Hui finished his sentence, he did not even look at Yang Xiaodong and began to count, "Ten, nine, eight, seven..."

    When Ai Hui counted to five, Yang Xiaodong blurted out, "I surrender."

    "Venerable, sorry for troubling you," Ai Hui said.

    Venerable Volcano was filled with admiration towards Ai Hui.

    Take a look! Every man is different, every Master is also different! What have I been doing with my life after living for so many years?

    "It¡¯s not troublesome, it¡¯s not troublesome..." Venerable Volcano quickly replied.

    He walked over, tied up Yang Xiaodong, and pulled him to Ai Hui.

    Yang Xiaodong lowered his gloomy face and asked, "I have a question, how did you discover me?"

    Even Venerable Volcano looked at Ai Hui with curiosity. Only Shi Xueman turned her head around, looking as if she couldn¡¯t bear to see what was about to happen.

    "Do you really want to know?" Ai Hui asked cheekily.

    "I want to know."

    "Look behind the spot where you were hiding," Ai Hui said.

    Venerable Volcano and Yang Xiaodong turned their heads and looked towards that house. There was nothing. Then, they looked even further back...

    A line of huge, sand-made words floated in the distant sky.

    "Yang Xiaodong is hiding behind this house."

    Behind the line of sand-made words, there was a mini sand-made Lou Lan wearing an apron while holding a wok and spat in each of his hands, appearing vivid and lifelike.

    Blood rushed to Yang Xiaodong¡¯s head and darkness engulfed his vision as he almost fainted.

 Chapter 463: Changing The Name To Thunder City

    Chapter 463: Changing The Name To Thunder City

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    During this period of time, Clearwater City was bustling with life.

    The scars from the great battle took merely a few days to disappear. Like a colony of hardworking bees, the earth elementalists repaired the destroyed houses night and day.

    At this point of time, no one was bothered about the money spent.

    What was better than having your home being intact after a great battle?

    Without anyone to direct them, all the earth elementalists automatically joined the rebuilding project of Clearwater City.

    The passion for life, the longing for a home, the vision for the future and the yearning for happiness gathered these total strangers together, with everyone helping and supporting each other.

    Such a sight could be seen all over Clearwater City.

    When they were tired or free, they would sit leisurely on the rooftops and look at the thunderous lightning shes in the sky above a distant mountain. All of them were well-prepared. They would even bring along tea and melon seeds, clicking their tongues in astonishment at the lightning shes while chit-chatting about their daily lives. At this point of time, they were filled with pride and admiration towards the few foreign elementalists as they vividly recounted the scene that had happened a few days ago.

    "Let¡¯s see, have you heard of Lightning Master? The word ¡®Lightning¡¯ sounds powerful, right?"

    "None of you were there at that time. The moment Master Ai appeared and gave everyone a re, lightning bolts that had the thickness of an arm streaked across the sky! So cool! All of the Patriarchs from the Assembly of Patriarchs were Masters, the elites of the elites but so what? When Master Ai red at them, it made one of the Patriarchs reverse her base level and she became half-dead, while the other one was frightened out of his wits and picked up hisrade and fled. When Master Ai saw that, he said to himself, ¡®Who can I re at now?¡¯. After he finished his sentence, he turned his murderous-looking face around and his eyes were popping out. Buzz! Before the lightning bolts shot out.... the legendary Northern Underworld King, Mister Dou, who had dominated the underworld for decades, surrendered without demurring."

    ...

    At this point of time, on a distant mountain, numerous lightning bolts were coiling around Ai Hui¡¯s body. Not far away, Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were flickering with a red glow.

    Ai Hui was releasing the lightning within his body with all his might. Silvery snakes were dancing wildly in the sky while deafening thunderps resounded through the air incessantly.

    After ten minutes, Ai Hui finally stopped. He was panting heavily, but the lightning streaks around his body had reduced in number significantly.

    "Lou Lan, how was it?" Ai Hui asked while panting heavily.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes stopped flickering as he replied, "Ai Hui, the results are out. Your earth pce produces sixty percent of the lightning in your body while your left and right hand pces produce twenty percent each.

    Ai Hui stopped panting and a pensive look appeared on his face. "This result is very close to my prediction. The earth pce is the king while the hand pces are the subjects. However, sixty percent is a lot more than what I expected."

    ...

    Another round of thunderous lightning shes streaked across the sky.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes stopped flickering and he quickly reported the result, "Ai Hui, the elemental energy from your hand pces is flowing towards your earth pce."

    ...

    In the midst of the thunderous lightning shes, the red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered with an unprecedented rhythm.

    If one took a closer look, he or she would discover that the red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes was flickering at the exact same frequency as the lightning bolts streaking across the sky.

    Suddenly, Lou Lan yelled, "Ai Hui, your left hand pce and right hand pce are opposite in nature! The elemental traces in your left hand pce and right hand pce are opposite in nature as well!"

    ...

    Another round of thunderous lightning shes had passed.

    The red glow in Lou Lan stopped flickering as he spoke with excitement, "Ai Hui, I have identified it! Your earth pce is the one that is producing the lightning! The twopletely different metal elemental energies from your left and right hand pces gather at your earth pce to produce the lightning!"

    ...

    The Battle of Clearwater City had created a sensation in the vicinity of Clearwater City.

    There were a total of seven Masters that took part in the battle initially. Undoubtedly, it was extremely sensational to see seven Masters fighting in a reasonably well-off city that normally only hosted two Masters.

    The fact that the first ever Lightning Master was born was even more sensational.

    The name Lightning de was widely known for his impact on Central Pine Faction, not his fighting capabilities.

    During this period of time, Ai Hui¡¯s performance had shocked the entire Beyond Avalon region.

    After defeating the swordsmanship genius Han Li, he was severely injured and had to enter seclusion. However, when he came out of seclusion, he had be a Master, the first ever Lightning Master. He single-handedly overturned the situation in the battle. Facing four Masters, he injured one, scared away one, and held the remaining two as captives.

    Upon seeing such an impressive feat by Ai Hui, everyone could not help but link him to those legendary figures in the history of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Ai Hui became renowned from this battle.

    The title of "the first ever Lightning Master" had attracted a lot of elementalists from nearby cities to Clearwater City. All of them were here to revere the Lightning Master.

    The first thing that every elementalist noticed upon arriving at Clearwater City was the distant mountain. Every now and then, thick and long lightning bolts streaked across the sky. Electrifying silvery snakes danced in sky while deafening thunderps echoed incessantly through the air.

    When they saw such a spectacr sight, four words came to their minds. The might of Heaven!

    Then, the residents of Clearwater City would tell these people that was the same mountain where Master Ai defeated swordsmanship genius Han Li.

    Initially, that was a nameless and unknown mountain. Now, it had a name, Thunder Mountain. There was a rumor going around Clearwater City stating that Ai Hui was practising his lightning techniques on Thunder Mountain.

    "In the future, Thunder City will be the holynd of Clearwater City!" Qiao Meiqi was high-spirited. The dismay on his face a few days ago was nowhere to be seen now. Filled with confidence, he said, "When I have enough money, I must purchase the Thunder Mountain. This might be andmark that canst for all eternity. The first ever Lightning Master, Ai Hui, practises his lightning techniques here. Lightning bolts descended from the sky endlessly for hundreds of days..."

    "Uncle Qiao, it has only been two days!" Gong Peiyao could not help but interrupt Qiao Meiqi.

    The residents thought that Ai Hui was practising his lightning techniques but he was actually releasing the overflowing lightning bolts in his body. To prevent himself from injuring the innocent residents, he could only do this on the distant isted mountain outside of the city.

    "Hundreds of days sounds more impressive!" Qiao Meiqi was extremely pleased with himself, "Then, I will spread the rumor that Ai Hui has left marks of lightning on Thunder Mountain and whoever that canprehend the marks of lightning, he or she will obtain the power of lightning and be a Lightning Master! How about it? This is a wless n, right! When the momentes, there will be numerous elementalists travelling over thousands of miles to Clearwater City to admire Master Ai¡¯s remnants. When you visit a holynd, you have to pay a fee, right? What if you don¡¯t have money? You will work for me. Hmm, the name of Clearwater City doesn¡¯t seem too nice. It¡¯s overshadowed by the name of Thunder Mountain. This name needs to be changed. We have to change the name! In the future, our city shall be called Thunder City! Yes! I have to use Thunder City to pay respects to Master Ai! Send out an announcement now. To celebrate the birth of the first ever Lightning Master, we will rename Clearwater City as Thunder City."

    Everyone was dumbstruck when they saw the excitement on Qiao Meiqi¡¯s face. They were stunned by Qiao Meiqi¡¯s greed.

    "Truly an unscrupulous businessman!" Venerable Volcano sighed with sorrow.

    He was an elementalist and he knew if Qiao Meiqi spread the rumors, a huge number of elementalists woulde to Clearwater City, no, Thunder City.

    When the chief of Karakorum Sword League became the first master swordsman, Karakorum Sword League expanded rapidly and countless elementalists visited them.

    Most of the members in the newly established Karakorum Division were elite swordsmen that were selected from Karakorum Sword League.

    One could imagine the number of elementalists that woulde to Thunder City to admire Ai Hui. Whenever a brand-new type of power was created, it would present new opportunities for many elementalists. If one could be a part of it, he or she would obtain a head start. How did those powerful and wealthy aristocratic familiese about? They did so by adopting this method.

    Immense wealth came from having great power.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s voice rang across the main hall. "I want half!"

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s mayor residence was the first building to be repaired. Due to theck of time, only the external part of the mayor¡¯s residence was repaired. The mayor residence¡¯s defensive rainscreen needed more time and an earth elemental master to be fully restored.

    Ai Hui, who had just returned to the mayor residence, seemed to look slightly different. However, everyone found it very difficult to identify what the difference was. The most noticeable part about him was his eyes. His eyes were unusually bright, so much so that they were dazzling.

    The glow of the Wintry Jade de in his hand had dimmed significantly, giving off a soft glimmer. Even the lightning arc that streaked across it asionally looked weak.

    "How are you feeling?" Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes lit up.

    "It¡¯s finally under my control, thanks to Lou Lan," Ai Hui gave a smile.

    Everyone knew Ai Hui was training on Thunder Mountain, but they did not know that Lou Lan was by his side.

    Ai Hui kept on releasing lightning bolts from his body and Lou Lan recorded the whole process. The analyzing ability of Lou Lan¡¯s Midnight was very powerful. Lou Lan specialized in obtaining unnoticeable, important information from an immense number of samples. Using his method, Lou Lan helped Ai Hui to analyze his elemental traces and obtain many vuble elemental traces.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes had curled into two crescent moons as he said cheerfully, "Lou Lan likes to help Ai Hui."

    Gong Peiyao was filled with jealousy. She wished she could throw herself at Lou Lan.

    With Lou Lan¡¯s assistance, the lightning within Ai Hui¡¯s body was brought under control for the time being. At least now he did not need to worry about his body exploding.

    After Ai Hui knew how the lightning in his body was produced, he quickly grasped the ability to control the rate at which the lightning was produced. Without an endless stream of lightning flowing through his body, the danger within Ai Hui¡¯s body had decreased by half.

    Of course, there were still a lot of problems waiting for Ai Hui to resolve them. However, as long as he got rid of the danger of his body exploding, he had enough time to resolve the other problems.

    He still had a long way before he could fully control the power of the lightning in his body. This was just the beginning.

    This was the problem with being a forerunner, but it was a unique characteristic at the same time. Forerunners faced too many unknowns. The path ahead of them was covered with dense fog and they had no idea how to proceed forward. The only thing they could do was to slowly fumble their way through.

    However, since no one was familiar with the new field, these forerunners would usually put up impressive performances and be influential and powerful individuals in their eras.

    Ai Hui looked at the mayor and asked, "How are the preparations for our resources? Once you are done preparing our resources, we will leave."

    "Congrattions, Master Ai. The resources have been prepared properly. You can set off at any time," Qiao Meiqi congratted Ai Hui.

    Even though the battle from two days ago had caused Qiao Meiqi to suffer huge losses, he was not bothered at all. In the past, Central Pine Faction was a promising power. Now, it had be a formidable power that could not be underestimated.

    With the first ever Lightning Master, the Shi family¡¯s heiress who could match up against two Masters at once, and the two captive Masters, Central Pine Faction had a total of four Masters!

    Qiao Meiqi and the Gong Residence had no issues with handing the two captives over to Ai Hui.

    In this way, the strength of Central Pine Faction¡¯s lineup far surpassed Thunder City¡¯s.

    Furthermore, Central Pine Faction was filled with youngsters. Youth implied boundless potential. With the refinement method of snowva in the hands of Central Pine Faction, they possessed an endless stream of wealth. By looking at Ai Hui¡¯s decision to use the profits from the sale of snowva to purchase a huge amount of resources, one could tell that he was very ambitious.

    Central Pine Faction¡¯s position in Qiao Meiqi¡¯s heart had been raised a few levels.

    The current Central Pine Faction was no longer inferior to those newly established families. It was a newly established family that possessed great potential.

 Chapter 464: Departure

    Chapter 464: Departure

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui and the rest hade quietly without anyone¡¯s knowledge, but when they left a huge load team followed. All the load basin beasts were given to them by Qiao Meiqi, together with a group of servants and porters.

    When they first arrived, there was no Master in Central Pine Valley. They had no ability to defend themselves. Ai Hui today, relying on his reputation as the first ever Lightning Master, was able to intimidate their enemies. Plus, Shi Xueman was by his side.

    And there were Mister Dou and Yang Xiaodong, who were held captive, so four Masters were overseeing the ce. Coupled with the valley¡¯s defense, no team could ever think of breaking into their territory without at least six or seven Masters on their team.

    Full of confidence, Ai Hui¡¯s disy made a good spectacle.

    The masses, upon hearing the news about Thunder City, walked out of their houses to take a look. They stood on both sides of the road, not daring to make a racket. Where the squadron passed the audience bowed their heads in respect.

    They weren¡¯t bowing to the fact that Ai Hui had be the first ever Lightning Master but that he was protecting their homnd.

    Unless they had no choice, who would be willing to wander about miserable and desperate?

    The battle that had happened earlier shook up Beyond Avalon. It wasn¡¯t merely because of the birth of the first ever Lightning Master, but also because it was the first battle between two power figures since the city expansion order and the elementalists¡¯ entrance into the Wilderness.

    A group of thieves and bandits participated in the battle of Skyheart City, thus it was regarded merely as an armed rebellion.

    And the battle of Thunder City was a conquest of power.

    The elementalists had charged into the Wilderness to build their own cities, facing pressure from dire beasts during the whole process. The cities were previously broken into because of these dire beasts and not because of conflicts among the people.

    Probably no one would¡¯ve thought that in future history books there would be a name for this battle, "Battle of Thunder City". This battle was viewed by future historians as a turning point.

    The battle marked the start of the chaotic era where Beyond Avalon started invading other cities to conquer them.

    Later on, there were many borations on this event.

    Some felt that the root cause was that the elementalists started to be ambitious after settling down in the Wilderness. Others thought that Madam Ye¡¯s rise had evoked much unhappiness and the Assembly of Patriarchs was one of the dissidents. There were also people who believed that the death of Great Elder gave way to the disorder in Beyond Avalon since there was no more leader.

    At this moment, no one knew exactly how impactful and far-reaching this battle was going to be.

    But to the citizens in Thunder City, this battle was more important than all the expounding done in history books.

    Their homnd belonged to them but history belonged to time.

    Not only was Ai Hui protecting their homes, he left a Thunder Mountain. This was one of the deepest cities within the Wilderness, where the mightiest and most dangerous dire beasts resided.

    Every single citizen had a deep understanding of dire beasts.

    Master Ai had pondered and analyzed lightning techniques at Thunder Mountain for consecutive days. Thunder rolled, disying might and power, and could clearly be heard from miles away.

    Dire beasts¡¯ fear of thunder exceeded that of humans, and elementalists who had been out scouting were all pleasantly surprised. Within a few mile radius practically all dire beasts, even the stronger ones, had vanished.

    They¡¯d all thought that they were on the wrong path.

    Thunder Mountain left a strong thunder aura, which caused dire beasts to stay away instinctively. This region then became a forbidden area for dire beasts. As long as the thunder aura did not disappear, the area around Thunder City would still be a dire-beast-free zone.

    In the Wilderness, nothing was more blissful than being safe. The future of Thunder City was bright. As residents of the city, the citizens benefited the most.

    In this chaotic world, mere citizens¡¯ wishes were being ignored. They, too, knew that Master Ai wasn¡¯t fighting for them, but Thunder City survived because of Master Ai and would benefit for a long time because of him as well.

    He, the legend, was the stars in the sky and they were the grass on the ground. They were worlds apart and weren¡¯t able to associate themselves with him.

    They bowed to him without expecting a response. They did it out of gratitude.

    The closely-packed crowd bowed unceasingly and only the footsteps of the heavy load basin beasts echoed throughout the big street.

    The atmosphere was exceptionally solemn.

    Sitting on a load basin beast, Ai Hui¡¯s smile vanished. He pursed his lips, his expression turning serious. His rxed posture disappeared too as he automatically straightened his back.

    In that instant he felt somewhat stifled and panicky.

    He did not know the reason, but was unwilling to think about it.

    It wasn¡¯t easy for anybody in this chaotic world, was it?

    Amid the silence the load team left Thunder City and disappeared into the dense Wilderness.

    A short while after they left the city, Ai Hui returned to his usual state. The unhappiness and indescribable emotions were all thrown to the back of his mind. He wasn¡¯t a heroic figure so the mission of saving the world should be left to someone else.

    Ai Hui fiddled with Mister Dou¡¯s walking stick, his face full of curiosity.

    Mister Dou and Yang Xiaodong did not receive any harsh treatment. Their elemental energies were merely being suppressed. Yang Xiaodong had a dark expression on his face and behaved indifferently toward Ai Hui. Mister Dou, on the other hand, was much more straightforward and patient, responding to all the questions he had answers for.

    "Why does this stick swallow light rays?"

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s question Yang Xiaodong couldn¡¯t hold back. "This isn¡¯t a stick!"

    With an "ah", Ai Hui looked the cane over a few times. With a I¡¯ve-had-my-fare-share-of-experience-so-don¡¯t-try-to-deceive-me look on his face he responded, "This is obviously a stick."

    The veins on Yang Xiaodong¡¯s forehead throbbed. He could only see the repulsiveness in that person and wanted so badly to stick a knife into his bloody face. He clenched his teeth, saying, "Northern Underworld King Tree!"

    A rare treasure being called as a stick left Yang Xiaodong feeling horrible, as if he¡¯d just swallowed a fly. While he kept telling himself that he had no choice but to lower his head, since he was under someone else¡¯s roof, he couldn¡¯t help but feel the rage surging within his chest.

    He practically stopped after each word for emphasis.

    Ai Hui eximed in realization, "I understand, it¡¯s a high-grade stick!"

    Yang Xiaodong flew into a rage. "You¡¯re the stick!"

    With a foolish look on his face Ai Hui asked Yang Xiaodong, "Why the face? Is it such an amazing stick?"

    Yang Xiaodong turned his face, his body trembling from anger.

    Mister Douughed and exined in a slow-moving tone, "It can absorb light because it is Northern Underworld King Tree. Northern Underworld was a remote and deste ce with no sunlight all day long because there grew a very unique type of tree, "Dark Tree". Dark trees live off of light rays as well, but the difference is that they swallow light and spit out darkness. There is a darkyer on their leaves that can swallow all surrounding light. And this one here is the King of Dark Trees. Only one is born out of every hundred thousand trees."

    Ai Hui felt as though he was listening to a story. "Where¡¯s Northern Underworld?"

    "No idea." Mister Dou shook his head. "No one knows where it is anymore. Perhaps they couldn¡¯t go there even if they knew. However, many powerful cultivators entered the Northern Underworld during the Cultivation Era."

    Ai Hui responded in interest, "So this is a remnant from the Cultivation Era?"

    "What I got was a seed." With a reminiscent look on his face he continued, "At that time I did not know that it was the seed of the King of Dark Trees. I¡¯d thought that it was just an ordinary seed. Even then, to me it was a treasure, so I cherished it very much and spent much effort nurturing it. It waster on, under a fateful coincidence, that I realized it was the King of Dark Trees."

    With his eyes lit up Ai Hui stated shamelessly, "It is mine now."

    Yang Xiaodong stood up and howled, "Shameless!"

    He knew how important Northern Underworld King Tree was to Mister Dou. Mister Dou was an extremely powerful Master with the Northern Underworld King Tree, but without it he was merely an ordinary elementalist.

    Mister Dou waved his hand, saying, "Northern Underworld King Tree has been yours ever since you caught me. I have a bold request, however, and am unsure if I can say it."

    It was then that Yang Xiaodong remembered he was now a captive. He sat down with a defeated look on his face.

    Ai Hui nced over at Yang Xiaodong. This gloomy fellow was easily agitated when it came to Mister Dou¡¯s affairs.

    Mister Dou was calm and honest, which in actual fact made Ai Hui admire him. The old knew better indeed.

    Ai Hui became a tad more respectful. "Please speak."

    "I don¡¯t have much time left to live. The Northern Underworld King Tree would be wasted in my hands. It has an extremely long life and the ancient books mentioned that it will not be destroyed as long as there¡¯s light and that it will only grow each day. It¡¯s only been in my hands for a few decades. It would be a real waste if this were to be buried and disappear."

    Yang Xiaodong had calmed down significantly and kept silent. He knew that these words were for him.

    "I¡¯ve been trying to understand the Northern Underworld King Tree for a few decades and have obtained some insights. I¡¯m willing to pass it all down to you without concealment. I only hope that you can take the children of my stronghold into your care."

    Yang Xiaodong¡¯s expression returned to normal. He¡¯d understood the moment Mister Dou spoke. He was, after all, born from the stronghold and knew what Mister Dou was concerned about."

    "Stronghold¡¯s children?"

    Ai Hui fell into a short daze, but after thinking about it he thought that it was only human nature. He nodded in agreement.

    Everybody then followed Mister Dou to the stronghold.

    Ai Hui looked at the extremely tanned kids who had gathered around. Shocked, he shouted, "You¡¯re surely formidable, aren¡¯t you? So many of them!"

    Awkward silence.

    Mister Dou who kept a straight face always, became very emotional for the first time. His face turned rigid, his expression hardened. His whole body stiffened up and his face turned red.

    He opened his mouth but no sound came out because he did not know how to start.

    The rest looked on awkwardly.

    Yang Xiaodong was about to speak up, but Ai Hui had already tapped Mister Dou¡¯s shoulder and said, "Don¡¯t worry, Old Dou. From now on, Central Pine Valley is home to you and your children. You¡¯re a responsible man, Old Dou! It mustn¡¯t be easy having so many children!"

    Mister Dou¡¯s face turned redder. He¡¯d experienced a cruel life and had never seen such a scene. He was at a loss.

    He was about to exin himself, but Ai Hui had already turned around and started mingling with the kids, his face full of smiles.

    The little kids were initially very guarded, but quickly warmed up to Ai Hui.

    Mister Dou, whose face was initially flushed, started to calm his emotions down. A smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. He had no regard for the material world but had an exceptionally keen intuition when it came to emotions. He could feel that Ai Hui had not the least bit of enmity toward the children. Even Shi Xueman and Lou Lan were genuinely happy.

    Yang Xiaodong looked at him without speaking a word, but his gloomy face brightened up a little.

 Chapter 465: Guillotines on a Snowy Night

    Chapter 465: Guillotines on a Snowy Night

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    When military banners of the three central divisions appeared on the battleground, the fight lost its suspense.

    Ever since the founding of the Thirteen Divisions in the Avalon of Five Elements, the three central divisions were the most unusual and mysterious divisions. The direct subordinates of the Elders Guild, these three central divisions were Surveince, Judgement, and Dread. The outside world had little understanding of them.

    They only knew that Surveince was good at obtaining news as they had countless spies. Judgement was in charge of trials and convictions. Only very specific crimes would require the involvement of Judgement. Dread was the most mysterious group, and news about them spread the least.

    A peculiar thing was that the three central divisions were not in the Avalon of Five Elements, but defended the Old Territory instead.

    Why did they do that? Which part of the Old Territory? No one knew.

    Even the powerful members from aristocratic families who knew a lot of rare inside information were unaware of the reason.

    Mystery always bred rumors.

    Some said that the three central divisions guarded arge-scale treasury. It was the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯sst hope and preserved boundless riches, rare treasures, weapons, and so on. When the Avalon of Five Elements reached the juncture of life and death, this treasury would be itsst opportunity to overturn the situation.

    Some also said that the ce where thebat divisions were stationed was a big crack leading to a deep part of the Wilderness. In order to prevent dire beasts from entering the Old Territory through this crack, thebat divisions stood guard.

    There were others who even believed that it wasn¡¯t a crack that lead to the deep Wilderness, but to an abyss.

    All kinds of strange and interesting rumors spread unceasingly through the years. This was still a riddle to this day. The other tebat divisions had a retirement system, but once involved with the three central divisions, it was a lifetimemitment.

    No matter which version of the rumors, there was something unanimous¨Cthe magnitude. There was no doubt that the three central divisions were powerful. It wasmon knowledge that the strength of the three central divisions were much stronger than the other tebat divisions.

    Even the strongest among the tendivisions was iparable to any one of three central divisions.

    Other opined that only Masters could join the central three. Of course, those withmon sense knew how nonsensical this was.

    There weren¡¯t that many Masters in this world.

    The appearance of the three central division military banners on the battleground immediately led to an all out attack. The rebel army formed from more than tenbandit teams was utterly defeated. Where the banner passed, the bandits crawled on the floor, put their hands behind their heads, and surrendered in fear.

    It was as if boiling oil had been poured on snow.

    The rebel army fled and surrendered without any effort on the part of the central divisions.

    The battle ended quickly, shocking the crowd that covertly observed this rebellion. Captives continuously appeared outside the city, causing Skyheart City to bustle. During this period, people were rmed and feared that the rebel army would enter the city and wipe them out.

    Trial, conviction, execution..

    The Judgement Division¡¯s efficiency was astonishing. Their methods were so cruel that the audience was left speechless and overwhelmed. The Judgement Division wasn¡¯t the least bit lenient toward these bandits.

    Everyday, there were rows of bandits waiting to be publicly beheaded outside Skyheart City.

    It was the people¡¯s first time seeing the expressionless team members of the Judgement Division. They had an apathetic look on their faces, simr to that of experienced executioners. The captives¡¯ uncontroble screams, flying heads, spurting blood, and headless corpses weren¡¯t able to even slightly change the expressions of the team members.

    Yet, the Judgement Division did not kill everyone. They did not kill the Masters among the bandits, but handed them over to Madam Ye to determine their fate instead.

    There were six of them.

    Masters were excused from capital punishment. It was an unwritten rule.

    The six Masters were all willing to follow Madam Ye¡¯s orders. No matter where they went, they were a force that was difficult to ignore. This was also why the lives of the six Masters were handed over to Madam Ye.

    Madam Ye, however, did not ept their surrender. The six of them were publicly beheaded.

    When the heads of the six Masters were hung high up on the wooden poles outside Skyheart City, the city fell into a storm of protest.

    If the rabbit dies, the fox grieves. Many Masters, cared for by their respective family ns, were disgusted by Madam Ye. During a private banquet among the Masters, many openly stated that they would never serve Madam Ye.

    These rumors also spread to the ears of Madam Ye, but she was unaffected and continued doing as she pleased.

    This was only the beginning.

    People were then shocked to realize that the dignified and virtuous Madam Ye actually had an iron fist.

    On that night, countless people tossed and turned restlessly in their beds, unable to sleep.

    On the next day, before the sky brightened up, there was an endless stream of horse and carriages outside the mayor¡¯s residence. Family patriarchs queued in a long line, waiting for Madam Ye to receive them. They were all well-celebrated figures.

    The citizens of Skyheart City were rejoicing over the stabilizing situation of the armed rebellion, but the aristocratic families weren¡¯t. They asionally nced over at the hanging Masters¡¯ heads. It was as if those heads had a magical power that automatically attracted people¡¯s attention.

    Madam Ye was really ruthless to kill all the Masters!

    Just then, the first ever snow since its construction fell over Skyheart City.

    The ice-cold, bone-piercing snowkes were sharp spinning des that danced to the gale. A gale storm was extremely terrifying. Wherever it passed, the rocks and trees on the ground were destroyed. It hid the sky and covered the earth. Even the sunlight was obstructed, making seem like night.

    Many secretly gossiped that this frightening snow gale must be the heaven¡¯s doing since even the gods could no longer stand seeing Madam Ye¡¯s careless behavior.

    The five God-subduing Peaks in the Skyheart City were activated to stop the whistling snow gale and bring warmth to the city interior.

    Nevertheless, people panicked inside and could not feel the warmth at all. Many thought of every possible method to leave this city, which protected them, because it was even colder and more bone-chilling inside.

    Without a sign, Surveince Division made a move.

    More than tenfamilies had been investigated and were charged with colluding with the bandits and acting from the inside. Irrefutable evidence surfaced and proved that these families hadmitted dreadful crimes that could not be wiped away.

    Arrest, trial, conviction.

    The Judgement Division did not appear this time, and standing in their ce was the Surveince Division. It was said that the Judgement Division maintained silence with regard to this operation, while the Dread Division wasn¡¯t in favor of this operation. Only the Surveince Division returned to Skyheart City without any apprehension of bing Madam Ye¡¯s sharpest knife.

    Scouting for news couldn¡¯t get any simpler for the Surveince Division.

    In Skyheart City, heads were rolling and the amount of blood spurting all over could form a river. There was even a faint bloody smell that filled the air.

    The whole operationsted for three consecutive days.

    There was no warmth in the recollections of the survivors. Whenever they told their stories, their voices spontaneously trembled. The snow gale enveloped Skyheart City, blocking out all sunlight for three days. It was as dark as night, and even the light emitted from the never-extinguishing southern lightnterns along the streets brought about a horrifying chill.

    The row of lever operated guillotines looked exceptionally magnificent.

    39 families had been trialed and over 7,000 had been condemned. Among these were weak servants and strong Masters.

    1,622 were beheaded.

    In the entire history of the Avalon of Five Elements, there had never been such a spectacr sight. This unprecedented blood purge seemed to have added ayer the color of blood to Skyheart City¡¯s light screen.

    These three days came to be known as "Guillotines on a Snowy Night."

    When the snow passed and the sun rose up again, the sunlight sprinkled over the field, making the once bustling city appear much more spacious and empty. The marketce was even more deste as people did not dare to leave their homes.

    A few dayster the tense atmosphere gradually dissolved, and the city returned to its usual tranquility.

    The mayor¡¯s residence.

    A man with his hair bunned up and a pale face smiled. His eyes weren¡¯t big, but they were bright and clear. His smile was very fresh and contagious.

    No one would¡¯ve thought that this seemingly warm man was the division leader of the Surveince Division.

    His speech wasn¡¯t slow as he reported the details of this operation in an organized and clear manner.

    Madam Ye listened carefully and asked questions from time to time.

    When the report was finished, she smiled and said, "It¡¯s hard to guard against internal thieves. Who would¡¯ve imagined that so many people would rather hand the city over to bandits than to let me keep my position. If they have the ability, what harm is there in giving my position up to them? I¡¯m just a woman who wants to raise Xiaobao. Father-inw entrusted this to me before he left, and I¡¯m only doing this in order to not waste his previous efforts. If there is a worthy person, I will definitely give up my spot and hand it over personally."

    Nian Tingfeng consoled, "Why care about those vulgar people, Madam Ye? You¡¯re the only one who can turn this desperate crisis around! I¡¯ll feel uneasy when you say such angry words."

    Madam Ye responded graciously, "I¡¯m not that great. This is all thanks to you, Division Leader Nian. It¡¯s not a pity if I lost my position, but if the bandits entered the city, the people would fall into a terrible situation. The city and its people would die and countless families would be destroyed."

    Nian Tingfeng replied respectfully, "You¡¯re right, Madam. If people remain undisciplined, they would fall apart like a sheet of loose sand. Beyond Avalon needs a new leader in order for us to progress. These mindless people are harboring unfathomable motives and are conspiring against us. It¡¯s not a pity even if they all die."

    Madam Ye sighed. "A pity for all those who are Masters."

    She wasn¡¯t feeling regret for those Masters among the bandits, but for the consecrated Masters within the city. These Masters were numerous, and if they could serve her, she would be like a tiger that had grown wings.

    Unfortunately, these Masters were practically all implicated, and more than half had been beheaded.

    "Why do you care, Madam? Your Master¡¯s Glory is a genius creation. Once the time is right, arge batch of Masters will emerge." Nian Tingfeng added seriously, "We just have to endure this period and all the Masters will be ours. No one can hold us by the elbow anymore. The others will naturally shut their mouths so that Madam can unleash your full potential and save Skyheart City from catastrophes. It¡¯s always better to get the pain over with rather than prolonging the agony. Rather than letting them rot, why not eradicate the rotten meat?"

    Madam Ye looked pleased. "With your assistance, I feel truly at ease. I still have something to trouble you with."

    Nian Tingfen hurriedly asked, "What instructions?

    "Help me investigate somebody."

    "Please tell me."

    "The Lightning de, Ai Hui."

    "Yes, Madam!"

 Chapter 466: Three Division Leaders in a Meeting

    Chapter 466: Three Division Leaders in a Meeting

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Chapter 466 - Three Division Leaders in a Meeting

    The snow gale dispersed and sunlight returned to the earth. Nevertheless, within a night, Skyheart City became even more solemn. The nights once filled with music and songs were gone. Aristocratic families had their tails tucked between their legs. No one wanted to offend Madam Ye at this time.

    Bloodstains left by the Guillotines on a Snowy Night event had yet to fade.

    No one knew what Madam Ye¡¯s next move was going to be, but discerning people knew not to provoke her.

    The three central divisions had strict military discipline.

    After Guillotines on a Snowy Night, not even one elementalist from the central divisions could be seen on the streets.

    Brilliant military glory, unfathomable, valiant with unsurpassable abilities, cold-blooded and cruel, killing without blinking, strict military conduct... These were the impressions and memories that the city had of the three central divisions.

    The three divisions were stationed in different ces.

    The Surveince Division was stationed in a military camp located within Skyheart City. They were supposed to be stationed in a practice ground of the Sky Edge Division but the Judgement Division was stationed there temporarily. It wasn¡¯t a big area and its facilities were very simple and basic, but the Judgement Division did not mind at all.

    In fact, the military camp had more than enough space for the Judgement Division.

    Aside from the three central divisions¡¯ glory, their strength exceeded the other 10 divisions even though they had the three smallest battle teams among all Thirteen Divisions of the Avalon of Five Elements. The Surveince Division had the biggest team, and even then, it was made up of under 1,000 members. The Judgement Division had only 800 people, whereas the smallest division, Dread, had 500.

    In actuality, the three central divisions had never ever been fully filled.

    The member selection process of the three divisions was extremely strict. They would rather be shorthanded than recruit unsuitable elementalists. They had exceedingly high psychological demands from their elementalists and would abandon those with slightly weaker willpower.

    An unremarkable looking Three Leaves Bamboo Cart appeared at the military camp entrance.

    There was no marking and nothing conspicuous. It was just amonly seen cargo transport cart except that its body was covered in a thick ck cloth so its interior couldn¡¯t be seen.

    By now, few people used Three Leaves Bamboo Carts to ferry goods since they were more difficult to use and elemental energy cost more. The cart required a huge volume of elemental energy and was simply not cost effective for transporting goods. The trend now was to make use of load basin beasts, which consumed less elemental energy. They had the heaviest cargo capacity, were easy to raise, and had a high survival rate outside the city.

    This was Skyheart City, the biggest city in Beyond Avalon after all. It housed the most aristocratic families and was one of the most prosperousnds, but the number of Three Leaves Bamboo Carts was still lower.

    Nearing the camp entrance, the cart instantly slowed down. An elementalist stood guard at the gate with a fixed expression on his faces. He would detect over 10 wisps of energy locking down on him from within the shadows if he had keen senses.

    The cart door opened and a seven or eight year old girl alighted. Her hair reached her ears and was glossy and smooth. Her hairstyle resembled a round apple with a neat fringe covering her forehead. She had chubby cheeks, jade-like skin, and long eyshes like brushes. She was like a cute little doll.

    A few expressionless guards followed behind.

    The elementalist, who stood guard with a stern expression, saluted. "Madam Caijue !"

    The girl nodded calmly before walking over from the door.

    This scene was ratherical. An adorable little girl behaving like an adult made her even more adorable. Her steps were very small and her walking speed was slow because of her size and short legs. Those immeasurably strong people behind her followed her pace, so they were practically inching forward with small, quick steps.

    A fierce and tough looking elementalist, who stood rigidly, bowed respectfully with a stern expression and a fixed gaze.

    No one would¡¯ve thought that this young little girl, Ximen Caijue, was actually the division leader of the mysterious Judgement Division.

    Upon entering the military camp, elementalists could be seen practicing with all their might. Some practiced alone while others were sparring. There was almost no difference whenpared to the other battle divisions, but if the other 10 divisions were to witness this scene, they would notice something strange.

    Silence. Unusual silence.

    Lone trainers analyzed, pondered, and gestured quietly. Training with a partner was much more intense. Blood sttered from time to time, and some elementalists already had many injuries. No oneined, however, as if they had no concept of pain.

    It was a strange scene.

    Ximen Caijue and her guards looked on indifferently as it wasn¡¯t their first time witnessing something like this.

    Nian Tingfeng saw Ximen Caijue and her group approaching and greeted, "What asion is it today that Madam Ximen Caijue is visiting personally?"

    The girl answered coldly, "Wan Shenwei is here too!"

    The smile on Nian Tingfeng¡¯s face remained, but the cheery expression in his eyes was gone. "Why such a big fuss? Then let¡¯s talk in the meeting hall."

    With that, he turned around and led the way.

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s guards and Nian Tingfeng¡¯s subordinates stopped outside the meeting hall.

    In the spacious meeting hall, Nian Tingfeng brewed his own tea. While boiling the water, he said, "Skyheart City¡¯s tea leaves are much better than the Old Territory¡¯s. I got this from confiscating possessions ,so I forgot which family it belonged to. Asking these fellows to battle and kill enemies is bothering them, but they are all experts in enjoying life. I¡¯ve not tried more than half of the tea leaves that I seized. I¡¯ll go get more from different families once this batch finishes."

    Ximen Caijue kept quiet, her apple face remaining stern and cold.

    Not long after, a lushly bearded man pushed open the door and entered the hall. This big man was exceptionally tall and sturdy, like a man from the mountains. His hands were much longer than an ordinary person¡¯s. He looked a little like an ape. It could be seen from his face that he¡¯d face many hardships. There were many fine crisscrossing scars and his arms and legs were also covered in scars.

    His eyes were very unique looking. He had light colored pupils, which made his eyes seem pale.

    The Dread Division¡¯s division leader, Wan Shenwei.

    Wan Shenwei strode into the hall and took a seat,menting, "I smell a fragrance."

    "New tea. Guarantee you have not tried it before."

    Nian Tingfeng picked up the steaming teapot and poured a cup each for Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue before serving himself one as well. He took a sip and relished in its taste, his face appearing drunk.

    Silence momentarily filled the hall as only the sound of the steaming teapot, which sat on the stove, could be heard.

    Without even looking at the tea in front of her, Ximen Caijue coldly asked, "What exactly are you doing, Nian Tingfeng?"

    As if he¡¯d not heard her, Nian Tingfeng slowly replied only after a short while, "What do you mean?"

    Ximen Caijue gave him a cold look. "Putting down the revolt was our job. It¡¯s okay to kill all the bandits and the Masters among them, but why kill the Masters in Skyheart City?"

    Nian Tingfeng asked her calmly, "Why not?"

    Ximen Caijue answered indifferently, "You know they¡¯re innocent."

    "So?" Nian Tingfengughed. "There are many innocent people, Madam Caijue, so who should die? Only a few have died and you¡¯re feeling the heartache already?

    Wan Shenwei put his teacup down. "Talk things over nicely."

    Nian Tianfeng leisurely took another sip of his tea before saying, "I understand what you¡¯re thinking. They are Masters and are on the aristocratic families¡¯ sides, so by right they are our people, and it would be a pity to destroy our own military strength, but this is not what I think."

    They other two remained silent and only Nian Tingfeng¡¯s voice echoed.

    "They were Masters and our people no doubt, but they were already rotten. Look, we¡¯ve been forced out of the Avalon of Five Elements and into the Wilderness and Skyheart City¡¯s still new. What are these fellows doing? Only thinking about enjoying life. These Masters are amazing at creating new teas, I¡¯ll give them that."

    Sarcasm was evident in his words.

    Ximen Caijue and Wan Shenwei kept quiet as they knew that Nian Tingfeng wasn¡¯t exaggerating.

    "Are we so pathetic? Are wecking in abilities? We are indeed, but what¡¯s worse is that we arecking in courage and fight. Look, these aristocratic families are our pirs of support, but they¡¯re all absorbed in self-indulgence. They withdraw when there¡¯s danger. What purpose do they serve even if they¡¯re our people?"

    Nian Tingfeng became increasingly worked up.

    "They are all pieces of rotten meat, so don¡¯t hope for them to turn into good meat. There¡¯s only one choice if you want to live on and that is to get rid of all this rotten meat! Yes, the damage is significant and painful, and it¡¯s difficult to make a move, but we are driving ourselves to a dead end if this drags on."

    His tone became calm suddenly, but carried a tinge of zeal.

    "So our decision is simple. Madam Ye is our only way out. Can you give me another option? Who can? I don¡¯t know if she can seed, but I do know that she¡¯s our only hope. The Avalon of Five Elements loses if she loses."

    He nced over at the both of them and said meaningfully, "It¡¯s fine as long as we win. A knife is still a knife, so does it matter who it belongs to?"

    Ximen Caijue asked dully, "What else do you know?"

    Wan Shenwei looked at Nian Tingfeng as well.

    Nian Tingfeng was the division leader of Surveince Division, which specialized in obtaining information, so it wouldn¡¯t be surprising if he had special insider news.

    They knew Nian Tingfeng¡¯s personality well. He was cautious and only did things he had confidence in. If he acted, there must be a reason behind it.

    Nian Tingfeng smiled and picked the teacup up again. "I¡¯m optimistic about Madam Ye¡¯s Master¡¯s Glory."

    Ximen Caijue and Wan Shenwei made eye contact.

    Master¡¯s Glory wasn¡¯t any secret since the all of Beyond Avalon knew about it. Madam Ye had even held a series of selection processes. No one knew what happened behind the scenes of the program, however.. No one knew where these people actually came from.

    Both division leaders were confident that Nian Tingfeng must have heard something, but Nian Tingfeng¡¯s mouth was sealed, so it was impossible for them to probe.

    Ximen Caijue responded coldly, "We can¡¯t win without a Grandmaster."

    Nian Tingfeng spread his hands. "Everyone wants to be a Grandmaster, but it¡¯s more practical to rely on Masters. They would at least prevent our side from looking too unsightly."

    Ximen Caijue snorted before standing up and walking toward the door.

    Nian Tingfeng stayed in his spot, drinking his tea.

    Wan Shenwei got up and strode to the door before stopping.

    "Tingfeng, you¡¯re not being honest."

    With that, he pushed the door open.

    From start to finish, Nian Tingfeng sipped on his tea with a smile on his face. His expression never changed.

 Chapter 467: Windy Resonant Pagoda

    Chapter 467: Windy Resonant Pagoda

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    A peculiar looking pagoda stood prominently in the northwest sector of Newlight City.

    Yuchi Ba looked at the newly built Windy Resonant Pagoda with pride and satisfaction.

    The pagoda was one thousand and eighty feet tall and made purely out of metal and rock. Engravings covered the entire structure, giving it an overall majestic feel. Normal pagodas were thick at the bottom and tapered towards the top, yet here stood one that was the other way around. The first five hundred feet of the pagoda were cylindrical in shape, much like a huge circr pir. Above that, branches began to emerge. These branches were loosely scattered, but became denser higher up the pagoda. From afar, the entire structure looked like a pine cone.

    The most wonderful aspect of the building was the countless wind chimes hanging at the top of each branch.

    Whenever the wind blew, the sound of the wind chimes would spread for miles around.

    Elder Yuchi spoke with gratitude to the white-haired, bearded old man standing in front of him, "My thanks to Master Di. This pagoda is truly a marvellous creation and will be the very foundation of Newlight City. Only Master Di is capable of aplishing such a feat."

    The old man gazed at the pagoda with satisfaction before shaking his head and replying, "I dare not take another¡¯s credit; the inspiration for this pagoda came from Mayor An. All I can do is incorporate the ideas of others to achieve satisfactory results. I can rest easy with capable people like Mayor An in Newlight City."

    This simple and in looking old man was the famous music master Di Xinyuan. He had returned to the Induction Ground to retire, built the Hall of Nine Tones, and lived a carefree life ever since. When the blood disaster broke out, he roamed the world to avoid getting caught up in it.

    Di Xinyuan was a new citizen. He lived a tough childhood, wandering from ce to ce and enduring many hardships before bing a famous Master.

    Music theory was not a mainstream area of interest. People had been seeking power since way before the blood disaster; who would bother studying music? As such, music masters were extremely rare throughout history.

    Di Xinyuan was the only one still alive.

    The construction of the Windy Resonant Pagoda had aroused his interest because a building of this size involving music theory was very rare.

    Another reason was that he carried the status of being a new citizen.

    The young Di Xinyuan had been slighted by others due to being a new citizen and thus developed an instinctive aversion to the aristocratic families. He rejected offers from many aristocratic families and chose to retire from the Induction Ground after his promotion to Master.

    After the city expansion order and construction of new cities, he followed the flow and arrived at Newlight City.

    He had initially been shocked by the Windy Resonant Pagoda¡¯s blueprint when An Chouchou showed it to him, then while participating in the project, he grew to appreciate the fatty whose name personified his look. He deliberately mentioned his admiration for An Chouchou to Yuchi Ba.

    With his status, Yuchi Ba would not ignore hisments.

    Yuchi Ba delightfullymented, "Newlight City can be without me, this old man, but not without Chouchou. The word ¡®elephant¡¯ in the name ¡®Ugly Elephant¡¯ is really appropriate. Where the elephant is, there is no fear of lions and tigers. God Nation has ¡¯Sick Tiger¡¯ Bei Shuisheng, our Newlight City has ¡®Ugly Elephant¡¯ An Chouchou!"

    An Chouchou was terrified. "Elder tters me, but this is part of my duty. How can Ipare with Bei Shuisheng?"

    Yuchi Ba burst into loudughter. "Why can¡¯t youpare? I say you areparable to him and I mean it. With you in charge of Newlight City, I will not have to worry about the upkeep of this pagoda."

    Jingle, Jingle.

    The shing sounds of the fine wind chimes were like a pleasant tide and the countless silver shes from the pagoda were like the sun illuminating the waves.

    The edge of the pagoda emitted traces of faint silvery light, which was the metal wind.

    "The wind is blowing!"

    Yu Jin whispered, her tone revealing inexplicable joy and excitement. Her knotted hair bun was still so eye-catching. Time did not leave traces on her face, but like an invisible grindstone, it polished the spirit of her whole body.

    The passing years were kind to her due to her attainment of Masterhood.

    Tong Gui, who stood beside her, lifted his head. Under the glittering bronze mask, his stern looking eyes became deep. He was just standing there, exuding steel and copper breaths which felt bereft of life.

    The time difference between their promotions to the level of Master was only three days.

    Tong Gui gazed at the tall pagoda. The edge of the pagoda was lit up with a faint aura of silver light forming a ring; that was the ring of metal wind. The metal wind synergised with the shing sounds of the Windy Resonant Pagoda to exert a magical force which attracted the wind.

    Both the wind and metal elemental energy were continuously converging.

    In a short period of time, the metal elemental energy around the Windy Resonant Pagoda was so abundant that it surprised Tong Gui. He did a brief calction in his mind and before the result came out, Yu Jin, who was beside him, eximed, "The metal elemental energy gathered at the pagoda is equivalent to ninerge metal elemental energy pools."

    The two of them had a tacit understanding, so without saying anything, Yu Jin already knew what was on his mind.

    Tong Gui enthused, "What a spectacr sight!"

    An Chouchou listened to everyone¡¯s admiration with such happiness that his eyes narrowed into slits and filled with excitement.

    He was under immense pressure.

    Madam Ye¡¯s dishonourable behaviour in Skyheart City was well known. As they had insider information and knew more, he was therefore under even greater pressure.

    The people present were all beaming. They understood the importance of the Windy Resonant Pagoda to Newlight City.

    Master Di suddenly asked, "I have a question and hope Elder Yuchi can help to clear the doubts."

    Yuchi Ba said generously, "Master Di, please speak your mind."

    Master Di looked puzzled and said, "This pagoda is effective and powerful. It can be described as a powerful weapon for Newlight City; however, it gathers extremely huge amounts of metal elemental energy and will easily attract dire beasts. Why not build it in town? In this way, there will be no loss even though the collected metal elemental energy will be slightly weakened. Having more security is worth the slight loss in elemental energy."

    Yuchi Ba heard and nodded. "What Master Di said is pertinent, but there is still one thing that has not yet been pointed out to Master Di. As I will be stationed in this pagoda, I intend to make use of the power of this pagoda to be a Grandmaster."

    Master Di was startled with the sudden realization. "Elder is really ambitious!"

    His eyes showed a trace of admiration. Yuchi Ba had failed in trying to be a Grandmaster before, but had the courage to try again. This was an extremely rare quality and reminded him of Le Buleng.

    Dai Gang had been a prominent figure even before he became a Grandmaster. There were only a handful of people who could defeat him and Le Buleng was one of them.

    Le Buleng had continuously failed to be a Grandmaster, but he never gave up. He was also aloof, which attracted many criticisms, but his firm resolution was something that even his enemies could not deny.

    The impact on those who failed to be a Grandmaster was devastating. From time to time, there would be Masters who failed while trying to be a Grandmaster. For those fortunate enough to survive, their skill would be substantially reduced and they would also suffer a huge mental blow. Most people would never be able to emerge from the shadow of failure.

    Therefore, when Master Di heard Yuchi Ba proiming his intention to challenge the level of Grandmaster once again, he knew how tough it was and really admired him for his decision.

    Yuchi Ba looked calm and said in a slow, steady, and thunderous tone, "I have seen too much injustice since my childhood and have decided to be the voice of the new citizens. Unfortunately, there is a limit to what I can do and this makes me feel guilty. Before the blood disaster, I often sighed for the difficulties faced by the new citizens trying to survive. After the blood disaster, the situation of the new citizens became even more difficult. I knew then that we were too weak. Only regimented people can survive; we cannot count on aristocratic families and the Elders Guild."

    Those listening to Elder Yuchi were touched.

    "I brought all of you here to build Newlight City and hope that we, the new citizens, can have a ce here in these turbulent times. I know I am obscure and untalented, but achieving this stage is already my limit."

    Others tried to speak, but he waved his hand in a self-deprecating manner. "It is not a disgrace to know your own limits. Now, the situation in Newlight City has stabilized and the foundation is firm. My mission has beenpleted and I have no more worries. I do not know what the future will be like and there is only so much I can do; however, after seeing An Chouchou¡¯s Windy Resonant Pagoda, I found another possibility and that is to make the breakthrough to the level of Grandmaster."

    His speech was steady and smooth, but his tone was a bit heated and his eyes were piercingly sharp.

    "This pagoda built in the wilderness will indeed attract dire beasts, but this is also my aim. I will kill thousands of beasts to breakthrough to the Grandmaster level. Either I be a Grandmaster or I will die. There is no other way."

    He nced at everyone and smiled. "If I am lucky, I will be a Grandmaster and carry everyone forward. If not, I will have tried my best and will die without any regrets."

    All of a sudden, Yu Jin¡¯s eyes turned red while Tong Gui¡¯s breathing became heavy and his fists clenched tightly.

    An Chouchou was stifled by panic, but he remained still.

    He understood better than anyone else that only a Grandmaster could be their anchor. Without a Grandmaster, they would never be able to reach the top tier and have any chance of winning.

    Without a Grandmaster, it would only be a matter of time until they were annexed.

    He guessed that Madam Ye knew what they were doing and must be making preparations. Only, he could not figure out what Madam Ye would do. Did Madam Ye really think she could achieve victory with only a bunch of Masters?

    Elder Yuchi was sacrificing himself to give the new residents a measure of hope for survival.

    Although Elder Yuchi was inferior in ability, nning, and strategizingpared to Madam Ye, he was much moremitted as the leader of the new citizens.

    Master Di was filled with respect and admiration.

    Yuchi Ba looked up and gazed at the Windy Resonant Pagoda, saying to himself, "Ten days from now, I will ascend the pagoda. If you have something to ask, please do it quickly."

    An Chouchou came forward and sternly said, "I have something that requires Elder¡¯s decision."

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin red at An Chouchou, thinking that this fe really knows when to pick the time to throw in the spanner.

    Yuchi Ba did not mind and smiled. "Chouchou, please speak up."

    An Chouchou said in low voice, "There was a battle in Clearwater City some days ago..."

    After listening to An Chouchou mention the Clearwater City incident, he nodded. "I know Ai Hui. We tried to recruit him before, but were rejected. I did not expect him to progress so quickly, he is indeed very talented. By mentioning this incident, Chouchou must have a deeper intention."

    An Chouchou sighed. Elder was indeed a good man, but his sensitivity and reaction to some matters were too slow.

    He replied in a low voice, "Clearwater City has changed its name to Thunder City. Now there is the first ever Lightning Master. Elder, do you remember Karakorum Savant, the first ever swordmaster? Nowadays, most of the Sky Edge Division are swordsmen."

    Yuchi Ba reacted. "Chouchou, are you saying that Ai Hu has the ability to form abat division?"

    All of them were stunned.

    An Chouchou looked solemn. "Karakorum Savant is in the front and Ai Hui is at the back. With the Sky Edge Division in front, is there any reason why a lightning-typebat division cannot be at the back?"

    Yuchi Ba was astonished. "Chouchou, what do you mean?"

    "We must recruit him at any cost!" His round face took on a domineering look and he said firmly, "If he does not want to join us, we cannot let him ally with Skyheart City!"

 Chapter 468: Hesitation

    Chapter 468: Hesitation

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Time is like a river. A river will flow through the deste, barren ravines, bug -infested swamps, and also the snow-capped mountain as it starts to melt, while the birds and flowers begin to appear in the valley.

    The Central Pine Valley, located under the ckfish Mouth Volcano, was exactly what people deemed a paradise.

    The drifting jadesword bamboo leaves flew gracefully in the sky as if they were green butterflies swirling in the air. These fluttering bamboo leaves would tremble in the air every now and then, producing a slight booming noise. Just like a sword chime, it started to generate minute torrents and this was followed by invisible waves of energy ripples.

    Wood elementalists were meditating in the bamboo forests and a faint green halo was seen revolving around their bodies.

    Colourful flowers bloomed everywhere in the bamboo forest and were intertwined with the defensive vines arranged by Duanmu Huanghun. It was a magnificent sight.

    For a teenager who had an obsessivepulsive disorder, this was one of thepulsory aspects which had to be considered while designing the defence.

    The biggest credit for the massive changes in Central Pine Valley went to Wang Xiaoshan.

    Wang Xiaoshanbelled the construction of Central Pine Valley as "Moulding the Mud". Although there were many earth elementalists in Central Pine Valley, he was the only one that was proficient in construction. Basically, all the hard work waspleted by him alone. It might have been tiring for someone else, but Wang Xiaoshan garnered pleasure from doing it.

    There was no other ce which had such a vast number of buildings for him to construct. Being in charge of military logistics in the past, he used to silently construct the buildings, and thereafter demolished them.

    Central Pine Valley not only had a vast number of buildings, but there were other aspects which had to be taken into consideration as well. The most important aspects were the elemental energy flow, how the buildings harmonized with the surrounding elemental energies, and how they could further strengthen the elemental energies.

    This was a field which Wang Xiaoshan had yet to explore.

    Large amounts of elemental traces were found inside the buildings. This was the most popr and advanced theoretical detail. With the exception of Ai Hui and Lou Lan, the others were totally clueless about these things.

    Wang Xiaoshan was a little fearful, but looked forward to what was going to happen.

    He wholly participated in and witnessed Master Han¡¯s [treating the city as a piece of cloth], therefore he had deeper emotions in this aspect. After he¡¯d served as a warehouse logistics person in-charge in the past, he once thought that if he had considered the issue of elemental nodes right from the start when he was building the city, would it be possible to produce an elemental energy needle that allowed the nodes to be activated and deactivated? During peacetime, these elemental energy needles could be concealed by buildings. They could then be activated when dangers arose. Or could he use the buildings to serve as the elemental energy needles?

    It was just that he was distressed about not having anyone to impart these skills to. In the market, any information rted to elemental traces was extremely costly.

    Thank goodness for Ai Hui, as he was Teacher¡¯s Wang only student.

    Hugging a pile of items which Ai Hui disposed of, Wang Xiaoshan felt that he¡¯d gained the most precious treasures and was deeply indulged in them. The entire Central Pine Valley was handed over to him together with plentiful materials. With such ideal conditions, this was something Wang Xiaoshan could never imagine, even when he was a person in-charge.

    Lately, the five elemental energy pools had been very stable. Moreover, with Ai Hui¡¯s relentless effort, the scale of the pools had expanded exactly double in size.

    Everyone made rapid improvements with the presence of concentrated elemental energies.

    In this chaotic world, even the dumbest person would know that being capable was the only way to survive. This included Fatty who trained daily at all costs. Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup was what kept him this energetic.

    Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup had already be what everyone anticipated the most everyday. Even theziest or most fanatic person at training would not give Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup a miss.

    With the sale of the snowva, Central Pine Valley did not encounter any financial concerns. Furthermore, the price of the dire-beast based materials had been falling drastically. This proved that the elementalists already had a firm foothold in the Wilderness and were gradually turning the situation around. With the abundance of dire-beast-based materials, Lou Lan now had more areas in which to utilize his talent. Different types of elemental soup were being prepared daily. With abination of high-grade and low-grade soups, it helped to further enhance the results as well.

    Mister Dou put his bowl down and wanted to express himself, but regretfully said," Never did I expect that I would be retiring and enjoying my time in this small valley for the rest of my life."

    Yang Xiaodong, who was standing at the side kept quiet, but could not hide the satisfaction on his face.

    Ai Hui finished the bowl without a single drop left and was full of arrogance, " That is Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup, the best in the whole world!"

    Lou Lan smiled till his eyes formed two crescent moons and happily replied, " Thank you everyone, Lou Lan will continue to work hard!"

    Everyone couldn¡¯t help but smile. Lou Lan, who was always filled with vitality, was Central Pine Valley¡¯s most well received person. If anyone were to badmouth Ai Hui, a group of people would be formed immediately and the others would chime in to gossip. On the other hand, if anyone were to badmouth Lou Lan, a group of people would unrestrainedly bash the party. Neither would they ask for the reason, nor hear any excuse.

    Mister Dou asked Ai Hui, " Have you found a ce which to nt the Northern Underworld King Tree?

    Ai Hui pondered, "There is a ce, but I¡¯m not sure if it will work."

    From the start, he had already been eyeing Mister Dou¡¯s Northern Underworld King Tree.

    Using the Northern Underworld King Tree to battle would enhance their weakness. Wouldn¡¯t being unable to move equate to being a free target? No matter how strong one¡¯s defence was, a free target would definitely be attacked.

    Although it was not ideal for battles, it definitely was an effective defence for the city.

    However in reality, the Northern Underworld King Tree needed to absorb light rays in order for it to expand. By nting the tree in the valley, it will cause the entire valley to fall into pitch darkness. Without any light rays, other vegetation in the valley would then gradually wither to death.

    The fish-mouth-like opening of the ckfish Mouth Volcano was also the volcanic crater of the Volcano.

    Within sight, a red ocean of bubbling, bright redva could be seen surging endlessly. From time to time, columns of mes and ck smoke could been seen squirting out of the magma and a concentrated sulphur smell pervaded the atmosphere.

    Mister Dou nodded his head, "So this is the ce you mentioned."

    Actually, he had thought of this ce before. He now had a better understanding towards the Northern Underworld King Tree and was already certain that it was not suitable for being nted in the the valley.

    "mes are also a type of light which the Northern Underworld King Tree would be able to absorb." Mister Dou affirmed the feasibility of this suggestion and continued, "But, there would be other problems faced. You would have to consider this carefully. One problem would be if the tree only absorbs the mes. I am also uncertain of what would happen, but ording to my understanding, the fountainhead of the elemental energy pools in the valley is this volcano. If the Northern Underworld King Tree swallows all the mes of this volcano, what will happen to the valley?"

    Ai Hui was stunned, "It is able to absorb the entire volcano?"

    A look of aghast was shown on every other person¡¯s face.

    Mister Dou warned them: "That¡¯s right! This is the Northern Underworld King Tree. It was already a treasure during the Cultivation Era. As long as light was present, it would never be destroyed. Let alone one volcano, it was even possible to swallow ten times the number.

    Ai Hui felt that this was a little tricky.

    The ckfish Mouth Volcano was the source of elemental energy of the Central Pine Valley. Suppose the fire elemental energy in the ckfish Mouth Volcano actually got swallowed up, Central Pine Valley would not be able to sustain itself.

    Ai Hui felt a quick shudder internally. He knew that the Northern Underworld King Tree was difficult to deal with. However, he never expected that it would be this formidable. Even if the five elemental pools in the Central Pine Valley revolved, the fire elemental energy drawn from the ckfish Mouth Volcano would only be insignificant for the Northern Underworld King Tree. Unexpectedly, such a small thing could actually devour the entire volcano and this was intimidating. He somewhat believed that this tree was derived from the abyss.

    But, to ignore such a valiant treasure, Ai Hui did not want to resign to his fate.

    He thought repeatedly, "How long will it take to devour the entire ckfish Mouth Volcano?""

    Mister Dou sighed, "It will not exceed three years."

    Ss, everyone exhaled a breath of cold air.

    The amount of fire elemental energy the five elemental pools absorbed annually was not even significant aspared to the entire ckfish Mouth Volcano. Let alone three years, even if it¡¯s thirty years, one percent of the energy might not even be consumed. Nowadays, the amount of fire elemental energy consumed by Central Pine Valley was about the size of two Hellfire Pagoda Cannons. But even so, the amount of fire elemental energy consumed was considered negligible to the entire ckfish Mouth Volcano.

    From such an analogy, everyone then understood that the Northern Underground King Tree was a terrifying existence.

    Even a fussy person like Shi Xueman had a sudden urge to do something. Being able to absorb such a huge amount of fire elemental energy proved how strong the Northern Underworld King Tree was.

    After the Northern Underworld King Tree absorbed the entire ckfish Mouth Volcano, to what extent would it grow to? To what extent would it strengthen to? Even with the simplest imagination, a normal master would definitely not be its match. Moreover, it was the Northern Underworld King Tree absorbing the fire elemental energy. It was already seen as a treasure in the Cultivation Era, so how mysterious could it be?

    Everyone¡¯s breathing started to get heavy.

    Three yearster, they would be able to harvest a treasure tree which could possibly counter a Grandmaster. Nobody could resist such a temptation.

    On the contrary, Ai Hui started to calm down. "It is not easy to dominate such a powerful treasure. We should not fill its stomach now, as when the timees it might backstab us. Then the joke will be on us."

    The others came to a sudden realization and vigntly looked at Mister Dou. As Mister Dou was still a captive, he was not able to acquire everyone¡¯s trust. A few of the quick-witted fellows must have thought that this was one of blind Mister Dou¡¯s plots.

    Could this be a sugared pill with poison?

    Mister Dou was just as calm and there was no change in his voice, "Definitely. I know my own limits, and therefore I do not dare to pursue this. I am unsure of what changes will ur when the Northern Underground King Tree grows to that degree. But there is one point which I can guarantee. Since the Cultivation Era, these types of treasures have only recognized their owners.

    Many people revealed their disappointment. Mister Dou¡¯s words were very logical, but their problem went back to square one.

    Supposing he had the strength of a Grandmaster, why would he still require the Northern Underworld King Tree? There would be no value if the full grown Northern Underworld King Tree still required the control of a Grandmaster.

    However, Ai Hui was not disappointed and his eyes shed,"Is this a gradual process?"

    Mister Dou nodded his head and replied,"Yes, but I need to warn you. You might not be able to suspend it from absorbing the fire. The tree¡¯s current strength is already enormous enough to wear myself out. If it starts to absorb fire, I can guarantee that I will be no match for it in the future. Hence, you will have to think really carefully. If there are any idents, please do not rely on me. At this old age, I only wish to enjoy my retirement and teach these kids."

    Ai Hui revealed a rare look of hesitation on his face.

 Chapter 469: Go Left, Or Go Right?

    Chapter 469: Go Left, Or Go Right?

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Having returned to the valley, Ai Hui had yet to make a firm resolution.

    Risk and opportunity coexisted. The risk was big, but so was the opportunity. It was simply too hard to make a choice. Ai Hui had to be more than cautious, especially since the strength of the Northern Underworld King Tree would affect the foundation of Central Pine Valley¡¯s survival.

    It was very unlikely for them to find anothernd with all five elements.

    Life always offered many choices and each choice was a fork in the road. Whether it was left or right, his heart harbored expectations, but thendscape ahead was a riddle.

    Fortunately, it wasn¡¯t urgent so Ai Hui had sufficient time to think things through and discuss it with everybody.

    Central Pine Valley faced more pressing issues at the moment.

    Lemon Camping Ground.

    Li Yuanliang looked at the gathered crowd within the camping ground. Some were joyful while others had a headache.

    Ever since Lemon Camping Ground became the delivery ground for snowva between Central Pine Valley and Thunder City, the number of visiting elementalists rose rapidly. The small camping ground was now twice its initial size, but still unable to amodate everyone.

    The increase in traffic brought about a huge boost in business. Everything in life was a business, but where there were many people, there were also many problems.

    Initially, Li Yuanliang had wanted to control the situation, but the elementalists who came in an endless stream quickly had him guilelessly retreating. If not for the Central Pine Valley¡¯s elementalists suppressing the crowd, Lemon Camping Ground would¡¯ve been overturned long ago.

    Central Pine Valley was aware of this situation as well, so people had been dispatched to guard the camping ground.

    On one hand, it was to ensure that the transaction went on smoothly, and on the other hand, it was to prevent the crowd from advancing toward Central Pine Valley.

    Seeing Jiang Wei, Li Yuanliang promptly went over and said with a bitter face, "Boss Jiang, what exactly did those in the Central Pine Valley say? This can¡¯t go on. The camping ground is about to explode. If these people go crazy, they will tear this ce down."

    Jiang Wei gave an apologetic look. "We did not expect this many people either. Sorry for causing such an inconvenience. Master Ai had specially instructed me topensate you all. It¡¯s just a small gesture, so I hope everyone will kindly ept."

    The elementalists behind him had already prepared the gifts.

    Joy shed across Li Yuanliang¡¯s face. Central Pine Valley was rich and imposing, yet amiable when handling matters. Really rare indeed, he thought to himself.

    He hurriedly added, "No, no, we¡¯re all neighbors, so it¡¯s no trouble at all, but your valley should make a decision soon. There are too many people hanging around this area. If things drag on, people will get restless and any slight instigation might lead to a human disaster."

    Jiang Wei cupped his hands together and bowed, his expression grave. "Thanks for the reminder, Brother Li. Don¡¯t worry, Central Pine Valley will not allow its partner to lose out. Having considered this unusual situation and to ensure the safety of Lemon Camping Ground, Master Yang will personally oversee this ce."

    He moved to the side, revealing Yang Xiaodong.

    Li Yuanliang was shocked. To him, Masters were an eminent and unapproachable existence. He hurriedly fell to his knees. "Li Yuanliang paying respects to Master Yang!"

    With a hum, Yang Xiaodong said loftily, "Get up."

    He was more than unwilling to keep watch since it meant that there wasn¡¯t going to be any elemental soup for him!

    It was exceedingly difficult for him to enter the next realm, but it was also impossible for him to drop in base level, so it could be said that he had no desires or wishes. Ever since he¡¯d tried Lou Lan¡¯s elemental energy soup, it became something he looked forward to daily.

    What a stupid broken camping ground. Let them die!

    Anger filled his stomach and seeing these noisy fellows worsened his mood.

    "Hmph!"

    His snort swept across the whole camping ground like a cold stream and silence overtook all previous mor.

    The elementalists¡¯ hair stood on end, their faces pale and minds nk.

    All elemental energy within the camping ground congealed, suffocating the area, as if there was a rope strangling their throats.

    Master!

    This word jumped into the minds of those elementalists who had regained their senses.

    Yang Xiaodong was like a proud rooster, scanning his surroundings coldly and withdrawing his might.

    A snort that could shake the whole ce. This was a Master.

    The elementalists kept quiet out of fear, but quickly, they started getting agitated.

    Fellows familiar with each other saw the excitement in one another¡¯s eyes. They admired and were inspired by Masters. A powerful figure could give everyone a sense of security in this chaotic world.

    Jiang Wei sighed a breath of relief. A Master was indeed useful.

    Seeing a Master for himself stirred something deep within Jiang Wei¡¯s heart. He couldn¡¯t help but tighten his fist. If he could advance to a higher base level, he would have more potential to unleash.

    People within Central Pine Valley had long been arguing over this issue since everyone had different opinions, and Ai Hui was having a hard time deciding.

    Everyone in the Central Pine Valley understood that they had to make an extremely pressing and crucial choice.

    It had already been four months since the Battle of Thunder City. As agreed, Central Pine Valley would sell four batches of snowva in exchange for a huge volume of resources and materials.

    The hot sales of snowva wasn¡¯tpletely smooth-sailing.

    Initially, the trade association under Qiao Meiqi kept pushing sales to fire elementalists, but quickly realized that business wasn¡¯t as good as predicted.

    There were simply too few fire elementalists and they were too poor.

    The elementalists in Beyond Avalon were mostly metal and water elementalists. They took up about 80 percent of the poption while wood elementalists took up 10 percent. Fire and earth elementalists made up thest 10 percent.

    This was because Dai Gang did not stop wood elementalists from entering Beyond Avalon and because the fire and earth elementalists¡¯ base camps, Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner, had fallen into the possession of the God Nation. The local earth and fire elementalists there had practically all turned into blood elementalists.

    Fire elementalists were the minority to begin with, but the situation was getting worse.

    Five years had passed since the fall of Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner, so fire and earth elemental materials were rare on the market. With a deficiency in resources andnds with fire and earth elemental energy, most of these elementalists were practically at a standstill in terms of their realms.

    This stagnation made their living environment harsher.

    Their situation did not improve even after entering the Wilderness. It became worse in fact. Any powerful and resourceful aristocratic family would not waste arge quantity of resources on building a fire or earth elemental city.

    The fire elemental areas in Beyond Avalon were made up of small scale towns, some established by groups of fire elementalists. These towns,cking in resources and defense, were in imminent danger. Even more fire elementalists were struggling in some of the forward camps. They had no ability to purchase expensive high-grade fire liquid like snowva.

    As a rich merchant, Qiao Meiqi was clear headed. He did not reduce the price despite poor sales. Instead, he changed his target consumers from ordinary elementalists to weaponsmiths. Weaponsmiths were only consecrated because of their abilities and might. They had a high purchasing power.

    Snowva was an effective tool for tempering weapons, so the product immediately caused an uproar in thatmunity.

    The snowva in Qiao Meiqi¡¯s hands rapidly ran out.

    However, this hot market brought about another effect.

    Qiao Meiqi vigorously marketed the product, building up the reputation of snowva. Fire elementalists who couldn¡¯t afford it knew that its production ground had to be in a fire elemental city. Only a ce with abundant fire elemental energy and high achievements could refine and produce such an item.

    For struggling fire elementalists, a city that could refine snowva was like a wisp of hope in the cold winter.

    Central Pine Valley was much stronger now, and Ai Hui and the gang had no intentions of concealing it. Its location was quickly figured out by other people.

    Many fire elementalists followed Qiao Meiqi¡¯s caravans to Lemon Camping Ground. They thought of ways to enter Central Pine Valley, but luckily, there were guards stationed at the camping ground so they hurriedly went back to report the situation.

    Central Pine Valley then sent out elementalists to maintain order in the camping ground.

    The fire elementalists pleaded. They were willing to pay any price in exchange for a ce to live in.

    This sudden situation brought about mixed responses. Some thought that this was a good opportunity to expand the city since they would need a lot of manpower in order to do so, and they couldn¡¯t keep relying on just the few hundreds of people within the valley. Others thought differently. They believed the news that the valley contained all five elements would leak out once they let these people in.

    Central Pine Valley wasn¡¯t weak and moderately powerful forces wouldn¡¯t dare to invade. However, once the news of this preciousnd leaked, things might change.

    To those peak forces, this was an irresistible temptation.

    Many more were starting to go on punitive expeditions, and over the past four months, there had already been many battles between cities.

    Everyone was in a difficult spot.

    The situation quickly took a turn for the worse as metal elementalists started showing up in the camping ground in increasing numbers. Only after asking was it apparent that these metal elementalists arrived in hope of following the footsteps of the first ever Lightning Master.

    It was just like how Karakorum Sword League¡¯s first master swordsman had attracted a huge volume of elementalists wanting to join them.

    Ai Hui¡¯s current reputation also attracted a huge volume of metal elementalists.

    There were even more metal than fire elementalists in the camp. After all, there was a higher number of metal elementalists to begin with.

    Everyone guessed that Master Ai might construct a lightning-typebat division, so it was a rare opportunity for many.

    The sudden increase in elementalists really crammed up the camping ground. Even after two rounds of expansion, the camping ground wasn¡¯t big enough to amodate everyone.

    There were dangers in such rapid expansion so, to maintain security amid such severe circumstances, Yang Xiaodong had been sent to keep watch. Finally, the situation started to stabilize.

    People in Central Pine Valley, however, had yet to make up their minds.

    They stopped arguing since all opinions had been expressed. They were merely waiting for Ai Hui to make the final call.

    To go left or right?

    The situation outside was bing more grim, and there wasn¡¯t much time for him to ponder and hesitate.

    Two months ago, Ye Baiyi hadpleted all the preparation work to mobilize an army, and the troops had already set out.

    The scale of the army was veryrge and mighty. Ye Baiyi had reached an unprecedented standard.

    The atmosphere was extremely tense.

    .....

    The three central divisions kept control as Madam Ye represented the Elders Guild to read a speech the Great Elder had written before he passed and shared speeches by well-known people from theter generations.

    "... This is a matter of life and death. There¡¯s no choice but to unite Beyond Avalon. Big cities, small cities, men, women, aristocrats, new citizens... Those who wish to live must fight bravely. Only then can our nation be protected and the women and children be saved! The three central divisions of the Avalon of Five Elements have had a long history. They have had outstanding military service and are extremely glorious. They are our role model, the sharpest de around. Hereto, the Elders Guild has decided to prepare for war. Surveince Division, take order. Do not disobey if assigned a mission. Do not pay lip service. Judgement Division will take over if there are dissidents! All battle teams at the front line must not fear battle and must not retreat. Those who withdraw will be dealt with by the Dread Division!"

 Chapter 470: Ai Huiâ€™s Decision

    Chapter 470: Ai Hui¡¯s Decision

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    The atmosphere in Central Pine Valley was rather tense.

    It was thest day for Ai Hui to make his decision on whether or not to allow outsiders into Central Pine Valley. Everyone in Central Pine Valley was very concerned about this since it involved their future.

    Ai Hui was ruthless and crafty, cold and upassionate, but direct and efficient when it came to decision-making. He was never sloppy about it. Ever since the establishment of Central Pine Valley, everyone had already gotten used to Ai Hui¡¯s sharp and clean method of addressing and solving problems.

    The unending hesitation and doubts he currently faced were rarely seen.

    Everyone sat neatly on the floor, their faces focused. Other than the increase in their strength, the long days of training were now done ording to the rules of abat division, so they acted in unison and were as good as one.

    Mister Dou sat quietly in a corner, feeling inwardly apprehensive. Before he came, he¡¯d heard about the Central Pine Faction, but was unconcerned. There were merely a few hundred members, so what was the big deal? He only got a shock after interacting with these youngsters.

    These youngsters were diligent, assiduous, extremely disciplined, intensely passionate, hadplete trust in their partners, and trained hard despite criticism.

    Mister Dou had traveled extensively and seen all kinds of people. He¡¯d also seen many powerful figures, but none had left the same impression on him as these youngsters had.

    Plus, they were so young.

    Their abilities were changing almost everyday. Coupled with the Master-grade elemental soup that was provided daily, their intense devilish training was constantly improving and unleashing their potential.

    Many youngsters had left a deep impression on him. Duanmu Huanghun, Jiang Wei, Fatty, Sang Zhijun, Wang Xiaoshan, and so on.

    It was a blessing that the children from the hill vige would be able to grow up in such an environment.

    Ai Hui strode onto the stage with a stern expression. Without beating around the bush, he directly announced, "In 15 days, we will start epting fire and metal elementalists from the outside. I have taken two main points into consideration. First, the situation outside is bad, a big war is imminent, and we might be conscripted. We need to expand our strength as soon as possible to prepare for battle. Perhaps some of you might wonder why we have to adhere to the conscription? Skyheart City is able to assert pressure on us under the name of righteousness and justice. We won¡¯t be able to go against the three central divisions. Not only us, but any of the other settlements as well. Second, why are we all gathering in the first ce? Revenge! We must not miss the opportunity to battle the God Nation!"

    Those below sat upright and motionless, but upon hearing the word "revenge" they reflexively clenched their fists.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze was as cold as a light flickering and reflecting off a crystal. His delivery was clear. "Our train of thought is simple. First, we have to guard and strengthen ourselves from being regarded by Skyheart City as cannon fodder. Second, we have to destroy the Blood of God. These two goals can¡¯t be achieved by the mere hundreds of us here. Building our ownbat divisions is what we have to do."

    Mister Dou was full of admiration and couldn¡¯t help but see Ai Hui in a different light. A few words were all it took for him to analyze and exin the current situation. He¡¯d thought that Ai Hui was crafty, sharp, and petty-minded, but now he understood that there was a reason why Shi Xueman and the others chose to follow him.

    The others nodded. Even if they had differing opinions, they couldn¡¯t deny the logic behind Ai Hui¡¯s speech.

    "But Central Pine Valley is our foundation. If it was exposed at this time, Skyheart City would most definitely have designs on us. They would then, in the name of righteousness, ce pressure on us and we would eventually have to give it up. So, I¡¯ve decided to construct another city atop the ckfish Mouth Volcano. We only have 50 days to do so. Are you confident, Xiaoshan?"

    Ai Hui looked toward Wang Xiaoshan and others followed.

    Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s face turned red, his heart palpitating. Ai Hui had asked him in private a few days back and he¡¯d been losing sleep over this question. He only felt his body trembling uncontrobly when asked in public. It was as if there was a ball of mes igniting in his heart.

    He¡¯d never been tasked with such an important mission...

    Wang Xiaoshan tried his best to calm his surging emotions, but as he was about to say what was on his mind, all that came out was, "I... I¡¯ll try my best!"

    Ai Hui shook his head. "Do not try your best. You have to aplish it."

    Wang Xiaoshan took a deep breath, his muscles tightening. He clenched his teeth, shouting, "I can do it!"

    With these four words, the fire in his chest thrived and his veins burned. Wang Xiaoshan was indescribably excited.

    This was an unprecedented challenge!

    "Alright, I¡¯ll leave that to Xiaoshan then," Ai Hui said firmly, without the least bit of sloppiness. He directed his gaze to the rest. "We, too, have many things to attend to. There are many fire and metal elementalists in Lemon Camping Ground, so we have to select from them. We will establish twobat divisions. One of them, "Sword of Lightning" will bemanded by me. The other, "Spear of Heavy Cloud" will bemanded by Xueman. You guys will be the backbone. Be it fire or metal elementalists, you guys can do as you deem fit. Other than that, we are going to recruit a batch of fire elementalists to make up our reserves. There is plenty of fire elemental energy here, so we shouldn¡¯t waste it."

    The audience was getting excited.

    Team expansion meant that they would be able to lead troops. They were all youngsters who hoped to assume personal responsibilities.

    Ai Hui continued in a deep voice, "As for how many we should take in and how we should conduct the selection process, you guys can discuss it with Xueman. Take note that all selection must bepleted within 15 days! That leaves us with little time left."

    Shi Xueman appeared cool, but her heart was pounding. With regard to Ye Baiyi¡¯s army pressing forward, she was most concerned about her father. Now that she could lead a battle team of her own and move to the front line to fight alongside her father, the desire forbat burned intensely.

    She stood up and saluted. "Yes!"

    Ai Hui turned his gaze toward Blind He. "Master He, is the sword finished?"

    Blind He shook his head. "I need a few more days because there are some small issues, but it won¡¯t take more than 15 days."

    "Good." Ai Hui addressed Zhao Boan directly, "Boan, we can release more snowva to stock up on our resources."

    Zhao Boan replied immediately, "Yes!"

    Ai Hui looked around and added in a low voice, "The war is going to happen some time soon. From now until the day it starts, time is precious and essential. Please train hard and try your best to stay alive. Get to work!"

    Everyone immediately dispersed and Central Pine Valley started bustling with activity.

    .....

    Ai Hui and Mister Dou arrived at ckfish Mouth Volcano.

    Mister Dou asked all of a sudden, "Are you sure about this?"

    "Yes, I am." Ai Hui stood at the mouth of the volcano, watching the roilingva. He added, "Time waits for no man. Let¡¯s discuss more when this is done and leave future affairs for the future."

    With Ye Baiyi¡¯s army pressing forward, a major war was inevitable. It was a long awaited war, and if they lost, all of the Silver Mist Sea and Cloud Palette Vige would fall into the Blood of God¡¯s domain.

    Beyond Avalon would be directly exposed before the Blood of God. Doors would be opened, and they would be driven further into the Wilderness like stray dogs.

    This was an uneptable oue in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    Yet, no matter what, their current situation was much better than before. In the past, they had no Masters at all, but now they had four, and everybody¡¯s abilities had improved drastically. Initially, he¡¯d even thought of selling Central Pine Valley to fetch a good price, but the monthly sales of snowva were bringing them a significant supply of resources.

    Aspared to the Blood of God, they were still very weak, but when it came to small scale, local battles, they weren¡¯t at all helpless.

    Thinking about being able to wage war against the Blood of God, Ai Hui felt his blood race.

    This was his and everyone¡¯s long cherished wish.

    The fire elemental energy in the volcano could only sustain the Northern Underworld Tree for three years? Who could care so much at this time? It was hard to say for sure that the valley would still be around at that time.

    Mister Dou asked, "Where do we nt it?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes flickered. "Wait a minute."

    With his eyes closed he held onto the Wintry Jade de and sensed the surrounding elemental energy waves. The waves were like umted, disordered ripples, but Ai Hui remained exceptionally calm as he sieved through these chaotic signals.

    Time passed and Ai Hui stood as still as a statue.

    Mister Dou sized Ai Hui up out of interest. There were no elemental energy waves around Ai Hui, but from his perception they seemed to be indistinct.

    Interesting.

    Ai Hui opened his eyes suddenly, the light in them flickering. He flew upward in a swift motion andnded on a rock.

    "Here!"

    The rock was about the size of a millstone and had a protruding section that extended into theva.

    Mister Dou sensed the nearby rocks, but felt nothing special. He asked doubtfully, "You sure?"

    Ai Hui answered certainly, "Here."

    "All right then."

    Without asking further, Mister Dou felt rather interested instead. Ai Hui was the only pupil of Wang Shouchuan. Could it be that there was a particr reason behind this choice?¡¯

    He strolled toward that rock.

    Disregarding disabilities, as long as one rose to be a Master, solutions could be found. While Mister Dou had no regards for worldly things, his sense of awareness was as good as his sight. He could clearly assess the surrounding environment.

    Mister Dou took a deep breath, his elemental energy surging. He had a grave expression on his face as he muttered to himself. Suddenly, the Northern Underworld King Tree in his hand was shrouded by a sheet of darkness.

    He stuck the staff into theva with a quick and sharp motion.

    The staff shook as an invisible energy wave was released, as if there was an invisible palm ttening out the wholevake.The surging and rollingva became as level as a mirror as it emitted bright red light.

    Oblique light pirs shot out from the tke surface, unceasingly gathering and collecting on the staff.

    The light ray at the mouth of the mountain dimmed instantly before a sheet of ck took over and illuminated the oblique light pirs.

    Mister Dou¡¯s jaw dropped as he could feel changes urring, but wasn¡¯t able to identify them. Even the familiar staff produced an unfamiliar energy.

    He was in shock.

    The red light enveloped the staff, causing its leaves to grow continuously. The surrounding darkness became more profound as well.

    Ai Hui fixed his eyes on the ceaselessly sprouting Northern Underworld King Tree as it swallowed the mes nonstop like a huge whale.

    Countless strands of fire elemental energy transformed into mes that were being swallowed up by the staff.

    Although the future was unknown, there was no fear.

    "Go," Ai Hui said, before rising up through of the darkness and out of the mouth of the volcano.

 Chapter 471: Flames

    Chapter 471: mes

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    A boiling cauldron of voices could be heard within Lemon Camping Ground, as if people were celebrating a festival.

    Gu Xuan took in the surrounding environment and was rather shocked to see the excitement and joy in people¡¯s faces. He carried a sword, his hair worn up in a bun which was kept in ce with a wooden hairpin. His sparse stubble was well trimmed and stiff, making him look more robust.

    He¡¯d already found a few swordsmen and even more metal elementalists. The ce was bustling with activity.

    Lemon Camping Ground was overcrowded, yet orderly, and no one caused any problems. There had been a few troublemakers two days back who were killed by Master Yang on the spot. Their corpses were thrown outside the camp.

    Gu Xuan wasn¡¯t used to to this. The aura of a Master swept across the camping ground unceasingly, and every time this happened, the keen and perceptive Gu Xuan would automatically grab hold of his sword hilt.

    The pressure a Master exerted was really terrifying.

    Gu Xuan was full of anticipation.

    He¡¯d entered the Third Elemental Realm two years ago, but had been unable to reach the doorstep of the level of Master. In order to seek out opportunities to be a Master, he went deep within the Wilderness and tried finding solutions through battling.

    He gained more and more battle experience and his techniques underwent some tempering. However, he still had no clue in regards to his Path of Master.

    He then came over here upon bumping into a group of elementalists who were headed for Central Pine Valley. Everyone was feeling very excited over the first ever Lightning Master, since they¡¯d never seen the power of the lightning.

    Different from other elementalists, Gu Xuan wasn¡¯t only curious about the lightning, but also about Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship. His curiosity stemmed from the battle with Han Li.

    Gu Xuan had seen Han Li¡¯s admirable swordsmanship. In two years, Han Li emerged as the most talented and outstanding genius within Karakorum Sword League, leaving Gu Xuan feeling ashamed and inferior.

    Yet, Han Li had been defeated by Ai Hui¡¯s sword.

    Upon hearing this news, the whole audience was stunned. To have been able to defeat Han Li, how strong must¡¯ve Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship and achievements been?

    Having been unable to find his own path of swordsmanship, Gu Xuan decided to visit Ai Hui in the Central Pine Valley, but was startled by the surging crowd upon reaching Lemon Camping Ground. He did not expect there to be this many people hoping to enter Central Pine Valley.

    Since there was a Master keeping watch, Gu Xuan saw Central Pine Valley¡¯s potential in a new light.

    Just before, Shi Xueman had brought a group of people to the camping ground, which caused amotion. Many were excited as they¡¯d guessed what was going on.

    Indeed, Shi Xueman announced the valley¡¯s decision to recruit new members for herbat division.

    "Spear of Heavy Cloud"?

    No one cared about the name. They raised their heads and looked around, waiting for Shi Xueman to ry the details.

    Shi Xueman had a high position in the valley. She was a Master and was born into an aristocratic family, so in terms of abilities and family history, she was being favored wholeheartedly. Even if those people weren¡¯t able to learn any lightning techniques, they would be more than d to be able to follow Miss Shi.

    Four earth elementalists stepped forward to repair the fire reservoir. Shi Xueman then poured in a whole bottle of snowva.

    Her act pained many in the audience. One bottle was really expensive!

    The sale of snowva was going very well and at a high price, facts known to all fire elementalists. This high-grade fire liquid was a valuable item that most fire elementalists couldn¡¯t afford, so many people started to feel that Central Pine Valley was rich and imposing. In this chaotic world, that meant more resources, better equipment and a higher rate of survival.

    Excitement was evident in people¡¯s faces and some were already eager to give it a try.

    Those fire elementalists with no roof over their heads were even more fired up. It was obvious that this fire reservoir was prepared specially for fire elementalists.

    Sang Zijun, who was standing beside Shi Xueman, stood forward and announced, "Fire elementalists able to stay in the fire reservoir for an hour will pass the test."

    The faces of many fire elementalists changed slightly. The fire elemental energy in the fire reservoir was exceptionally thick and no different fromva. It was a major challenge even for fire elementalists.

    Gu Xuan was guessing to himself the meaning behind this test.

    The congealed air surrounding Shi Xueman was sufficient to shock Gu Xuan, who was observing from afar. He knew that she was already a Master, but had thought that she¡¯d just been promoted. Experienced elementalists could testify that a new Master¡¯s realm needed time to stabilize.

    Yet, Shi Xueman¡¯s breath was concentrated and fixed. It was steady and solid, not at all unstable.

    There was no sign indicating that she¡¯d just been promoted to the level of Master.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s perception of the Central Pine Valley¡¯s abilities rose a notch once again. A new Masters¡¯ abilities andbat strength were unstable. They required time to settle down and adapt.

    He did not know how Shi Xueman did it, but it was clear that her abilities far exceeded those of ordinary Masters.

    The fire reservoir was huge and could amodate fifty elementalists.

    Fifty fire elementalists stayed in the fire reservoir, as if soaking in a bath. It was a strangely pleasing sight but no oneughed. The dense fire elemental energy abraded the elementalists¡¯ bodies, turning their faces bright red.

    Weaker fire elementalists started to open their mouths to breathe. Their burning hot breaths were mixed with wisps of mes.

    Gu Xuan thought about snowva. Fire elemental energy must be abundant in the valley, to the point where they were able to use such aggressive methods to train. This was definitely a cruel practice, but it was also definitely effective and could increase one¡¯s abilities within a short period of time.

    Many of the observing fire elementalists standing around the fire reservoir had the same realization and were getting very excited.

    That¡¯s right, excited.

    Fire elementalists did not mind if training was cruel. They were only concerned about its effectiveness in improving their abilities. They were without a home and had been at a standstill in terms of base level, so their yearning for proper training far exceeded that of other elementalists.

    In this chaotic world, there was no time for you to train at your own pace. Those who weren¡¯t able to progress quickly enough would be the food of dire beasts or corpses lying on the battlefield.

    What were cruel trainings methodspared to death?

    They had stagnant base levels and abilities, and could only watch as other metal and water elementalists of simr abilities improved and left them behind. They had no chance to catch up at all.

    It had been their unswerving determination that got them through five whole years of despair.

    Now that a chance presented itself in front of them, who would mind, no matter how cruel?

    Pain could be seen in the participating fire elementalists¡¯ faces but no one gave up. They knew that this was a rare opportunity and that no second chance would be given once they stepped out of the fire reservoir.

    They did not want to fall back into that familiar despair.

    Hu!

    A wisp of me rose from a fire elementalist¡¯s head and his hair was gone in an instant. His face was fierce looking, his veins bursting open. Each facial muscle was trembling as bean sized sweat beads surfaced and immediately evaporated, leaving only white salt. He opened his mouth wide but no howl or wailing could be heard.

    He was afraid that making noise would mean disqualification.

    mes started igniting along his cheeks, his skin spreading open like butter and revealing fresh, red flesh. The mes extended down his neck and shoulders as the intense pain made his body shake violently, nibbling away at his bones.

    No noise made.

    He would rather turn into bones amid those mes than return to that despair.

    The mes spread and gnawed at his shoulders, arms and fingertips. His body started to struggle less as that sinister, devilish face and those raging eyes gradually became hollow.

    Silence filled the camping ground.

    The metal elementalists were overwhelmed with shock and the fire elementalists¡¯ cheeks were streaming with tears.

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun were moved. They, too, had been shocked, but the person who the most affected was Fatty.

    Fatty stared nkly at the fire reservoir as a third of those fire elementalists were already smoking. It had only been half an hour, so ording to their agreement these elementalists had failed.

    It was impossible for them tost an hour.

    Even if they did persevere, they would ultimately turn into scattered ashes and smoke. They simply wouldn¡¯t survive.

    Yet, no one moved.

    Rib bones of the fire elementalist, who was in the worst situation, could be seen burning amid the mes. He was barely conscious and his eyes started to cken and roll up.

    "Take him out and give him immediate treatment."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s voice broke the silence. She took a deep breath, calming the agitation within her heart. The unfolding scene had a huge impact on her.

    The elementalists beside her hurriedly pulled this elementalist out and extinguished the mes on his body. Lou Lan quickly went forward to treat him.

    The fire elementalisty motionless, his eyes unfocused.

    Shi Xueman dered seriously, "You¡¯re recruited."

    The pupils in his empty eyes moved slightly, his breath pausing for a moment before regaining stability.

    Lou Lan said quickly, "He passed out."

    "Curable?"

    "Yes, Xueman."

    A reservoir full of fire elementalists, a reservoir full of mes. They were mes that rose from the despairing abyss, over high mountains and toward the horizon, waiting for the sun to rise.

    They were mes of vitality. mes that yearned for dignity.

    No one noticed Ai Hui standing atop a newly constructed tower in another corner of the camping ground. He was observing the situation from afar.

    After a long while he jumped down and continued working, all without speaking a word.

    Till now, his Sword of Lightning was still an empty shell. He was the only member and the division leader.

    It could be inferred from its name that thisbat division had two unique features, lightning and swordsman. Jiang Wei and gang were very strong and had high tactic aplishments. It would be much easier for Ai Hui to form abat division with their help.

    After careful deliberations, Ai Hui decided to start from ground zero because he had a bold idea.

    Influenced by Karakorum Sword League to continue improving themselves, swordsmen had generally grown stronger. Nevertheless, the majority of good swordsmen had joined Sky Edge Division.

    Till now, the new Sky Edge Division had yet to prove their abilities. In other words, the swordsmen had yet to prove their value.

    Ai Hui found it hard to recruit capable and outstanding swordsmen. He had to nurture them from scratch.

    That meant that he was very short on time.

    Producing abat division with significantbat strength within such a short period of time was a challenging task.

    Ai Hui had some ideas, which he would have to test in order to assess their uracy.

    He was in a camp Wang Xiaoshan had built when they first arrived at Lemon Camping Ground. The surrounding walls blocked off the sunlight from outside so no one knew that there were towers, with grass swords inserted, sitting within those walls. The number of towers was increasing too.

    The towers were built in picturesque disorder, suggesting a pattern. Ai Hui¡¯s quiet figure shuttled back and forth, within the walls, without stopping.

 Chapter 472: Guest

    Chapter 472: Guest

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Before Ai Hui could finish his sword tower, an emissary from the Gong Residence appeared at Lemon Camping Ground.

    He was about fifty years old and had kind brows. He was always smiling and his skin was well maintained. It was obvious that he had been living like a prince for a long time as there was a natural air of nobleness surrounding him.

    The housekeeper, Mister Wang, spoke very slowly and in a harmonious tone. It was pleasant listening to him.

    "... My master heard about this and the family was rejoicing over it. Old Madam cried a lot too and was traumatized by it. She said that luckily Master Ai was around, or else it would have been toote to regret if a serious mistake was made. Master Ai¡¯s kindness will not be forgotten. Master Ai¡¯s chosen his path and my residence is toote in congratting him. It¡¯s a great disrespect, but things had been dyed over that side. Master and Madam are still brooding over the incident and unable to justify it. Now the things with that side have been settled, Master Ai can get an exnation and the residence will be able to return his kindness..."

    A whole load team of gifts followed. There were many of them and they weighed a lot. Those present were left speechless.

    Just the list alone was a long scroll.

    Ai Hui nced over the list and was bbergasted. The majority of the items on that list were resources rted to battling or materials that could be used in the workshop. It seemed that the Gong Residence had been watching them and knew what resources they needed.

    He kept the gift list, a smile appearing on his face. "How kind of your residence! Please send my greetings to Master and Madam Gong!"

    Housekeeper Wang sighed a breath of relief upon seeing Ai Hui¡¯s straightforward eptance of the gifts, his smile widening. "Do not worry about the Assembly of Patriarchs. Everything has been taken care of cleanly."

    Ai Hui then realized that "that side" referred to the Assembly of Patriarchs. He asked out of curiosity, "Oh, how did you guys do it?"

    Housekeeper Wang replied smilingly, "The Assembly of Patriarchs lost two Patriarchs and one is heavily injured. Five divisions were torn down so they had to get someone to ry a message and mediate."

    Ai Hui shivered inwardly. The Gong Residence was really powerful. He asked, "But what about the two Patriarchs from before?"

    Housekeeper Wang shook his head. "No, I heard that the two of them had been severely injured by you. The mayor wanted the other party to hand them over, but the Assembly of Patriarchs hoped to use other means topensate. Sensing their sincerity the mayor agreed, albeit reluctantly."

    Ai Hui felt an indescribable sense of relief knowing that they weren¡¯t the two Patriarchs from before. Although he¡¯d only interacted with Jiu Gui once, he truly did not wish to hear news of his death.

    Seeing Jiu Gui reminded him of the deceased Hua Kui.

    Ai Hui did not ask what the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯s sincerity meant, but he figured they must have offered a sufficient price, or the Gong Residence would never agree to a settlement.

    This was also Ai Hui¡¯s first time experiencing what the deep foundation of an aristocratic family signified.

    Having been inside, Ai Hui knew how influential the Assembly of Patriarchs was. It was a power not to be trifled with currently. If not for the fact that the Assembly of Patriarchs was after his snowva, Ai Hui would not provoke them. But for the Assembly of Patriarchs to be tamed by the Gong Residence, thetter must be even more imposing.

    Ai Hui was beyond d that there were no conflicting interests between the Gong Residence and himself.

    The Gong Residence probably thought the same, hence the generous gifts.

    Housekeeper Wang¡¯s attitude validated his guess. Especially upon hearing that Shi Xueman was going to establish her ownbat division, he offered a batch of additional resources on the spot. From this, it could be inferred that Housekeeper Wang had significant power of speech back in the residence, since he was able to make decisions on his own.

    Ai Hui asked casually, "How¡¯s the situation in the Shi family? It¡¯s been a long time since Xueman went back."

    He felt it slightly strange that the Gong Residence sent supplies immediately upon hearing that Shi Xueman was going to start abat division, when Iron Lady¡¯s own family, also an influential family, appeared unconcerned about her ever since she¡¯d joined Central Pine Faction.

    Housekeeper Wang stopped himself before any word escaped his lips.

    Ai Hui sensed the change in his expression and pressed, "What¡¯s the problem?"

    Housekeeper Wang looked to the sides before saying in a lowered voice, "Please tell Miss Xueman not to go home, no matter what, for the time being."

    Ai Hui was jolted. It seemed that something bad really happened to Iron Lady¡¯s family. He asked softly, "What¡¯s the matter?"

    Housekeeper Wang only shook his head.

    Seeing that, Ai Hui did not press him for an answer but kept that in mind. He would get someone to investigate as soon as possible. Ai Hui wasn¡¯t too worried, since Iron Lady was now a Master who had power of speech no matter where she went. Not many could force her into doing things against her will.

    Plus, the gang had her back.

    Housekeeper Wang was very knowledgeable and tactful. Money and power helped in any upation. He spoke wittily, making people feel refreshed and not the least bit tired. More importantly, he was very generous and said the line many a times, "Oh, my residence has a solution. We¡¯ll send it over in a few days¡¯ time."

    Might cannot be bent. Riches and honor must be feared.

    Ai Hui loved chatting with these rich people. Time is precious? Not at all! No time? Time was like water in a sponge, definitely there when squeezed!

    Come,e. Come chat with me. Hit me with your money!

    Both host and guest were joyful and started calling each other brother in the blink of an eye.

    Ai Hui had wanted to gain more tangible benefits from Housekeeper Wang, but soon realized that he had fast and abundant channels for obtaining news. No matter what he said, Housekeeper Wang could provide insights he wasn¡¯t already aware of.

    For example, the front line was having a confrontation, Sky Edge and Infantry Divisions were already waiting to take action and that they were going to assist North Sea Division on the front line. Also, resources everywhere had risen over seventy percent in price, and the three central divisions had many different ideas.

    Ai Hui listened with keen interest. These insider pieces of news were things he wouldn¡¯t be able to get elsewhere.

    Housekeeper Wang asked suddenly, "My boy, when do you think the big war will start?"

    Ai Hui wrinkled his brows, the smile on his face fading. His mind became exceptionally calm as he answered, "When Master An Muda dies."

    Ai Hui realized what he¡¯d said only after he said it.

    Housekeeper Wang was shaken. No matter how he tried to conceal it, he wasn¡¯t able to hide that sudden change in his emotions.

    .....

    Assembly of Patriarchs.

    Autumn Watery on the bed unconscious. Her face was pale and bloodless, her bare skin withered and cracked. She was like a dried up water bed that had been exposed to the Sun for a long period of time. Her former charm and beauty was no longer visible.

    "Still not awake?"

    The man who spoke was about twenty-five or twenty-six years old. He was handsome looking and had a small cinnabar on his forehead. It was exceptionally beautiful. His face was wless and even fairer than ady¡¯s skin. His nose bridge was tall and straight, his gaze deep and blurred. His delicate and fine eyebrows would knit once in awhile, subconsciously revealing his state of distress.

    He had a very strange name ¨C Hong Rongyan.

    [Hong Rongyan - literally meaning ¡®Redplexion¡¯.]

    Even within the Assembly of Patriarchs, few had heard of this name. He seldom showed himself, but Jiu Gui dared not show any disrespect before him.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯s second Patriarch, Hong Rongyan.

    Worry shed across Jiu Gui¡¯s face. "No, her body is about to stop operating. I had to feed her fusion elixir to keep her breathing till now."

    Fusion elixir was a life sustaining elixir that was troublesome and expensive to refine so only the Assembly of Patriarchs would produce and allocate it. It required all five types of elemental energy and the refining work process was extremelyplex. Any negligence would waste all previous efforts.

    Fusion elixir contained pure fusion elemental energy. For everyone in the Assembly of Patriarchs, their lives could continue as long as they still had theirst breath.

    If not for the desperate situation Autumn Water had fallen into, Jiu Gui wouldn¡¯t have been able to part with his fusion elixir.

    Worry was still evident in Hong Rongyan¡¯s face. His voice sounded pleasant, carrying an irresistible charm and faint grief. "The might of lightning really is domineering. This is also the predestined fate of Autumn Water. It¡¯s too dangerous to entrust the mental state to foreign objects. Any slight incautiousness and you¡¯ll be devoured."

    "Yeah." Jiu Gui sighed. "But it¡¯s her path."

    Every Master had a different path. Some had grand, mainstream paths while others had a moreteral and unorthodox path. Thetter group was unable to envy the former.

    Everyone was different. So were their paths.

    Jiu Gui¡¯s [Sky Pce Possession Technique] was also extremely dangerous. The moment he lost control, the beast within the alcohol would turn against its master and take over, causing him to lose all awareness and reason, and be a beast in the form of a human.

    Hong Rongyan sighed. There was no answer to this question. He asked, changing the topic, "Did Mister Shao agree?"

    "No!" Jiu Gui seemed slightly angry. "That old fellow is stubborn and refuses to agree. If not for his frail body I would¡¯ve dealt with him!"

    Of course Jiu Gui was furious. With Autumn Water being in this state, they needed to remake a human puppet. It was said that Mister Shao was an outstanding earth elementalist and was an expert at refining sand puppets. Jiu Gui requested for his help, but did not expect to get rejected so directly.

    He¡¯d even conducted special investigations. It was unknown when Mister Shao had entered the Assembly of Patriarchs, but he¡¯d never been seen refining a sand puppet. If he wasn¡¯t reading, he would be sitting around. He¡¯d never made any contributions to the Assembly of Patriarchs.

    What was more strange was the fact that there were guards watching over such an idler, although no one bothered him.

    Jiu Gui was very clear that the Assembly of Patriarchs treated people who made no contributions heartlessly. Those unable to disy their worth would live terribly within the Assembly of Patriarchs. As for respecting the wise and so on, these were things that did not apply there.

    There had been arrogant craftsmen who were quickly put in order and made docile, contributing whatever they could.

    This old man, however, lived a good life so Jiu Gui found it strange.

    Hong Rongyan shook his head. "Don¡¯t be disrespectful."

    Although his tone was mild, Jiu Gui was apprehensive. "Could it be that this Mister Shao is a big figure?"

    Hong Rongyan shook his head without answering. "Just ry the orders."

    Jiu Gui felt somewhat relieved. Seeing that the fellow was old and weak, he had not attacked Mister Shao. Something was weird, definitely. He hurriedly answered, "Yes."

    "I¡¯ll go visit him."

    With that, Hong Rongyan turned around and left.

 Chapter 473: Waiting

    Chapter 473: Waiting

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The warm sunlight was sprinkled over the garden.

    The old many on the rattan chair, basking in the sun. There was a small tea table at the side and on it was a teapot and a teacup. With his eyes closed, the old man could hear footsteps approaching. "I¡¯ve already said that I don¡¯t know how to make a human puppet. If it¡¯s a sand puppet I can make do. You¡¯re finding the wrong person."

    Hong Rongyan stopped in his tracks as a respectful look filled his handsome face. "Master Shao!"

    It was as if the old man had not heard him.

    Hong Rongyan shook his head. "No, it should be Emperor Shao. How can there be Beast Venom Temple if the God Puppet Pce is still around? The Nangong Wulian would still have to address you as Teacher."

    The old man replied dully, "I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about."

    "There had been little news about God Puppet Pce. Much time has passed but we still managed to track your identity." Hong Rongyan responded faintly, mild distress evident in his eyes. He added sincerely, "Although we used to be enemies, this is no longer the case now, since you left Blood of God a long time ago. You¡¯ve came to us not just to bask in the sun I suppose."

    He stood beside the old man like an enveloping shadow that blocked off the sunlight.

    The old man then opened his eyes. "I want you guys to find a person for me."

    "Rted to Blood of God?"

    "No. To you guys."

    Hong Rongyan was rather surprised but quickly regained hisposure. "We will find the person."

    Master Shao was calm too. "Bring that littledy over."

    Hong Rongyan knew he was talking about Autumn Water.

    Autumn Water was quickly sent over and Jiu Gui looked at the old man strangely. He did not know how Sir Hong Rongyan was able to convince this stubborn old fellow. He was full of curiosity toward the old man. In the Assembly of Patriarchs, less than five members were able to receive such respectful treatment from Sir Hong Rongyan.

    The old man looked at the withered girl and shook his head. "She¡¯s strayed from the path."

    Hong Rongyan said, "Please borate, Master Shao."

    Master Shao? It was the first time Jiu Gui had heard of the old man¡¯s surname. He thought it over but no familiar names came to mind. There wasn¡¯t any Shao among the reputable Masters.

    Master Shao did not reveal much, but looked at Jiu Gui instead. "Go dig some soil."

    Jiu Gui was stunned, but since master Hong was just beside him, he dared not act up. Well-behaved, he asked, "What kind?"

    "Any."

    Jiu Gui fell into a daze. Any? He was burning with rage. This old man did not take human lives seriously!

    "Go."

    Hong Rongyan¡¯s one word fell onto Jiu Gui¡¯s ears like a bucket of ice cold water onto his head, cooling him down immediately.

    With master Hong Rongyan around, it wasn¡¯t his turn to unleash his temper.

    Since Master Hong said so, Jiu Gui immediately suppressed all thoughts, went over to a corner outside the garden and started digging a pot of soil guilelessly before returning.

    The old man picked up the teapot on the table and poured its contents onto the soil.

    Master Shao grabbed a lump of wet soil and pinched it for a little while. A rough, human-shaped mud puppet appeared in his hands.

    Jiu Gui was engrossed in it all. He wanted to see how this old man would save Autumn Water. When he saw the human-shaped mud puppet, he still felt somewhat appalled. It was the ugliest and crudest figure he¡¯d ever seen. He could only make out its head, torso and limbs. There was no face, no palms and no other details.

    Master Shao drew across Autumn Water¡¯s forehead with his fingernail and dark red, fresh blood oozed out from her already cracked and dried up skin.

    He then ced the palm sized, human-shaped mud puppet on her forehead.

    The dark red, fresh blood seeped into the mini mud puppet, giving it a thread of vitality and a liveliness.

    Removing his palm, Master Shao told them, "She won¡¯t die."

    Hong Rongyan had a serious expression on his face. "We will find the person you need."

    Master Shao did not look happy at all. Instead, he appeared more lonely and deste. Only a faint glimmer lit up deep within his eyes like a ray of light emerging from the horizon at dawn.

    .....

    The boundary line between Yellow Sand Corner and Silver Mist Sea.

    The sun hung high above the sand dunes, casting a deep shadow from the back. Ye Baiyi made his way toward the dunes, leaving footprints on the ground.

    He was alone as the guards were being left at the bottom of the hill. He wasn¡¯t moving quickly and did not utilize any power. He was just like an ordinary person, effortfully trying to climb his way up. He even used his hands at times.

    Seen from afar, he was as tiny as an ant.

    The guards at the foot of the mountain were like a bunch of quiet statues. Their expressions were solemn and motionless.

    Ye Baiyi stepped on the soft, yellow sand while sighing inwardly. The earth elemental energy in the sand was much weaker than before. There was even a huge production of earth elemental materials over here. These earth elemental materials were sold to Jadeite Forest in exchange for resources God Nation required.

    But even the amount of produce was decreasing now.

    The only thing that hadn¡¯t changed was thendscape of Yellow Sand Corner. Sandstorms, hiding the sky and covering the earth, blew all year round. This was something Blood of God¡¯s regime did not change.

    The number of organisms in Yellow Sand Corner were very small, so there was little chance for the blood poison to unleash its power.

    This was also why God Nation was lusting over Silver Mist Sea and Cloud Palette Vige.

    Aspared to the barrennds of Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner, Silver Mist Sea and Cloud Palette Vige had much lusher vegetation, extremely suitable for growing blood trees.

    Jade fruits had be the most important produce of God Nation, but they were only produced once every four years. God Nation needed much more jade fruits and a vaster, more fertile expanse of soil in order to grow more blood trees.

    But Elders Guild had no intention on giving up Silver Mist Sea and Cloud Palette Vige this easily.

    He finally reached the top of the sand dune. The sunlight falling into his eyes made him lose focus for a bit.

    He used all his limbs to stabilize himself at the top.

    He stood in his white clothes amid the loud sound of wind. He looked upward, allowing the sunlight to shine down on his whole body. At this moment, he wasn¡¯t the fearsome and awe-inspiring White-robed War God, but a young and inexperienced, youth in white clothes.

    The white-clothed youth who¡¯d went on a military campaign in the past was now here, gazing into the distance and looking forward to the future where he¡¯d be fulfilling his noble aspirations.

    Looking at the magnificent mountain range of Silver Mist Sea at the edge of the desert, he saw the slipping away of time.

    Five God-subduing Peaks were arranged in a series above the mountain range. They formed a majestic, motionless chain.

    The sun¡¯s afterglow added a golden halo to the God-subduing Peaks¡¯ defense circle, making it flicker and shine in the sky.

    The undting mountain range beneath the God-subduing Peaks had all kinds of defensive structures, like densely packed dog teeth that followed the topography of the mountains.

    Above the God-subduing Peaks was a big sheet of clouds. It was North Sea Division¡¯s most notable defensive structure, "Cloud Castle", and thebat division¡¯s elementalists were stationed within.

    God-subduing Peaks made the core. With Cloud Castle in the sky and the concentrated defensive structure on the ground, they formed an imprable wall, the Wall of North Sea, that stretched horizontally across 16 kilometers.

    Ever since the North Sea Division started entering battles, it became extremely difficult for God Nation to attack. The defensive line that was initially deep within Silver Mist Sea had been forcibly pushed back to the boundary line.

    Relying on the mountain¡¯s topography and borrowing the formidablebat force of God-subduing Peaks and the powerful defensive force of Cloud Castle, North Sea Division constructed its famous Wall of North Sea. Ever since it was built, countless blood elementalists had had their heads smashed and broken.

    And North Sea Division continued fortifying and strengthening this wall. God Nation even believed that it was indestructible.

    Ye Baiyi knew what kind of opponent he was facing.

    Shi Beihai used to be preposterous when he was young, but underwent a huge temperament changeter on. He was strongly determined to seed and quickly became the division leader of North Sea Division. Aspared to Ye Baiyi¡¯s record of being the youngest division leader, Shi Beihai assumed his post muchter in life.

    Shi Beihai was the enemy Ye Baiyi least wanted to meet. Shi Beihai was extremely tenacious and tricky to deal with.

    The Holy Emperor saw this too and was prepared to get rid of him at all costs.

    Wouldn¡¯t there be any reinforcement?

    Ye Beiyi found it unlikely. As long as Madam Ye was still rational, she wouldn¡¯t destroy the wall. Plus, Ye Baiyi had already received the news that Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division had assembled and were getting ready to provide Shi Beihai with support.

    Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division were under Madam Ye¡¯s personalmand so it was evident that she regarded Shi Beihai as very important.

    Ye Baiyi figured that there might be news he was unaware of.

    But no matter what, he couldn¡¯t go against the Holy Emperor¡¯s orders. Since the Holy Emperor said to do it at all costs, he would do it at all costs.

    Opposite him, above the God-subduing Peaks, someone was observing Ye Baiyi from afar as well.

    "What a pity."

    Shi Beihai shook his head while sighing. His shoulders were broad, his build tall and sturdy. His general facial features were simr to those of Shi Xueman, except that time had given him experience and stability. Shi Xueman, on the other hand, had a more heroic spirit, just as how a newborn calf was unafraid of the tiger.

    Vice division leader, Lu Manman, stood beside Shi Beihai. As opposed to his name, he spoke very quickly, like beans crackling and rattling. "It¡¯s not a pity. Ye Baiyi is rich now, unlike us. We¡¯re miserable and wretched. Look, this army is magnificent and we¡¯re hiding far behind in the Wilderness. At this critical time, instead of sending the three central divisions to assist us, they sent us two rookiebat divisions. I would think it¡¯s better for us to go over to Blood of God. It¡¯s better than allowing that sissy Ye Baiyi to treat us this way..."

    He was a head taller than Shi Beihai, but his whole body was thin and weak like a bamboo. He had high cheekbones and a pair of deep set eyes. His eyeballs moved constantly as he spoke, making him seem entric and quick-witted.

    "Enough, Manman. Will you die if you speak less?" Qi Xiuyuan asked in frustration.

    Unlike otherbat divisions, there were two vice division leader positions within North Sea Division. One seat was taken by Helian Fei¡¯er while the other was taken in turns by Lu Manman and Qi Xiuyuan. This

    Qi Xiuyuan looked like a frail schr without the strength to even truss a chicken, but those who underestimated him often found themselves on the losing end.

    "Yes I¡¯ll die!" Lu Manman spoke confidently. "I¡¯ll feel more stupid and cowardly for dying from holding in my words aspared to dying in Ye Baiyi¡¯s hands. We¡¯re all going to die soon anyway. Look at their army. It¡¯s much bigger than ours! Since death is imminent, we must die brave and heroic so future generations can say that Lu Manman and Qi Xiuyuan died from..."

    Qi Xiuyuan rolled his eyes. "Die alone if you want to, don¡¯t drag me down."

    Shi Beihai turned around to interrupt them. "You guys done with work?"

    "Almost."

    "No."

    With an "Oh", Shi Beihai added, "Double the volume."

    "No, Boss. We¡¯re dying! Ye Baiyi¡¯s army is pressing in and you want us to double the workload, we will die."

    "Get lost, why are you pulling me again? Please don¡¯t be like this, Boss..."

    Shi Beihai asked coldly, "Could it be that you guys have other means of survival?"

    Both answered in unison, "Yes!"

    Shi Beihai was rather astonished. "Oh, what is it?"

    "Surrendering!"

    "Retreating!"

    Shi Beihai¡¯s cheeks twitched. "You guys can die."

    Both had already fled the scene.

    Having seen it, Helian Fei¡¯er walked over whileughing involuntarily. Reaching Shi Beihai¡¯s side she said, "Don¡¯t be too impatient, Boss. Reports say that they¡¯re currently building in preparation for the prolonged war."

    Shi Beihai¡¯s expression was grave as he shook his head. "No, they¡¯re waiting for the right time to start a war."

    "Right time?"

    "They¡¯re waiting for Grandmaster An Muda to die."

    The murderousness blew off along with the wind, as if a bugle horn was heard from far away.

 Chapter 474: Sword Pagodas

    Chapter 474: Sword Pagodas

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Even the slowest reacting person would be able to smell the faint burning smoke in the air. The atmosphere became increasingly tense as market prices for all kinds of resources shot up like unreined wild horses.

    The remote and distantly located Lemon Camping Ground had, too, be exceptionally restless.

    A few days back, everyone had been shocked by Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s recruitment of new members. Elementalists who¡¯d seen it felt like their hearts were burning and were unable to keep calm. Watching the positions being filled up made unselected elementalists inevitably impatient.

    Everyone was waiting for Sword of Lightning. Why wasn¡¯t there any news?

    Could it be fake?

    People crowded outside the wall daily.

    It was said that this area used to be the camp where Ai Hui and his gang had stayed when passing by Lemon Camping Ground on their way to building their city. Everyone called it the inner camp. They looked at the inner camp, waitingboriously. nking sounds could be heard all the time but no one knew what was going on. Some elementalists wanted to fly overhead to see inside.

    But when they approached the inner camp a terrifying power locked onto them, its murderous spirit like that of an earth-shattering tsunami, causing them to faint on the spot.

    After that, no one dared to try anything funny.

    Creak. The main gate of the inner camp opened slowly.

    The waiting elementalists, who were bored to death, fell into a daze before snapping out of it. Was it starting? Shadows could be seen shooting by as some people wanted to inform theirpanions as soon as possible.

    Lemon Camping Ground wasn¡¯t big to begin with, so everyone received the news quickly.

    The door was opening!

    Just then, Shi Xueman and the gang appeared, which gave rise to an even biggermotion. Everyone was more or less certain that it was about to start.

    Shi Xueman and the rest rushed over and into the inner camp. They were very curious about the things Ai Hui had prepared. From what they knew about Ai Hui, he only did things he had confidence in.

    And this fellow often left people dumbstruck.

    Ai Hui saw the results of his hard work and felt deeply moved. He¡¯d been rushing work for a few consecutive days so that even the iron body, which he so often bragged about, felt ufortable.

    He was doing something that no one else had ever done, so it required a high level of concentration.

    He only allowed himself to rx during short breaks. When he was resting, strange thoughts would sh across his mind. For example, he would wonder what Grandmaster An Muda was doing or whether Ye Baiyi would feel awkward if he met Shi Beihai face to face.

    With augh he threw his attention back onto the construction of his sword pagodas.

    He¡¯d been highly focused for a long period of time, so when it all ended, weariness finally swept over him like a tide.

    The excitement he felt uponpletion surpassed his tiredness. He ced both hands on his waist and looked at his finished product in satisfaction. Shi Xueman, Jiang Wei and the rest came upon hearing the news, so they were all looking at Ai Hui¡¯s product, sizing it up in curiosity.

    The seven randomly arranged sword pagodas were of different heights. Shorter ones had threeyers whereas taller ones had nine. Grass swords were inserted all over the pagodas¡¯ bodies, making them looked like hedgehogs. Each sword pagoda emitted a biting cold and dense vital energy, which surged and collided within the inner camp.

    Shi Xueman immediately noticed the intricacies of the sword pagodas¡¯ positions. She asked, somewhat astonished, "Big Dipper?"

    Ai Hui cried out, "Iron Lady¡¯s still the most insightful!"

    Shi Xueman was already immune to the nickname Ai Hui gave her. She surveyed each sword pagoda slowly. As a Master, she had a much deeper understanding of elemental energy than the others.

    She could sense something profound about every sword pagoda. Each sword pagoda possessed a faint, cryptic aura of its own that corrted well with the others. They gave her the illusion that the seven sword pagodas were one.

    The rest had their eyes on Ai Hui, waiting for his exnation.

    Instead ofmenting on his creation he inhaled a deep breath. "Let¡¯s start."

    Gu Xuan entered the inner camp with the first batch of elementalists. He did not participate in the recruitment test for Spear of Heavy Cloud since he was more interested in joining Sword of Lightning. After witnessing the fire pond test he immediately waited outside the inner camp.

    As an outstanding swordsman, patience and the ability to bear difficult situations were necessary qualities.

    Swordsmen today no longer had that mighty and influential existence that they enjoyed during the Cultivation Era. Seeking survival within the crevassess was the realest portrayal of a modern swordsman¡¯s life.

    The teams were already queuing in long lines, looking enviously at those, Gu Xuan included, entering the inner camp.

    The hair on Gu Xuan¡¯s back stood on end the moment he walked in.

    A palpable murderousness enveloped his whole body, as if he was standing among thousands of sword clusters, bright as snow and dense as a forest. Even the wind in the camp felt like cruising, flexible swords that were extremely sharp and erratic.

    Sweat covered his back in an instant.

    Sitting in a corner, Ai Hui let out a soft cry of surprise as his gaze fell upon Gu Xuan. His eyes lit up.

    Walking into the camp was like entering the radius of Big Dipper Sword Pagodas. Swordsmen with high attainments were more sensitive to the aura emitted by these pagodas and hence they would feel a greater threat.

    A decent swordsman!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes grew brighter, as if he¡¯d found a terrific treasure. Already discovering a good seedling from the first round of assessment was a good sign!

    Gu Xuan was unaware that he was already being watched. He resisted the omnipresent danger and forged ahead.

    The test was simple. Test subjects had to walk through the sword pagodas one by one and the more they passed the better their results.

    Gu Xuan took a deep breath, and following the crowd he walked toward the first sword pagoda.

    The first sword pagoda had only three storeys, the second four and so on.

    Other than the differences in number ofyers, all seven sword pagodas had the same shape.

    The first examinee entered the first pagoda with fear and trepidation as an intense, bone-chilling sound of sword des rubbing against each other rang from within. Because the sword pagoda was made with many grass swords, each tremble of the swords made the sword pagoda appear to be trembling as well.

    It was as if a huge hedgehog was chewing with all its might, which made its body shiver.

    Puff! A round shadow flew out from the pagoda door. It was the examinee, who had just passed out.

    "Fail!"

    The upassionate verdict echoed throughout the field.

    Gu Xuan swallowed his saliva automatically as a fear he rarely experienced surfaced from within his heart. The sight of that unconscious examinee flying out was remarkably alike to seeing a huge hedgehog take up a piece of flesh and chew it over and over again, but to no avail, before disdainfully spitting it out.

    This... is a little embarrassing.

    Puff, "Fail!"

    Puff, "Fail!"

    The failure of three consecutive examinees caused an uproar among the onlookers. They looked at each other in dismay, their faces distorted and ugly. They¡¯d not expected the test to be easy, but this was simply too difficult.

    Three consecutive examinees had been thoroughly defeated without any exception.

    Gu Xuan was the fourth contender, and by now his heart was drumming. He took a deep breath in an attempt to calm his nervous heart, which worked as his eyes regained their firmness. Wasn¡¯t he here to seek a Path of Master of his own?

    These sword pagodas were unusual!

    With his head high he stepped into the sword pagoda and the door shut behind him.

    .....

    Gong Residence.

    Housekeeper Wang was reporting to his master and young master. As Family Head Gong was getting on in years, affairs within the residence were gradually being handed over to the oldest son, Gong Chengxiu. Since young, he¡¯d been regarded as the next family head and was nurtured ordingly in the household. He did not let his father down too. He had a vast circle of friends, was shrewd and adaptable.

    The Gong Residence¡¯s style of handling issues had been undergoing changes, from its former days of concealing strengths to its gradual reveal in recent years and the transferring of power.

    "... I¡¯ve taken a look at Miss Shi Xueman¡¯sbat division. There¡¯s nothing for me to say. She¡¯s simr to her father, havingmand of troops, none of which were unwilling. In the past, Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun were all good seedlings from their respectivebat divisions. And now, only a few days after their building expansion, they are already considered out of the ordinary and will definitely be elites in future!"

    Family Head Gong and Gong Chengxiu nodded their heads without the least bit of doubt.

    Shi Xueman was born into a reputable family and had clearly performed exceptionally in North Sea Division, or else the Elders Guild wouldn¡¯t have regarded her as their number one sessor. Sang Zhijun and Jiang Wei were also rtively outstanding.

    Every city was busy forming theirbat divisions. Elementalists who¡¯d ever assumed any post within the Thirteen Divisions were in great demand.

    Because of this, Central Pine Faction was also a main point of focus for many people.

    The majority of its members had experience in differentbat divisions. Such elementalists were scarce and they were regarded as the backbone of Spear of Heavy Cloud. Having Shi Xueman as the division leader made people feel confident in their future.

    "As for Ai Hui¡¯s Sword of Lightning, I can¡¯t seem to grasp its concept. Its name suggests a swordsmenbat division, so could it be like Sky Edge Division? But Sky Edge Division did not start from zero. No one in Sword of Lightning knows the ropes, which is worrisome. We¡¯re not yet close so I spared the conversation. I attended to his needs and even decided to offer him additional help, considering we might be able to build a rapport with Shi Xueman for future uses."

    "Well done!" Family Head Gong praised. "Ai Hui became a Master at such a young age so it¡¯s normal that he¡¯s more ambitious. He¡¯ll realize, after hitting a wall, that in this world there are many things tougher than being a Master. Money and properties aren¡¯t worth the mention."

    Gong Chengxiu was about forty years old. He was young and vigorous, his eyes flickering. He smiled. "He¡¯s a Lightning Master so perhaps he might produce astonishing results and aplishments."

    At that he burst intoughter and so did Housekeeper Wang.

    No one thought highly of Ai Hui¡¯s Sword of Lightning.

    Of course, Ai Hui¡¯s reputation as the first Lightning Master was unerasable, but he had no experience when it came to dealing with abat division.

    People naturally associated it with the current Sky Edge Division. Karakorum Pris was very simr to Ai Hui¡¯sbat division in this aspect, but it wasn¡¯t abat division builtpletely from scratch after all. There were many seasoned members who¡¯d transferred in from the former Sky Edge Division. These key yers were of significant help to Karakorum Pris and provided a certain level of guarantee in regards to itsbat strength.

    Yet, Ai Hui was starting from ground zero with no one to assist him.

    Since when was handling abat division so easy?

    Housekeeper Wang added, "Remembering Young Master¡¯s order, I asked him, before leaving, when he thinks the war is going to start."

    Gong Chengxiu was rather interested. "What did he say?"

    Housekeeper Wang bent his head, answering, "¡®When Grandmaster An Muda dies,¡¯ he said."

    Gong Chengxiu¡¯s body shook slightly, his eyes opening wide. Shortly after hemented softly, "He¡¯s pretty decent, to be able to have such foresight."

    Family Head Gong looked pensively at them.

 Chapter 475: Decision

    Chapter 475: Decision

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Like the blossoming of a flower, countless sword gleams were sprinkled over his head, releasing countless shadows that swirled around his body. Hiss, hiss. As the sword gleams brushed past his scalp, a piercing chilliness invaded his mind.

    The ice-cold aura kept pounding against Gu Xuan¡¯s mind like endless tidal waves.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s face turned slightly white.

    The sword gleams weren¡¯t an illusion.

    The sword gleams that were sprinkled over his head contained a terrifying power. If he got slightly closer to them, his skull would be leveled.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s mouth and tongue were dry and his body was tense. The sword in his hand was like a fire iron, practically useless. Yes, he did not have the courage to use his sword to ward off the sword gleams above his head. He was certain that the slightest contact with the sword gleams would detonate the terrifying power within them.

    He was like livestock that was being thrown in a meat grinder and ground to smithereens instantly.

    The time passed very slow. Every time the chilliness of the sword gleams brushed past his scalp, his mind would trembled in fear.

    He did not know how to survive this.

    When the door at the other end of the sword pagoda opened and sunlight poured in, the sword gleams over his head disappeared.

    Panting heavily, Gu Xuan realized his body was drenched in sweat and there was a puddle of sweat beneath his feet. His mind was nk and his body was limp and in pain, almost causing him to copse to the ground.

    After an unknown amount of time had passed, he finally returned to his senses.

    Sunlight poured in from the door, illuminating the inside of the sword pagoda, which was empty. Gu Xuan subconsciously raised his head and saw numerous sword tips sticking out of the ceiling above him. They were densely-packed and were ced in a flower-shaped formation.

    It wasn¡¯t an illusion just now after all.

    Gu Xuan, who was still haunted by the previous encounter, understood that he had passed the first trial. However, this wasn¡¯t the reason why he was feeling happy. He suddenly realized that here was where he could find the answer that he had been painstakingly seeking .

    He somewhat understood what the first trial was about. He was unsatisfied with his performance.

    Gu Xuan felt that these trials could allow him to understand more about himself.

    This was what made him happy.

    He raised his head and stepped out of the door.

    When he stepped out of the door, the elementalists that were lining up to enter the sword pagoda cheered for him. They were encouraged by Gu Xuan¡¯s sess.

    Shi Xueman looked at Ai Hui without saying anything.

    Ai Hui knew he would be beaten up if he did not reveal the secret behind the first sword pagoda. He cleared his throat and said, "The first sword pagoda tests one¡¯s willpower and endurance. Only those who have strong willpower and endurance can pass the trial."

    The rest were listening to him attentively.

    Ai Hui continued, "The sword gleams will brush past their scalps and might even shave off their hair, giving them a feeling of extreme danger. Once they make a wrong move, they will be knocked out by the sword gleams and spat out by the sword pagoda."

    "Are they really being spat out? Disgusting!" Sang Zhijun¡¯s face squirmed.

    Ai Hui gave a soft cough once again and replied, "I¡¯m just giving an analogy. I put this as the first trial because mybat division in the future must have strong endurance and willpower. Those who are mentally weak will not be able to drive the Sword of Lightning."

    Shi Xueman sharply caught the meaning behind Ai Hui¡¯s words and asked, "Drive the Sword of Lightning?"

    Ai Hui smiled but did not reply to her.

    "What does the second sword pagoda test?" Jiang Wei asked.

    "The ability to focus," Ai Hui did not keep them in suspense this time around and exined with a serious tone, "They have to stay extremely focused and make one hundred sword thrusts. In the process, they will face many disturbances. Therefore, I have used a lot of illusions in this trial. If they are not focused enough, they will not be able to pass the trial."

    Sang Zhijun could not help but ask, "Ai Hui, are you really serious about choosing members for your division? Don¡¯t you feel that your trials are too difficult?"

    "Are they very difficult?" Ai Hui asked back and continued, "This man will definitely pass all the trials."

    "Why?"

    "He is an outstanding swordsman and he will be very focused," Ai Hui exined.

    "Eh? Outstanding swordsman? How do you know that?" Jiang Wei was slightly surprised.

    "That¡¯s because I¡¯m a swordsman as well," Ai Hui replied with confidence.

    "Ai Hui, are you really a swordsman? Did you make a mistake?"

    "Precisely, focus on bing an outstanding lightning elementalist and don¡¯t mess around!"

    In the blink of an eye, everyone broke into a lively discussion.

    Suddenly, Shi Xueman said, "I will give them a tryter."

    "No!" Ai Hui was scared out of his skin.

    Shi Xueman raised her eyebrows and her gaze became slightly gentle as she asked, "Are you afraid that I might get injured?"

    "I¡¯m afraid that the sword pagodas might be destroyed," Ai Hui replied firmly.

    Shi Xueman touched the Cirrus on her back and said inly, "Ever since we have be Masters, we haven¡¯t had a fight yet. Come on, let¡¯s have a good fight today."

    Ai Hui put on a serious look and chided her, "You¡¯re already a division leader and you still talk about fighting all day long. Sigh, are you really serious about a fight..."

    .....

    Skyheart City, the encampment for Dread.

    The three division leaders had gathered together and their faces were grave.

    Sitting on a meditation mat, Ximen Caijue looked at Wan Shenwei and asked with a child-like tone, "How¡¯s Senior An Muda¡¯s health?"

    Wan Shenwei shooked his head and replied, "Senior An Muda did not meet me. The defense system for Pearblossom Pavilion has already been activated. I can still sense the aura of Senior An Muda, but no matter how hard I tried to call him out, he still did not give me a reply."

    A silence swept across the room.

    An Muda¡¯s health was an extremely important factor that could affect the entire world.

    This was the might of a Grandmaster. A Grandmaster could single-handedly control the direction that the entire world was moving in!

    Those who were strong were waiting for the fall of the Grandmaster, while those who were weak were struggling with all their might to prepare for the harsh wintering after the Grandmaster had fallen.

    Farsighted individuals understood that the fall of Grandmaster An Muda would be the fuse for the immense changes that the world would undergo.

    Everyone was filled with fear and hopelessness towards the future. All of them wanted to know what Grandmaster An Muda had prepared for the future.

    At this point of time, the sagacity and farsightedness of a Grandmaster would be a beacon of light for everyone.

    In the past, Wan Shenwei had a rather good rtionship with An Muda. As such, he was sent to Pearblossom Pavilion in the hope of gaining some guidance from An Muda. However, he hadn¡¯t expected for An Muda to not want to meet him.

    Ximen Caijue could not help but say, "Senior An Muda is too much. How can he still act so indifferent at this critical moment?"

    Wan Shenwei was depressed.

    Nian Tingfeng remained calm as usual and said, "I have already said that we can only save ourselves. Both of you might think that I have be Ye Lin¡¯sckey, but tell me who is more capable than her now?"

    "Capable! She killed her own people as if they were chickens. Of course she is capable!" Ximen Caijue sneered with sarcasm.

    "You are just feeling sorry for the loss of a few Masters, right? Very soon, both of you will realize why Ye Lin was capable of doing this." Nian Tingfeng retorted.

    Upon hearing these words, Wan Shenwei raised his head and asked, "Is Master¡¯s Glory going to end soon?"

    "The first batch of Masters will be ready soon," Nian Tingfeng cast a nce at both of them and muttered, "While we are still of some worth, we have to disy our capabilities. In the future, we may not even have the opportunity to do so."

    Wan Shenwei looked at Nian Tingfeng and said, "Tell us more about it."

    Nian Tingfeng shook his head and replied, "I can¡¯t say much about it. All I can tell you is that Master¡¯s Glory is more powerful than what we expected. No one can stop Ye Lin. Not me, and not the both of you."

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s apple-shaped face turned ice-cold. With an indifferent tone, she said, "Ximen family will never join hands with the Ye family."

    "She can¡¯t rece Elders Guild," Wan Shenwei shook his head.

    Nian Tingfeng calmly stood up and sneered, "That¡¯s true, but both of you still have to listen to hermands, right? I am a weapon that she uses to kill people. Both of you are weapons that she uses to scare people. Each of us has our own functions, ha!"

    After finishing his sentence, Nian Tingfeng walked off.

    After walking out of Dread¡¯s encampment, the sneer on Nian Tingfeng¡¯s face disappeared. His facial expression looked unusually calm.

    He did not bother to conceal his tracks. Under the protection of his guards, he headed straight for the mayor¡¯s residence.

    Along the way, the guards and maidservants of the mayor¡¯s residence bowed to him. With a lively smile on his face, he returned their greetings every now and then. When these maidservants saw the smart and handsome Lord Nian Tingfeng, an infatuated look appeared on their faces involuntarily. After he walked past them, they gathered at one corner and talked about Nian Tingfeng with excitement.

    "He¡¯s so handsome!"

    "That¡¯s so true!"

    "Sir is so amiable, he¡¯s not arrogant at all!"

    Nian Tingfeng stood outside the room and waited for Madam Ye to summon him. Even though Madam Ye had told him more than once that he could enter the room without being summoned, he still cared about following the rules of etiquette and not stepping over the line.

    Upon knowing Nian Tingfeng was waiting outside, Madam Ye quickly summoned him.

    When Madam Ye saw him, she grumbled, "I have told you not to treat me as an outsider, you really have too much etiquette. My son and I have to depend on you in the future."

    "Madam, you have ttered me too much. Subordinate does not deserve your praise," Nian Tingfeng replied respectfully.

    He reported everything about his meeting with Ximen Caijue and Wan Shenwei without missing a single word.

    From the start to the finish of the report, Madam Ye merely smiled. After Nian Tingfeng had finished speaking, Madam Ye said unhurriedly, "There¡¯s no need to panic. Time will tell the answer to the decision a man has made. A man has countless decisions to make in his life. Some decisions, if made correctly, will lead to glory. Some decisions, if made wrongly, will lead to eternal doom. Don¡¯t you agree?"

    "What Madam has said are truly words of wisdom." Nian Tingfeng was all smiles.

    "Tell me about other things. Last time around, I told you to give me a scouting report on Lightning de. How is iting along?"

    "I was just about to report this to Madam," Nian Tingfeng replied respectfully.

    He reported everything that happened in Central Pine Valley during this recent period of time. If Ai Hui was to hear Nian Tingfeng¡¯s report, he would be shocked. Everything they did had been observed by Nian Tingfeng.

    "You haven¡¯t infiltrated Central Pine Valley yet?" Madam Ye muttered.

    Nian Tianfeng shook his head and replied, "We haven¡¯t. Only members of Central Pine Faction can enter Central Pine Valley. The rest of the people merely gather at Lemon Camping Ground. I¡¯m afraid of alerting them inadvertently and hence I don¡¯t dare to act brashly. After all, they have a few Masters on their side. Do we need to resort to tougher tactics?"

    Madam Ye thought for a while before shaking her head and replied, "For the time being, we don¡¯t need to do so. There¡¯s no need for us to fuss over a small valley. Furthermore, they have rejected Newlight City¡¯s offer. We won¡¯t resort to anything drastic so as to avoid pushing them to Newlight City."

    "Yes," Nian Tingfeng replied.

    "However, I want you to keep a close eye on Spear of Heavy Cloud. Shi Xueman is the daughter of Shi Beihai. She has Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun to assist her. We can¡¯t let them be too powerful. Back in the day, I still wanted to bring these people into Master¡¯s Glory. It is such a pity. Most of them have good potential."

    Her tone contained a tinge of regret.

    "Yes! How about Ai Hui?" Nian Tingfeng asked.

    "Let him form hisbat division slowly. What is it called again?" Madam Yeughed.

    "Sword of Lightning."

    "The name is rather nice. It¡¯s a pity that the war will have ended by the time he forms his division." Madam Ye ridiculed.

    Upon hearing these words, Nian Tingfengughed as well, "Subordinate will definitely not disturb him."

 Chapter 476: An Old Friend And Yuchuan Embroidery

    Chapter 476: An Old Friend And Yuchuan Embroidery

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Pearblossom Pavilion. There was a visitor in the octagonal pavilion.

    An Muda looked radiant. His face was rosy, his ravine-like wrinkles had smoothened, and he looked as if his age had been reversed. He sat on a meditation mat while giving off an indescribable aura of might. The aura was as bright as the sun, causing one to being unable to directly look at An Muda. Visible energy undtions engulfed Pearblossom Pavilion, appearing as if they were about to crush this dimension to pieces.

    A short and thin old man was seated opposite him. This old man resembled a weather-beaten farmer who worked the fields every day. Beside the old man, there was a block of ice that was twice the height of a normal person. There was a figure within the block of ice.

    When the surging energy undtions from An Muda reached the vicinity of the old man, they disappeared into thin air.

    The old man took a sip of tea and put down his cup. Then, he said, "Your situation has worsened."

    An Muda smiled and said, "Actually, I¡¯m still feeling all right. My elemental energy is resonating with Nature¡¯s elemental energies. When they are inplete resonance, I will be one with Nature."

    The old man nodded his head and replied, "So this is how a Grandmaster dies."

    "You¡¯re still as unlikeable asst time," An Muda joked.

    "I¡¯m already so old. Why do I need to care whether or not people like me?" the old man replied.

    An Muda shook his head andughed. "You¡¯re better at talking now thanst time. What¡¯s wrong with this kid anyway?"

    This slight movement from An Muda released waves of energy that rippled through the air and caused the entire dimension to give off a deafening buzzing sound.

    "Not good, so I came to look for you," the old man replied with a solemn look on his face.

    An Muda¡¯s gaze was extremely sharp and intense, so much so that when it swept across the ice block, countless cracks appeared on its surface. The old man waved his arm and shot out a cloud of cold air. When the cloud of cold airnded upon the ice block, its surface thickened once more.

    The old man knew that An Muda had not done this on purpose. It was just that An Muda could no longer control his powers.

    "Your method is rather interesting." An Muda¡¯s tone contained a tinge of surprise.

    The figure within the ice block was a fire-attributed youth. The old man¡¯s method was unique in the way that he used an ice of extreme cold to stimte thest trace of fire elemental energy in the youth¡¯s body.

    An Muda knew what the old man was thinking just by looking at his method.

    Ever since the Fire Prairie was annexed by the Blood of God, fire elemental materials were scarce. The conventional training methods for fire elementalists no longer worked. However, Palette Cloud Vige was still producing water elemental materials. Chilly ice was considered a type of water elemental material, and it could still be obtained if one put in some effort.

    However, this was an unorthodox method that was unusually risky. A moment of carelessness could cause thisst trace of fire elemental energy to extinguish. If thest trace of fire elemental energy extinguished, the youth would lose his life.

    Being sealed in a block of ice for a long period of time was unimaginably excruciating for anyone. In this kind of extreme environment, one needed an immense amount of endurance and courage to keep the fire elemental energy trace alive and prevent it from extinguishing.

    "Deprivation leads to changes, changes in turn lead to finding a way out," the old man said inly, "but now, there¡¯s no way out. His father ced him in my hand. Now that he doesn¡¯t have a home, I can¡¯t abandon him."

    "Sigh, the Zu family was a powerful family. I didn¡¯t expect that even they could not avoid this cmity. If I¡¯m not wrong, he is called Zu Yan?" An Muda sighed and asked.

    "Yeah," the old man grunted a reply. With a calm face, he picked up the cup and took a sip of tea.

    "I roughly understand what you¡¯re saying," An Muda replied with an imposing tone. "He has already been through the toughest stage. If he continues to be sealed in ice, his mind and body will be injured. Right now, he needs sufficient and vigorous fire elemental energy to strengthen his body first. Only by doing this can he survive."

    "That¡¯s right. A type of A-grade fire liquid named Snow Lava has appeared on the market and it¡¯s rted to your disciple. This is also why I came to find you. I need a lot of Snow Lava. A lot.

    He spoke thest two words "a lot" with extra emphasis.

    If it was other people, he would have taken the Snow Lava by force. However, since Shi Xueman was in Central Pine Valley, he had to find An Muda first. He clearly understood that even though An Muda seemed to be unconcerned about Shi Xueman, he actually cared a lot for her deep down.

    He had known An Muda for decades and knew his character very well.

    "Xueman isn¡¯t the leader," An Muda said. "You have to find Ai Hui. As long as you¡¯re willing to let your precious disciple work for him as aborer for a few years, there shouldn¡¯t be much of a problem."

    "All right," the old man agreed.

    "Since we have settled the youngsters¡¯ issue, let¡¯s talk about our issue," An Muda continued.

    The old man cast a nce at An Muda and replied, "You¡¯re going to die soon, so what¡¯s there to talk about?"

    "How can a Grandmaster die on a bed?" An Muda gave a faint smile that contained an indescribable aggression.

    The old man froze. Then, he put down his cup and asked bluntly, "What are you going to do?"

    An Muda looked at the old man and smiled, "You will know soon."

    The old man shook his head and replied, "I¡¯m not going to apany you."

    "You can help me by guarding this ce." An Muda chuckled. "Dai Gang wille. Buleng, you have fought with him for your entire life. Aren¡¯t you sick of it?"

    When the old man heard Dai Gang¡¯s name, his gaze suddenly became sharp and intense. At this point in time, he looked as if he had be apletely different person. His short and skinny body exuded might and dominance.

    A powerful wave of energy swept across his body.

    In the current tumultuous era, where a huge number of heroes were born, not many people remembered this short and skinny old man.

    Le Buleng, who used to be the division leader of the Icy mes Division, regarded Dai Gang as his lifelong arch-enemy.

    Le Buleng regained hisposure and replied, "You¡¯re going to die soon, yet you still scheme so much. Why don¡¯t you want to meet that youngster, Wan Shenwei?"

    "Junior has passed away, so how can I bear to deal with his descendant? Be it the Avalon of Five Elements or Beyond Avalon, I have done my best as their guardian for so many years." A tinge of sadness appeared upon An Muda¡¯s face.

    "Let them be."

    Le Buleng filled up his cup and downed the tea in one gulp. He put down the cup on the table with a thump and walked to the edge of the pavilion.

    "Ha, it turns out a Grandmaster is a human as well," Le Buleng said, before taking the huge block of ice with him and jumping down.

    .....

    Lemon Camping Ground.

    A lot of people were very disappointed.

    "Why does he test people on such weird topics?

    "That¡¯s right! What about aptitude? Elemental energy? Inheritances? Don¡¯t these need to be tested? Is this a joke?"

    "I think he is trying to hireborers!"

    "Now that you mention it, it kind of makes sense. Wasn¡¯t Ai Hui aborerst time? Is it possible that he is forming Sword of Lightning withborers?"

    "An army ofborers, that¡¯s scary..."

    The seven sword pagodas in the inner camp had be a nightmare for many people. A lot of elementalists who thought that they were gifted and good enough were being eliminated by these trials. When they saw that those who were less gifted than them were epted, they felt that this world had gone mad.

    No, Ai Hui was the one who had gone mad.

    These people left the inner camp while shaking their heads in disappointment. They felt that the so-called Lightning Master was merely a lunatic. Ai Hui might be very formidable with his lightning techniques, but his current antics showed how inexperienced he was in building abat division.

    No one was stupid. In times of chaos, if one followed a good and powerful master, not only could he survive, but he might also be able to attain many achievements and build a solid foundation for his descendants.

    Following a lunatic would only lead them to a tragic end.

    They felt sorry for those elementalists who were epted by Ai Hui. These people had followed the wrong master and were fated to fail.

    The camping ground buzzed with such discussions, causing a lot of elementalists who had been epted to feel worried and withdraw from thebat division. Ai Hui did not try to stop these people from leaving.

    Ai Hui felt that nothing forced would seed.

    In the end, more than 400 men were all that remained in his division.

    This number was far too little to make up abat division. What could 400 men do? cing an army of 400 on the battlefield was like releasing a drop of water into the sea. What impact could it have?

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud had 3,000 men and an additional 2,000 as reserves.

    In the face of the worries from Shi Xueman and the rest, Ai Hui sounded even more pessimistic. "I will be d if half of these people can survive the training."

    Everyone was stunned.

    If 400 men was a drop of water, then what would 200 be?

    Everyone looked at each other nkly.

    "The situation on my side is terrible and all of you can see it for yourself. Whether or not we thrive in the future, it will have to depend on all of you. You must bring sess to the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Everyone, you must not ck off," Ai Hui reminded them in a solemn tone.

    Upon hearing these words, everyone felt weighed down. They could feel the immense pressure on them. All of them silently made a firm resolution to work and practice harder.

    Shi Xueman nced at Ai Hui.

    Even though this fellow had a solemn look on his face, she felt that he had a trick up his sleeve for some reason.

    .....

    Jadeite City. The dawn had yet to arrive.

    The Mingxiu Embroidery Workshop was brightly lit.

    Nowadays, the Mingxiu Embroidery Workshop had the highest prestige out of all embroidery workshops in Jadeite City. Not only did it have a Master to oversee it, it also had the backing of the Lu family and a type of loom called the [Needle-Subduing Peak].

    If it was another embroidery workshop that used this name for its loom, the workshop would definitely be raided by the authorities.

    The shadow cast by the God-subduing Peak over the Jadeite Forest had yet to disappear. It certainly wasn¡¯t a pleasant memory.

    However, the Mingxiu Embroidery Workshop was bing more prosperous. Other than the backing of the Lu family, Lu Mingxiu¡¯s performance for the past two years was exceptionally impressive, so much so that it shocked the entire Jadeite Forest.

    Not only had Lu Mingxiu inherited the legacy of her master, Master Han Yuqin, but she also surpassed her master and founded her own embroidery school of thought, the Mingxiu Style.

    Her textile products had a special name, [Yuchuan Embroidery].

    This name was thought up by Lu Mingxiu herself. The word "Yuchuan" was tomemorate her master, Han Yuqin, and her master-uncle, Wang Shouchuan.

    Any piece of [Yuchuan Embroidery] was considered a rare treasure on the market.

    The embroidery workshop was bustling and hectic. Everyone continued loading things onto a convoy of load basin beasts.

    Lu Mingxiu inspected the convoy to and fro. "Has everything been loaded up onto the load basin beasts?"

    A maid stepped out and replied, "Miss, everything has been loaded up."

    She had been Mingxiu¡¯s maid when Mingxiu was still young and called Tao Su. When Mingxiu followed Han Yuqin to learn about embroidery, the two of them separated. Two years ago, Mingxiu returned to Jadeite City and requested for Tao Su to assist her in her embroidery workshop.

    Tao Su was extremely capable. Even though she knew nothing about embroidery, she was able to keep everything else in good order.

    "Did we miss out on anything?" Lu Mingxiu was slightly worried.

    "Miss, I have already checked for the third time," Tao Su replied hastily.

    At this moment, a figure descended from the sky andnded in the embroidery workshop. This person was over 40 years old and looked boorish and ugly. His eyes were always squinting, as if he was perpetually examining something closely. The most eye-catching part of his body were his legs. There was absolutely nothing beneath his knees.

    "Thank you for your trouble this time around, Master Mu!" Mingxiu bowed and thanked him.

    "I will set off once you are ready," Master Mu replied inly.

    Lu Mingxiu took out a wooden box and passed it to Master Mu, "This was entrusted to me by the Duanmu family. Master Mu, please pass it Duanmu Huanghun."

    Master Mu took over the wooden box and replied, "All right, I will get going now."

    After Master Mu finished his sentence, he floated to the back of a load basin beast, sat down, and closed his eyes to take a rest.

    The convoy began to set off. The melodious sound of bells ringing broke the silence of dawn.

    Standing at a high position, Lu Mingxiu looked at the distant convoy. She seemed to be lost in thought. The entire convoy was filled with textile products that she had prepared and resources that could only be found in the Jadeite Forest. All of them were for Ai Hui.

    Master Mu was her elder brother¡¯s friend. Had she not pleaded with her elder brother, she probably would not have been able to find anyone to transport so many things to the distant Central Pine Valley. She hoped that these things could help her junior.

    Looking at the gorgeous red clouds at dawn, Lu Mingxiu, who had been busy making preparations for the entire night, was filled with hope.

    The convoy disappeared into the horizon and Lu Mingxiu turned around to leave. At this moment, she caught a glimpse of a figure.

    Her body froze as a mysterious sense of familiarity arose in her heart.

    She turned her head to search for that figure, but she could only see a street that was sparsely filled with people.

    She broke intoughter and turned around to leave.

 Chapter 477: Deal!

    Chapter 477: Deal!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "Alkaid! Someone is injured!"

    Pfff. The sword pagoda that was named Alkaid spat out an unconscious elementalist.

    "Lou Lan ising!"

    Lou Lan, who was standing on one side waiting for action, immediately ran over and provided medical treatment to the injured elementalist.

    ...

    "Chwan! Someone has fainted!"

    "Lou Lan ising!"

    ...

    Within two hours, more than 34 people had fainted. Lou Lan was running all over the ce.

    "End of training!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s unfeeling voice rang across everyone¡¯s ears like a heavenly melody. One by one, wobbly figures tottered out of the sword pagoda. Their bodies were drenched in sweat and gave off surging steam, resembling steamed dumplings had just been taken out of a steamer basket.

    Ai Hui flew out of the Megrez Sword Pagoda and swept his gaze across everyone. With a deep voice, he said, "Rest for one hour and prepare for the next training session."

    Thud, thud. Everyone sat paralyzed on the ground, trying to make the most out of their time to rest. No one was howling in grief or whining. Ai Hui was extremely cold-blooded. He had a zealous attitude toward training.

    One by one, over 100 people had left hisbat division because they were unable to endure his high-intensity training. Exactly 300 people were left in hisbat division.

    The long-prepared bowls of elemental soup were quickly served to these elementalists. Without sufficient nourishment, such high-intensity training would hurt their bodies.

    The sound of the elemental soup being ravenously devoured rang across the camping ground as a look of happiness appeared upon everyone¡¯s face. Sword pagoda training was a hell withplete darkness to them. Lou Lan and his elemental soup were the beacons of light in their hell.

    Gu Xuan was an ardent supporter of Lou Lan. To him, a magical sand puppet like Lou Lan was the most beautiful entity in this world. Other than his master, Lou Lan had no weakness at all.

    Gu Xuan felt indignant. How was a bastard like Ai Hui fit to be Lou Lan¡¯s master?

    Nowadays, he did not have any respect for Ai Hui. A few days ago, he was still thinking about following the Lightning de to find his own path in swordsmanship. Now that he thought about it, he felt that he was as stupid as a pig then!

    This bastard was actually vying with them over the elemental soup!

    How was this bastard fit to be their leader! If not for the fact that he was more powerful than them, they would have killed him in the middle of the night.

    After cing down the bowl that had been licked clean, Gu Xuan was still enjoying the aftertaste. However, he soon realized he did not have the time to do so. He had to seize the moment to do Circtory Cycle Revolutions and absorb the elemental energy from the elemental energy soup that he had just consumed. Only by doing so could he endure the next training session.

    Everyone had been through the preliminary selection and had already tried training in all of the seven sword pagodas. As said by Ai Hui, every tulip to its own hole. Everyone had to find a "hole" that suited them.

    The aura of within every sword pagoda waspletely different.

    Yes, it¡¯s aura, the sword aura.

    Some were sharp, some were piercing cold, some were scorching hot, and some were thick and heavy. There were various types of sword aura. Everyone had to learn and produce every type of sword aura to find out which one suited them the best.

    Gu Xuan understood the theories of swordsmanship. Any training program would require one to find a suitable path for himself or herself. This wasmon sense. However, the current training program was so crude and simple-looking that it raised their hackles. There was no sense of beauty to it at all.

    Painstakingly, he had repeated the training program so many times that his consciousness was bing fuzzy.

    Repeating the training program seven times made Gu Xuan want to puke.

    This was swordsmanship? What about those exquisite swordy variations? Weren¡¯t swordsmen known for their exquisite swordy variations? How could swordsmanship be so crude and simple-looking?

    Gu Xuan was assigned to the Merak Sword Pagoda and was the pagoda master. At the beginning, Gu Xuan was overjoyed. After all, who did not like being valued? Very soon, however, he realized this waspletely different from what he had expected.

    Merak Sword Pagoda had eight levels and it was preceded only by Ai Hui¡¯s Megrez Sword Pagoda. In each level of the Merak Sword Pagoda, there were six elementalists. Including Gu Xuan, there were a total of 48 elementalists in the Merak Sword Pagoda and all of them were only learning one sword move.

    Given Gu Xuan¡¯s swordsmanship level, he could perform the sword move skilfully and effortlessly.

    However, that did not mean anything here.

    In order to pass, the 48 elementalists had to perform the sword move together without a single person failing. Failure by any one of the 48 elementalists would result in total failure.

    Out of the 48 elementalists, only six of them knew the basics of swordsmanship.

    All of the training sessions were appalling. If they could seed three times out of 100 training sessions, they could count themselves lucky.

    The thing that disappointed him was he couldn¡¯t see any significance to this type of training program at all.

    The simple sword move did not require much skill to execute. It did not have any exquisite variations and there was nothing formidable about it. Gu Xuan felt that he was here to pursue the path of swordsmanship, not to waste his time on such a boring training program.

    "Boring?"

    Ai Hui took a nce at Gu Xuan.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s hair stood on end. When Ai Hui became serious, he looked as if he had turned into another person, giving off a terrifying aura.

    Ai Hui noticed everyone else was looking at him. After thinking for awhile, he said, "All right, I will show all of you a thing or two."

    Members of Central Pine Valley had fought alongside Ai Hui before and had deep level of trust in him. No matter what decision ormand he made, everyone would execute it without any hesitation.

    The newly recruited elementalists did not have such a level of trust in him. As such, it was normal for them to doubt him.

    Ai Hui failed to take this factor into ount, a result of hisck of experience.

    Ai Hui, who was self-reflecting, did not have any emotion on his face. He chose 17 rather strong elementalists to enter the Alkaid Sword Pagoda with him.

    Alkaid Sword Pagoda was the shortest sword pagoda with only three levels. In each level, there were six men.

    The rest of the Sword of Lighning¡¯s members widened their eyes with excitement. Actually, everyone had felt doubtful all this time. Why were they training every day? What were the uses of this training?

    "Get ready," Ai Hui¡¯s deep and low voice echoed in the Alkaid Sword Pagoda.

    Everyone in the sword pagoda became energized. Holding a sword in their hands, they stood at their assigned positions and braced themselves.

    "Raise your swords!"

    A deep roar exploded in everyone¡¯s ears.

    Everyone¡¯s sword lit up at the same time. Buzz. A mysterious vibrating buzz resounded throughout the Alkaid Sword Pagoda. They could feel that the sword pagoda was trembling slightly. However, at this point in time, they could not focus on anything else. Subconsciously, they raised the swords in their hands and flicked them upward. Each of their swords released a streak of sword gleam.

    18 streaks of sword gleam stacked upon each other and gathered at the apex of the sword pagoda!

    This moment was a brand-new experience for Ai Hui. From the point when he came up with the idea of the sword pagodas to the point when the construction of the sword pagodas waspleted, everything was near perfect. However, this was the first time that the practicality of the sword pagodas would be tested. At this instant, his sensory perception suddenly became unusually sharp. It was as if the range of his sensory perception had extended to a faraway ce.

    His mind became more and more focused. Suddenly, he sensed that a figure was spying on them from the depths of the sky.

    Who was this person?

    Suddenly, a brilliance erupted in his eyes. I have caught you!

    He flicked the sword in his hand lightly.

    Shiiiiiing!

    A melodious sword chime rang across the air, sounding like the ringing of great bells in a Buddhist temple.

    The sudden sword chime rmed everyone in Lemon Camping Ground. All of them raised their heads skyward.

    A thick and dazzling sword gleam shot out from the apex of the sword pagoda and ripped through the air. With a clear and crisp sword chime, it flew toward the depths of the sky.

    "What¡¯s that?"

    "It looks like a streak of sword gleam."

    "Is it possible that another master swordsman has been born?"

    Everyone eximed in surprise as their faces were filled with shock.

    The body of Shi Xueman, who was supervising the training of her ownbat division, trembled. She quickly raised her head to see what was going on. Her beautiful eyes lit up and her lips curled into a faint smile.

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun had their mouths agape with surprise as they looked at the streak of brilliant sword gleam in the sky.

    The dazzling sword gleam had a very long tail, resembling a shooting star flying toward the sky.

    In the depths of the sky.

    Le Buleng was slightly surprised. Ai Hui indeed lived up to his reputation.

    Previously, Le Buleng felt weird when An Muda allowed his precious disciple to follow somebody else. Now, he realized that thisd named Ai Hui was rather skillful.

    The altitude that Le Buleng was flying at surpassed the level of an ordinary elementalists. He was in the depths of the sky. It was very dangerous to fly at such a high altitude. Dire beasts that lived at these altitudes were powerful creatures like the humpback cloud whales.

    The depths of the sky might seem very quiet and peaceful, but it was actually filled with extremely intense metal winds. These metal winds were so powerful that they formed a special zone that would shred any ordinary individual to smithereens in a split second if he or she were to stay here.

    A speckle of dazzling light expanded in his vision at a terrifying speed.

    Le Buleng let out a snort.

    The sunlight over his head seemed to gather at his back. Suddenly, wisps of golden mes rose behind his back, resembling gold wings.

    He reached out his finger and pointed it at the iing sword gleam.

    A wisp of golden me shot out from his fingertip.

    The sword gleam collided squarely with the wisp of golden me.

    Boom!

    A thunderous explosion rang across the air. The sky looked as if it was trembling. Surging currents swept across the air and created distorted rippling energy waves through the sky.

    The power of the sword gleam was three times more powerful than what he had expected.

    At his current base level, he was extremely urate with his judgement of one¡¯s strength. Very seldomly would such an inuracy ur.

    His interest was piqued.

    He noticed there were a few pagodas on the ground and that the attack wasunched by the shortest one. This was the first time he saw a sword gleamunched by a pagoda. Interesting, very interesting!

    The deafening explosion in the sky caused Shi Xueman¡¯s facial expression to change drastically.

    Before she could react, a golden fireball suddenly appeared before her. A skinny old man holding an ice block that was a few times bigger than his body hovered 10 meters away from her.

    "Young girl, do you still remember me?"

    She Xueman was filled with shock. The speed of the old man was so fast!

    Upon taking a closer look at the old man, Shi Xueman¡¯s facial expression froze. After a while, she asked with uncertainty, "Uncle Le?"

    The news of Le Buleng appearing in Lemon Camping Ground swept across the entire camping ground like a hurricane.

    Who was Le Buleng?

    Youngsters might find this name unfamiliar, but when older elementalists heard of this name, a look of respect and reverence appeared on their faces. To them, this was a legendary name.

    The terrifying sword gleam that was shot out from the inner camp shocked the entire Lemon Camping Ground. At this point in time, the faces of those elementalists who withdrew from the Sword of Lightning were filled with regret.

    In the inner camp.

    Ai Hui¡¯s ring eyes looked as if they were going to pop out at any moment. With an unfriendly tone, he said, "Snowva? At least 100 liters? Senior Le, I respect you as a senior. If you want snowva, I can gift one or two liters to you as a form of respect, but now you want at least 100 liters? At least?"

    Le Buleng dropped the gigantic block of ice onto the ground and said bluntly, "If you provide enough snowva, he will be a Master and work for you for 10 years. Tell me now, deal or no deal?"

    Ai Hui widened his eyes and sneered. With a lofty attitude, he replied, "Deal!"

    In the blink of an eye, the ice-cold look on Ai Hui¡¯s face defrosted as he broke into a wide smile. With an amiable tone, he said, "Senior, is he your only disciple? Do you still have other disciples? Come,e, I have enough snowva. Where else can you find so much A-grade fire liquid? I will give you a 50 percent discount, five years ofbor for your second disciple!"

    Le Buleng, "..."

 Chapter 478: Shock

    Chapter 478: Shock

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Duanmu Huanghun restrained the anger within him.

    Being a prideful individual, when he saw that he was being surpassed by Ai Hui and Shi Xueman, he did not feel good at all. He was alright with Shi Xueman surpassing him. After all, he grew up under the shadow of Iron Lady and did not think much about surpassing her.

    However, he just couldn¡¯t ept the fact that Ai Hui had surpassed him.

    Duanmu Huanghun felt as unbearable as if he had swallowed a fly. When they were at Central Pine Academy, he hade a cropper in Ai Hui¡¯s hands countless times. If Ai Hui was an exceptional genius, he wouldn¡¯t have felt so indignant. However, be it talents or family background, Ai Hui paled inparison to him, yet Ai Hui was still able to surpass him.

    Unbearable.

    Was Duanmu Huanghun an individual who could bear seeing someone better than him? No.

    Duanmu Huanghun threw all the distracting thoughts to the back of his head. He had even rejected Iron Lady¡¯s invitation to join the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Right now, he was only thinking about one thing: Master.

    He had to be a Master!

    Being surpassed by Ai Hui had already brought him so much shame. If he still could not catch up to Ai Hui, it wouldn¡¯t be just a matter of shame anymore.

    Previously, Duanmu Huanghun had not thought about the issue of bing a Master. All he cared about at that time was learning various inheritances, and he had been immeasurably satisfied with his terrifying intelligence.

    It was only now that he realized more did not necessarily mean better.

    What was his Path of Master?

    Other than his [Viridescent Flower], he had studied numerous other absolute arts as well. Other than the absolute arts that the Duanmu family and his master, Dai Gang, kept, he also studied the ones that Shi Xueman brought from her family.

    There were very few people that could surpass him in this aspect.

    Currently, however, this advantage had be an impediment to his progress.

    Every absolute art was profound, deep, and contained extraordinary knowledge and rich experience. Glistening and dazzling, they were like gemstones scattered in the elemental energy system.

    In the face of so many absolute arts, he was at a loss.

    Which path should he choose?

    He sat under the defensive ancient tree and knitted his eyebrows in vexation.

    .....

    Lemon Camping Ground.

    Shi Xueman brought Le Buleng to her division¡¯s camp and said, "Zu Yan can stay in the fire reservoir first. The fire elemental energy in the fire reservoir isn¡¯t too strong, and he can endure it without damaging his body."

    Seven fire reservoirs were spread out in a line in front of Le Buleng. Some were packed with people while some were sparsely filled.

    Ai Hui followed behind them as well. He was filled with interest toward Zu Yan. He hadpletely forgotten that he previously defeated Zu Yan in a training hall.

    Shi Xueman nced at Ai Hui. What was this fellow up to again? She understood Ai Hui very well. Having respect for a senior was a characteristic that could never be found in Ai Hui.

    Everything he did, he did it with a purpose!

    When Shi Xueman saw that this fellow was willing to put aside his training to follow Le Buleng, she was certain that he was up to something.

    Le Buleng¡¯s gaze swept across the fire reservoirs and noticed something. "The fire elemental energy in these fire reservoirs are at different concentration levels?"

    "Yes." Shi Xueman nodded her head. "We have split the fire reservoirs into seven levels, from the lowest concentration level to the highest. We discovered that higher the concentration levels of fire elemental energy were not necessarily better for a fire elementalist. For low-level elementalists, only by absorbing fire elemental energy that is at a suitable concentration level can allow them improve faster."

    Le Buleng nodded his head. He definitely knew about this as it wasmon sense. However, the people in abat division seldomly conducted everything so meticulously like Shi Xueman.

    Shi Beihai had given birth to a capable daughter!

    Le Buleng¡¯s gazended upon the fire reservoir that had the highest concentration of fire elemental energy. This fire reservoir was very small and could only fit two to three people. Currently, there was only a fatty sitting it.

    Le Buleng was slightly surprised. This fatty must be quite strong to be able to withstand such concentrated fire elemental energy.

    Before he could say anything, an elementalist holding a basket walked up to this fire reservoir, took out a bottle from the basket, and opened its lid. Concentrated and pure fire elemental energy undtions were released from the bottle, lighting up Le Buleng¡¯s eyes. It was snowva.

    It truly lived to its reputation as an A-grade fire liquid!

    Right now, the market price for snowva kept on rising. The main issue was they could not be bought in bulk. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have looked for An Muda.

    The elementalist started to pour the snowva into the fire reservoir that the fatty was in. The crystal-clear snowva gave off wisps of transparent mes.

    In the blink of an eye, the bottle of snowva was emptied into the fire reservoir. The fire elemental energy of the fire reservoir significantly increased in concentration level.

    Le Buleng furrowed his eyebrows as he felt it was a waste to use the snowva like this. Was there really a need to use a precious A-grade fire liquid like the snowva to increase the concentration level of the fire elemental energy by that little bit?

    He felt that Shi Xueman was still young and did not know how valuable and expensive the snowva was.

    At this moment, the elementalist took out a second bottle and emptied its content into the fire reservoir.

    With a nk look on his face, Le Buleng watched as this elementalist emptied five bottles of snowva into the fire reservoir. He was not finished yet. He emptied bottles of snowva into the seven fire reservoirs one by one.

    A total of 12 bottles of snowva had been used!

    He suddenly turned around and asked Ai Hui, "Isn¡¯t snowva very valuable?"

    "They are indeed very valuable," Ai Hui replied nonchntly.

    Le Buleng turned around again and asked Shi Xueman, "How many bottles of snowva do you use every day?"

    "Around 50 bottles," Shi Xueman, who was very familiar with logistics, answered immediately.

    "How many liters of snowva is that?"

    "Five liters."

    Le Buleng¡¯s face turned very ugly. 100 liters of snowva were used in 20 days. However... Zu Yan was required to work for Ai Hui for 10 years!

    20 days of snowva in exchange for 10 years ofbor!

    When Ai Hui saw Le Buleng¡¯s ashen face, he panicked. Iron Lady was too honest.

    With a solemn look on his face, Ai Hui coughed softly and said, "The Spear of Heavy Cloud is our corebat division. From the beginning, we had already decided to spare no expense in assembling it! This is for the sake of allowing everyone to improve their strength rapidly and to survive in the battlefield. Therefore, we do not hesitate to provide as much snowva as possible. Everyone knows the value of snowva... but!"

    Ai Hui suddenly raised his voice as his facial expression became more solemn. "We feel that everyone¡¯s lives cannot be measured with money. Yes, wars are indeed unavoidable. However, since everyone has joined the Spear of Heavy Cloud, all of us belong to one big family. Our main target is to have as many people survive as possible. To do so, we are willing to spend more money. I also hope that everyone will not let Division Leader Shi down and will train hard to improve your strength!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s words were powerful and resonant.

    All of the elementalists in the fire reservoirs were extremely emotional. They had been through dark times when fire elemental materials were scarce and progress could only be made with great difficulty. They knew the current moment of bliss was hard toe by.

    Ai Hui¡¯s words had touched their hearts deeply. If not for the fact that they were enduring the heat of the fire reservoirs at this moment, they would make a vow to follow Ai Hui for eternity.

    Shi Xueman cast a nce at Ai Hui. After Central Pine Valley¡¯s production of snowva increased, they could not sell it because they feared crashing the market. As such, their stocks of snowva piled up more and more, and they had to use them for their training...

    Le Buleng¡¯s facial expression softened as he felt that what Ai Hui said made sense. It was not that they did not know the value of snowva, but rather, they were willing to use them in bulk.

    "That one then." Le Buleng pointed at the fire pool that Fatty was in.

    Deep down, Ai Hui was wiping off the cold sweat on his forehead. Luckily, he had followed them over here.

    "We are moving to another location in a few days¡¯ time. Uncle Le, do you mind waiting for a few days?" Shi Xueman asked.

    "Moving to another location?" Le Buleng was slightly puzzled.

    "We have a newly-built city. The fire elemental energy there is much more vigorous and concentrated," Shi Xueman exined.

    "A newly-built city?" Le Buleng was shocked.

    Youngsters nowadays were bing more and more formidable. They could casually build a city just like that?

    "That¡¯s right, we have a capable earth elementalist who is specialized in building structures," Shi Xueman said. "It will take some time to travel over there. I¡¯m not sure whether or not it will affect Zu Yan¡¯s condition."

    Upon hearing these words, Le Buleng said, "We will start when we arrive at the new city then. Prepare enough snowva by then. Once Zu Yan begins to absorb the fire elemental energy, the process can¡¯t be stopped halfway."

    "All right, we will put up less snowva for sale and make sure Zu Yan has enough snowva to use," Ai Hui quickly said.

    A satisfied look appeared on Le Buleng¡¯s face.

    Shi Xueman could not help but look at Ai Hui. This fellow... was indeed an evil businessman!

    Ai Hui seized the opportunity and asked, "Senior, can you teach us a thing or two? Do you mind giving us some pointers?"

    Le Buleng, who was feeling rather pleased now, said, "Xueman doesn¡¯t need me to give her any pointers. She will have a bright future if she continues on her path. As for you..."

    Le Buleng examined Ai Hui for a while and furrowed his eyebrows and said, "Your condition is much moreplicated."

    Everyone, including Shi Xueman, was shocked as nervous looks appeared on their faces. On the contrary, Ai Hui was calm. He was even in the mood tough. "Luckily, it¡¯splicated and not terrible."

    Le Buleng could see the facial expressions on everyone¡¯s face. He was surprised at the importance of Ai Hui in everyone¡¯s heart and by how calm Ai Hui was.

    Thisd was indeed interesting.

    Le Buleng nodded his head and said, "That¡¯s right, your condition isplicated, but not terrible. Is something forming at your earth pce?"

    "How does Senior know?" A look of surprise finally appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face.

    When he was making the breakthrough to Master, he had already sensed that something was developing in his earth pce. However, even now, there was nothing in his earth pce. This feeling had been bugging him all this time.

    Therefore, when Le Buleng analyzed his body, he was startled.

    "When your elemental energy flows past your earth pce, there is a very slight hesitation in its flow." Le Buleng looked as if he was recalling something and continued, "I have once encountered something like this, however, it did not happen to my earth pce. It happened more than 20 years ago. Hmm, what did I practice at that time? I can¡¯t really remember."

    "Can¡¯t really remember..." Ai Hui was stunned.

    How could someone not remember what he was practicing?

    The rest were stunned as well. They thought they heard Le Buleng wrongly.

    "I have tried to make the breakthrough to the level of Grandmaster eight times and failed every time. Every time I failed, I had to change my Path of Master and forget everything about my previous Path of Master. Therefore, how can I clearly remember what I used to practice?"

    Le Buleng¡¯s tone sounded as if he had downyed his experience. On the contrary, everyone was appalled by his experience. Even Shi Xueman was overwhelmed with shock.

    Whenever one failed to make the breakthrough to the level of Grandmaster, his mind and body would be severely traumatized and his base level would drastically fall. He would doubt his Path of Master as well. Many people could not walk out of the shadow of failing to be a Grandmaster for the rest of their lives.

    Even Yuchi Ba, who had failed breaking through to the level of Grandmaster in the past, only now had the courage to try again. Everyone was filled with admiration toward him.

    Whenever people talked about Le Buleng, they would sigh with sorrow. In many people¡¯s eyes, he was merely a backdrop who was used to amplify Dai Gang¡¯s glory.

    However, this man, who was treated like a backdrop by everyone, had tried to make the breakthrough to the level of Grandmaster eight times without anyone knowing!

    He had endured a life-transforming, once-in-a-lifetime agony eight times.

    Ai Hui was utterly shocked.

 Chapter 479: Madman Le Buleng

    Chapter 479: Madman Le Buleng

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp was silent. Only Le Buleng¡¯s voice could be heard.

    "I don¡¯t know what pointers I can give you. I never practiced the power of lightning before, and I don¡¯t really understand it. I can only give a rough ount of how I train. I hope this can be of some help to you."

    Le Buleng looked as if he was recalling something. However, most of time, he looked indifferent, as if he was chit-chatting about ordinary daily life. At this point in time, his tone became much more gentle. "I can¡¯t really remember much about my past. Thest time I failed, it was five years ago, around the time when the blood catastrophe broke out. Thest time I failed, the oue wasn¡¯t really that bad. Only my Path of Master was destroyed."

    Path of Master destroyed... the result wasn¡¯t really that bad...

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Is there an oue that is worse than this?"

    "Yes." Le Buleng nodded his head. "There was a time where I was severely injured and in a desert. Six of my pces were destroyed, so I couldn¡¯t move at all. My elemental energy waspletely depleted as well. Iid in the desert for five days without encountering anyone. Subsequently, I was discovered by a colony of white ants and half of my left arm was bitten off. Luckily, my bones were intact. At that moment, I still thought I was going to die. Haha. Fortunately, a huge sand storm arrived and saved my life. I was buried under a sand dune for... four or six months? I have forgotten about it. However, at that time, I managed toe up with the [Cold Embers] and [Earth Elemental Inverse mes] techniques. Ultimately, I made a gain."

    When Le Buleng talked about training, he seemed to have be an entirely different person. His skinny and dried face loosened up and looked as if it was giving off radiance. His aged eyes became sharp and bright.

    "At that moment, I was actually going to lose consciousness, but I wanted to survive. Suddenly, I thought of how embers could sustain for a long period of time without being extinguished. I didn¡¯t think too much at that time. All I wanted to do was to buy more time for myself. I didn¡¯t expect my idea to be so useful. After another two months, I finally regained some of my elemental energy. With my surroundings covered in sand, I could not absorb any fire elemental energy. Therefore, I had to think of another idea. Finally, I was able toe up with [Earth Elemental Inverse mes]. It took me another few more months to recover."

    Ai Hui looked nkly at Le Buleng. He could not imagine himself being severely injured with his arm bitten off by white ants while buried under a sand dune for several months.

    Ai Hui was considered an individual that had been through hardship. He had built up his endurance through the time he spent in the Wilderness. This had given him an extremely huge advantage. His training intensity had always been very high. The elementalists in Sword of Lightning were tortured by him to the point that they were going to copse.

    However, he still paled inparison to Senior Le Buleng.

    Le Buleng became very talkative when he talked about training. He waspletely different from the cold and reticent old fogey from before. He did not even need other people to liven the conversation.

    "Subsequently, I found a Path of Master through [Cold Embers] and [Earth Elemental Inverse mes]. However, that Path of Master was not good enough and I failed in making a breakthrough to the level of Grandmaster." Le Buleng shook his head, looking as if he hade to a dead end. Then, he continued, "Oh, oh, oh, we were talking about five years ago just now. Five years ago, when I failed, I quickly began to think of an idea. However, before I coulde up with an idea, the Elders Guild was ipetent and lost the Fire Prairie. By that point, I knew it would be troublesome to obtain fire elemental materials in the future. Ordinary methods definitely would not work. Then, I thought of a new method."

    Everyone was listening to Le Buleng attentively. A chance to hear an exceptional elite like Senior Le Buleng talk about his training path was hard toe by.

    Sitting in the fire reservoir, Faty could not help but ask, "What method?"

    Fatty¡¯s form of respect and admiration toward Le Buleng was different from the others. He also felt that the old fogey was rather formidable, but treated him like a storyteller as well. When he heard the story reached a critical junction, he could not restrain himself.

    Le Buleng was not annoyed by Fatty¡¯s question. Instead, he asked Fatty cheekily, "You¡¯re also a fire elementalist. Can you guess what the method was?"

    Fatty did not expect the old fogey to throw the ball back at him. However, when he saw the cheeky look on the old fogey¡¯s face, he was annoyed. Fatty snorted, "Without the Fire Prairie, you can¡¯t use the ordinary methods. Five years ago, the Wilderness Expansion Order had not been announced yet, so it has nothing to do with the Wilderness. Just now you mentioned that your base level had copsed and you had to re-cultivate your elemental energy. At that time, the only source that could produce an endless amount of fire elemental energy was..."

    Fatty muttered to himself for a while. Suddenly, his eyes lit up and he said, "I know! The sun!"

    Le Buleng was stunned. He had not expected Fatty to be able toe up with the answer. He could not help but examine Fatty closely. Fatty¡¯s aptitude was rather good, but his strength still paled inparison to Zu Yan.

    When Fatty saw the facial expression of Le Buleng, he knew he had guessed correctly. Feeling immensely proud of himself, he said, "How hard can such an easy question be?"

    At this moment, everyone suddenly realized what was going on. Fatty was right. The sun was able to produce an endless amount of fire elemental energy.

    "But isn¡¯t the fire elemental energy from the sun weak?" Shi Xueman felt puzzled.

    People had tried using the fire elemental energy from the sun to train a long time ago, but the fire elemental energy from the sun was extremely weak, making it very difficult for one train with it. Byparison, the fire elemental energy fromva in volcanoes was easier to absorb and use.

    "The fire elemental energy from the sun is indeed very weak. Ordinary methods definitely will not work," Le Buleng replied. "However, I know where the fire elemental energy from the sun would be very strong."

    "Where?" Fatty asked.

    "The depths of the sky."

    Hiss. Everyone drew in a breath of cold air.

    The depths of the sky was an extremely dangerous ce. A moment of carelessness would cause one to be shredded to smithereens. Even with Ai Hui and Shi Xueman¡¯s current strength, they could not survive long in the depths of the sky.

    "I thought Senior¡¯s base level had copsed? With the strength of a Master, how could you ascend to the depths of the sky?" Sang Zhijun interrupted.

    "I am familiar with that ce. That ce might seem dangerous, but once you get used to it, it¡¯s not that dangerous. Of course, it was rather painful at the beginning. Subsequently, it got better."

    At this point in time, everyone was filled with immense admiration for Le Buleng. Le Buleng¡¯s perseverance and zealotry far exceeded their expectations. If one went to the depths of the sky without attaining the level of Master first, he or she would most likely die. Shi Xueman, who had been to the depths of the sky under the protection of her master, clearly knew that the danger of that ce had been downyed by Le Buleng.

    Even if one had rich experience, the amount of pain that his or her body had to withstand remained the same.

    "This time around, the Path of Master that I came up with was the [Grandmaster Obliteration mes]." Le Buleng¡¯s eyes flickered, looking as if there were mes burning within them. "At that time, I felt that I had a high chance of bing a Grandmaster. Before me, no one was able to utilize the sun to such a level. My [Grandmaster Obliteration mes] technique is unique."

    Le Buleng¡¯s tone was proud and domineering, but everyone was filled with admiration toward him.

    The name "Grandmaster Obliteration mes" could cause one¡¯s heart to palpitate in fear. mes that could obliterate a Grandmaster!

    Le Buleng suddenly shifted his gaze to Ai Hui and said with a deep voice, "Your lightning is also very unique. I have seen your sword pagodas, and they are very interesting. However,ing up with sword pagodas is not enough. You have to reach your full potential! Right now, you¡¯re like a sissy. Look at your training programs. What kind of bullsh*t are they?"

    Le Buleng¡¯s ruthless words suddenly pelted Ai Hui in his face, stunning everyone.

    At the next moment, everyone¡¯s facial expression changed. Ai Hui might appear cheeky all the time, but his temperament was actually absolutely terrible. He was someone that was amenable to coaxing, but not coercion!

    However, the thing that caused them to be dumbstruck was when Ai Hui bowed respectfully and said, "Senior, thank you for your pointers!"

    Le Buleng did not smile just because Ai Hui treated him with respect. Instead, he knitted his eyebrows and said, "I have already given you the pointers that you need. It will have to depend on you, yourself, to determine what to do next. Your path is different from others. No one can teach you anything."

    When Le Buleng recalled that his disciple still had to work under Ai Hui, he stopped in his tracks, nced at Ai Hui, and said, "I feel that you¡¯re like me: someone who has desire. My desire is to be a Grandmaster and defeat Dai Gang. I don¡¯t know what your desire is and whether it is easier or harder to achieve than mine, but if you have a desire, you have to be hard on yourself. Mediocrity is not enough to make your desiree true."

    Ai Hui¡¯s body trembled.

    "I will leave Zu Yan here. I need to go and train now," Le Buleng turned around and told Shi Xueman.

    After Le Buleng finished his sentence, he flew up and disappeared into the sky.

    Everyone was at a loss. Le Buleng¡¯s words gave them a huge shock. No one expected Le Buleng, who had been regarded by many as a loser, to be so tenacious.

    Yes, he was tenacious.

    Even now, Le Buleng had not be a Grandmaster, and he was still a loser who had yet to seed. In the future, after many years had passed, everyone would still remember Dai Gang, but no one would remember that Le Buleng failed eight times to break through to the Grandmaster level.

    Yet, his failure to be a Grandmaster did not stop the crowd from respecting and revering him at all.

    Ai Hui was still at a loss. His mind was filled with the words that Le Buleng had just said.

    When the others saw Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression, a look of pity appeared on their faces. In their eyes, Ai Hui was already very hard on himself. He trained without knowing what fatigue felt like. He was perfect in the diligence department. No ordinary individual could train crazily and recklessly like Le Buleng.

    Le Buleng was a madman!

    Jiang Wei and the rest were about to console Ai Hui, but were stopped by Shi Xueman. They looked at Shi Xueman, and she shook her head at them.

    Ai Hui stood there with a nk look on his face.

    .....

    On the ridge of the ckfish Mouth Volcano, there was a huge quagmire that had a diameter of a few miles.

    The exhausted Wang Xiaoshanid in a pool of mud with half of his face submerged. He was panting heavily, and his mind was nk. He looked at the sky with emptiness in his eyes.

    Every now and then, the ck volcanic plume from the ckfish Mouth Volcano would drift past the azure sky in his eyes.

    His elemental energy and physical strength werepletely depleted.

    He was single-handedly building a city. Wang Xiao¡¯s face twitched with bitter agony.

    He had overestimated himself.

    Everyone had relied on him.

    With his physical strengthpletely depleted, his mind drifted like the volcanic plume in the sky. Suddenly, he thought of the day in the Garden of Life when Ai Hui led them to avoid the blood fiends.

    "Who is an earth elementalist?"

    He would never forget the question that Ai Hui asked on that day for the rest of his life. That moment was the turning point of his life. They hid under the rocks and soil, waiting for their reinforcements to arrive in the darkness. No one knew Wang Xiaoshan was feeling more touched than fearful. That was the first time he had realized that he was capable of helping other people.

    Fast forward to the present day, he was very d that he could be together with everyone.

    Countless times, he would think about how lucky it was for a useless man like him to survive the blood catastrophe.

    Patter.

    A drop of pea-sized rain fell on his face. Extreme pain spread over his face.

    More and more raindrops fell on his face. Soon, torrents of rain fell from the sky. He could not even open his eyes.

    It was painful...

    Suddenly, the image of Ai Hui kneeling before the graves of Han Yuqin and Wang Shouchuan amid the torrential rain in Central Pine City appeared in his mind.

    It must be very painful...

    The grief and shame from that day gushed into his mind. He remembered he had told himself that day, Wang Xiaoshan, you must be able to help everyone in the future.

    Raindrops fell on his face with a scorching sensation.

    From an unknown source, a surge of strength gushed through Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s body. He struggled to pick himself up and build his city amid the rain.

 Chapter 480: The Secret Mission of The Three Central Divisions

    Chapter 480: The Secret Mission of The Three Central Divisions

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "Le Buleng?"

    Madam Ye knitted her eyebrows. Nowadays, her authority was absolute. A slight movement in her eyebrows caused the atmosphere of the meeting room to instantly dim. Guards and servants around her were scared out of their wits and lowered their heads.

    Even Nian Tingfeng was vexed by her action. With a low voice, he reported, "Yes. Le Buleng has a disciple named Zu Yan. He is a member of the fire elemental Zu family. Reportedly, Le Buleng is there for Zu Yan. As for snowva, it is a rare A-grade fire liquid from Central Pine Valley. I don¡¯t know what deal have they made, but Le Buleng does not seem like he is leaving anytime soon. Meanwhile, Ai Hui¡¯s Sword of Lighting is bing rather powerful. We can¡¯t underestimate itsbat power."

    "Oh, what do you mean by we can¡¯t underestimate itsbat power?" Madam Ye asked calmly.

    Nian Tingfeng recounted the scouting report clearly to Madam Ye.

    Madam Ye¡¯s facial expression tensed. She came from a family of swordsmen and knew how powerful the sword gleam was from its description. However, when she heard that Sword of Lightning only had 300 people, her facial expression loosened up. "They have too few people. I heard that Ai Hui is an extremely stingy individual. He isn¡¯t even willing to hire more elementalists for hisbat division?"

    "I think he wanted to hire more, but was unable to do so." Nian Tingfeng exined, "Nowadays, most of the swordsmene from Karakorum. Other than those desperate fire elementalists, no one is willing to go to such an isted ce. Furthermore, no one dares to pursue a fellow who keeps talking about lightning."

    300 men were far too few for abat division, unless they were the Dread Division.

    Even with the assets of the entire Avalon of Five Elements, only one Dread Division was formed. However, even the Dread Division had 500 men, not 300. How could Central Pine Valley¡¯s strength bepared to the entire Avalon of Five Elements? Even if these 300 men were hand-picked elites, the division wouldn¡¯t be very powerful.

    If the elementalists weren¡¯t powerful and they were so small in number, what fighting capabilities would thebat division have then?

    Madam Ye did not take Ai Hui seriously.

    The three central divisions were built by the Elders Guild with all its might. A countless amount of resources and money were spent, and generations of research were conducted. Even when the Avalon of Five Elements was at its peak, it couldn¡¯t build a fourth central division. Right now, Beyond Avalon could only depend on its leftover assets to survive. Even Beyond Avalon couldn¡¯t build another powerfulbat division, let alone Ai Hui, who had zero assets.

    However, Le Buleng was a troublesome individual.

    Madam Ye and Nian Tingfeng clearly knew how troublesome Le Buleng was. This fellow¡¯s strength was the highest among all Masters in the Avalon of Five Elements. Other than Grandmaster Dai, no one dared to say they were confident in defeating Le Buleng.

    Furthermore, this fellow was reckless and never listened to orders. Otherwise, he would not have left his position as the division leader of the Icy mes Division.

    Le Buleng was bad-tempered and unreasonable.

    Everyone thought this madman had died after not hearing about him for so many years. They had not expected him to appear out of nowhere and spoil their ns.

    After thinking for a while, Madam Ye said, "Ask your men to retreat first. We won¡¯t provoke this madman for the time being. As long as we don¡¯t provoke him, he won¡¯t go crazy. When Father-inw was still alive, he said that even though Le Buleng is carefree, he has a deep sentimental attachment for the Avalon of Five Elements. It is no coincidence that Le Buleng appeared at this point in time."

    "What does Madam mean?" Nian Tingfeng was slightly surprised.

    Suddenly, Madam Ye revealed a confident smile and said, "Who do you think Le Buleng¡¯s target is?"

    As the division leader of Surveince, Nian Tingfeng knew a lot more insider stories than the other people. After thinking for a while, he understood what was going on and replied with excitement, "Dai Gang!"

    Those who were slightly older clearly knew about the grudges between Le Buleng and Dai Gang.

    "If I¡¯m not wrong, Le Buleng is Grandmaster An Muda¡¯s backup n to stop Dai Gang from annexing Beyond Avalon. Now, he is conveniently taking care of Shi Xueman." Madam Yeughed.

    "What about us?" Nian Tingfeng¡¯s eyes lit up.

    "We shouldn¡¯t disturb them. Even if Le Buleng can¡¯t stop Dai Gang, he can significantly exhaust Dai Gang¡¯s strength. As for Central Pine Valley, Shi Xueman is the daughter of Shi Beihai. How could she bear to ignore the perilous situation her father is in? If Ai Hui agrees to help her father out, then all of them will head toward the battlefield. Ha, but what can 300 people do? If Ai Hui disagrees, Central Pine Valley will face bitter dissension."

    "Madam is wise!" Nian Tingfeng eximed with sincerity.

    Madam Ye withdrew her smile and said with a solemn tone, "This period of time is very important to us. We definitely can¡¯t make any mistakes. What are Ximen Caijue¡¯s and Wan Shenwei¡¯s stances?"

    "This subordinate is useless!" A shameful look appeared on Nian Tingfeng¡¯s face.

    A cold glint shed across Madam Ye¡¯s eyes. With an indifferent tone, she said, "This is not your fault. Each man has his own aspirations. We can¡¯t force them to do something they don¡¯t like. However, they have been well cared for by the Elders Guilds for generations and should at least show me some sincerity. I heard that the three central divisions have methods that are specially designed to deal with Grandmasters?"

    Overwhelmed with shock, Nian Tingfeng¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. He had not expected for Madam Ye to know about such a top-level secret!

    A jittery look appeared on Nian Tingfeng¡¯s face. Madam Ye merely smiled and did not hurry him for an answer.

    Nian Tingfeng regained hisposure. With a determined look on his face, he lowered his head and replied, "Yes, the three central divisions do have such strategies."

    A Grandmaster was a supreme being with extraordinary status.

    In reality, the ruler of the Avalon of Five Elements was the Elders Guild. The Elders Guild benefited from the existence of a Grandmaster, but they were simultaneously filled with fear toward him as well. The Elders Guild had always wanted to devise strategies to deal with a Grandmaster. Other than some additional special reasons, the three central divisions were stationed in the isted Old Territory to develop strategies that allowed them to deal with Grandmasters. This was also one of their most important missions.

    The Elders Guild hoped that they would have the capabilities to retaliate if they were one day at odds with a Grandmaster.

    Developing strategies to deal with Grandmasters was one of the most top secret missions of the three central divisions.

    Very few people knew about this mission. Usually, only the Great Elder would know about it. A Great Elder would pass this secret on to the next Great Elder before he died.

    Any Great Elder understood that if this secret was leaked out, the Grandmasters would definitely not tolerate the existence of the three central divisions.

    "Since this is their responsibility, tell them to properly make the necessary preparations," Madam Ye said inly.

    "Subordinate will pass down the order." Nian Tingfeng¡¯s chest tightened.

    .....

    When Le Buleng was finally informed that they would be heading to the new city, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    However, he quickly became slightly suspicious and asked, "Ai Hui and the rest are noting?"

    Shi Xueman shook her head and replied, "They are staying here to train since the sword pagodas are difficult to bring over to the new city. We will go over first."

    Le Buleng understood and did not ask any more questions.

    The movements of the members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud were sharp and precise. Even though they had not trained together for very long, they acted somewhat like a legitimatebat division. Their formations were neat and orderly, and they behaved with utmost propriety.

    "Like father, like daughter!" Le Buleng praised Shi Xueman.

    He was the previous division leader of the Icy mes Division. Even though he was uninterested in bing a division leader and was obsessed with training, he was still an expert in assembling and managing abat division. Right now, the strength of the Spear of Heavy Cloud had already surpassed that of an ordinarybat division. All they needed now was time andbat experience. Once the Spear of Heavy Cloud entered the battlefield, they would be polished into an elite unit.

    Its foundation and structure were indeed outstanding!

    He could not help but nce at the Sword of Lightning within the inner camp and feel pity for them. The Sword of Lightning was rather interesting with rather strong fighting capabilities. It was a pity that its numbers were too small.

    The Sword of Lightning seemed to be practicing a kind of sword formation.

    Le Buleng was not at all unfamiliar with sword formations. After all, he was a training fanatic who had changed his Path of Master eight times. he had delved into almost every field before.

    Sword formations were neitherplicated nor simple. The main logic behind a sword formation was that it gathered everyone¡¯s strength andbined them into one single attack.

    The number of people involved had a direct effect on the might of the sword formation. The strength of more than 10 people might look impressive, but it was insignificant when ced on the battlefield.

    Le Buleng had a rough gauge of the sword pagodas¡¯ strength after withstanding an attack from the Alkaid Sword Pagoda.

    Given The Sword of Lightning¡¯s current strength, Le Buleng felt that they were still not ready to enter the battlefield.

    Abat division should have at least a few thousand men. The strength of the elementalists in The Sword of Lightning wasn¡¯t really impressive, there weren¡¯t any Masters other than Ai Hui, and their numbers were extremely few. How could they enter the battlefield and fight?

    However, Le Buleng could tell that Ai Hui was an opinionated individual. Furthermore, there were many marvellous, yet mysterious principles in these sword pagodas. The important thing was, what did all of this have to do with him?

    With Le Buleng clearing the path ahead of the Spear of Heavy Cloud, the danger-ridden route had be a safe road.

    Shi Xueman and the rest witnessed Le Buleng¡¯s formidable strength with their own eyes. In the face of Le Buleng, those powerful dire beasts were like sheep waiting to be ughtered.

    When everyone recalled that Le Buleng trained in the depths of the sky, they could not help but feel relieved.

    If he could train effortlessly in the depths of the sky, the dire beasts on the ground would be as weak as chickens to him.

    The entire journey was like a marathon. Le Buleng kept on clearing the path and pushing forward at the front while Shi Xueman and her division ran frantically to catch up with him. Throughout the journey, they were constantly being mocked by Le Buleng.

    "Are you a division of tortoises? Even a tortoise crawls faster than all of you!"

    "A short journey like this and all of you are already tired? How can you fight on the battlefield with your pathetic stamina?"

    "All of you are too slow! I¡¯m bored waiting for you. I will go and survey the vicinity within 20 kilometers of us now. If you still can¡¯t catch up by then, I will find some ce to train first."

    ...

    Le Buleng kept on saying such words. Even a y figurine could be melted with mes, let alone the youngsters in the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Everyone restrained themselves from erupting.

    Run! Charge!

    The journey was initially seven days long, but through sheer effort, they managed to reach their destination on the afternoon of the third day.

    When Le Buleng saw the ckfish Mouth Volcano, his eyes lit up. "You found a good ce! Where is the new city?"

    "Once we pass the mountain ridge ahead, we will arrive at our destination," Shi Xueman replied.

    She had mentally prepared everyone that the living conditions of the new city would be bad. Everyone had this mental preparation. No one dared to be too hopeful that Wang Xiaoshan could build a city single-handedly in 15 days.

    Having a prototype of the city would be good enough. The most important thing was to have the training facilities finished. No one here was a spoiled and pampered brat after all.

    On the contrary, Le Buleng wasn¡¯t anxious at this moment. He followed beside Shi Xueman, looking rather excited. He could sense the abundance of fire elemental energy contained within the ckfish Mouth Volcano. However, he felt puzzled. Even though there was an abundance of fire elemental energy, the base level of the fire elemental energy wasn¡¯t really that high. How could they produce an A-grade fire liquid like the snowva?

    He was filled with curiosity toward Ai Hui and his counterparts.

    After they passed the mountain ridge, the wind in the air became stronger.

    A brand-new empty city was built along the mountain ridge, making thetter look as if it was decorated with jewels. Amid the strong wind, the new city glistened in the afterglow of the setting sun.

    The wind blowing in their direction contained the earthly scent of fresh soil.

    Le Buleng was stunned. He abruptly turned his head around and asked, "This city was built by one person?"

 Chapter 481: Getting Rid of The Internal Conflict

    Chapter 481: Getting Rid of The Internal Conflict

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The size of the new city was ratherrge. The original design had a capacity for 10,000 people. Rather than a city that could fit 10,000 people, it looked like an expansive army camp that could fit 10,000 people.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud, along with its reserves, had a total of 8,000 men. The size of the army camp was more than enough for them.

    When everyone walked into this brand-new army camp, they could not help but click their tongues in amazement.

    "It¡¯s amazing... I heard that it was built by one person?"

    "If I didn¡¯t see it for myself, I wouldn¡¯t have believed it."

    "Yes, this ce is so huge..."

    ...

    Every now and then, people would let a gasp of surprise. The roads were neat and straight, and the perimeter walls were orderly and upright. There were buildings with various functions, dazzling everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Le Buleng¡¯s interest was piqued. He squatted down and touched the solid floor. Whether it was the floor or the perimeter walls, he could not see any bricks being used. Everything was entirely made out of soil and then solidified using elemental energy. Le Buleng felt the floor with his hand and noticed that it was very sturdy and hard. Furthermore, it was unusually smooth and level as well. Clearly, it was built by an earth elementalist all in one go.

    Formidable!

    He eximed in admiration in his heart. Small details like these showed a lot about an elementalist¡¯s strength.

    Everything fit seamlessly. No wrinkles could be found on the street roads or the perimeter walls. These unremarkable details disyed the impressive strength of the builder.

    Of course, those slightly rich families would not use such a method to build their cities. They felt that this method would result in crude and ugly cities. They would only use this method when they needed to set up outdoor camps in the wild when they were travelling.

    An outdoor camp waspletely different from an army camp that could fit 10,000 people.

    There would be a difference in quality between a city that was built by a group of people and a city that was built single-handedly by one person.

    Le Buleng was slightly surprised. Even though he had not spent a long time with the Central Pine Faction, he had a feeling that it was packed with talents. Even before Le Buleng met the earth elementalist who single-handedly built the city, he could not help but give him an extremely high rating.

    An earth elementalist who was very likely to be a Master!

    Fortification Master?

    This profession might not have existed in the past, but Le Buleng wasn¡¯t someone that rigidly adhered to conventions. Instead, he thought highly of this profession. If a fort appeared out of thin air on the battlefield within a night, it would create a huge sensation throughout the world.

    Given Shi Xueman¡¯s capabilities, she could definitely take advantage of this new profession.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud had a bright future!

    He felt at ease when he thought of this. With Zu Yan following Shi Xueman, he no longer needed to worry about him in the future. He could set his mind at ease and focus on dealing with Dai Gang.

    When Le Buleng thought of Dai Gang, a battle fervor gushed through his body in an instant.

    Shi Xueman and the rest quickly found Wang Xiaoshan, who was sleeping soundly. The entire body of Wang Xiaoshan was covered in mud, making him looked like a homeless man. A respectful gaze appeared on everyone¡¯s faces as they subconsciously lightened their footsteps.

    Wang Xiaoshan deserved to be respected for building aplete city like this single-handedly. Even Le Buleng was speechless.

    When Shi Xueman saw Wang Xiaoshan sleeping soundly on the ground, she felt touched. She could tell that Wang Xiaoshan was extremely fatigued.

    Actually, Wang Xiaoshan did not have much of a presence in the team. He was mild mannered, gentle, amiable, and easygoing. No matter how much work he was given, he would earnestlyplete it.

    Wang Xiaoshan woke up feeling groggy and rubbed his eyes. When he saw that he was surrounded by so many people, he was scared out of his skin. He only heaved a sigh of relief when he saw familiar faces like Shi Xueman and Jiang Wei.

    Looking as if he med himself, he quickly responded, "Ah, Xueman, all of you are here already? I... I haven¡¯tpleted the city yet... The defense system isn¡¯t up yet..."

    "It is all right. The city is close to being perfect. Thank you, Xiaoshan!" Shi Xueman sincerely thanked him.

    "But..." Wang Xiaoshan replied with a worrying tone.

    Jiang Wei patted Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s shoulder and smiled, "There are so many of us here. If we still have to worry about our safety, then we aren¡¯t fit to enter the battlefield."

    Wang Xiaoshan finally rxed himself when he heard Jiang Wei¡¯s words. Immediately, his eyes became drowsy and he yawned. "Then I shall have a good sleep first. Don¡¯t wake me up, I¡¯m going to sleep until the end of time!"

    He was very tired. but satisfied at the same time.

    .....

    After Shi Xueman and Spear of Heavy Cloud had left, Lemon Camping Ground became cold and cheerless.

    When Sword of Lightning announced that it wouldn¡¯t be recruiting new members, everyone left Lemon Camping Ground one by one. Lemon Camping Ground was simply too small to support so many people.

    As such, Lemon Camping Ground returned to its previous deste state. The asional yells from the inner camp managed to create some liveliness.

    Since everyone¡¯s attitude toward training changed, the training efficiency increased sharply.

    Even though the training was boring, they weren¡¯t hard to execute. When Ai Hui chose the members for his division, he purposely chose those who could endure long and boring training sessions and could maintain focus for a long period of time.

    The considerations that Ai Hui had taken prior to the formation of the Sword of Lightning began to now disy their effects.

    Gu Xuan, who had the right attitude toward training, quickly entered into a zone. The Merak Sword Pagoda where he was stationed was second only to Ai Hui¡¯s Megrez Sword Pagoda. The Merak Sword Pagoda was the second tallest sword pagoda with eight levels in total.

    Every level, there were six men. The entire sword pagoda held up to 48 men.

    In reality, Gu Xuan had nevermanded more than five men before. He aspired to be a swordsman. What was a swordsman? A swordsman was a lone wolf who used his sword to slice through every problem.

    Gu Xuan finally found eptance when he regarded the sword pagoda as a sword formation. Even though he had never seen a sword formation like this, he was absolutely sure it was a sword formation when he saw the sword gleam from the Alkaid Sword Pagoda. It was a very powerful and pure sword formation.

    It was definitely not easy for 48 people to unleash the same sword move at the same time, but everyone still managed to do it after putting in effort. When 48 streaks of sword gleam were gathered together, the dense sword aura that shot through the sky excited him.

    He was the pagoda master and every sword gleam in the sword pagoda would gather at his position. As such, only a capable swordsman could take up the position of the pagoda master. Only a capable swordsman could make minute adjustments amid so many sword gleams.

    In Sword of Lightning, Gu Xuan¡¯s swordsmanship was second only to Ai Hui¡¯s. However, even so, the number of minute adjustments he was able to make was very few. There were a lot of times when he needed to depend on the coordination among his teammates.

    However, being a pagoda master had its benefits too.

    Since every sword gleam in the sword pagoda would gather at his position, the sword aura that he experienced would be concentrated and powerful. The first time he sessfully unleashed an attack from the sword pagoda, his mind went nk.

    To outsiders, this might not have any value, but to a swordsman, this was the best form of tempering his swordsmanship.

    Gu Xuan was pleasantly surprised. He had never given up on the sword path.

    Currently, the biggest problem that swordsmen faced in training was that there weren¡¯t any swordsmen left from the Cultivation Era.

    No one had a direct understanding of swordsmanship. Karakorum Sword League¡¯s sword formations were for beginners to gain a first direct impression of swordsmanship. What was a sword? What did a sword gleam look like?

    However, when a swordsman progressed to a higher level of swordsmanship, he or she would be at a loss again.

    What did a high-level sword gleam look like? No one had seen it before, so there was nothing to reference.

    The current sword pagodas were able to directly show Gu Xuan how a sword gleam looked when it became stronger. This chance was extremely hard toe by. A dense and concentrated sword aura was able to help Gu Xuan understand swordsmanship as well.

    One could imagine the joy Gu Xuan felt.

    Simrly, inside the Alkaid Sword Pagoda, Ai Hui immersed himself in the dense aura of sword gleams.

    The words Le Buleng said that day had a huge impact on him.

    Before that day, Ai Hui had always been hesitating. Le Buleng was able to carry out those crazy training programs because of his character and personality. Le Buleng could afford to be reckless and ce himself in dire situations.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t do that. He wasn¡¯t a loner and still had a bunch ofrades depending on him.

    Ai Hui was different from Le Buleng in the sense that he had more responsibilities.

    Everyone was different. Each person had his or her own path to walk.

    Subconsciously, Ai Hui would tell himself these words and restrain himself from doing anything reckless.

    Today, however, Ai Hui suddenly realized how wrong he was.

    Yes, he was the leader of the Central Pine Faction. Was making sure everyone survived his only responsibility? No. If that was his only goal, then all he needed to do was to lead them to the depths of Wilderness and stay in a corner.

    What was the point of doing that? Who would agree to that?

    Making sure everyone survived was not his only responsibility. He still had to lead them to seek revenge and obtain victory. In an era where Grandmasters reigned supreme, they would eventually fail if they did not have any Grandmasters.

    In the face of a Grandmaster, they did not have any chance of winning. Not only must he make sure everyone survived, but he had to aim to be a Grandmaster as well.

    If he did not, who else would?

    Either he died on the way to bing a Grandmaster or he died at the hands of a Grandmaster.

    One option was to fight for his life, while the other was to wait for his impending doom. It was obvious which option he was going to choose.

    After getting rid of his internal conflict, Ai Hui felt an indescribable relief. For a very long period of time, he felt like he was walking on thin ice and trembling with fear. He was afraid that if he made one wrong move, everyone would be consigned to eternal damnation.

    Ai Hui was filled with admiration toward Le Buleng.

    Le Buleng was widely known to be a stubborn, intolerant, and crazy individual. Most people ignored his wisdom andposure. Whether it was the [Cold Embers], [Earth Elemental Inverse me], or [Grandmaster Obliteration mes] technique, all of them disyed the creativity of a genius.

    Le Buleng might appear to be crazy, but in reality, he was actually extremely calm.

    This was the scariest part about Le Buleng.

    An individual that was stubborn, determined, crazy, and intelligent was a formidable freak. Even so, Le Buleng was still suppressed by Dai Gang throughout his life.

    Ai Hui could not imagine how powerful Dai Gang actually was.

    Was a Grandmaster really that powerful?

    Ai Hui took in a deep breath of air and threw all the distracting thoughts out of his head. He then focused on his restless earth pce.

    With Le Buleng¡¯s reminder, Ai Hui paid a lot of attention to any abnormal movements in his earth pce. While training with the sword pagoda, Ai Hui discovered that every time the sword gleams gathered, his earth pce would somewhat react.

    It was sensitive the the aura of a sword gleam.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted as he suddenly thought about the sword embryo he used to have.

    He quickly discovered that even though the most powerful sword aura currently produced could make his earth pce restless, that was all it could do. It seemed that the sword aura was not powerful enough.

    Perhaps, he should consider other methods?

    Le Bulengined that Ai Hui¡¯s sword pagodas were not powerful enough, that they were useless on a battlefield. In reality, Ai Hui had already prepared for this problem. All along, he had not nned to use the seven pagodas on the battlefield. He had a n: Big Dipper Seven Swords, Combining the Seven Swords Into One!

 Chapter 482: Get Ready! Raise Your Swords!

    Chapter 482: Get Ready! Raise Your Swords!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Mu Lei was lost in thought. They had not encountered many obstacles along the way.

    The Lu Residence¡¯s old butler, Uncle She, followed along on this trip as well. This showed how much the Lu Residence valued this trip. With Uncle She¡¯s presence, the mayors of cities along the way presented them with gifts and favors. Some even sent their men to escort them for some distance. No one dared to offend the Lu Residence at this point in time.

    An Muda would not live for much longer. It was still unknown whether or not Madam Ye could withstand Dai Gang. If one day Dai Gang was to annex Beyond Avalon, those who offended the Lu Residence would definitely note to a good.

    As for those petty bandits, the moment Mu Lei released his aura, they were scared witless and ran away.

    If not for Lu Chen¡¯s request, Mu Lei wouldn¡¯t have wanted to travel so far just to escort some goods. Lu Chen had saved his life before , hence there was no way he could reject this request.

    He squinted his eyes as he sat in the bone basin on the load basin beast¡¯s back. His body was covered by a glossy brown, silk-like hide that swayed along at the load basin beast¡¯s pace.

    As sunlight sprinkled over Mu Lei¡¯s brown hide, it gave offyers of gorgeous luster. Mu Lei¡¯s body did not give off the slightest bit of death aura. At this moment, he resembled azy cat.

    The rest of the convoy tried their best not to make any noise. Mu Lei was not in a good mood.

    After a while, a scout returned and reported to Uncle She in a whisper. After Uncle She finished listening to the report, he went to Mu Lei and said, "Master Mu, Lemon Camping Ground is right in front."

    "Oh." Mu Lei slowly opened his eyes, sat up straight, and gazed into the distance.

    A simple and crude camp appeared on the distant horizon. All he could see was a vague silhouette that looked like a scar on the horizon. If one didn¡¯t have a sharp eyesight or look closely, he or she would not have discovered the camping ground.

    Such a simple and crude camp.

    He was slightly disappointed.

    Along the way, they had heard a lot of news about Lemon Camping Ground. Most of the news came from elementalists who were returning from Lemon Camping Ground. Uncle She paid a lot of attention to this news. He spared no expense and obtained a lot of information.

    What they heard the most were praises for the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Every elementalist that they encountered returning from Lemon Camping Ground praised this division to high heaven. They did not even feel sad for not being chosen to join thebat division.

    However, the evaluations of the Sword of Lightning were of two extremes. Some felt that Ai Hui truly lived up to the name of Lightning de foring up with something that people had never seen before. However, more people felt that the Sword of Lightning was merely mystifying things on purpose.

    Due to the fact that the Sword of Lightning only had 300 men, almost everyone showed disdain for it.

    No one, however, dared to mock Ai Hui.

    No matter what, Ai Hui was the first Lightning Master, and his status was legitimate. Le Buleng could mock and criticize Ai Hui, but not others. What made them think that they were qualified to do so?

    Le Buleng¡¯s sudden appearance had sparked off heated discussions as well. After being missing for so many years, everyone thought he had died, and no one expected for him to still be alive. In the past, a lot of people had not understood why the family head of the Zu family would ce Zu Yan in the hands of Le Buleng.

    Now, they could see how wise the family head of the Zu family had been in making this decision. As the sole surviving heir of the Zu family, Le Buleng would never abandon Zu Yan no matter what difficulties he faced.

    In the eyes of ordinary individuals, Le Buleng¡¯s strength was so-so, but he was definitely a good master who valued rtionships more than anything else.

    Only someone like Mu Lei, who had been a reputable Master for so many years, knew how formidable and ruthless Le Buleng was. As such, when he heard that Le Buleng was in Lemon Camping Ground, he involuntarily became energized. He finally rxed after he heard that Le Buleng had left along with the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Among the current generation of Masters, Le Buleng was one of the few that everyone feared and did not want to face.

    Everyone knew that Le Buleng desired to defeat Dai Gang. Initially, all of them mocked him for overestimating his own capabilities, but eventually, no one dared to ridicule him anymore. In the face of Dai Gang, Mu Lei did not even dare to think about going up against him. Le Buleng, however, did not fear Dai Gang or give up on going up against him.

    Everyone understood that Le Buleng might not be Dai Gang¡¯s match, but his strength was the closest to Dai Gang¡¯s out of everyone in the world.

    "We shall go over then. Everyone, ready up," Mu Lei said inly.

    Actually, even without Mu Lei¡¯s reminder, the rest of the convoy had already readied up. Everyone had travelled a long distance for this journey, and all of them were exhausted. As such, now that they were about to reach their destination, they were very excited. However, when they saw the simple and crude camp in the distance, their hearts sank.

    The Lu Residence was almighty in the Jadeite Forest, so their servants experienced luxurious lives. They were extremely disappointed to havee to a dpidated camp after travelling such a long distance.

    Uncle She knew what was going on. With a cold look on his face, he reprimanded the servants, "All of you better prepare yourselves and be well-behavedter. Everyone should know of the Lu Residence¡¯s rules. Those who create trouble for me will not be going back."

    A cold shiver went down everyone¡¯s spine as they withdrew the irreverent look on their faces.

    Uncle She¡¯s position in the Lu Residence was extremely high. He was one of few that the family head trusted deeply.

    This time around, for the sake of safety, he had handpicked the guards. More than 10 of the guards were from the Lu Residence, while the rest were from the Lu Residence¡¯s vassal enterprise. He knew all of their profiles clearly. Before they set off on this trip, they had been reminded that those who did not obey Uncle She¡¯smands would be severely punished.

    Given Uncle She¡¯s status and age, he shouldn¡¯t have traveled on this long and arduous journey.

    However, he volunteered himself for it since he was very grateful to Ai Hui. If not for Ai Hui, Mingxiu would have met with mishap while making her breakthrough to Master. Furthermore, Ai Hui had be the first ever Lightning Master. This achievement put him on par with Karakorum Pris.

    Ai Hui had already be a Master, and his strength would keep on improving as time passed.

    To ordinary individuals, a Master was an eminent entity and a goal that everyone worked hard toward for their entire lives. However, to those aristocratic families, a Master was merely the starting point of an expert¡¯s journey.

    Bing a Master was merely the beginning of the path of an expert.

    Only by first bing a Master could one strive to be a Grandmaster. This was a long and bitter war. In every era, there were countless geniuses, but only a small handful of them could be Grandmasters.

    Ai Hui deserved to be valued by the Lu Residence.

    At this moment, Mu Lei suddenly let out a yelp as a startled look appeared on his face.

    He was not the only one. Uncle She and the rest of the convoy were overwhelmed with shock.

    The atmosphere within Lemon Camping Ground¡¯s inner camp was tense.

    They were going to try tobine seven swords into one for the first time. This was also the first time they were practicing this kind of technique.

    It was only yesterday that Gu Xuan and the rest learned that the sword gleams from the seven sword pagodas couldbine together!

    Everyone in the Sword of Lightning felt an indescribable excitement.

    The sword gleams from the Megrez Sword Pagoda and the Merak Sword Pagoda were already far more powerful than they had expected. If theybined the seven sword gleams into one, how powerful would that be?!

    If they could execute it, the result would be overwhelming!

    However, the difficulty ofbining seven sword gleams into one was extremely high and simrly overwhelming.

    The shortest sword pagoda was three levels high, while the tallest sword pagoda was nine levels high. The seven sword pagodas had 42 levels and there were six men per level, adding up to 252 men in total. Previously, everyone wasughing at the fact that 252 was two more than 250. This was such an "auspicious" number.

    (In Chinese, a stupid person is known as 252 while "2" means stupid. Therefore, they areughing at the fact that they are more stupid than a stupid person.)

    The 252 men needed to be united in action and unleash their swords at the same time. One could imagine the difficulty of achieving this feat.

    "Get ready!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t loud, but it exploded in everyone¡¯s ears like a sudden p of thunder. Everyone braced themselves and concentrated their attention. The repetitive training had made them unusually proficient.

    "Raise your swords."

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯smand, all the elementalists raised their swords at the same time.

    Five sword pagodas lit up with a faint glow, but there were two sword pagodas that had not reacted at all. Eventually, the five sword pagodas rapidly dimmed as well.

    Failure!

    Even though all of them were mentally prepared for failure, they still did not feel good when they failed.

    The pagoda masters who led the two sword pagodas that had not lit up had their faces darken. They had to restrain themselves from cursing roundly.

    "We will try again after taking a break."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice was like a basin of cold water that sshed over their heads, dousing the frustration they felt.

    .....

    Phew.

    Mu Lei subconsciously heaved a sigh of relief. Just now, the crude and dpidated Lemon Camping Ground had suddenly be a horrifying monster that woke up for a split second.

    How long had it been since he had experienced such fear and trepidation?

    A simr sigh of relief rang across Mu Lei¡¯s ears, and he awoke with a start. When he turned around and realized it was Uncle She, his tense mind loosened up as he regained hisposure. To his astonishment, he realized that ayer of cold sweat had formed on his back.

    With a pale face, Uncle She asked with bewilderment, "Master Mu, what was that just now?"

    Mu Lei dared not be disrespectful to this old butler. The servants of a powerful family were as mighty as their family head. An old butler like Uncle She held a very high position in the Lu Residence. Furthermore, Uncle She had been very respectful to him throughout the whole trip.

    Mu Lei shook his head and replied, "I¡¯m not sure. I have never encountered such an aura before. Look at the clouds in the sky."

    Uncle She followed Mu Lei¡¯s finger and looked at the sky. When he discovered that there was a hole in theyer of clouds above Lemon Camping Ground, he was shocked. "Don¡¯t tell me it was caused by that aura?"

    "That¡¯s right." Mu Lei had a solemn look on his face. "It was caused by that aura. I have never seen such a cold and dangerous aura. I wonder who it is from?"

    "Master Mu, what do you think we should do next?" Uncle She looked at Mu Lei and asked.

    Mu Lei was abat elementalist and the only Master in the convoy. For anything that had to do withbat, Uncle She would let Mu Lei take charge. This was why the both of them had been so amiable throughout the whole journey.

    "Is it possible that Le Buleng hasn¡¯t left yet? We should go and take a look first. No matter who it is, it¡¯s unlikely he or she will be hostile toward us," Mu Lei replied with a deep voice.

    From his perspective, the only person who could unleash such a powerful aura was Le Buleng. However, whether or not it was Le Buleng, no one would dare to be hostile toward them.

    Uncle She felt that what Mu Lei said made sense and regained hisposure. He replied, "Let¡¯s go and take a look then."

    They spent a lot of time and energy to make the convoy move again. Many load basin beasts were rmed by what had just urred. As such, the guards had to exert much effort to pacify the beasts before the convoy could move forward again.

    .....

    After taking a break, everyone in the Sword of Lightning had rxed and their frustration had significantly lessened.

    The more you hurry, the less progress you¡¯re likely to make. This was what Ai Hui had learned from the past few days. Whenever everyone felt frustrated, giving them a break could yield better results.

    "Get ready."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice quieted down the seven sword pagodas. Everyone held their breath in deep concentration.

    "Raise your swords!"

    Two sword pagodas failed to light up.

    Failure.

    .....

    The convoy that travelled toward Lemon Camping Ground was still traumatized by the previous incident. The guards whispered and discussed the terrifying aura.

    Suddenly, the same aura appeared once again without warning.

    The pacified load basin beasts neighed in fear and fled in disarray, causing the entire convoy to descend into chaos.

    Mu Lei¡¯s heart tightened. However, when he discovered that nothing approached them, he regained a bit ofposure.

    Uncle She¡¯s face nched. He quickly ordered his henchmen, "Pull them back. Quickly pull them back... There is still one more load basin beast there."

    After a while, the convoy regrouped. Uncle She looked at Mu Lei.

    "Continue forward," Mu Lei ordered through clenched teeth.

    The seven sword pagodas.

    "Get ready!"

    "Raise your swords!"

    ...

    The convoy descended into chaos.

    ...

    "Get ready!"

    "Raise your swords!"

    ...

    The front legs of the load basin beasts gave way, copsing onto the ground.

    ...

    Mu Lei¡¯s face turned ashen.

 Chapter 483: Seven Swords As One

    Chapter 483: Seven Swords As One

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Mu Lei almost thought that someone was ying tricks on them.

    That journey of a few meters was practically a nightmare. They walked, stopped, and repeated this over and over again.

    "Could it be that Senior Le Buleng was testing some moves? Why else would such a strange scene appear?" he muttered to himself.

    It was not until they got closer to Lemon Camping Ground that they noticed the crowd outside and gasped in surprise. These people from the inner camp who¡¯d been frightened by the ripples produced during Sword of Lightning¡¯s training and had ran out of the camping ground.

    After a short while, they started adapting, but remained far away, waiting for the training within the inner camp to end.

    Mu Lei had a sharp sense of hearing and was attracted by the conversation between some men.

    "This Sword of Lightning is actually quite powerful. I¡¯m scared witless. These energy waves... the waves are too violent."

    "Yeah, it¡¯s simply life-threatening. I feel as if my life span was shortened by a few years because of this."

    "What to do? It¡¯s the Sword of Lightning."

    "Aye, how can they even stay in such a lousy camping ground? It doesn¡¯t do justice to their identity, does it?"

    "Will they continue training like this for the whole day?"

    "Will they keep training like this in the future?

    The two looked at each other, their faces turning ugly as they figured out the answer. Just thinking about how they were going to have to live amid this horrifying atmosphere made them both put their hands behind their heads.

    "Oh no!"

    "Oh god!"

    ...

    Mu Lei heard their conversation and fell into a daze. Sword of Lightning? So the Sword of Lightning was training? Could it be Ai Hui? He was startled. Had Ai Hui already reached such a level?

    On second thought, things seemed off. The aura and elemental energy waves weren¡¯t things a newly ascended Master could produce. This was also the reason why he¡¯d guessed that the disturbance was due to Le Buleng. Only someone as strong as him could stir up such astonishing elemental energy waves.

    There was only one remaining possibility. There must be something rted to sword formations going on inside.

    After all, Mu Lei was a powerfulbatant who¡¯d seen the world. His guesses were often correct. Sword of Lightning... one could tell from its name the characteristics of thisbat division.

    But... Sword of Lightning¡¯s production of such intense disturbances and terrifying aura meant that Mu Lei would need to reevaluate the abilities of thisbat division.

    He dared not to confirm thebat division¡¯sbat strength, but had a feeling that it was more powerful than rumored.

    Uncle Yu¡¯s face was pale. He was old and had less strength. The pressure he had to endure was huge in the face of such might.

    Ai Hui was Miss¡¯s junior and had even saved her life. He was as good as family.

    It was a pity that Shi Xueman was by his side, or else Ai Hui would also be a good candidate for the family¡¯s son-inw.

    He still felt worried over everyone¡¯s disapproval of Sword of Lightning. While Ai Hui was a Master, he was indeed a new hand when it came to handling abat division.

    By now, his worried heart had calmed. Although the aura from the camping ground made him feel quite burdened, to the point where his face was white, he couldn¡¯t help but smile.

    By his side, the guards from the Lu Residence had the same terrified look on their faces.

    As they approached the camping ground the mighty aura became more terrifying. When they neared the camping ground, they felt something entirely different.

    Uncle Yu turned around and looked at the guards, noticing that one was sprawled on the ground, gasping with his face in the grass and his body trembling nonstop.

    "Zheng Xiao! Stand up! Look at you, wouldn¡¯t all of us be dead if we depend on you when we encounter bandits?" Uncle Yu chided jokingly.

    Zheng Xiao had been rmended by a vassal enterprise. He was delicate, righteous-looking, and had decent abilities. The enterprise had begun to emphasize nurturing, so they rmended him, but they had not expected him to be this timid.

    Uncle Yu reproached him, but was in reality very encouraging. He had always been more tolerant toward youths. Courage had to be trained, and it wasn¡¯t a big deal for youths to be more fearful.

    Hearing Uncle Yu¡¯s words, the other guards turned around. They burst intoughter upon seeing Zheng Xiao on the ground. While they were all afraid, they weren¡¯t in as sorry of a state as Zheng Xiao.

    Laughter diluted the tensed atmosphere, and Zheng Xiao seemed more rxed by now since his body shook less violently.

    Suddenly, everyone noticed that the surrounding sounds had all disappeared and were reced by dead silence.

    Before they could react, a sword chime pierced through their brains like cranes flying through the clouds. Like an awl drilling into their minds, the chime caused the hair on their napes to stand upright.

    Buzzz. Their minds went nk. If they could see their own expressions, they would realize that there was neither fear nor dread, only emptiness.

    Mu Lei was the only one present who managed to stay clear-headed. Fear was solely evident on his face.

    Might. Terrorizing might that was exponentially stronger than any might from earlier. Yet... the surrounding elemental energy waves weren¡¯t surging. They were much smaller than those from earlier.

    What in the world was this kind of sword formation?

    He was overwhelmed with shock.

    The shock within his heart far exceeded the previous urrences because he knew how difficult it was to produce such a strong contrast. He also knew what kind of force such a huge contrast signified.

    This might represented the rming power of umted elemental energy. Elemental energy thatcked fluctuations meant that it was extremelypressed and contained, which signified absolute control. In theory, it was a perfect attack!

    Boom!

    Mu Lei snapped out of his shock and regained his senses shortly. Eh? He felt something was amiss. While he didn¡¯t understand what had happened, the explosion of the elemental energy waves and the sword chime produced ipatible sounds.

    What happened?

    With rapt attention, he looked over and saw a huge dust cloud rising from Lemon Camping Ground. What followed was a noisy mor.

    Lemon Camping Ground was in chaos.

    The rising dust enveloped the whole inner camp as the people inside cried out in rm.

    "What¡¯s going on?"

    "Is anybody hurt?"

    "Cough, cough..."

    ...

    Gu Xuan reacted the fastest by gathering his remaining elemental energy and releasing it with a wave of his sleeves. Whoosh! A gale emerged from within the camp, dispersing the dust.

    Everyone was dumbstruck.

    None of the seven sword pagodas inside the inner camp were in one piece. Ruined pieces were everywhere.

    What... what happened?

    Someone cried out, "Where¡¯s Boss?"

    Everybody looked around in search of Ai Hui¡¯s silhouette, but to no avail. They quivered and looked at one another, a premonition rising within their chests.

    Dashing over, Lou Lan pointed to the ruins of the Megrez Sword Pagoda and shouted, "Over there!"

    During the attack of the sword pagodas, Lou Lan had to stand far away or he would¡¯ve been injured by the sword rays. Before that, he¡¯d been guarding inside the inner camp and waiting to treat people when Ai Hui and the others returned to rest. Since this was an attempt tobine seven swords into one, Ai Hui had Lou Lan stand somewhere in the distance in consideration of his safety.

    Everyone dashed over to the ruins of the Megrez Pagoda and started frantically digging.

    Although they¡¯d only been in Sword of Lightning for a short while, everyone was still impressed by Ai Hui. Ai Hui never acted haughtily in front of them and always led the training.

    Ai Hui trained the most out of all of them.

    Previously, everybody was still worried about the future of Sword of Lightning but this wisp of concern vanished in a puff of smoke along with the attack of the sword pagodas.

    In abat division with a bright future, the leader worked closely with his soldiers, sharing the joy and hardship. What was there to be unhappy about? Why wouldn¡¯t one pledge allegiance to such a leader?

    Shortly, they found Ai Hui amid a pile of rubble

    "He¡¯s here!"

    "Boss¡¯s still alive!"

    ...

    Everyone shouted at once and prepared to pull Ai Hui out. However, they let out a miserable shriek the moment they touched his clothes.

    Since a few pair of hands had grabbed ahold of him at once, mournful instantly cries filled the ce.

    "My hand!"

    "There are knives on his body!"

    ...

    In response, the others quickly stopped themselves. Shortly, those who cried out got back to their feet, only to see that their hands werepletely unharmed. They were shocked. The acute pain they¡¯d felt made them think that their hands had been stabbed by sharp des.

    Gu Xuan, who was presently the most skilled, hurriedly exined, "It might be the sword aura. Please avoid touching Boss¡¯s clothes, everybody. Let¡¯s get the surrounding debris out of the way first."

    The crushed rocks were quickly cleared away. It was then that everybody noticed the position their boss was in. He maintained a standing posture while holding onto his sword.

    However... only the hilt of the Wintry Jade de remained in his hands.

    Bzzt! A silver electric sh throbbed between Ai Hui¡¯s palms and the sword hilt, effectively frightening the audience around him.

    While Ai Hui bore the reputation as a Lightning Master, he disyed more swordsmanship than lightning techniques within the camp. In Gu Xuan¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui was more of a pure swordsman rather than a Lightning Master.

    This wasn¡¯t the first time people had seen Ai Hui¡¯s lightning.

    Since the start, the red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes had been intensely flickering. Once his eyes stopped shing, Lou Lan said happily, "Ai Hui¡¯s not injured."

    Everyone let out a breath of relief and started talking all at once.

    "Enlightenment?"

    "How impressive."

    Whether Ai Hui had a moment of enlightenment or not, they couldn¡¯t be sure. Ai Hui stood motionless like a statue with his eyes shut, looking perfectly unharmed.

    People continued their lively discussion.

    "Why did the sword pagodas copse?"

    "Probably because they weren¡¯t able to endure the unification of the seven swords."

    "I think so, too. The unification is simply too mighty."

    "What¡¯s going to happen in future?"

    "Ask Boss."

    "I¡¯m at a loss. The sword pagodas are great, but how are we supposed to use them in battles? Carry them?"

    "I¡¯m not against the idea, but... won¡¯t we look a little stupid carrying them?

    "Just a little, you think?"

    Everybody was engaging in the heated discussion. They had many doubts, but weren¡¯t impatient. They¡¯d only been in Sword of Lightning for a short period of time, after all. They would simply leave these matters for their boss to fret over.

    Suddenly, footsteps sounded from outside.

    Gu Xuan jumped up. "Who is it?"

    Mu Lei floated over in midair, his loftiness caused the faces of those around to change. A Master!

    Mu Lei¡¯s gaze fell upon Ai Hui, who still stood motionless with his eyes shut.

    A silhouette obstructed his view. It was Lou Lan, who stood before Ai Hui.

    Sand puppet?

    Mu Lei was rather surprised, but did not mind much. He looked over Lou Lan and focused his gaze on Ai Hui once again.

    All of a sudden his pupils shrank.

 Chapter 484: New Sword Embryo

    Chapter 484: New Sword Embryo

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    When the seven swords became one, the intense sword breath seemed to fill his body with a mysterious force.

    It was as if something was beginning to stir within his heart, something like desire was breaking out of its cocoon within his body.

    What was it?

    He rummaged through his memories, which were like multicolored murals. They shed past quickly and switched around like thosenterns with a carousel of paper horses.

    With the passing of time, these murals started to peel off, losing their colors and luster. The lines were damaged and torn. They were beyond recognition yet unchangeably familiar, like calls from a faraway valley.

    Some time passed and only two images were left within his mind.

    In mid air, with hisst breath, Teacher was saying, "Kill me."

    He could still remember that calmness, free from grief. He was like an unrted observer who¡¯d made his decision and hadn¡¯t regretted it.

    He still did not regret it.

    Upon seeing this image in the deepest part of his memory, he wasn¡¯t at all surprised. He was amazed by another image.

    Swordsman Training Hall. The sun was sprinkled over the courtyard. He leisurely mopped the floor, trained with the wooden stand and sorted out the swordy manuals before relishing in the manuals and their exaggerated descriptions and asional legends that hid between the lines.

    Seeing the image of that frail youngster made him focus his gaze toward the front. Ai Hui was stunned.

    So it¡¯s like this...

    He muttered to himself.

    To him, lightning was revenge and the sword...was hope.

    His pale and dim childhood, and his unrealistic longings and delusions toward swordsmen were tiny and blurry wisps of hope. They were the glimmers of sunlight that fell on his tender and small palm, while the world casted a shadow that enveloped him like a colossal monster.

    They were like a sword.

    He suddenly recalled the reason why he¡¯d chosen the sword, and he also understood why he¡¯d never loosened his grip on his sword.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but tighten his grip, as he usually did.

    The world was still that colossal monster, but he was no longer that weak and cowardly youngster.

    The faint glimmer of sunlight that shone down on his palm had be the sword in his hands. The surging elemental energy, the criss-crossing sword breath and the winding lightning bolts filled him with courage and erased his fear. He was going to take revenge and battle it out.

    Ai Hui was highly emotional.

    Inside his earth pce, lightning shed and thunder roared. The thick lightning extended out from the emptiness and gathered from all directions like solid vines, which wound around a silver sword of lightning.

    The winding lightning bolts flickered unsteadily and only the vague silhouette of a sword could be seen.

    It was a sword embryo. A real sword embryo.

    Ai Hui spaced out in that moment. He¡¯d not expected a revival of his sword embryo. Its shape was entirely different, and the location in which it was born waspletely different as well.

    In that badly damaged swordy manual, he¡¯d read that a sword embryo was made from the essence, breath and spirit, so it would condense in his sky pce.

    But the earth pce...

    Ai Hui quickly noticed that the potent lightning serum rolling within his body had be extremely docile.

    The lightning poured into the sword hilt in his hands in time with the fluttering of his heart.

    Buzz.

    An lightning bolt cut open the pitch ck sky overhead, like a curtain.

    Another lightning bolt streaked across Mu Lei¡¯s pitch ck pupils.

    The sharp, sword-like silvery light illuminated the ruins and the people around it, drowning the shock in their faces. It stretched their silhouettes into long and sharp shadows.

    A beam of lightning shot out from the sword hilt. It looked like a zigzagging sword, changing irregrly.

    Sword of Lightning...

    These three words surfaced in the minds of the majority of people there.

    The lightning bolt was like snow and the audience was like puppets, silent and motionless. Only the crackling thunder could be heard.

    Ai Hui opened his eyes slowly. It was as if his eyes were shrouded by ayer of fine, electric light, their sharpness heart-piercing.

    At that point his heart was overwhelmed with the joy and satisfaction of experiencing a breakthrough.

    The new sword embryo was thoroughly different. The previous one was born from the essence, breath, and spirit, but the new sword embryo was born from lightning. In other words, the sword embryo in the sky pce was an extension of the essence, breath, and spirit and the sword embryo in the earth pce was a condensation of lightning.

    Both wereplete opposites, yet each was marvelous in its own ways.

    The sky pce¡¯s sword embryo could significantly sharpen Ai Hui¡¯s perception, while the earth pce¡¯s sword embryo could offer him much better control and power over the lightning within his body.

    The former could reach far,whereas thetter was contained within.

    Strictly speaking, this wasn¡¯t really a sword embryo, it was just a name Ai Hui had chosen to give it.

    He loosened the grip on what was left of Wintry Jade de. With a plop, the sword hiltnded on the ground and the lightning sword de vanished.

    As if awakened from a dream, everybody got ready to start talking.

    Ai Hui waved his finger across the sky like a sword. Psst, an electric light appeared and wound around his fingertip. It was like a sword de that flickered unsteadily, sharp and ring.

    This...

    The audience was stunned while Gu Xuan and a few others were shocked.

    They were very sensitive to the sword aura and could feel the sword consciousness contained within this wisp of electric light. It was exceptionally domineering and sharp, and was emanating a destructive aura. It waspletely different from the sword aura that Ai Hui used to use.

    It seemed... to have be more terrifying!

    Ai Hui put his finger down, his movement rhythmic and aesthetic, as if he was putting his sword in its sheath. The electric light around his fingertip was swiftly extinguished.

    Ai Hui had be stronger indeed.

    Gu Xuan was bing increasingly certain.

    He had a high and profound level of swordsmanship. While he hadn¡¯t reached Ai Hui¡¯s base level, he had definitely surpassed the average swordsman. Fanciful sword moves that were delightful to look at weren¡¯t necessary powerful, but powerful sword moves were definitely a pleasing sight, because they were more bnced, well-coordinated and ultimately perfect.

    The waving of Ai Hui¡¯s finger back and forth was a very casual, yet indescribably elegant motion.

    Mu Lei noticed this graceful movement as well.

    He was humbled. Capable individuals always gained respect, no matter where.

    Before, even though Ai Hui had his reputation as a Lightning Master, Mu Lei only saw him as a newly promoted Master.

    He no longer thought that way. A smile appeared on his face. "Congrattions, Master Ai!"

    Ai Hui¡¯d been taking notice of Mu Lei since the start. Mu Lei¡¯s qi was reserved, a clear sign that he too was a Master. He epted the greeting very politely. "Thank you so much, Sir. You are?"

    Uncle Yu stood up hurriedly and said respectfully, "This is Master Mu Lei."

    Ai Hui was pleasantly surprised by Uncle Yu¡¯s appearance. "Uncle Yu! Is Senior here too?"

    Uncle Yu reported, "Miss isn¡¯t here but she got me to prepare you a batch of woven materials. I wonder if you¡¯ll be able to use them? Master Mu is Young Master¡¯s friend. If it wasn¡¯t for him, we might not have made it here."

    Ai Hui quickly brought his hands together in thanks. "Thank you for the hard work, Master Mu!"

    Mu Lei shook his head and smiled. "Why so formal? We¡¯re all friends."

    Reuniting with an old friend was always pleasant. Ai Hui asked about Senior, so Uncle Yu shared how Mingxiu returned to Jadeite City, how she started her embroidery workshop and how she created Yuchuan Embroidery.

    Ai Hui listened with full attention, a happy smile asionally appearing on the corner of his mouth.

    After chatting for a bit, Ai Hui suddenly noticed the weariness in Uncle Yu¡¯s face. He was already so old and had just been on a long and arduous trek, so he must be exhausted. Ai Hui then quickly got him to rest.

    But Ai Hui did not allow the goods on the load basin beasts to be taken down.

    The sword pagodas in Lemon Camping Ground had been destroyed so there wasn¡¯t any point in staying here. Ai Hui had decided to bring everyone to the newly constructed Fishback City.

    The new city that Wang Xiaoshan had built atop ckfish Mouth Volcano¡¯s mountain range looked like the arch of a fish¡¯s back and so everybody decided to call it Fishback City.

    With Ai Hui¡¯s poor naming ability, everybody chose not to give him a chance.

    After resting for half a day, Uncle Yu had recovered his energy more or less and was in full approval when he heard that Ai Hui wanted them to move to the new city. He¡¯de personally in the hope of assessing the development and progress of Ai Hui and Central Pine Faction.

    He was extremely shocked to find out that they¡¯d managed to build a new city, and furthermore, it had been done by only one elementalist.

    This piqued even Mu Lei¡¯s interest.

    Currently, earth elementalists were living very poorly. The upation of Yellow Sand Corner had led earth elementalists into a state no different from fire elementalists. Construction-rted work, which used to be seen as worthless by slightly more capable earth elementalists, wasnow in high demand with strongpetition.

    Nevertheless, it seemed unimaginable that a single person could construct one whole city.

    Sword of Lightning¡¯s members had wanted to leave this worn-out camping ground for the longest time. If they weren¡¯t able to return to Central Pine Valley, Fishback City was a decent alternative. Everyone felt more curious as to how Boss was going to solve the broken pagoda issue.

    Ai Hui¡¯s increase in abilities boosted the team¡¯s morale greatly, especially those in Sword of Lightning. Following a capable boss meant a brighter future for them.

    The gang¡¯s departure was filled with enthusiastic farewells bidden by the citizens of Lemon Camping Ground.

    The horrifying atmosphere had almost caused the citizens to wet their pants. If Sword of Lightning was going to train like this everyday, they would all start considering a relocation.

    That explosion from earlier had their souls flying out of their bodies.

    Hearing that Ai Hui and gang were leaving, they sent them off like how they would a gue.

    With both Master Ai and Master Mu Lei around, safety wasn¡¯t an issue at all. The problem was that the load basin beasts were moving slowly, affecting the team¡¯s speed. Ai Hui wasn¡¯t impatient, however. Instead, he got the gang to train along the way.

    No sword pagodas? No problem.

    The birth of the sword embryo meant that Ai Hui did not require the help of the sword pagodas in order to diffuse any conflicts between everyone.

    Members who failed consecutively would be transferred into the reserve and their positions would be filled by the best performing members from the reserve.

    There were three hundred members in Sword of Lightning, but only two hundred and fifty-two positions in the seven sword pagodas, leaving forty eight members in the reserves.

    Members in the reserve received the exact same training as everybody else.

    Being drawn into thispetitive mechanism, the atmosphere instantly changed. No one wanted to be transferred into the reserve and those already in that team worked diligently for the opportunity to move out.

    The members¡¯ passion left Uncle Yu shocked. People from outside did not think highly of Sword of Lightning, but having seen it for himself Uncle Yu felt that AI Hui was much more capable than rumored.

    The way he worked wasn¡¯t like that of a new hand.

    When they reached Fishback City, a look of disbelief was on all of their faces.

    "Was this really built by one person?" Mu Lei couldn¡¯t help but ask again.

    Aspared to the many other cities he¡¯d seen, Fishback City wasn¡¯t at all grand. It wasn¡¯t big and couldn¡¯t amodate a lot of people. Nevertheless, the fact that it was built by only one pair of hands was simply unbelievable.

    They¡¯d just entered the city when Shi Xueman, who¡¯d received the news, arrived with a piece of good news of her own.

 Chapter 485: An Unforeseen Event

    Chapter 485: An Unforeseen Event

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    "Xiaoshan is in seclusion. Seems like he¡¯s about to break through." Shi Xueman announced joyfully.

    Ai Hui genuinely felt happy for Wang Xiaoshan. "That¡¯s great! He¡¯s been working hard recently."

    Everyone nodded in unison. Building a whole city all by oneself was unheard of. The difficulty and workload he¡¯d taken on was astonishing even toymen.

    Having aplished such an unimaginable feat, it wasn¡¯t surprising that he was undergoing a breakthrough.

    Le Buleng shot Ai Hui a nce. "You¡¯re pretty lucky aye, became significantly stronger."

    He couldn¡¯t help but give him two more looks as he was still rather surprised.

    Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s seclusion made him realize the huge potential of Central Pine Faction. Furthermore, these fellows were all so diligent. He had much confidence in the future of this faction.

    But Ai Hui¡¯s progress had him overwhelmed with shock.

    How many days had it been?

    Reasonably, a newly promoted Master would enter a process of steadily ascending improvement. Bing a Master was like havingpleted an outline of a piece of art and all that was left was to carve and refine it to perfection.

    A newly promoted Master seldom disyed such a huge increase in abilities.

    Ai Hui was an exception.

    Before, Ai Hui¡¯s energy was extroverted. Now, it was exceptionally well-controlled, except that there was a ring of an aura circling his body, its origin unclear. Was it the sword¡¯s qi? Le Buleng¡¯s eyes glowed slightly, his battlelust stirring endlessly.

    The first master swordsman had just been born and he had yet to spar with her.

    This foreign force made him eager to give it a try.

    He was extremely interested in all kinds of new and unseen forces.

    "Junior Mu Lei is here to greet Senior!"

    Mu Lei bowed to Le Buleng respectfully with his waist bent and head lowered.

    Having his thoughts disrupted, Le Buleng pulled a face and asked, "You are?"

    For someone whose only goal was to defeat Dai Gang, having an unknown Master stand before him was no different from having an ignorant cow or sheep do the same.

    To ughter or not to ughter?

    Mu Lei¡¯s heart jumped, his mouth drying up. "Fei Yuan is my teacher."

    Le Buleng¡¯s expression rxed a little as a reminiscent look appeared on his face. His tone warmed up instantly. "You¡¯re a student of Fei Yuan? How¡¯s your teacher doing?"

    A trace of grief shed across his eyes. "He died eight years ago."

    Le Buleng sighed. "He didn¡¯t make it after all. But death is just death. It¡¯s also a delight. He would feel vexed seeing how things have turned out."

    Mu Lei knew his teacher¡¯s personality and agreed with Senior Le Buleng. He said in a low voice, "You¡¯re right."

    Le Buleng treated Mu Lei in a friendlier manner, but remained as hostile as ever toward Lu residence¡¯s Uncle Yu. He snorted most of the time and couldn¡¯t be bothered to socialize with him.

    Lu Chen was the first disciple of Dai Gang, so it was only natural for Le Buleng to feel this way. If it had been a decently strong disciple from the Lu residence or Lu Chen in Uncle Yu¡¯s spot, Le Buleng might have even wanted to start trouble with him. But since Uncle Yu was weak, he did not deign to make a move.

    Uncle Yu smiled bitterly. He was knowledgeable and tactful, and knew better than to provoke this old, terrorizing fellow.

    Ai Hui was helpless too. The appearance of this old man made people nervous. He asked quietly, "How¡¯s Zu Yan?"

    Shi Xueman nodded her head, saying, "Not bad. He¡¯s absorbing the fire elemental energy speedily but isn¡¯t awake yet."

    In response to the change in topic, Le Buleng waved his hand, adding, "He¡¯ll wake up once he absorbs sufficient fire elemental energy and bes a Master."

    Ai Hui asked out of curiosity, "What if he doesn¡¯t?"

    Le Buleng snorted, "Then he won¡¯t ever."

    Ai Hui clicked his tongue and felt much sympathy for Zu Yan. He also felt that Le Buleng¡¯s answer really fitted his personality. That fellow was so cold and heartless.

    Ai Hui reminded Le Buleng, "Don¡¯t you need to train, Senior?"

    Le Buleng red at him. "Are you chasing me away, boy?"

    "Your time is yours to allocate, Senior." Ai Hui continued in all seriousness, "I believe Mister Dai Gang is feeling very bored right now since he has no opponents."

    Despite being aware of Ai Hui¡¯s motive, Le Buleng couldn¡¯t help but let out a groan. "Bullshit!"

    Before his words fell, he was already in the air.

    With Le Buleng gone, the atmosphere immediately lightened up. Even Mu Lei let out a breath of relief. He recalled something and retrieved a small wooden case from his sleeves. Handing it over to Ai Hui, he exined, "This is for Duanmu Huanghun. Sent by his family."

    Ai Hui took it and casually passed it to Iron Lady. "Where¡¯s Bangwan? Why isn¡¯t he around?"

    Shi Xueman grabbed hold of it and answered, somewhat worriedly, "He¡¯s in the valley. He¡¯s too anxious."

    Ai Hui knew what Duanmu Huanghun was worrying about, but was unable to counsel him since he usually did not listen well to advice to begin with.

    Proud and arrogant, Duanmu Huanghun must be feeling very anxious right now.

    But to be a Master, one mustn¡¯t rush because the more impatient one was, the more easily problems would arise.

    By now, Uncle Yu had already ordered the guards to unload the goods on the beasts. Ai Hui threw the matter to the back of his head andmented excitedly, "Seems like Senior¡¯s sent some good stuff over."

    The guards opened the wooden trunks and ayer of faint light filled the hall immediately.

    Even Uncle Yu¡¯s eyes were wide open in shock. The trunks had been packed personally by Mingxiu, so he wasn¡¯t unaware of the contents. Seeing how each trunk emitted elemental energy waves, he immediately figured that there must be a lot of good stuff inside.

    Mu Lei couldn¡¯t restrain his surprise. He knew how valuable Yuchuan Embroidery was.

    He couldn¡¯t help but feel a lingering fear. If outsiders knew how many Yuchuan Embroideries were in these trunks, someone might¡¯ve taken the risk and looted them out of desperation. Even he himself thought he might be unable to resist the urge.

    The number of Yuchuan Embroideries avable on the market was pathetically low. People thought that Yuchuan Embroideries weren¡¯t produced easily and that was why they were so rare. That wasn¡¯t actually the case. The real reason was that Lu Mingxiu couldn¡¯t bear to sell them as she wanted to give them to her junior.

    Lu Mingxiu pampered her junior way too much.

    But just the thought of Han Yuqin and Wang Shouchuan was enough for Mu Lei to feel grief and sigh.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t aware of all these things of course. He only felt iparably touched and cozy.

    The most eye-catching item was an entire set of textiles.

    Mixed with the shining silver silk, the azure wings, made from flowing cloud silk, looked like a reflection created by the sunlight shining onto clear water ripples. It was extremely beautiful and dazzling. The azure wings were joined to a soft, silver armor. There were intricate patterns stacked inyers on top of the wings. Ai Hui saw elemental traces like Rapt Attention, Drawing Element and Wedge-shaped Cloud Armor.

    Rapt Attention allowed him to maintain focus and concentration.

    Drawing Element could help him to draw some elemental energy from metal wind. While the amount it could absorb wasn¡¯t much, he could replenish part of it. This was extremely useful for him when he had to fly long distances.

    Wedge-shaped Cloud Armor was a type of water elemental defensive guard piece, often used on water elemental armors. Shi Xueman had it on hers too.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes turned red. He¡¯d thought of Master and Mistress.

    His eyes were on the boots beneath the soft armor and he felt rather surprised. The boots had been woven from scratch and he couldn¡¯t recognize the materials used.

    Ai Hui put them on immediately and they fitted very well. He jumped lightly.

    He almost hit the ceiling. While he was shocked, his eyes quickly lit up. These ordinary looking boots were actually very useful. Ai Hui believed that channeling elemental energy into the boots would increase their effectiveness.

    He suppressed the impulse within him and managed to stop himself from testing it out on the spot.

    This seemingly unremarkable, yet life-saving trick should be kept private.

    Other than the items she¡¯d given Ai Hui, there were a few other quality goods, such as a cloak meant for Shi Xueman, a belt meant for Fatty, a pouch meant for Duanmu Huanghun, a wristband meant for Jiang Wei, an arrow sack meant for Sang Zijun and a hat meant for Wang Xiaoshan. Lou Lan was given the most interesting item. It was an apron with an embroidered image of him holding adle in one hand and a wok in the other.

    She¡¯d prepared a gift for every single person that she could remember, so everybody was exceptionally moved.

    Some emotional connections could only be made after going through an experience together.

    Other than these personalised things, the rest of the items were mass produced, yet practical items, such as gloves. There were gloves that could increase strength and gloves that could improve one¡¯s control over elemental energy.

    It was obvious that each item had been prepared with love and utmost care. The wooden elemental ingredients were also things they would need frequently, but were difficult to purchase outside of Jadeite Forest.

    Ai Hui walked past each trunk and looked at each item. Senior did not leave any long messages, but each item had effectively expressed her care and concern.

    He thought about how Mistress had instructed him to protect Senior Mingxiu before she left.

    Ai Hui¡¯s nose started to tingle a little as tears were about to fall down his cheeks.

    "Ai Hui, Miss mentioned that this item..."

    The guard spoke while taking out the items on the top. The goods seemed to be pressed at the bottom. Preupied with his thoughts and emotions, Ai Hui went over without much thought.

    Uncle Yu saw the redness in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes and felt sad, yet consoled. Those two were like siblings after all.

    Suddenly he heard someone speaking. Wasn¡¯t that guard Zheng Xiao? Could it be that Miss had something to warn him about? No. Zheng Xiao was a guard rmended by the enterprise below and not a guard of the embroidery workshop. If anything, Miss would¡¯ve informed him and not Zheng Xiao.

    Not good!

    Uncle Yu¡¯s face changed. "Be careful..."

    Before he couldplete his sentence, an unforeseen event took ce.

    Gathered before the trunk, Ai Hui heard a soft thud and withdrew quickly.

    The trunk was enveloped by a faint, ck smoke.

    Ai Hui shouted, "Retreat, everybody!"

    His face started to feel slightly numb. What a potent poison, he thought to himself.

    Lou Lan cried out, "Ai Hui!"

    The red glow in his eyes started to flicker. It shed quicker and quicker, crazier and crazier.

    The others dispersed and surrounded that guard. They looked ferocious and murderous.

    "Hahaha! It¡¯s useless! You¡¯re dead meat, Ai Hui! It¡¯s Night Moth Fruit! You¡¯re incurable!"

    Zheng Xiao¡¯s voice became sharp. It was actually a woman.

    Upon hearing those three words "Night Moth Fruit", Uncle Yu and Shi Xueman¡¯s faces changed. The rapidly flickering red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes stopped abruptly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart sank. He could feel the poison spreading quickly.

    Zheng Xiao unveiled the elemental energy mask on her face and the unfamiliar face of a female was revealed. Only a frenzied madness was present in her face. "You killed so many of us. The day of redemption is here!"

    Grass Bandits...

    Uncle Yu recognized thedy and asked in a trembling voice, "You... you¡¯re Zheng Xiaoman?"

    Thedyughed but her face started to stiffen up. It was an eerie sight. She replied, "Who would¡¯ve thought that Uncle Yu would still be able to recognize me. Hahaha, Lightning Master? So what? Let¡¯s all die together..."

    With her stiff and raised head she fell over, her breath extinguished.

 Chapter 486: Night Moth Fruit

    Chapter 486: Night Moth Fruit

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Night Moth Fruit?

    Ai Hui had not heard of it, but he knew it was powerful.

    The numbness was spreading at an rming rate, and the elemental energy within his body was actually unable to resist it at all. He hade across many types of poison in the Wilderness, but none wereparable to this.

    Highly toxic types that were effective against dire beasts were rare and correspondingly expensive. Even among the dire beasts that could produce elemental elixirs, he had never encounter one that possessed this grade of poison.

    Ordinary poisons were basically useless against Masters.

    I wonder how much they cost? Must be expensive...

    A thought that even he found silly floated across his mind. Ai Hui¡¯s consciousness started to be indistinct as his field of vision started to blur. Zheng Xiaoman¡¯s scream sounded like an echo from a the valley, traveling further and further away.

    "... Hahaha, Lightning Master, so what? Let¡¯s die together..."

    His title had never been a big deal. Ai Hui never felt excited or pleased over his status as a Lightning Master, so her words meant nothing to him. He was , however, bothered by thetter part of her sentence.

    Let¡¯s die together...

    He had no idea why, but an image of Master and Mistress leaving together emerged from within his head. If death was the conclusion, an ending like Master and Mistress¡¯s would be quite beautiful.

    As for thisdy whom he wasn¡¯t acquainted with...

    Did she deserve that?

    An indescribably fury rose from his chest and rushed straight to his brain. He didn¡¯t know why he got this angry, but he did. Coming out of nowhere and shouting about wanting to die with him?

    Who did she think she was?

    He felt enraged. It had been a long time since he had been this angry. This unreasonably angry. These three words were fine if Lou Lan had said them. If Iron Lady had said them. If Mingxiu had said them. If Fatty said them. It was even alright for Duanmu Huanghun to say them. Anyone from the Central Pine Faction could say them.

    They were not something any random person had the right to say!

    If he let such a moron get away with it, wouldn¡¯t that mean that he was the bigger moron?

    The anger that was about to explode in his chest snapped Ai Hui out of his fuzzy consciousness and made him more clear-headed. The numbness had intensified, as if there were many hair-like worms drilling toward his elemental energy as well as into his five residences and eight pces.

    While he clear-headed, he quickly waved a finger of his still mobile right hand, as if thrusting his sword. Swoosh, an arc of electricity appeared on his fingertip.

    He did not know what kind of poison the Night Moth Fruit was, but he knew that other than the elemental energy within his body, there was a huge volume of elemental energy being converted into lightning.

    What kind of poison would be able to endure lightning!

    Since you¡¯re here, don¡¯t ever think about leaving!

    Ai Hui tossed all his apprehensions to the back of his mind, as a frenzy manifested in his eyes.

    To the others, he was a cool-headed, almost cold person who enjoyed taking advantage of others. He was somebody who acted only when he had a n.

    Not many remembered his wild side. The side that was hidden deep within the calm.

    He jumped off the ground, his figure disappearing before the eyes of those present. A few holes appeared on the roof of a nearby house.

    Shi Xueman was the first to react. She turned around, her ice cold face with bloodlust overflowing as she shouted, "Grab all of them!"

    At this point, she couldn¡¯t care less about the Lu Residence.

    Mu Lei¡¯s face warped and as he was about to speak up, Shi Xueman¡¯s ice-cold, yet baleful gaze effectively shut him up. He knew it was self-deprecating to talk about a Master¡¯s dignity at this point. If he made any unusual moves, Shi Xueman and the others wouldn¡¯t hesitate to kill him on the spot.

    He saw the determination in Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes and stopped himself from resisting.

    Uncle Yu raised his arm and called out, "Put down your weapons, everyone! No resisting!"

    His mind was currently in a mess as doubts filled his heart. Howy did Zheng Xiaoman blend into the team? The feud between the Grass Bandits and the Lu Residence ran deep because the former¡¯s destruction was directly caused by thetter. Master Lu was furious upon hearing that Mingxiu was almost killed by the Grass Bandits, so he made an all-out effort to wipe them out.

    No matter how much hatred Ai Hui felt toward the Grass Bandits, could it surpass the amount felt by the Lu residence? Giving up on vengeance against the Lu residence, spending so much effort to sneak into the convoy, anding all this way to seek revenge against Ai Hui?

    A mole! There must be a mole!

    Only those in the Lu residence who had decent ranks knew about Miss¡¯s n to send gifts to Ai Hui.

    Who could it be? Why?

    Uncle Yu knew that the wisest thing to do now was to cooperate with Shi Xueman and her people¡¯s investigation. He must not resist. Once conflict urred between both parties, they would fight to the death.

    If anything happened to Ai Hui, Uncle Yu would really be too ashamed to face Miss.

    It wasn¡¯t a big deal if he died. It was the aftermath that would be truly terrifying. The Central Pine Faction was much stronger than imagined. Plus, they had the mighty Le Buleng who harbored enmity toward the Lu residence. By then, Miss would have no regard for the Lu residence either. Uncle Yu knew how important Ai Hui was to her.

    Who was it?

    Uncle Yu broke out in a cold sweat that drenched his back.

    He hadn¡¯t noticed that there was a guard behind him. The guard was thoroughly frightened and drew close to him for support.

    "Stand properly! No one move!"

    Hearing Jiang Wei¡¯s order, not only did the guard behind Uncle Yu not stop, he increased his speed. Appearing right behind Uncle Yu in one big stride, his hand was about to smack Uncle Yu¡¯s head.

    Just as his strike was about tond, an unusual and zealous blush appeared on his face. In the next moment, Uncle Yu¡¯s head would split open like a watermelon, its contents spilling out everywhere. His mission would then bepleted.

    The hatred between the Lu Residence and the Central Pine Faction would never be dissolved.

    Uncle Yu was a trusted member of the Lu Residence, yet he was going to die within the Central Pine Faction¡¯s territory. Additionally, Ai Hui, the leader of the Central Pine Faction, was going to die from the Lu Residence¡¯s sneak attack.

    This was a deadlock!

    A deadlock that was about to be finished by his own hands. The excitement made his whole body tremble uncontrobly.

    Thump!

    The tactile sensation from his hands made his heart quiver, but an iing, sshing ball of yellow sand took him by surprise in the next moment.

    Lou Lan!

    Lou Lan blocked his strike at this crucial moment.

    The rest reacted very quickly. Shi Xueman swiftly appeared beside this guard. With her palm opened slightly, she aimed for the guard.

    There was only despair in the guard¡¯s face. He did not even resist.

    Not good, Shi Xueman thought to herself.

    A ckyer appeared on the guard¡¯s face. A poisonous pellet had long been ced inside his body, and he would die on the spot when it took effect.

    Shi Xueman looked at the corpse on the ground, her expression grave. Only the fearless would use such a method.

    Uncle Yu¡¯s face was beyond pale. The assassin¡¯s intention was obvious. If he¡¯d died, the enmity between the Lu residence and the Central Pine Faction would never be resolved unless one party was wiped out.

    Who was it exactly?

    He was simultaneously shocked, furious, and determined to seek the truth.

    First the Grass Bandits and now the assassin. There must be a spy in the Lu Residence since both had infiltrated into the convoy.

    Mu Lei, who stood beside Uncle Yu, had observed these events with a cool eye. He felt regretful for being part of this affair. The series of unforeseen events made it apparent that this was a meticulously nned conspiracy.

    So, he decided that it was best to keep his mouth shut.

    Uncle Yu gradually regained hisposure. He¡¯d been following his master his whole life and was used to seeing all kinds of incidents. After experiencing the initial shock and anger, he quickly calmed down. He was most worried about the Night Moth Fruit in Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    The Lu Residence was a wood elementalist Famly, so it was only natural for Uncle Yu to know about this poison.

    There were 12 types of highly toxic poisons that could threaten even a Master¡¯s life. They were collectively known as the [12 Taboos].

    The [12 Taboos] received much opposition from Masters and any information regarding their nting methods were sealed off. No matter how small, the moment news was heard regarding the Taboos, Masters would not hesitate to join forces to obtain them.

    The Night Moth Fruit was fourth on the list. It was an existence that greatly influenced a Masters¡¯ behavior.

    Instead of categorizing it as a poisonous object, it could instead be regarded as a peculiar dire beast. This was a point of debate among Masters. Under normal circumstances, the Night Moth Fruit had no vital signs. It was like a dead object. When it exploded, however, the ck smoke it released was known as Night Moth Smoke. It woulde alive the moment it touched flesh and be thread-like Night Moth Larvae.

    Even the toughest of skin and bones that were able withstand a sword were helpless before the Night Moth Smoke since it disregarded elemental energy defenses. Aftering to life and entering the flesh, the elemental energy in an elementalist¡¯s body would be nutrients for therva.

    Theserva appeared inrge quantities and could multiply at an rming rate within an elementalist¡¯s body. They would freely swim and permeate every corner of an elementalist¡¯s five residences and eight pces.

    When they started to mature, they would assemble somewhere within a Master¡¯s body and transform into a cocoon.

    By then, the Master would already be in the final phase of life as his elemental energy had beenpletely sucked away. All that remained was his withering flesh. When a Night Moth King broke out from the cocoon, it would gnaw on the lifeless body until the corpse was bare bones.

    The only person who could save Ai Hui was Dai Gang!

    But Dai Gang was tens of thousands of miles away...

    Uncle Yu felt absolutely bitter and pained.

    No one paid them any attention. Shi Xueman waited for them to rush out as she looked toward the sky.

    "Lou Lan..."

    Shi Xueman looked at Lou Lan with hope and expectation.

    Lou Lan said dispiritedly, "I¡¯m unable to analyze it, Xueman."

    After that Lou Lan started crying. It was his first time feeling this helpless. He was extremely upset and wondered if the grief he felt was the same as that felt by humans.

    Lou Lan was really, really sad.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were red. She pursed her lips tightly and patted Lou Lan¡¯s shoulders to console him.

    He hadn¡¯t noticed that his Midnight sand core was starting to destabilize.

    Suddenly, a ball of dazzling silver light blossomed in the sky, its domineering breath enveloping all of ckfish Mouth Mountain.

    In unison, everyone looked skyward even though the silver light was exceptionally eye-piercing.

    Lou Lan raised his head, the red glow in his eyes started to flicker nonstop.

    Still no results?

    The fact that the only thing he was unable to analyze was the very thing that had poisoned Ai Hui made him feel dejected and extremely anxious. He would definitely know what do now if he was a real doctor like Mingxiu¡¯s brother.

    Mingxiu¡¯s brother...

    Lou Lan suddenly stopped. He crooked his head before breaking into a run.

 Chapter 487: Frenzy

    Chapter 487: Frenzy

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    In the sky, Ai Hui¡¯s whole body was shrouded by lightning.

    The lightning within his body was swimming all over. Even though his body had already been tempered with lightning and had a high tolerance for it, he was still injured as his flesh started to char and dry up.

    Regaining rity along with consciousness, the frenzy in his eyes became much milder.

    He felt more at ease. Lightning was indeed the dire beasts¡¯ nemesis. Lightning had a certain level of control over the fine, ck, hair-like smoke within his body.

    There was a constant scattering and dispersing of the ck smoke amid the lightning.

    Damage to the flesh wasn¡¯t a big concern since there were ways to recover. He had to get rid of this strange ck smoke first.

    Ai Hui converted more elemental energy into lightning, hoping for an additional spurt of energy. However, he quickly realized that the situation wasn¡¯t good.

    Half of the elemental energy within his body had already been changed into lightning, but the hair-like smoke had only been reduced by about 10 percent. Following this rate, he wouldn¡¯t be able to extinguish the smoke even if he exhausted his elemental energy.

    While he could feel that the ck smoke was being suppressed, it would rapidly reproduce within his body the moment he slightly rxed.

    Ai Hui¡¯s brain spun quickly. Staying clear-headed was his priority right now.

    Eh?

    He suddenly noticed that there were almost no traces of smoke near his earth pce.

    His heart jumped. Could it be that the sword embryo¡¯s aura was effective against the smoke?

    With rapt attention, he curled his hand into a fist, extended his index and middle fingers, and activated the lightning within his body.

    The unruly lightning immediately gathered in his fingers as an intense sword aura enveloped his surroundings. Ai Hui did not release it, but allowed the lightning swords within his body to swim around.

    The ck smoke that it came into contact with along the way instantly vanished. It was much more efficient.

    Ai Hui¡¯s spirits rose. He only had one goal, which was to get rid of this dangerous ck smoke. He had nothing to fear as long as his solution was effective. He constantly activated the lightning swords, allowing it to swim within his body and kill off the smoke.

    Soon after, Ai Hui¡¯s face turned grave once again.

    The hair-like ck smoke was tougher than he¡¯d thought. Knowing the power of the lightning swords they automatically dodged it when it approached. They were exceptionally crafty, very slippery, and nimbler than the lightning swords.

    The lightning swords consumed arge amount of elemental energy, so Ai Hui was quickly running out.

    What to do?

    Somewhere high up in the sky, the whistling metal wind was a sharp de that could wring and shatter everything.

    Le Buleng reacted indifferently toward the metal wind. His posture was strange, with his face facing the ground and his limbs spread out. It appeared as if he was sprawled onto an invisible mattress.

    Staying motionless for such a long time, it seemed as though he¡¯d fallen asleep.

    The sunlight gathered on his back and formed a faintly visible golden light pir that enveloped his body.

    A wisp of faint golden, almost transparent, me burned noiselessly beneath the light pir.

    Strangely, his clothes weren¡¯t damaged.

    Le Buleng opened his eyes suddenly as a wave traveled over from below. It carried an extremely sharp and overbearing aura of lightning.

    That fellow, Ai Hui?

    What was going on?

    Such an intense wave fluctuation meant that Ai Hui was making an all out effort. Was there a powerful opponent around?

    Le Buleng instantly grew interested and stopped what he was doing. The light pir on his back rapidly dimmed as the faint golden me entered his body. He shook his limbs then dove his body downward like a meteorite.

    Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh. The whistling metal wind around him formed metallic light traces.

    The vast sea of clouds below magnified at a rapid rate.

    The regions where ordinary elementalists conducted activities were mainly located amid the cloudyers. The metal wind here was gentle and generally harmless.

    Only the really strong characters would prefer roaming high up in the sky, like the haughty and formidable humpback cloud whales.

    Appearing like a stone that had fallen through a sea of clouds, Le Buleng first saw a sheet of white before quickly breaking through the clouds.

    Whoosh.

    A faint golden me on his back transformed into wings that spread open, effectively halting his descending momentum.

    Le Buleng quietly floated in midair as his gaze fell upon Ai Hui, causing his expression to turn serious.

    Night Moth Fruit!

    Different from people who had only heard about, Le Buleng had seen it with his own eyes and even participated in a bloody pursuit against organizations that used it. He knew how dangerous the fruit was.

    He¡¯d only left for a little while, yet Ai Hui was already poisoned?

    He wrinkled his brows. The poison was incurable. Everything heralded misfortune.

    What a pity.

    He shook his head inwardly. Ai Hui was one of the few youngsters whom he thought would have a brighter future. Shortly after feeling regretful, he calmed down and returned to his apathetic disposition.

    Le Buleng was very experienced and had seen countless geniuses. Among them were many fallen soldiers. There were many reasons for the death of a genius. Some died fromplications arising from training, some were killed by strong enemies, some were assassinated by their family¡¯s foes, some died from overindulgence, while others simply lost their will to fight.

    What were geniuses?

    Only geniuses who could stay alive were strong fighters.

    Which strong fighter did not have piles of corpses of other so-called geniuses beneath their feet?

    Ai Hui was just seafoam, just another corpse among the corpses. It wasn¡¯t a big deal. This world wasn¡¯t going to stop spinning because of his fall.

    Eh? Surprise filled his face as the Night Moth Fruit¡¯s aura within Ai Hui¡¯s body weakened.

    He could actually suppress it?

    This immediately evoked Le Buleng¡¯s curiosity. He¡¯d underestimated Ai Hui.

    It was his first time seeing someone suppressing the Night Moth Fruit.

    How did he do it?

    It was as if someone was scratching within his heart, itching to slice open Ai Hui¡¯s body to find out what was going on inside.

    Soon, the surprise left his face because the Night Moth Fruit¡¯s aura had started to rally. He shook his head uncontrobly. Ai Hui wasn¡¯t going to make it after all. At this rate, Ai Hui was going to be the fruit¡¯s nutrients very soon.

    Just then, Ai Hui moved. He flew toward the cloudyer.

    Le Buleng observed Ai Hui¡¯s movements without moving. He wasn¡¯t able to cure Ai Hui, so it was meaningless for him to approach.

    He believed that Ai Hui probably knew that the situation was irreversible and did not wish to die in front of his friends andrades.

    This fellow was pretty prideful!

    A tinge of admiration shed across his eyes as he saw Ai Hui threading his way into the clouds.

    Eh?

    Le Buleng noticed that Ai Hui had stopped amid the clouds and felt somewhat puzzled. What was he trying to do?

    Floating amid the cloudyer, Ai Hui was surrounded and even blinded by a sheet of white. The wisps of mist soothed his scorched throat and provided his dry body with some moisture.

    Puuu. He spat out a breath of air, feeling the frantically counterattacking ck smoke within his body. He forced an electric arc out from the corner of his mouth. It was a wild, determined, and mocking arc.

    He activated his remaining elemental energy and wisps of electricity swam within his body.

    Like throwing a spark into a deep fryer, the thick sea of clouds started to undergo changes.

    Located underneath the cloudyer, Le Buleng became excited and emotionally moved.

    The calmyer of clouds overhead started to stir restlessly and faint lightning bolts could be seen among them. Quickly, the number of illuminated areas increased. Boom! An oppressive thunder resounded from deep within the clouds.

    shing lightning and rolling thunder.

    Bzzt. A solid, zigzagging bolt of lightning zapped across the cloudyer, illuminating a faintly discernible figure.

    The fellow was really crazy!

    The admiration in Le Buleng¡¯s eyes grew thicker. He thought about the time when he was young.

    What a pity.

    It was the second time Le Buleng felt regretful. He felt it was a pity that Ai Hui had found a teacher at an early age. He was more satisfied with Zu Yan¡¯s performance in all other aspects, but when it came to being brave and wild, Zu Yan simply didn¡¯t make the cut and was unlike Ai Hui. What was the use of being so obedient and well-behaved?

    Suddenly, he wished for Ai Hui to not die like this.

    Wouldn¡¯t the world turn duller if this crazy fellow were to leave just like that?

    Like a wild cow, Lou Lan rushed to Central Pine Valley.

    Blind He, who was doing some refining work, happily asked upon hearing Lou Lan¡¯s footsteps, "Lou Lan? Come, let me consult you. The sword is almost taking shape, but can this thing really fly...?"

    Turning a deaf ear, Lou Lan whizzed past like a gust of wind.

    Blind He was stunned. He muttered to himself, "What happened? Why¡¯s he in such a rush?"

    He shook his head before lowering it and getting back to work. An entric object like this sword was beyond his knowledge, so there were many challenging areas that he had to deal with. Yet, this novelty was precisely what he was attracted to. He was engrossed in it and unable to free himself from it.

    Lou Lan found Duanmu Huanghun in the bamboo forest.

    He shouted from afar, "Bangwan!"

    Duanmu Huanghun opened his eyes and was taken aback by Lou Lan¡¯s hasty appearance. "What is it?"

    It was his first time seeing Lou Lan in such a panicked state. Lou Lan was always so carefree, jolly, and lively.

    Something must have happened.

    Lou Lan asked urgently, "Do you know about the Night Moth Fruit?"

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face changed and jolted up. "Who¡¯s infected?"

    Lou Lan, who was now in front of Duanmu Huanghun, cried, "Ai Hui!"

    As if struck by lightning, Duanmu Huanghun was stupefied. With a pale face he asked, "How... how did it happen?"

    It was incurable.

    Not caring about anything else, Lou Lan said anxiously, "I can¡¯t find any information and am unable to analyze it. What do you know about it? The more details the better!"

    Lou Lan looked at Duanmu Huanghun in anticipation. He had thought of it when Mingxiu¡¯s brother, Lu Chen, came to mind. Bangwan was Lu Chen¡¯s junior and from an aristocratic family of wood elementalists. He must know a lot about the fruit.

    If he could gather more detailed information, it would be much easier for him to analyze the fruit, and the likelihood of finding a cure would greatly increase.

    Upon hearing Lou Lan¡¯s words, Duanmu Huanghun calmed down and blood returned to his face. He nodded quickly while answering, "You¡¯re right. I¡¯ve read quite a lot about it. There are only 17 articles. I¡¯ll recall them now."

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes started flickering.

    With a serious look on his face, Duanmu Huanghun started reciting all content rted to the Night Moth Fruit that he kept in his brain. He spoke at his usual speed when reciting the first article, but when he reached the second, his speed increased significantly and he finished without even taking a breath.

    Hepleted reciting all 17 articles in a single breath without missing a word.

    He continued, "There are a few other articles that talked about it. One article can be found in Master Chang Yu¡¯s work, "Hall Cleansing Records". There¡¯s a section on page 82 that goes like this..."

    Duanmu Huanghun spoke speedily as Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered rapidly as well.

    Overhead, ck clouds pressed down on them as lightning shed and thunder rolled.

 Chapter 488: A Giantâ€™s Afterglow

    Chapter 488: A Giant¡¯s Afterglow

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Ai Hui was still somewhat alert at the beginning, but after a few consecutive lightning strikes he lost consciousness.

    Before the might of Nature, even Masters were as negligible as dust.

    Ai Hui¡¯s whole body was charred, as if he was a big piece of charcoal that had just been fished out from the stove. Lightning struck his body continuously, and his body twitched with each blow.

    By now, even Le Buleng did not dare to drag him out from within the cloudyer.

    Lightning constantly filled the sky and illuminated the earth.

    No one was in the mood to train. They abandoned what they were doing and looked toward the dark clouds hanging in the sky as well as the exploding lightning amid those clouds. Shock and worry filled their faces.

    The lightning only stopped after an hour.

    A coal-colored figure descended from the sky.

    Shi Xueman was the first to dash over with a ball of mist in her hands. It rolled out and wrapped itself around Ai Hui.

    Lou Lan also sprinted forward, the red glow in his eyes flickering.

    Shortly after, he shouted happily, "He¡¯s breathing!"

    .....

    Dread Division Encampment.

    Three people gathered. The atmosphere was very grave.

    Nian Tingfeng said expressionlessly, "This is what Madam wants. You two do as you deem fit. No one can force you."

    Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue remained silent.

    After a while, Ximen Caijue spoke up. "What about Le Buleng? Don¡¯t you find his sudden appearance too coincidental?"

    Nian Tingfeng answered faintly, "Who knows? What does he have to do with us?"

    Wan Shenwei nodded and added in a low voice, "Whether Le Buleng hase for Dai Gang or not, it has nothing to do with us. The three central divisions exist to keep the Grandmasters in check and prevent the Avalon of Five Elements from falling into their control..."

    Ximen Caijue interrupted coldly, "What is left of the Avalon of Five Elements?"

    Wan Shenwei nodded. What was left of the Avalon of Five Elements?

    Ximen Caijue turned around and kept her gaze on Nian Tingfeng. "What are your ns?"

    Nian Tingfeng replied straightforwardly, "I¡¯m going to obey Madam¡¯s orders of course. Since things havee to this, we have to make an effort or else how are we going to benefit at all?"

    Ximen Caijuemented disdainfully, "How righteous."

    Nian Tingfeng remained unmoved. "I¡¯m me and you¡¯re you. Who¡¯s going to force you if you don¡¯t want to listen?"

    Ximen Caijue did not refute, keeping her mouth shut instead as her powdery, egg-shaped face fumed. It was a cute sight, but the two men did not find it delightful at all. They were aware of how she could kill without even blinking.

    Wan Shenwei broke the silence. "The Dread Division will get ready for a death match."

    A look of unswerving determination emerged from his frosty face.

    Ximen Caijue said mockingly, "We¡¯re digging our own graves. That woman¡¯s already taken into ount that we have no choice but to agree. Terrific. Every generation of the Ye family is terrific."

    Nian Tingfeng said suddenly, "You can choose not to go."

    A smile appeared on Ximen Caijue¡¯s tender face. "How can I not go? We are all expendable ves who exist to deal with Grandmasters. We live to sacrifice, and that¡¯s why we¡¯re so strong. If we reject this, the three central divisions will not exist in the future. Rather than having that happen, I¡¯m willing to die at the hands of a Grandmaster."

    Nian Tingfengughed. "That¡¯s for the best. I¡¯ll report this good news to Madam."

    He stood up and walked out of the door without the slightest smile on his face.

    The sky outside was dark, no sunlight could be seen, and it felt a little cold. He tightened his grip on his clothes and departed inrge strides.

    .....

    Pearblossom Pavilion.

    An Muda knew it was his time to leave.

    The bubbling of the elemental energy within his body had be increasingly intense. If this carried on, the Pearblossom Pavilion would be torn apart. He wanted to leave it for his students.

    It was thest thing he could save for that little fellow.

    He got up from the mat little by little. His movement was very slow, even slower than that of a snail, as if he was moving in slow motion. Yet, no matter how slowly he moved, the energy waves felt by the Pearblossom Pavilion caused it to tremble violently. It was in imminent danger, as if it could crumble into pieces at any time.

    He took two whole hours to get up on his feet.

    His face was rosy and lively, butcked the least bit of impatience. Instead, he looked at ease. Focus, to him, was as simple as eating and drinking. It was instinctive.

    He was a Grandmaster.

    In this world, there were muddleheaded, but lucky fellows who managed to rise to be Masters. However, they weren¡¯t fortunate enough to be a Grandmaster. Grandmasters were supreme. Each was born from abination of iparable talent, diligence, and a stroke of luck.

    Just as his feet left the praying mat, it shattered into countless grass bits and then to fine powder.

    Standing upright, An Muda was as lofty as a mountain. He gazed into the distance, a smile appearing at the corner of his mouth.

    How could a Grandmaster die while lying in bed?

    He slowly raised his right leg. Very slowly.

    It took him eight hours.

    His expression remained the same throughout, the faint smile on his face still calm. He walked, step by step, toward the edge of the Pearblossom Pavilion.

    No one knew, but Grandmaster An Muda took three days to advance nine steps.

    Hepleted each step in eight hours, his expression never changing. There was confidence, reservation, and tranquility between his brows, as if nothing in the world could shake him.

    Indeed, there was nothing left that could stir him up.

    Reaching the edge of the Pearblossom Pavilion, he looked far into the empty sky, and the corner of his mouth once again curved up. He was like a yful child who had thought of an interesting idea.

    He raised his leg, but not at a snail¡¯s pace.

    He did it at a normal speed.

    A sudden p of thunder exploded somewhere high in the sky, where the metal wind was bitingly cold. The metal wind, which had been blowing in another direction at a high speed, suddenly became like a disordered shoal of fish.

    The next moment, however, they halted as if a spell had been casted on them.

    High up in the sky, the metal wind that spanned a radius of about three miles stopped moving all of a sudden, as if it was a frozen brick of air.

    An Muda took a step.

    One step was equivalent to a few miles.

    His dark blue cloth shoesnded on air.

    Boom!

    A dull thunderp rolled from far away.

    The frozen metal wind within a several mile radius shattered in an instant as an astonishing force sprinted toward them. The dazzling rays were like waterfalls of light that poured down in torrents, pierced through the metal wind below, and prated through the cloudyers before finallynding on an uninhabited mountain peak.

    The precipitous mountain peak ttened like a piece of dough, losing half of its height. The initially pointed mountain peak vanished, and all that remained was a giant footprint that stretched over one and a half miles.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    It was as if a giant was trudging overhead.

    Such a huge movement shook the whole world.

    .....

    Dai Gang shut his eyes, relishing in the abundant wood elemental energy and listening to Hai Qing¡¯s report.

    "Mingxiu feels differently toward Ai Hui. She¡¯d practically sent over all of her savings to him. These siblings are something different. That Needle-Subduing Peak loom was made by Ai Hui. I sneaked in to carefully study it. It¡¯s really not simple. Ai Hui is indeed in possession of Wang Shouchuan¡¯s teachings, and Wang Shouchuan had found a good student. If we could poprize the Needle-Subduing Peak, it would be very beneficial for us."

    Dai Gang opened his eyes and broke into a smile. "Don¡¯t be rash. I¡¯m only left with one disciple. Mingqiu is strongly against my views and refuses toe back, while Huanghun is mingling with those from the Central Pine Faction."

    Although Hai Qing could call himself a student in front of Dai Gang, he was only an attendant and not a proper disciple. Quan Minglong was a disciple in name. hence notparable to Luchen and the other two.

    Qing Hai smiled. "I know the severity of the situation. Mingxiu¡¯s affairs concern Brother Lu Chen and the whole of Lu family, so it¡¯s of great importance. Right, Brother Lu Chen has found a Master named Mu Lei, a student of Fei Yuan."

    A nostalgic look appeared on Dai Gang¡¯s face. "Fei Yuan was a decent guy, but he was too soft-hearted. I haven¡¯t heard of Mu Lei. He probablygs far behind his teacher."

    Hai Qing nodded. "That¡¯s right. Uncle Yu from the Lu residence went over, too. The Lu Residence thinks highly of Ai Hui. Mingxiu might have secretly contacted the Duanmu family since they requested for Mu Lei to hand a wooden case over to Huanghun. I¡¯m not sure what was inside."

    Dai Gang waved his hand. "You don¡¯t have to be so thorough. Whether it¡¯s the Duanmu or the Lu family, they clearly know that I¡¯m the only one who has what they need. It¡¯s a one for all, all for one situation between them and me."

    Qing Hai responded respectfully, "Yes."

    He added, "There¡¯s one more piece of news. Le Buleng has showed himself. He¡¯s with Ai Hui¡¯s faction."

    Dang Gang smiled. "Must be an opponent arranged by that old fellow An Muda. It has been so many years, old friend. I wonder how much he has progressed. Hope he doesn¡¯t let me down."

    Qing Hai wanted to remind his master to take note of Ai Hui since Ai Hui was involved in many affairs. He¡¯d always felt that Ai Hui was very dangerous, but realizing that his master might have other opinions, Qing Hai kept mum.

    He had lived with his master for way too long and was quite familiar with his temper.

    Recalling something, Dai Gang asked in a low voice, "How¡¯s ourbat division doing? Can it endure a battle? Lu Feng is the division leader of the new Deathgrass Division. How is he?"

    Qing Hai replied, "Above average talent and passion, but very meticulous and diligent at work. The Deathgrass Division is no longer like it was in the past, but still better than before. They are worth nurturing."

    Dai Gang asked, "Is he the Lu Residence¡¯s adopted son?"

    "Yes."

    Dai Gang nodded. "Since he¡¯s worth nurturing and is a foster brother to Chen¡¯er, we have to train his guts. Currently, I¡¯m supporting the top, but they can¡¯t embarrass me either. They can¡¯t expect me to wipe the a** of any random fellow that they bring to me."

    Dai Gang was half mocking and half joking, but Qing Hai inwardly shuddered nevertheless. He said in a low voice, "I¡¯ll get to it now."

    "We must train not just him, but also the backbone below him. Master¡¯s Glory isn¡¯t a bad program. Promoting Masters and not Grandmasters. We can learn from that. Lu Feng is Chen¡¯er¡¯s foster brother, so I shall ept him as a disciple in name..."

    Dai Gang stopped suddenly.

    Seeing that his master had been quiet for quite some time, Qing Hai quickly looked toward him.

    Dai Gang sat motionlessly like a y figurine, the expression on his face strange. He appeared to beughing, but also grieving, sentimental, and lonely.

    "An Muda is dying."

 Chapter 489: Chapter 489 - Glorious Footprints

    Chapter 489: Chapter 489 - Glorious Footprints

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    An Muda stopped in his tracks and stood high up in the sky for a long time.

    The empty, ice-cold deep space covered his body as elemental energy from all directions approached and gathered. All five types of elemental energy had formed aplete cycle around his body. They coiled and switched around, growing and multiplying without end. Many clockwise and counterclockwise circtions intertwined and surged like waves.

    The perfectly curved horizon in the distance and the endlessly deep void behind were coated by a halo. It was the afterglow of the setting sun.

    The sun set behind him. If he turned his head, he would see a round, bright red fireball parallel to him.

    An Muda did not turn around. Like the sun behind him, he was only left with the afterglow.

    The sun would rise and set on schedule tomorrow, just like today, and the afterglow was its way of bidding farewell to mother earth. An Muda¡¯s afterglow was his final longing for this earth, which he¡¯d been guarding and defending his whole life.

    Even the metal wind was unable to dissolve the grief he felt.

    When he¡¯d just be a Grandmaster, he also stood where he was now, proudly overlooking the vast field beneath his feet. Who would¡¯ve known that it would one day fall into such destion. If there was anything that grieved him even more, it was probably the fact that he¡¯d lived to witness the dpidation of the Silver Mist Sea.

    Elementalists retreated into the Wilderness like the tide, exchanging whatever area they could draw vitality from in order to buy more time for themselves.

    The Silver Mist Sea, which had been regarded throughout the years as one of the biggest monuments of the Avalon of Five Elements, was merely a barren valley where not even a single de of grass grew. There was no dazzling mist, the mud at the bottom of the valley had been turned over, and there were pits everywhere like many festering wounds.

    Before the Elder Guild¡¯s departure, they had wiped out all of the umted artifact remnants and left only the useless slit that piled up and dried in this empty valley, waiting to be eroded by time.

    Perhaps one day a rainstorm and deluge would turn this valley, which was oncebeled as the sacrednd of metal elementalists, back into ake.

    Wild grass grew on the wide and dry riverbed of the Silver Mist River, which asionally attracted little birds to peck at them. The ce was packed with holes three feet long, appearing like a long scar that stretched across the river.

    Looking down from the sky, the holes were eye-catching and ugly.

    An Muda suddenly recalled Le Buleng¡¯s words.

    So Grandmasters were humans too.

    An Muda mocked himself, his eyes regaining their usual cheer. Once again, he took a step.

    He wanted to leave ast footprint.

    The faraway sky seemed to tremble as the afterglow sprinkled down from time to time like shooting stars.

    Skyheart City was filled with a solemn atmosphere as all the elementalists walked out of their houses and stood on the street for a long time, gazing soullessly in the direction of the Silver Mist Sea.

    Worry was evident on their faces, their expressions gloomy.

    Rumors had long since spread around the street stalls. Everyone was somewhat mentally prepared, but now that the rumors were turning into reality before their very eyes, they were panic-stricken.

    They understood that they could never return to the past.

    The early evenings when thenterns were first lit, the humble abodes of sessive generations, and the days they thought dull were now gone, along with the sounds of footsteps and the glorious track from the distant sky.

    The giant turned its body and a generation came to an end.

    Where did their future lie? Was it within the lush Wilderness where thistles, thorns, and rampaging dire beasts lived? Or was it on the battlefield with the Blood of God? Could they win against the Blood of God? Would they be swallowed up by the Jadeite Forest? Dai Gang was born from the Avalon of Five Elements after all, so he wouldn¡¯t be too harsh on them right?

    Sounds made when calling for birds were heard from an unknown corner and quickly spread.

    A trace of bewilderment and fear appeared on Madam Ye¡¯s face, but she quickly regained her senses and usual calm.

    Nian Tingfeng appeared by her side like an apparition.

    Madam Ye asked, "What do they think?"

    Nian Tingfeng responded respectfully, "They¡¯re willing to fight for you!"

    Madam Ye smiled in disbelief, but did not question his words. Instead, she ordered, "Then get them to prepare. Dai Gang will not wait for long."

    "Yes!"

    Nian Tingfeng agreed, but did not immediately withdraw. He looked, somewhat absent-mindedly, at the glorious tracks left behind.

    That person had done what they were supposed to do.

    .....

    Newlight City.

    Above the Windy Resonant Pagoda that made all sorts of noises, Yuchi Ba gazed in the direction of the Silver Mist Sea. The asionally trembling sky, the rumbling thunder, and the glorious tracks that led to the territory of the Blood of God.

    Senior An Muda...

    Shame rose within his heart as he mumbled to himself, "... Sorry Senior. What to do? We no longer want to endure this. We must split. So be it. Everyone minds their own business. The new citizens are living decent lives. We might not win, but are at least fighting for ourselves. We no longer want to be cannon fodder..."

    As he spoke, the bewilderment in his eyes cleared up and was reced by zeal.

    He looked toward the enormous and glorious tracks in the far sky and cried, "After so many years of being cannon fodder, we¡¯ve all had enough!"

    Even while knowing that Senior An Muda couldn¡¯t hear him, he still wanted to vent the anger and resentment in his heart.

    But why were tears forcing their way out?

    .....

    The mountain ridge of ckfish Mouth Mountain was packed with people who stood still like statues.

    In the horizon, there was no giant, but dazzling footprints, treading and shattering the clouds as they moved forward.

    Shi Xueman held onto Cirrus tightly, her face a deathly white. Tears blurred her vision, but she pursed her lips firmly to prevent them from falling.

    Her teacher was dying, Ai Hui was severely injured and unconscious, and her father was waiting for assistance at the front line.

    In that instant, an unprecedented grief and feebleness wounded her heart. She wanted to cry so badly.

    But she did not. She¡¯d known since young that crying was useless.

    She wiped her tears. While the glistening teardrops were still visible, there was no more distress and grief, only tough determination. She quietly sorted out her emotions.

    There were many things left to do. She had to manage the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s training and cure Ai Hui. While waiting for a cure for Ai Hui, the Sword of Lightning¡¯s training had to continue.

    Many, many things.

    "When a Grandmaster is alive, he defeats all heroes under the sky. When he dies, he stirs all clouds under the sky. Look, the sun and moon lose their splendor and the stars dim. The sky is so high, the earth is so vast. All living things gather to grieve. How heroic! How delightful! Living a life without being a Grandmaster is unsatisfying!" Le Buleng muttered, his voice initially low, but bing impassioned and resounding as excitement emerged from his grave and skinny face, turning it red.

    Suddenly, he shouted with all his might into the distant sky, "An Muda, don¡¯t let that Holy Emperor look down on you!"

    Golden mes rose in his eyes along with a burning sensation in his chest. He turned to Shi Xueman and said, "Little girl, I¡¯ll hand my rubbish disciple over to you. Hahaha, I¡¯ming, Grandmaster! If I can¡¯t be one, I¡¯ll be the enemy of one!"

    After that, he transformed into a me, flew toward the other side of the sky, disappeared in the blink of an eye.

    Shi Xueman turned around and looked longingly at the glorious tracks left in the sky.

    She must not let his effort go to waste.

    She retracted her gaze and said in a low voice, "Start training."

    .....

    The boundary line between the Silver Mist Sea and Yellow Sand Corner was in an uproar.

    Rumbling, rolling.

    It was as if there was a monster crushing its way through from the faraway horizon.

    Shi Beihai and a few others couldn¡¯t help but walk out of the campground. They raised their heads and looked at the sky behind them. Enormous and illuminated steps appeared in the sky and stayed on the ground, turning into long giant footprints.

    Only those with the sharpest eyesight, Shi Beihai and a few others included, could vaguely catch sight of a silhouette high up in the sky.

    Shi Beihai¡¯s face changed tremendously. "Senior An Muda!"

    The faces of a few other observers changed as well when they quickly understood what was going to happen next.

    In private, everyone had been extensively discussing about who An Muda was leaving his final attack for. There could only be two possibilities. One was Dai Gang, and the other was the Holy Emperor of the Blood of God. Everyone believed that thetter was more probable.

    They¡¯d been enthusiastic when in discussion, but now that the time had reallye, there was only an inexpressible grief shrouding their hearts.

    Boom!

    A giant footprint stretching across a mile appeared in Ye Baiyi¡¯s army camp.

    The footprint sank a few meters deep. Densely packed tents once filled the area, but with that hit, over a thousand soldiers turned into blood y before they could even make any sound.

    This scene was too shocking, causing everyone that saw it to freeze in fear.

    When everyone snapped out of their daze, their faces were all as white as a sheet, be it the North Sea Division or Ye Baiyi¡¯s army.

    "Is this a Grandmaster? Is this the strength of a Grandmaster?"

    These exact thoughts surfaced in the minds of many.

    Fear, instinctive fear. No matter how brave a soldier was, he could only shudder uncontrobly in the face of such an invincible and inhumane force.

    Ye Baiyi shivered slightly as despair overcame his face. On more than one asion, he had thought about how to deal with a Grandmaster, but it was only at this moment, when he was really facing one, that he realized all his thoughts had been silly and ridiculous.

    Another two footprintsnded.

    There was no sign and no sound. There were no blood-curdling screeches or bone crushing cracks, only booms that rang as the enormous footprints took away thousands of lives.

    The blood elementalists under Ye Baiyi were all elites who dared to participate in such a direct and cruel battle. Yet, in front of this one-sided massacre, they simply had no courage to gather.

    Not good!

    Ye Baiyi was anxious. These three hits happened too quickly, and he had had no time at all to react and adapt.

    There were signs that the army was about to copse.

    Just then, an imposing voice rang from overhead.

    "I¡¯m your opponent, An Muda."

    These words shook the whole sky and caused it to buzz.

    The army that was just about to crumble started cheering excitedly after two seconds of silence.

    Not a single voice could be heard from the North Sea Division.

    Shi Beihai and others were ashen-faced. Although people were convinced that the Holy Emperor¡¯s abilities wereparable to that of a Grandmaster, they held a slight glimmer of hope since they¡¯d not seen it for themselves.

    Now, that wisp of hope waspletely crushed.

    This was bad news.

    Everyone tried hard to search for the Holy Emperor¡¯s silhouette, but to no avail.

    An Muda¡¯s glorious footprints did not halt. He continued advancing toward the Blood of God¡¯s interior.

    "I really did not expect you to govern the Blood of God so well."

    An Muda¡¯s surprised voice echoed throughout the entirety of the Blood of God, but no one could catch sight of his person.

    "An Muda, if you really pity the people of Beyond Avalon, let them surrender as soon as possible. A meaningless battle is only going to take more innocent lives away."

    A faint yet mighty voice reverberated through Blood of God and many blood elementalists started to kneel down.

    An Muda stopped in his tracks.

    Because he¡¯d seen the Holy Emperor.

    Grandmaster to Grandmaster.

 Chapter 490: Grandmaster to Grandmaster

    Chapter 490: Grandmaster to Grandmaster

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    An Muda¡¯s silhouette was blurry as an rming amount of elemental energy stacked,yer uponyer, around his body like the surging of a deep sea.

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s eyes, as sharp as swords, pierced through theyers of elemental energy and saw him very clearly.

    He sighed softly. It sounded like the melodious chiming of a clock and it resounded through the Blood of God.

    Amid the deep sea of elemental energy, a dazzling brilliance rose around his body, the multicolored splendor appearing like cold mes. His skin was starting to melt into elemental energy and rise into the air like vapor.

    Free from the shackles that trapped every other living being, Grandmasters were the most perfect entities in this world. Even their deaths were absolutely beautiful.

    The Holy Emperor was rather angry. He snorted, "What¡¯s your worth, An Muda? Do you live for those fools? Open your eyes, An Muda. What kind of trash are you defending? If things were left to me, none of them would live!"

    The Holy Emperor despised An Muda.

    To him, the failure of the Avalon of Five Elements was directly caused by An Muda¡¯s nonfeasance. If it had been him, he never would¡¯ve allowed the dog crap Elders Guild to gain power. If anyone disobeyed him, he would purge him or her without hesitation and mercy. In his eyes, whatever aristocratic families and new citizens were all no different from ants.

    Who else is a Grandmaster but me!

    His will was the Blood of God.

    But today, the Holy Emperor had more respect for An Muda. While he was mediocre, soft-hearted, and blinded by camaraderie, he wasn¡¯t without valor and responsibility.

    People who were admiring the final afterglow of the Grandmaster were unaware of the suffering An Muda endured. Plus, although Grandmasters couldn¡¯t escape death either, there was a way around it, as the Holy Emperor had recentlye to realize. This was the Grandmaster¡¯sst chance, the biggest gift presented to him after he¡¯d attained the grandmaster level.

    An Muda had been a Grandmaster for a longer time than Dai Gang, so it was impossible for him to be unaware of this fact.

    An Muda had given up his final chance in order to help those fools.

    The Holy Emperor was half sympathetic and half respectful, but also extremely angry. An Muda was a stately Grandmaster who chose to sacrifice his final chance in order to save useless mud.

    Exceedingly foolish!

    The silhouette amid the deep sea of elemental energy and splendor stood motionlessly, but An Muda¡¯s candidughter was heard. He sounded like a 20 year old young man. "Only smart minds do smart things. I¡¯m not smart so I only do what I like."

    With a mocking look on his face, the Holy Emperor replied in a sharp tone, "Like? Hahaha, what a joke! Why did you be a Grandmaster? Isn¡¯t a Grandmaster, who has achieved his status by being the strongest, most gifted, diligent and fortunate, seeking the ability to control this world?

    An Muda¡¯s tone was very calm as he answered without the slightest irritation, "My world is already in my hands."

    The Holy Emperor couldn¡¯t be bothered to drag the conversation on. "Come on, An Muda, you don¡¯t have much time left. You can¡¯t even attempt your final struggle. How heart wrenching. I¡¯m also very curious about what having a match with a Grandmaster feels like."

    "I¡¯m afraid that you¡¯re going to be disappointed."

    An Muda¡¯s voice carried a tinge of joy.

    The Holy Emperor was stunned.

    p. A tender shattering sound, like that made from broken ss, fell onto the ears of the Holy Emperor. His face changed and a zing ray of light swallowed him up in the next moment.

    The deep sea of elemental energy that was wrapped around An Muda exploded.

    A ripple appeared above the Blood of God and slowly spread outward.

    The blood elementalists below stared nkly at the sky. Shock only appeared on their faces after quite some time.

    Elemental energy. Entirely elemental energy.

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s silhouette emerged from hundreds of miles away, his face ashen. He opened his palms and colorful patches were visible. It was a terrifying sight.

    His face was gloomy, but there was rage in his eyes. Anger targeted at himself.

    He had been blindsided!

    Huge elemental energy waves rose and rippled like a tsunami at the spot where An Muda had been standing.

    An Muda had not intended to use hisst strike against the Holy Emperor, but against the Blood of God.

    Just now, he recalled that the elemental energy around An Muda had simply been too thick.

    Why would there have been such a rich elemental energy?

    The colored patches on his hand were about the size of copper coins. They looked like flowing dye, their luster alluring.

    The Holy Emperor could feel that these patches were sucking in the surrounding elemental energy nonstop and continuously expanding. His eyes lit up. It was interesting that An Myda chose to borrow the infectious nature of the blood poison.

    He was indeed the oldest Grandmaster.

    The colored patches were wounds caused by the corrosion of elemental energy. The elemental energy released by An Muda was of a veryplicated and peculiarposition. It was a type of five elemental energy ring that contained all five differing attributes. Its structure was extremely exquisite.

    This type of five elemental rings circted continuously like a river. Each ring was like a whirlpool, sucking in all five types of elemental energy.

    It would continue to grow and expand.

    The Holy Emperor was a wise person to begin with, so he immediately figured out where the elemental energy around An Muda came from.

    Where An Muda had passed, all the elemental energy had been collected by him. Cloud Palette Vige and the Silver Mist Sea were probably like the Old Territory by now.

    He¡¯d underestimated An Muda!

    The fury in the Holy Emperor¡¯s eyes had reduced significantly, but the gloom remained on his face. He admired An Muda a bit more. To target the Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner instead of himself was a thinking a step ahead of the opponent. Exhausting all elemental energy from Cloud Palette Vige and the Silver Mist Sea... that was more like it. A ruthless Grandmaster.

    The smile on the Holy Emperor¡¯s face grew wider. An Muda hadn¡¯t been idle all these years. This type of five elemental energy ring was something he¡¯d prepared in order to deal with the Blood of God.

    This was because it could withstand the corrosion of the blood spiritual force.

    By now, the Holy Emperor could already predict what kind of disaster the elemental energy tsunami would bring to the Blood of God. This elemental energy rainstorm swept across the whole of the Yellow Sand Corner.

    An Muda¡¯s five element ring would swallow all the surrounding elemental energy to strengthen itself.

    The earth elemental energy in the Yellow Sand Corner wasn¡¯t as strong as before, but was still abundant. The same situation applied to the fire elemental energy in the Fire Prairie. These earth and fire elemental energies would be food for the five element ring.

    An Muda had really seen through the weakness of the blood poison.

    The more singr an elemental energy was, the easier it was infected by blood poison. The more types of elemental energy there were, the more difficult it became for the blood poison to infect. Blood poison would be ineffective against a dire beast that possessed all five types of elemental energy. This was also why the blood poison was unable to spread within the Wilderness. The majority of the dire beasts and nts in the WIlderness contained many types of elemental energy.

    A thorough transformation of elemental energy in the Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie by An Muda¡¯s five element ring was, to the blood elementalists, no less than an exceptionally destructive catastrophe.

    Without the replenishment of a single elemental energy, blood trees would wither and cause a shortage in the jade fruits. To God Nation, this deficiency would destabilize their foundation. The blood beasts would starve and die off, and there would be no blood crystals. Without jade fruits and blood crystals, blood elementalists wouldn¡¯t be able to undergo even the most basic of training.

    A pity, An Muda. You¡¯ve miscalcted.

    Why would you think I¡¯m unfamiliar with the five elemental energies?

    A faint shadow floated across his eyes, then became clear in an instant. A cold smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

    Not only was he familiar with the five elemental energies, he was aware of the blood poison¡¯s weakness. As such, he¡¯d never given up on improving the blood poison.

    That was right. An Muda¡¯s five element ring was beyond the Holy Emperor¡¯s understanding of the five elemental energies. It was more borate andplex, but the Holy Emperor did not doubt that he could break it. His study and understanding of the five elemental energies exceeded those of ordinary people, so he was highly confident in this aspect.

    The Holy Emperor did not care about the spreading five element ring rainstorm. Even if the Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie quickly became the haven of the five element ring and the blood elementalists were inhibited, this situation was only going to be temporary. The moment he broke the ring, the Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie would be restored.

    An Muda¡¯s five element ring was the most perfect ring he¡¯d seen so far. If he could break it...

    He suddenly felt excitement because he realized that he would reap a benefit that far exceeded his imagination if he managed to break it.

    Afterward, he would be able to embrace, without restriction, areas of the Wilderness that he was unable to in the past.

    If he could enhance the blood poison from An Muda¡¯s five element ring and enter the Wilderness, there would only be withered grass and rotten wood extending lifelessly into every corner of the Wilderness. The boundless Wilderness and inexhaustible dire beasts would all fall into his grasp.

    His heart surged. The territory belonging to the Cultivation Era was about to be restored by his hands.

    No, he was going to force the Wilderness somewhere further.

    The Holy Emperor burst into a long peal ofughter. "Hahahaha..."

    An Muda had not let him down!

    How could he, as a Grandmaster?

    Amid his wildughter, the distant elemental energy tsunami surged over with a shockingly powerful momentum.

    He believed that An Muda knew this too. He knew how dangerous things would be the moment this type of five element ring was revealed. Nevertheless, he used it just to buy that trash a bit more time.

    The Holy Emperor was baffled by this meaningless sacrifice. So what if there was a bit more time? What was going to change? Nothing would change. Did he think that the Elders Guild could use this small amount of time to im victory?

    There was probably no way out.

    It was really ridiculous for a Grandmaster to feel helpless.

    He, the Holy Emperor, would not be that foolish. He would take this gamble! He would certainly break An Muda¡¯s five element ring in the quickest time possible. He was the most powerful person in this era.

    No. Not just this era!

    He was going to surpass all the legendary cultivators, bing the strongest and mightiest person to exist in history!

    There was only emptiness in the eye of the spreading elemental energy rainstorm. The Grandmaster was no more.

    In high spirits, the Holy Emperor felt extremely smug about his sess. He smiled, "Thanks for your present, An Muda. You¡¯ll soon find out that your sacrifice was meaningless and that they¡¯re trashier than you think."

    He swiftly disappeared and reappeared above Ye Baiyi¡¯s army camp.

    "An Muda is dead. Official Ye, attack."

    The Holy Emperor looked at the North Sea defensive line with cold eyes, his disdain and contempt flickering. There was also a trace of pity!

    Beneath his feet, tens of thousands of soldiers kowtowed.

    I¡¯m the real Grandmaster!

    The Holy Emperor looked down from high up in the sky, his expression cold and detached. Like ripples, his silhouette slowly disappeared into the horizon.

    The faraway elemental energy rainstorm raged and whistled.

 Chapter 491: Us, North Sea

    Chapter 491: Us, North Sea

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Cloud Castle was concealed by thickyers of cloud. The deep clouds were not only used as a cover, but also provided an outstanding defense.

    The 32-kilometer-long North Sea Wall was the final defensive line against the Blood of God, but now, fragmentary nicks had already appeared on its surface.

    Each castle possessed countless cloud mirrors, through which one could clearly observe the situation outside. Above the mirrors, densely crowded enemies rushed over from all directions.

    What followed the blood elementalists was a concentrated azure arrow rain which would asionally strike them.

    The water elemental arrows that missed would explode into balls of cold, bone-piercing ice shards.

    Blood elementalists swept by the cold air would temporarily turn rigid, after which a heavy, sturdy azure javelin would shoot out from within the cloud wall. Like a ray of lightning, it would strike the blood elementalists and leave a bowl-sized bloody hole in their bodies.

    Yet, it was the attacksunched by the God-subduing Peaks that the blood elementalists feared most.

    The God-subduing Peaks could use the five elements interchangeably, so their attacks could not be guarded against.

    At times, an enormous silver sickle of light would sweep across the whole battlefield, and where it passed, blood elementalists would be severed in half at their waists. Fresh blood poured like rain and the mournful cries that filled the field left people¡¯s hair standing on end.

    From time to time, a few red, basket-sized fireballs would drop and explode mid-journey, scorching a radius of about thirty meters, leaving no survivors.

    Countless sand puppets would also leap from the ground and cling tightly to the blood elementalists, pushing them toward the arrow rain.

    Wood elementalists made fewer moves, fearing that the vines and nts would be infected by the blood poison.

    Under the North Sea wally piles of skeletons.

    Lu Manman blurted, "Is Ye Baiyi crazy?"

    The atmosphere within Cloud Castle was extremely grave. In the evening, on the day the Holy Emperor ordered an attack, Ye Baiyi hadunched an all-out attack. Enemies closed in like the tide, pressuring them immensely.

    They were very experienced when it came to battling against the Blood of God, but this waspletely different from past battles. The blood elementalists throwing themselves over were in a frenzied state. It was a fear-evoking sight.

    The first wave of attackssted from that evening until the next daybreak.

    The azure light ray produced by the water elemental energy and the red blood ray released by the blood elementalists lit the deep, despair-filled night as bright as daytime. It was eerily horrifying, as even the stars in the sky dimmed and lost their color.

    The North Sea Division had never met with such a frantic attack.

    When day broke, the morning light faintly lit up the horizon. The sun had yet to rise and the cold blue sky was ckened by smoke. The closely packed enemies retreated like the tide, leaving behind only corpses.

    The wounded were lying amidst blood pools, wailing in anguish, yet none took pity on them.

    asionally, the cloud wall would shoot fragmentary blue water elemental arrows, putting an end to their suffering.

    Giving them a proper ending and sparing them from pain was the best kindness they could be served.

    The captives and wounded were an intolerable burden to the North Sea Division. There was no one to manage the captives or treat the injured blood elementalists.

    The anguished wails gradually faded and the battlefield regained its deathly stillness.

    The sun rose, its sunlight unable to provide these fallen corpses with any warmth. The clouds floating in the blue sky were reflected on their lusterless and motionless eyes.

    Afraid that the corpses would lead to an epidemic and that their fresh blood would be drawn by more blood elementalists, the God-subduing Peaks set them aze, burning them to ashes.

    Wave after wave of attacks struck over three consecutive days.

    Even with the North Sea Wall, everyone felt that they would be unable to continue to endure. Every day, the wall would have more nicks and the enemies once almost drilled their way through. Lu Manman had had to lead his team to personally kill off those blood elementalists.

    Everyone rejoiced.

    The division leader had requested that they strengthen the defensive structures and they dared not goof off. At that point, many had been incredulous at the order.

    Structures built on the scale of the North Sea wall, in all of the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s history, could be counted on one¡¯s fingers. Alright, actually there were none in the Avalon of Five Elements. It was uncertain if the North Sea Wall could be considered as a part of the history of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Now, however, everyone felt that the division leader stood tall and had foresight, had been wise and brilliant.

    Even the North Sea Wall, built on an unprecedented scale, had almost been broken through by the enemies. If it had been the flimsy structure it once was, they might not have even been able to resist for three whole days.

    Qi Xiuyuan¡¯s expression was grave. "Ye Baiyi is throwing lives away, but other than this, there¡¯s no other way out."

    Helian Feier wrinkled her brows. "How many have died here?"

    Three days of attacks had resulted in over three thousand deaths.

    Such a severe loss was unimaginable for all of the North Sea Division. The bloody battle against the Blood of God had been ongoing for such a long time that it was obvious only their elites hade forward this time; they were far more capable than the soldiers from the previous battles.

    Aspared to the three thousand elites from the Blood of God, the North Sea Division was practically destroyed. They had nobat strength left. Abat division¡¯s defeat was considered a heavy loss even in the former Avalon of Five Elements, but Ye Baiyi did not care.

    "They have a lot of people," Shi Beihai stated calmly, his gaze sweeping across everyone present. In a low voice, he added, "We¡¯d previously discussed how an all-out battle would start following Senior An Muda¡¯s fall. This is an all-out battle that will only end when one party thoroughly loses, so throw away all unrealistic thoughts. This battle is going to be tougher than we can imagine."

    The few others were silent. They knew that their leader was right.

    Ignoring them, Shi Beihai continued, "Ye Baiyi is not a fool. He chose to do this, so he must have his own ns. What we have to do now is figure out what those ns are."

    Helian Feier muttered, "Such disregard for casualties is so unlike Ye Baiyi. He takes very good care of his soldiers. I think he might have been pressured by the Holy Emperor into executing such extreme measures."

    With bright and shiny eyes, Qi Xiuyuan added, "Can we think from their perspective? Ye Baiyi needs to break through the North Sea Wall. What would we do if we were in his position? It¡¯s meaningless tounch a mild, probing attack. It could escte easily, which is disadvantageous. High intensity attacks would mean high casualties. Our team damage is small, but take note that our essence elemental bean consumption is veryrge."

    Helian Feier¡¯s face changed slightly.

    Shi Beihai turned around and asked Helian Feier, "Go find out how many essence elemental beans we have left."

    At that, Helian Feier dashed out.

    The expressions on people¡¯s faces weren¡¯t too great.

    God-subduing Peaks did not require essence elemental beans because they possessed abundant amounts of elemental energy to begin with, but the recovery of the soldiers¡¯ elemental energy and the North Sea Wall¡¯s repairs required a high volume of essence elemental beans. Without elemental beans, the soldiers would need at least twenty hours to replenish their elemental energy.

    If there weren¡¯t enough essence elemental beans, then aside from the God-subduing Peaks which could continue operating indefinitely, the remaining elementalists¡¯bat strength would be greatly reduced.

    For the past three days, they¡¯d been hounded by their enemies, leaving them breathless. In such a highly tense state of affairs, no one had thought about essence elemental bean consumption.

    Helian Feier returned a short whileter, her face pale. "There¡¯s only half of the reserve left. If the battle continues at this intensity, we won¡¯t be able to withstand for much longer."

    Cloud Castle fell into aplete silence.

    Shi Beihai remained calm and collected. He turned to Qi Xiuyan and asked, "Are the mirage bean pods ready?"

    Qi Xiuyuan was clueless as to why Boss decided to ask him about them now, but nodded nevertheless. "Done."

    "Previously, I had you get in touch with the news viges. How did it go?"

    "Yes. I contacted some of the biggest names."

    Lightly drumming his fingers on the table, Shi Beihai said, "Take these mirage bean pods to them. Remember, tell them at the end that we¡¯re in urgent need of essence elemental beans."

    Qi Xiuyuan¡¯s eyes lit up. "Yes!"

    Lu Manman couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Boss, are you worried that Skyheart City..."

    Shi Beihai nodded without answering directly. Instead he exined, "Assistance has yet to arrive, so we¡¯re still a lone army putting up this fight. Although I don¡¯t know what the Elders Guild has in mind, it seems like they do not care if we¡¯re able to withstand the attacks or not."

    Everyone¡¯s faces changed altogether.

    "With the severing of ties between the aristocratic families and the new citizens, Ye Lin¡¯s authority in the Elders Guild has be an issue. I understand that the three central divisions are dealing with Dai Gang, but what about Sky Edge and Infantry? Why aren¡¯t they here yet?"

    Shi Beihai appeared calm, but his words were cutting.

    "It¡¯s apparent from Madam Ye¡¯s earlier speech that her people are all just cannon fodder." Shi Beihai shook his head. "Still plotting against her own people even at this point. How heart-wrenching."

    Qi Xiuyuan looked at Shi Beihai as he spoke. "Then we..."

    Shi Beihai shook his head. "I¡¯m telling you guys all this not to rock your faith; I just want you all to know that this battle is going to be much tougher than you¡¯d imagined."

    Lu Manman said anxiously, "Sir, if they¡¯re so heartless, why must we..."

    Shi Beihai looked down, unable to continue. There wasn¡¯t anger in his eyes, only tranquility. Yet, it was this calmness that rendered him unable to continue.

    What no one had expected was for the usually conscientious leader to break into a smile. "Are we fighting for Ye Lin? No. We¡¯re fighting for our families and rtives. Is the North Sea Division the Elders Guild¡¯s North Sea Division? No. We defend and protect those behind us. Be it new citizens or aristocratic families, regardless of where theye from, this is our mission. The North Sea Division¡¯s mission. Do not forget, soldiers."

    At that, the smile on his face disappeared and was reced by seriousness.

    Those present could feel a gush of hot air rising straight to the top of their heads. They stood up and fervently made their salutations. "Yes!"

    Shi Beihai surveyed his audience, light flickering in his narrowed eyes. He spoke quickly, with an imposing voice, "Order! Other than the usual operations of the God-subduing Peaks, all elementalists shall increase the demarcation of the front line from one hundred and fifty meters to four hundred and fifty meters."

    "Yes!"

    "Order! All elementalists shall split into three teams. Helian Feier, Lu Manman, and I will lead each team separately to battle and rest in batches!"

    "Yes!"

    "Order! Qi Xiuyuan,mand all craftsmen to work on defensive structures and defensive lines from now onward. Confer power to conscript the locals and mobilize all local elementalists and craftsmen."

    "Yes!"

    Shi Beihai took a deep breath and said solemnly, "Everyone, this battle will persist for a very long time. Do not ce hopes on others. Do not be discouraged by the enemy¡¯s power. Do not lose spirit at temporary losses. Us, North Sea, shall never lose the will to fight."

    "We, North Sea, shall never lose the will to fight!"

 Chapter 492: Dawn of Hope

    Chapter 492: Dawn of Hope

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Ai Hui slowly woke up.

    "Ai Hui¡¯s waking up!"

    Before he¡¯d opened his eyes, he could hear Lou Lan¡¯s cheer followed by a series of hurried footsteps.

    His blurry vision gradually became clear as familiar and concerned looking faces took shape.

    "How is it? Are you feeling better?"

    "You¡¯re finally awake, Ai Hui. We were so frightened!"

    "No knowledge of Night Moth Fruit. How weak."

    ...

    Everyone greeted Ai Hui messily, but concern was evident in all of their faces. Warmth filled Ai Hui¡¯s heart. He was moved. He wanted to say something, but nothing came out of his mouth. He realized he waspletely paralyzed and unable to lift even a finger.

    "Aye, he can¡¯t seem to talk."

    "Seems like it. He can¡¯t move yet."

    "He¡¯s blinking his eyes. He¡¯s alive."

    "That¡¯s good enough. Let him be. As long as he¡¯s breathing, he¡¯ll be up and jumping in no time."

    It was obvious that this joyfully satisfied voice came from Fatty.

    "Is that right?"

    "That¡¯s great!"

    "I¡¯m relieved!"

    "I think you¡¯re right, Fatty!"

    Everyone shouted in unison. In the blink of an eye, only Lou Lan was left in the room. Everyone knew very well that Ai Hui had a tenacious vitality. Knowing that he was alive was sufficient to calm their worried hearts and send them back to their own tasks.

    Having just witnessed the fall of An Muda, everyone was aware that the battle was about to start. Never had there been such an intense pressure. People knew that the front line battle could explode at any time and that they could soon be conscripted.

    With regard to battling against the Blood of God, every single member of the Central Pine Faction felt enthusiastic.

    It was a nightmare that had taken away countless lives and even the survivors had mostly lost the will to fight; yet, some would never forget the pain, grief, and despair that it had caused them.

    The seed of hatred had long been nted. It had since sprouted and grown significantly.

    Regardless of the reason for it or what the future held, hatred was hatred and always carried blood.

    People feared battle mainly because they feared death and despair, but these avengers, they had already lost everything and experienced absolute despair. As long as they lived, they would be unable to forget the bloodshed that had taken ce in Central Pine City. They wouldn¡¯t forget their ssmates, teachers, and the familiar faces which hady amidst blood pools, being swallowed up by blood fiends one by one.

    All along, living had been worse than being dead.

    Ai Hui had recovered significantly by the second day, proving that their impression of his tenacity was correct. On the third day, Ai Hui could already sit up.

    Seeing himself in this state, Ai Hui could onlyugh bitterly. His whole body was wrapped in the bandage. He looked like a living mummy. His bare skin was charred and cracked wounds could be seen all over. Although they had started to scab, it was still a shocking sight.

    "Don¡¯t worry, Ai Hui. Bangwan¡¯s gotten a lot of materials and I¡¯ve already found some methods to deal with it. The fruit within your body was damaged by lightning so it¡¯s returned to its dormant state. This phenomenon is not relevant to the materials Bangwan¡¯s provided, but I¡¯ve already separated out somews of its behavior. I¡¯ll treat you for sure, Ai Hui!"

    Lou Lan supported Ai Hui up while encouraging him.

    Ai Hui smiled, but his face was wrapped in the bandage so only his eyes were exposed.

    Lou Lan caught it, however, and responded happily, "Lucky there was the bandage to help Ai Hui iste the lightning strikes, otherwise, you would¡¯ve sustained more injuries."

    Since the start, the bandage had saved Ai Hui countless times.

    He thought about Master and Mistress before his mind drifted to Mingxiu and Uncle Yu. There must be a problem, he just knew it. He knew for a fact that Mingxiu would never hurt him. There was no doubt about it.

    But he would have to deal with this matter after his recovery.

    Lou Lan carefully ced Ai Hui under the sunlight.

    Basking in the sun, his whole body felt warm and indescribablyfortable.

    Lou Lan sat by Ai Hui¡¯s side, narrating the events that had unfolded. Ai Hui listened with keen interest, but upon hearing about An Muda¡¯s death and the glorious tracks he¡¯d left, Ai Hui fell into a daze.

    Subconsciously, his gaze fell upon Shi Xueman, who stood not far away and supervised everybody¡¯s training while holding Cirrus.

    Iron Lady must be feeling very upset.

    Ai Hui felt that Iron Lady was really strong. The pain he¡¯d felt when Master and Mistress passed was unforgettable. Ai Hui thought about what An Muda¡¯s death meant for the front line and Iron Lady¡¯s father, Shi Beihai. The situation must be rather tough right now.

    Her teacher had passed and her father was in danger, yet she was unable to help. Such pain was simply too harsh.

    Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s training was very structured. What Ai Hui had not expected was for Sword of Lightning¡¯s training to go on as usual. He¡¯d thought that training would have ceased when he¡¯d fallen into aa.

    He only realized it when he saw Shi Xueman asking Gu Xuan about how effective Sword of Lightning¡¯s training was.

    Only one thought ran through his head. He must recover as soon as possible!

    Seeing how Iron Lady assumed even more heavy responsibilities despite her sorrows and worries, Ai Hui only felt greater respect for her.

    He felt that he, himself, might not have been able to do it.

    Iron Lady looked as calm as always, but right now, this calmness only made Ai Hui feel her unyielding attitude and the powerful force contained in her delicate body.

    Wait. Delicate body... Something is amiss, thought Ai Hui.

    Alright, time to think about how to quickly recover.

    Seeing how everyone was dripping with sweat and working diligently, Ai Hui felt ashamed as he was practically wasting precious time.

    Ai Hui only became aware of just how terrible the condition of his body was when he started checking.

    Almost all of his residences and pces had been destroyed. The lightning gathered in the cloudyer was simply too intense and had far exceeded what his body could endure. As Lou Lan had said, without the bandage, he would have had close to zero chances of surviving.

    To an elementalist, having his residences and pces destroyed was no worse than drowning and being reduced to a handicapped person.

    He¡¯d only recently been promoted to a Master and was then suddenly struck by such a destructive force. If he had been any other elementalist, he might never have been able to recover from this setback. His recently gained immense power had vanished. What did it mean to be a Master and what did it mean to lose his status as a Master?

    It was all the more painful since he¡¯d lost something he¡¯d just recently gained. It probably felt equivalent to a fall from heaven into hell.

    Ai Hui did not feel pain and disappointment. Instead, he felt extremely d and renewed.

    At that time, it had been his only way out.

    At least he was still alive and could think of solutions while basking in the sun.

    Ai Hui was tenacious. The situation before him was horrible, but he understood that there was no time to feel dispirited and in despair. Senior Le Buleng had failed to have a breakthrough eight times and had been more wretched than he was right now; yet, he never stopped trying to get stronger.

    There¡¯s hope where there¡¯s life.

    Judging from the holes in his residences and pces, Ai Hui could imagine how the sky full of lightning had gathered in his body to destroy the vigor within. He did not just injure his residences and pces, but also the foundation of his vitality.

    Over eighty percent of his flesh was severely wrecked and might not even recover.

    Heaven neverpletely barred one¡¯s way. Ai Hui noticed something.

    There was a wisp of silver mist floating quietly within his utterly damaged earth pce. This ball of mist was extremely weak and would have been difficult to detect if not for his attention to detail.

    The silver mist flickered like the mist above the Silver Mist Sea.

    When Ai Hui consciously tried to approach this ball of mist, a thick aura of lightning shook him up.

    He felt rather disappointed. The elemental energy within his body had been exhausted, so of what use was the lightning? Injuries to the five residences and eight pces were, to elementalists, extremely burdensome, albeit curable. If the five residences and eight pces werepletely destroyed, there was simply no way to reverse it.

    In other words, he would be unable to train his elemental energy from now on.

    Lightning wasn¡¯t of much use to him.

    But why was there a remaining wisp of lightning within his body? He was somewhat suspicious, but on second thought, felt it was natural. Having had his body cleansed by so many lightning strikes, it shouldn¡¯t be surprising that some remained within.

    Wait!

    Ai Hui suddenly realized what was amiss. Finding remnant lightning in his body wasn¡¯t the strange part; why would that remaining wisp be a silver mist?

    Then it hit him.

    That¡¯s right, remnant lightning would never be silver mist!

    His mind kept going back to the silver mist. He felt thankful that he¡¯d once cultivated the sword embryo and Skyheart ming Lotus Lamp in his sky pce, as they had strengthened his mind significantly. His body was severely injured, but his mind was working decently well.

    He submerged himself into the silver mist and was wrapped by a familiar sensation.

    Sword aura!

    Ai Hui felt indescribably agitated and his mind became unstable. He shortly broke away from the mist, but was unable to hold back the ecstasy within his heart. He knew what that silver mist was!

    It was the sword embryo in his earth pce. The remnant pieces left by the lightning.

    With the shattering of the sword embryo and the exceptionally dense lightning aura, this peculiar type of silver mist had been formed.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind spun quickly. He was like an agile and avaricious hunter seeking whatever opportunities he could make use of.

    The bandage, wrapped around his whole body, revealed its eyes. They glowed and flickered within the shadow cast by the sunlight.

    After much thought, he still did not know much. Perhaps it was two hours or four hourster when his mind returned to the silver mist.

    This time, his state of mind was exceptionally calm and he wasn¡¯t irritable or stirred.

    He slowly and carefully felt this wisp of extremely frail silver mist. He moved very slowly and cautiously.

    Soon he was certain that his thought was correct. This extremely weak silver mist was a remnant shattered piece of sword embryo left by the lightning, but there was a subtle difference within.

    The sword embryo in his earth pce had been a sword of lightning that in itself contained very strong lightning attributes.

    The Nature¡¯s lightning that had prated his body had been powerful and aggressive, but had had simr properties to the sword embryo. Ai Hui could imagine how the lightning had been instantly absorbed by the sword embryo in his earth pce upon entering his body.

    The huge volume of lightning that had gathered in the sword embryo had far exceeded its level of endurance, hence the sword embryo had beenpletely wrecked and transformed into mist.

    At the same time, however, channeling a huge volume of lightning meant that the sword embryo had been thoroughly tempered once. No, many times. Even if it was destroyed, the lightning continued to flood his body and the sword embryo mist continued undergoing many rounds of ¡®tempering!¡¯"

    It was no wonder the lightning aura of the silver mist was so dense.

    Bearing and surviving through so many sessions of tempering...

    At this moment, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were sparkling. He saw the dawn of hope.

 Chapter 493: Black Cloud

    Chapter 493: ck Cloud

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui¡¯s injury had a huge impact on Central Pine Faction.

    All along, they were used to working under Ai Hui¡¯s leadership. They were used to handing over any tricky affairs to Ai Hui. Time and time again Ai Hui disyed miraculous problem solving abilities, proving himself worthy of their trust.

    Ai Hui had always been the strongest, the calmest and the person with the most ideas.

    Yet, at such a crucial period in time, their most reliable pir was severely injured. People felt insecure.

    Luckily, Ai Hui was recovering, so now everyone was significantly more relieved. Even if they had zerobat power, Ai Hui¡¯s intelligence gave them confidence.

    Ai Hui was recovering well.

    He¡¯d progressed from being paralyzed to being able to move his fingers and finally being able to move on his own again, albeit forcefully. Every day was an improvement for him.

    Everyone was feeling more cheerful because of this. They¡¯d witnessed many miracles involving Ai Hui and had seen many impossible things happen, which was why they hadplete faith in him.

    No one noticed that the red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes had intensified.

    Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup was of great help to Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was still fully wrapped in bandages. His flesh was recovering thanks to the excellent nourishment from the elemental soup. AI Hui was engrossed in self-exploration. He was already certain that the wisp of frail silver mist had been formed from the tempered sword embryo.

    Ai Hui named it "sword cloud".

    With just a bit of friction, sword cloud would produce small and fine lightning bolts. sword cloud could also change its shape marvelously along with the release of the sword aura, some of which were as thick and heavy as mountains, while others were cold and sharp. It was every mystical.

    Ai Hui recalled the descriptions he¡¯d previously read in some swordy manuals. Some swordsmen lived to grow and temper a mouthful of sword breath. Such swordsmen were initially weak, but along with the purification and condensation of the sword breath, their abilities would advance by leaps and bounds. The manuals said that the human was the sword and so they tempered themselves.

    It struck Ai Hui that he could use this as a reference.

    Although there was only a small wisp of sword cloud, it was extremely pure.

    The purer the force the more precious. This wasmon knowledge when it came to training. However, elementalists were careful not to let forces beyond their level, in terms of purity and grade, into their bodies.

    Elemental energy that surpassed their level would definitely stimte them more by providing a reference goal.

    But such elemental energy was usually offensive in nature. Before they could be absorbed they were like indigestible food and could cause harm to elementalists.

    From the look of it, the sword cloud would not harm Ai Hui¡¯s body. Of course, it also might have already harmed his body.

    Ai Hui felt that the pressing question was this: If he was unable to find a method to nourish and temper it quickly, would it gradually disappear? Sharp treasure swords would rust easily when ced in water for a long time.

    He couldn¡¯t find a solution at the moment, but gained something else ¨C his body.

    Other than the fact that his sword embryo had been cleansed and tempered by the lightning, his flesh had also been tempered, or rather, ruined. Fortunately, under the protection of his bandage, his practically burnt flesh retained a wisp of life force.

    His ever growing flesh was like the tender shoots that sprouted from the ashes left by the lightning.

    His flesh contained a faint lightning aura. Ai Hui guessed that his flesh would better be able to endure the lightning from now onward.

    Of course, be it the sword cloud or his body, these were mostly spections. He would have to recover and conduct continuous tests to arrive at a legitimate conclusion.

    Nevertheless, Ai Hui was already feeling d that he was able to find hope under such circumstances.

    Suddenly, there was a disturbance in the encampment.

    "Come and look, quick! Today¡¯s mirage bean pod!"

    "It¡¯s about the front line. Sir Shi Beihai!"

    "Division Leader¡¯s father!"

    "Come and look, quick!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s sense of hearing seemed to have sharpened as he¡¯d managed to detect his subordinates¡¯ faraway voices well. The strange thing was that it wasn¡¯t a reflection of his elemental energy.

    "Oh god!"

    "How terrifying!"

    rmed cries echoed continuously, but everyone quickly quietened down. Ai Hui could even hear that they were holding their breaths. He was very curious but slightly worried at the same time.

    He only understood the reactions of those outside when Lou Lan sent the mirae bean pod over to him.

    He looked at Iron Lady.

    Her face was a little pale and she looked distracted.

    It was his first time seeing such an absent-minded Shi Xueman. There was no focus in her ice-cold eyes.

    She paced back and forth.

    Themotion raised by that mirage bean pod spread to every city in the Wilderness. The bitter struggle had truthfully been recorded. The frenzied god elementalists, the cruel grappling and a mountain-high pile of corpses that could extinguish a raging me.

    Three days of battle seemed to have happened right before his eyes with an intensity that far exceeded anyone¡¯s imagination. The magnificent Wall of North Sea had be a bloody Acheron that sent chills down people¡¯s spines.

    And ultimately, when assistant division leader Helian Fei¡¯er pleaded for essence elemental beans with a face covered in soot, people finally snapped out of it with a quiver.

    Even the boldest person wouldn¡¯t be able to stop himself from shuddering.

    Wall of North Sea was the final defensive line against Blood of God!

    Seeing the continuous chain of tents, the frantic, tide-like surge of malevolent god elementalists and the corpses all umted beneath Wall of North Sea, everybody was finally certain that once the wall broke and North Sea Division lost...

    No one could withstand Ye Baiyi¡¯s army!

    Wall of North Sea had been constructed before the fall of Elders Guild. It was the finalrge-scale defensive structure of the whole of the Avalon of Five Elements!

    How many cities had defensive structures on par with Wall of North Sea?

    The cities would be razed to the ground and everyone would turn into god elementalists.

    Madam Ye immediately called on the cities in the hope that everyone would unite and brave the crisis together. Six Masters would be engaged to travel and transport the first batch of essence elemental beans to North Sea Wall.

    Newlight City also dispatched its Masters to ferry essence elemental beans.

    Other cities responded one after another. With the mayor at the top and the citizens at the bottom, teams formed to assist North Sea Division with the preparation of essence elemental beans. In this life and death crisis, everyone casted whatever prejudices they had aside and came together as one.

    Every single one of them was well aware that they were all finished once Ye Baiyi¡¯s army broke through North Sea Wall.

    Looking down from the sky, Wall of North Sea was like a long, snow-white dragon lying along the boundary line between Silver Mist Sea and Yellow Sand Corner, except that the dragon was utterly crushed. Its extended and undting body had many wounds.

    God elementalists were ring at each wound like tigers watching their prey.

    They were like warlike hos, asionally circling and swooping down. At times they were like petals blown by the wind, and at other times like drifting rocks that gathered together from a few brooks.

    Under the light of the God-subduing Peaks, each breach of North Sea Wall sunk into a never ending struggle between god elementalists and North Sea Division. From day one the battle had been extremely cruel.

    Each ce was like the ferocious mouth of an avaricious beast, swallowing flesh and life. Be it god elementalists or elementalists, they were all its food.

    Both sides were shocked by the other¡¯s willpower and tenacity. They then racked their brains toe up with a more fatal blow to deal to their enemy.

    With the nourishment of countless lives and flesh, each shockingly wide open, bloody mouth ripped apart noiselessly. It was as if there was a voice shouting for more flesh to fill its tummy.

    The evening sunlight prated the cloudyer and dyed the sand dune behind the army a splendid golden color. People who¡¯d been in Yellow Sand Corner knew that the breeze in the evenings was the mostfortable, unlike the zing heat in the afternoons and unlike the icy wind in the nights. The temperature was just right and it felt as though pieces of gauze were brushing across the field.

    The rich, bloody smell filled the air, as if it¡¯d been blown over by the slow setting sun behind the horizon. Inevitably the bright red sunset made people think about the brutality that was ongoing.

    A wisp of ck cloud rose up from the sand dunes. The vast sand dunes emitted scorching heat waves that resulted from a full day of sunshine, which made the remaining sunlight and ck cloud fuzzy and indistinct.

    The ck cloud struggled free of the heat waves and gradually it became bigger and came nearer.

    No one noticed this quiet wisp of ck cloud initially.

    It was only when the ck cloud continued to increase in size and obstruct the afterglow of the sunset that it managed to capture the attention of soldiers from both sides. They notified their teammates, doubt emerging on their faces. In the blink of an eye their faces changed.

    The ck cloud was approaching at a much faster speed than they¡¯d imagined. It was rapidly expanding within the army¡¯s field of vision. In actual fact, it was because its speed was simply too quick.

    "Blood... blood fiends!"

    Above North Sea Wall, the soldiers who¡¯d just been trampling on their enemies¡¯ corpses had their morales smashed to the valley floor as their faces turned pale.

    The sky had be a sky of blood fiends. They hid the sky and covered the earth in a grandiose manner, making it impossible to catch a glimpse of the horizon.

    An earth shattering cheer sounded from Ye Baiyi¡¯s army camp as soldiers dashed out of their tents and waved their hands and arms in the sky. The continuous battle had them exhausted beyond imagination. The cruelbat was like an automated hacksaw, tormenting their mental state unceasingly.

    How could they not get agitated upon seeing such a magnificent army of blood fiends arriving to provide reinforcement?

    Inside the tent, Ye Baiyi was looking at the battle statistics over the past few days.

    From the numbers it was apparent that their losses were severe but Ye Baiyi remained emotionless. Casualties were inevitable in all battles. It was only natural that the death toll was high since such a big scale defensive structure like North Sea Wall really was a tough nut to crack.

    But these same numbers exposed North Sea Division¡¯s weariness.

    Shi Beihai was one of the most powerful figures around and North Sea consisted of top elites. Yet, they were but one team.

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s order shed across his mind as he refocused on the battle report.

    Since yesterday, North Sea Division¡¯s offense had regained some vigor. Ye Baiyi was certain that the first batch of essence elemental beans had arrived.

    Ye Baiyi appeared indifferent. Shi Beihai wouldn¡¯t be Shi Beihai if he was easily defeatable.

    Outside the tent, the sound of air torrents and the howls of blood fiends pervaded the sky.

    Ye Baiyi raised his head. The big gift he¡¯d prepared for Shi Beihai was here.

 Chapter 494: Dialogue

    Chapter 494: Dialogue

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    "Beast Venom Temple is here," Shi Beihai mumbled.

    He fixed his eyes on the iing ck, cloudlike blood fiends, which covered the sky. He appeared calm, with the smoke around his face seemingly solidifying into ck rocks that became distinct under the sky and clouds.

    Lu Manman and Helian Feier had an ugly expression on their faces. Ye Baiyi¡¯s army was too much for them to handle. If not for the Wall of North Sea and the God-subduing Peaks, they would¡¯ve long been drowned by the tide-like inflow of enemies.

    With an additional Beast Venom Temple, the situation was so terrible that it drove people into despair.

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s Cold Pce, Nangong Wulian¡¯s Beast Venom Temple, Ye Baiyi¡¯s War God Pce and Red Devil¡¯s Fairy Devil Pce were Blood of God¡¯s four great pces.

    Bei Shuisheng never miscalcted, had an iparable internal government and was known as Sick Tiger of God Nation. Now that Blood of God was prospering, Bei Shuisheng imed the most credit.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s Beast Venom Temple was just as powerful. The blood fiends kept by Blood of God all came from the Beast Venom Temple. Even the most popr load basin beasts in the Wilderness were creations of the Beast Venom Temple.

    It was said that the newly risen strong yer in God Nation, Red Devil, was also a masterpiece of Beast Venom Temple.

    Needless to say Ye Baiyi was, in the eyes of Shi Beihai, one of the most intelligent division leaders around. Hisbat strength and strategies were the finest.

    "Ye Baiyi..."

    Shi Beihai turned around and said, "Get everyone to make full use of this time to restore the defensive line while others take the chance to recuperate. Tomorrow will be another bitter struggle. Supply them with essence elemental beans."

    Lu Manman and Helian Feier jumped in shock before answering in unison, "Yes!"

    Shi Beiha¡¯s silhouette disappeared on the snow-white pathway made from the cloudyer.

    The duo hurriedly ryed the order.

    Lu Manman¡¯s eyes were moving nimbly. At times he extended his neck and nced at the enemy¡¯s camping ground, snapping, "Ye Baiyi is amazing, eh? I used to think our boss was the greatest, but Ye Baiyi actually isn¡¯t weak either."

    Helian Feier was more knowledgeable. She shook her head in response. "It¡¯s because you were ignorant and inexperienced. Ye Baiyi is indeed powerful, but not many people outside know about it. Great Elder settled on two sessors previously, one of them being Ye Baiyi. There¡¯s nothing to criticize about Ye Baiyi¡¯s abilities. Great Elder admires him very much."

    It was clearly Lu Manman¡¯s first time hearing this. He couldn¡¯t help but ask, "And what happened?"

    Helian Feier shook her head. "Nothing."

    With Eyes wide open Lu Manman asked, "Why?"

    Helian Feier answered, "He¡¯s a new citizen."

    Lu Manman had a realization. "I see."

    The Great Elder¡¯s position had always been taken by members from aristocratic families only, not new citizens.

    Helian Feier added, "Ye Baiyi is proud and aloof. He¡¯s a new citizen, but isn¡¯t on close terms with Yuchi Ba and other people from New Citizen Faction. As such, he couldn¡¯t get their support."

    "He¡¯s so fierce!" Lu Manman eximed before asking, "If Ye Baiyi was one of the chosen ones, who was the other candidate?"

    Helian Feier gave Lu Manman a foolish look. "Boss."

    Lu Manman was frightened, but quickly regained his senses. "Boss? That¡¯s exactly what I was saying. Boss is so capable! If Ye Baiyi was chosen, why wouldn¡¯t Boss be chosen as well? Aye, then why didn¡¯t Boss agree? Sigh, wouldn¡¯t our lives be great if Boss became The Great Elder?"

    "I happen to know something about this." Helian Feier said admiringly, "Boss mentioned that there is still estrangement between new citizens and aristocratic families and it is getting worse. The divergence has reached a dangerous point where they are no longer able topromise. It is not something The Great Elder can solve, since he doesn¡¯t know how to either. Boss doesn¡¯t want to dip his gun into his own people¡¯s blood, be it the aristocratic families or new citizens."

    Lu Manman fell into silence. The atmosphere in North Sea Division had always been good. Both Qi Xiuyuan and him were new citizens, but were able to be assistant division leaders. Helian Feier was an aristocrat, but they all got along fine.

    Helian Feier sighed. "Actually, Great Elder liked Boss the most. Boss has a good family background, is powerful and morally praiseworthy. Both aristocratic families and new citizens would be in support of him taking over Great Elder¡¯s position. But it was said that Boss¡¯s firm rejection really angered Great Elder. Why did Miss Shi Xueman get Grandmaster An Muda to be her teacher? It was actually Great Elder¡¯s arrangement."

    Lu Manman was stunned. These seemingly ordinary affairs actually had stories behind them.

    "You must¡¯ve heard this before. Miss Shi Xueman had been regarded as the sessor of The Great Elder."

    Lu Manman nodded enthusiastically as how a chicken would peck at its food. "I¡¯ve heard, I¡¯ve heard."

    Helian Feier looked at him. "Don¡¯t you wonder why it¡¯s her? Miss Shi Xueman is still so young and she wasn¡¯t even a Master at that point in time, so what qualifications did she have to be such a hot candidate?"

    Lu Manman stared nkly into space. "You... you¡¯re right."

    "Fool!" Helian Feier couldn¡¯t help but roll her eyes at him. "Who does Boss favor the most? Miss Shi Xueman! If she bes Great Elder, would Boss just stand by if anything happened? And Grandmaster An Muda is her teacher, so wouldn¡¯t hee to the rescue if anything happened to her? Great Elder¡¯s n is really brilliant!"

    Lu Manman said, tongue twisted, "But... but..."

    "But why Ye Lin?" Helian Feier asked before answering with yet another sigh, "Man proposes but God disposes. Great Elder did not expect such a violent a blood catastrophe to erupt. We lost Yellow Sand Corner and Fire Prairie in the blink of an eye. Lesser Avalon of Five Elements failed, resulting in theter Wilderness Expansion Order. Have you not noticed that we havepletely lost our rhythm and are being led by the nose thanks to Blood of God?"

    Helian Feier¡¯s gaze carried a tinge of fear. "Boss said that Holy Emperor is an unmatched character in terms of ambition and ruthlessness and he¡¯s right. Great Elder¡¯s n has thoroughly been trampled with. Such a dangerous situation is not something Miss Shi Xueman can bear. Plus..."

    Her tone was slightly cheerful. "Our Miss has the same temper as her father. Hah, running to and Ai Hui and getting mixed up in his affairs. Look, isn¡¯t this reckless spirit of hers identical to her father¡¯s in his younger days? Great Elder was seething with anger at that news, but Boss was very happy. Plus, at that time, Grandmaster An Muda was no longer in good shape. Without his backing, Miss Shi Xueman won¡¯t gain a foothold in the Elders Guild."

    At this point Lu Manman slowly regained his senses and mumbled to himself, "Boss is really something. It would still be better for him to take over Great Elder instead of Ye Lin. If Boss had assumed the position, the situation wouldn¡¯t be so chaotic now."

    Helian Feier shook her head. "That¡¯s what I said previously, but Boss disagreed. He felt that Ye Lin was a more suitable candidate."

    "What?" Lu Manman thought his ears were ying a trick on him and asked in disbelief, "Boss said that b*tch would be a better Great Elder than him?"

    The whole of North Sea Division had nothing good to say about Ye Lin. Their request to withdraw from the front line in order to recuperate had been rejected countless times. They weren¡¯t provided with sufficient resources and had tried rushing for them but to no avail. The backupbat divisions had yet to arrive as well.

    If not for Boss¡¯s idea to mass release mirageovie bean pods, their defensive line would¡¯ve been destroyed due to an exhaustion of essence elemental beans. Yet, immediately after the release of the pods, Ye Lin was the first to stand up, calling for people to unite.

    Everybody felt sick to their stomachs, as if they¡¯d just swallowed a fly.

    What Ye Lin had done at the rear disgusted them as well.

    Guillotines on a snowy night, rivers of blood.

    So one could only imagine how intense Lu Manman¡¯s reaction was in regard to Helian Feier¡¯s words. To him, Shi Beihai was unsurpassable.

    "That¡¯s right. That¡¯s what Boss said." Helian Feier had aplicated expression on her face. After keeping silent for a short while she spoke up. "Boss said that the current Avalon of Five Elements is like a festering patient, wounds everywhere and flesh rotting, as if already on itsst breath but there are wolves in front and tigers behind."

    Lu Manman, too, became quiet.

    Helian Feier added, "Boss said that he is soft-hearted and does not wish to touch his own people¡¯s blood. Currently, the Avalon of Five Elements needs someone ruthless enough to eradicate the rotten flesh. Whatever wounds there are should be sewn up before anything else. This process is very bloody and many will die. Among the victims would be some whose crimes are impassable, some who are innocent and others who have different standings. This is something he¡¯s unable to do so Ye Lin should do it."

    Lu Manman spoke urgently, "But..."

    Helian Feier ignored him and continued, "Boss also said that while Ye Lin¡¯s method isn¡¯t necessarily honest and that she isn¡¯t the most open-minded person, she was ruthless and definitely unwilling to admit defeat. The rest might bow before the Holy Emperor in fear or give up in despair, but not Ye Lin. Her determination to stand off exceeds anyone in the Avalon of Five Elements. Se will never surrender."

    Lu Manman fell into silence once more. Boss had known Ye Lin from young so he must know her better.

    "Boss said he¡¯s unsure if her authority is a good or bad thing. The Avalon of Five Elements might wee a turn for the better in her hands, or it might crumble and turn to dust. He does not wish to be Ye Lin¡¯s knife or turn into rotten flesh, so what he¡¯s able to do is to guard the front line as best as he can. Boss also said that he would quit if he survives this death match. His obligations would¡¯ve been fulfilled, so his remaining time would be dedicated to protecting his daughter. If he dies, it will be in service of his duties so there won¡¯t be regrets."

    A sparkling tear had unknowingly emerged from Helian Feier¡¯s eyes.

    Lu Manman¡¯s eyes were red, but heughed, "If I survive, I¡¯ll follow Boss and be the family head. It¡¯s still better to follow Boss!"

    Helian Feier blinked. "Then I can only be the housekeeper."

    Lu Manman became interested. "What about Xiuyuan? Should he watch the door?"

    "That suits you more." Helian Feier stroked her chin. "Xiuyuan will do the ounts since he knows how to. Aye, Miss gotta earn some money. The two of us can only freeload and wait for death!"

    "I¡¯m only suited to doorwatching? What a joke! Do you know how rare a well-rounded leader like me is?"

    "Yeah, yeah, extremely rare. You can do the groceries, cook and clean. Well-rounded indeed!"

    "That¡¯s a servant! I¡¯m the head of the household. Family head!"

    "Hehe. Yes, yes, yes, you¡¯re the head... Hope we can all live on."

    "We will."

 Chapter 495: Master Shao And Information

    Chapter 495: Master Shao And Information

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The old man was kneading mud in the courtyard.

    In his aged and rough hands wet, ordinary looking yellow mud was being kneaded into the shape of a human puppet. The old man¡¯s facial expression was very focused, and he appeared to be lost in his own word.

    Hong Rongyan did not say anything and stood silently behind the old man.

    He wore a luxurious, ink-ck silk robe, making him look as if he was engulfed in a dense shade of darkness. His robe was well-fitted, wrapping closely around his long and slim figure. The glistening, dark-red cinnabar dot in between his eyebrows added an indescribable tinge of charm to his devilishly handsome face.

    When he appeared in the courtyard, all the rays of light seemed to focus on him.

    The old man was very focused on kneading the mud and Hong Rongyan was also very focused on watching him doing so.

    The sunlight shone into the courtyard and onto the old man¡¯s back, making the scene look like a painting.

    The servant girl that followed Hong Rongyan did not dare to make any noise. The scene taking ce now seemed to contain a mysterious power that could make one quiet down.

    The old man straightened his back and ced the mud puppet in his hands down. The humanoid puppet was crudely made, resembling the work of a naughty child. Its limbs were thick and short and it did not have any facial features. However, for some reason, it looked somewhat quick-witted.

    "Such a fine piece of work."

    Even though it was a word of praise, Hong Rongyan¡¯s voice contained a faint tinge of grief.

    When the old man heard his voice, he turned around and said casually, "If you like it, I can give it to you."

    "Thank you, Master Shao."

    Hong Rongyan gave a bow and carefully took over the mud puppet. The servant girl beside him acted with haste and hurriedly brought over an exquisite wooden box. Hong Rongyan cautiously ced the mud puppet into the wooden box and closed the box gently.

    Throughout the whole process, he held his breath with a focused look on his face and his movements were extremely slow. It was as if he was holding a priceless treasure, not a mud puppet.

    Master Shao looked at Rong Hongyan with interest and did not make any noise to disturb him.

    After closing the box, Hong Rongyan took a pure white handkerchief from the servant girl and wiped his hands clean before passing it back to her.

    Following which, he shifted his gaze towards Master Shao and said with distress, "Master Shao, we have some information regarding the issue you mentionedst time around."

    Master Shao¡¯s body suddenly tensed up. However, the next moment, he heaved a breath and his body loosened up slowly. He looked at Hong Rongyan and asked, "Where is she now?"

    "Your granddaughter indeed used to be in the Assembly of Patriarchs. However, at that time, since you had concealed your identity and we did not know that she was your granddaughter, we thought she was just an ordinary blood elementalist. If we knew your identity at that time, we definitely would have treated you with the highest form of respect."

    Hong Rongyan looked sincere and his tone wasden with grief and regret.

    "Then you imprison me? Torture me to extort confessions?" Master Shao replied with sarcasm.

    Back in the day, he concealed his identity and left Blood of God with his granddaughter. After he evaded Blood of God¡¯s pursuit, he was attacked by the Assembly of Patriarchs unexpectedly. Subsequently, his granddaughter was captured by the Assembly of Patriarchs.

    Hong Rongyan shook his head and replied, "You have too many prejudices against the Assembly of Patriarchs. Even though Blood of God and Assembly of Patriarchs have been arch-enemies for many years, our methods are still much more humane than Blood of God¡¯s.

    "Where is she now?" Master Shao asked inly.

    After staying silent for a while, Hong Rongyan replied with a stronger apologetic tone, "Fifteen years ago, the headquarters of Assembly of Patriarchs came under arge-scale attack and we suffered heavy losses. Our three orphanages were also affected and your granddaughter was in one of them."

    Master Shao froze as the luster in his eyes disappeared. After a while, he asked with a hoarse voice, "So she is dead?"

    "I¡¯m very sorry," Hong Rongyan bowed and expressed regret.

    His voice sounded very sincere.

    Master Shao stood there in a daze. His turbid pupils were emotionless.

    "I am really very sorry! I will take my leave now," Hong Rongyan sighed.

    After giving a bow, Hong Rongyan left the courtyard with the servant girl.

    After they left the courtyard, the servant girl could not help but ask, "Young Master, why are you so courteous towards him?"

    Jing Tao¡¯s voice was innocent and bright. Previously, she was being very well-behaved. At this moment there was no one else around so she became much more casual. She had served Young Master since she was very young. Both of them had a very deep rtionship and her status waspletely different from the other servant girls¡¯.

    "God Puppet Pce." Hong Rongyan looked as if he was reminiscing about something. "Back in the day, God Puppet Pce was glorious and mighty. The current master of Beast Venom Temple is his disciple. He is second to none in making puppets."

    A doubtful look appeared on Jing Tao¡¯s face. She didn¡¯t quite understand what was going on. In her eyes, no matter how formidable the old man was, he couldn¡¯t be stronger than her young master. However, since her young master said so, she quickly nodded her head.

    Hong Rongyan suddenly stopped in his tracks.

    Jing Tao was shocked. She quickly stopped in her tracks too and looked at her young master.

    "The pce master of God Puppet Pce is a supreme individual. Why would he want to escape from Blood of God with his granddaughter? Who is trying to harm him? Who dares to harm him? That could only be the Holy Emperor. Is it possible that he has offended the Holy Emperor?"

    Jing Tao remained speechless. She knew that if her young master¡¯s train of thought was disrupted now, he would be very angry.

    Hong Rongyan still did not understand what was going on after pondering for quite some time. Master Shao was Holy Emperor¡¯s right-hand man. Even though Holy Emperor was cruel and ruthless, he respected those who were capable very much. He definitely would not have scared Master Shao away from Blood of God over some petty issue.

    "Remember to get someone to investigate this issue," Hong Rongyan instructed.

    "Yes," Jing Tao replied obediently.

    She had been able to serve Young Master for many years because she knew the limits of decorum very well. Young Master could tolerate small tantrums from the servant girls. However, when it came to serious issues, her young master would be extremely serious. He would not be joking around at all.

    Her interest was piqued by Hong Rongyan. If the old man was so formidable, why did he want to escape from Blood of God?

    .....

    Ai Hui woke up in the middle of the night. He could not sleep as his mind was filled with the image of Iron Lady¡¯s helpless look from that day.

    In his eyes, Shi Xueman was not really smart or gentle at all. Her spearmanship was powerful and heavy. She had an iron willpower. She was always the one that led the charge. On the battlefield, she would always take on the most powerful enemy. She had neverined about hardships or med others for the circumstances she was in.

    But that day was first time he¡¯d seen such a helpless look from Iron Lady.

    The worst thing was he was severely injured at this point of time.

    Ai Hui could not fall asleep. He widened his eyes and looked at the stars above his head. After being in a daze for a while, he forcibly calmed himself down. Being in a daze was useless now.

    He got rid of the distracting thoughts in his mind and pondered about the condition of his body.

    As time passed, Ai Hui became drowsy, half-asleep.

    After an unknown amount of time had passed, he was awakened by Lou Lan.

    "Ai Hui, Ai Hui, wake up."

    Ai Hui opened his drowsy eyes and Lou¡¯s masked face appeared in his line of sight. Subconsciously, he blurted out, "Lou Lan..."

    "Ai Hui can talk!" Lou Lan¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Lou Lan¡¯s cheer immediately created an uproar in the camp. Everyone swarmed over, as if they were looking at a rare animal.

    "Look at how vigorous he is! He is stronger than a wild boar!"

    "Wild boar? Don¡¯t insult Ai Hui! He is a cockroach!"

    "He looks like he is going to recover soon. That¡¯s really good. Lou Lan can make more elemental soup for us now."

    "Yes, yes! Lou Lan has to take good care of Ai Hui every day, so it means we have less elemental soup to drink."

    "Lou Lan, what are we eating tomorrow?"

    "Should wee up with a new dish? Lou Lan¡¯s cooking skills... Argh, I¡¯m so hungry!"

    ...

    Everyone broke into a lively discussion. Initially, they were here to look at Ai Hui. Very soon, they were talking about elemental soup. The word "hunger" was written all over their faces. All of them were talking about what type of elemental soup Lou Lan would make tomorrow. They could not free themselves from the reverie they were lost in.

    No one noticed that Lou Lan had already brought Ai Hui away silently.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sleepiness was scared away by those unbearable fellows¡¯ repulsive-looking faces. At this moment, he was unusually wide awake.

    "Lou Lan, where are we going?"

    Carrying Ai Hui on his back, Lou Lan said cheerfully, "Ai Hui, we are going to Central Pine Valley. Master He has alreadypleted his task and he wanted me to bring you there to take a look. He doesn¡¯t know whether or not he did it right."

    Ai Hui became energized, "Blind He is really efficient. He is able to finish the task so fast."

    "Ai Hui, calling Master He ¡®Blind He¡¯ is really rude," Lou Lan said with a solemn tone.

    Immediately, Ai Hui reacted to him and chuckled, "Oops, oops. My bad, my bad, I am very respectful to Master He."

    Lou Lan¡¯s tone became cheerful once more as he said, "Yes. When Master He was forging it, he was very serious. Lou Lan has a lot to learn from him. When Lou Lan is free, Lou Lan is going to learn the art of smithing from Master He."

    Central Pine Valley was not far away from Fishback City. Carrying Ai Hui on his back, Lou Lan reached Central Pine Valley very soon.

    The first person Ai Hui saw was Duanmu Huanghun, who was meditating in the bamboo forest.

    There was a small wooden box in front of Duanmu Haunghun. It was the wooden box that his family members had requested Mu Lei to bring to him.

    Ai Hui did not disturb Duanmu Huanghun.

    When Lou Lan brought Ai Hui to the Snow Cluster mes, his gaze was immediately attracted by something.

    He raised his head and looked at the huge metallic casting in front of him.

    Its shape was very weird, resembling a metaldle. It was very difficult for one to link it to a huge sword. The first impression that one had was of its huge size. It was so huge that it looked like an ice-cold, metallic monster. The body of the sword was thick and strong. It looked much more sturdy than Ai Hui¡¯s sword body. It looked boorish and ugly.

    However, a huge part of its surface was extremely smooth and sleek, resembling a mirror. Countless, densely-packed elemental traces were carved all over it as well.

    "ording to your design, the sword is one hundred meters tall and has seven nodes. An iron framework is set up at every node. There will be three to nine levels. At each level of every pagoda framework, there are six positions for people to stand on. The elemental traces that you designed have already been carved onto it."

    Blind He¡¯s voice came from behind Ai Hui. His voice contained an unconceble weariness, along with a tinge of excitement and anticipation as well.

    Ai Hui could not shift his gaze off of it. The huge, metallicdle was an odd Big Dipper shape that pierced through seven pagodas. The seven pagodas did not have any bricks or tiles. They were just made up of thick and strong metallic frameworks.

    Even though its shape was odd, ugly and crude, Ai Hui behaved as if he had seen a priceless treasure sword. His eyes were brightly lit.

    Blind He¡¯s indifferent voice came from behind Ai Hui.

    "Inspect it and see if there¡¯s anything that needs to be changed. If there¡¯s nothing to be changed, then it ispleted. Right now, I am very curious about how you are going to make this huge fellow fly."

 Chapter 496: An All-out Attack, Metal Baskets, And Arrogant Words

    Chapter 496: An All-out Attack, Metal Baskets, And Arrogant Words

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Another day had passed. The sun rose from the horizon, shedding warmth and sunlight over thend.

    However, the Wall of North Sea did not receive any.

    At this point in time, the atmosphere at Wall of North Sea was wintry and bleak. Every defensive position was on high alert. Every soldier¡¯s body was tensed. They could not help but widen their eyes and look ahead with malevolence.

    The Blood of God¡¯s camps were absolutely silent. The dark masses of blood fiends were standing still like stone statues. Their scarlet eyes were filled with a thirst to kill and indifference towards people¡¯s lives.

    In the midst of the blood fiends, Beast Venom Temple¡¯s god priests¡¯ hands kept on releasing a red-colored, bloody glow.

    The mist-like bloody glow looked unusually alluring under the cold and gloomy sunlight.

    Speckles of the bloody glow entered the bodies of the blood fiends. Their scarlet eyes reduced in redness and became clearer. Their aggressiveness and high body temperatures disappeared along with the red glow in their eyes, as if their bestiality had been taken away by a mysterious force.

    Their eyes were clear and wless like extremely beautiful rubies.

    Upon witnessing this scene, the North Sea soldiers on the Wall of North Sea went into an uproar.

    "Everyone, take note! Do not look into the eyes of the blood fiends!" Helian Feier loudly reminded everyone with a solemn look on her face. She looked extremely calm. She was able to influence the soldiers with her calmness, causing themotion to diminish gradually. No one noticed that her fingers drooping by the side of her body were actually trembling slightly.

    The enemy was going tounch its main attack soon!

    Unlike before, Ye Baiyi did not attack the Wall of North Sea wave by wave. Instead, he gathered all the blood fiends andunched an all-out attack.

    The scale of this attack was unprecedented. The pressure on the defensive line was also unprecedented. The boundless sea of blood fiends caused Helian Feier to feel extreme despair. She could not see any hope of victory.

    A thick and wide palm patted her shoulder lightly.

    "Rx, do you still remember the n?"

    At first, her body froze. Then, when she heard the familiar voice, her body loosened up. Mysteriously, all the pressure and tension she felt disappeared as she began to regain herposure.

    Without turning around, Helian Feier nodded her head and replied, "Yes, I remember!"

    Shi Beihai patted her shoulder and left without saying anything else. He was patrolling along the defensive line. When the soldiers bowed and greeted him, he would calmly bow and greet them back. Every now and then, he would nod his head at the soldiers or ask, "Do you still remember the n?"

    Mysteriously, with this ordinary question and the slight nod of his head he was able to get rid of the fear and tension that everyone was feeling.

    Generally speaking, everyone was willing toy down their lives because they trusted this tall and imposing man.

    In a camp on the Blood of God¡¯s side, Ye Baiyi was looking at the Wall of North Sea that was obstructing the advance of his army. It was still standing tall and majestic. However, there were a lot of areas that were utterly damaged, allowing him to see the defensive positions of North Sea Division.

    Shi Beihai had exposed these defensive positions on purpose. They looked as if they could be broken through at any moment easily, but in reality they were dangerous spots of death.

    Ye Baiyi had long seen through Shi Beihai¡¯s n. However, he still sent his soldiers to attack these defensive positions and observed them being crushed to smithereens.

    If those exposed defensive positions were Shi Beihai¡¯s bait, then these suiciding soldiers were his bait.

    Shi Beihai¡¯s goal was to buy more time for the Avalon of Five Elements, and Ye Baiyi¡¯s only goal was Shi Beihai!

    This was an order from His Majesty.

    Ye Baiyi had no choice but to admit that His Majesty was extremely sharp, but unusually decisive and ruthless as well. His Majesty did not care about how many men he lost at all. All he cared about was whether or not Shi Beihai died.

    Ye Baiyi was able to urately spot the morale boost in the soldiers defending the Wall of North Sea. Upon seeing this, he eximed in admiration.

    Shi Beihai truly lived up to his name!

    However, what was the point of boosting the soldiers¡¯ morales at this moment?

    "Let¡¯s begin."

    Ye Baiyi¡¯s voice was indifferent without any tinge of excitement, resembling the piercing cold air in the early morning.

    A ck-colored blood fiend rose high into the air. It acted as a signal and caused other blood fiends to ascend from the ground and rise into the air with it.

    Like a gigantic ck rug that had its four corners lifted up by invisible hands, the dark sea of blood fiends flew towards the sky.

    The atmosphere at the Wall of North Sea suddenly became tense. However, this time around, no one was feeling as fearful as before.

    Their facial expressions were determined and their gazes were resolute.

    There were no newbies among them. For the past few years, they had battled Blood of God an unknown number of times. Their mentalities had be unusually tough.

    Previously, they were stunned by the might of Blood of God. Now that they¡¯d regained theirposure, they naturally did not feel scared at all. All of them were used to seeing death and they knew the uing battle was unprecedentedly dangerous. Right now, all of their facial expressions were solemn.

    The blood fiends covered the sky and hid the sun, causing the sky to darken.

    "Prepare to withstand the charge!" Lu Manman yelled at the top of his lungs.

    Just as he finished his sentence, the blood fiends in the sky began to swoop down.

    The dark masses of blood fiends resembled torrential hailstones.

    The cacophony of the sounds of their wings pping and the hisses and roars of tens of thousands of blood fiends came crashing down at the Wall of North Sea like a colossal tsunami.

    Even with the protection from the Wall of North Sea, the soldiers from North Sea Division felt their hair stand on end as a cold shiver went down their spines.

    The weight of the mass of blood fiends was equivalent to a small mountain¡¯s.

    The tens of thousands of diving blood fiends were like meteorites crashing towards the Wall of North Sea.

    If one looked down from the sky, he or she could see waves of a ck-colored tsunami crashing against the snow-white Wall of North Sea. Colorful glows of elemental energies kept on shing in the midst of the darkness.

    The corpses of blood fiends kept on falling from the sky like dumplings. Their bodies piled up on the ground, forming heaps of corpses everywhere. The blood fiends that were still alive were battering North Sea Division¡¯s defensive line frantically, not feeling tired at all.

    Cracks began to appear on the majestic Wall of North Sea.

    .....

    Fishback City.

    Everyone surrounded the huge sword that Lou Lan had taken a lot of trouble to bring over. All of them eximed in astonishment.

    "Isn¡¯t it a bit ugly?"

    "A bit ugly? Are you blind? It¡¯s extremely ugly! It looks like a bent shoulder pole that carries seven metal baskets. Hey, those baskets are of different sizes!"

    "Ai Hui¡¯s sense of beauty is still as hopeless as before."

    "I want to straighten it so badly, what should I do?"

    ...

    All the members of Sword of Lightning had an embarrassed look on their faces. Discussions and mockery from the others had revealed their own thoughts. At this moment, their faces had turned extremely red and they wished they could find a hole to hide in.

    After hesitating for a long while, Gu Xuan could not help but walk to Ai Hui and whisper, "Boss, don¡¯t tell me we are going to train in those metal baskets in the future?"

    "What metal baskets? They are sword pagodas! Metallic sword pagodas!" Ai Hui corrected him.

    Gu Xuan took a second look at them, but still could not tell that they were sword pagodas. However, this was not the main issue. He whispered again, "Yes, yes. They are sword pagodas, they are sword pagodas. But my point is, are we really going to train in these ¡®Metal Basket Sword Pagodas¡¯ in the future?"

    "In the future?" Ai Hui shook his head.

    When Gu Xuan saw Ai Hui shake his head, a tinge of joy appeared on his face instantly. However, Ai Hui then continued, "We are training now!"

    Gu Xuan was dumbstruck.

    The rest of the members were dumbstruck as well.

    From that moment onwards, watching Sword of Lightning members training became the favorite pastime of Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s members. There were times where even Shi Xueman would smile when she saw Sword of Lightning training.

    Ai Hui had yet to recover to the point where he was able to take part in the trainings. However, he would sit by one side and observe them.

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice would ring across the air whenever someone lost focus or failed to keep up with the rest.

    Very soon, the members did not care about their embarrassment anymore. Whoever was targeted by Ai Hui would be punished. Ai Hui could always think of various bizarre punishments to torture them. Aspared to those torturous punishments, that tad bit of embarrassment was nothing.

    When Uncle She saw the oddly shaped metallic colossus, he became curious as well.

    He had never seen anything with such an odd shape and he could not guess its uses as well. However, the members in those metal baskets were training diligently and they did not seem to be fooling around.

    On the contrary, the onlookers surrounding them wereughing and jesting, appearing as if they were watching a show.

    When Uncle She¡¯s gazended upon Ai Hui, he felt utterly guilty. He did not know how to face his mistress when he returned. After being detained for so many days, he did not feel any resentment at all. The Central Pine Faction was already being very reasonable for not killing him straight away.

    "Master Ai," he said respectfully.

    Ai Hui noticed Uncle She and quickly replied, "Uncle She,e and take a seat. Sorry for troubling Uncle She these few days."

    Uncle She¡¯s eyes turned red instantly. Choking with sobs, he replied, "I deserve to die! I caused Master Ai to..."

    "There is no more Master Ai," Ai Hui waved his bandage covered hand.

    At this moment, Uncle She realized Ai Hui¡¯s body did not emit any elemental energy undtions. At first, he was in a daze. Following which, he broke down in tears. He had served the Lu residence for his entire life and he seldom made any mistakes. He didn¡¯t expect himself tomit such a grave mistake in his twilight years.

    "Uncle She, you don¡¯t need to brood over it. It¡¯s alright if I lose my Path of Master. Where there¡¯s a will, there¡¯s a way. Didn¡¯t Le Buleng change his Path of Master eight times?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s tone was rxed. His eyes, which were the only part that his bandage-covered face revealed, were glittering, resembling the resplendent stars in the night sky.

    Uncle She was stunned. Not only did Ai Hui not feel despair, he was filled with a fighting spirit.

    He suddenly realized thisd would definitely be an extraordinary individual in the future.

    At this point of time, he had such a strong feeling about this!

    Thest time Uncle She had had this feeling was when he followed the family head to visit Dai Gang. Every movement Dai Gang made was pure and magnificent, making him resemble a celestial being in the sky.

    At that time, Dai Gang still did not possess the prestige and strength that he had now.

    Uncle She was still very young at that time. Just by taking a nce, he had a strong feeling that Dai Gang might be an extraordinary individual someday.

    He did not expect to encounter another person who could give him the same feeling in his twilight years.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s tone became solemn as he said, "I asked Uncle She over because I feel that Senior might be in extreme danger. Previously, the Grass Bandits tried to harm Senior. This time around, they managed to infiltrate your convoy. There is definitely a spy among you all. I suspect that the sneak attack on Senior previously was not a coincidence. Someone in your residence is trying to harm Senior!"

    Uncle She¡¯s facial expression turned solemn as well. Ai Hui¡¯s words were precisely what he had been pondering over thest few days.

    "I hope Uncle She can go back earlier and remind Senior to take care of her own safety. Mingxiu is my senior and she definitely will not harm me. I don¡¯t want anything to happen to her," Ai Hui¡¯s tone and gaze turned ice-cold, "However, the Lu residence must give me an exnation for this incident. Who did it? Who wants to harm me! Who wants to harm Senior! Uncle She, what do you think about it?"

    Uncle She shivered with cold. Then, he replied with a deep voice, "I will definitely report this to the family head! I believe the family head will definitely give Master Ai an exnation!"

    Ai Hui nodded his head. Due to his face being fully covered by bandages, no one could see what Ai Hui was feeling now. Gazing into the distance, Ai Hui replied with a calm voice, "All of us are one big family. It¡¯s best if our rtionships aren¡¯t hurt. I know what I¡¯m going to say might sound arrogant, but I think it¡¯s better for me to say it now lest everyone gets unhappy in the future. If there¡¯s ever someone who tries to stop justice being served and let the culprit get away with it, I will personally go to the Lu residence and seek for an exnation."

    A cold shiver went down Uncle She¡¯s spine. His rationality told him that what Ai Hui said was somewhat arrogant and funny, but he couldn¡¯tugh at all for some unknown reason.

    "I will remember it."

 Chapter 497: A Burst of White Light and A Warm Breeze

    Chapter 497: A Burst of White Light and A Warm Breeze

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ye Baiyi stood on the half-destroyed Wall of North Sea.

    The wind was very strong, causing his long ck hair and snow-white robe to flutter in the air. He gazed in the direction of Silver Mist Sea with a calm look on his face, appearing as if he was unconcerned about his sensational victory.

    The generals beside him were very cheerful. They had just trampled thest defensive line that was obstructing their great army from conquering the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Less than half of the Wall of North Sea remained standing. Spiralling columns of white smoke rose in the air and dissipated into wisps of mist. Since the wall was made up of mist, and now that no more elemental energy was being channeled into it, it was gradually disintegrating. After a while, the debris from the Wall of North Sea hadpletely disappeared.

    The scorchednd that was covered with numerous craters in front of the Wall of North Sea was proof that an epic battle had taken ce. Another proof was the countless piles of corpses, both blood fiends¡¯ and humans¡¯. However, by spring of next year, wild grass and nts would grow all over this war-tornnd. These traces of war would be flooded and concealed by the passing of time.

    A warrior will eventually die on the battlefield and a beauty can¡¯t avoid the ageing of time.

    Ye Baiyi looked at Silver Mist Sea, which waspletely depleted of elemental energy, and remained silent for a very long time. He did not expect himself to return to the familiar Silver Mist Sea in this manner.

    He did not return as a victorious hero like what he¡¯d fantasized about when he was young. Instead, he returned as an evil invader whom everyone loathed.

    A person¡¯s destiny was like the clouds in the sky. A random gust of wind could easily blow it off its original track.

    "Report! Subordinate is useless... I can¡¯t find Shi Beihai or the remnants of North Sea Division."

    Ye Baiyi¡¯s subordinate was extremely ashamed, so much so that his face was almost touching the ground. The generals surrounding Ye Baiyi stopped smiling and all of them lowered their heads in unison with a nervous look on their faces.

    Shi Beihai was their main target for this battle!

    This was His Majesty¡¯s decree.

    Even though they had taken down Wall of North Sea, they had lost their main target. They were penny-wise and pound-foolish.

    When the Wall of North Sea copsed, an immense number of blood fiends gushed in and caused the situation to turn extremely chaotic,pletely out of anyone¡¯s control. At that point of time, the blood fiends were already filled with bloodlust. Even the god priests from Beast Venom Temple could not pacify them. The blood fiends would even attack a blood elementalist if he or she got too close to them. Therefore, they could only watch nkly as the blood fiends gushed into the Wall of North Sea and flooded the enemy soldiers like tidal waves.

    Ye Baiyi withdrew his gaze and replied with a calm tone, "This is my mistake. After all, a blood fiend is a beast that doesn¡¯t listen tomands. Initially, I¡¯d still thought that the blood fiends wouldn¡¯t go crazy with the god priests from Beast Venom Temple around. I didn¡¯t expect the battle to be so intense, so much so that this ident happened. It¡¯s not your fault."

    The generals around him heaved a sigh of relief. His Majesty was imposing and his punishments were torturous.

    Ye Baiyi¡¯s militaryws were strict and everyone feared his reputation as a "God of War", therefore, no one dared to oppose him. Subsequently, when everyone saw how ruthless and cruel Ye Baiyi¡¯s methods were and how he was indifferent to human lives, they became terrified of him. After he deployed the blood fiends from Beast Venom Temple to reinforce their side and reduce their casualties, everyone was filled with admiration towards him. Even when Ye Baiyi was fully responsible for this triumphant victory, he still took the initiative to bear the mistake himself. His magnanimity and charisma had won over all the generals.

    "I will exin to His Majesty personally," Ye Baiyi scanned his surroundings and had a clear view of everyone¡¯s facial expressions. Then, he continued, "This victory has solidified the advantageous position of God Nation. From today onwards,the Avalon of Five Elements is history, like a beauty that has removed her clothes. Furthermore, we are able to seize three God-subduing Peaks. It¡¯s a triumphant victory! Everyone, you have worked hard. His Majesty will reward you ordingly. There will definitely be great rewards for achieving such a huge, meritorious service."

    An overjoyed look appeared on everyone¡¯s faces. They bowed and said, "Thank you for your leadership, Sir!"

    The reason why North Sea Division had withstood Blood of God for so long was that they had two powerful trump cards. The first one was the formidable defensive power of the Wall of North Sea and the second one was the terrifying offensive power of their five God-subduing Peaks.

    If they had not received reinforcement from the blood fiends, they would have lost even more men in taking down the Wall of North Sea.

    God Nation had been desiring God-subduing Peaks for a very long time. Even though they did not capture Shi Beihai, they stillpleted a great meritorious service by seizing three God-subduing Peaks!

    The Wall of North Sea had five God-subduing Peaks. Two of them were detonated by the Masters that were stationed there when Blood of God attempted to seize them, causing quite a huge number of deaths. However, Ye Baiyi was already satisfied with being able to seize three God-subduing Peaks.

    Information regarding God-subduing Peaks had always been something that was highly sought after in God Nation. However, Elders Guild was able to keep the information a well-hidden secret. God Nation had sacrificed many spies and they still ended up empty-handed.

    Now that they had seized three God-subduing Peaks, the God Nation could study them. They might even be able to create God Nation¡¯s own God-subduing Peaks.

    The God-subduing Peaks were a legitimate superweapon. Without the five God-subduing Peaks, the threat of the Wall of North Sea would be decreased by half.

    If God Nation could forge its own God-subduing Peaks, its advantage over the Avalon of Five Elements would increase significantly. Even cities in the depths of the Wilderness would not be able to stop God Nation¡¯s expansion when that day came.

    "Speaking of which, we haven¡¯t boarded the God-subduing Peak yet. Why don¡¯t we all enter it and take a look?" Ye Baiyi chuckled.

    "Sir, you¡¯re right!"

    "I would be honored to do so!"

    "Finally there¡¯s a chance for me to do so, I have been curious for a very long time."

    Everyone started talking at once.

    The God-subduing Peaks had caused a lot of trouble for everyone. All of them were very curious about the interior of a God-subduing Peak.

    The three God-subduing Peaks hovered silently in the sky. They were riddled with scars that were left behind by the intense battle between both sides. However, their main bodies weren¡¯t severely damaged. The god priests from Beast Venom Temple used some essence elemental beans they found to activate the God-subduing Peaks and make them hover in the air.

    As they got closer, the pressurizing aura of the God-subduing Peaks became stronger. The shadow of the God-subduing Peaks over their heads caused them to feel suffocated.

    "Elders Guild has one foot in the grave and their time is limited. Even so, they still managed to produce such a terrifying superweapon. They definitely have capable individuals working under them," said Ye Baiyi as he could not help but sigh with sorrow.

    The generals nodded their heads. Some were keeping silent. All of their facial expressions were very mixed. Other than the first batch of "seeds", most of the blood elementalists in Blood of God used to be elementalists in the past.

    They had been blood elementalists for many years, but their memories as elementalists had yet to disappear.

    The rise of Blood of God and the decline of Elders Guild reduced their guilt of switching sides. They even felt somewhat d. However, now that they saw a masterpiece like the God-subduing Peak, they were shocked and their old memories flooded their minds.

    One of the god priests who was busy cleaning up the God-subduing Peak saw Ye Baiyi and quickly descended to greet him, "Sir!"

    "So? Did you learn anything?" Ye Baiyi asked with a gentle voice.

    The god priests from Beast Venom Temple were all extremely knowledgeable. This batch of god priests was the core unit of Beast Venom Temple. Most of them had taken part in the project of imitating and creating a God-subduing Peak.

    God-subduing Peaks had been a throbbing headache for Holy Emperor.

    A God-subduing Peak that was overseen by a Master was like an impregnable fortress. It could attack, defend and move at will. If not for the fact that Elders Guild¡¯s strength had decreased significantly and they did not have enough manpower and resources, they would have built more God-subduing Peaks.

    Holy Emperor believed that a sufficient number of God-subduing Peaks could pose a threat to a Grandmaster.

    One of the god priests was extremely excited. He praised the God-subduing Peaks to the high heavens, "Wonderful workmanship! A marvellous creation! Previously, we had some ideas about the theories behind it and they aren¡¯t all wrong after all. Sir, do you want to board it? The interior has been cleaned up..."

    At this moment, an rmed cry erupted from within the God-subduing Peak, "Who¡¯s there? Who is hiding inside?"

    Suddenly, a powerful wave of elemental energy undtions erupted.

    Everyone¡¯s facial expressions changed drastically.

    "Protect Sir!"

    A guard standing beside Ye Baiyi pushed him to the ground. A few other guards quickly stood in front of him and activated a bloody screen.

    Time seemed to have frozen at this moment.

    The noises around Ye Baiyi disappeared and his surroundings became unusually quiet. Over the shoulders of the guards protecting him, Ye Baiyi stare nkly at the few guards that were running towards him. These guards were hisrades from Icy mes Division that joined Blood of God with him,

    Their eyes were widened in anger and their mouths were gaped. They seemed to be screaming something but no sound came out of their mouths. Their movements were very slow as well.

    Suddenly, their background became brighter and brighter. Blinded by the bright white light, Ye Baiyi could not see hisrades¡¯ faces clearly.

    Like a mountain sh flood, the dazzling burst of white light devoured the few familiar figures.

    Ye Baiyi was startled. Tears flowed silently out of his eyes, blurring his vision.

    His back copsed heavily onto the ground and he cked out.

    A dazzling burst of light engulfed everything.

    In a valley, twenty-five kilometers away from Wall of North Sea, there was a roaring cascade that was seven meters tall.

    Qi Xiuyuan looked nervously at the cascade.

    Whoosh. A familiar, tall and sturdy figure walked out from the cascade.

    "Sir!" Qi Xiuyuan was extremely agitated.

    To Qi Xiuyuan¡¯s astonishment, the one who walked out from the cascade was Shi Beihai. Shi Beihai¡¯s entire body was covered in blood. His face was scooty, his beard was unkempt and his hair was disheveled. However, there was still a cold glint in his tiger-like eyes.

    When Shi Beihai saw Qi Xiuyuan, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    When Qi Xiuyuan saw Shi Beihai¡¯s appearance, he was scared out of his skin. "Sir, are you injured?"

    "I am alright," Shi Beihai shook his head and replied, "This blood belongs to the enemy."

    This underground river had been opened up by Qi Xiuyuan when he was sent to build fortifications for North Sea Division. The underground river was linked directly to the interior of Wall of North Sea. The entrance to this underground river was very well-hidden. Initially, Shi Beihai just wanted an escape route to be built. He didn¡¯t expect that it would be put to good use one day.

    As familiar figures walked out of the cascade one by one, the smile on Qi Xiuyuan¡¯s face became wider and wider.

    However, the process halted after the seventeenth person walked out from the cascade.

    Qi Xiuyuan¡¯s face turned deathly white.

    "There¡¯s no need for you to watch the cascade anymore. These are the only people that have survived," Shi Beihai said with a gloomy voice.

    Even though he had made ns for retreat, the situation at that time was too chaotic. The surging blood fiends did not give them any time to make a retreat. Almost all of his men were drowned in the dark, surging sea of blood fiends.

    Only those who were very powerful were barely able to flee for their lives under the attack of the blood fiends.

    Suddenly, the ground shook.

    Shi Beihai¡¯s body trembled. The rest of the people raised their heads abruptly.

    Shi Beihai dashed towards the hillside like a wild animal. Simrly, the rest dashed frantically towards the hillside.

    After Shi Beihai climbed up the hillside, he looked in the direction of the Wall of North Sea.

    A monstrous and dazzling burst of white light had erupted and rose towards the sky.

    Apanied by heat and elemental energy undtions, the wind from the st wave of the explosion dispersed the clouds of North Sea. It caused the forests to rustle and Shi Beihai¡¯s disheveled hair to flutter. The warm breeze from the Wall of North Sea held the bright and cheerfulughter of hisrades, recounted the solemn oath they¡¯d made together in the past, and signified an evesting farewell.

    I have no regrets fighting side by side with all of you. It¡¯s time for a farewell. Goodbye, I¡¯m leaving. Everyone, take care.

    Shi Beihai stood in a daze as tears silently flowed down his scooty and bloodstained face.

 Chapter 498: Back View

    Chapter 498: Back View

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    The fall of the North Sea Wall shocked all of Beyond Avalon.

    The atmosphere in the meeting hall in Skyheart City was extremely tense.

    Madam Ye¡¯s facial expression was solemn. All the important personnel had grave looks on their faces.

    Nian Tingfeng¡¯s tone was deep and forceful as he reported the news to everyone, "By the time we obtained the news, North Sea Division, which was stationed at the North Sea Wall, had beenpletely wiped out. By using blood fiends to attack North Sea Division, Ye Baiyi caused theplete copse of the North Sea Wall. Facing a sea of blood fiends, it was very hard for them to make a sessful escape. Until now, we haven¡¯t found any survivors. I¡¯m afraid Shi Beihai has..."

    He could not finish the rest of his sentence.

    Most of the people there were very familiar with Shi Beihai and had a rather good impression of him. Before, they had discussed the issue and hoped that Shi Beihai could take over the position of Great Elder.

    It was a pity that Shi Beihai was not interested in the position and rejected the offer tactfully.

    Ye Baiyi was another person everyone was familiar with. Coincidentally, Ye Baiyi had also been a candidate to be Great Elder.

    Ultimately, neither of the two candidates took over the position of Great Elder and both of them ended up fighting each other.

    Fate yed a joke on the two of them, and it was a cruel one.

    Madam Ye¡¯s gaze swept across everyone as she began to talk with a solemn voice, "Now is not the time to grieve, we don¡¯t have much time left. Let¡¯s talk about what we should do next."

    Nian Tingfeng gave Madam Ye a bow and continued, "Shi Beihai had arranged a back-up n."

    Madam Ye wasn¡¯t surprised at all as she understood Shi Beihai very well. She nodded and said, "Shi Beihai has always thought far ahead. Tell us about his back-up n."

    "Yes." Nian Tingfeng turned around and faced everyone. "Shi Beihai anticipated the North Sea Wall¡¯s copse. He¡¯d had his vice-division leader, Qi Xiuyuan, lead all the cksmiths to the rear of the North Sea Wall and build arge number of fortifications. His original n had been to use the North Sea Division and theyers of fortifications to stop the enemies if the North Sea Wall copsed. It¡¯s a pity that he did not expect Ye Baiyi to use blood fiends to attack them. Most of these fortifications have beenpleted. Qi Xiuyuan, who was in charge of this project, has gone missing."

    "So these fortifications have fallen into the hands of Blood of God?" Ximen Caijue asked coldly.

    "Not yet." Nian Tingfeng saw the doubt in everyone¡¯s eyes and exined, "Shi Beihai hid an expert in each of the three God-subduing Peaks and purposely let Blood of God capture them. Subsequently, the three experts detonated the God-subduing Peaks and caused a colossal explosion. The scene was extremely spectacr. At that time, Ye Baiyi was aboard one of the God-subduing Peaks. He was caught in the explosion and is severely injured. He has been unconscious since then."

    "Such a pity..."

    "It¡¯s such a pity!"

    "Such a pity, we almost got him. As long as Ye Baiyi dies, the enemy troops will copse even if we don¡¯t attack them."

    A lot of people felt it was a pity that Ye Baiyi had not died.

    Rage engulfed Silver Soldier¡¯s eyes. Karakorum Pris, who was standing beside him, grabbed his hand and shook her head. When Silver Soldier saw Karakorum Pris¡¯s eyes, his rage subsided significantly.

    Her soft palm tightly interlocked its fingers with Silver Soldier¡¯s. Beneath the light muslin veil on her face, her usual ice-cold eyes were now tender like water.

    When Silver Soldier sensed Karakorum Pris¡¯s tenderness, he grabbed her hand tightly in return.

    Wan Shenwei, who had not spoken all this time, suddenly opened his mouth to say, "We need to seize the moment."

    Madam Ye shifted her gaze to Wan Shenwei while the rest of the people quieted down.

    "Shi Beihai¡¯s n is not bad," continued Wan Shenwei.

    In the dim light of the night sky, Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division¡¯s encampments were brightly lit, bustling with life. Everyone was unusually busy as they made theirst checks and preparations before setting off.

    Four hourster, Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division would be rushing to the front line.

    All the cities along the way had been ordered by Elders Guild to provide them with essence elemental beans, food, and lodgings. These were to allow them to reach the front line as soon as possible. They were now racing against time. Every second was extremely precious.

    Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division had been rebuilt not too long ago and had many rookies. Even though they had undergone plenty of training, they were still slightly flustered now that they were going to enter the battlefield for real.

    From the balcony of the mayor¡¯s residence, one could look down at the two camps that were situated right next to each other.

    A man of around fifty to sixty-years-old was staring at the two camps without moving. His figure looked as if it had blended into the night scene. Madam Ye¡¯s voice came from behind him.

    "Are you worried about them?"

    The man¡¯s eyes regained their rity. Without turning back, he replied inly, "They will be fine after fighting a few battles. Why didn¡¯t you send the three central divisions?"

    The man¡¯s stubby, grizzled beard and short silvery hair that was hard like iron wires made his craggy face look like the head on a robust statue. His eyes were like gems carved with the utmost care. They were solid-looking, well-defined, and striking. Every now and then, a cold glint would sh across his eyes, causing one to shiver with fear; however, if one took a closer look, those eyes would look like the depths of a night sky, filled with darkness.

    His clothes were in and unadorned. He wore a pair of the short pants usually worn byborers and was bare-footed, contrasting greatly with the ravishing and luxurious mayor¡¯s residence.

    The man¡¯s facial expression was indifferent, looking as if he did not sense the contrast at all.

    "Dai Gang ising." Madam Ye walked beside the man and stared at the encampment as she spoke with a soft voice. "I¡¯m even more worried about her than you are."

    "Then you shouldn¡¯t let her be the division leader."

    Madam Ye raised her eyebrows and sneered. "Don¡¯t let her be the division leader? Then who will be the division leader? You? I am a woman and have to take over such a huge mess. Furthermore, I am isted and helpless..."

    As she spoke, she began to choke with emotions.

    "You get what you seek," the man replied inly.

    Madam Ye wiped off her tears and said, "So are you saying that I sought this big mess myself? Then why did you ask your disciple toe over? Why did you agree to our daughter taking over Sky Edge Division? At the end of the day, you will help me, right?"

    The man cast a nce at her. An indescribable glint shed across his eyes in the darkness. This pair of eyes looked hurt, regretful, and sad at the same time. Soon after, they returned to normal.

    "I¡¯m very clear on what I have done."

    Madam Ye stopped crying and her facial expression returned to normal. "Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re only here to look at your daughter?"

    "No, I am here to warn you not to interfere with Karakorum¡¯s and Silver¡¯s business." The man shook his head.

    An unnatural look swept across Madam Ye¡¯s face as she replied, "You are still so paranoid, why would I interfere with their business?"

    "If you don¡¯t repent, I will kill you," the man said.

    Like a cat with its tail being stepped on, Madam Ye¡¯s voice turned sharp. "Kill me? Kill me then! Didn¡¯t you want to kill me back in the day? Heng Bingfeng!"

    Heng Bingfeng looked as if he didn¡¯t hear Madam Ye¡¯s words and continued to stare at the two camps.

    Madam Ye snorted. "It¡¯s because of you that I gave thatd a chance and let him be Infantry Division¡¯s division leader, but how can my daughter lead such a miserable life..."

    Heng Bingfeng¡¯s head suddenly turned around. His lightning-like gaze made Madam Ye stop talking at once.

    "You and her are twopletely different persons. Other than your own life, you won¡¯t value anything else as important," Heng Bingfeng said inly.

    Madam Ye looked straight at Heng Bingfeng and did not speak for a long time. Suddenly, like a blossoming flower, she broke into a smile. "We have not met for quite a long time, let¡¯s not talk about these unhappy things and talk about some happy things. How about it? Do you want to help me deal with Dai Gang? I think your strength is right on par with Le Buleng¡¯s."

    "I admire Dai Gang and think he is more suitable than you for the position of Great Elder," Heng Bingfeng said.

    "You¡¯re such a petty individual." Madam Ye pouted her lips. "You don¡¯t want to help me and you¡¯ll still say such words to annoy me."

    Heng Bingfeng shifted his gaze back to the two camps.

    Karakorum Pris had been brought up by Heng Bingfeng and they had a deep rtionship.

    "Do you want to visit Karakorum and your precious disciple?" Madam Ye suddenly asked.

    Heng Bingfeng did not respond.

    Just as Madam Ye thought that he was not going to speak, he suddenly said, "There¡¯s no need for me to do that. In times of chaos, if I can¡¯t protect them, the least I can do is not create trouble for them."

    "Are you going to look on helplessly as they go to the battlefield?"

    Heng Bingfeng remained silent for a while before replying, "Silver has a brave and unyielding character. His heart is filled with wrath and hatred from the blood catastrophe. If I don¡¯t let him go to the battlefield, he will not be happy. Karakorum can¡¯t bear to part with him. No matter where he is, whether he lives or dies, she will be by his side."

    "Because of these bullshit reasons?" An incredulous look appeared on Madam Ye¡¯s face.

    Without turning his head, Heng Bingfeng replied, "As long as she is happy, it¡¯s fine with me. One gets what he or she seeks. In times of chaos, it¡¯s best for one to live in the moment."

    "Yes, in times of chaos, it¡¯s best to live in the moment."

    Madam Ye muttered as she gazed into the distance. She looked slightly distracted. The area outside of the city was pitch-ck. Silver City¡¯s bright and lively lights that resembled a vast sky full of stars could no longer be seen.

    She returned to her senses and said coldly, "The Avalon of Five Elements can survive only if Dai Gang and Ye Baiyi are settled!"

    .....

    At this time, the Elders Guild, which was usually disorganized and inefficient, was unusually quick and efficient.

    Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division travelled day and night towards the fortifications at the rear of the North Sea Wall.

    At the same time, Skyheart City issued a conscription order in the name of the Elder¡¯s Guild. This was to allow them to conscript arge number ofbat divisions. Any city that had a slightly reputablebat division was conscripted.

    When the conscription order and the grievous news of Shi Beihai¡¯s death reached Fishback City, Shi Xueman was very calm.

    She took over the conscription order, which read, "Conscription order: Spear of Heavy Cloud and Sword of Lightning are to report to the front line immediately."

    Shi Xueman closed the conscription order and said, "Only Spear of Heavy Cloud will be going."

    The envoy, who was an elementalist from the Surveince Division which had sent the conscription order, was stunned. He hurriedly exined, "But..."

    Cirrus¡¯s ice-cold tip was immediately ced on his neck. At that moment, the envoy¡¯s facial expression changed drastically as he responded, "Audacious! Shi Xueman, are you defying the order? You have to think properly..."

    "Only Spear of Heavy Cloud will be going."

    Like the spearpoint at his neck, the frosty voice sent a cold shiver down the envoy¡¯s spine.

    The envoy tried to argue, "This is Elders Guild¡¯s..."

    "An envoy has the authority to act at his or her discretion," Shi Xueman interrupted.

    The envoy was speechless. It was then that he remembered Shi Xueman was from a powerful aristocratic family and knew about these customs very clearly.

    He tried to stay calm and said, "Miss Shi, you have to consider your actions carefully lest you humiliate your father¡¯s reputation."

    At his neck, Cirrus trembled. After a while, Shi Xueman said softly, "What is the point of having a good reputation when he is already dead?"

    The envoy¡¯s heart softened and he sighed, "It seems like the rumors are really true."

    He retrieved the conscription order and crossed off the name "Sword of Lightning," following which, he stamped it with his seal and passed it back to Shi Xueman.

    With a solemn look on his face, the envoy said, "Myrades from the Surveince Division have offered incense to your father."

    "Thank you." Shi Xueman took over the conscription order and left with Cirrus in her hand. She did not turn back.

    The envoy suddenly raised his head. All of a sudden, snowkes began to drift down from the sky.

    The back view of the figure in the drifting snow looked weak, yet austere.

 Chapter 499: Heater In Snow, Heart of God

    Chapter 499: Heater In Snow, Heart of God

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Heavy snow was drifting down from the sky. The heat-emitting ckfish Mouth Volcano was like an enormous heater, providing warmth in this cold winter.

    Two figures were sitting side by side on a protruding cliff that hung in the air on the volcano peak. Cirrus, which was stuck onto a rock behind the two figures, stayed motionless in the drifting snow, looking as if it did not want to disturb their peace.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s hands were propped against the rocks on her two sides, while her legs were dangling in the air. Her head was swaying faintly, making her ponytail look like a swing. She looked at the distant mountain range that was adorned with white snow. The sea-like green forests had disappeared.

    A smile would appear on her face whenever she turned around and looked at the mummy-like Ai Hui, whose body waspletely covered with bandages. She felt that Ai Hui¡¯s appearance was a great contrast to the current scenery. Ai Hui had yet to recover from his injuries and more than half of his entire body was still rigid. Shi Xueman was the one who¡¯d carried him up to the peak.

    When Ai Hui saw Iron Lady like this, he felt as if his heart was being pricked by needles. He wanted to tell her not to feel sad, but he couldn¡¯t say it. How could she not be sad when this kind of thing had happened? Then he wanted to tell her that the future would be much better, but realized she was going to the battlefield soon and her life would be at risk. Saying these words would make him sound as if he wasforting her out of courtesy.

    Deep down, he was panicking, but he did not want to show it. The distress he suffered from was nothingpared to what Iron Lady had gone through.

    Iron Lady was smiling. Ai Hui knew the best thing he could do now was to smile back at her.

    Luckily his face was covered with bandages.

    Ai Hui tried his best to make his tone sound casual as he said, "Don¡¯t die too early, at least not before Ie and find you."

    Shi Xueman turned around and looked at Ai Hui and replied, "Okay."

    "Don¡¯t listen to other people¡¯smands. Retreat immediately when you realize something is not right," Ai Hui continued.

    "Okay," Shi Xueman nodded her head.

    "Don¡¯t fight inflexibly, be adaptable. You have seen how a wolf pack hunts before, right? Be like them," Ai Hui continued.

    "Okay," Shi Xueman nodded her head once more.

    Ai Hui opened his mouth but no words came out. He felt that he was being too naggy, saying all these superfluous words. Mysteriously, a wisp of zing rage arose in his heart. He was angry at himself for being useless.

    Suddenly, a slim and snow-white hand extended towards him from his side and touched his face.

    The wisp of rage in Ai Hui¡¯s heart disappeared without a trace instantly. Even with bandages covering his face, he could sense the warmth of the hand.

    "Hey..." Ai Hui panicked.

    The snow-white hand turned his head around. Ai Hui felt like he was a wooden puppet when he heard the sound of bones cracking in his neck.

    After his head was turned around, Ai Hui saw Shi Xueman¡¯s face getting closer and closer to him.

    Ai Hui was stunned. Shi Xueman closed her eyes as her long eyshes fluttered lightly in the chilly wind. The shy blush on her face was as beautiful as the rose-red clouds in the sky during sunset.

    Their lips touched.

    Even though Ai Hui¡¯s lips were covered by ayer of bandages, he could still feel the tenderness and warmth of Shi Xueman¡¯s lips clearly. He was breathing erratically into theyer of bandages that covered his face and his face was burning all of a sudden.

    His entire body was frozen. He widened his eyes and looked at Shi Xueman¡¯s cute eyshes that were flickering like water ripples.

    She opened her eyes.

    Their eyes met each other. Time seemed to stop at this moment.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s limpid eyes contained a tinge of shyness and water-like gentleness that came along with a determination that made one feel sorry for her.

    Their lips separated. Shi Xueman sat up straight. The blush on her face had yet to disappear, looking like a sunset glow that refused to leave the sky.

    "You have to survive," Ai Hui blurted out.

    Shi Xueman somehow became cheerful. Even the snowy weather looked adorable to her at this point of time. She gave Ai Hui a wink as her lips curled into a sly smile, "Of course I have to survive, someone still owes me eighty million yuan."

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind, which had just regained its senses, was dealt a huge blow all of sudden. He was utterly shocked. He stuttered incoherently, "You, you, you... are Eighty Million Yuan..."

    Shi Xueman stretched her back and loosened up her body. She propped her hands against the rocks to push herself up and pulled out her Cirrus from the rock behind her.

    When she turned around and saw Ai Hui¡¯s bbergasted look, a naughty thought arose in her mind. She then did something extremely daring.

    She squatted down beside Ai Hui and used her index finger to lift up his chin that was covered with bandages. She winked her eyes at Ai Hui¡¯s stunned face and said, "I have kept this secret for a very long time."

    After she finished her sentence, she stood up and straightened out her armor. Following which, she jumped down from cliff. Like a huge, nimble bird, she flew and disappeared into the drifting snow. A carefree voice resounded through the air from far away, "I am leaving."

    All Ai Hui could see was drifting snow. He couldn¡¯t see the beautiful figure of Shi Xueman at all.

    He was stunned for quite a while before he could react.

    An indescribable mncholy engulfed his heart. Then, he returned to his senses and cried, "Hey, hey, hey, how do I get down? How can you ditch me after you have your way with me? Ungrateful woman! Quickly, bring me down..."

    Filled with uncertainty, Ai Hui thought he heard a chime-likeughter resounding through the drifting snow.

    .....

    The mountain ridge was covered entirely by snow.

    Nangong Wulian stood on the flight of stairs with his head lowered. An authoritative voice came from above him.

    "How is the progress of Heavenly God? If I remember, the project has been ongoing for nearly twenty years, right?"

    Today was the first time Holy Emperor had shown himself since the day An Muda walked across the sky and created the elemental energy storm.

    Being summoned by Holy Emperor at this point of time naturally made him feel worried. He had followed Holy Emperor for a very long time, even longer than Bei Shuisheng. However, he had never dared to exploit this fact in front of Holy Emperor before.

    Even though Bei Shuisheng might appear arrogant and domineering to some, he was very loyal to Holy Emperor.

    When Bei Shuisheng was a child, his life was saved by Holy Emperor. As his life was full of trouble and misfortunes, Holy Emperor had always taken pity on him and took good care of him. Sometimes, Nangong Wulian felt that both of them were like father and son.

    It was extremely rare to see Holy Emperor in such a rtionship, as he was an individual that waspletely devoid of all emotions.

    When Nangong Wulian¡¯s superior, Master Shao, escaped from Blood of God, it was mainly due to Holy Emperor¡¯s support that allowed him to be the pce master of Beast Venom Temple. Nangong Wulian was fully aware that he wasn¡¯t really talented. He was chosen by His Majesty only because he was obedient.

    After he took over the position of pce master, he did not dare to ck off and was always cautious and conscientious. Finally, he was able to get His Majesty¡¯s approval and even the name of the pce was changed to Beast Venom Temple.

    No matter how arrogant and despotic he was, he would do anything that His Majesty instructed with prudence.

    But ever since God Nation was established, His Majesty seldom summoned for him specifically.

    Upon hearing Holy Emperor¡¯s words, Nangong Wulian heaved a sigh of relief in his heart. Without changing his facial expression, he bowed and reported with utter respect, "I was about to report this issue to Your Majesty. Before Master Shao left, he destroyed almost all the information about Heavenly God. Luckily, we were able to find some remnants of his experiment reports. ording to these remnant reports, God Puppet Pce was just starting on the project of Heavenly God. At that point of time, Master Shao had merelypleted the design n for Heavenly God and had yet to implement it..."

    "I don¡¯t want to hear about these insignificant details. Let me ask you, how is the progress now?" Holy Emperor interrupted Nangong Wulian impatiently.

    Nangong Wulian hurriedly replied, "There is progress, there is progress. Previously, I have been trying to restore the project, but the progress is very slow. It wasn¡¯t until the birth of Red Devil, and his feat of enduring through an unprecedented level of blood refinement, that things started to change for the better. I have recorded all the changes in the entire process and finally came up with the structure of Heart of God. Thanks to the great blessing from Your Majesty, the first Heart of God has beenpleted! I was about to present it to Your Majesty."

    "Oh? I want to see it," Holy Emperor looked slightly interested.

    Nangong Wulian hurriedly ordered one of the guards to bring it over. Very soon, a transparent ice coffin was brought in.

    When the ice coffin was ced on the ground, the temperature of the pce hall suddenly decreased, making everyone feel as if winter had arrived. The ice coffin was filled with a transparent, red-colored liquid that resembled blood. Within the red liquid, there was a heart that was palpitating slowly. There were a lot of tentacles that were of different lengths growing out of the heart, making it look like a jellyfish swimming in a pool of blood.

    Thump, thump, thump.

    The faintly discernible sound of the heart beating echoed in everyone¡¯s minds.

    The facial expressions of all the guards present changed drastically. They stared at the ice coffin with a terrified look on their faces.

    Holy Emperor let out a gasp of surprise, releasing a pressurizing aura throughout the pce hall. Everyone felt suffocated in that instant. Nangong Wulian felt the most pressure. He could not help but bend his back and bow down. His Majesty¡¯s gaze pierced through him like a sharp sword.

    "Not bad, this is an extraordinary object."

    Holy Emperor¡¯s voice expressed approval.

    Nangong Wulian heaved a sigh of relief. Only a short amount of time had passed and his back was already drenched in sweat. Nowadays, Holy Emperor was authoritative and imposing. He was truly unpredictable.

    "It¡¯s all thanks to Your Majesty¡¯s wisdom. Everyone in Beast Venom Temple and I will not dare to im the credit for ourselves."

    "What¡¯s yours will be yours. Do you think I will deny you of your credit?" Holy Emperor seemed to be smiling. Clearly, he was in a good mood. Then, he continued, "All of your subordinates will be rewarded."

    Nangong Wulian immediately kneeled down and thanked Holy Emperor, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

    "Who do you intend to use the first Heart of God on?" Holy Emperor changed the topic.

    "Ordinary individuals will not be able to bear the might of Heart of God. Right now, I am looking for people who have an outstanding body constitution. Your Majesty, do you have any suggestions?" Nangong Wulian asked.

    "Use it on Ye Baiyi then," Holy Emperor replied inly.

    Nangong Wulian was overwhelmed with shock.

    He¡¯d already anticipated that His Majesty had a candidate but he didn¡¯t expect it to be Ye Baiyi. In God Nation, Ye Baiyi was of the same rank as him... Could it be that the situation on the front line had worsened?

    His Majesty was unhappy with Ye Baiyi? However, if he was unhappy with Ye Baiyi, why would he use such an important object on him? Even so, it also did not seem like His Majesty was was rewarding Ye Baiyi. Heart of God was still in the development stage. It had never been nted into a human body and its effects were unpredictable. Even Nangong Wulian, who was its creator, was unsure of its effects.

    Nangong Wulian did not know what His Majesty¡¯s attitude towards Ye Baiyi was.

    He did not dare to interrupt His Majesty.

    Holy Emperor continued to speak, looking as if he was talking to himself, "Ye Bai is severely injured and his life is in danger. Reasonably speaking, he has done a meritorious service by taking down the Wall of North Sea. However, he has failed to seize Shi Beihai and the God-subduing Peaks. He himself is severely injured and our army has sustained heavy losses. I don¡¯t know whether I should reward him or punish him. It will have to depend on his fate then."

    Nangong Wulian seemed to understand what the Holy Emperor meant and replied softly, "Understood."

    "Do you still remember Master Shao?" Holy Emperor suddenly asked.

    Nangong Wulian did not quite understand what was going on and replied, "I still remember him."

    "That¡¯s right, you should remember him since you were his subordinate for over ten years. Even though you were not highly valued by him, you worked for him the longest," Holy Emperor sounded as if he was reminiscing about the past. Suddenly, his voice turned cold, "Master Shao has re-appeared recently."

    Nangong Wulian felt as if his mind was struck by a lightning bolt. He began to stammer incoherently, "Master... Master Shao appeared..."

    "Do you want to guess where he has gone to?" Holy Emperor chuckled.

    "Where has Master Shao gone to?" Nangong Wulian was at a loss.

    "Haha, he has gone to the Assembly of Patriarchs," Holy Emperor replied with a sinisterugh.

    Hisughter was piercingly cold. However, this could not bepared to the shock Nangong Wulian received when he heard the three words "Assembly of Patriarchs". With a nk look on his face, he muttered, "Assembly of Patriarchs..."

    Holy Emperor stoppedughing and he returned to his usual self. Then, he asked casually, "Are you thinking about the master-disciple rtionship between you and him?"

    "I don¡¯t dare! Traitor Shao deserves to be punished and killed for betraying Your Majesty! Please let me take on the task of capturing this traitor!" Nangong Wulian was terrified.

    "Capture him?" Holy Emperor chuckled and shook his head. Following which, his facial expression turned cold and he continued, "No, why should I capture him? I want to see what shady business Master Shao and the Assembly of Patriarchs are up to! I also want to know why Master Shao wants to betray me. I can swear that I have never mistreated him before!"

    "Master Shao, Master Shao... Is it because you have something to tell me and that¡¯s why you haven¡¯t died?" Holy Emperor muttered, looking as if he was smiling.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s face turned pale-white as a cold shiver went down his spine.

 Chapter 500: Thereâ€™s No need For You To Apologize

    Chapter 500: There¡¯s No need For You To Apologize

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Nangong Wulian looked below him. His deep set eyes contained a tinge of curiosity.

    The countless tents of Blood of God¡¯s army resembled a sea that was ck and red in color.

    There were a lot of faintly discernible, disjointed white lines in this red-and-ck sea. These white lines were from the ruins of the Wall of North Sea.

    The tallest of the broken walls was nine meters tall, while the shortest was only one meter high. They stood along the old defensive line. Looking at them from afar, they looked like an old hairb with its teeth broken. They had endured through the harsh winter and made it to spring. The grass around them was covered with snow remnants from the winter. The dust that had gathered on them during the winter made them look dirty and scattered, resembling the defeated North Sea Division.

    The glory of the Avalon of Five Elements declined inevitably and the grandiose n to stop the invasion had failed. The traces left over by the greats could only be found in the distant legends.

    How would people in the future remember this battle?

    How would it be possible for them to visualize the magnificence of the Wall of North Sea and the devastation of the battle, if all they could see was verdant grass covering everywhere?

    As the pce master of Beast Venom Temple, Nangong Wulian¡¯s status wasparable to Ye Baiyi¡¯s. Furthermore, he was decreed by the Holy Emperor toe here. All the army generals were already out to wee him.

    When they saw Nangong Wulian, they stepped forward and greeted him with a bow.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s clothes were wrinkled and his hair was unkempt. His eyes were flickering with a demonic, yet fervent glint. When the generals made eye contact with Nangong Wulian, they immediately felt as if they were being burned by a piece of hot iron. Subconsciously, they quickly shifted their gazes elsewhere.

    "Where¡¯s Ye Baiyi?" Nangong Wulian asked, smiling.

    "Sir has yet to wake up."

    Nangong Wulian gave a neuroticugh and replied, "It¡¯s good that he hasn¡¯t woken up."

    His surroundings became quiet. Everyone looked at each other, not knowing what Nangong Wulian meant by his words. Was it possible that His Majesty wanted to punish their master?

    Everyone was feeling uneasy.

    If their master was to be punished, what were the chances of them being spared?

    Nangong Wulian noticed the fear on these people¡¯s faces, but he did not want to exin anything to them. The smile on his face grew wider as he said, "Lead the way."

    The generals returned to their senses and hurriedly led the way.

    Beast Venom Temple was unusually mysterious and dangerous in everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Most of the generals in War God Pce used to be from the old Icy mes Division. The rest of the generals were converted elementalists as well. Beast Venom Temple and Cold Pce were the cores of Blood of God. They existed before the blood catastrophe broke out. The history of Beast Venom Temple was longer than Cold Pce¡¯s. As such, it was more mysterious in everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Nangong Wulian had a weird temperament. He was extremely unfathomable and unreasonable.

    Ye Baiyi had warned them more than once not to provoke Beast Venom Temple. One could see that even Ye Baiyi feared Nangong Wulian.

    Nangong Wulian walked into the tent and saw the unconscious Ye Baiyi. When the god priest who was guarding Ye Baiyi saw Nangong Wulian, he hurriedly stepped forward to greet him and reported Ye Baiyi¡¯s condition.

    As Nangong Wulian listened to his subordinate¡¯s report, he looked at Ye Baiyi.

    The awe-inspiring War God of God Nation did not look like his usual self at this point in time. Ye Baiyi¡¯s face was pale-white and his life force was extremely weak, resembling a waning candle that was left in the wind.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s eyes lit up with a mysterious fervor. He ced his pale and dry palm on Ye Baiyi¡¯s chest. Suddenly, Ye Baiyi¡¯s clothes disintegrated into dust and disappeared. Nangong Wulian used his palm to caress Ye Baiyi¡¯s body. His gaze became increasingly hot while he let out a weird, high-pitchedugh every now and then.

    "Such a fine body, such a fine body... His meat is white and tender... Ye Bai has such a good body..."

    All the generals there were individuals who had been through countless battles and had experienced many life-and-death situations. Their eyes wouldn¡¯t even blink when someone attacked them head-on with a sword. However, the bizarre scene in front of them now was able to make their hairs stand on end.

    Many people turned their heads as they did not dare to look at the scene.

    On the contrary, the god priests from Beast Venom Temple had apletely different reaction. All of their eyes were lit up and they couldn¡¯t wait to assist Nangong Wulian.

    After caressing Ye Baiyi¡¯s body for quite some time, Nangong Wulian withdrew his palm hesitantly. With an impatient tone, he said, "Anyone who isn¡¯t from Beast Venom Temple get out of the tent now."

    More than half of the generals left the tent.

    Those generals who stayed had a hesitant look on their faces. Most of them were Ye Baiyi¡¯s subordinates and were from the old Icy mes Division. They were faithful and loyal to Ye Baiyi. As such, how could they be at ease when Ye Baiyi was in such a weak state? Furthermore, what Nangong Wulian had done just now made them very worried.

    If Nangong Wulian was to do anything to Sir...

    Furthermore, Sir was such a prideful individual...

    Nangong Wulian cocked his head and smiled. His unkempt hair was like a bird¡¯s nest. Following which, he said with a smile on his face, "If Ye Baiyi is no longer being treated now, he might be breathing hisst breath today. All of you have to think carefully now."

    The generals that stayed behind looked at each other. Suddenly, one of the generals clenched his teeth and yelled, "Everyone, go out now!"

    The generals gushed out of the tent like a tidal wave.

    Nangong Wulian stared at the unconscious Ye Baiyi with a zealous look on his face. He muttered, "Sir, Sir... It feels so good to know that you haven¡¯t died yet. The first Heavenly God is going to be born."

    An ice coffin was ced behind him. A jellyfish-like heart was floating in the bright-red liquid within the ice coffin.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s long and skinny index finger slid across Ye Baiyi¡¯s chest. Like a sharp de, his finger cut open Ye Baiyi¡¯s skin, revealing a beating heart within it.

    Nangong Wulian clicked his tongue in admiration. After a while, he threw Ye Baiyi into the ice coffin.

    When Ye Baiyi¡¯s body was fully submerged in the blood-red liquid within the transparent ice coffin, the jellyfish-like Heart of God suddenly moved.

    All of its tentacles suddenly contracted. Like a streaking javelin, it shot through the blood-red liquid and entered Ye Baiyi¡¯s chest.

    Nangong Wulian watched the entire process without taking his eyes off of the scene before him. His face was filled with fervor as he muttered, "It¡¯s perfect, it¡¯s indeed perfect!"

    Thump-thump, thump-thump, thump-thump.

    The sounds of two heartbeats echoed throughout the tent. The faces of those god priests who were low in base level turned pale-white with agony. The mixing of the sounds of the two heartbeats caused their blood to boil.

    As time passed, the interval between the beats of the two hearts reduced gradually.

    The rhythm of the two heartbeats eventually merged into a single one. The new heartbeat sounded deep and forceful, resembling the sound of a drum being beaten slowly. Every time it beat, it caused the blood spiritual force within everyone¡¯s body to undte.

    The ghastly cut on Ye Baiyi¡¯s chest healed and closed up visibly.

    Ye Baiyi, who was floating in the blood-red liquid, slowly sank to the bottom of the ice coffin.

    He looked as if he was sleeping.

    Nangong Wulian looked nkly at the ice coffin. His unkempt hair became motionless, the facial expression on his gaunt face froze, and his eyes turned red.

    It had been nearly twenty years.

    .....

    In a makeshift camp outside of Jade Tree City.

    The ce was filled with the sound of people wolfing down their food. No one cared about their image. After flying for a day and a night without stopping, everyone was drained. They were hungry and cold. At the makeshift camp, food had already been prepared for them. When theynded, they were immediately served piping hot elemental soup.

    Silver Soldier hadn¡¯t eaten yet. When the mayor of Jade Tree City heard they had arrived, he quickly rushed over to wee them. Out of courtesy, Silver Soldier had to entertain the mayor.

    After entertaining the mayor, Silver Soldier returned to the camp and sat beside Karakorum Pris.

    Karakorum Pris served Silver Soldier the elemental soup that she had long prepared. He did not even bother to be polite and gulped down the soup. He finally regained his energy after gulping down a few bowls of elemental soup one after the other. With a deep voice, he said, "The essence elemental beans have been prepared. There are enough tost us until we have reached the Rear of Wall."

    "Rear of Wall" referred to the area twenty-five kilometers behind the Wall of North Sea where Qi Xiuyuan built all the fortifications.

    "Silver, don¡¯t be so anxious," Karakorum Pris said softly.

    Silver Soldier reached out his metallic palm and touched Karakorum Pris¡¯s hair, saying, "I used to have a good friend who was from North Sea Division. We stayed together in Central Pine City. He is much more interesting than me and he would often tell me stories about North Sea Division."

    "What happened after that?" Karakorum Pris asked curiously.

    The metallic hand that was caressing Karakorum Pris¡¯s hair froze momentarily. He replied softly, "He brought the students of Central Pine Academy to the Garden of Life and the blood catastrophe happened to break out there. He did not survive in the end."

    "I¡¯m sorry, Silver," Karakorum Pris said with an apologetic tone.

    "It¡¯s not Karakorum¡¯s fault, you don¡¯t need to apologize," came a gentle, yet apologetic voice from behind the slick, silvery mask of Silver Soldier, "I¡¯m the one who¡¯s supposed to apologize for dragging you into the battlefield."

    "Don¡¯t say such words, Silver. Karakorum needs some realbat experience toplete the swordy encyclopedia." Karakorum Pris shook her head.

    Silver Soldier did not retort Karakorum Pris. All he did was caress Karakorum Pris¡¯s long hair gently. After a while, he said, "If we could have set off earlier, Shi Beihai might not have died."

    "Silver, don¡¯t me Aunt Ye," Karakorum Pris said softly.

    There were a few times when Silver Soldier had volunteered himself to reinforce North Sea Division, but was rejected by Aunt Ye. Karakorum Pris did not know why Aunt Ye would reject Silver Soldier. Everytime she talked to Aunt Ye about this, Aunt Ye would try to avoid the topic.

    Silver Soldier hesitated slightly and shook his head. "I¡¯m not ming her. Honestly, I can¡¯t do whatever she can do. She definitely has her difficulties. I don¡¯t understand all these politics. All I want is to..."

    He paused and gazed into the distance, appearing as if he was looking through the already dissipated smoke of war.

    After a long while, he said softly, "All I want is to fight with everyone."

    Suddenly, heughed at himself, "Master used to say that I¡¯m too stubborn, my hatred is too deep, and I have too much rage within me. He said that I have no hope of bing a Grandmaster because of these factors. At that time, I disagreed with him. However, now I know what Master said was right. Whenever I think of fighting, I am not able to restrain my emotions. I don¡¯t care whether or not I can be a Grandmaster. As long as I can fight against Blood of God with everyone, I am more than contented. Someone who is blinded by rage and hatred like me is fated to die on the battlefield."

    Karakorum Pris turned around and looked at Silver Soldier through her light, muslin veil. With a voice that was gentle like water, she said, "Karakorum will apany you."

    Silver Soldier was stunned as he looked at Karakorum.

    He stared nkly at Karakorum Pris¡¯s veil-covered face. Her beautiful, crystal-clear and determined gaze pierced his heart like a sword. An indescribable agony spread across his body.

    "I¡¯m sorry, Karakorum," Silver Soldier muttered.

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s heart skipped a beat, but her gaze remained crystal-clear. She imitated Silver Soldier¡¯s tone and replied, "It¡¯s not Silver¡¯s fault, there¡¯s no need for you to apologize."

    Silver Soldier returned to his senses and broke into aughter.

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s lips curled into a smile.

    Silver Soldier¡¯s gaze regained its firmness as he replied with a deep voice, "Let¡¯s carry out Circtory Cycle Revolution and regain our energy so that we can set off as soon as possible. Once we reach the Rear of Wall, we won¡¯t find such a safe ce anymore."

    Karakorum Pris acknowledged him and nodded her head in agreement.

    Silver Soldier took out an essence elemental bean, sat cross-legged on the floor and closed his eyes, beginning his Circtory Cycle Revolution.

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s crystal-clear eyes stared deeply at the silvery, glossy mask on Silver Soldier¡¯s face. Beneath her thin veil, her cherry lips moved slightly but no sound came out of her mouth.

    "No matter where you go, Karakorum will apany you."

 Chapter 501: Sword Cloud

    Chapter 501: Sword Cloud

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    During training breaks, all Ai Hui could hear was Lou Lan¡¯s grumblings.

    "Xueman has really left. Will she encounter formidable experts? Will she get hurt? Ye Baiyi is so powerful and the Spear of Heavy Cloud was only formed just recently. Aren¡¯t you worried, Ai Hui? Lou Lan is very worried..."

    Reaching the end of his patience, Ai Hui chided Lou Lan, "Lou Lan, are you very free? If you are very free, go and supervise Fatty..."

    Ai Hui suddenly stopped in mid-sentence. Fatty was in Spear of Heavy Cloud too. He was gone, along with Iron Lady.

    After staying silent for a moment, Ai Hui stood up and patted Lou Lan¡¯s shoulder, "Lou Lan, don¡¯t be so anxious."

    After Ai Hui finished his sentence, he walked to the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda. His hand was holding a grey-colored sword. The de of the sword was wide and thick, in and unadorned. It looked like it was made of neither wood nor metal.

    Two ancient words were engraved on the body of the sword, "Edgeless Sword".

    It was as light as a feather. It was the most suitable sword for Ai Hui now, since his body was frail and delicate.

    Edgeless sword was one of the presents that the Gong residence had sent over. Out of all the weapons that the Gong residence gifted Ai Hui, it was also the most outstanding one. Gong residence had spent a lot of effort and energy thanking Ai Hui.

    Edgeless Sword¡¯s background was unknown. No one knew who¡¯d forged it. It had been kept in the Gong residence¡¯s collection of treasures for over three hundred years.

    Using Edgeless Sword to pat Metal Basket Sword Pagoda, Ai Hui yelled, "Prepare for the next round of training!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s original name for Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was "Big Sword". However, it had been forgotten by everyone. Instead, the name, "Metal Basket Sword Pagoda", which was casually suggested by Gu Xuan, was approved by everyone. Even Ai Hui himself began to call it Metal Basket Sword Pagoda.

    Members of Sword of Lightning stood up and took up their positions.

    Everyone was used to the long training hours. Even though all of them were doubtful about whether or not Metal Basket Sword Pagoda could fly, they were still very serious and meticulous in their training.

    The fact that Spear of Heavy Cloud had headed towards the front line had a huge impact on Sword of Lightning. Fishback City, which used to be bustling with noise and excitement, was empty and unusually cold and cheerless now. Everyone had put away their yful attitudes and focused on the training sessions.

    No one wasining about the high intensity of the training sessions anymore.

    Tinkle!

    A sword chime was emitted from Ai Hui¡¯s Edgeless Sword.

    The members had been bracing themselves and unleashed their swords at the same time. A snow-white sword gleam, that resembled surging spindrift under the sun, suddenly engulfed the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda. It did not contain any elemental energy, but only a concentrated, biting-cold aura.

    The aura did not dissipate as time passed. The air in the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda stood still.

    The look on Ai Hui¡¯s face was solemn. Once again, his Edgeless Sword emitted a sword chime.

    Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh. More than three hundred streaks of sword gleams shed through the air. The aura they exuded was more concentrated than before.

    Ai Hui came up with the idea of using the sword chime as a word ofmand by fluke. However, it still worked exceptionally well.

    Ai Hi¡¯s entire body was drenched in sweat, giving off hot steam. The two hundred and fifty-two streaks of sword aura in the seven metal-basket-like sword pagodas gathered where he was standing and he had to endure an immense amount of pressure.

    The bones in his body were cracking while beads of perspiration were meandering down his cheeks. His eyes, however, were unusually bright.

    The concentrated, bone-piercing aura of the sword was incorporeal and formless, yet it could be found everywhere. The streaks of sword aura were gathering towards Ai Hui from all directions, creating an immense amount of pressure on him.

    The sword cloud in his earth pce was stimted, rolling and tossing non-stop.

    Nowadays, the sword aura within Ai Hui¡¯s body was ten times stronger than it was before.

    Ai Hui initially thought that he could no longer control the seven pagodas, as he had lost all of his elemental energy. Gu Xuan, whose strength was second only to him, was not able to take up his position. As such, Ai Hui had to force himself to do it. However, he didn¡¯t expect that the sword aura gathered together could be such a powerful stimtion to his sword cloud.

    The sword cloud was like the sword embryo he¡¯d had in the past. It was extremely sensitive to any sword-rted thing.

    After the sword cloud was stimted, it gradually became stronger.

    Ai Hui seemed to have a revtion. He thought of the term, sword consciousness, which was often mentioned in those ancient swordy manuals. Swordsmen from the Cultivation Era had been extinct for a very long period of time. No one knew what sword consciousness was or what it looked like anymore. Even Ai Hui could not fathom it.

    Ai Hui suddenly thought of the term "sword consciousness" when the immense sword aura surged towards him from all directions. But he also did not know whether or not his revtion was actually the so-called "sword consciousness".

    Ai Hui felt as if he had returned to the times he¡¯d spent in Suspending Golden Pagoda, where his body was tempered by metal winds that came from all directions.

    The sword cloud kept strengthening itself while its metallic luster became increasingly intense.

    Ai Hui knew it was his essence-breath-spirit that was being tempered.

    Sword embryos were formed by essence-breath-spirit.

    In the past, he¡¯d racked his brains trying to find a method that could temper his sword embryo, but failed.

    Now, he suddenly saw the light.

    So the sword embryo could be tempered like this!

    So the essence-breath-spirit could be tempered like this!

    His physical body was very weak and he was still depleted of elemental energy. However, his essence-breath-spirit was being tempered continuously, bing more powerful than before. He could feel that his sensory perception had be stronger. It was an indescribable feeling.

    His hearing had be sharper. He could clearly hear incredibly soft sounds from a distance. It was as if a string was being plucked right beside his ears. His perceptive range had increased greatly as well. He could sense the presence of someone from a long distance away.

    However, the biggest change was that he could now "see" elemental energies.

    The entire world around him had changedpletely. He could "see" the elemental energies in his surroundings.

    He could "see" the long and unbroken traces of metal elemental energy in the wind, the mist-like wood elemental energy that was released from trees and nts, as well as the fire elemental energy emitted by the sun and the raging sea ofva beneath the ground. He knew the diffusibility of earth elemental energy was very poor, as only a very small amount of earth elemental energy could be sensed in the air. And the clouds in the sky were really like immobile water, while the water beneath the ground was like surging clouds.

    When the different types of elemental energy came together, they turned into a gorgeous, colorful whirlpool. There were also some areas where the boundaries between different types of elemental energy were well-defined. In these areas, the elemental energies stayed well within their boundaries.

    Their variations were rich, exquisite and unpredictable.

    This was the first time that the world of elemental energies had appeared before Ai Hui in such a vivid manner. He was very impressed as he came up with countless revtions. If his five residences and eight pces were undamaged and he¡¯d still had his elemental energy, he could have imitated many of these variations.

    Unfortunately, he had lost his elemental energypletely.

    It was as if an enormous treasure trove had suddenly appeared before him, but he couldn¡¯t take anything from it.

    Fate had yed a cruel joke on him. The affairs of life were often unpredictable.

    Ai Hui could onlyugh bitterly. He wasn¡¯t depressed or discouraged. Having such an experience was already a pleasant surprise to him.

    Furthermore, Ai Hui¡¯s mind was on the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda.

    It was as if the sword cloud in his body was born for the sake of the sword pagoda.

    Ai Hui was situated at the core within the seven sword pagodas. All the sword gleams would gather at his position. In other words, his position was the most important among all the positions in the seven pagodas. It was also the position that endured the most pressure.

    Even though he had no elemental energy, he could use his sensory perception to control the seven sword pagodas. Any small change that took ce within the seven sword pagodas could not escape his discerning eyes. He was very surprised that he could use this "loophole" to control the sword pagodas.

    This reminded him of embroidery. The only different thing was that he could control more than two hundred invisible "strings" at the same time now.

    However, the number of things he could do with them was very little. This implied that every "string" was easily broken.

    However, this was enough for him.

    In the past, Ai Hui had relied on a massive amount of elemental energy to gather these sword gleams through a sword formation. The difference now was that Ai Hui could sort out these sword gleams before he gathered and merged them in an orderly manner.

    This was not going to be easy. In fact, this was harder to execute than the method he used in the past.

    He used very little elemental energy to sort them out. This meant that each member could not make too many mistakes and all of them had to be well-trained.

    The time taken from when the sword gleams were released by the members to the point where they gathered was very short. One could imagine the difficulty of sorting them out in such a short period of time. This was a huge challenge for Ai Hui.

    However, as long as he had a n, he had enough time.

    His eyes were illuminated by the dazzling streaks of sword gleams, pure and wless.

    .....

    Silver Soldier saw theyers of fortifications and heaved a sigh of relief.

    They had finally reached the Rear of Wall.

    The fortifications were empty and there were many areas that had yet to bepleted. All the cksmiths had abandoned the fortifications. Infantry Division and Sky Edge Division were purelybat divisions. They did not have many cksmiths with them.

    A figure descended from the sky hurriedly. A premonition arose in Silver Soldier¡¯s mind.

    "Sir! We have encountered enemy scouts ahead! We are currently engaging them!"

    Silver Soldier felt slightly shocked. However, he soon regained hisposure and said, "Bring a few more men with you, don¡¯t let a single one of them off."

    "I will go," Karakorum Pris said.

    Silver Soldier did not stop her and nodded his head, "Alright."

    Usually, a division leader wouldn¡¯t personally interfere in such a low level battle. However, Silver Soldier remembered that Karakorum Pris had not entered a battlefield before and he felt it was necessary for her to get used to it.

    Karakorum Pris brought a small team of Sky Edge elites and set off at top speed to provide reinforcement.

    When Silver Soldier saw the back view of Karakorum Pris disappear, he began to calm down. He himself wasn¡¯t a rookie and he had richbat experience.

    Encountering enemy scouts wasn¡¯t a good sign. It implied that even though the enemy forces did not upy Rear of Wall, for whatever reason they still maintained a high level of vignce around this area. This meant that Infantry Division and Sky Edge Division could not upy an advantageous position without alerting the enemy forces.

    Furthermore, when he reached the Rear of Wall, he realized that the number of fortifications was much lesser than he¡¯d expected. Their designs were crude and simple as well.

    However, after he thought about it again, he understood what had happened. Shi Beihai did not expect the Wall of North Sea to copse in such a short period of time. How was it possible for him to build so many fortifications in such a short period of time then?

    Crude fortifications, rookies with no realbat experience. The uing battles would be much more devastating than he¡¯d expected.

    Very soon, Silver Soldier¡¯s conjecture was verified.

    His scouts had encountered Blood of God¡¯s scouts and engaged them in battle several times. Even though the battles were small-scale, they were still extremely intense. He could tell the battles were intense when less than half of his scouts returned.

    Karakorum Pris returned very soon and she did not look good. The enemy scouts put up a strong resistance despite the fact that they were losing. No one was willing to surrender and all of them fought to their deaths.

    The intensity level of a battle in the battlefield waspletely different from the intensity level of a contest in a training hall.

    Silver Soldier stepped forward, but he did not console her. With a deep voice, he said, "The enemy¡¯s main forces will arrive soon. We need to make good use of the time to push forward and upy terrains that are advantageous to us."

    "Okay!" Karakorum Pris nodded her head.

    She knew that the battlefield was apletely different world.

    Silver Infantry Division and Sky Edge Division did not care about how tired they were from the long journey. They pushed forward at top speed as they wanted to obtain a deeper position. After advancing for around twenty-five kilometers, Silver Soldier suddenly ordered the twobat divisions to stop and set up defenses.

    He also requested everyone to make good use of the time to rest as the enemy forces would arrive very soon.

    Silver Soldier clearly knew that the enemy had rested well while waiting for them. He also knew that Infantry Division and Sky Edge Division were extremely exhausted. If they did not regain some of their elemental energy now, they would not be able to withstand the Blood of God¡¯s first wave of attacks, even with the help of the fortifications.

    To Silver Soldier, the first battle was extremely important. If they won the first battle, they would gain confidence easily. If they lost the first battle, they would copse on the spot.

    Very soon, reality had proven that Silver Soldier¡¯s arrangements were very urate.

    Four hourster, the enemy¡¯s main forces had arrived.

 Chapter 502: Decision

    Chapter 502: Decision

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "Sir, we didn¡¯t see Uncle She among them."

    "That bastard is indeed treacherous."

    "Sir, what do we do now?"

    "The only n is to go the whole hog now."

    ...

    "Night Moth Fruit?"

    Mingxiu¡¯s face turned deathly white. Her body involuntarily trembled while her eyes were filled with fear and despair. All she had wanted was to prepare some equipment and items for her junior. She had not expected that this would cause a disaster for her junior instead.

    She had heard of the Night Moth Fruit¡¯s notoriety from her eldest brother before. Her eldest brother had mentioned before that even he, himself, would have difficulty detoxifying the Night Moth Fruit.

    Uncle She sighed. When he saw the fearful look on Mingxiu¡¯s face, he felt even more guilty. "It¡¯s my fault for not carrying out the task properly. However, Miss, don¡¯t be so worried, Master Ai¡¯s life is not in danger."

    Uncle She recounted the process of how Ai Hui used the lightning bolts to counter the Night Moth Fruit.

    When Mingxiu heard that Ai Hui had been struck by lightning for several hours, a worried and distressed look appeared on her face. Subsequently, when she heard that Ai Hui¡¯s entire body was charred and covered with bandages, the image of Ai Hui¡¯s appearance shed across her mind, and she could not help but chuckle.

    She felt slightly at ease.

    Her junior had an extremely tenacious character. Even if no clues were found, he would still figure something out. As long as he was still alive, he would definitelye up with a n.

    Uncle She also ryed what Ai Hui had told him before he had departed to return to Mingxiu. It was because of Ai Hui¡¯s words that he met Mingxiu and not the family head first. Even though Ai Hui was weak now, Uncle She did not dare to sit idly and do nothing. He was worried about the family head getting angry as well. After pondering for quite some time, he decided to talk to Mingxiu first.

    Upon hearing Uncle She¡¯s report, Mingxiu¡¯s facial expression remained calm. Her eyes flickered, looking as if she was pondering over something.

    At this moment, a middle-aged man ran over hurriedly. He was Uncle She¡¯s trusted aide and had worked under Uncle She for over 20 years. On the return trip, Uncle She secretly left first without them. The rest of the people returned ording to the original schedule.

    When he saw Uncle She, he heaved a sigh of relief and said hurriedly, "Uncle She, the convoy was attacked yesterday. Thankfully, Master Mu was there, so we didn¡¯t have many casualties!"

    Mingxiu was exceptionally intelligent. Upon hearing these words, she said, "It seems like there really is a spy among us."

    After staying silent for a while, she continued, "Uncle She, go back and report this incident to Father first. I will go and have a discussion with First Brother."

    Uncle She agreed that this was the only n for now. He nodded his head and replied, "All right, I will report to Master first. Miss, please look out for your safety!"

    "I will bring along some guards." A smile appeared on Mingxiu¡¯s face.

    Following which, Uncle She left with his aide. After pondering over the incident for a while, Mingxiu stood up and changed her clothes. Then, she told her servant girl, Tao Su, "I will be out for a while."

    After Mingxiu left her embroidery workshop, she flew straight out of the city.

    Her eldest brother, Lu Chen, resided in an area that was 100 kilometers to the west of Jadeite City. Lu Chen¡¯s teacher, Dai Gang, who was the Jadeite Forest¡¯s ruler, did not live in Jadeite City either. He lived in area that was 100 kilometers to the east of the city.

    The teacher and his disciple lived at the east and the west of Jadeite City, respectively. The two of them were separated by a distance of 200 kilometers.

    It was no secret that Lu Chen had defied Dai Gang, but this did not affect Lu Chen¡¯s position in Dai Gang¡¯s heart. Among Dai Gang¡¯s disciples, Lu Chen was his favorite. Lu Chen was also known as a divine physician of this era. His attainments in the art of healing surpassed even Dai Gang. Dai Gang was extremely proud of this fact.

    Lu Chen was a kind individual who had a vastwork of friends. As he had healed countless experts, he enjoyed an extremely high prestige. Whether it was from the Jadeite Forest, Beyond Avalon, or Blood of God, there were many people that owed their lives to him.

    As Mingxiu traveled further away from the Jadeite Forest, the number of people she encountered along the way gradually decreased.

    Suddenly, Mingxiu stopped.

    A group of masked men blocked her path. With a deep voice, the leader of the group said, "Miss Mingxiu, my master would like invite you to his residence to stay for a few days!"

    Mingxiu did not panic at all. She replied with aposed voice, "Who is your master?"

    "Miss Mingxiu will know by then."

    The group of masked men chuckled as they spread out and surrounded Mingxiu.

    A glint shed across Mingxiu¡¯s eyes as she turned around and raised her voice, "You¡¯re still not revealing yourself?"

    A helpless sigh rang across the air. "How did you know it was me?"

    A shadow shed across the air as a tall individual suddenly appeared before Mingxiu.

    He carried a huge bow that was around his height on his back. His long hair was tied up using a red string. His small and nted eyes looked drowsy. There was now a stubbly beard on his familiar-looking face, making him look as if he had been through a lot.

    When Mingxiu took a closer look at the familiar figure, she was pleasantly surprised. She widened her eyes and said, "Brother Qiu."

    The familiar voice ripped through the man¡¯s thick wall of memory while a ray of sunshine pierced through his heart like a sword. The beautiful image of the girl that had haunted him like a ghost for countless nights in the past now walked out of his cold and pitch-ck dream, appearing right before him. Lit up by the sunshine, her bright and beautiful face smiled alluringly at him.

    Yu Mingqiu gasped.

    .....

    "After we reached ¡®Behind the Wall¡¯, everyone was extremely tired. That was the first time the division had traveled such a long distance after it was replenished. The situation was much worse than I thought. Damn it! We only had two hours of rest! Luckily, I never cked off during the daily training sessions. Even though I only regained 60 percent of my elemental energy, I didn¡¯t turn into a weak chicken that was waiting to be killed on a chopping board. Honestly speaking, when I saw the armies of the Blood of God, I thought I was not going to survive. At that time, my mind was in a nk. Forgive me for being so timid. The enemy¡¯s first wave of attacks almost caused our defensive line to break down. Wei died in front of me when a bone spear embedded with blood crystals pierced through his skull. Subsequently, his body was sucked dry by the bone spear. At that point in time, I think I cried. Yes, I cried. Wei was a good man, but he died in the end. I didn¡¯t die. I killed two enemy soldiers and don¡¯t know how I did it. Back then, I was very scared and my body was trembling. However, I very quickly regained myposure. That was because the enemy attacked us again..."

    The battlested for three days and three nights and was extremely intense.

    The simple and crude fortifications were not really useful to the Infantry and Sky Edge Divisions, and they still had a lot of casualties. However, the divisions had not copsed like they had been worried about. They had endured through the intense fighting. Other than the heavy losses they suffered on the first day, their situation over the next two days was much better.

    "This cannot go on." Silver Soldier was panting heavily as he talked to Karakorum Pris, "The enemy forces outnumbered us greatly. We can¡¯t get involved in a war of attrition with them."

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s body was sparkling clean. However, the glint in her eyes had dimmed significantly. She listened to Silver Soldier quietly without saying anything. She knew Silver Soldier had to have a n.

    Silver Soldier¡¯s metallic index finger swept across the map as he said, "We will retreat."

    "Retreat?"

    "But higher-ups want us to defend ¡®Behind the Wall¡¯."

    "That¡¯s right, Sir. You have to think twice about this decision."

    Karakorum Pris was slightly surprised as well. She knew how much Silver Soldier wanted to battle the Blood of God.

    Why would he want to retreat at this point in time?

    A cold glint shed across his silver mask. The eyes revealed by the mask flickered. On the mask, in between where his eyebrows were, the word "Infantry" was deeply marked.

    Silver Soldier ignored them and continued, "From the current situation, we can see that Ye Baiyi hasn¡¯t woken up yet. This is evident from the enemy forces that have attacked us. Even though the intensity of the fighting has been very high, the Blood of God have not deployed many of their soldiers. This shows that they are still trying to feel us out. If Ye Baiyi was awake, the enemy forces that attacked us would not be so few.

    The others quieted down.

    "The enemy forces that attacked our divisions these few days are made up of different divisions. Theycked coordination. This also indirectly proves that Ye Baiyi hasn¡¯t woken up yet, and that they are divided. This is our chance. What¡¯s going to happen next is that we will retreat slowly. Take note, we can¡¯t retreat too quickly. We will try to lure the enemy forces into a deeper position. The conscription order has been issued, and the conscripted divisions will arrive soon. We try to contact these divisions and have them set up ambushes behind us. We will form a pocket and lure the enemy forces into it. Once they are deep in the pocket, we will annihte them. We can also nk them from both sides and surround them," Silver Soldier exined with a deep voice.

    "What if the other party doesn¡¯t take the bait?¡¯

    "We will retreat and build a new defensive line," Silver Soldier replied.

    .....

    Lemon Camping Ground was filled with corpses. There were two people standing amid the corpses.

    "Is there still anyone alive?"

    "No."

    Their tones sounded very casual, their facial expressions indifferent. It was as if they couldn¡¯t see the corpses around them. Both of them were tall and huge. They also looked very simr to each other. Clearly, they were brothers.

    If someone saw these two, he or she would definitely recognize them. They were the Xiahou brothers.

    The older brother was Xiahou Jun, the younger brother was Xiahou Jie, and they were twins. They were already very talented from a young age. Both of them became Masters at the same time. If they were born in aristocratic families, their tales of their achievements would be widely spread. In reality, they were new citizens who had led a tough life since childhood. This caused them to be cynical and temperamental.

    "Have you rified with them?"

    "I have rified with them."

    "Then what about here? Should we set fire and burn them?"

    "That will give us away easily. Let¡¯s catch some dire beasts and throw them here."

    The conversation between the two men was short and sweet. They did not waste any time talking nonsense.

    After a while, both of them caught several dire beasts and threw them into the campground.

    The two of them hovered in the air, chatting casually as they watched the dire beasts chomping on the corpses.

    Xiahou Jun said coldly, "Shi Xueman has left and Ai Hui has yet to recover. The only one that is capable of fighting is Blind Dou. This is a rare chance."

    Xiahou Jie stretched his back and replied with an indifferent tone, "Let¡¯splete this mission as soon as possible. Newlight City is still morefortable to stay in. The reward this time around is enough for us to lead a carefree life for quite a long time."

    The two of them came here because they epted a mission concerning the snowva.

    It was no longer a secret that Shi Xueman had requested the envoy to take the Sword of Lightning off the conscription order. Because of this, many peoplemented. Shi Xueman indeed had feelings for Ai Hui.

    However, covetous individuals were able to also extract a lot of information from this incident. Ai Hui was injured, the Sword of Lightning only had 300 men, etc.

    Ai Hui¡¯s refinement method for the snowva was truly a money-making tool.

    Excluding Skyheart City, there were a lot of cities that were very poor. At this point, Central Pine Valley was at its weakest. It was like a child that possessed a precious treasure, attracting all sorts of greedy folks.

    "Have you thought about how to obtain the snowva refinement method?"

    "We can get it as long as we capture Ai Hui."

    "We have to be fast. There are a lot of people who want the snowva. If other people get it first, our trip will be wasted."

    "Men die in the pursuit of wealth, while birds die in the pursuit of food. These people better not encounter us. Otherwise, they will be dead for sure. Let¡¯s go."

 Chapter 503: Enemy is Coming

    Chapter 503: Enemy is Coming

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Lou Lan carefully carried the unconscious Ai Hui down from the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda and poured the long since prepared medicine into Ai Hui¡¯s mouth.

    The dark, inky medicine emitted a thick, choking smell.

    Each time the members witnessed Lou Lan feeding Ai Hui medicine, they would have a sympathetic look. Compared to Ai Hui¡¯s medicine, their elemental soup was practically a delicacy.

    Gu Xuan sipped on his soup, asionally nced over at Ai Hui, and prostrated himself in admiration.

    Training until unconscious... what kind of realm was this?

    Whatever it was, he couldn¡¯t do it.

    Not only him, but everyone in the Sword of Lightning was unable to do it. Everyone was utterly convinced of Ai Hui¡¯s capability. There had been some who were concerned that he would injure himself and that their future would fall into uncertainty. No one was worried any longer.

    Even if Ai Hui hadn¡¯t recovered. Even if he did not have the least bit of elemental energy.

    To be honest, Gu Xuan was unable to imagine how a person without elemental energy could possibly fight. It went against hismon sense. He was so absorbed in his thoughts that the fragrant soup almost seemed less alluring. He continued sipping on it subconsciously.

    It was true that Ai Hui had no elemental energy, but over these past few days of training they had yet to bump into issues.

    The seven sword pagodas operated very smoothly. No, even smoother than before!

    This was something Gu Xuan simply couldn¡¯t understand and something he felt was the most illogical.

    Could it be that elemental energy was unnecessary for swordsmen?

    He found it hard to belief since it vited conventional knowledge. Yet, a live example had been ced before him. What method was Boss using to operate the sword pagodas?

    "Do you need my help with your soup, Old Gu? It seems like you¡¯re having a little trouble!"

    A coarse voice interrupted Gu Xuan¡¯s train of thought.

    Gu Xian regained his senses and noticed a bright bald head approaching. He scolded jokingly, "What do you want, Old Xu! Trying to get a free bowl of soup from me? No way!"

    Exposed, Old Yu responded without getting angry, "It¡¯s because you¡¯re drinking without tasting it!"

    Gu Xuan rolled his eyes. "Even then, you¡¯re not gonna get it!"

    Old Yu was somewhat curious. "What have you been thinking about these two days, Old Gu? So preupied."

    Apart from the fact that everybody was impressed by Ai Hui¡¯s promotion into the Master realm, within the Sword of Lightning, Gu Xuan¡¯s abilities were second only to Ai Hui. However, they had seen Gu Xuan¡¯s recent abnormal behavior and were rather worried.

    While Gu Xuan wasn¡¯t well versed in worldly affairs, he was able to tell good from bad and could feel the concern of Old Yu and the rest. He exined, "I don¡¯t quite understand something. It¡¯s a fact that Boss doesn¡¯t have elemental energy, so why is he still able to control our sword rays?"

    Old Yu paused for a moment, but quickly found it funny. "That¡¯s all?"

    "Yes, just this!" Gu Xuan looked at Old Yu, adding, "You¡¯ve thought about it too? Any idea?"

    Old Yu answered matter-of-factly, "How is he able to control our sword rays despite not having elemental energy? Very simple eh, it¡¯s because he¡¯s the boss. If he can¡¯t then who can?"

    Gu Xuan was speechless and unable to refute.

    Old Yu continued, "You¡¯re overthinking, Old Gu. Let¡¯s talk about swordsmen. They existed in the past when there wasn¡¯t any elemental energy, so why must they have it now?"

    Gu Xuan was stunned. That was right! Swordsmen had a longer history than the Avalon of Five Elements and there wasn¡¯t any elemental energy back then, so why must they have it?

    He fell into a daze.

    Just then, Ai Hui¡¯s voice could be heard. "Everyone gather!"

    Unknowingly, Ai Hui had woken up from hisa.

    People raised their heads, somewhat bbergasted. They had just been resting for a short while and had yet to recover their elemental energy.

    The sword moves everybody practiced weren¡¯tplicated, but as long as someone wasn¡¯t following the tempo, the moves would usually fail. This was also why they had to maintain extreme focus at all times. Waving their swords around during such high focus required astonishing physical strength.

    After each round of training, everybody had to rest in order to recover their elemental energy and physical strength before starting the next round.

    The Sword of Lightning¡¯s training was very dull, much drier than their individual training.

    All kinds ofints emerged. For example, they found the sword moves limited and even boring. As such, a popr phrase surfaced within the Sword of Lightning.

    "Are we really swordsmen? I don¡¯t think so. Which swordsmen have such few moves? If we were to use them individually, not even a chicken can be killed. A swordsman unable to kill a chicken shouldn¡¯t go out there and im to be a swordsman!"

    If not for the fact that Ai Hui had personally released the power of the sword pagodas in Lemon Camping Ground, there probably wouldn¡¯t be anyone willing to press on.

    Ample rest was extremely crucial, as learned by everybody during this period of harsh training. Without rest, they wouldn¡¯t even be able to engage in high intensity training and wouldmit errors more frequently, hence hindering their practice.

    So when Ai Hui ordered everybody to gather, they were extremely surprised.

    "Something¡¯s up."

    These words alerted everyone. Elementalists who were still alive weren¡¯t rookies. They had rich experience. In this chaotic world, not only did they have to face dire beasts, they had to face all kinds of danger, greed, riches, and disputes.

    Everybody threw the bowl in their hands on the ground and stood up.

    With his full body wrapped in bandages, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were bright enough to light up the night sky.

    Earlier, his spirit and mind had entered a very unique state where he could "see" very far away. He¡¯d never seen such a faraway ce before and could detect its dangerous aura.

    It was as if the danger was close by. He then "saw" some shadows concealed amid the night.

    About 60 miles away from Fishback City, Xia Houjun stopped in his tracks.

    A vignt look shed across his face. "What¡¯s going on?"

    While they were both fickle, the fact that they could remain alive until this point and live sofortably was enough to show that they were capable individuals.

    Xia Houjun asked in a low voice, "Seems like someone is spying on us. Do you feel it?"

    "No." Xia Houjie shook his head, the alertness on his face remaining. He scanned his surroundings. "A strong expert?"

    "Not sure." Xia Houjun continued hesitantly, "Only in that instant, but it disappeared very quickly, so I can¡¯t be sure."

    "It¡¯s good to be more cautious," Xia Houjie said in a low voice, his eyes flickering. " We¡¯re not the only ones eyeing the snowva. There might be powerful experts, so we can¡¯t becent."

    "Mhmm."

    The duo raised their guard and slowed down.

    Any mistake on the battlefield would only lead to one ending¨Cdeath. They¡¯d seen too many powerful experts die from a small oversight. Failing to obtain the snowva simply meant that their mission had failed. They weren¡¯t ready to gamble their lives away for it.

    In Fishback City, Gu Xuan led a group of people back and forth within the city.

    Boss¡¯s orders were very strange. He¡¯d asked for all lights within the city to be lit. Bonfires had to be started wherever possible.

    He couldn¡¯t quite understand the meaning behind this. A strategy to mislead the enemy? But the opponent would immediately notice something fishy they moment they arrived.

    Nevertheless, he carried out Boss¡¯s orders to the letter.

    It was strange. It was only natural that everybody followed Boss¡¯s orders when he was a Master.

    Yet, now that he was severely injured and had yet to recover, it was strange how everybody stillplied subconsciously.

    Gu Xuan had traveled extensively and been to many cities. All along, he spoke with his fist. Anything a Master possessed would go up in smoke the moment his base level crumbled.

    No one would listen to his orders anymore and all respect would be gone.

    Yet, this did not happen to Ai Hui.

    Gu Xuan also tried thinking from his own perspective. Why was he still listening to Ai Hui? Could he control the sword pagodas? No. He didn¡¯t even know how to train, so needless to say he wouldn¡¯t be able to lift the pagoda. Could he rece Boss? No.

    Gu Xuan believed that in everyone¡¯s eyes, there were inconceivable things going on in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    There was something about Ai Hui that gave people faith.

    As for the fact that Ai Hui was no longer a Master, Gu Xuan realized that he did not really mind. In his eyes, Ai Hui would definitely return to his status as a Master, just like Senior Le Buleng had. Ai Hui was merely facing a low point in life.

    Gu Xuan was highly confident about this, even more so than the possibility of him bing a Master.

    So damn strange!

    Gu Xuan shook his head. He could only console himself. People who could be leaders usually had special traits.

    The lights in Fishback City shone brightly, and everybody took the chance to go to the top of ckfish Mouth Volcano. Right by their side was the sword pagoda that Lou Lan had brought up.

    The mountain wasn¡¯t as magnificent at night. The red glow from its volcanic crater was blocked by thick rolling smoke.

    The night breeze brushed across Ai Hui¡¯s face. He was like a mummy who had just crawled out from his sarcophagus. He looked into the distance, his eyes sparkling like stars.

    Gu Xuan and the rest followed Ai Hui¡¯s line of sight, but saw nothing.

    "Everybody take this time to rest. The enemy ising soon."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice made everybody nervous. They quickly meditated and recuperated.

    The volcanic crater quietened down and only Lou Lan was left by Ai Hui¡¯s side. He gazed into the horizon.

    It was extremely quiet around them.

    At this point, Ai Hui felt something he hadn¡¯t before. He felt as if he¡¯d melted into the night. He could see the metal wind blowing from afar. The almost undetectable ripplingyers. The ground beneath his feet and the blue dome of heaven above his head seemed to be one with him. His gaze spanned across the mountains and the blue dome of heaven, as if overlooking the field and bearing the weight of all living things.

    No one noticed that the moment the wind came close to ckfish Mouth Volcano, it would be abnormally docile. Only Lou Lan sensed it. He turned around, the red glow in his eyes flickering for a short while before calming down.

    Behind them, the bubbling snowva appeared to be ttened into foldedyers by an invisible hand. Its was smooth and glossy like a heated metal mirror.

    An obsessed look appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face. This was beyond a wonderful experience.

    In his eyes, the world wasn¡¯t just elemental energy.

    Some time passed, then he sensed something. Immediately, he separated himself from that marvelous state of mind. He felt somewhat regretful and felt it would be good if he could experience this state once more.

    With a murderous spirit surging within his bright eyes, he threw away all distracting thoughts.

    "Enemy ising."

 Chapter 504: Villa of Conscience

    Chapter 504: Vi of Conscience

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Lu Chen¡¯s residence outside Jadeite Forest City had a very unique name ¨C Vi of Conscience. Its door, made of firewood, was half open and trees were nted all around the fences. A mild fragrance pervaded the air. The whole ce was like a Xanadu.

    To the left of the door were the words "Bridge Between Life And Death", and to its right were the words "Ceaseless Yin and Yang". Above was a big bolded word: "Conscience".

    Vi of Conscience seldom received visitors, except for those who came specially to seek medical treatment. Lu Chen was very reputable, but had been in seclusion in recent years and practically never epted patients.

    The clear moonlight sprinkled over the courtyard. The three of them sat facing one another, sipping on their wine.

    Lu Chen¡¯s features were simr to Mingxiu¡¯s, save for the more robust lines on his face. He had a more schrly aura, his ck long hair grazing his shoulders. He wore a loose white robe and wooden clogs, an uninhibited schrly vibe surrounding him.

    Lu Chen and Yu Mingqiu had many things to tell each other, but neither knew where to start. Yu Mingqiu had even more words for Mingxiu, but was simrly unable to start. The words turned to wine when they reached the corner of his mouth.

    The brother and sister started speaking first.

    Lu Chen spoke to Mingxiu in a somewhat reproachful manner. "You were too rash, sister. Fortunately nothing cropped up this time, or else it would¡¯ve been dangerous. They were all fearless soldiers. I¡¯ll go investigate properly."

    Mingxiu stuck out her tongue mischievously. "Other than Brother Mingqiu, I have other preparations."

    Her childlike attitude only came out before her older brother. He¡¯d been taking care of and pampering her since young, so they were very close. Compared to their scheming and astute parents, Mingxiu trusted her brother more.

    Lu Chen said what he did out of habit. He knew his sister wasn¡¯t an impulsive person and that she had back up. With a loving smile, he continued, "Say it. You nevere for nothing. You¡¯re definitely not here to visit me."

    Mingxiu told Lu Chen about Ai Hui and his face turned serious. Even Yu Mingqiu, who had been drowning his sorrows in wine, couldn¡¯t help but put his cup down.

    "Night Moth Fruit is very troublesome." Lu Chen sighed. "Borrowing the force of lightning to deal with it is a bold move that I¡¯ve not thought of or tried. Judging from the result, he probably has suppressed it, but because the Nature¡¯s lightning is too aggressive, I¡¯m afraid his injuries are not light, even if he practices lightning. Even if he doesn¡¯t lose his life, his five residences and eight pces won¡¯t be able to endure it."

    Mingxiu instantly became anxious. "Then what should we do?"

    "If his five residences and eight pces are severely injured, I can¡¯t do anything." Lu Chen shook his head and continued regretfully, "The five residences and eight pces are like the skeleton of a human. If not many areas have been injured then there might still be cures, but if the damage is critical, they¡¯re basically untreatable. The residences and pces are linked and subtly rted. Rebuilding the connection is not something that can be done."

    Yu Mingqiu, who¡¯d been quiet since he¡¯d entered, spoke suddenly. "I don¡¯t see it that way."

    The siblings looked toward him simultaneously.

    Yu Mingxiu added, "Do not forget that Senior Le Buleng had also been severely injured before. Ai Hui is tough and durable, not someone who would easily concede defeat."

    Ai Hui had left a deep impression on him.

    "I hope so." Lu Chen nodded. He hadn¡¯t interacted with Ai Hui and so knew little about him. He turned to Mingxiu and said, "Take three Vitality Branches when you leave. The rest is up to him."

    Mingxiu responded cheerily, "Thank you Brother!"

    The Vitality Branches were Lu Chen¡¯s treasured lucky charms. Giving Mingxiu three at once was really an expensive gesture. Vitality Branches were even more famous than Night Moth Fruits. They were known to revive patients with only one breath. Each branch contained a wisp of original life force. It was the source of life of all living things.

    Lu Chen had invented these Vitality Branches upon mastering the art of healing.

    Even Grandmaster Dai was full of praises for them, believing that they were the mark of a new era.

    Seeing his sister¡¯s joyful look, Lu Chen shook his head and turned to the rather foreign Yu Mingqiu. "You¡¯re finally back. Where have you been all these years?"

    "Deep within the Wilderness." Yu Mingqiu picked up a wine cup with both hands before draining it in one gulp. His faint stubble made him look quite different. "I was very curious to see what¡¯s further inside and so I went to explore."

    Lu Chen sized him up before breaking into a smile. "Not easy eh,ing back alive."

    Yu Mingqiu burst intoughter and replied ruefully, "Yeah, I came back alive."

    The siblings could hear the sorrow in his voice. He must have been through a lot of tribtions in there. The words "deep within the Wilderness" seemed to have a magical power that captured everybody¡¯s attention. Even Lu Chen, who stayed out of worldly affairs, appeared interested.

    Yu Mingqiu wasn¡¯t a habitually silent person to begin with, so as he started speaking, he became more lively too.

    He talked about some of his experiences living deep within the Wilderness. Out of the corner of his eye he caught a glimpse of Mingxiu looking engrossed, and so he spoke more energetically and expressively. He was naturally aical person, so he quickly got everybodyughing.

    Yu Mingqiu was rather distracted, as if he¡¯d gone back to when he was young.

    .....

    Faraway in Fishback City, the lights were brightly lit within the night. It was an exceptionally striking sight.

    The duo was still worried about finding the wrong ce, so they heaved a sigh of relief upon seeing the city.

    The Xiahou brothers slowed down. Ever since Xiahou Jun noticed something amiss, the two paid extra attention to their surroundings and quickly found many rivals.

    Xiahou Jie asked eagerly, "Quite a number of small ants, should we evacuate?"

    Xiahou Jun shook his head. "There must be some strong yers lying in ambush, so don¡¯t be careless. Plus, this is too big of an offense so do not expose your identity, or else we won¡¯t have a life to live even if we do survive."

    "Mhmm", Xiahou Jie acknowledged, his eyes recovering their calm.

    Snowva brought a lot of benefits, so many were lusting over it and bing restless. No one dared to openly seize the snowva, however, since Shi Beihai had passed away not long ago and Shi Xueman had stepped into the battlefield. Those who tried robbing snowva now would certainly be criticized by the masses.

    The Xiahou brothers knew the pros and cons very well. If the world knew that they had mounted a sneak attack on Central Pine Valley, no one would publicly ept or provide asylum for them.

    Before they came, they had already been told this repeatedly.

    Xiahou Jun said in a low voice, "We don¡¯t have to rush. Let¡¯s wait for others to make a move. When the situation turns chaotic, that¡¯s when we act."

    Xiahou Jie nodded in understanding.

    While he had an irritable temperament, he was like a totally different person inbat. He became extremely calm and tolerant.

    They carefully avoided their rivals and approached Fishback City, only concealing themselves upon reaching the foot of the mountain. They were experts at ambushing, so no one was rmed by their movements.

    They hid behind a rock, bing one with the darkness. They were only a few hundred meters away from Fishback City. This distance, to them, could be closed within the blink of an eye.

    They were like seasoned hunters, waiting for the others to take action first.

    Time passed, but there were still no movements.

    The Xiahou brothers weren¡¯t the least bit impatient. Instead, they became increasingly alert, evidence that they weren¡¯t forces to be reckoned with. They made eye contact and saw the seriousness in each other¡¯s eyes.

    The prey was very delicate and harmless. The other hunters were the dangerous ones.

    It wasn¡¯t just the two of them; the rest also had the same judgment, which exined why there hadn¡¯t been any action yet.

    Xiahou Jie said suddenly, "Brother, something¡¯s not quite right."

    Xiahou Jun jolted and asked hurriedly, "Someone made a move?"

    "No." With a doubtful look on his face, he continued, "This city... seems too quiet."

    Xiahou Jun paused for a moment before looking around with rapt attention. The lights were still brightly lit but there was no sound at all, only dead silence.

    Not right!

    At this distance, they should be able to hear the voices of the citizens, but no matter how he pricked up his ears there were none.

    A chill rose up Xiahou Jun¡¯s back. An ambush!

    He had a premonition at this point.

    Could it be that Central Pine Valley still had some kind of force left?

    He did some calctions in his mind. There was only one Master, Mister Dou, left in Central Pine Valley. Needless to say, Master Dou¡¯s abilities were great and on par to the brothers¡¯, but it would be difficult for a pair of fists to deal with two. Plus, there were so many people lying in ambush. If they made use of this advantage, Master Dou simply wouldn¡¯t be able to raise any waves.

    Or was it that their information was wrong?

    They were worried about Le Buleng returning unexpectedly. No one wanted to bump into that freak. If not for the fact that the higher ups had guaranteed them over and over again that Le Buleng was waiting to go all out with Dai Gang, they absolutely wouldn¡¯t have epted this task.

    Suddenly, Xiahou Jun¡¯s heart quivered. He looked toward the mountain ridge up front.

    A ball of ck shadow squirmed soundlessly. They wouldn¡¯t have noticed it if they weren¡¯t experts in ambushes and if they weren¡¯t highly focused.

    They jolted, their eyes wide open.

    Someone had made a move!

    It was just in time for them to get an idea of the situation in the city.

    It wasn¡¯t only the Xiahou brothers; there were many pairs of eyes watching within the darkness. They were looking at the brightly lit city as they, too, realized that something was amiss.

    On the mountain top.

    Above the spot where Iron Lady had bid farewell to Ai Hui, the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda rested horizontally.

    Ai Hui had not expected Great Sword¡¯s first battle to happen at this time and ce, or that he would face such strong rivals.

    The snow covered mountains and the image of a beautiful woman fading faraway into the snow shed across his eyes.

    His bright-as-stars eyes gazed into the distance, toward the direction of the Wall of North Sea.

    He patted the metal basket below him.

    The members who¡¯d long been prepared stood up at once, their elemental energy and physical strength a hundred percent recovered. While they couldn¡¯t yet see their enemy, they knew it wasing.

    Gu Xuan included, everyone was rolling up their sleeves and rubbing their fists, eager for action.

    Sword of Lightning¡¯s first battle!

    Looking down from the mountain top, their field of vision was optimal. Those with good eyesight, like Gu Xuan, caught sight of a shadow under the lights. The enemy is here indeed!

    Ai Hui waved the Edgeless Sword in his hands, an imposing aura instantly pervading the air. Everybody became alert and grabbed the swords in their hands tightly. They were highly focused; that was the signal to get ready for battle.

    A melodious sword chime sounded from the ckfish Mouth Volcano¡¯s volcanic crater, breaking the silence of the night.

 Chapter 505: A Strike in the Frosted Dawn

    Chapter 505: A Strike in the Frosted Dawn

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Cheng Ningfeng carefully felt his way toward Fishback City.

    He had already sensed something amiss. Despite the city being too quiet, the lights were charming. Could this be an empty city? He was confident about his excellent ambushing skills, so even as he was guarded, he advanced to investigate nevertheless.

    It really was a small city, obviously built in a rush. Its defense was also poor.

    Cheng Ningfeng inwardly shook his head. Central Pine Valley¡¯s abilities were indeed as rumored, mostly propped up by Shi Xueman. The moment she left, the city fell apart and was no longer able to even protect its snowva.

    Now that Ai Hui was injured, he only needed to beware of Master Dou.

    Cheng Ningfeng still didn¡¯t dare to be careless. With a tensed state of mind he carefully crossed over the wall, ready to counter any sneak attack from within the city at all times.

    But there was nothing.

    The city streets were empty and all the lights were lit.

    Unknowingly, a wisp of cold air rose within his heart. The empty city was like the bottomless and ferocious mouth of a beast, waiting for its prey to drop in.

    Cheng Ningfengposed himself by exhaling a deep breath. These people were just trying to scare him. How was this empty city stratagem going to frighten anybody? Ultimately it all boiled down to the size of their fists and speed of their swords.

    Just then, he heard an indistinct sword chime.

    It sounded from a faraway ce.

    Above... a mountain top?

    Cheng Ningfeng subconsciously raised his head and looked in the direction of the noise. All he saw was a sword ray.

    A bright snow-like silver sword ray descended, and in that instant lit up the blue dome of heaven. Even the city lights were suppressed and dimmed inparison.

    What was that!

    Cheng Ningfeng¡¯s pupils shrank and reflected a faint silver ray.

    The silver light shed and the sword ray was right in front of him, effectively illuminating the fearful look of despair on his face.

    What... what is this?

    Cheng Ningfeng¡¯s mind went ck. He was even unable to associate this silver light, which was as thick as a bowl, with the sword ray!

    His body was motionless. The thick and solid sword ray had pierced through his body effortlessly.

    He stared nkly in that position like a y puppet. The bowl sized hole in his chest made it possible for one to see the ground behind him and the bottomless pit that was in the ground.

    The blood in his body hadn¡¯t had time to ssh out from his wound.

    The sharp whistling sound camete and was apanied by a wild airflow, exploding into Cheng Ningfeng¡¯s body. Cheng Ningfeng¡¯s body was like a frail cloth puppet, instantly ripped apart into countless pieces. Bloodrain sprayed and sttered onto the wall.

    The night resumed its deathly stillness.

    Fishback City¡¯s lights were still brightly lit.

    The Xiahou brothers, still lying in ambush behind the rock, were thoroughly shaken up.

    "Mountain top. The sword ray came from up there!"

    "Must be a kind of sword formation!"

    The two exchanged gazes and saw the fear in each other¡¯s eyes. They did not manage to get a clear look at that sword strike, which was exceptionally rare for Masters.

    Richly experienced yers most feared the unknown. No matter how powerful an enemy was, he must have a vulnerable point so it was possible to find a solution. On the other hand, the unknown meant that the enemy was unpredictable.

    On the mountain top, the night breeze was slightly cooling.

    The Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was like an ugly steel monster, entrenching itself on a big rock and coldly looking down on the preys beneath.

    The Sword of Lightning members cheered and were heartened. That ck shadow was their first victory, so everybody was feeling excited. Before, they were worried about the uncertain future of Sword of Lightning, but now they were finally able to set aside their worries.

    The Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was a little ugly, but also very practical and provided effective defense.

    While it wasn¡¯t as ferocious and changeable as God-subduing Peak when it came to attack and defense, its attacking power was decent.

    Everyone¡¯s faces were filled with joy. Combat strength was the key to surviving in this chaotic world. Even Gu Xuan couldn¡¯t contain his happiness. If they knew that the ck shadow they¡¯d just killed was ck Fog Wolf, Cheng Ningfeng, they would be even more shocked.

    Seeing that everyone was getting overly excited Ai Hui coughed softly. "Get ready for the next wave of attack."

    The crowd gradually calmed down.

    A sword chime rang again.

    Fail!

    Ai Hui shook his head inwardly. More training was needed. Everyone was too agitated and had yet to rpose themselves. Over thirty people had slipped.

    Such a high rate of error hadn¡¯t appeared in a long time.

    But Ai Hui did not me the members, as he could understand their excitement. Elites weren¡¯t trained and created overnight. Members who made a mistake looked ashamed and somewhat embarrassed.

    Again!

    A sword chime rang.

    Another failure. Although everybody was trying hard to calm themselves down, there were still five who made a mistake.

    Training and actual battle were simply too different. A ny percent sess rate could be achieved in training, but in actualbat, having a sixty to seventy percent sess rate was already not bad.

    The Xiahou brothers exchanged looks, their eyes flickering.

    "Sword formation indeed! Powerful, but not always sessful."

    "Three failures, one sess."

    Both were seasoned battlers and understood what methods would be more suitable when dealing with such attacks. They remained still, however. If they could understand this fact, the rest could too.

    Indeed, a few shadows rose and shot toward the mountain top like lightning.

    They had already realized that Fishback City was a bait used to attract their attention, and that Ai Hui¡¯s sword formation was ced above the mountain since it provided them with an optimal view.

    But no matter how powerful, what was the use of a sword formation that seeded only once out of four tries?

    Seeing the shadows dashing along the mountain range, the members in the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda on the mountain top immediately became restless.

    Just then, Ai Hui¡¯s calm voice fell into their ears. "Everybody shut your eyes."

    The members were stunned, but immediately shut their eyes and soon quietened down. Their breaths became more stable and calm.

    Ai Hui¡¯s unclosed eyes shone brightly, like the stars in the sky.

    Another sword chime rang.

    Brush! The swords moved as one, a sword ray appeared with a rippling effect.

    The bright sword ray lit up the sky once again, illuminating the faraway range of mountains.

    The sword ray shed across the sky, leaving a dazzling light scar in the darkness.

    An approaching shadow seemed to have detected it and hurriedly morphed its body. The audience only felt blinded for a second before a few more shadows appeared by its side.

    Xiahou Jie couldn¡¯t help but shout, "Good!"

    He¡¯d already recognized that shadow. Thousand Shadow de, Yue Chongyang!

    Yue Chongyang was a Master and his Path of Master was [Doppelganger]. He could transform into many difficult to distinguish bodies. Yue Chongyangbined his body splitting techniques perfectly with de techniques to form the unique [Thousand Shadow de]. The moment it was fully put to use, the de rays would be like waves, stackedyer uponyer, making it difficult for people to recognize and making them fall deep into them.

    Seeing Yue Chongyang disying [Thousand Shadow de] at such a crucial moment, Xiahou Jie couldn¡¯t control his cheer.

    The sky-breaking sword ray was like lightning, but difficult for the naked eye to catch.

    It pierced through a shadow.

    Everybody held their breaths unknowingly. They were full of anticipation. It must be a fail! There were over ten shadows in the sky so there was no way for them to identify the real one.

    It must be a miss...

    The next moment, the shadows in the sky simultaneously popped and disappeared like bubbles.

    All that was left was the stupefied shadow of a man staring at the bowl sized wound on his chest, face full of disbelief. He hadn¡¯t had time to figure out how the enemy was able to identify his real body as the dyed sharp sword whistle, apanied by the surging airflow, had already struck his body like a heavy hammer.

    Boom!

    In midair, Yue Chongyang¡¯s body instantly ripped apart, triggering a bloodrain. It was a bloody sight.

    The other shadows that had moved together with him became sluggish as their minds temporarily went nk. Compared to Cheng Ningfeng, Thousand Shadow de Yue Chongyang had been much stronger. He¡¯d been a Master.

    Furthermore, Yue Chongyang was killed while executing [Thousand Shadow de]. It was much more shocking and impactfulpared to what had happened to Cheng Ningfeng.

    Ai Hui stood tall above the sword pagoda on the mountain top. He looked down, grief and joy absent from his eyes.

    The sword cloud within his body flowed slowly. Everything that was happening around him surfaced from within his heart in an inverted manner. Ai Hui hadn¡¯t heard of Thousand Shadow de, Yue Chongyang, but that split body elemental energy transformation left him astonished nevertheless.

    It was an extremely imaginative Path of Master!

    If it had been the past him, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to identify the real body.

    But today he could do it because he was able to "see" not just elemental energy.

    There was no elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body, but he was exposed to a different sky. At this point his heart was exceptionally calm and free. He raised Edgeless Sword and instructed, "Get ready for the next wave."

    Ai Hui¡¯s calm was contagious. Everybody threw aside distracting thoughts and shut their eyes, gathering all their focus.

    A sword chime rang once again.

    The people below snapped out of their dazed state.

    A sky-breaking sword ray!

    Yet another shadow had been struck by the sword ray. A sword whistle and airflow followed immediately, causing the body to rip apart. Blood sprinkled all over the night sky.

    Fear appeared on the face of the remaining shadow. He suddenly turned around to flee.

    Only fear was left in his heart. He¡¯d never seen such a powerful sword formation. It reminded him of God-subduing Peak! Yes, the sword formation on the mountain top reminded him of the irrepressible God-subduing Peak.

    He¡¯d only covered a few hundred meters when a sword ray tore across the sky.

    It prated his body and shot into the darkness in front.

    p! His body shattered.

    The Xiahou brothers were ashen-faced as they realized that they had bumped into a tough situation.

    Central Pine Valley actually had such a powerful sword formation!

    They, too, had been reminded of God-subduing Peak, as only it could match a terrifying force like this. Thus far, only Skyheart City, which was under Elders Guild¡¯s control, could refine God-subduing Peaks. Other cities weren¡¯t able to do so.

    God-subduing Peak was the strongest weapon in Beyond Avalon.

    Yet, anotherparable rival had appeared: this unknown sword formation.

    What exactly was Central Pine Valley¡¯s background? How could it possibly have such a powerful weapon? Finally they understood that the powerful figures outside had all underestimated the Central Pine Faction.

    No one dared to think about snowva anymore. Aspared to this nameless sword formation, snowva was simply insignificant.

    Their biggest problem now was to figure out a safe way to escape!

 Chapter 506: Blazing Shooting Star

    Chapter 506: zing Shooting Star

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Compared to the frightened people at the foot of the mountain, those in the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda were much calmer. Closing their eyes and listening carefully to the sword chime, they sensed the aura Ai Hui gave out.

    This faint aura was a new change that emerged after Ai Hui was severely injured.

    The aura was very weak, like a gentle wind revolving around the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda. If he were to walk out of the pagoda, it would be undetectable. Gu Xuan was the first to sense Ai Hui¡¯s aura. Everyone else only realized it after they were told.

    Later on, everyone also realized that the special wave motion that Ai Hui emitted could help them with their rhythm and synchronization.

    They had not expected to have already limated themselves to the countless bizarre conditions that Ai Hui¡¯s body had been going through. Only Gu Xuan was aware that this unusual undtion wasn¡¯t an elemental energy wave motion.

    Could this be the reason why Ai Hui was able to control numerous sword gleams?

    Gu Xuan started paying more attention to this mystical wave motion. Gradually, he realized that this wisp of weak aura could more easily resonate with a sword. In reality, it was not the swordsmen who felt the aura, but the swords in their hands that responded to it.

    How amazing!

    Gu Xuan was astonished that such magical swordy actually existed. It was to the extent that he was uncertain if this aura could be categorized as a type of swordy.

    At this moment, Gu Xuan was even more in tune with his perception. Many details that were usually difficult to detect during actualbat were now like cobblestones exposed on a dried riverbed.

    Yet another sword chime sounded.

    Everyone almost instinctively waved their swords.

    Those who were watching from the foot of the mountain witnessed this bizarre sight. Layers of sword gleams were lit and piled up like shiny toothpicks, forming a small hill. Seven sword-gleam-made hills at different heights illuminated the mountain peak.

    The next moment, all the sword gleams converged.

    They gathered so quickly that it was difficult for the naked eye to detect. Even with their eyes wide open, they couldn¡¯t figure how the sword gleams came together. Like silver lightning, a dazzling gleam tore across the night sky and was reflected in their eyes.

    A blood-curdling screech echoed!

    A sharp sword hiss followed that almost ruptured their eardrums. 300 meters away, east of where the Xiahou brothers stood, a rock exploded together with some flesh.

    The brothers¡¯ faces were ashen, their palms wet with sweat.

    If the targets of that sword gleam had been them, would they have been able to dodge it?

    Unlikely...

    Trembling in fear, Xiahou Jie asked in a low voice, "How does he know?"

    They hadn¡¯t sensed the presence of those who had been hiding behind the rocks so close to them, yet Ai Hui, who was at the mountain summit, had actually located them. Xiahou Jie was dumbfounded, as if he¡¯d seen a ghost.

    Xiahou Jun was terrified as well. He¡¯d thought that this would be a battle between hunters. Who would¡¯ve known that the real enemy was actually the prey whom they¡¯d thought was harmless.

    Another terrifying sword gleam struck, ripping through the air and darkness.

    Almost simultaneously, a loud scream sounded, but was drowned by the sharp sword chime. The sound of exploding bodies destroyed the Xiahou brothers¡¯st wisp of fighting spirit.

    "Withdraw!" Xiahou Jun ordered without the least bit of hesitation, not cing their faith on luck.

    Like a sh of lightning, both leapt off their feet.

    Not only the two of them, but all the other ambushers couldn¡¯t care less, fleeing away in disarray. Everyone was very experienced, so their escape routes were meticulously chosen and the distance between them had increased. Some of them directly soared into the sky, while others stayed close to the ground, taking cover and frantically escaping in a zigzag pattern.

    Ai Hui, who was in the sword pagoda, had bandages covering his face, so one wouldn¡¯t be able to determine his expression. However, it could be seen from his exposed eyes that he was looking coldly at those furiously fleeing figures at the foot of the mountain.

    The Edgeless Sword in his hand was as before, its rhythm unaffected. Methodically arranged, a sword chime sounded.

    Under the stimtion of victory, the others were in an exceptional state and practically made no mistakes. Wave after wave of sword gleams repeatedly lit up like a tide.

    The steel monster situated atop the big rock on the mountain peak spat fatal sword gleams, ceaselessly iming lives like a machine.

    Gu Xuan was one of the few who managed to stay clear-headed. He was the strongest, so he felt the impact the deepest. His sword moves were regr and thorough, still without any elegance. The sword moves remained simple and crude, but everybody increased their speed. Their rhythm became increasingly coordinated, and the sword gleams¡¯ resonance also strengthened.

    The sword gleams were much finer than before, but their light was more condensed and substantial. They had be much more powerful and mighty.

    Ai Hui¡¯s rhythm was calm and unruffled in the midst of chaos, as if he had no regard for those escaping enemies.

    Gu Xuan knew that wasn¡¯t the case, but rather, Ai Hui had already gainedplete control over the situation. The intervals between each wave of attack were brief and negligible.

    Perfect sword gleam!

    Executing the perfect sword gleam was something they found difficult to achieve in daily training. Yet, it was so effortless during battle.

    Gu Xuan knew that this was because Ai Hui wasn¡¯t holding anything back at this point!

    Ai Hui never used his full strength during daily trainings. Gu Xuan¡¯s impression of Ai Hui had be more enigmatic. He was still unaware of how Ai Hui could¡¯ve possibly noticed the enemies.

    Looking at the desperate escapees being eliminated by Ai Hui, Gu Xuan suddenly realized the reason Ai Hui ordered them to light up the whole of Fishback City.

    Fishback City was the bait.

    This bait¡¯s purpose wasn¡¯t to expose the hidden enemies, but to lure and gather them into the vicinity. In other words, Ai Hui had long since noticed and locked onto these targets.

    He also used the city as bait in order to bring the enemies closer to them while increasing their escaping distance.

    Ai Hui had nned to get rid of every single one of them right from the start!

    Gu Xuan was frightened by his realization. Goosebumps appeared all over his body. This... was too scary. Among the many infiltrators, there wasn¡¯t ack of Masters, so where did Ai Hui get all that confidence from?

    "Gu Xuan."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice wasn¡¯t loud, but Gu Xuan was startled nevertheless. He quivered and quickly looked toward Ai Hui. There weren¡¯t any walls to obstruct the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda, so he could see him immediately.

    Ai Hui looked at him and only saw a head wrapped up in bandages and a pair of inquiring eyes.

    Gu Xuan immediately squeezed a slight smile out to express an apology and to indicate he was all right. He, himself, was probably unaware that he now had more respect toward Ai Hui.

    These few waves of attacks had been perfect.

    In terms of effectiveness, they were also perfect and not one sword missed. Nine sword gleams imed more than nine lives, including Masters and pseudo Masters.

    Ai Hui was also very pleased. The might of the sword pagodas was much better than he¡¯d expected. It also proved that Masters could be eliminated through cooperation as long as suitable methods were employed.

    Of course, if someone else was in his position, the result would not have been as ideal. After all, locking onto a Master was an extremely challenging task.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t affected by changes in elemental energy, so he could easily lock onto a Master. It wouldn¡¯t be so easy for other elementalists. Nevertheless, the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda¡¯s formidable power had been validated.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s guess was urate. Ai Hui¡¯s n, all along, was to wipe the enemies out.

    So far, the battle tempo waspletely under his control and moving ording to his n.

    The enemies had no chance.

    If they had been brave enough to close in on the mountain peak from different directions and sacrifice some lives, Ai Hui and the others would¡¯ve been the ones being massacred.

    However, fundamental trust wascking between enemies. The first thought upon meeting with danger was to wait for others to make a move first while they fled. Joining forces was impossible.

    If they had all moved as a team, Ai Hui wouldn¡¯t have been this reckless.

    But this time, he won the bet.

    Only three enemies were left, and the furthest one was already six miles away. Ai Hui wasn¡¯t anxious, however. Instead, he instructed, "Take 10 breaths and get ready for the second form."

    Everybody shuddered and quickly recalibrated their state of mind.

    Earlier, they had executed the first form, which Ai Hui had given a name that they simply didn¡¯t know how to evaluate. It was called the [Great Sword Gleam].

    Had hee up with that name just because the converged gleams appeared very big?

    Even this perfunctory name was in line with Ai Hui¡¯s style.

    The second form had a much better name: [zing Shooting Star].

    All right, it was equally perfunctory.

    The second form was prettyplicated as the long swords in their hands had to undergo three changes. Other than that, the pace was simr. They had toplete a swing of the sword as they turned their bodies while standing in their own positions.

    This was exactly why the training for the second move was much more challenging.

    The slight increase in difficulty of the second move would make it a few times harder for more than 200 swordsmen to move in sync.

    The chance of sess for the [zing Shooting Star] sword gleam was currently only about 60 percent, despite their diligent daily training.

    On the other hand, their chance of sess for the first form, [Great Sword Gleam],

    was more than 90 percent. They rarely failed.

    Everyone shuddered upon being told to get ready for the second form. Even Gu Xuan threw away all distracting thoughts,posed himself, and focused wholeheartedly.

    He knew that inattention would easily lead to failure.

    10 breaths passed in the blink of an eye.

    Everybody maintained rapt attention as another sword chime sounded, this onepletely different from before. Each sword form produced different sword chimes. The second form of the sword gleam was shorter, but more intense.

    H. A ring of sword light appeared and curled around everybody.

    Failure.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes remained still. With a light tremble of his Edgeless Sword, another sword chime echoed.

    A sword gleam shot up into the sky like fireworks.

    The fireworks kept soaring, but the gleam gradually dimmed and eventually disappeared.

    At almost the same time, a grain-sized speck of light appeared over Xiahou Jie¡¯s head. It fell rapidly and grew increasingly brighter. In the blink of an eye, it illuminated the sky like a meteor.

    Xiahou Jun eyes were about to pop out. "Dodge it!"

    Xiahou Jie did not hear his brother¡¯s voice. He only noticed that there seemed to be a sun rising overhead, casting his shadow onto the snow-white ground before him.

    What is this...

 Chapter 507: Brewing Storm

    Chapter 507: Brewing Storm

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    A whistle sounded from overhead.

    This sword whistle was of a different kind of sharpness. It rumbled, heavy as thunder, causing even the sky to tremble.

    The illuminated ground before him swayed continuously. Xiahou Jie¡¯s shadow extended amid the constant shaking.

    Xiahou Jie subconsciously tilted his head toward the sky. His body turned rigid.

    An eye-piercing light ray rapidly magnified in his eyes. The light ray was so intense that he shut his eyes automatically, his mind nking out.

    What... swordy is this?

    The light ray descended so quickly that he was unable to react and could only watch it approach him at an rming speed.

    He was not even able to make out its shape since there was only light in his field of view. Bright, white light.

    Xiahou Jie¡¯s final impression of the world was just a sheet of white. Endless bright light, like an ocean of light that he was unable to break free from.

    Lost amid the boundless white light, his world gradually turned intoplete darkness and emptiness.

    Seeing his brother being struck and killed by the sword ray with his own eyes, Xiahou Jun¡¯s tears overflowed. They were twin brothers and had a telepathic connection from a young age. Since they hadn¡¯t been separated before, the pain he felt right now was as if his body and heart had been ripped apart.

    In order to escape, they had deliberately distanced themselves, resulting in him being unable to provide support in time.

    He simply hadn¡¯t thought about how he could save his brother.

    Once again, fireworks started rising from the faraway mountain top.

    Xiahou Jun felt emotional. He stopped in his tracks, turned around, and looked toward the sky.

    Out of nowhere, a spot of silver light like an unremarkable looking star appeared overhead, but in the blink of an eye, it suddenly and rapidly increased in size.

    From darkness to ring brightness, it only took an instant.

    The dazzling white light ray was so piercing that it blinded him like a silver ocean would.

    He grinned, hysteria evident in his face. He roared wildly, "Bring it on!"

    The surrounding elemental energy gathered toward him like a tide. His body was like a balloon, frantically expanding.

    Not only did his eyes reflect the piercing silver light, the reflection of a crazy, angry sea of fire could be seen as well.

    Before, there would have been another surge of elemental energy that echoed with his, but now, he was all alone. The space around him, within a 10 meter radius, became bright red.

    The devilish red mes were like the tongues of many monsters, sticking out from the emptiness and licking his body.

    Xiahou Jun stood in mid air, his legs spread out in a slight squat, as if there was an invisible floor beneath his feet. He clenched his right hand into a fist and turned his body slightly to one side. His entire figure was like a drawn bow.

    The devilish red fire traces swifty appeared on his cheeks, causing his sinister grin to look even more terrifying and demonic.

    The mes circled around his clenched fist.

    He released a punch toward the sky!

    The red fist beam shot skyward like a fire pir. The deafening whizz was about to burn through the blue dome of heaven.

    [Yin ming Earth Fist]!

    This was his Path of Master, originating from hollow Yin fire. Xiahou Jie¡¯s path was the exact opposite¨C[Yang ming Heaven Fist]!

    A pity...

    The devilish red fist beam collided with the sharp silver sword ray without the least bit of pretense.

    Boom!

    A zing light ball blossomed abruptly, illuminating the whole ckfish Mouth mountain range as if it was daytime.

    On the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda, the swordsmen shook. There was a rising mist since they were all sweating profusely. Their heavy pants filled the air as their evaporated sweat formed a fog that enveloped the whole pagoda.

    Not only was steam rising from Ai Hui¡¯s body, his mouth was filled with a salty bloody taste as he stifled a groan.

    His body was weaker than an average elementalist, but he had been dealt a more impactful blow, so he was immediately injured.

    "Take three breaths and get ready. Once more."

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice was rather hoarse, but his tone remained the same. There was unwavering vigor in his eyes, as if the previous blow had had no impact on him.

    The other members could feel Ai Hui¡¯s determination. They spontaneously adjusted their breathing and the raging elemental energy within their bodies.

    Three breaths passed in an instant.

    The oscitions of the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda stopped as it returned to its original calm. A calm before the storm. Everyone was waiting to take action after having umted energy and power. They were like drawn bows waiting to release their arrows.

    A brief, but intense, sword chime sounded again.

    252 curling sword rays apanied 252 pairs of hands as they turned and raised their swords, as if adorning a heavy ck steel monster with ayer of fine bright silver chain mail.

    Fireworks rose in the sky.

    Xiahou Jun¡¯s body was covered with blood. He looked up at the mountain peak, which was silent for a brief moment before firework-like sword rays exploded. He grinned.

    He knew he wasn¡¯t going to escape today.

    He simply stayed where he was, motionless.

    The weak were prey for the strong, and his life was about toe to an end. He thought about how he¡¯dmitted all sorts of evil deeds in his life. He killed people without feeling any emotions. Such a happy life¡ªnot at all bad!

    Dying together with his brother and dying under such an exceptional weapon. What was there to be displeased about?

    He thought about how shocking this would be for the world. Panicked and lost faces appeared before him.

    Heughed out loud, like the hooting of owls, reckless and egotistical. His voice pervaded his surroundings.

    The dazzling silver light blossomed overhead and became increasingly brighter, illuminating his malevolent, wild, and bloodstained face. Cast on the ground, his shadow trembled intensely like a candle me in the wind.

    The sword ray descended like a meteorite.

    The silver light ray swallowed up that willful and brash shadow, leaving not the smallest trace.

    Thest remaining enemy had long lost hisst trace of resistance and willpower. He shook like a sieve. He raised both arms in the direction of the faraway ckfish Mouth Volcano. He plopped down on his knees and cried out incoherently with all the strength he had left, "Surrender! I surrender! I surrender!"

    A few miles away, ckfish Mouth Volcano was like an iprehensible monster upying its territory. The brightly lit Fishback City was like the monster¡¯s mocking eyes.

    He was filled with fear and had no courage left. He had seen with his own eyes how more reputable experts had fallen one after another in front of him. He was about to have a mental break down.

    Xiahou Jun¡¯s death was the final blow to his already tensed state of mind.

    He broke downpletely.

    Another firework rose into the sky from that faraway mountain.

    His body stiffened, his pale face full of despair. He cried frantically, "No, no, no, I surrender, I surrender. I¡¯ve already surrendered. What else do you want..."

    The light ray above his head shone down on his lifeless face and shadow as well as on that helpless despair.

    The light ray swallowed everything before the night sky resumed its darkness.

    Ai Hui exhaled a deep breath atop the mountain. "Battle over."

    His tensed mind loosened and an intense dizziness took over. He tottered and almost fell over, but managed to grab ahold of the pagoda railing before stabilizing himself.

    "Boss, are you alright?"

    "Are you okay, Boss?"

    Members around quickly noticed Ai Hui¡¯s condition and gathered around, faces full of concern.

    Lou Lan squeezed his way through with a transparent jade green bamboo pipe. "Medicine, Ai Hui."

    Inside the bamboo pipe was an inky ck medicinal syrup. Ai Hui removed the cork and gulped it down in one shot. As the syrup entered his throat, he felt a rush of painful heat, as if it was about to burn up. Immediately after, a slight chill gushed to his brain.

    Ai Hui felt a burst of energy. "Thank you, Lou Lan."

    Lou Lan replied happily, "It¡¯s what I should do."

    With a slight cheer in his tone, Ai Hui instructed, "Go clean up the battlefield, the enemies have been crushed."

    After a short pause came earth-shattering cheers.

    Many of them werepletely exhausted, depleted of both elemental energy and physical strength. They plopped down onto the ground with a silly smile on their faces. Members who still had some strength left dove down the mountain like a nest of bees.

    Ai Hui stood on the highest point of the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda, fixing his gaze far away.

    It had been a close call. The final enemy had almost left his perceptive region. If not for the fact that he had been too scared and chose to surrender, Ai Hui would¡¯ve only been able to watch him as he fled.

    Wiping out all the enemies hadn¡¯t been Ai Hui¡¯s n, but a choice he¡¯d made since he realized he had such arge range of perception.

    There were many advantages to wiping out all of the enemies.

    One could imagine how the outside world would reevaluate their judgment of the Central Pine Valley¡¯sbat power. More importantly, they had no information about the valley, so they would refrain from acting rashly.

    Thus, Ai Hui had killed thatst surrendering elementalist without any hesitation.

    Ai Hui was different from Master Dou and Yang Xiaodong. He had yet to recover and was no longer a Master. He could bring out the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda¡¯s power, but once he left it, he became a weakling unable to even truss a chicken.

    Amodating a foreign Master at this point was risky since any moment of disloyalty would put Ai Hui into an extremely dangerous situation.

    Ai Hui knew just how frail he was.

    They would finally have time in future to lead a more peaceful life, so this period was extremely crucial.

    This battle had shocked and impacted Ai Hui greatly as well. He was aware that the warfare level of the world had gone up a notch.

    Although the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was his own design, even he, himself, had not expected it to be this mighty!

    He could imagine how this battle would trigger all new warfare innovations if the outside world knew about it.

    The position of Masters would weaken significantly since ordinary elementalists would be able to increase theirbat power intrinsically through umtion and practice, just like the pagoda.

    The God-subduing Peak required a Master to control, but the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was a step more advanced. It was cheap to construct and did not require a Master to control it. Ai Hui also firmly believed that there were many other ways to verify this fact.

    He even wondered if a Metal Basket Sword Pagoda full of Masters would be able to contend against a Grandmaster.

    He did not know, but felt it wasn¡¯t impossible. It was difficult for him to imagine what kind of scene would unfold when a sword pagoda formed by a group of Masterspleted its attack.

    If it was sessful, the current idea that Grandmasters were supreme would be subverted. The reason why Grandmasters were at the top was because their strength had reached another realm. A realm that human strength and umtion could not defeat.

    Ai Hui felt a storm brewing.

    What would future battles be? He did not know, but what he knew was that future battles would undergo major changes.

    It was this vague premonition that made Ai Hui determined to not let off any enemies. He had to protect the secret of the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda.

    He wasn¡¯t ready. The Sword of Lightning wasn¡¯t ready.

 Chapter 508: Spirits of the Deceased

    Chapter 508: Spirits of the Deceased

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Mo Wu felt rather anxious. ording to the n, the Xiahou brothers should have returned that day, but there was still no trace of them so far.

    Mo Wu was in charge of receiving the brothers. He was An Chouchou¡¯s trusted aide. Boss had given him such an important mission, disying that he was highly regarded. He was also trying hard to maximize his contribution and merit. Among Boss¡¯s subordinates, there were quite a few rivals, so Mo Wu needed to be dauntless and active at all times.

    Sess or failure?

    Regardless, he wanted to at least see them.

    Not seeing them was Mo Wu¡¯s biggest fear.

    Could it be that the brothers became greedy after obtaining the Snow Lava? Or were they spies? Or were they thinking about starting a bidding war?

    Or perhaps they came into conflict with others and got injured?

    Mo Wu thought it possible that the brothers were injured, but highly unlikely that they were both killed. Their individual abilities were considered decent among Masters, but when they fought together, their telepathic connection increased their power significantly. At least three or four Masters had to join hands in order to take the two of them down.

    Mo Wu was of the opinion that nopetitor would send three or four Masters out at this time.

    Even Skyheart City was unable to do so since it was preparing for the appearance of Dai Gang.

    After some thought, Mo Wu decided that betrayal was the most probable result, which made him fidgety.

    He waited yet another day, but the brothers did not show up. Unable to wait any longer, Mo Wu decided to go investigate for himself.

    He bumped into a few passersby who looked to be in a hurry. They sized one another up before lowering their heads and continuing on their journeys. Mo Wu remained expressionless, but was inwardly shocked. He was very familiar with the aura of these people. They were all in the same line of work.

    Could it be that these people were like him...

    This conjecture made him shiver. He dared not overthink. Instead, he hastened on with his journey with his head lowered.

    After two consecutive days of traveling, he finally arrived at Lemon Camping Ground. He¡¯d been here before disguised as a merchant, so he was very familiar with this ce.

    Lemon Camping Ground was empty. The houses were in ruins and there were no survivors.

    Mo Wu kept a straight face. People in this trade were all trained to have a heart of stone. When he was discussing strategy with the Xiahou brothers, he¡¯d suggested not sparing any lives. This matter was simply too sensitive and a storm would be generated if outsiders found out. Silencing everyone would reduce the risk of information being leaked.

    He walked inside and a shadow suddenly dashed in front of him. It was a passerby from before.

    His face was full of fear and panic as he practically staggered his way into the camping ground.

    Mo Wu crinkled his brows. Did the Xiahou brothers turn this ce into a bloody mess? They were hot-tempered and murderous, unable to stop once initiated.

    He walked to the center of the camping ground, wondering if he should bury the corpses.

    Reaching the center, he was stunned.

    It waspletely empty, save for a tall wooden board about the height of a man that was stuck into the ground. On it was a row of words written in blood.

    "Masters and elementalists, 20 dead. Here, in Lemon Camping Ground, lie the spirits of the deceased gentlemen!

    The big bloody words were written recklessly and brashly. It was a sight that shocked the eyes and pierced the heart.

    Before the board was a pile of offerings, which included some remnant clothing, melted chunks of weapons, broken limbs, and so on.

    A chill ran down his spine, and his limbs were ice-cold, as if he¡¯d entered an icehouse.

    He suppressed his fear, bent down, and started rummaging through the offerings. He caught sight of a broken cloth that was of a unique quality. On it was an embroidered wolf and the words "ck Fog Wolf, Cheng Ningfeng."

    There was also a broken section of a de with a transparent crystal hilt that had a fine ribbing pattern.

    Mo Wu was astonished. He recognized this de.

    It was... [Thousand Shadow de], Yue Chongyang¡¯s shadow de!

    Mo Wu was more than familiar about all news regarding reputable Masters, so he was certain he had not misidentified this object.

    Yue Chongyang was a real Master.

    Mo Wu, who continued sifting through the items, was dumbfounded. He saw two halves of amand token, which were the Xiahou brothers¡¯ keepsakes.

    Mo Wu kept them, his face pale as sheet as he turned around and staggered away.

    Exactly how many Masters died here?

    Who did it?

    The storm that blew over Lemon Camping Ground quickly swept across the whole of Beyond Avalon.

    Initially, Mo Wu verified three Masters, but after some inquiries from all parties, the count went up to five. The other seven were reputable experts like the ck Fog Wolf Cheng Ningfeng, who was a pseudo Master.

    One could well imagine the intense aftermath this triggered.

    Everyone felt it most likely that Le Buleng had decided to wipe them out with a sudden attack. They believed that no one else could possibly take down five Masters and seven pseudo Masters with no survivors.

    Indeed, none were spared.

    It had to be said that if a Master wanted to escape, he wouldn¡¯t be easily killed unless his abilities were far inferior to his enemy. This was especially the case for a Master like the Thousand Shadow de Yue Chongyang, whose split body technique was his life saving skill.

    But he, too, had perished.

    The Central Pine Valley had be unfathomable overnight.

    Everyone sent out huge groups of investigators in hopes of getting to the bottom of things, but gained little.

    An Chouchou asked with a grave face, "Any results?"

    Mo Wu brought the two pieces of themand token. Their melted surface served as a decent clue.

    Mo Wu reported respectfully, "The preliminary report is out. It was some kind of high temperature swordsmanship. We found a concentrated sword aura on the tokens. This swordsmanship is shockingly powerful and the Xiahou brothers might have already been reduced to dust. The tokens were preserved only because of their unique quality."

    An Chouchou was rather surprised. "Swordsmanship?"

    While swordsmanship had been flourishing over the past few years and there had been rising master swordsmen like Karakorum Pris, such a powerful sword technique had been unheard of.

    Perhaps a new master swordsman had emerged?

    He sighed. "Isn¡¯t Ai Hui a powerful swordsman too? I heard he was injured?"

    Mo Wu hurriedly replied, "Do you remember the battle between Ai Hui and the Grass Bandits? They poisoned Ai Hui with Night Moth Fruit for revenge."

    An Chouchou became excited. "Night Moth Fruit?"

    "An urate piece of news I bought from the guards of the Lu Residence¡¯s caravan." Mo Wu added, "In order to withstand the toxin, Ai Hui flew into the cloudyer and borrowed the force of lightning. Although he managed to suppress the toxicity of the fruit, he sustained severe injuries and almost became a cripple. The sword aura left on the tokens contained no aura of lightning, so it can be concluded that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t involved."

    An Chouchou nodded in approval. "So it was someone else."

    Mo Wu continued, "Boss is wise. Ai Hui is an expert in the sword, he invented Sword of Lightning, and his swordsmanship isn¡¯tpletely without his teacher¡¯s art. We suspect that this mysterious powerful expert might be Ai Hui¡¯s teacher."

    An Chouchou nodded. "There has been a lot of news focused on the Central Pine Valley. Do not act blindly."

    "Yes!"

    Mo Wu departed, and An Chouchou¡¯s expression turned ugly.

    He felt the ache of losing the Xiahou brothers. Losing two Masters was a disastrous injury to suffer.

    He couldn¡¯t help but sigh.

    From the bottom of his heart, he had never wanted to touch the Central Pine Valley. Insead, he was impressed by Ai Hui and his gang. Now that he had power over Newlight City, he faced unimaginably extreme pressure. Newlight City had weak foundations and declining financial resources, leaving him with no choice but to seek other ways of making money.

    If not for this desperation, he wouldn¡¯t have wanted to seize the snowva since it was a heinous crime.

    Not only was Newlight City facing fiscal problems, it was also very vulnerable in other aspects. Skyheart City had the three central divisions, Master¡¯s Glory, the Sky Edge and Infantry Divisions, and God-subduing Peaks.

    Thus, Newlight City was much weaker in terms of prestige and power. This was an all around weakness. In time, the disparity between the two parties would only increase.

    An Chouchou was worried sick.

    Madam Ye was an extremely ambitious senior and was still cleaning out the central divisions. The situation would change after she was done. If she was able to obstruct Dai Gang this time, her influence would inevitably and sharply increase.

    When that happened, the whole New Citizen Faction might copse the moment she offered the new citizens slight benefits.

    The situation right now seemed calm, but in actual fact, the water was starting to heat up and bubble.

    An Chouchou couldn¡¯t contain his anxiety as he sighed once again. He walked into the sunlight and gazed at the faraway Windy Resonant Pagoda, praying inwardly.

    Things would only change if Great Elder Yuchi became a Grandmaster.

    .....

    Skyheart City, the Dread Division¡¯s camp.

    Madam Ye looked at Le Buleng and Wan Shenwei from afar. Their friendly match had attracted the attention of the whole camp.

    Skyheart City had prepared a luxurious resting ce for Le Buleng, but he never stayed over. Instead, he was always hanging out in the Dread Division¡¯s camp, looking for people to swap pointers with.

    The three central divisions were very mysterious to him. As someone who was obsessed with training, Le Buleng wasn¡¯t willing to waste any time at all.

    All distinguished experts in the division had been challenged by him. He was stronger than them, but it didn¡¯t matter. He would restrict his abilities when fighting.

    To him, this kind of challenge was fun and interesting.

    Not wanting to destroy Skyheart City, both contenders dared not engage with too much elemental energy. Even so, their unimaginable utilization of elemental energy was still an eye-opener.

    The whole sh went on for two hours before Le Buleng felt contented and ended it.

    Madam Ye went forward and greeted warmly, "Uncle Le."

    Seeing Madam Ye, aplicated look shed across Le Buleng¡¯s eyes. In regard to Madam Ye¡¯s ways, he felt extremely conflicted. He admired the way she handled certain things, but was also disgusted by some of her actions.

    His mixed emotions were made apparent as he spoke somewhat impatiently, "Get straight to the point."

    Madam Ye smiled lightly without getting angry. "Does Uncle Le know what just happened in the Central Pine Valley?"

    Le Buleng stopped what he was doing and turned around. "Central Pine Valley?"

    Madam Ye continued solemnly, "Five Masters and seven powerful experts headed over to the Central Pine Valley a few days back, but none came out alive."

    Le Buleng was stunned.

    She added, "It¡¯s very shocking that the Central Pine Valley has such a powerful expert. In this matter of life and death, it would be good for Beyond Avalon to have extra force and vitality. I wonder if you¡¯re able to invite this senior over to join in on the n to resist Dai Gang?"

    As if he¡¯d thought of something, Le Buleng¡¯s expression became strange.

    Madam Ye was unable to read him, but she continued sincerely, "If this senior has any conditions, please do let me know and I¡¯ll do what I can, even if it means giving up my seat."

    Le Buleng could no longer contain himself. Raising his head, he broke into heartyughter.

 Chapter 509: Sounding Out, Footprint

    Chapter 509: Sounding Out, Footprint

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Lemon Camping Ground.

    Qiao Meiqi looked at the deste camp before him and sighed. He¡¯d been to Lemon Camping Ground before and although it was tattered and small at that time, it was full of vitality. Now, not a soul was in sight.

    Only the influential higher-ups were concerned about Lemon Camping Ground. Nevertheless, they were only paying attention to that wooden board and the remnant objects.

    Yet, not many were interested in the massacre of Lemon Camping Ground.

    To those powerful figures, Lemon Camping Ground was just a small territory with a small poption. Dead or alive, it didn¡¯t matter to them.

    This was times of chaos.

    Qiao Meiqi asked himself how many people would care if he died. His eyes regained their coldness. In this chaotic world, there was nothing more important than surviving. Sympathy was worthless.

    He was waiting for Ai Hui.

    They agreed on Lemon Camping Ground for their transaction location.

    Gaining Ai Hui¡¯s trust wasn¡¯t an easy feat. They had a friendly cooperation, but Ai Hui still had reservations.

    Qiao Meiqi praised Ai Hui inwardly. He was young, but handled things in a very mature and experienced manner. It was difficult to believe that such a capable fellow had been aborer.

    Still deep in thought, he caught sight of Ai Hui and cried out in rm, "Your injuries are this bad? I heard you were injured, but did not expect it to be this serious!"

    Ai Hui waspletely wrapped in bandages except for his eyes, and even then, he looked frail. In the past, Ai Hui¡¯s breaths were long and deep like those of powerful dire beasts. People could feel the force contained within.

    Now, his breaths were brief and delicate, a clear sign of his feebleness.

    What kind of injuries would have led to this?

    It was beyond a Master¡¯s level...

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s heart thumped. He forced a smile. "You look pretty good."

    Ai Hui¡¯s clear and tranquil eyes had the ability to attract gazes, as if possessing a strange force.

    Although he tried his best to disguise it, Qiao Meiqi¡¯s change in expression did not escape Ai Hui¡¯s notice. Ai Hui did not get angry. Instead, he said frankly, "Yes, I¡¯m back to the same old me overnight."

    Qiao Meiqi was a wealthy merchant after all, so his expression quickly returned to normal. He said, smiling, "As the saying goes, a thin camel is still bigger than a horse. You¡¯re still able to cause such a scene despite being severely injured."

    He pointed to the wooden board with his mouth.

    Among the influential higher ups, this wooden board was even more well known than Ai Hui. The big bloody words did not have the intensity of drawn swords and drawn bows, but it did not conceal its intention to threaten and intimidate.

    This was precisely Ai Hui¡¯s style of doing things.

    Ai Hui shook his head and spoke, not in an unhappy tone, "It¡¯s already our mistake that they got involved. This is all we could do."

    Qiao Meiqi said half seriously, "You¡¯ve outdone yourself. Five Masters. I was shocked stupid and thought that the news was being spread and distorted. Who knew it was actually true. Knowing that I wasing, many have requested news about you."

    Beneath the bandages came Ai Hui¡¯s softughter. "What news would I have?"

    Ai Hui did not spend any more time on this topic. He asked, "Did you bring the stuff?"

    The yful look on Qiao Meiqi¡¯s face disappeared as he turned serious. "I¡¯ve gotten most of the goods except for a few materials that are harder to purchase. I¡¯ll need more time for those. This is the list of items I¡¯ve yet to obtain. Take a look. I¡¯ll continue thinking of solutions."

    Ai Hui retrieved the list and looked through it carefully.

    Qiao Meiqi watched him attentively in attempt to obtain clues from his face. However, it was to no avail since Ai Hui¡¯s face was covered in bandages. His eyes were expressionless and indifferent.

    Ai Hui¡¯s list included many types of ingredients. Qiao Meiqi had specially hired somebody to analyze this list, but was still unable to get a clear idea of what these ingredients were for.

    Having looked through the list, Ai Hui nodded and kept it. "I¡¯ll trust you to get hold of the remaining items."

    QIao Meiqi hurriedly replied, "Definitely, definitely."

    Ai Hui added, "The snowva is ready and in arger quantity this time. I¡¯ll trouble you to get these listed items as soon as possible since it¡¯s more urgent."

    Qiao Meiqi took the list and scanned through it. Seeing that the ingredients were all medicinal he immediately understood. "No problem, I¡¯ll get them as quickly as possible."

    Seems like Ai Hui¡¯s injuries are pretty serious.

    Ai Hui expressed his gratitude. "Thank you, Mayor."

    Qiao Meiqiughed, "We¡¯re old friends, so it¡¯s what I should do! When are you going to take me on a tour around the Central Pine Valley?"

    Ai Hui looked at him, half smilingly.

    Qiao Meiqi did not know why, but seeing Ai Hui¡¯s eyes jolted him. He burst intoughter, saying, "Just a joke, just a joke. I, too, lead a tiring life since I¡¯m short on money."

    Ai Huiughed. "If you¡¯re short on money, everyone else is a beggar."

    Whatever awkwardness dissolved in this instant.

    Qiao Meiqi understood that from a business point of view, working with Ai Hui brought many benefits. He hoped for this to carry on. It was not his ce to get involved in other matters.

    He couldn¡¯t afford to provoke the others, but neither could he afford to provoke Ai Hui.

    If Ai Hui could chop up five Masters, whp was him?

    This thought soothed his heart and rxed his posture.

    Qiao Meiqi did not stay long. After checking the inventory, he bade farewell and left.

    Looking at the disappearing caravan, Gu Xuan spoke up. "This guy seems problematic, Boss."

    Ai Hui nodded in agreement. Of course he could tell that something was not right with Qiao Meiqi today. Instead of exposing it, he sighed meaningfully. "Mayor is an intelligent man."

    Gu Xuan asked, somewhat puzzled, "Why have youe personally this time, Boss? Your injuries..."

    Ai Hui smiled. "How can they feel assured if they don¡¯t see me in this state? How else can we gain more time?"

    Gu Xuan pondered over his words.

    .....

    Along the way, Zu Yan had been observing the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Having lost his family and struggling to survive in the cold, Zu Yan was no longer a willful and arrogant hedonist. He was much more mature now. He had managed to survive and be a Master all because he had a good teacher.

    He knew not how to repay his teacher, but knew that his teacher wasn¡¯t in need of his reciprocation.

    Teacher had helped him choose this path, so he would continue walking down this path.

    In terms of allocation, the Spear of Heavy Cloud was still quite behind the elite battle divisions he¡¯d seen. The member¡¯s abilities weren¡¯t too great and they were inexperienced, probably their biggest weakness.

    Other than these, they had more merits than he¡¯d imagined.

    Although the members weren¡¯t of a high level, they were willing to work hard withoutining. The fire elementalists were especially hardy, never onceining about the hardship and weariness they faced.

    Having a sturdy and capable backbone served as the basic guarantee of the team¡¯sbat power. He could already imagine how these key experts would step out and make the right choice when met with a predicament during battle.

    In terms of powerful experts, however, Spear of Heavy Cloud wasn¡¯tcking. Shi Xueman as an individual had strongbat power and, with Yang Xiaodong and Zu Yan, there was a total of three Masters keeping watch. Jiang Wei, Sang Zijun, Qian Dai, and the others were all at the pseudo Master level.

    Other than them, there was Wang Xiaoshan, a earth elemental master proficient in construction, who could greatly expand the battle tactics of the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    The most praiseworthy person was Shi Xueman.

    The former goddess of the Induction Ground had grown beyond his imagination. Shi Xueman was steady, calm, and spoke eloquently like a general. People in the division had only respect and adoration toward her.

    "Down below is the designated region."

    Sang Zijun¡¯s words captured everybody¡¯s attention.

    Two days ago, they had met scouts from the Infantry Division and received Silver Soldier¡¯s n. After some discussion and consideration, Shi Xueman had agreed to his battle n.

    They traveled day and night at double speed toward the designated district. ording to Silver Soldier¡¯s n, they were going to lie in ambush together with the Infantry and Sky Edge divisions to surround their enemies.

    The lush mountains ahead carried a certain destion and loneliness. Man had only left the Silver Mist Sea for a few years, yet Nature had already eagerly imed and expanded its territory. The wild grass and trees had already started to take root in the old cities.

    Trekking along the wild made everybody¡¯s heart feel heavy. All of them had at one point lived in the bustling cities of the Avalon of Five Elements. Those splendid lights, endless streams of people, and vehicles like bamboo carts had yet to be forgotten.

    Suddenly, Jiang Wei pointed to the valley before them. "Look, there!"

    Everybody followed his fingers and saw a huge footprint that was over a mile long. Amid the mountains it formed a low-lying valley.

    Everyone became solemn.

    Zu Yan mumbled to himself, "Glorious footprints..."

    When An Muda died, Zu Yan had been unconscious and wasn¡¯t able to witness it for himself. Now that he¡¯d finally seen it, he couldn¡¯t help but fall into a daze.

    Shi Xueman stared absent-mindedly at the big footprint, her eyes turning red.

    Teacher had drawn out the Silver Mist Sea¡¯s elemental energy, causing it to be increasingly tattered. Even those who came over from the Old Territory had no interest in it.

    It was said that citizens of the Old Territory had already constructed a bridge over the Lava River and that many of them came pouring in like the tide. Now that the elemental energy in the Silver Mist Sea and Cloud Palette Vige had withered, they gradually returned to the Old Territory.

    Without elemental energy, the Silver Mist Sea and Cloud Palette Vige were no longer appealing.

    Furthermore, dire beasts would asionally make their way into the Silver Mist Sea and Cloud Palette Vige, resulting in major casualties. This was another factor that spurred citizens to return to the Old Territory.

    There was no elemental energy in the Old Territory, but there weren¡¯t any powerful dire beasts either.

    The Silver Mist Sea was nowpletely empty and in ruins. Would the city remnants still be around in the times toe?

    She recalled what her teacher had said about leaving the Pearblossom Pavilion to her. She decided to tidy up the ce after this battle.

    Until then...

    Shi Xueman sped her Cirrus tightly as she looked at the footprint between the hills with a steady gaze.

    The first battle was about to unfold beneath Teacher¡¯s footprints. Perhaps it was fate. Teacher must be watching over her in heaven.

    In that case, she was going to im her first victory in memory of him.

    She shifted her gaze toward Wang Xiaoshan. "I¡¯ll leave the rest to you, Xiaoshan."

    Wang Xiaoshan nodded sincerely, "I¡¯ll do my best."

    Today, Wang Xiaoshan was a mason who yed with mud. His unremarkable looking clothes were still covered in dust, but between his browsy an indescribable vigor and confidence.

 Chapter 510: Pointers

    Chapter 510: Pointers

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    "So he¡¯s really injured?" Gong Chengxiu asked as he fiddled with his wine cup.

    Behind him were Han Li and Gong Peiyao.

    Ever since Han Li left Clearwater City after having a match with Ai Hui, he¡¯d fallen into an obsession. He became deranged and got lost in the Wilderness. At that time, he was in a semi-conscious state, his body filled with wounds left by dire beasts. Fortunately, he bumped into Gong Peiyao and Venerable Volcano, who were on the way out, and was saved.

    Unexpectedly, in the process of looking after Han Li, Gong Peiyao developed feelings for him.

    Han Li, who¡¯d just woken up, was no different from a cripple. Even his mind was in an abnormal state, sometimes clear-headed and sometimes crazy. Nevertheless, Gong Peiyao continued taking care of him without wavering, deliberately took her own sweet time on the road, and refused to return home.

    Under Gong Peiyao¡¯s meticulous care, Han Li¡¯s injuries fully recovered and so did his state of mind. When his vision regained rity he had be a master swordsman.

    Newly promoted, Han Li¡¯s status naturally rose, and his rtionship with Gong Peiyao received Gong Chengxiu¡¯s tacit eptance.

    Qiao Meiqi picked up his cup, gulping the wine down before cing it back on the table. "He¡¯s no longer a Master."

    Han Li was astonished. "His base level crumbled?"

    The match with Ai Hui had been his turning point. Ai Hui¡¯s sword formation had influenced him greatly. As such, he¡¯d been paying close attention to Ai Hui. To him, rival swordsmen whom he was able to exchange pointers with were few.

    Ai Hui was one of those very few.

    Qiao Meiqi looked at Han Li. "Worse. His residences and pces are mostly destroyed. His breaths are brief and weak. His injuries are more serious than rumored. If not for the fact that he¡¯s mentally all right, I would be slightly worried. If I lose this snowva business, I¡¯ll be earning much less."

    Han Li looked disappointed, his heart empty.

    Gong Chengxiu sighed and said somewhat regretfully, "What a pity. So it¡¯s not a sword pagoda?"

    Qiao Meiqi spread his hands. "That I¡¯m not sure."

    Han Li shook his head. "Theoretically speaking, it is possible. A sword pagoda is a kind of sword formation, and there¡¯s no intrinsic difference. Any sword formation would have an eye, and it must bemanded by a capable and strong expert. It is possible for a sword pagoda to have such might, but only if a master swordsman wasmanding it. Ai Hui was poisoned by Night Moth Fruit so even if he survived by luck, he definitely wouldn¡¯t be able to endure the pressure of the sword formation."

    Gong Peiyao looked dreamily at Han Li. She adored his confidence and frankness.

    Gong Chengxiu wrinkled his brows. "Could it be that Ai Hui really has backing?"

    Qiao Meiqi reminded, "Isn¡¯t that a good thing? At least we are all friends and not enemies."

    Gong Chengxiu rxed his brows and smiled. "That¡¯s right! At least we¡¯re all friends and not enemies."

    The rtionship between the Gong Residence and the Central Pine Valley was virtually inseparable. They knew what kind of sword formation Ai Hui was drumming up. Many had already forgotten that Ai Hui was Wang Shouchuan¡¯s only student.

    The God-subduing Peak originated from Teacher Wang¡¯s theories, so how was it inconceivable for Ai Hui to create something simr to the God-subduing Peak?

    Others believed there was a powerful and mysterious expert, but Gong Chengxiu first thought of Ai Hui¡¯s sword pagoda.

    ording to Han Li, this type of weapon would not be operable without a Master. The God-subduing Peak also required a Master to control.

    It was not a sword pagoda. Gong Chengxiu was disappointed, but mostly relieved. If there really was a lethal weaponparable to the God-subduing Peak, would the Gong Residence be able to withstand it? Not only was he after its power, he greatly feared its influence.

    A strongly destructive weapon was like an irritable and powerful dire beast. Toward which direction would it toss the Gong Residence?

    To glory or to ruins.

    .....

    Volcanic Crater, ckfish Mouth Volcano.

    Mister Dou was here to check on the Northern Underworld King Tree as usual. Ever since it had been imnted into the volcanic crater, he woulde regrly to examine it. He felt a lot of affection for it since it was something that had followed him for a long time after all.

    His days in the Central Pine Valley had been very satisfying and leisurely. He didn¡¯t have to fight and kill or worry about gratitude and grudges. He was just a teacher, conducting lessons for the kids. It was extremely rxing.

    He stopped suddenly. "You¡¯re here."

    "Yeah."

    Ai Hui raised his head and looked at the Northern Underworld King Tree beside the magma.

    The red light beams were like a converging luminous muslin, shooting into the darkness than enveloped the tree. The Northern Underworld King Tree was like a monster that came out of nowhere, opening its mouth and greedily swallowing the light.

    Because of the tree¡¯s existence, the volcanic crater was dusky and dim.

    Aspared to when it was first nted, the tree was much stronger now. It had also started to sprout and grow leaves.

    Ai Hui maintained his posture for a long time and found his body aching the moment he was roused by Mister Dou. Heughed bitterly to himself. He hadn¡¯t expected his body to be this weak.

    Mister Dou, being extra observant, crinkled his brows. "Have your injuries worsened?"

    He¡¯d been satisfied with his life here so far and did not wish for it to be disrupted. In this chaotic world, the key to maintaining such a dreamy lifestyle was to maintain the might of the Central Pine Valley.

    Fishback City wasn¡¯t far from the valley. The sword rays from that night had shaken him greatly, but also made him feel at ease.

    However, he had not expected that Ai Hui¡¯s injuries would aggravate!

    Having stayed in the valley for some time, Mister Dou understood how important Ai Hui was to the Central Pine Faction. His value was beyond what was visible.

    Ai Hui smiled bitterly. His injuries had indeed worsened.

    Commanding the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda took a toll on his body. Xiahou Jun¡¯s counterattack inflicted great damage. However, the root cause wasn¡¯t this, but the sword cloud.

    The sword cloud within his body was a simr existence to that of the sword embryo. If Ai Hui¡¯s body was wood, the sword cloud would be a burning me. The me was currently very vigorous, but the wood was inadequate. This was the fundamental cause of his poor health.

    Ai Hui had tried many ways to strengthen his body, but to no avail. It was as if his past tempering methods had all lost their effectiveness overnight. With regard to this, Lou Lan had no ideal solution. At least for now, there were no better methods.

    Ai Hui was exceptionally energetic, but his body was declining by the day. Commanding the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda during battle had worsened his condition.

    Mister Dou sighed. "Too much lightning has permeated your body, causing it to repel elemental energy. WIthout elemental energy replenishment, your body will only continue to deteriorate."

    Ai Hui jolted. "Any ideas, Mister Dou?"

    He had to admit that Mister Dou was indeed a seasoned Master, able to locate the problem at first nce.

    Mister Dou continued, "You¡¯ll have to find another source. In the past, elementalists had falsely believed that the existence of the five elemental energies were involved in all living things. This was merely their opinion. For example, this Northern Underworld King Tree isn¡¯t within the five elements.

    Ai Hui agreed wholeheartedly. He¡¯d felt this way since a long time ago. From the start, his sword embryo had been strange and outside of the five elements. Later on, his lightning also wasn¡¯t within the five elements. Otherwise, why had elementalists not unraveled the secret of lightning throughout the millennia after the construction of the elemental energy system?

    Mister Dou sighed again. "Perhaps the Northern Underworld King Tree could help, but its actual effectiveness will only be known after trying."

    Ai Hui hurriedly said, "Thank you for your trouble, Mister Dou."

    Mister Dou walked to the tree and added, "The tree is able to absorb all light, which bes its nutrients and eventually its leaves."

    The Northern Underworld King Tree had a total of 13 leaves.

    Mister Dou plucked one off and gave it to Ai Hui. "Try it. It doesn¡¯t taste too bad. I¡¯ve eaten it in the past when I was injured."

    An ash gray color emerged on the leaf, and there was a ck veined pattern that criss-crossed on it. Holding it in his hand, Ai Hui realized that the leaf was oddly heavy. If not for the fact that he¡¯d seen Mister Dou pluck it from the tree with his own eyes, he would¡¯ve thought that he was holding a big chunk of metal.

    A big metal chunk fresh out of the oven. It was rather warm.

    Mister Dou reminded, "Eat it quickly. The leaf can¡¯t be preserved unless you can find [Northern Underworld Fog]. Otherwise, upon picking it, it will start emitting light and get destroyed.

    Ai Hui popped it into his mouth without further ado.

    The leaf melted rapidly in his mouth like a block of ice as wisps of warm flows seeped into his body.

    Ai Hui felt his withered flesh immediately bing plump as he felt instantly refreshed.

    Effective!

    When thest wisp of the warm flows entered his flesh, Ai Hui felt that his whole body was full of strength.

    It had been a long time since Ai Hui felt this rxed. He was beyond happy and quickly removed his face bandages. There was only joy on his face.

    "Don¡¯t be happy too soon." Mister Dou poured cold water on Ai Hui¡¯s joy. "The Northern Underworld King Tree is only nourishing your body temporarily. If you do not find a way to continuously nourish your body, it will certainly copse due to the immense energy. If you¡¯re able to find a way, your vitality will increase a notch. Perhaps you might walk a different path then."

    Mister Dou¡¯s words hit the nail on the head.

    The cheer in Ai Hui¡¯s heart dimmed. Mister Dou was right. The leaves of the Northern Underworld King Tree were remarkably effective, but could only be used for emergencies and not for daily training.

    Yet, the notable effects of the leaves of the Northern Underworld King Tree gave Ai Hui considerable inspiration.

    It was no wonder that while Lou Lan¡¯s medicine helped him to regain energy, it wasn¡¯t as effective in nourishing his body. The ingredients Lou Lan used had to be refined ording to the elemental energy system, and the medicinal syrup was essentially a product of this system. His body had been tempered by lightning, so it was strongly repelled by elemental energy. Past methods he had used to temper his body no longer worked.

    It seemed like he would need to look for something outside of the elemental energy system.

    But where should he look for something beyond elemental energy?

    Eh? Ai Hui suddenly recalled that his body possessed something outside of the elemental energy system.

 Chapter 511: A Story

    Chapter 511: A Story

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Ai Hui looked at the ck-colored armor, the golden blood, the blood bandage, and the piece of an unknown beast¡¯s bone in front of him.

    These were the only items he had that might not belong to the elemental energy system.

    The ck-colored armor resembled a skeleton. It was formed by an unknown type of ck bone. Ai Hui suspected that it might be the bones of the demonic god in his dream. The intertwining spurs on the ck bones that were of various sizes looked like beast fangs, appearing unusually sinister. On its skull, there was a spur that was as sharp as a sword pointing directly towards the sky. On its back, there was a pair of boney, ck wings that resembled the wings of the devil.

    The gold-colored blood was sealed within a crystal, flickering with an alluring luster.

    The blood bandage was the item that Ai Hui was most familiar with. It had saved his life countless times. Without the blood bandage, he would have been disintegrated into ashes by the lightning bolts in the clouds that time. Even after it had been struck by lightning for a long period of time, the blood bandage remained intact.

    The piece of unknown beast bone had been found in the cavern of scarlet flying foxes. Until now, Ai Hui had yet to determine which dire beast it came from. Other than being unusually hard, it did not seem to release any elemental energy undtions.

    Now that he looked at these items again, he had apletely different perspective on them.

    In the past, when he¡¯d looked at an item, he would subconsciously observe its elemental energy undtions. Now that he¡¯d lost all his elemental energy, he was able to see a lot of new phenomena outside of the elemental energy system.

    The demonic god armor was surrounded by a thinyer of distorted air.

    The piece of unknown beast bone must havee from an extremely powerful dire beast in the past. It did not release any elemental energy undtions. Furthermore, it also looked like some kind of crystal, reminding Ai Hui of the firmament iron at the tip of Cirrus.

    The golden blood looked as if it was surrounded by countless, shape-shifting, mysterious symbols that were moving constantly.

    Meanwhile, the blood bandage gave off weak, yet strange energy waves.

    In the past, he would not have observed these phenomena. As such, when they appeared in front of him now, he felt very amazed.

    Standing beside Ai Hui, Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were flickering with a red glow. "Ai Hui, these items are very weird."

    "Yes, Lou Lan," Ai Hui replied casually, "They are items that do not belong to the elemental energy system."

    "Like artifact remnants?" Lou Lan asked.

    "That¡¯s right," Ai Hui nodded his head and replied.

    Items that did not belong to the elemental energy system were not rare at all. Among these items, artifact remnants were the mostmonly seen. They were remnants of ancient artifacts that had been corroded by Silver Mist Sea and time.

    How long has mankind been cultivating? Ai Hui did not know the answer. The ancient Cultivation Era seemed long and boundless. The elemental energy system, which had merely existed for around one thousand years, was like a drop of water in the vast sea of the history of mankind.

    Suddenly, Lou Lan let out a yelp.

    Ai Hui was shocked and he asked, "Lou Lan, what happened?"

    Lou Lan pointed at the golden blood, "Ai Hui, Lou Lan finds it somewhat familiar."

    Ai Hui was startled. He widened his eyes and asked, "Lou Lan finds it somewhat familiar?"

    The golden blood was an ancient treasure. From his dream, it seemed to be the blood and seed of the demonic god. The demonic god had released a total of ten seeds in the hope of being resurrected.

    A puzzled look appeared in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes as he replied, "Yes, Ai Hui. Lou Lan does not know the reason behind it as well. I just find it familiar. The weird thing is Lou Lan hasn¡¯t seen it before."

    Ai Hui immediately thought of Master Shao.

    Lou Lan had not seen Blood of Demonic God before and yet he found it familiar. There was only one possibility. It was because of his previous owner and creator, Master Shao. Master Shao¡¯s background was very mysterious. Was it possible that he had seen the Blood of Demonic God before?

    Ai Hui felt that there might be such a possibility.

    Ai Hui still remembered there were many people who had coveted the ancient treasurest time around. Not only was Blood of God interested in it, but Dai Gang as well. Now that he thought about it, Dai Gang and the rest could have already known what the golden blood really was.

    It was something that could make a Grandmaster go crazy over it...

    However, Ai Hui felt somewhat worried and fearful after having that dream. Because of the demonic god¡¯s evilness, strangeness and formidability, Ai Hui did not dare to try using the golden blood. At that point of time, Ai Hui¡¯s training path had been smooth and straightforward. He was improving at a very high speed. Hence, it was natural that he did not want to take any risks at that time.

    Fundamentally, Ai Hui was an extremely conservative individual. He would definitely not take a risk if there was no need for it.

    However, when it came to a moment in which he needed to make changes, he would be filled with courage.

    Lou Lan hesitated for a while and asked, "Ai Hui, can you give Lou Lan the golden blood?"

    Without any hesitation, Ai Hui passed the golden blood to Lou Lan, "Here, Lou Lan."

    Even if the golden blood was the blood of a demonic god, something that even a Grandmaster had racked his brain to obtain, Ai Hui would still give it to Lou Lan without any hesitation if he needed it.

    Lou Lan was very happy as his eyes curled into two crescent moons, "Thank you, Ai Hui!"

    "Lou Lan, you must be careful, this thing is somewhat evil. It¡¯s the blood of an ancient demonic god. It¡¯s also the seed that allows the demonic god to resurrect from the dead," Ai Hui reminded Lou Lan.

    Ai Hui told Lou Lan about his dream in detail.

    Lou Lan listened to Ai Hui attentively. After listening to Ai Hui, Lou Lan realized what was going on and said, "So it¡¯s Blood of Demonic God. There are ten seeds in total. One has been used on the armor and one is with Lou Lan. There are still eight seeds left. Ai Hui, Lou Lan just thought of something."

    "What has Lou Lan thought of?" Ai Hui was stunned.

    Lou Lan widened his eyes and replied, "Ai Hui, do you think Blood of God has anything to do with it? Blood of God and Blood of Demonic God differ only by one word."

    Ai Hui froze, looking as if he was struck by lightning.

    How could he not have seen this obvious link!

    Blood of God, Blood of Demonic God...

    Was it possible that the creation of Blood of God was rted to Blood of Demonic God?

    Ai Hui suddenly understood why Blood of God and Dai Gang had racked their brains to seek the Blood of Demonic God.

    Previously, he was still specting about Master Shao¡¯s background. At this moment, he slightly understood what was going on. If Master Shao wasn¡¯t from Blood of God, then he was rted to Dai Gang. However, when Ai Hui thought of Master Shao¡¯s age, he realized this conjecture was very unlikely. It was more likely that Master Shao was from Blood of God.

    Ai Hui also thought of Madam Ye, as the stone statue was found in the Ye Residence¡¯s treasury. It might be possible that the Ye family¡¯s ancestors were also looking for Blood of Demonic God and came across the stone statue by chance. However, they did not find the Blood of Demonic God and was unable to activate the stone statue. This in turn benefitted Ai Hui.

    Countless thoughts shed across Ai Hui¡¯s mind, but he did not say them out loud, especially the conjectures that were rted to Master Shao.

    If Master Shao was really from Blood of God, why would he want to leave Blood of God in the first ce? There must be a reason that no one was supposed to know. If Ai Hui told Lou Lan about these random thoughts, Lou Lan would be very worried.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gazended upon the demonic god armor. It was good that Lou Lan wanted the Blood of Demonic God. He did not need to fuss about which item to choose now.

    He walked towards the demonic god armor.

    .....

    Thest bit of debris from Wall of North Sea had disappeared. The area was lined with unending stretches of tents, resembling a ck-colored sea.

    At this point of time, the camp was bustling with activity.

    Ye Baiyi was still in a deep sleep in the ice coffin, but the sound of his heartbeat was deep and heavy. He was like a huge dragon that was in a deep slumber.

    A few generals walked into the tent and asked, "When will Sir wake up?"

    "It will have to depend on his luck." Nangong Wulian¡¯s eyes were bloodshot and his face was filled with a morbid fascination. He furrowed his eyebrows and continued, "His body is too weak and it needs to be replenished with essence blood.

    "How do we do it?"

    After thinking for a while, Nangong Wulian replied, "We will use blood fiends and they must be of high base level. Low-level blood fiends are useless. Kill all the high-level blood fiends."

    The generals did not leave immediately upon hearing Nangong Wulian¡¯s answer. One of them said, "Pce Master, Sir hasn¡¯t woken up yet. What should we do next then? Should we send some men as vanguards? We have been pursuing Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division. Should we send some reinforcements..."

    Suddenly, Nangong Wulian broke into a rage and shrieked, "All of you get out! Don¡¯te and bother me! If you want to talk about anything that has to do with warfare, wait for this fellow to wake up!"

    The generals fled the tent in a panic.

    .....

    The Cold Pce.

    Bei Shuisheng, who was sunbathing behind the entrance, opened his eyes. The image of a graceful figure expanded rapidly in his line of sight.

    "Such a rare visitor."

    Bei Shuisheng poured a cup of tea for She Yu and passed it to her.

    She Yu did not bother to be courteous and took the cup of tea. After she rose from her chair and thanked Bei Shuisheng, she continued, "There¡¯s something I¡¯d like to ask Sir about."

    A smile appeared on Bei Shuisheng¡¯s haggard, pale-white face. He replied, "It sounds like it¡¯s something serious."

    She Yu did not beat around the bush. She nodded her head in agreement and asked, "Yes, I want to know what Heart of God is."

    "Heart of God?" Bei Shuisheng¡¯s hand froze momentarily.

    He stared at She Yu and sighed softly, "Why are you so anxious?"

    She Yu forced a smile. She couldn¡¯t tell anyone about the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] and the swapping of positions between the flower ve and flower master. However, she needed toe up with a solution fast. Otherwise, the longer the problem dragged, the more dangerous it would be for her.

    When she heard that Beast Venom Temple had developed Heart of God, and the Holy Emperor bestowed it on Ye Baiyi, she felt like a drowning person who had seen a lifebuoy.

    Bei Shuisheng ced his cup down and replied with a gentle voice, "There¡¯s nothing about it that I can¡¯t tell you. It¡¯s just that it involves some old affairs. You¡¯re definitely qualified to know about it. This story, however, will be slightly long."

    She Yu sat upright and smiled, "She Yu has the time and patience to hear it."

    "Do you know how the name ¡®Blood of God¡¯ came about?" Bei Shuisheng asked casually.

    She Yu was stunned as she did not expect the story to start from this question. She shook her head and replied, "It¡¯s not because we are blood elementalists?"

    Bei Shuisheng shook his head and replied, "Back in the day, someone found a drop of God¡¯s blood by luck. Subsequently, that person founded Blood of God."

    She Yu was dumbstruck. She then stammered, "A drop of God¡¯s blood? God¡¯s blood? Is there really God¡¯s blood in this world?"

    "That¡¯s because the secret to God¡¯s blood can¡¯t be decoded by one person alone. Therefore, that person gathered a group of capable individuals who had the same mentality as him and formed an organization called Blood of God. The secret of God¡¯s blood is boundless. As such, the organization hassted for generations. Once they understood the secret of God¡¯s blood, they disapproved of the elemental energy system.

    "They obtained many experimental results and umted generations of important knowledge. Blood poison and blood refinement are some of theirter achievements. At that time, they developed a humanoid puppet. This humanoid puppet is somewhat simr to a sand puppet, but it is more intelligent and flexible. They called this type of humanoid puppet a god puppet. The creation of the god puppet helped them significantly. Therefore, they purposely created a department that could produce more god puppets. That department is called God Puppet Pce.

    "God Puppet Pce continued tost for many generations until thest pce master suddenly came up with a bold idea."

 Chapter 512: Heavenly God

    Chapter 512: Heavenly God

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    She Yu could not help but sit upright. She felt that what she was listening to was an astonishing insider story.

    The rxed look on Bei Shuisheng¡¯s face had disappeared as he sat upright from his half-lying position. With a solemn tone, he said, "He had a few questions in mind. Why do we have to keep trying to decode the God¡¯s blood? Why can¡¯t we create it?"

    "He wanted to create God¡¯s blood?" She Yu could not help but cry out in rm.

    "Yes, he wanted to create God¡¯s blood," Bei Shuisheng replied as a hopeful look appeared on his face. "He is really bold foring up with the idea of creating God¡¯s blood. You can well imagine that this idea raised a lot of objections at that time. Even though the research on God¡¯s blood has never stopped and we have obtained a substantial amount of knowledge, there are still a lot of things about the secret of God¡¯s blood that we have yet to unravel. Perhaps this is the difference between men and God."

    She Yu, who was enthralled by the story, quickly asked, "What happened next? Was he able to create God¡¯s blood?"

    "No." Bei Shuisheng shook his head. "The difference between God and man was farrger than he expected. He went through almost all the research on God¡¯s blood and tried to find a method to create it. Eventually, he failed. However, even though he failed, he still managed to make some gains. He discovered that being able to create God¡¯s blood was highly unlikely. However, he also knew that if he lowered his expectations andbined what he¡¯d learnt from his specialization in making god puppets, he could create a god puppet that was far more powerful than the ordinary god puppets. Hence, he initiated an ambitious project."

    "Heavenly God."

    "The Skyheart City¡¯s so-called Master¡¯s Glory pales inparison to the project of Heavenly God..." Bei Shuisheng¡¯s mind seemed to wander off.

    "So has he created a God?" She Yu blurted out.

    "I don¡¯t know," said Bei Shuisheng spreading out his hands.

    She Yu widened her eyes, looking as if she was going to kill someone.

    ¡®I don¡¯t know? How could he say "I don¡¯t know" after the story finally came to an end?¡¯

    Bei Shuisheng chuckled, "Subsequently, he left Blood of God and disappeared without a trace. Even though he destroyed lots of information, there are still some remnants left. His student then tried to use the remnant information to replicate his teacher¡¯s work. This student of his was Pce Master Nangong Wulian."

    She Yu was stunned. After a while, she said. "But Sir Nangong was the pce master of Beast Venom Temple."

    Bei Shuisheng raised his eyebrows and replied, "At that time, Nangong Wulian did not partake in the project of god puppets. He was in charge of managing the blood fiends. As such, he eventually renamed God Puppet Pce to Beast Venom Temple."

    Bei Shuisheng did not think too highly of Nangong Wulian. Nangong Wulian¡¯s Beast Venom Temple paled inparison to the once terrifying God Puppet Pce.

    "What does all this have to do with Heart of God?"

    "Reportedly, the most important part of the Heavenly God Project was the heart. That is because, ording to the previous pce master¡¯s theory, the heart of the God must be able to withstand immense pressure. It¡¯s the most important part of the whole project. This is what¡¯s called the Heart of God. As to whether Nangong Wulian¡¯s Heart of God or the previous pce master¡¯s Heart of God is stronger, we still don¡¯t know yet."

    "I see," She Yu muttered.

    Bei Shuisheng continued, "Why are you so anxious then? You can talk about it again after Ye Baiyi has tried it."

    "Thank you, Sir." She Yu gave Bei Shuisheng a bow.

    Bei Shuisheng waved his hand and replied, "These are just some old affairs. I am not the one that created Heart of God, you don¡¯t have to thank me. However, you¡¯re still young, there¡¯s no need for you to be so anxious."

    She Yu knew Bei Shuisheng had good intentions and she gave him a respectful bow once more.

    .....

    The battle was extremely intense.

    Silver Soldier wasn¡¯t flying in the sky. He was walking on the ground with long, swinging strides. Like an unreasonable beast, everywhere he walked past, men would fall and blood fiends would copse. His metal-made arms were flickering with a cold glint at this moment. His attacks were unusually violent. If one was to get hit by him, that blood elementalist or blood fiend would explode into a bloody mess. Furthermore, he did not try to dodge the enemies¡¯ attacks at all and let themnd upon his body. It was as if he was invulnerable.

    Karakorum Pris was hovering above his head. Thirteen swords were floating behind her in a fan-shaped formation, making her look like a peacock that had spread its feathers. Whenever she pointed her finger at an enemy, a sword gleam would streak across the air and a bloody hole would appear in her target¡¯s body. She was spiralling through the air nimbly and quickly. Because of her gorgeous figure and her magnificent sword gleams, she became the most dazzling entity on the battlefield.

    Silver Soldier wiped the blood off of his face. The enemy forces were much harder to defeat than he¡¯d expected.

    Under such hopeless circumstances, the enemy forces had yet to give up and copse.

    Luckily, Silver Soldier¡¯s ally forces were rather powerful. Otherwise, even with his n being executed smoothly, they might not be able to secure a victory.

    Spear of Heavy Cloud was guarding their position firmly like a nail being nailed tightly to the ground. They were able to withstand the charging enemy forces and entangled them, not giving them a chance to make a retreat.

    She was truly the daughter of Shi Beihai!

    Silver Soldier¡¯s eyes were filled with admiration.

    Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s guard formation looked chaotic, but in reality, it was carefully designed. They had an exceptionally formidable earth elementalist. Those pagoda cannons had been builtst-minute and those long tubes were the snouts ofva-spitting beasts. The most impressive member of Spear of Heavy Cloud was a fatty who was one hundred percent urate with his shots. He would roar every time he shot the pagoda cannon.

    The white beam of light which shot out from the pagoda cannon was extremely powerful.

    When Silver Soldier took a closer look, he almost tripped and fell. The simple and crude pagoda cannon was actually shooting out snowva.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud was indeed rich and imposing!

    Inparison, Infantry Division and Sky Edge Division were like beggars.

    When Shi Xueman was choosing the fire elementalists for her division, she thought of how to make use of these fire elementalists¡¯ fighting capabilities. Subsequently, she thought of the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons. Even though they were simple and crude, they were extremely powerful. She did not need to worry about the snowva as there was plenty back in Central Pine Valley. Ai Hui had been worrying about how to sell all the snowva without crashing the market and causing their price to drop drastically.

    Initially, the members were in chaos. Luckily, Shi Xueman ordered Wang Xiaoshan to set up specific arrangements on the battlefield.

    These arrangements provided rather good protection for the members and allowed them to gain experience rapidly.

    If a position could no longer withstand the enemy forces, Shi Xueman, Zu Yan or Yang Xiaodong would lead an attack and stabilize the situation there. They would take turns doing this.

    There was once an enemy general who merely showed his face, but he was instantly pierced to death by Shi Xueman.

    This dealt a huge blow to the Blood of God¡¯s morale. If not for this strategy, Shi Xueman and her counterparts would suffer heavy casualties.

    Even so, the brutality of the battles continued to intensify.

    People continued to die one by one.

    .....

    Ai Hui felt weird upon putting on the demonic god armor.

    His surroundings quieted down instantly. Thump, thump, thump. He could vaguely hear the sound of a heartbeat. Ai Hui listened carefully so he could hear the sound of the heartbeat clearly. The heartbeat was not his.

    It wasing from within the demonic god armor.

    An armor had a heartbeat too?

    Ai Hui swallowed his saliva with difficulty. Anything that was rted with the demonic god armor was strange.

    Very soon, Ai Hui discovered that the rate of the demonic god armor¡¯s heartbeat was synchronizing with his own heartbeat. He became to feel slightly panicked. Following which, when the rate of the demonic god armor¡¯s heartbeat sessfully synchronized with his heartbeat, a mysterious power imbued his body.

    At that instant, he felt like his body was going to explode from the abundance of the mysterious power. He felt as if he could shatter the sky.

    Fortunately, there was still a tinge of calmness and rationality in his mind. He knew this was an illusion. His body was like a dpidated house, weak and broken.

    He heaved a long breath of air. Items from a demonic god were indeed evil.

    The helmet covered his headpletely, while the two openings for its wearer¡¯s eyes were level with his eyes. Looking at the helmet from outside, the openings for the eyes were like two whirlpools that were of an unfathomable depth. Looking out from within the helmet, however, the outside world be entirely different.

    He could see everything in high definition.

    Ai Hui never expected that his sense of vision could extend so far someday. He could even see every nook and cranny of the clouds in the sky effortlessly.

    The sharp spur on the top of his helmet doubled his range of sensory perception.

    He could sense every movement that took ce within fifty kilometers of him.

    The seemingly heavy armor weighed almost nothing when he put it on. It was unusually light. Furthermore, it fitted Ai Hui¡¯s body very well, looking as if it was tailor-made for him.

    "Ai Hui looks very formidable!" Lou Lan said cheerfully.

    Ai Hui tried to spread the wings on his back.

    The ck, bone-made wings started to vibrate and spread open. Suddenly, Ai Hui disappeared and became a small ck dot in the sky.

    "Ai Hui is so formidable!" Lou Lan was dumbstruck.

    Ai Hui looked extremely joyful, as if he had gotten a brand-new toy. The demonic god armor was far more powerful than he imagined. Furthermore, he could feel that he had only activated a very miniscule portion of the armor¡¯s actual powers.

    When he took off the armor, his legs went soft and he copsed to the ground.

    Sweat was released from his body like a gushing fountain. In the blink of an eye, he was drenched in sweat. Ai Hui was panting heavily like a dying fish. He was so tired that he could not even move his finger.

    Lou Lan was shocked by this scene. He hurriedly fed Ai Hui a few bottles of medicine.

    Even though his physical body did not seem to have recovered, his face looked slightly better now.

    Ai Hui looked fearfully at the demonic god armor. It was dangerous!

    When he was wearing it, he did not feel tired at all. However, when he took it off, he felt like he was going to copse from exhaustion at any moment. It was not that the demonic god armor would not exhaust its wearer¡¯s energy, but it prevented the wearer from knowing that his energy was being depleted and stopped him from feeling tired.

    This would be advantageous for its wearer during battles. However, if the wearer was careless, he or she might die from exhaustion in a battle thatsted very long.

    It was indeed demonic!

    Every part of the demonic god armor was strange. It required its wearer to have an extremely strong willpower. If onecked willpower, he would be immersed in the pleasure of having unlimited powers and would die unwittingly.

    Ai Hui warned himself repeatedly.

    After resting for a long while, Ai Hui regained much of his energy. He struggled to stand up and walked towards the demonic god armor.

    After he put on the armor, his fatigue disappeared without a trace. The mysterious power filled his body once more.

    Ai Hui tried to restrain his urge to fly into the sky. He was not wearing this demonic armor for the sake of immersing himself in the pleasure of having unlimited powers.

    He wore it because he wanted to search for a new source of power.

    He wanted to find a power that did not belong to the elemental energy system and could heal his frail and broken body.

    How could he enter the battlefield with such a body?

    A beautiful image of a woman appeared in his mind. Ai Hui subconsciously reached out his hand and touched his own lips. He felt as if the warmth of Shi Xueman¡¯s lips was still there.

    He thought that his action was somewhatughable as his lips curled into a smile.

    A determined looked appeared in his limpid eyes.

 Chapter 513: Train of Thought

    Chapter 513: Train of Thought

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Human activity had ceased, roars and screams had disappeared, and the sparse and spacious battlefield was now filled with smoke. Hot steam was rising from the charred craters on the ground. Everywhere was covered with such craters. If one looked down from the sky, they could see the gigantic footprints of An Muda were covered with thousands of craters at this point of time.

    However, at this point of time, no one cared about these things anymore.

    Everyone was sitting on the ground paralyzed, gasping for air desperately. Even the smoky scent in the air smelled as if it was the best fragrance in the entire world now.

    Severed limbs and grounded pieces of flesh were all around them.

    It felt so good to be able to survive.

    With a dazed look on their faces, all they could think of was this line.

    Silver Soldier walked around the battlefield and patted the survivors on their shoulders to boost their morales.

    The battles were far more intense they they¡¯d expected. Even though they were able to sessfully ambush the enemy forces, the enemy forces were much more stubborn than anticipated. This was somewhat ironic. In the past, these enemy soldiers were just ordinary soldiers in the Avalon of Five Elements. They could not even be considered veterans. They were weak and weak-willed then. However, all of them had be elites now.

    Even Silver Soldier, who was their enemy, was filled with admiration towards them.

    He was at a loss.

    He simply could not understand, why would a bunch of weaklings from Avalon of Five Elements be such an elite unit that refused to give up, and retaliated with all their might even in dire straits after they had joined Blood of God?

    Why?

    Was Avalon of Five Elements really that bad? So bad that no one was willing to sacrifice his or her life for it?

    Instead of feeling happy about obtaining a victory, Silver Soldier was feeling gloomy. When he thought of Madam Ye and the open strife and veiled struggles among the cities, he felt vexed all of a sudden.

    Alright, actually what do all these things have to do with him?

    He was just a division leader of the Infantry Division and he did not have much power. Even if he had power, would he be able to overturn the situation? No.

    Silver Soldier raised his head and looked at the sky. His silvery mask gave off the reflection of the smoke-covered sky.

    "Silver."

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s voice woke Silver Soldier up. He withdrew his gaze and saw Shi Xueman and her counterparts walking towards him.

    He readjusted his emotions and threw those distracting thoughts to the back of his head. Then, he cupped his metallic hands and said solemnly, "I am Silver Soldier. If it wasn¡¯t for all of you, we would¡¯ve been in danger."

    These were not words of courtesy, but rather, fact.

    Spear of Heavy Cloud had yed a very important role in this victory.

    If it was not for the fact that Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s defensive formations withstood waves of attacks from the enemy forces and entangled them, Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division would not have had the chance to nk the enemy forces.

    When the enemy forces were making theirst-ditch effort to retaliate, Shi Xueman was the one who led the charge to mp down on the retaliation,pletely crushing their morales.

    Without her, Sky Edge Division and Infantry Division would have had to suffer heavier casualties.

    Even though Spear of Heavy Cloud was just a regionalbat division, it still undertook the most dangerous and difficult task. Silver Soldier held them in high esteem. The strength of Spear of Heavy Cloud clearly surpassed Infantry Division and Sky Edge Division. Shi Xueman deserved to be praised for her effort. Like father, like daughter.

    Shi Xueman held up her Cirrus and greeted Silver Soldier and Karakorum Pris, "Hello, I am Shi Xueman. Sir, you¡¯re being too courteous. Your strategy and everyone¡¯s concerted effort were the keys to this victory."

    Karakorum Pris looked curiously at Shi Xueman and raised her sword to return the greeting, "I¡¯m Heng Kunlun."

    The two division leaders had a good impression of each other at first sight. Kunlun was the first master swordsman. She was invincible and matchless on the battlefield.

    Shi Xueman was from a prestigious aristocratic family. Her strength far surpassed an ordinary Master¡¯s.

    Nowadays, there were plenty ofbat divisions, but very few female division leaders. They were the only two female division leaders who were so young.

    Both of them had different temperaments. Shi Xeman was fair and grave, while Heng Kunlun was cold and sharp.

    "How¡¯s Ai Hui?"

    Silver Soldier¡¯s question shocked Shi Xueman. Silver Soldier actually knew Ai Hui?

    "He¡¯s injured. He had yet to recover at the time we left," Shi Xueman replied.

    Silver Soldier was startled. He quickly asked with great concern, "He¡¯s injured? Is his injury severe or not?"

    Shi Xueman cast a nce at Silver Soldier. From his tone, she could tell that he wasn¡¯t faking his concern. Following which, she bluntly asked him, "Sir, are you very close with Ai Hui?"

    "I stayed in Central Pine City for a period of time," Silver Soldier replied.

    Upon hearing these words, Shi Xueman suddenly understood why Silver Soldier was so concerned. She exined, "He was struck by the poison of Night Moth Fruit. Even though the poison has been removed, his body is still gravely injured."

    Upon hearing the term "Night Moth Fruit", fear shed across Silver Soldier¡¯s eyes. He only felt at ease when he heard that the poison had been removed. He shook his head and said, "He was always injured in the past. His body was always covered with cuts and bruises. Even when he trained, he would not care about injuring himself."

    When he thought of the day where he¡¯d rescued Ai Hui and Duanmu Huanghun outside of Suspending Golden Pagoda, a smile unwittingly appeared on his face behind the silvery mask.

    The image of a beautiful and sweet-looking figure emerged from his memory at the same time.

    The smile behind the ice-cold mask froze. An indescribable grief filled his heart, causing him to forget to breathe for a moment. His smile disappeared bitterly. After so many years, he still could not forget her, despite trying so hard to do so.

    No oath of eternal love was made, no magnificent love story was created. There was only warm sunshine and a gentle smile, beautiful like a dream. Even though itsted only for a short period of time, it was real, and it was cruel. Like the deadliest poison in the world, it hid in the innermost part of his heart.

    He must bear the responsibility for everything.

    He told himself in his heart.

    "Silver."

    He was startled by Kunlun¡¯s voice. When he saw the worried look on Kunlun¡¯s face, he returned to his senses. The grief he felt earlier withdrew like a receding tide into the innermost part of his heart.

    How could an ignoble person, such as he, be so emotional?

    He was fortunate to have once had such a beautiful dream in his lifetime.

    A solemn look reappeared in his eyes, resembling a river that flowed calmly and silently. He said, "I just thought of Central Pine City."

    Shi Xueman thought that Silver Soldier had recalled the bloody battles in Central Pine City. The gazes of Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun and the rest softened.

    Without any hesitation, Shi Xueman asked bluntly, "What¡¯s our next move?"

    The rest looked at Silver Soldier. Because of this victory, Silver Soldier had gained everyone¡¯s approval as leader.

    Silver Soldier did not say anything as his gaze swept across the battlefield. When he saw those dazed and fatigued faces, he sighed softly. At this point of time, the most important thing for him to do was to give the soldiers rest and reorganize them. Most of the soldiers in the threebat divisions were rookies. It was not easy for them to fight such a tough battle without copsing. Even if they obtained a victory, their energies were spent.

    At this point of time, time was crucial to their survival.

    In a direct confrontation, Blood of God would definitely be in an advantageous position. The troops from Avalon of Five Elements had to depend on their defensive formations to withstand Blood of God¡¯s offense.

    The loss of this battle would leave a huge impression on Blood of God.

    Blood of God would definitely carry out a counter-attack. They were stationed at the Wall of North Sea. This little bit of damage was not enough to deal a huge blow to Blood of God military-wise. It would only enrage them.

    An enraged beast might be more dangerous, but it would reveal more of its weaknesses as well.

    Sometimes, a chance came only once. Once it was lost, it wouldn¡¯te back again.

    A lot of things in life followed the same logic.

    At this point of time, it was meaningless for him to feel pity for his life. He was marble-hearted and his gaze was stone-cold.

    "I have an idea."

    .....

    Central Pine Valley.

    Wearing the demonic god armor, Ai Hui did not dare to waste any time. He was observing his body with great attention. In Ai Hui¡¯s eyes, the demonic god armor was still extremely mysterious. When it came tobat or training, Ai Hui¡¯s observation skills were extraordinary.

    There was no such thing as a free lunch in this world. Power couldn¡¯t be created out of thin air. The ancient artifacts consumed spiritual force, while the current Heaven-grade weapons consumed elemental energy.

    What did the demonic god armor consume then?

    Ai Hui suspected that the demonic god armor consumed life force.

    The fatigue caused by the demonic god armor made Ai Hui feel as if he was breathing hisst. This was coupled with the fact that he was already using the blood bandage. If it were not for the blood bandage, Ai Hui suspected that he might be sucked dry by the demonic god armor. In order to replenish his energy, he had to eat a leaf from the Northern Underworld King Tree every time he took off the armor.

    Of course, this was just Ai Hui¡¯s spection. He had yet to reach the level where he couldprehend the meaning of life force.

    However, Ai Hui was absolutely certain with regards to his theory. How could a demonic god who sought to resurrect himself be a friendly entity? If that was the case, he wouldn¡¯t be called a demonic god.

    When Ai Hui thought about this, he felt pessimistic.

    As long as the demonic god had a chance to overturn the situation, he would definitely grab it. After all, why would a prideful demonic god allow a human to control his body?

    All of these were Ai Hui¡¯s conjectures. However, even if they were facts, Ai Hui could only brace himself to ept them at this moment. He simply did not have any solutions.

    The leaves from the Northern Underworld King Tree, that could relieve and stabilize his condition, were limited in number. This meant he couldn¡¯t use the demonic god armor indefinitely.

    Therefore, once he started using it, he had tomit to it.

    He had tried a few ns. Until now, he still had not found the solution. Ai Hui realized there might be some problems with his current train of thought.

    Perhap he should change his tactics?

    Encountering setbacks during training sessions was nothing out of the ordinary for Ai Hui. After encountering countless setbacks, he gradually found some tricks to resolving his problems. Sometimes, the trick of changing his train of thought and looking at a problem from a different perspective would produce a better result.

    He did not put on the demonic god armor immediately. He pondered over it, came up with an idea of what he was going to do and determined his goals.

    After thinking it through, he put on the demonic god armor once again.

    In his eyes, the world became different once more.

    Ai Hui was already very familiar with this kind of feeling. This time around, he did not try using any other powers. He ced all his attention on his body.

    His flesh was dried up and his life force was diminishing. Streaks of lightning were travelling through his flesh.

    These fine lightning streaks were the remnants of the lightning bolts that had struck himst time. They were the ones that destroyed the life force in his body. His flesh could not grow in an environment that was filled with streaks of lightning. This logic was easily understandable.

    Lightning was the bane for almost all living things.

    Wait!

    Logically speaking, with so many streaks of lightning travelling through his body, his flesh would dry up gradually until he disintegrated into ashes. However, this did not happen to him. He was severely injured, but his life would not be in danger as long as he did not use any powers.

    Ai Hui noticed that his flesh was quite different from before.

    A bold idea appeared in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    Was it possible that his flesh had already be a brand-new, extraordinary type of flesh?

 Chapter 514: Sick And Extraordinary

    Chapter 514: Sick And Extraordinary

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    "....At that time, our family had obtained two of them in total. We did not know what they were used for. It just so happened that you wereing of age and we needed to find a good teacher for you. We gave one of them to Grandmaster Dai in the hope of getting him to ept you as his disciple. Grandmaster Dai gave his consent cheerfully. If this item can be so coveted by a Grandmaster, it¡¯s definitely an extraordinary artifact. We hid the other one in our secret chamber and we didn¡¯t dare to tell anyone about it. Subsequently, Grandmaster Dai asked us about it and we acted as if we knew nothing and told him there was only one. This item is of great importance, you must keep it by your side at all times. Before you find out what it is, don¡¯t show it to anyone. Follow the path of [Viridescent Flower] and you will have no trouble bing a Master. Of course, bing a Grandmaster is an extremely arduous feat. If this artifact can assist you in doing so...."

    Duanmu Huanghun had already destroyed the secret letter from his home. He had memorized every single word in the letter. His family had taken great pains to send the wooden box to him. They actually used Lu Mingxiu as a cover to send it. Rather than the Duanmu family, the Lu family was actually the family that Grandmaster Dai truly trusted.

    After reading the secret letter, Duanmu Huanghun understood a lot of things.

    It turned out that Grandmaster Dai had epted him as a disciple to fulfil a transaction.

    No wonder why his teacher practically did not care about him at all. His teacher always treated him differently from First Senior and Second Senior.

    However, Duanmu Huanghun discovered that he wasn¡¯t too disappointed. He understood what was going on. His teacher was unconcerned with him. Likewise, he was unconcerned with his teacher.

    Duanmu Huanghun was a proud and arrogant individual. He felt that he could still progress, even if he did not have a teacher. At the end of the day, he had to find his own path for himself.

    Now, he was d that he had been "kidnapped" by Shi Xueman. It was at Central Pine Valley where he could truly rx himself. He could finally keep himself away from the internal strife in Jadeite Forest.

    Now, he could spend all his energy and talents on his training.

    This was the best moment of his life.

    He had found his path, the path that belonged to him, the path of [Viridescent Flower].

    In the bamboo forest, Duanmu Huanghun was sitting cross-legged on the ground with both his eyes tightly closed. His palms held the archaic wooden box, looking as if he was asleep.

    A beautiful pattern of a viridescent flower was revolving beneath his body.

    The wind was rustling and bamboo leaves were drifting through the air. However, any leaf that drifted within ten meters of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body would be repelled by an invisible force.

    The revolving pattern of the viridescent flower beneath Duanmu Huang¡¯s body changed its shape every one hour.

    Everyday, there would be twenty-four changes to the pattern of the viridescent flower. Every new pattern waspletely different from the previous one.

    After twenty days had passed, Duanmu Huanghun had created four hundred and eighty different types of [Viridescent Flower].

    Duanmu family¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] had a long history. It could be traced back to the distant Cultivation Era. The Duanmu family had a collection of more than two thousand types of [Viridescent Flower], but most of them had lost their uses by now.

    Every time the pattern of the viridescent flower changed, the elemental energy around Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s body became more concentrated.

    It was as if there was an enormous archive in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s head. Right now, he was breaking it apart, destroying it, and rebuilding it over and over again.

    This was only the beginning. This was destined to be a very long process.

    Duanmu Huanghun was filled with expectation.

    .....

    Lou Lan was doing his best to prepare elemental soup for everyone. Right now, the members of Sword of Lightning were in the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda that they were embarrassed of in the past. They were going through the simple sword moves that they used to mock andin about, over and over again.

    ¡®Nothing is more convincing than an actual battle.¡¯

    These bloody words on the wooden b in Lemon Camping Ground were the first deration they made to the world using swords, and it had shocked every city. They were shocked by their own powers as well. They had a new understanding of the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda and themselves.

    When they hadpleted this process, a transformation would take ce.

    They did not understand what was going on. All they understood was that they could be stronger.

    Because Ai Hui was injured, Gu Xuan upied his Megrez position for the time being. It was the first time he experienced the immense pressure that Ai Hui always faced in the past. Gu Xuan wasn¡¯t a weak individual. He did not give up easily. Like a whetstone, the pressure he faced forced him to improve every day.

    Nowadays, Fishback City had sufficient resources. Every day, they would be provided with sufficient elemental soup. Everyone knew that such an environment was hard toe by in times of chaos.

    Without needing to be prompted, everyone was training frantically.

    There was a person beside the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda. It was Blind He.

    He bore a heavy responsibility.

    By building Metal Basket Sword Pagoda, he had merelypleted the first phase of his task. Right now, he was trying toplete the second phase of his task.

    This time around, rather than forging a gigantic sword, he was supposed to forge a sword for every member of Sword of Lightning.

    Right now, everyone was using a different sword. Most of their swords had been used for a very long time. It was alright for them to use their current swords for training. However, for an actual battle, their swords would pose a problem.

    Taking this issue into consideration, Ai Hui gave Blind He the task of forging a sword for everyone.

    There was a total of three hundred men in Sword of Lightning. As such, three hundred swords would have to be forged for them. To prepare for the scenario where a sword might be damaged and had to be reced, Blind He had to forge at least five hundred swords to keep some as spares.

    Quantity wasn¡¯t the main issue. The biggest problem that perplexed Blind He was to figure out what kind of sword suited the members of Sword of Lightning the best. As a weaponsmith, he had high expectations for the weapons he forged. Every weapon he made had to be top-quality.

    Even though he had made the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda, he was still baffled by it. It was only until he witnessed its might during thest battle that he understood how it could be used.

    These few days, he had been staying around the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda to get a feel of how it operate and how the members trained.

    After observing quietly for a few days straight, a rough idea began to form in his mind.

    He returned to the furnace and started the forging process.

    He sprayed the White Cluster mes over a piece of metal. Like an ice cube, the piece of metal melted into a puddle of molten metallic liquid easily. He then started to add various materials into it. His movements were fluid like water, graceful and beautiful. Every time he added in a material, an elemental energy ripple of a different color would streak across the surface of the molten liquid. Colorful elemental energy ripples began to gather and intertwine on the surface of the molten liquid. Eventually, gorgeous and dazzling elemental energy ripples were formed.

    Blind He was very focused. The faint glow from the eyes on his palms engulfed the molten metal. Every change taking ce in the molten metal was under his control.

    The elemental energy ripples on the surface of the molten metal continuously undted.

    The glow released by the eyes on his palms suddenly turned cold as ayer of frost appeared on the surface of the molten metal. The molten metal had solidified into an ingot. The gorgeous and dazzling elemental energy ripples looked as if they were frozen on the surface of the ingot, creating extremely beautiful patterns.

    Blind He did not stop. He picked up the snowva that he had prepared earlier and poured it over the metal ingot.

    Sizzle.

    A loud and clear sizzle resounded through the air when wisps of white-colored, scorching mes rose from the metal ingot. Densely-packed cracks began to appear on the surface of the metal ingot.

    Blind He picked up a iron hammer and hammered the metal ingot. The surface of the metal ingot was as crispy as a biscuit. Very soon, its surface broke down and revealed a silvery white metal within it.

    It was a silvery-white, half-transparent metal ingot that resembled a silvery-white crystal. Soft and thin flower petals were frozen within the metal ingot. They were formedyer uponyer, looking extremely beautiful.

    The petal-shaped patterns contained glittering silver powder, which made the metal ingot dazzle when it was ced under the sun.

    A satisfied look appeared on Blind He¡¯s face as he muttered, "Pearblossom Dazzling Silver. From today onwards, you are called Pearblossom Dazzling Silver. I have no regrets in my life anymore, I have no regrets in my life anymore!"

    The snow-white petals in the metal ingot resembled pear blossoms.

    Luckily Ai Hui did not have the time to care about him, otherwise he would havee up with another ugly name for it again, like "White Cluster mes". If that were to happen, Blind He would vomit blood.

    Blind He was very emotional. Up to now, this metal ingot had the highest grade among all the metal ingots he had ever created. It was every weaponsmith¡¯s dream to be able to create his own material, name it, and leave his mark on history.

    He had no choice but to admit that, even though Ai Hui wascking in his ability to name things, his White Cluster mes and snowva were remarkable inventions.

    Without these two powerful tools, he would not have been able to create Pearblossom Dazzling Silver.

    Due to his excitement from creating Pearblossom Dazzling Silver, Blind He no longer felt tired and began to forge the swords. He already had a rough idea of the sword¡¯s design in his mind. The sess in creating the Pearblossom Dazzling Silver implied that the most difficult problem had already been solved.

    Very soon, he forged the first sword. He furrowed his eyebrows and destroyed it.

    He destroyed the second one as well.

    It was as if he wasn¡¯t getting tired at all. He continued to forge the swords one by one. However, he was satisfied with none of them.

    The rush of excitement he¡¯d felt earlier had disappeared. The consecutive failures added on to his fatigue.

    He stopped and sat beside the furnace in a daze.

    Without Blind He noticing it, night had descended. The stars in the night sky gave off a bright glow while the night breeze blew silently.

    "He Wei, here is your elemental soup," Lou Lan said as he sent a bowl of elemental soup to He Wei.

    Blind He returned to his senses and took over the bowl of elemental soup. A smile appeared on his cold face. "Thank you, Lou Lan."

    "There¡¯s no need to thank me, He Wei. In the future, Lou Lan wants to learn weapon forging from He Wei," Lou Lan said.

    "No problem," Blind He agreed immediately. As he was drinking the elemental soup, he asked casually, "Lou Lan, why do you want to learn weapon forging?"

    Lou Lan tilted his head and thought for a while before he answered, "So I can make money. In the past, Lou Lan and Ai Hui used to forge weapons to make money."

    Blind He burst intoughter. He did not remind Lou Lan that Ai Hui was so poor now that he was only left with money. The snowva that Central Pine Valley had umted was like a mountain of gold now. Even when the prices of various resources had soared, Central Pine Valley was able to maintain an abundance of resources. Central Pine Valley was no longer that poor valley in the past.

    "Lou Lan has to work hard then," Blind He smiled and said.

    Lou Lan nodded his head forcefully and replied, "Lou Lan will definitely learn from He Wei seriously."

    After drinking the delicious elemental soup and hearing Lou Lan¡¯s cheerful voice, Blind He felt that the fatigue in his body had disappeared without a trace.

    When Lou Lan saw Blind He had gone into deep thought again, he did not disturb him and left silently.

    Before Blind He had concluded his thought process, he discovered where his problem was: He did not abandon the usual weaponsmiths¡¯ train of thought.

    Whenever one wanted to forge a weapon, he or she would first consider the issues of how to stimte elemental energy and how to channel them. However, this train of thought was not suitable for Sword of Lightning.

    The sword moves that the members of Sword of Lightning executed were very simple. These moves did not need to take into consideration elemental energy. What did the members need the most? After observing them for several days, Blind He clearly knew the answer to this question. It was synchronization!

    Synchronization was the key factor to Sword of Lightning¡¯s might.

    This was the biggest difference between Sword of Lightning and otherbat divisions. Never before had he seen abat division that downyed individual capabilities and emphasized teamwork to such an extreme extent.

    It was a sick and extraordinary concept!

    It was only right for such a sick and extraordinarybat division to have a sick and extraordinary weapon!

    Blind He was overwhelmed with emotions.

 Chapter 515: The Glory of A Master Comes With Blood

    Chapter 515: The Glory of A Master Comes With Blood

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    A gloomy cloud hung over Skyheart City.

    The destruction of Wall of North Sea rang across everyone¡¯s ears like a knell. The delusion of having the capability to make theirst struggle had been ruthlessly popped like bubbles under the sun.

    The path from Avalon of Five Elements to Beyond Avalon was filled with blood and corpses. Before the survivors could rejoice, dangers befell them once again.

    Meanwhile, from the fall of Wall of North Sea to the arrival of Blood of God in Beyond Avalon, their path was smooth and level. Who could stop Blood of God¡¯s armies as they advanced like a tsunami?

    The only thing that was worth rejoicing over was probably Ye Baiyi¡¯s injury.

    North Sea Division¡¯s final retaliation made it clear to everyone in the world that North Sea was raging with anger. However, there was only one North Sea Division. Everyone had witnessed the tragic sacrifice of North Sea Division. The performance of the rest of the divisions was simply pathetic.

    During the rise of Blood of God, the Thirteen Divisions were like decayed, dead trees, unable to put up a decent fight. Some surrendered, some had their division leaders killed and some werepletely wiped out. Meanwhile, those who survived were trembling with fear and trepidation. They were no longer brave and fervent, but instead resembled elderly men that had passed their primes.

    The Thirteen Divisions¡¯ thousand years of glory and prestige werepletely lost.

    North Sea Division was thest gleam of hope. Even though they did not secure a victory, they had not let everyone down, and they did not betray the glory and prestige of North Sea Division.

    An Muda¡¯s footprint of glory stayed silently amid the mountains, growing old day by day.

    The sunset¡¯s afterglow was sprinkled over Skyheart City.

    Skyheart City used to be an ambitious city as well. It was the core of Beyond Avalon, the city where Elders Guild resided, and the ce where the three central divisions were stationed. However, nowadays its lofty ambitions were shattered and everyone in the city was having sleepless nights.

    When would the armies from Blood of God arrive? Would Grandmaster Daie and annex Beyond Avalon in the next few days?

    Where could one live a peaceful life?

    The streets were unusually deste, so much so that not a single soul could be spotted. Most of the shops were closed. There were only a few shops that were still open for business. The light from the sun had turned gloomy. After such a harsh and freezing winter, Skyheart City¡¯s economy was in a slump. After the Wall of North Sea had fallen, the situation in Skyheart City worsened significantly. Even heartless individuals did not have the mood to y around now.

    Various rich and powerful aristocratic families were packing up their valuables and seeking a way out. Should they go to Jadeite Forest? Or should they join Blood of God? They¡¯d heard that Holy Emperor was tyrannical and cruel. If he was enraged, a river of blood could be created at any moment. What if...

    Suddenly, the light screen in the sky lit up.

    The people who were on the lookout for invaders bolted upright immediately. That light screen was formed by [Five Peaks]. The [Five Peaks], which were formed by five God-subduing Peaks, guarded Skyheart City from all four directions and overhead. Together, they formed an impregnable defensive light screen.

    Usually, only a smallponent of [Five Peaks] needed to be activated to ensure the safety of the city. But recently, due to the tense situation, everyponent of [Five Peaks] had been activated.

    The glow in the sky disappeared within a short period of time.

    The only time a Master would deliver a message personally was when he was delivering a report from the front line!

    After a short while, Nian Tingfeng appeared in the mayor¡¯s residence, his face filled with joy. "Where¡¯s the mayor? I have important information for her! Please help me notify her!"

    "The mayor is not in the residence. She went to the Lake of Masters one hour ago," the guard standing at the door replied with an apologetic tone.

    Nian Tingfeng did not stay there and left the ce.

    Lake of Masters was the most heavily guarded ce in Skyheart City. It was where the Master¡¯s Glory was held. There were more than three Masters guarding that ce. Lake of Masters was also the five God-subduing Peaks¡¯ primary focus of protection.

    Every month, Madam Ye would make two to three trips to Lake of Masters.

    Master¡¯s Glory had been proposed by her. After she gained power, she kept on promoting Master¡¯s Glory and ced all her hope in it. If Master¡¯s Glory failed, it implied aplete failure for her. She would have no chance of overturning the situation if that ever happened.

    Lake of Masters was heavily guarded. Even Nian Tingfeng had to give early notice of his arrival and was checked before he could enter the ce.

    After he was checked by the guards, he entered. Lake of Masters was a naturalke. It contained extremely pure water elemental energy. Reportedly, thiske was the defining factor for why Skyheart City was built in its current location in the first ce.

    One had to know that Skyheart City was mainly popted by metal elementalists.

    Lake of Masters was not really huge. It was three kilometers long and two kilometers wide. Its shape was long and narrow like a crescent moon. When they first discovered it, it was called Crescent Moon Lake. They only changed its name to Lake of Masters after it was selected as the venue for Master¡¯s Glory.

    Madam Ye had ced high hopes on Master¡¯s Glory, hoping that it could cultivate more and more masters for Skyheart City.

    Nian Tingfeng saw Madam Ye surrounded by many people at thekeside. She was listening to a report from an ordinary-looking, middle-aged man. Nian Tingfeng walked over silently, not intending to disturb them.

    When the middle-aged man saw Nian Tingfeng, he stopped talking and smiled at Nian Tingfeng as a form of greeting, "Division Leader Nian is here."

    He had a goatee, his face was meager, and his hair was worn in a bun using a wooden hairpin, making him look somewhat like a sage.

    Nian Tingfeng did not dare to hesitate and quickly returned the greeting, "Nice to meet you, Mr Ma."

    Ma Shiji was Madam Ye¡¯s most important tactician. He was a pedant that had learned Wang Shouchuan¡¯s theories. He was Madam Ye¡¯s right-hand man. [Five Peaks] had been devised by him. Master¡¯s Glory was also managed by him. As such, Madam Ye trusted him deeply.

    Even though Ma Shiji did not hold any official position, Nian Tingfeng knew he was an important figure and did not dare to offend him.

    Madam Ye nodded her head at Nian Tingfeng and told Ma Shiji, "Continue."

    Nian Tingfeng lowered his head and stood on one side.

    Ma Shiji continued, "The training method for fusion elemental energy that Madam obtained from Assembly of Patriarchs is extremely ingenious. I¡¯m enlightened by it. From the look of it, the only way to counter blood spiritual force is to possess all five elements at the same time. The traditional method for obtaining all five elements is to be a Grandmaster. However, fusion elemental energy allows one to skip this step. The creation of fusion elemental energy proves that Assembly of Patriarchs has truly been the arch-enemy of Blood of God for the past hundreds of years."

    "I have taken some ideas from God-subduing Peak to create the Circle of Five Elements. Ibined the earth elemental energy beneath theke, the water elemental energy from theke itself, the fire elemental energy from the sun, and the wood elemental energy from the gigantic lotus seed heads. Then, I fed the lotus seed heads with ores that contained an abundance of metal elemental energy. Initially, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn¡¯t create a five elemental lotus seed head. It was only until I obtained the training method for fusion elemental energy that I could finally create twenty-five five elemental lotus seed heads. On each five elemental lotus seed head, there are eighteen five elemental lotus pods. That means there are a total of three hundred and sixty elementalists in them now."

    A cold shiver went down Nian Tingfeng¡¯s spine. He could not help but take a nce at theke.

    Huge lotus seed heads were gushing with brilliant lights and floated silently on the surface of theke. Every lotus seed head contained the vague figures of curled up humans.

    He knew there was a total of five hundred elementalists who had entered the first round of Master¡¯s Glory. Most of them were talented young men and women from various families.

    Subsequently, more and more people joined the program, especially when it was opened to new citizens. They lowered the requirements for Master¡¯s Glory and increased Madam Ye¡¯s prestige significantly.

    In total, there were more than one thousand five hundred elementalists who participated in Master¡¯s Glory.

    However, there were only three hundred and sixty people left now.

    Where had the other one thousand two hundred people gone?

    Nian Tingfeng trembled in fear.

    Surveince Division¡¯s selection of new members was already very strict. However, not being selected and dying after being selected were twopletely different concepts. Even Nian Tingfeng, who was used to seeing death ur, was terrified when he knew of the astonishing death rate.

    Even Ma Shiji¡¯s enthusiastic and excited voice caused his hair to stand on end.

    "Right now, there is a total of three hundred and sixty people who havepleted Five Elemental Lotus Seedcoat. There are at least two hundred people who are expected to be Masters. As long as they awaken, the current situation will be overturned. These two hundred Masters will possess all five elements. Hahaha, even if Holy Emperor and Dai Gange here personally, they will not be able to gain anything from us. Furthermore, with a flick of these Masters¡¯ fingers, Ye Baiyi will be reduced to ashes in an instant. This is only the first batch. Now that we have experience, the time taken to cultivate the second batch can be reduced significantly."

    Ma Shiji¡¯s eyes were filled with excitement as he continued, "I have made some calctions. As long as we can cultivate more than five hundred Masters, we can take over the world!"

    A smile appeared on Madam Ye¡¯s face as she said, "Mr Ma, thank you for your trouble. The day Master¡¯s Glory ispleted will be the day that you are honored."

    "Madam has devoted yourself wholeheartedly to Beyond Avalon and spared no effort in making it a better ce. Aspared to your contributions, mine is not worth mentioning. Without Madam¡¯s support, I wouldn¡¯t have fulfilled my dreams," Ma Shiji replied respectfully.

    The smile on Madam Ye¡¯s face widened. The world before everyone¡¯s eyes seemed to light up at this moment. Age did not leave any traces on Madam Ye¡¯s face. She was still as beautiful as before.

    She withdrew her smile and said with a solemn tone, "Sir, you¡¯re being too humble. You¡¯re a peerless tactician. Who else in this world can match up against you? It¡¯s my fortune, the Elders Guild¡¯s fortune, and the world¡¯s fortune to have your assistance!"

    Ma Shiji gasped for air as his mind surged with emotions.

    He had had a rough life since he was born. He used to be homeless and miserable. He was often viewed by many as an unorthodox individual. He¡¯d possessed many talents but no one appreciated him. It wasn¡¯t until he met Madam Ye that he could have a chance to disy his talents.

    He was not good at bootlicking. The words he had just said were his limit. At this moment, he was restraining his emotions. Following which, he continued, "Oh, I have yet to congratte Madam. Among everyone, Xiaobao is the most outstanding one. No one can match up to him. His achievements in the future will be limitless."

    Madam Ye sighed as aplicated look appeared in her eyes. After staying silent for a long while she muttered, "Xiaobao, I hope you can understand what Mama has done."

    Ma Shiji and Nian Tingfeng looked at each other and remained speechless.

    Madam Ye raised her head as rity returned to her eyes. She shifted her gaze to Nian Tingfeng and asked, "Is there news from the front line?"

    "Yes."

    Nian Tingfeng did not dare to look at Madam Ye in the eyes. He lowered his head and passed her the report.

    When Madam Ye took over the report and read it, her eyes lit up. She eximed with joy, "Good, good, good! The drought has finally ended! This great victory has arrived at the right time! Silver Soldier and Heng Kunlun did not let me down! Shi Xueman has done a good job as well. She truly deserves to be Shi Beihai¡¯s daughter. Like father, like daughter!"

    A joyful look appeared on everyone¡¯s faces involuntarily.

    It was a great victory, a great victory indeed!

    "Disseminate this piece of good news, every message vige must receive it! Let everyone know that as long as we unite together, even if we don¡¯t have a Grandmaster anymore, we still can emerge victorious! Blood elementalists are like humans, they die as well!"

    Madam Ye was so emotional that her voice became slightly shrill. However, no one cared about it as everyone was wild with joy at this moment.

    "Yes!" Nian Tingfeng replied loudly.

    Without any hesitation, he turned around and left in a hurry.

    After a while, the silent and deste Skyheart City appeared as if it had awakened from a deep slumber. Thunderous cheers erupted throughout the entire city.

    When Madam Ye heard the increasingly loud waves of cheers, she became high-spirited.

    With terrifying speed, the news spread throughout Beyond Avalon like a hurricane.

    Beyond Avalon had been waiting for a victory for too long.

    The names of Shi Xueman, Silver Soldier and Heng Kunlun had spread throughout Beyond Avalon like fire.

    Whenever a new era arrived like a tsunami, all of a sudden some people would be crushed to smithereens, while some would be legends.

 Chapter 516: Lou Lan Is Formidable Now, Unity Sword

    Chapter 516: Lou Lan Is Formidable Now, Unity Sword

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The five residences were in ruins and the eight pces were covered with thousands of holes.

    Every time Ai Hui examined his body, he would be shocked and terrified. He was extremely lucky not to have died.

    Heposed himself. The Northern Underworld King Tree did not have many leaves left. This implied that he did not have many chances left to use the demonic god armor. Fortunately, even though he had yet to find a solution, he¡¯d still managed to make some gains.

    For example, he knew that it wasn¡¯t his physical body that was injured, but rather the sword cloud within his body.

    He also identified some of the characteristics of the sword cloud.

    When he¡¯d used the lightning bolts in the clouds to counter the venom of the Night Moth Fruit, the lightning bolts almost destroyed everything in his body. Even the sword embryo that he had just formed was shattered. However, the shattered sword embryo did not disappearpletely. Instead, it absorbed a huge amount of lightning and transformed into a unique sword cloud.

    Aspared to the sword embryo, the shattered sword cloud had a more outstanding sensory perception.

    Right now, the range of Ai Hui¡¯s sensory perception exceeded twenty-five kilometers. He never thought he would achieve such a feat in the past.

    However, the sword cloud was much more unstable than the sword embryo. This observation had a direct link to Ai Hui¡¯s injury.

    His severely damaged body had a mysterious rtionship with his sword cloud. If his sword cloud was stable, the condition of his flesh would be stable as well. If his sword cloud was unstable, the condition of his flesh would be unstable too. If his sword cloud was totally out of control, his flesh wouldpletely disintegrate into ashes.

    Ai Hui¡¯s conjecture for this rtionship was that both his flesh and sword cloud may have been tempered with lightning. As such, both of them contained lightning.

    ording to this conjecture, as long as Ai Hui could stabilize the sword cloud, his injury would gradually recover.

    Today was the day he was going to verify his conjecture.

    Ai Hui was hovering in the sky above theke in Central Pine Valley. There was a small cloud in front of him. The cloud was only half the size of a house. It was dense and sparkling white, resembling a soft cotton ball.

    Ai Hui was half-naked. He stared at the bit of cloud and said, without turning his head, "Lou Lan, help me record the process."

    The painful lesson he¡¯d learnt from channelling lightning from a whole sea of cloudsst time made him realize that he was still a mortal after all. It was safer for him to channel lightning from a single cloud. Ai Hui had racked his brain to find a suitable clump of cloud. Subsequently, he thought of the bit of cloud floating above theke in Central Pine Valley.

    Not only was the cloud smaller in size, it could be controlled as well. This way, it would be much safer for him.

    He had paid a painful price for this lesson thest time around.

    On thekeside, Lou Lan¡¯s glowing eyes were flickering. He replied with a solemn tone, "Ai Hui, Lou Lan is ready."

    Ai Hui inserted his arms into the cloud in front of him and carefully initialized the unstable sword cloud within his body.

    Buzz.

    A slight numbness started spreading along his arms. Ai Hui increased his focus and observed the changes taking ce in his body.

    The lightning from the cloud was very weak, but it was still able to cause Ai Hui¡¯s hair to stand on end, making him look like a porcupine.

    The lightning flowed through Ai Hui¡¯s body and entered his flesh.

    Like a slithering, silvery snake, the lightning travelled through Ai Hui¡¯s flesh. His flesh was dyed with a thinyer of silver-white color, resembling fine silver threads which vibrated every now and then.

    Ai Hui held his breath and observed every single detail. He clearly knew that many valuable discoveries could be made from observing those insignificant details.

    A small portion of the lightning was absorbed by his flesh while the rest was absorbed by his sword cloud.

    The loose sword cloud began to contract and thicken.

    As the sword cloud absorbed more and more lightning, it became thicker and thicker.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up. He could sense that as the sword cloud thickened, his vibrating flesh began to stabilize.

    The fatigue that had engulfed his body for the past few days reduced significantly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted. It seemed his train of thought was correct.

    At this moment, the numbness throughout his body disappeared and the sword cloud stopped thickening.

    Ai Hui realized that the soft and sparkling white cloud in front of him had disappeared. All that was left was a wisp of white mist that was dissipating gradually within his fingers.

    "Ai Hui, your conjecture was right." Lou Lan¡¯s tone was filled with a pleasant surprise.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes was flickering non-stop. With a serious tone, he continued, "The sword cloud is indeed resonating with your flesh. This kind of resonance uses lightning as a medium. Right now, I havee up with five conclusions."

    "Five?" Ai Hui was stunned.

    He felt that he hade up with two or three conclusions. He certainly did not expect Lou Lan toe up with five conclusions.

    Lou Lan continued with a solemn tone, "First, lightning is the source of energy for the sword cloud. It consumes the lightning and we will have to replenish lightning for it frequently. Second, when the sword cloud revolves, it will be more stable. This conclusion can be verified by the stability of your flesh. Third, Ai Hui¡¯s body did not have any elemental energy. The lightning in your flesh is strongly repellent to elemental energy. Fourth, the resonance between the sword cloud and your flesh can only stabilize your flesh, not make it stronger. Since your body can¡¯t hold elemental energy, it willck the nourishment of elemental energy and your flesh will have difficulty bing stronger. Fifth, Ai Hui¡¯s body will be weaker and weaker. If you want to stabilize your injured condition, you will have to strengthen the sword cloud. You will have to replenish it with lightning. Lightning is strongly repellent to elemental energy, hence, replenishing the sword cloud with lightning will cause your flesh to degenerate. There will be a limit to how much your flesh will degenerate. When that happens, Ai Hui¡¯s body will be weak, yet stable. This is caused by the resonating rtionship between the sword cloud and your flesh."

    Ai Hui was dumbstruck.

    Why did he feel like Lou Lan had now be much more formidable than before?

    In the past, Lou Lan had helped him carry out analysis as well. However, he could never analyze things to such an extent. He roughly knew three of the conclusions Lou Lan had juste up with. As for the remaining two, he had no idea at all.

    He would know whether or not Lou Lan¡¯s conclusions were correct once he tried them out.

    After obtaining a rough idea about what to do next, Ai Hui was filled with zest.

    .....

    Gu Xuan and the members of Sword of Lightning, who had just finished their training session, looked as if they had just been pulled out from water,pletely drenched in sweat. They were lying on the ground all over the ce.

    Blind He carried a bundle of swords and walked over to them.

    Thump. He threw the bundle of swords on the ground and said, "Come and try the new swords."

    His voice was hoarse and he looked extremely tired.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s gaze was immediately captivated by the new swords on the ground. As an elementalist who had taken on the path of swordsmanship, his love for swords came from within his heart. With a single nce, he could tell whether or not the quality of the sword was good.

    When he saw the new swords, the first thought that came to his mind was... Beautiful swords!

    A mysterious power gushed through his fatigued body. Gu Xuan stood up and picked up a sword from the heap on the ground. Then, he ced it before his eyes and observed it carefully.

    Such a good sword!

    The body of the sword was much wider than an ordinary sword¡¯s. At the same time, it was much thinner than most swords as well. It was made of an unknown material. The sword was transparent and dazzling, resembling a crystal that gave off a metallic luster. Sparkling white flower petals could be seen within the sword, looking as if they were frozen in ice.

    "What type of material is this?" Gu Xuan could not help but ask.

    "Pearblossom Dazzling Silver!"

    "Never heard of it," Gu Xuan shook his head.

    "Of course you haven¡¯t heard of it before," Blind He retorted bluntly with a tone that was filled with a strong sense of pride, "I just created it a few days ago."

    "So it was created by Master He!" Gu Xuan was in awe.

    For any weaponsmith, it was extremely difficult to create an excellent type of material.

    Gu Xuan became increasingly interested in it. Upon taking a closer look, he saw an extremely fine slit in the middle of the de of the sword, splitting it into half. This slit was extremely fine. If he hadn¡¯t looked at it closely, he would not have noticed it.

    Double-stranded sword? No!

    The slit extended from the sword tip to the sword hilt.

    Gu Xuan was a connoisseur of swords and yet this was the first time he had seen such an oddly shaped sword. A pondering look appeared in his eyes. Could it be...

    He gently brandished the new sword in his hand.

    Buzz!

    An obvious vibration was given off by the new sword. In the next moment, Gu Xuan¡¯s eyes widened as he looked at the other new swords on the ground in shock.

    They were vibrating too!

    Feeling lost, Gu Xuan blurted out, "This is..."

    A smile appeared on Blind He¡¯s face. As a weaponsmith, what made him prouder than seeing that his works shocked other people?

    "The swordsmanship of Sword of Lightning is very strange. It does not focus on moves or elemental energy. It focuses on synchronization. Several hundreds of people move together as one. Generally speaking, this kind of swordsmanship has never been seen before by many. Pardon me for being ignorant, but I had never heard of it as well. The biggest problem of forging these new swords was to figure out, what kind of sword is suitable for all of you and your weird swordsmanship? What kind of sword allows all of you to move together as one? An inspiration hit upon me and I thought of a tuning fork. Isn¡¯t the resonance produced by a tuning fork suitable?"

    As Gu Xuan kept on brandishing the new sword in his hand, the rest of the new swords on the ground were vibrating as well. The other members of Sword of Lightning were attracted by themotion. All of them lit up their eyes as they realized the new swords would be a great upgrade for them.

    Everyone was filled with eagerness as they hopped into Metal Basket Sword Pagoda and began to try their new swords.

    Blind He had been observing their training sessions. He made a total of six swords for the first batch.

    The six new swords were for the pagoda masters of the six sword pagodas. Everyone took up their positions, looking forward to try their new swords. The new swords felt extremelyfortable in their hands, as if they were part of their bodies.

    "Ready!" Gu Xuan roared with a deep voice.

    Everyone¡¯s faces turned solemn. The relentless training sessions over the past few days had caused their sword moves to be instinctive. They could enter the mental zone ofbat and became highly focused in an instant.

    Gu Xuan brandished the sword in his hand.

    At the same time, the swords in the other five pagoda masters¡¯ hands vibrated too. Due to the relentless training sessions they had been through, they immediately brandished the swords in their hands.

    The six streaks of sword gleams converged into one.

    Like aet, a cold and sharp sword gleam flew into the sky and shot through theyer of clouds.

    Gu Xuan and the rest were overjoyed. It was as if these swords were specially made for them. They were extremely suitable for Metal Basket Sword Pagoda. With the new swords, the difficulty of synchronizing their movements was greatly reduced.

    Why were their sword moves made to be so simple? That was because the difficulty of synchronizing their movements was too high. Only by reducing theplexity of their sword moves could they then synchronize their movements

    With this new sword, however, they could try moreplicated sword moves.

    If the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was an enormous tiger, then the new swords would be like wings that were attached to it.

    "Such an ingenious idea, this has never been done before!" Gu Xuan praised Blind He to the high heavens.

    Such a fine sword!

    The new swords were not only good at helping them to synchronize their movements. They also had an excellent texture and they allowed Gu Xuan and the rest to channel their elemental energies easily.

    Blind He was smiling non-stop. He was feeling extremely pleased with himself.

    "What¡¯s the name of this sword?"

    Blind He heaved a sigh of relief as he could finally name the swords before Ai Hui did it.

    With a resolute and decisive tone, he replied.

    "Unity Sword!"

 Chapter 517: Itâ€™s A Disgrace To Associate Myself With All Of You

    Chapter 517: It¡¯s A Disgrace To Associate Myself With All Of You

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Another piece of cloud had been sucked dry.

    A bitter smile appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face when he looked at his arms. The size of his arms thinned again.

    The sword cloud within his body strengthened again.

    His muscles were degenerating at a rapid speed. His clearly defined muscles hadpletely disappeared. The strength of his arms had reduced significantly and his body was much more skinnier than before.

    With his body fully covered with bandages, he looked like an air-dried mummy.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body wascking in life force, resembling a person who was about to die. Even though he had stabilized his injured condition, his body had be significantly weaker. Other than this, there was nothing wrong with him.

    Ak Hui, himself, was the one who couldn¡¯t get used to it the most.

    In the past, his strong and agile body was one of his most trustworthy weapons duringbat. He was very proficient in using his body to obtain an advantageous position during a fight.

    However, he hadpletely lost this advantage now.

    He suddenly became extremely delicate, unable to even truss a chicken. He would be lying to himself if he said he didn¡¯t find it a problem at all.

    On the contrary, the sword cloud had be several times stronger. It slowly revolved and gave off a boundless aura of might.

    Mysteriously, his eyes had be unusually bright. Nowadays, his gaze varied irregrly.

    Sometimes, his gaze would be empty and unpredictable. Sometimes, his gaze would be limpid and lofty like the sky. asionally, it would be boundlessly deep like the vast starry sky. There were also times where his gaze looked as if it was densely covered with lightning bolts, giving off an aura of destruction. At times, his gaze would look as sharp as a sword, piercing through the heart of whoever he looked at.

    However, no matter what, his gaze would always dazzle with brilliance, making it impossible for one to look him in the eyes.

    When he touched the hilt of the sword hanging on his waist, the sword cloud within his body trembled and the feeling of weakness instantly disappeared without a trace. The glint in his eyes became more ring as well.

    Ai Hui gently shook the sword hilt and abruptly disappeared from the sky.

    The next moment, he appeared one meter above the ground. He let go of the sword hilt and the power in his body disappeared immediately. He fell to the ground and staggered before stabilizing himself.

    These past few days, he had made a lot of new discoveries.

    The sword cloud would only react under two circumstances. The first circumstance was when it was absorbing lightning. The second was when Ai Hui held his sword hilt.

    As long as Ai Hui held his sword, the sword cloud would be initialized. It would engulf Ai Hui¡¯s body with energy and power, resonating with his flesh.

    Ai Hui called this [Imbuement of Sword Cloud].

    However, the moment he let go of the sword hilt, he would revert back to the frail and weak loser who couldn¡¯t even truss a chicken.

    The thing that left him helpless was that the [Imbuement of Sword Cloud] would deplete the lightning in his sword cloud. As such, he had no choice but to reduce the amount of time that he held his sword.

    At this moment, he suddenly noticed a familiar figure approaching him. It was Yang Xiaodong.

    Yang Xiaodong was travel-worn. When he saw Ai Hui, he heaved a sigh of relief. Initially, he did not have a good impression of Ai Hui. However, after he returned from the battlefield, he found Ai Hui to be cordial. He took out a letter and passed it to Ai Hui, "This is from Division Leader Shi."

    Iron Lady¡¯s letter!

    Ai Hui became energized and quickly took the letter.

    .....

    "Great victory! Great victory!"

    A wave of cheers swept across the camp of the Dread Division.

    Even Wan Shenwei¡¯s cold-looking face contained a tinge of joy at this moment. He looked in the direction of the front line with aplicated look on his face.

    "What great victory?"

    Le Buleng¡¯s voice came from behind him.

    Wan Shenwei quickly turned around and passed the report in his hand to Le Buleng. "It¡¯s a report of victory from the front line. The Sky Edge Division, Infantry Division and Spear of Heavy Cloud Division joined hands and inflicted heavy losses on the enemy forces. The enemy forces have lost more than 3,000 men and all of them were elites..."

    After taking a nce at the report, Le Buleng¡¯s shrivelled face turned red in an instant. He rudely threw the report at Wan Shenwei¡¯s face.

    Even though the report was just a thin piece of paper, it felt like a heavy hammer when it hit Wan Shenwei¡¯s face. Wan Shenwei groaned, but he didn¡¯t care about the pain on his face and hurriedly asked, "Why is Senior so angry?"

    Le Buleng ignored himpletely and walked toward his room.

    Wan Shenwei quickly chased after him. "Senior... Senior..."

    Le Buleng continued to turn a deaf ear to him. When he reached his room, he began to pack his things.

    Wan Shenwei forced a smile and asked, "Senior, what are you doing?"

    Usually, Wan Shenwei did not like to smile. At this point in time, his smile looked extremely unnatural and awkward.

    Without raising his head, Le Buleng replied, "I am not waiting anymore. I am going to challenge Dai Gang now."

    Wan Shenwei was startled. He did not know what had provoked Le Buleng and quickly persuaded him, "Senior, didn¡¯t wee to an agreement that we will join hands and take on Dai Gang? Why have you suddenly changed your mind?"

    "It¡¯s about self-respect," Le Buleng replied as he continued to pack his things.

    "Senior, what are you implying?" Wan Shenwei¡¯s face turned gloomy.

    When everyone in the camp saw the two of them arguing, they stopped celebrating and shifted their gazes toward them.

    "What am I implying?" Le Buleng sneered as he stopped what he was doing and squinted his eyes. An ominous glint shed across his eyes as he continued, "You still dare to argue with me? If I was a few years younger, I would have killed you by now."

    Wan Shenwei tried to restrain the anger within him. His body was surging with a murderous aura while his fists were tightly clenched. "Senior, can you rify your words? At least let me know what you are unsatisfied with."

    Le Buleng¡¯s face was filled with disdain as he smirked. "After spending a few days with you, I still thought you were a real man. A tiger that has rested for too long will lose all its might. A dragon that is locked up for too long will lose its fearsome gaze. My life was full of ups and downs. I have been through countless life-and-death situations. The only thing I have is courage, so I don¡¯t cower from difficulties. A moth that flies into the me will die, but at least it dies gloriously. Look at all of you, you¡¯re a bunch of dogs and flies that think you can outsmart everyone. In reality, you¡¯re just a bunch of lethargic cowards and weaklings."

    Every word that came out from the skinny old man was powerful and resonating.

    Everyone in the camp was speechless.

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s face flushed with anger and embarrassment.

    Le Buleng raised his voice as he continued angrily, "The three central divisions are useless! Does the armor you wear, the inheritances you have learned, and the elemental food and beans you eate from the Ye family?"

    Everyone¡¯s gaze gathered at Wan Shenwei involuntarily.

    At this point in time, Wan Shenwei¡¯s face was red with embarrassment, shame, and anger. He did not know how to exin this to his soldiers.

    Le Buleng did not care about him at all and continued to chide him, "The Wall of the North Sea has copsed, while the North Sea Division has been annihted. Your fellowrades have died for the country with their corpses left in the wilderness. They are unable to rest in peace since they were humiliated. The enemy forces have arrived and the world is about to be plunged into an abyss of misery and suffering. Let me ask all of you: Who are the ones who are going to die?"

    Le Buleng¡¯s surroundings became even more quiet. Many people felt uneasy.

    Le Buleng¡¯s words were like a knife that plunged into the hearts of every soldier. "The citizens who provide for all of you!"

    Everyone¡¯s face was bright-red as their heavy breathing became erratic.

    "Great victory? Haha!" Le Buleng¡¯s tone became even more sarcastic.

    Anger erupted from his chest. With a seething look on his face, he yelled, "From the glorious footprints, an old man had died in the enemy country. From the North Sea¡¯s Shi family, a lone girl is fighting at the front line. From the Infantry and Sky Edge, new soldiers are defending our territory. The so-called elites are hiding at the rear and celebrating the so-called great victory at the front line. Hahahaha!"

    Le Buleng let offughter aimed at the sky. Hisughter was ear-piercing. Unable to restrain his anger, he sted a punch toward an arena in the center of the camp

    Boom!

    It sounded as if a drum had been heavily struck in Skyheart City. The arena in the center of the camp was shattered into smithereens.

    A fist-shaped hole that was 60 meters deep was created.

    The [Five Peaks] of Skyheart City was rmed and its light screen was activated. A boundless aura of might engulfed the city. The light screen was as thick and solid as a wall, extending slowly to the defensive line formed by the camp.

    "It¡¯s a disgrace to associate myself with all of you!"

    A firm and disdainful voice rang resounded throughout the sky. It could be heard throughout the whole city, causing everyone¡¯s ears to buzz. It was so loud that the soldiers of the Dread Division went into a daze. By the time they regained their senses, shame and anger engulfed them.

    A skinny, yet lofty, figure calmly flew toward the light screen of the [Five Peaks] without any fear.

    Golden mes began to rise from his back, giving off a dazzling radiance.

    "A dead thing dares to stop me?"

    Le Buleng sneered. The golden mes engulfed his fist as he sted a punch onto the light screen.

    A dazzling burst of light erupted, looking as if the sun had exploded. A vast expanse of whiteness descended upon Skyheart City.

    By the time everyone regained their vision, they could only see a web-like light screen in the sky that had a hole in the middle. Le Buleng had disappeared.

    Everyone was overwhelmed with shock.

    The five God-subduing Peaks looked as if they were stunned by Le Buleng¡¯s terrifying punch. They only regained operations after 10 seconds. The hole in the web-like light screen in the sky was rapidly repaired and disappeared gradually.

    Skyheart City, mayor¡¯s residence.

    Everyone held their breath as they listened to Madam Ye attentively.

    "The enemy forces will definitely retaliate. We have to replenish resources and manpower to send to the threebat divisions as soon as possible. This must be done at any cost. This issue is of the highest importance now," Madam Ye instructed with a calm and firm tone.

    "Should we adjust the sizes of the threebat divisions?" Nian Tingfeng asked carefully.

    "Keep them the same," Madam Ye said as she nced at him.

    "Subordinate understands." Nian Tingfeng nodded his head with a pensive look on his face.

    Madam Ye continued, "By the way, don¡¯t we have three God-subduing Peaks that have just beenpleted? Send them to the threebat divisions as well. One for eachbat division."

    Amotion broke out among Madam Ye¡¯s subjects.

    "Madam, you must not do this. If the God-subduing Peaks fall in the hands of the Blood of God, we will be in danger."

    "Yes, yes. Such a precious weapon cannot be given to them just like that."

    ...

    Madam Ye raised her hand and all the voices disappeared.

    A look of disdain shed across Madam Ye¡¯s eyes. Soon after, she regained herposure and replied, "Such a precious weapon should be used on the battlefield. Don¡¯t tell me we are supposed to leave it in a warehouse and let it rot? Get it done!"

    A look of admiration appeared upon Nian Tingfeng¡¯s face. Respectfully, he replied, "Yes."

    Madam Ye had a look of satisfaction. She looked at her subjects and said, "Not only should we publicize this great victory, we have to publicize the rewards for it as well. I want everyone to know that as long as a person is willing to fight on the battlefield, he or she will be rewarded greatly. The Elders Guild will not mistreat anyone. Anybat division that umtes enough meritorious service will be given a God-subduing Peak."

    It was at this moment that everyone realized what Madam Ye¡¯s intentions were. All of them clicked their tongues in admiration.

    At this moment, the ground suddenly shook and everyone was stunned.

    "It¡¯s a disgrace to associate myself with all of you!"

    The piercing voice was loud and clear.

    "It¡¯s Le Buleng." A frightened look appeared upon Nian Tingfeng¡¯s face.

    Following which, a white light shed across the sky. Soon after, everything returned to normal.

    Madam Ye¡¯s face turned ashen. She instructed Nian Tingfeng, "Go out and see what¡¯s going on."

    Nian Tingfeng disappeared instantly. After a while, he came back with a shocked look on his face. "Senior Le Buleng has gone to challenge Dai Gang."

    Madam Ye and the rest were astonished. Le Buleng had yet to be a Grandmaster. Was he trying to seek death by taking on Dai Gang single-handedly?

    At this moment, a person hurriedly ran into the hall and made a report.

    "Reporting to Mayor, the Dread Division is striking their camp and preparing to leave the city!

    Madam Ye stood up quickly.

 Chapter 518: Creditor And Boss

    Chapter 518: Creditor And Boss

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "... It has been proven that setting up fortifications on the battlefield beforehand and having an earth elemental master who specializes in construction are very advantageous for our defense. A battlefield that has been fortified beforehand provides a favorable position for our side during an intense battle. Furthermore, we can clearly identify the paths to take for counter-attacks. We can also foresee that Construction Master will be a new progression path for earth elementalists in the future. It might be a brand-new profession..."

    "... The Hellfire Pagoda Cannon is extremely powerful. It yed an important role during the battle. However, it has also be the main target for enemy forces. As such, it is necessary to deployyers of defense around a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon. Fatty¡¯s bombardment skills are admirable. He also has a suggestion regarding the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon. After discussing it, we feel that there is high chance for it to work. We will only know if it truly works when we return and ask Master He to try it out..."

    "... I am shocked by the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon¡¯s utility in battle. I have a feeling that it will greatly change the style of warfare in the future. I imagine that if we can equip a God-subduing Peak with Hellfire Pagoda Cannons, it will greatly increase the offensive power of the God-subduing Peak in theory. I have evene up with a few tactics for it. It¡¯s a pity I don¡¯t have a God-subduing Peak..."

    "... The enemy forces have very high adaptability. In thete stage of the battle, they were able to identify our weaknesses. Luckily, they didn¡¯t have many men left and couldn¡¯t break through our defensive line. At that point in time, the situation was extremely dangerous. Now that I think about it, I still feel scared. Currently, we are discussing how to resolve this issue. We have a few ideas so far, but we will only know whether or not they will work when we try them out in an actual battle..."

    Ai Hui read Iron Lady¡¯s letter very carefully.

    The letter was like a battle summary report. In the letter, she did not reminisce about their old times or write anything about missing him.

    Ai Hui was slightly in daze. He could imagine the battlefield scene in his mind.

    The beams of red light that erupted from the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons engulfed the enemy forces like floodwater. Ear-piercing screams, explosions, rising smoke, sttered mud that rained down from the sky, soldiers who were struck in the sky and resembled kites with broken strings...

    Looking down from the sky, the defensive line was like a tidal wave that was beingpressed. A blue and white armored girl was fighting at the forward position of the tidal wave with Cirrus in her hands.

    Without even asking, Ai Hui already knew where Iron Lady would be on the battlefield.

    She would always take the lead and appear at the most dangerous ce. This was something about her that Ai Hui admired a lot.

    To his surprise, the name she signed at the end of the letter was "Creditor."

    Ai Hui chuckled.

    He re-read the letter a few more times. After furrowing his eyebrows and pondering for a long while, he took out a piece of paper and wrote a letter of reply to Iron Lady.

    "... Like what you have said, weapons like pagoda cannons will y an important role in future warfare. As long as we have enough snowva, the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons will inflict heavy losses on the enemy forces. If we can equip God-subduing Peaks with Hellfire Pagoda Cannons, then these God-subduing Peaks will certainly be fortresses that fly in the sky. We will have to provide them with elementalists who specialize in aerial warfare and prevent the enemy forces from getting close to them. Like what you have said, warfare in this era is undergoing huge changes..."

    "... The idea of a Construction Master sounds great. You can consider involving wood elementalists as well. Wood elementalists specialize in creating disturbances such as poison attacks and illusions over arge area. If a wood elementalist could coborate with a Construction Master, they would produce outstanding results. By the way, Bangwan has gone into secluded training..."

    "... My condition has stabilized. The Sword of Lightning is gradually forming its offensive capabilities now..."

    After writing a lengthy letter, Ai Hui realized that if Iron Lady¡¯s letter was a battle summary report, then his reply letter would be a battle nning report.

    All right, replying to a report with a report.

    They certainly matched each other.

    At the end of the letter, Ai Hui solemnly penned "Boss."

    He felt pleased with himself. Didn¡¯t the Iron Lady know that the debtor is the boss of the creditor? What was so special about being a creditor?

    Yang Xiaodong looked on as Ai Hui rapidly finished writing the letter, solemnly folded it up, put it in an envelope, and passed it to him. At that moment, his facial expression became solemn as well. It appeared that the letter was very important.

    "When are you leaving?" Ai Hui asked.

    "Immediately," Yang Xiaodong replied.

    The great victory they had just achieved was a truly meaningful victory for the Avalon of Five Elements against the Blood of God. The enemy forces had a strong and solid foundation. The defeat of their vanguard division was not enough to fundamentally damage them. It would only enrage them instead.

    Their uing counter-attack would definitely be insane.

    Yang Xiaodong didn¡¯t like Ai Hui very much, but he respected Shi Xueman very deeply.

    "Bring more snowva with you before you leave," Ai Hui reminded Yang Xiaodong.

    "Okay." Yang Xiaodong nodded his head.

    He had witnessed the might of the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons with his own eyes and knew the importance of snowva. The uing battles would not be easy. Replenishment of snowva on the battlefield was a problem, so this was the best time to restock their supply.

    Things weren¡¯t like what they used to be in the past. Otherwise, a sandpass would solve all of their problems.

    Whether it was the sandpass or the message tree, both of them were built at the peak of the Avalon of Five Elements and nourished by generations of experts. The earth elemental energy in the ground blended together well without any barriers. The stable and powerful Avalon of Five Elements was like a plot of rich and fertile soil, while the sandpasses, message trees, and azure wings were the delicious fruits that grew on it.

    Nowadays, the plot of soil had be infertile and dry, and the trees and nts growing on it were withering. The glory of the past was lost.

    Many things that they were ustomed to had disappeared. These things included sandpasses, message trees, Three Leaves Bamboo Carts, etc.

    The journey was a long one. As such, Yang Xiaodong did not waste time, taking the snowva and departing immediately.

    When Ai Hui saw Yang Xiaodong¡¯s figure disappear into the horizon, a strong sense of urgency arose in Ai Hui¡¯s heart.

    .....

    Skyheart City.

    Everyone left their houses and stepped into the streets.

    The incident just now had rmed everyone. All of them were startled when they saw two groups of people standing across from each other on the street.

    The group with more people was the Surveince Division while the group with fewer people was the Dread Division. Was there internal strife among the three central divisions? Or were they plotting a rebellion? Why was there suddenly internal strife when they had just announced a great victory?

    Nian Tingfeng blocked Wan Shenwei¡¯s path. He was persuading Wan Shenwei patiently, "Le Buleng is crazy, don¡¯t tell me Boss Wan is crazy too? Acting rashly like this won¡¯t bring you any chance of victory. So what if all of the three central divisions enter the battlefield? Can we obtain victory? No, we can¡¯t..."

    "I know." Wan Shenwei nodded his head calmly.

    "If you know, why are you still doing this?" Nian Tingfeng asked angrily.

    Wan Shenwei replied inly, "Senior Le Buleng is right. It is everyone¡¯s responsibility to defend our country. However, we must be the first ones to do so. This is because the world has been providing for us for all these years and the others don¡¯t have such a luxury. If someone has to die, then it must be us first. We should be the ones who bleed first, before the rest can do so."

    Nian Tingfeng was speechless. After a while, he replied, "Do you think death will solve everything? The most important thing for us to do now is to win."

    "Who will win?" Wan Shenwei asked him back.

    "Everyone, the Avalon of Five Elements," Nian Tingfeng replied solemnly.

    "There is no more Avalon of Five Elements," Wan Shenwei sneered. "We can¡¯t represent everyone. The current Elders Guild can no longer represent everyone."

    "Then who will represent everyone? Dai Gang? So we should act like a sheet of loose sand, fight among ourselves, and be blood elementalists when we fail?" Nian Tingfeng mocked Wan Shenwei.

    "You¡¯re underestimating the heroes in the world. Heroes emerge in times of chaos," Wan Shenwei shook his head and replied.

    "You would rather ce your hope in those so-called heroes than the sessor who the Great Elder appointed?" Nian Tingfeng retorted disdainfully.

    "Yes. I don¡¯t agree with Ye Lin¡¯s conduct and deeds."

    Nian Tingfeng¡¯s facial expression turned ugly as he replied, "It¡¯s fine by me if someone else does not understand what she¡¯s doing. You don¡¯t know how rotten the current situation is. Madam has spent an immense amount of time and effort to reach the current stage. Do you know how stressed and tired she is..."

    "Precisely! The current situation is rotten!" Wan Shenwei interrupted him as a ze lit up in his eyes. "We need courage, not transactions or plots. If you and I don¡¯t want to die and everyone puts their own safety before everything else, then who will fight and defend our country? Even ordinarybat divisions should die before the citizens do, let alone the three central divisions. This is not about glory, but rather, fulfilling our duty."

    "Well said!"

    A piercing voice echoed through the air from the end of the street.

    Nian Tingfeng¡¯s eye pupils dted. It was Ximen Caijue!

    Wan Shenwei turned and saw Ximen Caijue, who looked like a small girl.

    "I didn¡¯t expect Boss Wan to be able to talk so eloquently," Ximen Caijue joked.

    "Now that I speak of it, I truly feel ashamed." Wan Shenwei¡¯s weathered face looked slightly flushed with shame.

    "We should be ashamed. The Judgement Division will be heading toward the battlefield with you as well." Ximen Caijue snorted, "Nian Tingfeng, the Ye family is evil. You better be careful to not be betrayed by Ye Lin."

    Nian Tingfeng¡¯s face turned extremely ugly. He had not expected the Judgement Division to butt in as well.

    "Let them go."

    Madam Ye¡¯s voice came from a distance. She was surrounded and protected by many guards. She looked imposing and dignified.

    Her gaze swept across the scene. With a deep voice, she said, "If you want to go, then go ahead. I will not stop you. However, there¡¯s something I want to rify. It¡¯s easy to die and difficult to live. If you stay alive, you will be wronged, your name will be tarnished, and you will be med. However, only by staying alive can you obtain a chance at victory. The three central divisions are the world¡¯s bestbat divisions. If the three central divisions are lost, we will no longer have the ability to make another one.

    Everyone remained speechless. Madam Ye¡¯s words made sense. A worried look appeared on many people¡¯s faces.

    "Excuses," Ximen Caijue sneered.

    With a dignified look on his face, Wan Shenwei looked directly at Madam Ye and said, "Madam can stay alive and pursue the victory you seek. The three central divisions might be able to protect Skyheart City, but what about Beyond Avalon? We can¡¯t. What about other cities? Should we not care about their lives? Madam¡¯s heart only cares about this small Skyheart City. The three central divisions belong to the entire Avalon of Five Elements, not just Skyheart City alone."

    When Wan Shenwei finished his sentence, he became disinterested in talking anymore. He then gave the order, "Set off."

    Everyone in the Dread Division echoed in unison, "Set off!"

    "Set off!" Ximen Caijue yelled at the top of her lungs.

    "Set off!" Everyone in the Judgement Division yelled in unison.

 Chapter 519: Grandmaster Daiâ€™s Decree

    Chapter 519: Grandmaster Dai¡¯s Decree

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The Lu family was the leading illustrious family in the Jadeite Forest. However,pared to other extravagant, high-profile, and prominent families, the Lu family was so low-profile that no one seemed to notice their existence. Whether it was Lu Chen or Lu Mingxiu, neither of them had done anything that was preposterous. Their strict and prudent family culture was praised by many people.

    The study room of the Lu family¡¯s patriarch was unusually simple and crude.

    The wooden nks that made up the floor were filled with traces of aging. They would produce creaks whenever someone walked on them. There were also a few wooden nks which had a different color from the rest. Clearly, these few wooden nks had been repaired before. Every wooden nk gave off a dark luster. One could clearly tell that they were often used and cleaned with utmost care.

    The four walls of the study room were filled with various books, looking extremely messy.

    Sunlight shone through the wooden fretwork window, leaving a nted, flower-shaped shadow on the wooden floor. The wooden fretwork window had a seven-leaf flower design. That was a Seven-leaf Flower. This kind of design used to be very popr when the Avalon of Five Elements was first established. It symbolized family harmony and prosperity.

    After about 100 years, this kind of design was gradually reced by newer and more beautiful designs. One could hardly see this kind of design in modern times.

    An elegant-looking man who was around 50 to 60 years old was fiddling with a loom in the corner of the room. It appeared that he had finished building the loom halfway through. The floor around him was filled with variousponents.

    Thud, thud, thud. Someone was knocking on the door.

    The man, whose forehead was dripping with perspiration, answered without raising his head, "Come in."

    The person who entered the room was Uncle She. He looked at the floor attentively. Uncle She was very familiar with the room itself. He knew which area of the floor had just been repaired and which area was broken. As such, he was very careful with where he ced his feet.

    Master repaired the floor of the study room by himself. He did not want anyone to interfere with it.

    As a servant, Uncle She was always mindful not to create any trouble for his master. This was part of his experience from being a servant for so many years.

    He quietly walked behind the man. When he saw the halfpleted loom, he smiled. "Master, you have said that you willplete it by tomorrow. It seems like things aren¡¯t going your way."

    "I guess I can¡¯tplete it!"

    The middle-aged man stood up from the ground. His body was covered in wood shavings, making him look like he was in a sorry state. He brushed off the dust and wood shavings from his body and took the wet towel Uncle She passed him. Then, he continued, "This Ai Hui is rather capable. The [Needle-subduing Peak] is very weird. There are a lot of areas which I don¡¯t understand. It¡¯s a pity that Mingxiu is such a stubborn girl. She just doesn¡¯t want to bring back the [Needle-subduing Peak] and let me study it."

    This middle-aged man was the patriarch of Lu family. He was also the father of Lu Mingxiu, Lu Zhian.

    No one had expected that the Lu family patriarch was trying to make a copy of the [Needle-subduing Peak].

    "It¡¯s not like you don¡¯t know Miss¡¯s temperament." Uncle She smiled.

    "That¡¯s true." Lu Zhian chuckled. "Usually, she might appear very smart. In reality, she is a very stubborn individual."

    After cleaning his hands, Lu Zhian threw the towel back to Uncle She and strode to his desk.

    He picked up the cup of cold tea on the desk and downed it. After feeling much cooler, he spoke again, "Yesterday, Lu Chen sent me a letter and requested for me to investigate the incident thoroughly. He is such an anxious boy. Tell me, how is the investigation?"

    "From the looks of it, there is a very high chance that it was Young Master Feng," Uncle She replied with a prudent voice.

    "Tell me everything that you have found."

    "Yes."

    "We caught a remaining member of the Grass Bandits. He was the archer who tried to assassinate Miss when she was ascending to the Master level. This fellow was very tight-lipped. No matter how we tortured him, he refused to say anything. However, Young Master Qiu eventually came up with a solution. He used a few herbs that were gathered from the depths of the Wilderness and made a [Soul-grabbing Pill]. With the help of the [Soul-grabbing Pill], we finally made that fellow talk."

    "Mingqiu, this boy... He doesn¡¯t evene to our house when he returns! I have doted on him in vain!" Lu Zhian was unhappy.

    "In Young Master Qiu¡¯s eyes, Master¡¯s house pales inparison to Miss¡¯s embroidery workshop." Uncle Sheughed.

    "That¡¯s true!" Lu Zhian burst into aughter.

    Suddenly, he stoppedughing and asked, "Mingqiu didn¡¯t visit his teacher?"

    "No, he did not." Uncle She looked at his master and shook his head.

    Lu Zhian furrowed his eyebrows and sighed, "Forget it, I don¡¯t want to interfere in their business. Continue."

    Uncle She nced at his master and said an earth-shattering sentence, "Young Master Feng is interested in Miss."

    "Continue," Lu Zhian¡¯s facial expression did not change.

    "From the mouth of that Grass Bandit member, the Grass Bandits had received a huge business deal. The other party offered them a huge sum of money to attack Asakusa City and kidnap Miss. ording to the original n, the other party would even pay an extra sum of money to buy Miss. The Grass Bandits greatly valued this business deal. Furthermore, they have always hated the Lu family, so they set their hearts on this mission. Because they were worried that news of their n might be leaked, they sent a batch of vanguards to kill everyone along their path. Unexpectedly, they encountered Master Ai and were killed by him instead."

    Lu Zhian¡¯s facial expression was as calm as water. One could not tell what he was feeling.

    Uncle She kept his tone calm and tried not to add any emotions to it. "At that time, Young Master Feng¡¯s Fiery Floating Cloud was heading toward Asakusa City. Looking at the time frame of the events, if the Grass Bandits really attacked Asakusa City ording to their n, Young Master Feng¡¯s Fiery Floating Cloud would have reached Asakusa City in the heat of the battle. I have intentionally sent some people to ask a few members of the Grass Bandits to understand the situation. They have verified that Young Master Feng arranged a huge number of training sessions on sieging a city, attacking a city, and saving a hostage. Some of the training sessions also included familiarizing themselves with the city n of Asakusa City. He also taught them some special battle tactics. After we showed these battle tactics to that remaining member from the Grass Bandits, he was extremely shocked. However, from the contents of the training sessions, I can see that Young Master Feng did not have any intention of hurting Miss."

    Lu Zhian nodded his head and eximed in admiration, "Lu Feng has done a rather good job foring up with such a meticulous n. If it was not for Ai Hui¡¯s idental interference, his n had a high chance of seeding. Mingxiu had been away from home for many years, and her rtionship with Lu Feng had be estranged. Even though the method of ying hero to save the beauty is old-fashioned, it¡¯s still very effective. At that point in time, Yu Mingqiu was nowhere to be found, so he managed to find an excuse to get close to Mingxiu."

    Uncle She did not dare to make any judgementalments. He continued, "As for Zheng Xiaoman, she was offered a chance to seek revenge when a mysterious fellow approached her one day. The internal department of the Grass Bandits strongly objected to this matter. However, Zheng Xiaoman insisted on seeking revenge. No one could stop her. Her subordinates did not understand why Young Master Feng wanted to deal with Master Ai."

    "Jealousy is a toxic poison. Have you ever seen Mingxiu treating someone so good? Lu Feng was raised as an adopted son. He might look very strong and determined, but in reality, he has an inferiorityplex and is a very sensitive individual. He is nothing like Mingxiu. Meanwhile, Lu Chen is a carefree and simple man. As for Mingxiu, she is an iron fist in a velvet glove. She handles things logically and reasonably. How I wish she was a man!" Lu Zhian said calmly.

    "She¡¯s just like you," Uncle She replied.

    "Your tteryes just at the right time!" Lu Zhian burst outughing.

    Uncle She grinned.

    Lu Zhian withdrew his smile and sighed. "How would I not know Lu Feng¡¯s shorings? However, who else is more ambitious than him in this residence? Lu Chen is a carefree and simple man who doesn¡¯t care about fame. Mingxiu put her heart and soul into embroidery. She treats her junior better than her father. Lu Feng is too anxious. If he did things step-by-step and let nature take its course, wouldn¡¯t the Lu residence be in his hands sooner orter? Anyway, no matter how strong Mingxiu¡¯s future husband is, he can¡¯t be someone who has the surname Lu!"

    Uncle She did not dare to say anything. He listened to Lu Zhian respectfully.

    "As for Ai Hui¡¯s message that he asked you to pass to me, even though I know he cares for Mingxiu and it¡¯s reasonable for him to say those words, he is still somewhat arrogant. However, I now know that I was wrong. The bloody words on the wooden board in Lemon Camping Ground have yet to dry. Who in this world dares to underestimate? The Central Pine Valley has a hidden tiger."

    "I have just received news of the great victory for Beyond Avalon at the front line. Even though Skyheart Citymended the threebat divisions as a whole, Shi Xueman¡¯s Spear of Heavy Cloud was really the key to that victory. The Central Pine Faction is well-established and has a huge number of talents. I am more than happy that Mingxiu is from the Central Pine Faction. Therefore, why would I want to risk having a conflict with the Central Pine Faction?" Lu Zhian muttered.

    "Mingqiu is back. No matter how estranged his rtionship with Grandmaster Dai is, he is still Grandmaster Dai¡¯s disciple. How would it be possible for Mingqiu to put up with the fact that someone is targeting Mingxiu?"

    Lu Zhian sighed with sorrow as a tinge of sadness appeared in his eyes. "Being too anxious is hurting Lu Feng. Everyone who is involved in this incident is not someone he can provoke!"

    Uncle She sighed in his heart as well. No one understood more than him about how much hope Master had ced in Lu Feng. Master had spent a lot of time and effort nurturing Lu Feng.

    Lu Zhian¡¯s facial expression returned to normal as he continued, "Hand Lu Feng over to Lu Chen. After all, Lu Feng is Grandmaster Dai¡¯s disciple-in-name. We can¡¯t handle him anyhow. Let them resolve their matter by themselves.

    "Yes," Uncl

    She replied respectfully.

    Just as he was about to leave, someone knocked on the door.

    "Master, Sir Hai Qing wants to seek an audi ence with you," a guard outside the door reported.

    A glint shed across Lu Zhian¡¯s eyes as he opened the door and walked out of the room.

    There was a middle-aged man standing by himself at the bottom of the flight of stairs. When that middle-aged man heard the sound of the door being opened, he turned around.

    As Lu Zhian walked down the stairs, his face beamed with smiles. "Rare guest, rare guest... It has been a very long time since Sir Hai Qing visited my humble abode. Come in,e in. This time around, we have to reminisce about the good old times."

    As usual, Hai Qing did not smile. He bowed and replied, "Nice to see you, Patriarch! I am afraid we can only reminisce about the old times next time around. I am here to pass you a message from Grandmaster Dai."

    Lu Zhian respectfully bowed in return and replied, "Feel free to tell me the message, Sir."

    "Grandmaster Dai said that even though Lu Feng has done something wrong, brothers should not argue with each other, let alone injure each other. Lu Feng will be stripped of his position as the division leader of the Deathgrass Division. He will be punished by entering the Grass Hollow for the three years. Whether he lives or dies, it will have to depend on his luck," Hai Qing said with a deep voice.

    "I will obey as Grandmaster Dai has decreed!" Lu Zhian replied respectfully.

    .....

    Mingxiu Embroidery Workshop.

    Yu Mingqiu looked at the man in the mirror. The stubble that had covered his face was nowpletely shaved, and his long hair was tied up using a red string once more. He looked invigorated now.

    The traces of aging on his face had disappeared. He seemed to be looking at a reflection of himself from the past. A self who had existed five to six years ago.

    What would have be of him if the blood catastrophe and everything else after had not happened?

    Heughed at himself and shook his head, throwing these distracting thoughts out of his head. When he thought of the fact that he could live in the embroidery workshop, he became extremely excited, and his entire body was filled with vigor even though he was staying under the pretense of protecting Mingxiu.

    The enchanting image of a beautiful girl was so close to him. The absolutely empty room in his heart was sprinkled with sunshine at this point in time.

    After straightening his cor, Yu Mingqiu walked out of his room with a radiant smile on his face.

    What should he say when he saw Mingxiuter?

    ...

    His skills were slightly rusty...

    .....

    Hai Qing set foot upon the street after leaving the Lu residence.

    No one on the street took notice of him. No one knew that this grumpy-looking man who had no guards around him was actually the butler of the entire Jadeite Forest.

    After he walked through the street and made a turn, he arrived at the doorstep of an embroidery workshop. He raised his head and looked at the signboard. On the signboard, there were three words written in ink: "Mingxiu Embroidery Workshop." The handwriting was unusually graceful.

    Hai Qing, who seldomly smiled, had a subtle smile on his face. Soon after, the smile disappeared.

    He was all too familiar with Lu Chen¡¯s handwriting.

    Just as he opened the door and was about to enter the workshop, a familiar voice resounded through the air.

    "The whole year must be nned for in the spring. The whole day must be nned for in the morning. The early bird catches the worm... Hehe... Mingxiu, good morning!"

    Hai Qing thought he saw a witty-looking young man with a pair of beady eyes and his hair tied up by a red string who was swaying his head while reciting a poem.

    He could not help but smile. However, why was he sighing in his heart?

    As Hai Qing set foot inside the workshop, a familiar view of a back appeared in his eyes. He was still the same...

    Hai Qing set his gaze on Yu Mingqiu¡¯s back for a few seconds before withdrawing it.

    A lot of things had changed.

    When Yu Mingqiu saw who the visitor was, the smile on his face disappeared.

    Hai Qing said emotionlessly, "Xiao Qiu, long time no see. Grandmaster Dai has invited you to his residence."

 Chapter 520: Panda Mummy

    Chapter 520: Panda Mummy

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes were tightly closed like a door. Behind the door, there was a world that had a great, ongoing snowstorm. Green snowkes danced and fluttered in the air. Every snowke was a viridescent flower. All of them were shaped differently, possessing a myriad of forms.

    He was immersed in this pure, yet richly colorful, world.

    The glowing pattern beneath his body changed its shape silently once more.

    The nine hundred and sixtieth type of [Viridescent Flower].

    .....

    A breathless roar resounded through the air from the other side of the valley.

    "Unity? Why not call it Transcendence?"

    "It has been so many years, no one will care if it¡¯s called Transcendence."

    "Can¡¯t he use his brain? With the name of "Transcendence" alone, we can increase the selling price of each sword by three times!"

    ...

    No one cared about the air-dried mummy who was jumping up and down in rage. Everyone cared about their reputation. Stealing the name of an ancient sword wasn¡¯t something that an ordinary individual would do.

    "Boss, are you going to train with us?" Gu Xuan asked bluntly.

    Ai Hui shut his mouth.

    Nowadays, his body was bing weaker and weaker. Whenever he walked, he felt as if he was floating. In the beginning, he was still able to use the [Imbuement of Sword Cloud] to suppress Gu Xuan and the rest. However, very soon, everyone saw through Ai Hui. They knew he was strong on the outside, but weak on the inside. Every training session consumed the lightning in the sword cloud. Right now, the sword cloud within Ai Hui¡¯s body allowed him to execute only 10 sword moves.

    For Gu Xuan and the rest, unleashing 10 sword moves in a row was no longer an issue for them.

    An old fox like Gu Xuan naturally would not go head-to-head with Ai Hui. A simple sentence like that was enough to put him down in one shot. Of course, he also did not dare to really provoke Ai Hui. A few days ago, Ai Hui had just taught them a lesson. Even though Ai Hui might appear weak and delicate, he became apletely different person the moment he touched his sword hilt. Within 15 seconds, he brought them to their knees.

    15 seconds!

    He ttened everyone!

    The sword Ai Hui used was [Edgeless Sword], which usually didn¡¯t give off any sword rays. However, at that moment, it released an earth-shattering sword ray that flooded all of them like an angry tidal wave copsing against a reef.

    No one could see Ai Hui¡¯s sword ray clearly.

    The sword ray sent Gu Xuan flying for more than 40 meters and caused him to lie on the ground for nearly half a day. He only regained his senses when Lou Lan fed him some elemental soup.

    After that incident, everyone became obedient once more. However, an old fox like Gu Xuan naturally would not lose his courage just because of a single failure. Very soon, he tried to test the waters again.

    Ai Hui gave a humph. He looked as if he could not be bothered with them, but in reality he was mentally noting down their names. He would teach them a lesson one by one in the future.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui raised his head and looked in another direction.

    Someone was flying toward them.

    Everyone, who wasughing and joking previously, became silent immediately. A vignt look appeared on all of their faces.

    "Nevermind, it¡¯s a friend." Ai Hui waved his hand.

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s words, everyone loosened up. However, they did not have the mood to fool around anymore and continued their training.

    Very soon, a familiar figure descended from the sky. It was Mu Lei, who had left not too long ago.

    When Ai Hui saw that it was Mu Lei, he was very surprised. However, his facial expression had already returned to normal by this point in time. He smiled and asked, "What wind blows our Master Mu here?"

    When Mu Lei saw Ai Hui¡¯s appearance, he was startled.

    Ai Hui¡¯s entire body was wrapped up with white bandages. Initially, his eyes could still be seen. Now, his eyes were covered with two ck circr crystal chips, making him look extremely weird.

    Not much time had passed since hest left this ce. However, Ai Hui appeared to be a few times skinnier than before, resembling an air-dried mummy. Wearing the two ck crystal chips made him like a panda mummy.

    Mu Lei could not help but ask curiously, "Are you eyes injured?"

    Ai Hui blinked his eyes and a red glint shed across the ck crystal chips. "Somewhat."

    Mu Lei felt as if he hade across this scene somewhere before...

    The ck crystal chips were made by Lou Lan using a fire elemental crystal. They could protect Ai Hui¡¯s eyes from the ring sunlight. After Ai Hui tried wearing them and realized that they were quite effective andfortable, he had not taken them off since. Lou Lan¡¯s workmanship was exceptional. As for the fact that he had transformed into a panda mummy from a regr mummy, a pragmatic fellow like him did not care about it at all.

    Mu Lei was a very sharp individual. When he saw that Ai Hui did not want borate, he did not ask him any more questions.

    Mu Lei carefully removed a metal box from his back. The metal box was exquisitely made with countless fine decorative designs engraved on it.

    "These are the Vitality Branches that Mingxiu requested for me to deliver to you."

    As Mu Lei spoke, he meticulously opened the metal box. Three metallic branches were ced within it.

    Upon sessfully making the delivery, Mu Lei heaved a sigh of relief. Actually, he was the one who volunteered to make the delivery this time around. He felt extremely guilty for the previous incident with the Night Moth Fruit. He felt that he had not handled the situation well.

    Without being encumbered by a convoy, Mu Lei, who was a Master, was able to travel day and night to deliver the Vitality Branches within a short period of time.

    "Vitality Branches?" Ai Hui¡¯s tone was filled with curiosity and surprise.

    He walked over to the metallic branches and squatted down. He could sense a faintly discernible auraing from the three metallic branches. This aura was very unique, calm, and profound. It appeared as if it had drifted over from a very far ce.

    "Vitality Branches are Master Lu¡¯s most famous work! They contain a trace of the most primordial life force. As long as you¡¯re not dead, it will pull you back from the gates of hell." Mu Lei¡¯s voice had a tinge of sincere respect for them.

    "Really?" Ai Hui¡¯s tone was filled with doubt.

    Mu Lei¡¯s neck thickened and flushed as he widened his eyes. With an unfriendly tone, he replied, "Of course! Humph, if it weren¡¯t for the fact that Master Lu dotes on Miss Mingxiu, he wouldn¡¯t have taken out these Vitality Branches for you. Moreover, he gave you three!"

    Back in the day, Mu Lei¡¯s life was saved by Lu Chen, so he was very grateful to him. Therefore, when he heard Ai Hui¡¯s doubt, Mu Lei was very unhappy.

    "So they are very expensive?"

    Mu Lei regained hisposure. Still feeling slightly unhappy, he could not help but sneer, "Expensive? Since when can Vitality Branches be bought with money? They are priceless. Even Grandmaster Dai acimed them as priceless treasures."

    Upon hearing these words, Ai Hui beamed with happiness. "Senior Mingxiu is the best!"

    After a while, Ai Hui asked again, "How do I use them?"

    Mu Lei was momentarily stunned before answering Ai Hui, "I¡¯m not sure, I have never used them before."

    Ai Hui felt vexed. Suddenly, an idea hit him,and he yelled at the top of his lungs, "Lou Lan! Lou Lan!"

    A shadowy streak sped toward Ai Hui and stopped in front of him. Cheerfully, Lou Lan said, "Lou Lan is here! Ai Hui, how can I help you?"

    Ai Hui pointed at the metal chest and instructed Lou Lan, "Lou Lan, study the uses of these Vitality Branches."

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered with a red glow. He was very surprised. "Vitality Branches?"

    Mu Lei finally understood why he found this scene with Ai Hui so familiar just now.

    "Has Lou Lan heard of it before?" Ai Hui asked.

    "Yes, Ai Hui. Vitality Branches are the most impressive creation of the White-robed Divine Physician, Lu Chen. He created Vitality Branches by treating the wood element as the spirit and the metal, water, fire, and earth elements as the soul. Every Vitality Branch contains a trace of the most primordial life force," Lou Lan exined.

    "I shall hand them over to you then." Ai Hui felt greatly relieved when he heard Lou Lan¡¯s words.

    "No problem, Ai Hui!" Lou Lan replied cheerfully.

    Mu Lei stared nkly at Ai Hui and Lou Lan. He could not believe that Ai Hui would leave a priceless treasure like the Vitality Branches for a sand puppet to study.

    Didn¡¯t Ai Hui know how many people were willing to pay any price to obtain a single Vitality Branch? Didn¡¯t Ai Hui know how hard he had restrained himself from the temptation of the Vitality Branches on the way here?

    "When is Master Mu leaving?" A red glint shed across Ai Hui¡¯s ck crystal chips.

    Mu Lei almost choked on his saliva. He had just arrived, hadn¡¯t drunk a sip of water, and Ai Hui was already chasing him away?

    Initially, he also wanted to leave right after he had delivered the Vitality Branches. At this moment, he changed his mind. "I will leave after you have used the Vitality Branches. Vitality Branches have a well-known reputation and I haven¡¯t seen how magical they are before. It won¡¯t be troublesome for you, right?"

    "It¡¯s not troublesome at all, Master Mu. You can help yourself then. I have something to tend to."

    Ai Hui hurriedly left after he finished his sentence.

    Mu Lei was bewildered. Was Ai Hui really that busy? As a Master, Mu Lei was treated with respect in every city. This was the first time he was being ignored.

    Ai Hui was busy with what?

    Feeling slightly curious, Mu Lei followed him. Lou Lan, Gu Xuan, and the rest did not try to stop him.

    Ai Hui was indeed very busy. He was engulfed by an air of urgency.

    Stabilizing the condition of his injury was a good start. He was slowly tapping into the power of the sword cloud. From the look of it, there were still many side effects. The growth of the sword cloud was neither fast nor slow. However, in such a desperate situation, Ai Hui felt extremely anxious. There was nothing he could do to speed up the process. Right now, the area of the clouds he could absorb could not exceed 600 square .meters.

    Otherwise, the lightning he triggered would exceed the limit that his body could endure.

    His body could not withstand another injury.

    He could only restrain the anxiousness within him and do everything step-by-step.

    Surprisingly, the training level of the Sword of Lightning¡¯s members exceeded his expectations. Blind He¡¯s Unity Swords had doubled everyone¡¯s strength.

    Other than strengthening the sword cloud, there was another problem that urgently needed to be resolved by Ai Hui.

    How could he make the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda fly?

    Initially, Ai Hui wanted to use the Northern Underworld King Tree to power it. However, he had used the tree to heal his injuries and almost all of its leaves had been plucked off. It no longer possessed the ability to power the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda.

    Certainly, if he wanted the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda to fly, he would have to fill it with a surging power.

    Power, not elemental energy.

    Nowadays, the price of obtaining elemental energy was surging higher and higher. Due to the characteristics of the Northern Underworld King Tree, Ai Hui felt that it had the potential of being a power source for the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda.

    Unlike the rich and imposing Elders Guild, Ai Hui could not build God-subduing Peaks.

    Every God-subduing Peak possessed all five elements and formed a five elemental cycle. Each God-subduing Peak was made up of countless precious materials and its production cost was extremely expensive. In other people¡¯s eyes, a God-subduing Peak was unusually mysterious. In Ai Hui¡¯s eyes, however, there was nothing mysterious about it. A God-subduing Peak did not consume just one type of elemental energy. Instead, it consumed a power that was formed by the five elemental cycle.

    This was the greatest secret of the God-subduing Peak.

    Wang Shouchuan had mentioned it in his theories, but it had not been exined. Actually, Ai Hui was very impressed that the Elders Guild could study his teacher¡¯s theories to such an extent.

    When the five types of elemental energy formed aplete cycle and the cycle attained a level of equilibrium, it would automatically operate perpetually.

    The power released by the five elemental cycle was called the Cyclical Force of Five Elements.

    However, it was not easy for the cycle to attain equilibrium. No one had any idea on how to use the Cyclical Force of Five Elements either. Most people found that using just one type of elemental energy was more than enough. There wasn¡¯t an urgent demand for people to find a higher form of power yet.

    It was only when the terrifying blood poison swept across the Avalon of Five Elements that people realized how weak and delicate a particr type of elemental energy was when used on its own against blood spiritual force.

    The prominent rise of Wang Shouchuan¡¯s theories and the discovery of elemental traces changed everything.

    This gave birth to a superweapon like the God-subduing Peaks.

    Ai Hui did not have the money or resources to build a God-subduing Peak, but he hade up with other ideas.

    This was because his teacher was named Wang Shouchuan.

 Chapter 521: Blank Wooden Tablet

    Chapter 521: nk Wooden Tablet

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    The lofty pce in front was surrounded by thriving vegetation, full of vitality. Green radishes cascaded down the pce walls like a waterfall. Only through cracks could one see the exquisite white jade patterns and the auspicious motif on the wall, carefully carved by a master craftsman. An unusual fragrance pervaded the air. It wasplicated, yet mild and difficult to deliberately detect, but heart-piercing when unintentionally discovered. Even brilliant wood elementalists weren¡¯t able to identify the types of fresh flowers found in this fragrance in a short period of time.

    Standing before the pce, Yu Mingqiu was slightly absent-minded.

    The dense wood elemental energy surged like the sea, and it was as if Yu Mingqiu was standing opposite from and facing an oceanic sheet of a wood elemental energy.

    Looking at it surge and overflow soundlessly. Looking at the calm waves and its stillness.

    He extended his gaze toward the sky and the surging wood elemental energy gathered, approaching from all directions like worshipping believers.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s heart leapt. Exactly how much wood elemental energy is needed to form this oceanic sheet of wood elemental energy?

    Suddenly, he wondered if that small courtyard in which his teacher had be a Grandmaster had been reduced to dust.

    Hai Qing did not disturb Yu Mingqiu. He stood before the pce gate and waited quietly.

    Grandmasters did not need guards. Usually, other than Dai Gang and Hai Qing, there were only a few apanying servants, so it was very quiet.

    Yu Mingqiu regained his senses. "Sorry, Hai Qing. My wind wandered."

    Hai Qing responded faintly, "No matter."

    Yu Mingqiu followed behind Hai Qing and walked toward the pce, receiving bows from female servants along the way. They looked curiously at Yu Mingqiu. This face was very foreign to them.

    "What¡¯s the name of the pce?"

    "Pce of Origin."

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s footsteps became slightly sluggish, his heart indescribably shaken up.

    Power of Origin, beyond elemental energy!

    Grandmasters were still unable to break away from the elemental energy framework. Was Teacher trying to detach himself from his Grandmaster level?

    Indeed, there were none above Grandmasters. Under the current elemental energy system, Grandmasters were the limit. To surpass Grandmasters, one would have to break free from these shackles.

    What would be the realm beyond elemental energy like?

    Yu Mingqiu pondered absentmindedly.

    Hai Qing, who was leading the way, exined, "This pce was jointly built by a few families, the Lu Residence included, as a gift to Grandmaster Dai."

    Yu Mingqiumented casually, "Quite beautiful."

    The winding pavilion corridor, rockery, and moon gate were beautifully arranged. Koi fish were frolicking in the pond, and there were all kinds of vegetation, many of which Yu Mingqiu couldn¡¯t recognize. He¡¯d also seen some of them in the Wilderness.

    The enormous pce was like a myriad nt garden.

    His field of view suddenly opened up on a small, undting hill. The grass was like a nket, clean and simple. There was also a small, lone courtyard located on the hill.

    Unknowingly, Yu Mingqiu¡¯s eyes turned moist.

    "Grandmaster Dai feels morefortable living in his own little courtyard, so it¡¯s been moved over."

    Hai Qing¡¯s voice sounded, as if from the high and faraway clouds.

    Upon seeing Dai Gang, Yu Mingqiu observed that time hadn¡¯t taken its toll on the middle aged man. He sat before the tea table, looking at Yu Mingqiu with a slight smile.

    "Wee back, Xiao Qiu."

    Yu Mingqiu felt calm at this point. He greeted expressionlessly, "Teacher."

    "Sit. I haven¡¯t heard anything about you for a few years and have been very worried."

    Dai Gang¡¯s words warmed Yu Mingqiu¡¯s heart. He kept silent, loosened the big bow on his back, and sat opposite his teacher.

    Hai Qing had already left quietly.

    Dai Gang poured a cup of tea for Yu Mingqiu and smiled. "It seems like you haven¡¯t been suffering for nothing. So much more robust. I¡¯ve been to the deeper parts of the Wilderness and suffered quite a lot too. That¡¯s a good ce to toughen somebody up."

    Yu Mingqiu did not respond as he knew not what to say.

    Dai Gang eyed the bow beside Yu Mingqiu and said, "Let Teacher have a look."

    Yu Mingqiu grabbed it and handed it over to his teacher.

    Dai Gang held it and stood up, pulling it in a rxed manner. He praised, "Good bow! Is it made from divine cypress? I¡¯ve seen a divine cypress tree in the Wilderness. Its crown was lush, and its core sturdy and resistant to sword shes. I¡¯d thought of plucking a few branches to bring back for refining weapons, but encountered a strong enemy and was fully upied."

    The bow¡¯s body was in and simple. It looked like it was made by carving a stick that was as thick as a wrist with a knife. The bowstring was a white beast tendon that was stretched taut.

    Dai Gang was considered a tall man, but this bow was a head taller than him.

    Yu Mingqiu replied, "Divine cypress."

    Dai Gangmented, "The bowstring is a little weak. The silver-ringed glue is unable to bring out the might of the divine cypress. Good bow. While it¡¯s not on par with Blue Dome of Heaven, it has a lot of room for growth. Plus, you refined it yourself, so it¡¯s linked to your life force and can surpass Blue Dome of Heaven in future. Where¡¯s Blue Dome of Heaven?"

    Yu Mingqiu answered, "Damaged in battle."

    Blue Dome of Heaven, personally forged by Dai Gang, was a weapon gifted to Yu Mingqiu. The material he¡¯d used were extraordinary; the three branches and green vines were objects that had been while he was undergoing the breakthrough to be a Grandmaster.

    Blue Dome of Heaven rose to fame immediately uponpletion.

    Dai Gong put the bow aside and sat down before saying, "Look, with destructiones construction. The world is mostly like that."

    Yu Mingqiu sped the teacup, not saying a word.

    Dai Gang looked at him. "When the blood catastrophe first erupted, I was convinced that the Elders Guild would not be able to reverse the situation. It¡¯s the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯s fate."

    Yu Mingqiu put his teacup down and responded expressionlessly, "Fate is determined by the heavens and not man."

    Dai Gang chuckled. He wasn¡¯t angry. "Xiao Qiu, do you think An Muda would¡¯ve agreed if I proposed for him and I to take over the Elders Guild?"

    Yu Mingqiu was stunned. This was a question he hadn¡¯t thought about. After some serious thought, he felt that An Muda would¡¯ve most likely agreed.

    Dai Gang continued faintly, "Outsiders aren¡¯t aware that I ever paid An Muda a visit. They¡¯re clueless about the fact that An Muda had asked if I was willing to take over."

    Yu Mingqiu was thoroughly shocked.

    "And I rejected him."

    Yu Mingqiu jerked his head up. "Why?"

    Dai Gang replied calmly, "I asked myself if I was able to save the Avalon of Five Elements and the answer was no."

    "No?"

    "Correct, I can¡¯t. Can I eliminate the conflict between the new citizens and aristocratic families? No. The Elders Guild was already rotten. It was no longer a matter of killing one or two people, so was I going to kill all of them? An Muda wouldn¡¯t have agreed either. Can this bunch of fellows, each with their own ulterior motive, take the Holy Emperor down? I don¡¯t think so. The Elders Guild was doomed to fail. An Muda wouldn¡¯t have been able to save it. I wouldn¡¯t have been able to save it."

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s eyes were bright and shiny as he looked straight into Dai Gang¡¯s eyes. "Then why make the Jadeite Forest independent?"

    "Because I can save it." Dai Gang smiled. "An Muda regarded the Avalon as home, so naturally he was willing to sacrifice everything for it. I¡¯m different. What has the Avalon got to do with me? Chen¡¯er, you, and Huanghun are all in the Jadeite Forest. I can protect it, protect everyone, and that¡¯s enough for me. What do other people have to do with me? Plus, I didn¡¯t want to fail and worry about failing."

    "But..."

    Yu Mingqiu opened his mouth, but knew not what to say.

    "I know you want to say that themon people are innocent. You¡¯re different from your senior. He¡¯s benevolent, yearns for a simple life, and works hard for it. You, on the other hand, are stubborn and obstreperous. You attach great importance on camaraderie and being chivalrous and heroic, but you must understand where youe from, where you¡¯re heading to, and who your rtives, friends, and enemies are. You must be clear that you, your senior¡¯s Lu residence, and your junior¡¯s Duanmu household are all from the Jadeite Forest."

    "There are so many things in this world to feel helpless about. Are you able to deal with all of them? Even if you¡¯re a Grandmaster, your ability is limited when faced with the powerful influences. The pain you¡¯ve suffered is negligible." Dai Gang gave Yu Mingqiu a meaningful look. "If you want to do more, focus on getting stronger. The stronger you are, the better the world will understand your pain and suffering."

    Yu Mingqiu kept quiet. He had something different in mind, but did not know how to refute.

    "Your senior is here."

    A knock on the door sounded immediately after. Lu Chen¡¯s voice came from outside. "Teacher."

    "Come in."

    Yu Mingqiu was very surprised by his senior¡¯s appearance. He felt the trace of a distinct aura when Lu Chen walked in. He didn¡¯t look too well and was also very surprised to see Yu Mingqiu. "Xiao Qiu¡¯s here too."

    Yu Mingqiu hurriedly greeted, "Senior!"

    Lu Chen sat down and got right to the point, "Why are you protecting Lu Feng, Teacher?"

    Hearing this name, Yu Mingqiu turned serious, while the word "protecting" turned his expression ugly.

    He¡¯d been involved in investigating who was plotting against Ai Hui and Mingxiu.

    Seeing his disciples¡¯ expressions, Dai Gang sighed. "Follow me in."

    After that, he walked toward the study room.

    Lu Chen and Yu Mingqiu made eye contact and saw the surprise in each other¡¯s faces. Teacher had never allowed anyone into his study room. Not them and not Qing Hai.

    They¡¯d been following Teacher for so many years, but hadn¡¯t been allowed to enter.

    They were rather curious. Lu Feng was merely a disciple in name, so why was he worth making a fuss over?

    It couldn¡¯t be said that Teacher was unfeeling, but he definitely wasn¡¯t someone to ce an importance on rtionships.

    The study room was solemn and dim. Candles were lit in all four corners, with some high up and some below. The candle mes swayed gently. There weren¡¯t shelves full of books or luxurious objects. There was a mat woven from reeds and a faintly green, long-necked vase with a budding plum blossom in it. Overall, it was a simple and unadorned study room.

    Nheless, Lu Chen and Yu Mingqiu¡¯s gaze were fixed on the wall.

    Seven sandalwood tablets hung on the wall in a row.

    The second wooden tablet had two words on it: "Lu Chen."

    The third wooden tablet had two words on it: "Yu Mingqiu."

    At the end of the row, in order, were the words "Duanmu Huanghun,""Quan Minglong," and "Lu Feng."

    The duo¡¯s gaze converged on the first wooden tablet. There were no words on it.

    "You two have a senior."

    Although they somewhat had a vague feeling about this, Lu Chen and Yu Mingqiu were still greatly shaken upon hearing it with their own ears!

    They¡¯d been following their teacher around since they were young and had never been aware that they actually had a senior.

    This was especially the case for Lu Chen. All along, he¡¯d believed himself to be the eldest. Who knew he actually had a senior.

    Dai Gang¡¯s gaze fell upon that nk wooden tablet.

    Still processing this sudden news, Yu Mingqiu nced at his teacher out of the corner of his eyes and was startled.

    He actually saw grief in his teacher¡¯s eyes.

    In his mind, Teacher was like a god, always smiling.

    He¡¯d never seen sorrow or the like on his teacher¡¯s face before today.

    "I don¡¯t care about the hostility between you guys. I will absolutely not allow my disciples and students to attack one another.

    Dai Gang¡¯s tone was calm, but unyielding. Disobedience was intolerable.

    Like a god¡¯s decree.

 Chapter 522: Pinwheel Sword

    Chapter 522: Pinwheel Sword

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Seeing the word "Boss" at the end, Ai Hui¡¯s rascally face emerged in Shi Xueman¡¯s mind. A smile blossomed on her face, but vanished almost instantly.

    She quickly diverted her attention and pondered over the words in Ai Hui¡¯s letter. Although there were certain parts she couldn¡¯t quite understand, she believed in Ai Hui¡¯s talent and foresight when it came tobat. She hadplete confidence in him.

    To her, Ai Hui was simply a genius born to battle. He had a beast-like instinct, extraordinary perception, and was extremely brave and firm.

    Silver Solder and Karakorum Pris walked over.

    Silver Soldier handed a battle report over to her and said in a ratherplicated toned, "There¡¯s been some changes. This is a news report sent over by the Surveince Division."

    Shi Xueman took the report and read it carefully.

    "... an old man is dead in the enemy country, a lone girl is fighting at the front line, new soldiers are defending our territory..."

    Senior Le Buleng really wasn¡¯t afraid to rebuke. How satisfying. Shi Xueman felt herself letting out a long held breath. It was very liberating.

    She returned the report to Silver Soldier, looking straight at him. "What do you mean?"

    Silver Soldier said honestly, "We¡¯re here to discuss this matter. If it turns out to be true, do we still need to take this risk? We only have to wait for a while and we will have three God-subduing Peaks. We can also fight alongside the Judgment and Dread divisions. Capabilities on both sides will undergo fundamental changes."

    Ai Hui¡¯s words floated into her mind unknowingly.

    "... do not listen to others¡¯mands..."

    "... do not get involved in fights, maintain flexibility..."

    She responded straightforwardly, "I disagree. It is true that our power will increase, but there won¡¯t be a fundamental reversal. The enemy, too, is vignt and on guard, so we won¡¯t catch them by surprise. Now that Ye Baiyi is stitose, we must use this time to eliminate all of their forces. Otherwise, the retreating army will confront us and we will be dragged into a deadlocked battle. Our army isn¡¯t as strong as the enemy¡¯s, so the moment we get dragged into a deadlocked battle, we will sink into a disadvantageous situation."

    Silver Soldier was now clear-headed. He inhaled a deep breath. "You¡¯re right."

    He was rmed by the good news in the battle report. Not only was there a strongbat weapon like the God-subduing Peak, but there were also two strong allied divisions, which exined the joy he felt.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s words brought him back to reality.

    Karakorum Pris nodded her head slightly in agreement.

    Silver Soldier wasn¡¯t a timid person. He responded firmly, "Then we¡¯ll go ording to the n."

    Sword, spear, and iron fist collided in the air.

    The three made eye contact, their gazes steady. All three shouted in unison.

    "Victory!"

    .....

    Central Pine Valley.

    Ai Hui was in trouble. Previously, he had been fully confident of dealing with the Ring of Life, but during theter tests he kept running into problems.

    Theoretically speaking, the Ring of Life wasn¡¯tplicated, but in order to produce Ring of Life force, there had to be a very subtle bnce between the five types of elemental energy. This unique Ring of Life was known as the Shouchuan Ring, named inmemoration of Wang Shouchuan and his theory.

    Today, more and more people were starting to see the major impacts of his theory.

    The Shouchun Ring wasn¡¯t very challenging for Ai Hui.

    The difficult part was maintaining the ring force.

    Sustaining the force meant maintaining its bnce.

    The Shouchuan Ring was a kind of Ring of Life, so it naturally had simr characteristics. A special characteristic of the Ring of Life was that it was always in a state of mobility and fluctuation. It changed unpredictably, making it difficult to control.

    The God-subduing Peak¡¯s enormous bulk contained abundant elemental energy. In the energy cirction process, other than the ring force, it could also mobilize elemental energy to use and consume. Having ring force and elemental energy at the same time meant that a God-subduing Peak could be in a consistently stable state.

    The price to pay for a surplus of force was an rming quantity of precious materials.

    The Elders Guild was wealthy, so cost wasn¡¯t a problem.

    Ai Hui, on the other hand, was poor. He would¡¯ve long since been broke if he had followed the refinement process of the God-subduing Peak.

    Ai Hui felt that the ring force had greater prospects because once the Shouchuan Ring waspleted, elemental energy consumption would decrease drastically. In the past, it was easy to obtain elemental energy in the Avalon of Five Elements and cost was low. Today, it was much more difficult to obtain and afford elemental energy. Ring force produced by identical elemental energy could be more plentiful.

    The most pressing question for Ai Hui was how he could maintain the Shouchuan Ring¡¯s stability.

    Blind He had always been interested in the things Ai Hui made. The White Cluster mes, Hellfire Pagoda Cannon, and Metal Basket Sword Pagoda were all embodiments of a super imaginative mind.

    Blind He¡¯s familiarity with materials was always helpful to Ai Hui.

    Mu Lei followed Ai Hui since he was also very interested in what Ai Hui was refining. Coming here was wise and, although he wasn¡¯t sure what Ai Hui was making, he had a feeling that it was going to be something very powerful.

    Five strangely shaped leaves were ced in a row. It was a rather magnificent sight.

    These five leaves were the result of Ai Hui and Blind He¡¯s consecutive days of hard work.

    Gu Xuan and others, who were training, were chased out of the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda. Everybody stood at the side, curiously watching what Ai Hui wasing up with. The Metal Basket Sword Pagoda had initially been ridiculed for its weird shape, but its might eventually shocked everyone.

    The night battle on the peak of ckfish Mouth Volcano had transformed their mindset thoroughly.

    The fact that Ai Hui was always able to create unexpected things was nowmon knowledge.

    Ai Hui and Blind He jumped into the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda, stood at the rear end Chwan position, and started refining. Blind He stretched out his palm, and the eye on it opened, shooting out a beam of light.

    The light beam shot onto the thick and solid metal frame, instantly turning it red and soft. It was like y, constantly changing shape. Next, an even brighter light beam shot out from the eye on the hollow of his palm andnded on the heated metal frame. Sparks flew everywhere as an exquisite elemental trace extended upward like moving clouds and flowing water.

    Everyone knew that Blind He¡¯s refinement standard was very high, as evidenced by the Unity Swords, but none had actually seen him at work, so they felt overawed.

    The materials piled up beside him flew toward the light beam from his palm like moths flying to a me, melting amid the light and transforming into molten iron that permeated the red metal.

    When thest ingredient was consumed, the light beam from Blind He¡¯s palm disappeared and the eye shut slowly. As Blind He stood up, his body swayed a little, almost causing him to fall over.

    Lou Lan was quick enough to support him in time.

    Seeing how Blind He was sweating from head to toe and how his breaths were messy and hurried, Ai Hui knew his elemental energy had been depleted. He said with all sincerity, "Thanks for the hard work, Master He!"

    Blind He nodded his headboriously without making any sound. With Lou Lan¡¯s help, hended on the ground and meditated to recuperate.

    Lou Lan then walked over to Ai Hui. "What next?"

    Ai Hui observed the part that Blind He had refined. There was an additional drum kit on the Chwan position. It was t and looked like closed mussels and scallops. Behind it was a long and round stick.

    Ai Hui pointed to the row of leaves and instructed, "Let¡¯s start from the fire leaf."

    Lou Lan shouted loudly, "Okay!"

    With a poof, Lou Lan transformed into a giant sand palm and grabbed a red leaf from the row. It seemed to be rolled up from a thinyer of red crystal.

    This was when everybody realized that there was a round hole at the tail of the red leaf.

    Additionally, there was a yellow sand leaf, a transparent shiny silver leaf with petals, a cloud leaf that emitted white cloudy mists, and wooden leaf woven from green vines.

    "Why do I find this familiar?"

    Someone shouted and everyone else nodded in agreement. The object before them was oddly familiar.

    The lightbulb in Gu Xian¡¯s mind lit up. He cried out, "Pinwheel. Isn¡¯t this a paper pinwheel?"

    Everyone gasped. It was no wonder it looked so familiar. It was a paper pinwheel they¡¯d all yed with when they were young, except that this pinwheel was made from multicolored leaves so it was pretty to look at.

    Why install a "paper pinwheel" on the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda?

    Everyone was puzzled.

    Only Gu Xuan and a few wiser ones opened their eyes wide in surprise.

    It had to be said that the originally simple and crude Metal Basket Sword Pagoda looked much better with this colorful pinwheel on it.

    The instation process took longer than expected. Ai Hui adjusted the position of each leaf meticulously, which took a total of four hours.

    Blind He had regained most of his energy by now. He stood at the side and watched.

    He was also very curious to see how Ai Hui would be able to rely on thisrge paper pinwheel to make the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda fly.

    He found it difficult to believe. As a master weaponsmith, he was extremely familiar with flight equipment and hadn¡¯t heard anything about paper pinwheels.

    The instation wasplete and everyone looked on in anticipation.

    Ai Hui felt very emotional as well. He shouted, "Open the shell cover, Lou Lan."

    Lou Lan answered loudly, "All right!"

    Then, he walked to the shell-shaped cover and opened it. It was empty inside.

    Ai Hui added, "Pour the snowva in, Lou Lan!"

    "All right!"

    Lou Lan took out the snowva he¡¯d already prepared and poured it in.

    The onlookers finally realized what was going on, especially Blind He. He was involved in the refining process, so he had more knowledge and immediately connected the dots. He started to feel emotional.

    Snowva filled up the cover.

    Lou Lan closed the lid.

    Hoo. The red fire leaf sprayed a ball of me onto the sand leaf. The sand leaf quickly became heated, as if it was melting into snowva. Following that, the petals on the shiny silver leaf became brighter. The silver light blinked and a strong metal wind gusted from the rolled up leaf. The metal wind blew onto the cloud leaf, instantly turning it into curling mist. The wood leaf woven from green vines absorbed the mist continuously and sprouted. Strands of green light rays shot out from the soft stem and into the fire leaf.

    The five colored paper pinwheel started to spin.

    Vroom, vroom, vroom.

    The paper pinwheel spun increasingly fast, to the point where people could no longer distinguish between the leaves. All they saw was a ball of brightly colored, spinning streaks of light.

    Ka, ka, ka.

    The Metal Basket Sword Pagoda trembled violently and, just as people were getting worried that it wouldn¡¯t hold up, it gradually lifted off the ground and hovered.

    It was beyond overwhelming to witness such a colossal object hovering in midair!

    Everyone was dumbstruck.

 Chapter 523: The Boundary of Ring

    Chapter 523: The Boundary of Ring

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    To everyone¡¯s surprise, Ai Hui, with the sword in his hand, jumped onto the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda that was slowly floating up.

    At this moment, Ai Hui was giving off a piercingly cold aura like an unsheathed sword.

    Standing on the pagoda, Ai Hui felt excited. He could feel the strong power contained in the pagoda under his feet. The idea of making a pinwheel came as a sh of ingenuity, but the result was far better than he expected.

    His biggest problem had been figuring out how to control the Ring of Life to maintain its Shouchuan Ring status.

    The pinwheel perfectly solved this problem.

    The des of the pinwheel were made from five different materials and could effectively control the amount of elemental energy participating in the Ring of Life. With its curly structure, the elemental energy would flow in a vortex. This not only increased the power greatly, but could also maintain a stable output of elemental energy.

    Pinwheel Ring was an original creation by Ai Hui due to his sh of ingenuity as well as his profound umtion of knowledge day by day.

    An amazing power was transmitted via the multi-colored flowing light at the end of the sword, and the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was quaking.

    Ai Hui was well prepared. As he expected, the power of the pinwheel would gradually increase until it reached a new equilibrium.

    Then the multi-colored flowing light began to diffuse. It was as if a ball of dough was being rolled out really thinly. It covered the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda like an eggshell and gradually spread to the tip of the sword.

    Everyone was shocked by the miraculous scene. They stopped breathing and widened their eyes as they didn¡¯t want to miss any details.

    When the flowing light converged at the tip of the sword, the whole Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was shrouded by the flowing light. The light was in the shape of a shuttle which was pointed at both ends and wide in the middle. The light was brightest at the ends and pale in the middle.

    "It¡¯s so gorgeous!"

    "Yes, it¡¯s like the God-subduing Peak!"

    "But more beautiful than the God-subduing Peak!"

    The onlookers were excited, and praise could be heard everywhere.

    The Metal Basket Sword Pagoda used to be incredibly hideous, but now it had be so gorgeous like an ugly duckling turned into a white swan. Everyone felt excited at the thought of fighting in such a ring light shuttle.

    Many people even wanted to jump onto the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda to give it a closer look.

    Ai Hui was carefully observing the light shrouding the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda. The light was abination of elemental energies of five attributes. When the pinwheel had just started to run, the light was multi-colored, but now it became transparent and colorless as the rotation of the pinwheel stabilized.

    Ai Hui was lost in thought. The integration of five elements seemed like it would be an inevitable trend in the future.

    It had to be admitted that the world was improving. Previously, the integration of five elements was something only achieved by grandmasters, but now it had be amon subject that was studied more often and more deeply by everyone, as elemental energy was not sufficient nowadays.

    The reason was simple. The integration of five elements could produce more power while consuming less elemental energy.

    This reminded Ai Hui of fusion elemental energy. Admittedly, fusion elemental energy, which possessed all the five attributes, was more in ordance with the current situation. Although at the very beginning the training process was slow, its effect grew more and more astonishing as one¡¯s elemental energy level went up. Therefore, its benefit was more obvious in theter stage of training.

    Ai Hui was curious about what would happen if elementalists from Assembly of Patriarchs could be Grandmasters.

    The light was thin and almost totally transparent, but could cut off the external sound.

    Ai Hui feltcent. He had created the pinwheel ring form of five-element integration. Compared with the God-subduing Peak, it was more borate and more elemental-energy efficient. But on the other hand, limited by materials, theprehensive strength of Pinwheel Sword was undoubtedly inferior to the God-subduing Peak.

    But making something that possessed subtlety like God-subduing Peak and which could even surpass it in some aspects, while using such cheap materials, was enough for Ai Hui to feel proud of himself.

    Ai Hui held the hilt of the sword tightly in his hand and his eyes ran down each corner of the Pinwheel Sword again and again.

    Pinwheel Sword, which was like a name in a fairy tale, would be the new name of the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda.

    Nobody here had the experience of garrisoning the God-subduing Peak like Iron Lady and the rest. Although Ai Hui made this Pinwheel Sword ording to his teacher¡¯s theory, it was the first time that he had experienced it himself.

    Standing inside the pinwheel, he could get a more direct and profound feeling.

    The so-called ring force was actually a special type of fusion elemental energy.

    But ring force was produced via elemental traces and pinwheel ring, and was more borate than Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ fusion elemental energy. Thetter was bncing the five elements through training.

    It was probably appropriate to describe ring force as the equilibrium within bnce.

    Therefore, there were many special features of ring force. For example, Ai Hui found that ring force was different from any other kind of elemental energy. Its shape was like a spindle or a shuttle.

    This reminded Ai Hui of a special noun from the Cultivation Era, which was "boundary".

    The ring force released by the pinwheel ring constituted a small boundary, and energy could flow freely within the shuttle-shaped boundary.

    Amazing!

    Now, elemental energy no longer needed to flow ording to certain routes. In this shuttle-shaped "boundary", it could reach anywhere in no time.

    He realized that this feature of ring force was likely to overturn the current elemental energy system.

    He kept this feature firmly in mind, and decided to study it furtherter.

    The boundary of the ring had great advantages, such as strong defensive powers. If it was under attack, the force would be shared by the whole boundary of ring. Therefore, unless the boundary broke, it would never be pierced.

    But this also posed a big problem for Ai Hui, as he realized that his normally strong perception was totally cut off by the boundary.

    This was not good!

    With his strong perception, Ai Hui could always sense danger earlier than anyone else, which was necessary for him to survive on the battlefield.

    Rubbing the spot between his eyebrows, he sighed that this problem was beyond his expectations. Although the light shrouding the boundary was thin and almost transparent, Ai Hui knew how hard and firm it was.

    He decided to put this problem aside. With a quick flick of the Edgeless Sword in his hand, a ray of Sword of Lightning flew out from the tip.

    The ray flew out of the light curtain with a roaring sound, and disappeared after gliding a long distance away.

    Ai Hui sighed in relief. The boundary of ring could only cut off one¡¯s perception, but not sword rays.

    But still, there seemed to be some nuance to this.

    Trying to recall every detail when he¡¯d waved the sword just now, Ai Hui thought for a moment and waved his sword again.

    Once again, a sword ray flew out.

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes lit up as he realised what the nuance was. At first the lightning appeared at the point of the sword, but in the next instant it had already shed outside of the light curtain.

    It reminded him of the ring force¡¯s feature at once. Now it seemed that not only ring force, but also sword rays could appear instantly at any corner within the boundary of ring.

    What influence would this have in a battle?

    The Pinwheel Sword was indeed designed and made by Ai Hui. But it was a brand new weapon, and many mysteries about it were unknown even to its creator.

    The God-subduing Peak must be garrisoned by a Master. This was not only due to its preciousness, but also because only a Master could make the most of its power. The God-subduing Peak contained abundant elemental energy and only a Master could manage to control it.

    The elemental energy of the Pinwheel Sword, on the other hand, was generated from snowva. Therefore, it did not necessarily need to bemanded by a master.

    Ai Hui jumped on the seashell cover. Apart from containing Snow Lava, it could also control the speed of infusion of the snowva into the pinwheel. By increasing this speed, the pinwheel could generate stronger power.

    Like a sword with a pinwheel on its tail, it flew very fast.

    As to controlling the direction, Ai Hui¡¯s method was very simple. In front of the seashell cover there was a bearing, with which the cover could turn in any direction. If the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda waspared to a fish, then the seashell cover and the pinwheel were its tail that could wiggle to control its direction.

    Ai Hui tried to increase the speed.

    The top of the light shuttle suddenly became very bright.

    Ai Hui was dazzled.

    Then, after a huge re, Ai Hui felt like he was pushed by someone from behind, and then he was thrown forward. Fortunately, he had been holding the sword hilt all the time and was in the state of Imbuement of Sword Cloud.

    He reacted very fast. Within an instant, he stabbed with Edgeless Sword several times.

    p, p, p.

    The sword continuously hit the steel bars in front of him and made intense sounds. Ai Hui was like a spring. He tried to stabilize himself with the force from the sword.

    When he saw what had happened, he was astounded and took in a breath of chilly air.

    The Pinwheel Sword plunged into the ridge of the ckfish Mouth Volcano, leaving only less than half of it outside of the ridge.

    Embedded in the ridge, the front part was dark, while the rear part was hanging in the air. From there Ai Hui could see the crowd running towards him in panic.

    Gu Xuan and the others were all dumbstruck.

    They¡¯d just seent the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda disappear after a sh of light. Then there was a huge re from afar. When they flew into the sky, they were astonished to see the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda was embedded into the hillside.

    Previously, they all thought that the Pinwheel Sword was powerful and ring. However, having seen the scene where about two thirds of the sword was inserted into the hill, they began to feel chills at the back of their neck.

    Ai Hui climbed out of the Pinwheel Sword and said embarrassedly, "I¡¯m not yet proficient at controlling it, or else it would be very safe.

    Everyone¡¯s faces looked pale.

    .....

    In the camp of God Nation.

    Nangong Wulian was reproaching someone, "Don¡¯t bother me with such trivial matters! Fighting in the battlefield is your business. Don¡¯t ask me how! I¡¯m busy and have no time to waste on this bullshit...."

    Several generals retreated from the camp gloomily.

    They were all furious about being defeated on the frontline, and about their enemy¡¯s boasting of such a win.

    One of them asked, "Then what do we do now? If we cannot save face, when they want to find somebody to meter, none of us can escape."

    One prudent general who was older in age said, "Sir hasn¡¯t woken up. So we cannot act rashly..."

    "Rash? Our enemy is pping our face now and we still have to bear it?"

    "We must win our glory back! His Majesty cannot bear the existence of any incapable person. Do you want your family to be involved and punished too?"

    The others were silent.

    "Sir hasn¡¯t woken up. We have no right to dispatch our troops."

    Suddenly someone said in a forceful voice, "Troops? Don¡¯t you hear them saying that an old man is dead in the enemy country, a lone girl is fighting at the front line, new soldiers are defending their territory? Our enemies are a girl and a group of new recruits. Don¡¯t bother to dispatch out troops! I¡¯ll go!"

    Everyone looked towards where the voice wasing from, and saw a strong man with a fierce look walking towards them.

    "General Xing!"

    "If General Xing confronts our enemies in person, then we are sure to win!"

    "We have nothing to worry about now!"

    Feeling rxed, people began to express their admiration ardently.

 Chapter 524: Vitality Branches

    Chapter 524: Vitality Branches

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Inside a tent.

    Standing beside the ice coffin, Nangong Wulian stared at Ye Baiyi, who was still in a deep sleep, and murmured to himself, "Why is he still unconscious? He is supposed to be awake by now. Is it because the base level of the blood fiends was not high enough?"

    In the ice coffin, Ye Baiyi looked as if he was really just sleeping. His long hair was like seagrass, and his eyes were closed.

    A wicked smile appeared on Nangong Wulian¡¯s face, "Let me add some more tonics."

    Then he walked out of the camp, and caught sight of a group of people in preparation to go to the battlefield. The leader looked familiar. Nangong Wulian remembered his background and murmured, "It turns out to be him."

    That man was Xing Shan. He¡¯d once received blood refinement at the Beast Venom Temple. He was the one who held the record in blood refinement before the Red Devil.

    Nangong Wulian collected many useful pieces of information from Xing Shan, from which the Red Devil also benefited a lot. But Xing Shan was not as talented as the Red Devil, so he couldn¡¯t improve further after reaching his current level.

    It was said that Xing Shan joined the armyter on and had made a lot of contributions so far.

    Nangong Wulian never associated himself with generals. He clearly knew his position. As long as the people of the Beast Venom Temple did a good job, his position would be stable enough. An association with generals would only incur his majesty¡¯s suspicion, which was very likely to lead to death.

    Even though the Red Devil was from the Beast Venom Temple, they stayed away from each other and hardly had any interactions.

    Xing Shan¡¯s fighting skills were good.

    Well, that would be fine. Since Xing Shan had taken the mission, their victory was just around the corner. This could save him a lot of trouble, as those guys would stop buzzing around him like flies.

    Now his main task was to find a solution to wake Ye Baiyi up.

    There had to be more tonics!

    An announcement was put up at the camp which astounded everyone.

    A dayter, twelve people stood in front of Nangong Wulian, who looked at them withcency. He had just put up a post yesterday, and surprisingly, more than one hundred people were willing to sacrifice their own lives to save Ye Baiyi. These twelve people were selected as the most outstanding and talented ones. Fastidious as Nangong Wulian was, he was very satisfied with the physical conditions of these people.

    And he was shocked by how Ye Baiyi was adored by his people.

    At first, Nangong Wulian had intended to take some guys by force, but since the process would be very miserable, and it was impossible for any involuntary participant to make it to the final stage, he finally gave up on the idea.

    But it turned out that so many people were willing to save his life with their own life!

    He nced at Ye Baiyi, and wondered where this guy¡¯s charm and charisma came from.

    Nangong Wulian asked with interest, "I would like to know why you are willing to sacrifice yourselves for Ye Baiyi. What is more important than your life? Let me tell you in advance that during the process you will suffer a living death. Are you sure you want to do this? You are allowed to give up now."

    Nobody moved.

    Nangong Wulian said in surprise, "What favor did he do to you on earth that makes you all so loyal to him? I¡¯m really curious. Tell me your stories, one by one."

    A strong man with a scar on his face said in a deep voice, "I was a former member of Icy mes Division. He once saved my life."

    The person beside him said, "I was a former member of Icy mes Division too. I was once besieged for fifteen days, and was abandoned by the Elders Guild. It was him who led an army and fought for three days without sleep or rest to save me."

    "I was a former member of Icy mes Division too. I served him for ten years and never encountered any unfairness."

    ...

    Some looked aloof, some excited. Some spoke in a deep voice, and some were impassioned.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s eyes focused on thest one, who was a young man. He looked like a boy and was still shy. Nangong asked him curiously, "What¡¯s your reason?"

    Under Nangong¡¯s gaze, the young man looked unprepared and embarrassed. Face flushing, he stammered, "Sir, Sir..."

    Nangong Wulianughed out, "You are free to pull back."

    "No I won¡¯t!" The young man¡¯s face got even more flushed, and he stammered, "During the blood disaster, he, he asked me to run, but I, I didn¡¯t..."

    Nangong Wulian was a bit surprised. He nodded and said, "You can have a good rest for the next few days to retain your energy. I can¡¯t guarantee you that Ye Baiyi can wake up. But what I can guarantee is that you will die a worthy death, and your blood spiritual force will not be wasted."

    The twelve people said in unison, "Thank you, Sir!"

    .....

    Just as Ai Hui jumped down from the Pinwheel Sword and let loose of the sword hilt, he felt tired and flopped down on the ground. Overwhelmed by tiredness, Ai Hui felt like he was totally soaked in his sweat, as if he was just picked up out of the water. The impact was short, but really consumed a lot of energy.

    "Ai Hui!"

    Lou Lan carried Ai Hui on his shoulders and ran fast into the valley.

    Ai Hui said weakly, "I¡¯m fine, Lou Lan."

    "One more minute, Ai Hui," Lou Lan encouraged him loudly, "Lou Lan has found a use for Vitality Branches."

    Ai Hui was surprised, "Really? Lou Lan you are great!"

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were like two crescent moons. He said earnestly while running, "The Vitality Branch¡¯s spirit is wood elemental while its soul is metal elemental, water elemental, fire elemental and earth elemental. This is how it should be used."

    Having finished his words, Lou Lan brought Ai Hui to a ce in the valley where he had already prepared everything he needed.

    A handful of sand, a basin of water, a bowl of snowva and a piece of ingot were ced around Ai Hui. Then Lou Lan put an empty vase in front of Ai Hui, and put three Vitality Branches into it.

    Ai Hui sat on the ground cross-legged.

    Lou Lan shouted out loudly, "Ai Hui, get ready. I¡¯m going to start!"

    Then he threw a sh of me into the snowva, sending bursts of fire into the sky. The yellow sand suddenly floated into the air, as if held by an invisible hand. Then, the ingot iron melted into liquid, which, surprisingly, was not hot at all. Smog rose from the water in the basin and transformed into a cloud of mist.

    Gu Xuan and the others were worried about Ai Hui too. They ran to him fast, and saw the peculiar scene.

    Suddenly, the vase in front of Ai Hui produced a suction force that attracted all the raging fire, the floating sand, the cold, melted iron and the clean mist into the vase.

    And to everyone¡¯s surprise, the three Vitality Branches began to sprout!

    Green, tender shoots appeared on the ck and hard surface of the branches, giving rise to everyone¡¯s exmation.

    The shoots were quivering and were growingrger at a speed that was visible. Then, in the blink of an eye, three branches were full of green leaves, constituting a beautiful scene.

    When buds grew out, everybody was quiet, as they were afraid to startle the three branches.

    Then, the buds burst into bloom. They could smell a peculiar fragrance from the pure flowers.

    Everyone was fascinated by the fragrance.

    When the flowers withered away, fruits grew. After a short period of time, three juicy fruits were hanging on the branches, which made everyone dumbstruck.

    Lou Lan said hurriedly, "Ai Hui, catch the fruits. Don¡¯t let them fall on the ground!"

    Just as Lou Lan had finished his words, the three fruits began to fall from the branches towards the ground.

    Ai Hui had been very focused from the very beginning. When he heard Lou Lan¡¯s voice, he stretched out his hand without hesitation and deftly caught the three heavy fruits in his hands.

    ËûÐÄÖÐ»¹ÔÚ¾ªÌ¾,Ä¾ÐÞµÄÒ»Ð©ÊÖ¶Î,ÕæÊÇ·ËÒÄËùË¼,³¬ºõÏëÏó.

    He was marveling in his heart about how some methods of wood elementalists were unimaginably weird.

    The whole process, from sprouting to fruit yielding, was silent, but was more shocking to Ai Hui than a massive killing move.

    Lou Lan shouted loudly, "Ai Hui, eat the fruit!"

    Ai Hui was dazed. When he heard Lou Lan¡¯s shout, he sent the fruits to his mouth subconsciously.

    He could feel coolness floating into his throat when the fruit touched his mouth.

    Three streaks of weak, but highly pure, life force were flowing into his body.

    The lightning in his body could destroy almost any life force except forthese. They were totally uninfluenced, and could flow freely in his body as if the lightning did not exist.

    No wonder why the Vitality Branches was so famous!

    But what happened next was beyond Ai Hui¡¯s expectations.

    The three streaks of life force flew around his body, and then wormed their way into the sword cloud!

    When Ai Hui came to his senses, three jade-green leaves were flickering among the sword cloud.

    Ai Hui was astonished.

    He had thought that the life force could nourish his blood and flesh so that he would not be so frail and weak. But it was never expected that the three streaks of life force would dive into the sword cloud as if they were attracted to it.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t understand what on earth in the sword cloud was attracting them.

    And his body was still frail, which meant that his attempt to improve his physical condition with the Vitality Branches had failed.

    Mu Lei looked at Ai Hui enviously when he was eating the fruits. Those were fruits from the Vitality Branches! How many people could get a Vitality Branch in this world? Few! And how many of them could use three Vitality Branches at a time? None, at least he¡¯d never heard of any.

    Ai Hui opened his eyes and looked a bit sluggish.

    Lou Lan asked with concern, "Ai Hui, how is it?"

    The others thought Ai Hui was shocked by the excellent effect when they saw him sitting there motionlessly. Mu Lei¡¯s eyes were red. He didn¡¯t even try to conceal his envy.

    Ai Hui said weakly, "Seems that it didn¡¯t work."

    Lou Lan was surprised, "Didn¡¯t work? Did I get anything wrong?"

    "No, it¡¯s not Lou Lan¡¯s problem. They dived into the sword cloud."

    "Into the sword cloud?" A red light kept flickering in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes as he was analyzing the phenomenon, "Lou Lan needs to think about it."

    Ai Hui noticed that the three green leaves were tossing about in the sword cloud. But when he took a closer look, he found nothing weird. Actually it was not useless at all. Ai Hui could feel that he got tired much slower now, and even if he had used up his strength, he could soon recover.

    However!

    That was all!

    This was the only benefit he¡¯d gotten.

    But this was Vitality Branch, the thing that, in legends, could bring back anyone¡¯s life as long as he or she was still breathing.

    The previous changes were amazing too. But why was its effect so ordinary?

    Or was it because his body was too special?

    Ai Hui tried a few more times, but nothing happened. The three leaves were still tossing about in the sword cloud leisurely. He was disappointed and didn¡¯t want to think about it anymore.

    Since his strength had been renewed, he thought he¡¯d better continue to explore the pinwheel sword.

    He wished he could go to the battlefield right now. But he also knew that without strength, he would only encumber Iron Lady and put everyone¡¯s lives in danger.

    This was not what he would do. But he was more than pleased to give everyone an exciting experience.

    "Let¡¯s start practicing on Pinwheel Sword from today!"

 Chapter 525: Xing Shanâ€™s Target

    Chapter 525: Xing Shan¡¯s Target

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Xing Shan¡¯s mount was an ardent flower night wolf which was as big as a hill and even taller than a horse. Its ck hair was shiny like grease and the scarlet flower-pattern traces all over its body were beautiful and harmonious. Its ash-like eyes exuded a wolf¡¯s perseverance and ferocity. It curled back its lips to reveal its sharp teeth every now and then.

    It was more than just a mount; even on its own, its fighting capacity was already amazing.

    The mounts of the men behind Xing Shan were all doughty ardent flower night wolves.

    Xing Shan had been a butcher before blood refinement, but after being infected with blood poison, he showed a surprising gift and was noticed by the god priest in his area. That priest had rmended Xing Shan to the Beast Venom Temple for blood refinement and he soon broke the previous record.

    Twelve times.

    His record went unbroken for a very long period of time, until the Red Devil appeared and created a record of receiving blood refinement twenty-one times with one hundred and eight kinds of beasts¡¯ blood. It had shocked everyone in Blood of God, including the Holy Emperor.

    With such a record, the Red Devil, a poor wretch who¡¯d had nothing, soon rose up and set up his own pce.

    Xing Shan could not reach such a level, but going through blood refinement twelve times was enough to get him a seat among the top fighters of Blood of God. He didn¡¯t continue further, as he felt he was close to copse by the end of the twelfth blood refinement.

    After the blood refinement at the Beast Venom Temple, he joined thebat divisions and was promoted due to his outstanding achievements.

    At the beginning of God Nation¡¯s establishment, the most important task the Holy Emperor gave to Ye Baiyi was to set up their system ofbat divisions.

    Ye Baiyi lived up to expectations. He created thebat division system and designed tactics ording to the features of god elementalists. The massivebat division system currently in use waspletely created by him.

    Thebat division system of Blood of God consisted of three parts: the Sacred Heart Division directly controlled by the Holy Emperor, the subordinatebat divisions attached to each pce, and the god bloodbat divisions. The god bloodbat divisions were the most important and mainly consisted of six god divisions: God Dragon, God Tiger, God Wolf, God Shaman, God Demon, and God Spirit.

    Each god division had two direct subordinatebat divisions, all of which were collectively called the twelve blood divisions.

    The system made up of six god divisions and twelve blood divisions seemed simr to the Thirteen Divisions of the Avalon of Five Elements, but were totally different in essence. It was Ye Baiyi¡¯s understanding of war and the embodiment of his experience and wisdom.

    The Thirteen Divisions of the Avalon of Five Elements were separate, but the blood divisions could be a strong supplement for the god divisions. Besides, each blood division had two beast camps as its reserves.

    Due to this perfectyer system, the fighting capacity of thebat divisions werergely improved. Even if they encountered any loss, they could soon be supported and reinforced. Thebat division system of the Avalon of Five Elements, however,cked subordinateyers and reserves. Once the elite troops suffered severe losses, the division almost had to be rebuilt, as had been the case with the Sky Edge Division and the Infantry Division.

    Each god division and blood division possessed five thousand people respectively, while a beast camp possessed ten thousand.

    That was to say, aplete god division consisted of fifty thousand people.

    The Holy Emperor ced great trust in Ye Baiyi. He not only dubbed him War God and built a War God Pce for him, but also granted him the power to lead the six god divisions.

    Until the appearance of the Red Devil, when Ye Baiyi took the initiative to submit a request stating that he was overwhelmed with the responsibility and hoped to transfer three god divisions for the Red Devil to lead.

    The Holy Emperor rejected his request.

    Then Ye Baiyi submitted the same request again. Thinking it over again, the Holy Emperor finally decided to put the God Dragon Division and God Shaman Division under the Red Devil¡¯smand.

    This was because the Holy Emperor knew that Ye Baiyi was the head of the Icy mes Division when he¡¯d been with the Avalon of Five Elements, and was thus the one who best understood military organization in God Nation at that time. Red Devil, on the other hand, was far braver and stronger than the others, but it would take time to prove his military astuteness.

    Ye Baiyi didn¡¯t fail the Holy Emperor¡¯s trust.

    He executed a rotation system in the frontline, which meant the six god divisions would fight against enemies one by one in the battle to improve their fighting capacity.

    That was how the Blood of God could be equipped with such a strong military force today.

    Xing Shan joined thebat division when Ye Baiyi just began to set up the sixbat divisions. He was strong and good at fighting, and soon won recognition from Ye Baiyi. With his umtion of achievements in the battlefield, he became the division leader of the Ardent Flower Blood Division which was subordinate to God Wolf Division, and was regarded as a strongpetitor for the next head of God Wolf Division.

    Even though the ardent flower night wolf he was riding was running fast, Xing Shan¡¯s body was steady and still. He was tall and strong, with a brutal-looking face. His eyes looked gloomy and frightening.

    Zu Chun, the deputy head who was riding beside him, suddenlyughed and said, "Senior, you are so wise. I heard that Shi Xueman and Karakorum Pris are both rare beauties..."

    The obsceneughter gave rise to chaos among the others.

    Xing Shan said indifferently, "You can do whatever you want to Karakorum Pris, but I need Shi Xueman for my own use."

    The others cheered, "Senior, you are so wise!"

    As if hearing nothing, Xing Shan continued, "But let me make it clear first. If anyone hinders us, don¡¯t me me for being merciless."

    The others immediately became silent, as they knew that he really meant it.

    Only a few including Zu Chun looked as if they were absorbed in thoughts. They were clearly aware that their division head was not just impulsive and violent as others thought. He was actually as cunning as a wolf.

    Xing Shan did have his own intention, or he would not take the initiative to start the fight. His target was Shi Xueman.

    Among all the targets, Shi Xueman was undoubtedly the most valuable one. The Judgment and Dread Divisions were too tough for him to deal with. He would never attempt a stupid thing like crushing a stone with an egg.

    Neither the Infantry Division nor Sky Edge Division could bepared with Shi Xueman, the former sessor of the Great Elder.

    Moreover, her father just gave Sir Ye Baiyi a staggering blow. If he could capture Shi Xueman, he could gain not only fame, but also the admiration of the former members of the Icy mes Division, who, Xing Shan clearly understood, had the closest ties to Lord Ye Baiyi. If he could build a connection with them, it would be helpful for his future promotions.

    But he had to win the battle first.

    Although he appeared to be scornful of Shi Xueman in the camp, he was only doing this to deceive the others. In fact, he did not underestimate Shi Xueman at all, but paid her great attention. He had carefully studied the reports of the survivors without any negligence.

    The cooperation between the Sky Edge, Infantry, and Spear of Heavy Cloud Divisions was ingenious. Besides, they had more people than him.

    Nevertheless, Xing Shan was confident with his Ardent Flower Division. They had been through many battles and were experienced enough.

    Moreover, he had one advantage; no one knew that his target was only Shi Xueman.

    Not even his subordinates knew it.

    He said coldly, "Order the soldiers to throw away their loads and march forward at the fastest speed!"

    Zu Chun was surprised. "Are we starting our long-range raid so early?"

    The long-range raid was a strategy that the Ardent Flower Blood Division was good at, as the ardent flower night wolves could run ten days and nights without stopping, but it was seldom used in actualbat because if they started too early, both the soldiers and wolves would be too tired. Plus, since no loads could be carried, they had to march forward without any burdens, which meant that once they encountered any idents, they were likely to fall into a difficult situation due to ack of supplies.

    Xing Shan simply said, "Speed is the most important in a war."

    Zu Chun was alerted and replied, "Got it!"

    After Xing Shan¡¯s orders were announced, the soldiers began to feed their wolves with blood crystals, and also loaded themselves with blood crystals. All the carriages were left aside and no one gave them a second nce. They were well-trained soldiers. Their faces looked indifferent, but their figures exuded a brave and agile aura.

    Havingpleted preparations, the Ardent Flower Blood Division was silent. Even the wolves did not make a sound.

    Xing Shan noticed the concerned look of Zu Chun, but he chose to ignore it.

    This move was risky indeed, but Xing Shan knew that he must reach the battlefield and finish everything before the two horrifyingbat divisions, Judgment and Dread, finally arrived. Otherwise, there would be no chance for him.

    A ferocious look flickered in his eyes. He hit the wolf with his legs and said decisively, "Move!"

    No one responded. Silence was flowing like a river.

    .....

    "Ahhhhhhh..."

    The eardrum-piercing screams could be heard here and there in the Pinwheel Sword. Even those who tried their best to restrain themselves looked extremely pale. Their faces were twitching.

    The ground was getting closer and closer at an amazing speed.

    Closer and closer!

    The screams suddenly became sharp and miserable as if there was a conductormanding them.

    Boom!

    With a huge re, everyone felt as if they were bumped by a running rhinoceros and their minds went totally nk. They plummeted down, but were fortunately suspended by strong and tough vines tied to their bodies. Unfortunately, the vines tied them so tightly that they almost cut into their flesh.

    After some time, someone began to groan. Then, with incessant groans, people came to life one after another.

    "Oh my god. Am I still alive?"

    "I feel like I¡¯m dying."

    "I would have preferred to die."

    ...

    It was all dark except the light above their heads. It was like they were standing inside a dry well.

    The Pinwheel Sword hadn¡¯t been properly controlled just now. It plunged into the ground and rushed over dozens of meters before it stopped.

    The strong impact left them dizzy. Everyone sat there, weak, limp, and unwilling to move at all. To protect them from possible dangers during the horrifying Pinwheel Sword¡¯s training session, Ai Hui had specially wrapped them with the old vines.

    This was "due to safety reasons", Ai Hui had said .

    ng, ng, ng.

    High above their heads came the sound of an iron spoon hitting an iron basin. It sounded far away from them.

    The absent-minded crowd seemed to wake up all of a sudden. Those who had closed their eyes to refresh their spirit suddenly opened them, as if they had been cheered up by some stimnt. The desperate look flickering in their eyes changed into the light of hope and desire. They untied the vines in a great hustle.

    "Why is this so tight?"

    "Oops! Who is stepping on me? Again!"

    "Don¡¯t even think that you can get ahead of me!"

    ...

    Like agile apes, the crowd of people tried their best to climb up along the vertical Pinwheel Sword. Their faces looked savage and the scene was really spectacr.

    In front of Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup, friendship and rtionships meant nothing.

    "You all worked very hard!"

    Hearing Lou Lan¡¯s vigorous voice, no one stopped their steps. They were like wolves with green light flickering in their eyes, rushing towards their dishes.

    Ai Hui had already taken enough soup. He said slowly, "Take it easy. You can take your time."

    He was totally ignored.

    Gu Xuan was thest one who climbed up. He was in low spirits, as he¡¯d been the sword operator just now.

    Ai Hui called the person who flew the Pinwheel Sword the sword operator. A sword operator who failed toplete the whole flying process would be punished, and therefore, he didn¡¯t get any elemental soup.

    Ai Hui walked to Gu Xuan who was dejected and downhearted, patted him on the shoulder, and encouraged him, "Old Gu,e one. Try again next time!"

 Chapter 526: Sword Operator

    Chapter 526: Sword Operator

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    As long as safety precautions were taken, the Pinwheel Sword was actually safe enough to operate.

    The light curtain shrouding the Pinwheel Sword had a strong defensive power. In the durability tests, only thebined bombardment of seven or more sword pagodas could do damage to it.

    With the protection of the light curtain, Ai Hui elerated his pace.

    There was only one sword operator? Of course not! Everyone should try it at least once. The sword operators who performed well would get double shares of elemental soup, while those who performed poorly would have no elemental soup.

    Gu Xuan was today¡¯s sword operator. At first Ai Hui thought highly of his performance, but during thest stage, however, due to an operating error, the Pinwheel Sword plunged into the ground.

    The Pinwheel Sword¡¯sprehensive power was incredibly inferior to that of a God-subduing Peak in terms of defense and attack force, but it had one advantage. Its speed.

    The Pinwheel Sword¡¯s speed astounded everyone who witnessed it.

    Flying was nothing new, as nowadays everyone had their own azure wings, butpared to flying with the Pinwheel Sword, flying with azure wings was as slow as a snail. Many believed that the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s name was terrible. It should be named Lightning Sword!

    When flying, the Pinwheel Sword was as fast as a bolt of lightning.

    But as a result of its extreme speed, any inuracy when operating it might lead to ident.

    This was too difficult for a new sword operator with no prior experience.

    Ai Hui found that not everyone could do the job. Only those who were talented in perception of speed could adapt to the amazing speed of the Pinwheel Sword. He immediately realized the importance of sword operation, especially to future expansions.

    As a result, Ai Hui specially bestowed a title to the person who was in charge of operating the Pinwheel Sword: sword operator. A sword operator held the same position as a pagoda master. This soon attracted the interest of the other team members. Now there were seven sword pagodas. Ai Hui himself was in charge of the Megrez Sword Pagoda, while the masters and probationary masters of the other six pagodas had already been assigned to different members.

    Now there was one more position.

    Ai Hui gave an invible order.

    Everyone must try to operate the Pinwheel Sword at least once, and the others must be in it during the attempt.

    Since there would be no danger at all as long as they were strapped in tightly enough.

    Since then, the Pinwheel Sword had been inserted into both the mountain and ground in various directions and positions.

    No one knew how many times the poor ckfish Mouth Volcano had been pierced by the Pinwheel Sword these days. The surface of the mountain was full of bumps and hollows, which looked shocking upon being seen. Once, they had even pierced through the entire rock stratum, creating a magma jet that had rushed over three hundred meters into the sky.

    Previously, there might have been some strong dire beasts in the dark eyeing them as prey, but now, there was not a single beast that dared to keep a foothold within three hundred miles.

    At first, the members felt dizzy and vomited a lot, but theyter got so used to it, they even thought it was no longer exciting enough.

    Even so, only three were regarded as qualified sword operators.

    To find these three sword operators, the price Ai Hui paid was three Pinwheel Swords.

    The light curtain around the Pinwheel Sword had a strong defensive power, but the sword itself was not tough enough. Sturdy as it was, the materials it was made of were not of a high enough level. After repeatedly enduring such strong impacts, it could not be used for long.

    But it didn¡¯t matter, as the cost to make a Pinwheel Sword was cheap!

    Had he damaged one of the God-subduing Peaks, Ai Hui would be so heartbroken and unable to sleep, but he didn¡¯t really care if one Pinwheel Sword was destroyed. He could easily make a new one.

    Blind He had taken a lot of time and effort to make the first Pinwheel Sword, but to a weapon master of his level, a weapon once produced could be reproduced with little difficulty. Besides, no high-level materials were used to make a Pinwheel Sword. Except for theirrge size, he encountered no problems when making new swords.

    On top of all this, Master He would not be content with simply copying the original style.

    Since tests were ongoing and materials were consistently provided, why not try more styles? It was almost instinctive for people like Blind He to aim for better quality and faster speed.

    So every time, Blind He would make some changes and adjustments.

    As a result, the current Pinwheel Sword was quite different from what it had been before.

    Previously, the iron frames and fences had been crude, like seven metal baskets carried on a shoulder pole. That was where the name Metal Basket Sword Pagoda hade from. Now it was a wide sword made with lots of Pearblossom Dazzling Silver, and the sword itself had been toughened. The wide sword was like a long field used for martial arts practice. The seven sword pagodas had white walls and dark blue tiles. They were properly distributed ording to the locations of the Big Dipper¡¯s seven stars.

    The Pnwheel Sword was located at the end of the tilt.

    Master He also designed a space for the sword operator which could amodate three sword operators at a time. In this way, even if an operator were to be injured, he or she could soon find a recement. The operating device was designed as a sword inserted into a ball, so as to match the name of "sword operator". Holding the tilt of the sword in hand, a sword operator could easily control the flying direction of the Pinwheel Sword.

    The broadened sword allowed for more space, and Master He added more seashell bags to store snowva. In this way, the flying distance of the Pinwheel Sword could bergely increased.

    Besides, the Pinwheel Sword was equipped with eight more sword altars, each of which could amodate six people. Altogether, the sword altars could amodate forty-eight team members in total. A sword altar could make some low-intensity attacks to support the people in the sword pagoda in case of any casualties.

    To confuse enemies, Unity Swords were hung under the Pinwheel Sword in a circle as spare swords.

    The Unity Swords could resonate, so when flying, the Pinwheel Sword made a clear and melodious chime, like that of a wind chime. Ai Hui and the others also noticed that as long as there were more than thirty-six Unity Swords on the Pinwheel Sword, the chime they could produce was able to influence the elemental energy flow of their enemies.

    An inspiration urred to Ai Hui. He thought of his [Sword Chime]

    So he spent some time rearranging the Unity Swords, after which the clear sword chimes, when put together, became loud and resonant, like a bell from an old temple deep in the mountains.

    The temple bell-like sword chime had a strong deterrent power towards elemental energy. Gu Xuan and the others had experienced themselves that when the Pinwheel Sword suddenly appeared above their heads and the loud bell rang like an explosion, their minds became totally nk and their elemental energy stopped flowing.

    The cool debut of the Pinwheel Sword made Ai Hui very excited.

    Unfortunately, he didn¡¯t know whether or not the sword chime could influence the blood spiritual force of blood elementalists. This had to be tested on the battlefield.

    After Master He¡¯s improvements, the new Pinwheel Sword became more powerful and had the potential to be a trump card in the war.

    As they adapted to flying on the Pinwheel Sword, the on-sword training finally began.

    Shi Zhiguang was one of the new sword operators, and the one who operated the sword during the first maneuver. The other two operators looked at him with admiration, but since Shi Zhiguang was indeed the most outstanding one of the three, no one had any objections.

    Shi Zhiguang looked excited.

    He used to be an ordinary team member with no special talent. His remarkable performance was beyond even his own expectations. Until today, he still felt like he was in a dream.

    He himself hadn¡¯t known his specialty before, as in a low-speed situation, he was no different from ordinary people. If the speed was increased to or above a certain level, however, he would enter into a stimted state and the flow of his elemental energy would elerate uncontrobly. In contrast, the world would appear to slow down in his eyes.

    Shi Zhiguang enjoyed this feeling very much.

    Stepping on the sword, Ai Hui walked to Shi Zhiguang and encouraged him, "Just do as you are used to."

    Shi Zhiguang was excited. "Yes, Boss!"

    Previously, as a member of Sword of Lightning, he would kick up a fuss against senior together with everyone else, but this was the first time senior talked to him particrly and in person. He was greatly encouraged, as he could feel Ai Hui¡¯s expectations of him.

    Everyone got ready. They were very serious and cautious towards the first aerial trial.

    Meticulous attention to detail could be seen on everyone¡¯s faces. The Pinwheel Sword was solemn and soundless.

    Ai Hui said in a deep voice, "Start!"

    Shi Zhiguang tried to calm himself down. He gently pulled the sword operator and the Pinwheel Sword left the ground, rushing into the sky like a sword ray.

    It made a circle high in the sky. Ai Hui glimpsed satisfiedly at Shi Zhiguang. He marveled in his heart that Shi Zhiguang, whom everyone had thought was average and untalented in every aspect, unexpectedly possessed an excellent gift in speed.

    Ai Hui knew that even he himself could not do as well as Shi Zhiguang. The Pinwheel Sword glided as though on ice, without any jolts. Even the circle it made was perfect.

    "Everyone, get ready."

    Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s warning, the team members held their breath. Ai Hui didn¡¯t use the Edgeless Sword which was of better quality, but he chose a Unity Sword due to its resonant effect.

    Then, hearing a Sword Chime, all of them waved the Unity Swords in their hands at the same time, rippling the air with their sword rays.

    The sword rays were as bright as the snow and gathered at the sword. Ai Hui, who was fully concentrated, suddenly felt the Unity Sword in his hand be heavy.

    He knew this was not because of a change in the sword¡¯s weight, but because of the load created by the two hundred sword rays converging on the sword. He was familiar with such a load, but this time he felt something different.

    It was the resonance of the Unity Swords hanging on the other side of the Pinwheel Sword under his feet.

    But there was hardly any time for him to think more. Under the Imbuement of Sword Cloud status, Ai Hui pushed the Unity Sword in his hand forward gently, as if he was holding a ss full of water.

    The ring sword ray flew out of the Pinwheel Sword and effortlessly pierced into the mountains not far away, leaving a bottomless hole. Then, apanied by a tremendous sound, something suddenly exploded and left a huge hole with a diameter of over thirty meters at the entrance.

    A red glint shed across the ck crystal chips on Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    It was an amazing surprise that the sword move could have the effect of a shock wave.

    Previously, the sword move could only leave a bottomless hole, the diameter of which was simr to that of a bowl. Now, therge, deep hole at the entrance was the result of the sound explosion alone.

    Ai Hui immediately realized that the sound explosion was actually a follow-up damage which would give them more advantages in actualbat. This also meant that the training done during these days had not been a waste of time. The move had beenpleted perfectly just now.

    Regardless, Ai Hui knew that this was not enough.

    In the battlefield, flying at a constant speed like this was courting death. The Pinwheel Sword was so conspicuous that once it appeared on the battlefield, it would immediately be targeted by all the enemies. Strong as it was, the defensive power of the light curtain would be of no use on the battlefield. Even the light curtain of the God-subduing Peaks had been broken through, let alone the Pinwheel Sword.

    The only way to survive would be to keep changing their location beyond the predictions of the enemies.

    This was a great challenge not only to Shi Zhiguang, but to all the members in the sword pagodas as well.

 Chapter 527: Courage and Special Training

    Chapter 527: Courage and Special Training

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X, TYZ

    A skinny and aged figure shuttled through the woods. His face and hair were covered with dust. Wrinkles on this face were rigid and forceful, likeyers of folds piled up by gradually solidifying molten iron. However, his eyes were extremely pure like a baby.

    Le Buleng left Skyheart City. Instead of flying, he chose to walk through the wild and headed toward the Jadeite Forest.

    He walked in the daytime and sat in meditation at night. Wild fruits and dire beasts satisfied his stomach. Water from streams moistened his throat. He measured the earth by his feet and felt its eternity. Compared to the earth, life was as insignificant as dust. Looking into the sky, he indulged in the enormous starry heavens that had witnessed countless geniuses as they wrote down their legends.

    He recalled his childhood. He was not the most gifted or the worst, but it was without a doubt that his temper was the most troublesome. After all these years, he had be this old, but his temper had not changed much.

    It was just like his endeavors to be a Master - he never seeded.

    He had experienced too much failure and mockery in his life.

    There were too many memories, so he needed to go through them slowly. The courage left behind by him gradually became alive.

    His youth, faith, dream, pride, and persistence were totally mixed in all sorts of courage.

    The courage to persist in his decision, the courage to give up in order to survive, and the courage to start again from scratch.

    Also, the courage when he was in his teenage years, in his adulthood, and in his old age.

    During his lifetime, he had always wondered about the future from his desk. He had the experience of practicing all year round, no matter the mind-numbing winter or the searing hot summer, and also the experience of standing high above the masses with themand of abat division in his hand. He had been to the highest mountain and tried to touch the sky in drunkenness, traveled to the snowfields that harbored frozen rivers, and experienced the vast deserts where smoke rose directly into the sky. He had seen bandits running and begging for forgiveness while he sat on top of a city wall and had also vanquished heroes by simply letting them know his name.

    The first half of his life was mocked by others. People thought he was a freak andughed at his failures.

    Thetter half of his life was admired by others. People venerated his perseverance and revered him as a master.

    He had experienced ups and downs as well as all kinds of emotions, but never had he felt regretful.

    When he recalled his eventful life, the worries in Skyheart City, the ups and downs of the world, the destiny of humanity, and all the other distracting thoughts faded into the wind.

    His heart was crystal clear.

    In this manner, he made his final preparations for the battle. At this moment, Le Buleng was like an ascetic believer who was on a pilgrimage. In his mind, the final destination of his pilgrimage was the battle, which was also his whole life.

    He had failed eight times, struggled eight times, and attained enlightenment eight times.

    On the way to his final destination, he had been thinking and hesitating.

    He was like a rusty sword that was dull, but had its sword ray. He climbed mountains like the old vines that clung to the cliffs that overlooked Jadeite City.

    He had traveled throughout the world and challenged numerous heroes. He had pursued the Path of Master for his whole life.

    He strode proudly ahead and sang confidently.

    There was only one battle left for him to fight in his lifetime.

    .....

    In the bamboo forest of the Central Pine Valley, the patterns under Duanmu Huanghun were changing again.

    This [Viridescent Flower] variation was number 1,200.

    The Pinwheel Sword had been inserted obliquely into a ridge on the ckfish Mouth Volcano. The colorful pinwheel on the end of the sword pointed to the sky and twirled against wind.

    The pinwheel castrge pieces of shadow on the ground where people sat scattered and were taking a break to recover their elemental energy.

    Shi Zhiguang looked sad. Cupping his chin with his hand, he stared at the ground silently with the ends of his eyebrows pointing downward.

    His performance today had been awful because he couldn¡¯t find a proper rhythm for their striking pace and had failed several times. Each strike of the Pinwheel Sword had to match an attack from the sword pagodas. In addition, the controller had to deviate the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s direction if it had traveled 50 feet in one direction.

    Due to the lightning speed of the Pinwheel Sword, Shi Zhiguang had to remain highly concentrated. A tiny distraction would lead him to failure.

    Gu Xuan sat down beside him. He patted him on the shoulder andforted him, "You are already the best!"

    He meant it.

    Although Shi Zhiguang was tall and looked simple and honest like a savage fighter, he was the most gifted among the three sword operators and performed the best.

    Shi Zhiguang didn¡¯t respond because Gu Xuan¡¯s words didn¡¯t work at all. He had just discovered what his gift was and was more than eager to earn achievements.

    Would he have to go back to what he was before?

    After he experienced being respected and admired, his life became bright, so he could no longer bear the dull and poor life from before.

    Gu Xuan didn¡¯t know how tofort Shi Zhiguang, but he thought that he had to say something after seeing his depression.

    "Shi Zhiguang!"

    In another corner, Ai Hui put down his elemental energy soup and shouted at him.

    Shi Zhiguang was startled. He hesitated for a while and walked toward Ai Hui.

    Gu Xuan was worried that Shi Zhiguang would be rebuked, so he followed him immediately.

    "Sit down," Ai Hui said indifferently.

    His skinny body was wrapped in bandages with two pieces of ck crystal over his eyes.

    On normal days, Ai Hui¡¯s appearance was privately mocked by everyone, but at this moment, Shi Zhiguang felt inwardly guilty, so he didn¡¯t find this funny at all and thought that the person under the bandages must be enraged.

    Shi Zhiguang murmured, "Standing is okay for me."

    Ai Hui snorted, "Sit down. You want to go against my orders?"

    Shi Zhiguang shivered a bit and sat down immediately. He sat properly with his legs held together and his hands on his legs.

    Gu Xuan realized the situation was not good and decided that if Shi Zhiguang was reprimanded, he would beg for leniency for him.

    Ai Hui cleared his throat and asked, "Why are you depressed? It¡¯s not your fault. The Pinwheel Sword is a new weapon, and we are all groping our way forward. Therefore, it¡¯s fine for you to fail. I can ept your failure, but I can¡¯t tolerate you losing your will to fight. If you keep doing so, I will rece you!"

    Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s words, Shi Zhiguang instantly stood up straight, held his chin up, and puffed his chest out. His extreme chest muscles were as strong as a gori¡¯s. He immediately said, "Master, I won¡¯t lose the will to fight!"

    Gu Xuan looked at Ai Hui in surprise.

    In everybody¡¯s mind, Ai Hui was strict because he would assign punitive practice that took on unimaginable forms to anyone who made a tiny mistake during training. These punitive practices would consume one¡¯s energy excessively. Besides, Ai Hui was impartial and incorruptible, so everyone was awed by him.

    Still, no oneined. Instead, they were sincerely convinced when Ai Hui joined their training and followed the same criteria as everyone else.

    Last time, Ai Hui beat the whole Sword of Lightning by himself, which won everybody¡¯s admiration.

    It had to be admitted that Ai Hui was good at training people. The seemingly nonsense tests from before wereter proven to be practical. Some members were average in personal strength, but possessed talent in particr aspects. Thus, no one was arrogant in the division, and the atmosphere was quite harmonious.

    Gu Xan¡¯s mindset had been unknowingly changed He used to be a loner, but now he practiced and shouldered punishment together with the other division members, which contributed a lot to their rtionship.

    This was especially evident a few days ago when Ai Hui was injured, so Gu Xuan had to lead the division in training.

    From then on, Gu Xuan had be used to taking care of others.

    That was why he had decided to intercede for Shi Zhiguang this time.

    Ai Hui coughed again. "Although you are not the one to be med for the mistakes, you still need to make progress. After all, our lives depend on you."

    Shi Zhiguang felt excited immediately. Face flushing, he said loudly, "I won¡¯t let you down!"

    He had never been so highly valued like that.

    Conscious of his responsibility, he was full of vigor. Thus, he couldn¡¯t wait to operate the Pinwheel Sword again and start a new practice session.

    Ai Hui nodded and seemed satisfied. "Good, but having guts is not enough to win a battle. We have to improve our overall strength. In order to raise sword operators¡¯ strength, I have designed a special training regimen for you all."

    Shi Guangzhi straightened his neck and shouted, "I willplete the special training!"

    He decided that he would finish it no matter how hard it was.

    Ai Hui waved his hand. "Not only you, but all sword operators have to pass the special training. Gu Xuan, tell the other two toe here."

    The other two sword operators came immediately and stood rigidly in front of Shi Zhiguang. Compared to Shi Zhiguang, they were not confident at all. Daily training was already difficult enough. They couldn¡¯t imagine how hard the special training would be.

    They were prepared to undergo the most severe trial.

    Other team members also gathered around since they wanted to know what the special training would be.

    As everybody arrived, Ai Hui said, " Being highly concentrated for a long period of time is the top challenge for a sword operator. This special training focuses on that point. Hence, it tasks our sword operators with learning to embroider."

    After hearing what he said, everybody was silent at first. Then, they exploded withints.

    "Embroidery! Oh my god!

    "Boss must be insane!"

    ...

    ...

    Shi Zhiguang, who had been excited a moment ago, was dumbstruck.

    The other two sword operators also felt astounded.

    Ai Hui asked, "Do you know anything about embroidery? Come on, Shi Zhiguang. Tell us what you know."

    Shi Zhiguang stuttered, "Yes, women do embroidery."

    A strong sense of d¨¦j¨¤ vu carried Ai Hui back into his memories, returning him to a small, familiar courtyard where an old man patiently taught a teenager.

    Almost reflexively, Ai Hui said , "Superficial!"

    "A seamstress needs to use elemental energy as a needle, which is not an easy job. The qualities of threads and materials are different, while the designs areplicated. A good seamstress can control 10 elemental energy needles simultaneously that work in different areas of her embroidery work. As for the best embroidery master, do you know how many elemental energy needles she could control at a time?

    "How many?"

    "The highest record was 949 needles..."

    Nobody noticed the yearning and nostalgia in Ai Hui¡¯s hoarse voice. His mind lingered in the small courtyard where the sound of weaving looms hummed now and then.

    Master, Mistress, your disciple can now teach others how to embroider.

 Chapter 528: Ability of God

    Chapter 528: Ability of God

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    After several consecutive days and nights of forced marching, even the ardent flower night wolves disyed some signs of fatigue.

    Xing Shan did not continue to move forward, but chose to rest and recuperate. As the distance between the two parties drew closer, the level of danger increased dramatically, and they might confront the enemy at anytime. The speed of advancing became unimportant, and the key factor was not to make any mistakes.

    He bet that Shi Xueman and others would not retreat even with the imminent arrival of the Dread Division and Judgement Division. As the saying went, "newborn calves are not afraid of the tiger." Furthermore, they had just won a battle and morale was high. There was no reason for them to choose a conservative strategy.

    The vengeful response from the Blood of God was as expected.

    Due to their involvement in the previous war, Shi Xueman and Silver Soldier were all proficient in warfare. It was not surprising that Shi Xueman performed very well as she was from a distinguished family.

    It was the performance of Silver Soldier which surprised everyone.

    The sudden appearance of Silver Soldier, who wore the title of Karakorum Pris¡¯s senior, gave everyone the impression of him being just a skilful fighter without utilizing military strategy. Many people were waiting to see Madam Ye make a fool out of herself since being skilful in martial arts alone was not enough to qualify as abat division leader.

    In actual fact, even the status of Master was exaggerated. Combat divisions could be found everywhere and were already considered worthless. That¡¯s why in order to qualify as a division leader, military expertise was a requirement.

    The performance of Silver Soldier on the battlefield revealed his vast experience and one could easily tell that he was a veteran warrior. Even though the amount of casualties was rtivelyrge, it did not lower their evaluation of him. With a bunch of new rookies on the battlefield, arge number of casualties was unavoidable. Even the most powerful division leader would not be able to immediately get a group of new recruits to reach the level of battlefield veterans.

    Silver Soldier had no problem with attacking or providing support whenever necessary. It was obvious that he had excellent tactical training.

    In contrast, the more renowned first sword master Karakorum Pris¡¯s performance was a far cry whenpared to her senior. She was more like an assistant to Silver Soldier who firmly executed his advice. Of course, good execution was also beneficial in the battlefield.

    Her strong personal strength was like a cold and flickering unsheathed sword.

    ording to the ounts from the battlefield, almost no one could block Karakorum Pris and the number of experts who died under her sword was at least 17.

    Among them were three powerful men who hadprehended the Ability of God!

    The strength of the blood elementalists originated from fresh blood which contained blood spiritual force. Through special mixing and refining, different types of beast blood would blend with the blood elementalist¡¯s blood. This process was called blood refinement.

    Xing Shan experienced the blood refinement of the Beast Venom Temple. It was a major blood refinement where a variety of different types of beast blood werebined, enhancing the effect of the process. Correspondingly, the risk of major blood refinement was also veryrge and a slight mistake might inadvertently lead to death by explosion.

    Xing Shan had undergone 12 major blood refinements which had been extremely difficult and was only second to Red Devil in number.

    Apart from major blood refining, the typical cultivation for a blood elementalist was also equivalent to blood refinement. In intensity and effectiveness, it was far less powerful than major blood refining. Of course, the risk was almost negligible and hence very safe.

    Major blood refining was like a shortcut. If one was umonly gifted and extremely fortunate, he would seed instantly. Just like Red Devil who had no record of merits from any battles, but became one of the giants of the Blood of God who built his own pce after surviving an unprecedented 21 major blood refinements.

    Minor blood refinement was mild and harmless. With perseverance, there would also be simr results.

    Whether it was a mild minor blood refinement or a radical major blood refinement, they were basically two different pathways, but their nature was still to enhance the blood in the blood elementalist to increase his or her power.

    When blood in the body of a blood elementalist continued to grow stronger, the Ability of God would be activated. It was like a "key," capable of unlocking the mysterious power lurking in the bloodstream and discovering the unique skills of each person.

    There were great differences between the ancestral mark of different people because of different blood types. Yet after bing a blood elementalist, a variety of blood and especially the blood of various beasts was further absorbed into the bloodstream. These huge differences made the Ability of God extremely diverse

    Some blood elementalists with the Ability of God were able to grow wings on their back and, like the incarnation of birds, roamed among the clouds.

    On the other hand, some blood elementalists with the Ability of God were capable of listening to the wind and hearing movements that were very far away.

    There was also the ability to grow horns that were super strong and unbeatable.

    How many kinds of Abilities of God were there? No one knew.

    Blood elementalists who couldprehend the Ability of God were the best experts and their statuses were equivalent to a Master. Whether it was the blood division or the god division, blood elementalists with the Ability of God were the backbone supporting the divisions.

    Xing Shan, himself, was a blood elementalist with the Ability of God and had seven such subordinates under him.

    Thebat power of these blood elementalists were powerful andparable to a Master. Even as a secondarybat division, the Ardent Flower Blood Division contained eight blood elementalists with the Ability of God. This showed that abat division from the Blood of God was way more powerful than its Beyond Avalon counterpart.

    Even so, the ability to kill three blood elementalists with the Ability of God in a single battle was extremely rming and had a great impact on the war.

    This was why, even though Karakorum Pris had limited tactical acumen, nobody dared to underestimate her. Whoever owned such arge lethal weapon had a great fighting advantage. In particr, when both sides were deadlocked, a sharp sword capable of tearing up the enemy¡¯s defenses was often the key to victory.

    Xing Shan did not want to encounter Karakorum Pris. He knew that even if he won the battle, half of his generals would get killed. There were no benefits to be reaped and such victories meant nothing to him.

    Just as he was eyeing the leader position of the God Wolf Division, someone else was also secretly coveting his Ardent Flower Division leader position behind his back.

    In contrast, Shi Xueman was a much more enticing and worthwhile target.

    A very high reward made Xing Shan willing to take the risk. As long as they were able to capture Shi Xueman, they were not afraid if the war sapped their strength. This was because the reward reaped would be worth it.

    It was a good deal.

    He had already done some preparations beforehand.

    He shouted at his two subordinates, a bold man and one dressed like a schr. The bold man was Kan Yong and the schr was Wu Wenyi. Both of them were blood elementalists with the Abilities of God.

    Xing Shanmanded ,"You two, each lead a small team and go separately. Your task is simply to disrupt the enemy and mislead them into thinking we have threebat divisions."

    Wu Wenyi said, "Aren¡¯t we going tounch a surprise attack on them? Won¡¯t our strategy be exposed?"

    Kan Yong also gazed at Xing Shan.

    "The other party knows that we will take revenge and definitely will take precaution. As long as we get slightly closer to the enemy, they will be rmed. It is impossible to ambush them. I also suspect they have their traps ready and waiting for us to arrive."

    Both of them nodded. Boss¡¯s analysis was probably correct.

    Xing Shan continued, "Therefore, we are going to disrupt their arrangement to ensure they do not know our actual situation. If both of you encounter enemies, just harass them, but do not engage them. As long as you stay active, they will be unable to sleep and eat well. No one knows how many people we will send for revenge. They can¡¯t figure out how much depth we have and will definitely take strict precautions, exposing their n. It will be better if you can mobilize their battle divisions. Let¡¯s first muddy the water before fishing in troubled waters."

    Both said in unison, "We understand!"

    They felt that what Boss said was absolutely right. Only if they confused the enemy would they then be able to grab an opportunity to attack. His brilliant achievements in wars and his previous record proved that his strategic insights were excellent, so they were very convinced by Boss.

    The two teams disappeared into the mountain forest.

    Zu Chun looked at their backs and sighed with emotion, "Hope their luck will improve."

    Xing Shan said coolly,"It will."

    Then, he said to Zu Chun,"We are now slowing down the speed of advance, but by increasing the number of scouts, we need you to takemand. Our target is Shi Xueman."

    Zu Chun was startled. Now that he understood the true intention of Xing Shan, he could not help but ask, "Only Shi Xueman?"

    "Only Shi Xueman," Xing Shan emphasized again. He noticed the change in Zu Chun¡¯s expression and said coolly,"I did not tell you beforehand for fear of information leaks. You can imagine the benefits of capturing Shi Xueman. Deploy all the scouts. There is only one target, and I only need to know where Shi Xueman is located."

    Zu Chun calmed down and admitted that the concerns of the division leader were not unreasonable. Thepetition between the different divisions of the Blood of God was a lot fiercer than the gentlepetition of the 13 divisions of Avalon of Five Elements.

    Each of the scouts soared into the sky or disappeared into the mountain forest.

    Zu Chun looked solemn, his spinal column lit up, and indescribable power emitted from him.

    There were three kinds of blood elementalists. The mostmon were god guards, followed by god shamans, and in the minority were god priests.

    Both Zu Chun and Xing Shan were god guards. Whenpared to elemental energy, the effect of using blood spiritual force to temper the body was much better. At the beginning, the physical fitness of the god guards would have an all-rounded enhancement. Speed, strength, dexterity, and self-healing ability were greatly improved. With training, the blood essence of the whole body began to converge on the spine and condensed as spinal blood.

    The spine was like the trunk of a tree and was the source of power.

    The coagted spinal blood started from the cyx and moved steadily upward, just like climbing adder. A spine had a total of 33 vertebrae and these were known as the 33 pirs to the sky. It was said that if a god guard could get through the 33 pirs to the sky by traversing the whole spine, he would be a Master.

    However, none of the god guards had managed to get through the 33 pirs as of now.

    Zu Chun only surpassed 17 pirs, and among the god guards, he was already considered a very tough guy. From the ninth column onward, the strength required to get through each column was multiplied and the difficulty was exponentially increased.

    The glistening spine was naturally curved and entrenched like a dragon.

    The blood spiritual force in the body converged at an rming speed toward his back and a dense scar appeared on his back, just like an ancient emblem. The expression shown by Zu Chun was like someone undergoing tremendous pain.

    It stung.

    The huge ck wings rose slowly from his back, growing and extending toward both ends.

    Throughout the whole process, Zu Chun was grim until the wings ceased to grow. The pain on his face vanished, reced with indifference.

    His eyes no longer had focus.

    Without any nonsense, Zu Chun pped the wings behind him and disappeared all of a sudden.

 Chapter 529: Reconnaissance

    Chapter 529: Reconnaissance

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    Shi Xueman was patrolling the camp when she saw Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun. She nodded and asked, "Did you arrange for the reconnaissance?"

    Jiang Wei said, "Arrangements have been made for Zu Yan to lead and Fatty has set off as well.

    Having been sharpened by the battle, which had greatly influenced him, he appeared more steady and restrained. Not only him, even Sang Zhijun and Fatty seemed like different people individually.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s work could always be trusted since he rarely made mistakes.

    Shi Xueman was surprised, "Even Fatty is going? He is not suitable to be a scout."

    Sang Zhijun heard and smiled, "Aren¡¯t they both fire elementalists? Both of them used to soak in the fire reservoirs together, and with Fatty so thick-skinned, how can Zu Yan be his opponent? Just a short time was needed for them to be good brothers."

    Jiang Wei said hurriedly, "Besides being a little bit thick-skinned, Fatty is actually not too bad."

    Sang Zhijun covered her mouth andughed, "Are you praising him?"

    Jiang Wei reacted andughed heartily.

    Shi Xueman noticed the fluctuation of elemental energy throughout Jiang Wei¡¯s whole body and her eyes lit up, "Jiang Wei, are you going to have a breakthrough?"

    Sang Zhijun was stunned to hear this. She turned her face toward Jiang Wei and gushed, "Breakthrough? Why did you not mention it?"

    Sang Zhijun was prepared for action. "It seems like I have to put in more effort and not be left behind."

    Shi Xueman looked at the two of them and could not help smiling. Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun got close to each other recently and gelled really well. Although Jiang Wei did note from an aristocratic background, he was destined for a bright future as he was steady and calm. The Sang family used to be mediocre, but their situation was not much better now.

    Sang Zhijun yed a critical role in her family and had sufficient authority to speak.

    Jiang Wei thought of something and said, "Zu Yan has recently improved tremendously."

    With the achievements of Master Zu Yan, everyone should have addressed him as Master in ordance with the usual practice. However, addressing him as "Master" still made people feel awkward. It also made Zu Yan ufortable, so he requested that everyone address him by his name.

    Shi Xueman sighed with emotion. "He is probably inspired by Senior Le Buleng."

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun nodded one after another as they agreed with Shi Xueman.

    Sang Zhijun was full of worries. "I wonder if Senior Le Buleng has reached the Jadeite Forest? I admire the courage of Senior Le Buleng, but to challenge Dai Gang at this time, the odds are slim."

    Jiang Wei had a different view. "When will we ever have a high chance to defeat Dai Gang? I, however, feel that the timing is just right. Thus, do not worry about the future of Zu Yan as he is a carefree spirit. After witnessing the actions of Grandmaster An Muda, the battle spirit in Senior Le Buleng was also aroused. Moreover, after seeing the actions of Skyheart City, anger filled his heart. From the moral point of view, it was the limit for Senior Le Buleng."

    Talking about Skyheart City made Sang Zhijun angry and she grunted, "Unfortunately, I was not present at that time. It is with great regret that I did not get to see Senior Le Buleng in a rage. Skyheart City really makes people angry!"

    Jiang Wei saw that Sang Zhijun was angry and hurriedlyforted her, "There¡¯s nothing to be angry about. At least they gave us a God-subduing Peak. A God-subduing Peak is something I have never even dreamed of."

    Sang Zhijun grinned from ear to ear and was full of optimism. "Oh yes, with the God-subduing Peak, we do not need to take other¡¯s feelings into consideration. Plus, a lot of Xueman¡¯s ideas can also be achieved."

    Shi Xueman had the utmost expectation for the God-subduing Peak. She used to be stationed at a God-subduing Peak, had experienced its power, and had thought about it before. What would be the result if she possessed a God-subduing Peak and erected the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon on top of the peak.

    The recent battles had made her profoundly aware of the changes in her surroundings.

    Formerbat divisions only had to confront dire beasts, but now they had to face the blood elementalists who were under the reformedbat divisions. The enemy had undergone tremendous changes and many strategies had became less suitable.

    This was destined to be a rapidly changing era.

    She remembered some of the points that Ai Hui had borated on in his letter and had to admit that Ai Hui¡¯s keen instinct for battle was extraordinary. He obviouslycked rich experience in warfare, but this did not seem to prevent Ai Hui from understanding the battle.

    Maybe it was a gift.

    This thought shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s mind, and she immediatelyughed at the fact that it took until now to discover Ai Hui¡¯s gift. Wasn¡¯t the talent of Ai Hui obvious since the first battle?

    She repeatedly warned, "Continue to be alert."

    "Yes!"

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun obeyed the order with a salute. No matter how close their rtionship was in private, everyone was serious when it came to business.

    Shi Xueman elerated her pace and a thought flickered in her mind.

    She wanted to capture this feeling.

    .....

    Fatty scanned the mountain below and muttered from time to time, "This barrennd, not even a shadow to be seen. Nothing, there is nothing at all. We have flown for a long time, and it is very tiring. Little Yanyan, let¡¯s go down to rest."

    Zu Yan was speechless, "I am taking you to fly. What is so tiring?"

    Fatty nonchntly said, "My eyes are tired. Why don¡¯t you try it?"

    Zu Yan rolled his eyes, but had to admit that Fatty had the right to say so. Fatty was definitely not a good scout, either in terms of size or speed. Zu Yan was willing to take the trouble of bringing Fatty along despite his habit of constant grumbling for an important reason.

    Fatty¡¯s eyes were as sharp as an eagle¡¯s and even the pheasants who hid in the imprable grass could be seen.

    Basically, if Fatty said it was safe after a nce at the ce, that meant it was truly safe.

    Zu Yan was much more powerful than Fatty, but when it came to eyesight, they were notparable. Fatty could aim the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon so well and so urately, something that definitely could not be done with bad eyesight.

    However, Zu Yan deeply hated some of Fatty¡¯s bad habits.

    A little bit of work, yet he was alreadyining of tiredness. Nonsensical talk from his mouth kept pouring out and could not be blocked. Zu Yan was almost driven crazy by Fatty¡¯s nonsense when they were both in the same fire reservoir and had nowhere else to escape to at the beginning. Zu Yan was powerful and therefore able to endure the high-level fire reservoir. Fatty was obviously not strong, yet he was still able to stay put inside.

    It should be due to his skin being thick...

    Zu Yan was descending and getting ready tond. He picked out a spot with a very good view of the terrain. It was located on a mountain ridge and the line of sight was very far.

    As Fatty was preparing to rest, his eyes suddenly blinked and his body stiffened.

    Zu Yan, who was carrying Fatty, noticed it and instantly asked, "Did something happen?"

    Fatty did not speak, but squinted his eyes and slowly scanned around. After a while, he turned his body and lowered his voice, "There are blood elementalists!"

    Zu Yan trembled with fear. "Where are they?"

    He had not discovered anything earlier.

    Fatty stretched, yawned, and whispered, "Behind the rock, about six or seven miles away from us."

    Zu Yan looked Fatty¡¯s deceitful expression and suspected he was cooking up a scheme. He asked immediately, "What is your n?"

    "You go get some prey, but do not go too far."

    Fatty kept on turning around and his eyes continuously scanned all about, exactly like a veteran scout.

    Zu Yan felt suspicious, "Are you hungry? Misleading me by asking me to hunt for you."

    Fatty felt indignant. "Where is the basic trust between brothers? What else, what do you mean by misleading you? Isn¡¯t it expected for you to hunt for your brother? When you were in the fire reservoir, I was afraid you would be bored and specially kept youpany."

    Zu Yan decided to shut up since he had never won an argument with Fatty.

    After talking, Fatty swaggered toward the low-lying ground, seemingly looking for a sheltered ce to rest.

    Zu Chun flew the fastest. He set outst, yet flew the farthest. His Ability of God was [Heavenly Roc Wings] which were verymonly used. The pitch-ck wings grew from his back with sections of ck and red feathers foldedyer byyer. The pattern formed by the ck and red was extremely exquisite, graceful, and elegant.

    The Heavenly Roc was an ancient divine beast which was fierce and tough, roaming all over the highest of the heavens.

    The blood in his body, which contained Heavenly Roc ancestral mark, should have originated from the blood golden eage. However, after millions of years, the content of the Heavenly Roc ancestral mark in the blood golden eagle had be very diluted. Still, the power of this small portion of diluted blood was already sufficient to make a qualitative change in the strength of Zu Chun power.

    Zu Chun had already discovered the presence of the two of them earlier.

    He did not rush over, but quietlynded. Then, he found a ce to hide and waited for the two elementalist scouts to enter into his attack range.

    A confrontation between scouts was unusually brutal and cruel.

    Every scout wanted to capture the opposite party since a live captive was worth far more than a corpse. A captive scout would have a miserable end as they would be tortured and treated cruelly. Even suicide was an extravagant hope.

    The scouts needed not only strong personal strength, but also steel-like willpower. Otherwise, once they were captured, they would not be able to withstand the torture and would divulge information.

    He never expected the two elementalist scouts to stop moving forward, but they stopped to take a rest instead.

    Am I discovered?

    Zu Chun felt this was impossible since he was quite a distance away from them and had not exposed himself.

    Afterward, he saw that one of the scouts unexpectedly went to hunt. He felt relieved and thought that he had not been discovered, but had encountered two substandard scouts.

    It was extremely dangerous to scout for information. The scouts of anybat division were the best of the elites. However, the amateurish performance of these two made Zu Chun shake his head.

    He was even more speechless after seeing Fatty¡¯s figure. Whichbat division would choose a fat man with such a bloated body to serve as a scout?

    Am I getting confused?

    Am I encountering anotherbat division? The Spear of Heavy Cloud, Infantry Division, and Sky Edge Division could not be so novice. The more he thought about it, the more likely it seemed that the victory of Shi Xueman during the previous battle had stimted the rest of thebat divisions and they also wanted to earn some merits against the God Nation?

    Zu Chun sneered.

    He quietly walked toward the other party.

    The other party was negligent and had their backs facing him. In addition, the two seemed to still be in dispute.

    Two rascals!

    Zu Chun¡¯s eyes shed with murderous intent.

 Chapter 530: The Bird is in the Net

    Chapter 530: The Bird is in the Net

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    "Can¡¯t you use a little less force? Control the heat, it¡¯s already burnt. How are we going to eat? And you¡¯re a Master. Aren¡¯t you ashamed of calling yourself a Master when you can¡¯t even roast a bird properly?"

    "Don¡¯t eat it if you don¡¯t want it."

    "I¡¯ll eat, I¡¯ll eat. A Master is cooking personally, so of course I¡¯ll show my support, but in the name of brotherhood, I¡¯m advising you to learn from Lou Lan. Even if you don¡¯t fight in future, at least you can open a roasted chicken stall and live off it. Or you can follow me back to Old Territory and I¡¯ll give you a roasted chicken stall. Aye, I remember how A Hui refused to return to Old Territory. He was made for greater things, and I¡¯ve known it for the longest time. At that time, A Hui..."

    "Can¡¯t you even shut your mouth with food?"

    ...

    Zu Chun listened as they quarreled.

    Zu Chun was feeling increasingly certain about his conjecture. Which cannon fodder division? A Hui? Never heard of him. Old Territory? Coming from the countryside, it was no wonder he had little aplishments. And such a rookie Master, one without even the most basic vignce, would only give away his life on the battlefield.

    A cold light shed across Zu Chun¡¯s eyes as he got ready to make a move.

    "The bird is in the. All on you, pretty boy."

    "Scram."

    Eh? Zu Chun was stunned. Just then, like a ball, the fatty in front put his hands behind his head and leapt forward rapidly. And another person turned around and looked at him expressionlessly.

    The man looked like he was fifteen or sixteen. His skin was quite pale and he looked rather feeble.

    Zu Chun shuddered. To be a Master at such a young age meant that his talent was absolutely extraordinary. Plus... was this a trap?

    A red light lit up beneath his feet.

    He lowered his head and saw a clearly visible red light web. With the pale youth standing right in the center, the criss-crossed red light enveloped a few hundred meters around him like a giant, red spider web.

    The pale youth stood in the middle of the red spider web, watching him coldly like a spider hidden in the dark.

    Zu Yan was rescued by Le Buleng during the blood catastrophe, and because of the upation of Fire Prairie, which led to a deficiency in fire elemental ingredients, he was unable to train and was sealed in ice by Le Buleng. Having been frozen over and unable to see the sunlight for a long time, a sickly paleness appeared on his face. Furthermore, the ice seal also froze his looks in time, so he still looked as if he was fifteen or sixteen years old.

    Knowing he¡¯d been deceived, Zu Chun was furious, but he quickly calmed down.

    He did not know when he¡¯d been noticed or whether they had special tricks, but at that point, anger wasn¡¯t the solution. A sinister smile surfaced on the corner of his lips and his gaze became cold. He was determined to catch them both and show them what he was capable of.

    He sized his opponent up and felt that he was somewhat familiar-looking, as if he¡¯d seen him somewhere before.

    He stirred. "May I know your name, Sir?"

    The man expressionlessly replied, "Zu Yan."

    Zu Chun¡¯s heart jumped. He looked at that faintly familiar face and finally realized why he found it familiar.

    Young Master Zu Yan!

    Hadn¡¯t the Zu family beenpletely destroyed? Why was Young Master Zu Yan alive? Complicated emotions that were difficult to understand filled his mind. Although he wasn¡¯t aware of what Zu Yan had been through, Zu Yan was indeed standing before him, alive and well.

    Zu Yan¡¯s mind and views of the world were still stuck in the time of Induction Ground, so they were young and tender. In contrast, Fatty, who was hiding far behind Zu Yan, was very experienced. He¡¯d sensed the change in Zu Chun¡¯s expression and demanded, "Tell us your name too."

    Quivering, Zu Chun blurted out, "Zu Chun."

    He immediately regretted revealing his name.

    Indeed, Zu Yan¡¯s face turned grave. He asked coldly, "Which branch are you from?"

    The Zu family was a powerful family; it was well-established and still growing, with many side factions. Upon seeing someone from the same family on the battlefield, Zu Yan¡¯s heart felt constricted, as if a ball of fire was stuck in his chest. The Zu family was destroyed, but the branch family was relying on their mortal enemy.

    Zu Chun kept silent for a moment before responding. "The Hongling Zu Branch."

    Zu Yan¡¯s voice was like an echoing, bitingly cold wind. "There are even branches in the family. The Hongling Zu family is ranked third. The family head is a generous man. I was twelve when Ist saw Hongling Zu family¡¯s head, Uncle Ming. Is he still alive?"

    Zu Yan was a direct descendant of the Zu family, so ever since he was young, he¡¯d been regarded and nurtured as the sessor of the family and was well-respected.

    After a long period of silence, Zu Chun shook his head. "Hongling was surrounded for twenty days, and the situation was hopeless. Refusing to surrender but not wanting the family to be ughtered, Uncle Ming killed himself. Those with "Ming" in their names have all died."

    The rage in Zu Yan¡¯s chest was quickly extinguished and overtaken by sorrow.

    Zu Yan almost fainted upon waking up to the news that the whole Zu family had been ughtered without exception. What followed was a long period of depression and decadence. Seeing Zu Chun reminded him of his family, which threw him into a fury. Knowing that Uncle Ming and the rest refused to surrender andmitted suicide calmed him down.

    He¡¯d felt angry because he was of the opinion that the family head had been betrayed.

    And the sorrow he felt now was due to his realization that there was nothing they could¡¯ve done. Zu Yan could understand the despair and helplessness Uncle Ming and the rest must¡¯ve felt when they ended their lives.

    Zu Yan said faintly, "Go, I¡¯ll pretend we¡¯ve never met."

    Fatty opened his mouth, but he swallowed the words that were about toe out.

    Zu Chun shook his head. "You don¡¯t have to do that, Young Master. There¡¯s no more Hongling Zu family. We¡¯re separate individuals and were areon our own, so since we¡¯ve met, let us have a death match, clean and open, fair and square, so that our friends and families will not be dragged into this."

    Zu Yan gave Zu Chun a meaningful look and nodded. "I¡¯m too soft-hearted."

    In these few years, Zu Yan had been like a nk te. He was inexperienced and was still a mncholy and moody youth. Hearing Zu Chun¡¯s words woke him up. Not only were their lives at stake but theirrades¡¯ as well. If letting Zu Chun go would result in a defeat and the loss of hispanions¡¯ lives, he wouldn¡¯t be able to forgive his sin even if he died.

    He reminded himself inwardly.

    Zu Chun inhaled a deep breath, gazing deeply at Zu Yan. "I¡¯m assuming this is the family¡¯s absolute art [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation]?"

    [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] was the Zu family¡¯s absolute art, and only direct descendants had the right to practice it. Zu Chun had only heard of the name and had never seen it for himself.

    Zu Yan replied, "That¡¯s right, but there are differences as well."

    In Induction Ground, Zu Yan practiced the [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation]. It was an absolute art that had undergone generations of deepening and perfecting. Zu Chun hadn¡¯t seen it not only because only descendants weren¡¯t able to practice it, but also because it was an extremely difficult skill to master. It demanded a lot, even from the most talented since it was astonishingly challenging toprehend.

    In each generation, no more than three people were able toprehend [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation]. But once they were enlightened, their umtion would constantly deepen with time and turn them into very strong yers.

    Due to having been frozen over for many years, the preserved wisp of unextinguished fire element in Zu Yan¡¯s body was extremely pure. This was also the reason why he was able to be a Master so effortlessly upon being replenished with a huge volume of snowva.

    Zu Chun¡¯sughter carried on for a while, his vigor rising drastically. "Young Master¡¯s [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] isn¡¯t the only exception!"

    Whoosh. He engaged [Heavenly Roc Wings] and his body abruptly vanished.

    Zu Yan¡¯s gaze sharpened. With a snort, he swiftly sprang up from the red spider web and wove a shield-sized spider web before him.

    Bang!

    A blurry afterimage shed past as a dent appeared on the spider web shield. Sparks flew everywhere.

    "Interesting indeed!"

    Zu Chun¡¯sughter sounded in mid air. Borrowing the force of the spider web shield, he flew up into the sky.

    The durability of the spider web surprised him. As a member of the Zu family¡¯s branch family, it could be said that [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] had a well-known reputation and a special ce in his heart. Because of that, he was even more excited to face his opponent. His battlelust was overflowing.

    Returning to the sky, Zu Chun¡¯s hands no longer felt restricted. He felt more carefree.

    [Sky Roc Wings] worked better in the sky.

    With a tremble of the wings on his back, Zu Yan vanished once again.

    He reappeared behind Zu Yan almost immediately like an oblique sword ray, going straight for Zu Yan.

    As if he had eyes behind his head, Zu Yan sprang up from the spider web and stayed in the air.

    A spider web appeared before Zu Chun once again.

    He saw Zu Chun approaching, but he disappeared yet again.

    Zu Yan snorted. Like a poisonous snake that had sensed danger and raised its head, the few spider webs beside his legs gathered to form a big spider web over his head.

    Diving down without dodging, Zu Chun increased his speed and tilted his body slightly. The wings behind his back spread open like a scissors and smashed violently onto the spider web above Zu Yan¡¯s head.

    A devilish, red knife ray sliced the spider web.

    Zu Yan¡¯s face changed and he took a step toward his left.

    The descending red ray sliced Zu Yan¡¯s body into two.

    Snap. The red spider web threads broke.

    Zu Chun did not look the least bit happy. That slice felt strange. Indeed, Zu Yan, who had been split into two, did not bleed at all. Instead, he gradually became blurry.

    Zu Chun caught a glimpse of a shadow out of the corner of his eye.

    Unknowingly, Zu Yan had already appeared a hundred meters away from him.

    Zu Yan looked up. The flickering me in his eyes could cause one¡¯s heart to palpitate. He raised his right arm, his fingers spread open, and his forefinger pointed at Zu Chun!

    An intense sense of danger rose in Zu Chun¡¯s heart. Without the slightest hesitation, he engaged Heavenly Roc Wings.

    Hiss hiss hiss!

    It sounded like a spitting poisonous snake or a whining of a spider concealed within the darkness. Fire red spider web threads shot toward the sky.

    Zu Yan quickly engaged his wings and flew upward frantically.

    Densely packed red spider web threads chased closely behind him like a swarm of rapidly slithering red snakes.

    Zu Yan, who was on the ground, became a small, ck dot, but the red spider web threads showed no indications of giving up.

    Zu Chun had decided. If he wasn¡¯t able to dominate them in the sky, he might as well admit defeat!

    The exquisite red pattern on his Heavenly Roc Wings emitted a devilish, red light. Zu chun¡¯s speed increased drastically and the afterimage in the sky flickered non-stop. His body had be erratic.

    He was like a sharp, red knife ray, plunging into the bitingly cold, golden-wind-filled deep space.

    The red spider web threads quickly became disordered.

    At the same time, a few hundred meters away, a shadow dove from the deep space toward the ground like a sharp arrow.

 Chapter 531: Fattyâ€™s Lethal Weapon

    Chapter 531: Fatty¡¯s Lethal Weapon

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The wind whistled as Zu Chun increased his speed, the surging airflow like cutting knives. His field of vision was shaky, but he fixed his gaze onto that shadow on the ground.

    It was as if the violent force in his blood had been roused.

    Zu Chun wasn¡¯t aware that his eyes were bloodshot. The red light enveloping his wings was as dense as a thickyer of red crystal. His aura was strengthening and a gush of azure air surged upward. It was as if he was seeing himself fly beyond the end of the world, over a void, and across the stars. He used to rule the sky. Pride and agitation spread within his body.

    An enormous spider web lit up beneath the feet of Zu Yan, who was on the ground.

    As if he hadn¡¯t seen it, Zu Yan had sufficient confidence that even [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation] would not be able to stop him!

    Bang!

    Just then, with a jolt on his back, it was as if there was a moment of enlightenment. A gush of extremely vigorous force entered his body in an instant. He couldn¡¯t help but emit a stern and long hiss, his breath surging.

    He was wild with joy. He hadn¡¯t expected to undergo a breakthrough at this time!

    The eighteenth column had been unlocked!

    The curled spider web on the ground enveloped Zu Yan like an unbloomed rose whose petals had folded and stacked over one another. The defensive strength disyed by the crisscrossed canine teeth was absolutely intimidating and unbreakable.

    But Zu Chun was full of confidence, and sinister smile surfaced on his lips.

    As if feeling Zu Chun¡¯s murderousness, Zu Yan raised his head once again and got into an odd position.

    His left leg was propped up while his right leg was in a squat, and his upper body was leaning forward.

    The slightly paling zing me overflowed from Zu Yan¡¯s eyes. His eyes werepletely hidden amidst the mes. At this moment, his expression was calm, as if a fire god was arriving.

    He lifted his face up and fixed his gaze at Zu Chun, who was rapidly plunging downward.

    The red light enveloping Zu Chun¡¯s body was like a sharp, red knife ray. A mournful, sharp hiss filled the whole sky. It was a soul-shaking sound.

    Zu Yan¡¯s right leg mmed onto the ground, effortlessly splitting the mud as if a giant had swung his hatchet and drawn a solid and cold arc.

    The surroundings curled up and a petal-like spider web lifted off the ground simultaneously as if being blown up by the wind. Piece after piece entered the disk slowly, creating a dazzling sight. It was as if the arc had been dyed red asyers of flower patterns folded over one another. It was absolutely exquisite and beautiful, and the red glow on the arc became increasingly introverted.

    Since Induction Ground Time, Zu Yan had already been able to attack with his heavy, axe-like leg, but his execution today was thoroughly different. There had been an intrinsic transformation.

    When that wheel, which looked as ifyers of flower patterns had been engraved on it, of red mes shot toward the sky silently, a chill went up Zu Chun¡¯s spine. An unprecedented sense of danger enveloped his heart.

    It hadn¡¯t been an easy journey for Zu Chun to survive till this point and serve as the Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s vice division leader. The fear of danger did not urge him to escape. Instead, he knew that when his life was at stake and that the only way to survive was to be even crazier and reckless.

    He ced both hands in front like an ancient, ferocious beast that had been angered. With a sky-filling hiss and devilish red light, he dashed toward that red, ming arc.

    Both had the same surname and both had the same red ray.

    The difference was that one was devilish and fearful while the other was reserved and refined.

    Like a dyed predestination, the rays collided with a great impact.

    The splendid rays lit up abruptly, filling the sky with a sheet of white. Nothing could be seen. An ear-splitting boom sounded, causing the ground to shake intensely. A pounding windstorm followed, frantically sweeping and ripping everything apart. The solid rock shattered instantly as if smashed by a heavy hammer. Even before its fragments could fly everywhere, they were swallowed up by the wind. Trees also got twisted and shattered instantly, and the mud on the ground was lifted a few meters up as if a monster was trampling forward.

    It felt like judgment day.

    Time seemed to have stopped at this point.

    Some timeter, a wildughter rang in the sky.

    "Hahahaha!"

    Zu Chun was covered in blood, but his aura remained strong as he floated in mid air. As he looked at the enormous pit below, hisughter became increasingly wild and arrogant.

    Zu Yan was in a much more sorry state as he struggled his way out of the giant pit. His clothes were torn and there were quite a few wounds all over his body. His right leg was twisted at a weird angle.

    "Hahahahahaha, that¡¯s all there is to the young master of the Zu family! That¡¯s all there is to [ming Heavenly Spider Transformation]!"

    Zu Chun only felt an indescribable ease and excitement, as if an invisible shackle that had been binding him was broken. It was satisfying.

    From then on, he was no longer the Zu Chun from Zu family¡¯s side faction. He was the vice division leader, Heavenly Roc Wing, Zu Chun, from Ardent Flower Blood Division!

    Boom!

    A dull sound rang from afar.

    Zu Chun was stunned, and before he could look toward the direction of that boom, he felt as if he¡¯d been dealt a blow by a heavy hammer. His body shook uncontrobly.

    When he turned around, he saw a small mountain peak and an odd-looking mini pagoda cannon tube from which ck smoke was rising in spirals. The pagoda cannon was propped on Fatty¡¯s shoulder. Fatty was in a half squat position, his body steady as a mountain.

    There was no fear, dread, or cunningness on his face, onlyplete focus. He was expressionless, with his right cheek stuck close to the scalding cannon tube. Before him was a sturdy trestle that formed a stable triangle with his legs. The cannon tube¡¯s tail was connected to a thick and soft tube which extended to a water tank that contained the clear-as-water snowva on his back.

    Their eyes met.

    A cold light shed across Fatty¡¯s eyes.

    Boom!

    Another earth-shattering boom sounded and a dazzling white me sprayed out from the cannon tube. As if he had suffered a heavy hit, Fatty¡¯s feet sunk ankle deep into the rock. His face was flush red, his round eyes filled with anger, and his whole body¡¯s power activated. Even then, the huge impact still threw his body backward.

    Zu Chun¡¯s body trembled once again as the immense force ripped his body.

    He lowered his head and saw two bowl-sized bloody holes on his chest. Connected to them were two biting disks of moon.

    What a domineering pagoda cannon, and how urate...

    Could it be Skyheart City¡¯s secret weapon?

    He fell into an unconscious state and dropped down from the sky.

    Fatty was soaked in sweat, and vapor was rising from his body. He was like a freshly roasted pig. His skin was bright red and his sweat was overflowing, but it was as if he was numb. He kept the trestle before him, took down the cannon tube on his shoulder, and disassembled the soft tube. He used a palm carrying elemental energy to wipe across the cannon tube slowly and then it became soft. He then carefully rolled the cannon tube and soft tube up and packed both along with the trestle inside the bag he was carrying.

    The whole process was done meticulously and skillfully.

    After packing, Fatty leapt off the hill nimbly, which was surprising because of his body size.

    With a few jumps, he appeared by Zu Yan¡¯s side. Zu Yan was staggering, still overwhelmed with shock, and out of it.

    Zu Yan was used to seeing Fatty carry that bag all the time. Little did he know that there was a lethal weapon hidden within.

    Zu Yan was already aware that Fatty was an expert in handling the pagoda cannon.

    Yet, Fatty had actually modified it, again and again...

    Zu Yan knew not how to describe thispletely innovative single pagoda cannon. Was it considered a weapon? Probably, although it was very different from the weapons Zu Yan was familiar with.

    Without a word, Fatty supported Zu Yan up and lugged him over his shoulder.

    Zu Yan only felt his world spinning, and when he regained his senses, he realized he¡¯d been manhandled.

    "Put me down, I can walk on my own..."

    "Shut up! Don¡¯t attract the army!"

    Zu Yan was stunned. He¡¯d never heard Fatty using such a stern and serious tone and was caught off guard.

    It seemed effortless for Fatty even though he was carrying a big adult and a big bag at the same time. Another few jumps took him to Zu Chun¡¯s side.

    Zu Yan saw that Zu Chun¡¯s eyes were wide open. It wasn¡¯t a peaceful death. There was also disbelief on his face and two ghastly bloody holes on his chest. Fatty¡¯s cannon had pierced two holes through Zu Chun¡¯s chest. The extremely hot snowva had scorched all around the holes. This was also why there wasn¡¯t any blood flowing out from the holes.

    Not at peace, the deceased Zu Chun had probably found it difficult to believe that he would actually die by Fatty¡¯s hands.

    Zu Yan thought suddenly.

    He wasn¡¯t confident.

    He¡¯d seen Fatty using it to get rid of powerful blood elementalists and had been shocked by the Hellfire pagoda cannon¡¯s might at that point in time. But the Hellfire Pagoda was cumbersome to set up, since it required a lot of time. Unless it was for a big scale battle or for defending purposes, it wasn¡¯t a favorable piece of equipment, especially in the face of an unexpected attack.

    He hadn¡¯t expected Fatty to modify the pagoda cannon into a weapon that could be used by one person.

    Can¡¯t judge a person by appearance...

    While Zu Yan was in thought, Fatty grabbed Zu Chun up and lugged him over his other shoulder.

    Zu Chun¡¯s wide-open eyes met Zu Yan¡¯s, causing Zu Yan¡¯s hair to stand on end. "Why are you carrying the corpse?"

    Fatty exined while dashing, "To show Xueman and the guys. Maybe they¡¯ll find some useful information. At least we¡¯ll know whichbat division he was from."

    Zu Yan immediately felt ashamed. As as investigator, he really wasn¡¯t qualified. He was worse than Fatty. An investigator¡¯s responsibility was to source for information rted to enemies. He only cared about killing his enemy and got tangled into family affairs, forgetting his responsibilities.

    How careless.

    "Plus, I haven¡¯t checked the corpse. Isn¡¯t this all for nothing if we waste natural resources... no, leave it to rot? What a pity! I don¡¯t do meaningless businesses."

    Fatty dashed wildly with both men on his shoulders. He knew that themotion from earlier had rmed both sides. If they did not hurry, they might get chopped into minced meat if other blood elementalists rushed over to investigate.

    Zu Yan was already half crippled and had no strength left.

    Using his pagoda cannon tounch a sneak attack was alright, but to use it in a one on one battle was no different from seeking death. Before he could set up the pagoda cannon, he would¡¯ve been chopped into pieces.

    Fatty was so fast that his legs were producing wind and his face was flush red. Beads of sweat were rolling down his cheeks. He was like an elephant running in the forest.

    Quick,e and save me, Iron Lady!

 Chapter 532: Face to Face

    Chapter 532: Face to Face

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Even when tidying up the camp, no one in the Ardent Flower Blood Division made any sound. Other than the breaths of the ardent flower night wolves and the soldiers petting them to pacify it, the whole campground was solemn.

    Xing Shan managed the military strictly, but whatever War God Ye said, he wouldplete wholeheartedly. He, too, would do that. Military order was strict, and anyone who dared defy his instructions would be killed on the spot and without hesitation. On the other hand, he knew how to coax his subordinates. Whenever there were money making opportunities, he would bring everyone along instead of hogging everything for himself.

    He was born in the marketce and was very practical and tactful. He knew that ttering and fawning hadn¡¯t the least bit of use. Those who led the team well and were loyal and devoted to him would be rewarded immediately and given important posts. That way, subordinates felt it to be rather fair.

    As time passed, people were convinced of this boss¡¯ leadership. Boss appeared rough, but he was actually aplex person and not someone to be fooled easily.

    Xing Shan leaned on his Chieftain Wolf and sprawled on the floor with his eyes slightly shut as if he was resting. He was lightly stroking the wolf¡¯s fur with his palm. This ardent flower night wolf was his saddle horse. It was extremely spirited, but also hot-tempered.

    In the beginning, Xing Shan suffered some hardships when dealing with the Chieftain Wolf. He was extremely frustrated, but he couldn¡¯t bear to ughter it. With much effort, he finally managed to tame it.

    They had a very close rtionship, and the Chieftain Wolf had saved his life repeatedly. In Xing Shan¡¯s eyes, no one in the whole of the Ardent Flower Blood Division wasparable to his Chieftain Wolf.

    With his Chieftain Wolf¡¯s ability, this long-range raid wasn¡¯t a big deal. The Chieftain Wolf enjoyed Xing Shan¡¯s caresses and yawned asionally. With his eyes shut, XIng Shan was deep in thought.

    He didn¡¯t know why, but he started to feel ill at ease, which disturbed him, because he had met with danger the previous time he felt this way.

    This was an omen, he thought.

    He sorted recent affairs carefully but couldn¡¯t find anything amiss.

    Suddenly, he felt that something wasn¡¯t right and jerked his eyes open.

    A dazzling light ray lit up in the faraway sky, its intense wave motion rming Xing Shan. Such a strong motion could only be due to a confrontation between two powerful yers. Was there a powerful figure?

    The whole camp had been startled. Everybody stood up and looked toward the ray in bewilderment.

    A short whileter, an obvious air flow swept across the campground, and Xing Shan¡¯s face changed.

    This was the shockwave from that earlier collision. From amid the wind, he captured Zu Chun¡¯s aura of blood spiritual force!

    Quite a few people had detected this. Having interacted with Zu Chun day and night, many of them were familiar with his blood spiritual force¡¯s aura. If it had been any other day, no one would be too worried, since in the Ardent Flower Blood Division, Zu Chun¡¯s ability was second only to Boss Xing Shan. Yet that wave motion was simply too intense. Zu Chun must have met a Master elementalist!

    Xing Shan¡¯s face was ashen-colored. Zu Chun was his right-hand man and Xing Shan relied heavily on him. Zu Chun had always been the one in charge of daily training, and even after so many years, he¡¯d never failed to live up to Xing Shan¡¯s expectations.

    He quickly suppressed his anger, his mind spinning rapidly. Xing Shan had secured his position as the division leader not only because of his own capability.

    He originally nned to seek out the location of the Spear of Heavy Cloud first. He hadn¡¯t expected to scout out the opponent so quickly, and a Master elementalist at that.

    The enemy was very close!

    Xing Shan¡¯s expression worsened with this realization. The distance between them was much shorter than he¡¯d expected. This meant that the enemy was positioned even more aggressively and invasively and was more ambitious.

    While he didn¡¯t know whichbat division his opponent was from, he knew that the three teams that cooperated and imed victory previously had no reason to battle separately. If they wanted to join forces, they could not be too far apart.

    After analyzing, Xing Shan realized that they were in a very dangerous situation!

    The Ardent Flower Blood Division could be attacked from all sides.

    Xing Shan calmed down. He was aware that whether or not the opponent was from Shi Xueman¡¯sbat division, he would have to use the power of lightning to attack and prevent getting closed in on three sides.

    Any hesitation in the face of such an encounter could lead to a catastrophe.

    In a battle encounter, both parties were usually unprepared. Many would wait for the right opportunity in hope that they could be more amply prepared, but retreating and hesitating was like bowing and giving away victory.

    "Get ready, army! We¡¯re setting off shortly!"

    Xing Shan roared before turning over and sitting on his wolf.

    Everybody responded loudly as they got up in session and sat on ardent flower night wolves.

    They transformed into a deluge and whizzed toward that dazzling light.

    Shi Xueman was in the tent, summing up her insights.

    If they had a God-subduing Peak and installed a pagoda cannon at its crucial position, it would be rmingly powerful. She put pen to paper and in the blink of an eye an outline of God-subduing Peak appeared.

    She¡¯d been stationed in one before, so she was very familiar with it. Propping her chin, she fixed her eyes on the drawing and quickly marked out a suitable position for the pagoda cannon to be installed.

    A mighty force like a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon was very well-suited to a heavy weapon like a God-subduing Peak.

    A Hellfire Pagoda Cannon could double the power of a God-subduing Peak and seal off a region that was more than ten times bigger. Shi Xueman was also startled by her deductions. Any tripling or quintupling of power of a heavy weapon was already considered remarkable.

    A tenfold increase waspletely unbelievable.

    Shi Xueman never would¡¯ve thought that such a small Hellfire Pagoda Cannon could cause such a huge change.

    What else would a God-subduing Peak need if it had a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon?

    Shi Xueman was very aware that a God-subduing Peak wasn¡¯t without its ws. The Wall of North Sea wouldn¡¯t have copsed otherwise.

    And her father wouldn¡¯t have...

    Shi Xueman pursed her lips tightly, her expression steadfast. She tried hard to dismiss her distracting thoughts. Now¡¯s not the time to feel sad and weak, she told herself.

    She started thinking again.

    She thought about the ws of a God-subduing Peak since thinking from this angle might lead her to something.

    She recalled her journey to Jadeite Forest, trying hard to capture the God-subduing Peak¡¯s weaknesses.

    Its speed!

    The God-subduing Peak¡¯s speed wasn¡¯t considered slow. Elementalists would get tired from flying, but a God-subduing Peak could travel from Silver Mist Sea to Jadeite Forest without needing to stop. When it came to battles, however, it always seemed clumsy.

    The God-subduing Peak was too bulky and could only resist instead of dodge enemies¡¯ attacks.

    Enemies would throw themselves onto it like a swarm of bees, and that was when the God-subduing Peak was in greatest danger. It wouldn¡¯t be able to bear the attacks no matter how solid its defense was. If enemies managed to get close, some unique attacks would smash its tortoise shell like a heavy hammer.

    Some extreme blood elementalists would even self-detonate.

    The scene of a blood elementalist exploding was very heroic, and its impact was extremely shocking too.

    In the midst of killing, soldiers would usually be even more crazy, be it blood elementalists or elementalists. There wasn¡¯t any difference.

    A God-subduing Peak¡¯s speed and agility was difficult to change because of its bulk.

    How could shepensate for this w then?

    What about an even morepressed pagoda cannon? Shi Xueman immediately rejected this idea. While Hellfire Pagoda Cannons were indeed very mighty, their firing frequency was simply too slow and more suited for focused targets.

    A God-subduing Peak wasn¡¯t very useful when it came to dealing with this swarm battle technique.

    What to do?

    Increase the number of defending elementalists? This could be a solution. Elementalists were good at flying, so they would be able to block off approaching enemies. An inspirational sh lit across her eyes. That¡¯s right, as long as they prevented enemies from getting close to the God-subduing Peak, its might could fully be unleashed.

    Shi Xueman was feeling rather agitated. She was aware of the value of this idea.

    Quite a few God-subduing Peaks had already been created, but there were always only a few elementalists stationed around each of them. Because there weren¡¯t many battle positions onboard, there had always been few battling elementalists.

    But its gigantic build could definitely fit the entirebat division!

    They just hadn¡¯t done it, because they believed that increasing the number of elementalists on board wouldn¡¯t increase the God-subduing Peak¡¯s might.

    But it was as if Shi Xueman had just opened up a new window. She felt that a God-subduing Peak wasn¡¯t just an empty castle, it could actually be a beehive!

    A flying beehive!

    If they weren¡¯t able to handle the swarm battle technique, the enemies, too, wouldn¡¯t be able to.

    Adding a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon to a God-subduing Peak would greatly increase its lockdown region, which meant that their own soldiers would be able to get assistance from a greater area.

    Shi Xueman got increasingly excited and stood up abruptly, left her tent, and got ready to discuss this matter with Sang Zi Jun, Jiang Wei, and the rest.

    This was their daily activity ¨C non-stop pondering and discussing. From the start of the blood catastrophe, Ai Hui had been the one to host the discussions, and this tradition never stopped since then.

    Shi Xueman, who had just walked out of the tent, turned rigid. She raised her head and looked at the dazzling light ray at the horizon.

    That was... Zu Yan¡¯s elemental energy wave motion!

    Zu Yan must have met an extremely remarkable blood elementalist!

    Zu Yan was very capable. Although he had be a Master a littleter than usual, his abilities in the Spear of Heavy Cloud was second only to Shi Xueman¡¯s. He was a even notch better than Yang Xiaodong. Such a violent impact could only be due to an encounter with a powerful blood elementalist.

    An enemy was here!

    And they were already very close by.

    "Get ready for battle!"

    Without needing for her to shout, members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud were already rmed. The elemental energy wave motion was simply too intense.

    "Gather the troops quickly, Wang Xiaoshan. An enemy is here."

    "Get ready to face the enemy head-on, Jiang Wei."

    "Get someone to inform the Sky Edge soldiers that the enemy is here, Sang Zijun."

    "Follow me, Yang Xiaodong. We¡¯re going to save them!"

    The azure wings on Shi Xueman spread open with a jolt and she soared into the sky.

    Not daring tog behind, Yang Xiaodong quickly followed behind.

    Jiang Wei fixed his gaze on their silhouettes, clenching his fists. The more dangerous the situation was, the usefulness of a Master became more apparent.

    This battle encounter urred too suddenly, and everyone was caught off guard. Yet none panicked, since they already had a contingency n. From top to bottom, everybody was working in an organized manner.

    The camping ground was in full swing as everyone was operating at full speed, like precise gears.

    The courageous reigned supreme!

 Chapter 533: So Be It

    Chapter 533: So Be It

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Fatty was carrying two men on his shoulders, but his speed did not reduce. He was like a rapidly rebounding cannon or a leaping... wild boar.

    His big body moved surprisingly gracefully.

    Only each time hended, it was as if a terrifyingly powerful cannon had gone off into the earth, causing ayer of it to rise up.

    Fatty was gasping for breath, and his whole body was covered in sweat and was misting. His legs felt really heavy, but he dared not stop at all.

    He suddenly felt the ground trembling and fear emerged on his face. In the past, such tremblings urred whenever a group of beasts charged across the field, but how could there by a group of beasts now? That wave motion from earlier would only have scared all of them away. They wouldn¡¯t dare to approach this region.

    There could only be one possibility. The enemy¡¯s cavalry!

    Fatty exerted even his milk-sucking strength and started sprinting with his teeth clenched.

    The vibrations were getting closer and Fatty was about to burst into tears.

    Come save me, Ah Hui!

    Zu Yan, who was still on his shoulder, regained his senses. He was already severely injured and was very feeble. Initially, he felt somewhat embarrassed for having to be lugged by Fatty, but upon noticing that Fatty could run pretty fast, he realized that Fatty had been bluffing all along. He was justzy.

    Each time they were out, he was the one carrying him along as he flew.

    After having considered that, Zu Yan immediately felt at ease. After carrying Fatty so many times, it wasn¡¯t unreasonable for him to allow Fatty to support him this once!

    But he regretted it soon after.

    Fatty ran jerkily andnded heavily without the least bit of cushioning. This quickly made Zu Yan feel dizzy and nauseated. He felt that the bones in his body were about to fall apart.

    The worst thing was that Fatty was sprinting in the forest like a nimble wild boar.

    This wild boar had thick and rough skin, so naturally it was alright, but the branches, shrubs, rattans whipped him directly like raindrops. Red shes continued emerging on his snow white skin in a criss crossed pattern. It was a tragic sight.

    He asked weakly, "Can¡¯t you... just... run properly?"

    Fatty¡¯s movements chopped his short sentence into three trembling sections, leaving Zu Yan breathless.

    Fatty responded in a sobbing tone, "Why do you have so much sh*t to say!? How about you try?"

    Zu Yan was stunned. He softened his tone, answering, "What are you crying for? You don¡¯t have to be so anxious. Rest for a little while if you¡¯re tired."

    Fatty burst into tears. "How can I not be? The enemy¡¯s chasing us!"

    Zu Yan stared nkly for a while, listening with rapt attention. His face changed and he hurriedly urged, "Run, quick! Run, quick! Faster!"

    Fatty cried, "I¡¯m trying. Or do you want to do it?"

    Zu Yan was very worried by now. He thought about what to do, turned his face around, and saw Zu Chun¡¯s wide-open eyes staring back at him. He immediately screamed, "Why are you still carrying this thing? The enemy is reaching us. Throw it away!"

    Fatty stopped crying. "No!"

    Zu Yan was shocked. "No? He¡¯s scorched, so why won¡¯t you toss him aside?"

    "This is my loot! I haven¡¯t searched him yet." Fatty¡¯s tone was resolute and decisive. "My head can break, my blood can flow, but I can¡¯t lose my loot!"

    "..."

    The rumbling sounds from behind became increasingly clear. The ground was shaking, and the movement alone was enough to turn Zu Yan¡¯s face white.

    Fatty calmed down at this time. "Don¡¯t be afraid. It¡¯s nothing actually. A Hui and I have seen migrating dire beasts during our time in the Wilderness. That is the real deal."

    Zu Yan couldn¡¯t read Fatty. Fatty was usually as timid as a mouse and was all kinds ofzy. He was so money-faced that people often wanted to give him the finger. Still unwilling to give up his loot at this point, Fatty was the quintessential foolish guy ¨C willing to give up his life for money. Yet this same fellow had just killed Zu Chun and was the one who had silently modified a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon.

    Even at this time of crucial danger, Fatty did not abandon him, and they joked together.

    How could there be such a strange and contradicting person in this world?

    Zu Yan quickly noticed that Fatty wasn¡¯t running in a straight line but in a zigzag manner, constantly changing directions.

    He couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Why not run toward the our camp?"

    "Stupid!" Even during this mad sprint, Fatty couldn¡¯t help but roll his eyes and answered in annoyance, "Remember, when you¡¯re fleeing, do not run in a straight line, or the wild beasts can easily catch up to you."

    Zu Yan asked automatically, "Why?"

    "How can you be so stupid? It¡¯s such simple logic, so simple that it¡¯s difficult to answer. How did you even be a Master? Under the table...?"

    Zu Yan was about to retort, but the rumbling sounds were ear-splitting and he could faintly see some silhouettes.

    "There!"

    Shouts could be heard from behind.

    Fatty, who had been full of mettle, was now shrieking, "Oh my God!¡¯

    The wind between his legs grew even stronger, like a whirlpool, shuttling non-stop through the forest.

    Xing Shan fixed his gaze on the corpse on the shoulder of that faraway figure. His face turned ashen and his eyes were about to pop.

    Zu Chun!

    Although only a back view was exposed, Xing Shan was certain that he did not make a mistake.

    Zu Chun had been following him for years and was a trustworthy assistant. Their rtionship was beyond that between ordinary bosses and subordinates. Seeing Zu Chun¡¯s corpse made Xing Shan¡¯s heart boil. He made a long and sharp hiss.

    Sensing its owner¡¯s grief and indignation, the ardent flower wolf, too, howled. The fresh, red flowers on its ck, shiny fur transformed into mes that slowly separated from its body and floated around. There wasn¡¯t any stray fur on its body. It was pitch ck and smooth like satin. With its head high, it hissed in an extraordinarily spirited manner.

    The wolf¡¯s forelimbs stomped onto the ground, causing mes to stter everywhere. Carrying Xing Shan on its back, it soared into the sky and toward that faraway silhouette.

    Hunting was an inherent ability of the wolf. It locked onto his sprinting prey.

    But as if that fat target had anticipated this ability, he jerked his body to the side and borrowed a big tree to obstruct its line of sight before changing directions constantly. The wolf noticed that its prey had managed to break free from its focus.

    Boom!

    The Chieftain Wolf was like a small mountain, crashing onto the ground heavily and spraying mes from its hoofs. The mes mixed with the earth with a whizz, as if a broad axe had been raised up. Every tree within a thirty meter radius was chopped in half and instantly turned to ashes. The mountain rocks shattered and the fragments shot into the woods, fast and powerful as arrows while emitting "pu, pu" sounds.

    Leaving a burnt, deep pit of a few meters radius on the ground, it soared into the sky once again.

    Its deep red, ruby-like blood eyes were burning. It had been angered by its prey.

    Thatrge prey was exceptionally sly, its body unceasingly moving around like a slippery loach. One moment it was on the left and the next moment it went to the right. Sometimes it used trees to cover itself and other times it drilled into the dense shrubs.

    The prey could always sense that it was being locked onto. The Chieftain Wolf had never met such a crafty prey.

    Xing Shan had calmed down by now. He had always been an ambitious and ruthless character, so the more angry he got, the more he calmed down. He was extremely cool-headed now, and his body was emitting cold air into the surroundings.

    People who were familiar with Xing Shan would definitely run far away upon seeing this. They knew how terrifying a raging Xing Shan was!

    Xing Shan looked coldly at that slippery figure. He couldn¡¯t help but admit that this was the most deceitful scouter he¡¯d ever seen. It was true that one shouldn¡¯t judge a person by his appearance. It was unbelievable that such a fat figure could actually be this agile!

    It was his first time seeing a scout with this physique, and one so powerful at that!

    But no matter how capable he was, he was just a scout.

    He grinned coldly and grabbed hold of a ck hatchet that was hanging on the wolf¡¯s body.

    Fatty feltpletely different. His whole body was flush red, as if he was drunk. His pouring sweat was no longer visible and the veins behind his neck were popping. He opened his eyes wide in fear. His breaths were bing coarser and red mes could faintly be seening out of his mouth.

    Zu Yan could hear Fatty¡¯s drumming heartbeat and feel his tensed muscles. ming breaths were a sign that a fire elementalist was nearly exhausting his elemental energy.

    Fatty...

    Zu Yan felt indescribably moved, and his nose started feeling sour. He was simply too grateful for being able to survive the ice seal and to meet such a goodpanion.

    He called out, "Toss us aside, Fatty!"

    Without a sound, Fatty was focused on spriting, his bulky body trembling all over like a frantic wild boar.

    Zu Yan raised his voice and shouted, "Toss us, quick, Fatty!"

    Again, Fatty made no sound, as if he hadn¡¯t heard him.

    Zu Yan sensed something amiss and struggled to look at Fatty¡¯s face. He received a jolt.

    Fatty¡¯s eyes were hollow-looking and only white mes were flowing within.

    .....

    Central Pine Valley.

    The sword operators¡¯ embroidery training had be something everybody watched during training intervals. It was a joy to observe those manly hands holding a delicate embroidery needle, cautiously attempting to create a pattern while sweating buckets.

    Ai Hui¡¯s stern criticism could be heard asionally.

    "Slow down. Why are you going so fast? Are you holding a sword or an axe?"

    "Focus. Stabilize your state of mind. Do you know what stability means? It means that you¡¯re able toplete your embroidery unruffled, even if someone behind you is trying to slice your ass with a knife."

    Someone from the crowd shouted, "Then what about the butt situation, Boss?"

    "Butt?" Ai Hui tilted his head to think. "Mend it afterpleting the embroidery."

    "Hahaha..."

    Everyone was rolling on the floor and forgot at that moment that they had been the butt of the joke too when they were training in the Metal Basket Sword Pagoda.

    Shi Zhiguang fixed his eyes on the embroidery needle with all the focus he could gather. The audience¡¯sughter fell on deaf ears. It must be said that this was a totally new experience since he had only been training at a rapid speed in the past.

    The faster the speed, the slower he felt time was moving.

    But embroidery required slowness, and when a certain speed was reached, he realized in surprise that time seemed to move increasingly faster.

    He wondered if others felt the same way.

    But as time went by quicker, he felt a different and indescribable kind of "slowness". His heart was exceptionally calm, like a rock amidst the long river that was time. Time was like a river brushing across the stone¡¯s surface, yet every detail was so crisp and clear.

    It was a very peculiar feeling, and he was engrossed in it.

    He had found his talent. He was extremely sensitive to speed. He felt different sensations toward the lightning speed sword and the slow and focused embroidery. He was unclear of the uses of these sensations.

    He had seeked guidance from Boss, and after some thinking, Boss told him to spin silk from cocoons.

    Aspared to embroidering, spinning silk required an even slower speed, and the sensation Shi Zhiguang felt was even more intense.

    Ai Hui looked at Shi Zhiguang, his heart singing praises.

    Shi Zhiguang was the most talented out of the three sword operators and had been the quickest to enter that state of mind.

    Eh? As if he felt something, Ai Hui looked toward Shi Zhiguang and was emotionally moved.

    The thread in Shi Zhiguang¡¯s hand lit up faintly, buzzing and trembling.

 Chapter 534: Fattyâ€™s Talent

    Chapter 534: Fatty¡¯s Talent

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Shi Zhiguang recounted what he felt just now to Ai Hui with excitement. An envious look appeared on everyone¡¯s faces. They could all tell that Shi Zhiguang had an extremely bright future ahead of him.

    He was very fortunate to have discovered an unknown talent that was hidden for many years.

    Everyone possessed a treasure within them.

    But how many people actually unearthed it?

    Even though aristocratic families possessed absolute arts, famed teachers, and an abundance of wealth, very few of them possessed talents. As such, one could well imagine how few talents those ordinary families possessed.

    It was unfortunate that Shi Zhiguang didn¡¯t discover his talent when he was young and had missed the best period of life to practice it. However,pared to other people, he was still considered very lucky to have discovered an unknown talent after so many years.

    At this point in time, Ai Hui had already confirmed that Shi Zhiguang¡¯s talent was speed.

    In normal speed, Shi Zhiguang would not have too much of a reaction. However, when his speed was overly fast or overly slow, he would produce reactions that werepletely different from ordinary people¡¯s.

    Everyone gathered around him with curious looks on their faces.

    When they thought of talents, they would think about things like a higher elemental energy connectivity and etc. They had never heard of a talent in speed. Those who were quick-witted were thinking about whether or not did they had some unknown talents as well.

    When Shi Zhiguang was talking, everyone was holding their breaths while listening to him attentively.

    When Shi Zhiguang finished talking, everyone shifted their gazes to Ai Hui.

    In the past, Ai Hui was only known for his powerful strength, superb swordsmanship, and specialization in the theory of elemental traces. After the training session with Shi Zhiguang this time around, all of them realized Ai Hui was a good teacher!

    This discovery roused everyone.

    Everyone hoped that they could discover what their talents were.

    Ai Hui could see the hopeful look on everyone¡¯s faces. After thinking for a while, he said, "Nowadays, the training system focuses on the five residences and eight pces. After all, this system has been established for quite a while. Indeed, there are many types of talents. During the Cultivation Era, talents were being ssified distinctively. That is because the training system at that time was extremely huge; there were many diversifications and types of tests. For example, if a person was slow-witted but had an unusually high willpower, he or she was suitable for the field of meditation. However, if a person in today¡¯s world is not gifted in the field of elemental energy, he or she will not have much of a future. Take Zhiguang, who has a talent in speed, as an example. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that our Pinwheel Sword needed a driver, he would not have brought out his talent."

    Everyone thought hard and long about Ai Hui¡¯s words. Meanwhile, Shi Zhiguang was nodding his head repeatedly.

    Ai Hui thought of something and his lips behind the bandages that covered his face curled into a grin. "The most unique talent is probably the talent in escaping."

    "Talent in escaping?"

    "Does escaping need talent?"

    "Hahaha, this talent is quite practical. The moment you see something not right, quickly turn and escape!"

    "Who has this talent? Who has this talent?"

    Everyone broke into a lively discussion. All of them looked at Ai Hui with curious looks on their faces.

    For a moment, Ai Hui felt as if he had be a teacher, standing on the podium while giving a lesson to his students below. Was he going to be a teacher after teaching them embroidery? Was he taking up the roles of Master and Mistress at the same time?

    "Everyone knows this person," Ai Hui replied.

    "Boss, stop keeping us in suspense! Quickly tell us who it is!" Everyone became impatient.

    "Fatty," Ai Hui chuckled.

    "Fatty?"

    "Really?"

    "I don¡¯t believe it. With his body size, he is suitable to be a sacrificial victim for those who are escaping."

    "I don¡¯t believe it either."

    Everyone shook their heads.

    "I am really not lying to you. You guys better not underestimate Fatty. Fatty is good at two things. The first is his greed for money, and the second is escaping. I am willing to y a second fiddle to him with regards to these two aspects," Ai Hui said solemnly.

    "Boss, you¡¯re being too humble. With regards to the point of being greedy for money, you definitely will not lose out to Fatty!" Someone blurted out.

    "Hahaha! That¡¯s right!"

    "Don¡¯t try to make Fatty the scapegoat!"

    Everyone burst outughing.

    Drenched in sweat, Ai Hui was exasperated as he said, "Don¡¯t spoil my reputation. Am I this kind of person?"

    "Yes!" everyone said in unison and dragged out the word.

    They wereughing all over the ce.

    Ai Hui remained speechless. When he turned around and saw Lou Lanughing too, he flew into a rage. "Lou Lan, have you finished cooking the elemental soup?"

    "Ai Hui, you have just finished yours," Lou Lan blinked his eyes.

    "....." Ai Hui.

    "Boss, is Fatty¡¯s escaping talent very formidable? Is it like my talent in speed?" Shi Zhiguang asked curiously.

    "His is slightly more formidable than yours," Ai Hui answered.

    Suddenly, everyone¡¯s curiosity was piqued. For the past few days, all of them had witnessed Shi Zhiguang¡¯s talent with their own eyes. Usually, Shi Zhiguang might appear to be unremarkable. However, when he boarded the Pinwheel Sword and took up the driver¡¯s seat , he became a totally different person. Until now, only Shi Zhiguang was able to make those extremely difficult maneuvers and moves in an utterly short period of time.

    As such, when Boss said that Fatty¡¯s talent was more formidable than Shi Zhiguang¡¯s, everyone¡¯s curiosity was piqued. Boss would never lie about such things.

    Ai Hui smiled. Other than him, no one knew about Fatty¡¯s talent. He exined, "If you fight alongside Fatty on the battlefield, you will notice a very strange phenomenon. Even when the battlefield is very chaotic, there are a lot of people, and the ongoing battle is very intense, Fatty will always be ignored by everyone. The most extreme case that I have ever see is when we were in the Wilderness. At that time, we were still working asborers in the Wilderness. One day, while we were setting up camp, a dire beast attacked us. More than one hundred people had died that day. Everyone in Fatty¡¯s unit, except him, had died. I saw with my own eyes that after the dire beast finished biting everyone to death, it walked past Fatty as if it never saw him."

    An uproar broke out.

    "Really?"

    "Sounds like bulls**t to me."

    "Boss, are you telling us a fake story?"

    Everyone reacted strongly. That was because the story did not make sense and none of them had never heard of such a thing before.

    Ai Hui did not get angry and continued, "At that time, I was like all of you. I myself was stunned and even got injured because of it. From that day onwards, I started to observe Fatty. Eventually, I discovered that there is indeed something strange going on with this fellow. Every time he runs into a dangerous situation, he is able to escape unscathed. Later, I slowly understood what was going on."

    Everyone pricked up their ears, fearing that they might miss out on any details.

    "It is as if he was born with the ability to know which area is dangerous and which area is safe. Subsequently, we were put in the same unit. At that time, I still had not figured out what was going on with Fatty. We managed to dodge dire beasts a few times because of this talent of Fatty¡¯s. Eventually, I understood that Fatty has a talent in escaping, because he is naturally extremely sensitive to smells. Even if he is very close to a dire beast, he is able to hide in the blind spot of that dire beast and dodge it."

    "Ahhhhh..." Everyone came to a realization.

    Ai Hui continued, "This innate ability of Fatty is best used when he is escaping. He can use trees, rocks, hills, rivers and etc to hinder a dire beast from locking onto his smell. Unlike humans, most dire beasts don¡¯t rely on their eyes. Instead, they rely on the smells to lock onto their targets."

    Everyone looked pensive.

    "There¡¯s one more reason," Ai Hui continued, "Fatty is timid."

    An uproar broke out once more.

    "Being timid can be a strength too?"

    "Boss, are you encouraging us to be timid?"

    Ai Hui shook his head. After everyone quieted down, he continued, "Fatty is more timid than ordinary people. Whenever he encounters a dire beast, he will be very scared. To Fatty, fear is also a power. In the state of fear, Fatty can outperform his usual self. Once, I was injured and my unit abandoned me. Fatty was extremely scared at that time. He carried me and ran behind our unit for more than ten days."

    Everyone was speechless. This was the first time they had heard this story. Their eyes widened involuntarily and their facial expressions turned shocked.

    No wonder Boss and Fatty had such a deep rtionship!

    Ai Hui felt touched as he narrated this story. However, he kept his tone calm as usual and continued, "Toward the end, he was extremely exhausted and he had almost lost his consciousness. He relied solely on his will to survive. Fatty¡¯s will to survive is a lot stronger than most people¡¯s. This is a strength. Having a strong will to survive allows Fatty to do a lot of things that ordinary people can¡¯t. For example, he was able to carry me for more ten days with his energypletely depleted. I¡¯m inferior to him with regards to this aspect."

    Everyone was overwhelmed with shock. They did not expect Fatty, who was usually sozy and timid, to have such a formidable moment.

    Ai Hui eventually concluded, "The only reason why I said Fatty is more powerful than Shi Zhiguang was that he discovered his talent at a very early stage. When we were in Wilderness, dangers were everywhere and they happened to stimte Fatty¡¯s gift. However, Zhiguang, don¡¯t give up. Now, you have your talent. As long as you keep on sharpening it, it will be stronger."

    With a determined look on his face, Shi Zhiguang yelled, "I will continue to work hard!"

    Ai Hui swept everyone with his gaze and said, "I will think of other talents and see if there are any ways to test them. However, I can¡¯t promise they will work."

    Upon hearing these words, everyone cheered in unison, "Long live our Boss!"

    When Ai Hui saw the joy on everyone¡¯s faces, his lips could not help but curl into a smile.

    Just as Ai Hui was analyzing and exining Fatty¡¯s talent to everyone, in a distant battlefield, Xing Shan was sitting atop a wolf while admiring Fatty¡¯s talent.

    Fatty¡¯s plump and huge figure was a facade. He was more nimble and slithery than a snake. However, this was not the only reason why the division leader of the Ardent Flower Blood Division was full of praise for him. The thing that truly roused Xing Shan was Fatty¡¯s instinctive sensitivity to smells.

    This was an extremely rare talent.

    Smells were harder to detect than elemental energies and blood spiritual force. An outstanding expert could only form this ability after going through countless battles. Xing Shan could tell that Fatty¡¯s strength was around the same as his subordinates¡¯ and yet his performance was unusually impressive.

    This fellow¡¯s sensitivity towards smell was so formidable that he could use obstacles and directional angles to hinder the Chieftain Wolf from locking onto his smell. He used this kind of special technique to escape again and again. One must know that the Chieftain Wolf was one of the most outstanding ardent flower blood wolves bred by the Beast Venom Temple. As a beast, it possessed powerful hunting capabilities and its sensitivity towards smells far exceeded humans¡¯.

    The Chieftain Wolf, which had never failed before, had missed its target again and again today.

    Xing Shan did not expect to encounter such an interesting fellow in this world.

    A sinister smile appeared on his face. Following which, the ck, heavy axe in his hand emitted a bloody glow that shot towards Fatty like a tidal wave of blood.

    When the bloody glow left Xing Shan¡¯s heavy axe, Fatty, who had being escaping with all his might, froze in his tracks. A look of despair appeared on his face.

 Chapter 535: Xing Shanâ€™s Strength

    Chapter 535: Xing Shan¡¯s Strength

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Being the division leader of the Ardent Flower Blood Division, Xing Shan was definitely very powerful. He hadpleted twelve rounds of blood refinement. Even though this number paled inparison to Red Devil¡¯s, it was still the second highest record.

    After leaving the Beast Venom Temple, he did not stop improving himself. Not daring to ck off at all, he trained diligently every day.

    Going through the blood refinement was like taking a gamble. Before the result was revealed, one would never know whether he won or lost. However, if he lost the gamble, he would never have a chance to y again.

    The effort Xing Shan put in had yielded great returns. Twelve rounds of blood refinement had established an extremely solid foundation in him. His blood contained an abundance of precious ingredients. The hard work he put into his training caused the beneficial effects of the ingredients in his blood to be released.

    His strength was increasing steadily over a long period of time.

    Out of 33 vertebrae, he had unlocked 30 of them. Among so many god guards, this was an extremely impressive result.

    Some of Fatty¡¯s talent had amazed him, but that was because he had never seen anything like this before. The disparity between their strength levels was enormous. By waving his axe casually, Xing Shan was able to cut off all of Fatty¡¯s escape routes.

    Fatty might¡¯ve been able to cut off his smell and hinder Xing Shan from catching him, but he waspletely helpless against an attack that covered such a wide range.

    There was no way out for him!

    As such, when Xing Shan waved his axe, Fatty immediately knew he was stuck.

    Fatty could not even imagine the disparity between his strength and Xing Shan¡¯s. His heart was filled with despair.

    A strong sense of fear flooded him like a tidal wave.

    Suddenly, he looked as if an idea had erupted within his head. He reached out his hand and plucked out the hose that was connected to the snowva on his back and stuffed it into his mouth.

    Gulp, gulp!

    Like an incredibly thirsty traveller that was lost in the desert, he began to gulp down the snowva.

    Zu Yan¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. He cried out in rm, "Fatty!"

    The crystal-clear liquid was snowva! It was an A-grade fire liquid!

    A drop of it could effortlessly burn through a rock, and Fatty had actually taken two mouthfuls of it.

    He was done for!

    Zu Yan¡¯s head was buzzing and his mind went nk. How could a mortal drink an A-grade fire liquid?

    Following which, Fatty spat out the hose. His face was in daze, looking extremely weird.

    When the snowva entered his body, his nearly depleted fire elemental energy reacted as if it had been doused with a basin of hot oil, intensifying and bing extremely violent in an instant.

    An endless stream of mes was emitting from Fatty¡¯s body. These mes were not bright-red. Instead, they were white in color, resembling the ze flowing in his eyes.

    Fatty¡¯s flushed cheeks suddenly became pale-white, looking as if his blood was being sucked dry. Every now and then, his facial muscles were twitching, making him looked unusually sinister and crazy.

    "Fatty, why don¡¯t you want to put me down..." Zu Yan¡¯s cheeks were streaming with tears.

    After he was released from the ice seal, his teacher told him that the world nowadays was much more cruel than before. He felt that he had made enough mental preparations, but it turned out that reality waspletely different from his expectations.

    Fatty could hear Zu Yan crying. At this point in time, he had lost his sanity. Suddenly, he made a very weird posture. He raised his right arm perpendicr to his body and straightened it. Then, he bent his left arm and used it to support his right arm.

    When Xing Shan saw that Fatty did not run and turned around instead, a sneer appeared on his face.

    Now you know you can¡¯t escape. Your courage is indeedudable, but your strength is too weak. You¡¯re merely making a fruitless attempt.

    However, when Xing Shan saw Fatty gulping something and then made a weird posture, he was stunned.

    What inheritance was this?

    Boom!

    A muffled boom resounded through the air.

    Zu Yan, who was previously on Fatty¡¯s shoulder, was tossed into the air by the impact.

    In the mid-air, Zu Yan saw an amazing scene. Fatty¡¯s straightened right arm jerked back like a cannon.

    A white-colored ze was shooting out from the fist of Fatty¡¯s straightened right arm.

    Zu Yan¡¯s mind went nk. What kind of technique was this?

    Meanwhile, on the opposite side, a cold glint shed across Xing Shan¡¯s squinted eyes.

    The white ze did not look very powerful, but it was extremely fast, resembling an attack that wasunched by a pagoda cannon. A white burst of light shed across everyone¡¯s eyes. Following which, the bloody gleam from Xing Shan¡¯s axe crashed into the white ze, resembling a surging tidal wave that collided against a solid reef.

    Boom!

    A bloody glow rushed towards the sky, making the sky look as if it was raining blood.

    The result of the impact caused everyone to turn pale with fright.

    All of them knew how powerful Boss Xing Shan¡¯s axe was. It would take at least four people to be able to withstand a casual attack from his axe.

    This fatty had actually used such a weird attack to block Boss Xing Shan¡¯s axe!

    Furthermore, Fatty looked as if he was in dire straits just now.

    Just as everyone was feeling astonished, Fatty¡¯s body wobbled, looking as if he was going to copse.

    So he was just an arrow that had reached the end of its flight!

    A sinister smile appeared on Xing Shan¡¯s face as he raised his heavy axe once more. The Chieftain Wolf beneath broke into a small run. It was repeatedly infuriated by Fatty today. Following which, it began to pick up its speed.

    Thud, thud, thud!

    Every step it took, the earth shook and the mountain trembled. Dirt and mes flew up the air, resembling a hurricane that was devastating the trees and nts in its surroundings.

    "Die!"

    A roar echoed through the air. In mid-air, the man and the beast looked as if they had merged together. The axe gleam descended from the sky, resembling a powerful, bloody waterfall. It was apanied by a terrorizing vibrating whizz. No living things within three hundred metres of Xing Shan could escape unscathed!

    Zu Yan widened his eyes as he looked at the red-colored sky that was rapidly falling towards him. His mind had gone totally nk.

    They were going to die here today...

    Like a wooden puppet, Fatty couldn¡¯t move at all. His face was deathly pale.

    Suddenly, a shrill whistle rang echoed through the air. It sounded as if it came from a distant ce. However, in the blink of eye, the whistle appeared to be right here with them.

    A blue-white shadow appeared out of thin air in front of Fatty. The shadow was moving so fast that it appeared blurry. Xing Shan couldn¡¯t see the face of the shadow clearly. He could only see a ponytail fluttering behind it...

    And the tip of a spear that was rapidly expanding in size before his eyes.

    The spear effortlessly pierced through the bloody, waterfall-like axe gleam as if it was a red-colored curtain.

    The blue, firmament-iron-made spear tip collided heavily with the de of the ck, heavy axe.

    Xing Shan felt as if he had been hit by a berserk dire beast. The terrifying attack caused his facial expression to change drastically. Starting from the bottom of his spine, the vertebrae in his back began to light up one by one.

    His eyes widened angrily while his muscles trembled violently. He roared, "Break!"

    To his horror, just as the word left his mouth, he discovered that the powering the spear was bing stronger and stronger. If his axe gleam was like a surging tidal wave, then the spear tip would be an entire sea!

    How could... it be....

    The scenery on both sides of Xing Shan¡¯s eyes was shing by, turning into streaks of shadows from his perspective. The Chieftain Wolf beneath him had already entrenched its four limbs in the ground, but it still could not stop despite using all its strength.

    Bang!

    Xing Shan¡¯s back mmed against a huge tree. The huge tree was smashed to smithereens and wood shavings were sent flying through the air. Bang, bang, bang. Xing Shan¡¯s body kept on trembling as he continued to fly backwards and knock down trees and rocks along the way. His gaze was fixated on the blue-white shadow that was pulling apart in distance from him.

    The sounds of dried branches snapping, rocks shattering, and the earth splitting could not conceal the confident and vigorous voice of a girl.

    "I am Shi Xueman."

    To Xing Shan¡¯s horror, before he could even stabilize himself, he realized that the girl in the distance was pointing her spear at him.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were so cold that they resembled the ice-blue sky above a snowy mountain.

    Suddenly, she disappeared

    Not good!

    Xing Shan¡¯s eyelids twitched as he subconsciously ced his heavy axe in front of him.

    Like the sound of raindropsnding on a banana leaf, a crisp and clear sound of collision resounded through the air.

    Xing Shan¡¯s body trembled. Every spear move Shi Xueman executed was crisp, powerful, and unblockable. Xing Shan had never encountered such an attack before. Every move was in and simple, resembling a standard thrust. There was no dazzling luster, gorgeous techniques, or unnecessary changes. However, her spear thrusts were still extremely formidable.

    The tens of spear thrusts gathered.

    Xing Shan looked as if he had been struck by a lightning bolt as terrifying power gathered in the de of his heavy axe. He and the Chieftain Wolf hadpletely lost control of their bodies.

    However, what everyone saw waspletely different.

    Shi Xueman suddenly appeared in front of Xing Shan. At almost the same time, Xing Shan and his mount, who were still flying backwards, disappeared.

    In mid-air, Shi Xueman calmly withdrew her spear with the side of her body facing forward. She looked around and asked, "Who are you?"

    The faces of everyone in the Ardent Flower Blood Division had turned white. All of their eyes were filled with fear. No one dared to reply to Shi Xueman.

    Suddenly, a loud rumble resounded through the air behind everyone. Xing Shan and his mount had created a huge trench on the ground.

    Everyone regained their senses and rushed towards Xing Shan like a swarm of bees.

    A two-meter-deep trench appeared on the ground in front of Shi Xueman. It was perfectly straight and extended over several hundred meters. All of the trees and rocks along the trench were reduced to fine powder.

    Zu Yan was dumbstruck as he looked at the scene. He was utterly stunned. This was the first time he was shocked by someone¡¯s might other than his teacher¡¯s.

    Shi Xueman was actually so powerful to such a terrifying extent...

    Even Yang Xiaodong, who was standing behind Shi Xueman, was startled.

    He had fought with her before in the past. At that time, even though she was very powerful, she was only slightly more powerful than him. How could she have grown so much in such a short period of time?

    Yang Xiaodong felt that his training was a waste.

    Shi Xuemannded gracefully on the ground. An ordinary-looking movement from her looked peerlessly magnificent in everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Without turning her head, she said, "Yang Xiaodong, bring them and leave first."

    "Yes! Division Leader, be careful!"

    Yang Xiaodong replied. His tone involuntarily carried a tinge of respect.

    He picked the unconscious Fatty and Zu Yan and flew in the direction of of their camp. His heart was twisting at this moment. He wished that he could stay behind and fight with Shi Xueman. However, this was an order, so he had to obey it.

    Zu Yan turned his head around and looked at Shi Xueman too. In the past, he only listened to his teacher¡¯s orders. However, from this moment onwards, he regarded himself as a member of the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Zu Yan turned his head back when he could no longer see Shi Xueman. When he saw Fatty, who was in the other arm of Yang Xiaodong, he was shocked.

    Fatty¡¯s hand was holding on to a person... Zu Chun.

    The unconscious Fatty was holding on tightly to Zu Chun¡¯s leg, appearing as if he was holding onto a treasure.

    When... had this fellow picked up the body of Zu Chun...

 Chapter 536: Netherworld Bestial Ox

    Chapter 536: Netherworld Bestial Ox

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Xing Shan stood up from the trench. Holding his heavy axe, he made a soft jump and jumped out of the trench. His Chieftain Wolf followed suit as well. It shook off the dirt on its body and stared at Shi Xueman with fear and hatred in its eyes.

    When Shi Xueman saw that Xing Shan looked as if nothing had happened to him, she had no choice but to admit that a blood elementalist¡¯s body was far more stronger than an elementalist¡¯s. After going up against so many blood elementalists, she realized that they had tenacious life force and powerful physical bodies. Their life force and bodies even surpassed blood fiends¡¯.

    "Excellent spearmanship!"

    Xing Shan praised Shi Xueman with sincerity.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s spearmanship was not dazzling at all. It looked no different from the basic spearmanship that any ordinary training hall would teach.

    However, it was this unremarkable spearmanship that produced an invincible aura.

    Xing Shan was no longer the town butcher that he was in the past. He understood that this spearmanship was a result of hard work and countless revisions. If this type of spearmanship appeared in the hands of someone like Le Buleng, no one would find it strange at all. However, when it appeared in the hands of a young girl, everyone found it incredible.

    Xing Shan petted his Chieftain Wolf dearly. Shi Xueman¡¯s previous spear move was unusually powerful. Even though he knew the Chieftain Wolf wasn¡¯t weak, he still felt sorry that it was hurt.

    Like a docile dog, the Chieftain Wolf intimately licked Xing Shan¡¯s wide palm.

    Xing Shan¡¯s gaze turned cold. He stretched his back and shook his four limbs. The vertebrae at his back lit up one by one.

    With a calm voice, he said, "I am Xing Shan. Miss Shi, nice to meet you. I have long heard of your famous name. I am truly blessed to be able to see your beautiful face today."

    A storm was brewing beneath his calm tone.

    Deep down, Shi Xueman shivered with cold. She could feel that Xing Shan¡¯s aura was intensifying.

    During the previous battle, Shi Xueman had seen many powerful blood elementalists. However, none of them could bepared to Xing Shan.

    After Xing Shan introduced himself, a look of realization appeared on Shi Xueman¡¯s face. She swept her gaze across his subordinates, nodded her head, and replied, "So you¡¯re the Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s Division Leader Xing Shan."

    As the conflict between Blood of God and Avalon of Five Elements intensified day by day, both sides became more and more familiar with each other. Eventually, more and more people knew about the mysteriousbat divisions of Blood of God.

    "I didn¡¯t expect Miss Shi to have heard of my name before." Xing Shan suddenly burst into aughter. He waved his heavy axe wildly and continued, "Miss Shi¡¯s superb spearmanship is indeed impressive. Let¡¯s have a good fight today."

    As he finished his sentence, a tyrannical aura surged through the air.

    Crack, crack, crack!

    The sound of fried beans exploding was given off from whole of Xing Shan¡¯s body. Like a balloon, his body began to inte. His body became tall and sturdy. His height was around 4 meters, his shoulders were broad, his back was wide, and his hair was thick and dense. His skin was now giving off a ck, metallic luster. His huge and sturdy muscles looked as if they were made up of iron, and his ck-colored armor burst open and embedded itself into skin, resembling ck fish scales.

    A bone-made helmet grew out of his head. There were two sharp, bull horns on each side of his helmet, giving off a threatening, cold aura.

    Even though Shi Xueman looked calm on the surface, she was on high alert deep down.

    She had never seen such a weird scene before in a battlefield.

    When Xing Shan used his huge, cattail-leaf-fan-like palm to hold up his heavy axe, he looked like he was holding a stalk of rice straw. The heavy axe, which previously looked too big and awkward for his size, looked just right for him now.

    A fearsome aura soared through the sky and engulfed the battlefield. The sky looked as if it had darkened at this instant. Qing Shan looked like a thousand-year dire beast that had emerged from the depths of the Wilderness, intimidating everyone present.

    Even the Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s soldiers, who were used to seeing their boss¡¯ might, took a few steps back at this moment.

    Beside Xing Shan, his Chieftain Wolf howled and shook its body.

    Crack, crack, crack.

    Its body began to inte rapidly. All its hair became thick like needles. Its initial calf-sized body had be the size of an elephant now. The ardent flowers that were previously fluttering around it had transformed into streaks of scarlet mes. These streaks of mes were then absorbed by its hair. Its sharp ws were giving off a bright-red glow, looking as if they were just taken out from a furnace. Its deathly pale teeth were growing at a great speed. They became thicker and sharper. Traces of mes were spiralling in and out of the gaps between its teeth.

    Xing Shan then sat on the back of the Chieftain Wolf.

    Shi Xueman lowered her gaze, took half a step back with her right foot, and pointed her Cirrus towards the front.

    Xing Shan squeezed his legs and the Chieftain Wolf dashed forward all of a sudden.

    "Eat my axe!"

    A thunderous voice erupted through the air. Everyone felt their visions blur as they lost sight of Xing Shan and his Chieftain Wolf.

    Shi Xueman squinted her ice-cold eyes and stepped forward half a step with her left foot. Following which, she thrusted her Cirrus forward.

    nk!

    A deafening sound of metal colliding erupted in everyone¡¯s ears. A circr air current that was formed by a white-colored mist and a red, bloody glow swept across the entire ce like a red-white hurricane. The blood elementalists¡¯ facial expressions changed as they put up their shields to defend themselves. The dirt and fragments mixed within the red-white hurricane was extremely destructive, causing sparks to fly when the hurricane collided against the blood elementalists¡¯ shields.

    Those slightly weak blood elementalists were being pushed back repeatedly. Their bodies were trembling and blood was flowing out from their mouths and noses. However, at this point in time, no one dared to wipe off the blood on their faces as their eyes were fixated at the scene.

    The two figures separated immediately after making contact, drawing a distance of a few hundred meters from each other.

    There was a hole that had an area of 350 square meters in between them, shocking everyone.

    Before the onlookers could regain theirposure from the impact of the collision just now, the two of them disappeared at the same time.

    The two indistinct figures continuously streaked across the air and collided against each other.

    The densely-packed sound of the collisions between the spear and the axe resounded through the air, striking fear into the onlookers¡¯ hearts.

    Every collision was earth-shaking, creating a red-white, ring-shaped shockwave that swept across the area. Everything in the path of the ring-shaped shockwave was reduced to smithereens as if they were being swatted by a huge, invisible hand.

    The Ardent Flower Blood Division kept on retreating. All of them were overwhelmed with horror. When a battle between two experts was taking ce, it was extremely dangerous for one to spectate it, let alone lend a helping hand to one of the parties.

    The longer Shi Xueman fought, the more astonishment she felt.

    Compared to before, Xing Shan was apletely different man after he summoned his Ability of God. A blood elementalist¡¯s Ability of God was mysterious in many ways. Qing Shan¡¯s strength had increased by at least ten times. Previously, he was easily knocked back in the air by Shi Xueman¡¯s spear moves. Now, he could easily ward them off. His blood spiritual force had undergone weird changes as well. Every attack heunched with his axe was covered with ayer of red-colored bloody glow.

    The red, bloody glow had high viscosity. There were a few times that it almost pierced through her spear gleam, posing an unusually dangerous threat to her.

    The Chieftain Wolf also became more powerful and sly.

    So this was an expert blood elementalist?

    However, the surprise Xing Shan was feeling was no less than Shi Xueman¡¯s.

    His Ability of God was the rare [Netherworld Bestial Ox].

    One day, while Xing Shan was training, he suddenly sensed a trace of ancient aura in his blood. That was when he formed the Ability of God in the [Netherworld Bestial Ox].

    Legend had it that the Netherworld Bestial Oxen lived in the Nether River that connected the realm of life and the realm of death. They were an extremely rare species that lived in the realm between life and death. The Netherworld Bestial Oxen were immensely powerful. Furthermore, their bodies were surrounded by the blood water of the Nether River. Any living thing that touched their bodies would be dragged into the Netherworld.

    In this day and age, ancient beasts were thought to possess a myriad of remarkable abilities.

    Even though the ancestral mark of the [Netherworld Bestial Ox] in Xing Shan¡¯s body was very weak, it still allowed him to be extremely formidable when he summoned it.

    In the past, whenever he summoned the [Netherworld Bestial Ox], his opponents would be suppressed by him immediately.

    The quality of everyponent of his body would improve drastically and he would be immensely powerful. An ordinary attack from him would be unblockable. His skin and muscles would be as hard as metal, giving him an extremely formidable defense. There were a few sparring sessions where he used his bare hands to ward off weapon attacks and not a single mark was left on his arms.

    His blood spiritual force not only became more vigorous and concentrated, it also possessed the aura of the Nether River, which allowed it to be unpredictable.

    Initially, he thought that he couldpletely suppress Shi Xueman by summoning the [Netherworld Bestial Ox]. He didn¡¯t expect Shi Xueman to be able to ward off his attacks steadily. Every time he increased his power, Shi Xueman¡¯s spear would increase in power as well.

    The thing that bewildered Xing Shan was that the power of Shi Xueman¡¯s spear moves wasparable to his!

    Shi Xueman¡¯s Cirrus was surrounded by ribbon-like traces of mist. These gentle-looking traces of mist were unusually dominating and forceful!

    The physiological differences between a man and a woman gave rise to many differences in traits and abilities between the two genders. Strength was one of these differences. A woman¡¯s strength seldom matched up against a man¡¯s. As such, how would one expect Shi Xueman to go up against Xing Shan, who had just summoned the [Netherworld Bestial Ox]?

    Was Shi Xueman made of iron?

    If he found out that Shi Xueman¡¯s nickname was Iron Lady, he definitely would not be so surprised.

    The continuous head-on collisions aroused Xing Shan¡¯s bloodlust. With a roar, he streaked towards Shi Xueman.

    Shi Xueman was also bing stronger and stronger. The tougher her opponent was, the more her strength grew. With a snort, she rose into the air. The ribbon-like traces of mist released by her Cirrus were fluttering and dancing along with the wind.

    Xing Shan did not have the slightest bit of fear in him. His Chieftain Wolf made a leap and both of them turned into a streak of red shadow.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    Every now and then, a burst of light and a terrorizing aura would erupt throughout the sky.

    The onlookers raised their heads as the battle dazzled their eyes. The two figures in the sky were moving extremely fast. They could see the white-colored mist and the red-colored bloody glow colliding against each other continuously.

    Thunderous booms fell incessantly on the onlookers¡¯ ears.

    The two people hadpletely different fighting styles.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s spearmanship was superb. She forcibly used her spearmanship to ward off Xing Shan¡¯s heavy attacks. Those blood elementalists that practised spearmanship widened their eyes for the fear of missing out any detail.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s spearmanship had indeed reached an unimaginable realm.

    Meanwhile, Xing Shan¡¯s attacks were extremely heavy and forceful. Every attack caused the sky to turn bloody. All of his subordinates had a taste of his bloody glow before. The moment it made contact with a person, it would invade and attack that person¡¯s bone marrow, usually ruthlessly.

    Xing Shan and his Chieftain Wolf were telepathically connected. A man and a wolf. Their powers were harmonized perfectly, producing an utterly formidable impact.

    One could clearly tell that Shi Xueman was very scared of Xing Shan¡¯s bloody glow. She did not dare to touch it at all. The traces of mist surrounding her body were soft like ribbons, changing their forms endlessly. Like an imposing mountain, they were heavy and dominating. They could always shatter the bloody gleam at critical moments.

    Shi Xueman was on high alert against the bloody glow. Every time her spear gleam collided against it, she could tell that a trace of her water elemental energy was absorbed by it.

    Xing Shan was like a crazy man. His might was terrifying, appearing as if he possessed a boundless amount of energy. The Chieftain Wolf beneath him kept on howling, not showing a single sign of tiredness.

    Shi Xueman quickly realized that this could not go on!

    The other party had a huge advantage over her in terms of physical energy. A battle of attrition would be disadvantageous for her.

    All of a sudden, Shi Xueman withdrew her spear and flew towards the sky.

    "Trying to escape?"

    Xing Shan¡¯s sinisterugh followed Shi Xueman relentlessly.

    Suddenly, Shi Xueman stopped at the thick and denseyer of clouds.

 Chapter 537: [Axe of Nether River] VS [Iron Flowers Thrust]

    Chapter 537: [Axe of Nether River] VS [Iron Flowers Thrust]

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Yang Xiaodong was flying with all his might.

    The distant explosionsing from his back were torturing him. When he turned his head around, even though he was very far from the scene, he could see the red and white gleams streaking through the air.

    Like a tsunami from the Nether World, the overflowing red glow was tyrannical and fearsome, dyeing the sky in the color of blood. Streaks of sparkling white spear mist were dancing and raging in the sea of blood like white-colored dragons.

    As he looked at the distant scene, he was trembling with fear. At the same time, he was very worried.

    Honestly speaking, he joined Central Pine Valley because he had no choice but to do so, and he was very unwilling then. However, after joining the Spear of Heavy Cloud, his impression of Shi Xueman changedpletely. Unlike the sly and unpredictable Ai Hui, Shi Xueman was candid and upright. Even though she had a tendency to pull out her spear when things did not go her way, she wouldy out the issues and talk about them candidly, winning over everyone.

    Yang Xiaodong liked Lady Shi Xueman¡¯s style very much.

    Unlike the selfish Ai Hui, who only cared about himself, Lady Shi Xueman would take the initiative to help people around her and assume responsibilities bravely.

    In Yang Xiaodong¡¯s heart, Lady Shi Xueman¡¯s image was far better than Ai Hui¡¯s.

    Even though the life in the Spear of Heavy Cloud was very tough, Yang Xiaodong felt that it was very enriching as well.

    Lady¡¯s order was for him to send back the two injured people. He resisted the urge to reinforce Lady and flew towards the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp at top speed.

    When Yang Xiaodong was near the camp, he was quickly discovered by Jiang Wei and the rest. When hended, Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun, and the rest immediately gathered over. When they saw the unconscious Fatty and the heavily injured Zu Yan, their facial expressions changed drastically.

    Very soon, Fatty and Zu Yan were sent to receive treatments.

    "How¡¯s the situation?" Jiang Wei asked with a deep voice.

    "We have encountered an enemybat division. Lady is engaged in an intense battle with the enemy. I have to go and help her." Yang Xiaodong was extremely anxious.

    Jiang Wei remained calm and stopped him. "Did Lady instruct you to do anything?"

    Yang Xiaodong went into a daze momentarily before blurting out, "She just wanted me to leave first and take the injured back."

    Leave first? Yang Xiaodong seemed to have regained hisposure.

    Jiang Wei nodded his head and replied, "Lady will find a chance to escape. We have to believe in the Lady. It¡¯s very likely that the enemy might be arriving soon, so we have to make preparations. The enemy is from whichbat division? Did you recognize him? What characteristics did he have?"

    "They ride on ck-colored wolves and their leader wields an axe," Yang Xiaodong replied.

    When Jiang Wei was in the Sky Edge Division, he was the key figure that the higher-ups wanted to nurture. They felt that he had great potential of bing an excellent leader.

    Jiang Wei was calm, meticulous, diligent, and very strict with himself. All along, he paid great attention of thebat divisions of Blood of God. Upon hearing Yang Xiadong¡¯s words, he immediately said, "It¡¯s the Ardent Flower Blood Division. Their division leader is Xing Shan. He is a fearsome and troublesome individual."

    Usually, Jiang Wei would hide key information from everyone. Back when he was gathering the intelligence on thebat divisions of Blood of God, he had already thought of how to handle the information. At that time, while he wasing up with ideas and deductions, he probably never thought that he would use the information so soon.

    In a critical moment, there was no time for deliberation. The experience that was umted over time yed the most important role now.

    Without any hesitation, Jiang Wei quickly said, "We need to add more fortifications. Xiaoshan, I want many pits. Each of them should be forty centimeters deep and wide. The more pits there are, the better it is. I want the camp to be surrounded with them."

    Wang Xiaoshan was slightly anxious, but he was able to keep his cool. "This is a very easy task. Do the pits need to be hardened? Or should I add some stone spikes in them?"

    For a Master that yed with mud, digging holes was extremely easy. He could even make these holes as hard as iron and add spikes into them.

    However, to Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s surprise, Jiang Wei shook his head and replied, "No, don¡¯t harden them. I want you to soften them. Can you fill them up with mud? Can the mud be slightly more slippery than the usual types of mud?"

    Wang Xiaoshan quickly replied cheerfully, "This is a good idea! Yes, there is a type of mud called quicksand mud. It is very slippery, so much so that it is more slippery than oil."

    Jiang Wei¡¯s eyes lit up as he replied, "Alright, we will use quicksand mud then. You have to be fast, the enemy forces are arriving soon."

    "Don¡¯t worry, it will take at most twenty seconds," Wang Xiaoshan said candidly.

    After finishing his sentence, Wang Xiaoshan turned and left.

    Jiang Wei gave instructions to everyone in an orderly manner as he rearranged the defense line. Even though no one understood the uses of most arrangements, they knew that the vice division leader had a purpose for every arrangement.

    When Sang Zhijun saw Jiang Wei calmly giving everyone instructions, a glint shed across her eyes. Following which, a look of adoration appeared on her face without her knowing.

    Wang Xiaoshan was half-squatting at the edge of the defense line. Both of his hands were pressing against the ground, making him looked like a huge toad. Suddenly, his eyes widened angrily and an air of might erupted from his body while a bright earth-yellow glow engulfed his body.

    A concentrated aura of earth elemental energy diffused along the surface of the ground, then the ground began to tremble lightly.

    Suddenly, everyone felt as if the entire ce was going to sink into the ground. It was as if Wang Xiaoshan was standing on top of an abyss.

    One by one, pits began to appear on the ground, spreading all over the ce rapidly.

    Whoosh.

    Suddenly, a pir of deep-brown mud shot out from the ground. Following which, the mud fell from the sky like rain and filled up the pits in the blink of an eye.

    The surfaces of the mud-filled pits began to coagte. Within a few seconds, the pits vanished and the ground looked just like before.

    Wang Xiaoshan, whose body was glowing faintly, stood up from the ground. His face looked simple and honest,pletelycking the formidable air that he exuded just now. If everyone had not witnessed the scene with their own eyes, they would not think that this farmer-like fellow was actually an earth elemental master.

    "I have added a very thinyer of camouge to the ground¡¯s surface," Wang Xiaoshan exined.

    "It¡¯s much better with ayer of camouge," Jiang Wei praised him.

    He estimated the time and took a deep breath. Then, with a deep voice, he said, "Everyone, get ready to battle."

    .....

    Below the sea of clouds, Shi Xueman suddenly stopped in her tracks. From the corner of her eyes, she could see the murderous-looking Xing Shan. However, she was able to maintain herposure. With a solemn facial expression, she gently brandished her Cirrus.

    Buzz.

    A heart-prating buzz resounded through the air.

    The sea of clouds above her head caved in. Following which, the sea of clouds formed a white-colored tornado that surged into Shi Xueman¡¯s spear gleam.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s arm trembled as a rarely-seen strenuous look appeared on her face.

    The eyelids of Xing Shan, who had been pursuing Shi Xueman closely, were twitching furiously. An intense premonition suddenly arose in his heart.

    Not good!

    However, it was toote for him to turn around now. If he gave his back to his opponent now, the iing killer move would destroy him.

    Xing Shan was a ferocious and ruthless individual. He obtained the position of division leader of the Ardent Flower Blood Division by umting meritorious credits from countless battles.

    He would give it his all in a life-and-death moment!

    The blood spiritual force in his entire body was surging, and an ox-like roar erupted from his chest. The red glow surrounding him suddenly became dense and sticky, resembling fresh blood. The fringes of the fresh blood surrounding him were releasing faint, red energy waves, resembling blood ripples.

    An ancient aura descended upon Xing Shan¡¯s body.

    The ck heavy axe unknowingly became deathly white, resembling the color of a bone that was eroded by time.

    The blood-like, sticky-looking, red glow surrounding his body surged towards the deathly white axe in his hand and transformed into a river of blood, dyeing half the sky red.

    With the blood river trailing his deathly white axe, he shed it in the direction of Shi Xueman.

    [Axe of Nether River]!

    At this moment, Xing Shan no longer cared about catching Shi Xueman alive. Facing such an immense pressure from Shi Xueman, he was actually using his killer move!

    Unlike inheritances, once an Ability of God was summoned, the ancestral mark would be activated and the user would naturally understand the marvel within the Ability. However, if a blood elementalist wanted to improve his Ability of God, he or she would need pure ancestral characteristics. Even though Xing Shan only possessed a thin trace of the Netherworld Bestial Ox¡¯s ancestral mark, his strength had ascended into an unknown realm.

    The Nether River connected the realms of life and death. A drop of water from the Nether River would sever karma.

    Xing Shan had yet to understand what karma was.

    The ancestral mark of the Netherworld Bestial Ox in his body was not pure, and the bloody glow from his [Axe of Nether River] naturally would not be as powerful as the real Nether River. However, at the moment it came into contact with elemental energy, it would sever the connection between an elementalist and his elemental energy. Subsequently, it would devour that elementalist¡¯s elemental energy and strengthen its user¡¯s body.

    This attack of Shi Xueman must have contained a tremendous amount of elemental energy. In Xing Shan¡¯s eyes, this was just a sumptuous meal!

    Shi Xueman did not know what Xing Shan was thinking. She did not even sense the aura of the [Axe of Nether River] as she had ced all her attention on her Cirrus.

    The Cloud of Firmament Iron!

    The gushing mist entered her spear gleam, making it as heavy as iron. Meanwhile, the Cirrus in her hand had be as heavy as a mountain. She needed to focus all her attention on the Cirrus to be able to control it.

    ck-colored, flower-like sword gleams were released from the spear tip. Following which, they slowly spiralled around Cirrus. These flower-like sword gleams looked as if they were made up of iron, but in reality, they were made up of mist and clouds.

    Every iron flower weighed more than a few hundred kilograms.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s self-formed technique, [Iron Flowers Thrust]!

    People always used adjectives like elegant, light, gentle, and graceful to describe spearmanship. However, at this point in time, the style of Shi Xueman¡¯s spearmanship waspletely different. Hers was dense and heavy!

    When six ck-colored, iron flowers swirled around the sparkling white Cirrus, Shi Xueman¡¯s aura of might suddenly disappeared.

    Her gaze shifted from the Cirrus to Xing Shan.

    The image of an enormous axe that had a torrential bloody glow trailing it entered her eyes. The bloody glow was like a red-colored flood that had broken through a dike, surging towards her with an earth-shattering might.

    Phew.

    Shi Xueman slowly heaved a breath of air. The breath of air she exhaled was like a sword, splitting the sea of cloud above her head into two.

    Her gaze was resolute and tranquil; not the slightest bit of panic could be seen in his eyes.

    It was as if she did not see the iing blood river.

    She took a long step and thrusted her spear forward.

    The spear move was simple-looking and ordinary. There was nothing fancy about it. However, in the hands of Shi Xueman, a simple and basic move possessed an indescribable sense of beauty. It was as if all the lights were shining upon her now. Unknowingly, everyone¡¯s attention was captured by her.

    This ordinary-looking forward thrust transformed into a chilly gleam. Six iron-made flowers were slowly spiraling around it as it flew towards the blood river.

    Compared to the terrifying might of the [Axe of Nether River], Shi Xueman¡¯s [Iron Flowers Thrust] looked very ordinary.

    However, for some unknown reason, this normal-looking thrust managed to catch everyone¡¯s attention.

    All of the onlookers were holding their breaths.

    Guarded by the six spiralling iron flowers, the chilly spear gleam collided into the overwhelming, fearsome blood river.

    Suddenly, Xing Shan¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. The blood river in front of hm exploded. Before he could react, the hand that he was using to hold his gigantic axe went numb. His heavy axe, which was releasing an aura of fear and might previously, crumbled into fine powder like a crispy biscuit in an instant. Following which, his palm exploded into a rain of blood. It happened so fast that he could not even feel the paining.

    Following which, he saw that his right forearm was gone.

 Chapter 538: The Enemy Forces Are Arriving!

    Chapter 538: The Enemy Forces Are Arriving!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Shi Xueman didn¡¯t look alright all all. The armor that covered her right forearm had been shattered, revealing her slender, snow-white forearm. She was still holding on to her Cirrus tightly. Her blue-white body armor was filled with cracks. She had been wearing this armor since she was in Central Pine City. Years of battles and training sessions had caused some damage to it. However, she certainly didn¡¯t expect this battle topletely destroy it.

    Her face was emotionless, but in reality, she was battling hard with the bloody glow in her body. Even though her powerful [Iron Flowers Thrust] had shattered Xing Shan¡¯s [Axe of Nether River], a few traces of the bloody glow had still managed to enter her body. By the time she could react, it was already toote. These few traces of bloody glow were thin like hair strands. Even though they were not deadly, they swamed extremely fast through her body. To Shi Xueman¡¯s horror, her body¡¯s elemental energy cirction was bing increasingly sluggish.

    "Hahahaha!"

    Xing Shan burst intoughter and pleased look appeared on his face. His severed arm was still bleeding, but he looked as if he couldn¡¯t feel any pain.

    "How is it? Miss Shi, do you like my [Axe of Nether River]?" Xing Shan smiled.

    No one could tell what Shi Xueman was feeling. Deep down, she was trying to expel the bloody glow within her body as soon as possible. However, the bloody glow was unusually slippery, like a loach. There seemed to be ayer of membrane on the surface of the bloody glow. The membrane looked very thin, but it was actually extremely tough and durable. It stopped elemental energy from eroding the bloody glow.

    "If Miss Shi has four hours to spare, you might be able to think of a solution. However, right now, you should just follow me. Isn¡¯t it too much for your soft skin and tender flesh to take so much pain?" Xing Shan sneered.

    His injury looked horrifying, but it was not really severe. Blood elementalists had powerful physical bodies, and their regenerative ability wasparable to dire beasts¡¯. The Beast Venom Temple had many odd methods that could help them recover from their injuries.

    Xing Shan purposely used his injury to bait Shi Xueman into fighting him head-on. And by doing so, he could nt [Gadfly] in her body. [Gadfly] was a technique of [Netherworld Bestial Ox]. It wasn¡¯t deadly, but it could hinder its host¡¯s elemental energy cirction.

    Its effect wouldst for four hours.

    From the moment he thought about capturing Shi Xueman alive, he had been thinking of ways to do so. Eventually, he came up with this idea.

    Suddenly, Shi Xueman raised her head and looked directly at Xing Shan and said, "Is it? You¡¯re getting happy too soon!"

    The smile on Xing Shan¡¯s face froze as a premonition arose in his heart. He then roared, "Get her!"

    Beneath him, there were a few experts that were prepared to take action any time. They rose into the air and lunged for Shi Xueman!

    Suddenly, Shi Xueman dug into the sea of clouds above her head.

    Xing Shan¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. He had lost Shi Xueman!

    Without Xing Shan saying anything, his experts took action immediately. Streaks of red light sted towards the position where Shi Xueman had disappeared into. A burst of odd-looking, blood-colored mes erupted and burned a huge hole in the sea of clouds.

    However, they still could not see Shi Xueman.

    The experts flew through theyer of clouds and appeared above it. They scanned the boundless sea of clouds but still could not find Shi Xueman.

    Xing Shan¡¯s face turned ashen. A cooked duck could fly?

    Suddenly, the Chieftain Wolf beneath him howled in at a particr direction.

    Everyone stared at that direction. More than a few kilometers away, they could see a figure that resembled an agile whale in the sea of clouds.

    "Chase her!"

    Without any hesitation, Xing Shan led the chase. That few experts followed suit as well. His main forces on the ground advanced with a loud rumble too.

    Xing Shan clearly understood that such an exceptionally good chance wouldn¡¯te by a second time. His eyes were very sharp, so he could tell that Shi Xueman wasn¡¯t using her elemental energy to fly. Rather, it was the Cirrus in her hand that was helping her fly.

    Upon thinking about it, he felt that it wasn¡¯t surprising. After all, she was a member of the Shi family, so how could she not have a few treasures in her hands?

    Within these four hours, Shi Xueman¡¯s capabilities would be limited. To the Ardent Flower Blood Division, these four hours would be the best and only chance to capture her. Without Shi Xueman, the Spear of Heavy Cloud would suffer a huge loss in strength.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s strength was extraordinary, and her skill basics were extremely solid. Furthermore, her spearmanship was out of this world. If it weren¡¯t for [Gadfly], Xing Shan felt that he wouldn¡¯t have a high chance of pulling this mission off.

    This time around, Shi Xueman was unprepared. Hence, [Gadfly] would work by surprise. This move could only be used once. Once the opponent was prepared for it, it would be ineffective.

    Shi Xueman was holding her Cirrus very tightly. Traces of mist were spiralling around the body of Cirrus. It was flying Shi Xueman through the sea of clouds at a lightning speed.

    The Cirrus¡¯ body was forged using a bone of a humpback cloud whale. Shi Beihai personally chose the most perfect bone to forge the Cirrus. Humpback cloud whales were powerful entities that lived in deep space. They were at the peak of the food chain and they were born with the ability to fly in the sea of clouds. At this moment, the Cirrus was flying Shi Xueman nimbly through the clouds.

    Meanwhile, above her head, Xing Shan and his counterparts were chasing relentlessly after her.

    There was no sign of panic on Shi Xueman¡¯s face. She even closed her eyes and let Cirrus fly her through the air freely. Even though she knew that the hair-like traces of bloody glow in her body weren¡¯t deadly, she had no intention of bing a sitting duck.

    Xing Shan and his counterparts could only see a faintly discernible figure flying swiftly through the vast sea of clouds.

    The sea of clouds was like a thick, protective screen, hindering their sensory perception.

    Traces of mist entered Shi Xueman¡¯s body in a steady flow. She used the boundless water elemental energy from the sea of clouds topress the water elemental energy in her body.

    The thin traces of bloody glow were very weird. Their surfaces were extremely slippery and they were swimming like loaches in the water elemental energy within Shi Xueman¡¯s body. Ordinary methods would not work against them, but Shi Xueman thought of an idea. She intended topress the water elemental energy in her body and turn it into the firmament iron that made up the tip of her Cirrus. This way, those traces of bloody glow would have nowhere to hide!

    Firmament iron was only made up of one ingredient, water. However, now it had be one of the hardest materials in the world.

    Compressing water elemental energy was a very bold idea. It was extremely risky as well.

    The water elemental energy in the sea of clouds was mixed with other elemental energies as well. For example, metal elemental energy from the metal winds and fire elemental energy from the sun.

    At this point in time, Shi Xueman did not have the time to remove the impurities. Along with the endless stream of water elemental energy, these impurities would gather in her body.

    Every elementalist pursued the state of purity for the elemental energy within their bodies. Impurities would affect an elementalist¡¯s control over his or her elemental energy. The greatest impact of impurities was that they might gather in the five residences and eight pces and directly reduce an elementalist¡¯s connectivity with his or her elemental energy greatly.

    Very often, once an elementalist¡¯s connectivity with his or her elemental decreased, the effect would be irreversible.

    If one wanted to reverse the effect, it would be as difficult as improving his or her talents.

    However, at this moment, Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t care about these things. It was too early to think about the negative effects of impurities. She couldst for a long period of time before the negative effects set in. Right now, all she cared about was making it out alive!

    She kept onpressing the water elemental energy that gushed into her body. Her eyebrows knitted slightly as a rarely-seen tinge of agony appeared on her face. The process of converting water to firmament was extremely arduous and difficult. Simrly, the process ofpressing water elemental energy wasn¡¯t easy either. However, Shi Xueman did not give up. She could sense that as the water elemental energy increased in viscosity, it became more and more difficult for the traces of bloody glow to travel around her body,

    Suddenly, her body trembled.

    .....

    Time was passing slowly. The atmosphere in the Spear of Cloud¡¯s camp was bing extremely tense.

    The anxiousness on Yang Xiaodong¡¯s face was bing increasingly intense. Sang Zhijun and the rest were bing nervous and worried as well. Jiang Wei was the only one that was calm and collected. He wasn¡¯t affected by any emotions.

    The tightly-closed eyes of Fatty, who was still unconscious, kept on trembling. It appeared that the eyeballs behind his closed eyelids were rolling around.

    Zu Yan was keeping watch over Fatty by his side. Upon seeing Fatty¡¯s eyelids trembling, he became worried. Was he having a nightmare?

    Suddenly, Fatty opened his eyes and quickly picked himself up. With a voice filled with panic, he yelled at the top of his voice, "The enemy forces are arriving!"

    Everyone shifted their gazes to Fatty.

    Zu Yan quickly assured him, "Fatty, we are back in the camp. There¡¯s nothing, there¡¯s nothing!"

    It appeared Fatty was really frightened this time around.

    A sympathetic look appeared on everyone¡¯s faces. They also thought that Fatty acted this way because he was traumatised badly. However, they also knew that it wasn¡¯t easy for Fatty to make it back alive.

    Meanwhile, those meticulous individuals felt that Fatty was having a nightmare as they noticed his eye pupils weren¡¯t focused.

    Jiang Wei, who had been emotionless all this time, suddenly asked, "Fatty, where are the enemy forcesing from?"

    "That side!" Fatty pointed to a forest in his southeast direction.

    "Get ready for battle! Everyone, get ready for battle!" Jiang Wei suddenly shouted.

    He walked around the camp and urged everyone to prepare for battle. Everyone then began to make preparations. However, they were feeling extremely confused.

    What was wrong with the Vice Division Leader? Fatty was obviously traumatized, so how could the Vice Division Leader believe his words?

    However, Jiang Wei¡¯s gaze was limpid and resolute, putting pressure on everyone. None of them did not dare to hesitate, and they all made their preparations.

    Suddenly, Yang Xiaodong¡¯s facial expression changed. An incredulous look appeared on his face. "I think... the enemy forces are really arriving!"

    He could not help but take a nce at the dazed Fatty.

    Fatty had actually sensed the enemy forces¡¯ presence earlier than him!

    His strength was much higher than Fatty¡¯s. Furthermore, he was a Master. Suddenly, he let out a yelp again and looked at Fatty with doubt.

    He realized there was something wrong with Fatty¡¯s body...

    At this moment, the ground began to tremble. Veterans were able to tell that the enemy forces were huge in number.

    Rumble! Rumble!

    The ground was trembling furiously. Jiang Wei and the rest felt as if they were standing on a drum that was being beaten. The rising smoke in the distant wasing towards them with tumultuous momentum, and the enormous forest ahead of them turned blurry.

    Everyone sucked in a breath of cold air. The previous Blood of God¡¯sbat divisions that they fought were much weaker than this iingbat division!

    "Pagoda cannons, get ready!" Jiang Wei remainedposed.

    In the center of the camp, the twelve pagoda cannons were already prepared. Vats of snowva were being poured into the fire pools continuously. When the battle intensifiedter on, they might not even have the time to replenish the snowva.

    At this moment, Fatty had regained his senses as well. The loud rumbles struck fear into him and caused his face to turn white. He quickly dashed to a nearby pagoda cannon and snatched over the main cannon position. "Let me do it!"

    The level of Fatty¡¯s control of the pagoda cannon far surpassed everyone in thebat division, so naturally, no one would snatch the position from him.

    At this point, all of them could see the enemy forces. Deafening rumbles filled their ears. They could clearly see the sinister-looking faces of the enemy forces now. In the face of such a terrifying flood of blood elementalists, many members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud had their faces turned pale-white and their minds went nk.

    The enemy forces were charging towards them.

    At this point in time, a familiar figure descended from the sea of clouds above their heads like a kite that had its string broken.

    "Lady!"

    "Xueman!"

    Everyone¡¯s facial expressions changed drastically. Sang Zhijun did not care about anything and soared into the air to catch the falling Shi Xueman.

    Theyer of clouds above everyone¡¯s heads suddenly exploded and howlingughter echoed through air.

    Jiang Wei clenched his teeth. At this moment, even he himself could not maintain hisposure. He widened his eyes angrily and roared at the top of his voice, "Pagoda cannons! Listen to mymands! Listen to mymands!"

    Twelve pagoda cannons were slowly initializing.

 Chapter 539: Confrontation

    Chapter 539: Confrontation

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The one leading the charge of the Ardent Flower Blood Division was its vice division leader, Tao Feng. Tao Feng and Zu Chun had a deep rtionship. After he found out that Zu Chun had died, he cried his eyes out.

    He was bent on seeking revenge for Zu Chun. When he saw the camp of the Spear of Heavy Cloud, his eyes turned bloodshot with hatred.

    He raised his arm and roared, "Kill them! Kill all of them!"

    His soldiers echoed after him in unison, "Kill them! Kill all of them!"

    Amid the deafening mor, Tao Feng and the ardent flower night wolf beneath him lit up with a bloody glow. The rest of the soldiers lit up with a bloody glow as well.

    All of their bloody glows made contact with each other andbined together into one. Their aura intensified abruptly.

    An aura of death rose into the sky. Like a bloody, heavy axe, the aura split the thickyer of clouds above their heads into two.

    The bloody glow engulfed the entire Ardent Flower Blood Division. The movements and rhythm of every soldier and ardent flower night wolf began to synchronize more and more.

    Their grandeur intensified and their momentum turned increasingly terrifying.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    The thousands of soldiers advanced together as one. Every time the wolves ced their paws on the ground, the ground would tremble like a drum that was being beaten. Everything that was in the path of the charging, red-glowing army was reduced to fine powder.

    When the usuallyposed Jiang Wei saw the Ardent Flower Blood Division raze a six-meter-tall hill to the ground, his facial expression changed drastically.

    He had never seen such a grandeur from abat division of Blood of God before.

    Was this the true might of a properbat division from Blood of God?

    This thought shed across his mind. The situation that they were facing now had reached a critical junction. He widened his eyes and held his breath.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    Jiang Wei was counting the pace of the ardent flower night wolves. Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s quicksand pit zone was right in front of them.

    Like a bloody, heavy axe that was swinging crazily, Tao Feng led the Ardent Flower Blood Division and charged into the quicksand pit zone

    Jiang Wei widened his eyes while holding his breath.

    He also did not know whether his idea would work or not. He came up with this idea when he was devising battle tactics. At that time, he felt that it would work. However, now that he witnessed the powerful charge of the Ardent Flower Blood Division for himself, he knew he had underestimated his opponent!

    Bang!

    Suddenly, the outermost edge of the quicksand pit zone exploded. Under the powerful impact of Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s charge, the quicksand that was more slippery than oil flew into the air from the pits.

    Tao Feng and his wolf wobbled. He and his ardent flower night wolf were telepathically connected. As such, they would immediately sense if there was something wrong.

    It was a trap!

    His mind jolted.

    However, at this point in time, he couldn¡¯t think too much about it. Both sides were only separated by a small distance. He could clearly see the fear and shock on the elementalists¡¯ faces. He immediately made up his mind.

    He was too familiar with this facial expression!

    Once they covered this small distance and charged into the elementalists¡¯ camp, the elementalists would definitely crumble!

    A sinister smile appeared on Tao Feng¡¯s face, then he roared, "Charge!"

    Jiang Wei continued to widen his eyes. However, he was not looking at the iing Tao Feng. Instead, he was staring at the ground beneath Tao Feng¡¯s ardent flower night wolf.

    The quicksand that sttered into the air was like a raised brocade, giving off a dazzling luster.

    However, the quicksand did not break!

    A look of joy appeared on Jiang Wei¡¯s face. Yes, the quicksand did not break!

    Xiaoshan had seeded!

    The bloody glow that surrounded the paws of Tao Feng¡¯s wolf was like knives, shattering the rocks on the ground. However, the soft-looking quicksand did not break under the impact of the bloody glow!

    The soldiers following closely behind Tao Feng had charged into the quicksand pit zone as well.

    Their bodies could not help but wobble as well.

    The bloody glow that engulfed the entirebat division suddenly dimmed slightly. [Bloody Axe Charge] was a unique charging tactic of the Ardent Flower Blood Division. It involved everyone¡¯s blood spiritual forcebining together and forming a powerful and invincible momentum. However, [Bloody Axe Charge] was very demanding on thebat division that was executing it. Everyone¡¯s pace and tempo of blood spiritual force cirction had to be the same; the more synchronized they were, the more powerful they would be.

    In a perfect [Bloody Axe Charge], everyone moved together as one, their hearts beat together, their blood spiritual force circted in the same tempo, and they advanced and retreated together. A perfect [Bloody Axe Charge] was simply unstoppable for attacking a city or a camp.

    Jiang Wei had studied the Ardent Flower Blood Divison before, so he roughly knew the characteristics of [Bloody Axe Charge]. He knew that it was ineffective to slow down the enemy forces or increase their own defense when dealing with this type of charge. Instead, they had to disrupt the enemy forces¡¯ tempo. The more chaotic the enemy forces got, the less powerful the charge would be.

    He had been waiting for this chance. He roared, "Pagoda cannons! Fire!"

    Boom!

    The first boom came from the pagoda cannon of Fatty.

    A beam of white light shed through the air andnded squarely on the Ardent Flower Blood Division.

    Fatty made a very smart move. He did not aim at Tao Feng, who was right at the front of thebat division. Instead, Fatty aimed at the side of thebat division.

    The beam of white light pierced through five blood elementalists, leaving a bloody hole in each of their bodies.

    Amotion broke out among the blood elementalists surrounding them. The bloody glow that they thought was impregnable was utterly delicate against the beam of white light. Even though it only killed five blood elementalists, it shocked the rest of the blood elementalists greatly.

    The other pagoda cannons reacted as well.

    Boom! Boom! Boom!

    Booms resounded through the air continuously while beams of white light repeatedly shot out of the pagoda cannons andnded on the Ardent Flower Blood Division. Since the two sides were so close to each other, it wasn¡¯t too difficult for the pagoda cannons to hit their targets. Only two pagoda cannons missed their targets as the elementalists controlling them were too nervous.

    The killing machines from Central Pine Valley had disyed their might.

    Those blood elementalists that were hit by the pagoda cannons did not explode into a pool of blood. Instead, a basin-sized hole was created on each of their bodies. If such a huge injury appeared on any part of a body, it would be more than enough to cause death.

    When a blood elementalist saw the internal organs and bones dangling from the horrifying hole on hisrade¡¯s body and then hisrade copsed to the ground without saying a word, it was very difficult for him not to feel panic.

    Just like how it was the first time the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s elementalists had seen [Bloody Axe Charge], it was also the first time that Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s blood elementalists had encountered Hellfire Pagoda Cannons.

    Ai Hui created the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons simply because Blind Heined that the mes used to refine and forge weapons were not good enough. At the same time, Ai Hui also wanted to recycle the snout of theva-spitting beast.

    He definitely didn¡¯t expect the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon to be a weapon that struck fear in people¡¯s hearts one day.

    In the sky, the faces of Xing Shan and his counterparts turned ugly.

    Looking down from the sky, they could see what was going on clearly. They saw with their own eyes how the invincible Ardent Flower Blood Division became sluggish and chaotic instantly when it entered the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s trap zone. The straight and brilliant beams of white light were like the gazes of Death itself, creating more chaos for Ardent Flower Blood Division.

    As the division leader of the Ardent Flower Blood Division, Xing Shan clearly knew the might of the [Bloody Axe Charge]

    When he saw the [Bloody Axe Charge] bing soft and weak, he knew he had to do something. Otherwise, even if he ultimately obtained victory, it woulde at a price of heavy casualties.

    "All of you, go down!" Xing Shan instructed with a deep voice.

    In the Ardent Flower Blood Division, there were seven blood elementalists that had Ability of God. One was Zu Chun, who had died. Two of them were Tao Feng and a blood elementalist who were currently leading the charge. The remaining three were beside Xing Shan.

    The three of them knew that the situation had reached a critical junction. All of them replied in unison, "Yes!"

    The three of them were veterans that had been through countless battles. They immediately split up and flew down from different directions. While they were in mid-air, they summoned their Ability of God.

    One person had a row of spurs growing from his back. His limbs became thick and solid and his body became broader. His skin turned coarse and thick with ayer of densely-packed fish scales covering it. A spiky tail grew out of his tailbone. His eyes became almond-shaped, giving off an ice-cold aura.

    Another person had a pair of ck-white wings growing out of his back. His nails became sharp and crooked while his gaze became unusually piercing. The sounding out of his mouth resembled the cry of a crane.

    Thest one was a girl. A pair of thin, spotted wings grew out from her back. Her body was petite, making her looked like an oversized butterfly.

    Xing Shan did not move. Even though the injury of his severed arm wasn¡¯t life-threatening and it could be healed by taking a trip to the Beast Venom Temple, it still dealt a significant damage to his body overall. Shi Xueman¡¯s spear gleam was wreaking havoc in his body. Even though it wasn¡¯t deadly, it had a huge impact on his fighting capabilities.

    That three blood elementalists with Ability of God flew towards the camp of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. To everyone¡¯s surprise, their target was Shi Xueman, who was still in the arms of Sang Zhijun.

    As long as they could get hold of Shi Xueman, their mission would be a sess!

    As the division leader of the Spear of Heavy Cloud, Shi Xueman was deeply adored by everyone. If they could capture Shi Xueman, they could force the Spear of Heavy Cloud to surrender. The three blood elementalists flew extremely fast. They drew three odd-looking arcs as they swooped down from three different directions towards Sang Zhijun.

    Sang Zhijun looked as if she sensed something. She raised her head and revealed a weird smile on her face.

    The next moment, Shi Xueman, who was unconscious in Sang Zhijun¡¯s arms, suddenly disappeared.

    Not good!

    The image of a spinning-top-like spear gleam that was wrapped by traces of mist expanded rapidly in the three blood elementalists¡¯ eyes.

    Intense fear struck the three blood elementalists.

    They had witnessed Shi Xueman¡¯s battle with Xing Shan with their own eyes. From Shi Xueman¡¯s terrifying strength and perfect spearmanship, they knew they had no chance of defeating her.

    When Shi Xueman suddenly lunged at them without any warning, their first thought was they had been tricked!

    Which part of the whizzing, piercing-cold spear gleam looked weak? In mid-air, the figure of Shi Xueman was very blurry, and only her cold-looking eyes could be seen. Her gaze was so resolute that it sent fear down their spines.

    The butterfly-like blood elementalist flew the slowest. Despair arose upon her face. Her hands kept on sprinkling gorgeous drizzles of light through the air. Following which, illusions appeared amid the drizzles of light.

    She did not know that even Ai Hui had to y second fiddle to Shi Xueman¡¯s determination. Her extraordinary willpower was the reason why she had never encountered an inner demon in her path of training. Her teacher, An Muda, did not give her many pointers. He only told her to continue walking her path.

    The spear gleam effortlessly pierced through the gorgeous rain of light and the body of the butterfly-like blood elementalist. The immensely heavy mist spiralling around the spear gleam sted onto her petite body.

    Her beautiful and transparent wings were shattered and its remains drifted in the air.

    The spear gleam which had yet to lose its power reached the lizard-like blood elementalist. He let out an angry roar and the bloody glow around his body surged. He then turned his body and swung his spiky tail. The bloody glow entered his tail and the spikes on his tail dazzled with a scarlet glow, resembling the iron nails that were just taken from the furnace.

    Following which, he swung his scarlet-glowing spiky tail at the spear gleam!

    The whizzing spear gleam suddenly trembled and brushed past the scarlet-glowing tail. From an extremely ingenious angle, it pierced through the lizard-like blood elementalist¡¯s chin.

    Bang!

    A rain of blood descended from the sky while the spear gleam passed through a white rainbow.

    Holding a spear, the lone figure of Shi Xueman suddenly surged forward.

 Chapter 540: Chapter 540 - 20 Meters Of Life-or-death Experience

    Chapter 540: Chapter 540 - 20 Meters Of Life-or-death Experience

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    When Sang Zhijun caught Shi Xueman in the air, she had already sensed that something was not right with her.

    After Shi Xueman surged into the air, Sang Zhijun no longer ced her attention in the sky. She felt relieved in any ce that Shi Xueman was in charge of. Sang Zhijun shifted her gaze to Jiang Wei, who was roaringmands frantically now.

    She seldom saw such a fervent look on Jiang Wei¡¯s face. Her mouth curled into a faint smile.

    The calm and seasoned Jiang Wei was usually called "Old Ginger" by everyone. The older a ginger was, the spicier it was. [1]

    Sang Zhijun shifted her gaze, withdrew her smile, and ced her attention on the battle.

    The situation was much more intense than expected. The Ardent Flower Blood Division had arrived too fast. The Infantry Division and the Sky Edge Division had yet to arrive. Even though the Spear of Heavy Cloud was somewhat powerful, it was still a rtively newbat division with little experience.

    This was only the second battle of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. One could imagine their stress in facing a legitimatebat division of Blood of God.

    When Sang Zhijun took over themand of the archers, the previously chaotic rain of arrows became orderly now.

    Jiang Wei looked very excited, but deep down he was unusually calm. When he noticed there was a change in the nature of the rain of arrows, he knew Sang Zhijun had takenmand of the archers. This took some pressure off him.

    The two of them had coborated for many years, so they were well-coordinated.

    Jiang Wei fixed his gaze on the quicksand on the ground. He had underestimated the Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s [Bloody Axe Charge]. However, he also did not expect Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s quicksand mud to be so formidable!

    The quicksand mud was more slippery than oil and yet it was stickier than sugar syrup.

    Every time a pagoda cannon was fired, amotion would break out in the Ardent Flower Blood Division. Every shot would kill or injure at most five people. For the Ardent Flower Blood Division, which had thousands of men, this number was insignificant. However, the chaos that was created by the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons caused the charging speed of the Ardent Fire Blood Division to reduce sharply.

    The impact of having their charging speed reduced was deadly.

    The charging impact of a high-speed Ardent Flower Blood Division was extremely powerful. It would cause the pits on the ground to be destroyed. However, once the speed of the Ardent Flower Blood Division was reduced, they would lose their momentum, making it very difficult for them to advance in the sticky yet slippery quicksand mud. The ardent flower night wolves had to be very careful to maintain their bnce in the slippery quicksand mud. Every step they took would be harder than usual. The stickiness of the quicksand mud made them felt as if they were walking in a marsh. Every now and then, if the body of a ardent flower night wolf swayed, it implied that it had stepped on a pit.

    The quicksand mud and pits were not powerful enough to cause any damage to the ardent flower night wolves. They only had one purpose, and that was to slow down the speed of the Ardent Flower Blood Division.

    In the sky, Xing Shan¡¯s attention was caught by Shi Xueman. Tao Feng, who was leading the charge, had yet to notice her. All he was thinking of was seeking revenge for Zu Chun. The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp was almost within reach.

    As long as he and his soldiers could cross this quicksand zone, the victory could be easily obtained!

    The quicksand zone, which was less than 300 meters, was insignificant in the Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s eyes.

    Themotion created by every shot from the pagoda cannons dimmed the bloody glow that surrounded the Ardent Flower Blood Division. And every time this happened, a rain of arrows would be released from the archers under Sang Zhijun¡¯smand and descend upon the blood elementalists.

    This scenario resembled a wolf pack that kept on tearing off the flesh of its prey.

    Every smallmotion created was like a small cut. Eventually, the small cut would be a huge cut.

    Within a short period of time, the sharp and heavy de of the bloody axe was riddled with damage unwittingly.

    At this point in time, the most sharp front end of the damage-riddled bloody axe had finally reached the edge of the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp. An evil grin was upon Tao Feng¡¯s face. As the one leading the charge, he was at the front end of the army. The bloody glow surrounding his body was the most concentrated as well.

    However, Tao Feng, who was solely focusing on moving ahead, did not notice that he was slightly separated from his army.

    The nearest blood elementalist to him was 20 meters away.

    "Master Yang!" Jiang Wei suddenly yelled.

    When Yang Xiaodong saw that Shi Xueman was alright, he ced his attention on the battlefield. A Master was an important offensive power that posed a significant impact on the battlefield. In the daily training sessions of the Spear of Heavy Cloud, a Master¡¯s attack was utterly formidable.

    A Master usually had two responsibilities. The first was to deal with an enemy expert that was of same level as him. The second was tounch a point source explosion and overturn the battle situation.

    The number of Masters in the Spear of Heavy Cloud was very limited. Only Shi Xueman, Zu Yan, and Yang Xiaodong were Masters. Therefore, they had to very careful on how the Masters were utilized in the battlefield. As such, they ced a lot of effort on devising tactics that could be used by a Master.

    Zu Yan was too young. Furthermore, he had been ice-sealed for a rather long period of time. Even though he had attained the level of Master, he was stillcking inbat experience.

    On the contrary, Yang Xiaodong was much more experienced and shrewd.

    An experienced veteran might not necessarily had an advantage in an one-on-one battle. However, when he was in a dire situation, he knew what should be done. When Jiang Wei gave the order, Yang Xiaodong immediately took action.

    [Refraction Forest]!

    Numerous prisms that were made up of water elemental energy appeared behind Tao Feng. Like a prism wall, it separated Tao Feng from the rest of the Ardent Flower Blood Division.

    After losing its speed, the bloody hammer¡¯s momentum reduced greatly. It was easily split by Yang Xiaodong¡¯s [Refraction Forest].

    The blood elementalists were dazzled by the sudden burst of light in front of them. Those who had fast reactions attacked the [Refraction Forest] at the first instance.

    To their surprise, the bloody glows that they released bounced to and fro within the forest of prism pirs

    Hovering in mid-air, the prism "wall" remained the same.

    "Pagoda cannons! Concentrate your shots on..."

    Boom!

    The roar of a blood elementalistmander behind the "wall" could be heard by all blood elementalists. Boiling blood gushed up their heads in an instant.

    Not good! Vice Division Leader Tao Feng is in danger!

    The other blood elementalist who possessed the Ability of God couldn¡¯t care less. They flew into the air and lunged towards the position of Tao Feng.

    While in mid-air, he saw an appalling sight.

    There was someone who had targeted Tao Feng earlier than Jiang Wei. That person was Fatty, who had been controlling the pagoda cannon with all his might.

    From Fatty¡¯s puffy cheeks and the traces of hot steaming out from his body, one would think he was utterly exhausted. In reality, he was looking for the weaknesses of the enemy forces. He had long noticed Tao Feng, who was at the front end of the charge.

    Tao Feng was too ferocious, too arrogant, and too conspicuous.

    However, Fatty had been restraining his urge to shoot Tao Feng, as he knew he had to wait for the right moment to do so. Tao Feng wasing at them with might and great momentum, so Fatty was not confident he could kill him.

    As such, he targeted the main forces behind Tao Feng first.

    In reality, Fatty was responsible for more than half of the casualties the Ardent Flower Blood Division had suffered. When Fatty took up the position for the pagoda cannons, the other pagoda cannons ced their attention on him. During the daily training sessions, everyone had witnessed Fatty¡¯s exceptional prowess in using the pagoda cannon and his extraordinary despicability.

    Fatty¡¯s shots would alwaysnd on the enemy forces¡¯ most unbearable area.

    After learning from experience, everyone fired at whichever direction Fatty fired at. The casualties the Ardent Flower Blood Division were mainly caused by this tactic.

    Fatty felt exceptionally good today. Even though his body was emitting traces of hot steam, he did not feel tired at all. On the contrary, he felt he had an unlimited amount of energy.

    The pagoda cannon felt unusually good in his hands as well. Wherever he pointed his pagoda cannon, he would hit whichever specific target he had in mind.

    His uracy was simply on point today!

    Fatty also did not know why he was so excited today. However, he knew that today he was on fire.

    When Jiang Wei¡¯s roar rang across the air, Fatty immediately knew what he was thinking.

    When Yang Xiadong¡¯s [Refraction Forest] erupted with a dazzling radiance, Fatty¡¯s pagoda cannon sounded off.

    Boom!

    A beam of scorching, white light hit Tao Feng squarely.

    Tao Feng sensed danger immediately. He let out a weird yelp that sounded like the cry of a bird.

    When the white light hit Tao Feng, he transformed into a pheasant feather with a pop. Following which, the pheasant feather was reduced to ashes.

    When Fatty fired that shot, he immediately knew that something was not right. Without any hesitation, he carried the heavy pagoda cannon and took two steps forward diagonally. His feet were unusually nimble and quick.

    The heavy pagoda cannon weighed almost nothing in Fatty¡¯s hands. Whoosh. A heavy and muffled sound of wind could be heard.

    The pagoda cannon was fixed, pointing towards a position where there was no one.

    Without any hesitation, Fatty fired the pagoda cannon.

    Boom!

    A beam of scorching, white light erupted from the pagoda cannon.

    A blurry shadow appeared in front of the pagoda cannon. All of a sudden, a burst of white light erupted.

    It was toote for Tao Feng to dodge the attack. He could only look on nkly as the beam of white light struck his body.

    The scorching, white light collided heavily with the bloody glow around Tao Feng¡¯s body. Tao Feng¡¯s body trembled as a red-white brilliance erupted.

    Fatty felt that his situation was unprecedentedly good. He was visualizing the snowva being poured into the pagoda cannon and sensing the fine andplicated traces and elemental energy rings on the inner wall of the cannon barrel.

    He was doing this purely by his feeling. Boom, boom, boom!

    Three muffled booms resounded through the air as three balls of dazzling white-colored mes erupted from the cannon barrel.

    Every loud boom caused Tao Feng¡¯s body to tremble.

    Clink!

    A loud and crisp sound that sounded like ss shattering could be heard. The bloody glow around Tao Feng¡¯s body hadpletely copsed. Blood was seeping out from the corner of his mouth as his eyes widened angrily. However, at this point, his body trembled so much that it became numb and immovable. The ardent flower night wolf¡¯s front limbs were half bent, looking as if they were forcibly being held down to the ground by a pair of invisible hands.

    Despicable...

    The bitter roar that was echoing repeatedly in Tao Feng¡¯s head was drowned by the incessant deafening booms.

    The rest of the pagoda cannons responded and fired at Tao Feng frantically.

    The bounded Tao Feng could only look on nkly as the beams of scorching, white light shot towards him from all directions.

    Bo!

    He snarled in his heart.

    Dazzling radiance erupted from the [Refraction Forest] behind him, resembling the rising sun.

    Beams of white light devoured Tao Feng¡¯s body.

    When the white light dissipated, four charred footprints were left on the ground.

    The man and the wolf were destroyed physically and spiritually.

    At this moment, the [Refraction Forest] was shattered.

    They had finally crossed the 20 meters of life-or-death quicksand zone. It was because of these 20 meters of quicksand that they lost their vice division leader. Everyone¡¯s eyes were bloodshot. The one hundred people at the front end were already setting foot on hard and sturdy ground one by one.

    At this moment, all of them knew that their so-called battle tactics and strategies were useless now.

    Courage was all that mattered in close quartersbat.

    Only the brave ones would emerge victorious.

    A devastating and bloody scene began at this point.

    Simrly, the battle in the sky became lopsided.

    After the crane-like blood elementalist witnessed two of hisrades die, he was overwhelmed with horror. There was only one thought in his mind, and that was to run! His speed was exceptionally fast. In a blink of an eye, he disappeared into the sea of clouds. Even Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t catch up to him.

    However, Shi Xueman¡¯s target wasn¡¯t this man. Her target was Xing Shan.

    Note:

    [1]The Chinese word for ginger is "Jiang".

 Chapter 541: Surviving

    Chapter 541: Surviving

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    His troops had already broken into the enemy¡¯s frontline. Even though a huge price had been paid, they had already gained dominance. In previous battles, as long as they entered the elementalists¡¯ frontline, thetter would fall into a state of panic.

    Elementalists¡¯ inheritances were exquisite and abundant and they were courageous and bold.

    Blood of God hadn¡¯t been established for a long time; it was like a young and vigorous youth. Beyond Avalon, on the other hand, was like an old man who was past his prime,cking in drive and bravery.

    Fighting at close quarters required valor.

    Xing Shan felt that the present conditions were already fixed, so he just had to wait for the bottom bat division to im victory. So what if Shi Xueman was strong and powerful? It takes two hands to p!

    He smiled. "Why would you fight this hard-pressed battle? Your troops have already been broken into. Do you still think there¡¯s a chance to overturn the situation?"

    Shi Xueman replied coldly, "What a pesk."

    At that, her figure vanished.

    Xing Shan quickly drove his wolf toward a corner to dodge. The snow-white mist curling around the Cirrus brushed past his body like a whip that carried overwhelming power.

    p. The mist fell into the sea of clouds, causing it to explode and transform into a six hundred meter crack.

    Sunlight pierced through the crack like golden light swords.

    Xing Shan¡¯s scalp went numb. If that mist had struck him, he would¡¯ve been severely injured if not dead. He was bewildered. Shi Xueman was like a lively dragon, her elemental energypletely unaffected.

    Was his [Gadfly] ineffective?

    Or was it her n to lure the enemy? Looking at the mingled crowd beneath, he dismissed that thought. If her opponent had assisting armies, she would reasonably avoid meeting them head on. Why would she present herself at their doorstep?

    But Shi Xueman seemed not the least bit affected even after two of his own troops had been taken down by her personally.

    Xing Shan racked his brains but still couldn¡¯t understand.

    But he knew that waiting was his only chance at victory now.

    The battle situation on the ground was very tight.

    Xing Shan dodged continuously. It was a sorry sight. Shi Xueman¡¯s spear techniques were extremely peculiar. The strips of white mist wound around her spear body were like white dragons, and it was precisely this mist that caused Xing Shan such a huge problem. The mist would disperse in a spiral along with the onward spear ray like a big, opened umbre, enveloping a wide region.

    Yet this spotlessly white and floaty mist that looked soft and powerless was in fact exceptionally potent.

    These overbearing mist strips had made him suffer quite a bit.

    It was the case this time as well.

    Seeing that he wasn¡¯t going to be able to dodge, Xing Shan could only wave the machete in his left hand to block them off. But the high-quality machete cracked instantly upon impact and shattered into countless fragments that flew in all directions.

    Xing Shan spurted out a mouthful of fresh blood, which spilled and stained his garment.

    His wolf was covered in injuries as well, with a leg that was bent unnaturally.

    Xing Shan bit between his teeth. He mustn¡¯t retreat now.

    The soldiers below would lose confidence and hesitate if he fled. Their morale would take a hit and they would lose the upper hand.

    He threw the sword hilt away and burst intoughter, disregarding the bloodstains on his face. He was like a malicious spirit that had risen up from the sea of blood inhell. With ring eyes, he suddenly shouted, "Ardent Flower Blood Division! Kill!"

    The members below, who had already sunk into a bitter struggle, received a morale boost upon hearing their division leader¡¯smand. Blood elementalists in every corner of the battlefield raised their weapons in unison and responded wildly, "Ardent Flower Blood Division, kill!"

    All covered in bloodstains, Xing Shan watched Shi Xueman coldly. Blood overflowed from the wound on his palm as he stroked his wolf¡¯s head gently.

    The state of battle was extremely desperate, especially at the frontline, where blood had already dyed the entire ground red. Elementalists on both sides had bloodshot eyes. The blood elementalists broke into the disposition in hope of opening up a nick, but the guarding elementalists were going all out to defend against the attacks.

    Those shooting cannons and arrows bombarded enemies who had sunk into the quicksand in order to cut off the strength of iing enemies.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s heart was bleeding. His men were falling sessively, but so far no one had cowered.

    Th elemental energy light rays and fresh red blood rays interweaved.

    About six meters away from the troops, Yang Xiaodong was fighting at close quarters with a powerful blood elementalist. They were both keeping away from the disposition. A battle between Masters would influence a wide area, so not only would enemies be affected, team members would be involved too.

    Looking down from the sky, the Spear of Heavy Cloud gradually was gradually into a disadvantageous position!

    The current Blood of Godbat division were well-trained, theirbat strength matchless. When the blood catastrophe first erupted, thebat divisions had an equal number of weak and strong yers, but ever since the Holy Emperor made War God Ye Baiyi to lead and establish thebat divisions, the situation immediately changed for the better.

    Ye Baiyi had been serving the army for many years and was well versed in the ways of abat division. He did not blindly imitate the Thirteen Divisions of Avalon of Five Elements. Instead, he altered the allocation of resources ording to the unique characteristics of blood elementalists. Following that, he created a duty roster that got the soldiers in thebat division to take turns going to the front line to umte actualbat experience and tempering.

    It was precisely Ye Baiyi¡¯s string of actions that made abilities on both sidesparable and created a fundamental change.

    Blood of God¡¯sbat divisions trained efficiently and its soldiers were brave, good, and unyielding when it came to battling. Beyond Avalon¡¯sbat divisions, on the other hand, had a bunch of newbies. It hadn¡¯t been established for long and so itcked drilling and the temperings of actualbat.

    If not for a batch of outstanding key yers inside the Spear of Heavy Cloud defending against the heedless assault of the Ardent Flower Blood Division, thebat division would¡¯ve crumbled long ago. These key yers, taking lead in spite of the dangers, were the ones who managed to keep the situation controlled.

    Even then, the scale of victory was still gradually tilting toward the Ardent Flower Blood Division as more and more blood elementalists stepped onto the battlefield.

    Yet, blood elementalists weren¡¯t the only agitated ones.

    Struggling bitterly to brace the disposition, Fatty was going insane.

    Eliminating a powerful blood elementalist pleased him greatly and gave him a big morale boost in regard to his condition that day. With his inted confidence he performed remarkably by killing thirty six enemies with twelve consecutive shots.

    He had killed thirty-six because one shot of his would pierced through three blood elementalists.

    In the battlefield, the enemies weren¡¯t as closely packed, so it was actually much more difficult to kill off three blood elementalists with one cannon, yet Fatty did it twelve consecutive times. It could be said that he had the assistants, who were refilling the pagoda cannon with snowva, utterly dumbstruck.

    Fatty¡¯s well-built body was like an iron tower, resisting the strong recoil of the pagoda cannon. With each shot, his body sank a little and his sweat-covered flesh tensed up like solid metal. His whole body became red, like burning steel. Zzt, zzt, zzt. His sweat instantly turned to thick vapor.

    The mist practically enveloped the whole pagoda cannon and Fatty¡¯s body.

    No one noticed Fatty¡¯s gaze changing from its initial ease and confidence into a frightened look.

    Each shot was still perfect and wless, but why was the number of mounted soldiers increasing?

    Not only did his exceeding performance fail to enhance his confidence, it brought about an increasing number of enemies, resulting in him feeling increasingly despairful.

    He couldn¡¯t control his fear and dread.

    He¡¯d been overperforming, so why were the enemies respawning quicker and quicker? He had already hit his maximum potential...

    Amid the vaporization, Fatty shivered, his gaze full of fear. His footsteps grew heavier, as if he was sinking into quicksand.

    He was beyond afraid.

    A Hui, A Hui...

    Come and save me, quick!

    Tears welled up and fell quickly. Zzt zzt zzt. His red-hot skin vaporized his tears immediately, leaving only two white tear stains.

    He dared not stop and could only continue attacking with even more wildness.

    It was as if Fatty had be possessed. His face warped and involuntary sounds of crying came out of his mouth.

    Suddenly, a white figure descended from the sky.

    A spinning spear ray carrying strips of mist smashed strongly into the crowd of blood elementalists like a meteorite.

    Boom!

    The ground shook and the earth-shattering boom made everyone freeze.

    The iparably aggressive mist was like long vines that whipped the ground strongly, shattering the corpses of the blood elementalists and night wolves together with the mud. It was like a reverse waterfall where everything shot upward into the sky.

    A petite silhouette half-squatted on the ground with Cirrus pointing toward the ground.

    Their blue and white armor was crushed and only a few pieces remained. Only half a sleeve was left on one shoulder and fresh blood was spilling out from her mouth, causing her porcin white skin to look even more snowy and tender. Her hair tie was broken and her head full of hair fell upon her shoulders like a waterfall, fluttering along with the wind.

    She got up slowly and surveyed the battlefield coldly and loftily.

    She raised her head and took a look at Xing Shan, who was in the sky.

    She responded not with words but the Cirrus in her hands.

    Cheers erupted from the troops of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. The elementalists who had been bitterly assisting were now crying frantically, their morale spiking.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s universally shocking strike had jolted Fatty out of his despair. With a quive, his crazed mind leapt into action once again.

    Like a drowning man, he grabbed onto thest straw of hope.

    Whether or not that straw could save him wasn¡¯t for him to ponder over. It was hisst chance of surviving, so no matter how tiny, it was significant.

    Catching sight of a trace of life amid the abyss of despair converted all his fear and dread into drive. As if injected with chicken blood, his flesh started rousing and his footsteps became swift. The heavy pagoda cannon that had been weighing down on him became light as feather.

    An image of piled up corpses in the cold forest of the Wilderness appeared in his head. He was digging with a shovel at the heap of deadborers, some of whom he remembered the names and others whom he did not.

    Scenes from the breezy evening that he left the Wilderness floated into his mind.

    With the tangerine yellow sunset as backdrop, Fatty called out to Ai Hui¡¯s back, "Live on, Ai Hui!"

    Live on! Live on!

    You must live on!

    Boom boom boom!

    Faster, faster!

    Damn it, how do I do it faster!

    There isn¡¯t enough power, but more snowva would overheat the pagoda cannon. What to do...

    He grabbed the snowva by his feet and gulped it down abruptly. Whoosh. Surging white mes came out from his body and the white ze in his eyes throbbed.

    This time, Fatty did not lose consciousness!

    p!

    His sped his fingers together over the cannon tube like two metal pincers that carried mes. The tail was supported by his shoulder, and with his feet ced firmly on the ground, he stood motionless.

    The raging fire elemental energy surged into the cannon tube in his hands.

    Like an enormous beast, the pagoda cannon drew out all of the Snow Lava in the fire pond in an instant.

    Complicated spiral patterns formed by white mes lit up in the inner wall of the cannon tube, from the tail of the tube to its mouth.

 Chapter 542: Pale Flames

    Chapter 542: Pale mes

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Shi Xueman gave up on Xing Shan and joined in the close-quarters fight, which immediately stabilized the situation.

    Just then, she sensed something. She looked toward the disposition of troops and joy emerged on her face.

    Amid many pagoda cannons one was especially bright, and rings of bright veined patterns had appeared on its body. When it lit up, the air instantly became stifling, as if there was an invisible hand pressing down from the sky.

    Xing Shan¡¯s face changed. Someone was actually bing a Master at this time!

    When his gaze fell upon the pagoda cannon, he noticed by chance that it was the fatty who had slipped away from his fingers from an earlier chase.

    Xing Shan was already spent, but at this point he threw himself toward that pagoda cannon without hesitation.

    He mustn¡¯t allow him to be a Master!

    An intense sense of danger arose within his heart. He had a premonition that this fire would be earth-shattering and rmingly powerful! Usually, one more or one less Master wouldn¡¯t make much difference, but in this close battle, any change on any side could be that veryst straw that breaks the camel¡¯s backl.

    Both sides had sustained significant losses, and due to fighting aggressively till now, they were all exhausted. Everyone was relying on theirst breath, and the side to let go first would lose.

    Under these circumstances, a defeat would only lead to one oue ¨C an all-army wipe out!

    Xing Shan couldn¡¯t care less about his own safety. With an angry growl, he tightened his grip on the Chief Wolf under him. The crippled Chief Wolf was also spent, but upon hearing its master¡¯smand, it started galloping and producing bright red mes with a hiss.

    They were the mes of its blood core.

    When the mes die out, the Chief Wolf turns into ashes and dissipate in the air.

    The fresh mes of blood core wrapped around Xing Shan to nourish his withered body. The tongue of mes was like a mischievous tongue, licking all over his body, full of love and yearning.

    Amid the mes, tears rolled silently down Xing Shan¡¯s bloody face.

    The Chief Wolf raised its head, and with a bend of its back it shot up toward the sky with Xing Shan on its back. Hanging its foot in mid air, it transformed into a red fire flow that dove toward the brightly-lit pagoda cannon on the ground.

    The fire flow whizzed downward like falling stars.

    The air trembled as strips of white mist swept across the sky swiftly and struck the fire flow.

    Bang!

    Amid the flying sparks there seemed to be a sorrowful whimper of a wolf. The sparks dimmed and transformed into pale white ashes that filled the sky and faded away with the wind.

    Shi Xueman had also been sprung into the sky by the powerful jolt.

    Boom!

    The heavy boom sounded like a resolute striking of the drum above the battlefield, which made everybody¡¯s hearts jump. Before they could react, their field of vision was upied by a dazzling sheet of white light rays.

    The white light rays did not disperse but grew brighter instead. The blinding white mes were like beautiful metal flowers blooming on the ground.

    The rapidly extending waves of white mes were like unfolding flower petals that swept across the battlefield while carrying an aura of death.

    The blood elementalists couldn¡¯t dodge in time and were engulfed in the white mes.

    The blood elementalists who were close by were immediately swallowed up by the mes and couldn¡¯t even scream in time. The spattering white mes, dense as raindrops, raided about a third of the whole battlefield.

    Many blood elementalists were caught by the white mes.

    The finger-sized white mes hadn¡¯t aroused their attention, since they were still overwhelmed in shock by that astonishing bombardment of the cannon. However, the piercingly painful misery snapped them out of it.

    They were rmed upon realizing that the white mes on their bodies weren¡¯t extinguishable!

    No matter the methods, they were unable to put out these strange, white mes.

    Fearful screeches and anguished wailings echoed. They werepletely out of courage and frenzy. In the face of something unexinable, they felt afraid.

    Some blood elementalists did not get a lot of mes on them and so they clenched their teeth and sliced the parts of their flesh that were caught in mes. Fresh blood poured out of their wounds at a visible pace before being swallowed by the white mes. The ones who saw this happen were all feeling cold inside.

    The blood elementalists affected by the mes could only howl in grief, their sharp cries causing hair of those who could hear them stand.

    Xing Shan¡¯s limbs were ice-cold, his expression grieved. He had thought that Fatty¡¯s firing would be extraordinary, but the white mes before his eyes had exceeded his imagination.

    Xing Shan shut his eyes in despair.

    Fatty¡¯sunch had a destructive impact on the morale of the Ardent Flower Blood Division. Theirpanions were rolling on the ground, howling in grief and pleading for a quick finish. It was a sight difficult to ignore.

    Those were devilish mes from hell.

    Shi Xueman observed the misery in awe and subconsciously turned her gaze to Fatty. Such strange white mes... what was Fatty¡¯s Path of Master exactly?

    The battlefield that had just been filled with shouts and cries was now dead silent as everyone was stunned by Fatty¡¯sunch.

    The survivors were pale in the face, as if they¡¯d just seen the devil.

    The red glow over Fatty¡¯s body gradually faded along with the cooling down of the heated pagoda cannon. As if all his hair had opened up a valve, sweat started pouring out. Zzt zzt zzt, his sweat instantly vaporized into mist, leaving white, salt stains. The vapor surged like the smoke rising from an erupting volcano. As if the gates of hell had been opened, Fatty¡¯s iron-like body was faintly discernible amid the mist. The salt stains all over his body extended like frost, making the overall sight more ghastly and cold.

    Fatty¡¯s gaze was vacant as he murmured.

    "Live on... I must live on..."

    He then copsed face down.

    Upon seeing this hellborn terrifying fellow copse, the blood elementalists subconsciously cheered. Since the start of the flickering white light till now, the Ardent Flower Blood Division had actually been so intimidated by this fatty that they had forgotten to resist.

    Xing Shan wasn¡¯t the least bit happy, however. He had heard a sword whistle.

    The Sky Edge Division was here!

    A bitingly cold sword ray broke the sky.

    A veiled Karakorum Pris appeared on the battlefield. The beautiful eyes behind the veil swept across the field full of corpses, evidence of the gruesomeness of the battle.

    Her eyes were cold and recklessly murderous. She inhaled a deep breath, calling out, "Sorry I¡¯mte, Division Leader Shi!"

    Before she could finish her greeting, a concentrated sword whistle sounded from the sky.

    Swoosh swoosh swoosh!

    Sword rays lit up the sky and the number of figures increased. The Sky Edge Division had arrived.

    Karakorum Pris did not talk much. She lowered her gaze and ordered in a cold voice, "Kill! Leave not a single one alive!"

    A sky full of sword rays fell down like rain.

    Karakorum Pris locked down her target, and with a light wave of her white hand, a sword light flew toward Xing Shan.

    Xing Shan looked disappointed. He had thought that the young and impetuous Karakorum Pris would capture him alive after seeing that he had no strength to defend himself.

    Who knew that she was so cautious?

    Xing Shan gave a disdainful look. "I¡¯m a hero, how can I die by your sword?"

    He stabbed his chest with his intact left palm and gouged his bloody heart out. He then pinched and broke it, causing a blood fog to erupt. His body rapidly withered and transformed into ashes.

    When Karakorum Pris smelled the floating fragrance, her face changed. She withdrew her palm and the sword light circled toward the blood fog.

    The sword light rolled the blood fog upward into the sky, taking it higher and higher without any intention to stop. It continued to fly upward until it finally brought it into the wild metal wind. The sword light and blood fog melted like ice cubes at a visible speed.

    Blood of God hadn¡¯t stopped analyzing elementalists, and elementalists, too, had never stopped studying Blood of God.

    The blood elementalists¡¯ poison was much more potent than before. It was rmingly contaminating to soil and vegetation, and so the best way to get rid of it was to throw it deep into the sky.

    The wild metal wind couldpletely melt the blood poison.

    The surviving blood elementalists weren¡¯t willing to stay idle and so they retaliated frantically. Their division leader hadmitted suicide, they had been surrounded, and they knew that they weren¡¯t going to be lucky enough to live past today, so they were going to fight and bring down as many as they could before they perished.

    The blood rays did not grant the bitingly cold sword rays easy ess.

    Within a short time frame, the Sky Edge Division had umted a high number of casualties.

    Karakorum Pris appeared calm but was shaking inside. The Ardent Flower Blood Division hadn¡¯t actually crumbled yet. She could imagine how cruel the battle must have been for the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Contending against the Ardent Flower Blood Division one on one and causing enormous damage without falling into a disadvantageous situation was a remarkable feat that forced her to re-evaluate the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯sbat power.

    The battle had already ended when the Infantry Division arrived.

    Seeing the ground full of corpses and the battlefield inplete disorder, Silver Soldier had a grave expression on his face. He was reenacting the bitter battle scenario in his head.

    Shi Xueman was inspecting the campground and encouraging the injured.

    Upon seeing Shi Xueman, Silver Soldier called out in surprise, "You..."

    Shi Xueman shook her head slightly as an indication for him to shut his mouth. While holding onto the Cirrus, she walked around the camp once to examine everyone before handing over the remaining work to Jiang Wei.

    She brought Karakorum Pris and Silver Soldier to somewhere private.

    With a worrying look on her face, Karakorum Pris exined to Silver Soldier, "She forciblypressed the water elemental energy from the sea of cloud into her body. There are now a lot of impurities that are hard to dispel."

    Shi Xueman was very calm however. "I had to do it under those circumstance, or I would have lost my life. It isn¡¯t a major problem for my elemental energy to receive some damage."

    Silver Soldier knew not how to console her. When he thought about how she had stopped him from talking and encouraged the soldiers, he couldn¡¯t help but feel deep veneration for her.

    After some thought, he started, "You guys were seriously injured this time. Why not retreat and rest for some time? Heal your injuries first. Even with replenishment, you¡¯ll need to train for some time."

    Karakorum Pris reminded, "The God-subduing Peak should be here soon. How about we go and receive it first? The Ardent Flower Blood Division is very powerful and our odds of sess aren¡¯t high. With the help of God-subduing Peak, we will be much better off."

    Silver Soldier already knew that the Karakorum Division had sustained significant injuries.

    At that he nodded. "Alright. Let¡¯s all go back and receive it. The quake caused by the destruction of the Ardent Flower Blood Division isn¡¯t something our three novice military units can handle. Converging with Shenwei and Caijue¡¯sbat divisions is the way to go."

    Shi Xueman found his suggestion reasonable and agreed right away. "Let¡¯s all go then."

 Chapter 543: Reward

    Chapter 543: Reward

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    "Shi Beihai¡¯s daughter indeed," Madam Ye praised as she read the battle report over and over again.

    Nian Tingfeng stood at the side, smiling. "Like father, like daughter indeed. She¡¯s quite simr to her father. I was also very surprised when I received the report and only handed it over to you after three confirmations."

    "Yeah." Madam Ye sighed sorrowfully. "It¡¯s been so many years since the blood catastrophe, and speaking of which, this is the first time the God of Blood¡¯s organizational structure has been destroyed."

    Nian Tingfeng responded respectfully, "It¡¯s all because of your wisdom, Madam. The situation was so rotten, but you emerged, overturned it, and saved us from the crisis."

    Madam Ye burst intoughter. "You¡¯re getting better at bootlicking, eh."

    Nian Tingfeng cried out, "These are my heartfelt words! Others aren¡¯t aware of your troubles, but I¡¯ve seen them all."

    Unconcerned, Madam Ye smiled. "Why care about them? They¡¯re either old men one step into their coffins, a bunch of overindulgent fellows, or a group of impulsive and brainless people who think that their enthusiasm can change the world. There¡¯s nothing to worry about!"

    "You¡¯re right, Madam!"

    Madam Ye flicked the report lightly with her fingers and mumbled, "What do you think of this pagoda cannon?"

    Nian Tingfeng replied, "What a sharp eye you have, Madam! Your humble servant thinks that this pagoda cannon is one of the key reasons why Shi Xueman was able to resist and prevail over the Ardent Flower Blood Division. Its appearance has had a great impact in that battle. Before, there were not any weapons that could allow those who were of lower skill levels to attack and kill Masters or blood elementalists with Ability of God. Vice Division Leader Tao Feng of the Ardent Flower Blood Division died directly under the might of the pagoda cannon. His body and soul were utterly crushed."

    Madam Ye nodded and said in a low voice, "Go on."

    "Yes." Nian Tingfeng sorted his thoughts out. He had just gotten the battle report a short while ago after all. He added, "Be it the blood elementalists or our own people, the number of Master level experts determined thebat strength. Strong Master level experts were extremely useful on the battlefield and yet, the pagoda cannon is a threat to their lives. Even if the pagoda cannon was targeted only at the enemy¡¯s Master level soldiers, it could greatly restrain their military unit."

    Madam Ye sighed and asked after a short while, "Then are we able to forge a pagoda cannon?"

    Nian Tingfeng answered, "I¡¯ve studied the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s pagoda cannons. In the previous ambush battle, the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon¡¯s performance was very remarkable as well. At that time, I was wondering if we could create it. After asking some master weaponsmiths, I was informed that forging it isn¡¯t difficult. The snout of theva-spitting beast is difficult to obtain, but not impossible. The problem is not the pagoda cannon, but the snowva. Only the Central Pine Valley can create snowva. Many have tried to get ahold of its recipe, but no one has seeded yet."

    Madam Ye was rather surprised to hear that. "The Central Pine Valley¡¯s leader is thatborer named Ai Hui? Pretty capable fellow, alwaysing up with new things."

    Nian Tingfeng replied, "He¡¯s Wang Shouchuan¡¯s only student."

    "No wonder!" Madam Ye continued in realization, "A famous teacher producing an outstanding student. Nothing surprising. I¡¯ve underestimated him, and he actually went on to create such a quality weapon by himself. He might excel someday."

    Nian Tingfeng stood tall at the side, lowering his head without making a sound.

    Madam Ye added suddenly, "Award Shi Xueman on behalf of Skyheart City. Didn¡¯t we reward them with a God-subduing Peak previously? Give them another! The Spear of Heavy Cloud sustained heavy losses and is in urgent need of replenishment of their manpower. Give her the authority to seek local recruits. Also, the Spear of Heavy Cloud is an importantbat division of Beyond Avalon, but has too few Masters. Give her five of them. We can give Shi Xueman a list of Masters to select from. The Surveince Division will provide a few and the other families will provide the rest. Pick wisely."

    Nian Tingfeng nodded. "I understand."

    He was speechless. Even he would find it difficult to turn down such a generous offer. One God-subduing Peak and five Masters... even if Shi Xueman knew that there was possibly a hidden motive, she might still be moved.

    Since these were enough to substantially improve the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s power.

    Pleased, Madam Ye looked at him and said, "Inform those selected to obey Shi Xueman¡¯s orders and not to act willfully. Of course, do not pressure her if she doesn¡¯t need them."

    "Yes!"

    Madam Ye said suddenly, "Find a way to get this report to Newlight City."

    Nian Tingfeng shuddered, "I understand."

    He retreated with a respectful bow and realized that he was breaking out in a cold sweat.

    The sunlight was shining down on him, but Nian Tingfeng couldn¡¯t feel any warmth.

    "Sir!"

    The subordinate waiting below gently reminded him upon seeing that Nian Tingfeng was lost in thought.

    With a quiver, Nian Tingfeng regained his senses. "Return to the camp."

    He smiled bitterly. He was actually frightened by a woman. He had thought that she coveted the pagoda cannon and hadn¡¯t expected her to want the news to be brought to Newlight City.

    Getting someone else to do the dirty work¨Cssic!

    There was Master¡¯s Glory in Skyheart City, so Madam had confidence, but Newlight City had nothing except for people. If this news was spread, Newlight City would seek out the recipe for snowva at any cost.

    Watching the fires burn across the river, Madam Ye was waiting for the right time. For example, when Ai Hui was killed and the Central Pine Valleycked a leader. Then, she would be able to incorporate these soldiers into her troops in the name of justice and revenge.

    Killing two birds with one stone!

    What a good game n. All it took for her toe up with something this brilliant was reading that battle report. How amazing!

    .....

    The Blood of God¡¯s army camp.

    Nangong Wulian looked at the soldiers rushing into the tent and asked in annoyance, "Who let you in?"

    A high ranking military officer stepped out and answered, "It¡¯s very urgent, please forgive us!"

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s heart thumped. He was prepared to re up, but seeing the panicked looks on their faces, he had a premonition. "What happened?"

    "The Ardent Flower Blood Division has been destroyed and Xing Shan has died in battle!"

    Nangong Wulian was stunned. "What did you say? The Ardent Flower Blood Division was destroyed? Wiped out?"

    The soldiers quickly gave a battle report in trembling voices.

    Nangong Wulian inhaled a deep breath. "So it¡¯s still Shi Xueman?"

    "Yes."

    Nangong Wulian flew into a rage, cursing aloud, "Trash! Bunch of trash! Taken down twice by a woman. You guys are worse than trash! Are you all not useless? Tell me. What use are you guys?"

    Everybody lowered their heads, not daring to retort.

    After giving them a scolding, Nangong Wulian¡¯s face turned pale, and he started pacing back and forth.

    The God Nation had always had the upper hand and the Avalon of Five Elements was relying on the Wall of North Sea as theirst straw of hope. On the battlefield, the God Nation had a major advantage as well and had basically suppressed the elementalists. If not for Shi Beihai defending the Wall of North Sea, the Avalon of Five Elements would¡¯ve long since been razed to the ground. All of the God Nation looked down on the Elders Guild and felt that only Shi Beihai was worthy of their respect.

    This wasn¡¯t a simple defeat. It was the first time the God Nation faced such an devastating defeat. How unlucky. Needless to think, Nangong Wulian knew how angry His Majesty would be upon hearing this news!

    And he would have to bear the me!

    Thinking about this made him panic even more. His Majesty had bestowed the Heart of God in response to Ye Baiyi¡¯s defeat. He would definitely not let Nangong Wulian off the hook easily now that thetter had made such a huge blunder.

    He would have to save himself!

    Not only Nangong Wulian, but the other soldiers were also feeling anxious. This was the worst defeat ever in the whole history of the Blood of God. His Majesty¡¯s rage wasn¡¯t something anyone could endure.

    "Why are you guys still standing here?" Nangong Wulian¡¯s face was as white as sheet. "Go out and attack! Wipe Beyond Avalon out and bring Shi Xueman back to her to His Majesty or else we¡¯re all dead!"

    "But Sir Ye isn¡¯t awake. Without his orders..."

    "Are my words not clear enough?" Nangong Wulian seethed with anger. "I¡¯ll be straight with you guys. I¡¯ll eliminate the families of those who make me lose face in front of His Majesty."

    Seeing the hesitant look on the soldiers¡¯ faces, Nangong Wulian suppressed his anger and took a deep breath. "I¡¯ll tell him when he wakes up, but if you guys continue dilly-dallying, we might as well just sit around and wait for death."

    The soldiers made eye contact, knowing it was time to make a choice.

    "We¡¯ll leave Sir Ye to you and set off now!"

    Then, they hurriedly left .

    Shortly after, a bugle horn sounded and the voices of men mixed with the whines of blood fiends were heard continuously.

    The army was setting off!

    The atmosphere over at the Spear of Heavy Cloud wasn¡¯t too great. No one seemed happy about their victory. They had lost too much this time. A quarter of their soldiers were gone and half of the survivors were injured. This was the result of upying a defensive stance.

    It was considered a heavy loss for a newbat division like the Spear of Heavy Cloud, especially with the death of 13 Central Pine Faction veterans.

    .

    Shi Xueman and the others weren¡¯t the least bit happy. Members of the Central Pine Faction were all survivors from the blood catastrophe. They had fought alongside one another in Central Pine City and survived through the battle together. Their friendship ran deep.

    Along the road, upon seeing the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s g, otherbat divisions rushing to the front line would clear a path for them out of respect.

    News had already spread and the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s reputation skyrocketed, even surpassing that of the Sky Edge and Infantry Divisions. It was currently the premierbat division for elementalists.

    Shi Xueman advised thesebat divisions not to stay idle at the moment since the enemy would soon take revenge.

    Yet, no one heeded her warning.

    The Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s destruction and Skyheart City¡¯s rewarding of the Spear of Heavy Cloud made everyone hopeful that one day they, too, could create such a miracle and make a name for themselves!

    Blood elementalists weren¡¯t undefeatable after all!

    Shi Xueman watched their disappearing silhouettes and shook her head helplessly. She knew that their victory was due to luck. If not for Wang Xiaoshan, the pagoda cannon, Fatty¡¯s breakthrough, and the Sky Edge¡¯s reinforcement...

    The distant sky was gloomy, and her heart was disturbed.

 Chapter 544: Central Pine Valley

    Chapter 544: Central Pine Valley

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Central Pine Valley.

    [Viridescent Flower], type 4800.

    Duanmu Huanghun stood motionlessly like a statue. Ai Hui and Lou Lan visited him regrly, but he was still engrossed in his own moment of enlightenment. No one dared to disturb him, but they were somewhat worried. They had never seen such a prolonged moment of enlightenment.

    Two months had passed, but he had yet to waken. It was as if he had fallen into a deep sleep and lost consciousness.

    He remained spotless, but the aura surrounding him fluctuated.

    Sometimes it was tranquil, other times it surged. asionally, the wind circled around his body, but periodically, the whole bamboo forest waspletely still, like an imprable steel jungle.

    The bamboo forest grew lusher as the withering drifting jadesword bamboo leaves created a magnificent sight. Not only the bamboo forest, but the Central Pine Valley¡¯s vegetation was also growing wildly, perhaps due to Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s influence.

    A sword ray shed across the sky.

    As if out of nowhere, an enormous Pinwheel Sword appeared in the sky above the Central Pine Valley.

    The children who were training raised their head and looks of anticipation appeared on their faces. They had seen for themselves how the Pinwheel Sword came and went like the wind, mighty and unpredictable. Three kids clung onto Ai Hui, wanting to sneak into the Sword of Lightning. Ai Hui had promised them that they could join thebat division if they were capable enough.

    As such, the children in the Central Pine Valley trained passionately and diligently.

    The Pinwheel Sword gradually descended and a group of sweaty men jumped off of it.

    "How satisfying. How are we going to use azure wings when we have gotten used to the Pinwheel Sword?"

    "Yeah. Azure wings are as slow as tortoises."

    Everyone talked about azure wings with a look of resentment. The Pinwheel Sword¡¯s speed exceeded that of any kind of azure wings. Even those known for speed weren¡¯tparable to the Pinwheel Sword. Needless to say, slower flight options, like the Fiery Floating Cloud,gged far behind.

    Once they had gotten used to the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s lightning speed, no one was able to endure the exasperatingly slow speed of azure wings.

    "I just don¡¯t know when we¡¯ll be able to go to the front line! Big Sister imed victory once again!"

    "Boss said we¡¯re not at actualbat standard yet."

    "Boss demands too much from us. Five swords in one breath... how¡¯s that possible?"

    The so-called "five swords in a breath" meant that the Pinwheel Sword had toplete five entire attacks in one breath. If it was just one person, with their current sword mastery, they could easily execute five strikes. However, using the Pinwheel Sword to execute five strikes was extremely challenging. So far, they had yet to seed.

    "Yeah, five perfect resonances in one breath. How unrealistic."

    "Three are enough. I don¡¯t believe anyone can block our triple strike!"

    "Not even a Grandmaster!"

    People were discussing fervently when someone suddenly shouted, "Zhiguang, how about you talk to Boss?"

    Shi Zhiguang had be one of Boss¡¯s favorites. Everyone knew that Boss thought highly of him and regarded him as the future top candidate of sword operator.

    Shi Zhiguang remained unmoved. He spread his hands out and said, "Forget it. However he wants us to train, let¡¯s just do it. I still have to practice embroideryter on. Seeing embroidery needles make my fingertips numb."

    "Hahaha, Shi Zhiguang is going to be the Central Pine Valley¡¯s first seamstress!"

    "Not many of us are as virtuous as Zhiguang!"

    After being ridiculed, Shi Zhiguang did not get angry. Instead, he said, "You guys better treat me well. If I can¡¯t master embroidery, none of us will be going to the battlefield!"

    "Aye, I really want to fight as soon as possible. I heard that the Spear of Heavy Cloud was severely depleted and practically ruined. How worrying."

    "Boss is definitely feeling even more anxious!"

    "Yeah."

    Everybody subconsciously looked up at Ai Hui, who was absorbing lightning on ckfish Mouth Mountain¡¯s peak. A ring of faint clouds were fastened to the mountain like a hat.

    Every now and then, silvery light would streak across the ground. Rumbling booms could be heard in the air as well.

    "Everybody worked hard! Elemental soup is here!"

    Lou Lan¡¯s enthusiastic voice rang, immediately producing cheers.

    Seeing everyone greedily gulping down the soup, Lou Lan¡¯s eyes narrowed into two crescent moons.

    Shortly after, Lou Lan turned around and looked toward the mountain top. The conical bamboo hat was bing fainter and gradually dispersing. A figurepletely wrapped in bandage was revealed.

    On the mountain peak, Ai Hui exhaled a long breath.

    Hu. Whoosh.

    A white swordlike aura appeared with an indistinct lightning flickering inside it.

    Behind the red crystal sheet, a light ray shed past.

    He hadn¡¯t been training for nothing. His body was still bing thinner day by day, but the sword cloud within his body had been growing consistently. He carefully controlled the volume of the lightning intake in order to prevent over-absorption, which would damage his body.

    The sword cloud was now like an orb solid cloud . It rotated slowly, churning indeterminately. At times lightning would sh inside of the cloud orb. Beneath it, there were three tender young sprouts that emitted faint green light.

    Although the green light was thin, it protected the sprouts firmly.

    The three young sprouts were transformed from the Vitality Branches!

    The green light continuously seeped into Ai Hui¡¯s flesh to nourish his terrible body. It was precisely the three Vitality Branches that prevented his body from worsening. The green light released by the branches was the source of life.

    Ai Hui looked to the horizon.

    The mountains previously umted with snow had regained their verdant colors. The sky remained boundless, and the figure that flew by was silent, leaving no trace. It only flitted across the mountain range, producing a gust and faint bell-likeughter.

    Ai Hui was slightly out of it.

    The good news was that Iron Lady had won. The bad news was that it was a bitter victory.

    He had to be quick.

    He took a deep breath and suppressed his worry. Reason told him that being anxious wasn¡¯t going to be of any help at this point. Be it the Sword of Lightning or himself, they were further away than anticipated.

    Until now, the Pinwheel Sword could only execute one sword move in a breath. Such inefficiency was preventing it from unleashing its advantage in speed. They only had one Pinwheel Sword, and if it could only release one strike per breath, its contribution in battle would be seen as pathetic. It would then be practically useless in the war.

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s piloting standard was verycking. Only by maintaining its speedbined with directional changes could the Pinwheel Sword survive in battle. Its defensive power was far behind that of a God-subduing Peak.

    His current state had be a problem as well. He was worried about the sword cloud and not his body. Could a sword cloud in this state handle a battle? If it couldn¡¯t even persevere through a battle, he would only be everybody¡¯s burden.

    These problems were actually very easy to solve, but they required sufficient time.

    If they had an adequate amount of time, executing five strikes in a breath wouldn¡¯t be a problem. If they had enough time, Shi Zhiguang¡¯s standard would rise significantly because of his potential. If they weren¡¯t short on time, Ai Hui¡¯s sword cloud would grow strong enough to assist him in a major battle.

    Yet, what theycked most now was time.

    Upon being informed of the severity of Iron Lady and herbat division¡¯s injuries, Ai Hui had been looking ghastly for the past couple of days.

    Not only him, but the members of the Sword of Lightning were training much more intensely since they were all feeling very anxious

    Yet, Ai Hui knew that this was precisely the time that they needed to maintain theirposure.

    He grabbed the sword hilt, the anxiety in his heart vanishing. His whole person had "cooled" down instantly. The sword was like an extension of his body as his thoughts and perception spread along the body of the de.

    With a tremble of the sword tip, it ripped across the sky, taking in and spitting out sword light.

    A gush of power channeled outward from the sword hilt, carrying his body up into the air and transforming into a sword ray that descended toward the valley from the mountain peak.

    The cloudyer dispersed. Sunlight sprinkled over thend, illuminating the mellow and smooth sword ray, producing a dazzling sight.

    Members who had just finished their elemental soup were just in time to witness this scene. It wasn¡¯t the first time they had seen Boss¡¯s swordy, but not once had it failed to take their breaths away.

    Everyone held their breaths and looked toward the sky admiringly as the sword ray formed a beautiful, painting-like scene.

    Gu Xuan was especially bewitched by it all.

    Boss¡¯s swordsmanship was bing increasingly unimaginable and mysterious.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s swordsmanship wasn¡¯t at a low standard to begin with, yet he couldn¡¯t understand Boss¡¯s swordsmanship at all. Whenever he saw Boss¡¯s sword ray, he would repeatedly simte it in his mind and wonder if he would be able to execute such a beautiful sword move as well.

    Beautiful was the first impression people had of Boss¡¯s sword ray.

    Breathtakingly stunning!

    Everyone knew what kind of person Boss was. He was mean, petty, stingy, cold, ruthless, and even his battle style was blunt and efficient. Basically, there was nothing beautiful about his personality or style.

    Inparison, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s temperament was more fitting.

    Yet, it was just beautiful. Even a sword reed that Boss casually swiped with was so beautiful that Gu Xuan simply couldn¡¯t move his eyes off of it.

    However, no matter how much he racked his brain, Gu Xuan was unable toprehend and imitate Boss¡¯s amazing sword ray.

    It seemed as though Boss could aplish anything with a sword. It was unbelievable.

    The sword ray was like a rainbow after the rain, gradually dimming and vanishing. Gu Xuan¡¯s face was still filled with surprise and admiration.

    Ai Hui, who had descended and found Blind He, shouted, "This sword is about to be destroyed!"

    Blind He took Ai Hui¡¯s sword, gently stroking the sword body. The eye in the center of his palm opened up, shooting out a light ray that swept across the sword body and instantly exposing dense cracks.

    Blind He exined, "Your sword ray contains lightning, which is very damaging to a sword. Even if it¡¯s a Heaven-grade weapon, it would be unable to endure the impact. I¡¯ve yet to find suitable ingredients."

    "Just a Unity Sword will do, or else I won¡¯t be able to train." Frustration was evident in Ai Hui¡¯s tone. "Or do I really have to hang swords all over my body in future?"

    Blind He responded, "Lightning is an primordial power, the nemesis of all living things. It¡¯s a force even stronger than elemental energy, and no one has studied it before. I¡¯ll need time to figure things out. Furthermore, the Unity Sword isn¡¯t just any sword."

    Ai Hui burst intoughter, feeling as though Blind He had just cracked a cold joke. "It¡¯s a heaven-grade weapon. Aye, I know. Give me a few more to carry with me."

    Blind He replied expressionlessly, "There¡¯s only one."

    Stunned, Ai Hui asked, "Howe?"

    "Haven¡¯t got time to make more." Blind He groaned, "Been creating fire reservoirs."

    Ai Hui now remembered.

    Since the volume of training had increased, the amount of snowva the Pinwheel Sword consumed had spiked as well. Plus, their original snowva stores were depleting as well. Ai Hui had also considered the fact that the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s victory wasrgely due to the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon¡¯s performance. He¡¯d reckoned that the rise in price of the snowva also contributed to Blind He¡¯s forging of more fire reservoirs in order to produce more snowva.

    However, he had still underestimated the influence of this victory.

 Chapter 545: Pagoda Cannon Master

    Chapter 545: Pagoda Cannon Master

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    "Again!"

    Boom!

    A loud sound rang as white mes sprayed out from the pagoda cannon¡¯s barrel.

    As Fatty¡¯s body sank a little, vapor rose up from all over his body.

    A faraway hill exploded suddenly, causing fragmented rocks to fly everywhere. It was a magnificent sight.

    The observing audience gasped in surprise.

    "Wow, Fatty, you¡¯re amazing!"

    "What Fatty? Is that how you should address him? Don¡¯t be foolish! Call him Master Fatty!"

    "Oh yeah, Fatty¡¯s a Master now. We gotta call him Master Fatty."

    "But... Master Fatty doesn¡¯t sound suave at all!"

    "Still gotta call!"

    ...

    Everybody was rather interested in Fatty¡¯s performance. Time passed and the Spear of Heavy Cloud gradually recovered from their disaster. The respect and courtesy other military units had showered them with along the way gave even the lowest ranked elementalists a new lease on life.

    They raised their heads and puffed out their chests, striding forward in high spirits. Their demeanor and appearance had undergone aplete transformation.

    They sustained heavy injuries, but they were the victors. They had aplished something people regarded as an impossible miracle.

    The difficult victory had given this novicebat division an extraordinary morale boost. They were no longer afraid, and the painful loss reminded them not to be arrogant or get carried away.

    Fatty had be a popr figure in the Spear of Heavy Cloud. If not for hisst shot, the strange white mes that almost copsed the Ardent Flower Blood Division, their victory wouldn¡¯t have been certain. Even if they had won, they would¡¯ve incurred a heavier loss.

    Every time they pitched camp, Shi Xueman would allow Fatty to demonstrate his pagoda cannon.

    Until now, Fatty was still unsure of his Path of Master. Shi Xueman was very knowledgeable, but was somewhat unable to make any sense of it either.

    Fatty¡¯s cannon attack had indeed be entirely different.

    cing the same pagoda cannon in Fatty¡¯s hands would produce a very disparate power when used by another gunner. Ordinary fire elementalists¡¯ cannon attacks would only produce a long thin me that carried a red glow and injured the target by piercing through its body. In Fatty¡¯s hands, however, the mes sprayed by the cannon barrel were much bigger. The mes were pure white and burned even more fiercely. Its damage was much more variable as well. Sometimes it would produce white mes like in the previous battle, but it could also produce an explosion and even ring-shaped bullets.

    Yet, Fatty was unable to ount for this.

    Including Fatty, other than being overwhelmed with shock and admiration, everyone felt d. Only Shi Xueman was keenly aware that a whole new profession had been born.

    Fatty was the first ever Pagoda Cannon Master.

    No one really ced heavy regard onto the pagoda cannon since it was a new weapon that hadn¡¯t been released for long. Even the core members of the Central Pine Valley didn¡¯t think highly of it. If not for the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s mass recruitment of fire elementalists, Shi Xueman wouldn¡¯t have thought about using pagoda cannons in battle.

    New fire elementalist recruits were rather weak. Even with the help of snowva in their daily training, they needed a much longer time to reach an elite elementalist¡¯s level. Because of that, the pagoda cannon, which demanded little from fire elementalists, but produced considerable power, came into Shi Xueman¡¯s field of view. After a period of verification, it ultimately became the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s standardized weapon.

    At that time, she even purchased, through Qiao Meiqi, a batch ofva-spitting beast snouts in order to forge more pagoda cannons.

    The emergence of a pagoda cannon Master allowed the Pagoda cannon¡¯s might to undergo a fundamental change.

    The pagoda cannons in ordinary fire elementalists¡¯ hands were more like a strengthened bow and arrow. It was mightier than an ordinary bow and arrow, but its rate of fire was much slower and required more manpower to operate.

    Yet, in the hands of a Pagoda Cannon Master, its ws disappeared. It became mightier, and more importantly, more battle tactics became avable for use.

    It was very difficult to be a Master. Fatty also became a Master somewhat identally, and only heaven knew when the next Master would emerge. Yet, the birth of a Pagoda Cannon Master meant that its potential had far exceeded everyone¡¯s initial prediction.

    Shi Xueman was thinking about how to unleash its full potential and decided to pester Fatty for every single detail.

    "How did you control the cannon attack?"

    "Was the snowva able to sense it? What state was it in?"

    ...

    Tormented, Fatty felt as though his brain was about tobust. He was someone who went by gut feeling. Ai Hui was the one who liked digging up roots and getting to the bottom of things. Although Fatty was very pleased about bing a Master, he absolutely did not dare to act boastfully in front of Big Sister. Even Ai Hui lowered his noble head before her abuse of authority, so Fatty was merely a docile baby in front of her.

    Shi Xueman started gathering more and more information to gain a rough idea of the special traits of a Pagoda Cannon Master.

    She asked Fatty, "Do you think there¡¯s still room for improving the pagoda cannon?"

    "Of course!"

    Indeed, Shi Xueman thought to herself. She added, "How so?"

    Gesturing with his fingers, Fatty started, "The cannon¡¯s structure can be simplified. I¡¯m able to use it single handedly because I¡¯ve stripped it down many times. It would be good for Ai Hui to use it too since that fellow would definitely modify until it was unrecognizable. Theva-spitting beast¡¯s snout makes a pretty decent cannon barrel, but it¡¯s a little weak and is unable to endure a slight increase in the amount of snowva. Leaving snowva in the fire reservoir is simply too hazardous..."

    Fatty rambled on, as if enumerating one¡¯s family valuables.

    Zu Yan, who stood by the side, was stunned. He had never seen Fatty speaking with such frankness and assurance. To him, Fatty was a bum, all take and no give. He would never sit if he could lie down and would never stand if he could sit.

    Shi Xueman noticed people approaching and interrupted, "I¡¯ll leave the modifications to you then."

    Fatty¡¯s eyes lit up. He kind of liked that idea, but immediately started grumbling, "But there¡¯s no master weaponsmith. If only Blind He was here."

    Shi Xueman responded bluntly, "I¡¯ll think of something."

    Fatty was somewhat excited and somewhat distressed. "I¡¯ll have to think about it too."

    Shi Xueman continued, "I have a mission for you now."

    She saw some elementalist guards stopping a group of people. The leader of the group wore armor and was surrounded by a bunch of guards.

    Fatty was puzzled. "What mission?"

    Shi Xueman said, "See that group of people? They¡¯re interested in our Hellfire Pagoda Cannon. Go receive them."

    Fatty stared nkly while pointing at himself. "Me?"

    Shi Xueman replied, "You¡¯re the first ever Pagoda Cannon Master. Of course it¡¯s you."

    Fatty was rather satisfied with her answer. "Then am I not quite powerful?"

    "Of course," Shi Xueman answered with certainty. "You¡¯re the secret weapon responsible for our victory. You deserve the most credit."

    Blushing, Fatty responded, "Everyone worked hard together."

    Immediately after, his tone changed. "Any reward?"

    "Yes!" Shi Xueman answered straightforwardly. "Other than the God-subduing Peaks, Skyheart City also sent a batch of treasures and you¡¯ll get to pick. Also, you¡¯ll get essence elemental beans! A million of them!"

    Fatty was over the moon. He rubbed his hands together in anticipation. "But how can I ept... how can I..."

    Things were different now. There had been a steep decline in the production of essence elemental beans, so a million of them cost an enormous sum of money.

    "But you know that the division¡¯s budget is tight." Shi Xueman changed the topic. "Do you reckon it¡¯s easy to imitate the pagoda cannons?"

    After some thought Fatty answered, "It¡¯s quite easy. Even I was able to create a simple single man pagoda cannon. Perhaps you¡¯re worried about others making fakes? It¡¯s easy, but they don¡¯t have snowva."

    Shi Xueman asked, "Then can we sell snowva to them?"

    Fatty¡¯s eyes shone brightly. "Oh my god! How could I have missed such a brilliant business idea? We¡¯ll be a monopoly. That¡¯s stable profit!"

    Shi Xueman continued, "So, go demonstrate what the pagoda cannon can do. You¡¯re the only one here who¡¯s done business before. What do you think?"

    Fatty patted his chest in assurance. "No problem!"

    Shi Xueman led Fatty toward that group of people and greeted them in a friendly, manner "I am Shi Xueman, and you are?"

    The man in armor half rose and responded politely, "My armor makes it inconvenient to bow, please forgive me. I¡¯m Ke Ning, division leader of the Blue g Division."

    Shi Xueman greeted, "Nice to meet you, Division Leader Ke."

    Recently there had been innumerablebat divisions popping up like springtime bamboo shoots, and she was unfamiliar with many of those names.

    Ke Ning gazed at the hill that had exploded earlier and asked somewhat curiously, "Was that a demonstration of the legendary pagoda cannon?"

    "Legendary pagoda cannon" made Shi Xueman smile. "Yes."

    Ke Ning¡¯s eyes lit up, and he asked with embarrassment, "This is bold of me, but could I please take a tour around this area?"

    Shi Xueman replied generously, "Sure, I¡¯ll let Master Qian Dai bring you around. He is a Pagoda Cannon Master, the one responsible for singlehandedly securing our victory in the battle against the Ardent Flower Blood Division."

    Ke Ning had thought that Shi Xueman would¡¯ve kept such a high-level weapon confidential. Who knew that she would be so generous about it and even allowed a Master to demonstrate its power. He was overjoyed and hurried expressed his gratitude, "Thank you so much! Thank you so much! Thanks for the hard work, Master Qian!"

    The Hellfire Pagoda Cannon, once unknown and disregarded, had be a mighty weapon. As more details about the Spear of Heavy Cloud became public, more people started attributing the victory of thebat division to the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon.

    Shi Xueman responded, "You¡¯re being too polite."

    Fatty stood at the side with his chest puffed out. He nodded toward the group of people and said loftily, "Follow me."

    Ke Ning and gang followed behind eagerly.

    Sang Zijun was dumbstruck by it all and stuttered only after they were gone, "Boss, this..."

    Shi Xueman wasn¡¯t smiling. She gazed afar and responded after a short while, "We¡¯ve lost too much this time. If not for Fatty¡¯s breakthrough, we would be in a worse state. I¡¯m wondering if we would have sustained less injuries if we had been better prepared and stronger? It¡¯s worth working hard if it means we can sacrifice even one less member. Plus, the Ardent Flower Blood Division is merely a blood division. What if we bump into a god division in the future?"

    Sang Zijun and Jiang Wei remained silent since they could rte to her thoughts.

    Shi Xueman added, "We need more resources and more money in order to grow quicker and save more lives."

    Everyone looked toward the nearby pagoda cannon.

    Fatty was talking nonstop, his saliva sttering everywhere as he introduced his pagoda cannon to Ke Ning and gang, whose eyes were all brightly lit.

 Chapter 546: The Popular Pagoda Cannons (1)

    Chapter 546: The Popr Pagoda Cannons (1)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Ke Ning and his counterparts walked out from the camp of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. There was an unconceble look of joy on Ke Ning¡¯s face, but he did not say anything. After they had walked far away from the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp, Ke Ning suddenly asked an unremarkable-looking man, "Uncle Li, what do you think of this pagoda cannon?"

    The unremarkable-looking man was a famous weaponsmith, Li Houtang.

    "Extraordinary!" Li Houtang¡¯s voice was powerful and resonating.

    "I¡¯d like to hear the details," Ke Ning¡¯s eyes lit up.

    "I wonder who created this pagoda cannon. It is truly extraordinary. When I first heard that the Spear of Heavy Cloud won the previous battles because of these pagoda cannons, I still thought everyone was exaggerating. After witnessing it for myself today, I realize that I am the one who was ignorant. The emergence of pagoda cannons will pose a huge threat to Masters on the battlefield in the future." A look of admiration appeared on Li Houtang¡¯s face.

    "Can we imitate and make our own pagoda cannons?" Ke Ning quickly asked.

    He was at an age where he was impatient for sess. He wanted to achieve aplishments in the current times of chaos.

    Li Houtang and Ke Ning¡¯s father had a deep rtionship and he treated Ke Ning like his nephew. He praised Ke Ning, "Small Ning, excellent foresight! The pagoda cannons will definitely be popr in the future. It is a top-notch weapon in the battlefield."

    Li Houtang remained silent for a moment and muttered, "I have carefully studied their pagoda cannons just now. It is not really difficult to forge a pagoda cannon. I more or less know how to do it. However, even if I know how to forge a pagoda cannon, there¡¯s still the issue of the snowva. Shi Xueman probably publicized the forging method for the pagoda cannon because she wants all of us to buy snowva from her."

    "I see!" Ke Ning came to a realization.

    Li Houtang nodded his head and continued, "If the Central Pine Valley is willing to sell their snowva, then we will not have any issue with obtaining it. However, from what I know, the snowva is extremely expensive. Also, we might not even need snowva for our pagoda cannons."

    Upon hearing these words, Ke Ning looked slightly disappointed. He then asked, "How about we build one pagoda cannon and give it a try first?"

    Li Houtang shook his head and replied, "From what I see, the more pagoda cannons there are, the more useful they will be. On the contrary, it we only have one or two pagoda cannons, they will not be of any use to us."

    "However, other than the Spear of Heavy Cloud, who else can equip so many pagoda cannons with snowva?" Ke Ning asked again.

    Li Houtang thought for a while and replied, "Perhaps we can think of a solution with regard to the fire liquid. After thinking about it, as long as a fire liquid is used, the pagoda cannons will work. A pagoda cannon actually imitates theva-spitting beast. Ava-spitting beast spits outva. Snowva is so powerful that it¡¯s an A-grade fire liquid. We can mix a few B-grade fire liquids together and add in a small amount of snowva. As long as we can get the proportion right, we can reduce our costs. Even though this mixture might not be as powerful as the snowva, it is still powerful enough against ordinary soldiers."

    Ke Ning¡¯s eyes lit up once more as he said, "Uncle Li, you¡¯re right! The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s pagoda cannons are indeed powerful and can kill Masters, but then again, how can there be so many Masters on the battlefield? There are more ordinary soldiers. Since the fire liquid we will be using is weaker, the quality of our pagoda cannons can be lowered as well. Therefore, can we use other materials to rece the snouts ofva-spitting beasts?"

    Ke Ning thought of the rain of fire released from Fatty¡¯s pagoda cannon. It covered an enormous range, making it impossible for anyone to dodge it!

    Ke Ning¡¯s eyes became increasingly bright.

    If they could carry out arge-scale distribution of pagoda cannons for their soldiers, they could use the rain of fire to seal off the entire battlefield. This tactic might not be effective against Masters, but it would be an absolute nightmare for ordinary soldiers.

    As for the enemy Masters, he could just leave them to his Masters!

    The more Ke Ning thought about it, the more he felt this n would work.

    Li Houtang cast a satisfied look at Ke Ning. It wasn¡¯t easy for someone of his age to not be deceived by the might of pagoda cannons and pursue more formidable forms of power.

    He nodded his head and said, "We will think carefully about it when we get back to our camp. We need to seize the moment now. The pagoda cannons have juste into vogue, but the future battlefield will definitely be dominated by them."

    Ke Ning and the rest nodded their heads.

    .....

    Nowadays, Thunder City had be extremely prosperous.

    Being the ce where the first Lightning Master, Ai Hui, had had his breakthrough, many people visited it and went to Thunder Mountain to get a feel for the concentrated lightning aura. Up until now, other than Ai Hui, no one was able toprehend the power of lightning. Many people also understood that what Ai Hui had experienced was an extremely rare event.

    For instance, there were also several master swordsmen, but none of them could bepared to Karakorum Pris.

    Thunder City¡¯s prosperity was directly linked to Ai Hui. Other than the travellers who were here to admire Thunder City, there were also many businessmen that came here for one thing¡ªthe snowva.

    Everyone knew there were only two ces in this world where snowva was sold. The first ce was the Central Pine Valley, the second was Thunder City.

    Ai Hui had a very close rtionship with the mayor of Thunder City, Qiao Meiqi. Qiao Meiqi was the biggest retailer for snowva. More than 90 percent of snowva on the market was from Qiao Meiqi.

    The Central Pine Valley was mysterious and dangerous. The bloody words at Lemon Camping Ground had yet to dry. That was the burial ce for many Masters.

    Nowadays, the Central Pine Valley¡¯s reputation had spread far and wide. Some people did not believe the rumors they heard and tried to approach the Central Pine Valley. In the end, these people disappeared forever without a trace.

    No scouts dared to get too close to the Central Pine Valley. They could only observe the Central Pine Valley from more than 50 kilometers away.

    Qiao Meiqi was like the spokesman for the Central Pine Valley. He was the only one who could obtain snowva from them. Furthermore, all of the Central Pine Valley¡¯s purchases of resources depended on Qiao Meiqi.

    Ever since snowva developed the potential as a weapon, its sale had increased sharply. Qiao Meiqi had made an immense amount of money. Furthermore, the Central Pine Valley was like a monster that devoured money. The colossal amount of money they earned from the sale of the snowva was then converted into a colossal amount of resources.

    Qiao Meiqi could earn money from both sides. It was impossible for him not to get rich.

    However, as a visionary businessman, he clearly understood that the Central Pine Valley was the main reason why he could earn so much money. Nowadays, many people felt that he was just a puppet of the Central Pine Valley.

    Qiao Meiqi did not deny such rumors. He knew that no one harbored any ill intentions against him because everyone was afraid of the Central Pine Valley. The bloody wooden sign at Lemon Camping Ground frightened away many covetous and evil individuals.

    Right now, after the Spear of Heavy Cloud achieved a huge victory, Shi Xueman¡¯s prestige skyrocketed.

    Qiao Meiqi led a luxurious life as he was able to earn top dor safely. One could tell how happy he was by looking at the evesting smile on his face when he checked his ount book.

    The supply of snowva was almost empty.

    "Given the current speed, we have to go to the Lemon Camping Ground a few days earlier." Qiao Meiqi could not restrain the happiness in his voice.

    At this moment, he suddenly heard someone yelling from outside, "Is there snowva for sale?"

    The manager outside replied politely, "Yes, there is. Sir, how much do you need?"

    "I want all of it!"

    Qiao Meiqi could sense the wealth of the customer from inside his room. As such, he decided to go out and take a look. Judging from the person¡¯s generosity with money, he must be a very rich customer!

    Qiao Meiqi walked out of his room and took a close look at the appearance of the customer. It was a man who was around 30 years old.

    "Sir, nice to meet you. I am Qiao Meiqi, may I know your name?" Qiao Meiqi greeted the customer politely. Following which, he instructed the manager, "Give this customer a 10 percent discount on the price of snowva."

    Apparently, that man knew who Qiao Meiqi was. When he heard there was a discount, a look of joy shed across his face. Cupping his hands, he replied, "So it¡¯s Mayor Qiao. Thank you very much, Mayor. I am the division leader of the Silversword Division, Liang Zidao."

    Qiao Meiqi was a businessman and was very good with his words. Upon hearing Liang Zidao¡¯s name, he became even more friendly. He replied, "So it¡¯s Division Leader Liang, I have long heard of your renowned name!"

    Nowadays, there were manybat divisions. Qiao Meiqi did not even know half of thesebat divisions. Clearly, he had not heard of the Silversword Division. However, Qiao Meiqi was still beaming with smiles, looking extremely friendly.

    After a while, the snowva was brought out.

    After taking a look, Liang Zidao furrowed his eyebrows and said, "You have so little snowva?"

    Knowing that he had encountered a legitimately rich man, Qiao Meiqi¡¯s eyes lit up, and he asked, "Is this amount not enough for you?"

    Liang Zidao shook his head repeatedly and replied, "Not enough, not enough. How can this little amount of snowva be enough?"

    "Brother Liang, how much snowva do you need?"

    "I need at least three more vats!" Liang Zidao signaled with his fingers.

    Deep down, Qiao Meiqi was overjoyed. However, he replied with an apologetic look on his face, "Brother Liang, I am really sorry! These are all I have right now. Brother Liang, don¡¯t worry, I will procure more as soon as possible!"

    Upon hearing these words, Liang Zidao¡¯s facial expression loosened up. He asked, "How long will that take?"

    Qiao Meiqi clenched his teeth and replied, "Three days!"

    "All right, I will wait here for three days then," Liang Zidao replied.

    Suddenly, someone barged in and asked, "Is there snowva for sale?"

    .....

    Huo Da was a Master that Qiao Meiqi had just hired.

    After Qiao Meiqi became immensely wealthy, the thing he worried the most about was his safety. In times of chaos, one could live without money, but not without strength. When it came to hiring experts, Qiao Meiqi was willing to pay any price.

    Currently, Thunder City had three Masters.

    The money and benefits Qiao Meiqi offered were much more generous than that of other mayors. With three Masters overseeing Thunder City, the city had extremely good public security. No one dared to create trouble.

    Huo Da led a carefree life. If there was no war, everything would be perfect. However, if it weren¡¯t for the war, Masters wouldn¡¯t be so valuable. He could not have lived such a life in the past.

    The mayor had just summoned him. After packing his things, he flew straight to the mayor residence.

    Qiao Meiqi was extremely polite to him. As such, he had never put on airs in front of the mayor. Usually, other than inviting the Masters to dinners, the mayor seldom summoned them. After arriving at Thunder City for so long, Huo Da had yet to receive any missions. Therefore, when Qiao Meiqi summoned him this time around, he was very excited and was prepared to put up a good performance.

    When hended at the mayor¡¯s residence, he shocked to see a massive crowd beneath him.

    Was it a rebellion?

    Those people nced at Huo Da and turned back to continue arguing. No one cared about him.

    "Do you understand what a ¡®firste, first served basis¡¯ is?! I came here earlier than you, so I will buy them before you!"

    "How much I want to buy is my business, what can you do about it?"

    "Stop bullshitting me. If you¡¯re a man, let¡¯s have a fight at the arena now."

    "Do you think I am scared of you?"

    ...

    When Huo Da saw these people arguing furiously, he felt puzzled. However, at the same time, he felt relieved that these people were not after the mayor.

    When he entered the mayor¡¯s residence, he was shocked by the mayor¡¯s haggard face. He asked, "Mayor, what happened to you?"

    Qiao Meiqi waved his hand and replied with a solemn look on his face, "Master Huo,

    . I have an extremely urgent mission for you!"

    A cold shiver went down Huo Da¡¯s spine as he replied, "Mayor, feel free to tell me about it!"

 Chapter 547: The Popular Pagoda Cannons (2)

    Chapter 547: The Popr Pagoda Cannons (2)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Ai Hui still did not know that Iron Lady was actively promoting the pagoda cannons.

    As usual, he was training at the mountain peak, absorbing the lightning from the clouds.

    Suddenly, he stopped and shifted his gaze to a distant mountain range.

    Someone wasing!

    Ai Hui closed his eyes and grabbed his sword hilt. The range of his sensory perception extended and the world became unusually quiet and clear to him.

    He "saw" a man holding a white g walking through the forest towards Central Pine Valley. The appearance of that man was fuzzy. However, his movements were clumsy and his base level was low.

    Ai Hui suddenly let out a yelp of surprise and looked at another direction.

    What day is today? Why are there so many customers?

    Ai Hui shook his head. Following which, he transformed into a streak of sword gleam and appeared in front of Gu Xuan and the rest. He said to Gu Xuan, "Stop training. Two guests areing. Get some people and wee them."

    Huo Da did not expect his first mission to be transporting goods. He wanted to reject this mission. After all, he was a Master and he had his dignity.

    Transporting goods? Is this a joke?

    However, he could see the unconceble anxiousness and seriousness in the mayor¡¯s eyes.

    Alright, the mayor had treated him rather well. He could only console like this.

    Restraining his face from twitching, he forced himself to ept the mission.

    However, when the mayor took out an astronomical number of essence elemental beans from the treasury and ced it before him, his eyes widened abruptly!

    At that moment, he knew this was an extremely important mission!

    He was not the only one. When the mayor took out the essence elemental beans, the noisy mayor residence quieted down immediately. The glow and elemental energy undtions released by the essence elemental beans were filled with destructive power. Everyone was affected by it.

    Subsequently, the mayor reminded him that the other party did not like to sell the snowva on credit. If he did not see the essence elemental beans, he would not take out the goods. The mayor also told him that the other party had a bad temper and not to get into a conflict with him.

    Right now, Huo Da was carrying these essence elemental beans and flying in the sky.

    Honestly speaking, this was the first time he hade into contact with so many essence elemental beans. Every now and then, an evil thought would arise in his head. What if he ran away with them? However, his rationality eventually defeated his irrationality. In the current times of chaos, it was very fortunate for him to encounter a boss like the mayor. If he ran away with these essence elemental beans, he would not be able to find a ce in this world to settle down.

    Now he finally understood that whether or not a flight would be tiring depended on what the flyer was carrying. Even though he carried so many essence elemental beans, he did not feel tired at all. He was flying at his top speed.

    When Huo Da thought of the mayor¡¯s reminder, he took out the g that he gave him. An eye-striking "Qiao" was written on the g.

    The mayor gave him the g because he was afraid he might get injured identally. Huo Da did notpletely agree with what the mayor thought. After all, he was a Master. How could he get injured so easily? Even though the story of the bloody sign at the Lemon Camping Ground spread like wildfire, he still felt that he could not get injured so easily.

    Right now, all he wanted to do wasplete the mission as soon as possible. The mayor had said that this mission was extremely urgent and that he needed it to bepleted as soon as possible.

    After a while, a few figures appeared in front of him.

    Huo Da became energized. Central Pine Valley had a mysterious background. Various versions of rumors surrounded it, and he was very curious. Whether it was the so-called "Lightning de", the influential Shi Xueman, or the disciple of Grandmaster Dai, Duanmu Huanghun, all of them had achieved renowned feats.

    Right now, they had one more Pagoda Cannon Master. He was the first ever Pagoda Cannon Master, Qian Dai.

    "There is a ferocious tiger in Central Pine" was the mainstream opinion that everyone had of Central Pine Valley. In everyone¡¯s eyes, Central Pine Valley wasn¡¯t huge in size and it did not have many people; however, it was filled with experts.

    However, when Huo Da saw the elementalists that came to greet him, a disappointed look appeared on his face.

    They looked ordinary!

    They could not even bepared to the weak guards of Thunder City. There was nothing special about them.

    When the person saw Huo Da¡¯s g, he asked, "May I know who are you?"

    "I am Huo Da from Thunder City. I am under the orders of my mayor toe here and purchase a batch of snowva urgently," Huo Da replied humbly.

    The other party cast a nce at him and said, "Follow me."

    Huo Da had been sizing these few elementalists from Central Pine Valley along the way. He was greatly disappointed. Their elemental energy undtions were weak and inert. Theycked wariness as well, casually showing their backs to other people.

    Was this the true strength of Central Pine Valley?

    Huo Da felt very disappointed. It appeared that there was nock of con artists in this world. Central Pine Valley was deliberately mystifying their existence to build up their reputation.

    Huo Da followed the elementalist from Central Pine Valley to an empty earth-made city.

    This city was....really ugly!

    Compared to the prosperous Thunder City, this earth-made city was pathetically small. Furthermore, it was crudely made and it had no defensive capabilities. At this point in time, Huo Da was utterly disappointed. All he wanted to do now was toplete the mission and return to Thunder City as soon as possible. He was not willing to stay here any longer.

    The elementalists from Central Pine Valley brought Huo Da to an empty house. Then one of them pointed to the house and said, "Wait inside."

    Instead of getting angry, Huo Da wanted tough. This elementalist was weak, but he was arrogant, huh!

    As a Master, no matter where Huo Da went, he would be treated with respect. This was the first time he was being bossed around since bing a Master. He wanted to see how arrogant Central Pine Valley could be.

    He strode in the house with his head high.

    The house was empty. There was only a stone table inside. On the table, there were a pot of tea and a few ceramic bowls.

    To Huo Da¡¯s surprise, there was a person sitting front of the table.

    This person was short and fat. His body was covered with dirt, making him looked utterly pathetic. His base level was very low as well.

    The fat man was panting as he gulped down the tea. When he heard footsteps behind him, he turned around to see who it was.

    When he saw Huo Da, he smiled warmly at him. "Are you here to buy snowva too?"

    He took a bowl and filled it up with the tea from the teapot. Then he ced it on the table where there was an empty seat. "Come and have some tea, you must have flown for a while."

    Huo Da¡¯s facial expression loosened up and then he sat down on the empty seat. With a reserved tone, he said, "Thank you."

    He took a sip of the tea and he furrowed his eyebrows. It tasted really bad! In Thunder City, the treatment he received was top-notch. When was he ever served such lousy tea before?

    The fat man asked smilingly, "Brother, which city are you from?"

    "Thunder City, I am Huo Da," Huo Da replied. Then he asked, "Who are you?"

    The fat man replied with a smile on his face, "My name is An Chouchou, I¡¯m from Newlight City."

    Thud.

    Huo Da¡¯s hand trembled and his bowl dropped to the ground, sshing the tea over the floor.

    .....

    Newlight City.

    "So she rejected?"

    Madam Ye¡¯s voice was calm like water, but it still sent a cold shiver down Nian Tingfeng¡¯s spine. He lowered his head and replied, "Yes. Shi Xueman said that the Spear of Heavy Cloud currently doesn¡¯t need so many Masters and she thanked Madam for your kind intentions."

    Madam Ye smiled. "It¡¯s normal for youngsters to have resolution. They need to hit a snag to know what this world is truly like."

    "Madam is right," Nian Tingfeng replied.

    "Anyway, what¡¯s with the issue of pagoda cannons?" Madam Ye picked up the teacup in front of her and took a sip.

    "Whenever the Spear of Heavy Cloud encamps, they will showcase the technology of pagoda cannons. They allow people to spectate and study the pagoda cannons. From the looks of it, I think they are trying to sell more snowva." Nian Tingfeng looked somewhat helpless.

    "Since when has Shi Beihai¡¯s daughter be a profiteer? It doesn¡¯t seem like something she would do." Madam Ye was astounded.

    "I am also thinking whether or not it is Ai Hui¡¯s idea," Nian Tingfeng conjectured.

    "Is the price of snowva on the market dropping?" Madam Ye asked.

    Nian Tingfeng shook his head and replied, "No."

    "Then how can those ordinary people afford to use pagoda cannons? Even though the pagoda cannons are powerful, they consume a substantial amount of snowva. Not many people are rich enough to use pagoda cannons," Madam Ye said.

    "I heard they have discovered that B-grade fire liquids can be used as well. As long as they add a small amount of snowva, the power of pagoda cannons won¡¯t reduce too much," Nian Tingfeng reported.

    Madam Ye put down the teapot in her hand, and a mysterious sense of panic arose in her heart.

    The Elders Guild had long studied the pagoda cannon. The pagoda cannon was a first-ss weapon, but it was very expensive to forge. Furthermore, it needed to use snowva, and the cost of snowva was very high. The pagoda cannon also had numerous weaknesses. For example, it needed to be erected, its attacking frequency was low, and etc. Actually, it was more suitable for attacking a city or a defensive battle.

    Because of these weaknesses, even though the pagoda cannon was very powerful, the Elders Guild did not really care about it.

    They certainly did not expect Shi Xueman to use the pagoda cannons to obtain a great victory.

    Shi Xueman actively promoting the technology of pagoda cannons was unusual. Madam Ye also did not think that someone was able toe up with a solution for the weakness of high consumption of snowva.

    Her initial n to ignite conflict between Newlight City and Central Pine Valley was unexpectedly disrupted by Shi Xueman.

    Madam Ye looked very far into the future. The poprity of pagoda cannons would have a deep impact on the future. It had a deadly impact on her Master¡¯s Glory.

    If a Grandmaster was an asset to a nation, then a Master was an asset to the battlefield.

    The number of Masters and their strength had a direct impact on the strength of abat division. And the pagoda cannons were a weapon that could threaten Masters. In the past, only Central Pine Valley had pagoda cannons, and they did not have many of them.

    With the rise of pagoda cannons, a Master¡¯s importance on the battlefield would be reduced sharply in the future.

    Madam Ye, who had ced all her chips in the Master¡¯s Glory, undoubtedly would be the one that suffered the most losses.

    After remaining silent for a while, she asked, "Do you have any solutions?"

    Nian Tingfeng clenched his teeth and answered, "The sess of pagoda cannons lies in the snowva. If we can take control of the snowva..."

    He clenched his fist in the air abruptly.

    A look of uncertainty shed across Madam Ye¡¯s face.

    Even though Nian Tingfeng¡¯s n would settle the issue once and for all, it faced many impediments. Shi Xueman had just obtained a great victory, and her had reputation skyrocketed. She had done a meritorious service for Beyond Avalon. If they targeted Central Pine Valley at this point of time, it would deal a huge blow to Skyheart City¡¯s prestige. People would start to question Skyheart City¡¯s impartiality.

    Righteousness was a very important weapon in Madam Ye¡¯s hands.

    Moreover, Central Pine Valley¡¯s strength worried Madam Ye very much. Up till now, no one knew how the Masters that tried to infiltrate Central Pine Valley had died.

    If it was another city, that city would¡¯ve already been razed to ground.

    What should she do now?

    Madam Ye could not help but clench her fists tightly. Master¡¯s Glory was a war that she definitely had to win at all costs!

    She took in a deep breath of air. With a determined gaze on her face , she asked, "Do you have any idea how to get rid of Central Pine Valley?"

 Chapter 548: The Deep Conversation With Ugly Elephant

    Chapter 548: The Deep Conversation With Ugly Elephant

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    This was the first time Ai Hui had met An Chouchou.

    An Chouchou, who was also known as "Ugly Elephant", was the current mayor of Newlight City. Under his leadership, Newlight City had changed beyond recognition. Even though Newlight City¡¯s prestige paled inparison to Madam Ye¡¯s Skyheart City¡¯s, An Chouchou still did a great job by creating the prosperity it was enjoying now.

    Using his performance, An Chouchou was able to gain the respect of everyone in the world.

    His appearance was ugly, he was born poverty-stricken, and his base level was extremely low, and yet he could be the mayor of Newlight City. Everyone could not help but respect him for his achievements.

    After finding out that this pathetic-looking fat man was the renowned "Ugly Elephant", Huo Da became reserved instantly, sitting down there quietly.

    An Chouchou was sizing up Ai Hui as well.

    Ai Hui¡¯s appearance was too weird. His entire body was covered with bandages and he wore two red crystal chips on his eyes, resembling a red-eyed mummy. An Chouchou had encountered many experts before, and he had a very high adaptability towards weird-looking clothings.

    Experts¡¯ tempers were usually different from ordinary people¡¯s as well. It was very normal to see some entricities in experts.

    An Chouchou remained calm to Ai Hui¡¯s appearance and chuckled. "I have long heard about the legendary Lightning de. All this time, I have been thinking about when to pay you a visit, but I certainly didn¡¯t expect I would wait until today to do so. I heard that Brother Ai is injured, how¡¯s your injury now?"

    A cold shiver went down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. The outside world did not know about his injury, hence, he did not know how An Chouchou had gotten wind of it. However, on second thought, he felt that the New Faction having a few spies was nothing to be surprised about. After all, they were a powerful faction.

    Ai Hui did not want to beat around the bush and asked bluntly, "Ugly Elephant is a busy man and yet you¡¯re here personally. May I know what are you here for?"

    An Chouchou was surprised at Ai Hui¡¯s bluntness. However, he regained hisposure very soon and continued, "I am here to propose an alliance."

    "Alliance?" Ai Hui was looking at An Chouchou doubtfully. "I don¡¯t quite understand what you¡¯re saying."

    "Even though Central Pine Valley is small, it is powerful. Even though Newlight City is very huge, it is weak. Skyheart City uses righteousness as its banner andbat divisions as its sword. Master¡¯s Glory is about to bepleted. Why would they let outsiders share a slice of their pie? The day Master¡¯s Glory ispleted is the day that my faction and your faction are hegemonized," An Chouchou exined calmly.

    Ai Huiughed involuntarily and replied, "Newlight City is a huge city and you have numerous new citizens. It¡¯s normal for Skyheart City to view you as a threat. On the contrary, Central Pine Valley is so small. I¡¯m afraid Madam Ye doesn¡¯t care about us at all."

    "If that¡¯s the case, why is Miss Shi¡¯s Spear of Heavy Cloud conscripted?" An Chouchou chuckled.

    Ai Hui was stunned momentarily.

    "Brother Ai, you have underestimated yourself. Central Pine Valley possesses the technology of pagoda cannons, and snowva is the key to its sess. Currently, Madam Ye sees Central Pine Valley as an eyesore. On the battlefield, the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s pagoda cannons were able to rid of the Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s blood elementalists that possessed the Ability of God. Therefore, it shouldn¡¯t be much of a problem for the pagoda cannons to get rid of Masters as well," An Chouchou said casually.

    Ai Hui was terrified. He suddenly understood the severity of the issue.

    Everyone knew that Master¡¯s Glory was Skyheart City¡¯s brainchild. If the pagoda cannons threatened the existence of Masters, wouldn¡¯t the Central Pine Faction be an impediment that Madam Ye would want to get rid of?

    For a moment, Ai Hui was breaking out in cold sweat.

    An Chouchou smiled and continued, "If I was Madam Ye, I would first use the name of righteousness to incite the public. A powerful weapon like the pagoda cannon is essential in the war against the blood elementalists. It¡¯s rted to the fate of mankind, how can it be mized? Then I would send Surveince Division and force Central Pine Valley to hand over the refinement method for snowva to the Elders Guild. Oh, I meant ¡®buy¡¯. As long as Brother Ai is willing to sell the snowva, the Ye family will still be willing to fork out a sum of money to buy it. Subsequently, the Elders Guild just needs to say that they will equip everybat division with pagoda cannons and provide them with snowva. Naturally, no one will object to what they are doing. By then, will Brother Ai hand over the refinement method for the snowva?"

    Huo Da¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. He was regretting deeply now. If he knew something like this would happen today, he wouldn¡¯t havee even if the mayor kneeled down and begged him. At this moment, he was flustering. These two people were tantly talking about such ssified information in front of him. Would they kill him to prevent him from divulging this information?

    Ai Hui, however, calmed down and picked up the teapot. Then he filled up An Chouchou¡¯s bowl with tea and said, "Brother Chou, don¡¯t tell me you came all the way just to scare me?"

    Deep down, An Chouchou was praising Ai Hui. Usually, when a person heard such words, his or her facial expression would change drastically. Ai Hui acted as if he wasn¡¯t affected by it at all. He was calm and collected, and he still could joke about it. He was truly worthy to be the leader of Central Pine Valley.

    "Therefore, I am here to propose an alliance with your Central Pine Valley." An Chouchou smiled brightly. "If you hand over the refinement method for snowva to the Elders Guild, at least you can be a rich person. The Ye family will still show some leniency towards you. However, the case for us is different. Newlight City represents the new citizens. We have a lot of people, sothe Ye family will definitely not let us off. The Ye family will only feel relieved when Newlight City is destroyed, the New Citizen Faction¡¯s Elders are dead, and the new citizens are broken up. It¡¯s a pressing issue for Newlight City."

    "If Central Pine Valley allies with Newlight City, we can keep the refinement method for the snowva?" Ai Hui asked.

    "As long as you form an alliance with Newlight City, when the Surveince Division arrives at your doorstep, we will definitely send troops to assist you!" An Chouchou said with resolution.

    "How do we form an alliance then?" Ai Hui asked again.

    Deep down, An Chouchou heaved a sigh of relief, then he answered, "We will enjoy the benefits of snowva together. I will provide manpower and you will provide the refinement method for snowva. Newlight City does not have a lot of things, but we do have a lot of manpower. We also have a lot of smiths. Therefore, we can carry outrge-scale production of pagoda cannons and snowva. Other cities don¡¯t have as many smiths as we have."

    "How do we split the profits then?" Ai Hui continued to ask.

    "We will split the profits evenly," An Chouchou replied.

    "I roughly understood Brother Chou¡¯s idea. However, this is an important issue, so I have to think about it first." Ai Hui nodded his head.

    "Of course." An Chouchou nodded his head as well. "But Brother Ai has to make your decision fast, as the Ye family is already taking actions."

    "Alright, I get it," Ai Hui replied.

    Following which, Ai Hui summoned Gu Xuan and asked him to bring An Chouchou to his resting ce.

    Ai Hui drummed his fingers lightly on the table as he pondered over the issue.

    Huo Da looked as if he was sitting on a bed of needles, not daring to move an inch. Previously, he was still looking down on Central Pine Valley. However, when he saw the renowned Ugly Elephant anxiously seeking alliance with Central Pine Valley, he knew how foolish he was.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui turned around and stared at Huo Da.

    Being stared at by the blood-red crystal chips, Huo Da¡¯s heart tightened. Was Ai Hui going to kill him? He felt the urge to run away, but his rationality made him stay.

    "Old Qiao asked you toe?"

    Huo Da¡¯s body was frozen. He summoned his courage and replied, "Yes."

    "What¡¯s the matter?" Ai Hui asked.

    "The Mayor wants to buy a batch of snowva urgently. I have brought the essence elemental beans," Huo Da replied honestly.

    "Are there many people buying snowva?" Ai Hui asked?

    "Yes, they are filling up the mayor residence," Huo Da nodded her head.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted as he thought of a good idea. He said, "Go back right now and tell your mayor that if he wants the snowva, gather a batch of news viges and send them to Fishback City."

    Huo Da heaved a sigh of relief in his heart. It seemed that he wouldn¡¯t be killed. However, very soon, he became surprised, "News viges?"

    "Does Thunder City have them?" Ai Hui asked.

    "I¡¯m not sure." Huo Da shook his head.

    He was a revered Master, so why would he care about such trivial matters of marketce?

    "No matter what, you have to ask Old Qiao to get them for me," Ai Hui instructed Huo Da with a solemn tone. "This matter is extremely urgent!"

    When Huo Da heard the two words "extremely urgent", a premonition arose in his heart.

    When Ai Hui saw that Huo Da did not say anything, he continued to ask, "Have you remembered what I told you to do?"

    "Yes, I have memorized your words." Huo Da¡¯s voice was quivering slightly.

    "Tell Old Qiao that how much snowva he is going to get will depend on whether or not he does this job well," Ai Hui continued.

    "I will convey this message to the Mayor." Huo Da nodded his head.

    When Huo Da thought of the mayor residence that was fully packed with buyers, he knew how destructive this message was to the Mayor.

    "Then what about the current batch of snowva?" Huo Da asked carefully.

    "Get this thing done first!" Ai Hui said bluntly.

    "What about these essence elemental beans?"

    "Oh, you bring them back then."

    For a moment, Huo Da felt that he was going to cry. He painstakingly carried these essence elemental beans and flew here, and now he was going to carry them back to Thunder City?

    At this moment, he suddenly heard Ai Hui muttering, "No, he flies too slow!"

    Huo Da was annoyed. What a joke! He flew too slow? His azure wings were called "Comet Wings". They had an extremely fast speed. He flew like aet with them. That was why they were called "Comet Wings".

    Speed was a field that Huo Da specialized in. He could not help but blurt out, "Sir, I am using Comet Wings!"

    "That¡¯s still too slow!" Ai Hui shook his head. Following which, he yelled towards outside, "Get me Shi Zhiguang!"

    After a while, a tall and muscr man came in. His entire body was drenched in sweat. He asked, "Boss, you asked for me?"

    Without saying anything unnecessary, Ai Hui said, "Zhiguang, I have a mission for you. Bring this Master to Thunder City. Ask the Mayor to find some news viges and gather them here."

    "Okay!" Shi Zhiguang replied and prepared to run out of the house.

    "Use Pinwheel Sword," Ai Hui instructed Shi Zhiguang. "Ask Gu Xuan to bring some men and go along with you. Take care of your safety."

    "Yes!" Shi Zhiguang answered.

    Huo Da could not believe his eyes. This muscr man that was built like a iron pagoda could fly faster than him? And what kind of azure wings was Pinwheel Sword? He had never heard of it before. Was it a new model?

    He wanted to see what model of azure wings was faster than his Comet Wings!

    Huo Da was filled with incredulity. He had decided thatter he wouldpete with Shi Zhiguang¡¯s "Pinwheel Sword" to see who was faster.

    "Set off immediately. Remember, this matter is extremely urgent! Get it done as soon as possible!" Ai Hui reminded them with a deep voice.

    A cold shiver went down Shi Zhiguang¡¯s spine. Without saying anything, he broke into a run and dashed outside.

    Huo Da quickly followed him.

    After a while, Huo Da felt slightly puzzled. Shi Zhiguang wasn¡¯t using azure wings, he was actually running with his legs! Huo Da unhurriedly followed Shi Zhiguang, who was running frantically. Subsequently, they arrived at a huge and odd-looking structure.

    Huo Da could not help but take a second look at the structure. Such an odd shape.

    "Emergency gathering!"

    "Old Gu, Boss wants you to bring a team of men and follow me on a mission."

    "Alright!" Gu Xuan, who had just walked over, turned around and yelled, "Members from Merak and Megrez! Board the sword now!"

    Replies resounded through the air. Huo Da saw a group of people run out from the crowd that was resting. All of them ran frantically towards the odd-looking structure with their foreheads beaded with sweat.

    They ran up the structure and dashed into two pagodas.

    Huo Da was slightly curious. Were their azure wings inside the pagoda?

    "Come up!" Shi Zhiguang yelled at Huo Da.

    Huo Da acknowledged him and went up structure with a confused look on his face. He was waiting for those members to equip their azure wings.

    Suddenly, the floor beneath Huo Da trembled. His eyes widened abruptly.

    It... It was actually flying!

 Chapter 549: Itâ€™s Coming!

    Chapter 549: It¡¯s Coming!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Every "first time" in life was always unpredictable.

    For example, Huo Da certainly didn¡¯t expect his first mission in Thunder City to be transporting goods. Shi Zhiguang and Gu Xuan also didn¡¯t expect their first mission on the destructive Pinwheel Sword would be fetching people.

    However, Boss had said that this matter was extremely urgent, so none of them dared to idle.

    Shi Zhiguang stood at the position of sword operator with widened eyes, looking extremely focused. To him, the difficulty level of controlling the Pinwheel Sword to move forward at full speed paled inparison to the difficulty level of controlling it to makeplicated maneuvers.

    Usually, his training was much moreplicated than this. The Pinwheel Sword could not fly so fast. He had to control the speed, keep on changing directions, and finding suitable angles to make maneuvers.

    Shi Zhiguang was extremely excited to be able to fly the Pinwheel Sword at top speed without any worries. Such a chance was hard toe by. Ever since he became the sword operator, his love for speed had reached an unprecedented level. Being as fast as lightning gave him a mysterious sense of thrill.

    This was a speed that Shi Zhiguang found pleasurable. However, from the moment the Pinwheel Sword took off from the ground, Huo Da¡¯s face had been deathly pale.

    He was scared out of his wits!

    In terms of size, the Pinwheel Sword was much more smaller than the God-subduing Peak. However, in terms of speed, the God-subduing Peak was not Pinwheel Sword¡¯s match. Not only the God-subduing Peak, but no flying machine that Huo Da hade across before, be it the Fiery Floating Cloud or azure wings, could match Pinwheel Sword¡¯s speed.

    It was simply too fast!

    Huo Da, who was specialized in flying, actually felt dizzy. It was too fast! Thest time he felt dizzy was when he was twelve years old. That was the first time his teacher had brought him to fly.

    At this moment, Huo Da finally understood why Ai Hui said that he was too slow.

    As Huo Da got used to the speed of the Pinwheel Sword, the color of his face gradually returned to normal. A brand-new experience entered his body. He was slightly excited, looking as if he had gotten a new toy.

    How was it possible that it could fly so fast?

    Huo Da paid attention to the elemental energy changes taking ce in the Pinwheel Sword. Gradually, a look of awe and realization appeared on his face.

    The Pinwheel Sword was indeed a sword!

    The design of the Pinwheel Sword was very odd. There was ayer of sword gleam formed around it. The sword gleam was wide and thin, effortlessly slicing through the iing gale.

    Its flying style was very unique as well, resembling a stone that was skipping on water. The Pinwheel Sword would always slice through the sting wind through various very small angles. It flew swiftly along the gaps within the wind instead of going directly against it.

    Such insane creativity!

    It was too perfect!

    Huo Da never stopped eximing in admiration in his heart. In his eyes, the Pinwheel Sword was the perfect flying machine. No other flying machine could bepared to it. He sharply realized that the other flying machines would be obsolete with the emergence of the Pinwheel Sword.

    It was simply like a streak of lightning.

    He could not imagine how much fear and surprise such a sword gleam would cause in the enemy forces if it appeared on the battlefield!

    Huo Da¡¯s gaze subconsciously swept across the other people on the Pinwheel Sword.

    Gu Xuan was older and more experienced than Shi Zhiguang. This was his first mission and his mind was tense. He had to do his best for this mission. Throughout the journey, he was on high alert. The two sword pagodas took turns to rest and keep watch.

    When Thunder City appeared in Huo Da¡¯s line of sight, he was dazed. He found it very hard to believe what he had seen.

    Had they really reached Thunder City?

    Even though he had already epted the extraordinary speed of the Pinwheel Sword along the way, he still received a huge shock when Thunder City appeared in his line of sight.

    In Thunder City, the cloud defenseyer was keeping watch over the city vigntly.

    Last time around, the battle of Masters destroyed more than half of Thunder City. In the process, the cloud defenseyer waspletely destroyed as well. The current cloud defenseyer was built afterwards. Qiao Meiqi still remembered the lesson he learnt from that incident. Having immense wealth now, he built a cloud defenseyer that was thicker and sturdier than before. Its defensive capabilities were more outstanding as well. Of course, the price was much more expensive too.

    The number of elementalists stationed on the cloud defenseyer was more than before too. There were at least twenty elementalists.

    Nowadays, Thunder City had tight security. Even if it was an ordinary day, the guards would not dare to idle at all. The Mayor had told them that anyzy behaviour would result in them being fired. The treatment that Thunder City¡¯s guards received was far better than the other cities¡¯, so everyone treasured their jobs very much.

    Suddenly, someone asked puzzledly, "Do you all hear something?"

    The rest stopped joking and listened attentively.

    "Nothing."

    "I hear nothing as well."

    "What did you hear? Have you heard wrongly?"

    Everyone shook their heads.

    A puzzled look appeared on the face of the elementalist who heard something. Was it possible that he heard wrongly?

    "What¡¯s that?" an rmed cry broke out.

    Everyone shifted their gazes and saw a pin-sized light spot in the distant sky. The light spot was very small but unusually bright. It was trembling slightly in the sky.

    What was that?

    The spot that seemed to be glowing with light was far away from Thunder City. They widened their eyes but still could not tell what it was.

    "Is it a dire beast?"

    "What dire beast is it? Who has seen this dire beast before?"

    "I have never seen it before."

    Just as everyone broke into a lively discussion, someone said, "Eh? Is it bing slightlyrger?"

    Everyone took a closer look. The previously pin-sized light spot indeed becamerger.

    Becamerger...

    A fast-reacting elementalist¡¯s facial expression changed drastically as he screamed, "It¡¯s flying towards us!"

    Everyone looked as if they had just woken up from a dream and all of their facial expressions changed. The inside of the cloud defenseyer went into chaos.

    "rm! Pull the rm!"

    "Cloud defenseyer, activate!"

    "Rainscreen defense, activate!"

    "Elemental energy pools, all elemental energy pools take note!"

    Various orders were being passed down continuously. The atmosphere inside the cloud defenseyer was extremely tense. Everyone was on high alert, and ayer of perspiration had appeared on their foreheads.

    An elementalist cleared his throat and yelled, "It¡¯s too fast! We can¡¯t lock onto it!"

    The intense feeling of nervousness and fear altered the tone of his voice.

    After a while, the dazzling light spot had be the size of a fingernail. It looked as if the sun was flying towards them! The light spot was vibrating slightly, disying its terrifying speed in great detail.

    Buzz, buzz, buzz.

    The elementalists could feel their bodies trembling. They quickly discovered that it was the cloud defense system that was trembling. The fragmented yet powerful energy undtions made the cloud defense system looked like if it was on a high-speed vibrating sieve.

    "Not good! The elemental energy undtions are interfering with the cloud defenseyer!"

    An rmed cry rang across the interior of the cloud defenseyer. Everyone¡¯s faces turned numb with fear.

    What dire beast was it?

    How was it possible for it to possess such an incredible speed?

    The atmosphere of the cloud defenseyer¡¯s interior was solemn and tense.

    The mayor residence.

    Qiao Meiqi rubbed his temples. Not only did the number of buyers waiting outside the mayor residence not decrease, it was increasing constantly. Reportedly, someone had developed a new type of fire liquid that was suitable for pagoda cannons. This fire liquid reduced the usage of snowva.

    This also meant that the cost of using a pagoda cannon would decrease.

    Until now, all the fire liquids that were developed for the pagoda cannons needed snowva. People had tried many methods, but they eventually discovered that the power of pagoda cannons could be increased significantly by adding in a small amount of snowva. Even though fire liquids that did not contain snowva could still work, they were not powerful enough.

    After obtaining this piece of good news, everyone realized snowva had be even more important now!

    Previously, even though the pagoda cannons were very powerful, no one was interested in using them, as their cost was overly expensive. However, now that the technology of the pagoda cannons was gradually decoded and their cost was lowered, everyone could afford them now. As such, snowva became more important and the demand for snowva in the market increased significantly.

    Due to this series of information, those merchants who previously did not intend to buy snowva changed their minds and joined in the panic buying of snowva.

    This in turn caused the overcrowding outside the mayor residence.

    Qiao Meiqi was a businessman. Those who visited him were his guests, and as such, how could he chase them away? He did not want to offend anyone, but he was extremely anxious. Considering the time, Huo Da should be reaching Fishback City.

    Now he was just hoping that Huo Da could bring enough snowva back.

    It was still not enough!

    When Qiao Meiqi saw the massive crowd, he felt blissful and vexed at the same time. After Huo Da brought back the snowva, who should he sell it to first? When amodity was in high demand, a lot of science was involved in deciding who to sell it to.

    Suddenly, a deafening rm rang across the air, disrupting Qiao Meiqi¡¯s thought process. His facial expression changed slightly.

    During the battle of Mastersst time, he almost lost his life. When he heard the rm now, he was trembling with fear. However, when he thought of the huge sum of money that he invested in the defense system, he felt slightly at ease.

    Especially when he saw the two figures in the air, he regained hisposure.

    What was there that Masters couldn¡¯t solve? There were two Masters in the sky!

    At this moment, someone yelled, "Look, what¡¯s that in the horizon?"

    When Qiao Meiqi heard these words, he quickly looked at the horizon.

    An extremely dazzling light spot appeared in the horizon, and it was expanding in size rapidly. The light spot was so ring that it caused everyone¡¯s eyes to tear. No one could look at it directly.

    "It¡¯s moving extremely fast!"

    "Oh god, how is it possible that such a fast-moving beast exists?"

    An unprecedented sense of fear slowly extended throughout Thunder City. Those who were looking at the horizon had their faces turned white. A strong sense of fear and uneasiness engulfed their minds.

    Suddenly, a faintly discernible vibrating rustle rang across the air.

    The light spot became so bright that no one could look at it with their naked eyes.

    A sharp and dangerous aura engulfed the city. Like a star that fell from the sky, it was expanding continuously in everyone¡¯s eyes!

    "It¡¯sing!" someone yelled in rm.

    Inside the cloud defenseyer, all the guards were extremely tense. They let off an off-key, rmed cry in unison.

    "It¡¯sing!"

    The indescribable light spot was very close to the city. The visual impact from its extreme speed was overwhelming!

    A lightning-like streak of light shed across everyone¡¯s trembling eyes.

    The glowing trail left by it looked as if it had pierced through time and space.

    An odd-looking structure appeared outside of Thunder City.

    A dead silence swept across Thunder City.

    Everyone¡¯s mouths were agape as they stared nkly at the sky. All of their minds were in a daze.

    After a moment.

    Like a dyed tidal wave, the whistle and boom that followed tightly behind the flying structure collided heavily on the cloud defenseyer.

    Boom!

    Snow-white mist swept across the area. Like a tottering bubble, the rainscreen was fluctuating irregrly, looking as if it would copse any moment.

    Thunder City exploded into an uproar instantly.

 Chapter 550: Youâ€™re A New Citizen

    Chapter 550: You¡¯re A New Citizen

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Perfect emergency brake!

    Shi Zhiguang heaved a sigh of relief. He was very satisfied with his own performance. During the usual training sessions, he seldom had the chance to push the speed of the Pinwheel Sword to its limits. He also seldom practiced emergency brake when the Pinwheel Sword was travelling at its top speed. Furthermore, he was mentally and physically exhausted after travelling such a long distance.

    However, when he saw the chaotic Thunder City beneath him, where everyone was running in all directions in fear and panic, he was stunned.

    Not good. Shi Zhiguang¡¯s facial expression changed as he knew he had created huge trouble!

    .....

    The camp of the Spear of Heavy Cloud was packed with people every day.

    Various divisions leaders and important figures came all the way here to observe Fatty shoot Pagoda Cannon. Every now and then, rmed gasps could be heard from the crowd. The power of the Pagoda Cannon was indeed terrifying. In the hands of Fatty, there was a myriad of attacking styles for the Pagoda Cannon.

    A eager look appeared on many people¡¯s faces.

    "Will we really not get into trouble?" Sang Zhijun was slightly worried.

    Beside her, both Jiang Wei and Yang Xiaodong looked distressed. Things were getting out of hand. Those who did not know what was going might think that this was a popr circus, not abat division. Every day, there would be a huge number of peopleing here from various ces. They were here just to witness the might of the Pagoda Cannons. As such, the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp was always packed with people. Every now and then, there would also be discussions on how to forge the Pagoda Cannons and how to improve them.

    This caused the traveling speed of the Spear of Heavy Cloud to reduce significantly.

    ording to the original n, they should already have met the Dread Division and Judgement Division, which were escorting the God-subduing Peaks.

    The thing that astonished Jiang Wei and the rest was everyone¡¯s fervor toward the Pagoda Cannons. The only event that could bepared to the current Pagoda Cannon craze was when the Elders Guild publicized the blueprint for building elemental energy pools and encouraged everyone to build cities in the Wilderness.

    However, the Elders Guild was a highly revered organization whereas the Central Pine Valley was just a small power.

    The craze of the Pagoda Cannons was fully disyed through the current value of fire elementalists.

    When the Spear of Heavy Cloud had recruited fire elementalists at Lemon Camping Ground, they had attracted a huge number of fire elementalists. At that time, those fire elementalists were in dire straits. Not too long after the blood catastrophe broke out, the Fire Prairie was annexed by the Blood of God. The prices of fire elemental materials skyrocketed, making them extremely expensive. Fire elementalists could no longer sustain their usual training routines. Facing a simr situation were the earth elementalists.

    The emergence of snowva had captured the attention of fire elementalists. All of them went to Lemon Camping Ground to look for opportunities, leading to the grand asion back then. Shi Xueman wanted to build the Spear of Heavy Cloud with fire elementalists as its core. The fire elementalists she chose were those that passed the test of the fire reservoir. These fire elementalists were extremely determined. They could endure the extreme pain and never once cried out. They valued the opportunities that were given to them very much. Even though most of them were very low-level, they weren¡¯t a problem to the the Spear of Heavy Cloud at all due to the snowva production.

    However, as the Pagoda Cannons rose in poprity, the demand for fire elementalist skyrocketed. Any fire elementalist could easily find a lucrative job now. Those fire elementalists with outstanding abilities were a hotmodity.

    Of course, all the fire elementalists needed to be retrained to learn how to use the Pagoda Cannons.

    Pagoda Cannon Master became the premier progression path that all fire elementalists wanted to pursue.

    Jiang Wei and the rest saw with their own eyes how everyone¡¯s fervor got out of control in an extremely short period of time.

    After thinking for a while, Shi Xueman said bluntly, "I can¡¯t think of a better idea. Does anyone have a better idea?"

    The rest shook their heads.

    Honestly speak, they were not optimistic about publicizing the technology of the Pagoda Cannons. Everyone in themand department of the Spear of Heavy Cloud had different opinions toward the disclosure of the Pagoda Cannons¡¯ technology. However, Shi Xueman¡¯s reasoning eventually convinced them all. Given Shi Xueman¡¯s prestige, everyone trusted her decision.

    Shi Xueman blinked her eyes. "Furthermore, we still have Ai Hui. We won¡¯t get the worst of it."

    Everyone burst outughing in unison.

    Shi Xueman suddenly thought of Ai Hui¡¯s exasperated cursesing from behind when she flew off from the peak of ckfish Mouth Volcano during that snowy day. Her limpid and ice-cold eyes became gentle in an instant. Her lips curled into a faintly discernible smile.

    Only those who were very familiar with Shi Xueman could tell that she was very happy now.

    "Why are you so happy?" Sang Zhijun was astounded.

    "I am thinking how that fellow will handle this matter?" A mischievous look appeared on Shi Xueman¡¯s face.

    "I guess he will have a headache," Jiang Wei said while chuckling.

    Shi Xueman swept her gaze across everyone and realized that the worried looks on their faces had unwittingly disappeared. Everyone was probably willing to follow Ai Hui because they could let Ai Hui worry about those troublesome issues.

    .....

    Ai Hui was sitting alone on a rock at the peak of ckfish Mouth Volcano. He did not know since when, but he liked to sit on this piece of rock to gaze into the distance, ponder about matters, or get lost in thought.

    The only thing that he foundcking was that it had never snowed since that day.

    In the past, Ai Hui had not liked snowy days since he would be very cold. Now, he felt that a scenery with snow drifting in the sky was quite beautiful and interesting.

    Whenever he encountered problems, he would sit here alone and ponder over them. He wasn¡¯t a quick-witted individual, and the sly Bangwan had yet toplete his secluded training. As such, he couldn¡¯t find anyone to discuss his problems with and could only sit here and slowly contemte.

    A fat figure climbed up to the mountain peak with great difficulty, panting heavily along the way.

    An Chouchou sat his fat ass down beside Ai Hui. While panting heavily, he said, "It¡¯s very lonely to admire such beautiful scenery alone. Let Chouchou be Brother Ai¡¯spanion."

    Ai Hui felt helpless. Not only was An Chouchou fat, he was also thick-skinned. He thought of Fatty, who was also very thick-skinned. Was this a nature all fat people in the world?

    An Chouchou reclined halfway on a piece of boulder. He did not care about his image at all. Then, he asked, "Is Brother Ai having difficulty in making a decision?"

    "There¡¯s nothing difficult about making a decision." Ai Hui shook his head.

    "Oh? So Brother Ai has made your decision?" A glint shed across An Chouchou¡¯s pea-sized eyes. He smiled confidently and said, "Weplement each other very well. This alliance is a win-win situation for both of us. There is a huge number of new citizens, but weck the resources of aristocratic families. Now that we have Brother Ai¡¯s creativity, we are like a tiger with wings. Just like Master Wang, Brother Ai¡¯s name willst for all eternity and be remembered by everyone in the world."

    Ai Hui merely smiled. He did not agree or disagree with An Chouchou¡¯s words.

    Ever since Ai Hui injury, he felt that his mind had be calmer, that he, himself, had be a much quieter person. He did not know whether this was because of the existence of the sword cloud or because his body had be weaker. His mind was pure and limpid.

    The details that he ignored in the past would asionally stun him nowadays. They were exquisite and real, making him emotional for some unknown reason.

    His ferocity had diminished significantly as well.

    If the Ai Hui of the past was like an unsheathed treasure sword that gave off a cold glint, the Ai Hui now was gentle and tranquil like a sword gleam hidden within the sheath.

    An Chouchou was in a rather good mood. Filled with vigor, he said, "Brother Ai¡¯s way of thinking is creative. You¡¯re really a genius. I wonder what that metal basket-like structure is? I can see that it moves unusually fast."

    Even though there was a casual look on his face, deep down he was awaiting Ai Hui¡¯s answer with rapt attention. When he saw the enormous structure fly, he was overwhelmed with astonishment.

    An Chouchou¡¯s eyesight was sharp. He could tell that it was an extraordinary structure with a single nce.

    Initially, he thought it was a structure like the God-subduing Peak. The principle behind the God-subduing Peak was developed from the theory of [Treating the city as a piece of cloth], which was the brainchild of Wang Shouchuan. In this world, other than the Elders Guild, the person who was most likely to build a God-subduing Peak was undoubtedly Ai Hui.

    Previously, there were some people who were doubtful whether Ai Hui had learned one or two things from Wang Shouchuan. However, after the birth of the Pagoda Cannons, everyone finally knew that Ai Hui was well-versed in Wang Shouchuan¡¯s theories. The fact that no one was able to imitate and create snowva up to this point was the best proof.

    "That¡¯s the Pinwheel Sword." Ai Hui cast a nce at An Chouchou. "Brother Chou is also interested in swordsmen gadgets?"

    "Swordsmen?" An Chouchou furrowed his eyebrows.

    He had not expected it to be a gadget for swordsmen. Immediately, he lost interest in it. Swordsmen had enjoyed a rather good reputation for the past few years, but the biggest representative for swordsmanship was still the Karakorum Sword League. In An Chouchou¡¯s eyes, Karakorum Pris was Madam Ye¡¯sckey, and not many people would go to the Karakorum Sword League to learn swordsmanship. As such, there were very few swordsmen among the new citizens. These few swordsmen were very low-level as well.

    "Only a swordsman can use it." Ai Hui nodded his head.

    An Chouchou initially thought well of the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s future and usefulness. At this moment, he said, "It¡¯s such a pity. I can see that it moves fast like lightning, so much so that it¡¯s faster than any flying devices and structures today. If it was used on the battlefield, it¡¯s perfect for long-range raids and sneak attacks."

    Ai Hui had no choice but to admit that even though An Chouchou was ugly and his base level was low, he had an extremely sharp insight for things that he had never seen before.

    An Chouchou changed the topic and asked shamelessly, "Can Brother Ai build one for Newlight City too?"

    Indeed, not only was his insight top-notch, his shamelessness was also top-notch.

    Ai Hui could not be bothered with this fellow. He knew An Chouchou was someone who asked for a mile when one gave him an inch.

    Seeing that Ai Hui ignored him, An Chouchou did not get angry, merely smiling.

    On the mountain peak, the wind became stronger and colder. Night gradually descended.

    "Honestly speaking, I am still not used to nighttime in the wild," An Chouchou suddenly muttered, looking as if he was reminiscing about something. "In the past, in the Avalon of Five Elements, everywhere was brightly lit like the stars in the sky when it was nighttime. One could go anywhere at night. There were no dire beasts, and one did not need to fear for his or her safety. There were stores that sold midnight snacks everywhere on the streets. Everyone could have fun untilte into the night. There would still be heavy traffic on the streets at midnight. The powerful individuals could fight with each other, while themoners could still lead a peaceful life."

    Ai Hui remained silent. He thought of Central Pine City.

    Back then, even the most ordinary small town would be filled with vigor and liveliness. That scene was so beautiful that it resembled a dreand. When those days still existed, peopleined about them being utterly boring. However, when the congration of war arrived and every day was filled with life-and-death struggles and blood, everyone wished they could return to those peaceful and mundane days.

    "Ai Hui, you¡¯re a new citizen."

    An Chouchou stared at Ai Hui with a solemn look on his face.

    "We, as the new citizens, shouldn¡¯t be enved and trampled on. Ai Hui, no matter what, we have to decide on this alliance before Master¡¯s Glory ispleted. If we drag this decision out until then, everything will be meaningless. Master¡¯s Glory is much scarier than you expect. That woman is a lunatic!"

    An Chouchou looked sinister, and his facial expression was distorted. His eyes were filled with deep hatred and resentment.

    Ai Hui was startled.

 Chapter 551: The Purest Sword Lineage

    Chapter 551: The Purest Sword Lineage

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "When I first saw it, I knew it was extraordinary. It is destined to dazzle the entire sky."

    -- News Master Wen Youming

    Wen Yongming was a famous news reporter from the news vige, "Elemental World."

    The rise of news viges, which was due to the decrease in the production cost of the mirage bean pods, happened not too long ago. However, the number of news viges was already growing at a terrifying speed. Everyone was bing increasingly used to buying newly-released mirage bean pods every day to watch the content they were interested in.

    Some high-tier news viges were able to distinguish themselves from the rest and expanded rapidly. Elemental World was one of these news viges.

    The rise of news viges also gave rise to a new profession, news reporter. They were hired by news viges to gather news from various topics. They were an indispensable part of a news vige.

    As a reporter, one did not need to have a high base level, but rather, one definitely needed sharp senses. Knowing how to obtain valuable news from the chaotic world and how to conquer audiences involved a lot of science,

    Wen Yongming was a well-known reporter, otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have been targeted and hired by Elemental World.

    He had arrived in Thunder City one month ago. His attention was captured by the snowva. Qiao Meiqi was the only snowva retailer, and he had a mysterious rtionship with the Central Pine Valley.

    As a professional reporter, Wen Yongming was very interested in everything that had to do with Ai Hui. Ai Hui¡¯s reappearance in the world was orchestrated and hyped up by the New Citizen Faction using news viges. One could say that the Lightning de was the first sessful news story for the world of news viges.

    Unlike those who disappeared without a trace afterying low for a period of time, Ai Hui was able to reappear on the world¡¯s radar despite disappearing for some time.

    He then established the mysterious Central Pine Valley!

    Wen Yongming witnessed with his own eyes how the news of Ai Hui¡¯seback spread and resulted in the grand gathering of the Central Pine Faction. Wen Yongming was filled with interest toward Ai Hui. All this time, he had been paying attention to various information rted to Ai Hui and the Central Pine Valley.

    For example, the Battle of Clearwater City, Ai Hui bing the first ever Lightning Master, the Central Pine Valley¡¯s snowva being graded as an A-grade fire liquid, the bloody signboard at Lemon Camping Ground, the Shi Xueman-led Spear of Heavy Cloud winning two battles in a row, the recent Pagoda Cannon craze, etc.

    The Central Pine Valley was still very mysterious, as if it was covered by a dense fog.

    Many aspects of the Central Pine Valley intrigued Wen Yongming.

    For example, the fact that the Central Pine Valley¡¯s strength kept on increasing. It was not just one person improving, but rather, everyone in the Central Pine Valley was improving together.

    Another example was that other powers wished the whole world would know about their feats, but not the Central Pine Valley. It seemed that the entire Central Pine Valley had not appeared on the world¡¯s radar at all. No one paid great attention to their existence. Only when certain huge events or conflicts broke out would the long-forgotten Central Pine Valley appear on the world¡¯s radar.

    A low-profile power like them always got on the nerves of other powers.

    Previously, the Central Pine Valley had very few people. Most of them were from the Central Pine Faction. The formation of theirbat divisions happened not too long ago. Everyone thought highly of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. After all, Shi Xueman was well-versed in military warfare and the Central Pine Faction was mainly made up ofbat veterans. They had a bright future. However, no one expected Shi Xueman to bring a bunch of unknown rookie fire elementalists to the battlefield and win two battles in a row.

    The Central Pine Valley had a magical allure over Wen Yongming.

    After waiting for a month, he still did not make any gains. Even so, he wasn¡¯t anxious. As an outstanding reporter, having patience was a must. Even if he put in effort, he might not receive any payback. However, if he did not put in any effort, he wouldn¡¯t even have the chance to receive any payback at all.

    Now, he finally received payback from the effort he had invested. From the huge number of customers crowding outside the mayoral residence waiting to buy snowva, Wen Yongming immediately understood that the pagoda cannon craze would have an extremely deep impact on Beyond Avalon and the entire world.

    However, at this point in time, he could only look nkly at the oddly-shaped structure hovering in the sky outside of Thunder City.

    He had never seen such an odd-looking structure before.

    It was like a misshapendle or a walking stick. Atop it, there were a few pagodas that were of different heights. Beneath it, countless swords were hanging, resembling wind chimes. At the back of the structure, there was a rotatable pinwheel.

    No matter how he looked at it, it looked like an oversized handicraft that was made by a child and very stupid-looking at that.

    However, it was this odd-looking structure that struck an unprecedented fear and panic in all of Thunder City.

    An elementalist from descended from it. Oh? Wasn¡¯t that Master Huo Da?

    Wen Yongming was stunned momentarily. When he returned to his senses, his face flushed with excitement.

    Master Huo Da travelled day and night to go to the Central Pine Valley!

    The Central Pine Valley!

    This odd-looking structure was from the Central Pine Valley!

    Wen Yongming forced himself to stay calm. He knew he had gotten himself a big scoop this time around! He took out a mirage bean pod in a flurry. Following which, he pinched and broke its outer shell, revealing five sparkling, translucent, and dark green beans.

    He inserted a trace of elemental energy into the beans. With a soft pop, the beans became a wiggling ball of light. Within the ball of light, there was an image of the odd-looking flying structure outside the city.

    "Hello everyone. This odd-looking structure that everyone is looking at now is a rarely-seen flying device. This is the first time it has appeared in front of the world. We have never heard of it before. Ites from the mysterious Central Pine Valley. That¡¯s right! The Central Pine Valley that triggered the pagoda cannon craze! The speed of this flying device exceeds our understanding of speed. When it arrived just now, the violent shock wave it created almost destroyed the defenses of Thunder City. Now, let us take a closer look at it..."

    Wen Yongming controlled the mirage bean pod and talked as he moved closer to the Pinwheel Sword.

    Huo Da descended to calm everyone down while the rest of the Sword of Lightning¡¯s members continued to be on alert.

    Previously, the ruckus they created shocked the entire Thunder City. Shi Zhiguang¡¯s face was filled with regret. Now, he felt that what he had just done was overly rash. The city gate of Thunder City was absolutely empty, with no one daring to get close to them. It was as if they were a dire beast that would eat people!

    At the empty city gate, there was a man holding a ball of light. That man was mumbling nonstop to himself as he moved closer to them.

    What should they do?

    Everyone looked at Gu Xuan.

    Gu Xuan was vexed as well.

    Clearly, this person was a reporter. The mission that Boss gave them was to bring as many reporters back as possible. That meant he couldn¡¯t kill this fellow. However, this man kept on recording them, making Gu Xuan extremely ufortable. He felt something wasn¡¯t right.

    Should he silence this fellow?

    Luckily, Gu Xuan was an experienced veteran. After thinking about it, he still had to bring a batch of reporters back. As such, he couldn¡¯t keep the Pinwheel Sword a secret no matter what. He let Wen Yongming move closer and record them. Turning around, he yelled at the other members, "Everyone, wake up! Have you not eaten anything? Whoever looks unmorous on the mirage bean pod will receive extra training sessions when we go back!"

    When everyone, including Shi Zhiguang, heard the words "extra training sessions," they raised their heads and stuck out their chests, releasing a surging ferocious aura.

    "... Its shape is extremely odd. It¡¯s uglier than the most ugly-looking dire beast. Until now, we still don¡¯t know what is it used for. However, the speed that this monster disyed just now is unusually terrifying. It is faster than all azure wings, Fiery Floating Clouds, and dire beasts. Since this monster is from the Central Pine Valley, it is destined to be extraordinary..."

    Everyone was already stressed out by the man¡¯s nonstop muttering. All of them trained with the Pinwheel Sword day and night, so they had developed a deep rtionship with it. As such, when the man kept on referring to the Pinwheel Sword as a "monster," one of the members could not help but cry out, "It¡¯s a Pinwheel Sword! It¡¯s not a monster!"

    Wen Yongming¡¯s eyes lit up and quickly raised his volume to exin, "A Pinwheel Sword! This monster-like flying structure is a sword! Oh, that¡¯s right, Ai Hui is the Lightning de, and hisbat division is called the Sword of Lightning. This Pinwheel Sword no doubt possesses the purest sword lineage. It¡¯spletely filled with the aura of swords..."

    Ha.

    One of the members could not help butugh.

    Gu Xuan turned around with eyes filled with anger and asked, "What¡¯s so funny?"

    "Boss Gu, the purest shamelessness lineage... filled with the aura of shamelessness..." the member¡¯s face was bright-red from holding in hisughter.

    [1] "Sword" and "Shamelessness" have the same pronunciation in Chinese.

    The rest responded to that member¡¯s joke andughed all over the ce.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s face turned ck.

    .....

    When Qiao Meiqi saw Huo Da, his heart skipped a beat.

    Don¡¯t tell me he is also a traitor!

    The incident with Yang Xiaodong had left a dark shadow in his heart. Moreover, there was no reason for Huo Da to be back so soon. He had also never seen the odd-looking flying structure in the sky outside of the city before. Furthermore, he could tell that the odd-looking structure harbored malicious intentions just from its recent disy of might.

    However, when Qiao Meiqi heard Gu Xuan¡¯s roar, he was stunned.

    Gu Xuan was the vice division leader of Ai Hui, so Qiao Meiqi naturally recognized him. Qiao Meiqi immediately realized that this odd-looking structure was a new creation of the Central Pine Valley!

    His eyes lit up as he took a closer look at it.

    In his eyes, the Central Pine Valley was definitely not the strongest power. However, it was definitely the one that knew how to make the most money. Every new creation they came up with was definitely something good, something that made a lot of money.

    At this moment, he happened to hear the name of the Pinwheel Sword.

    Pinwheel Sword?

    So this structure was called a Pinwheel Sword. It was so fast!

    Would it sell well?

    After thinking about it, Qiao Meiqi knew that it would definitely sell well. Just its speed alone was enough to make people pay for it with essence elemental beans.

    It was a good product!

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s eyes were brightly lit. However, when Huo Da walked over and told him exactly what Ai Hui had said, his facial expression changed.

    Qiao Meiqi was an experienced businessman. After Huo Da told him what Ai Hui said, he knew that Ai Hui must have something to announce, and that it had to be rted to the snowva and the recent pagoda cannon craze.

    When he thought more deeply about it, a cold shudder went down his spine.

    Right, he and Ai Hui were bound together by mutual benefits. If Ai Hui was done for, his good days woulde to an end as well.

    Under a strong sense of danger, Qiao Meiqi¡¯s efficiency was exceptional. Very soon, he had gathered all the reporters in Thunder City. However, Thunder City wasn¡¯t a huge city like Skyheart City, so it didn¡¯t have that many reporters.

    There were only seven reporters in total!

    When Qiao Meiqi thought of Ai Hui¡¯s words, "How much snowva he is going to get will have to depend on whether or not he does a good job," his mind went into a daze. He knew that Ai Hui seldom said such harsh words. If he said these words, that meant he was for real.

    Since he did not have that many reporters, he had to use other people to make up the numbers.

    The huge number of customers that surrounded the mayoral residence were representatives for various powers. Since Ai Hui had an important announcement to make, it must affect these people as well.

    Qiao Meiqi was uncertain. He could only console himself like this.

 Chapter 552: Knife

    Chapter 552: Knife

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    In a simple room, on a red y stove, sat a steaming silver pot. It was like an angry little monster spouting thick steam. Mist lingered around, keeping the room especially warm.

    It wasn¡¯t easy for Nian Tingfeng to enjoy a leisurely afternoon just reading books and sipping on tea. He was very rxed.

    A knock came at the door.

    Nian Tingfeng¡¯s gaze never left the scroll in his hands. He casually called out, "Come in."

    An ordinary looking man walked in and bowed respectfully. "Boss."

    The Surveince Division was probably the onlybat division that took looks into consideration. Members mustn¡¯t be overly handsome, ugly, tall, sturdy, strong, and so on. If you were thrown into a crowd and became impossible to find, then congrattions, the Surveince Division needs you.

    The Surveince Division was filled with average looking members. It was difficult to find someone even a little eye-catching.

    Nian Tingfeng asked idly, "It¡¯s all arranged?"

    His subordinate reported, "Yes, we¡¯ve made arrangements with the main news vige. Everyone will be able to see how the Spear of Heavy Cloud prevailed over the Ardent Flower Blood Division. We were quite far away, but it was a pretty decent spot."

    Nian Tingfeng continued reading his book and replied, "Praise Shi Xueman more. We must shape her into the hero of elementalists so she can share the burden of our hope."

    "Yes."

    "When the time is ripe, we can discuss the pagoda cannon and make a move from there."

    "Yes."

    Noticing that his subordinate wasn¡¯t in high spirits, Nian Tingfeng diverted his gaze and put his scroll down. "Any problems?"

    His subordinate kept quiet.

    Nian Tingfeng picked up the silver pot unhurriedly and filled it with water. "Xiao Lin, how long have you been working for me?"

    "16 years, Boss."

    Moved, Nian Tingfeng continued, "Yeah, 16 years. You¡¯re the person I worry about the least. You¡¯ve never hesitated to execute tasks that I have assigned you, no matter how dangerous they were. I did not expect for you to hesitate today."

    Guilt shed across Xiao Lin¡¯s eyes. "I just feel... they¡¯re fighting so hard at the front line..."

    Nian Tingfeng interrupted calmly, "And we¡¯re stabbing knives into their backs? You feel ufortable?"

    Exposed, Xiao Lin answered frankly, "The situation is so dangerous, but the higher ups are still engrossed in their internal strife. We are at a loss and do not know what stance to take."

    Nian Tingfeng exined amiably, "You guys aren¡¯t the only one feeling this way. I am too, but look at Beyond Avalon. It is like a sheet of loose sand with the cities standing alone. Can they obstruct the Blood of God? It¡¯s true that Shi Xueman is powerful, and it¡¯s an amazing feat that the Spear of Heavy Cloud have aplished by wiping out the Ardent Flower Blood Division. However, the Ardent Flower Blood Division is only one of the 12 blood division. There are still six god divisions above them. Can Shi Xueman pull strongly against this crazy tide? No. Can Shenwei and Caijue do it? No, because our forces are all too fragmented. Will Shenwei and Caijue take orders? Will the Spear of Heavy Cloud?"

    Xiao Lin kept silent.

    Nian Tingfeng added, "What we need now isn¡¯t one or two victories. We must look at the overall situation. On arge scale, what do we need the most? We must unify the forces. Only then might we be able to win. Victory is impossible if we all fight our own battles. As for the person who will unify the forces, I¡¯m not really concerned. So far, I think the likelihood of Madam Ye being that person is the highest."

    "If there¡¯s really a hero, us small figures won¡¯t be able to obstruct him or her. If the so-called hero can¡¯t even get passed us, then hero is not the right term. I don¡¯t actually want to talk about any major principles. There are many reasonings in the world, and they all make their own sense. We are like a knife, so we should just do what knives do. Don¡¯t you think so?"

    Xiao Lin stayed quiet and hung his head down shortly. "You words are right."

    Nian Tingfeng waved his hand. "I can¡¯t tell when the battle will start. Get everyone to feel at ease. Do things slowly, and look around slowly. We have time. Why be heroic in this chaotic world? This chaotic world is like a sieve, sifting away the unlucky and the weak. We¡¯re part of the sieve. How could this sieve get in the way of a true hero?"

    Xiao Lin was impressed, his dejected look vanishing. "I¡¯ll pass on the message to everybody."

    Nian Tingfeng warned repeatedly, "It¡¯s most important to get things done properly. As long as the knife is sharp and serviceable, Madam will need it and the hero will need it too. If the knife is not useful, what use would it be for Madam or the hero?"

    Xiao Lin was convinced. "Yes!"

    .....

    Thunder City, two hourster.

    "Everyone securely seated?"

    Gu Xuan¡¯s stern gaze swept across the crowd inside of the Pinwheel Sword. He was having a headache. Boss had instructed him to bring some of the news viges¡¯ reporters back. By bringing so many of them back, would it be considered mission aplished or not?

    He was uncertain.

    However, he had taken the situation into consideration. Plus, Boss intended that the selection should be done by Qiao Meiqi. They just had to transport the people over as fast as possible.

    Needless to say, the reporters stirred at the news that Qiao Meiqi wanted them to head to the mysterious Central Pine Valley. They quickly packed their belongings and brought sufficient mirage bean pods along.

    The guests at the mayoral residence¡¯s gate also took the chance to express their interest.

    The Central Pine Valley was supremely popr, and everyone wanted to be associated with it. Yet, it was like a tortoise, making it impossible for people to make a move. Those who approached the valley would go missing, their fates unknown.

    Those who wanted to purchase snowva would have to go to Thunder City.

    Now that there was a chance to head directly to the Central Pine Valley, no one was going to let it slip by. Agitated they shouted things like "Mayor Qiao, how long are you going to make us wait?" and "This isn¡¯t how you do business" in hopes of traveling along.

    Qiao Meiqi, who was initially worried about the number of reporters, took advantage of the situation and "reluctantly" agreed.

    He even took Gu Xuan¡¯s doubt upon himself, making others look at him with a whole new level of respect. He¡¯s an interesting guy indeed!

    Qiao Meiqi was a wise man. Whether there were sufficient people or not, Gu Xuan wouldn¡¯t be affected, but this nk was still going tond on his buttocks. He reckoned that seven reporters wouldn¡¯t satisfy Ai Hui. Bringing more people would at least present a greater chance.

    Everybody boarded the Pinwheel Sword, looking and touching around. They were full of curiosity.

    Yet, many of them were also inwardly being mindful.

    From the snowva to pagoda cannon, the Central Pine Faction had created one trend after another. Could the Pinwheel Sword be the next craze?

    It was a rare opportunity for them to experience riding in it.

    The seven reporters were even more excited, taking out their mirage bean pods and recording fervently.

    Gu Xuan couldn¡¯t be bothered with them. He dered the seven pagodas as prohibited ground, sending people to stand guard. As he started operating the Pinwheel Sword, the elemental energy wave that it emitted was enough to cover its elemental trace, so no one could tell.

    "Sit tight! We are setting off!"

    Gu Xuan was somewhat resentful. There were so few passengers, yet it took two hours just to get everybody seated. How slow. Ever since he started leading his own team, his voice had thickened since he was basically roaring the whole time.

    "It looks so strange!"

    "Yeah, I wonder why."

    "Big dipper. It¡¯s like the big dipper."

    "Swordsmen always have such odd things."

    Everyone on board discussed enthusiastically as they looked in all directions, full of curiosity and anticipation. Gu Xuan¡¯s words fell on deaf ears. He wasn¡¯t even a Master so why was he yelling? As everyone was in high spirits, no one bothered with Gu Xuan. They were just looking and touching everything.

    Gu Xuan didn¡¯t look too good. He felt as if he was leading a group of defiant tourists.

    Due to the Sword of Lightning¡¯s training, he had gradually gotten used to a life of strict discipline and tranquility. He wasn¡¯t used to morous scenes.

    Luckily, there would not be such missions in future, he consoled himself.

    He yelled toward Shi Zhiguang, who was at the rear, "Set off!"

    Shi Zhiguang, too, shouted, "Set off!"

    The Pinwheel Sword lifted off the ground with a lightness that contradicted of its bulk. It then sped up and pierced through the clouds like an oblique sword ray. Those inside could feel the experience more directly and intensely.

    "Ahhhhhhhh!"

    "Oh my god, oh my mother!"

    "Oh father!"

    ...

    Ear-piercing shrieks echoed. The sudden and sharp eleration caught everyone off guard. Many of them their lost bnce and fell onto the ground like cbashes. It was a mess.

    Gu Xuan snorted lightly, raising his chin. He had deliberately chosen not to remind them.

    Ever since he had started following Ai Hui, he had been slightly infected by his badass style of doing things.

    The passengers were pale, and the more timid ones were trembling uncontrobly in their thighs. They were all familiar with flying, but had never experienced such extreme speed.

    The scenery on both sides flew by at a speed difficult for the naked eye to catch. It was like a brightly-colored optical tape. The rising screen was transparent like crystal, and they could clearly see the light scars and sparks created by the friction between the screen and the violent airflow.

    Even if they were separated by ayer of light screen, everybody couldn¡¯t help but feel rmed and frightened.

    Wen Yongmin was rather afraid initially. His mind had been nk since they took flight. The tide-like shrieks drowned him, his face was pale, and his whole body was shaking.

    When the flight started stabilizing, however, he regained his senses.

    Excited, the blood returned to his pale face.

    His first reaction was to check his mirage bean pod. Luckily, he had it all recorded. He knew he was going to strike it rich! He could imagine how big of amotion his video was going to cause!

    He surveyed those around him. Everybody was feeling excited and emotional.

    As a veteran reporter, Wen Yongmin was an expert at digging for news. He had been presented with an extremely rare chance since the Central Pine Valley had always kept a low profile. Wen Yongmin was determined to cherish this opportunity.

    He locked his gaze onto Gu Xuan. This middle-aged man looked like the leader of these people.

 Chapter 553: Mirage Craze

    Chapter 553: Mirage Craze

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Wen Yongmin walked forward and politely greeted, "Hi, I¡¯m Wen Yongmin, a reporter from Elemental World news vige. Can I ask you a few questions?"

    Upon hearing the words "Elemental World," Gu Xuan¡¯s eyes lit up. He had bought Elemental World¡¯s mirage bean pods before, but the second half of the sentence alerted him. "You can ask, but I may not answer depending on confidentiality."

    "No problem," Wen Yongmin agreed easily. He started, "May I have your name and upation? Are these confidential?"

    After some thought, Gu Xuan felt it unnecessary to conceal these. "I¡¯m Gu Xuan, a swordsman and vice division leader of the Sword of Lightning.

    Wen Yongmin jolted. He caught a big fish!

    The Central Pine Valley was very mysterious and outsiders knew little of it. They knew of its twobat divisions, the Spear of Heavy Cloudmanded by Shi Xueman and the Sword of Lightning led personally by Ai Hui.

    It was said that the Spear of Heavy Cloud was the Central Pine Valley¡¯s backbone, so the outside world thought more highly of it. Shi Xueman and her division¡¯s miraculous victory also validated the fact that outsiders had been underestimating their capability.

    Meanwhile, the otherbat division, the Sword of Lightning, was extremely mysterious.

    Wen Yongmin was experienced and careful. Expressed a cooperative attitude, he continued, "Is this called a Pinwheel Sword? Can you introduce it a little? You don¡¯t have to reveal anything confidential."

    Gu Xuan thought about it and answered, "The Pinwheel Sword is a creation invented by our division leader."

    Wen Yongmin¡¯s eyes lit up. "Sir Ai Hui?"

    Gu Xuan nodded, satisfied with how Wen Yongmin had addressed Ai Hui.

    Wen Yongmin¡¯s impression of the Pinwheel Sword rose a notch. Ai Hui¡¯s creations were always pleasantly surprising.

    Wen Yongmin asked directly, "Is the pagoda cannon his creation as well?"

    After some thought, Gu Xuan believed that this wasn¡¯t a secret. "That¡¯s right."

    "Snowva too?"

    Again, nothing confidential. Gu Xuan answered candidly, "Right."

    Wen Yongmin¡¯s heart stirred. This was the first time the Central Pine Valley had given direct confirmation that the pagoda cannon and snowva were made personally by Ai Hui. In the past, there were only conjectures.

    Wen Yongmin eximed in admiration, "For being able to innovate so many new things, Boss Ai Hui is simply extraordinary."

    With an honored look on his face, Gu Xuan raised his head and puffed his chest. "True, not many canpare to him in this aspect."

    "Are members of the Sword of Lightning all swordsmen?"

    Gu Xuan hesitated for a while before answering, "Yes. Many of them weren¡¯t at the beginning, but they all are now."

    He was uncertain as to whether or not the members were considered swordsmen. He felt that they were entirely different from the traditional definition of swordsmen, but if they weren¡¯t swordsmen, what were they?

    All right, new swordsmen.

    Wen Yongmin asked directly, "What¡¯s the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s source of energy? Essence elemental beans?"

    Gu Xuan hesitated for a little while but figured that snowva was no longer a secret substance. "Snowva."

    Wen Yongmin was shocked. Eyes wide open, he repeated, "Snowva?"

    "That¡¯s right."

    Wen Yongmin couldn¡¯t describe his astonishment. Using snowva as the fuel, it was no wonder that the Central Pine Valley possessed the recipe for snowva.

    But to Wen Yongmin, what seemed obvious would actually impact this era greatly.

    The pagoda cannon¡¯s poprity and the freshly fashioned Pinwheel Sword were evidence that snowva¡¯s utility far exceeded people¡¯s imagination.

    Furthermore, as the sole producer of snowva, the Central Pine Valley had a bright future as long as they could defend themselves. Wen Yongmin, who was familiar with the style of powerful influences, knew that many would be lusting over it, however. He suddenly understood why Ai Hui needed to gather the reporters.

    Could it be that Ai Hui had realized it too?

    Wen Yongmin became agitated once again. No matter what choice Ai Hui made. it would have a significant impact on this era.

    No, Ai Hui¡¯s impact on this era had surfaced long ago.

    To a reporter, the opportunity to witness such a historical moment was extremely precious.

    Suppressing his agitation, Wen Yongmin asked, "Are we heading to the Central Pine Valley?"

    "No." Gu Xuan shook his head. "We¡¯re going to Fishback City."

    "Fishback City?"

    "That¡¯s right. The ce where Master Wang Xiaoshan had his breakthrough, and the ce he constructed all by himself."

    Wen Yongmin was once again in disbelief. Mouth agape, he asked, "He built it single-handedly?"

    At that moment, they were flying toward the horizon. Far away, at the confluence of heaven and earth, faint rays of light emerged as they flew to the dividing line between day and night..

    Wen Yongmin and the rest enjoyed the sunrise, but were unaware that in the other corner of Beyond Avalon, a storm was brewing.

    The sun had just risen from the horizon, its radiance driving away the darkness as cities awoke from their sleep. Although cities nowadays had fewer skyscrapers, no longer had the whirring of Three Leaves Bamboo Carts and Fiery Floating Clouds to cover the sky, and were less developed than those in the Avalon of Five Elements, there was a kind of never seen before change. As long as there were citizens upying thend, it would quietly blossom with the aura of "life."

    On the streets, steam was hanging in the air above the bun and pastry shops, attracting the gaze of passersby rushing past. Having starved for a whole night, the best constion for these empty stomachs would be a bowl of piping hot soy milk to go along with some deep-fried breadsticks.

    No matter how the eras changed, how trends faded, how Three Leave Bamboo Carts and Fiery Floating Clouds might disappear from the lives of citizens, this "life" would live on forever. It wouldn¡¯t stop for a rest, just like the sun that rose and set every single day.

    Still, it was predestined that this wasn¡¯t going to be an ordinary morning.

    "Watch how the Spear of Heavy Cloud defeated the Ardent Flower Blood Division, from beginning to end!"

    "Gruesome! Gruesome! Gruesome! Timid ones stay away!"

    "The North Sea¡¯s lone girl. A woman not letting a man off!"

    "Enlightenment on the battlefield. The first Pagoda Cannon Master releasing deadly white mes!"

    ...

    Outside the mirage bean pod shop, sales assistants shouted at the top of their lungs, their faces flushed. This scene was replicated throughout all mirage bean pod shops in every city.

    Passersby stopped at these shops. Like magic, the assistants¡¯ shouts pulled them over.

    "Give me a copy!"

    "One copy for me."

    Everyone was filled with curiosity and incited. The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s victory had been widely disseminated earlier, but the details hadn¡¯t been made public.

    Now that the details were being revealed, everyone was highly interested. Their enthusiasm far exceeded the news viges¡¯ predictions. Even before noon, all the mirage bean pods had been sold out. News viges had no choice but to increase production of new mirage bean pods.

    He Min was 14 years old. He was a student of the Hyde Training Hall. The Hyde Training Hall wasn¡¯t considered big, but was well-known for grooming youngsters. The training hall was responsible for producing quite a few talented individuals, and among them was one who had gone on to be the Wind Mail Division¡¯s vice division leader. Due to this affiliation, the Hyde Training Hall had also be the division¡¯s co-training ground. Each year, the Wind Mail Division would go over to the Hyde Training Hall to pick suitable students to replenish its ranks with young blood.

    In this chaotic world and time, being recruited into abat division was the best way out.

    After bing the Wind Mail Division¡¯s co-training ground, the skills that the Hyde Training Hall imparted changed somewhat. In this era, there wasn¡¯t time for you to slowly instruct your students. If they could not adapt to battles quickly, their future would be very bleak, and the training hall would be renounced by the public since no one would train there. The number of students selected by thebat divisions was an grand yearly test for the training hall. If students were recruited into a well-knownbat division, the reputation of the training hall would soar.

    As usual, He Min arrived at the training hall and was greeted by excited faces. They gathered around and discussed fervently.

    He didn¡¯t exactly like to join in the buzz, so he stayed apart.

    He changed into his training garments and went over the imparted content from the previous training in his head a few times. He was very focused and quickly started to sweat. He came from an ordinary family, and before the blood catastrophe, they had managed a small family business and were living quite well. When the blood catastrophe erupted, however, the whole family followed the exodus into the Wilderness to rebuild their lives, and they fell into financial straits.

    The good thing was that his whole family was alive and together. It was the biggest fortune amid the misfortune.

    During his migration, he had experienced a lot of thrills and had faced the attack of dire beasts quite a few times. As such, he had been sensible since a young age, and his goal had always been to enter abat division. Now that the training environment waspletely different from the past, students with ordinary family backgrounds, like him, wouldn¡¯t be able to continue training if they were not recruited by abat division.

    Only by entering abat division would they be provided with a steady flow of training resources.

    He looked at the time. The lesson was about to start. He Min stopped to wipe the sweat off his face.

    With a mirage bean pod in his hand, Teacher arrived right on time, appearing rather excited.

    "Let¡¯s watch this clip before we start training. The best among you guys will be recruited intobat divisions in future, so battling will be inevitable. Teacher hasn¡¯t been on the battlefield, so there¡¯s nothing I can impart to you guys. The clip that I¡¯m about to show you all is real battle footage."

    The students stirred restlessly as some even started shrieking out of agitation.

    He Min was bbergasted and somewhat puzzled.

    Teacher, who was usually stern, did not get angry today. In fact he was smiling, which was very strange to He Min.

    "Looks like many of you have already guessed it. That¡¯s right, I¡¯ll be showing you the ssic battle footage of how the Spear of Heavy Cloud, led by Shi Xueman, defeated the Ardent Flower Blood Division!"

    He Min quivered. He thought he had heard wrongly.

    The training hall was already in an uproar.

    "You¡¯re amazing, Teacher! You actually bought it!"

    "I heard it¡¯s out of stock everywhere!"

    "You moved quick, Teacher!"

    ...

    Teacher was pleased, but he deliberately put on a straight face. "Quiet! Observe carefully. I¡¯m not simply gonna let you guys watch it. I want each and every one of you to submit a reflection report after!"

    The students, who were jumping excitedly just a moment ago, were now whining like geese.

    Yet, when the clip started ying, everybody automatically sat up straight.

 Chapter 554: Entering the Camp

    Chapter 554: Entering the Camp

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Along the way, the Spear of Heavy Cloud, which had been dyed, was finally about to join forces with Shenwei and Caijue¡¯sbat divisions. From afar people, were already able to catch sight of the God-subduing Peaks floating in the sky. Four majestic God-subduing Peaks formed a line in the sky, creating a magnificent sight. Light screens lit up and flickered from time to time, contributing to the God-subduing Peaks¡¯ already mysterious vibe.

    "Those are God-subduing Peaks?"

    "How spectacr!"

    "Two of those are ours? Oh my, how great!"

    Members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud eximed in admiration. Their eyes shone brightly as a look of infatuation and longing shed across their faces.

    The God-subduing Peak, a top-notch battle weapon forged by the Elders Guild. It yed a huge role in assisting the Wall of North Sea in defending against the Blood of God. So far, God-subduing Peaks were still the most powerful battle weapon in the world.

    The God-subduing Peaks were enormous and bulky, able to station a wholebat division. Each God-subduing Peak was unique because they were made by slicing off mountain peaks at their waists. It was said that the selection of mountain peaks was a stringent process, with the first requirement being that they must be over 1.3 kilometers in height.

    Its defense was extremely shocking. Each God-subduing Peak was basically a fortress in the sky. Its offensive power was equally astonishing. It possessed all five elements and could quickly change its attacking methods.

    The God-subduing Peak gathered the Elders Guild¡¯s most exquisite elemental trace research, the most valuable ingredients, and the top forging methods. Only the Elders Guild had the ability to forge a God-subduing Peak since they were the only ones with an abundance of valuable materials and extremely skillful craftsmen.

    Standing against the God-subduing Peak, the Blood of God had no choice but to attack forcefully.

    When facing an elementalistbat division, a blood elementalistbat division had a rtive advantage over them. In a one ono one battle, a blood elementalistbat division had an 80 percent chance of victory.

    However, if the elementalistbat division had a God-subduing Peak, the blood elementalistbat division only had a threefold advantage in terms of military strength, and this was only if they chose to attack head on. Even then, they would have to be prepared to pay a heavy price in exchange for breaking through a God-subduing Peak¡¯s defense.

    To the elementalists, the God-subduing Peak held the most supreme position.

    Even Shi Xueman, who was usually steady and calm, seemed touched. She had been in a God-subduing Peak before and had experienced for herself its immeasurable might. Two God-subduing Peaks were enough to ce the Spear of Heavy Cloud onto the list of the most powerfulbat divisions.

    Everyone sped up in unison. Even the injured members were excited.

    There were already people waiting outside the camping ground.

    "Are you Shi Xueman, division leader of the Spear of Heavy Cloud?"

    The speaker was a middle-aged man, 40 or so with average looks. However, the asional glints in his eyes convinced people that he wasn¡¯t someone whose abilities should be underestimated.

    Shi Xuemanposed herself. "Yes, I¡¯m Shi Xueman. You are?"

    The man made his salutations, "Your humble servant, Zhao Mingwei, is from the Surveince Division."

    The Surveince Division. Shi Xueman became vignt and asked calmly, "I¡¯m here to receive the God-subduing Peaks and some resources. Are there any procedures to follow?"

    "I¡¯ve been waiting days for you and thought you weren¡¯ting." Zhao Mingwei smiled. "There¡¯s no procedure. You¡¯ll just have to enter the camp to verify."

    Shi Xueman nodded. "All right. Where are the two division leaders? Xueman will pay them a formal visit."

    In terms of seniority, Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue were on par with her father, so she spoke as a junior.

    She walked toward the camping ground as Sang Zhijun and the rest followed behind.

    "Halt!" Zhao Mingwei spoke suddenly, "Sorry, everyone. Only Division Leader Shi is allowed to enter."

    The faces of Sang Zhijun and the others changed abruptly. Members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud put on an unfriendly face, and the atmosphere instantly became one of mutual hostility. Everyone was highly guarded against Skyheart City, and now Shi Xueman was going to enter alone. How could they not be worried?

    Shi Xueman stopped them and looked at Zhao Mingwei, saying coldly, "I¡¯ll be quick, don¡¯t worry."

    After that, she entered the camp with her head high.

    Jiang Wei looked murderous at this point. He ordered in a low voice, "Be on guard everyone."

    Members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud took out their weapons silently and got into position. With pagoda cannons in ce, they pointed them toward the camping ground. A murderous aura filled the air.

    Thousands of miles away.

    The mirage bean pod light ray flickered.

    There wasn¡¯t any sound in the room since everyone was holding their breaths. They had forgotten how to breathe.

    It was evident that the clip had been recorded some distance away from the battlefield, but because of the ample distance the whole battle could be recorded. The wood elementalist who had recorded the clip was so skillful that even the veteran reporters were left sweating from head to toe.

    The gruesome battle had the audience shaken up and emotionally moved. Blood and flesh sttered everywhere and carelessly right before everyone¡¯s eyes. The Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s head on attack made their scalps tingle. Even if it was merely a recording, it was enough to evoke intense reactions from the crowd. The dazzling white mes sprayed by the pagoda cannon ripped through the sky. Trampled by the ardent flower night wolves, the yellow mud on the ground was like a sheet of raised silk, tan in color and carried a devilish luster that flickered nonstop.

    The close quarters fight between Shi Xueman and Xing Shan was on full disy.

    Vapor rose from Fatty¡¯s body. He was like an iron tower, domineering and sturdy. A sinister look shed across his face as he mounted a sneak attack on the enemy division leader.

    Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s transformation of the ground into a muddy marsh was a perfect showcase of a Master¡¯s aura.

    The remarkable blood elementalists¡¯ might and malevolence.

    The bitterness of the short range fights and the hysteria of both parties were clearly demonstrated. They were willing to do anything to continue breathing. The cruel sight of fresh blood mixing in with mud made people feel suffocated.

    Fatty¡¯s breakthrough at the ultimate moment, the terrifying fiery rain, and the strangely inextinguishable white mes made their limbs cold and sent a chill down their spines.

    The Chieftain Wolf¡¯s sacrifice, Xing Shan¡¯s suicidal counterattack... it was moving and tragic.

    When the final scene ended, the room sank into darkness, and no one said anything for a long time.

    Whoosh. The windows were opened and sunlight entered the room. The bright and beautiful sun couldn¡¯t provide the room with any warmth. Only fear and shock remained on the audience¡¯s faces.

    Prince Gong couldn¡¯t help but exim, "I did not expect the battle to be this gruesome. Shi Xueman¡¯s victory didn¡¯te easy."

    Gong Peiyao pursed her lips. Her face was pale and bloodless. She had been thoroughly frightened and felt extremely regretful. She wouldn¡¯t have watched it if she¡¯d known how gory it would be. She was definitely going to have many sleepless nights. More so than fear, she felt impressed. It was no wonder that Shi Xueman had always been the one looking after her. How much tenacity and perseverance this battle had required! She had felt happy for Sister Xueman upon hearing about the good news, but hadn¡¯t realized how difficult it had been for them to im this victory!

    Han Li was out of it and shaken up. He had always been responsible for his own sword mastery. Ever since he became a Master, he was convinced that he could go anywhere in this world. Only now did he realize how ignorant he had been. He had been intensely proud of his skills, but how much help would he be when ced on that battlefield?

    On the contrary, being used to such sights, Venerable Volcano wasn¡¯t too affected, but his eyes lit up at that point. "What an amazing pagoda cannon! What a strange Path of Master! I did not think that a Master could be born out of a pagoda cannon. This thing has great potential."

    Prince Gong nodded. "Recently pagoda cannons have been popr and Shi Xueman seems to be marketing them as best as she can. I had been led to think that the Central Pine Valley was on short of money."

    "War costs a lot." Venerable Volcano nodded. "Abat division¡¯s expenditure is no longer like in the past, when they only had two or three hundred members. It¡¯s normal to be short on money. It would be weird if they were not."

    Prince Gong asked directly, "What do you think about pagoda cannons, Venerable Volcano?"

    Venerable Volcano answered without hesitating, "Great prospects! Slightly inconvenient when used single-handedly, but for abat division they¡¯re perfect. Fire elementalists are cheap nowadays..."

    Prince Gong interrupted Venerable Volcano with a bitterughter. "Venerable, fire elementalists aren¡¯t cheap anymore..."

    Venerable Volcano was slightly taken aback. "Howe?"

    Prince Gongughed even louder. "Shi Xueman had been demonstrating the power of pagoda cannon on the trip back. She allowed tours and answered all rted questions. Pagoda Cannons are in high demand now, and the price of hiring fire elementalists is spiking. Every family has a shortage of fire elementalists."

    A look of realization shed across Venerable Volcano¡¯s face, and he burst intoughter. "How unexpected, how unexpected. Here I was thinking that fire elementalists were about to fall into decline and look what happened in the blink of an eye. Ai Hui is remarkable, remarkable indeed."

    He was a fire elementalist, so naturally it was happy news.

    Prince Gong muttered, "Looks like we¡¯ll need to polish up the pagoda cannon¡¯s techniques. Engaging fire elementalists isn¡¯t a problem. It doesn¡¯t matter if they¡¯re expensive, so just scout them out. However, we will have to purchase snowva. Doesn¡¯t that mean we will be in the hands of the Central Pine Valley?"

    Venerable Volcano had seen a lot, so he suggested, "Buy some first and we will study it ourselves. If the pagoda cannon is really that popr and snowva is really essential, would others simply let those people control them?"

    At that he stopped abruptly.

    Prince Gong¡¯s eyes lit up and were twinkling.

    They exchanged gazes.

    .....

    Fishback City.

    The recording had finally ended, and An Chouchou gave Ai Hui a side nce. A pity his face was wrapped up in bandage, so his expression couldn¡¯t be seen. Ai Hui would probably have an engrossed look on his face right now.

    An Chouchou waved his hand. "This is my subordinate who just went to purchase this mirage bean pod. If Skyheart City wants to make a move, it would definitely gain support first, and this mirage bean pod is the best way to do it. I had my man be on the lookout, and sure enough, it¡¯s out."

    Ai Hui asked faintly, "What does this show?"

    An Chouchouughed out loud. "Why feign ignorance, Brother Ai? Things have alreadye to this point, is there any meaning in concealing and hiding?"

    Ai Hui sighed. "Looks like Skyheart City is really about to make a move. You¡¯re wise, Brother Chou. What should the Central Pine Valley do?"

    An Chouchou smiled. "It¡¯s just a small issue. Surely Brother Ai wouldn¡¯t be defeated by it?"

    He was full of confidence. It was already set. Skyheart City¡¯s first step was as he had predicted. He believed that this would serve as a message to Ai Hui that the situation was under his control.

    An Chouchou didn¡¯t want to talk too much. Ai Hui was a smart man. With his umted experience, Ai Hui could always seek out opportunities.

    Ai Hui¡¯s only chance was to cooperate with Newlight City!

    Only by cooperating with Newlight City could he intimidate Skyheart City and prevent it from making any reckless moves. Other influences, even the Gong residence, wouldn¡¯t be able to do this. Other smaller powers wouldn¡¯t even be able to resist against Skyheart City.

    "I can¡¯t even earn some money peacefully." Ai Hui sounded helpless.

    He stood up, walked toward the door, and left An Chouchou with some parting words, "It¡¯ste. You should rest early."

 Chapter 555: Decoy

    Chapter 555: Decoy

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Entering the camping ground. Shi Xueman saw that it was empty. She narrowed her eyes and stared coldly at Zhao Mingwei. "What¡¯s going on?"

    Her gaze was bitterly cold. To the Spear of Heavy Cloud, the two consecutive bloody battles were like twopletely transformative tempering sessions, but wasn¡¯t it the same for her? Although she did not raise Cirrus in her hand, she still released a frightening aura, which seemed to freeze the air in the camp.

    However, Zhao Mingwei only smiled bitterly. "Please calm down, Leader Shi. I wasn¡¯t being deceitful, but was left with no choice..."

    Suddenly, two figures dashed in. They were Silver Soldier and Karakorum Pris. Seeing the hostile situation outside the camping ground upon arrival had shocked them. After receiving information from Jiang Wei, they couldn¡¯t help but charge in without dy.

    They were also worried that Skyheart City would harm Shi Xueman.

    Silver Soldier looked around and said in a deep voice, "What¡¯s going on?"

    By now Karakorum Pris had already rested her sword against Zhao Mingwei¡¯s neck.

    The bitterness on Zhao Mingwei¡¯s face intensified. "Now that all three division leaders are here, my mission isplete. The Dread and Judgement Divisions are long gone."

    As it turned out, Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue, while formting a n on the road, had decided to change their route. They had ordered Zhao Mingwei to advance ording to the original n and to put forth a great disy, allowing everyone to have a look at the four majestic God-subduing Peaks. Yet, the Dread and Judgement divisions had long since disappeared.

    All three division leaders made eye contact.

    Silver Soldier asked, "Did the two leaders say where they were going?"

    Zhao Mingwei cried, "I did ask, but they ignored me. You sirs are finally here! I was in fear the whole time. We¡¯re talking about four God-subduing Peaks and endless supplies. If I had lost them, even nine lives wouldn¡¯t be sufficient for me topensate. I haven¡¯t had a peaceful night of sleep and have been traveling in trepidation this whole journey..."

    Silver Soldier inquired once again about the details of the Dread and Judgement divisions¡¯ departure.

    After a while, the three of them gathered again.

    Silver Soldier said in a low voice, "He¡¯s not lying."

    Shi Xueman asked, "If this was a decoy employed by them, where would they be targeting?"

    Silver Soldier shook his head. "I don¡¯t know yet. Perhaps they would attack the enemy headquarters directly or the Blood of God¡¯s territory. The former is most likely. How bold of them!"

    Shi Xueman looked impressed too. "The enemy would never expect it, but they still have a narrow window."

    Everyone kept quiet.

    Such a dangerous war strategy was greatly avoided and employed as ast resort. This also meant that the two division leaders were pessimistic about the situation. They were convinced that ordinary methods would give them little chance of victory.Thus, they chose to risk it.

    Worry shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. "We have to make full use of this time. The enemy¡¯s counterattack might be too aggressive for us to handle this time round."

    They had initially thought that with the two centralbat divisions, Dread and Judgement, there would not be any problems even if the enemy attacked more forcefully. After all, they were the two strongestbat divisions in the Avalon of Five Elements.

    They believed that while an ordinarybat division would be unable to resist the blood elementalists¡¯ retribution, it would at least have sufficient members to exhaust a significant portion of their energy. Plus, they would have the Dread and Judgement divisions as the core while the Spear of Heavy Cloud, Infantry, and Sky Edge would assist by forming a new defensive line to obstruct the enemy.

    But with the Dread and Judgement Divisions¡¯ sudden change in attacking route, their n had already failed before it even started. This also meant that the situation had be extremely dangerous.

    Having battled with blood elementalists, the three of them were clear that an ordinary elementalistbat division was no match for the enemy. They were most worried that thebat divisions charging toward the front line would keep getting defeated and eventually copse.

    With the entire front line copsing, there would be no chance of victory.

    Everyone was speechless. Suddenly, Beyond Avalon¡¯s fate had fallen onto their shoulders, and the immense pressure rendered them breathless. In reality, they were merely three nobodies and theirbat divisions werepletely new. Looking around, however, they realized that there wasn¡¯t anyone else.

    Silver Soldier eximed, "We must obstruct them!"

    Shi Xueman raised her Cirrus up.

    A snow-white long sword was raised.

    An iron fist was raised.

    "To the death!"

    "To the death!"

    "To the death!"

    .....

    Central Pine Valley.

    Ai Hui, Lou Lan, Blind He, and Mister Dou sat together. They listened carefully as Ai Hui went through his whole n. "That¡¯s about it. Any problems?"

    Mister Dou was the first to speak. In a worried voice he asked, "Can we really seed?"

    Ai Hui replied calmly, "This is the best solution I cane up with. Whether or not it will work, I¡¯m not sure. Lou Lan has tested this hypothesis, and theoretically speaking, it should work, but no one has done it before, so nothing can be guaranteed."

    With an exceptionally grim and assured tone, Lou Lan eximed, "Lou Lan believe it will definitely seed!"

    Mister Dou sighed. "It¡¯s too much of a risk."

    Ai Hui said in a low voice, "A loosed arrow cannot be retrieved. The tigers and wolves are watching all around, so we have to defend ourselves."

    Mister Dou couldn¡¯t help but sigh and remained silent. Whenpared to the serenity within the valley, the fire of war outside was like a whole different world. He was no longer a leader in the underworld, but an average old man who enjoyed teaching a bunch of kids every day.

    He sighed deeply. He¡¯d hoped for these kids to grow up safely, but judging from the current situation it was an extravagant wish.

    The chaotic world was like a copper furnace that trapped everyone in it. There was no hope of escaping.

    The Central Pine Valley was also unable to stay out of it.

    He closed his eyes and envisioned many small and weak figures fighting through the war amid the wind and rain. Some fell while others gradually grew stronger.

    This was the chaotic world.

    Blind He said faintly, "It¡¯s fine on my side. I can make whatever is needed. The rest can be put aside for now."

    Ai Hui added, "Regarding manpower, I will engage all the members of the Sword of Lightning and all of the kids from the valley. Lou Lan will be in charge of coordinating and rectifying the situation."

    "No problem, Ai Hui! I¡¯ll work hard!" Lou Lan answered enthusiastically before asking, "What about Bangwan?"

    "Don¡¯t disturb him." Ai Hui continued, "Bangwan¡¯s spontaneous enlightenment has been going on for such a long time. I have a feeling that he will be at a totally different level when he awakens."

    Mister Dou opened his eyes, revealing the depth of his empty eye sockets. With a disdainful expression, hemanded, "Just leave the Northern Underworld King Tree to me."

    Ai Hui watched him attentively and bowed. "Thank you, Sir."

    Mister Douughed. "You need not be so polite with me. I¡¯ve been waiting for this for a long time. Just the thought of it makes my blood race. One foot already in the grave,n but still able to go down in history. How lucky am I! There are no regrets left in life!"

    His long grey hair fluttered in the air. Despite the emptiness and haggardness on his face, he spoke heroically, "Remember to prepare some good wine!"

    Ai Hui spoke solemnly, "On the day of victory, we will have a drink together."

    Pinwheel Sword.

    As everyone gradually got used to the speed of the Pinwheel Sword, their excitement cooled off too. Nevertheless, they never stopped pondering over it.

    Qiao Meiqi wondered if he should get a Pinwheel Sword from Ai Hui. From what he saw, cirction was the essence of business, and in the cirction of money and goods, speed was always crucial. Even if ced in the era of the Avalon of Five Elements, the speed of the Pinwheel Sword would be iparable, let alone the load basin beasts that were currently the main mode of transport.

    As for the fact that the Pinwheel Sword ran on snowva and was therefore extremely costly, Qiao Meiqi did not see it as a problem at all.

    Now was the time of wars and chaos!

    Who would care about costs when it was a matter of life and death?

    As for the swordsmen needed to operate the Pinwheel Sword, he could simply pay Ai Hui to train them! With his understanding of Ai Hui, any definite benefits would effectively convince him. There was no difference between chasing a duck or a flock of ducks. He wasn¡¯t expecting those swordsmen to fight his war, but to transport his goods.

    After a while, he realized that only Shi Zhiguang was operating the Pinwheel sword while the other swordsmen were merely standing guard. Qiao Meiqi¡¯s eyes became even brighter. Wouldn¡¯t that be even easier?

    A Pinwheel Sword being attacked? With such speed, enemies would only be eating the dusting out of it. Not even dire beasts would be feared! Practically all the dire beasts that could catch up to the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s speed lived in the upper atmosphere.

    No matter how he saw it, the Pinwheel Sword was the perfect transportation tool!

    The more he thought about it, the brighter his eyes became.

    What he had thought of wasn¡¯t anything special, but at this moment, no one could imagine the enormity of the storm that the Pinwheel Storm could possibly raise. No one knew how deep of an impact it could bring to this world.

    Everyone was aware of the advantages of the Pinwheel Sword, but its disadvantages were simrly evident. The high cost of snowva greatly limited its suitability. Only the wealthy, like the Central Pine Valley, would spend so recklessly. How were others going to afford it? Even if they could, they would only have enough for one or two.

    Throughout the journey, Huo Da had been by Shi Zhiguang¡¯s side.

    Shi Zhiguang was feeling uneasy after being stared at for a long time. "What are you looking at?"

    Huo Da replied truthfully, "Looking at how you control the Pinwheel Sword."

    Shi Zhiguangughed out loud. "Is this something you can learn just by looking? It¡¯s not so easy being a sword operator!"

    Huo Da questioned, "Sword operator? Specializing in the Pinwheel Sword?"

    Shi Zhiguang had been piloting the Pinwheel Sword in a fanciful manner and had been totally enjoying the process. Upon executing an emergency brake maneuver outside Lightning City, he had almost caused an uproar, but became significantly more well-behaved on the route back. However, merely operating the Pinwheel Sword at full speed required little effort, and he quickly got bored. Huo Da¡¯s words easily got him excited.

    He was, after all, a young chap in his twenties. Seeing a Master who was looking at him in such an inquisitive manner immediately fed and satisfied his vain heart.

    In high spirits, Shi Zhiguang started bragging about the importance and power of sword operators. "That¡¯s right! A sword operator holds the most important position on the Pinwheel Sword and hasplete control over its flight. He decides how and where it flies. Think about it. All lives on board are in your hands, so how can you not be important?"

    Huo Da nodded his head in agreement. With slight astonishment he cried, "That¡¯s really good!"

    Huo Da¡¯spliment excited him even more. "Now that you have experienced the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s speed for yourself, how do you feel?"

    Huo da replied sincerely, "Fast as lightning. It¡¯s iparable."

    "That¡¯s right!" Shi Zhiguang hurriedly added, "With this speed it is extremely challenging to alter its direction. You must find a loophole in the enemy¡¯s troop disposition and seek a suitable path to cut in. All of this has to bepleted in a second. I¡¯m not lying. It must all be done in the blink of an eye or else you¡¯ll overshoot."

    Huo Da knew that Shi Zhiguang was speaking the truth since Huo Da was also an expert in flying. His Comet Wings were known for their speed. He had rich experience in flying and knew that the faster the speed, the harder to control. With the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s speed, it was true that Shi Zhiguang would only be given a split second to react.

    Huo Da eximed, "You must have trained for a long time!"

    Shi Zhiguang opened his eyes wide. "Definitely! I¡¯ve been through some vigorous training. There¡¯s no other way. There were so many times that I felt like I was going to die."

    Huo Da asked curiously, "How do sword operators train?"

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s face instantly turned red. After a short while he stammered, "Embroidery."

    Huo Da was utterly shocked.

 Chapter 556: Open Conspiracy

    Chapter 556: Open Conspiracy

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    An Chouchou faced the mirror, looking at the figure in it. A look of satisfaction shed across his face.

    He hade forward personally, not hesitating to take risks, in order to express his sincerity. To form an alliance with Central Pine Valley was, for Newlight City, a game of chess, of life and death. To date, despite Newlight City¡¯s development, it was unable to get rid of its status as a big but powerless city. It had the most people butcked powerful yers. It had the most craftsmen, but they weren¡¯t highly skilled.

    Everything was rted to new citizens. In the past, in Avalon of Five Elements, new citizens were of lower-middle ss. While they had a great number, theycked umtion. Aristocrats were the exact opposite. They were small in number but wealthy, had inheritance and profound umtion.

    And Central Pine Valley was like an enormous treasure chest!

    Be it pagoda cannons, snowva, or the Pinwheel Sword, they all had An Chouchou drooling with desire.

    Especially snowva. If he could just get its recipe, Newlight City would undergo aplete transformation and it would be able to make up for its biggest weakness.

    As long as Central Pine Valley became Newlight City¡¯s ally, thetter would be in control of the situation. Central Pine Valley was powerful indeed, but they had too few people. In time, Ai Hui and gang would find themselves being outnumbered, ultimately needing to join Newlight City to be new citizens or lose their controlling power.

    It was an open conspiracy.

    Because Newlight City was Ai Hui¡¯s only choice.

    Forming an alliance with Skyheart City? The disparity in abilities of both parties was simply too huge, such that Skyheart City could effortlessly swallow up Central Pine Valley. An Chouchou was even convinced that if Master¡¯s Glory was a sess, the first batch of Masters would be ordered by Madam Ye to first target Central Pine Valley and not Newlight City.

    Destroying Central Pine Valley and gaining ownership of snowva would mean that whether she threw it aside or used it, Madam Ye would be able to sleep peacefully at night.

    An Chouchou had even more inside information. He knew that Master¡¯s Glory was Madam Ye¡¯s real foundation. For it, she had even put her own son inside. Anything that could threaten Master¡¯s Glory in the slightest was a thorn in her flesh.

    Ai Hui, who was able to create snowva, should be buried in the loess.

    An Chouchou studied Ai Hui before. No matter the time, Ai Hui was able to recognize the state of affairs. It seemed that he was especially able to seek opportunities amid despair. He never pinned his faith on luck and his hope on others.

    This was an intelligent and pragmatic young man.

    An Chouchou pushed open the windows and saw a descending Pinwheel Sword.

    He walked out, full of confidence.

    Those in the Pinwheel Sword, which had justnded, were absorbing the sights of Fishback City. In all honesty, Fishback City was small and ugly, but there was only respect on their faces.

    Because this city was built single-handedly by an earth elementalist.

    Just this fact alone was sufficient to evoke veneration and admiration.

    Wen Yongmin and the other reporters started recording. They hadn¡¯t forgotten about their job and definitely weren¡¯t going to waste such a rare opportunity. No one knew what was up with Ai Hui and why he would actually invite them over.

    Some adaptable reporters were already wondering if they could get a chance to apply for a tour around Central Pine Valley.

    In Beyond Avalon, Central Pine Valley was simply too mysterious, and it was said that even Qiao Meiqi hasn¡¯t been inside. It was a restricted area.

    Some people were admiring the gxy of talent within Central Pine Valley and the fact that yet another earth elementalist Master had been born. Central Pine Valley was like a treasurend with good feng shui, consistently producing capable talents.

    "I heard that they¡¯re all survivors from Central Pine City."

    "Sometimes we really gotta admit that marvelous things do happen. Look at them. Survivors of Central Pine City uniting to form a pool of great talents."

    "Yeah. Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, Qian Dai, Wang Xiaoshan, and Lu Mingxiu. Five Masters... heaven really is spoiling the Central Pine Faction."

    "One is bound for good fortune upon surviving a great disaster."

    ...

    Ai Hui heard people gasping from afar, and in that instant it was as if he¡¯d been isted from the world. To those people, they were already being regarded as talents. In the past, who would have thought that Fatty, who waszy, unreliable, and needed Lou Lan to supervise his daily training, would¡¯ve aplished this much. Also, other than ying with mud, Wang Xiaoshan had no other skills, and he even felt guilty for not being able to contribute to the team.

    Iron Lady had always been that brilliant and lofty Iron Lady.

    And himself? He was a pauper who had to clean up the training hall and even owed his mistress arge sum of money. He made daily visits to the Suspending Golden Pagoda to temper his body and would be very happy whenever he managed to earn a little bit of money. At that time he hadn¡¯t known Lou Lan for long and Teacher and Mistress were still alive...

    His thoughts grew further and further away into the olden days of the gentle and warm sunshine.

    "Boss, the people are here."

    Gu Xuan¡¯s words pulled him back to reality. Behind that fresh, red crystallic sheet, a faint trace of tenderness and sorrow shed across his eyes before he regained calmness.

    Qiao Meiqi came over, asking, "What happened exactly, my boy? Why such a big troop?"

    Ai Hui smiled slightly. "You¡¯ll know soon."

    Coincidentally, An Chouchou came over and called out with a smile, "Mayor Qiao!"

    Somewhat puzzled, Qiao Meiqi asked, "This is?"

    Ai Hui introduced, "Newlight City, An Chouchou."

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s face changed. He was overwhelmed with shock, countless thoughts rolling within his mind. Even though he had been doing business for a long time and was extremely experienced, his mind went ck and he actually forgot to greet An Chouchou.

    An Chouchou chuckled without getting angry. He was somewhat pleased.

    He raised his head slightly, a confident smile appearing on his face.

    An Chouchou¡¯s identity was quickly revealed to the rest, and those present cried out in surprise. They looked doubtfully at An Chouchou and Ai Hui, wondering to themselves what was going to happen that day.

    Wen Yongmin and the other reporters were busy recording. They had a feeling that a piece of sensational news was about to arrive!

    Central Pine Valley, a few miles away from Fishback City, was in a frenzy at that moment.

    The members of Sword of Lightning and all the children had been mobilized. They were working hard under themand of mini Lou Lans, who covered the mountains and ins. Mini Lou Lans waved their little gs, running here and there and asionally shouting in their high voices.

    "Go, go! Everyone go!"

    Some had stern faces as they stood at the end of a moat, gesturing and instructing in a serious tone.

    "Here, here, not aligned!"

    "Not deep enough, a foot short!"

    Others floated in the sky, forming different words made of sand.

    "Work harder, everyone, we¡¯re about to finish!"

    "Thanks for the hard work, everybody!"

    A white light ray, unique to White Cluster mes, illuminated Blind He¡¯s expressionless face. The eye on his palm emitted a golden light that shot onto the materials that were piled like a mountain. By his feet lied a freshly castedponent. Its red glow had yet to fade and it was emitting hot steam.

    Su Qingye asked in a low voice, while burying his head in work, "Know what this is for?"

    Hua Xiaoyun bit her lips, answering softly, "No idea. Teacher Dou refused to answer! You got news?"

    Among the many children, Teacher Dou doted on the sensible and adorable Hua Xiaoyun the most and was much more strict toward boys. Mischievous ones would definitely get caned, but when Hua Xiaoyun made a mistake, he would justugh it off.

    Zhou Wen added, "Why do you ask so much? Just do what you¡¯re told."

    Su Qingye knew Zhou Wen¡¯s character well. Without getting angry, he said, "From what I see, something big¡¯s about to happen! What do you say, Little An?"

    Wei An was brought back by Ai Hui and could be considered his student. Wei An was naturally cautious, different from the three kids who had been following Ai Hui for many years. Ai Hui didn¡¯t have time to guide him, so Wei An felt slightly lost. "I... I don¡¯t know."

    "Don¡¯t bully Little An!" Hua Xiaoyun red at Su Qingye. Wei An¡¯s awkwardness and uneasiness had evoked the kind-hearted Hua Xiaoyun¡¯s sympathy. She added, "Only Skyheart City would dare to find trouble with us."

    Su Qingye rolled up his sleeves and rubbed his fists. "Skyheart City¡¯s looking for death!"

    The kids had already gotten used to the valley¡¯s power. To them, Central Pine Valley was the world¡¯s most powerful and safest ce.

    "Everyone, have a break! Elemental soup is here!"

    When Lou Lan¡¯s voice was heard, cheers followed. All problems and doubts were thrown to the back of their minds.

    There wasn¡¯t anything Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup couldn¡¯t solve. If there was, then it was a sign that another bowl must be served!

    He Min had been out of it for the past few days as the gory scenes from the mirage bean pod appeared in his mind from time to time. Not only him, his ssmates were in a worse state. Quite a few timid students had been absent from training. Even the teacher had been feeling slightly depressed these few days.

    The weather that day was pretty good, the bright sunlight providing them with much needed heat. The atmosphere had lightened up a little. For the past few days, even the sunlight couldn¡¯t warm their cold bodies up.

    It was a pity the Spear of Heavy Cloud never recruited members here, or else He Min would definitely apply.

    On second thought, He Min felt he was indulging in fantasy. Countless people were trying to squeeze their way into the Spear of Heavy Cloud, so he would never get his turn.

    As he was passing by the mirage bean pod shop, He Min stopped.

    He had very little change with him, but he still ran over to ask, "Do you have thetest mirage bean pod of the Spear of Heavy Cloud, Boss?"

    "There are some Masters¡¯ analyses of that battle, do you want it?"

    He Min clenched his teeth. "Yes!"

    Surprisingly, He Min didn¡¯t feel much of a heartache for having spent money on it.

    He was very curious as to what the Masters had to say about the battle.

    He looked at the time. It was still early, so he found himself a remote ce to enjoy the clip.

    "In that battle, it can be said that the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s performance was perfect. There were a few key areas. First would be the disposition constructed by Master Wang Xiaoshan. In past battles, while earth elementalistal masters were of significant use, Master Wang Xiaoshan waspletely different from them. ording to our materials, he used to be very good at building camps. And constructing battlefields is a new discovery and development for earth elementalists. Master Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s quicksand paste yed a huge role in dying the enemies¡¯ attacks. Second would be Shi Xueman¡¯s outstanding performance. On fighting Xing Shan one on one, she didn¡¯t fall into a disadvantageous position at all. Plus, after a few crucial collisions, she had greatly boosted the team¡¯s morale. But the most crucial parts would be the pagoda cannons¡¯ execution and Qian Dai¡¯s breakthrough. It¡¯s no doubt that him bing a Master was a chance urrence, but pagoda cannons are undoubtedly the most powerful weapons to deal with the blood elementalists!"

    He Min continued viewing only to find more promotion about the pagoda cannon. He was somewhat disappointed.

    He wasn¡¯t a fire elementalist, so he couldn¡¯t be a pagoda cannoneer.

    He shut the clip off and jogged toward the training hall.

 Chapter 557: New Pagoda Cannon

    Chapter 557: New Pagoda Cannon

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    It was a bustling day at the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s encampment

    The two gigantic God-subduing Peaks were absolutely eye-grabbing. The people on it were like little ants. Everybody was familiarizing themselves with the God-subduing Peaks. After all, the God-subduing Peaks were big fellows that weren¡¯t easy to operate properly.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud breaking into the God-subduing Peaks was rather smooth since Shi Xueman and Sang Zhijun had been stationed in them before and were very clear about the procedures. Inparison, the Infantry and the Sky Edge Division were in a much worse state. They had never been in direct contact with the God-subduing Peaks, so they had to send people over to the Spear of Heavy Cloud to learn.

    With Sang Zhijun leading the team, Shi Xueman had more time to recuperate from her injuries.

    Her internal injuries were due to an over-absorption of impure water elemental energy. These impurities, upon entering the body, would settle within and be very difficult to eliminate. The longer time dragged on, the more harmful it became to the body. Furthermore, this type of injury was permanent and incurable, so elementalists wouldn¡¯t do what she did unless they absolutely had no choice.

    Shi Xuemanposed herself and with rapt attention she held onto the Cirrus, her legs slightly apart and her gaze seemingly fixed on the spear tip.

    Time passed and she remained motionless, just like a statue.

    Gradually, a grey, hairlike mist rose from the spear tip. It was very peculiar and did not disperse.

    Hu!

    Shi Xueman slowly kept her spear.

    There still weren¡¯t any good solutions to heal an injury like this. However, Shi family was rich and powerful after all and had collected all kinds of strange things. By influence, Shi Xueman naturally knew much more than average people.

    She had just executed a move from a remnant piece of writing, "Dirtless Sheet". She had been flipping through her family¡¯s ancient books, so this was very helpful to her.

    "Dirtless Sheet" was just a piece that survived time and had no beginning or end. Remnant pieces like this could be found in every family. They were basically items passed down from the Cultivation Era. Some contained exquisite knowledge, some were interesting, while others could be used as references even when it came to elemental energy.

    While every family had its own collection, only a few specialized in studying these remnant sheets. A remnant sheet of writing was usually cryptic and difficult toprehend. Also, these pieces weren¡¯t systematic; everything was broken and in disorder. Some were even preposterous and unimaginable. A lot of energy had to be invested, but not much benefit could be reaped, so naturally, families wouldn¡¯t waste time on these remnant writings.

    If not for the fact that Shi Xueman had been diligent since young and had a solid foundation, she would have forgotten the contents.

    "Dirtless Sheet" talked not only about refining the body but also about the state of mind, so it was somewhat marvelous. Shi Xueman had tried it since there was nothing to lose, but she realized that it actually worked.

    She extended her palm, and her skin felt as though there was an additionalyer of moisture.

    A significant amount of impurity had been eliminated, but ording to this speed she would need a lot of time. Unfortunately, her schedule was extremely tight at the moment since there were a lot of things to do at the Spear of Heavy Cloud and there was going to be another fierce battle soon. Where was she going to find the time to recuperate? It would be good enough if she could just prevent her injuries from worsening.

    Her abilities had deteriorated by ten percent.

    It was extremely difficult for newly promoted Masters to see any slight improvement.

    She walked out from the room and quickly noticed that people were gathered and were making noise.

    She walked over silently and saw them watching the mirage bean pod. Its contents had her stunned.

    "Aye, they didn¡¯t capture my face, what a loss. I¡¯ve lost the chance to be famous."

    "At least I can see your rear view. I got blocked by a d*mn tree."

    "Master Fatty¡¯sst shot was really amazing!"

    "Yeah, if he hadn¡¯t undergone a breakthrough at that critical moment, we would¡¯ve all been in big trouble."

    ...

    Everyone was having a lively discussion, and unlike outsiders who viewed the clip, they weren¡¯t shaken up. They had already broken free from the battle trauma and were better able to face that cruel battle calmly.

    Sang Zhijun and Jiang Wei noticed Shi Xueman¡¯s entrance and walked to her side.

    Shi Xueman retracted her gaze and asked, somewhat puzzled, "From where?"

    Sang Zhijun smiled. "We went to the nearest city to buy some things and found a lot of mirage bean pods involving us. We then realized that we have all be a hot topic, so we bought one of each clip. There are still many others, but they are all Masters¡¯ analyses. This is the only one that recorded us."

    Jiang Wei added, "I wonder who recorded it. We didn¡¯t detect any ambusher."

    Ai Hui had more information, so she answered, "It¡¯s Surveince Division."

    Sang Zhijun was stunned. "Why would Surveince¡¯s clip be on the market?"

    "Yeah, why would Surveince¡¯s clip circte? Logically speaking, it¡¯s strictly confidential content."

    Fatty asked, "Could it be that they are thinking of giving us yet another God-subduing Peak?"

    The mention of a God-subduing Peak had everyone excited. They had thrown themselves on it the moment it arrived and finally experienced its might for themselves.

    Jiang Weiughed. "You really think it¡¯s that easy? These four God-subduing Peaks are probably Skyheart City¡¯s whole fortune. If not for the fact that we were moving together with the Sky Edge and the Infantry, our merit would simply be too huge. Skyheart City wants to lure the talented ones, so it won¡¯t be our turn."

    Fatty chimed in, "Who cares. The God-subduing Peaks are now in our tummies, and no one¡¯s going to seize them."

    There was no joy on Shi Xueman¡¯s face. She asked Sang Zhijun, "What about other bean pods?"

    Sang Zhijun hurriedly took out a bag of bean pods. "They¡¯re all in here. We haven¡¯t had time to view them yet."

    Shi Xueman crushed one of them, and in the clip the Master kept on going on about how powerful the pagoda cannon was and how it was the number one weapon to deal with blood elementalists.

    Following that, Shi Xueman kept crushing more bean pods, and the smiles on everybody¡¯s faces vanished.

    Practically all of the clips talked about how the "pagoda cannon was the key to tackle blood elementalists".

    Even those who weren¡¯t as sharp sensed an unusual atmosphere rising.

    Just then, a scout rushed over. He cried out, "Boss! The front line has been defeated. Blood of God broke in and got in deep, and ourbat divisions have suffered heavy losses. Sixbat divisions have already been scattered."

    Everyone¡¯s faces changed. Thinking back to the sentence that the "pagoda cannon was the key to tackle blood elementalists", they felt a chill spreading all over their bodies.

    Fatty burst into a rage. "Skyheart City! It must be them!"

    Sang Zhijun looked at Shi Xueman anxiously. "What now?"

    "Continue familiarizing yourselves with the God-subduing Peaks. There¡¯s not much time." Shi Xueman remained calm as her gaze swept across the room. "We¡¯re dead if we lose, so let¡¯s not care so much. Focus on battling. We¡¯ll leave these things to Ai Hui. He¡¯ll handle them well."

    She then added, "No one can do it better than he will."

    Her words calmed everyone down slightly.

    Fatty nodded continuously. "That¡¯s right, that¡¯s right, don¡¯t worry. I know him. He has a pretty ck heart too, it doesn¡¯t lose to anyone else."

    After some thought, Shi Xueman instructed, "Zhijun, Get Master Yang to bring these mirage bean pods and this report to Ai Hui as soon as possible."

    At that, Sang Zhijun hurriedly left to look for Yang Xiaodong.

    Shi Xueman turned around to face Fatty. "How¡¯s the modificationing along?"

    Fatty¡¯s eyes lit up. "The prototype is more or lesspleted. Old Li is forging it now. He should be almost done."

    Old Li was a decently skilled craftsman that they had recruited.

    His words caught everyone¡¯s interest. "Let¡¯s go take a look."

    Fatty behaved like a pagoda cannon expert now, but as the first ever Pagoda Cannon Master, he did have that right. No one, including Ai Hui, could say with certainty that they knew more about it than Fatty.

    Old Li had a coal-like face. When he spotted Shi Xueman and gang, he instantly became overcautious.

    Fatty cleared his throat. "Old Li, is it done?"

    "Yes, I was about to look for you."

    With a wave, Fatty called out, "Quick, let me have a look."

    "Aye, have a look," he said as he carried a box that was bigger than him.

    Without a word, Fatty opened it, and the rest gathered around quickly.

    Upon hearing that Fatty¡¯s new pagoda cannon was done, the people who had been watching the clips threw them aside and rushed over. Even Zu Yan was there. Everyone was very curious to see how Fatty¡¯s modified pagoda cannon would look like. He had, after all, made a single-person pagoda cannon by himself.

    No one cared much when he took out his single-person pagoda cannon. They thought that Fatty was just having fun and hadn¡¯t expected him get rid of a remarkable blood elementalist with it.

    It wasn¡¯t wrong to say that Fatty was the Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s greatest jinx. Two outstanding blood elementalists had died by his hands, and hisst shot was the final fatal blow.

    Fatty took strangely-shapedponents from the box and started assembling them. Although it was his first time installing them, Fatty didn¡¯t seem the least bit unfamiliar. His hands worked nimbly, as if he¡¯d practiced it many times before.

    Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t help but feel moved. Each Master had his own talent, and even such azy person like Fatty had extraordinary passion when it came to pagoda cannons. She could still remember the time in Central Pine City when Lou Lan had to supervise Fatty¡¯s training. No one had expected him to sessfully be a Pagoda Cannon Master one day.

    Fatty waspletely focused, his plump fingers moving quickly.

    In his hands, a whole new pagoda cannon emerged before everyone¡¯s eyes.

    It was much more bulky, but the trestle had been simplified. The position of the fire reservoir had also undergone a major change and its volume had increased significantly as well. The most eye-catching part would be the thick and solid red cannon tube. The modified tube was about three times thicker and twice as long. Its entire body was now bright red in color, appearing like an enormous city-attacking hammer. There were two small, wing-like structures at the tail of the tube, formed from stackedyers of ck metal.

    "This is the new pagoda cannon. I call it the ¡®Beehive Heavy Cannon¡¯!"

    Pride was evident on Fatty¡¯s face.

 Chapter 558: Improving The Fort

    Chapter 558: Improving The Fort

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "Ai Hui created the pagoda cannons and snowva. However, the one who truly promoted and developed pagoda cannons was his good friend, Qian Dai. Qian Dai, who was timid and hated closebat, had an exceptional talent with pagoda cannons. Not only did he be the first Pagoda Cannon Master, he also relentlessly improved the pagoda cannons relentlessly. The pagoda cannon craze that he single-handedly promoted had an extremely deep impact on the war back then. These twoborers from the Wilderness joined hands to start a brand-new era. In the history of pagoda cannons, no other invention¡¯s glory could bepared to theirs. We have benefited from both of them, we are trapped by them, and we can¡¯t escape from them.

    -- < The History of Pagoda Cannons>

    Fatty was enjoying the limelight and the respectful looks he received. He was curious and hopeful, feeling as if something in his body was leaping, boiling, and bursting forth. This was a very unfamiliar and new experience for him. He had never experienced this feeling before.

    He coughed softly and said, "When the Division Leader asked me to improve the pagoda cannons, I actually already had a few design ns in mind."

    A few softughter broke out in the crowd.

    Fatty became worried in an instant. He replied, "Hey, hey, hey, I am not boasting! I came up with those design ns when I had free time. There were even a few of them. However, eventually, I felt that these pagoda cannons should be equipped on the God-subduing Peak. I have looked through a few design ns, but I was not really satisfied with them. Therefore, I decided toe up with another new design."

    Everyone was very quiet as they listened to Fatty attentively.

    Fatty also gradually went into a zone as he continued to talk. His plump face had a glint that radiated . "I have never been on a God-subduing Peak. After I boarded it this time, I realized that the God-subduing Peak is really a treasure. It is an air fort that can fly in the sky. Since it is an air fort, what attributes do the pagoda cannons equipped onboard need? The first attribute I thought of was long range. The longer the range of the pagoda cannons, the safer we are. Since there is so much space in the sky, we should make good use of it."

    Everyone nodded their heads. This logic was simple to understand.

    "The next one is high attack speed. The God-subduing Peak will definitely be surrounded by enemy forces. Since the enemy forces will surround the God-subduing Peak, we will be attacked from all directions. If the attack speed of the pagoda cannons are too slow, they will be useless to us.

    "The third attribute is area-of-effect attacks. Since the God-subduing Peak was destined to be surrounded by enemy forces, we will have to fight many enemies at once. If one shot only kills one person, how many shots will we have to fire? This will not have too much of an impact on the overall battlefield either. Actually, I was inspired by the previous battle. Thest shot was rather effective. If we can¡¯t kill an enemy soldier with a single shot, we canpensate with a huge number of shots. After all, the God-subduing Peak has a huge surface area and we can equip it with a sufficient number of pagoda cannons."

    Zu Yan was overwhelmed with shock. Was this really Fatty?

    Fatty¡¯s exnations were clear and precise. Every part was well thought out. Furthermore, he exined with assurance, looking as if he had be apletely different person. Was this the same Fatty that kept on yelling he was tired and hungry whenever they went out to scout?

    An absolute silence descended upon the room. Everyone was listening to Fatty attentively. Everything he said had substance.

    A look of surprise shed across Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes. She had only casually mentioned improving the pagoda cannons and had not ced too much hope on Fatty. She hadn¡¯t expected for Fatty to give her such a huge surprise.

    "What everyone is looking at now is a scaled-down version," Fatty smiled.

    Everyone cried out in rm. The size of the pagoda cannon they were looking at now had already exceeded the size of any pagoda cannons they had ever seen before. This was considered the scaled-down version? How big would the actual Beehive Heavy Cannon be?

    "As for the actual version, everyone will get to see it in the future." Fatty kept everyone in suspense. "Let¡¯s try this out."

    "Master Fatty! Show us a thing or two!" someone yelled.

    Shi Xueman, Jiang Wei, and the rest felt anticipation. Being the first ever Pagoda Cannon Master, no one doubted Fatty¡¯s talent with pagoda cannons. After Fatty bragged so much about the might of the Beehive Pagoda Cannon, everyone was looking forward to it.

    After pouring the snowva into the fire reservoir, Fatty stood behind the pagoda cannon.

    His facial expression was solemn and his legs were spread apart. His plump and huge body was a fleshy mountain. Using his shoulder to support the back of the pagoda cannon, he then ced both his hands on the cannon barrel. In an instant, the snowva in the fire reservoir was sucked dry.

    The surroundings were so quiet that one could even hear the sound of a pin dropping on the ground. Everyone held their breaths while widening their eyes. They were afraid to miss out on any details.

    Fatty¡¯s stance began to change. His left leg extended forward while his waist was lowered, forming a bow stance. Elemental energy was inserted into the pagoda cannon from Fatty¡¯s palms. The beehive-like inner chamber of the pagoda cannon began to spin rapidly.

    It was only at this moment that everyone noticed the new pagoda cannon was doubleyered. The inside of the pagoda cannon could actually rotate.

    The beehive-like inner chamber spun faster and faster. It was like steel heated by fire, emitting a bright-red glow. If one looked inside the cannon barrel, he or she would see the dazzling red light in the center of the beehive-like inner chamber gradually bing white in color.

    Hiss, hiss, hiss!

    A sound that resembled countless snakes hissing together was produced by the pagoda cannon, causing everyone¡¯s hair to stand on end.

    A beam of red light shot out from the cannon barrel.

    A powerful shock wave erupted from the pagoda cannon. Fatty¡¯s body suddenly sank into the ground. His eyes were angrily dted, and his muscles became taut with veins popping out, making him looked very muscr. Boiling hot steam engulfed his body.

    The beam of red light was spinning extremely fast. On the contrary, its flying speed did not look fast at all.

    A disappointed look appeared on many people¡¯s faces. This speed was too slow, and the enemy forces would have enough time to dodge the pagoda cannon¡¯s attacks.

    At this moment, the single beam of red light suddenly scattered into countless beams. Densely-packed beams of red light flew in all directions, resembling an enormous red dandelion.

    Its diameter was more than 150 meters.

    Pop.

    One of the beams of red light suddenly inted and burst, transforming into a streaking tongue of white me that was more than 60 meters long. Pop, pop, pop.

    A sound like that of beans popping could be heard incessantly. The enormous red dandelion exploded all at once! Countless white tongues of fire criss-crossed in the air, forming a gigantic zing. It burned for more than 10 seconds before vanishing into the air.

    Phew!

    Fatty heaved a breath of air. The breath of air he exhaled gave off sparks, making him look like a fire-breathing dragon.

    Oh? Can all of you show me some reactions? Where is the round of apuse for me? Howe there are no reactions at all? Did I mess it up?

    Fatty was baffled.

    Suddenly, a mor erupted. Fatty was so scared that he almost threw away the pagoda cannon and ran away.

    "Formidable! White hot mes!"

    "It looks slightly like the shot that Master Fatty firedst time!"

    "The elemental energy undtions are really scary. I thought a volcano had erupted."

    "Yes, yes! Master Fatty is bing more and more powerful!"

    ...

    Jiang Wei¡¯s eyes were brightly lit. He spat out a series of questions in quick-fire session, "How big is the actual version of the Beehive Heavy Cannon? Howrge of an area can the explosion cover? Can the range of the explosion be altered? How much snowva will it consume..."

    Upon seeing such strong reactions from everyone, Fatty became pleased with himself in an instant. He coughed melodramatically and replied, "There are so many questions from everyone. I still don¡¯t know the answers to most of these questions yet, but I can tell all of you my opinion on this new pagoda cannon."

    Everyone gradually quieted down. The elemental energy undtions from that shot had disyed to everyone the might of the new pagoda cannon.

    "Why is it called ¡®heavy cannon?¡¯ That¡¯s because it is extremely powerful, far more powerful than other types of pagoda cannon. I have looked through all the other design ns. They don¡¯t have the God-subduing Peak, so they don¡¯t have the advantages that we have. What are the advantages of the God-subduing Peak? It can fly and has a huge amount of space. Therefore, we can make the pagoda cannons equipped on the God-subduing Peakrger. This is why I named it ¡®heavy cannon.¡¯ The Beehive Heavy Cannon is equipped with a Zi-Mu fire reservoir. What you¡¯re seeing now is a Zi fire reservoir. A Mu fire reservoir has arger volume and can contain more snowva. As for the snowva, I also have some ideas. I feel that if we purely use snowva, our consumption of snowva will be too great. After the previous battle, I realized that the pagoda cannons are more effective if there were more of them. In the future, when we equip a God-subduing Peak with a huge number of pagoda cannons, we will not have enough snowva. I think we have to look into a new type of fire liquid as well. A mixed one. I feel that a fire liquid blend is the future."

    "The fire liquid blend will reduce the power of the Beehive Heavy Cannon, right?" Jiang Wei asked.

    "That is for sure," Fatty replied. "However, I think we can split the blood elementalists into two groups and use two different types of pagoda cannons against them. The Beehive Heavy Cannons can be used to deal with ordinary blood elementalists. We can build enough of them to deal with the sieging enemy forces. If we are dealing with blood elementalists who possessed the Ability of God, we can devise a new type of pagoda cannons and use pure snowva. However, we don¡¯t need too many of this type of pagoda cannons. Snowva is so expensive that only those blood elementalists who have high statuses deserve it!"

    Everyone burst outughing.

    "I will leave the new type of pagoda cannons to you then," Shi Xueman said.

    "Division Leader, what about my reward?" Fatty intentionally put a pitiful look on his face.

    "No problem," Shi Xueman replied bluntly. Then, she added, "I will have Ai Hui pass it to you."

    Fatty shivered in fear. Immediately, he spoke with a solemn tone, "I was just joking! I was just joking! As a member of the Spear of Heavy Cloud, it is my responsibility to shoulder the honor of the Spear of Heavy Cloud! This is my job! Furthermore, what does the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s business have to do with the Sword of Lightning?!"

    Shi Xueman nodded her head and replied, "I will also tell him what you said."

    "Big Sister, Boss, Great Aunt, please let me off." Fatty looked like he was going to cry soon.

    Everyoneughed heartily. Shi Xueman could not help but smile too.

    Everyone, especially those from the Central Pine Faction, saw with their own eyes how Fatty was tortured by Ai Hui in the past. The shadow cast on his mind was as dark as the night.

    Subsequently, Fatty returned to his usual self and continued, "The Beehive Heavy Cannon is powerful, but its consumption of snowva is huge too. We need to replenish our stores of snowva. Moreover, the Beehive Heavy Cannon needs more people to operate. ording to my estimation, one Beehive Heavy Cannon will need at least 20 people to operate. Only the main gunner needs to be a fire elementalist. The rest of the crew can be of any elemental type. One God-subduing Peak will need at least..."

    Fatty tilted his head and thought about it for a while before continuing, "50 Beehive Heavy Cannons?"

    Ssss!

    Everyone gasped. All of them were shocked by this number!

    Fatty¡¯s plump and sweaty face smiled. He did not seem crazy at all. However, everyone knew how crazy this number was. Right now, the Spear of Heavy Cloud only had 12 pagoda cannons. If both God-subduing Peaks were to be equipped with 50 Beehive Heavy Cannons, they would need a total of 100 Beehive Heavy Cannons.

    100 Beehive Heavy Cannons!

    The terrifying, zing, white me just now was a scaled-down version... Wouldn¡¯t 100 full-sized, zing, white mes... form a sea of fire!

    When everyone imagined the sight of a sea of white fire covering the sky, they became extremely excited.

    "100 Beehive Heavy Cannons need 2,000 men. We need increase our manpower then," Sang Zhijun was already doing the calctions.

    Fatty continued, "That¡¯s right. We have to make some early preparations or else it will be hard to recruit people at thest moment. If we have too many empty positions, it will create another issue."

    Fatty looked at Shi Xueman.

    "Speak," Shi Xueman said.

    After witnessing the might of the Beehive Heavy Cannon, she had already decided that they needed to equip the God-subduing Peaks with Beehive Heavy Cannons no matter what. If they really equipped the two God-subduing Peaks with 100 Beehive Heavy Cannons each, they would look like two enormous porcupines. The enemy forces would not know how to deal with them.

    She knew that this n was not easy to implement. However, she had a decisive and determined character. Once she decided to do something, she would do it at all costs without fearing the difficulties. Since she already made up her mind on equipping the God-subduing Peaks with Beehive Heavy Cannons, she would ovee any obstacles along the way.

    "Not only do we have a problem with the manpower, we also have a problem with the number of smiths. Old Li alone is not enough. We need to recruit more smiths. Otherwise, I don¡¯t know when can we finish equipping the 100 Beehive Heavy Cannons for each God-subduing Peak," Fatty said.

    After thinking about it for a while, Shi Xueman made a decision and said, "Skyheart City has allowed us to conscript elementalists from any local ces to replenish our manpower. Jiang Wei, Zu Yan, both of you bring some men and go to the surrounding cities to recruit elementalists and smiths. For the elementalists, follow the usual procedure. As for the smiths, tell them we have the conscription authority first, and then give them some snowva in exchange for their service."

    "We will set off immediately." Jiang Wei was filled with admiration toward Shi Xueman.

    By telling the smiths that the Spear of Heavy Cloud could conscript them by force first and then giving them snowva in exchange for their service, they would not make things too difficult for the smiths.

    As for Zu Yan, his task was to hold the line. Without a Master among them, people would not take them seriously.

    Shi Xueman turned around and said to Fatty, "I shall leave the new type of pagoda cannons to you. Time is running out. In the future, you will be responsible for anything that has to do with pagoda cannons."

    An unprecedented feeling extended throughout Fatty¡¯s body like an electric current. His face flushed as he replied emotionally, "I will do my best!"

    This was the first time he had been entrusted with such a heavy responsibility in the Central Pine Faction.

    At this moment, his eyes became slightly red. It was a pity that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t here. The fatty who shivered with cold in the pool of mud, the greedy demon who liked to steal money, the coward who hid behind Ai Hui, thezy bum who did not like to train or bear hardships had finally been entrusted with a heavy responsibility. He could finally stand tall and proud in front of everyone.

    The cowardice,ziness, and shame had be a page from yesterday. The new page was shining brightly.

    Life was like flipping through a book. Every page was different. It always waited for a better version of itself to appear.

 Chapter 559: The Time Has Arrived

    Chapter 559: The Time Has Arrived

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The reporters in Fishback City were feeling very weird. After staying here for so many days, when they saw An Chouchou, they had a feeling that a hot piece of news would break out soon. However, up till now, no news had been announced. All of them were puzzled.

    Wen Yongming guessed that Ai Hui was waiting for the right chance to do so.

    As such, unlike the other reporters, who stayed in the courtyard drinking tea and chatting every day while waiting for Ai Hui to announce the news, he went around interviewing the people of Fishback City. He was filled with curiosity toward the Central Pine Faction. He tried to gather any information that was rted to the Central Pine Faction, but made little progress. There was very little information about the Central Pine Faction circting outside. These people had almost zeromunication with the outside world and had never released any information about themselves to the outside world.

    Therefore, the Central Pine Valley was unusually mysterious to the rest of the world.

    Even though Wen Yongming was in Fishback City and not the Central Pine Valley, it was still an extremely rare opportunity for him to observe the Central Pine Faction, the Sword of Lightning, and Ai Hui from such a close distance.

    He clearly knew that no one in Fishback City trusted him at all. Any sensitive or out-of-line questions would put them on high alert against him and would cause them to be annoyed with him. As such, no matter what he did, he would always ask Ai Hui for permission first.

    For some unknown reason, Ai Hui agreed that he could interview the the Sword of Lightning¡¯s members on the condition that he did not disturb the members¡¯ daily training sessions. However, when Wen Yongming asked for an interview with Ai Hu himself, he was simply rejected by thetter. Ai Hui seemed very busy and was seldom in Fishback City. No one knew where he went.

    To be able to interview the members of the Sword of Lightning, Wen Yongming was also very excited. Aspared to the otherbat division of the Central Pine Valley, the Spear of Heavy Cloud, the Sword of Lightning did not have much of a reputation yet. The outside world did not think too highly of them. However, Wen Yongming was filled with expectation for the Sword of Lightning Sword. He firmly believed that abat division built by Ai Hui would definitely be extraordinary in the future.

    With Ai Hui¡¯s approval, the members of the Sword of Lightning cooperated very well with Wen Yongming for the interviews. All of them were youngsters. Who did not want his face to appear in front of the world?

    Be it Ai Hui, Wen Yongming, or the members of the Sword of Lightning, none of them probably expected that this information would be passed down forever. These ounts would be the most important historical evidence that theter generations used to study Ai Hui, the Central Pine Faction and the Sword of Lightning.

    Due to this, Wen Yongming¡¯s name would be remembered forever.

    At this point in time, Wen Yongming had no knowledge that the contents he recorded would bring so much shock to theter generations. Thanks to his reporting, this fog-covered period of time could be presented to theter generations. During this period of time, the king had yet to wake up, Lou Lan was still wearing a cooking apron, the legendarybat division was still in its embryonic stage, and the world-shaking names who umted countless outstanding military merits were still shy youngsters.

    Wen Yongming specialized in socializing and was able to easily mix with this group of innocent youngsters in a short period of time.

    The Sword of Lightning also gave him a pleasant change of environment.

    In this ce, no one cared about status or fought and schemed against each other. Everyone sweat with all their might. Their daily training sessions had a terrifying intensity.

    In a notebook that was passed down to the future generations, the few pages that mentioned the daily training sessions of the Sword of Lightning stunned the futurebat divisions. Those futurebat divisions underwent training that paled inparison to the Sword of Lightning¡¯s.

    There were many minor details mentioned, such as the sword operator who would practice embroidery. In the future, one had to practice embroidery before bing a sword operator. As such, many people also referred a male sword operator as a "male seamstress."

    The praises for Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup mentioned in the notebook were enthusiastically talked about the most by the future generations. The number ofpliments Lou Lan received per day was directly linked to the number of times he had served his elemental soup that day. If he served his elemental soups three times in a day, he would definitely receive more than threepliments for that day.

    The number of times that the elemental soups was served had a direct corrtion with the amount of praise Lou Lan would receive.

    However, the thing that left the deepest impression on Wen Yongming was the unity and diligence disyed by this smallbat division. All of them were filled with vitality, behaving differently from the people in the outside world.

    This group of people was extraordinary.

    It was a pity that he did not get to see the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    As usual, after the members of the Sword of Lightning had finished their training session, Wen Yongming eagerly went over to chat with them. At this moment, he felt slightly puzzled. The duration of the training session today was shorter than usual. By now, he was already very familiar with the members of the Sword of Lightning. They would greet each other, and he would even tease those members who were tired to death. Today, however, everyone responded to him absent-mindedly. Usually, they would burst outughing and cheer him on.

    Wen Yongming could sense that the atmosphere was bing tense.

    Had the time arrived?

    At this moment, a figure suddenly descended from the sky. All the members could not help but stand up. Upon noticing this minor detail, Wen Yongming knew something was up. When he saw who the figure was, his mind shook.

    Yang Xiaodong!

    Being curious about any information that was rted to the Central Pine Valley, Wen Yongming could recognize any important figure of the Central Pine Faction. Yang Xiaodong used to be a Master hired by Thunder City. Subsequently, he betrayed Thunder City, but was defeated by Ai Hui and his counterparts. Eventually, he and Mister Dou became captives of the Central Pine Valley. After Yang Xiaodong joined the Spear of Heavy Cloud, he became an important figure in thebat division and disyed outstanding performances under Shi Xueman¡¯s leadership.

    Yang Xiaodong had returned from the front line!

    Indeed, after a while, the mysterious Ai Hui appeared in Fishback City.

    After approximately four hours, Yang Xiaodong left hurriedly.

    Fishback City was very small. Almost everyone saw Yang Xiaodong arrive and leave. The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

    Whether it was the reporters or the snowva buyers who had followed along, all of them understood that the time for the announcement was arriving soon.

    "Mayor Qiao, the Division Leader wants to see you."

    Qiao Meiqi was slightly surprised that his name was called first. Deep down, he felt anxious. No matter how he looked at it, Ai Hui was going to do something astonishing this time around. Right now, almost 60 percent of the profits that Thunder City made came from the snowva. If anything was to happen to this business deal, Qiao Meiqi would suffer huge losses. Unfortunately, he had no say in this issue.

    In the past, the Central Pine Valley needed to worry about how to sell the snowva. Now that the demand for snowva had skyrocketed, the Central Pine Valley could easily sell its snowva. The only thing that made Qiao Meiqi felt at ease was that both of them enjoyed a pleasant coboration. Ai Hui was someone who valued old rtionships. However, he was also a businessman. If he knew there were no mutual benefits for both sides, he wouldn¡¯t care about the rtionship between them.

    He did not know Ai Hui¡¯s n and felt uncertain.

    When Qiao Meiqi walked into Ai Hui¡¯s office, Ai Hui was looking at a map on the wall. When Qiao Meiqi took a closer look at the map, his body shivered. It was a map of the front line. The most eye-catching position on the map was where the Spear of Heavy Cloud was currently stationed.

    Qiao Meiqi could not help but ask, "Brother, are you preparing to go to the front line?"

    Ai Hui shifted his gaze from the map and nodded his head at Qiao Meiqi, "Yes, we will be going to the front line very soon."

    Upon receiving a confirmed answer from Ai Hui, a cold tingle went down Qiao Meiqi¡¯s spine. Even though Ai Hui¡¯s face was covered by bandages and his eyes were blocked by the crystal chips, Qiao Meiqi could still sense Ai Hui¡¯s resolution.

    Suddenly, Qiao Meiqi asked, "What about the Central Pine Valley? Who will protect it?"

    "I have already made arrangements for it," Ai Hui replied calmly.

    He was too calm!

    Ai Hui was so calm that Qiao Meiqi felt panic. He had been through countless difficult negotiations and had rich experience in this aspect. However, at this point in time, the experience he had was of no use to him at all. Ai Hui was calm like a silent sword, but released a sharp glint. This implied that Ai Hui had already made a decision and possessed the overwhelming determination to carry it out.

    This was what Qiao Meiqi was most afraid of because Ai Hui was a businessman.

    Qiao Meiqi was so nervous that he did not even notice his trembling voice. "Brother, don¡¯t do anything rash. After all, you¡¯re someone who has a stable business now. You must be careful with any decision you make."

    Ai Hui picked up the teapot and poured a cup of tea for Qiao Meiqi. Then, he replied, "The reason I asked youe today is because I want to talk about our future coboration. Whether you agree with my choice or not, it will not affect our rtionship."

    In the end, Qiao Meiqi was an experienced businessman. He quickly regained hisposure and said, "Brother, speak your mind."

    "Very soon, I will bring the Sword of Lightning to the battlefield. However, my rtionship with Skyheart City willpletely copse as well. I hope that Brother can help me, but I also clearly know the risk that you will face if you help me. Therefore, I can understand the worries you have," Ai Hui said calmly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s rtionship with Skyheart City wouldpletely copse!

    Qiao Meiqi, who had just regained hisposure, almost jumped out of his seat when he heard these words. Had the rtionship between the Central Pine Valley and Skyheart City already deteriorated to this stage? Qiao Meiqi forced himself to stay calm and replied, "If I don¡¯t agree, our snowva business deal will no longer continue?"

    "Yes, I will have other ns for the snowva," Ai Hui replied bluntly.

    Qiao Meiqi admired Ai Hui¡¯s straightforward character. At this point in time, he had already calmed downpletely. He asked bluntly, "If I agree to help you, what can I do to help you? And what will I get in return?"

    Apparently, Ai Hui was already prepared for this question. He continued, "I want Brother to be in charge of our logistics. This war will continue for a long period of time. Our rtionship with Skyheart City will deteriorate rapidly, so it is impossible for us to get any resources from them. Therefore, I hope Brother¡¯s enterprise can provide resources for us. We will hand over our spoils of war to you. Other than this, Brother will continue to be the only channel where the outside world can get snowva."

    "So we are like an exclusive resource convoy that supports the Central Pine Valley¡¯sbat divisions?" Qiao Meiqi palpitated with eagerness.

    "That¡¯s right." Ai Hui nodded his head.

    Qiao Meiqi was incited by Ai Hui¡¯s words. Of course he knew of the risk that came along with it. From the look of it, Skyheart City was naturally the most powerful at the moment. If he offended Skyheart City, he would have bad days ahead. However, the profits that Ai Hui could provide him were immense. Being the sole retailer for snowva was like having a gold mine. Simrly, the profits from being the resource supplier that supported the Central Pine Faction enticed him.

    Spoils of war were usually worth 10 times more than their original value after they were used on the battlefield. The profits he could earn from the spoils of war were immense!

    Of course, the risk that came with all these benefits would be huge as well. Their lives would be in danger, and the transportation of resources would be filled with danger. They would be prone to sneak attacks by enemies.

    If it were other people who came up with this proposal, Qiao Meiqi would have rejected it straightaway. However, it was Ai Hui who proposed it, causing him to hesitate. He believed in Ai Hui¡¯s fighting capabilities. This fellow looked as if he was born to fight.

    Furthermore, there was still the Spear of Cloud that kept on performing miracles.

    In his mind, Qiao Meiqi was weighing the pros and cons. If he agreed to the proposal, it would be equivalent to him joining the Central Pine Faction. This was something that neither Skyheart City nor the Gong Residence, which he had close ties with, could tolerate.

    "I need to think about it," Qiao Meiqi replied with difficulty.

    "You indeed have to think carefully about such an important issue. I am sorry, but you will have to stay in Fishback City for a few more days and wait for me toplete my affairs," Ai Hui said understandingly.

    Qiao Meiqi left Ai Hui¡¯s office with aplicated look on his face.

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice was calm and collected the entire time. The aura he disyed waspletely different from the past.

    Qiao Meiqi realized that he might need to reassess Ai Hui.

 Chapter 560: The Central Pine Valleyâ€™s Declaration

    Chapter 560: The Central Pine Valley¡¯s Deration

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    When An Chouchou saw Qiao Meiqi walk out from Ai Hui¡¯s office with aplicated look on his face, he felt slightly pleased with himself. Qiao Meiqi¡¯srgest business was the snowva. It was normal to be distressed after losing such a huge piece of pie.

    An Chouchou had done some research before. More than half of Thunder City¡¯s profits came from snowva. This was also why An Chouchou came alone this time around.

    Why wasn¡¯t Newlight City powerful even though its poption was so huge? It was because it wasn¡¯t rich. Whether it was inheritances, elemental traces, or the God-subduing Peaks, the expenditure of resources was astronomical. The aristocratic families controlled a powerful economy. Meanwhile, the new citizens were the low and middle sses of the Avalon of Five Elements. How would they possess such powerful wealth then? Even though Yuchi Ba was an Elder in the Elders Guild, he still couldn¡¯t bepared to those well-known Elders from aristocratic families.

    The snowva could bring about huge profits. If Newlight City could ally with the Central Pine Valley, their economy would skyrocket.

    An Chouchou had the confidence that he would be able to bring qualitative changes to Newlight City within the next few years.

    After a while, Ai Hui walked out as well. Then, he nodded his head at An Chouchou, "Brother Chou, I¡¯m sorry for making you wait for such a long time."

    "Brother Ai, are you ready to make the announcement?" An Chouchou smiled with a calm look on his face.

    "Ah, yes." Ai Hui turned around and spoke to everyone, "Everyone, I¡¯m sorry for making all of you wait for so long in this deste ce. I am really sorry. However, since this issue is rted to snowva, I had to be prudent about it. Now, I have two announcements to make."

    Everyone became excited on the spot. Were the announcements ready?

    Wen Yongming and the other reporters began recording.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui said to An Chouchou, "Brother Chou, please stand beside me."

    An Chouchou gave a confident smile and stood beside Ai Hui. Even though he knew all this time that he would be able to convince Ai Hui, he still felt extremely excited when the moment arrived. Back in the day, when he took over the construction project of Newlight City, no one held him in high regard. However, he stillpleted the project perfectly.

    The sess he had this time around would be the starting point of the rise of Newlight City.

    And because he came alone on this mission, his name was destined to be remembered by Newlight City forever.

    He was extremely confident.

    Beside him, Ai Hui opened his mouth and began speaking, "I have taken note of the numerous discussions regarding pagoda cannons and snowva. Moreover, Brother Chou has travelled a long distance toe here and discuss this issue with me. Newlight City is a huge city and Brother Chou has great foresight. I have benefitted a lot from the discussion we had. I am also very d that everyone supports the pagoda cannons. The Central Pine Valley¡¯s resolution in opposing the Blood of God has never changed. From the day the blood catastrophe broke out in the Induction Ground at Central Pine City, we have been doing this. Our most important mission now is to fight against the Blood of God. Having a brave, responsible and powerful partner is more important than securing a victory on the battlefield. Therefore, I have two announcements to make..."

    An Chouchou tried his best to restrain his emotions, but his lips still curled into a smile eventually.

    Sess!

    .....

    Skyheart City.

    Xiao Lin was reading the battle report that was sent to him. He flipped through and finished the first few pages with a nce. Suddenly, he stopped flipping the pages as a cold glint shed across his eyes. His ordinary-looking face turned fierce and sinister all of a sudden. At this moment, Xiao Lin looked as if he had be another person. His body emitted a chill, resembling a poisonous snake that was hiding in the dark.

    He picked out a few pages from the battle report file and ced them within his robe. Subsequently, he turned back to the ordinary-looking man.

    Following this, he walked out of his room. After making several turns, he set foot on the street.

    There were not many people on the street. Skyheart City was no longer prosperous like it was in the past. After the Bloody Night of Guillotines, Skyheart City had declined significantly. Madam Ye did her best to govern the city. She disliked extravagant and excessive behavior. The reputable aristocratic families had already cut down on their indulgences by quite a bit.

    However, there were still a lot of criticisms against Madam Ye. The most widely spread and impactful were Le Buleng¡¯s words.

    On the surface, Le Buleng was talking about the three central divisions. However, who didn¡¯t know that those words were targeted at Madam Ye in reality?

    Xiao Lin knew where the problemid.

    Until now, Madam Ye had not personally orchestrated a victory. This was why peoplecked confidence in her. In many people¡¯s eyes, Madam Ye was more interested in engaging in internal strife than fighting the blood elementalists. Furthermore, Madam Ye¡¯s brainchild, Master¡¯s Glory, had yet to bepleted. Everyone had misgivings about the Master¡¯s Glory program.

    Among the higher-ups in Skyheart City, Xiao Lin had heard themin about Master¡¯s Glory more than once. They said that if the resources spent on Master¡¯s Glory were used to build God-subduing Peaks, they would have a lot more God-subduing Peaks, and the situation wouldn¡¯t be so grim now. With a few more God-subduing Peaks, the Wall of North Sea also wouldn¡¯t have copsed so easily

    Xiao Lin knew things weren¡¯t that simple. However, he did not think about doing anything.

    What Boss told him that day made sense. They were just a knife. They had no say in when they were use or how they were used. It was enough for them toplete the tasks that the higher-ups gave them.

    Right now, he waspleting the task that the higher-ups had given him.

    After walking past a few blocks, he came to the entrance of a news vige. He walked into it, appearing as if he was very familiar with this ce.

    A reporter who was currently refining some mirage bean pods turned around. A faintly discernible look of disdain shed across his eyes, but he quickly became all smiles. "Sir, you can just ask us to go over. There¡¯s no need for you toe here personally."

    Shen Jin was around 50 years old. He looked like a honest person, but one could tell he was actually a profiteer.

    No matter how good Shen Jin tried to hide his look of disdain, Xiao Lin, who was specialized in observing bodynguage, could still see it clearly. However, he did not care about it all. So what if this fellow disliked him? He was fine with anything as long as he couldplete his task.

    He took out the few pages of the battle report from his robe and ced them on the table. Then, he said inly, "It¡¯s all right. I want you to take a look at these few pages."

    When Shen Jin picked up the battle report and read the first line, his facial expression changed slightly.

    "Do you know how to write?" Xiao Lin asked indifferently.

    "Sir, please guide me," Shen Jin stuttered.

    Xiao Lin did not beat around the bush and bluntly said, "Manybat divisions have failed even though they have pagoda cannons. After investigation, we realized thesebat divisionscked snowva. They used a low-grade fire liquid blend that caused the power of the pagoda cannons to be greatly reduced."

    Shen Jin¡¯s facial expression changed again. He of course knew what these words implied.

    Upon seeing the worried look on Shen Jin¡¯s face, Xiao Lin said inly, "Don¡¯t worry, there will be many people supporting you."

    Shen Jin knew he had toply with Xiao Lin today. Therefore, he added, "Should we also say that the Elders Guild will pay a handsome sum of money to buy the refinement method for the snowva from the Central Pine Valley? We can also say that thebat divisions at the front line were sacrificed in vain because theycked snowva."

    A look of admiration shed across Xiao Lin¡¯s eyes. Just as he was about to speak, someone barged in and yelled, "Old Shen! Old Shen! Big news! Big news!"

    Shen Jin¡¯s facial expression changed. Before he could react, that person had already barged in.

    The person only realized there was a guest after he barged in. He did not know who Xiao Lin was. He felt slightly embarrassed and said, "Old Shen, I¡¯m sorry. I don¡¯t know you had a guest. I wille and find youter."

    "What¡¯s the big news?" Xiao Lin suddenly asked.

    The person thought Xiao Lin was Shen Jin¡¯s friend and hurriedly said, "Absolutely hot news! It just came out this morning, and I just bought it. I am shocked..."

    "The main point please," Xiao Lin interrupted emotionlessly.

    The person looked slightly embarrassed. However, he quickly started talking with excitement again, "The Central Pine Valley has made two important announcements. Let me tell you, when I first saw it..."

    When Xiao Lin heard the three words "Central Pine Valley," his mind jolted. He turned around abruptly and appeared in front of the person. "Hand the mirage bean pod over!"

    Xiao Lin¡¯s suddenly disy of might froze that person in an instant. He subconsciously handed the mirage bean pod over to Xiao Lin.

    Xiao Lin returned to his original position and crushed the mirage bean pod.

    Ai Hui was entirely covered by bandages with two red crystal chips over his eyes, resembling a red-eyed mummy. He looked extremelyical, but Xiao Lin knew how scary this mysterious man was. Ai Hui was truly a ruthless individual.

    When Xiao Lin clearly saw who the fat man beside Ai Hui was, his eye pupils dted abruptly.

    An Chouchou!

    The mayor of Newlight City, An Chouchou, who was also known as the "Ugly Idol." An Chouchou handled things firmly and carefully. He was honest and sincere as well. With the addition of his body size, he was affectionately known as the "Ugly Idol" by the citizens of Newlight City.

    The Central Pine Valley and Newlight City were going to ally with each other.

    Xiao Lin felt as if he had been struck by lightning. This result was what Madam Ye least wanted to see happen. He could almost imagine how angry Madam Ye would be when Boss meet herter!

    "I have taken note of the numerous discussions on pagoda cannons and snowva..."

    "Our most important mission now is to fight against the Blood of God. Having a brave, responsible, and powerful partner is more important than securing a victory on the battlefield..."

    Eh? Xiao Lin was stunned all of a sudden.

    "Therefore, I have two announcements to make. The first one is that the Sword of Lightning will be going to the battlefield to fight alongside the Spear of Heavy Cloud. The second one is that we have decided to open up snowva and the technology behind the pagoda cannons to the public in order to put up a better fight against the Blood of God and to find like-mindedrades. We will form a brand new Pagoda Cannon Alliance. We will provide free snowva to the members of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance and will share with them our research on pagoda cannons. Our requirements are very simple. First, only thosebat divisions that fight long-term on the front line will be provided with free snowva. We feel that thebat divisions at the front line need the snowva more urgently. Second, allbat divisions that wish to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance will have to undergo our assessment and possess enough military experience as well as tenacious willpower..."

    In the mirage, An Chouchou¡¯s facial expression was frozen. The confident smile on his face had disappeared as his face began to turn ashen.

    At this moment, Xiao Lin wanted to burst outughing. An Chouchou had been fooled!

    However, this notion of his was soon gone.

    He stared at the red-eyed mummy in the mirage. He wished he could tear the bandages off Ai Hui¡¯s head to see the ambitious look on his face.

    They had discussed the possible responses that Ai Hui woulde up with, but they had definitely never thought of this response.

    How ambitious did he have to be to choose this method?

    Did he really think that he could use the snowva to make everyone listen to him?

    A sneer appeared on Xiao Lin¡¯s face.

    Naive!

 Chapter 561: The Pagoda Cannon Alliance

    Chapter 561: The Pagoda Cannon Alliance

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    He had been fooled. An Chouchou felt like he was a clown.

    He was calm toward this oue. He realized he couldn¡¯t me anyone but himself.

    He had underestimated Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was far more ambitious than he expected, far more daring than he thought.

    Deep down, An Chouchou sighed with sorrow. A newborn doesn¡¯t fear the tiger, but did Ai Hui really think this was an easy feat to pull off? Was snowva really that powerful? So much so that Ai Hui could use it tomand everyone?

    It was not that easy.

    Most of thebat divisions that went to the front line were under the Elders Guild¡¯smand. They were motivated by Skyheart City¡¯s generous rewards. Anyone who joined Ai Hui¡¯s side would cause his or her rtionship with Skyheart City to copse. How many people were willing to take the risk of falling out with Skyheart City?

    What gave him the right to think that he could control the situation? To make everyone listen to him?

    There were many things that couldn¡¯t be achieved just by being ambitious.

    An Chouchou was very curious about what Ai Hui would do next. From Ai Hui¡¯s past, he could tell that Ai Hui wasn¡¯t a brainless youngster. On the contrary, the way Ai Hui handled things disyed maturity that surpassed his age.

    He had been stupid to underestimate Ai Hui once. He would be worse than stupid if he underestimated him twice.

    Very soon, An Chouchou regained hisposure and told Ai Hui, "Brother Ai is really bold."

    The bandages on Ai Hui¡¯s face twitched, appearing as if he was smiling behind the bandages. "I¡¯m not bold, but rather, I¡¯m being forced into this situation. I can¡¯t possibly resign myself to my fate."

    An Chouchou did not believe Ai Hui. He felt that Ai Hui¡¯s words were just civilities. However, he did not wish to linger on this issue and changed the topic, "What about the Central Pine Valley? Aren¡¯t you worried about it?"

    Then, a look of realization appeared on An Chouchou¡¯s face, and he continued, "Ah, the bloody signboard in Lemon Camping Ground has yet to dry. There should be no one that dares to mess with the Central Pine Valley during this period of time."

    Ai Hui declined to say anything about this issue. He merely replied, "Brother Chou will know in two days¡¯ time."

    Upon hearing these words, An Chouchou chuckled. "I will have to be thick-skinned and stay for two more days then."

    Most of the people had left. Hoping that his message could be spread faster, Ai Hui used the Pinwheel Sword to send Wen Yongming and the rest back to Thunder City. The customers who wanted to buy snowva were sent back as well. Ai Hui¡¯s announcement had given them a great shock.

    When the Pinwheel Sword returned, Gu Xuan had an annoyed look on his face. Upon seeing this, Ai Hui asked, "What¡¯s with that look on your face? Something happen along the way?"

    Shi Zhiguang interrupted, "These people are too vile. Along the way, they kept speaking ill of Boss. All of us were infuriated. They only shut their mouths when we threatened to throw whoever that kept on talking off the Pinwheel Sword."

    "What did they say about me?" Ai Hui looked interested.

    Shi Zhiguang was an honest individual. When Ai Hui asked this question, he replied frankly, "They said Boss is delusional. They also said you have overestimated yourself and that you think you¡¯re a very important figure. Why can¡¯t everyone survive without your snowva?"

    Ai Huiughed out loud. Then, he patted Gu Xuan and Shi Zhiguang¡¯s shoulders and said to them, "Go and have a rest."

    After flying such a long distance, both of them were tired. They knew they had a lot of things to do afterward, so they went back to rest.

    Qiao Meiqi walked over to Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was shocked by Qiao Meiqi¡¯s appearance. He asked, "Brother, what happened to you?"

    Qiao Meiqi¡¯s eyes were very red, resembling the eyes of a rabbit. His hair was unkempt, and he looked as if he had not slept for a few days. Disgruntled, he said, "It¡¯s your fault. You have created such a huge uproar. Haa, why did I have to fall in? If you want me to replenish your supplies, I will do it for you. Why did you have to trouble me by asking me to fall in?"

    Ai Hui smiled and did not say anything.

    Qiao Meiqi clenched his teeth and said, "After thinking it through over the past few days, I feel that I have more prospects for sess following you. Anyway, in Skyheart City¡¯s eyes, I am on the Gong Residence¡¯s side. If the Ye Family really dominates the world, they will definitely target me as well. If that¡¯s the case, I might as well take a gamble with you, Brother. What¡¯s the worst that can happen to me? At worst, I die!"

    After Qiao Meiqi finished this sentence, he looked as if he was relieved of a burden, calming down in an instant.

    "Brother thought so highly of us?" Ai Hui cast a nce at Qiao Meiqi.

    "It¡¯s not that I thought highly of all of you," Qiao Meiqi shook his head as his tone changed, "but rather, it¡¯s that I think highly of you. You¡¯re born to be a troublemaker. The more chaotic a situation is, the more effective you are. I guess you have never noticed this characteristic of yours before. In the past, I was puzzled about why you were willing to stay in a deste ce like the Central Pine Valley. Now that you¡¯re going to the front line, I feel that you¡¯re back to normal. Can the Ye Family solve the chaotic situation now? No, I don¡¯t think so."

    "Brother feels that I can solve it?" Ai Hui was extremely surprised.

    "No, you can¡¯t," Qiao Meiqi replied bluntly. "You don¡¯t have this capability yet. However, if we talk about who has the higher chance of surviving, I would pick you. I am very confident in you regarding this aspect. Furthermore, with your snowva trump card, no matter who you seek help from in the future, no one will reject you. At worst, I will surrender along with you. Since there¡¯s a way out and I can have the opportunity to make big bucks, this little bit of risk is nothing to me."

    Ai Hui was astonished by Qiao Meiqi¡¯s thought process. He was truly a businessman!

    "Wee aboard!" Ai Hui reached out his hand to Qiao Meiqi.

    It was only after careful deliberations that he chose Qiao Meiqi to be his partner. Both of them had coborated for a long period of time, and they had enough trust and confidence in each other. If it was someone else, Ai Hui would not be at ease. He or she would not be on Qiao Meiqi¡¯s level either.

    Qiao Meiqi high-fived Ai Hui¡¯s hand delightedly. Following which, he frowned and sighed deeply. "Haa, why do my Masters always be your subordinates eventually? Huo Da just told me that he wants to be a sword operator and requested that I ask you about it."

    "He wants to be a sword operator?" Ai Hui was slightly surprised, but soon nodded his head. "All right, he can follow Shi Zhiguang and train for a period of time first. He is a Master and I believe he will master the position very soon."

    An elementalist who could be a Master definitely had an outstanding level of intelligence. A person that solely depended on diligence would never be a Master. A Master had a deep understanding of elemental energy. No matter what new skill they learned, they could pick it up easily.

    Ai Hui also had not expected that Huo Da wanted to be a sword operator. He hadn¡¯t expected the position of sword operator to be so attractive to a Master.

    Immediately, he thought of a brand-new opportunity.

    Currently, Shi Zhiguang was already verypetent with operating the Pinwheel Sword. Shi Zhiguang was still young, so he had more potential than Huo Da. However, as a Master, Huo Da was at his peak now. Huo Da would rapidly grasp the trick to operating the Pinwheel Sword. However, an ordinary Pinwheel Sword did not have enough room for a Master to disy his entire might.

    Being a Master at his peak, Huo Da was able to manage a higher speed, carry out moreplicated maneuvers, endure a more powerful impact, and exhibit a better control over the Pinwheel Sword.

    Should he make Huo Da a solo Pinwheel Sword?

    The image of an enormous sword that was covered with a thick sword gleam disappearing into the sky and then creating a bloody trail in the enemy camp appeared in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    Fast and invisible!

    As long as it was fast enough, it could produce a horrifyingly destructive power.

    Sword operator was a new profession Ai Hui had made up. A master sword operator was something that he had never thought of. There were many areas that he needed to think about in detail. However, Ai Hui felt that this idea was really worth considering.

    The addition of Qiao Meiqi was extremely beneficial for the entire Central Pine Faction.

    The Central Pine Faction was mainly made up ofbat elementalists. If they were asked to handle business deals, they would definitely cause a huge mess.

    Getting rid of their dependence on Skyheart City for resources was the first step of Ai Hui¡¯s n. With the snowva, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t afraid of not having enough money. However, whether it was selling snowva or buying an enormous amount of resources, they needed people who were capable of doing it.

    By joining the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, one had to undertake a huge risk and break ties with Skyheart City. However, he or she would have no risk in buying snowva. Skyheart City¡¯s influence was not enough to hinder people from buying snowva.

    Now, there was one final issue left. The Central Pine Valley.

    Lou Lan ran over to Ai Hui and yelled, "Ai Hui, the arrangements in the valley have been settled!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted.

    After Yang Xiaodong returned to the Spear of Heavy Cloud, he repeated everything Ai Hui said to Shi Xueman. After hearing the message, Shi Xueman did not say anything.

    Early in the morning, Shi Xueman sent her subordinate to a nearby city to buy a mirage bean pod.

    Inside a tent, Shi Xueman, Fatty, Jiang Wei, and the rest were staring at the mirage.

    Fatty was pping his thigh as he watched the mirage, "Oh my! This move of A¡¯ Hui is really beautiful! Did you see the look on An Chouchou¡¯s face? Hahaha!"

    The rest had their faces filled with shock. They needed some time to digest Ai Hui¡¯s sudden announcement.

    Clearly, they understood what Ai Hui¡¯s deration implied. From today onward, their rtionship with Skyheart City waspletely broken. This meant that they were going to establish a power of their own. In the past, the Central Pine Valley was too small, and they had too few people. It was very hard for them to establish themselves as a power back then.

    Everyone was startled by Ai Hui¡¯s audacity and resolution.

    When the mirage finished ying, there was absolute silence in the tent.

    Shi Xueman looked around and calmly said, "Let¡¯s talk about it."

    Without hesitation, Fatty yelled, "I support Ai Hui! Everything we do, we have to do ording to that old witch! Boring! Skyheart City is obviously trying to snatch our snowva. This is a golden eggid by our old hen. Even if we die, we are not giving it to them!"

    The rest nodded their heads. Fatty¡¯s words spoke for their minds.

    Madam Ye and Skyheart City were not really popr among the soldiers on the front line. Everyone was limited by the "Elders Guild." Deep down, theycked respect toward Madam Ye. The more battles abat division fought against the blood elementalists, the more they would feel this way. Why would they respect Madam Ye when she was doing nothing in Skyheart City while theirrades kept dying on the battlefield?

    "I agree. However, we still need to discuss any unforeseen events that we might encounter. For example, will our rtionship with the Infantry Division and the Sky Edge Division change? In our original n, we needed the coordination of four God-subduing Peaks to form a defensive line. If our rtionship with the Infantry Division and the Sky Edge Division drifts apart, do we need to have a backup n?" Jiang Wei spoke with a deep voice.

    "How do we resolve the issue of resource replenishment?" Sang Zhijun asked.

    "After all, it is obvious that we are trying to form a power of our own."

    "What if no one joins our Pagoda Cannon Alliance?"

    "What will happen to the Central Pine Valley? Who will protect it?"

    Everyone broke into a lively discussion. The atmosphere heated up in an instant.

    Ai Hui¡¯s audacity had shocked everyone. However, they subsequently felt more excitement than shock. All of them were still young, filled with vigor and courage. Of course they did not want to stay and hide in a deste valley. All of them wanted to make a name for themselves.

    Furthermore, the enmity between them and the blood elementalists was unresolvable.

    Theypletely disagreed with Skyheart City¡¯s style of handling things. Deep down, they disdained and hated Skyheart City¡¯s actions. Now that they could finally expand their power and influence to step onto the world stage, they were filled with hope and expectation.

    Everyone knew that this path was arduous and dangerous. Even so, this couldn¡¯t suppress their fervor or stop them from pursuing what they desired.

    These invisible restraints had been suffocating them for a very long time. They longed to be free from them.

    As for the danger and risk that came along with this decision, none of them cared at all. Weren¡¯t they in danger every day on the battlefield? No matter what dangers or adverse effects came along with this decision, it couldn¡¯t be worse than the dangers and tragedies they faced on the battlefield.

    "We will discuss these issues again when Ai Hui is here. I¡¯m not too sure about his exact arrangements either. However, everyone doesn¡¯t need to be too worried. Ai Hui already has a solution to the issue of the Central Pine Valley. He will give all of you a surprise," Shi Xueman said.

    Surprise?

    Everyone looked at each other, feeling even more curious.

 Chapter 562: Skyheart Cityâ€™s Countermeasures

    Chapter 562: Skyheart City¡¯s Countermeasures

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The Infantry Division¡¯s encampment.

    Silver Solder looked silently at the red-eyed mummy who was covered in bandages in the mirage. Other than his voice, Silver Solder couldn¡¯t link the person in the mirage with the youth in the embroidery workshop in Central Pine City. Even his voice was slightly different despite it sounding familiar. The tranquility and resolution in his voice were forged by steel-like willpower. It was no longer young and tender like it was in the past.

    Silver Soldier felt as if a lifetime had passed.

    After he woke up from his injury, he was suffocated by the devastation caused by the Battle of Central Pine City.

    When he saw Ai Hui plunge his sword into the body of Wang Shouchuan and Mingxiu¡¯s tear-streaked face, he was heartbroken. He felt as if his heart had been shed by a sword.

    That night, he was dead drunk.

    Fate seemed to y a cruel joke on him. It first threw him into theforting warmth of sunshine, then it ruthlessly threw him into a cold and dark abyss.

    A slightly warm palm gently held his metallic hand. The texture of the palm wasn¡¯t soft since it was covered with calluses from long term swordsmanship practice.

    He returned to his senses from the whirlpool of memories.

    Silver Soldierughed at himself. How could a person whose life did not belong to himself be qualified to feel sentimental?

    He smiled at Karakorum Pris and said, "I am fine. I just didn¡¯t expect this fellow to grow to this level."

    Karakorum Pris knew that her senior had thought about Central Pine City again. She could feel that her senior had been depressed all these years. Every time he thought about Central Pine City, he would be emotional.

    She wondered what her senior was like before he was injured. Was he always solemn like this? Did he never smile like he did now?

    "It seems like Aunt Ye has an eye on the snowva," she said softly.

    "It¡¯s not ¡®seems like,¡¯ but rather, she has had an eye on the snowva all along. Snowva is an A-grade fire liquid, and there are many uses for it. With the emergence of Pagoda Cannons, why would Skyheart City ignore such a powerful weapon?" Silver Soldier replied.

    "Thatd Ai Hui is very crafty. He will not allow anyone to get the better of him. He will definitely fight to his death with anyone that tries to steal from his bowl. Look at his message. He obviously knows that Skyheart City is going to target him, so he struck first and obtained the upper hand," Silver Soldier continued.

    "Take a look, he is actually taking a shot at Skyheart City with his words. Thebat divisions at the front line need the snowva more urgently than those who aren¡¯t at the front line. Skyheart City must be feeling angry and humiliated right now. However, they can¡¯t do anything against Ai Hui at the moment. Thisd is a bad boy. That¡¯s the way he has always been. One has to be very careful when dealing with him. A moment of carelessness will cause one to be eaten by him. I also don¡¯t know why a decent girl like Shi Xueman fell for a bad boy like him."

    The eyes behind Karakorum Savant¡¯s veil curled slightly. She liked it the most when her senior pondered over something seriously. It was only in these moments that her senior would forget about all his depressing memories and be focused.

    "What about us?" she continued to ask.

    After thinking about it, Silver Soldier replied, "We will carry on what we have been doing until Skyheart City gives us a clear-cut order. I don¡¯t think Skyheart City dares to act recklessly anyway. Furthermore, the situation now is critical. If the situation gets out of control and creates a chain-reaction, we will not be able to hold off the blood elementalists. Eventually, the enemy forces will be able to attack Beyond Avalon directly. This is definitely an oue that Skyheart City doesn¡¯t want to see."

    Karakorum Savant wasn¡¯t a brainless person. After thinking about it, she felt that her senior¡¯s words made sense. She knew Aunt Ye very well and knew that Aunt Ye was very good at practicing forbearance. Karakorum Savant nodded her head and replied, "Senior is right."

    "That¡¯s why I said thisd Ai Hui is very crafty. Look at the timing he chose to make this announcement. Skyheart City can¡¯t do anything to him at all. Even though I don¡¯t know how thisd is going to handle the situation, I know he can do a lot of things during this period of buffer time. Thisd is an expert during chaotic situations. He is like a slippery loach that can make the most out of every opportunity."

    "I think Senior actually admires Ai Hui a lot." Karakorum Savantughed.

    Silver Savant was stunned momentarily. Then, he nodded his head and said, "There are many unusual aspects about him. He is strong-willed and tenacious. I have never seen someone like him before. To other people, willpower might be a form of persistence with a particr faith. Ai Hui, however, seems to be born with willpower. It¡¯s an instinct to him. The words ¡®giving up¡¯ don¡¯t seem to exist in his dictionary."

    "Senior has such a high assessment of him!" Karakorum Savant was astonished.

    "Actually, what right do we have to assess him? His achievements today were obtained through his own hard work. We are inferiorpared to him."

    Karakorum Savant tilted her head and thought about it. Then, she nodded her head and replied, "Senior is right."

    She and her senior became the division leaders of the Infantry and Sky Edge divisions only because of her father. Ai Hui became the leader of the Central Pine Faction through his own abilities. Even Shi Xueman became his subordinate.

    After fighting alongside Shi Xueman, she rather admired Shi Xueman¡¯s strength and character. Ai Hui was indeed formidable if he was able to make an outstanding individual like Shi Xueman his subordinate.

    "Let Skyheart City stress over the issue of snowva. Right now, I am actually very interested in Ai Hui¡¯s Pagoda Cannon Alliance. No matter what, thisd is exceptional inbat. He can relieve us of some of our burden," Silver Soldier said.

    "After listening to Senior, even I hope Ai Hui can arrive earlier." Karakorum Savant chuckled.

    Silver Soldier was right. Skyheart City was stressing over Ai Hui¡¯s prestige now.

    "This is what you meant by you are confident of getting it done? This is what you call getting it done?"

    Madam Ye¡¯s enraged voice echoed throughout the meeting hall. Everyone kept quiet out of fear. Madam Ye had always been graceful and refined. This was the first time they had seen her lose control of herself. She wasn¡¯t even this angry when the Dread Division and the Judgement Division had left the city.

    Ayer of perspiration appeared on Nian Tingfeng¡¯s forehead without him knowing. He had thought of various possible moves that Ai Hui would make, but he definitely never thought of this response. Ai Hui¡¯s style of handling things was indeed surprising.

    "He is pping our face! By saying the front line needs the snowva more urgently, he is saying that we are doing nothing at all! Hmph, he even said that he is going to the front line immediately. A smart move indeed. The p he gave our face is loud and clear. Now, we can¡¯t even do anything against him!" Madam Ye¡¯s face had turned ashen as she chided everyone.

    "This subordinate is ipetent. Madam, feel free to punish me," Nian Tingfeng summoned his courage and said.

    Upon sensing the sincerity in Nian Tingfeng¡¯s words, Madam Ye¡¯s rage lessened. Following which, she snorted, "Punish? What¡¯s the point of punishing you now? Can I stop the world from mocking us by punishing you?"

    Now that she talked about it, she felt extremely distressed. She always felt vexed whenever she had to deal with issues that were rted to the Central Pine Valley. She regretted not razing the Central Pine Valley to the ground earlier!

    "This subordinate deserves to die." Nian Tingfeng lowered his head even more.

    Madam Ye took a deep breath and suppressed her emotions. "Punishment or not, we will talk about itter. Right now, let¡¯s discuss what we should do now. And I want to know what Ai Hui¡¯s intentions are for making this deration."

    Everyone looked at each other. No one was willing to say anything.

    Upon seeing this, Nian Tingfeng opened his mouth and said, "This subordinate hase up with some conjectures."

    "Speak!" Madam Ye said coldly.

    Nian Tingfeng did not speak immediately. It was only after he reorganized his thoughts that he started to talk, "Initially, after looking at Ai Hui¡¯s deration, this subordinate was also shocked. However, after thinking about it, I realized this is actually hisst resort. He might have found out that we are interested in seizing the snowva from him and simply used our tactic against us. By using the pretext of going to the front line and fighting, the public can¡¯t expect anything from him. Ai Hui also knows that the front line is filled with dangers. The Central Pine Valley alone can¡¯t do much to help. Therefore, he thought of the idea of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. He wants to rope in a bunch of people to build up his prestige and influence. This will increase his chance of securing a victory on the battlefield."

    "Ai Hui this bastard... On the surface, he acts as if he is being magnanimous. In reality, he is just a treacherous individual," Madam Ye snorted.

    A cold shiver went down Nian Tingfeng¡¯s spine. Madam Ye spoke the words "Ai Hui this bastard" with an obvious killing intent.

    Everyone nodded their heads. Before this incident, no one felt that Ai Hui could pose any threat to Skyheart City. Even though the Central Pine Valley was impressive, it was too small. How could such a small group of people pose a threat to them?

    Right now, however, the Central Pine Valley was like a fish bone that was stuck in the throat of Skyheart City. It wasn¡¯t deadly, but it was extremely unbearable.

    "Madam is wise!" Nian Tingfeng ttered Madam Ye first before continuing, "From the look of it, it¡¯s best that we don¡¯t do anything now. There are two reasons for this. First, the situation is critical now. Any reckless moves will cause us to lose this fight. Second, the Sword of Lightning Division is taking the initiative to fight on the front line. We can¡¯t find a reason to bring them down now. At the moment, we should cope with all actions by remaining inactive. There are still many obstacles between Ai Hui¡¯s path and his goal. He is facing a few problems now."

    "Continue." Madam Ye became excited.

    First, he has a low prestige. Before this incident, the Central Pine Valley was just a small power. Ai Hui¡¯s personal strength is rather impressive, but that¡¯s not enough to attract other people to join him. Even if there are people joining him, he will face the problem of insubordination. How is Ai Hui going to convince the masses?"

    Everyone nodded their heads. What Nian Tingfeng said made sense.

    Madam Ye clearly understood the problem of insubordination from her personal experience.

    In the past, no one cared that Ai Hui became the leader of the Central Pine Faction because the Central Pine Faction only had a few hundred of people back then. It was not easy for a power that had such a small number of people to achieve anything.

    Madam Ye was born from nobility. She was born in the oldest family of the Avalon of Five Elements. Even with the Great Elder paving the way for her, there were still many people who refused to support her. For Newlight City, it might appear to outsiders that An Chouchou was in charge. In reality, Yuchi Ba and the other Elders were really the ones who called the shots.

    Once Ai Hui formed the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, the issue of authority would arise. On the battlefield, life-threatening situations might arise at any moment. Would people obey him just because of the snowva? This was something that was not going to happen.

    "Second, since he has already announced to everyone that he is going to the front line, he must secure a victory. Otherwise, he will be aughingstock."

    Nian Tingfeng continued, "Whether there is internal strife in the Pagoda Cannon Alliance or Ai Hui fails to secure a victory, we will have enough reasons by then to pick up the pieces for him. When that dayes, the snowva will naturally be ours."

    "We must encourage those capablebat divisions to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance." Madam Ye softly coughed.

    "Yes," Nian Tingfeng replied.

    "We have to be on the offensive and not the defensive all the time," Madam Ye said.

    "This subordinate will bear this in mind!" Nian Tingfeng replied respectfully.

    "Even if we are bound to fail, we have to wait until this issue blows over," Madam Ye muttered.

    "Understood," Nian Tingfeng acknowleged.

    "I hope the Dread Division and the Judgement Division don¡¯t let me down," Madam Ye mumbled.

    Nian Tingfeng did not say anything. He had be the focal point of the entire meeting hall. A few people were looking at him with disdain. He did not do anything and remained calm. After the Dread Division and the Judgement Division headed toward the front line, the Surveince Division had been mocked by many people.

    By this point in time, Madam Ye¡¯s rage haspletely disappeared. Her gaze shifted to Ma Shiji as she said, "Master¡¯s Glory is our brainchild. I¡¯m sorry for troubling Sir over this issue. There¡¯s no need to rush it. Stabilityes first. Only sess is allowed."

    Currently, Ma Shiji did not dare to hesitate and replied with a prudent look on his face, "Yes."

 Chapter 563: The Transformation of the Central Pine Valley

    Chapter 563: The Transformation of the Central Pine Valley

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Unlike Skyheart City, which was anxious over the Central Pine Valley¡¯s deration, heated debates erupted in other cities instead. Everyone discussed the Central Pine Valley¡¯s deration, making it the hottest discussion topic at the moment.

    The previous craze over pagoda cannons and snowva allowed Ai Hui¡¯s deration to create a sensation the moment it was announced to the world.

    In short, this was the first time Ai Hui took the initiative to step onto the radar of the world, creating and gaining quite a huge amount of attention on himself. Many people also suspected that there was someone in the dark helping Ai Hui build momentum for the previous pagoda cannon craze.

    Everyone argued enthusiastically about the weird appearance of the red-eyed mummy as well as the proposal of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    Those who bootlicked Skyheart City were speechless at the formidability of Ai Hui¡¯s move. It was very hard for them to imagine that such a fearsome and deft move was executed by the hands of a young man.

    Wen Yongming and the other reporters were very experienced. They did not release all of their recorded content to the world at once. Ai Hui¡¯s deration would take away all the attention from the rest of their news stories and overshadow them.

    When everyone began to debate passionately about Ai Hui¡¯s deration, Wen Yongming and the other reported began releasing their additional material. These reports included the odd appearance of the Pinwheel Sword and its terrifying speed, the magical sword operator, the Fishback City that was single-handedly built by a Master, the daily training sessions of the Sword of Lightning, etc.

    These new and odd topics immediately attracted everyone¡¯s attention and piqued their curiosity.

    The lightning fast Pinwheel Sword in the mirage attracted the most attention. Countless people were eager to try it. Those who had traveled in it before boasted about it endlessly.

    These released mirage bean pods did not increase everyone¡¯s understanding of the Central Pine Valley. Instead, they further increased the mystique of the Central Pine Valley in everyone¡¯s hearts. Aside from the pagoda cannons and the snowva, now there was the Pinwheel Sword and Fishback City. The Central Pine Valley was like an enormous treasure trove that always gave people surprises.

    How many things were there in the Central Pine Valley that were unknown to the world?

    Being a war machine, the Pinwheel Sword had a terrifying speed, but what about its offensive capabilities? How could it be used to fight on the battlefield? Did it work in a simr way as the pagoda cannons?

    Countless questions swirled around everyone¡¯s heads. All of them were filled with curiosity and expectation toward the Sword of Lightning¡¯s trip to the battlefield.

    Meanwhile, at Fishback City, the most tense moment had arrived. Even Ai Hui, himself, could not help but feel tense.

    "Lou Lan, have you checked everything?" Ai Hui asked.

    "Ai Hui, Lou Lan has already checked everything." On Ai Hui¡¯s shoulder, there was a mini Lou Lan tilting his head while counting with his fingers. "Ai Hui, this is the seventh time that Lou Lan has checked everything."

    When Ai Hui saw the look on Lou Lan¡¯s face, he could help but feel overjoyed. The anxiousness he felt was reduced significantly.

    Beside him, Qiao Meiqi felt excited and anxious. Since he had already made up his mind to join Ai Hui¡¯s side, every sess and failure of Ai Hui¡¯s operations was closely rted to him.

    All along, Ai Hui had not wanted to tell him how was he going to protect the Central Pine Valley. The more Ai Hui did not want to tell him, the more curious he felt. It was as if there was a kitten that kept scratching Qiao Meiqi¡¯s heart. He had asked other members of the Central Pine Faction, but none of them knew. Even though they were digging and building things in the Central Pine Valley, none of them knew what they were doing this for.

    An Chouchou was the only outsider here. He saw that everyone¡¯s gaze was directed at a distant valley.

    Was it possible that the Central Pine Valley was there?

    Ensuring the safety of the Central Pine Valley was a huge problem that Ai Hui faced. After all, the Central Pine Valley was the home of the Central Pine Faction. Nobody wanted their home to be thrashed when they were out on a war expedition.

    From the look of it, it appeared that Ai Hui already had a n.

    Suddenly, An Chouchou thought of Ai Hui¡¯s master and mistress. Was Ai Hui going to use [Treating the city as a piece of cloth]?! The moment this idea appeared in An Chouchou¡¯s head, he couldn¡¯t get rid of it. Ai Hui had managed to inherit Wang Shouchuan¡¯s legacy. Currently, Ai Hui¡¯s knowledge of elemental traces exceeded his teacher in many areas. Given Ai Hui¡¯s abilities, it was possible that [Treating the city as a piece of cloth] would reappear.

    Using this method, even though the people living in the valley would be trapped for the time being, the safety of the valley would be ensured.

    The more An Chouchou thought about it, the more possible he felt it was. His facial expression changed.

    Then, he heard Ai Hui asking again, "Is Bangwan protected?"

    "Ai Hui, he is protected," Lou Lan yelled.

    "Are the others out?"

    "Ai Hui, they have alreadye out."

    Ai Hui¡¯s mood was involuntarily affected by Lou Lan¡¯s. Lou Lan always made everyone feel that their lives were filled with valor and sunshine.

    When the situation finally came to a head, Ai Hui actually felt nervous. He could not help butugh at himself. Then, he spoke with a solemn tone, "Get ready."

    The mini Lou Lan standing on Ai Hui¡¯s shoulder flew into air. A small red g mysteriously appeared in his hand. The mini Lou Lan waved the small red g with all his strength and yelled, "Get ready!"

    "Get ready!" The mini Lou Lans all over the mountains and valley echoed after him.

    Everyone held their breath. The air seemed to freeze at this point in time.

    "Begin!" Ai Hui gave the order firmly.

    The mini Lou Lan in the air waved down the red g with a whoosh and yelled, "Begin!"

    "Begin!"

    "Begin!"

    The responses from the mini Lou Lans resounded through the air like a tidal wave.

    An Chouchou looked at Lou Lan with curiosity. This was the first time he had seen such a sand puppet. However, he didn¡¯t really care about it. Fire elementalists were benefiting from the rising poprity of pagoda cannons, so their social status elevated. Meanwhile, the status of earth elementalists was still on the decline. Nowadays, many earth elementalists started learning construction. They hoped they could be a battlefield construction master like Wang Xiaoshan

    The sand puppets seen today were remnants from the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Thest family who specialized in producing sand puppets, the Sha Family, happened to be annihted by Ai Hui.

    From the look of it, An Chouchou felt that what Lou Lan was doing might just be an ability of a sand puppet. To him, the utility of a sand puppet was very limited.

    Rumble!

    A deep and muffled sound came from the ground. The ground beneath everyone¡¯s feet was trembling furiously, causing all of them to lose their bnce.

    Crisscrossing streaks of light erupted in the valley.

    A powerful elemental energy wave swept across the area like a hurricane. An Chouchou was overwhelmed with shock. What was going on?

    He was not the only one. The others were overwhelmed with shock as well. The scene happening before their eyes had far surpassed their imagination.

    What was going on?

    In the Central Pine Valley, all five types of elemental energy pools were bursting with radiance. Five different colored lights erupted at the same time. Along with the dazzling radiance, concentrated elemental energies flowed through the crisscrossing channels in the valley.

    If one looked down from the sky above the Central Pine Valley, he or she would see a gigantic cycle of five elements forming.

    Rumble! Rumble!

    The rocks surrounding the Central Pine Valley began to copse. The mist-covered valley appeared in front of everyone. A gorgeous radiance erupted behind the mist, preventing anyone from taking a clear look inside of the Central Pine Valley. Because of the radiance, the mist that covered the Central Pine Valley became unusually beautiful. Powerful elemental energy undtions kept on muddling the mist.

    This mighty scene frightened everyone.

    Rumble.

    The mountains around the valley were copsing at a terrifying speed. A colossal crevice appeared around the valley. The only thing that was not affected was a mountain ridge on a particr side of the valley.

    The crevice around the valley becamerger andrge, more than 70 meters wide. It was astonishingly deep as well. If one looked at it from afar, he or she would think that it was an abyss that led to hell.

    The bottom part of the valley was hanging in the air and gave off a brilliant glow.

    An Chouchou¡¯s brain hadpletely stopped working. Newlight City and the Windy Resonant Pagoda had been personally built by him, but he had never seen such a spectacr sight before.

    All this time, Ai Hui had been staring at the glow from the valley. Suddenly, he yelled, "Mister Dou!"

    The others looked as if they had just woken up from a dream and searched for Mister Dou, especially those children from the Central Pine Valley. They were frantically looking for their teacher, but couldn¡¯t find him.

    Suddenly, Su Qingye pointed to the volcanic crater of ckfish Mouth Volcano and yelled in surprise, "Look over there!"

    Everyone¡¯s gaze followed Su Qingye¡¯s finger and shifted to the ckfish Mouth Volcano. The edge of the volcanic crater had be unusually dark, as if the volcano was devouring all the light around it.

    "Teacher is in the volcano!"

    "It¡¯s Northern Underworld King Tree!"

    rmed cries broke out among the crowd.

    At the volcanic crater, Mister Dou was standing on a red-hot rock and surrounded byva. Beside him was the Northern Underworld King Tree that he had nted. His hand held onto a branch of the tree. His facial expression was solemn and the elemental energy undtions released by his body were surging.

    A dazzling red light was being absorbed by the Northern Underworld King Tree.

    Indistinctly, the red light was covered with traces of ck lines.

    The stimted Northern Underworld King Tree was frantically devouring the light surrounding it, causing the weird phenomenon in the volcanic crater.

    Traces of ck light entered the surgingva.

    The surgingva within the volcano was connected to the earth fire beneath the ground. There was an abundance ofva in the volcano, resembling a hidden sea of fire. Mister Dou felt so insignificant in the face of nature.

    He suddenly grinned.

    Mankind had always been insignificant like dust. He had never been a great man before.

    With such a chance given to someone like him who had reached the twilight years of his life, what more could he ask for?

    His hollow eyes were as deep as an abyss. Traces of intense ck light shot out from the Northern Underworld King Tree and prated downward through theva of the volcano.

    The traces of ck light resembled a ck muslin canopy and a huge at the same time.

    The traces of ck light prated the volcano deeper and deeper.

    Blood started to seep out from the corner of Mister Dou¡¯s mouth. The look on his face, however, looked extremely happy. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that he had yet toplete his task, he would definitelyugh to his heart¡¯s content.

    After an unknown amount of time, Mister Dou knew he had reached his limit. Instantly, the traces of ck light that were prating downward through theva suddenly converged, cutting off theva within the volcano from the underground earth fire like a sharp knife.

    Pfffft. He spat out a mouthful of blood into the air,entirely dyeing his robes with the color of blood

    He did not care at all as heughed heartily at the top of his lungs.

    Crack!

    A crevice suddenly appeared at the base of ckfish Mouth Volcano. The crevice immediately extended around the volcano at a terrifying speed. ckfish Mouth Volcano looked as if it had been sliced by a gigantic sword. Surgingva erupted from the crevice and flowed along the mountain ridge. Quickly, the flowingva cooled down and solidified.

    It stopped flowing before reaching Fishback City. However, at this moment, no one bothered to pay any attention to theva. No one could take their eyes off of the ckfish Mouth Volcano.

    The crowd gaped with wide eyes. At this moment, their brains had stopped working.

    In front of their eyes, the ckfish Mouth Volcano and the mist-covered Central Pine Valley slowly floated up from the ground.

    Dead silence descended upon Fishback City. It was so quiet that one could even hear the sound of a pin dropping on the ground. The distant, yet overwhelming smell of sulfur, the bubbling sound of the flowingva, and the sizzling sound of the cooling and solidifyingva could be distinctly smelled and clearly heard.

    An Chouchou was dumbstruck.

 Chapter 564: An Chouchouâ€™s Change

    Chapter 564: An Chouchou¡¯s Change

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    What was he seeing?

    What was he seeing!

    The mountain peak was flying!

    Oh god...

    An Chouchou¡¯s head was buzzing, and he felt as if he was being electrocuted while an intense numbing sensation rendered him motionless. Everything he was seeing was beyond his imagination.

    The surrounding mor seemed to being from afar, and everything felt unreal.

    Amid the dead silent Fishback City, an explosion abruptly went off. It looked as if an erupting volcano had instantly collided with a thickyer of ice. The chill and the quiet had been shattered and catapulted into the skies by the sudden release of raging passion and agitation.

    Everyone had gone mad!

    Completely mad!

    Shi Zhiguang held his head with both hands and kneeled on the ground, his face full of disbelief. "Oh my god! It flew up! It flew up! How¡¯s that possible... how¡¯s that possible..."

    Gu Xuan stood at the side, his mouth trembling. He was unable to speak, and unknowingly, tears had filled his face.

    Qiao Meiqi rushed to Ai Hui¡¯s side and roared frantically, "God-subduing Peak! God-subduing Peak! This is a God-subduing Peak right? You did it on purpose, you must have done it on purpose! Oh my god, you actually made a God-subduing Peak. What can¡¯t you make? Are you human? Are you human or not! You¡¯re not! Not human!"

    Choosing Ai Hui had been a tough decision, and Qiao Meiqi had to endure immense pressure and risks. Be it abilities or magnitude, Ai Hui was far behind Skyheart City. Qiao Meiqi thought highly of Ai Hui, but at the same time, his confidence had no basis. Seeing ckfish Mouth Volcano flying up relieved him of all pressure, thus causing him to act this way.

    Although Ai Hui felt very emotional, he did a good job of remaining calm. "It¡¯s not a God-subduing Peak. Although I made some theoretical references, they are still very different..."

    When Ai Hui had decided to rush to the front line, the Central Pine Valley¡¯s safety became the greatest obstruction that needed to be fixed. The Central Pine Valley contained all the elderly and the young, so just one Mister Dou wasn¡¯t enough to resist an enemy invasion. He came up with many possible solutions, but they weren¡¯t able to guarantee the Central Pine Valley¡¯s safety, so Ai Hui felt that it was better to just bring all of them along.

    However, danger lurked in every corner of the battlefield, so Ai Hui had to once again think about how to ensure everyone¡¯s safety.

    He then thought about the God-subduing Peak.

    The Central Pine Valley was uniquely shaped and contained all five elements. Plus, disregarding costs, they had constructed five elemental energy reservoirs to form a Circle of Life. While a God-subduing Peak had all five elements as well, its elemental energy reservoirs were much smaller than those of the Central Pine Valley. Plus, the valley¡¯s elemental energy reservoirs had already been built for quite some time, and they had constantly been using fire elemental energy to nourish and strengthen the Circle of Life. As such, the quality and scale of the five elemental energy reservoirs were far superior to when they were first constructed.

    Conditionally speaking, the Central Pine Valley¡¯s flying mountain form was much more outstanding than a God-subduing Peak¡¯s. The former naturally contained all five elements, and after Ai Hui¡¯s modification, its Circle of Life became even more perfect. A God-subduing Peak, on the other hand, had an ordinary mountain form and the five elemental energy reservoirs were refined by people, so it had to consume an rming amount of precious ingredients in order to maintain the operation of the reservoirs.

    Yet, Ai Hui¡¯s idea was even bolder.

    Although the Central Pine Valley had the five elemental Circle of Life, the cycle would gradually disperse from wear and tear if there wasn¡¯t a way to replenish it. The same principle applied to a God-subduing Peak. As such, Ai Hui thought about using the ckfish Mouth Volcano since it contained an astonishing amount ofva, which was the key to replenishing the fire elemental energy of the cycle as well as producing snowva.

    That way, it would not only provide unceasing nourishment, but would also upgrade the Central Pine Valley¡¯s five elemental Circle of Life as well as supply thebat division with snowva.

    No one, however, listened to Ai Hui¡¯s exnation. Fishback City was in a raucous frenzy.

    The lofty mountain peak ascended gradually as everyone watched in awe. It was much bigger than the Pinwheel Sword. It was so bulky that the Pinwheel sword was like a toothpick before the peak of ckfish Mouth Volcano.

    The volcano had an unique shape, like that of a ckfish which was halfway out of the water. Beside its huge body was a bright in enveloped in mist. This was the former Central Pine Valley. The other three faces of the valley had been peeled off and exposed.

    Ai Hui was the first to fly to the mountain peak, and the rest, who were unable to hold back any longer, followed closely behind.

    Ai Hui did not go to the Central Pine Valley, but flew toward the volcanic crater of ckfish Mouth Volcano. The devilish red glow over thevake converged to form a beam that shot into the Northern Underworld King Tree. Next to the tree sat a figure covered in blood.

    Ai Hui jumped in shock. His figure shook a little and appeared beside Mister Dou. "Sir!"

    Mister Dou appeared much paler and even the wrinkles on his face had deepened. He burst intoughter. "Hahaha, mission aplished, mission aplished!"

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered rapidly, and he said shortly after, "Mister Dou¡¯s injuries aren¡¯t fatal, but he might not be able to engage his elemental energy in the future."

    Emotions stirred in Ai Hui¡¯s heart, and he extremely guilty. He carefully supported Mister Dou up.

    He had considered this matter to be highly challenging, but it seemed that he had still underestimated the difficulty of cutting off the earth fire¡¯s pulse.

    Feeling Ai Hui¡¯s guilt, Mister Dou shook his head. "I know my injuries well. It¡¯s not a big deal. No worries at all. I¡¯m blind and old, so am I expecting to go into battle? I have no more regrets for being able to aplish this matter. Haha, this is something never done before, and I can teach peacefully from now onward. Where¡¯s the wine? I¡¯m going to drink my fill!"

    Lou Lan did not hesitate to deny him. Eyes wide open, he very seriously said, "You aren¡¯t fit to drink wine right now, Mister Dou."

    Ai Hui did not waste any more time either. He supported Mister Dou up and flew outward cautiously. "Yeah, listen to Lou Lan."

    Mister Dou burst into a rage. With a hand supporting his neck he scolded, "How can I not have wine now? How can I not have wine now!"

    Without even turning his head Ai Hui shouted, "Lou Lan!"

    "I¡¯ming!" Lou Lan replied loudly, before catching up quickly. He persuaded Mister Dou patiently, "You really shouldn¡¯t drink, Mister Dou. Before your injuries heal you can¡¯t drink. Don¡¯t worry, it won¡¯t take long. About half a year will be sufficient, so before that, not even a drop of alcohol should be consumed since it will severely impede your recovery. It will have three negative effects. Firstly..."

    Mister Dou¡¯s face was flushed. He was furious, but couldn¡¯t do anything to Lou Lan.

    After nagging for half a day, Lou Lan tilted his head, saying, "Although you can¡¯t drink, there are other ways to celebrate. I¡¯ll prepare elemental soup, so use that to celebrate, Mister Dou."

    Feebly, Mister Dou started drooling. His anger vanished like a puff of smoke as he said softly, "So be it, but since it¡¯s a celebration, just one bowl won¡¯t do."

    "Two bowls at most." Lou Lan blinked before adding, "Your body can¡¯t take any more than that."

    "Fill both bowls to the brim then."

    "But..."

    Mister Dou became impatient. "Full bowls! I¡¯m not even drinking wine anymore and you¡¯re telling me I can only have two bowls of soup. If you can¡¯t even give me two full bowls, what kind of celebration would it be?"

    "All right. Two full bowls it is."

    "Hahahahaa. I can finally have two bowls!"

    Their conversation made Ai Hui smile.

    Everybody walked around ckfish Mouth Volcano in high spirits. Looking down from above was a very refreshing experience. Even Shi Zhiguang and the rest were filled with curiosity.

    Being onboard ckfish Mouth Volcano and the Pinwheel Sword were two entirely different experiences. The Pinwheel Sword was as fast as lightning, but very small in size, so the ride was clearly very shaky. ckfish Mouth Volcano, on the other hand, was absolutely stable and motionless. There was no swaying, and if not for the fact that they were overlooking the ground, they wouldn¡¯t even know that they were in midair.

    To them, this was a whole new experience.

    The children ran about, excited and unable to stop.

    On the contrary, An Chouchou was dazed. Standing at the edge of the mountain peak and surveying the ground, it could be seen that the trees had be like little ants. ckfish Mouth Volcano¡¯s chopped side emitted a red glow, like a gradually cooling molten steel. It was a rather shocking sight.

    Before such an overwhelming force, An Chouchou only felt his body turn cold as an intense fear sped his heart tightly like a devil¡¯s w that had crawled out from the abyss.

    He knew that he had once again underestimated Ai Hui and finally understood why Ai Hui had allowed him to stay and watch.

    God-subduing Peak!

    Ai Hui could forge a God-subduing Peak. If this news were to spread, what kind of storm would it raise?

    An Chouchou saw Ai Hui walking over. Feeling the bitterness in his mouth, he asked, "Is this a God-subduing Peak, Brother Ai?"

    Ai Hui answered calmly, "There are some differences, but yeah."

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯s answer, An Chouchou felt agony. Having just pagoda cannons and snowva versus having the blueprint for the God-subduing Peak were twopletely different situations. Everyone favored pagoda cannon and snowva, but other than the Spear of Heavy Cloud, there weren¡¯t any other testimonials. The God-subduing Peak¡¯s might, on the other hand, was known and witnessed by all.

    An Chouchou was filled with fear.

    Ai Hui, who looked like a red-eyed mummy at this point, had be unfathomable.

    Pagoda cannons, snowva, Pinwheel Sword, God-subduing Peak...

    What else did he know? Exactly how deep was his understanding of elemental traces?

    With a dull, defeated look he cried out, "Great work, Brother Ai! How unpredictable! I¡¯m impressed!"

    Ai Hui looked at him. The red crystals and bandage concealed his expression, but his tone remained calm. "What do you think about the Pagoda Cannon Alliance?"

    Ai Hui¡¯s words did not surprise An Chouchou at all. Ai Hui had him witness the ascension of ckfish Mouth Volcano precisely for this. Having already expected this question, An Chouchou wasn¡¯t the least bit happy. He was discouraged in fact. Other than thisst sentence, he had judged everything else incorrectly. Plus, Ai Hui¡¯s words left him with no choice.

    An Chouchou sighed inwardly, "Brother Ai¡¯s capability is immeasurable, and the Pagoda Cannon Alliance¡¯s future is inevitably bright. I¡¯ll make the announcement when I return. It¡¯s going to be a great undertaking!"

    Ai Hui rose halfway and said, "Thank you so much, Brother Chou."

    Not wanting to stay any longer, An Chouchou bade goodbye. "There¡¯s a lot of work to do in the city. I¡¯ll leave now."

    Ai Hui added, "Have a safe journey, Brother Chou."

    An Chouchou staggered away as the elementalists from Newlight City, who had long since been waiting from afar, rushed forward to receive him. From time to time they nced over at ckfish Mouth Volcano, their eyes filled with fear and shock.

 Chapter 565: God Wolf Division

    Chapter 565: God Wolf Division

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Upon receiving the order to pitch camp, the God Wolf Division¡¯s soldiers sighed a breath of relief. While their consecutive victories were gratifying, they felt extremely tired and needed to take a breather.

    The God Wolf Division and the Silverfrost Blood Division¡¯s officers were gathered at the leaders¡¯ tent to discuss some official matters.

    The God Wolf Division¡¯s leader was Helian Tianxiao. He was about 30 years old, had deep set eyes, and his brown eyes were ice-cold and sharp, as if they could pierce one¡¯s heart. The consecutive victories hadn¡¯t improved his mood the slightest.

    Ye Baiyi had gone all out against the Wall of North Sea, deploying four great god divisions and eight full blood divisions into battle. Ye Baiyi was still unconscious, and after much discussion, the officers decided that the God Spirit Division would oversee the Dawn Blood Division and the Dusk Blood Division. They would defend the camp at the rear while the otherbat divisions would split into three groups and advance together.

    The God Tiger Division would lead the Radiance Blood Division and the Bluster Blood Division in one direction.

    The God Wolf Division would lead the Silverfrost Blood Division in a second direction.

    The God Devil Division would lead the Birth Division and the Death Division in thest direction.

    The destruction of their subordinate Ardent Flower Blood Division was a huge disgrace to the entirety of the God Wolf Division and because of this, thetter had been facing a huge amount of pressure. The first ever destruction of a bloodbat division in the whole history of the God Nation had already pinned the God Wolf Division up on a pir of shame.

    In order to wash off this shame, they had to secure even greater achievements. As such, the God Wolf Division¡¯s thirst for victory was the most intense out of the three military contingents.

    Helian Tianxiao asked coldly, "Everyone present?"

    After a headcount, his assistant reported, "Everyone is here."

    Helian Tianxiao waved his hand. "Let¡¯s watch a clip first."

    The lights in the tent were dimmed. A personpletely wrapped in bandage and wearing red crystals over his eyes appeared before the officers¡¯ eyes, effectively catching their attention.

    "... Therefore, I have two announcements to make. The first one is that, the Sword of Lightning will be going to the battlefield to fight alongside the Spear of Heavy Cloud. The second one is that we have decided to open up snowva and the technology behind the of pagoda cannons to the public in order to put up a better fight against the Blood of God and to find like-mindedrades. We will form a brand- new Pagoda Cannon Alliance. We will provide free snowva to the members of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance and will share with them our research on pagoda cannons. Our requirements are very simple. First, only thosebat divisions that fight long-term on the front line will be provided with free snowva. We feel that thebat divisions at the front line need the snowva more urgently. Second, allbat divisions that wish to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance will have to undergo our assessment and possess enough military experience as well as tenacious willpower..."

    Upon hearing "pagoda cannon" everybody¡¯s faces turned serious.

    The clip wasn¡¯t long and ended quickly. Soon, a discussion broke out in the tent.

    "Who is he? He speaks authoritatively."

    "I know him, he¡¯s Ai Hui. I think he invented the pagoda cannon."

    "Then we gotta be careful."

    "The first Lightning Master; a big threat. Lightning is our bane."

    Helian Tianxiao allowed the discussion to go on. He wasn¡¯t a boss who could decide and act alone. While he felt anxious and impatient, the words "pagoda cannon", also evoked vignce.

    Not only him, but the officers and soldiers were discussing with very grave expressions on their faces.

    Recent battles had been rather smooth-sailing, but the new weapon, the pagoda cannon, had dealt them significant injuries. Furthermore, they had an encounter with the Blue g Division a few days back, and it was precisely their pagoda cannons that had dealt the Silverfrost Blood Division a significant blow.

    It was not until they had gained possession of a mirage bean pod recording of the battle between the Spear of Heavy Cloud and the Ardent Flower Blood Division that they started to gain a better understanding of the pagoda cannons. It was also from there that they starteding up with strategies to deal with them, resulting in an improvement of the battle situation.

    The utilization of pagoda cannons by thebat divisions that they had encountered wasn¡¯t at allparable to those of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. The counter-strategy they hade up with crushed thosebat divisions easily, and even the Blue g Division, whom the blood elementalists had found tricky to deal with, suffered heavy casualties.

    Yet, they dared not regard Ai Hui¡¯s deration lightly.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s mastery of pagoda cannons was the highest thus far. A close analysis of the deathmatch with the Ardent Flower Blood Division had shaken up the blood elementalist officers. No other blood division would¡¯ve been confident about securing victory.

    When the discussion started to die down, Helian Tianxiao spoke up, "All right."

    The camp quieted down immediately.

    He scanned through his audience, causing them to shudder. Helian Tianxiao narrowed his eyes, saying, "Tell me, what are your thoughts?"

    Someone stood out,menting, "We will face a great threat if an alliance is formed. The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s pagoda cannons are much more destructive than those employed by otherbat divisions such as the Blue g Division."

    A crisp female voice sounded. "I don¡¯t think we have to worry at all. Firstly, we have already found the loophole and w of the pagoda cannons. Actualbat has proven that our strategy is effective. Next, the alliance appears to be a good concept, but there are many practical problems, like the supply of snowva. How is the Central Pine Valley going to supply such huge volumes of snowva? Also, other than the Spear of Heavy Cloud, the Sky Edge, and the Infantry Divisions, there aren¡¯t any other proper elementalistbat divisions. How is it going to be easy for Ai Hui to assemble a bunch of unorganized and scattered groups?"

    Thedy speaker had short hair, a decent appearance, and a cool demeanor. Her armor made her look tall, entuating her delicate figure.

    She was Song Xiaoqian, the division leader of the Silverfrost Blood Division. Able tomand abat division on her own, her abilities were naturally unquestionable.

    Helian Tianxiao nodded his head slightly, a tinge of admiration shing across his eyes. He said in a deep voice, "I¡¯lly the ns out. We must defeat and capture Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, and the rest. With regard to the Ardent Flower Blood Division¡¯s humiliation, we are going to repay it doubly. This is a mission we must aplish! There¡¯s no other way!"

    His tone rxed, and he said to Song Xiaoqian, "Continue."

    A light shed across her eyes as she added, "I have an idea. Why not her the sheep?"

    "Herd the sheep?"

    Song Xiaoqian yed with her clothing fringe and smiled. "That¡¯s right. Look, aren¡¯t these so-calledbat divisions like a flock of sheep? They¡¯re just a group of mobs, so defeating them is of no use to us. Why not drive them toward the Spear of Heavy Cloud, the Sky Edge, and the Infantry Divisions? No matter how many big the mob, they are still just rabble. They would be dead weight for Shi Xueman and herpatriots, dead weight that they can¡¯t get rid of even if they wanted to. When there are many people, there will be distractions and internal conflicts. Even if they fear Shi Xueman¡¯s prestige, with slight external pressure they will reveal their true selves and thoroughly copse. When that timees, what use will Shi Xueman and her troop¡¯s defensive line be?"

    Helian Tianxiao immediately captured the ingenuity of it all, and his eyes lit up. "Great idea!"

    He said decisively, "I¡¯ll write a letter and send it to the other two god divisions!"

    Newlight City.

    An Chouchou fixed his gaze on the faraway Windy Resonant Pagoda and was in somewhat of a daze. His journey to the Central Pine Valley had impacted and shaken him up greatly. He even felt utterly defeated. Many people had been fooled by his amiable appearance and weren¡¯t aware of his pride and arrogance.

    In his eyes, Newlight City¡¯s only enemy was Skyheart City.

    Now, he knew he had been a frog in a well. What a joke.

    All that he had seen and heard during this journey hadpletely shocked him. Even after returning to Newlight City, he was unable to ovee his mixed emotions. He was at a loss. What could Newlight City and the Central Pine Valley fight together for?

    His unfocused gaze had ultimately fell upon the Windy Resonant Pagoda. Helpless, he realized that the only chance he had was Elder Yuchi.

    If Elder Yuchi could be a Grandmaster, all problems could easily be solved, and Newlight City would have a better chance against Skyheart City.

    But bing a Grandmaster...

    Even the most optimistic wouldn¡¯t be able to pin much hope on it.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin came over together, and Tong Gui asked, "Are we really going to do this Mayor?"

    An Chouchou regained his senses. Upon seeing both of them, his vision regained its rity. "That¡¯s right. It¡¯s our only chance. The Pinwheel Sword is iparably sharp, but its range of application is simply too small, so it¡¯s not employable on arge scale, but the pagoda cannon is different. There are many more fire elementalists than swordsmen, and the former¡¯s umtion is more profound as well. In this case, they have much better prospects, and I think better of the pagoda cannon. We have quite a number of fire elementalists of our own, so that¡¯s an advantage we can tap into."

    Yu Jin spoke suddenly, "Then aren¡¯t we going to be manipted by Ai Hui?"

    An Chouchou smiled bitterly. "Until Elder Yuchi exits from his seclusion, it remains a fact that we are in a weaker position."

    Both Tong Gui and Yu Jin kept silent because they knew this was true. However, there was only a negligible chance for Elder Yuchi to be a Grandmaster. All of Newlight City was very pessimistic about this as well.

    With a change of tone, An Chouchou added, "But the alliance with the Central Pine Valley isn¡¯t a bad thing for us. Nominally, it sounds as though we are the weaker party, but the power of speech depends on the respective abilities of thebat divisions. As long as we master the pagoda cannon, we can quickly establish many pagoda cannonbat divisions. The Central Pine Valley¡¯s greatest weakness is theirck of people, and it is a weakness that can¡¯t be sorted out within a short period of time. Unlike the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s previous recruitment, there won¡¯t be as many fire elementalists begging to be chosen anymore. This isn¡¯t a problem for us at all. Instead, our elementalists are weaker on average, which does not impede the efficiency of pagoda cannon."

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin nodded slightly. The best thing about the pagoda cannon wasn¡¯t that its cannoneer was powerful, but that it demanded less from elementalists. This meant that it was easier to spread the mastery of pagoda cannons to more people.

    An Chouchou¡¯s tone became stern. "Set off today, head toward the front line, and join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. Remember, it is most crucial to grasp the technique of the pagoda cannon first. Do not worry about other matters. Do not try to seize control or power. It wille naturally when we grow stronger. Plus, when there are more people, it won¡¯t be as easy for Ai Hui to monopolize the production of the snowva.

    Tong Gui and Yujin responded at once, Yes!"

    Both of them were highly convinced by An Chouchou¡¯s wisdom. Newlight City was what it was because of him. Initially, they were worried that he wouldn¡¯t be able to recover from that discouraging journey, but upon seeing him snap out of it, they were beyond d.

    A guard came forward to report, "Everything is in order and everyone is present Mayor."

    An Chouchou told both of them, "I shall not send you two off. This journey is going to be dangerous. I would not be sending you guys out if this was not our only chance to overturn the situation. Come back alive, no matter what. Leave the rest to me."

    After that, he bowed, turned around, and left with his head held high and chest puffed out.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin followed An Chouchou¡¯s disappearing figure with their eyes.

    Yu Jinmented, "I did not expect Ai Hui to be this capable."

    Tong Gui sighed. "Yeah, he used to be somewhat famous, but still insignificant. Now, he¡¯s the man of the moment, and we have to move ording to his actions. What a difficult situation to be in."

    Yu Jin looked at An Chouchou¡¯s back. "He has a strong fighting spirit."

    Looking pensively, Tong Gui said, "He probably met his match?"

    Far away, An Chouchou said to all the reporters and their respective news viges in an energetic and steady voice, "Newlight City is the Central Pine Valley¡¯s closest ally. The Central Pine Valley¡¯s conduct serves as our model. I hereby announce that Newlight City is joining the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. We will send our tworgestbat divisions to the front line to join the alliance. I¡¯m also calling for the strongerbat divisions to also join the alliance..."

 Chapter 566: One-versus-One or All-versus-One

    Chapter 566: One-versus-One or All-versus-One

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    Newlight City¡¯s high-profile announcement of joining the Pagoda Cannon Alliance shook the entire Beyond Avalon.

    The Central Pine Valley was rather well known and had strong abilities as well. However, in the eyes of others, it was only a small power after all. Newlight City, on the other hand, was a big yer. It was secondarypared to Skyheart City, but was the secondrgest city with thergest poption. Newlight City represented an rming number of new citizens. Although the new citizens were generally not that strong, nobody could belittle the vast number of them.

    When Newlight City publicly announced that they would support Ai Hui¡¯s decision to set up the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, it momentarily disrupted thebat divisions which were waiting on the sidelines. Everyone was originally worried that Ai Hui could not handle this, but with the support of Newlight City, they could immediately see the future of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud, the Sword of Lightning, and Newlight City¡¯sbat divisions were the core divisions that were capable of forming the foundation of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    Previously, many people were worried about Skyheart City¡¯s sanctions, but after witnessing Newlight City¡¯s deration, they were worried that this opportunity would vanish all of a sudden. With Newlight City as their shield, why would anyone be worried?

    The Pagoda Cannon Alliance, which had yet to form, was already bing popr.

    .....

    Skyheart City.

    Madam Ye was fixated on the mirage bean pod and could not take her eyes off of it.

    "Newlight City is the Central Pine Valley¡¯s closest ally..."

    Just like a hammer¡¯s head, An Chouchou¡¯s voice was calm and powerful. Every sentence that came from him was hammered into everyone¡¯s mind.

    The crowd beneath were overwhelmed with shock. The Central Pine Valley and Newlight City bing allies was what worried Skyheart City the most. Although the Central Pine Valley had pagoda cannons and snowva, their small poption eventually limited them. Newlight City, on the other hand, had arge poption that wasn¡¯t strong. They were only strong in appearance, but weak in reality, which was unworthy of Skyheart City¡¯s worry. However, when both factions united, it caused Skyheart City to feel utterly frightened.

    Nian Tingfeng was extremely cautious since he could imagine how furious Madam Ye could get.

    However, what took him by surprise was that Madam Ye was not the least bit angry. In fact, she replied with a smile, "This An Chouchou is pretty good at using powerful connections to intimidate people. Back then, we were under the impression that the new citizens had new tricks up their sleeves. Never did I expect that he would not even have the boldness topete with Ai Hui today."

    No one dared to even exhale. From Madam¡¯s tone, they were unable to distinguish if she was pleased or furious. Everyone became even more worried, especially Nian Tingfeng. He had already been warned by Madam for fouling up the previous issues and had not expected that An Chouchou would actually release a statement.

    "An Chouchou has lost his determination, so there is nothing to worry about," Madam Ye faintly replied. "As for the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, hehe, do you think it is so easy to establish? Let them torment themselves."

    Nian Tingfeng heaved a sigh of relief. "Yes."

    Madam Ye continued, "This problem is beyond our scope of concern. Just let them do as they please. As to what extent, this will be their own doing. What we need at present is the Master¡¯s Glory. The first batch of Masters are going to leave seclusion. Skyheart City should be on the alert and not mess up at this moment."

    Everyone replied in unison, "Yes."

    Madam Ye¡¯s gaze was as cold as ice. "I will not me anyone for the things that they are not in charge of, but do not me me for being vicious and merciless if anyone does not fulfill their own duties."

    Everyone uniformly trembled in fear.

    Madam Ye continued, "Tingfeng, what is the situation for the selection of the next generation of Master¡¯s Glory?"

    Nian Tingfeng quickly replied, "Reporting Madam, the 40 closest cities to Skyheart City have alreadypleted the selection."

    Madam Ye faintly replied, "Is anyone obstructing?"

    Nian Tingfeng immediately replied, "No one is obstructing."

    Madam Ye nodded her head in satisfaction, "That is great. Master¡¯s Glory is the right path for elementalists to resist the blood elementalists. Whoever dares to obstruct will be deemed as the entire Beyond Avalon¡¯s enemy and a traitor! Inform them that when ites to this point, feelings and sentiments will not be considered."

    Nian Tingfeng immediately responded, "I understand!"

    Madam Ye continued asking, "How many people have been selected as of this moment?"

    Nian Tingfeng replied, "There are currently 76 people selected. 36 of them have arrived at Skyheart City, and the other 40 are still en route.

    Madam Ye faintly knitted her eyebrows since the number of people selected were far lower than her expectations. However, thinking of the current situation aspared to when Master¡¯s Glory first started, it could be said that there was a world of difference.

    Nian Tingfeng sensed that Madam Ye was displeased and hurriedly replied, "We are currently heading toward the further cities to select the most suitable candidates."

    Madam Ye solemnly warned, "This is the most crucial matter. Ai Hui and An Chouchou are merely little rascals. Do not mess up your priorities."

    Nian Tingfeng quickly replied, "I understand."

    Madam Ye restrained the jitters that she was experiencing in her heart as she had to rely heavily upon Nian Tingfeng. Surveince Division was the toughest and strongestbat division in Skyheart City. Moreover, their ability to dig for intelligence was what she required at present.

    Even if Nian Tingfeng did not do a good job, she would not reprimand him on a whim, but would rather win him over.

    Once the Master¡¯s Glory program was over, all the difficult issues could be solved easily!

    I¡¯ll just have to endure for a short period!

    .....

    Shi Xueman slowly opened her eyes, and Cirrus which was stationary, started to tremble lightly. A strand of ck smoke could be seen emitting from the tip of the spear.

    Her internal injury was gradually improving. Although the amount of recovery was small, she was already very content.

    She retracted her spear, rose up, walked out of the tent, and discovered that something was amiss outside.

    Within one night, the camp had be packed with people. Where did all these peoplee from?

    Holding onto Cirrus, she walked toward Sang Zhijun who was currently busy and asked in a low voice, "Why are there so many people?"

    Sang Zhijun was both excited and and concerned, "Yesterday, Newlight City¡¯s An Chouchou publicly imed to form an alliance with us. They will be dispatching Tong Gui and Yu Jin¡¯¡¯sbat divisions to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. These fellows are just like wolves who smelled their prey and rushed over. Newlight City¡¯s hard-earned savings were utilized this time since Tong Gui and Yu Jin are their most capable division leaders. Is this how optimistic An Chouchou is about us? I wonder what spell Ai Hui casted on him!"

    Shi Xueman finally understood what had happened, lowered her guard, and inly replied, "Do you not understand him? Haven¡¯t you realized that there is nothing that he will not stoop to doing?

    Sang Zhijun let out a gentleugh. "Yes, yes, they have even abducted our division leader."

    Shi Xueman replied unpleasantly, "I can¡¯t be bothered with you."

    Sang Zhijun quickly replied, "Don¡¯t go. How do we handle these people? There are so many people at the side, and it¡¯s likely to get chaotic."

    Shi Xueman replied, "Inform them to retreat 10 miles and wait for Ai Hui¡¯s announcement of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance¡¯s constitution. Do not allow any pitching of tents within the 10 miles radius.

    Sang Zhijun got a little worried. "Will this create any chaos?"

    Shi Xueman replied, "It will be better with chaos since they can¡¯t even suppress it now. Furthermore, with the establishment of the alliance, wouldn¡¯t it be even more chaotic?"

    Sang Zhijun eventually understood that Shi Xueman wanted to punish some of the gathered fellows as an example for the others.

    She immediately went to announce the order.

    As expected, some people came to create trouble.

    "For what reason! For what reason should we withdraw?"

    "Exactly! Does this ce belong to the Spear of Heavy Cloud? This is a no man¡¯snd!"

    A few started to create a disturbance and immediately triggered others to follow suit.

    Upon seeing that many people came to cause trouble, the other divisions did not immediately depart. Rather, they were engrossed in watching from the sidelines and were curious to see how the Spear of Heavy Cloud would handle this.

    All of a sudden, a silhouette appeared, and thecent people in the crowd were knocked down to the ground.

    Just like cbashes, they all fell right by Shi Xueman¡¯s feet.

    The bystanders were dumbstruck. The speed of Shi Xueman¡¯s silhouette was too fast, and they had not managed to catch a glimpse of her actions. Yet, those Masters who managed to distinctly see Shi Xueman¡¯s actions revealed grave looks as the smiles on their faces disappeared.

    When an expert struck you, you would know how good he or she was.

    Shi Xueman was agile, swift as lightning, and had clean technique. The Masters in the crowd were pondering if they could achieve the same result, but they would absolutely not be able to do so as beautifully as Shi Xueman had.

    One of them had been badly thrashed and was still in a daze. At this moment, there was a voice that came from the front half of the crowd, "Which division are you from?"

    He subconsciously blurted out, "The Yellowsand Division."

    "Oh, the Yellowsand Division has lost the opportunity to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance."

    This sentence scared the confused and dizzy man until he became deathly pale.

    At that moment, a tall and sturdy figure who possessed a fierce and tough aura appeared from the crowd. His face was filled with anger, "I am the division leader of the Yellowsand Division, Hei Yan. My subordinate might have been slightly rude and impetuous, but you should not be so overbearing. On what basis did you disqualify us?"

    Shi Xueman did not answer, but questioned him, "One-versus-One or All-versus-One?"

    Hei Yan nearly thought that he had heard incorrectly, "What?"

    Shi Xueman repeated once more, "One-versus-One or All-versus-One?"

    Hei Yan¡¯s face became flushed as he fumed with rage between gritted teeth. "Intolerably bullying! Intolerably bullying! This arrogant and despotic person still dares to establish the Pagoda Cannon Alliance?

    This sentence caused many to hesitate since everyone still wanted to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, but did not want to give up their authority. If the Central Pine Valley was as powerful as what Shi Xueman had revealed, then many of them would have given up deep in their hearts.

    Hei Yan nced across the crowd and felt internallycent.

    Shi Xueman remained aloof. "One-versus-One or All-versus-One?"

    Hei Yan who was somewhat arrogant awhile ago, red at her. "You!"

    Although he fumed with anger, he did not lose his rationality. Shi Xueman was indeed extremely powerful. In the mirage recording, she had battled against heavy odds when she encountered a few elementalists with the Ability of God. She had disyed an extremely terrifyingbat power, and he knew that he had no chance of winning. There was also a huge gap between the Yellowsand Division and the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Hei Yan was flustered and exasperated, "Is it a big deal to be strong? Does being strong permit you to bully the weak?"

    Shi Xueman nodded her head. "Yes, it does."

    Hei Yan was dumbfounded and could not respond in time.

    At this moment, someone stepped forward, "Division Leader Shi¡¯sbat power is iparable. The Spear of Heavy Cloud is indeed outstanding, but can you convince everyone if you only use your fist?"

    Shi Xueman nodded, "Yes, I can."

    This person was dumbfounded as well. After a short period of time, his face flushed. "But..."

    Shi Xueman calmly scanned her gaze all around and straightforwardly interrupted his words, "Who is not convinced?"

    The people present remained silent out of fear.

 Chapter 567: Masterâ€™s Glory Selection

    Chapter 567: Master¡¯s Glory Selection

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Gong Residence.

    Gong Peiyao was startled when she saw Venerable Volcano who came to bid farewell. "Venerable, this is...."

    Venerable Volcano firmly replied, "I am here to bid farewell."

    Gong Peiyao¡¯s eyes turned red immediately. "Did Peiyao neglect Venerable Volcano in any way? Why do you want to leave?"

    Thunder City had managed to survive only because Venerable Volcano went all out to risk his life. Gong Peiyao felt devastated upon hearing that he was going to leave.

    Venerable Volcano shook his head. "I have already repaid the family head¡¯s kindness. With Han Li by your side, I can also be at ease. I wish to check out the situation at the front line. Back then, it was thanks to Ai Hui¡¯s porridge that my injury healed. I also wish to experience what the Pagoda Cannon Alliance is like."

    Gong Peiyao was choked with emotion. "The front line is so dangerous..."

    Venerable Volcanoughed heartily. "I already have one foot in the grave, how dangerous can it be? If not for how much I detest blood elementalists, I wouldn¡¯t have made this choice."

    Before Gong Peiyao could persuade him to stay, Venerable Volcano interrupted her. "I have already made up my mind, do not attempt to persuade me anymore. Before I leave, I have a message for your father."

    Gong Peiyao resisted her tears. "Please speak, Peiyao will definitely pass on the message."

    Venerable Volcano nced intensely at Gong Peiyao. He was quite fond of her and knew that she had a good personality, otherwise, he would not have stayed at the Gong Residence for so long.

    Such a pity that he really did not fancy Prince Gong or the culture at the Gong Residence. If this little girl had been in charge of the household, he might have stayed on for another few years.

    But, these words were not necessary for the little girl to know. He replied calmly, "Your father and the Assembly of Patriarchs are very close. He must be careful of them, as the Assembly¡¯s people are vicious and ruthless. Associating with them is akin to asking a tiger for it¡¯s skin. Okay, I have nothing more to say, so I¡¯ll be leaving."

    After finishing his message, Venerable Volcano disappeared in a burst of mes.

    The sea of clouds in the night sky was like a ck curtain embedded with diamonds, boundless and wide. This was the most majestic and also the most enchanting view in the world. Jiang Wei was deeply moved by the sight.

    Hundreds of millions of years ago, the vast sky full of stars was just like the illuminated sky today.

    During the era ruled by the ancient dire beasts, their backs, multi-colored feathers and footprints were illuminated by the stars¡¯ radiance sprinkling down from the night sky.

    Cultivation Era, which had been reflected in this night sky, witnessed the magnificence of swordsmen. The myriad sword rays had surged through the sky, exuding an earth-shattering brilliance that eclipsed even the dazzling stars. Tens of thousands of swordsman sects were ripped up from the earth while an endless number of seals were ced across mountain ranges. The starry night sky seemed to reflect the grandeur of the swordsmen and their naive ignorance. The splendour of the earth willst for all ages, just like them.

    Is there anything that is immortal on this earth?

    Jiang Wei sighed softly.

    The elementalist by his side heard his sigh and teased him, "Old Ginger, thinking of Sister Sang?"

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun¡¯s intimate rtionship was observed and blessed by everyone. Jiang Wei was steady and experienced, while Sang Zhijun was bold and incisive. They were both vice division leaders and their romantic rtionship was termed as "the spring of vice division leaders."

    Jiang Wei retracted his thoughts as he was already used to being teased. He smiled. "A little."

    On the contrary, due to his honesty, everyone felt embarrassed to tease him. In fact, they were envious of their rtionship. With the rampant wars and bombardments in this era, nobody knew when they would die. It was somewhat lucky to be able to find someone who loves you and who you love in return.

    Jiang Wei sized up the city in front of him. It was not big and had guards standing perfectly straight in a considerably imposing manner.

    Jiang Wei was a little taken aback. With regards to such a small city, itsbat division¡¯s strength and discipline should be rtively ordinary and rxed. As for its financial status, it would be difficult to support an elitebat division as the amount of resources one consumes is very shocking. Without strong and solid financial resources, it would be difficult to support abat division.

    If Central Pine Valley did not have the support of the snowva, they would also be unable to support Spear of Heavy Cloud and Sword of Lightning.

    As a result, Jiang Wei¡¯s heart stirred when he saw the guards at the city gate. It seemed that security was rather strict. Could there possibly be a capable person inside Wind Mail City?

    Wind Mail City was located neither too far off nor too close to the front line. As it was still within the range in which they could recruit, Jiang Wei and a few elementalists made a trip down.

    The previous battle heavily damages Spear of Heavy Cloud and they urgently needed to replenish their manpower. In addition, Shi Xueman considered how this battle would not end anytime soon and specially rxed the restrictions on recruitment. She hoped that they would be able to recruit a few youngsters with potential. Although these youngsters would not be able to immediately be abat power, they would still be able to improve quickly over time spent enduring the battlefields. Most importantly, they would continue to improve while prating deeply into the battlefield. Only then would they be the future backbone of Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Jiang Wei liked youngsters even more as they were not influenced by the bad habits of otherbat divisions. With proper nurturing, they could be outstanding soldiers. When they had been recruiting fire elementalists, it was by chance that fire elementalists were at their lowest point. As a result, they were able to filter in the fire elementalists who had tenacious determination. If it had been like the current situation, they would have thanked heavens for being able to recruit any fire elementalists at all. As for the strength of these fire elementalists or whether or not they had strong determination, theypletely had no choice in the matter.

    One of the guards came forward and asked, "Here for the selection?"

    Jiang Wei stared nkly. "Selection?"

    Another guard checked Jiang Wei from top to bottom, smiled, and told hisrade, "Maybe he¡¯s not here to take part in the selection. He¡¯s not qualified to join the selection due to his old age."

    Jiang Wei heard what was said and bowed politely to a few others. He curiously asked, "May I know what selection everyone is talking about?"

    One of the guards smiled and exined, "Ignore them. The city is currently selecting the best seeds for Master¡¯s Glory."

    Jiang Wei was overwhelmed with shock. "Master¡¯s Glory has seeded?"

    The guard shook his head, "Not yet, we have not heard any news, but we did hear that they are preparing for the next generation¡¯s Master¡¯s Glory. We assume that it will seed soon."

    Jiang Wei heaved a sigh of relief. They had previously discussed how Master¡¯s Glory¡¯s sess would be bad news for them. There was a high possibility that a fundamental change would take ce in the current situation.

    They were still uncertain whether the situation would take a turn for the better or for the worse, but they knew that it would be a turning point.

    Jiang Weiughed. "I have yet to experience Master¡¯s Glory. Since I happened to passed by, I will have to tour around properly. I wonder which training hall it is being held at?"

    "It¡¯s the mayor¡¯s residence, of course!" The guard looked at him as if he was a country bumpkin. "They are our valued and distinguished guests, how could we degrade them and make them travel to different training halls?"

    Jiang Wei was not angry and nodded repeatedly. "That¡¯s true."

    He was a little disappointed. It turned out that the guards were being serious and conforming to standards because of the selection. There really weren¡¯t any talented candidates.

    He handed over a few elemental energy beans and was released.

    After a short while, one of the guards suddenly became suspicious. "That person from a moment ago seemed a little familiar. It felt like I had met him somewhere before."

    Another guard was also a little suspicious. "Now that you mention it, he did seem familiar."

    "Maybe he came to our Wind Mail City before?"

    "Sigh, I just can¡¯t recall anything. Not going to care anymore."

    After entering the city, Jiang Wei and the rest headed towards the mayor¡¯s residence. Earlier on, the mayor¡¯s residence had already been surrounded by people until it was impossible to get through. Such a selection was a rare asion in a small city like Wind Mail City. The entire city was there to enjoy the bustling scene.

    "It was such a pity. That child almost made it. "

    "Yes, anyway, this selection is really stringent. Not a single soul has seeded yet."

    "If it was easy, how could it still be called Master¡¯s Glory?"

    Jiang Wei waited to mix into the crowd as he darted his gaze towards the second floor pavilion of the mayor¡¯s residence. The mayor looked like he was a rich middle-aged man. Beside him was a fair skinned youngster who wasvishly dressed and had a cold and gloomy gaze. His status seemed to be rather honorable. It could be seen that the mayor was constantly expressing goodwill towards him.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s gaze ultimatelynded on the servant behind the youngster. The man wearing servant¡¯s clothes gave off a dangerous vibe; it was as if he knew that someone was spying on him. The servant turned his head and looked in Jiang Wei¡¯s direction.

    Before the other party even began to turn his head, Jiang Wei had already shifted his gaze elsewhere.

    The official in the training hall spoke loudly, "The next batch joining the selection, Hyde Training Hall."

    He Min stood on the stage and was the sixth person in the queue. He was not in the least bit nervous. Frankly speaking, he was not even interested in joining this selection. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that every student in the training hall had to take part in it, he would have slipped away.

    He did not like Skyheart City.

    When did it start? As he stood on the stage, he was bored stiff and thought to himself, oh, probably because he liked Spear of Heavy Cloud. After seeing that mirage bean pod, he became Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s die-hard supporter. He had dreamed of joining Spear of Heavy Cloud countless times. Even if he was unable to qualify as a pagoda cannoneer, he was fine serving as a transport soldier.

    He was unsure why the gruesome battle had given all the other students nightmares. He¡¯d thought that the battle with flesh and blood spattered everywhere, the booming sound of the pagoda cannons, and the fluttering quicksand was brimming with power and aesthetically pleasant. In He Min¡¯s eyes, the malevolence exuded by the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s members ignited a certain indescribable conviction in him.

    He felt as if he was possessed. In the past, he¡¯d longed to join the Wind Mail Division, but as he looked at them, he felt that they were undisciplined, like a bunch of disorganized and uncoordinated soldiers.

    Skyheart City had a hostile rtionship with Spear of Heavy Cloud, making He Min detest it even more.

    All the students in front did not seed.

    This was nothing odd. Including himself, the entire Hyde Training Hall did not have any gifted students.

    Wind Mail City and Hyde Training Hall were respectively a small city and training hall. He was only an ordinary person.

    Spear of Heavy Cloud, that was where all the heroes were congregated. He looked forward, but felt even more frustrated.

    "Next, He Min."

    The voice on the stage woke He Min from his thoughts and he returned to reality. He subconsciously walked towards the centre of the stage.

    As he strode over the shadow backstage, the ring light ray prevented him from seeing anything clearly.

    Even many yearster, he was unable to forget that image.

 Chapter 568: Effect of Reputation

    Chapter 568: Effect of Reputation

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Several guards were chatting excitedly at the city gates, discussing which of Wind Mail City¡¯s talents were likely to be selected. Some said Yu Xiaobai of Wind Trail Training Hall and others supported Zuo Chao of Cold Ray Training Hall. Everyone stuck to their own arguments, bragging about how they had seen these amazing geniuses with their own eyes.

    Someone noticed that one guard had suddenly stopped moving and asked, "Hey! What happened, Old Xu?"

    Old Xu seemed not to hear anything and stood motionless.

    Some people panicked. "Hey! Hey! Old Xu, don¡¯t scare us!"

    One of them hurriedly patted old Xu¡¯s face. It quivered and then his whole body shivered.

    The crowd heaved a sigh of relief and someone shouted, "What¡¯s the matter old Xu? How many people do you want to scare to death!"

    Old Xu¡¯s face flushed and he stammered, "I, I remember!"

    Everybody was curious and yet disapproving. "What do you recall? What has surprised you?"

    Old Xu stammered, "The, the person just now!"

    The others were confused. "Who did you see just now?"

    Old Xu swallowed his saliva, but was still agitated. He finally found his tongue. "That guy whoughed loudly when you said he was too old to participate in the selection. Later, we realized that he looked familiar."

    Everyone reacted; they had a pretty strong impression of that person.

    "That man? What happened?"

    "Do you remember?"

    "Who is he? You¡¯re scared out of your wits."

    Old Xu swallowed his saliva again. "Yes, Spear of Heavy Cloud!"

    "Spear of Heavy Cloud?"

    Everyone was stunned. In a short while, it becamepletely silent.

    After a while, one of them looked a little unnatural and forcefullyughed. "Old Xu, do not scare me, what Spear of Heavy Cloud? Why not Sword of Lightning?"

    Another man appeared as if struck by lightning. "Spear of Heavy Cloud!"

    He finally recalled why he found that man familiar. He shivered and eximed, "He, he is Jiang Wei! Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s vice division leader!"

    "Jiang Wei!"

    "Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s vice division leader!"

    The others gradually changed their expressions as they finally recalled and understood why they found him familiar. Some time ago, a mirage bean pod of the overwhelming battle between a blood elementalist division and Spear of Heavy-Cloud had been studied and analyzed by countless masters. Every important figure in Spear of Heavy Cloud had been repeatedly mentioned.

    As the vice division leader of Spear of Heavy Cloud, Jiang Wei was naturally not left out.

    Everyone expressed their disbelief and stood rooted.

    That was Spear of Heavy Cloud!

    And what more, the vice division leader of Spear of Heavy Cloud!

    He came to such a small city like Wind Mail City...

    All of a sudden, everyone simultaneously quivered and then regained theirposure.

    "Why would Spear of Heavy Cloude to Wind Mail City? Would it be disadvantageous for us?"

    "Come on, what do they see in Wind Mail City? Seems too good to be true!"

    "To replenish resources?"

    "We are so poor..."

    "What should we do now?"

    "Hurry up and report to the mayor!"

    A few of them beckoned to each other and, without a care for the others, turned and ran towards the mayor¡¯s residence.

    He Min stood ufortably in the middle of the stage.

    He was not used to having so many pairs of eyes on him, but unlike the others, he had nothing to gain or lose and thus was not as nervous as the other students.

    In the centre of the stage was a half-man high, four foot tripod. The tripod was covered withyer afteryer of delicate and meticulous elemental traces, through which light flowed slowly like water. The tripod was filled with colorful liquid like a beautiful python entrenched therein.

    Not knowing why, the multicolored liquid in the tripod made He Min fearful.

    He turned his face away and dared not look at the tripod.

    The elementalist who stood beside the tripod was responsible for the testing. "Put your hand out."

    He Min extended his palm.

    The elementalist tester grasped his palm and gently scratched it. Fresh blood seeped out immediately and dripped into the tripod.

    He Min had witnessed the first few people drip a few drops of fresh blood into the tripod without any reaction. He did not expect any reaction either and was getting ready to step down from the stage.

    At that moment, the colorful liquid which had just engulfed the blood unexpectedly emitted dazzling lights.

    Multicolored lights were projected from the tripod. Together with the rotating light beam, they transformed into a five colored flower representing the five elemental energies. Each petal floating on top of the tripod represented one of the elemental energies. All of a sudden, the five petals broke into five groups of fragmented lights andbined into a glowing cocoon.

    A strange wave of sound burst out.

    Five little dragons of different colors emerged from the broken cocoon and hovered around, chasing each other.

    This strange visionsted more than ten seconds before it faded and disappeared.

    The mayor and a few men wereughing and chatting in the pavilion. Instinctively, they stopped and gazed uniformly at the stage. As the flower formed into a cocoon, the servant behind the well-dressed young man suddenly widened his eyes. Even his normally expressionless face disyed surprise.

    The onlookers marvelled that they did not know what a five-colored flower signified, but this peculiar vision made them realize that it was extraordinary.

    He Min stood nkly on stage while looking at the huge tripod in front of him, unsure of what to do.

    Suddenly, loud panting sounds drowned out all other noises.

    "Mayor! Mayor! Spear of Heavy Cloud ising! Spear of Heavy Cloud ising! "

    "Mayor!It is vice division leader Jiang Wei!"

    The guards¡¯ shouts plunged the audience into silence, then in the next moment, they burst into an uproar.

    "Spear of Heavy Cloud! Is it that Spear of Heavy Cloud?"

    "Certainly! Didn¡¯t you hear him say vice division leader Jiang Wei?"

    On the stage, He Min heard the words "Spear of Heavy Cloud" and was dumbfounded. Spear of Heavy Cloud... Spear of Heavy Cloud was actually here!

    Upon hearing the name "Spear of Heavy Cloud", the mayor became agitated and suddenly stood up. Wind Mail City was not near the battlefield, but neither was it considered far. His biggest worry was the possibility of a blood elementalistbat division approaching the city. The world-renownedbat division "Spear of Heavy Cloud" certainly could be a protective talisman in these troubled times.

    Previously, he had been wondering how he could make connections with Spear of Heavy Cloud, but did not know where to begin.

    Spear of Heavy Cloud actually took the initiative toe to Wind Mail City!

    It was a golden opportunity !

    The mayor was overjoyed with this chance of a lifetime and could not let it slip away. He wanted to inquire for more details, but the booming noise was just like an angry wave that could practically lift Wind Mail City up to the sky.

    Jiang Wei and several other members looked at each other and were bewildered. They were almost drowned in the noisy boom, as if they were in the midst of a stormy sea.

    One of his members silently mouthed the words, "Are we that famous now?"

    Jiang Wei was uncertain and replied the same way, "I also do not know..."

    He really did not know.

    Due to time constraints, members who had previously been recruiting had all gone directly to the training halls at the fastest speed. After selecting recruits, Jiang Wei would immediately arrange another member to escort them to the camp and took the remaining members quickly to the next city.

    They all underestimated the far-reaching impact of the mirage bean pod.

    They were at the front line every day, tense and busy, with no time to pay attention to the various messagesing from the rear. All of them had only seen the mirage bean pod once. They could only judge feelings of the figures in the clip from their back views.

    They didn¡¯t experience the development of the whole incident. They had no idea that they have long been legendary in the eyes of the world.

    So, when the tsunami-like noise overwhelmed them, they looked dazed and did not know what was going on.

    "Quiet! All keep quiet!"

    The Master by the mayor¡¯s side projected his elemental energy and the thunderous sound silenced everybody.

    The mayor anxiously asked several guards, "Where is he? Where is vice division leader Jiang Wei?"

    The guards stuttered, "They said, said that they are here to see the selection..."

    Noting the situation, Jiang Wei knew he muste out to rify. "I am Jiang Wei, d to meet the mayor and sorry for the disturbance."

    All eyes in the field turned to Jiang Wei. Many were excited to see him. It was really Jiang Wei! He looked exactly the same as in the mirage bean pod!

    As the initiator of the incident, Skyheart City had not expected this move to push the reputation of Spear of Heavy Cloud to an all-time high. Compared to any time in the past, this was the lowest point of Beyond Avalon as elementalists faced repeated defeats against the blood elementalists. Even the prestigious and illustrious Shi Beihai suffered a disastrous defeat to them.

    The survival of Beyond Avalon was at stake. The unprecedented fear and despair overwhelmed the residents.

    All of Beyond Avalon seemed to be drowning.

    In this most desperate and darkest hour, Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s victory had been like a ray of sunlight shining through thick clouds. It gave hope to everyone.

    It was just like a drowning man finally clutching a rice straw.

    The mirage bean pod which recorded the entire battle between Spear of Heavy Cloud and Ardent Flower Blood Division had shown everyone the enemy¡¯s ferocity and Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s strength. More importantly, it had been the first real head-on victory.

    There was nothing more convincing and reassuring than this segment of mirage.

    People could now understand that blood elementalists were not invincible and that they themselves were not entirely vulnerable.

    This was how Spear of Heavy Cloud had caused such an unprecedented sensation and gained the greatest reputation.

    Although the people were agitated, no one said anything. They consciously made a path through the crowd.

    Jiang Wei was surprised by the great courtesy he received. He nodded his thanks to the crowd on both sides and walked out.

    The mayor was very excited, but to be able to be a mayor, he definitely was a man of some caliber. He smiled and said, "Dear Mister Jiang, your gracious presence has brought glory to Wind Mail City! What do you mean trouble? If it is trouble, I hope you can make it everyday. Mister Jiang, you hardly evere by, you should stay for a few more days."

    Jiang Wei bowed slightly. "Thank you for your good intentions, I appreciate it; however, given the present situation, I really have no time. If I gain a victory in the future, I shall trespass on your hospitality."

    "Oh! That is such a pity." The mayor sighed. He knew that Jiang Wei was telling the truth. He soon became somewhat curious and asked, "I wonder why you have made your trip here? As long as I can be of service, the whole of Wind Mail City would not hesitate toy down their lives if needed."

    The man in gorgeous clothes beside the mayor took on a ghastly expression. At this moment, he had beenpletely forgotten.

    Jiang Wei thanked him again. "Thank you mayor. I am here to recruit some manpower to supplement thebat division."

    He just finished speaking.

    Boom!

    The crowd blew up again.

    "Me, Me, Me!"

    "Choose me, choose me!"

    "I want to participate!"

    Jiang Wei felt like he was standing on an erupting volcano. The ground was shaking and he was a little dazed. His mind echoed the words that had just been spoken by hisrades.

    Are we so famous now...?

 Chapter 569: To Die for a Belief

    Chapter 569: To Die for a Belief

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Wang Rui overlooked the surging and frantic crowd, his moodpletely ruined.

    On behalf of Skyheart City, he hade to select the best candidates for Master¡¯s Glory, but these people were only here to join in the buzz. Yet, upon hearing that the Spear of Heavy Cloud was recruiting, they became so agitated and wild. Wang Rui felt terrible, as if he had just swallowed a fly.

    Wang Rui was born into an aristocratic family that had a close rtionship with the Ye family.

    The Wang Family had a long history, but hadn¡¯t been illustrious for a long time. However, by riding on Madam Ye¡¯s newly gained power, the family immediately had a change of fortune. In terms of seniority, Madam Ye was Wang Rui¡¯s maternal aunt, and Wang Rui often yed around in the Ye residence when he was young.

    Madam Ye considered visiting various cities to scout for candidates since just relying on the Surveince Division wasn¡¯t enough. She needed someone who was decent in all aspects, including family background, to coordinate the selection so that the respective mayors would follow through or at least not obstruct her ns.

    Having followed Madam Ye for some time, Wang Rui had had his glorious moments, but it was still his first time carrying such a heavy responsibility.

    He truly cherished this opportunity and wanted to get things done properly.

    Seeing the scene before him, a rush of anger filled his heart, and his face was terrifyingly gloomy. Could it be that the poprity of the Spear of Heavy Cloud had already surpassed that of Skyheart City?

    "Quiet! Quiet!"

    The Master beside the mayor had no choice but to step forward to maintain order.

    The excited crowd gradually calmed down, but the passion and fervor on their faces had yet to fade.

    The mayor wanted to speak, but a tender voice broke the silence from on the stage, "I don¡¯t want to go to Skyheart City! I want to join the Spear of Heavy Cloud!"

    The speaker was He Min, who had an agitated expression on his face.

    He was extremely agitated. Ecstasy filled his heart, and he felt as if he was dreaming.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud had actuallye to Wind Mail City to recruit new members!

    He Min¡¯s voice rang just when the crowd had quieted down, so everybody¡¯s gaze fell onto him. However, no one, including the mayor, was surprised. In fact, they urged him on.

    "Good one!"

    "That¡¯s our boy!"

    The crowd starting an endless cheer.

    Master¡¯s Glory had been discussed for so many years, but nothing hade out of it yet. There weren¡¯t any Masters, so people thought of it unfavorably. Plus, while Skyheart City emphasized righteousness, citizens had nothing good to say about it. Le Buleng¡¯s satirical speech circted more extensively than anything else, and to the ordinary citizens, the so-called general situation was simply too vague and distant.

    Meanwhile, the Spear of Heavy Cloud grappled at the front line with real swords and spears. Wine, to them, was boiling fresh blood. Those who died were eternal heroes. What they chopped were the heads of their enemies.

    In the eyes of ordinary people, joining Master¡¯s Glory and going to Skyheart City meant that they might gain power and be an influential figure. Joining the Spear of Heavy Cloud, however, meant that they could immediately enter battle to fight against the blood elementalists.

    Thetter was for the hot-blooded!

    "No way!"

    An angry voice boomed across the field.

    Wang Rui¡¯s face was ashen, and he felt his face burning, as if he¡¯d received a few hard ps. He hadn¡¯t expected the Spear of Heavy Cloud to be this popr!

    The servant behind him whispered, "We must take He Min away no matter what. So far he¡¯s the most talented candidate, second to none!"

    Wang Rui also had no ns of letting He Min go. If he were to join the Spear of Heavy Cloud, Skyheart City would reach rock bottom. Wouldn¡¯t it be an extreme humiliation if this were to spread? And how could he, Wang Rui, allow himself to be the butt of the joke? His bright future would be thoroughly thrashed.

    Furthermore, that servant had reminded him that he absolutely could not shrink back.

    He stood up slowly. With a stern expression, he walked to the edge of the pavilion and surveyed the audience. In a deep voice, he started talking, "The Spear of Heavy Cloud is the pir of the Elders Guild and abat division most worthy of our trust. Their outstanding performance was indeed up to the Elders Guild¡¯s expectations, but Master¡¯s Glory fundamentally influences our ability to resist and im victory over the blood elementalists."

    Terrified by his might, the morous crowd unconsciously lowered their voices.

    His tone was powerful and resonating. "Thus far, Master¡¯s Glory is our greatest and strictest n. The Elders Guild will supply endless effort and resources! Countless people are advancing dauntlessly, wave upon wave. What for? To defeat the blood elementalists and take the Avalon of Five Elements back! Every one of you must understand the Elders Guild¡¯s painstaking effort. Regarding the fight against blood elementalists, the Elders Guild is more determined and well-prepared than anyone else."

    He Min shook his head stubbornly. "I want to join the Spear of Heavy Cloud!"

    Wang Rui suppressed his impatience, responding calmly, "If you join Master¡¯s Glory, you¡¯ll be able to unleash greater potential and be a powerful Master! You will be the Elders Guild¡¯s core, and they will focus on grooming you!"

    He Min refused to listen. Like a monkey drum he shook his head. "No! I¡¯m joining the Spear of Heavy Cloud!"

    Wang Rui ran out of patience. Under the eyes of those present, he flew into a rage and berated, "Why are you so insensible? Do you not have any regard for the present situation? Are you able to take responsibility if Master¡¯s Glory fails because of you?"

    He Min answered righteously, "I¡¯m a child!"

    The crowd burst intoughter. Everyone was amused by his response.

    "Exactly. He¡¯s just a kid. What responsibility?"

    "The Elders Guild is so useless!"

    "Heh, heh. An old man is dead in the enemy country, new soldiers are defending our territory, a lone girl is fighting at the front line, and now it¡¯s this kid¡¯s turn!"

    ...

    He Min¡¯s words made Jiang Wei smile too. This kid seemed really stubborn, but somewhat quick-witted and clever.

    The mocking and ridiculing turned Wang Rui¡¯s face as red as pig liver. Each verbal attack was like a iron sword that pierced right through his heart. He had never been in such an embarrassing situation. The humiliation made his body tremble uncontrobly. Finally losing control, he roared, "Enough!"

    The audience sank into momentary silence, but what followed after was an even more intense wave of angry reactions.

    "What nonsense! Too afraid to go to the front line, yet you dare shout at us?"

    "I¡¯ve already said it. The Elders Guild is as useless as mud, and the inside officials are only interested in saving themselves!"

    "Don¡¯t waste the kid¡¯s time. Bullsh*t Master¡¯s Glory. Rubbish!"

    ...

    The crowd was absolutely agitated. Some of the stronger men were even rolling their sleeves up, ready to charge forward.

    Wang Rui¡¯s face was ashen, and his body shivered. He muttered to himself, "Wicked citizens. A bunch of wicked citizens..."

    Wind Mail City¡¯s mayor stood at the side, his face turning gloomy. Calling his people wicked right in front of his face... was that fellow implying that he was a wicked mayor? Expressionlessly, hemented, "Wicked indeed. How could such wicked citizens be worthy of such a grand n like Master¡¯s Glory? Kindly head over to other cities to find your candidates."

    Wang Rui turned his head, his face distorted. His eyes spat fire as he roared like a ferocious tiger, "You..."

    Wind Mail City¡¯s mayor wasn¡¯t the least bit afraid. He asked coolly, "What? Is Prince Wang going to call me wicked too?"

    The servant behind Wang Rui sighed and ced his palm on Wang Rui¡¯s shoulder. Wang Rui only felt a heavy weight pressing on his body. Not only was he unable to move, but he couldn¡¯t speak a word either.

    A powerful elemental energy wave enveloped the whole of Wind Mail City, and the dark clouds overhead instantly vanished, revealing the clear, blue sky. Yet, no wind could enter Wind Mail City, as if the air had solidified.

    All noise faded in a sh.

    The surging mor from earlier seemed to have frozen all of a sudden, and everybody¡¯s faces changed. They were so overwhelmed with shock that they couldn¡¯t speak.

    The middle-aged man bowed toward Jiang Wei, calling out, "Sir! I¡¯m a nobody from the Surveince Division and have received an order to select the candidates for Master¡¯s Glory. I think we have found a very suitable prospect. Please give us that honor. My division leader will never forget this and will repay you in future for sure."

    Jiang Wei sighed. He was somewhat hesitant.

    He was a prudent and experienced man who did not wish to be enemies with the Surveince Division. While the two parties did not see eye to eye, the Surveince Division was very strong with the Elders Guild was behind their back, so it was best for the Spear of Heavy Cloud to not fall out with them.

    He Min was confined by the invisible elemental energy and couldn¡¯t speak. He felt absolutely anxious, fearing that he was going to be sent to Skyheart City.

    No way!

    He couldn¡¯t let the opportunity to join the Spear of Heavy Cloud slip away!

    He Min frantically engaged the elemental energy within his body. Although he was aware that his own frail elemental energy was in no wayparable to the energy that confined him, he couldn¡¯t care less. All he could think of was joining the Spear of Heavy Cloud!

    The elemental energy within his body attacked the invisible shackles recklessly and incessantly!

    His face was twisted, and the bones in his body were cracking, but the elemental energy trace rendered him immobile.

    He must go to the Spear of Heavy Cloud!

    He had never mobilized all of his energy this wildly before. Unable to adapt to such a great intensity, he started feeling dizzy as his head buzzed nonstop.

    Suddenly, somewhere deep within his body, a hot stream gushed from his abdomen up toward his neck, and a ball of raging me burned in his chest. His head rumbled as he entered a fuzzy state of consciousness. He could only feel a rush of intense heat enter his throat as the invisible shackles loosened slightly.

    He used all his energy to shout, "I want to go to the Spear of Heavy..."

    Before he could finish, a ball of bloody mist sprayed out of his mouth!

    The middle-aged man opened his eyes wide in disbelief.

    Upon seeing the bloody mist that He Min spewed out, Jiang Wei jolted. The doubt in his heart vanished like a puff of smoke.

    Jiang Wei stood forward and spoke in an unhurried, but firm as steel, tone, "Sorry, but we¡¯re taking this kid."

    The other members followed closely behind. As the troops spread out, everyone had solemn and resolute expressions.

    It would be their greatest honor to have a kid who was this stubborn, who would choose to injure themselves in order to join the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    The middle-aged man sighed. "As a vice division leader with an immeasurably bright future, why put yourself in danger for a kid? You only have one life, so why not use it where it matters? The divide between a Master and yourself is too huge. You can¡¯t win."

    Jiang Wei did not stop. With determined and steady eyes, he calmly unslung the bow from his back and said in a low voice, "We were born with a belief, and we will die with it. We will not live perfunctorily, and we will die for our belief!"

    His scatteredrades formed a miniature vanguard, walking in sync. There was no fear on their faces, only persistence and courage. They were one. Old Ginger¡¯s words had touched them, and they couldn¡¯t help but cried out in unison.

    "We were born with a belief, and we will die with it. We will not live perfunctorily, and we will die for our belief!"

    Clearly, they weren¡¯t walking fast, but each step shook the earth like ps of thunder. Their voices clearly weren¡¯t loud, but they reached far and wide and into people¡¯s heart. They clearly had few people, but fearlessness spread across the field. They were invincible.

    With each step and sentence, their aura strengthened like a rising tongue of me, burning the skies like fire and like blood.

    The middle-aged man¡¯s face changed.

 Chapter 570: Three Bunny Hairs

    Chapter 570: Three Bunny Hairs

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Jiang Wei wasn¡¯t a rash individual; he was calm and steady. In everyone¡¯s eyes, he was a reliable and trustworthy person. They did not need to worry about anything that he was in charge of.

    He wasn¡¯t really talented. Among the students of Central Pine Academy, he wasn¡¯t considered outstanding. Aspared to other students who were more talented than him, sometimes he felt that his achievements today werergely due to the coincidental encounter with Ai Hui at the Garden of Life where the blood catastrophe first broke out.

    If one was to ask him what his strengths were, his answer would most likely be his trustworthiness and tenacity.

    Whether it was the escape from the Garden of Life, the Battle of Central Pine City, or the battle with the Ardent Flower Blood Division, he was the least noticeable and seldom put up an extraordinary performance. However, he would never give up and was always a reliable force to the team.

    Everyone liked calling him "Old Ginger" because they felt that his character was too elderly for his age. He was like a 50 year old middle-aged man.

    He would properly carry out the missions Ai Hui and Shi Xueman gave him. He would not skimp on the training tasks that were given to him either. He did all his tasks meticulously. Even if he knew the camp was stationed in an absolutely safe area, he would not lower his guard and ck off defensively.

    He was a person who treated his job seriously and did not like to let his imagination run wild.

    However, after having witnessed the blood catastrophe, the death of his ssmate¡¯s teacher, the copse of the Avalon of Five Elements, and the world bing increasingly chaotic, he felt helpless and insignificant and realized that human lives were fragile like grass. There were more and more things that he couldn¡¯t understand umting in his heart.

    He was not good at motivating people or talking.

    He had said these words because he was giving a serious reply to the other party.

    When these words left his mouth, he felt as if he was enlightened. His entire body rxed, appearing as if he had shed the shackles that bound him. The haze that clouded his mind waspletely lifted off. At this moment, his mind was in a state of rity. He had finally expressed his desired answer.

    Whether an enemy was powerful or weak, whether the world was safe or dangerous, life still remained short and unpredictable.

    Live not an ignoble life, die an honorable death.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s elemental energy surged excitedly. It was as if his elemental energy was cheering in high spirits. His facial expression remainedposed, he had his huge bow in his hand, and his eyes were like an abyss, deep and unfathomable. Behind him, three elementalists took up their positions and formed an irregrly-shaped rhombus with him. Finally, there was one more elementalist standing directly behind the rhombus.

    The Lesser Arrow Formation was a battle formation that wasmonly used by elementalists.

    However, in Jiang Wei and his counterparts¡¯ hands, it disyed a terrifying might.

    Wang Rui¡¯s face turned deathly pale. Jiang Wei and his counterparts were only five people in total, yet they were able to cover his line of sight. The aura of devastation exuded by Jiang Wei and his counterparts made Wang Rui feel as if he was on a battlefield where people were sted into pieces. Like humongous, malevolent beasts, they advanced slowly toward him.

    Thump.

    His legs gave way, and he fell to the ground.

    At this point in time, the middle-age man behind him did not bother with him. He withdrew all his elemental energy and prepared to face Jiang Wei.

    After one entered the Surveince Division, he or she would not use his or her birth name anymore. This symbolized a farewell to his or her old life.

    The middle-aged man was called Xiao Shan even though he wasn¡¯t young anymore. Only those who were familiar with the Surveince Division would know that members who had the word "xiao" in their names were the legitimate core members of the division. These core members either held key positions in the division like Xiao Lin or were powerful experts like Xiao Shan.

    [1] "Xiao" in Chinese means small or young.

    At this moment, there was a solemn look on Xiao Shan¡¯s face. The Surveince Division was one of the Three Central Divisions, so how could they not be familiar with a battle formation. Furthermore, wasn¡¯t this themonly used Lesser Arrow Formation?

    The Lesser Arrow Formation was a battle formation that every elementalist in everybat division had to learn.

    The Lesser Arrow Formation arranged in front of him looked extremely absurd and was filled with many mistakes. The biggest mistake was its arrowhead position. Xiao Shan had never seen a Lesser Arrow Formation that put an archer at the arrowhead position.

    An archer was a role that needed range in order to be useful inbat. How could an archer stand at the arrowhead position where he would be put in a closebat situation with the enemy?

    There were a lot of other mistakes as well. For example, their formation was much more spread out than a typical Lesser Arrow Formation.

    However, the imposing aura and elemental energy undtions released by Jiang Wei and his counterparts were definitely no joke!

    As an expert even among Masters, Xiao Shan¡¯s eyes were naturally very sharp. He was quickly able to tell that there was something odd about Jiang Wei¡¯s Lesser Arrow Formation.

    Jiang Wei stood at the arrowhead position of the Lesser Arrow Formation. Behind his left and right nks, there were two fire elementalists. At the arrow nock position to the rear, there was also a fire elementalist. These three fire elementalists formed a perfect triangle. Right behind Jiang Wei, there was an earth elementalist. The earth elementalist happened to stand in the center of the triangle formed by the three fire elementalists.

    Such an borate structure!

    In his heart, Xiao Shan eximed in admiration. He had not expected themonly-used Lesser Arrow Formation to be so special in Jiang Wei¡¯s hands.

    Even though they had not fought yet, and he could not see all of the marvels of Jiang Wei¡¯s formation, he could sense that there was something unique about it just from its borate structure.

    However, even though the other party¡¯s Lesser Arrow Formation lit his eyes up and he looked forward to experiencing it, he stood by the words he said just now. The strength disparity between a Master and someone who had yet to be a Master was incredibly wide.

    On the battlefield, a Master wasn¡¯t invincible, but he or she had the ability to ultimately change the oue of a close fight.

    Having only five people in total, Jiang Wei and his counterparts couldn¡¯t pose any threat to him.

    However, he did not want to start a feud with the Spear of Heavy Cloud. After all, both sides had no enmity toward each other in the beginning. This candidate selection trial was prepared for Master¡¯s Glory, not for the Surveince Division.

    Among the higher-ups of the Surveince Division, there were many divided opinions about the Division Leader¡¯s decision.

    Many people felt that the Surveince Division should head toward the front line like the Judgement and Dread divisions. On the contrary, another group of people felt that they should follow the Division Leader with resolution. Ultimately, Madam Ye¡¯s qualifications and achievements weren¡¯t enough to convince everyone.

    Xiao Shan looked at Jiang Wei and his counterparts with aplicated facial expression. The rise of the Spear of Heavy Cloud had caused the rift between members of the Surveince Division to grow wider and wider. Skyheart City¡¯s performance had disappointed a lot of people. Many were disappointed that an elite force like them were hiding in Skyheart City doing dishonorable things. At the same time, they felt conflicted too.

    Xiao Shan belonged to the neutral party. Whatever tasks his division leader gave him, he would carry them out earnestly. He had no ill intentions toward the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Instead, he rather admired them.

    He had seen the mirage bean pod of that battle. If it had been the Surveince Division, he believed they would have obtained a victory as well.

    The Surveince Division was one of the Three Central Divisions. Generations of trial and error were conducted and a countless amount of manpower and resources was spent before this Central Division was born.

    Every member had to undergo multiple stages of selection tests before he or she was chosen. They had gathered the most outstanding elementalists.

    In Xiao Shan¡¯s eyes, it wasn¡¯t easy for a regionalbat division like the Spear of Heavy Cloud to obtain such a military sess.

    Xiao Shan had made up his mind. He wanted the other party to retreat on their own ord. With an apologetic tone, he said, "This is my duty. Pardon me then, Sir Jiang!"

    He raised his right hand.

    Snap.

    A loud and crisp sound of fingers snapping resounded through the air.

    A weird elemental energy wave swept across the area like a ripple.

    Crack!

    A small ice cube formed between his fingers. The ice cube was irregrly shaped, and it was sparkling and translucent, giving off an oddly beautiful fluorescence.

    Crack, crack, crack!

    The frightening sound of ice forming echoed through the air. A irregrly shaped, dazzling ice dragon was growing thicker and longer at a terrifying speed as it neared Jiang Wei. The ice dragon grew in an expansive manner. The further it grew, the thicker and wider it became, resembling an enormous cone that was oriented horizontally.

    Xiao Shan¡¯s Path of Master: [Tears of Amber]!

    The demonic, yet beautiful, ice wasn¡¯t really ice. It was actually crystallized elemental energy. When the elemental energy surrounding an enemy crystallized, the enemy would be like an insect trapped in resin that slowly became amber. The seemingly weak crystallized elemental energy was actually very firm and strong. A person who was trapped by it would not be able to move at all, resembling a bug encased in amber.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s gaze was lowered, his feet were spread out, his straightened left arm was holding his bow, and his right hand was holding the bowstring, looking as if he had not seen what was going on.

    A transparent ss bamboo vial appeared in each fire elementalists¡¯ hand. Each ss bamboo container was filled with crystal-clear snowva.

    Crack.

    The ss bamboo vials shattered as the crystal-clear snowva immediately ignited into a faint ze. The three fire elementalists had solemn looks on their faces. Their hand signs transformed nimbly as the faint ze danced between their fingers.

    At almost the same time, a quicksand whirlpool formed beneath the feet of the earth elementalist behind Jiang Wei.

    Following which, the surging sand whirlpool swirled around the five squad members.

    The movements of the three fire elementalists were uniform and synchronized. They pressed their hands downward, and the faint ze generated by the snowva entered the quicksand whirlpool beneath their feet.

    Boom!

    Surging fire elemental energy gushed into the sand whirlpool. However, the weird thing was that the fire elemental energy only gathered at the outer ring of the sand whirlpool. The earth elementalist took in a deep breath of air as his face became bright-red. He pointed, raised his palms upward, and roared, "Rise!"

    The quicksand whirlpool behind Jiang Wei began to rise from the ground, looking like a quicksand monster climbing out of a sand pit.

    The wiggling quicksand engulfed Jiang Wei¡¯s feet and extended upward to his waist, his upper back, and over his shoulders to his arms.

    Jiang Wei looked as if he felt nothing, remaining motionless.

    In the blink of an eye, Jiang Wei was entirely covered by the quicksand, leaving only his head exposed. More and more quicksand rose from the ground and flew toward the back of Jiang Wei. Following which, the quicksand became an enormous and solid sand wall that supported Jiang Wei like a firm and hard pedestal.

    The frantically crystallizing elemental energy grew increasinglyrger in Jiang Wei¡¯s line of sight. It was as if a huge wall had been hurled at him.

    A demonic, yet gorgeous, radiance flooded his line of sight. He had nowhere to run.

    Suddenly, violent elemental energy surged from his back. A brilliant glow erupted from Jiang Wei¡¯s eyes as he pulled the bowstring!

    However, there was no arrow nocked on the bowstring!

    Jiang Wei pulled the bowstring further back as violent elemental energy surged through his right arm. A dazzling glow blossomed from the bowstring as an arrow began to form.

    The arrowhead was made up of shining silvery metal elemental energy, the arrow shaft was made up of quicksand that was swirling nonstop, and the arrow fletchings were made up of scarlet feathers of dancing me.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s unique Lesser Arrow Formation, [Three Bunny Hairs]

    This unique name was chosen Sang Zhiijun. The Bunny Hair Arrows she used in Central Pine City had burned a huge and painful hole in her pocket, but they were very effective in battle. In her eyes, Bunny Hair Arrows were the best arrows. Of course, they were the most expensive as well.

    The bowstring was released.

    After flying for two meters, the arrow collided with the frantically growing wall of crystallized elemental energy.

    Clink!

    The deafening sound of a collision rang through the air.

    The rain of fire released by the arrow fletchings silently entered the quicksand arrow shaft. Then, the fire elemental energy from the fletchings and the earth elemental energy from the arrow shaft entered the dazzling arrow head.

    These three different types of elemental energy fused together.

    Boom!

    A deep and muffled explosion resounded through the air.

    The crystallized elemental energy wall that was growing frantically appeared as if it had been heavily struck by a dire beast.

    The crystallized elemental energy wall stopped two meters in front of Jiang Wei.

 Chapter 571: Valiant Warriors

    Chapter 571: Valiant Warriors

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The momentum of the frantically growing crystallized elemental energy stopped abruptly, looking as if it had hit a wall.

    The arrogant Xiao Shan¡¯s eyes lit up. Interesting!

    Fire engendered earth and earth engendered metal. As the arrowhead, Jiang Wei happened to be a metal elementalist. The amount of metal elemental energy that Jiang Wei could utilize was plentiful, but he did not convert all the elemental energies into metal elemental energy. He still maintained a portion of the fire elemental energy and earth elemental energy as they were. This was why the previous explosion urred.

    There were two advantages to using metal elemental energy to form the arrowhead. The first advantage was it had an extremely strong piercing ability. The second advantage was it could fuse with the other two types of elemental energy to create an explosion.

    This was indeed unique!

    Xiao Shan could not help but exim in admiration once more. This was the first time he had seen such an exquisite arrangement being utilized in a basic battle formation like the Lesser Arrow Formation. From the excellent coordination among the five people, Xiao Shan could tell that they had undergone a huge number of training sessions.

    Actually, judging from the strength of each elementalist in the unit in front of him, they looked very ordinary. Jiang Wei¡¯s strength was rather impressive. He was the only bright spot among the five man squad and was not far from bing a Master. The strength of the other four elementalists was ordinary, especially the three fire elementalists. These four elementalists were even weaker than the ordinary members of the Surveince Division.

    Given Jiang Wei¡¯s strength, he could only be an unit leader in the Surveince Division. However, since he had many military aplishments, he could be a middle-ranking officer instead.

    Of course, the position of vice division leader in the Surveince Division was absolutely out of his reach.

    Xiao Shan¡¯s high rating of Jiang Wei¡¯s military capabilities wasn¡¯t baseless. The performance put on by Jiang Wei¡¯s low-levelrades had disyed Jiang Wei¡¯s capabilities. For example, the fire elementalists were too low-level and could not produce sufficient fire elemental energy. The ss bamboos vials that were filled with snowva could make up for the fire elementalists¡¯ deficiency and improved their performance.

    The earth elementalist wasn¡¯t really powerful either. However, the huge amount of quicksand was able to act as a connection for the five person squad. The sand wall that supported Jiang Wei withstood significant impact and acted as protection for him.

    These details might seem insignificant, but it was precisely these details that disyed Jiang Wei¡¯s capabilities. It was these details that allowed his weak and ordinary-lookingrades to disy extraordinary fighting capabilities.

    A look of admiration shed across Xiao Shan¡¯s eyes.

    However, this level was not enough to win this fight.

    Snap.

    Xiao Shan snapped his fingers again.

    The ice dragon that was frozen in the air exploded with a loud bang. Countless crystallized fragments swept across Jiang Wei and his counterparts like a blizzard. Every tiny fragment was like a seed that caused the surrounding elemental energy to crystallize and grow.

    Soon, a gigantic, dazzling, transparent bell canopy covered Jiang Wei and his counterparts. The canopy bell was formed by the frantically crystallizing elemental energy.

    The onlookers cried out in rm as looks of shock appeared on their faces.

    Jiang Wei and his counterparts had nowhere to run!

    Within the bell canopy, Jiang Wei¡¯s facial expression did not change. He ced his huge bow in front of him and put his right hand fingers on the bowstring. With a deep voice, he said, "Two bamboos. Attack!"

    The earth elementalist understood what Jiang Wei meant and manipted the wiggling quicksand beneath his feet. The quicksand lifted the five people up andunched an attack forward.

    Two more ss bamboo vials appeared in the hands of each fire elementalist.

    Without any hesitation, they crushed the vials in their hands at the same time.

    Boom.

    The mes produced were much more powerful than the previous time. The three of them had grave looks on their faces. They used their hands and guided the mes to their bodies. In the blink of an eye, the zing mes engulfed their bodies and turned them into three men who were on fire.

    The onlookers cried out in rm again.

    The three ming fire elementalists began to run around the earth elementalist with all their might. If one looked down from the sky, he or she would see a ming triangle that was spinning.

    In front of the earth elementalist, the roiling quicksand transformed into a brown cauldron with three legs.

    Wisps of fire were released into the three-legged cauldron by the three ming men as they ran wildly on the quicksand. A red glow suddenly erupted from the three-legged cauldron, making it look as if it was being heated.

    In an instant, the quicksand beneath their feet looked as if it was boiling, sweeping up numerous sand waves.

    Amid the rolling waves of sand, speckles of silvery light appeared. Like a school of fish, they swam toward Jiang Wei. The sand-made pedestal that carried Jiang Wei was as bright as snow, looking as if it was cast out of iron.

    Jiang Wei¡¯s elemental energy was operating at its limit. Faint silvery stars appeared in his eyes.

    The metal elemental energy in the sand pedestal that carried him was bing more and more vigorous. He felt like his body was ripping apart. In reality, this wasn¡¯t a misperception. A slight moment of carelessness would cause his body to be ripped apart by the surging metal elemental energy.

    He carefully controlled the vigorous and fearsome metal elemental energy. The huge bow that he ced in front of him was bursting with a brilliant silvery light, appearing as if a glowing silver needle had grown out of his bow.

    The quicksand lifted them and continued moving forward!

    Xiao Shan¡¯s facial expression became solemn once more.

    This was...

    He realized that he had underestimated Jiang Wei and his counterparts.

    The fire elementalists, whom he previously thought were the weakest and most useless, actually had their merits. The fire elemental energy released by the snowva was extremely powerful. From Xiao Shan¡¯s perspective, it was too much for each fire elementalist to handle all of the fire elemental energy from the two ss bamboo vials of snowva.

    But the three of them managed to do it!

    They distributed the mes around their bodies proportionally. By doing so, they could reduce the amount of mes they had to control at any given moment. However, Xiao Shan had not initially thought of this method because he knew the agony that he would have had to face if he allowed the mes of snowva to engulf him.

    Under such agony, the three fire elementalists could still synchronize their movements and release the mes into the three-legged cauldron at the same speed.

    Xiao Shan could not help but feel surprised. Such an aggressive execution!

    Eachbat division had certain moments where they would fight with all their might. However, this was the first time that Xiao Shan witnessed the ubiquitous Lesser Arrow Formation being executed with such aggression. From their excellent coordination, Xiao Shan could tell that they had practiced this formation many times.

    Was this done to make up for the deficiency in their strength?

    Xiao Shan¡¯s gaze became slightlyplicated.

    The theory behind it was easy to understand, yet very fewbat divisions could implement it. It was akin to how the fire elementalists allowed their bodies to be engulfed by mes. This could only be done with an extremely high endurance, steel-like willpower, and strict self-discipline.

    In front of him, there wasn¡¯t just one, but three fire elementalists who possessed such characteristics!

    Wasn¡¯t the Spear of Heavy Cloud scared of a mutiny urring?

    Suddenly, he thought of an interesting fact about the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s recruiting process. Fire elementalists had to pass the fire reservoir test before they could enter the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Previously, everyone had not thought much about it. They merely felt that Shi Xueman valued individuals with high willpower. After the rise of Pagoda Cannons, the value of fire elementalists skyrocketed, and everyone felt that the Spear of Heavy Cloud was too lucky for taking the best fire elementalists all for themselves,

    Who would have thought that the Spear of Heavy Cloud designed their battle formations based on the exceptional willpower of their fire elementalists?

    Xiao Shan no longer looked down on the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Not only did he admire the perseverance of the fire elementalists, he also admired the ingenuity of the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Suddenly, his mind trembled.

    While he was distracted by his thoughts, the quicksand that carried the entire Lesser Arrow Formation was just about to collide with the expanding crystallized canopy.

    The statue-like Jiang Wei began to move as he pulled the bowstring with his right hand.

    His huge bow suddenly erupted with a brilliance. The space between the bow and its bowstring was covered with a silvery light, resembling a glowing silver fan.

    The silvery light then converged toward the horizontal line formed by Jiang Wei¡¯s fingers on the bowstring. The glowing silver fan that had previously been open was now closed.

    Following which, a thick glowing silver arrow that was the size of a javelin appeared on the bowstring.

    Clink!

    The bowstring twanged as a silvery light streaked through the air!

    Jiang Wei¡¯s face remained emotionless as he pulled and released the bowstring with lightning speed. An arrow was released again!

    Boom!

    The arrow gleam sted a huge hole in the ice-like, crystallized elemental energy. However, the edge of the hole began to regenerate almost immediately. The second arrow gleam struck the crystallized elemental energy again, deepening the hole by a few meters.

    Clink, clink, clink!

    Boom, boom, boom!

    In the midst of the brilliant silvery light, Jiang Wei moved extremely fast. The onlookers couldn¡¯t clearly see the action of him pulling the bowstring. Only once in awhile could they catch a glimpse of him doing so.

    The glowing silver arrows that appeared on the bowstring remained the same. However, the onlookers quickly realized that the hand which Jiang Wei used to pull the bowstring was dripping with blood.

    Razor-sharp metal energy gathered on the bowstring, making it as sharp as a knife!

    Even so, Jiang Wei¡¯s facial expression remained emotionless. It was as if he couldn¡¯t feel anything at all. The bowstring was pulled and released mechanically.

    Amid the dazzling streaks of silvery light, the explosions, and the fluttering fragmentary light, they advanced with aggression!

    Xiao Shan finally understood why the fire elementalists were fighting with all their might and why they could endure such a painful battle tactic. It was because Jiang Wei took the lead.

    However, how manybat divisions could actually implement this simple principle?

    It had been ages since the Surveince Division hadst set foot upon the battlefield...

    All of a sudden, Xiao Shan felt a sense of embarrassment. These weak and low level individuals were fighting with all their might. To secure a victory, they were willing to use a battle tactic that filled them with agony.

    Valiant warriors like them... should be in the Surveince Division!

    Division Leader, you should look at these people!

    Live not an ignoble life, die an honorable death...

    Xiao Shan suddenly became very excited.

    Jiang Wei and his counterparts, who were advancing frantically, did not know what was going on outside at all. All of their facial expressions were distorted as they advanced with all their might. The moment Jiang Wei¡¯s shooting speed slowed down, the hole would regenerate. Jiang Wei did not care about anything else and shot the arrows intensely.

    There were no more distracting thoughts in his mind.

    He only had one thought now.

    Attack! Attack!

    Separated by the pure and gorgeous crystallized elemental energy, the figure of the middle-aged man appeared distorted. However, Jiang Wei¡¯s bloodshot eyes did not blink at all.

    He was getting closer!

    10 meters, 7 meters, 2 meters...

    Jiang Wei was bing more and more excited. He did not know whether or not he could obtain victory. All he knew was that if his attacks got closer to Xiao Shan, his chance of winning would be higher!

    Boom!

    Breaking out of the elemental canopy, Jiang Wei felt his body be lighter and his vision be clearer. The figure of his target was exceptionally distinct now.

    He was within reach!

    Without any hesitation, Jiang Wei pulled the bowstring with all the strength he had left and ced all his attention on his bow.

    Locked on!

    Snap.

    Suddenly, his hand became empty. The bowstring had snapped.

    He was stunned. Like the sharp de of a sword, the bowstring hit his body and created twocerations, but he couldn¡¯t feel anything.

    Wang Rui, who hid far behind Xiao Shan, suddenly yelled, "Kill him!"

    The air seemed to have frozen at this moment.

    Wang Rui kept on yelling, "Kill him! Quickly kill him..."

    Snap.

    Xiao Shan snapped his fingers without turning back. Wang Rui¡¯s voice abruptly came to a halt. He had been imprisoned by Xiao Shan¡¯s elemental energy.

    Xiao Shan looked at the unconscious He Min, the dazed Jiang Wei whose palm was badly mangled, the exhausted earth elementalist who was scowling at him, and the three fire elementalists whose bodies were still aze with mes.

    "You¡¯re more suitable for this kid, so nurture him properly," Xiao Shan said indifferently.

    Jiang Wei raised his head abruptly. He couldn¡¯t believe what he had just heard.

    Xiao Shan turned around and flew up into the air. A lingering voice spiralled through the air.

    "We will meet again on the battlefield in the future."

 Chapter 572: The Utter Defeats At The Front Line

    Chapter 572: The Utter Defeats At The Front Line

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    When Ke Ning retreated along with the Blue g Division, he discovered that the area around the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s encampment was packed with people.

    The Blue g Division had suffered heavy losses. Less than one-third of its troops had made it back alive. One could say that they hadpletely lost their ability to fight on the battlefield. However, Ke Ning did not want to go back with his tail between his legs. He brought the remnants of hisbat division and encamped at a location that was far away from the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp.

    Now that the Blue g Division finally had a chance to take a breather, everyone in thebat division heaved a sigh of relief.

    However, they had suffered heavy casualties, so the soldiers were low in morale and dejected. Before they headed toward the battlefield, they were grandiose and smug. They felt that they had obtained the key to victory after modifying the pagoda cannons.

    However, during their first battle with the blood elementalists, they watched theirrades being mowed down like fragile grass. It was then that they realized how wide the strength disparity between them and the blood elementalists was.

    Anguished wails and groans filled every corner of their camp. The survivors were crestfallen and dejected. Ke Ning felt stressed and walked out of the camp alone.

    Li Houtang noticed Ke Ning¡¯s irregr behavior, stopped working, and walked out of the camp as well.

    Ke Ning sat beside a brook not far away from the camp.

    When Li Houtang walked closer to the brook, he heard Ke Ning stifling his crying. Li Houtang sighed and sat beside Ke Ning. Then, he consoled him, "It¡¯s not your fault. You don¡¯t need to me yourself."

    Ke Ning was like a nephew to him, and he had watched him grow up. Ke Ning had been a very arrogant individual from a very young age. This defeat had dealt a huge blow to him. Li Houtang was very worried that Ke Ning wouldn¡¯t recover from this setback.

    Li Houtang continued to console him, "There are not manybat divisions that can contend with the blood elementalists. Therefore, there¡¯s nothing embarrassing about losing to them. This ce isn¡¯t safe, so it¡¯s better if we retreat as soon as possible. Given the advancing speed of the blood elementalists, they will reach here very soon."

    Ke Ning stopped crying and wiped the tears off of his face. Then, he raised his head and said, "I¡¯m not leaving."

    Li Houtang sighed. "Do you think now is the time to throw a tantrum? This time around, all of the God Nation¡¯sbat divisions have been activated. Who can stop them? Even the Spear of Heavy Cloud, which has God-subduing Peaks, might barely hold them back."

    "If the Spear of Heavy Cloud can¡¯t hold them back, where can we go even if we retreat?" Ke Ning asked.

    Li Houtang was speechless.

    What Ke Ning said was true. The Spear of Heavy Cloud was thest line of defense. If they couldn¡¯t hold back the flood of blood elementalists, then no one could.

    "We have to stay...," Ke Ning said as his tone became more solemn, "... and join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. In reality, our pagoda cannons do cause damage to the enemy forces and are really useful, but our level is too low. By joining the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, we can learn how to really use the pagoda cannons and will definitely increase our offensive power."

    "But I heard Shi Xueman is domineering and arrogant. What if she wants us to hand over themand of ourbat division to her if we join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance?" Li Houtang said in a worried tone.

    "Then we will hand it over!" Ke Ning¡¯s tone was determined. Following which, he muttered, "What¡¯s the point of holding onto the remnants of thisbat division?"

    Li Houtang did not try to persuade Ke Ning anymore. He was right. Theirbat division had been broken, while the morale of their troops had reached rock bottom. The devastating defeat had caused many of them to lose the courage to fight the blood elementalists ever again.

    "So many of our brothers have died. There¡¯s no way I can go back and hide from this fact," Ke Ning said as he stared at the brook.

    "There are so manybat divisions that want to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. I¡¯m afraid it won¡¯t be easy for us to do so." Li Houtang was slightly worried.

    "Very soon, there won¡¯t be that manybat divisions," Ke Ning muttered.

    "What do you mean by there won¡¯t that manybat divisions very soon?" Li Houtang could not help but ask.

    "What does Uncle Li think of our Blue g Division?" Ke Ning asked.

    "It can¡¯t bepared to the Spear of Heavy Cloud, but it¡¯s definitely much more powerful than the ordinarybat divisions," Li Houtang replied with pride.

    Ke Ning nodded his head. Apparently, he agreed with what Li Houtang said. However, his tone then changed as he continued, "If we suffered such a devastating defeat, what makes you think that the others won¡¯t suffer the same fate as us?"

    Li Houtang was stunned.

    Ke Ning continued, "Uncle Li, you shall see. Soon, there will be a lot of bad news, and more than half of thebat divisions here will run away."

    Li Houtang was astounded. He could not help but examine Ke Ning closely.

    Ke Ning¡¯s previously young and tender face seemed to have aged and matured significantly overnight. The arrogance that he used to possess hadpletely disappeared and was reced by maturity.

    Li Houtang felt very d.

    Ke Ning¡¯s words came true.

    The Green Heavy Division was defeated, the Golden Feather Division was defeated, the Por Division was defeated...

    More and morebat divisions were utterly defeated. The record for news of these defeats was five differentbat division being defeated in one day.

    Currently, the true strength of the enemy forces was gradually surfacing. The enemy troops were split into three separate forces and advanced at the same time.

    The God Tiger Division, which led the Radiance Blood Division and the Bluster Blood Division, and God Tiger Division, which led the Birth Blood Division and the Death Blood Division, served as the left and right wing forces. The God Wolf Division, which led the Silverfrost Division, served as the central force.

    Beyond Avalon¡¯sbat divisions that stationed to oppose these three forces were obliterated.

    The pagoda cannon technology, which everyone ced their hopes on, did not bring about victories.

    The atmosphere suddenly became tense and grave. The retreat of the defeatedbat divisions from the front line dealt an extremely huge blow to the morale of Beyond Avalon. ording to the survivors, the God Nation¡¯sbat divisions were invincible like God himself.

    The members of variousbat divisions felt panic. Various versions of rumors were spreading everywhere.

    Somebat divisions had already sensed that something was wrong and began to retreat. This created a chain reaction and caused an upsurge in the number of retreatingbat divisions. Every day, there werebat divisions that decamped and retreated.

    The surrounding area of the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp, which was previously packed, was now spacious and empty.

    The atmosphere in the Spear of Heavy Cloud became tense as well.

    Jiang Wei, who had just returned to the camp, did not even have the chance to allow his injuries to recover. He had already begun to prepare for battle. The newly recruited members had been sent to training as well. Originally, these newly recruited members were intended for future deployment, but due to the sudden critical situation, they had to be immediately trained and prepared.

    Inside the camp, the one with the most stress was Fatty.

    Initially, Fatty was filled with enthusiasm. This was especially the case after he learned that Ai Hui would arrive soon. He acted as if he was on steroids. Being able to show off to Ai Hui was a dream that he had had since the days he worked in the Wilderness as aborer.

    However, as the situation worsened, his intention of showing off to Ai Hui had been thrown to the back of his mind.

    Pagoda cannons were the key weapons they used against blood elementalistbat divisions. This weapon was also the cornerstone for their battle formations and tactics. If something went wrong with the pagoda cannons, they would have to redesign their battle formations and tactics.

    Fatty, who had never taken on such a huge responsibility before, felt as if he was carrying a mountain on his shoulders now.

    Unfortunately, the process of building the pagoda cannons had currently gone astray.

    There was an area in the camp that was specifically converted into a smithy and buzzed with activity. A huge number of cksmiths that had been conscripted with snowva as payment were trying to forge real Beehive Heavy Cannons at the moment.

    The heavy cannon that Fatty had previously used for demonstration was a scaled-down prototype. He envisioned the true Beehive Heavy Cannon to be 18 meters in length and three meters in diameter.

    Everyone was unfamiliar with forging pagoda cannons, let alone building the high level Beehive Heavy Cannons. Up until now, they had yet to seed. Fatty was so anxious that his mouth developed ulcers and his eyes became bloodshot.

    "Master Fatty, what kind of pagoda can hold such a heavy cannon?"

    "Master Fatty, how about we make it smaller? It¡¯s okay if the power is lower!"

    The cksmiths kept on trying to persuade Fatty. The consecutive failures had dealt a huge blow to everyone¡¯s morale.

    "All of you, shut up!" Fatty¡¯s eyes were inmed.

    Whenever Fatty flew into a rage, a cold shiver would go down everyone¡¯s spine. All of them lowered their heads in fear.

    Currently, Fatty missed Blind He terribly. Even though Blind He always looked cold and unfriendly, his skills were superb.

    Zu Yan walked over and squatted down to examine the scrapped heavy cannon. Swiftly, he discovered that the problemid in the beehive-shaped inner chamber. There were many small tears in the inner chamber.

    This was the main reason why the cksmiths could not forge an actual Beehive Heavy Cannon.

    Zu Yan also racked his brain. His injury had yet to recoverpletely, and he knew the current situation was critical. There wasn¡¯t much time left for them. If they could not produce enough Beehive Heavy Cannons, their strength would be greatly reduced.

    However, Zu Yan wasn¡¯t a weaponsmith, and he knew nothing about forging weapons. He was not able to gain any further insights even after he stared at the cannon for a long time.

    After he left the smithy, he still could hear Fatty¡¯s thunderous roars. This was the first time Zu Yan had seen Fatty care so much about something. In his eyes, Fatty was someone who never set his heart on doing anything.

    His tyrannical behavior made him look like an entirely different person now.

    Fatty had saved Zu Yan¡¯s life before. As such, he was also racking his brain to think of a solution for Fatty.

    He remembered that Fatty had said there wouldn¡¯t be any problems with forging the Beehive Heavy Cannons as long as they had an outstanding cksmith. Unfortunately, their cksmiths were conscripted and weren¡¯t really high-level. Furthermore, the level of a cksmith couldn¡¯t be increased in a short period of time.

    Should he go and find a formidable cksmith?

    But where could he find one? Their camp wasn¡¯t near any cities or viges, so how could there be cksmiths avable?

    Suddenly, Zu Yan¡¯s eyes lit up. He knew where he could find cksmiths, but he soon felt apprehensive. After all, the pagoda cannon forging process was confidential. After thinking it over a second time, he changed his mind. If they were to lose this battle, they would have nothing left. Thus, there was no point for them to keep anything confidential.

    .....

    The current situation was exactly what Ke Ning expected. He had not remained idle. These past few days, he had been encouraging his troops and had given pensions to those soldiers who had lost the will to fight, letting them return home.

    After carrying out this reorganization, he was left with over 100 men in hisbat division. His camp was rather empty, but the morale of his men hadpletely changed. Those soldiers who stayed were hungry for vengeance.

    There was no news from the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. Ke Ning remained patient and did not seek out Shi Xueman. He was waiting for a chance.

    Ke Ning had been observing the Spear of Heavy Cloud from the side. When he saw an elementalist from the Spear of Heavy Cloud walking in his direction, he became energized.

    ËûÖ÷¶¯Ó­ÁËÉÏÈ¥:"¿ÉÊÇËþÅÚÁªÃËÒª¿ªÊ¼ÕÐÄ¼ÁË?"

    Taking the initiative, he asked this elementalist, "Has the Pagoda Cannon Alliance begun the recruiting process?"

    The other party was stunned. Then, he shook his head and answered, "No."

    Ke Ning felt slightly disappointed, but he maintained his patience. Upon seeing that the other party had an anxious look on his face, Ke Ning asked, "Can I be of any help to you?"

    "Do you have any cksmiths? We need outstanding cksmiths," the other party replied.

    Ke Ning was surprised. The other party was actually looking for cksmiths. He couldn¡¯t help but ask, "May I know what the problem is?"

    The other party did not want to answer his question.

    Ke Ning¡¯s mind jolted. They needed cksmiths at this moment, but did not want to answer his question, could it be...

    He forced himself to stay calm and said, "Give me a moment."

    He turned around and yelled for Li Houtang.

    The person examined Li Houtang and said politely, "We need outstanding cksmiths. May I know your honourable name?"

    "My name is Li Houtang. I¡¯m a master weaponsmith," Li Houtang replied with pride.

    He was extremely proud of his qualifications.

    The shock that the person initially felt rapidly turned into ecstasy.

 Chapter 573: Fish Bone

    Chapter 573: Fish Bone

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The situation was worsening much faster than Shi Xueman and the rest expected.

    Shi Xueman, Silver Soldier, and Karakorum Pris convened an emergency meeting. Important generals from the threebat divisions gathered and discussed how they were nning to deal with the current situation. Everyone had grave looks on their faces.

    "I have just received news that the Por Division and the Green Heaven Division suffered heavy losses and that the Northfield Division waspletely destroyed. Up until now, there have been more than 20bat divisions that are out of action and more than sixbat divisions that have been annihted. ording to the survivors, the enemy forces seemed to purposely allow our allies to withdraw when they could have annihted them," Silver Soldier said solemnly.

    "Purposely allowed them to withdraw?" Sang Zhijun was shocked.

    "They are trying to use the defeated soldiers to overwhelm and swamp our defensive line." Shi Xueman looked worried after thinking about it.

    Silver Soldier let off a bitterugh behind his mask and said, "That¡¯s correct. Right now, thebat divisions at the front line are scared out of their wits and are retreating with all their might. Looking from their positions, the three enemy forces are like a huge cloth bag with our location as the only opening. Every day, numerousbat divisions are retreating through our location."

    "The number ofbat divisions around our camp has already reduced greatly. Those opportunists have already run away," Jiang Wei said.

    "It¡¯s good that they ran away. They were just a ticking time bomb." Silver Soldier nodded his head.

    The rest nodded their heads as well. Silver Soldier was right. Thosebat divisions were nothing but trouble. Not only were they weak, they were insubordinate as well. Just two days ago, Shi Xueman had to personally teach a lesson to a few troublesomebat divisions before they retreated obediently. By not impeding Shi Xueman and her counterparts, thesebat divisions were already helping them.

    There was a huge number of suchbat divisions. There were different types of people from various cities, and they were unruly. Shi Xueman and her counterparts couldn¡¯t kill them. It was better that they retreated now.

    Even though everyone knew the strategy of the blood elementalists, they could note up with a solution for the time being.

    "Can we open up a passage for thesebat divisions to retreat through?" Karakorum Pris asked.

    Everyone shook their heads. To establish a defensive line, they purposely chose narrow terrain that was easy to guard and hard to attack. On the two nks of this locations, there was a canyon of unfathomable depth. Violent metal winds blew within this canyons all year round. This location was the famous Windy Pearl Bridges. The canyon was very long, and the surging metal winds formed a barrier that was very difficult to pass. Above the canyon, there were more than 10 naturally-formed stone arches that were not affected by the metal winds.

    This location was called Windy Pearl Bridges because the natural stone bridges were covered with long and narrow cracks, resembling pearl nes.

    The width of each stone bridge was different. The narrowest was only a few hundred meters wide while the widest one was a few kilometers wide.

    To reduce the area they had to defend, Silver Soldier purposely used a God-subduing Peak to destroy the other windy bridges and left only the most suitable bridge for them to defend.

    Their defensive n was built around this Windy Pearl Bridge.

    The canyon was approximately 500 kilometers long. If the enemy didn¡¯t attack through the remaining bridge, they would have to make one veryrge detour through arduous terrain in order to advance. If it was a typical situation, Shi Xueman and the rest would be worried that the blood elementalists would take the the detour and attack them from their rear. However, the blood elementalists were eager to seek revenge. Therefore, Shi Xueman and the rest felt that the blood elementalists would try to attack through the Windy Pearl Bridge by force.

    Thus, they felt this ce was most suitable for defending.

    As they had expected, the enemy forces chose to forcefully attack and advance toward the Windy Pearl Bridge. However, they had not expected the blood elementalists to use the weaker elementalist divisions as a tactic to attack them.

    "It¡¯s highly likely that the enemy forces will stick close to the retreating forces and use them as cover to get close to us. This way, our offense will be restricted," Shi Xueman muttered.

    "We can only strengthen our defensive line for the time being." Silver Soldier could not think of a better solution. When he saw the discouraged looks on everyone¡¯s faces and felt that the atmosphere had be tense, he changed the topic and asked, "Ai Hui should be arriving soon, right?"

    Even though Shi Xueman tried her best to restrain her emotions, she still disyed the excitement of a young girl while replying to Silver Soldier, "Yes, he should be arriving soon."

    "Ai Hui will definitely have a solution!" Sang Zhijun said.

    When Silver Soldier swept his gaze across everyone, he surprisingly discovered that all of their faces had rxed.

    It was as if they had a type of... absolute confidence in Ai Hui.

    He suddenly looked forward to Ai Hui¡¯s arrival.

    .....

    "Just a while longer before we reach the front line."

    Qiao Meiqi was very excited. He had ced all his material goods and family members on the Fish Bone. After discarding all his worries, he looked as if he had been reborn and appeared much younger.

    "Fish Bone" was the name given by Ai Hui to the floatingndmassprised of ckfish Mouth Volcano and the Central Pine Valley. The shape of ckfish Mouth Volcano looked like a leaping ck fish with the top-half of its body out of the water. In order to make it fly, Ai Hui had to shave off the outeryer of the volcano, making it skinnier than before. Therefore, Ai Hui renamed it Fish Bone.

    As usual, everyone disdained this name. Let¡¯s look at the name "God-subduing Peak." So domineering! The size of ckfish Mouth Volcano was much bigger and mightier than any God-subduing Peak, yet its name was so ordinary. Ai Hui should have given it a better name!

    However, Ai Hui had not done so.

    After they set off, they had not stopped to take a single break. They did not try to cover their tracks either. They swaggered in the direction of the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp.

    The journey was so smooth that it seemed as if they weren¡¯t in times of chaos.

    "Howe no one asks about us?"

    "That¡¯s true, our big ck fish is so impressive! How can there be no reactions toward it? No one even bothers to record an image of it."

    "It¡¯s too weird."

    When Huo Da heard the members¡¯ mutters, he was slightly amused by them. The members of the Sword of Lightning were basically youngsters who were filled with passion and ambition. Even Huo Da felt very happy being around them.

    Quickly, Huo Da regained his concentration and humbly asked for guidance from Shi Zhiguang, who was training by himself on one side. "Zhiguang, I still don¡¯t quite understand this embroidery technique."

    Shi Zhiguang stopped what he was doing and replied, "Ahh, reversal embroidery technique. This is quite difficult. The key is to create a reversal and move side by side along with it..."

    He provided a voluminous answer and did not hide anything from Huo Da. Meanwhile, Huo Da listened to Shi Zhiguang attentively and nodded his head every now and then.

    Initially, when Huo Da came to ask Shi Zhiguang for guidance, thetter was slightly nervous. After all, Huo Da was a Master. When a Master came and asked him for guidance, he felt insecure. However, as they became more familiar with each other, Shi Zhiguang gradually loosened up. Subsequently, Shi Zhiguang fell in love with providing exnations to Huo Da. This was because he realized that when he was exining to Huo Da, some of his thought processes became clearer.

    It was unknown whether or not the skills of operating the Pinwheel Sword were rted to embroidery. Shi Zhiguang was very talented in embroidery and progressed at lightning speed.

    Sometimes, even Ai Hui was surprised. In the future, if Shi Zhiguang no longer wanted to be a sword operator, he could open an embroidery workshop with his embroidery skills.

    In the past, everyone teased Shi Zhiguang about embroidery and called him Embroidery Lady Shi. However, when they saw that Huo Da was also addicted to embroidery, they did not dare to mock Shi Zhiguang anymore. Huo Da was a Master and highly revered. Hence, Shi Zhiguang¡¯s image improved significantly in everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Shi Zhiguang did not feel pleased with himself because of this.

    Master Huo might seek guidance from him, but it was because of this that he understood the might of a Master. Even though Huo Da had just started learning both embroidery and how to operate the Pinwheel Sword, he did not look like a newbie at all. Shi Zhiguang merely mentioned someplicated moves and Huo Da was able to execute them on the spot.

    During the previous battle, they had killed a few Masters. All of them felt unconcerned about Masters.

    What was so great about a Master? Those Masters were still killed by a single sword move!

    Initially, Shi Zhiguang thought like the others. However, after getting to know Huo Da, he felt just how ridiculous the rest of the division members were. They might not have heard of Huo Da¡¯s name, but he was still a Master after all. A Master would always be a terrifying entity.

    A Master¡¯s understanding and control of elemental energy was on apletely different level from theirs.

    Huo Da had a different perspective from them. In this ce, he had experienced many brand-new things. The thing that shocked him the most was the Sword of Lightning¡¯s battle tactics, whichpletely defied the traditional elemental energy channelling technique.

    He wished he to be able to soon operate the Pinwheel Sword. It was a pity that there was only one Pinwheel Sword. They would arrive at the battlefield shortly, and Shi Zhiguang had been training with everyone else. Huo Da had not found a sparring partner yet.

    Meanwhile, Ai Hui sat on a boulder and looked at the glowing Duanmu Huanghun in the bamboo forest nearby.

    Duanmu Huanghun had yet to wake up, and Ai Hui was feeling slightly worried for him. However, after taking a closer look and realizing that Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s breathing and elemental energy undtions were very stable, he felt significantly relieved.

    Lou Lan ran over and yelled cheerfully, "Ai Hui, we are entering the front line zone and are going to see Xueman soon!"

    "Wow, that was fast," Ai Hui said as he stood up. "Lou Lan, let¡¯s go up to the mountain."

    Ai Hui and Lou Lan went up to the mountain peak and gazed into the distance.

    Evening soon descended. The color of the setting sun resembled blood, causing the vast earth to be bathed in a bright red luster. The trees looked as if they had been dyed with the color of blood. The wind became stronger and colder, seemingly bringing forth the sound of war from the distant horizon.

    The vast earth was filled with destion. White bones could be seen scattered throughout the grass and thickets.

    The joy of seeing Iron Lady instantly and unknowingly disappeared.

    When he returned to his senses, he realized that all the division members had gathered behind him.

    He turned around, looked at his soldiers, and yelled, "Assemble!"

    Swoosh.

    Everyone looked as if they had woken up from a dream and quickly stood neat and orderly in front of Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui nced at Huo Da, who stood to one side. Like the other members of the Sword of Lightning, he stood upright and at attention.Ai Hui was surprised. He had not expected the position of sword operator to be such a strong enticement for Huo Da.

    Ai Hui withdrew his emotions and said, "From today onward, we will be entering the front line zone. I dere that the Sword of Lightning is entering standby mode now."

    The glow of the sunset shone on the youthful faces of the division members. Their young and tender faces exuded hope and ambition,pletely devoid of fear. The Sword of Lightning¡¯s members had been waiting for this day toe. They were like a bunch of hungry tigers that were finally allowed to enter the battlefield.

    Unfortunately, Ai Hui knew that the Sword of Lightning was more likely to be prey than predator when it set foot upon the battlefield.

    This was war.

    Ai Hui felt disheartened instead of hopeful or ambitious. If it weren¡¯t for the circumstances, he definitely would not have wanted to go to the front line. At least not so soon. Now that he brought his men to the front line, how many of them would actually survive? He did not know the answer to this question. He did not even know whether or not he, himself, would survive.

    Simultaneously, he also did not feel any fear.

    When he thought of the fact that he would shortly be battling the blood elementalists, he felt an eagerness as well. He had never forgotten the blood that Central Pine City had bled. He had never forgotten the vengeance he needed to seek for his master and mistress.

    The depression and the eagerness were twopletely different emotions. They intertwined in his heart, causing him to fall silent.

    The members looked at Ai Hui, seldom looking at him like this.

    After thinking about it, Ai Hui said, "We are going to reach the battlefield soon. The enemy forces are very strong, much stronger than us. Everyone will face death at any time. I can¡¯t promise that I will lead all of you out of the battlefield alive, but I can promise that I will definitely not forsake you and run away by myself."

    The members quieted down. The hope and ambition disyed on their faces had disappeared and were reced by solemnity.

    Ai Hui took in a deep breath of air and said with a serious tone, "Listen to mymands! Everyone, board the Pinwheel Sword now! Sword of Lightning, prepare to set off for a patrol mission!"

    "Yes!" everyone replied in unison.

    The neat and orderly members of the Sword of Lightning scattered in an instant as they boarded the Pinwheel Sword from all directions.

    The five-colored pinwheel at the back of the Pinwheel Sword began to spin.

 Chapter 574: The Yellow Sand Division

    Chapter 574: The Yellow Sand Division

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Along the way, the Fish Bone did not cause too much of amotion. People thought that it was a God-subduing Peak. In the past, the appearance of a God-subduing Peak would evoke rmed cries from onlookers. Nowadays, however, everyone was used to seeing this.

    In the past, the God-subduing Peak was seen as the mightiest war machine. From its name, one could tell how much hope the Elders Guild had ced in it.

    At the beginning, the God-subduing Peaks were indeed quite useful. The enormous role that they yed was what allowed the Wall of North Sea to withstand the blood elementalists for such a long time. Currently, however, those who had some rationality clearly understood that one or two God-subduing Peaks would not overturn the present situation.

    Ai Hui sent the Pinwheel Sword out on patrol to allow everyone to have a feel for wartime tension. The Sword of Lightning consisted of a bunch of brand-new rookies and paled inparison to the current Spear of Heavy Cloud. The core members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud had had a lot of realbat experience.

    The only battle that the Sword of Lightning had experienced was merely dealing with sneak attacks from a distant mountain peak.

    Ai Hui was very worried about cing a bunch of rookies on the cruel battlefield. As such, he decided to give them a warm-up first and let them experience the atmosphere of the battlefield. Ai Hui did not know whether or not this method would work, but he had no other ideas currently.

    Luckily, the Pinwheel Sword flew very fast, so it was very easy for it to escape.

    The patrol mission continued as usual. However, this time around, Gu Xuan brought back an unconscious captive.

    "Boss, we discovered that manybat divisions are retreating from the front line. Something huge seems to have happened. This fellow was bad-mouthing Big Sister, so we captured him," Gu Xuan reported to Ai Hui.

    "Good job! Be brave and don¡¯t restrain yourself. Interrogate him first," Ai Hui praised Gu Xuan.

    He let Gu Xuan be the vice division leader the Sword of Lightning because he knew Gu Xuan was a veteran. Other than having experience, a veteran was bold and cunning. Everyone else was pure and naive like Shi Zhiguang.

    Gu Xuan carried the captive into a room and pped him repeatedly until he woke up. Initially, Gu Xuan just wanted to ask him about the current situation, but it just so happened that this fellow was bad-mouthing Shi Xueman. Without hesitation, Gu Xuan knocked him out and brought him back.

    When the captive woke up, he was at a loss. After seeing that he was surrounded by unfriendly gazes, he returned to his senses and stuttered, "Who... who are all of you? May I know how have I offended you..."

    "Whichbat division are you from?" Gu Xuan interrupted with a scowl on his face.

    "The Yellow Sand Division! My division leader is Sir Hei Yan. You must have heard of him..." the captive replied hurriedly.

    The captive feared that the other party might kill him. Since the other party asked him about his background, his chances of surviving were higher.

    A look of realization dawned upon Gu Xuan¡¯s face. His ice-cold face defrosted as he became extremely amiable. "Oh, so you are the subordinate of Sir Hei Yan of the Yellow Sand Division. I met Sir Hei Yan a few years ago. Even now, I still have a deep impression of him. Sorry for this misunderstanding!"

    The captive could not help but smile. In his heart, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    So they are familiar with Sir Hei Yan... It seemed like it was a misunderstanding after all...

    Even though he was knocked out for no reason, he did not dare to pursue the matter. All he wanted was to safely return to hisbat division.

    The captive beamed and said, "The moment I saw you, I knew you were an extraordinary and friendly individual. So you¡¯re a friend of Sir Hei Yan. I will not hesitate to swim through water and tread on fire just for you!"

    The captive did not know the other party¡¯s intentions. However, since he was in other people¡¯s territory, he did not dare to try anything funny.

    Gu Xuan smiled and replied, "May I know what the current situation is at the front line? I heard that the Spear of Heavy Cloud is very domineering. Can Brother tell me more about this?"

    Previously, the captive found this person in front of him to be slightly familiar. He seemed to have seen him somewhere before, but couldn¡¯t recall where. When the captive learned that Gu Xuan was a friend of his division leader, he began to trust him more.

    Upon hearing Gu Xuan¡¯s words, the captive became agitated and said, "That¡¯s right! She¡¯s arrogant, really arrogant! Pagoda Cannon Alliance my foot! I think she just wants a group of obedient dogs! I couldn¡¯t take it anymore and denounced her in front of everyone. Can you guess what happened next? She attacked me! Everyone left on the spot. If we were to enter the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, wouldn¡¯t we be ordered around by her every day? Sir, you better not get tricked by her. All of us have seen through the Pagoda Cannon Alliance¡¯s true colors."

    The smile on Gu Xuan¡¯s face became wider. He nodded his head and asked again, "I have seen manybat divisions retreating. What¡¯s going on at the front line?"

    "What¡¯s going? We have suffered countless defeats! The blood elementalistbat divisions are too powerful for any of us. They boasted so much about the Pagoda Cannons, but they are bloody useless in reality. Fivebat divisions were defeated in one day! How are we going to continue fighting? Aren¡¯t we seeking death if we fight? Since the Spear of Heavy Cloud has God-subduing Peaks, who can do a better job defending the front line than them? From the look of it, I don¡¯t think they can defend for long..."

    The captive was talking nonstop with excitement. He did not know the elementalists behind him had murderous looks on their faces.

    Gu Xuan nodded his head and replied, "Brother, your words hit the nail on the head!"

    Then, he patted the captive¡¯s shoulder and continued, "Brother, please wait here for a while more."

    The captive looked on nkly as Gu Xuan walked out of the room. When he saw everyone else looking at him fiendishly, he became slightly nervous and did not dare to move at all. Following which, he bowed in a servile manner to everyone, but none of them bothered with him.

    Gu Xuan returned to Ai Hui and told him everything that the captive said.

    Ai Hui touched his bandage-covered chin and muttered, "It seems like the situation is running amok."

    Gu Xuan did not dare to say anything for the fear of disrupting Ai Hui¡¯s thought process. Even though he had travelled extensively and had a lot of worldly experience, he knew nothing about fighting a war.

    After thinking for a short moment, Ai Hui suddenly asked, "He said a lot ofbat divisions are retreating?"

    "Yes, there are a lot," Gu Xuan replied hastily.

    A cold glint shed across the red crystal chips that covered his eyes. He smiled and said, "Let¡¯s pay a visit to the Yellow Sand Division."

    .....

    At the Yellow Sand Division.

    Hei Yan was listening to a report from his subordinate. When he was told that a unit leader had gone missing, he did not care all. That unit leader might have run away or encountered a dire beast. Even if he encountered bandits, that was normal as well. Even though Hei Yan particrly admired this unit leader, who was very keen-eyed and often took the initiative to share his worries, he had no time to care about him at this critical moment.

    Due to the "righteous speech" he gave at the camp of the Spear of Heavy Cloud Division, he now had a slight reputation.

    The division leaders of a few smallbat divisions had already paid him a visit.

    Hei Yan was actively promoting his n. "The Spear of Heavy Cloud definitely can¡¯t hold back the blood elementalists. Thebat divisions of the Blood of God are too powerful. They are attempting the impossible. Previously, the blood elementalists were not familiar with them and that was why they managed to secure a victory. This time around, the Blood of God has fielded all of their forces, and they areing forth with invincible might. There is only one Spear of Heavy Cloud, so how would it be possible for them to overturn the situation?"

    A worried look appeared on other division leaders¡¯ faces. Hei Yan¡¯s words had hit the nail on the head.

    "That¡¯s why we need to make preparations sooner rather thanter!" Hei Yan said profoundly.

    "Brother Hei Yan is shrewd and insightful. Speak your mind," one of the division leaders said.

    Upon seeing that it was the right moment, Hei Yan replied with a glib tongue, "Since Beyond Avalon is bound to be defeated, why must we hang ourselves on a single tree and wait for our deaths? A shift of environment makes a tree dead, but a person prosperous..."

    A division leader¡¯s face flushed with anger as he roared, "Brother Hei Yan, don¡¯t tell me you want to surrender to the enemy forces? I rather die than to be a blood elementalist!"

    Hei Yan was shocked. He replied angrily, "Sir, what kind of person do you think I am! I would be the first one to object to surrendering to the blood elementalists!"

    Upon hearing these words, the facial expressions of the others rxed.

    "We definitely can¡¯t surrender to the blood elementalists. Elementalists and blood elementalists can¡¯t exist together!" Hei Yan dered with righteousness. Then, he changed his tone and continued, "However, has everyone thought about the other side?"

    All of them looked at each other. The person who previously chided Hei Yan hesitantly asked, "Is Brother Hei Yan talking about the Jadeite Forest?"

    Hei Yan pped his hands and eximed, "That¡¯s right! Everyone, Grandmaster Dai was still born in the Avalon of Five Elements at the end of the day. He parted ways with the Elders Guild merely because of ideological differences. From the look of it, Grandmaster Dai was indeed wise. He knew the Elders Guild was decadent and ipetent. He did not want to follow them and established independence for the Jadeite Forest. Grandmaster Dai is the only Grandmaster left among the elementalists. He is thest hope for our war against the blood elementalists! The Ye Family is ipetent. Right now, Beyond Avalon is on the verge of copse, but does that mean we have to die with it? Why can¡¯t we seek another way out?"

    Everyone hated the idea of surrendering to the blood elementalists. Many of them had deep grudges against blood elementalists. However, none of them rejected the idea of surrendering to Grandmaster Dai, unlike before.

    Then, someone said hesitantly, "Of course, everyone knows about Grandmaster Dai¡¯s greatness. However, he is someone beyond our reach. If we want to surrender to the Jadeite Forest, we must find the right connection."

    Hei Yan did not say anything, but merely smiled confidently.

    "Brother Hei Yan has the right connection?" Everyone¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Hei Yan remained silent and kept on smiling.

    Immediately, everyone became excited.

    Hei Yan saw everyone¡¯s reaction and felt pleased with himself. He shook his head and said, "I can¡¯t answer your question. I can¡¯t answer your question."

    Everyone broke into amotion.

    "Brother Hei Yan, don¡¯t be so selfish!"

    "Don¡¯t tell me Brother Yan wants to see us die?"

    Everyone talked at the same time.

    When Hei Yan saw that it was the right opportunity, he began to talk, "It¡¯s not that I don¡¯t want to help all of you. I have to respect all of your opinions as well. Even though I have the right connection, and there won¡¯t be any problem with me going over, I am not willing to stay there as a mere decorative item. After all, two heads are better than one What can I achieve by going there alone? As a matter of fact, I called everyone over to devise an idea together. There is sess and safety in numbers. With more people going over together, we have arger say as well."

    Some people nodded their heads while some looked hesitant.

    Upon seeing this, Hei Yan continued, "Everyone has to seize the moment and identify where the wind is blowing. We are not the only ones who want to join the Jadeite Forest. If someone else does it first, our value will drop significantly. If you feel that the Spear of Heavy Cloud can stop the blood elementalists, then I have nothing to say."

    The few hesitant individuals were convinced by Hei Yan as they looked each other in the eye.

    "All right, I will listen to Brother Hei Yan!"

    "Since everyone is here, Brother Hei Yan should tell us what¡¯s the n now."

    "That¡¯s right!"

    When Hei Yan heard everyone¡¯s words, he knew the matter was half aplished. He coughed softly and said, "The Pagoda Cannon Alliance is a joke. However, the concept of an alliance is still rather useful. We can create abat division alliance. Of course, I am too ignorant and uneducated for the position of alliance leader. I don¡¯t deserve it..."

    He was purposely retreating for the sake of advancing. Therefore, he wasn¡¯t worried at all.

    At this moment, a soldier suddenly barged into the tent with a look of panic on his face. "Sir... Sir... God... God-subduing Peak..."

 Chapter 575: Ai Huiâ€™s Belief

    Chapter 575: Ai Hui¡¯s Belief

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    When Hei Yan and his counterparts walked out of the meeting tent, they were stunned momentarily and their facial expressions changed drastically.

    The enormous shadow was cast down from the sky and covered their entire camp. A terrifying mountain was hovering about their heads, exuding a powerful aura of pressure that caused their hairs to stand on end. Some people couldn¡¯t even breath. All of them were worried that it might drop down.

    It was really a ¡¯God-subduing Peak¡¯!

    The radiance released by the God-subduing Peak¡¯s glowing surface was being emitted endlessly, preventing the onlookers from clearly seeing what was inside it.

    Hei Yan and his counterparts looked at each other in disbelief. Everyone was feeling uncertain.

    Some people silently questioned whether or not this was a trap set up by Hei Yan. Not too long ago, they were still talking about seeking refuge with Grandmaster Dai. Minutester, the God-subduing Peak suddenly appeared. It couldn¡¯t be a coincidence!

    An elementalist descended from the God-subduing Peak and said, "Is Division Leader Hei Yan here?"

    Hei Yan¡¯s eyelids twitched violently. He summoned his courage and stepped forward and replied, "I¡¯m Hei Yan. May I know who oversees this God-subduing Peak?"

    "Who do you think you are to ask about Sir¡¯s identity?" The elementalist chided Hei Yan.

    The rest shivered in fear. Who was the overseer of this God-subduing Peak? At this point of time, Surveince Division was the only powerfulbat division. Could it be Sir Nian? Or was it Madam Ye?

    Everyone was puzzled. Hei Yan knew that things weren¡¯t going the right way. Clearly, the other party hade with ill intentions. However, there was nothing much he could do now. He could only ask, "How can I be of help to Sir?"

    "Sir has given an order. All retreatingbat divisions have to leave behind their resources and cksmiths," the elementalist said sternly with a cold look on his face.

    Hey Yan¡¯s face flushed with anger as he replied furiously, "Even Skyheart City has no right to detain our resources and cksmiths! I want to see who it is that dares tomit such a heinous crime! Division Leaders, who is with me?"

    No one said anything. None of them were willing to speak out before they could rify what was going on.

    The elementalist remained emotionless as he said indifferently, "So you are disobeying the order now?"

    Deep down, Hei Yan was crying. He had expected at least one person to support him. He clenched his teeth and replied, "This order is really too much for me to ept. Yellowsand Division is willing to offer a portion of our resources but..."

    "So you¡¯re really disobeying the order," the elementalist said inly. Suddenly, his tone changed as he roared with a stern voice, "Whoever defies Sir¡¯s order will be killed without mercy!"

    When he finished his sentence, a snow-white sword gleam streak shot down from the God-subduing Peak and flew towards Hei Yan.

    "How dare you..." Hei Yan was furious.

    He felt as if he was being locked onto by a terrifying dire beast. All his hairs were standing on end. An extremely strong sense of danger engulfed his entire body.

    In the life-or-death situation, he channeled his elemental energy frantically. A deep glow was emitted from his body. His skin became ck in color and turned as hard as a rock, giving off a gentle, crystallic luster at the same time.

    It was his Path of Master, [Lithification]!

    [Lithification] allowed its user to use elemental energy to change the nature of his flesh into various rock types. In that moment, Hei Yan had changed the nature of his flesh to one of the hardest rock types in the world, ck Crystal Metallic Rock. It was very difficult to create a scratch on the ck Crystal Metallic Rock even with weapons, as it was extremely hard and sturdy. Hei Yan had used this move to escape death countless times before.

    As long as he did not die, he had no fear even if he was injured.

    The sword gleam was as fast as a lightning bolt. Within seconds, it was in front of Hei Yan.

    Pfff.

    Hei Yan¡¯s body turned stiff while his facial expression froze.

    A bowl-sized hole appeared on his chest through to his back. The sword gleam continued on its path and hit the ground. Then, it cleanly pierced through the ground as if it were made of tofu, creating a pit that was of an unfathomable depth.

    A dead silence descended upon everyone.

    All the division leaders were dumbstruck.

    They already knew the other party might use some extreme methods to punish someone as an example to others. However, the scene that had just unfolded still shocked them.

    The decisiveness and ruthlessness of the other party had utterly stunned them. The streak of sword gleam was horrifying.

    As a division leader, Hei Yan definitely wasn¡¯t a weak individual. His [Lithification] was famous for its ultimate defense and ability to ensure survival. Because of his Path of Master, Hei Yan had survived countless bitter battles.

    Thump! Hei Yan, whose eyes were wide open with rage, fell to the ground on his back like a wooden stake.

    He was dead!

    The faces of the division leaders turned deathly pale as their minds buzzed. They were dumbstruck.

    The other party had killed Hei Yan...The other party actually killed Hei Yan!

    The attack was direct and efficient...And they killed him with one strike...

    Was the other party insane?

    Wasn¡¯t the overseer of the God-subduing Peak scared of infuriating all of them into attacking him from all directions? Doesn¡¯t he know that such bandit-like behavior will cause his reputation to hit rock bottom? Doesn¡¯t he...

    There was no point for them to ask any more questions now. The ice-cold corpse of Hei Yan on the ground had answered all of their questions.

    At this moment, two elementalists flew down from the God-subduing Peak while holding a man in their arms. The man¡¯s limbs were trembling and his face was pale-white. When he saw Hei Yan¡¯s corpse on the ground, he shivered in fear.

    He had witnessed the entire process of how his division leader was killed from inside the God-subduing Peak.

    Even now, he still could not believe that they had really killed Division Leader Hei Yan. His mind waspletely nk. A strong sense of fear dominated his mind and body. He did not even know how he had arrived on the ground.

    "Is that clear?"

    The voice seemed toe from a distant ce. He stared at the other party with his mouth agape.

    The moment the Sword of Lightning¡¯s swordsman saw the captive¡¯s facial expression, he knew he had forgotten what he said just now. The swordsman snorted and repeated impatiently, "Hand over all of your resources and cksmiths, is that clear? If you miss anything, you know what the oue will be!"

    He spoke thest sentence with ruthlessness.

    The captive shivered and replied incoherently, "Yes, yes, yes. I understand, I understand, I understand!"

    "What are you waiting for then?"

    The captive scrambled away to carry out his task. He knew hisbat division like the back of his hand. He knew clearly what resources they had and who the cksmiths were. At this point of time, no one from Yellowsand Division dared to step out and say anything.

    After witnessing theirbat division¡¯s most powerful individual, Hei Yan, having been killed by a single strike, who still dared to argue with the other party?

    The elementalist who came down first was Gu Xuan. He turned around and looked at the frightened division leaders. Just now, when he¡¯d heard Hei Yan say "Division Leaders", he became excited. An opportunity! Initially, they nned to capture a fat sheep. He didn¡¯t expect to capture a flock of fat sheep in the end!

    Being an experienced individual who had travelled extensively, Gu Xuan was very good at capitalizing on opportunities. He said, "Whoever hands over the greatest amount of resources and the most number of cksmiths will be allowed to go back first."

    All the division leaders looked at each other. Then, they turned around and gave instructions to their subordinates.

    On the Fish Bone, Qiao Meiqi was dumbstruck. He was a businessman, since when had he ever seen such a tant robbery?

    "Is... Is this alright?" Qiao Meiqi looked worried and hesitant.

    "What¡¯s not alright about it?" Ai Hui replied inly.

    Qiao Meiqi swallowed his saliva with difficulty and replied, "Aren¡¯t you scared of infuriating the masses?"

    Ai Hui chuckled and replied, "Those who have retreated from the front line havepletely lost their fighting spirit and willpower. They are just a mob of cowards. We only asked for their resources and cksmiths, not their lives. They will not resist us."

    "But..."

    "Is Beyond Avalon only our home? No, it is everyone¡¯s home. Since it is everyone¡¯s home, everyone has to put in their effort and resources to defend it. These resources are going to be waste in their hands anyway. They should be used on thebat divisions at the front line. We are making the best use of everything," Ai Hui saidzily.

    When Qiao Meiqi saw carts of resources being transported to the Fish Bone, he felt delighted and embarrassed at the same time. "Doing this will still hurt our reputation."

    "Reputation?" Ai Hui sneered, "Let¡¯s talk about reputation after we survive this ordeal. If we can¡¯t even survive the war, what¡¯s the point of having a good reputation? If we seed in defending Beyond Avalon, we will be known as great heroes and no one will care about what we are doing now. If we fail in defending Beyond Avalon, all of us will be dead. Do you still care about reputation when you¡¯re dead?"

    Qiao Meiqi was stunned. He suddenly came to a realization, looking as if he was enlightened.

    An excited look immediately appeared on his face. He rubbed his palms and said eagerly, "I will go and help them out now."

    Ai Hui stood on the peak of ckfish Mouth Volcano and looked at the camp beneath him. The smile behind the bandages that covered his face disappeared. The information obtained from the captive allowed him to conclude that the situation had worsened. He did not know much about war strategies, but he could tell whether a situation was good or bad and he knew what he should do.

    In terms of war-rted things, he paled inparison to Iron Lady.

    However, he also knew Iron Lady¡¯s weaknesses. Iron Lady was too righteous, toopliant and too honest. In the current time of chaos, someone like Iron Lady was easily taken advantage of.

    Unlike her, Ai Hui had experienced the evilness and cruelty of this world. He knew how greedy, cunning and unscrupulous people in this world could be.

    All along, he had never cared about his reputation.

    Just like how the name "master-killer" did not distress him, or make him feel regretful for his decision back in the day. He did not care about what other people thought of him. All he cared about was his master and mistress.

    The feeling of sorrow and yearning for his master and mistress had never left him.

    He was silently enduring the sorrow, and silently yearning for them.

    Along the way, he had clearly determined what he wanted to achieve in this war. He wanted to lead everyone out of it alive.

    Very soon, the resources on Fish Bone were piled up like a mountain. A team of cksmiths stood on the mountain with fear written all over their faces. They did not know what was awaiting them.

    On the contrary, the members of Sword of Lightning were jubnt.

    Countless mini Lou Lans were climbing up and down the pile of resources, happily and busily checking the resources.

    The resources taken from otherbat divisions had been handed over as well. Upon seeing that the amount of resources and number of cksmiths they¡¯d received was rather plentiful, Gu Xuan did not make things difficult for the division leaders and let them off.

    Upon returning to Fish Bone, Qiao Meiqi was ecstatic. When he saw Ai Hui, he yelled at the top of his voice, "We are rich! We are rich! This time around, we are really rich!"

    The other members roared withughter.

    Ai Hui chuckled and said with azy tone, "This is only the beginning. We will do the same to everybat division that we encounter along the way."

    Qiao Meiqi was stunned by Ai Hui¡¯s words. He stuttered, "Along... Along the way... We will do... do the same?"

    "That¡¯s right. Why? You can¡¯t bear to do so?" Ai Hui cast a nce at him.

    Qiao Meiqi felt a burst of blood gush into his head. He became so emotional that he started to talk incoherently, "We are rich! We are rich! We are really rich!"

    He finally calmed himself down after a while. Then, heughed bitterly, "I feel like the business I have done over the years was all a waste. What kind of business is more profitable than doing this?"

    Ai Hui restrained his urge to roll his eyes. Annoyed, Ai Hui replied, "You¡¯re considered lucky if you manage to do this kind of thing even once. But you still want to do it everyday? If we do it once in awhile, we¡¯ll be thought of as taking a drastic approach in response to a critical situation. If we do it everyday, we are no different from bandits. I have only heard of businessmen bing rich, I have never heard of bandits bing rich."

    Qiao Meiqi returned to his senses and nodded his head. He looked slightly dejected as he said, "It¡¯s such a pity."

    Everyone burst into aughter.

    Gu Xuan looked at thosebat divisions that were retreating in panic and said, "After what has happened this time around, no one will dare to stay in this area anymore."

    "Isn¡¯t that good? Don¡¯t tell me you feel relieved letting these people watch your back?" Ai Hui said inly.

    Gu Xuan could not help but look at Ai Hui in astonishment.

    Had Division Leader done this on purpose?

 Chapter 576: Lightning Razor

    Chapter 576: Lightning Razor

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Majestic, has swagger, pragmatic.

    At the start, Ai Hui passed them off as a group from Skyheart City, but his sword ray was quickly seen through by everyone. After all other than Sky Edge Division, where Karakorum Pris was, only Ai Hui¡¯s Sword of Lightning could execute such a powerful sword ray.

    So Ai Hui might as well do it openly.

    While Fishbone didn¡¯t fly very fast, it could cover an extremely wide scope and fewbat divisions would be able to escape its radar.

    Qiao Meiqi took the front position. He was a businessman and good at dealing with people. When he engaged in extortion and ckmail he could also quickly grasp the secrets among them.

    "Safety¡¯s the most important. Everyone must be united! See, what¡¯s your division n? To supply man, or power?"

    "Don¡¯t worry, this isn¡¯t embezzlement. Where did it go? Did you swallow it into your stomach?"

    "Elders Guild will remember everybody¡¯s contributions!"

    "That isn¡¯t much, brother. Look, we¡¯ve already worked so hard and you¡¯re giving us so little. Are you trying to chase beggars away? Do you want us to take action?"

    ...

    When finally exiting the battle region, everyone in Yellow Sand Division cried tears of joy upon seeing the closest city after their long and difficult trek. And the citizens who saw these shabby, skinny as bones and haggard looking division members were astonished.

    The reporters who came upon hearing the news immediately filled the city up.

    Combat divisions arrived one after another and all the soldiers were like beggars, having no money for even a meal.

    For a while, Sword of Lightning became notorious for its evilness.

    Ai Hui had, too, be the most well-known viin and bandit, an abrupt change in terms of people¡¯s impressions of him. Mirage bean pods containing all kinds of criticisms and condemnation flooded every shop.

    "Denouncing blood and tears,wlessnds under heaven ¨C Death of Yellow Sand Division¡¯s leader, Hei Yan!"

    "How did the form for God-subduing Peak fall into the hands of this viin? Skyheart City in collusion with Central Pine Valley?"

    "Yet anotherbat division stopped. Innumerable crimes by the Lightning Razor !"

    ...

    Ai Hui¡¯s conduct had exceeded people¡¯s imaginations and was absurd to them. The name "Lightning Razor" spread like wildfire and left a deep impression on people as they immediately caught onto it. Even Newlight City, which had just formed an alliance with Central Pine Valley, was now involved and people were running to An Chouchou to protest.

    The mirage bean pod left An Chouchou dumbstruck. He felt as though his heart had been trampled on by thousands of galloping horses.

    "Has this fellow gone mad?" he muttered repeatedly, and the responses he received from people around him carried the same disbelief.

    .....

    Skyheart City.

    "... this is vile and damnable! I¡¯ve never heard of a deed so preposterous and nasty. Not even in the whole of the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯ history! This is a shame to Avalon of Five Elements, a disgrace to us elementalists! Ai Hui is despicable. Through and through a liar, scoundrel, gangster, hoodlum, bandit..."

    An impassioned division leader who¡¯d survived shouted himself hoarse in a meeting hall.

    When he was done, Madam Ye nodded with an indifferent expression. "Got it."

    The division leader was stunned and fell into a long daze. He hade so far to make aint against Ai Hui¡¯s crime and all he received was a "got it"?

    Before he could speak, two guards grabbed onto him on both sides and pushed him out of the hall.

    The other officials looked at each other in dismay. They did not know what Madam Ye was thinking. Wasn¡¯t she full of hatred toward Ai Hui?

    With a gentleugh Madam Ye said, "Ai Hui¡¯s giving it his all. Initially I didn¡¯t think much of this battle, but it seems like things are getting interesting. This fellow has his ways and has foresight. He doesn¡¯t stick to a pattern. He¡¯s stronger than Shi Xueman and Silver Soldier. It really is surprising how that inflexible old man, Wang Shouchuan, could produce such a powerful disciple."

    No one else dared to speak.

    Madam Ye¡¯s expression turned stern. "In the name of Elders Guild, appoint Ai Hui as the headmander of the front line. He will have the authority to conscript individuals and all divisions must co-operate."

    No one could believe their ears.

    Someone anxiously advised, "Resentment is surging..."

    "Shut it!" Madam Ye berated coldly. She stood up from her seat and swept her gaze across the room. "Short-sighted fools! Our priority now is to guard the defensive line! Don¡¯t talk about cutting off the supplies to these people. If killing all those idiots is what it takes to keep Ai Hui guarding the front line, why not!"

    Everyone was stunned and kept quiet out of fear.

    She turned to Nian Tingfeng. "Go mediate the situation. Keep the public under control. I don¡¯t wish for anyone to be a drag at this point."

    "Yes," replied Nian Tingfeng respectfully.

    Madam Ye then asked casually, "How¡¯s the Wind Mail City mattering along?"

    Nian Tingfeng shuddered, clenching his teeth. "Openly disobeyed an order and is to be beheaded on the spot ording to military discipline."

    "Don¡¯t kill as you please, we¡¯re not Ai Hui. He¡¯s pretty capable, would be a waste to behead him." She said in a light voice, "The front linecks good yers now. Let him go. Heard there are some members from Surveince asking to be drafted? Loyal and brave. Send them all."

    Nian Tingfeng bent his head. "Yes. It is their duty to stay loyal to Elders Guild."

    Madam Ye responded amiably, "Sometimes, you can¡¯t expect everyone to understand you. Some will, but some won¡¯t. If you need to cut them off, what¡¯s there to wait for? Look at Ai Hui. He has a small team, little power, an insignificant name, but when he starts working up a storm he does it well. Why? He is not restricted by conventions and regtions. He just wants to win. Does he care about criticism from the masses? Not at all."

    Nian Tingfeng replied respectfully, "You¡¯re right, Madam."

    Madam Ye sighed. "One must have a steady heart to aplish things. How else would you get things done? Unable to make demands, but also unable to blindly connive. I¡¯ve seen the hard work you have been putting in these few years and I will not forget."

    Nian Tingfeng shed tears of gratitude. "They might not be able to understand your efforts, but having followed you around everyday, I know how much you¡¯ve done for Elders Guild! I¡¯ll tidy up Surveince properly when I get back."

    .....

    Infantry Division.

    "This fellow is really reckless, absolutely unrestrained,"said Karakorum Pris in amazement.

    Silver Soldier seemed to be forcing a smile as he shook his head. "I also have no idea what he¡¯s been through in these past years for him to be so extreme. I heard that people outside are calling him Lightning Razor, a name that will probably stick for quite some time."

    Karakorum Pris could hear the concern and worry in her senior¡¯s tone.

    Silver Soldier just shook his head and smiled. "Forget it, we¡¯ll talk when this is over."

    A sigh followed, then he said, "Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s formed its own system, there¡¯s no need for us to worry about them. Thesest few days I¡¯ve been thinking about our cooperative battle tactics and how everyone can train together."

    Karakorum Pris responded simply, "Okay."

    Her clear voice carried a tinge of happiness. Being able to train with her senior made her happy.

    Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s encampment door was shut tight, its security strict.

    All thebat division leaders stood outside the entrance.

    "Encampment still closed today? Does she not care? Ai Hui¡¯s gone berserk, how disappointing!"

    "Care? How could she? Ai Hui¡¯s always been the boss of Central Pine Faction, so even division leader Shi has to listen to him."

    "Hush, quieten down. You dare talk bad about him here, are you tired of living? Two days back a fellow was grumbling a little, talking bad about Razor Ai, and got his legs broken by leader Shi."

    "Is that true? Why so ruthless?"

    "Aye, I also don¡¯t think she can control him. Just give me some discount points and I¡¯ll hand over half!"

    "Half? Stop dreaming! ¡®Razor¡¯ Ai. Do you know what a razor is? He¡¯s not going to give you even a strand of hair."

    Shortly after, the door opened.

    Sang Zhijun walked out and said coldly, "Our leader has given orders. Craftmen who hand over seventy percent of supplies on their own ord will be registered and can get one Spear of Heavy Cloud battle g to ensure a smooth and safe journey back. Those who are dishonest and fraudulent will be punished for concealing military intelligence. Informers will be rewarded with half the earnings!"

    A mor broke out. Concealing intelligence meant instant beheading ording to militaryw. The fact that snitches would be rewarded sent a chill down the spines of those who were interest-driven. The surrounding faces immediately turned grave.

    Even more people started yelling.

    "Seventy percent! How demanding!"

    "Exactly! Fifty! Fifty percent at most!"

    "Give us a way out, Leader Shi. We have elderly and young children."

    Sang Zhijun remained expressionless. She said coldly, "Those who stay to fight with us will not need to hand anything over and we will return the supplies."

    Everyone shut up immediately.

    Some timeter someone spoke up, albeit weakly, "But seventy percent is simply too harsh."

    "Yeah it is."

    Sang Zhijun couldn¡¯t be bothered arguing. "Go tell Boss Ai Hui yourselves."

    Hearing Ai Hui¡¯s name made their hearts jump.

    Someone clenched his teeth, shouting, "I¡¯ll hand it over! But is the g really useful?"

    Sang Zhijun answered, "Our leader has already written a letter about the situation, to Ai Hui. Those who hand over the supplies are considered as contributors who are feeding the front line. As for the effectiveness of the g, try and you¡¯ll know. But note that Ai Hui has a fiery temper and it wouldn¡¯t be as easy talking to him."

    The audience looked at each other in dismay.

    "I¡¯ve been admiring Leader Shi for a long time now. It¡¯s only natural that we offer a little something!"

    "That¡¯ right! She¡¯s Beyond Avalon¡¯s tower of strength. With our supplies in her hands there¡¯s nothing for us to worry about."

    Sang Zhijun kept a cool face and instructed the military materials official to start taking inventory and names.

    Returning to the camping ground, Sang Zhijun plopped onto the chair. Having a mental breakdown she cried out, "Don¡¯t make me do something like this again, oh my god. I¡¯ve never said anything so shamelessly and self-righteously before. I almost couldn¡¯t go on."

    Without even raising her head Shi Xueman responded, "Now you know how heartless that guy is."

    Somewhat puzzled Sang Zhijun asked, "Why are we doing this?"

    "Time." Shi Xueman continued staring at the map. "We must make full use of our time. It takes time to cast the pagoda cannons and practicing how to use it takes time too. Getting them to hand over the supplies themselves would save us a lot of time."

    "Ai Hui¡¯s heart must be aching. Such a huge loss."

    Shi Xueman replied indifferently, "I¡¯m the creditor anyway."

 Chapter 577: Camp of the God and Blood Divisions

    Chapter 577: Camp of the God and Blood Divisions

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    The whole world had been monitoring Ai Hui¡¯s preposterous behavior.

    Asmander of Sword of Lightning, Ai Hui had be the Lightning Razor and while everyone was raising a storm of protest, no one was really that shocked. Although Ai Hui was a reputable leader in Central Pine Faction, he had always remained low-key and no one knew much about him.

    Skyheart City¡¯s appointment and attitude had caused a hugemotion, andter on Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s new tax regtion left the people speechless.

    It seemed as though the world had suddenly be iprehensible. Such perverse events just kept happening one after another. Openly robbing an ally? How was that any different from what bandits do?

    Many thought that for such a righteous division leader like Shi Xueman to get involved, she must¡¯ve been brainwashed by Ai Hui.

    Although Skyheart City was trying hard to control the public¡¯s opinion, people¡¯s interest toward this matter was shocking. Long-standing families and the mayor absolutely abhorred Lightning Razor and were fuming with rage. Citizens at the bottom, on the other hand, pped their hands in favour.

    To them, thebat divisions that had pulled back from the front line were all cowardly and only interested in saving themselves.

    While Ai Hui was greedy, he had never stopped advancing toward the front line. Shi Xueman, too, was like a nail, hammering her way to the front without ever retreating.

    It was obvious at a nce who the reliable ones really were.

    "Razor Ai and his new victim" became the talk of the town as everybody discussed it enthusiastically over food and tea.

    Even the blood elementalistsbat division was shocked upon receiving the news. However, it also boosted their morale. From what they saw, Elders Guild had alreadypletely decayed and was unable to unite even when the big war was approaching. Basically, they had rotted to the core from punitive expeditions and internal strifes.

    There were even blood elementalist officials calling for soldiers and weapons to fight directly against Skyheart City.

    The situation was favorable. All that was needed was a spurt of energy to take down the Windy Pearl Bridge defensive line and the rest would be smooth-sailing, like a horse galloping straight across tnd.

    However, danger often surged within the shadows cast by the sunlight, just as how thistles and thorns often hid among brightly colored flowers.

    In the lush forest people were densely packed. Their faces and disheveled looks revealed the hardships they had been through. Yet, they remained calm. They either leaned on the tree trunks or sat on the ground. Some chewed their food quietly while others sipped on their water.

    They moved gently and the enormous camp was dead silent. Only bird chirps could be heard.

    The short pine trees nted by the exploring wood elementalists were covered with pine cones that emitted an alluring fragrance, which was effective for attracting birds. The birds happily pecked at the cones as if they didn¡¯t see the figures sitting on the ground.

    After surveying the terrain, the explorers would nt a short pine tree. The pine cones had a special attractive force that drew birds to them and the birds would ignore the troops entering the jungle. This way, the birds wouldn¡¯t be rmed and the patrolling blood elementalists wouldn¡¯t notice anything amiss as well.

    Ximen Caijue sat on the moist moss, not minding that her clothes were stained with mud despite having mysophobia. She was like a stubborn, mischievous little girl but only coldness and harshness filled her tender face.

    Wan Shenwei sat opposite her while military officers and powerful yers from both divisions surrounded them. Everyone looked apathetic, but asionally, as they blinked, excitement for the uing war could be seen in their eyes.

    Between them, amid a ball of gentle light, a camp could be seen clearly.

    If blood elementalists were found here they would definitely be shocked since it was their camp.

    Wan Shenwei said in a deep voice, "God Spirit Division as well as Dawn and Dusk Blood Divisions are guarding the big camp. When dealing with them, just fight normally."

    His tone was very calm, as if he was facing a regionalbat division and not God Spirit Division, one of the six god divisions. The rest appeared as usual, not sensing anything strange, as if everything was natural.

    "Be it God Spirit Division or the two blood divisions, they¡¯re not our targets. We have two targets: Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian."

    When mentioning Ye Baiyi, Wan Shenwei¡¯s voice trembled slightly, but only his old subordinate caught it.

    He continued, "Ye Baiyi¡¯s still unconscious. He¡¯s been nted with the Heart of God. Beast Venom Temple¡¯s master, Nangong Wulian, is also an important target so there must be a specialist in charge. You¡¯ll be in charge, Song Yan."

    The middle-aged man, who looked rather feeble, nodded. "Alright."

    Song Yan was one of the most outstanding members in Dread Division. He was also one of the mostpetent assistants of Wan Shenwei.

    Ximen Caijue added, "Tie Dao, partner with Song Yan."

    A in looking man, who looked like a cksmith, nodded his head simply. "Okay, Old Song. I¡¯ll listen to your directions."

    No one seemed to have any regard for this unremarkable looking person, but he was one of Caijue¡¯s three knives. Even Song Yan was quite excited. They had joined hands over twenty years ago and hadn¡¯t expected to be able to fight alongside each other once again. Powerful yers shared amon sense of understanding, which made them look forward to this uing battle.

    Wan Shenwei looked at both of them. "Your target is Nangong Wulian. Capture him alive if possible, but otherwise kill him."

    "Understood."

    "Okay."

    Wan Shenwei turned toward Ximen Caijue. "As for Ye Baiyi, are you going or should I go?"

    Ximen Caijue replied mildly, "I¡¯ll go, you¡¯re busy."

    "Alright."

    He added, "The n is simple. We¡¯ll kill our way in.. till this point."

    His tapped his finger on the north point of the big camp before drawing a straight line down to a tent in the heart of the camp, where security was the tigtest.

    Wan Shenwei continued, "Everyone go to rest now and the whole army shall execute a surprise attack in twelve hours."

    The rest nodded their heads indifferently before turning around and leaving.

    The former Wall of North Sea had long vanished without a trace. Blood of God¡¯s camp had also been emptied out and all the blood fiends had disappeared.

    God Spirit Division led both Dawn and Dusk Blood Divisions to guard the camp.

    Continuous reports of sess arrived from the front line, bringing joy, but also restlessness, to the people.

    It wasn¡¯t the first time subordinates had tried to persuade He Nanshan to lead the army. What credit could he get by defending the big camp? There was an uncountable number of people whoined everyday. He Nanshan understood how his subordinates felt and this, too, wasn¡¯t his first time considering that proposal.

    His Majesty emphasized on contributions. Contributors would get rewarded definitely, no exceptions.

    Defending the camp really wasn¡¯t desirable. If anything happened, they would inevitably be held ountable. If nothing happened, that was just a given and when His Majesty gave out rewards the most he would do would be to grace them with words like "reliable" and "wise". It was nothingparable to thebat divisions that charged out in front.

    Yet, He Nanshan forced himself to remain in the camp. He remembered how Dread and Judgement Divisions were nowhere to be found.

    Everybody thought it was possible that Dread and Judgement ran off somewhere to be independent, so there was nothing to worry about. Elders Guild had long been corrupted, still obsessed with riches right before the big war. How unbelievable.

    Their consecutive victories also made everyone look down on Elders Guild. To the blood elementalists, Spear of Heavy Cloud was thest barrier they had to cross. Once that was done Beyond Avalon would be a delicate woman, stripped bare.

    Only Spear of Heavy Cloud could give them trouble now. But they were only just a little stronger than a blood division. Once god divisions were dispatched, nothing would be too difficult to handle.

    But everyone felt more uneasy the more this was so.

    How could they feel fairly treated seeing that others could easily gain credit while they weren¡¯t able to benefit from anything?

    He Nanshan could only continue cating them. No matter what, Handsome Ye¡¯s safety was top priority. He Nanshan¡¯s coaxing was actually very effective. Not only was Handsome Ye everybody¡¯smander-in-chief, he was their superior. He had a good personality and was capable, hence he was well-liked and respected by people.

    As such, people put the me on Nangong Wulian again, and until now Handsome Ye still hadn¡¯t woken up.

    Nangong Wulian never was kind toward the soldiers so no one was happy to begin with. If not for the fact that he had a high status and great power, they would¡¯ve spoken up out of anger. But since they weren¡¯t able to do that they could onlyin in private.

    Although He Nanshan had repeatedly warned everyone to raise their guard, no one cared. No one believed that anyone would dig their own graves bying over here. And if they did, even better! As everyone was feeling frustrated over theck of credit they were getting, anyone who attacked the camp would basically be giving them free credit.

    Nangong Wulia¡¯s tent was right beside the center tent. Other than making daily trips to Ye Baiyi¡¯s tent, he would also hide in his tent to study whenever he had time.

    Of course he knew about the generalints, but he did not care. Heh, even Ye Baiyi had to mind his manners in front of him, so what rights did these lowly soldiers have to whine?

    The front line¡¯s victory temporarily eased his worry over the destruction of Ardent Flower Blood Division.

    What worried him was Ye Baiyi. The Heart of God had obviously wielded together with Ye Baiyi perfectly, so why wasn¡¯t he awake yet?

    Nangong Wulian was losing patience while staying at the front line. There was nothing there and he couldn¡¯t conduct much of his research. It was aplete waste of time, but he couldn¡¯t go back unless Ye Baiyi woke up.

    It looked like he would have to nourish Ye Baiyi with more nutrients today.

    He went into the tent in the middle and Ye Baiyi was still lying unconscious in the ice coffin. Ye Baiyi had an indistinct heartbeat, but it had the power to absorb people¡¯s souls. Even Nangong Wulian, the creator of Heart of God, was immersed in the heartbeat that seemed to contain boundless might.

    It was as if an enormous dragon was lying in the ice coffin, deep in sleep.

    He asked the person beside him, "Whose turn is it today?"

    Shortly, a youth, not older than twenty, entered the tent.

    Nangong Wulian said with a smile, "I remember you. So it¡¯s your turn today, how is it? Prepared well?"

    He had a deep impression of this youth. He recalled the youth saying that Ye Baiyi had advised him to leave before he¡¯d made the decision to join God Nation.

    The youth did not leave, but instead followed Ye Baiyi and had been ready to offer his life to him.

    Looking rather tense, the youth said with much effort, "All prepared."

    In these past few days he had seen hispanions using fresh blood to feed Boss and it was his turn today. Everyone said he was the youngest and so they ced him right at the end.

    Nangong Wulian felt envious that there were actually so many people who were willing to die for Ye Baiyi. How many of his people in Beast Venom Temple would do the same?

    His face turned ugly as he said coldly, "You can start now."

    The youth plopped his knees onto the ground and made three bows to Ye Baiyi. His forehead was red and tears were falling down his face. He choked, "Sir, I¡¯m unable to follow you any longer. You must live long! I have no regrets left, and will conquer the world with you in my next life!"

    He took a deep look at Ye Baiyi and wiped the tears off his face before leaping into the blood pool beside him.

    The blood pool glowed brightly and roared like angry waves.

    Ye Baiyi¡¯s faintly discernible heartbeat became lower and more powerful.

 Chapter 578: Set Off

    Chapter 578: Set Off

    Trantor: Irene Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Dawn was approaching and a slight glimmer could be seen through the forest on the azure horizon.

    Everyone was done with their preparations and the forest was dead silent.

    They were still very far away from their enemies¡¯ camp. Even if they were to sprint and fly they would need about a day or so. If they did not fly at full speed and kept stopping, they would need about two to three days. As such, they found no scouts from the enemy¡¯s side and even their enemies felt that this region was safe.

    No one had everunched their attack from so far away. A long day of flying would be a rigorous test of the soldiers¡¯ physical strength and elemental energy. Ordinarybat divisions would¡¯ve been too exhausted and unable to battle by then.

    But they could do it.

    Wan Shenwei swept his gaze across his people, his heart filled with pride. They were the most elite elementalists in the whole of the Avalon of Five Elements. Every single one of them had been carefully selected and had been through the harshest trainings.

    People only knew that they were defending Old Territory and other than that felt that they were very mysterious. No one knew what kind of hardships they had been facing. They were fighters. Real fighters that had been through countless close quarter battles.

    Everyone was calm and steady, thanks to their experience from being in hundreds of battles.

    Wan Shenwei spoke up suddenly, his voice deep, "Glorious footprints, the old man is dead in enemy country. From Shi Beihai¡¯s family, the lone girl is fighting on the front line. New soldiers from Infantry and Sky Edge are defending our territory. The so called best of the elite congratte and celebrate victories!"

    The originally quiet forest became exceptionally suffocating as the air seemed to have congealed, leaving no wind at all. The birds in the forest tried effortfully to p their wings but were confined to their spots and unable to fly.

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s gaze swept across the stone cold faces, causing them all to blush a deep red, gasp loudly for air and clench their fists tightly while trembling all over.

    "The humiliation and shame has settled. If word spreads, it will go down in history for many years."

    The red on their faces deepened, as if there was a ball of fire in their chests, unable to be released. They were prideful people, so being nailed onto history¡¯s wall of shame was worse than death.

    Expressionless, Wan Shenwei said faintly, "Words will continue to spread and historians will remember what the best of the elites are for many years toe."

    The suppressed fire exploded in their chests as the fresh blood within their bodies boiled likeva. Everyone started breathing heavily.

    It was like the practically frozen forest was hit by a rising windstorm as countless leaves rolled up and branches crackled and rattled. Their fighting spirit and battle lust rushed out of their hearts like flowing fire, able to engulf all. Lightning struck every inch of flesh in their bodies and the ze made them feel the pain. A satisfying pain. A pain that carried pride.

    It felt as if they were going to burst out of their chests, and pierce through their bodies. There was fire, light, a knife, a sword. The zing fire and lightning was roaring and bellowing. Kill all the enemies! Obstruct them all, burn them to ashes!

    The azure wings on Wan Shenwei¡¯s back appeared. They were wide and deep ck in color, effectively entuating his heavily-built body. The agitated soldiers started spreading their azure wings and all kinds of bright colors instantly lit up the forest.

    "Dread, set off!"

    He took the lead and soared high into the clouds.

    "Judgement, set off!"

    Ximen Caijue transformed into a green light and flew up into the sky.

    She was resolute, her light ray was like a sword that pierced through the blue dome of heaven.

    Countless light rays whizzed up into the sky like rain and illuminated the deep earth and the swaying forest.

    A few Rust Plumes could be seen gliding steadily in the sky.

    Rust Plumes were standard equipment for God Nation¡¯s scouts. They looked like blood eagles, but were in actual fact a hybrid form of blood eagles and blood vultures. Beast Venom Pce had sessfully produced them after years of breeding. They were ash-green in color and had a very tactile quality to their bodies. They had a bright red feather at the back of their neck, hence their name.

    Their wings stretched over fifteen meters and could fly very well and stable even for long distances. It was like gliding on ice, which allowed the scouts to better conserve their energy. Rust Plumes had another major gift ¨C their eyes. They could see very far away, making it difficult for enemies concealed within the forest to escape them.

    This was a small scout team from Dawn Blood Division.

    At that point, the Rust Plumes were in pilot mode and the scouts onboard were allzing around and chatting.

    "Have you heard? Yet another fellow offered himself to Commander Ye."

    "Yes. What a good fellow! He¡¯s already an old man but people are so devoted to him."

    "What a pity. They are all outstanding fellows."

    "Could it be that the higher ups want to remove his authority? Do you think they¡¯re all people who stand by Commander Ye¡¯s side?"

    The leader was frightened by this statement and hurriedly chided, "Don¡¯t talk drivel! Is His Majesty that kind of person? Is this something we should discuss? Keep in mind not to speak like that anymore or I¡¯m not going to let it go!"

    He took out a few jade fruits to feed his own Rust Plume Wings, intimately caressing its solid feathers.

    The rest knew that they had taken it too far and quickly diverted the topic.

    "When can we go to the front line. It¡¯s so boring to go patrolling every day!"

    "Yeah. Not a single soul can be seen in this stupid ce."

    "Why¡¯s there a need for so many people to defend the big camp? I think one blood division is sufficient."

    "Seems like there¡¯s not going to be any credit for us this time. We¡¯re done for. Won¡¯t there only be Jadeite Forest left after Skyheart City is taken down?"

    People conversed fervently, all talking at once. They had been patrolling around this district every day and had yet to notice anything. As the scouts in charge of the outermost circle, they covered the furthest distance every day.

    Suddenly, the Rust Plume beneath the leader emitted a sharp hiss.

    Everyone was stunned and stopped talking. Something¡¯s wrong!

    They diligently kept their eyes in front, but it waspletely empty and they couldn¡¯t find anything amiss. However, they did not let their guard down since the Rust Plumes¡¯ eyesight was far superior to their own.

    The leader was about to speak up, but his pupils shrank suddenly.

    An arrow wrapped in green light appeared in his field of vision, its speed quickly elerating rendering him unable to react.

    p!

    The green light shed and the leader¡¯s brain burst open like a watermelon.

    A few arrowsnded swiftly and more brains exploded simultaneously.

    A wave of arrows rained down and wiped the whole scout team out before they could even get a clear look at the arrows.

    The Rust Plumes called out sadly upon realizing that their owners were dead. They were rather intelligent and knew to return to the camp to inform the others. They pped their wings hard, turned and flew toward the direction of the camp.

    The sky buzzed and trilled, as if the air was trembling.

    Specks of light rays lit up one after another, filling up the sky like stars.

    The specks magnified at an rming rate and in the blink of an eye they appeared right before them.

    A deafening whistle drowned all sounds. The surging air was sharper than the tip of a sword. Without even looking at the Rust Plumes that were pping their wings with all their might they whizzed overhead. Even though Rust Plumes were known for their speed, amid these light flows they were as slow as tortoises.

    The surging airflow was like a very sharp sword.

    Though stronger than steel, the Rust Plumes¡¯ bodies were sliced into pieces in an instant.

    With unspent momentum and power, the air flow whipped onto the ground ruthlessly.

    The figures in the sky broke in like lightning, causing the mud to fly up, the forest to shatter and the river to stop flowing. It was as if there was a terrifying and invisible iron plow that was plowing a path over a mile wide. It created a pencil-straight ravine that seemed to have been drawn by a ruler, extending forward unceasingly.

    The Three-forked River Camp was a more important defense spot. There were no towns located there and it didn¡¯t have a name because it was where the river separated, so guards from Dawn Blood Division had named it the Three-forked River Camp.

    Whether it was the god divisions or blood divisions, many of the battle tactics they followed originated from the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Ye Baiyi used to be the division leader of Cold me Division, so he was very familiar with thebat divisions in Avalon of Five Elements. He knew their weaknesses and ws, but also their advantages.

    Before Ye Baiyi reorganized God Nation¡¯sbat divisions, they were inadequate and weak. Outsiders regarded them as mobs.

    Other than implementing battle tactics ording to the unique characteristics of god elementalists, Ye Baiyi did not avoid the Avalon of Five Elements¡¯sbat divisions¡¯ areas of strength, but instead integrated them perfectly.

    For example, Dawn Blood Division¡¯s scouts used equipments which was exactly the same as those ofbat divisions in Avalon of Five Elements. In fact, their equipment was even more perfect than those belonging to legitimatebat divisions, like Infantry and Sky Edge.

    It wasn¡¯t that Dawn Blood Division simply dispatched a few small teams. It was a whole securitywork constructed with many nodes. These randomly scattered nodes differed in size and Three-forked River Camp was a bigger node. Its scope could reach forty small surrounding nodes to form a big web. There was a total of six big nodes like Three-forked River Camp.

    The nodes of different sizes formed a big, tight web that could resist an infiltration by elementalists.

    If enemies invaded from the front, they could transmit the information to the base camp at top speed. Ye Baiyi was very clear about the importance of the scouts and guards. Their job wasn¡¯t to obstruct and dy the enemies but to report the situation back to base camp as quick as possible in order to give them sufficient time to strategize and react.

    The person in charge of the blood elementalist guards was Tang Jingrong. He was a godly blood elementalist, so it was clear how important Three-forked River Camp was to Dawn Blood Division.

    Tang Jingrong was experienced, careful, reliable and powerful.

    Tang Jingrong started setting up defense perimeters upon arriving at Three-forked River Camp. He also sent full scouts out for daily patrols. He did not feel that enemies would raid the camp because that wasn¡¯t any different from seeking death. However, he knew that he mustn¡¯t let his soldiers ck off or all sorts of incidents would ur. Instead, if they got busy, disturbances were less likely to happen.

    He held onto a cup of tea andnded on a floating sentry. He asked the soldier on duty, "What¡¯s the situation?"

    The soldier answered helplessly, "Not even a fly, Boss."

    Tang Jingrongughed. "That¡¯s the best. We would be in trouble if there was anything."

    Suddenly he crinkled his brows, as if sensing something.

    He focused his gaze far away, but noticed nothing. Was it his imagination?

    Suddenly an arrow wrapped in green light appeared before his eyes.

    His expression changed.

 Chapter 579: The Bloody Battle At The God Encampment (1)

    Chapter 579: The Bloody Battle At The God Encampment (1)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "We had been humiliated, and we had been shamed. These words will be passed on through the generations and history will remember them for many years. History will also remember what the strongest elite unit in the world was like."

    - Wang Shenwei

    Tang Yingrong did not know where this glowing green arrow came from, but he was a blood elementalist that possessed an Ability of God after all. At this critical moment, he was able to activate his terrifying potential. A deep, angry, and beast-like roar was exploded from his throat.

    He reached out his right hand abruptly and tried to grab the arrow.

    Mysteriously, his right arm was covered with ayer of thick hair as traces of bloody glow twined around his piercingly sharp fingernails.

    He caught it!

    A look of joy appeared on his face. However, the next moment, the smile on his face froze.

    Pop!

    A deep pain erupted from his right hand. His palm had exploded into a bloody mess. A huge chunk of minced flesh and blood hit his face and chest, making him look extremely horrifying. His right palm and wrist hadpletely disappeared, revealing his ghastly white forearm bones.

    Tang Yingrong could not bother with the pain. He knew this was the moment to fight for his life.

    In front of him, the soldiers¡¯ heads were exploding like shattered watermelons.

    He turned around and flew into the air. With his body surrounded by a red glow, he flew toward the main camp with all his might. He was overwhelmed with shock. Who was it that attacked them? The enemies were so powerful! He was already severely injured before he could even see their faces! Skyheart City still possessed such formidable experts?

    Suddenly, he thought of the twobat divisions that had disappeared, and his face turned deathly pale.

    Dread! Judgement!

    A feeling of extreme danger engulfed him. All his hair stood on end, making him look like an rmed cat. Without turning around, he gathered a ball of bloody glow in his left palm and swung it behind his back!

    Pffft. His left palm exploded. His entire left forearm was severed.

    It was as if Tang Yingrong knew his death was imminent as he let out a heart-wrenching shriek.

    "No!"

    An arrow shot into his back, through his body, and flew out from his chest, releasing a burst of bloody mist.

    He watched nkly as his body fell from the sky powerlessly. He saw speckles of light spark up in the horizon, resembling the stars of the night sky. Following which, a deafening hiss flooded over him like a tidal wave. With his own eyes, he witnessed the fortifications of his camp being destroyed as if they were made of paper.

    The Three-forked River Camp that he had spent a countless amount of effort and time building was annihted in the blink of an eye.

    His vision began to blur. Streaks from glowing figures hurtled past him in the sky above him.

    One of them stopped for a while and shot a nce at him. Then, he conveniently swiped the de in his hand once.

    A de gleam devoured Tang Yingrong¡¯s line of sight before darkness descended upon his vision.

    .....

    Nangong Wulian came early in the morning to check on Ye Baiyi.

    He was still not awake!

    Nangong Wulian was so angry that he pulled out a few strands of hair from his head. He realized the amount of blood spiritual force that the Heart of God needed was terrifying, so much so that it exceeded what he had expected. Theoretically, this was a good thing.

    The only thing that gratified Nangong Wulian was that Ye Baiyi¡¯s heart rate had changed.

    This proved that he was on the right track.

    Should he continue to sacrifice people to provide blood spiritual force him? Nangong Wulian was slightly hesitant. He did not know whether or not Ye Baiyi would find trouble with him after waking up.

    All right, maybe not. After all, he was doing this to save his life.

    Nangong Wulian was still uncertain. Those sacrificed subordinates of Ye Baiyi seemed to possess a mysterious power that caused Nangong Wulian to feel worried. He had seen many gory scenes before. It was very normal for the Beast Venom Temple to use blood elementalists as ingredients.

    É±ÈË²»Õ£ÑÛµÄËû,Ãæ¶ÔÄÇÐ©×ÝÉíÔ¾ÈëÑª³ØµÄ²¿Êô,²»ÖªÎªºÎ,È´ÓÐÐ©Î·¾å.

    For a cold-blooded individual like him, he actually felt scared when he saw Ye Baiyi¡¯s subordinates jump into the blood pool to sacrifice themselves. He did not know why he felt this way.

    He decided to wait for two more days.

    Once Ye Baiyi woke up, there would an incredible change to his strength. Nangong Wulian did not know exactly how much Ye Baiyi¡¯s strength would grow, but he was certain that it would be a significant growth. In the Blood of God, strength was status. Ye Baiyi¡¯s status in the Blood of God would definitely rise. If Ye Baiyi woke up, became unhappy with Nangong Wulian, and wanted to find trouble with him, His Majesty would protect him. However, Nangong Wulian would definitely still have to undergo some suffering.

    He had better be careful...

    Nangong Wulian walked out from the tent and saw He Nanshan, who had been keeping watch outside.

    "Sir Nangong, has General Ye woken up?" He Nanshan asked with concern.

    "Not yet." Nangong Wulian shook his head with an indifferent look on his face.

    A disappointed look appeared on He Nanshan¡¯s face. Without General Ye, everyone felt that theycked a pir to support them. Being the division leader of the God Spirit Division, He Nanshan definitely wasn¡¯t an ordinary individual. He clearly knew that the current situation was only this smooth and perfect because the enemy was weak. If things did not turn well at the front line, they would most likely be thrown into an adrift situation.

    This was an extremely deadly time bomb.

    As long as General Ye was unconscious, this time bomb would continue to exist. The four god divisions were equally ranked, so no one would listen to each other.

    Fortunately, the war at the front line had been smooth so far. They had been crushing the enemybat divisions effortlessly.

    From the look of it, the only remaining threat was the defensive line at the Windy Pearl Bridge.

    The three deployed God Division leaders had already identified the weakness of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Therefore, they chose to drive the retreating enemybat divisions to the Windy Pearl Bridge and use them to crush the defensive line. This was a rather good idea, but the enemy wasn¡¯t simple either. They only saw the avaricious appetite of Ai Hui and the Spear of Heavy Cloud. He Nanshan, however, saw something different. The number of defeatedbat divisions that were previously stationed at the Windy Pearl Bridge¡¯s defensive line had been reduced greatly.

    These defeatedbat divisions could be either a helping hand or a time bomb for the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Due to of this avaricious appetite, those good-for-nothing and weak-willedbat divisions were scared away. Only the determined and ferventbat divisions remained.

    He Nanshan wasn¡¯t sure whether the enemy forces had really identified the potential time bomb or if it was a fluke. This was because a future sea of trouble had been created using this type of method.

    Suddenly, a deafening rm resounded through the air.

    An attack on the camp!

    He Nanshan shivered as his facial expression changed drastically. He was enraged. Were all the sentries dead? How could they fail to discover the enemy forces until the enemy had already reached the main camp! He rose up in the air and flew toward the sky.

    Vibrating speckles of light appeared in the distant horizon, resembling the stars of the night sky. Even though they were very far away, he could still sense the terrifying aura of death that wasing his way.

    He Nanshan lowered his head and looked at the main camp beneath him. Soldiers gushed out of the tents like flowing water whilemanders gave out orders clearly and orderly.

    He Nanshan heaved a sigh of relief in his heart. It seemed that the daily training sessions had worked. As long as they were calm, the enemy forces had no chance of sess.

    Even though the enemy forces came with a mighty momentum, they only had around 1,000 soldiers.

    He was slightly curious how these elementalists had avoided his tight surveincework. After a while, his facial expression turned solemn. He saw that the scouts in the sky were killed on the spot before they could even escape.

    An incredible idea appeared in his mind.

    Were... all the scouts in like this before they could even escape?

    Buzz, buzz, buzz.

    A vibrating sound came from the distance. The air seemed to throb at this moment, appearing as if a surging flood was approaching. This terrifying might caused He Nanshan¡¯s facial expression to change.

    The enemy forces had already reached the edge of the main camp.

    To protect the main camp, densely-packed fortifications were set up on the perimeter. A huge number of blood fiends were also stationed there defensively

    The soldiers in the fortifications hurriedly broke down the fences surrounding the blood fiends to release them.

    If one looked down from the sky, hordes of red blood fiends were gathering.

    Whoosh!

    A sea of avian blood fiends flew up into the sky. The bloody glow around their bodies merged together, seemingly forming a red blood wall that whizzed toward the enemy forces.

    [Wall of Bloody Sky]!

    This was an unique blood elementalist battle formation. It used the powerful impact of blood fiends to block and disrupt the enemy forces¡¯ charge. Those blood fiends were fierce and violent. During peacetime, drugs were used to restrain them. Otherwise, they would fight among themselves until all of them were dead.

    The pure elemental energy from an elementalist had a deadly enticement over them. They would recklessly hunt down elementalists and eat them. They did not understand the concept of fear and would not care about their own lives.

    Within the camp, all the blood elementalists had gathered while orders were passed frantically through the chain ofmand.

    He Nanshan calmed himself down. With one god division and two blood divisions stationed in the main camp, he felt rather confident. These divisions were meticulously formed by General Ye, and they knew the weaknesses of elementalistbat divisions like the back of their hands.

    From the number of the enemy forces, he knew they were the Dread Division and the Judgement Division.

    In reality, blood elementalistbat divisions were afraid of the Dread and Judgement divisions since they were so few in number. The Dread Division only had 500 men total. However, they seldom came out in full force and only had at most 300 men at the moment. The Judgement Division had 1,000 men at full force, but they presently only had 700.

    In total, these twobat divisions had at most 1,000d men.

    Even if they were very powerful, what impact would they have on the battlefield with so few soldiers?

    A god division and a blood division had a standardized strength of 5,000 men each. With one god division and two blood divisions, they currently had a total of 15,000 men! With 15,000 blood elementalists against 1,000 elementalists, why should he be afraid?

    Unless an elementalist could kill 15 blood elementalists?

    As long as they did not panic, the enemy forces had no chance of victory. After thinking it through, He Nanshan regained hisposure. This was a god-given chance. Not too long ago, he was still worrying about not umting enough meritorious services, but now, the enemy forces delivered themselves to him personally. If he missed this opportunity, he would be letting himself down.

    He Nanshan made a firm resolution. Not only must he win this battle, he must do it in a stylish manner!

    Wang Shenwei was apathetic. He wasn¡¯t surprised that he had rmed the enemy forces. The enemy was no ordinary army after all. It was already very fortunate that they alerted the enemy forces only after reaching the main camp perimeter. It could have been worse.

    Even though flying blood wall was still very far away, he could smell a weird, but strong, fragranceing from it.

    He could see the sinister-looking appearances of the blood fiends. Pungent saliva dripped from their deathly white teeth. Their bloodshot eyes were filled with bloodlust and insanity. The closer the blood wall was, the more he could feel a sense of danger and invincibility from it.

    The corner of Wan Shenwei¡¯s mouth slightly twitched. A cold and disdainful look shed across his face.

    He shifted his gaze to the distant horizon. The rising sun was bright-red in color, exuding liveliness and vitality. They had flown for a day and a night. After setting off at daybreak, flying in the direction of the rising sun, enduring the scorching afternoon heat, saying farewell to the setting sun, finding themselves in the dark night, and immersing themselves in the splendor of the stars, here they were, encountering the rising sun once again.

    The beautiful scenery along the way and the despair in the enemy soldiers¡¯ eyes before they died were heartwarming and pleasing to his eyes.

    The scenery before a great battle took ce was the most beautiful.

    He gripped the heavy sword in his hand, and his ck azure wings erupted with radiance. Following which, his flying speed increased sharply. Behind him, the other soldiers simultaneously increased their speed.

    Streaks of brilliance drew an elegant arc in the heavens. They began to rise higher and higher into the sky.

    They pierced through the clouds and the metal winds. In the heights of the deste upper atmosphere, they immersed themselves in the sunshine and suddenly dove down!

 Chapter 580: The Bloody Battle At The God Encampment (2)

    Chapter 580: The Bloody Battle At The God Encampment (2)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    They were like a gorgeous meteor shower.

    Leading the charge, Wan Shenwei smiled silently. Each of his hands grasped a sword raised high above his head. The swords were unusually shy under the sunlight.

    Wan Shenwei, who dual-wielded swords, was rxed, natural, and looked as if he was performing an ordinary leaping overhead sh.

    He swung his swords down vertically.

    No sword gleams or sword chimes were produced. Suddenly, the center of the roaring blood wall caved in. Countless fragments of bones and flesh erupted from the blood wall, resembling a torrential rain of gore.

    The blood wall was split into two, revealing a gap that was more than 30 meters wide in the middle.

    Beside Wan Shenwei, Ximen Caijue was emotionless. She was holding a toy-like miniature bow. The bow was very small, but it was of an unusually excellent quality. Its body was green in color and formed by two green snakes intertwining together. The two snake heads happened to be biting each end of the bowstring. The bowstring glistened red in color.

    She followed beside Wan Shenwei and had no intentions of attacking.

    Watching from afar, He Nanshan¡¯s facial expression changed. He could not believe what he had just seen.

    That sh just now...

    That person was... Wan Shenwei!

    He Nanshan suddenly felt his mouth go dry. He was overwhelmed with shock. Beyond Avalon still had such a powerful expert!

    Among all the experts today, the Holy Emperor and Dai Gang were evenly matched. Right beneath them were Le Buleng and Red Devil. Le Buleng¡¯s greatness was obvious. Even though he had suffered numerous defeats, His Majesty felt that he was the third strongest individual in the world.

    As for Red Devil, General Ye had personally told him that Red Devil¡¯s strength was surpassed only by His Majesty¡¯s in the God Nation. Hence, he was the second strongest individual in the God Nation. Generally speaking, his strength was most likely beneath Le Buleng¡¯s.

    However, after He Nanshan witnessed Wan Shenwei¡¯s might today, he realized there were a lot more experts in this world than he had imagined!

    He felt slightly uneasy.

    No two Masters were exactly the same. Different Masters had different impacts on the battlefield. If that sh from Wan Shenwei was to strike a battle formation, it would deal heavy casualties. A Master was a disruptor on the battlefield. The destructive power of an expert among the Masters was even more terrifying.

    He Nanshan suddenly felt that the assembling speed of his troops was slight slow. He could not help but yell, "Faster!"

    At this moment, approximately one thousand men who were diving down from the sky with streaks of light trailing behind them collided squarely with the blood wall.

    He Nanshan could not help but widen his eyes. He looked at the collision with expectation. The blood wall was very huge and thick. Breaking through the blood wall would not be an easy task even for blood elementalists. Furthermore, the blood birds weren¡¯t afraid of death. As long as they were still alive, they would continue to tangle with their enemies in an insane manner.

    More than 200 men at the front of the charge suddenly roared in unison, "Dread!"

    The bodies of more than 200 men lit up with a dazzling glow, resembling over 200 suns. The weapons in their hands buzzed loudly, appearing as if they were echoing each other.

    If Ai Hui was to see this sight, he would be astonished because this charge produced the same oue as his Sword of Lightning Division, but through a different approach. These two hundred plus men used different weapons, but their elemental energies resonated with each other and at the exact same rhythm.

    The 200 plus weapons were brandished in a top-down direction at the same time.

    The blood wall exploded with a loud bang. Like an enormous burst of blood-colored fireworks, countless torrents of scarlet blood sprayed in all directions. One could see mangled blood birds, numerous broken bones, and dismembered limbs in every torrent of blood.

    The blood wall was shattered to smithereens in one hit!

    The Dread Division soldiers continued to advance with momentum andnded on the ground like a gigantic hammer.

    Boom!

    If one looked down from the sky, the ground surrounding the position where the Dread Division hadnded undted like water ripples.

    Due to the undting ground, the blood fiends that were frantically dashing toward the Dread Division lost their bnce and fell into chaos.

    When the blood fiends picked themselves up from the ground, the sinister looks on their faces had disappeared. Their eyes were filled with fear and dread as they whimpered softly, turned around, and suddenly escaped in all directions. These blood fiends were violent and unintelligent, but their senses were sharp. Instinctively, they could sense the small group of people in front of them was extremely dangerous. These people were a terrifying entity that lived at the top of the food chain.

    He Nanshan¡¯s facial expression turned extremely ugly. The uneasiness in his heart became stronger, and he could sense an imminent danger.

    Inside the main camp, streams of soldiers continued to gush out from the tents. Only 50 percent of the soldiers had been assembled.

    They were too slow!

    Initially, He Nanshan thought that the blood wall could dy the enemy forces for a while and that they would have enough time to assemble all soldiers. All of his soldiers were well-trained. As long as they had enough time, they could be fully assembled.

    There were over 200 men in the Dread Division. To be exact, there were 274 men.

    They moved as one and stomped the ground together. A perfect crater was formed in the ground with a diameter of 150 meters, as though an invisible hand had pressed into the ground. It was smooth and impable, as though gently stamped from a mold.

    274 figures rose into the air at the same time and drew an elegant arc in the sky. Like stone pellets released by a catapult, they flew toward the fortifications at the edge of the main camp.

    "Stop them!" He Nanshan blurted out.

    Even though the blood elementalists were rmed, they were able to maintain theirposure and order due to their arduous daily training sessions. A blood elementalist captain at the fortifications roared, "Attack!"

    Pitch-ck spheres were shot out of the fortifications and into the air. Following which, they exploded into clouds of blood mist that gradually diffused in the air. Instantly, the concentrated blood mist engulfed the zone in front of the fortifications.

    Blood mist bombs were created by the Beast Venom Temple. The blood mist that diffused in the air contained a deadly poison. Blood elementalists were unaffected by it, but it was extremely deadly to elementalists.

    However, the Dread Division shocked the blood elementalists once again. They flew out of the blood mist safe and sound.

    Boom!

    Just like before, theynded heavily on the fortifications like a mighty hammer.

    A breach that was 150 meters long appeared in the continuous line of tall fortifications.

    The two ends of the breach were extremely neat, making the breach look like it had been cut out with scissors. A huge pit that was several meters deep was created at the breach. One could see bloodstained tiles and bricks in the pit.

    Holding his swords, Wan Shenwei smiled at the fearful blood elementalists. Then, he began to walk toward the inner camp.

    He wasn¡¯t walking at a very fast pace and looked more like he was strolling through a park.

    Absolute silence descended upon the entire camp. It was as if everyone¡¯s throat was tightly gripped by an invisible hand.

    Indifferent-looking figures followed Wan Shenwei and strolled toward the inner camp.

    Ping!

    A loud and crisp sound of ss breaking broke the silence. The glowing bloody screen that covered the sky above the main camp shattered. Countless blood-colored fragments drifted through the air, resembling a heavy snowfall that was dyed crimson.

    A cold and somber atmosphere descended upon the main camp.

    Their camp had been invaded just like that, and they were scared stiff by the enemy forces just like that. Furthermore, the enemy forces were the Dread and Judgement divisions that they had mocked countless times.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes became bloodshot. They did notck courage, and simrly, they did notck pride. They weren¡¯t rookies who had just set foot upon the battlefield. The concept of failure had nevere across their minds before.

    "Kill them!" roared the captain of an unit that had just finished assembling.

    He took the lead and charged at the strolling Wan Shenwei. They knew that they were overestimating their abilities, but they still had theirrades who were mustering behind them right now!

    They did not have any lofty beliefs. All they had was fighting spirit and a deep sense of pride. They could be defeated or killed, but they definitely could not tolerate being humiliated and trampled on by the enemy forces.

    A few other troop units also lunged at the Dread Division at the same time.

    All they could do now was to slow down the enemy forces, even if it was only for a minute!

    A look of admiration appeared on Wan Shenwei¡¯s face, but he did not stop, continuing to stroll forward. The two elementalists beside him stepped forward to face the iing blood elementalists.

    Side by side, the two elementalists charged toward the blood elementalists like two bulls.

    The elementalist on the left used a scythe. Right now, he looked like he was reaping wheat as the self-proimed elite blood elementalists copsed effortlessly before the scythe.

    In an instant, the unit was annihted, leaving corpses and wounded soldiers scattered everywhere on the ground.

    The elementalist on the right used a silver spear. Spear gleams appeared and disappeared unpredictably at the blood elementalists¡¯ throats and hearts. Even the powerful bodies of the blood elementalists could not stop the deadly attacks from this silver spear.

    Wan Shenwei looked as if he couldn¡¯t see the corpses around him or the enemy soldiers that were lunging for him.

    His gaze was fixated at the distant He Nanshan. With a steady gait, he walked toward He Nanshan.

    There were blood elementalist units constantly charging at him from all directions!

    The elementalists that surrounded him pounced at the iing enemy units like tigers released from their cages.

    Only the braves would win this battle!

    At this point in time, both sides were engaged in close quartersbat. The oue was unusually devastating. Quickly, Wan Shenwei realized that the surrounding enemy forces were increasing in number nonstop. They had beenpletely surrounded. The enemy forces had abandoned their battle formations and were simply surging at them like a tidal wave.

    Wan Shenwei stopped in his tracks. Then, he raised the two swords in his hands and roared, "Dread!"

    The elementalists who were fighting the flood of blood elementalists suddenly withdrew and gathered around Wan Shenwei.

    All of them raised their weapons and roared in unison, "Dread!"

    Their weapons chimed in unison as the glows around their bodies suddenly intensified. The iing blood elementalists looked as if they had collided with an iron wall. Immediately, they felt that they had been struck by an invincible force. Their minds went nk as their bodies flew back in the air.

    "Dread!¡¯

    Wan Shenwei and hisrades roared in unison as they swung their weapons in a downward vertical motion.

    274 streaks of elemental energy gathered and became a terrifying sword gleam that shot forward.

    Blood elementalists were everywhere, but the ones in the front were the most densely-packed. By now, everyone knew that Wan Shenwei¡¯s target was Sir He Nanshan!

    The densely-packed blood elementalists took the full brunt of this mighty sword gleam.

    Boom!

    The gigantic, thick, and cold sword gleam crashed into the crowd of blood elementalists.

    Along with soil, broken limbs and flesh sttered on both sides of the moving sword gleam. The sword gleam created a deep trench in the ground. Everywhere it passed by, flesh and blood would fly into the air.

    A bloody path with a width of more than 15 meters was formed in front of Wan Shenwei.

    The sword gleam had pierced through the area in front of them!

    All the blood elementalists in the path of the sword gleam were dead. The surrounding blood elementalists were stunned momentarily. However, in the next moment, they frantically lunged at the Dread Division.

    Various forms of bloody glow sted toward the Dread Division like a torrential downpour.

    Suddenly, Wan Shenwei slightly bent his knees. His soldiers looked as if they had received an order and slightly bent their knees in unison as well.

    They then exhaled together!

    When the 274 men exhaled together, it sounded like a deafening thunderp. Their surging elemental energy undtions gathered and formed a ring-shaped shock wave.

    The surrounding blood elementalists froze, looking as if they had been struck heavily by a rod.

    Like an ancient dire beast that had broken free from its chains, Wan Shenwei and the Dread Division rose into the air and surged toward He Nanshan.

 Chapter 581: The Bloody Battle At The God Encampment (3)

    Chapter 581: The Bloody Battle At The God Encampment (3)

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Before today, He Nanshan was confident that he could defeat anybat division from Beyond Avalon. General Ye had clearly exined to them the characteristics and weaknesses of everybat division from Beyond Avalon. Their daily training sessions were focused on dealing with elementalistbat divisions.

    It wasn¡¯t a fluke for the god divisions and blood divisions to win so many battles in a row. Other than the physical superiority that blood elementalists had over elementalists, the appropriate adjustments and optimizations made by the god and blood divisions also made them stronger. On the contrary, elementalistbat divisions did not have any substantial improvements and were still stuck with their traditional battle tactics and stratagems.

    The only so-called progress they had made was the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s pagoda cannon technology.

    Due to this "progress," the Spear of Heavy Cloud Division was the only elementalistbat division that could win battles against blood elementalistbat divisions.

    The tidal wave of a new era always came silently and without any signs, but in reality, no one could avoid being swept away by it. Those who were sharp would either search for a high mountain and live a life free of worries or drift with the tide and follow the crowd blindly. Those who were stubborn would struggle and drown, eventually disappearing into the depths of the sea.

    He Nanshan strongly believed that the blood elementalists were on the right track. He had absolute confidence in dealing with elementalistbat divisions.

    However, when he faced the terrifying Dread Division, his confidence wavered.

    This was especially the case when Wan Shenwei led the Dread Division into the heavens and surged toward him. He felt as though a mountain was flying toward him and would crush him to smithereens. The terrifying might caused the air around He Nanshan to freeze.

    As the division leader of a god division, He Nanshan did notck strength and courage. Even though he was intimidated by the might of Wan Shenwei and the Dread Division, he was able to regain hisposure quickly.

    He extended his right palm as his eyes suddenly lit up with a faint red glow. Beneath him, the blood elementalists who had remained motionless all this time immediately erupted with a bloody glow. Following which, their bodies projected streaks of bloody glow.

    The faint red glow in He Nanshan¡¯s eyes spun like a whirlpool.

    The air around him became distorted abruptly, resembling an inting air bubble.

    The sh attack of the Dread Divisionnded on the air bubble like a heavy hammer, shattered it, and struck He Nanshan heavily. The attack¡¯s momentum carried it all the way to the blood elementalists beneath He Nanshan.

    Boom!

    An earth-shaking impact caused the soil to fly up more than 30 meters into the air like a fountain.

    Wan Shenwei furrowed his eyebrows slightly and let out a soft gasp of surprise. He felt that the sh attack had not hit the right spot. Even though the scene of soil flying up into the air was spectacr, there seemed to be something wrong with it.

    Subsequently, the soil fell from the sky like raindrops. Other than a horrifyingly deep trench, there weren¡¯t any corpses on the ground.

    Torrential attacks subsequently flew at Wan Shenwei and the Dread Division from all directions.

    Wan Shenwei looked as if he expected to be attacked. Without any hesitation, he led his soldiers and charged forward. The storm of attacks from the blood elementalists missed their targets. Even though the continuous sh attacks from the Dread Division had produced remarkable results, Wan Shenwei did not indulge in the pleasure of massacring the enemy forces. Even though his actions looked rash, his mind was unusually calm. Having been through countless battles, he was able to maintain his rationality andposure in any situation.

    He had not forgotten the original n.

    He did not care about killing He Nanshan or investigating the odd-looking bubble. Along with the Dread Division, he charged and killed his way toward the central camp like an invincible sword.

    In an unremarkable corner of the camp, an enormous blood bubble suddenly rose from a blood pool. Following which, the blood bubble popped and revealed He Nanshan and his subordinates.

    A fearful look appeared on all of their faces at the same time. Even though they managed to escape, they felt as if they had just taken a trip to the gates of hell when they were locked on by the Dread Division.

    He Nanshan heaved a sigh of relief. They had narrowly escaped.

    The Dread Division was unimaginably powerful.

    The confidence he had in the God Spirit Division was derived not only from the usual training sessions, but from the unique structure of the God Spirit Division as well. Among the six god divisions, there were two that were slightly special. One was the God Spirit Division, while the other was the God Shaman Division.

    A god elementalist¡¯s training emphasized an individual¡¯s body constitution and innate skills more so than an elementalist¡¯s. A person¡¯s potential for sess could be determined at the start of his or her training. Among god elementalists, there were many god guards. Compared to the number of god guards, there were much fewer god shamans. The rarest type of god elementalist was the god priest.

    Therefore, in the God Nation, god priests had the highest status, followed by god shamans. God guards had the lowest status.

    He Nanshan was a god priest. His personal escorts were the famous "Lesser Nanshans." The Lesser Nanshans were the only unit in the God Nation that was entirely made up of god priests.

    When he saw the Dread Division charge toward the central camp, he felt happy instead of fearful.

    The central camp was of the utmost importance and would always be the first target of the enemy forces. Therefore, he had set up a huge number of defensive arrangements around the central camp. There wereyers of protection and countless traps set up around it, making it impregnable.

    The Dread Division was really too powerful. However, they wouldn¡¯tst long. The constant depletion of their strength would cause them to reveal their weaknesses.

    God priests were not meant to be sacrificed.

    He and the surrounding god priests descended into the blood pool and disappeared.

    The entire encampment was like a surging sea of blood. Roars resounded everywhere. Some contained insanity, some contained hysteria, and some contained resentment, but all of them contained zeal. Some faces were sinisters, some were solemn, and some were cold, but none of them were without fear. The sttering blood and the res from explosions were equally dazzling. No one avoided the collisions between the gorgeous elemental energy glows and the demonic bloody glows.

    One by one, the blood elementalists fell like reaped wheat.

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s childlike face was cold and emotionless. She pulled and released the bowstring of her small bow with lightning speed.

    No one could see her movements clearly.

    An arrow surrounded by a green glow flew through the densely-packed blood elementalists and appeared at the side of a god priest¡¯s forehead.

    Pop!

    The god priest¡¯s head exploded like a shattered watermelon. The blood elementalists around him were stunned. Following which, they frantically looked for the sniper who had assassinated the god priest.

    Ximen Caijue had long since disappeared from the scene.

    She was like a swift-moving wisp of mist. No one could track her down. The toy-like bow in her hand was like Death itself. It specifically targeted enemymanders, blood elementalists with an Ability of God, and god priests. Until now, the number of enemymanders and blood elementalists with an Ability of God who she had in totaled more than 20 people.

    When an unit of blood elementalists lost their unit leader, their formation would fall into disarray. Even though they still possessed a numerical advantage, the threat they posed was reduced significantly. Blood elementalists with an Ability of God had immense destructive powers, especially when ordinary soldiers were helping them. The most sinister blood elementalists were the seemingly delicate god priests. They were hidden among the crowd, making it very difficult to spot them. Their sudden psychic attacks would cause her soldiers misjudge and make tactical errors. In such an intense battle, where they were severely outnumbered by the enemy forces, tactical errors were enough to cost them their lives.

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s killing efficiency was terrifying, greatly affecting the enemy forces¡¯ operations. Even so, the soldiers of the Judgement Division continued to die one by one. The enemy had far too many men.

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s face was ice-cold. The Judgement Division had never suffered such heavy casualties before, but she wasn¡¯t blinded by anger or grief. They had not invaded the enemy encampment with great difficulty just tomit murder and arson here.

    With her peerless speed and skills, she wasn¡¯t at all worried about being targeted by the enemy forces.

    Soaring high in the sky, she clearly oversaw the entire battlefield.

    The Dread Division was piercing through the enemy forces like an invincible sword while the Judgement Division protected the nks like "wings." With their nks protected, the Dread Division was able to push forward with all its might.

    The elementalist who was in charge of protecting the Dread Division¡¯s left nk was an elemental Master who dual-wielded swords. He was like a high-speed spinning top that destroyed everything in its path.

    Meanwhile, the elementalist protecting the Dread Division¡¯s right nk was surrounded by light streaks. The light streaks moved so fast that they blurred. They resembled a school of nimble-moving fish that swam around the elementalist. Every now and then, a light streak would shoot out and someone from the enemy forces would copse to the ground. These people could only see the blurry tail of a light streak before they died.

    Ring pommel saber, be saber, and iron saber were the three sabers of the Judgement Division.

    Looking down from the sky, she could see that the blood elementalists continued to gather in front of the Dread Division. There were also many ces illuminated by a faint bloody glow. Nothing could escape Ximen Caijue¡¯s sharp eyes. Was it a trap? However, when Ximen Caijue recalled that the enemy leader had hidden himself, her lips curled into a sneer.

    Suddenly, she disappeared.

    The streaks of bloody glow flitted across the position where she had previously been and missed their target.

    The next moment, Ximen Caijue¡¯s high-pitched and cold voice suddenly rang out in the sky above the Judgement Division, "Judgement, [Aerial Seal]!"

    The Judgement Division soldiers heard Ximen Caijue¡¯s order and roared in unison, "Judgement, [Aerial Seal]."

    Following which, a spectacr scene appeared on the battlefield.

    Countless light beams rose into the air from the left and right sides of the Judgement Division and arced toward the sky above the Dread Division. In a sh, a sharp whistle engulfed the battlefield.

    Hiding in one corner of the encampment, a feeling of extreme danger rose in He Nanshan¡¯s heart. However, it was now toote for him to react.

    A petite figure suddenly appeared at the rear of the Judgement Division.

    Twang! Twang! Twang!

    The sound of a bowstring being pulled and loosed echoed throughout the encampment.

    Three green arrows pierced through the countless light beams in the sky. The chaotic light beams suddenly gave off a buzz before forming an enormous disk. Within the disk, there wereplicated-looking veins. The disk, which resembled a gigantic seal that was carved with utmost care,nded on the densely-packed blood elementalists in front of the Dread Division.

    At this moment, time seemed to freeze.

    Then, intertwining cracks appeared on the bodies of the blood elementalists within the glimmering seal.

    Pffff!

    There was a very soft sound of blood spurting, yet an extremely horrifying and gory scene unfolded before everyone¡¯s eyes. Blood fountained out of the cracks on the blood elementalists¡¯ bodies like a water jet. The few thousand people in the glimmering seal were dismembered piecemeal by the razor-sharp elemental energy.

    Like statues that had been sundered, the body parts of those few thousand people fell to the ground as ake of blood began to pool.

    This scene, reminiscent of the river Acheron, rendered the surrounding blood elementalists dumbstruck. A momentary dead silence swept across the enormous encampment. The blood elementalists had been through countless battles, but had never seen such a gory, frightening, and hellish scene before.

    The Dread Division seized this opportunity and advanced a few hundred meters.

    They were getting closer to the central camp!

    He Nanshan was stunned. However, his mind jolted, and he quickly yelled, "Protect the camp! Stop them!"

    Currently, he no longer wanted to withhold the fact that his n had beenpletely foiled by the Dread Division¡¯s earth-shaking offensive. Could he hold back the Dread Division? He was not sure and did not dare to think about it. All he could do was keep on sending soldiers to stop them.

    Ximen Caijue locked onto He Nanshan. However, she had expended too much energy to execute the [Aerial Seal] just now. Furthermore, He Nanshan was heavily guarded as well. Her gaze shifted to the battlefield. The [Aerial Seal] had not only expended a huge amount of her energy, it had also caused the Judgement Division to suffer heavy losses. In the blink of an eye, more than 10 soldiers had been sacrificed.

    Ximen Caijue remained calm. The merciful couldn¡¯t takemand of an army. Deaths were bound to happen on the battlefield. Furthermore, this mission was supposed to be perilous. Dying was considered normal while surviving was considered fortunate.

    A good leader, however, had to make sure the sacrifices were meaningful.

    When she saw that the blood elementalists who had surrounded the central camp were now surging toward the Dread Division like a tsunami, her eyes lit up.

    She had aplished her goal!

    After regaining some of her strength, she entered the battle again.

 Chapter 582: Hostage

    Chapter 582: Hostage

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Everyone¡¯s attention was caught by the frantically advancing Dread and Judgement divisions. They had never seen such an unstoppable offensive. He Nanshan had tried various methods, but still could not stop their advance. The central camp was facing imminent danger!

    At this point in time, every blood elementalist could only think of one thing. They must not let the enemy forces reach the central camp!

    If they could not think of a solution, they had to sacrifice their lives to hinder the Dread and Judgement divisions¡¯ progress.

    All out!

    The immense pressure caused the blood elementalists to make deadly mistakes. The blood elementalists who previously provided strict security at the other end of the central camp were now heading toward the position of the Dread Division to provide reinforcement, leaving only a few units back there to stand guard.

    An unnoticeable wisp of ck smoke silently drifted into the central camp through an unguarded area.

    The central camp did not consist of just one tent. It was a circr area where rows of tents were set up. The central camp was where Ye Baiyi spent his daily life, where meetings took ce, etc. Nowadays, many tents were upied by Nangong Wulian. He had brought a lot of equipment and various ingredients with him.

    In an isted corner, the wisp of ck smoke touched the ground and Song Yan and Tie Dao appeared. Both of them had changed into the attire of a blood elementalistmander.

    Both of them looked at each other excitedly.

    In the central camp, the Beast Venom Temple¡¯s god priests were like a bunch of headless flies that were frightened easily. Their faces were filled with panic and fear. Usually, they lived like kings in the Beast Venom Temple. Since when had they ever been in such a situation? All of their legs became like wet noodles as their faces became pale-white.

    Nangong Wulian also felt very anxious, but when he saw his subordinates¡¯ behavior, he chided them, "What are all of you panicking for?! Humph, the number of men that the Dread and Judgement Divisions have is so few that they will burn out very soon. As long as they don¡¯t break through the defensive line, we are safe."

    On the surface, he appeared strong-willed, but deep down he regretteding to the front line.

    However, he could not defy His Majesty¡¯s order. After thinking about it, he could only me himself. He shouldn¡¯t have sought credit from His Majesty at that time.

    The roars and sounds of battles from outside set off his fear and trepidation.

    Suddenly, he discovered that his surroundings were empty. There were no blood elementalist guards around him, which immediately enraged him. "Where is everyone? Where have they gone? Howe there is no one protecting me?"

    One of his subordinates hesitated for a while before replying, "Sir, you have instructed them not to get close to this tent."

    It was at this point that Nangong Wulian remembered what had happened. He felt the patrolling soldiers were too noisy and that they were disturbing him from doing his research. Therefore, he had set this ce as forbidden area.

    He allowed only a few soldiers to guard the central camp. He Nanshan and his counterparts were allowed to enter the central camp only if they had something urgent to report to Nangong Wulian.

    The invasion came too abruptly and too aggressively. He Nanshan and his counterparts had been struggling under the immense pressure that the Dread and Judgement division exerted. They could not execute the usual reactionary n and had no time to worry about the central camp.

    Nangong Wulian felt more and more uneasy. With a stern voice, he said, "Go and find someone to protect me! Tell He Nanshan that if anything happens to me, His Majesty will sentence him and his family to death!"

    The few god priests quickly appeased Nangong Wulian and left the tent in a hurry.

    .

    Not far away, Song Yan and Tie Dao were searching the central camp. They were surprised at how empty the central camp was. Previously, they were still worried that the enemy forces had set up a vacant central camp to trick them. However, when they heard the words, "Go and find someone to protect me," their eyes lit up.

    The two of them looked each other in eyes. With perfect coordination, they silently crept in the direction of the voice.

    Subsequently, they saw Nangong Wulian. Previously, they had already memorized the face of Nangong Wulian. Therefore, they could recognize him with a single nce. Both of them were overjoyed as they had not expected their mission to proceed so smoothly.

    Nangong Wulian was panting heavily. The sounds of battles were getting closer to him. The feeling of fear in his heart was growing stronger as well. He felt like he was a fish that had been thrown ashore and was having more and more difficulty breathing properly.

    That goddamned He Nanshan!

    Nangong Wulian had to survive and teach him a lesson! How dare He Nanshan fail to send people to protect me!"

    Suddenly, the head of his subordinate dropped to the ground in front of him as blood spurted out of the severed neck like a fountain.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s pupils dted. He wanted to scream, but couldn¡¯t do so as a chilly tinge flowed down his neck. The sharp de of a sword made of all his hair stand on end. Then, a ghost-like voice came from behind his back, "If I was you, I would keep my mouth shut."

    The scream that was about to leave his mouth became a whimper.

    Nangong Wulian¡¯s face was pale-white. He feared that a slight movement of the other party¡¯s fingers would cost him his life.

    "Where is Ye Baiyi?"

    Even though he couldn¡¯t see who the other party was, his voice was so cold that it resembled the voice of a devil from hell.

    Nangong Wulian swallowed his saliva with difficulty and pointed shakingly to thergest tent, "He... He is there."

    Song Yan held Nangong Wulian at swordpoint and walked toward the tent. Tie Dao grasped a broadsword with a vignt look on his face.

    As they walked into the tent, Song Yan and Tie Dao¡¯s facial expressions changed. Ye Baiyi was lying unconscious in an ice coffin that emitted traces of cold air. However, his deep and terrifying heartbeat made him appear like a huge dragon that was hibernating.

    Even if a huge dragon was in a deep slumber, one could not ignore its might.

    "What¡¯s the situation with Ye Baiyi? When is he going to wake up?" Song Yan asked.

    Nangong Wulian whimpered, "I don¡¯t know when he will wake up either... Grant me amnesty and I am willing to pay any price and will surrender to you. As long as you give me amnesty, I will join Skyheart City. I am the pce master of the Beast Venom Temple. I have conducted a wide range of research, and you will definitely be interested in them..."

    Nangong Wulian stopped talking all of a sudden. His eyes were wide open as he couldn¡¯t believe what had just happened. He wanted to talk, but only a muffled and incoherent sound came out of his mouth.

    His neck had been sliced open. Blood gushed out of his neck as immense pain flooded him like a tidal wave.

    He really couldn¡¯t believe what had just happened. He was the pce master of the Beast Venom Temple and possessed so many secrets. How could they bear to kill him? Were they not interested in the secrets of the God Nation? He still had so many research results...

    Why...

    These mad men...

    Song Yan casually threw Nangong Wulian¡¯s corpse to the ground.

    "One hostage is enough," he said emotionlessly.

    "All right," Tie Dao replied.

    A ss bamboo vial appeared in Song Yan¡¯s hand. He crushed it and poured the snowva over Nangong Wulian¡¯s corpse. mes quickly rose from the snowva and devoured Nangong Wulian¡¯s corpse. In the blink of an eye, his corpse was reduced to nothing but ashes.

    Tie Dao then dug up the charred soil and threw it into a blood pool.

    This incursion was a perfect start, but it was only the beginning of the entire war. The Beast Venom Temple¡¯s countless methods had stricken fear in them. A slight moment of carelessness would result in devastating consequences.

    By destroying Nangong Wulian¡¯s corpse in this manner, the enemy forces would not know whether he was alive or dead. Plus, Ye Baiyi would be in their hands. Nangong Wulian¡¯s value in this war paled inparison to Ye Baiyi¡¯s. Whether Nangong Wulian was dead or alive, his impact on the front line blood elementalists wasn¡¯t huge. However, with Ye Baiyi in their hands, the blood elementalists at the front line would definitely descend into chaos.

    Ye Baiyi had an unrivaled impact on the blood elementalistbat divisions. He had single-handedly formed the six god divisions and the twelve blood divisions. His prestige among the blood elementalists was matchless. Not even Red Devil¡¯s reputation could bepared to his.

    As long as they could take down Ye Baiyi, the tides would shift in this lopsided war.

    Neither of them let their guard down. Tie Dao swung his broadsword heavily on the ice coffin. The ice coffin shattered with a loud bang, and Ye Baiyi fell to the ground. Tie Dao carefully ced his sword against Ye Baiyi¡¯s neck, but Ye Baiyi remained unconscious and motionless.

    At this moment, they could hear hurried footsteps getting closer to them. They immediately picked up Ye Baiyi and ran in the opposite direction of the tent.

    The blood elementalists who rushed over were Ye Baiyi¡¯s personal guards. When they saw the empty tent, their facial expressions changed drastically.

    Then, they saw an opening on the other side of the tent.

    "Chase them!" the leader of the personal guards yelled anxiously.

    He Nanshan was under immense pressure since their defensive line was thinning. There were a few times that Ximen Caijue¡¯s cold arrows almost struck him, and it had been the two experts beside him that warded off the arrows. One was dead while the other was severely injured.

    Before today, he had never thought that there existed such a terrifyingbat division in the world.

    Even though the blood elementalists outnumbered the elementalists 15 times over, He Nanshan had never once obtained the upper hand. The enemy forces had taken control of the rhythm of the battle. Whether it was the level of the leadership or the level of the soldiers, they had beenpletely outssed by the enemy forces.

    Suddenly, the Dread and Judgement divisions changed directions, as if they wanted to attack from another angle.

    "Defend!" He Nanshan roared at the top of his lungs.

    Countless blood elementalists gathered to form a thick defensive line, preparing to withstand the onught of the Dread and Judgement divisions.

    However, no one expected for these two divisions to suddenly turn around and retreat.

    All the blood elementalists were stunned before cheering at the top of their lungs. They had defeated the enemy forces! Even though the enemy forces barely had 1,000 soldiers, the suffocating pressure they exerted was able to destabilize any defensive line. When the Dread and Judgement divisions retreated, the physically and mentally exhausted blood elementalists felt as if they had won a battle. One could tell how much pressure the Dread and Judgement divisions had given them.

    He Nanshan¡¯s facial expression changed drastically, however, as he felt a strong sense of unease.

    "It¡¯s not good! General Ye and Sir Nangong have been kidnapped by the enemy!"

    He Nanshan nearly cked out as he almost fell to the ground. His brain buzzed loudly, resembling someone who had been punched in the temple. His face was deathly pale. The fact that General Ye and Sir Nangong had been kidnapped under his nose would definitely earn him a death sentence!

    An intense fear engulfed his mind. Not only him but all the officers around him had their faces turned pale at this moment.

    He Nanshan bit the tip of his tongue, causing a sweet bloody taste to pervade his mouth. The pain calmed him down. "Chase them!"

    He knew if he didn¡¯t save General Ye and Sir Nangong, they would not need to return to the God Nation anymore. Dying on the battlefield would not implicate their family members, but if they returned to the God Nation now, they would be trialed as sinners and their families would also be charged.

    At this point, he threw all his worries to the back of his mind.

    Everyone knew that this was the time for them to go all-out. This was the only chance for them to survive. No, it wasn¡¯t a chance for them to survive, but rather, a chance for them to redeem themselves. The fear instilled by the Dread and Judgement division just now hadpletely vanished. Currently, they were in dire straits.

 Chapter 583: Reunion

    Chapter 583: Reunion

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The Surveince Division camp.

    Xiao Shan was packing his luggage. Suddenly, someone knocked on his door. Without turning around, he answered, "Come in."

    It was Xiao Lin. He looked at Xiao Shan with aplicated expression on his face.

    The two of them were extremely familiar with each other. Xiao Shan knew it was Xiao Lin without even turning around. He continued to pack his luggage and asked, "Are you here to send me off?"

    With a heavy heart, Xiao Lin replied, "You¡¯re going to the front line soon, so how could I not send you off?"

    After fastening thest rope of his luggage, Xiao Shan turned around and replied inly, "I am merely going to the front line. It¡¯s not like we are never going to see each other again."

    Xiao Lin did not reply to Xiao Shan. It was ominous to talk about death when one was packing his or her luggage. He changed the topic and said, "Sir will not being to send you off. He said that since all of you have decided to go the front line, fight with all your might and don¡¯t be cowards."

    Xiao Shan had already expected that the Division Leader wouldn¡¯t personally send him off. He replied calmly, "Of course we won¡¯t. Tell him that I¡¯m really sorry for implicating him this time around."

    The more Xiao Shan appeared calm, the more uneasy Xiao Lin felt. He very much missed the time spent in the Old Territory. Even though they led an arduous life back then, they were like a big family without any barriers between each other.

    The current Surveince Division had be divided. The harmonious and united atmosphere no longer existed.

    "How many people are going with you?" Xiao Lin asked.

    "352," Xiao Shan replied with an exact number.

    Xiao Lin remained speechless. The Surveince Division had a total of 1,500 troops. Now they were only left with 1148 soldier. Nearly one-third of them chose to follow Xiao Shan to the front line.

    They were utterly disappointed in Nian Tingfeng.

    Xiao Lin had a lot of words to say, but the moment they reached his mouth, they simply became just one sentence, "Make sure they survive."

    When Xiao Shan heard this sentence, the calm look on his face disappeared and was reced by a solemn look.

    "I will try my best. You should know that I am not really good in war-rted matters, so I can¡¯t promise you that."

    "No one can make any promises now." Xiao Lin shook his head.

    "Everyone is well aware of the situation. All of them just want to die at the right ce. The best elite unit in the world shouldn¡¯t die at home," Xiao Shan replied.

    Xiao Lin felt extremely ashamed. He opened his mouth, but no words came out.

    Xiao Shan patted his shoulder.

    "I¡¯m leaving now."

    .....

    The war banner of the Spear of Heavy Cloud Division became the most eye-catching symbol for thebat divisions that had retreated from the front line. Fearing that they would be plundered by the Lightning Razor, all of them carried the war banner of the Spear of Heavy Cloud in every city they traveled through.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s war banner became the war banner that everyone was most familiar with.

    After entering the Wilderness, the number ofbat divisions had been declining. There was no other singrbat division that had its war banner appear in so many cities, and this phenomena was discussed many people.

    After receiving Iron Lady¡¯s letter, Ai Hui immediately knew her intentions.

    He no longer cared about thebat divisions that he encountered along the way and headed for the defensive line at the Windy Pearl Bridge at full speed.

    The size of the Fish Bone was toorge, so its flying speed wasn¡¯t that fast. Besides this, Ai Hui also had to do something with the abundance of resources they now had.

    The Fish Bone bustled with activity.

    Under Lou Lan¡¯s leadership, countless cksmiths were forging the bases for pagoda cannons, refining snowva, and making various mechanicalponents. Theseponents would be used to modify and improve the Fish Bone.

    Back in the day, when Ai Hui and Lou Lan were constructing the Fish Bone, theycked manpower and had to deploy the children living in the Central Pine Valley. Now that they had enough manpower and resources, they could fulfill Ai Hui¡¯s original design for the Fish Bone, which had been previously upleted.

    The current Fish Bone was an ugly and simple prototype. Other than flying and some defensive capabilities, it had no other functions.

    These mechanicalponents would allow the Fish Bone to be more powerful and exquisite.

    .....

    Nowadays, Ke Ning was extremely busy. After joining the Spear of Heavy Cloud, he had been tasked with an important responsibility. Shi Xueman felt that he was a talent and let him travel around as a new recruit to contact those elementalists who wanted to seek revenge.

    Ke Ning was originally a division leader. After hisbat division was decimated, he wasn¡¯t willing to return and pledged to seek revenge. His background and experience allowed him to bond with the other survivors who wanted to seek revenge as well.

    He had contacted a batch of survivors to settle the preparations for the establishment of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    Shi Xueman had explicitly told Ke Ning that the Spear of Heavy Cloud hadpleted its recruiting process and that the newly established Pagoda Cannon Alliance would be entirely led by Ai Hui. Ke Ning¡¯s mission was to pave the way first.

    However, Ke Ning felt this was the most troublesome issue.

    Ke Ning believed that if Shi Xueman had been the one who established the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, the survivors would not hesitate to join. However, when they heard that Ai Hui was the founder, they became hesitant.

    Nowadays, Ai Hui was an absolutely infamous individual. "The Lightning Razor" was his new nickname.

    It was hard to get people to believe in someone who was plundering innocent people at such a critical moment.

    Ke Ning had put in a lot of effort, but the oue was still undesirable. Those survivors begged him to ask Division Leader Shi for a favor and to let them join the Spear of Heavy Cloud Division.

    Ke Ning had mentioned this issue to Division Leader Shi a few times, but was mercilessly rejected by her every time.

    He had long heard that Division Leader Shi and Ai Hui were lovers. Now, he was 100 percent certain that this was definitely not a rumor. The thing that stunned him the most was that Division Leader Shi transferred him to the Pagoda Cannon Alliance just so that he could focus on the preparations for the establishment of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    This implied that, from now on, Ke Ning no longer belonged to the Spear of Heavy Cloud, but rather, to the currently empty Pagoda Cannon Alliance!

    Ke Ning felt like he had been struck by a lightning bolt.

    He finally recovered after being depressed for a few days.

    However, this blow had helped him a lot with his task. Those people who begged Ke Ning felt guilty over his transfer to the Pagoda Cannon Alliance and decided to join the alliance. Some people felt that Ke Ning was a loyal and trustworthy individual, so they felt that following Ke Ning to fight against the blood elementalists wasn¡¯t a bad idea after all.

    Unknowingly, the Pagoda Cannon Alliance that Ke Ning was preparing had grown to around 800 people. Right now, they were waiting for the arrival of Ai Hui, but generally speaking, none of them felt excited.

    Suddenly, someone rushed into the room and yelled, "He has arrived, he has arrived! The Lightning Razor is here!"

    Everyone, who had been resting, rushed out of the room. No matter what, Ai Hui was directly linked to their future. With regards to Ai Hui¡¯s leadership, some were indifferent, some were unhappy, and some were hopeful. However, no matter what attitudes they had, they could not ignore Ai Hui¡¯s existence.

    As the colossal Fish Bone gradually approached, an absolute silence descended upon the entire encampment.

    Everyone¡¯s mouths fell open as they stared at the sky with nk looks on their faces.

    Everyone was used to seeing the God-subduing Peaks. After all, the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s camp wasn¡¯t far away, and they could see the two God-subduing Peaks every day. However, when an enormous mountain that was a few times bigger than a God-subduing Peak approached them, they were awed by its repressing aura.

    Everybat division that stood in the path of the Lightning Razor had had all their resources and manpower seized. As such, there had already been many discussions on the oversized God-subduing Peak analog. The blueprints for the God-subduing Peaks were the Elders Guild¡¯s absolutely ssified information. Given the rtionship between Skyheart City and the Central Pine Valley, the former would definitely not give these blueprints to to thetter.

    Looking at the Fish Bone, one could tell that Ai Hui had a deep understanding of elemental traces. One could also tell that the Central Pine Valley¡¯s wealth was far greater than what everyone had expected. The cost of building a God-subduing Peak was huge. Since it wasrger than a God-subduing Peak, the cost of building the Fish Bone was definitely sky-high

    After a while, surprised gasps broke out in the encampment.

    "It¡¯s really huge!"

    "So this is the Fish Bone? I heard the Central Pine Valley is part of it as well!"

    "It is a colossus!"

    The doubt in everyone¡¯s eyes had disappeared. The Fish Bone, which was evenrger than a God-subduing Peak, was a stark symbol of strength. No one who saw it doubted the destructive power that it possessed. Being the person who had designed and built it, Ai Hui¡¯s image in everyone¡¯s heart had improved significantly.

    Ke Ning¡¯s eyes lit up. How many pagoda cannons could be deployed on such a gigantic mountain!

    When he thought of equipping the Fish Bone with numerous pagoda cannons and transforming it into a pagoda cannon porcupine, his blood raced through his veins.

    Things that were massive in size would always give people a sense of power and security. When Ke Ning saw such a gigantic entity hovering above his head, he felt much more at ease.

    Shi Xueman and the rest had already reached the Fish Bone.

    They examined it and clicked their tongues in wonder. Every now and then, they would touch it to get a feel for it. Previously, when they heard that Ai Hui was heading to the front line, they were worried about what was going to happen to the Central Pine Valley. They had not expected for him to bring the entire Central Pine Valley and ckfish Mouth Volcano over.

    Everyone tacitly left Ai Hui and Shi Xueman alone.

    Both of them sat on a huge boulder at the peak of ckfish Mouth Volcano as they looked at the soaring wind canopy of the distant Windy Pearl Bridge. This sight was extremely spectacr.

    "Your injury hasn¡¯t healed yet?" Shi Xueman nced at Ai Hui and asked.

    "I have no solutions for the time being." Ai Hui nced back at Shi Xueman. He had an unusually sharp perception, furrowed his eyebrows, grasped Shi Xueman¡¯s hand, and asked, "Are you injured?"

    Shi Xueman was slightly panicked when Ai Hui held her hand. She tried to force herself to stay calm.

    Humph, what was there to be panicked about?

    She quickly regained herposure and felt a warmthing from the bandages that covered the hand which was holding her palm.

    Ai Hui nodded his head and said, "Oh, you can¡¯t get rid of the impurities that were caused by forcibly absorbing natural elemental energies into your body. This is indeed troublesome."

    "I already have a solution. It¡¯s effective, but it will take some time," Shi Xueman replied.

    "Let me see if there are any better solutions." Ai Hui then changed the topic, "You have done a great job with thest few battles, especially the one against the Ardent Flower Blood Division. That one is a ssic."

    "Really? It is difficult to hear praise from your mouth."

    "Of course. If you had fought even better, I would not have toe."

    "Haha, it¡¯s not good for the debtor to sleep while the creditor is busting her ass off."

    "The debtor is always the boss, and a boss gets sleepy easily."

    "When are you paying back the money?"

    "Wow, the texture of your hand is quite good."

    "Why are you still holding my hand?"

    "I am checking your injury."

    "Have you finished checking?"

    "We have to be prudent with injuries. Come, let me see your other hand."

 Chapter 584: Treatment

    Chapter 584: Treatment

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    He had not touched her hands in vain.

    Both of them sat cross-legged facing each other. With his head lowered, Ai Hui¡¯s left hand held Shi Xueman¡¯s right hand and his right hand grasped the hilt of his sword. Small, fragmented lightning streaks swam around his body. Every now and then, a cracking sound would pop off.

    Opposite him, Shi Xueman¡¯s eyes were tightly shut, her face was flushed, and traces of mist rose from her body.

    Ai Hui¡¯s solution wasn¡¯t veryplicated. He directed the sword cloud in his body to Shi Xueman¡¯s five residences and eight pces. The lightning attribute of the sword cloud could remove elemental energy.

    This solution carried a very huge risk as well as side effects.

    First, it required Shi Xueman to be totally rxed. In such a state, the elemental energy in her body would not reject Ai Hui¡¯s sword cloud, allowing the sword cloud to enter her five residences and eight pces. Second, Ai Hui needed to have precise control over his sword cloud. Only by having meticulous control over his sword cloud could he then remove the impurities without damaging Shi Xueman¡¯s five residences and eight pces.

    The side effect was that the lightning from Ai Hui¡¯s sword cloud would not only remove the remnant impurities, but would also remove some of Shi Xueman¡¯s water elemental energy. This would cause her five residences and eight pces to degenerate.

    However, at this point in time, such small side effects were insignificant. Shi Xueman was already a Master. It was not very difficult for her to strengthen her five residences and eight pces. Furthermore, with Lou Lan¡¯s customized elemental soup, she could quickly and fully recover after spending some time cultivating.

    Like a white wall that was identally smeared with other colors, Ai Hui¡¯s solution was to remove the entireyer of paint on the wall and repaint it white again.

    Even Shi Xueman was surprised by Ai Hui¡¯s solution of using a minor injury to heal a major injury. Frequently, she wanted to pry open this fellow¡¯s skull to see what was inside. How could he alwayse up with so many weird ideas? Ai Hui¡¯s ideas were always illogical, leaving people bbergasted. At the same time, they were awe-inspiring.

    Without a doubt, this was a good solution.

    Of course, other people couldn¡¯t think of this solution since they weren¡¯t like Ai Hui, who could control the sword cloud and the lightning streaks with great precision.

    Shi Xueman was a decisive individual. Without any hesitation, she agreed to this idea.

    Even though the remnant impurities were very difficult to remove, the severity of their corrosion on her five residences and eight pces wasn¡¯t high.

    Shi Xueman was very curious about what exactly Ai Hui would do.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sword cloud was a soft cloud. It engulfed Shi Xueman¡¯s water elemental energy and caused her to carry out Circtory Cycle Revolutions automatically.

    To Shi Xueman¡¯s surprise, this soft sword cloud did not affect her control over elemental energy. This was the first time she had encountered such a freakish phenomenon.

    Ai Hui, this fellow, was simply filled with entricity.

    As her body carried out Circtory Cycle Revolutions, the impurities that corroded her five residences and eight pces were slowly removed. The sword cloud was extremely sharp like a razor. It shaved away Shi Xueman¡¯s corroded elemental energy as well.

    To Shi Xueman, this was a test of willpower.

    Time silently passed.

    "All right, it¡¯s done," Ai Hui¡¯s voice was hoarse.

    Shi Xueman opened her eyes. Opposite her, Ai Hui was drenched in sweat with his body on the verge of copse.

    "Are you okay?" Shi Xueman was worried.

    "I will be fine after taking a break," Ai Hui¡¯s voice disyed his weariness.

    Shi Xueman suddenly stood up, picked up Ai Hui, and carried him in her arms.

    The tottering Ai Hui widened his eyes abruptly. With a terrified voice, he said, "Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing! Let me down! Quickly let me down!"

    Shi Xueman turned a deaf ear to Ai Hui and replied, "You can¡¯t even move your fingers right now."

    Even though Ai Hui was a shameless individual, his face still burned with embarrassment when a girl carried him in her arms. Out of humiliation, he raged, "Hey, hey, hey, you are an ungrateful girl! Quickly let me down! I can walk on my own!"

    "Don¡¯t worry, no one is looking," Shi Xueman replied casually.

    At that moment, the door p of the tent suddenly flipped open. Dazzling sunlight shone into the tent.

    Shi Xueman froze. Ai Hui froze.

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun, who were here to invite Ai Hui and Shi Xueman over for a meeting, stood at the entrance with bbergasted looks on their faces. They widened their eyes, unable to believe what they were seeing. Time and space seemed to have frozen at this moment.

    Sang Zhijun stammered, "What... What are the both of you doing..."

    Jiang Wei pulled Sang Zhijun away and left the tent. Without turning around, he said, "Continue what you were doing. We never saw anything."

    Shi Xueman felt her face burning. She wished she could find a hole and hide in it. What had just happened?

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes as wide as the eyes of a cow. At this moment, he felt as if 10,000 cows had just trampled over him. He felt like dying!

    Thump.

    Shi Xueman threw Ai Hui onto the bed like a bup bag.

    Ai Hui felt a wave of pain sweep through his body and blurted out, "Ouch!

    The blushing Shi Xueman escaped in a panic.

    "Hey, hey, hey, how can you treat your benefactor like this? Hey, hey, hey! Come back! Let¡¯s talk about it first. How much money do I owe you this time..."

    Ai Hui¡¯s yelling almost made Shi Xueman go back to give him a good beating.

    With a bright-red face, she gritted her teeth and ran off.

    This affection was brief. Of course, whether or not they were affectionate would have to depend on the person who was looking at them. Everyone saw things ording to their own perspective. In everyone else¡¯s eyes, they were considered affectionate when they were not fighting. Only Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun knew that there was more to it when they saw them.

    The current situation was dire. Everyone had responsibilities and numerous daily tasks.

    The next morning, Ai Hui was awakened by Lou Lan¡¯s energetic shout.

    "Everyone, meal time!"

    Ai Hui felt the entire Fish Bone shaking. Cheers could be hearding from every nook and cranny of the Fish Bone. Lou Lan¡¯s cheerful voice made everyone realize how beautiful this world was.

    After checking his body, Ai Hui was surprised to find his body wasn¡¯t damaged much.

    As for Iron Lady¡¯s injury, she would be fully healed after a few more sessions. When Ai Hui thought of this, he felt slightly pleased with himself. Such a troublesome injury was easily taken care of in his hands!

    Nowadays, he was already used to his weak and delicate body. Indeed, he had to face the reality sooner orter.

    Crying and whining wouldn¡¯t solve the problem.

    As he walked out from his tent, the warm and cozy sunlight shone on his body. Filled with contentment, Ai Hui stretched out. When he saw some people crying piteously for food, he was stunned. Almost all the core members of the Spear of Cloud Division were here, and they were looking nkly at Lou Lan.

    When Lou Lan saw Ai Hui, his eyes lit up. Immediately, he took a bowl of elemental soup and dashed over to Ai Hui, "Ai Hui, it¡¯s meal time!"

    Under everyone¡¯s jealous gaze, Ai Hui grinned and felt extremely pleased with himself. "Thank you, Lou Lan."

    Ai Hui bluntly took the bowl of elemental soup, downed it in one gulp, and wiped his mouth. He still wanted more, but he currently couldn¡¯t drink that much elemental soup. After his five residences and eight pces were destroyed, the elemental energy system within his body waspletely warped. Without the five residences and eight pces, he couldn¡¯t absorb the huge amount of elemental energy in the elemental soup.

    "Eh, why is everyone here?" Ai Hui asked.

    Everyone rolled their eyes at him and continued wolfing down the elemental soup.

    "Lou Lan belongs to everyone!" someone yelled.

    Immediately, amotion broke out.

    Everyone drooled when they thought of Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup. None of them could restrain themselves and began to refill their bowls. Currently, the Fish Bone had an abundance of ingredients. They were no longer poverty-stricken like in the past. The elemental soup was now free-flowing. As long as one could digest and absorb the elemental energy in the elemental soup, he or she could drink as much as he or she wanted.

    Being unable to absorb the elemental energy in the elemental soup wasn¡¯t as simple as a digestion problem caused by overeating. The umted elemental energy would negatively impact one¡¯s body.

    Ai Hui chuckled and did not raise any objections. He looked around and asked, "Where¡¯s Iron Lady?"

    "Xueman said she is busy today and will not being," Lou Lan replied.

    Ai Hui rubbed his chin and thought of the scene yesterday. He felt slightly regretful and sighed. Why had he not flirted with her more when he had the chance to do so yesterday? He really shouldn¡¯t have cared so much about losing face. He had to be thick-skinned like Fatty.

    "A¡¯hui! A¡¯hui!" Fatty ran toward him excitedly.

    Ai Hui shuddered. Had he identally spoken out his thoughts? He coughed softly and tried to maintain hisposure. Then, he examined Fatty with a melodramatic look on his face and said, "Not bad, Fatty. You have be a Master. I underestimated you in the past."

    All along, Fatty wanted to show off to Ai Hui. When he heard Ai Hui¡¯s words, he felt extremely pleased with himself, but did not disy it. Instead, he replied with a solemn tone, "I can¡¯t always embarrass you. Come,e, let me show you my Beehive Heavy Cannon! Don¡¯t be surprised when you see it!"

    Ai Hui was also filled with curiosity regarding Fatty¡¯s Beehive Heavy Cannon. Even though the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon was created by Ai Hui, it was poprized and brought to greater prominence in Fatty¡¯s hands. Even Ai Hui was shocked by Fatty¡¯s transformation.

    Ai Hui was looking forward to the pagoda cannon created by the first ever Pagoda Cannon Master.

    When Ai Hui saw the Beehive Heavy Cannon, his eyes lit up. "Interesting, Fatty."

    "Of course." Fatty smirked.

    As Ai Hui walked around the Beehive Heavy Cannon and examined it, his eyes became increasingly bright. From many aspects of the Beehive Heavy Cannon, he could tell that Fatty¡¯s understanding of pagoda cannons had exceeded the original scope of the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons.

    Li Houtang stood at one side and looked at Ai Hui with disdain.

    He was an old-school individual and wasn¡¯t used to seeing Ai Hui¡¯s "weird appearance." Li Houtang was someone who valued reputation a lot. The nickname "Lightning Razor Ai" made him dislike Ai Hui even more.

    Li Houtang felt that Ai Hui had created the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons through luck.

    Afterpletely circling around the Beehive Heavy Cannon, Ai Hui spoke with a pompous tone, "There are no major problems. It looks rather good. The work of a Master is indeed extraordinary."

    Getting praised by Ai Hui made Fatty beam involuntarily. He replied joyfully, "How can I not improve after spending so much time with you. Feel free to tell me any areas that need to be improved. I am a humble man. Hahaha!"

    Thest tinge of apprehension in Fatty¡¯s heart disappeared. If Ai Hui had not taken a look at it, Fatty would still be uncertain. Since Ai Hui said there were no major problems, then there definitely were no major problems. Fatty trusted Ai Hui with all his heart. Even if he had be a Master, he still trusted Ai Hui like before.

    Speaking of bing a Pagoda Cannon Master, Fatty still did not understand what happened back then.

    Li Houtang was annoyed as he snorted, "There aren¡¯t any major problems? So you are saying there are some minor problems then? Sir Ai Hui, please give us one or two pointers."

    Ai Hui shot a nce at Li Houtang. He did not remember provoking this old fellow before, but why had he been given such an annoyed look?

    He waved his hand at Blind He, who was standing to one side, and said "Old He,e and take a look."

 Chapter 585: The Dread Divisionâ€™s Plan

    Chapter 585: The Dread Division¡¯s n

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Li Houtang gazed doubtfully at Blind He. From what he could see, the young man before him was very feeble and even blind.

    How could a blind person be a weaponsmith?

    Li Houtang had been a weaponsmith for many years and had never heard of a blind man bing one.

    Blind He kept quiet. He extended his palm, and the eye in the center opened up suddenly, emitting a beam of light. Like a solid light ray, it swept across the Beehive Heavy Cannons one by one. The light ray disappeared, and the eye on his palm closed.

    Li Houtang opened his eyes wide in shock. He had never seen such a strange inheritance.

    Blind He¡¯s current standard was far beyond that of when Ai Hui first found him. Just by looking at the items he forged, one could feel the power contained within. From the initial Cluster White mes to the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon, from the Sword Pagoda to the Pinwheel Sword, from Pearblossom Dazzling Silver to the Unity Sword and the Fishbone, his scope of knowledge had only been increasing while his abilities skyrocketed.

    Blind He flicked his finger gently, causing a peanut sized speck of light to fly out.

    The speck of light flew to the front of the Beehive Heavy Cannon¡¯s tube, transforming into an eye-catching light hoop.

    Blind He said faintly, "Cut from here."

    While Li Houtang felt that the eye in Blind He¡¯s palm was really strange, Blind He¡¯s words angered him. He had never heard of such a careless and baseless modification suggestion!

    His anger turned toughter. "And why¡¯s that?"

    Blind He acted as if he had not heard him. He was an arrogant person to begin with who only smiled when facing Lou Lan. He did obey Ai Hui¡¯s instructions, albeit with a cold face.

    As for Li Houtang¡¯s question... who was this fellow?

    Fatty had utter confidence in Blind He¡¯s abilities. He hurriedly ask, "How do we cut it, Old He?"

    Blind He snorted and flicked his finger.

    With a ng like the sound of a chime, the front portion of the cannon barrel fell onto the ground. The incision was smooth and seamless.

    Li Houtang¡¯s eyes opened wide once again. The Beehive Heavy Cannon¡¯s barrel wasn¡¯t easy to make. It had to be of extremely high quality in order to endure the high temperature snowva. It was a cannon barrel that he had created after racking his brain for a long time.

    Yet, it shattered like fragile ss in Blind He¡¯s hands.

    Fatty, unable to endure any longer, had already started to prop the Beehive Heavy Cannon up.

    The internal beehive chamber was flushed red as it buzzed rapidly.

    Bzzzz.

    Red light beams sprayed out continuously, agitating Fatty. The Beehive Heavy Cannons he had controlled in the past were always somewhat sluggish, but he just couldn¡¯t identify the cause. Now, the sluggishness hadpletely disappeared, and the hefty Beehive Heavy Cannon actually felt light and nimble in his hands.

    Fatty couldn¡¯t help but shout, "This is great! So amazing!"

    Shi Xueman had handedplete responsibility of the pagoda cannons to him, causing him to feel enormous pressure. He had never been under such great stress and feared under-performing the most. When he faced problems with the forging of the Beehive Heavy Cannons, he burned with anxiety, like gunpowder on the verge of exploding.

    On the other hand, any improvements to the Beehive Heavy Cannon filled him with wild joy.

    Li Houtang was dumbstruck. Of course he could recognize quality goods. He had been involved in the creation of the Beehive Heavy Cannon, hence its sess and his familiarity with it. But...

    He stuttered, "This... how?"

    Blind He snorted. "Why must I tell you?"

    At that he walked away, ignoring Li Houtang who was as still as a statue at this point.

    Ai Hui waved his hands, expressing his innocence, before leaving as well.

    .....

    In a valley.

    The Dread and Judgement divisions were resting, their members¡¯ faces filled with exhaustion from executing a long distance surprise attack, raiding the enemy¡¯s central camp, and escaping afterward. The enemies chased closely behind like zealots. Only after two days of continuous retreat had they managed to throw off the pursuers and finally get a chance to take a breather.

    Even if they had willpower made out of steel, they werepletely spent.

    Wan Shenwei promptly decided to stop escaping and let everybody rest instead. They only had a short period of time before the enemies would catch up.

    The officers of bothbat divisions gathered for a meeting.

    "... I feel that Nangong Wulian was very dangerous. Although he looked weak, he was the pce master of the Beast Venom Temple after all. I didn¡¯t know what he had with him, so I just killed him. I was worried that he might revive or live in another organism as a parasite, so I burned him to ashes with snowva."

    Song Yan and Tie Dao gave a detailed debriefing of the scene at that time, and it went smoothly. There weren¡¯t too many suspicious points.

    Wan Shenwei nodded. "It¡¯s good that you killed him. We only need Ye Baiyi for the following operation. The Beast Venom Temple is very unpredictable. It¡¯s better to be more cautious."

    The others nodded their heads in agreement.

    In their eyes, Nangong Wulian waspletely different from Ye Baiyi. Ye Baiyi used to be theirrade, but had chosen to betray the Avalon of Five Elements, thus angering everyone. Yet, his gift and talent impressed them greatly.

    A person like that had chosen to betray the Avalon of Five Elements.

    Everybody looked at Ye Baiyi withplicated gazes. There was anger, hatred, reverence, and doubt.

    On the other hand, Nangong Wulian was merely a dangerous enemy to them.

    Value wise, the sess of their following operation depended on Ye Baiyi. Nangong Wulian had his value of course, but he wasn¡¯t crucial.

    Everybody surrounded Ye Baiyi, who was still in a deep sleep, looking at him curiously.

    Ximen Caijue asked, "Will he wake up suddenly?"

    Wan Shenwei shook his head. "No idea."

    Song Yan added, "Should we just get rid of him? He Nanshan and the rest don¡¯t know if he¡¯s dead or alive anyway."

    "They might know. Blood elementalists have many strange things." Wan Shenwei added, "Plus, we can¡¯t kill him now."

    Can¡¯t kill?

    Everyone was stunned.

    Song Yan¡¯s dagger appeared out of nowhere as he drove it toward Ye Baiyi¡¯s thigh.

    Just as the dagger was about to enter his thigh a red glow appeared with a crisp "ding" sound. Song Yan¡¯s dagger couldn¡¯t actually prate his skin.

    Everybody¡¯s faces changed.

    Tie Dao muttered, "What exactly is the Heart of God?"

    No one was able to answer him.

    A powerful force was hibernating within Ye Baiyi¡¯s body. The moment he was in danger, this force would explode, effectively protecting him. This force was the Heart of God.

    Wan Shenwei and hisrades had fought quite a bit with the blood elementalists. Recently, there were more battles, but the power of the Heart of God seemed to be very different from the blood spiritual force of ordinary blood elementalists.

    They could even feel an ancient, boundless aura radiating from the Heart of God.

    The pulse of the Heart of God contained an indescribable power that could travel very far. This made them an attractive target, and they had nowhere to hide, which exined why He Nanshan was pursuing behind them so closely and unwilling to let go.

    The Dread and Judgement Divisions had to travel at their maximum speed in order to increase the distance from the blood elementalists and gain time to catch their breath.

    Wan Shenwei said in a low voice, "To be honest, I had not expected us to seed. This n seemed very pessimistic from day one. Now that Ye Baiyi is here, we have already half seeded. However, everyone should be prepared because our days are only going to be more arduous and dangerous."

    The others kept quiet and had solemn looks on their faces.

    Attacking the camp was quick and very sessful, but they paid a heavy price. More than 100 soldiers had perished.. It was a first in the whole history of the Dread and Judgement divisions.

    And this was just the beginning. Everyone knew that Wan Shenwei wasn¡¯t just frightening them.

    Wan Shenwei took a deep breath. "Now that Ye Baiyi is in our hands, what¡¯s going to happen next? He Nanshan¡¯sbat division will definitely continue chasing us. Also, the three god divisions attacking the Spear of Heavy Cloud will receive the news and obstruct our path from another direction. No matter what, they need to rescue Ye Baiyi, but we don¡¯t know how manybat divisions are on their way. Of course, the more the better. That¡¯s our goal."

    "We must lead them in circles. Initially, we were afraid that they would not be able to catch up, but there¡¯s no need to worry now. With the Heart of God¡¯s pulse, there¡¯s no way they can¡¯t find us. This is also why I said that things will only be tougher from now on. We will have shorter periods of rest as the number of enemybat divisions increases. We will feel increasingly tired and worn out, but for each additional day that we persevere, the higher the chances of sess for the defensive line."

    "This is also why we can¡¯t kill him." He looked at his audience before continuing, "I know that everyone here hates him. I do too. I would like to ask him why he chose to betray the Avalon of Five Elements if he wakes up, but we need him to stay alive at the moment. We can only disorientate the blood elementalistbat divisions, lure them over to us, and effectively lessen the burden on the Spear of Heavy Cloud if he stays alive. A dead Ye Baiyi would only agitate them more, and we don¡¯t need that."

    Wan Shenwei said dully, "Comparing strengths, it is very difficult for us to win this battle. Even if we have him as a hostage, everything goes smoothly from now on, and our n seeds, I don¡¯t know if we can win this battle. No one knows."

    Everyone kept quiet, keeping their gazes on Wan Shenwei.

    While Wan Shenwei looked indifferent, his tone was mild like water. "We will fall one by one. Ye Baiyi might also wake up and kill us. Maybe nothing will change even if all of us are sacrificed."

    Nevertheless, a ball of fire burned within his eyes.

    He looked around and asked, "Are you all afraid?"

    "Hah, are you kidding, Boss?"

    "So very afraid. Afraid, that they will lose sight of us!"

    "We¡¯ve earned more than enough. Our attack was beautifully executed. Who couldpare with us? Our names are going to go down in history and will be taught in textbooks!"

    "Oh gosh, as a future historical figure, should I change my name now? To make it sound more aggressive."

    "Heh, in future exams, students will be asked how they would execute a raid, how they would choose their attacking direction, and how to assist theirrades if they were an elementalist from the Dread Division. They will be asked to describe their battle tactics and attacking strategy..."

    "Oh my, luckily we¡¯re done with exams! I must help you live on so you can be a teacher in the future and create exam questions that would wreck the students, ahaha!"

    "Get lost!"

 Chapter 586: Do It Thoroughly

    Chapter 586: Do It Thoroughly

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X, TYZ

    "Is this the Pagoda Cannon Alliance? Is Ai Hui here?"

    A chilly voice woke Ke Ning up. Drowsy and sleepy, he looked up to see a tall and strong figure in front of him. Standing beside this figure was a tall and thindy whose eyes also seemed cold. She wore her hair in a high bun with throwing knives inserted into it.

    Feeling the pressure from the two people in front of him, Ke Ning swallowed nervously and stood up, "I¡¯m Ke Ning, the manager of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. May I know who you are?"

    He actually felt ufortable, as he always associated the word "manager" with something bad.

    But what could he do?

    When Ai Hui suddenly left everything rted to the Pagoda Cannon Alliance to him with an appreciative look, but without any exnation, Ke Ning was dumbfounded and couldn¡¯t believe his ears. When he came to his senses, Ai Hui had already disappeared.

    Who was the one who had promised righteously to found the Pagoda Cannon Alliance?

    Ke Ning felt a bit regretful. He had not expected for Ai Hui to be so irresponsible. It was ironic that he had had some illusions toward the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    The idea of leaving had urred to him more than once, but he couldn¡¯t speak it out when facing the hundreds of people who followed him.

    Having struggled for two days, he made up his mind. The worst result was death anyway, which was no different from his choice at the very beginning. After he figured this out, he felt like a totally different man who was full of vigor. More surprisingly, although Ai Hui didn¡¯t show up, the spectacr Fish Bone was absolutely convincing.

    The elementalists, who had been hesitating and struggling, now flocked to join them.

    The Pagoda Cannon Alliance was expanding rapidly, making Ke Ning terribly busy. It was not easy for him to find some time to take a nap.

    "Tong Gui."

    "Yu Jin."

    The man and thedy answered coldly.

    Ke Ning was shocked and totally sobered up. The names of the two reputable division leaders from Newlight City struck his ears like a p of thunder. Although he knew that Newlight City had expressed its full support for the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, it was beyond his expectation that they sent two of their strongestbat divisions here.

    In terms of status and position, Ke Ning was far inferior to them. This made him nervous, but excited at the same time.

    As long as Sir Tong Gui and Lady Yu Jin were here, the strength of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance would be far greater than other ordinarybat divisions.

    He replied at once, "Please have a seat. Are you looking for Sir Ai Hui? He is surveying the terrain at the moment. I¡¯ll call him back now."

    Tong Gui said in a rough voice, "We should pay him a visit. Manager Ke, would you please lead the way?"

    "Manager Ke" sounded harsh, but Ke Ning was also surprised by the respect the division leaders showed toward Ai Hui. After all, in Ke Ning¡¯s mind, Ai Hui was already regarded as unreliable.

    He immediately said, "No problem. This way please."

    .....

    Ai Hui stood at the side of the Great Rift and watched the howling metal wind. It was like a transparent wind wall with a metallic luster, obscuring the scene on the other side.

    This reminded Ai Hui of the Suspending Golden Pagoda outside of Central Pine City.

    He was lost in thought.

    Everyone was busy preparing for the big battle ahead.

    Ai Hui was the only one who looked unupied. Having thrown all duties rted to the Pagoda Cannon Alliance to Ke Ning, all he did everyday was idly top and go along one side of the canyon, as if enjoying the scenery.

    No one knew what he was thinking.

    Surveying the terrain was only an excuse Ke Ning found for Ai Hui. Assessing the terrain waspletely unnecessary. The metal wind had isted the two sides, and the other Windy Pearl Bridges had all been destroyed.

    Ke Ning led Tong Gui and Yu Jin to Ai Hui.

    Tong Gui saluted and said, "Long time no see, Sir Ai Hui."

    Yu Jin saluted too, but didn¡¯t say anything.

    Their feelings wereplicated. Years ago, they looked at Ai Hui like their junior, but now they needed to address him respectfully as a Sir. On the other hand, howeverplicated they felt, they were not envious or unconvinced. It was amon rule that strength was the most important. The achievements Ai Hui had aplished over the years were enough to win their respect.

    As for Ai Hui, some appreciated him, some criticized him, but no one would ignore him.

    Ai Hui nodded, "It must have been a tough journey. Is Mayor An all right?"

    Tong Gui replied reverently, "Yes, everything is fine with the Mayor. He misses you very much, my Sir. Before we left, he asked us to obey yourmands. No matter what the task is, and whether it is dangerous or not, Tong Gui and Yu Jin will do the best and never flinch."

    Ai Hui smiled. "Thank you for your support."

    Tong Gui said, "You are wee. This is what we should do."

    Ai Hui nodded. "I happen to have a task that may require your help."

    Tong Gui said, "At your request."

    Ai Hui said, "I want to establish the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, which will be our next goal. Currently, I¡¯m fully upied, so everything is being done by Manager Ke. I now want to ask a favor from you guys to help him build up the framework of the alliance."

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin looked at each other in surprise.

    Before they arrived, they both thought that Ai Hui would keep a vignt watch over them and even marginalize them. They never expected that Ai Hui would entrust them with such an important task at the very beginning.

    It was natural that they had these doubts in mind since they had interacted with Ai Hui years ago and were fully aware of his cunning.

    Ai Hui could see their doubts, but he simply ignored this and asked, "Any problems?"

    Tong Gui couldn¡¯t figure out if Ai Hui was genuine, but for the moment he had to reply, "We will spare no efforts, but what is our strategy for the Pagoda Cannon Alliance?"

    Ai Hui touched his jaw and said, "Our time is too limited, so I cannot ask too much. You can organize them and drill with the pagoda cannons. The Spear of Heavy Cloud has forged a new type of pagoda cannon called the Beehive Heavy Cannon, and Old He will find craftsmen too. Your task is to familiarize everyone with the new cannons. I won¡¯t ask for a high standard. It will be fine as long as they can use it proficiently and shoot the shells out."

    Hearing what he said, Ke Ning couldn¡¯t help but interject, "But we don¡¯t have a single Beehive Heavy Cannon yet."

    Ai Hui smiled, "We will soon."

    Ke Ning was suspicious of what Ai Hui said. He knew Ai Hui even better than Tong Gui and Yu Jin, and he didn¡¯t trust Ai Hui at all.

    Ai Hui didn¡¯t exin further.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin looked at each other again. They were also full of doubts. Knowing how to use the pagoda cannon was just the basic requirement. If that was enough, then what fighting capacity would the Pagoda Cannon Alliance have?

    Yet, it seemed that Ai Hui had other implications. Besides, they knew that Ai Hui was definitely not a fool.

    Tong Gui said solemnly, "We won¡¯t dishonor yourmission."

    .....

    At the camp of the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Sang Zhijun was reporting to Shi Xueman, "These days, the goods and materials we are seizing is shrinking sharply. The day before yesterday, we had fivebat divisions that passed through, but today there was only one."

    Shi Xueman was writing rapidly at the desk. Hearing Sang Zhijun¡¯s words, she looked up and asked, "Why?"

    Sang Zhijun smiled bitterly. "Because we are too notorious now, even worse than bandits. In their words, we are the worst viins. Manybat divisions are not willing to withdraw through here. They would rather go the long way around and retreat along the rift than pass through our defensive line. We are really infamous now."

    Shi Xueman suddenly asked, "You mean they are withdrawing along the rift to get avoid us?"

    Sang Zhijun said, "Yes, our scouts found that manybat divisions are marching toward either end of the rift. Although it will be a long march, at least they won¡¯t lose their assets and possessions."

    She was worried about their bad reputation. It had to be extremely terrible, else they wouldn¡¯t be willing to spend several extra months on their way back.

    Shi Xueman couldn¡¯t helpughing.

    Sang Zhijun marveled, "Gosh! Xueman, why are you stillughing?"

    The education she had received since she was young required her to stick to the regtions ofbat divisions and notmit the slightest offense against people. What she was doing now was totally different. Not only she, but many others in the Spear of Heavy Cloud had the same feeling.

    No one wanted to turn from a hero into a viin.

    They would not hesitate to execute Ai Hui¡¯smand, but they felt ufortable.

    Shi Xueman murmured to herself, "This guy was so cunning to think up of this solution."

    Sang Zhijun was confused. "Xueman, what are you talking about?"

    Shi Xueman came to her senses and said, "You see, the problem has been solved."

    Sang Zhijun was still in confusion. "What problem?"

    Shi Xueman exined patiently, "We were worried that our enemy would attack our defenses with the defeated troops as their shield. Now, no such troops areing toward us. Isn¡¯t this problem solved?"

    Sang Zhijun paused for a while and said, "Yes, it seems so. Then the problem has indeed been solved in this way. So this is the real purpose of that guy? Then we have misunderstood him."

    Shi Xueman said coldly, "You didn¡¯t. He wanted to make a profit down the road. This guy¡¯s heart is ck."

    Sang Zhijun coughed lightly and said jokingly, "Yes, his heart is ck, but someone just happens to like ck-hearted guys..."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s face immediately flushed. She pretended to be angry and said, "How dare you be so rude? You definitely need a spanking."

    Sang Zhijun was not afraid of her at all. She blinked mischievously, "You two only hugged? Didn¡¯t do anything else? What a pity! Miss Division Head, you cannot lose the good reputation of the Spear of Heavy Cloud. If he is too shy, force him to! If he refuses to obey, beat him! Ah..."

    Sang Zhiruo covered her head and crept away to avoid Shi Xueman¡¯s fist.

    Now, Shi Xueman was in the tent alone. Her face was red, looking shy and cute.

    After a while, the flush gradually faded away as Shi Xueman calmed down and became as cold as she usually was.

    Hmmm, Sang Zhijun was right. She was the creditor. Why should she feel guilty? Even if they started a fight, she was not afraid of Ai Hui anyway.

    She went out of the camp and walked toward the camp of the Sword of Lightning Division.

    On her way, she happened toe across Ai Hui. Both of them became a little embarrassed to see each other.

    Soon, however, Shi Xueman returned to normal and said, "Let¡¯s go into the camp."

    Sang Zhijun, who took Jiang Wei along to peep at the two, gasped with surprised and couldn¡¯t believe her eyes.

    They were so direct...

    Ai Hui paused for a while and asked, "Why?"

    Shi Xueman said, "Last time we did not finished."

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun were totally dumbstruck. They couldn¡¯t help remembering the scenest time when Shi Xueman held Ai Hui in her arms and walked toward the bed. What they had not finished...

    Ai Hui realized that Shi Xueman was talking about healing her injury.

    He nodded. "Then let¡¯s do it thoroughly!"

    Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun looked at each other.

    Do it thoroughly...

 Chapter 587: Going Steady

    Chapter 587: Going Steady

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X, TYZ

    Although Ai Hui had promised that there would be enough Beehive Heavy Cannons, Ke Ning didn¡¯t believe him. Furthermore, he felt that Sir Tong Gui and Lady Yu Jin seemed to be too respectful toward Ai Hui.

    He couldn¡¯t understand why a guy who was nicknamed "Razor" was respected.

    In Ke Ning¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui was greedy, contemptible, and did nothing useful.

    Thest feature was what he couldn¡¯t bear the most!

    Why had he stayed to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance? Because he wanted revenge! But Ai Hui¡¯s idleness and irresponsibility made him very disappointed. If it were not for Division Leader Shi who had asked him to handle the alliance, and if it were not for the group of people he had brought into the alliance, he would have left this alliance which was unworthy of the name.

    The participation of Sir Tong Gui and Lady Yu Jin cheered Ke Ning up. At least they had reputation. prestige, and were familiar with military life because they had been division leaders for years. They were far better than the amateur Ai Hui.

    However, he didn¡¯t know that Tong Gui and Yu Jin spoke highly of Ke Ning in private.

    Young as he was, he was capable and experienced. He was not bad tempered and could always think logically. Such a person was a talent at any position. Besides, he was particrly familiar with pagoda cannons and would be extremely talkative at the first mention of pagoda cannons.

    They marveled in their hearts that Ai Hui was as extraordinary as they had expected. Even his subordinate was so capable.

    Their study of pagoda cannons was far inferiorpared to Ke Ning.

    Ke Ning indulged in studying pagoda cannons. Although he was stationed at the Pagoda Cannon Alliance camp, he could still walk in and out of the other camps. Due to his connection with Li Houtang, he could watch how Master Fatty practiced from a short distance, and sometimes even had the opportunity tomunicate with him.

    He had his own understanding of pagoda cannons. When organizing the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, he had already begun to think of how to set it up and how to train the elementalists by himself.

    This was merely his interest. At that time, he had not thought that he would take on this responsibility.

    Therefore, when Tong Gui and Yu Jin finished reading his proposal, they gasped in admiration and nned to follow it. Ke Ning was dumbstruck. When he came back to his senses, he felt encouraged and perturbed at the same time. He was young, energetic, and eager to earn achievements, so it was unsurprising that he felt excited when his proposal was recognized. However, he didn¡¯t have the relevant experience and was unsure whether his ideas were right or wrong.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin didn¡¯t think so much.

    On one hand, Ke Ning¡¯s proposal was thoughtful, detailed, and very practical, which demonstrated that his understanding of this subject was better than theirs.

    On the other hand, they had not forgotten Ai Hui¡¯smand either. What Ai Hui said was "to help Ke Ning build up the framework of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance." Since they were here to help Ke Ning, Ke Ning should lead the project.

    Neither of them was shrewd or sophisticated. They were typical elementalists frombat divisions and highly obedient. Since they had already agreed, then they would follow Ai Hui¡¯smand and do their best to execute it.

    Their existence made up for Ke Ning¡¯s shorings, as thetter had ideas, but no experience, while the former were experiencedbat division leaders. They could perfectly deal with the any training issues.

    "Excuse me. Is Sir Ai Hui here?"

    An indifferent voice interrupted Ke Ning. He looked up and saw a nonchnt man standing in front of him. Behind him, there were about two to three hundred men.

    Somehow, Ke Ning felt that this crowd of people was dangerous, maybe even more dangerous than Sir Tong Gui and Lady Yu Jin.

    He swallowed nervously and asked, "He is in the camp. Who are you?"

    The middle-aged man said lightly, "We would like to pay Sir Ai Hui a visit. Can you lead the way?"

    This guy¡¯s behavior was very polite, but somehow He Ning was still very alert. He could feel the danger, but could not refuse, so he said subconsciously, "Okay, this way please."

    When he came back to his senses, the group of people had entered the camp under his guidance. He suddenly realized that he even didn¡¯t know what these people wanted to do. How could he bring them into the camp so rashly?

    On the other hand, there were many experts in the camp. When this thought urred to him, he was more or less relieved.

    Then, he saw Sir Tong Gui and Lady Yu Jin, so he quickly walked toward them.

    .....

    In a dim tent.

    A man¡¯s gentle voice asked, "Get up now? Lou Lan¡¯s elemental soup is ready."

    A girl¡¯szy voice responded, "I want to sleep for a while."

    The gentle voice, "Then shall I bring the soup here?"

    The girl said drowsily, "I want to sleep!"

    The man carefully covered her with a quilt. Then, he kissed her gently, put on his clothes, and walked out of the tent. The sun was warm outside, and everything seemed to be different from before.

    He walked into the camp of the Sword of Lightning with an unconscious smirk on his face.

    The passersby saw his vigor and broad smile, and they began to make fun of him.

    "Hey Old Ginger, you finally did what you should have done, huh? As I said, this should have been done long before. We are men of the battlefield. There¡¯s no need to care so much!"

    "You see, Old Ginger is now a totally different man."

    "Spring ising!"

    "Congrattions! When will Young Ginger be born?"

    At times, Jiang Wei was so embarrassed that his face would flush while being teased, but more often he would only smirk. His maturity andposure were all gone.

    The amorous nces between Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun were within the sight of everybody else. They were all happy for this rtionship. The ties betweenrades-in-arms were always pure and genuine. In the war torn years, all they saw was the aftermath of deaths, massacres, bloodshed, and the fragility of their tiny lives. Under such circumstances, the new couple was like a sprouting green nt in the middle of a deste desert. Everyone sent their sincere blessings from the bottom of their heart.

    As if he was drunk, Jiang Wei hobbled to the camp of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    Now, the news about the rtionship between the vice division leaders was known to everyone here at the campsite. People came to congratte Jiang Wei from time to time, making the campsite very tumultuous. Suddenly, someone shouted that they should have a celebration, which immediately gained the support of everyone else.

    Ai Hui and Shi Xueman were drinking elemental soup. They nced at each other and agreed with a smile.

    The healingst night was much better than the previous time because Ai Hui had at least not copsed due to fatigue. After a busy night, they went to have elemental soup together in the morning and learned this unexpected good news.

    The whole defensive line, especially the Spear of Heavy Cloud, were immersed in great joy. After the tough battle with the Ardent Flower Blood Division, they experienced victory, but also suffered heavy casualties. Under such depressing circumstances, they sincerely cherished the joy and happiness the new couple brought.

    Lou Lan cheered loudly, "Lou Lan will make arrangements!"

    Ai Hui looked Jiang Wei up and down and said, "Not bad bro. No wonder they say that a wise head makes a closed mouth. It¡¯s really beyond my expectation that you two went steady so fast on the sly. I thought you were introverted, but it turns out that you are quick enough when doing this."

    Jiang Wei was a bit embarrassed, "I should thank you and Xueman."

    It was the straightforwardmunication they overheard between Shi Xueman and Ai Hui that greatly impacted Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun. Seeing how direct their division leaders were, the two figured that there was no need for them to be shy any longer after seeing each other for such a long time.

    No one knew what hardships they would go through in the next battle or whether they would survive. It was better not to leave regret for tomorrow.

    Their division leaders were so wise.

    As a result, Jiang Wei and Sang Zhijun, who had already dated each other for so long, no longer had any other concerns.

    Ai Hui said casually, "Of course you should thank me and Iron Lady. Otherwise, how would you meet each other? They all say that less talkative guys are the most cunning. I didn¡¯t believe it before, but now I do. You are not bad, really."

    Shi Xueman nodded too as a smile appeared on her cold face. "Zhijun is a good girl, and you are also outstanding. Congrattions."

    No one said anything like "may you two live together until you are old and gray," because they knew that in war time, such blessings were as unrealistic as the flowers in a mirror and the moon¡¯s reflection in water.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui looked Jiang Wei up and down in surprise.

    Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s actions, Jiang Wei looked at himself and asked, "What?"

    Ai Hui said with surprise in his tone, "It seems that you will achieve a breakthrough soon."

    Jiang Wei paused. He closed his eyes to examine the status of his body.

    After a while, he opened his eyes, feeling pleasantly surprised.

    Last time during the conflict in Wind Mail City and under the great pressure from his enemies, he had felt that he was close to a breakthrough. However, after they returned, he was too busy to notice any changes in his body. It was beyond his expectations that the elemental energy in his body had now be perfectly fused and vigorous. He could feel that the elemental energy was about to gush out at anytime.

    Ai Hui was very happy for him. "Good thingse in pairs!"

    Shi Xueman smiled, stood up, and said, "I¡¯ll go to find Zhijun."

    When Shi Xueman walked out of the campsite, Jiang Wei suddenly grabbed Ai Hui and asked in a low voice, "Senior, when will you celebrate?"

    Ai Hui was a bit confused. "We?"

    Seeing Ai Hui¡¯s puzzled look, Jiang Wei suddenly became flustered. If the division leaders knew that he and Sang Zhijun had been eavesdropping, would they... beat them?

    He immediately changed the topic, "I, I mean Xueman looks very good today!"

    Ai Hui understood what he meant and said, "You mean her injury? She has almost recovered. Don¡¯t you know who the healer is? Okay, I¡¯m going out, and you can get to your work."

    Then he told him as a superior, "As the saying goes, indulging in your lust is equivalent to hanging a knife above your head. What is a man? A man should be strict on himself. Come on and push yourself! You will soon be a Master!"

    Then he patted Jiang Wei¡¯s shoulder and left.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin also came to congratte him.

    Their feelings wereplex when they faced Jiang Wei. They had regarded him as a rare talent in the early years, but he was determined to follow Ai Hui, and they had not expected for him to grow so fast. Sometimes, they wondered whether he would be what he was today had he followed them to Newlight City back then.

    The conclusion they reached made them disappointed.

    Aggressive as they were at the very beginning, the new citizens were gradually worn down, attempting and aplishing nothing in the end.

    Jiang Wei was expressing his gratitude when he noticed a group of peopleing toward them behind Ke Ning. The moment he recognized the leader who walked at the front, the smile on his face froze.

 Chapter 588: Former Members of the Surveillance Division

    Chapter 588: Former Members of the Surveince Division

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X, TYZ

    "Vice Leader Jiang, how have you been?"

    Xiao Shan looked at ease, as if nothing had happened between them.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin didn¡¯t know who these neers were, but could feel the dangerous atmosphere they carried. They were a bit relieved after they learned that Jiang Wei knew these people.

    Jiang Wei had not been afraid of him even when in Wind Mail City, let alone in their own campsite. He said in a deep voice, "After the farewell in the Wind Mail City, I never expected that we would meet again. What are you doing here?"

    Xiao Shan looked at Jiang Wei carefully. Then, against everyone¡¯s expectation, he burst intoughter and said, "Within such a short period of time, Vice Leader Jiang has made great progress."

    Jiang Wei replied emotionlessly, "Thanks to you."

    At first, the others only thought that these people and Jiang Wei knew each other. Only now did they realize that something unpleasant must have happened between them. The atmosphere immediately became tense as everyone became vignt, especially Ke Ning who led them here. Were they here to assassinate Ai Hui?

    Although Ke Ning despised Ai Hui, he had to admit that Ai Hui had an enormous influence over the Pagoda Cannon Alliance and the Spear of Heavy Cloud. If Ai Hui was injured or killed now...

    Ke Ning didn¡¯t dare to think further.

    Xiao Shan was not angry. Instead, he smiled and said, "No discord, no concord. I sincerely admire your conduct and strength."

    Even Jiang Wei began to feel weird. As the saying went, never hit a smiling face. It appeared that he had note to look for trouble. To be honest, Jiang Wei was not really angry with him. At leastst time Xiao Shan had left when he was at an absolute advantage. From this, Jiang Wei could tell that Xiao Shan should be a righteous gentleman.

    Jiang Wei directly asked, "What are you doing here? You can cut to the chase."

    Xiao Shan said casually, "We want to join you and fight together against the blood elementalists."

    The eyes of Tong Gui and Yu Jin lit up. The strength of this middle-aged man was unfathomable, while the agility and courage of hispatriots also indicated they were an elite force. At first, they thought the neers were here to find fault with them and were a bit worried. Now, they were overjoyed to hear that these elites wanted to fight against the blood elementalists.

    Ke Ning was also relieved.

    Jiang Wei was surprised as well. The identity of this man was a mystery, but he was more influential than ordinary Masters. If these elite were to join, they would be a strong influence that could not be ignored. He looked Xiao Shan in the eyes and asked in a deep voice, "Skyheart City has agreed to this?"

    Xiao Shan¡¯s smile disappeared at once upon hearing "Skyheart City" and said with disdain, "We have nothing to do with the Yes."

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin had not expected to hear "Skyheart City," and were even more surprised to hear Xiao Shan¡¯s words. Their minds were working fast, trying to figure out who this guy was who dared to call Lady Ye "the Yes."

    A smile appeared on Jiang Wei¡¯s face. He stretched out his hand and said, "Wee! How about joining our Spear of Heavy Cloud? I can resign and leave the position of vice division leader to you!"

    Jiang Wei believed that Xiao Shan was a proud man since Xiao Shan had taken the initiative to leave even when holding an advantageous position. Such a proud man would not lie.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin¡¯s eyes opened wide. How had things changed so quickly? A minute ago they were like enemies, but now Jiang Wei was drawing them over to his side and was even willing to give up his position as a vice division leader.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin were anxious. Since Ai Hui was not here, they could not stop Jiang Wei from doing this.

    Ke Ning didn¡¯t feel surprised. That guy was not a fool, so of course they would join the Spear of Heavy Cloud. After all, the Spear of Heavy Cloud was an elite squad and far superior to the Pagoda Cannon Alliance that consisted of stragglers and disbanded soldiers. Even in his dreams, Ke Ning wanted to return to the Spear of Heavy Cloud and was very regretful for his decision to join this crap. In the Spear of Heavy Cloud his pagoda cannon expertise was also useful. Plus, Master Fatty was also in theirbat division. Why had he made such a stupid decision back then?

    Although thebat divisions brought by Tong Gui and Yu Jin greatly increased the level of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, it was still far inferior to the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud was a legendarybat division and the only elementalistbat division that had defeated a blood elementalist division.

    Xiao Shan shook his head and said, "No,we want to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance."

    Everyone was shocked, especially Ke Ning. He couldn¡¯t believe his ears.

    Jiang Wei was surprised too, exining, "I invited you to the Spear of Heavy Cloud because our defensive position is closer to the enemies and therefore under greater pressure. Thus, we need an expert to assume overallmand.

    Xiao Shan still shook his head and said lightly, "We will join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance."

    Ke Ning wanted to pry open their skulls and see if their brains were made of tofu. Abandoning the vanguard elite squad to join the rear-guardbat divisions to fight against blood elementalists? Were they here to y around?

    Oh, in addition, the head of the rear-guardbat divisions waspletely unreliable.

    Jiang Wei was curious, "Can you tell me why?"

    He had interacted with this man before. If such a proud man decided to fight against blood elementalists, he was definitely not afraid of difficulty or death, sohe had to have a reason for making this decision.

    Xiao Shan didn¡¯t want to hide anything, "Because we are more optimistic about Ai Hui and think that he is the key to victory."

    What? Ke Ning wondered if his ears were still functioning. More optimistic of that unreliable guy? Currently, he would rather be an onlooker. There was nothing joyous because these neer who wanted to join them were only fools.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin¡¯s expression indicated their confusion since this reason was just nonsense.

    Jiang Wei, however, didn¡¯t think so. He asked with surprise and solemnity, "What do you mean?"

    Xiao Shan seemed to know what Jiang Wei was thinking and said with a smile, "We know the Central Pine Valley well."

    A shudder swept over Jiang Wei. His face turned gloomy as what he had just been thinking was that these guys seemed to know them very well, and now his thoughts wereid bare. Actually, although Ai Hui didn¡¯t do much in either the Spear of Heavy Cloud or the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, the key members of the Central Pine Faction firmly believed that Ai Hui was the key to sess.

    Such confidence was blind, but it was due to their experience umted over a long period of time.

    However, this was the first time that their blind confidence was exposed by someone else.

    Xiao Shan¡¯s smile disappeared as he made a formal salute. "Please let Sir Ai Hui know that Xiao Shan, former member of the Surveince Division, together with 352 men, applies to join the Pagoda Cannon Alliance to fight against blood elementalists. We wait for assignment at any time."

    The Surveince Division!

    Jiang Wei¡¯s eyes widened, as he finally learned where Xiao Shan was from and why he was such a strong opponent. Also, he discovered why Xiao Shan was so familiar with the Central Pine Faction.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin were also struck dumb with amazement.

    They knew much more about the Surveince Division, such as the level of the "Xiao" generation in the division. They also knew that 352 people was about one third of the wholebat division. Were they really that determined to leave?

    Ke Ning¡¯s jaw almost dropped to the ground. He was totally dumbstruck.

    The personal charisma of Ai Hui was beyond his imagination!

    Xiao Shan reamained self-possessed. He was not a fool. Before he left, he told Xiao Lin that he knew he didn¡¯t know how to fight in a war, so he wanted to find someone who did. In others¡¯ eyes, the best strategist in the Central Pine Faction had to be Shi Xueman, but with the Surveince Division¡¯s powerful informationwork, they concluded, after careful analysis of the extensive information they had collected, that all the victories were directly connected to Ai Hui.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s Spear of Heavy Cloud might be able to confront a blood division or a god division face to face, but there was no chance of winning when facing the main forces of the blood elementalists who were numerically superior. Even if he joined them with his 352rades, it wouldn¡¯t help much.

    The only possibility of winning depended on Ai Hui and the Pagoda Cannon Alliance he was setting up.

    Although faint, this was the only hope.

    Jiang Wei was the first toe back to his senses. No wonder they were familiar with Ai Hui. Whether or not they were willing to join the Spear of Heavy Cloud, having former members of the Surveince Division on their side was a great boost for them in the fight against blood elementalists.

    He smiled and said, "Sir Ai Hui will be d to know you are here. Please wait for a moment. I¡¯ll inform him of this good news now."

    Xiao Shan nodded. "Thank you."

    All of a sudden, he looked up and into the distance before calmly saying, "We have a guest."

    Just as he finished his words, a point of light appeared in the remote sky with a rumbling sound. Then, they saw a fireball flying at their campsite like a shooting star with trailing ck fumes.

    The fireball moved extremely fast.

    As a former member of the Surveince Division, Xiao Shan was sensitive to any secret intelligence. Seeing the fireball, he shouted, "Disperse!"

    Boom!

    The fireball crashed into the open field in front of the campsite, making the earth tremble andva ssh.

    When the fire died out, an old man who looked like a drunk appeared in front of everyone.

    He murmured to himself, "So tired, so tired! This time I¡¯ll ask that boy to give me enoughva to drink."

    Seeing the face of the old man, Tong Gui and Yu Jin were greatly shocked and blurted out at the same time, "Venerable Volcano!"

    Venerable Volcano shook his head and turned back. After recognizing them, heughed out loud. "Little Tong Gui and little Yu Jin. Why are you here? Is Old Yuchi all right?"

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin hurriedly saluted him.

    Tong Gui said reverently, "i am honored to meet you, Venerable Volcano. Elder Yuchi is still secluding himself from the world to train."

    Venerable Volcano snorted in contempt and said, "Still in closed door training? Doesn¡¯t he know how old he is? He just doesn¡¯t know how to deal with the inner devils. What a waste of his fighting capacity. He puts too much in his heart, not like me."

    Tong Gui smiled and didn¡¯t say anything. The status of Venerable Volcano was high enough toment on Elder Yuchi.

    Venerable Volcano looked around. His pupils contracted when he saw Xiao Shan, "Who are you?"

    Xiao Shan saluted and said in a polite and decent tone, "I¡¯m a former member of the Surveince Division. It¡¯s my honor to meet you."

    "A subordinate of Nian?" Venerable Volcano paused for a while. When he came back to his senses, he said with admiration, "Not bad. You are more courageous than him. Doesn¡¯t he feel vexed to have a group of Masters crouching in Skyheart City?"

    Hearing his words, even Xiao Shan and the others who had left felt embarrassed.

    Venerable Volcano looked around and asked, "Where is Ai Hui? Ask him to meet me. I¡¯ll depend on him from now on. Didn¡¯t he set up some Pagoda Cannon Alliance? I¡¯m in, as long as there¡¯s enough snowva."

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin were shocked.

    Ke Ning had not recovered from the previous shock. He used to regard the Pagoda Cannon Alliance as an alliance of cannon fodder. However, all of a sudden, Masters showed up out of nowhere and were actively seeking to join it.

    Why couldn¡¯t he understand the world anymore?

 Chapter 589: Metal Wind Curtain

    Chapter 589: Metal Wind Curtain

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X, TYZ

    The news that former members of the Surveince Division and Venerable Volcano had joined the Pagoda Cannon Alliance encouraged the elementalists who had been watching and waiting.

    They were not afraid to go to war, but they didn¡¯t trust Ai Hui¡¯s Pagoda Cannon Alliance. Now, however, the enlistment of Masters facilitated the expansion of its reputation and strength.

    Ai Hui still had not supervised the Pagoda Cannon Alliance at all, and left everything to Tong Gui, Yu Jin and Ke Ning.

    Xiao Shan followed Ai Hui as he walked back and forth along the Great Rift every day.

    Atst, he couldn¡¯t help but ask, "Are you thinking of how to deal with the metal wind curtain? As far as I know, no one can break through it. Even if a Master enters the wind curtain, he or she will only be shredded into pieces. Once upon a time, a Master tried to walk through it, and the result was that not even a single part of his body remained."

    Ai Hui smiled, "Human beings cannot break it for sure."

    Xiao Shan paused. Ai Hui¡¯s words seemed to indicate something else. He asked, "You mean things other than human beings can break it?"

    Ai Hui smiled again, but didn¡¯t exin.

    Xiao Shan was so eager to understand that he felt as if there was a cat scratching his heart. So had Ai Hui thought up of a solution?

    Blind He never thought that one day he would have to manage so many craftsmen.

    The Lightning Razor "plundered" over 2,000 craftsmen and over 20 weaponsmiths along the way. Blind He was shocked to hear the number.

    Then, when he learned that the number of craftsmen conscripted by the Spear of Heavy Cloud was simr, he didn¡¯t know what to say.

    Even the Elders Guild in Skyheart City would yield to such a tremendous amount of craftsmen.

    If this number was announced, the rest of the world would be astounded.

    The scene of thousands of craftsmen forging weapons at the same time was spectacr. The mes rose up in an endless line and lit up the sky. All the craftsmen were trying their best to make Beehive Heavy Cannons, although not all of them were truly willing to do so because Ai Hui had resorted to extreme methods which were not at all open and aboveboard.

    In terms of the remuneration, however, none of them were badly treated. Plus, everyone understood that if this defense was broken, Beyond Avalon wouldpletely fall. By then, even if they and their families didn¡¯t die, they could only convert to blood elementalists.

    No one wanted to be a blood elementalist. That was a totally different world to them.

    The world of craftsmen was very simple and straightforward. They only trusted the one with the best skills. Since Blind He¡¯s level was high enough to convince the others, no one had any objection to him being their leader.

    The White Cluster mes and snowva had greatly widened their horizons, while even a glimpse of the mountain-like piles of materials would bring them happiness.

    What craftsmen worried about the most was ack of materials, which would lead to the failure of many of the ideas they conceived. In reality, this used to be a verymon problem. Therefore, almost all craftsmen had severe a "supply shortage phobia," especially the higher-level ones.

    Now that they had free to use materials, the unprecedented satisfaction made them joyful.

    Blind He was totally dumbfounded when he received this task and didn¡¯t know where to start at all. If it had not been Ai Hui who assigned him this task, he would have already fallen out with whoever appointed him to such a position. Since it was Ai Hui¡¯s request, however, he didn¡¯t dare to do so.

    He wouldn¡¯t mind raging at Ai Hui, but as for falling out with him, Blind He didn¡¯t have the courage. He didn¡¯t want to experience any of Ai Hui¡¯s methods.

    Fortunately, they had Lou Lan.

    Lou Lan was almost omnipotent. The mountain-like piles of materials were sorted out and arranged by Lou Lan alone. It was amazing that Lou Lan finished this vast workload quietly.

    During the first cannon forging stage, Lou Lan also yed an important role in coordination.

    Numerous mini Lou Lan went around busily in the manufacturing district.

    "The heating duration has to be a little bit longer."

    "Oops, there¡¯s an error in its length."

    "Keep going! We will seed soon!"

    Soon, every craftsmen became fond of Lou Lan who was always happy. They all wondered how Lou Lan could be so kind-hearted and lovely while Lightning Razor Ai was so wicked and merciless.

    Many Beehive Heavy Cannons had been produced. They were lined up neatly, looking majestic and impressive.

    When Ke Ning caught sight of so many Beehive Heavy Cannons, his eyes lit up as he almost pounced on them.

    Currently, all the important figures were gathered at the Great Rift because Ai Hui said they were going to test the cannons.

    Beside the rift, a Beehive Heavy Cannon had been set up with Fatty as the test gunner.

    Fatty shot Ai Hui a nce, and Ai Hui nodded. "Try it."

    Fatty didn¡¯t reply. He controlled the cannon to fire into the fierce wind curtain.

    Streaks of red light exploded on the wind curtain, making a huge roar. mes were gathered by the wild wind and sshed crazily. A deep hole appeared on the wind curtain after the explosion. Itsted for only one second before it was devoured by the metal wind.

    In front of the power of nature, even an elementalist¡¯s strong weapons were so tiny.

    Ai Hui stared at the wind curtain attentively and said, "Continue."

    Fatty took a deep breath and fired continuously at the wind curtain. With deafening roars, balls of red light kept hitting the wind curtain, leaving huge holes in it. The scene of metal wind and mesbining was a feast for the eyes, but the holes in the wind curtain disappeared instantly like raindrops falling in the river.

    When the Beehive Heavy Cannon stopped firing, the wind curtain had not changed one bit.

    Many people were witnessing the power of the Beehive Heavy Cannon for the first time and were shocked. Yet, when faced with the metal wind curtain, it was still not enough.

    Silver Soldier asked curiously, "Ai Hui, do you want to attack the enemies across the wind curtain?"

    Many people¡¯s eyes lit up. If they could do so, then this was definitely a good idea, especially for the Pagoda Cannon Alliance which was advantageous in its number of people.

    Xiao Shan shook his head, "It¡¯s not powerful enough to pierce the wind curtain."

    The depth of the hole left by the cannon was six to ten meters while the narrowest part of the rift was over 100 meters.

    Venerable Volcano sighed, "Since the fire restrains metal, I don¡¯t dare to intrude into the wind curtain either. It¡¯s a road that leads to death."

    Fatty said while thinking, "Or let me try to see if we can make heavy cannons that can pierce the wind curtain?"

    Ai Hui shook his head and said, "No need. Even if we can do so, not much power will remain, so it cannot do much harm to our enemies. Besides, we can¡¯t waste time on this. Hurry up, and teach everyone how to control the Beehive Heavy Cannon."

    Then he pped, "Okay, enough of the shy part for today. Get back to what you were doing."

    The curious crowded dispersed , wondering what Ai Hui¡¯s n was.

    However, Ai Hui called Shi Xueman, Silver Soldier, and some others back, saying, "For several days, not a singlebat division has passed through. I believe our enemies areing. Are you interested in joining me to go and watch?"

    Silver Soldierughed out loud. "I¡¯ve heard that the Pinwheel Sword is as fast as lightning. It¡¯s a rare chance to experience it in person, so I¡¯ll go."

    The others also agreed.

    Even Shi Xueman had never been on the Pinwheel Sword, and the other division leaders were also curious. Meanwhile, it would indeed be helpful if they could spy on their enemies in person.

    Gu Xuan and others never stopped training. As the war drew near, the intensity of their training also increased. The supplies were abundant, so they didn¡¯t need to worry about consumption and just focused themselves on training.

    The Pinwheel Sword suddenly rose up into the sky to the exmation of the riders.

    The experience of the unparalleled speed was totally different. Within a limited time, it had conquered everyone.

    Silver Soldier marveled, "I guess the Pinwheel Sword is the fastest thing in the world. Is there anything that canpete with it?"

    Xiao Shan answered affirmatively, "Definitely not."

    The gorgeous eyes of Karakorum Pris lit up, and she asked, "Can we borrow it? This is a supreme weapon for swordsmen."

    Ai Hui smiled bitterly, "This Pinwheel Sword is not hard to make, nor is it expensive, but it¡¯s very hard to control. First of all, there must be a sword operator. So far, we¡¯veonly trained one qualified sword operator, Zhiguang. Secondly, the swordsmen in the Sword Pagodas are totally different from ordinary swordsmen. You will understand this if we encounter any enemies."

    Karakorum Pris nodded. She didn¡¯t feel angry at Ai Hui¡¯s refusal. During these days, she got to know Ai Hui better. The more they interacted, the more they trusted each other.

    The feeling of flying in the sky while as fast as a sh was fanscinating.

    Not a single person could be seen in the wildnd.

    Their expressions gradually became solemn. This abnormal phenomenon indicated that the enemy was not far away from them.

    The members of the Sword of Lightning were on guard for any possible dangers.

    .....

    The God Wolf Division was holding a meeting.

    The members were in a heated discussion.

    "It¡¯s so weird. How can Ai Hui be so shameless? Even the Elders Guild didn¡¯t say anything?"

    "What can they say? The Elders Guild has to yield as long as he agrees to go to the front line. They are willing to give him whatever he needs."

    "Okay great. Our n haspletely failed. The defeatedbat divisions have not traveled through the the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s defensive line at all."

    "Then their return will take them months, right?"

    "Those people are on their side. Ai Hui is cruel enough to treat them like this."

    "Now the elementalists are scared out of their wits when they hear Ai Hui¡¯s name."

    "Shit! Who on earth are their enemies? Currently, Ai Hui is more like their enemy than us."

    Song Xiaoqian, who used to be bright and brave, now looked very gloomy. Those goddamn defeated elementalists would rather face the vast Wilderness and unpredictable dire beasts than withdraw through the Windy Pearl Bridges.

    Moreover, the reason was ridiculous¨Cthey were afraid to be plundered by their ally.

    This meant that her n was aplete failure.

    She had never failed sopletely before.

    Damn the Sword of Lightning! Damn Ai Hui!

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face was as peaceful as the surface of water. He wasn¡¯t very angry because he knew it wasmon for tactics to fail in the actualbat. A war would never go as they expected.

    Or it wouldn¡¯t be called a war.

    He was still calm because their advantages had not been weakened at all. As long as they were on the superior side, they could win by overwhelming the opponent in a simple and crude way.

    Suddenly, someone came and reported, "Sir, there was a letter sent by the God Spirit Division."

    Helian Tianxiao was immediately ovee by an uneasy sense of foreboding. The noisy tent became silent at once. They looked at each other in surprise and bewilderment.

    In the next moment, their hearts sank when they saw the blood all over the messenger¡¯s body.

    The messenger delivered the letter to Helian Tianxiao so quickly that he did not even have time to salute.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s hand shivered slightly when he took the letter. Then, he tore it open, his face paled, and his dizzy mind spun as he read the contents.

    The tent was so quiet that they could even hear the sound of a pin drop. Seeing Helian Tianxiao¡¯s pale face, they all realized something horrible had happened.

    In the following instant, a furious and desperate roar from Helian Tianxiao could be heard from inside the tent.

    "He Nanshan! You piece of trash!"

 Chapter 590: First Confrontation

    Chapter 590: First Confrontation

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X, TYZ

    Silence. Dead silence.

    The news was like thunder from a clear sky. Their faces were pale, while their brain buzzed.

    Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian had been kidnapped by the Judgement and Dread divisions.

    Everyone¡¯s hands and feet were cold as the news chilled them to the bone. They felt like they were falling into an abyss without any preparation, and their future suddenly became hopeless.

    No one said a word because they hadn¡¯t recovered from the shock.

    The messenger from the God Spirit Division knelt on the floor and felt ashamed. This time it had been the God Spirit Division that made a blunder. Even when Division Head Helian shouted abuse at their division, the messenger didn¡¯t dare to refute this.

    For half an hour, no one spoke in themand tent. They were all in a trance.

    Finally, Helian Tianxiao came to his senses. His face was still gloomy, but his eyes returned to normal. He said coarsely, "Have all the otherbat divisions been informed?"

    The messenger from the God Spirit Division said, "Yes, messengers were sent to allbat divisions."

    Helian Tianxiao then asked, "To His Majesty too?"

    "We haven¡¯t had the time to..."

    Hearing his words, Helian Tianxiao became furious. He suddenly stood up and said, "You are still thinking of hiding this fact from His Majesty even at this time? Do you think he is a fool?"

    The messenger shivered and didn¡¯t dare to speak.

    Helian Tianxiao sat back in his seat in disappointment. Suddenly, he felt at a loss. At the very beginning, they were on the advantageous side. How on earth had they fallen into a situation like this? Back then, they were mighty and overwhelming like a tiger. What could the Wall of North Sea do to them? It could only vanish under their feet.

    Since when had the state of the war became so unpredictable?

    The North Sea Division...

    Ever since the explosion of the God-subduing Peak, General Ye had been in aa due to injuries. His majesty sent Nangong Wulian to help them imnt the Heart of God. Even so, they were practically certain that they would win the war. Even after the Ardent Flower Blood Division was destroyed by the Spear of Heavy Cloud, they still believed it wouldn¡¯t have much influence on the overall situation.

    Theyughed at the depraved and decadent Elders Guild, but never expected that the Judgement and Dread Divisions, which they had also derided countless times, would kidnap General Ye and Nangong Wulian.

    The war situation suddenly changed.

    Cornered beasts would put up a desperate fight. Helian Tianxiao suddenly had this thought.

    The Elders Guild was corrupt and decayed, but with thousands of years worth of umtion, its final counterattack was surprisingly impressive and aggressive.

    He suddenly became furious. They were strong, powerful army that was braver than anyone else. How could they allow others to lead them by the nose?

    "Inform the whole army! Attack the Windy Pearl Bridge at full speed!"

    He stood up, looked around, and said in a low voice, "Leave the rescue to the others. As the vanguard, we should initiate the attack."

    Seeing the confusion from all the generals and soldiers, he said coldly, "It¡¯s time for you to put up the most desperate fight. Get ready to die on the battlefield."

    .....

    On the Pinwheel Sword.

    Standing shoulder to shoulder, Ai Hui and others felt the sword¡¯s lightning velocity and watched the ground fly by at such high speed. The Pinwheel Sword was like a sharp de that could cut the wind and chop the clouds.

    Silver Soldier marveled, "I never knew that anything could fly so fast. Previously, I saw in a mirage bean pod clip and already felt shocked. Now, after a firsthand experience, I¡¯m even more certain that this speed is iparable in the world."

    Venerable Volcano added, "Even azure wings willg behind inparison."

    Xiao Shan looked indifferent, but he was shocked too. The Surveince Division once analyzed the speed of the Pinwheel Sword and concluded that it was about five times faster than azure wings, but if they were to experience it themselves, they would know just how ridiculous this was.

    This terrifying speed was historical!

    Would the people in Skyheart City still be able to sleep soundly if they knew the real speed of the Pinwheel Sword?

    Speed was a constant pursuit for humans. Whether it was individuals orbat divisions, they never spared any efforts in such a pursuit. As the saying went, being fast was the only move that couldn¡¯t be dealt with.

    Although he hadn¡¯t known the real fighting strength of the Pinwheel Sword, he had a hunch that the appearance of the Pinwheel Sword would profoundly influence modern warfare.

    He didn¡¯t know what this influence would be, but his feeling was strong.

    With shining eyes, Shi Xueman suddenly turned her head, "In the future, we need Pinwheel Swords in the Spear of Heavy Cloud as well."

    Ai Hui coughed slightly and drawled, "The Pinwheel Sword is expensive..."

    Suddenly, he caught sight of Iron Lady stretching her wrists and flinched. If he was beaten by her in front of so many people, it would be shameful. Therefore, in the next breath, he immediately said, "But if you want it Iron Lady, it won¡¯t be a problem. After all, we are so poor that we have nothing but money now."

    Hearing his words, Ke Ning immediately added, "My lord, we need it in the Pagoda Cannon Alliance too!"

    Ke Ning felt like he was in a dream. His biggest nightmare now was that he would suddenly wake up and find out that it was all a fantasy. The current amazing personnel of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance were beyond his wildest imagination. He had previously been worried that they would only be an army of cannon fodder.

    Ke Ning was clever. Otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have be so infatuated with pagoda cannons. The experience onboard the Pinwheel Sword not only astounded him, but it also caused him to think further. What if the Pinwheel Sword was equipped with pagoda cannons instead of sword pagodas?

    Ai Hui restrained his impulse to kick Ke Ning off of the Pinwheel Sword and said carelessly, "There aren¡¯t enough sword operators."

    Abruptly, he yelped in surprise and shouted to Shi Zhiguang who was at the tail of the sword, "Turn left!"

    The others were intrigued by Ai Hui¡¯s behavior and all looked left, but they saw nothing. Even Xiao Shan, who was one of the strongest individuals onboard, didn¡¯t feel anything either.

    The Pinwheel Sword drew a beautiful arc in the sky.

    The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

    About 200 miles away from the camp of the God Wolf Division, one of their scout teams was on patrol. They were sitting on the backs of their Rust Plumes, looking pleased, but alertness flickered across their narrowed eyes now and then.

    "I candidly admit my defeat. How can the Lightning Razor be even more scary than us? Look at those fleeingbat divisions. I feel like we are actually saving Skyheart City."

    "Haha, yes we are indeed."

    Someone suddenly grunted, "What good are elementalists? We god elementalists are definitely superior."

    The atmosphere immediately became awkward. Although they were all blood elementalists now, previously almost everyone was an elementalist. It had been long enough for everyone to ept their new identity, but the process was cruel, bloody, and full of miserable memories. The topic was always mentioned identally, revealing seemingly long forgotten scars.

    The captain noticed the change in atmosphere and said, "There¡¯s no difference in levels between elementalists and god elementalists, but there is between the Elders Guild and His Majesty. It¡¯s not wrong to say that we are saving them. The Elders Guild is stupid and ipetent and Beyond Avalon is near its end, but our God Nation is thriving. This world should be ruled by someone with the appropriate ability so that everyone can live a happy life. As for the Elders Guild, even the Lightning Razor¡¯sbat divisions have be their pir. You can see how corrupt they are now."

    His words boosted the morale of the team.

    Willing or not, their identity as blood elementalists couldn¡¯t be changed, just as wounds could be forgotten, but scars would never disappear. They simply needed a reason to live and a reason to fight.

    The dazzling brilliance of the thriving God Nation covered up all the scars.

    Everyone in the God Nation believed firmly that the world belonged to them, just like the loyal soldiers and generals believed that the appearance of the Blood of God was to create a new world. The growing pains were just an inevitable part of this creation.

    The captain was pleased with his encouragement. Suddenly, his Rust Plume quivered abruptly. He looked up and saw a sh of light far away from them and therefore shouted, "Careful!"

    The light rushed at them at an astonishing speed.

    The pupils of the captain contracted. "It¡¯s a sword ray! Dodge!" he shouted.

    His Rust Plume stretched its wings and rolled quickly in the air. The howling sound brushed past him at a shocking speed, causing all of his hair to stand on end from the icy stimulus.

    Next, he heard a scream behind him. One soldier couldn¡¯t dodge and was cut in half together with his mount.

    The captain¡¯s eyes immediately became red with anger. Without saying a word, he urged his Rust Plume to fly forward, and the other team members followed him closely. Everyone was furious. They had never encountered any resistance like this before. This was their squad¡¯s the first casualty.

    Soon, an oddly shaped object appeared in front of them.

    What was this?

    While the others were perplexed, the captain suddenly remembered that this thing had appeared in a mirage bean pod they captured before.

    He blurted out, "The Sword of Lightning!"

    The others paused. They had just been talking about the Sword of Lightning Division and then they encountered it.

    Regardless, they had to get revenge for their teammate!

    The flying object had a weird shape, but they were not afraid at all. Scout teams consisted only of elites from abat division. All of them were outstanding and experienced. The previous easy victories had made them confident too. They had once attacked an elementalistbat division and defeated the whole division with just their one team.

    The captain said in a deep voice, "Attack separately!"

    All the members dispersed at once and approached the Sword of Lightning from different directions.

    On the Pinwheel Sword, Gu Xuan was severely scolded by Ai Hui.

    "With such a massive strike, you only hit one guy? How on earth did you practice recently?"

    With a spur of the moment improvised idea, Ai Hui decided to let Gu Xuan takemand of thebat division because this was a perfect opportunity for actualbat training. Although the Sword of Lightning had improved and was much better than before, the members didn¡¯t have many chances to experience realbat.

    However, seeing that Gu Xuan only hit one guy with thest strike, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t bear it.

    Cold sweat ran down from Gu Xu¡¯s forehead, and other members were nervous too. Ai Hui¡¯s prestige was now much higher, and they held him in awe and veneration. They were very afraid to hear him say the word "practice" because this would usually be apanied with punishment.

    Gu Xuan shouted loudly, "Everybody stay focused!"

    When Gu Xuan observed Ai Huimanding, he felt that Ai Hui was doing it easily. On the other hand, when he was in charge, he realized how difficult it was.

    If he screwed up and lost face for Ai Hui in front so many people...

    Gu Xuan couldn¡¯t help shivering.

 Chapter 591: The Sword Aura

    Chapter 591: The Sword Aura

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The Pinwheel Sword was a brand-new weapon that no one had ever seen before.

    No one knew how it fought, what it specialized in, or how powerful it was.

    Karakorum Savant had been examining how the sword pagodas worked. Being a swordswoman herself, she was very curious about the Pinwheel Sword. Previously, Ai Hui told her that the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s swordsmen were different from conventional swordsmen. This certainly piqued her interest.

    Simrly, Shi Xueman was very curious about the Pinwheel Sword as well. When shest left the Central Pine Valley, the Pinwheel Sword was just a bunch of metal frames put together in a hideous manner.

    Xiao Shan and Silver Solder had widened their eyes as they waited for Pinwheel Sword¡¯s performance.

    With everyone¡¯s gaze gathered on Gu Xuan¡¯s back, the pressure on him gradually increased. At the back of the Pinwheel Sword, Shi Zhiguang was also on high alert and 100 percent focused.

    Gu Xuan maintained hisposure. When he saw the enemy forces striking at them from all directions, he did not brandish his sword immediately. He merely yelled, "Push forward! Prepare for [Seven Stars]!"

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s eyes widened as his sword hand transformed into a flurry of afterimages, dazzling those who were looking at it. Not far away, Huo Da¡¯s eyes lit up. This was the only move that he couldn¡¯t execute as perfectly as Shi Zhiguang. The difficulty of this move was not due to the speed of the hand movements, but rather, the speed of the change in hand movements. The speed at which the elemental energy was being channeled had to be precise and steady as well.

    The most difficult part was channeling the elemental energy steadily while changing the hand signs extremely quickly.

    Sometimes, one had no choice but to admit that innate skills were indeed scary. Shi Zhiguang¡¯s base level and understanding of elemental energy paled inparison to Huo Da¡¯s, yet his performance as a sword operator was much more outstanding than Huo Da¡¯s.

    The God Wolf Division¡¯s scout captain saw the Pinwheel Sword tremble slightly. Suddenly, it blurred and turned into a light streak that flew at them.

    It was really fast!

    In the blink of an eye, the glowing Pinwheel Sword appeared right in front of the blood elementalists who were unable to dodge in time.

    Bang.

    Three blood elementalists were sent flying through the air.

    Everyone on the Pinwheel Sword were veterans with richbat experience. They could tell from the sound of the collision that every bone in those three blood elementalists¡¯ bodies had been shattered. They had no chance of surviving.

    The Pinwheel Sword was ferocious!

    Silver Soldier, who favored the fighting style of meeting force with force, began to fantasize about the Pinwheel Sword bashing through blood elementalists as it sent their flesh and blood flying into the air.

    It was a deadly weapon! It was much deadlier than the God-subduing Peak!

    The God-subduing Peak wasrger in size and had many offensive capabilities, but in terms of force of impact, it paled inparison to the Pinwheel Sword.

    Silver Soldier immediately fell in love with this kind of deadly weapon. He was pondering whether or not he should buy one or two of them from Ai Hui.

    The Pinwheel Sword effortlessly cut through the encirclement of blood elementalists. At this moment, Gu Xuan roared, "Raise your swords!"

    A buzz rang through the air.

    It sounded like countless tuning forks ringing together. The onlookers on the Pinwheel Sword felt their heads be heavier. Despite the fact they were able to recover shortly, their facial expressions still changed involuntarily, disying shock and amazement.

    Buzz!

    A electric noise resounded through the air. A thick, irregrly-shaped sword gleam shot out from the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s tail.

    This was...

    The onlookers opened their eyes wide out of the fear of missing out on any detail.

    With a thunderous boom, the sword gleam exploded into seven dazzling spots of light that flew in different directions.

    Boom.

    The seven light spots ruptured into seven bursts of radiance, resembling seven blossoming flowers. Seven different sizeds formed from sword gleams appeared and scattered in the sky,

    When the scout captain saw the brilliant burst of white light in the sky, he knew something was wrong.

    Before he could react in time, the surging burst of sword gleams had already reached him.

    In an instant, his muscr body was ripped into pieces by countless streaks of sword gleam.

    When the dazzling burst of white light dissipated, the sky was empty. Every blood elementalist had been annihted.

    Gu Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. He had finally killed all the enemies without screwing up. Even though the [Seven Stars] technique had a very wide attack range, there were still loopholes. If they were unlucky, one or two enemies might be able to dodge the attack and escape.

    Fortunately, Lady Luck was smiling upon them today.

    He wiped off the beads of sweat from his forehead and stole a nce at Boss. When he saw that Boss did not show any reactions, he heaved a sigh of relief again.

    At this moment, everyone on the Pinwheel Sword was silent. The engagement between the Pinwheel Sword and the blood elementalists had dealt a huge blow to them. They needed time to digest what they had just seen.

    Ai Hui did not feel anything. What Gu Xuan had just done was nothing out of the ordinary. However, he knew Gu Xuan¡¯s progress couldn¡¯t be rushed and that Gu Xuan would be more proficient after a few more battles. Ai Hui almost forgot that he, himself, wasn¡¯t a battlefield veteran either.

    Everyone gradually regained theirposure. After all, everybody was an extraordinary individual. Only Karakorum Pris failed to regain herposure. This time around, she finally understood what Ai Hui meant when he previously said that their concepts of swordsmen were different. She received the most shock out of everyone. Gu Xuan and his counterpartspletely defied her understanding of swordsmanship.

    Were Gu Xuan and his counterparts still considered swordsmen?

    They did not pursue a swordy style of variations, but rather, a style of synchronization with each other. She had never seen or heard of such swordsmen!

    If she had not witnessed the powerful might of the Sword of Lightning¡¯s sword gleam with her own eyes, she would think of them as being unorthodox.

    Since ancient times, there had been no such swordsmanship!

    Since ancient times, there had been no such swordsmen!

    "A mere scout unit dared to charge at us. This shows how unafraid of us they are," said Venerable Volcano while sighing.

    "Currently, the blood elementalists are unstoppable. They feel that we can¡¯t withstand a single blow. There are several cases where an entirebat division was annihted by a few blood elementalists," Silver Soldier added.

    Everyone feltplicated emotions. Initially, both sides¡¯ strengths were bnced. Within a short period of time, the elementalists¡¯ strength suffered a devastating decline. Nowadays, few elementalists felt proud of themselves. The marvellous Spear of Heavy Cloud Division only magnified the vulnerability of modern elementalists.

    All of them returned to their senses. After the shock they received from the Pinwheel Sword wore off, their hearts became heavy. The Pinwheel Sword was indeed powerful, but sword operators were very hard to train. This limited its usefulness in the war. Could one or two Pinwheel Swords make any fundamental changes to circumstances of the war?

    Ai Hui noticed everyone was feeling down, but he couldn¡¯t think of any way to cheer them up. This wasn¡¯t something that could be resolved with a few words. The difference in mentality between elementalists and blood elementalists was caused by the number of victories and defeats each side went through.

    The only way to raise morale was through victories. Other than victories, there were no other methods.

    Ai Hui also realized this war was tougher than he expected. If the generals and Masters around him now were so pessimistic, he could imagine how low the morale of the rest of the troops would be.

    Ai Hui remembered which direction the enemy scouts came from. He passed down the instruction to continue moving forward.

    The fact that they encountered the enemy scouts implied that they were not too far away from the main enemy force.

    Indeed, they quickly encountered a second batch of scouts. Ai Hui did not do anything and continued to let Gu Xuanmand the Pinwheel Sword.

    This time around, Gu Xuan¡¯s performance was much better. He did not let a single scout escape.

    However, their current location was too close to the enemy encampment, their battle had rmed the other scouts, and a third squad of scouts arrived shortly, depriving them of any time to catch their breaths.

    This time around, Gu Xuan failed to kill every single scout.

    Of course, other than the fact that Gu Xuan needed to improve his skills, the enemy scouts also took the initiative to retreat this time around. When they saw that the Pinwheel Sword had reached this area, they knew that the other two scouting forces were most likely dead. As such, they did not choose to fight to the death and escaped in different directions instead. At this point in time, the most important thing for them to do was to alert the main force.

    Wisps of blood-colored signals blossomed in the air.

    From these signals, one could tell how professional the blood elementalists were. Compared to elementalistbat divisions, the blood elementalistbat divisions had morebat experience and were better trained.

    Everyone had solemn looks on their faces.

    This was the first time Xiao Shan, Venerable Volcano, Tong Gui, Yu Jin, and the rest made contact with the blood elementalistbat divisions at the front line. The proficiency of the blood elementalists far exceeded their expectations.

    "The main forces of the enemy areing," Silver Soldier reminded Ai Hui.

    "They have already arrived," Ai Hui replied calmly.

    Just as he finished his sentence, the distant horizon undted like rippling water. A faintly discernible boom resounded through the air. Even though they were separated by a vast distance, they could feel an invincible auraing their way.

    Ai Hui turned around and walked toward the sword pagoda.

    His pace was neither fast nor slow, resembling an ancient mummy who was taking a stroll. At the beginning, everyone had found his weird mummy costume to be irksome. By now, they were already used to seeing him like this.

    What was Ai Hui trying to do?

    Everyone felt uncertain.

    As Ai Hui walked up the flight of stairs, his body exuded an indescribable aura.

    The members of the Sword of Lightning became instantly excited. Boss was going to operate the Pinwheel Sword personally! Ever since the day of the one sided ughter from the ckfish Mouth Volcano peak, they all viewed him as a god, but the subsequent training sessions were led by Gu Xuan. Boss seldomly led the training anymore.

    Ai Hui¡¯s aura intensified with each passing day. In everyone¡¯s eyes, his aura had be increasingly unfathomable.

    Gu Xuan was also very excited. Not only was he the vice division leader of the Sword of Lightning, he was also an expert whose strength was second only to Ai Hui in thebat division. However, he clearly knew how wide the strength disparity between him and Boss was.

    Every time Boss disyed his skills, it was an excellent chance for him to observe and learn.

    Everyone¡¯s gazes were gathered on Ai Hui. Many of the gazes contained a tinge of uncertainty.

    This was the first time they had seen such a weird situation.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body did not emit any elemental energy undtions at all. Nheless, for some unknown reason, his body appeared to be unusually pristine and transparent, like... a crystal. An indescribable invisible aura surrounded his body.

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s beautiful eyes lit up. She could not believe what she was seeing.

    Other people might find that invisible aura unfamiliar, but for Karakorum Pris, she found it unusually familiar.

    It was sword aura! An extremely pure sword aura!

    Attaining this realm of swordsmanship was something that she had dreamed about. Such phenomenon could only be found in the swordy manuals from the Cultivation Era.

    Oh god, how did he do it?

    From a young age, Karakorum Pris had always been fascinated by swordsmanship. Creating a swordsmanship encyclopedia was one of her biggest wishes. She had always thought that she was the strongest swordsman of the present era. Today, she finally realized there was someone ahead of her.

    No elemental energy was involved, only a sword was used.

    Ai Hui did not realize that everyone felt shocked at this moment. When he took up his position at the sword pagoda and held the hilt of his sword, he devoted all his concentration to his sword, appearing as if he had be an entirely different person.

    His sensory perception extended to the heavens. The howling metal winds, clouds, and sunshine rapidly brushed past the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s light screen shield. The distant imposing mountain range and the blue dome of heaven above his head seemed to be staring at him.

    A heroic spirit was born in the vast earth,

    Shiiiiiiing. He unsheathed his sword.

    Buzzz. Every Sword of Lightning member¡¯s sword chimed in unison, producing a sword chime that cut through the air in all directions.

    A tremble came from the sword in his hand. It resembled a fine strand of electric current that flowed through every member¡¯s body, causing every strand of hair on their bodies to stand on end. The blood flowing in their bodies was boiling silently, resembling surging, scorching-redva.

    A cold voice drifted through the howling wind.

    "Target the enemy forces! Advance at full speed!"

 Chapter 592: Charge!

    Chapter 592: Charge!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    What Helian Tianxiao said made sense. Now that General Ye and Nangong Wulian had been kidnapped, they were in dire straits. He did not know how to appease His Majesty, neither did he know how to obtain victories. Even his determination was wavering at this point of time.

    After he became a blood elementalists and got promoted, there had never been a crisis as dangerous as this time.

    He did not dare to think about the oue. Other than making him scared and worried, thinking about the oue would not help him in any way. Only by having a do-or-die attitude could he then see a glimpse of hope.

    His hawk-like eyes were flickering with a cold glint, disying a strong killing intent.

    Helian Tianxiao exuded the air of an outstanding leader. Whenever he encountered dangers, he could clearly determine the gains and losses within a short period of time. He swept his gaze across his generals. When he saw the despair and fear in their eyes turn into an insane battle fervor, he was extremely gratified.

    The current God Wolf Division was like a wolf that had its back to the wall. They were unprecedentedly ferocious and insane.

    Helian Tianxiao strongly believed that no one could stop them.

    Just as he was going to give the order for his army to set off, a deafening rm suddenly sounded off.

    Helian Tianxiao had been suppressing the zing mes within him. When he heard the rm signalling an enemy raid, he wasn¡¯t angry. Instead, he smiled, strode out of his tent and said, "Let¡¯s see who paid us a visit today. From today onwards, we will kill any elementalist that puts up resistance!"

    His ruthless voice sent a cold shudder down every general¡¯s spine. They knew their chief was really furious this time around. No one stepped forward to appease him. All of them were filled with a frantic killing intent. The fire in their hearts was lit up by despair. Now that their lives were at stake, why would they still care aboutradeship?

    Just as Helian Tianxiao stepped out of his tent, his eye pupils dted abruptly.

    It was dazzling outside of the tent. The ground was as bright as snow. The wobbling brilliance was demonic and pierced his eyes. The leg that he extended out of his tent cast a trembling shadow on the ground, resembling a wiggling puddle of ink. Helian Tianxiao had never seen such a weird phenomenon in broad daylight.

    He raised his head abruptly and looked at the sky.

    A light ball, like a shooting-star, was flying towards them at a terrifying speed. The dazzling brilliance was being released by that light ball.

    The encampment became increasingly bright. Everyone and everything looked as if it were ted with ayer of shiny silver. The light ball was devouring the light from every light source . Helian Tianxiao couldn¡¯t even determine the position of the sun at this point of time.

    A premonition arose in his heart. He snarled, "Defend..."

    Actually, there was no need for him to remind his subordinates. When the rm for enemy raid sounded off, the soldiers that were in charge of the encampment¡¯s defense had already set up the defenses. The soldiers of God Wolf Division were very well-trained.

    Back in the day, Ye Baiyi had repeatedly adjusted thebat divisions that fought at the front line. Having been through countless battles, the six god divisions and twelve blood divisions were thoroughly sharpened. Furthermore, they had maintained their numbers all this time. Therefore, the overall standard of theirbat divisions was very high.

    The shooting-star like light ball came very fast. In the blink of an eye, it had reached the encampment.

    The blood canopy had just risen up.

    The demonic and ring light collided heavily against the blood canopy.

    Boom!

    An enormous explosion erupted. The sound wave devoured everyone¡¯s sense of hearing in an instant. The rays of light discharged from the explosion engulfed everyone in whiteness. The ground beneath their feet shook violently, causing them to lose their bnce.

    Helian Tianxiao shook his head to regain his senses. The impact from the collision was very powerful.

    He managed to close his eyes at the moment when the collision took ce. As such, he wasn¡¯t affected by the outburst of dazzling light. When the dazzling light dissipated, Helian Tianxiao could see that the glow of the blood canopy had dimmed and its thickness had reduced significantly.

    Suddenly, his pupils dted once more.

    A shooting-star like light ball shot down from the sky and flew towards them again. The demonic and ring white light appeared once more.

    Helian Tianxiao was overwhelmed with shock. This shooting star seemed to appear out of thin air.

    Boom.

    Another explosion resounded through the air. There was an outburst of dazzling light once again.

    This time around, everyone had learnt their lessons. They closed their eyes and were not affected by the ring white light.

    Clink! A soft, shattering sound rang across Helian Tianxiao¡¯s ears. His mind jolted.

    Oh no! The blood canopy is going to shatter!

    Before he could react in time, a rumbling shock wave crashed on his head like a huge hammer.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s body swayed as he tried to stabilize himself.

    When he saw his surroundings, his face had turned ashen. It was as if a hurricane had swept through the encampment. The encampment was in chaos. The tents had been ripped from the ground and the soldiers were lying haphazardly all over the ce. Luckily, no one was injured. The blood canopy had absorbed most of the force from the shooting stars. Even though thest shock wave was extremely powerful, its force had been dispersed and it was not enough to injure everyone.

    However, since when had God Wolf Division ever suffered such humiliation!

    Helian Tianxiao was startled and angry at the same time. Based on the energy undtions from the explosion, he could tell that the shooting star was actually a sword gleam.

    Swordsmen!

    Could it be Sky Edge Division?

    Suddenly, Helian Tianxiao noticed there was a rice-grain-sized speckle of light rising in the distant sky.

    It¡¯s there! He widened his eyes and watched on nkly as the speckle of light rose higher and higher... and then suddenly it disappeared!

    Almost in an instant, he thought of the shooting stars that appeared out of thin air just now. He roared at the top of his voice, "Defend!"

    Even in such a sorry state, God Wolf Division still demonstrated the skills of an elite unit. The soldiers in charge of the encampment¡¯s defense had received the greatest impact just now. Many of them had blood seeping out from the corners of their mouths and their bodies were shaking. However, the moment they came to their senses, they frantically returned to their defensive positions without any instructions given.

    The boundary of the encampment lit up with a red glow. The red glow kept on rising and formed a blood canopy. The blood canopy was drawing closed to a point above the centre of the encampment.

    The sword gleam wasing at a speed faster than before!

    The shooting-star like sword gleam collided with the blood canopy before it could fully close up.

    The defensive power of the partially-closed blood canopy was much lower than when it was fully closed. In an instant, the blood canopy shattered into smithereens. The de-like fragments fell from the sky like raindrops. Helian Tianxiao and his counterparts had put up a bloody glow to surround their bodies. As such, they weren¡¯t hurt by the fragments.

    In a moment of desperation, the more ordinary soldiers could only protect their vital body parts. Their bodies were spurting out blood. Meanwhile, the muscr blood elementalists knew how to make use of their physical advantages. Non-deadly injuries would not have too much of an impact on them.

    Under the powerful impact, those blood elementalists that were in charge of the encampment¡¯s defense were knocked flying back and became unconscious.

    Since when had God Wolf Division ever suffered such humiliation?

    Everyone¡¯s eyes were bloodshot. Roars and snarls could be heard throughout the encampment.

    Silverfrost Division¡¯s division leader, Song Xiaoqian, clenched her teeth and said, "Chief, allow me tounch a counterattack!"

    However, Helian Tianxiao was unusually calm at this moment. He shook his head and replied, "The enemy ising!"

    The dazzling speckle of light in the distant sky kept on quivering as it increased in size gradually.

    On the Pinwheel Sword, everyone was silent. All of them had different facial expressions. Some were bewildered, some were incredulous, and some were terrified, but none of them were calm.

    [zing Shooting Star]. Ai Hui¡¯s cold voice seemed to linger in the smoke emitted by the shooting star.

    His swordsmanship was incredible. No, was this still considered swordsmanship? Karakorum Pris, who was the most eligible person to answer this question, did not know the answer.

    With their own eyes, they witnessed the powerful might of Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship and how the blood canopy of the God Wolf Division¡¯s encampment was destroyed.

    What aroused them the most was Ai Hui¡¯s willpower and fighting spirit.

    Their enemy was a god division. It was the god division that had yet to be defeated. It was the god division that had a few members who dared to attack an entirebat division. It was the fearsome god division that defeated numerousbat divisions like a hot knife slicing through butter.

    Pinwheel Sword increased its speed instead of reducing it as it charged towards the enemy¡¯s encampment. When everyone had realized Ai Hui really wanted to charge towards the encampment, a thought appeared in all of their minds at the same time. Was he seeking death?

    The next thought they had was... he was crazy!

    However, the metal wind that was brushing past their ears had reached an incredibly high speed, so much so that it was ear-splitting. The scenery around them had be blurry. The glow that surrounded the Pinwheel Sword had intensified. The Pinwheel Sword was rapidly increasing in size in the fearsome and invincible god division¡¯s field of vision!

    An unimaginable situation was happening right now.

    What they were doing now was insane, reckless, illogical and insufferably arrogant.

    All of them had grown out of their reckless teenage youth years and they were obviously used to seeing death. However, at this point of time, why was the blood in their bodies boiling and racing so? And what exactly caused the zing fire in their hearts?

    Shi Xueman was holding Cirrus in her hand tightly as her fingers turned pale. Xiao Shan¡¯s face was flushed,cking the usual indifference. Venerable Volcano¡¯s beard was swaying and his lips were trembling. Yu Jin subconsciously grabbed Tong Gui¡¯s elbow. She did not realize how tightly she was holding Tong Gui¡¯s arm, and she never realized how much Tong Gui¡¯s body was trembling. Ke Ning¡¯s mind was nk while his mouth was mumbling incoherent words non-stop.

    The members of Sword of Heavy Cloud had descended into a state of insanity!

    Usually Ai Hui was calm and cool-headed. However, the current Ai Hui was like surging lightning bolts in a cloudy sky, reckless and domineering!

    His cold voice rang across everyone¡¯s ears once more.

    "Shi Zhiguang, prepare for [Heavenly Chime of Sword Vortex]!"

    Veins were popping out of Shi Zhiguang¡¯s neck. With an intense excitement on his face, he roared, "Yes!"

    "The rest, prepare for [Great Sword Gleam]"

    No one replied to him. The sword pagodas did not need to reply to Ai Hui¡¯smands. An unusual flush appeared on every member¡¯s face. Their backs were slightly bent, their eyes were widened, and they were holding their breaths, resembling tigers that were waiting to strike at any moment.

    The howling of the metal winds was bing increasingly violent. The Pinwheel Sword was still increasing its speed. The image of the enemy encampment was increasing in size and rity in their line of sight.

    Atop the Pinwheel Sword, everyone was unusually quiet. The air seemed to have frozen at this moment.

    Shi Xueman and the rest could not help but hold their breaths. A silent killing intent was brewing in the frozen air.

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s eyes were widened while his muscr body remained stationary. However, the palm that he used to hold the sword was still gentle like water. He brandished the sword gently and smoothly without any aggression or urgency.

    Shi Xueman, Xiao Shan and Venerable Volcano were the first ones to notice something weird was going on. Something seemed to be moving.

    After a while, a rustle that resembled the sound of the tide flowing through the sea rang across their ears.

    This was...

    Xiao Shan and the rest looked around but didn¡¯t notice anything. However, at this point of time, they could not be bothered with anything else. The enemy encampment was almost within reach!

    The chime-like Unity Swords hanging at the bottom of Pinwheel Sword were swaying like water nts. They all pointed in the same directions and their swaying motions were synchronized. A mysterious aura was forming but the rustling sound was bing unnoticeable. It was as if fragmented lightning bolts were gathering in the depths of theyer of cloud.

    Ai Hui¡¯s gazended upon Helian Tianxiao, who was standing in the middle of the encampment. Simrly, Helian Tianxiao noticed Ai Hui, who was positioned at the core of the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s aura.

    Their eyes met. An unconceble aura of death swept across the air silently.

    Suddenly, a sinister smile appeared on Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face as he roared, "Kill them!"

    Behind theyer of bandages, Ai Hui¡¯s lips curled into a cold smile as he slightly turned the sword in his hand.

    Angry roars and a sword chime rang through the air at the same time.

 Chapter 593: Silver Frostâ€™s Resistance

    Chapter 593: Silver Frost¡¯s Resistance

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Without any probing attacks, the battle instantly escted into a climax.

    Song Xiaoqian, whose request tounch a counterattack was denied, mysteriously appeared in Silver Frost Blood Division. With an ice-cold face, she sat on the back of a snow white silver frost wolf. Beside her, there was a gbearer who held the war g of Silver Frost Blood Division high in the air. Behind her, approximately one thousand soldiers had gathered and they stood in neat and orderly formations. Units of soldiers continued to gather behind her like streams of water.

    The enemy had arrived too fast, so fast that they couldn¡¯t assemble in time.

    One thousand soldiers was enough!

    A cold glint shed across the beautiful eyes of Song Xiaoqian. The silver frost wolf beneath her suddenly raised its front limbs. Behind her, the silver frost wolves beneath every soldier followed suit as well.

    When Helian Tianxiao¡¯s angry roar resounded through the sky, the one thousand Silver Frost wolves¡¯ thick and solid front limbs mmed heavily onto the ground.

    A snow white icy mist suddenly pervaded the area.

    A thick and gigantic ice wall rose from the ground in front of the encampment. It was right in the way of Pinwheel Sword. After the ice wall was set up, icy mist and frost swept up from the ground and gathered around it.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s God Wolf Division suddenly moved. They separated into two groups and ran adjacent to each other, brushing past the two ends of the ice wall. This entire process waspleted in one go without any hesitation.

    The sudden appearance of the ice wall did not seem to affect Ai Hui at all. He merely turned the hilt of his sword slightly.

    The movement of one sword caused hundreds of swords to move.

    Beneath Pinwheel Sword, the chime-like Unity Swords were whirling slowly, resembling water nts that were caught in a vortex. Suddenly, they erupted with a burst of radiance and synchronized sword chimes. Like a fully-filled reservoir with its dam lock opened abruptly, the radiance gushed out like surging floodwater. The deep and low sword chimes converged into one single sword chime. It was loud, clear and melodious, resounding through the sky like the cry of a crane!

    [Heavenly Chime of Sword Vortex] was inspired by [Sword Chime], but it was several times more powerful than thetter.

    The ice wall trembled and the icy mist rose into the air. Countless straight, crisscrossing sword scars appeared on it.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s facial expression changed, but she couldn¡¯t yell in time.

    Pinwheel Sword did not try to dodge the ice wall. Instead, it collided into it directly.

    The ice wall shattered with a loud bang, causing countless ice fragments to fly in all directions like torrential rain. The charging God Wolf soldiers copsed like wheatgrass that was being reaped. They looked as if they were hit by a heavy hammer as the glow around their bodies dimmed. The terrifying power from the collision caused them to lose their bnce and fly off the backs of their wolves.

    Song Xiaoqian reached out her hand and caught one of the ice fragments as it shot out from the icy mist. The fist sized ice fragment had a shiny surface that made it look like a shard of mirror. It appeared as if it had been cut and polished by an extremely sharp sword gleam.

    Her face turned solemn.

    After it shattered the ice wall, Pinwheel Sword entered the icy mist. Its speed suddenly slowed down. When the icy mist brushed against the glowing screen surrounding Pinwheel Sword, sparks were created and flew in all directions. The glowing screen around Pinwheel Sword was thinning visibly. The icy mist had an odd, corrosive ability that seemed to be effective against Pinwheel Sword¡¯s glowing screen.

    Ai Hui was unconcerned about this.

    Blood elementalists practised blood spiritual force. In the spiritual force system, blood spiritual force was considered a low-tier spiritual force. However, it was still a type of spiritual force nheless. Therefore, it was still much more powerful than elemental energy.

    However, a battle was never fought on paper.

    Pinwheel Sword was as fast as a lightning bolt. The icy mist could not stop it at all. Pinwheel Sword jolted and the hindering mist disappeared.

    A snow whitebat division stood silently in front of them.

    Without any hesitation, Ai Hui moved the sword in his hand. Like a silentmand, every member¡¯s sword moved at the same time.

    Looking down from the sky, one could clearly see the seven sword pagodas erupting with a brilliant radiance at the same time. The radiance was produced by the glow of sword gleams shooting out of the seven sword pagodas. They were scattered uniformly, resembling the seven stars of the Big Dipper.

    Song Xiaoqian held her breath. She felt that her heart was being gripped by an invisible hand. An intense feeling of danger engulfed her body.

    Her instincts, which she¡¯d developed from countless battles, allowed her to channel all her blood spiritual force instantly. All of sudden her body emitted an enormous amount of mist.

    At this moment a thick, dazzling streak of sword gleam travelled with lightning speed and struck her directly.

    Crash!

    Ice fragments flew through the air in all directions.

    Having a powerful sense of perception and a clear mind, Ai Hui knew that he¡¯d struck an ice statue the moment he unleashed his attack. At the same time, he had already locked onto his target again and heshed out his sword once more.

    Another gigantic streak of sword gleam was unleashed!

    Song Xiaoqian, who had just appeared amid the mist, felt an intense sense of danger. She was overwhelmed with shock. How could the other party lock onto her position? However, she had no time to think about it now. She clenched her teeth, channeled all her blood spiritual force and transformed into a cloud of mist once again.

    Crash!

    Ice fragments flew through the air in all directions again. The spot where she was standing previously was empty now. However, this time around, the ice fragments were stained with blood.

    At this point of time, the blood elementalists from Silver Frost Blood Division had already risen into the air and lunged for Pinwheel Sword!

    Every one of them was holding an ice spear. As they reached their maximum height in the air, they arched their lower backs, exhaled and hurled the ice spears in their hands.

    The ice spears spun at an extreme speed and transformed into streaks of light that whizzed towards Pinwheel Sword.

    Each unit of blood elementalists hurled out more than one hundred ice spears. Like a bone shattering rain of ice, the ice spears sted Pinwheel Sword¡¯s glowing screen. The glowing screen vibrated violently. The piercing power of those ice spears was extremely terrifying.

    Just as the first wave of blood elementalists hurled the ice spears in their hands, the second wave of blood elementalists was already in the air throwing their ice spears.

    One wave after another, the ice spears flew towards Pinwheel sword like a torrential storm!

    Pinwheel Sword¡¯s glowing screen was on the verge of copse.

    Ai Hui locked onto Song Xiaoqian¡¯s figure once more. However, this time around, Pinwheel Sword¡¯s glowing screen was facing imminent danger. Admittedly, his attack could hit Song Xiaoqian, but he would put Pinwheel Sword in danger.

    In a split second, Ai Hui had made his move.

    The seven sword pagodas lit up once again. The sword gleams released a glow and shot out from the seven sword pagodas.

    [Seven Stars]!

    Seven bursts of sword gleams erupted like fireworks around Pinwheel Sword.

    Without any warning, Silver Frost soldiers were caught in the sword gleams from [Seven Stars]. They fell from the sky like dumplings in an instant. However, the icy mist seemed to have a mind of its own. It transformed into a soft mattress and caught the fallen soldiers.

    The soldiers weren¡¯t severely injured. Other than ten unlucky soldiers who were hit in their vital body parts, the rest were only lightly wounded. They did not care about their injuries at all. Their first reaction after getting hit was to continue lunging for Pinwheel Sword.

    The strength of [Seven Stars] did not lie in its power, but rather its attacking radius. Like a huge broom, it swept every blood elementalist down from the air around Pinwheel Sword.

    Shi Zhiguang seized the opportunity and pressed the hilt of his sword abruptly. Pinwheel Sword conveniently flew out of Silver Frost Blood Division¡¯s encirclement and its glowing screen re-stabilized. Those fallen Silver Frost soldiers that had frantically lunged for Pinwheel Sword missed their target.

    Shi Zhiguang clearly understood that Pinwheel Sword¡¯s most formidable strength did not lie in its sword gleams, but rather, its speed and maneuverability. Boss had warned them more than once that Pinwheel Sword was not used to fight enemy forces head-on. Fighting head-on was more for weapons like hammers and rods. Swords were used to fight nimbly and swiftly.

    Touch and go, attack the enemy¡¯s weak spot, strike where it hurts the most.

    Shi Zhiguang wasn¡¯t confused at all. At this moment, he was unusually excited and yet his brain was extremely calm.

    Ai Hui did not stop attacking. His sword continued to fly through the air swiftly.

    Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh. More than two hundred sword gleams were dancing in the air.

    Like an enormous whip, a huge and thick sword gleamnded on the enemy encampment. Tents were ripped apart and blood and flesh flew in all directions, forming a bloody "road" on the ground.

    The blood elementalists who had assembled into their formations were able to withstand the huge sword gleam through various methods. Even if they could not withstand it, they still tried their best to lessen the damage done. However, those blood elementalists that had yet to assemble into their formations did not have the ability to withstand the huge sword gleam. Like a fish on a chopping board, they were readily ughtered.

    A war was as such. Sometimes, blood elementalists with Ability of God or who were Masters were very limited in their usefulness. It was every division leader¡¯s responsibility to give orders and ensure theirbat divisions were in order.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s face turned ashen. Half of her body was drenched in blood. The huge sword gleam had injured her severely. However, even so, she continued to givemands to the soldiers and made sure they finished assembling into their formations.

    Pinwheel Sword whizzed through the air and released three more huge sword gleams. Three enormous bloody gouges were left on the ground of the encampment.

    More than thirty blood elementalists died on the spot. More than fifty blood elementalists were lying in a pool of blood while groaning in agony.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s facial expression did not change at all. A few hundred casualties was insignificant to Silver Frost Blood Division and God Wolf Division, despite the fact that this was thergest number of casualties they had suffered since they arrived at the battlefield.

    Helian Tianxiao already knew who the invader was!

    Ai Hui¡¯s Sword of Lightning!

    Having sharp eyesight, he could see Shi Xueman, Silver Soldier and the rest of the elementalists¡¯ core members on Pinwheel Sword.

    Disrespect. He could feel that God Wolf Division was being disrespected. All the enemy division leaders had arrived at God Wolf Division¡¯s encampment, if they weren¡¯t disrespecting them then what else were they doing here?

    However, Helian Tianxiao was still able to maintain hisposure at this moment. He was thinking of only one thing. He couldn¡¯t let the enemy leave this ce!

    The oddly-shaped weapon and the astonishing fighting tactics had lit up his eyes. All of his defensive tactics had failed because of these unprecedented and odd fighting tactics.

    They had been in a disadvantageous position all this time. They had more than a few hundred casualties and yet the enemy did not even have a single casualty.

    Helian Tianxiao, however, was unconcerned.

    All of the enemy¡¯s important leaders were atop this weird-looking weapon. As long as he could take down this weapon, he would make up for all the losses he suffered. Even if the whole God Wolf Division was annihted, this deal was still worth it.

    Pinwheel Sword broke through the half raised blood canopy and prated the encampment.

    "Don¡¯t run!"

    "They are escaping!"

    The surrounding generals were cursing loudly. Suddenly, Helian Tianxiao yelled, "Get ready, the enemy ising back!"

    The rest were stunned. Soon after, a furious look appeared on their faces.

    Helian Tianxiao could maintain hisposure, but his generals could not do so. They failed to stop the enemy¡¯s raid. Their encampment was wrecked and the ground was filled with corpses and wounded soldiers from their side. It was as if the enemy had just trampled on their faces.

    Every soldier of God Wolf Division was prideful and valiant. How could they take this lying down?

    "Every unit split up now and focus on slowing the enemy down. You must entangle the enemy in order to slow it down. Once the enemy¡¯s speed is reduced, it will be a fish that is trapped in a," Helian Tianxiao instructed.

    "Yes!" roared everyone in unison.

    God Wolf Division scattered into separate units. Every unit had approximately one hundred men and they cruised forward slowly.

    Atop Pinwheel Sword, everyone felt like they were dreaming. They could not believe what they had just seen.

    Were they... prating the enemy encampment?

    They actually prated the encampment of the enemy forces!

    The encampment of God Wolf Division and Silver Frost Blood Division!

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression remained as usual and his mind was calm. He lowered his sword as his cold voice resounded through the air.

    "Shi Zhiguang, peeling tactic!"

    "Yes!" Shi Zhiguang¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Moving the hilt of the sword in his hand, Pinwheel Sword drew an elegant arc in the sky and went back for the blood elementalists!

 Chapter 594: Helpless

    Chapter 594: Helpless

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Helian Tianxiao continuously adjusted his defensive arrangements. The enemy¡¯s speed was terrifying. If he did not reduce the enemy¡¯s speed, there was absolutely no chance for him to obtain victory. He was very prudent because he did not know whether or not the enemy still had other trump cards.

    Previously, the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s pagoda cannons had already given then a huge shock. Now, this odd-looking flying machine of the Sword of Lightning gave them another huge shock.

    The God Wolf Division felt extremely humiliated after seeing their encampment so easily invaded. Shame and anger arose in their hearts. However, due to the impact of the previous incisive attack, they had no choice but to maintain theirposure.

    Helian Tianxiao predicted that the Sword of Lightning would charge their encampment once more. Everyone felt infuriated, and all of them were waiting to give the Sword of Lightning a good beating.

    Shi Xueman, Silver Soldier, and the rest observed the enemy forces closely.

    Soon, they were going to fight the God Wolf Division. A chance to observe them beforehand like this was hard toe by.

    The God Wolf Division was like a blood-colored whirlpool. Every unit had over 100 men, and all of them were slowly cruising around the encampment, looking like routed soldiers. On the surface, their formations looked unorganized, but in reality, they were concealing their killing intent. The distance between each cruising unit was very small and faintly discernible. When a unit was in trouble, the nearest unit would immediately provide reinforcement to it and block the enemy. Meanwhile, the other nearby units would spring into action and outnk the enemy.

    Members of the Silver Frost Blood Division were mixed among them. Their feet released surging traces of mist that would not dissipate.

    At this moment, the Pinwheel Sword finished making its U-turn and began to increase its speed. Its glowing light screen became bright once again.

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s eyes looked as though they were surging with snow-white tidal waves under the sun. Due to exerting too much strength, his facial expression could not help but turn sinister. Coupled with his tall and muscr body, he looked like a furious wild beast that was filled with energy. However, his movements were smooth and gentle like water, looking as if he was afraid to break the sword hilt.

    The buzzing produced by the Pinwheel Sword resonated once more. With a long trail of light behind it, it flew toward the enemy encampment.

    Even though Helian Tianxiao had seen the Pinwheel Sword in action before, he still could not help but feel surprise when he saw it in action again. Such terrifying speed! Such fearsome might!

    The distance between the two parties was reducing rapidly

    "Prepare to receive the enemy!" Helian Tianxiao roared.

    The mist from the Silver Frost Blood Division shot up into the sky like countless frigid white palms. These white misty palms acted as the first line of defence. Previously, the sound wave attack had left a deep impression on them. This time around, they had prepared a thicker ice wall and frosty mist that possessed a stronger restrictive ability. The members of the God Wolf Division were also prepared. As long as the speed of the Pinwheel Sword was slightly reduced, they would pounce on it like a pack of hungry wolves.

    Just as the Pinwheel Sword was about to charge into the encampment, it suddenly changed its direction and flew along the edge of the encampment at an extreme speed.

    As it flew along the edge of the encampment, each of the seven sword pagodas lit up with a dazzling radiance. A streak of [Great Sword Gleam] shot out from the Pinwheel Sword. The thick and shining sword gleamnded heavily on the encampment.

    The sword gleam traveled at a lightning speed, and its momentum was unstoppable. It almost reached the center of the encampment.

    Everyone who stood in its path was ripped into pieces of flesh and blood. The encampment was split into two with blood elementalists either injured or dead at the line of demarcation. No one could withstand its sharpness. The God Wolf Division¡¯s members were scattered, so they did not suffer heavy casualties. Even so, 12 of their members still died on the spot and six of their members were severely injured.

    The number of wounded blood elementalists was fewer than the number of dead blood elementalists. This showed how powerful the sword gleam was.

    Helian Tianxiao did not care about the casualties. His heart skipped a beat as he realized Ai Hui¡¯s intention!

    Indeed, the Pinwheel Sword drew another arc in the sky and charged at the encampment again. Halfway through, it suddenly changed its direction and flew at an oblique angle to the encampment.

    As it neared the edge of the encampment, it shot out another streak of sword gleam into the encampment!

    The previous scene was reenacted, causing more than 10 casualties.

    Damn it!

    Helian Tianxia¡¯s face turned extremely sullen. For a period of time, he did not know what to do either. The Pinwheel Sword was like a sharp fruit knife that pared the encampment bit by bit.

    Even though he knew Ai Hui¡¯s intention, he could not think of any good solution. The Pinwheel Sword was too fast, too nimble, and it only flew along the edge of the encampment.

    Suddenly, Helian Tianxiao found that this battle tactic looked unusually familiar.

    Eh? Wasn¡¯t this the tactic that the God Wolf Division frequently used? They used speed and maneuvering to cruise around the edge of the enemy forces. Whenever the enemy forces rxed, the God Wolf Division would pounce and take a bite of them.

    By the time Helian Tianxiao realized what was going on, he turned even more sullen.

    The Pinwheel Sword was using his favorite tactic against him, yet he was helpless against it. Helian Tianxiao was a shrewd and calm individual, but he was flustered and exasperated by this point in time.

    After a while, the other party had already charged them five times. There were almost 100 casualties.

    Calm down! Calm down!

    He took a deep breath and suppressed the anger within him. "Defend! Raise the defenses! Strengthen the defenses!"

    When Helian Tianxiao saw the blood canopy rising up slowly, the veins on his neck popped while his fists were clenched so tightly that they turned pale-white. In the past, the God Wolf Division would alwaysugh at its enemies for being a tortoise that hid in its shell. He had not expected that he would now be the one who hid in a tortoise shell.

    The blood canopy rose and covered the entire encampment once more.

    Every blood elementalist heaved a sigh of relief. The Pinwheel Sword¡¯s continuous sorties had caused them to bleed. Even the bravest soldiers would feel fear when stuck in a situation where they could get hit, but couldn¡¯t retaliate.

    The distant Pinwheel Sword stopped in its tracks. Following which, It turned around and looked at the encampment from a distance.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s gaze was fixated on the tallest sword pagoda on the Pinwheel Sword. There was a skinny figure whose body waspletely covered in bandages.

    Ai Hui!

    This name popped up in Helian Tianxiao¡¯s mind. A nobody whom he hadpletely disregarded in the past had be his nemesis now. The killing intent in his eyes was unconceble. He had to seek revenge for the humiliation he suffered today!

    Atop the sword pagoda, Ai Hui stood in front of a pagoda window, seemingly looking at Helian Tianxiao too.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui raised the sword in his hand, a sword that was mysteriously covered with cracks. Ai Hui then pointed the sword at Helian Tianxiao.

    This provocative action enraged the entire God Wolf Division. All the soldiers flew into a frenzy. Curses, roars, and requests tounch a counterattack flooded the encampment.

    Ai Hui suddenly let go of the sword hilt. In the midair, the sword shattered, and its fragments fell all over the ground. Following which, Ai Hui dusted his hands.

    This action caused the God Wolf Division to explode. Even the most honest-looking soldier flew into a fury.

    Helian Tianxiao suddenly smiled. He raised his voice and said, "Brother Ai is indeed powerful and talented. Furthermore, the Sword of Lightning Division truly deserves the reputation it has. I admire you! However, in the current times of chaos, Brother Ai¡¯s effort alone will be futile. Why not join the God Nation and undertake the mission of bringing peace to this world with us?! His Majesty is eager for talents..."

    Atop the Pinwheel Sword, Ai Hui did not care about Helian Tianxiao at all. He turned around and said to Shi Zhiguang, "Go back."

    Upon hearing these words, Shi Zhiguang quickly operated the Pinwheel Sword. Following which, the Pinwheel Sword drew an arc in the sky and flew toward the Windy Pearl Bridge.

    Inside the God Wolf Division¡¯s encampment, Helian Tianxiao gazed at the distant Pinwheel Sword. For a moment, he was dazed.

    When he returned to his senses and saw the low morale of his soldiers, he silently shivered in fear. The Sword of Lightning came at a really inopportune time. Just before a win-or-die battle, the Sword of Lightning delivered a devastating blow to them. The momentum that he had gathered for his army disappeared in an instant.

    Helian Tianxiao pretended to be calm andughed, "We are going to win for sure!"

    The rest were stunned and looked at their division leader. The fighting capabilities disyed by the Sword of Lightning had just injured them, and they could not do anything about it. They could not understand what their division leader meant by "win for sure."

    When Helian Tianxiao saw that he had seeded in getting everyone¡¯s attention, he said calmly, "The Sword of Lightning is powerful, but what has it achieved today other than revealing its weaknesses? If the Sword of Lightning Division was my trump card, I would keep it a secret and use it only at the critical moment to obtain victory. I would definitely not use it to scout my enemy and alert them against me. Do you all think that this makes sense?"

    The voice of a woman rang through the air, "Sir, you¡¯re right!"

    The voice belonged to the Silver Frost Blood Division¡¯s Song Xiaoqian. She continued, "By revealing his trump card, Ai Hui clearly knows that he can¡¯t use it to obtain victory!"

    The other generals weren¡¯t fools. They were merely shocked by the might of the Sword of Lightning Division. Now that the two division leaders had unravelled the reason behind Ai Hui¡¯s raid, they returned to their senses and nodded their heads.

    When Helian Tianxiao saw that the dejected looks on everyone¡¯s faces disappeared, he felt at ease. Then, he turned around and asked Song Xiaoqian, "How¡¯s your injury?"

    Half of Song Xiaoqian¡¯s body was covered in frost. One could see some bloodstains within the frost. She shook her head and replied, "I will be fine after resting for a few days."

    A blood elementalist had a very strong body. As long as the injury was not deadly, he or she would recover rapidly.

    Helian Tianxiao nodded his head and continued, "Since Ai Hui already knows our position, there¡¯s no need for us to hurry. We can advance at normal speed while taking this opportunity to let your injury heal as well."

    "Yes," Song Xiaoqian replied.

    She turned around and left.

    Helian Tianxiao looked around him. The soldiers were repairing the encampment and tending to the wounded. Deep down, he wasn¡¯t as optimistic as he portrayed. Previously, he had felt that the defensive line at the Windy Pearl Bridge would be unable to withstand a single blow. He had not expected for Ai Hui¡¯s Sword of Lightning Division to deal him a head-on blow.

    How could he not understand Ai Hui¡¯s intention?

    Ai Hui was doing this to raise the morale of the elementalists. He wanted to prove that blood elementalistbat divisions weren¡¯t invincible.

    And Ai Hui had seeded.

    No matter what, this was a sessful raid by the elementalists. The Sword of Lightning Division had pierced through the encampment of the God Wolf Division, able toe and go as they pleased. Meanwhile, the God Wolf Division was helpless against them. This raid would boost the morale of Ai Hui¡¯s subordinates greatly.

    However, what Helian Tianxiao told his soldiers wasn¡¯t a lie either. A mere Sword of Lightning Division wasn¡¯t really scary.

    Helian Tianxiao did not tell them the full story. He did not tell them that Ai Hui was using this raid to boost the morale of the elementalists.

    This was a most troublesome issue.

    From this day forward, not only did he need to face the Sword of Lightning, he also needed to face tenaciousbat divisions which had their morale boosted. Defensively, the enemy forces had a new-found willpower and fighting spirit that would significantly impact the future battles as well.

    Previously, Helian Tianxiao only knew of Ai Hui as "Lightning Razor Ai." Ai Hui was supposed to prove the Elders Guild¡¯s decadence.

    Now, he knew how unreliable those rumors were. They had made an extremely huge mistake.

    This fellow, whom everyone felt was merely avaricious, was able to create such a significant impact the moment he set foot on the battlefield.

    Such a formidable individual!

    Helian Tianxiao eximed in admiration in his heart. He knew he, himself, wouldn¡¯t be able to pull off such an earth-shaking move. If Ai Hui¡¯s means weren¡¯t so weak, he might have been able to overturn the situation.

    It was a pity both sides had nowhere to retreat to. In terms of determination and willpower, both sides were evenly matched.

    The uing battle was destined to be a tough one, but victory would ultimately belong to them.

 Chapter 595: â€œThe morale of an army is important.â€

    Chapter 595: ¡°The morale of an army is important.¡±

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "I really couldn¡¯t imagine Ai Hui would choose to assault the enemy encampment at that point in time. Even now, when I think about it, I still can¡¯t believe the Sword of Lightning assaulted the encampment of the God Wolf Division and the Silver Frost Division. I have to admit that my mind was nk at the instant he charged the encampment. I feel really ashamed. All along, I felt that I was braver than anyone else, but now I know that I am a coward deep down. Before we charged into the enemy encampment, I still did not understand why Ai Hui became the leader of the Central Pine Faction. Now, I think I know why. One is always willing to follow a person who can bring confidence and courage to everyone in a hopeless situation."

    The writing brush in Tong Gui¡¯s hand stopped in its tracks. He was in somewhat of a daze. He was writing this letter to An Chouchou. After a while, he returned to his senses and continued writing the letter.

    "The Pinwheel Sword is a miraculous masterpiece. It has peerless speed and terrifying offensive capabilities. The only thing that limits it is the position of sword operator. I heard that one needs talent and a unique training system to be a sword operator. Even so, the profession of sword operator has potential and a bright future. The skies of the future belong to the Pinwheel Sword. Thebat tactics of the sword pagodas will also redefine thebat styles of elementalists."

    "A bunch of second-rate swordsmen were able to unleash a first-rate attack. Even Karakorum Pris was surprised. I named the Central Pine Valley¡¯s uniquebat style as the Pagoda Style. Pagoda cannons and sword pagodas follow this style. Ai Hui has found the answer to the question of how to use a group of low-level elementalists on the battlefield. The Pagoda Style is innovative and defies conventional battle stratagems.

    "It will even affect the training methods of elementalists in the future. The need for individual technique and absolute arts will reduce gradually. There will be a greater need for elementalists to havepatibility, synchronization, and endurance. This is the beginning of a new era. It¡¯s my honor to be able to witness and participate in this mission. Newlight City must increase it research on Pagoda Style military strategies. You have an acute foresight. I believe you have already understood what I am saying, and there¡¯s no need for me to give you more details."

    Tong Gui¡¯s writing brush stopped in its tracks again. Countless thoughts appeared in his mind. He sighed with sorrow, but felt hopeful and optimistic.

    "Logically speaking, the strength of both sides did not change much. The enemy¡¯s strength still far surpasses ours. Even so, our side is filled with optimism and fighting spirit. Compared to the dead atmosphere of the past, even though our sky is still covered by dark clouds, we can now see a silver lining. This silver lining is not enough to illuminate the path in front of us, but it¡¯s enough to motivate everyone.

    "Everyone has begun to believe that Ai Hui¡¯s arrival will bring some changes to the current situation."

    "Even though victories are not guaranteed, no one is scared of fighting blood elementalists anymore."

    Tong Gui carefully sealed up the letter and instructed someone to send it to Newlight City.

    When he walked out of his tent, he saw a group of people surrounding Ke Ning. They were listening attentively to Ke Ning¡¯s narration of the Sword of Lightning¡¯s raid at the enemy encampment. This incident had be the hottest discussion topic of the entire defensive line.

    Initially, no one believed it. Fortunately, there were many witnesses. When everyone discovered that it was true, the whole Pagoda Cannon Alliance exploded.

    Due to this incident, the number of elementalists who joined the Pagoda Cannon Alliance increased significantly.

    When Ke Ning discovered this trend, he exaggerated the incident without restraint and recruited a huge number of elementalists.

    Along the way, there were people asionally greeting Tong Gui, and he returned their greetings. As he walked through the encampment, he could sense the obvious change in atmosphere. Previously, the encampment had a lifeless atmosphere that was rife with pessimism. Nowadays, he would see burly and tough men smile with exultation, looking as if they had excess energy.

    "Good job! We have to let those blood elementalists know that we are not a bunch of weaklings!"

    "It¡¯s a pity I didn¡¯t go along. If I could have seen it with my own eyes, I would die with no regrets!"

    "Sir Ai Hui might really be able to overturn the situation."

    "Sir is a true man! Unparalleled courage!"

    Upon hearing these words, Tong Gui could not help but smile.

    However, when his smile disappeared, he scolded them, "What are all of you doing here? The Pagoda Cannon Alliance doesn¡¯t need useless people. The blood elementalists areing and all of you are still cking here? Go and train now!"

    Everyone scurried away in panic. Even Ke Ning had a look of embarrassment on his face.

    Tong Gui strode forward and bowed solemnly, "Sir Ke Ning, time is precious, and the enemies might arrive at any moment. We need to speed up the training process and make sure everyone is ustomed to using the pagoda cannons."

    In terms of strength and experience, Tong Gui far surpassed Ke Ning. However, since Ai Hui assigned him and Yu Jin to assist Ke Ning, he could notin about anything and considered himself as the subordinate of Ke Ning.

    Ke Ning broke into an embarrassed smile. Just as he was about to say something, a cksmith walked over and asked, "Who is Ke Ning?"

    "I am," Ke Ning replied.

    "12 Beehive Heavy Cannons. Please sign the receipt," the cksmith said.

    In an instant, Ke Ning¡¯s embarrassment disappeared. He asked joyfully, "Where are the Beehive Heavy Cannons?"

    When Ke Ning saw the 12 Beehive Heavy Cannons, he almost drooled. Previously, the forging process of the Beehive Heavy Cannons had encountered a hitch. After the arrival of Li Houtang, the problem was solved. Furthermore, because of the team of cksmiths led by Blind He, the production speed of the Beehive Heavy Cannons began to increase.

    The newly-produced Beehive Heavy Cannons needed to be supplied to the Spear of Heavy Cloud first. The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s defensive line was closer to the enemy, and the pressure they faced wasrger. Therefore, they needed the Beehive Heavy Cannons more urgently.

    The daily training sessions of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance involved training with the pagoda cannons that were phased out by the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    This was also why Ke Ning only now saw the Beehive Heavy Cannons.

    The thick bodies of the heavy cannons were bright-red in color. They looked unusually eye-catching and were filled with an aura of might.

    "Blind He has made some modifications to the Beehive Heavy Cannons. The length of the barrel was reduced, the amount of snowva that can be delivered was increased. and the capacity of the fire reservoir has been augmented. Overall, its power has been boosted. This is the first batch of Beehive Heavy Cannons, and they will be replenished in the future. I am here to to build the fire reservoirs. Where should we set up the pagoda cannons?"

    Ke Ning returned to his senses and quickly replied, "I will go and ask Sir."

    He did not know Ai Hui¡¯s exact n. Where the pagoda cannons were set up was directly linked to their next battle. He did not know what Ai Hui¡¯s arrangements were for the alliance for the next battle. As such, he did not dare to make decisions for such matters.

    "Ouch!"

    Ai Hui¡¯s scream could be heard even from the tent next to his.

    After Lou Lan examined Ai Hui, he said, "Ai Hui, you have to be more careful next time. Now, the elemental soup is no longer effective for you. Luckily, your body possesses the life force from the Vitality Branches. Otherwise, you would be in danger."

    Ai Huiid on the bed and whispered, "Next time? Is there still a next time? Since I have done my best, the rest is up to them. Lou Lan, help me up and bring me out to bask in the sunlight. Lying on this bed makes me feel like I am bing moldy."

    "No problem, Ai Hui," Lou Lan nodded his head and yelled cheerfully.

    With a bang, Lou Lan transformed into a ball of soft sand and carried Ai Hui out of his tent.

    When Ai Hui left his tent, the dazzling sunlight caused him to squint his eyes. Compared to the tent, he preferred to be under the sun. Lou Lan moved very carefully. He ced Ai Hui in afortable position before leaving to do his work.

    The warm and cozy sunlight shone on Ai Hui¡¯s body. It was a form of pleasure for him.

    Previously, after they had returned to their encampment, he looked as if he was going to copse after he stepped out of the sword pagoda. During the raid on the enemy encampment, he was overly focused and forgot about his condition. Why did he regret acting like a hero only when he was at hisst breath?

    Sigh, one has to think before acting...

    Drowsiness crept over Ai Hui.

    "Sir! Sir!"

    Ke Ning¡¯s voice disrupted Ai Hui¡¯s nap. He could not help but open his eyes and ask," What¡¯s wrong now?"

    Ke Ning arrived beside Ai Hui like a gust of wind. With a fawning look on his face, he said, "Sir, the Beehive Heavy Cannons have arrived. Where should we deploy them?"

    The Sword of Lightning¡¯s raid on the enemy encampment hadpletely changed Ke Ning¡¯s impression of Ai Hui. In the past, Ke Ning was the one who badmouthed Ai Hui the most behind his back. Ke Ning used to yearn to return to the Spear of Heavy Cloud day and night because he had not wanted to join this bullsh*t Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    In contrast, he worshipped Ai Hui nowadays, and his loyalty was unswerving. Whatever Ai Hui said was definitely right!

    Ai Hui¡¯s insane actions and the miraculous battle had established a divine position in Ke Ning¡¯s heart.

    Some people might ask, wasn¡¯t it just a raid? What? Was that a joke? Had anyone done it before? Who could do it? No, no one could do it. Other people wouldn¡¯t even think about it. Initially, Ke Ning thought Ai Hui was crazy and felt he was going to die. Subsequently, he was so nervous that his mind nked. Eventually, after leaving the enemy encampment safe and sound, he felt incredulous, fearful, and emotional.

    Ke Ning behaved respectfully toward the sick andzy-looking mummy in front of him, like how a student faced his teacher.

    "Oh, the Beehive Heavy Cannons," Ai Hui casually replied, feeling slightly sleepy.

    Ke Ning nodded his head and said, "Yes, Sir. Once the Beehive Heavy Cannons are set up, it will be very hard for us to move them again in the future. Should we decide on the defensive positions first before we set them up?"

    "Just set them up anywhere you want and train with them first. Given the Pagoda Cannon Alliance¡¯s current level, none of you can go to the front line yet," Ai Hui repliedzily.

    With his face flushed in embarrassment, Ke Ning said, "I¡¯m sorry for not doing a good job. I will definitely supervise and urge everyone to train with the pagoda cannons."

    If it had been in the past, he would think that Ai Hui was intentionally nitpicking and trying to shirk responsibility. However, he now believed in everything Ai Hui said. He felt that he, himself, never really did a good job. He was determined to properly train the Pagoda Cannon Alliance and not implicate Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui acknowledged him and continued, "Don¡¯t scrimp on the snowva. Train as though you¡¯re in a real battle."

    "Yes! Subordinate will not let Sir down!" Ke Ning said solemnly.

    After finishing this sentence, Ke Ning left with his head held high.

    Ai Hui was stunned by Ke Ning¡¯s behavior, staring nking as Ke Ning left. He did not know what had happened to this fellow. It looked as if he had be another person.

    "The morale of an army is important," Xiao Shan appeared out of nowhere beside him and said inly.

    Ai Hui returned to his senses. All this time, he was annoyed by Xiao Shan¡¯s mysterious behavior and the know-it-all look on his face. He curled his lips and retorted, "We must have a practical solution. What¡¯s the point of solely depending on morale?"

    "That¡¯s true," Xiao Shan nodded his head.

    Then, he turned around and walked away.

    Ai Hui was stunned. He... he walked away just like that? What kind of reaction was this? Why didn¡¯t you ask me what solution I havee up with?"

    Suddenly, a mournful rm echoed through the encampment.

    Ai Hui sat up straight and looked at the defensive line near the metal wind curtain.

    The most brutal battle was about to begin.

 Chapter 596: Pearl Defensive Line

    Chapter 596: Pearl Defensive Line

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Atop the God-subduing Peak, everyone gazed into the distance.

    The God Wolf Division had stopped 25 kilometers away from them and started to pitch camp.

    "It seems we really scared Helian Tianxiaost time," Silver Soldier said whileughing.

    The rest could not help butugh as well.

    The God Wolf Division was no longer as cocky as they were in the past. Now, they were very prudent. Not only did they set up defenses outside of their encampment, they also had several units patrolling the sky. The defensive structures in their encampment were built with diligence as well. Compared tost time, there was a significant increase in the number of defensive structures they built.

    One could tell that the Sword of Lightning¡¯s raid on their former encampment had greatly impacted them.

    However, the smiles on everyone¡¯s faces disappeared rapidly. The more prudent the enemy, the harder the battle would be.

    The elementalists possessed an absolute numerical advantage. There were the Spear of Heavy Cloud, the Infantry Division, the Sky Edge Division, the Sword of Lightning, and the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. Furthermore, with the defensive line behind their backs, they could keep on replenishing their manpower. Meanwhile, the God Wolf Division and the Silver Frost Blood Division only had a total of 10,000 troops.

    It was a pity that a battle did not solely depend on the number of soldiers.

    The blood elementalists¡¯ strength far surpassed theirs.

    The Sword of Lighting was rather powerful, but there was only one Pinwheel Sword, and they only had a few hundred men. The most powerfulbat division was the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Its strength wasparable to the blood elementalists, but it had suffered heavy casualties during thest battle and had to replenish their manpower with many rookies. Their offensive strength had decreased significantly. Then again, when one considered the fact that they had God-subduing Peaks and were fighting a defensive battle, they should be able to contend with the blood elementalists.

    The Sky Edge Division and the Infantry Division were traditionalbat divisions. Their strength paled inparison to the Spear of Heavy Cloud. Nheless, since they had God-subduing Peaks and were fighting a defensive battle this time around, they could definitely put up a good fight against the blood elementalists as well.

    As for the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, its members were not even proficient in using the pagoda cannons yet. They simply would not be of any help in the battle.

    Of course, the terrain was still advantageous for the elementalists, consisting of a narrow passageway. If it weren¡¯t for the Windy Pearl Bridge¡¯s unique terrain, Ai Hui felt that they should just forsake this battlefield and escape.

    Jiang Wei furrowed his eyebrows and said, "They are waiting for the other two god division forces."

    Everyone felt distressed. The more cautious and prepared the enemy was, the more stress they felt.

    The God Wolf Division and the Silver Frost Blood Division had a total of 10,000 men. The God Tiger Division army and the God Devil Division army had 15,000 men each. If the other two god division forces arrived in time, they would have a total of 40,000 men.

    The feeling of facing 10,000 men and the feeling of facing 40,000 men werepletely different. The former made them feel confident in winning the defensive battle. Thetter, however, made them feel despair, especially when the enemy¡¯s strength far surpassed theirs.

    "At this stage, we shouldn¡¯t expect the other party to make any mistakes. They need time, and we need time," Ai Hui said.

    The rest nodded their heads. Once the Pagoda Cannon Alliance members could operate the pagoda cannons proficiently, they would definitely be a great asset for the elementalists. This was the advantage of being on the defensive. The difficulty of operating the pagoda cannons on the God-subduing Peaks was much lower than having to engage in close quartersbat.

    Everyone was heavy-hearted. No one felt confident that they could win this defensive battle.

    Even though none of them were confident in victory, their morale wasn¡¯t as low as it was in the past. The Sword of Lightning¡¯s raid on the God Wolf Division¡¯s encampment had debunked the myth of invincible blood elementalistbat divisions and had a significant positive impact on the elementalists¡¯ morale. Nothing was more devastating to an army¡¯s morale than being unable to deal any damage to the enemy.

    Nowadays, even though the elementalists at the front line knew their probability of winning the battle was very low, they still could make the blood elementalists pay a devastating price.

    The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

    While Ai Hui and his counterparts were observing the encampment of the God Wolf Division, Helian Tianxiao, Song Xiaoqian, and their counterparts were observing the elementalists¡¯ defensive line as well.

    The magnificent metal wind curtain was a colossal wall that linked the heaven and earth together, blocking their line of sight. In the middle of the wind curtain, there was a small air tunnel. In the past, there were many such tunnels created by the naturally formed bridges. They used to resemble a string of pearls, which was how the Windy Pearl Bridges got their name. Eventually, the other bridges were destroyed and this air tunnel was the only one left.

    The bridge had a width of 2.5 kilometers. The metal winds rose from the rift below to the two sides of the bridge and then converged at a point 1.5 kilometers above the bridge. This was how the 2.5 kilometers wide and 1.5 kilometers tall tunnel was formed above the bridge.

    There were three God-subduing Peaks hovering above this bridge. Every now and then, the God-subduing Peaks would flicker and glow.

    "It¡¯s so spectacr. The Elders Guild is ipetent and feckless. Only their God-subduing Peaks can be considered a peerless invention," Song Xiaoqian eximed in admiration.

    "Not only the God-subduing Peaks, but the arrangement of their defensive line is at a high standard as well," Helian Tianxiao said with a wary look on his face.

    The generals around Helian Tianxiao were veterans who had rich war experience. At this point in time, all of them had solemn looks on their faces.

    When they saw the elementalists¡¯ defensive line, they felt vexed. These three God-subduing Peaks formed a bnced inverted triangle.

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud was positioned at the top left and furthest back. Hellfire Pagoda Cannons could unleash powerful long-range attacks from this position.

    The Infantry Division was situated below at the position closest to the ground and most forward. They would be the first line of defense. Their soldiers specialized in close quartersbat, and their main task was to withstand enemy soldiers who broke through the defensive line.

    The Sky Edge Division was situated on the right side. They were positioned higher than the Infantry Division and lower than the Spear of Heavy Cloud. They were also closer to the Infantry Division so that they could provide reinforcement to thetter if needed.

    In the center of these three God-subduing Peaks, there was nothing but darkness, resembling a gateway to hell.

    Everyone knew that a huge number of pagoda cannons were certainly stationed in the darkness. Attacking this area would cause them to face a devastating retaliation.

    The three God-subduing Peaks had sealed the small air tunnel tightly.

    What would happen if they attacked the God-subduing Peaks head-on? After the Battle of the Wall of the North Sea, they knew how terrible this decision would be. However, the unique terrain of the Windy Pearl Bridge only allowed them to attack the God-subduing Peaks.

    For the past few days, they had been thinking about how to break through the defensive line, but every n required a hefty price.

    "Should we wait for the God Tiger Division army and the God Devil Division army to arrive?" a general spoke up.

    "The God Tiger Division army and the God Devil Division army are hunting down the Judgement and Dread divisions. Right now, the most important thing to do is to save General Ye. The rest aren¡¯t important," Helian Tianxiao exined.

    "So we are the only ones?" Even Song Xiaoqian was overwhelmed with shock.

    The other generals froze.

    "That¡¯s right. The situation will be terrible if we can¡¯t save General Ye. However, if the Dread and Judgement divisions bring General Ye back to Skyheart City, the situation will be even worse. It will bepletely over for us then. We can¡¯t solely depend on bum known as He Nanshan. The God Tiger Division army and the God Devil Division army have to go and save General Ye. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that we are far away from them, we would have reinforced them as well."

    "But we only have 10,000 men..."

    Everyone¡¯s face turned extremely ugly. With only 10,000 men, no one had the confidence to break through the horrifying defensive line.

    "Don¡¯t worry, when I received the news from He Nanshan, I immediately sent for the beast battalions," Helian Tianxiao assured them.

    Upon hearing these words, the tense faces loosened up. Every god division had four beast battalions. Every beast battalion had 10,000 men, and all of them were reserves for the god divisions and the blood divisions. The soldiers of a beast battalion weren¡¯t powerful, but they could bolster the numbers. They were very suitable for sieging defensive positions.

    With the 40,000 men from the beast battalions, everyone felt confident regarding the future battle.

    Helian Tianxiao saw the facial expressions of every general and sighed in his heart. He wasn¡¯t worried about this siege battle, but was instead worried about why His Majesty had not reacted to this incident yet.

    Compared to His Majesty getting angry, Helian Tianxiao was more scared when His Majesty did not have any reactions.

    However, Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face remained calm. He snorted, "No matter how costly the price we have to pay, we have to overrun the Windy Pearl Bridge and invade Skyheart City!"

    This was their only chance.

    To survive, everyone else had ced their hopes on saving General Ye. Helian Tianxiao, however, ced his hopes on obtaining a victory in this battle. As long as they could take down this defensive line, they would have a smooth road ahead. Beyond Avalon had no other powerfulbat divisions except for the Surveince Division.

    Once he reached Skyheart City and forced the Ye family to submit to him, he might be able to avert disaster with this merit.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s decision was to try to atone for his mistake with a meritorious deed.

    He wasn¡¯t sure whether or not this would work. No one knew what His Majesty was thinking, but this was his only chance.

    The probability of sessfully razing Skyheart City to the ground was higher than the probability of sessfully saving General Ye.

    The generals knew that this was the only way. All of them replied solemnly, "Yes!"

    "By sunset, our encampment should bepleted. Have a good rest tonight. From tomorrow onward, we will attack them in small waves to get a feel for their defenses," Helian Tianxiao instructed.

    "Yes!"

    .....

    The next morning.

    Ai Hui was roused awake by the sounds of battle. He was slightly surprised. Had the enemy¡¯s reinforcements arrived?

    After a while, he saw Iron Lady, so he asked shockingly, "Aren¡¯t you guys fighting? Why are you here?"

    Shi Xueman shook her head and replied, "It¡¯s just a small attack wave. They are trying to probe our defenses."

    A look of realization dawned upon Ai Hui¡¯s face. What the enemy did made perfect sense.

    Shi Xueman blinked her eyes and said, "I let Fatty use the old Hellfire Pagoda Cannons."

    Ai Hui acted as if he was resigned, "Haaah, even our Iron Lady knows how to deceive people. This world is really hopeless."

    He was looking forward to seeing the enemy forces face the Beehive Heavy Cannons when they attacked the defensive line head-on. They would been in for a huge surprise.

    When Shi Xueman saw Ai Hui reclining on the bed, she said, "I don¡¯t think it¡¯s right for the Commander-in-chief to lie in bed right now."

    "I am injured, and the most important mission for the injured is to rest and recover. Is the sun out? Basking in sun helps the body to recover faster," Ai Hui repliedzily.

    "That¡¯s true."

    Shi Xueman nodded her head and walked toward the Ai Hui¡¯s bed.

    Ai Hui froze. After a while, he returned to his senses as a premonition arose in his heart. "Hey, hey, hey, what are you doing? What are you trying to do?"

    Shi Xueman picked Ai Hui up from his bed and carried him in her arms. As she walked toward tent exit, she said, "I am bringing you out to bask in the sunlight."

    "Let me down! Let me down!" Ai Hui¡¯s voice was filled with fear. To him, the exit of the tent resembled the gateway to hell. He tried to struggle, but his weak and frail bodycked the strength to escape from Iron Lady¡¯s evil clutches.

    "Let me down! I can walk on my own!"

    "Big Sister, Big Sister, Iron Lady... No, no, no... Xueman..."

    "Both of us are notable individuals. If there¡¯s anything you¡¯re unhappy with, we can talk about it. Don¡¯t just resort to violence!"

    "Hey, hey, hey, I still owe you money. Do you still want me to pay you the money or not?"

    "All right! All right! All right! I will pay you back the money! That¡¯s not what I really meant. Do you really think I am that kind of person? Hey, hey, hey, put me down first..."

    Shi Xueman turned a deaf ear to Ai Hui and continued to stride toward the exit of the tent with him in her arms.

    The sunlight was dazzling. Ai Hui¡¯s exceptional sensory perception allowed him to sense that his surroundings were quickly bing silent.

    He shut his eyes,pletely disheartened.

    It was over!

 Chapter 597: The Sick Tiger And The Red-dressed Girl

    Chapter 597: The Sick Tiger And The Red-dressed Girl

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    No matter what time it was, the Cold Pce would always look icy and unweing. Even the scorching afternoon sunlight seemed to turn pale-white when it shone into the pce. The pce seemed to contain the chill of winter. Towering statues stood silently in various corners in the pce. Layers of vermillion doors separated the majestic inner pce from the outside world.

    She Yu felt anxious.

    Her rtionship with Bei Shuisheng was rather good, so she could visit and leave the Cold Pce as she wished. Bei Shuisheng seldom meet visitors. Without his permission, no one could get near the Cold Pce.

    Even so, every time she came to the Cold Pce, she still could not help but feel nervous. The sick and frail Bei Shuisheng had a pair of eyes that looked as if they could see through the world.

    After She Yu passed through the vermillion doors, she came to the huge and spacious inner pce that was devoid of people.

    In the face of the imposing pce, her petite body made her look insignificant.

    Bei Shuisheng sat beside a door basking in the sunlight. Only sunlight from the midday sun could shine into the pce. Every day at this time, Bei Shuisheng would put down all his work and bask in the sunlight while sipping tea.

    "You havee."

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s voice was always soforting, like a breeze blowing in her face.

    "Sir, good afternoon," She Yu replied as she kneeled on a praying mat outside the inner pce.

    She did not know why she had been summoned to the Cold Pce.

    Bei Shuisheng smiled. His face was sickly white. Furthermore, since he stayed in the Cold Pce for such a long period of time, it was very hard for him to see the sun, causing his entire body to look pale and weak. One would not be able to link this person to the "Sick Tiger of the God Nation."

    "It has been a very long since Ist chatted with you." Bei Shuisheng took an empty cup and poured some tea into it. Following which, he pushed the cup of tea through the doorway to She Yu. "So how are you? How have you been recently?"

    She Yu respectfully took the teacup and replied, "I¡¯m still the same. Nothing much has changed."

    "Time passes really fast. So many years have passed unwittingly. If my memory serves me right, you belonged to the first batch of seeds." Bei Shuisheng sighed.

    She Yu did not understand what Bei Shusheng was trying to say. Therefore, she replied with prudence, "Yes."

    "Then we started serving His Majesty at around the same time. When His Majesty found me, he initially wanted me to join the seeds. It¡¯s a pity my body was too weak, and His Majesty dropped the subject." Bei Shuisheng continued, "You are the only one left from the first batch of seeds, right?"

    "Yes," She Yu¡¯s hands froze.

    These so-called "seeds" were a group of elites who were cultivated by the Blood of God from a young age. Most of them were orphans, and they began to practice blood spiritual force at an early age. At that time, the Blood of God¡¯s training system for blood spiritual force was still at the initial stage. They had tried various training methods and even passed the task to the Beast Venom Temple. Eventually, the Beast Venom Temple developed a mature training system for blood spiritual force.

    Thepetition among the seeds was extremely brutal and devastating.

    The Holy Emperor valued the seeds very much. He felt that they were the cornerstones of the Blood of God. They had done a lot for the Blood of God, and their loyalty for their nation was unparalleled.

    When the Blood of God was just starting out, the seeds were used as soldiers, they fought at the front line, and they did not let the Holy Emperor down.

    Due to this, the death rate of the seeds was terrifying. She Yu was the only survivor of the first batch of seeds.

    She Yu¡¯s position in the Blood of God was a special one. She was viewed as the princess of the God Nation, which was why she was addressed as "Her Highness."

    However, that period of time wasn¡¯t exactly a beautiful memory for She Yu. All of herpanions and rivals were gone, and she was the only one left.

    She Yu did not know why Bei Shuisheng would talk about this matter.

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s gaze was fixated on She Yu¡¯s face. Even though she had put a lot of effort on her make-up, Bei Shuisheng could still tell that she looked wan and sallow. He sighed in his heart and asked, "When was the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] cast on you?"

    She Yu was overwhelmed with shock as her petite body trembled violently. With a pale-white face, she asked, "How.... how did you know?"

    "Previously, when you came and asked me about the Heart of God, I knew there was something up with you. However, I was still not too sure at that time. The [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] is a profound spell that not many people know about. I only recalled the details after reading about it when I was bored. I didn¡¯t expect that I would witness it with my own eyes. If you were the flower master, why would you ask me about the Heart of God? You were so anxious only because you¡¯re the flower ve," Bei Shuisheng replied calmly.

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s voice was calm like water, but it was able to stupify She Yu. However, she was able to calm down very soon, feeling as if she had been relieved of a burden.

    She was not fearful, but rather, bitter. Even if His Majesty knew about it and wanted to punish her, so what? She had been searching for solutions to release herself from the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art], but to no avail until now.

    She had no more hope left in her heart.

    Bei Shuisheng continued, "Initially, I thought it was done by His Majesty. However, after I asked His Majesty, I realized he had not studied the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] before. War God Ye and Red Devil joined the Blood of God not too long ago, so they definitely don¡¯t know anything about it. Was it Pce Master Nangong?"

    At this point in time, She Yu had already calmed down. She shook her head and replied, "Sir, thank you for your concern. The [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was not cast by someone else. I am just reaping what I have sowed."

    "You did it to yourself?" Bei Shuisheng was startled.

    He thought of something, and his dull eyes lit up abruptly as he asked, "The flower master and the flower ve have swapped positions?"

    "Yes." She Yu¡¯s eyes dimmed.

    "I see..." A look of realization dawned upon Bei Shuisheng¡¯s face.

    He was amazed by She Yu¡¯s talents. The [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was profound and unpredictable. Out of the many spells of the God Nation, it was one of the most mysterious ones. He had not expected She Yu to be able to learn it. He certainly also had not expected her to encounter the rare event of the flower ve and flower master swapping positions.

    Bei Shuisheng slowly digested the shock he felt. After a while, he asked, "May I know who the other party is?"

    She Yu hesitated for a while and blurted out two words, "Ai Hui."

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s face was filled with astonishment. His body froze, looking as if someone had cast a freezing spell on him. After a long while, he exhaled deeply. There was still a remnant of shock in his eyes. He then muttered, "So it¡¯s him, so it¡¯s him..."

    He absolutely had not expected the other party to be Ai Hui.

    "When did you cast the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] on him?"

    "In Central Pine City."

    Thest tinge of doubt that Bei Shuisheng had disappeared. He recalled that when the blood catastrophe first broke out, She Yu was near Central Pine City. He was slightly amazed at She Yu¡¯s foresight and courage. To be able to see Ai Hui¡¯s potential and cast the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] on him without any hesitation at that time was not something that ordinary people could do.

    Bei Shuisheng was even more surprised that Ai Hi could swap positions with She Yu even though he was the one whom the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] had been cast on.

    This incident verified one idiom, which was that only a powerful dragon was capable of crossing the river!

    When Bei Shuisheng raised his head, his facial expression had already regained itsposure. "There might be hope for you."

    She Yu¡¯s mind jolted as she cried out in rm. She could no longer maintain herposure. With a trembling voice, she said, "Sir, enlighten me."

    However, Bei Shuisheng turned silent once more. After a while, he replied with a solemn tone, "There is a chance that this solution might fail. I can¡¯t promise you anything."

    "At this point in time, even if the solution has only one percent chance of sess, I¡¯m still willing to try it." She Yu smiled sadly.

    Sorrow arose in Bei Shuisheng¡¯s mind. He definitely knew how tragic the fate of a flower ve would be. He understood what She Yu was feeling now. Suddenly, he changed the topic and said, "General Ye and Pce Master Nangong have been kidnapped by the Dread and Judgement divisions."

    She Yu, who was unprepared for the news, was dumbstruck. After a while, she returned to her senses and cried out in rm, "What happened?"

    She was utterly shocked by this extreme news that suddenly came to her. Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian¡¯s importance to the God Nation was second only to Bei Shuisheng¡¯s. Ye Baiyi had trained six god divisions and 12 blood divisions by himself. Nangong Wulian¡¯s Beast Venom Temple affected various aspects of the God Nation. Other than the miraculous Heart of God and the research on Blood refinement, Beast Venom Temple also cultivated various species of blood fiends and blood nts.

    These two important figures had been kidnapped!

    She did not dare to imagine how devastating this news would be for the God Nation!

    The situation at the front line was going so well, yet how had theymitted such a foolish mistake?

    Upon hearing this news, She Yu was dumbstruck. For a period of time, she fell into a stupor.

    "His Majesty can¡¯t ept such heavy losses. After his battle with An Muda, His Majesty has yet to recover from his injuries, so he can¡¯t save the two of them personally. Red Devil is stationed at the border of the Jadeite Forest and can¡¯t leave his post to save them. When His Majesty asked me for my opinion, I thought about it and rmended you," Bei Shuisheng muttered.

    She Yu was stunned and thought she had heard Bei Shuisheng wrongly. She shook her head and replied, "Sir, you should know about my strength. This matter is of utmost importance, and I am incapable of handling it even though I really want to offer my help..."

    Bei Shuisheng smiled. "We will talk about your strengthter. Initially, I thought that Pce Master Nangong was the one who cast the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] on you and that if you saved him, he would release you from the spell. However, now that I know the other party is Ai Hui, I feel truly surprised, but that does not mean you have no chance of surviving."

    She Yu looked as if she was listening to a story. Bei Shuisheng seemed to be certain that she could save Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian. If the one in front of her wasn¡¯t Bei Shuisheng, she would have stormed off in a huff after hearing such absurd words. The Dread Division and the Judgement Division were filled with experts, and Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue were powerful entities. Her strength paled inparison to theirs.

    With a rxed tone, Bei Shuisheng said, "Just like what I previously said, I don¡¯t know whether or not this method will work."

    A magnificent golden box, cast entirely out of gold, appeared in his hand. Beautiful decorative designs were engraved on it. Clearly, it had been forged by a reputable cksmith.

    Bei Shuisheng pushed the golden box through the doorway.

    Countless doubts ran through She Yu¡¯s mind. She did not know what Bei Shuisheng was up to. She took the golden box and carefully opened it. The interior of the golden box was lined with a ck silk fabric that resembled flowing water. A resplendent piece of transparent crystalid inside.

    Inside the crystal, there was a drop of golden liquid.

    She Yu seemed to have thought of something as her brain buzzed and went into a daze.

    "His Majesty has bestowed you with a drop of God¡¯s blood. The Heart of God, which was inspired by God¡¯s blood, has yet to bepleted, and there are still many ws with it. You will develop a telepathic connection with the Heart of God. Perhaps you can rouse Ye Baiyi? All ourbat divisions will be under yourmand. I believe you can bring Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian back. As for how God¡¯s blood will affect the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art], I currently don¡¯t know. However, I am really looking forward to see what will happen."

    Bei Shuisheng smiled at She Yu with a warm look in his eyes.

 Chapter 598: Training During Real Battles

    Chapter 598: Training During Real Battles

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    In the sky in front of the God-subduing Peak, there were more than blood elementalists wearing Rust Plumes. They gathered and dispersed in an extremely nimble and random manner, looking as if they were cruising around the defensive line. However, if one did not pay attention to them, they would suddenly pierce through the defensive line from odd angles like sharp knives. When they were close to the defensive line, they would throw various weird weapons, such as rupture bombs that released blood poison smoke or blood arrows that possessed terrifying prative power.

    In the beginning, they caused the soldiers on the God-subduing Peak to panic. However, everyone soon got used to them and were now able to maintain theirposure.

    Atop the God-subduing Peak, Fatty¡¯s roars were like thunderps that exploded through the air every now and then.

    "What are all of you shooting at?"

    "Li Kui, Ma Xiao, what is going on with your units? Why are you so weak?"

    "Bums! How many times have I told all of you: don¡¯t panic, don¡¯t be anxious, observe their rhythm, and don¡¯t be deceived by their rhythm! Look at all of you! What are you shooting at? You have missed every single target!"

    "Unit C! Extra training! No food for any of you until you have finished this training!"

    A wave of groans swept across the God-subduing Peak immediately. The membersing down from the pagoda cannons had an ashen look on their faces. Fatty did not care about them at all. He continued to bellow, "Unit D, take up your positions! Wake up! Shoot properly!"

    Unit D¡¯s members looked as if they were about to face a formidable beast. Their facial expressions were tense. The previous three units were punished with extra training sessions, hence the pressure on Unit D was enormous.

    The captain of Unit D was Wu Feng. He was the fire elementalist who had almost burned to ashes in the fire reservoir at Lemon Camping Ground without uttering a word and went into aa afterward. After Lou Lan treated him, he was able to recover promptly. However, horrible scars were left on his body. His left cheek was bright-red, resembling a ball of mes.

    Lou Lan told Wu Feng that he could help him remove the scars, but Wu Feng refused because he wanted to keep the scars to remind himself of his past every now and then.

    Among the fire elementalists in the Spear of Heavy Cloud, Wu Feng was one of the most hardworking ones. Even though he wasn¡¯t gifted, he was extremely meticulous with the duties given to him. He had never disappointed anyone who gave him a task.

    After the pagoda cannon crews were handed over to Fatty, he quickly got into Fatty¡¯s good graces. Eventually, he was promoted to the position of captain.

    After his promotion, he worked even harder. Whether it was his training sessions or his daily responsibilities, he would put in all his effort to carry them out without cking off at all.

    Wu Feng had observed the previous three units during theirbat mission and had developed some ideas. The previous units missed their targets because their skill level while operating the pagoda cannons was too low. Plus, the enemy units were elites. Although the enemies looked as if they were flying around aimlessly, they maintained a very precise distance between each other in reality. Their Rust Plumes were very nimble as well, making it difficult for the pagoda cannon gunners to predict their flight paths. As a result, the previous three units had missed their targets.

    Before taking up their positions, Wu Feng had already discussed with his members about what to do. In the end, they came with an idea that was not the best, but it all they coulde up with. All of them would aim at a single target and engulf its potential escape directions with their shots.

    Even though this idea was somewhat foolish and inefficient, Wu Feng felt that it was a rather good one. They had also discussed the many small details regarding this idea. Now was the time for them to see if their idea worked or not.

    Wu Feng licked his lips and instructed his unit, "All pagoda cannons, target the third from the left."

    Whirrr. All the pagoda cannons pointed at a single target in an instant.

    The target could sense that he was being targeted. He began to change his aerial direction repeatedly. His flight path was very weird and unpredictable.

    Wu Feng¡¯s pagoda cannon started to move up and down ordingly. The rest of the pagoda cannon gunners could not see the target in the sky at all. All of them were just staring at Wu Feng¡¯s pagoda cannon. They tried to make sure their pagoda cannons were pointing at the same direction as Wu Feng¡¯s at all times.

    Snowva poured into Wu Feng¡¯s pagoda cannon, and the cannon barrel turned bright-red. However, he did not fire his pagoda cannon immediately. He realized there were two pagoda cannons which were not ready yet. The cannoneers for these two pagoda cannons were rookies who were not skilled enough.

    They couldn¡¯t fire their pagoda cannons yet!

    If a pagoda cannon was filled with fire elemental energy, but was not fired, the pagoda cannon gunner for that pagoda cannon had to direct the fire elemental energy into his or her hands. Otherwise, the pagoda cannon would explode.

    Wu Feng¡¯s face twitched, but he remained unconcerned. A red flush extended from his shoulders to the rest of his body, making him look like he was being boiled.

    He did not utter a single word or move his body at all.

    Fatty did not roars this time around. He stared at Wu Feng with an amazed look on his face. This fellow had high endurance! Previously, he promoted Wu Feng because he was cautious and conscientious. Fatty had not expected this fellow to have such outstanding endurance. This was a pleasant surprise for Fatty.

    The conventional training system for elementalists seldom focused on endurance. On the contrary, the new training system valued endurance a lot.

    Back in the day, Ai Hui used the sword pagodas to select swordsmen for hisbat division because he wanted to test their endurance. The Pinwheel Sword had clearly shown that endurance was an important factor in the Pagoda Stylebat system.

    After Fatty became a Master, his understanding toward endurance became deeper.

    Finally, thest two pagoda cannons were ready.

    Wu Feng roared, "Fire!"

    Boom!

    The six pagoda cannons thundered in unison. Six beams of light swiftly engulfed the target in the sky.

    The targeted blood elementalist had already sensed something wasn¡¯t right and tried his best to dodge the iing attacks. However, the iing attacks covered such a wide radius, so how could he possibly dodge them all?

    A beam of light brushed past his left chest.

    The left side of his body disappeared, revealing charred flesh and internal organs. He lowered his head and looked nkly at his body. Following which, he let out a blood-curdling scream and fell from the sky.

    "Good job! One more time!" Fatty¡¯s roar rang through the air.

    Wu Feng¡¯s blood was racing. He replied loudly with excitement, "Yes!"

    Everyone was encouraged by the sess of their first salvo, and they became more confident and adept when they fired their second one. Once again, they shot down another enemy.

    After seeing that two of theirrades were shot down in a row, the rest of the blood elementalists dispersed and escaped in a panic. A wave of cheers erupted from the God-subduing Peak.

    Fatty was very excited. His thunderous voice resounded through the air, "Unit D, you will have twice the usual amount of elemental soup!"

    Wu Feng and his unit let out an earth-shaking cheer while the other units looked at them with envy in their eyes.

    Next to Fatty, Zu Yan said in a low voice, "There are two pagoda cannons that are more powerful than the rest."

    "You realized it too?" Fatty was slightly surprised.

    "Yes, they have achieved elemental energy resonation, which caused their power to increase significantly." Zu Yan¡¯s eyes brightened. "However, only two pagoda cannons achieved elemental energy resonation. The others just barely failed to do so."

    "How can we make sure they arepletely synchronized? It¡¯s already pretty good that two pagoda cannons resonated." Fatty looked slightly vexed.

    Elemental energy resonation could increase the power of pagoda cannons. Fatty was extremely interested in this discovery, but it was very difficult to achieve elemental energy resonation. To do so, he would need all the pagoda cannons to bepletely synchronized. Wasn¡¯t this logic the same as the principle behind the sword pagodas on the Pinwheel Sword?

    A look of realization shed across Fatty¡¯s face, but then he furrowed his eyebrows again.

    There were three factors as to why the seven sword pagodas on the Pinwheel Sword could be synchronizedpletely. First, the members wielded Unity Swords which could react to each other simultaneously. Second, the seven sword pagodas were built on the seven unique star positions. Third, the members simplified their sword moves and repeatedly trained these moves.

    Fatty and the pagoda cannon gunners could only achieve the third factor. They had no way of pulling off the other two factors.

    Seven cannon positions? Different elemental energies had different characteristics. The seven star positions were suitable for sword gleams and couldbine seven swords into one. On the other hand, pagoda cannons used another type of elemental energy. The sword method might not work for pagoda cannons.

    "I might have a solution," Zu Yan said hesitantly.

    "You have a solution? You better not lie to me!" Fatty looked at Zu Yan with a face full of doubt.

    "If we want them to be synchronized, we need to have an unifyingmand system. My [Earth Fire Heavenly Spider Transformation] technique can set up a huge spider web of earth fire. As long as the pagoda cannons are set up on the nodes of the spiderweb, I should be able to transmitmands to them," Zu Yan replied to Fatty after thinking for a while.

    Fatty briefly froze before responding, "That seems like it would work."

    "Do you want to give it a try?" Zu Yan asked.

    "We have to give it a try! We have to give it a try!" Fatty nodded his head repeatedly.

    Then, he continued, "But we can¡¯t try here. We have to try it behind the defense line."

    Zu Yan did not understand why Fatty did not want to try from their forward position..

    "What if it seeds? We can¡¯t alert the enemies. We have to give them a surprise," Fatty said while chuckling.

    A look of realization dawned upon Zu Yan¡¯s face.

    Atop the God-subduing Peak, at the highest point, Shi Xueman looked at the incensed Fatty and smiled.

    No one would expect this impatient and irascible fatty used to be a coward in the past. Nowadays, one could no longer see the old shadow of the original Fatty. As time passed and one experienced more things, he or she would keep on growing. Everyone grew old, but they went through different experiences. Due to these diverse experiences, they improved themselves differently and seeded in variety of ways.

    "Fatty said that since the enemies are trying get a feel for our defensive line, we might as well treat them as target practice. He has beenmanding pagoda cannon units one after another to shoot at the enemies. There are many rookies, and it¡¯s a good opportunity for them to experience the atmosphere of realbat," Jiang Wei said.

    "Fatty is like that fellow and never wants to lose out on anything. They are like mosquitoes that will suck every ounce of your blood until you have dried up," Shi Xueman said.

    Sang Zhijun knew Shi Xueman was talking about Ai Hui and smiled. Besides her, Jiang Wei was smiling as well.

    Ever since Jiang Wei became a Master, he became more reserved and unfathomable, like an abyss.

    He continued, "Helian Tianxiao does not seem anxious, he might be waiting for God Tiger Division forces and God Devil Division forces to arrive. Logically speaking, they should have arrived by now, but why have we not detected their presence?"

    The rest did not know the answer either and came up with various spections.

    "Perhaps they encountered other enemies on the way here? No, that can¡¯t be. After all, who is capable of hindering them?"

    "Perhaps they are lost?"

    "Or maybe they had a change of n?"

    "Who knows? It¡¯s better for them toeter! I think Grandpa Fatty¡¯s idea of training during real battles is very effective. The enemies aren¡¯t anxious and neither are we!"

    "Haha, that¡¯s right."

    Everyone broke into a lively discussion, but they still could note up with a proper conclusion.

    Before the God Wolf Division arrived, the atmosphere at the defensive line was very tense. Now that they were here, everyone threw their worries to the back of their minds and focused on the present battle instead. As such, the atmosphere had lightened up significantly.

    Shi Xueman also did not know what the enemies were up to. She muttered, "We will wait and see."

    Suddenly, she asked Sang Zhijun, "Isn¡¯t today the day that the selection process for sword operators is taking ce?"

    "Yes, it¡¯s today, but I am not sure what¡¯s going on. I did not send anybat elementalists over and only sent the reserves," Sang Zhijun nodded her head and replied.

    "They are still very young and have a lot of potential. We must seize the opportunity to train more sword operators. Pinwheel Swords are the future," Shi Xueman said.

    "Yes!" Sang Zhijun quickly nodded her head and replied.

    Both of them were familiar with warfare. After raiding the enemy encampment with a single Pinwheel Sword, they immediately realized its colossal value. They also understood the importance of sword operators.

    Sang Zhijun shot a nce at the enemy encampment. She felt that the enemies most likely wouldn¡¯t attack them for the time being. Then, she said, "Let¡¯s go and take a look at the selection process."

    The others felt curious as well and followed her.

 Chapter 599: Selection of Sword Operators

    Chapter 599: Selection of Sword Operators

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    He Min stood among a crowd of youngsters who were about his age. When selecting new blood to replenish its forces, the Spear of Heavy Cloud emphasized its desire to recruit youngsters with potential. These youngsters were like sheets of nk paper, free from bad habits and able to quickly get used to the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s style. As long as they were properly nurtured, they would definitely serve as the backbone of the future.

    Regarding talent, the Spear of Heavy Cloud could care less. It focused more on the candidates¡¯ nature. The Central Pine Faction was now reputable and famous, but in the past, they had been very ordinary students. Jiang Wei, Wang Xiaoshan, and the rest were all average students and the Central Pine Institution was also an average and secluded academy. Who would¡¯ve thought that they would gain such fame and recognition?

    As for the replenishment ofbat strength, they could select the elites from the defeated troops at the front line. Plus, they had already established and prepared reserves.

    Although Shi Xueman did not have much expectation in terms of talent, youngsters yearned to join the Spear of Heavy Cloud due to its prestige. Whenever Jiang Wei went to recruit from the students, there would always be a hugemotion as the youths were all eager to join. As such, the members they had recruited were all intrinsically outstanding.

    Hearing the ongoing chatter, He Min felt fidgety. He had absolutely no interest in the sword operators. He wanted to be a pagoda cannon gunner. Unfortunately, he wasn¡¯t a fire elementalist. All right, even if he couldn¡¯t be a pagoda cannon gunner he didn¡¯t mind joining one of the other smallbat teams.

    With a determined heart, he hade to the Spear of Heavy Cloud and hadn¡¯t been disappointed!

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud had countless powerful experts, and its practice sessions were strict. No one was even the slightest bit defiant. Wind Mail City¡¯sbat division wasn¡¯t even worthy to bepared to the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    This was a first ssbat division!

    "If I can be a sword operator, I could dash into enemy camp on a Pinwheel Sword!"

    "I heard that the Pinwheel Sword is as fast as lightning. I¡¯m looking forward to it!"

    ...

    Hearing hispanions¡¯ discussion, He Min felt even more frustrated. Pinwheel Sword, Pinwheel Sword. These fellows only talked about the Pinwheel Sword!

    Of course, He Min had heard about the battle where the Pinwheel Sword charged directly into the enemy camp, but he didn¡¯t care for it. Ever since Sir Jiang Wei insisted on bringing him back and ever since he had heard those passionate cries "We were born with a belief, and we will die by it," he had determined that this was thebat division for him and that there were no other heroes.

    He would only fight for the Spear of Heavy Cloud.

    Even if he knew that the Spear of Heavy Cloud and the Pagoda Cannon Alliance were a family, that Ai Hui was the leader of the Central Pine Faction, and that his perseverance seemed ridiculous, it was still how he felt and thought!

    Hmph, he was different from those who groveled before the powerful figures!

    He Min kept silent.

    A tall and sturdy fellow who looked like an iron tower appeared, and everybody immediately closed their mouths.

    This was Shi Zhiguang¡¯s first time facing so many kids, so he was rather awkward. He greeted them lightly, "Hi everyone, I¡¯m Shi Zhiguang, a sword operator of the Pinwheel Sword. We¡¯re here today to test if you guys have what it takes to be a sword operator."

    Someone raised his hand and asked, "Sir, what does it take?"

    This was the first time anyone had called him "sir." Shi Zhiguang blushed, feeling somewhat pleased, yet at a loss. Nevertheless, he was a sword operator and even Master Huo Da asked him for guidance, so how could he lose his cool in front of a young boy?

    "

    He forced himself to remain calm, puffing his chest out. "A keen sense of speed and meticulous control of elemental energy."

    Seeing that Shi Zhiguang was rather friendly, the other students started raising their hands.

    "Sir, how does it feel to fly while piloting the Pinwheel Sword?"

    "Sir, what were you thinking when you were charging toward the camp?"

    "Sir, were you afraid at that moment?"

    He Min¡¯s eyelids drooped as he sighed inwardly at this bunch of novice kids. How embarrassing.

    Shi Zhiguang was a very tolerant person to begin with, so he smiled and answered all the questions, quickly getting familiar with the students.

    Out of the corner of his eye He Min noticed the division leader and her officers approaching and instantly stood up straight in a sh. He searched through the crowd, quickly spotted Jiang Wei, and received a jolt.

    Jiang Wei also noticed He Min¡¯s nce. He had a deep impression of the youngd. With a slight smile he called out, "Work hard, He Min!"

    He Min only felt a gush of hot blood rush to his brain. He shouted loudly, "Yes!"

    Shi Zhiguang hurriedly bowed to Shi Xueman and called out, "Madam!"

    He was an honest, straightforward person and had seen Division Leader Shi walking out of the tent while carrying Boss. At that point, everyone had started to discuss how they had done what they were supposed to do and how Shi Xueman would definitely be Boss¡¯s wife in the future. Shi Zhiguang felt that their conclusion was correct, so calling her Division Leader Shi seemed too formal. "Madam" sounded more friendly.

    Shi Zhiguang had been under Ai Hui¡¯s care and guidance, hence he was devoted and loyal toward Ai Hui.

    Shi Xueman blushed a deep red.

    The surroundings became quiet as Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun, and the rest looked on, somewhat embarrassed. They were impressed by Shi Zhiguang and shocked that he had actually dared to call her that. A sword operator indeed.

    Shi Xueman only felt her face burning. Even her neck and ears were red. If there was a hole in the ground, she would be more than d to stuff her head inside. Shi Zhiguang¡¯s seriousness and genuine expression caused her to be at a loss.

    She bit her lips and forced herself to calm down. "We are just spectators and curious about how you guys select sword operators. Ignore us, Zhiguang."

    Shi Zhiguang hurriedly responded, "Then I¡¯ll continue."

    Shi Xueman acted as if nothing had happened. What was the big deal about being called "Madam?" Why was her heart beating so fast?

    Out of the corner of Shi Xueman¡¯s eye, she caught a glimpse of Sang Zhijun giggling while covering her mouth and couldn¡¯t help but re at her. Yet, she did not realize that she hadn¡¯t actually refuted Shi Zhiguang.

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s attention was ced onto the kids once again. He said seriously, "Come, let¡¯s start the test."

    Everybody became alert. He Min, especially, had his eyes wide open.

    Initially, he had not been interested in bing a sword operator, but having been encouraged by Sir Jiang, he felt his blood racing. He had to perform well and not let Sir Jiang Wei down!

    Shi Zhiguang took out a rolled up cloth bag and spread it open in front of everyone. "The test is very simple."

    Everyone pricked up their ears. Even Shi Xueman, Jiang Wei, and the others looked on curiously with their full attention.

    Shi Zhiguang threw a word at them, "Embroidery!"

    The opened bag revealed rows glistening silver needles that were neatly arranged.

    Everyone had a sluggish expression on their faces. The word "embroidery" had taken them aback.

    He Min stared nkly at the shiny needles, his jaw dropped so wide that an egg could fit inside.

    Shi Zhiguang spoke sincerely, "An outstanding sword operator is inevitably an outstanding elemental embroidery expert. Both have a lot inmon, and one has to be proficient in embroidery in order to be a good sword operator. Embroidery can test the precision of your elemental energy control and your ability to maintain focus over a long period of time. Only those with excellent embroidery skills are fit to be sword operators!"

    Everybody was speechless and silence fell over the field. Only Shi Zhiguang¡¯s voice echoed.

    Shi Zhiguang looked very serious. "Don¡¯t think I¡¯m over exaggerating the effectiveness of embroidery. Master Huo Da is trying hard to study the techniques of embroidery so as to pilot a Pinwheel Sword soon. If even a Master is doing so, all of you should work hard too. All right,e try. It¡¯s simple. There are three sections. Controlling the needle to make it fly straight, to fly in circles, and finally to fly slowly. The slower the better."

    "First person!"

    Already in a working state of mind, Shi Zhiguang operated strictly and meticulously. He had even dared to guide a Master, so of course he wouldn¡¯t have stage fright.

    He Min was muddleheaded. He never would¡¯ve thought that the aptitude test for aspiring sword operators was actually embroidery. Furthermore, from what Shi Zhiguang had said, a sword operator¡¯s daily training would most definitely include embroidery!

    Oh god, how terrifying!

    Just the thought of holding an embroidery needle and making the woven cloth fly made him feel cold all over. He would definitely be a target for ridicule. A man doing embroidery was simply too...

    He had never heard of a male embroidery master!

    "Your turn, He Min."

    With an "oh," the muddleheaded He Min walked forward subconsciously.

    An embroidery needle was brought to him.

    "Come try to make it fly straight."

    Seeing that He Min wasn¡¯t in the right state of mind, Jiang Wei felt rather worried. He didn¡¯t know what He Min was thinking. For people with richbat experience, they might be shocked and surprised by embroidery, but definitely would not be repulsed.

    Any method of increasing theirbat abilities was a good method!

    He Min hadn¡¯t regained his senses. He grasped the needle nkly and started channeling his elemental energy subconsciously.

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s voice sounded from the side. "Not bad! Try making it fly in circles. It¡¯s simple, just add a little spin while channeling your elemental energy."

    Add a little spin... He Min moved the elemental energy in his hands.

    "Not bad, not bad!" Shi Zhiguang¡¯s voice carried a tinge of excitement. "Now try to make it fly slowly. It¡¯s very simple, just contain and hold your elemental energy. Cram it forward slowly like how you would with an awl. Slower. That¡¯s right, even slower. Good. Excellent!"

    Shi Zhiguang was full of smiles. "You¡¯ve passed! You¡¯re selected!"

    A good seedling!

    He Min¡¯s performance was the best out of all students so far!

    Jiang Wei felt happy for He Min. "Nicely done, He Min!"

    Still unaware of the situation, He Min instantly became happy upon hearing Sir Jiang Wei¡¯s praise.

    "You¡¯re He Min aye?" Shi Zhiguang smiled while patting his shoulder. "Report to the sword operator department tomorrow. I¡¯ll bring you aroundter. All right, next."

    Shi Zhiguang had a lot of strength. His shoulder pat made He Min¡¯s body sway and brought him back to his senses.

    Wait. Report to the sword operator department tomorrow?

    He panicked.

    An image of him waving and directing an embroidery needle floated in his mind...

 Chapter 600: Judgement, Step Forward

    Chapter 600: Judgement, Step Forward

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    The thick metal wind curtain blocked the line of sight of the blood elementalists. They could not find out what was happening behind it. If they could see what was happening behind the defensive line, they definitely would not be so calm.

    An endless ze of light in the camp made it as bright as daylight, and voices could be heard everywhere. Even the lightsing from the sky filled with stars were overshadowed by it. It waste at night, but the camp was bustling and full of life.

    The cksmiths were restless with bloodshot eyes. Everybody knew that battle was imminent and that the enemy had reached the defensive line. There was no need to supervise because everyone was motivated to work.

    Each smelting furnace produced infernos which soared to the skies. With each slogan shouted by the cksmiths, flowing mes and red hot molten metal discharged dazzling sparks.

    Ai Hui looked down at the radiant scene from the top of the Fish Bone. He was a little lost in thought. The supplies were piled up like a continuous mountain range, and the cksmiths shuttling to and fro looked like hard-working ants.

    He could not help butughed at himself. This was probably his most rewarding moment.

    So many cksmiths, so much supplies, and so many people. This scene just gave Ai Hui some confidence to face the next battle.

    Bring it on. Since we cannot retreat, let¡¯s fight!

    Use up all the supplies, and fight to thest man for this battle.

    This was Ai Hui¡¯s decision.

    There was no other choice.

    Piece by piece, the newly forged and still warm Beehive Heavy Cannons were sent to the Pagoda Cannon Alliance and set up within the first hour. The pagoda cannon crews, which were well prepared, immediately swarmed in and learned how to operate these Beehive Heavy Cannons.

    This was probably the world¡¯s craziest and extravagant training because it involved only Beehive Heavy Cannons and live ammunition.

    In another corner of the camp, the Beehive Heavy Cannons were bellowing endlessly.

    Ke Ning patrolled back and forth between the different teams. His throat was already hoarse, while his hair and entire body were messy and dirty. He seemed as if he was surrounded by mes and smoke, yet he exuded a indescribable aura.

    Even Li Houtang would be surprised by Ke Ning at this moment.

    Back then, he was seen as rich and spoiled, but now, it was as if he hadpletely changed.

    Ke Ning was not the only one who changed. Tong Gui and Yu Jin were also quietly changing. They had served inbat divisions for many years and experienced many events which gradually honed their characters. Although both of them were capable and well versed in the art of war, their passion had long since disappeared.

    The Pagoda Cannon Alliance was a fledgling alliance, and the circumstances they faced may have forced them to be more focused. Deep inside, there might have been certain overlooked areas, and they were quietly developing new ideas.

    Even their subordinates had a bright, new outlook.

    The majority of the soldiers in the Pagoda Cannon Alliance came from the routed troops from previous battles. They refused to leave and had revenge on their minds, hoping to have a good fight with the blood elementalists. They were most worried about being recruited into the officialbat divisions because they discovered that the officers did not sincerely want to fight with the blood elementalists. Instead, these leaders were just doing perfunctory duties and secretly preparing to escape or nning to fight for power and status.

    These vengeful soldiers held a wait-and-see attitude toward Ai Hui at the beginning for this reason.

    Later, they found that Ai Hui sincerely wanted to fight this next battle. Moreover, the raid on the enemy¡¯s encampment had changed their opinion about him.

    Their emotions also unknowingly influenced the rest.

    Venerable Volcano said emotionally, "Initially, I thought the Pagoda Cannon Alliance was only a temporary coalition. Morale was low and expectations were not great. In contrast, morale is pretty good now!"

    His experience was rich and diverse, but a uniquebat division like the Pagoda Cannon Alliance was a first for him. It was a makeshiftbat division which consisted of mostly routed troops, but was fearless and consequently had great fighting spirit.

    Xiao Shan said inly, "How could the Avalon of Five Elements exist for thousands of years if its people were simply willing to be ughtered?"

    Venerable Volcano nodded. "It is rare for a defeated army to still be extremely brave. If everyone else can do so, what is there to fear about the blood elementalists?"

    Ai Hui responded with a sneer, "Everyone can do so? What a beautiful thought! Some people say that the Avalon of Five Elements was a piece of rotten wood, but these people are part of thest bit that is not rotten. However, it is wishful thinking to depend on this small piece of good wood. Furthermore, people are not hoping for resurrection, but just hoping to linger on."

    Xiao Shan felt Ai Hui¡¯s words were harsh and said, "It is not as hopeless as you think, and the Elders have to consider the whole situation."

    He felt guilty about what he had just said and promptly shut up.

    Ai Hui stopped arguing since he was not the type to quibble. The reason he had said these words was due to the fact that he felt everyone still saw the glimmer of an illusion, but it was only a fig leaf that covered their embarrassment.

    Besides, it had nothing to do with him, and he was not fighting for the sake of the Elders Guild.

    He turned toward Venerable Volcano. "The results of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance¡¯s live ammunition practices are pretty good, but because the consumption of snowva is toorge, we need to prepare in advance."

    Venerable Volcano was feeling the pinch. "I was just going to remind you, How can you train yourbat division this way ? Goodness, how much snowva is going down the drain in a day? All that money! I used to think you were stingy, but now I realize I have misjudged you. You are actually a spendthrift!"

    Ai Hui said, "Theva inside the Fish Bone is certainly not enough. To replenish the snowva, we are going to needva of earth fire!"

    Ai Hui eagerly asked, "Can it be done?"

    "Not a big problem." Venerable Volcano gloated, "Many people think only volcanoes have earth fire. In fact, there is earth fire deep underground. However, it is usually buried rtively deep down, but this is not a problem for me."

    Ai Hui replied with admiration, "In that case, thank you for your trouble, Venerable! "

    The reason he was looking for Venerable Volcano was because he had heard in Thunder City that Venerable Volcano could summon a volcano. This left a deep impression on him. He had not expected that Venerable Volcano could actually solve the problem and felt relieved.

    All of a sudden, he felt a sharp pain from his left arm. It was like a scalding iron was burning him.

    He could not restrain a cry of pain.

    An extremely strange and overbearing force came out from the blood plum blossom on his arm and drilled into Ai Hui body.

    He could not control his body, and all of it tensely locked up..

    Xiao Shan and Venerable Volcano, who were beside Ai Hui, saw him acting strangely and their expressions changed.

    The exmations from Xiao Shan and Venerable Volcano had be very distant and vague, as ifing from the clouds. The sword cloud in his body sensed danger, exploded like a covered wok, and spontaneously circted while roaring like thunder.

    Ai Hui felt several strands of power in his body separating, and his body felt like it was being torn to pieces.

    A never before experienced pain made him ckout. He fell down to the ground andpsed into aa.

    In all corners of the cksmith camp, the tiny mini Lou Lans whomanded and coordinated all materials suddenly stopped. They all made the same move¡ªlooking up at the top of the Fish Bone as their small eyes shed with a red gleam.

    They dashed away as if by mutual consent and gravitated toward the Fish Bone like the tide. Countless mini Lou Lans ran while shouting uniformly.

    "Ai Hui, there is danger!"

    "Lou Lan ising!"

    .....

    At a temporary camp.

    The soldiers of the Dread and Judgement divisions were gasping after experiencing a painful battle and finally getting rid of the enemy.

    No one talked. Everybody snatched whatever time there was to rest and restore their physical strength.

    Their situation was getting tougher, as could be seen from the frequency of the fights. In a short span of three days, they fought with blood elementalists about a dozen times. Such high intensity battles were taking a toll on them.

    The deterioration of the situation could be seen from the casualties.

    Their casualties were constantly increasing, especially in the Judgement Division, which had lost almost half their manpower.

    Of course, the casualties inflicted on the enemy were even greater, and they had killed at least five times more than their own casualty count. However, the advantage of the enemy forces was far too great. The losses suffered by the God Spirit Division were devastating and its two supporting blood divisions were hit even harder. Nevertheless, emergency reinforcements¨Cin the form of two more god divisions and four more blood divisions¨Cwere enough to form arge that surrounded them in all directions.

    In such a difficult situation, the Dread and Judgement divisions showed their toughness to the fullest. They seemed to be tireless and unaware of despair. The blood elementalists failed in entrap them.

    From that point forward, no one from the blood elementalistbat divisions dared to mock the Dread and Judgement divisions.

    If not for the Heart of God constantly releasing energy waves that exposed the position of Dread and Judgement divisions, even with a task force of three god divisions and the six blood divisions, the blood elementalists were not certain that they could overtake the Dread and Judgement divisions.

    Ximen Caijue said, "We can¡¯t go on like this."

    Wan Shenwei looked at her, "We can¡¯t give up halfway."

    "Of course not." Ximen Caijue raised her young, feminine, apple-shaped face and looked icily arrogant. "These days, I have been studying the energy waves released by the Heart of God and thinking of ways to suppress them."

    The weather beaten face of Wan Shenwei was full of surprise, "Suppress the Heart of God¡¯s energy waves? You have a way?"

    Ximen Caijue said, "I have to try it to know."

    Wan Shenwei was impatient. "Let¡¯s try?"

    They were now in such a passive position due to the energy waves of the Heart of God which actively exposed their position. If these waves could be sealed, then their concealment would be greatly improved, and the enemy would find it more difficult to discover them.

    They could dy the enemy for a longer time by ying hide-and-seek with them in the mountains.

    Ximen Caijue looked calmly at Wan Shenwei. "If anyone can survive, leave some seeds for the Judgement Division."

    She stood up after speaking.

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s body shivered. He opened his mouth, but did not make any sound.

    Ximen Caijue looked at the decimated and injured Judgement soldiers. A trace of unbearable sadness shed in her eyes, but it was immediately reced by a firm and determined look. At this stage, what was there to hesitate about?

    In any case, she had never felt regret, but hoped that this was something worth sacrificing for.

    With her petite body floating in the air, she unslung the delicate small bow from her back and coldly said, "Judgement Division, step forward."

 Chapter 601: Seal

    Chapter 601: Seal

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    Amid the pitch ck sky, a weird, rugged stone looked just like a peaceful monster crouching on the ground.

    The soldiers from the Judgement Division were randomly distributed in a circle. In the center,id an unconscious Ye Baiyi. Ximen Caijue floated in the skies above Ye Baiyi and fixated her attention on him.

    In another hour, the Heart of God would release waves of energy.

    The Heart of God... What horrifying thing had the Beast Venom Temple actually created?!

    Ximen Caijue was bewildered. It seemed like a horrifying monster was hibernating inside Ye Baiyi. No, Ye Baiyi was now actually a monster, an unconscious monster.

    Ximen Caijue even suspected that as long as there was a threat to its life, the pulsating heart, which wasparable to a great dragon¡¯s heart, might possibly lose control. Without restraint, the terrifying and violent force would result in a catastrophic bacsh.

    All right, since the current stage had been reached, the end result would not be any differentpared to the catastrophic bacsh.

    The only exception was that it foiled their n to dy for time.

    Ximen Caijue was somewhat lucky since Nangong Wulian was already dead. To be able to refine something as irregr as the Heart of God, it was not excessive to overestimate Nangong Wulian¡¯s danger level. Suddenly, she thought of how horrifying the situation would be if the Beast Venom Temple were to constantly refine Hearts of God.

    The Judgement soldiers on the ground were absolutely silent, awaiting hermand.

    Every single one of them tried their best to stand perfectly straight, but it was difficult to cover up their scar riddled bodies. They fixated their bloodshot eyes on Ye Baiyi. Only half of the Judgment Division remained, and they appeared very meager.

    They seemed like a bunch of defeated soldiers!

    Yet, it would be this bunch of people who established their efforts and created a unfathomable miracle.

    Ximen Caijue swept her gaze across everybody. After tonight, she did not know how many familiar faces would disappear from her sight. In her heart, she was both emotional and full of pride.

    She suddenly asked, "Has everything been noted?

    "Yes!"

    Everyone¡¯s voices were as hoarse as withered leaves and peeled off bones. Their voices prated the wind of the boundless desert.

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s delicate and tender face radiated her determination, and she was just like a sharp, unsheathed sword. With her delicate small bow in hand, she flicked it gently.

    Almost simultaneously, the Judgment soldiers uniformly pulled the bows in their hands. The bows emitted a dazzling white ray of light. In this steep and pitch-ck valley, each cycle of the full moon seemed to float on the surface of the night sky.

    Each drawn bowstring had white rays of light that gathered on a glowing arrow. An abstruse ck pattern appeared on the body of these arrows that were aimed at Ximen Caijue in the sky. Circr light rings appeared under their feet, and these rings had various patterns which revolved endlessly.

    All of the glowing arrows were pointed toward Ximen Caijue.

    There was another clear and melodious strum of a bowstring.

    Just like amand, the soldiers intuitively released their bowstrings. It seemed like it was raining glowing arrows. All the glowing arrows were aimed urately at Ximen Caijue.

    Ximen Caijue sparkled from head to toe, like a substantial light ray, her appearance made it piercingly painful for people to look straight at her. Her petite figure was enveloped within the ring and zing light ray, as if she was one of the gods.

    It was unknown when her bowstring had been drawn.

    A chilly sound that was clear and ice-cold as well as solemn and sacred rang out.

    "Judgment as follows: Seal!"

    As if it could rip the sky apart, a solid and ring light pir unexpectedly sted Ye Baiyi¡¯s body. His body seemed to sustain a serious injury as his back was smashed to the ground.

    The light rays which revolved under the soldiers¡¯ feet acted like arge which swiftly engulfed Ye Baiyi.

    The Heart of God within Ye Baiyi seemed to sense danger and pulsated violently.

    Thud, thud, thud!

    Each pulsation was just like a firm hit on a heavy drum.

    The soldiers who were located in the proximity bled heavily from their seven apertures. All of a sudden, a white ze rose from the bottom of their feet. They were engulfed by the ze before they could even let out a tragic scream.

    Though the energy released by the Heart of God was powerful, as it collided with theposed of light rings, it was ultimately incapable of breaking through the glowing, seemingly weak. The glowing paused slightly before pulling back rapidly and trapping Ye Baiyi securely.

    The rings surrounded Ye Baiyi¡¯s body just like a shiny fishing. .

    Thud, thud, thud.

    The Heart of God pulsated slower and slower, softer and softer.

    Eventually, it waspletely silent.

    Ye Baiyi¡¯s body lost its support and dropped from the sky.

    Ximen Caijue, who was in the sky, shone with radiance all over.

    Upon seeing Ximen Caijue, Wan Shenwei felt a huge shock. At this moment, a few wrinkles unexpectedly appeared on Ximen Caijue¡¯s girlish face.

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s figure shed past, and she fell from the sky.

    Wan Shenwei swiftly appeared by her side and caught her.

    Ximen Caijue muttered with difficulty, "Go quickly."

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s eyes turned red as gave outmands, "Bring the wounded soldiers and Ye Baiyi. Transport them immediately."

    The soldiers of the Dread Division urgently dashed forward and carried the surviving soldiers on their backs. At the same time, they grabbed the stitose Ye Baiyi and followed Wan Shenwei out of the valley.

    Just as they disappeared, He Nanshan, who was worn out from marching, arrived at the valley with his elites.

    A moment ago, He Nanshan had seen the exceptionally bright beams of light from afar. He did not question his ominous premonition and hurriedly led the soldiers over.

    There was absolutely no one when they arrived in the valley.

    He Nanshan squatted on the ground. There was still a remnant fluctuation of elemental energy on the surface, and his expression grew darker.

    He did not know what kind of methods the Dread and Judgment divisions employed, but he could sense a thread of sealing aura from the remnant energy fluctuations.

    To be able to force the Dread and Judgment divisions to expose themselves without hesitation and also force them to utilize a sealing technique...

    He Nanshan did not even need to think because he knew there was only one possibility.

    This was a result that he had never thought of.

    Damn it!

    His face turned ghastly pale, and he smashed his fist into the ground. The terrifying force did not travel underground. Instead, the entire valley underwent waves of turmoil.

    "Chase them!"

    The enemy had not escaped very far, and he hoped that luck was on his side.

    He Nanshan¡¯s anger disappeared shortly without a trace. He forced a bitter smile.

    Luck... His own luck was extremely rotten right from the beginning.

    .....

    Out of the three God-subduing Peaks, the peak located closest to the ground was the Infantry Division¡¯s position. The Infantry Division specialized innd battles, so they needed to be sufficiently close to the ground. Master Wang Xiaoshan had meticulously reconstructed the ground below the God-subduing Peak. He had createdyers of traps as well as distinct terrain which could bring out the best qualities of the Infantry Division.

    Silver Soldier¡¯s deep and low voice could be heard from this God-subduing Peak.

    "Not a bad job. Let¡¯s try it again!"

    He stood right in front of the troops with approximately 50 soldiers behind him. Every single one of them was drenched in sweat and panting heavily, but they still did their utmost to perform an offensive stance.

    Silver Soldier unexpectedly took a heavy step outward and threw his fist in the air!

    Behind the mask came a thunderous voice, "Kill!"

    50 soldiers simultaneously threw their fists in the air and violently shouted, "Kill!"

    The huge fist-shaped ray was like an overbearing siege machine that would shatter any obstruction into bits and pieces.

    The fist ray remained in the sky for no less than 15 seconds before it slowly disappeared.

    Silver Soldier exhaled a long breath. The air he exhaled was as solid as a sword. Slowly, he retracted his fist. The soldiers behind him had fallen into disarray and copsed to the ground, rendered motionless.

    Elemental soup, which had long since been prepared, was delivered right in front of the soldiers. After finishing the soup, their spirits soared. One by one they carried out Circtory Cycle Revolutions to digest the elemental energy in the soup.

    A gratified look appeared on Silver Soldier¡¯s face. The strength of his troops had improved rapidly and greatly exceeded his expectations. The arduous training sessions and abundant resources allowed these rookies to improve at lightning speed. The base level of his soldiers had increased byrge margin.

    He thought of how he had worried about Ai Hui plundering otherbat divisions. Never had he expected to personally benefit from it. The ingredients of the elemental soup were delivered from Shi Xueman¡¯s side, and the recipe was from Lou Lan.

    It really proved the saying: You¡¯ll eat the meat, and I¡¯ll drink the soup.

    For the first time ever, Silver Soldier was leading such an extravagant life.

    Heughed absurdly.

    "Truly incredible. If this fist appeared on the battlefield, no enemy would be able to defend against it."

    A cold, yet slightly happy, tone could be heard behind him.

    Silver Soldier turned around and saw his juniore into his field of view. He somewhat loss his concentration for a moment, but immediately reacted, shook his head, and replied, "I could only gather 50 people. Compared to more than 200 people in Ai Hui¡¯s Sword of Lightning, I¡¯m stillcking."

    Karakorum Pris shook her head, "There is no need for senior to be unduly humble. After all, the Pagoda-style military strategies were created by Ai Hui, so it was not surprising for him to mobilize 200 people. In the times toe, senior will also be able to achieve the same numbers."

    Silver Soldier asked, "How¡¯s your progress?"

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s tone sounded distressed as she replied , "Not very smoothly, but it is my own problem. Ai Hui¡¯s Sword of Lightning has totally abandoned the beauty and mystery of swordsmanship. It is difficult to convince myself."

    Silver Soldier consoled her, " Don¡¯t worry, let nature take its course."

    .

    The Sword of Lightning¡¯s battle style brought extreme shock to the both of them and also allowed them to follow their hearts. On this, Ai Hui was not selfish and instructed others without any reservations. The Sword of Lightning, however, was specifically established by Ai Hui ording to the needs of the sword pagodas. How the Infantry Division and Sky Edge Division actually utilized the Pagoda Style military strategies was actually up to Silver Soldier and Karakorum Pris to decide.

    Silver Soldier¡¯s progress was slightly smoother as he had managed tomand 50 soldiers. On the contrary, Karakorum Pris had practically no progress. She was not the core member of herbat division

    She was a very conventional swordsman, and her swordsmanship had formed long ago. In addition, she felt that the Sword of Lightning¡¯s swordsmen were not even qualified to have that title.

    Unfortunately, the Sword of Lightning¡¯sbat power was extremely astonishing.

    Karakorum Pris was extremely troubled. She really wasn¡¯t an ignorant and stubborn person and even felt that the Sword of Lightning¡¯s swordsmanship would actually rece traditional swordsmanship entirely.

    Traditional swordsmanship had yet to be reinstated, but would it decline again?

    She was at a loss.

    Soon, both of them would no longer be in the mood to train.. Jiang Wei arrived.

    Silver Soldier cried out in surprise, "Ai Hui is unconscious? What happened?"

    Karakorum Pris couldn¡¯t help but nce at her senior since she rarely saw him lose his self-control. Her senior really regarded Ai Hui as someone important and cared a lot for him.

    Jiang Wei did not look well. "We are still unsure. It happened too suddenly. Lou Lan is currently diagnosing the problem."

    Silver Soldier was prepared to check on Ai Hui¡¯s condition with Jiang Wei when a mournful rm unexpectedly sounded.

    The three of them were distracted and subconsciously looked toward the God Wolf Division¡¯s camp. Their expressions changed drastically as they gasped in unison.

 Chapter 602: The Arrival of The Beast Battalions

    Chapter 602: The Arrival of The Beast Battalions

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    In the distant horizon, the boundless flood of blood fiends was like a sea of reddish-ck clouds that swept across the sky.

    A smile appeared on Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face. Behind him, all his generals looked excited as they could not resist pumping their fists in the air. Even though their strength was superior to the elementalists, they still suffered a series of defeats in a row. All of them were stewing because of this. Furthermore, His Majesty had yet to react to the kidnapping of Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian. This caused everyone in the God Wolf Division to feel nervous and frightened. They felt as if the angled de of a guillotine would drop down on their necks at any moment and im their lives.

    Every soldier in the God Wolf Division was tormented daily by a mixture of sullenness and fear. Now that their reinforcements had arrived, their suppressed emotions erupted at once.

    Beast battalions were reserves that supported god divisions and blood divisions. Each beast battalion had 10,000 men. The blood fiends that were assigned to them were broadback batfish. The broadback batfish was a new species formed bybining a ck blood bat and a devil fish. It looked more like a devil fish with a pitch-ck body that could fly in the air At each of its eyes, there was a red line that extended all the way to its tail. Its wingspan was 40 meters, making it an extremely huge creature.

    The back muscles of a broadback batfish were highly developed. They were thick and wide, making its back veryfortable to sit on.

    A broadback batfish was docile and had a low intelligence level. It flew very slowly, but it could fly steadily while carrying an extremely heavy load.

    If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the broadback batfish had an insatiable appetite, they would serve as an outstanding type of transportation blood fiend. Every day, they needed to consume a massive amount of jade fruits, making them extremely costly to rear. As a result, they were only assigned to beast battalions.

    When the battalion leaders of the beast battalions saw Helian Tianxiao standing at the camp entrance, they quickly controlled their broadback batfishes to descend from the sky.

    The sky-covering sea of "clouds" poured down from the sky, resembling floodwater that had been released from a floodgate.

    When all the broadback batfish had descended from the sky, the area surrounding the encampment looked as if it had beenid with ck carpet, appearing unusually spectacr.

    The four battalion leaders of the beast battalions walked to Helian Tianxiao and greeted him respectfully, "Sir, we are here! Sorry for arrivingte!"

    "As long as you¡¯re here, it¡¯s all right. We will rest and prepare for two more days before attacking their defensive line,"Helian Tianxiao replied with satisfaction.

    "Yes!" the four battalion leaders bowed and replied in unison.

    Two of them had solemn looks on their faces while the other two were rubbing their hands in excitement. Still, none of them showed any fear. Before they departed, they already knew what the situation was like. As such, they had already made mental preparations for what they were going to face.

    As reserves, it was extremely difficult for them to have a chance to meet Helian Tianxiao. Furthermore, when they saw Helian Tianxiao waiting for their arrival at the entrance, they felt extremely honored.

    The status of the beast battalions was extremely low. Usually, the most important mission for them was to provide new recruits to the blood divisions. For the past few years, the blood divisions had not suffered heavy losses. Therefore, the number of beast battalion soldiers who could enter the blood divisions was pathetically low. Most of these troops were sent home after serving in a beast battalion for several years.

    The Blood of God valued military merits. By umting military merits, one could achieve his or her goals, earn promotions, and obtain preferential treatments for his or her family. In the Blood of God, the social status of military personnel was very high. Their status far surpassed other professions. The family members of military personnel could receive many preferential treatments too. Even though beast battalions were just reserves, the treatment that their soldiers received was good enough to make the blood elementalists from other professions jealous.

    ordingly, if a soldier from a beast battalion couldn¡¯t enter a blood division and was discharged, all the preferential treatment that he received would be taken away.

    On the contrary, if one died on the battlefield, his or her family members could enjoy this preferential treatment forever. This was why the Blood of God¡¯s soldiers were usually not scared of death on the battlefield.

    It was not that there was no one in the Blood of God who opposed these preferential treatments. Rather, this decree was enacted by the Holy Emperor himself. As such, no one dared to openly oppose it.

    Therefore, when the beast battalions received the order to reinforce thebat divisions at the front line, not only did they not feel fear, they felt excitement instead. They packed their belongings as fast as possible and traveled day and night to rush to the front line.

    Along the way, the four battalion leaders discussed the possible scenarios they would face. Eventually, they came to the unanimous conclusion that they most likely would be taking part in a siege battle.

    Since ancient times, it had not been easy to win a siege battle.

    Just by having aplete defense system, the besieged side could render the offensive side helpless even if thetter outnumbered the former by several times. Consequently, the offensive side often suffered heavy losses.

    The four battalion leaders ordered their subordinates to pitch camp and rest. They, themselves, did not dare to rest. Ignoring their fatigue, they observed the defensive line at the Windy Pearl Bridge.

    When they saw the defensive line clearly, they gasped in unison. Even these battalion leaders who were previously eager to get into action changed their facial expressions drastically.

    The situation was much worse than they had expected!

    Keeping thempany was the vice division leader of Silver Frost Blood Division, Pan Fengling. Pang Fengling was female, but she looked masculine. She was taller and sturdier than an average man, and her voice was deep and hoarse. Her weapon was terrifying as well. It was an azure-colored mace that was about as tall her. It gave off faint traces of white mist, exuding a chill to its surroundings.

    The Blood of God¡¯sbat divisions ced great emphasis on rank. The rules of etiquette between a high-ranking officer and a low-ranking officer were very stringent.

    Beast battalions were merely reserves. The rank of the beast battalion leaders was equivalent to a middle-ranking officer of a blood division. Having a vice division leader apany the four battalion leaders already defied the Blood of God¡¯s regtions.

    Pan Fengling was emotionless, but her voice contained a tinge of arrogance. However, she still described the situation clearly to the four battalion leaders.

    "We can¡¯t attack on the ground. Look over there. There is a quicksand zone there. The Ardent Flower Blood Division received a fatal blow when they were slowed down by such a quicksand zone. Furthermore, the enemy has a battlefield construction master. He can raise tall walls from the quicksand zone at any time, allowing the Infantry Division to utilize their strength on the ground. The quicksand zone also hides many traps that can¡¯t be avoided. The pagoda cannons in the sky would be firing at the ground too."

    She continued, "The middle section is not suitable for us to attack either. Previously, we had tested to see if we could attack through the middle section. We realized that the middle section is the most unsuitable area for us to attack. The God-subduing Peak at the middle section is guarded by the Sky Edge Division. That section might look the weakest, but in reality, it is most heavily guarded. The Infantry Division can use Master Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s rising sand tforms to provide reinforcement to the middle section. At the highest position, the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s Hellfire Pagoda Cannons can easily reinforce the middle as well."

    "ording to the probing we have carried out over the past few days, the only way for us to attack their defensive line is through the highest position.. We have to take out the topmost God-subduing Peak, which is guarded by the Spear of Heavy Cloud. If we attack that section, we only need to face the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons. The Hellfire Pagoda Cannons might be powerful, but their attacking frequency is very low. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that they have a pagoda cannon master, we would have taken this God-subduing Peak down a long time ago."

    Pan Fengling snorted. Apparently, she wasn¡¯t satisfied with the reinforcements from the beast battalions. She did not try to hide her unhappiness at all. However, when she thought about the merits she would obtain after breaking through the Pearl Defensive Line, her tone softened.

    Her voice even contained a tinge of encouragement as she continued, "However, this is your only chance as well. As long as we have enough manpower, our assault will be strong enough to break through the defensive line of pagoda cannons. Once we take down the God-subduing Peak that is manned by the Spear of Heavy Cloud, taking down the other two God-subduing Peaks will be a walk in the park. We can definitely conquer the Pearl Defensive Line."

    The four battalion leaders carefully observed every single detail of the Pearl Defensive Line. They had no choice but to admit that what Pan Fengling said was true. The only way to attack the defensive line was through the God-subduing Peak at the topmost position.

    "Madam, you¡¯re right. The four of us will discuss it againter," one of the more prudent-looking battalion leader said respectfully to Pan Fengling.

    "Don¡¯t dy the assault," Pan Fengling snorted.

    After finishing her sentence, she turned and left.

    .....

    She Yu had been staring at the drop of God¡¯s blood in the crystal for a very long time. She had not expected His Majesty to bestow her a drop of God¡¯s blood.

    His Majesty had never bestowed God¡¯s blood to anyone before. Even Red Devil, himself, had never received such treatment from His Majesty before. She was merely a seed, yet His Majesty favored her so much by bestowing her with such a supreme artifact. She Yu felt as if she was dreaming.

    This drop of God¡¯s blood was the blood of God himself. It was the God Nation¡¯s supreme sacred artifact.

    There were many rumors regarding God¡¯s blood. Some said the first Holy Emperor was a descendant of God himself. God knew the Cultivation Era was going to end and that he was destined to fall. Therefore, he bestowed 10 drops of his blood to bless his descendants. Some also said God¡¯s blood was actually the purest essence blood of a devil that had lived for tens of thousands of years. Otherwise, how could the blood be preserved until now? Blood spiritual force seemed to have verified this rumor.

    However, it no longer mattered whether the God¡¯s blood came from God himself or a devil.

    She Yu knew every drop of God¡¯s blood possessed a boundless amount of power. The reason why His Majesty could be a Grandmaster and dominate the world was because he unravelled the secret of God¡¯s blood and absorbed the supreme power from it.

    She still could not believe that His Majesty actually bestowed her with God¡¯s blood. Was it possible that His Majesty had already broken through the limits of God¡¯s blood?

    This thought shed across She Yu¡¯s mind. Following which, she threw all these distracting thoughts to the back of her head. Since when had she be worthy of guessing what the Holy Emperor was doing?

    She ced her attention on the God¡¯s blood once again. Deep down, she was filled with gratitude toward Bei Shuisheng. God¡¯s blood might not be the only answer to restraining the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art], but it was definitely the best answer. Previously, she had ced all of her hopes on the Heart of God since she had not even dared to dream about receiving God¡¯s blood. God¡¯s blood was a sacred artifact after all. In the blood spiritual force system, God¡¯s blood was considered a supreme entity. No matter how profound and mysterious the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was, it still could not bepared to God¡¯s blood.

    She was only worried about whether or not could she handle the power of the God¡¯s blood.

    The power possessed by God¡¯s blood was boundless and dominating. If an ordinary individual consumed it, his or her body would explode on the spot. Among the generations of Holy Emperors, only the current Holy Emperor had unravelled the secret of God¡¯s blood!

    She Yu did not expect herself to unravel the secrets of the God¡¯s blood. All she wanted was to use to its power to save herself from [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art].

    His Majesty also bestowed her with some tips on consuming the God¡¯s blood. She could tell the notebook had been personally written by His Majesty. She Yu had memorized every single word in it. She had read it several times and knew its contents like the back of her hand.

    She knew she only had one chance. Given such an excellent chance, if she still could not seed, she might as well die.

    She took a deep breath of air.

    A determined look shed across her eyes. She was extremely certain that her fate hade to a turning point.

    She threw the crystal into her mouth.

    Crack.

    The crystal wasn¡¯t as hard as she thought. It broke easily like an ice cube in her mouth.

    A wisp of aura flowed down her throat and entered her body.

    A look of agony suddenly appeared on She Yu¡¯s pale-white face.

    The mysterious aura in her body diffused to her surroundings. The ground beneath her feet was reduced to fine powder silently. Instead of flying up into the air, the fine powder stayed on the ground and undted like rippling water.

    An invisible energy wave engulfed the room, slowly distorting the dimensions of space.

 Chapter 603: Golden Thread And Blood Plum Blossom

    Chapter 603: Golden Thread And Blood Plum Blossom

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    At this moment, She Yu felt like she was in a furnace. Burning agony rendered her mind nk. Her surroundings had be a blur, drifting past her eyes like undting water nts.

    She remembered what His Majesty¡¯s notebook said and tried her best to protect her mind. Despite her efforts, she was still too weak and fragile in the face of the domineering and terrifying God¡¯s blood.

    Boiling hot, her entire body was boiling hot.

    She wanted to howl in anguish, but she could not make any noise. Every bone in her body felt as if it was being scorched. In a daze, she felt as though she was a sacrificial offering from ancient times that was tied to stone pir and burned in a raging inferno.

    She seemed to see stars falling from the sky like rain, a distant sea churning nonstop, scorching earth fires shooting toward the clouds, and surging ck smoke apanied by sparks that swallowed the sky and covered the earth.

    Sorrow, fear, disappointment, nostalgia...

    Mysterious emotions devoured her like a surging tidal wave again and again. Every time, she felt as if she was going to go insane. She felt fear, then despair.

    The first section of her spinal column lit up.

    Following which, the second section lit up, the third, the fourth...

    The rate of the spinal sections lighting up only slowed after reaching the twenty-fifth one.

    If She Yu saw this, she would be shocked. She was a god shaman, not a god guard. Unlocking the spinal column was a feature that could only be found in god guards.

    It was a pity she couldn¡¯t see this. At this point in time, she was immersed in a boundless amount of power. She was like a block of wood drifting in the sea. One moment she would be tossed up by the raging waves, the next she would be mmed heavily into the depths of the sea.

    .....

    Cold Pce.

    Two people sat across from each other at a doorway. One was inside the pce, the other outside.

    In front of Bei Shuisheng, there was an imposing, middle-aged man slowly sipping his tea.

    Bei Shuisheng poured himself some more tea and asked casually, "Your Majesty, has it begun? My sensory perception is too weak."

    The middle-aged man in front of him was the current ruler of the God Nation, the supreme being who was most likely to dominate the world, the Holy Emperor!

    The Holy Emperor finished his tea and closed his eyes, looking as if he was tasting the tea.

    "Your Majesty, all I have are low-quality tea leaves," Bei Shuisheng said helplessly.

    The Holy Emperor opened his eyes and replied sternly, "Eh? Low-quality tea leaves? Who is in charge of buying your groceries? Is it possible that someone embezzled the funds? It seems like I have to investigate!"

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s voice became even more helpless, "Has Your Majesty forgotten about my habit? I like to drink low-quality tea."

    "Ahhh, it has been a while since Ist came here. Shuisheng, don¡¯t me me, don¡¯t me me," said the Holy Emperor while chuckling.

    If someone saw this scene, he or she would be so surprised that his or her eyes would pop out. The domineering and imposing Holy Emperor actually had such an amiable side!

    Bei Shuisheng shook his head as he sipped his tea. "It seems like it is beginning."

    "Yes, it¡¯s beginning," the Holy Emperor replied. He ced the teacup on the threshold, signalling Bei Shuisheng to give him more tea.

    Bei Shuisheng picked up the teapot and filled up the Holy Emperor¡¯s teacup. Then, he said inly, "I don¡¯t really understand why Your Majesty bestowed the God¡¯s blood to She Yu."

    "You don¡¯t understand? Didn¡¯t you keep praising She Yu? I thought you were still interested in her? Is it possible that I misunderstood you?" the Holy Emperor replied with a straight face.

    Bei Shuisheng could not be bothered with the Holy Emperor¡¯s nonsensical words and continued, "The Heart of God is just an imitation, while the God¡¯s blood is a sacred artifact. How are they the same? Furthermore, when you bestowed the God¡¯s blood to She Yu, it took a toll on your strength. I really don¡¯t understand why you did so."

    The Holy Emperor chucked, looking slightly pleased with himself. "It¡¯s extremely rare that Shuisheng doesn¡¯t understand something. In my eyes, Shuisheng is the cleverest person in the world."

    He nted his eyes as a "quickly ask me" look appeared on his face.

    Bei Shuisheng acted as if he never saw the look on the Holy Emperor¡¯s face and continued sipping his tea.

    After a while, the Holy Emperor could not take it any longer and asked, "I thought you didn¡¯t understand? Why are you not asking me?"

    Bei Shuisheng looked shocked as he replied, "I thought Your Majesty didn¡¯t want to tell me about it. It¡¯s better that I don¡¯t know too much about such confidential matters."

    The Holy Emperor became fed up, but he couldn¡¯t do anything. Outside, whenever he flew into a rage, the world would shiver in fear. However, in the Cold Pce, he restrained his overwhelming might and dignity. He looked like a mellow elder.

    The young man in front of him possessed the highest level of intelligence in the world, but his body suffered from an odd illness. He could only stay in this icy and dull pce in order to survive.

    His intelligence was brilliant and magnificent, illuminating the skies of this era. Heaven gave him a peerless brain, but put him in a cage he could never leave for his entire life.

    The Holy Emperor loved him dearly and couldn¡¯t bear to scold him.

    The Holy Emperor took a sip of tea and said, "I am willing to fork over one drop of God¡¯s blood. As an elder of the God Nation, She Yu is qualified to possess God¡¯s blood. It¡¯s just that I had not expected the flower ve to be Ai Hui or that the positions of the flower ve and flower master had swapped. Ai Hui is actually quite capable and can be regarded as a young tiger."

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s tone was calm. His tone sounded as if he did not even care about the renowned Lightning de.

    Bei Shuisheng did not retort him. His Majesty deserved to have such confidence.

    Ai Hui might be on the rise recently, but he was still way below His Majesty¡¯s level. Currently, the only person who could contend against His Majesty was Dai Gang.

    Bei Shuisheng was worrying about another issue. "Le Buleng has yet to challenge Dai Gang."

    The threat to His Majesty would continue to exist until Le Buleng challenged Dai Gang. After the battle with An Muda, His Majesty¡¯s injuries had yet to fully heal. Therefore, if Dai Gang attacked the God Nation now, the situation for them would be perilous.

    "If Dai Gang really has the courage to take me on, he would haveid an ambush behind An Muda that day. Otherwise, why hasn¡¯t hee yet? He just wants to protect that small plot ofnd. He is no longer as dauntless as he was in the past," the Holy Emperor sneered.

    Bei Shuisheng agreed fully with what the Holy Emperor said.

    "Everyone at the front line is worthless! How could they lose Nangong Wulian and Ye Baiyi! Even pigs are smarter than them!" The Holy Emperor¡¯s face turned somber.

    Bei Shuisheng knew if it weren¡¯t for the dire situation at the front line, His Majesty wouldn¡¯t have taken such a risk.

    "Your Majesty, calm down. Ye Baiyi has the protection of the Heart of God, so he should be safe and sound. In contrast, we have to make some arrangements for the Beast Venom Temple as soon as possible," Bei Shuisheng appeased the Holy Emperor.

    Ye Baiyi had the protection of the Heart of God, but Nangong Wulian did not. Thetter¡¯s chances of survival were very low. Even though Bei Shuisheng did not like Nangong Wulian, he still recognized the Beast Venom Temple¡¯s importance to the God Nation, which was wasparable to Ye Baiyi¡¯s.

    Ye Baiyi single-handedly built the six god divisions, but the Beast Venom Temple was involved in numerous aspects of the God Nation. These aspects included blood refinement research, the cultivation of blood fiends, the internal affairs of the Blood of God, the strengthening process of the blood nts and jade fruits, cost reduction project for blood fiends, etc.

    If anything was to happen to the Beast Venom Temple, the negative impacts on the God Nation might not be obvious at the beginning, but they would definitely bleed out the country in the long run.

    The Holy Emperor shook his head and replied, "We will wait a while longer. Even though Wulian¡¯s talent level is ordinary, he has worked diligently for many years. It was not easy for him to make it this far. What if he is still alive after we find a new pce master? Aren¡¯t we letting him down then?"

    Bei Shuisheng nodded his head and replied, "Your Majesty, you¡¯re right. I did not think this through."

    Suddenly, the Holy Emperor let out a soft gasp of surprise. Then, he spoke with a slight tone of astonishment, "She Yu¡¯s talent is much higher than I thought."

    Upon hearing these words, Bei Shuisheng looked through the door toward the direction of She Yu¡¯s residence.

    .....

    Inside a dark room.

    She Yu¡¯s body floated in midair, appearing as though she was being carried by a pair of invisible hands.

    Her eyes were tightly shut, and she couldn¡¯t feel anything at this moment. Her red dress drifted elegantly and slowly, appearing as though she was submerged in water.

    The 32 vertebrae of her spinal column gave off a dazzling radiance through her back. The topmost vertebra was like a stubborn fortress that refused to light up.

    There was a strand of hair-like golden thread that ran through her dazzling spinal column. It could be seen clearly.

    For every vertebra that lit up, She Yu¡¯s body would be tempered once. With 32 vertebra lit up, her flesh and blood had been tempered to a nearly perfect state. Her body looked as if it was made up of sparkling and translucent white jade, giving off a gentle luster.

    Her internal organs could be clearly seen as well.

    Only a powerful body could withstand the might of God¡¯s blood.

    If She Yu was awake now, she would know that she had passed the first stage.

    If one¡¯s level of talent wasn¡¯t outstanding enough, he or she wouldn¡¯tst through the process of body tempering and wouldn¡¯t withstood the might of the God¡¯s blood. As a result, he or she would explode and die.

    This was why the Holy Emperor felt surprised. She Yu was a god shaman. Her talentsy in her mind, not her body. It was truly surprising to see her withstand the God¡¯s blood.

    Thest vertebra could not be activated through. Suddenly, the golden thread that ran through her spinal column split into two and came out from her tailbone.

    One golden thread flowed through her internal organs, entered her skull, and finally stopped, staying at her be. The other golden thread, however, pounced on the glistening blood plum blossom on her left chest.

    The blood plum blossom looked as though it had detected danger as it trembled violently.

    However, it couldn¡¯t break free of the golden thread.

    The golden thread wrapped around the blood plum blossom rapidly. A trace of dazzling golden glow appeared on the edge of the glistening blood plum blossom, making it looked luxurious.

    Suddenly, the blood plum blossom erupted with a bloody glow. The bright and terrifying bloody glow dyed the room crimson. The trace of golden brilliance around the edge of the blood plum blossom did not change at all, but the bloody glow released by the blood plum blossom was folding up gradually.

    Like a golden shackle, the trace of golden brilliance bound the torrential bloody glow tightly, causing it to fold up repeatedly.

    The bloody glow that filled the room looked as if it was being pulled by an invisible hand. Eventually, it became a plum blossom-shaped beam of red light. The beam of red light was like a sparkling and translucent crimson chalcedony.

    Plum blossoms spiralled around the beam of red light. The auras of death and life were intertwining. A demonic and mysterious aura pressed against the golden radiance. The blood plum blossom on She Yu¡¯s chest began to implode, but it was still trying to emerge through the beam of red light. The golden radiance and the bloody glow were evenly matched.

    The color of the blood plum blossom on She Yu¡¯s chest kept on darkening, bing as ck as ink. Following which, it began to copse and exuded an aura of absence filled the air. The blood plum blossom became so dark that it looked like an abyss.

    The golden thread that entered her be released a golden radiance as well. This golden radiance reinforced the one surrounding the blood plum blossom.

    The bloody glow continued to fold up. The number of spiralling blood plum blossoms around the beam of red light decreased. The golden spiralling was winning.

    Hair-like streaks of golden spiralling silently entered the abyss-like blood plum blossom on her chest, resembling ink seeping through a piece of paper.

    The dark and empty mark of the blood plum blossom became smaller and smaller, bing a pin-sized ck dot.

    She Yu¡¯s petite body trembled, and the ck dot disappeared.

    The golden radiance closed up and returned to her be. A look of agony appeared on She Yu¡¯s face once again. The golden radiance from her be released countless fine threads. They spread and extended throughout She Yu¡¯s brain like a spider web.

    She Yus body started to shiver.

    Crisscrossing golden streaks appeared on her face and brain. The golden radiance looked as if it wanted to break out of her head.

    Suddenly, the golden radiance froze.

    Like a receding tidal wave, it gushed out from She Yu¡¯s brain. Following which, it pounced toward She Yu¡¯s heart like a hungry shark that had smelled its prey.

 Chapter 604: The Blood Eye On The Bandage

    Chapter 604: The Blood Eye On The Bandage

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The atmosphere on the Fish Bone was tense.

    Enemy forces were at their doorstep, and Ai Hui suddenly fainted at this critical moment. This only exacerbated the already difficult situation. Previously, after the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s raid on the enemy encampment, Ai Hui unwittingly became the pir of support for everyone, especially the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    In the past, they were insecure and doubtful of themselves. Nowadays, they had be tenacious warriors. Some of them were even proud and arrogant. All of them had no choice but to admit that Ai Hui was qualified to lead the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin, who were generals that came from Newlight City, were won over by Ai Hui as well.

    Needless to say, Ke Ning was the number one supporter of Ai Hui currently.

    A group of people surrounded Ai Hui¡¯s tent. All of them had worried and anxious looks on their faces. Right now, Lou Lan was treating Ai Hui. Everyone hoped that Ai Hui could regain consciousness as soon as possible. Suddenly, a faint golden radiance erupted from the tent.

    "Such domineering energy!" Xiao Shan¡¯s indifferent face stirred.

    The Masters at the scene looked at each other and saw the uncertainty in each other¡¯s eyes. The golden radiance was muted, but its domineering aura was able to set off fear and trepidation in them. They were very sensitive toward auras and could feel the ferocity of the golden radiance.

    In the tent, Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered with a red glow.

    A trace of golden radiance appeared in Ai Hui¡¯s body. This trace of golden radiance was extremely domineering, rampaging through Ai Hui¡¯s body and causing chaos everywhere. Before this happened, Ai Hui¡¯s body was already very weak, depending on the Vitality Branches and the sword cloud to survive. This bnce was toppled after the trace of golden radiance went on a rampage in his body, causing Ai Hui to fall into aa.

    No one knew what the aura of the golden radiance was, except for Lou Lan.

    A drop of golden blood appeared in his palm as a look of doubt shed across his eyes. The aura from the drop of golden blood was exactly same as the golden radiance.

    Ai Hui had said before that this was the blood of a demonic god.

    Ai Hui had a total of two drops of the demonic god¡¯s blood. One was used on the stone statue, which became the demonic god armor. The other one was given to Lou Lan. Where had Ai Hui gotten these two drops of demonic god¡¯s blood from?

    Lou Lan did not understand what was going on.

    However, he did not want to fuss over this problem for too long. Right now, time was running out. The most important thing to do now was to save Ai Hui¡¯s life.

    Lou Lan was unusually sensitive to this aura. When he first saw the demonic god¡¯s blood, he knew this item was extremely beneficial for him. However, he did not try to consume it because Ai Hui had told him that the demonic god¡¯s blood was something out of the ordinary.

    Lou Lan felt that Ai Hui was right. He had seen the demonic god armor before and felt that it was very odd. Furthermore, there were still a lot of things that he did not understand about the Midnight sand core in his body. He was filled with uncertainty regarding it.

    Out of prudence, Lou Lan did not absorb the demonic god¡¯s blood. However, he did not stop researching it.

    After studying the demonic god¡¯s blood for a very long time, Lou Lan finally understood why he would feel that it would be useful to him.

    Because of blood spiritual force.

    Back in the day, when he was analyzing a blood crystal, the seal on his Midnight sand core was lifted, allowing his strength to increase sharply.

    This was one of the many areas that puzzled Lou Lan.

    His sand core, Midnight, was extremely different from other sand cores. He had recorded various types of sand cores, but none of them were like Midnight.

    The sand core of an ordinary sand puppet used elemental energy to operate, but Midnight did not work this way.

    The outeryer of Midnight used elemental energy to operate, but its internal sections used blood spiritual force to function. This was why the seal on his Midnight had been lifted when he analyzed the blood crystal.

    The structure of Midnight was veryplicated. Theplexity of its structure surpassed every sand core that Lou Lan knew of. Its structure was simr to an onion¡¯s, consisting of manyyers. The structure of Midnight had a total of nineyers. Ever since the seal had been lifted, Lou Lan could only fullyprehend its three outeryers.

    More and more evidence was showing that Master Shao might be from the Blood of God. Given theplexity and intricacy of Midnight¡¯s structure, Master Shao was definitely not an ordinary individual.

    Lou Lan wondered if Master Shao currently was all right.

    His sudden yearning for Master Shao sent him in a daze. No matter where Master Shao was from or who he was, his position in Lou Lan¡¯s heart would never change.

    Lou Lan returned to his senses, and his gazended on the unconscious Ai Hui.

    There were two individuals in the world who were very important to Lou Lan. They were Ai Hui and Master Shao. Master Shao had gone missing, and Lou Lan did not want anything to happen to Ai Hui. He was just a sand puppet, a very lucky one.

    Lou Lan prepared to absorb the demonic god¡¯s blood.

    Previously, Lou Lan was not in a rush to use the demonic god¡¯s blood. This was because he had yet to rify what effects the demonic god¡¯s blood would have on him. He could sense that there was a connection between blood spiritual force and the demonic god¡¯s blood, but he wasn¡¯t sure how deep the connection was.

    ording to his original n, he wanted to be more prepared before absorbing the demonic god¡¯s blood. By being more prepared, the risks that he had to take would be lower. However, whenpared to Ai Hui¡¯s life, this so-called risk meant nothing to Lou Lan.

    Eh?

    Lou Lan suddenly noticed something abnormal, and his hands froze.

    A faint bloody color mysteriously appeared on the bandage wrapped around Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes flickered rapidly. There were no wounds on Ai Hui¡¯s body!

    Where had the blood on the bandage came from?

    Lou Lan did not dare to lower his guard as he stared at the bandage.

    The bloodstain on the bandage became more and more obvious. It was as if blood was seeping out from within the bandage bit by bit. The bloodstain gathered at Ai Hui¡¯s chest area. If Lou Lan did not know Ai Hui¡¯s body condition like the back of his hand, he would definitely have thought that Ai Hui¡¯s chest had a huge open wound.

    The bloodstain became brighter and brighter, gradually forming a demonic image.

    An eye.

    The blood eye upied almost all of Ai Hui¡¯s chest. Its was a simple and unadorned image, looking like a totem from an ancient tribe. Lou Lan¡¯s sand core contained a huge amount of information, but he still could not find any information regarding this blood eye.

    The blood eye seemed to have a life of its own. It was dripping with blood and giving off a gentle luster, striking fear into one¡¯s heart.

    Lou Lan was a sand puppet, so he wasn¡¯t affected by it. He focused on observing every change that was taking ce in Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    When the blood eye appeared, the rampaging golden light suddenly stopped in its tracks. In the next moment, it rushed toward the blood eye without any hesitation and prated it.

    The golden radiance entered the pupil of the blood eye. Following which, the cold and domineering pupil looked as if it was cast out of gold.

    It stared coldly at Lou Lan.

    The golden radiance that engulfed the tent dimmed, but Lou Lan sensed danger immediately.

    He discovered that he was immobilized by something, unable to move even a single part of his body.

    Glup.

    The golden pupil in the blood eye suddenly swiveled.

    An invisible energy wave swept across the inside of the tent. Everything in the tent was undting, resembling nts under the sea.

    The sand that made up Lou Lan¡¯s body lost control. Specks of sand began to drift out from the externalyer of his body and dispersed in the air around him.

    Lou Lan¡¯s Midnight operated rapidly, while the red glow in his eyes flickered nonstop. He let go of his control over the sand that made up his body and transformed into a sandstorm that hovered in the air.

    The externalyer of the sandstorm circled around the interior of the tent. In the middle of the sandstorm, there was a fist-sized transparent crystal that flickered with a red glow. This was Lou Lan¡¯s sand core, Midnight. Midnight was shaped like a human heart, and its flickering red glow resembled a pulsating heart. If one took a closer look at the flickering red glow, he or she would discover that every flicker was actually the red glow revolving around the crystal¡¯s surface before disappearing like a shooting star that streaked across the sky.

    In the center of the crystal, there was a deep and unfathomable void.

    It was a sand core, yet it seemed to be surrounded by an invisible barrier that separated it from the sandstorm.

    The sandstorm tightly wrapped up Midnight and the invisible barrier, forming an oversized sand heart. The surface of the sand heart was packed with roots that connected to every part of Lou Lan¡¯s body. Right now, these roots were swaying loosely like the roots of aquatic nts.

    The closer the sandstorm was to Midnight, the more stable it was.

    After an unknown amount of time had passed, the gold color of the pupil gradually faded, and the trace of golden radiance within it returned to Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Lou Lan felt his entire body rx. That invisible energy wave had disappeared, and Lou Lan¡¯s body returned to its original form. His first reaction was to examine Ai Hui. When he saw that Ai Hui¡¯s breathing had returned to normal, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    This was the first time he had encountered such a bizarre invisible energy wave.

    The energy wave wasn¡¯t powerful, but he could not put up any resistance against it. Nevertheless, he had already recorded all its characteristics and would analyze themter on.

    After a while, the golden sheen hadpletely faded from the pupil in the blood eye, returning the pupil to its original crimson color.

    The color of the blood eye began to fade as well.

    Lou Lan recorded the changes taking ce in the bandage and examined Ai Hui¡¯s condition at the same time.

    He immediately discovered something abnormal.

    The previously domineering and violent golden radiance had be gentle and restrained after it returned to Ai Hui¡¯s body. It even began to heal Ai Hui¡¯s body automatically.

    The sudden change in the nature of the golden radiance made Lou Lan very happy. Even though he still did not understand what was going on, he knew this was a good thing for Ai Hui.

    Still, the danger had yet to pass.

    Right now, there were three powers in Ai Hui¡¯s body. The first one was the destructive power of lightning that came from the sword cloud in his earth pce. The second one was the three streaks of green glints that flowed around Ai Hui¡¯s body. They were the primordial life force that had been formed by the Vitality Branches. The third one was the trace of golden radiance from the demonic god¡¯s blood.

    Everywhere the trace of golden radiance passed through, Ai Hui¡¯s flesh would be tempered. Following which, the three streaks of primordial life force would heal the wounds caused by the golden radiance as it tempered Ai Hui¡¯s flesh. The sword cloud seemed to have detected a threat and roared with thunderps. Its surging lightning bolts would then rip apart the flesh that had just been healed.

    The three powers formed a cycle.

    Every now and then, Ai Hui¡¯s body would be engulfed sequentially by a golden radiance, a faint green glint, and dazzling, silvery lightning streaks. During each cycle, Ai Hui¡¯s body would crack and heal repeatedly. The scene was horrifying.

    Lou Lan could not do anything about it either. The three powers in Ai Hui¡¯s body were powerful and mysterious. The golden radiance was from the mysterious blood of a demonic god, the green glints were from the White-robed Divine Physician Lu Chen¡¯s masterpiece, and the sword cloud was formed by lightning that had melded with a sword embryo from the Cultivation Era.

    One needed a lifetime to fullyprehend the profundity of any one of these powers. Who would have thought that Ai Hui possessed three such powers in his body.

    Yet, if Ai Hui couldn¡¯t form a stable bnce with these three powers, his body would be a battlefield for them. Ultimately, his body wouldpletely copse. No outsiders could help him with this process.

    The previous problem with Ai Hui was that the primordial life force and the sword cloud could not form aplete and harmonious bnce. Now that there was the addition of the golden radiance, the problem worsened.

    At this moment, Ai Hui¡¯s consciousness was slowly waking up.

 Chapter 605: Life and Death

    Chapter 605: Life and Death

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    A Hui¡¯s body could not move at all. When his consciousness awoke and he learned about the condition of his body, he was bbergasted.

    What was the golden radiance?

    Eh? Its aura was somewhat familiar!

    At the instant that Lou Lan discovered Ai Hui had awoken, he quickly told him everything that had happened previously. The situation in Ai Hui¡¯s body wasplicated, and outsiders could not interfere with it at all. However, Lou Lan could help Ai Hui by obtaining more information.

    Lou Lan did not talk very fast as he described every single detail with rity to Ai Hui. He also told Ai Hui his own conjectures as a reference.

    After telling Ai Hui everything, Lou Lan calmed down and kept watch over Ai Hui on one side. The red glow in his eyes flickered nonstop as he continued to observe Ai Hui¡¯s condition.

    When Ai Hui finished listening to Lou Lan¡¯s recount, he realized what was going on and immediately thought of someone.

    One Thousand Yuan! [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art]!

    That was because the blood plum blossom had disappeared.

    Ai Hui was very scared of this alluring girl who dressed in red. Like a viper that was hiding in the dark, she would bite him by surprise.

    After calming down, Ai Hui put the issue of One Thousand Yuan aside for the time being. The disappearance of the blood plum blossom signified that the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] had been removed. He heaved a sigh of relief. All this time, the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] had been his biggest worry.

    Right now, he needed to think about the terrible situation going on in his body.

    Blood of the demonic god!

    After listening to Lou Lan¡¯s conjectures, Ai Hui realized what was going on. No wonder he found the golden radiance¡¯s aura somewhat familiar. He had used the other drop of the demonic god¡¯s blood on the stone statue, which eventually turned into the demonic god armor.

    He had not expected One Thousand Yuan to possess the blood of demonic god too.

    Lou Lan had told Ai Hui before that demonic god¡¯s blood and God¡¯s blood differed by only one word, "demonic." It was likely that both of them were rted to each other. Looking at what was happening now, it seemed that Lou Lan was right.

    When Ai Hui learned about the appearance of the blood eye on the bandage and heard that the previously domineering golden radiance became gentle in nature, he understood that the bandage had saved his life once again.

    Now that Ai Hui thought about it, he felt that the dreand that he entered previously might be real. The demonic god armor, the demonic god¡¯s blood, and the bandage were closely linked to each other.

    Unconsciously, Ai Hui¡¯s mind wandered.

    He did not know for sure whether the mysterious ancient demonic god truly existed or not. All three items, the demonic god armor, the demonic god¡¯s blood, and the bandage, were extremely mysterious and powerful.

    Just the bandage alone had saved his life several times.

    Plus, every time he thought of how the bandage saved his life, he would think of his master and mistress.

    A faint tinge of nostalgia lingered in his heart. His master and mistress¡¯s smiling faces appeared in his mind. The anxiety that he felt was relieved gradually. No matter how difficult the situation was, he would not lose his courage to fight on. After all, he was very lucky to able to survive for so long.

    Lou Lan did not know how Ai Hui would handle the news, but he discovered that the terrible situation in Ai Hui¡¯s body had alleviated significantly.

    Ai Hui was indeed Ai Hui!

    Lou Lan was very happy. He always had a mysterious confidence in Ai Hui. Lou Lan¡¯s eyes slightly squinted into two crescent moons. However, he quickly clenched his fasts and widened his eyes. Following which, his eyes flickered rhythmically with a red glow.

    He had to record every single change taking ce in Ai Hui¡¯s body and let Ai Hui refer to them.

    When Ai Hui calmed down and looked at the condition in his body, he felt that it wasn¡¯t as bad as he had thought. A problem would always remain as a problem. Sometimes, one had to look at the problem from a different perspective. By doing so, he or she would have a new outlook on it.

    Ai Hui began to ponder over the problem.

    His first target was the demonic god¡¯s blood. Having a serious attitude when solving a problem was exceptionally important. After pondering over the demonic god¡¯s blood, Ai Hui sensed something was different.

    After all, he had personally used a drop of the demonic god¡¯s blood before.

    The golden radiance in his body seemed to have weakened significantly. It did not simply be more gentle, but rather, its amount was reduced. Ai Hui conjectured that the golden radiance in his body contained only 20% to 25% of a drop of the demonic god¡¯s blood.

    Ai Hui rejoiced in his heart.

    If it had been a full drop of the demonic god¡¯s blood, his body would have exploded, and he would not be alive now.

    After Ai Hui determined the amount of the demonic god¡¯s blood in his body, he ced his attention on the nature of the golden radiance. The bandage caused the previously domineering and violent golden radiance to be gentler and more restrained. However, its ability to temper his flesh had not changed.

    Apparently, the golden radiance did not belong to any power that Ai Hui knew of. It wasn¡¯t elemental energy or blood spiritual force. Luckily, he was considered very experienced in the field of the unknown.

    The sword embryo and lightning were both brand-new types of power.

    When Ai Hui faced an unknown, he would think daringly, carry out trials prudently, and sort it out meticulously. This methodology was derived from his experience in dealing with unknowns.

    He tried to channel the golden radiance, but it wouldn¡¯t move a single bit.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t surprised. Even though the bandage had reduced the destructive power of the golden radiance, the golden radiance was from the demonic god¡¯s blood after all, so its base level was extremely high. Perhaps he could channel the golden radiance if he wore the demonic god armor? It was a pity that he could not move his body or talk at all. This conjecture could only be tested in the future.

    Since he could not channel the golden radiance, he tried to channel the other two powers.

    He could channel the sword cloud very smoothly. He was able to carry out the Imbuement of Sword Cloud with a mere thought. Usually, when he was executing the Imbuement of Sword Cloud, he could move any part of his body as he pleased, but at this moment, he couldn¡¯t do so.

    He could channel the primordial life force from the Vitality Branches as well, but simrly, he could feel an invisible hindrance.

    By now, Ai Hui had confirmed that the base level of the golden radiance wasparable to that of the sword cloud and primordial life force.

    The golden radiance roamed around Ai Hui¡¯s body freely. It was the main culprit of the situation in his body was in. The sword cloud and the primordial life force had roughly reached a bnce. Now that the golden radiance was roaming around his body freely and creating chaos everywhere, the sword cloud felt threatened and released lightning bolts repeatedly. The destructive aura from the lightning bolts set off fear and trepidation in Ai Hui. Meanwhile, the primordial life force was picking up after the sword cloud and the golden radiance. It followed behind the golden radiance and the sword cloud, continuously repairing the damage that the other powers had inflicted on Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    The threepletely different types of power could not coexist with each other.

    They were like three equally powerful elementalists who disliked each other and were fighting in a deathmatch.

    The exuberant primordial life force, the destructive lightning, and the unknown demonic god¡¯s blood...

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted.

    The primordial life force represented "Life" and the lightning represented "Death"...

    Six words appeared in his mind: [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art]!

    Ai Hui suddenly became excited!

    Having been threatened by the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] for a long time, Ai Hui had spent a lot of time and effort dealing with it. He had experienced both the positions of flower ve and flower master. As a result, he had developed his own understanding of the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art].

    Life and Death represented two opposite extremes, like the South Pole and the North Pole.

    Yet, Ai Hui knew the that rtionship between Life and Death was extremely profound. If he had topare this rtionship to something, he would think of Han Li¡¯s "Yin and Yang." However, "Life and Death" was much more profound than "Yin and Yang".

    Even though it was very difficult to find areas in this world where Yin and Yang coexisted, they could still be found. On the other hand, no one knew any ces where Life and Death coexisted.

    Life and Death were twopletely different states. If he wanted to bring them together, he had to find a medium. Only an extraordinary medium could bring these twopletely different states together!

    Without any hesitation, Ai Hui targeted the demonic god¡¯s blood.

    This bold and unusual idea excited Ai Hui. Theoretically speaking, this idea was wless and ingenious.

    However, how could he bring these three entirely different powers together?

    Ai Hui suddenly thought of the image of the blood plum blossom.

    Essence blood! His mind jolted.

    Did he have anything that contained his essence blood? Yes!

    The bandage!

    Just as this idea appeared in Ai Hui¡¯s mind, the bandage that wrapped around his body began to move. Like a nimble white snake, it entered Ai Hui¡¯s body through one of his fingers.

    *****

    Ai Hui¡¯sa had caused dark clouds to loom over the defensive line.

    Nevertheless, the threebat divisions could not care about it anymore at this point in time. Everyone felt extremely tense. The arrival of the horde of enemy reinforcements implied that a final battle was about to begin.

    The Hellfire Pagoda Cannons on the God-subduing Peaks had been changed to Beehive Heavy Cannons.

    Thick, bright-red cannon barrels were pointing majestically toward the sky. Barrels of snowva were poured into the fire reservoirs, causing the air to turn scorching hot. Fatty was walking to and fro, inspecting every pagoda cannon to make sure nothing would go wrong during the battle.

    Beehive Heavy Cannons were built using six Zi fire reservoirs and one Mu fire reservoir. This number ensured that the Beehive Heavy Cannons could fire for a very long time. It also reduced the time needed to set up synchronized attacks. Other than replenishing the Mu fire reservoir with snowva, the Zi fire reservoirs also increased the firepower of the Beehive Heavy Cannons.

    Every Zi fire reservoir was guarded by three soldiers. With the addition of a main pagoda cannon gunner and a vice pagoda cannon gunner, every Beehive Heavy Cannon would need a twenty person crew.

    On the God-subduing Peak that was manned by the Spear of Heavy Cloud, there were 100 Beehive Heavy Cannons. These cannons were deployed on the surface of the God-subduing Peak and looked extremely spectacr. This was the first ever pagoda cannon formation. However, no one was sure whether or not it could ward off the enemy forces.

    The earth-shaking number of blood fiends also brought with them an immense pressure that the defenders had never felt before.

    When fighting a siege battle, what the attacking army needed the most was quantity, not quality. Without enough manpower, it was very hard for the offensive side to break through a heavily guarded defensive line.

    The number of reinforcements that the enemy had received was terrifying. They were capable of fighting a battle of attrition.

    The gigantic blood fiends struck an intense fear into every elementalist. Any experienced veterans could tell that these enormous blood fiends would cause huge trouble in the uing battle.

    Even Fatty felt jittery. He did not know whether or not the Beehive Heavy Cannons could ward off these blood fiends.

    On the surface, he was still mocking and ridiculing the blood elementalists. Fatty¡¯s timid nature had changed a lot, but his mouth had be much more vicious at the same time. It just so happened that the pagoda cannon crews subscribed to his style of leadership. Fatty¡¯s curses were utterly savage. Every now and then, the members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud would roar withughter, loosening up the anxious atmosphere significantly.

    Fatty was not the only one who felt nervous. Everyone was on high alert.

    Shi Xueman was no longer keeping watch outside Ai Hui¡¯s tent. The situation was critical, and she had to oversee her God-subduing Peak personally. The Pagoda Cannon Alliance could not yet be deployed in battle, but the former Surveince Division elites led by Xiao Shan were already on standby and prepared to provide reinforcement at any moment.

    Time passed bit by bit in the frozen air.

    The troublesome enemy scouts that bugged them previously had disappeared. The encampment opposite them was silent, looking like a fearsome beast that was gathering its strength before it pounced on themter.

    In the morning two dayster, before the sun rose, the blood elementalist encampment was already buzzing with activity. One could even hear the roars and hisses of the blood fiends.

    The battle was about to begin.

 Chapter 606: Beast Battalions

    Chapter 606: Beast Battalions

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Helian Tianxiao looked in front of him at the four leaders of the beast battalions.

    The first battalion leader was named Yang Xianyong. His face was broad with thick eyebrows. His four limbs were muscr and bulky, giving him a mountainous build. Yang Xianyong wasn¡¯t a gifted individual, but he was very hardworking. He had nurtured many outstanding soldiers who were recruited by blood divisions and god divisions. Thus, he was rather reputable in the beast battalions.

    The second battalion leader was named Xuan Chong. He was short and stout, resembling a young calf. He had a fierce-looking face, making him appear unusually ferocious all the time. He was brave and good at fighting, but he had an irascible temperament. There was one time when hemitted a grave mistake and was almost beheaded. Eventually, he was punished by being sent to a beast battalion as a battalion leader.

    The third division leader was named Mo Shaojun. His skin was uniquely dark green in color. He was tall and skinny, resembling a person who suffered from tuberculosis due to living a life of extreme debauchery. One wouldmit a grave mistake if he or she judged him by his appearance and underestimated him. He was a ruthless and vicious individual.

    The fourth division leader was named Wei Fumin. He was very short, resembling an old sun-baked farmer. His face always contained an unscrupulous smile. He had a slippery character and very few people were able to take advantage of him.

    This was the first time Helian Tianxiao came into contact with people from the beast battalions. Usually, if the God Wolf Divisioncked manpower, Helian Tianxiao would directly transfer people from the Silver Frost Blood Division or the Ardent Flower Blood Division. These two blood divisions had more interactions with the beast battalions.

    "How about it? Do you have any strategies?" Helian Tianxiao asked amicably.

    The four battalion leaders looked at each other. After a while, Yang Xianyong stepped out and replied, "We have some ideas..."

    Just as Yang Xianyong was about to report their ideas, Helian Tianxiao waved his hand and interrupted, "There¡¯s no need for you to report to me. All of you are veterans and should know how to fight this battle. I believe in all of you."

    Helian Tianxiao had led an army for many years and possessed rich military experience. He knew that he, himself, was unfamiliar with the beast battalions. If hemanded them, he might get in their way. Yang Xianyong and the rest weren¡¯t rookies, this was not the first time they had set foot upon the battlefield, and they were more familiar with their own subordinates.

    A look of relief appeared on the four battalion leaders¡¯ faces. They felt very motivated. After all, gaining the trust of Sir Helian was a huge encouragement that did note by easily to them.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s facial expression turned solemn, and he said, "I don¡¯t want to emphasize the importance of this battle to all of you. I just want to tell you that everyone here is in the same boat, be it you from the beast battalions, the God Wolf Division, or the Silver Frost Blood Division. Everyone, including me, is in the same boat. Either we obtain a victory or we die here!"

    "Yes!" A cold shiver snaked down the spines of the four battalion leaders.

    Helian Tianxiao stood up and waved his hand, "Go and capture the God-subduing Peaks!"

    "Yes!" the four battalion leaders replied in unison.

    Following which, they walked out of Helian Tianxiao¡¯s tent. Outside the tent, the soldiers from the beast battalions were ready to set off. From a distance, they resembled a dense and enormous dark mass, looking extremely spectacr. The countless broadback batfish looked like a ck sea. Whenever the broadback batfish pped their wings, ck froth appeared to spray across this ck sea. .

    "Set off!"

    The ck sea rose into the air. The sky darkened as countless broadback batfish covered the entire sky.

    Looking at the sky, Song Xiaoqian could not help but exim in admiration, "It¡¯s spectacr!"

    All along, she had not thought highly of the beast battalions¡¯ fighting capabilities. However, when she saw this scene, she was overwhelmed with shock. Usually, beast battalions rarely had the opportunity to fight on the battlefield. Back in the day, when Ye Baiyi finished raising thebat divisions for the God Nation, he created a roster to increase thebat level of everybat division. There were a total of 18bat divisions, six god divisions and 12 blood divisions. The roster was very packed, so the beast battalions did not have a chance at all.

    The others nodded their heads as they were shocked by the scene as well.

    From afar, the three God-subduing Peaks lit up one by one. The enemy was prepared to face them. A gentle brilliance engulfed the three God-subduing Peaks. Even the dazzling sunshine from the morning sun could not eclipse the gentle brilliance they emitted.

    As the number of skirmishes between the blood elementalists and elementalists increased, no one in the God Wolf Division dared to underestimate their enemy any longer. If it was anotherbat division that deployed this kind of tortoise defense, they might think that thatbat divisioncked courage. However, the Spear of Heavy Cloud had already proven their worth.

    Whether it was Helian Tianxiao or the soldiers, all of them clearly knew that an unprecedentedly arduous battle was waiting for them.

    The beast battalion leaders sitting on their broadback batfish understood this too.

    The area that the enemy forces were defending was very small. The three God-subduing Peaks had sealed up the air tunnel above the bridge very tightly. The body size of the broadback batfish was enormous, and their troops could not spread out. This implied that it would be very difficult for them to rush the defensive line with a huge number of troops.

    For the past two days, the four battalion leaders had been discussing how they nned to deal with the enemy¡¯s defensive line. Even though the enemy was like a thick tortoise shell, they were still able toe up with a few tactics.

    "We will proceed ording to the original n," Yang Xianyong said.

    "Okay!"

    "I will take the lead!"

    "Let¡¯s see how they react."

    The other three battalion leaders replied and returned to their respective beast battalions.

    The one taking the lead was Mo Shaojun. The other three beast battalions separated and pulled away from each other. The enemy position was too small and could not fit so many broadback batfish. By pulling away from each other, they could prevent the sky from being too congested.

    Mo Shaojun¡¯s face turned sinister. He licked his lips as a look of madness shed across his eyes. "Ask the first unit if are they ready."

    The vice battalion leader beside him turned around and passed down the question. Rapidly, he received a reply and reported to Mo Shaojun, "Sir, the first unit is ready. They can strike at anytime!"

    "Let¡¯s begin then," Mo Shaojun replied with a cold voice.

    "Yes!"

    The captain of the first unit was named An Shun. He was a burly, 40 year old man. Honestly speaking, he had not expected to be able to set foot upon the battlefield. He had spent a long time in this beast battalion. Given his current age, it wasn¡¯t possible for him to receive a promotion anymore. He had already decided to stay a few more years in this beast battalion before he retired and went home.

    When he heard that the beast battalions were going to provide reinforcement at the front line, he couldn¡¯t believe it.

    He wasn¡¯t afraid to die. From the day the blood catastrophe broke out, there were people dying daily. When one was born in times of chaos, it was normal for him or her to feel numb toward death. There were special reasons why he felt this way. When one was used to seeing death, he or she would understand how insignificant and fragile life was.

    There was nothing special about dying on the battlefield either. His death would only bring about some benefits for his wife and daughter.

    He married his current wife quitete in life. He had been very lucky, bing a blood elementalist after surviving blood refinement. Unlike him, all his family members had already died during the blood catastrophe. His current wife was luckier than him. She had survived the blood catastrophe with her daughter.

    Whether he felt sorrow or grief, life still moved on. Both he and his wife were honest and dutiful individuals. After their mutual friend acted as a matchmaker for them, they got married. His wife¡¯s daughter was obedient as well as sensible, and he treated her like his own daughter.

    The benefits of dying on the battlefield were much better than the benefits that he would receive if he retired. Therefore, he was fine with going to the battlefield.

    However, he was slightly surprised that his unit was in charge ofunching the first wave of attacks.

    Many thoughts shed across his mind. His swiftly vision became spacious and empty. They were all alone now because their unit had already separated from the main force.

    There were 1,000 men and 50 broadback batfish in the first unit.

    This attack only needed 50 men, but An Shun felt that he should lead by example since he was the captain of the unit.

    An Shun maintained hisposure. He knew the n of attack like the back of his hand.

    Right now, he was gauging their distance from the enemy line. He heard that many scouts had lost their lives in order to rify the attack range of the enemy forces.

    An Shun thought to himself that that was a pity. The scouts from the God Wolf and Silver Frost Divisions were elite among elites. It wasn¡¯t easy at all to train such a high level scout. An Shun knew this very clearly.

    They shortly entered the attack range of the enemy forces. An Shun yelled, "Madness blood pills!"

    The other 49 men took out the madness blood pills that they had prepared beforehand and fed them to the respective broadback batfish they were sitting on.

    If god divisions were first line forces and blood divisions were second line forces, then beast battalions would be third line forces. Beast battalions were mainly in charge of nurturing new soldiers for blood divisions. The strength level of beast battalions was also lower. This could be seen by the low number of blood elementalists who possessed an Ability of God. The only blood elementalist with an Ability of God in An Shun¡¯s beast battalion was Mo Shaojun. The promising prospects that they nurtured were usually sent to blood divisions too.

    Regardless, Ye Baiyi still formted some simple battle tactics for beast battalions. These battle tactics made ensured that the beast battalions were useful in certain special asions.

    Madness blood pills were one such tactic.

    Madness blood pills were created by the Beast Venom Temple. They allowed blood fiends to enter a special state of frenzy. In this state, the blood fiends would be unusually ferocious and violent, while their strength would increase tremendously as well. They would be creatures that had no concept of fear.

    The enormous size of broadback batfish and their terrifying strength allowed this tactic to be filled with destructive power.

    Feeling slightly sad, An Shun patted the head of the broadback batfish beneath him. With a calm tone, he said, "Big ckie,e."

    When a madness blood pill was fed to a blood fiend, the blood fiend¡¯s brain would be irreversibly damaged. There was very little chance that it would survive after its blood waspletely burned out. Even if it survived, it would be disabled and could not return to its beast battalion. For a blood fiend, this was a fate worse than death.

    An Shun¡¯s broadback batfish was very docile and obedient. It had followed him for many years, and they had an extremely close rtionship.

    Big ckie swallowed the madness blood pill obediently.

    An Shun smiled and patted the back of Big ckie. "Don¡¯tin that I¡¯m taking advantage of you. If you can¡¯t survive, I will die here too. We head to the underworld together."

    Big ckie did not understand An shun¡¯s words as the madness blood pill began to take effect. Its facial expression was filled with agony, and its body was trembling nonstop. Countless blood patterns began to appear on the two thick blood lines on its body. Like fast-growing vines, the blood patterns speedily spread all over its body.

    Pfff, pfff, pfff.

    The sound of skin and flesh erupting could be heard.

    Thick, durable white spurs of bone grew out of the front of Big ckie¡¯s huge wings. The bone spurs radiated with a demonic red glow. Densely-packed red metal spikes grew out of its long tail. They were so sharp that they struck fear in people¡¯s hearts.

    Big ckie let out a roar of agony as its eyes turned blood-red.

    Its wings began to p violently. Suddenly, Big ckie erupted with a terrifying strength and shot higher into the sky.

    An Shun had never felt such violent strength from Big ckie¡¯s body before. Big ckie almost dismounted him from its back. Fortunately, his reactions were fast as he grabbed on to Big ckie¡¯s scales. Right now, his body was hanging in the air.

    Big ckie continued to frantically fly higher. Only by doing so could he feel better. The surging slipstream made it difficult for An Shun to stabilize his body.

    Even though An Shun had trained this tactic many times, this was the first time he had personally executed it.

    Big ckie¡¯s body stopped trembling, and An Shun knew that the drug had taken effectpletely.

    An Shun continued to hold on to Big ckie¡¯s scales tightly. His palms dripped with blood after being cut by Big ckie¡¯s scales. He looked as if he felt nothing and roared at the top of his lungs in the face of the violent wind, "Big ckie, charge!"

    As though it heard An Shun¡¯smand, Big ckie drew an arc in the sky and flew toward the God-subduing Peaks

    A faint bloody glow engulfed Big ckie and An Shun¡¯s bodies. Like a meteor falling from the sky, An Shun and Big ckie dived down from the heavens with raging mes and a deafening whistle.

    Huge silhouettes appeared behind An Shun and Big ckie, following their lead closely.

    The bloody glow that rose from their bodies lit up the sky and illuminated the three God-subduing Peaks.

 Chapter 607: Test the Defenses

    Chapter 607: Test the Defenses

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Due to their rxed movements and enormous bodies, the broadback batfish looked like ck clouds when they flew in the sky. They made one felt as if they were flying very slowly, but it was merely an illusion. Whenever a broadback batfish pped its broad wings, it would fly for a rather far distance. They were excellent for flying long distances.

    The facial expressions were tense. They had never seen the broadback batfish before. Just their enormous bodies alone looked intimidating.

    Fatty was very calm. He had travelled extensively and even ran a business for a few years. Hence, he had very sharp eyesight. Even though this was the first time he had seen the broadback batfish, he could tell they were docile creatures that specialized in carrying heavy loads from their appearance and flying characteristics.

    When he saw a unit separate from the main force and lunge toward them, he could not help but furrow his eyebrows. That enemy unit only used 50 broadback batfish, strongly implying that they were trying to test the defenses.

    When the broadback batfish became frenzied, many people cried out in rm.

    Fatty was also shocked, but when he heard the rmed cries of his subordinates, he felt he was losing face. The chubby meat on his cheeks trembled as he yelled angrily, "What are all of you shouting for!"

    At this point in time, Fatty already understood the enemy unit¡¯s intention. He shifted his gaze and yelled at the top of his voice, "Pagoda cannoneers, to the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons!"

    Before he even finished his sentence, he jumped away from his Beehive Heavy Cannon and ran toward a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon.

    The other pagoda cannoneers were stunned. Soon, they returned to their senses, jumped out of their Beehive Pagoda Cannons, and ran toward the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons.

    The God-subduing Peak had been equipped with approximately 100 Beehive Heavy Cannons and tens of Hellfire Pagoda Cannons. These Hellfire Pagoda Cannons were initially used to repel the enemy scouts as well as for the pagoda cannoneers to practice with. Fatty had not redeployed them. After all, the God-subduing Peak had a lot of space. Furthermore, Fatty felt that the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons had a few strengths that the Beehive Heavy Cannons did not. At certain times, they might be surprisingly useful.

    The area of effect for Hellfire Pagoda Cannon shots were inferior to Beehive Heavy Cannon shots, but their prating power was stronger and their attack range was further. They were more suitable for sniping enemy experts.

    Fatty had not expected them to require these strengths so soon.

    Like a nimble ball of lightning, Fatty swiftly arrived at a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon.

    The light screen that engulfed the God-subduing Peak began to undte, making it very difficult for those on the outside to see what was going on inside.

    With agility that did not match his figure, Fatty jumped behind the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon and yelled, "Get ready!"

    At every Hellfire Pagoda Cannon, aside from the pagoda cannoneer, the rest of its crew were also ready. When they saw Fatty running to a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon, they had already begun to prepare. By the time Fatty gave his order, all of them had finished preparing.

    The barrel of Fatty¡¯s Hellfire Pagoda Cannon swiftly turned bright-red.

    Fatty stood with his legs apart and used his shoulder to support the barrel. His round and plump face was extremely focused at the moment. His slightly squinting eyes flickered with a cold glint.

    Boom!

    A thunderous boom resounded through the air as white mes shot out from the barrel.

    Fatty felt a powerful recoil from the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon. All his muscles were taut, distinctively disying their fibers and sinew. Boiling traces of steam rose from his body, resembling a bronze statue that had just been cast.

    The head of the leading broadback batfish suddenly exploded. Its cranial matter, along with fresh blood, flew in all directions.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    Fatty¡¯s Hellfire Pagoda Cannon kept on shooting out white mes. Steam rose from his entire body. Without his knowledge, his body had been drenched with sweat. The sweat gathered and formed streams that meandered down the clearly defined muscles on his burly body.

    In Fatty¡¯s hands, the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon felt as light as a bamboo stick.

    The other pagoda cannoneers could not help but exim in admiration. They looked at Fatty with eyes filled with reverence. The overall recoil from a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon was lower than from a Beehive Heavy Cannon, but the number of people needed to man a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon was much lower than for a Beehive Heavy Cannon, Therefore, the pagoda cannoneers needed to withstand a stronger impact . Furthermore, when the firing rate increased, the impact that pagoda cannoneers received also increased.

    The impact from such a rapid rate of fire was extremely terrifying. Yet, Fatty looked as if he felt nothing at all.

    Even though the firing rate was extremely fast, Fatty¡¯s uracy had not faltered. Every time the pagoda cannon was fired, a broadback batfish¡¯s head would definitely explode!

    He had not missed a single target!

    Fatty¡¯s facial expression was cold. He methodically reaped the lives of the broadback batfish.

    He had never seen a madness blood pill before, but he was able to determine the enemy force¡¯s intention. He could tell that broadback batfish weren¡¯tbat blood fiends. The enemy detachment merely wanted to use the enormous bodies of the broadback batfish as cannon fodder to attack the defensive line.

    Having such huge bodies, the broadback batfish had to have astonishing vitality. Ordinary injuries were unable to threaten their lives. From the beginning, Fatty aimed at their heads. No matter what drugs were fed to them, the broadback batfish were still blood fiends and couldn¡¯t survive if they received severe head trauma.

    The difficult part was urately striking the heads of the fast-moving broadback batfish.

    Compared to their broad and huge wings, their heads were very small. They didn¡¯t have necks, and their heads were connected directly to their bodies. When they were in a frenzied state, their flying speed increased sharply, making it difficult for one to target their heads.

    Still, this wasn¡¯t much of a problem for Fatty.

    Even if the heads of the broadback batfish were smaller, he was still confident that he could hit their heads. Furthermore, the increase in the flying speed of the broadback batfish did not affect Fatty much either. Due to their physical attributes, even if they were in the state of frenzy, they still could not maneuver as nimbly as Rust Plumes.

    Fatty only found small, nimble, and vignt blood fiends to be troublesome.

    The outstanding attack range of the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon was fully utilized by Fatty. By the time the other pagoda cannoneers took up their positions, Fatty had already in four broadback batfish.

    A sharp, dazzling arrow gleam flew out from the top of the God-subduing Peak and blew up the head of a broadback batfish.

    Jiang Wei was standing at another peak with a bow in hand.

    "Shoot their heads!"

    Fatty reminded the pagoda cannoneers.

    The booms from the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons resounded through the air like firecrackers. Every now and then, the heads of the broadback batfish in the sky would explode and they would fall from the sky.

    However, the uracy of the other pagoda cannoneers was not as good as Fatty¡¯s. Other than hitting the heads of the broadback batfish, the pagoda cannoneers also hit other parts of their target, creating bowl-sized bloody holes. To the broadback batfish, which possessed astonishing vitality, these types of wounds were equivalent to mosquito bites.

    One broadback batfish had its body riddled with tens of bloody holes, but it looked as if it felt nothing, and its momentum did not decrease at all.

    Helian Tianxiao, who was observing the battle from afar, had a look of satisfaction on his face. "Making the best use of everything. Even though the beast battalionsck offensive capabilities, they are very useful in attacking a city or a defensive line. Back in the day, Ye Baiyi had spent a lot of time and effort developing these battle tactics for the beast battalions."

    Helian Tianxiao fell silent when he thought of Ye Baiyi. He respected Ye Baiyi greatly and was very worried for his safety. Nevertheless, saving Ye Baiyi was beyond his reach, and he only hoped that he could break through this defensive line as soon as possible.

    Song Xiaoqian had not blinked for even a split second. Her attention was entirely captured by the battle, and she did not sense the worry in Helian Tianxiao¡¯s words. Then, she spoke rapidly, "Other than Qian Dai, the proficiency of the other pagoda cannons isn¡¯t very high."

    Their previous scouting and harassment had obtained very little information.

    Now that the intensity of the battle had increased, the weaknesses of the Spear of Heavy Cloud were revealed.

    The other generals agreed with Song Xiaoqian¡¯s observation. Other than Qian Dai, who was 100% urate with his shots, the rest of the pagoda cannoneers were inefficient.

    Dead broadback batfish kept on falling from the sky, but there were still 26 remaining. More than half of the deceased broadback batfish were killed by Qian Dai.

    Everyone felt motivated at this instant. How much could a Pagoda Cannon Master aplish? How many broadback batfish could he kill? 50? 100?

    At this point in time, the broadback batfish were less than two kilometers away from the God-subduing Peak. To the broadback batfish, two kilometers could be covered in the blink of an eye.

    Once they could attack the God-subduing Peak...

    Whether it was the four beast battalion leaders at the head of the army or Song Xiaoqian and her counterparts at the rear, all of them were rejoicing. The situation was proceeding much smoother than they expected!

    As the broadback batfish neared the God-subduing Peak, the uracy of the pagoda cannoneers increased greatly. The pressure that these broadback batfish faced intensified sharply as well.

    The speed at which the broadback batfish dived increased significantly.

    The pressure on the pagoda cannoneers suddenly rose sharply as well. As the broadback batfish drew closer, the pressure from their huge and creepy bodies became stronger. Many pagoda cannoneers became nervous and missed their targets.

    Luckily, more than half of the pagoda cannoneers were still firing at their usual level, especially Wu Feng. He had disyed an excellent control over his mental state. His battle results were second only to Fatty¡¯s. He had already killed four broadback batfish.

    One by one, the broadback batfish fell from the sky like dumplings.

    Thest broadback batfish was less than 500 meters away from the God-subduing Peak.

    It looked as if it had foreseen its death. Its sawtooth tailshed out and a glowing red streak shot toward the God-subduing Peak with a sharp screech.

    The broadback batfish¡¯s white bone spurs, moss-like blood patterns, and bright-red sawtooth tail could distinctly be seen!

    Wu Feng could see it clearly and fired his pagoda cannon without any hesitation.

    Pffff!

    The head of the broadback batfish exploded like a watermelon.

    The glowing red streak hit the God-subduing Peak, causing ripples to form and drift across its light screen.

    Everyone¡¯s faces were astonished. The enemy¡¯s first offensive could already reach them?

    Fatty¡¯s facial expression remained the same as usual. He jumped away the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon and roared, "Beehive Heavy Cannons!"

    This time around, the pagoda cannoneers reacted much faster. No one hesitated, and their movements were extremely fast.

    Mo Shaojun was very satisfied by the first attack wave. Even though everyone who participated in the first attack wave had died, the fact that they were able to reach the enemy¡¯s defensive position proved that the enemy was much weaker than he had expected.

    "The second, third, fourth, and fifth units, prepare to strike!" Mo Shaojun said emotionlessly.

    Mo Shaojun deployed 200 broadback batfish in one go. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the enemy¡¯s defensive line was very small and that the broadback batfish couldn¡¯t spread out in the sky, he would havemitted all the broadback batfish he had.

    However, 200 broadback batfish were enough to overwhelm the enemy forces.

    His lips curled into a sinister smile, as though looking forward to something.

 Chapter 608: 12 Salvos of Heavy Cannon Fire

    Chapter 608: 12 Salvos of Heavy Cannon Fire

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    On the God-subduing Peak that was guarded by the Sky Edge Division, everyone nervously looked at the iing army of broadback batfish in the sky. The sight of 200 broadback batfish suffocated them.

    "Can Master Fatty hold them back?"

    "Should be able to."

    Such discussions broke out everywhere in the God-subduing Peak. Everyone felt deeply worried.

    In the crowd, there was a man was was wide-eyed. Like everyone else, he was afraid of missing out on any detail. His name was He Huan. He was one of the earliest members who joined the Karakorum Sword League. He wasn¡¯t really gifted, but he was extremely hardworking. Hence, his strength was rather not bad. When Karakorum Pris was rebuilding the Sky Edge Division, she made him a unit captain.

    He Huan was an ardent individual with a good temperament. He was on good terms with everyone in the Sky Edge Division.

    However, no one knew that one of He Huan¡¯s ancestors was a subordinate of the Ye family¡¯s ancestors. Being apetent individual who was very interested in military affairs, He Huan was selected by Madam Ye to join the Karakorum Sword League. Back then, Madam Ye wanted him to protect Karakorum Pris from the dark and therefore put him in the Karakorum Sword League.

    After the Pearl Defensive Line was set up, he received a new mission, which was to observe and record down every aspect of the Central Pine Faction from the dark. He Huan heaved a sigh of relief after receiving this mission. The higher-ups knew the current situation was critical, and they would not sabotage themselves.

    He Huan would not feel any stress if it wasn¡¯t an assassination mission. He faithfully recorded down everything he observed. Sometimes, he would even record down his own analysis of what he observed.

    "Captain He, do think Master Fatty can hold them back?" a unit member beside He Huan asked him.

    "He definitely can," He Huan replied casually without turning around.

    The other members had huge confidence in He Huan and his insight. Upon hearing these words, all of them heaved a sigh of relief.

    "If Captain He said Master Fatty can hold them back, that means he definitely can hold them back!"

    "We must believe in Captain He!"

    He Huan¡¯s attention was ced entirely on the sky. There was aposed look in his eyes. The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s daily training sessions were his main observation target. The scene of Beehive Heavy Cannons firing was extremely spectacr. Whenever the soldiers of the Sky Edge Division were having a rest, they would choose a good spot and spectate the Beehive Heavy Cannons in action. That scene was much more magnificent than fireworks.

    Everyone would also discuss the pagoda cannons¡¯ might. Sometimes, He Huan would give his opinions too.

    He Huo did not only observe the might of the Beehive Heavy Cannons. He thoroughly observed every single aspect of the Central Pine Faction. For example the characteristics of the Central Pine Faction¡¯s core members.

    Fatty was an underestimated target.

    Before Fatty became a Master, he was widelybeled as "coward." It was only after he became the first ever Pagoda Cannon Master that everyone¡¯s impression of him changed.

    However, He Huan¡¯s recording and analysis of Fatty waspletely different from the consensus from the start.

    Ever since Ai Hui became famous, his past was slowly revealed to the world. Many elementalists who were from his hunting group in the Wilderness back in those days were still alive. Their memories detailed Ai Hui¡¯s past experience in the Wilderness.

    Among these memories and descriptions, He Huan discovered something that was overlooked by many people. Most of the elementalists in the hunting group remembered Fatty. Some of them could not even remember Ai Hui very well, yet they had a deep impression of Fatty.

    It was a pity that He Huan could not personally ask other people for their opinions on Fatty. However, this also showed that Fatty wasn¡¯t as ipetent as other people thought he was.

    Other than Ai Hui, Fatty was the other survivor. Most people felt that Fatty survived only because Ai Hui protected and took care of him.

    He Huan did not think so.

    He could see that Fatty possess an extraordinary sense of vignce. Any signs of trouble would cause him to be on high alert. Fatty¡¯s arsenal was filled with vileness and treachery. Sneak attacks and traps were this fellow¡¯s favorite weapons.

    It was very hard for one to imagine that someone like him could be a Master.

    When He Huan saw the first round of attacks from the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons, he knew Fatty had already set up his trap. He Huan had seen the might of a Beehive Heavy Cannon before. He knew how scary it would be if the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s Beehive Heavy Cannons fired all at once.

    The number of broadback batfish in the sky was a few times greater than before. They formed a dense, dark mass in the sky, striking fear and shock into He Huan. In the sky, the fearless, gigantic blood fiends were like a darkish-red tsunami that was filled with anger and insane power.

    However, for some unknown reasons, He Huan was slightly looking forward to seeing the scene of the ze from the Beehive Heavy Cannons colliding against the darkish-red tsunami. How magnificent would that be!

    He could not help but hold his breath.

    .....

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud pagoda cannon site on the God-subduing Peak.

    The pagoda cannoneers scrambled frantically from the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons to the Beehive Heavy Cannons. They were panting heavily, and their foreheads were beaded with perspiration. Eventually, their breathing calmed down. Everyone held their breaths and had their eyes wide open. The air seemed to have frozen at this moment. The enormous site for Beehive Heavy Cannons was so quiet that one could even hear a pin drop.

    The sound of the broadback batfish pping with bone-spur-filled wings could be heard clearer and clearer. The air currents produced by their wings had gathered, making the sky look as if it was trembling.

    "Let them get closer! Listen to mymands!"

    Fatty¡¯s voice was low and deep, but it sounded unusually loud in the silent pagoda cannon site.

    1.5 kilometers!

    Voom, voom, voom!

    The sound of the broadback batfish pping their wings resembled a gigantic air pump being pumped. Waves of air current from their wings struck the light screen of the God-subduing Peak, causing it to undte nonstop.

    The pagoda cannoneers could even feel the God-subduing Peak trembling slightly.

    1 kilometer!

    The pagoda cannoneers could clearly see the fury in the eyes of the broadback batfish, their thick and solid white bone spurs, the vine-like and intertwining blood traces on their bodies, and the looks of insanity and malevolence on the faces of the blood elementalists sitting on their backs.

    500 meters!

    The overly close distance between the broadback batfish and the pagoda cannon crews caused thetter¡¯s line of sight to be covered with broadback batfish, and they could not even see the sky. It was as though they were ced beneath the darkish-red tsunami and were about to be crushed to smithereens in the next instant!

    Their foreheads were covered with beads of perspiration, and their bodies were drenched in sweat. Even though they tried their best to maintain theirposure, their faces were still pale-white. Some people were even licking their dried lips every now and then.

    Opposite from them, when Mo Shaojun saw his subordinates get so close to the God-subduing Peak, a strong sense of uneasiness arose in his heart.

    The God-subduing Peak was too quiet! Something¡¯s wrong! The broadback batfish did not face any resistance!

    Is the other party really that confident? Aren¡¯t they scared of getting their fingers burned for ying with fire?

    Given such a close distance, even the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons would not be able to hold off the broadback batfish!

    But why was he feeling so uneasy?

    The smile on Mo Shaojun¡¯s face disappeared as beads of perspiration appeared on his forehead. He could not help but clench his fist tightly, causing his fingers to turn white. His wide eyes could not blink at all, fearing that he might miss out on some details.

    300 meters!

    "Attack!"

    Fatty¡¯s voice was unusually low and deep, containing a tinge of chilliness. However, when it rang across the ears of the pagoda cannoneers, whose minds were on the verge of copse, it sounded like a deafening thunderp.

    Almost immediately, all the heavy cannons boomed in unison!

    Suddenly, illuminated red lights like streaks of red glowing swords, pierced through the darkish-red tsunami that was formed by the broadback batfish.

    Red glows?

    Mo Shaojun¡¯s facial expression changed as his heart palpitated with fear. They were not Hellfire Pagoda Cannons!

    They were too close!

    The Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s pagoda cannoneers had never hit targets that were so close to them before. They did not even need to aim as the huge bodies of the broadback batfish covered their line of sight.

    It was insane!

    They had never put themselves in such an insane situation before. The enemies were getting closer and closer. The fear and anxiety they had been feeling all this time had reached their limits and erupted at once when Master Fatty gave hismand. Everyone¡¯s minds were in a daze. They were frantically firing at the darkish-red tsunami that covered their line of sight.

    Their firing rates had reached an unprecedented level.

    The bright-red barrels of the heavy cannons gave off an eerie glow, resembling iron tes had been heated until they turned red.

    The buzz from the high-speed spinning inner chamber of the Beehive Heavy Cannons was mixed with the continuous deafening booms.

    The streaks of red ze that shot out from the Beehive Heavy Cannons were like red, glowing silk. During the daily training sessions, the streaks of ze from the Beehive Heavy Cannons would fly for a brief moment before opening up into glowings that covered a wide area.

    However, at this point in time, the broadback batfish were too close to the pagoda cannoneers. It was toote for the zing streaks from the Beehive Heavy Cannons to open up. In a sh, they pierced through the broadback batfish like red glowing swords

    More than 10 broadback batfish in front of them were flooded by hundreds of streaks of heavy cannon fire in the blink of an eye.

    The strong vitality of the broadback batfish was useless against the Beehive Heavy Cannons. Before those broadback batfish could wail in agony, their bodies were already ripped apart by the terrifying zes from the heavy cannons.

    The attacks from the Beehive Heavy Cannons had perfectly disyed the power of "heavy." If onepared the attack of a Hellfire Pagoda Cannon to an awl that had a powerful prating power, the attack of a Beehive Heavy Cannon would be a hammer when it had yet to open up.

    When the attack of a Beehive Heavy Cannon hit a broadback batfish, thetter would freeze momentarily. This showed how terrifying the attack of the Beehive Heavy Cannon was.

    The momentum of the charging broadback batfish was impeded before they were ripped to smithereens in the next moment.

    The heavy cannon fire continued their trajectories and hit the broadback batfish at the rear. Almost immediately, an ensuing second salvo of heavy cannon fire hit the broadback batfish that were now at the vanguard. They froze, were ripped to smithereens, and the heavy cannon fire shots continued on their paths to the broadback batfish at the rear...

    The third salvo!

    The fourth salvo!

    ...

    They had fired 12 salvos in one go!

    This was an unprecedented result, a result that they had never achieved before in training.

    A momentary silence descended upon the Beehive Heavy Cannon site.

    The pagoda cannoneers were panting heavily, their bodies were drenched in sweat, traces of boiling steam engulfed their surroundings, and their eyes were in a daze. Clearly, they had yet to recover from the shock. They had just made a trip to the gates of hell and were still frightened.

    A wail resounded through the air, returning everyone to their senses.

    They raised their heads and looked at the sky. The darkish-red tsunami that covered the sky had disappeared. There was one half-crippled broadback batfish remaining. It was wailing and on the verge of copse. Half of its body had disappeared. Blood was flowing down its maimed body, dripping from the sky.

    In the quicksand zone in front of the defensive line, fragmented flesh and limbs could be found everywhere, resembling an Asuric hell. A gust of wind blew across the area, and a strong bloody smell that was mixed with an unusually sweet scent assaulted everyone¡¯s noses. The pagoda cannoneers, who had just relieved themselves from the fear and insanity of death, could not help but squat down in unison and puke.

    Behind them, the other members of the Spear of Heavy Cloud, the Infantry Division, and the Sky Edge Division could not believe their eyes.

    On the opposite side, Mo Shaojun and everyone in the God Wolf Division and the Silver Frost Division had the same incredulous looks on their faces.

    For a moment, both sides became unsually silent.

 Chapter 609: The Gamble Paid Off

    Chapter 609: The Gamble Paid Off

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Fatty stared at the scene in front of him. When he saw the enemy forces retreating like a receding tide, he could not believe his eyes.

    Did... did they win?

    He wiped off the beads of sweat on his forehead with a nk look on his face. His energy waspletely sapped. His legs went soft, and he fell to the ground on his butt.

    During their daily training sessions, they had never attacked targets that were so close to them before. He was confident in the might of the Beehive Heavy Cannons, but if the enemy forces got too close to them, they might be in severe danger. The enemy forces might rely on their thick hides and solid flesh to crash through the defensive line.

    Fatty did not know what was he thinking at that moment. Why would he take such a huge risk? He could have fought a safer battle. At that point in time, he felt that he had to make the enemy forces eat a humble pie!

    That thought had shed across his mind like lightning. Without careful deliberations, he decided to take a gamble.

    Why did he want to make the enemy forces eat a humble pie? He did not think about it or know why he felt that way at that time. All he knew was that the arrogance of the enemy forces annoyed him.

    It was an intuition that was hard to describe.

    Now... he was feeling scared.

    A strong sense of acute mental shock caused Fatty¡¯s legs to tremble nonstop. His sweat was flowing down his face like meandering rivers. The heavy breaths that he heaved were like scorching volcanic plumes.

    "Oh my god..." Fatty¡¯s shivering lips muttered unwittingly.

    He wanted to find a grass stalk to chew, but his trembling hands couldn¡¯t grab ahold of it.

    Thump, thump, thump.

    His heartbeat sounded like a fast drumbeat in his ears. Why was his heart beating so fast? Why were his limbs so soft?"

    He had made up his mind not to act so recklessly in the future. Acting recklessly would only shorten his life.

    The morous outburst frightened Fatty so much that his body shook involuntarily. He almost ran and hid somewhere.

    After a while, when he returned to his senses, he realized the noisy mor was actually hisrades cheering. He heaved a sigh of relief because he was d that he did not hide and cover his head with his hands in fear. That would have been embarrassing.

    He felt that he should stand up. Shouldn¡¯t a hero stand up with pride at this point in time?

    He should put his hands on his hips and look disdainfully out of the corner of his eye. Or should he put on the emotionless killer look that Ai Hui had? That would look impressive too...

    These distracting thoughts caused his lingering post-traumatic fear to disappear unwittingly. Eh? Why couldn¡¯t he stand up?

    He realized that his limbs were soft like noodles, and he couldn¡¯t even exert any strength. He flew into a rage out of humiliation. He had obtained the fruit of victory with great difficulty, yet he couldn¡¯t even pick himself up now! Fatty was someone who liked to take advantage of other people. How was it possible for him to control that urge now?

    "Is everyone dead? Don¡¯t you know you have to help me up?"

    Fatty¡¯s angry roar was drowned by an outburst of cheers.

    The pagoda cannoneers were cheering jubntly. After experiencing a near-death experience just now, all of the pressure had been released at this moment. The impressive battle results tasted much sweeter as well.

    Only Zu Yan heard Fatty cursing loudly. He chuckled, but did not have any intention of helping him up.

    Shi Xueman looked at the pagoda cannon site that was rejoicing and cheering wildly. The people beside her were filled with shock and amazement.

    Jiang Wei shook his head and eximed with amazement, "Insane! Bold!"

    He did not expect for the usually timid Fatty to do such a reckless thing. This was amazing! He wasn¡¯t the only one who felt this way. Everyone else was amazed by Fatty. All of them usually trained with Fatty. Therefore, they were extremely familiar with Fatty¡¯s character.

    However, the entire process did happen and they had witnessed it with their own eyes.

    It was too amazing!

    Shi Xueman¡¯s lips curled into a smile. "Fatty can take up responsibility now. We have made a huge profit this time around!"

    Everyone smiled in unison as an excited look appeared upon their faces. Shi Xueman¡¯s words spoke their minds. If someone said that Fatty would be a Master and take up a responsibility role a few years ago, all of them would burst outughing.

    "After all, he and Ai Hui are the only ones who survived the Wilderness!" someone yelled.

    These words immediately gained everyone¡¯s approval.

    "After all, he and Ai Hui are the only ones who survived the Wilderness!"

    He Huan could not help but say these words in his mind.

    All along, he had thought highly of Fatty. His progress so far had verified He Huan¡¯s judgement. The battle just now was very short, but the battle result was magnificent. The magnificence of the battle couldn¡¯t be overemphasized. However, the extra things that He Huan saw were the minor details disyed by the entire process.

    The enemy forces arrived with overwhelming momentum. If they could not constrain this momentum, the subsequent battles would be tougher. The enemy had numerous blood fiends, and ordinary wounds would not strike any fear into them. Instead, they would only evoke the enemy forces¡¯ insanity and bloodlust, causing the battle to be more devastating.

    Everyone understood this logic.

    However, how many people dared to allow their enemies toe so close to them before retaliating?

    Ordinary peoples would not dare to do this. That was because a slight moment of carelessness would allow the enemy forces to break through the defensive line. That was the worst case scenario. However, the usually timid Fatty actually made such an insane and bold decision.

    The unknown potential and unique characteristics hiding beneath Fatty¡¯s timid facade were beginning to radiate brilliantly.

    Not only was he brave and decisive, the gamble he took also paid off! That was the most important thing.

    Winners made the rules and losers lived by them. This was the eternal truth of the battlefield.

    If a defeat could bring someone experience and prevent him or her from making the same mistakes again, then a victory could make someone more calm andposed, increasing the confidence that other people had in him or her.

    He Huan was feeling extremely happy. However, he was soon overwhelmed withplex feelings. Even though their side had a new general, their defensive line was much more stable, and their chance of victory was higher, Fatty still belonged to the Central Pine Faction.

    The conflict between the Central Pine Faction and Skyheart City was irreconcble.

    From what He Huan saw, the Central Pine Faction was strengthening every day. They were bing more and more powerful. Right now, Skyheart City needed Ai Hui to defend the front line, but could Skyheart City restrain a Central Pine Faction that had matured?

    He was slightly worried.

    This tinge of worry shed across his mind and disappeared. Swiftly, a sincere smile appeared on his face. Who could say what would happen in the future? No matter what, the most important mission now was to defend the defensive line.

    .....

    Everyone in the God Wolf Division was feeling tense.

    Everyone had an ugly look on their faces. No one expected the beast battalions to suffer such heavy losses in their first battle.

    "What kind of pagoda cannon is that? Have you heard or seen it before?"

    Inside the tent, Helian Tianxiao was looking around. No one could tell what he was feeling right now. The shock that he felt previously had disappeared. Even after he had regained hisposure, he still exuded an imposing aura.

    He became the omnipotent division leader in everyone¡¯s hearts once again.

    The low morale was slightly boosted while the tense atmosphere in the tent loosened up significantly.

    "

    Song Xiaoqian shook her head and replied, "I have never seen it before. It should a new type of pagoda cannon that the enemy has developed. It ispletely different from Hellfire Pagoda Cannons. Now that we have analyzed it, we know that its attack is unstoppable and powerful at close range. When its attack has traveled far enough, it will open up and cover a wide area. The situation just now was too chaotic. Our soldiers were too close to them, and it was hard to determine the new pagoda cannon¡¯s exact area of effect."

    "Despicable! How dare they use the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons to trick us earlier on!"

    "I still thought Shi Xueman was an upright and honest individual. I never expected her to use such a despicable trick."

    "It might not be Shi Xueman, it might be that Pagoda Cannon Master named Qian Dai. I heard this person is extremely despicable!"

    Everyone broke into a lively discussion filled with resentment.

    "Shut up!" Helian Tianxiao roared.

    All the generals turned silent out of fear.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s eyes pierced through everyone on the spot like a knife, causing them to lower their heads.

    "Don¡¯t throw away my face! There¡¯s only win or lose on the battlefield. There¡¯s nothing despicable about it!" Helian Tianxiao¡¯s words were sharp like a sword.

    The generals who behaved noisily just now had their faces flush red with shame.

    "The most important thing that we have to do now is to rify the capabilities of this brand-new type of pagoda cannon," Helian Tianxiao said with a calm voice. "There¡¯s no such thing as a perfect weapon in this world. As long as we can find its weaknesses, we will find the key to victory. Mo Shaojun, report."

    Mo Shaojun was standing in a corner of the tent with a gloomy look on his face.

    He had suffered heavy losses in the battle. Not many blood elementalists had died, but more than half of the broadback batfish had been in. He felt as though his heart was being stabbed by a sword.

    The chance to set foot upon the battlefield was hard toe by. Therefore, Mo Shaojun valued this chance very much. He certainly did not expect himself to suffer such devastating losses when the battle had just merely begun!

    God Nation valued outstanding military service the most. Therefore, all thebat divisions were vying for the chance to enter the battlefield and obtain military merits. The six god divisions and 12 blood divisions had been dominating the war, so the beast battalions did not even have the chance to set foot upon the battlefield.

    If they couldn¡¯t fight on the battlefield, they couldn¡¯t obtain military merits or promotion.

    This chance was extremely hard toe by, and he had screwed it up. As such, he was feeling discouraged.

    At this point in time, if it was blood elementalists who died, it would still be all right. However, it was the broadback batfish that died just now. This meant that his current situation was far from good.

    When he heard Helian Tianxiao¡¯s words, he returned to his senses and said, "Sir, you¡¯re right. Right now, the most important thing for us to do is to understand the enemy¡¯s new pagoda cannons. ording to my estimation, the enemy has around 100 pagoda cannons. They fired 12 salvos of attacks in total. I misjudged the situation and tried to use apressed formation to break through the enemy¡¯s defensive line. As a result, I suffered such heavy losses."

    "Continue," Helian Tianxiao said emotionlessly.

    "We have to rify the power of this new pagoda cannon, its shooting range, its area of effect, etc. We also need to know how many of these new pagoda cannons they have. Since pagoda cannons need snowva, we have to find out how much snowva the new type of pagoda cannon consumes. We also need to know how long the enemy pagoda cannoneers can continuously fire," Mo Shaojun continued.

    "If I wanted you to find out more about this new type of pagoda cannon, how would you go about doing it?" Helian Tianxiao asked inly.

    "Previously, we suffered heavy losses because our battle formation was too packed. If I am allowed to fight again, I would split my offense into three prongs and attack the three God-subduing Peaks from different directions. By doing so, I can prevent the enemy¡¯s pagoda cannons from concentrating their attacks on our forces. Other than that, I would increase the number of soldiers taking part in the battle and have them throw blood mist bombs to obstruct the enemy¡¯s line of sight," Mo shaojun replied solemnly.

    A look of satisfaction finally appeared on Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face. Then, he encouraged Mo Shaojun, "Tomorrow, you will continue to lead the assault. Tonight, think about how you are going to fight the battle. Use your brain more and don¡¯t let me down. Don¡¯t stress over the casualties because I will replenish all of your losses. As long as you can see through the enemy¡¯s tricks, no one can take away your merits!"

    Mo Shaojun was overjoyed. He replied emotionally, "Sir, thank you for supporting me!"

 Chapter 610: Stone Forest, Sand Sea

    Chapter 610: Stone Forest, Sand Sea

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    After the day¡¯s thrilling battles, everyone¡¯s tensed nerves could finally rx and tiredness was like the tide,ing in waves. Everyone gradually became sleepy after drinking the elemental soup. Soon enough, the pagoda cannoneers tottered around and waves of snores could be heard.

    Fatty did not rest. He leaned over the muzzle of the Beehive Heavy Cannon and inspected the inner tube. He couldn¡¯t help but frown and muttered to himself, "There is a crack? It really hurt the cannon so much?"

    Fatty bared his teeth and felt the pinch.

    The Beehive Heavy Cannon was costly. Without paying for it by plundering the people previously, they could not have produced it.

    Fatty liked to take advantage of others and was stingy. He was a famous penny-pincher. He saw that after using the Beehive Heavy Cannon for only twelve rounds, cracks had already appeared. He immediately felt the pinch and even the joy of the day¡¯s victory was diminished.

    Zu Yan heard and said, "Do you want to change to a new batch?"

    He was Fatty¡¯s assistant now.

    Previously, the arrogant Zu Yan would have felt insulted. His teacher was Le Buleng and he had reached the master level much earlier than Fatty. Whichever angle you looked from, neither party was on the same level. Even if they were to swap positions and make Fatty his assistant, he would still be disgusted with this damnedzy and cowardly Fatty.

    But now, Zu Yan was convinced.

    He was indebted to Fatty as he hadn¡¯t abandoned him when they were in danger. So now, how could Zu Yan disregard their friendship? Because of this, the arrogant Zu Yan became an assistant to Fatty.

    In addition, the more time they spent together, the more Zu Yan would notice Fatty¡¯s capabilities. Fatty was usually timid and tended to be at a loss and unable to react correctly when in danger; however, he would always show a fierce and decisive side when pushed to the wall.

    Fatty was sharp, alert, and would hide whenever he sensed something wrong. This was his way of protecting himself, but once he understood that he could no longer hide, he would fight with determination and resort to all kinds of unsavory tricks which would surprise others.

    In order to survive, Fatty couldn¡¯t care less and would be even more unscrupulous.

    In contrast, Zu Yan found himself just like the flowers in the greenhouse; they looked gorgeous, but were in fact vulnerable and fragile.

    The dedicated Zu Yan was undoubtedly an excellent assistant as he was born in an aristocratic family, making him well-informed and knowledgeable. In terms of innate skill and wisdom, Zu Yan was like a weakened version of Duanmu Huanghun. Seeking revenge for the extermination of his entire family, suffering the pain of being sealed in the freezing ice for years, and learning what Le Buleng taught both in words and by example all made Zu Yan even more resolute and decisive.

    Since he had attained the right state of mind, he rapidly became more mature.

    Fatty shook his head repeatedly. "Don¡¯t have to, we can still stick with it for a while. We gave them such a huge surprise today, without figuring out the situation, they would not dare to attack us again so soon."

    Zu Yan agreed with Fatty¡¯s judgement.

    Shortly after, Sang Zhijun shouted at Fatty and Zu Yan to attend the meeting discussing how to deal with the enemy the next day.

    Upon arrival, Fatty and Zu Yan found that Silver Soldier and Karakorum Pris were already there. One after another, everyone congratted Fatty and teased him a little.

    The cheerful atmosphere soon vanished and everyone became serious.

    Today¡¯s war had been just an appetizer. Despite the big surprise they had prepared for the God Wolf Division, it was far from enough to force them to retreat.

    For tomorrow¡¯s battle, the other party will certainlye up with all kinds of countermeasures.

    As expected, the next day¡¯s battle was unusually fierce.

    At the front of the defensive line, fresh red smoke filled the field,pletely blocking everyone¡¯s vision. This red smoke not only contained the blood poison, but was also very concentrated. The pagoda cannoneers¡¯ vision was affected and their power output was greatly reduced.

    From time to time, the broadback batfish would rush out without warning from the rich blood mist and send a flurry of attacks at the pagoda cannon.

    The enemy¡¯s attack was not only limited to the God-subduing Peak defended by the Spear of Heavy Cloud, the other three God-subduing Peaks were also under attack. In contrast, the Infantry Division¡¯s situation was the best. They were originally the division that specialized in close quarterbat and what more, with Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s guidance, were as steady as a rock.

    Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s standard of battlefield construction was improving each day. The earth was like soft mud in his hands and could be manipted at his will. The jagged, criss-crossed corridors and the uneven terrain were at the right height for soldiers to jump up and down. In addition, there were grotesquely shaped arches covered with sharp ridges. They were just like giant sturdy rock thistles.

    Soldiers were very dexterous in such terrain, but it was difficult for the huge bodies of the broadback batfish to pass through. What was more amazing was that these peculiar arches, when damaged, would repair themselves spontaneously.

    Once a broadback batfish fell to the ground, the quicksand would make it sink down under.

    This was what Wang Xiaoshan hadpleted overnight specifically to counter the enemy based on yesterday¡¯s attack. He named it [Stone Forest, Sand Sea].

    [Stone Forest, Sand Sea] was not impregnable, but it could bring big trouble to the broadback batfish. This brought great help to the Infantry Division; it could even be said that theyplemented one another.

    The Sky Edge Division was in a much worse situation, but Karakorum Pris was no ordinary person. Although it was difficult for her to ept Ai Hui¡¯s so-called Pagoda Style, she was unique in her swordsmanship. Therge number of sword formations sheid out around Sky Edge Division contained her enlightenment of swordsmanship umted throughout the years.

    Karakorum Pris was determined topile the swordsmanship encyclopedia. She did not forget her wishes, regardless of how uncertain the situation was, and her diligence towards swordsmanship never stopped.

    She might not be an excellent division leader, but was definitely an outstanding swordsman.

    Sky Edge Division¡¯s God-subduing Peak was gorgeous. The countless sharp swords looked like groups of dazzling silver knife fish swimming around the God-subduing Peak. If you looked closely, the sharp swords would change irregrly within the light flow, mysterious andplex.

    Despite this, the broadback batfish had thick skin and flesh. Excepting their heads, their bodies were not really affected by the injuries. The broadback batfish were often covered with bloody holes, yet they could still roar and continue to rush towards the God-subduing Peak.

    Fortunately, the pagoda cannon formations above them noticed this situation and quickly supported with artillery fire. Only then did they manage to withstand that wave of attack.

    The second day¡¯s battle was absolutely challenging and everyone was exhausted.

    The number of broadback batfish invested by the enemy was much lower than the previous day, but the attacks were more random and harder to pin down.

    After a day of violent battle, the enemy finally retreated.

    Regardless of how tired everyone was, they reassembled to discuss how to deal with the next day¡¯s battle.

    Fatty looked awful and did not have the previous day¡¯s victorious spirit. He said softly, "We must find a way to counter the blood mist, or else the advantage of our pagoda cannons will be significantly weakened. Today, a lower number of broadback batfish were sent outpared to yesterday, but the threat is greater and everyone is under more pressure. Not solving the blood mist problem will make us very vulnerable."

    Everyone nodded. They could all tell where the problem was from today¡¯s situation.

    However, how could they solve the blood mist problem; no one knew where to start.

    Before today, nobody had experienced the blood mist.

    Xiao Shan suddenly said, "I know a little about the blood mist."

    All turned toward Xiao Shan with expectation. They remembered that he was from the Surveince Division, which was also the intelligence division.

    Shi Xueman said seriously, "Please advise us."

    The reason why Xiao Shan had rushed over was because he¡¯d seen that they were beset by the blood mist. He was a guy who did not spout nonsense and told them right away, "The blood mist refined by Beast Venom Temple totals up to over fifty different types, but at present, there are three types which were granted to thebat divisions."

    Upon hearing that there were over fifty types of blood mist, everybody¡¯s expression turned somewhat sour, but as they continued to listen they were able to heave a sigh of relief.

    Everyone got excited. As expected, he was worthy of having been a big shot in the Surveince Division, considering his detailed exnations.

    Understanding yourself and your enemy is the basis of victory on a battlefield. Everyone strained their ears to listen for fear of missing out on any important information.

    "The three types are called Scarlet Mist, Intoxicated Beauty, and Heavenly Concubine. These three concoctions are difficult to scout out, but we do somewhat understand their effects. The Scarlet Mist is the mostmonly seen and most dense. It¡¯s concentrated, but the toxicity is the least out of the three types. Also, its biggest strength is its ability to withstand wind. No matter how strong the wind, it will be incapable of dispersing the Scarlet Mist. I suspect that what the enemy used today was Scarlet Mist. For Intoxicated Beauty, it¡¯s mist is indistinct and has a strong hallucinogenic effect. As long as a minute strand of mist is inhaled, you will be poisoned. Lastly, the Heavenly Concubine¡¯s colour is the most faint, almost colourless. Its toxicity is, however, the strongest, and the victims poisoned by it look very terrifying."

    Xiao Shan paused for a short while before continuing, "Speaking of which, I am ashamed. Although we were aware of the three types of blood mist, we did not really research them."

    The thought of the Surveince Division focusing on Sky Heart City¡¯s internal strife while neglecting their research on the enemy caused Xiao Shan to feel ashamed of himself.

    A simple piece of information might decide the fate of countless people on the battlefield.

    Just when everyone was feeling rather disappointed, Xiao Shan inhaled deeply. "However, I can still remember seeing an item which had been provided by Beast Venom Temple. It was pertaining to the important points regarding the application and storage of Scarlet Mist. Among those points there was an exceptionally important one, which was to not use water."

    Everyone¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Jiang Wei replied, "Could it be possible that it cannote into contact with water?"

    Shi Xueman gave a clear-cut reply, "Let¡¯s test it out tomorrow."

    The most worrying factor was that they werepletely clueless about the enemy¡¯s strategy. Knowing a little more would also grant them a slight advantage.

    Shi Xueman was originally a water elementalist and she immediately thought of a few methods which they could try out.

    Fatty abruptly said, "I have an opinion."

    Everyone turned their attention towards Fatty.

    Fatty continued, "Today¡¯s enemy¡¯s scouting was undoubtedly sessful. It is certain that their confidence has increased and that tomorrow¡¯s attack will be even more intense. I was thinking, maybe we could reverse the strategy of the blood mist and only mobilizing it at the crucial point. This will give the enemy another surprise."

    As hepleted hisst sentence, Fatty¡¯s speech subconsciously had a tinge of ruthlessness in it.

    It seemed that everyone needed to be re-acquainted with Fatty. The Fatty in front of them was just like apulsive gambler on the gambling table. Was this the same cowardly and cautious Fatty they knew?

    Fatty, who had been boiling with rage, was sized up by everyone. He became embarrassed all of a sudden. "Haha, I was just speaking my mind. Please don¡¯t mind me."

    All of a sudden, Shi Xueman spoke, "I support this opinion!"

    Everyone¡¯s gazes were involuntarily attracted to her.

    Shi Xueman smiled. "It¡¯s a little risky, but think about it from another perspective. Are our opponents ready? To throw in all the stakes on the third day of battle?"

    Fatty¡¯s eyes brightened, shining.

 Chapter 611: The Fantasyland Within Ai Huiâ€™s Body

    Chapter 611: The Fantasnd Within Ai Hui¡¯s Body

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, CakeHermit

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind was engrossed in figuring out the changes to his body. He thought of the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art], but did not know how to utilize it. Time was slipping away and hepsed into a stupor.

    When he woke up, he astonishedly found himself under a light pir.

    A faint, but unusually warm red light embraced him like a mother¡¯s arms. The dazed Ai Hui clearly saw what looked like ruins outside the light pir.

    Where was this? What was going on?

    Ai Hui became rmed.

    Firstly, he noticed the pir of light on his whole body.

    Light pir? He looked up subconsciously and then jerked in fright and terror.

    The entire sky was covered by the rolled out, big picture of a giant blood eye. Ai Hui had never seen such a strange and horrifying scene. He even had the illusion that the sky¡¯s blood eye was like a rotating living creature, watching him. The red light pir projected from the blood eye enveloped him with a circumference of tens of feet.

    Ai Hui forced himself to calm down. He was very familiar with the blood eye pattern as it was exactly the same as the one on the bandage.

    The faint red light was not harmful, but gave him a warm feeling and appeared to protect him.

    Bandage... The bandage had saved Ai Hui many times and he felt an inexplicable warmth. The horror in his heart gradually disappeared and Ai Hui calmed down, but shortly after, doubts immediately arose.

    Where was this?

    He gazed out through the light pir.

    He saw a dpidated, barren ce in which not even a de of grass grew.

    A few dpidated pces could be seen far away, but Ai Hui could still clearly tell that they were already in ruins.

    Not far from him was the only intact pce. It was shrouded in dark clouds that drooped low, seemingly within a hand¡¯s reach. Amidst the dark clouds, lightning shed from time to time and electrifying silvery snakes danced. The dark clouds were surging like thousands of swords gathering and moving around. The sword symphony sometimes sounded like whispering waves, sometimes like angry, roaring waves, while the dense sword consciousness stretched endlessly.

    The lightning and sword consciousness dispersed out of the pce from time to time and swept along the ground, leaving the affected areas all ckened, cracked, and scarred.

    In another location, a small tree which was half a man tall, stood still. It was an unknown type of tree with three branches and had a sparkling and translucent jade green trunk. The tree had only nine leaves. Their colours were as fresh as early spring blossoms and the tree was surrounded by a green light. Suddenly, a leaf fell out of the branch and floated to the sky. Immediately, multiple strands of fine, drizzling rain fell. The ck hair-like fine drizzle moistened the dry ckened ground and miraculously, the cracks on the ground gradually closed.

    Far from the unreachable depth of the sky, under the giant blood eye, a golden scorching sun hung solitarily in the sky. The golden glow dazzled and was piercingly cold, like a needle without any warmth.

    A spiritual thought shed through his mind, were all these events happening in his own body?

    Were the ruins under his feet the flesh and blood of his own body? Those ruined pces were his destroyed five residences and eight pces?The only undamaged part was the earth pce. The tree was the Vitality Branches and the dark clouds were the sword cloud. The high hanging golden scorching sun was the Blood of God?

    Was this the fantasnd that the bandage created?

    On recalling that bizarre dream, he remembered that the bandage was the canvas that had carried the devil¡¯s painting. Previously, he¡¯d thought that the dream was absurd, but now he thought that the probability of it being true was seventy to eighty percent.

    Nobody knew the origin of the demonic god who had managed to escape unscathed.

    These thoughts shed through his mind and he tried to focus his attention on the present. Although he knew that it was a mirage, it still seemed too real. Whether it was the ckened barren ground, the ruins of the pces, the raw wood branches, or even the sword clouds. Everything seemed too realistic.

    Ai Hui tried to walk away from the red light pir, but it unexpectedly moved along with him.

    Was the bandage protecting him?

    While Ai Hui was ruminating, he suddenly raised his head and looked out of the light pir

    He was acutely aware that the light outside was brighter now.

    Brighter...

    He looked up at the scorching sun hanging under the blood eye. The scorching sun was brighter than it had been earlier.

    The ice-cold golden glow, coupled with the zing white light, was just like the ruthless ruler of the world and supervised the earth indifferently.

    The ckened barren ground became even more dpidated, but when the golden glow shone on the Vitality Branches and earth pce, it immediately provoked a counterattack.

    The green light from the Vitality Branches became even brighter and exuded vitality. In the surrounding area, green shoots constantly sprouted, budded, and bloomed.

    In just a short period, flowers were blooming like a piece of brocade. It was really beautiful.

    The dark clouds that enveloped the earth pce surged and raged. The silvery lightning was like a stout silver python shuttling amongst the clouds. The thunder was rolling and rumbling voices were heard, sounding terrifying. Layers uponyers of sword consciousnesss found their target and, apanied by the silver lightning, moved forward wave after wave, surging towards the golden glow in the sky.

    Even in the red light pir, Ai Hui could feel the thrill in the tripartite battle.

    He confirmed that the red light pir was the bandage protecting him. It caused the golden glow shining on the red light pir to vanish without a trace.

    The golden glow gradually became brighter. Apparently, it was angered by the counterattack of the Vitality Branches and earth pce¡¯s lightning sword cloud. The ring golden glow almost turned the outside worldpletely white.

    The dazzling golden light shone on the flowers and nts that had freshly grown around the vitality branches. The vibrant flowers were wiped out with a speed visible to the naked eyes.

    However, the Vitality Branches¡¯ green light was still very tenacious and firmly met head-on with the golden glow.

    The battle between the sword cloud and the golden glow was much more intense. The dense sword consciousness was like the tide, pouncing onto the golden glow and heading towards the sky. Every time the silvery lightning¡¯s fragmented glow and the golden fragmented glow collided, there would be arge booming noise generated.

    The golden glow still continued to strengthen.

    It was like a cold and heartless ruler, overbearing, mighty, and awesome.

    Even though the Blood of Demonic God had been around for a long time and Ai Hui had experienced the power of the demonic god armor before, it was still the first time he was directly facing the power of the God¡¯s blood.

    It was really powerful!

    Looking through the light pir, Ai Hui could feel the power, but somehow, Ai Hui did not like the scent diffused from the God¡¯s blood as its power was beyond his expectations. In addition, the aura thatmunicated the mighty power revealed indifference.

    Indifference to life.

    That was why Ai Hui did not like the demonic god armor. The powerful demonic god armor also revealed the same kind of aura, one without any sign of life and only absolute calm; it also had a sheer indifference to life and ordinary calmness.

    Ai Hui was very ufortable and not fond of it.

    Deep in his heart, he had always felt that the demonic god in his dream was an evil god. In fact, Ai Hui did not have much of a concept of good and evil; he felt that people viewed life from different standpoints. It did not matter whether it was the cultivator or elementalist, it was just the ups and down, changes and recement of the human interior. Whether it was Sky Heart City or Jadeite Forest, it was only a matter of personal interest.

    The aura of the God¡¯s blood always made him associate it with a "non-human" feeling.

    After all, Ai Hui was just a human being.

    Fortunately, the warm red light of the bandage isted him from the overbearing and piercingly cold golden glow. It also enabled Ai Hui to witness the amazing scene.

    The golden sun in the sky suddenly started to rotate and began to search for targets.

    Ai Hui was startled.

    He saw the ubiquitous golden light shrink and move towards the sword cloud and the Vitality Branches.

    Two golden light pirs which looked like real gold, covered the resplendent green Vitality Branches and the roaring, thundering sword cloud.

    The entire vitality sapling became increasingly green and crystal clear. The rich and concentrated green glow firmly resisted the golden light pir. At themon boundary of the golden beam and green glow, a sizzling sound abounded and the green glow continuously turned into ashes.

    The counterattack of the sword cloud was even more violent.

    The raging tide gathered by the dense sword consciousness crashed towards the golden light pir. The minute golden glow and the fragmented sword consciousness flew all over the ce and a rumbling sound could be heard continuously. The thick and solid lightning scurried out like a giant silver steel fork and swiftly submerged itself into the golden light pir. Ai Hui could even see the minute golden glow scattered near the lightning.

    The three parties seemed to be in a deadlock. The green light of the Vitality Branches stood firm and the thunder roaring sword consciousness seemed endless.

    Time was slipping away.

    Ai Hui dared not cken even a bit. He knew the sight in front of him, though seemingly peaceful, was actually extremely dangerous. This was the conflict that was happening inside his body and any changes would have a great impact on him.

    He carefully and cautiously looked at every change.

    The golden light pir became more and more luminous and then condensed. Ai Hui felt they were like two golden transparent crystal pirs and the rays in the pirs flowed slowly.

    Unable to withstand the assault, the Vitality Branches¡¯ green light shrank and declined.

    The lightning within the sword cloud also lost some of its ferocity and revealed signs of weakness.

    Ai Hui was a little nervous.

    If the Vitality Branches and sword cloud were no match for God¡¯s blood, what will be of him?

    Blood elementalist?

    No matter the result, Ai Hui was unwilling to ept it. After determining the existence of the rtionship between the God¡¯s blood and Blood of God, this was what Ai Hui was most worried and fearful of.

    But, he found himself unable to do anything.

    He tried to walk towards the sword cloud, but found that once he got close to the earth pce, he could not make any more progress.

    The blood eye in the sky seemed to limit the boundary of his activities.

    Ai Hui was a little disappointed as he¡¯d actually intended to take advantage of the red light beam to help the Vitality Branches and sword cloud.

    It seemed that this method was ineffective.

    At this moment, the Vitality Branches¡¯ green glow became unable to hold on. Thest ray of green light was annihted and the Vitality Branches werepletely exposed to the transparent golden pir.

    Ai Hui was shocked.

    The overbearing and piercing cold golden light shone directly on the Vitality Branches.

    The resplendent green Vitality Branches suddenly stiffened and the tender green foliage edges became yellow and ckened. Following which, they turned into wisps of smoke. The rising green smoke in the golden light pir appeared as long shadows.

    The golden glow engulfed the vitality branches at a speed visible to the naked eye.

    The shadows in the golden glow got increasingly clearer. They were not scattered about, as though engraved in the golden light pir.

    That was...

    Ai Hui was attracted by the images of the shadow. All of a sudden, his head shook as if controlled by a magical force. He stared intensely and carefully at the shadows of the green smoke in the golden glow for fear of missing out on any details.

 Chapter 612: Vitality Branches and the Fire Elemental Ring

    Chapter 612: Vitality Branches and the Fire Elemental Ring

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    All along, Ai Hui was under the impression that Vitality Branches were the purest form of wood elemental energy.

    But, he saw the five different types of elemental energy¡ªmetal, wood, water, fire and earth¡ªin the freeze frame right before his eyes.

    All five elements were present!

    His understanding towards the Vitality Branches waspletely and fundamentally subverted. The Vitality Branches had already been in Ai Hui¡¯s body for a long period of time. In the past, he had also studied Vitality Branches on more than one asion, so much so that he gained something from it.

    However, the sight before him made him realise that his prior understanding of the Vitality Branches deviated fundamentally.

    How was it possible?

    At this moment, Ai Hui was both shocked and in disbelief. For so long he had been yet to realise the intricacies of it! But at this moment, he could not be bothered about all these things. Under the golden glow, the Vitality Branches were gradually being destroyed. Once he missed this opportunity, he would be incapable of prying into the marvel of the Vitality Branches.

    The overbearing and ice-cold golden glow thoroughly destroyed the disguise and the outer shell of the Vitality Branches. It allowed all of the changes to appear as well.

    Indeed, all five elements were present. Upon seeing the five types of elemental energy intertwine in an ingenious manner, Ai Hui could not help but to exim in admiration once again. He thought of fusion energy, but theposition of the Vitality Branches with the five types of elemental energy was even more outstanding by many folds. The five types of elemental energy were constantly revolving in the elemental energy cycle. It was an exceptional and borate ring of life.

    The whole five elemental cycle¡¯s ultimate aim was to generate wood elemental energy.

    At this moment, Ai Hui only now just realised where the astonishing healing ability of the Vitality Branches came from. In reality, the Vitality Branches were actually situated in the constantly revolving ring of life. This signified that regardless of what elemental energy was around, it would drag the Vitality Branches into the five elemental cycle, producing an unending stream of wood elemental energy. Yet peculiarly, the Vitality Branches constantly revolving ring of life had an invisible dividing line. It was as if the entire ring was submerged in water and only the wood elemental energy was revealed on the surface.

    Ai Hui suddenly thought of Han Li¡¯s Path of Master, [Yin Yang]!

    Metal, water, fire and earth belonged under Yin while only wood belonged under Yang.

    Ai Hui eximed repeatedly to himself.

    When the golden glow destroyed the Yin Yang divide, the other four types of elemental energy would then be revealed. It was no wonder why the Vitality Branches were rumoured to be the original source of wood elemental energy. It turned out that not only would the Vitality Branches transform, Yin would transform to Yang as well.

    It indeed was a magical yet imaginative process, which allowed the wood elemental energy to be totally different and possess a miraculous healing ability.

    Impressive!

    The Vitality Branches were created by Lu Chen, who was the most powerful White-robed Divine Physician in this generation. He definitely lived up to his name!

    This was the most unique and creative five elemental ring of life he had ever seen.

    Under the golden glow, it was difficult for the Vitality Branches to sustain themselves. Thest inches of the roots began to disintegrate into smoke. On the contrary, the shadow of the golden glow was exceptionally clear. Ai Hui was aware that when thest bit of the Vitality Branches was destroyed, the shadow within the golden glow would disappear without a trace.

    Such a pity!

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart ineffably felt a hint of regret.

    At this point, he wasn¡¯t thinking about the terrible consequences that would befall his body once the Vitality Branches were destroyed. Rather, he felt it was such a pity that a perfect and magical five elemental ring was going to be destroyed.

    Could he stop it from happening?

    This intention shed through his mind. All of a sudden, a red pir of light was cast down from the sky, engulfing the shadows within the golden glow.

    Ai Hui was expressionless.

    He lifted his head and sure enough, the red light pir was being projected by the giant blood eye above his head.

    The golden glow seemed to be afraid of the beam of red light released by the blood eye and retreated as quickly as a receding tide.

    The shadow of the Vitality Branches within the beam of red light transformed into a green glow. It did not enter the blood eye and the beam of red light subsequently disappeared.

    It could turn out like that?

    Ai Hui was overjoyed by the good news and thought of saving the sword clouds. He then looked towards the giant blood eye above him full of expectations.

    The time passed by slowly.

    Ai Hui¡¯s neck had already started aching and no light beam was cast yet.

    He was a little bbergasted, why was it not effective anymore?

    Inexplicably, Ai Hui felt that the blood eye in the sky seemed to be mocking him.

    Must¡¯ve been an illusion!

    Ai Hui consoled himself.

    The God¡¯s blood, which lost its target on the Vitality Branches, channelled all its attacking power toward the sword cloud. Ai Hui noticed that the golden glow shining on the sword cloud became slightly more powerful all of a sudden.

    The sword cloud, which were barely sustained, immediately became in danger.

    The ferocious lightning seemed like it had lost its power and was unable to electrify the golden light pir at all.

    The glow from the lightning became weak as well.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression turned solemn as the lightning in the sword cloud wasn¡¯t cultivated by him. Rather, it was absorbed from theyer of clouds. It would be difficult to replenish once over consumed. The current situation of the sword cloud was evidence that over consumption of the lightning caused it to be powerless.

    Despite the lightning¡¯s attack, the golden light pir¡¯s constant approach was unstoppable.

    The moment the golden light pir shone on the sword cloud, the surging and roaring sword cloud briefly paused.

    But the next change was different from what Ai Hui had expected.

    A fine, silvery glow suddenly appeared from the sword cloud. It seemed as if it was going to escape without a trace. But the golden light pir descended from the sky and firmly subdued it.

    Ai Hui then saw clearly that this silvery glow was astonishingly a streak of silver lightning.

    The lightning was like the thickness of a chopstick and had many fine bifurcations. It was fixed within the golden light pir, as if it were cast from silver.

    Ai Hui¡¯s acute vision allowed him to see the thin, silvery lightning in the golden light pir. It seemed as if it was subdued, but it was still struggling like before. He could tell from its continuous swallowing and spitting of lightning and the asional shattering of the golden glow.

    The lightning sank into the same situation as the Vitality Branches. It had been confined by the light pir release by the God¡¯s blood.

    However, Ai Hui¡¯s gaze could not help but fall on the remaining sword cloud. The sword cloud, which lost all their lightning, were not as weak as what he imagined. On the contrary, their resistance was now even more intense.

    The former sword cloud were formed by lightning and had shattered the sword embryo. Now, without the lightning, only the sword embryo¡¯s remains were left.

    What was a sword embryo? It was difficult for Ai Hui to provide a clear and distinct answer, but he knew that the sword embryo cultivated the mind!

    .

    The opening of the remnant chapter had already exined that human¡¯s blood had a limit after all, but the cultivation of the mind did not have an upper limit.

    Ai Hui fixated his attention on the surging sword cloud while deep in thought.

    Purification and refinement were the crucial points for the mind, not quantity and strength.

    It was obvious that the power of the sword cloud decreased significantly as they lost their lightning, but the sharp and ferocious aura was somewhat stronger than before!

    The golden glow was just like an overwhelming siege machine, while the surging and spiraling sword cloud was like a capstan densely packed with des.

    It unexpectedly obstructed the advancement of the golden glow!

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted and he was astonished. He was suddenly aware that despite it being damaged, the sword embryo was an even more amazing existence than the Vitality Branches and lightning.

    The Vitality Branch¡¯s imaginative and creativeposition immensely shocked Ai Hui. In terms ofplexity and value, the Circle of Life and Yin Yang¡¯s integration highly exceeded the God-subduing Peak and Hellfire Pagoda Cannon.

    The Vitality Branches had the most outstanding elemental energy system that Ai Hui had ever seen.

    Even though Lu Chen wasn¡¯t a Grandmaster, Ai Hui believed that Lu Chen already had one foot in the door based on the Vitality Branches.

    Once Lu Chen opened that door, awaiting him would be a wide and boundless world.

    But the stunning Vitality Branchespletelycked resistance against the God¡¯s blood.

    The gradually weakening and further subdued lightning had once again confirmed the high level of power of God¡¯s blood.

    And from Ai Hui¡¯s point of view, the weakest sword cloud, no, now it was sword embryo cloud, had disyed a much stronger potential. Ai Hui felt that his understanding of many things had been constantly subverted and overturned today.

    He¡¯d once inevitably believed that the reason why the sword cloud was so powerful wasrgely due to the lightning¡¯s strength.

    A sword embryo which was cultivated using the remnant of swordy manual, versus lightning which had never been conquered by any elementalist. The question of which was stronger seemed obvious at a nce.

    However, the facts proved that he was wrong.

    The confrontation between the sword embryo cloud and the golden light pir made them appear as if they were on par. It was evident that a short period of time wasn¡¯t sufficient to determine the winner.

    Ai Hui tried to restrain the shock in his heart. He turned his gaze towards the lightning which was confined by the golden glow.

    He anticipated a little.

    What exactly was the lightning? Ai Hui had yet to obtain any answers to this question as of now. Even though he was the first ever Lightning Master, he was still incapable of exining this fundamental question.

    The method he¡¯d used to cultivate his lightning proved that he was just a conductor of the lightning. He transferred the lightning between heaven and earth to his own body. This could neither enable the lightning to be purer and more condensed, nor could it change the characteristics of the lightning.

    Despite Ai Hui¡¯s power, he knew that his understanding of elemental energy was greatly inferior to that of the creator of Vitality Branches, Lu Chen.

    The Vitality Branches had revealed their original state under the golden glow just a moment ago. It was in its purestposition, all of its disguise already destroyed.

    He then clearly saw what had happened to the Vitality Branches.

    In the event that the golden glow shone on the lightning, would the lightning, which was ultimately incapable of resisting the golden glow, expose its intrinsic quality too?

    Ai Hui was full of expectation and opened his eyes widely. He stared at the continuously struggling lightning within the golden glow. Although it had been proven that the lightning was no match for the God¡¯s blood, the situation had benefited Ai Hui greatly in being able to solve the questions which had been bugging him for so long.

    The lightning within the golden glow struggled continuously. However, Ai Hui noticed that every time it struggled, the size of the lightning would actually decrease a little.

    Time always passed by quickly in the midst of concentration.

    The lightning in the golden light pir shrank from its beginning thickness of a chopstick to the mere thickness of a toothpick.

    Just when Ai Hui thought that the lightning was about to reveal its true form, he found unexpectedly that the nearly dissipated lightning persevered longer than anticipated. Within the golden light pir, the fine but illustrious lightning was exceptionally eye-catching.

    It did not move a single bit.

    Ai Hui had a lot of patience, his gaze did not waver the slightest bit. He was just like a patient hunter, camouged amongst the dense underbrush waiting for the appearance of his prey.

    Pop!

    A gentle popping sound rang from the golden light pir.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted!

    It¡¯sing!

 Chapter 613: Beat Them at Their Own Game

    Chapter 613: Beat Them at Their Own Game

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    Just as the sun rose the next morning, the opposite encampment started to be restless.

    The pagoda cannoneers under Fatty were calmer and more confident after yesterday¡¯s victory.

    However, there was still a long way to go in bing an experienced soldier. The atmosphere waspletely tense and solemn as before.

    Some of them were examining the snowva in the fire reservoirs, while a few others were cleaning the solid pagoda cannons even though they were already spotlessly clean.

    The unit leaders were continuously emphasising the important points to take note of during the day¡¯s battle.

    Fatty gazed into the opposite encampment and was absolutely silent.

    His plump face was brimming with happiness just like before. His bean-sized eyes shed with dangerous glints from time to time. The pagoda cannoneers would nce at Fatty now and then. Even though it hadn¡¯t been a long time, everyone¡¯s confidence in Fatty increased very rapidly.

    Zu Yan who was at the side, felt that this genuine and chubby fe seemed to have an indistinct and unexinable charisma.

    One couldn¡¯t deny that wars indeed had an astonishing ability to push humans to their limit.

    Even Zu Yan himself had a misconception. Although the war had only just begun, he felt that it was almost as long as a lifetime.

    Zu Yan¡¯s mind was rather calm as the tactics had already been discussed yesterday.

    Fatty¡¯s exceptionally brazen thinking had unexpectedly gained the support of Shi Xueman. Soon after, everyone discussed about the possible methods which the enemy might employ. With everyone pooling their ideas and the n gradually developing, their confidence was even stronger.

    However, a battle was something that could never be simply discussed behind closed doors. Ample preparation would not imply a guaranteed victory.

    There was always the possibility of unforeseen circumstances on the battlefield.

    Fatty suddenly said, "The enemy is preparing to attack."

    Sure enough, as Fatty ended his sentence, the blood elementalists and blood fiends soared into the sky and flew over.

    The glowing screen of the three God-subduing Peaks became bright all of a sudden and enteredbat mode. The atmosphere around the pagoda cannon site abruptly became intense as well. Everyone went into theirbat positions, shut their mouths and tenaciously stared ahead.

    The ck mass of broadback batfish was like a bunch of cumulonimbus clouds, flying towards them.

    The soldiers of the beast battalion were carefully operating the broadback batfish. Behind them, a capable and valiant expert stood upright without any fear. The surrounding few broadback batfish were each supported by an expert.

    One of them said faintly, "Let¡¯s begin."

    A few of them nced at one another and began to channel their blood spiritual force. Rough and thick hair emerged all over the bodies of some of them, while others even grew coarse skin, sharp spurs and sparkling, densely packed fish scales.

    Following the changes in their bodies, they gave off a frightening and powerful aura.

    Blood elementalists with Ability of God!

    Astonishingly, these few people were blood elementalists with Ability of God!

    Right by their feet, each person had bamboo baskets filled with fist-sized ck balls.

    One of the blood elementalists with Ability of God grabbed a ck ball from the bamboo basket andughed nastily. He exhaled loudly and tossed it towards the sky.

    The deep and low whistling sound it made was just like the cutting sound made by a sturdy crossbow.

    His strength was extremely extraordinary. In the blink of an eye, the ck ball unexpectedly appeared near the defensive line of the God-subduing peak.

    Pop!

    The ck ball ruptured and a mass of red blood mist immediately pervaded the air, epassing a radius of over thirty meters.

    The wind was strong, yet that mass of red blood mist was not in the least affected.

    The other blood elementalists with Ability of God made their moves and the howling lingered on.

    The blood elementalists feared the consequences of the Beehive Heavy Cannon¡¯s power and threw the ck balls from a fair distance away.

    Masses of red blood mist exploded in front of the God-subduing Peak. No matter how the wind blew, it did not dissipate. Rather, the blood mist quickly fused into a big mass.

    The pagoda cannon site was slightly stirred. Even though they had been repeatedly warned about what might happen today, the blood mist at the front of the site was so thick that itpletely obstructed their vision. To a pagoda cannoneer, focusing on their enemy was a prerequisite before opening fire. If their vision was obstructed, it would disrupt their instincts.

    ck balls were continuously shot to within the blood mist and exploded afterwards.

    The blood mist was just like a squirmy red monster, advancing continuously.

    Zu Yan heaved a sigh of relief, "As expected, it¡¯s Scarlet Mist!"

    Fatty¡¯s n was indeed excessively risky. Zu Yan was trembling in fear and he could not understand why Lady Shi would support his idea. A little inattentiveness would lead to a disastrous oue. If Senior Xiao Shan¡¯s information was wrong and the enemy did not employ the use of Scarlet Mist, they would immediatelynd in a predicament.

    When the first mass of blood mist exploded, he observed the blood mist right away. It conformed entirely with the characteristics of Scarlet Mist.

    Fatty licked his lips and said, "It seems like yesterday¡¯s battle really pained them. They are being very cautious today."

    Zu Yan had the same sentiments as he looked at the gradually advancing blood mist.

    With the blood mist advancing steadily, it started to enter the firing rage of the pagoda cannon. Fatty also began to squint his bean-sized eyes.

    He suddenly replied, "Let them feign open fire."

    Zu Yan got distracted, "Are we not waiting for themands to open fire?"

    Fatty smiled sinisterly, "If we are going to put on a show, we should wait till the end to do it.They won¡¯t feel relieved if we do not st a few cannons."

    Zu Yan reacted, ¡¯That¡¯s right! Despite the quick advancement of the blood mist, we have yet to open fire. This is clearly suspicious. Once the enemy starts to suspect something, they will not take the bait.¡¯

    He hurriedly instructed the rest.

    Following the booming noise of the pagoda cannon, Fatty was clearly able to sense that the advancement of the blood mist was speeding up.

    Shi Xueman and the others who were nearby returned to their senses as they¡¯d had a narrow escape.

    They were used to upright and straightforward battles. With regard to these kinds of crafty tactics, they were not ustomed at all and thereforepletely overlooked this issue.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s position was very close to the frontline and there were roughly over three hundred water elementalists by her side. Spear of Heavy Cloud mainly relied on fire elementalists and the number of water elementalists left were few. Moreover, the majority were from the assistance unit and not thebat unit. Back then, Central Pine Valley¡¯s reputation was limited and was not attractive for the water and metal elementalists. As a result, the water elementalists recruited had very ordinary abilities.

    Moreover, because of Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s strict and high intensity daily trainings, people got injured easily. Shi Xueman then permitted these water elementalists to assist in the soldiers¡¯ recovery process. Although they were not legitimate doctors, they were considerably effective in restoring the health of these soldiers.

    The water elementalists were a little nervous, but seeing Lady Xueman¡¯s calmness, they gradually calmed down as well.

    Madam Xueman was Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s core. Regardless of how dangerous the situation was, as long as she was present everyone would be relieved.

    Shi Xueman was listening attentively.

    The blood mist obstructed her vision and she could only rely on her hearing to determine the enemy¡¯s position.

    The sound of the wind was getting louder and clearer which meant that the enemy was approaching.

    Shi Xueman was about to give an order when she suddenly stopped and felt that something was not right. At this moment, a light bulb went off in her head. There wasn¡¯t any yelling or roaringing from the broadback batfish!

    She vividly remembered yesterday¡¯s scenario.The broadback batfish which had consumed medicine became exceptionally impetuous, yelling and roaring uncontrobly.

    The wind from within the blood mist unexpectedly did not carry any sounds of yelling or roaring.

    Shi Xueman remained as calm as ice and forcibly restrained herself.

    Trailing the blood mist, the thin blood wings of a blood elementalist with Ability of God stopped trembling. He smiled, "Like what I said, doing more than required."

    The blood elementalist¡¯s Ability of God was derived from an ancient blood cicada.

    Another blood elementalist with Ability of God shook his head and replied, "Being careful is not a bad thing."

    He agilely dodged a ze which squirted out from the pagoda cannon. Following which, he turned around immediately and made an attack gesture with his hands.

    The dense blood mist did not affect the vision of the blood elementalists at all. They were like fish in water.

    The beast battalion soldiers sessively fed the broadback batfish drugs and the broadback batfish started to expand in size. They became exceptionally violent, yelling and roaring continuously.

    However, the booming pagoda cannon noise from ahead was even more deafening. Streaks of fiery zes shed against the blood mist.

    The frantic broadback batfish were like tremendous, surging waves, charging towards the enemy from all directions.

    Just as Shi Xueman heard the thunderous roars of the broadback fish, a cold glint shed across her sparkling and translucent gem-like pupils. She shouted loudly all of a sudden, "Prepare!"

    The water elementalists got ready one by one. They had all sorts of equipment in their hands. Some had water elemental beads, some had bows and water elemental arrows while some had small masses of clouds and other things.

    Many of this equipment was found in the mountain of materials through the night.

    Shi Xueman held her breath for two counts and then resolutely gave orders, "Attack!"

    The water elementalists concurrently tossed their weapons towards the blood mist.

    The water elemental beads burst in mid-air and the dense water elemental energy infused the air. The water elemental arrows transformed into running water as they left the bowstrings and wereunched at the blood mist. The small masses of clouds flew to the sky and immediately expanded in size. Unexpectedly, it started to drizzle.

    Shi Xueman inhaled deeply and gently spun Cirrus in her hand. The sky which was clear a moment ago, suddenly turned dark with countless ck clouds.

    Cirrus thrusted out brazenly from her hand.

    Dark clouds filled the sky followed by rampant lightning and heavy rain.

    The raindrops pitter-pattered amidst the blood mist.

    The dense and unscattered blood mist from a moment ago disappeared in a sh, just like pouring hot water onto ice.

    The broadback batfish pouncing from all directions were revealed.

    The blood mist disappeared very abruptly while the broadback batfish and beast battalion soldiers were involuntarily distracted for a moment.

    At this moment, tongues of fire were squirted out from the top of the God-subduing Peak. The sudden booming sound shocked them till their ears buzzed.

    Seven or eight broadback batfish were immediately hit and copsed one after another.

    Another head-on attack and they would sustain serious injuries!

    The enemy was well prepared!

    But the beast battalion soldiers responded quickly. Besides advancing there was no other option, as retreating only meant death!

    Booming sounds from the Hellfire Pagoda Cannon resonated in the sky. The pagoda cannoneers, who were led by Fatty, opened fire at full force and zing white water vapour diffused the air at the pagoda cannon site.

    The broadback batfish continuously moaned and then fell. All the pagoda cannoneers gave their best and the result was remarkable. However, there were still many broadback batfish rushing to the front of the site.

    But this time, the enemy had learnt their lesson and attacked from different directions. A few broadback batfish formed a team and their loose formation reduced the power of the pagoda cannons.

    However, Shi Xueman and the rest were already prepared for this. The glowing screens of the three God-subduing Peaks were at their brightest, all ready to resist any attack.

    There were not many broadback batfish remaining and they were able to resist them.

    At this moment, Shi Xueman¡¯s pupils shrunk.

    Each and every soldier on the broadback batfish was carrying a basket on their back.

    She remembered clearly that the soldiers of the beast battalion had not carried any baskets yesterday!

    All of a sudden, one of the soldiers grinned evilly and shattered the basket.

 Chapter 614: Frost Locust Grass

    Chapter 614: Frost Locust Grass

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    A wisp of red cloud rose from the shattered basket, rolling and squirming about in the air like a bunch of locusts.

    The blood locusts were each about the size of a finger. Their wings were ck as ink, but their bodies were fresh red and plump like drops of blood. The locusts dispersed swiftly in the air, nimbly flying toward the God-subduing Peak¡¯s light screen.

    The blood locusts were uncountable and closely packed.

    Fatty¡¯s face changed slightly as he felt somewhat disturbed.

    Blood locusts? What were they for? An unexpected situation had urred on the battlefield. The enemy had regarded them as their trump card, evidence that this had been plotted long ago.

    This sudden change took the cannoneers off guard and threw them into disorder as they weren¡¯t sure where they should aim to shoot.

    Fatty decided his course of action on the spot and shouted in a higher pitch, "Ignore everything else, go for the broadback batfish!"

    Beehive Heavy Cannons were most suited to taking these small blood locusts down. However, at this point, the broadback batfish were too close to the God-subduing Peak. Such close distance rendered Beehive Heavy Cannons ineffective since their mes couldn¡¯t disperse in time to eliminate the blood locusts. Rather than aiming for the blood locusts, it would be wiser to focus all fire on the broadback batfish.

    The panicking cannoneers steadied themselves and started taking aim at the broadback batfish.

    The usually calm Xiao Shan couldn¡¯t help but cry out, "They¡¯re frost locust grass! Don¡¯t let them near the defensive light screen!"

    Frost locust grass?

    It was everybody¡¯s first time hearing this name. While no one could tell how powerful they were, Xiao Shan¡¯s rare behavior worried them. Without hesitation, they wanted to engage whatever means they could.

    Sang Zhijun led the archers to shoot down the blood locusts, their arrows falling like rain.

    The blood locusts did not move fast and weren¡¯t considered agile. Those that were shot instantly exploded into balls of blood rays.

    Sky Edge¡¯s sword formation operated like spiraling capstans, instantly ripping the blood locusts into pieces.

    Balls of blood rays blossomed in the sky like beautiful flowers.

    A pity no one had the time to appreciate this stunning scenery.

    However, there were simply so many blood locusts that it was hard to imagine. How could the baskets behind the soldiers¡¯ backs possibly contain this many locusts?

    Boom!

    A broadback batfish mmed heavily onto the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s God-subduing Peak, causing its light screen to shake violently. Everyone on board jerked a little and some lost their bnce.

    The intense quake also affected the cannoneers. Their Beehive Heavy Cannon tilted and their cannons shot off-target.

    A few broadback batfish looked as though they were going to m onto the light screen. The thick vines hanging off the God-subduing Peak like metal chains hoisted up swiftly like a raised anchor, hitting one of them.

    The broadback batfish¡¯s huge body was flung off instantly.

    The suspending coarse vines rose up with an rming might and threw themselves toward the iing broadback batfish. The God-subduing Peak was like an ancient octopus rising out from the deep ocean, its durable and thick tentacles extraordinarily strong. Upon getting hit, the broadback batfish would fly over tens of meters away.

    The broadback batfish¡¯s astounding vitality was now clearly disyed, as no matter how far they were thrown off, they woulde right back up shortly. Not only weren¡¯t they afraid, they became agitated and attacked with more power and wildness.

    More than five batfish had already dodged the cannons. Without hesitation, Shi Xueman rose into the sky.

    Yang Xiaodong, Xiao Shan, and others followed closely after.

    When faced with such colossal blood fiends, ordinary elementalists could only deal little damage. Only Masters could block off their attacks.

    With his bow in a full moon, Jiang Wei released the bowstring, his arrows breaking the sky like light flowing and piercing the brain of a broadback batfish.

    Its brain exploded into a ball of blood mist. With the remaining momentum, the headless corpse mmed onto the God-subduing Peak¡¯s light screen, producingyers of ripples.

    Everyone¡¯s attention was on the broadback batfish, so the blood locusts took this chance to invade.

    A blood locustnded on the light screen.

    Sang Zhijun was preparing a shot when the blood locust on the light screen exploded with a p.

    What is this?

    Sang Zhijun was slightly taken aback.

    There was no remnant blood ray. Instead, there was a ball of grey mist above the light screen, which left a fist-sized ash spot. In the center, a small, greyish-white de of grass could clearly be seen.

    Frost locust grass... it¡¯s really grass!

    The elementalist controlling the God-subduing Peak cried out in rm, "It¡¯s absorbing the elemental energy from the defensive light screen!"

    Sang Zhijun turned pale.

    The light screen around the frost locust grass was thinning at a visible speed while the greyish-white grass was growing wildly.

    Sang Zhijun released her bow and a golden light struck the frost locust grass.

    The next scene changed Sang Zhijun¡¯s facepletely. p! The frost locust grass exploded, and like an exploded dye, it sttered everywhere. The next moment, many fine, greyish-white buds sprouted up.

    Pop pop pop!

    Another three blood locustsnded on the light screen and exploded instantly.

    In the blink of an eye, the light screen appeared to be covered in ayer of ugly, greyish-white moss.

    The frost locust grass was growing at an astonishing rate while frantically absorbing the light screen¡¯s elemental energy. The light screen around the grass was clearly thinner than other regions.

    "Don¡¯t let it bear fruit. It¡¯s like a dandelion!"

    Xiao Shan, who had just killed a broadback batfish, turned around to warn his teammates. He was filled with hatred at this point. While he knew about its special characteristics, he had limited knowledge when it came to dealing with this type of strange organism.

    Surveince¡¯s infiltration into God Nation hadn¡¯t been smooth, so they had limited information. God Nation hade up with all kinds of new species over these few years, and Surveince knew only names and general characteristics.

    Surveince¡¯s main focus and strength were still in Skyheart City.

    Xiao Shan bit his lips tightly. He wanted very badly to report everything to the division leader when this was over! To let him see the number of lives involved in each report.

    He turned his head and saw a wild broadback fish, whizzing like a small mountain peak while emitting an intimidating roar, diving toward him. It bore its white teeth and unpleasant-smelling saliva. It was exceptionally malevolent. The soldier from beast battalion had a crazy expression on his face, his eyes blood-shot while shouting frantically.

    Xiao Shan¡¯s gaze turned cold, his finger moving slightly.

    The space froze suddenly, as if ice had grown all over, rapidly swallowing the diving broadback batfish and the soldier from the beast battalion.

    The broadback batfish and beast battalion soldier were sealed in ayer of ice.

    The frozen space instantly cracked. Crash! It shattered into countless pieces and fell down the sky like a basin of blood rain.

    Sang Zhijun heard Xiao Shan¡¯s reminder. An image of dandelions¡¯ drifting seedlings floated into her mind, instanting turning her body cold.

    The frost locust grass on the light screen grew in numbers. It was a horrifying sight.

    Emergency!

    Sang Zhijun could clearly see that the number of spots on the light screen was increasing and that the screen was thinning rapidly. She knew that they had to stop the frost locust grass, or the screen would weaken and the broadback batfish would cause them heavy damage.

    She also noticed that blood elementalists with the Ability of God had appeared on the battlefield.

    The battle was intensifying.

    The enemy saw a chance to cut in and had dispatched a huge number of elites in hopes of breaking through their defense. Without its light screen, the God-subduing Peak would lose all its protection and they would bepletely exposed and vulnerable to the enemy¡¯s attacks.

    But... how would they get rid of the frost locust grass?

    Frost locust... grass?

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s mind clicked. This was a kind of grass that could swallow elemental energy!

    Recalling the explosion of the blood locust, she became more confident in her theory that the blood locusts were merely vehicles. If it¡¯s grass...

    Sang Zhijun immediately thought of something that could be useful.

    She turned around and searched. She quickly made a pile of stone eggs containing snowva by the fire reservoir!

    That¡¯s right, snowva!

    She spread her wings and like a quick and skillful bird, she flew out of the light screen with some snowva in hand.

    She stopped by the greyish-white spot, getting ready to break the stone shell.

    A dazzling arrow ray brushed across her cheek.

    Behind her, an elite blood elementalist opened his eyes wide. A bowl-sized wound could be seen on his chest.

    The enemy had already gotten so close?

    Sang Zhijun was shocked. She turned and saw Jiang Wei carrying his bow on the God-subduing Peak. His bowstring was still shaking and looking at her. She felt a tinge of warmth and calmness in her heart. She smiled toward him before retracting her gaze.

    She broke the stone shell cleanly and poured the clear, water-like snowva onto the greyish-white spot.

    Sss!

    The greyish-white smoke rose and formed a ball that surged endlessly. An indistinct face could faintly be seen howling in grief and unwilling to leave.

    Somehow, the surging greyish-white mist scared Sang Zhijun. She thought about the human face-like elemental traces on the blood tree trunks in the blood forest.

    After a short while, the greyish-white mist vanished with a p.

    Sang Zhijun suppressed her fear and looked toward the spot from earlier. The greyish-white spot had disappeared and the thinned light screen was gradually returning to its usual condition.

    She was overjoyed. Snowva was effective!

    Many people, including Jiang Wei, had been observing Sang Zhijun¡¯s actions and were now wild in joy, hurriedly searching for snowva.

    Suddenly, a energetic voice sounded, "Let me!"

    It was Venerable Volcano.

    He had been preparing snowva at the back, and upon hearing about the intense battle, he hurried over to provide assistance, coincidentally catching sight of Sang Zhijun using snowva to get rid of the greyish spots of the frost locust grass.

    Venerable Volcano flew out of the light screen. Without concealing his Master¡¯s base level, his overflowing might was like an erupting volcano. His body was covered in ayer of scarlet light rays, as if formed from snowva, which swept across the whole ce with visible heat waves.

    He retrieved the cbash on his belt, raising his head and drinking its contents in a gulp.

    He gave a pained expression. The snowva contained within had been meticulously made by him. The originally clear-as-water snowva carried a golden tinge now.

    Hu, a wisp of transparent me rose from over his head.

    Venerable Volcano took a deep breath, raising his head abruptly and opening his mouth.

    Boom!

    The dazzling, whitish-red light mes shot out from his mouth and into the sky like an erupting volcano.

    The zing me was like an enormous fire dragon, spiraling along the light screen of the God-subduing Peak. Wherever it passed, the greyish spots vanished.

    Venerable Volcano followed this pattern, and in the blink of an eye, the frost locust grass on the light screens of all three God-subduing Peaks were effectively destroyed.

    The elementalists started cheering.

    Upon losing the chance to attack, the blood elementalists abandoned the corpse-filled field and retreated like the tide.

 Chapter 615: The Invincibility of the Sword Embryo

    Chapter 615: The Invincibility of the Sword Embryo

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    When the secret of the lightning was finally presented before Ai Hui, Ai Hui felt that his breathing had stopped for a split second. That was an illusion. In his current state, he did not need to breathe at all.

    The silvery lightning within the golden light pir emitted a silvery light band. The silvery light band resembled the mysterious aurora that appeared in the night sky above freezing mountains.

    Following which, the silvery light band began to lengthen bit by bit like a shadow.

    Ai Hui widened his eyes and focused all his attention on the scene for the fear of missing out on any details.

    Inside the silvery light band, a mysterious ring slowly appeared before Ai Hui, looking as though it was flying out from the thick fog deep in a mountain.

    Five elemental ring!

    Ai Hui tried to suppress the ecstasy in him. He was right! Previously, he already had a hunch that the lightning might be a five elemental ring. However, when the structure of a five elemental ring really appeared in front of him, he could not help but feel excited.

    What would the structure of the lightning¡¯s five elemental ring be like?

    The glow of the five elemental ring became brighter and clearer. It was undting endlessly with brilliant, vibrant colors. It was as if the five elemental ring was previously covered by a light muslin and now the light muslin was removed, revealing a resplendent glow.

    Ai Hui was enthralled by it.

    He eximed in admiration numerous times in his heart. Such a magical structure!

    His previousprehension of Vitality Branches¡¯ profundity had benefited him in many ways. Vitality Branches were rings of life formed by the engenderment among the five elements, while lightning was a ring of destruction formed by the restrainment among the five elements. However, Ai Hui absolutely never expected that the core of lightning was actually made up of the water elemental energy on the ring of destruction!

    After thinking about it again, he realized that this was the most logical answer!

    Clouds gave rise to lightning. This was amon knowledge that even a child would know. Howe he had never thought of it? He wasn¡¯t the only one. Avalon of Five Elements had a history of over one thousand years, but no one had unraveled the secret of lightning. Was it possible that no one had thought of this?

    As Ai Hui thought deeper about it, he came to a realization.

    Vitality Branches were five elemental rings of life. Metal, water, fire, and earth elements were Yin and wood element alone was Yang. Its structure was extremely exquisite.

    Aspared to the Vitality Branches, the structure of lightning was rather simr, but it was moreplicated and marvellous!

    That was because it was made up of two five elemental rings!

    For the first five elemental ring, metal, wood, fire, and earth elements were Yin, while water element was Yang. For the second five elemental ring, metal, wood, fire and, earth elements were Yang, while water element was Yin. The two five elemental rings got tangled up in the air, resembling a pair of twins.

    Ai Hui was deeply fascinated by them. He had never seen such a profound and magical elemental energy structure before!

    It was at this moment that he understood why no one could decode the structure of lightning all these years. Most elementalists trained with just a single type of elemental energy. Only those who had reached a high level of cultivation coulde within the reach of the five elemental ring. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that Ai Hui had a unique master who used elemental traces to utilize elemental energy and break the barrier between every type of elemental energy, Ai Hui would not havee into contact with various mixtures of elemental energies andprehended the logic behind the five elemental ring.

    The fact that Lu Chen was able to create the Vitality Branches as a wood elementalist showed how intelligent and talented he was.

    The profundity of lightning, whose structure was much moreplicated and mystical than Vitality Branches¡¯, was far beyond mankind¡¯s imagination.

    If it weren¡¯t for the golden light from the God¡¯s blood, Ai Hui would not have pried into the profundity of lightning.

    His gaze was fixated on the two Yin Yang five elemental rings which were spiralling and got tangled with each other. He hadpletely lost track of the time.

    Suddenly, a beam of red light descended from the sky and engulfed the two spiralling five elemental rings.

    The two Yin Yang five elemental rings fused and transformed into a streak of silvery light that shot into the blood eye in the sky.

    Ai Hui returned to his senses.

    He looked slightly in daze. All he was thinking of was the two intertwined five elemental rings that spiraled untiringly. Honestly speaking, the elemental energy structure of lightning far exceeded what Ai Hui could imagine, dealing an extremely huge blow to him.

    He did not know how much understanding of elemental energy a Grandmaster had, but he did know that the fact that no one had unraveled the secret of lightning was an out-and-out truth.

    After having his vision engulfed by scorching golden white light, he returned to his senses.

    He was in a daze for a while before his excited mind calmed down gradually. Following which, an indescribable sense of fear gushed into his mind.

    The elemental energy structure of lightning wasplicated and borate, yet it was naturally mysterious. It had surpassed the limits of the current elementalists¡¯ understanding of elemental energy. However, even so, the lightning still could not withstand the golden light front the God¡¯s blood.

    Was the God¡¯s blood... really undefeatable?

    An intense fear flooded Ai Hui¡¯s mind, causing his body to shiver in fear.

    Had someone created a five elemental ring that was far moreplicated, borate, and powerful than the lightning¡¯s?

    Ai Hui could onlyugh bitterly to himself.

    After the golden glow devoured the lightning, it was only left with one enemy: the cloud of sword embryo that resided in Ai Hui¡¯s earth pce. If the cloud of sword embryo was devoured by the golden glow, his body would be filled with thetter entirely. Would he be a blood elementalist then?

    The bitter smile on Ai Hui¡¯s face widened. He treated the blood elementalists like an arch-enemy and yet he was bing one of them. What was more ironic than this?

    A sword chime erupted in his ears. The clear and crisp sword chime surged towards the golden light like a tidal wave.

    Alright, before he died, he wanted to see what the sword embryo looked like.

    Was this considered dying without regrets?

    He could not help butugh to himself again.

    Ai Hui became slightly excited. When he thought of the sword embryo, his interest was suddenly piqued. Aspared to elemental energy and five elemental ring, the sword embryo had existed for a longer time in Ai Hui¡¯s body. The sword embryo wasrgely responsible for the fact that he came out of Wilderness alive in the past. The sword embryo was powerful and mysterious. From the beginning, Ai Hui had been muddleheaded when it came to the sword embryo. Now, he was still muddleheaded over it.

    Ai Hui was filled with curiosity towards getting a sneak peek into the profundity of the sword embryo.

    He threw all his distracting thoughts to the back of his head and focused on observing the battle between the cloud of sword embryo and the golden light.

    Just like before, the golden light gathered on the cloud of sword embryo at the earth pce. The golden light pir that shone on the cloud of sword embryo became stronger and more concentrated.

    Like a tidal wave that was formed by countless swords, the cloud of sword embryo¡¯s power sword consciousness erupted every now and then. Fine, fragmented golden rays fell through the air like rustling, golden leaves while the sword consciousness flew in all directions like spindrift.

    The battle was much more intense than the previous one.

    The twopletely different auras of tyranny and chilliness shed into each other.

    Ai Hui did not dare to lose his focus. The battle between the Vitality Branches and the golden light pir did notst very long. Once the golden lightpletely engulfed its prey, its prey would notst very long. Therefore, a slight moment of distraction might cause him to miss the scene.

    Ai Hui widened his eyes and ced all his attention on the battle.

    Time passed by slowly.

    After an unknown amount of time had passed, Ai Hui began to feel that something wasn¡¯t quite right.

    What had gone wrong?

    Ai Hui did not know how to describe it. However, he felt that he was getting tired. Why was he getting tired? It was hard for him not to feel tired after focusing his attention for such a long period of time.

    He was stunned.

    A long... period of time...

    He suddenly understood what had gone wrong and he shifted his gaze to his earth pce. Then, he froze as he couldn¡¯t believe what he had just seen.

    The battle between the cloud of sword and the golden light did not change at all. It was still as intense as before.

    How much time had passed?

    It was very difficult for Ai Hui to urately keep track of the time in the blood eye¡¯s fantasnd. However, there was one thing he was sure of. The time that had passed so far had already surpassed the total duration for the two battles between the golden light and the Vitality Branches, and the lightning.

    Why was this so? Ai Hui felt incredulous.

    The cloud of sword embryo, which he thought was the weakest out of the three powers, could actually hold back the golden light. Until now, it had yet to show any signs of weakening.

    What was going on?

    Ai Hui was slightly puzzled.

    Wasn¡¯t this implying that the sword embryo and the God¡¯s blood were of the same level?

    Wait, the same level?

    Ai Hui could not help but look at his earth pce again. The battle between the two sides was still ongoing. It was as intense as before. Ai Hui widened his eyes once again and carefully observed the area surrounding the battle.

    That¡¯s right, the cloud of sword embryo did not show any signs of weakening.

    Ai Hui felt really confused. The sword embryo was so powerful that it could actually contend against the God¡¯s blood?

    How could his body possess something that could contend against the God¡¯s blood? Wrong, the question should be how was it possible that he had developed something so formidable?

    Ai Hui almost covered his head with his hands and groaned. What was going on?

    After a long period of time, Ai Hui finally epted this fact. And after another long period of time, Ai Hui was finally convinced that the cloud of sword embryo wasn¡¯t conceding to the golden light!

    Explosions continued to erupt from the intense collisions between the surging cloud of sword embryo and the golden light pir.

    Time passed by slowly and neither side showed any signs of fatigue.

    From the start, Ai Hui had been focusing all his attention on the battle. Eventually, he became numb. He even began to think about other questions. For example, how could he get out of the blood eye¡¯s fantasnd?

    From the look of it, it would take a very long time for the battle between the cloud of sword embryo and the God¡¯s blood to have an oue.

    Was it possible that he would be trapped here forever?

    However, Ai Hui realized that he couldn¡¯t do anything while he was standing in this red light pir.

    Who would be keeping watch over him at this point in time? It definitely had to be Lou Lan! Ai Hui thought to himself.

    When Ai Hui thought of Lou Lan, his heart was warmed.

    Suddenly, his mind jolted. Was it possible that Lou Lan had discovered his condition?

    Just like what Ai Hui had expected, Lou Lan had been watching over Ai Hui beside his bed all this time.

    At this moment, the red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes kept on flickering. He had finished recording every change that took ce in Ai Hui¡¯s body. Ai Hui¡¯s body had emitted a resplendent, green glow, flickering lightning streaks, surging sword consciousness, and the domineering yet familiar golden light.

    Lou Lan¡¯s conjecture was right. The Vitality Branches, sword cloud, lightning, and God¡¯s blood were having epic battles in Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Very soon, the green glow and the wood elemental aura disappeared. That was when Lou Lan knew that the Vitality Branches had been devoured. As the golden light intensified, the flickering lightning streaks began to dim as well. Eventually, the lightning streaks disappeared. At this moment, the golden light intensified even more. It was so intense that it looked as though it was going to shoot out from Ai Hui¡¯s body. Now the golden light of the God¡¯s blood had already upied an extremely huge portion of Ai Hui¡¯s body. Ai Hui¡¯s earth pce, where the cloud of sword embryo resided in, was the only portion that wasn¡¯t upied by the golden light.

    With his own eyes, Lou Lan witnessed how the surging sword embryo at Ai Hui¡¯s earth pce withstood the golden light.

    At this point in time, the tent was filled with the magnificent sword consciousness and a domineering aura. That was the fallout released from the intense battle between the cloud of sword embryo and the golden light in Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Sword embryo...

    Lou Lan suddenly dashed out of the tent.

    He hade up with a solution.

 Chapter 616: 10,000 Swords

    Chapter 616: 10,000 Swords

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    After the post-battle meeting ended, Shi Xueman crossed the windy bridge and walked towards Fish Bone.

    The battle today was unusually thrilling.

    The pride and arrogance brought by the previous victory had been crushed. The first thing Fatty did in the meeting was to apologize to everyone. Now that Fatty had thought about his risky action, he felt frightened. If it weren¡¯t for Sang Zhijun¡¯s solution to frost locust grass and the timely arrival of Venerable Volcano, the battle would have be a lot harder.

    Today, the blood elementalists had taught all of them a good lesson.

    Just when they thought the blood elementalists only relied on broadback batfishes, the blood elementalists used reality to show them that they were not the only ones with a trump card. The blood elementalists utilized a multi-pronged strategy. They used the broadback batfishes as a cover and prepared the frost locust grass behind it.

    They had to admit that the frost locust grass was extremely effective in the battle today. It had put the elementalists¡¯ defensive line to a gruesome test. If Sang Zhijun¡¯s solution had note as fast, or Venerable Volcano had arrived slightlyter, the enemy forces would¡¯ve been able to attack the God-subduing Peak directly.

    The battle today reminded them that even though the God-subduing Peak was powerful, it wasn¡¯t invincible.

    Fortunately, the enemy forces seemingly did not expect the frost locust grass to have such an outstanding result. Therefore, they were slow in providing reinforcements to their forces. If their experts and elite troops arrived earlier to provide reinforcements, the pressure on the elementalists would have increased sharply and the battle would have be more arduous.

    Everyone was discussing the enemy¡¯s potential strategies and their own counter strategies for tomorrow.

    The atmosphere of the meeting was very solemn. The situation that happened today had stricken fear into everyone.

    The Beehive Heavy Cannons also revealed their weaknesses today. Once the enemy forces got too close to them, their effectiveness would decrease. The scenario on the first day where the enemy forces charged towards them in a packed formation would never happen again. Today, the enemy¡¯s offensive routes were obviously nned with careful deliberation. They attacked from several directions to spread out the heavy cannon fire and greatly reduce the might of the Beehive Heavy Cannons.

    Fortunately, they were still able to ward off the enemy forces despite the risky situation.

    The atmosphere of the entire encampment was tense, but everyone¡¯s morale wasn¡¯t really affected.

    On the contrary, Shi Xueman was veryposed. There was a huge number of rookies in thebat division. Even those veterans did not participate in many major battles before. No one, including herself, had much experience, and there were many things that they needed to figure out on their own.

    Since ancient times, those renowned generals built up their reputations by winning battle after battle.

    Shi Xueman could clearly sense that everyone, including herself, was improving. This made her very happy, and she felt hopeful. She strongly believed that the hardships of the war were temporary and that the ultimate victory would belong to them.

    Her only worry was Ai Hui.

    After the meeting ended, she went and looked for him straightaway.

    Before she reached Ai Hui¡¯s tent, she saw Lou Lan instructing the Sword of Lightning¡¯s members to plunge numerous swords into the ground.

    It looked like some kind of sword formation.

    When she walked nearer, she could not help but ask curiously, "Lou Lan, what are you doing? How¡¯s Ai Hui?"

    "Xueman, we are setting up a sword formation," Lou Lan replied swiftly, "Lou Lan wants to see if this sword formation can help Ai Hui or not."

    Sword formation? Help Ai Hui?

    Shi Xueman was stunned momentarily. She was feeling slightly puzzled, but she did not disturb Lou Lan. She merely stood on one side and silently watched them work. Lou Lan had superb medical skills, and he must¡¯ve had his reasons for doing this.

    Like Shi Xueman, the members of Sword of Lightning were feeling curious as well.

    Lou Lan carefully carried Ai Hui out of the tent.

    When Shi Xueman saw Ai Hui, she could not help but feel shocked. An intense, golden light was emitting from Ai Hui¡¯s body. He looked as thought he had a sun inside his body.

    Such a domineering aura!

    Deep down, Shi Xueman was feeling astonished. The golden glow gave off an extremely domineering aura that she had never seen before.

    Shi Xueman could sense anotherpletely different aura. In Ai Hui¡¯s earth pce, there seemed to be many razor-sharp swords swimming around. They exuded a freezing aura that resembled the cold vapor from a ten-thousand-year-old ice.

    A shocking look appeared on faces of Sword of Lightning¡¯s members. All of them were swordsmen, so they clearly knew that this was sword aura. However, they had never seen such a concentrated sword aura.

    They felt as if they were in the middle of a sea of swords. The tidal waves on the sea¡¯s surface did not seem scary, but deep within the sea, there were actually countless surging swords!

    Hu Xuan stared nkly at Ai Hui.

    He definitely knew how formidable Boss was. He was won over by Boss¡¯s attainments of "Lightning Master" and "Master Swordsman". However, he did not expect Boss¡¯s understanding towards swordsmanship to have reached such a terrifying level!

    Was this... the so-called "sword consciousness" mentioned in those ancient books from the Cultivation Era?

    There were many debates over the topic of sword consciousness. Some exaggerated its existence, some described it as god-like, and some merely felt it was a misinformation and that it did not exist all.

    Gu Xuan did not know for sure whether or not was this the so-called sword consciousness. However, at this moment, he waspletely enthralled by this aura. The cold and pure aura made him felt as though the tip of a sword was being pressed against his be. Every strand on his body could not help but stand on end, yet he was indulging in this feeling. For someone who was passionate about swordsmanship, such a pure and cold sword aura was like a superbly excellent wind that caused them to have difficulty extricating themselves from it.

    Lou Lan carefully ced Ai Hui in the sword formation and his eyes began to flicker with a red glow.

    The sword formation was a very simple [Big Dipper Sword Formation]. Unity Swords were used to set up this sword formation. Back in the day, Blind He forged a batch of Unity Swords, and these were the reserves. Even though Unity Swords were very costly to forge, they could use them to set up the formation as time was running out and it was toote for them to forge new swords.

    The sword formation did not have any reactions.

    Within the sword formation, Ai Hui did not have any reactions either. The golden light within his body was very stable and the spiralling sword aura was the same as before. There did not seem to be any changes.

    One hour passed.

    Lou Lan had not moved, but the red glow in his eyes continued to flicker rhythmically.

    Shi Xueman sat down and looked nkly at Ai Hui with her chin resting on her hand. Her mind wandered off and one could not tell what she was thinking.

    Among the members of Sword of Lightning, only Gu Xuan remainedposed. The other members had worried looks on their faces.

    Until now, there were no reactions.

    Was it possible that this method did not work?

    Suddenly, an extremely soft vibrato rang across the air.

    Those who had sharp hearing jumped up. Shi Xueman stood up and stared at the sword formation. Simrly, the others were holding their breaths while staring at the sword formation.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes continued to flicker rhythmically.

    The Unity Sword nearest to Ai Hui was trembling slightly. The extremely soft vibrato was produced by it!

    It trembled so softly that one could not even see the motion. One might even mistaken it as a result of wind blowing it. The vibrato it produced was extremely soft as well. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that everyone was concentrating their attention very hard, they would not have heard it.

    There wasn¡¯t a single trace of wind.

    The Unity Swords began to tremble more and more violently, so much so that one could even see them trembling with naked eyes.

    The second sword began to tremble as well.

    Following which, the third, the fourth....

    The buzz from the Unity Swords could be clearly heard now.

    Gu Xuan widened his eyes in incredulity. He seemingly saw traces of fog-shaped aura seeping into Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Those were...

    No one could tell him what those traces of fog-shaped aura were. At this point in time, everyone, including Shi Xueman, was entirely enthralled by the sword formation.

    The buzz resembled the sound of a bee pping its wings rapidly.

    Every Unity Sword released a gentle glow. With the addition of the trembling motion, the Unity Swords formed streaks of blurry light. Gradually, the [Big Dipper Sword Formation] exuded a faint luster that engulfed Ai Hui.

    From total silence, the area was gradually filled with sword chimes. All this time, the sword chimes produced a chilliness that struck fear into everyone¡¯s hearts.

    The soaring sword chimes gathered into a deafening and resounding screech, resembling the cry of a crane.

    Shiiiiiiiiiiiiing!

    A cold and sharp sword gleam shed across everyone¡¯s eyes and disappeared.

    The glow and the sword chime disappeared. It was as if everything were back to normal and nothing had changed.

    Pfff. A soft, shattering sound echoed through the air.

    An Unity Sword suddenly shattered into a clump of fine powder and disappeared into the air like a wisp of smoke. Pfff, pfff, pfff. The rest of the Unity Swords shattered into fine powder and disappeared into the air as well.

    Even the sword hilts were reduced to fine powder too.

    Shi Xueman¡¯s gaze examined Ai Hui¡¯s body carefully. Following which, a tinge of joy appeared in her beautiful eyes. The golden light within his body remained the same; however, the surging sword aura around his body seemed to have intensified slightly.

    The increase in its intensity was extremely small. Ordinary elementalists would not have detected it, but it couldn¡¯t escape Shi Xueman¡¯s sharp eyes.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes stopped flickering as he yelled cheerfully, "Lou Lan has found a solution!"

    Lou Lan carefully carried Ai Hui back to his tent and then ran off like a gust of wind.

    As Shi Xueman looked at Lou Lan¡¯s back view, her lips curled in a smile and a tinge of hope appeared in her eyes. The heavy rock on her heart had been lifted off. She clenched the Cirrus in her hand tightly and left.

    She had to prepare for the battle tomorrow.

    ....

    All the cksmiths were told to stop what they were doing and gather. Due to Ai Hui¡¯s plunder along his way to the front line, the number of cksmiths they had now was terrifyingly huge. If one looked at them from afar, they looked like a dense and packed dark mass.

    Even though most of their levels were considered ordinary, their number still exceeded an rming 5,000. Only Skyheart City had such an enormous number of cksmiths, and this number was even inclusive of the Elder Guild¡¯s cksmiths.

    No one was willing to give Master-level cksmiths to Ai Hui, and there was nothing he could do about it. However, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t picky at all. He did not care about the base level of the cksmiths and swooped them all into his ranks.

    Because of the huge number of cksmiths that the Central Pine Faction possessed, they were able to speed up the forging process of the Beehive Heavy Cannons for the battle. And because of this robust level of forging process, they were able to churn out Beehive Heavy Cannons endlessly for the Pagoda Cannon Alliance to use for their daily training sessions.

    The cksmiths felt slightly puzzled. Everyone whispered to each other as they tried to find out what was going on.

    Their everyday schedules were fully packed and this was the first time they were being gathered like this. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the cksmiths here received excellent treatment and benefits, they would have suspected that they were going to be sent to the battlefield.

    After a while, Master He and Master Li arrived together.

    With both master weaponsmiths here, every cksmith immediately quieted down.

    Master He¡¯s facial expression remained as usual. All along, his face was cold and indifferent.

    However, the usually magnanimous Master Li looked very serious at this moment. He looked around and started talking with a stern voice.

    "Everyone, stop what you are doing now, we have received an emergency task."

    A slightmotion broke out, then someone yelled, "Do we have to stop making Beehive Heavy Cannons too?"

    "That¡¯s right!" Li Houtang had a solemn look on his face and his tone was resolute and decisive. "All the current tasks will be pushed back and we willplete this emergency task first."

    A cold shiver went down everyone¡¯s spines. From Master Li¡¯s tone, they knew that the task this time around was extremely important.

    A glint shed across Li Houtang¡¯s eyes as he instructed solemnly, "This time around, our task is to forge swords. From now onwards, everyone will begin to forge swords! The materials have already been prepared."

    Forge swords?

    Everyone was stunned as they scratched their heads puzzledly. Why did he need so many people to forge swords? Why did he need so many swords?

    Li Houtang did not exin further and dropped a bomb on them.

    "The target for the first batch of swords will be 10,000."

    After a moment of silence, the cksmiths broke out into amotion!

    The target for the first batch of swords was.... 10,000?

 Chapter 617: Experimenting With Sword Formations

    Chapter 617: Experimenting With Sword Formations

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Even though Mo Shaojun and his counterparts had not captured the defensive line, Helian Tianxiao still praised them and guaranteed them huge merits for this battle.

    Mo Shaojun¡¯s beast battalion suffered heavy losses and was crippled. He had a lot of blood elementalists left, but his broadback batfishes werepletely expended.

    However, Mo Shaojun was already prepared for this. Not only him, the other three division leaders were the same as well. Beast battalions were created to be sacrificed.

    The important thing was that they had to be sacrificed for a meaningful purpose.

    His strategy today had enlightened the others greatly. Solely depending on broadback batfishes wasn¡¯t enough to take down the defensive line. Instead, using a variety of methods would produce a better result.

    The usefulness of frost locust grass greatly exceeded their expectations. If they were adequately prepared, their battle result would¡¯ve been even better. On the other hand, they were also very surprised that the enemy forces were able to find a solution to the frost locust grass so fast. This proved that the enemy forces were well-trained and a force to be reckoned with.

    After the post-battle meeting, the four division leaders gathered and discussed about whether or not there were other methods other than frost locust grass.

    Mo Shaojun¡¯s facial expression had already returned to normal. He was an unfeeling individual. He wasn¡¯t feeling sad because of his injured and dead subordinates, but rather because he had made little headway against the enemy forces. At this point in time, he had returned to his senses and was actively giving ideas. He did not react negatively just because the next attack would be led by someone else.

    He clearly knew that only a victory would salvage everything.

    A defeat would render all sacrifices meaningless.

    Only Helian Tianxiao and Song Xiaoqian were left in the encampment of the God Wolf Division.

    Song Xiaoqian was reporting to Helian Tianxiao with a solemn look on her face. "We have scouted the vicinity 50 kilometers from here and picked six potential positions. However, we still need more time before we can decide on the final position."

    Helian Tianxiao nodded his head and smiled. "There¡¯s no hurry. Today our offense was rather effective. I¡¯m sure the enemy was startled."

    "I also didn¡¯t expect Mo Shaojun to achieve this level of sess. The effect of Sir transferring over the beast battalions is instant." Song Xiaoqian¡¯s lips curled into a smile as well.

    Helian Tianxiao broke into aughter. "Honestly speaking, I also didn¡¯t expect they would achieve this level of sess. I¡¯m looking forward to seeing what methods they will use tomorrow. I don¡¯t care whether their methods are effective or not, as long as they can maintain the pressure on the enemy forces and keep them distracted, I¡¯m fine with anything they do."

    "Sir is right," Song Xiaoqian agreed with Helian Tianxiao¡¯s words wholeheartedly.

    "You don¡¯t need to be so anxious; we still have time now. However, you have to ensure that you will only seed and not fail once the n is set in motion," Helian Tianxiao said with a deep and low voice.

    "I will definitely make an all-out effort for this battle! I will only live if I seed and I will seek death if I fail!" Song Xiaoqian bowed and replied solemnly.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s facial expression returned to normal as he continued, "Don¡¯t think that I¡¯m pressuring you. Right now, we are on the same boat. Victory is our only hope now."

    "Subordinate understands!" Song Xiaoqian replied resolutely.

    "Go."

    "Yes!"

    .....

    On a valley not far away from the forge.

    All the weeds and bushes in the valley had been cleared off, leaving nothing at all.

    He Huan had followed Gu Xuan to the valley. He looked around, feeling nervous. Was it possible that they had discovered his real identity? Were they going to kill him by bringing him to such a deste ce? He was racking his brain to find what he had done wrong to reveal his identity?

    Today, he suddenly received the Division Leader¡¯s order that he was sent to the rear to coordinate with Gu Xuan. The Division Leader¡¯s order to him was vague.

    Ever since he received this order, he had been feeling jittery. From the unusually intense battle today, one could imagine how intense the battle would be tomorrow. Therefore, he could not help but feel overly suspicious when he was suddenly transferred from the front line to the rear. Furthermore, the order was so vague.

    However, he had great restraint over his emotions. Even though he was feeling nervous deep down, he maintained hisposure on the surface.

    He noticed there were piles of swords on the empty valley. He feigned curiosity and asked, "Sir Gu, what are we here for?"

    Gu Xuan was the vice division leader of the Sword of Lightning, and his rank was higher than He Huan¡¯s. Therefore, He Huan had to address him as "Sir". Even though the Sword of Lightning had only a few hundred people, no one dared to underestimate them.

    "Actually, we need to experiment with various sword formations. However, Captain He should also know that even though we are swordsmen, we are not really familiar with sword formations. Therefore, I requested Lady Karakorum to send us a swordsman who is proficient in sword formations to help us set up sword formations. Lady Karakorum rmended Captain He to us. She praised Captain He for being a master in setting up sword formations. As such, we shamelessly requested Lady He to send Captain He to guide us," Gu Xuan said politely.

    He Huan heaved a sigh of relief in his heart. It turned out he hadn¡¯t exposed his identity.

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s praise for his proficiency in sword formations wasn¡¯t excessive. He Huan was one of the senior figures in the Karakorum Sword League. He was also one of the earliest swordsmen to join it. He had followed Karakorum Pris for a very long time and he did have an exceptional proficiency in sword formations.

    After having loosened up, He Huan¡¯s thought process came alive. However, he still had many doubts. Why would they transfer him over to set up sword formations when the war was in its climax now?

    "Sword formations? May I know what will the sword formations be used for?" He Huan asked puzzledly.

    "We are trying to find a suitable sword formation," Gu Xuan replied.

    "What is considered suitable?" He Huan was even more puzzled now.

    Gu Xuan shook his head and replied, "We still don¡¯t know yet, and that¡¯s why we need Captain He to set up every type of sword formation you know before we can find out which one is suitable."

    "Every type of sword formation?" Hu Huan was stunned.

    Even though Karakorum Pris had to manage the Sky Edge Division, she never stopped developing and studying sword formations, as she was determined topile a "swordsmanship encyclopedia". Not only her, but many people in Karakorum Sword League were doing the same thing. All of their sword formations had been recorded into the iplete Swordsmanship Encyclopedia.

    The number of types of sword formations in the Swordsmanship Encyclopedia kept on increasing every year.

    Up till now, there was an rming 1,600 types of sword formations recorded in the Swordsmanship Encyclopedia.

    Therefore, when He Huan heard Gu Xuan say "every type of sword formation", he was stunned.

    Gu Xuan had a serious look on his face. He emphasized again, "That¡¯s right! Every type!"

    When He Huan saw the piles of swords that were piled up like hills at the valley, he suddenly realized that Gu Xuan wasn¡¯t joking. These swords were obviously just forged not too long ago. Some were still giving off steam and some were not even polished.

    The sense of doubt in Gu Xuan became even stronger. He racked his brain and still couldn¡¯t figure out what these people were doing. Gu Xuan¡¯s words baffled him.

    When he saw the resolute look on Gu Xuan¡¯s face, he reminded him beforehand, "The newest version of Swordsmanship Encyclopedia has recorded more than 1,600 types of sword formations, but I can only remember over 900 of them."

    Gu Xuan nodded his head and replied, "Set up over 900 of them then! Thank you for your trouble, Captain He!"

    Gu Xuan felt slightly ashamed of himself.

    Taking a look at He Huan, he was also a swordsman, but he remembered over 900 types of sword formations!

    Gu Xuan himself could only remember over 10 types of sword formations. In the Sword of Lightning, his swordsmanship was second only to Ai Hui¡¯s.

    Upon hearing Gu Xuan¡¯s reply, He Huan replied bluntly, "I will need some help."

    "Including me, everyone in the Sword of Lightning will listen to Captain He¡¯smands. If it¡¯s not enough, I will go and call for some more people," Gu Xuan said.

    "It¡¯s enough, it¡¯s enough," He Huan said hurriedly.

    When He Huan had to carry out a task, he would be very meticulous and devote his heart and soul to it.

    Setting up 900 over types of sword formations was an extremely huge test even for him. He felt like he was taking a very difficult test. He had to go over every single detail from his memory, and this wasn¡¯t easy.

    Even though Gu Xuan and his counterparts were not familiar with sword formations, they could still identify sword formations that were set up wrongly.

    With the help from everyone in the Sword of Lightning, the process became faster than Hu Huan expected. Even so, it took them an entire night to finish setting up over900 types of sword formations.

    The sun rose up from the horizon. The previously empty valley was now filled with densely packed sword formations.

    Everyone was standing on the hignd beside the valley and looked down at the valley. Their hearts were filled with a sense of achievement. The weariness from working through the night seemed to have decreased significantly.

    Suddenly, someone yelled, "Look, there is a trace of mist!"

    Everyone stared hard at the valley. Indeed, a trace of faint, white-colored mist had appeared in the valley mysteriously. That trace of mist was extremely faint. However, its razor-sharp and cold aura could be clearly felt even from such a huge distance.

    The mist gradually became more concentrated. The bizarre thing was that its color kept on changing. It would be snow-white like an iceberg, red like the sunrise, light blue like the sky, and silvery like a sword.

    "Why does it look like the Silver Mist Sea?"

    "Now that you mention it, it does look a bit like the Silver Mist Sea."

    "What Silver Mist Sea? It¡¯s Sword Mist Sea!"

    When He Huan heard the excited conversations of the members from the Sword of Lightning, his brain began to work silently. Were they trying to recreate the Silver Mist Sea? But what was the point of doing that? Sword Mist Sea?

    He could note up with a reasonable exnation. The magical sight in the valley in front of him did startle him. He also realized that the densely packed sword formations in the entire valley were set up using approximately 10,000 swords.

    10,000 swords implied that an enormous amount of manpower and resources were utilized.

    When they were setting up the sword formations, bundles of swords were being delivered to the valley endlessly. It was obvious that these swords were just recently taken out of the furnace. Some of them were still giving off a red glow.

    These many sword formations could only bepleted with an abundance of manpower and resources.

    Perhaps only this group of people could squander their resources like this.

    He Huan felt that they were squandering their resources. He could not think of a reason for them to do so.

    Even though He Huan did not know what they are trying to do, he still asked casually, "If you want to increase the power of the sword formations, why don¡¯t we carry out blood imbuement?"

    Upon hearing He Huan¡¯s words, Gu Xuan quickly asked, "What is blood imbuement?"

    "This is a discovery that we made while we are studying the ancient sword formations. It¡¯s actually not very hard to understand. I think everyone has seen it in various ancient records before. A sword that has not tasted blood before usually does not have any aura of death. A flying sword from the Cultivation Era has to depend on its owner¡¯s nourishment and the enemies¡¯ blood to enhance day by day," He Huan exined.

    "That¡¯s right, there are indeed such records. We can give it a try." Gu Xuan nodded his head.

    However, when he cast a nce at the valley, he became vexed. "There are so many swords, where can we find so much blood for them?"

    When He Huan thought about the number of swords in the valley, he also felt that his idea was indeed absurd. He quickly said, "Without blood channelling, even though the sword formations will be weaker, they still can be used."

    And this moment, the morning sun had risen. A streak of sunlight shone through a gap on the mountain peak into the valley.

    The streak of sunlight bounced to and from the swords in the valley continuously. All of a sudden, the valley became brighter.

    The swords in the valley looked like a forest and the mist was moving even though there wasn¡¯t a single trace of wind. An extremely sharp aura soared to the sky, causing everyone to take a step back involuntarily. A deafening sword chime resounded through the air as the countless swords broke free from the ground and flew around the inside of the valley. Under the illumination from the sunlight, the flying swords resembled sparkling shoals of fishes. They were extremely nimble and turbulent, looking as if they wanted to shred even the sunlight.

    Upon witnessing such a magnificent sight, everyone quieted down in unison.

 Chapter 618: Sword Mist

    Chapter 618: Sword Mist

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Hu Huan returned to the Sky Edge Division with his mind filled with doubt.

    Lou Lan carried Ai Hui to the valley.

    Gu Xuan carried something unknown in his hands and hurriedly arrived at the valley as well.

    He exined, "Didn¡¯t Captain He say that the sword formations would perform better with blood imbuement? Just now I went to the front line and saw many corpses of broadback batfishes. I brought some back so that we try using them for the blood imbuement. There shouldn¡¯t be any problem if we try it on just one sword formation, right?"

    Gu Xuan looked at Lou Lan with an uncertain look on his face.

    "We can give it a try, Lou Lan is also not sure. Try it at thest sword formation." Lou Lan nodded his head.

    Gu Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. He was scared that his well-intentioned action might cause trouble.

    This time around, they wanted to find out which type of sword formation woud help Ai Hui the most. Right now, Ai Hui¡¯s body was only left with two powers, the God¡¯s blood and the sword embryo. They had to help Ai Hui defeat the God¡¯s blood.

    Previously, the [Big Dipper Sword Formation] had proven that Lou Lan¡¯s idea was useful. Now they were trying to find which one would help Ai Hui the most. Gu Xuan and his counterparts found out that the difference between the amount of help that every sword formation provided to Ai Hui was very small.

    However, the amount of help provided by every sword formation was already very small. Therefore, the difference was actually quite significant. They wanted to find a sword formation that produced the best effect and consumed the least number of swords. After all, every sword formation needed a huge amount of resources and manpower to build.

    They wanted to help Ai Hui as much as possible while optimizing the manpower and resources.

    The clever Lou Lan was able to convince everyone.

    Lou Lan carried Ai Hui and carefully ced him in the center of the valley.

    Following which, he quickly returned to the mountain ridge beside the valley. His eyes flickered with a red glow as he carefully observed and recorded every change taking ce in the valley. In his body, the operating speed of his Midnight sand core kept on increasing.

    Everyone else was holding their breaths. They did not even dare to breathe too loud as they stared at Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was lying silently on the valley floor. Above him, there was mist drifting and countless swords flying.

    Time seemed to have frozen at this moment.

    Everything looked unusually silent, so much so that it made one flustered.

    Did it not work?

    An anxious look appeared on some members¡¯ faces. They had worked throughout the night and had high expectations for these sword formations.

    Those timid members could not help but close their eyes, not daring to see what will happen.

    Inside the blood eye¡¯s fantasnd, Ai Hui was startled.

    The battle between the sword embryo and the God¡¯s blood remained the same as before. The battle was still as intense as before and it did not show a single sign of abating. However, as time passed, Ai Hui began to feel numb.

    He couldn¡¯t do anything.

    Previously, there were a few traces of sword consciousness that entered the fantasnd to supplement the sword embryo.

    Ai Hui knew it was definitely Lou Lan thinking of a solution for him. However, it was obvious that the effect was very small. Both the God¡¯s blood and the sword embryo were colossi that were terrifyingly powerful. Their powers far surpassed Ai Hui¡¯s knowledge. Even the lightning wasn¡¯t their match. Hence, one could tell how powerful they were.

    The more powerful, pure, and high level a power was, the more difficult it was for it to be supplemented and strengthened.

    The few traces of sword consciousness that supplemented the sword embryo were really too weak. It was simr to adding a bowl of water to ake,pletely pointless.

    Ai Hui himself also could not think of any solutions to help the sword embryo.

    Just the thought of needing to find a power that was of the same level as the God¡¯s blood was enough to make him feel despair.

    However, at this moment, Ai Hui felt something enter his body and he was startled.

    Very soon, he noticed that it was an extremely weak trace of sword aura. He shook his head as it wasn¡¯t helpful to the situation at all.

    Another trace of sword aura entered his body. Two traces, three traces...

    Eh?

    Ai Hui was stunned. An endless amount of sword aura was entering the earth pce where the sword embryo resided in.

    This amount... doesn¡¯t seem right...

    Meanwhile, on the mountain ridge, the Sword of Lightning¡¯s members were looking at another scene.

    After experiencing a moment of silence, a deafening sword chime rang through the air and awakened everyone.

    A smile appeared on Gu Xuan¡¯s face. The first sword that produced the sword chime belonged to the sword formation which he added the broadback batfish¡¯s flesh to.

    However, the next moment, he did not have the time to think about it anymore.

    It sounded as if a rainstorm had suddenly arrived.

    Concentrated sword chimes gathered and exploded in the valley like a powerful current.

    One could not describe how intimidating the sound produced bybining sword chimes from 10,000 swords together was!

    The Sword of Lightning¡¯s members on the mountain ridge felt their ears buzz while their bodies turned numb. A wave of chilliness rose from their tailbones, causing them to tremble involuntarily. The elemental energy in their bodies ran amok, resembling a headless fly that was flying all over the ce.

    One by one, the members of Sword of Lightning had their faces turned white as they fell to the ground.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s face turned slightly pale as well. He felt as though there was a paper-thin de cut across his brain. Every strand of hair on his body was standing on end, looking as if a streak of static electricity had flitted across his skin.

    Unlike the other members that fell to the ground, he forcibly held his ground and stared at the valley.

    He felt slightly worried. Could Boss endure such powerful and scary sword aura?

    Every sword that was inserted into the ground of the valley began to rise into the air, and traces of mist were emitting from them. Everything happening in the valley now defied Gu Xuan¡¯s rationality.

    Every trace of mist was pure sword aura.

    The swords that had lost their sword auras began to crumble like rotten wooden blocks. Eventually, all of them were reduced to ashes.

    Under everyone¡¯s attentive gazes, the 10,000 swords crumbled at the same time. The scene of them crumbling to ashes had an extraordinary power that grasped Gu Xuan¡¯s mind tightly. He was feeling fearful and hopeful at the same time.

    Such an epic scene!

    When thest sword turned into ashes, the spiralling traces of mist almost covered the entire valley. They did not produce any sound and they were spiralling silently. However, Gu Xuan felt as if a formidable dire beast was staring at him, causing his body to tighten. There was nowhere he could run to. Following which, a strong sense of danger engulfed his mind. He did not doubt the fact that those spiralling, gentle-looking traces of mist in the valley could easily shred him to pieces.

    When he was young, he went to the Silver Mist Sea.

    The thick mist that engulfed the Silver Mist Sea was silvery and sparkling, looking extremely spectacr.

    However, the mist of Silver Mist Sea had never caused him to feel so fearful like now.

    The spiralling traces of mist in the valley were like a cold, razor-sharp, and ruthless beast.

    Thump, thump, thump...

    Gu Xuan felt his mouth go dry. He could not help but say, "There seems to be a sound."

    "It is Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo, it is beating," Lou Lan said.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes was flickering at a terrifying speed.

    Gu Xuan did not notice that Lou Lan¡¯s current tone waspletely different from his usual tone. At this point in time, his tone was mechanical and cold without any emotions.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s attention was ced entirely on Lou Lan¡¯s words. The sword embryo was beating? He could not help but ask with a pleasant surprise, "So it¡¯s working?"

    "Yes, it¡¯s working."

    Just as Lou Lan finished his sentence, the mist in the valley began to change.

    The previously spiralling mist suddenly began to surge violently. The color and shape of the mist started to change continuously. Eventually, traces of mist that were of various colors and shapes were formed.

    The traces of mist surged more and more violently, resembling a wild beast that was frantically struggling for its life after getting caught in a trap.

    No matter how hard they struggled, they still could not break free. The traces of mist looked as if they were firmly trapped by an invisible.

    Thump, thump, thump. The sound of the sword embryo palpitating became louder and clearer. It sounded like someone was beating a drum in the mist. At the same time, it also sounded like a dire beast that was waking up from its ten-thousand-year slumber.

    Gu Xuan¡¯s mouth became more and more dry.

    As time passed, the traces of mist that engulfed the valley began to thin.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body appeared in everyone¡¯s vision once again.

    Thump, thump, thump. The thumping of the sword embryo sounded as if it was right beside everyone¡¯s ears, unusually clear and powerful.

    This time around, everyone could see what was going on clearly.

    Every time the sword embryo palpitated, a trace of mist would be absorbed by Ai Hui¡¯s earth pce and the mist that engulfed Ai Hui would thin by a bit.

    Gu Xuan felt that it wasn¡¯t an illusion. The remaining traces of mist seemed to know their fate. They kept on struggling, but they still couldn¡¯t break free from the invisible force that was confining them.

    The sword embryo seemed to have an extraordinary power of dominion over the sword aura.

    Gu Xuan was fascinated and envious at the same time. Boss had taught them the method of forming a sword embryo before, but none of them had seeded in doing it. They already felt that the remnant chapter on cultivating a sword embryo was like a profound heavenly book which could not be understood, let alone cultivating one.

    They knew every single word in the remnant chapter, but they could not understand them when they strung them together.

    Boss also did not know how to exin its profundity to them.

    Even a foolish person could sense how powerful the sword embryo was.

    When the sword embryo finished absorbing thest trace of the mist, it gradually quieted down.

    Everything seemed to be back to normal.

    Ai Hui lied silently in the center of the valley. Intense, golden light continued to emit from his body. The aura spiralling around his sword embryo was sharp like a sword.

    The valley was filled with densely packed, small holes. They were left behind by the sword formations that had reduced to ashes.

    Did it not work?

    Gu Xuan looked slightly disappointed. After witnessing the epic scene just now, he thought that Ai Hui would definitely wake up this time around. He did not expect they would fail again.

    The flickering red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes calmed down gradually.

    Lou Lan¡¯s cheerful voice broke the silence.

    "Lou Lan found it!"

    .....

    The forge was bustling with activity and brightly lit, illuminating the night sky.

    Newly forged swords were being taken out from the furnace in a seemingly endless stream.

    All the cksmiths were filled with fatigue.

    "Insane! I thought we had justpleted ten thousand swords. Now they want one million swords!?"

    "Damn it! Is he eating the swords?"

    "Eating the swords? Who the hell can finish eating ten thousand swords in a night?"

    "What the hell is going on? Even if he wants to squander his wealth, he shouldn¡¯t do it in this way!"

    "Damn it! Whoever asks me to forge a sword in the future, he or she better get out of my sight!"

    "That¡¯s right! I think I will puke if I see another sword!"

    "Aaaaaah, someonee and save me!"

    "No one can save you!" A cold voice suddenly broke out behind everyone¡¯s backs.

    To everyone¡¯s surprise, it was Master He. They did not know when Master He had appeared behind them, and they immediately kept quiet.

    Blind He snorted and left. After he was 30 meters away from the other cksmiths, he could not help but produce a mutter.

    "Who cane and save me?"

 Chapter 619: Ripened

    Chapter 619: Ripened

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Skyheart City, Lake of Masters.

    The Lake of Masters, which usually had tight security, looked as if it was preparing for a formidable enemy today. Theyers of guards that surrounded theke were like steel walls, rendering theke impregnable. All the important figures of Skyheart City were gathered here today.

    Madam Ye was standing on thekeside. She had a calm and tranquil look on her face, looking no different from her usual self. Only a right-hand man like Nian Tingfeng would know she was suppressing her emotions.

    Master¡¯s Glory, which they had spent so many years to carry out, consumed countless amount of resources and manpower, and triggered numerous debates, had finally ripened.

    Nian Tingfeng knew how much Madam Ye had sacrificed for Master¡¯s Glory.

    From the beginning until now, Master¡¯s Glory had faced countless objections and criticisms. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that Madam Ye actively promoted it with an unparalleled persistence, it wouldn¡¯t have made it today.

    With regards to this point, Nian Tingfeng had nothing but respect for Madam Ye. How sessful would the Master¡¯s Glory be? Could it really produce Masters? Even if it did produce Masters, what would the strength of the Masters be like?

    No one knew the answers to these questions.

    Madam Ye was willing to ce all her chips on an unknown future. All this time, she did not hesitate and her persistence did not waver. How many men actually possessed such determination and decisiveness?

    Madam Ye might have done some scandalous things, but she also did some things that won people over.

    Those who were invited today were the higher-ups of Skyheart City. Some were Elders from the Elders Guild and some were the family heads of aristocratic families. Every single reputable individual from Skyheart City was invited.

    Different people had different reactions to this event. Some were feeling excited, some were feeling doubtful, some remained silent, and some were whispering to each other.

    Madam Ye had a panoramic view of everyone¡¯s facial expressions. A tinge of indifference and disdain appeared in her eyes.

    How would these mediocre individuals understand that today was the beginning of a new era?

    She noticed that Ma Shiji¡¯s body had frozen. She smiled and consoled him, "Shiji, don¡¯t be anxious. I invited them here to join in the fun. Even if today isn¡¯t the day, so what? They have toe if I ask them to."

    Ma Shiji forced a smile as beads of perspiration appeared on his forehead unwittingly.

    He was indeed feeling nervous. ording to his estimation, today was the day that the five elemental lotus seed heads ripened. However, he did not expect Madam Ye to invite so many people to attend this event. Therefore, he was feeling extremely nervous. He did not dare to think of the consequences if he miscalcted the date and embarrassed Madam Ye,

    Madam Ye smiled and shifted her gaze to the enormous five elemental lotus seed heads on theke. The glow of the five elemental lotus seed heads was flickering, dousing theke in a myriad of brilliant colors. It was extremely beautiful.

    Suddenly, Nian Tingfeng gasped in surprise and looked at the center of theke.

    A bright glow appeared in his eyes all of a sudden.

    "Official Nian, have you discovered anything?" Madam Ye asked.

    The bright glow in Nian Tingfeng¡¯s eyes disappeared and he withdrew his aura. With a respectful tone, he replied, "Madam, congrattions."

    Just as he finished his sentence, the garish glow over theke disappeared all of a sudden, bing pitch-ck. It resembled a bottomless abyss that trapped light.

    The 25 enormous five elemental lotus seed heads looked as if they were on a ne of darkness.

    All the conversations came to an end spontaneously.

    All of them looked fearful as they realized that the surrounding elemental energy was mysteriously frozen. Those slightly weak elementalists discovered that they couldn¡¯t channel the elemental energy in their bodies. It was as if their bodies had been frozen. They could neither move nor produce any sound at all.

    This phenomenon came suddenly and left suddenly. In the blink of an eye, everyone was back to normal.

    At this moment, no one was talking and everyone had a bewildered look on their face. What had just happened? Were the Masters produced by Master¡¯s Glory... really that powerful? The momentary disy of might just now had unsettled the critics of Master¡¯s Glory.

    A flush appeared on Ma Shiji¡¯s haggard face, looking as though he was drunk.

    He restrained his excitement and bowed politely. "Madam, please move to thekeshore."

    Madam Ye nodded her head reservedly and walked to thekeshore with an elegant pace.

    Ma Shiji continued, "Madam, please use your essence blood to wake the Masters up."

    Without saying anything, she reached out her snow-white arm and a sharp, exquisitely-made dagger appeared in her other hand. Following which, she pressed the dazzling de of the dagger on her tender arm and a drop of bright-red blood seeped along the de.

    Soon, a glistening trail of blood flowed down her white and wless arm. The scene contained an indescribable yet enchanting sense of beauty.

    There was an abnormal calmness on Madam Ye¡¯s face, exuding an awe-inspiring aura of might.

    Her blood dripped into theke.

    Madam Ye seemed to have heard a murmur that sounded familiar and strange at the same time. She looked slightly startled. When she listened carefully, she couldn¡¯t hear anything. Her beautiful, limpid eyes seemed to be covered with ayer of mist at that instant, bing blurred and distant.

    After a while, she moved her cherry lips gently and said softly, "Xiaobao, wake up."

    Burble.

    One of the five elemental lotus seed heads gave off a soft, bubbling sound. Suddenly, the outeryer of the lotus seed head exploded into smithereens, resembling the process of a flower blossoming. The top-half body of a familiar-looking young man was revealed.

    When Madam Ye saw the familiar face, her petite body trembled as she lost control of her emotions. "Xiaobao!"

    The top-half naked young man slowly opened his eyes. The dull look that used to reside in his eyes had disappeared and was reced by a crystal-clear, sparkling one. In his eyes, one could not see the slightest tinge of warmth except for chilliness and indifference.

    Xiaobao looked as if he had be apletely different person. Other than the shape of his face, he hadn¡¯t really changed much. His body had be perfect and without blemish, resembling the masterpiece of an outstanding sculptor.

    A bright, colorful light band was spiralling around his body. Metal, fire, wood, water, and earth. It was a five elemental ring!

    Burble, burble, burble.

    Soft bubbling sounds echoed through the air. One by one, the outeryers of the lotus seed heads exploded like flowers blossoming.

    Human figures appeared before everyone¡¯s eyes.

    Thekeside was dead silent and the air seemed to have frozen. Not even a trace of breeze was present.

    The naked figures standing on the lotus seed heads were giving off an indescribable aura of might.

    All of their bodies were different but perfect. Every detail of their bodies looked as if they were meticulously carved out by a master sculptor. Their eyes were limpid and sparkling, exuding indifference and chilliness as well.

    Some people began to lick their lips nervously, but most people had their bodies turned frozen with fear.

    Including Nian Tingfeng.

    He had never seen such a bizarre scene where there were a few hundred people that looked somewhat simr to each other. He strongly felt that they were clones, even though they weren¡¯t.

    They looked too simr to each other!

    They were definitely different in terms of height. However, their mannerisms, auras, ice-cold gazes, wless bodies, and spiralling five elemental rings made them looked like they were clones.

    He had met many people that had simr mannerisms to each other. For example, every soldier that was from the Surveince Division usually had simr mannerisms. This applied to the other two central divisions as well. However, this group of people had exactly the same mannerisms.

    A cold shiver went down Nian Tingfeng¡¯s spine and a sense of fear arose in his heart. He did not dare to think too much.

    All of the Masters standing on the lotus seed heads opened their palms and shook their hands gently. The five elemental rings that spiralled around their bodies entered the backs of their palms and transformed into thumb-sized fire elemental ring imprints.

    Their movements were neat and uniform, looking as if they were the same person.

    Madam Ye stared nkly at Xiaobao. Xiaobao¡¯s gaze was cold without any emotions. She could sense a faint trace of telepathic connection between her and Xiaobao.

    "Congrattions, Madam! Congrattions!"

    Madam Ye returned to her senses. Ma Shiji¡¯s facial expression was extremely agitated.

    Ma Shiji quickly continued, "I have counted just now. We have nurtured a total of 316 Masters! It¡¯s so much better than we expected! Thest time Madam came here, there were 44 out of 360 people that failed! At that time, we made a conservative estimation and concluded that it will be a great sess if we could nurture 200 Masters. But now we have actually nurtured 316 Masters! Congrattions, Madam! Congrattions!"

    Madam Ye¡¯s facial expression returned to normal and she smiled. "All the credit goes toShiji! For the sake of Master¡¯s Glory, you have racked your brain and worked your heart out. I can see for myself how hard you have worked. Shiji, I will reward you ordingly!"

    Ma Shiji quickly shook his head and replied with gratitude, "If it weren¡¯t for Madam¡¯s recognition of my worth, I don¡¯t know where I would¡¯ve ended up in this world. Subordinate can only repay Madam¡¯s kindness of recognizing my worth by sacrificing my life toplete the heavy responsibility that Madam gave me!"

    Madam Ye smiled with satisfaction. "We will talk about the rewardster. It¡¯s definitely not right for me to not reward you handsomely for your iparable meritorious service. Right now, I want you to introduce our Masters to everyone."

    "Words mean nothing without actions. Why not Madam let one of the Masters put up a demonstration?" Ma Shiji replied politely.

    "Ma Shiji is right." Madam Ye nodded her head.

    She turned around and raised her voice and asked, "Is there anyone who wants to spar with one of the Masters? If you win, I will reward you with three elemental elixirs!"

    Amotion broke out among the onlookers.

    Elemental elixirs were extremely rare nowadays. One could not buy them even if he or she had the wealth to do so. Therefore, when Madam Ye forked out three elemental elixirs as the reward, many people were tempted by it.

    "Madam, may I know what type of elemental elixirs you are offering?" someone yelled.

    Madam Ye was in a good mood and she did not get angry. She smiled and replied, "Any type you want."

    Immediately, all the onlookers became excited.

    "Madam, I am willing to give it a try," a middle-aged man stood out and said respectfully.

    When everyone saw clearly who this man was, all of them quieted down immediately. This man exuded a mighty aura and his face was awe-inspiring. One could tell that he was a powerful individual.

    Zhong Houjun was currently the most powerful expert in the Zhong Residence. Even though the aristocratic families no longer possessed the prestige and power they used to have and the Zhong Residence had been in a decline for quite some time, they were still very powerful.

    Zhong Houjun used to be the vice division leader of the Infantry Division, and he was supposed to be the next division leader. However, after the appearance of the Silver Soldier, not only did he lose the position of vice division leader, his Zhong Residence also went into a decline.

    Many people knew that Zhong Houjun was filled with resentment and anger.

    When everyone saw Zhong Houjun volunteer himself, they knew that there was going to be a good show, so all of them shut their mouths.

 Chapter 620: Flash Kill

    Chapter 620: sh Kill

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Madam Ye wasn¡¯t surprised to see Zhong Houjun¡¯s appearance. With a slight smile she said, "You¡¯re brave indeed, able to take on huge responsibilities. Just this courage alone is rare in this world."

    She turned around and looked toward theke. "General Zhong¡¯s abilities surpass many. Who¡¯s going to go against him?"

    The audience remained quiet, as if they hadn¡¯t heard her question.

    Xiaobao¡¯s face was like a block of perpetually frozen ice, his crystal clear eyes motionless. "Gui Hu, go."

    "Yes!"

    A light flow rose from theke andnded before the audience.

    Zhong Houjun¡¯s pupils shrank a little.

    Gui Hu was robust and valorous. Every part of his steel-like flesh tangled together like pythons. As he casually extended his body, his muscles wiggled like a group of snakes, erasing all doubts about the explosive power contained within. It was even stranger that while there was definitely a slight light flow revolving around his body, there was no overflowing elemental energy waves at all.

    Zhong Houjun was bewildered.

    He knew that Gui Hu was born into a small family and was very average in terms of giftedness. Now, however, his every movement was perfected, as if he was an entirely different person. His eyes, especially, were devoid of warmth, and Zhong Houjun felt his heart turn cold.

    Not only him, but every other witness kept quiet out of fear.

    They hadn¡¯t felt anything observing from afar, but when Gui Hu came closer, a shockingly suffocating pressure followed, as if thousands of clouds were pressing down on their heads and clogging up their chests. Masters with a keener perception felt an extreme sense of danger radiating out of Gui Hu.

    Was Master¡¯s Glory really that great?

    Zhou Houjun was very experienced. He quickly steadied his heart and calmed himself down.

    His request to enter war wasn¡¯t an impulsive decision.

    Madam Ye showed no relent toward aristocratic families. Many illustrious aristocratic families from the past were now dispirited and listless. The Zhong family only escaped because they kept a low profile and exercised restraint. With regard to his dismissal as the Infantry Division¡¯s assistant leader, Zhong Houjun had noints. Nevertheless, he was very clear that if he did not prove his worth for a prolonged period of time, he would quickly be forgotten.

    He had to disy his value, be it to Madam Ye or to Blood of God.

    The g could stay still, but it must be utilized.

    Zhou Houjun called out politely, "Please!"

    Even thosecking intelligence understood that these victors of Master¡¯s Glory would be Madam Ye¡¯s true henchmen. These young "Masters" would quickly enter the stage and have an iparably bright future ahead of them.

    Toward Zhong Houjun¡¯s politeness Gui Hui remained unmoved.

    "Kill him."

    The cold voice traveled from the heart of theke. It was Xiaobao.

    Zhong Houjun¡¯s face changed. The surrounding faces turned ugly quickly and a wisp of anger surfaced. It was merely apetition and yet he¡¯d called for Gui Hu to kill Zhong Houjun! Many were determined to teach these ignorant little fellows a lesson!

    As Xiaobao¡¯s voice fell, Gui Hui moved.

    The calm before the storm!

    Zhong Houjun only felt himself being blinded as Gui Hui instantly appeared before him.

    So fast!

    Zhou Houjun¡¯s eyes twitched. He dared not slow down at all, and with a push of his palm, an elemental energy wave exploded like a windstorm, flowing all over the whole ce.

    The elemental energy transformed into bells that enveloped his whole body and circted unceasingly. They were shaped simply, being narrow on top and wide at the bottom, and they were filled with seals of birds and flowers.

    [Loud Chime Bell]!

    Even if though Zhong residence was still far from being as powerful as the Ling residence, it had profound inherited traditions. [Loud Chime Bell] was the Zhong residence¡¯s most well-known absolute art, named after its admirably resonating chime. It was said that the Zhong residence¡¯s ancestors had a different surname and only changed it to "Zhong" after inventing [Loud Chime Bell].

    (Chinese surname Zhong means "bell" in English.)

    The Infantry Division was known for its powerful defense. Among its many absolute arts, [Soldier], which only the division leader was allowed to practice, was the only artparable to [Loud Chime Bell]. Even in the Avalon of Five Elements, [Loud Chime Bell] remained as one of the most powerful absolute arts.

    Its only weakness was its attacking power.

    Everyone felt relieved upon seeing Zhong Houjun execute [Loud Chime Bell]. He had good control and was a Master. His elemental energy was so profound and consistent that no one present had confidence in breaking through its defense.

    Xiaobao¡¯s ruthlessness and coldness infuriated respective aristocratic families. They had already been put in order by Madam Ye and were feeling resentful. Now that this newborn "Master" was publicly demanding a life, the aristocratic families were convinced that they had to teach him a lesson and kill off their arrogance, or they would have a hard time living from now on.

    It was rare for everyone to have a mutual enemy.

    Amid the shadow, Gui Hu remained expressionless. He seemed lifeless, like a puppet that only knew how to kill.

    He made a fist with his right hand and a stream of elemental energy and light flow appeared around his wrist.

    Metal, wood, water, fire, earth... five elemental ring!

    Following immediately were many five elemental rings that circled around his arm.

    Nine Five Elemental Rings overflowing with light wrapped around Gui Hu¡¯s right arm. Without a sign, the elemental energy surged violently upward. Like a fierce tiger that had just been released, it roared and growled, brimming with ferocity.

    Zhou Houjun¡¯s face changed.

    Before he could react, Gui Hui waved his fist.

    His fist carried a stream of light flow that resembled the brightly-colored eyes of a ferocious tiger that was ready to kill. Itnded solidly on the big chime bell.

    ng!

    A deep, reverberating sound boomed in everyone¡¯s ears, causing a temporary hearing loss.

    Inside of the bell, Zhong Houjun appeared distracted, but he quickly regained focus! He steadied the surging qi and blood within his body. When he saw the bell¡¯s body clearly before him, his pupils shrank once again. Above the bell was a... a crack!

    How... how could it be?

    He couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. He had never ever seen a crack appearing on the bell.

    ng!

    Yet another punchnded on that crack.

    Gui Hui¡¯s fist did not seem very fast. It wasn¡¯t as fast as lightning, since each punch could clearly be seen.

    Simrly, the cracks on the bell¡¯s body could clearly be seen.

    ng ng ng!

    Without getting tired, Gui Huinded each punch on the same spot, effectively erging the crack at a visible speed.

    The wild elemental energy waves circled around Gui Hu¡¯s body, never dissipating. They hovered around him and undted along with his every punch.

    The blood in Zhong Houjun¡¯s surged violently, finally causing him to expel a fresh pool of blood from his mouth.

    The fresh bloodnded on the bell, causing its light ray to be even more dazzling.

    Just then, Gui Hu¡¯s still eyes lit up. He loosened his fist and printed his palm onto the crack on the bell.

    The elemental energy waves around him disappeared swiftly as elemental energy within a few hundred meters was being emptied out. The nine Five Elemental Rings around his arm merged into one that circled around his palm that hadnded on the bell.

    Snap!

    It seemed that Gui Hui¡¯s palm hadn¡¯t met any resistance as it effortlessly broke through the bell and smashed onto Zhong Houjun¡¯s chest.

    As if he had done something insignificant, Gui Hui rose into the air, transforming into a stream of light andnding onto a lotus chair on theke once again.

    Dead silence.

    Zhong Houjun lowered his head while still in a daze. He looked at the clearly visible Five Elemental Ring on his chest.

    It spun unceasingly as the five types of elemental energies reced one another, appearing and disappearing endlessly.

    Cracks started appearing on his body as if he was a y statue. The criss-crossed cracks soon covered his whole body like a spiderweb. Bright, devilish light rays shot out from the cracks.

    The rays grew increasingly intense and Zhong Houjun started to melt like a block of ice.

    He moved his lips as if he was trying to speak, but nothing came out.

    Hu.

    Amid the light, his blurry figure hadpletely melted and transformed into nothingness.

    The brightly-colored light rays dimmed rapidly and eventually vanished.

    Still a dead silence.

    No one dared to believe what they had just witnessed. Did Gui Hu really kill Zhong Houjun so effortlessly? Did Gui Hu really dare to kill Zhong Houjun? Was Master¡¯s Glory really so powerful?

    The enormous impact had crushed all the guard they held up in the blink of an eye.

    Nian Tingfeng was stunned too.

    p p p.

    A gentle apuse broke the silence.

    The audience looked toward where the sound came from. It was Madam Ye.

    Madam Ye¡¯s face was full of praise. "Gui Hu¡¯s improved significantly. He was still a toddler when he first came to the Ye residence and now he¡¯s already a key yer. You did not let me down."

    She did not look at the aristocratic families and Masters, who looked as if they had lost a son. They were like air to her.

    Facing the Lake of Masters, she fixed her gaze onto the solemn figures. These years of hardship and grief overtook their hearts as sighs and sobs turned into an empowering heroic spirit.

    She had seeded.

    All the scheming and price paid had finally yielded the best results.

    She had finally gotten hold of a power that belonged only to her. A formidable power.

    An unprecedented sense of security encased her and an unprecedented confidence flooded her whole body. Words simply were superfluous at this point.

    Even bold, visionary words were unnecessary to her right now.

    From today onward she was truly going to be in charge of her own fate. Also, she would finally have the rights to contend on the stage of this world.

    This was merely the first step, the first cycle of Master¡¯s Glory. There would be an endless stream of Masters to fight for her, along with her subordinates.

    To her, her life had just entered a new chapter. To the world, this was the case as well.

    She said faintly, "You may all leave."

    No one dared to speak. They lowered their heads and left in silence and in fear.

    Madam Ye felt an increased spurt of happiness. She had tried all methods to restrain the aristocratic families, and while they did not speak up, they resented her and continued their undercurrent dealings privately. The dispersing crowd today, however, was a reassurance that all undercurrent dealings had been wiped out cleanly.

    These fellows¡¯st bit of ambition had been destroyed.

    What a pity.

    She shook her head, not wanting to think about it any longer. She then called out softly, "Come here, Xiaobao."

    Without hesitation, Xiaobao flew up andnded before her.

    Noting that the piercing look had vanished from his now indifferent eyes, Madam Ye felt very safe and couldn¡¯t help but smile.

    WIth a perplexed gaze, she extended her palm and caressed Xiaobao¡¯s face. She whispered, "Mom¡¯s going to be relying on you for protection from now on."

    Xiaobao looked apathetic. He was a lifeless statue.

    Madam Ye¡¯s gaze regained its brightness. She retracted her palm and spoke calmly, "I need you all to do two things for me now."

 Chapter 621: A Strengthening Sword Embryo

    Chapter 621: A Strengthening Sword Embryo

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Within the fantasnd of the blood eye, the confrontation between God¡¯s blood and sword embryo showed no signs of stopping.

    After the nourishment of hundreds of thousands of sword formations, the sword embryo had obviously changed.

    The initial emergence of fog that enveloped his earth pce was like a spiraling, grey cloud. Now, countless sword des could faintly be seen surging within this cloud. The des were of different sizes and shapes, but each one flickered with a sharp and dazzling light ray, making them seem substantial. However, only the tip of the des were solid. While moving along the sword bodies, they became increasingly blurry and eventually faded into fog spirals.

    They dragged long stretches of fog that looked like many strips of palm-sized and t satin.

    The sword embryo¡¯s movement and might was much more shocking now, and itsbat power had clearly increased as well.

    Ai Hui had been observing it very closely. Even though both both were in equilibrium, the fragmented rays shattered by the golden light pir had clearly increased. The surging and spiralling sword des were like a shoal of terrifying piranhas, advancing dauntlessly with their sharp teeth. As if they were immune to exhaustion, they kept biting at the golden light pir non-stop.

    Such a change surprised him greatly.

    To him, the sword embryo was covered with ayer of mysterious muslin and hence was difficult to see through. It reacted to all objects rted to swords. It was very mystical and did not lose to the aggressive and powerful God¡¯s blood.

    Thinking about it, Ai Hui felt he was really quite lucky.

    He didn¡¯t have much God¡¯s blood within his body, perhaps a third or a quarter of a drop. He was convinced that if he had aplete drop of God¡¯s blood, he would¡¯ve been dead by now, even with his sword embryo.

    He felt somewhat curious. Where did One Thousand Yuan get God¡¯s blood?

    He thought it was most likely that it was a reward from the Holy Emperor, but why did the Holy Emperor do that? God¡¯s blood was extremely precious, and he definitely wouldn¡¯t bestow it to anyone easily.

    Plus... did he not need it anymore?

    Ai Hui found this idea ridiculous. God¡¯s blood was thus far a force of the highest level and even his sword embryo was merely tied. What would a force stronger than God¡¯s blood be like?

    Ai Hui¡¯s knowledge of forces had unknowingly undergone a change.

    Supposing that a Master signified an elementalist who had found a path of his own, his next target would be to construct an elemental ring of his own. For example, Vitality Branches and Lightning were all elemental energy rings, five elemental energy rings to be specific.

    This was undoubtedly the most difficult and deceiving in nature.

    Ordinary elementalists started from training for one elemental energy, and their journey to bing Masters was arduous and filled with obstacles. Perhaps many were convinced that the single elemental energy was their guiding principle, but little did they know that in order to progress further, their single elemental energy had to move toward all five elemental energies.

    Assembly of the Patriarchs¡¯s fusion elemental energy had more advantage in this aspect.

    What was more mystical was that the five elemental energy rings created by Masters, more often than not, did not disy all five elemental energies. For example, people viewed Vitality Branches as wood elemental energy, whereas Lightning was associated with water elemental energy. No one would¡¯ve thought that they were all part of an borate and structured five elemental energy ring.

    If not for God¡¯s blood, Ai Hui wouldn¡¯t haveprehended this concept.

    Five elemental rings was a Master¡¯s second base level.

    What about a Grandmaster? Would it still be a five elemental energy ring? Ai Hui had no idea since he hadn¡¯t seen a Grandmaster and was unable to judge. However, Lu Chen¡¯s Vitality Branches¡¯ five elemental energy ring was already exquisitely structured and abstruse, but he wasn¡¯t a Grandmaster. He himself had fumbled his way into refining lightning without bing a Grandmaster.

    A Grandmaster was someoneparable to the Holy Emperor, so their strength must be on par as well.

    In the elemental energy system, it was reallymendable for a construct to be able to contend against God¡¯s blood. Even Ai Hui¡¯s lightning would be annihted by it. His sword embryo was a strange fetus whose origin AI Hui was still unclear about.

    While straightening out this thoughts, Ai Hui formed his own judgment.

    The first phase was to be a Master.

    The second phase was to understand the five elemental energy rings and differences emerged in this stage. For example, Lightning would surpass Vitality Branches. Was there a five elemental energy ring simpler than Vitality Branches? Ai Hui believed so. Was there a moreplex five elemental energy ring than Lightning? Ai Hui was positive as well.

    The third phase was to be as strong as a Grandmaster, God¡¯s blood, and the sword embryo.

    If the Holy Emperor bestowed God¡¯s blood to She Yu, could it be that he had already found something more potent? Was there something even more powerful than that?

    Ai Hui was at a loss. The five elemental energy rings of Vitality Branches surprised him, and he also found Lightning¡¯sposition unimaginable. God¡¯s blood was absolutely powerful and admirable, while the sword embryo was a muddled mess, albeit originating from a mysterious and powerful swordsman, so Ai Hui looked forward to that.

    A power of a higher level than that of God¡¯s blood? Ai Hui was unable to imagine.

    Alright. Ai Hui felt his thoughts getting increasingly ridiculous. Such far-fetched ideas weren¡¯t things he needed to consider.

    He shook his head and diverted his focus back onto the confrontation between the sword embryo and God¡¯s blood.

    When his gaze fell onto the aggressive collision, he noticed that specks of fragmented golden rays were being peeled off the golden light pir. Toward the solid and seemingly substantial golden light pir, these specks of fragmented rays were simply negligible. If they kept up this speed, how long would this deadlockst?

    Suddenly, Ai Hui realized that he had overlooked a problem.

    The sharp swords within the sword embryo had shattered from the collision and transformed into fog to re-enter the sword embryo. Where had the rays that were shattered by the light pir of God¡¯s blood gone to?

    Returned to God¡¯s blood? Not right...

    Ai Hui opened his eyes wide in search.

    .....

    "That¡¯s about all for today."

    Jiang Wei¡¯s expression carried a tinge of exhaustion. The battle in the day had been extremely intense. The enemy had innumerable tricks, so they had to stay alert at all times. The enemies were getting increasingly sly and their strategies were constantly changing, but somehow their battle oues weren¡¯t as good as before.

    There was a total of thirteen broadback batfish corpses.

    When they realized that flesh was needed for the sword formations, Jiang Wei and gang started transporting these corpses from the frontline every day. Members of the Sword of Lightning quickly went forward to receive and chop them into pieces before sprinkling them into the sword formations.

    Currently, the sword formations were starting to build up.

    Atop the mountain ridge overlooking the valley, the atmosphere waspletely different. The densely packed sword formations were like a steel jungle, permeated by a dangerous and biting cold aura. The fog bred and diffused non-stop, causing many corners to be hidden from the eyes.

    The fog spiralled within the valley¡¯s sword formations. It was like a giant whirlpool that enveloped the valley, and in the heart of the whirlpool stood Ai Hui.

    The constant supply of fog poured into Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Gentle "pu, pu" sounds traveled from within the sword formations. They were sounds made by the transformation of swords into flying ashes.

    "How many swords in the valley now?"

    "Three hundred twenty six thousand, six hundred forty nine so far."

    "How shocking. Were you a sword eater in your previous life?"

    "Lou Lan thinks so too."

    Jiang Wei looked eager. "Does it really work?"

    Lou Lan answered seriously, "Yes, it works, Jiang Wei. The effects of using flesh is notable as it can increase the power of the sword formations by five times and it can develop an amazing change in the sword aura and a trace of spirituality. While weak, it is extremely precious. Among all the sword formations we found, the Yin and Yang Sword Formation works the best."

    Jiang Wei asked immediately, "When will Ai Hui wake up?"

    Lou Lan shook his head. "No idea."

    Jiang Wei fixed his gaze onto the center of the densely packed sword formations where Ai Hui was in deep sleep. "I really hope he wakes up soon."

    Looking longingly, Lou Lan nodded. "Yeah."

    .....

    Within the blood eye.

    Ai Hui finally understood where those fragmented rays had gone.

    A portion of them had been absorbed by the sword embryo, and another portion had entered his body. The remaining had transformed into a faint, golden fog that pervaded the air.

    Ai Hui could clearly feel the sword embryo and his flesh undergoing astonishing changes. He found it difficult to describe these changes, but he knew that they were very beneficial for himself.

    The most obvious benefit was evident from the recovering process of his withered flesh. This gave him a pleasant surprise. Ever since he had used his lightning to fight off Night Moth Fruit, his body waspletely wrecked and he was as weak as paper. Afterward, all sorts of forces shed within his body, turning it into a bitter battlefield. There seemingly wasn¡¯t any hope for recovery.

    Who knew that the fragmented golden rays would have such an effect!

    The sword embryo¡¯s change was even moreplicated, and Ai Hui couldn¡¯t determine whether it was a good or bad change. However, after absorbing the rays, the sword embryo seemed to have be more calm toward God¡¯s blood.

    After halting for two days, the sword aura started to flow incessantly again. Ai Hui knew that it must¡¯ve been the work of Lou Lan and gang. They were trying to help him.

    Ai Hui was moved. No matter when and no matter how hard the situation, they weren¡¯t going to abandon him.

    The constant flow of sword aura rapidly strengthened the sword embryo.

    Ai Hui found something different. Not only was the sword aura much stronger now, there were also many changes. It had a weak spiritual nature and a division between Yin and Yang now.

    Could it be a sword formation?

    In just a while, Ai Hui almost guessed it. Few had greater knowledge than him when it came to an understanding of sword formations and swords. The amount of iing sword aura was rming, so it was obvious that the sword formation designed by Lou Lan and gang was of a significant scale.

    Ai Hui was still unaware that in order to save him, Lou Lan was going to create hundreds and thousands of sword formations.

    He only reckoned there were tens of thousands of swords. He would be struck dumb if he knew.

    The new influx of sword aura produced a major impact on the sword embryo. Not only did the closely packed and swimming sword points be more spiritual, they gradually splitted into two groups, one Yin and one Yang. The groups were connected at both ends, entangling and spiralling.

    Ai Hui got a shock when he saw it. Wasn¡¯t this Yin Yang Fish?

    The changed sword embryo started to be stronger and the amount of fragmented raysing off the golden light pir increased. The fragmented golden rays were unceasingly being absorbed by the sword embryo and his flesh. The unabsorbable portion transformed into drifting, golden fog that became increasingly visible.

    The suspending and scorching sun seemed not to have changed in the slightest. The golden light pir remained as overbearing as before, but Ai Hui saw a chance of victory.

 Chapter 622: The Arrival of She Yu

    Chapter 622: The Arrival of She Yu

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    High above the sky.

    A dazzling golden light shed across the whistling metal wind like a golden arrow shot by a god.

    She Yu was in red clothing and surrounded by faint, golden light. She was flying in a surprising speed like a shell fired from a cannon, leaving a long trace of air wave behind her. The trace was like a ship wake on the sea, and it existed for just an instant before it was torn up by the astonishingly destructive metal wind.

    Her pretty and coquettish face was seductive; even her frown could melt a man¡¯s heart.

    She was not very used to the vast potent power within her body.

    Every heartbeat led to the tremble of her heart and spirit as if an electrical current was passing through her body.

    Days ago, when she opened her eyes, everything had changed. The world in front of her was totally different. And all the changes were due to God¡¯s blood, the holy object of the God Nation.

    The unabsorbed God¡¯s blood stayed dormant in her heart like a huge beast waiting to wake up. But the absorbed God¡¯s blood had already pushed her to a level that was beyond her imagination before. The power within her body was as vast as a sea. Sometimes even a small action would lead to the roar of this violent sea.

    The Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art, which she had been worrying about for a long time, had disappeared without any trace as if it never existed. Thus, her greatest concern was solved. How miraculous the world was.

    Almost all troubles tended to stem from weakness.

    This applied to worry as well as anger.

    Now She Yu was fully focused on this task, which was critical to the God Nation. To help her finish the task, His Majesty even gave her the God¡¯s blood because both Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian were Irreceable to the God Nation.

    So whatever it would take, she mustplete the task and bring Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian back.

    She would never forget the great kindness of His Majesty.

    Suddenly, she felt something and turned abruptly to fly to another direction. Now she had be extremely sensitive, especially to the blood spiritual force. And the Heart of God had a special link with the God¡¯s blood. After all, the Heart of God was created for the God¡¯s blood. As a result, she could locate the Heart of God even though it was sealed, which was why His Majesty assigned the task to her.

    Her figure suddenly disappeared from the high altitude.

    At the next instant, she appeared out of nowhere at a lower altitude and looked down at thebat division below her.

    The God Spirit Division was having a rest. Everyone was exhausted, including He Nanshan, whose weary face revealed his fatigue and anxiety. Several days ago, the Heart of God suddenly stopped jumping, followed by the disappearance of the Judgement and Dread Divisions into the mountains.

    They didn¡¯t know if it was because they had killed the Heart of God or because something had happened to it. The worst situation was that they had killed both General Ye and Pce Master Nangong.

    The fear in their eyes grew stronger and stronger.

    The sudden change screwed up all their ns. They had to change their formation and send out spies to find any traces their enemies might have left.

    This gave a good opportunity to their enemies, who were no longer on the disadvantageous side. The Judgement and Dread Divisions immediately switched from a runaway to a lone wolf in the forests. It was ferocious and cunning, and it took every opportunity to attack.

    He Nanshan¡¯s division was attacked by them several times and had suffered great losses. The enemy was more experienced and cunning than they thought.

    Suddenly, He Nanshan felt something unusual. He looked up at once and his heart contracted.

    He didn¡¯t know when someone had appeared above his head!

    Only until he saw the face of the person above did he rx and sighed with relief, "Phew, so it¡¯s Your Highness"

    She Yu¡¯s status in the God Nation was not low, but not high either. Plus, she had no real power. As the head of God Spirit Division, He Nanshan¡¯s status was actually higher than hers.

    But upon seeing She Yu at this time, an idea urred to He Nanshan. His face turned pale, then he saluted and asked, "Any message from His Majesty?"

    This was the most likely issue he could think of. And he was prepared to wee the anger from His Majesty. Anyway, their performance was so terrible that even he could not ept it. He only hoped to make some more contributions to offset his guilt instead of being arrested and sent back now.

    Seeing He Nanshan¡¯s expression, She Yu could guess what he was thinking.

    She smiled gently.

    The world in front of the soldiers of the God Spirit Division changed drastically. The smile kept being erged in their eyes, and the sky behind the girl in red copsed and rotated, making them unable to stand steadily. The blood spiritual force within their bodies totally lost control. They fell on the ground powerlessly, and they even couldn¡¯t move their fingers at all.

    Strong fear devoured everyone.

    They had never been met with anything so weird.

    Suddenly, they heard a beast¡¯s roar from behind. It was one of the blood elementalists with Ability of God who summoned his Ability of God to resist She Yu. Then, one after another, other blood elementalists with Ability of God kept summoning their Ability of God before they copsed.

    He Nanshan¡¯s face was pale and his body was shivering. But he managed to withstand the pressure and asked, with a quiver in his voice, "What does His Majesty want to do?"

    She Yu didn¡¯t reply, she smiled again. Suddenly, they felt like all the flowers bloomed and the sun shined again brightly after the rain.

    The pressure was all gone. The warm air made them cozy. The generals and soldiers couldn¡¯t help smiling too.

    But He Nanshan became more scared.

    How could She Yu be so horribly strong?

    Then he heard her gentle voice whispering in his ears.

    "I shall be the most grateful to receive the holy object of the God Nation granted by His Majesty. I shall die the cruelest death to pay my debt of gratitude. His Majesty urged me in person to bring back General Ye and Pce Master Nangong. Division Leader He, please inform the other two divisions to support the God Wolf. The great deeds of our God Nation cannot be stopped by a line of defense."

    He Nanshan looked at the smiling She Yu with incredibility.

    Of course he knew what the holidom was, but he couldn¡¯t believe that His Majesty would grant it to the others.

    But the horrifying strength of She Yu could only be exined in this way.

    It took him a long time toe back to his senses. Bowing his head, he said reverently, "Congrattions to Your Highness. Get it!"

    In the God Nation, strength decided everything. Now maybe only the Red Devil could bepared with She Yu in terms of strength. Therefore, it was natural for He Nanshan to show respect in front of her. Moreover, granting the holidom in person to She Yu showed His Majesty¡¯s special favor to her.

    After hesitating for a while, He Nanshan said, "Your Highness, I have something to report."

    He Nanshan knew how to behave in a delicate situation, with which She Yu pleased. She said softly, "Go ahead, Division Leader He."

    He Nanshan said reverently, "We don¡¯t know why, but since several days ago, the fluctuation of the Heart of God has never appeared again. As a result, we now fail to trace our enemies. It¡¯s a shame to say so, but due to my ipetency, many generals and soldiers are dead."

    She Yu looked as peaceful as usual as if she had already known. With a smile on her face, she said, "You don¡¯t need to me yourself. I think the Heart of God must have been obstructed by the enemies. With a history of over a thousand years, the Judgement and Dread Divisions are definitely not mediocre. Both Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue are outstanding elites. The small obstacles we encountered won¡¯t affect the overall situation."

    He Nanshan felt relieved.

    He knew that She Yu hade on behalf of His Majesty, which indicated his dissatisfaction with them. He was worried that She Yu would punish him here. And if so, he could only ept it.

    But her words had made it clear that His Majesty didn¡¯t want to sanction them, but had given them the opportunity to right their wrongs.

    The generals and soldiers around He Nanshan were also rxed. In this way, She Yu had left a good impression in their heart.

    He Nanshan was ashamed. "It¡¯s all my fault. I¡¯m not qualified to be a division leader. I¡¯m willing to take any punishment."

    She Yu shook her head. "Victory and defeat are bothmon in a battle. You don¡¯t need to be too concerned about it. I have my own way of finding the Heart of God. But as for the other twobat divisions, I hope you can send someone to deliver the message and remind them not to be influenced by this."

    After hearing what she said, He Nanshan knew that She Yu must¡¯ve had other methods, so he cut it short, "No problem! We will set out now!"

    She Yu nodded and left.

    Only now did the Spirit God Division really feel relieved.

    "The strength of Her Highness She Yu is so horrifying. I cannot control my body at all, not even a finger!"

    "She used to be strong too. It¡¯s said that what she practiced was [Star Divine Hallucination]. Do you know who seeded in practicing itst time?"

    "Who?"

    "His Majesty!"

    "Really? This is amazing! No wonder His Majesty granted the holidom to her."

    "Yes. We will have one more big shot in the God Nation in the future."

    They discussed heatedly with admiration.

    He Nanshan was also marveling in his heart. Back then, the Red Devil had already shocked the whole nation. Now Her Highness She Yu was not inferior in any respect to Lord Red Devil. If she could save General Ye and Pce Master Nangong, then this great achievement would be more striking than Lord Red Devil¡¯s.

    Moreover, in His Majesty¡¯s heart, Her Highness was the person who deserved his trust.

    He scolded them loudly, "Shut up! How dare you gossip about Her Highness! Give out my order to march towards the defense line of Windy Pearl Bridges. Send someone to inform the other two divisions of Her Highness¡¯s order. Also, send someone to the God Wolf Division as fast as possible to inform them that we areing soon and to tell them not to act rashly before we arrive. When we all meet, we will swoop down on the defense line together!"

    "Get it!"

    She Yu didn¡¯t stop for a second after she left the God Spirit Division.

    She wasn¡¯t telling lies. She had already sensed the aura of the Heart of God. Apparently, the enemies had sealed it so that no fluctuations could be felt, but they couldn¡¯t seal its aura.

    As a peerless object of blood-refinement, the Heart of God had a strong vitality and powerful aura.

    And the aura had nothing to do with elemental energy at all, so elementalists couldn¡¯t feel it. But having absorbed the God¡¯s blood, She Yu could easily detect it. That was why His Majesty granted her the God¡¯s blood and sent her to finish the task.

    She flew silently like a red ghost ording to what she could sense.

    Gradually, the aura became stronger and stronger. It directed her way like a fingerpost.

    She knew that her enemies were not far away.

 Chapter 623: The Change in the Sword Embryo

    Chapter 623: The Change in the Sword Embryo

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X, TYZ

    Ai Hui was following the change of the sword embryo closely.

    Within just a few days¡¯ time, the original sword embryo had first changed from a vapor to a foggy sword point, then to Yin Yang fish. Now that there was no more fog around it, the silky sword gradually became denser.

    Small swords of different shapespiled like a vast school of fish.

    More interestingly, no matter what shapes the small swords were, they were all in pairs¡ªone yin and one yang. The yin and yang swords were distinctly separate, but twined and rotated around each other constantly.

    Small pieces of golden rays sshed and floated in the air like mayflies in the water.

    The rotating Yin and Yang sword embryo was like a vortex, and the attraction created a long, thin golden fog belt that tied to the sword embryo like a transparent golden silk.

    Ai Hui was shocked by the growth rate of the embryo. He realized how amazing the ancient demonic god had been. Even though it was only an unknown demonic god whose name couldn¡¯t be found in any records, the blood it left contained a spiritual imprint that was so strong that it was still indestructible after so many years.

    If it were not for the support from Lou Lan and others, his sword embryo would not have gained such a surprising advantage. The sword aura kept flocking in, dividing the Yin and Yang, and making the sword fog denser. Cold lights flickered on the small swords. When they were circling, the impetus was far more colossal than before.

    The sword embryo broke the golden light as well as the spiritual imprint of the God¡¯s blood into bits. The will of the demonic god was removed from the broken spiritual imprint and became the food for the sword embryo.

    This was the golden silky fog.

    After being absorbed into the sword embryo, the small swords kept absorbing the nutritious golden fog like greedy fish.

    When the golden fog permeated into the small swords, the grey sword began to adopt a metallic luster.

    A piercing aura spread out like ripples.

    Even among the bloody light pir, Ai Hui could still feel the apprehension, as if someone was holding a sword against between his eyebrows.

    More and more golden light was broken by the sword embryo as its aura grew at an amazing speed.

    Indulging in the pure and piercingly cold sword consciousness, Ai Hui¡¯s mind and spirit were very clear. The sword embryo seemed to be integrated with his heart, spirit, blood, and flesh. He could feel the pleasant growth of each small sword and the different auras they sent forth.

    The aura of each sword was totally different from the others. Some were arbitrary, some pure, some gentle, and some tyrannical. Ai Hui had never thought that there were so many kinds of sword aura in this world. Each kind was so unique, but they were harmonious and blended into an integral whole without any conflicts.

    Ai Hui was intoxicated with the various kinds of sword auras.

    The root of the sword embryo was his essence, breath, and spirit. Now the growth of the embryo facilitated his umtion of spirit. The remnant chapter on the sword embryo cultivation now flew in his mind smoothly. Ai Hui felt that he was enlightened, and mysterious content suddenly became understandable.

    He didn¡¯t know how much time had passed when he woke up from the intoxication and was astonished.

    All he could see was the golden fog. It had pervaded the whole ce. In the thick fog, Ai Hui could not clearly see the golden light pir.

    He tried to calm himself down. After a while, he began to realize what had happened.

    The sword embryo could only absorb the demonic god¡¯s spiritual imprint from the God¡¯s blood. The other ingredients were useless. However, in the God¡¯s blood, the spiritual imprint was only a small part. The ingredients of the God¡¯s blood that were rted to blood and flesh permeated into Ai Hui¡¯s body, nourishing him.

    Except for these two parts, the God¡¯s blood contained other mysterious powers, which were left behind. Ai Hui couldn¡¯t absorb them, so theypiled and flew freely in his body.

    The power of the demonic god was beyond Ai Hui¡¯s knowledge. Therefore, he held it in awe and veneration.

    His blood, flesh, and sword embryo only absorbed a small fraction of its power.

    Ai Hui became alert when he saw the scope of the golden fog clearly. It was not easy for him to straighten out all the strong, weird powers within his body. Judging from the current situation, he just needed to wait until the God¡¯s blood was totally destroyed by the sword embryo.

    Yet, the mysterious golden fog might be his new concern. The more the fog there was, the more dangerous it would be.

    The lessons learned were profound. He would never allow unfamiliar powers into his body easily.

    Having calmed down, Ai Hui didn¡¯t want to covet the power that might be contained in the golden fog. Instead, he began to consider how to get the fog out of his body. To him, the God¡¯s blood absorbed by the sword embryo as well as his flesh and blood was enough to enhance his strength.

    At this moment, he had no time to explore these unknownponents.

    Just then, streaks of sword aura flocked into Ai Hui¡¯s body from outside. As Ai Hui¡¯s essence, breath, and spirit became stronger, he could clearly feel the continuous series of sword formations from the outside world.

    Suddenly an idea urred to him. Why not lead the unknown golden fog into the sword formation?

    At the thought of this, the thousands of small swords in the sword embryo began to roar simultaneously.

    .....

    On the ridge above the valley, the members of the Sword of Lightning Divisiony down on the ground on all sides. Everyone was exhausted, and some members had fallen into sleep, snoring like thunder. They were too tired these past few days. All they had done those days was set up sword formations day and night. They even couldn¡¯t remember how many sword formations they had set up. Besides, they needed to offer the blood and flesh of blood fiends collected by front line soldiers as sacrifices to the sword formations.

    Thetest batch of long swords were not ready yet, and the battle at the front line wasn¡¯t over today. The rest time was very precious to them. Everyone was lying on the ground.

    Gu Xuan was better off than the others. Although also exhausted, he managed to stand up and watch the thickly dotted sword formations in the valley in fascination.

    Shi Zhiguang beside him murmured, "When will our boss wake up? Without him I¡¯m feeling anxious..."

    Gu Xuan came back to his senses and said, "Soon."

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s eyes lit up. "Really?"

    Gu Xuan said firmly, "Yes! Take a closer look. He is devouring the sword formations now much faster than before and is still elerating."

    Shi Zhiguang was not a fool. He just hadn¡¯t paid attention before. Hearing Gu Xuan¡¯s words, his eyes lit up, "Yes, yes! Boss¡¯s eating speed has increased so quickly! We can hardly keep up with him now in setting sword formations."

    With one hand clenched, he hit his other hand palm with excitement, "When our boss wakes up, let¡¯s put up a thorough fight with them. I¡¯ll show them how powerful the Sword of Lightning is."

    He missed the thrill of the fight with the God Wolf Division fromst time. That feeling was excellent.

    Gu Xuan nodded as he had the same feeling.

    Since he was older in age and more mature, he always thought more. He knew that the battle was fierce these days, and their enemies were changing tactics all the time. Everyone was highly focused. So far, their defense was rtively stable, but somehow Gu Xuan always felt uneasy.

    Probably because their boss was absent.

    Ai Hui was their backbone. When Ai Hui wasn¡¯t with them, they felt anxious no matter what they did.

    On second thought, however, Gu Xuan felt this was natural because he noticed that not only the Sword of Lightning, but also Division Leader Shi, had the same feeling. Division Leader Shi was strong enough, but she was still willing to follow Boss¡¯s lead from the bottom of her heart. So, as a small fry, he took his dependence on Ai Hui for granted.

    At this moment, he totally forgot he was the vice division leader of the Sword of Lightning.

    What he said to Shi Zhiguang was no lie. It was the conclusion he reached after careful observation.

    Boss was going to wake up soon!

    Just at this moment, they heard a thundering roar in the valley.

    Gu Xuan and Shi Zhiguang jumped up with a start.

    The valley was quivering as tens of thousands of swords were chiming.

    The sword chime converged into a torrent. The sound could shake one¡¯s heart as well as the ground.

    At first, Gu Xuan and others were scared, but then on second thought, they were excited. This might be a sign that their boss was going to wake up?

    Soon, they realized something was wrong.

    "Look at the blood sacrifice sword formation!"

    Hearing his words, the others all turned to look toward that sword formation. A blood sacrifice sword formation was a sword formation that was offered the blood and flesh of blood fiends as sacrifice. Lou Lan found that a blood sacrifice sword formation was more helpful for Ai Hui.

    Actually, none of them knew how to offer the sacrifice, so they just scattered the blood fiends¡¯ blood and flesh into the sword formation. Then, they found that Ai Hui seemed to prefer blood sacrifice sword formations indeed because they would be devoured immediately after they were ready.

    That blood sacrifice sword formation was just set with the blood fiends¡¯ blood and flesh delivered to them about two hours ago.

    The blood sacrifice sword formation suddenly began to shine with a golden light, and the blood and flesh in the formation were soon absorbed like water in the desert. Meanwhile, each long sword in the sword formation had absorbed the blood on its de.

    In an instant, all the blood in the sword formation hadpletely disappeared.

    nk!

    With a clear sword chime, a long sword in the sword formation projected a beam of golden light.

    nk, nk, nk!

    Sword chimes could be heard without end. Each long sword in the sword formation projected a beam of golden light which was almost solid. Those beams of golden light were glittering, translucent, and as straight as swords. They crisscrossed in the sky above the sword formation.

    Then, with a light cracking sound, a nail-sized piece peeled off the de of a long sword and turned to ashes and dust before it fell on the ground.

    Crack, crack, crack.

    Large pieces began to peel off the de of the sword like an eroded fresco.

    All the pieces turned to ashes and disappeared in the air.

    After thest cracking sound, all the pieces disappeared, and the scene in front of everyone was very weird.

    The sword formation was shrouded by thick golden light. Many swords of light were inserted into the ground. They were bright and dazzling, as if had just been taken out from the smelter. A sword aura shot up into the sky and criss crossed above the sword formation.

    the swords formed a ray of light, one by one pierce through the ground.

    Trantor¡¯s Thoughts

    Cynthia Cynthia

    Hey guys! AFE is scheduled to go Premium on 4th April 2018! Since we don¡¯t have Patreon, not many changes will be made. Thank you for supporting our work, we will continue to provide all of you with top-quality trantion. Thank you so much!

 Chapter 624: Godâ€™s Blood and Swords

    Chapter 624: God¡¯s Blood and Swords

    Trantor: Cynthia Editor: X, TYZ

    Yang Xianyong had a square face and thick eyebrows. He was reporting thetest situation on the battlefield.

    The first beast battalion was greatly damaged. Casualties ounted for more than 70 percent of the whole battalion, which meant it was put out of action. Yang Xianyong was unwilling to ept this, but there was nothing he could do as their enemies were too strong.

    "The attack power from the pagoda cannons increases every day. I suspect that the Pagoda Cannon Alliance will very likely join the battle. Currently, it¡¯s much more difficult for us to break through their defense because the mes shot from the pagoda cannons are very dense and can even create a wall of pagoda cannon fire. As long as there¡¯s weakness in the broadback batfish assault formation, the whole force will be destroyed. It seems that they have sufficient snowva, so their attacks are more reckless than before, and they don¡¯t care at all about how much they have used."

    Hearing his words, Helian Tianxiao marveled, "Those from the Central Pine Valley are clever indeed. Snowva is an A-grade fire liquid, and its price is expensive. They are so extravagant in their use of snowva now because they must have found a way to make it on arge scale. I¡¯m afraid that no one knows that secret of the Central Pine Valley yet."

    Yang Xianyong hesitated for a while and continued to report, "I found something weird these past few days."

    "Something weird?"

    "Yes. After each battle, they will take away all the corpses of the broadback batfish. Previously, they usually burned the corpses with snowva in case of gue outbreaks, so I think what they are doing now seems weird."

    Helian Tianxiao looked surprised. He thought for a while and said, "Only corpses of broadback batfish?"

    "Yes. As for the corpses of soldiers, they just deal with them the same as before."

    Song Xiaoqian asked, "Maybe they want to learn more about the broadback batfish?"

    Helian Tianxiao nodded and said, "Yes, maybe they want to find a solution to deal with the poisonous smoke from the broadback batfish. Anyway, they are not doing this to be blood elementalists."

    The others burst intoughter when hearing thest sentence.

    Someone chimed in, "If they really want to be blood elementalists, then they¡¯d better surrender. We have better and safer ways."

    Helian Tianxiao smiled and said softly to members of the beast battalion, "I know you have suffered heavy casualties and great difficulties, but this time we are attacking the heavily fortified positions, which is a life-or-death battle. As a result, there¡¯s no retreat. It¡¯s not time to weep for the dead. Instead, we must try to find ways to defeat our enemies. Last time, the Frost Locust Grass was very effective, and we almost made it. I believe in your strength and wits. Now go and prepare for the battle tomorrow!"

    The four heads of the beast battalions looked at each other and replied simultaneously, "Yes!"

    Everyone else had left. Only Song Xiaoqian and Helian Tianxiao were in the tent.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face became gloomy. He snorted coldly, "They are collecting the corpses of broadback batfish now. I¡¯m afraid they are nning something big. We cannot dy any more. How¡¯s your progress now?"

    Song Xiaoqian said reverently, "I¡¯ve found a way, and the test result was pretty good. I think it can be deployed in real battle after a few improvements."

    Helian Tianxiao asked in a deep voice, "How long will it take?"

    Song Xiaoqian was determined. "Three days at the most. I¡¯m willing to make a written pledge!"

    Helian Tianxiao nodded hard. "Okay, I¡¯ll give you three days."

    Then his expression became much more rxed. Gently, he said, "Don¡¯t me me for pushing you so hard. Every dayes at the cost of the lives of our soldiers. If we cannot find a way out before the beast battalions are all killed, I can only go to the battlefield myself."

    Song Xiaoqian said firmly, "We willplete it within three days!"

    Helian Tianxiao waved his hand. "Go."

    He was the only one left in the tent now. He felt tired because their enemies were more and more difficult to deal with. They became stronger as the battle progressed. He was scared at their rate of improvement. He had never seen abat division that grew at such an amazing speed.

    In fact, Yang Xianyong didn¡¯t need to report at all. Helian Tianxiao knew the current situation very well.

    Their casualties were increasing, and so was the difficulty in moving forward. Although they hade up with many ideas, none caused severe harm to their enemies, as they could always respond quickly and effectively.

    Just at this moment, he heard chaos from outside, and a guard walked in and said with excitement, "Sir, here¡¯s a letter delivered by a scout sent by Division Leader He."

    He Nanshan?

    Helian Tianxiao cheered up. Had they rescued General Ye and Pce Master Nangong?

    He sat up, took the letter, and tore it open.

    Heaving read each word on the letter, he was shocked.

    She Yu! The holy relic!

    He was pleased when he learned that troops from differentbat divisions would arrive in a few days¡¯ time, but soon, the joy was reced by conflict.

    .....

    In the valley.

    Crack!

    A light sword broke into golden pieces, which didn¡¯t disappear, but merged into another sword nearby.

    "Another sword has broken."

    Gu Xuan felt pain for the broken sword. Although he didn¡¯t know how powerful the light swords were, he knew they were extraordinary almost by instinct.

    He suddenly turned to the other members and shouted, "Blood sacrifice! Hurry up!"

    The other members hurriedly scattered the blood and flesh they had prepared into the sword formation.

    The sword that had just absorbed the golden pieces suddenly brightened with dazzling, ming radiance when it touched the blood and flesh.

    Shi Xueman, Jiang Wei, and the others were also dumbstruck to see this scene.

    "They¡¯re really broken?"

    "It¡¯s true."

    They heard about the weird changes Ai Hui had gone through and came over to see what happened during the down time.

    Lou Lan was closely following Ai Hui¡¯s changes and was very familiar with every detail. He exined, "The golden fog is the God¡¯s blood that he cannot absorb, so he has to get it out of his body. Otherwise, he may be a blood elementalist."

    Sang Zhijun was curious, "Is this God¡¯s blood really a drop of a God¡¯s blood?"

    Shi Xueman suddenly said, "We cannot trace the origin of the God¡¯s blood, so it¡¯s hard to confirm if it¡¯s really a God¡¯s blood, but we are sure now that each drop of God¡¯s blood contains amazing power. God¡¯s blood was discovered by the Blood of God at the very beginning and became their holy relic that was passed down from generation to generation until today."

    She was born in an aristocratic family, so she knew many things that were rarely known by others.

    Sang Zhijun grew more curious. "Then why does Ai Hui have God¡¯s blood?"

    If it was the holy relic of the Blood of God, it must be precious. Why Ai Hui did have it?

    Lou Lan exined what had happened with the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art]. Everyone was emotionally shaken. They had never heard of such a capricious sacrificial art before. Besides, they became more reverent toward Ai Hui when they learned that he had been trying to act like a healthy person all this time although severely injured.

    Only Fatty¡¯s eyes lit up. He said with admiration, "A Hui is so lucky! What can you do with him? He can get a relic by getting injured! This holy object must be expensive, right?"

    In his eyes, it was like Ai Hui was identally picking up a gift bag along the way.

    No one bothered to reply to him.

    Lou Lan continued to exin, "The God¡¯s blood that Ai Hui cannot absorb was channeled into the sword formations, but ordinary swords cannot bear the power and usually would explode. However, the God¡¯s blood is very sensitive to blood and flesh. The blood sacrificed sword formations can absorb part of the God¡¯s blood."

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s eyes widened. "Then will the swords be tempered into God swords?"

    Blind He suddenly said, "In a sense, yes."

    Everyone¡¯s eyes turned to Blind He.

    Blind He said lightly, "The God¡¯s blood is influencing the swords in a way that is very unique and is different from all methods that we know. Unfortunately, they are not yet God-grade swords because the quality of the swords are just average. Only Heaven-grade weapons, having absorbed enough God¡¯s blood, can be God-grade weapons.

    Jiang Wei asked in confusion, "Then why don¡¯t we use some higher grade swords?"

    Blind He said, "There¡¯s no time. It takes too long to make a Heaven-grade weapon, and numerous precious materials are needed too. Although we have enough materials, not many kinds can be used to make Heaven-grade weapons."

    Fatty chimed in, "At least we can make one or two?"

    "That will be useless." Blind He said dryly, "We need at least 100."

    100 Heaven-grade weapons...

    Hearing his words, everyone gave up on this n at once.

    Shi Xueman asked, "How many swords do we need to absorb the God¡¯s blood?"

    She hoped Ai Hui could wake up sooner. Only by eliminating the non-absorbable God¡¯s blood from his body could he wake up. The aura of the light swords was overwhelming, ferocious, and would inflict enormous damage to Ai Hui if it lingered in his body.

    Blind He said lightly, "About a 100,000."

    The others were scared by this number. Only Fatty was heartless, "It¡¯s fine. We can make it."

    Jiang Wei asked again, "What if the 100,000 swords all be God-grade swords? How powerful would that be?"

    "As I just said, they are not counted as God-grade swords." Blind He said, "Although each sword can only absorb a very tiny amount of God¡¯s blood due to its quality, the God¡¯s blood still can remold the swords and greatly increase their power."

    Thinking for a while, he continued, "A single remolded sword would be inferior to a Heaven-grade weapon, but there should be other merits."

    At this moment, the flickering golden light began to spread from Ai Hui¡¯s location at the center to the outside. Swords that were unable to withstand the God¡¯s blood incessantly exploded now and then, but the remaining swords still lit up the whole valley.

    When night fell, the thickly-dotted light swords were likenterns spread all over the valley. The scene was a feast for the eyes.

    Yet, no one had the time to enjoy the beautiful scene.

    Blind He continued to make swords because Ai Hui would need more swords to absorb the God¡¯s blood.

    Shi Xueman, Fatty, and their team members were going back to the front line to prepare for the battle tomorrow.

    Gu Xuan and his division members were busy setting sword formations in the valley.

    No one noticed that in the Central Pine Valley on the Fish Bone, a young man stood among the drifting bamboo leaves in a bamboo grove. The traces of the [Viridescent Flower] were gradually fading away.

    The air in the bamboo grove seemed to have stopped flowing, and time seemed to have stopped. All the drifting jade sword bamboo leaves stayed still in the air.

    A small, but delicate, diamond-shaped Viridescent Flower trace quietly appeared between the young man¡¯s eyebrows.

    Trantor¡¯s Thoughts

    Cynthia Cynthia

    Hey guys! AFE is scheduled to go Premium on 4th April 2018! Since we don¡¯t have Patreon, not many changes will be made. Thank you for supporting our work, we will continue to provide all of you with top-quality trantion. Thank you so much!

 Chapter 625: Breaking Through the Wind Curtain

    Chapter 625: Breaking Through the Wind Curtain

    Trantor: Cynthiia Editor: X, TYZ

    After a whole day of battle, both the elementalists and blood elementalists were exhausted. So they came to a cease fire to recover strength and prepare for the battle tomorrow.

    The beast battalions tried to attack during the night, but hadn¡¯t seeded and came back with severe casualties.

    In the night, the whistling of the metal wind curtain almost drowned out all the other sound.

    About 120 miles away from the campsite, twobat divisions stood silently like statues in straight lines in front of the wind curtain. Only the howls of wolves could be heard now and then.

    The weather was good tonight, there was no moon, and the sky was dark.

    Standing in front of the wind curtain, Helian Tianxiao said solemnly, "Here?"

    Song Xiaoqian saluted. "Yes. We detected six weak areas in the wind curtain, and here is the weakest point."

    Helian Tianxiao nodded, "Then get ready."

    Song Xiaoqian hesitated, "Don¡¯t we wait for reinforcements?"

    Although in her heart, she didn¡¯t want to wait for reinforcements either, she felt it inappropriate to ignore the letter sent by Division Leader He.

    Helian Tianxiao shook his head, "No need."

    The others felt relieved too, followed by excitement.

    As long as they could break through the wind curtain, the weakest abdomen of their enemies would beid bare in front of them. If it were not for the special terrain of the Windy Pearl Bridges that created a pass where only one guard could prevent a whole army from getting through, the three God-subduing Peaks would not be able to stop their attack at all. The onlybat division they feared was the Spear of Heavy Cloud, but it would hardly be a match for the God Wolf Division.

    The Windy Pearl Bridges defensive line was now thest defense of their enemies. As long as they could take down the Windy Pearl Bridges, they could march forward with irresistible force and were bound to win. Therefore, none of them wanted to share the merits and honor with others.

    After hearing the Division Leader¡¯s decision, they were all excited.

    Helian Tianxiao looked around and said loudly, "Everybody listen to me. I don¡¯t want to stress anything further for the battle tonight. If we win, it will be a peerless merit, but if we lose, this is where we die."

    The words encouraged everyone present. They were shivering with excitement, and their blood was boiling.

    They were strongmanders and soldiers with illustrious military exploits, and they were more eager to earn achievements than ordinary people. Moreover, the battle tonight would definitely leave an indelible mark in history.

    Matchless merit was the pursuit of every aggressive general.

    Motivated by their aggression and ferocity, they had be bloodthirsty monsters. Riding on their wolves, they were breathing heavily and licking their lips now and then, revealing the impulses in their hearts that they were trying to restrain.

    Helian Tianxiao cut it short and said, "Let¡¯s begin."

    Song Xiaoqian no longer hesitated. She rpsed into her usual apathy and drove the silverfrost wolf toward the wind curtain.

    In front of the wind curtain, 12 Silverfrost soldiers were ready.

    Song Xiaoqian took a deep breath and shouted, "Begin!"

    Sadness appeared on these Silverfrost soldiers¡¯ faces. They dismounted, some with tears in their eyes, and caressed the heads of the wolves.

    "Go!"

    Their voices shivered.

    The silverfrost wolves howled mournfully and licked their masters. Then, they crashed into the wind curtain like silvery shooting stars.

    12 silverfrost wolves transformed to 12 beams of silvery light that bumped into the wind curtain and instantly exploded.

    The silver frost stabbed deep into the wind curtain like hard icicles.

    A modicum of silverfrost scattered, and the piercing coldness swept the whole area. Generals and soldiers of both the God Wolf and the Silverfrost divisions became silent. Since their bonds with their mounts ran really deep, they didn¡¯t have the heart to watch this scene.

    The 12 silver icicles sticking in the wind curtain formed a circle with a diameter of 15 to 20 meters.

    The metal wind kept whistling, but the ice circle was stable and still.

    Song Xiaoqian said coldly, "Frost Locust Grass!"

    The soldiers let out the Frost Locust Grass they had prepared. ck and red blood locusts flew at the ice circle like a ck and red cloud.

    Tinkle, tinkle, tinkle.

    The blood locusts bumped into the wind curtain in the center of the ice circle.

    Gray dots began to spread. In an instant, the center of the ice circle turned to gray. The metal elemental energy was quickly eroded, and a round channel appeared in front of them. Everyone was excited and eager.

    Although they had already known that the higher ups must have found a solution, when they saw that the wind curtain had really been broken through, their intent to fight suddenly broke out.

    As long as they passed through the wind curtain, victory would be at their fingertips.

    Song Xiaoqian was kind of relieved. She calmed down and ordered, "God Wolf and Silverfrost divisions will now mix together and pass through the channel. Silverfrost Division, reinforce the channel with cold air when passing through."

    The soldiers immediately understood Song Xiaoqian¡¯s intention, and everyone marveled at her perfect method in their hearts. The two divisions had been cooperating for years and knew each other very well. They soon mixed together without any dy.

    A general from the Silverfrost Division walked in front, and his silverfrost wolf jumped up and stepped into the entrance of the channel.

    Each time the silverfrost wolves¡¯ ws stepped on the channel, they would produce cold fog that could reinforce the channel.

    A general from the God Wolf Division closely followed the wolf.

    Then, the rest of the generals and soldiers flocked into the channel. When thest soldier walked through, Song Xiaoqian¡¯s face finally lit up with pleasure.

    To break through the wind curtain, she had done a lot of work. Finding the weak points of the wind curtain alone took her a long time. Next, she racked her brains to think of a method to cut through the wind curtain. Later, inspired by the Frost Locust Grass used by the beast battalions, she came up with this solution.

    Helian Tianxiao always looked frosty, but now he didn¡¯t try to conceal the happiness on his face. "You will be credited with the first achievement in this battle."

    Song Xiaoqian, riding on her wolf¡¯s back, bowed slightly in response without saying anything.

    Without continuous cold air, the ice channel in the metal wind curtain began to melt. After a while, the channel totally disappeared, and the wind curtain returned to its previous state.

    Helian Tianxiao looked back at the God Wolf and the Silverfrost divisions lining up in front of him.

    He said solemnly, "From now on, no hubbub, nomunication. Slow down and control your steps. Don¡¯t make any noise. Go!"

    The God Wolf and the Silverfrost divisions marched forward at a speed that was not fast. Therge army, including the wolves, didn¡¯t make any sound. Killing intent pervaded the whole troop.

    .....

    In an inconspicuous valley.

    Wood elementalists nted Disguise Rattans for camouge. Their palms shined with green light. The green rattans grew at a fast speed. Soon, the ground around the campsite was covered with the rattans. Fog scattered along the leaves of the Disguise Rattans. Seen from the outside, the campsite had disappeared.

    The valley was small and clear at a nce. One could see every corner of the valley without entering.

    The Judgement and the Dread divisions made use of this trait.

    Blood elementalists usually only gave a glimpse of a valley before they left. They would not send anyone into the valley to search further because it was too small forbat divisions to hide in.

    They began to rest.

    Since Ye Baiyi¡¯s Heart of God was sealed, the situation had greatly changed. They began to take the initiative, didn¡¯t need to be kept constantly on the run, and even gained victories in previous ambushes. This boosted the morale of the troops since seeing the dawn of victory was more exciting than anything else.

    Noticing the fatigue on Ximen Caijue¡¯s face, Wan Shenwei walked to her and sat beside her, "Are you okay?"

    Ximen Caijue frowned unhappily. "Of course I am."

    She was the kind of person who was eager to do well in everything and didn¡¯t like others to worry.

    Wang Shenwei and Ximen Caijue had known each other for years and were familiar with each other¡¯s temper and character, so Wan Shenwei didn¡¯t mind and said, "Something is wrong."

    Ximen Caijue shot him a nce. She always admired Wan Shenwei¡¯s capacity, so she asked in a deep voice, "What¡¯s wrong?"

    Wan Shenwen said, "We didn¡¯t meet any blood elementalists both today and yesterday. No troops nor scouts."

    Ximen Caijue paused for a while before her expression changed. She was not a fool and immediately realized the problem. Judging from the previous situation, they would encounter at least two to three batches of enemies every day. It was abnormal indeed that no blood elementalists appeared for two consecutive days.

    Ye Baiyi was still in their hands, so blood elementalists had no reason to give up.

    Unless...

    She blurted out, "The Holy Emperor is here?"

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s expression changed too when he heard her words.

    Just at this moment, they heardughter above their heads.

    Wan Shenwei was shocked. He looked up at once and saw a girl in red sitting at the peak. His pupils contracted as his heart sank. He hadn¡¯t noticed when this girl appeared at all!

    This alone demonstrated her extraordinary capacity.

    Looking down at them, She Yu smiled and said, "Don¡¯t overestimate yourselves. You are just remnants of a defeated army. The Holy Emperor won¡¯t bother toe in person."

    Her voice was unspeakably pleasant to hear, with a hint of enchantment that lingered in the valley. Some of the soldiers began to fall into a trance.

    Wan Shenwei was scared. The generals and soldiers of the Judgement and the Dread divisions had been through numerous battles, and their will was firm and determined, but even so, they couldn¡¯t escape falling into her trap.

    His elemental energy surged, and he shouted like thunder, "Hey!"

    As if a tornado had exploded in the valley, the others shivered and came back to their senses.

    Their stares toward the figure in red at the peak changed.

    A master could prove his ability with a single move.

    The Judgement and Dread members were all experienced and instinctively had a keen judgement of the current situation. The girl in red seemed weak, but in their eyes, she was the most formidable enemy.

    Noticing the girl¡¯s red clothing, Ximen Caijue suddenly remembered who she was and shouted, "You are She Yu, the girl in red?"

    Song Yan stood right below She Yu. The moment Xiemen Caijue spoke, heunched an attack.

    A dim de ray flew toward She Yu silently.

    This move illustrated the rich experience of Song Yan. Under the cover of Ximen Caijue¡¯s voice, he chose a wily angle to throw out the flying knife.

    She Yu suddenly looked down and smiled at Song Yan.

    This smile was like a flower blossoming. Even the sky above her head seemed to be clear and shiny.

    She flicked her thin and white finger softly.

    Bang!

    The de exploded. Song Yan stifled a groan and staggered backward a few steps before he managed to stand still. Blood flew down the corner of his mouth.

    Everyone¡¯s expression changed.

 Chapter 626: Breeze of Surveillance

    Chapter 626: Breeze of Surveince

    Trantor: Cynthiia Editor: X, TYZ

    Ke Ning was looking over the campsite. Wary of waking hisrades whose faces were covered in dirt, he walked cautiously and quietly.

    Those young faces disyed a maturity beyond their age. Experience on the battlefield could always wash away the sentimental and skittish parts of a person. The trial between life and death tested not only a person¡¯s will, but also their mind.

    The change in Ke Ning also happened to many of hisrades in the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    During consecutive fierce battles, there were several instances of extremely dangerous situations where the Pagoda Cannon Alliance had to support the front line. Today¡¯s situation was the same. Their enemies had once advanced to a distance of less than 100 meters away from the line of defense.

    After a day of fierce fighting, the warriors were all burned out. Everyone seized the opportunity to have a rest because they knew that tomorrow wouldn¡¯t be any easier.

    The four beast battalions were not yet defeated, and the even more powerful God Wolf and Silverfrost troops had been at ease and waiting for the defenders to grow exhausted. Any hint of fatigue would trigger their cunning enemies tounch a fatal attack.

    Tong Gui and Yu Jin were sitting on a hillside that was barren and full of scorch marks. They were both looking at Ke Ning who was on patrol in the campsite on this dark night.

    The night was as dark as ink, and the wind was gusting around. In the quiet camp, the young man was as straight as a spear. Enormous Beehive Heavy Cannons were ced everywhere like ancient beasts squatting on the ground and casting shadows of death.

    Yu Jin suddenly said, "Ke Ning has made great progress."

    Tong Gui quite agreed with her and praised, "Yes, he has been reborn. At the beginning, I wondered why Ai Hui asked us to assist him. I didn¡¯t expect that he would change so much after several battles. Ai Hui had great foresight regarding Ke Ning."

    Yu Jin asked, "What¡¯s the next move for our enemy?"

    Tong Gui thought for a while and said, "I don¡¯t know. The situation now is good for us. The Pagoda Cannon Alliance is doing a good job now because they have be more proficient at using pagoda cannons. As long as we don¡¯t lose the defense line, we can keep our position."

    Yu Jin didn¡¯t answer.

    Discussions like this happened all the time. Usually, they were just nonsense. In their daily meetings on the battlefield situation, they had discussed the specifics in more detail. This idle talk was just a way for them to encourage themselves.

    Seeing Yu Jin close her eyes, Tong Gui stopped talking. The battle during the day time was not easy for them either.

    Venerable Volcano, who had a contemtive look on his face, squatted on the mountain range and overlooked the valley. In the valley, the glowing swordss that looked like scorched iron swords were inserted everywhere, creating a splendid spectacle.

    Although he was experienced and knowledgeable, this was the first time that he had seen such a peculiar scene.

    In amazement, Venerable Volcano mused, "The first time I saw Ai Hui, I knew he was different and would always create amazing things. I wonder what he spends his time thinking about."

    Xiao Shan stood beside him silently and was absorbed in his own thoughts while looking at the valley.

    Suddenly, he asked, "When will Ai Hui recover?"

    Lou Lan answered, "ording to his recuperation status during these two days, it will still take about 10 days before he totally recovers."

    The surging sword consciousness in the valley disappeared. If he had not seen this happen with his own eyes before, he would have believed there was nothing in the valley. It was shocking to them because they knew the swords that resembled red hot iron had locked away all the sword consciousness.

    Restraining was much more difficult than recklessly showing off.

    All of a sudden, Lou Lan looked out into the distance.

    Xiao Shan was alert and asked at once, "What?"

    Lou Lan was confused. "I feel vibrations from earth elemental energy under the ground. It seems that some beasts are approaching."

    Venerable Volcano was curious. "Beasts? What beasts woulde to this damnable ce?"

    Earlier, they had searched this area several times. There was not a single big insect to be found, let alone beasts. The area around the wind curtain was almostpletely barren.

    Xiao Shan put on a vignt face. "What beasts? How many?"

    Loa Lan closed his eyes and answered after a moment, "Many. These beasts have four legs and are traveling briskly."

    He was a sand puppet who was sensitive to earth elemental energy. The vtility of earth elemental energy was much lower than other elemental energies. On the vast earth, earth elemental energy was normally subdued and as tranquil as the surface of ake. Now, however, Lou Lan sensed that the earth elemental energy in the distance was rippling slightly.

    Back when Shi Youguang was hunting Ai Hui, he had used the trace of earth elemental energy left by elementalists to locate Ai Hui.

    Lou Lan was better than Shi Youguang in this aspect. Not only because he was a sand puppet, but also because with his unparalleled sand core, Midnight, his power was matchless. As a result, he could sense the slightest changes in the earth elemental energy from more than 5,000 meters away.

    Xiao Shan became more nervous. "In which direction?"

    Lou Lan pointed to the rear of the camp and said predictively, "Over there!"

    Xiao Shan flew up into the sky without any hesitation.

    Looking toward the direction in which Lou Lan pointed, Xiao Shan saw a cluster of tiny shadows that were moving, almost as if the horizon was jumping up and down.

    When he saw the size of the group, he finally understood why Lou Lan said there were many of them.

    A chilly st traveled straight through his spine and into his forehead. His scalp tightened, and he felt like he had fallen into an icehouse that was mind-numbingly cold.

    Xiao Shan came back to his senses, and his face paled. He then yelled, "Enemy attack!"

    The sharp sound tore through the silent night.

    "Enemy attack!"

    The camps of their enemy were over there. Incessant lights brightened the dark night like stars in the sky.

    Helian Tianxiao murmured, "Beautiful!"

    A yell wafting from the distance gradually grew clear, "Enemy attack!"

    Helian Tianxiao grinned ferociously. He patted the belly of the wolf that he rode and ordered, "God Wolf, charge!"

    Next, Song Xiaoqian, who was on the nk, gave her order at once, "Silverfrost, charge!"

    The wolf pack elerated.

    The rumble of the beast horde became louder and gradually converged into growling thunder. Strong and powerful wolf paws struck the ground like hammers. Stiff rocks couldn¡¯t stop them and turned into powder under their limbs in almost an instant.

    Boom, boom.

    Thousands of paws simultaneously struck the ground as if stomping thunder into the earth. The earth shook.

    The fur of the God Wolves was as red as blood and illuminated the soldiers riding on them. The red halos gradually fused together. If one looked down from the sky, he or she would see all the red halos expand and gradually merge into onerge halo as the God Wolf Division charged faster and faster.

    The blood red torrent galloped over the ground. They advanced as quickly as a giant red axe splitting the air.

    On both sides of God Wolf troops, snow-white Silverfrost soldiers brought along a freezing fog like two swords that were ready to attack the enemies at any time. The ground that they passed froze, leaving two icy pathways behind them.

    On the back of those wolves, the soldiers were excited and prepared to kill anything they encountered. Their eyes bloodshot, and their faces subconsciously broke out into brutal grins.

    They had never been so sure that sess was around the corner!

    ording to the experience umted during countless battles, they were quite certain that charging forward from such a close proximity to the enemy made them invincible. Even the three central divisions couldn¡¯t stop them.

    The enemy camp in front of them started to fly into turmoil. Lights were lit constantly, which illuminated their camp as if it was daytime.

    They were merely a mob!

    The enemy¡¯s panic triggered the fierce nature of the blood elementalists. The brutal aspiration to kill writhed in their bodies. They felt like they had already seen a picture of the future: after they intruded into the enemy camp, the frail camp was shredded into pieces when encountering the forceful paws of their wolves. They would cut into the bodies of their foes and churn the flesh up effortlessly like heavy and fierce axes.

    Several shadows shot up from the enemy camp and flew toward them.

    All of a sudden, a piece of ice appeared in the air in front of them and wildly grew bigger and bigger.

    Xiao Shan!

    He was an expert from the Surveince Division.

    Helian Tianxiao had witnessed Xiao Shan fighting in battles several times and was impressed by Xiao Shan¡¯s mighty power. Many of their powerful experts who had an Ability of God were defeated by Xiao Shan.

    However, this had just been during skirmishes..

    In skirmishes, Masters yed crucial roles. They were strong and flexible, which was a great advantage.

    When it came to a full fledged battle against a chargingbat division, however, the situation was totally different.

    Helian Tianxiao thought that Xiao Shan was overly confident, like a mantis trying to stop a chariot.

    A momentter, the ice that could freeze space grew into a transparent wall that blocked Helian Tianxiao, and he grinned scornfully.

    He didn¡¯t choose to slow down. Instead, he took the lead and charged into the transparent wall. Like an enormous ax shrouded in a red halo, the God Wolf Division hacked at the transparent wall.

    Boom!

    The transparent wall copsed, shattering like a crystal into countless pieces.

    The charging momentum of the God Wolf Division didn¡¯t decline at all.

    In the sky, Xiao Shan spat a mouthful of blood and lost control of his body. Comrades beside him immediately grabbed him, allowing him to keep his bnce and suppress the turbulent elemental energy in his body. He knew he couldn¡¯t stop the charging of the God Wolf Division all by himself. It was no different from suicide.

    However, each second was precious for them right now!

    His clothes were soaked in blood, and his face was pale. He used to look apathetic, but now he was as animated as an inferno. "[Breeze of Surveince]!" he roared as loudly as he could.

    The other soldiers were shocked by his roar. They understood that Xiao Shan was about to risk his life in this battle. The next minute, they felt as if some emotions had exploded in their hearts. They were all followers of Xiao Shan and had prepared to sacrifice their lives before they arrived.

    No one flinched. They howled furiously, "[Breeze of Surveince]!"

    Elemental energy rose ferociously from under their feet and swept every single inch of their skin. Their eyes were bright, and their bodies were steady. Standing there, they could feel the resonance of each other¡¯s elemental energy.

    Although they had practiced this move in their teenage years, they had never expected to use it in the future.

    They smiled at each other.

    Sweeping off the dust, they restored the shine to their swords. The whole army was like a sick monster who opened its eyes and demonstrated its great power once more. They were a bunch of deserters from a division that had a history that stretched more than a millenia. Now, they were singing a battle song that belonged to their ancestors. The sound lingered in the river of time and in the sky. The gs they lifted were rotten, but were radiant like the sun.

    They knew that this would be thest song.

    So, just let it be.

 Chapter 627: Eating Grass

    Chapter 627: Eating Grass

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    The hissing of "Breeze of Surveince" in the night sky had yet to dissipate when a me rose from within the faraway alliance¡¯s camping ground into the sky with a loud boom. It sounded like an erupting volcano.

    Venerable Volcano!

    Three huge snowva fireballs flew into the sky and drew a ming locus in the night. Like meteorites descending from the sky, they dove for that angry, rolling, blood-colored wave with a whistle.

    Helian Tianxiao had no intention of reducing speed, as if he had not seen them.

    Beside him Song Xiaoqian shouted at the top of her lungs, "Archers!"

    The archers from both sides of the Silverfrost Division moved in unison, pulling their bowstrings without retrieving any arrows. The surrounding cold air converged, and sparkling and translucent ice arrows appeared on their bowstrings. The tails of these beautiful ice arrows were like a magnified snow flower.

    Song Xiaoqian ordered, "Release!"

    Twang!

    The sound of 1,000 bowstrings being released rang out. A thousand ice cold lights flew into the sky, leaving behind slender and bright scars like glowing silkworms. It was as if there was an invisible palm in the sky, twisting and turning these bright silk threads to create a beautiful and brilliant ice windstorm.

    Oneva fireball mmed onto the ice windstorm forcefully.

    Boom!

    Countlessva mes exploded in the air like fireworks. The next moment, the ruptured silver frost froze, and all the beautiful light rays disappeared in an instant. The fiery flowers became flowers of silver frost, while the zingva became silver frosted rocks that smashed onto the ground like rain, shattering into pieces.

    .....

    Lights on the God-subduing Peak guarded by the Spear of Heavy Cloud were dim, and the tired soldiers took this time to rest. However, the lights were bright in Shi Xueman¡¯s tent as the officers gathered together to discuss the next day¡¯s battle.

    Suddenly, Shi Xueman jerked her head up as her heart jolted.

    An intense elemental energy wave motion!

    Not only did the nonstop whistling of the metal wind curtain cover up the majority of the ambient sound, it would also conceal the majority of the elemental energy wave motions. Yet, this burst of wave motion was so intense that even the metal wind curtain was unable to hide it!

    It wasing from... behind!

    Her face changed.

    Not only her, but the others also felt this rming presence. It was simply too intense. Like a sun in the night sky, it was effortlessly striking.

    "Enemy!"

    A sharp rm went off, and the soldiers in charge of the night duty rushed over, "Reporting! A big group of enemies detected!"

    Everyone dashed out of the tent.

    From the faraway horizon, countless broadback batfish were speedily flying toward them like a powerful current.

    The number of broadback batfish made everybody take in a deep breath of cold air. They had no doubt that the enemy had ced everything on this battle. No, only all the beast battalions. What about the God Wolf and the Silverfrost divisions? Where were they?

    Thinking about that astounding elemental energy wave motion from earlier, their faces quickly turned pale.

    How had the enemy broken through the wind curtain?

    The lights on the three God-subduing Peaks brightened. The Infantry and the Sky Edge divisions had also been rmed.

    Shi Xueman bit her lips forcefully, almost splitting them open. Never had there been a moment that terrified her this badly and made her feel this much despair! The iing beast battalion was like an enormous tide that could easily swallow them up.

    Calm down, calm down!

    Her first reaction was to engage the God-subduing Peak to rescue Ai Hui and the others, but she knew it was toote.

    Plus, once they retreated, Sky Edge and Infantry wouldn¡¯t be able to hold off the flock of enemies. Their defense line had been smashed in the blink of an eye, making it impossible for everyone to flee. Being familiar with military affairs, she knew that retreating was harder than going all out. They would be utterly defeated if they were even slightly careless when withdrawing.

    What would Ai Hui do if he were to be in her position?

    Shi Xuemanposed herself. Ai Hui had been in even more dangerous situations, but he had not given up, so how could she? Furthermore, how could Ai Hui, that evildoer, die so easily?

    Yeah, how could he die so easily?

    Viins have long lives!

    Shi Xueman threw her panic away and calmed herself down. She was much more clear-headed now. If Ai Hui were to die, the rear position would be destroyed, and the three vanguardbat divisions wouldn¡¯t survive either. Once their vanguard defense line was broken through, those at the back would also perish.

    All for one, one for all.

    This thought swept thest bit of fear out the window.

    Abandoningrades and fleeing alone weren¡¯t things people from the North Sea¡¯s Shi family could possibly do!

    She quickly made a decision. "Qian Dai, Zu Yan, go assist the Pagoda Cannon Alliance!"

    Fatty had long been feeling restless. Thinking about Ai Hui being in danger affected his fighting spirit. He admired Shi Xueman because she stuck to her principles, which was a respectable trait. He wasn¡¯t like her. He was just a fatty who was lucky to be alive and only slightly principled.

    To him, no one was as important as Ai Hui.

    Fatty and Zu Yan left immediately.

    Having recovered herposure Shi Xueman disyed her decisiveness. She was certain that close rangebat power was what the rear needed to resist the God Wolf and the Silverfrost division. However, she was also clear that it was toote to assemble people and then return to provide assistance.

    She determined that the enemy had already started charging!

    Furthermore, that intense and terrifying gush of elemental energy wave motion made her recall some details about the three central divisions that she had read previously.

    Unable to make up for the disadvantages at the rear, she would have to further strengthen the advantages they already possessed. This was her judgment.

    If the battle had already ended and the Alliance had already crumbled by the time Fatty and Zu Yan got there, it would be pointless for anyone else to go over. If the battle was still ongoing, it meant that both sides were in a deadlock and their arrival would greatly boost the Alliance¡¯s power.

    The pressure at the front line was extremely huge, but Shi Xueman remained confident.

    Amid this despairing chaos, Shi Xueman gambled herst bit of hope.

    Ultimately, human affairs were determined by heavens.

    Ke Ning frantically shouted for the soldiers to man the pagoda cannons.

    Intense fear shrouded his heart, causing him to feel suffocated and breathless. However, he knew that every second was being exchanged for hisrades¡¯ fresh blood.

    In the distant sky, a group of people were being enveloped by intense light rays. Watching them from afar, they were like skynterns drifting in the sky.

    Senior Xiao Shan and the rest...

    Unknowingly, tears rolled down Ke Ning¡¯s cheeks.

    A sharp whistle echoed across his head as a dazzling light ray ripped across the dark sky.

    The Sword of Lightning!

    Ke Ning leapt up and yelled at the top of his lungs, "Cannoneers, get to your pagoda cannon! Cannoneers, get to your pagoda cannon!"

    In the camp, people were dashing about with blood-shot eyes, as if in a frantic state of mind.

    Far away, a surging current filled the field. Also in the distance, a dazzling light ray illuminated the night sky.

    The skyntern-like light balls emitted terrifying wave motions that made Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face change for the first time. He quickly recalled a legend that had circted for a long time, but was rather secretive.

    In the legend, it was said that the three central divisions were tasked with an important mission, which was to ensure that the Elders Guild wouldn¡¯t fall under the control of Grandmasters. As such, across generations, the three central divisions had been working diligently to create a fatal move that could suppress Grandmasters.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s heart jumped. Could this legend be true?

    In the sky many crisscrossed light beams appeared in the spaces between the former soldiers of the Surveince Division, who had been enveloped in light rays. When they first emerged, they were as dim as shadows, but quickly brightened.

    They were bing increasingly bright!

    Helian Tianxiao noticed that wind was being generated!

    No, the surrounding elemental energy was being drawn away by those damned fellows in the sky.

    Helian Tianxiao roared, "Shoot them down!"

    Hearing that, Song Xiaoqian shouted, "Archers!"

    The archers in the Silverfrost Division drew their bows at the same time.

    "Release!"

    The same ice windstorm rose once again and pounced toward those light beams and figures in the sky with a loud whistle.

    Just as the ice windstorm was about to swallow those floating figures, a viridescent flower branch appeared all of a sudden.

    This delicate viridescent flower branch remained motionless despite the whistling and wild ice rainstorm. The moment it appeared, it grew at an rming rate. The branch was like a devilish vine that quickly grew into a wall of viridescent flower branches in the blink of an eye.

    The ice windstorm formed by countless ice arrows mmed heavily against the wall of viridescent flower branches.

    Ripplingyers appeared on the wall as the bright light rays spread along the branches, filling the wall with specks of light and forming a beautiful flower scroll. It was so beautiful that it was hard to look away.

    A slightly thin figure appeared overhead unknowingly.

    He wore snow-white garments and had long hair that fluttered in the wind. The paleness in his face added contrast to his handsome features, effective entuating them. The viridescent flower traces on his forehead added some mystery.

    He had a cool expression and appeared exceptionally arrogant. The dark night sky overhead was like a pair of ck wings fixed on his back.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s pupils shrank once again. Duanmu Huanghun!

    He was back?

    It was old news that Duanmu Huanghun had been in seclusion for a long time. Who knew he would actually appear at this critical juncture. It wasn¡¯t a big deal since, ording to the usual progression, Duanmu Huanghun would¡¯ve only be a Master. It wasn¡¯t anything to worry about.

    What could a Master do when ced on this battlefield?

    Yet, that wall of viridescent flower branches made Helian Tianxiao aware that Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s abilities exceeded those of ordinary Masters.

    How did this fellow get this strong?

    Helian Tianxiao felt uncertain, but quicklyposed himself. So what if that was the case? Without a Grandmaster the other enemies wouldn¡¯t be able to resist their attack!

    They were the God Wolf Division!

    Helian Tianxiao refocused his gaze onto the enemy camp. That was their main target. The annoying flies would be dealt with after seizing control over the Pagoda Cannon Alliance¡¯s camp!

    "So much noise the moment I return. How unpleasant."

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s annoyed voice rang from above. It was cold and lofty, but not loud. Nevertheless everyone on the battlefield could hear him and the former Surveince members¡¯ frantic withdrawal of elemental energy seemed not to have any effect on him.

    He stood god-like and proud, as he overlooked the ground and extended his palm out.

    On his palm floated a segment of a viridescent flower branch.

    The branch was very short and did not look fancy. There wasn¡¯t any rming wave motion either, but it carried a simr tenderness and plumpness.

    "These wolves have traveled a long way. Their kindness should be repaid, but I heard that wolves eat flesh. Sorry, but there¡¯s only grass today."

    At that, he tossed the viridescent flower branch toward the blood-colored current that covered the field.

 Chapter 628: Viridescent Flower, Viridescent Flower

    Chapter 628: Viridescent Flower, Viridescent Flower

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The viridescent twining branches fell onto the ground softly like a viridescent feather.

    "Viridescent flower, viridescent flower, carry me with magnificence. Viridescent flower, viridescent flower, bestow me with poor melons."

    .

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s melodious voice echoed.

    The viridescent flowers extended rapidly like a green carpet spreading outward.

    Helian Tianxiao found Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s voice as annoying as the buzzing of a fly. Nevertheless, he had to admit that his judgment had been urate.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s abilities were indeed beyond those of ordinary Masters!

    As one of the richest and most powerful aristocratic families in the former Avalon of Five Elements, not only was the Duanmu family the most influential family in Jadeite Forest, it was also a ce the God Nation had always been gathering information from. Duanmu family¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] had long history that could be traced back to Cultivation Era. Reportedly, it was inspired by the viridescent flower design on porcin. When put to use, [Viridescent Flower] indeed validated this im.

    [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] was the mostmon and ordinary skill among the Duanmu family¡¯s absolute art, [Viridescent flower].

    However, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] was entirely different. It was no longer made of the frail and t viridescent flower traces but lively and plump young sprouts.

    He could feel the resistance from the ground.

    The moment God Wolfunched an attack, the soldiers became one with blood spiritual force. Forget about grass, even if there was a mountain before him, Helian Tianxiao had confidence that he could smash it into pieces!

    But he could also clearly feel the resistanceing from the tender viridescent flowers!

    He felt as though he had fallen into a swamp as the resistance all around slowed the soldiers¡¯ momentum. This was an extremely dangerous sign! When charging, speed and momentum were key. If they were to lose speed, they would also lose power. No matter how heavy an axe was, it wouldn¡¯t chop wood if the handler was unable to raise it.

    They had to get out of this situation!

    Helian Tianxiao shouted, "Silverfrost Screen!"

    Without hesitation Song Xiaoqian repeated, "Silverfrost Screen!"

    On the battlefield, Silverfrost Division¡¯s task was to protect the nks of God Wolf and sacrifice themselves when needed. This was the Silverfrost Division¡¯s mission and job.

    Silverfrost wolves sprinted wildly on both sides and the mist around their hoofs thickened.

    Crash!

    Before them, a long block of ice rose from the ground and extended forward.

    God Wolf leapt onto the ice and continued charging forward!

    The all-round resistance disappeared and God Wolf regained their previous might and momentum.

    Duanmu Huanghun looked on as this happened. He nted his mouth a little and started to sing.

    "General and his cavalry, a beauty yet to be married. Viridescent flower remains the same, aging with magnificence."

    Covering thend, the viridescent twining branches blossomed simultaneously as bright viridescent flowers bloomed. The sea of grass from earlier instantly became a sea of flowers. When Duanmu reached the notes "aging with magnificence", the viridescent flowers exploded and countless petals enveloped the whole battlefield, fluttering everywhere!

    The petals emitted a slight glimmer as they danced in the boundless sky like snowkes, as if there were beautiful women singing a mournful but alluring song.

    Helian Tianxiao opened his eyes wide in disbelief.

    What Path of Master was this?

    Was this a wood elementalist¡¯s move?

    How could it be?

    God Wolf¡¯s movement became sluggish as the soldiers¡¯ mental state had been affected. The river flow-like blood spiritual force was no longer surging as smoothly as before.

    Such an unimaginable move, such terrifying viridescent flowers... how could they be executed by a freshly promoted Master?

    Damn!

    Helian Tianxiao cursed. He had to break this skill first; otherwise, even if they had managed to charge into the enemy¡¯s camp, the soldiers¡¯ morale and might would be depleted. What would be the use then?

    Right now time was of the essence!

    The enemy was trying everything they could to obstruct God Wolf in order to stall for time and increase their odds of victory.

    Helian Tianxiao was well aware of this fact, but there was nothing he could do. He had thought that they could make it to the camp in one shot, but obstacles presented themselves one after another, thoroughly pissing him off.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s pretentious and arrogant behavior added mes to his already heated heart.

    When has there ever been a mere Master who had dared to act all high and mighty before God Wolf?

    Go to hell!

    Unable to hold back any longer, Helian Tianxiao roared, "Kill!"

    He raised the curved knife in his hand and dove toward Duanmu Huanghun.

    The God Wolf soldiers yelled in unison, "Kill!"

    Dazzling, red-colored knives rose like a blood wave, carrying a sharp whistle. It was as if a malicious spirit had broken free from the blood sea and pounced onto Duanmu Huanghun.

    Knife rays flew up and the sharp whistle faded. All sounds on the battlefield disappeared and were overtaken by a dead silence.

    The viridescent flower petals fluttered as if being attracted, and gathered from all directions.

    Pff, pff, pff.

    The petals shattered into viridescent fragmented rays upon nearing the terrifying knife rays. The viridescent twining branches grew wildly on the ground, forming walls, but before the knife rays, they too became as frail as paper.

    The blood knife rays swept ferociously across the sky and struck Duanmu Huanghun!

    In his fluttering white garments, Duanmu Haunghun exploded into viridescent fragmented rays with a loud bang. The remaining momentum threw the blood knife rays high up into the sky.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s eye twitched. They had been yed!

    A big sheet of fluttering viridescent flower petals assembled behind Xiao Shan and gang to form a viridescent twining branch embroidery ball. Bang! The embroidery ball exploded, causing the viridescent flower fragmented rays to dance in the breeze as a pale Duanmu Huanghun reappeared.

    How close!

    If he hadn¡¯t been more careful, he definitely would¡¯ve died horribly by that knife. He wouldn¡¯t have been able to block off the full strength of God Wolf. Not only would he have failed to do so, but he would also fail to escape once he was being locked down.

    Nevertheless, he could sense that these soldiers¡¯ morale was bing increasingly intimidating. With a raise of his head and a puff of his chest, Duanmu Huanghun courageously flew up. With his floating white garments and handsome face, he looked almost god-like.

    "Viridescent flower, viridescent flower..."

    Duanmu Huanghun shouted, but before he could do anything, he saw Helian Tianxiao raising his knife. Duanmu Huanghun quivered and cursed inwardly. Once again, with a p, he transformed into fluttering viridescent flower petals that dispersed amid the sea of flowers.

    Sword of Lightning. Gu Xuan and gang were waiting patiently for an opportunity.

    God Wolf was moving with full force. It wasn¡¯t something they could fight against without Ai Hui¡¯s lead. That terrifying knife ray from earlier had shocked them bloodless. However, upon seeing that Duanmu Huanghun had managed to dodge it, they instantly heaved a sigh of relief.

    "That¡¯s it, that¡¯s it. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s be a Yu Mingqiu! He¡¯s starting to recite poetry!"

    "Magnificent I do know, but what about the poor melon? What kind of melon is that? Will one be poor after eating it? It¡¯s no wonder Bangwan¡¯s always so poor! Boss won¡¯t eat it for sure!"

    "Whoever dares to offer Boss a piece of poor melon will be dead in one p! Right, who¡¯s that general?"

    "Why do you care! The focus should be on the beauty! When did he find himself a belle?"

    "Could he be talking about himself?"

    "Hmm, seems possible..."

    Nonsensical discussion filled the air, but that aside, everyone was still impressed by Duanmu Huanghun, who had be so powerful upon returning! They knew how difficult it was to resist God Wolf¡¯s blood current, even for a short period of time!

    Unknowingly, the fear and desperation in their hearts had disappeared. What took over was a heroic spirit for having battled against the enemy.

    Wind Mail¡¯s power, volcano¡¯sbustion, viridescent twining branches¡¯ splendor.

    No one retreated. Everybody risked their lives forging forward in unity.

    As members, how could they not feel proud? How could they not?

    Wasn¡¯t life but a battle?

    To live without regrets.

    Emotions surging, Gu Xuan forced himself to regainposure. Boss wasn¡¯t around, so he would bemanding the team.

    In a low voice, he cut in, "Shut it, you all!"

    Everyone quietened down immediately and turned serious, their emotions surging within and their eyes flickering with a strong desire to battle. They no longer felt exhausted and were filled with boundless energy; they had fire in them. However, they had to wait for the perfect opportunity to deal the enemy a fatal blow.

    Gu Xuan continued, "Zhiguang, move diagonally to the side. The moment Senior Xiao Shan and his team move, we will cut in!"

    Shi Zhiguang nodded as he gently pressed on his sword hilt. His eyes were like stars in the night sky, but his face was as calm as water.

    The members of Sword of Lightning fixed their gaze on Xiao Shan and gang.

    Not only Sword of Lightning, but the whole battlefield¡¯s attention was on them.

    Because the elemental energy wave motion was so intense, it swallowed up elemental energy from miles away. What great power! The skyntern-like lights from earlier had be even more dazzling. They were like suns that emitted eye-piercing light rays, illuminating the night sky and making it seem like day time.

    Amid the light, a figure could faintly be seen.

    It was bing blurry bit by bit.

    Helian Tianxiao felt the terrifying wave motion but did not raise his head. Instead, he led his team in their wild charge. He was afraid that if he did look up, he would uncontroblyunch an attack!

    A sense of danger overtook his whole body, making him feel fear and trepidation.

    The best choice now was to charge into the enemy¡¯s camp.

    Once they did that, it would be difficult for them to separate, no matter how strong the enemy¡¯s moves were.

    Whatever the enemy had done so far was to slow them down. The more this was so, the more they shouldn¡¯t stop!

    By now the enemy had already shown all their cards.

    Seeing the camp magnifying in his field of vision, Helian Tianxiao felt uncontrobly agitated.

    The annoying viridescent flowers swept over once again, but this time Helian Tianxiao remained unmoved. The flowers were much weaker than before. Plus, they had already gained momentum and flow, so they were unobstructable.

    Once the heavy axe was lifted, the enemy would be destroyed!

    Just then, the sky dimmed once again.

    Eh?

    Helian Tianxiao raised his head automatically and noticed that the sun had vanished. The scenery around them had disappeared as well. A gentle wind sound surrounded them.

    The wind sound was very subtle, but it made Helian Tianxiao¡¯s hair stand on end.

    He raised his arm abruptly and shouted, "Halt!"

    The enormous inertia plowed deep scars on the ground, causing mud to fly everywhere. God Wolf and Silverfrost stopped in their tracks and everyone looked around, bewildered.

    They couldn¡¯t see anything. Instead, they could only hear the wind. It was so gentle and soft, but absolutely frightening.

    Breeze of Surveince had arrived right on schedule.

 Chapter 629: A Desperate Effort

    Chapter 629: A Desperate Effort

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Thud, thud, thud.

    The footsteps of people wearing metallic warboots broke the dead silence in Newlight City. Every time their metallic warboots touched the ground, blood would ssh in all directions, resembling the blossoming of a dark-red flower. asionally, drops of blood wouldnd on the warboots. Following which, the drops of blood would slide silently to the ground like dewdrops falling off lotus leaves.

    The warboots thus remained spotlessly clean and the footsteps remained synchronized.

    The brick pavement of the street was soaked with blood. If one looked down from the sky, he or she would see the bloody pavement extend to the end of the city. The blood color of the street was dazzling. The street was filled with puddles of blood, resembling puddles of water that were left behind by a downpour. However, instead of the pleasant after-rain aroma, the air was filled with a choking, bloody stench.

    Those people walked silently through the empty, bloody street, looking as if they could not see or smell anything.

    Some of them had a few decapitated heads that were dripping with blood in their hands. The eyes on these heads were wide open, containing fear and anger.

    If one took a closer look at these decapitated heads, he or she would be overwhelmed with shock.

    Two of the heads belonged to Yuchi Ba, who tried to be a Grandmaster, and "Ugly Idol" An Chouchou, who was the mayor of Newlight City...

    However, in reality, no one saw this scene. Those who saw this scene were already dead. Everyone on this street, no, the core district of Newlight City, was already killed.

    Xiaobao was walking at the front with an ice-cold look on his face. "Tell them that if they don¡¯t surrender before sunset, we will massacre everyone in the entire city," he said indifferently.

    "Yes!" Gui Hu replied.

    Whoosh. Gui Hu suddenly appeared in the air. With elemental energy surging through his voice, he yelled, "If you don¡¯t surrender before sunset, we will massacre everyone in the city!"

    After taking a nce at the setting sun, Xiaobao withdrew his gaze.

    Gui Hu flew down beside Xiaobao and asked, "Why don¡¯t we massacre everyone now?"

    "They are Madam¡¯s subjects after all, so we should take mercy on them," Xiaobao answered inly.

    "If it was me, I would have killed every one of these defiant new citizens. What¡¯s the point of allowing them to live? Humph, so what if Yuchi Ba is high and mighty? He still ended up like this," Gui Hui said haughtily.

    "Yuchi Ba has passed his prime; he is no longer as mighty as before. It¡¯s a pity An Chouchou has suffered this fate though. He was extremely capable and talented," Xiaobao replied.

    Gui Hu felt a tinge of admiration for An Chouchou as well. He snorted, "I didn¡¯t expect this fatty to so strong-willed."

    "He was a foolishly loyal individual," Xiaobao continued inly.

    When they reached a crossroads, they stopped in their tracks as a group of people appeared in front of them.

    Leading the group of people was a shivering old man. When he saw Xiaobao and his counterparts, he kneeled down and spoke with a trembling voice, "Newlight City is willing to surrender to you! We will surrender!"

    The rest of the people behind him kneeled down as well and said, "All of us will surrender to you!"

    Xiaobao did not even take a nce at them and let them continue kneeling on the puddles of blood. Then he turned around and said to his counterparts, "Newlight City has been pacified. Next stop, Pcefield City."

    .....

    A cool breeze blew as the aura of killing intent lingered in the air.

    Helian Tianxiao was feeling regretful at this point of time. He had underestimated the enemy. The battle he thought he would win easily was overflowing with variables. The oues that he anticipated did not happen. The toughness and tenacity of the enemy overwhelmed him with shock and fear.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s strength exceeded an ordinary Master¡¯s. Helian Tianxiao wondered, was it possible that Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s genius had already reached the gate of Grandmaster?

    He single-handedly withstood an army charge. Such bravery... Didn¡¯t they say this fellow was just a pretty boy?

    And these fellows from the Surveince Division... they were actually brave!

    The current Helian Tianxiao did not dare to underestimate the three central divisions anymore. Dread and Judgement joined hands and single-handedly invaded the main encampment and kidnapped General Ye and Nangong Wulian. Meanwhile, these people from Surveince were willing to give up their lives to stop their charge without any hesitation.

    Previously, Helian Tianxiao felt that the three central divisions were weak and decadent. Right now, he felt that he was really foolish and arrogant to think that way. The main reason for their repeated losses was their underestimation of the elementalists.

    However, there was no medicine for regret in this world.

    Now that their charge was impeded, their situation immediately became extremely dangerous.

    While the rest was in a daze, Song Xiaoqian took the lead to make a decision. The breeze surrounding them seemed very weak, but she could sense that it was extremely dangerous. She took off her bow from her back and shot an arrow into the air above her head all of a sudden.

    A streak of light shed across the air and inserted itself into the deep, dark night.

    Suddenly, a look of joy appeared on her face. Following which, she pulled her bowstring back. Every time she pulled her bowstring back, she would release one arrow. Eventually, she shot out 12 arrows. The 12 streaks of light spread out like the tail of a peacock in the air. The three bottommost streaks of light disappeared.

    The three arrow gleams were devoured silently.

    A cold shiver went down Song Xiaoqian¡¯s spine. In a sh, she had lost her connection with the three arrows.

    Until now, she still did not know what was inside the breeze, but she knew that it must be something that was extremely dangerous!

    However, the arrows she released just now enabled her to find out how tall the surrounding breeze was.

    360 meters!

    Eventually, the other generals began to imitate what Song Xiaoqian did. Rains of arrows flew towards the breeze that was surrounding them. Most of these arrows were mysteriously devoured, but the generals were still able to quickly grasp the shape of the surrounding wind

    Everyone gasped in fear.

    They initially thought that it was an upright, cylindrical wind curtain. However, now they realized that it was actually a bell-shaped wind curtain. Mysteriously, there was a 60-meter-wide hole at the top of the bell-shaped wind curtain.

    Helian Tianxiao felt slightly d. He conjectured that such a huge hole was created as the Surveince Division did not activate enough men this time around.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s conjecture was right. The real [Breeze of Surveince] needed at least half of the Surveince Division to execute fully.

    [Breeze of Surveince] was an ultimate move that was created to deal with Grandmasters. The Surveince Division named this dangerous yet quiet breeze "trade wind". It was discovered during a bitter battle. "Trade wind" did not belong to any of the five elements. It was produced when elemental energy was burned. When an elementalist burned the elemental energy in his body, he was like an ignited candle, and the "trade wind" was the smoke from the candle me. "Trade wind" could only be found in extremely small amounts.

    Until now, the Surveince Division had yet to master the core of the "trade wind". They had not found any solutions other than having their members burn their own elemental energies.

    The "trade wind" would be more powerful as more elementalists burned their elemental energies. This type of unique and mysterious wind had nothing to do with the five elements, but it could merge together with the Nature as one.

    Once the "Surveince Cage" was formed, it couldst for tens of thousands of years.

    Even if the one that was trapped in the Surveince Cage was a Grandmaster, he or she could only listen to the sound of the breeze in absolute darkness as he slowly died with the passing of time.

    The Surveince Cage would copse only if the elemental energies in the world disintegratedpletely, like the cmity at the end of Cultivation Era.

    It was a pity Xiaoshan did not have enough men and [Breeze of Surveince] could not be executed fully. Xiaoshan did not know about this fact, but he had already achieved his goal of impeding the charge of the God Wolf Division and the Silverfrost Blood Division to buy more time for the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    From the look of it, everything proceeded smoothly.

    The soldiers of the God Wolf Division and the Silverfrost Blood Division looked distressed. They were specialized in charging enemy lines, not flying. They were almost entirely incapable of flying straight up.

    A 360-meter-tall, bell-shaped wind curtain with an exit that was only 60 meters wide!

    How were they going to get out?

    Time was passing bit by bit and everyone was bing more and more flustered. They could imagine the scene of the frantic encampment of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance stabilizing gradually and aiming their Beehive Heavy Cannons one by one at them.

    Even if they managed to escape this bell-shaped wind curtain, they would have to regroup before they could charge the enemy line.

    Facing concentrated pagoda fire without speed would render thempletely helpless like a fish on a chopping board.

    "Build an ice staircase upwards!" Song Xiaoqian instructed.

    Everyone¡¯s eyes lit up. It was a good solution!

    Building an ice wall was amonly-used tactic by the Silverfrost Blood Division. Not only could an ice wall act as a defensive structure, it could also create a path for them to charge their enemy lines. As long as they built an ice wall upwards, they would form an ice staircase which they could use to escape this bell-shaped wind curtain.

    The soldiers of Silverfrost acted rapidly. Their silverfrost wolves raised their front paws and mmed them heavily on the ground, causing ice-cold air to flow in all directions. An ice wall began to rise from the ground.

    However, very soon, everyone¡¯s facial expressions turned ugly.

    The edges and corners of the ice wall were smoothening rapidly. The ice wall was melting and shrinking silently. It reminded one of a rock being eroded by wind. Within a short period of time, this thick and solid ice wall waspletely eroded by a seemingly invisible wind.

    "Howe it turned out like this?" someone asked with a trembling voice.

    No one could answer his question.

    The worse thing was that time was running out.

    A burly man jumped out of his rank with his silverfrost wolf and said with a deep voice, "Division Leader, if we win this battle, please take care of my family!"

    Before Song Xiaoqian could say anything, the burly man roared and he and his silverfrost wolf exploded into a cloud of extremely cold mist. Their corpses could not be found at all.

    An ice wall that was sturdier and more sparkling than before appeared once again. The unusual thing about it was that it was light blue in color, resembling an enormous, blue-colored gemstone that was exuding traces of cold air.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s mind shivered. This was the Silverfrost Blood Division¡¯s unique explosion technique, [Frost Explosion]!

    The blue ice wall extended in front of everyone¡¯s eyes. The corrosive wind still existed, but its speed had been greatly reduced.

    Another Silverfrost soldier and his silverfrost wolf threw themselves at the ice wall and activated [Frost Explosion]!

    The rest turned silently. Following which, streaks of snow-white figures stepped out of their ranks and charged towards the ice wall and activated their [Frost Explosion].

    The explosions of [Frost Explosion] weren¡¯t loud, and they resembled the sound of ice shattering.

    The blue-colored ice wall kept on rising as the sound of ice shattering resounded through the air continuously.

    360 meters tall, 460 people.

    A light blue, sparkling, ice staircase with a precipitous slope was formed. It led to the sky above their heads.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s eyes turned slightly red as she bit her lower lip tightly. She was unable to say anything.

    Helian Tianxiao watched on silently as the ice staircase increased in height. With an ice-cold facial expression like usual, he bowed at the ice staircase.

    He then raised his head and looked at the sky. The aura of killing intent surrounding his body became stronger and more concentrated. He looked like the God of Death that had just arrived from hell. His ice contained nothing but chilliness.

    Without saying anything, he took the lead and ran up the ice staircase. Even though the ice staircase was steep, he effortlessly ascended it.

    The rest remained silent and followed closely behind him.

    Their solemn faces and reddened eyes were reflected in the light-blue glow of the ice staircase.

    The powerful paws of the silverfrost wolvesnded gently and silently on the ice staircase, appearing as if they knew that therades¡¯ bodies were beneath their feet.

 Chapter 630: Confrontation

    Chapter 630: Confrontation

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The deep and vast night sky descended upon the battlefield.

    The battlefield was extremely quiet. One could only hear a light and gentle breeze blowing through the night air, resembling an inaudible, millennium-old whisper.

    The elementalists were staring at the enormous wind curtain that gave off a lustre with shock. Its base was five kilometers wide and its body was wide at the bottom and narrow at the top, resembling a glowing hill. The deep and tranquil night sky was like a pair of esoteric, ck eyes that stared at the wind curtain silently.

    The glow of the wind curtain wasn¡¯t dazzling; it merely gave off a faint lustre that looked like a visible flowing breeze.

    The wind curtain did not contain any terrorizing elemental energy undtions. It waspletely merged with the Nature, perfectly harmonious. It looked like a hill that had been there all along. Other than being huge in size, it looked exceptionally unremarkable.

    However, all the elemental masters present were utterly appalled by it.

    Including Duanmu Huanghun.

    He was hovering in the air while staring at the huge, glowing wind curtain. His eyes were wide open and his mind was unsettled.

    After the simplification and consolidation of the multitudinous variations of [Viridescent Flower] during his seclusion, he finally created the mighty [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches]. He was already standing at the apex of the Duanmu family¡¯s history. [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] no longer consisted only of wood elemental energy. It was a five elemental ring that used wood elemental energy as the starting point. [Viridescent Flower] had stepped onto a new realm that was formed from emptiness.

    After exiting his seclusion, Duanmu Huanghun was extremely confident. The door to the next higher realm had been opened and he could see the magical world behind the door.

    However, the wind curtain before his eyes now made him realize that knowledge was infinite.

    The elemental energy undtions from it might¡¯ve been weak, but they synchronized perfectly with the Nature. The elemental energies of the Nature were mixed and chaotic, while the glowing wind curtain was pure and clear. Even though they hadpletely different natures, Duanmu Huanghun had the misperception that they were from the same source.

    Very soon, Duanmu Huanghun realized that this wasn¡¯t an illusion.

    The Nature¡¯s elemental energies entered the wind curtain endlessly, appearing as if there was something inside attracting them. The glow of the wind curtain did not intensify or dim; it remained silent and no changes urred to it.

    Duanmu Huanghun eximed in admiration in his heart. How did they do it? If he had not witnessed it with his own eyes, he definitely wouldn¡¯t believe it.

    If the Nature was a painting, then these members from the Surveince Division would be the consummate painters of this painting. Even though the things they added to the painting should not belong there, they fitted wlessly as though they were meant to be there eventually. Painters who were able to achieve this feat were exceptional. The Nature was alive and constantly changing, hence one could imagine the difficulty of this feat.

    The tinge of pride that formed in Duanmu Huanghun not too long ago vanished in an instant.

    No one could destroy this wind-made hill. Perhaps a Grandmaster could? Duanmu Huanghun was unsure even though his master was a Grandmaster. As long as the Nature¡¯s elemental energies were not destroyed, the breeze-made hill would stand tall here forever.

    The seniors from the Surveince Division had sacrificed their lives to leave an imperishable masterpiece in this world.

    This ce would definitely be a tourist attraction or a research site in the future after a thousand years had passed.

    Verdant grass would cover this wilderness and flowers would bloom everywhere. Endless streams of tourists would arrive here from all over the world and the whispering breeze would carryughter as it blew.

    This was the first time Duanmu Huanghun had witnessed something that was immortal.

    Eh?

    He suddenly noticed that the top of the glowing wind curtain wasn¡¯tpletely sealed off.

    His facial expression changed drastically.

    Zu Yan was flying with Fatty in his arms, and both of them were staring nkly at the breeze-made hill. Fatty flew too slow, so Zu Yan decided to just carry him and fly. They flew past the Windy Pearl Bridge and headed for the encampment of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    On the way, they happened to see Xiao Shan and his counterparts execut [Breeze of Surveince].

    Compared to Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s shock and amazement, both of them were feelingplicated. Even though Xiao Shan and his counterparts came from the unlikeable Surveince Division, Fatty and Zu Yan had long treated them as their own people. Xiao Shan and his counterparts never cowered during battles, and they even provided necessary assistance during critical moments.

    Now that Fatty and Zu Yan had watched them courageously sacrifice their lives to deliver a fatal blow to the enemy forces, both of them felt sad and emotional at the same time.

    At this moment, Zu Yan¡¯s pupils suddenly dted and he yelled, "Not good!"

    A man and a wolf were standing at the peak of the glowing, breeze-made hill with a lofty air. The man was sitting on the back of the wolf. He looked around with an austere look on his face. His eyes revealed a bone-piercing, ice-cold killing intent.

    Helian Tianxiao!

    Fatty suddenly grinned, "It¡¯s good that not all of them died yet. They have to save some for us to kill."

    His smile was very cheerful, but it was filled with a sinister aura of death.

    Zu Yan¡¯s facial expression returned to normal and he acknowledged Fatty. All of sudden, his flying speed increased slightly.

    Fatty was very familiar with the encampment of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance as he had been there several times before to teach Ke Ning and the rest. He swept his gaze across the encampment and looked for Ke Ning. "He¡¯s there!"

    Zu Yan cast a nce at the direction Fatty was pointing at and spread open the azure wings behind his back abruptly. With a long trail of mes behind his azure wings and Fatty in his arms, he descended from the sky like a meteor andnded in the middle of the encampment.

    Ke Ning only noticed Fatty and Zu Yan at this point of time. A look of joy appeared in his eyes as he hurriedly went forward to receive them. Before he could say anything, Fatty asked, "Are the pagoda cannoneers in their positions?"

    "Yes, they have already taken up their respective positions," Ke Ning quickly replied.

    "I will takemand of them, you go and find yourself a pagoda cannon position to take up," Fatty said rudely.

    Ke Ning quickly let Fatty have his pagoda cannon position. An excited look appeared on his face as he asked, "Master Fatty, how should we fight this battle?"

    Fatty¡¯s arrival allowed Ke Ning to heave a sigh of relief. The enemy main forces broke through the wind canopy andunched a surprise night attack upon them. It wasn¡¯t easy for Ke Ning to lead everyone and stop them from crumbling. Previously, after [Breeze of Surveince] was executed, he thought that the enemy forces were done for. He did not expect the enemy forces to be able to escape from the breeze-made hill. When he saw Helian Tianxiao appear on the peak of the breeze-made hill, he felt despair.

    The ones that arrived were the enemy main forces, the Silverfrost Blood Division and the God Wolf Division. How could a bunch of rookies like them withstand these elite forces?

    He did not escape and held fast to his position as he knew there was nowhere to run too. He wanted to do his best, submit himself to fate, and take a bite off the enemy before he died.

    However, the arrival of Fatty and Zu Yan gave Ke Ning a glimpse of hope.

    In the field of pagoda cannons, Qian Dai was no doubt peerless. Every victory that involved pagoda cannons basically came from Fatty¡¯s hands. Ke Ning had personally experienced how utterly different a pagoda cannon was when it was in his hands and when it was in Fatty¡¯s hands.

    Fatty cast a nce at the enemy soldiers that wereing out from [Breeze of Surveince] endlessly.

    He could tell that even though the enemy forces had suffered losses, the losses were very limited.

    "Master Fatty, they are assembling." Ke Ning was slightly anxious.

    It was a sign that the enemy forces were preparing tounch a charge. Previously, the terrifying might of God Wolf¡¯s and Silverfrost¡¯s charge had left a hard-to-erase imprint in Ke Ning¡¯s mind. He felt that God Wolf and Silverfrost could not be stopped once they started their charge again.

    "It¡¯s better that they assemble." Fatty seemed to be smiling.

    Mysteriously, when Ke Ning saw Fatty¡¯s smile, a cold shiver went down his spine.

    Fatty did not care about Ke Ning¡¯s doubt. He turned around and told Zu Yan, "Let¡¯s give them a huge firecracker."

    "Alright." Zu Yan nodded his head.

    Ke Ning looked at both of them and felt baffled. Shouldn¡¯t they attack the enemy forces before they finished reassembling? At this point in time, the two sides were very close to each other, and the enemy forces had already entered the firing range of the Beehive Heavy Cannons.

    Zu Yan walked out of his pagoda cannon position and stopped 10 meters away from Fatty.

    Fatty took in a deep breath of air and roared, "All pagoda cannoneers, get ready."

    On the opposite side, Helian Tianxiao seemed to have heard Fatty¡¯smand and turned around to look at him. Both of their eyes met. Helian Tianxiao¡¯s facial expression was ice-cold as usual, and his gaze towards Fatty was filled with disdain.

    Fatty grinned at Helian Tianxiao, appearing as if thetter was harmless.

    Suddenly, a mass of mes appeared on the ground beneath Zu Yan¡¯s feet. Following which, a few fiery lines shot out from the mass of mes. With Zu Yan in the centre, they shot out in all directions like slithering, ming snakes.

    Helian Tianxiao was still waiting for his soldiers to finish assembling. He cast a nce in the distant sky and sensed that the deep night scene was hiding something deadly dangerous. The scene of the Pinwheel Sword piercing through his encampment that time appeared in his mind. His opponent was hiding in the dark now. As long as he revealed a single weakness, his opponent would deal him a fatal blow.

    Ever since they broke through the wind canopy, Helian Tianxiao had been worrying about the incisive and powerful Pinwheel Sword.

    However... Helian Tianxiao could also sense that the Pinwheel Sword that was hiding in the dark was not as dangerous asst time.

    Was it possible Ai Hui wasn¡¯t present?

    This conjecture arose subconsciously in his mind. However, in the blink of an eye, he threw this idea to the back of his head.

    Now that they had lost their speed, they were in a very dangerous situation. The enemy forces did not show any sign of copsing. Helian Tianxiao kept on reminding himself that it was not a bunch of rookies standing opposite him, but rather, a group of elite soldiers.

    The enemy forces¡¯ courage and willpower were as good as theirs. The elementalists from Surveince Division had already proven this.

    Helian Tianxiao did not dare to be careless. Even though they had lost their speed and the might of their charge was greatly reduced, out of prudence, he still decided to regroup his forces. By gathering everyone¡¯s power, their defense would be stronger.

    They were very close to the pagoda cannon formation opposite of them.

    Helian Tianxiao could even see the hasty arrival of Pagoda Cannon Master Qian Dai clearly.

    The enemy did not take any actions, looking as if they were preparing for a killer move. However, this was simply to Helian Tianxiao¡¯s liking. After all, he needed more time. For this kind of offensive battle, it was best not to engage the enemy in short skirmishes. The right way to fight this battle was to gather all his forces and smash the enemy¡¯s defensive line to smithereens like a heavy hammer.

    The opposing pagoda cannon formation seemed to be lit up with a ze, but Helian Tianxiao did not really care about it.

    Every spot in the pagoda cannon formation was filled with ze. Every now and then, scorching mes would shoot out from the fire reservoirs that were filled with snowva, illuminating the night sky.

    The fiery lines zigzagged through the ground of the encampment. They were extremely fast and nimble.

    Whoosh.

    One of the fiery lines passed through a Beehive Heavy Cannon. The pagoda cannoneer was stunned as a weird feeling arose in his heart. He quickly raised his head and looked in the direction of Fatty.

    Fatty nodded his head at him and gave him a hand gesture that signalled him to get ready for the battle. A look of ecstasy appeared on the pagoda cannoneer¡¯s face.

    The fiery lines kept on meandering through the Beehive Heavy Cannons. If one looked down from the sky, he or she would discover that the fiery lines were intertwining, forming an enormous ming spider web.

    Zu Yan¡¯s renowned technique, [Hellfire Spider Web]!

    The bright-red Beehive Heavy Cannons were positioned directly on the nodes of the [Hellfire Spider Web].

    At the center of the [Hellfire Spider Web], Zu Yan was like a seasoned hellfire spider that was waiting patiently for its prey to arrive.

    10 meters away, Fatty was carrying the heavy Beehive Heavy Cannon on his shoulder. He chuckled and closed his eyes, looking as if he had fallen asleep.

    The encampment of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance quieted down.

 Chapter 631: The Resonance of Pagoda Cannons

    Chapter 631: The Resonance of Pagoda Cannons

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Helian Tianxiao sensed an aura of danger. The experience from going through countless battles had given him an extraordinary instinct to sense danger.

    However, he did not panic or hesitate.

    Past experiences had told him that valor and decisiveness were exceptionally important to a life-or-death battle. In a chaotic and desperate situation, ying absolutely safe would only let a great opportunity slip. Going all-out would put more pressure on the enemy forces than ying it safe.

    Currently, his forces were reassembling. The atmosphere was silent and austere.

    Soon after, theypleted reassembling and the enemy forces had finished preparing. Both sides seemed to have returned to the starting point once more. However, Helian Tianxiao firmly believed that they held an advantage over their enemy.

    Compared to the defensive line formed by the three God-subduing Peaks and guarded by te Spear of Heavy Cloud, the defensive line formed hastily by the Pagoda Cannon Alliance was weak and delicate like paper, and loopholes could be found everywhere on it.

    The sharp ws of God Wolf were already pressing on the enemy¡¯s soft and tender belly. All it needed to do was to swipe its ws gently and its prey¡¯s entrails would burst out of his belly.

    Perhaps it would get bitten by the enemy before killing it, but the pain was nothingpared to the fruit of victory.

    Helian Tianxiao raised his right hand with a cold look on his face. "Get ready."

    And at the same time, directly opposite Helian Tianxiao, Fatty opened his eyes. His pea-like eyes squinted as he stared at the enemy forces in front of him. He spat out a mouthful of saliva and readjusted the Beehive Heavy Cannon on his shoulder. With a deep and low voice, he yelled, "Get ready."

    10 meters away from Fatty, Zu Yan shut his eyes as his long air drifted in the air even though there was no wind. Whoosh. Red mes suddenly extended along his long hair, making his hair look like long, fiery tongues. His breathing was slow and steady. Every time he breathed in and out, the hellfire spider web that covered the ground of the encampment would light up and dim ordingly.

    The pagoda cannoneers looked slightly nervous. They had practised this move before.

    However, they had only practised it twice.

    Fortunately, the contents of the training weren¡¯tplicated. All they needed to do was to keep up with the tempo.

    Zu Yan¡¯s breathing rhythm was transmitted to every pagoda cannon through his hellfire spider web. His calm and steady breathing rhythm seemed to contain a type of infectious ability. Those panicky pagoda cannoneers were gradually calming down now.

    Boom.

    The earth shook.

    Everyone¡¯s minds shook. One could tell that some pagoda cannoneers were panicking from their breathing rhythms. Even though they had participated in defending the defensive line before, this was actually the first time they were facing a head-on charge from the enemy forces.

    The breathing rhythm of the hellfire spider did not change at all. It was still slow and steady like before.

    Boom, boom.

    The earth shook even more violently than just now. The earth was shaking and the mountains were trembling.

    The pagoda cannoneers were dry, feeling slightly nervous. The enemy soldiers in front of them were like a tidal wave that surged towards them. The might of the enemy soldiers was like a flying mountain that could crush everything in its path.

    "Close your eyes and follow the rhythm," Fatty¡¯s deep and low voice rang across the air timely.

    Many pagoda cannoneers forcibly closed their eyes and began to adjust their breathing rhythms. Eventually, the booms in their ears seemed to be fuzzy. Their long and slow breaths were like an enormous monster that slowly emerged from the water¡¯s surface, grasping onto their minds tightly.

    Their minds were still in a nk, with fear, nervousness, and panic all mixed together. However, their bodies had already begun to enter a familiar state.

    They experienced this state every time during their daily training sessions. The devil-like training intensity always made them lose their thinking ability. The repetitive, mechanical training sessions had forged every movement into bing their instincts.

    So what¡¯s an instinct? Instinct was an intuitive way of acting when one was fearful, desperate, or anxious.

    It was like they were drowning, and the slow and steady, rhythmic breathing that rang across their ears were like their lifebuoys.

    The formation of God Wolf and Silverfrost was tight and concentrated. An intense, bloody glow engulfed the entire army formation. Those blood elementalists that possessed the Ability of God roared angrily and summoned their Abilities. Some of their appearances even underwent terrifying transformations as auras of ancient dire beasts began to pervade the air. Some even had dazzling andplicated blood traces appearing on their bodies. These blood traces quickly blended into the bloody glow, resembling red-colored water nts that were drifting in a raging sea.

    At this moment, they did not hold back anymore. Other than [ck Turtle Blood Traces] and [Scarlet Serpent Blood Scale Traces], which increased defensive power, they also executed the useless[God Eagle Eyes Blood Traces]. Basically, they unleashed every type of blood traces that they had.

    A life-or-death battle!

    Blood elementalists that possessed the Ability of God were the core members of god divisions and blood divisions. All the battle tactics were designed ording to them. Those who were individually powerful would make the best vanguards. They would be able to rip apart enemy defensive lines and break through. Meanwhile, those who weren¡¯t individually powerful usually possessed outstanding supporting blood traces that gave tremendous upgrades to the entire army.

    Even though apressed formation would increase their susceptibility to damages, it would intensify the bloody glow that engulfed them. With the support from the various types of blood traces, their defensive capabilities would rise significantly.

    Usually, Helian Tianxiao would break up his army into several smaller units. Even if some units had small amounts of people, they still possessed powerful offensive power like sharp knives. However, after they had lost their speed and momentum, the offensive power of those smaller units would decrease sharply. Therefore, Helian Tianxiao wasn¡¯t sure whether or not could they still deal any damage to the enemy¡¯s defensive line.

    Boom, boom.

    In full strength, the God Wolf Division had 10,000 men and the Silverfrost Blood Division had 5,000 men. Even after the losses they had suffered, they still had around 12,000 men total.

    In the middle of the formation, the God Wolf Division was like a heavy, blood-colored broadsword. On the two sides of the formation, the Silverfrost Blood Division was like the edges of the blood-colored broadsword, glimmering with a cold gleam.

    The members of the God Wolf Division were howling every now and then. Veins were popping out of their necks and their muscles were twitching in excitement. The blood spiritual force in their bodies were resonating with the bloody glow that engulfed the entire formation. They could not hear their own howls as they were drowned out by the explosions and roars in their surroundings. The blood in their bodies was burning intensely.

    They were unstoppable!

    They got closer and closer to the enemy¡¯s defensive line, so much so that they could even see the pagoda cannoneers¡¯ closed eyes clearly.

    The blood elementalists looked as though they had been injected with steroids as they grinned sinisterly.

    A bunch of weaklings!

    They had never seen enemies that were so afraid that they closed their eyes. Did these weaklings really think that they could stop them?

    Wishful thinking!

    Eh? What was that?

    Fiery lines streaked across the ground beneath the enemy formation. These fiery lines intertwined and formed an enormous ming spider web.

    A thin, frail, and pale-faced youngster was standing in the center of the ming spider web. The flickering mes beneath his feet devoured the lower part of his body, resembling a gorgeous, dazzling robe.

    That was... Zu Yan!

    The total copse of the Ardent Flower Blood Division had shocked everyone in God Wolf Division. It was also since then that they took notice of Zu Yan, despite the fact that he was more renowned for his status as the disciple of Le Buleng.

    Zu Yan suddenly opened his eyes and raised his right arm.

    The hellfire spider web that covered the ground beneath the entire formation suddenly vibrated, appearing as though Zu Yan had strummed the string of a zither.

    Mysteriously, even Helian Tianxiao¡¯s mind vibrated involuntarily.

    At almost the same time, all of the Beehive Heavy Cannons fired with a loud rumble.

    A ring, zing burst of light caused their eyes to turn white for a moment. The deafening booms drowned out all other sounds. The soldiers that were standing at the frontmost positions felt their bodies tremble, appearing as though they had knocked into a huge wall. Before they could react, they had already lost their consciousness.

    In the sky, Duanmu Huanghun witnessed this dazzling, magnificent scene.

    Densely-packed light beamsbed the night sky like a neat and even fence of light. They also resembled a wall that collided head-on with a blood-colored tidal wave. Duanmu Huanghun could clearly see that the surging, blood-colored tidal wave froze momentarily, looking as though it had knocked into a solid reef.

    Instantly, the bloody glow that came into direct contact with the burst of light melted like ice and snow. The nearby 10 plus blood elementalists were vaporized before they could even howl in pain.

    Following which, the zing burst of light exploded. The night sky turned bright like daytime as though the sun had appeared.

    Duanmu Huanghun could not help but squint his eyes. He was overwhelmed with shock.

    Were these... pagoda cannons?

    He almost couldn¡¯t believe what he had just seen. The pagoda cannons had already been improved to such a formidable state? Duanmu Huanghun encountered the night attack from God Wolf and Silverfrost the moment he came out of his seclusion. As such, he was focused on dealing with blood elementalists and he did not have the time to take a close look at the pagoda cannons.

    The gorgeous yet terrifying pagoda cannon shots had overturned his understanding of pagoda cannons.

    He had merely gone into seclusion.... Howe he felt like the entire world had changed?

    The one that was controlling the pulsating rhythm of the hellfire spider web was Zu Yan? Had he be a Master? The familiar-looking Fatty... had also be a Master? Duanmu Huanghun was so shocked that his eyes almost popped out.

    Wait... The pagoda cannon shots... The neat and orderly pagoda cannon fires...

    Duanmu Huanghun widened his eyes abruptly. The pagoda cannon shots were actually resonating!

    Even though only half of the pagoda cannon shots resonated.... But.... could pagoda cannons resonate too?

    To hell with it!

    Duanmu Huanghun almost cursed out loud. Why did everything in front of him look so unfamiliar? He was shocked by the might of the enemybat division. Since when had they be so powerful? He was also baffled by the fact that the members of the Surveince Division had sacrificed their lives to stop God Wolf and Silverfrost. Wasn¡¯t the Surveince Division under Madam Ye? Pagoda cannons had be thicker andrger... Fatty had be a Master...

    Duanmu Huanghun suddenly felt a mild panic. Was it possible that his seclusion hadsted for several years?

    When the burst of light dissipated, Duanmu Huanghun regained his vision. The time seemed to have frozen at this moment.

    The surging, flood-like bloody glow that engulfed God Wolf and Silverfrost dimmed significantly. Within the bloody glow, the blood elementalists were in a daze. Some of soldiers had blood seeping out of the corner of their mouths. The bloody glow that engulfed them could protect them, and it distributed the damage done by enemy attacks among every one of them as well. This used to be their huge advantage over the elementalists in the past, enabling them to disregard their enemies¡¯ attacks.

    However, this time around, the pagoda cannon barrage hit them and stopped their charge like a powerful heavy hammer. They did not expect the enemy forces to be able to unleash such a powerful attack. This did not make sense at all.

    The most terrifying thing was that the frontmost section of the their formation had a uniform,b-shaped gap now.

    A glint shed across Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes. He understood what was going on.

    Resonance! The resonance of pagoda cannons!

    The hellfire spider web was used to control the firing rhythm and cause the pagoda cannons to resonate. Such a brilliant idea! Zu Yan could not be underestimated!

    Suddenly, Duanmu Huanghun raised his head and looked at the night sky. His pupils dted abruptly.

    A faint glow shed across the night sky.

    Following which, the sky looked as though it was being split in half by a gigantic sword as a streak of cold gleam descended from it!

 Chapter 632: Victory in Sight

    Chapter 632: Victory in Sight

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The Sword of Lightning was like a great white shark from the deep, moving stealthily in the vast darkness and waiting for its prey to make a mistake.

    Gu Xuan and Shi Zhiguang were wide awake. Boss wasn¡¯t around, so they needed to be even more careful. If the Sword of Lightning was like an unsurpassable lion when it was hosted by Boss, it would just be a cub without him.

    When God Wolf and Silverfrost started charging, the margins of the battlefield intensified, making it difficult to breathe.

    Senior Xiao Shan¡¯s [Breeze of Surveince] was clearly strong like fire yet gentle like the whisperings of the wind. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] reached across the whole earth and blue dome of heaven, fluttering in the darkness like a beautiful dream.

    The Sword of Lightning kept exceptionally quiet, as if they were souls drifting outside of the battlefield.

    Gu Xuan and Shi Zhiguang¡¯s gaze remained on the flickering Hellfire Spider Web in the campground. They had seen Zu Yan and Master Fatty attempting a pagoda cannon volley. When Hellfire Spider Web appeared, they immediately knew the intention of Zu Yan and Master Fatty.

    The Sword of Lightning got into their attacking position noiselessly.

    While Zu Yan was engaging Hellfire Spider Web, the Sword of Lightning abruptlyunched their attack.

    The Beehive Heavy Cannons¡¯ magnificent volley of gunfire was the best shield. When the light rays dispersed, the lightning sword shed across the sky and a sharp sword chime swept across the whole battlefield. A huge, snow-white sword ray dove into the center of God Wolf and Silverfrost¡¯s army like a heavy sword that could split the sky and the earth.

    The blood rays enveloping thebat division had just suffered a blow from the Beehive Heavy Cannons, causing them to dim and weaken. At this point, when the enemy¡¯s defense was at its weakest, the lightning swords brilliantly disyed their astonishingly powerful breakthrough.

    The dimmed blood rays instantly shattered like ss.

    Gu Xuan and Shi Zhiguang knew their limits. They didn¡¯t dare to charge straight ahead, for the area was concentrated with powerful fighters. They instead dove for the enemy¡¯s center and most vulnerable section.

    The snowy, white sword rays lit up the sky momentarily.

    The iing lightning swords rumbled loudly. They were sharp and powerful, effectively destroying everything in their path and blowing people up into pieces. A blood elementalist with the Ability of God wasn¡¯t able to react in time, so he was quickly ripped apart by the extremely powerful force, creating a blood downpour that filled the sky.

    The enemy¡¯s army splitted into two!

    Not staying for a moment longer, the lightning swords that seeded on the first blow vanished into the night.

    The Sword of Lightning¡¯s sneak attack was very ingenious since it happened just as everybody had their focus on the Beehive Heavy Cannons and the light rays that had yet to disperse. After seeding, they quickly fled far away.

    Duanmu Huanghun opened his eyes widely. God Wolf¡¯s packed army was now separated by a ten-foot-wide path, exactly the passage the lightning swords had plowed through. Within the path there were no survivors. Fresh blood and broken limbs were everywhere, and the sounds of anguished wailing rang incessantly.

    What..... What is this?

    Duangmu Huanghun was in shock. Having just ended his spontaneous enlightenment, he felt unfamiliar with the world that seemed to have turned upside down. Both the enemies and allies were foreign to him.

    Nevertheless, he heaved a gentle sigh of relief. He had been worried that his side would crumble, but he realized that they actually still had fight in them.

    Everyone had grown a lot!

    Helian Tianxiao seemed rather lost. His mind was in a nk as he had yet to recover from the huge blow disyed by the Beehive Heavy Cannons. He had underestimated the power of the volleys. His field of vision had been filled with only a sheet of whiteness, as if he had been knocked over by a group of sprinting wild beasts. Despite hisbat power, he had temporarily lost focus.

    Nevertheless, Helian Tianxiao was God Wolf¡¯s strongest warrior. After a brief pause, he regained his senses right away only to be mortified. He had thought that after so many days of battling, his team had already grasped the ins and outs of the pagoda cannons.

    Never had he imagined that his enemy still had a trump card!

    It was a killer move no one had ever seen before, a move that produced such a fantastic resonance. It was exactly such resonance that powered the pagoda cannons¡¯ might.

    Helian Tianxiao suppressed his emotions. Thend was filled with incessant cries and broken limbs. He narrowed his eyes, ignoring the sight before him as if he was unconcerned. To him, although the Sword of Lightning¡¯s sneak attack had resulted in heavier damage than the Beehive Heavy Cannons, thetter carried a much greater threat.

    The volley of gunfire from the new Pagoda Cannons was like a powerful heavy hammer, effectively restraining God Wolf¡¯s charge.

    God Wolf¡¯s charge could merge the soldiers¡¯ blood spiritual force. The dense blood rays that enveloped the whole army strengthened their defense significantly, and the enemy¡¯s attacks would be blocked off by the rays. It was precisely this unique charge formation that usually gave them the upper hand when battling against the elementalists.

    They carried thick and heavy shields on their shoulders as they marched forward These shields were able to block off the iing raining arrows. The biggest threat of the volley of gunfire from the new Pagoda Cannons was not directly injuring or death, but obstructing the their path and slowing them down from moving forward.

    Countless thoughts and considerations spun in Helian Tianxiao¡¯s mind. He had fallen into a quandary.

    To separate the disposition? He was somewhat hesitant. While breaking into smaller groups seemed easy, there will be no advantage for them when fighting against the elementalists.

    Especially since there was still Duanmu Huanghun drifting overhead.

    Duanmu Huanghun was someone with rming power. He was stronger than ordinary blood elementalist with the Ability of God. Helian Tianxiao wasn¡¯t sure if the small division would be able to charge through the swarm-like viridescent flowers. If Duangmu Huanghun got involved, the scattering shots from the pagoda cannons would be very fatal.

    On the other hand, while the Sword of Lightning was aggressive, how many could they take down if they were to disperse?

    Stick with the formation and charge? That way they could ignore Duangmu Huanghun. Yet thebination of pagoda cannon volleys and the Sword of Lightning was a thorny problem.

    Not only had the enemy¡¯s abilities exceeded his prediction; their diverse strategies also made him feel helpless.

    From the corner of his eye, Helian Tianxiao saw the pagoda cannon formation¡¯s fire web brightening, a sign that he had to make a decision now.

    In a sh, Helian Tianxiao appeared beside Song Xiaoqian. Clenching his teeth, he said, "Both divisions split up. I will lead God Wolf and charge forward while you lead Silverfrost and attack from the sides."

    Even before Song Xiaoqian could reply, a deafening rumble was heard. The abruptly lit light rays illuminated the dark skies once again.

    Both Song Xiaoqian and Helian Tianxiao quivered. The enormous force stifled Song Xiaoqian.

    Hundreds of fighters at the forefront had vanished.

    This time, the resonance of the pagoda cannon volley was even more mighty and terrifying. Once hit, the blood elementalists instantly evaporated even before they could cry out.

    The sharp sword chime was like gangrene and the Sword of Lightning were like spirits in the dark night, destroying everything in their path. A familiar scene of blood and flesh flying everywhere reappeared.

    Song Xiaoqian could see the rare anxiety and heartbreak on Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face. She knew that the Sword of Lightning alone wouldn¡¯t be able to break through God Wolf¡¯s defense and cause such severe losses, but if they could strike God Wolf at its weakest moment, which was right after the pagoda cannon volley, they would cause disastrous deaths and injuries.

    The situation was critical, so without any dy, she shouted, "Yes! "

    Next, she raised her spear and yelled, "Silverfrost, follow me!"

    Split into two, the Silverfrost Division gathered toward where Song Xiaoqian stood like flowing mercury. Helian Tianxiao also used this time to regroup God Wolf into three teams. Each had about two thousand people, which was sufficient to block off Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower]. After the regrouping, they would also be able to exert much more pressure on the enemy¡¯s troop disposition.

    The reassembled Silverfrost was like a wheel of bright, full moon-like knives that drew an enormous and beautiful arc, making a roundabout and flying toward the right nk of the troop disposition.

    The three teams of God Wolf also took this time tounch a fierce attack on the pagoda cannon disposition. They pulled apart from one another like three sharp arrowheads, shooting for the alliance¡¯s disposition from three different positions.

    The God Wolf soldiers held their breaths.

    They originally believed the battle to be one-sided, but now their roles had reversed. They were the ones getting suppressed, and this was the case even from the start of the battle. They had actually failed to make use of their powerful fighting strength and were choking with resentment over it.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s decision had turned the battle situation around again.

    The attack of the Hellfire Pagoda Cannons remained fierce, the Sword of Lightning was still appearing unpredictably, and Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s viridescent flowers were still as annoying. Despite all that, the speed in which God Wolf was charging forward had increased significantly.

    The Pagoda Cannon Alliance was now facing increased pressure as the enemies had be more cunning. Not only did they split into different groups and routes, they no longer moved in a straightforward manner but with a swifter and more cooperative approach.

    The Silverfrost Division¡¯s new strategy to attack from the nks was the real fatal move since Fatty and Zu Yan would be blindsided.

    However, the battle situation was very intense, so they had no time to care about that. The front was directly facing attacks from the three teams of God Wolf. They fought exceptionally fiercely, as though they were not afraid of death. The soldiers of God Wolf were gradually getting used to the volleys of the pagoda cannons and also the tricks of both the Sword of Lightning and Duanmu Huanghun.

    They became more patient, from resisting the shots from the pagoda cannons to taking turns to lure them. The Sword of Lightning had almost fallen into their trap, and if not for Shi Zhiguang¡¯s quick reaction, they wouldn¡¯t have gotten out in time. Unexpectedly, it was Duanmu Huanghun who had been giving God Wolf a lot of trouble. He was very nimble and his viridescent flowers covered a very wide range. Furthermore, he always struck at the perfect times, when they were defenseless while changing formation.

    To Helian Tianxiao, however, Duanmu Huanghun was merely an irritating fly.

    The members of God Wolf never stopped suffering, and the number of casualties continued rising. Nevertheless, Helian Tianxiao knew very well that the odds were nting towards their favor. An important piece of proof was that the pagoda cannon volleys were no longer producing as great a result as the previous few rounds of shots.

    A round of shots could only result in less than a hundred deaths, and to Helian Tianxiao, this sacrifice waspletely eptable.

    The three teams took turns to shield one another, luring the alliance to fire. They were like three slippery loaches.

    Helian Tianxiao did not engage his whole army directly, since that could easily open up an opportunity for the enemy. The defense line formed by the pagoda cannon volleys, the Sword of Lightning, and Duanmu Huanghun was something that even Helian Tianxiao wouldn¡¯t dare to underestimate.

    He was waiting for Silverfrost to outnk the enemy ever since that the deciding moment.

    By now Silverfrost was already out of the pagoda cannons¡¯ firing range and the rumbling of the shots was left behind them.

    They made a detour and were obstructed by a mountain ridge. While it was a mountain ridge, it wasn¡¯t actually tall. It was more like a small mound.

    Upon crossing this ridge and advancing forward, they would be able to enter the enemy¡¯s disposition from the sides.

 Chapter 633: Continuous Chatter

    Chapter 633: Continuous Chatter

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    "Rest a little."

    Wan Shenwei was the one who spoke up. His body was covered in blood stains, and the most jarring wound was on his left arm. There was nothing left from his elbow down, only a portion of his white bone jutting out from his flesh. It was a terrifying sight.

    He looked calm and his gaze was firm, as if he wasn¡¯t the one injured.

    It was a wound left by a bitter struggle between She Yu and himself. It was this lose-lose situation that frightened She Yu off, giving them the chance to catch a breath.

    His steel-like willpower infected his soldiers. No matter how tired everyone was, no one had a look of despair on their faces. They quickly tumbled onto the ground, and those military officers with leftover energy walked to the outer areas to stand guard without a word.

    But Wan Shenwei was very clear that She Yu¡¯s escape was temporary and that she would quicklye for them once again. God¡¯s blood had an rming recovering ability. The injuries he had given her would take only one or two days to subside.

    She would definitely hunt for them again.

    She¡¯d been doing exactly that for the past few days, effectively inflicting enormous damage on Dread and Judgement.

    The generals of Dread and Judgement were called to gather.

    Without nonsense, Wan Shenwei got straight to the point. "Let¡¯s n our next operation. After the break, Dread and Judgement will split up and evacuate."

    Ximen Caijue cut in, "I disagree!"

    Wan Shenwei asked, "Don¡¯t you want to leave some seeds for Judgement?"

    Ximen Caijue went mute as these were words she¡¯d used on Ye Baiyi. She surveyed her troops with a grieved look.

    There were only about a hundred people left in Judgement, and practically all of them had injuries. Ever since the establishment of Judgement, there had never been such a heavy loss, and they had never faced such a direct danger of annihtion.

    Disconste she stressed, "I¡¯m staying."

    Wan Shenwei shook his head. "Your abilities have been affected, so it¡¯s pointless for you to stay."

    If it had been any other day, his words would¡¯ve triggered her to start a physical fight. Yet, today, these words only brought her despair and grief. She turned her face and looked at the unconscious Ye Baiyi.

    Ye Baiyi seemed to be in a deep, quiet sleep. If not for the asional movements of his eyshes and the faintly discernible heartbeat of the Heart of God, people would¡¯ve suspected that he was no longer alive.

    Kidnapping the enemy¡¯smander... what a glorious and out-of-this-world aplishment!

    Yet Ye Baiyi had be a pressurizing force. The power of the Heart of God had far exceeded their imagination. It was their first time seeing somebody who, even when unconscious, could not be killed. It was already proven that She Yu would always be able to lock down on their location, so everyone guessed that it was rted to the Heart of God.

    They only way for them to escape She Yu¡¯s hunt was to throw Ye Baiyi away, but doing so meant that all their sacrifices would be meaningless.

    She Yu¡¯s power brought not only shock but also fear to Dread and Judgement.

    As the division leader of Dread, Wan Shenwei¡¯s abilities were already at an elementalist¡¯s peak. The only elementalists stronger than him were Dai Gang and Le Buleng. Even then, he wasn¡¯t She Yu¡¯s match.

    An unkible Ye Baiyi and a fatal She Yu.

    The force both the Heart of God and God¡¯s blood contained subverted Wan Shenwei and gang¡¯s knowledge.

    The blood catastrophe¡¯s eruption and the rise of blood elementalists had made elementalists realize that there was another kind of force in this world. Now they had to find out that the blood elementalists had started moving ahead of them, and their force system seemed to be superior to theirs.

    This was the real despairing realization.

    Remarkable blood elementalists kept emerging, but powerful elementalists were dwindling. In the times yet toe, the disparity between both sides would only widen.

    It was as if Wan Shenwei was standing alone on an isted ind, looking at the torrential and boundless waves rising up slowly and covering his feet and his surroundings. There was no escaping and no ce to hide.

    Sometimes an individual¡¯s strength was really as negligible as dust.

    Wan Shenwei sighed inwardly before his train of thought pulled him back. "Now we¡¯re only afraid that we won¡¯t be able to shrug She Yu off. Now our only n is to survive. Dread and Judgement will split up and move toward different directions. I will bring Ye Baiyi along with me and flee toward Jadeite Forest. If she doesn¡¯t want Ye Baiyi to fall into the hands of Dai Gang, She Yu will spare no time to chase after you all."

    "Let me stay, Sir!"

    "How can you take such risks so rashly?"

    "Yeah, how can Dread do without you, Sir? I¡¯m willing to be the bait!"

    Dread¡¯s soldiers were beyond emotional, offering themselves for service one after another.

    Wan Shenwei raised his working arm, which hushed them.

    When it became quiet, he smiled. "You guys can¡¯t outrun She Yu. I might not be able to it either, but at the very least I should be able to keep up with her. If I don¡¯t run far enough, she will have time to turn back to hunt for the others.

    The audience kept silence as they knew he was right.

    "But..."

    "No buts." Wan Shenwei shook his head. "This is an order."

    Everyone quietened down.

    Wan Shenwei swept his gaze across his people, the smile on his face gradually disappearing. With a stern expression, he spoke calmly, "I¡¯m most likely not going to be able to return this time. Dying in a battlefield is our predestination. It¡¯s pretty nice. All troubles are solved with death, and the living suffer more. For that I¡¯ll have to say I¡¯m sorry."

    He got up suddenly and gave everyone a serious bow.

    At a loss, the soldiers stood up crying.

    "Sir! Sir!"

    "Sir, you..."

    This bunch of irond fellows grew red in the face as their voices choked. They were unable to speak and their eyes were bloodshot. The young soldiers bit their lips to prevent themselves from crying, but tears rolled down their cheeks uncontrobly.

    Wan Shenwei smiled for a second before speaking up with a solemn expression on his face. "Let¡¯s talk about the arrangements in the back. Your mission is more difficult than mine."

    The valley was very quiet and only Wan Shenwei¡¯s voice could be heard.

    His voice was very calm and deep. There was no motivating or vehement words as usual, as if he was briefing them about the usual training content, patrolling arrangements and uing missions.

    "My mission is to bring Ye Baiyi to Dai Gang. Whether or not I can hand him over safely, there¡¯s no guarantee. It¡¯s best if I can, because it¡¯s better for him to be in Dai Gang¡¯s hands than to return to Blood of God. After all, Dai Gang is an elementalist, and it¡¯s still better than handling Blood of God. There¡¯s no choice if I can¡¯t make it there. People like us should just do our best and that¡¯s enough."

    "I¡¯ll leave Dread to you, Song Yan."

    "Now it seems that ourbat and training methods require a lot of modifications. We need to improve and alter every aspect. Blood of God is progressing very significantly, be it within theirbat divisions or within their powerful yers. She Yu alone is able to tackle all of us, and we¡¯re unable to kill Ye Baiyi¡¯s Heart of God. How are we going to fight if he wakes up? We would only get ripped apart. Blood of God is simply improving too quickly. We must catch up, or there really won¡¯t be anymore hope."

    His unhurried tone carried the same familiarity, but the foreign part was his continuous chattering, as if he was talking about ordinary daily matters.

    Usually, his speech was concise and powerful, consisting of order after order.

    There must¡¯ve been a lot of things that he wanted to say... things he couldn¡¯t bear to let go of...

    To die in battle wasn¡¯t scary at all, but why were tears falling down?

    The young soldiers wiped their tears away, their flushed faces filled with unswerving determination. They were going to remember all his words.

    Wan Shenwei sighed after a brief pause. "Be it Dread or Judgement, don¡¯t get destroyed. Don¡¯t disperse either. You guys must unite, live on, and continue fighting. As for what course to follow, I don¡¯t know. I only have one request: do not start any internal strife. Any enemy of Blood of God is a friend."

    After some thought, he seemed to mutter to himself, "I wonder if Madam Ye¡¯s Master¡¯s Glory has seeded. Although I disagree with many of her views, I do hope it will seed. If the elementalists don¡¯te up with new battling methods, we are bound to lose. If not that, then there¡¯s Ai Hui. There are many strange things in the Central Pine Faction. The pagoda cannons are really powerful, and Shi Xueman and gang are even more insistent on taking the blood elementalists down."

    In a self-mocking manner, Wan Shenwei smiled a bitter smile. "All of this feels like pointless talk."

    With his eyes red, Song Yan clenched his teeth. "I¡¯ll remember all your words forever, Sir!"

    Wan Shenwei turned to Ximen Caijue. "Ximen, you¡¯re fiery and jealous. I¡¯m afraid you won¡¯t be able to handle Madam Ye. It¡¯s better if you go to the Central Pine Faction."

    Ximen Caijue felt sorrowful but did not express it on her face. With a cold snort she said, "Think about how you¡¯re gonna survive in the hands of that witch first! You dying in the hands of a younger blood elementalist is a humiliation for the people of the three central divisions."

    Because he knew her character well, Wan Shenwei did not get angry.

    With augh, he stood up.

    He walked toward Ye Baiyi, kept his sword, and used his working hand to pick Ye Baiyi up before spreading his azure wings.

    They opened up like an evil dragon spreading its wings from within hell.

    Except that his wide, ck wings were badly damaged and scarred. The sword on his waist was filled with cracks and its edges were chipped off. His broken arm had yet to recover and his white bone was eerily stained with blood.

    Wan Shenwei stood pencil-straight and upright, without the least bit of hunch. His cool face, having been through hardships, was heroic and high-spirited at this moment.

    Whoosh, whoosh, his wings pped slowly, stirring the air around them.

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s straight silhouette remained motionless.

    He scanned his eyes across everybody¡¯s faces. He was going to remember all of them. Emotions filled his chest as he shouted, "It¡¯s been an honor working alongside all of you for over a decade. I will never forget it! Time has passed, but nothing changes. We will not turn our backs on the citizens and Dread! If there¡¯s a chance, I will fight with you all again! We will fight to our hearts¡¯ content!"

    Some sobbed silently, some cried out in grief, some yelled agitatedly, while others started bellowing in agony.

    Wan Shenwei only smiled. Carrying Ye Baiyi, he rose into the sky.

    "I¡¯m going."

 Chapter 634: Sword Formation Gone Berserk

    Chapter 634: Sword Formation Gone Berserk

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Engrossed in the bitingly cold refining process of his sword embryo, Ai Hui had no idea how dangerous the situation outside was.

    The sword embryo was entirely different from how it had been before.

    The swords within spiralled in a tangle like two concentrated shoals of fishes. The odd thing was that each mini sword was shaped differently. Some were like the vast autumn waters, magnificent and cold; some were slightly bent like hooks or a crescent moon; some were blunt, as if eroded by wind and frost, while others had only half a de and their tips were like a reverse fish hook...

    Ai Hui had never seen so many differently shaped swords before.

    When he ced his mind onto a certain mini sword, its profound essence came naturally to him like a creek that flowed across his heart and mind. His sword embryo was like a kaleidoscope that contained a myriad of exceptional sword manuals.

    Ai Hui had never felt this satisfied.

    For him, studying and researching swordy was like groping in the darkness. With the decline in poprity of swordsmanship, swords manual left over from the Cultivation Era also lost their authentic tradition and might in the elemental era. Many times he could only hazard guesses and conduct tests.

    He had no one to ask for guidance and many of his theories couldn¡¯t be corroborated. Even the sword embryo that he had somehow produced was very damaged and iplete, like a deformed nt.

    Yet, after absorbing the force of Blood of God, this deformed nt grew wildly and irradiated an unprecedented vigor that somehow healed the damage.

    The ancient demonic god¡¯s blood was simply unbelievable!

    With continuous strengthening and perfecting, what appeared before Ai Hui was an unprecedentedly rich and colorful world.

    He absorbed all the nutrients like a starved man. It was a chance that he¡¯d never dared to dream about.

    Following the increase in understanding of swordsmanship, myriad of swordys, and absorption, his sword embryo became increasingly mighty and wild.

    If Ai Hui were to raise his head to look at the zing sun, he would realize that the aura of the domineering sun was now much weaker. Even its seemingly substantial golden light pir and its pressurizing and destructive aura had dimmed significantly when ced in front of the whizzing and surging sword embryo.

    The amount of sshing golden rays increased. They were like golden mist, vast and obscure.

    Ai Hui separated himself from this bizarre state and quickly sensed something amiss. The speed of the golden mist was bing slow. After a brief sensing, he found the cause.

    There wasn¡¯t any flesh in the sword formation. Without it, the divinity and impurity blended into the sword at a much slower pace.

    Ai Hui muttered to himself. ording to the usual time schedule, Lou Land and gang should¡¯ve replenished more flesh by now.

    Could it be... had something happened?

    .....

    They just had to go over the mountain ridge to attack the side of the enemy¡¯s troop disposition. There wasn¡¯t the least bit of hesitation in Silverfrost. The Beehive Heavy Cannons rumbled incessantly behind, and each time a shotnded on the ground, they could feel an intense quake.

    They had to make full use of time. Each second was extremely precious.

    The mountain ridge wasn¡¯t considered tall and its slopes weren¡¯t steep, so they had a smooth and easy journey. Song Xiaoqian felt relieved as this meant that the enemy hadn¡¯t thought that their camping ground would be invaded. If they had expected an attack, they would¡¯ve arranged the necessary deterrents.

    The originally unrestrained night attack had be a to-and-fro tussle. The enemy¡¯s stubbornness and countless tricks had caused some doubts within God Wolf. They wondered if the enemy had already prepared themselves a long time ago.

    After crossing the ridge sessfully, they could see the pagoda cannon formation glowing from far away. The glow of the volleys released by the Beehive Heavy Cannons was even more jarring when witnessed from afar. They were neat like a light fence, and the undtions produced by the elemental energy resonance were like invisible ripples that appeared exceptionally striking in the night sky.

    After a brief moment of astonishment, Silverfrost sighed a breath of relief and loosened their tensed hearts.

    Just as Song Xiaoqian was preparing to order everybody to advance toward the pagoda cannon formation, someone cried out in rm, "Quick, look, what¡¯s that?"

    Song Xiaoqian jolted. What she had least wanted to hear was a cry like that, because that usually signified an unforeseen change.

    The surprised cry attracted everybody¡¯s attention and they all looked up. The next moment, more rmed cries and drawn out breaths could be heard.

    "What¡¯s that?"

    "Oh my god! What¡¯s that?"

    As they had been solely focussed on the faraway volleys let out by the pagoda cannon formation, they failed to notice the valley beneath their feet. The valley wasn¡¯t deep and its terrain was level. It was a typical small basin.

    However, the scene in the valley was extremely shocking. Long swords were invertedly inserted into the earth on the valley floor, their des directly facing the sky. They were ced in a crisscrossed and disordered manner, but somehow there seemed to be a kind of pattern contained within the mess.

    The countless and densely packed swords filled the whole valley. It was like a sword forest!

    Despite Song Xiaoqian¡¯s usual calmness, she couldn¡¯t help but feel overwhelmed with shock, her scalp going numb.

    The sight before her was simply too majestic! Hundreds of thousands, or even millions of swords covered the valley, producing an iparable visual. She even questioned if she had just entered a historical site of a swordsman sect in the cultivation era.

    The swords pointed toward the sky without a sound and Song Xiaoqian knew that these countless swords were part of a sword formation.

    The dense sword consciousness surged like an enormous dragon with spiky scales, hissing and spiralling within the forest.

    This... what exactly was this?

    All of a sudden, a premonition rose within her chest. Could this be the hidden but fatal move prepared by the enemy? The manpower and physical resources required to operate so many swords were most definitely unimaginable!

    What was Shi Xueman and gang plotting with such an rming quantity of resources?

    "Quick, look at the center of the valley!"

    Actually, even without calling out, everybody already had their eyes on the center since the swords there were entirely different from those outside. They were like sword embryos that had been freshly taken out of the oven, exceptionally eye-grabbing amid the night sky.

    The light rays released by the Beehive Heavy Cannons asionally lit up the night sky and concealed these light swords, which were at times bright and at times dim.

    Song Xiaoqian opened her eyes wide as a look of disbelief took over her stern face.

    The aura of light swords...

    The other soldiers also sensed the difference and gasped in surprise.

    "Are they blood elementalists? Why do they feel like our own?"

    "Yeah! Could it be that they had started to train blood spiritual force?"

    "Seems a little different."

    "It¡¯s different!"

    The soldiers of Silverfrost weren¡¯t certain, because the aura emitted by the light swords seemed simultaneously familiar and foreign.

    Song Xiaoqian had heard their doubts but chose not to talk. They felt that way, but she did not since she had sensed simr aura!

    His Majesty!

    The number of times His Majesty had called for a gathering of officials could be counted with one hand, but she had been lucky enough to be involved. It was that particr meeting that she finally understood how powerful His Majesty was. He had merely revealed a wisp of aura, but he gained the acknowledgement of the whole world!

    That experience had left her an indestructible impression.

    The aura of light swords couldn¡¯t bepared to His Majesty¡¯s, since thetter¡¯s was like an ocean, extremely vast and immeasurable, rendering people resistanceless. Although the former was much dimmer, Song Xiaoqian was certain that both were simr.

    Could it be General Ye?

    This thought shed across her mind but immediately got denied. No matter how powerful Dread was, it wasn¡¯t possible for them to transport General Ye to the back in such a short period of time and under such close pursue.

    Another possibility came to mind. Holy object!

    His Majesty¡¯s legendary force originated from Blood of God¡¯s supreme holy object ¨C ancient God¡¯s blood.

    Perhaps the elementalists had gotten hold of God¡¯s blood?

    "There¡¯s someone in the sword formation!"

    They could vaguely see someone lying in the center of the faintly discernible ring of light swords.

    Many subconsciously swallowed their saliva and their mouths became dry. The sight before them was simply too terrifying. There were so many swords making up therge scale sword formation and there was actually someone inside of it!

    Could it be that this unbelievably big sword formation was actually created single-handedly?

    Who could operate such a colossal amount of resources? And if such a great amount of power was being condensed into an individual...

    A word jumped into their heads almost simultaneously ¨C Grandmaster!

    It could only be a Grandmaster!

    Song Xiaoqian made the same judgement. She was shaken up. Some areas of doubt had been cleared by this point.

    Could arge scale sword formation produce a Grandmaster? Perhaps not, but what if there was God¡¯s blood?

    The Spear of God and so on were all pretenses meant to hinder the enemy¡¯s strategies. Their real killer move was this sword formation. The Grandmaster that was being bred within this sword formation!

    A hesitant look appeared on her face.

    ording to their previous n, they were supposed to attack the pagoda cannon formation from its sides, but now that she knew that a Grandmaster was possibly being born, her n was swayed.

    A Grandmaster was supreme!

    The birth of a Grandmaster was sufficient to change the grand scheme of things.

    Song Xiaoqian clenched her teeth and made a decision on the spot. She then ordered coldly, "Destroy the sword formation!"

    Compared to the possibility of a Grandmaster being born, the victory of this battle meant nothing. Even if God Wolf were to be destroyed, there wouldn¡¯t be any fundamental change in strength and power on both sides.

    However, if the elementalists were to produce another Grandmaster, their previous dominance would vanish in a puff of smoke. The blood elementalists¡¯ overwhelming superiority would no longer stand and both parties would more or less have a bnce of power, with the blood elementalists having a slight advantage perhaps.

    They had to destroy the sword formation no matter what!

    They mustn¡¯t let the elementalists produce another Grandmaster no matter what!

    Song Xiaoqian needn¡¯t say anything. The soldiers were aware of these facts too.

    Like an avnche, Silverfrost descended from the mountain ridge. From the mountain peak, they dove toward the valley, borrowing the advantage of the terrain and momentum to charge forward with an unstoppable grandeur.

    Even the faraway rumbling of the Beehive Heavy Cannons were temporarily being drowned by the ttering of wolves¡¯ hoofs.

    The valley shook, causing the swords to tremble.

    Song Xiaoqian remained as calm as ice. The moment she made her decision, there was no trace of hesitation left.

    The white light rays enveloped the soldiers of Silverfrost and wrapped around the hoofs of the wolves. They were like flowing des that crashed into the sword formation.

    Wherever they passed, the swords broke off like dried branches and flew all over.

    In the blink of an eye, a scar of over thirty meters had been plowed out of the sword formation.

    Just then, a light sword beside Ai Hui trembled slightly.

 Chapter 635: Cruel Battlefield

    Chapter 635: Cruel Battlefield

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The light sword trembled and was swiftly removed from the earth. It then shot into the sky, leaving an exceptionally eye-grabbing arc of light trace in the night sky.

    ng ng ng!

    A crisp sword chime sounded incessantly.

    The light swords came out of the ground in session and transformed into sword lights that shot toward the Silverfrost Blood Division.

    In that moment, the light swords were like rain.

    From the attack of the first light sword to the constant fall of raindrop-like swords, everything happened in the blink of an eye. However, Song Xiaoqian¡¯s full attention was captured by the light swords thatnded onto the sword formation. The momentum of the light sword was amazingly fast. Not daring to underestimate them, she shouted, "Flying Wall!"

    The Silverfrost soldiers already had their arrows on their bows and released them upon hermand.

    Boom!

    The bowstrings shook as arrows shot out like dense rain, as if a gush of cold water had been poured out.

    As the silver arrows left their bows, their bodies rapidly developed ayer of white frost that thickened and expanded instantly to form ice beams.

    The ice beams grew at an rming rate, resulting in an amazing scene on the battlefield.

    The arrow rain expanded like balloons, turning ice beams into ice blocks that eventually blended together to form a giant, ice wall.

    This ice wall of over thirty meters in height, a hundred twenty meters in width, and ten meters in thickness flew forward like a mountain peak with a low whistle. It was like an enormous dire beast, charging into the jungle and thend it trampled on overturn. The swords weren¡¯t able to obstruct the wall at all and broken sword pieces flew in all directions like raindrops.

    [Flying Wall] consumed much more energy than the simpler [Ice Wall], but its effect pleased Song Xiaoqian nevertheless.

    The more important thing was that [Flying Wall] could protect them as they continued charging forward.

    Countless actual battles had proven that the moment they lose charging speed, death was the only result.

    Song Xiaoqian was convinced that the death of their enemy was inevitable if they could maintain their speed all the way to the front. Of course, this was true unless he had already been upgraded into a Master.

    Just then, she heard a soft plop and immediately tensed up.

    The light swords had hit the ice wall!

    Her pupils shrank. A bright light speck had appeared on the ice wall before her eyes.

    The next moment, densely packed light specks surfaced on the ice wall like twinkling stars.

    "Be careful..."

    Before Song Xiaoqiao could finish her words, the light rays of the specks brightened. Bitingly cold and sharp sword consciousness shot out from between the brows andnded onto the ice wall, causing it to explode into ice bits. The scene of such a huge ice wall shattering into pieces was absolutely magnificent. It was as if the snow mountain had produced an avnche that raised a thickyer of dust off the ground.

    However, Song Xiaoqian had no time to bother with these.

    Like lightning, a sword light ripped across the sky andnded within the Silverfrost Blood Division in the blink of an eye!

    The white light rays that enveloped the whole army was fragile like paper and unable to obstruct the sword light at all. Like red hot metal, the sword light blinded her vision and left a sharp light scar that seemed to slice open the night sky.

    Pff, pff, pff!

    Even without turning around to look, Song Xiaoqian knew that those were the sounds of the light swords effortlessly piercing through her soldiers¡¯ bodies.

    p! Her side vision had suddenly been upied by a sshing lump of exploded flesh. A soldier¡¯s brain had just been struck by a light sword.

    Song Xiaoqian remained indifferent, as if her heart was made of stone. Perhaps she would feel sad after the war, but at this moment she was calm and almost cold.

    Had there ever been a battle without casualties?

    A wave of attacks resulted in the fall of over a hundred soldiers!

    It was Song Xiaoqian¡¯s first time witnessing such a horrifying attack. Furthermore, this was the result even after they had employed their ice wall as defense. Yet she wasn¡¯t too surprised, since she knew that they were about to face a rival, or should she say monster, of a totally different level.

    The first wave of attack had proven a part of her conjecture right.

    God¡¯s blood!

    She was a hundred percent certain that the other party had it. Otherwise, there was no way he could prate their defense this easily.

    The strict level system of blood elementalists was not only disyed through their power and status but also their ability to suppress force. This was also why Red Devil was able to rise to a prominent position immediately upon his blood refinement.

    Simrly, blood spiritual force of a higher level couldpletely suppress that of a lower level. Even though he had justpleted his blood refinement, Red Devil was fated to be one of the strongest yers within the God Nation.

    And the most powerful person in the God Nation was the emperor, His Majesty!

    Originating from the holy object, the force of God¡¯s blood was the strongest force in the God Nation. Nothing wasparable.

    The soldiers believed that the enemy had to be extremely powerful to produce such colossal damage, but only Song Xiaoqian knew that apart from his immeasurable abilities, the force of God¡¯s blood¡¯s restraining effect on the blood spiritual force was the real cause of their heavy casualties.

    The holy object of the God Nation was the main culprit of Silverfrost¡¯s disastrous loss. It was rather humiliating.

    Song Xiaoqian had no idea how and where the enemy had gotten hold of God¡¯s blood, but there was no other choice than to continue charging with their injuries.

    The crisp sword chimes mixed in with the rumbling of wolves¡¯ hoofs.

    The light swords came out of the ground one by one and transformed into dazzling sword lights that dove for the Silverfrost Blood Division.

    Some soldiers would copse with each step Silverfrost took. In spite of that, their momentum did not weaken.

    Soldiers that had fallen off the back of the wolves had no time to howl since they quickly got trampled by theirpanions behind.

    Their flesh mixed in with the earth, dying it red.

    No one noticed that their flesh had silently disappeared, as if they¡¯d been swallowed.

    .....

    Within the blood eye¡¯s fantasnd, the thick, golden mist was weakening in a speed visible to the naked eye.

    Ai Hui noticed the anomaly and muttered to himself. He understood what was going on.

    The golden mist was the portion within God¡¯s blood that he wasn¡¯t able to absorb, and he nned to expel it through the sword formation. However, ordinary swords weren¡¯t able to endure such an aggressive force and so they broke one after another. Later on, with the nourishment of the flesh of blood fiends, these swords of ordinary quality could absorb the weak force of God¡¯s blood to be light swords.

    However, the flesh of blood fiends was obtained through front line battles, so they were limited. As such, an increasing amount of God¡¯s blood couldn¡¯t be expelled.

    No one had thought about using the corpses of blood elementalists, since they were all humans after all. It was difficult to carry out such an act that challenged their morality.

    Ai Hui, who had been roused by his failure to expel the golden mist, could only guess that something had happened outside.

    But when the Silverfrost Blood Division charged into the sword formation, he immediately sensed it.

    Before he could react, his sword embryo had already started operating upon sensing threat. The next moment, Ai Hui witnessed the magnificent scene of light swords falling like rain.

    The sword formation swallowed the enemy¡¯s flesh, catching Ai Hui off guard.

    Again, before he could react, the golden mist that couldn¡¯t be drained abruptly weakened.

    Almost simultaneously, swords shot out seemingly substantial light rays from the corners of the sword formations. The surface of the sword bodies started to peel off, revealing the shimmering light swords underneath.

    The crisp sword chimes sounded again as the freshly born light swords rose into the sky and dove toward the enemies.

    The flesh of blood elementalists was much more effective than that of blood fiends.

    The flesh of broadback batfishes, the lowest of all blood fiends, had previously been used. Now, the fleshes within the sword formation were those of blood elementalists and silverfrost wolves, which were of a much higher levelpared to the batfishes¡¯. It was especially the case for blood elementalists since their flesh wasn¡¯t something blood fiends could match up to.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart turned cold.

    God¡¯s blood really was a monster. The portion he had absorbed, which amounted to less than a drop, had been sufficient to strengthen his sword embryo and bring about entirely new changes. The remaining portion, on the other hand, couldn¡¯t be expelled out of his system if not for the blood flesh.

    It swallowed all of the blood flesh, be it those of humans or wild beasts.

    Ai Hui supposed that if God¡¯s blood had created the God Nation and founded the blood elementalist system, blood elementalists possessing God¡¯s blood would be able to swallow other blood elementalists to replenish their own bodies whenever needed.

    The unique properties disyed by God¡¯s blood were truly intimidating.

    Ai Hui was getting increasingly convinced that God¡¯s blood belonged to the demonic god in the dream sequence he had had, because its force disyed an uninhibited, primitive, callous, deceitful, and beast-like predatory behavior.

    This was also why Ai Hui did not like it at all. Warmth waspletely absent. Ai Hui had always believed himself to be a cool fellow who had no regard for the death of others.

    He had never ced value on morality and virtues. He was willing to try anything in order to be stronger. Even then, the traits disyed by God¡¯s Blood irked him thoroughly.

    One example would be the blood elementalists¡¯ sacrificing of their ownrades in order to save themselves.

    He would rather die than to do something like that.

    Luckily, those forces had been expelled and he wasn¡¯t going to turn into a blood elementalist.

    Ai Hui raised his head automatically to look at the giant blood eye on the top of his head.

    Thank you, blood bandage.

    Aye, thinking about Teacher and Mistress again...

    Despite being in a dangerous situation, Ai Hui¡¯s thoughts ran wild, causing an indescribable grief.

    He only regained his senses upon realizing that the golden mist before his eyes had weakened significantly. Yet another batch of blood elementalists had be the light swords¡¯ nutrients.

    Up till now, he had been a bystander.

    Watching his sword embryo orchestrating the whole battle.

    His entirely transformed sword embryo was exhibiting its power to Ai Hui.

    Song Xiaoqian felt as though they were charging into a group of hos.

    They couldn¡¯t see anything in front as they werepletely blinded by the crisscrossed light beams that enveloped them. It was actually a web that had been formed by countless dancing light swords!

    Song Xiaoqian raised the spear in her hands swiftly, coincidentally blocking off an amazingly fast sword light.

    ng! A clear sound rang as the spear point exploded into a ball of fire.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s palm burned and she was almost unable to maintain her grip on the spear.

    The light sword shot away, but Song Xiaoqian noticed that it hadn¡¯t been damaged even the slightest.

    The force of God¡¯s blood contained within that light sword was extremely weak, but it was that very wisp of frail force that pressurized her greatly. The toll it had inflicted on her far exceeded what she usually had to face.

    If this went on, they were going to be destroyed.

    What scared her more was the fact that the number of light swords was increasing, and at an rming rate. They were all around and uncountable. The striking light scars drawn by them were like light beams that wove into an imprable web.

    Her people had only managed to advance a few hundred meters, as if they were stuck in a quagmire.

    Soldiers beside her fell one after another. Song Xiaoqian was no longer able to maintain a calm state of mind. She started to get anxious.

    She tried using all ideas that she coulde up with, but to no avail.

    Only approximately half of her soldiers were alive. A three hundred meter advancement took a third of her people down. Such a heavy and rapid loss had never been seen before.

    There was another three hundred meters to go.

    She noticed the look of fear emerging on her soldiers¡¯ faces.

    Only three hundred meters more. Thest three hundred meters!

    Her gaze was resolute.

 Chapter 636: To Hell

    Chapter 636: To Hell

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Helian Tianxiao was getting rather impatient. Had the Silverfrost Blood Division gotten into their attacking positions?

    With his keen perception, he had sensed the changes urring silently on the battlefield. Helian Tianxiao had climbed his way up from the bottom and possessed an exceptionally acute awareness toward battle situations. God Wolf was gradually getting used to the volleys of the Beehive Heavy Cannons, but their enemies too were getting used to theirbat tactics. The Beehive Heavy Cannons¡¯ volleys were undergoing some changes, and the most direct result was the increase in the number of casualties. Even though the increase wasn¡¯t significant, Helian Tianxiao saw it as a very bad sign.

    Duanmu Huanghun and the Sword of Lightning were as irritating as flies, appearing and disappearing unpredictably. These vile fleas were more crafty and sly than before, which also annoyed God Wolf increasingly. What was worse was that Duanmu Huanghun seemed to have started co-operating with the Sword of Lightning. If not for the fact that Helian Tianxiao had maintained vignce, a team of his would¡¯ve almost been separated by their coalition.

    Much more than he had imagined, the enemy was extremely troublesome to deal with.

    ording to the time, the Silverfrost Blood Division should¡¯ve arrived at the sides of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    Yet there weren¡¯t any movements.

    Could there have been an ident? Or had the enemy prepared something?

    Helian Tianxiao forced himself to calm down. Two of his generals, Xing Shan of the Ardent Flower Blood Division and Song Xiaoqian of the Silverfrost Blood Division, hadpletely opposing characters. Xing Shan was fiery and extremely invasive when it came to strategizing. Song Xiaoqian, on the other hand, was calm as ice and handled affairs orderly. Both had their unique traits, but when it came to trustworthiness, Helian Tianxiao had more confidence in thetter.

    From day one, he had never seen her doing any ridiculous things. At times, when he was feeling emotionally overwhelmed, she had been the one to pull him out of it.

    Song Xiaoqian was definitely aware of the urgency of the situation, so the fact that she hadn¡¯t made an attack meant that something must have happened.

    Helian Tianxiao couldn¡¯t think of what the enemy could¡¯ve possibly prepared, but it wasn¡¯t the time to ponder over this.

    Before him were two choices: to continue waiting for Silverfrost to attack the enemy¡¯s camp from the side or to make a direct charge at the camp.

    Both choices had their pros and cons.

    The first n meant that he would pin all hopes on Silverfrost, but what if they had not arrived at the sides of the campground?

    He wasn¡¯t too sure about the second n either. Even if he gained victory, it would be in exchange for a heavy loss. ording to his estimation, it would be lucky if a third of his people stayed alive.

    Facing these two difficult choices, Helian Tianxiao decided to wait for twenty breaths. If Silverfrost did not attack by then, he would lead his team tounch a determining attack.

    Having made a decision, Helian Tianxiao stopped hesitating. Afterposing himself, he kept track of the time silently.

    The camp of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance. Unstoppable.

    Actual battles weren¡¯tparable to training. After experiencing the initial panic, the pagado cannoneers were now unafraid and steady. They had killed extensively and were in a wild state. The rming heatwaves emitted by the sturdy and boiling hot Beehive Heavy Cannon warped the air around it. Its temperature was even higher than that of the underground snowva.

    Sssst, ssst. Quite often the cannoneers would get scalded, but it was as if they couldn¡¯t feel anything.

    The rumbling of the Beehive Heavy Cannons had be their favorite melody. Even the huge impact caused by the firing of cannons delighted them. Every one of them waspletely reveling in these sensations, and their faces even looked distorted and sinister.

    The members of the alliance were mostly elementalists from the front line who had been defeated but refused to leave. They wished to battle again. Their fighting spirit had never beencking. They yearned for battle and many were happy to die an ambitious death.

    It was difficult for bystanders to imagine how much of an encouragement Senior Xiaoshan¡¯s [Breeze of Surveince] was for them.

    Some muttered to themselves, waiting for Zu Yan¡¯s orders, whereas others kept silent, pressing their cheeks against the boiling hot cannon body but remaining as motionless as ice.

    Fatty narrowed his pea-sized eyes, which had an ominous glint to them, as he constantly searched for the enemy¡¯s vulnerability like a crafty wild beast.

    He was immersed in the battling state of mind.

    He was no longer that weak and cowardly child that only knew how to flee. After bing a Master, he hadpletely transformed into another person. It must be said that fate was amazing. Even he himself hadn¡¯t imagined that one day he could calmlymand so many troops for battle.

    To others, Fatty was veryzy. Only people who were familiar with him, like Ai Hui, knew that while he was indeedzy, he was good at racking his brains, evident from how he used to apply his intelligence in order to skive.

    The alliance¡¯s camp upied the high ground, and Fatty had taken in the whole diversion of the Silverfrost Blood Division. Even Helian Tiaoxiao¡¯s n he had managed to predict almost urately.

    But that direction...

    Heh heh, Fatty smiled coldly.

    Fatty hadplete trust in Ai Hui, blind faith in fact. Even when thetter was injured or poisoned, Fatty never believed that anyone could get rid of him. If Ai Hui were to day one day, Fatty was convinced that the area around his grave would have a ghost-subduing effect.

    If the opponent failed to receive any signal, he was sure to go all out.

    And that was when either the fish dies or the splits.

    Bah! Grandpa Fatty was not ready to die.

    Fatty realized that the enemy was bing craftier, obviously attempting to stall for time. With his quick thinking, he arranged the Beehive Heavy Cannon volley while getting the cannoneers to start their duty roster in order to gain precious time for resting.

    Fatty¡¯s arrangement was so careful that even Helian Tianxiao failed to notice that the number of pagoda cannon volleys had decreased significantly.

    Fatty narrowed his pea-sized eyes, waiting for the opportune time to start the decisive battle.

    .....

    Inside of the sword formation in the valley, the battle was extremely intense.

    The narrowly packed sword formation was now in a scattered mess. Countless light swords danced in the air at lightning speed. They were so quick that the light scars dragging across the sky were like dancing light ribbons. Because there were too many of those entangling around Silverfrost, there would asionally be one that pierced through the blood division.

    Pff, pff, pff.

    The sound of blood flower bursting was like a symphonic movement from hell where each note brought the fall of some soldiers.

    Silverfrost had sunken into chaos. They had no time to care about theirpanions, as they were too busy preparing to block off the light swords that could approach from any direction. The defensive light rays that were able to block off the volleys of Beehive Heavy Cannons were as frail as paper in front of these fine light swords.

    No defensive move was able to stop the light swords. They were like the grim reaper¡¯s sickle, ruthlessly slicing their throats. They had never felt so helpless.

    How did things turn out this way?

    Some quick-witted soldiers suddenly thought about how the aura they had senseding from the sword formation was somewhat simr to the blood spiritual force, and their faces immediately changed.

    They could vaguely guess what was going on, and the fear within them intensified.

    Song Xiaoqian shouted all of a sudden, "[Frost Fire]!"

    The Silverfrost soldiers were stunned. [Frost Fire]...

    Of course they knew what thismand meant. Those soldiers with the Ability of God, especially, who preserved the perfected force. When the whole defense system was unable to function, personal ability was the thing that could help them better survive.

    [Frost Fire]...

    A soldier with the Ability of God bellowed. Voom! His whole body rose in transparent mes. Following the intensifying and subsiding mes, an rming coldness erupted and spread.

    The silverfrost wolf beneath him howled as its snow-white fur started bursting into ice-cold mes.

    Just as danger was closing in, there was a light sword that stuck close to the ground without making a sound. Its target was the abdomen of the silverfrost wolf. Another one came from the back, aiming at the soldier¡¯s brain. Yet another one approached from an extremely artful angle that brushed across another soldier¡¯s body before arriving.

    An evil grin emerged on the face of the soldier with the Ability of God.

    Hu! The cold mes waxed and waned, spreading the chilliness.

    Covered in ayer of frost, the light sword flying close to the ground dropped with a ng. It was like a struggling fish outside of water, squirming a little before bing motionless. The other two light swords faced the same fate, getting covered in frost before losing their spirituality and dropping onto the ground.

    The other soldiers with the Ability of God started to bellow, employing their [Frost Fire].

    Frost Fire was Silverfrost Blood Division¡¯s killer move and only those with the Ability of God could employ it. The mes generated were extremely cold and could freeze all things. However, once engaged, the user would be their fuel.

    Yet, before theirbustion, they were ultimately powerful!

    Covered in frost, a soldier with the Ability of God roared before rising into the sky, struggling free from the light web woven by countless light swords.

    Behind him came four other soldiers with the Ability of God who also had broken free from the light web!

    The five of them locked their gazes onto the figure in the heart of the sword formation. They made five arcs in the sky and, like blooming flowers, they dove toward the figure in the sword formation from different directions.

    A loud sword chime broke the sky!

    The closely packed light swords swiftly splitted into five light sword flows that chased after the five of them!

    The other Silverfrost soldiers only felt a slight release of pressure as their surrounding field of vision returned to normal. They could finally see what was going on.

    The light swords moved fast as lightning, quickly catching up with the five soldiers with the Ability of God. The swords wound around them tightly, their dazzling light scars circling and drowning their figures. They were like five light balls woven from light beams.

    Light swords fell down like rain, crackling and rattling.

    There was an endlessunch of light swords that flew up from all around the sword formation, shooting toward the five light balls.

    Why are there more and more light swords?

    Song Xiaoqian was puzzled, nking out upon catching a glimpse of the ground out of the corner of her eye. The bloody piles of corpses she had expected were absent. While the field was in a mess and there were broken swords everywhere, no bloodstains could be seen at all. Where had all the corpses gone?

    Her face turned white as sheet.

    Exactly what monster was breeding within the sword formation?

    No, it¡¯s a devil! A flesh-consuming devil!

    An unprecedented fear enveloped her heart and mind, as if there was an invisible palm squashing her heart and rendering her breathless.

    The faintly discernible figure within that densely packed sword formation appeared very young.

    There was only a highway before them. Was it leading to hell?

 Chapter 637: [Sword Chime]!

    Chapter 637: [Sword Chime]!

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Even if the path ahead led to hell, they could only continue charging forward now. It was toote for them to regret it.

    Song Xiaoqian suppressed the fear in her mind. She took the lead and charged towards the figure nearest to her. The light from the [Frost Fire] above her head shot towards the light ball that was surrounded by the light swords. The deafening sword chime became louder and clearer and the distant booms from the Beehive Heavy Cannons were striking fear into everyone¡¯s hearts.

    The dazzling, flickering light shone on Song Xiaoqian¡¯s face.

    "It¡¯s only a few hundred meters, I will reach there in a blink of an eye," she told herself in her mind.

    One by one, the sword formations in front of her lit up. The devil lying among the sword formations seemed to sense danger.

    So the devil could be scared too!

    A tinge of courage arose in Song Xiaoqian¡¯s heart all of a sudden. She nudged her saddle silverfrost wolf to charge forward at its top speed. Pointing her spear towards her front, she roared, "Kill!"

    The soldiers following tightly behind her roared in unison, "Kill!"

    The sound of the wolf paws storming on the ground resembled a concentrated drumbeat. The bodies of the Silverfrost soldiers lit up with a silvery glow once more. Like streaks of silvery lightning bolts, they charged forward!

    A sword formation that had a beam of light swirling around it was blocking their path.

    However, Song Xiaoqian had no intention of reducing her speed or changing her direction. Without any hesitation, she charged towards the sword formation head-on. Bang. The glowing sword formation shattered to smithereens with a loud bang. Sword fragments shot towards all directions.

    Without the light swords, the sword formation on its own was useless against the Silverfrost Division.

    The Silverfrost soldiers, who had yet to lose their momentum, continued to charge towards the second sword formation. The sword formation shattered once again!

    At this point of time, the five balls of Frost Fire bellowed in the air. The freezing glow emitted by the Frost Fire suddenly intensified and bound the surrounding light swords tightly.

    Live or die, sess or failure, it all depended on this moment!

    Inside the fantasnd of the blood eye, the prative and omnipresent golden mist had disappeared without a trace.

    Using the flesh and corpses that were filled with an abundance of blood spiritual force as a medium, the God¡¯s blood, which previously could not be expelled, was entering the sword formations now. More and more swords were shattering because they couldn¡¯t endure the blood spiritual force. Even so, the number of light swords continued to increase rapidly.

    The scorching sun in the sky had dimmed significantly and the opaque golden pir had became translucent now.

    The sword embryo was operating frantically like an enraged beast.

    The densely-packed sword chimes sounded like beans being fried. Just their sound alone made one¡¯s blood boil and filled him or her with battle fervor.

    However, Ai Hui¡¯s blood wasn¡¯t boiling. At this point in time, he was unusually calm. When the Silverfrost Division broke into the valley of sword formations, he could sense every single movement they made. He had been locked onto by the enemy and the murderous aura that engulfed him intensified.

    Danger was approaching him!

    What should he do?

    He was still stuck in the fantasnd, unable to escape. Ever since the sword embryo became stronger, it could no longer be controlled by Ai Hui, resembling a monster that was trying to break free from its chains.

    The sword embryo that Ai Hui nurtured was inherently weak. Now that it had absorbed the God¡¯s blood, it transformedpletely. Many times, Ai Hui felt that the sword embryo was a living entity that had its own consciousness. This wasn¡¯t his misperception. The word "embryo" signified life. It also referred to the sword embryo¡¯s unique ability to grow by itself.

    For the past few days, Ai Hui had witnessed for himself how the sword embryo independently became stronger bit by bit. The number of swords within the sword embryo kept on increasing. Every sword exuded a new type of sword consciousness, and there were many that Ai Hui never had seen before.

    As a spectator, Ai Hui had benefited a lot and his horizons were broadened.

    However, he was feeling very puzzled as well. The sword embryo was no doubt powerful, and its ability to grow independently was astonishing as well. However, no matter how powerful it was, if it could not be controlled, what was the point of having it?

    Was it possible that the ancient swordsmen did not realize this? Ai Hui didn¡¯t think so.

    So how did the ancient swordsmen solve this problem? Ai Hui had pondered over this question for a very long time, but he still could not find the answer. The journal he had on the topic of sword embryos was a remnant record, and most of its contents had been lost. Even Ai Hui was unsure whether or not the sword embryo that he nurtured was the same as the one mentioned in the journal.

    Previously, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t anxious over solving this issue at all. He felt that he woulde up with a solution sooner orter.

    However, he did not expect that danger would be approaching so soon!

    The enemy forces were less than 250 meters away from him!

    The terrifying white-colored flood was powerful enough to crush him to a pulp.

    The worst thing was Ai Hui discovered that many enemy soldiers were taking off the bows on their backs.

    Ai Hui, who was usually calm andposed, could not help but shiver in fear now. Was his body going to be pierced with arrows first and then crushed into pulp?

    Ai Hui could see the hatred and fear on the soldiers¡¯ faces.

    Bows were being drawn one by one.

    "Damn it!"

    Ai Hui cursed loudly. He didn¡¯t expect himself to die in such a pathetic manner in the end! His motionless body was going to get countless holes from the piercing arrows and then crushed into pulp by the countless wolf paws... This might be the most pathetic way to die in the world....

    Before he could finish what he was thinking, darkness engulfed his vision...

    Was he dead? This thought arose subconsciously in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    However, the next moment, he reacted strongly. Something wasn¡¯t right!

    Previously, Ai Hui¡¯s attention was captured by the charging Silverfrost Division in the outside world, so he did not notice that the frantically operating sword embryo had suddenly dispersed. The intertwining Yin and Yang sword masses had transformed into two powerful currents that surged towards him.

    The blood-colored light pir that had engulfed Ai Hui all this time did not stop the powerful currents. The sword embryo originated from Ai Hui¡¯s cultivation of essence-breath-spirit and it was part of Ai Hui¡¯s body. Ai Hui¡¯s essence-breath-spirit was the soil that the sword embryo grew on and the God¡¯s blood was the nourishment. Ai Hui and the sword embryo were simply inseparable.

    The sword masses came too fast and there were too many swords. In an instant, they covered Ai Hui¡¯s visionpletely and this was why he saw nothing but darkness.

    The countless swords were a gigantic school of fishes that surrounded Ai Hui, forming a perfect sphere. Amazingly, the line that divided the Yin and Yang on the sword-made sphere was extremely distinct. They were still twined around each other and revolving continuously.

    Inside the sword-made ball, Ai Hui could sense a mysterious rhythm.

    Something was beating... It resembled a heartbeat...

    Was this... the sword embryo?

    For some unknown reason, this beat felt unusually familiar to Ai Hui, as though he was inseparably rted to it. Suddenly, a realization dawned upon Ai Hui. The unsolvable questions that he used to have suddenly cleared up at this moment.

    I see!

    He focused his concentration on the sword embryo.

    Thump, thump, thump.

    Almost effortlessly, his mind synchronized with the pulsating rhythm of the sword embryo, as though he was born with this ability.

    The sword-made sphere that surrounded him stopped moving all of a sudden.

    The next moment, the tens of thousands of swords chimed in unison.

    Ai Hui¡¯s entire body trembled. The invisible barrier between him and the sword embryo disappeared. Countless thoughts engulfed his mind like a sh flood.

    He reached out his hand and a small sword appeared in his palm.

    The silverfrost wolves charged forward at their top speeds. One by one, the sword formations were destroyed, smashed to smithereens.

    The soldiers on the silverfrost wolves¡¯ backs drew their bows as their arrows flickered with a cold glint. Their movements were perfectly synchronized. This was thest volley of arrows that they were going to fire. One could tell how well-trained the Silverfrost Blood Division was from their ability to release a volley of arrows while charging forward.

    Beside Song Xiaoqian was the vice division leader of the Silverfrost Blood Division, Hua Yunfeng. Other than Song Xiaoqian, he was the only expert that possessed the Ability of God in thebat division now. He wasn¡¯t in the range of the Frost Fire so that he could provide leadership for thebat division if the division leader died.

    Hua Yunfeng¡¯s handsome face exuded a bone-piercing hatred.

    Devastating!

    More than one-third of the Silverfrost soldiers had died, and almost all the blood elementalists that possessed the Ability of God were killed. The Silverfrost Blood Division had never suffered such devastating losses before. Because of the losses, Hua Yunfeng was filled with anger and hatred. Even if the other party was the devil, he had to kill him!

    !

    Die!

    With hatred in his heart, Hua Yunfeng roared, "Fire!"

    The bowstrings vibrated in perfect unison, producing exactly one sound.

    A rain of arrows that suddenly appeared whizzed towards the centre of the valley of sword formations.

    The arrows could cover the distance of 250 meters in a blink of an eye. The arrow gleams lit up the figure in the centre of the sword formations as the rain of arrows approached it. It was a skinny young man.

    His eyes were tightly closed, appearing to be in aa.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s pupils suddenly dted. Ai Hui!

    No one in the Silverfrost Division would forget the humiliation that Ai Hui had given them when he led the Pinwheel Sword and pierced through the God Wolf Division¡¯s encampment in an invincible manner.

    It was actually Ai Hui!

    Song Xiaoqian was feeling vexed. She should have thought of it earlier! All this time, she never saw Ai Hui despite the ongoing battle being so intense. This wasn¡¯t normal at all. No wonder Shi Xueman and her counterparts were willing to spend so much manpower and resources in this valley. If they did so for Ai Hui, then everything made sense now.

    However, everything was going to end soon!

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s sharp eyesight could clearly see Ai Hui!

    30 meters, 20 meters, 10 meters...

    Ai Hui did not show any signs of waking up. Song Xiaoqian¡¯s tightly pursed lips curled into an arc.

    Die!

    Suddenly, a sword chime resounded through the air.

    This sword chime was unlike the sword chimes in the past. It wasn¡¯t impassioned, but rather low and deep like a drumbeat.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s vision suddenly shook violently. The silverfrost wolf beneath her swayed all of a sudden, causing her to almost fall off from it.

    What was going on?

    The entire valley was swaying.

    Every sword in every sword formation in the valley was trembling. The deep and low sword chime was produced by nearly a million swords chiming together at the same time.

    The rain of arrows that almost reached Ai Hui suddenly turned into ashes. The arrow tips melted and reduced to ashes. The arrow shafts melted and reduced to ashes.

    Like mist, the shattered arrow gleams disappeared along with the wind.

    The whizzing, piercing rain of arrows disappeared without a trace just like this.

    Song Xiaoqian almost fell off her silverfrost wolf. The rest of the Silverfrost soldiers could not believe what they had just seen. The blood in their bodies raced and they lost control of their blood spiritual force. Following which, an intense numbness engulfed all of their bodies. Beneath them, the limbs of the silverfrost wolves turned soft. Those slightly weak silverfrost wolves lost their bnce and copsed to the ground.

    Song Xiaoqian was overwhelmed with horror.

    What was this...

    The surging mist that swirled in the air above the valley was sword mist. It was produced by the sword formations in the valley. Compared to the silver mist at Silver Mist Sea, the sword mist was sharper and its corrosive effect was much more terrifying.

    The valley seemed to be covered with an enormous, transparent copper bell. The sword chime caused the mist to undte, which caused the copper bell¡¯s interior to churn violently.

    On the other side of the mountain, Lou Lan, who couldn¡¯t rush to Ai Hui¡¯s rescue, had his eyes flickering with a bloody glow. At this point in time, he appeared to be in a daze. He muttered involuntarily, "[Sword Chime]..."

    That¡¯s right, it was [Sword Chime]!

    It was just that this sword chime was formed by nearly a million swords.

    The confined and narrow terrain of the valley increased the might of [Sword Chime] by several times.

    In the past, when Ai Hui created [Sword Chime], he did not think that this move could produce such earth-shaking might and dazzling brilliance.

 Chapter 638: Sword Embryo and Avedha-vasa

    Chapter 638: Sword Embryo and Avedha-vasa

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Helian Tianxiao failed to wait for the news of the Silverfrost Blood Division attacking the enemy forces¡¯ nk to arrive.

    He knew he could not wait any longer.

    It was most likely that Silverfrost had encountered trouble. He did not know what trouble it was and it did not matter at all at this point in time. He needed tounch an attack immediately without any hesitation.

    Just as Helian Tianxiao was about to pass down an order tounch an offensive, a deep and low sword chime suddenly rang across the air from the location of the Silverfrost Blood Division.

    His mind trembled and he almost lost control of the blood spiritual force in his body.

    Helian Tianxiao raised his head abruptly and looked in the direction of the valley.

    A gigantic transparent copper bell was ced over the valley and the mist inside it was surging ceaselessly. The deep and terrorizing sword chime wasing from the gigantic transparent copper bell.

    The facial expressions of every soldier beside him changed drastically. Those powerful blood elementalists with the Ability of God felt their chests be stuffy, while the ordinary blood elementalists had their faces turned pale-white and felt nauseous.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s heart sank. He knew that the Silverfrost Blood Division had encountered a huge problem!

    He threw this distracting thought to the back of his head and his facial expression returned to normal. With an ice-cold look in his eyes, he ordered with a deep voice, "Every unit, prepare to attack!"

    Until thest moment came, who knew what the oue of the battle would be?

    Simrly, the low and trembling sword chime alerted the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    Everyone looked at the valley with doubt. Wasn¡¯t that ce Ai Hui¡¯s valley of sword formations?

    Fatty¡¯s fat cheeks wobbled and his pea-sized eyes widened abruptly. The undtions on his face resembled tidal waves,pletely filled with joy. He cackled withughter. "Hahaha, [Sword Chime]! It¡¯s Ah Hui¡¯s [Sword Chime]! Ah Hui is awake! Ah Hui is awake!"

    When the battle was at such a critical junction, any small increment in power would make the

    The morale of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance was greatly boosted!

    Fatty cleared his throat and yelled, "Wake up! Don¡¯t throw my face in front of that Ai fellow! I will kick the ass of whoever screws up!"

    Laughter broke out among the members of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance and the tense atmosphere loosened up slightly.

    Everyone knew that Master Fatty feared Ai Hui as though he was tiger.

    "Master Fatty, you better be careful of your own ass!"

    "Aye, why my ass? I seem to think of something..."

    "Hahahaha!"

    Everyone burst out inughter, but Fatty merely chuckled along with them, not feeling angry at all. Following which, he cast a nce at the valley. No one could tell that there was a tinge of worry deep within his pea-sized eyes. He definitely knew that was [Sword Chime], but it was different from how it was in the past. Its might far surpassed Ai Hui¡¯s actual strength. If Ai Hui wasn¡¯t bing a Grandmaster, that meant he was struggling for his life. After all, Fatty hadn¡¯t seen Ai Hui yet.

    In Fatty¡¯s heart, Ai Hui was invincible. Even so, Fatty felt that the probability of Ai Hui bing a Grandmaster was almost zero.

    Was he struggling for his life then?

    Fatty¡¯s mind could not help but tremble in fear.

    Out of the corner of Fatty¡¯s eyes, he saw a ray of light sh across the opposite side. His meaty face immediately turned solemn. He yelled with a low voice, "The enemy is going to fight with all its might. Every pagoda cannon, get ready!"

    A burst of red glow lit up behind Fatty. Without even turning his head, he knew it was Zu Yan¡¯s hellfire spider web.

    Fatty picked up the weighty Beehive Heavy Cannon with one hand and ced it on his shoulder.

    His gaze was deep and his body remained stationary. He had gotten rid of his distracting thoughts. In his eyes, he could only see the impending battle.

    He was no longer the Fatty that acted on impulse and did not care about anything.

    That was because his shoulder carried not only the pagoda cannon but more responsibilities as well.

    He squinted his eyes and looked at the enemy soldiers as they began to charge.

    Behind him, the red glow was getting brighter. Without any hesitation, the Beehive Heavy Cannon on his shoulder let off an angry boom.

    The scorching ze that shot out from his Beehive Heavy Cannon lit up the night sky. It illuminated Fatty¡¯s solemn and focused face and his burly figure.

    Under the deep night sky, Duanmu Huanghun was standing in the wind. He looked bewilderedly at the enormous transparent bell above the valley.

    He was too familiar with this aura. Ai Hui!

    But... howe his aura was so powerful?

    Violent elemental energy undtions were being suppressed firmly within the transparent bell. Duanmu Huanghun could even see the formless energy waves surging continuously in the transparent bell. He did not even need to think too deeply to know that the Silverfrost Blood Division was suffering inside the transparent bell.

    He knew that the Silverfrost Blood Division held the desire to kill when they attacked the valley, but he could not think of any good solutions.

    The elementalists¡¯ military strength was limited. If they faced the Silverfrost Blood Division head-on, they would need to put in all their manpower and resources to barely contend against them.

    He didn¡¯t expect...

    Until now, he still did not know what was going on.

    How powerful must one be to produce such terrifying might? Was it possible that Ai Hui had be a Grandmaster?

    The pitiful Duanmu Huanghun felt like his whole world had been toppled aftering out from his seclusion. His understanding of the world had been overturned. Initially, he still felt proud of himself for creating [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] and bing the most powerful genius in the history of the Duanmu family.

    However...

    [Breeze of Surveince] had curbed his arrogance significantly. However, since he had heard that it was a legendary killer move, he could still ept it. But what about Fatty, thatzy bum? He actually had be a Master? And why was that cannon-like thing so powerful? The hellfire spider web could actually synchronize the attacks of Beehive Heavy Cannons?

    And now he saw a [Sword Chime] that looked as if it was executed by a Grandmaster!

    To hell with it!

    Duanmu Huanghun, who usually possessed a cultivated demeanor due to his aristocratic family background, could not help but curse.

    Alright, he had never seen a Grandmaster-level attack before, this was a good chance for him to do so. Duanmu Huanghun consoled himself like this.

    When Duanmu Huanghun found out that Ai Hui was still full of life, he heaved a sigh of relief. However, when he realized what he had just done, he felt as though he had swallowed a fly. He actually felt happy for this fellow bing stronger? How could it be? How could the genius from the Duanmu family lose to this bastard?

    A dangerous-looking glint shed across Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes. With killing intent surging through his eyes, he stared at the God Wolf soldiers that were beginning to charge forward.

    He gave of faint snort of disdain.

    The viridescent flower on his palm began to light up.

    .....

    At this moment, Ai Hui, who was being wrapped up by the sword embryo, was immersed in a weird state.

    He had used many powerful artifacts and skills. The most powerful one was no doubt the demonic god armor. The absolute calmness and control it had given him were extremely formidable. Even so, all these powerful artifacts and skills could not bepared to the sword embryo. He felt that the sword embryo was like a part of his body.

    The sword embryo was indeed a part of his body.

    Ancient records from the Cultivation Era stated that human bodies and spiritual force had their limits, but a person¡¯s essence-breath-spirit had limitless potential. If one kept on strengthening his or her essence-breath-spirit, he or she would nurture a sword embryo.

    The so-called essence-breath-spirit was known as god consciousness.

    In the past, the sword embryo was iplete. Now that it had absorbed the power of God¡¯s blood, it was reborn and finally became a real sword embryo.

    Ai Hui felt that if the swordsman that first created "sword embryo" saw his sword embryo now, he would be overwhelmed with shock. The Cultivation Era was the era of spiritual force, and not many people knew about the existence of the demonic god.

    The demonic god was formed by generations of offerings from tribes, and it had gathered countless men¡¯s god consciousness and avedha-vasa. The most famous individual that practised avedha-vasa was Zong Ru, who was a Dhyana practitioner

    The demonic god¡¯s blood contained the purest forms of god consciousness and avedha-vasa.

    The concept of avedha-vasa was much moreplicated than essence-breath-spirit¡¯s. It involved evestingness and karma.

    After the sword embryo devoured the god consciousness from the God¡¯s blood, its avedha-vasa was released. This was why it needed to use flesh and blood as a medium. Avedha-vasa naturally engendered blood and flesh. They fused with each other, entered the body of a sword, and transformed it into a light sword. However, the approaches of the demonic god and an ancient swordsman werepletely different. The sword embryo nurtured by an ancient swordsman was pure in nature. Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo wasn¡¯t that pure in nature, but rather wild and unruly.

    If the sword embryo of an ancient swordsman was an ice-cold killing machine, Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo was a violent, bloodthirsty, and fearsome beast.

    Ai Hui could sense the "fearsomeness" of his sword embryo.

    His sensory perception was unusually sharp. Even though the sword embryo listened to hismands and it was like a part of his body, he knew that he would lose control of it if he exceeded certain boundaries. After absorbing the power from the God¡¯s blood, the sword embryo became much more powerful than he expected.

    He did not dare to be careless. The current situation did not allow him to be careless either.

    The might of [Sword Chime] far exceeded his expectations.

    The sword embryo was formed by his god consciousness and then it grew by itself. However, its growth still ultimately depended on Ai Hui¡¯s understanding towards swordsmanship. Therefore, the sword embryo wasrgely responsible for the sword moves that Ai Hui created.

    The [Sword Chime] that was improved by the sword embryo was close to perfect. Not only was its shape flexible, but its power was increased by several times as well.

    Seeing that his move was executed smoothly and wlessly, Ai Hui proceeded to act without any hesitation. Taking advantage of others¡¯ plight had always been his motto. In the past battles, [Sword Chime] usually disrupted the enemies¡¯ offensive first and then killed them afterwards.

    [Sword Chime] not only affected Song Xiaoqian and her counterparts on the ground, it also affected the five blood elementalists that were burning with Frost Fire in the sky.

    Their Frost Fires froze abruptly and their freezing power decreased sharply.

    Ai Hui seized the opportunity and used his light swords to get rid of the Frost Fires.

    His [Sword Chime] was so powerful because it was strengthened by the enormous number of swords, sword formations, and the beneficial terrain of the valley. However, the sword formations were built using ordinary swords and more than half of them were destroyed. Using such ordinary swords was not enough to deal with the Silverfrost Blood Division.

    The light swords contained the avedha-vasa of the God¡¯s blood, making them extremely powerful. Furthermore, they were the bane of blood spiritual force.

    Ai Hui¡¯s facial expression was focused. Even though there were countless traces of sword consciousness in the sword embryo, Ai Hui was still more familiar with his own moves. Even after the sword embryo was enhanced, he could still wield it with ease.

    He chose one of the five blood elementalists with the Ability of God.

    The Frost Fire was extremely powerful. While [Sword Chime] disrupted the Frost Fire, Ai Hui seized the opportunity and managed to snatch back only seven light swords.

    Once a blood elementalist with the Ability of God decided to fight till his death, his powers would be extremely formidable.

    Seven light swords were enough.

    After breaking free, the seven light swords did not fly away. Instead, they appeared 30 meters away from a ball of Frost Fire.

    The seven light swords were positioned in the sky in an irregr manner, resembling the shape of adle. Those who hadmon sense could straightaway tell that it was Big Dipper!

    It was a more powerful version of the [Big Dipper] that he often used in the past!

    The seven light swords suddenly transformed into seven wisps of smoke and disappeared.

    It was [Misty Strike]!

    The next moment, seven light spots shot towards the Frost Fire. The longer they flew, the closer they drew to each other. Eventually, they merged together as one in the sky.

    The light spots were far more resplendent than the brightest star in the night sky. They carried an aura of death as they pierced through the ball of Frost Fire and came out from its other end.

    Pfff.

    The sound was extremely soft, but it sounded like a thunderp to the Silverfrost soldiers even though they were in a valley where a sword chime was resounding incessantly across the air.

    The Frost Fire froze.

 Chapter 639: Brand-new Sword Moves

    Chapter 639: Brand-new Sword Moves

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The mass of Frost Fire surrounded by the light swords suddenly exploded and an enormous burst of fireworks erupted in the sky. The light swords tangled up with streaks of ice-cold mes as they scattered in all directions in the sky.

    With a sound that resembled the pitter-patter of rain, the light swords pierced through the surging mist in the valley and plunged straight into the soil on the ground.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s facial expression changed.

    When a mass of Frost Fire exploded, it meant an expert with the Ability of God had died. Song Xiaoqian wasn¡¯t sad because of the death of that blood elementalist. When a blood elementalist executed [Frost Fire], he or she was bound to die. However, before that happened, he or she could buy enough time for thebat division.

    But now...

    The sword chime continued to ring to across the air, causing the Silverfrost soldiers¡¯ blood to race and their faces to turn pale-white. The surging sword mist was like tidal waves that had the teeth of a saw, eating away at thebat division¡¯s defense ceaselessly. If one was identally drawn into the sword mist, his or her skin would corrode and melt like snow.

    The sword chime caused the mist in the entire valley to stir.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s ears were buzzing loudly. At this point in time, she wasn¡¯t feeling fearful anymore. Like a wolf that was driven to desperation, she was struggling for her life.

    Without saying a word, she bit her lips and gave the silverfrost wolf beneath her a squeeze with her thighs.

    The silverfrost wolf beneath her was high-spirited and arrogant. Its body was white like snow, spotlessly clean. It possessed an extremely beautiful pair of ghostly blue pupils. It was the leader of the silverfrost wolves in the Silverfrost Blood Division and it was telepathically connected to Song Xiaoqian.

    It bent its front limbs slightly and then dashed out from the Silverfrost¡¯s ranks with Song Xiaoqian on its back, charging towards Ai Hui, who was lying in the middle of the sword formations.

    A white-colored, lightning-like streak ripped through the mist.

    On the back of the silverfrost wolf, Song Xiaoqian¡¯s spear lit up with a luster.

    At this point in time, Ai Hui was feeling splendid!

    Countless sword rings surrounded his body. His eyes were tightly shut and every detail of the valley was under his control. The sword-formation-filled valley became his best home field.

    His immersion in the sword embryo and his indescribable telepathic connection with the light swords made him forget that he was in a battlefield.

    All the shackles that bound him had disappeared. He was finally free. With a jolt of his mind, the light swords suddenly moved. The elemental energy cirction and the five residences and eight pces within his body hadpletely disappeared

    Was this the true might of the sword embryo?

    Ai Hui was amazed and happy at the same. He looked a child that had just gotten a new toy, exploring this new and unknown world.

    The light swords that plunged deeply into the ground trembled lightly. Suddenly, they broke free from the ground and shot towards the sky.

    Dazzling and fine light beams shot out from the ground. They were unusually nimble and they drew magnificent traces of light in the sky. They were like alerted swifts that were filled with dangerous spikes, dazzling everyone.

    The traces of light intertwined with each other. They were so beautiful that one could not appreciate them all at once.

    Most of the light swords flew towards the other four balls of Frost Fire. The remaining light swords submerged into the mist like sharks.

    Ai Hui noticed the iing Song Xiaoqian and left the Frost Fires in the sky to his sword embryo.

    Previously, the sword embryo had been fighting on its own. It only went back to Ai Hui when it discovered that it could not handle the enemies. His sword embryo wasn¡¯t a harmless sheep, but rather a ferocious dire beast. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that the sword embryo was created from his god consciousness, he felt that he wouldn¡¯t be able to control it.

    Just now, he had already demonstrated how to destroy the Frost Fire. All the sword embryo needed to do was to imitate him. The sword embryo was proficient in all of Ai Hui¡¯s sword moves. It was even more proficient than Ai Hui himself. If Ai Hui¡¯s sword consciousness was the soil, then his sword moves would be the seeds.

    Ai Hui did not expect the seemingly small and weak seeds to grow into such exuberant fruits with such a terrifying speed.

    The sword embryo was indeed a ferocious beast. However, now it was still in its adolescent stage. It was a small beast that possessed a terrifyingly gigantic arsenal which it did not know how to use.

    And Ai Hui was an expert inbat tactics.

    Ai Hui had demonstrated how tobine [Big Dipper] and [Misty Strike] to destroy the Frost Fire, and the sword embryo could execute it better than him.

    Now Ai Hui could ce all his attention on the Song Xiaoqian, who was the biggest threat to him.

    He did not dare to underestimate the other party. Being the division leader and the strongest member of Silverfrost Blood Division, how could she be weak?

    A glint shed across Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. His palm was grasping nothing but air, looking as though he was holding an invisible sword.

    He was very excited.

    The joy of breaking free from his shackles and the contentment he felt afterwards was an experience that he never had before ever since he started out on the path of swordsmanship.

    The sword formations that filled the valley produced dense sword mist. In a ce where the aura of sword was in abundance, he felt just like a fish in the water.

    Within the sword embryo, the figure moved like a wisp of smoke.

    On the back of the charging silverfrost wolf, Song Xiaoqian¡¯s eyes flickered with a glint. Her body was motionless, but the tip of her spear suddenly lit up with a glow.

    The mist in front of her suddenly split open and everything became clear to her at once.

    A circr screen of swords suddenly appeared in front of her line of sight.

    On the sword screen, the light swords swam like fishes, forming perfect circles. An aura of Yin and Yang radiated from it, causing the surrounding space to turn fuzzy. The circr sword screen was like a door that led to another world.

    [Three Yin Three Yang Huge Sword Rings]!

    This [Three Yin Three Yang Huge Sword Rings] was several times more powerful andrger than the original version.

    The aura of Yin and Yang was cryptic and unfathomable. Song Xiaoqian, however, wasn¡¯t surprised by what she saw. Right now, she had already confirmed that Ai Hui was trying to be a Grandmaster!

    How would the approaches of an expert that was capable of bing a Grandmaster be seen through so easily?

    However, this fact did not waver her determination. She stooped down as the glow from her spear tip emitted a bone-piercing chilliness. Every time the paws of her silverfrost wolfnded on the ground, snowkes would fly in all directions.

    Along with her spear and silverfrost wolf, she crashed heavily into the Three Yin Three Yang Huge Sword Rings.

    Clink!

    A clear and crisp sound of ice breaking resounded through the air. Fragments of the sword rings and dim light swords flew in all directions.

    The light swords that flew out were covered with frost, exuding chilliness that made them seem as though they were taken out from an iceberg.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s field of view became clear once more, but her pupils dted.

    Another [Three Yin Three Yang Huge Sword Rings]¡¯s circr sword screen appeared in front of her mysteriously.

    She understood that there were many more sword screens behind this one waiting for her. Instead of feeling disappointed, she felt a sense of pride. She whipped her silverfrost wolf to go faster and pointed her spear towards her front. Come on!

    A streak of white-colored, frosty lightning crashed through the sword screens one by one.

    Clink, clink, clink!

    The sound of ice breaking echoed across the air continuously, crisp and loud.

    Within a distance of 70 meters, there were 13 [Three Yin Three Yang Huge Sword Rings]!

    She no longer cared about the oue of the battle and the matter of life and death. Without any distracting thoughts, she only cared about one thing and that was to charge forward!

    She threw off the lingering sword chime and the surging mist behind her. The explosion of the Frost Fires above her head rang across her ears. The cold gleam from the explosions lit up her figure, the path in front of her, and Ai Hui¡¯s figure in the center of the sword formations.

    When she crashed through thest sword screen, her eyes lit up. Ai Hui was less than 60 meters away from her!

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s body was drenched in blood and her haughty silverfrost wolf was covered with cuts and bruises. Both of them were ice-cold as frost.

    Greeting them were six silent crescent moons.

    Ai Hui admired Song Xiaoqian¡¯s bravery and decisiveness. She wasparable to men in terms of courage and ability. However, Ai Hui was not going to take it easy on her.

    The number of light swords he could use kept on increasing.

    The dim light swords that fell to the ground gave off a buzzing sound. The silvery frost on their surfaces were being corroded, revealing more and more dazzling light spots. The light swords contained the power of God¡¯s blood, which was several times more powerful than the frost¡¯s blood spiritual forces. They were breaking free from the restraint of the frost.

    Six light swords formed a crescent moon and there were six crescent moons drawing mysterious and unpredictable traces in the sky. They were moving silently with biting cold killing intent.

    Probably because Ai Hui had been in a delicate and weak state for a very long time, he now disliked those shy killing moves. He preferred his killing moves to be inconspicuous.

    [Six Moons]!

    Compared to the old version of [Six Moons], the current version had undergone aplete transformation.

    The six crescent moons gave off a cold luster, resembling an illusion.

    Sitting with a haughty posture on the silverfrost wolf¡¯s back, Song Xiaoqian suddenlyughed. Transparent mes then began to rise from her body. The silverfrost wolf beneath her raised its head tall and proud. Simrly, transparent mes rose from its blood-covered, snow-white fur.

    [Frost Fire]!

    The Frost Fires in the sky had beenpletely extinguished. Under the night sky, the only source of light in the sword-formation-covered valley was this mass of cold mes.

    The Frost Fire extended along her spear. Eventually, the entire spear was burning.

    Song Xiaoqian raised her head and gave her silverfrost wolf a squeeze with her legs. Following which, her silverfrost wolf jumped towards the six crescent moons while Song Xiaoqian thrusted her spear forward!

    A melodious wolf howl resounded through the air.

    The Silverfrost soldiers, who had not broken free from the sword chime all this time, finally woke up. Then they saw a heart-wrenching scene.

    Song Xiaoqian and her silverfrost wolf, along with the cold mes around them, leapt into the air and collided head-on with the six crescent moons.

    "No!"

    The heart-ripping screams of the Silverfrost soldiers echoed through the valley.

    Boom!

    Frost Fire flew in all directions and the cold crescent moons shattered.

    The figures of a woman and a wolf still stood upright in the sky. Her Frost Fire had dimmed significantly and her spear was half broken.

    Before the Silverfrost soldiers could heave a sigh of relief, a mysterious red muslin that covered the entire skynded on Song Xiaoqian¡¯s shoulders. It was as though someone had ced a cascading red muslin over her shoulders, incredibly beautiful.

    That was...

    Boundless fear was disyed in the Silverfrost soldiers¡¯ widened eyes.

    A wisp of red mes rose into the sky. It was mixed with a trace of cold, transparent mes, forming a demonic yet enchanting sight.

    [Soaring mes, Cascading Muslin]!

    Unlike the old version of [Soaring mes, Cascading Muslin], this version wasn¡¯t filled with aggressiveness. It was gentle and effortless, revealing an unreal beauty. The light swords contained the power of God¡¯s blood and the mes they produced were of incredibly high temperature.

    The red mes engulfed the woman and the wolf, looking like a sea of mes that devoured an iceberg.

    The iceberg slowly melted and the figures of the woman and the wolf became increasingly faint until they disappearedpletely.

    Muslin-like mes rained down from the sky. Indistinctly, one could hear a sorrowful sigh echo through the air.

    The Silverfrost soldiers¡¯ cheeks were streaming with tears.

    More and more light swords gathered in the sky above the valley. They were like a strictly disciplined army, arranging themselves silently and orderly.

    Ai Hui did not sigh. He would not pity his enemies, but rather respect them.

    Following which, the light swords rained down from the sky!

    A waterfall of fragmented light poured down from the sky, looking as though it was poured from highest of the heavens. The hiss it produced turned from sharp to deafening.

    [Fragmented Sword]!

    Angry roars and curses gathered into a mor that sounded as if it was going to topple the valley.

    The mor softened.

    Sporadic sounds could be heard.

    Silence descended upon the valley.

 Chapter 640: The Charge

    Chapter 640: The Charge

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The synchronized volley of pagoda cannon fire ripped through the ck night sky, illuminating crowds of frantic-looking figures. They were densely packed, resembling flocks of blood-thirsty locusts that surged towards the pagoda cannon defensive line like a tidal wave.

    In front of the pagoda cannon defensive line, rivers of blood and corpses were strewn everywhere.

    The God Wolf Division could no longer maintain their formation. They were thoroughly broken up in several groups.

    Viridescent flowers and twining branches grew all over the ce, trapping the Silverfrost soldiers every now and then. The Pinwheel Sword was like the scythe of death that left decapitated body parts and blood everywhere it flew by, creating bloody trails everywhere.

    Helian Tianxiao could no longer bother himself with the series of onughts from Duanmu Huanghun and the Sword of Lightning.

    The sword chime crushed Helian Tianxiao¡¯sst trace of hope. The Silverfrost Blood Division had little hope of surviving.

    If he hadn¡¯t been greedy for merits in the first ce and had waited for reinforcements to arrive, he would not be in this despaired state...

    This thought shed across his mind and a tinge of agony and distress arose in his heart. However, soon after, a proud and ruthless look shed across his eyes.

    As long as they could break into the enemy encampment... yes... as long as they could break into the enemy encampment, those goddamn pagoda cannoneers would copse and flee in panic!

    Charge!

    There was no other option for him.

    Ruthlessness arose in Helian Tianxiao. With a pair of bloodshot eyes and a sinister look on his face, he led the charge. Two blood elementalists with the Ability of God were guarding his nks. The three of them formed a sharp arrowhead formation that was unstoppable!

    They warded off three rounds of the Beehive Heavy Cannons¡¯ attacks in a row, sharply raising the morale of the God Wolf soldiers!

    The booms from the synchronized shooting of the Beehive Heavy Cannons caused the blood elementalists¡¯ ears to buzz. They could not hear anything at all. A smoky smell and a choking blood smell pervaded the scorching air. There were soldiers falling into their own pools of blood constantly. Roars and groans wereing out of their mouths involuntarily. They were in a state of insanity, resembling wolves that were driven to the edge. They only had one thought in their minds: charge forward! Charge forward!

    Simrly, the pagoda cannoneers were fighting for their lives as well.

    Now that the enemy soldiers were scattered, their synchronized attacks did not work very well. Fatty made a prompt decision by stopping the synchronized offense and allowed the pagoda cannoneers to shoot freely.

    The enemy soldiers surged closer and closer to them like violent tidal waves.

    The elementalists could even clearly see the twisted faces of the enemy soldiers. They were like a mob of monsters.

    The pressure on the Pagoda Cannon Alliance was increasing rapidly!

    Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle. The scorching red pagoda cannons kept on leaving burn marks on the pagoda cannoneers¡¯ hands, shoulders, and faces. They appeared as though they could not feel anything as they continued to shoot out torrents of pagoda fires. This was the only thing they could do as death approached them. They had to bombard the enemy soldiers frantically.

    Previously, Fatty allowed the pagoda cannoneers take turns to rest and conserve their precious energy. At this critical junction, this move had disyed its apt usefulness.

    If just now they were too aggressive with their offense to bait the enemy soldiers, at least half of the Beehive Heavy Cannons would be expended now.

    Fatty¡¯s target was Helian Tianxiao.

    He was very calm. The inner chamber of his Beehive Heavy Cannon revolved rapidly while the red glow at cannon muzzle turned bright swiftly. Boom. A deep and low explosion resounded through the air as a dazzling beam of red light shot out from the cannon muzzle. The weighty Beehive Heavy Cannon abruptly recoiled backward, but Fatty¡¯s body remained stationary.

    On the left side of Helian Tianxiao, Luo Wei raised therge shield on his left hand. When the attack from the Beehive Heavy Cannonnded on the shield, Luo Wei¡¯s body shook and blood seeped out from the corner of his mouth. His thick, solid, and rhinoceros-like skin began to crack and traces of blood seeped out from those cracks. In a blink of an eye, his body turnedpletely bloody.

    After Luo Wei forcibly blocked the attack from the Beehive Heavy Cannon, his facial expression turned dazed. Eventually, his pupils regained their focus. All of a sudden, he raised his head and roared angrily at the sky, resembling an angered beast.

    He was indeed a beast.

    His veins were popping out and his muscles were tense. His legs were thick and muscr like pirs, while his skin was rock-hard. His Ability of God was [Northern Deste Elephant], which granted him boundless strength. He was one of Helian Tianxiao¡¯s most valiant generals.

    Using Luo Wei¡¯s cover, Helian Tianxiao and the other blood elementalist, Den Zixiong, charged 30 meters forward.

    Boom!

    The explosion from Fatty¡¯s Beehive Heavy Cannon was slightly different from the other Beehive Heavy Cannons¡¯. Itsted for a shorter period of time and it sounded deeper and lower. Its power was much higher as well.

    Deng Zixiong was charging in front of Helian Tianxiao. He was holding a heavy axe that was taller than a man. He had an imposing look on his face and his eyes were exuding absolute confidence and arrogance. With a snort, his hands suddenly lit up with a dazzling red glow. Following which, he raised his heavy axe high in the air, exhaled, and swung it downward.

    A 10-meter-tall, red-colored axe gleam shot out from his axe.

    The next moment, Deng Zixiong¡¯s facial expression changed drastically.

    Just as the axe gleam was about to collide with the pagoda shot, thetter suddenly exploded like a fireworks disy. A burst of red light erupted in front of him like a red umbre opening up.

    Traces of red light went round Deng Zixiong, converged, and sted towards Helian Tianxiao.

    Deng Zixiong¡¯s forceful axe attack had missed its target!

    As the first ever Pagoda Cannon Master that founded the brand-new profession of pagoda cannoneer, Fatty¡¯s proficiency in using a pagoda cannon was no doubt number one in this world today. Even Ai Hui was inferior to him in this aspect.

    A surprise look shed across Helian Tianxiao¡¯s eyes.

    He had seen Fatty operate a pagoda cannon before, but he did not expect Fatty to be so formidable.

    However, as the division leader of the God Wolf Division, how could his be strength be underestimated? Without saying anything, he opened up his palm and extended his hand towards the converging traces of red light.

    Boom!

    A muffled boom echoed through the air.

    The converging traces of red light suddenly exploded and released a powerful shock wave. Helian Tianxiao¡¯s palm turned numb. A cold shiver went down his spine while his facial expression turned solemn. Initially, he thought the pagoda cannon was a weapon that relied on brute force. He did not expect it to perform such a versatile maneuver in Fatty¡¯s hands.

    Deng Zixiong, who had missed his target, felt his qi and blood churning. The worst thing was he felt angry that he was fooled by Fatty.

    Damn it!

    Deng Zixiong¡¯s face turned bright red. He did not know whether was it because his qi and blood were going in the reverse direction or because he was angry.

    He saw ze shooting out from a pagoda cannon opposite him.

    Deng Zixiong roared and squeezed the god wolf beneath him with his thighs. He raised the heavy axe in his hands and swung it down heavily!

    A red-colored light screen appeared in front of him. Surging power gushed out from his heavy axe and formed transparent ripples on the light screen. The ripples were actually formed when the air was beingpressed by the terrifying power from his axe.

    Boom!

    The attack from the Beehive Heavy Cannon collided against the light screen.

    Deng Zixiong and the god wolf beneath him looked as though they were struck heavily by a whip. Their bodies trembled and blood seeped out from their noses and mouths. His facial expression was in a daze. Apparently, the power of this attack far exceeded his expectations. The immense power had somewhat stunned him.

    Before he could return to his senses, the image of a ball of mes was expanding rapidly in his pupils.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s eyelid twitched and he quickly appeared beside Deng Zixiong. He flipped his palm and directed it at the ball of ze descending from the sky.

    Boom!

    The ball of ze exploded in the air. Countless stones, along with streaks of mes, flew in all directions.

    It wasn¡¯t a Beehive Heavy Cannon!

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s palm turned charred ck. He squinted his eyes and stared at the sky. Balls of ze kept on rising into the air above the distant hovering peak named Fish Bone.

    Venerable Volcano!

    An angry roar sounded behind Luo Wei. Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face changed slightly. Not good!

    His real target was Luo Wei!

    Green branches wrapped around Luo Wei and his god wolf. Both of them struggled to break free, but those seemingly soft, green branches were unusually tough and durable. Luo Wei, whose body was drenched in blood, was a trapped beast, letting out despaired roars.

    Ss!

    A sound of cloth ripping apart resounded through the air. Seven long and narrow, willow-leaf-like daggers suddenly shot out from the ground.

    Seven dagger gleams interweaved and enveloped Luo Wei and his god wolf like a glowing cage.

    Luo Wei and his god wolf looked as though a freezing spell had been cast on them.

    The next moment, blood spurted out from their bodies like a fountain.

    In the distance, a girl was in the night sky silently. The pagoda fires that streaked across the sky every now and then would illuminate her figure. Like birds that were returning to their nest, the daggers returned to her and entered her towering hair.

    In the dim light of the night, her slender and elegant figure looked cold and dangerous.

    She gently spread the azure wings on her back and disappeared into the night sky, searching for her next prey.

    A tall and sturdy figure was standing in front of Deng Zixiong. His copper mask lit up asionally. Tong Kui stared coldly at Deng Zixiong,pletely fearless. Fatty wasmanding the pagoda cannoneers and hence he and Yu Jin could charge into the enemy ranks. As the only two Masters in the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, their targets were blood elementalists that possessed the Ability of God.

    After returning to his senses, Deng Zixiong charged towards Tong Kui without any hesitation.

    Helian Tianxiao seized the opportunity to push forward. He did not care about Tong Kui at all. At this point in time, time was very precious to him. He did not want to waste his time on an ordinary elemental master now.

    Tong Kui did not want to stop him either. He knew his own limitations, and he couldn¡¯t contend against someone like Helian Tianxiao.

    Fatty faced Helian Tianxiao directly. Excitement arose within him as the Beehive Heavy Cannon on his shoulder seemingly became light and easy to use.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    Three streaks of pagoda fires were shot out in a row and locked onto Helian Tianxiaoz

    Helian Tianxiao opened up his palm and struck it forward.

    Boom, boom, boom. The three streaks of pagoda fires exploded. Helian Tianxiao was unharmed.

    Even though his speed had decreased drastically, every step he took was stable and left a footprint on the ground, unstoppable. Every now and then, Venerable Volcano wouldunch a sneak attack on him and the green flowers and branches on the ground would harass him, but his advance still couldn¡¯t be stopped.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face was as calm as still water. He was sitting tall and mighty on the back of his god wolf.

    The distance between him and Fatty was closing up.

    The attention of the entire battlefield was captured by this showdown. Helian Tianxiao suddenly advanced by a great distance, appearing unusually eye-striking in the midst of flying pagoda fires.

    Ke Ning¡¯s gaze was directed on Helian Tianxiao. He was slightly nervous, thinking whether or not should he help Master Fatty. However, very soon, he did not need to think about this question anymore. The flood-like enemy soldiers forced him to concentrate on the battle.

    Whether it was Helian Tianxiao or the other blood elementalists that broke through the defensive, the result for the encampment would be the same.

    If it weren¡¯t for Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s and the Sword of Lightning¡¯s reinforcement, Ke Ning felt that he would definitely not have been able to hold off the blood elementalists.

    Phew, phew, phew. Zu Yan was panting heavily and his pale-white face was flushing right now. His body was drenched in sweat, looking as though he had juste out from a pool of water. He was utterly exhausted. Using the [Hellfire Spider Web] to control so many pagoda cannons expended a terrifyingly huge amount of his elemental energy. He clenched his teeth tost until now.

    However, all his attention was ced on Fatty.

    The explosions from the Beehive Heavy Cannons continued to be rhythmic, exactly just like before. However, Zu Yan, who was very close to Fatty, knew that thetter was beginning to feel nervous.

    As the distance between Fatty and Helian Tianxiao closed up, the bombardment from the Beehive Heavy Cannons still could not impede thetter. The scale of victory was tipped in Helian Tianxiao¡¯s favor.

    Fatty¡¯s body began to tremble.

 Chapter 641: Helian Tianxiaoâ€™s Trump Card

    Chapter 641: Helian Tianxiao¡¯s Trump Card

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Under the dark night sky, the valley appeared serene and hidden.

    Countless swords were inserted into the ground at the bottom of the valley, resembling a forest of swords. Mist was surging through the air silently. Every now and then, a burst of light would light up in the distance, illuminating the two sides of the valley and every single uneven damage in the sword formations. Even though explosions were resounding through the sky incessantly, the valley was dead silent.

    The faces of those dead blood elementalists were still sinister-looking, but the mes in their eyes had been extinguished. The corpses of silverfrost wolves emitted wisps of cold air while blood flowed out from their wounds endlessly, resembling red-colored streams.

    The sword formations were like an arid desert, greedily absorbing every trace of nutrients.

    Both the blood elementalists¡¯ and silverfrost wolves¡¯ flesh melted and their blood seeped through the ground¡¯s surface. Their pale-white bones were revealed bit by bit, looking like a mountain ridge that revealed its original color after the snow on it had melted.

    Many swords in the sword formations were covered with cracks. The silverfrost wolves¡¯ charge had a terrifyingly destructive impact on the sword formations. At this moment, the cracks on these swords were disappearing silently, looking like wounds that were healing.

    Buzz. When thest crack disappeared, a buzz rang across the air as the sword formations vibrated.

    The swords gave off a faint luster.

    Buzz, buzz, buzz. The volume of the sword chime undted while the light swords lit up one by one.

    Beside a particr sword formation, the corpse of a silverfrost wolf dried up and revealed its white bones. Its empty eye sockets were dark and hidden in depth.

    Flesh could not be seen in the sword formation. It was difficult for one to differentiate the human bones from the wolf bones, as they were all stacked upon each other, spreading over the entire sword formation.

    Currently, they were nourishing the fertile soil beneath the forest of swords.

    If one looked down from high above the sky, the sky seemed to have fallen into the deep valley, dazzling and magnificent.

    The valley was filled with countless star-like specks of light.

    Suddenly, a light sword broke free from the soil. Shiiiiiiiiiiing. Like a treasure sword that had been unsheathed, a clear and melodious sound echoed across the valley.

    An ice cold and sharp streak of sword gleam shot through the air as a deafening sonic boom shot through the horizon. The sword gleam was perfectly straight and slim, magnificent and dazzling, illuminating the entire valley.

    It resembled a bugle horn that was blown to tip off the start of a battle. At the same time, it also resembled the signal res that marked the beginning of a decisive battle.

    One by one, the rest of the light swords broke free from the ground. The soil on the ground exploded, flying in all directions. Numerous slim, silk-like sword gleams soared into the air, lighting up the spacious, tranquil, and cold valley.

    The tone of the whizzing sound rapidly turned from sharp to vigorous and deep, resembling the rumbles of a wardrum being beaten.

    The valley looked as though daytime had descended upon it.

    The explosions and mes from the distant Beehive Heavy Cannons became insignificant at this point in time.

    The light swords continued to rise through the air. They flew through the mist, past the mountain ridge, and finally through theyer of clouds in the sky. The valley beneath them became serene, cold, and pitch-ck once again. If one was at their location right now, he or she could not even hear the explosions from the distant Beehive Heavy Cannons anymore. The light swords continued to soar through the air, looking as though they wanted to pierce through the night sky and hug with the distant stars.

    The light swords entered the depths of the sky and flew through the violent metal winds.

    They drew beautiful and elegant arcs that impeded the metal winds.

    When the fearsome and violent metal winds rubbed against the sword gleams, scorching, bright-red mes were released. An ordinary elementalist would not be able to set foot on such a high altitude at all. This was a zone ordinary elementalists were forbidden to enter, as the violent metal winds possessed a terrifyingly destructive power.

    Even so, the light swords began to increase their speed as they flew through the metal winds and scorching mes!

    They split the metal winds apart, causing horrifying sonic booms to break out and drift along with the winds.

    Like a school of bloodthirsty sharks, the light swords swam around the sky above the battlefield. The battlefield had be their hunting ground.

    The tens of thousands of light swords suddenly swooped down.

    Fatty¡¯s body was trembling and his fatty flesh was undting like waves.

    He initially thought that he had nothing to fear after bing a Master. However, now that he saw Helian Tianxiao closing in on him with an unstoppable momentum, a wave of fear surged across his entire body.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s face was as calm as still water. Every step he took left a footprint on the ground. Even though he wasn¡¯t advancing very fast, he looked as thought nothing in this world could stop him!

    Fear and despair arose in Fatty¡¯s eyes. Now he really felt that he might not be able to stop Helian Tianxiao. Everytime the pagoda fire from his Beehive Heavy Cannon was about to hit Helian Tianxiao, Helian Tianxiao would swat and scatter it. Fatty had tried all the techniques he coulde up with, but he still wasn¡¯t able to stop Helian Tianxiao for even a second.

    Helian Tianxiao was like the Grim Reaper who had just arrived from hell. The closer he got to Fatty, the nearer Fatty was to his death.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s eyes were cold and unfathomable, exuding a sinister aura of death.

    Fatty¡¯s body trembled involuntarily and his face had turned pale-white.

    The firing tempo of his Beehive Heavy Cannon began to turn chaotic. He was like a panicking beast that was on the point of its demise.

    Was he going to die? Was he going to die?

    Fatty¡¯s head was buzzing loudly. Two of his attacks could not even hit the slow-moving Helian Tianxiao. He had nevermitted such a low-level mistake before.

    He began to have difficulty breathing. Fatty felt as though there was an invisible hand choking his throat and suffocating him.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s figure turned fuzzy in his eyes.

    Was he going to die soon...

    A murmur echoed in his mind.

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s lips curled into a cruel smile. In front of him, Qian Dai¡¯s attacks were bing chaotic. Clearly, he was panicking now. Pagoda fires from the other Beehive Heavy Cannons flew over from all directions. The other pagoda cannoneers knew that something was wrong, so they hurriedly came forward and provided reinforcement.

    It was a pity...

    Helian Tianxiao shook his head. Even though the pagoda fires wereing at him in torrents, they were utterly messy. They were no longer as powerful as they were just now when they were synchronized.

    Qian Dai was the linchpin of the pagoda cannoneers. If the linchpin was panicky and fearful, how big of an impact could the rest of the pagoda cannoneers possibly have?

    After warding off another three rounds of pagoda fires, Helian Tianxiao advanced another 20 meters.

    At this point in time, everyone on the battlefield had directed their gazes to Helian Tianxiao. The pagoda fires and explosions that filled the sky had be his background music. The elementalists opposite him were filled with fear and despair, while the blood elementalists behind him were filled with ecstasy and adoration.

    All of them could not help but hold their breaths.

    However, one side was waiting for the judgement of Death while the other was waiting to break out into cheers of victory.

    Suddenly, Helian Tianxiao froze in his tracks. He raised his head abruptly and the red glow in his eyes intensified.

    Mysteriously, faint clusters of mes rose up from the body of Qian Dai, who was almost almost within his reach. The white-colored mes were very faint, looking as though they were weak and delicate. However, for some unknown reason, Helian Tianxiao suddenly felt something grip his heart tightly.

    Wait!

    Helian Tianxiao noticed Qian Dai¡¯s eyes.

    His eyes were hollow without any emotions, making him look like a soulless zombie.

    At this point in time, those emotionless, hollow eyes were staring at him.

    A tinge of chilliness suddenly arose in Helian Tianxiao¡¯s heart.

    He looked nkly at Fatty. Suddenly, Fatty leaned forward with his left knee slightly bent. He muttered something to himself as he fixated his gaze on Helian Tianxiao.

    "Survive... survive..."

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s hearing was extremely sharp. He was very close to Fatty and hence he could clearly hear what Fatty was saying.

    Survive?

    Helian Tianxiao was stunned. The next moment, his pupils dted abruptly.

    Suddenly, the Beehive Heavy Cannon opposite him shot out a dazzling streak of ze.

    An intense feeling of danger engulfed Helian Tianxiao¡¯s body abruptly. The ze from Fatty¡¯s Beehive Heavy Cannon wasn¡¯t bright red in color, but rather, deathly white.

    Helian Tianxiao let out a sharp screech. His eyes emitted a demonic red glow and his body gave off ayer of ck mist. The ck mist on his right palm was the most dense. The ck mist was extremely concentrated, making it darker than ink. It also had a revolting, fishy smell. Indistinctly, one could see a bloody glow surging within it.

    The flesh on Helian Tianxiao¡¯s right palm began to melt, revealing pale-white bones. His facial expression looked very weird. It was a mixture of agony, pleasure, and insanity.

    This was his real trump card!

    The God Wolf soldiers widened their eyes with surprise. They could not believe what they were looking at right now!

    Blood demon! God shaman!

    Division Leader Helian Tianxiao was actually a god shaman!

    The God Wolf Division was a god-guard-typebat division; who would have expected its division leader to be a god shaman?

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s ck-mist-covered palm collided heavily with the deathly white pagoda fire. Both of them contained a demonic aura.

    The earth-shattering explosion that everyone anticipated did not happen. Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle. Instead, the sizzling sound of a piece of bloody meat being ced on a burning-red, metal grill rang across the air.

    The next moment, a mournful screech suddenly broke out.

    In the ck mist, countless shadows were struggling and churning. If one took a closer look, he or she would realize that these shadows were actually distorted faces. They were like trapped souls that kept on giving off mournful wails.

    Even though the wails weren¡¯t deafening, when one heard them, he or she would feel that an awl was being hammered into his or her head.

    Everyone covered their ears subconsciously, but it was useless.

    In the sky, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s facial expression changed drastically. The green light beneath his feet ruptured and released countless green flowers and branches that formed a gigantic, green-colored vine ball around him, protecting him securely.

    The Sword of Lightning had slightly better luck. Previously, they were tond an attack sessfully from afar. Even so, they nearly lost control of the Pinwheel Sword.

    The rest were in a worse condition. Almost all the Beehive Heavy Cannons had stopped firing.

    The God Wolf soldiers behind Helian Tianxiao weren¡¯t any better off. Many of them had blood seeping out of their mouths, noses, and ears.

    When the brain-piercing, demonic sound disappeared, almost half of the ck mist around Helian Tianxiao¡¯s body had disappeared. Helian Tianxiao was in a daze. He couldn¡¯t believe what he had just seen.

    Pop. The vine ball in the sky exploded into a rain of light. Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s face turned pale-white and his eyes revealed deep fear. However, at the same time, he was filled with anger as well. He roared, "How dare you use the blood trees¡¯ ghost-faced tree lumps to nurture a blood demon!"

    Those who had returned to their senses were overwhelmed with horror.

    When the blood catastrophe just broke out, numerous forests were infected with the blood poison. The trees in these forests transformed into blood trees. These blood trees fed on the blood and flesh of elementalists and transformed their souls into tree lumps. These tree lumps resembled human faces. They kept on distorting, looking like they were wailing in agony.

    Eventually, God Nation purposely sent a huge number of god shamans to various blood forests to carry out rituals to pacify the souls inside these ghost-faced tree lumps.

    Even the inner department of God Nation felt that the use of the ghost-faced tree lumps was overly cruel.

    God Nation¡¯s action was highlymended by many people. This was also seen as an act of God Nation¡¯s generosity.

    No one had expected Helian Tianxiao to use the ghost-faced tree lumps to nurture his blood demon!

    Boom!

    A deep and low boom sted through the air, capturing everyone¡¯s attention.

    Fatty, who had lost his consciousness, copsed onto the ground facing upward. His face was white like paper. His weighty Beehive Heavy Cannon dropped on the ground, sending dust and dirt into the air.

    Helian Tianxiao gave a smirk. His smile was oddly terrifying. At this moment, his body looked utterly dehydrated and fine lines and wrinkles appeared on his face. The red glow in his eyes became increasingly demonic. The flesh and skin on his right arm hadpletely melted, leaving only pale-white bones.

    He did not care about his body at all. At this point in time, the ghost-faced tree lumps were merely a minutiae.

    The most threatening enemy had fallen. Who else could stop them now?

    "Kill!"

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s voice sounded dry and hoarse, but it was actually filled with insanity and bloodlust.

    The God Wolf soldiers looked as though that they had just woken up from a dream. They cheered loudly and charged towards the enemy encampment like a tidal wave.

    Victory!

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s ears twitched and a look of doubt shed across his face.

    Eh? What was that sound?

 Chapter 642: Chiefâ€™s Instructions

    Chapter 642: Chief¡¯s Instructions

    Trantor: Irene Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The sound was tiny, almost inaudible amid the morous battlefield.

    Nevertheless, at this point, Helian Tianxiao possessed the sharpest senses, allowing him to detect an indescribably dangerous aura. He raised his head and looked toward the sky, a look of doubt appearing on his face.

    Could it be that the enemy¡¯s reinforcements had arrived?

    Shi Xueman¡¯s Spear of Heavy Cloud came to his mind first. Perhaps the beast battalion had already been taken down?

    Wrong direction!

    If that was the Spear of Cloud, they should¡¯ve beening from the direction of the wind curtain. Why are they approaching from overhead?

    And this sound was so strange, as if it was separated by something...

    Helian Tianxiao, who had abruptly stopped in his tracks and looked toward the sky, confused the other soldiers. They didn¡¯t know what their leader was doing. Was there something amiss in the sky? Some soldiers looked up with their eyes opened wide but couldn¡¯t see anything suspicious.

    High above the battlefield, limpid and lofty.

    In the daytime, this ce was as clear as ss, and in the nighttime, the radiance of the stars overhead easily prate the sky. The violent metal wind filled every inch of this space, never stopping to rest. There were no clouds at all and hence no vapor. The violent metal wind would shred anything that invaded this region into pieces.

    Only powerful organisms living on top of the food chain like the humpback cloud whale and world-hating powerful elementalists like Le Buleng could roam freely here.

    Today, a group of uninvited guests arrived.

    The violent metal wind hadn¡¯t hindered their journey.

    The countless light swords were like an enormous shoal of glowing fishes that whizzed over along with a loud rumbling and zing fire flow.

    Beneath was the vastnd and the faraway and curved horizon, wrapped up by the dark and star-filled sky. The field of vision from here waspletely different. The intense battle became negligible. It was merely a light speck smaller than the point of a needle, its brightness waxing and waning.

    The light swords pulled wisps of dazzling, pencil-straight light scars across the clean, gentle, and splendid star-filled sky, appearing like meteor showers.

    The light scars looked exceptionally fine, but they remained intact no matter how the metal wind blew.

    Amid the rumbling, the light swords began to elerate.

    The friction generated intensified the zing mes, and they looked like pieces of scarlet silk ribbons that were raised up into the air. Tens of thousands of light swords, tens of thousands of red fire flows, tens of thousands quakes produced by the rumbling brought on this lonely sky region an unprecedented impact.

    Pff.

    The light swords at the front prated the metal windyer and above them the scarlet, satin-like fire flow was still surging amid the wind without dispersing.

    The light swords pierced through the wind and appeared around it.

    The heart-quivering rumble and dazzling mes remained amid the wind. They were like an invincible army toiling away for hours in silence,pleting their final assembly.

    Layer uponyer, the densely packed light rays continued circting as the coldness dispersed noiselessly.

    ng!

    The swords chimed simultaneously, forcefully resonating throughout the earth.

    Woosh, woosh, woosh!

    The light swords transformed into light flows and shot downward.

    The sky overhead lit up. It was so ring that Helian Tianxiao¡¯s pupils shrank and his heart skipped a beat. What was that?

    The next moment, a deep and resounding sword chime sounded overhead. His face changed.

    "Be careful..."

    Before he could warn the others, the dense sword consciousness pressed in on his head, causing his whole body to sweat and his hair to stand on end instantly.

    Not daring to hesitate, he transformed into a ball of ck mist and pounced forward.

    Helian Tianxiao was very clear that the only way to live was to go forward!

    As long as he entered the opponent¡¯s defensive line, he could blend in with the elementalists and dodge the descending attacks.

    He still wasn¡¯t sure who was above, but that trepidation he felt had informed him how dangerous the situation was. His intuition, carved by years of battling, was like his body instincts that often sensed something even before his brain did.

    Nevertheless, he halted after two steps. With a twitch of an eye, a doubtful expression emerged on his face.

    Over ten swords had appeared before him unknowingly and yet he hadn¡¯t sensed their presence.

    The ordinary-shaped swords emitted a dim, red glow, as if they¡¯d just been taken out of the oven. They started to whirl and spin like a group of nimble fishes, chasing one another and forming a round sword screen.

    The iprehensible aura dispersed and the space around the sword screen became blurry.

    [Three Yin Three Yang Huge Sword Rings]!

    The sword screen with crisscrossing Yin and Yang was irregr. Compared to the [Three Yin Three Yang Huge Sword Rings] used to deal with Song Xiaoqian, the [Three Yin Three Yang Huge Sword Rings] before Helian Tianxiao was a few times bigger. If the former was a door, thetter would be a wall.

    Helian Tianxiao wasn¡¯t actually shocked by the change in the sword screen. Instead, he felt a wisp of familiar aura from these seemingly heated light swords.

    The aura of blood spiritual force.

    Wrong! A force of a higher level...

    His Majesty!

    Helian Tianxiao quivered, the blood on his face draining away. He was white as sheet. It was in blood elementalists¡¯ blood to fear the Holy Emperor. Even Helian Tianxiao wouldn¡¯t be able to resist if His Majesty wanted his life. Other than craning his neck and waiting for death, he wouldn¡¯t be able to react any other way.

    But Helian Tiaoxiao reacted very quickly. It couldn¡¯t be His Majesty, so there was only one possibility. Holy object!

    Who had God¡¯s blood?

    Why was God¡¯s blood in the hands of an elementalist?

    Countless thoughts shed across his mind like lightning. He forced himself to calm down. It wasn¡¯t the time to think about all these things. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a few cold, shing lights. Once again, a sense of danger rose within his chest.

    A few crescent moon-like sword rays shot across the sky in a crisscrossed manner. Their arcs were strangelyplex and hard to grasp. It was Ai Hui¡¯s [Six Moons]!

    Damn it!

    Helian Tianxiao¡¯s gaze turned cold. With a p of his palms, ck mist enveloped them.

    Just at the six sword rays intertwined, a gush of powerful force surged up violently, causing the rays to break.

    Despite his sessful attack, Helian Tianxiao¡¯s heart sank. He knew that his earlier worry hade true. The enemy must have gotten hold of the holy object! That six sword rays clearly had an inhibiting effect on his blood spiritual force.

    Song Xiaoqian¡¯s Silverfrost Blood Division...

    He had finallye to realize why Silverfrost had been hesitant to attack from the sides. A grieved expression appeared on his face. Perhaps Silverfrost had already been wiped out.

    Separated by the sword screen, Qian Dai had already fallen face down and the remaining cannoneers were obviously panicking. The sudden assistance had caught them off guard and they had even forgotten to attack.

    So close yet so far... so close yet so far!

    Helian Tianxiao calmed down. When he first sensed the aura of God¡¯s blood on the light swords, he knew that there was no chance of sess. The most powerful person in the Central Pine Faction was Ai Hui!

    Was it Ai Hui? It must be. Who else could it be?

    Helian Tianxiao had no idea where Ai Hui had gotten hold of God¡¯s blood, but he knew that with it, Ai Hui was no longer someone the six god divisions could contend against.

    Only His Majesty or She Yu, who had possession of the force of God¡¯s blood, could deal with Ai Hui.

    Helian Tianxiao felt regretful.

    Light rained down from overhead, illuminating the field.

    Helian Tianxiao sighed inwardly, feeling that Nature had made him a fool. He was this close... this close to sess. A pity the enemy was a group of impressive opponents.

    The sword rays descended like a waterfall, their sharp sword chimes piercing through souls. Like fragmented porcin pieces, the irregr sword rays possessed a unique beauty.

    He wasn¡¯t aware that this was Ai Hui¡¯s own invention - [Fragmented Sword].

    But the [Fragmented Sword] today was substantially different. In the past, the sword rays were formed from the fragments, but today, it was a powerful, waterfall-like current that descended and engulfed a wide area.

    There was nowhere to hide and flee.

    Helian TIanxiao watched helplessly as the sword rays pierced through his soldiers¡¯ bodies, turning them into blood pirs that shot out. Anguished wailings rang incessantly as familiar figures fell down one by one. The bloodshed turned into a river that dyed his field of vision red.

    All of a sudden, he raised his head and startedughing.

    "Hahaha, Ai Hui, isn¡¯t the force of God¡¯s blood great? You elementalists are at the end of the road. God elementalists are the future! Yes or no? Yes or no?"

    With hisst "yes or no", his voice became hoarse and his face malevolent.

    Sword rays came down like rain.

    The ck mist surged violently around Helian Tianxiao, howling and screeching while attempting to resist the sword rays. However, the sword rays were like heated metal swords that effortlessly pierced through blocks of frozen butter.

    Pu pu pu. Blood flowers blossomed.

    He did not flee even though he could. Throwing everyone aside and running away like a coward, struggling to preserve hisst breath?

    That was a pain worse than death!

    He felt thoroughly remorseful for being too eager to im credit and hence advancing prematurely, causing an army to get wiped out. He felt somewhat relieved, however, since they had all tried their best and victory was really in sight, except that Nature decided to y a trick on them.

    Invading the enemy¡¯s camp but dying under the force of God¡¯s blood... How ironic.

    Helian Tianxiaoughed maniacally. "God¡¯s blood... God¡¯s blood indeed! Such pure God¡¯s blood!"

    He stood upright with bloody holes covering his whole body. Fresh blood gushed out unceasingly.

    Corpses were everywhere. In the blink of an eye, there was no longer anyone standing alongside him. The cries of agony gradually died down and the twitching bodies gradually stopped moving. Countless light swords were inserted into the ground beside their bodies.

    When he saw that the light swords were greedily absorbing fresh blood and flesh, Helian Tianxiao was stunned. Shortly after, he burst intoughter. "So you¡¯ve already be a god elementalist, Ai Hui! You¡¯re the mediator! Great, great, great! God Nation will unify the world very soon!"

    Absorbing flesh... Definitely a blood elementalist!

    Even in God Nation, only the rare portion of blood elementalists who practiced the cruel and evil skills were required to absorb flesh.

    So Ai Hui was a blood elementalist!

    Helian Tianxiaoughed so much that his tears and snot were all flowing out. He found it ridiculous and funny.

    Upon hearing Helian Tianxiao¡¯s manicughter, Lou Lan, who had just rushed over, pitied him somehow. He felt a trace ofpassion for this person who was about to perish...

    p. While Helian Tianxiao¡¯s consciousness was bing blurry, he was roused by that sudden sound. He gathered his final pool of energy to open his eyes.

    Before him was a row of words written by sand.

    "You guessed wrongly!"

 Chapter 643: Sky Leaf Division

    Chapter 643: Sky Leaf Division

    Trantor: Cynthiia Editor: X, TYZ

    A group of people were walking through the wild jungle. They were clothed in rags, and their face were covered with dust, which made them look really shabby. Most of them had dark blood stains on their clothes. They found an opening among the trees and sat down to have a rest.

    Several days ago, they had been on edge all the time and kept a vignt eye for She Yu, who might attack them at anytime. However, for the past three days, they didn¡¯t encounter any attacks at all. Yet, no one felt relieved since they knew that it was because Wan Shenwei drew She Yu away.

    They were worried about Wan Shenwei.

    She Yu¡¯s level was beyond Wan Shenwei now. The only thing that could hold her back from taking action was that Wan Shenwei had the unconscious Ye Baiyi with him.

    To be cautious, the Judgement and Dread divisions split into more than 10 groups and withdrew from different directions. This team consisted of only 15 people, but their strength was high because Ximen Caijue was in this team.

    Now they found grassy clearing and sat down in all directions.

    No one was in the mood to talk. They were exhausted after being vignt for days. They needed time to recover both their physical and elemental energy. Even so, they still had two people on guard to prevent a possible attack.

    Time flew by silently. After a few hours, they woke up one by one.

    Those who had had enough rest reced the teammates on guard. Now, the morale of the team was more or less boosted, and the silent group gradually became vigorous. They hadn¡¯t had a good rest like this in a long time. To elerate the retreat, they didn¡¯t sleep at all for three days.

    After all, every members was an elites before. Thus, having recovered from exhaustion, they were no longer upset.

    They sat in a circle in groups of three to five and chatted in low voices while eating and drinking.

    "We haven¡¯t seen the demonic girl for days. It seems we have totally gotten rid of her."

    "What did she eat? How can she be so strong now?"

    "Yes, it¡¯s so weird. So many people together still could not withstand her."

    "All she dares to do is sneak attack. If she was so capable, why not fight aboveboard..."

    "Come on," someone sneered, "she is alone, but made us flee like rats. It¡¯s already a shame for us even though it was a sneak attack. Stop finding excuses."

    The rest fell silent. The smoke-like red figure was their nightmare. More than half of the team members were wounded because of her. They didn¡¯t know how horrifying She Yu was until they had fought with her hand to hand.

    "Is it the God¡¯s blood? She must have absorbed the God¡¯s blood, or else how can she be so strong?"

    "Weird. This is weird. There are so many things that are weird about the Blood of God. Fortunately, we have killed Nangong Wulian. They say that the Beast Venom Temple has more weird things."

    "I¡¯m worried about Division Leader Wan now."

    The group became silent again. These days they were trying to avoid talking about this. They felt worried, ashamed, and upset, but there was nothing they could do. Thisplex feeling was cutting their hearts like a rusty blunt knife.

    They even didn¡¯t dare to think about it.

    Someone murmured, "It will be fine. Division Leader Wan is so strong..."

    He stopped, as he remembered the injury inflicted on Wan Shenwei was caused by She Yu, but what he said lit up the others¡¯ hopes.

    "Even if he cannot defeat her, he has azure wings. At least he can run away."

    "Yes, yes! Azure wings! He has azure wings! At least he flies faster than She Yu."

    "And if he flies to the Jadeite Forest, She Yu must observe decorum because Grandmaster Dai is there. However strong She Yu is now, she is no match for Grandmaster Dai."

    Their discussion was heated.

    Feeling distracted, Ximen Caijue scolded, "Shut up!"

    Everyone became silent at once.

    More wrinkles appeared on her face. Herplexion tarnished, she now looked like an old woman. She sealed Ye Baiyi at great cost, then got injured by She Yu¡¯s sneak attack, which made the situation much worse.

    As she red at them, her stateliness as a division leader was revealed through her mental aura.

    She had a fiery temper and had never suffered such a defeat before. Now in such a physical state, she couldn¡¯t bear the anger and spit out a mouthful of blood. This scared the other team members, and they all rushed forward.

    "Lady!"

    She waved her hand to stop them froming closer.

    Trying to calm down, she looked around at the team members and felt sad. Ever since their establishment, the Judgement and Dread divisions had been invincible, and their enemies would be terror-stricken even when hearing their names. Never once were they so miserable.

    Maybe the Judgement Division woulde to an end under hermand.

    Suddenly, the soldiers on guard signaled an alert that someone were approaching!

    Ximen Caijue tensed upon hearing the alert. Was it She Yu? Somehow she felt rxed, and she smiled. If She Yu was here, then that meant Wan Shenwei could survive. She knew she was a burned outmp and would die soon anyway. She didn¡¯t have the power to save the Judgement and Dread divisions, but Wan Shenwei was more powerful and more steadfast than her. It was better to leave this difficult task to him.

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s life was more valuable.

    Her smile froze when she saw the neers. Far away in the sky, a group of people were flying toward them at an incredibly fast speed.

    They arrived in almost an instant. A few seconds ago, they were just ck spots in her eyes, but now they were standing in front of her.

    It was not She Yu!

    Instead it was a group of elementalists.

    The flow of elemental energy revealed their excellent strength. They were at least Masters. Wait! So many Masters... About 100 elemental masters appeared in front of her. More incredibly, the flow of elemental energy around them showed that they were all Masters.

    She had never seen so many masters.

    She stiffened and could only think of one possibility.

    Master¡¯s Glory!

    High above the clouds, some people were flying at a fast speed. Their azure wings left long traces of mist and passed across the sky like ab.

    The group consisted of over 100 handsome men and pretty women, but they all looked cold.

    The woman leading the group had a gorgeous face, delicate eyebrows, and indifferent eyes, as if nothing in the world could raise her interest.

    If Ai Hui saw her, he would recognize her. She was Fu Sisi, whom he once had some interactions with before.

    The Fu family once suffered from a great cmity and was almost destroyed, but at the critical moment, they went to seek refuge with Madam Ye. Later, to protect Xiaobao and Madam Ye, they suffered great losses. Madam Ye remembered their help with gratitude and gave them a big reward. Now, the Fu Family was one of the most prestigious families with great power in Skyheart City.

    To shoulder the main responsibility of the family, Fu Sisi decided to participate in the Master¡¯s Glory n.

    When she became a Master, she soon won recognition from Madam Ye, and was entrusted with important tasks. Her position in the Sky Leaf Division was inferior only to Xiaobao.

    There was no more immaturity on her face. She was confident because of her strong power and looked indifferent, but stately.

    "Ye Baiyi is still alive? Wan Shenwen doesn¡¯t look like a soft hearted man. It¡¯s hard to imagine that Ye Baiyi could survive for so long in his hands."

    "Nian Tingfeng¡¯s news should be trustable."

    "How¡¯s Xiaobao¡¯s progress?"

    "Smooth. Pcefield City has surrendered as well. The massacre in Newlight City worked well; otherwise, it wouldn¡¯t be so smoothter. Those guys are just jacka**es. We need to show them our strength."

    "I feel pity for An Chouchou. He was a talent."

    "Pity? Why? Madam Ye will soon take down all the cities. Then, she can find whatever talents she wants."

    "That makes sense."

    Hearing their discussion, Fu Sisi didn¡¯t speak at all, but in her heart, she also agreed that the reason why elementalists were weak was because Beyond Avalon was in chaos and the cities were separated by their personal armies. Only Madam Ye could unify the cities, unite Beyond Avalon again, and fight against the blood elementalists in a joint effort.

    Plus, the Sky Leaf Division was the sharpest de of Madam Ye.

    Suddenly, she noticed something and looked down on the ground below them.

    "Someone¡¯s down there! It¡¯s the Judgement Division!"

    A member beside her recognized them by their clothes.

    Fu Sisi said lightly, "Let¡¯s go down."

    Then, she descended like a goshawk that had found its prey. The others immediately followed her.

    Boom!

    Fu Sisi suddenly disappeared. In the next instant, she appeared 10 meters above the remnant team from the Judgement Division.

    Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh.

    Figures constantly appeared beside her.

    Hundreds of Masters appeared above the Judgement members all at once, creating great pressure to them. Next, when all these masters released their momentum, the pressure was so enormous that it felt like mountains pressing on their heads and almost stifled the generals and soldiers of Judgement.

    Everyone¡¯s faces were pale except for Ximen Caijue. After the shock at the beginning, she had calmed down.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s eyes gradually swept across them and finally fixed on Ximen Caijue. "Are you Division Leader Ximen?"

    Ximen Caijue snorted. "Yes. You are the Fu family¡¯s girl?"

    Fu Sisi gestured slightly and said, "Yes, I¡¯m Fu Sisi. I¡¯m honored to be the vice division leader of the Sky Leaf Division."

    Ximen Caijue said neutrally, "I don¡¯t remember such a division."

    Fu Sisi said casually, "There wasn¡¯t such a division before, but then Madam Ye needed one, and now there is one. How did you run into such a miserable situation? Where¡¯s Ye Baiyi?"

    Ximen Caijue suddenly understood their intention, "You are here for Ye Baiyi!"

    Fu Sisi admitted directly, "Yes! Now tell me your experience these days in details."

    Her face turning gloomy, Ximen Caijue said angrily, "How can you be so rude in front of me!"

    Puff!

    The head of a soldier from Judgement suddenly exploded without any warning.

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s pupils contracted. The intention to kill shed across her eyes.

    Fu Sisi said lightly, "A wise man submits to fate. Division Leader Ximen, you¡¯d better cooperate with me. Plus, giving Ye Baiyi to us is better than giving him to the Blood of God or Dai Gang."

    .....

    Half an hourter.

    Fu Sisi murmured, "She Yu, God¡¯s blood, the Heart of God..."

    She seemed to have caught an invisible clue, but when she thought further, the clue led nowhere. She came back to her senses and left the questions behind. What she needed to do now was finish her tasks.

    She turned and left without looking at the bloody corpse on the ground.

    Ximen Caijue¡¯s eyes were still open. She died with a grievance. The other generals and soldiers were all killed too.

    "Go to the Jadeite Forest."

 Chapter 644: Wine and Affection

    Chapter 644: Wine and Affection

    Trantor: Cynthiia Editor: X, TYZ

    Winners took all. This was always true. The difficulties and despair in the process would only be buried in one¡¯s memory, but even after a long time, they were still vivid in the mind. Hardships and despair would always bestow charm in victory, in the way that wine would bestow a mellow taste in life, making it enchanting and unforgettable.

    It might be describedter in historical records with only a few words. When future generations read it, they might simply ignore it or be carried far away by the fascinating experience.

    In the foggy sword formation valley, light swords were flickering like stars in the sky. The valley was still tranquil, but the annr ridge around the valley was totally different. Bonfires were lit all over the ridge to light up the night. People were singing, dancing, and crying out joyfully in celebration could be seen everywhere, making the ridge very bustling.

    Except for those on guard duty, everyone else came to the celebration.

    Even the most solemn guys couldn¡¯t help smiling, not to mention those like Fatty who were always happy. Tonight, Fatty wasughing all the time, and others could scarcely see his eyes.

    This was the most critical battle they endured through, during which the majority of the members were on the verge of copse. Any failure would have lead to a total defeat.

    They were lucky indeed, but the victory was more due to their unity. If it were not for [Breeze of Surveince], or Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower], or the Sword of Lightning, or the volleys of Beehive Heavy Cannons, or...

    Without reservation, they made use of all the power they could think of, like a fully armed soldier using his teeth and nails in the end.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were like crescent moons when smiling. He wore an apron and walked back and forth in the campsite with a pot in one hand and a soupdle in the other hand. Wherever he went, people around would cheer for him.

    "Good job Lou Lan!"

    "Lou Lan¡¯s final hit was fantastic!"

    "I guess Helian Tianxiao died of anger!"

    Lou Lan shared the soup with everyone happily.

    "I have to say that our boss is too horrifying. The swords havee out even before he does."

    "I agree. I was scared to death and thought I would die there. It was all thanks to boss¡¯s swords!"

    "Was anyone like me and thought it was raining then?"

    "Me! I was totally dumbstruck!"

    Hearing their admiration for Ai Hui, Lou Lan was even happier.

    Shi Xueman sat on a rock with a bottle of wine in her hand. She stared at the foggy sword formations and took a sip. She never drank before, but somehow she very much wanted to drink today. Unconsciously, her cold face turned red. The smile on her pretty face made her look like a different person.

    Sang Zhijun also came with a bottle of wine and shouted at a distance, "Xueman, Xueman!"

    She just finished dancing with the others around the fire and still felt excited. Even her voice was much louder than usual. Shi Xueman turned her head and burst intoughter when she saw Sang Zhijun bouncing about. She had never seen Sang Zhijun like this before.

    Sang Zhijun was apparently a little bit drunk. She jumped on the rock and sat down beside Shi Xueman casually. "Why note and dance with us?"

    Then, she nced at the valley and smiled. As if she suddenly understood something, she asked, "Bad mood, huh? Because Ai Hui hasn¡¯te out?"

    "Yes," Shi Xueman replied and took another sip.

    Sang Zhijun paused for a while, as she hadn¡¯t expected that Shi Xueman would admit it so readily. When she came back to her senses, she consoled Shi Xueman, "Rx. He will soon."

    When they mentioned Ai Hui, Sang Zhijun also became serious. Shi Xueman could see the veneration in her eyes. The scene earlier had greatly shocked and impacted her.

    Shi Xueman smiled. She raised the wine bottle in her hand and drank a gulp of wine.

    Sang Zhijun also took a long swig of wine. Then, she wiped the drops left on the corner of her mouth and said directly, "I know you are worried, Xueman, about others¡¯ opinions of him."

    The flowing light swords fell from the sky like a starry waterfall. It was extremely spectacr. They witnessed this awesome scene when they had just finished the front line battle.

    What happened next was more horrible.

    The corpses melted into the earth at a fast speed. The tens of thousands of light swords suddenly shined with dazzling rays, and the chime of swords could be heard all over the valley and lingered for six hours.

    Even Helian Tianxiao and his mount could not prevent being devoured by the light swords.

    Although they had seen the sword formation consume blood and flesh before, it was shocking to see the whole God Wolf Division being devoured. When they came back to the valley, they all gasped in astonishment after seeing the numerous bones of the dead in the sword formation.

    It turned out that the Silver Frost Division also became nutrition for the sword formation.

    In terms of the amount of blood and flesh that had been devoured by the sword formation, maybe only the devils in the ancient legends could match him. Inparison, the blood refinement of the Beast Venom Temple was not worth mentioning.

    They were both grateful and frightened.

    It was so shocking.

    Shi Xueman fell into silence as if she was tasting the wine in her mouth.

    Sang Zhijun¡¯s face blushed scarlet, but her eyes were clear. "We are not afraid at all, even if Ai Hui really bes a blood elementalist."

    They had all witnessed Ai Hui¡¯s hatred toward the Blood of God.

    Even if he became a blood elementalist, they were not worried because they believed Ai Hui would be the blood elementalist who would destroy the Blood of God. In contrast, they were more concerned about whether Ai Hui could ept his identity as a blood elementalist and if he would even want to kill himself.

    Sometimes, Ai Hui was afraid of death, but sometimes, he was frighteningly at ease in the face of death.

    "We¡¯ve known each other ever since we were in Central Pine City and have been fighting side by side for years. No one remembers how many times he has saved us." Sang Zhijun turned her head and looked Shi Xueman in her eyes, saying with excitement, "We are not friends, but a family. If my family member bes a blood elementalist, would I leave him? Why do we choose to celebrate here around the sword formation? It¡¯s because we want to celebrate with Ai Hui and because we want him to know that we will not leave or abandon him. He will always be our leader."

    Shi Xueman looked at her nkly. A warm current surged in her heart, and her nose felt sore. She was concerned about Ai Hui¡¯s safety as well as others¡¯ attitude toward him. Born in an aristocratic family, she had seen too much betrayal and the fickleness of human nature. Therefore, she cherished the purity and happiness of the moment more than anything else.

    Everything that had happened along the way passed through her mind.

    The embarrassing blind fight in the training hall, the 150 yuan he lent her in the noodle house, the firm eyes in a desperate situation, the warm lips in the wind and snow, and the curses and panic behind her...

    A warm smile appeared on her face, and her eyes once again became clear and firm. She suddenly stood up, threw away the wine bottle in her hand, and put her hands at her mouth, shouting with the loudest voice, "Ai Hui, I¡¯ll wait for you!"

    The others fell into silence and looked at Shi Xueman.

    After a while, everyone smiled.

    Fatty was already drunk. He endured unprecedented pressure in this battle. Now that all the pressure was released, he was the most excited one in the revelry. Beside him, Zu Yan was as drunk as a fiddler, his pale face flushed. He was smiling in his dreams.

    This guy was such a lightweight. He only drank one cup before he got drunk.

    Upon hearing Shi Xueman¡¯s yell, Fatty couldn¡¯t help but burst outughing. Ai Hui and Shi Xueman were deeply in love and yet both of them were ice-cold in nature. He thumped the ground and chuckled. Suddenly, he looked as though he was going to cry. He seemed to see the thin and lonely back view of Ai Hui the day he left the Wilderness.

    Fatty stood up and shouted himself hoarse at the valley, "Ai Hui, stay alive!"

    Fatty¡¯s face was covered with tears.

    Sang Zhijun suddenly stood up and threw away her wine bottle. She put her hands up at her mouth like a trumpet and shouted at the valley, "Ai Hui, can you hear us?"

    Jiang Wei also stood up in excitement.

    His fate probably changed the second he met Ai Hui. Before that, he was not born into an aristocratic family nor was he talented. Before he met Ai Hui, he was average in all aspects.

    Yet, everything changed after he met Ai Hui.

    He survived in the blood disaster, and his life was totally different, including his rtionship with Sang Zhijun. He nced at Sang Zhijun firmly and gently.

    Jiang Wei shouted into the valley, "Ai Hui, thank you!"

    The rest stood up one by one and shouted into the valley loudly and noisily. No one could hear clearly what they were saying.

    "Ai Hui is invincible!"

    "Boss! Boss!"

    ...

    The loud voices almost turned the valley upside down. Lou Lan¡¯s eyes turned into two crescent moons in happiness. His head tilted, and his eyes lit up.

    Then, among all the noise, they heard a crack, and saw a ball-like clump of sand rise up into the sky and explode. Next, the scattered sand transformed into two words, "Ai Hui."

    The crowd quieted down. After seeing it was Lou Lan, they understood what happened and all burst intoughter.

    They cheered out loudly, "Ai Hui!"

    Crack! The sand words in the sky above the valley transformed into "invincible."

    The rest shouted withughter, "Invincible!"

    Crack, the sand word transformed again.

    Many of them saw the words and rolled on the ground whileughing out loud. Then, the sand words transformed into numbers and began to count back.

    "Three, two, one..."

    They didn¡¯t try to conceal the smiles on their face at all. Everyone shouted themselves hoarse with their loudest voices, "Ai Hui likes Shi Xueman!"

    Shi Xueman, who used to be an iceberg, now blushed scarlet in shyness. She hid behind Sang Zhijun hastily and covered her face with her hands.

    The swords in the valley suddenly began to chime as if it was a response from Ai Hui.

    "Hahahaha!"

    Everyone burst intoughter.

    The sand letters kept changing, and the crowd shouted in a loud voice rhythmically.

    "The Sword of Lightning is despicable, but invincible!"

    "Hahahaha!"

    This reminded them of the contemptible tactics of the Sword of Lightning.

    "The Spear of Heavy Cloud, practice until you¡¯re worn out!"

    "Hahahaha!"

    The members of Spear of Heavy Cloud could helpughing first, as they were clearly aware of the heavy training load. Others were taking pleasure in their misfortune.

    "In the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, we defeat our enemies by luck!"

    "Hahahaha!"

    Fatty was the happiest, while other members of the Pagoda Cannon Allianceughed until they gasped for breath. There were indeed too many new members in the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    "Is Lou Lan handsome?"

    "Yes!" they answered with one voice.

    "Hahahaha."

    Laughter lingered in the dark night.

 Chapter 645: Chase

    Chapter 645: Chase

    Trantor: Cynthiia Editor: X, TYZ

    Wan Shenwei was hiding in a thicket and stared at the red figure hovering in the sky. He didn¡¯t even dare to blink until She Yu finally flew away and disappeared. After that, he spitted out the mud in his mouth and flopped down on the ground.

    He let out his bated breath with a little gasp, and his eyes were firm.

    The new wound beside his neck was stained with mud, and the flesh was exposed to the air. As his chest moved up and down, his rock-like face was as cold as usual. Only half of the keels of his azure wings were left, resembling a broken spear.

    His azure wings had been destroyed by She Yu with only one strike.

    Wan Shenwei hadn¡¯t expected that She Yu could take a shortcut by traversing the metal winds from the upper atmosphere. This made him realize that the strength of the demonic girl was far beyond his imagination. As a result, Wan Shenwei made a sudden decision¡ªhe suddenly fell sharply and rushed into the jungle.

    From that moment, Wan Shenwei¡¯s rich experience began to y an important role. He got rid of She Yu by making use of theplicated terrain. Although She Yu would soon catch up afterward, Wan Shenwei had already spotted her weakness in this aspect and had escaped again and again in this manner. Later, he also realized that She Yu could only detect the general location of Ye Baiyi¡¯s aura, so he set some traps, which worked well.

    The blood on his ragged armor and clothes was dry, his hair was messy with some stray stalks of withered grass, but his eyes were still bright.

    He smoothed his clothes and armor unhurriedly as usual. He knew it wouldn¡¯t take long before She Yu found him again.

    Wan Shewei had always been strict with others and himself in abiding by the conduct and discipline of thebat divisions, and he hated undisciplined people very much. However ragged his armor was, he would always take care of it.

    He nced at the unconscious Ye Baiyi and smiled bitterly. No matter how they rolled around in the mud and among the forests these days, Ye Baiyi¡¯s clothes were still clean and as white as snow.

    "Brother, we have been escaping for such a long time and went through many hardships together. Unfortunately, I cannot keep yourpany any longer. Well, maybe you don¡¯t need me at all. Haha," Wan Shenwei murmured to himself, and he couldn¡¯t helpughing out loud.

    Then, he shut up and looked up at the sky in a trance.

    She Yu had be more and more difficult to deal with. She was making progress every day. Plus, Wan Shenwei was not so naive that he believed that he could totally get rid of her only with these simple methods. After all, her qualification to be granted God¡¯s blood had already demonstrated her excellence.

    Wan Shenwei knew a lot about the Blood of God. They regarded talent as key. They were far more cruel than elementalists in qualification trials.

    A ck spot appeared in the sky.

    Wan Shenwei came back to his senses. He knew his trap would no longer work.

    However, he didn¡¯t want to surrender without putting up a fight.

    He took a long breath and grabbed Ye Baiyi in his hands. With a burst energy, he rushed out like a leopard.

    Hearing the shrill howls behind his back, Wan Shenwei turned his hand that held Ye Baiyi.

    Ye Baiyi was like a shield that Wan Shenwei used to cover his back.

    The red rays from the sky hit the unconscious Ye Baiyi.

    There seemed to be an invisible defense around Ye Baiyi, and the red rays were annihted when they touched him.

    Roar!

    Growls were heard from inside Ye Baiyi like the roar of some kind of beast, which was extremely thrilling.

    Wan Shenwei felt the person on his back suddenly be heavy and push him hard, making him lose his bnce while running. Fortunately, he was already preparedfor this. He twisted his body and tapped the ground with the tips of his toes to adjust his direction and continue to rush forward.

    Seeing that Ye Baiyi was still unscathed, She Yu sighed with relief, but she also felt extremely enraged. Wan Shenwei had made Ye Baiyi his best shield. This had happened several times, and She Yu had to slow down her attacks out of fear of hurting General Ye.

    She Yu¡¯s eyes focused on Wan Shenwei, who kept moving in a zigzag route, and her expression wasplicated.

    Previously, the three central divisions were just a joke in her eyes, but now she began to appreciate and respect this leader of the Dread Division. During their confrontations these days, Wan Shenwei was in a disadvantageous situation, but he managed to escape using any method at hand until today. Of course, part of the reason was his rich experience, but the essential thing that supported him all this time was the strong will within his heavily-injured body.

    No matter how much she admired him, however, She Yu would not show any mercy.

    The Holy Emperor had granted the God¡¯s blood to her for this task. How could she face him if she failed toplete it? Since she had been hunting down the Judgement and Dread divisions for days, but never saw Nangong Wulian, she was pretty sure the Beast Venom Temple would have to change its leader now.

    She could not save Nangong Wulian. As a result, Ye Baiyi would be her only life-saving straw.

    No matter what happened, she had to get Ye Baiyi back safe and sound.

    She looked around and knew it was time to end everything. The intent to kill shed across her charming eyes.

    It was time to pull in her.

    She Yu suddenly dived like a goshawk hunting its prey.

    Wan Shenwei was sprinting with Ye Baiyi on his shoulder. He didn¡¯t hear the sound of the wind at all. There was a steep ridgeing up. Wan Shenwei bent forward in an angle that was almost parallel with the angle of the ridge.

    His throat and chest were burning, and his legs felt like they were filled with lead.

    His face used to be cold like it was carved out of a rock, but now, the lines of his face were twisted like taut steel wires that were about to snap at any time.

    He kept changing his position and avoided She Yu¡¯s attacks with Ye Baiyi as his shield. The only thing he needed to be concerned about was preventing She Yu from snatching away Ye Baiyi.

    Wan Shenwei dashed along the ridge like an agile antelope.

    Light flickered in She Yu¡¯s eyes as she found that Wan Shenwei¡¯s speed had slowed down. It seemed as if he was exhausted like a spent arrow. She kept adjusting her position to attack him from different angles as if chasing her prey.

    Wan Shenwei was already worn out and only held on until now because of his strong will. He was dodging almost by instinct as She Yu came closer.

    In her heat, She Yu admired that even in such a predicament, he could still manage to dodge.

    He was an awesome fighter!

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s sight and mind became blurred, and the path became steeper. The jagged rocks along the way were like monsters that were about to devour him at any time.

    Still, there was no fear in his heart.

    An unknown amount of time passed before his blurred vision suddenly became open and clear, and the blue sky could be seen.

    Feeling the cool breeze, Wan Shenwei shivered and sobered up.

    He looked around.

    It was the mountain peak, and there was no way forward.

    It was an area about several meters across.

    The sunshine was ring, and the breeze gently touched his face.

    She Yu gradually descended from the sky to Wan Shenwei¡¯s altitude.

    She didn¡¯t want to humiliate such a tenacious enemy.

    The isted peak was towering and steep like a sword inserted into the earth. On the summit stood a desperate man, bruises covering every inch of his body. He carried Ye Baiyi on one shoulder, and his chest was moving up and down to the rhythm of his breath. His clothes and armor were covered with sweat, blood, and mud. Not a single area was clean.

    About several meters in front of him was a girl in red clothing. She looked graceful, but illusory like fog and mist.

    Under the sharp contrast, the scene became more dismal.

    After seconds of silence, She Yu said, "Surrender. You arepetent and talented. His majesty will entrust you with an important post. As you can see now, the God Nation is thriving while the Elders Guild is near its end. What was it all for?"

    Wan Shenwei twitched. He wanted tough, but his lips were dry, and his throat was raw.

    She Yu couldn¡¯t help asking again, "What was it all for?"

    Wan Shenwei gradually recovered with heavy breathes. He simply smiled without saying a word.

    She Yu knew her words were only nonsense to Wang Shenwei, whose will was as firm as iron. Instead, she restrained her pity on him and said lightly, "It¡¯s said that the Dread Division has a killing move to deal with Grandmasters. Why don¡¯t you use it?"

    Wan Shenwei chuckled and said, "You are strong, but still far from a Grandmaster."

    She Yu could feel the scorn in his tone. What he meant was that he didn¡¯t think She Yu was strong enough for the Dread Division to use this killing move. She wasn¡¯t angry, thinking deeply instead about the implications of his words.

    So this was not just a rumor.

    Wan Shenwei would rather die than use this move...

    That meant the move had many restrictions. Most likely, it could only be used once.

    Wan Shenwei would rather fight to the death.

    She Yu felt more respect for him.

    Theoretically, She Yu could be killed as long as they paid a high enough cost, but a Grandmaster couldn¡¯t. It was a wise choice to keep the killing move that could only be used once.

    However, he could still make such a choice when his life was in danger and when the Dread might be totally destroyed

    She Yu shook her head, "Division Leader Wan really has a heart ofher stone. You can sacrifice your own life, but you are heartless to put the life of yourrades at stake too."

    Wan Shenwei said indifferently, "Since we joined the Dread Division, our personal safety has already been out of our consideration. Instead, you had better watch out for your Holy Emperor."

    She Yu smiled, "You really have a big heart, Division Leader Wan, to worry about His Majesty in such a disadvantageous situation. Now, our armies are bearing down in force, and you are making one retreat after another. It won¡¯t take long before we sweep through Beyond Avalon. His Majesty doesn¡¯t even need toe in person. As for your division, I won¡¯t let a single member escape. You can rest in peace."

    She had resolved to kill all the remaining members of Dread after she saved Ye Baiyi.

    Suddenly, an indifferent voice came from above their heads.

    "That sounds arrogant. You won¡¯t let a single member escape?"

    They couldn¡¯t tell whether the voice was just next to their ears or came from afar.

    She Yu¡¯s expression changed while a light of hope shed across Wan Shenwei¡¯s eyes. Both of them moved simultaneously.

    She Yu moved like a streak of red fog and tried to grab Ye Baiyi from Wan Shenwei¡¯s shoulder, but Wan Shenwei was even faster. Almost just as they heard the voice, he stepped hard onto the ground with thest of his strength and rushed to the cliff edge.

    He immediately jumped down without hesitation.

    She Yu knew things would not go well when her strike failed. She was about to chase them when she felt the movement from above her head, forcing her to stop.

    More than100 people flew through the metal windyer. They were surrounded by ring rays and dived down apanied by thundering roars.

    Even the sky was quivering.

    They were all Masters! More than 100 Masters!

    She Yu was shocked. Meanwhile, two words appeared in her head.

    Master¡¯s Glory!

    The whistling wind under the cliff conveyed Wan Shenwei¡¯s unscrupulousughter.

 Chapter 646: Girl in Red vs. Sky Leaf Division

    Chapter 646: Girl in Red vs. Sky Leaf Division

    Trantor: Cynthiia Editor: X, TYZ

    The blood eye seemed tranquil.

    When the zing sun overhead disappeared, the power of the God¡¯s blood was all absorbed. The vexing golden blood also disappeared. After the numerous blood and flesh were devoured, the non-absorbable parts of the God¡¯s blood were finally channeled into the light swords.

    The huge blood eye in the sky was still staring at the earth silently, but the red beams had disappeared.

    Under the blood eye, the sword embryo gave out an astonishing power. 18,000 swords of different shapes and auras constituted a huge ball. They were swimming slowly like a giant school of fish. Amazingly, no matter how they flowed, the dividing line between Yin and Yang didn¡¯t move a bit.

    Ai Hui was suspended in the center of the sword embryo. He stretched his arms and closed his eyes tightly.

    To the various swords flowing around him, he was like a ma that attracted them, but none of the swords could touch him.

    He was modifying the swords.

    The sword embryo, having absorbed the power of God¡¯s blood, had be far more powerful than before. The sword embryo was internally connected with Ai Hui and was the origin of his essence, breath, and spirit. It was not difficult to control something that had the same root as him.

    What was troublesome now were the 18,000 swords that contained the power of God¡¯s blood and had absorbed countless blood and flesh. The light swords contained the power of God¡¯s blood that Ai Hui couldn¡¯t absorb, but after devouring the blood and flesh, the situation changed.

    They were like blood thirsty cruel monsters. Even if they were just inserted in the ground, their frightening intent to kill could scare anyone who came close. Within 30 meters of the sword formation, the killing intent was almost stifling.

    A cracking sound came from the sword formation.

    The shape of a light sword was changing quietly. The t de was bent over like a willow leaf while the thickness became attenuated. At the very beginning, when the sword formation n was made, to produce enough long swords within a limited period of time, the long swords were made in the most ordinary andmon size.

    There seemed to be an invisible hand modifying its shape.

    When finished, the light of the sword slowly faded and finally disappeared, like a piece of red-hot iron cooling down after being taken out of the forge.

    A ck sword was inserted into the mud. Its hilt was straight, and its cloud-shaped sword edge was covered with delicate patterns. Its de was paper thin and long with a subtle arc, exuding a dangerous aura. In contrast, the body of the sword was as white and silvery as snow. The light crimson along the edge of the de seemed like blood left on the white teeth of beasts that had just torn apart their prey.

    Another light sword dimmed. It was a heavy and straight sword with only one sharp edge. The wavy maroon serrations looked extremely ferocious and blood-thirsty.

    The sword embryo contained 18,000 streaks off sword consciousness, and light swords was also numbered 18,000. Ai Hui didn¡¯t believe it was only a coincidence.

    All the consumable parts of the God¡¯s blood had been absorbed, and the non-absorbable part was channeled into the sword formation, but why he was he still unable to break away from the blood eye? Ai Hui had tried many times, but nothing happened until he realized the identical number of sword consciousnesses and light swords.

    As a result, Ai Hui began to modify the swords.

    He modified them ording to the shape of each sword consciousness. Then, he realized that he could change the shapes of light swords freely. The rays of the modified light swords were restraining, and the change was subtle and could hardly be described.

    Ai Hui called the new ck and red sword a "God Sword."

    Of course they were far inferior to the ancient God-grade swords, but the quality of the new ck sword was extraordinary and had surpassed that of ordinary Heaven-grade weapons.

    The new sword was more closely connected to the sword embryo. Ai Hui could control them effortlessly through the embryo and execute extremelyplicated moves.

    18,000 was an intimidating number. To Ai Hui, however, it was extremely exciting because he knew that once he finished, the weapon would be unprecedented.

    .....

    In the gorge at the foot of the mountain, Wan Shenwei looked up at the fierce fight in the sky and was struck dumb with amazement.

    He had been through many battles, but none wereparable to the one he was watching. He felt lucky that he drew She Yu away or else the remaining Judgement and Dread members would have been unable to escape

    The red figure moved fast like an untraceable wisp of fog. Each strike was deadly.

    The sky kept changing, sometimes as dark as night, sometimes thundering and shing lightning, sometimes sunny and tranquil, and sometimes crimson.

    It was reported before that She Yu practiced the [Star Divine Hallucination] and the [Phantom Smoke Dance] The [Star Divine Hallucination] technique could confuse one¡¯s mind with illusions, making enemies unable to tell falsehood from reality. It was one of the most obscure and profound spells from the Blood of God. So far, only two people had mastered it. One was She Yu, and the other was the Holy Emperor.

    This was why she was in the Holy Emperor¡¯s good graces. He believed she was talented.

    With the [Star Divine Hallucination] and the [Phantom Smoke Dance], She Yu coulde and go freely among the Masters.

    The strength of the Masters shocked Wan Shenwei. Some of them were by no means inferior to him. After all, even during the heyday of the Avalon of Five Elements, only a few elementalists were on par with him, and all of them were well known heroes.

    Now, he encountered several at once!

    Moreover, the other Masters were only slightly inferior to him and had already surpassed ordinary Masters. Any of them could be the leader of abat division.

    However, they were only ordinary members here.

    Master¡¯s Glory!

    So this was the true Master¡¯s Glory!

    Wan Shenwei somehow felt scared. Previously, he had not understood why Madam Ye bet all her hope and all she had on Master¡¯s Glory.

    Currently, he understood as he witnessed the intimidating strength of the members.

    No one could stop Madam Ye!

    He couldn¡¯t help shivering. Madam Ye had shown her toughness from the very beginning. Wan Shenwei was clearly aware of her cruelty, and she possessed the sharpest de now. Wan Shenwei could even imagine that all obstacles in front of her would be crushed.

    He could see that Madam Ye turn her head back and smile softly while standing on the blood stained ground.

    A gloomy chill traversed his heart.

    Regardless, he was dying. Why did he have to think so much?

    Wan Shenweiughed at himself and calmed down. Maybe this valley was where he would be buried. Why bother to worry about what would happen in the future. No matter what the world would be, it had nothing to do with a dead man.

    Having shrugged off the burdens, he began to enjoy watching the battle in the sky.

    She Yu was not as calm as she appeared to be. The news that the Master¡¯s Glory had seeded greatly impacted her, and she was not prepared at all to fight against these Masters.

    Initially, she had lost control over her mind and body, but after the first sh, she calmed down, and her heart began to sink.

    The Masters trained by Master¡¯s Glory were far stronger than ordinary Masters!

    Their moves were astonishingly powerful. After several rounds, She Yu noticed something different. It was their elemental energy. Their elemental energy was different from ordinary elementalists. At first, she couldn¡¯t even tell what attribute their elemental energy belonged to.

    Only after more than 100 moves did she realize that their elemental energy consisted of all five attributes.

    This reminded She Yu of the fusion elemental energy from the Assembly of Patriarchs, which was the mortal enemy of the Blood of God. The hatred between the two sides could be traced back to hundreds of years ago. She Yu clearly knew about fusion elemental energy.

    Initially, she didn¡¯t realize the elemental energy consisted of five attributes, so she didn¡¯t associate them with the Assembly of Patriarchs. Now, she knew this new kind of elemental energy had to be closely tied to fusion elemental energy.

    In the rumors, Madam Ye had close connections with the Assembly of Patriarchs, but theyter fell out with each other.

    In an instant, many ideas urred to She Yu, but she soon left them behind because her absent minded state caused her to incur another wound.

    Blood had woken up her intent to kill. Her pretty eyes looked cold.

    As one of the first batch of the Blood of God¡¯s top seeds, she survived countless life-or-death battles. No matter what the cost, she had to bring Ye Baiyi back!

    She moved like a wisp of red smoke, appearing in front of a Master like a ghost before pointing at him with one finger powerlessly.

    It seemed like this move was not threatening at all, but in her enemy¡¯s eyes, this was not the case.

    His surroundings suddenly became pitch ck. More frighteningly, all his perceptions were sealed. Suddenly, he caught sight of a spot of light that was swiftly approaching him, and immediately chopped toward it with all his elemental energy.

    He seeded!

    He was relieved when he felt his sword hit something. As long as he could withstand this move, hispanions woulde to assist him.

    The spot of light suddenly exploded and released ring rays. Without warning, he could not see anything because his vision was filled with endless whiteness.

    No!

    He didn¡¯t have time to react before his body froze. In the next instant, his throat was pierced, leaving a finger sized bleeding hole.

    With this method, She Yu killed five Masters while only suffering three wounds. This shocked everyone present.

    They all looked gloomy.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s face was ghastly pale. Since the establishment of the Sky Leaf Division, they had been invincible and had not even met apetent rival no matter where they went, let alone a loss of five Masters. Moreover, the team was led by her.

    Xiaobao had conquered so many cities without a scratch so far.

    How could She Yu be so strong!

    She Yu lookedposed with an easy gracefulness. A thin trickle of blood appeared at the corner of her mouth, making her pretty face even more seductively charming. She licked the wound with her tongue and smiled sweetly.

    Killing intent shed across her gorgeous eyes. The blossom-like red clothes fluttered in the air and made pping sounds.

    She breathed out and said in a voice that was as tender as water, "None of you will leave alive."

 Chapter 647: Wind Columns and Mourning

    Chapter 647: Wind Columns and Mourning

    Trantor: Cynthiia Editor: X, TYZ

    He Nanshan could hardly believe his eyes. In front of him stood the remnant soldiers of the beast battalion. Their morale was depressed and expressions panicky. He Nanshan had never seen anything like this in any of the God Nation¡¯s armies.

    They were extremely frightened.

    The camp was all quiet except for the sobs of the officers.

    Helian Tianxiao attracted the attention of the enemies with the beast battalions, but actually nned to pierce the wind curtain and sneak attack them from behind. Theoretically, there was no problem with the n. Even He Nanshan would agree with him on this n.

    Yet astonishingly, both the God Wolf and the Silver Frost Divisions were destroyed with no survivors. The beast battalions waged a grueling attack, but couldn¡¯t break through, so they had to retreat back to their campsite. The Infantry and the Sky Edge Divisions took the opportunity to counterattack them, causing heavy casualties to the beast battalions. Under the pursuit of the Infantry and the Sky Edge Divisions, the officers and soldiers of the beast battalions retreated separately. As a result, only slightly more than 100 managed to escape.

    He Nanshan fell into silence, but in his heart, he was greatly shocked and could hardly calm down.

    How was this possible?

    Due to an ambush? Even so, with their capacity, the God Wolf and Silver Frost were unlikely to be totally destroyed. Did their enemies have a backup n?

    That had to be it!

    However, what kind of backup n couldpletely destroy the God Wolf and Silver Frost?

    The God Nation had been fighting against Beyond Avalon for such a long time that they were aware of the status quo. The elementalists¡¯ continuous retreats had already revealed their weakness. He was surprised by the destruction of the Ardent Flower Blood Division, but could ept it.

    However, the God Wolf was one of the six god divisions, and Helian Tianxiao was not at all weaker than He Nanshan.

    Plus, they were not defeated, but destroyed. As strong and experienced as the God Wolf and Silver Frost were, even if they fell into a tough spot, they would find an opportunity to break through an encirclement. They were likely to suffer great losses, but how could they be destroyed?

    He Nanshan felt both scared and angry. He had sent a messenger to inform Helian Tianxiao to wait for the support of the God Spirit Division, but unexpectedly, Helian Tianxiao directly initiated an attack instead of waiting for them.

    All the ns were disrupted by Helian Tianxiao¡¯s decision. Their power wasrgely reduced.

    What could they do in the face of such a defeat?

    Ai Hui hadn¡¯te out, but they noticed the change of the light swords, which they believed was a good signal. The battle at the defensive line achieved an unprecedented victory, during which the God Wolf, one of the six god divisions, was obliterated. This section of their armed forces hadpletely disappeared.

    This was undoubtedly the most glorious fight in the years of fighting between the God Nation and the Elders Guild.

    This unprecedented victory boosted the morale of the elementalists.

    All previous despair was gone.

    The legend that the six god divisions were invincible was broken. As they realized that blood elementalists from the god divisions were also mortal human beings, they gradually became confident and overcame their inner fear toward the god divisions. In their hearts, the god divisions might be stronger, but they, themselves, were not easy to deal with either.

    With boosted morale, they went back to reinforce their defenses more actively.

    They had discovered all the spots in the wind curtain that were previously pierced by the God Wolf Division. To prevent the recurrence of simr situations, they decided to broaden the canyon under Shi Xueman¡¯s guidance so as to reinforce the wind curtain.

    This was not an easy task. The canyon had been eroded by the wind curtain for years. The more fragile rocks had already been weathered and broken, while the remaining stone had be very hard under the quenching of the metal wind curtain for years,.

    Even though they had Wang Xiaoshan, it would still be an arduous task. Fortunately, they only needed to broaden some key positions.

    Wang Xiaoshan was now the busiest.

    Shi Xueman, Silver Soldier, Jiang Wei, and Sang Zhijun discussed the arrangement of the defenses, while Karakorum Pris never participated in such tasks because she was not interested. Wang Xiaoshan sat in front of a sand table where theyout of the defensive line and the surrounding terrain was clearly and vividly disyed.

    Wang Xiaoshan listened carefully to their discussion and adjusted the sand table ordingly.

    The sand table kept immediately changing ording to their proposals, even before the sounds of their voices faded away. The four stood around the sand table, either contemting or discussing heatedly.

    Wang Xiaoshan hardly joined their discussion. He would only change the sand table when they had a conclusion.

    Wang Xiaoshan had almost no fighting capacity, but his value was reflected in defense. In Silver Soldier¡¯s words, Wang Xiaoshan¡¯s defensive role was more significant than ten warfare masters.

    They knew the Blood of God would not let them go easily, and the battles in the future would only be more fierce and cruel. Still, they were confident.

    After a heated discussion, they finally came to a conclusion. Then, they left everything to Wang Xiaoshan, with Sang Zhijun as the coordinator.

    Silver Soldier went back to the campsite of the Infantry Division in a good mood. Although it was a painstaking period, he felt fulfilled. Back then, he jumped out to take over the Infantry Division and became the division leader despite the questions from all the skeptics. On one hand, he wanted tobat the blood elementalists, and on the other hand, he could hardly bear to see the Infantry Division vanish.

    The Infantry Division existed in name only when he took over, as the members were all ipetent and inexperienced new recruits. Having endured through several battles, they had now be much resolute and steadfast, and their young faces became more mature. They were no longer panicky when going to the front linepared to before. Nowadays, they were well trained and mentally strong. After a few more battles, they would be a new batch of elites.

    Silver Soldier was delighted with a sense of aplishment after seeing the improvement of hisbat division.

    Although the main forces of the recent battles were either the Spear of Heavy Cloud or the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, with the Infantry and Sky Edge providing support most of the time, Silver Soldier was sufficiently satisfied. He was confident that as the two divisions grew stronger, they would be able to y more important roles in the future.

    He asked the vice division leader, "Is Lady Karakorum back?"

    "Not yet." The deputy leader shook his head.

    Karakorum Pris had been indulging in the sword formations in the valley these days. She had always wanted topile a swordy manual. Therefore, the changing light swords were of great attraction to her.

    She sat on the slope beside the valley every day and stared at every change of the light swords.

    She was fascinated with the birth of every new sword.

    Not only her, but all the sword elementalists of the Sky Edge Division also came and stayed near the sword formations to explore the sword consciousnesses. It was like a constantly changing swordy manual in front of them, and any understanding from it would be greatly beneficial to them.

    The Sword of Lightning, on the other hand, didn¡¯t have any feeling toward it. They took another path.

    Silver Soldier shook his head and sighed. He was clearly aware of his junior¡¯s indulgence in swordy, but he didn¡¯t know her fellow sword elementalists were the same as her. The God-subduing Peak where the Sky Edge Division should be stationed was empty, causing Silver Soldier to have to deploy soldiers of the Infantry Division to guard it. If the God-subduing Peak crashed and hurt theirpanions due to unattended operation, it would be the worst joke.

    His junior was an outstanding swordsman, but not a qualified division leader.

    Silver Soldier knew that if it had not been for him, she wouldn¡¯t havee to the front line. All she thought about swordy, and she had no interest inbat divisions at all. As a result, he didn¡¯t have the heart to scold her.

    Suddenly, he noticed that the vice division leader wanted to say something, but stopped after a second thought, so he asked, "Did anything happen?"

    The vice division leader looked around. Seeing that nobody was here, he said in a low voice, "A messenger from Skyheart City asked to see you."

    Skyheart City?

    Silver Soldier felt that something was weird, but he didn¡¯t show any emotional fluctuation except that his eyes became gloomy.

    The vice division leader looked worried and said in a low voice, "He came in secret, so I didn¡¯t dare to let others know."

    Why did they send a messenger at this time?

    Currently, themander-in-chief here was Shi Xueman. Why did theye directly to him instead of visiting Shi Xueman first? Silver Soldier sensed something ominous.

    "Where is he?"

    "Waiting in your tent."

    Duanmu Huanghun finished drinking the elemental soup with satisfaction and came to the spot where he would typically sit quietly. Actually, the elemental soup didn¡¯t have much effect on him now, but he insisted on drinking it during each meal and sometimes evenpeted with others to get another bowl.

    This was because the soup cooked by Lou Lan was the most delicious thing in the world. Not only Duanmu Huanghun, but Fatty was also addicted to it. Sometimes, they would even put up a fight for the leftovers.

    The others could only watch them enviously. That was a war between big shots!

    Duanmu Huanghun was in a good mood today because he won and received an extra half bowl of soup. Seeing Fatty¡¯s furious expression made him happy.

    Duanmu Huanghun had been out of sorts regarding the fact that Fatty had be a Master.

    How can a genius be called a genius if he was no different from ordinary people?

    Thus, he decided to continue to improve the power of the [Viridescent Flower Green Vines] to let fools like Fatty know what a real genius was.

    Theoretically, the [Viridescent Flower Green Vines] he had justprehended was his apex. It would be incredibly hard to advance, but there was an excellent example for him to follow.

    People he met along the way kept saluting him.

    "Sir Duanmu!"

    "Master Duanmu!"

    He returned the salutes politely. After all, he was born in an aristocratic family, so his demeanor was perfect.

    Afterward, he frowned slightly when he realized that there were so many people here today.

    Previously, he woulde across a few people when he came here, but never so many. Looking ahead, he could see an endless stream of peopleing in. If Duanmu Huanghun was not familiar with this location, he would have thought that he had stepped into a scenic spot during a holiday.

    He also noticed that many of the people had a bamboo basket on their arm.

    Yet, none of the basket contained anything.

    There were more and more people as he continued to walk forward.

    The unhappiness in Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s heart had already gone. Instead, he was wondering what these people were doing here.

    There was a high slope in front of him, behind which was the ce where he tried to gain furtherprehension. Duanmu Huanghun had a keen ear. He heard human voices from behind the high slope.

    He couldn¡¯t resist his curiosity and walked past the high slope. When he saw what happened, he was stunned.

    The wind columns not far from him were shining with a hint of soft light. People there were either kowtowing or taking offerings out of their baskets and cing them in order before the wind columns.

    There were various offerings, such as wild beasts that had just been killed, fresh wild fruit, and grain rations of thebat divisions.

    Twigs and grass torches were ignited and inserted in front of the offerings. The whole ce was wrapped by smog and fragance.

    They looked small in front of the towering wind columns.

    They were mumbling some words while raising wine jars up and spattering the wine on the offerings and into the air.

    "Today is the seventh day after your death. Predecessors, pleasee and feel free to eat and drink."

    "We cannot find any food of better quality on the battlefield. Hopefully, you won¡¯t detest it."

    "Do eat more please."

    "Please rest in peace. Leave the battle to us."

    The mumbling lingered in the wind among the former members of the Surveince Division.

 Chapter 648: Changes

    Chapter 648: Changes

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    When Silver Soldier first saw the messenger from Skyheart City, a feeling of danger arose in his heart instantly. The messenger was very young and had a very handsome appearance, one that Silver Soldier had never seen before. His luxurious robe was spotlessly clean, making him looked as though he had just attended an aristocratic family banquet.

    "Sir, nice to meet you. My name is He Yong, and I¡¯m from the Sky Leaf Division."

    He bowed slightly, but his face was indifferent. Hispletely emotionless tone sounded as though he was talking about something that had nothing to do with him.

    Silver Soldier noticed that the messenger¡¯s body was surrounded by ayer of faint aura that was scant and hazy. His heart skipped a beat, but his movements did not reveal anything. He sat down and asked casually, "Sky Leaf Division? I don¡¯t remember there being a Sky Leaf Division among the Skyheart Divisions?"

    "After the Master¡¯s Glory seeded, Madam gave the order to set up the Sky Leaf Division," He Yong replied.

    "Master¡¯s Glory has seeded?" Silver Soldier was stunned.

    "Yes," He Yong¡¯s indifferent tone contained a tinge of pride.

    Silver Soldier could not maintain hisposure. Raging waves seemed to rise in his heart. Master¡¯s Glory had seeded? It actually seeded!

    Because of his junior, he was considered an important subordinate of Madam Ye¡¯s. As such, he knew more about Master¡¯s Glory than the outside world. When he was still a member of the internal department of Skyheart City, a lot of criticism and doubt were continuously directed toward Master¡¯s Glory. Almost no one could understand why Madam Ye recklessly promoted Master¡¯s Glory. At that time, Madam Ye was like an insane gambler who had lost her rationality and ced all her chips on Master¡¯s Glory.

    It finally seeded huh...

    Silver Soldier tried his best to maintain hisposure and shot aplicated look at He Yong. Silver Soldier had sharp eyesight and could tell that He Yong was a Master produced by Master¡¯s Glory. He was rather powerful. Even though Silver Soldier did not know He Yong¡¯s background, he instinctively knew that He Yong was not to be trifled with.

    "How are the others¡¯ strengthspared to yours?" Silver Soldier asked, trying to get more information from He Yong.

    "My strength is not worth mentioning in the Sky Leaf Division." He Yong knew Silver Soldier was sounding him out. He did not avoid the question because there was no need to do so. Very soon, everyone would know about the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s strength.

    If they were able to form abat division, that meant the number of Masters they produced had to be substantial...

    Abat division that was entirely made up of Masters...

    Terrifying offensive capabilities!

    A cold shiver went down Silver Soldier¡¯s spine. In the history of the Avalon of Five Elements, there had never been abat division that was entirely made up of Masters. Even the three central divisions were not entirely made up of Masters! Furthermore, these Masters were much more powerful than ordinary Masters!

    Silver Soldier wasn¡¯t an ignorant newbie. When such a powerful force was born, the geography of the entire Beyond Avalon would undergo huge changes. Perhaps even the geography of the entire world would change because of the birth of the Sky Leaf Division.

    Sky Leaf Division. One could sense how ambitious Madam Ye was from this name.

    [The word for "Leaf" in Chinese is "Ye".]

    He Yong managed to catch a glimpse of the fear in Silver Soldier¡¯s eyes. This wasn¡¯t the first time he saw fear and reverence in other people¡¯s eyes when he mentioned the Sky Leaf Division. He was like an almighty god who showed no mercy to his subjects at all. His ice-cold tone contained a tinge of cruelty.

    "A few days earlier, the Sky Leaf Division made an inspection tour to various cities in Beyond Avalon. Newlight City refused toply with our orders, so we took some necessary measures. Yuchi Ba and An Chouchou were executed, while Newlight City begged Madam Ye for mercy."

    Silver Soldier could no longer maintain hisposure and cried out in rm, "Elder Yuchi! Ugly Idol! The New Citizens Faction..."

    A mocking look shed across He Yong¡¯s eyes. He replied coldly, "When we arrived at Pcefield City, the patriarch of the Gong Residence personally weed us and pledged his allegiance to Madam. He sent his daughter, Gong Peiyao, to Skyheart City to serve Madam."

    Silver Soldier froze.

    He definitely knew that "to serve Madam" was merely an excuse on the surface. In reality, Gong Peiyao was being taken hostage.

    "Whichever city the banner of the Sky Leaf Division arrives in, that city will pledge its allegiance to Madam. Quickly, the hostility between every city will disappear."

    He Yong nced at the dumbstruck Silver Soldier and said purposefully, "An era is about to end, and a brand-new era about to begin. Sir, you have to think clearly which path you are going to take."

    After a long while, the dazed Silver Soldier opened his mouth with difficulty. With a hoarse and dry voice, he asked, "What does Madam want me to do?"

    He Yong smiled.

    .....

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s mouth was agape with shock.

    He felt a hint of moisture on his face, appearing as though raindrops were hitting his face. Was it raining? No, it was blood!

    A Master swayed in the air and fell from the sky, resembling a kite with a broken string. However, at this moment, no one had the time to save him.

    Bang!

    That Master¡¯s head collided heavily with a rock not far away from Wan Shenwei. His head exploded like a fragile watermelon, and he died on the spot. Deep down, Wan Shenwei felt relieved. Previously, when he fell from the mountain, he did not fall to his death because he used Ye Baiyi as a cushion.

    The battle in the sky had exceeded two hours. Wan Shenwei had been counting the number of Masters who had fallen. More than 21 Masters had been killed. She Yu had paid a heavy price as well. Her left arm was dangling by her side. Her left forearm was distorted at an awkward angle, and her body was covered with numerous bruises.

    Wan Shenwei had not expected the seemingly petite and cute She Yu to be so unyielding and brave!

    She was like a wild beast that had gone insane.

    Wan Shenwei, who had richbat experience, had a clear grasp of the current situation. The scales of victory were tipped in the elemental Masters¡¯ favor. It might appear that She Yu was dealing heavy losses to the elemental Masters, but in reality, the elemental Masters were closing in around her.

    Currently, She Yu was like a trapped beast and did not have much time left.

    Fu Sisi wanted to capture She Yu regardless of the casualties they suffered, even if it meant that tens of their Masters had to die. The second round of Master¡¯s Glory had already begun, and theirbat division would be replenished with new Masters very soon. However, the chance to capture She Yu, who had absorbed God¡¯s blood, was extremely hard toe by.

    The value of God¡¯s blood wasparable to Ye Baiyi¡¯s.

    God¡¯s blood was the Blood of God¡¯s supreme sacred artifact. Reportedly, the Holy Emperor became that powerful because he had absorbed the power of God¡¯s blood.

    The Holy Emperor had never bestowed the God¡¯s blood on anyone before, so She Yu was the first person to receive it.

    The invisible connection between the Heart of God in Ye Baiyi¡¯s body and the God¡¯s blood in She Yu¡¯s body appeared clearly in Fu Sisi¡¯s mind. This meant that they might have a chance to decode the darkest secret of the Blood of God!

    The only thing that surprised her was that She Yu¡¯s strength was much more powerful than she had expected. The number of casualties they suffered was much higher than she had expected as well.

    Everything would be worth it!

    This was the best chance. A chance like this, where She Yu was isted, would most likely nevere by again.

    After having two hours of rest, Wan Shenwei had regained some of his energy.

    The daily arduous training sessions disyed their worth now. Wan Shenwei¡¯s regenerative ability was extraordinary.

    After he fell to the ground, he became motionless. Initially, there were a few individuals observing him closely from the dark. At that time, he waspletely exhausted, felt dizzy, and was unable to move at all. After he regained his strength gradually, he remained in his motionless state. Eventually, the eyes that were observing him disappeared.

    Everyone had ced their attention on She Yu. At this point in time, She Yu seemed to know that she was on the brink of death. She was going all-out!

    No one noticed Wan Shenwei.

    Wan Shenwei, who had been waiting for the right opportunity, began to move. He picked up Ye Baiyi and slipped away silently.

    Just as he started moving, Fu Sisi, who was in the sky, noticed him right away. However, She Yu was now in her most dangerous state and another three of Fu Sisi¡¯srades were killed. She clenched her teeth and yelled, "Capture the demonic girl first!"

    No one raised any objections.

    The withering Wan Shenwei posed zero threat to them. Even if they let him off now, how far could he possibly run?

    When Wan Shenwei saw that Fu Sisi did not care about him, he broke into a run after picking up Ye Baiyi, not caring about his cover at all.

    Heughed bitterly in his heart. He might be the most cowardly division leader in the history of the Dread Division. There had never been a Dread division leader who pathetically ran for his or her life like he was doing now.

    Even when he ran, no one bothered to chase him.

    He knew he did not have much time left. He did not dare to conserve any energy and ran with all his might.

    .....

    A group of seven or eight people were flying through the untamed wilds.

    "Are we going the right direction? So far we haven¡¯t discovered any traces."

    "Sir flies, so how would he leave behind traces? This direction indeed leads to the Jadeite Forest!"

    In order to avoid She Yu¡¯s tracking, the Dread Division broke up into many small units and escaped in different directions. Halfway through, someone in this unit suggested that they should find their division leader and help him.

    Everyone in this unit was young. The youngest was Wan Erdan. He was the youngest warrior in the Dread Division, at the mere age of 16 years old.

    They also knew that the chances of finding Wan Shenwei and helping him were very slim, but they just wanted to do something. They knew what they were doing was futile and irrational, but none of them cared! Sir was going to die, so what was there to be rational about!

    After splitting up from the other units, they did not retreat, but rather, they headed in the direction of the Jadeite Forest at full speed.

    Being the youngest, Wang Erdan was often teased by everyone. However, everyone knew that Sir liked Wang Erdan very much. Wang Erdan himself knew that as well.

    Not many people in the Dread Division could get training pointers from Sir personally. Wang Erdan was one of the lucky few. Many people secretly discussed whether or not Sir wanted Wang Erdan to take over his position. It was obvious that he was nurturing Wang Erdan with great care.

    Actually, everyone liked Wang Erdan a lot. He was honest, down-to-earth, and diligent. He was a nice fellow, but he did not seem like someone who could lead the Dread Division.

    He was the one who suggested to find Sir and help him.

    Wang Erdan never thought that their irrational action would allow them to avoid Fu Sisi and the Sky Leaf Division. While pursuing the Dread Division, Fu Sisi and her team from the Sky Leaf Division barged through the metal wind stratum, thereby missing Wang Erdan and his counterparts.

    Everyone had ugly looks on their faces. After so many futile days, they were feeling extremely terrible.

    Everyone¡¯s faces were gloomy. They were on the verge of blowing up.

    Even though Wang Erdan had an anxious look on his face, his eyes kept on scanning his surroundings, looking for traces of Wan Shenwei.

    "We still haven¡¯t found him yet! Are we on the right track?!"

    Suddenly, Wang Erdan raised his hand and stopped everyone. "Stop!"

    Uponing hearing this word, everyone¡¯s minds jolted as a look of joy appeared on their faces. However, when they saw Wang Erdan close his eyes as though he was sensing something, they quickly quieted down.

    Wang Erdan opened his eyes and pointed to their right side. "There are people fighting there!"

    There were people fighting there? Was Sir fighting with the demonic girl?

    Everyone became excited and worried at the same time. Without any hesitation, they hurriedly flew in the direction that Wang Erdan was pointing.

    Wan Shenwei was running forward mechanically. Right now, he was dragging Ye Baiyi on the ground as he moved forward step by step. His steadfast-looking face was covered with wounds, his widened eyes were cloudy, his lips were dry, and the wounds on his arms were turning into bloodstained scabs. His fingers had turned white from grasping Ye Baiyi¡¯s hair and dragging him.

    The pathetic-looking Ye Baiyi looked like a ragged sack that was being dragged on the ground.

    However, whether he passed through swamps, mud pools, ornds that were filled with sharp stones, his entire body still remained spotlessly clean and snow-white.

    Suddenly, Wan Shenwei heard familiar, pleasantly surprised cheers.

    "Sir! It¡¯s Sir!"

    Ahhh, I¡¯m having hallucinations now.

    Wan Shenwei shook his head. Following which, darkness engulfed his vision, and he copsed to the ground.

 Chapter 649: Holy Phoenix

    Chapter 649: Holy Phoenix

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    The afternoon sun shone fiercely. The ring sunlight shone on the spacious and empty encampment of the Surveince Division. The encampment was deste and silent. asionally, a few people would walk across the encampment, giving it a bleak atmosphere. Most of the soldiers were out gathering intelligence. Only 10 percent of the total number of Surveince soldiers stayed back to guard the encampment.

    Ever since Xiao Shan brought a few hundred men with him to the front line, the morale of the Surveince Division dropped drastically. The atmosphere of the encampment was downcast and tense. As such, many people couldn¡¯t take it and requested the higher-ups to send them out on missions. The number of soldiers who stayed in the encampment became smaller and smaller.

    Those who stayed in the encampment were listless and downcast. Even their daily training sessions had ckened significantly. Being one of the three central divisions, which were known for their strict military discipline, such behavior was unimaginable.

    If the departure of Xiao Shan and his counterparts from the Surveince Division caused internal strife for thebat division, then the establishment of the Sky Leaf Division made the Surveince Division¡¯s external situation moreplicated.

    In the past, the Surveince Division was Madam Ye¡¯s right-hand man that she relied heavily on. Their position was irreceable back then. However, now everyone could tell that the Sky Leaf Division was Madam Ye¡¯s "legitimate son."

    This wasn¡¯t the worst aspect.

    The Sky Leaf Division shocked the world when it annexed Newlight City and forced Pcefield City to surrender. Soon after, it swept across the whole of Beyond Avalon with thunderous momentum. Wherever they went, outstanding heroes would bow down to them.

    This unprecedented powerful performance and the great undertaking of unifying Beyond Avalon were incredible. The Sky Leaf Division¡¯s reputation skyrocketed instantly.

    In the depths of the encampment, there was an unremarkable brick house that was unguarded.

    The interior of the house was very dark, lookingpletely different from the dazzlingly bright world outside.

    Nian Tingfeng was staring at the memorial tablets in the house like a motionless statue. He had been in this house for quite a long time. Ever since he stepped into this house, he had been silent. On the long ck table, there were hundreds of memorial tablets with names inscribed on them. They were spotlessly clean and neatly ced. Clearly, someone had been cleaning and tidying them with great care.

    Trails of smoke rose from the censer, blurring the names on the memorial tablets. The memorial tablets seemingly transformed into an army of soldiers who were standing silently and solemnly.

    The Surveince Division was the most well-informed organization in Beyond Avalon. It was the first to know of the victory at the front line and of the decision that Xiao Shan and his counterparts made.

    It was unknown who built this memorial hall. Every soldier who returned to the encampment after their missions woulde here and pay their respects to those who had died.

    This was the first time Nian Tingfeng came here.

    His body moved, and his eyes regained their rity. Following which, he picked up three joss sticks.

    He lit them up with the fire from the altarmp, bowed to the memorial tablets, and inserted the joss sticks into the censer.

    After staring at the memorial tablets for a little while longer, he turned and left.

    All this time, he never said a single word.

    He took an unremarkable gray fleabane cart out of the encampment without alerting anyone.

    Inside the cart, Nian Tingfeng was expressionless. Every now and then, he would look out of the window at the pedestrians walking hurriedly on the street.

    Skyheart City was regaining its vitality, and the number of people on the streets had increased significantly. This could be seen from the slow moving speed of the cart. The shops along the streets were open. Neatly dressed shop assistants were attracting customers to their stores. . asionally, they would yell and promote their businesses with a loud and clear voice. The colors of their sign boards seemed to have be brighter as they were wiped clean of dust, adding liveliness to the streets.

    Nian Tingfeng suddenly thought of the Avalon of Five Elements in the past. Every city was packed with people and brightly lit, illuminating the night sky.

    An indescribable,plicated look shed across his eyes.

    Honestly speaking, he disliked Master¡¯s Glory. He disliked it very much. If Masters could be produced so easily, wouldn¡¯t it be ridiculous for those who trained and worked their a**es off in order to be Masters?

    Whether it was him or an ordinary soldier from one of the three central divisions, which one of them had not worked desperately and been through rounds of brutalpetitions to achieve their current strength?

    However, whether or not he liked Master¡¯s Glory, he had to admit that it was as if it was born to impact this world. Whether or not it seeded, it would deeply influence the world.

    The mighty performance of the Sky Leaf Division made everyone realize the rise of a powerful Skyheart City. Even those who were slow could tell that Skyheart City would be a legitimate behemoth of Beyond Avalon in the future!

    The strong confidence people had for Skyheart City had revived it, rendering it as good as new. The previously closed shops were opened once again. The economy became prosperous once more. Those who had foresight were already hastily heading for Skyheart City.

    Madam Ye picked up the scepter that the Elders Guild had dropped.

    Of course, not everyone had hope and confidence in her.

    Before Nian Tingfeng walked into the great hall, he heard an angry voiceing from within it.

    "Madam, there is trouble! It¡¯s too brutal! They are not our enemies, but our own people! New citizens might disagree with us on certain issues, but we still shouldn¡¯t forget their contributions to the Avalon of Five Elements. They are your subjects as well. How can you treat them like they are your enemies? Using brutal force, inciting bloodbaths, rming and scaring the people, and causing the entire world to fear us..."

    In response, Madam Ye¡¯s gentle voice rang across the air, "You¡¯re right. Xiaobao and the rest are too rash in their actions. I will reprimand when they return. They are just a bunch of youngsters who act impetuously and do not think about consequences. They need experienced and prudent seniors like all of you to guide them along..."

    Nian Tingfeng did not enter the great hall. He merely waited at the door with his head lowered while calmly listening to their conversation, resembling an old monk who was mediating.

    After a while, a group of old men walked out from the great hall with satisfaction. When they saw Nian Tingfeng waiting at the entrance, some of them snorted and some looked at him with disdain and animosity. After the emergence of the Sky Leaf Division, the status of the Surveince Division had dropped sharply. In the past, Nian Tingfeng was Madam Ye¡¯s sharpest knife, and he had offended countless people. Now that he lost power and influence, many people silently gloated at him as a result.

    However, these people did not dare to go overboard. After all, Nian Tingfeng still possessed power.

    Nian Tingfeng turned a blind eye to them.

    After a while, Madam Ye summoned him.

    As Nian Tingfeng walked into the great hall, Madam Ye, who was lying on her chair, smiled with azy grin. With a tinge of derision in her voice, she said, "Take a look, this bunch of fussy old fogeys always enjoy criticizing me when they¡¯re free. Previously, all of them hid in their homes like a bunch of cowards. Now, all of them suddenly became candid officials! They are worse than a bunch of fence-sitters. At least fence-sitters still have some capabilities. These people are extremely ipetent."

    "So what if some blood was spilled? How much blood have we already bled? Hmph, if we don¡¯t intimidate those people now, how long should we wait to do so?"

    "Madam is right," Nian Tingfeng answered.

    Madam Ye looked right at Nian Tingfeng and sat up straight with a solemn look on her face. Next, she spoke with a very serious tone, "I know recently you have heard a lot of rumors and nder that have wronged you. I¡¯m well aware of your merits. Why would I forget about you? If the Sky Leaf Division is my fists, then the Surveince Division is my eyes. How can I punch urately without having good eyesight? Once Beyond Avalon is pacified, you can ce your focus on augmenting the Surveince Division. I will give you the authority to recruit experts from various cities to replenish the strength of the Surveince Division. I have high expectations for the Surveince Division, so you have to work hard."

    A grateful look appeared on Nian Tingfeng¡¯s face. He bowed and answered, "I am ready to risk my life and limbs to serve Madam!"

    "All right, all right, don¡¯t get led astray by those bootlickers." Madam Ye chuckled and waved her hand. Shortly, the smile on her face disappeared. She then said inly, "From now onward, the work that we have to do will be very tough, especially your mission. Whether it¡¯s the new citizens or the aristocratic families, I want you to identify the defiant ones."

    "Yes," Nian Tingfeng replied.

    "Beyond Avalon can only defeat the Blood of God if we are united. We have to get rid of those rebellious rotten apples, especially among the new citizens since they have been a independent for too long."

    "Yes, this subordinate will take note of them."

    "It¡¯s definitely hard to avoid pain, but as long as we can endure through this stage, the road ahead will be smooth and level. At this point in time, we can¡¯t be too soft-hearted." Madam Ye sighed with sorrow.

    "Yes," Nian Tingfeng agreed with Madam Ye.

    "As long as we are united, we don¡¯t need to be afraid of the blood elementalists. Take a look, we have obtained another great victory at the front line again. This is the best proof. We can¡¯t depend on just one or twobat divisions. Can we solely depend on just them to defend the front line? Clearly no!"

    "Madam is right, and I will specifically remind all the news viges."

    "I always feel relieved whenever you handle matters for me." A look of satisfaction appeared on Madam Ye¡¯s face.

    "What do you think of the Central Pine Faction?" she suddenly asked with a change in her tone.

    After remaining silent for a while, Nian Tianfeng replied, "By Great Elder¡¯s decree, Madam is the legitimate decision maker for the Avalon of Five Elements. Every elementalist in the world should obey yourmands. Those who defy you should be regarded as the blood elementalists¡¯ aplices, and they are to be executed to serve as a warning to the rest of the world."

    "You make me sound as though I am an executioner who indiscriminately kills people. Sigh, I really hope they can smarten up..."

    Suddenly, Nian Tingfeng spoke with a clear and solemn voice, "The Elders Guild is ancient, decadent, and unsuitable to handle the current perilous situation. Beyond Avalon isn¡¯t the same as the Avalon of Five Elements. The blood elementalists are closing in on us. If we want to defeat them, we have to raise our war banners and fight bravely against them. The Blood of God has the Holy Emperor tomand the blood elementalists, while we also have a leader who can unite every elementalist in the world. However, it¡¯s out of Madam¡¯s jurisdiction to do so. Therefore, I suggest we abolish the Elders Guild so that Madam can ascend the throne andmand the world under the name of the Holy Phoenix!"

    "Holy Phoenix..."

    Madam Ye¡¯s beautiful eyes lit up.

    .....

    In the darkness, She Yu had suppressed her aurapletely and resembled a statue. The rocks around her were cold, and the darkness was moist. She was in a crevice that was only a few meters wide, situated in the depths of a mountain.

    The path that connected the crevice to the outside world was extremely winding, preventing light from entering the crevice.

    To break out of the encirclement of the Sky Leaf Division, She Yu did not hesitate to use her secret art. Even though she had broken out of the siege, she was on the brink of dying. At that point in time, she couldn¡¯t even care where she was escaping to. Fortunately, she came across such a well-hidden crevice.

    She Yu¡¯s current condition was extremely terrible. Her face was deathly pale andpletely devoid of blood. Her body was covered with ghastly wounds that did not have any bloodstains. Her pale-white bones were revealed in many areas.

    How many bones had she broken? She Yu did not know.

    Her consciousness began to turn fuzzy. With herst tinge of consciousness and self-preservation, she was able to suppress her aura.

    The few faint auras outside had disappeared, but She Yu had already fainted. Her condition had worsened significantly. Her body became boiling hot, and her life force was sapping rapidly. Fine lines and wrinkles appeared on her face as her skin began to dry up and crack.

    Her long ck hair turned snow-white at a visible speed, and her heart gradually stopped beating.

    Over time, her body became transparent. Her dark-red blood vessels could be seen clearly now. The fine blood vessels emitted a faint demonic red glow that undted with a gurgle.

    Time silently passed in the darkness.

 Chapter 650: What Kind Of Swordsmanship Is This?

    Chapter 650: What Kind Of Swordsmanship Is This?

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    A group of people was sitting on the ground. The atmosphere was tense, and no one was talking. The fact that they ended up empty-handed after suffering such heavy losses dealt a huge blow to these prideful and arrogant "new Masters."

    Fu Sisi was sitting on a boulder that was of half a man¡¯s height. Simrly, her facial expression did not look too good.

    At this point in time, they were engulfed an intense sense of failure. Their heads were hanging down dispiritedly. Only at this moment did they realize they were just a bunch of ten to twenty year old youngsters.

    Master¡¯s Glory boosted their strength and allowed them to be Masters, but it couldn¡¯t increase their maturity or wisdom. When they won, they easily became arrogant. Simrly, when they lost, they easily felt dejected.

    "We will split into two groups now. Gui Hu, bring 20 men with you. Your mission is to search for She Yu. The demonic girl is severely injured and definitely can¡¯t run far. Right now, she is most probably hiding somewhere. If you find her, try your best to capture her alive. If you can¡¯t capture her alive, kill her. We definitely can¡¯t let her survive."

    Fu Sisi raised her head as her tone became firm. After witnessing the sacrifice of her father and the great changes that happened to her family, she became much more mature than the others. Due to this intrinsic quality, Madam Ye appointed her as the vice division leader of the Sky Leaf Division.

    Fu Sisi knew that she had to raise everyone¡¯s morale now. Failure wasn¡¯t that scary at all. It wasn¡¯t toote for them to bounce back now. After realizing the mistakes that she had made, Fu Sisi reorganized her train of thought very soon.

    "The rest will follow me. Hmph, Wan Shenwei is just a spent force now, and he still dares to escape? Ye Baiyi is very important to us, so we can¡¯t afford to lose him!"

    Everyone became re-energized and stood up one by one.

    .....

    Gong Peiyao looked at the distant Skyheart City as a tinge of sadness shed across her eyes. Beside her, Han Lu was able to sense her gloominess. He opened his mouth, but nothing came out. He did not know how to console her.

    The image of indifferent faces and the spreading pool of blood beneath their feet appeared in his mind.

    Sky Leaf Division!

    A tinge of fear streaked across the depths of his pupils. His palm that grasped his sword hilt tightened subconsciously, causing his fingers to turn white.

    They were a group of cold-blooded killing machines. In their eyes, human lives were no different from weeds.

    Soon, Han Li regained hisposure. After bing a Master, his mental state became more and more cultivated with each passing day. He was no longer as rash as he was in the past. Furthermore, he knew Peiyao would be safe in Skyheart City even though she was a hostage. From his understanding of Madam Ye, he knew she would take good care of Peiyao and try her best to win Peiyao over. Madam Ye was someone who was willing to pay any price to gain talents.

    If someone tried to harm Peiyao, they would have to step over his dead body first.

    Han Li was absorbed in swordsmanship. He had no interest in politics, and all he wanted was to live a simple life. As long as Peiyao was safe, he would be at ease. Peiyao probably wouldn¡¯t be happy though. Fortunately, Peiyao always understood the big picture and had extremely strong adaptability. With regards to this aspect, Han Li might even lose out to her.

    He smiled and shifted his gaze back to the distant Skyheart City. He did not know whether or not it was because he had not returned for a very long time, but he found the previously deste and ruined Skyheart City to be prosperous now.

    Gong Peiyao thought of the news that she had just received, and her spirits rose significantly. "The elementalists obtained a great victory at the front line. The God Wolf and Silver Frost Divisions were in to thest man, and Helian Tianxiao was executed. Such an unprecedented triumph. Ai Hui and Sister Xueman are really formidable."

    "That¡¯s really a great victory!" Han Li was emotionally moved.

    With the destruction of the God Wolf Division, the Silver Frost Blood Division, and the Ardent Flower Blood Division, this implied that one-sixth of the Blood of God¡¯s elites were annihted. Even with the Blood of God¡¯s massive military strength, this was still considered a heavy loss for them.

    "Their impressive performance is... not something good in Madam Ye¡¯s eyes." Gong Peiyao looked slightly worried now.

    Han Li remained silent.

    Suddenly, Gong Peiyao asked curiously, "Let me ask you, between Ai Hui¡¯s group and the Sky Leaf Division, who do you think is more powerful?"

    After thinking for a while, Han Li replied, "Sky Leaf Division."

    "Why the Sky Leaf Division?" Gong Peiyao wasn¡¯t satisfied with Han Li¡¯s answer.

    "In the history of the Avalon of Five Elements, there has never been abat division that was entirely made up of Masters. Any single member of the Sky Leaf Division is more powerful than an ordinary Master. I can¡¯t think of anyone that can defeat the Sky Leaf Division," Han Li muttered.

    Gong Peiyao gave a childish snort and continued, "In any case, I believe in Ai Hui and Sister Xueman."

    Ai Hui...

    When Han Li thought of Ai Hui, a trace of longing shed across his eyes. For some reason, the battle fervor within his body began to stir. His loss to Ai Hui was precisely what allowed him to pry into the profundity of swordsmanship and be a Master.

    He knew he would be extremely delighted if he had another chance to fight with that fellow again!

    Han Li could not help but grip the hilt of his sword tightly. After a while, he heaved a breath of air. This breath of white air was shaped like a sword and refused to dissipate. His facial expression loosened up gradually.

    It was a pity there that were no swordsmanship experts in Skyheart City.

    After he became a Master, a brand-new world of swordsmanship appeared before him. There were countless unknowns waiting for him to explore. Right now, he hoped that he could encounter other master swordsmen and exchange pointers with them.

    Previously, he still hoped that his swordsmanship could improve with each passing day. Now, he no longer counted on it.

    The sess of Master¡¯s Glory had paved a bright path for all young elementalists. This was a path allowed them to obtain power, strength, status, wealth, and glory rapidly.

    As a traditional elementalist, Han Li instinctively loathed Master¡¯s Glory. From his perspective, Master¡¯s Glory was no different from the Beast Venom Temple¡¯s blood refinement.

    Before they reached the city gate, there was already an elementalist waiting for them.

    Han Li did not know who this elementalist was and found him to be extremely unfamiliar. However, Han Li knew that he was from the Sky Leaf Division by the energy undtions around his body.

    The elementalist had an indifferent look on his face. He bowed slightly and spoke with a polite tone, "Miss Peiyao and Master Han, wee to Skyheart City. Madam knew that both of you would arrive today, and she is very happy. She even personally involved herself in finding a residence for you. If you have any requests, feel free to tell me. Madam has prepared a weing banquet for both of you, and various family heads are invited to it. Your luggage will be sent to your residence by the butler. Please follow me to the banquet now."

    A wide smile appeared on Gong Peiyao¡¯s face as she bowed and replied gently, "Sir, thank you for leading the way."

    "You¡¯re wee."

    The elementalist¡¯s face was still indifferent as usual. He turned around and led the way.

    As they entered Skyheart City, Gong Peiyao and Han Li looked at each other. They could see the shock in each other¡¯s eyes. Both of them hade to Skyheart City before, so they knew what it looked like in the past. The current Skyheart City looked as though it had been reborn. There was a huge number of shops, and the streets were bustling with people and activity.

    Was this... the economic climate of a free market nation?

    Gong Peiyao¡¯s feelings wereplicated.

    The banquet was very grand. Those who attended it were all important figures. The seniority of many of them actually required the Gong Residence¡¯s family head to receive them. By custom, a junior like Gong Peiyao was only fit to serve them. From the atmosphere of the banquet, one would definitely not be able to tell that this banquet was prepared for a hostage.

    Madam Ye was cordial and warm, making one felt as though he or she was at home. She drank andughed with everyone. Both the host and the guests were enjoying their time at the banquet.

    Gong Peiyao knew this was Madam Ye¡¯s way of bragging about her aplishments by disying her benevolence and amiability.

    When Gong Peiyao returned to her residence, she was already worn out and quickly fell into a deep sleep.

    Han Li looked at Gong Peiyao¡¯s cherubic sleeping appearance and sighed in his heart. Sensing that someone was outside, he stood up and walked toward the door silently. When he opened the door, he saw the Sky Leaf Division elementalist who had received them earlier.

    "Madam wants to see you."

    The meeting ce was at a deste, unremarkable house.

    Madam Ye¡¯s appearance had not changed at all. It appeared that time did not leave any traces on her. Han Li could sense faint energy undtionsing from the shadow in a corner not far away.

    He remained calm and stayed at his position like a statue.

    "Han Li, have I ever mistreated you?"

    Madam Ye¡¯s voice was in and calm.

    "No, never," Han Li replied.

    "Do you have anything to exin to me then?" Madam Ye snorted.

    "No." Han Li shook his head.

    Madam Ye did not seem to expect that Han Li would be so stubborn, and her face darkened. A faint killing intent extended from the shadow in the corner, and the temperature of the room kept on decreasing, appearing as though it could sense Madam Ye¡¯s anger.

    Han Li acted as if he couldn¡¯t sense this.

    Suddenly, Madam Ye chuckled softly. "You indeed have the air of a Master now. Even your character has changed.

    Han Li sighed in his heart. He knew his rtionship with Madam Ye waspletely broken. Han Li¡¯s entry into the Karakorum Sword League was personally arranged by Madam Ye. From what she said just now, she was actually giving him a chance to redeem himself. As long as he was willing to lower his head and take orders from Madam Ye, she would let bygones be bygones.

    However, he still rejected her even though that path led to glory and magnificence.

    The faint killing intent that lingered in the room disappeared, appearing as though it was Han Li¡¯s hallucination.

    "You¡¯re already a master swordsman now, and you should have deep understanding of swordsmanship. It just so happens that I have a mirage clip here that I want to show you." Madam Ye smiled.

    Han Li felt slightly puzzled, but he did not say anything.

    A ball of light suddenly blossomed in the room. Han Li¡¯s attention was immediately captured by the image before him. It was a battlefield!

    He could tell that the person who recorded this clip used an extremely high-grade mirage bean pod. The image was extremely clear with many details in high definition.

    Han Li¡¯s eyes looked as though they were about to pop out. His mouth subconsciously opened, and it did not close for a long period of time.

    When Madam Ye saw his facial expression, she did not ridicule him. She still remembered how appalled she was when she first saw this image.

    The sword gleams that descended from the sky were like a beautiful rain of light. Even the splendor of the synchronized pagoda cannon shots paled inparison to it. In the face of the light swords, the powerful blood elementalists were weak and delicate like pieces of paper and were unable to withstand a single blow.

    Rivers of blood and corpses were everywhere.

    What is this sword? Why are the sword gleams so unique?

    How many swords are there? Howe he can¡¯t keep track of the number of swords?

    Why is every sword shaped differently?

    How does one control such a terrifying number of light swords?

    Why are they so powerful?

    What... what kind of swordsmanship is this?

    Countless questions swirled in Han Li¡¯s head. He felt as though there were raging waves surging through his mind. His understanding of swordsmanship was overturned in an instant. The confidence he obtained from bing a Master copsed with a loud rumble at this moment.

    He did not notice Madam Ye¡¯s pupils faintly dte when Helian Tianxiao yelled in the clip, "Ai Hui, you¡¯re a blood elementalist!"

    Han Li, who was immersed in the recording, suddenly realized what was going on. This clip depicted the entire process of the destruction of the God Wolf Division!

    The dazzling and gorgeous rain of swords...

    All of a sudden, a name involuntarily appeared in Han Li¡¯s mind.

    ¡ª¡ª Ai Hui!

    Han Li couldn¡¯t believe what he had just seen.

    When the clip ended, the room became silent once more. Han Li¡¯s heavy panting could be clearly heard. His eyes were in a daze, his face was pale-white, and his clothes were drenched in sweat.

    Madam Ye stayed silent for a while before asking, "From your perspective, do you think swordsmanship alone can be so powerful?"

 Chapter 651: Gong Peiyaoâ€™s Conjecture

    Chapter 651: Gong Peiyao¡¯s Conjecture

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Han Li did not know how he returned to his residence. He was still in a daze. His mind was preupied with image of the dazzling rain of light descending from the sky. When he went through the door, he tripped on the threshold and almost fell down.

    "What happened?"

    Gong Peiyao hurriedly walked up to him. Her eyes were filled with worry. She had never seen Han Li like this before.

    Han Li raised his head with his eyes still in a daze. After a long while, he returned to his senses and heaved a sigh. When he saw the worry in Peiyao¡¯s eyes, he bitterlyughed. "I¡¯m all right, Madam did not make things difficult for me. It¡¯s just that I saw incredible swordsmanship, and it¡¯s difficult for me to ept it for the time being."

    Upon hearing these words, Gong Peiyao heaved a sigh of relief. "That you¡¯re all right is all that matters."

    Soon after, Gong Peiyao asked with curiosity, "Whose swordsmanship could frighten you to this extent?"

    After bing a Master, Han Li¡¯s understanding of swordsmanship had entered a brand-new realm. Not only did he not feelcent, he practiced and researched swordsmanship more diligently than before. His level of attainment in swordsmanship increased with each passing day. Gong Peiyao seldomly saw Han Li fight and did not know how good Han Li¡¯s swordsmanship was. When the Sky Leaf Division arrived at Pcefield City, Han Li stepped forward to negotiate with them and averted a bloodbath.

    "It¡¯s Ai Hui... I saw how the God Wolf Division was destroyed, the death of Helian Tianxiao, and the omnipresent sword consciousness... It was an eye-opener!" Han Li replied emotionally.

    "Really? Really? It¡¯s a pity I did not have the chance to see it. Ai Hui has already be so powerful? Who else was there? What about Sister Xueman?" Gong Peiyao widened her eyes.

    She spoke extremely fast as her curiosity was piqued. The news of the great victory at the front line had been spread far and wide. However, everyone only knew that the God Wolf Division was annihted and that Helian Tianxiao was killed. No one knew the exact details of the battle, which shrouded the victory in mystery. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that Ai Hui and Shi Xueman had outstanding military aplishments, many people would not have believed that the victory happened.

    "There¡¯s only Ai Hui. Countless light swords descended from the sky like a rain of light." Han Li shook his head.

    Gong Peiyao was stunned. "Then the God Wolf Division was destroyed?"

    Han Li replied her with an "uhh." A mind-wandering look swept across his eyes. "That scene was breathtaking and magnificent. I wish I could see it with my own eyes!"

    "Is Ai Hui really that powerful now?" Gong Peiyao muttered.

    "Yes, every one of those countless light swords was differently shaped. Even their sword consciousnesses were ever-changing and all-embracing," Han Li eximed in admiration.

    "Isn¡¯t he like a Grandmaster that way? Has Ai Hui be a Grandmaster?" Gong Peiyao asked.

    Han Li froze as a look of doubt appeared in his eyes. After a while, he returned to his senses and said, "No, Ai Hui is not a Grandmaster yet. Even though his swordsmanship is at the peak of perfection, it isn¡¯t omnipotent."

    Suddenly, a realization dawned upon him. "No wonder Madam asked me if swordsmanship alone can be so powerful!"

    Previously, he was immersed in the swordsmanship disyed in the clip, and he did not think about anything else. Now that he thought about it, he understood what Madam Ye meant by her question. Ai Hui¡¯s strength definitely had not reached the level of a Grandmaster. His swordsmanship might be extraordinary, but it definitely wasn¡¯t powerful enough to annihte the God Wolf Division effortlessly.

    He recalled the clip in his mind. One of the scenes that he previously ignored captured his attention now.

    In the face of Ai Hui¡¯s light swords, the red glows around the Gold Wolf soldiers¡¯ bodies were unusually weak, like paper. Han Li had fought with blood elementalists before and knew the red glow around their bodies was very troublesome. It wasn¡¯t easy to break through it. However, the light swords descending from the sky not only killed Helian Tianxiao effortlessly, but countless God Wolf soldiers as well.

    When he thought of Helian Tianxiao¡¯s angry cry before his death, Han Li¡¯s facial expression changed slightly.

    He told his conjecture to Gong Peiyao, and her face turned solemn. After a while, Gong Peiyao shook her head and replied, "I¡¯m sure he isn¡¯t a blood elementalist. Lou Lan would not lie. Furthermore, it¡¯s unlikely that other people did not sense Ai Hui cultivating blood spiritual force. There¡¯s another possibility as to why the light swords are so effective against blood elementalists..."

    "What possibility?" Han Li asked.

    "God¡¯s blood, the sacred artifact of the God Nation!" Gong Peiyao¡¯s tone turned solemn. "Blood elementalists have a strict base level system. The power of a blood elementalist with a high base level is extremely effective against the power of a blood elementalist with a low base level. Given Helian Tianxiao¡¯s base level, the only ones who can restrain him are the Red Devil and the Holy Emperor. Plus, the only person who can restrain him that easily is the Holy Emperor. Reportedly, the Blood of God has a sacred artifact that was passed down since the ancient times, the blood of a demonic god. The Holy Emperor attained the level of Grandmaster after absorbing it."

    "Then where did Ai Hui get the God¡¯s blood from? If he absorbed the God¡¯s blood, won¡¯t he be a blood elementalist? Is it possible that one would not be a blood elementalist after consuming the God¡¯s blood?" Han Li asked.

    "I don¡¯t know he got it, but perhaps Madam Ye knows." Gong Peiyao shook her head.

    "Why would Madam Ye know?" Han Li asked with doubt.

    "You forget that Madam Ye used to have a close rtionship with the Assembly of Patriarchs, which is the arch-enemy of the Blood of God," Gong Peiyao replied.

    "Didn¡¯t they fall out?" Han Li was puzzled.

    Gong Peiyao did not reply immediately and looked out through the door. Han Li understood what she meant. Following which, he used his index and middle fingers like a sword and pointed it at the sky. Next, he drew a circle in the air and released faint waves of energy. His surroundings quieted down in an instant.

    With a solemn look on her face, Gong Peiyao lowered her voice and said, "You have seen the elementalists from the Sky Leaf Division before. Don¡¯t you realize that all of them have something inmon?"

    After thinking about it, Han Li replied, "They possess all five elements?"

    "Yes," Gong Peiyao answered. "My family has worked with the Assembly of Patriarchs before, and we have obtained an iplete version of the training method for fusion elemental energy. When I saw the elementalists from the Sky Leaf Division, I immediately thought of fusion elemental energy. I have looked through the ancient records in my family. Even though the Assembly of Patriarchs is mysterious, we still know a thing or two about them. Reportedly, the Elders Guild obtained an iplete version of the training method for fusion elemental energy in the past. After assessing it, the elders felt that it was not specialized enough and would not have much sess in the future. Moreover, the Assembly of Patriarchs is very low-profile. The Elders Guild usually doesn¡¯t care about them unless they overstep the bounds of what is proper."

    Han Li was enthralled by Gong Peiyao¡¯s words. Such insider information could never be found in the outside world. Only those long-established aristocratic families possessed records of such issues.

    "The Assembly of Patriarchs has a very long history, but the fusion elemental energy has only been around for over 20 years."

    "Over 20 years?" Han Li was astounded.

    20 years was too short for an inheritance to fully mature. Many inheritances only became absolute arts after going through generations of improvements and amendments.

    "20 years was when the Elders Guild first discovered it. In reality, fusion elemental energy has been around longer than that. Around five years before the Elders Guild discovered fusion elemental energy, a member of my family battled with the Ye family. A few of our family guards were severely injured, and traces of all five elemental energies could be found in their bodies. At that time, no one knew that that was fusion elemental energy. It was only when the Elders Guild discovered the existence of fusion elemental energy that our family head recalled the incident. He felt that the issue was extremely peculiar and decided to record it down." Gong Peiyao looked slightly vexed.

    "Is it possible that the Ye family and the Assembly of Patriarchs..." Han Li was startled.

    Gong Peiyao shook her head and replied, "I don¡¯t exactly know what happened, but I am certain that the rtionship between Madam Ye¡¯s family and the Assembly of Patriarchs isn¡¯t as simple as what the outside world thinks."

    "If that¡¯s the case, it is not surprising that Madam Ye knows about the God¡¯s blood." Suddenly, Han Li thought of a question and asked, "What do you think Madam Ye will do if Ai Hui¡¯s body really possesses the God¡¯s blood?"

    "That¡¯s true, what will Madam Ye do?"

    A glint lit up in Gong Peiyao¡¯s eyes as her facial expression brimmed with curiosity and expectation.

    .....

    In the depths of a dark crevice, a petite figure was curled up while emitting a pulsating red glow.

    Droplets of water were gathering on the rocky ceiling above her.

    Drip.

    A droplet of water fell from the rocky ceiling. At this moment, the red glow around She Yu¡¯s body intensified. That droplet of water fell into the red glow like a moth that flew into a candle me.

    Sizzle.

    A wisp of white steam rose into the air, appearing as though the droplet of water hadnded on a hot iron.

    The red glow pulsated continuously. The mist around She Yu was dense and concentrated.

    Through her nearly transparent body, blood was flowing through her bright-red blood vessels, and her heart was beating rhythmically.

    Thump, thump, thump.

    Her heartbeat wasn¡¯t fast, but slightly slow. However, every heartbeat was filled with power. The surrounding air was trembling slightly, as though a slim hand was lightly brushing across the surface of a drum.

    Fine and tiny cracks began to appear on the surface of the heart, as if it had been sliced several times by a razor-sharp knife. The cracks were finer than strands of hair. If it weren¡¯t for the dazzling red glow that was shining out of them, one would not have noticed them. Along with the red glow, they made She Yu¡¯s heart look as if it was filled with burningva.

    Traces of domineering and violent aura emanated from the hair-like cracks. There was a poisonous bug frantically escaping from her body. Suddenly, it froze in its tracks.

    The poisonous bug¡¯s life force disappeared, and its luster dimmed, bing ash-colored. It had be a tiny bug statue.

    Thump.

    She Yu¡¯s heart began to beat again. The ash-colored poisonous bug disintegrated into dust.

    The surging blood in her blood vessels gushed into her heart continuously. Following which, the blood was sent to various parts of her body by her heart. The look of agony on She Yu¡¯s face disappeared gradually. Her facial expression turned serene, resembling a baby who was sleeping soundly.

    The dense mist had yet to dissipate. It gathered around her like a white cocoon.

    Gui Hu descended from the sky andnded on a boulder. Then, he swept his gaze across his surroundings. In his proximity, there were only bushes that were half a man¡¯s height, making it impossible for someone to hide in them.

    Gui Hui did not leave. Heid down and ced his ear on the boulder, listening carefully for any sounds.

    He agreed with what Fu Sisi¡¯s conjecture. It was most likely that She Yu was hiding beneath the ground. Only by doing this could she avoid them. The demonic girl was severely injured and could not escape far. However, she might use some unique hiding techniques to conceal herself.

    Putting aside his distracting thoughts, Gui Hu closed his eyes.

    The sounds made by growing nt roots, scuttling ants, flowing water, and the exuberant subterranean world appeared in his mind.

    At this point in time, he heard an unusual sound.

    Thud, thud, thud...

    It sounded like the heartbeat of a slumbering, gigantic beast. It was unusually slow and deep, yet powerful. Gui Hu wasn¡¯t an experienced individual, but his instincts told him this beast was not to be trifled with.

    His mind jolted, and he stood up. Swiftly, he found a crevice in a nearby cluster of rocks. The heartbeat wasing from this crevice.

    Without hesitation, he entered the crevice.

    The entrance of the crevice was extremely obscure. It was also far deeper than he expected. He was highly vignt, but his speed did not slow down. Inside the crevice, there was nothing but darkness. However, this did not hinder him. To him, it was no different than being in the light.

    When he reached the depths of the crevice, dense mist covered his eyes. The weird heartbeat wasing from it. The white mist was extremely dense, stopping him from seeing what was inside.

    What was this?

    A look of uncertainty arose on Gui Hui¡¯s face. He instinctively sensed a dangerous aura and became highly alert.

    Suddenly, dark-red glowing eyes lit up in the mist.

 Chapter 652: A Piece of Unexpected News

    Chapter 652: A Piece of Unexpected News

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    Deep in a lush forest on a mountain range, there were two people flying at high speed under the forest canopy like two huge birds. They looked very anxious, but they were extremely careful in their movements. They were absolutely silent as they advanced.

    Wang Erdan carried the unconscious Wan Shenwei on his back while hisrade, Deng Rong, carried Ye Baiyi. Both of their faces and necks were covered with white residue. This white residue was actuallyyers of salt left behind after their sweat had evaporated. Both of their lips were dry and cracked, while their throats were parched and scorched. They werepletely exhausted, but they continued to clench their teeth and advance with all their might.

    This was their only thought.

    Every minute and every second was utterly precious and drenched in theirrades¡¯ blood.

    Theirrades had sacrificed themselves as bait to allow them to make an escape. Only Wang Erdan and Deng Rong remained. In the face of those terrifying killing machines from the Sky Leaf Division, their chances of survival was almost zero.

    Wang Erdan and Deng Rong did not bawl their eyes out. At this point in the war, everyone had already disregarded life and death.

    The dead would rest in peace, while the living would live in hatred and seek vengeance.

    Suddenly, a weak groan came from behind Wang Erdan. A cold shiver went down Wang Erdan¡¯s body. Even though he was worn out, his dazed eyes still lit up with vigor.

    "Sir!"

    He quickly stopped in his tracks, but his body did not listen to him. As hended on the ground, he staggered and almost fell down. Fortunately, he had a fast reaction time as he used his left hand to prop himself up from the ground and stabilize himself.

    Deng Rong¡¯s reaction time was slightly slower. He flew for tens of meters before returning to his senses and almost crashed into a huge tree. Luckily, he used Ye Baiyi as a shield in front of him.

    Bang.

    Like an adamantine pad, he crashed into the tree trunk and caused wood shavings to fly in all directions. Deng Rong used the inertia to stabilize himself. Following which, he carried Ye Baiyi and ran over to Wang Erdan in a hurry. With a pleasantly surprised look on his face, he asked anxiously, "Is Sir awake?"

    Wang Erdan carefullyid Wan Shenwei straight on the grass.

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s face was pale like a piece of paper andpletely devoid of blood. His eyelids twitched and opened up slowly.

    For some reason, Wang Erdan burst out crying. "Sir, you¡¯re awake, you¡¯re finally awake!"

    Deng Rong¡¯s eyes were slightly red.

    When Wan Shenwei saw the faces in front of him clearly, his empty eyes lit up with a glint. His lips curled as he tried to force a smile. Even a small action like this pulled at the wounds within his chest cavity. Following which, a sharp pain swept across his body. A shade of darkness shed across Wan Shenwei¡¯s vision as he almost lost consciousness again.

    After a long while, he returned to his senses. He knew he did not have much time left.

    "After I die..."

    Wang Erdan¡¯s lips trembled involuntarily. He clenched his teeth and did not say anything. He knew Sir must have something important to remind him about. Tears streamed down his cheeks uncontrobly like floodwater.

    Deng Rong kneeled on the ground while sobbing silently.

    Speaking a few words seemed to drain Wan Shenweipletely. He froze for a long while before regaining a bit of strength to speak, "Send Ye Baiyi to Ai Hui."

    Wang Erdan nodded his head furiously and let his tears flow down his cheeks torrentially. He did not dare to say anything because he was scared that he might bawl his eyes out if he opened his mouth.

    Even though Wan Shenwei was severely injured at this point in time, his state of mind was still unusually clear. Ever since he saw the Sky Leaf Division and knew that Master¡¯s Glory had seeded, he understood that the current situation of the world was undergoing aplete change. From this moment onward, Beyond Avalon would be in Madam Ye¡¯s hands entirely.

    How could a mountain hold two tigers? The Central Pine Faction¡¯s fate had already been decided at this moment. Either they pledged their allegiance to Madam Ye, had their strength slowly diminished by the war against the blood elementalists, or became a rebel army that would be be suppressed by Skyheart City.

    Actually, Wan Shenwei did not mind Madam Ye unifying Beyond Avalon. Simrly, he believed that Beyond Avalon had to be united for it to defeat the Blood of God.

    However...

    The emotionless eyes of the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s elementalists suddenly appeared in his mind. They had the same mannerisms and same elemental energy auras. If one disregarded their outer appearances, they were just like sand puppet clones.

    A mysterious sense of fear arose in Wan Shenwei¡¯s mind. He suddenly thought of something bad.

    Sky Leaf Division¡¯s elementalists were like...

    The Dread Division was the leader of the three central divisions, the most importantbat division of the Avalon of Five Elements. Having being the division leader of the Dread Division, Wan Shenwei hade into contact with countless insider stories. Like a tidal wave, fear gushed into his mind from all directions, rendering him unable to escape. This was the first time that the usually fearless Wan Shenwei felt scared. His usually firm and stable palms were trembling involuntarily at this moment.

    No matter what, Beyond Avalon could not fall into the hands of the Ye family!

    The look in Wan Shenwei¡¯s eyes intensified, and a tinge of red rose upon his pale-white cheeks. He sat up abruptly, grabbed Wang Erdan¡¯s clothes, widened his eyes, and said, "Do you still remember the ce that I brought you to? Go! Bring Ai Hui and hispanions there!"

    Wang Erdan¡¯s face was covered with tears. Sir¡¯s words put him in a daze. The ce that Sir had brought him to?

    "Quickly go!"

    Wan Shenwei roared as his eyes widened in anger. After he finished his sentence, his face froze like a statue, and he copsed heavily onto the ground. Wang Erdan and Deng Rong turned pale with fright. No matter how hard they screamed at or hit Wan Shenwei, thetter would not react to them at all.

    Wan Shenwei was dead,pletely devoid of life.

    A hero who died with a remaining grievance.

    Both of them wept loudly over the body of Wan Shenwei with tears frantically flowing down their faces. Suddenly, Deng Rong wiped off the tears on his face as a glint streaked across his reddened eyes. He had regained hisposure. He picked up Wan Shenwei¡¯s body and tied it to his back. Then, he said, "Have you remembered Sir¡¯s words?"

    Wang Erdan knew what Deng Rong was going to do and shifted his gaze to him. Deng Rong¡¯s face was covered with dirt and residual tears. His eyes were now so swollen that the glint had disappeared. They contained nothing but unwavering determination.

    Wang Erdan could not help but cry again.

    He was the youngest member of the Dread Division, so everyone usually took good care of him. In his heart, Wan Shenwei was like his father, while hisrades were like his elder brothers.

    Why... why he was the only one left now...

    Wang Erdan stood there isted and helpless. Deng Rong looked at his tear-stricken, young, and tender face and sighed. He was still a kid after all.

    Deng Rong hardened his heart and said, "Don¡¯t let us die for nothing, Dan Dan."

    After finishing his sentence, Deng Rong took Wan Shenwei¡¯s body, rose up in the air, and flew off in another direction. She Yu or the Sky Leaf Division shouldn¡¯t be able to see through his diversionary tactic. He hoped he could dy them for a while. Indeed, even if it was just for a while.

    In the past, Wang Erdan hated being called "Dan Dan" by the people in the Dread Division. Every time someone called him that, he would fly into a rage out of humiliation and fight with that person. However, this time around, why was he not angry? Why was he crying even harder?

    A surge of strength from an unknown source filled his body. Not caring about the tears on his face, he picked up Ye Baiyi and flew off in another direction with all his might.

    Deng Rong was right, he could not let everyone die in vain.

    .....

    "It¡¯s God¡¯s Blood! It¡¯s definitely God¡¯s blood."

    Ma Shiji was so agitated that his voice became slightly high pitched and sharp. He looked at the clip with his eyes wide open while muttering, "It¡¯s magnificent, it¡¯s indeed magnificent! Look at the swords sticking in the ground, they are devouring the blood and flesh of the blood elementalists! This is the proof! In an extreme situation, a high-level blood elementalist can devour a low-level blood elementalist to replenish his or her strength. Even though there are not many such cases, it¡¯s enough to show the key issue here."

    Madam Ye was very calm instead of shocked or surprised. Next, she asked, "Where did he get the God¡¯s blood from?"

    Ma Shiji returned to his senses, shook his head, and replied, "It¡¯s very hard to know where he got it from because there are too many possibilities."

    "Why did he not be a blood elementalist then?" Madam Ye continued to ask.

    When Ma Shiji heard this question, his eyes lit up. Clearly, the question had struck a nerve in him. With excitement, he replied, "Even though there are many things that I am unsure of, I can roughly conjecture what happened. It¡¯s an extremely brilliant idea!"

    Ma Shiji did not beat around the bush and continued, "The Assembly of Patriarchs has researched the blood of blood elementalists for many years, and many results have been produced. The power of a blood elementalist originates from his or her blood. The higher the base level of a blood elementalist¡¯s blood, the more powerful he or she will be. However, the blood of a blood elementalist is a type of poison to an elementalist. The higher the blood¡¯s base level is, the more poisonous it is. Ai Hui seems to know a lot about the God¡¯s blood and the toxicity of it. The method he used is ingenious. He directed the power that he couldn¡¯t absorb from the God¡¯s blood into the swords. An ordinary sword can¡¯t tolerate such mighty power, therefore hepensated this weakness with a huge number of swords. That¡¯s why we can see there are countless light swords in the clip. The more terrifying thing is that these light swords are no longer ordinary weapons after absorbing the blood and flesh of the blood elementalists."

    "What do you mean?" Madam Ye¡¯s facial expression did not look good.

    "In ancient times, there were differents names for such an attribute. While some called it spiritual nature, others called it demonic nature. Oh my god, it¡¯s really a miracle! It¡¯s incredibly hard to forge a Heaven-grade weapon with a spiritual nature, yet he possesses so many of them!"

    "Did you say that Ai Hui knows a lot about the God¡¯s blood just now?" Madam Ye asked.

    "He couldn¡¯t havee up with such an ingenious idea if he did not know a lot about the God¡¯s blood."

    A look of doubt shed across Madam Ye¡¯s eyes. She closed her eyes, looking as though she was thinking of something.

    After a long period of time, she opened her eyes and asked, "If Xiaobao and Ai Hui fight, who would win?"

    Ma Shiji hesitated for a while before answering, "It¡¯s hard to say who would win. We will know after they actually fight. There¡¯s something that I am unsure of. How does Ai Hui control such an enormous number of swords?"

    "In the Cultivation Era, there was a swordsman sect that used essence, breath, and spirit to form embryos that control swords. They called them sword embryos. It¡¯s most likely that Ai Hui has nurtured a sword embryo. I didn¡¯t actually expect someone in this world to be able to nurture a sword embryo sessfully."

    A look of realization dawned upon Ma Shiji. He believed Madam Ye¡¯s conjecture without any doubt. After all, Madam Ye¡¯s ancestor was thest swordsman. The Ye family had a huge number of ancient books on swordsmanship as well as a vast amount of knowledge on this subject.

    "If this is the case, Xiaobao has a very low chance of defeating him. The entire Sky Leaf Division should be able to contend against him," Ma Shiji muttered.

    Madam Ye¡¯s facial expression turned ugly. She already had a taste of supreme power. Now that someone who could threaten her authority suddenly appeared, she felt uneasy.

    "Numbers can¡¯t bepared to strength. Is there any solution?" she asked.

    After a slight hesitation, Ma Shiji replied, "We can let Xiaobao enter the second round of Master¡¯s Glory."

    "Will Xiaobao be in danger?"

    "It¡¯s not really dangerous, but the sess rate will decrease."

    "Do it then."

    "Yes."

    The next day, a piece of news broke out and created a sensation in Beyond Avalon.

    "Everybat division at the front line united as one and fought bravely against the blood elementalists, obtaining a great victory as a result. After convening, the Elders Guild has made several decisions. Regardless of rank, all soldiers will be promoted by one rank. The rewards are as follows... Swordsman Ai Hui has achieved an extraordinary meritorious service by executing Helian Tianxiao, standing out among his peers. We hereby promote him to the position of Elder in the Elders Guild. He willmand allbat divisions at the front line and be a candidate for the next Great Elder. The Elders Guild will choose a dateter to discuss the election of the next Great Elder..."

 Chapter 653: Second Sun

    Chapter 653: Second Sun

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    At the Jadeite Forest¡¯s border, a caravan advanced through the vast grasnd. The caravan wasn¡¯t small. It was a team consisting of over 150 load basin beasts that stretched across several miles. Melodious copper bells echoed along with the sound of the breeze.

    This was the divide between the grasnd and the forest. A verdant and lush forest could be seen about 50 miles down the road.

    Abandoned, the Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige¡¯s elemental energy had withered and their five elemental cycles had been broken. The Jadeite Forest¡¯s elemental energy had also be much more sparse. The grasnds at the border constantly expanded as the tree line retreated. On the other side of the grasnds, there were even signs of desertification and increasing destion.

    The growth of the vegetation did not affect people¡¯s pursuit of profit. Caravans came in an endless stream. They set off from the Jadeite Forest, traversed through Palette Cloud Vige and the Silver Mist Sea, and entered Beyond Avalon. This was currently the most bustling trade route.

    The battle between the Blood of God and Beyond Avalon had severed the trade route. Many resources from the Blood of God had to go around the Jadeite Forest and through the merchants of the Jadeite Forest in order to enter Beyond Avalon.

    The elemental energy in the Silver Mist Sea and Palette Cloud Vige had withered, hence these ces weren¡¯t suitable long term residences for elementalists. All kinds of wild beasts bred freely, but the good thing was that they wouldn¡¯t turn into dire beasts. Other than the fact that the journey was a little far, there wasn¡¯t much lurking danger. Theck of elemental energy replenishment wasn¡¯t a problem since load basin beasts were extremely durable, hard working, and made for long distance transportation. Their only w was that they moved too slowly, but even then, it wasn¡¯t a big problem these days.

    Old Tu had already traveled along this route many times, so he was very experienced.

    Upon entering the Jadeite Forest¡¯s border, everyone in the caravan heaved a sigh of relief. With Grandmaster Dai watching over the Jadeite Forest, no one would dare cause trouble. Ever since the Grass Bandits were attacked by Ai Hui and trapped and annihted by the Lu family and Duanmu family¡¯s alliance, their operation hadpletely halted since the main ringleaders had been caught.

    The Jadeite Forest was now a happynd of peace and joy.

    The battle between the Blood of God and Beyond Avalon was a topic that the people of the Jadeite Forest discussed over tea. Some talked idly about it, some were filled with worry, while others dismissed it with augh. Generally, though, everyone considered it distant. They were more interested in what Master Mingxiu was creating nowadays and in the mistakes that Yu Mingqiu made when reciting poetry.

    Old Tu hummed a folk song. This journey had taken about six months, but had been pretty beneficial. Thinking about how he could return to his familiar home in a few days¡¯ time lit his heart up like the sun.

    Speaking about the sun, he suddenly felt that the sun before his eyes seemed to be unusually ringpared to when he first started this journey.

    "How hot. Why does it feel like summer?"

    "Yeah, why is it getting so hot so early this year? Strange!"

    "Don¡¯t talk so much. Let¡¯s hurry. It¡¯ll be cooler in the forest."

    ...

    Hearing their discussion made Old Tu crinkle his brows. The climate this year had been abnormal indeed. Summer came three months earlier than usual. Could it be that the broken five elemental cycle had destroyed the equilibrium?

    Worry shed through his heart.

    Suddenly a convoy member cried out, "Look up, quick. What¡¯s that? Oh my god! Two suns!"

    Two suns?

    Old Tu found it too ridiculous. How could there possibly be two suns? Nevertheless he raised his head and looked skyward. The next moment his whole body turned rigid like a statue. His mind buzzed and nked out, preventing him from even hearing the mor around him.

    "Oh my god, what is happening? Why are there two suns?"

    "Two suns? I have a bad feeling..."

    Everyone was frightened by what they had just seen. Their faces were pale, and some timid fellows started trembling.

    There were clearly two suns of different sizes in the sky. They emitted dazzling and piercing rays of light that illuminated the field.

    Old Tu regained his senses. He forced himself to stayposed, but his hands shook uncontrobly, revealing his inner fear. The prairie before him had seemingly be much more eye-catching, its whiteness somewhat terrifying. He squatted down to touch the grass and realized that the leaves were very dehydrated with the tips starting to wither.

    As a well-travelled person, Old Tu could immediately tell that this condition had appeared not too long ago.

    He stood up promptly and called for a guard who was skilled at flying. "Report this to Jadeite City as soon as possible."

    Not daring to be sluggish, the guard rose into the sky and flew toward the Jadeite Forest.

    Yu Mingqiu was heading toward Mingxiu¡¯s embroidery workshop as usual. He¡¯d been obsessing over embroidery recently and wanted to work in the workshop every day. Being able to greet Mingxiu and learn from her was like a dreame true. Although he was clumsy and not too bright, he had already conferred the title of top male embroiderer to himself.

    Whenever he appeared to be pleased with himself, Mingxiu would always cover her mouth andugh gently.

    How great!

    Everyday for him was filled with joy and satisfaction. His biggest wish was to live this kind of life.

    He quickened his pace, walking along the familiar path while shaking his head and mumbling to himself.

    "The journey is long and endless. I shall learn embroidery to the best of my abilities."

    "Mingxiu¡¯s thread, Mingqiu¡¯s garment."

    "The past has passed, and the future is unknown. The present remembers the heaven and earth, watching Mingxiu and then Mingqiu."

    Inspired, he clicked his tongue, his face full of joy and infatuation. The weather was great, the sun was bright and beautiful...

    His quick footsteps stopped abruptly.

    Hmm, the sun seems a little too bright...

    Yu Mingqiu looked up at the sky, and his pupils shrank. There were two suns, one big and one small!

    He quickly regainedposure and used his palm to shade his eyes. He muttered, "Abnormality is devilish..."

    He lowered his head with a grave expression on his face. He extended his arm and spread his palm open. The intense sunlight contained exceptionally domineering fire elemental energy. He could even feel a slight burning sensation.

    He narrowed his eyes. A bright light shed past and a frivolous, but cold, smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

    He looked at the sky once again and mumbled, "Let me see what divine presence you are!"

    Before he finished his sentence he vanished.

    More and more people started sensing the anomaly in the sky and stopped to look, fear evident in their eyes. People kepting out of their houses, and the streets started to fill up. rmed cries and even shrieks could be heard, but gradually everybody started lowering their voices. Panic spread across the entire Jadeite Forest like a potent poison. This unprecedented phenomenon seemed to foreshadow an uing disaster.

    Fear was like an big invisible web, enveloping everybody¡¯s hearts. As if afraid that noise would trigger a catastrophe in the sky, they kept their voices down.

    .....

    Windy Pearl Bridge defensive line.

    The encampment of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance was buzzing with activity. To a new army, a difficult victory was sufficient to boost their confidence and transform them. Even without Fatty¡¯s supervision, every single soldier would train diligently. Even Tong Gui and Yu Jin were learning how to shoot pagoda cannons. ording to them, they would quickly be obsolete if they did not learn the necessary skills.

    Inside a tent.

    Duanmu Huanghun was rather interested in the news rted to Ai Hui¡¯s promotion into the Elders Guild¡¯s as a Great Elder candidate. Heughed cooly, "What an old trick that has been used for so many years. Can¡¯t they change it up a little?"

    With a p, he shut off the recording. With a flick of his fingers, the mirage bean pod soared in a parab through the air beforending straight into the bin.

    He supported the back of his head with his hands and leaned back slightly, lounging in his chair.

    Sang Zhijun mumbled, "Might as well gift something more realistic like eight or 10 God-subduing Peaks..."

    No one responded.

    Each God-subduing Peak was like a monster that swallowed a lot of resources. If all of Skyheart City¡¯s resources were to be ced in the new cycle of Master¡¯s Glory, where were they going to gather any materials to create God-subduing Peaks? Eight or 10 was impossible, and even just one or two was already decent.

    Seeing that no one was responding, Sang Zhijun felt indignant. "Why don¡¯t you guys think it¡¯s possible? If they don¡¯t have God-subduing Peaks they could at least provide more resources for us to forge one. Didn¡¯t you all hear? Combat divisions have been entering Skyheart City to pay tribute. There were all kinds of countless resources that blocked up the roads."

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯szy voice followed after, "Everyone is expressing their loyalty to the Holy Phoenix. Our resources wille or the higher ups won¡¯t be able to exin themselves. As for the quantity... don¡¯t be too hopeful."

    The rest agreed with Bangwan¡¯s judgment.

    Stroking his fleshy chin Fatty continued, "Does that old witch not have sufficient confidence in the Sky Leaf Division or is it that we¡¯re too powerful?"

    Fatty looked pleased.

    "You overestimate yourself." Jiang Wei attacked verbally, "It¡¯s obvious that Ai Hui is too powerful. We¡¯re just tagging along."

    Upon hearing this, Fatty¡¯s pea-sized eyes opened wide. "Ai Hui wouldn¡¯t be that great without our Pagoda Cannon salvos! Hmph, the Alliance¡¯s credit must not be forgotten. We¡¯re poor. Look at us, we¡¯re a bunch of newbies and have lost a lot. We need to replenish..."

    Hisst line gave it all away, causing everyone to erupt intoughter.

    With an indifferent expression, Shi Xueman knocked on the table. "All right, let¡¯s put this aside and talk about the uing battle."

    With regards to the so-called Great Elder of Elders Guild, shecked the least bit of interest. Just like she knew that if Ai Hui were here, he, too, would have nothing but disdain for it. All along, they had never had the intention of fighting for that position.

    Big Sister¡¯s words shut all of them up.

    Even Bangwan, who was lounging in his chair, sat up straight with a serious expression on his face.

    Although Ai Hui was the boss, everyone still dared to crack jokes with him, though the possibility of his treacherous retribution kept them on their toes. However, no one dared to joke with Shi Xueman. She had always been one to talk with her fists. Oh, and with Cirrus.

    As such, only silence filled the tent as everyone sat upright, waiting for her to speak.

    "Recent operations haven¡¯t been too good. Many of the enemy forces have chickened out, and no one was willing to battle. Pretending not to fight back to lure the enemy doesn¡¯t work either. Any other ideas?" Shi Xueman wrinkled her brows as she ryed the situation in frustration.

 Chapter 654: North Sea Ruins

    Chapter 654: North Sea Ruins

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    What Shi Xueman said wasn¡¯t exaggerated.

    After the great victory over the God Wolf Division, the strength and morale of both sides had undergone major changes. The enemy forces were only left with a few beast battalion remnants. Shi Xueman led the Spear of Heavy Cloud Division, taking the initiative to attack and defeat the God Wolf Division¡¯s supporting beast battalions.

    Soon after, the God Spirit Division, which wasmanded by He Nanshan, came to reinforce the blood elementalists¡¯ assault on the defensive line. However, the morale of the elementalists was high, and their fear of the blood elementalists had long since disappeared. Both the Spear of Heavy Cloud and the Sword of Lightning constantlyunched raids beyond the defensive line and sought to engage the enemy.

    The Sword of Lightning¡¯s Pinwheel Sword, which was fast and flexible, acted as bait at the vanguard and lured the enemy into the Spear of Heavy Cloud¡¯s ambush. Duanmu Huanghun was responsible for ambushing any blood elementalists with an Ability of God.

    After working together a few times, everyone had built a rapport with one another, and the result on the battlefield was remarkable.

    However, the other party was not foolish and immediately changed their strategy after suffering several losses, withdrawing into a passive defense. Shi Xueman and her soldiers were bamboozled. They were like rats pulling at a turtle that had withdrawn into its shell and did not know what to do.

    The God Spirit Division deliberately avoided the previous encampment of the God Wolf Division because there were still remnants of the beast battalion soldiers¡¯ bodies.

    He Nanshan, who was within the heavily guarded central camp, stared dismally at the Sword of Lightning which was continuously cruising outside. Beside him, several blood elementalists that had an Ability of God looked wary and did not let their guards down.

    He Nanchan involuntarily clenched his fist and felt very oppressed.

    The Sword of Lightning flew around the camp and even rushed into the central camp¡¯s defenses to provoke them at times, but they left the central camp swifty before any counter attack.

    Its speed was really too fast!

    If it decided to flee, no one would be able to overtake it. He Nanshan and the rest had organized several pursuit teams previously, but fell into ambushes and lost quite a number of soldiers. Included among these soldiers were two blood elementalists with the Ability of God. These two men died in the same way. Both were trapped by Duanmu Huanghun, besieged, and then killed.

    The casualties were not a big deal to the God Spirit Division, but it was nauseating!

    He Nanshan felt really disgusted, even more disgusted than if he had swallowed a fly. In terms of overall capability, the God Spirit Division was more powerful. The only thing that could not be dealt with was the oddly rapid speed of the Sword of Lightning.

    Undoubtedly, the other party only possessed this absolute advantage, which they made use of repeatedly.

    Harassment, unceasing harassment. Provocation, continual provocation.

    If he sent someone to drive them away, he would be afraid of getting ambushed. If he did not drive them away, however, it would be nauseating. This group of people was truly and extremely shameless. After He Nanshan¡¯s order to stop attacking, these rascals were getting more aggressive and taking advantage of them. Not only were they hovering around the camp all day long like flies searching for eggs, they even attacked the camp twice.

    He Nanshan was awakened from his sleep and, as could be imagined, was in a terrible mood.

    He swore he had never seen such a shamelessbat division. How could anyone consider this to be abat division? They were obviously just a group of hooligans and viins!

    Initially, he was afraid of the consequences. The destruction of the God Wolf and the Silverfrost divisions was sufficient to show that the other party was a threat, so much so that they even defeated the God Spirit pursuit teams. After suffering a great loss to the Dread Division, he dared not underestimate the elementalistbat divisions anymore.

    However, the shameless behavior of the other party almost made him lose his mind, and he was tempted several times to order a full decisive battle. Damn it! If it was not for the big mistake they hadmitted as well as the order from Her Highness She Yu that restricted them from fighting, if it was not for...

    Restraint, restraint...

    He took a deep breath and roared out an order, "Do not attack. Defend your position!"

    After this order, his chest felt stiffer, and he turned away. He walked just two steps, stopped in his tracks, and mmed into a stake at the side without any warning. In the midst of the debris, the roar of He Nanshan sounded like an enraged, uncontroble beast.

    He Nanshan¡¯s chest was heaving violently, and he was breathing heavily. His eyes were blood red, possessing an extreme intent to kill.

    Just wait! Your time will be up when the God Devil and the God Tiger divisions join forces with us! I will ughter and hack you into many pieces.

    Swoosh!

    Behind He Nanshan, a sharp sonic boom came from afar. His body stiffened. Even without seeing, he already knew that it was yet again another provocation from the Sword of Lightning!

    The anger within him, which had just subsided a little, immediately started to rise again. In a sh, he flushed red.

    Damn it! The God Devil and the God Tiger divisions, are you preparing to crawl over?

    Even snails are faster than you guys!

    He Nanshan cursed unconsciously and could not even register what he was saying. His features were distorted just like an angry rhinoceros as he charged into the central camp.

    .....

    In the midst of the biting cold metal wind, three streams of light were like three arrows splitting the furious gale.

    Three elementalists from the Sky Leaf Division were desperately fleeing for their lives. Their delicate and apathetic faces disyed panic and fear, which was rarely seen. All their fears originated from the vague and hazy blood shadow behind them.

    No matter how fast they sped up, they could not break away from the bloody shadow. It was like gangrene attached to the bones.

    "What should we do? What should we do?" one of the elementalists screamed with a piercing voice that contained a trace of trembling.

    Despite the fear in his eyes, another one of the elementalists reluctantly maintained hisposure. "I will block him while you guys run in separate directions! The message must be delivered to Fu Sisi by any means!"

    Just as he finished his words, he unexpectedly roared and maneuvered strangely in midair. As he faced the bloody shadow, a five-colored light ring shot out from his hand.

    The other two knew that the situation was critical and swiftly separated in two different directions.

    The five-colored light ring waspletely unaffected by the metal wind. It suddenly opened as the five elemental energy rings merged and formed an exquisite five-colored chain. The chain grew crazily, extending itself forward to be an astonishingly long snake in the blink of an eye. Its folded body covered a radius of more than 15 meters.

    Like a big, it covered the red shadow which was illusory like mist.

    The distance between both parties was too close, and their speeds were also fast. The red silhouette inevitably plunged into the chain of five elements.

    "Lock!"

    Suddenly, the chains in the sky tightened and turned into an airtight cage. A bright red color could be vaguely seen inside. Dazzling rays could also be seen within theyers of chains and between the different elemental energy rings. They were currently forming apletely new five elemental ring, just like a multi-colored glowing cocoon.

    The elementalist could not help showing a trace of joy. Once the reorganization of the five elemental ring waspleted, the glowing cocoon would be indestructible. Around each elemental energy ring, there were at least eight elemental energy rings, forming a staggering number of five elemental rings.

    Each five elemental ring was like a lock.

    As the number of five elemental rings increased, the cage became even sturdier.

    Suddenly, an indistinct sigh sounded in his ear.

    His pupils dted, his body stiffened, and his mind went nk. The whole world sank into a dead silence.

    Thump, thump, thump.

    As if from a heavy drum, a deep and vigorous pulse full of rhythm sounded in his ears. Was it his own heartbeat?

    Why...

    All of a sudden, the radiant cocoon right before his eyes transmitted countless bloody glows. Just like dazzling bright red swords, they thrusted out from the glowing cocoon.

    The next moment, he saw the so-called indestructible glowing cocoon melt like snow.

    A bloody glowshed out, and just like a scarlet silk cloth, it swiftly coiled around his body. The front of the bloody glow was like a soft, yet deadly, snake and did not enter the five elemental ring on the back of his palm.

    His pupils lost their luster.

    His sigh could not be heard in the rustling metal wind. Just like time, it continued flying forward.

    After dozens of miles, the wind would see another pair of pupils that had lost their luster. Gui Hu¡¯s cheeks were close to the cold rock, and the vitality of his body was gone. His skin appeared strangely pale, but there was not a single blood stain on the rock.

    .....

    On a little hillside, Wang Erdan looked around nkly.

    The hillside was not high, only about six meters tall, but it had a panoramic view of the surroundings. The wind blew against his muddy and weather beaten face. His dry lips were like withered wood in the desert, revealing dead skin and cracked wounds.. In thecerations, the dark brown blood stain looked like magma that was gradually cooled.

    Wang Erdan looked like a savage who was shabbily dressed and riddled with scars.

    Ironically, the Ye Baiyi in his hands was still spotlessly clean, white, and wless. The captive looked ravishing, but the captor looked appalling.

    The view was unfamiliar, so hepletely lost his sense of direction.

    Where was this ce?

    In his eyes, this was a remote and deste ce out in the Wilderness. There were big and tiny pits everywhere. The big ones were more than three meters wide, while the small ones were less than a meter across. They were stacked inyers, and the number of pits was astonishing.

    Some of the deep pits were charred and barren inside. On the other hand, some of the deep pits with ash inside were already full of green ss. Other deep pits connected to the ground water and became ponds of different sizes.

    The countless pits were reminiscent of a cruel and brutal war.

    The vision of Wang Erdan was restored. As a member of the Dread Division, he was instinctively sensitive to war. Where had such an astonishing war urred? There was a faint answer in his heart.

    He dragged Ye Baiyi along and walked toward the nearest big pit.

    Without the slightest pity for Ye Baiyi, Wang Erdan half dragged him by his feet and ploughed a deep mark on the ground. Ye Baiyi¡¯s head crashed into a bamboo basket sized rock with a bang. Surprisingly, the rock was shattered instantly, but Ye Baiyi was safe and sound.

    Wang Erdan was ustomed to this reality. The fact that Ye Baiyi did not wake up was also good. At least he could be used as a weapon, a real humanoid weapon!

    He walked to the nearest big pit. Wang Erdan crouched down and used his palm to touch the mud at the edge of the pit.

    Aside from the wood elemental energy of the grass and the earth elemental energy of the earth, the almost intangible water elemental energy was rather different.

    He confirmed the spection in his heart.

    The Wall of North Sea, he had arrived at the Wall of North Sea. There were only a handful of such terrifying battle sites. Apart from the current Windy Pearl Bridge defensive line, the only other ce was probably the Wall of North Sea.

    Yet, looking forward, there were only countless deep pits, and he could not find any cloud wall.

    Well, it must just be ruins now.

    Wang Erdan smiled bitterly. He actually reached the Wall of North Sea, but there was a huge problem. The Wall of North Sea had long since fallen into enemy hands and was now controlled by the blood elementalists. In other words, he was now behind enemy lines, and his destination was on the other side of the enemy¡¯s main army.

    He still did not know about the destruction of the God Wolf Division, but, he knew he had to prate the enemy¡¯s main forces in order to reach the Windy Pearl Bridge defensive line.

    It was an impossible task.

    Soon, however, he did not have to think about it.

    A figure slowly descended from the sky in front of him. The person¡¯s delicate face was expressionless and without any trace of emotion.

    Wang Erdan was in despair.

    We are finished.

 Chapter 655: Fireball

    Chapter 655: Fireball

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    Yu Mingqiu flew into the sky. The outer corner of his eye caught a glimpse of a few other silhouettes which were continuously rising. These people were mostly foreign to him, and their auras were not weak at all. This did not matter to Yu Mingqiu since he left the Jadeite Forest many years ago and therefore did not recognize therge number of neers.

    Although he did not recognize anyone, everyone knew who he was. Yu Mingqiu, the one who indulged in writing inelegant poems daily, was the talk of the entire town. However, those who knew slightly more were aware that although Yu Mingqiu appeared immoral, he was extremely powerful.

    More important was Grandmaster Dai¡¯s attitude toward him.

    Of the three disciples of Grandmaster Dai,first disciple Lu Chen was content living a simple life and disliked disturbance to his routine. The third disciple, Duanmu Huanghun, was not in the Grandmaster¡¯s good books. As such, they did not have a harmonious rtionship with each other. Now, he was located miles away.

    The second disciple, Yu Mingqiu, was the most valued by Grandmaster Dai. Many people spected that Yu Mingqiu had the highest possibility of being the sessor of Grandmaster Dai.

    One wood elementalist spoke loudly from afar, " Sir, any solution?"

    His voice sounded worried and also attracted the attention of others.

    Yu Mingqiu shook his head. "Not yet."

    He raised his head, retracted his gaze, and solemnly said, "It should be somewhere high in the sky. I will take a look. As the metal wind is blowing violently, please take note of your safety."

    Just as Yu Mingqiu finished his words, he continued to dash upward into the sky. He noticed that the majority stayed put, and only three people followed him. It was evident that these three were sufficiently confident in their own abilities. Yu Mingqiu did not stop them, merely nodding his head before withdrawing his gaze.

    Soon enough, they entered the metal windyer. The frantic whizzing noise of the metal wind flooded the entire world. A faint green circr light screen lit up around Yu Mingqiu¡¯s body, blocking off the metal wind.

    The tiny sun was out of reach just as before. Yu Mingqiu wore a grave expression because he had never traveled to such a high altitude in the depths of space.

    He continued to ascend through the atmosphere.

    A momentter, another wood elementalist could no longer endure and chose to return.

    Metal chops wood, and metal winds were more harmful toward wood elementalists than other normal elementalists. This caused them to ascend with even greater difficulty.

    In no time, another wood elementalist chose to retreat as well.

    Shortly after, the sole remaining wood elementalist could not tolerate it anymore and descended to the ground. Even though his body was facing downward during the descent, he kept his vision fixed on Yu Mingqiu, who was constantly ascending. His state of mind suffered a huge shock.

    Yu Mingqiu was not considered speedy, but there wasn¡¯t the slightest sign of him slowing down since the beginning. It seemed like he was strolling idly. The increasingly violent metal wind did not affect him the slightest bit.

    The news of Yu Mingqiu traversing the Wilderness spread throughout the world. It was a pity that only a few people witnessed it, so his real abilities still remained a mystery.

    Having witnessed it with his own eyes, he suddenly realized Yu Mingqiu¡¯s power was unfathomable.

    He was oblivious to the fact that it was not as effortless as Yu Mingqiu disyed it to be.

    It was difficult for Yu Mingqiu to judge the distance between himself and the ground at this moment. An approximate estimate would be at least be over 10 kilometers. As he continued to ascend, the surroundings became peaceful. The whizz of the metal wind wasrgely reduced, but it was even more dangerous and unpredictable.

    As if he was treading on thin ice, Yu Mingqiu was extremely cautious and stared closely at his own light screen. The light screen seemed as if it had been molded by a pair of invisible hands in the seemingly peaceful void of space.

    He had never been to such high altitude location before. Any slight inattentiveness might cause his light screen to shatter, allowing the gusts of transparent metal wind to tear him into pieces.

    Nevertheless, he finally managed to see his target!

    Yu Mingqiu was utterly stunned. The closer he flew, the greater the shock he felt. Just like a burning ind in the void space, an iparably gigantic fireball was hovering nearby.

    Its size was extremely astonishing, causing Yu Mingqiu to feel his insignificance.

    Standing miles away, stream of heat waves which seemed like turbulent tides pped against Yu Mingqiu¡¯s light screen. The protective sphere of light was just like a wavering bubble that might burst at anytime.

    All of a sudden, a soft nt shoot grew right under Yu Mingqiu¡¯s feet. Impressively, it was a fresh and green vine. Just like a Boston ivy, the vine grew rapidly along the internal wall of the light screen. The light screen, which was unstable a moment ago, immediately stabilized. The resplendent green vine integrated with the light screen at a speed which the naked eye could see. It then transformed into a sparkling and translucent pattern which was extremely eye-catching.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s fixated his vision onto the fireball in front of him and was perplexed.

    What exactly was this fireball? Why would it appear over here?

    On the surface of the fireball, golden mes were spat out continuously. Some of these golden mes even exceeded 300 meters and seemed like enormous fire sickles that swept across the spatial void. They effortlessly bisected the threatening metal wind.

    Yu Mingqiu restrained himself and became even more puzzled.

    What an overbearing fire elemental energy!

    What made him even more shocked was that the aura of the fire elemental energy released by this gigantic fireball was almost equivalent to the fire elemental energy flourished by the sun. It was no wonder that they mistakenly believed there were two suns in the sky.

    Yu Mingqiu moved slowly around the fireball and swept his vision across every inch of it.

    The diameter of the fireball exceeded 10 kilometers and was indeed an enormous structure containing admirable power. Soon enough, the attentive Yu Mingqiu made a new discovery. To his surprise, this fireball was actually absorbing the sun¡¯s fire elemental energy!

    When the fireball absorbed fire elemental energy from the sun, it would shrink slightly, and the tongues of me on its surface would start to dwindle. Secondster, the fireball would start to expand as scorching zes extended out with a boom, releasing astonishing heat waves.

    Such a repetitive cycle.

    Yu Mingqiu was bewildered. His first reaction was to wonder if this was a living creature. The rhythmic expansion and contraction reminded him of breathing.

    Could it be a new type of dire beast? Or could it be an ancient dire beast?

    He shivered and felt his mouth go dry. The legendary ancient dire beasts were able to transform nature and were way more powerful than the modern elementalist. It would tantamount to a natural disaster for the Jadeite Forest.

    At this moment, his vision swept past the crack between two tongues of fire, and his pupils abruptly shrank.

    When the tongues of fire started to dwindle, he was able to vaguely see the interior of the fireball. The mes inside the fireball were concentrated and limpid, just like golden ss.

    A shrivelled and skinny figure could be strikingly seen.

    Yu Mingqiu was blown away, and his hair from head to toe stood on end. This intense fear was just like an invisible palm firmly grasping his heart. To his surprise, he was unable to breath at that very moment.

    It was actually a person!

    Unexpectedly, such a terrifying phenomena was a human!

    Who? Who could have such high spending power?

    The first name that popped into Yu Mingqiu¡¯s head was his teacher, Grandmaster Dai Gang! However, what teacher trained was wood elemental energy, so it couldn¡¯t be him. If it had been such an astonishing amount of wood elemental energy, teacher would definitely be able to achieve it, but such extraordinary fire elemental energy...

    Wait a minute, fire elemental energy!

    Yu Mingqiu froze and the next moment, rigidly staring at the vague silhouette in the fireball. Even though he could only see a fuzzy image, he was still able to make out the figure¡¯s short and small statue.

    Hiss. Yu Mingqiu exhaled and became ghastly pale. He already knew this person¡¯s identity now.

    Le Buleng!

    The strongest beneath Grandmaster, Le Buleng!

    The tyrannical, yet pure, fire of the sun proved Yu Mingqiu¡¯s conjecture.

    Yu Mingqiu still could not understand how Le Buleng achieved this.

    Upon returning to his senses, Yu Mingqiu¡¯s expression changed.

    Le Buleng and Teacher¡¯s grudge was well known in this world. There could only be one objective for appearing in the Jadeite Forest.

    He was challenging Grandmaster Dai!

    "Truly spectacr."

    An incredulous exmation could be heard from behind Yu Mingqiu. He quivered and immediately turned around. Unknowingly, a mild middle-aged man appeared behind him.

    Yu Ming Qiu promptly bowed. "Teacher."

    Dai Gang did not reply to him, staring at the fireball before saying, "I once thought that there were only one and a half people who could be considered my opponent. In the case of the Holy Emperor, it could be said that I met my match. The other half is Le Buleng. He is the only one who has an unyielding attitude, even after facing defeat."

    Yu Mingqiu listened attentively andrgely approved. As Grandmaster¡¯s Dai disciple, he knew more behind the scenes informationpared to an ordinary person. In order to challenge Teacher, Le Buleng had invested a lot of effort and deserved respect.

    From the perspective of the challenged, Le Buleng was undoubtedly an enemy. However, Yu Mingqiu was full of respect with regard to confronting such an enemy.

    Dai Gang¡¯s tone was solemn as he said, "It seems like I have overestimated myself and undermined the heroes in the world. After knowing the words that Le Buleng scolded Wan Shenwei with, I felt so contented that I drank 3 cups of wine in a row. Hmph, how could Buleng¡¯s ardent mes bepared to a decaying dead tree?"

    Yu Mingqiu saw that his teacher¡¯s mood was considerably good, felt relieved, and smiled. "I also heard that from Senior Le before, and it felt refreshing! However,pared to Teacher¡¯s, my alcohol tolerance... Hehe."

    Dai Gang smiled. Among his disciples, Lu Chen was too honest and simple-minded, while Duanmu Huanghun was overly rebellious. Only Yu Mingqiu, who appeared as frivolous, was actually a straightforward and genuine person who he favored.

    Grandmaster Dai praised him, "To be able to reach this stage, your improvement is tremendous."

    Yu Mingqiu replied, "Nevertheless, Teacher is still awesome. Upon seeing such a situation, I almost chose to escape, but when I thought of Teacher¡¯s daily teachings, I became slightly courageous. Even if I had to sacrifice my life, I still had to scout for Teacher. "

    He swayed his head and recited poems, but his eyeballs were swivelling rapidly. "However, seeing that teacher has a n in mind, I am reassured!"

    Dai Gang had a headache due to Yu Mingqiu¡¯s inelegant poems. He coughed lightly and replied, "A n in mind? You are underestimating Le Buleng."

    Yu Mingqiu stared nkly, "Why?"

    Dai Gang responded, "What Le Buleng trained are the [Grandmaster Obliteration mes]. I once thought [Grandmaster Obliteration mes] is just a spate of nonsense. How could it obliterate a Grandmaster? Hehe. The Golden Crow Fire is extremely overbearing, and its practitioners have to first sustain injury. Now, I realized that I have underestimated him. He has decided to go all-out and is determined to fight to the end. If I did not guess wrongly, he wanted to nurture genuine [Grandmaster Obliteration mes] by converging such a vast amount of Golden Crow Fire."

    Yu Mingqiu listened until his scalp felt a little numb. "This is gambling with one¡¯s own life!"

    "This is indeed the case for Le Buleng," Dai Gang said as a weak glimmer of hope shed in his unfathomable eyes. "He had only two options, adapt or die. His bold character, coupled with his disregard for honor, led him to take such action. Let¡¯s go. There¡¯s no need to be rmed as things will y out in due time. If he fails, I¡¯ll pay my respects. If he seeds, then the world shall know of one more miracle, and I shall gain a new opponent."

    The wind was gentle and violent at the same time, carrying hisughter far away.

    "Such an honor!"

 Chapter 656: The Idle Duanmu Huanghun

    Chapter 656: The Idle Duanmu Huanghun

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    The night was filled with stars sprinkled on the blue dome of heaven, and the splendor of the stars shone on the earth. The brightly lit Fish Bone absorbed all the starlight. Voices wafted down from the peak as zing red mes soared through the air. They were mining the sealed magma, which would be refined into snowva to provide enough ammunition for the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    The nearby Central Pine Valley was quiet and still, with a gentle mist covering it like a curtain and isting it from the hustle and bustle of the outside world. However, the splendor of the stars prated effortlessly through the mist and gave the valley a veil of light. The fallen leaves from the jade sword bamboo trees were separated from the bamboo branches and rolled in the breeze. From time to time, they would send forth the clear sound of sword chimes and would inject some liveliness into the atmosphere.

    The Central Pine Valley was utterly quiet, and the children were all asleep. Everyone was shocked by the sudden attack from the God Wolf and Silver Frost division previously. Since then, Mr. Dou had ordered all children to stay in the Central Pine Valley.

    Other people hardly came to the Central Pine Valley. Everyone else was unusually and endlessly busy, except for Duanmu Huanghun.

    Duanmu Huanghun did only what was of interest to him. For example, harassing and ambushing the enemy. He was toozy to bother about things that did not interest him. It was good at the beginning because the enemy was like a silly rhinocereous that got angry at the slightest provocation. Good teamwork between Duanmu Huanghun, the Spear of Heavy Cloud, and the Sword of Lightning resulted in sessive victories over the enemy. In particr, after the loss of two blood elementalists with the Ability of God, who were regarded as matchless warriors, the enemy god division unexpectedly turned out to be in and boring cowards.

    Duanmu Huanghun was suddenly no longer busy at all.

    Only two people could order him around, namely Shi Xueman and Lou Lan. Ai Hui had not left his seclusion, so all matters pertaining to the entire defensive line fell on Shi Xueman. She had a multitude of things to handle and had no time for Duanmu Huanghun.

    Lou Lan was also busy cooking elemental soup and patrolling the sword formations in the valley. He worked diligently and conscientiously. Lou Lan was a good boy who did not like to trouble others and would always find ways to solve his own problems. If help was needed, everyone would be enthusiastic to help him, but Duanmu Huanghun simply had to wait for his turn.

    Duanmu Huanghun was half reclining on a branch, humming a ditty, and enjoying himself. The slight breeze blowing on his face gave him an indescribable sense offort. He really liked the tranquillity of the Central Pine Valley. It was like a paradise here, and the war outside did not affect it the slightest bit.

    At this time,zing around was probably the most beautiful thing in life.

    He thought of the blockhead Ai Hui, who was still struggling in the sword formation. Meanwhile, here he was enjoying this idyllic ce.

    He could not helpughing aloud and felt very pleased.

    To be honest, he was very satisfied with the current situation since there was nothing he needed to worry about.

    Since the Jadeite Forest had Teacher to overlook the whole territory, no one dared to attack them. The Duanmu family held a stable position in the Jadeite Forest, so he did not need to worry either. Regarding the war, Shi Xueman was around and only asionally needed his help. Whether it was the Spear of Heavy Cloud or the Pagoda Cannon Alliance, their structures were stable, their tactics were gradually evolving, and they did not require his involvement. As for the Infantry and Karakorum divisons, what did that have to do with him?

    When he thought it over, it seemed that there was no other better thing to do than to train.

    Duanmu Huanghun reflected for a moment because he did not believe he was actually bored to this extent? He tilted his head, pondered, and had to admit that he was ovee with boredom.

    He thought through it carefully again.

    Well, it seemed like nothing was wrong.

    He was very satisfied with his current condition. Not only his state in life, but also his own condition.

    Strength and advancement in level allowed the once gifted young man to mature.

    Many of his past obsessions were infused with youthful emotions and absurdity. They were witnesses to those hazy green years,ing from vibrant sunshine, disappearing behind in the wind, and leaving a lightly invisible shadow.

    Nevertheless, it was always hard to change the fundamentals.

    At the thought of training, Duanmu Huanghu perked up and sat straight. He stretched out his palm as his previously lethargic look turned serious. His gaze was as sharp as a sword.

    Snap. He snapped his fingers gently.

    A little green light emanated in between his fingers. Fresh and green shoots bloomed from his palm and circled around like a sparkling translucent jade bracelet. Green leaves were swaying like the wind, turning into bits of green light that surrounded his palm.

    It sounded like someone was singing softly as the wind lightly blew by.

    A faint green light appeared and seemed liable to vanish at any moment.

    Duanmu Huanghun was unusually focused. He controlled the faint light surrounding the circle. However, the light onlysted for a few moments before disappearing without a trace.

    It still did not work!

    Duanmu Huanghun frowned slightly and wondered where the problem was.

    He was trying to use the [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] to recreate the [Breeze of Surveince].

    The gorgeous, dazzling, and magnificent rain of light swords surprised and shocked not only Madam Ye, Han Li, and other people, but also Duanmu Huanghun.

    That scoundrel actually... could possess such a formidable killer move?

    He was stupefied and in disbelief for a long time. His happiness from entering closed door cultivation toprehend the [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] technique and his joy from ascending to Master had disappeared without a trace.

    Duanmu Huanghun felt so motivated that he could hardly breathe.

    He was determined to create a killer move that was more powerful than what Ai Hui had! Yes, that was right. Not inferior, but beyond.

    How could the majestic Duanmu Huanghun be worse off than Ai Hui? This was his simplest conclusion!

    After making up his mind, Duanmu Huanghun began to ponder carefully.

    Duanmu Huanghun was arrogant and proud, but definitely not stupid. He had always thought that a man could be angry, but not stupid. He was clear-headed enough to know that it was not a simple task to surpass the rain of light swords.

    He eyed the [Breeze of Surveince] as a solution.

    The [Breeze of Surveince] was the most powerful killer move of the Surveince Division. Rumors said it could deal with Grandmasters, but Duanmu Huanghun had scoffed at this im when he heard of it previously. His teacher was a Grandmaster, so he was very clear about how powerful a Grandmaster could be.

    Regardless, he was greatly shocked when witnessing how the [Breeze of Surveince] almost decimated the God Wolf and Silverfrost divisions. If not for the fact that there were too few Surveince Division soldiers toplete the technique, the God Wolf and Silverfrost divisions would have beenpletely entombed.

    To be able to destroy the God Wolf and Silverfrost divisions with only one killer move caused his thoughts to wander far away.

    These days, as long as he was free, he would run before the huge glimmering windnterns to ponder the mystery. The structure of the glimmering windnterns was extremely stable, and it was not empty talk that they could stand for a thousand years. Duanmu Huanghun found great inspiration from this extremely special structure.

    However, after thorough research, he discovered that theplexity of the [Breeze of Surveince] was far beyond his expectation.

    Duanmu Huanghun was rather proud of his knowledge regarding training. In terms of talent and intellect, he did not think he lost to anyone. Continuously running into walls did not discourage him, but aroused his pride and made him even more determined to unravel the mystery within.

    This was one of the reasons why he liked to be in the Central Pine Valley. The Central Pine Valley was peaceful and had abundant elemental energy, allowing him to do some hard thinking.

    Just a few days ago, he finally made a breakthrough and saw a glimmer of hope.

    The faint green halo on his hand was a miniature version of the [Breeze of Surveince]. Although there was still a long way to go to fully replicate it, this was certainly a good start.

    More importantly, this was the [Breeze of Surveince] implemented by the [Viridescent Flower].

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s ambition was not just to copy the [Breeze of Surveince]!

    Time in the night quietly passed, and that pair of eyes was always focused on the light, just as before. The green light ray on the palm brightened and extinguished, extinguished and then lit up again.

    .....

    The weak sound of the wind came and went, like it was remembering the swan song of the battlefield.

    Fu Sisi took amanding view that overlooked the valley. Her deep eyes were brooding with unpredictability.

    Wang Erdan, who was on the ground, was ragged and gasping for air. His face was full of despair, yet unwilling to ept defeat. Unfortunately, he had already been pushed to his limits. Fu Sisi had to admit that from Wan Shenwei down to this nameless soldier, they all had a ruthless and courageous attitude which she secretly admired.

    Even if it was at the end of the road or with an axe on their neck, their attitude was still to counterattack bravely.

    It was this valiant attitude that dragged out the whole situation. Since the mission when Wan Shenwei was used to lure She Yu and the soldiers of the Dread Division were used as bait to constantly misleading the Sky Leaf members, all of this hadnded her in such a sorry state.

    She hated the Dream members deep down inside, but at the same time respected them. She had seen many cases where people were indifferent to the lives of others, but seeing them treat their own lives so trivially was a first for her.

    The power of the Sky Leaf Division was far beyond the Dread Division. Yet, they were far behind in terms of attitude.

    Nevertheless, it was finally over.

    Her eyes fell on Ye Baiyi, who was being dragged on the ground, and her beautiful eyes suddenly lit up.

    Out of the ordinary as expected!

    She did not hesitate and gently pointed her fingers at Wang Erdan.

    A faint glow suddenly appeared in front of Wang Erdan.

    Wang Erdan, even at his peak, was not much of a match for Fu Sisi, let alone when in such a pitiful state. Still, he did not give up the slightest hope, and a deep roar came from his throat. He was like a beast on the verge of despair.

    He yanked Ye Baiyi in front of him to act as his shield.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s face slightly changed as she realized that this was not good!

    A faint glow whichcked finesse struck Ye Baiyi.

    A humming sound that resembled the twilight morning bells of the remote mountains resounded. A bloody glow suddenly lit up on Ye Baiyi¡¯s body. Like a bloody mouth, it swallowed the faint light in one gulp.

    The vigorous force was like an avnche surging toward Wang Erdan and hit him like lightning. He spat out blood instantly, but he still clung to Ye Baiyi and did not have any intention of letting go at all.

    Feeling very dizzy, he took Ye Baiyi and flew backward a few meters before falling heavily on a rock.

    Wang Erdan grunted as blood spilled out from the corner of his mouth.

    The bloody glow within Fu Sisi grew more intense. There were rumors of Ye Baiyi imnting the Heart of God by using all kinds of magical methods, but seeing it was an extraordinary experience. She did not hold back on the previous strike, but it did not hurt Ye Baiyi at all.

    She fell into a trance and imagined that it was not Ye Baiyi in a deep sleep, but actually a terrible ancient beast inside.

    Fu Sisi immediately returned back to reality. If Ye Baiyi were to wake up now, it would be terrible.

    She deliberately avoided Ye Baiyi, but Wang Erdan seemed to have guessed her intention and wielded Ye Baiyi as a shield, keeping his defense airtight. For a moment, Fu Sisi was shackled and did not know what to do with Wang Erdan.

    Fu Sisi converted her rage into sneeringughter, " Well, well, well, you really deserve to be from the Dread Division. Wan Shenwei has a bunch of good subordinates! I was able to kill Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue. Do you think I¡¯m unable to kill all of you? None of you should even think of living!"

    Suddenly a deep and vigorous voice spoke out, ""Did you kill Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue?".

 Chapter 657: The Survivors of North Sea

    Chapter 657: The Survivors of North Sea

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    "Sir, what is the use of us suffering here?"

    "Wait, wait for an opportunity."

    "Sir, what opportunity could there be?"

    "Blood elementalists would certainly never imagine that we are hiding here. We are the sword that can ambush them from behind. Well, perhaps we are just a thorn, but even as just a thorn, that¡¯s enough."

    "Sir... will we be able to endure?"

    "Maybe, maybe not."

    .....

    Suddenly, a loud voice was heard. Fu Sisi¡¯s pupils abruptly shrank as she felt an anxious urge to withdraw and only managed to halt after retreating more than three meters away.

    She had not even noticed that someone was approaching!

    This disy of skill already showed that the strength of the opponent was not weak.

    She nced in the direction of the voice.

    A man armed with a spear stood on top of the hill. Since he was standing with the sun behind him, the re made it difficult to see his face. Yet, this man was tall, sturdy, and possessed a deep, breathtaking, and imposing stature.

    Fu Sisi jerked her slender body and eximed aloud, "Shi... Shi Beihai?"

    The neer was broad shouldered, resolute looking, and nonchnt, sharing some likeness with Shi Xueman¡¯s features. A thick and rough beard covered almost half of his face, and it was evident that it had not been taken care of for a long time. He wore broken armor which revealed a blue robe underneath. His armor was covered with cracks and dark brown blood stains. The North Sea Division¡¯s crest was clearly visible and impressive on the chest piece of the armor.

    The North Sea Division¡¯s division leader, Shi Beihai!

    The Fu family was also a prominent n, so how could Fu Sisi not know Shi Beihai? Although his beard was as bushy as a savage¡¯s, Fu Sisi was certain that this savage man was the world famous Shi Beihai.

    But... Wasn¡¯t Shi Beihai already dead? Wasn¡¯t the North Sea Division already annihted?

    Fu Sisi was extremely horrified. If the living Shi Beihai was not standing in front of her and someone told her that Shi Beihai was still alive, she certainly would have regarded it as a joke.

    How could Shi Beihai still be alive?

    Regardless, Shi Bei Hai was still alive, so the North Sea Division surely had not been destroyed to thest, but why? Why did Shi Bei Hai pretend to perish? Even when Shi Xueman encountered danger, he still did not show up. What was he plotting? What were they plotting?

    Fu Sisi was exceptionally intelligent and numerous thoughts instantly shed through her mind.

    ording to seniority, she needed to call Shi Beihai "senior" respectfully.

    Shi Beihai carried a long spear and slowly walked down the slope.

    Thump, thump,thump.

    His steps were firm like a mountain, and the ground trembled like a heavy hammer beating a drum where his stepsnded. He looked awe-inspiring. His slightly squinted eyes did not reveal his expression, but his body was as straight as a spear. He did not move a single muscle, exhaling his breath like thunder with every word he spoke and every step he took.

    "You killed Old Wan and Ximen?"

    Every wording out from Shi Bei Hai was like a heavy hammer knocking on Fu Sisi¡¯s heart. The blood in her body started to surge violently and made her fidgety.

    The bright sunshine disappeared as the sky darkened. Above Shi Beihai¡¯s head, countless clouds gathered from all directions. The sunny weather immediately became overcast and clouds ominously covered the sky.

    With the clouds gathering nonstop, the snow white clouds quickly turned gray, then ck. The sky quickly darkened as day swiftly turned into night.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s expression changed as her mood became somber. Ever since Shi Beihai showed up, she seemed to be under his control!

    This was Shi Beihai...

    Aside the three central divisions, he was once looked upon as the strongest division leader among the top 10 divisions. He was a pir of the Avalon of Five Elements and was once regarded as the most suitable Great Elder candidate! He built the Wall of North Sea with his own resources to obstruct the elite blood elementalists.

    This was indeed Shi Beihai!

    Repressing his anger, revolving the elemental energy, and synergizing his pace, artiction, and breath together allowed his presence climb at an rming rate.

    This was Shi Beihai, the perfectbination of strength and experience.

    Fu Sisi calmed down and could not help but admire him. Although these old fogeys were outdated, they still had many admirable aspects.

    It was a pity...

    What was outdated was outdated and destined to be swept into the trash, old chap!

    Fu Sisi smiled gently. "That¡¯s right, both Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue are dead. Now, it is your turn, senior. With senior aspany, the two division leaders would not feel lonely in theherworld."

    No matter what was in Shi Beihai¡¯s mind, the fact that he hid and did not return to Sky Heart City clearly indicated his attitude.

    He did not believe in Madam!

    A lightning bolt shed among the thick clouds, illuminating the dark sky and shone on Shi Beihai¡¯s expressionless face. However, his eyes revealed deep and unfathomable sadness.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s pupils shrank once again as another person appeared at the top of the hill behind Shi Beihai. This person had thin a physique, like a defenceless schr. His face was full of grief and indignation with his lips tightly pursed.

    She did not know that this person was the North Sea Division¡¯s vice division leader, Qi Xiuyuan.

    However, her gaze did not linger on Qi Xiuyuan because there were other people continually appearing on the hillside.

    These people looked like savages with broken armor and vaguely appeared as a unified group.

    The surviving members of the North Sea Division!

    There were unexpectedly still so many surviving members of the North Sea Division!

    However, when thest North Sea soldiers came out, Fu Sisi heaved a sigh of relief and smiled with a hint of disdain. It was a false rm because there were only 19 of them left!

    If these 19 people all were Masters, they could be a force to be reckoned with.

    Unfortunately, there was only one Sky Leaf Division in the world!

    Fu Sisi felt pride in her heart. With a new eraing, these old and useless things should just be reduced back to ashes and dust. What was a mere 19 people if even cities shuddered under the might of the Sky Leaf Division?! It was just a mere Shi Beihai. Having executed Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue, what was one more Shi Beihai?

    With her initial fear abated, Fu Sisi felt a little ashamed at herck of experience as she had lost her cool over such a small matter.

    A murderous look appeared in her eyes. She raised her arm, and the five element ring imprint on the back of her hand brightened like the brightly colored eyes of a ghost. The gorgeous five element light started to circte, and in the blink of an eye, her arms, which were as white as a lotus root, became multi-colored, sparkling, and translucent, just like extremely beautiful stained ss.

    She oriented her elbow and palm together like a knife.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s figure suddenly disappeared.

    Driven by an aura, Shi Beihai¡¯s half closed eyes opened wide and brightened intensely. His right foot stomped out half a step. This half-step was firm, powerful, and as fast as lightning, butnded without a sound. His straight and upright body leaned forward. With his spear in hand, he thrust out sharply without any fancy movements.

    A gleaming colorful crystal and a ghostly palm overflowing with light streamers collided against the spear tip.

    Aghast, Wang Erdan dove to the ground and positioned Ye Baiyi to protect his head.

    Visible ripples panned out from the palm and spear tip, quietly spreading into the surroundings. The translucent ripples expanded to a radius of about two meters before bing cloudy. An eerie,herworldly shriek sprang forth as the ripples grew, culminating in a crescendo that resounded in all directions.The ripples expanded in a simr manner, exploding with the force of a storm.

    A crackling and rattling cacophony ensued!

    On the ground, grass and soil were flying furiously in the raging storm.

    Fu Sisi, who was in front of the spear tip, turned into a faint shadow and disappeared. In no time, she returned to her previous position.

    Fu Sisi found it hard to believe. How could this be? How could Shi Beihai manage to block this strike?

    She had not held back when she delivered that blow...

    Even Wan Shenwei was not her equal, so how could Shi Beihai be? Was Shi Bei Hai even stronger than Wan Shenwei?

    When her vision fell across the ground around Shi Beihai, her pupils contracted again. The ground around Shi Beihai was turned over as if countless plows had gone through it, but from his feet to the North Sea soldiers¡¯ feet behind him, the ground waspletely intact. It was a striking contrast!

    This was a... battle formation?

    That was it!

    Shi Bei Hai¡¯s arm was sore and swollen. The ghostly attack from Fu Sisi contained extremely terrifying power. Shi Beihai had never met with such ghostly and overbearing power before. If not for his solid spearmanship, he certainly would have suffered heavily from it.

    For others who encountered such a strange and mighty enemy, they might not necessary feel fear, but certainly would be cautious.

    Shi Beihai did not even cower. His chiseled, rock-like face was grave and stern as usual. His mind did not even quiver because he was immersed in unspeakable sadness and anger.

    He had known both Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue for decades. Whatever their differences, they were all members ofbat divisions of the Avalon of Five Elements. They had not died at the hands of blood elementalists, but at their own people¡¯s hands. Shi Beihai was inconsble!

    He suddenly took another step and thrusted out the spear once again. With his angry eyes wide open, his mouth violently shouted, "Kill!"

    "Kill!"

    The North Sea soldiers behind him shouted in unison, took a step forward together, and waved the weapons in their hands. They had followed Shi Beihai for so many years and had never seen him so disheartened and sad.

    .

    There was also a burning me in their chests.

    In order to block the blood elementalists, the North Sea Division fought until they were left with only 19 survivors. They did not know about the magnificent contributions of the Dread and the Judgement divisions, but they knew that both Dread and Judgement went to the front line and that the two division leaders died under the brutal force of elementalists.

    They sympathized with each other because they had amon enemy.

    Another bolt of lightning pierced the sky, illuminating the earth as well as each and every one of these fierce and angry smoke-stained faces.

    19 sources of elemental energy surged around the surrounding area and, with the help of the aura of war,bined into a faint blue spear light.

    The howling of the whole sky suddenly disappeared, and the faint blue spear light flew toward Fu Sisi like a falling star.

    Enveloped and locked on by the aura, Fu Sisi knew that no matter which direction she dodged, the spear light would follow relentlessly.

    However, did she need to evade?

    Her beautiful eyes suddenly turned cold, her face was covered densely by frost, and her gorgeous, ghostly palm raised up. Loops of the radiant five element ring lit up along her arms like multi-colored poisonous snakes raising their heads. As each five element ring lit up, there was a terrifying influx of force into her arm, and her arm became more transparent.

    When thest loop of the five element ring lit up in between her slender fingers, her colorful ss arms became as transparent as crystal.

    The transparent engraved crystal arms were perfect masterpieces in this world andcked any ws.

    They inexplicably attracted all the light in this universe. The air around the arms seemed to be deeply attracted to this stunning beauty and paused.

    The transparent crystal fingers gently grasped the blue stars, and the blue stars fell between the fingers.

 Chapter 658: The Assembly of Patriarchsâ€™ Plan

    Chapter 658: The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ n

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    The warmth of the sun fell on every corner of the small courtyard. As usual, Master Shao sat in a white rocking chair for a short rest. The early autumn sunshine was the most pleasant, warm and moist. It was just enough to dispel the chill of autumn.

    The rocking chair rocked slowly and rhythmically.

    A furry maroon kitten was lying on the armrest, squinting its eyes and showing the same look of enjoyment.

    This kitten was a stray cat which was fed twice by Master Shao. Since then, it hung out in the courtyard, refused to leave, and behaved like it owned half of this ce.

    "Master Shao is really rxed."

    Hong Rongyan unexpectedly appeared in the courtyard doorway. He wore a ck overcoat, possessed an exquisite and mncholic appearance, and had a vermillion mark painted on his be. He looked like a person from a framed painting.

    Master Shao did not respond, keeping his eyes closed as he slept. The kitten on the armrest suddenly stood up, hunched over with its hair standing on end, and bared its teeth at Hong Rongyan, as if defending its own territory.

    A skinny palm gently stroked the kitten¡¯s arched spine. The angry kitten gradually calmed down, and its body softened. Ity again and squinted its eyes with pleasure.

    Master Shao said inly, "Sir Hong Rongyan, you nevere to me other than to ask for a favor. What do you need this time?"

    Hong Rongyan smiled slightly, but the gloom in his furrowed eyebrows caused his smile tock warmth, just like the slight chill of early autumn.

    He walked in, stopped in front of Master Shao, and bowed slightly. "I have to trouble you with a request. I need to consult with you regarding this mirage bean."

    Master Shao opened his eyes and got up from the white rocking chair.

    The white rocking chair melted like snow and turned into a pool of white sand. The kitten jumped to the ground with crity, but was evidently dissatisfied with the interruption of its midday break and meowed at Hong Rongyan.

    The white sand on the ground creeped around, rose up, and transformed into a sand puppet which stood beside Master Shao. What was initially coarse mud became exquisite and agile after constant improvements by Master Shao.

    Hong Rongyan eximed in admiration, "I have seen many sand puppets, but your puppet is unique."

    Master Shao faintly replied, "Just a worthless piece of work which is unpresentable."

    He came straight to the point and said, "I have grown increasingly curious about this mirage bean that brought you here personally."

    Hong Rongyan nodded. "I will have to trouble Master Shao."

    The subordinate behind him hurriedly stepped forward, his hand holding a basin of mirage bean pods. He carefully ced it on the ground, then bowed and stepped back.

    The cirction of the beams of light attracted the attention of Master Shao. Even the bright sunshine could not outshine the light rays from the mirage bean. This was not the first time Hong Rongyan had looked at it, but he had to admit that he was still fascinated by it. However, he restrained himself and fixed his eyes on Master Shao.

    Although Master Shao forced himself to stay calm, Hong Rongyan was sharp enough to notice his fear.

    Right from the beginning, Hong Rongyan did not speak or interrupt Master Shao.

    The light disappeared as the mirage bean recording ended. Master Shao did not speak for a long period of time.

    After quite a while, Master Shao finally exhaled. "Unexpectedly, the blood elementalistbat divisions have performed to such an amazing extent! The younger generation truly exceeds the older generation. Such a powerful light sword can only be described as divine."

    "Thebat division in the recording was the God Wolf Division, one of the six god divisions. There was another blood division, the Silverfrost, which was also destroyed during this battle. The light swords were controlled by a sword elementalist named Ai Hui. Rongyan would like to know from you if Ai Hui has ever taken the holy object of Blood of God?"

    Hong Rongyan fixed his gaze on Master Shao.

    Understanding suddenly dawned on Master Shao, and he nodded, "Oh this chap Ai Hui. I have heard a little about the illustrious Sword of Lightning Division. That blood elementalist soldier is rather powerful but he still couldn¡¯t block Ai Hui¡¯s light swords. It is quite possible Ai Hui has taken the sacred artifact as you suspect. However, after observing the rain of light swords, the power was terrifying even though the bloody glow could not be seen. If I am not mistaken, he absorbed the power of the holy artifact, while inducing his blood and qi into the swords."

    "So, that was the case." Hong Rongyan nodded. "In other words, this method can be used to restrain blood elementalists?"

    "That¡¯s right," Master Shao nodded, but teasingly winked at Hong Rongyan, "as long as you can find more of the God¡¯s blood."

    "That¡¯s true." Hong Rongyan smiled and changed topics. "Master Shao¡¯s work is a goal that the descendants will emte. The Holy Emperor heard that Ye Baiyi was seriously injured and in critical condition, so he granted Ye Baiyi the Heart of God. Your student Nangong Wulian personally imnted it in Ye Baiyi."

    Master Shao grew agitated upon hearing the three words "Heart of God."

    Hong Rongyan said casually, "I do not know how much Nangon Wulian learned from Master Shao or how powerful the Heart of God is exactly? Somehow, I do not understand why you sessfully developed the Heart of God at that time, but destroyed all the materials and records before escaping from the God Puppet Pce. What reason could this be?

    Master Shao remained silent.

    "What the need is there for Master Shao to make things difficult for me?" Hong Rongyan sighed. "What I have most for Master Shao is admiration. However, the Heart of God is rted to our Assembly¡¯s survival, and I hope you can give us a helping hand."

    Master Shao grinned a scornful smile. "I already have one foot in the grave. Matter of life and death no longer bother me. We are enemies, not friends. If I were not seeking the whereabouts of my granddaughter, would I have entertained you? How could I be unprepared after I decided to see you?

    He stopped smiling and lowered his tone, "If you want the Heart of God, bring my granddaughter for an exchange. There is no point in talking to me if you cannot find her. If you are thinking of schemes like confession by torture or other such methods, do not use them to scare me. Thanks to your Assembly, I was seriously injured back then. In order to survive, I had to transform my whole body. Now, there is not much left of my body. To prepare for a situation like today, being in the hands of others and being tortured, I would rather die than live. I have set up a killing mechanism in my body and can destroy my soul at any moment."

    "Take care. I will not be sending you off!"

    Master Shao turned around and stormed straight into the house.

    Hong Rongyan looked gloomy when he left the small courtyard because he had really hit a snag. On second thought, he realized he was too impetuous. Master Shao was once the pce master of God Puppet Pce after all. How could he not be prepared at all?

    Still, there were some gains today.

    The content inadvertently revealed by Master Shao was somewhat interesting...

    The corners of Hong Rongyan mouth revealed a hint of a pondering smile.

    "Heart of God, haha, Heart of God..."

    Hong Rongyan stopped and listened. Master Shao¡¯s prolongedughter came from the small courtyard behind her. She frowned slightly as a hint of doubt shed through her eyes.

    Heart of God... What could make Master Shao so pleased?

    Master Shao, who was inside the house, had lost his anger, and his face showed a hint of relief. Upon reaching the ending of the mirage bean recording, the sudden appearance of Lou Lan made him pleasantly surprised and almost made him lose his self control.

    Even though he knew Ai Hui was a pretty good fellow, he was still very worried about Lou Lan.

    In fact, he regretted instructing Lou Lan to follow Ai Hui when it seemed that Ai Hui was just an ordinary student. The wish of Master Shao was for Lou Lan to live a peaceful life.

    He had not expected himself to make an error in judgement!

    From the start, Ai Hui was not a quiet person and would stir up trouble wherever he went. It was too dangerous for Luo Lan to follow such a troublemaker! Every time he heard news of Ai Hui, Master Shao shuddered with fear and worried incessantly.

    Although it was just a hasty glimpse from a mirage bean, Master Shao could see that the power of Lou Lan was vastly different. Lou Lan was certainly able to safely remove Midnight¡¯s outer seal.

    He was immensely satisfied with Lou Lan. Well done!

    Due to the fear that Lou Lan could not bear the power of Midnight, Master Shao had implemented a safeguard that sealed the Midnight core. The outeryer was broken, indicating that the body of Luo Lan had adapted to the partial power of Midnight.

    The fear of letting Hong Rongyan know about his concern for Lou Lan made him hold back.

    However, at this moment, he had no more scruples andughed heartily.

    "Heart of God, haha, Heart of God..."

    .....

    Wong Erdan held on tightly to Ye Baiyi¡¯s long hair and hid behind him. asionally, fragmented lights would sweep over his exposed arms and legs, creating bloody wounds. Besides making muffled noises, Wang Erdan did not dare to make a single movement.

    With intense fighting going on in front of him, this would normally be the best time to flee. However, he had already exhausted his strength dragging Ye Baiyi to hide behind the North Sea Division¡¯s formation.

    He did not even have the strength to dodge the aftershocks of the intense battle before him, let alone run away.

    Fortunately, he had an unbreakable "human shield." This was probably the most expensive shield in the world.

    Looks like all that effort paid off from dragging you around!

    Fu Sisi was extremely angry at the moment, and her expression was awful. Her sparkling and translucent arms had an extremely pronounced crack from her index finger to her forearm.

    A moment ago, her fingers grasped her opponent¡¯s spear gleam. She had not expected that the spear gleam would actually burst between her fingers immediately. Subsequently, she suffered a substantial injury.

    Her strength was obviously much stronger than the other party, but the other party always made her feel extremely terrible. Intellectually, she knew this was because the other party was more experienced than her and could always exploit her weaknesses by using ingenious methods to counteract any disadvantage as a result. Despite this, she still felt dejected.

    If She Yu was here, she would certainly suffer the same feelings as Fu Sisi for chasing Wan Shenwei all this way. It could be said that she had suffered a hefty.

    Wan Shenwei and Shi Beihai had been on the battlefield for decades. They had seen all sorts of events and were full of experience!

    Thunder roared from the sky, and silvery lightning illuminated the earth.

    Bean-sized raindrops came down as thunderbolts shot down from the sky. The intense storm spanned a vast expanse of the sky and earth.

    Fu Sisi did not let the rain bother her. As the rain neared her body, it seemed to encounter an invisible screen and appeared to slip away. In the midst of the downpour, Fu Sisi¡¯s clothes did not get wet at all.

    On the contrary, her stature became more ghostly and elusive in the heavy rain.

    The rain fell in torrents, and all of a sudden, a crystal clear palm quietly went straight for Shi Beihai¡¯s face. The five half opened fingers were each lit up with different elemental energy light rays.

    The five elements¡ªmetal, fire, wood, water, and earth¡ªformed a ring that pressed down from above.

    A cold shiver went down Shi Beihai¡¯s spine, but instead of retreating, he exhaled loudly and moved forward with his spear, thrusting it like a poisonous snake at Fu Sisi¡¯s abdomen.

    Fu Sisi almost crushed her teeth in anger. She knew her blow could kill Shi Beihai, but the thrust from Shi Beihai spear would certainly injure her seriously. She had been forced to retreat by Shi Beihai¡¯s method of mutual destruction several times.

    She did not doubt that Shi Beihai was unafraid of death.

    Both Shenwei and Beihai were the same.

    In desperation, Fu Sisi turned her wrist, folded her five fingers, and turned her palm into a beak-like shape. The five elements fused together and erupted with radiance.

    Light gathered at the tip of the spear.

    Shi Beihai felt as though he had been struck by lightning as he lost his bnce and was pushed back a few steps before stabilizing. The other people behind him were knocked down all over the ce.

    Pop.

    The tip of the spear snapped, and the Firmament Iron, which was thought to be the hardest material, shattered to pieces.

    Fu Sisi rebounded more than three meters due to the strength of this blow before finally managing to stabilize herself. When she saw the shattered battle formation and weapons of the other party, she smiled.

    On the other hand, Shi Beihai, who was carrying a simple and unadorned spear in the heavy rain, looked at the knee high water level around him and smiled as well.

 Chapter 659: The Sea

    Chapter 659: The Sea

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    Thunder and lightning pierced the sky, making it appear like twilight. This could not illuminate the storm sufficiently to enable visibility as the rain, water sprays, and mist blurred the world.

    The falling rain turned into streams and flowed into the pits. The different sized pits became different sizedkes in just a short time. If you stood above the dark clouds, you would see a spectacr view. Clouds in all directions were converging at this ce at an rming speed. The clouds, which spanned hundreds of miles, did not get thin due to the storm, but grew thicker like a rising mountain range.

    Atop the cloud-covered mountains, a thick and strong lightning bolt that looked like a crazy silver python as the explosive thunder boomed louder and louder. It was as if a half naked giant that was 1,000 feet tall and had angry eyes was hiding within the continuous clouds and desperately beating on drums.

    Fu Sisi finally noticed the unusual nature of the rain.

    Falling from the sky were not raindrops, but rather rivulets of water, and they were thickening at an rming rate.

    Even if she had less experience, it was clear that the rain at this time was absolutely abnormal.

    The water filled the pits, overflowed, and spread across the underbrush. It continuously and frantically rose up to knee level. The back country had turned into a vast ocean.

    Wong Erdan stared dumbfounded as it felt like the end of the world.

    A cold shiver went down his spine.

    The temperature was dropping sharply, and exhaled air had be a visible white mist. He had already been drenched by the rain earlier and shivered due the sudden drop in temperature.

    Shi Beihai... This was Shi Beihai!

    Wang Erdan somewhat understand why Shi Beihai was so respected by his division leader.

    Since Wan Shenwei was fond of him, Wang Erdan typically concurred with Wan Shenwei on every topic. The three central divisions were superior among the Thirteen Divisions. They looked at the rest of the divisions with inevitable condescension. Sir did not show any contempt for these division leaders, but only Shi Beihai seemed to be... regarded with respect?

    Wang Erdan remembered clearly what Sir said because he had been extremely chatty at that time.

    Please forgive him for using the word "chatty," it absolutely wasn¡¯t disrespect toward Sir. Wang Erdan was ustomed to the silence of Sir, and this was the first time he encountered Sir saying so much. The impression was too profound.

    "Shi Beihai is as vast as the sea."

    After that, Sir was his back to his usual self. His speech was short, yet powerful.

    "Sir, what do you mean by the sea? Or is he as scheming as the sea?

    The curious response of Wang Erdan triggered the interest of Sir.

    "Ha, you have seen the sea before. When it is tranquil and calm, with no waves, no edges, and no corners, it bes boring and monotonous over time. If you look at his life, it has exactly this meaning. Everything is visible, so it¡¯s so dull and uninteresting."

    Wang Erdan felt that Sir¡¯s words were quite apt. Wasn¡¯t Shi Beihai such a dull and boring person? His life was mediocre, his military exploits were minimal, he had no temper, and also did not challenge anybody. His existence among the division leaders also did not matter.

    "It seems like the life of Shi Beihai was rather boring."

    Afterward, Sir¡¯s reaction caused Wang Erdan to be stunned.

    "Shi Beihai is probably the only person who is more boring than me. Look at Le Buleng. Although he did not do a good job as a division leader, his ambition to challenge Dai Gang has not extinguished. As for Ye Baiyi, his countless aplishments have attained a widespread reputation. Other division leaders also have their own achievements. Look at Shi Beihai. What has he done all these years? Oh, he made a spear for his daughter."

    "It seems like that..." Wang Erdan carefully responded.

    After Sir said, "Oh, he made a spear for his daughter," Wang Erdan would never forget his unpleasant and extremely angry look. How could such an expression appear on Sir¡¯s cold and stern face?

    "Oh, he has really put in a lot of effort on this spear and came out with the idea of Firmament Iron. He even specifically went to kill a humpback cloud whale and nonsensically imed that it shed against the camp and the city. Is it possible that the head of a humpback cloud whale was caught in the door and recklessly attacked from so high above? Well, not more than two dayster, the Elders Guild was hoping he could take over the Great Elder¡¯s position as well. Yet, he imed to be too busy with his North Sea Division¡¯s military affairs. Oh, oh, too busy!"

    Next, Sir said with sarcasm, "Such a boring guy. When he was young, he was actually a bum wanderer. Scary right?"

    Wang Erdan was frightened, but still mustered up the courage and asked, "Sir, you seem to have great admiration for Sir Beihai? "

    Wan Shenwei simply nodded. "Yes, among these division leaders, thest person I want to be an enemy with is Shi Beihai. Even though this chap likes to pretend to be dead, acts deaf, and feigns like everything does not matter to him."

    "Ah! Why is that so?"

    "Because the sea is not always calm and peaceful."

    In this short dialogue, Wang Erdan saw many varied expressions on Sir¡¯s face, a face that had been shaped and sculpted by multiple killings. Wang Erdan dared to swear that before this incident, he had thought that this icy face had lost the ability to change expressions.

    Now, Wang Erdan had a high opinion of Sir¡¯s foresight. Wasn¡¯t it the sea out here?

    Everything around him was really turning into a sea, and the water level was up to his waist. He was exhausted, could not stand up, and did not even had the strength to swim.

    Hemented in his heart that this couldn¡¯t be. He would not die at the hands of the Demonic Girl or at the hands of the Demonic Girl of the Sky Leaf Division, but would drown in the waters of the North Sea?

    Aye, Ye Baiyi was actually... floating on the water!

    Wang Erdan was stunned and overjoyed. He pulled at the hair of Ye Baiyi and found his buoyancy to be incredibly good!

    In no time, the water level flooded up to his chest.

    With reckless abandon, Wang Erdan used hisst residual energy to climb up on top of Ye Baiyi using both his hands and feet.

    Fortunately, Ye Baiyi was still floating on the water and did not sink much.

    Wang Erdan heaved a sigh of relief after realizing he would not drown in the water of his own people.

    Wang Erdan, who was lying on top of Ye Baiyi, suddenly found Ye Baiyi¡¯s face very close to him. It made him feel a little weird and gave him goosebumps.

    On second thought, Wang Erdan struggled to get up and turned Ye Baiyi to submerge his face in the water. Hey t on top of Ye Baiyi¡¯s back and conveniently grasped his hair.

    Wang Erdan felt more rxed by not seeing Ye Baiyi¡¯s face.

    He could not deny it. Ye Baiyi, this captive, was really omnipotent. You could use him as a shield or as a raft.

    Not having to worry about drowning, Wang Erdan was soon attracted by the intense battle ahead.

    Fu Sisi knew she had fallen into the trap of Shi Beihai. She calmed down and admitted that Shi Beihai was one step ahead of her. However, that did not imply that she would give up.

    On the contrary, sheunched a more violent attack.

    Her figure swiftly disappeared in midair and reappeared at the left side of Shi Beihai like a specter. The light rays from the five types of elemental energy on her five fingers lit up once again.

    She deliberately selected the left side because Shi Beihai¡¯s spear had shattered.

    However, the area in front of Fu Sisi darkened, and she lost sight of Shi Beihai.

    The sky above Shi Beihai was raining rivulets of water, all of which were uniformly nted. The rivulets were each as thick as an arm, looking like hundred of stout whips mercilesslyshing at Fu Sisi. They powerfully shot across the air, emitting a low and soulful scream.

    Qi Xiuyuan, who was behind Shi Beihai, showed his admiration. Both of his hands in the water moved in an opposing circr trajectory.

    The others had not recovered yet. Only he, as the vice division leader, had the energy left to do so.

    In the water, Qi Xiuyuan¡¯s confidence rose. They were people from North Sea!

    Boom!

    The rivulets burst in the sky as numerous water droplets sshed in all directions. They were so fast that they turned into mist within nine meters after violently colliding with the air.

    No one could see what was happening inside the thick mist.

    Qi Xiuyan knew he did not have the ability to hurt Fu Sisi, but he wanted to cause some trouble for the opposite party.

    He stared at the ball of mist as if facing a formidable enemy. The mist was surging, but did not disperse.

    Out of the corner of his eye he glimpsed a shadow. His heart suddenly skipped a beat as he realized the bad news!

    Out of nowhere, Fu Sisi appeared above Shi Beihai¡¯s head!

    Fu Sisi¡¯s murderous eyes filled the atmosphere, and she pointed her palm directly at Shi Beihai. On her sparkling and translucent arm, the nine sections of the five elemental energy lit up one by one from her wrist to her shoulder.

    The five element ring closest to her shoulder revolved in the opposite direction. Moving forward, it merged with the five element energy ring in front of it. Then, it rotated one-fifth and merged with the next elemental energy ring after that.

    Pop, pop, pop.

    The intense sonic boom sounded like fried beans exploding.

    In the blink of an eye, nine total five element energy rings merged into one, and her fingers appeared.

    A zing beam of light shot out from the elemental energy ring at Fu Sisi¡¯s fingers like a radiant sword cutting through the world as it flew at Shi Beihai. The moment the beam of light shot out, time seemed to freeze, and the heavy rain unexpectedly stopped.

    Countless water droplets were suspended in the air, as if in a strange dreand.

    Qi Xiuyuan was overwhelmed with shock. Elemental energy... the surrounding elemental energy could not be controlled!

    Shi Beihai¡¯s eyes drooped as both hands held the broken spear as it submerged in the water.

    From the time that Qi Xiuyuan struck out, he had also started moving. After years of working together arm-in-arm, they had a good rapport with one another.

    With both hands clenching the spear, he slowly raised it up. His movements were so slow that they looked almost motionless in the water. The spear without a spearhead appeared to weigh thousands of pounds.

    However, it really weighed 30,000 pounds.

    Fu Sisi broke through the mist, appeared above his head, and lit up the lights on her arm. The spear pole began to rise up more quickly.

    With the spear upright, the water in front of him started rising.

    The water level was rising not only within a distance of three meters, but also 30 meters and even 300 meters away. In front of him, whether his vision could reach it or not, the water level was rising as the broken spear rose.

    Within a radius of 100 miles, the water of the sea was stirred by Shi Beihai with the spear in his hand.

    Shi Beihai¡¯s feet appeared rooted. His expression did not show his mood while he stirred the sea very slowly, bit by bit.

    The stirring speed of the spear elerated, and the vast sea became turbulent, devouring the floating water droplets in the sky.

    Fu Sisi only felt the sudden darkness. A wall of water so high and wide that its ends could hardly be seen pressed toward her with insurmountable force.

    The sea was not always calm and peaceful.

 Chapter 660: God Tiger

    Chapter 660: God Tiger

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    What was this?

    Fu Sisi was frightened by the violent,pressed water walls approaching from all directions, which made them impossible to dodge. The gigantic water walls rumbled loudly and moved quickly, containing a majestic and boundless might.

    She felt an intense suffocation, as if her body had been ced in a meat grinder.

    Death was close. She was going to be crushed in the next moment!

    Her hands and feet were ice cold. She was panicked and at a loss. Thoughts flooded her brain. How... how could this be? How did Shi Beihai have such terrifying power?

    He was merely the North Sea Division¡¯s leader!

    Why was he so powerful?

    There seemed to be a voice screaming inside her head. The intense trembling due to the fear of death made her hair stand on end. Her eyes lost their focus as her survival instinct kicked in.

    She shrieked uncontrobly. Her scream was like an awl that pierced through the rain and the sea.

    She jerked and closed her five fingers that were spread open, as if she was pulling back a.

    The zing light pir that was about to strike Shi Beihai swiftly copsed and transformed into five differently colored ropes of light. Metal, wood, water, fire, earth... these five elemental energy light ropes rolled backward like five enormous pythons and swiftly coiled around Fu Sisi.

    At thest moment she chose to defend herself!

    This was not some electrically fancy technique, only a most primitive survival instinct. At the final moment of this full force death battle, she cowered.

    Time seemed to freeze. The moment when their gazes intertwined, she saw her opponent.

    Shi Beihei¡¯s armor was half shattered. He stood in the water with both hands sping the broken spear, and his eyes were fixed onto her. He was expressionless. There was no anger or contempt. His gaze was as deep as the water.

    This quick glimpse was unforgettable.

    Unfathomable Shi Beihai!

    The whistling sea drowned her field of view as the mountainous impact pounced onto her.

    With a stifled groan, her mind went nk briefly.

    Within a 50 mile range, the deluge surged violently like a tsunami. The waves were like giant palms mming down heavily, and the raging water sshed high up into the sky. This absolutely terrifying force caused the ground to shake.

    Only Shi Beihai stood unaffected amid these currents.

    He kept his gaze on the magnificent scene and was somewhat absent-minded. The even more spectacr Wall of North Sea had long disappeared. Human strength was ultimately insignificant.

    Suddenly, amid the angry waves, a light ray shot up into the sky and vanished into the horizon.

    Qi Xiuyuan had thought that victory was near, but who knew that the cooked duck would actually fly away. He shouted urgently, "Boss!"

    Shi Beihai shook his head. "No need to chase. There¡¯s no point."

    Qi Xiuyuan felt indignant. "She actually fled! She must have great luck."

    Shi Beiyi fixed his eyes on Fu Sisi, who was now distant. "Not luck, but ability. The Ye n put their all into Master¡¯s Glory. Before, I was still uncertain, but now, it is clear how powerful Master¡¯s Glory actually is."

    Qi Xiuyuan smirked. "Still not your match."

    Shi Beihai shook his head again. "She¡¯s not weaker than I am. She justcks experience and will power. She was only slightly injured."

    Qi Xiuyuan did not retort. Smiling, he said, "I know you won anyway."

    Shi Beihai ignored him and said with a grave expression, "If all the Masters of Master¡¯s Glory have this sort of ability... No, even if they¡¯re slightly weaker than her, they would still be very terrifying."

    Qi Xiuyuan was stunned, and his face turned ugly. He finally understood what Boss was worried about.

    The deluge that lost its target was no longer as violent. It calmed down quickly.

    "Someonee help me. Bring thed from the Dread Division, and we¡¯ll leave immediately," Shi Beihai ordered promptly, knowing that they had to leave because the enemy¡¯s reinforcements would arrive shortly, and they wouldn¡¯t be able to escape then.

    His earlier move had consumed all of his energy. He even had to pay an additional small price for it. He was really spent.

    Though, in order not to let Fu Sisi see through him, he had been enduring.

    Qi Xiuyuan finally realized how horrible Boss¡¯s condition was. His face changed, and he quickly rushed over to support Shi Beihai.

    The Sky Leaf Division¡¯s elementalists arrived shortly. They searched everywhere, but couldn¡¯t find any remaining members of the North Sea Division.

    The North Sea Division had gone underwater, like fish.

    .....

    A bonfire was lit in the wild as the faraway sun had already fallen behind the horizon. Darkness and cold had started to seep in.

    An army troop was pitching their tents. Even though the troop wasn¡¯t small, everything was done orderly. Many powerful tigers were sprawled around the camping ground,zing around like a group of big cats. Their physiques were intimidatingly majestic, with statures over four meters. They were like blocks of moving mountains. It could be seen from their fur color that there were three species of them.

    Radiant tigers from the Radiance Blood Division had bright red fur with beautiful golden flower patterns. They had amber eyes, sharp ears, lean bodies, and were known for their speed.

    Bluster mysterious tigers from the Bluster Blood Division were entirely different. They had a pair of scarlet eyes and enormous bodies. Their limbs were powerful, and they had a fierce temperament. The Beast Venom Pce had attached the remnant souls of mysterious tortoises on their bodies, producing ck segments of mysterious tortoise shells that provided outstanding protection. As such, they were coined as ferocious war beasts.

    However, the remnant mysterious tortoise souls were unceasingly absorbing the vitality of the ck tigers, causing them to have short life spans. They rarely exceeded 10 years old and only had five primebat years.

    Using the bluster mysterious tigers came with many restrictions. For example, they weren¡¯t suitable for long distance traveling and needed special equipment for transporting goods. The Bluster Blood Division had a specialized battalion that followed behind. Plus, these tigers had an extreme appetite. The amount of jade fruits they consumed was five times more than the amount needed by radiant tigers.

    Even though there were many restrictions, the bluster mysterious tigers¡¯bat abilities were extremely rming. Once they became engrossed in a fight, they became unstoppable and could instantly alter the course of a battle.

    God tigers were the most beautiful. They had a pair of crystalline eyes, and their fur was white and spotless. Duringbat, rings ofplicated blood traces would emerge. They had peculiar skills such as walking on air as if was the ground as well as striding and running on the sea of clouds.

    There was a very small number of god tigers since it wasn¡¯t easy to nurture them.

    Right now, most of the troops of the God Tiger Division, the Radiance Blood Division, and the Bluster Blood Division were pitching camp. Due to their greater endurance, a small portion of radiance tigers were patrolling, whereas the majority of them were resting. The bluster mysterious tigers were sleeping soundly. Energetic god tigers were ying in the sky, diving into the clouds at times and dashing out at times.

    On a stone mountain not far away from the camp, the God Tiger¡¯s division leader, Shan Minxiong, was gazing into the distance.

    Shan Minxiong was sturdy, powerful, and his arms were intimidatingly thick. He had dark skin, a flushed face, and looked like a cksmith who worked long term in front of a forge. His eyes were clear, a sign that he was bold, but not scheming.

    Beside him, the Radiance¡¯s division leader, Xiao Buyu, was giving his report. He was a lean andrge fellow.

    "Boss, 30 percent of the soldiers have yet to gather thus far."

    Another big and fierce-looking fellow, who had a face full of beard, spoke, "10 percent of the Bluster Blood Division¡¯s soldiers have yet to gather."

    He was the Bluster Blood division leader, Tu Shengxian.

    Shan Minxiong crinkled his brows. Before, when chasing and attacking the Dread and Judgment divisions, they had to disperse and form small search teams. It was easy to split up, but difficult to reunite. Even if an assembling order had long been issued, many soldiers couldn¡¯t reconvene on schedule.

    Due to of the Radiance Blood Division¡¯s outstanding endurance, soldiers had prioritized their mission despite the huge dispersal. As a result, this division had the most number of missing soldiers.

    Shan Minxiong sighed, but quickly made a decision. "Someone will stay here and assemble the returning soldiers. Tomorrow, the rest will charge for the defensive line at full speed."

    Both answered in unison, "Yes!"

    Shan Minxiong smiled. "He Nanshan has already started expressing his discontent. He has been pestered beyond his tolerance by the enemy and even lost a few powerful experts with the Ability of God."

    Tu Shengxian snorted. "The God Spirit Division is trash. If not for them, would General Ye and Pce Master Nangong have been captured?

    He Nanshan¡¯s God Spirit Division had been guarding the rear camp, but was raided by the Dread and Judgement divisions. Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian were then kidnapped. To Tu Shengxian and others, the God Spirit Division shouldered the biggest me.

    They had not heard the news about Nangong Wulian.

    Shan Minxiong waved his hand. "It has already happened, so there¡¯s no pointining. Since His Majesty has sent Her Highness out, we will just listen to her orders."

    Tu Shengxian snorted, but said nothing else.

    Xiao Buyu said suddenly, "Her Highness¡¯s received the holy artifact. Such grace... has something like this ever happened?"

    Shan Minxiong muttered, "Never. If Mister Bei could endure the holy artifact, I¡¯m sure His Majesty would do the same for him. A pity he was born weak and can only take charge of the overall situation from within the pce. Otherwise, with his abilities, wouldn¡¯t taking over the world just be a piece a cake?"

    Withoutmenting, Xiao Buyu continued, "With this development, is His Majesty nning to nurture Her Highness as his sessor?

    Shan Minxiong added, "His Majesty is in his prime. It¡¯s too early to talk about this."

    Xiao Buyu pointed to the sky. "I heard that His Majesty wishes to go even further, conquering the world without sharing the glory. His Majesty¡¯s lofty aspirations are like those of rare heroes. This journey is dangerous and unfathomable. His Majesty must have his arrangements."

    Shan Minxiong was frightened and shocked. Suddenly he thought, "If His Majesty left the God Nation..."

    He quivered and dared not continue thinking. He berated, "Speak cautiously! How dare we specte on His Majesty¡¯s thoughts? He has unmatchable talent. I¡¯ve been faithfully serving him for many years. Being able to tame the power of the holy artifact was a fortunate thing for the God Nation..."

    Just then, the horizon ended as a wind curtain that was visible to the naked eye emerged.

    The wind wasn¡¯t huge, and it swept through gently. However, it contained abundant water elemental energy and indescribable elemental energy wave undtions.

    The three of them were shocked.

    It was as if their hearts were being prodded by an invisible hand.

    Tu Shengxian asked, "Who?"

    Xiao Buyu trembled. "Toward the Wall of North Sea!"

    The Wall of North Sea...

    Three of them looked at one another in dismay. A silhouette emerged in their minds simultaneously.

    "Shi Beihai! Shi Beihai is still alive!"

 Chapter 661: Assembly

    Chapter 661: Assembly

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    Yu Mingqiu was spinning silk in Mingxiu¡¯s embroidery workshop. He was sweating all over, vapor was rising from his whole body, and he did not blink at all.

    "When ites to spinning silk, you¡¯re still the best. Far better than I am."

    Mingxiu¡¯s praise back then came unexpectedly and had caused Yu Mingqiu¡¯s ears to turn red. To be honest, Yu Mingqiu admired Ai Hui very much and knew that Ai Hui and Mingxiu were like siblings instead of lovers. Even then, he couldn¡¯t handle the dailypliments she showered Ai Hui with.

    Jealousy. Rising jealousy! There was an idiom saying that jealousy is the root of all evil.

    Jealousy breaks his elemental energy down!

    Jealousy makes him turn ugly!

    Jealousy clogs his five elements!

    Jealousy makes him forget to string his bow!

    Jealousy makes him recite his poetry like sh*t!

    (Pun between poetry and shit. Poetry ¨CÊ« (shi1), Shit ¨CÊº (shi3))

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s eyes were bloodshot. Uneptable! Spinning silk, was that right? Come, let me show you the kind of man that I am, able to recite countless verses and spin endless silk!

    Damn, it broke!

    Yu Mingqiu looked at the broken silk thread in his hand as his face twitched.

    "Brother Mingqiu¡¯s progressed a lot."

    Mingxiu¡¯s voice rxed his distorted expression immediately as all anger vanished in a puff of smoke. He coughed softly, acting aloof. "I gotta work harder. As they say, if you don¡¯t work hard when you¡¯re single, there¡¯s only grief after marriage!"

    Mingxiu smiled as the other embroiderydies chuckled while covering their mouths.

    Yu MIngqiu looked at the time and knew it was time to leave. Upset, he bade, "I¡¯m going now. See you tomorrow, Mingxiu. See youdies tomorrow."

    "See you tomorrow, Brother Xiaoqiu!"

    Time flew by whenever he was in the workshop. How he wished it would slow down.

    Yu Mingqiu walked out of the workshop. A few stepster, his sweat disappeared, and his usual expression returned.

    Suddenly, the scenery within his field of view turned white at a visible speed as a fearful elemental energy wave motion traveled from overhead. In that instant, the whole Jadeite Forest fell into a dead silence.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s face changed slightly. He jerked his head up toward the sky.

    The smaller sun had shrunk into the size of a needle tip. It appeared like a star, but the light it emitted was so intense that even the bigger sun seemed dim and was overshadowed.

    A reveal after all?

    Worry shed across Yu Mingqiu¡¯s heart, but he quicklyposed himself. He had absolute confidence in his teacher. Even if Le Buleng were to be a Grandmaster, he still wouldn¡¯t be Teacher¡¯s match.

    Teacher has been a Grandmaster for many years, so how could he have remained stagnant all this time?

    Quickly, Yu Mingqiu noticed many figures shooting out from all directions. They were Teacher¡¯s guards.

    He instantly knew that something big had happened.

    Upon seeing Yu Mingqiu, one of the guards hurriedly called out, "Lord Mingqiu, Grandmaster has ordered everybody to assemble in the pce to discuss important matters. Please go there quickly. I¡¯ll inform the others."

    Yu Mingqiu nodded. "Got it."

    He nced up at the zing light speck before retracting his gaze and flying toward the Pce of Origin.

    High in the sky, the ind-like fireball had alreadypressed into a sphere with a radius of less than 30 meters. Its originally golden color had turned white as well.

    Amid the zing fireball, a pitch ck figure could clearly be seen.

    It was so dazzling that even the sun had lost its luminosity. The darkness was so profound that it seemed as though it could swallow all light. The stark contrast created a devilish image. It had an indescribable strangeness and beauty, but was unexinably alluring and captivating.

    The terrifying wave motion formed rings of invisible ripples that spread outward.

    When the elemental energy wave motion swept past, a mighty aura emerged, as if to announce the arrival of the gods.

    The Pce of Origin was usually very quiet because Dai Gang did not appreciate disturbances and ordinary affairs. He led a reclusive life.

    Only Lu Chen, Yu Mingqiu, and a few others had the right to enter and exit.

    Upon arriving, Yu Mingqiu noticed that the pce gates, which were closed at all times, were now open.

    People entered in an endless stream. The entrance was bustling with noise.

    Important figures flew toward the Pce of Origin one after another,nding a few blocks away before walking over. They were well acquainted, whispering to one another upon meeting. With a suspicious expression on their faces, they discussed the possible reasons for this assembly. That terrifying wave motion from earlier made its way into their conjectures. It was a bad omen.

    The atmosphere was grave and stifling.

    The visitors fell silent upon catching sight of the vine and flower-filled pce walls from ad distance. Veneration washed over their faces as they lightened their footsteps in fear of disrupting the peace.

    Inside, the pce hall was quiet and serene, but a little solemn.

    A slightly chilly gust weed them as they strode across the threshold. It was indescribablyforting. The wood elemental energy within the Pce of Origin was much thicker than the outside. It was also strangely gentle and smooth. Regardless of the inherited skills they practiced, all of them felt an unexinable sense offort.

    For many, this was their first time entering the Pce of Origin, so they couldn¡¯t help but look around in curiosity. However, they were quickly disappointed because the pce was simple and in. The greenery was lush and there were all kinds of rare flowers and nts, but they weren¡¯t considered magnificent.

    Rumor had it that the Holy Emperor¡¯s pce was so grand and majestic that being inside made visitors feel small. In terms of luxury, the Pce of Origin couldn¡¯t evenpare to their own residences.

    However, wood elementalists with profound abilities had grave looks on their faces. They could feel the difference between this wood elemental energy and the energy they had been in touch with previously. The pce¡¯s every grass, tree, mountain, and rock appeared simple, but were in fact abstruse. Between the cirction of elemental energy hid an indescribable wonder.

    These visitors trembled inwardly. The wood elemental energy in the Pce of Origin was just as thick as before, but it used to surge violently like an angry wave. Now, it was like spring wind and rain, moist and silent.

    Everybody acted very respectful, as if they were disciples about to pay a formal visit to their teacher.

    Qing Hai smiled, standing before the hallway. "Grandmaster Dai is waiting This way please."

    He was dressed in a simple, navy robe with his hair worn in a bun and fastened by a wooden floral hairpin. He smiled amiably and appeared like an ordinary servant.

    Nevertheless, facing one of the Jadeite Forest¡¯s leading figure, no one dared to slow down. They hurriedly moved forward to make their salutations. Qing Hai had been serving Grandmaster Dai for a few decades and had gained hisplete trust. This was something no one couldpete with.

    The main hall of the Pce of Origin was called the Lotus Command Hall, and this was the first time it was being used.

    Compared to the Holy Emperor¡¯s impressive pce hall, the Lotus Command Hall was simple, yet elegant, just like a pretty daughter from a humble family. In the center of the main hall was a huge, square pond. It extended deeply into the hall and had table-sized king lotuses floating neatly on both sides of the square pond. On top of each king lotus leaf was a white prayer mat.

    The lotus flower at the center of the pond bloomed, emitting a delicate fragrance.

    Water trickled down around the pond like snow.

    The domed roof of the pce hall was a piece of intact jadeite. It was sparkling, translucent, and glistening. The waves of the pond were reflected by the clear domed roof, producing a gleam that was absolutely beautiful.

    Behind the water curtain that surrounded the pond, a figure who sat upright could vaguely be seen.

    Grandmaster Dai!

    Everybody quickly restrained themselves and sped up toward the pond. The water curtain opened up as if there was a pair of invisible hands pulling it apart. The visitors stepped onto the king lotus leaves and took a seat.

    Yu Mingqiu walked to the second praying mat before Grandmaster Dai and bowed. "Teacher!"

    Grandmaster Dai smiled slightly. "Take a seat. Your senior ising too."

    Yu Mingqiu nodded calmly, but was actually left speechless. It seemed like there was really something big. Teacher had even called for Senior. Lu Chen was a simple man who had no interest in ordinary affairs and wouldn¡¯t bother with unnecessary things.

    Indeed, Lu Chen arrived shortly after and took a seat beside Yu Mingqiu. They made eye contact and saw the doubt in each other¡¯s faces. It seemed to them that even if Le Buleng had be a Grandmaster, there was no need to create such a big fanfare.

    Quickly, the hall was filled and many had to stand before the water curtain or along the corridor.

    Everybody had serious looks on their faces. Some were even deeply worried since it was very rare for all of the important figures to be called over. Yu Mingqiu¡¯s presence wasn¡¯t a surprise, but the appearance of the usually disinterested Lu Chen was indeed shocking. In fact, the patriarchs of the renowned aristocratic families were all here: the Lu family, Duanmu family, Quan family, and so on.

    Such a huge assembly had never been seen in the Jadeite Forest.

    Did something major happen?

    As everyone was guessing to themselves, restlessness and apprehensiveness started taking over them.

    The water curtain above them slowly opened up, revealing Grandmaster Dai¡¯s silhouette.

    Everybody stood up and greeted, "Grandmaster!"

    Grandmaster Dai returned with a slight bow. "All¡¯s here and well."

    After everyone had taken their seats, he smiled and spoke up again, "I¡¯ve not seen all of you in a long time. Everyone looks great and happy. I¡¯ve called you over without prior notice, so please forgive me for disrupting your regr schedules."

    Grandmaster Dai¡¯s voice was warm and kind, making people feel as though spring had washed over them.

    They quickly responded simultaneously, "Not at all."

    Grandmaster Dai continued, "I¡¯ve called all of you over to exin a few matters. Also, the front line battle report has arrived, and there are many important pieces of news. Although the Jadeite Forest is not directly involved in the battle between Beyond Avalon and the Blood of God, it is inevitable for us to be implicated."

    He sighed softly. "Ever since our independence, there has only been peace and quiet. I can see from yourplexions that all of you have been living decent lives. How can our peacest amid this chaotic world? I do not wish to dampen your spirits, but the circumstances and times have. Life will be different from now on, so please bear with me."

    Everybody listened in silence and apprehension. They straightened their backs and sat upright.

    With a calm expression, Grandmaster Dai said, "President Quan, please deliver the report of current events."

    Everybody¡¯s gaze fell simultaneously onto Quan Weide. Quan Weide was the president of the Deep Sea Enterprise and had many channels for obtaining information. Everyone was curious about the purpose of this assembly. Did something big happen?

    The battle at the Windy Pearl Bridge defensive line circted rather widely within the Jadeite Forest. It was a topic discussed fervently over tea and meals. However, their discussions were either without many details, made with bits of information, or filled with contradictions, making it difficult to piece the whole story together.

    Knowing this, President Quan Weide would definitely exin the detailed truth.

 Chapter 662: Out of It

    Chapter 662: Out of It

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    "... The victory at the Windy Pearl Bridge defensive line has many noteworthy details. The pagoda cannons were again greatly helpful. This type of new weapon has many ws, but they also have advantages that other weapons don¡¯t provide. For example, they demand little from elementalists. ording to our standards the elementalists in the Pagoda Cannon Alliance aren¡¯t considered elite, but they could still be as equally useful as a team of elites.. Plus, the pagoda cannon salvos were so powerful that they managed to directly shake up the God Wolf Division¡¯s head-on charge. We aren¡¯t able to forge heavy and expensive weapons like God-subduing Peaks. Pagoda cannons are fire elemental weapons, so can we produce a simr wood elemental weapon?"

    "The Sword of Lightning¡¯s battle tactics are even more unique. Fleeing far away after missing a shot, they leave the enemy with no alternatives. It¡¯s said that this thing is called a Pinwheel Sword. It¡¯s fast as lightning and operates differently from the usual Fiery Floating Clouds and Three Leaves Bamboo Carts. It¡¯s not as effective for breaking up formations, but is the perfect vehicle for scouting and causing disturbances."

    Quan Weide was crafty and profound, but had unique foresight. He had been observing the pagoda cannons for a long time, so everyone in the Lotus Command Hall was full of assurance and not at all frightened.

    Dai Gang¡¯s expression was the same as usual as his gaze slowly scanned across the audience below, but his heart was unavoidably sighing.

    Other than Yu Mingqiu and a few others who were engrossed in listening, the majority of the audience were lowering their heads in disinterest.

    The Jadeite Forest was like a utopia, free from war and turmoil. Plus, with the persistent battle between Beyond Avalon and the God Nation, the Jadeite Forest¡¯s economy had been flourishing. Everyone was more concerned about how they could profit even further. The high influx of money did not go into training because wood elementalistscked a sense of urgency. They knew that as long as Grandmaster Dai was alive, the Jadeite Forest would be safe and stable. Grandmaster Dai was in his prime, so for the next few decades, they had nothing to worry about.

    This also led to the hedonistic way of life in the Jadeite Forest.

    Grandmaster Dai had called for this assembly precisely because he was worried.

    "Master¡¯s Glory was a huge sess, and there was a total of 278 Masters produced. The world is starting to enter the era of Masters. The Ye family has control over Beyond Avalon, and even without the help of Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, and theirrades, it is no longer the case that they have no chance of winning against the Blood of God. Between the Sky Leaf Division and the six god divisions, it is still unclear which is stronger or weaker since they have yet to have a face off. However, it is important to note that the Masters in the Sky Leaf Division are much stronger than ordinary ones. So far, the Masters in the Sky Leaf Division have only had sessful battles! It is clear that they have a palpable superiority, which is why people distinguish them as Sky Leaf Masters. ording to our standards, no more than five of us in the entire Jadeite Forest are on par with Sky Leaf Masters.

    The silence broke as everybody started fidgeting. They were obviously feeling indignant over this conclusion.

    "Impossible! Only five in the entire Jadeite Forest? President Quan is threatening others¡¯ ambition and killing his own might."

    "We have plenty of powerful experts, and there are countless of talents in each family. What is Sky Leaf?!"

    "I don¡¯t believe it either. ording to President Quan¡¯s logic, wouldn¡¯t it be effortless for the Ye family to destroy us? Then why isn¡¯t she here yet?

    "Hahaha..."

    The audience burst intoughter along with all kinds of ridicule and mockery.

    Yu Mingqiu smiled too. He was rather skeptical.

    Suddenly, a soft sigh sounded from above, effectively ending theughter. Everyone only now realized that they had been impudent before the Grandmaster. They quickly lowered their heads and kept quiet.

    Grandmaster Dai started, "President Quan¡¯s words do seem a little exaggerated."

    While lowering their heads, the audience couldn¡¯t help but smile a little.

    Grandmaster Dai continued, "Five? That¡¯s wrong. Only three, to be exact."

    The audience¡¯s smiles froze. Everyone found it hard to believe. A few people even stood up in the next moment. Even Yu Mingqiu and Lu Chen seemed shocked.

    Grandmaster Dai extended his finger and pointed with a calm expression, "Other than Chen¡¯er, Xiao Qiu, and myself, no one else is their match."

    The whole hall fell into silence. It was only then that people realized it wasn¡¯t a joke. A white pallor slowly took over theirplexions.

    Grandmaster Dai sighed. "It is not just everyone else, but I, too, have underestimated Madam Ye. There are indeed supernatural abilities involved in Master¡¯s Glory. There¡¯s a blend of fusion elemental energy from the Assembly of Patriarchs, blood refinement methods from the Beast Venom Pce, and even some ideas from my own [Lotus Chiropractic Technique]. Masters who managed to survive were reborn with all five elements and five elemental rings. Assembly of Patriarchs hase up with the concept of five elemental rings a very long time and that¡¯s why they created the fusion elemental energy. I didn¡¯t expect Madam Ye to seed."

    Those listening stared nkly into space. Only Yu Mingqiu and Lu Chen¡¯s faces changed. This was because they knew what it meant to bind the five elemental energy rings.

    It meant that bing a Grandmaster was attainable.

    Prior to Dai Gang and the Holy Emperor, elementalists who could bind the five elemental energy rings were the cream of the crop.

    Dai Gang added, "But Master¡¯s Glory isn¡¯t without its ws. While the Masters they produce are extraordinary, it is difficult for them to improve further."

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief, but quickly realized that this fact made no difference. How terrifying would abat division made up of members at Yu Mingqiu¡¯s level be?!

    Someone shouted, "But they¡¯re not Grandmasters! Why do we need to worry when we have Grandmaster Dai around?"

    Immediately, the atmosphere loosened up.

    Yeah, Grandmaster is around. No matter how powerful the Sky Leaf Division is, they¡¯re no match for him. Plus, Sky Leaf Masters can not improve further, but Lu Chen and Yu Mingqiu have this potential. The situation isn¡¯t that bad.

    Yu Mingqiu suddenly recalled the zing fireball from earlier, vaguely understanding the reason behind this assembly. His face changed.

    Dai Gang smiled. "That is another problem, and we¡¯ll talk about itter. President Quan, please continue."

    Quan Weide bowed. "Yes."

    Quan Weide found it hard to remain calm. Even though he was the one who made that judgment, Grandmaster Dai had spoken very frankly, revealing that the situation was worse than he had imagined. His heart sank.

    Inhaling a deep breath, he recalibrated his state of mind and continued.

    "Beyond Avalon is in disarray and so is the Blood of God. Shi Beihai hadunched a surprise counterattack and severely injure Ye Baiyi. The Heart of God, bestowed by the Holy Emperor, is an extraordinary object. The Beast Venom Temple¡¯s master, Nangong Wulian, personally imnted this heart for Ye Baiyi."

    Someone asked, "What is the Heart of God?"

    Quan Weide shook his head. "I have no idea, but I have heard that it is like the heart of a dragon and astoundingly mighty."

    Yu Mingqiu noted that Teacher¡¯s expression was unusual. Most wouldn¡¯t be able to notice this, but being meticulous and familiar with Teacher, Yu Mingqiu understood that this sentence meant a lot to Teacher.

    What was the Heart of God? Something that even Teacher paid attention to?

    He looked over at his Senior and was given a look that said, "We¡¯ll talkter."

    Quan Weide raised his voice in excitement, "Who knew! The Dread and Judgment divisions conducted a long distance surprise raid, charged into the enemy¡¯s rear camp, and kidnapped both Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian!"

    The crowd cheered as everyone was unable to contain their joy.

    "Great! The three central divisions are wless!"

    "The Dread and Judgment divisions converted shame into bravery and achieved a huge merit. The story of this battle is sure tost forever!"

    "Ye Baiyi, the traitor... If I had been there, I would¡¯ve cut him into pieces!"

    ...

    Yu Mingqiu looked happy as well. Yei Baiyi and Nangong Wulian were without a doubt crucial figures within the Blood of God. One was the number one militarymander in the God Nation, while the other was responsible for an even wider scope of activity. Losing them was an extremely major blow for the Blood of God.

    Although the Jadeite Forest and the Blood of God had long since reached a cease fire, the Jadeite Forest had been a part of the Avalon of Five Elements after all. Everyone in the Jadeite Forest sympathized with Beyond Avalon and felt resentful toward blood elementalists.

    When Yu Mingqiu caught a glimpse of Teacher out of the corner of his eye, he was stunned.

    He thought he had seen wrongly.

    Teacher¡¯s finger was trembling slightly.

    How could a Grandmaster¡¯s finger tremble? Even if the Holy Emperor were to appear right now, Dai Gang¡¯s finger wouldn¡¯t be shaking the slightest! Yu Mingqiu¡¯s mind went nk. Shortly after he regained his senses and realized that he had not made a mistake.

    This was the first time that Teacher was so out of it.

    No powerful expert in this world could make Teacher act like this!

    A premonition rose in Yu Mingqiu¡¯s chest.

    "Where are the two of them?" Dai Gang¡¯s voice rang once again, silencing the hall.

    Yu Mingqiu was even more certain now. Teacher¡¯s voice always sounded calm, but now it carried a tinge of anxiety. Yu Mingqiu couldn¡¯t help but look at Lu Chen. Lu Chen¡¯s expression changed, as if having a revtion.

    Did he know something?

    Yu Mingqiu wanted to open his mouth, but knew that it wasn¡¯t the right time. He racked his brain, trying hard to recall.

    When had Teacher ever disyed such unusual behavior...

    Quan Weide reported, "No news thus far. The Holy Emperor bestowed a sacred artifact to She Yu, ordering her to rescue Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian. Madam Ye was aware of this and sent the Sky Leaf Division out to battle. Ximen Caijue and Wan Shenwei¡¯s corpses have been found and both of theirbat divisions have been destroyed. There¡¯s still no news about the Blood of God¡¯s sessful rescue. Wan Shenwei and Ximen Caijue are both resilient individuals. They would¡¯ve gotten rid of Ye Baiyi and Nangong Wulian if they had no chance of winning. As such, I¡¯m guessing that the captives might already be dead."

    The hall was instantly filled with sorrowful sighs.

    "The Dread and Judgment divisions are heroic!"

    "They¡¯ve died an honorable death!"

    ...

    Yu Mingqiu noticed that Teacher¡¯s expression was off. He could smell an aura of dejection and defeat and was shocked when he saw a strand of white hair surfacing on Teacher¡¯s head.

    He recalled the other times that Teacher had been so out of it. His mind wentpletely nk as an indescribable image invaded his thoughts.

    Teacher¡¯s room.

    A wordless wooden te.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s eyes opened wide as his face changed.

    Could it be... perhaps...

    Beside him, the same paleness was reflected in the simrly intelligent Lu Chen¡¯s face. He had a look of disbelief as well.

    Suddenly, a jade-colored king lotus leaf started to wither at its edge. Wisps of white mist rose from the trickling water as the water suddenly stopped dripping.

    A ball of mes rose from the lotus flower in the pond, turning it into ashes together with its stem.

    A destructive and terrifying aura enveloped the whole Pce of Origin.

 Chapter 663: Successor

    Chapter 663: Sessor

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    Inside the Lotus Command Hall, the air was frozen.

    Everyone present seemed to be strangled by a pair of invisible hands and were unable to move. The intimidating and heavy power suffocated them as sweat rolled down their pale cheeks. It was so quiet inside that even a pin drop would clearly be heard.

    Everyone looked frightened, especially Quan Weide. He did not know that the contents of his earlier report had angered the Grandmaster.

    The Grandmaster was the god of the Jadeite Forest. His will was the will of the Jadeite Forest. Any anger from him was sufficient for blood to flow like a river. They hadn¡¯t seen the Grandmaster¡¯s wrath. To them he was like a god in the sky, overlooking all worldly affairs.

    Quan Weide¡¯s thighs were trembling and his feet gave out, but he couldn¡¯t move because the surrounding pressure had confined him, causing him to remain in this position like a statue. He wanted to open his mouth to beg for mercy, but no voice came out.

    Only Yu Mingqiu and Lu Chen understood why Dai Gang was this angry.

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s mind buzzed and nked. He was stunned by this unexpected truth and found it hard to remain calm.

    Ye Baiyi... Ye Baiyi was actually their senior?

    Yu Mingqiu found it absolutely ridiculous.

    That¡¯s right, preposterous!

    Ye Baiyi had been the division leader of the Icy mes Division for so many years, while Yu Mingqiu was the vice division leader of the Death Grass Division. While they weren¡¯t considered well acquainted, they had met quite a number of times. Ye Baiyi had never shown any signs at all. Furthermore, Icy me was a fire elementalbat division!

    Teacher¡¯s first disciple was actually a fire elementalist? How illogical!

    In the past Yu Mingqiu had felt that Ye Baiyi was extremely enigmatic. Ye Baiyi had a mysterious history and all Yu Mingqiu knew was that he was a new citizen who gradually became the representative of the new citizens. Ye Baiyi¡¯s journey of progress was rather legendary. He had started from the bottom and became famous through the Battle of The Dawn, eventually recing Le Buleng as the division leader of the Icy mes Division.

    Nevertheless, no one would¡¯ve thought that he would defect to the Holy Emperor and be the number one traitor in the Avalon of Five Elements. The Holy Emperor¡¯s reward for him shocked the world. Even before serving, Ye Baiyi had been granted the title of "War God" and was the overallmander of the army. The Holy Emperor had also specially constructed War God Pce for him, which only the third pce after the Beast Venom Temple and the Cold Pce.

    Ye Baiyi did not let the Holy Emperor down as he reformed the military tactics of the blood elementalistbat division and established the six god divisions. From then on, between the God Nation and the Avalon of Five Elements, the former started gaining the upper hand and became increasingly dominant and superior over time.

    If he wasn¡¯t aware that Ye Baiyi was his senior, Yu Mingqiu would feel that he was a mysterious andplex person who was difficult to read.

    If Ye Baiyi was really his senior, all the things he had done would be even more illogical!

    Teacher was on par with the Holy Emperor so, as a disciple, why would Ye Baiyi surrender to thetter?

    Unless... unless it was a feigned surrender?

    This idea popped up, snapping Yu Mingqiu out of his thoughts. Thinking about how Teacher had been so worried and concerned about Ye Baiyi, his idea seemed very possible. However, he quickly had his doubts. When Ye Baiyi was still in the Avalon of Five Elements, he had still hidden this rtionship along with Teacher.

    Why did they conceal their real rtionship?

    Yu Mingqiu felt his heart turn cold. His face was rather pale, and he dared not proceed down this train of thought.

    Beside him, Lu Chen was deep in his own thoughts, his face simrly pale-looking.

    Before they could sort out their thoughts, a gush of domineering and vast energy waves came through from overhead. It was so intense that even the heavily guarded hall felt like a hot desert as heat waves continued rolling in.

    Yu Mingqiu and Lu Chen raised their heads at the same time and looked toward the dome. Their faces changed.

    The same name leapt into their minds.

    Le Buleng!

    Rumble.

    Heavy thunder sounded from the faraway horizon, yet the sky was clear and cloudless. Where was iting from?

    Outside the hall gate, the sunlight burned even more fiercely, causing the temperature to spike. Moisture evaporated as the trees dried up rapidly. The interior of the cold and quiet hall was like a different world from the outside, where a deathly pale and zing sun hung in the sky.

    A faint sigh broke the silence, and the invisible shackles vanished. The frozen air within the hall started circting once again, as if time had just frozen for a brief moment.

    Sweat stained everybody¡¯s garments and even the floor, proving that what happened wasn¡¯t an illusion.

    Thump. A sudden sound startled them.

    It turned out to be Quan Weide, who had gone weak in his limbs, lost his bnce, and fallen onto the lotus leaf.

    No oneughed at him, however, since they probably would¡¯ve fared worse if they were in his position.

    Dai Gang¡¯s expression returned to normal; the familiar smile and spring-like aura had returned. Still, having witnessed the bitingly wintry and bone-piercing aura, fear followed them like a shadow, and no one dared to rx or be careless.

    They stood respectfully with their heads lowered, trembled in fear, and did not dare to make any sound. The blood within their bodies was flowing slowly, preventing them from quickly regaining their body heat.

    Dai Gang smiled and spoke gently, "I need to address a matter first."

    Everybody kneeled down immediately. "We await your orders!"

    While trembling uncontrobly, Quan Weidie stumbled onto his knees.

    As if narrating a story, Dai Gang started, "I¡¯ve made a promise to Le Buleng. As long as he challenges me, I shall ept. Actually, it does not have that much to do with this battle, but there are certain things that I wish to arrange as soon as possible, and now¡¯s the chance, so I shall say my piece. I¡¯m embarrassed to say that while everyone in the Jadeite Forest regards me as the leader, I¡¯ve done very little. Instead, it is you all who have been working diligently while spilling blood, sweat, and tears. As they say, when a teacher is in trouble, his disciple will carry on his work. I¡¯m not going to make it, so the affairs of the Jadeite Forest will be handed over to Mingqiu. Mingqiu is young and not as experienced, so please, everybody, spend more effort helping him like how you¡¯ve helped me."

    Everyone had long predicted that this assembly was for a big announcement. Nevertheless, this explosive news still left them dumbstruck.

    Grandmaster was at his peak, which would predictablyst for a few more decades, so why was he arranging for a sessor so soon?

    As for Le Buleng, no one paid too much attention. While he was known as the third strongest person in the world, it was obvious that his abilities were far behind those of the top two. Perhaps he could create some trouble for Dai Gang, but only the Holy Emperor could really challenge Dai Gang.

    Furthermore, Dai Gang chose the second and not the first prince.

    Lu Chen looked pleased, patting Yu Mingqiu¡¯s shoulder encouragingly and feeling happy for his junior. He was relieved. He had no interest in power. These trifling matters were no different from poison. However, as the senior disciple, the pressure was ultimately on him. Now that he could finally do what he liked, he was beyond happy.

    The master of the Lu family, Lu Zhian, didn¡¯t look too good, however.

    Dai Gang had no son, so logically speaking, as the senior, Lu Chen was more likely to be his sessor. Unexpectedly, Grandmaster did not act ording to convention and chose Yu Mingqiu instead.

    Even though he, himself, knew that Chen¡¯er was overly-simple and an unsuitable candidate, seeing the throne slip away just like that made him feel terrible.

    Lu Zhian was a calm person after all. He stepped out and said, "Don¡¯t worry, Grandmaster. We will certainly assist the second lord as best as we can. We will do anything!"

    The rest responded in the same manner, hurriedly dering their devotion.

    Yu Mingqiu was rather shocked, and his mind was in a mess. He had still been thinking about Senior Ye Baiyi¡¯s secrets when Teacher pointed him out. He was caughtpletely off guard.

    When he finally processed what had just happened, he prepared to refuse.

    As the vice leader of the Deathgrass Division, he had chosen to enter the Wilderness alone because he was unable to ept the Jadeite Forest¡¯s secession. Although he had returned, this issue continued to affect him. The Jadeite Forest¡¯s extravagant atmosphere was theplete opposite of the arduous and torturous years that he had spent in the Wilderness, and this truly made him feel bad.

    Dai Gang smiled and did not let Yu Mingqiu speak. "I heard that Xiao Qiu¡¯s been interested in embroiderytely and running to Mingxiu¡¯s workshop every day. Xiao Qiu isn¡¯t young anymore, and his parents aren¡¯t around anymore. As his teacher, I¡¯ve decided to propose marriage with the Lu family. Mingxiu and Xiao Qiu are childhood friends, and now that they¡¯re both Masters, it can be said that they¡¯re an ideal couple. What do you say, Master Lu?"

    Yu Mingqiu¡¯s mind went nk.

    He stopped listening at this point and threw whatever he had wanted to say to the back of his mind. Only endless joy filled his heart.

    Lu Zhian hadn¡¯t expected Grandmaster to propose marriage either, but he quickly responded with a face full of joy. Yu Mingqiu was the future master of the Jadeite Forest, so this marriage would be extremely beneficial for the Lu family. Plus, as Grandmaster had mentioned, Mingqiu and Mingxiu had been friends since childhood and he had always been devoted to her. They were really a good match.

    Moved, he answered, "Great, great, great! It¡¯s our family¡¯s honor. Xiao Qiu grew up under your watch and you regard him as your own son. This marriage is more than anything I can ever ask for!"

    An enormous amount of pleasant surprise crashed and swallowed Yu Mingqiu up like a tsunami.

    His yearning and adoration transformed into indescribable joy that filled every corner of his heart. He wanted to scream. He wanted to run over to the workshop. He wanted to confess!

    He wanted to cut open his chest and let Mingxiu see that his heart was beating for her. He wanted to tell her that he was willing to do anything for her, be it treading on fire or climbing mountains made of knives.

    He wished morning woulde soon so he could see Mingxiu the moment she opened her eyes. He could look at her sleeping like a child and watch her face as it was lit up by a wisp of sunlight that shone through the windows. He couldn¡¯t wait to wake up beside her. He could tuck her locks of hair behind her ears and greet her when she woke up.

    Ahhhhhh, he was too happy. What to do, what to do. Too, too, too happy!

    Seeing a foolish grin taking over Yu Mingqiu¡¯s usually smart-looking and alert face made Dai Gang smile for a second.

    He then raised his head, his abstruse and sharp gaze seemingly piercing through the domed roof made out of translucent jade andnding upon the boundless sky.

    At that location, there was a tenacious looking figure.

    "Dismissed."

    Before his voice finished fading, the seat of honor was already empty.

 Chapter 664: Prey

    Chapter 664: Prey

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    The soft red garment was like a rippling wave that fluttered slowly in the wind.

    She Yu stopped in midair, her gaze sweeping across the ground. Her delicate and charming face was now beyond gloomy.

    A rare trace of water vapor had appeared in the Wilderness, but the remnant water elemental energy waves had been so intense it was as if they were deeply imprinted onto the ground.

    Shi Beihai!

    The Wall of North Sea had been destroyed, but there was still no news about Shi Beihai¡¯s whereabouts. She wanted to see him, dead or alive, since he wasn¡¯t just an ordinary elementalist, but one of the most powerful fighters and also the division leader of the North Sea Division. She Yu hadn¡¯t fought with him before, but Ye Baiyi and Mister Dou had both confirmed his capability.

    The remnant ripples in this region were the proof.

    There was another reverberating gush that remained here. This unique five elemental energy undtion could only mean one thing¡ªSky Leaf Division! She Yu had killed tens of Sky Leaf Masters, so she was very familiar with the characteristics of this kind of elemental energy.

    She could even determine that it was highly likely that the person who fought with Shi Bei Hai was the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s beautiful vice leader. It seemed that that woman had suffered a huge loss, which made She Yu shiver inwardly.

    Fu Sisi was very strong, with abilities exceeding most of the elementalists from the Sky Leaf Division. In fact, she was probably on par with She Yu when She Yu had yet topletely recover from her injuries. Even though She Yu had benefited from her defeat and had grown significantly stronger, she did not have absolute confidence that she could defeat Fu Sisi.

    Not only was Shi Beihai alive, he was much stronger than anybody had expected. This was undoubtedly terrible news.

    Worse, Ye Baiyi could very possibly havended in the hands of Shi Beihai!

    She Yu¡¯s mood fluctuated. Shortly after her delicate face regained its usual leisure, her deep eyes gazed into the distance. She had nned to get rid of Fu Sisi with one blow since she knew thetter was severely injured. However, thinking about how Ye Baiyi could¡¯ve fallen into Shi Beihai¡¯s hands, she could only sigh and watch as such a golden opportunity slipped away.

    General Ye was her highest priority!

    Dressed in her drifting red dress, she vanished into the air like a wisp of faint smoke.

    .....

    The atmosphere was extremely tense in the meeting room of the Pagoda Cannon Alliance.

    All the important figures from the defensive line were present, including Silver Soldier and Karakorum Pris. Everyone, especially Shi Xueman, was excited, yet nervous. Although she tried to restrain herself and maintain herposure, everyone in the room was familiar with her character, so how could they not tell?

    Gu Xuan was the one giving the report. He, too, knew that the situation was unusual. He presented an exceptionally meticulous ount, fearing that he might miss some detail.

    "... At that point, we were creating disturbances for the God Spirit Division, but it wasn¡¯t very effective, and the opponents did not withdraw. After some discussion, we felt that staying there was inefficient. As such, we decided to infiltrate from the rear and see if we could find any of the enemy¡¯s smaller units or replenishing teams to get something out of them. We advanced about 300 miles, but couldn¡¯t find anything. Just as we were about to turn back, we felt an intense surge of elemental energy ripples. Coincidentally, Master Huo was on board the Pinwheel Sword. His judgment in regard to elemental energy is much more urate than ours."

    Silence filled the meeting room as everyone was absorbed in his narration. They diverted their gazes toward Huo Da.

    Huo Da really wanted to be a sword operator and was always involved in the operations of the Sword of Lightning.

    Huo Da did not defer. As a Master, he was indeed more authoritative in this aspect.

    In a deep voice he began talking, "Yes, the elemental energy ripples were very intense, probably due to an ongoing fierce battle between two strong fighters. One of the ripples was from water elemental energy. It had obvious properties belonging to that of the North Sea Division, so it should be from them. The other ripple was very strange. If I¡¯m not wrong, it should be five elemental energy from the Sky Leaf Division.

    Many of the listeners looked worried. The Sky Leaf Division had shaken the world with its power.

    Shi Xueman was unexpectedly calm now.

    Huo Da reported, "I believe that the water elemental energy was stronger and had the upper hand!"

    Joy shed across everybody¡¯s faces. A few of them almost cheered out loud, but stopped upon seeing Huo Da¡¯s grave expression. He wasn¡¯t done.

    "However!" Huo Da added, causing their hearts to tense up all at once. After hesitating for a bit he continued, "The ripples of water elemental energy were simply too intense. If it really was Division Leader Shi, I¡¯m afraid he possibly overdrew his strength. Of course, this is just my conjecture. I¡¯m not familiar with his abilities after all."

    Everyone then diverted their gaze toward Shi Xueman. As his daughter, she would have the answer.

    She responded, "He might have already been injured."

    Her tone was certain as a murderous spirit bubbled in her ice cold eyes. She emitted an intimidatingly mighty aura. Thinking about the Sky Leaf Division shing with her father fed her already overwhelming blood thirst.

    The atmosphere became stifling and furious. Shi Beihai led his division to resist the blood elementalists. They had not retreated at all, even as the whole army was practically being wiped out. The North Sea Division¡¯s sacrifice was still fresh in everybody¡¯s mind, yet the Sky Leaf Division was already nning to kill Shi Beihai?

    The North Sea Division...

    Silver Soldier couldn¡¯t help but reminisce about his good old friend and sigh. He knew he needed to say something. Everyone present was from the Central Pine Faction except for Karakorum Pris and himself, who were Madam Ye¡¯s people. This issue had resulted in an unmendable crack between the Central Pine Faction and Skyheart City. The so called Great Elder position had be a joke.

    He found it hard to understand why Madam Ye would make a move on Shi Beihai. Was it because of achievements?! How disappointing and disdainful was that?

    He did not want to get involved in internal strife, but also didn¡¯t want the defensive line to copse just like that. Everyone knew that the Blood of God¡¯s uing retaliation was going to be undeniably ferocious!

    Karakorum Pris looked somewhat embarrassed as well. Her cheeks were burning, and she couldn¡¯t bear to show her face. Having fought alongside them for such a long time, the simple-minded youngdy had long regarded everyone as brothers, so she did not know how to exin this to them at this point.

    Silver Soldier said in a low voice, "We need to go rescue Division Leader Shi immediately! The elemental energy fluctuations are too intense, and the blood elementalists will definitely sense them. They will not sit and watch Division Leader Shi escape. We must act now or he will be trapped. The Pinwheel Sword... let¡¯s use that. The stronger fighters should join the search!"

    Knowing that time was of the essence and that this wasn¡¯t the time for conflict, everyone quickly started discussing this operation.

    Huo Da volunteered himself. "While my sword operating skills aren¡¯t quite there yet, I can still steer it. This way we can send out another Pinwheel Sword to split the search."

    "All right!" Shi Xueman agreed instantly before ordering, "Two Pinwheel Sword will travel north separately. Huanghun, follow Master Huo¡¯s Pinwheel sword and shield it if necessary."

    "Yes!"

    "Qian Dai and myself will board the other Pinwheel Sword. Jiang Wei, Sang Zhijun, Silver Soldier, and Pris will guard the defensive line. Be careful because the enemy might take this opportunity to attack. We shall search the rivers,kes, and valleys along the way. Take the North Sea Division¡¯s signal bullets with you and put them into every river andke. If there are none, drill them into the underground river."

    "The enemy will definitely harass us, but let¡¯s try to cut down on skirmishes and throw them off with speed instead. Return to the defensive line as fast as possible after finding Division Leader Shi."

    A series of orders was ryed in this manner. Shi Xueman wasn¡¯t the least bit hesitant.

    Everyone answered simultaneously, "Yes!"

    Just then, a familiar voice joined in like the wind. "Count me in."

    Shi Xueman opened her eyes wide in joy, crying out, "Ai Hui!"

    The meeting room door opened, and a slender youth greeted them with a slight smile.

    Tears instantly filled the eyes of Shi Xueman, who had just been rying orders with an unswerving and determined expression.

    .....

    Above the mountain peak, the sounds of clothes fluttering in the wind could be heard. Facing the wind, Xiao Buguo stood loftily, his eyes overlooking the ground like electricity.

    A silhouette appeared like lightning before him.

    "Reporting! Traces of activity in the northwest!"

    He did not move, but a smile appeared at his mouth. "Search again! Take note of the underground river! Those dregs of the North Sea Division escaped through the underground rivers previously! Dig three feet deep if you have to!"

    "Yes!"

    The subordinates acknowledged and went to work.

    ording to the original n, the God Tiger Division would rush to the defensive line to rendezvous with the He Nanshan led God Spirit Division. Meanwhile, a team would be left behind to rally the smaller units that were still en route. The sudden explosion of elemental energy waves, however, had disrupted this n.

    Such an rming water elemental energy surge could only mean that Shi Beihai was still alive!

    Shan Xiong immediately decided for Xiao Buyu to lead a unit of elites and six soldiers with the Ability of God and stay behind to hunt down Shi Beihai. Shan Xiong gave Xiao Buyu a kill order. He was to eliminate Shi Beihai no matter what!

    Shan Xiong wasn¡¯t aware that Ye Baiyi was in Shi Beihai¡¯s hands, and he had his own considerations.

    If Shi Beihai was still alive, it meant that their previous victory was just a joke. Their own general was missing, but the enemy¡¯s general was alive and kicking. What could it be but a joke?

    Shi Beihai was one of the few powerful fighters that no one dared to underestimate. Now this ferocious beast of the North Sea was hiding behind their backs and cloaked in the darkness. The moment they were to expose their vulnerability, all that would be left for them was a fatal blow.

    Shi Beihai¡¯s might had shaken the world. Xiao Buyu had witnessed his power and did not dare to overlook him at all. However, he had confidence because this time it was very likely that Shi Beihai was wounded.

    The water elemental energy ripples from yesterday were unequaled, but within the mix was another gush of simrly powerful energy waves. This meant that Shi Beihai had met with an equally strong opponent. The second elemental energy wave was extremely peculiar, and it was difficult to determine which element it was, but Xiao Buyu guessed that it could be from the Sky Leaf Division.

    The Sky Leaf Division¡¯s appearance had Shan Xiong worried as well, but he decided to hand this problem over to Her Highness, She Yu, to fret over.

    Xiao Buyu didn¡¯t think too much. He rubbed his fists in excitement because he knew that this was the best time to kill Shi Beihai.

    Yet, he didn¡¯t know that there were quite a few other teams, consisting of arge number of strong blood elementalists, that were searching toward the Wall of North Sea.

    Those intense elemental energy waves were like the sun in the night sky, dazzling and exceptionally eye-catching.

    The prey that was Shi Beihai could easily arouse the battle fervor of blood elementalists.

    As if feeling the austerity of it all, the temperature fell drastically, and snow started falling.

 Chapter 665: Mutual Understanding

    Chapter 665: Mutual Understanding

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    On board a God-subduing Peak with tight security.

    The Infantry Division¡¯s soldiers were sorting out their armor in an unhurried and careful manner, typical of veterans. They were no longer newbies whom people looked down on. Multiple battles had gradually carved them into mature warriors.

    Karakorum Pris followed behind Silver Soldier, a veil covering her face. Her star-like eyes exposed the worries on her mind.

    She wasn¡¯t someone who could conceal her emotions after all. Furthermore, she was facing the senior whom she had the most trust in, so she couldn¡¯t help but ask, "What is Aunt Ye thinking? How could she make a move on Division Leader Shi? How could she?"

    After a while she hesitantly muttered to herself, "Perhaps the Sky Leaf Division did it without permission? That¡¯s right! It must be! Why would Aunt Ye attack Shi Beihai? Her people must have acted against her orders!"

    Karakorum Pris, who was usually calm and habitually silent, was actually talking this much. It could be seen that this matter had impacted her greatly.

    Silver Soldier kept quiet, his deep gaze prating his iron mask and sweeping across the armor in the soldiers¡¯ hands.

    The armor that belonged to the Infantry Division soldiers werepletely different from those issued previously. This was a new batch of battle armor specially forged by the camp at the rear after the master weaponsmiths from the Pagoda Cannon Alliance gathered new information from the recent battles.

    The brand new armor was integrated with a huge number of the Central Pine Faction¡¯s exclusive elemental traces, such as those of the five elemental ring on the Pinwheel Swords. When it came to the understanding and usage of elemental traces, the Central Pine Faction was unique and unmatched.

    The armor sent by Skyheart City were old models that had been forged five or six years ago. It was said that they were found in a warehouse.

    The 13 divisions of the former Avalon of Five Elements had their own equipment division that consisted of their own master weaponsmiths, who would research and produce new gear.

    Currently, the division remained, but the master weaponsmiths had long vanished. More importantly, who still cared about this?

    The Infantry and Sky Edge divisions were no longer the elite, but twopletely newbat divisions. They had finally attained some hard-earned results, yet the Sky Leaf Division had to appear and shake things up.

    No soldier was willing to use the older models, soall of the older equipment was kept in the warehouse. Later on, Silver Soldier simply removed equipment off the replenishment list and asked for training necessities, medicine, and supplies.

    Silver Soldier withdrew his thoughts and saw that no one was around. In a low voice he said, "The Sky Leaf Division came to find me."

    Karakorum Pris was about to cry out, but stopped herself by pursing her lips. The eyes beneath her veil were wide open.

    Silver Soldier continued nonchntly, "I did not agree or disagree. Initially I thought this would buy some time, and we could talk after this war, but who knows... sigh..."

    His deep sigh sounded from behind his mask as an indescribable weariness took over his body.

    Shock emerged on Karakorum Pris¡¯s face, but gradually dissipated shortly after.

    The two of them entered the tent in silence. It was empty inside.

    Silver Soldier did not speak. He was waiting for his junior to process this matter.

    Shortly, Karakorum Pris raised her head. "I¡¯ve figured things out, Senior."

    "Have you?"

    "Yeah." The voice behind the veil was resolute, and the limpid eyes behind the veil were bitingly bright. "It¡¯s clear now."

    Silver Soldier listened quietly. He knew that while Junior appeared indifferent, she was in fact extremely firm and had her own views.

    "Aunt Ye is at fault!" Karakorum Pris stated. "Be it toward Ai Hui and his gang or Shi Beihai, she shouldn¡¯t be like this. We¡¯re fighting alongside Ai Hui and his people. We bleed and sacrifice together. It¡¯s disgraceful to do this behind their backs. I¡¯m on their side this time."

    Hearing the child-like words "on their side" made Silver Soldierugh, but he quicklymented in a stern manner, "Then your aunt will be very disappointed. She sees you as her own daughter. You spent so much time ying in her residence when you were young, and the sword moves you learned were from the Ye residence¡¯s manuals."

    "Yeah."

    "Without Aunt Ye¡¯s support, the Karakorum Sword League will shut down, and the sword manual you¡¯re hoping topile will go down the drain too."

    "I¡¯ll do it myself."

    "Then we¡¯ll have to resign from thebat divisions. Yeah, it will good enough if she doesn¡¯t condemn us. The best oue is that we enjoy life in retirement."

    "Retirement... so be it."

    His smile widened behind his mask. Like an emerging ripple, heughed cheerily, "Hahaha, all right! Retirement it shall be!"

    The eyes behind the veil narrowed as their de-like, sharp glint disappeared. Karakorum Pris became an ordinary girl-next-door whose smile was warm and bashful.

    After hisughter subsided, Silver Soldier said in a deep voice, "All right, let¡¯s finish this war off properly!¡¯

    The dog eat dog squabbling and plotting were exhausting. He yearned to fight the blood elementalists without getting swept into the whirlpool of political strife. He was disappointed by Skyheart City¡¯s recent behavior.

    Karakorum Pris nodded her head forcefully. "Yeah!"

    .....

    It was a cloudy day in Jadeite City. There was no zing sunlight, so it was exceptionally cool and refreshing. Yet, the citizens were unable to enjoy the weather since security was tight and the atmosphere within the city was grave. There wasn¡¯t a soul in sight on the streets.

    High up in the atmosphere, two figures were facing each other.

    The wild metal wind immediately turned tamed and quiet upon entering within a radius of 300 meters of these two. It was like stepping into a whole different world.

    Dai Gang sized Le Buleng up andughed. "Yeah, you look significantly younger. Strange."

    People who weren¡¯t familiar with Le Buleng would be shocked by his current appearance. The originally withered and wrinkled Le Buleng was like an oldborer who worked on the fields. Now, he was like a 34 year old man whose wrinkles had all disappeared. He also stood tall and straight. Only the stubbornness and paranoia between his brows remained. He looked ordinary when he was younger, but his unmatchable sensitivity gave him a kind of unique and indescribable charm.

    He was wrapped by a slighter bigger and transparent air bubble.

    Le Buleng also felt somewhat uneasy. He looked around his surroundings, then at his own palm, and mumbled, "I¡¯ve actually recovered my youthful vigor..."

    Shortly after, he regained his senses and shook his head, "It is not a big deal, just mortal flesh. This force..."

    Radiance filled his eyes.

    Rather interested, Dai Gang asked, "What? Is there anything special about it? Come, tell me about your training situation."

    Without declining, Le Buleng answered candidly, "Great!"

    "After leaving Skyheart City, I decided to look for you. On the way, I suddenly understood that with my current condition, I definitely wasn¡¯t your match, so I decided to take a gamble. I felt that [Grandmaster Obliteration mes] was decent and could be a threat to you, so I wanted to continue down this path. Unfortunately, with the condition that I was in, all my flesh and bones were already extremely tempered. How was I to improve if I were to advance down this path?"

    Dai Gang¡¯s tone carried admiration. "Have you figured it out?"

    In this aspect, he was rather impressed by Le Buleng. This fellow was insane and absolutely intelligent. He could do all sorts of crazy and wild things!

    Le Buleng did not conceal his satisfaction. "At that time, I passed by a small brook and could clearly see the ground at the bottom. The water was sweet, clear, and very beautiful. A question popped up in my head: Such sweet water... was it pure water? Definitely not. Then it clicked. What about Golden Crow Fire? The strongest fire? Then, I thought about how my body had been tempered by the sun¡¯s fire and how Golden Crow Fire is unable to affect me. Could I temper it instead?"

    Even Grandmaster Dai Gang couldn¡¯t help but feel moved. "Golden Crow Fire is extremely strong and matchlessly potent, yet you thought about tempering it?"

    Le Buleng was pleased with Dai Gang¡¯s reaction. He raised his eyelids and snorted, "So what? Why not? When has anything ever had a limit and boundary? The sun has existed forever, yet life is so short and negligible. Hmph, so what? It¡¯s a venerable path, so why fear it? I¡¯ll do it if I want to!"

    He spoke resolutely and heroically.

    After some thought, he added, "Of course it is not easy, but I¡¯ll just have think of solutions."

    Dai Gang burst intoughter and felt inexplicably carefree,plimenting afterward, "You¡¯re number one when ites to ambition!"

    He felt rather regretful. "A pity there is no wine to seal these words!"

    Le Buleng smiled. "Your capacity for alcohol is horrendous."

    Without getting angry, Dai Gang asked, "Tell me how did you temper the Golden Crow Fire?"

    "Okay!"

    Le Buleng retracted his smile and turned serious. He was very clear about his strengths and weaknesses. He was bold, crazy, and wild enough, but when it came to training and theories he was far behind Dai Gang.

    He had many unresolved doubts and hoped that Dai Gang could enlighten him.

    "My idea is very simple. Since I want to temper Golden Crow Fire, I would first have to have a sufficient amount. So, I started absorbing more and more of it and quickly reached my limit. My first idea was topress all of it within my body. This concept was truly aggressive, and I¡¯ve tried many methods, but to no avail. Since it did not work, I thought of another solution. I started operating the Golden Crow Fire within my body, letting it form a whirlpool. This method was very effective, and I quickly gathered a huge volume. Still, I noticed that I was unable to absorb any more of it shortly after. Later on, I realized..."

    Le Buleng spoke very carefully and did not conceal any details or thoughts.

    Dai Gang listened closely and would interject asionally to question him.

    They became increasingly excited and deep in thought. They gestured enthusiastically with their arms and legs, pping andughing from time to time.

    They were like close brothers or good friends who had known each other for years. No one could tell that they were mortal enemies who were fated to fight against each other for their whole lives.

    Since they fought with their lives, they had a mutual understanding.

 Chapter 666: Swords

    Chapter 666: Swords

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    "Move faster!"

    "Take note of the distance. Don¡¯t leave any gap!"

    The soldiers of the God Spirit Division could be seen constructing blood pools across the vast wilderness. They weren¡¯t big, only having a radius of less than two meters, a depth of under a meter, and were shaped like plum blossoms. The soldiers moved nimbly. Building such blood pools was effortless for them.

    Soon after, some soldiers came over with deep baskets filled with all kinds of material. They threw these ingredients into the pool one by one, and they melted into balls of bloody water. Next, the water in the blood pools quickly became a fresh red color as a sweet, delicate fragrance filled the air.

    A God Spirit Division officer came forward with his palm raised.

    Whoosh.

    A wisp of transparent me rose.

    The transparent me was thrown into the pool, which caused the bloody pool to light up. Thick blood-colored smoke rose and congealed. It was like an enormous pir, baring its fangs and ws as it rose.

    On these ordinary fields, there were pirs of fresh red smoke.

    A god priest from the God Spirit Division stood under the pir chanting to himself. The blood-colored smoke pirs started to release an inexhaustible amount of blood-colored petals. The fresh crimson petals seemed soft and ethereal as they drifted through the air.

    It was dreamy and beautiful.

    The vice division leader, Qin Ge, extended his palm. When a petal fell onto his hand, it turned into a wisp of red smoke before vanishing into the air. He couldn¡¯t help but exim in admiration, "How beautiful!"

    He Nanshan looked grave. Was this going to work?

    He felt uncertain.

    Having suffered from the disturbances caused by the Sword of Lightning, everyone in the God Spirit Division racked their brains to think about how they could deal with the unpredictable Pinwheel Sword. After some effort, they came up with the [Smoke Flower Lock].

    Initially, he had been determined to strategize and wanted toy an ambush for the Sword of Lightning. However, that terrifying surge of water elemental energy waves made He Nanshan realize that Shi Beihai was still alive!

    Needless to think, he knew that the other side would try to rescue Shi Beihai by any means necessary. Which daughter would watch her own father fall into the enemy¡¯s hands?

    If the Sword of Lightning were to n a rescue, the fast as lightning Pinwheel Sword was undoubtedly the best choice.

    Now it was up to the [Smoke Flower Lock] to keep Sword of Lightning away!

    Just then, a sharp rm sounded.

    "They¡¯re here!"

    Seeing the frightened soldiers gathering in the field, He Nanshan felt indescribably stifled. The Sword of Lightning¡¯s nonstop harassment had already left a deep scar in their psyches. Small teams who were left alone in the wild would be the Sword of Lightning¡¯s prey. There was even a period of time where he refrained from sending scouts out since their death toll had pained him greatly.

    It had to work!

    He Nanshan hardened his heart with hatred.

    .....

    A Pinwheel Sword was resting atop the valley of sword formations.

    Fatty bared his upper arms while working hard to build an all new pagoda cannon. It was going to be different from the Beehive Heavy Cannon and had a slender, crane-like barrel that could maximize its shooting range and pration. It was smaller than Beehive Heavy Cannon and Fatty alone could operate it without difficulty.

    Fatty suspected that he wouldn¡¯t have to act because he was travelling with Ai Hui and Shi Xueman. Nevertheless, his cautious nature made him prepare for the worst.

    Although the temperature was dropping, Fatty was sweating buckets. He was usually pudgy looking, but when he took off his shirt, only robust muscles were visible. His sweat was like ayer of shiny oil added onto his coppery body.

    While working, Fatty mumbled to himself, "Zhiguang, operate it properly. Grandpa Fatty¡¯s little life is in your hands."

    Zhiguang responded unhappily, "Grandpa Fatty, I¡¯vepleted my missions many times."

    "Hehehe, I¡¯m timid, you know." Fatty continuedining, "Aye, Zhiguang, can¡¯t yound the Pinwheel Sword properly on the ground? Do you know how much work it is for me to carry all of this up?"

    Shi Zhiguang helplessly answered, "Boss¡¯s orders."

    His eyes lit up. "Boss is here!"

    Fatty shut up instantly and acted as though he was concentrating on his work. Even as a Master, he was still terrified of Ai Hui. Fatty regarded Ai Hui as his best buddy and respected him, but also feared him. Ai Hui had always been involved in Fatty¡¯s development process, tormenting and molding him. Ai Hui¡¯s callousness had long since be an overbearing power that intimidated Fatty.

    Nevertheless, Fatty was really grateful for having Ai Hui around. He knew very well that without Ai Hui spurring him on, he never would¡¯ve achieved what he did and would¡¯ve be a useless pile of bones.

    Close by, another Pinwheel Sword stopped in midair. This was the second sword, operated by Huo Da.

    Compared to Shi Zhiguang¡¯s empty Pinwheel Sword, Huo Da¡¯s was packed with people. Other than Duanmu Huanghun, all members of the Sword of Lightning were on the second Pinwheel Sword. It was Huo Da¡¯s first time operating it on a mission, a dangerous mission at that, so everyone thought about ensuring safety first.

    With Ai Hui, Shi Xueman, and Fatty on board, theirbat power was at its peak.

    Ai Hui¡¯s appearance stirred the members up instantly because many of them had not seen him in a long time.

    "Look quick, Boss is here! Boss is really back!"

    "Zhiguang¡¯s so lucky, going on a mission with him."

    Huo Da interrupted, "Hey, hey, hey, I¡¯m a Master too! What are you trying to imply? Respect the Masters!"

    Laughter erupted. They were all familiar with one another and never put on airs.

    "Yes, yes, yes, Master Huo¡¯s achievements and glory are unmatchable!"

    "Zhiguang¡¯s achievement is nothingpared to Master Huo¡¯s! We¡¯ve won the lottery!"

    "We¡¯re depending on you, Master Huo!"

    Huo Da patted his chest, "All right, he¡¯s not my match. We don¡¯t have to be afraid!"

    In the next moment, he asked doubtfully, "Why did Zhiguang park there?"

    Gu Xuan shook his head. "Boss¡¯s orders."

    Duanmu Huanghun groaned, the unhappiness tant on his face.

    Ai Hui hadn¡¯t been on board for a long time, and he felt twice as familiar after setting foot within. It was empty inside except for Shi Zhiguang.

    Shi Zhiguang raised his head and puffed his chest out, standing upright. He shouted, "Boss!"

    Ai Hui smiled, "Long time no see, Zhiguang."

    Shi Zhiguang was moved.

    The news of Ai Hui¡¯s return had been spreading across the camp for a while, greatly boosting the division¡¯s morale. Members who weren¡¯t new were aware of how important Ai Hui was to the team, even though he appeared nonchnt most of the time.

    The encampment was overflowing with a joyous atmosphere.

    The only regretful thing was that Ai Hui had taken Lou Lan along with him, which meant that they weren¡¯t getting any delicious elemental soup until the mission waspleted.

    Cries echoed within the encampment as everyone started praying that this mission would go smoothly.

    They had no idea that the goal of this mission was to rescue the scattered survivors of the North Sea Division.

    Lou Lan greeted Shi Zhiguang happily, "How are you doing, Zhiguang!"

    A smile automatically appeared on Shi Zhiguang¡¯s face. "Wee on board, Lou Lan!"

    Lou Lan carried a big suitcase. Was that food for the journey? Shi Zhiguang¡¯s eyes lit up.

    Shi Xueman held onto Cirrus as she greeted him, "Thanks for the hard work, Zhiguang."

    Shi Zhiguang quicky returned the greeting, "Don¡¯t say that, Madam, it¡¯s my duty!"

    The word "madam" made Shi Xueman blush. She quicklyposed herself and nodded at Shi Zhiguang before walking elsewhere. She was rather lost in thought, tightly pursing her lips in worry and anxiety.

    She had been beyond grief after hearing the news of her father¡¯s death, converting her sorrow into determination and sprinting to the front line

    Shi Zhiguang walked toward Ai Hui and saluted, "Reporting! The Pinwheel Sword is all ready. We can set off!"

    "Wait a moment."

    Somewhat surprised, Shi Zhiguang asked, "Is anyone else joining, Boss?"

    Ai Hui smiled mysteriously. "You¡¯ll find out soon."

    Even Shi Xueman threw a gaze over in curiosity. Only Lou Lan was smiling widely, his eyes forming two happy looking crescent moons.

    Ai Hui remained solemn as he took a deep breath.

    Sss!

    His breath sounded like the continuous tearing of cotton, carrying a tinge of sharpness.

    The sound stopped abruptly as Ai Hui raised his palm gently. His index and middle fingers straightened together to form a sword.

    ng!

    Without any warning, a simultaneous sword chime sounded below.

    Shi Zhiguang quivered as the hair all over his body stood on end. Before he could react, the sky overhead dimmed, and a ball of enormous shadow enveloped him.

    He looked up automatically and became breathless.

    Countless ck long swords hovered quietly above his head. They werepletely ck and came in different shapes, covering the sky. They moved noiselessly like a colossal group of ck sharks, cruising through a deep sea of dead silence.

    The number of swords was uncountable. The tips of the swords gathered together, asionally producing a shing and bone-piercing cold light.

    Shi Zhiguang¡¯s mind went nk.

    The sight before him was filled with a dangerous and scary aura. It was suffocating.

    Shi Xueman was stunned too.

    She knew that Ai Hui¡¯s return came with a leap in abilities, but the scene before her had exceeded her imagination.

    Ai Hui...

    Ai Hui¡¯s clothes fluttered without any wind, and his fringe was all messed up. The flickering cold light in his eyes, however, became increasingly bright, like the stars in the sky.

    At this moment, he was akin to an unsheathed treasure sword, emitting a dense and bitingly cold aura as light rays extended miles away!

    Above the valley, a gentle call sounded.

    "Come!¡¯

    The noiseless ck swords swiftly transformed into a surging ck waterfall that cascaded down from the sky.

    Seeing the countless swords pouncing on him like ck sharks that wanted to rip him into pieces and swallow him up, Shi Zhiguang paled. He wanted to hide, but at this point, there was only absolute despair in his heart because he realized he couldn¡¯t move.

    Thud, thud, thud!

    Like rain hitting the ground, these sounds made people gasp for air.

    This destorm passed quickly, and Shi Zhiguang was dazzled by it all. Before he could react, the azure sky weed his vision again. That suffocating darkness had vanished, as if it had merely been an illusion.

    Not far away, Duanmu Huanghun and the others had witnessed it clearly.

    The ck swords that filled the valley chimed in unison, rose from the ground, and rocketed into the sky. They were like ck clouds overhead. Following Ai Hui¡¯s call, the spiraling swords came down. The ck flood split into seven, forming seven fine currents that entered the seven sword pagodas.

    In that moment, the Pinwheel Sword sank a little.

    Like seven hedgehogs, the sword pagodas had ck swords sticking out of them. They became seven pagodas not only in name, but in reality.

    There was only silence in the valley save for the sound of spiraling swords.

    Duanmu Huanghun was dumbstruck, and everyone else turned into statues. They were speechless.

    The bitingly sharp sword consciousness had dissipatedpletely along with the cold light in Ai Hui¡¯s eyes.

    "Set off!"

 Chapter 667: Blood-colored Petals

    Chapter 667: Blood-colored Petals

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    He Huan was inspecting the various defensive positions on the God-subduing Peak and looked slightly distracted.

    Ai Hui had left his seclusion.

    He Huan was Madam Ye¡¯s agent. The mirage bean pod clip was secretly recorded by him, and he sent it to Madam Ye through a unique method. Logically speaking, he and Ai Hui should be arch-enemies since they belonged to different camps, but why was he feeling excited and even happy when he learned that Ai Hui had left his seclusion?

    He Huan kept on reminding himself not to muddle up his identities.

    No matter what, he would not betray Madam Ye!

    He exhaled deeply, raised his head, and looked at hisrades. When he saw the involuntary excitement and hope on their faces, his eyes dimmed. Suddenly, he felt slightly at a loss.

    Was what he was doing right?

    He did not know and did not want to know.

    Suddenly, a soldier beside him yelled, "Sir, emergency!"

    With a jolt to his mind, He Huan returned to his senses. Was there an attack? He quickly headed to the defensive line to take a look. However, he did not see any sign of the enemy.

    Like fluttering snowkes, countless blood-colored petals drifted toward them from the wide and empty wilderness beyond the defensive line, covering their line of sightpletely. He could not see anything in the distance at all. The boundless wilderness was covered by this rain of blood-colored petals.

    He Huan¡¯s mind stretched taut. He roared loudly, "Everyone on high alert now!"

    The God-subduing Peak¡¯s defensive shield began to glow with osciting light traces, appearing extremely beautiful. Everyone in the Karakorum Division was vignt. He Huan was preparing to send someone to warn the other twobat divisions. When he saw that the defensive shields of the other two God-subduing Peaks had lit up, he silently heaved a sigh of relief.

    Then, he noticed that a few petalsnded on the glowing defensive shield and transformed into faint red smoke that dissipated into the air.

    The defensive shield did not move the slightest bit and did not show any signs of being damaged.

    He Huan¡¯s mind jolted. Could the smoke be poisonous?

    However, an elementalist who specialized in poisons quickly reported to him, "Sir, this smoke isn¡¯t poisonous."

    He Huan furrowed his eyebrows. The more the gas seemed harmless, the more uneasy he felt. Blood elementalists had many unpredictable and odd tricks up their sleeves.

    At this moment, he saw Karakorum Pris walking toward him.

    He Huan stepped forward to receive her. "Madam! This smoke seems odd. I¡¯m afraid there¡¯s more than meets the eye!"

    Karakorum Pris took a look at what was going on and nodded her head. "You might be right."

    After she finished her sentence, she waved her lily-white hand lightly. A sharp silvery sword gleam shot out of her hand and flew toward the wilderness outside of the defensive line. In the blink of an eye, the sword gleam increased sharply in size and transformed into an enormous silvery dragon that was 30 meters long before it charged toward the rain of blood-colored petals.

    The sword gleam was extremely sharp. Any petal that made the slightest contact with it was shredded and transformed into red smoke. The sword gleam, which was originally cold and dazzling, was covered in ayer of faint red light and looked indescribably odd.

    Karakorum Pris furrowed her eyebrows. She sensed that something was wrong.

    The sword gleam was invincible, shredding an unknown number of petals. However, the red smoke surrounding the sword gleam became more and more concentrated. The sword gleam was like a ma that continuously attracted the red smoke.

    Even as the amount and concentration of the red smoke kept on increasing, the red smoke still could not cover the brilliance of the sword gleam.

    However, an astute person could tell that the sword gleam was dwindling in strength.

    The sword gleam had a long and concentrated red smoke trail behind it as its speed began to wane.

    The sword gleam lost its speed and terrifying sharpness as the red smoke gathered from all directions and wrapped around it incessantly.

    Like a shark that was entangled by seaweed, it became suffocated and powerless. Eventually, it stopped in its tracks.

    The red smoke was churning violently as its size kept on increasing, resembling an ugly and odd-looking monster.

    The glow of the sword gleam gradually dimmed.

    Pffft.

    Like a candle me extinguished by the wind or a beast that wailed before its death, the sword gleam¡¯sst tinge of radiance disappeared.

    After devouring the sword gleam, the enormous mass of red smoke looked as though it had just eaten its fill and dispersed in all directions. In the blink of an eye, the mass of red smoke disappeared as blood-colored petals flew out from it.

    A countless amount of petals could be seen flying around the wilderness, appearing extremely horrifying.

    When everyone saw what happened to the sword gleam, they immediately understood what the blood elementalists were targeting with these blood-colored petals.

    "So they are targeting the Pinwheel Sword! The Sword of Lightning must have made them suffer too much recently. With these blood-colored petals, it won¡¯t be that easy for the Pinwheel Sword to harass them anymore," He Huan could not help butugh bitterly and say this.

    The operation to save Shi Beihai was top secret. Only the two division leaders from the Karakorum Division and the Infantry Division took part in the meeting.

    He Huan knew that this was He Nanshan¡¯s response to the Sword of Lightning¡¯s harassment. Actually, the Sword of Lightning¡¯s recent assaults were barely effective. Furthermore, the God Spirit Division had begun to get used to the Sword of Lightning¡¯s incursions.

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s heart sank. Having taken part in the meeting, she immediately knew the intention of the blood elementalists.

    The blood elementalists wanted to stop them from saving Shi Beihai!

    Feeling extremely anxious, she turned around and prepared to tell Shi Xueman and her counterparts about this unforeseen event.

    Suddenly, a sword chime resounded through the air from far behind the defensive line.

    Karakorum Pris¡¯s body trembled as she stopped in her tracks in mid-air.

    Wearing a veil on her face, one could not see her facial expression. However, at this point in time, her eyes were flickering with a cold glint while her body exuded an intense aura of battle fervor.

    Simrly, the sword chime caught He Huan¡¯s attention. However, he felt that this sword chime sounded delicate and elongated, resembling the chime of an ancient temple in the depths of a secluded mountain. When he noticed the abnormal behavior of Karakorum Pris, he was slightly surprised.

    "Madam?" he could not help but ask.

    Karakorum Pris turned a deaf ear to him. She was still immersed in the sword chime just now. The scene of 10,000 swords vibrating and chiming in unison formed involuntarily in her mind. Like a boundless starry sky, the feeling of grandeur formed by countless streaks of sword consciousness and the intricate magnificence dazzled her, causing her mind to wander, her blood to boil, and her battle fervor to soar through the sky!

    Her beautiful eyes suddenly widened as her jade-white hand tightened its grip on her sword handle. Following which, she blurted out, "It¡¯sing!"

    It¡¯sing? He Huan was at a loss. What wasing?

    Like a ghost, the Pinwheel Sword arrived silently.

    "Are they going to set off again?" He Huan said to himself. When he shifted his gaze to Karakorum Pris, he was stunned.

    Is Madam... holding her breath?

    .....

    Even after the Pinwheel Sword left the defensive line, Duanmu Huanghun had not returned to his senses. The synchronized sword chime from the 10,000 swords kept on echoing in his head while the image of a spiralling flock of destructive swords that resembled a dark cloud continued to appear before his eyes.

    What kind of swordsmanship was this? Was this still considered swordsmanship?

    In terms of might alone, Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship had surpassed any Duanmu Huanghun had ever seen.

    Every one of the odd-looking ck swords was shaped differently and exuded different auras. Surprisingly, even though they were immense in number, every one of them was unique.

    After returning to his senses, Duanmu Huanghun rubbed his chin with a pensive look on his face.

    His [Viridescent Flower] simplifiedplexity. On the contrary, Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanshipplicated simplicity.

    No matter how stunning Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo was, Duanmu Huanghun did not show the slightest bit of envy. During his recent secluded training, he had managed to sneak a peek at the doorstep of the Grandmaster level and hade up with his own five elemental ring. His will was as firm as iron andpletely resistant to external temptations. He hoped to attain some inspiration from observing the magnificence of Ai Hui¡¯s swordsmanship and perfect his [Viridescent Flower].

    Aftering up with his own five elemental ring, his strength had far surpassed the ordinary level of a Master.

    His path became solitary and arduous. There were very few who walked the same path as him.

    .....

    Huo Da¡¯s reaction speed was very fast. Even though he was shocked, he still remembered his responsibility as a sword operator. He gently pushed the sword handle on the Pinwheel Sword, causing it to smoothly glide forward.

    After crossing the defensive line, his field of view changed as fluttering red snowkes covered the wilderness.

    No, they were not snowkes. They looked more like petals.

    "What are those things?"

    "What are the blood elementalists up to again?"

    "I have a feeling they are poisonous!"

    The sound of everyone talking simultaneously alerted Duanmu Huanghun, who was in deep thought. When he raised his head and saw the vast sea of fluttering petals, his eyes froze.

    He stood up and walked up to the railing surrounding the Pinwheel Sword. The air pervaded with a fragrant and sweet smell, causing him to furrow his eyebrows.

    Such a weird poison smoke!

    The Duanmu Family was a legitimate wood elementalist family. Poisons were an important branch of study for wood elementalists. Even though Duanmu Huanghun did not learn any poison-based inheritance, he still knew a thing or two about poisons.

    He raised his palm, reached out his index finger, and touched the air with it.

    Following which, a speckle of green light flew out from his fingertip. Like a firefly, it flew into the air.

    A soft shoot popped out from the speckle of green light and began to grow frantically. It was the [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] technique.

    The moment the red petals made contact with the [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches], they turned into a red smoke. Next, the red smoke weaved itself around the [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] and congealed. In the blink of an eye, the red smoke surrounding the [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] became more and more concentrated. Duanmu Huanghun realized that the growth rate of his [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] began to reduce. Even though he did not go all out, he had already identified some of the characteristics of the blood red petals.

    It was targeting the Pinwheel Sword?

    Duanmu Huanghun could not help but knit his eyebrows. Even though this method seemed slightly disgusting, he had to admit that it was rather effective.

    The [Viridescent Flower, Twining Branches] could clear away these blood-colored petals, but it would take him at least two days to do so.

    This was most likely the intention of the blood elementalists as well. At this critical juncture, what theycked the most was time.

    Suddenly, a sword chime resounded through the air.

    Ai Hui realized his perceptual awareness was obstructed, causing him to be slightly surprised.

    Cultivating a sword embryo allowed his essence, qi, and spirit to be extremely powerful. After absorbing the God¡¯s blood, the strength of his essence, qi, and spirit had reached an unprecedented level. His perceptual awareness could even prate the metal wind curtain, allowing him to clearly sense anything.

    However, at this moment, he realized that his perceptual awareness was obstructed by this boundless sea of blood-colored petals.

    There was something wrong with it!

    Blood elementalist methods were always weird, unpredictable, and came in a variety of forms.

    Beside him, Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were flickering with a red glow. "Ai Hui, this isn¡¯t a poison smoke. They are actually very small blood bugs that will take the initiative to attack. They will gather from all directions and attach themselves to elemental energies. It will be very difficult for the Pinwheel Sword to pass through them."

    Ai Hui looked at these blood-colored petals with rapt attention. He had an odd expression on his face.

    Even though he was doubtful, he still reacted to them. Gently waving his hand, the ck swords sticking on the seven sword pagodas suddenly flew up into the air with a buzz. Like a swarm of hos, they charged into the sea of blood-colored petals.

    The petals were immediately shredded and turned into bright-red smoke that covered the entire sky. Like a monster that bared its fangs and brandished its w, the smoke surged toward the ck swords.

    However, the following scene stunned everyone.

 Chapter 668: Destroyed

    Chapter 668: Destroyed

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    50 kilometers away from the defensive line, everyone in the temporary encampment of the God Spirit Division was indescribably excited.

    Karakorum Pris and Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s actions against the petals just now were instantly noticed by the attentive god priests.

    "Sir, the [Smoke Flower Lock] is very effective!"

    He Nanshan had been observing the effectiveness of the [Smoke Flower Lock]. He finally felt at ease, but he did not reveal any sign of happiness on his face. With a deep voice, he said, "Don¡¯t be too happy so soon. The enemy is merely feeling out our [Smoke Flower Lock]. We still don¡¯t know whether it can stop the Pinwheel Sword or not."

    Filled with confidence, the god priest said, "The Pinwheel Sword definitely can¡¯t break through the [Smoke Flower Lock]!"

    The [Smoke Flower Lock] covered the vast sky.

    To deal with the Sword of Lightning¡¯s Pinwheel Swords, everyone in God Spirit had racked their brains toe up with different ideas. They hade up with more than 200 ns and the [Smoke Flower Lock] was the best n among them all.

    For example, it could withstand the power of lightning. Lightning was undoubtedly the bane of blood elementalists. He Nanshan and his counterparts couldn¡¯tpletely resolve the threat of lightning, but the [Smoke Flower Lock] had a high resistance to lightning.

    The morale of the entire God Spirit Division was greatly boosted. They couldn¡¯t wait to redeem themselves from the humiliation they had suffered.

    They had been pestered by the Sword of Lightning beyond their endurance, but they couldn¡¯t do anything about it. Under the Sword of Lightning¡¯s constant harassment, they had suffered a lot. Being a turtle was a great humiliation for these proud and valiant warriors. As such, they had a lot of pent-up resentment.

    A petal that flew past He Nanshan¡¯s eyes suddenly exploded and transformed into a puff of smoke.

    He Nanshan¡¯s pupils dted as he mumbled, "They areing!"

    The soldiers of the God Spirit Division cried out in unison. All of them were filled with expectation.

    Just now, their enemy was merely probing the [Smoke Flower Lock]. Now was the time to see whether or not the [Smoke Flower Lock] would work against the Pinwheel Sword. After fighting against the elementalists for so long, no one in the God Spirit Division dared to underestimate their opponent any longer. The enemy¡¯s strength was definitely on par with them. Any slight underestimation would cost them the hefty price of being annihted. The destroyed God Wolf Division was a great example.

    Pop, pop, pop.

    The sound of the petals exploding was very soft.

    However, when the countless dancing petals that were everywhere exploded at the same time, the countless soft popping sounds converged and transformed into an extremely spectacr sound. The minds of the God Spirit Division¡¯s soldiers shuddered mysteriously. Their hair stood on end, appearing as though tiny streaks of electric current were flowing through their skin.

    Countless wisps of red smoke exploded in the air, resembling countless blooming red flowers.

    The air was silent and still, but the countless wisps of red smoke flew in unison toward the elementalists¡¯ defensive line, forming red diagonal lines in the sky.

    These lines surged forward with a ferocious momentum, covering the sky above the wilderness as fast as a snap of the fingers.

    Flying at such a rapid speed, the sky above the wilderness became bright and cleared up in the blink of an eye.

    He Nanshan¡¯s eyes were tightly closed as he sensed everything that was happening within 50 kilometers of his location. He clearly knew that the Pinwheel Sword was a difficult problem which they had to solve. Otherwise, they would always be haunted by the Pinwheel Sword and trembling in fear under its earth-shattering sword chime. The worse thing was, if the Pinwheel Swords were widely promoted and used, the God Nation would be thrown into a defensive position.

    Come at me, Pinwheel Sword!

    He Nanshan yelled in his heart with a strong fighting spirit. Within him, a ball of mes was burning ardently. He had made enough mental preparations. The destruction brought by the Pinwheel Sword was definitely terrifying and the Sword of Lightning¡¯s retaliation would be utterly fierce. However, he believed that the [Smoke Flower Lock] could endure the Pinwheel Sword¡¯s impact and reduce its violent and astonishing power. He believed it could trap the Pinwheel Sword tightly like an huge, indestructible.

    The ultimate victory definitely belonged to the God Spirit Division... Yes!

    Something doesn¡¯t seem right...

    The Pinwheel Sword...

    No! It is not the Pinwheel Sword!

    He Nanshan opened his eyes abruptly. His usual calm and unfathomable eyes were filled with panic and helplessness at this point in time.

    The blood-curdling scream of a god priest rang across his ears and broke the dead silence.

    Bloody foam gushed out from the god priest¡¯s mouth and spilled all over his white and luxurious god priest robe. His usually elegant face distorted sinisterly.

    The swarm of ck swords surged into the wilderness, appearing like a school of ck sharks barging into a bloody ocean.

    There were numerous ck swords, but their numbers still paled inparison to the number of wisps of smoke in the sky. If one looked down from space, he or she would see a gigantic red monster slowly wiggling toward the position of the Pinwheel Sword.

    The soldiers at the defensive line could see the blood-colored smoke bing denser and denser. The blood-colored smoke glistened so much that it looked as though it was bleeding.

    More and more wisps of red smoke gathered endlessly from all directions.

    This scene was a hundred times more spectacr than what Karakorum Pris and Duanmu Huanghun had seen before!

    Just as everyone thought that the battle between the mass of blood-colored smoke and the ck swords was about to begin, an astonishing sight urred.

    Drops of bright-red blood actually began to bleed out from the mass of glistening bloody smoke, resembling a thunderhead cloud.

    More and more drops of blood fell from the mass of blood-colored smoke.

    Pitter-patter.

    Blood-colored rain began to fall from the sky.

    The rain of blood resembled an enormous curtain that covered the wildness. Soon after, the rain grew heavier. It looked as though there was a huge bloody gash in the sky, an incredibly weird phenomenon.

    The weirder thing was that the ck swords were floating motionlessly amid the torrential rain of blood with their tips pointing downward.

    When the pea-sized drops of blood neared the ck swords, they suddenly defied gravity and floated around the ck swords like feathers. Following which, the drops of blood transformed into sparkling beads of blood that were of various sizes.

    The number of blood beads increased at a terrifying rate. By the time thest drop of blood fell from the sky, the mass of blood-colored smoke hadpletely disappeared. The azure sky and the spacious wilderness appeared before everyone¡¯s eye once more.

    There was a terrifying number of blood beads around the swarm of ck swords. They were densely packed and stretched over a distance of three kilometers, resembling a long, starry trail of crimson in the night sky.

    Tinkle!

    A sword chime sounded off from the swarm of ck swords as they began to spin.

    As though they were manipted by an invisible force, the densely packed blood beads surrounding the ck swords began to spin as well.

    They looked just like the starry sky at night.

    An indescribable and boundless aura spread across the wilderness like a wave. Fine ripples began to form on the surface of the pure and limpid blood beads, resembling the wrinkled surface of ake when the wind blew across it.

    Faint traces of ck smoke began to emit from the surface of the blood beads.

    The traces of ck smoke behaved oddly. They disappeared within seconds after they rose from the blood beads. Given that there were so many blood beads, it was strange that the amount of ck smoke produced wasn¡¯t enough to form a smoke screen. The scenario now was theplete opposite of the blood-colored smoke that covered the sky earlier.

    The blood beads were shrinking at a visible rate. Some hadpletely transformed into ck smoke that then vanished into thin air.

    Some were reduced to faint silvery specks of light.

    The faint silvery specks were as fine as sand. One couldn¡¯t even differentiate their sizes with the naked eye. The light specks were roughly the size of a rice grain and exuded a warm and gentle glow.

    Compared to the astonishing blood-colored starry trail just now, these sparse and faint light specks could be considered underwhelming.

    Its gentle and pure aura was vastly different from the previously sweet and bizzare aura.

    A melodious sword chime sounded from the swarm of ck swords.

    Upon hearing the sword chime, the light specks surged toward the swarm of ck swords, resembling soldiers that had heard amand.

    Like a ck hole that swallowed everything, the swarm of more than 10,000 swords rapidly devoured the variously sized light specks.

    Everything happened too fast.

    Before anyone could react, all of the smoke, blood beads, and light specks had disappeared. The hovering ck swords were the only things that remained in the air.

    The swarm of ck swords trembled slightly, crumbled, and then transformed into a ck dragon formed from the swords. The dragon spiralled through the air once before returning to the Pinwheel Sword.

    Those who witnessed this sight felt that the ck swords were like insatiable monsters that made sure there were no prey left before returning home.

    Thud, thud, thud!

    Like raindrops hitting a banana leaf, the ck swords reinserted themselves into the sword pagodas. Every sword¡¯s position was exactly the same as before.

    The surroundings were so quiet that even the sound of a pin drop could be heard.

    Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s eyes opened so wide that they looked like they were about to pop out of his eye sockets at any moment. What was going on?

    Karakorum Pris was dumbstruck. What kind of swordsmanship was this? Why can¡¯t I understand it at all?

    With an embarrassed look on his face, Ai Hui rubbed his nose. He had not expected this turn of events. Out of the corner of his eye, when he saw that Shi Xueman had covered her mouth to hide the shock and amazement written all over her face, he was secretly overjoyed. He coughed softly and prepared to say something awesome, "This is..."

    A burst of mor suddenly exploded through the air, giving Ai Hui a huge fright.

    Thunderous cheers resounded throughout the defensive line.

    A smile appeared on Ai Hui¡¯s face. Next, he gave Shi Zhiguang, whose face looked emotional, a hand signal to set off.

    Pinwheel Sword, set off!

    At this point in time, there was dead silence in the encampment of the God Spirit Division. Everyone looked dejected. A few god priests were lying in a pool of blood with their eyes wide open in horror. Most of them were already dead. There was one god priest who was still breathing.

    In order to maintain control over the [Smoke Flower Lock], these god priests had imprinted their souls in it.

    After the [Smoke Flower Lock] was destroyed, they received a bacsh and were killed on the spot.

    The face of the only surviving god priest turned pale with fear and bewilderment while his pupils had be disorganized.

    "His Majesty, it¡¯s His Majesty..." he mumbled hysterically.

    Amid the dead silence, his voice was so loud and clear that everyone in the encampment could hear it.

    Fear spread throughout the encampment while amotion began to break out. Every soldier¡¯s facial expression turned odd, doubtful, and fearful...

    Crack!

    An armored boot stomped on the head of the god priest. His head exploded like a watermelon, and his hysterical voice came to an abrupt end.

    He Nanshan¡¯s face was as calm as water. "Anyone who deludes the people with lies will be executed on the spot!"

    His piercing gaze swept across the entire encampment, causing every soldier to lower their heads in shame.

    "If His Majesty was here, he would definitely chop off your heads the moment he saw the look on your faces!" He Nanshan snorted.

    Everyone¡¯s faces turned red as they felt even more shame.

    He Nanshan¡¯s face rxed as a glint shed across his eyes. "The enemy is here. Prepare for battle!"

    Everyone raised their heads as battle fervor surging through their bodies. The fear and doubt they had felt previously disappeared without a trace.

 Chapter 669: Discussion

    Chapter 669: Discussion

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: X, TYZ

    "I see."

    "Now you get it."

    Le Buleng and Dai Gang¡¯s mumbling resounded through the air at the same time. Both of them were stunned. However, they then gave each other a smile, not at all covering up the admiration they had for each other.

    The sound of wind blew loudly in their ears. They were witnessing a legendary scene take ce.

    After three days and three nights of discussion, both of them seemed to have be good friends. They did not hold back their knowledge from each other and answered the other¡¯s questions withplete honesty. Both of them had benefited greatly from this discourse.

    A look of pity shed across Dai Gang¡¯s eyes. "Brother Buleng, your technique is odd, but it¡¯s unique. Forming the raging inferno and treating your body like a piece of firewood naturally caused many defects in your body. Your body will not be able to recover within a short period of time. I¡¯m afraid you don¡¯t have much time left. Sigh, it¡¯s such a pity."

    Le Buleng already knew of this. The three days and three nights of discussion had cleared up many areas that he was unsure of.

    "What¡¯s there to feel pity about? I have no regrets!" Lu Buleng chuckled.

    A look of adoration appeared upon Dai Gang¡¯s face. With a rxed tone, he said, "Today, I have no choice but to admit that Brother Buleng is indeed qualified to be my opponent and a good one at that."

    "Do I look like I need your approval? And it seems you¡¯re mistaken about something. I have no interest in being your opponent, I¡¯m only interested in destroying you." Le Buleng sneered.

    Le Buleng¡¯s words were vulgar and unfriendly, but Dai Gang wasn¡¯t angry at all. He merely smiled and whispered, "It seems like I have to disappoint Brother Le. Who in this world can destroy me?! Only the Heavens can destroy me! The Holy Emperor can¡¯t destroy me and neither can you."

    Dai Gang spoke such arrogant words with ease, sounding as though they meant nothing to him at all.

    Le Buleng squinted his eyes, not hiding his killing intent at all. He smirked and said, "Oh? Is that so? But I feel that I have a high chance of destroying you this time around. Your mind is injured. Perhaps a dear rtive of yours has died? Tsk tsk, I never expected a hypocrite with a heart of stone like you to feel sad one day. Whoa, you have suddenly be more likeable now. Do you need my condolences?"

    Dai Gang was not infuriated by Le Buleng¡¯s words. He smiled and replied, "Life is so long, so wouldn¡¯t it be boring if there were not one or two sad asions? The joys and sorrows of life are merely feelings. Whether I¡¯m happy or sad, it¡¯s my choice. Brother Buleng, you¡¯re so anxious to fight me because you know you¡¯re going to die soon. Unfulfilled wishes will only cause you to have regrets while walking down the path to hell."

    Le Buleng could tell that Dai Gang was emotionally affected and was not aspletely integrated as before. The minds of powerful entities like them had been tempered countless times to be pure and steel-like. A minor injury to their minds was definitely caused by something unimaginable.

    Dai Gang could also tell that Le Buleng¡¯s lifespan had been significantly reduced. His cultivation method was too extreme, so much so that it exceeded his physical limit. Temporarily stabilizing the berserk powers in his body without letting his body crumble could already be considered a Herculean feat.

    Both of them were crossing verbal swords since it was best to engage in psychological warfare at the moment.

    The intimate and harmonious atmosphere from before hadpletely vanished. Now, both of them treated each other like arch-enemies.

    Le Buleng burst outughing. "If I really die, then so be it. I came into the world naked, and I shall leave this life naked! Furthermore, I won¡¯t be lonely when I¡¯m walking down the path to hell because you will be apanying me."

    "Brother Buleng¡¯s carefreeness is truly admirable. Let me personally send you off. As for my life, I¡¯m afraid you can¡¯t take it away." Dai Gang sighed with emotions.

    An impatient look shed upon Le Buleng¡¯s face. "We have been talking so much for the past three days that my saliva is running out. Let¡¯s begin!"

    With a solemn look on his face, Dai Gang bowed to Le Buleng. "Goodbye Brother Buleng. I¡¯m ready to send you off to death!"

    .....

    Killing intent filled the air.

    He Nanshan watched on nkly as the Pinwheel Sword vanished into thin air. He was feeling indignant and resentful.

    The enemy had no intention of continuing the fight. The Pinwheel Sword avoided his meticulously nned defensive line and disappeared behind it. If the Pinwheel Sword did not wish to fight, no one could force it to do so.

    He Nanshan shook his head as he felt that he had been too naive. The Sword of Lightning had never been a rash or stupidbat division.

    Now, the situation had be more and more dire. He Nanshan couldn¡¯t believe it when he saw two Pinwheel Swords!

    In the past, when he was worried about the Sword of Lightning, he could console himself by telling himself that the construction process of the Pinwheel Sword was extremely difficult, just like the God-subduing Peaks. This prevented the elementalists from mass-producing Pinwheel Swords. However, now that he saw two Pinwheel Swords, the constion he had felt waspletely shattered.

    The God Nation would face arger Sword of Lightning and many more Pinwheel Swords in the near future.

    When both the image of a multitude of Pinwheel Swords that covered the sky as well as the thought of hisbat division suffering under the hands of the Sword of Lightning appeared in his head, he felt a severe headache.

    The Pinwheel Swords caused He Nanshan¡¯s head to throb, while the [Smoke Flower Lock] caused him to feel extreme fear. The gibberish that those god priests had babbled before they died kept on resounding through his head.

    His Majesty...

    He Nanshan¡¯s mind shuddered in fear before he returned to his senses. It couldn¡¯t be His Majesty, but...

    The power hierarchy of god elementalists was clear-cut. The powers of a high-level god elementalist hadplete dominance over the powers of a low-level one. The entire process with which the [Smoke Flower Lock] was wiped out had happened in the blink of an eye. The process contained a trace of an aura that He Nanshan was extremely familiar with.

    It was His Majesty¡¯s aura!

    He Nanshan thought of the holy treasure, God¡¯s blood. Previously, he heard that His Majesty had bestowed a drop of God¡¯s blood to She Yu. Was it possible that the enemy had a drop of God¡¯s blood as well? However, He Nanshan couldn¡¯t sense any trace of blood spiritual forceing from that aura.

    It doesn¡¯t make sense at all!

    More and more questions surged through He Nanshan¡¯s head. The situation was bing increasingly puzzling and mysterious.

    He Nanshanposed himself and squeezed out three words from his clenched teeth, "Return to camp!"

    Once the Sword of Lightning broke through their trap, they had no way of catching up to them.

    After breaking through the [Smoke Flower Lock], the two Pinwheel Swords parted ways and carried out the search in different directions.

    The Pinwheel Sword that Ai Hui was on hovered above ake. Shi Xueman and a few elementalists threw a light-blue, rhombus-shaped crystal into the river.

    The rhombus-shaped crystal was a North Sea signal buoy that was created in a rush before the North Sea Division headed for the front line. This buoy could release a unique type of elemental energy wave that spread throughkes, rivers, and underground water systems. It was extremely useful equipment for North Sea Division.

    There were also hovering signal buoys that could transmit signals through water vapor in the air. However, the enemy clearly knew of these hovering signal buoys. Along the way, Shi Xueman and her counterparts could not see any clouds in the sky. This implied that Shi Beihai and his counterparts could only be hiding in the underground water system.

    The elementalists who apanied Shi Xueman inying the signal buoys were ex-members of the North Sea Division, so they knew how to contact their oldrades.

    However, until now, they had not received any return signal.

    There was a limit to how far the elemental energy waves could be spread. To establish an effective connection, they needed to ce a new signal buoy after a certain amount of distance.

    Ai Hui was sitting cross-legged on the deck examining a ck sword. He was actually very surprised that the ck swords could devour the [Smoke Flower Lock].

    On Ai Hui¡¯s right side, Lou Lan was holding a ck sword in his hands and examining it as well. Even his manner of doing so was exactly the same as Ai Hui¡¯s. Ai Hui held up the ck sword and scanned its de. Lou Lan also held up the ck sword and scanned its de. Ai Hui straightened the ck sword and brushed his fingers across the de. Lou Lan also straightened the ck sword and brushed his fingers across the de. Ai Hui put down the ck sword. Lou Lan also put down the ck sword.

    Ai Hui turned his head to his right. Lou Lan turned his head to his left.

    A man and a sand puppet were staring into each other¡¯s eyes.

    Ai Hui had a solemn look on his face. "Lou Lan, did you find out anything?"

    "No, Ai Hui." Lou Lan¡¯s tone was solemn as well.

    A momentary silence swept across the deck.

    Ai Hui threw the ck sword aside, spread open his arms, fell backward, andid on the floor of the deck.

    The ck sword hovered in the air for a few seconds before plunging itself onto the sword pagoda like a bird returning to its nest.

    The azure sky was cloudless. Warm and cozy sunlight shone upon Ai Hui¡¯s body, making him feel an indescribable sense offort.

    Lou Lan also threw the ck sword in his hands aside and copied Ai Hui by spreading his arms and lying on the floor of the deck. Compared to Ai Hui, Lou Lan interpreted the concept of "lying down" even more radically. His body had melted into the shape of a round t cake. Only his head remained intact, with his eyes curling into the shapes of crescent moons.

    After a while, Ai Hui heard a popping sounding from his right side. He turned around to see what it was.

    Bubbles made of sand were rising from Lou Lan¡¯s round, t-cake body. Pop, pop, pop. The sand bubbles popped and transformed into a line of words: "Lou Lan is really happy!"

    The sand-made words were undting, looking as though they were being blown by the wind.

    Ai Hui burst outughing.

    Suddenly, he felt a warmth rising in his heart.

    "Lou Lan, what do you want to do after the war?"

    "Lou Lan will do whatever Ai Hui does."

    "Alright, I will open a shop for you that sells elemental energy soup."

    "Yayyyy! Lou Lan loves it!"

    "Iron Lady will be in charge of collecting money. I¡¯m sure no one will dare to eat without paying."

    On the other side, Fatty shot a disdainful look at Ai Hui. If he wasn¡¯t intimidated by Ai Hui, he would definitely mock him.

    Open a shop that sells elemental energy soup? What a waste! All of us are Masters now, and we have so many brothers under us!

    Let Iron Lady be in charge of collecting money? Whoa, you¡¯re so stupid that you have given me a headache!

    Wouldn¡¯t it be better to collect protection fees instead?! Iron Lady would be perfect for the job of collecting protection fees. Who would dare to not pay her? We can upy a few streets and make a living off protection fees. This kind of life would be carefree and unfettered!

    Suddenly, Ai Hui sat up straight and stood up. Thezy and rxed look on his face had disappeared. He looked at a distant hill with a sharp, sword-like gaze.

    Fatty reacted quickly and returned to his senses from his fantasy of collecting protection fees. "What¡¯s the matter?"

    His eyes followed Ai Hui¡¯s gaze, but he couldn¡¯t see anything.

    Lou Lan reverted to his original form and stood up. Widening his eyes, he also failed to discover anything.

    Ai Hui had a solemn look on his face as a tinge of doubt shed across his eyes. "I sense an extremely odd aura, but it¡¯s very far away from us."

    "Blood elementalists?" Fatty¡¯s mind jolted.

    "No, it¡¯s elemental energy."

    "Then it shouldn¡¯t blood elementalists... Who could it be? The Sky Leaf Division?"

    "It¡¯s not them." Ai Hui shook his head.

    At the time when Shi Beihai¡¯s elemental energy erupted, Ai Hui could sense a unique type of elemental energy undtion. From this type of elemental energy undtion, he knew that the Sky Leaf Division was conflicting with the North Sea Division.

    The Sky Leaf Division¡¯s elemental energy undtions were very unique, making them easily identifiable.

    However, the elemental energy undtions that he sensed now were extremely different from the Sky Leaf Divison¡¯s.

    "Which type of elementalist is it?" Fatty asked again.

    "I don¡¯t know." Ai Hui shook his head.

    Fatty was stunned. "You can¡¯t even tell which type of elementalist it is?"

    "That¡¯s right. It¡¯s a strange type of elemental energy undtion. I have never encountered this type of elemental energy before."

    Fatty¡¯s facial expression turned solemn.

 Chapter 670: Charge

    Chapter 670: Charge

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Ai Hui suddenly said, "They have left."

    Fatty was obviously relieved

    At this moment, Shi Xueman and some people had returned to the top of the Pinwheel Sword. She saw everybody staring at them, shook her head, and indicated that there wasn¡¯t any response.

    Ai Hui patted Shi Xueman on the shoulder to console her. "No detectable movement is also good news."

    Shi Xueman¡¯s expression slightly brightened.

    With the ability of her father, a fight to the death was inevitably earth-shattering. It would be impossible to quietly kill or capture him. Ever since the elemental energy storm, her father seemed to have disappeared without a trace.

    On the contrary, this made Shi Xueman firmly believe that her father was still alive.

    "We will continue to move forward," Ai Hui went on, "Go to the ce where the elemental energy storm broke out and maybe we can discover something."

    The Pinwheel Sword swept across the sky and left faint traces that were quickly dispersed by the wind.

    The God Tiger Division was advancing towards the Windy Pearl Bridge¡¯s defensive line to merge with the He Nanshan¡¯s God Spirit Division. The Radiance Blood Division, which was originally apanying them, was given orders to return and search for the whereabouts of the North Sea remnants.

    The situation of the war was unpredictable; what was once an absolute advantage seemed to have disappeared overnight.

    Not long ago, they were full of confidence and boasted that they could reach Sky Heart City in the time it took to snap a finger. Now, the Windy Pearl Bridge¡¯s defensive line had be like a natural moat that blocked their way.

    The confidence they previously held had already disappeared and the war zone had be a stalemate and a tug of war.

    When did it start?

    He tried hard to recollect.

    That¡¯s it, since the self-explosion of the Wall of North Sea and the God-subduing Peak, which caused General Ye to sustain serious injuries and fall into aa. They were without a leader and their progress slowed down as a result. Then, both Dread and Judgement made the thousand mile sneak attack on them. The situation quickly deteriorated and the God Nation went into a passive state.

    They were a group of people who were not afraid of death!

    Shan Minxiong could not help admiring them, but he felt more despair. The elementalists¡¯ disadvantage were being reduced as these people did not fear death.

    Pressure was gradually shifted to the God Nation, and this caused the God Wolf Division tounch continuous risky raids which led to the whole army being wiped out. The destruction of the God Wolf Division was due to many coincidences, but the ever increasing pressure made the God Nation war department gradually lose patience.

    It did not matter whether you were the hunter or the prey, once you have lost your patience, the situation will be dangerous.

    Shan Minxiong gazed at the army marching by and felt that they seemed to be less imposing than before. He shook his head as if to shake off the misconceptions in his head and managed to regain his train of thoughts.

    The problem of Shi Beihai was to be settled by Her Highness, She Yu.

    He was wondering how to break through the Windy Pearl Bridge¡¯s defensive line. In retrospect, this doubt had been revolving in his head and still could not be solved up till now.

    Looking at how strong the defensive line of Windy Pearl Bridge was, to Shan Mingxiong, who had captured the Beihai Wall, the three God-subduing Peaks were nothing to him. The Infantry Division and the Sky Edge Division were new units. ording to the frontlinemunique, the Infantry Division and the Sky Edge Division were not the main force, they disyed more of a supporting role.

    The power of the Spear of Heavy Cloud should not be underestimated.

    The Pagoda Cannon Alliance was a bit unusual. They were just a bunch of defeated soldiers, but how did they transform into brave and fierce soldiers under the guidance of the Central Pine Faction?

    Was it possible that Ai Hui possessed supernatural powers?

    Shan Mingxiong circled the three words ¡¯Central Pine Faction¡¯ and started thinking deeply.

    Looking back, he was dumbfounded by the rapid development of the Central Pine Faction. Shan Mingxiong clearly remembered the day that the Wall of North Sea fell. At that time, the intelligence unit¡¯s report that was sent to the desks of the various divisions about Beyond Avalon stated that Central Pine Faction was only a small force that had just risen.

    Who would have thought that this small force could actually obstruct the big army of the God Nation from advancing south?

    Shan Minxiong¡¯s curiosity was suddenly aroused. The Central Pine Faction was the leader of this campaign; did this small force have something mystical about them?

    A shrill rm abruptly interrupted Shan Minxiong¡¯s contemtions.

    "The enemies are attacking!"

    Shan Mingxiong did not panic at all and lifted his head to look at the distant sky. Whether it was the God Tiger Division or the Bluster Blood Division, they were all well trained and battle hardened elites, so they clearly knew what to do when encountering the enemies.

    Very soon, a majority of the divisions regrouped and remained vignt. Several blood elementalists with the Ability of God rode the god tigers and soared into the air to engage the iing enemies.

    A pinpoint ck spot appeared in the distant sky.

    Shan Minxiong¡¯s pupils shrank in response to the surprising speed.

    They came in at the speed of sword rays, without any warning.

    It was the first time Huo Da had operated the Pinwheel Sword to perform the task, so he was unusually excited. Although he kept reminding himself to keep calm as befitting of a master, he could not control himself from operating the Pinwheel Sword at the ultimate speed.

    This was indeed the Pinwheel Sword, and this was the person to control the sword!

    He was originally obsessed with the Pinwheel Sword because of its unparalleled speed. Only the lightning speed could awake the passion in him. The ultimate speed brought him the ultimate pleasure and the world seemed different!

    Gu Xuan was in great trepidation. "Slow down, slow down, Master Huo, there is no need to go so fast!"

    The rest of the soldiers echoed, "Yes, yes."

    "Vomit...."

    The poor soldiers were used to Shi Zhiguang¡¯s refined needle threading operation and were confused by the rough ways of Huo Da. Even a powerful master like Gu Xuan with such a tough cultivation was frightened until his face turned pale.

    From a high position, Duanmu Huanghun nced at the officers and soldiers of the Sword of Lightning, cleared his nose, shook his head, and did not hide the look of disapproval on his face at all.

    A green vine cane that was as thick as a thumb had both ends tied between two sword pagodas. Duanmu Huanghun looked as if he was swinging on a swing and seemedposed.

    Suddenly, he thought of something, turned his face, and gazed into the distance.

    His sharp eyes and amazing eyesight immediately spotted a majority of the blood elementalists in front.

    At this moment, Huo Da also discovered the enemies and shouted with excitement, "There are blood elementalists in front. What should we do?"

    Gu Xuan had not opened his mouth yet when Duanmu Huanghun faint voice rang out. "Charge at them."

    Huo Da was even more excited. As if injected with chicken blood, he loudly responded, "Good! Charge at them. I am going to start! Everybody hold on tightly!"

    The soldiers of Sword of Lightning changed their expressions and firmly grabbed on to any fixed objects around one after another. A powerful force suddenly erupted from under their feet and the Pinwheel Sword crazily began to gather explosive speed!

    The force brushed the ground, making Gu Xuan andpany turn white with fright.

    "Hoooooowl!"

    The Pinwheel Sword¡¯s glowing screen isted the sound of the howling wind outside, but it was ovee by the wild cries of Huo Da. Because of his excessive excitement, Huo Da¡¯s face was glowing and amazing elemental energy fluctuations were released from his body.

    Huo Da could not bepared to Shi Zhiguang in terms of controlling the sword, but the pointrgely in his favour was his cultivation of the master level.

    As a master, he could withstand a greater impact and he could effortlessly manipte the Pinwheel Sword to reach its peak power.

    As the speed continued to increase, the glowing screen of the Pinwheel Sword also rapidly brightened.

    On top of the green vines, Duanmu Huanghun got up. He was wearing an elegant, green gown which moved without the wind blowing and his eyes were bright as the stars. Ever since he came out from seclusion, he only wore a green gown with embroidered floral patterns on the left chest and the two words "Duanmu" in bold letterings.

    He disliked the traditional Duanmu Family¡¯s emblem as it was unsightly. As such, he redesigned it. With his present achievements, he was entitled to modify the Duanmu Family emblem.

    The glowing screen got increasingly brighter, illuminating the minute parts of the Pinwheel Sword. Duanmu Huanghun appeared normal, but he was feeling inspired deep inside.

    He had worked with the Sword of Lightning many times, had sat on the Pinwheel Sword numerous times, and was very familiar with the Pinwheel Sword. But this was his first time finding out that under the control of an elemental master, the Pinwheel Sword could unleash such formidable power.

    This speed...was really amazing!

    That fellow...

    The scouts on the God Tiger did not expect the Pinwheel Sword to elerate suddenly, so their reaction was half a beat slower.

    The Pinwheel Sword was like aet as it streaked through between the two of them.

    Amidst the zing lights, the two green vines did not attract the attention of anyone. As the Pinwheel Sword passed by beside the two scouts on the God Tigers, the floating, green vines weightlessly and urately hit their faces.

    Bang!

    The two scouts seemed to be hit by heavy hammers and their heads burst open like watermelons.

    The Pinwheel Sword flew very far away. The headless bodies of the scouts lost their bnce and fell to the ground. The two God Tigers whimpered as they did not understand what had happened.

    Huo Da lifted his head and looked admiringly at the image of the osciting vines on the glowing screen. These two vines had justpleted the mission of killing with one hit and then retracted within the glowing screen.

    Huo Da could not understand how Duanmu Huanghun had done it. The glowing screen was amazingly thick, so how could the vines effortlessly prate it?

    However, he was very clear that just based on this incident, it was sufficient to say that Duanmu Huanghun was much more powerful than him.

    Charging past the scouts, the Pinwheel Sword charge towards the God Tiger Division, who was on high alert.

    A blood-colored glowing screen rose from the God Tiger Division. Within the glowing screens, two small groups werepleting their instations. The god tigers were well-trained, and although they were ambushed while marching in the wild, they could stillplete their instations in such a short time.

    Once theypleted the instation, they would turn into a mean ughter machine.

    Shan Mingxiong looked with disinterest from the sidelines, did not utter a word, and stared at the Pinwheel Sword streaking across like a stunning meteorite.

    Was this the Pinwheel Sword that He Nanshan andpany had suffered much bitterness from?

    The speed was really terrifying!

    The courage of the opponents shocked him as he alone dared to charge at the troops. It could clearly be seen that he somewhat had an arrogant attitude.

    Shan Minxiong was a little depressed. Initially, when the elementalistbat division met with the blood elementalistsbat division, they would run away. Now they could single-handedly charge at the enemies. It was a big change which happened in a short time and reflected the reversal of the battlefield situation.

    The Pinwheel Sword got nearer and nearer and the dazzling light began to cover the blood canopy. It was as if the sun was shooting out brilliant rays of light and the visual field suddenly became bright.

    Boom!

    A zing light of one hundred times the brightness of the previous burst caused a huge roar that shook the earth and almost shattered Shan Minxiong¡¯s eardrums. Scary shock waves erupted and hit him like a heavy hammer, causing half of his body to go numb.

    Before his eyes was a vast expanse of white, but Shan Minxiong knew that the protective blood canopy was certainly shattered.

    The charge of the Pinwheel Sword turned out to be so formidable and terrifying.

    Struck dumb with amazement, Shan Minxiong found it hard to believe.

    Right at this moment, an ominous feeling appeared.

 Chapter 671: Green Fog

    Chapter 671: Green Fog

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    Fu Sisi never imagined that things would go south just like that.

    Meeting the remnants of the North Sea Division had badly wounded her.

    Strangely though, the heavily injured She Yu had miraculously recovered and seemed to be even stronger than before. She Yu had escaped and left Fu Sisi with a series of bad news to deal with. 13 people had been killed by She Yu. What was odd was that some of their bodies had gone missing. One of these bodies belonged to Gui Hu.

    "We¡¯re missing five corpses."

    Her subordinate¡¯s report made her usually calm self be oddly restless.

    So many of the missing corpses belonged to members of the Sky Leaf Division. How could this be when there were no signs of wild beasts scavenging?

    Could She Yu be behind this?

    What could She Yu possibly want with this many Sky Leaf Division corpses? Could it be the Beast Venom Pce instead?

    Fu Sisi felt terribly uneasy. The Beast Venom Pce¡¯s actions were often strange and hard to predict. Furthermore, they were notorious for their nefarious deeds. What would happen if her teammates¡¯ corpsesnded in their hands? Would they be able to uncover the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s secret ande up with ways to counter them?

    Fu Sisi took a deep breath to calm down. She could not bear to continue this line of thought.

    She had not managed to capture Ye Baiyi and She Yu had escaped. To make things worse, more than half of her subordinates had been killed, and her teammates¡¯ corpses were snatched.

    She felt extremely agonized. Returning with such lousy results would definitely incur Madam¡¯s wrath. Fu Sisi did not dare harbor any thoughts of being forgiven. This was the first time she had taken on such heavy responsibility, yet she messed it up big time.

    These repeated failures had, however, made her more aware.

    The Sky Leaf Division¡¯s campaigns throughout Beyond Avalon were wildly sessful. All the cities they had swept across could only surrender. These continued sesses had made the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s leadership terriblycent. At the time, discussions within the division came to the conclusion that only the Holy Emperor and Dai Gang were able to match up to them. They believed that any member of the Sky Leaf Division was no weaker than the top members of other divisions.

    Wan Shenwei¡¯s final struggle, She Yu¡¯s guile, and Shi Beihai¡¯s overwhelming power made her realize that the world¡¯s "heroes" were not to be trifled with.

    What was she going to do now?

    She suddenly raised her head and looked into the distance. Those around her looked up at the same time.

    Everyone of them was dumbstruck.

    .....

    The ringing sound reverberating through the air gave a sense of just how terrifyingly fast the shock wave was moving. Shan Minxiong started to feel tense. An astonishinglyrge broadsword suddenly appeared in his hand. This sinister-looking broadsword was pitch ck from tip to base except for the blood red demonic faces iid on its de.

    Without any hesitation, he flicked his wrist and nimbly shed the huge broadsword in a forward arc. As the ck ray flew forward, it was apanied by an eerie wailing that would make even the hardest of men tremble.

    Ping!

    A soft, crisp sound rang out.

    Shan Minxiong¡¯s body stiffened. The vine had not struck with much force, but efficiently pierced his defenses with its sharpness. He let out an uncontroble cry as a wave of indescribable pain washed over his body. Paralysis soon began to set in.

    The anguish he was feeling now waspletely different from the pain ofmon injuries. He felt as though an invisible thread was tightening around his brain.

    Poison?

    Shan Minxiong¡¯s heart skipped a beat. He knew of many different poisons that were capable of affecting the mind.

    Blinded by the pain, he took a huge step back in retreat. Right at this moment, the immense shockwave arrived at its destination.

    Bam!

    Shan Minxiong was hit by the force of a stampeding beast. His massive body flew backward like a sandbag.

    A sh of green light could be seen as a green vine narrowly missed his body. The soft, agile tendril was like a nimble snake, swiftly retreating upon missing its target.

    Duanmu Huanghun!

    A single name surfaced in his mind as he sailed through the air.

    Duanmu Huanghun was a key member of the Central Pine Faction, the legendary genius of the Duanmu family, and Grandmaster Dai Gang¡¯s disciple...

    Waves of information shed through his mind. The pins and needles present throughout his body were a constant reminder of just how precarious of a situation he was in.

    Being a genius or whatever was of little value in this day and age. Shan Minxiong had long since lost count of the number of genius elementalists that he had in, but this Duanmu Huanghun... Even though Shan Minxiong only had a small window to react and could barely use his strength, the fact that he was ced in such a bad position...

    Shan Minxiong felt a lingering fear creeping up on him.

    Duanmu Huanghun was even more powerful than what the rumors said about him!

    Shan Minxiong did not have the luxury of time to ponder over such matters.

    The scene before his eyes was hard to watch. Just as he had predicted, the defensive blood canopy had been shattered, and the Pinwheel Sword had devastated the entire area. A 50-foot wide crater on the ground was ample evidence of its sheer might.

    Nothing was left standing where the Pinwheel Sword had struck. The entire ce was littered with gore. Even the soldiers who were more than 10 feet away suffered varying degrees of severe injuries from the impact.

    The Pinwheel Sword¡¯s frightening prowess wasid bare for all to see. Shan Minxiong now understood the hate that He Nanshan harbored toward this weapon of mass destruction.

    However, the Pinwheel Sword looked as though it wasn¡¯t doing too well either. It was stuck in the middle of the crater.

    It was not flying... could it be... damaged as well?

    Shan Minxiong¡¯s eyes lit up.

    An opportunity!

    Without its speed, the Pinwheel Sword was about as useful as a tiger without fangs. All it could do was wait to be trampled by others.

    Rumble, rumble!

    The ground shook. Shan Minxiong could tell without looking that two teams of fully equipped bluster mysterious tigers were on the attack. He feltforted that the ground troops were reacting well to the situation, counter-attacking at the first possible opportunity.

    Close range assaults were the bluster mysterious tigers¡¯ expertise.

    An impressive burst of force propelled their lumbering bodies forward at a swift speed. The bluster mysterious tigers elerated to their top speed in the blink of an eye. Their full set of armor would allow them to withstand the enemy¡¯s attacks and decimate everything standing before them.

    Like a warhammer dragged straight out of hell, their only mission was toy waste to everything.

    His spirits lifted, Shan Minxiong brimmed with expectation.

    A different scene was ying out on board the Pinwheel Sword.

    Gu Xuan and the rest were trying hard to find stable footing. All color had been drained from their faces, and the tremendous impact force had rendered them powerless. They had flown on the Pinwheel Sword many times before, but this was the first time they had experienced such a nightmarish ride.

    This was not an offensive strike, this was practically suicide!

    It was a miracle that the Pinwheel Sword did not fall apart.

    Huo Da was sweating buckets as he anxiously tried to get out of this rut.

    The Pinwheel Sword had gonepletely through the soilyer and struck the rock stratum beneath. The tip of the Pinwheel Sword was now trapped by rocks. To make things worse, the materials used to construct the Pinwheel Sword were not particrly amazing. The impact from that strike had caused damage to various parts of it.

    The fear-inducing rumble was rapidly getting closer to them. Huo Da¡¯s stress was also swiftly building up while he concentrated on utilizing his elemental energy.

    A sharp noise filled the air as the five elements swirled around the pinwheel. The pinwheel at the rear of the sword began to spin wildly, causing the entire Pinwheel Sword to shudder violently.

    Ending up in such a state left Huo Da feeling like he had failed as a Master.

    Duanmu Huanghun shot a nce at Huo Da and snorted, "There¡¯s still time."

    Opening his palm, he produced a small twining branch that glowed a faint green. He squatted down and ced it on the floor.

    Thinking about his escaped prey made him condescendingly snort once more. That guy who was decked out in high-ranking gear had reacted quickly enough to avoid him.

    The green glow beneath his feet grew brighter, partially engulfing Duanmu Huanghun. His handsome face was frozen in a solemn expression within the light, making him look like a deity who had descended from heaven.

    Shan Minxiong witnessed the amazing scene that followed.

    The twining branches of Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s [Viridescent Flower] swiftly covered every inch of the Pinwheel Sword and continue growing outward to fill the entire crater. The speed at which this urred was oddly reminiscent of cotton candy expanding.

    Countless green vines then sprang outward from the crater, spreading relentlessly like a green flood.

    The green vines moved with the ferocity of an escaped green beast that had been trapped since time immemorial.

    As the earth groaned beneath the magnitude of what was happening above it, the two teams of bluster mysterious tigers rammed into the relentless green vines from different directions.

    Roar!

    A series of explosions ensued. In the face of the bluster mysterious tigers, the green vines that had burst forth with the magnitude of a hundred waterfalls copsed like fragile bubbles. The armored riders astride the bluster mysterious tigers brandished their heavy weapons to face the green vines. Some of them wielded warhammers while others carried polearms, heavy maces, and other equallyrge weapons. The riders¡¯ weapons and armor were shrouded with a ck me that, upon closer inspection, had a blood red core.

    Upon contact with the ck me, Duanmu Huanghun¡¯s green vines were burned to a crisp, releasing wisps of green smoke.

    The morale of the blood elementalists soared. They were confident in shredding their enemies as long as they could reach the Pinwheel Sword.

    Practically unstoppable, the teams charged forward!

    Soon, they realized that something was fishy.

    How was it possible that they were still nowhere near the Pinwheel Sword?

    The Pinwheel Sword had only been about 100 yards away. For them, they could easily close this distance in a single breath. They had charged forward for more than 10 breaths, yet they had not reached the Pinwheel Sword.

    Everyone¡¯s facial expression changed slightly. They ordered their growling bluster mysterious tigers to halt as they discovered something wasn¡¯

    An enormous wall of green vines stood tall before their eyes, while an endless green fog surrounded them. The green fog was wispy and rarefied, yet they could not see anything beyond three yards.

    It was a trap!

    The riders were at a loss about what to do.

    Gu Xuan looked out from within the Pinwheel Sword and was astonished by what he saw.

    Right after they charged into the green mist, the two teams of bluster mysterious tigers started to deviate from their original trajectory and started to circle the Pinwheel Sword. Seeing them run around obliviously in circles was bothedic and strangely odd.

    "What technique is this? It¡¯s amazing!" Gu Xuan muttered to himself in a daze. He suddenly realized that it looked a little familiar. "This kind of looks like the blood mist from before."

    Surprised by his observation, Duanmu Huanghun shot Gu Xuan a brief look.

    The creation of this skill was indeed inspired by the [Smoke Flower Lock].

    Duanmu Huanghun pondered over the [Smoke Flower Lock] while idling around for the past two days. He found it rather interesting and started to implement some of his own ideas on it. With that, the [Viridescent Flower, Obfuscating Fog] technique was created.

    His lower jaw twitched as he let out a condescending snort.

    None of you know anything about the power of a genius.

    "It¡¯s done!" Huo Da cheered excitedly as the Pinwheel Sword finally struggled free of its fetters and soared into the sky.

    Duanmu Huanghun looked away indifferently after seeing the ground and the blood elementalists rapidly shrink from the corner of his eye. He lithely leapt onto a swaying vine amid the adtory looks from the others, calmly closing his eyes to rest.

    It was not long before his eyes abruptly snapped open, and he surged to his feet. Turning his head to the left, Duanmu Huanghun saw something that left him aghast.

 Chapter 672: Yin Furnace

    Chapter 672: Yin Furnace

    Trantor: Irene Editor: X, TYZ

    Amid the darkness, the Holy Emperor raised his arm. On it was a devilish, yet alluring, colored spot. It was An Muda¡¯sst ¡°gift¡± to him. The blood spiritual force within his body flowed to his arm area only to be resisted by an invisible force and was unable to pass through it.

    The colored spot was formed from tangled five elemental rings. They were connected, head to tail, like a lock. They were like a ball of flowing bright light, constantly undergoing changes.

    The Holy Emperor had been unable to break this ¡°An Muda Ring.¡±

    Yes, the Holy Emperor named it the ¡°An Muda Ring.¡±

    The Holy Emperor was wise, knowledgeable, and had seen all kinds of absolute arts that elementalists practiced, so he was extremely familiar with five elemental rings. He understood that these rings were a new Master¡¯s first barrier. Only those who couldprehend them could possibly progress further.

    The An Muda Ring was different from those he had seen before. It had life. It could grow and change, regrouping and repairing itself. It flowed endlessly, never ever stopping.

    It was breathtaking, amazing, and magnificent.

    The Holy Emperor disapproved of An Muda¡¯s ways, but was exceedingly impressed by the An Muda Ring.

    Breaking the An Muda Ring would allow him to heal from his injuries, but more importantly, he would be able to further advance his level.

    Grandmasters reigned supreme not only because of their powers, but also due to their solitude. It was extremely cold at the top, and such was their lives as Grandmasters. This loneliness wasn¡¯t just something that few battled together against. It was also something they experienced during training.

    There were fewer and fewer things they could use as references. There were also fewer people whom they could learn from and discuss matters with. Loneliness hit them the most when they pondered over their next destination.

    Ever since the battle with An Muda, the Holy Emperor had stayed away from governmental affairs and spent practically every waking hour attempting to understand the An Muda Ring.

    The An Muda Ring caused him to spend a lot of time and energy, but the output was worth the effort. Seeing through An Muda¡¯s ideology was priceless. The Holy Emperor looked forward to the day when he could finally solve the riddle. He was curious about the essence of the An Muda Ring.

    And that day was near.

    Compared to being on the front lines, he was much happier using his time to study the An Muda Ring.

    Peeking into the insights of a Grandmaster was like exploring a whole new world.

    He opened his eyes suddenly.

    As he left his room, the sun was rather ring, but it did not seem to affect him.

    The guards were shocked to see him, but they quickly bowed. ¡°Your Majesty!¡±

    Ignoring them, the Holy Emperor flew up into the sky and stopped somewhere high above. He had a grave expression on his face as he kept his gaze in the direction of the Jadeite Forest.

    Such an intense wave motion¡­ Dai Gang¡­ Who else?¡±

    A new Grandmaster???

    ¡­..

    It was a lively scene in Skyheart City. As people rushed out from their houses, some flew up into the sky, while others stood on their roofs. They were all looking toward the Jadeite Forest. They craned their necks despite the futility.

    There were mixed emotions on their faces. It was indeed hard to remain calm at this point.

    The indescribable elemental wave motion had already disrupted the flow of heaven and earth.

    Rays of magnificently colored, fluctuating lights appeared far away in the horizon. Bright light traces shed across the blue dome of heaven from time to time. They were like falling meteors, caused by friction between surging elemental energy. The white, cottony clouds were crackling and burning, as if ignited by something, and producing a thick green smoke. The sun and moon were simultaneously visible as they released their radiance.

    All kinds of strange phenomena were urring.

    ¡°Grandmasters are freakishly terrifying!¡±

    ¡°Exactly!¡±

    ¡°Who¡¯s the other fellow aside from Dai Gang?¡±

    ¡°It has to be Senior Le Buleng! Have you forgotten that he had specially made a trip down to challenge Dai Gang to battle?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯re right. He¡¯s probably the only worthy opponent.¡±

    ¡°We have to call him Grandmaster Le!¡±

    ¡°An Muda might¡¯ve been too old. Grandmasters Dai and Le are still in their prime.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s hard to imagine how powerful a human can be. Even if the whole poption of Skyheart City joined forces, they wouldn¡¯t be able to resist a hit from two grandmasters, would they?¡±

    ¡°Definitely not!¡±

    ¡­

    Madam Ye held her head up high, more arrogantly and stubbornly than usual. She was the only one aware that her body was trembling uncontrobly beneath her luxurious clothes. She appeared calm, but behind her sealed lips, wisps of blood from clenching her teeth too hard leaked from her gums. A bloody smell pervaded the air as she stared in the direction of the Jadeite Forest.

    Are Grandmasters really invincible?

    She even felt a tinge of despair and confusion. Having seen An Muda¡¯sst strike, she had thought that that was a Grandmaster¡¯s power and had spent so much effort in establishing Master¡¯s Glory. This gave her confidence that Skyheart City would remain fearless even when facing a Grandmaster.

    It was only now that she realized how naive she had been.

    Those forces were of a different realm!

    Even quantity wouldn¡¯t be able topensate for the disparity in power.

    Madam Ye broke out in cold sweat. Her belief that Skyheart City was impregnable had been threatened, and she felt insecure.

    Le Buleng was surrounded by dark mes and looked akin to a devil rising from Hell. The curling mes were pitch-ck and seemed capable of swallowing all light. The restless fire danced with a distinct rhythm, like that of a pulse. asionally, they would form transparent ripples that spread outward in the sky.

    The ripples carried a terrifying power and might that reached far and wide.

    If Le Buleng was hellfire, Dai Gang would be a gust of unfathomable wind. He was always cheerful and light-hearted.

    The ripples produced by the ck mes did not affect his physical body. They continued spreading into the distance, as if he was merely an illusion.

    Le Buleng had battled against Dai Gang many times and was very familiar with his skills, hence he unleashed his full force immediately without any warning.

    His body disappeared swiftly in midair. Instantly and out of nowhere, a ming ck fist appeared from behind Dai Gang.

    Lustrous lotus flowers grew and blossomed behind Dai Gang¡¯s back just in time for the petals to roll outward and wrap around Le Buleng¡¯s ming fist, effectively blocking it.

    Whoosh. The petals turned into ashes and dust.

    Dai Gang used this opportune moment to break free, a startled expression forming on his gentle face. ¡°These mes¡­ Yin mes!¡±

    ¡°Can¡¯t hide it from you indeed!¡±

    A cold groan sounded from far away as a sharp force appeared noiselessly by Dai Gang¡¯s ears.

    His eyes lit up. ¡°I see. Golden Crow Fire generates Yin after nonstop tempering and upgrading. Amazing stuff. These Yin mes can evenbust in a void right?¡±

    Both moved as fast as lighting. Throughout a brief exchange of conversation, both had exchanged blows at least tens of times.

    The effect produced by two colliding forces that were entirely different also differed. At times these shes disappeared without a sound, but at other times, they were earth-shatteringly loud like thunder.

    Le Buleng became excited because he could feel that their current fight was different from the previous ones.

    That powerless feeling he had felt when facing Dai Gang was like a nightmare that enveloped his whole life.

    He had thought that they were the shackles of fate, but he was finally going to crush them!

    He burst into aughter. ¡°It feels good!¡±

    Dai Gang retracted his smile and adopted a stern expression. ¡°Brother Buleng is rebelling against destiny for sure, establishing supreme absolute arts, and passing them onto the new generations. May I ask for its name?¡±

    Le Buleng was surprised, but after some thought he mumbled, ¡°I forgot about naming it. Eh, let me call it [Yin Furnace].¡±

    Dai Gang praised, ¡°Great name! If Brother Buleng loses, I¡¯ll be sure to pass it on to the noble disciplines. If anything goes wrong, I¡¯ll entrust the gifted ones to hand it down and carry it forward, ensuring that this treasure does not collect dust.¡±

    Le Bulengughed out loud. ¡°I¡¯ve been living life my own way, and nothing matters when I¡¯m dead, so who cares?¡±

    Before he finished, his body appeared beside Dai Gang as he threw another punch.

    Dai Gang¡¯s eyes lit up. ¡°There are ripples in this empty space!¡±

    A lotus flower blossomed behind his back to block the blow.

    Whoosh. The flower burned to ashes. The ck mes then surged forth toward Dai Gang¡¯s head.

    Nothing much could be seen, but Dai Gang¡¯s body withdrew speedily. His open hands and fingers were like blossoming flowers. It was a dazzling sight for all to see.

    The bowl-sized lotus flowers spiraled rapidly toward the surging, curtain-like smoke.

    Bububu¡­

    The flower petals exploded into balls of light. Amid the light were pattering sounds generated by fine rain.

    The seemingly soft rain had actually managed to disrupt the momentum of the ck smoke.

    Just then, a fist pierced through the rain curtain!

    Dai Gang¡¯s pupils shrank. He extended his palms out and struck out. A deluge of petals fluttered in the sky as heavenly music filled the air. It was as if a deity had descended.

    Boom!

    The petals turned into fine powder in an instant, and the heavenly music stopped abruptly.

    The light ray that blossomed between them was so dazzling that it hurt to watch, and it was apanied by a fiery explosion of elemental wave motions.

    Le Buleng only felt a burst of overwhelming force approaching. Before he could react, his body shot backward like a ball for miles before he could stabilize himself.

    He looked at the criss-crossing wound on his fist and grinned. There was only madness in his eyes.

    That felt good!

    The ground beneath him was a long crack that was three kilometers wide and over ten kilometers long, as if it were a valley.. This was the ghastly scar, left behind by that earlier blow.

    Behind Le Buleng, the umted soil had created a dust storm that covered the sky and still whirled in the air.

    It swept far across the field, extending a thousand miles away!

    Le Buleng shifted his gaze toward where Dai Gang was standing.

    Dai Gang was in a worse state. His palms were missing from his lower arms and astonishingly severe wounds could be found all over his body.

    Le Buleng hardened his gaze. There were no bones sticking out of Dai Gang¡¯s arms.

    No bones?

    ¡°I haven¡¯t been injured in a long time. Almost forgot what it feels like,¡± Dai Gang mumbled and raised his head up with a smile.

    ¡°You¡¯re amazing indeed, Brother Buleng. The first to ever force me to unleash my true potential. How interesting!¡±

 Chapter 673: Dai Gangâ€™s Secret

    Chapter 673: Dai Gang¡¯s Secret

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    Le Buleng stared at Dai Gang¡¯s broken wrists. They were white and lustrous, somewhat like jade yet not, and somewhat like wood yet not.

    He mumbled to himself, "I see, I see. Body of grasscord and white lotus... Unexpected, how unexpected. I¡¯ve fought so many battles against you, but failed to notice. An undying body... I never imagined anyone would actually reach that level."

    With a slight smile, Dai Gang replied, "You have good judgment, Brother Buleng. [Grasscord] is a product from my traveling days, when I chanced upon a fewherworld lotus seeds in the hall of Daya. From there, I received significant enlightenment."

    Flesh grew from his broken wrists at a visible rate, forming two perfectly new palms.

    Dai Gang¡¯s voice carried a maic charm that reminded people of the spring breeze.

    Le Buleng¡¯s eyes were brightly lit at this point. The thrill inspired him. When it came to training, he never was one to follow conventions. The absolute arts he had created were all bewildering, yet revealing of his talents.

    Dai Gang¡¯s brief summary had already sparked ideas in Le Buleng¡¯s head. He mumbled, "Netherworld lotus seeds? I got it. They¡¯re a perfect match for the [Lotus Chiropractic Technique]. With [Grasscord] as aplement, an undying body can be achieved? But that¡¯s not enough since it¡¯s only a shell. How then, can it be perfected? Something iscking, something crucial..."

    His eyes beamed suddenly, his expression exuberant. "[Life and Death Command]! Could it be the [Life and Death Command]? Hahaha, I got it! Living through death! Commendable! How impressive! It¡¯s no wonder you¡¯re a Grandmaster! It¡¯s only logical!"

    Dai Gang was taken aback, but he quickly sighed and shook his head. "I had thought that the only person who could possibly unravel my secret was the Holy Emperor, but who knew it would be you, Brother Buleng."

    As if he hadn¡¯t heard, Le Buleng continued mumbling to himself, "Yeah, living through death and stimting a wisp of life along the boundary of life and death. That¡¯s the key to an undying body. What a genius! A step ahead of me in fact."

    Le Buleng seemed to have gone insane.

    He raised his head all of a sudden, his eyes fixed meaningfully onto Dai Gang. "What does death feel like?"

    Dai Gang shuddered, and his perpetually cheerful face twitched a little. Reverence, enthusiasm, fear, infatuation... his face was a blend of all these intense emotions.

    With a bitter smile he stated, "Indescribable."

    In response, Le Buleng released a long breath. "Must¡¯ve been unusual. How I yearn for it."

    The fervor in his eyes gradually faded, and he returned to his normal state. "Walking on the boundary of life and death while defying fate... it¡¯s definitely a first. It might not be thest, but definitely the first. I¡¯d never been impressed by you in the past, but things have changed! Please share its name."

    "[White Lotus Revival Technique]," Dai Gang eded.

    Le Buleng nodded. "[White Lotus Revival Technique]. Living up to its name indeed. Many iprehensible details have been cleared up."

    Dai Gangughed involuntarily. "What were you uncertain about?"

    "The reason you turned your back against the Avalon of Five Elements and established the Jadeite Forest. The reason you were so interested in God¡¯s blood."

    Dai Gang stared nkly as Le Buleng spoke.

    Le Buleng¡¯s voice was very calm and emotionless, as if rying an irrelevant story. "[White Lotus Revival Technique] is indeed an amazing achievement, but not wless. That new wisp of life is merely the beginning. Much more vigor is required to maintain your undying body. God¡¯s blood has ample vigor and is the best material for replenishing your undying body as a result. A pity it is difficult to get a hold of it. Without aplete [White Lotus Revival Technique], you had no confidence in beating the Holy Emperor and hence chose to establish the Jadeite Forest."

    The sky was much quieter as even the wind had stopped blowing. There only was Le Buleng¡¯s piercing voice now.

    "Previously, I had found the low wood elemental energy in the Jadeite Forest to be strange. All the energy was flowing toward your pce. Why would you need that much wood elemental energy? Now, I finally understand. What you need isn¡¯t the wood elemental energy, but the vigor within the wood element. You¡¯re using the whole of the Jadeite Forest to nourish yourself."

    "When the Holy Emperor was injured from the battle with An Muda, you did not jump in to fight for God¡¯s blood, but you definitely weren¡¯t afraid, so that was interesting. Perhaps... you couldn¡¯t leave the Jadeite Forest? Come to think of it, ever since you became a Grandmaster, you lived a solitary life in the Green Sea. You needed the Jadeite Forest when the Green Sea became insufficient? In this sense, the Jadeite Forest is both your home and prison."

    "So, you¡¯ve been paying attention to God¡¯s blood and people thought you were trying to study it. Plus, you were in a defensive position."

    "Which reminds me of something that I still can¡¯t understand. Why did Ye Baiyi defect to the Holy Emperor?"

    Le Buleng grinned, but there was only seriousness in his eyes. "I believe I¡¯m the only one who¡¯s been in a match with you and Ye Baiyi. Back when Ye Baiyi took over my position as the division leader of the Icy mes Division, I¡¯d already noticed that his elemental energy was unique. Also, how many times have we battled? How can you hide that familiar energy from me?"

    His tone became increasingly curious. "I¡¯m still confused about your goal. Is it the thing in the hands of the Ye family? Or the thing that the Dread troops are guarding?"

    The air was quiet and still.

    After a long time, a sigh was heard.

    Dai Gang started speaking, "You¡¯ve surprised me today, Brother Buleng. The world has underestimated you. A yearter, on this day, I¡¯lle over to visit and pay my respects.

    With him as the center point, the elemental energy within a several hundred mile radius started to surge.

    Even further away, the people in Skyheart City could sense the elemental wave motions. Those in the nearby Jadeite Forest were basically experiencing a storm.

    Even though Dai Gang and Le Buleng had chosen an isted area for their battle, it was inevitable that the effects of their sh would extend across the cities. After recently assuming power, Yu Mingqiu deployed all the wood elementalists he could to strengthen the defense of the Jadeite Forest.

    A sandstorm was covering the sky ahead and rolling over with indestructible force. Those terrifying wave motions from far away made people feel suffocated.

    Lu Chen, who was usually unconcerned about worldly affairs, floated beside Yu Mingqiu.

    He admired his junior¡¯s unflustered demeanor. If it had been him, he would¡¯ve been at a loss. While looking at him, Lu Chen thought back to how Yu Mingqiu acted when reciting poetry. They were like two different individuals at this point.

    "Stabilize the defense!"

    "Get ready to resist the attack!"

    "

    "Prepare yourselves, all wood elementalists!"

    "Doctors, get ready to treat the injured!"

    Hismands were concise, while his voice was steady. It boosted the morale of the people and reduced their stress level.

    The Jadeite Forest engaged its defenses, and the sky darkened immediately. Nightshade leaves bigger than houses started stacking onto one another and covering the sky. They emitted a soft light, producing a beautiful sight. Dragon bones made from 12 golden crow vines propped up the green dome. Each bone was made from three interwoven vines, and each vine was over three meters in diameter.

    Arge volume of fibrous roots hung down from the vines and were connected to the big trees of the Jadeite Forest to form an additional support. Within the dome, there were countless petals fluttering in the sky. They were the ideal buffer because they could absorb extreme impacts.

    Despite the darkening of the sky, the leaves and fluttering petals were releasing their own glow, which actually illuminated the area to a level that was as good as daytime.

    The imprable defense made the citizens feel much safer, but their faces changed soon enough when the windstorm approached with an earth-shattering howl that even the defense was unable to block.

    "It¡¯s here!"

    Even with his rich experience in the Wilderness and despite having seen all kinds of strange phenomena, Yu Mingqiu couldn¡¯t help but tremble at the intimidating scene unraveling before him.

    The beasts in the Wilderness were nothingpared to what he was witnessing.

    Was this a Grandmaster¡¯s power?

    Boom!

    The Jadeite Forest jerked, as if there was a giant palm grabbing and shaking it.

    The outermostyer of nightshade leaves exploded into powder as the dragon bones continued to shake intensely, producing cracking sounds. The dancingyer of petals were pulverized and formed mist that surged and intertwined. The big trees that acted as support shook suddenly, causing their leaves to fall. Cracks formed on a massive viridescent beech tree that was massive enough to require four men to carry.

    Yu Mingqiu raised his guard. He was the most worried about the first hit.

    He opened his eyes wide, staring overhead. Seeing that the dragon bones disyed no signs of breaking despite their intense swaying, he finally released a sigh of relief.

    They had made it!

    Pitter patter! The storm-like sounds of collisions made it hard for people to breathe.

    The green light emitted by the nightshade leaves formed dense ripples that numbed their heads. The soil raised by the windstorm contained a terrifying force that instantly bore holes through the nightshade leaves upon impact. The number of holes on these leaves was increasing rapidly, turning them into something that resembled beehives beforepletely destroying them.

    At the nightshade field beneath the dome, the wood elementalists were channeling whatever energy they could to grow and sprout more nightshade leaves. The sprouted leaves floated up toward the dome like thick green clouds as they strengthened the defense.

    Yu Mingqiu raised his voice, "Pay attention to the elemental energy, change shifts!"

    One after the other, the drained wood elementalists groaned before copsing onto the nightshade field. Doctors rushed over to pull the semi-conscious wood elementalists aside to make way for the next group.

    10 breaths.

    The windstormsted for a total of 10 whole breaths. A suffocating 10 breaths.

    Everyone¡¯s minds were nk when the windstorm passed with its typical rumble. They couldn¡¯t react in time.

    After a short pause, cheers filled the ce. Having survived the cmity, people went wild with joy.

    A calm and collected voice effectively broke the cheers.

    "Inspect the defense immediately and treat all injured elementalists. Recover your elemental energy as much as you can and be quick," Yu Mingqiu ordered.

    There was no joy on his face.

    He knew that this was just the beginning.

 Chapter 674: Grey and Green

    Chapter 674: Grey and Green

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Streaks of ck fire shot through the sky like dozens of ck arrows being fired into the distance. Formless ripples emitted from each streak of ck me, rapidly raising the ambient temperature. A strong killing intent pervaded the surroundings.

    Le Buleng¡¯s silhouette paced demonically amidst the dark mes.

    He was facing a lotus flower, and a huge one at that.

    With its fifty-foot-long stalk, Le Buleng thought that the lotus strongly resembled arge boat swaying in the wind. Each one of its plump and tender petals was three feet long and they stackedyer uponyer to form an altar of sorts. In the middle of the flower, atop its green core, stood Dai Gang. The petals wrapped around him, providing protection.

    This was [Revival Lotus].

    It had begun as aherworld lotus seed, but it had blossomed into something much less nefarious under Dai Gang¡¯s nurturance and refinement. Dai Gang had justpleted his [White Lotus Reviving Technique] and used it as a vessel for incubation. Having shut off from the rest of the world, he proceeded to "die" within the lotus for three years and six months.

    When he returned to the realm of the living, Dai Gang was at the level of a Grandmaster. The lotus that had embarked on this mysterious experience with him hadpletely transformed into something mystical. It was now one of the strongest treasures in the world.

    A streak of ck me struck one of the petals, creating ripples on its surface. The petal began to wither gradually, but a new one immediately grew to take its ce.

    Shrouded by the petals, Dai Gang¡¯s expression remained solemn. He separated and pressed his palms together, sending a flurry of petals raining down from up above.

    The seemingly gentle rain of flowers was like an illusion. Its fragrance was utterly captivating. Everytime a streak of ck me shot past, the floating flowers would aggregate around it and snuff the fire out.

    To a Grandmaster, everywhere was a battlefield.

    The two of them were either moving like lightning, chasing each other down hundreds of meters, or engaging in terrifying close quartersbat that produced blinding sparks.

    After his initial testing, Le Buleng became more ustomed to his new body. He was unfamiliar with several aspects of his body after undergoing tempering inside the yin furnace. Luckily, his lifetime ofbat experience allowed him to quickly get a knack for his new abilities.

    He appeared above the giant lotus in the blink of an eye with ck mes on his arm. Instead of shooting out like before, the mes extended down his arm straight towards his palm, forming a pitch ck javelin. The javelin was about four feet nine inches long and had a crystal-like quality.

    Le Buleng was extremelyposed. With the utmost confidence in his strength, he engaged his core andunched the javelin!

    His figure was frozen in the air, like something out of an ancient mural. The javelin in his hand had vanished.

    A light, bubbling sound spread through the air, and a small hole could be seen on one of the lotus flower¡¯s many petals. The javelin that was formed from ck mes effortlessly bore through the lotus flower and pierced through Dai Gang¡¯s body.

    Dai Gang looked down and saw a puncture wound the size of a small bowl on his abdomen. Wisps of ck me surrounded the wound, corrupting his body and destroying his inner vitality.

    He ignored the wound after giving it a quick nce.

    An injury like this was no big deal to him.

    The wisps of ck me around the wound were quickly extinguished, and the charred flesh where the wound was was rapidly whitening. Dai Gang¡¯s damaged tissues were regenerating at a fast pace, and the wound was fully healed in the span of eight breaths.

    Dai Gang furrowed his brows as he tried to track Le Buleng¡¯s swift, erratic movements.

    Le Buleng was moving too fast!

    Dai Gang himself was already considerably fast, yet his speed was miles behind Le Buleng¡¯s. This was not something unexpected for Dai Gang since he knew that Le Buleng¡¯s body had been tempered to the extreme in the Yin Furnace. Le Buleng could possibly have transcended the physical limits of the human body.

    Le Buleng might have praised Dai Gang¡¯s [White Lotus Reviving Technique] as something phenomenal, but surely the way he tempered his own body was phenomenal as well?

    Le Buleng appeared to have the upper hand, but he was in fact unable to find a way to deal with Dai Gang. Inflicting normal injuries on Dai Gang was effectively a pointless venture.

    Le Buleng attempted to use other offensive strategies, but nothing seemed to work.

    At this point, both parties understood that they were in a war of attrition.

    Le Buleng was capable of inflicting damage to Dai Gang, but his terrifying regenerative powers made short work of any such injuries. Simrly, Dai Gang did not have any way to deal with the insanely fast and stalwart Le Buleng.

    Le Buleng once again took the initiative in trying to break out of this stalemate. He soared high into the sky like a rocket.

    Dai Gang inevitably looked up. With the ring sun shining in Dai Gang¡¯s eyes, Le Buleng¡¯s figure was soon reduced to a small, ck dot.

    What was this fellow trying to do?

    Dai Gang did not dare to underestimate his opponent. Even though their previous engagement was slightly restrained, both parties were able to deduce the full extent of the other¡¯s strength.

    Hmm?

    Dai Gang¡¯s pupils suddenly constricted.

    This is...

    His brightly lit field of view was rapidly turning dark. Looking down from high up above, one would realize that all the sunlight was gathering towards Le Buleng. Le Buleng¡¯s immediate surroundings did not get brighter despite that. Counterintuitively, a thickyer of darkness that appeared to have made its way out of the deepest levels of hell surrounded his figure. Like a ck hole, the darkness was so profound that even the slightest amount of light was unable to escape its grasp.

    As if colour had been drained from his vision, the world that Dai Gang saw appeared to have been painted in greyscale. The azure blue sky was now grey, and looked empty and deste. The flora on the ground below had been stripped of all their verdancy, and thend was coloured ash as far as the eye could see. Thick tree trunks looked like they were molded from y, and the soft leaves and flowers were like grey paper cuttings. The nearby limestone formations lost their hard edges, making it seem as if they were as easy to snap as a dried twig.

    The vibrant world around him became utterly sinister in an instant.

    Dai Gang felt an unfamiliar yet instinctively abhorring energy building up.

    [Yin Furnace]!

    Dai Gang knew that he was in trouble this time.

    This lifeless, deste world was no illusion, life force was actually gradually being drained from everything around them. Dai Gang could clearly feel a barriering between his connection with the Jadeite Forest. The basis of his powery on his ability to tap on the wood elemental energy within the Jadeite Forest. The life force within the wood elemental energy was thergest source of his strength.

    Affected by Le Buleng¡¯s move, Dai Gang felt his body¡¯s regenerative ability decrease significantly.

    Things were going to be much harder for a good while.

    A faint smile crept across Dai Gang¡¯s face. It had been a long time since he was cornered like this, so much so that he had forgotten what feeling wretched was like. Upon pre-empting the predicament that was about to befall him, an unfamiliar yet novel feeling of excitement began to flourish within his unfaltering heart.

    Amidst the petals, Dai Gang sat down in a full lotus position. His eyes were neither open nor closed and his expression revealed neither joy nor sadness. His calm demeanor betrayed none of the hectess that life often brings.

    As though time was going backwards, the fully bloomed lotus flower began to close and returned to the bud stage.

    The lotus flower bud that held Dai Gang fell from the sky, nting itself firmly into the ground.

    The lotus flower bud swayed gently in the breeze.

    The hard earth around the bud turned into soft soil at a leisurely pace and water began to surge out from beneath the soil. In the blink of an eye, the entire area above ground was transformed into a gleaming, shallow pond. One by one, tender, green lotus nts sprouted out of the ground. Their leaves promptly spread out as the nts stood erect against the wind.

    The water¡¯s gleam and greenness of the nts continued to spread throughout their deste surroundings at an rming rate.

    High up in the sky, Le Buleng was indifferent to the scene ying out below.

    He was enjoying himself profusely. Challenging Dai Gang was his lifelong dream, and he was savouring every moment of this fight with a Grandmaster.

    Le Buleng did not take the hardships and obstacles he had experienced before to heart. He viewed each and every challenge from the previous half of his life as fate¡¯s way of refining his very being. Not once did he lose hope, give himself up to anger, or whimper in sorrow. His heart was as pure as that of a newborn.

    He closed his eyes unhurriedly.

    From a bird¡¯s eye view, one would see a patch of grey about five kilometers wide.

    The sunlight in the region was not simply gathering around Le Buleng. He was, in fact, devouring everyst bit of it.

    The thick darkness that surrounded Le Buleng continued to be denser. As he continued topress the darkness, Le Buleng¡¯s silhouette gradually became clearer. His four limbs were the first to peek out of the darkness, followed by his head, and then his lower body. Upon beingpressed to the size of a fist, the darkness no longer changed in size. The fist-sized ck hole rotated endlessly, inviting onlookers to have a glimpse of hell.

    This was [Yin Furnace]!

    Boundless power poured into Le Buleng¡¯s body, causing every strand of his hairs to quiver.

    He opened his eyes.

    Le Buleng¡¯s pupils were pitch dark, and looking into them was like staring into the abyss.

    A ridiculously terrifying aura seeped out of Le Buleng¡¯s body, sweeping across thend like a mighty hurricane.

    The sound of crashing waves rang out from below in response. Joining in was a chorus of sweet-sounding bell chimes that reverberated through the air. These sounds wereing from the warm, green orbs of light that sat within the lotus leaves.

    While Le Buleng was busy absorbing sunlight, Dai Gang¡¯s lotus leaves had spread out all the way to the edges of his grey domain.

    The area had been split into two parts - a colourless, grey void of a sky and a lush, green pond brimming with lotus leaves.

    A lotus flower bud the size of a small mountain stood loftily amidst the field of lotus leaves, swaying ever so slightly in the wind. In the middle of the sky was the ck hole that could devour almost all life. The two sides faced each other in seemingly perfect bnce.

    The greatest battle in the history of the Avalon of Five Elements was about to begin.

    Le Buleng raised his hand and extended his fingers.

    With a gentle drop of his wrist, a light drizzle began to fall from the sky.

    Streaks of ck me as fine as cow¡¯s hair descended from the void. Scattering across the sky, it looked as if a sheer ck cloth was covering the sky and separating light from dark.

    Raindrops continuously fell onto the sturdy, green orbs of light that were wrapped by the leaves.

    The fine drizzle grew heavier and heavier, ultimately turning into torrential rain. A sea of ck ink was floating up in the sky, unleashing its payload on the ground below.

    The green orbs of light within the lotus leaves began to dwindle bit by bit as the raindrops devoured their glow.

    A soft whimper could be heard as thest wisp of green light was extinguished from one of Dai Gang¡¯s leaves.

    Without the protection of the green glow, the ck torrential rain hammered directly onto the lotus leaf. The raindrops pierced countless small holes in the leaf,pletely destroying it.

    The stalk disappeared soon after.

    Above the endless ck torrential rain, Le Buleng hovered in the air like a god. A steady stream of sunlight continued to fuel the Yin Furnace.

 Chapter 675: The Odd Transformation of The Sword Embryo

    Chapter 675: The Odd Transformation of The Sword Embryo

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The light and shadow at the distant horizon churned and fluctuated irregrly, resembling the aurora in the night sky of extremely cold ces. That was a spectacr phenomenon formed by surging elemental energy.

    Even though it was very far away, everyone was dazed by its vast and surging elemental energy waves. The elementalists that were setting up the North Sea buoys could not help but stop what they were doing and shift their gazes in the direction of Jadeite Forest. Those who were chatting idly with each other also stopped talking and looked at Jadeite Forest. Everywhere became unusually quiet.

    Time seemed to have frozen at this moment. One could only hear the sound of wind blowing.

    Suddenly, a tinge of extremely weak and fine sound echoed in the wind.

    Initially, no one noticed it. Gradually, this sound became increasingly sharp. It was buzzing violently and loudly, overwhelming the sound of the wind blowing.

    Shi Xueman had a sharp sense of hearing. She subconsciously tilted her head and immediately found the source of the sound. It wasing from the seven sword pagodas on the Pinwheel Sword. The swords sticking out of the sword pagodas were vibrating violently at the same time. They were exceptionally agitated.

    Ai Hui...

    Before she could turn her head around, she heard Lou Lan crying out in rm, "Ai Hui!"

    Shi Xueman turned her head abruptly and looked in the direction of Ai Hui. She saw Ai Hui sitting upright on the ground with agony written all over his face.

    She stomped her foot on the ground and the azure wings on her back spread open. In a sh, she appeared beside Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui raised his head and forced out a smile with great difficulty. His facial appearance was distorted in pain. Following which, he let out a deep growl through his clenched teeth. "Disperse!"

    Shi Xueman¡¯s mind jolted. Without any hesitation, she grabbed Lou Lan and flew away from Ai Hui.

    Upon hearing Ai Hui¡¯smand, everyone else woke up and immediately dispersed. However, they did not forget their duty, which was to maintain vignce. Even though they did not know what was wrong with Ai Hui, they understood that the most important thing for them to do now was to prevent anyone fromunching a sneak attack on them.

    Shi Xueman stopped a few hundred feet away from Ai Hui. Looking at Ai Hui, she bit her lower lip and her eyes froze. Following which, she withdrew her gaze and clenched her Cirrus tightly and released a dangerous aura.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body began to tremble involuntarily. His face was as pale as a piece of paper. Pea-sized beads of sweat slowly flowed down his forehead.

    Things did not seem to go well for Ai Hui.

    The red glow in Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were flickering rapidly. With an urgent voice, he said, "The elemental energy in Ai Hui¡¯s body is in chaos and his mind is injured."

    By now, Ai Hui could no longer talk.

    His perceptive awareness far surpassed everyone else¡¯s, so h e was the first one to sense the elemental energy waves from Jadeite Forest. At that time, he felt as though there was an invisible string in his mind that was suddenly plucked.

    His sword embryo, which was originally roving along the Yin Yang dividing line, suddenly stopped moving. The next moment, 18,000 streaks of sword consciousness rose from Ai Hui¡¯s body at the same time. Following which, they pointed in the direction of Jadeite Forest like venomous snakes that had encountered danger.

    Then, they shot up into the air!

    The elemental energy waves were bing more and more powerful.

    To everyone else, even though the elemental energy waves were terrifying, they couldn¡¯t harm them. However, to Ai Hui, it could put him in a dire situation. His sword embryo was reacting strongly to the elemental energy waves.

    The 18,000 streaks of sword consciousness were trembling and rumbling at the same time, resembling a pack of wolves that were howling. They were responding to the elemental energy waves from the two Grandmasters!

    The sword embryo behaved as though it had encountered its natural enemy. It was emitting an extremely powerful aura of battle fervor.

    Ordinary elementalists might find it very hard to detect changes in elemental energy waves, but Ai Hui could do so easily.

    The speed at which the elemental energy waves were bing more powerful was terrifying.

    The sword embryo was not willing to concede to the two Grandmasters. Its operating speed was bing faster and faster.

    Ai Hui tried to pacify the sword embryo but failed.

    Very soon, the operating speed of the sword embryo overwhelmed Ai Hui. He was scared witless as the sword embryo¡¯s operating speed had gone out of his controlpletely.

    The sword embryo did not show any sign of slowing down, and its operating speed kept on increasing.

    Breaking the critical point of the sword embryo was an extremely terrifying elemental energy wave. Out of all the elemental energy waves, this was the most powerful one! What Ai Hui feared the most was that this elemental energy wave contained the aura of death and destruction.

    What Ai Hui did not know was that this elemental energy wave given off by Le Buleng¡¯s activation of [Yin Furnace].

    The elemental energy waves were like sea waves and this elemental energy wave was like a tsunami, breaking the critical point of the sword embryo.

    The 18,000 streaks of sword consciousness suddenly crumbled and flew in all directions, appearing as though they had been struck with a huge blow.

    This dealt an enormous impact on Ai Hui¡¯s mind and caused him to suffer an injury.

    Ai Hui¡¯s head buzzed as he cked out.

    Soon after, he returned to his senses and let off a bitterugh in his heart. He reckoned that he was the first person to get injured by the elemental energy waves. However, he did not really care about it. Even though he was injured, it wasn¡¯t a severe injury. He could recover from it in a few days¡¯ time.

    The sword embryo was formed by essence, breath, and spirit. It was incorporeal, magical, and unique and it was exceptionally sensitive to elemental energy waves and psychic attacks. Everything had its pros and cons. Because of the sword embryo, Ai Hui had a powerful perceptive awareness. However, at the same time, he was injured because of the sword embryo as well.

    If this was the only impact on Ai Hui, he would only experience the might of Grandmasters.

    However, he had underestimated the sword embryo and overlooked other things.

    When the 18,000 dispersed streaks of sword consciousness gathered and went into a roving mode once again, Ai Hui sensed a gush of frustration from the sword embryo.

    Ai Hui was stunned.

    Frustration?

    The sword embryo had always been very mysterious. From the day he developed the sword embryo, it had always been very calm. It had never behaved like this before. Even if the sword embryo was provoked, it would remain in a state of calmness and would not feel frustrated at all.

    But why would he sense a gush of frustration from the sword embryo?

    Ai Hui felt slightly incredulous.

    Before he could react, a mysterious gush of frustration suddenly hit him and engulfed his body.

    He felt there was something in his body that was restless and kept on strengthening. He also felt as though a dormant volcano in his body had woken up and it was about to erupt.

    The sword embryo was telepathically connected to him. Just like how the sword embryo¡¯s "absolute coldness" affected him in the past, its frustration was affecting him now.

    Ai Hui tried to keep himself calm. Before he found out what was going on, he had already sensed the danger.

    He focused his attention on the sword embryo and realized that it looked no different than before.

    However, when Ai Hui saw the streaks of sword consciousness flying in front of him, he shuddered in fear.

    That is...

    He had personally shaped and modified every streak of sword consciousness into such a fine and mature form ording to his understanding of swordsmanship. Therefore, he was extremely familiar with every single streak of sword consciousness.

    Every streak of sword consciousness had a ck-colored de as its body. There should be a hair-like red line on the edge of each de. However, now the red lines had thickened at least ten times more than before in size. Furthermore, there were countless blood-colored cracks spreading all over the streaks of sword consciousness, resembling a blood-colored spider web.

    A faint bloody mist began to emit from the blood-colored cracks on the des.

    When the bloody mist made contact with Ai Hui¡¯s mind, an intense feeling of frustration and blood lust erupted in the depths of his mind.

    Subconsciously, Ai Hui tried to reach for the ck sword in front of him. However, just as he reached with his hand, a tinge of rity shed across his eyes. His hand changed direction and reached for the railing enclosing the deck of the Pinwheel Sword.

    Boom. A hole appeared on the sturdy deck of the Pinwheel Sword and countless pieces of broken wood flew in all directions.

    Damn it!

    More and more blood-colored cracks appeared on the streaks of sword consciousness in the sword embryo. As a result, more and more bloody mist was released.

    The concentrated bloody mist coagted into beads of blood on the streaks of sword consciousness and dripped down from their bodies.

    Drip, drip.

    Very soon, a puddle of blood appeared below the sword embryo. As the bloody mist became more concentrated, the puddle of blood kept on increasing in size. The weird thing was that the puddle of blood wasn¡¯t undting. Its surface was as sleek as a mirror, reflecting the image of the sword embryo above it. The sword embryo was bing scarlet in color.

    Distorted faces began to appear on the mirror-like puddle of blood. At the same time, angusihed wailings and blood-curdling screeches resounded through the air, causing one¡¯s hair to stand on end.

    Eventually, there were tens of thousands of faces swimming in the puddle of blood. Following which, they gathered and formed a huge face. The face was delicate, gentle, and beautiful and it was neither smiling nor frowning.

    When Ai Hui took a closer look at the huge face, he was dumbfounded.

    Lou Lan, whose eyes were flickering with a red glow, suddenly cried in rm, "Not good! Something is corroding Ai Hui¡¯s elemental energy!"

    "Look at the sword pagodas!" An elementalist realized something was not right.

    Shi Xueman shifted her gaze in the direction of the sword pagodas and her facial expression changed involuntarily. The ck swords sticking out of the sword pagodas had turned blood-red in color. Glistening blood was seeping out from the ck swords.

    The scene was unusually creepy, causing everyone¡¯s blood to run cold.

    Suddenly, a sword chime resounded through the air and the 18,000 blood swords shot out of the sword pagodas. The sword pagodas turned sparkling clean in an instant, not having a single trace of blood on them at all.

    The 18,000 blood swords hovered above Ai Hui¡¯s head, resembling a bloody cloud.

    And at this moment, Ai Hui stood up slowly. When everyone saw Ai Hui¡¯s face, all of them were stunned.

    They did not know whether or not their eyes were ying trick on them, but the contours on Ai Hui¡¯s face seemed to have be gentle. He was neither smiling nor frowning, appearing indescribably creepy. His limpid and ck pupils had be scarlet in color, resembling two spiralling bloody vortexes that could devour anyone.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui leapt into the air.

    The hovering blood swords flew towards him and engulfed him like a mass of bloody cloud.

    The scene looked exceptionally weird. The blood-sword-formed spherical object kept on wiggling in the air.

    Clink, clink, clink!

    Incessant sword chimes erupted from the spherical object like a tsunami.

    When thest sword chime finished echoing through the air, a towering, scarlet watchtower that was made up of blood swords appeared in the sky.

    A scarlet trail shot out from the watchtower and shed across the sky as a terrifying aura surged in all directions like a huge wave. The bloody glow from the watchtower covered half the sky and caused the sun to dim. A sword chime that resembled the sound of a bell chiming in an ancient temple located deep within a mountain rang through the air.

    Ai Hui appeared at the top of the watchtower. However, he seemed so familiar yet distant to everyone.

    Ai Hui stared at them with a tinge of killing intent in his eyes. His face undted like the surface of water, bing slightly blurry. However, it started to stabilize after a while.

    Ai Hui withdrew his gaze and the corners of his mouth curled into a faint smile. Then he mumbled to himself, "Why are you resisting me so fiercely? Such a profound rtionship, huh."

    Ai Hui¡¯s face turned blurry once again. A look of agony appeared on his face. Following which, it was reced by a ruthless and evil look. At this moment, he let out a groan and his body bended.

    Clenching his teeth, he blurted out, "Go!"

    The blood-sword-made watchtower streaked across the air into the distance.

 Chapter 676: Repercussions

    Chapter 676: Repercussions

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Dai Gang was sitting motionlessly in a lotus flower. One could not tell he was in danger, as there was a calm and peaceful look on his face

    The [Yin Furnace] was devouring the sunlight continuously. The area that was affected by it looked as though it was isted from the rest of the world. Dai Gang¡¯s elemental energy regeneration waspletely cut off and the ck mes were still corroding his vitality. If this carried on, he would die soon.

    Pop.

    Inside the lotus seed head beneath him, a lotus seed transformed into a wisp of smoke and disappeared, leaving behind a hole.

    Every lotus seed contained pure and vigorous vitality. He spent arge amount of time and effort to cultivate them. Every one of them was extremely precious. In a situation whereby he was isted from the world, he had no choice but to use these Revival Lotus Seeds.

    Unbelievable! He couldn¡¯t believe he had to resort to this drastic measure.

    Le Buleng, who had been challenging him for nearly a lifetime, finally cultivated a skill that could restrain his [Revival Lotus Seeds]. Was this destined?

    Dai Gang¡¯s lips curled into a smile, feeling somewhat amused.

    If the eighteen lotus seeds were expended, he would die. However, one couldn¡¯t tell that he was anxious about it.

    That was because he knew that the sun would not shine upon the earth forever. Nothing in this world couldst forever.

    When the sun set and the moon rose into the sky, the power of [Yin Furnace] would decrease drastically. That was when he would retaliate.

    He would definitely take good care of Le Buleng.

    The smiling Dai Gang was filled with confidence.

    Suddenly, a long and continuous sword chime rang across his ears. The sword chime wasn¡¯t loud or clear and it sounded almost like a sigh. It had passed through countless pieces of clouds, mountains, valleys, and rivers before arriving here. At the same time, violent and boundless energy waves were rising through the sky in an extremely distant ce.

    The energy waves were filled with provocation.

    The smile on Dai Gang¡¯s face froze. Since the start of this battle, he had been calm and collected. However, now he was stunned. For a moment, he furrowed his eyebrows and an incredulous look appeared upon his face.

    A Grandmaster? Who could it be?

    The first person he thought of was the Holy Emperor. However, he turned down this notion very soon. He was no stranger to the Holy Emperor¡¯s aura. In the past, the Holy Emperor¡¯s aura was frenzied and domineering in nature. Nowadays, his aura was purely magnificent in nature, alike to that of a king.

    Was it possible that there was a new Grandmaster?

    This was what made him feel incredulous. For so many years, the only people who had attained the level of Grandmaster were himself and the Holy Emperor. Facing Le Buleng, who had just be a Grandmaster, he was already battered and exhausted. Now one more Grandmaster was born in a distant ce?

    It was really...

    Dai Gang did not know how to describe what he was feeling. He felt an indescribable excitement, just like how he felt when he saw Le Buleng bing a Grandmaster.

    It felt as though... there was one more person that was of the same kind as him in this world.

    Upon taking a closer look at this powerful yet unfamiliar aura, he realized that this person was at a... war-torn area...

    And from the sword chime just now, Dai Gang reckoned that this person must be a swordsman. He could only think of one name.

    The Lightning de, Ai Hui!

    If it was really Ai Hui, that would be amazing.

    Dai Gang somewhat couldn¡¯t believe it as Ai Hui was far too young.

    Unlike Dai Gang, Le Buleng knew it was Ai Hui instantly. After all, he had met Ai Hui before. Other than Ai Hui, he couldn¡¯t think of anyone that possessed such powerful sword consciousness.

    At the same time, he was feeling the same amount of shock as Dai Gang.

    The speed at which thisd progressed... was terrifying!

    For a moment, Le Buleng had mixed feelings. All along, he had a lot of admiration for Ai Hui, but he certainly did not expect him to reach this universally shocking level in such a short period of time.

    However, very soon, Le Buleng furrowed his eyebrows. Something wasn¡¯t right!

    Le Buleng had a deep impression of Ai Hui¡¯s sword consciousness. Like what his nickname, "Lightning de", suggested, his sword consciousness was pure, boundless, and majestic. His sword consciousness was formed by the purest sword aura and the majestic and domineering lightning.

    Even though the power of lightning was domineering in nature, its dominance exuded a callousness that followed thew of nature, not a frenzied bloodlust.

    Even though the sword chime was long and continuous, the energy waves that rose into the sky contained an aura of bloodlust, resembling a wild beast that had been hungry for a very long time.

    There was such a strong bloody smell!

    There was definitely something wrong with Ai Hui!

    Was it possible that he was infected with blood poison?

    Countless doubts ran through Le Buleng¡¯s mind. However, he soon threw them to the back of his mind.

    So what if Ai Hui was infected with the blood poison? Le Buleng had tried many different cultivation paths and he never viewed any of them as orthodox or unorthodox. From the ancient times until now, the world had never been fair. One had to pay a price for anything he or she wanted. If it was him, he wouldn¡¯t care about the blood poison infecting him as long as it could elevate him to the level of Grandmaster.

    Perhaps this was the price.

    Le Buleng returned to his senses. He no longer had any distracting thought in his mind. There was only one person in this world that he cared about. This person had been his arch-enemy for his entire life, Dai Gang.

    Battle fervor surged through Le Buleng¡¯s heart when he saw the tightly shut [Revival Lotus] below him. Right now, he did not care whether or not Ai Hui was infected with the blood poison. The sword chime was filled with provocation and he loved it! It felt as though another person had entered this cold and deste world. This realm was no longer exclusive to only two or three people.

    This suited Le Buleng¡¯s temperament perfectly!

    The long and continuous sword chime sounded like a bugle horn to Le Buleng, making his blood race with battle fervor.

    He clearly knew Dai Gang¡¯s intention. So what?

    His abyss-like, ck pupils contained nothing but insanity. His [Yin Furnace] was operating at full power. Crack, crack, crack. ck-colored cracks appeared everywhere on Le Buleng¡¯s body, making him like a porcin statue that was covered in cracks. Every crack seemed to be connected to an abyss, exuding intense and pure darkness.

    A ck-colored liquid began to seep from the cracks. The liquid resembled ck-colored blood and moltenva at the same time.

    Whoosh.

    Wisps of ck mist began to rise from the ck-colored liquid. The mist gathered and did not dissipate.

    Following which, the ck mist shrouded Le Buleng, making him look like the demonic god of the darkness.

    Opening up his palms, the surrounding ck mist gathered at the center of his palms and formed a ck-colored axe. The axe was entirely pitch-ck in color, simple and unadorned.

    Le Buleng raised the axe over his head, leapt into the air, and flung the axe down on the [Revival Lotus]!

    .....

    High in the sky, where metal winds were blowing incessantly, the Holy Emperor was looking in the direction of Jadeite Forest. He was sitting cross-legged in the air with both his eyes closed. He was watching the battle between the two Grandmasters from their elemental energy undtions.

    He was no stranger to Dai Gang¡¯s exuberant vitality. On the contrary, he was extremely interested in Le Buleng¡¯s cold and gloomy elemental energy undtions.

    Grandmasters had always been in scarcity. He felt fortunate that there were individuals that were as powerful as him in this era. And a battle between two Grandmasters like this was extremely rare. Even though he could only watch it from a distance, he still felt d as it was still an extremely rare opportunity.

    Suddenly, a long and continuous sword chime rang across his ears.

    The constantly blowing, violent metal winds could not stop it from reaching his ears at all.

    The Holy Emperor opened his eyes. His eyes were flickering with a sparkling glow and his indifferent face looked slightly stirred, which was an extremely rare sight,

    He stood up and faced the direction of the sword chime.

    That was the front line!

    Sword chime? The Holy Emperor¡¯s facial expression returned to his usual indifferent self. Simrly, he thought of Ai Hui. He had been observing thisd. Even though his strength level was ordinary, he could be considered the most powerful swordsman of this era. It was also thisd that led a bunch of rookies to stop the advancement of his armies.

    What an interestingd!

    The Holy Emperor admitted that he overlooked Ai Hui. However, he did not really mind this "mistake" at all. If he wasn¡¯t wrong, Ai Hui had just be a Master recently. Therefore, why should a Grandmaster-cum-ruler-of-a-nation care so much about ad who had just be a Master recently?

    Such pure sword consciousness!

    The Holy Emperor had nothing but admiration for Ai Hui. He did not expect to see such pure sword consciousness in an era where swordsmanship was irrelevant. He felt very fortunate to be able to witness it.

    Ai Hui truly possessed the style of those ancient swordsmen!

    However...

    God¡¯s Blood? Thisd must be quite gifted to be able to absorb the God¡¯s Blood without exploding to death.

    If there was anyone that understood the God¡¯s Blood the best, it would be the Holy Emperor.

    It would be very interesting to see what would happen next for someone that obtained absolute power in such a way.

    An indescribable smile appeared on the Holy Emperor¡¯s face.

    .....

    When the sword chime rang across Skyheart City,motion broke out.

    "How could it be?"

    Madam Ye¡¯s face turned pale-white with horror and despair.

    The battle between Dai Gang and Le Buleng at Jadeite Forest had terrified her. The horrifying powers of two Grandmasters at their peaks truly overwhelmed her. However, she was still feeling optimistic; she was even secretly overjoyed.

    However, the sudden sword chime was able to make her feel despair and fear.

    Ai Hui!

    After the Sky Leaf Division was born, almost the entire Beyond Avalon was in her hands. Even a powerful aristocratic family like the Gong Residence had bowed down and surrendered to her. The only person that could strike fear into her heart was Ai Hui!

    Ai Hui was a thorn in her flesh.

    Every day, she was racking her brain on how to deal with Ai Hui while not affecting the situation at the front line.

    Ai Hui bing a Grandmaster was the worst oue for Skyheart City. After all, the Sky Leaf Division was nothing in the face of a Grandmaster.

    Every trump card and advantage she had had disappeared all of a sudden.

    Therefore, how could she not be despaired?

    Her mind was nk. She stood there nkly like a corpse that waspletely devoid of life. All of her schemes were weak and fragile in the face of absolute power.

    Every high-ranking official of Skyheart City was thrown into despair. The flourishing and advantageous situation that they were still in yesterday popped like a bubble of fantasy today.

    How could it be?

    How was it possible that Ai Hui could be a Grandmaster?

    He was a swordsman!

    And he was so young!

    Why...

    While everyone was feeling despair, no one noticed that a five elemental lotus in the Lake of Masters was emitting faint, ck smoke and losing vitality.

    Inside that lotus, Xiaobao could sense his mother¡¯s despair and fear.

    He wanted to console her, but he couldn¡¯t make any sound. He turned anxious and frustrated as he did not know what to do.

    Fear and despair engulfed him. He was afraid that he might lose his mother.

    No!

    The depths of his soul was screaming, like a drowning man that was wailing for thest time while looking at the sky from under the water. Boundless fear flooded him like a tidal wave and he began to lose his consciousness.

    The five elemental lotuses on the Laker of Masters were withering. The elementalists inside them had been reduced to nothing but pale-white bones.

    The hundreds of lotuses withered and disappeared. Only one lotus was left in the center of theke. It was wless and sparkling clean like a piece of high-quality jade.

    "Ahhh!"

    A man¡¯s trembling howl rang across the depths of everyone¡¯s minds.

    A dazzling, white-colored light pir shot up the sky and ripped through theyer of the clouds, shocking everyone in the world.

 Chapter 677: Assembly of Patriarchs

    Chapter 677: Assembly of Patriarchs

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    "The dense, multicolored rays that shot out of Jadeite Forest looked very much likerge waves churning in the ocean. They had the mostplex swirls of colour to ever grace this world, and it seemed very much as if the colours collided with purpose. The gentle sword chimes that came and went like shadows left no traces, yet they were omnipresent. In contrast, the blood-colored sword ray was extremely violent and tinted the clouds above the Pearl Defensive Line a deep red. A pir of white light ascended from within Skyheart City. It stood tall and majestic, practically propping up the sky. The bone-shuddering cry that followed told the world of life¡¯s sufferings. The Holy Emperor lit up God Nation¡¯s sky with a golden glow,manding the respect of his subjects through the reinforcement of his virtuous will."

    - The Experiences of Byron

    "That day was destined to be written into the history books. I, who had witnessed the phenomena that urred with my own two eyes, firmly believe that. Please forgive my anxiousness. My body was trembling with excitement, as if a stream of electricity was coursing through my veins. It was at that moment that I knew a new era was about to unfold. It arrived without warning and waspletely unexpected."

    - Elder Wu¡¯s Memoirs

    "Since the beginning, the Grandmasters have always been like a tightly shut book. On that fateful day, however, the world finally caught a glimpse of its contents."

    - Elementalists, a History

    The dawn of a new era often unfolds with great momentum. While somee to appreciate the beauty of change, most people end up being dragged along like rubble by the current.

    Fu Sisi felt that the past two days were like a nightmare.

    The Jadeite Forest had witnessed the battle of a lifetime. Here was where two Grandmasters, who were at the absolute peaks of their power, fought in a life-changing battle. No one had expected Le Buleng to be a Grandmaster, but his rise to power was not unreasonable. He was, after all, the "third most powerful person in the world", and logically the best candidate for grandmaster.

    But what in heaven¡¯s name was that sword chime at the end? And that bright white sh from Skyheart City? Did the Holy Emperor do that because he felt left out?

    Regardless of whether it was the white light from Skyheart City or the Holy Emperor¡¯s golden light, they were far enough to avoid feeling its effects.

    The sword chime and blood-colored sword re was much closer.

    Upon hearing the sword chime, the elemental energy within their bodies started surging uncontrobly. They had practically lost all control immediately and had to rest for almost four hours to recover. The shockwaves caused by the sword re made them feel as if they were stuck in the eye of a storm, rendering them unable to move.

    This was the first time they had experienced something like that.

    It was as if there was arge demon right behind them. They werepletely scared out of their wits.

    After calming down, everyone broke into intense discussion. The most probable new grandmaster would be The Lightning de, Ai Hui. Based on what she knew, Fu Sisi agreed with the others¡¯ conjecture. For some unknown reason, however, the blood-colored sword re gave her a sense of familiarity and reminded her of someone.

    Master¡¯s Glory hadpletely transformed her, but also blurred a good portion of her old memories. She could not remember at least half of her life that had happened before Master¡¯s Glory. However, two events were etched deeply in her mind. The day her father was obliterated in front of her and the Silverwheel Swordsman, Chu Zhaoyang.

    Chu Zhaoyang had been their swordy teacher for a short while before vanishing without a trace. Despite this, she had an oddly deep impression of him.

    This must have been a misperception.

    Even though Chu Zhaoyang¡¯s swordy was good, he was nowhere near this new Grandmaster.

    Returning to her senses, she asked, "Are there any leads on Gui Hu and the others¡¯ corpses?"

    Her team members immediately stopped their discussion and shook their heads.

    "None."

    "Could they have been eaten by wild beasts?"

    "Wild beasts would have left skeletal remains. What¡¯s more, there aren¡¯t any traces. Someone is definitely behind this!"

    The harsh truth left Fu Sisi feeling weary. Her mission had been fraught with obstacles and mishaps. Even till now, they had yet to progress in their task. Ye Baiyi had gone missing, and her team had suffered heavy casualties. To make things even worse, some of their bodies had disappeared as well. The Sky Leaf Division were not any closer in tracking any of their targets, and now Shi Beihai hadpletely vanished as well.

    Fu Sisi had long made the decision to return to madam and ask for forgiveness. She would then resign from her post as vice division head.

    But as long as the mission was still ongoing, she would have to uphold the responsibilities she held as a leader.

    Where could Shi Beihai possibly be hiding?

    She rubbed her aching temples, trying to make herself rx. Where would she escape to If she were Shi Beihai? She thought long and hard, sorting through her strands of thought as if she were untangling silk threads.

    Gradually, a single burst of insight began to take shape. She seemed to have grasped onto something crucial.

    A sudden, high-pitched cry came right at that moment. "Boss, we¡¯ve discovered something!"

    One of her team members was flying towards the camp with a face full of joy. He was holding tightly to a piece of clothing.

    Fu Sisi promptly stood up. That piece belonged to Gui Hu!

    This new discovery made the drained group of people excited. Everyone stood up one after another.

    Fu Sisi asked coldly, "Where did you find it? Take us there."

    She firmly believed that the missing corpses were the work of a person. She did not know how the other party was going to make use of them. Perhaps they were trying to unlock the secret of Master¡¯s Glory or achieve something else, but there was no question about their ill-intentions towards the Sky Leaf Division.

    Disrespecting the dead was simply unforgivable!

    The atmosphere was filled with an electrifying tension. Everyone had a grim expression on their face, and a strong hatred filled their hearts.

    The Sky Leaf Division quickly arrived at the ce where Gui Hu¡¯s clothing was found. The area was densely covered with shrubs.

    They soon discovered another lead nearby. One of the members noticed that the soil in one plot ofnd was slightly different from the rest of the area. He spontaneously shouted, "Here!"

    Fu Sisi instantly appeared beside him, her re icy cold. "Dig up this entire plot."

    A couple of team members nced at each other before starting the excavation. The soil was easy to dig up, and appeared to have been freshly piled there. The sight before them as the soil was dug up made them even more riled up than before.

    Gui Hu¡¯s body was not buried beneath the soil, there was only a heap of flesh.

    Seemingly unaffected, Fu Sisi crouched to inspect the flesh.

    "This seems to have been done very precisely with a slicing tool. The perpetrator didn¡¯t do this just to vent."

    She found Gui Hu¡¯s hand, and saw that the five elemental ring had been removed.

    "There are two possibilities. They are either trying to uncover the secret of Master¡¯s Glory, or find a means to deal with us."

    Fu Sisi spoke with absolute calm, sounding as if she was merely recounting an unrted narrative.

    A member furiously offered, "Shi Beihai and his crew must be the ones behind this!"

    "Definitely!"

    Fu Sisi replied, "It could also have been the blood elementalists."

    Fu Sisi continued tly as she stood up, "Regardless of who it is, we¡¯ll definitely repay this blood debt."

    She turned around to face one of her female members, Xu Lin. "Can we find them?"

    Xu Lin was an expert in tracking. Using a secret technique, she could find anyone as long as they left some kind of trace behind.

    Xu Lin nodded, "Let me try."

    She closed her eyes and raised her arms in front of her chest with the palms facing each other. A ring of elemental energy appeared beneath her feet. The elemental energy ring began to spin, and the countless spirals whirled into a blur. A ball of brown light appeared in between her palms. The ball was made up of earth elemental energy, but it was not dense like how earth elemental energy typically was. Instead, the fluctuations within Xu Lin¡¯s earth elemental energy were soft and light.

    Xu Lin gently raised her palms, as if to toss a handful of sand into the air.

    [Dust of Revtion]!

    Spots of faint light appeared amidst the dense shrubs. The light spots came in all sorts of different sizes, and were scattered all over the ce. Some were on the ground, while others were up on the trees. The direction they pointed towards was, however, highly uniform. The spots revealed a trail that went deep into the forest.

    Without saying a word, Fu Sisi followed the spots of light into the forest.

    The other team members quickly followed suit.

    It was not long before they found another mound of dirt. The body beneath had been dismembered as well. However, the technique used was slightly different this time around.

    Rage was slowly building up within the members of the Sky Leaf Division.

    The spots of light were bing brighter, indicating that the tracks were getting fresher. They were getting nearer to the enemy.

    No one uttered a single word as the murderous aura of the group continued to climb. All they wanted to do now was to find the other party and destroy them.

    Fu Sisi suddenly stopped dead in her tracks.

    The trail of glowing lights stopped here.

    They had reached a ravine that was filled with oddly shaped rocks and had aplex, craggy terrain.

    Fu Sisi called out, "Come out! After spending so much effort on luring us all the way out here, is there still a need for you to hide like this?"

    "I¡¯ve long heard of Miss Sisi¡¯s extraordinary abilities. It seems I have witnessed this with my own eyes today."

    The hoarse voice came from behind a rock. A man in a grey robe stepped out from behind the rock, and arge number of other grey-robed elementalists revealed themselves too. They were all positioned in tactically superior positions around the ravine andpletely surrounded the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s members.

    Fu Sisi had a nk expression. "Who are you?"

    The grey-robed man chuckled, "My name is not worth mentioning..."

    Just as his voice trailed off, a bright red hole appeared on his chest. Fu Sisi had taken the initiative to strike first.

    The grey-robed man smiled in a haunting manner. "Miss Sisi¡¯s killing intent is so strong."

    He disappeared with a soft pop, vanishing in an instant like a burst bubble.

    To think that was a fake!

    Fu Sisi raised a brow. Her opponent¡¯s cautiousness made her heart sink slightly, but she continued her assault on the other grey-robed individuals without hesitation. The rest of the Sky Leaf Division swiftly followed. Determined to ughter everyst one of them, they couldn¡¯t care less about who those grey people were.

    As for their ambush? Nobody gave a damn.

    The Sky Leaf Division¡¯s members had the utmost confidence in their abilities. They were not afraid as long as their opponents were not Grandmasters.

    All of a sudden, the ravine was filled with colourful beams of light. Five different coloured pirs of light ascended from the ground like twisted dragon bones, meeting in the air above the ravine. A thin, multi-coloured curtain of light covered the areas between the light pirs, trapping the Sky Leaf Division within.

    Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth!

    Fu Sisi was momentarily distracted. The five pirs were made up of the five different elemental energies. This was a trap built using all five elements?

    She sneered coldly and the five element ring on her palm lit up brightly. The five element ring rotated in her palm, slowly causing her pale, tender hand to be translucent.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s presence immediately changed drastically. It was as though a sword had just been unsheathed, revealing it¡¯s true power.

    The grey-robed man that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere stood on arge rock with a look of admiration on his face. "Master¡¯s Glory is indeed amazing."

    Wielding her hand as an edged weapon, Fu Sisi leapt off the ground in an imposing manner. She shed violently at the point where the five elemental pirs converged.

    Ping!

    The sound of ss shattering rang throughout the ravine. The elemental energy pirs shattered, scattering brightly coloured shards of light. It looked as if a rainbow-coloured mist had descended from the sky.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s chilly, awe-inspiring voice boomed from within the mist.

    "So, you guys are thest dregs of the Assembly of Patriarchs!"

 Chapter 678: The Impatient Demonic God

    Chapter 678: The Impatient Demonic God

    Trantor: YH Editor: TYZ, KLKL

    A red watchtower swayed high above the clouds as if it was drunk. Anyone watching it would be afraid that it might topple at any moment.

    On top of the swaying watchtower stood a stooped figure that was hugging tightly onto a pir. He looked like he was in terrible pain.

    "Why are you being so stubborn? As long as you agree, I can give you unlimited power! You could easily join the ranks of the Grandmasters, and that would only be the beginning."

    "With enough power, you can be the most influential individual!"

    "Don¡¯t you want to exact revenge? Only by embarking on the Grandmaster¡¯s path can you gain the right to challenge the Holy Emperor and get your revenge!"

    ...

    He was patiently persuading, each one of his sentences dripping with undeniable seduction. However, the fellow in his body resisted every sugar-coated word with fervour. He finally lost all patience, unleashing a torrent of verbal abuse.

    "Just what the hell are you thinking?"

    "You maggot! Trash!"

    A loud rumble could be heard as the red watchtower began to copse. His body fell from the copsing tower along with the countless longswords.

    "Scoundrel!"

    He hissed out two spiteful words from between his clenched teeth as he spiraled through the air. He reached his hands out into the darkness and bellowed, "Converge!"

    Blood swords fell through the air like rain drops, coalescing beneath him onmand.

    The red watchtower had been rebuilt in the blink of an eye.

    A look that was both arrogant and disdainful stered his face. "You and your little tricks..."

    Before he could finish, a dull, cracking sound made his face turn pale. With his sentence left hanging, the red watchtower once again copsed, sending torrents of longswords cascading down into the depths below.

    The floor beneath his feet had disappeared, and he joined the plunge.

    Feeling pressed for time, he shouted, "Converge!"

    The limp, falling blood swords regained their strength and merged beneath him. The swords moved like a school of salmon hopping upstream, rapidly stacking and surging upwards, propping him up as they went along. The watchtower was soon back to its full height.

    Before he could even take a breath, he heard a dull, cracking sound.

    "Enough!"

    He suddenly burst into a violent rage. His face contorted into a terrifying mask and his eyes were filled with pure malice. Thick veins began to pop out of his neck. Much like a ferocious lion, he was ready to rip anything that moved into shreds. This anger was then spontaneously released into the area around him, creating waves of blood-red ripples that expanded aggressively.

    The resulting shockwave instantly ignited everyst bit of elemental energy within a fifty mile radius, creating a spectacr light show of multicolored mes.

    He was like a god who had descended from the heavens. The air around him appeared to have congealed, and the wind did not even dare to brush against his skin.

    Crack!

    A familiar dull noise rang true amidst the lifelessndscape.

    His terrifying expression was momentarily frozen. His eyes were wide open in surprise.

    Crash! The newly rebuilt watchtower copsed again.

    "Converge!"

    "Why bother..."

    Crack, crash!

    "Converge!"

    "When will this end..."

    Crack, crash!

    "Converge!"

    "I¡¯ve had enough, I¡¯m warning you..."

    Crack, converge!

    "I¡¯m sure we can talk things through..."

    Crack, crash!

    "..."

    Crack, crash!

    Crack, crash!

    ...

    Above the endless sea of clouds stood a red watchtower. It was stuck in a seemingly endless cycle of formation and destruction. Amidst this endless cycle a figure could be seen bobbing up and down, and an incessant stream of angry curses could be heard.

    The recently awakened demonic god felt as if he was losing his mind. In all his years of unending life he¡¯d never once encountered something so ridiculous.

    His initial intention had been to take over the host. To think he would end up in this awkward situation instead.

    If the heavens had given him another chance....

    He was a demonic god for heaven¡¯s sake. How did he end up in such a pathetic state?

    Aware of just how far he had slipped, the demonic god was on the verge of tears.

    Flickers of lightning could asionally be seening from the ever-moving sword embryo. Looking past the manyyers of sword consciousness, one would notice a pulsating glow in the sword embryo¡¯s core.

    That was Ai Hui¡¯s consciousness.

    It was then that Ai Hui realised how much more dangerous mental training was whenpared to elemental energy training. The slightest moment of inattentiveness could cause one to end up in an unrecoverable state. Slight deviations during elemental energy training were easily detected due to the numerous warning signs that would soon appear. But when it came to training the mind, there were no such warning signs. The entire training could immediately go south at the smallest mistake, leaving no room for correction.

    Using the blood eye, he¡¯d managed to devour the portions of God¡¯s Blood that contained its three incorporeal energies. He had channeled the remaining portions into the sword formation and managed to temper 18,000 god swords. He did not care about the many divisions of blood elementalists that had been consumed by the sword formation in the process.

    The energy that he was unable to absorb was then channeled into the god swords as a desperate measure. However, Ai Hui had underestimated both the god blood¡¯s formidable power and the side effects of absorbingrge amounts of blood spiritual force.

    Part of the God¡¯s Blood¡¯s power was channeled into the sword formation to forge 18,000 "god swords". Following that, the sword formation consumed the entire Silverfrost Blood and God Wolf Divisions. Little did he know that theirbined energy had created the perfect environment for the demonic god¡¯s awakening.

    Ai Hui had no idea that the demonic god¡¯s consciousness was embedded so deeply within the God¡¯s Blood as this was a domain that he had yet to explore. The events that transpired taught him an important lesson - unfamiliar forces were often fraught with unknown dangers.

    The demonic god¡¯s consciousness had hidden silently within the god swords, never once revealing any signs of its existence.

    In the sliver of opportunity that opened when Ai Hui¡¯s attention was momentarily disrupted, the demonic god sprang into action.

    Ai Hui¡¯s reaction was equally fast. Upon realising that something was wrong, he immediately retracted his consciousness into the sword embryo andid out lightning defenses to keep the demonic god¡¯s assault at bay.

    Ai Hui was now stuck in an unusual situation.

    The 18,000 god swords were under the control of the demonic god. These swords also formed the basis of the demonic god¡¯s "corporeal body".

    At the same time however, the sword embryo was still able tomand those swords as well.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was in an even weirder state. The god swords¡¯ blood spiritual force was continuously nibbling away at Ai Hui¡¯s body, but the lightning emitted by the sword embryo was continuously purifying it at the same time. The demonic god had only just awakened and was in his weakest state. At this point, the lightning still presented a huge threat to him.

    To make things worse, he was unable to destroy Ai Hui¡¯s body since it was protected by the Banner of God.

    Long ago, when the demonic god was on the verge of disintegrating into nothingness, he¡¯d split his essence into ten droplets of blood. These droplets of blood were to be the seeds of his revival in a distant future. His corpse was transformed into a set of armor, and his banner fell to the human world.

    Of all people, the banner had ended up in Ai Hui¡¯s hands. Even worse, it had absorbed his blood and hence belonged solely to him.

    A shadow of its former glory, the Banner of God was much weaker than it used to be in ages past. Even though it was unable to do much against the most powerful opponents, it was a natural suppressant for the newly awakened demonic god¡¯s powers.

    The demonic god ruminated over his darn luck. His very own artifact had turned into someone else¡¯s protective gear.

    What¡¯s more, the Banner of God had warned Ai Hui about the demonic god¡¯s reincarnation using the dreamscape. It was only because of this that Ai Hui was able to set up the appropriate defenses. Someone who knew nothing about God¡¯s Blood would most certainly not be able to put up such resistance.

    Even until now, the demonic god could not fathom why the banner had chosen Ai Hui.

    Regardless, his former defensive artifact was now his biggest obstruction.

    At that time, the demonic god had wanted to snatch away the two drops of God¡¯s Blood that Lou Lan kept. If he had been able to fuse with those two drops of God¡¯s Blood, his strength would have increased tremendously.

    He had however, met with Ai Hui¡¯s fierce resistance. Ai Hui had demonstrated his willingness to resolve the matter with mutual destruction, forcing the demonic god to retreat.

    The next thing he knew, the watchtower was copsing and reforming in an endless cycle. Right before the demonic god was about to fall apart, his ears picked up a sound.

    His hearing was extremely sharp, allowing him to pick up sounds that were incredibly far away.

    Is there a battle going on?

    Hmm? Hang on.

    His nose twitched a little and his eyes instantly lit up.

    Fu Sisi never expected their assant to be the Assembly of Patriarchs. She knew quite a bit about the Assembly of Patriarchs, particrly that they were practically Madam¡¯s right and left hands. Madam hadter devoted all of her time and resources into Master¡¯s Glory.

    News of the assembly¡¯s defection spread soon after the sess of Master¡¯s Glory.

    Skyheart City¡¯s Assembly of Patriarchs was immediately attacked and suffered heavy casualties. Four of their members died on the spot. The Assembly of Patriarchs promptly vanished without a trace, hiding like rats in a sewer.

    It was hard to imagine that they would be bold enough to target the Sky Leaf Division.

    What made Fu Sisi uneasy was the Assembly of Patriarch¡¯s deeper motives. It seemed as though they had developed a deep interest in Master¡¯s Glory. Whether they nned to create their own Master¡¯s Glory or figure out the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s weakness, she and her team were on the losing end.

    Pop.

    Fu Sisi pulled her hand out of a grey-robed man¡¯s chest,pletely unfazed by the fresh blood that sttered over her clothes.

    More than ten grey-robed individuals had died at her hands, yet not a single one of them showed any signs of fear.

    No wonder why Madam had once relied so heavily on their power!

    What a group of fearless individuals!

    Fu Sisi¡¯s breathing was getting heavy. Even though the multicolored fog was not poisonous, it made the cirction of elemental energy extremely taxing. Fu Sisi had heard of the Assembly of Patriarch¡¯s fusion elemental energy before, but it was only now that she knew what it truly was.

    Five elemental energies!

    Even though fusion elemental energy looked crude and unrefined whenpared to the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s five elemental rings, Fu Sisi realised that she was looking at its precursor.

    Could Master¡¯s Glory somehow be rted to the Assembly of Patriarchs?

    In that instant, she finally understood the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ keen interest in Master¡¯s Glory.

    Out of the corner of her eye, Fu Sisi noticed the multicolored arrow that was sticking out of her team member¡¯s body.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s pupils contracted.

    Metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. An arrowhead crafted by entangling the five elements in a deathly embrace.

    "Ahhhhhhhhh!"

    The Sky Leaf Division member who was struck by the arrow cried out sorrowfully. His body was shaking violently, but there were even more terrifying things toe. The five elemental ring on his hand was dispersing strands of multicolored light as it became fainter.

    How... How is this possible?

    Fu Sisi¡¯s mind was buzzing.

    Those who were not privy to the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s secrets had no way of knowing the true function of the five elemental rings. Most people thought of it as merely a mark, but it was in fact the source of their strength.

    Asso shot out from within the mist,tching onto the team member who was struck by the arrow and dragging him away.

    Fu Sisi felt a chill run up her spine. The other team members experienced a simr sensation upon witnessing what had just happened as well. As if they needed to take a breather, the assembly of patriarchs did not make any moves either.

    An eerie silence descended upon the battleground.

    Both sides were reserving their strength for the next engagement.

    Crash.

    The sound of containers crashing thundered above them.

    Everyone was dazed. A rush of cold air blew up their spines, making their blood run cold!

 Chapter 679: The Blood Eye

    Chapter 679: The Blood Eye

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    In the sky above the valley, Ai Hui¡¯s body was fuzzy from time to time. The watchtower beneath his feet was like surging river water that was formed by melted ice chunks, pouring downwards. Countless blood-colored swords descended from the sky while a torrential, deep, and low sword chime echoed across the air like the roars of numerous wild beasts.

    The sound rang through the air without any warning. Both the Sky Leaf Division and the Assembly of Patriarchs were caught unprepared by it. They saw a demonic and violent red light descending from the sky, appearing as though their eyes were smashed by an iron hammer.

    The blood-colored current formed by countless blood swords smashed into the colorful mist that pervaded the valley. Following which, the mist churned violently. The five light pirs that had just disappeared appeared once more. Immediately after, the colorful mist surged towards the five light pirs.

    A colorful, ss-like, pentagonal pavilion enveloped the valley.

    [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock]

    It was a secret art that the Assembly of Patriarchs developed with a tremendous amount of effort. Even though it was very demanding of its user¡¯s strength, it was extremely mighty.

    In the blink of an eye, the cage-like [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock] had be a protective screen for both sides.

    The glow from the [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock] was flickering. Like a giant mouth that was sucking in air abruptly, it sapped all the elemental energy in the air above the valley.

    It was [Zero Elemental Zone], a zone where no elemental energy was present!

    The descending cascade of blood swords barged into the colorless and shapeless [Zero Elemental Zone] and froze.

    When the grey-robed, middle-aged man from the Assembly of Patriarchs saw who the neer was, his mind shuddered in shock. The turn of events wasn¡¯t good for them. Why were they so unlucky to provoke such a behemoth? Those who were slightly capable were guessing that Ai Hui was the one responsible for the world-shocking sword chime and bloody glow that appeared everywhere two days ago.

    Even though nobody knew how Ai Hui had be a Grandmaster, they understood that he wasn¡¯t inferior to the other Grandmasters in any aspect. Everyone realized that a new Grandmaster had been born.

    Furthermore, it was the first ever Grandmaster Swordsman in the history of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    No one dared to provoke a Grandmaster.

    The grey-robed, middle-aged man suddenly yelled at the top of his voice, "Grandmaster Ai, don¡¯t attack us! The Assembly of Patriarchs is your ally, not your enemy! We have nothing against you!"

    The figure in the sky above the valley turned a deaf ear to the grey-robed man¡¯s words. He wasn¡¯t discouraged just because his powerful current of blood swords was facing an obstruction. Instead, his savagery was provoked.

    A snort resounded through the air, then the cascade of blood swords suddenly began to rotate and split into half, forming two terrifying, gigantic pythons that twined around each other. Every blood sword was buzzing and vibrating. The red glow emitting from them intensified significantly, resembling the color of blood.

    Within the red glow, images were growing and multiplying endlessly. Soft, anguished wailings seemed to echo across everyone¡¯s minds.

    Everyone on the valley felt as though there was a hole in the sea of blood in the sky. The torrential bloody glow looked as if it was about to devour them. Subsequently, the thought of not being able to escape anywhere arose in their minds. The anguished wailings caused their minds to waver, making it very difficult for them to stay calm.

    The grey-robed man turned pale with fright.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs was established to deal with the Blood of God, and they had done a lot of research on blood elementalists. He had never seen such a concentrated and pure bloody glow before. This implied that Ai Hui possessed an unprecedented type of powerful and pure blood spiritual force.

    From his knowledge, he did not know of any blood elementalist that possessed such terrifying blood spiritual force, not even the Holy Emperor.

    How could it be?

    At first, when he saw the bloody glow, he reckoned that Ai Hui might have absorbed God¡¯s Blood. However, now he had overturned his conjecture. Such pure and powerful blood spiritual force... It appeared as though the demonic god was reborn!

    One could imagine the fear and panic the grey-robed man felt. However, Ai Huipletely ignored him. Other than resisting him until the end, there was nothing much he could do.

    Clenching his teeth, he turned around abruptly and yelled to Fu Sisi, "Join forces?"

    Fu Sisi also understood the severity of the situation. Even though both parties previously wanted each other dead, they did not mind joining forces now. After all, they were facing a Grandmaster, so they had no choice but to do so.

    Without any hesitation, she nodded her head. "Alright!"

    While the two of them were conversing, the bloody current of blood swords shredded the [Zero Elemental Zone] to smithereens and collided with the [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock].

    Boom!

    A thunderous boom resounded through the air, causing everyone¡¯s ears to buzz.

    The [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock] looked as though it was struck by an enormous hammer, as it trembled violently.

    The grey-robed man was horrified. "Quick! Channel your elemental energy!"

    The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ members quickly channeled their elemental energy into the [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock], stabilizing it before it was destroyed.

    After seeing that his attack was blocked, the demonic god turned incensed.

    With great difficulty, he finally found an excellent cauldron for his body. He seized the moment when the other party¡¯s mind was broken and took over it as its host, preparing for its rebirth in this world.

    However, what happened afterwards wasn¡¯t really pleasant.

    The artifact that he forged with great difficulty had be a protective shield for his cauldron, preventing him from devouring the cauldron¡¯s consciousness. Hence, he was thrown into this awkward situation whereby he did not haveplete control over this body.

    Along the way here, he was tortured by this goddamn cauldron.

    Fortunately, he had encountered some prey. As long as he could devour this prey, he could strengthen himself and obliterate this goddamn cauldron.

    Unfortunately, he did not expect this prey to be able to stop his attacks in session. Even though he had just woken up and his strength was far from its peak, as a demonic god, he was used to treating everyone like ants. He only revered those ancient cultivators.

    To his surprise, these ants were able to stop him. Therefore, how would he not be angry?

    He raised his head and let out a blood-curdling, demonic screech. The red glow from the blood swords looked as though it hade alive, swaying indeterminately. Meanwhile, the blood swords were like red-colored eyes.

    They flew back up into the sky and hovered erratically, resembling a wriggling piece of blood-colored cloud.

    Thump, thump, thump.

    Suddenly, a rhythmic sound echoed across the air. It resembled the heartbeat of a beast.

    Fu Sisi felt as if something was staring at her, causing her hair to stand on end. An intense feeling of danger arose in her head. Immediately, she yelled, "[Heavenly Elemental Shield!"

    She suddenly raised her right arm in front of her and spread open her fingers. Following which, she roared, "Open!"

    The seal on her right palm lit up. Then it shot a five elemental energy ring towards the bottom of the [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock]. The spinning five elemental energy ring rapidly increased in size, resembling a glowing shield that was floating on top of everyone¡¯s heads.

    The remaining members of the Sky Leaf Division also knew that it was not the time to conserve their energy. All of them raised up their right arms and shot out beams of five elemental energy from the seals on their palms, strengthening the floating glowing shield.

    "[Heavenly Elemental Shield]!"

    On the surface of the shield, the metal, earth, fire, water, and wood elements began to light up together and release beautiful ring-shaped light. The five elemental energy flowed and grew endlessly. The surface of the shield gave off a brilliance, appearing as if it was made up of solid matter.

    The [Heavenly Elemental Shield] gave Fu Sisi a sense of security.

    The five elements in the [Heavenly Elemental Shield] engendered each other and therefore it had no weaknesses. Even if it was damaged, it could repair itself. The five core nodes of the [Heavenly Elemental Shield]id in the five elemental energy in the members¡¯ seals.

    The five elemental rings in the bodies of the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s members could absorb various types of elemental energy from their surroundings. This was why they were so powerful. The elemental energies that they absorbed would be extremely pure five elemental energy after filtering through their bodies. Following which, the five elemental energy would gather at the seals on their palms.

    They called this kind of elemental energy "heavenly elemental energy", implying it was above all types of elemental energy.

    Heavenly elemental energy was extremely precious, so no one was willing to use it unless they were in a dire situation.

    The defense of the Heavenly Elemental Shield was extremely powerful, almost impregnable. During a sturdibility test done on the Heavenly Elemental Shield by the interior of the Sky Leaf Division, no one could destroy it single-handedly.

    Gathering everyone¡¯s heavenly elemental energy to form a Heavenly Elemental Shield was a move prepared by them for enemies that were much more powerful than them.

    The only people that were more powerful than them were Grandmasters.

    Fu Sisi and her counterparts had never expected they would use this move one day.

    The bee-like swarm of swords in the sky kept on changing its shape.

    Everyone on the valley looked as though they were preparing for the arrival of a monstrous enemy. Fu Sisi was so anxious that her palms began to sweat.

    Wait... that shape... it looks like an enormous eye that was tightly shut!

    Before Fu Sisi could confirm her conjecture, the enormous eye in the sky suddenly opened up.

    At that instant, the sky darkened and the sun dimmed. The limpid, blood-colored eye captured everyone¡¯s attention.

    In the center of the blood-red pupil of the eye, there was nothing but darkness.

    An odd, numbing sensation spread across Fu Sisi¡¯s body like a poison.

    Immediately, she bit her tongue. The intense pain and the smell of blood woke her up. With an angry voice, she roared, "Don¡¯t look at the blood eye!"

    A strong sense of fear devoured her body. What kind of beast were they facing?

    The members of the Sky Leaf Division looked as though they had just woken up from a dream, as an apprehensive look appeared on their faces.

    On average, the members of the Assembly of Patriarchs were much weaker than the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s members. A weird smile appeared on many of their faces. Following which, traces of blood seeped out from out their bodies. Soon after, the blood flowed out of their bodies like a river. Within seconds, their entire bodies, except for their faces, were covered in thick and viscous blood. On their faces, there was no look of agony, but rather a look of joy and pleasure, causing one¡¯s hair to stand on end.

    Boom!

    One of the members that was covered in fresh blood exploded all of a sudden, spurting blood everywhere.

    The sound of explosion resounded through the air incessantly. Even though everyone had seen all kinds of devastating scenes before, they were still frightened by this scene.

    The grey-robed, middle-aged man yelled and reminded everyone, "Be careful not toe into contact with the blood!"

    Before he finished his sentence, the blood on the ground suddenly floated up into the air.

    As the blood floated into the air, each drop became perfectly round and limpid, like beads. These beads of blood contained zero impurities, resembling rubies that were perfectly refined.

    Pff, pff, pff. Beads of blood kept on gathering in the air.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s mouth was dry and her heart was beating fast.

    What is this thing?

    When the grey-robed man saw the mass of blood in the air increasing in size, his facial expression changed drastically. "Quick, burn it!"

    When Fu Sisi, who was already very anxious, heard the grey-robed man¡¯s words, her heart contracted rapidly. Even though she did not know what was going on, she could sense fear and panic in the grey-robed man¡¯s voice.

    Fu Sisi yelled, "Stabilize the Heavenly Elemental Shield!"

    She withdrew her palm. Facing the wriggling, powerful mass of blood in the air, she felt that her heart was beating extremely fast.

    The enormous blood eye in the sky revolved slowly, seemingly revealing a cold sneer. It looked as though it was mocking the innocence of those people down there.

 Chapter 680: The End of the Epic Battle

    Chapter 680: The End of the Epic Battle

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Fu Sisi took a deep breath. She knew what she had to do to prevent a massacre.

    The elemental energy within her body was operating at an insane speed. She cupped her palms in front of her chest with a solemn look on her face, the imprint on her palms suddenly lighting up. A burning me spontaneously appeared in front of her palms.

    The five-colored me looked terribly weak, as if it was going to be extinguished at any moment.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s face lost a bit of color, but the resolve in her eyes only grew brighter. She thrust her palms forward and sent the me flying towards the continuously expanding blood ball.

    The mended silently on top of the half-foot-wide blood ball.

    In the blink of an eye, the crystalline mass of blood turned into arge, ominous-looking five-coloured ss marble.

    Crack!

    A soft, cracking noise could be heard from within the marble.

    Within moments, the marble¡¯s surface became lined with hairline cracks and it fell apart with a splendid crash.

    Fu Sisi heaved a sigh of relief.

    That wisp of five-colored me from before was was known as [Sky Leaf ss me], and it consumed a great deal of heavenly elemental energy.

    Fu Sisi could not afford to care about such expenditures anymore; what was more important was that it worked.

    "Steady!¡¯

    The middle-aged man¡¯s cry caught her attention. She turned around to see something amazing happen.

    The gigantic and ominous-looking blood eye shot out a pir of red light that enveloped the entire valley. The blood eye was made up of countless mobile blood swords that swam around each other as if they were a school of fish. Even though they moved about deftly, the blood eye¡¯s shape remained the same.

    Within the bloody glow, the Five Elemental Pavilion Lock released threads of five-colored vapor as it melted.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs was frantically pouring elemental energy into it.

    Fu Sisi could see that the Five Elemental Pavilion Lock would not hold much longer. She started to feel anxious.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯ [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock] looked strangely like a secret technique that the Sky Leaf Division would possess... Could Master¡¯s Glory have something to do with the them?

    She did not know why such a nonsensical thought would pop into her head at this treacherous juncture, but she did not have the luxury of time to ponder over it anyway.

    The Five Elemental Pavilion Lock was disintegrating faster than the Assembly of Patriarchs could channel their elemental energy. The Five Elemental Pavilion Lock was in imminent danger.

    The middle-aged man¡¯s face was losing color fast. [Five Elemental Pavilion Lock] was supposed to be used to suppress members of the Sky Leaf Division. It was meant to defend against attacksing from within it, and not the other way round.

    The thinned-out pavilion lock split into two halves with a pop beforepletely dissolving in the bloody glow.

    "Watch out!"

    Just as Fu Sisi¡¯s reminder hit the air, the dense bloody glow rammed directly into the Heavenly Elemental Shield.

    An electrifying sound echoed through the valley!

    Five-colored mes rose out from above the Heavenly Elemental Shield. Where the two met, the bloody glow was dyed multi-colored before being burnt and vanishing in a puff of smoke.

    The Sky Leaf Division¡¯s morale soared, but Fu Sisi was not ready to celebrate just yet.

    The dense bloody glow disappeared just as her defensive preparations wereplete.

    She was momentarily dazed before she looked towards the Jadeite Forest in surprise.

    Up on the blood eye, Ai Hui gazed upon the distant Jadeite Forest.

    The magnificent glow on the horizon that continued non-stop for three days and three nights was like a glorious fire that seemed to rage on endlessly.

    After the initial excitement, people eventually got used to its presence. The mundane affairs in the everyday lives of the people took precedence over the lofty matters of the Grandmasters. People still brought the topic up asionally to express their incredulity and attempt to discuss these things that were beyond what they might ever know.

    At the edge of a city, a couple sat side-by-side on a rock atop the peak of a mountain. The gentle evening wind caressed their cheeks as they looked out into the horizon.

    The young man said, "It¡¯s as beautiful as the warm glow of sunset."

    The youngdy replied, "It¡¯s even more beautiful than that. It¡¯s more like nuee ardente, perhaps even beautiful."

    "That¡¯s a battle between two Grandmasters, a battle between two of the strongest people in the world." The young man¡¯s eyes were filled with a powerful yearning.

    In response, the youngdy said, "Do Grandmasters get married and have kids? Do they have people they like?".

    The young man thought for a moment before answering, "I doubt it. How can one be a Grandmaster if yoked by the burden of rtionships?".

    "Humph, I don¡¯t believe you. Isn¡¯t a Grandmaster still a person? Why can¡¯t they have someone that they like?" the youngdy said as she wrinkled her nose.

    The young man said, "Master once told me that the path to greatness is a lonely one, and that there can only be sess with sacrifice. If a Grandmaster¡¯s achievements are unparalleled, then the sacrifices he makes must be unparalleled as well."

    Entranced by the scene before her, the youngdy fell silent. A short whileter she whispered, "Don¡¯t be a Grandmaster."

    "You say that as if I have a shot," the young man chuckled.

    Turning to face him, the youngdy asked seriously, "Are you going to be a Grandmaster?"

    The young man frantically surrendered. "I won¡¯t, I won¡¯t. Not even if I was offered a chance to. Whoever bes a Grandmaster is a fool!"

    The youngdy smiled sweetly as she leaned against her boyfriend. Looking down into the peaceful city below, she felt exceptionally tranquil.

    "You said so yourself."

    "Of course!"

    A ring, white light burst forth from the horizon just as he finished hisst syble.

    The youngdy cried out in shock and buried her face in the young man¡¯s chest. The young man quick-wittedly took her into his arms and rolled them both behind the rock.

    They hid for a long time before peeking out from behind the rock.

    The magnificent glow that had ebbed and flowed was gone. The evening¡¯s afterglow enveloped the sky once again.

    They looked at each other in dismay, their faces drained of color.

    As they made their way down the mountain, they noticed that the city was bustling with life. People were making their way out of the houses, leaping onto roofs and taking to the skies to get a better look at the horizon.

    The battle between the two Grandmasters hade to an end.

    Everyone was engaged in intense discussion about what was going on. To them, the battle between Grandmasters was so far away that it felt like nothing more than an interesting piece of news. The more discerning elementalists were, however, filled with worry and unease.

    Deep down they knew that even though the battle was fought far away, its consequences were hanging above them by a thread.

    Now that the battle had ended, was it going to be a meat pie or a guillotine that fell?

    The majestic Cold Pce was as cheerless as usual. Bright and beautiful sunshine lost a great deal of its warmth and color upon shining into the pce.

    Bei Shusheng did not mind this. He leaned against the main doors and waited for the sunlight to enter the pce¡¯s hall.

    "Leisurely aren¡¯t we.".

    A deep voice resounded throughout the air. A figure had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. The man stood with his hands behind his back, standing outside the pce in a casual yet imposing manner.

    Bei Shuisheng stood up and bowed, "Your Majesty!".

    "Dispense the formalities." The Holy Emperor walked up to the doorframe and sat down amid the sound of his robes. "Bring some tea."

    Bei Shuisheng smiled and poured a cup of tea. He pushed the teacup across the doorframe and said, "Please enjoy the tea, Your Majesty.".

    The Holy Emperor finished his cup in one mouthful, savouring the tea for a good length of time before saying, "Dai Gang was defeated.".

    These four words were filled a deep sorrow.

    Leisurely sipping his tea, Bei Shuisheng was shocked by what he had just heard. "Dai Gang was defeated?" he blurted out subconsciously.

    "That¡¯s right."

    The Holy Emperor pushed the tea cup back across to Bei Shuisheng, signalling for him to pour more tea.

    Bei Shuisheng lifted the teapot hurriedly, spilling a few drops as he poured.

    Seeing Bei Shuisheng turn pale in shock made the Holy Emperorugh out loud. After regaining hisposure, he slowly picked up the teacup.

    Bei Shuisheng was not in the mood to drink tea. He furrowed his brows and muttered to himself, "How did Dai Gang lose?".

    The Holy Emperor did not answer and continued savouring his tea.

    Bei Shuisheng repeated his question, this time aloud. "How did Dai Gang lose?".

    .Bei Shuisheng¡¯s expression was one of utter disbelief.

    The Holy Emperor was thoroughly amused by Bei Shuisheng¡¯s expression.

    The Holy Emperor adopted Bei Shusheng when he was just a kid. Ever since he was a child, Bei Shuisheng had demonstrated wisdom andposure years ahead of himself. The Holy Emperor had never seen him like this before.

    Bei Shuisheng raised his head and looked at the Holy Emperor. He repeated himself for the third time, "How did Dai Gang lose?".

    The Holy Emperor stopped fooling around and replied, "I have no idea, but he lost.".

    He was equally puzzled by the same question. Dai Gang was at the peak of his power, and even the Holy Emperor¡¯s chances at defeating him were not high. He would not be able to iste himself in peace if he did not know that Dai Gang was unable to leave Jadeite Forest.

    How could a newly ascended Grandmaster defeat a Dai Gang, who was at the peak of his power?

    Even fighting for a draw would be difficult.

    Bei Shuisheng slowly digested this piece of news and regained hisposure. He mumbled, "Something unexpected must have happened. Dai Gang must have met with some sort of serious trouble to have lost to Le Buleng. Could Dai Gang have messed up his training?".

    The Holy Emperor shook his head. "Dai Gang¡¯s methods may seem radical, but they¡¯re actually very conservative. Others may have made mistakes, but definitely not him.".

    Bei Shuisheng softly said, "Dai Gang¡¯s defeat is going to bring some major trouble."

    Admiration shed across the Holy Emperor¡¯s eyes. He picked up his teacup and leisurely said, "Do tell."

    Rather than talk about how Dai Gang was defeated, discussion about matters following his defeat was of greater interest to the Holy Emperor. As a ruler, he was not very interested in the smaller details.

    Bei Shuisheng took a while to gather his thoughts.

    The Holy Emperor contentedly sipped his tea and did not rush Bei Shuisheng.

    After a while, Bei Shuisheng¡¯s eyes regained their rity. He suddenly asked, "How¡¯s Le Buleng¡¯s condition?"

    The Holy Emperor was taken aback by the fact that he did not think of this.

    He respected Dai Gang greatly. He felt that the man¡¯s talent, intellect, determination, and methods were pretty much on par with his own. Apart from hisck of great ambition, Dai Gang was an excellent individual.

    On the other hand, he disliked Le Buleng¡¯s wild personality. Even now, he did not value Le Buleng much.

    Despite that, Le Buleng was still a formidable character. Bei Shuisheng¡¯s reminder helped the Holy Emperor identify his own negligence.

    After thinking, he replied, "Even though he won, Le Buleng must have suffered from grievous injuries. His base level is still unstable since he has just ascended to the rank of Grandmaster. From the way things look, I believe he is in terrible shape."

    Bei Shuisheng asked another question, "Is Dai Gang really dead though?"

    The Holy Emperor almost blurted out that he could not possibly be alive after such an intense battle. Somehow, the words had stopped right at the edge of his mouth. If the person battling Dai Gang had been the Holy Emperor himself, then there would have been no way he could survive. However, things were different if the victor was Le Buleng.

    That lunatic...

    The Holy Emperor felt a slight headache as he finally realized why he disliked Le Buleng so much. He hated lunatics with a vengeance because they were unpredictable and were capable of doing all sorts of irrational things.

    He rubbed his temples as he replied, "I have no idea."

    Bei Shuisheng guffawed, "Ha, things are getting interesting."

 Chapter 681: The Secret of Godâ€™s Blood

    Chapter 681: The Secret of God¡¯s Blood

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    "Another era has ended," mumbled the figure standing atop the blood eye to himself as he looked out into the distance.

    The demonic god¡¯s words carried a sentimental tone as several old memories shed in his mind. He had once hovered above a ravine and stared beyond the horizon, just like today. He had quietly watched lightning sh in the distance, observed glorious sword rays, and revered the cultivators¡¯ godlike prowess. He next witnessed their fall from glory, the end of an era, and he struggled to survive against all odds.

    All of a sudden, his face contorted in pain. Keeling over, he hissed, "Scoundrel!"

    Ai Hui was like a persistent cockroach that capitalized on every small window of opportunity. The overwhelming sense of nostalgia had momentarily weakened his will, giving Ai Hui a chance to attack. The demonic god was mentally and emotionally drained. He hated this feeling.

    But he could not do anything about this annoying pest.

    He unleashed his rage upon those in the ravine below.

    .

    With a wave of his hand, a stream of swords flew out from the blood eye beneath his feet. Like a humongous red python leaving its nest, the stream of swords slithered down into the ravine below. Hundreds of swords criss-crossed in their paths like a swarm of migratory birds flying south for the winter.

    Countless sword chimes converged as the swords plunged towards the ravine.

    Fu Sisi felt her scalp tingle and desperately cried out, "Watch out!"

    The blood-red sword python mmed head on into the Heavenly Elemental Shield!

    Brilliant sparks burst forth from the point of impact, lighting up the entire ravine.

    Boom!

    The impact was so great that those in the valley felt as if they had been knocked senseless by a sledgehammer taken to the face.

    Being much stronger than the rest of them, Fu Sisi quickly snapped out of it. She shouted, "It worked!"

    The other members gradually came back to their senses. Seeing the Heavenly Elemental Shield unwaveringly holding up sharply raised their morale.

    Even those from the Assembly of Patriarchs showed a tinge of joy.

    The paranormal phenomena that had urred over the past few days signaled the birth of a new Grandmaster, the birth of another unbeatable force. Ai Hui seemed to have corroborated this point with his impressive entrance. His awe-inspiring power left those in the ravine feeling slightly defeated.

    But such a terrifying attack could unexpectedly be blocked!

    The mood in the ravine quickly shifted from one of despair to one of hope. Everyone¡¯s will to live had kicked in hard, bursting forth like a phoenix reborn amidst the ashes.

    The middle-aged and grey-robed man¡¯s eyes lit up brightly. He suddenly dered, "He¡¯s not a Grandmaster!"

    Fu Sisi was momentarily distracted, but quickly snapped out of it. She echoed, "That¡¯s right, he¡¯s not strong enough to be a Grandmaster!"

    Her intention had been to raise the morale of her team members, but as the words left her mouth, Fu Sisi realised that something was amiss. Indeed, something did not feel right. Even though she had yet to see Ai Hui¡¯s swordy, she knew there must be something extraordinary about it if he was known as the greatest swordsman of their time.

    The torrent of blood swords was formidable, but the only thing worth noticing was the strange blood spiritual force-like energy that was driving them. Apart from that, there was nothing spectacr about the sword technique.

    She had once trained under the Silverwheel Swordsman Chu Zhaoyang, and thus knew the true might of the swordsmen.

    If he truly was a Grandmaster of swordy, could the Heavenly Elemental Shield stop him like this?

    Perhaps it could, but it would definitely not be this easy!

    The densely packed marks on the Heavenly Elemental Shield where the swords had struck were a terrifying sight to behold. However, the shield was still holding up a lot better than expected.

    Fu Sisi felt a lot lighter after thinking through the situation. Members of the Sky Leaf Division were not just regr masters. Armed with their five elemental rings, they were all on the precipice of bing Grandmasters. If their opponent was not a Grandmaster, then they were not too far away in terms of strength. Additionally, the middle-aged man leading the Assembly of Patriarchs was most certainly a Patriarch himself. His abilities were at least equivalent to her own.

    Following this line of thought, they might just have a chance of winning this fight!

    The demonic god was shocked that his attack had failed to prate their defenses. He was unhappy that the shield was stronger than he thought.

    He let out an annoyed grunt and sent thousands of blood swords flying out of the blood eye. The swords dived down once again with the sound of a thousand birds chirping.

    It¡¯s all because of that annoying pest!

    Even though Ai Hui¡¯s strength was not at the level of a Grandmaster, Fu Sisi was not about to belittle him. The countlesscerations on the Heavenly Elemental Shield was proof that his strength was still way beyond theirs. She had once tested the Heavenly Elemental Shield¡¯s capabilities, and knew just how much it took to leave a mark on it.

    The Heavenly Elemental Shield was the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s most prized secret defensive technique since it had another well-hidden ability. Activating the shield required the use of fusion elemental energy, but repairing it only required the five elemental energies. As elemental energy poured into the shield, the vast number of blood-red marks began to disappear. The shield¡¯s surface was quickly restored to its original glory.

    The second wave of blood swords swarmed in without any room for respite.

    Clink, clink, clink!

    Countless blood swords rushed directly towards them like torrential rain, mming continuously against the Heavenly Elemental Shield.

    Densely packed sparks illuminated the translucent shield, allowing Fu Sisi to see more clearly. She noticed that thecerations were building up at an rming rate. The criss-crossing, interweaving blood-red gashes were a terrifying sight.

    Time seemed to both slow down and speed up at the same time.

    All Fu Sisi could see were the blood-redcerations all over the surface of the shield. It was as if she was looking through red tinted lenses.

    Members of the Sky Leaf Division frantically poured their elemental energies into the Heavenly Elemental Shield. The redcerations continually formed and disappeared. The entire situation felt extremely precarious, as though the shield could shatter at any moment.

    High up above, the demonic god gasped in shock.

    Having lived through the cultivation era, he looked upon the elemental era with contempt. However, the way things were looking now made him realise that elemental energy was not as weak as he thought. The Heavenly Elemental Shield¡¯s defensive capability was far better than he had imagined, even if he was at the weakest point of his long life.

    Despite his arrogance, the demonic god was a cautious individual.

    The speed at which the shield regenerated was way beyond his expectations.

    He felt a tinge of unease.

    The blood swords contained a corrosive demonic energy that was difficult to remove. However, the power of the five elemental energies seemed to be able to cleanse it from the shield with ease.

    Had he been in hibernation for far too long...

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s voice reverberated throughout the vacuous Cold Pce.

    "Your Majesty said that there¡¯s something odd about that bloody glow?"

    The Holy Emperor saw the shock on Bei Shuisheng¡¯s face and felt a sense of satisfaction, since it was rare to see him lose hisposure. Remaining calm and collected, the Holy Emperor pretended to take a sip of tea. He then proceeded to slowly exin, "Who in this world has a better understanding of God¡¯s Blood than I do?"

    His expression changed to one of solemness as he put the teacup down. Unhurriedly, he continued, "Blood of God was created from God¡¯s Blood, and nobody else has a better understanding of it than me. The first leader was the one who unearthed the origins of God¡¯s Blood, and this secret has been passed on from the leaders of one generation to the next."

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s eyes grew wide. He had been involved with Blood of God for such a long time, yet he¡¯d never heard of this before.

    "While researching God¡¯s Blood, we discovered that it could create the blood eye illusion under certain conditions. The blood eye takes on many forms, and holds a wide range of powers. Delving into ancient records led us to a demonic god known as Chi Tong, the Scarlet-eyed Emperor."

    Bei Shuisheng was an extremely knowledgeable man. He often browsed through the Cold Pce¡¯s ancient records in his free time, and had seen this name before. Surprised to hear it from the Holy Emperor, he faltered, "Scarlet-eyed Emperor? Scarlet-eyed Emperor of a thousand wilderness cities?"

    He remembered the name because it belonged to a demonic god from the Wilderness. The Scarlet-eyed Emperor was said to have been born to a nameless tribe in the Wilderness. He was given life from avedha-vasa and experienced the end of the Cultivation Era. Nobody was sure when he had died. At the peak of his life he supposedly ruled over a thousand cities in the Wilderness.

    Bei Shuisheng had his reservations about the existence of such a demonic god.

    Every generation had its fair share of powerful individuals who ventured deep into the Wilderness. Personal journal records revealed that they had sessfully prated the deep Wilderness. These explorers had found scattered ruins of cities in the wilderness, but there had been no evidence of anyrge ns. Bei Shuisheng had felt that the one thousand cities mentioned in the legend of the demonic god were a severe exaggeration.

    HIs curiosity was piqued when he heard the Holy Emperor mention the Scarlet-eyed Emperor.

    "Indeed," the Holy Emperor nodded. "We have conducted repeated tests which have confirmed that God¡¯s Blood is the blood of the Scarlet-eyed Emperor."

    Bei Shuisheng listened intently. He knew that even more shocking information wasing.

    The Holy Emperor solemnly recounted, "The leader of each generation is the key person in charge of researching God¡¯s Blood. Despite how cautiously we¡¯ve work, something still went wrong. The second leader of Blood of God sank too deeply into his research on God¡¯s Blood. He became possessed by it, killing everyst one of his close friends and rtives. In fact, almost half of the most powerful exponents we had were ughtered by him. In hisst moments, the Second regained a brief moment of consciousness. He capitalized on this to blow himself up."

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s voice trembled slightly, "The Night of Frozen Blood..."

    He immediately recalled an event he had oncee across in the archives. The Second had causedrge-scale damage to Blood of God because of training issues. Because it had happened on a frigid, winter night, the event became known as "The Night of Frozen Blood". The recordscked a lot of details which he had nowe to know.

    "Right before he imploded, the Second revealed the secret of God¡¯s Blood."

    Hearing His Majesty¡¯s voice falling to a whisper, Bei Shuisheng held his breath.

    "Resurrection, the Scarlet-eyed Emperor¡¯s resurrection. God¡¯s Blood droplets were the seeds he had sown to ensure his eventual return."

    Bei Shuisheng suddenly thought of the strange phenomena that happened a few days ago. Slightly dazed, he asked, "Could it be that... the Scarlet-eyed Emperor has resurrected within Ai Hui¡¯s body?"

    "Perhaps." The Holy Emperor revealed an odd smile. "The Scarlet-eyed Emperor, hehe. I¡¯m brimming with expectation. Back when we were looking into God¡¯s Blood, we were extremely cautious in avoiding it¡¯s influence. Our blood spiritual force can be said to have originated from God¡¯s Blood, but in actual fact, it¡¯s vastly different. In addition, we¡¯ve been preparing a worthy opponent for the Scarlet-eyed Emperor ever since we realised he could be resurrected."

    "A worthy opponent?"

    "Yup, a group of tenacious individuals who are filled with hatred. Our beloved, old arch-enemy of a hundred years."

    "Assembly of Patriarchs? How are they..."

    "Yeah, they¡¯ve always wanted to steal God¡¯s Blood. After much detailed plotting, they managed to "identally" steal one drop."

    "The Assembly of Patriarchs has God¡¯s Blood in their possession too?"

    "That severely damaged drop of God¡¯s Blood that the second leader left behind after exploding. Isn¡¯t this all so exciting?"

 Chapter 682: Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness

    Chapter 682: Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    Chapter 682 - Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness

    "Besides, what right did Chi Tong have to dere himself the Scarlet-eyed Emperor?" The Holy Emperor spoke with contempt.

    He set the teacup down, a sparkle in his eyes revealing his keen interest in the topic.

    "Compared to the leaders of other generations, the Second was pretty ordinary. He was slightly talented, but not outstanding in any way. His character was also soft, and there were many people who refused to obey him. Some even opposed him outright."

    The Holy Emperor scoffed coldly, then continued. "Hmph, how did he even put up with all of that?"

    Bei Shuisheng wanted tough, but he held it in. He quickly lifted his teacup to hide his expression.

    "Speaking of putting up, no one couldpare to him." The Holy Emperor¡¯s tone suddenly changed to one of admiration and sorrow. He continued, "Before Chi Tong¡¯s revival, the Second led a mediocre existence without achieving anything. It was only after being possessed by Chi Tong¡¯s demonic consciousness that he became respected."

    "Demonic consciousness?"

    "Yes, Chi Tong was born from avedha-vasa and strengthened through blood sacrifice. He was versed in the teachings of blood while also contemting avedha-vasa through Dhyana. These two sides wereplete opposites and served to counter each other, yet Chi Tong managed to blend them together. He eventually achieved a half-god, half-demon state. Chi Tong used Dhyana to build up his blood spiritual force one step at a time. The resulting blood spiritual force was of an unparalleled purity that was unstained by the influence of evil. He used the ways of the blood elementalist to nurture avedha-vasa, creating the extremely malevolent [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness]."

    Bei Shuisheng waspletely captivated by what he was hearing. The Holy Emperor possessed unparalleled knowledge regarding training practices, and it was greatly enjoyable to listen to his exnations. Hearing such an odd name, Bei Shuisheng could not help but ask, "Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness?"

    "Making use of karma, which was inherent within Dhyana, the seeds find life in death. The blood spiritual force he possessed while he was alive was extremely pure, giving rise to a demonic consciousness that brimmed with vitality and felt gentle and cid. This was how he managed to swindle offerings from so many tribes in the wilderness. At the moment of death, his demonic consciousness was like a withering flower that preserved its future in the form of a seed. This [Death Seed] was incorporeal and required a suitable host to germinate within. The host¡¯s consciousness would be the seed¡¯s fertile soil, allowing it to germinate and eventually bloom. Our [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] is an imitation of these [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] and a pretty lousy one at that. Sadly, it is one of the few things that we managed to learn from the demonic consciousness. Besides the favor you asked for, one of the reasons I bestowed God¡¯s Blood upon She Yu was her ability to master the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art]. I wanted to see how God¡¯s Blood would evolve in her body."

    Bei Shuisheng experienced a moment of rity. "His Majesty is wise! But I wonder who the host of her sacrificial flower was? It was my mistake that I hadn¡¯t thought to ask her."

    The Holy Emperor waved. "That¡¯s not important. Let¡¯s continue with Chi Tong."

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s expression had be even graver. Even though the way he spoke of Chi Tong reflected a great deal of disdain, deep inside there was not even the slightest bit of contempt.

    "It is thus reasonable for Chi Tong to be known as a demonic god. Every drop of God¡¯s Blood glows brightly enough that even fools canprehend its wonder. Anyone who covets the power of God¡¯s Blood will inevitably have their minds corroded by [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness]. [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] remain dormant until the host¡¯s mind reveals a sliver of weakness. It takes root right at that moment, making it practically impossible to guard against. The Second waspletely blindsided, hence the Night of Frozen Blood."

    "After ughtering 100 people, the Second finally regained a tinge of conscious awareness. He threw himself into a beast cage, ced a bloodletting lock on himself, and broke off all four of his limbs."

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s face was devoid of expression, while his voice was low and hushed.

    Bei Shuisheng¡¯s heart was racing. He could imagine just how hair-raising the situation had been during that long, bloody night. He imagined just how deep the Second¡¯s despair must have been when he locked himself within the cage.

    "God¡¯s Blood was so resilient that the Second¡¯s limbs regenerated in a sh. Thankfully, he had ced the bloodletting lock on himself. Oh, I suppose you don¡¯t know what that is. Bloodletting locks were created to deal with dire beasts. Once put in ce, they were impossible to remove. These locks had 36 chains that were loaded with des. Strapped around the entire body, they were able to drain everyst bit of blood from the target. The process of bloodletting was extremely painful, and even the most resilient dire beasts were unable tost longer than three days."

    Bei Shuisheng held his breath.

    The Holy Emperor proceeded indifferently, "The Second, oh or rather, Chi Tong, endured for nine days and nine nights before giving up and exploding. We managed to collect arge amount of blood samples, and the Beast Venom Pce had a field day with his corpse. It was after this that we perfected the practice of nurturing blood spiritual force, so the credit must be given to the Second. Between the Second and I, no one else dared to tamper with God¡¯s Blood."

    Bei Shuisheng let out a long sigh. "That was... tragic."

    "Tragic?" An austere smile appeared on the Holy Emperor¡¯s face. "The foundation of all things tend to lie on the dried-up remains of those before us. If our enemies¡¯ remains can be found among these, surely some of our own must as well?"

    Bei Shuisheng muttered, "If Chi Tong has taken over Ai Hui then I suppose Ai Hui devoured God¡¯s Blood?"

    "Most likely," the Holy Emperor replied. "While studying the demonic consciousness within God¡¯s Blood, the Beast Venom Pce deduced that there should be 10 droplets of God¡¯s Blood in total. Blood spiritual force is difficult to investigate, but the demonic consciousness leaves observable traces. We have five droplets in our possession, so there must be five more outside. The droplet left behind after the Second¡¯s explosion ended up in the hands of the Assembly of Patriarchs. I used up two droplets and gave one to She Yu, so we only have one left. Dai Gang has coveted God¡¯s Blood for a very long time. His [White Lotus Reviving Technique] is vastly different from the [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], but both have simr effects. I believe he is trying to learn a thing or two from thetter. It¡¯s a pity he doesn¡¯t have much luck and the Great Wei Enterprise¡¯s droplet ended up with the Silverwheel Swordsman Chu Zhaoyang. Ai Hui has somehow gotten ahold of that droplet, so it seems highly likely that Chu Zhaoyang is actually Ai Hui in disguise."

    How would Ai Hui feel if he knew that the Holy Emperor had hit the nail on the head by luck?

    Bei Shuisheng suddenly thought of a question. "Will She Yu fall prey to the [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness]?"

    "Haha, of course not." The Holy Emperor let out a heartyugh. "Chi Tong underestimated the world¡¯s heroes. After the Second¡¯s incident, everyone realized that blood spiritual force had a w and were trying to figure out how to ovee it. It was only by my hands that this w was patched up and God Nation rose to today¡¯s glory. God¡¯s Blood is highly toxic to others, but it is superbly nourishing to the blood elementalists of God Nation. The blood spiritual force within it, however, is exceedingly powerful, so only those who are gifted can withstand it."

    Bei Shuisheng heaved a sigh of relief and curiously asked, "How did Your Majesty break the demonic consciousness?"

    The Holy Emperor smiled as his eyes narrowed into slits. He looked like he was reminiscing about something from the distant past. Bei Shuisheng suddenly felt as though his surroundings had be much colder.

    "That¡¯s a long story." The Holy Emperor changed the topic. "It isn¡¯t necessarily true that Ai Hui doesn¡¯t stand a chance! The [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] may be malevolent, but they aren¡¯t without limits. The karmic cycle in which Dhyana is firmly rooted is a two-way street. The [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] were created through Dhyana and, as such, have to obey itsws. In order to take, it must give. What it gives is blood spiritual force, which feeds the host¡¯s flesh and blood."

    Bei Shuisheng was baffled by the finer details since he had never practiced Dhyana.

    The Holy Emperor did not seem to care and continued talking with zest, "Give and take. Things taken forcibly ultimately do not belong to you. The body isn¡¯t a mere shell, it has an infinitely mysterious intimacy with the mind and the soul. The strengthened flesh and blood will in turn nourish the mind and soul. This is what ¡¯a sharper mind through strengthened flesh¡¯ means. If the host¡¯s mind is too strong or too weak, then this nourishing effect is useless. However, if the two were about the same strength then it might have some serious benefits."

    Bei Shuisheng now had a better understanding. "Does His Majesty think that Ai Hui¡¯s mind is strong?"

    The Holy Emperor answered, "That sword chime was clear and sublime, totally free of any blood energy. Didn¡¯t you feel its dissonance against the bloody glow that filled the sky?"

    "Will Ai Hui emerge victorious?"

    "Haha, we¡¯ll have to see how lucky he is."

    "Your Majesty seems to be slightly interested in Ai Hui?"

    "Yeah, of course I¡¯m interested in the second person to be possessed by the [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], but there are others who are even more interested."

    ""The Assembly of Patriarchs?"

    "The Ye n? Why?"

    "Hehe."

    .....

    In the empty Wilderness, two figures appeared out of thin air.

    One of them was a man aged about 25 or 26. He was wrapped up in a ck cloak and carried a small sack that contained a bright red object. He had a rather average-looking face, a reddish forehead, and an air of worry around him.

    He was the Assembly¡¯s second Patriarch, Hong Rongyan.

    A talldy with a pair of slender legs stood beside him. She was as pretty as a peach blossom and was both charming and refined. Yet, her eyes were cold and emotionless. Her skin was as fair as snow with a crystalline quality to it.

    Thisdy was Autumn Water, who had been injured by Ai Hui earlier.

    On her shoulder was a coarsely made y doll the size of a palm. It was one of Master Shao¡¯s random creations from back in the day.

    The y doll suddenly spoke in a delicate voice, "We¡¯re near. I can feel his presence. How repulsive, it reeks badly of blood."

    The voiceing from the y doll belonged to Autumn Water. Without moving the slightest bit, she stood still like an ice sculpture.

    Hong Rongyan asked tly, "Which direction?"

    Autumn Water raised her hand and pointed to the left.

    "There," said the voiceing from the y doll.

    The voice continued to speak through clenched teeth, "Hehe, looks like it is true that we only meet our enemies. Ai Hui, you¡¯re dead meat!"

    Hong Rongyan replied unenthusiastically, "He can¡¯t die. We need to capture Chi Tong and can only unlock the secret to the [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] by making use of him."

    "I don¡¯t think there¡¯s a need to," scoffed the y doll. "I¡¯ve already started to gain control of my newfound strength. Even Chi Tong is no match for me unless he has sessfully taken over Ai Hui¡¯s body."

    Her words were filled with confidence.

    "Enough!" Hong Rongyan¡¯s eyes were filled with displeasure as he stared at the y doll. Coldly, he said, "I don¡¯t want anything to go wrong during this attempt to capture Chi Tong. Understand?"

    The y doll seemed to respect Hong Rongyan deeply. It muttered, "I was just rambling. Do you have to be so fierce..."

    Hong Rongyan¡¯s gaze softened a little. Seeing that Autumn Water and the little y doll looked rather out of sorts, he mumbled, "After all these years, we¡¯re finally here... I can die without regrets."

    The y doll fell silent. Autumn Winter stood unmoving like a lifeless puppet.

    A momentter, the y doll spoke again, "Don¡¯t just talk about death so simply like that."

    "Ok, no talking about death now." Hong Rongyan¡¯s eyes regained their rity.

    "How can I die before announcing my arrival to the Blood of God and all those traitors?"

 Chapter 683: Life Slicing Parasite

    Chapter 683: Life Slicing Parasite

    Trantor: YH Editor: X, TYZ

    Back in the Cold Pce, the tea had lost its warmth.

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s interest remained high as he continued to speak, "Chi Tong was born from avedha-vasa. He was a spiritual consciousness that sprang forth from the primal chaos. The heavens and the earth happened to be undergoing massive change, creating an opportune moment for his birth. He was worshipped by the tribes in the Wilderness and given strength through generations of sacrificial offerings. Chi Tong eventually stepped forth from his banner and forged a body with the blood of 10,000 dire beasts. He then styled himself an Emperor and lorded over every single one of the tribes. He was quite exemry."

    "There was abundant spiritual force during the Cultivation Era, so all things contained spirit. The birth of a spiritual consciousness wasn¡¯t something improbable. With the decline of spiritual force, the chances of something like that happening is almost zero. While his birth wasn¡¯t spectacr, Chi Tong¡¯s forging of his corporeal body is a truly peerless technique."

    Bei Shuisheng animatedly asked, "Peerless? That awesome?"

    His Majesty was a figure at the top of his game. It took an undue level for him to call something "peerless."

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s manner was solemn. "Forging a fleshly body was already an incredible feat during the Cultivation Era. What¡¯s more, Chi Tong was born toward the end of the Cultivation Era when spiritual force was already on the decline. Using the blood of 10,000 beasts as his foundation, Chi Tong improved his blood refinement techniques over hundreds of years until he forged a near-perfect corporeal body. It¡¯s a pity that this technique has long been lost."

    As he spoke, the Holy Emperor revealed fleeting expressions of yearning and regret.

    "Of course, the epitome of his achievements was still God¡¯s Blood. In addition to the [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], God¡¯s Blood also contains the refined essence of Chi Tong¡¯s flesh. Chi Tong¡¯s body was reportedly drained of all its blood and essence, leaving an empty shell behind. I wonder where his body is right now. Finding it would perhaps help me to answer some questions."

    Bei Shuisheng curiously asked, "His body is still around? Won¡¯t it dpose?"

    "Nope." The Holy Emperor shook his head. "How can a godly artifact dpose? Besides his corporeal body, Chi Tong left behind another impressive item."

    "Another?"

    The Holy Emperor answered, "[Chi Tong¡¯s Banner of God]."

    Bei Shuisheng had never heard of this artifact before, but he remembered some historical records. "The banner that nurtured Chi Tong?"

    "No, it is a pity that it was destroyed, for it contained Chi Tong¡¯s original form." The Holy Emperor continued, "After Chi Tong became emperor, he gave an order. All his subjects were tobine their efforts to create a new Banner of God, which was truly an arduous task. Since Chi Tong¡¯s original form, a single blood eye, was painted onto the banner, it was also known as the [Blood Eye Banner]. This banner was impervious to fire or water and repelled all evils. Chi Tong met with many dangers while refining his [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], but was often protected by this banner."

    Bei Shuisheng said, "If Chi Tong has reincarnated, why isn¡¯t he going after these two artifacts?"

    The Holy Emperorughed. "It¡¯s not that he doesn¡¯t want to, it¡¯s that he can¡¯t."

    "Can¡¯t?" Bei Shuisheng felt it odd. "How so? The corporeal body was his previous body and [Chi Tong¡¯s Banner of God] was created by him. Isn¡¯t it a waste to relinquish ownership of them both?"

    The Holy Emperor sneered, "You think reincarnation is that simple? In order to fully reincarnate, he has to stop the karmic chain. These two artifacts are too deeply entwined with his past self, so he needs to avoid them. Why would he get himself polluted by them?"

    Bei Shuisheng suddenly saw the light. "So that¡¯s why."

    The Holy Emperor¡¯s interest in the conversation ended here. He slowly stood up and said, "Rest early and don¡¯t exhaust yourself."

    After bowing, Bei Shuisheng respectfully replied, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty."

    The pce was empty by the time he raised his head. There was not a single soul in sight.

    Up in the sky, Chi Tong retracted his gaze.

    The gradually fading waves retracted like a receding tide, bringing along with them the earth-shaking events that had transpired. The sky above the horizon looked exceptionally pure, as if it had been thoroughly cleansed.

    Everything was tranquil like nothing had happened.

    The battle between the two grandmasters was finally over.

    To the people of this world, this battle had changed a lot of things. To Chi Tong, however, it was no big deal.

    Chi Tong¡¯s expression returned to his default cold look.

    He felt a sense of satisfaction inside his heart. These Grandmasters were nothing as long as he could return to his full strength. Power was everything.

    His turned his sights to the people in the ravine below. His red eyes glowed through his eyelids as he squinted slightly.

    These guys seemed to possess some sort of elemental energy that could counter him.

    The constant flow of five elemental energies reached an elegant equilibrium. Chi Tong¡¯s blood spiritual force lost its power soon aftering into contact with it.

    Could it be that someone knew the secret of God¡¯s Blood and had been preparing for his reincarnation?

    If that was the case, things were starting to get interesting!

    Having lived through the magnificent Cultivation Era, Chi Tong looked upon the Elemental Era with contempt. In his eyes, the so-called Grandmasters of this era would only be average characters if ced in the Cultivation Era.

    However, upon his revival, he noticed that things were not that simple. First, he was greeted with a head on "surprise" from his host. To think that he would encounter something as entric as the sword embryo in this era when it had not even been popr during the Cultivation Era. The prevalence of blood elementalists and beasts was extremely helpful to his recovery. He should have been able to im his host¡¯s body in one stroke.

    Unexpectedly, he ended up in a predicament.

    Now, he had just happened upon elemental energy that could counter him. Chi Tong caught a whiff of danger in the air.

    Yet, this did not make him hesitate one bit. The process of resurrection had always gone against the natural order. Danger? Every step of the way had been dangerous.

    The affairs of life were constantly changing while karma worked consistently in the background.

    He had witnessed the demise of the Cultivation Era and had been enveloped by the fear that came with the end. In order to struggle on against the greater forces of the world, he racked his brains and left no stone unturned. Preparing for all possible dangers during his reincarnation, Chi Tongboriously searched far and wide for techniques and methods that would aid him in the time toe.

    He was proud of the meticulous preparations he had made. Any and all situations had been well prepared for.

    However, he absolutely had not expected to be reunited with [Chi Tong¡¯s Banner of God], much less that it would belong to his host.

    The object that was once his most precious defensive artifact was now the first obstacle he had to crush.

    Perhaps this was what reincarnation was all about. Perhaps he had to bid farewell to everything from his past. In this case, he would probably have to pulverize it.

    He decided to use the [Blood-refined Life Slicing Parasite] technique to free himself from the conundrum he was facing.

    The [Blood-refined Life Slicing Parasite] was derived from a rather neglected technique known as the [Spirit Devouring Parasite]. Chi Tong felt that the technique was rather useful, but that itcked power. Thus, hebined it with blood refinement to create the [Blood-refined Life Slicing Parasite].

    The [Blood-refined Life Slicing Parasite] was simple enough to practice. All one needed to do was consume flesh and blood to create a parasite feeds on mental constitutions.

    While able to repel Chi Tong¡¯s consciousness, the Banner of God would not be able to block the life slicing parasite. Upon hatching, it would first begin to slowly nibble away at the connection between the host¡¯s mind and body, ultimately severing it. The host¡¯s mind would be a rootless tree, slowly withering away. The life slicing parasite would continue to grow in strength and would eventually consume the host¡¯s entire consciousness.

    Even the sword embryo¡¯s profound mysteries would not be able to stop the life slicing parasite once it had sessfully severed the mind-body connection.

    Chi Tong actually thought quite highly of Ai Hui. Even in the Cultivation Era, very few people managed to sessfully nurture a sword embryo. To think that someone was actually able to do so in this Elemental Era impressed even the deeply experienced and knowledgeable Chi Tong.

    In Chi Tong¡¯s eyes, Ai Hui¡¯s body was weak beyond belief, especially whenpared to his admirable mind. Although Chi Tong did not really care much about it, the God¡¯s Blood that constantly permeated Ai Hui¡¯s body would nourish and make it much stronger in due time. With enough time, Chi Tong was confident in attaining his former glory. Nobody was more knowledgeable about body tempering than him.

    Ai Hui¡¯s frail body also gave Chi Tong one less set of problems to deal with because the life slicing parasite would be able to take effect much faster.

    While Ai Hui¡¯s physical body was not a problem, his sword embryo was a different story altogether. Eradicating it down to the roots would require arge number of parasites. Luckily, all he needed was flesh and blood to grow the parasites.

    Among those in the ravine below, there were a few outstanding individuals. He would be able to create quite arge number of parasites if he could devour their flesh.

    He needed their flesh and blood, but also needed to keep one of them alive.

    Transforming a body was aplicated process. If he did not need to follow this process, he would have simply sorted out those below with one swipe of a hand.

    He shifted into an odd pose. He crossed his right leg and left his left leg hanging naturally down. The upper half of his body remained upright with his right hand ced on his leg. His left hand looked as if it was holding onto a delicate flower. All in all, he looked as though he was sitting upright on an invisible chair. In the blink of an eye, the ruthlessness and violence on his face had vanished, reced with a look of serenity.

    A dense, pure, and bloody glow spread out in all four directions like a cloth.

    The entire area around Chi Tong was bathed in a crimson light.

    The sky had vanished and even the mountains had vanished. The red glow descended upon the ravine, coloring everything a deep red. The entire scene was as sinister as could be.

    Those in the ravine were shocked.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s eyes opened wide as she eximed coldly, "Ai Hui! To think you¡¯re a blood elementalist!"

    Everyone else was considerably shaken. Such a pure bloody glow was beyond what amon blood elementalist could achieve.

    Everyone soon turned pale.

    Ai Hui was actually a blood elementalist!

    Even the dumbest person would have understood the situation by now. Despair filled their hearts. Ai Hui¡¯s identity as a blood elementalist was so well hidden that no one actually knew about it. If they were seeing it today, then there was no way they were going to be allowed to leave alive.

    Fu Sisi remained unmoved. She looked at the teammate standing across from her.

    The two stared at each other.

    The middle-aged man seemed to have calmed down. All they could do now was to fight for their lives. Heughed ironically. "Guess our big hero is actually a blood elementalist. Tsk tsk, such a well hidden secret. I wonder if Shi Xueman would be sad if she knew?"

    The name "Shi Xueman" caused the bloody glow to pause momentarily. Ai Hui¡¯s face revealed signs of an inner struggle.

    The middle-aged man¡¯s eyes lit up. There was hope!

    Ai Hui was one of the Assembly¡¯s prime targets. The middle-aged man quickly recalled as much as he could about Ai Hui.

    He sneered, "Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqin must be turning in their graves right now. Hahaha, I wonder if they¡¯d crawl out upon seeing their favorite disciple like this."

    The air around them seemed to congeal.

 Chapter 684: Opportunity

    Chapter 684: Opportunity

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Fu Sisi understood what the middle-aged man was trying to do. She stared intently at Ai Hui.

    Everyone knew how Wang Shouchuan and Han Yuqin had died.

    She had no doubts that his words would anger Ai Hui. The issue at hand was how Ai Hui would react. Would an enraged Ai Hui reveal some weakness or destroy them all in a frenzy? This was an extremely risky gamble, but present circumstances did not leave them with much choice.

    Ai Hui was no longer the person he used to be. With a presenceparable to a Grandmaster¡¯s, he was one in level if not in name.

    The power and aura he had unleashed since the start of the fight left nothing to the imagination.

    All kinds of tactics were fair game in a fight against such a terrifying opponent.

    The sky was deathly still and the winds had stopped altogether. A stifling pressure enveloped the entire ravine. Fu Sisi¡¯s entire body was tensed up. Her hands were balled into fists and her palms were drenched with sweat.

    Ai Hui suddenlyughed madly towards the sky.

    "Hahahaha, hear that? Do you hear that? Ai Hui! Hahahaha! You¡¯re a blood elementalist now, do you remember how you buried them? Ai Hui, you betrayed them! You betrayed them! That¡¯s true, you killed them with your own hands. You betrayed your own friends, and you¡¯ll eventually kill them all as well. You betrayed Shi Xueman, you¡¯ll put a sword right through her heart. You betrayed yourself, so you¡¯ll kill yourself. Hahaha, Ai Hui, you can¡¯t go back! You can¡¯t go back! Hahaha..."

    The hystericalughter was like the world¡¯s most vicious curse.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body shook violently, like the surface of boiling water. His figure was blurry and looked as though it was on the verge of copse. Ai Hui¡¯s remaining blood swords buzzed with activity, and an air of madness flowed throughout the entire area in powerful waves. The swords were like enraged wild beasts, ready to break free from their chains at any moment.

    The people in the valley felt their scalps tingling with fear. They had a premonition that Ai Hui was going to descend and massacre all of them in an instant.

    Fu Sisi had difficulty swallowing her saliva.

    The Ai Hui they saw today waspletely different from the one she had heard of. Although, a change in personality resulting from intense training was not something odd. She was a prime example herself, having changedpletely after Master¡¯s Glory. She had almost no memories of her past self.

    What truly shook her was the fact that Ai Hui had be a blood elementalist.

    How is this possible...

    The circumstances surrounding Wang Shouchuan¡¯s death by Ai Hui¡¯s hands were extremely heart-wrenching. Even though there were some who could not ept Ai Hui¡¯s actions, most people could sympathise with him and respected him for what he did.

    Ai Hui saw blood elementalists as his archenemies and was at the front line in the battle against them. In a time of despair, Ai Hui practically relied on his own power to repel the armies of blood elementalists. He won the adtion of the people and became a hero in the eyes of the public. He was an idol to many youths and an inspiration to the resistance.

    His reputation was so great that even Skyheart City did not dare to smear it at a whim. Fu Sisi treated him as an enemy only because they belonged to two different camps. In her heart, however, she admired him a little. It was not just her, most members of the Sky Leaf Division felt the same way too.

    How did someone like that end up walking down the path of a blood elementalist?

    Fu Sisi found it hard to believe even though the truth was in in sight. Her gaze unintentionallynded upon the middle-aged man¡¯s face. Hmm? Fu Sisi stared hard.

    The middle-aged man¡¯s eyes were wide open and a strange expression was apparent on his face. It looked as if he had discovered an exotic treasure but was slightly afraid of it.

    The fanaticalughter suddenly stopped. An abnormally gentle voice could be heard from the fuzzy figure.

    "Forget it, Ai Hui. Forget everything. All those things are useless in the face of power. As long as you are strong enough, everything in this world will belong to you. Everything. You can have all the women you want, all the friends you want. If you miss your teachers, you can bring them back to life to apany you. Look, nothing is impossible if you¡¯re powerful enough."

    Ai Hui¡¯s silhouette became even blurrier. Even the voice started to cut off from time to time.

    "Stop resisting... Ai Hui... This is futile, this is your fate. You¡¯re destined to..."

    Just what was happening? Why did it seem as though two people were fighting?

    Fu Sisi¡¯s brain kicked into overdrive. She suspected that the middle-aged fellow from the Assembly of Patriarchs knew what was happening. A split personality? Ai Hui was clearly in an abnormal state right now. Perhaps this was her chance.

    She was not sure, but she decided to seize the opportunity anyway. They would not have any more chances once Ai Hui returned to normal.

    She quietly signalled her teammates and received their affirmation.

    The middle-aged man from the Assembly of Patriarchs never took his eyes off Ai Hui. As such, he did not notice the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s quiet movements. Everyone recognised the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s power because they knew that all of its members were the product of Master¡¯s Glory. What most people didn¡¯t know about, however, was the subtle chemistry that they shared with each other.

    Silently, the Sky Leaf Division got into position.

    Fu Sisi knew that this was their only shot at oveing Ai Hui. She activated everyst bit of heavenly elemental energy in her body in preparation for the offensive maneuver.

    The rest of the Sky Leaf Division closed their eyes and suppressed their presence. They too knew that an opponent of such a high level would not leave another opening.

    "What¡¯s the difference between blood elementalists and regr elementalists? When you be the ruler of this world... There won¡¯t be any difference! You like those people... It¡¯s fine, just turn them all into blood elementalists. They¡¯ll be able to live even longer... and keep youpany for even longer. Doesn¡¯t it all sound amazing?"

    Like a spring beingpressed, Fu Sisi bent her knees slightly.

    The other members did the same.

    The middle-aged man noticed something odd from the corner of his eye, but he was too enthralled by the demonic voice in the sky.

    "Do you want evesting life? You¡¯ll be immortal as long as we merge! What an amazing thing, you¡¯ll be able to do whatever you want, nothing is impossible. You can..."

    Fu Sisi¡¯s mind quivered. Whatever was within Ai Hui was not human!

    At this point, the heavenly elemental energy within her body was surging ceaselessly. With no room left for hesitation, she steeled her resolve andunched herself off the ground with an unfeeling cry. "Kill!"

    The other members of the Sky Leaf Division took to the skies, following closely behind Fu Sisi.

    A chorus of war cries rang out. "Kill!"

    Fu Sisi felt an abundance of heavenly elemental energy surging up from below. The muscles in her body let out a joyous and excited ring. She felt as light as a feather, capable of floating without using any energy.

    The pressure imposed upon her by Ai Hui¡¯s presence was lightened.

    Her mind was rid of all distracting thoughts as she arched her back and raised her arms high up above her head. With a resolute glint in her eyes, she was like an unsheathed de.

    The surging heavenly elemental energy rushed to her palms, producing a faint, white glow.

    The glow was so faint that it was hard to see, but its sharpness could be felt by all.

    It was only now that Ai Hui looked down from above, his figure still a blur. Despite that, Fu Sisi made out a hint of mockery in his eyes.

    He twiddled his fingers and pointed gently at Fu Sisi

    "Look at these fools overestimating themselves..."

    The bloody glow that filled the sky concentrated directly in front of Fu Sisi.

    Fu Sisi was chosen to be the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s leader because Madam Ye saw an unyielding determination in her, even in the face of difficulty.

    The bloody glow continued to converge, blocking out Ai Hui¡¯s figure from her line of sight. An increasingly strong resistance pushed back against her, making it feel as if she was wading through a swamp.

    Retreat was the furthest thing away from her mind. With all of her might, Fu Sisi brought her sealed palms down from above her head in an arc, slicing towards the heavens!

    The faint, white glow became momentarily blinding.

    A white crescent flew out of her palms and headed directly for Ai Hui.

    [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh]!

    The dense, bloody glow was sliced like a hot knife through butter. The white rays of the sh attack flew directly at Ai Hui.

    Chi Tong stopped his soliloquy and stared at the white ray in surprise. The special elemental energy they were using had a restraining effect on his blood spiritual force. This attack seemed to amplify its effects greatly!

    The white sh ray hit Chi Tong¡¯s chest in the blink of an eye.

    Cries of joy could be heard from the ravine below.

    Chi Tong¡¯s body slowly disappeared. As it vanished, theughter below grew softer.

    Chi Tong¡¯s silhouette reappeared nearby. His look of contempt disappeared as he looked at the slow-moving white ray. The white ray drew an arc in the air and flew towards him again.

    It was not particrly fast at first, but it quickly picked up speed and dissolved into a streak of light.

    Chi Tong stopped bothering with Ai Hui. He raised his hand and swatted in the direction of the white ray.

    Rumble!

    A loud rumbling sound filled the air as the bloody glow surrounding the white ray copsed inwards and drowned out the white ray in an instant.

    The bloody glow surged angrily.

    Out of nowhere, the white ray burst out of the bloody glow and continued on its path towards Chi Tong.

    Chi Tong was taken aback slightly. He vanished again with a cold sneer.

    [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh] was a skill that made use of the chemistry between the members of the Sky Leaf Division. It worked by umting all of the members¡¯ heavenly elemental energy into one murderous strike. When enough heavenly elemental energy has been rued, some of its special characteristics are revealed.

    Heavenly elemental energy was qualitatively different from single types of elemental energy.

    Upon release, [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh] chases its target relentlessly until it runs out of energy or strikes its target down.

    Fu Sisi heaved a sigh of relief. [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh] was effective!

    Without hesitation, the Sky Leaf Division took the chance to leave the ravine.

    This was Fu Sisi¡¯s true intention!

    The so-called final attack was only meant to create a diversion.

    From the moment Ai Hui arrived, she never believed that they could defeat him.

    They moved so fast that the Assembly of Patriarchs had no time to respond.

    The scenery around them changed rapidly as they sped out of the ravine and they soon saw a curtain of blood. Fu Sisi could clearly see the uneven, smoky edge of the curtain.

    Her spirits were lifted. She saw hope.

 Chapter 685: Unforeseen Circumstances

    Chapter 685: Unforeseen Circumstances

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Up in the sky, Chi Tong watched the white sh ray with interest.

    It left a trail of white lights as it flew, painting a beautiful, starry sky.

    This white ray was something he had never seen before. It was pretty powerful and was as persistent as gangrene. The white ray followed him no matter how many times he changed positions. It reminded him of a hunting dog he once kept that relentlessly chased its prey.

    The elemental energy that the white ray was made up of was extremely special. It was evident that the people in this era were continuously striving to attain greater power.

    This was what piqued his interest.

    "How amusing," Chi Tong said to himself.

    He was getting more and more fascinated with this world. He had thought the end of the Cultivation Era would bring about an age of deterioration. However, meeting with "surprise" after "surprise" following his rebirth piqued his interest greatly.

    Being reborn in a dull era was boring. He liked vitality and energy.

    He had experienced the boundless, resplendent world of spiritual force. He knew of the intriguing intricacies of avedha-vasa, of its karmic cycle that even time could not disrupt. He also knew of the wild and vicious nature of blood refinement, how it was merely an extension of naturalw.

    The five elemental energies were pathetic in his eyes. He felt as if he was looking at ancient ape-men sharpening their stone axes.

    The white ray¡¯s appearance led him to realise that this world was on the edge of a turning point.

    The appearance, spread, and maturation of any energy system was something that could not be achieved by individuals alone. It required continuous development and inheritance to build. At a special point in time, all of these umted efforts would be ignited by a special individual. The resulting paradigm shift will lead to an explosion in power, lifting everyone up to a higher ne of strength.

    That new elemental energy created bybining all five elements were proof of this.

    Once they have stepped over this edge, the elementalists would find themselves in a much wider world, and they would create a whole new system. The power that this new system will bring left even Chi Tong in fear.

    But all of this would only happen hundreds of years from now.

    For now, this sapling was still too young to pose a threat to him even though he had yet to return to full power.

    He was floating in mid air, still standing in the same posture. He stared intently at the iing [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh] without any intention of evading it.

    A soft sigh could be heard in the minds of those below. It was hushed, but it sent shivers down their spines.

    The world spun before their eyes. The bloody glow that filled the sky transformed into streams of blood that spiralled their way towards Chi Tong. They merged to form a vortex of blood with Chi Tong at its core.

    Just as she was about to attack the blood curtain, Fu Sisi felt her surroundings spin. Getting hit by a strong sensation of vertigo caused her to lose her footing and copse on her knees. Kneeling down made her feel no better as she found herself suspended in the air with the ground above her head and an endless void beneath her feet.

    Even though she knew it was an illusion, Fu Sisi shut her eyelids instinctively. Her heart was pounding in her chest.

    An illusion? What a powerful illusion...

    Fu Sisi dug her hand into the ground to make herself feel safe. Never did she think that an illusion would make her revere its power.

    But an illusion will never be real, and the Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh will definitely...

    Before she could finish her thought, she caught a glimpse of something that left her in deep shock. Her face had drained of all color and her mind was a nk.

    This... Impossible!

    [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh] was wobbling around like a drunken fish. Its movements were extremely sluggish, unlike the vigor it disyed before. [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh] slowed down considerably before grinding to a halt. The vortex¡¯s currents rushed the white ray around like a dead fish floating down a river.

    [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh] began to shed wisps of white light as it became weaker. Soon, the white ray was all but gone.

    Fu Sisi was as pale as a sheet. She did not think that [Sky Leaf Amoghavajra sh] would be able to defeat Ai Hui, but she believed that it could at least cause him enough trouble and buy them time to escape. To achieve this, the Sky Leaf Division had poured all of their heavenly elemental energy into it.

    But...

    The endless spinning rendered Fu Sisi unable to control her body. Her brain felt heavy and her elemental energy was out of control, spinning along with the vortex.

    Rapidly spinning figures floated about her vision like dead fish. They were indeed no different from dead fish. All she had to do was give a mentalmand and these figures would all blow up in a brilliant explosion.

    The purest drop of blood within God¡¯s Blood was his key to strengthening his host¡¯s body post reincarnation. To think Ai Hui had used something so precious to forge these blood swords. The sheer number of blood swords was impressive, but they werepletely useless to Chi Tong.

    He had never practiced any sword moves and was thus unable to utilize the blood swords effectively. All he could do was use them as regr artifacts.

    What¡¯s more, Ai Hui had used some sort of method to perfectly fuse these filthy swords with the God¡¯s Blood. Even Chi Tong was unable to extract the God¡¯s Blood from them. What a waste of precious resources!

    It was bad enough that the drop of God¡¯s Blood was wasted, but Ai Hui even fed the blood elementalists¡¯ flesh and blood to these blood swords. Chi Tong had yet to gain control of Ai Hui¡¯s body at the time and as such could only watch in anxiety. This body would not be so weak if he had ess to any of those.

    Chi Tong was able to rule over the Wilderness with his peerless physical body and malevolent demonic consciousness. Without a peerless physical body, all he had left was his demonic consciousness.

    [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] was his greatest creation. He had pored over countless tomes to create this technique.

    Regr illusions were able to mix up fantasy and reality to confuse others. Powerful illusions were capable of sealing off an individual¡¯s senses and plunge them into a deep state of despair.

    Chi Tong¡¯s [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] had reached a whole new level.

    Within the seal of his demonic consciousness there exists no true reality nor true illusion. The two were extensively intertwined, with no true cause or effect. Upon losing their senses, those with weaker dispositions would be unable to resist.

    This was no mere illusory technique. Chi Tong was confident that his [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] alone was enough of a climb for future generations.

    He had only just reincarnated and had not regained his full strength, yet taking care of these fellows was as easy as ABC. It was not even worth a mention.

    Oh?

    Chi Tong suddenly noticed that one of the floating figures had made a slight movement.

    It was that peculiar middle-aged man.

    Chi Tong was surprised that he could still move despite being stripped of his senses. Could he have somehow retained a shred of his consciousness?

    This fellow¡¯s elemental energy seemed to be able to counter his blood spiritual force. Him being able to retain his consciousness within the demonic consciousness made Chi Tong even more amazed. These two things happening to the same person was too much of a coincidence. Chi Tong began to suspect that someone was waiting for his rebirth.

    Interesting.

    A dangerous glint shed in his eyes. He decided to let the middle-aged man leave and use the rest as food for his Life Slicing Parasites.

    He would soon be able to have full control over Ai Hui¡¯s body.

    Thinking back about Ai Hui¡¯s mental episode, Chi Tong felt very satisfied. He looked at the middle-aged man from the assembly with a gentler gaze. "Perhaps that was your doing. As long as you do as I say, I¡¯ll spare you from excruciating agony."

    Well-versed in the ways of blood refinement, Chi Tong knew all sorts of methods that could be used to extract information from others.

    Suddenly, he heard a whistling noise.

    Not good! An ambush!

    Chi Tong¡¯s face grew ashen. To think he was so weak that he could not even detect someone nearby. This was something that had never happened to him.

    Hiss!

    The sound of fabric being sliced by a sharp edge came from behind him. The blood vortex was split into two by an extremely fineceration.

    Hiss, the sound could be heard again.

    An equally fine cut appeared on Chi Tong¡¯s body, slicing him into two clean halves.

    Chi Tong¡¯s two halves turned into a mass of blood with a woosh.

    Once again, Chi Tong¡¯s figure re-appeared several yards away.

    "Hehe, you¡¯re Chi Tong all right!"

    Chi Tong¡¯s expression sunk when he failed to locate the coquettish voice. His earlier conjecture was now confirmed. The other party knew his name and should as such know all about his history as well.

    The blood vortex lost its color and vanished in an instant.

    The floating bodies fell back into the ravine with a loud thud.

    Nothing had changed. The azure blue sky had returned and the ravine was back to its usual state.

    Chi Tong looked toward his uninvited guest and realised that there were actually two!

    He had only been able to detect one of them... Was he simply too careless, or did they have some kind of special technique?

    Keeping his emotions in check, Chi Tong smiled. "What a shocker, you actually know my name. Seems like you guys are better prepared than I thought. May I know your names?"

    Chi Tong sized up the two individuals as he spoke.

    The man was cold and aloof. Therge, ck furcoat draped around his thin body made for a really cheerless image, while his exquisite features were even more delicate than a woman¡¯s. The other person was an incredibly alluringdy, with her perky bosom and pale thighs. Her face was, however,pletely devoid of emotion.

    Chi Tong¡¯s gazended on the y doll and his eyes promptly lit up.

 Chapter 686: Collaboration

    Chapter 686: Coboration

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The y doll on Autumn Water¡¯s shoulder suddenly started speaking with a coquettish voice. "So, it¡¯s really Chi Tong, huh? Has our little Ai Hui been eaten? Sigh, initially I wanted to reminisce the good old times with him."

    Hong Rongyan gave a slight bow and said, "I¡¯m Hong Rongyan and this is Autumn Water, we¡¯re from the Assembly of Patriarchs. Nice to meet you, Senior Chi Tong."

    "Assembly of Patriarchs?" Chi Tong shifted his gaze to Hong Rongyan, looking slightly interested in him. "You understand me very well?"

    "In those days, youmanded the entire world. Everyone in the Assembly of Patriarchs reveres you greatly. It¡¯s a pity I was born at the wrong time, otherwise I would¡¯ve pledged my allegiance to you," Hong Yan said.

    "Pledge your allegiance?" Chi Tong mocked, "You arrived with such a murderous look on your face, it doesn¡¯t seem like you wanted to pledge your allegiance to me."

    "Senior, you¡¯re mistaken. I developed my skills based on your ideology, and you¡¯re like a teacher to me. Hence why would I try to harm you?"

    "Your words do make sense." Chi Tong nodded his head, appearing to have believed Hong Rongyan¡¯s words. Suddenly, he asked, "Who made that y doll?"

    "It was personally made by a Master in the Assembly of Patriarchs. Senior, if you join us, I can introduce him to you," Hong Rongyan answered respectfully.

    When Chi Tong saw how tight-lipped Hong Rongyan was, he knew thetter wasn¡¯t a simple character, but he wasn¡¯t angry. He merely smiled and continued, "Join the Assembly of Patriarchs? Are you asking me to be your leader?"

    With a sincere look on his face, Hong Rongyan replied, "Senior, if you¡¯re willing to deign to join us, the position of leader will definitely belong to you."

    "This sounds like a good idea, as I myself need some manpower too. Furthermore, you¡¯re much more familiar than me with regards to the current situation of this world. It¡¯s possible that we can coborate. After all, all you want is my cultivation art. This is not at all a problem for me. We canbine forces and help each other out as long as..." Chi Tong muttered.

    As Hong Rongyan listened to Chi Tong¡¯s words attentively, a look of joy appeared on his face. His mind waspletely captivated by Chi Tong¡¯s words.

    A grain-sized, red glowing spot silently appeared behind him.

    Hong Rongyan could sense something behind him. However, before he could react in time, the red glowing spot suddenly exploded. A dazzling beam of red glow shot out of it and hit Hong Rongyan¡¯s back. His body and his facial expression froze, resembling a wooden puppet.

    Chi Tong¡¯s eyes were filled with killing intent.

    The red glow that hit Hong Rongyan¡¯s back kept on changing its shape. Gradually, it transformed into a tightly shut eye.

    The eye trembled for a while and slowly opened up.

    Chi Tong was overjoyed. As long as the blood eye was fully opened, Hong Rongyan¡¯s blood and flesh would be fully devoured by him. He sensed a familiar trace of aura from Hong Rongyan¡¯s body. It was the God¡¯s Blood!

    Previously, he was still vexing over the issue of finding God¡¯s Blood. He certainly did not expect someone to deliver it right to him.

    The amount of blood spiritual force he obtained from devouring blood and flesh paled inparison to the amount contained in even the thinnest trace of God¡¯s Blood. If he could devour a trace of God¡¯s Blood, he could obliterate Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryopletely. Currently, Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo was undting violently. It was bing increasingly unstable and it could crumble any moment. Even if he ced a de of grass on it, it would copse and vanish into thin air.

    This was a God-given chance!

    Chi Tong never expected Ai Hui, who had given him a huge headache, to be so weak-minded. He did not expect a genius that could cultivate a sword embryo to be restricted by worldly emotions. Chi Tong felt incredulous. How could a weak-minded individual cultivate a sword embryo sessfully? Since the ancient times, all those who could sessfully cultivate a sword embryo had resolute, steel-like minds. They were emotionless individuals whose minds couldn¡¯t be affected by anything in the world.

    Chi Tong¡¯s [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] cultivated the mind. He clearly knew how difficult and dangerous it was to train the mind. The slightest mental wound could consign a practitioner to eternal damnation.

    However, Ai Hui had the protection of the Banner of God. Hence, it was not that easy to destroy him.

    No doubt, Ai Hui and Hong Rongyan, who both possessed the aura of God¡¯s Blood, were the best nourishment for him.

    Suddenly, a strong sense of danger arose in his heart. Without any hesitation, Chi Tong surged forward. At the same time, the remaining blood swords rose into the air and transformed into a bloody screen that protected his back.

    Boom!

    A deep and low sound of collision resounded through the air, resembling the sound of a charging rhinoceros colliding against a steel te.

    A few blood swords flew past Chi Tong from his sides.

    Not good!

    Chi Tong¡¯s facial expression changed slightly. He formed a hand sign and pped his hand towards his left. His movements were gentle and effortless. A ball of blood in his palm exploded and the bloody screen behind his back expanded rapidly, resembling a gigantic bloody mouth.

    And at this moment, a ss-like, multi-colored palm pierced through the expanding bloody screen at a great speed.

    Chi Tong¡¯s eyes shrunk abruptly.

    The bloody screen froze. Following which, the ss-like palm clenched and the bloody screen exploded into smithereens.

    The image of Autumn Water was reflected in Chi Tong¡¯s eyes.

    Autumn Water began to grow in size. Her usual fragile skin was brightly colored and transparent like a piece of colored ss. The lovely and sexy beauty looked as though she had been painted in various colors. Her indescribable fiendishness caused one¡¯s hair to stand on end. Her face remained expressionless and her body exuded an ice-cold aura of death.

    The eyes of the y doll on Autumn Water¡¯s shoulder lit up with an eerie red glow and its mouth began to move.

    A lovely voice rang across the air. "Where is your [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness]? I have been looking forward to it."

    Chi Tong¡¯s face darkened, but he still remained calm. The enemy¡¯s understanding of him far exceeded his expectations.

    Autumn Water¡¯s colored-ss-like body reminded him of the five elemental energy that could restrain his blood spiritual force. It was like... the crystalized form of the five elemental energy. But how could it be? A crystallized form of the five elemental energy? And that y doll looked weird. Anything that could act as a host for a soul was definitely an extremely rare artifact. However, this y doll was obviously man-made. How was it possible?

    Chi Tong was feeling exceptionally terrible.

    Even though he had encountered "surprises" time and time again, he did not really mind them. However, these two members of the Assembly of Patriarchs had legitimately struck a sense of danger in him.

    He was not afraid of the so-called "moment of brilliance" by geniuses. After all, which era didn¡¯t have geniuses?

    Instead, he was afraid of people that patiently hid in the dark to study him and find out about his weaknesses. This made him shiver in fear.

    Even when his strength was at its apex, he was extremely fearful of this kind of people. Furthermore, now he was at his weakest form.

    Hong Rongyan, who was frozen by the red glow, suddenly blinked his eyes once. He looked as though he had woken up from a dream. He stretched his back and cracks began to appear on the blood eye on his back. In the blink of an eye, the cracks spread and extended like a spider web. Pop. The blood eye copsed into a burst of fragmented bloody glow and vanished into thin air.

    Hong Rongyan turned around. His facial expression remained the same as before. With a respectful tone, he said, "Senior, please consider my suggestion. I believe you can see our sincerity. Senior¡¯s [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] is unpredictable and possesses the might of both God and Devil. The Assembly has been admiring you for a very long time. After putting in so much effort for so many years, the Assembly did not make much progress. If we can join forces, the world will be ours. When that day arrives, the Assembly can seek our revenge and you canmand the entire world again. How mighty it is to be able to conquer the world!"

    "Such a resolute individual... I didn¡¯t expect anyone to remember me after I died and disappeared from the world for such a long time. Other than crystallized elemental energy, what else have youe up with?" Chi Tong asked coldly.

    "I am humbled to hear that. We have created [Pure Fusion Elemental Body] and fusion elemental energy. These were created to deal with Blood of God. [Pure Fusion Elemental Body] is formed using crystallized fusion elemental energy. It is very effective against blood spiritual force," Hong Rongyan answered.

    "I guess it is exceptionally effective against me." Chi Tong was neither smiling nor frowning.

    "Senior, you have overestimated us." Hong Rongyan continued to speak with a respectful tone. Then he changed his tone and continued, "If your strength was at its peak, our creations would definitely be useless against you. However, you have just woken up and obtained a host body, and therefore you have a low chance of oveing [Pure Fusion Elemental Body]. If I¡¯m not wrong, you can only rely on [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness]. Fortunately, the Assembly has done some research on [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], but we need your pointers on it."

    Chi Tong¡¯s heart sank. Hong Rongyan¡¯s words hit the nail on the head. Hong Rongyan knew his situation exceptionally well!

    In fact, his situation was much more worse than Hong Rongyan had expected!

    Hong Rongyan did not know that Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo was still surviving tenaciously. It had not been destroyed yet.

    If Hong Rongyan knew...

    "How do you want to coborate?" Chi Tong asked bluntly.

    "What demonic god? From the look of it, you¡¯re still a human after all," Autumn Water sneered.

    Chi Tong was a shrewd individual. His facial expression remained as calm as usual even after hearing Autumn Water¡¯s sneer, acting as though he had never heard her words. He then stared at Hong Rongyan.

    On the contrary, a look of admiration shed across Hong Rongyan¡¯s eyes. He and Autumn Water were very confident in this trip. They understood Chi Tong and his situation extremely well. However, Chi Tong had many treasures in his hands; it would be best that they did not need to snatch them by force. As long as they could get Chi Tong on their side, they would obtain a treasure trove that possessed countless treasures.

    "Senior¡¯s blood refinement art surpasses all others¡¯. Your [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] is a peerless skill. If you can teach the Assembly of Patriarchs a thing or two about it, we will be indebted to you forever," Hong Rongyan said respectfully.

    Chi Tong was surprised by Hong Rongyan¡¯s words. "I understand why you want [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], but why do you need the blood refinement art?"

    "We can only improve by epting others¡¯ criticism. Our arch-enemy, the Blood of God, specializes in blood refinement. If you can give us some pointers, we can identify the weaknesses of Blood of God and seek revenge against them," Hong Rongyan replied.

    Chi Tong stared at Hong Rongyan¡¯s face, but he couldn¡¯t tell anything about him. His intuition told him that this matter wasn¡¯t as simple as it seemed.

    Chi Tong never exposed Hong Rongyan. Instead, he asked, "Whether it is [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] or the secret to blood refinement, we can negotiate about it and make a transaction. But what do I get in return?"

    "Senior, you¡¯re right. Since it is a transaction, both parties must have some sort of gains." Hong Rongyan¡¯s eye were zing. "How about God¡¯s Blood?"

    Chi Tong¡¯s eyes lit up. Soon after, he asked with doubt, "You still have God¡¯s Blood?"

    "Of course the Assembly doesn¡¯t have it," Hong Rongyan replied, "But the Blood of God has it. However, the Holy Emperor is overseeing the Blood of God. I have yet to regain my strength, so if I confront him alone, I¡¯m afraid that I can¡¯t defeat him. However, if you join forces with the Assembly, we have some chance of defeating the Holy Emperor."

    "Your words do make sense," Chi Tong nodded his head and replied. "But how do I make sure that you will hand over the God¡¯s Blood to me?"

    "Without the God¡¯s Blood, we can¡¯t obtain your secrets. It is a very fair transaction. If we want to obtain your secrets, we will definitely hand over the God¡¯s Blood to you."

    "That¡¯s true." Suddenly, Chi Tong pointed to the unconscious figures on the ground and said, "I want their blood and flesh."

    "You can have everyone except for my people," Hong Rongyan replied.

    The y doll on Autumn Water¡¯s shoulder cast a nce at Hong Rongyan but did not say anything.

    Hong Rongyan lowered his gaze and his facial expression remained as per usual.

 Chapter 687: The Sudden Attack

    Chapter 687: The Sudden Attack

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    She Yu¡¯s eyes were tightly closed. The ck, worm-shaped seal on her forehead kept on wriggling. Her body was slightly trembling, looking as though she was experiencing extreme agony.

    In a crevice in a distant valley, there was a grain-sized, ck-colored beetle that was motionless.

    "You can have everyone except for my people."

    These cold and fuzzy words rang across She Yu¡¯s ears.

    In the sky, Chi Tong snapped his fingers and shot a speckle of red light into a member of the Sky Leaf Division. That person¡¯s body turned transparent with a visible speed. One could clearly see his beating heart and hair-like blood vessels all over his body. Following which, his blood vessels exploded and traces of blood seeped out from his entire body. In the beginning, his body was covered in red spots. Subsequently, the red spots began to grow in size rapidly.

    In the blink of an eye, his entire body was covered in blood. The blood kept on wriggling, resembling a hungry wild beast that was revealing an unrestrainable restlessness.

    Chi Tong opened his mouth slowly. The wriggling mass of blood on the ground rose into the air and flew into his mouth.

    A look of enjoyment and satisfaction appeared on Chi Tong.

    She Yu knew Ai Hui extremely well. She always thought of ways to understand more about him.

    She Yu nted the [Life and Death Sacrificial Art] on Ai Hui not because she thought highly of his strength, but because she was confident in her own strength. When the positions of master and ve in the [Life and Death Sacrificial Art] swapped, She Yu¡¯s fear actually originated from the copse of her confidence.

    The figure in the sky looked so familiar. However, the look of enjoyment on his face did not match She Yu¡¯s impression of Ai Hui at all. Ai Hui was an individual that had an extremely high level of self-control. Such a look of enjoyment definitely would not appear on his face.

    Chi Tong... is revived!

    She Yu came across this name only a few times in some ancient books back in God Nation. Even though this ancient entity had an extremely close rtionship with Blood of God, she never thought she would encounter it one day.

    Having been born as a blood elementalist, She Yu shouldn¡¯t be surprised by the scene of a blood elementalist devouring someone¡¯s blood and flesh as of right. However, for some reason, she felt terrified when she saw how Chi Tong transformed someone into a pool of blood and then devoured it.

    Chi Tong¡¯s eyes were tightly closed. Satisfaction was written all over his face, looking as if he was eating a delicacy.

    Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water were watching from the side. Hong Rongyan looked calm and collected. On the contrary, the y doll on Autumn Water¡¯s shoulder had a disgusted look on its face. The Assembly of Patriarchs was the arch-enemy of Blood of God and therefore she naturally hated seeing blood elementalists doing this.

    With her sharp eyesight, She Yu saw Autumn Water¡¯s facial expression and she made a mental note.

    Today, she had reaped a lot of gains and she had to slowly digest them.

    She wanted to deliver the news of Chi Tong¡¯s revival to the Holy Emperor as soon as possible. She felt instinctive fear towards Chi Tong. From a certain perspective, Blood of God was actually an extension of Chi Tong.

    There was also another issue: the Assembly of Patriarchs.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs had been Blood of God¡¯s arch-enemy for a very long time. However, She Yu knew that the Holy Emperor and Bei Shuisheng did not really care about the Assembly. When she saw the huge changes in Autumn Water and Hong Rongyan, she understood that the Assembly had achieved a crucial breakthrough in their cultivation.

    The worse thing was that Chi Tong was going to join forces with the Assembly of Patriarchs!

    Their target was definitely God Nation and His Majesty!

    The only thing that consoled She Yu was the fact that both parties had only the appearance of unity. They were actually divided at heart.

    Suddenly, a figure flew out across those unconscious people lying on the ground. Like an arrow that had been released, the figure stuck close to the ground and fled from the scene. It was Fu Sisi.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s escape path was right below Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water. Just as Autumn Water was about to attack her, Hong Rongyan stopped her. The y doll on Autumn Water¡¯s shoulder waved its hands angrily, appearing to be mumbling something.

    Disturbed by Fu Sisi, Chi Tong opened his eyes and snorted, "Overestimating your capabilities!"

    He waved his palm gently and shot a streak of bloody glow at Fu Sisi.

    All of a sudden, countless streaks of bloody glow appeared around Fu Sisi and engulfed her.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s body froze as the bloody glow had confined her. The streak of bloody glow shot out by Chi Tong then fused with the bloody glow that engulfed her body.

    Chi Tong let out a chuckle and waved his palm gently. Fu Sisi¡¯s body began to rise into the air and fly towards him.

    A bloodthirsty look shed across Chi Tong¡¯s eyes. Out of everyone on the ground, Fu Sisi was the most powerful and hence her flesh and blood were the most nourishing.

    The bloody glow around Fu Sisi¡¯s body intensified, resembling blood now.

    At this moment, the grey-robed, middle-aged man regained his consciousness. He felt extremely nervous and his eyes were rolling rapidly. When he saw Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water in the sky, he was overjoyed and his facial expression rxed.

    Following which, he stood up slowly. When he saw that Chi Tong did not have any intention of attacking him, he feltpletely at ease and quickly flew towards Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water.

    When he saw Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water, his body trembled and a look of ecstasy shed across his eyes. At the same time, a look of envy and expectation arose on his face.

    Hong Rongyan nodded at him. The middle-aged man quickly gave a bow and hid behind Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water.

    When he saw Fu Sisi turn into a mass of blood, he felt bitter, fearful, and relieved all at once. Fu Sisi¡¯s strength was a notch higher than his, but she was still helpless against Chi Tong. If it was him, he would have died by Chi Tong¡¯s hands. Fortunately, Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water had arrived in time to save his life.

    Chi Tong opened his mouth and the mass of blood that engulfed Fu Sisi flew towards him.

    Just as the mass of blood flew past Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water, it suddenly changed directions and flew towards them.

    This turn of events was too sudden. Furthermore, it was very close to them.

    The bloody glow that surrounded Fu Sisi dimmed abruptly, revealing her glimmering body,

    Hong Rongyan¡¯s facial expression changed for the first time. His eyes lit up and a look of shock appeared on his delicate face.

    Since Fu Sisi was the strongest among everyone on the ground, she was no doubt the fattest piece of meat to Chi Tong. Hong Rongyan never expected Chi Tong to give up such a good opportunity to nourish himself and attack them.

    The bloody glow around Fu Sisi¡¯s body dimmed and her facial expression could be seen clearly.

    Not good!

    Hong Rongyan¡¯s heart was thumping. Fu Sisi had to do her utmost!

    Fu Sisi indeed had to do her utmost. At the moment she regained her consciousness, she knew the probability of her surviving was basically zero. She looked as though she was going to flee, but she actually was seeking an opportunity to take someone down with her.

    Initially, she was prepared to use herst attack on Chi Tong. However, she did expect that wily old fox to push her to Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water.

    When did Chi Tong see through her trick?

    Fu Sisi felt incredulous and fearful at the same time. Even though she knew she was going to die soon, she still could not help but feel fearful towards Chi Tong.

    At this point in time, she no longer had any chance of dodging or changing her direction. Her entire body had be sparkling and transparent like a piece of colored ss.

    When she saw the stunned look on Hong Rongyan¡¯s face, she felt somewhat happy. She hated people that treated her like an ant. The Assembly of Patriarchs betrayed Madam Ye and they were considered a hostile enemy to Skyheart City. Even if she couldn¡¯t hit Chi Tong with herst attack, she still could give it to the enemy of Madam Ye and Skyheart City. She did not sacrifice her life for nothing.

    Suddenly, her vision went blurred. A beautiful and alluring body appeared in front of Hong Rongyan. It was Autumn Water!

    Autumn Water¡¯s body lit up with brilliant lights and vibrant colors.

    So simr...

    Fu Sisi felt as though she was facing a member of the Sky Leaf Division. The Sky Leaf Division shared many simrities with the Assembly of Patriarchs. Could there be a rtionship between these two?

    This was herst thought.

    A five-colored glow emitted from her body, looking as though she was pierced by countless colorful swords.

    Autumn Water made a surprising move. Suddenly, she spread open her arms and hugged Fu Sisi.

    Fu Sisi¡¯s eyes werepletely devoid of life. Her face was almost touching the face of Autumn Water, whose eyes were devoid of life as well. At the same time, they looked exactly like each other, except for their looks.

    Hugging Fu Sisi, Autumn Water tried to fly towards the ground.

    However, before she could do so, Fu Sisi suddenly exploded in her arms with a loud boom.

    Right after Chi Tong pushed Fu Sisi towards Hong Rongyan, he transformed into a streak of bloody glow and fled. After flying a few hundred feet away from the valley, a dazzling burst of light erupted behind his back. A brilliant, white light engulfed his vision and his shadow extended far away.

    Terrifying energy waves that contained a kind of power that intimidated him struck him, causing his mind to shudder in fear.

    The white light dimmed and he slowly regained his vision. It was as though the sky had darkened. Soon after, the sky turned brilliant and multi-colored, looking as though it was painted with various colors by God.

    He did not turn his head around to see if they were chasing him or not. Instead, he increased his speed and fled with all his might.

    Chi Tong realized this wasn¡¯t a world where he could do whatever he pleased.

    This was a dangerous world.

    He had a feeling that many people had anticipated his revival. They had prepared numerous baits, traps, and tortures for him.

    They were more patient than all types of hunters.

    Humans had been waiting for him for generations.

    That was because they wanted to hunt a demonic god.

    The thought of this made Chi Tong tremble with fear.

    On a mountain ridge, there was an enormous and terrifying pit. This pit was so huge that it could fit seven to eight hills in it. The mountain peak had already been leveled. ck fumes were rising in spirals from the pit.

    Expressionless, Hong Rongyan was hovering in the sky above the pit. He was holding a small, y doll. Behind him, the grey-robed, middle-age man was trembling in fear. Everyone else had died.

    The y doll was dim and lifeless and it was dangling like a ragdoll.

    Hong Rongyannded in the pit and looked around. After a while, he found Autumn Water¡¯s body in a thick pile of ashes. Autumn Water¡¯s beautiful body had turned appalling. The right side of her head was gone, both of her arms had disappeared, and her right thigh had vanished.

    "I¡¯m so ugly..."

    The y doll howled in grief.

    The middle-aged man suddenly searched through the debris. After a while, he found a severed palm that had the seal of the Sky Leaf Division on it. It was Fu Sisi¡¯s palm.

    "Madam!" the middle-aged man immediately yelled.

    "Bring her along." Hong Rongyan nodded his head at him.

    After finishing his sentence, Hong Rongyan picked up Autumn Water¡¯s remnant body. A gentle and prudent look that was rarely seen appeared on his ice-cold face, looking as though he was picking up the most valuable treasure in this world.

 Chapter 688: Kill Me

    Chapter 688: Kill Me

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    After fleeing for a few days straight and making sure he was safe, Chi Tong finally felt at ease. At this point in time, his face no longer possessed the look of insufferable arrogance. The escape he made was a humiliation to his proud self. But so what? It was natural for someone to flee when he or she encountered danger, be it a demon, a god, or a human. Pride had no ce in a matter of life and death.

    Chi Tong was filled with vignce against the mysterious Assembly of Patriarchs.

    He had a premonition that the Assembly of Patriarchs had some kind of method to restrain him. He did not believe Hong Rongyan¡¯s words on the coboration. To Chi Tong, Hong Rongyan¡¯s "coboration" was merely an excuse to entice him. Chi Tong even came up with many possible "reasons" to support this idea. For example, the Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯s unique methods could only be executed when they were close to him.

    He thought of various methods and every one of them was extremely cruel and excruciating. He definitely did not want to experience any one of them.

    Whether or not his conjecture was right, Chi Tong felt that the Assembly of Patriarchs was a mysterious and dangerous organization. He did not want to have anything to do with them.

    It was a pity he did not devour that girl though.

    He smacked his lips. Devouring her blood and flesh would¡¯ve been a rare enjoyment for him. When he thought of the sudden attack he made, he couldn¡¯t help but snigger.

    It¡¯s indeed a rare enjoyment.

    Those fellows from the Assembly of Patriarchs would definitely agree with him on this.

    Chi Tong reduced his flying speed as his tense mind rxed. He felt slightly tired. Initially, when he just took over Ai Hui¡¯s body, he thought that he would have a pleasant trip ahead of him and he believed he could stay calm and unruffled in the midst of chaos andplete the trip.

    However, what happened so far waspletely different from what he expected.

    He was like the king of the grasnd, a lion, that barged into a prehistoric, dense, and unknown forest. The towering trees concealed the sky and sunlight, making the forest dark and gloomy. Countless vines hung and intertwined across the huge trees. The trees were covered with moist moss and the air was pervaded with a dposing smell. The thickyer of rotten leaves on the ground wasn¡¯t as firm as the grass on the grasnd. He also had to be careful of the dried-up bones buried under the rotten leaves. Their shapes werepletely different from the bones of the wild beasts living on the grasnd.

    Chi Tong hated this feeling, as he liked to have everything under his control.

    Given his current situation, he had to be extremely careful. A slight error could lead to a huge mistake.

    Fortunately, he had discovered Ai Hui¡¯s weakness and had taken over his body.

    Thebination of the Banner of God and the sword embryo had caused Chi Tong a huge headache. Luckily, he was able to use words alone to waver Ai Hui¡¯s mind and seize the opportunity to take over his body.

    Chi Tong was adept in reading and manipting human minds.

    A human mind wasplicated yet centralized at the same time. It was a world... aplete, diverse world that was beyond mankind¡¯s understanding.

    It could emit light and warmth like the sun, giving warmth to the souls surrounding it. However, it could also pile up shadows that were darker than the night in a secluded corner.

    It could be impregnable, enduring the cruelest torture and the deepest agony in the world. It could also be soft like an air bubble that could be shattered easily with a gentle poke from a crisp toothpick.

    Nobility and malevolence could be buried in the same tomb while courage and cowardice were like two vines that entwined each other. It was extremely difficult to make sense of them and tell them apart.

    The change in the sword embryo could exin everything.

    Previously, the sword embryo was indescribably sturdy, so much so that he did not know how to destroy it. Now, however, he saw a crack on it.

    This was a good sign.

    Self-doubt and self-denial caused the most harm to one¡¯s mind.

    The former was an invisible dagger that was sharp and unpredictable. It caused hair-like wounds that couldn¡¯t be seen. Every crevice on a soul was caused by it.

    Thetter was a heavy axe. Every strike it produced was prative. Even the thickest tree trunk would break with a loud bang under it.

    Chi Tong had a deep understanding of human minds. He had seen more exceptional geniuses die due to losing themselves than by their enemies¡¯ hands.

    He licked his lips and chuckled while his scarlet eyes exuded chilliness.

    All of a sudden, his body trembled violently, bing a blur. Ai Hui was struggling, appearing to have known Chi Tong¡¯s intention. To Chi Tong, this kind of struggle gave an indescribable feeling of pleasure. What¡¯s more entertaining than killing such a resolute individual?

    "Hmm, who should I start with?"

    Chi Tong¡¯s voice was intermittent. However, he did not mind it at all and he was still smiling.

    Suddenly, a voice rang across his ears.

    "I¡¯ll start with you then."

    Chi Tong turned his head and a red-dressed girl entered his line of sight. That girl was wearing a red dress, resembling a rose in full bloom. She was staring at Chi Tong coldly, not concealing the killing intent in her eyes at all.

    Staring at Chi Tong, She Yu unknowingly felt a strong killing intent arising in her heart. That¡¯s right, she was shocked when she realized this. She had never felt such a strong desire to kill someone before. This was a first for her. At the same time, she was feeling uneasy. It seemed that if she couldn¡¯t kill Chi Tong, she herself would die.

    Was it some kind of premonition?

    She Yu forced herself to stay calm.

    She wasn¡¯t an impetuous individual. The fact that Chi Tong fled from the Assembly of God made her realize that this demonic god was strong in appearance but weak in reality. If she wanted to kill him, this would be the best opportunity for her to do so. A wily old fox like Chi Tong could regain his full strength even when he was gasping for air.

    She carefullynded behind Chi Tong. The look of panic on his face had confirmed her conjecture.

    Even though her decision was a risky one, she still decided to do it.

    It¡¯s a girl again! A trace of haze streaked across Chi Tong¡¯s mind. He hated women. This red-dress girl reminded him of that girl from the Assembly of Patriarchs. Her ice-cold body made him instinctively loath her.

    Suddenly, he rxed his eyebrows. "Oh, so it¡¯s just a little bug. It must be you that¡¯s been spying on me, right? I was on my way to find you, and I certainly did not expect you to deliver yourself to me."

    She Yu remained emotionless. After all, Chi Tong could be considered the primogenitor of blood elementalists. Therefore, how could she hide it from him? Chi Tong¡¯s reactions further reinforced her conjecture, proving that his escape from the Assembly of Patriarchs wasn¡¯t a facade.

    Chi Tong let out a gasp of surprise. Suddenly, his eyes lit up brightly. Raising his head, he chortled and said, "I can¡¯t believe I have searched high and low for it when it¡¯s so easy to be found! You actually have the God¡¯s Blood!"

    The moment She Yu appeared, Ai Hui, who had been struggling in the sword embryo, calmed down immediately.

    The thought that Chi Tong had just now struck fear in Ai Hui. That¡¯s right, it¡¯s fear, pure fear... His body turned cold and he was panting heavily. Chi Tong wanted to kill Shi Xueman, Lou Lan, Fatty, Duanmu Huanghun, Jiang Wei, etc...

    At that moment, Ai Hui was mentally prepared to kill himself and Chi Tong together. He would rather die with Chi Tong in the blood swords¡¯ hands than having his hands covered in the blood of his friends.

    It was also the first time that he felt delighted seeing the demonic girl. He somewhat felt thankful that she appeared.

    Even if he died in the demonic girl¡¯s hands, he wouldn¡¯t me or hate her. Of course, he was afraid of death. However, if death could lead to certain favorable oues, he could ept it with open arms.

    After all, he had already experienced death once.

    Fate is a funny thing.

    At Central Pine City, when he was at his wit¡¯s end, this girl nted the [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Flower] on him and allowed him toplete hisst attack. His redemption was notpleted, but he was still grateful to her.

    Today, he was at his wit¡¯s end again and this girl appeared once more. Even though she was about to take his life, he was still thankful to her.

    Ai Hui could clearly sense the ice-cold, intense killing intent in She Yu, appearing as though it was something that he could touch. At this moment, he was unusually calm. They seemed to be looking at each other right now.

    "Kill me."

    The sword embryo operated with a whizz. A soft mumble resounded through the air.

    "Kill me."

    She Yu seemed to hear someone speaking to her.

    Her mind jolted as she quickly look around to see who was talking to her. Who was it?

    Her surroundings were empty and there was no one. Was it possible that she heard wrongly?

    Even though Chi Tong appeared arrogant and aggressive, deep down he was on the lookout. This girl had been chasing him for days and nights. She must have something up her sleeves if she dared to appear in front of him at this moment.

    Chi Tong hated women. Even though this girl possessed the God¡¯s Blood and wasn¡¯t as cold as the girl from the Assembly of Patriarchs, she still exuded an aura that he hated.

    She Yu was staring at him as though he was her prey, a prey that she must kill...

    When Chi Tong saw She Yu getting distracted for a split second, heunched an attack without any hesitation.

    A bloody glow exploded in the air. The blood swords beneath Chi Tong flew towards She Yu like an enormous, blood-colored python.

    When She Yu realized that she was distracted, she silently cried out in rm. At this moment, she felt regretful. Why did shemit such a low-level mistake? When facing a high-level opponent like Chi Tong, a moment of carelessness would consign her to eternal damnation.

    The torrential current of whizzing blood swords surged towards She Yu with a terrifying might.

    There was a multitude of blood swords, and all of them were shrouded in a dazzling bloody glow. The bloody glow exploded and blinded her in an instant, causing her to feel suffocated.

    Damn it!

    She Yu was about to dodge the blood swords when she realized that a faint, red glow had appeared around her out of nowhere. She couldn¡¯t break free from the red glow; it was like she was stuck in a pool of quicksand.

    Her facial expression changed drastically!

    She did not expect herself to be thrown into such a dire situation the moment she showed up. At this moment, she did not have time to think about whether or not she was too optimistic and underestimated Chi Tong previously.

    The impending death caused her mind to go nk while her body reacted instinctively.

    All the blood in her body gushed into her heart in an instant.

    A boom resounded in her head, appearing as though something had exploded. She also heard a crackling sound in her head, sounding as if something was cracking. Time seemed to have frozen at this moment.

    Her eyes widened while her pupils lost focus.

    Just as the gigantic blood-sword-formed python was about to hit her, it suddenly changed direction and plunged into the ground.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    The earth shook and the mountains trembled while soil flew in all directions. The blood-sword-formed python had disappeared.

    The sudden turn of events caused Chi Tong¡¯s facial expression to change. Exasperated, he squeezed out two words through his clenched teeth. "Ai Hui!"

    The next moment, he sensed something. He raised his head abruptly and looked at She Yu.

 Chapter 689: The Beating Heart

    Chapter 689: The Beating Heart

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Thud, thud, thud.

    A sonorous yet restrained sound echoed across the air. It sounded as though a ritual was about to begin. On a high altar, there was a heavy and old-fashioned leather drum. The passing of time had dyed it with a glimmering ck color that made it looked as though it was smoldered by mes. A half-naked, muscr man wearing only an animal hide brandished a mallet that was made up of an unknown beast¡¯s thigh bone. Every time he beat the drum, his hair would flutter across the air, resembling the licking tongues of fire burning in the braziers around the high altar, wild and devilish.

    A transparent energy ripple propagated from the center of She Yu¡¯s body. The air seemed to have frozen, causing one to have difficulty breathing.

    Chi Tong stared at She Yu, looking as though he had seen a ghost.

    Wait, no, he didn¡¯t really care about ghosts and spirits.

    He stared at She Yu¡¯s chest. A faint, red glow was emitting from her chest. Her fragile-looking skin looked delicate under the red glow, appearing somewhat transparent. If the red glow was absent, her skin would be snow-white and alluring.

    Chi Tong was extremely familiar with the red glow. It had added an aura of extreme danger to this gorgeous and captivating sight.

    Chi Tong could sense a concentrated aura of the God¡¯s Blood. No one understood the God¡¯s Blood more than him. He could even sense that this red-dressed girl had not fully refined the God¡¯s Blood yet.

    If this was really the case, it would be an out-and-out good news to him. If she had fully refined the God¡¯s Blood in her body, Chi Tong would have suffered a huge loss.

    But... what was that?

    Something seemed to be devouring the God¡¯s Blood in her body.

    Chi Tong wasn¡¯t perplexed by the fact that the God¡¯s Blood was being devoured, but rather, he was perplexed by that "something". He actually did not know anything about it! This made him panic.

    It seemed to exist for only the God¡¯s Blood.

    The red-dressed girl did not have much God¡¯s Blood in her body. A hair-like trace of the God¡¯s Blood was enough to kill a powerful dire beast. However, that "something" kept on absorbing the God¡¯s Blood in the red-dressed girl¡¯s body without apprehension.

    Could it be a dragon¡¯s heart? Stop kidding me, how can a piece of trash like a dragon endure my God¡¯s Blood?

    Even Chi Tong did not dare to absorb so much God¡¯s Blood when he just woke up.

    What the hell was that thing?

    A strong sense of danger engulfed Chi Tong¡¯s mind.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs hade up with strategies that specifically focused on him. These strategies were meticulously nned. They involved elemental energy systems, cultivation methods, and even Demonic Consciousness.

    He had witnessed how his fruit ofbor that he spent his entire lifetime worth of knowledge and cultivation on became other people¡¯s prey. The beating heart beneath her perky chest definitely wasn¡¯t something natural. It was a meticulously nned trap, a trap that specifically dealt with the God¡¯s Blood.

    Following which, a scene appeared in Chi Tong¡¯s mind.

    In a distant past, there was a group of people surrounding the God¡¯s Blood. Their eyes were filled with greed and self-restraint at the same time. They did not enshrine and worship the God¡¯s Blood. Instead, they were ambitious and arrogant as they tried to tame a boundless ocean.

    This vast and majestic ocean was the power contained in the God¡¯s Blood.

    Chi Tong shivered with cold.

    Lunatics! They are a bunch of lunatics!

    Before Chi Tong died in the past, he hade up with different scenarios on the day he was revived. He visualized that people would fear, respect, and revere him. Even if they bore animosity towards him, they would be fearful of him at the same time. Wasn¡¯t mankind born with the instinct to revere unknown ancient entities?

    But the reality was different... it was cruel.

    Chi Tong forced himself to calm down. He still did not know who the girl was.

    What exactly is so special about her heart?

    The beating rhythm of her heart was different from before. It was undergoing changes now. If her heart waspared to a boundless and evesting ck hole before, then now it would be an agitated volcano that could erupt at any time.

    Was this kind of thingmon or umon?

    If it was the former, he still had a chance to struggle for his life. If it was thetter, he would give up all hope.

    Could he snatch it over?

    Chi Tong tried to stop himself from turning around and running away. He needed to verify all the answers himself. He had spent so much time and effort to take over Ai Hui¡¯s body and revive, how could he not give it a try?

    After taking a deep breath, he raised his palms. Immediately, a red glow filled the sky.

    .....

    At the Pearl Defensive Line, the three god divisions were resting.

    Recently, many things had happened. Even the eyes of the calmest individual could not help but have a feast. After several discussions, all of the division leaders realized everything that had happened had various deep impacts on the current world situation.

    Putting things in perspective, the battles that happened on the Pearl Defensive Line seemed to have be insignificant. Both the elementalists and the blood elementalists would bepletely helpless against a Grandmaster.

    The nature of the war did not change, but rather, the number of Grandmasters in this world had changed.

    The birth of a new Grandmaster could cause many sudden changes in the current situation, making it unpredictable.

    As division leaders, they detested this kind of turn of events utterly. It was as thought the blood they bled, the sweat they shedded and the life-and-death struggles they went through had be worthless overnight.

    It was apt to regard the world situation as a chessboard and everyone else as the chess pieces. Those who were ambitious would still hope they were important chess pieces that could affect the chessboard in one way or another.

    However, it was unreasonable for the chessboard to change just like this.

    The only thing that consoled them was that the situation on the elementalists¡¯ side had worsened. Ai Hui¡¯s sudden departure had thrown them into a rudderless state. The Sword of Lightning was busy searching for Ai Hui and they were no longer harassing the blood elementalists.

    Since Her Highness She Yu had not reacted yet, they did not dare to make any decisions on their own. Therefore, they were rxed for the time being.

    Since neither side was in the mood to battle, the Windy Pearl Bridge, which had been engulfed in the mes of war for quite some time, suddenly quietened. It was a rare sight.

    Some people werepletely forgotten by everyone else.

    About five kilometers beneath the encampments of the god divisions, there was an underground cavern. Sunlight couldn¡¯t reach this ce at all, but thanks to the presence of earth fire it wasn¡¯t extremely cold. Craggy, oddly shaped, ck-colored volcanic rocks could be found everywhere. Due to the constant water corrosion by the underground river, the sturdy volcanic rocks had developed sharp edges. Meanwhile, the volcanic rocks at the other end of the cavern were smooth and rounded thanks to the polishing job done by the metal winds.

    In that direction, there was a crevice that led to the valley beneath the Windy Pearl Bridge. The metal winds from the valley entered the cavern through the crevice and mmed against the irregrly shaped rocks in the cavern, giving off ghost-like wails and wolf-made howls.

    In this vile cavern, where metal winds blew incessantly, earth fire erupted asionally, and water vapor pervaded the air, there was a group of people sitting calmly on the ground. Their leader was Shi Beihai.

    Above the ground, He Nanshan and his counterparts often discussed the North Sea Division¡¯s possible hideouts. They had racked their brains but to no avail. Rescuing Commander Ye was their most important mission, and they did not dare to treat it with negligence.

    However, they did not expect the target they had been arduously searching for to be right beneath their feet, less than five kilometers away.

    Thebined presence of water elemental energy, fire elemental energy, and metal elemental energy had caused the environment of the cavern to be extremely vile. However, it also formed an exceptional natural barrier against the outside world.

    Even in such a dire straits, Shi Beihai was still sitting upright and recuperating while having his eyes closed. Ye Baiyi was lying unconscious beside him. There wasn¡¯t a single speck of dust on his body and his white robe was sparklessly clean.

    Shi Beihai¡¯sposure boosted everyone¡¯s confidence.

    Hiding beneath the enemy encampment was a brilliant move that made use of the enemy¡¯s blind spot. One would require both courage and luckto pull this off.

    They had never doubted Shi Beihai¡¯s courage. However, his luck was exceptionally good as well. This made everyone grin from ear to ear, boosting their morale in the process. For the sake of safety, everyone spoke in a soft volume, but their tones were still very rxed.

    "Sigh, whenever I think of the fact that we¡¯re sitting beneath their butts, I feel like giving them a stab. What should I do?"

    "Most importantly, what should we stab them with? And how should we do it?"

    "Both of you are cancerous to the North Sea Division! Hey, Erdan, what¡¯s that look on your face? The North Sea Division¡¯s culture isn¡¯t what you think it is..."

    "There¡¯s no need for you to exin anything, the North Sea Division is indeed unpredictable."

    ...

    Everyone stopped chatting and shifted their gazes to Shi Beihai.

    Shi Beihai opened his eyes and nodded at them. "Thank you for your hard work. How was it?"

    The members of the North Sea Division reported their findings one by one.

    Theyout of the underground river system was veryplicated and there were many tributaries. Almost all of their equipment was used up and they could only rely on themselves to carry out the exploration. As long as they were in this ce, they did not need to worry for their safety. However, it wasn¡¯t feasible as a long-term n. As the enemy forces kept on reducing their searching range, the situation would be more and more dangerous for the North Sea Division.

    Shi Beihai wanted to find an underground river that passed through the bottom of the valley. This way, they could return to the elementalists¡¯ encampment safely.

    However, the chances were very slim. Shi Beihai hade across several archived files regarding Windy Pearl Bridge. In the past, the Elders Guild had formed a team of people to explore the underground of the Windy Pearl Bridge, but they couldn¡¯t find such an underground river.

    His subordinates were utterly tired and bruised. After suffering a crushing defeat, any tinge of hope, even if it was nonexistent, was extremely precious to them.

    Shi Beihai also wanted to know where the tributaries of these underground rivers led to. This way, he could determine which direction to escape to if they encountered dangers.

    The thickyer of soil and thebined presence of the three elemental energies had isted them from the enemy forces and blocked their perceptive awareness of the outside world at the same time. They did not know that an earth-shaking change had taken ce in the outside world and they also did not know that He Nanshan was no longer in the mood to search for them.

    As such, the North Sea Division still maintained a high level of vignce.

    Suddenly, Ye Baiyi¡¯s body moved.

    Everyone in the cavern stopped talking. They turned around and looked at Ye Baiyi¡¯s body attentively.

    Ye Baiyi had not moved for many days already. Not even a single strand of his hair moved.

    If it weren¡¯t for the faint sound of his heartbeat, everyone would have thought he had died.

    The sudden movement of his body gave everyone a shock. Subconsciously, everyone scattered and surrounded Ye Baiyi¡¯s body. They had attentive looks on their faces. As long as Ye Baiyi did something odd, they would attack him without any hesitation.

    Shi Beihai was doing the same thing as well. Even though he cared for his old friendship with Ye Baiyi and he hoped that Ye Baiyi wouldn¡¯t die by his hands, he still wouldn¡¯t hesitate to kill him to prevent future repercussions.

    Ye Baiyi was mumbling, but his eyes were still closed. His eyebrows were knitted, appearing to be in great pain.

    "Be careful! His heart!"

    In the dark, a flickering, faint, red glow emitted from Ye Baiyi¡¯s heart.

 Chapter 690: Commander Red

    Chapter 690: Commander Red

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The heavily-guarded border between Jadeite Forest and God Nation.

    Lu Siyan was on her usual patrol. She was not exactly good looking, with her wide face and thick eyebrows. She had a heroic demeanor and only revealed her girlish side when the corners of her eyes turned up in a smile. Most people thought that she was a strange girl. While other girls focused on their appearances during physical training, she never once bothered with such things.

    Her day to day behavior was simr to that of the other men. She neverined about hardships and led a carefree life without worry. Anyone who thought she was easy to bully would, however, get a good taste of her iron fist.

    Nobody understood why Commander Red would pick such a weirdo as his deputy. Everyone knew that Commander Red was deeply in love with the princess inside the Devil Pce, but did not feel that that was reason enough to pick a tomboy as his deputy.

    Would it not have been better to pick someone prettier since they were going to meet every day?

    Besides being a tomboy, everything else about Deputy Lu was great. She was valiant, strong, diligent, and followed Commander Red¡¯s orders to the letter.

    Take patrolling for instance.

    It was highly unlikely for any incidents to happen since the Jadeite Forest must be in chaos after the battle between Grandmasters. There was no way Deputy Lu did not know about this, yet she continued checking all the guard posts diligently. Nobody else dared to ck off after seeing that.

    Someone went to confront her about it and asked her to cut them some ck. Deputy Lu raised her eyebrows and retorted that there was still a threat. What if Le Buleng came?

    Everyone was dumbstruck by her response.

    This newly promoted Grandmaster was reportedly extremely temperamental. It would be terrible if he came over and wrecked their encampment on a whim. What¡¯s more, this new Grandmaster was very open about his hatred towards blood elementalists.

    On the other hand, what could they even do about a Grandmaster?

    Deputy Lu seemed really annoyed and looked as if she was ready to hit someone. Nobody dared to make any morements after that, but they all thought the same thing.

    Would there be a difference whether they were on guard or not?

    Everyone was relieved that the days of being on edge hade to pass without incident.

    What¡¯s more, Commander Red was around. Even though he could notpare to a Grandmaster, Commander Red surely had the means to put up some resistance. Back when Commander Red tookmand of both the god dragon and god shaman divisions, he used a simple yet violent method to gain control. Every high ranking exponent in the two divisions were beaten up by him.

    Since then, the tworge god divisions listened obediently to Commander Red.

    Lu Siyan only returned after patrolling the entire camp.

    News had arrived from the other side. It was reported that something big had happened, and that there were devastating losses incurred. Even Commander Ye¡¯s whereabouts was unknown.

    Prior to this, Lu Siyan was very bitter about not being able to gain merits out on the front lines. Now, she was d that she did not get sent up front.

    Commander White and Commander Red were often referred to as the Red and White Commanders. Ye Baiyi was Commander White, while Red Devil was Commander Red. Commander White was higher ranked than Commander Red, something evident from the number of God Divisions under their charge.

    In terms of power, everyone felt that Commander Red was slightly weaker as well.

    Commander White established the six God Divisions on his own and was renowned and respected throughout God Nation.

    Commander Red¡¯s greatest strength was his valor. Everyone had the impression that he was a man of great valor, and the incident with the two God Divisions strengthened it.

    Lu Siyan used to think the same way, but after spending such a long time by his side, her admiration for him grew with each day. Sometimes she would wonder why people had that impression of him since he never did anything particrly valiant. But in that case, why did she feel admiration for him?

    Afterpleting her patrol, Lu Siyan prepared to report her findings to Commander Red.

    She entered the tightly guardedmander¡¯s tent to find him alone inside.

    The tent was minimally furnished since Commander Red did not pay particr attention to hedonistic pursuits. Because of that, nobody under hismand dared to lead an extravagant lifestyle.

    Commander Red always had the same unfeeling mask on no matter the asion. The ck and red maskbined with his ocean blue pupils gave an exquisite sense of beauty. It adequately captured the mysteriousness of an ocean, the dark night, and an unending me.

    Lu Siyan made her report as usual, but she felt that Commander Red seemed rather distracted. She wondered if there was an emergency. Lu Siyan was a woman of candor, and hence easily vocalized what was on her mind. "Sir, is there something wrong?"

    Red Devil looked as if he was roused from a deep sleep. He shook his head. "Nothing¡¯s wrong."

    After hearing his reply, Lu Siyan did not ask anymore questions. She bowed and said, "I¡¯ll take my leave then."

    Red Devil suddenly shouted, "Hold on.".

    Lu Siyan stopped in her tracks. Her mind was filled with even more questions since she had never seen Commander Red like this before.

    Red Devil muttered, "Instruct the others to be on high alert.".

    Lu Siyan promptly asked, "Is Grandmaster Le on his way?" .

    Red Devilughed bitterly. "Le Buleng isn¡¯ting, but His Majesty has just entered Jadeite Forest.".

    Lu Siyan was dumbstruck. Her face was drained of color as she stumbled out of the tent in a hurry, forgetting to salute hermander.

    Her brain was buzzing with activity. Was there going to be another epic battle?

    Biting cold winds blew tirelessly above the clouds. While rivers flow ceaselessly back to the sea, winds blow ceaselessly with no end in mind.

    An ocean of clouds with no end in sight filled the sky. Large clouds rolled across the sky like pure, white waves; some vanished in the wind, while others formed spontaneously. This endless cycle rendered the skyscape ever changing.

    Two figures stood facing each other amid the strong winds.

    Like a majestic mountain, the Holy Emperor stood loftily with his back perfectly straight. His observant eyes looked down from high above, crushing those beneath his gaze with immense pressure.

    Le Buleng was vastly inferior in stature. He was stooped, thin, and wore ragged clothes, much like amon farmer in the rural countryside. The Sun was clearly at its zenith, yet there was nothing but darkness in the small area around him. It was as if the sunlight was being consumed by something.

    The Holy Emperor said ruefully, "To think you were actually able to defeat Dai Gang.".

    His voice was dignified and imposing.

    Le Buleng shook his head. "He lost to himself."

    "Lost to himself?" The Holy Emperor asked, deep in thought. His eyes regained rity in an instant. "Congrattions, Brother Le, on fulfilling your wish."

    Le Buleng sneered, "Being addressed as Brother Le by the great Holy Emperor is too much praise.".

    The Holy Emperor did not get angry. "Brother Le, you¡¯ve earned your ce as my equal and are as such truly worthy of being addressed as so."

    Getting impatient, Le Buleng replied, "I believe you¡¯re not here to talk about brotherhood. Come, let¡¯s fight!".

    The Holy Emperor smiled. "Why are you putting on a show, Brother Le? If I¡¯m not wrong, you¡¯re quite badly injured.".

    Le Bulengughed out loud. "Nothing escapes those sharp eyes of yours. However, we¡¯re both in simr states. An Muda¡¯sst gift feels good doesn¡¯t it.".

    The Holy Emperor responded leisurely, "It¡¯s getting lonelier now that there are fewer Grandmasters. What say we have a merry drink and a good chat? I bear no grudge with Brother Le.".

    Le Buleng was irritated. "Cut the crap. Such a small mind within a dignified shell, are you here to pick up scraps?"

    "Looks like Dai Gang isn¡¯t dead." The Holy Emperorughed. He continued, "I don¡¯t quite understand why you¡¯re protecting him. Aren¡¯t you enemies?"

    Le Buleng answered seriously, "I challenged him because I genuinely wanted to defeat him, not because I hate him. I have yet to defeat him, so how can I hand him over to you?"

    "Looks like he really lost to himself then..."

    The Holy Emperor furrowed his brows. He felt both puzzled and relieved.

    Le Buleng was bing increasingly irritable. "I don¡¯t wish to waste any energy on you. But I can¡¯t help it if my hands get too itchy, so you¡¯d better leave soon.".

    The Holy Emperor had gotten the answer he wanted. Satisfied, he chuckled. "Brother Le has such a noble nature! I¡¯ll make a move first then. We shall meet again!".

    He left right after saying his piece.

    Le Buleng had aplex look in his eyes as he watched the Holy Emperor leave.

    Lost in his thoughts, he turned around to look at the Jadeite Forest.

    The people on the Pinwheel Sword were exhausted beyond belief. Everyone¡¯s faces were filled with anxiety, and the atmosphere was one of panic.

    They had yet to find any traces of Ai Hui despite having been out searching for a couple of days.

    Something must have happened to him!

    Everyone knew Ai Hui very well. He would never leave them unless something went wrong. The bloody glow that day inevitably brought them all to the same disturbing spection.

    If Ai Hui had really be a blood elementalist...

    Nobody dared to say it out loud, but they could not help but think about it constantly. This made them worry about Ai Hui even more. They were not worried about the ramifications that such a transformation might bring, they were anxious about Ai Hui¡¯s ill-fatedness.

    Those that formed the backbone of the Central Pine Faction knew very well the unspeakable pain and misfortune that Ai Hui had endured during the battle of Central Pine City. What would happen to Ai Hui if he really became a blood elementalist?

    They shuddered to think that this was what fate had in store for him.

    Lou Lan hung his head in guilt and regret. It was Lou Lan¡¯s idea to use the sword formation to absorb the blood beasts¡¯ flesh and blood. He was now aware that absorbing all that blood might have resulted in negative consequences.

    "Something¡¯s up over there!" someone suddenly shouted.

    Everyone on the Pinwheel Sword immediately looked up.

    Shi Zhiguang turned the rudder and made the Pinwheel Sword draw a beautiful arc as it flew toward the northwest. He did not need to be told where to go. The target location was simply too eye-catching.

    Arge, ck pit sat in the middle of a mountain cluster.

    It was not hard to imagine the intensity of the battle that took ce here!

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes lit up. "I sense Ai Hui¡¯s lingering presence here!".

    Everyone¡¯s eyes lit up. All of them jumped off the Pinwheel Sword before it even stopped.

    "What a strange elemental energy wave!"

    "Feels like the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s elemental energy."

    "There¡¯s another type here. The Assembly of Patriarch¡¯s fusion elemental energy that Ai Hui mentioned?"

    "This ce reeks of blood..."

    That sentence alone made the whole grouppletely silent. The member that said it was immediately filled with regret and would dly give himself two tight ps.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes shed red as he scanned the area.

    The sand core [Midnight] was operating at full speed to analyze all the avable information.

    An unusual wave was transmitted from afar.

    The sand core [Midnight] stopped with a nk.

    What was happening? This was the first time Lou Lan had experienced something like that.

    Before he could react, [Midnight] started functioning again. Out of control, it began operating at a much greater speed than ever before.

 Chapter 691: Strange Power

    Chapter 691: Strange Power

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Thud, thud, thud.

    The air around She Yu¡¯s body pulsed with each of her heartbeats. A plum blossom surfaced on the space between her eyebrows. The flower was brightly-colored, tender, and beautiful. It seemed as though it was alive and gave the illusion that its petals were moving.

    A faint, ck smoke hovered around her body.

    Her long eyshes quivered slightly as she slowly opened her eyes. Her dull, golden pupils looked exceptionally striking under the bright sunlight.

    The air around her stopped pulsating, and her sonorous heartbeats became much fainter. The air began to move once again. This youngdy hovered in the air with her red robes pping in the wind and faint, ck fog that was reminiscent of night enveloped her body.

    Everything looked peaceful and serene, yet Chi Tong sensed danger.

    He did not panic.

    As a demonic god, he viewed humans the way they viewed insects. He was surprised that people had been continuously researching his past, and he anticipated that his future would be fraught with danger. But so what? He was a demonic god.

    A little demonic god that was born on a hill in the far reaches of the Wilderness.

    And on that small hill he once witnessed the ocean engulf the sky, seen sword rays that pierced the heavens, and experienced the afterglow at the end of the Cultivation Era. He had spent those long days constantly finding ways to strengthen himself.

    He still had many moves up his sleeve.

    Chi Tong¡¯s expression was bing increasingly serene. There was no joy or sadness on his face and his blood red eyes were exceptionally limpid.

    The red glow that filled the sky was gradually fading away.

    She Yu was a little bit dazed.

    A strange feeling washed over her entire body, wrapping her tightly from within. Was this really her own body? She found it hard to believe so. Her flesh was full of vigor and seemed to contain an infinite amount of power. She Yu felt like she could snap off a mountain peak. It was as if a vast ocean was hiding beneath her petite frame.

    That was not all.

    She was picking up the sounds of nature both near and far. She could hear the grass swaying in the wind, the insects crawling through the ground, as well as a myriad of other sounds. She could detect the threads of water elemental energy that were rising up to the sky. Moving along with the wind, droplets of water condensed to form fluffy, white clouds.

    Nature was an elegant painter, and she was itstest critic.

    She felt as though she had been transported to a different world.

    Filled with wonder, she looked down at her chest. Her skin had be much more exquisite and even exuded an alluring luster. She Yu herself found it hard to look away.

    She ced a hand on her bosom.

    Her powerful heartbeats could easily be felt through her flesh and bones. She Yu¡¯s mind was filled with questions.

    Her talent far surpassed other individuals. [Star Divine Hallucination] was considered the most profound and cryptic technique the God Pce had ever seen, and she was the only other person besides the Holy Emperor to have sessfully learned it. [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] was another unconventional skill that she sessfully attained. These experiences were excellent examples of her unfettered ambition.

    She had never been a clueless little white rabbit.

    Her heart was definitely not ordinary.

    The first thing she thought of was the [Heart of God] that Mister Bei had told her about.

    Impossible

    Why would she possess [Heart of God]? The Beast Venom Pce only had one of those, and it was in Commander Ye¡¯s body. If the thing in her chest was truly a [Heart of God], where was it from?

    It most likely wasn¡¯t [Heart of God], but what was it then? She could not find anything simr in her memories.

    Could it be her ancestral mark¡¯s innate disposition?

    Countless ideas and questions flit across her mind. She calmed her mind down and fixed her eyes on Chi Tong.

    Now was not the time to think about such things, she needed to settle things with Chi Tong first.

    The red glow that filled the sky had vanished. Not a single trace of it was left.

    The sunlight was bright and beautiful, and the wind blew gently.

    Ai Hui quietly watched from the "sidelines".

    He had regained hisposure.

    The waves that She Yu¡¯s heartbeats created were so strong and violent that Ai Hui could feel it from deep within the sword embryo. For some reason, however, Ai Hui felt a strong sense of deja vu.

    Where had he seen this before?

    Ai Hui suddenly realised where his feeling of deja vu was from. It was... It was kind of like Lou Lan¡¯s sand core...

    He shook his head, unable to fathom why he would make such an illogical connection. Lou Lan¡¯s [Midnight] was Master Shao¡¯s creation, and it was known to be peerlessly borate. However, it definitely did not possess such a violent vor.

    Lou Lan was such a cutie.

    Thinking about Lou Lan made Ai Hui smile. Everyone must be very worried about me right now...

    But now was not the time to feel sad. He turned his attention to his, or rather, Chi Tong¡¯s body.

    The ancient demonic god were indeed extraordinary!

    Chi Tong may seem reckless and arrogant, but he was actually really cunning andposed. He possessed arge number of killstrokes and his moves were highly unpredictable. Ai Hui may have lost control of his physical body, but at least he was now unfettered by physical constraints.

    All of the minute details in the world before him wereid bare without distraction.

    The elemental energy in his surroundings looked no different than before, but Ai Hui could feel something different. He could detect minor differences, but he found it hard to describe the experience.

    This made him very ufortable, but he could not identify where exactly this difort wasing from.

    However, he knew that this minute change was very dangerous.

    She Yu did not waste any saliva talking. She did not think that there were any words that could shake a demonic god¡¯s resolve.

    Her body flickered as she overcame the binding force of the elemental energy in the environment with ease. She had never felt this free before.

    Whether it was thin, dense, water, metal, or others, elemental energy was omnipresent.

    They were everywhere, like a vast body of water.

    Elemental energy was like the ocean, and people were like fish. Elemental energy was the source of all power, but was also an omnipresent restrictive force.

    She Yu easily broke free of the fetters of elemental energy, and her body vanished.

    Chi Tong turned his body sideways and lightly flicked his wrist behind his back. His movements were nimble as smoke.

    A crisp popping sound rang out.

    Chi Tong picked up something. Before he could even react, a powerful force rammed into him like a tidal wave, sending him flying down into the ground like a shooting star.

    Out of nowhere, a red figure appeared beside him.

    Wisps of ck fog scattered, revealing a delicate, snow-white palm that was lodged in his abdomen. Red robes fluttered in the wind like a rose in full bloom.

    Hmm?

    Sensing that something was amiss, she quickly retracted her palm.

    The Chi Tong before her eyes turned into a multi-colored crystalline figure.

    She Yu suddenly recalled the spontaneous detonation of the Sky Leaf Division members in the ravine. In a moment of desperation, she spread her fingers and pressed downwards. A dangerous scent pervaded the air around her, and the air began to pulsate again.

    Boom!

    The crystalline body exploded, unleashing a rapidly expanding ball of light that was as radiant as the sun.

    The expanding ball was about to reach the snow white palm but suddenly stopped dead in its tracks. It was as if it had run into an invisible wall.

    The ball of light¡¯s white hot boundary was only inches away from She Yu¡¯s hand, but it could not get any closer despite its raw power. All it could do was announce its anger to the other party from behind a barrier. The ball of light continued to expand downwards, turning from a circle into an oval before spitting out res from its bottom.

    Sparks and res shot out from the bottom of the ball of light. It was a beautiful sight, much like fireworks in the dead of night.

    She Yu¡¯s wildly thumping heart finally quietened down. Her wrist was trembling to the point where it felt numb, and she was panting hard. The next moment, however, she was on guard again.

    Was that the end of Chi Tong? Impossible!

    The ground below was filled with holes of all sizes. These pits were the result of the explosion that just urred. Thergest pit was slightly over twenty feet wide, while the small ones were at least three to four feet wide. The ground was terribly scorched, and spirals of smoke could be seen rising out of the pits.

    Chi Tong was nowhere to be seen.

    She Yu was boggled by the explosion. That self-detonation technique was clearly the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s means of mutual destruction. Why would Chi Tong be able to use it? Did he copy it that fast?

    p, p, p.

    Someone was pping behind She Yu¡¯s back.

    She Yu¡¯s figure disappeared with a sh. She re-appeared a few hundred feet away out of thin air and turned to face Chi Tong.

    "Amazing stuff!" Chi Tong said as he licked his lips. He looked at She Yu with a piercing hot gaze, as if he had just discovered some unique treasure. He muttered to himself, "Such vitality, this must have been prepared to handle the God¡¯s Blood. It¡¯s such a pity that none of you will ever be able to utilize its full potential. It¡¯s better if I hold on to it first. Only I am worthy of such a powerful heart!"

    She Yu¡¯s figure flickered again, dissipating like a puff of smoke..

    A palm pierced its way out of Chi Tong¡¯s chest, causing blood to stter everywhere.

    Chi Tong did not reveal any signs of anguish. Instead, he cackled, "Keke, it¡¯s no use."

    The fresh blood meandered down his clothes while an eerie smile appeared on his face.

    Chi Tong¡¯s body rapidly became insubstantial.

    Bad news! It¡¯s another fake!

    She Yu was about to retreat when Chi Tong¡¯s limbs contorted backwards and wrapped tightly around her.

    Chi Tong¡¯s skull twisted three hundred and sixty degrees with a crack. He grinned widely at her.

    With She Yu bound by his boneless limbs, Chi Tong¡¯s body once again became translucent.

    Like a wild beast being cornered, She Yu¡¯s heart tensed up in the face of impending danger.

    The next moment, her heart abruptly released all tension.

    Her head was ringing and her vision blurred.

    Chi Tong¡¯s exploding body suddenly started to break apart. Deep cracks widened his malevolent smile and continued to spread throughout his body.

    Spirals of ck fog wafted out of Chi Tong¡¯s gaping mouth.

    Chi Tong¡¯s body rapidly shriveled up like a nt being drained of water.

    The ck fog grew denser, churning in the air around them before returning to She Yu¡¯s body.

    She Yu¡¯s eyes regained their focus when thest wisp of ck fog returned to her body.

    She turned around and saw that Chi Tong remainedpletely unscathed.

 Chapter 692: Star Divine Hallucination

    Chapter 692: Star Divine Hallucination

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    How powerful...

    Ai Hui was bewildered.

    He had the best seat in the house, which allowed him to see much more than anyone else. He was both a spectator and an actor. Protected by the sword embryo, he was able to spectate the battle from an excellent perspective. Since Chi Tong was using his body, Ai Hui was also able to experience the various changes that urred duringbat. This allowed him to have a feel of the nuances in his moves as well.

    The two rounds of intensebat were over in the blink of an eye, but the experience left Ai Hui in awe.

    The She Yu he saw in front of him was so powerful that Ai Hui felt estranged. It was hard to imagine that her delicate-looking frame actually possessed the strength of a rampaging dire beast. Every movement of hers was capable of wanton destruction and she managed to evade Chi Tongs¡¯ two killing moves through the use of pure, unadulterated power. In addition to all that, the ck fog that shrouded her body gave off a dangerous presence. For some unknown reason, Ai Hui could smell a familiar scent within it.

    This made him slightly puzzled.

    Chi Tong¡¯s actions shocked Ai Hui to a much greater extent than She Yu¡¯s immense power.

    Chi Tong was manipting elemental energy.

    Although it did not sound particrly impressive, the way Chi Tong did it was unlike anything Ai Hui had ever known.

    His method left no traces.

    Chi Tong was able to manipte the elemental energy within the area at will. Production, destruction, and transformation of elemental energy were all within his control, and he could do it in an instant. To him, the five significantly different elements were all the same, as if there were no boundaries between them. Everything that Ai Hui knew about the way they interacted did not appear to exist in Chi Tong¡¯s eyes.

    The two faux bodies that he had used earlier werepletely formed from elemental energy. He managed to copy the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s self-detonation technique with ease.

    It¡¯s just... Brilliant!

    Ai Hui¡¯s foundational beliefs were thoroughly subverted. Amid all the surprises, he felt very inspired. How fortunate that he was able to witness and experience an ancient demonic god¡¯s techniques first hand!

    His curiosity overpowered his wariness.

    Chi Tong was not discouraged by the loss of his two faux bodies. He was, in fact, getting excited. His eyes burned brighter than ever as he stared at She Yu¡¯s chest, ready to dig her heart out.

    "What an interesting thing! What an amazing thing! Who is the genius behind this work of art? It is even capable of devouring the God¡¯s Blood and normalizing it¡¯s demonic consciousness! Sadly, you¡¯re defiling it. What a waste of a good heart."

    Listening to Chi Tong¡¯s monologue, Ai Hui had a moment of realization. No wonder he thought that the ck fog felt familiar, it was [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness].

    She Yu was momentarily distracted. "Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness..."

    Chi Tong shook his head. "The person who forged this heart is a genius, no, a legendary figure. How pleasant would it be if I could befriend this person!"

    She Yu saw a less sinister side of Chi Tong when she saw the raw admiration on his face. Perhaps a demonic god wasn¡¯t as malevolent as she thought.

    This thought of hers vanished in an instant.

    Chi Tong sneered coldly, "It¡¯s a real pity that you¡¯re too weak to draw out even one percent of its power.".

    Before he even finished speaking, all the elemental energy within a fifty kilometer radius became extremely active. The energy began to condense, forming countless elemental energy orbs that surrounded She Yu in a snap. They were each around the size of a watermelon, and were pure and limpid like ss marbles.

    They whirled ceaselessly, bing brighter with each revolution.

    Chi Tong¡¯s maniacalughter reverberated through the air.

    "Hand it over. Divine artifacts are meant to be used by gods!"

    The elemental energy orbs fell on her like a torrential rain. The light trails left behind by the orbs as they flew looked like arrows of light.

    She Yu had nowhere to dodge.

    After seeing what he was capable of doing, Ai Hui respected Chi Tong a lot more. He could tell that Chi Tong was not at all familiar with elemental energy, and the moves he had used were obviously derived from the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s self-detonation technique. But this one move that he had copied was so much deadlier in his hands.

    Chi Tong did not do anything fanciful. Rather, his methods were simpler and more crude.

    His sheer power was what made his simple methods extraordinarily terrifying. He was capable of manipting an insane amount of elemental energy, instantlybining them inplex ways.

    Ai Hui had a poor understanding of [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], but he knew that the recently awakened Chi Tong was still fairly weak. He simply could not imagine Chi Tong at full strength.

    However...

    She Yu¡¯s hairs stood on end as she realized how close she was to death this time. She imagined that the god of death was standing right beside her, his breath smelling of death and decay.

    If even a cornered beast would fight with all its remaining might, how could she surrender now?

    Her body flickered and nine clones immediately appeared within a five foot radius around her.

    She had created nine clones around her in an instant. She intended to spread out the damage by luring the elemental energy orbs towards nine different targets and in doing so, find an opportunity to survive.

    She had grossly miscalcted.

    Chi Tong did not lock onto her and was using a much simpler method instead. There were more than enough elemental energy orbs to destroy everything within a range of several hundred kilometers.

    The first elemental energy orb had be terribly ring. It exploded spontaneously.

    The air around it burned bright with radiant light.

    Orb after orb followed suit, exploding in a brilliant disy of light rays.

    Boom. A chain reaction sent the orbs exploding one by one, each one detonating closely behind another...

    Chi Tong retreated a few kilometers away from the epicenter. His face was slightly pale from the effort used to generate the orbs. He had spent all his energy on this killing blow. He could not afford to be indecisive, not when he was this weak. There was no way he could win a battle of attrition in his current state.

    The bright white light before him made his face look even whiter more ghastly. A solemn grin crept up on his lips as he mumbled to himself, "What a spectacr sight!".

    He knew just how powerful his attack was and hence steered clear of the explosions. He was definitely not able to withstand such an impact in his current state.

    He retreated the moment he triggered it.

    The brilliant white light grew brighter and brighter, with more and more explosions urring before the old ones could even die down.

    The explosions raged on for ten breaths, sustaining the brilliant white light that lit up the entire area. It was as if the sun had fallen from the heavens.

    The brilliant rays died down after thest elemental energy orb exploded.

    Rumble!

    The explosion produced massive elemental energy waves that swept across the ground like a violent hurricane.

    Chi Tong remained in the same upright position. The elemental energy waves made his clothes flutter and his hair was blown all over the ce. Chi Tong was satisfied. He did not think that anyone could have survived such a concentrated st. Even he himself would hardly dare to take such an attack head on, especially in his current state.

    He was, however, worried about that glorious heart.

    He hoped that the heart had survived the st without too much damage.

    After thest wave shot past him, Chi Tong saw that there was nothing left where She Yu had been. The point of greatest impact was several kilometres above the ground, but the ground below was badly damaged as well.

    Looking down from above, one would clearly see that there was nothing left on the ground within several hundred kilometers. The surface was unnaturally smooth, as if someone had ttened it with a gigantic rolling pin.

    The ground was a good six feet lower than before.

    The part of the ground that was nearest to the sts¡¯ epicentre was charred ck. A huge pile of ashes sat nicely on the ground.

    Chi Tong happily flew towards the spot where She Yu was. In his current state, he was unable to use his demonic consciousness to scan the area for her corpse. All he could do was manually search through the ashes himself.

    He was quite lucky and soon found her corpse amid the ashes.

    A good part of She Yu¡¯s body was buried in ashes.

    Chi Tong walked over and swept the ashes aside. He could not help but click his tongue in mild disgust.

    She Yu had died in a horrible manner. Her right arm waspletely blown off, and only half of her upper body remained. Thecerations on her body were so severe that some of her internal organs could be seen. Her legs were bent at odd angles, adding on to the terrifying image.

    Her wide open eyes were filled with grievances. There were no signs of breathing nor life in her body.

    With a huge weight off his shoulders, Chi Tong¡¯s eyes lit up. Luckily, it was the right side of her body that was damaged.

    He was worried that his opponent¡¯s body would have beenpletely wrecked.

    Chi Tong swallowed his saliva and stretched out his fingers. He traced a small arc on her chest.

    She Yu¡¯s chest was sliced open cleanly, revealing her heart without much gore.

    Chi Tong¡¯s face was full of ecstacy. This heart was now his!

    Upon transnting this heart into his body, his power would multiply in an instant. Over time, he would be even stronger than his previous self. This heart was truly a masterpiece, one that seemed to have been made for him!

    This was a Heart of God, an actual Heart of God.

    He reached out towards the heart within She Yu¡¯s chest.

    His fingertips touched the heart. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed something lying a short distance away from She Yu¡¯s body. Turning to look, he saw that it was only two to three feet away. He had been so focused on the Heart of God that he did not notice it.

    That¡¯s... A sword hilt!

    Chi Tong instinctively thought of Ai Hui.

    He soon noticed theckluster blood swords that were scattered about the area.

    Following that, he realized that the damage done to She Yu¡¯s body was much less than what he had expected. Ai Hui¡¯s blood swords had protected her!

    Not good, then this woman...

    At this moment, ck fog emerged from She Yu¡¯s unforgiving eyes, turning them as dark as ink. A beam of light the size of a needle shot out from the center of the plum blossom between her brows and struck Chi Tong right in the middle of his forehead.

    [Star Divine Hallucination]!

    Chi Tong was stunned.

    The silent heart at the tip of his fingers started beating again.

 Chapter 693: Collapse

    Chapter 693: Copse

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The thickyer of ashes on the ground was still warm and spiralling traces of ck smoke were rising into the air. A single nt couldn¡¯t be found in the area.

    A gust of wind blew across the area and swept away the smoke.

    A man bent down and touched the girl lying below him. His body was motionless and his facial expression had frozen. The girl was exceptionally beautiful, but her body was utterly destroyed, resembling a ragdoll that had been shredded. Her joints were in awkward positions, resembling twisted iron wires. The wound that cut open her chest was neat and clean, disying the proficiency of the cutter. It was so neatly cut that it wasn¡¯t overflowing with blood, resembling the poultry that was killed and hung on the butcher shelves in the marketce.

    The heart within the chest was still thumping vigorously.

    It was so powerful that the whizzing wind in the air couldn¡¯t conceal its thumps.

    Chi Tong, who was afflicted with [Star Divine Hallucination], was woken up by the heartbeat.

    Every time the heart beat, a wave of fear swept across Chi Tong¡¯s body. He instinctively felt a sense of danger. His disorganized eye pupils regained focus while his mind gradually regained rity.

    It was an unexpected failure!

    He did not expect his opponent to retaliate when she was in such dire straits. It was a careless mistake! Regret arose in his heart. However, he was able to regain hisposure very soon. Now wasn¡¯t the time for him to feel regretful.

    Thump. His fingertip felt the pulsation of She Yu¡¯s heart. At the same time, a wave of attractive force swept over him.

    Chi Tong¡¯s facial expression changed.

    He wanted to run away, but to his horror, he couldn¡¯t even move his fingers.

    Damn it!

    What¡¯s going on?

    Thump, thump, thump. Chi Tong¡¯s face darkened as the heart continued to beat. Every time the heart beat, his mind would tremble and he would be dazed momentarily. He felt a deep sense of fear. If this continued, his mind would bepletely shattered. When that moment arrived, he would be like a delicacy that had been cut into small pieces waiting to be eaten.

    Why would things turn out like this...

    This heart could actually subdue [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness].

    No! Chi Tong was snarling deep in his heart, resembling a lone wolf that was trapped in desperate straits. Who!? Who created this heart!?

    It was a pity he couldn¡¯t make any sound and no one could hear him.

    Other than Ai Hui, who was protected by the Banner of God.

    Ai Hui was indescribably delighted despite the fact that he was in dire straits as well. The sword embryo that was revolving around him was utterly broken. There were only a few swords that were still flying. These swords were covered with cracks and they were no longer as nimble as before.

    However, he did not feel sad at all.

    Compared to Chi Tong controlling his body to harm his friends, this oue wasn¡¯t bad at all.

    At the critical junction, Ai Hui controlled the blood swords to protect She Yu. Chi Tong¡¯s terrifying power almost destroyed all of the blood swords and Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo. For the first time, his sword embryo was damaged so severely.

    Chi Tong was truly terrifying!

    Chi Tong had just revived and he had a shallow understanding of this world and the elemental energy system. However, he was able to utilize elemental energy effortlessly after experiencing the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s killer move for only a short while. If he was given a few more days to gain a deeper understanding of the elemental energy system, his [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] would be even more powerful.

    Ai Hui did not dare to imagine the consequences if that happened. Could anyone stop Chi Tong if that really happened? Perhaps even a Grandmaster couldn¡¯t stop him.

    It was most likely that no one in this world was more dangerous than Chi Tong, not even the Holy Emperor.

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind was severely damaged and his sword embryo was on the brink of being destroyedpletely. He could feel the adverse effects on him. If it weren¡¯t for the protection of the Banner of God, he would have been annihted.

    At this point in time, he was like a withering candle that could be extinguished at any moment.

    "Hahahaha...."

    Ai Hui wasughing happily.

    "It¡¯s you!" Chi Tong roared.

    Ai Hui felt an indescribable sense of relief. His biggest worry had been settled. Even if he was annihted, he would die with no regrets. The fear and reverence he had for Chi Tong had vanishedpletely.

    Ai Hui let out a whistle happily. "Are you surprised? Are you surprised?"

    The enraged Chi Tong calmed himself down. Then he sneered, "Do you think you can survive? It will devour your consciousness as well, so neither of us will survive. The Banner of God can stop me, but not her."

    Ai Hui let out a mockingugh and replied, "You still think that I want to live? I didn¡¯t know that a demonic god could be so naive."

    Chi Tong became silent. Soon after, he lowered his volume and replied, "Alright, I was wrong about you! However, I can promise you that I will find a new host body if you help me survive this ordeal."

    With a gentle voice, he continued, "Both of us can survive. If this is the case, why should both of us die? Why make it convenient for the enemy? Don¡¯t you hate the blood elementalists the most?"

    Ai Hui looked at Chi Tong with doubt.

    Chi Tong continued with a sincere tone, "I can promise you that we will part ways after this incident. I¡¯m willing to apologize for the mistakes I have made. I can teach you [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness]. It¡¯s a supreme absolute art and you¡¯re naturally suitable to learn it. Your consciousness is much stronger than ordinary individuals¡¯. I can promise you that you will be a Grandmaster in three years¡¯ time. And in ten years¡¯ time, you will be peerless. This world will be yours, and who else will dare to defy you by then? You hate blood elementalists and all of them shall die in your hands. Even time will not be able to defeat you, you will be indestructible eternally."

    Chi Tong¡¯s voice was filled with temptation. He was able to use only a few words to draw aprehensive blueprint for Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui was still looking at him with doubt.

    Suddenly, a moment of daze swept across Chi Tong¡¯s consciousness. He could sense that he was copsing. If he could see his own body, he would be shocked. Needle-like traces of ck mist were seeping out of his pores now.

    He knew that time was running out.

    His only chance of surviving and resisting this horrifying heart was to join forces with Ai Hui.

    "Alright, let¡¯s not talk about these unrealistic goals. Think about it, if you be a Grandmaster, you will be qualified to establish a nation of your own. Don¡¯t you want to secure a home for your friends? After all, they have risked their lives and limbs for you."

    Chi Tong sensed that Ai Hui had wavered for the first time.

    Chi Tong knew he was going to seed soon,and his voice became much gentler than before. "They also have families, right? Who doesn¡¯t want his or her family to lead a good life? You can easily achieve this goal. Once you be a Grandmaster, you can establish a nation of your own and they will be taken care of then. Think about the family members of those who have died on the battlefield. Right now, their family members are in such a miserable state. Some are impoverished, some have died of hunger, and some even have to sell their sons and daughters for money. You can be the one that stops these things from happening."

    "You don¡¯t need to worry for your safety. I can make a blood pact and I will definitely not harm you."

    Ai Hui turned silent.

    Chi Tong knew he had seeded.

    Thump, thump, thump. The heartbeat was earth-shattering. Chi Tong knew his time was running out, but he still maintained hisposure.

    After a while, Ai Hui spoke with hesitance, "Teach me [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] first."

    Chi Tong feigned hesitance for a moment before replying, "Alight, you have to enter the Banner of God first."

    "So it¡¯s the Banner of God." Realization dawned upon Ai Hui. He almost believed Chi Tong¡¯s words when he said that the Banner of God couldn¡¯t save him.

    "That¡¯s right," Chi Tong said calmly. "After all, the Banner of God used to be my body. It is a very useful artifact for one¡¯s mind, it¡¯s just that you still don¡¯t know how to use it. I have already severed my karma with it and therefore I can¡¯t control it, but you¡¯re able to do so."

    Time was running out and Chi Tong did not dare to stop talking. He continued with a rapid tone, "It was a ce for me to carry out my cultivation so that even if my physical body is destroyed, my soul has a home to continue to exist. It has absorbed your blood and you¡¯re its master, but you have yet to activate it."

    "This totem was born out of fire, which iss why I left a wisp of heart me in it. You need to leave your mind seal on it before you can control it."

    Mind seal?

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind jolted. Suddenly, he reached out his hand to grab one of the few broken swords flying around him. Then, he threw it towards the Banner of God.

    The sword was quickly devoured by the Banner of God.

    The next moment, the blood eye on the Banner of God disappeared and was reced by a picture of a blood sword.

    Chi Tong had mixed feelings. He could sense that thest trace of connection he had with the Banner of God had been severed. From today onwards, he was no longer rted to the Banner of God in any way.

    The remaining swords that flew around Ai Hui entered the Banner of God and disappeared as well.

    A faint sword gleam engulfed Ai Hui.

    "Faster, let me in," Chi Tong said with an anxious voice.

    His mind had already begun to destabilize, and it was showing signs of copsing.

    "Teach me the [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] first!"

    Chi Tong clenched his teeth. Following which, a pigeon-egg-sized light orb shot out from his mind and flew towards Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui did not dare to receive it hastily. The sword gleam surrounding him gathered in front of him and transformed into a palm and caught the light orb. After making sure it was harmless, Ai Hui reached out his hand to take it.

    "Faster! Let me in!" Chi Tong urged Ai Hui.

    A boundless amount of profound information gushed into Ai Hui¡¯s mind. Following which, his mind was thrown into a daze, appearing as though it was flooded by a tsunami. Even though the light orb was very small, the amount of information it contained was surprisingly immense, stunning Ai Hui in the process.

    He had no time to process the information carefully as it was too rich in content!

    "Faster! Faster!"

    The pitch of Chi Tong¡¯s voice changed uncontrobly. His mind was unstable, resembling a raging cloud of smoke that could dissipate at any moment.

    Ai Hui¡¯s voice came out from the sword gleam. "Mr. Demonic God, thank you for your gift!"

    "Bast*rd! You¡¯re a treacherous scumbag!" Chi Tong shrieked with menace.

    Standing under the sword gleam, Ai Hui looked on as Chi Tong¡¯s mind churned and dissipated bit by bit. A ck-colored mist was spiralling around Chi Tong¡¯s physical body, and it was surging towards his fingertip rapidly.

    When She Yu¡¯s heart devoured a trace of the ck-colored mist, it beat with more vigor.

    "Dear Mr. Demonic God, no matter how pleasant you put it, I will never believe you. I¡¯m not as ambitious as you think, and I don¡¯t think I am a very formidable person. I also don¡¯t really think about the future. I think killing you is worth more to me than establishing a nation. I will feel at ease that way even if I die."

    "Hahaha!"

    A howlingughter came out from the churning, ck-colored mist.

    "Kill me? Do you think you can really kill me? As long as I have the God¡¯s Blood, I will able to revive again."

    Following which, Chi Tong¡¯s tone changed, sounding as though he was Ai Hui¡¯s old friend.

    "Speaking of it, other than the [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], I still have a skill that is unrivalled. My physical body is formed by fusing the blood of ten thousand beasts and my blood refining skill is peerless in the world. Initially, I wanted to carry out my blood refinement slowly in order to prevent this physical body from being destroyed. Before I go, I will give you another present."

    A premonition arose in Ai Hui¡¯s mind.

    "Let me tell you a secret. In everyone¡¯s body, there are a few invisible sluices. This is the real secret to blood refinement."

    Chi Tong¡¯s voice was as gentle as water.

 Chapter 694: Taking Action

    Chapter 694: Taking Action

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    The blood elementalists¡¯ encampment on the border of Jadeite Forest and God Nation were on high alert and the atmosphere there was extremely tense.

    The number of patrolling units was several times higher than usual. There was a solemn look on every one of those fully equipped soldiers. As long as anything weird happened, they would immediately attack Jadeite Forest. The hissing sound of beetles made the atmosphere more tense and solemn.

    That was because His Majesty was in themander¡¯s tent.

    Actually, everyone knew that they did not need to protect him. The idea of protecting a Grandmaster was simply nonsensical. On the contrary, the security level of the camp had reached a new high due to the presence of His Majesty. All the sentries could actually rest now. After all, who could avoid a Grandmaster¡¯s sharp sense of hearing?

    Even the most bold individual in the encampment did not dare to chit-chat with other people.

    There had been many controversies and disputes since the outbreak of the blood catastrophe until the establishment of God Nation. That was because too much blood and hatred were involved. However, after God Nation was established and His Majesty assigned sages and talents to important positions, God Nation began to flourish. His Majesty hated corrupt individuals very much. His style of governing was well-ordered and honest. Even the lowest ss of citizens led a rather good life.

    On the contrary, the Elders Guild was like a big, hollow, decayed tree that was uprooted by a huge gust of wind and broken apart. The ones that suffered the most were no doubt its people. They were like duckweed as they had nothing and no one to rely on. Even after they moved to Beyond Avalon, they had to face wars that urred frequently among cities.

    The happiness of God Nation¡¯s ordinary citizens came throughparison.

    After all, their opponent¡¯s ruling government was foolish and decadent.

    The prosperity and stability of God Nation watered down the brutal image of the Holy Emperor. Which emperor doesn¡¯t step on heaps of bodies to attain kingship?

    Time diluted blood and pain. As time passed, the ordinary citizens began to look forward to a better future. The triumphant progress of the six god divisions also showed everyone how ipetent and weak the Elders Guild was. His Majesty gradually became a figure of reverence for everyone.

    The ordinary soldiers did not need to think too much. They could only do this as a way to express their respect for His Majesty.

    Inside themander tent, the Holy Emperor was sitting on the seat of honor. That was where Red Devil usually sat. Red Devil was sitting beneath the Holy Emperor while listening to him speak. The battle of Grandmasters did not happen, so there was nothing for him to worry about.

    The Holy Emperor seemed to be in a good mood.

    "It¡¯s good that Dai Gang did not die. If he really died, it would be a huge pity. Le Buleng still cares about his old friendship with Dai Gang and he also doesn¡¯t want me to exploit Dai Gang¡¯s death. I also can¡¯t believe Le Buleng actually attained the level of Grandmaster. He is one stubborn fellow, the most stubborn fellow in the world. I have really underestimated him, but it¡¯s a pity that he can¡¯t live long."

    Red Devil sat quietly on his chair, resembling a lifeless rock.

    He was very calm even though the Holy Emperor was right in front of him.

    The Holy Emperor admired Red Devil¡¯s strength and capability very much. The only problem he had with Red Devil was his nonchnt attitude. He just wasn¡¯t interested in achieving any goals. Only the princess at the Fairy Devil Pce could cause changes in his emotions.

    "Previously, I transferred you here because I was worried about the Jadeite Forest. Now there¡¯s no need for me to worry anymore. Dai Gang¡¯s disciples are worthless and incapable. Even though Dai Gang did not die, he is severely injured. Jadeite Forest is afraid of us attacking them and therefore they won¡¯t dare to provoke us. Le Buleng¡¯s alies won¡¯t stay here to protect them. He doesn¡¯t have much time left, hence why would he waste time taking care of Dai Gang¡¯s home?" the Holy Emperor continued.

    "Can I go back now?" Red Devil asked bluntly.

    "No, not yet." The Holy Emperorughed bitterly.

    Red Devil looked straight at the Holy Emperor. Under his ice-cold mask, his eyes were as clear as water.

    With a deep voice, the Holy Emperor continued, "I want you to go to the Windy Pearl Defensive Line and stabilize the situation there."

    "No, I¡¯m not going," Red Devil replied bluntly.

    The Holy Emperor wasn¡¯t angry. He added, "Until now, there has been no news of Nangong Wulian and Ye Baiyi. I¡¯m afraid their situations are bleak. That ce doesn¡¯t have a leader now, and I need someone to stabilize the situation there. The current situation is tooplicated and she is still too young to handle it. Chi Tong has revived and he will definitely target She Yu because she has the God¡¯s Blood in her body."

    "No, I¡¯m not going."

    If it was another person who behaved like this, the Holy Emperor would have pped him or her to smithereens. However, when it came to Red Devil, the Holy Emperor wasn¡¯t angry at all. He said with a patient tone, "If Nangong Wulian dies, Beast Venom Temple will be paralyzed."

    Red Devil raised his head abruptly. "What about Fairy¡¯s medicine?"

    When Fairy was found, her body was gravely injured. Nangong Wulian used blood refinement to restore her body. However, too many of her body parts needed to be restored. In order to maintain her life, Nangong Wulian had tried various secret arts on her body. This caused her to suffer from many illnesses that required her to take special medicines at certain times.

    With a serious tone, the Holy Emperor continued, "I¡¯m currently choosing a new pce master for the Beast Venom Temple. If anything happens to Nangong Wulian, there¡¯s still a recement. There¡¯s no need for you to worry about the medicines, Nangong Wulian has already prepared a stock of medicine for Fairy. I want you to go there just in case something serious happens. It¡¯s best that nothing happens to Nangong Wulian. Otherwise, it will be very troublesome to assign a new pce master to the Beast Venom Temple at this critical juncture.

    "Alright, I will go."

    Red Devil¡¯s reply was very clear-cut.

    The Holy Emperor wasn¡¯t surprised by Red Devil¡¯s reply. He knew that Red Devil would go through water and tread on fire for the little princess of the Fairy Devil Pce without even knitting his eyebrows.

    "The current situation there is veryplicated. All you need to do is stabilize the situation. I also don¡¯t know what Chi Tong will no that he is revived. However, he will definitely look for She Yu to get her God¡¯s Blood. The Assembly of Patriarchs will definitely approach Chi Tong as well, as they have been waiting for this day for a very long time. A formidable individual was born in the Sky Leaf Division, and I reckon that he will get involved in the chaos as well. You have to be careful; all you need to do is stabilize the situation and prevent the remaining god divisions from getting ughtered."

    Suddenly, both of them raised their heads abruptly. They could sense a terrifying wave of elemental energy undtions.

    When both of them stepped out of themander¡¯s tent, they saw streaks of brightly colored brilliance in the horizon, resembling a gorgeous rainbow.

    That happened to be the direction of the Windy Pearl Defensive Line.

    "Grandmaster?" Red Devil asked.

    The Holy Emperor squinted his eyes and replied, "Yes, Grandmaster." His face did not look so good.

    Even though the soaring, bloody glow, the sonorous sword chime, and the white glow from Skyheart City were extraordinary, they were stillcking in might in the Holy Emperor¡¯s eyes. He considered those individuals that caused these phenomenons to be merely pseudo-Grandmasters.

    However, these elemental energy undtions were obviously released by someone that was on the level of Grandmaster.

    "Hmm, these energy undtions contain all five types of elemental energy... Could it be the Assembly of Patriarchs? No, it can¡¯t be. It¡¯s that bunch of people at Skyheart City! No, it can¡¯t be. How is it possible that they produced someone so powerful? Is it possible that a genius was born?" the Holy Emperor mumbled to himself. His facial expression kept on changing.

    Red Devil remained silent. He looked at the propagating streaks of brilliance in the horizon, somewhat in a daze.

    Windy Pearl Defensive Line... The elementalists...

    Ai Hui, Duanmu Huanghun, Shi Xueman... One by one, these names shed across his mind.

    A look of agony appeared in his limpid eyes. Soon after, his eyes regained rity once more.

    The Holy Emperor, who had been muttering to himself, suddenly widened his eyes, looking as though he had thought of something. "Something¡¯s not right! It¡¯s Chi Tong!"

    His words captured Red Devil¡¯s attention. Red Devil wasn¡¯t a blood elementalist by birth, so he was unfamiliar with this word. However, he could tell that His Majesty feared Chi Tong more than anyone else. This was the first time he saw such a fearful look on His Majesty¡¯s face. His Majesty never had such a look on his face when he was talking about Dai Gang and Le Buleng.

    "Who is Chi Tong?" Red Devil asked.

    The Holy Emperor returned to his senses and looked around at this surroundings. Then he replied, "Go in first and we will talk."

    Both of them entered themander¡¯s tent and sat down again. Following which, the Holy Emperor told Red Devil everything about Chi Tong¡¯s history.

    Red Devil widened his eyes as he was dumbstruck.

    All along, he thought events like the revival of an ancient demonic god would only happen in legends. He did not expect it to happen in this world at this era. Furthermore, he might have to face him in the future. One could imagine how shocked he was.

    When the Holy Emperor saw the shocked look on Red Devil¡¯s face, he couldn¡¯t help but burst outughing. It was incredibly hard for him to see such a facial expression from his favorite general.

    Even though Ye Baiyi was a near-perfectmander-in-chief, the Holy Emperor still preferred Red Devil.

    Red Devil never knew how to conceal his emotions or express his deference to the Holy Emperor. He was a quiet individual thatcked ambition. However, he was someone that valued loyalty and honored the promises he made. He wouldn¡¯t agree to anything hastily. Once he agreed to something, he would brave through all kinds of dangers to achieve it. He also wouldn¡¯t give up easily.

    "Many people have targeted Chi Tong. Once this news is spread, no one will be able to resist this temptation. [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] is a supreme absolute art that allows one to revive indefinitely. Chi Tong has just revived, and right now he is at his weakest form. It is also the best chance to seize him. The Assembly of Patriarchs and Skyheart City will be targeting him."

    Red Devil could not help but sit up straight. He finally understood how troublesome the situation that he had to deal with was.

    The Holy Emperor chuckled and continued, "Don¡¯t worry, as long as you bide your time, no one will find trouble for you. That¡¯s because they have amon enemy now."

    "Who?"

    "Le Buleng," the Holy Emperor sneered. "Le Buleng is going to die soon and he is the most anxious person that wants to get hold of Chi Tong. Now that [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] is right in front of him, why would he give it up? No matter powerful the rest are, they are only pseudo-Grandmasters. Le Buleng is a legitimate Grandmaster."

    "Doesn¡¯t Your Majesty desire the [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness]?" Red Devil suddenly asked.

    "Me?" The Holy Emperor burst outughing and replied, "I want a different thing from them. They want [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], but I don¡¯t want it. Hmm, what¡¯s the point of defying thew of nature and having the ability to revive indefinitely? All I want is Chi Tong¡¯s secret to blood refinement."

    "Chi Tong¡¯s secret to blood refinement?"

    "Chi Tong was born out of pure will, but he was able to create a physical body. The method he used to achieve this is incredulous. Our blood refinement technique pales inparison to Chi Tong¡¯s. Reportedly, Chi Tong used the blood of ten thousand beasts to form his physical body. The blood was so poisonous that his body couldn¡¯t take it and copsed bit by bit every night. Because of this, Chi Tong howled in anguish for three years before devising a unique blood refinement technique to create his physical body. Eventually, he did create a peerless physical body. Everyone knows of the existence of the God¡¯s Blood, but they don¡¯t know that it begins with Ten Thousand Beasts¡¯ Blood. Without the body of God, how can there be God¡¯s Blood? Subsequently, Chi Tong severed his karmic rtionship with his physical body for the sake of his reincarnation. His physical body became an immortal armor, but it was lost in the end. What a pity."

    "Can his blood refinement technique cure Fairy?" Red Devil suddenly asked again.

    "Of course, it can give your Fairy a new body," the Holy Emperorughed and answered Red Devil¡¯s question.

    Red Devil stood up from his seat and said, "I will set off tomorrow."

 Chapter 695: A True Blood Elementalist

    Chapter 695: A True Blood Elementalist

    Trantor: YH Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Wisps of ck fog emerged from all over Ai Hui¡¯s body and made their way down his fingertips into She Yu¡¯s beating heart.

    The lively heart beat faster and faster as it devoured the ck fog like a hungry animal. After consuming arge amount of it, the heart started to beat slower but stronger. The heartbeat now sounded more like a bass drum being mmed hard.

    The dense, ck fog surrounding Ai Hui thinned out quite a bit. His body was once again visible.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body suddenly shook.

    She Yu¡¯s beating heart stopped in apparent shock, but continued beating after one breath. It became much faster and stronger, like a wild beast hunting down its prey.

    Beneath the lingering ck fog, Ai Hui remained utterly still. His bare skin waspletely devoid of color and looked pale and sickly. Like a bolt out of the blue, a single blue vein popped out. The vein wriggled like a tiny earthworm that was desperately trying to break out from under his skin. More and more blood vessels began to protrude, turning his body into a mass of gulches. It was a fairly terrifying sight to behold.

    Crack, crack, crack.

    The bones in his body seemed to be groaning under a crushing grip.

    Blood vessels were fast bing visible all over his body. His cheeks, forehead, and even the corners of his eyes were crawling with "earthworms". Ai Hui was not exactly handsome, but his face looked terribly gruesome at this moment.

    His body was trembling uncontrobly, as if a thousand monsters were wreaking havoc inside it.

    One of his cheeks split open with a pop. Blood seeped out of the wound to form a fine blood trace along his cheek.

    This first popping sound seemed to act like some sort of signal.

    Pop, pop, pop. Blood traces started to appear all over his body, as if an invisible scalpel was making surgical incisions on it.

    The fine blood traces were densely scattered like a red spider web.

    Ai Hui¡¯s densely covered face had an expression of pain stered over it. His mouth opened wide, but not a single sound came out of it.

    His eyes started to fog over and his pupils were the color of muddy water. The muddiness in his eyes swiftly faded away, revealing two pupils that looked like almond-shaped citrine crystals. His eyes were unbearably cold, reminiscent of the cold stares of snakes and felines.

    His jet ck hair grew at an rming rate, reaching his waist in a matter of seconds. His ten fingernails visibly grew into pitch ck ws.

    His newly developed ws dug deep into She Yu¡¯s heart. Her heart was seemingly indestructible, maintaining its function despite its loss of shape.

    A metallic liquid oozed out of the blood traces that covered Ai Hui¡¯s body. They flowed down his body, forming armor scales. They piled onyer byyer around Ai Hui¡¯s body and glistened brightly in the sun.

    Ai Hui¡¯s premonition was very urate.

    "This is no great secret. Blood spiritual force is poisonous, and the body repels all kinds of poisons. But once these sluices are open, the body bes a defenseless castle. It will then wee blood spiritual force with open arms, and you¡¯ll be a true blood elementalist if you manage to survive this without exploding! Look forward to it!"

    The churning ck fog became even thinner, but the malicious words never stoppeding.

    "Please overlook the resulting ugly appearance. Why did I amalgamate Ten Thousand Beasts¡¯ Blood to forge the ultimate physical body? I wanted tobine the strong points and the essences of all of them. The sharpest fangs, far-seeing eyes, imprable skin, and limbs that could crush mountains. Oh, and the soul of a sword embryo."

    "Such a thing of beauty!"

    "Oh, do not concern yourself with those half-baked blood elementalists. You will be a true blood elementalist, one with an insatiable thirst for fresh blood and an unappeasable hatred for elemental energy. You will put them all to shame."

    "When your belovedpanions pour their hearts out in front of you, all you will be able to think about is how alluring they smell. Oh, and all you will want to do is to devour them; your body will tremble with excitement as you imagine how delightful their flesh will be. Devour them, devour everyst bit of flesh and blood in them. You¡¯ll be together with them, forever and ever."

    "Are you ready? Ai Hui."

    "It¡¯s time for you to be a true blood elementalist. This is my final gift to you. Hahaha..."

    Chi Tong¡¯s voice became weaker as the ck fog continued to thin. Despite that, his madness and brutality continued to linger in the wind.

    Ai Hui watched Chi Tong tenaciously until the voice disappeared along with thest wisp of smoke.

    Be a blood elementalist?

    Ai Hui was at a loss for what to do. How did he end up like this?

    He could hardly find the words to describe his present emotional state. Was he regretful? Nope, he did not feel regret. Not killing Chi Tong would have been the bigger mistake. If Chi Tong was willing to do anything just to destroy Ai Hui¡¯s consciousness, he was definitely capable of doing all kinds of malicious deeds.

    Ai Hui¡¯s survival instincts have always been strong, and he would always fight for a chance to live. When his friends¡¯ lives were concerned, however, Ai Hui was more than willing to give up his life.

    He had been straddling the line between life and death ever since he entered the Wilderness.

    He had a thirst for life, but was undisturbed by death.

    Fate was a ridiculous thing. In spite of everything, he was actually going to end up as a blood elementalist. All that hatred, all that fighting, everything was going to be for naught.

    He found it hard to ept this.

    Perhaps death was an escape.

    This thought was immediately washed away by the severe pain that followed. The feeling flooded his entire body, wracking him in pain.

    The darkness in She Yu¡¯s eyes subsided and they regained rity after thest bit of ck fog vanished.

    Upon regaining consciousness, She Yu struggled to open her eyes against the blinding light. It took quite a while before her eyes adjusted to the brightness.

    In front of her was a monster that she had never seen before.

    Its entire body was covered in scales. The sun¡¯s rays reflecting of these scales were what blinded her. It had waist-length hair that draped over its body like a waterfall and moved nimbly in the wind. For some reason, the monster¡¯s hair reminded her of a writhing bunch of snakes.

    The monster¡¯s body wasrge and sturdy, with arms the size of regr people¡¯s thighs. Needless to say, its thighs were out of this world. With hands the size of palm leaf fans, She Yu thought it looked a lot like an ape dire beast. Nails as sharp as daggers lined its fingertips, ready to slice open human flesh in an instant.

    One of those "daggers" was pressing against her heart.

    Was this Chi Tong¡¯s true body?

    She Yu¡¯s mind shuddered. Had her final struggle failed as well?

    She was slightly disappointed.

    At thest moment, she had ced all her hope on this heart of dubious origin. While she was out, she felt as if the heart had consumed something.

    She thought she had won, but it appeared otherwise.

    No, not yet.

    She noticed that Chi Tong¡¯s eyescked focus. She Yu smiled bitterly when she realized that her heart had done its job. She would have been dead otherwise.

    Regardless, she was still alive.

    She tried to remove the finger that was stabbing her heart, but then she realized that it would not budge no matter how hard she tried. Chi Tong¡¯s arm felt like it was cast in bronze.

    All she could do was shift her body through clenched teeth and attempt to crawl away. Her beating heart gave her strength. She knew that the heart had undergone some changes, but now was not the time to look into it. The ck fingernail scratched her heart as she moved, and the sharp pain made her gasp.

    Ai Hui... Is he dead?

    Blood swords had silently appeared at the critical moment to block off arge portion of the impact. Her entire body would have been reduced to dust if not for that.

    She finally broke away from Chi Tong¡¯s body and stood up. Her grievous injuries made her move weirdly. The extensive injuries she suffered were a ghastly sight, but for some reason, she did not feel any pain.

    She fixed her gaze on the monster that stood motionless like a statue. She could feel an enormous amount of blood spiritual force within its body.

    Ai Hui, he¡¯s dead.

    The monster before her felt nothing like Ai Hui.

    Aplex emotion arose within her.

    They were enemies, rivals, people belonging to two opposing camps. Ai Hui was a weakling the first time they met in Central Pine City. Ai Hui¡¯s exceptional improvement rate led She Yu to notice his shocking potential and innate skill. That was why she imnted [Life and Death Flower Sacrificial Art] in him. That was only the beginning of Ai Hui¡¯s legend. She Yu was thrown into a state of chaos when their positionster reversed.

    She Yu admired and respected Ai Hui a little.

    Ai Hui is dead, his legend has ended.

    She would have merely sighed and felt a tinge of pity if she had only been a spectator of his tale. There was nothing shameful about dying at the hands of a powerful demonic god.

    But she was saved by him at the critical juncture...

    The blood within the monster¡¯s body was churning angrily, so much so that She Yu could feel its blood spiritual force surging from a distance away. She did not have the ability to kill it in her current state. Furthermore, it was about time for her to leave. The monster would wake up once its blood spiritual force had settled down.

    She sensed that Chi Tong hadpleted his resurrection.

    Ai Hui did not leave anything behind.

    She Yu noticed something from the corner of her eye. Bending down like a puppet with stiff joints, she reached into the ashes and grabbed something.

    A blood sword.

    Its de had lost all luster and it was no longer as sharp as before. Deep-set cracks could be seen all over its body.

    She scrutinized the blood sword carefully.

    A keepsake.

    She raised her head and stared at the monster, her eyes brimming with a strong desire for vengeance. Without hesitation, She Yu left the scene.

    I may not be able to kill Chi Tong now, but one day I¡¯ll present him as a sacrifice to your blood sword.

 Chapter 696: Blood Elementalistsâ€™ Secret Art

    Chapter 696: Blood Elementalists¡¯ Secret Art

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    "Ai Hui is gone."

    Hong Rongyan stared at the undting colorful ripples in the distance, slightly dazed.

    Autumn Water¡¯s y dollid on Hong Rongyan¡¯s shoulder and asked dispiritedly, "What do you mean by ¡¯gone¡¯? I thought he was gone all along."

    Fu Sisi¡¯s self-destruction had damaged Autumn Water¡¯s body terribly. Right now, she was feeling extremely angry. Every time she encountered Ai Hui, something bad was bound to happen to her. Previously, Ai Hui almost destroyed her mind. This time around, he caused her body to be severely damaged. Initially, she still thought she could seek revenge.

    "Previously, Chi Tong merely suppressed his consciousness. Now he was officially obliterated by Chi Tong," Hong Rongyan replied inly.

    "Why?" Autumn Water still didn¡¯t quite get what was going on.

    "That¡¯s because only the legitimate [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] possesses such might," Hong Rongyan answered.

    Upon hearing these words, a fearful look shed across the face of the middle-aged man that was standing beside Hong Rongyan with his head lowered respectfully. The revival of an ancient demonic god was already very terrifying. A demonic god that had regained his strength fully was even more terrifying than that.

    "Does that mean Chi Tong has returned to his peak form?" Autumn Water stammered.

    She began to feel scared now.

    The energy undtions reminded her of the battle of Grandmasters at Jadeite Forest. The Assembly of Patriarchs had been studying Chi Tong for a very long time. They clearly understood that the level of Grandmaster wasn¡¯t Chi Tong¡¯s ultimate goal.

    The Assembly had created many weapons that could be used to "hunt" Chi Tong. but nobody knew whether or not they would really work.

    "No." Hong Rongyan was very calm, appearing as though he had anticipated this turn of events. "Destroying Ai Hui¡¯s consciousness could only release the might of [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], its impacts on us are still very limited. His weakness lies in his physical body."

    ""Physical body?"

    Hong Rongyan nodded and continued, "That¡¯s right. Right now, the physical body that Chi Tong possessed is Ai Hui¡¯s. It¡¯s absolutely impossible for him topletely blood-refine it overnight. Chi Tong¡¯s attainment in blood refinement might be peerless, but Ai Hui¡¯s body is far too weak. Even if he possesses the God¡¯s Blood, it will still take a long time to fully blood-refine it. If Chi Tong tries to do it by force, either the body explodes, or..."

    Suddenly, Hong Rongyan froze and went into a daze.

    "Or what?" Autumn Water blurted out.

    Hong Rongyan returned to his senses and continued, "Or he bes a monster."

    "A monster?"

    "That¡¯s right. When I was studying Chi Tong, I realized that the God¡¯s Blood is actually made up of the blood of ten thousand beasts. But why was the body that Chi Tong forged humanoid instead of animaloid? Chi Tong was born out of pure will. Therefore, he doesn¡¯t care about whether his body is humanoid or animaloid. However, when he forged his body, he decided to make it humanoid without any hesitation. Hence, I havee up with a conjecture..."

    Autumn Water felt as though there was a cat gnawing on her heart. She quickly asked, "What¡¯s your conjecture?"

    "A humanoid body is really the ultimate state of blood refinement," Hong Rongyan replied.

    "A humanoid body is really the ultimate state of blood refinement..." Autumn Water muttered to herself.

    "Yeah," Hong Rongyan continued, "Subsequently, I coincidentally read in a book that there were a few times where Chi Tong transformed into a monster after he forged his body. The monster looked neither humanoid nor animaloid. It consisted of characteristics from many different beasts, and it looked different each time. I called it [Monsterification]. It¡¯s only after Chi Tong seeded in developing a peerless blood refinement technique and stabilized his physical body that this phenomenon never urred again. Think about it, after a blood elementalist awakens his or her ancestral mark, he or she disys the characteristics of a certain beast. Can you see that they are very alike?"

    The y doll on his shoulder was biting its palms. Then it tilted its head and asked, "Now that you mentioned it, it does seem like it."

    "If Chi Tong transforms into a monster, it is actually our best chance to capture him," Hong Rongyan continued.

    The y doll¡¯s eyes lit up. "Why? Is it because he would be overwhelmed by the brutal nature of the beasts?"

    Hong Rongyan shook his head and replied, "No, but rather, he would be overwhelmed by the different beast natures. The God¡¯s Blood is made from the blood of ten thousand different beasts. Every one of these beasts has a different nature. Their natures sh with each other terribly and intensely, but Chi Tong was able to suppress it through an unknown method. However, once [Monsterification] happens, he won¡¯t be able to suppress it anymore and the different natures of the ten thousand beasts would overwhelm him. Even [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] will be suppressed and sealed by this phenomenon, causing Chi Tong to lose his rationality."

    "I see!" Realization dawned upon Autumn Water¡¯s y doll. Suddenly, she asked with doubt again, "Does this mean that the training system of Blood of God¡¯s blood elementalists is wed?"

    "That¡¯s right," Hong Rongyan said, "Beast Venom Temple has always been so obsessed with creating new blood beasts because they want to find a breakthrough in this aspect. However, they have not made much progress."

    At this moment, a concentrated beam of bloody glow shot up into the sky, resembling a bloody sword that pierced through theyer of clouds!

    The colorful energy ripples in the sky behaved as though they had encountered their predator, spreading outwards and avoiding the bloody glow hastily. Following which, they disappeared like popped bubbles.

    Roar!

    A brutal and savage beast roar echoed across the air from the distance.

    The y doll was stunned. Then it stammered, "Don¡¯t tell... tell me... he has undergone [Monsterification]..."

    Hong Rongyan returned to his senses and replied anxiously, "Go!"

    .....

    In the darkness, a figure¡¯s chest was flickering with a red glow. He was standing there like a wooden stake, motionless. Whenever his chest lit up with the red glow, one could indistinctly see his chiseled jaw. His eyes were tightly shut and he had a nk look on his face.

    The red glow gradually dimmed.

    Suddenly, a group of figures appeared behind him and jumped on him, causing him to fall to the ground.

    "Got him!"

    "Faster,e and help!"

    "Grab hold of his legs!"

    "His other leg! Quick! Grab hold of it!"

    The sound of somebody falling to the ground and exasperated yells echoed through the air. Dust sprung up everywhere in the darkness. It was total chaos.

    A group of people was pressing Ye Baiyi against the ground. Some were pressing against his legs and some were pressing against his waist. All of them were panting heavily, but they did not dare to let loose the slightest bit. Everyone was covered in dirt, while Ye Baiyi was still sparkling clean. His white robe resembled the color of snow.

    A few days ago, Ye Baiyi was suddenly "reanimated" and his heart beat wildly while flickering with a red glow. Initially, everyone thought Ye Baiyi was not going to wake up. However, to their surprise, Ye Baiyi suddenly stood up straight and gave everyone a fright.

    During his days in the Avalon of Five Elements, Ye Baiyi was already incredibly powerful. Now he was even more powerful than before. The only person who could contend against him was Shi Beihai, but he had not fully recovered yet.

    Everyone knew something was wrong, but they behaved as though they were preparing for the arrival of a powerful enemy.

    Very soon, those who had sharp eyesight realized that Ye Baiyi¡¯s eyes weren¡¯t opened. However, before they could tell everyone this observation, Ye Baiyi suddenly jumped into the darkness like a spring. Everyone was dazed momentarily before chasing after him.

    Soon after, all of them realized that something was wrong with Ye Baiyi. His posture was exceptionally weird.

    His eyes were closed, his body was upright and rigid, his waist and legs were straight, and he was jumping forward like a spring.

    None of them had \ever seen such a weird scene, and they felt a cold shiver go down their spines. If Ye Baiyi had his arms raised horizontally, he would be no different from a jiangshi. Right now, he looked incongruous with the surroundings and he was extremely fast. Whenever he jumped, one could even hear the a whizz echoing through the air. The more terrifying thing was his destructive power. There were a few times where there was no path ahead of Ye Baiyi and yet he continued to jump forward and force out a path.

    He broke and jumped through the hard and sturdy rocks as though they were tofu. Thud, thud, thud. Ye Baiyi was like a human-shaped chisel, leaving a human-shaped hole on every rock wall that he jumped through. He could disappear into the midst of the rocks and crevices in the blink of an eye.

    There were numerous passageways, byways, and crevices, but nobody knew where they led to.

    If it weren¡¯t for Shi Beihai, they would have lost Ye Baiyi.

    After chasing Ye Baiyi for a few days, they finally caught up to him. Everyone was exhausted, but they did not dare to ck off. They continued to press him against the ground and resisted the terrifying strength that he exerted.

    Thump, thump, thump.

    Ye Baiyi¡¯s heartbeat was unusually loud and clear in the darkness.

    Gradually, the sound of his heartbeat softened. Those who were sharp could sense that the resisting forceing from Ye Baiyi was bing smaller.

    "It seems like he is not moving anymore."

    "Eh? He is really not moving anymore!"

    "Thank God! He finally stopped moving!"

    "Be careful. What should we do if he reanimates again?"

    Everyone began to talk at once.

    At this moment, Shi Beihai¡¯s gentle voice rang across everyone¡¯s ears. "Everyone, get up."

    Everyone behaved as though they had been granted an amnesty. After letting go of Ye Baiyi, all of them sprawled on the ground while panting heavily. They looked extremely miserable, as they had exerted so much strength in order to catch up to Ye Baiyi.

    And they weren¡¯t exaggerating.

    Ye Baiyi wasn¡¯t tired at all. Even though he had jumped and broke through boulders for a few days straight, his speed did not decrease at all. The underground world wasn¡¯t exactly a safe ce. There were various dangerous creatures lurking everywhere.

    The weird thing was that these creatures did not dare to provoke Ye Baiyi no matter how fearsome they were.

    What¡¯s worse, the person who roused them wasn¡¯t friendly at all.

    "Damn it, I¡¯m so tired! My legs are going to break soon!"

    "He is already so scary now; won¡¯t all of us be killed if he truly wakes up?"

    "Shut up! Don¡¯t jinx it!"

    Shi Beihai did not mind his subordinates¡¯ints. He already knew Ye Baiyi wasn¡¯t as dangerous as everyone else made him out to be. Initially, Ye Baiyi¡¯s "reanimation" did give Shi Beihai a fright; however, he soon discovered that something was amiss.

    Ye Baiyi looked as though he was being summoned by something...

    The sudden turn of events disrupted Shi Beihai¡¯s n. However, he was able to react quickly and he decided to follow Ye Baiyi. Ye Baiyi¡¯s behavior had confirmed his conjecture. Even though Ye Baiyi would make turns when he was advancing, he was still heading towards a particr direction.

    Shi Beihai was very curious. What was summoning him?

    Could it be a secret art of the blood elementalists?

    Shi Beihai did not think so. If it was really a secret art, why would the blood elementalists wait until now to use it? The person that worried the most about Ye Baiyi falling into the North Sea Division¡¯s hands would be the Holy Emperor.

    Ever since the Heart of God was imnted into Ye Baiyi¡¯s body, he had been behaving oddly.

    The red glow emitting from Ye Baiyi¡¯s heart had disappeared. He became silent like a corpse once again.

    Shi Beihai withdrew his gaze. Not only didn¡¯t the feeling of doubt in his heart disappear, but it became even stronger. Had Ye Baiyi arrived at his destination, or had that "something" stopped summoning him?

    Right now, all of them faced an important question: where were they now?

    Ye Baiyi seemed to have an extraordinary intuition towards the underground passageways. Furthermore, he was able to jump through boulders and proceed forward with an extreme speed. Shi Beihai reckoned that they were very far from away from their original position. However, there was no point in having a good sense of direction underground.

    What was waiting for them above the ground? Would it be friendly or hostile towards them?

    Shi Beihai made up his mind and instructed his subordinates, "We will rest here for ten hours first and then we will go up."

    His subordinates immediately stopped talking and the light-hearted look on their faces vanished without a trace.

    The dark, underground cavern became silent once more. The tired and bruised members of the North Sea Division were recuperating their strength.

 Chapter 697: A Dire Beast

    Chapter 697: A Dire Beast

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    "Lou Lan, are you alright?"

    "Lou Lan is alright."

    Lou Lan¡¯s tone was the same as usual, setting everyone¡¯s mind at ease. Lou Lan¡¯s appearance for the past two days had scared everyone out of their wits. In the aspect of rtions with other people, nobody could be as good as Lou Lan; even Ai Hui wasn¡¯t as popr as Lou Lan.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eternal vigor was unrealistically beautiful in this brutal and exhausting era.

    "What happened?"

    "Lou Lan doesn¡¯t know either, it seems like there is somebody calling out to me."

    Suddenly, Lou Lan widened his eyes. "Below!"

    Immediately, Shi Zhiguang pushed his palm forward. Like a nimble swordfish, the Pinwheel Sword descended and pierced through the sea of clouds. In an instant, the Pinwheel Sword was engulfed by the sea of clouds. Pure white clouds skimmed past the Pinwheel Sword, giving off a mournful shrill.

    After passing through the sea of clouds, everyone was able to see what was ahead once more.

    Everyone heaved a sigh of relief as the ground appeared before their eyes.

    There was a huge pit on the verdant mountain range. On the charred ground of the huge pit, there were numerous potholes. The pit was extremely dazzling, resembling an ugly mark that was branded on a piece of gleaming, gorgeous mink fur.

    The potholes that were of various sizes were countless and they covered a distance of hundreds of miles.

    "Was this ce attacked by meteorites?"

    "Was it caused by a Grandmaster?"

    Every member of the Sword of Lightning was shocked. They swallowed their saliva with difficulty while staring at the ground.

    Lou Lan¡¯s eyes were flickering with a red glow. Suddenly, he jumped down from the Pinwheel Sword. The rest returned to their senses and quickly followed suit.

    There was a thick of grey ashes covering the ground too, and it was almost knee-deep. The faces of those who jumped down from the Pinwheel Sword turned slightly white. It was very hard for them to imagine how powerful an attack must be to create such a scene.

    Lou Lan bent down and extended his hand into the ashes.

    When he pulled his hand out, there was a fragment in his grasp. The rest turned around and looked at it.

    "It¡¯s a sword fragment... Ai Hui..."

    Everyone¡¯s faces turned deathly pale. Could it be...

    Suddenly, Lou Lan looked as though he had sensed something and turned around to look at one of the potholes.

    The next word he said put everyone on high alert immediately.

    "Who?"

    .....

    Where is this?

    The distant horizon was engulfed in a faint, orangish glow, looking as if it was on fire. The clouds above it were tinged with sunset hues. Thest trace of afterglow was abandoning the boundless sky as darkness began to embrace the vastnd.

    When Ai Hui regained his consciousness, he realized that he was floating in mid-air by himself.

    Before he could make sense of what was going on, an indescribable pain engulfed his body like a tidal wave. Ai Hui always felt that he had strong willpower, just like how he felt that his ability to endure pain was one of his few essential strengths that allowed him to strive in his cultivation despite hisck of genius.

    It¡¯s so painful...

    Ai Hui felt as though every muscle, every bone, and every blood vessel in his body was being ripped apart, shattered, and popped respectively.

    His endurance that he was intensely proud of copsed within a split second and he lost consciousness once again.

    His eyes that had just regained rity lost focus once more.

    A monster that had fish scales all over its body and long, hook-like fingers floated silently in the air, resembling a stationary, weightless statue.

    When thest trace of afterglow disappeared from the blue dome of heaven, darkness took control over the sky and the earth. Wind whizzed through the air and the temperature dropped rapidly. Little nocturnal creatures crawled out of their nests and brought vitality and energy to the night.

    Pop.

    One of the monster¡¯s arms suddenly exploded and blood violently spurted out of its wound.

    In the wind, the blood became a cloud of bloody mist that flew thirty meters beforending on the ground.

    When the cloud of bloody mistnded on the ground, the grass on the ground withered rapidly. Within seconds, the verdant underbrush became deathly white in color. As the faint bloody mist seeped into the bodies of the bugs in the underbrush, the bugs froze and then exploded with a pop.

    Pop, pop, pop. The bodies of the bugs in the underbrush kept on exploding.

    Even though the impact of the bugs¡¯ explosions wasn¡¯t really significant, it was strong enough to turn the withered, deathly white nts into white-colored powder that disappeared along with the wind.

    The body of the monster in the sky was undergoing violent changes. It looked as though there were countless snakes wriggling under its glistening fish scales. Under the faint starlight, the scene was extremely horrifying.

    Pop. Another part of its body exploded again, releasing another cloud of bloody mist into the air.

    However, the next moment, the flesh at its badly mangled wound wriggled and regenerated with a visible speed. In the blink of an eye, the wound was healed. It looked as good as before without any scar.

    Various parts of the monster¡¯s body kept on exploding, healing, and growing.

    During this process, the monster¡¯s shape was silently transforming.

    All this time, the monster¡¯s figure did not move; it looked as though it had died.

    Suddenly, its dazed, almond-shaped pupils regained focus and an ice-cold, dangerous aura filled its eyes. Following which, it disappeared.

    .....

    Under the night sky, two figures were flying through the air like two huge birds. They weren¡¯t flying very high, thus allowing them to scan the ground for their target.

    However, until now they were still empty-handed.

    "Is it possible that Vice Leader Fu has already died?"

    "Most likely. Only the Sky Leaf Division¡¯s members know how to execute that move."

    "Maybe not. Wasn¡¯t there a more terrifying self-destruction two days ago? That one was exactly like ours. Sir said that it is Chi Tong¡¯s [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness]. Chi Tong can imitate any move just by looking at it once."

    "Are you sure he is that scary? My hair is standing on end now!"

    "Yes, I¡¯m sure. Hey, he is an ancient demonic god after all. Who wouldn¡¯t be scared of him?"

    "What does Chi Tong look like? Sir¡¯s instructions aren¡¯t really clear. If we don¡¯t know what he looks like, how are we going to find him..."

    It was very easy for one to get tired after staring at the ground from such a height for so long.

    With an irritated tone, one of them said, "Why? I¡¯m just speaking the truth. Am I wrong to say that? If we don¡¯t know what Chi Tong looks like, how the hell are we going to find him? Finding a needle in a haystack is already incredibly tough. If we don¡¯t even know what the needle looks like, how will we find it..."

    "What is that?"

    His partner¡¯s light breathing jolted his mind. He quickly stopped whining and asked, "Where?"

    "Directly in front of us."

    Directly in front of them?

    The moonlight was bright and the sky was clear without any clouds. As such, they had an excellent view of the sky and they were able to spot their target quickly.

    Due to the long distance between them and the mass of shadow basking under the moonlight, they could only see its silhouette. They were sure that it wasn¡¯t a human, as it looked muchrger than a human.

    "Is it a dire beast?"

    "Let¡¯s take a look."

    After the outbreak of the blood catastrophe, the number of sightings of dire beasts had decreased sharply, especially the sightings of powerful dire beasts. It was as though they could intuitively sense danger and had fled to the depths of the Wilderness.

    The blood catastrophe was the prologue of a war. Even though the war thatsted several years had taken countless lives, it had spurred a great development in the elemental energy system. Under intense pressure, various new and efficient absolute arts and training methods emerged rapidly. The overall strength level of elementalists had increased dramatically since the outbreak of the blood catastrophe. This could be shown through the significant increase in the number of Masters.

    In the past, the dire beasts were the elementalists¡¯ nightmare. Now, the elementalists were at the top of the food chain.

    Both of them were very confident in their strength, but they were still on high alert. As they drew closer to the figure, they could gradually see what it was.

    Its body was roughly the size of a small hill and it had its back facing the moonlight. More than half of its body was covered in shadow. The outline of the shadow gave off a gleam of light, resembling clear and crystalline water ripples. This was caused by the fish scales reflecting the moonlight.

    "It seems like an ape-type dire beast, but I can¡¯t figure out which species it belongs to."

    There were countless types of dire beasts. Dire beasts of the same type had different breeding methods and evolution paths, causing them to have huge differences in their physical forms. Most of the time, the type of a dire beast could only be differentiated by humans after it died.

    When the two people realized that it was a dire beast, they felt at ease. Soon after, suspicion arose in their minds.

    "Something is amiss; why would a dire beast appear in this ce?"

    Just as the words resounded through the air, two scarlet glows appeared in the pitch-ck shadow. The dire beast had opened its eyes.

    "Be careful!"

    A strong sense of danger engulfed the two people. At this moment, both of them were like two cats with their hair standing on end. They reacted extremely fast and they were well-coordinated. They abruptly flew off in directions opposite to each other.

    The huge figure basking in the moonlight did not move. Its scarlet glowing eyes gradually dimmed.

    After separating in opposite directions, they both prepared tounch a two-pronged attack. Their facial expressions were solemn, looking as though they were preparing for a powerful enemy. They did not dare to lower their guard. The instant where the monster opened its eyes made them realize how dangerous it was.

    It was as though a motionless statue had started moving.

    Crack. The sound of a bone cracking echoed across the air.

    The monster raised its head slowly, appearing like an old man that had just woken up. Following which, it stretched its arms. The sound of bones cracking resounded through the air incessantly, making the two people wonder if the monster had a metallic bone structure beneath its ice-cold fish scales.

    The monster was subconsciously stretching its body. The sound of its bones cracking resembled the sound of beans being fried.

    The two members of the Sky Leaf Division had their foreheads covered in cold sweat. The air seemed to have frozen at this point in time and the two of them were extremely anxious. The more calm the monster appeared, the more pressured they felt.

    How could a dire beast give them so much pressure? If someone told them that they could be pressured by a dire beast in the past, they would have felt humiliated.

    The two of them looked at each other and saw fear and panic in each other¡¯s eyes.

    Since both of them were products of Master¡¯s Glory, they were telepathically connected and they had exceptional coordination. They knew what each other was thinking without having to talk.

    One of them reached out his palm and five elemental energy extended through his arm like intertwining vines. Following which, the five elemental energy transformed into a longbow that was brightly and colorfully lit. He had an ice-cold look on his face. After taking a breath, he ced three arrows on the bowstring and pulled the bowstring, preparing to shoot them as soon as he had umted enough power.

    And the other person suddenly disappeared.

    Boom!

    The bowstring gave off a thunderous boom. Three streaks of light shot through the air and exploded like the blossoming of a flower, drawing three perfect arcs in the sky. They were aimed at the monster¡¯s head, heart, and lower body.

    In the opposite direction, his partnerunched a surprise attack. He held a brightly colored sword in each of his hands, exuding an aura of death.

    At this point in time, he was less than 100 meters away from the monster and he could finally see the face of the monster clearly. When he saw the eyes of the monster, his heart thumped heavily as a premonition arose in his mind.

    The monster had a pair of limpid and indifferent eyes and its pupils were almond-shaped,pletely devoid of any warmth. For some reason, the monster¡¯s eyes reminded him of a deep and calm sea.

    The next moment, the monster disappeared right in front of his eyes.

 Chapter 698: Madam Yeâ€™s Plan

    Chapter 698: Madam Ye¡¯s n

    Trantor: TYZ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    As the sun rose from the horizon, a brilliant ray of golden glow streaked across the vastnd, illuminating Han Li, who was sitting cross-legged below a pine tree on the top of a mountain.

    After a while, Han Li opened his eyes and released the impure air in his thoracic cavity. A sword-shaped trace of white air whizzed through the air, vaguely giving off the sound of a sword chime. He stood up and bathed his body in the sunlight. He could feel a tinge of warmth in the crisp and cold air.

    He had a panoramic view of Skyheart City, which was situated at the foot of the mountain. The faint mist around the city had yet to disappear, resembling ayer of muslin.

    Every early morning was Han Li¡¯s best time to train. The time where night and day swapped and yin and yang fused helped him greatly to improve and enrich his sword consciousness. The mountain was quite far away from Skyheart City and it was peaceful and secluded. Every day, Han Li would reach the mountain peak four hours before sunrise and witness the swapping of daytime and nighttime.

    When the first trace of sunlight shone upon the vastnd, it implied Han Li¡¯s training for that day had ended.

    He stepped on the boulder lightly and vanished into thin air. A sword chime rang across the air as a white streak appeared in the sky. After a few seconds, the white streak was dispersed by the wind.

    Han Li was walking along a street in Skyheart City. At this point in time, Skyheart City had already woken up and there were many people on the street. Han Li could even see many load basin beasts forming up. Trade caravans always set off in the early morning to prevent any dy.

    Breakfast shops were also opened already. Spiralling, fragrant steam captivated the pedestrians¡¯ attention.

    Just like every day, Han Li arrived at his favorite breakfast shop.

    "Boss, a bowl of grasspig noodles please!"

    "Alright!"

    Han Li sat down at his usual seat. After a while, a bowl of steaming grasspig noodles was delivered to it. Beyond Avalon was developed from Wilderness. Thend that was once filled with countless dangers also gave the elementalists numerous unexpected gifts. Every day, new species and minerals were discovered, bringing about a huge impact on everyone¡¯s lives.

    Grasspigs were one of them.

    A grasspig was a small-sized pig that fed on grass. They could grow up to thirty catties at most and they ate arge variety of types of grass. Their flesh was fresh and tender, filled with rich wood elemental energy that wasrgely beneficial to elementalists¡¯ cultivation. When they were first discovered, their meat was extremely expensive and was considered a rare food ingredient. Their price dropped drastically only after a wood elementalist discovered a method that could rear grasspigs rapidly. Eventually, grasspig meat becamemonly used.

    Now the delicious grasspig meat could be found at any store.

    Han Li ate his grasspig noodles at ease. Every day at this moment, he would feel that the war at the front line was unimaginably far from him.

    As more and more cities in Beyond Avalon capitted to Skyheart City, more and more trade caravans and diplomatic missions surged into Skyheart City, making this ce increasingly prosperous. Horses, people, and carriages could be seen everywhere. The businesses in the city were flourishing as well. Even an ordinary individual could easily find a job these days.

    The newest mirage bean pod was being yed at the counter of the shop.

    "Breaking news. The battle of Grandmasters has ended. Dai Gang lost and Le Buleng has redeemed himself...

    "Jadeite Forest has no leader now and it¡¯s hard for Yu Mingqiu to achieve anything without support."

    "More than fifteen family heads presented a petition to beseech Madam Ye to ascend the throne. By unifying Beyond Avalon, Madam has surpassed all great men and women in the history of Avalon of Five Elements and she will be remembered for thousands of years. By popr demand, she is expected to ascend the throne of Beyond Avalon. Blood Nation has the Holy Emperor, Beyond has the Holy Phoenix..."

    Han Li continued to bury himself in his bowl of noodles. Recently, the topic of pushing Madam Ye to ascend the throne of Beyond Avalon had be quite hot.

    This was most likely fueled by Nian Tingfeng in the dark.

    After finishing the bowl of noodles and paying the bill, Han Li walked out of the shop with satisfaction. The wide street was bustling with activity at this point in time. The thing that caught everyone¡¯s attention in Skyheart City was the pir of white soaring through the sky. It was extremely spectacr. Looking from afar, it looked as though it was half the size of Skyheart City. Closer to the ground, the white light was extremely intense, so much so that it looked like it was made up of a solid material. Higher in the sky, its intensity decreased. The border of the pir of white light undted unsteadily, resembling an enormous and inextinguishable white me.

    That was where the Lake of Masters was.

    The white light had been there for a few days already. The citizens of Skyheart City were already used to it, but those on diplomatic missions that had just reached this ce were still amazed by it. They were stirred up and some of them even kneeled on the ground with tears flowing all over their faces.

    They finally had a new Grandmaster to protect them after the death of An Muda. The absence of a Grandmaster was the direct cause to the fall of the Avalon of Five Elements.

    They did not care how Skyheart City handled issues. The sense of security brought about by a Grandmaster was always irreceable.

    However, for some reason, Han Li felt that the white light today seemed slightly unstable.

    But he did not really care about this and withdrew his gaze. Then he headed for the Gong Residence. Peiyao should have woken up by now.

    The Lake of Masters was heavily guarded, with one guard every ten meters.

    Madam Ye was walking slowly by theke. Nian Tingfeng walked behind her while reporting to her. A few experts from the Sky Leaf Division surrounded them, maintaining a high level of vignce.

    "Where is the Sky Leaf Division now? Have they found Chi Tong?"

    "They have already reached the battle scene of Miss Fu and her subordinates and they are still searching for Chi Tong. We have also discovered traces of the Assembly of Patriarchs."

    "We can¡¯t let Chi Tong fall into the hands of the Assembly of Patriarchs, we definitely can¡¯t!"

    Nian Tingfeng shivered in fear. Madam Ye seldom used such a tone to speak. He knew Madam Ye was hiding something from him, but he did not reveal any emotions. He did not even hesitate to reply. "Yes!"

    Madam Ye remained silent for a while before saying, "Tell them, if they discover Chi Tong, don¡¯t do anything reckless. Observe him and wait for reinforcements."

    Nian Tingfeng understood what Madam Ye was trying to say. He cast a nce at the center of theke and replied, "Is Grandmaster Gu going?"

    "That¡¯s right," Madam Ye answered bluntly. "It¡¯s a great opportunity for us."

    "Likewise, it is the same for Blood of God and the Assembly of Patriarchs. Whoever catches Chi Tong gets thestugh."

    "Subordinate understands."

    The surface of theke was engulfed in an intense, white light. The white light was undting slowly, resembling white-colored burning mes. The aura of the white light was calm in nature, like a swirling gust of cool breeze. Nian Tingfeng did not feel pressured by it even though he was standing so close to it. However, he knew how scary the power that it contained was.

    Even if a sea was dead calm, one would not dare to underestimate its might.

    Madam Ye stared at the surface of theke and suddenly asked, "Does it look like the Silver Mist Sea?"

    "It¡¯s more powerful than the Silver Mist Sea. The Silver Mist Sea doesn¡¯t have a Grandmaster nor Madam Ye," Nian Tingfeng replied.

    Madam Ye gave him a smile. "You really know how to tter me. You¡¯re dismissed."

    Nian Tingfeng respectfully dismissed himself.

    Madam Ye continued to stroll along thekeside. After a while, she saw Ma Shiji, who was standing straight and upright like a bamboo pole by the side of theke.

    Ma Shiji had been waiting for Madam Ye for quite some time. When he saw her, he quickly stepped forward and greeted her. "Madam, everything has been prepared already."

    Madam Ye noticed the look of reverence in Ma Shiji¡¯s eyes. With satisfaction, she nodded and said, "Let it begin."

    "Madam, please." Ma Shiji stepped aside.

    Not far away from them, a five elemental lotus near the side of theke bloomed.

    Without any hesitation, Madam Ye stepped onto the lotus and sat down cross-legged. The petals of the lotus began to close slowly.

    After a while, the white light that erupted from theke¡¯s surface surged towards the lotus and engulfed it happily. The white light surrounding the lotus became increasingly intense, resembling a dazzling light orb.

    Envy shed across Ma Shiji¡¯s eyes. How lucky it was for her to be baptized by the primordial life force of a Grandmaster. Given Xiaobao¡¯s love for Madam Ye, Ma Shiji felt that the sess rate was very high.

    Madam has produced a good son!

    Ma Shiji had mixed feelings.

    He had doubts about this ce. From a long-term perspective, extracting primordial life force from Xiaobao before his base level stabilized was unfavourable towards his future development. The importance of a Grandmaster was obvious to everyone. Any damage done to a Grandmaster was uneptable.

    However, Xiaobao¡¯s primordial life force could only be absorbed by Madam Ye before his base level was fully stabilized. Once his base level stabilized, his primordial life force would be stabilized too and it couldn¡¯t be absorbed by anyone anymore.

    Simrly, Madam Ye was also very important.

    Ma Shiji was worried about another problem as well. If Xiaobao was injured, Madam Ye would be severely injured at least and would die at worst. Even an ordinary elementalist couldn¡¯t withstand the power of a Grandmaster that had yet to stabilize.

    Ma Shiji did not know why Madam Ye was so anxious, so much so that she was willing to risk her life.

    However, if Madam Ye could survive this...

    Ma Shiji was very nervous as he wasn¡¯t confident at all. After something unusual happened to Xiaobao, Madam Ye threw him a proposal. The proposal and its pages looked very old. There was no signature on it either. After he received this proposal, which was called [Grandmaster¡¯s Sacrifice], he was greatly shocked. The idea mentioned in the proposal was outrageous and brazen, causing him to tremble in fear.

    It mentioned how to extract a Grandmaster¡¯s power to nourish one¡¯s body.

    How could there be such an incredulous thing in the world?

    Grandmasters were so powerful, how could one imprison them? Furthermore, given the pride of a Grandmaster, why would he or she share his or her powers with anyone?

    Whoever came up with this idea must be crazy!

    This was Ma Shiji¡¯s first reaction. However, after he read it thoroughly, he was shocked by it. To his horror, he discovered that there was a chance of this idea seeding theoretically.

    The weird thing was, even if the n worked, Ma Shiji did not know what would happen to Madam Ye.

    He reckoned that the proposal Madam Ye gave him was iplete and that there should be more to it. This was a tremendous n. He was extremely curious about the missing contents, feeling as though there was a cat gnawing on his heart.

    He did not dare to ask as he was slightly afraid.

    That was because he suddenly realized that the five elemental lotus fitted the [Grandmaster¡¯s Sacrifice] perfectly. The five elemental lotuses were painstakingly devised by Ma Shiji.

    Is this a coincidence?

    Ma Shiji became increasingly scared and he did not dare to think too much about it. Eventually, he suppressed the fear within him, looked at the issue from a professional perspective, and improved the [Grandmaster¡¯s Sacrifice].

    He chose to extract the primordial life force because it was extremely valuable. Moreover, it wouldn¡¯t hurt Xiaobao and the risk Madam Ye had to take was much smaller. He felt that Madam Ye did not have to personally take part in battles like the Holy Emperor.

    With the presence of Xiaobao, even of the Holy Emperor arrived at Skyheart City, Madam Ye wouldn¡¯t have to do anything.

    I hope Madam and Xiaobao are safe and sound.

    Ma Shiji prayed in his heart.

 Chapter 699: Awakening and Conflict

    Chapter 699: Awakening and Conflict

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    It was Ai Hui¡¯s sixth time regaining consciousness.

    He felt as though he was being torn apart once more; the sensation bound him so tightly that he had to open his mouth wide to gasp for air. He could feel an inch of flesh tearing under his skin. It was tearing, regrowing, reorganizing, and tearing again in an endless cycle.

    His past five experiences had been very brief and he had woken up to immediate and immense pain each time. He could acutely sense that his window of consciousness was lengthening.

    He extended his hand, or rather sharp-as-a-hook w, and let out a bitterugh. If the others were to see him in this monstrous state, they would probably be beyond shocked.

    Was he still considered human?

    Ai Hui lost interest after some self-mocking. Chi Tong that he feared the most had upied his body and even harmed his people, something he could never forgive. The thing he was most worried about had not urred and he had managed to survive Chi Tong, so was there really anything for him toin about? Granted, he looked like a beast, but he would dly ept this consequence over anything else.

    I¡¯m part-human at least, he consoled himself.

    With that, he diverted his focus onto moving away from this unfamiliar beast¡¯s body.

    Ai Hui was an extremely disciplined person; his self-control was instinctive. Even if his window of consciousness was fleeting, his natural reaction was to attempt to gain control over his own body.

    He knew that his priority was to extend this window, but it really wasn¡¯t an easy feat.

    He felt dizzy and less sharp than usual. The pain in his body was a constant reminder that it would soon engulf and swallow him up.

    He looked around with a foreign and shockingly sharp vision and could easily spot the traces on the rocks from miles away. He could also clearly see a finger-thin spotted lizard hiding within the shadows.

    Where is this?

    He was in a boundless wilderness, surrounded by grit. The earth elemental energy was rich and heated. The heatwave rising from the ground warped the distant scenery into an overwhelming blur.

    At this point Ai Hui¡¯s ear twitched. He turned to look toward his left.

    There seemed to be people battling...

    He flew over, struggling and staggering along the way.

    .....

    Amid the barrenness, he noticed two groups of people facing one another in confrontational stances with swords and daggers drawn.

    The atmosphere was chillingly hostile as Xiao Buyu murderously sized his opponents up. The God Tiger Division, led by Shan Minxiong, proceeded to the front line as the elites of the Radiance Blood Division, led by Xiao Buyu, were in charge of tracking Ye Baiyi¡¯s location. If unsessful, they were to join She Yu as soon as possible.

    Xiao Buyu was feeling absolutely terrible. His mission, fraught with obstacles, almost convinced him that he had been possessed by an unlucky god. General Ye appeared to have vanished without a trace, and his task to join Her Highness had yet to progress. Initially, he could still locate the secret marks left behind by her, but those had disappeared midway.

    He searched around thest secret mark and noticed a battlefield in the process. It was filled with thousands of holes, each an evidence of a gruesome battle that had taken ce. In this battlefield, Xiao Buyu spotted a trace left behind by Her Highness¡¯s blood spiritual force. Apart from that, there was another kind of eye-grabbing trace ¨C one left behind by the five elemental energies.

    His heart jumped right out of his throat; he hadn¡¯t seen anything like this before, but ording to previous records, he could vaguely guess who the opponent was.

    These people before him validated his conjecture.

    The passion in Xiao Buyu¡¯s heart was set aze in that moment. "Sky Leaf Division!" he shouted through his gritted teeth.

    The traces left on the battlefield contained all five elemental energies, which were only possessed by the Assembly of Patriarchs and the recently established and enigmatic Sky Leaf Division.

    There was only one possibility ¨C Sky Leaf Division!

    Xu Jing was the head of the division. He had a calm personality and was well-liked within the division. The division leader, Gu Xiaobao, was still in seclusion, so he had to take over and assist Fu Sisi.

    Xu Jing had a great built. With broad shoulders and a big chest, he looked just like a door god. On top of a square face and copper skin, he possessed a gaze sharp as lightning and eyebrows dense as des. He looked intimidating even without trying.

    While taking a clear look at the fellows, he said in a deep voice, "So it¡¯s Xiao Buyu, the head of Radiance Blood Division."

    Despite it being a fire vs water situation, Xu Jing had no ns toplicate the issue. His priority was to locate Fu Sisi and not to get tangled with Radiance Blood Division. As he thought about how to get away, he heard a coldughtering from Xiao Buyu.

    "Kill! Spare no one!"

    A bright light shed across Xu Jing¡¯s eyes. Throwing all distracting thoughts to the back of his mind, he yelled cooly, "You¡¯re courting death!"

    A bloody battle broke out.

    .....

    Ai Hui followed the battle¡¯s sounds, but the moment he moved, he sensed something amiss.

    His vision blurred and he vanished from the spot. Before he could react, the ground magnified within his field of vision. Right in the center of his sight was a rock that as tall as a few menbined, and the traces on it were extremely familiar. Exposed to strong sunlight, the rock emitted clearly visible heat waves that looked like transparent, billowing waves.

    Wait... wasn¡¯t that the rock he had just seen a moment ago?

    Ai Hui¡¯s already muddled brain couldn¡¯t react in time, so he could only look on as the rock continued magnifying. The little spotted lizard hiding in the shadows raised its head. Looking at the figure that had appeared suddenly, it was equally taken aback.

    They exchanged sluggish nces.

    Like a meteor, Ai Hui mmed straight onto the solid rock with his eyes open since he couldn¡¯t close them in time.

    Pop!

    A bottomless hole appeared on the rock in an instant. It was like a heated drill had bore a hole through a lump of frozen fat.

    The spotted lizard turned its neck in confusion as the figure disappeared again. Had its eyes yed a trick?

    Pop!

    The ground three hundred meters away exploded and endless dirt and gravel shot up into the air. The force was so intense that the raised soil and rocks produced a ck wave that was over thirty meters tall.

    Hu! A towering figure appeared far away followed by a loud gush as the ck wave started surging.

    The raised dirt and rocks rained down at this point.

    A rainstorm took over the wilderness as the debris hit the rock, crackling and rattling incessantly. Startled, the spotted lizard slid into a crack of the rock.

    In midair, Ai Hui was unable to control his own movement.

    Initially, he was shocked too, but he was quickly pleased to find that on top of being unhurt from the massive impact, the searing pain in every corner of his body seemed to have faded a little.

    This discovery excited him and snapped him out of his daze.

    The widespread pain was causing him to be on the verge of copsing. ording to past experiences, he would soon fade into this boundless agony.

    Now that he had identally discovered a way to reduce the pain, Ai Hui dove down without hesitation.

    Bang!

    The moment he smashed into the soil, a formless ripple spread rapidly. The ground within a 150 feet radius became soft as water as the ripple continued to expand in a visible speed.

    The next moment, more soil and rocks formed another ck wave, ten times as powerful asst time, that rocketed high into the sky. It looked like a ck pir that was holding the sky in ce.

    Boom, yet another ck wave shot up into the air miles away.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body wasn¡¯t amid the pir-like wave. He appeared spotless in the air, about thirty feet away from the wave. The striking ck wave had be a backdrop for him.

    He shook his head and his ckened eyes immediately regaining some clearness.

    He gathered his remaining soberness and inhaled deeply before diving down once more.

    .....

    The battle between the Sky Leaf and Radiance Blood Divisions was evenly-matched and aggressive to say the least.

    The members of the Sky Leaf Division possessed skills that baffled Xiao Buyu. Despite there being only twenty of them, none wasn¡¯t a Master elementalist. Plus, their abilities far exceeded those of average Masters. The battle progressed ambiguously with great powers involved and splendid colors apanying them. Meeting force with force, it came as a shock that the Radiance Blood Division wasn¡¯t able to gain any advantage.

    It wasn¡¯t Xiao Buyu¡¯s first time experiencing something like this.

    Within a brief period of time, the Radiance Blood Division had lost over ten elites.

    What he didn¡¯t know was that his opponents were suffering as well. Sky Leaf members were capable but had inadequate battle experiencepared to the veterans in Radiance Blood. Xu Jing felt as though they had fallen into a quicksand, and it was indescribably unendurable.

    Even after taking down over ten members, the remaining soldiers of Radiance Blood weren¡¯t suffering from serious injuries.

    What Xu Jing feared more was the fact that Xiao Buyu seemed to have found a way to deal with them. He could unquestionably feel the pressure building up. It was incorporeal yet bing forcefully binding. The radiant tigers beneath Xiao Buyu had acute senses and telepathic abilities. Many a times they had managed to dodge most of his killer moves, which made him feel as though he had thrown punches at a pile of cotton.

    Xu Jing felt rather anxious. This couldn¡¯t go on!

    ording to the current situation, their elemental energy would be exhausted before getting rid of the opponents. When that happened, they would be like chickens on a ughter table, with no chance of escaping. The Bluster Blood Division was good at sudden bursts of attack, while the Radiance Blood Division was good with long-range raids, speed, and endurance.

    This won¡¯t work. We have to speed up!

    Xu Jing was determined to execute his killer move.

    Just then, a sound traveled from the distance and all the battlers present sensed it simultaneously.

    Rumble, rumble, rumble...

    Thunder?

    Xiao Buyu and Xu Jing raised their heads in unison. Not a single cloud was spotted in the piercingly hot sky, so how could the sound be thunder?

    Then...

    The rumblings became increasingly distinct and loud.

    They wereing this way!

    Once again Xiao Buyu and Xu Jing looked up toward the source.

    There was no need to fly up, since the vast and unobstructed field fell right into their field of vision.

    All of a sudden, the leveled and smooth horizon pulsed a little.

    It was a very small movement, but all the keen battlers never could¡¯ve missed it.

    What followed after was an astonishingly frequent and increasingly obvious throbbing of the horizon. After some time, Xu Jing and Xiao Buyu managed to make out what the throbbing was ¨C balls of soil exploding into the sky.

    What are those...

    The exploded dust waves became visibly clearer and more resounding. The waves surged into their sight, as if an invisible giant was striding toward them.

    Xiao Buyu and Xu Jing¡¯s faces changed instantly. They had no idea what those things were, but they could sense that they were fatally dangerous!

    They could no longer care about the battle as they roared simultaneously.

    "Enemy iing! Radiance Blood Division, retreat!"

    "Beware! Sky Leaf Division, withdraw!"

 Chapter 700: Disturbance

    Chapter 700: Disturbance

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    About 10 kilometers away, two blurry figures surfaced in the sky. They were surrounded by ayer of peculiar airflow, akin to a transparent eggshell. Through theyer, two familiar silhouettes, Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water, could be seen.

    Autumn Water¡¯s injuries had yet to heal, so she appeared rather dispirited and had on a dull expression. As usual, she remained motionless like a statue. The y doll, which was initially on her shoulder, was now sitting on Hong Rongyan¡¯s. In spite of its unrefined face, the puppet moved vividly and even cried out asionally.

    "How amazing!"

    "The Radiance Blood Division is so strong."

    Hong Rongyan looked on indifferently, as if he couldn¡¯t hear anything. The eggshell-shaped airflow around him was a Concealment Orb. It could screen off and iste their breaths, allowing them to camouge into any environment.

    The y doll crooked her head. "Should we take this chance to rob them?"

    "Are your injuries healed?" Hong Rongyan asked.

    "No," the y doll answered, somewhat crestfallen.

    She knew that it was a sign for them to sit still. She wasn¡¯t even allowed toe initially and was told to rest, but under Autumn Water¡¯s desperate harassment, Hong Rongyan had conceded, much to her surprise.

    She wasn¡¯t one to defy her boss. Even if he had looks more beautiful than a woman¡¯s, his heart was harder than steel.

    Her focus was quickly snatched by Radiance Blood¡¯s performance. Having battled with the Sky Leaf Division, she understood that these "man-made Masters" were not forces to be trifled with. In fact, she had expected to witness a one-sided battle.

    While the injuries inflicted were on the Radiance Blood Division, those with a discerning eye could tell that victory was on its side.

    Autumn Water stayed alert.

    Skyheart City¡¯s Master¡¯s Glory was a sess, as evident from the set up of the Sky Leaf Division. Gu Xiaobao was undergoing another breakthrough and was in the process of bing a Grandmaster. The Assembly of Patriarchs was finally reaping results. Hong Rongyan¡¯s [Self-illuminating Devil Core] and her [Pure Fusion Elemental Body] made them rise in the power rankings.

    Needless to say, there was Le Buleng¡¯s victory over Dai Gang and the rebirth of Chi Tong, an ancient magic.

    Within a short time, the state of the world had overturned. This inevitably led to Autumn Water¡¯s belittling of the traditional influences. It was unfathomable that the Radiance Blood Division, with less than a hundred fighters, could maintain control against twenty Sky Leaf elementalists.

    Elites indeed!

    She was clear that Radiance Blood Division¡¯s abilities paled significantly inparison to the Sky Leaf elementalists¡¯, but they were better at coordination, had a resolute will to battle, and possessed exquisite military strategies. Overall, the Sky Leaf Division relied on individual strength, so members quickly fell into situations where they had to fight alone.

    Sky Leaf was a rtively new division, so in all aspects, it was more crude and clumsy. While its members had grown stronger through Master¡¯s Glory, they had insufficient experience and maturity. These were weaknesses without an immediate solution.

    She observed the battle with keen interest and felt good seeing the Sky Leaf Division suffer.

    Suddenly, a vague rumble sounded from afar, something akin to muffled thunder.

    What was that?

    The y doll looked on apprehensively.

    Just then, a shocking sight befell her.

    Boom boom boom. Amid the condensed rumblings, mud pirs shot speedily up into the distant sky like raised waves.

    "Chi Tong!" Hong Rongyan breathed out with his eyes wide open.

    Sitting on his shoulder, Autumn Water could feel her boss¡¯ body tense up. She quickly looked over and caught sight of a blurry figure at the front of those pirs.

    How fast!

    Autumn Water was dumbstruck. Even with her current ability, she was unable to make out the mysterious figure, which meant that it wasn¡¯t moving at an horrifyingly extraordinary speed.

    How could the battlers below turn a blind eye to such a big movement? Indeed, they were getting ready to resist the iing impact.

    Autumn Water could only imagine the carnage that wasing after such an entrance.

    Something was wrong, she felt.

    Boss... his shoulder was as hot as a burning iron.

    She gazed at him and saw that while staring at the battlefield, his mild, jade-like skin had turned into a scarlet red color.

    What... what was going on? Autumn Water felt panic rising within her chest. Boss always had on a cold, sullen expression, so why was he wavering? Hadn¡¯t he battled with Chi Tong? Could it be...

    A silhouette swiftly emerged at the edge of the battlefield.

    Autumn Water¡¯s heart shook.

    What... was that creature?

    That... that was the Chi Tong?

    .....

    Bang bang bang.

    Each strike reduced the pain within Ai Hui¡¯s body, though his flesh was still being torn apart, so the pain brought by the metamorphosis was still intense and kept on umting.

    He felt that his body was no different from a volcano. While the rain outside reduced its temperature, the heat inside was endlessly boiling and rising.

    He was losing power and his vision was blurring along with his consciousness.

    At least... at least he had managed to stick it out longer this time.

    That was hisst thought before passing out.

    The fast-moving figure stopped abruptly in midair. Floating in the sky, he became motionless as his eyes started to cken.

    The pitter-pattering behind him continued as the dirt and rocks smashed down like hail, causing dust to fly everywhere.

    As the raised dust rose close to Ai Hui, there seemed to be an impregnable wall obstructing it. The airflow rolled down, causing more dust to surge even higher into the sky. The dust resembled a grey, fang-bearing monster that had taken over half the sky.

    Simrly, its grey cape was dancing in the air like a grey stage curtain, waiting to be drawn.

    Was the malevolent and ugly monster quietly waiting to make an entrance or to awaken?

    .....

    The battlefield was eerily silent at this point. Silent as death.

    Be it the Sky Leaf or the Radiance Blood Division, all elementalists had stopped. They stared emptily at the monster before them. It was as if everyone had forgotten how to speak, even the courageous radiant tigers beneath the blood elementalists.

    Xu Jing¡¯s mouth was dry. "What was that?" his voice cracked.

    The massive figure was like a floating mountain, its golden luster made exceptionally ring under the scorching sun. Its almond-shaped eyes seemed to have lost focus. Upon closer inspection, one would notice an abyss deep within those eyes. Its ck, waterfall-like hair fell down to its waist, and each strand was pencil-straight and sharp as an iron wire. Its ws were like hooked daggers, fatally dangerous.

    Dire beast?

    Out of the corner of his eyes, Xu Jing caught a glimpse of Xiao Buyu trembling.

    Is Xiao Buyu trembling?

    He gave it a second look and was sure that his eyes weren¡¯t malfunctioning. As if enduring an intense kind of pain, Xiao Buyu¡¯s body was indeed shivering ever so slightly. Xu Jing scanned across the field and was shocked to find all the Radiance Blood Division¡¯s blood elementalists and beasts shivering.

    This...

    He recalled a rumor that imed how blood elementalists would instinctively cower in front of an existence mightier than theirs.

    Mightier... a mightier blood beast? Could that be a secret product of the Beast Venom Pce?

    Xu Jing found this theory ridivious. As the Radiance Blood Division head, Xiao Buyu was undoubtedly the mightiest existence within the whole of God Nation. If that was a mightier blood beast... a mythological beast perhaps?

    The monster was still as a statue.

    While he was unable to wrap his head around this thing, Xu Jing could sense the dangerous aura it released and dared not overlook it. The rich blood spiritual force was as attention-grabbing as a sun would be in the night sky. He did not understand why Xiao Buyu and gang had such a strange reaction, but he saw it as a good opportunity to attack. It was doom for his people if the blood elementalists started working with the monster.

    With a gentle stirring of heavenly elemental energy within their bodies, his members started snapping out of their daze. The Sky Leaf members were mentally linked; while they weren¡¯t able to sendplicated messages, sharing simple signals wasn¡¯t a difficult feat.

    Prepare for attack!

    "Kill!"

    Xu Jing¡¯s thick growl broke the silence like a p of thunder.

    Twenty Sky Leaf elementalists conjured faint but brightly-colored ripples and their bodies vanished from the ground.

    The next moment, they reappeared around the monster, their hands lighting up with colorful rays. They executed a killer move in unison, the bewitching light rays so dazzling that it was impossible to look at them straight on. The sonic boom, like that from a bellowing wave, caused the sky to quake.

    Having twenty Mastersnd a blow simultaneously was a rare sight.

    Xu Jing was maximally satisfied with this sudden attack.

    The Radiance Blood elementalists were still standing on the ground like wooden blocks. So was the monster...

    Eh?

    Something seemed odd.

    Xu Jing¡¯s pupils shrunk. Something was wrong. The colorful rays of all shapes were about to strike the monster, but it remained motionless and had zero reaction.

    When faced with danger, absolutely anyone or anything would instinctively flinch or dodge.

    Nevertheless, he was confident that nothing could resist twenty Masters¡¯ united attack unless the person or thing in question was a Grandmaster.

    Screech!

    An ear-piercing sound overtook the sky like sharp des scraping against an iron sheet.

    The frontmost light arrow stopped suddenly, as if it had hit an invisible wall. Next, the other uniquely-shaped arrows experienced the same phenomenon and were blocked off. It was an extremely strange scene; the monster was surrounded by floating light rays of all shapes and sizes, some as straight as a pencil, some shaped like a willow leaf de. There were even spiraling light balls and snake-like light tapes that coiled around.

    They were all stunningly splendid and indescribably enchanting.

    Xu Jing¡¯s face changed.

    Impossible!

    Impossible...

    Shrouded by the glorious lights, the monster¡¯s unfocused eyes started to contract. Amid the dark abyss within its eyes, a scarlet red dot lit up.

    It spread open in both eyes like blood.

    Xu Jing noticed that the monster¡¯s waist-length hair was swaying like a tree hit by the night breeze.

    He had never in his life felt such danger, and a dark cloud enveloped him deep down.

    His heart dropped.

 Chapter 701: [Crossed Spinning Top]

    Chapter 701: [Crossed Spinning Top]

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    For a moment, Xujing could see the monster¡¯s gently swaying hair and its strengthless body, but in the next instant, his field of vision became empty.

    "Beware!" was all he could manage before the light around him dimmed and a ball of shadow clouded overhead.

    It all happened so quickly!

    Fortunately, catching sight of the monster previously had prepared Xu Jing. Like an invisible string that had been strung, the heavenly elemental energy that had been umting within the darkness was engaged. At lightning speed, two palms came together with fingers interlocked into a mudra, effectiving opening up the Heavenly Elemental Shield.

    The palm leaf fan-sized palms pressed against the shield without a sound.

    At the other end of the shield stood Xu Jing, shocked as he had never seen palms like these before. The dense scales that were ice-cold and satiny reminded him very much of snakes and lizards. The hook-like fingers had long and ink ck nails that resembled bent daggers.

    He then saw transparentyers of ripples spread outward from the outline of those palms.

    "Pu", he heard a sound like a feline would make when its pawnded solidly on a dried branch. It was muted, as though the animal made effort not to break the forest¡¯s silence.

    Xu Jing¡¯s pupils dted as he heard a thunder crack within his ears before rumbling incessantly.

    His straightened body sank abruptly and the soil instantly reached up to his knees. He was like a nail that had been hammered halfway into the ground. Fresh blood flowed out of his nose and mouth, panic evident in his face.

    The other Sky Leaf members finally snapped out of their daze and started roaring and charging toward the monster. The fact that Xu Jing had lost the ability to resist just after one exchange came as a shock to them, and it instantly put them in a tense mental state.

    Despite their determined dash, they were outsped by a streak of blood-colored sword light that lit the sky like a lightning bolt and shot swiftly toward the monster¡¯s head.

    It was Xiao Buyu¡¯s doing!

    The disparity in experience between Sky Leaf and Radiance Blood was made obvious once again. While more powerful individually, the Sky Leaf members were still a tad slower when reacting to sudden battle situations.

    As the leader of the Radiance Blood Division, Xiao Buyu was much more seasoned and quick than Sky Leaf.

    Xiao Buyu¡¯s hawk-like eyes were, at this point, as calm as water. He did not wait for Sky Leaf and the monster to enter battle mode to reap the fruits. Neither did he choose to escape. He knew right off the bat that the Sky Leaf members were not the monster¡¯s match.

    His judgment was proven urate, but there was not a trace of joy in his heart. They were now caught in a sticky situation.

    What... was this monster?

    Seeing his strike shatter like a bubble upon an effortless wave of the monster¡¯s palms, Xiao Buyu felt his throat dry up.

    Nevertheless, his attack had sessfully stalled the monster.

    The Sky Leaf members¡¯ attacks whizzed past the sky, producing brightly-colored and enchanting elemental energy rays that fluttered like rain. The hazy, colored rain made the whole scene dreamy. Members flocked toward the monster from all around, leaving it with no escape path.

    With their keen sense of smell, the elites of Radiance Blood seized this opportunity to assemble in the sky. Their actions were nimble and adept. Even at a crucial and urgent time like this, they moved with an unruffled aesthetic appeal.

    Xiao Buyu hesitated not one bit after his attack. He sat on a radiant tiger and moved silently to the forefront of his team. He grasped a long and narrow, blood-colored treasure sword in each hand. The swords¡¯ bodies were thin and almost transparent, just like a cicada¡¯s wings. They carried a faint rouged lustre that resembled a blossoming sakura.

    Together they had a really nice sounding name ¨C Cherry Warmth.

    His division ridiculed Xiao Buyu to no end for being gloomy and cold yet possessing such feminine swords. It was definitely a mismatch visually. Of course, Xiao Buyu could not care less about their teasing. He had been deeply and helplessly drawn to Cherry Warmth from the moment he set eyes on it.

    The only downside was its name.

    Names like Savage Blood would appeal to and suit him more, but Swordmaster Nai Hezhu had made it clear that he would not sell it if its name were to be altered. Xiao Buyu had no choice but to concede.

    Cherry Warmth was like a budding youngdy; no matter how much enemy¡¯s blood it had absorbed, it continued to shine a crimson red, as indifferent as before.

    Xiao Buyu overlooked the light splendor with his murderous eyes. He turned the sword hilts with his palms and held them by his side. With his upper body leaning forward, he tightened his legs around his tiger¡¯s abdomen and bellowed, "Kill!"

    "Kill!" his officers and soldiers roared, thunder-like, in response.

    Radiant tigers were not as agile as ardent flower blood wolves, but they generated a more powerful charging force when diving down from the sky. The blood spiritual force within their bodies surged rhythmically and achieved resonance immediately. Rich and radiant blood rays could be seen shooting out from their bodies and fusing together.

    Each small team moved in a tight formation shaped like a triangle.

    Six seemingly blood-filled darts split swiftly, drawing six amazing yet fatal light traces, as if a fresh flower had blossomed in the sky. They dove down simultaneously from different angles.

    Having witnessed this sight from far away, the y doll on Hong Rongyan¡¯s shoulder blurted out, "How beautiful."

    She could see the six blood traces hanging down from the sky in a spiraling arc, akin to a freshly bloomed flower whose petals were retracting.

    It was unimaginably beautiful but concealed unimaginable danger as well.

    Xiao Buyu had no clue, of course, that someone was generously throwingpliments at them. He was focused solely on his attack. It was not a reckless strike; he had strategically umted power and waited for the right moment to release.

    In the face of a powerful enemy, he needed to be vignt and resolute.

    Attacking recklessly would only cause him to lose the chance at turning the situation around. Such a chance would only present itself once. The moment he had decided to strike, there was no room for hesitation.

    Beneath, the gorgeously lit rays expanded like soap bubbles as a ck shadow pierced through theseyers of light curtains and shot upward into the sky. Such brilliance, so brief yet limitless, had never been seen.

    Seeing that the monster waspletely unscathed, witnesses drew in cold, long breaths. Xiao Buyu, on the other hand, remained calm and unmoved.

    His Cherry Warmth swung slightly and an almost undetectable wave motion swept across the sky.

    Everyone tensed up. It was a signal to get ready to attack!

    The positions of the six teams were clearly visible when viewed from above. They were not arranged symmetrically. Some were nearer while others were further. They were also stationed at different heights. The overall formation appeared rather messy, but upon closer inspection, one would be able to sense the indistinct yet fearlessly murderous aura.

    Cherry Warmth quivered under Xiao Buyu¡¯s grip. It was in high spirits and full of yearning for fresh blood.

    Xiao Buyu¡¯s palms were like pliers, tightly and steadily gripping the sword hilts. His narrow eyes emitted a cold light ray like what an eagle produced while spiraling in the sky and gazing down upon its unknowing prey.

    The monster that broke Sky Leaf¡¯s attack turned slightly sluggish.

    It was time!

    The cicada wing-like Cherry Warmth produced a prating buzz as Xiao Buyu brandished his swords, the right horizontally and the left vertically.

    His members broke from their triangr formation and advanced forward in two groups, the right horizontally and the left vertically.

    The blood rays enveloping Cherry Warmth entered the sword light, causing the cross to brighten instantly and transform into blood-colored bolts that shot the monster beneath.

    Xiu xiu xiu!

    Scalp-numbing, snake-like hisses could be heard.

    The cross bolts were in fact formed from whirling and tangling sword rays. They reached a certain equilibrium and continued revolving around one another.

    The other five teams moved at the same time and the abruptly lit blood rays reddened the whole sky in an instant. It was as if the clouds had been dyed a sunset red. Different whistling sounds blended into one another, bing erratic and a disturbance for the monster.

    Six attacksnded in a picturesque disorder around it, effectively locking up all possible escape routes and forming a perfect trap.

    Xiao Buyu had chosen the optimal moment, and the monster, having charged out of the circle, sank into immediate danger.

    It lifted its head and advanced head-on with no intention of retreating.

    The whizzing, blood-colored light rays reflected off its almond-shaped eyes, vacant and apathetic.

    Unknowingly, Xiao Buyu¡¯s heart started to throb harder.

    Most of the attacks fell short due to the monster¡¯s unexpected move. Nevertheless, there was nowhere for it to run upon reaching the crossed sword light that Xiao Buyu¡¯s team had released.

    Instead of dodging them, the monster opened its right palm and reached for the crossed light.

    Noting its action, Xiao Buyu emptied all thoughts. A curl appeared on the corner of his lips to match his malicious-looking face. He looked very much like a scheming fox at this point.

    This round of attacks contained the most formidable power, or rather, the true core of it was the crossed sword light.

    [Crossed Spinning Top]!

    It was a fatal move that Xiao Buyu had invented upon receiving Cherry Warmth. It was an original skill that disyed astonishing power. While experimenting with it, not even Boss Shan Minxiong had the courage to face it straight on.

    Xiao Buyu was full of confidence.

    The monster moved fast. It extended its wed fingers, instantly tripling the size of his hands.

    It managed to get a firm grip of the crossed sword light.

    A tinge of joy spread across Xiao Buyu¡¯s face, but the anticipated explosion did not ur. His expression froze up gradually.

    The red sword light was whirling at a high speed in the monster¡¯s hand.

    How... how was that possible?

    Xiao Buyu was evidently at a loss. The scene had unfolded in an unimaginable way. [Crossed Spinning Top] was essentially in a subtle yet frail equilibrium. Any slight motion would disrupt this bnce and trigger a mighty explosion. Even he, as the creator, could only guarantee its stability during release and when following trajectory.

    In order to achieve this, he had spent untold amounts of effort and time, from idea generation to product experimentation.

    Seeing the crossed spinning top spinning amid the monster¡¯s grip, Xiao Buyu felt as though he had just seen a ghost.

    On the other hand, the monster paid him no heed.

    An explosion as gentle as a candle me sounded along with a surge of dazzling spear rays that submerged the monster¡¯s silhouette.

 Chapter 702: Retreat

    Chapter 702: Retreat

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    The dazzling spear ray was released by Xu Jing. He had an additional long white spear in his hand. The light ray blossoming from its body was like an erupting sun, its brilliance gushing toward the sky like a reverse waterfall. As one looked from the edge of the light to the center, the more solid and magnificent it became. Right at the most dazzling core of the spear ray, a bean-sized wisp of ck me could be seen.

    It was truly ck and deep, like a vacuum.

    That was the tip of the spear.

    Pu pu pu, the ck, candle-like me broke into a slow dance with the wind.

    Xiao Buyu, who was spiraling in mid air, snapped out of his shock and stared at that frail wisp of me with a heavy expression.

    He could sense its danger.

    Like a weakmp light, the ck me flickered along with a strange and terrifying force that sucked the surrounding elemental energy into the spear.

    Like pouring hot oil into a raging inferno, the spear rays expanded rapidly.

    Xiao Buyu felt his body jerk, as if someone was pulling him from below. It was not just him but also the blood rays, surrounded by other small teams, which abruptly fell into a chaotic mess.

    Bewildered, Xiao Buyu looked down with uncertainty at the person holding the spear. Who was that?

    He had only heard about Gu Xiaobao and Fu Sisi, so who was this unfamiliar fellow that popped out suddenly? And one so capable at that!

    It was an extraordinary spear!

    A zing, snow-white spear ray reflected off Xu Jing¡¯s face as he maintained a determined and calm expression on his face.

    It was not just his sturdy and cautious character but also his capability that secured him his position in the Sky Leaf Division.

    The division was still in its embryonic state and far from perfect.

    Madam Ye was well aware that the heavenly elemental energy was an even higher level force. However, it would not form a system that could support her foundation and ambitions if no one was able to perfect it. The members of the Sky Leaf Division were on the forefront of this. They had the deepest understanding of thispletely new and foreign force.

    The division¡¯s innovation and dynamics were unprecedented.

    Xu Jing had gotten into people¡¯s radars upon creating his own absolute art.

    He was born into an aristocratic family. Despite its long history, the family had fallen into a slump and was ultimately crushed in this generation. His spear techniques had originated from his family and were responsible for the fame he had gained since young. He was regarded as a youth with limitless potential and hence had been scouted into Master¡¯s Glory.

    By blending the heavenly elemental energy together with his absolute art, Xu Jing hade up with an all-new spear technique that Madam Ye was full of praises for. She bestowed him with her well-known spear, Snow Dragon, much to everyone else¡¯s envy. Eternally grateful, Xu Jing named the set of techniques [Sky Dragon Spear].

    This particr move was [Dragon Candle].

    The spear was like a candle me and the enemy, moths; there was a fatal attraction between the two.

    The dazzling spear ray swept across the sky, but just as it was about to swallow the monster, the monster made an unexpected move.

    It lowered its body into a half-squat position and pressed its right palm down forcefully, swiftly releasing the Crossed Spinning Top. A red light shed by like a devilish and fatal blood-colored arrow, shooting into the white, zing spear.

    This red arrow struck the ck me right on point.

    After witnessing it all, Xiao Buyu¡¯s face changed. "Beware!" he yelled at the top of his lungs.

    Ping!

    A crisp, ss-shattering sound pierced through the whistling wind and people¡¯s eardrums.

    The next moment, all of the white rays disappeared from the sky.

    It was as if everyone had been transported from a bright field into a darkroom. ck overtook their field of vision temporarily. A few blinkster, things returned to normal.

    They were then greeted by ck and red threads everywhere.

    The hair-like threads, all tangled together, shot from all directions. There were too many of them to count.

    A majority of the Radiance Blood soldiers were being held together by the threads, from which ck and red hell-like mes started to rise and interweave. The blood rays enveloping the soldiers were no different from mmable oil, and the mes grew rapidly and swallowed them whole.

    Even before they could let out screams, theybusted into fire balls.

    Xiao Buyu had a distorted expression on his face at this point. The scene before him had unfolded in an absolutely horrifying manner. Who would¡¯ve thought that the collision of the Crossed Spinning Top and ck mes could generate such a deadly effect!?

    What evoked more fear was the fact that the monster was able to control his Crossed Spinning Top so easily.

    The situation had turned out to be more severe than he imagined. The burning soldiers had turned into scattered ashes in an instant. In spite of that, the red and ck mes did not die out. They followed and spread along the blood rays.

    "Move aside! Move away, everyone!"

    Xiao Buyu¡¯s voice was hoarse from all the tension he felt. He saw, with his own eyes, how a soldier had been set aze for moving too slow and getting in contact with the damned mes.

    The blood rays that were everywhere had be a path of growth for the mes.

    The Radiance Blood soldiers quickly broke from their formations.

    The loss was just as great for the Sky Leaf Division.

    Feeling something amiss at thest point, Xu Jing had channeled all his heavenly elemental energy into Snow Dragon and managed to survive.

    Other members were not as lucky. They had been standing closer to one another, which had allowed the mes to prate two bodies at once.

    Six members had not been able to dodge the mes and had turned to ashes as a result. The only difference was that their stronger vitality had enabled them to persist for a longer time, which had also ironically led to more suffering.

    Heart-tearing screams that could numb listeners¡¯ scalps were heard amid the mes.

    The lucky survivors from the Sky Leaf Division were panic-stricken, their faces white as sheets of paper. The six balls of fire were floating not far away from them, so the anguished cries were constantly dampening their spirits and hammering their nerves.

    Even the usually calm Xu Jing was now in a terrible state.

    Just a few months back, they were merely a bunch of half-adults. Master¡¯s Glory had given them much physical power but not emotional strength.

    There has never been a shortcut to a powerful will.

    Xiao Buyu was the first to snap out of the trauma. The loss was sudden and severe, but the battle had yet to end, so it was not the time to grief.

    Where was the monster?

    He scanned around for traces.

    He quickly managed to locate its position. The monster had gone miles away. Its tired body was curled up into a meatball. With its metallic ck hair wrapped around its body, the monster resembled a furry ck ball.

    Light shed before Xiao Buyu¡¯s eyes.

    A few wisps of ck and red mes were burning the monster¡¯s hair.

    A tinge of hope grew within his heart but was quickly trampled on.

    The monster unrolled itself faster than the burning mes could spread. With a swish of its w-like finger, the monster managed to chop off the burning portion of its hair.

    The chopped lock of hair was blown away by the wind but turned to ashes before it could go far.

    Just like that, the ck and red mes begrudgingly vanished into a puff of smoke.

    While slightly disappointed, Xiao Buyu quickly recalibrated his emotions.

    The monster¡¯s cold, almond eyes had dimmed significantly, but it did not appear to be hurt at all.

    Xiao Buyu prompted his radiant tiger and then waved his arm. Cherry Warmth released a howling buzz. It was a signal for everyone to gather. With a few nimble steps forward, his radiant tiger took flight. As if awakened from a dream, the soldiers moved to the designated spot as tributaries would converge into the sea.

    Xiao Buyu¡¯s heart was bleeding from the perishment of one fifth of his members just from a single head-on battle alone.

    When he caught the fighting will in his subordinates¡¯ eyes, however, he was immediately overwhelmed with pride. The Sky Leaf rookies, on the other hand, were nothing but a bunch of soft eggs, easily losing their heads and bing wobbly out of fear.

    After they reassembled, Xiao Buyu locked his gaze onto the monster once more.

    What was it exactly?

    Despite his confusion, he knew it was not the time to be indulging in flights of fancy.

    All of a sudden, his gaze turned sluggish.

    The monster made an abrupt turn and fled without even looking back.

    This movement caught Xiao Buyu off guard, to the extent that he fell into a brief daze. When he regained awareness, the monster had already be a ck dot.

    What speed!

    Needless to say, he knew it was impossible to catch up with it. Unknowingly, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    This strange monster had put tremendous pressure on him. Because their battle had been brief, he was unable to grasp much information about it. Nevertheless, his rich experience and developed intuition told him that it was extremely, extremely dangerous.

    Compared to this threatening and unknown monster, the soft eggs below were evidently a better target.

    A cold grin appeared on his lips. Then he tightened his legs around the radiant tiger and dove straight down.

    There was only callousness and malice in Xiao Buyu¡¯s eyes.

    "Kill! Spare no one!"

    ######

    Unlike Xiao Buyu and Xu Jing, the bystanders, Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water, who had witnessed the whole scene, were not the least bit surprised. Instead, they were taken aback by Xu Jing¡¯s [Dragon Candle] and Xiao Buyu¡¯s [Crossed Spinning Top].

    "What were those two skills? How powerful... When did they gain possession of such incredible moves?" the y doll started.

    "Never seen those," Hong Rongyan replied.

    With that, they fell into silence.

    Having exchanged fights with the Sky Leaf Division not long before, both had thought that they were well aware of its ability. Yet, in the blink of an eye, their judgment had been undermined. They had simply and mistakenly believed that they could go on a rampage during this battle.

    An ominous feeling rose within Hong Rongyan¡¯s heart. The state of affairs seemed to have gottenplicated.

    The y doll broke the silence at this point. "Let them fight it out, heh. At best, both, if not three, parties will be defeated, and we can just wait to reap the rewards..."

    Before Hong Rongyan could respond, the y doll¡¯s voice changed. "Aye aye aye, is Scarlet Eye actually escaping? No way, running from a bunch of small shrimps? He¡¯s actually running! What kind of demonic god is he... Wait!"

    The y doll paused before screeching, "Aye aye aye! That direction... this... isn¡¯t heing for us?!"

    "Ahhhhh! He... he¡¯s flying toward us..."

 Chapter 703: Hong Rongyan Strikes

    Chapter 703: Hong Rongyan Strikes

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    The y doll¡¯s scream echoed as Chi Tong zoomed into their line of sight. Hong Rongyan remained calm as usual, but his chest was tingling with unease.

    Chi Tong was moving speedily. The distance between both sides was closing in fast, so there was no chance to dodge.

    Plus... the cold gaze Chi Tong was directing toward Hong Rongyan made it clear that any living obstacle that appeared before the former would trigger an attack.

    Without time to overthink, Hong Rongyan inhaled deeply, his eyes overflowing with brilliant colors and light.

    The light in his eyes spiraled, as if multi-colored rays were being sucked into his pupils. They gathered in the center and spun endlessly, forming a bewitching whirlpool.

    Hong Rongyan¡¯s body jerked slightly.

    With his body as the core, faint halos started shooting outward like ripples.

    The halos engulfed the surroundings without any sound. Where they passed, bizzare lusters were left behind.

    It was as if the blue sky was being nketed byyers of rainbow-colored cellophane. The whole scene was somewhat dreamy and strange. These beautiful lights also painted the spotlessly white clouds, turning them into balls of cotton candy.

    Hong Rongyan¡¯s face was expressionless, his exquisite statue-like features no different from a craftsman¡¯s masterpiece. They had a marbly, ice-cold texture, but exuded a realistic charm.

    The coarse y doll on his shoulder was waving its short arms about, as if highly agitated. Its mouth was opening and closing quickly, as if wailing, yet producing no sounds.

    Not wanting to be distracted during battle, Hong Rongyan sealed the doll¡¯s mouth without a second thought.

    Having studied Chi Tong for so long, he was well aware of its powers. Nevertheless, the thought of battling stirred him. The Assembly of Patriarchs had a long history, and the research revolving around God¡¯s blood dated back to the ancient times. Like the Blood of God, the elites of each generation within the assembly had undergone virtual battles with the Scarlet-eyed Emperor.

    Now, he was finally going to do it in the real world. A real battle.

    Yes, from what he saw, the Chi Tong before him was the real deal. The one he had battled against before was disappointing, perhaps due to its iplete resurrection.

    This one, this monstrous and beast-like Chi Tong, was the real one.

    A demonic god that had broken free from all reinforced shackles and chains.

    This Chi Tong had real value. It could realize and verify the cases and theories that the assembly had umted thus far.

    Chi Tong paid no attention to the spreading halos. They left no trace in its eyes.

    As it passed them in the air, it only felt waves offortable breeze grazing across its face.

    Without putting up any guard, it had charged into this world, and this world was about to be turned upside down.

    Chi Tong¡¯s body sank slightly as its almond eyes contracted. Its sharp senses far exceeded that of normal human beings. It could easily spot a floating feather from miles away, so why would it miss the obvious changes in the scenery before it?

    It was just that the changes urred too abruptly and without warning, so it had not been able to react in time, which was evident from the momentary bewilderment on its face. Apart from the sudden variations, Chi Tong was also unable to wrap its head around the sense of familiarity it felt.

    Chi Tong turned and locked its somber and deste gaze on Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water.

    Amid the familiar feeling, it could feel the murderous aura surrounding these two people.

    Hong Rongyan acutely captured the changes in Chi Tong¡¯s expressions. Maintaining its still expression and fast-spinning brain, he gathered that their special camouge had turned their location into something like a blind spot even though they were not far away from it. However, he was also certain that with its ability, Chi Tong was able to sense their presence.

    Just... it had taken longer than expected.

    "Could it be that the metamorphosis has impacted its wisdom?" This thought shed across his mind.

    He did not spend too much time theorizing since getting distracted was only going to get him killed.

    Chi Tong¡¯s silhouette blurred all of a sudden.

    Almost subconsciously, the light rays in Hong Rongyan¡¯s eyes expanded as he pressed his hands forward.

    Bang!

    A thunderous explosion erupted, and Hong Rongyan¡¯s field of vision became fuzzy.

    Chi Tong was suspended in the air 60 meters away. Spider web-like cracks were spreading outward from its body.

    There was a wall. An invisible wall.

    It had appeared very suddenly, and Chi Tong had not sensed it in time, which resulted in a solid crash. The web-patterned cracks were clear indications of the tremendous force of the impact.

    Hong Rongyan was as unperturbed as ever, as if turning a blind eye to the astonishing sight before him.

    The unanticipated collision had thrown Chi Tong into a daze. With its formidable recovery abilities, however, it returned back to normal within a few seconds. Not only had the attack failed to faze it, it had aroused the animosity within the monster.

    Chi Tong jerked its head up and hissed before pouncing onto Hong Rongyan.

    ########

    Xiao Buyu, who was getting ready to butcher the Sky Leaf Division, felt his heart jump. He spun to the side and shouted, "Go! Hurry and check it out!"

    He could not understand why he minded the monster this much, to the extent of giving up the perfect opportunity to get rid of the Sky Leaf rookies.

    He had to be crazy!

    He cursed inwardly, but led his teams toward the direction of that intimidating hiss without hesitation.

    Upon seeing the blood elementalists move away, Xu Jing let out a breath of relief. His eyes turned hazy, while his emotions wereplicated. The blood elementalists were not as strong, but somehow they performed even better.

    If the blood elementalists hade down for them, the Sky Leaf Division would have fallen into an unimaginably chaotic and dangerous plight.

    A bitter smile surfaced on his lips.

    He knew what the problem was, and so did everyone else. Yet, there was no good solution. The Sky Leaf Division was simply too inexperienced; only time and endless battles would allow them to gradually adapt.

    There were no shortcuts.

    "What do we do now?" a teammate¡¯s voice broke Xu Jing¡¯s train of thought.

    Xu Jing sorted his mind before answering, "Let¡¯s go over and take a look."

    As he got ready to move, he noticed the stillness of his surroundings. Turning around, he caught sight of his teammates¡¯ wan faces and their sluggish stances.

    "Just a quick look. We¡¯ll maintain a safe distance and be able to react to any movements. They¡¯re not our match when ites to strength."

    His teammates immediately exhaled in relief, which agonized and pressured Xu Jing.

    The battle had greatly threatened his team¡¯s morale.

    They were greeted by a shocking sight when they arrived close to the scene.

    Xiao Buyu and his team, which had arrived there slightly earlier, were not in any better shape. The blood elementalists had their jaws wide open and had not even sensed Xu Jing¡¯s arrival.

    Xiao Buyu¡¯s face was as pale as a sheet and his eyes were filled with unprecedented terror, as if he had thought of something unimaginably horrifying.

    ########

    Hong Rongyan set his brightly lit eyes on Chi Tong while maintaining a grave expression on his face.

    The y doll on his shoulder had lost its liveliness and kept quiet out of fear.

    In midair and covered in blood, Chi Tong appeared rather pitiful. However, its eyes were fixed and murderous as it red at Hong Rongyan.

    The wounds on its body were healing visibly and quickly became non-existent.

    What a frightful ability!

    A toppling and overturning wave of pressure was released toward Hong Rongyan. He remained unmoved even as a huge wound was inflicted on Autumn Water¡¯s body, stretching across her right shoulder to her left abdomen and almost splitting her into two.

    At the most crucial moment, Autumn Water had epted the fatal blow on Hong Rongyan¡¯s behalf.

    He was indifferent to it because he could determine what state Chi Tong was in.

    Few knew Chi Tong better than he did.

    If he was not mistaken, Chi Tong had activated the blood spiritual force within God¡¯s Blood and started the blood refinement. The scale at which the blood spiritual force surged was something only God¡¯s Blood could reach.

    Other than [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], the blood refinement was anotherrgely coveted achievement of Chi Tong.

    When it came to blood refinement, no one else could go against Chi Tong. Even the Scarlet-eyed Emperor had only managed to acquire a negligible amount of knowledge.

    Chi Tong¡¯s undeniable recovery and regeneration abilities meant that it was basically immortal.

    Yet, having activated the blood refinement, Chi Tong¡¯s wisdom had apparently taken a huge dip. God¡¯s Blood was something he had gathered and refined from the blood of countless dire beasts. It contained a vast amount of pure blood spiritual force, but also remnants of brutality. When refined slowly, there was no problem suppressing its beastly nature, but now that Chi Tong hadpletely activated the refinement process, he would inevitably be affected by those remnants.

    Hong Rongyan could not understand why Chi Tong would take such a risk.

    Could it be that there had been a dangerous situation?

    Hong Rongyan guessed inwardly that Ai Hui could have given it a blow, forcing it to act unexpectedly.

    To others, immortal Chi Tong was unbeatable. To Hong Rongyan, however, its cunningness and unpredictable mind were far more dangerous than its physical powers.

    A slight arc appeared on the corner of Hong Rongyan¡¯s lips.

    Through probing and investigation, he had already found a method to deal with Chi Tong.

    Chi Tong observed as the scenery before it started to revolve around that man in the ck cape. The sky was spinning, the clouds were spinning... everything was spinning.

    Except that man.

    Chi Tong growled and charged at Hong Rongyan.

    However, just as it was about to dash forward, Chi Tong lost control of its body, as if it had fallen into a torrential whirlpool. It extended its arms in the hope of getting a grip, but there was nothing.

    It wanted to roar, but was horrified to realize that it could not make any sound.

    It struggled with all its might, attempting to steady itself. It was desperate to grab something. Anything for it to borrow some energy.

    Yet, no matter how it waved its arms, there was nothing for it to hold onto.

    The dizziness it was expecting did not take over. Instead, an indescribable sense of familiarity flooded its senses.

    So familiar, yet it had no recollection...

 Chapter 704: Grass Hall

    Chapter 704: Grass Hall

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: Lucas, TYZ

    Chi Tong had revived and Ai Hui had died.

    A number of major events had urred over the year: The front line battle became unpredictable, the respectivemanders suffered great losses, and so on, but no repercussions couldpare with the fact that Chi Tong had seized Ai Hui¡¯s body to resurrect himself.

    The mutual killings, the endless vying for authority and power, and the desire to exploit and im merits had turned this world into a bustling yet brutal arena. The appearance of the ancient demonic god made everything seem like child¡¯s y. The humans were acting like fish in a pond, avariciously fighting for food, while the demonic god was sitting leisurely by the pond and casting his fishing rod.

    Whether the demonic god was a demon or a god, he was inevitably the ruler above all humans.

    However, no one wished to be a ve.

    Chi Tong¡¯s revival struck unimaginable fear into people. Ai Hui¡¯s death, inparison, became insignificant. He could be the Central Pine Faction¡¯s leader and a mightymander on the front line of war, but before destiny, he wasn¡¯t worth a mention.

    For example, God Nation¡¯s army had chosen not to seize this opportunity to attack. Instead, with no zeal left to battle, they retreated.

    Be it in God Nation, Skyheart City, or Jadeite Forest, everyone was talking about Chi Tong¡¯s revival. They were sick with worry. The words "demonic god" seemed to carry a sort of mysterious and formidable power that could easily evoke dread.

    And of course there was the Assembly of Patriarchs.

    An organization that used to operate in the dark, underground world was nowid bare under the sun. It was said that this mysterious organization was responsible for leading Chi Tong¡¯s revival project. Brimming with ambition, its people had ns to let him run the world.

    Skyheart City had publicly denounced the assembly for conspiring with the tyrant.

    On that same afternoon, God Nation had also dered that its people would never be enved by Chi Tong and would fight until the very end.

    Jadeite Forest, on the other hand, had made a much more conservative statement by simply uniting its humans to resist against Chi Tong and the assembly.

    It was the first time in history that the three powerful influencers had simultaneously expressed their stand. Everyone knew that the assembly was an extremely wicked organization¨Cit existed to wipe mankind out.

    Within a short period of time, the assembly became a public enemy, no different from the street rats people chased after.

    The turbulent protest took over the world, but the higher-ups in the assembly vanished. No one stepped forward to say anything. Like an avnche, members within the organization started arge-scale rebellion.

    Details about the fusion elemental energy and so on gradually surfaced, but what caught people¡¯s attention was the Grass Hall.

    Not long after, the secret method to enter the hall spread like wildfire. The majority of the masses dared not to test it out. Bold fellows, unable to ovee their curiosity, entered the hall and were instantly attracted to the amazing world within. More and more people surged in and discovered that they were not limited by distance andmunication.

    This drove people wild.

    The message tree that was once able to ry news between people miles apart had be obsolete due to the blood catastrophe that broke the bnce of the elemental energies, causing them to wither. People had no choice but to adapt to a more primitive and unhurried life. Nevertheless, the old way of living had never been forgotten. They remembered how lively and fast-paced life used to be.

    It was no wonder, then, that the appearance of the Grass Hall had thrown people into a frenzy.

    The strange thing was that the assembly reacted indifferently to the surge in the number of visitors. It had no intention of shutting down the hall.

    Luo Hao entered the familiar door and path into the Grass Hall.

    The moment he entered, he was hit by a wave of mor. While it wasn¡¯t his first time experiencing this, he had trouble getting used to it and was subconsciously thinking back to the old hall. There weren¡¯t as many people and as much noise in the past.

    The visitors were looking all around and gasping. Like tourists, they were filled with curiosity.

    Luo Hao retracted his gaze, looked down, waddled through the crowd, and reached an empty corner.

    He extended his hand and circles of light traces lit up from the outline of his palm. Out of nowhere, a light door appeared before him, and he walked in. The crowd behind let out a loud gasp and a few even walked to where Luo Hao had been. They mimicked him by extending their palms out, but nothing happened. They mumbled a little before turning to leave.

    The scene before Luo Hao¡¯s eyes switched into yet another familiar one.

    Limitless Tavern. It was a rather reputable ce among former members of the assembly. The tavern hadn¡¯t been established for long, but had risen to fame due to its soul-lifting wine. Soul-lifting wine provided a great boost of energy and customers flooded to the tavern because of that.

    Soul-lifting wine wasn¡¯t expensive, so people gradually formed the habit of patronizing the shop, just sitting around to chat and rx. As time went by, Limitless Tavern became a ce where news was shared, so all kinds of information could be probed from here.

    Aspared to the mor outside, the tavern was much quieter. People sat in groups of two or three at tables separated by soundproofed light curtains, so there was no need to worry about eavesdroppers. Some light curtains even had ripples like those found on water curtains so that outsiders had an unclear view of the situation inside. This was to prevent others from lip reading.

    Luo Hao was a regr customer. He plopped down on a stool before the bar counter.

    The boss, who wore a white apron, nodded at Luo Hai while wiping a ss. "Care for one?"

    With a bitter expression Luo Hao answered, "Three souls will do."

    Luo Hao was familiar with the boss¡¯s temper. Knowing that he wouldn¡¯t be able to sound this stingy fellow out without ordering any alcohol, Luo Han went against his economic struggle and got a ss for himself. Soul-lifting wine was avable in levels of three, six, nine, and so on. The resulting difference in level was jarring. Three soul wine was the cheapest version.

    With a sigh, the bossmented, "Everyone¡¯s having it tough huh."

    He poured a ss of three soul wine and pushed it before Luo Hao.

    The wine inside the ss emitted a faint glow. There were three moon-like balls floating and sinking within.

    Luo Hao raised his ss and took a sip out of it. His throat was immediately greeted by a cool sensation. Despite the wine¡¯s apparentck of taste, Luo Hao couldn¡¯t help but to indulge. Beyond refreshing, he felt as though his body had been thoroughly cleansed.

    After a short while, he spoke up, "Isn¡¯t business going well? There¡¯s quite a lot of people."

    The boss shook his head. "Not as good as before. Haven¡¯t sold a ss of six soul in two days."

    "Can¡¯t be helped. It¡¯s tough earning money now," Luo Hao added before swallowing thest night ball. He shut his eyes and emptied his mind. All his worries faded, and he felt an indescribable peace.

    He enjoyed this feeling and wasn¡¯t alone. The majority of the customers in the tavern savored this experience.

    A long timeter, Luo Hao opened his eyes. "I need to know something, Boss."

    The Boss let out a questionable smile. "Not where the members of the assembly are. Everyone¡¯s been asking."

    Skyheart City, Blood of God, and Jadeite Forest had all started offering bountiful rewards in exchange for the assembly¡¯s whereabouts. Information regarding any single member was worth a heavenly sum, but of course, Chi Tong¡¯s location was worth the most.

    Money brought out the courage in men. Many set their eyes on these rewards.

    Former assembly members like Luo Hao had a natural advantage since they possessed more inside information. This time, however, all of the higher-ups vanished suddenly without a trace, so even the members were left blindsided and clueless.

    Luo Hao smiled, "You would¡¯ve gone to collect your rewards if you had any idea."

    Keeping the innocent smile on his face, he continued in an almost whisper while pointing at the ss, "I¡¯m more curious about the origin of these souls."

    The boss stopped wiping his ss and gave a forced look. "The warehouse of course. I¡¯m going to have to shut the shop down very soon."

    Smiling without faltering, Luo Hao simply looked at the boss without saying a word.

    ######

    Ai Hui had a dream. A very fuzzy dream. He could vaguely hear many voices, all of them blurry. They sounded so close by, but he just couldn¡¯t make out the words. No matter how hard he concentrated, it was as if there was a whole world separating him from the voices.

    He dreamed of blood. A lot of blood and a lot of faces.

    Pale faces, like white masks floating in the air, were singing a folk song he couldn¡¯t understand.

    It was a frightening scene, but Ai Hui wasn¡¯t afraid. He just did not like it at all.

    His dream then became more chaotic, and he felt as though he was a chunk of wood, drifting at sea.

    When Ai Hui woke up from his dream, he let out a sigh of relief. Nothing was scarier than the uncertainty he felt in the dream.

    He preferred a more straightforward life.

    Even death wasn¡¯t as scary to him. Although he did not want to die, this was not out of fear. He had long since epted the inevitability of death. Was there anyone who would escape death?

    As long as there were no regrets.

    Muddleheadly, Ai Hui opened his eyes. After such a long period of fuzziness, his brain was slow to react, and it took some time to restore his mental rity. It was simr to the process of restringing a loosened bow. As the string became taut, the bow became dangerous again.

    Ai Hui was like this bow as his gaze turned sharp.

    As usual, his field of view was filled with darkness.

    He was lying on a cold, solid rock. As he struggled to get up, he checked around for wounds. He faintly recalled getting injured before losing consciousness.

    Ai Hui suppressed his doubts. His priority was to figure out his location.

    He was all alone in this vast, pitch-cknd. The wind was strong and bone-chilling, and he couldn¡¯t see anything apart from the ck rock.

    Where was he?

    Ai Hui scanned the surroundings with rising suspicion.

 Chapter 705: Chapter 705 - A Strange Place

    Chapter 705: Chapter 705 - A Strange ce

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    The rock beneath his feet was piercingly cold, and Ai Hui felt as if he was walking on a pr ice sheet.

    How long had he been walking? He couldn¡¯t be sure.

    Time psed in a strange and unpredictable manner, like the meandering of streams. In this space, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t able to urately judge the time.

    After several failed attempts, Ai Hui decided not to waste any more energy on it.

    It wasn¡¯t just his ability to judge the time, but also his sense of direction that had been affected. There were no stars above him and no distinctive features on the terrain either. The ice-cold, barrennd disyed no trace of life.

    Ai Hui had traveled extensively, but there was nothing like this ce.

    There was no vegetation, no insects, no elemental energy wave motion, and not even a breeze. There was nothing but the ck, ice-cold rocks to keep himpany.

    How strange.

    He could only advance aimlessly.

    Some timeter, a slight glimmer appeared before this muddle headed man, jolting him out of his daze.

    Just imagine an exhausted traveler, having trekked under the empty sky for a whole night, finally catching sight of the first rays of the morning sun. There was nothing more stirring and exciting than this.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body was boosted with a sudden surge of energy. All of his weariness was emptied out.

    He sped toward the glimmer, moving faster than a cheetah.

    The surroundings became increasingly bright as he shrugged the darkness and nothingness behind him. Ai Hui felt himself crossing the boundary between yin and yang.

    Suddenly, he stopped and looked down. A tender, jade green color had caught his attention.

    It was an ordinary looking de of grass that grew on the ck rock.

    Ai Hui observed it carefully. The grass had no unique characteristics and was no different from a typical weed. The only difference was that the de of grass wasn¡¯t growing from in between the cracks, but from within the rock. Then again, this also wasn¡¯t anything special since many nts absorbed nutrients from these rocks. Some would even turn the solid rocks into soft silt.

    Thanks to his umted experience in the Wilderness, Ai Hui was somewhat of an expert when it came to identifying different vegetation.

    A few names shed across his mind, but he eliminated them one by one. At first nce, all these seemed possible, but upon closer inspection, this de of grass had indefinite features.

    Ai Hui shook his head. It was probably a new species. He simply couldn¡¯t be sure.

    He quickly threw this insignificant thought aside. Being able to locate a live being amid thispletely destend was undoubtedly a huge encouragement.

    Ai Hui sped up a little and was weed by more greenery and light.

    He couldn¡¯t identify the source of the light since there were still no stars and no moon above his head.

    "What a strange ce," Ai Hui muttered to himself for the umpteenth time.

    He continued walking, and the greenery grew lusher, making it difficult for him to see any exposed ck rock. The ground became uneven in height. Ai Hui was no longer standing on a vast in.

    The number of species of vegetation started to increase as well. He even discovered a thicket.

    It was a fluffy and brightly-colored thicket, no different from a bloodied dog¡¯s tail, that reached Ai Hui¡¯s waist. Since there were no weeds within the radius of a meter around this thicket, the ck rock was exposed and the thicket was exceptionally eye-catching among the ridged, mountainousnd.

    As such, Ai Hui was able to notice it from afar.

    Yet another species he hadn¡¯t seen before.

    The hollow, heart-shaped leaves were slightly bigger than fingernails and looked like red balloons. The branches were extremely fine, almost simr to natural silk. Ai Hui suspected that the leaves would drift far off into the sky if their branches were cut off.

    He tried breaking a fine branch, but instead of floating, the connected leaf burst like a bubble and vanished out of sight.

    A balloon-like thicket?

    What a strange thicket.

    Ai Hui shook his head. He couldn¡¯t be bothered to think any more.

    This entire ce was just odd.

    As he was about to continue on his journey, he felt something fall. He looked up and saw countless light specks sprinkling down from the endless void and breaking the dark night.

    A vast whiteness filled his vision, as if a snowfall had just urred.

    Ai Hui reached his palm out subconsciously, allowing the light specks tond on it.

    The specks were the size of grains and emitted a soft radiance. They fell onto his palm without the least bit of harshness. It was an unexpectedly warm andforting experience.

    Indescribably, Ai Hui was attracted to these light specks. A weak whirlpool formed as the specks within a few meters from him came toward him. The glimmering balls fell onto him and disappeared instantaneously as a gush of faint warmth took over his body.

    p, p, p.

    A condensed wave of explosions sounded from close by.

    Ai Hui was rmed and hurriedly followed the source. All he saw was the bursting of the red thicket leaves, which created many tiny, tender, and fresh lips. The silk-like branches danced hysterically as these red lips nimbly caught the miniscule glimmers. They were like a bed of snakes, dancing in disorder, yet precise and free from entanglement.

    They were so rapacious that it was as if they had been waiting for a long time.

    The once fluffy and cute thicket had, in an instant, turned devilish.

    Not just the thicket, but even the lush, carpeted grass had sinisterly transformed. The des of grass were frantically waving, mimicking arms in attempt to capture the drifting glimmers.

    The previously peacefulnd had turned savage, simr to how a group of predators would transform upon smelling blood.

    The "snow" onlysted for about 20 breaths before disappearing. It came and went without any warning.

    Suddenly, Ai Hui¡¯s vision regained rity. Peace had returned to the bloodthirsty grass and the devilish thicket. Everything had changed so fast, leading him to suspect that it could all have been an illusion, like a dream that ended before it could begin.

    He shuddered uncontrobly.

    What just happened wasn¡¯t an illusion or a dream.

    The nearby thicket had grown a notch. The grass patch under it had thickened as well.

    All within those 20 breaths.

    What a strange ce.

    Ai Hui looked around, all while raising his guard.

    While that crazy experience had left him unsettled, he had also benefited from it. His footsteps had gotten lighter, and he could feel warmth spreading within his body. Absorbing these warm flows would strengthen his ability.

    Ai Hui continued on his path without stopping.

    More species appeared along the way. There were wild flowers of all sorts of colors, and he could even see a grasnd with splendid colors. It was no longer a monotonous scene.

    Thickets became amon sight as he moved forward. They had all kinds of shapes and variety. It was an eye-opening experience for Ai Hui. He hadn¡¯t seen two identical looking thickets thus far. Each one was unique.

    By now, Ai Hui had encountered three "snow falls."

    One was crystal blue, one emerald green, and the other a faint red. These three "snow falls" urred irregrly andsted for a different period of time as well. The longeststed 40 breaths, while the emerald green one ended the fastest,sting only seven breaths.

    Ai Hui did not know what these light balls were, but evidently, these peculiar "snow falls" had a nourishing effect on thisnd.

    Whatever the case, everything around here was strange.

    It was no longer a dull sight before him. He could see huge trees of great heights, beautifully colored vines, and scattered thickets. Yet, despite being knowledgeable in nts, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t able to identify any of them. They were all different.

    Some trees were pencil-straight with silvery trunks that stood like swords pointing to the sky and had leaves that looked like clouds and mist.

    There were also trees that had coiled branches, as soft as snakes, that opened themselves to form a huge web when the "snow" fell.

    Ai Hui could be sure now that other than the grass at the outermost edges, he wouldn¡¯t spot any two identical nts.

    This grotesque and variegated world left Ai Hui with an unreal feeling.

    He had never heard of a ce like this, except perhaps in fairy tales.

    It was a pity that he wasn¡¯t in one right now since this world was not only monstrous, but also full of danger.

    It was even more so than in the Wilderness.

    Ai Hui walked on the rocks carefully. The ck rocks that he had loathed before had be his refuge. That ice-cold sensation kept him grounded.

    The vast greennd was no longer visible.

    Ai Hui understood the ultimate goal of the evolution of these nts¨Cto catch the falling "snow flowers" which were also their food. In this region, the grass weren¡¯t able to survive. The more oddly shaped and bulky nts were the final victors.

    Ai Hui quickly realized that these victors emerged not through their physical attributes but through their shocking "hunting techniques."

    Ai Hui had witnessed for himself how some blood-streaked, ringed vines had wrung a stumpy, gurgling brown tree with feather-like leaves to death. The coils of these vines were like Indian kraits, agilely twining around their victim. The stumpy brown tree¡¯s leaves then plugged themselves into the streaked rings, causing a blood-like juice to flow out from the vines. While the leaves absorbed the juice, the vines continued tightening their grip around the stumpy tree trunk, essentially strangling it.

    The tree trembled slightly, releasing a strange and urgent cry. More leaves started piercing the blood-streaked, ringed vines and sucking the juice within.

    Just as the vines were almost embedded in the tree, the blood-streaked rings started snapping. Each section became a seed and sprouted wildly.

    Amid this conflict, the more skillful blood-streaked, ringed vines emerged as the final winner. The stumpy tree copsed and turned into a pile of delicacy.

    The ringed streaks around the vines were no longer red, but golden.

    They turned their gaze toward Ai Hui.

 Chapter 706: Chapter 706 - Golden Ringed Vines

    Chapter 706: Chapter 706 - Golden Ringed Vines

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    The golden ringed vines were like sea anemone, rolling out and drifting. Beneath them, the remains of the stumpy tree had already turned to ashes, which quickly dissipated into the air until there was nothing left.

    Ready to pounce on its prey, the golden ringed vines were like a scattered fis and also like a golden ringed spider.

    They red at Ai Hui maliciously, moving toward him like arge wave and swallowing him in no time.

    Ai Hui immediately felt his hair stand on end. He arched his back slightly like a frightened cat, returning the deadly re.

    He appeared calm and unperturbed when he was in fact trembling with fear.

    What a strong wave motion!

    Such an intense motion could only be unleashed with a consciousness that had been tempered to perfection.

    Be it physical strength or elemental energy, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t be considered the best. When it came to essence, breath, and spirit cultivation, like training his sword embryo, he was almost unbeatable. Even Chi Tong couldn¡¯t do much about it.

    Cultivation of the incorporeal energies was a neglected branch, so there were only a few who could leave an impression on Ai Hui.

    Yet, the golden ringed vines before him had managed to startle him.

    A conscious nt?

    The self-proimed nt expert, Ai Hui, had indeed seen nts grown by the elementalists, blood nts grown by the blood elementalists, and even the myriad of wild nts grown in the Wilderness, but had never heard of anything like this.

    It was an unprecedented situation!

    Such a powerful consciousness at that!

    No dire beast had ever had this level of consciousness.

    If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that he had seen it for himself, he never would¡¯ve believed it.

    Recalling the process in which the golden ringed vines had swallowed the stumpy tree made him suspect that these strange trees and vines weren¡¯t actually nts, but odd looking animals.

    The attack had far exceeded Ai Hui¡¯s expectations. It was as if the previous meal hadn¡¯t satisfied the vines¡¯ appetite in the least. He could clearly feel the vines¡¯ thirst and excitement.

    The golden ringed vines made the first move.

    A furious vine dove toward Ai Hui.

    Having prepared, Ai Hui crouched slightly and sprung away from the vine. He whirled around and managed to safely dodge a few more iing vines.

    p.

    One of the vines that he dodged broke abruptly into sections along its golden rings. More than 10 broken pieces turned and shot toward Ai Hui like rain.

    Having seen how the vines had swallowed the stumpy tree, Ai Hui was prepared for this particr attack.

    He spread his arms slightly, bent his fingers, and flicked them continuously, shooting out over 10 fine green sword rays. These rays were like blooming flowers.

    They were about the size of a chopstick and the color of autumn waters.

    When Ai Hui woke up in this strange ce, he noticed that all of his equipment was missing and that he was unarmed. Nevertheless, he was relieved to find that not only were his sword skills unaffected, they had significantly increased in power. He wasn¡¯t sure if it was this ce that boosted his skills or if he had indeed made progress.

    Moves that demanded more effort from him in the past could now be easily executed. For safety reasons, however, Ai Hui chose not to attempt attacks that required more energy.

    Even the sword embryo, which Ai Hui could only activate with a sword, had be exceptionally lively.

    Everything would be perfect if he had a sword.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t get used to its absence. He even considered forging a sword, no matter how unrefined. Unfortunately, he hadn¡¯t been able to spot any suitable materials along the way. The grasses here were too fine and soft.

    The easy and unconstrained execution of movements and sword rays filled Ai Hui with joy.

    Each ray urately hit a section of the vine.

    Ai Hui had perfect control. His sword rays, as fine as chopsticks, pierced into the broken sections and propelled them far away.

    Ai Hui was an experienced fighter. Although he couldn¡¯t tell what other moves the golden vines were capable of, he was wise enough to know that he should stay away from those broken sections.

    He was quickly rewarded for being cautious.

    The broken vines, hit by his rays, exploded in chorus, transforming into more than 10 puffs of dull red smoke and enveloping the air all around him.

    Toxic?

    Ai Hui immediately held his breath and put his fingers together before pushing his palms outward with great force.

    His surrounding lit up faintly. The surging air flow swept toward the smoke puffs like a p of thunder.

    Ai Hui exhaled slightly.

    What was the most dangerous thing? The unknown! Everything here made him feel foreign. Until now, everything that he had seen was way beyond his knowledge and understanding. The best method, when faced with an unknown enemy, was to avoid it and not fight.

    Ai Hui took the opportunity to fly up into the air.

    He wanted to escape and leave the dangerous and bizarre vines.

    Just then, out of the corner of his eye, he caught a sh of golden light.

    Not good!

    More than 10 golden rings were ejected from amid the smoke and whizzed toward Ai Hui. The rings were of different sizes, the smallest were the size of a ring and the biggest asrge a table.

    He thought back to the faint golden rings on the vines.

    The golden rings shot up like a school of fish. Ai Hui couldn¡¯t figure out what they were, but a sense of immense danger overtook him.

    With no time to indulge, he reacted instinctively.

    He sped up and turned into a shadow, no different from a dim fog, before vanishing. He reappeared the next moment, higher up in the sky, before diving down quickly.

    Ai Hui swooped down without any warning or buffer. The whole scene defied logic and was hard to bear.

    Sensing danger, the vines on the ground started dancing wildly. The golden rings on them lit up simultaneously, bing only brighter with time.

    AI Hui turned a blind eye to this and continued diving down with no intention of dodging.

    He lifted his index finger and jerked it lightly.

    A hazy light ray lit up from his fingertip. An unusual green color shed across his eyes, which was different from past experiences.

    There was no time for him to delve into it.

    The light ray he generated was like a soft green muslin. It was light, yet powerful.

    The golden rings pursued it relentlessly and collided with it head on.

    Unexpectedly, there was no intense impact. The golden rings struck the green muslin, causing it to crease. The creases looked simr to ripples on a water surface. Amid therge ripples were wisps of green fog that surrounded the golden rings.

    The golden rings seemed to have sensed the situation and turned even brighter, but no matter how they charged toward the paper-thin muslin, they ended up getting trapped within it.

    Boom!

    A golden ring exploded suddenly, producing countless light spikes. The other rings did the same instantaneously. Within seconds, it appeared as though many suns had been created.

    These "suns" quickly dimmed, however. A faint green fog had flown toward and wrapped around them to be a big green fog ball.

    There was nothing left within as the fog dispersed, and the green muslin returned to its original form.

    Eh! Definitely different from the past.

    Ai Hui was bbergasted. The [Soaring mes, Cascading Muslin] that he had known so well remained the same with regards to its execution, but its effect waspletely different.

    It wasn¡¯t the time to ponder over this, though. A sense of extreme danger washed over him as a deadly cold breeze, as if blown from the depths of hell, rushed toward him from below.

    While still diving down, AI Hui felt himself shudder.

    The snake-like vines on the ground suddenly stood at attention, pointing at Ai Hui like taut and pencil-straight swords. The golden rings around them were so dazzling that he could see it from high above.

    Boom. A stifled explosion sounded.

    Above the pencil-straight vines, the golden rings had snapped like rubber bands, producing the somber-sounding, yet impactful explosion.

    Ai Hui only felt temporarily blinded by shes of piercing, golden light rays. Golden arrow rain!

    The keenness of those rays was so substantial that Ai Hui developed the illusion that his internal organs were being brutally punctured.

    What a crisp consciousness! What grandeur!

    Ai Hui raised his eyebrow as a thirst for victory took over him. Such mindfulness and grandeur had a direct connection to the three incorporeal energies. When it came to the more obscure cultivation of the essence, breath, and spirit, he hadn¡¯t met a worthy opponent before.

    Now that he had finally encountered an opponent that was almost perfected tempered, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but feel a wave of eagerness.

    Instinctively, his green muslin started closing up like an enormous green umbre. The green muslin and fog-like sword rays wrapped around Ai Hui tightly to form a green fog ball. The rays thickened, effectively concealing even Ai Hui¡¯s shadows.

    This was purely an improvisational move.

    In thispetitive state, Ai Hui had felt that his [Soaring mes, Cascading Muslin] needed a change and subconsciously retrieved the sword rays as a result.

    But... what next?

    Unable toprehend this subconscious move, he was at a loss.

    The golden arrow rain approached speedily, its sharp consciousness growing increasingly intense every moment and magnifying the stabbing pains that Ai Hui felt. He had no doubt about the might of the arrow rain and knew that he would be a sieve if he couldn¡¯t quicklye up with a good n.

    Fog... fog... rolling fog...

    Ai Hui suddenly found this rolling fog somewhat familiar.

    Sword embryo!

    Wasn¡¯t his sword embryo... simr to this ball of fog?

    Eureka!

    ng!

    A series of melodic and rhythmic sword chimes rang incessantly, like the pattering of rain.

 Chapter 707: Chapter 707 - Spirit Swords

    Chapter 707: Chapter 707 - Spirit Swords

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    As the sword chimes rang, Ai Hui sensed his surroundings.

    The originally indistinct sword mist formed sword rays. As each sword ray solidified, a chime followed after. It was simr to how a chick cracked its shell and made its first chirp.

    The clear, melodious chimes weren¡¯t exactly forceful. Instead, they were like fine rays of sunlight that pierced through the cloudyer. Joy sprouted within Ai Hui as he witnessed this.

    The mist around him raged while the incessant chimes prated it. Fine green sword rays bored through the mist endlessly. Upon a closer look, one would notice that they were in all different kinds of shapes, none mirroring another. Some were like needles, hooks, willow tree leaves, and eyebrows, while others were like metal stones, sturdy mountains, and light smoke.

    Ai Hui¡¯s state of mind was turbulent from the uninterrupted sword chimes, umting indescribable emotions within.

    How bumpy was this road of cultivation?

    Ever since swordsmen had lost their form as well as guidance and waned over the years, Ai Hui¡¯s understanding of swordsmanship hade from his own sword embryo.

    The method to cultivate the sword embryo was iplete and cryptic. Since spiritual elements were no longer the same today, Ai Hui¡¯s studies and discoveries were mostly idental. All along, he had been skating on thin ice.

    The mental knot he had umted over a long time was like surging undercurrents that grew ferocious and violent, almost bursting out of his chest and shooting up to the highest of heavens!

    ng!

    Thest sword chime sounded so sharp that he could feel a prick in his brain.

    Ai Hui shuddered and opened his eyes.

    With his somewhat perplexed gaze he swept away the haze, revealing a crystal clear, blue sky that looked like sparkling and translucent ice. Countless sword rays cruised around Ai Hui, fast and agile, like a school of fish.

    The golden light flew toward Ai Hui, as violent as a rainstorm. He could clearly see the tip of the ray bing fatally bright.

    The bubbling air in his chest was about to explode. He channeled energy with some hand motions before releasing it abruptly. The next moment, the sword rays swimming around him entered his body, as if attracted by mas.

    Absolutely dazzling green rays shot out from his body, as if there was a big green sun within his body. The light rays around him flowed as an enormous green sword shadow, even bigger and taller than Ai Hui, appeared overhead.

    Buzz!

    A low sword chime jolted Ai Hui. Before he couldprehend what was going on, he felt a gush of abundant force binding him and blurring his vision suddenly.

    A bystander would¡¯ve witnessed this spectacr sight.

    A bright green ray lit up as quickly as it disappeared, just like a lightning bolt. It pierced the ground, illuminating this bizarre world.

    Boom!

    Ai Hui¡¯s mind buzzed. He was delirious, but felt uninhibited. It was beyond refreshing.

    Gradually, his vision returned, and he noticed that he was standing in a big pit. It was over 60 meters deep with straight and smooth walls.

    An isted, green, miniatureature sword cruised not far away from Ai Hui. He fell into a brief daze before snapping out of it, and the green sword flew toward him,nding on his palm. It fit in his palm perfectly and was entirely green. Neither golden nor made of wood, it was of the most ordinary design.

    Was that the sword ray from earlier? Why didn¡¯t it disappear?

    Rumble, rumble.

    Outside the pit and in the distance, a low rumble could be heard. It sounded like an rmed group of beasts fleeing in disarray.

    Ai Hui leaped lightly, flew out of the pit and looked around. He saw a ball of dust that was wrapped by a ck airwave and stacked up like a towering wall. It rolled away while crushing everything in its path.

    The green miniature sword followed quickly behind him.

    What about the golden ringed vines?

    The pit was so even and neat that it seemed to have been sliced out with a sharp knife. Ai Hui walked along the path and knew very well how solid the ck rock beneath him was.

    Did he... create this earlier?

    He found it hard to believe.

    Suddenly, he caught a glimpse of a golden light from inside of the pit.

    Eh?

    He jumped into the pit and saw a section of broken vine stuck in the ground. It was about a meter long and was as straight as an arrow. The six golden rings around it were the source of that golden light.

    The golden ringed vines had disappeared, leaving only this section.

    Ai Hui pulled it out. It was heavy in his hand. He tried bending it, but it was extremely tough. If he hadn¡¯t seen how the vines had captured their prey, he would have simply dismissed it as a golden arrow shaft.

    Although he knew not how it could be utilized, his instincts told him that this broken vine would be a decent treasure.

    As he was about to put it away, the circling miniatureature sword floated over and pecked at the vine.

    Crack!

    Like a biscuit being munched on by a squirrel, the vine in Ai Hui¡¯s hand had be one section shorter. Ai Hui was dumbstruck.

    Did his sword... just eat the vine?

    Crack! Crack!

    Before Ai Hui could react, there was only half a section of vine left in his hand. The tougher-than-steel vine was nothing before the miniature sword.

    Upon witnessing this event, he tossed the remaining vine over to the green miniature sword. A few crunchester, there was nothing left.

    Ai Hui was astonished and intrigued. It was a miniature sword transformed from a sword ray, but it acted no differently than a house pet.

    Having had its fill, the sword looked like a puffed up bird that was on the verge of bursting. It swayed, somewhat adorably, in the air like a drunkard.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but let out a grin.

    The swaying sword exploded all of a sudden, splitting into two pieces.

    Two green lights shed by as the swords circled and danced around Ai Hui.

    The smile on his face stiffened, and his expression turned sluggish.

    Shortly after he regained his senses, Ai Hui whipped his head around, his ferocious gazending upon another nearby nt.

    After a resounding sword chime, the ground shook with a loud boom that reverberated through the rolling smoke and dust.

    Inside the massive pit, Ai Hui found a brown stem. He tossed it in midair and saw four green sword rays interweaving. Crack! The stem was gone in no time.

    Ai Hui opened his eyes wide out of fear of missing any detail.

    He felt that the green sword might transform once more.

    The four swords swayed about. Four ps sounded simultaneously as each sword broke into two pieces.

    Eight green flying swords!

    Ai Hui whistled in satisfaction. He advanced forward without stopping. Upon discovering that the essence of those strange nts could feed his swords, Ai Hui basically went wild. Every nt in his path was swept clean.

    Any danger and uncertainty had been forgotten. All he thought about was increasing the number of green swords.

    His sword embryo, born from incorporeal energies, had entered a whole new realm. It was no longer an abstract theory, but a physical sword.

    It was an essential transformation, from an incorporeal sword to a tangible one.

    Ancient swordsmen believed that a sword embryo was produced from a soul, and the cultivation of the embryo was in fact that of the soul. Since there was a spirit in every soul 1 , the sword was also known as spirit sword.

    The generation of a spirit sword meant that it was no longer within the five elements and was shockingly powerful. Since the sword was also birthed from the swordsman¡¯s soul, it was a truly vital sword. When it came to the telepathic connection, even the most refined flying sword was no match for a spirit sword.

    Another astonishing quality of the spirit sword was the fact that it could cause direct damage to the enemy¡¯s soul.

    Producing a spirit sword was an achievement ancient swordsmen felt proud of.

    Although the cultivation of a sword embryo was a formidable process, it wasn¡¯t widely practiced. Cultivation was arduous and difficult to understand, and because of the danger involved, any carelessness would lead to eternal damnation. The ancient reputable families believed in advancing step by step and believed that umted knowledge was the key to sess. Yet, the cultivation of a sword embryo was unfathomable and ruthless, so the majority of them did not approve of it.

    When a swordsman¡¯s ordinary flying sword was damaged, he could simply get another one. Swordsmen who had spent their whole life nourishing just one sword would receive vital damage. When a spirit sword was damaged, however, it meant that its owner¡¯s soul would also have been injured. If minor, his soul would be badly damaged, but if serious, his body and soul would both be destroyed.

    Generally speaking, cultivators of the sword embryo had only one spirit sword. The moment they broke through the abstract theory, their spirit sword would be a tangible existence.

    Ai Hui¡¯s sword embryo was very different from others¡ªhis was formed from a collection of miniature swords.

    The difficulty of his breakthrough was significantly lower, but the spirit sword he had attained was only partially finished. Looking at his lonely spirit swords and thinking about the countless swords within the embryo, Ai Hui knew that his spirit sword was far frompletion.

    That being said, even an iplete spirit sword provided a huge boost to Ai Hui¡¯s strength.

    It turned out that this strange ce was an exceptionally good training environment. Ai Hui had managed to increase the number of spirit swords to eight just by killing the odd nts along the way and extracting their essences.

    His sword embryo had possessed yin and yang, thus his spirit sword did as well. Out of the eight swords, four were yin and four were yang.

    After figuring out that the green miniature sword was a spirit sword, Ai Hui made a conjecture with regard to this strange ce.

    Snowfalls of different colors would ur once in a while, and his spirit sword liked the snow flowers, too. He gathered that these snow flowers offered nourishment for the soul.

    Although the origin of these magical and beautiful snow flowers was unknown, it was a fact that they had created this amazing world.

    Under the nourishment of the snow flowers, the nts started to gain traces of souls. It was no wonder that they would then start terrorizing one another and disying animal traits. Since the essences of the nts contained souls, they were the ideal food for Ai Hui¡¯s spirit swords.

    The human soul is extremelyplex, so having the spirit swords swallow a human soul would hinder their growth and cause heterogenization. When that happened, the swords would turn against their owners.

    The cultivation of a sword embryo had always been deemed as unorthodox, but never evil.

    Nevertheless, the souls within these nts were extremely pure and possessed no self-awareness.

    Ai Hui had never heard of such a strange ce.

    He thought back to the time before hisa. Could Chi Tong have pulled him into thisnd?

    He recalled the ancient records that he had seen.

    During the cultivation era, there was a saying that many and all kinds of worlds existed. Each world was like a small heaven and earth system that cultivators could enter and exit.

    Could thisnd be a ce that Chi Tong had left for himself to nourish his soul? That must be right. Chi Tong¡¯s [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] and seizing of life for resurrection, don¡¯t they both require the nourishing of souls?

    This might not be possible for an ordinary person, but as a demonic god, Chi Tong had had a long life and ample preparation for his revival. It made sense for him to locate a world that had yet to copse and leave behind a few alternate paths.

    It was highly likely that before his death, Chi Tong had vengefully pulled Ai Hui in.

    The more Ai Hui thought about the possibility of his theory, the better he felt. He cast his gaze ahead and noticed that the scenery had changed quite a bit.

    The vastnd before him was his very own granary!

 Chapter 708: Chapter 708 - Danger from the Sky

    Chapter 708: Chapter 708 - Danger from the Sky

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    Ai Hui sprinted forward.

    Behind him, a shrub filled with red fruits pursued relentlessly.

    Granary? How naive of him and how embarrassing. Arrogantly thinking that his spirit sword would allow him to kill as he pleased, Ai Hui ended up getting humbled by all sorts of weird nts.

    These nts were growing increasingly bizarre and beyond his imagination, just like the shrub that was giving chase.

    When Ai Hui firstid eyes on the shrub, he had been attracted by the bright, alluring fruits. They were plump and carried an exotic fragrance.

    But...

    While sprinting, Ai Hui had a sudden hunch and leaped to the side. A red fruit brushed past his face with unimaginable power, producing an intense airflow that hurt his face.

    Boom!

    A bright orange me rose as that fruit explosively hit the ground. The surging shockwave made Ai Hui feel like a small boat amid a rainstorm. He was almost unable to steady himself.

    Ai Hui had used his spirit sword to block the fruit when he first saw it, but that resulted in him being sted 200 meters backward together with his sword. Smoke rose from his body as if he was a coal miner. The vigor within his sword was damaged as well, leaving it looking much dimmer.

    Despite his suffering, Ai Hui took to his heels without a word. Soon after, he detected movement behind him, and when he turned back, he received the shock of his life.

    The shrub had uprooted from the ground and was giving chase. Its roots wiggled nimbly like spider and centipede legs. Unable to fly, Ai Hui could only consecutively change directions, but even then, he simply couldn¡¯t get rid of the shrub.

    "Is that really a nt?" Ai Hui cursed inwardly. "Can¡¯t it just stay in a ce and act like one?"

    It seemed that the shrub bomb had no intention of giving up.

    The wind howled behind him once more.

    Eye twitching, he shouted, "Swords!"

    The swords circling around Ai Hui swiftly appeared before him. They opened up in sequence like a pontoon bridge. He bent his body slightly and leaped onto the "bridge," stepping on the bodies of the sword des like an agile leopard. He borrowed this momentum and started running wildly.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    His earlier position had been enveloped by orange mes, and he only felt a powerful gush pushing him forward. Instead of resisting, he made use of it to advance forward.

    Whoosh! He managed to increase the distance between the shrub and himself.

    He could finally let out a small sigh of relief. The red fruits were rmingly powerful. Fighting against them would only cause him more problems.

    Suddenly, the sky dimmed.

    Ai Hui tilted his head upward.

    Sss! He involuntarily drew a deep breath.

    A green cloud was floating toward him. It covered the sky and cast a huge shadow.

    An indescribable sense of danger burgeoned within him. At the same time, the swords around him were buzzing and vibrating, disying a huge warning sign. Without hesitation, Ai Hui squatted and sprung forward like an arrow shooting from its bow.

    Overhead, the green cloudyer started to descend, its shadow bing increasingly dense. Ai Hui could clearly feel a sense of danger so overwhelming that his heart was about to jump out of his chest. The descent of the cloud did not slow down. It only appeared this way due to its massive size.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    A series of explosions echoed. Ai Hui did not dare to look back. Instead, he lowered his head and focused on dashing outward, which was a wise decision on his part.

    If he could see what was behind him, he would agree.

    As the green cloudyer floated toward Ai Hui, even the shrub could detect the danger. It shifted its roots instantly and charged back to its nest.

    The green cloudyer was less than 60 meters away from the ground at this point.

    Like an endless wall, it gradually pressed closer to the ground as if it was about to tten everything into a pancake.

    The shrub stopped escaping. Its roots were trembling uncontrobly. The red fruits started detaching andunching themselves toward the cloud like raindrops.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    Balls of orange lights shed. The intensity of the sts produced shockwaves that worsened the conditions of the narrow space and threw the shrub a few hundred meters away.

    Bubbles started bulging above the cloudyer. The boundless green cloud was like a soft, yet durable piece of rubber.

    The cloudyer continued descending. Feeling it almost touch his head, Ai Hui had no choice but to bend his head down a little.

    His surroundings werepletely ck by now, and he could only locate a small wisp of light in front.

    There was not much time left!

    Ai Hui inhaled a huge breath. He raised his index and middle fingers, but kept the rest curled. Upon this activation, the spirit swords around him lit up. They gathered before him like an opened umbre, their tips facing forward.

    This eight-sword umbre turned brighter before folding up.

    In that instant, Ai Hui used both palms to grab ahold of the sword hilt.

    A light speck lit up amid the darkness.

    Sss! As gentle as a breeze, it shed by like a meteor and stuck itself onto the ground before drilling toward the narrow light gap.

    Faint sword rays could be seen swiftly flying out from beneath the thick cloudyer.

    Ai Hui could feel his surroundings brighten. He had managed to escape the cloud!

    Chi, chi, chi! The sword rays plowed into the ground, leaving a deep and pencil-straight pit behind Ai Hui that only ended after about 1.5 kilometers. Ai Hui felt heavy-headed, but his knees were wobbly.

    When he regained his senses and turned back, he saw an enormous sheet of green sea. He couldn¡¯t catch sight of where it ended. If he hadn¡¯t witnessed its descent, Ai Hui would¡¯ve believed it to be a sea of grasnd.

    He inched closer, only to realize that it wasn¡¯t grass, but a kind of grassy algae. They looked soft and frail, were as fine as hair, and were all tangled. Because they were over 300 meters thick, the scene became a eerie sight.

    Above the t green sea were bulges of different sizes. Ai Hui could see something wiggling and struggling within them and guessed that they were nts that had failed to escape.

    Waves of aquatic grasses rose one after another, sweeping toward the bulges.

    Even with Ai Hui¡¯s rich knowledge and experience, the scene before him made his blood run cold.

    The shrub that had terrorized him had also failed to escape the cloud¡¯s wrath. In fact, as far as Ai Hui could tell, there wasn¡¯t a single living being that had managed to flee.

    Gradually, the waves calmed and the sea of algae returned to its carpeted form, leaving no creases.

    Throughout the whole process, Ai Hui hadn¡¯t made any excessive movements. He knew very well that the massive thing before him wasn¡¯t something he could handle. At least within this strange world, this thing was at the top of the food chain.

    The quiet aquatic grasses started lifting off the surface of the ground and floated up toward the sky.

    Once high above, it started closing up. A short whileter, it turned into a green mountain peak that drifted in midair. It continued ascending until it eventually became an unnoticeable ck dot.

    Having seen this whole event, Ai Hui was determined to be extra careful when it came to dangers from the sky.

    Later on, this would prove to be a wise decision.

    During a blue snowfall that urred some timeter, Ai Hui observed how the aquatic grasses spread open to intercept snow flowers that fell within a few hundred hectares from its location.

    Ai Hui no longer dared to be mindless.

    Perhaps it was because of his increased vignce, but he could faintly feel a thread of consciousness from high, high above that was paying attention to him.

    How powerful was it really?

    He wanted to go up to see for himself. It was a pity that he wasn¡¯t able to fly.

    When he first woke up in this ce, or rather the edge of this world, it waspletely deste. Now that he was advancing toward the center, he could feel an omnipresent pressure.

    He felt as though he was underwater.

    This invisible pressure made Ai Hui feel strained. Not only was he unable to fly, everything that he did required more energy. He had to constantly strengthen his spirit swords in order to adapt to the gradually increasing pressure.

    Whenever he started to feel strained, he would suitably retreat and seek out weaker nts to fortify his abilities.

    He had 16 spirit swords at this point, a major leap in his eyes.

    However, the nts he was exposed to became increasingly powerful and dangerous as well.

    Addressing his enemies as nts was merely a habit. Despite looking like nts, these strange organisms acted more like dangerous predatory animals.

    At this point, practically all the nts Ai Hui met could move of their own free will.

    The mental pressure he felt was no weaker than the physical one that he was subjected to.

    He could be a predator, but also a prey. He needed to be alert at all times. Fortunately, keeping focus was his forte. Sometimes, he would have the illusion that he was back in the Wilderness and slogging hard.

    The unknowns were all dangerous.

    He carefully kept the remains on the ground. This thistle had exhausted a significant amount of his energy. On it were dense, gleaming blue spikes, and Ai Hui could asionally spot fine lightning arcs above them.

    Ai Hui was extremely interested in this nt since it was his first time seeing a nt that could generate electricity.

    One of his spirit swords moved closer to the spikes.

    Zap! A fine electric arc struck the sword. Ai Hui felt a slight numbness, but continued to observe and experience.

    Shortly after, he used another spirit sword to experiment while remaining deep in thought.

    He then made a bold move by cing his finger straight onto the spikes.

    Whoosh !

    A dazzling electric arc lit up. Like a slithering snake, it coiled around Ai Hui¡¯s finger and entered his body. The thistle that once possessed an almost undetectable breath became lively and rolled toward Ai Hui. The spikes on it shed with fatal light rays.

    Just then, an even more dazzling electric arc spurted out from between Ai Hui¡¯s fingers to strike the thistle.

    The perky thistle became stiff as countless electric arcs started refracting and swimming along the blue spikes, causing them to explode.

    Unknowingly, Ai Hui¡¯s eyes were shrouded by ayer of dense electric arcs. He looked effortlessly intimidating.

    His sword rays inteced, and the thistle snapped into sections.

    The spirit swords floating around him were now coated with dense lighting arcs.

 Chapter 709: Chapter 709 - Human-faced Marshland

    Chapter 709: Chapter 709 - Human-faced Marsnd

    Trantor: Irene_ Editor: X, TYZ

    The blue electric arcs allowed Ai Hui to regain all the power he had lost. Having previously tempered his body amid the lightning to purge toxins, Ai Hui found these arcs extremely familiar. The moment the arcs entered his body, countless realizations surged within him.

    There was an exceptional affinity between this strange world and lightning.

    Even more wonderfully, the lightning was verypatible with his spirit swords, perhaps because both weren¡¯t a part of the five elements. Ai Hui had yet to figure the situation out.

    His spirit swords were undergoing gradual changes. The contrast between their yin and yang was bing more distinct. The yang swords were turning a purer white, and there were densely packed lightning bolts swimming around them. It appeared as if the swords wore a silvery silk coat. The yin swords were turning ink ck, and the lightning around them seemed to have been dyed ck as well. They looked like countless shadows and fog that enveloped the sword bodies.

    ck lightning?

    Could this be yin lightning? Ai Hui had read about it in the ancient records. It was said that yang lightning could wipe out all kinds of evil, whereas yin lightning contained all kinds of poison that could prate the deepest of bones.

    When he was going through the ancient records, he had merely treated them as reading material and had not expected to experience it for himself one day. Lightning techniques were profound and wide-ranging, but had unfortunately died out a long time ago.

    As the saying goes, it is only when one experiences true knowledge that he finally understands how little he knows.

    Influenced by the spirit swords, the lightning had also been divided into yin and ying. It was a phenomenon that greatly surprised Ai Hui.

    This meant that between the lightning and spirit swords, thetter was in a dominant position. Ai Hui had always known lightning to be the mightiest force, so it was a shocking realization that the swords he had cultivated could actually gain the upper hand.

    The legendary rumor that a swordsman who was able to cultivate spirit swords could proim himself a hegemon was not just a rumor after all.

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help feeling pleased, but what came out of him was a bitter smile.

    "Let¡¯s get out of this damned ce first," he thought to himself.

    Evil pervaded every corner of this ce, so he dared not lose focus. If he hadn¡¯t been careful up to this point, he would¡¯ve died many times over.

    Ai Hui stopped in his tracks.

    Before him was a vast stretch of marsh, and he couldn¡¯t locate its boundaries.

    Within the marsnd, there was gray mud with scattered clusters of green, needle-like meadow grasses on it. A faint gray fog rose from the mud, gradually forming balls. As the airflow within the balls started rolling, Ai Hui could vaguely make out distorted and blurry faces. Mournful whimpers drifted from within the balls of fog, intensifying the bleakness of the marsnd.

    When Ai Hui appeared at the edge of the marsnd, all the floating fog faces turned toward him.

    Ai Hui wasn¡¯t sure if it was an illusion, but he felt as though these faces were smiling at him.

    "Come...e..."

    "Ee... ahh..."

    "Hehe..."

    Screeching sounds floated about like steel wires piercing eardrums. Undoubtedly, it was highly ufortable to bear, but they emitted a strange charm that made Ai Hui want to pay more attention.

    Despite being an extremely bold person, when facing a situation like this, Ai Hui couldn¡¯t help but shiver.

    Yet, standing before the sinister marsnd, Ai Hui was inexplicably attracted to it. There seemed to be a voice within that urged him to go in.

    Ai Huiposed himself and took a few steps back. His eyes were clear and bright.

    This human-faced marsnd had the ability to impact one¡¯s mental state.

    Human-faced Marsnd was a name that Ai Hui had just given to this extremely dangerous ce.

    Ai Hui decided to change his path and started moving along the edges of the marsnd. The moment he moved, the faces in the marsnd turned respectively to re at him.

    While he pretended not to notice, he could feel the hair on his back standing on end.

    The scene that unfolded next was a grand showcase of the dangers of the marsnd.

    A ball of aquatic grasses was chasing after some nts, and with no other routes, thetter chose to run right into the marsh. Despite feeling unable to prevail over the aquatic grasses, Ai Hui stopped at the edge of the marsh. The nts that had charged into the marsh were immediately surrounded by the spherical fog faces. The fresh and bright colors of those nts quickly faded into a gloomy gray color. Their sturdy branches started to melt into huge clumps of gray mud and drip down.

    The fog faces only started to disperse after the mud and marsh became one.

    The eerily taperedughter shrouded the sky once more.

    With a face as pale as a sheet, Ai Hui swallowed his saliva. He had finally figured out the origin of the mud.

    The whole marsnd was covered with gray mud.

    "How many nts have been buried under?" Ai Hui wondered but dared not imagine.

    Human-faced marsnd? More like deadly marsnd.

    Ai Hui detected a frail wisp of consciousness being cast down from high above the clouds again. "It" was overseeing everything that was going on down here. Ai Hui did not look up. He had no mood to care about that unknown existence.

    He moved along the marsh while attempting to circumvent it. What he had underestimated was its width. No matter where he went, the fog faces would always turn to stare at him. At the start, he felt as though there were beams boring into his back, but as time passed, he was no longer bothered.

    Eh?

    He narrowed his eyes. Not far away and in front of him, there seemed to be a mess on the ground.

    He remembered clearly that this mess had been left by the fleeing nts when they charged into the marsh.

    Was the marsh round in shape?

    Ai Hui shook his head, dismissing this idea. He had a keen sense of direction and was sure that he had been moving in a perfectly straight line.

    Strange.

    A sharpughter traveled from the marsh as the faces continued keeping an eye on Ai Hui, as if mocking his futile attempts.

    After listening to theughter for a long time, Ai Hui could effortlessly ignore it.

    A fantasnd?

    What to do?

    It was impossible for him to circumvent, and there weren¡¯t many routes for him to take. He could either move forward or backward. Retreat? He shook his head. He had woken up in a deste location, but here he was, getting involved in more activities and bumping into more things.

    He continued advancing toward the center of this world despite the increased dangers.

    Opportunities are often hidden amid danger.

    Ai Hui had a premonition that if he wished to leave this ce, he would have to move toward the most lively and dangerous location instead of the most empty region.

    Since he had decided to move forward, he would have to pass through the marsnd.

    It was a pity that he couldn¡¯t fly. Otherwise he could simply pass this fatal zone. This wasn¡¯t his first time encountering a problem because of his disability. He actually had a rough exnation for it, but had been unable to verify it thus far.

    Ai Hui decided to experiment first.

    Around him, a spirit sword transformed into a silver light and shot toward the nearest fog face ball.

    The silver sword ray prated the face effortlessly before returning to Ai Hui¡¯s side in an arc.

    The fog face ball twisted and turned before freezing. In its core appeared an additional silver light.

    Buzz, buzz, buzz! Countless fine electric arcs exploded from within the light, instantly covering the fog face.

    A grieving howl filled the ce as the face, enveloped by lightning, turned to ashes before vanishing.

    Although Ai Hui wasn¡¯t sure what those faces were, he had a hunch that they were evil objects, so he chose to attack with a yang sword. Indeed, the yang sword had managed to deal a fatal blow to the fog face.

    Yet, there was no obvious joy in his face. He extended his palm, and the yang swordnded in it.

    It was much dimmer than before.

    At this point, his sword count had doubled again to 32, of which 16 were yin and 16 were yang. Looking at the endless marsnd, however, Ai Hui knew that 16 yang swords weren¡¯t enough to get him out.

    Relying on those 16 swords alone wouldn¡¯t work, so Ai Hui decided to experiment with a yin spirit sword.

    The ink ck sword whizzed past, as if ripping the sky apart and leaving a crack behind. Simrly, the yin spirit sword easily prated the fog face ball, but the result was totally different.

    A small wisp of ck air surfaced on the face. In the next moment, the face was enveloped by ck, web-like threads.

    The warped gray face became even more distorted as it released a low ripping howl and turned ck.

    It pounced on a nearby fog face ball.

    The low ripping howl was now apanied by an eerie screech. There was a frantic fight between the ck and gray human faces. The other gray faces turned their attentions to the fight, and the sharp shrieks wavered slightly as a result. They flocked forward to surround the ck face. In no time, the ck fog face ball waspletely devoured.

    It was a wild sight that almost caused Ai Hui to vomit.

    The oue wasn¡¯t what he had expected, but he quickly understood that this situation could be taken advantage of.

    The yin spirit sword fell back into his hand, and he noticed that the yin lightning around its body had thinned quite a bit.

    Since it was impossible for Ai Hui to solely rely on the power of his spirit words, he had to find an alternative solution.

    He had observed another disparity between the previous and current situations.

    Before, when he was hunting all kinds of nts, they would always leave an essence behind. It was those essences that had strengthened his swords. However, there was nothing left from the destruction of both of the fog face balls.

    While that was unfortunate, Ai Hui wasn¡¯t too bothered. What he focused on was the legendary knowledge behind it. Be it the marsnd of the fog faces or the odd nts he had seen previously, they were both dissimr, but they possessed different kinds of existence.

    The aquatic grasses were stronger than the average nts, but they all had the same objective.

    How was he going to pass through the marsnd?

    Ai Hui¡¯s gaze fell upon a scattered cluster of meadow, and his heart jumped.

    How did these dark-green, needle-like meadow grasses survive in the marsnd without turning into lumps of mud?

    Could it be that... these seemingly normal meadow grasses had a unique feature?

    His heart skipped a beat as a circling spirit sword flew out.

    A sword ray shed past the sky toward a patch of meadow.

    As it was about to strike, something startling urred!

 Chapter 710: Trouble

    Chapter 710: Trouble

    Trantor: YHHH Editor: X, TYZ

    It was an old well that was covered in lifelike, ornate carvings of auspicious beasts. Two prominent words, "subdue demons", were written on its side using cinnabar. The words sported an unrestrained calligraphic style, was seemingly written with a fine brush, and had an otherworldly feel to it. Having withstood the test of time, the well was in a deste state, and the once bright red cinnabar had since dulled.

    Five elemental energy stupas, each representing one of the five elements, stood around the ancient well. The spanking new stupas contrasted sharply with the ruins they were erected in. Like lighthouses, lights of different colours shone atop these structures.

    The five elemental lights were aimed downwards to create aplete five elemental energy ring.

    The five different elemental energies coexisted in harmony, shining unceasingly.

    A bone-piercing cold churned sluggishly at the well¡¯s opening. It¡¯s depth was so great that the bottom of the well could not be seen. Deep inside, the faint outline of a being could be seen.

    A group of people approached the well. Leading them was Hong Rongyan, and Master Shao walked by his side.

    Hong Rongyan gently asked, "What do you think of this ce, Master Shao?"

    Master Shao lookedposed, but his mind was in turmoil. He took a deep breath and spoke, "I wasn¡¯t expecting you to find such a precious location.".

    He walked up to the well¡¯s edge and observed the rolling white fog. Unable to contain his surprise, he dered, "What an amazing well! Sealing off the stench of Chi Tong¡¯s blood with this well is a stroke of genius. It¡¯s no wonder nobody else has gone after the lot of you. To which Cultivation Era sect did this ce belong to? How did you find this?".

    Hong Rongyan shook his head, "There are too many sects to know for sure. We found this ce purely by chance, and amid the ruins found this Demon-subduing Well. Everything else had already been reduced to rubble. Checking the ancient records turned up nothing about the origins of this well."

    "Relics from the Cultivation Era are truly something else." Master Shao gushed. Changing the topic, he asked, "Using the well to suppress the essence of Chi Tong¡¯s blood while peeling his physical body away using the five elemental energies to extract the divinity within. Is this your n?"

    Hong Rongyan bowed in respect, "Kindly lend us a hand, Master Shao."

    Master Shao was not, "Your n is already wless, even I have nothing more to add."

    Hong Rongyan smiled, "We¡¯ve met with some trouble."

    Master Shao was surprised, "Trouble?"

    "The Banner of God."

    Master Shao was momentarily stunned, "Banner of God? Impossible. Chi Tong had abandoned the banner when he severed his karmic ties to achieve reincarnation."

    Hong Rongyan sighed ruefully, "Yeah, that¡¯s what the records say as well. Sadly, things are different in reality and this was something even Chi Tong did not expect. His host, Ai Hui, happened to be the new owner of the Banner of God. Through some unknown means, Chi Tong managed to get the banner to protect him once again."

    Hearing the name "Ai Hui" made Master Shao¡¯s eyes light up, but the spark was gone in an instant.

    Hong Rongyan detected Master Shao¡¯s subtle reaction and nodded, "I see you¡¯ve heard of the Lightning de too. Ai Hui is an extremely talented individual, and is easily one of the strongest members of the new generation. It¡¯s a pity he met Chi Tong and ended up having his soul devoured and his body taken. The thing is, Ai Hui had cultivated a sword embryo and had a pure, refined mind. Chi Tong¡¯s soul was as such damaged in the taking over process, and his body has seen started to fall apart. Sigh, this was supposed to be an optimal opportunity for us, but the Banner of God just had to intervene."

    Master Shaoughed out loud after hearing Hong Rongyan¡¯s exnation. "Hahaha, so now you¡¯re blocked by the Banner of God? Ai Hui may have been unlucky, but it looks like you guys are even worse off! Hahaha!"

    Hong Rongyan nodded, "Indeed, the Banner of God is not something to be trifled with. The fusion elemental energy has worked tirelessly to wear it down but till now it has only shown slight signs of declines."

    Master Shao replied matter of factly, "I¡¯d like to help, but my hands are tied. Besides, the banner has already begun to wear out. You¡¯re not long away from breaking through."

    The puppet on Autumn Water¡¯s shoulder had an indignant look on its face. It shouted, "Don¡¯t y games with us old man!"

    Master Shao replied calmly, "Youngdy, your mud body cannot withstand much God¡¯s Blood. How about I help you with a new one?"

    He chuckled, "How about a sand puppet. Maybe a sand puppet will be more suitable."

    Autumn Water could barely tolerate having to exist in a mud puppet. Master Shao¡¯s words had unintentionally torn her psychological wounds open, sending her into a state of rage. She shouted, "You¡¯re just asking for it aren¡¯t you!"

    Autumn Water¡¯s expressionless eyes suddenly glowed with anger.

    "How dare you disrespect Master Shao!"

    Hong Rongyan snorted coldly. Autumn Water immediately froze in ce, the mud puppet seething with fury.

    Master Shaoughed the matter off.

    Hong Rongyan said to him, "Please stay and give us some pointers, Master Shao."

    "I¡¯d like to observe some of the Assembly¡¯s techniques as well." Master Shao replied, sounding slightly interested.

    As their subordinates brought Master Shao away, Autumn Water spoke in an oddlyposed manner. "We don¡¯t exactly have any way to make sure he helps. We don¡¯t have any information about his granddaughter."

    "Right," Hong Rongyan nodded. "Don¡¯t worry, he¡¯s interested in both Chi Tong and Ai Hui. He¡¯ll give in to temptation and attempt to break Chi Tong down once he joins us."

    The mud puppet was curious, "Master Shao¡¯s interest in Chi Tong is expected, but Ai Hui?"

    "No idea," Hong Rongyan muttered. "Perhaps there¡¯s something special about someone who has managed to cultivate a sword embryo and tame lightning."

    The mud puppet seemed to be buzzing with ideas. "A pity Ai Hui¡¯s body is going to be destroyed. Wouldn¡¯t it be great if we could forge a God Puppet from his body? Wouldn¡¯t it be really powerful?"

    Hong Rongyan ignored the mud puppet. The Assembly of Patriarch¡¯s attention had been focused on Chi Tong¡¯s reincarnation, causing Master Shao¡¯s matter to progress terribly slowly.

    He rubbed his temples in an attempt to alleviate the growing headache. He had exaggerated when he talked about the Banner of God being weakened. The Banner of God was much more resilient than they had expected. It was giving them considerable trouble.

    That was why Hong Rongyan hoped Master Shao could help.

    Once the head of Beast Venom Pce and the man who created the Heart of God, Master Shao was only second to the Holy Emperor in terms of knowledge about God¡¯s Blood.

    Master Shao was however, not one to give in easily to others.

    "What¡¯s happening inside?"

    "Nothing has happened."

    Theoretically speaking, Ai Hui¡¯s valiant mind,bined with the sword embryo, should have been able to greatly damage Chi Tong¡¯s soul. What¡¯s more, Chi Tong had only just reincarnated, and would have been in a state far from his full power.

    Obstructed by the Banner of God, Hong Rongyan thought of another way around. He was going to focus on Chi Tong¡¯s soul instead. Although, destroying Chi Tong¡¯s soul would also cost them the opportunity to learn how to cultivate [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness].

    On the other hand, dragging this operation out was disadvantageous too.

    So many days had passed, but the Banner of God¡¯s defensive capabilities were as strong as ever. This meant that Chi Tong¡¯s soul had yet to be vanquished.

    Hong Rongyan suddenly felt impatient. If only he could go in and take a look.

    Unfortunately, he did not dare to.

    That was the most dangerous ce in this world, the true wilderness.

    *************************************

    Human-faced Marsnd.

    The unremarkable underbrush suddenly lit up with countless bubbles of light. At the same time, an eerie howl was let loose into the sky, piercing to one¡¯s ears. Ai Hui felt as if an awl had been hammered through his heart, the resulting intense pain nearly causing him to ck out.

    He was instinctively aware that he was under attack.

    Silver threads of lightning burst forth from deep behind his eyes, quietly shrouding the area around him with a protective presence. The pain in his chest disappeared, and the piercing sound became more subdued. While still terribly unpleasant, it no longer hurt him and now sounded more like an infant¡¯s crying.

    On guard, Ai Hui summoned his spirit swords. He had never heard of a ce like the Human-faced Marsnd and had no idea where he was. The past few days here had however helped him to understand that danger was lurking behind every corner, and that any dropping his guard was likely tond him in an inescapable mire.

    The glowing underbrush shook vigorously like the spikes on the back of an angry hedgehog .

    Crash.

    The entire underbrush rose up from the ground slowly, as though someone was picking it up. Its true form was gradually being revealed.

    A human face, a grotesque, deformed human face.

    To a seasoned exponent like Ai Hui, beauty was abstract concept that had no ce in battle. However, seeing this face made him extremely ufortable. It was a difort that he could not describe.

    The face had all five facial features present, but it projected an otherworldly presence that was disquieting.

    When considered separately, each of its features were perfectly normal, yet when ced together, they gave a sense ofplete dissonance. It felt as if they had all been plucked off different faces, and forced together in a hauntingposite image.

    The face was enveloped in a rolling gray fog that matched perfectly with the dull, lifeless marsnd. In sharp contrast however, was the face¡¯s vibrant glow that shone through parts of the fog, painting an eerie picture that assaulted the senses and screamed evil.

    The dark green underbrush was the face¡¯s hair.

    It grinned at Ai Hui.

    A shiver ran down Ai Hui¡¯s spine. The face was already bizarre enough, and the smile made it look even more terrifying.

    A formless shockwave pressed against Ai Hui.

    A wisp of cold air entered his body, making him shiver. It exploded into tiny fragments the moment he activated his spirit swords.

    Ai Hui opened his eyes but was unable to move. His body had frozen in ce like a statue.

    The glowing face made a loud quacking noise, its facial features scrunched up as if it were bothughing and crying at the same time. It shot something out of its mouth that flew at high speed towards Ai Hui.

    That was its tongue.

    The ck tongue shot out like an sticated rope. At its tip was a pitch ck hook that was lined with shiny, sharp teeth on the inside.

    They were moving non-stop, biting away at nothing.

    The tongue hooked itself around Ai Hui, and the teeth dug into his shoulders.

    The face¡¯s features were twisting around violently as if crazed by the sight of delicious food. The dark green underbrush shook wildly with excitement.

    Ai Hui¡¯s spirit swords sensed the imminent danger and autonomously shed at the tongue. A bright glint could be seen as the pitch ck tongue was sliced in half.

    Half of the tongue was still draped around Ai Hui¡¯s shoulders, and the teeth continued to gnaw away.

    The severed ends wiggled as new hooks,plete with razor sharp teeth sprouted out of them.

    Just when things seemed like they could not get any worse, the other bushes present in the marsnd began to shudder. Human faces leisurely rose up from the marsh one by one.

    Pained, haunting wails rang out incessantly throughout the marsnd.

 Chapter 711: Snowfall

    Chapter 711: Snowfall

    Trantor: YHHH Editor: X, TYZ

    Ai Hui couldn¡¯t budge and could only stare at the ugly, patchwork faces floating toward him.

    The spirit swords danced around Ai Hui, knitting a tightly weaved web of light. Eerie wails continued to rise from all over, sending chills down Ai Hui¡¯s spine.

    Ai Hui was bing anxious.

    What kind of evil had he stumbled upon?

    This was the first time he had been attacked without noticing it first. The numbness that washed over his body had rendered his senses useless, but he was oddly still conscious.

    The fragment of the tongue on his shoulder continued to gnaw away.

    It was an extremely strange feeling!

    The teeth¡¯s gnashing sounds rang out incessantly yet he could feel no pain. Ai Hui felt like a onlooker to his plight.

    A momentter, the paralysis subsided a little. Ai Hui regained some of his movement and effortfully turned to look at his shoulder.

    He rxed upon seeing his shoulder.

    The tongue fragment was still biting ceaselessly, its razor sharp, white teeth moving at high speed. His shoulder was however,pletely unharmed.

    Another tonguetched onto his body with a pop.

    Gnash, gnash.

    Ai Hui¡¯s body remained unscathed no matter how much they chewed.

    He waspletely at ease now, curiously observing the ugly, malevolent creatures.

    His body was suddenly paralyzed again.

    He had been hit by the same attack.

    Now that he knew the faces could not harm him, Ai Hui rxed and carefully observed their behavior. The spirit swords followed suit, slowing down significantly as more and more tongues made their way towards Ai Hui.

    Ai Hui¡¯s current predicament would scare any onlooker. His body was covered in what looked like countless wriggling ck snakes.

    In the middle of the terrifying scene stood Ai Hui,pletely unharmed. He was fast bing used to the numbing sensation brought on by the faces. Ai Hui was recovering much faster with each wave of paralysis.

    He eventually reached a point where he could no longer be fully paralyzed. All he could feel was a slight tingle, as though a small electric current was running through his body. His rapidly increasing immunity to this seemingly formless numbing attack rendered it unthreatening.

    The faces were floating at the marsh¡¯s edge, unable to leave the biome. They were only able to attack Ai Hui from afar.

    Ai Hui found it very interesting.

    He wiped his hand against his chest, and the tongues plopped on the ground one after another. Once on the ground, they wriggled about frantically and let out haunting cries of pain. The tongues gradually faded into ck smoke, disappearingpletely.

    Ai Hui stood a short distance outside the marsnd, provoking the ugly faces.

    Having established that they were of no threat, Ai Hui began to feel that the faces were not as ugly or sinister as he had initially thought. Seeing them stuck at the edge of the marsh made Ai Hui rxed.

    He was provoking the faces not out of boredom, but to learn more about them.

    Through his observations, Ai Hui realized that the formless attack was a unique kind of mental shockwave. It was an extremely stealthy attack that could easily catch anyone without prior experience. However, those who knew what to look out for could easily detect it. Much to his surprise, he also noticed that this attack had a tempering effect on his soul. This was the reason why he had been able to ovee the effects of paralysis with increasing speed, ultimately bingpletely unaffected by it.

    Another thing he discovered was that the faces had a cooldown period between attacks. He deduced that it took them approximately eight to twelve hours after an attack to do it again.

    Yet another discovery was that the faces¡¯ ck tongues were its only other means of offense besides the shockwave. Ai Hui was rather disappointed by their simple attacks, which were a total mismatch with their vile and sinister looks.

    The biggest revtion he had was however, regarding himself. His soul was extraordinarily strong, which was why the snake-like tongues were unable to deal any damage to him. He was like a sturdy rock which the tongues¡¯ razor sharp teeth could not bite through.

    A battle between souls was vastly different from physicalbat. A well-tempered soul couldpletely crush a weaker one without any chance of fighting back.

    Ai Hui felt thankful to Chi Tong for banishing him here. It was only in such a strange ce that he could get such wonderful insights.

    Knowledge and ideas regarding the soul were often cryptic and hard to grasp. Because the soul existed within the body, it could only be felt but not seen. The only way a person could attempt to understand and interact with it was through personal subjective experiences. This naturally made it much harder toprehend its true nature. Such experiences were also difficult to put into words, and their subjective nature meant that they often varied between people. Recorded knowledge surrounding things such as the soul and consciousness were hence typically undecipherable to everyone but the author.

    This was the reason why cultivation of the soul and the mind have been considered a treacherous road to take since ancient times. It was also why there were such few practitioners of the art. Ai Hui¡¯s shaky cultivation of the sword embryo was a good example of its difficulty.

    In this strange world however, Ai Hui was able to directly observe his soul and consciousness.

    This was definitely a once in a lifetime opportunity.

    Ai Hui was now much moreposed than he had been when he first found himself awake in this world. He was no longer in a hurry to leave and instead wanted to explore further. Furthermore, he knew how to cultivate Chi Tong¡¯s [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness], and there was nowhere better toprehend it than in this world.

    [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] was the culmination of Chi Tong¡¯s life¡¯s work. It was a true masterpiece forged out of his blood, sweat, and tears.

    How many people have dared to challenge life and death? It was the natural order of the universe that restrained every single living being. Chi Tong¡¯s ambition and bravery in choosing to defy this naturalw was worthy of admiration and respect.

    Tricking Chi Tong into divulging [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] was a stroke of intuition on Ai Hui¡¯s part, but he did not realize just how wide-ranging and profound its concepts were until he delved into it. Itsplexity had deterred Ai Hui from attempting to practice it.

    On the one hand, Ai Hui found [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] much too profound and was afraid that he would spend his entire life just to find the starting line. In addition, he had only recently made significant progress with his cultivation of the sword embryo, and was hesitant to divert his attention to something new.

    On the other, he was afraid of the traps that Chi Tong might haveid inside. A sly old wily like Chi Tong would definitely leave surprises wherever he went. It would be a real shame if Ai Hui was led into a gulch and left to die there.

    However, Ai Hui decided to read [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] now that he knew of the wonders of this ce.

    He was still not going to practice [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] but intended, instead, to use the knowledge within to his advantage. [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] was the condensed form of everything Chi Tong came to understand about the soul. Under regr circumstances such knowledge would be beyond Ai Hui¡¯s capacity to grasp but in this world, the teachings would be wholly apparent.

    For instance, the marsnd faces¡¯ formless shockwaves were recorded in [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] as [Yin Desires]. It was an ability associated with the evil spirits of the underworld, said to be capable of destroying lesser souls. If the shockwaves produced were weak, the ability would instead have a tempering effect.

    Ai Hui had no idea how anyone could visit the underworld to find out what desires evil spirits possessed. Although, he was absolutely sure that he was currently not there yet.

    [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] contained many ideas that were far too abstract, and Ai Hui merely nced over them. Despite this, he had learned a whole lot from it and came to understand more and more about souls and consciousnesses as he continued to read.

    His spirit sword count had more than doubled, increasing from thirty two to seventy two. Seeing this made him much more confident of his progress.

    Ai Hui decided to leave the Human-faced Marsnd and press onwards.

    He walked through the marsh, releasing weak shockwaves in an attempt to mimic [Yin Desires]. The clouds of fog and human faces rolled and floated around him, seemingly unaware of his presence.

    The marsh was muchrger than he had thought, taking him a good long while before he reached the other end.

    He was back on firm, solid ground.

    Ai Hui turned to look at the Human-faced Marsnd, looking at it with a fresh perspective.

    He was not sure how this marsh, with its rolling fog and haunting faces, came to be formed but ording to Chi Tong¡¯s ount, it was the result of restless spirits congregating. Of special note was the floating faces which were actually formed by restless spirits that tore away at one another until they fused into a single being.

    Ai Hui wondered about the marsh¡¯s dark history and how its many restless spirits came to be.

    A pity he was not powerful enough...

    Ai Hui looked at his palm, at the arcs of electricity that jumped between his fingertips. He clenched his fist tightly, extinguishing the currents.

    He decided then that he would erase the marsh once he was strong enough.

    Looking ahead, Ai Hui picked up his pace and continued walking.

    Seventy two spirit swords swirled around his body like a school of fish, making for a majestic sight.

    As Ai Hui continued on his journey, the environment around him began to change. He felt as though he had just walked into the gobi desert, with nothing but sand and rocks as far as the eye could see.

    Ai Hui was surprised. Had he reached another end of this world?

    He had awoken in a simrly deste location, which he took to be the border of this world. Following that, heter made his way onto a meadow filled with all sorts of nts, although he would not exactly consider them to be nts.

    He soon rejected this border conjecture.

    The barrennd before him was different from the one he had arrived on.

    The edge of this world waspletely devoid of life but here, he could feel the life force of other creatures. [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness] was a masterpiece about life and death, and Ai Hui was very extremely sensitive to traces of life.

    He could detect several weak traces of life force that gave him no more information than the fact that there was more to this barrennd than meets the eye.

    Ai Hui raised his head.

    Ai Hui stuck his palm out, catching several snowkes. The snowkes were the size of goose feathers and saturated with a deep red hue. They looked remarkably like the shed feathers of a crimson coloured mingo. The snowkes on Ai Hui¡¯s palm melted and soaked through skin, releasing a warm sensation that spread throughout his body.

    The entire world was covered in an all-epassing blood red tint as a dense killing intent permeated the air.

    The snowfall here... was much greater!

    Ai Hui suddenly sensed danger. His vision tunneled as he looked towards the side.

 Chapter 712: Monster

    Chapter 712: Monster

    Trantor: YHHH Editor: X, TYZ

    This was thergest snowfall Ai Hui had ever encountered.

    Snowkes fell from the sky, floating down like crimson feathers. Ai Hui¡¯s entire field of view was covered in red and he was unable to see further than thirty meters. The graceful red snowkes twirled and flitted about the air like professional dancers. asionally, a group of snowkes would seemingly bunch together like a flock of birds, only to be blown apart by a gust of wind, disappearing into the sea of red.

    The gentle breeze caressed his ears, whistling softly like a lover revealing her inner feelings.

    The spirit swords surrounding Ai Hui sprang to life, spinning rapidly around Ai Hui as they chased the red snowkes. This snowfall was very heavy, with snowkes that were muchrger in size than anything he had seen before. They provided a good source of nourishment for the spirit swords. The swords were frantically moving, as if they were hungry children chasing after sweets and treats.

    The beautiful red snowfall was truly a sight to behold. It brought with it oodles of vitality, nourishing everything it fell upon.

    A storm was brewing atop a small hill about a kilometer away from Ai Hui.

    A deep roar made its way through the falling snow. The sound was filled with thirst, excitement, and danger.

    The hissing sound of the wind became much more prominent and the red snowkes began to swirl with the surging air currents. They circled around the small hill, gradually increasing in speed. A giant red vortex had formed around the hill, and more and more of the red snowkes were being sucked into its core.

    In the middle of the vortex was a crouching monster...

    The snowkes entering the vortex congregated to form a red streak that funneled right into the monster¡¯s mouth.

    Ai Hui immediately understood that the monster was devouring massive amounts of the snowkes using the vortex. He had to admit that it was a highly efficient method, one that made his spirit swords¡¯ chase look like a mere game.

    He carefully inched towards the monster, using the dense snowfall as cover.

    Ai Hui suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. He sensed that he was on the precipice of entering the monster¡¯s detection zone. He had no idea how he knew, but his intuition had sharpened greatly after digesting parts of [Deathly Seeds of Demonic Consciousness].

    Having moved nearer to the monster, Ai Hui could see it a lot more clearly.

    The vortex acted as a funnel of sorts, directing the torrent of red snowkes into the mouth of a four-legged beast at its base.

    Ai Hui was unable to see the monster clearly, but could roughly see the shape of a lion or a panther.

    Wild beast!

    Ai Hui was shocked to see a wild beast in this world. Since arriving here, he had only encountered strange nt-rted creatures. This was the first wild beast he had seen here. Briefly recounting his encounters, Ai Hui began to catch on to something.

    But this was not the time to go into deep thought. Something odd about the wild beast on top of the hill caught Ai Hui¡¯s eye.

    The wild beast¡¯s body emanated an intense green glow that was in stark contrast to the red of thendscape.

    As it devoured more of the snowkes, its green glow became even and even more eye-catching. The wild beast appeared to be trembling within the glow, as if it was in immense pain.

    Roar!

    A pain-filled bellow shook the earth and the sky, prating the heavy snowfall to reach even the far ends of thend.

    Within the green glow, the wild beast¡¯s figure began to blur. It looked as if a stone sculpture was melting.

    Boom, boom, boom. Sounds of explosions could be heard.

    Ai Hui could barely hear the sounds, but the ensuing shockwaves were clear as day. With each explosion came a powerful shockwave that spread in all directions away from the epicenter.

    The shockwaves were bing more powerful, a sign that the wild beast was too.

    The booming sounds transitioned into low drum beats, that pulsed steadily like heartbeats.

    Amidst the snow, the ring green glow began to dull, signalling the end of the wild beast¡¯s transformation. The heartbeats faded away as the wild beast adjusted to its newfound strength.

    Ai Hui quietly took a step backwards.

    The wild beast did not give off dangerous vibes before its transformation. Now that it had transformed, Ai Hui¡¯s intuition told him otherwise. Provoking it was not a wise choice. Ai Hui stepped back because he was not about to engage in a battle with a dangerous wild beast that he had no information on.

    He decided to sneak away before it noticed him.

    Just as he was taking the first step, the snowfall abruptly stopped. Ai Hui was caughtpletely off guard as his only cover had vanished without warning.

    The snow had gone as suddenly as it had came. Everything on the field that was obscured was nowpletely visible.

    With the snow out of his sight, Ai Hui could finally see the wild beast clearly.

    It was something he had never seen before. It looked a little like a nk panther, with a body that was pitch ck. Throughout its body, densely packed green traces lined its skin like an ominous tattoo. Long, ck scales with green hues covered its body from the abdomen to the back like a pair of hands with fingers inteced. Its paws were covered in an alluring green ze.

    Its head was however, the strangest part.

    With short hair and human ears, anyone who saw it from the back would think it was a human head.

    Seeing it from the front wouldpletely dispel this idea. Itcked facial features and only had a thick, t piece of bone where its face should have been. Looking at it made Ai Hui wonder if someone had chopped off the front half of its head. The only feature it had was the pair of bright green eyes iid at the top of the bone.

    A strange feeling welled up within Ai Hui.

    He stared at the monster that was ring right back at him. The sudden absence of snow allowed the two to have a staringpetition.

    The monster¡¯s eyes shed brilliantly.

    Ai Hui reacted immediately, dodging to the side with a tap of his feet.

    A focused beam of light struck the exact spot where he had been standing.

    There was no explosion, but a fifty meter wide pit had appeared around the point where the light beamnded.

    Ai Hui began moving without hesitation, activating his spirit swords with a mentalmand.

    Closely packed sword chimes rang out one after another as powerful sword rays flew towards the monster. They rained down onto the top of the hill like shooting stars.

    The monster appeared to have been shocked by the iing attack. However, it managed to promptly react, unleashing an angry howl.

    Ai Hui noticed that it was not a sound that wasing out if its non-existent mouth. The howl was actually a type of psychic attack.

    The monster was clearly in an angry state. It was extremely warlike and appeared to relish the fight that was toe. To the monster, Ai Hui was also a strange, unknown creature that presented a very real threat.

    The green traces throughout its body spontaneously lit up, projecting aplex green pattern up into the air. The lines of light intertwined ceaselessly, weaving themselves into a barrier.

    A sword ray mmed into the green barrier.

    Ripples could be seen on the surface of the barrier where the sword ray had struck.

    Ai Hui felt his spirit sword get stuck in some sort of mire,pletely unable to expend its energy. It felt as if the spirit sword had been trapped.

    Ai Hui immediately changed tactics. He split up the remaining spirit swords into groups of two, pairing each yin lightning sword with its yang counterpart. The two different sword types circled around each other, getting faster as they fused into a single sword.

    Yin and yang as one!

    A single silver pir with coarse lightning running over its surface rammed into the monster¡¯s green barrier from high up in the sky.

    Boom!

    Arge gaping hole appeared in the barrier as the thunderp faded into the background.

    Another lightning-infused sword ray made its way through the gaping hole, piercing the monster with absolute uracy.

    There was no ce forpassion in Ai Hui¡¯s heart at a time like this. He took the opportunity to unleash everyst spirit sword at his disposal against the monster. Sword ray after sword ray struck the monster consecutively.

    Boom, boom, boom!

    The deafening explosions createdrge air currents around the area.

    Howl!

    A furious howl burst forth from the lightning storm on the top of the hill. Ai Hui could not believe that the monster had survived his attack.

    Feeling uneasy, he subconsciously leapt away and recalled his spirit swords to form a shield in front of him.

    A single green light beam swiftly made its way through the air.

    The two spirit swords in front of him were obliterated in an instant.

    His instinctive reaction had allowed him to survive. The green light beam was deflected to his side, once again creating arge pit where it struck.

    In that instant, Ai Hui thought that he was going to die for sure.

    The monster¡¯s offensive capabilities were out of this world. That green light beam reeked strongly of death. Ai Hui had tested the durability of his spirit swords and found that they were practically indestructible. In the face of that beam of light however, they might as well have been made of cardboard.

    Given a second chance, Ai Hui did not attempt to escape. Fleeing in an unfamiliar environment was after all, a poor option.

    Furthermore, the monster definitely knew the terrain better than him.

    Ai Hui himself was slightly injured from the loss of the two spirit swords. This was one of the downsides of cultivating a sword embryo. As powerful as the sword embryo was, its inextricable link to its hosts¡¯ consciousness meant that injuring it was akin to injuring its host.

    The ash and dust around the monster settled, revealing its figure. It looked a little wretched, its body burnt an ash grey. Lightning was particrly effective against souls, and there was almost nothing they could do about it. Numerous shallow wounds and gashes stered its body, not particrly debilitating, but plenty.

    The monster stared right into Ai Hui¡¯s eyes. Its glowing green eyes shone brighter than ever, reflecting its anger.

    The monster lowered its body and growled. Dense green light flowed out of the traces on its body as its murderous presence skyrocketed. Visible shockwaves in the form of ripples were forming in the air around the monster.

    Ai Hui did not avoid the monster¡¯s gaze and stared right back into its brilliant green eyes. Seventy spirit swords floated around him in a deliberate manner. The swords¡¯ awe-inspiring consciousness generated an icy cold aura that hung in the air around them.

    Tensions ran high as the twobatants fixed their gazes upon each other. The air reeked strongly of bloodlust.

    The mes that enveloped the monster¡¯s feet raged while the monster arched its back, ready to strike. The green lights drew two indistinct lines in the air that quickly faded.

    Ai Hui readied himself, shifting his footing and altering his bnce. A sh of silver exploded deep within his eyes as he opened his fingers and sprang off like an arrow. A deafening sword chime resonated into the sky!

 Chapter 713: Village of Rest

    Chapter 713: Vige of Rest

    Trantor: YHHH Editor: X, YHHH

    Master Shao strolled down the street with his hands behind his back. A middle-aged man in white garb walked half a step behind, following his movements.

    The buildings around the area were newly built.

    With all the signs of construction lying in in sight, it was not quite yet a city. It looked more like a huge construction site.

    The entire area was well lit and bustling with activity despite it being deep into the night. Surrounding the city were mountains with peaks that pierced into the night sky. Master Shao noted that they had to be in the middle of some hidden valley. He looked around, trying to identify the mountain range that surrounded this city. Despite his best efforts, he was unable to find a match in his memory.

    Master Shao asked, "What is the name of this ce?"

    The man following him promptly replied, "The Vige of Rest."

    The Vige of Rest?

    His interest piqued, Master Shao asked, "Is there a story behind its name?"

    The man exined, "Our mastermented that souls whoe to this blessednd to rest would surely find eternal peace."

    Master Shao chuckled. "That¡¯s nice."

    Looking up, Master Shao saw that there was a thinyer, much like a water screen, blurring the night sky as well as the stars embedded within. His sharp vision allowed him to immediately notice that this was no ordinary barrier.

    "What¡¯s that up in the sky?"

    "That¡¯s an ancient seal," the man said with a tinge pride. "This is the only ancient seal we¡¯ve found that can still be operated. Once activated, it creates a barrier thatpletely separates things within it from those outside. Not even a grandmaster can find us here."

    "So none of you can leave?"

    "Nobody can leave this ce," the man as he smiled. "It¡¯s probably for the best since there might be spies mixed in with the rest of us. It¡¯s safer to keep everyone in."

    Master Shao¡¯s heart sank. He pretended to casually mention, "Finding an ancient blessednd and an ancient seal requires quite a bit of luck."

    The man passionately responded, "Fortune clearly favors the Assembly."

    He snickered and asked, "How else do you think Chi Tongnded in our hands? Don¡¯t you agree, Master Shao?"

    Master Shao replied withposure, "The Assembly has yet to gain ess to this key."

    "It¡¯s only a matter of time before we do." The man continued with confidence, "With regards to forging [Heart of God], Master Shao is peerless. On matters regarding Chi Tong, however, nobody has acquired more knowledge than the Assembly of Patriarchs or the Beast Venom Temple."

    "To each his own," agreed Master Shao as he nodded. "Although, using the Demon-subduing Well to neutralize the Banner of God might prove an uphill task."

    The man eximed in admiration, "Master Shao is sharp indeed."

    Master Shao was taken aback, "Oh, does the Assembly have other alternatives? There¡¯s no need to reveal more if it¡¯s top secret."

    The man smiled. "You¡¯re one of us, Master Shao, so there¡¯s no harm in telling you more. Besides, not even a grandmaster can escape from this ce."

    He paused for a moment, pleased to see Master Shao¡¯s curiosity. The man continued, "The Banner of God is truly formidable, but can physical protection shield the soul?"

    "Soul?" Master Shao was stunned. "You guys are going for the soul?"

    The manughed in reply.

    Master Shao¡¯s brows were deeply furrowed as misgivings flooded his mind. "Beginning with the soul! How though?"

    The man posed a familiar question, "Master Shao, what¡¯s the name of this ce again?"

    "Vige of Rest, where souls would find eternal peace. Didn¡¯t you just..."

    Master Shao¡¯s eyes widened in shock.

    The man grinned like the Cheshire cat.

    At this point, the two of them had reached the end of the street. A huge, lumbering tree stood in front of Master Shao,pletely blocking his line of sight. Light rays filtered through its dense canopy, creating a tranquil scenery.

    Master Shao muttered subconsciously, "This is..."

    The man looked at it and answered, "The Tree of Rest."

    Tree of Rest?

    Master Shao wondered if this tree was somehow inextricably linked to this ce.

    Right then, the previously enthusiastic man tly said, "The area beyond this tree is forbidden to all but members of the Assembly of Patriarchs. You¡¯ll be free to roam the area after you¡¯ve joined the Assembly, but only if Master Shao is interested in doing so, of course."

    Master Shao regained hisposure and responded, "Let¡¯s go back then."

    Master Shao felt as though the core member of the Assembly of Patriarchs beside him had rxed greatly when he asked to turn back. It seemed as though the Tree of Rest had an important role in breaking Chi Tong.

    The Assembly of Patriarchs¡¯test advancement?

    What made him think twice was the feeling of familiarity that the tree gave him.

    As though... he had seen it before?

    ##############

    This was a strange room.

    The walls, floor, and ceiling were the same drab gray. The room waspletely bare, save for the door.

    Inside the room, Hong Rongyan carefully read the letter in his hands.

    "We found some leads while investigating Master Shao¡¯s defection from the Beast Venom Venom..."

    A moment after, the letter disintegrated into ashes.

    He looked up at the ceiling and whispered to himself, "I see."

    After pausing for a while to think, Hong Rongyan came back to his senses. He gave his cheek a light smack and transformed into a cold and aloofdy.

    He opened the door and was immediately greeted with a loud burst of noise.

    Walking out of the room, he found himself standing in front of arge za that was bustling with activity. The door behind him vanished in an instant.

    Hong Rongyan frowned slightly. Since it had been built, the Grass Hall had never been this crowded before.

    Amid therge number of people, two people who were chatting caught his attention.

    "Any clues?"

    "Nope, you?"

    "None either. Is the Assembly of Patriarchs an assembly of rats? Just which hole have they disappeared into! My precious reward, oh!"

    "Do you think they would have been capable of standing against Skyheart City if they were so easily found and taken down?"

    "Let¡¯s search somewhere else. I don¡¯t think there¡¯s anything here in the Grass Hall. This ce was constructed by the Assembly of Patriarchs¡ªsurely they wouldn¡¯t leave any clues behind?"

    "That¡¯s not necessarily true. Look around, more and more people are piling in."

    "That¡¯s true, but it¡¯s also because information spreads really easily."

    "There¡¯re so many people around, yet the Assembly has done nothing. Furthermore, admission into the Grass Hall is open to all. If it were you, wouldn¡¯t you have sealed off the ce long ago?"

    "Maybe they don¡¯t care."

    "There¡¯s another possibility."

    "What¡¯s that?"

    "The Assembly of Patriarchs has no way of sealing off the Grass Hall and preventing others from entering. Their control over the Grass Hall may not be as strong as we think."

    "When you put it that way, perhaps..."

    As Hong Rongyan turned to leave the Grass Hall, the discussion faded into the distance.

    ##############

    Gentle beams of light hung from therge tree like countless jellyfish tentacles.

    A number of people were meditating beneath the tree. A single, unbroken wisp of light threaded through the center of their brows, linking them together.

    The member watching over the main hall hurriedly bowed to Hong Rongyan as he walked in.

    Hong Rongyan quietly nodded in acknowledgment, "Is Chi Tong here yet?"

    "Not yet."

    "Continue to keep watch."

    "Yes!"

    As he was about to leave, Hong Rongyan suddenly asked, "Can the Grass Hall be closed?"

    "Ah, close off the Grass Hall? Sir, the Grass Hall cannot be closed."

    Hong Rongyan nodded. "Oh yes, I¡¯ve forgotten about that."

    Someone raced in right at that instant. He excitedly announced, "Sir, something is happening with the well!"

    ##############

    A pulsating blood-red glow was spilling out of the well, illuminating the words "subdue demons."

    The five elemental energy stupas whirred loudly as they operated at full capacity. Large amounts of each type of elemental energy were resonating with each other. Weaker individuals who stepped near the formation would lose control of the energy in their bodies, sustaining cultivation-rted internal injuries or dying.

    Hong Rongyan and Autumn Water were the only two people standing beside the well. The others stood a good distance away to observe. In contrast with the throngs of eager individuals around him, Master Shao¡¯s expression was solemn and unsmiling.

    The Banner of God was finally showing signs of being worn down after so many days.

    Hong Rongyan and the others were using a simple, yet effective, method. They had bombarded the Banner of God with arge, constant stream of elemental energy.

    Countless amounts of precious materials were used in the process. These were the Assembly of Patriarch¡¯s precious resources that had been passed down from generation to generation, yet they were nothing more than fuel for the elemental energy stupas at this point in time.

    The members were sad to give up their supply just like that, but they knew there was no other choice. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the Assembly of Patriarchs. If Hong Rongyan¡¯s n was sessful, the Assembly would be the masters of this world.

    Nobody could resist such a temptation. They were like a group of high rollers tossing chips onto the table and anxiously waiting for the dice to fall.

    A small crack had opened in the dice cup, and they could see a strong possibility of winning.

    The Banner of God was peeling away.

    The bloody glow that oozed out of the well was brilliant and limpid.

    The corners of Hong Rongyan¡¯s lips curved into what seemed like the beginning of a smile. Betting all of the Assembly of Patriarch¡¯s resources on this had given him a lot of pressure.

    Finally seeing results, he heaved a sigh of relief.

    The Banner of God¡¯s core, the blood eye, had been revealed. A part of it had been eroded already, signifying that it was only a matter of time before it would be destroyed.

    The mud puppet sat on Hong Rongyan¡¯s shoulder and mumbled, "What a pain! This stupid tattered piece of cloth! How much longer is this going to take."

    Hong Rongyan was back to his usual self. A sliver of worry still sat between his brows, but his tone was significantly more rxed. "Things are already moving as smoothly possible. Ai Hui might be strong, but he¡¯s still not as powerful as Chi Tong. This would be impossible if we were up against the banner from before Chi Tong severed his karmic ties. Even a few grandmasters working together would not be able to scratch its surface."

    The mud puppet jumped in shock and asked, "Seriously? That powerful?"

    "How can mere mortals hope to appraise the power of a demonic god¡¯s artifact?" Hong Rongyan scoffed coldly. "Thankfully, even demonic gods are subject to the whims of this world. We would not otherwise have such an opportunity to get a share of the action."

    The mud puppet pped. "So have we caught up to thest good era?"

    Hong Rongyan seemed to be lost in a daze. He muttered to himself, "Good or bad?"

    "Who knows!"

    Stepping away from the well, Hong Rongyan noticed Master Shao¡¯s pained look. He walked over and asked softly, "Master Shao, why do you look so worried?"

    Master Shao looked up and asked, "May I take a closer look?"

    Hong Rongyan shook his head. "I¡¯m sorry, but this concerns the Assembly¡¯s secrets."

    Master Shao stared right into Hong Rongyan¡¯s eyes and said solemnly, "How can I be a part of this scheme?"

    Hong Rongyanughed. "Master Shao¡¯s [Heart of God] is unparalleled. Others have tried to copy it, but are only capable of forgingughable rejects. I would like to exchange one drop of Chi Tong¡¯s God¡¯s Blood and full participation for the [Heart of God] recipe. What do you think, Master Shao?"

    Master Shao smiled. "What would a scraggly old man like me do with God¡¯s Blood?"

    Hong Rongyan replied, "You still have a granddaughter."

    Master Shao was momentarily stunned but soon regained hisposure. "You¡¯ve found her?"

    Hong Rongyan said, "We have leads."

    Master Shao anxiously pressed, "What leads?"

    Hong Rongyan squinted at Master Shao, "Whoever possesses the first generation Heart of God is your granddaughter."

    Master Shao¡¯s body stiffened. "This is the lead you¡¯ve found?"

    Hong Rongyan opened his eyes andughed. "Yes, fresh from the oven."

    Hong Rongyan turned and walked off without looking back at Master Shao again.

    "Do think about it."

    Master Shao was frozen in ce.

    The mud puppet on Hong Rongyan¡¯s shoulder looked lost. "First generation Heart of God? Master Shao¡¯s granddaughter? Where¡¯s the link? How did you find out?"

    "I guessed."

    "Guessed?" The mud puppet¡¯s jaw dropped.

    "Yup."

    The mud puppet prodded, "How did you guess?"

    "I just randomly guessed."

    "..."

    The mud puppet was riled up. "Sir, will Master Shao agree?"

    Hong Rongyan replied, "You¡¯ll have to ask him that yourself."

    The mud puppet iled its hand about. "Master Shao will definitely agree! This is his granddaughter we¡¯re talking about! Sir, will you be unrivaled with the Heart of God? Hahaha, unrivaled, peerless, without equal!

    "Unrivaled? Ah..." Hong Rongyan gazed into the distance.

    The night was dark and seemingly never-ending. He wondered when they would see the light.

 Chapter 714: Human-head Tree

    Chapter 714: Human-head Tree

    Trantor: As Studios Editor: As Studios

    Ai Hui plopped down on the ground, the monster¡¯s corpse lying motionlessly by his legs. Exhaustion washed over him, and his eyelids grew heavy. This was the first time since entering this world that he felt tired.

    He nced at the wisps of smoke that were emanating from the monster¡¯s legs and was oddly reminded of freshly served pork trotters.

    A strong feeling of hunger overwhelmed him as he swallowed his saliva. It was only now that he realized just how long it had been since hisst meal. Regaining his senses, Ai Hui reminded himself that there was no need to eat in this mental world.

    He felt as though he was losing control over his thoughts.

    Ai Hui confirmed that it was not an illusion when he noticed that his body had be slightly translucent. The previous battle appeared to have caused considerable damage to himself, so much so that even his spirit swords had lost their sheen.

    He was afraid of falling asleep, lest he remained that way forever.

    A single spirit sword flew before him with a single mentalmand. Its gleaming de acted as a mirror, allowing Ai Hui to look at his current form. His entire body was translucent, rather like a jellyfish. A small ck dot could be seen deep within his forehead.

    Ai Hui was shocked.

    Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was actually a pitch-ck drop of blood.

    More horrifying were the strands of ck mist that reached out from the droplet like tentacles, corroding all within their thankfully limited reach.

    Death Seeds of Demonic Consciousness!

    Ai Hui¡¯s eyes grew wide as his mind buzzed intensely with activity.

    He tried a variety of methods, but the droplet of blood refused to even budge. Focusing his consciousness on one of the wisps was like staring into the abyss¡ªall Ai Hui could sense was an aura of death and despair.

    Ai Hui¡¯s heart sank.

    In addition to tampering with his body, Chi Tong had tampered with his consciousness as well. A demonic god from an ancient time was truly a force to be reckoned with. Ai Hui felt that he was still far away from Chi Tong¡¯s level.

    Then again, there was nothing embarrassing about losing to an ancient demonic god was there?

    Ai Hui could only try to console himself.

    The monster¡¯s corpse had begun to melt away. Like an ice sculpture exposed to direct sunlight, it was disintegrating into a puddle of multi-colored fluid.

    The fluid was quickly absorbed into the ground,pletely vanishing before Ai Hui could figure out what was happening.

    A smudge of green appeared on the ground, and a small sprout grew out of it at an unbelievable rate.

    This...

    The sprout released a faint rainbow mist that made Ai Hui feel extremely at ease. The feeling of his soul dissipating had lessened significantly.

    This!

    Ai Hui knew then that he had lucked out. His spirit swords flew in a circle around the sprout, absorbing the rainbow mist that it created.

    Ai Hui¡¯s spirit swords quickly regained their luster and energy.

    Acknowledging its beneficial properties, Ai Hui sat down beside the sapling.

    The sprout was still growing at an rming rate and it was not long before it grew into a sapling. The rainbow mist that it was periodically releasing from its leaves had be much denser.

    After absorbing arge amount of the rainbow mist, Ai Hui¡¯s form became more opaque. Ai Hui confirmed that the rainbow mist was highly beneficial to souls and seemed to be able to strengthen them.

    The sapling had grown into a lofty tree of more than sixty meters in a matter of hours. The tree¡¯s majestic crown was like a mountain suspended in midair. Its densely packed leaves and branches seemed to pulse with life as it continued to release its beautiful rainbow-colored mist.

    Ai Hui thought that the tree looked pretty familiar.

    Where have I... seen this tree before?

    He could not help but furrow his brows. The tree felt even more familiar each time he looked at it.

    Wait a minute!

    Isn¡¯t this... Isn¡¯t this my message tree?

    Ai Hui stared widely at the tree that towered before him. Unable to believe his own eyes, Ai Hui walked a fewps around it before he came to the conclusion that it was indeed the message tree.

    This lofty tree was a scaled-up, exact copy of his message tree.

    First generation message tree...

    Ai Hui was still bewildered after recovering from his initial shock. He dived deep into his rapidly firing thoughts.

    He had initially discovered the first generation message tree during his time in Central Pine City. He had apparently been working and staying at a ce that once aodated someone named He Bingfeng. It was also there that Ai Hui met Lou Lan.

    Ai Hui¡¯s expression softened as he wondered how Lou Lan was doing.

    Ai Hui had initially thought that it was an ordinary message tree, butter found out that it was a first generation message tree.

    Even more interesting was its ability to receive messages from someone who called himself the Old Prisoner. Ai Hui recalled that he might not have been able to escape the Blood Cmity if not for the Old Prisoner¡¯s warnings.

    The Old Prisoner was a mysterious figure. Even up until now, Ai Hui had no idea what his name was or where he was locked up. Hismunications with the Old Prisoner were intermittent, but Ai Hui had specially made arrangements to bring the first generation message tree with him when he left Central Pine City.

    Ai Hui rarely contacted the Old Prisoner after the disruption of the five elemental energy cycle following the fall of Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner.

    By that point, Ai Hui had also sensed that the Old Prisoner¡¯s thoughts were bing muddled. The messages he had received reflected the Old Prisoner¡¯s increasingly confused state of mind. Ai Hui guessed that the Old Prisoner was soon approaching the end of his life.

    Ai Hui had once sent a message trying to find out where exactly the Old Prisoner was trapped.

    There had been no reply to his message, however, and Ai Hui¡¯smunications with the Old Prisoner had stopped from then on.

    Seeing this gigantic "message tree" made Ai Hui think back about the mysterious Old Prisoner, reminisce about his time back in Central Pine City, and miss his Master and Mistress. Ai Hui slowly became lost in nostalgia.

    A sudden rustling sound roused him from his thoughts.

    Something was approaching.

    This incorporeal soul form had more acute senses than his corporeal form. Ai Hui could detect a hostile presence even in the absence of sight and sound.

    He stood up, and the spirit swords returned to their positions around him. Ai Hui was ready to fight.

    Ai Hui took a deep breath when he saw his enemy.

    Numerous strange creatures were approaching his position from all directions.

    A gigantic forest green python with three horns was slithering toward him. Its body was several times thicker than a tree trunk, and it destroyed any obstacle that stood in its way. A human head was present where Ai Hui had expected to see a snake¡¯s head. Its eyes alone were muchrger than Ai Hui¡¯s full body. The creature smiled widely at Ai Hui, its teeth glinting with menace.

    A group of glowing jellyfish hung in the air like blue light bulbs. Their bramble-like tentacles moved lightly in the air, shrouded by a blue glow that seemed to resemble lightning. A childlike whimpering could be hearding from these jellyfish.

    A single deer was prancing about, its hooves making light clip-clop noises with each move. Instead of antlers, the deer had live tree branches on its head. Tender green leaves that were filled with life clung onto these branches, surrounding an alluring cluster of flowers. Beneath the branchesy two vacant eyes. Not a single ounce of flesh hung from the skeletal structure that made up the deer¡¯s body.

    Ai Hui braced himself for battle.

    He could sense these creatures¡¯ insatiable hunger for the lofty tree beside him.

    The lofty tree¡¯s rainbow mist was truly extraordinary. Ai Hui¡¯s soul had fully reconstituted and was now even stronger than before. His spirit swords had also strengthened greatly.

    This gave him some confidence in taking on the fast approaching creatures.

    Despite being surrounded, Ai Hui had no intention of surrendering. Besides the danger of giving these creatures ess to the tree, he wanted to find out the connection between this tree and the first generation message tree as well.

    Besides, running away was useless in this strange world.

    All of a sudden, the creatures all stopped dead in their tracks.

    Ai Hui was taken aback. He could sense the creatures¡¯ fear and apprehension. His mind stirred. Were they afraid of him? Or... were they afraid of the tree?

    Ai Hui raised his guard. Was there more to this tree than meets the eye?

    He tried stepping away from the tree, but the creatures did not budge. Ai Hui understood that it was the tree they feared!

    There must be danger!

    These creatures were natives of this world and most certainly knew it better.

    There was a small explosion behind Ai Hui. His body stiffened, and when he turned around, he noticed that the tree was bearing fruit.

    Ai Hui clenched his teeth.

    The "fruits" hanging from the tree¡¯s branches were actually human heads. The sight of it all made even the battle-hardened Ai Hui¡¯s scalp tingle.

    Each of the heads had different features. Some had pale white hair while others had a head full of shiny ck hair. The onemonality that they all possessed, however, was ack of facial features. Despite that, Ai Hui could somehow manage to distinguish them and could even tell if they were male or female.

    A shiver ran down his spine as an unexpected fear creeped up within him.

    At the same time, he saw the creatures unanimously take several steps back in fear.

    Ai Hui moved away from the tree without hesitation.

    Whoosh.

    The human heads turned toward him.

    Their smooth, featureless fronts made it look as if the heads¡¯ faces had been sliced cleanly off. A breeze blew through the tree¡¯s crown and sent hairs of different colors flying in the wind.

    The heads shuddered.

    Ai Hui had a sense that the heads were eitherughing uncontrobly or experiencing an unbearable pain. Ripples appeared on the featureless faces.

    Ai Hui felt his body turn rigid. A powerful force hit him from all sides, confining him in ce. Countless voices screamed, wailed, andughed into his ears. He felt as though someone was swinging a hammer at his brain.

    Ai Hui wrapped his hands over his head and screamed.

    The heads that hung freely from the lofty tree exploded simultaneously.

 Chapter 715: The End

    Chapter 715: The End

    Trantor: As Studios Editor: As Studios

    As usual, Han Li returned to the city after his training.

    He casually greeted the noodle store¡¯s owner¡ªas he always had¡ªand found a seat on his own. A bowl of piping hot noodles was served shortly; its familiar yet still alluring scent pervading the air around it.

    Han Li overheard the other customers¡¯ conversations as he quietly ate his noodles.

    "There hasn¡¯t been much happeningtely."

    "Yeah, the fighting on the frontlines have stopped for quite a while."

    "Come to think about it, it¡¯s almost been a year."

    "That¡¯s true..."

    "Nothing new regarding Chi Tong or the Assembly of Patriarchs either. How strange."

    "Maybe they¡¯re all dead."

    "What about the Pagoda Cannon Alliance?"

    "Nope, it¡¯s been a long time since they¡¯ve even made a peep."

    "This is really odd, I feel as though something big is looming."

    "You and your inauspicious remarks! It has been a long journey to attain this peace..."

    "I¡¯m just saying, maybe..."

    Han Li stopped eating for a moment to think. The past year had indeed been too peaceful.

    Initially, people were still actively searching for the Assembly of Patriarchs and Chi Tong. However, as time went by, nobody could even find a single trace of them. The Assembly of Patriarchs had practically vanished from this world. In the meantime, Skyheart City, God Nation, and Jadeite Forest seemed to have coordinated some sort of self-imposed silence.

    As the major yers faded into silence, so did the stories that apanied them. It was the end of an era.

    Everyone had retreated into seclusion, and the clouds moved quietly with the wind. Perhaps a storm was brewing, or the sky was just waiting for the sun to rise. Maybe the world was just waiting for the dawn of a new era...

    [The End]

    Author¡¯s Note: I sincerely apologise that this story has to end this way. My health has been terrible these two years, and this is my personal issue to bear. To all my readers, I¡¯m really sorry.

    The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and

    continue reading tomorrow, everyone!